#come on disney give us silver singing and talking to animals

[kaymarie-bell]

Diasomnia Book, Chapter 5 Spoilers (and mini translations)

edit: [part 2]

‼️ LONG POST ‼️

Baul reports that the castle is currently surrounded by Henrik, the Knight of Dawn and their troops. They cannot use teleportation magic because they're injured so they must walk all the way there + Lilia is currently not a match for the Knight. Meleanor must stay strong by herself

Baul does not want our group to come along since it's a battle of Fae vs Humans, but Silver says that race doesn't matter and we want to fight for what's right

They find a pair of cooks who give the group food and mention that Silver really looks like "him"

Silver is on his Disney princess era, he's using his ability to talk to animals to help them get to the castle/distract the guards

KNIGHT OF DAWN REVEAL (he's Silver's ancestor 100%)

Silver's ring/necklace started to shine right after we got to see the Knight

Man that Henrik is really ugly

This mf's entire reason to wage war against the Fae is just to take Meleanor's magical orb for his collection??? and to steal her egg??? the Knight is clearly against this but he cannot refuse to fight due to his own circumstances

WE FINALLY GET TO THE CASTLE

Malleus' mother is named Meleanor (we get a confirmation of the spelling from the name of the location)

SHE'S SINGING A LULLABY BEFORE WE SEE HER (yes it's the same song Malleus sings in the overblot scene I wanna kms)

she's gorgeous omg

Meleanor is really mad at Lilia (?) and throws lighting at him and everyone else

Aye we get egg Malleus reveal

Meleanor already calls him Malleus because she was sure he was going to be a boy because of motherly instincts (😭)

Silver and Sebek experience microagressions from the Fae pt. ??? (Meleanor made them kneel before her once she saw their ears)

Meleanor decided to confront the troops by herself

just fell to my knees. hold on

She gives her egg to Lilia and orders them to flee somewhere safe

Lilia protests and Meleanor keeps on throwing lighting at him. Silver steps in to protect Lilia. Lilia scolds him but then Silver begs them to stop fighting because they're doing it only out of concern for the other

Baul and Sebek are surprised by him. Baul asks Meleanor to listen to his words

Lilia: I can't hatch this egg by myself! Dragons can only be hatched with magic and affection from their parents. It only works with true love

I don't understand parental love. I don't know what it is like to love someone.

Meleanor: You love me, don't you? Or were you lying when you proposed to me when we were young?

You love Levan too. The time you two have spent together side by side as generals is even longer than a married couple.

How can you not love a child of our blood?

Meleanor forces everyone away from the castle while saying her goodbyes to Lilia and Malleus

Lilia tries to get back to her but Baul stops him and tells him that as guards they must obey the commands given by the Draconias, or else be punished by lighting. Lilia says it doesn't matter, he will quit the squad and he's already used to the lighting.

Baul says that the egg he's holding is the King who will carry the future of the valley. They must escape. They have to trust that Meleanor is strong enough to win and get back to them, and keep their focus on protecting the egg.

Lilia finally agrees and we keep on moving

The writers are so evil. We get a confrontation of Meleanor vs the Knight of Dawn

Meleanor's battle against the troops is basically the scene of Maleficent vs Prince Philip in the movie (she's in her dragon form). Meleanor's magic attributes are the same as Malleus's dorm SSR btw (fell to my knees)

we're currently escaping via underground passage that's collapsing due to the battle

suddenly the Knight of Dawn appeared. He was blown all the way there by Meleanor's magic

the Knight recognized Lilia's general mask immediately and realized that the egg he's holding must be the Prince and Lilia takes a fighting stance

Baul steps in to fight but the ceiling collapsed, burying Lilia and Malleus under the debris. Silver panics but then an aurora-like light appears. The Knight used his magic to save Lilia and the egg

the Knight shows concern for the egg and Lilia asks him why he saved them. the Knight is speechless

the Knight's mask breaks. He looks just like Silver but with long blond hair. Everyone is shocked

there's two lights comming from them, it's originating from their ring/necklace (they both have identical ones). The Knight says he was given his by his fairy godmother (?) and it was one of a kind. He demands to know who Silver is.

Silver cannot get any words out. We hear a roar and the Knight says there's no time for talking, Henrik is after the egg so they must keep on running quickly

Baul is offended by "being pitied by their enemy" but Lilia says to forget about it and keep moving

Silver is still in shock and remembers the conversation he had with Lilia when he gave him his ring (about how he had it on when he was found)

oh no my son is straight up having a panic attack and crying his heart out. He cannot accept that his own flesh could have done this to Lilia and Malleus. We see the beginning of another overblot...

Sebek is screaming for Silver to stay strong. He tells Lilia and Baul to keep going and that we will catch up later. Silver is our responsibility as his friends.

Yuu gets dragged into darkness, Silver's negative emotions???

Silver is having a lot of negative thoughts, wondering if Sebek hates him now...how will he ever face Malleus again...thinking that maybe if he stays in the dream he won't have to show up in front of them...he wants to stay in the dark...(we have to literally fight his demons away 😭)

Silver is crying. Suddenly we hear a baby. And a familiar voice...

[Abandoned castle, covered in thorns]

Lilia: I'm coming back here again...it must have been 300...no, 400 years already.

We finally signed a peace treaty with the neighboring nations. I was able to return to this place.

It's been a long time since the last time I came here. It took quite a while. Truly.

Silver: This voice...father?

Lilia: The castle of the Wild Roses is abandoned, and it is said that you will get cursed if you step a foot in.

Silver: Father...can't he see me? Could this be part of the scenery in Father's mind, or...?

*cries from a baby*

Lilia: a baby's crying? Is it coming from the throne room? I should go see

[Throne room, covered in thorns]

Lilia: A baby? And what's more, it's a human! Why are you here?

[CG of baby Silver. He has blond hair and a shining ring/necklace]

Lilia: ! this ring...

Silver: This baby! Could it be...? My hair color is different, but those eyes and that ring...

Lilia: Hair golden like the sun, and that ring...It cannot be...the Knight of Dawn's...?

No, it isn't possible. Soon after the castle fell into Henrik's hands, there was another dispute over land and resources.

In that confusion, the Knight and his wife Leah...*sigh*

Cradle, will you show me your memory for a moment?

Far Cry Cradle [To the cradle in the distance!]

Silver: That spell...it's my Father's unique magic.

He can play the memories engraved on "things" for a little bit.

Red Fairy: The enemy is around the corner!

His Royal Highness, who was once titled the Knight of Dawn, has perished. The fall of the castle is just around the corner.

The "Land of Swords" has met its end.

Our dearest Queen Leah, please hurry up and run! We will protect the Prince.

Blue Fairy: Come now, my Prince. You will sleep sweetly for a while, until this sad battle is over.

Green Fairy: It's okay. This ring will strengthen our magic. He will remain in this form, dreaming happily ever after until the spell is broken. Whether it is 10 years, or 100 years.

Blue Fairy: Well then...

When someone who truly loves the prince comes along...this spell will be broken and he will wake up from his slumber.

Red Fairy: Yes, I'm sure of it. In a world without war, in a world of peace...

[Back to Lilia's memory]

Lilia:...I see.

Your parents and guardian fairies protected you from the flames of destruction.

Have you been waiting in this cradle for someone who truly loves you to come along, since the day the country collapsed?

But as time passed, the magic of the guardian fairies must have broken down.

*baby crying*

...the child of the Knight of Dawn...a revenge for Levan and Meleanor's...

Right now...with these hands...

*Silver gasps, the baby wails*

Lilia:...I couldn't face Malleus again if I did that.

If I tell him to love mankind and walk with his neighbors...then I must do the same.

And...I would have lost even Malleus if the Knight of Dawn hadn't granted me mercy that day.

Can this "me" ever love a human being?

Silver: Please stop, Father! -I'm not worthy of being loved by you!

*baby cries*

Silver: STOP IT! STOP CRYING! YOU DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO CRY!

Lilia: There there, don't you cry anymore. I'm surprised that such a small body has been able to endure such loneliness for so long. Good boy, let's go.

Huff, you're heavier than I expected.

I remember the day the Malleus hatched. It seems like it was only yesterday.

Fairies and humans alike wish for their own children to live, even at the cost of their own lives, I suppose.

*baby cries*

Child of the Dawn, today is the birthday of the new master. Therefore, I shall give you my blessing!

Blessing of the night.

[the baby's hair changes from gold to silver]

Silver:..O-oh...my hair...

Lilia: His hair changed color!

Perhaps the Knight of Dawn's hair, which shone like sunlight, was due to the blessing of his servants of the day.

Your hair seems to have been lit by the light of the moon, with the blessing of the night's servants.

That's alright. A person with golden hair would stand out a bit in the Valley of Thorns.

*baby yawns*

Lilia: Hahah. Are you tired from crying all these years?

Now, your name is- hmm? It doesn't seem to be written anywhere on the cradle or the ring...

Hmm...let's see...moonlight...silver...Okay, I've decided.

Silver. From today on, your name is Silver.

The moon illuminates the dark night. Like so, its silver light will illuminate your path.

Despite Lilia adopting him as his son while knowing who his biological father was, Silver still feels guilty about his origins

Okay so I chose one of the spaces where you can heal your cards, and got some lines from Lilia. He's wondering what do human babies eat in order to grow, and remembers that Baul's son-in-law is a human, so he decides to ask for his help (the music changes from dramatic and gloomy to bright and cheerful, it made me tear up)

A new location appears, it is the house in the forest where Lilia raised Silver. Lilia is singing the same lullaby Meleanor sang to Malleus.

Malleus knocks on Lilia's door, he wants to see the baby he has taken in since the fairies in the forest have been talking about it. Lilia tells him to be quiet because he has just gone to sleep.

Malleus calls the baby a naked monkey-like creature and asks what is it (😭). Lilia says he's the baby from the rumors and says he looks lovely.

Malleus:...lovely? that thing? (😭😭😭)

Lilia is like "oh you came at a good time, I have to go shopping so please watch him for me for a bit, okay?" and Malleus is like "huh? This? me?"

Lilia is trying to figure out what "powdered milk" is because that's what his book says he should feed the baby. He has to go to a human store to get it. (Fairies eat flowers' nectar???)

Malleus does not want to stay on his own because he's afraid he'll break the "little creature" if he touches him. Lilia assures him that it'll be okay, he just has to sing a lullaby and the baby will fall asleep even if he's crying.

Lmao Lilia left and baby Silver woke up crying immediately. Malleus is stressed because the baby is noisy and he can't think of any song...but then remembers that he does know one at least one (he sings the song again 😭). Silver fell asleep and Malleus wishes Lilia to hurry up and return.

Malleus doesn't even remember where he heard that lullaby. He thinks it might have been from one of his nannies. The Silver of the present cries when he hears that.

There's snippets of Silver's upbringing throughout this part. Lilia and Malleus were present when he stood up on two legs for the first time (Malleus says it would take about 30 years for a fairy...it took him 20, and he was considered fast). Lilia says that at this rate Silver will be all grown up in the blink of an eye.

Lilia is reading a story, and Silver says his first word

Baby Silver: dada

Lilia: What? I am not your father....

Baby Silver: dada!

Lilia: Well...should I just wait until you understand things better before I tell you?

Well then...yes, I am [your father].

Baby Silver: *laughs*

Another conversation between Lilia and Malleus. Malleus asks where did he find a human baby, Lilia just says he found him during a walk in the forest and tells him to not pay any mind to it. Malleus says that he didn't have to raise him just because he found him, it would've been good to leave the baby with the humans.

Lilia:...your father Levan uses to say this: We fairies need to get to know humans better, and humans need to get to know fairies.

Levan was the one who took the initiative to learn a language in common with humans and also to teach it to other fae.

Silver is a way for Lilia to learn to love humans. Malleus asks him what if he can't get to love them, Lilia says not to jump ahead since there's a lot of time.

Lilia: it says here that they can only eat milk and mashed vegetables

Malleus: if that's what the human book says then that's okay. We're fairies so we shouldn't go against it.

Lilia: but you've been eating meat and fish since you were little

Malleus: But I am a dragon, not some weak human

Lilia: They cry when they are hungry, and sleep when they are full. Babies are similar, it doesn't matter whether dragons or humans.

Malleus:...ha.

Lilia: Oh, you ate the whole plate. Good boy, Silver! Was it good?

That's it, eat a lot and sleep well so you can grow up to be a big boy!

But don't you get tired of the same taste everyday? Next time, I'll try a little more variety-

Should we add meat of a rat to the soup? It's said to be nutritious. Or maybe the powder of a black newt?

Malleus:...don't do that. I'll have food for the baby brought from the castle regularly.

I'm a little nervous about leaving it all to you.

Lilia: Oh? You used to hate humans. What brought such a change of heart?

Malleus: If this baby gets weak, you'll be sad. Isn't that right?

Lilia:...you're such a sweetheart, Malleus.

Silver: Father...Lord Malleus...I...

[blot monster appears]

Silver:...you keep showing up again and again. Go away.

Another battle

Another memory. Young Silver is shouting for Lilia to come see what he has. Silver made a bracelet out of acorns, it is the same one Lilia still has among the things he keeps in his room.

Lilia praises him for being a genius at picking up acorns, and Silver tells him he had help from his animal friends. Silver tells him is for him.

Silver: You know, I heard that if you carry an acorn amulet, you will live a long and healthy life.

The oak tree fairies taught me that.

Be healthy all the time. And we will be together forever.

Lilia:...you will pray for my long life?

You, who are a human....

Silver: What? What's wrong? Are you hurt somewhere?

Lilia:...it's nothing. Come here.

Silver: Daddy, it hurts if you squeeze me that hard.

Lilia: It's the best gift ever.

With this charm, I feel like I'll be able to live another thousand years. Thank you.

Silver: Heheh. I love you, daddy

Lilia: So do I, Silver

The current Silver remembers finding that bracelet while cleaning up Lilia's dorm room, he had forgotten it was a gift from him. Lilia had said it was the most precious gift he had ever received, a gift that even Malleus envied.

Silver says that something like that couldn't be worth much. He cries.

The next memory is the day Silver found out he was adopted. He was so shocked he ran out of the house while it rained.

Lilia says that he thought Silver would've figured it out by now, but then he retracts the statement and says he was the one who kept it to himself. He didn't have the courage to tell the truth and see Silver's sad face. Lilia runs into the rain while calling out for Silver.

The current Silver still cannot fathom that Lilia could truly love him while knowing he's the son of the Knight.

Silver says he's tired and cannot keep on going. He apologizes to Lilia and Malleus for not being able to accomplish his dream of being a knight. Then a voice speaks up...

It is general!Lilia, and he calls Silver "Knight of Dawn"

Silver goes to deny it's him, but then his appearance changes and the one with long blond hair and armor is him. General Lilia accuses him of taking away Levan and Meleanor. Silver calls him father, and Lilia tells him to not call him that.

Battle, General Lilia vs Knight of Dawn Silver.

Silver begs Lilia to stop since he doesn't want to fight him, he tells Lilia he will dissappear and never show up in front of him again. Lilia refuses to listen.

Lilia gains the upper hand and he's ready to strike Silver down, but then he starts to change into the blot monster. Silver realizes this is a nightmare, but he's very tired and cannot fight against the darkness any longer.

Lilia's voice tells him to stand up. He tells him that it's not a problem to run away from an enemy, or use cowardly tricks to get away. What matters the most is to not give up on living. So, stand up Silver!

Silver is not sure if the voice is real or just a convenient thing his mind made up. He's unsure of what to do...

[the story continues but I've been here since 1 am, it is currently 8 am ☠️]

some comments/observations so far:

- the lullaby wrecks me every time. The first time we heard it was very chilling because it was during Malleus' overblot, but then seeing Meleanor -> Lilia -> Malleus again...it just makes me sadder and sadder

- Lilia lost the only two people he had ever loved at the same time (😭)

- I hope we get to see more of RSA since the whole "Land of Swords" seems to be related to its origins...

- I kinda called it with Silver being a prince of sorts...I do not feel happy about this, he's in so much pain because of his origins

- I think the scene where Lilia finds Silver dealt me even more damage than Idia and Ortho's backstory in chapter 6. You guys have to listen to it fr. The baby crying? Silver shouting that he has no right to cry while crying himself? Lilia gently soothing the baby at that point feels like it was also meant for grown up Silver.

- Every memory we see of Lilia it's full of the love he chose to have for Silver and it breaks my heart that Silver still cannot allow himself to be loved. I also loved seeing Malleus there.

- I'm calling it now, the spell the fairies put on Silver is the reason he still falls sleep randomly. It hasn't been broken completely because he feels doubts about the love Lilia has for him, but Lilia will finally manage to make him see the light and Silver will be free.

- I also would love for the acorn bracelet to end up being the cure for whatever it is Lilia has. With the power of love everything is possible and all that.

- With all this going on I haven't even thought about what Malleus must be doing in the "real world" rip ☠️

[heron-iles]

Okay but if we have seen Azul singing and talking to animals, what is keeping them from showing us Silver singing and talking to animals?

[sandbees]

Okay I was thinking about how the other charathers that Arent the great Seven would react to the NRC students in the house of mouse AU. Like i can Imagine Azul asking Ariel if She wants ti make a deal with him and Ariel Is like "lol no", or the First year see Cruella de vil at One of the tables and they are like "She look so much like Crewel that She's giving us PTSD" or kalim and Aladdin becoming buddies :D.

Well, let me put in some headcannons then:

Word goes around that some of the Great Disney villains come to visit Yuu and everyone gets jealous.

So now whenever Yuu goes to work they always get asked to have them visit their world.

So, Yuu just says, “Meh ok, you guys can visit me whenever just ask one of the Great Seven or go through the mirror in my dressing room-“

And suddenly Yuu gets someone they met from the House of Mouse ever other day. It’s literal chaos and Yuu doesn’t know if they should feel exasperated or flattered.

Anyways, here’s some interactions between the dorms and some Disney Characters:

Heartslybul: Obviously when Alice comes to visit, she comments on how Heartslybul reminds her of the Queen of Hearts’ garden. When Yuu mentions that they paint the roses red, Alice sarcastically asks, “Does the dorm leader behead people who don’t paint the roses?” “...Well, he’s more lenient now but...” “...You’re serious?”

Ace and Alice get along swimmingly, basically quick quips and a lot of teasing. Yuu regrets introducing them to each other because they know the two are going to get into some sort of trouble. Deuce also gets along with Alice, though he can get lost in Alice’s rambles in imagination.

I think Alice would get along with Trey and Cater. I mean, they both give big brother vibes (Trey more than Cater). Trey would give Alice some tarts and Alice is like, “....He’s cool.”

Cater is going to take a bunch of pictures, and Alice is very curious about the device he’s holding (I don’t think phones or the internet existed during Alice’s time so...). Cater ends up teaching Alice about the internet and phones.

Riddle...ohhh noo. Once Alice broke one of the 810 rules and Riddle lightly scolded her for it. Alice thinks most of the rules are ridiculous and while Riddle has toned down on being strict, he’ll quickly get annoyed with Alice questioning the rules. There’s rules for a reason! The dorm was founded on these rules!!

Savannaclaw: It’s Simba, obviously. He’s curious to see the dorm after his...nefarious uncle. It’s much more nicer than he expected, though he’s a little off put by the dorm’s...rowdiness.

But he’s impressed with the Magishift practices they have when Yuu showed them.

He likes Jack, right off the bat. Jack has this sense of justice that he can relate to. I think they would get along pretty well. Oh, and probably how strong and buff Jack is.

Simba is wary of Ruggie, due to him being a hyena beastmen. He has...bad memories of hyenas. His wariness is correct, since Ruggie has tried to swindle Simba and Yuu to do some of his work. Does the relationship get better? Only if Yuu makes them hang out with each other haha.

Leona reminds Simba of Scar...to a certain degree. Lazy, cunning, and has this look where it seems like he could be planning something nefarious...

Ok, maybe not that bad, but Simba is weary of Leona. He kind of expected a character similar to Scar since this is the dorm based on him but...still. It’s really odd. It’s kind of rocky, but if Cheka comes over to visit, well...it could get better.

I mean, Leona does find Cheka annoying and calls him a brat but...Simba can tell there’s no malicious desire towards Cheka, which raises Leona’s “evil people don’t interact” list. That doesn’t mean Leona’s in the clear, but he’s ok.

Octavinelle: Surprise, surprise, it’s Ariel! She comes over, human legs and all. (Don’t worry! She got them from the nicer sorcerers). She wanted to visit Yuu and see how great NRC was! They had fun, and then they went to Mostro Lounge.

Ariel is terrified of the Tweels. They give her this...off putting feeling and they’re very intimidating. She does not trust them at all. She does like how they get up close and how they speak as if she’s some poor soul waiting to be taken advantage over.

That’s also why she does not trust Azul at all. He reminds Ariel of Ursula - especially when he tries making a contract with her. Uh-uh, no way. Never again.

This leads to Ariel dubbing NRC a dangerous place for Yuu to stay at. Why doesn’t Yuu come live with her and her family back at her world? Surely it’s much more safer than here! Why, Melody already sees Yuu as a big sibling so why not just stay at the castle permanently?

Ursula fumes at the thought of her enemy trying to take Yuu away and become their parent. That’s her role, dammit!

Scarabia: Kalim invites Aladdin, actually. It’s the most funniest scenario. Yuu mentioned to Kalim about the street rat that wooed the princess and Kalim says, “:00 WE SHOULD INVITE HIM!!” Jamil sighs and facepalms.

It’s actually going great! Aladdin is kind of shocked at the big party that Kalim threw, but it was a great welcome. He’s shook that Kalim apparently trusted Aladdin enough to show him the treasury room. “It’s open for all of the dorm to use! I don’t need much of it!”

Wasn’t NRC rumored to be a villain’s school??? What is this ball of sunshine doing here???

Actually, the Scarabia duo are good in his eyes. Sure, a little rough around the edges with Kalim being a bit too naive and Jamil being more of a watching snake, but they’re better than what he expected. Aladdin gets along with them pretty well!

And then they go on a carpet ride when Kalim introduces Aladdin to his magic flying carpet.

Yuu and Jamil scream at the two of them to get down as they fly across the night sky.

Pomfiore: oh no. Oh no no no. Snow White visiting Pomfiore is like...Neige visiting.

Vil is cold to Snow White, and she knows why. She’s seen the images that Yuu had of this “Neige Leblanc”. He certainly reminds her of her younger days. Which is why she completely understands why Vil is so standoffish of her.

What she doesn’t expect is Rook singing her praises and also kind of...watching her. It’s low key creepy but Yuu says it’s normal and since he doesn’t mean any harm Snow White lets it slide. They do have a good conversation though. Snow White learns to understand Rook’s...eccentric hobbies.

Epel and Snow White go together like apples and oranges. They go pretty well together, but they have contrasting differences. They could be passed of as siblings with their cute looks, as much as Epel hates to admit it. Though I’d like to think they have this “Soft big sister with a gremlin of a little brother” dynamic. Or “Big sister that is harmless but has a badass little bother” dynamic. Just...a cool sibling dynamic, basically.

Ignihyde: Hercules comes by when he hears that a dorm was based off of Hades. He had to see what it was like. He expected the doom and gloom, but he didn’t expect all the technology.

He and Ortho go along swimmingly. I mean, he’s pretty chill around the more upbeat and cheery dorm member, at least. (Seriously, the others were such buzzkills). He also gets a good impression on Idia when Ortho affectionately talks about his big brother! Wow, so the kids here do have a heart! Unlike Hades-

Ok, so as much as Ortho talks so highly of Idia, Hercules does not see how Ortho does. I mean, Idia is a complete shut in and gloomy recluse! Why do you stick around him?! It isn’t until he speaks his mind about that comment does Ortho turn into a crazy murder machine. (“How DARE you speak of that about my brother!!”) Yuu has to save Hercules and the entire dorm before Ortho blows up the school.

So now Hercules sees how inseparable the two are and how much they care for each other, which yeah, that’s pretty cool. (Is also low key jealous, how come his half brothers weren’t like that?)

Diasomnia: Aurora visits with Maleficent. Both do not share ill will after their stories are completed. They actually do make amends. So Maleficent invited Aurora to see her grandson, and Aurora politely accepts.

They have tea with Malleus, and it is a very pleasant conversation. Aurora gets along well with Malleus, even suggesting maybe she should invite him and Maleficent to her kingdom one day. (Maybe when she gives birth to a beautiful baby. Maleficent liked that)

Lilia is also a fun one to be around! Aurora was so surprised by his scare that she had laughed. Ah, what a funny fae! Why, she hadn’t laughed this hard since...well, never. She likes Lilia and will come by if she needs a good laugh.

Poor Sebek though....he acts all uptight around Aurora because she’s a Queen and also aquatinted with Maleficent...he must be respectful to her at all costs! It takes a long time for Sebek to at least act a little casual around her. Maleficent says it’ll take some time, though Aurora isn’t sure if that time will come on her lifetime...but for the meantime, she is still happy to be around Sebek’s presence and have pleasant conversations with him.

Aurora and Silver...ok, let me say this: they got along during a sleepover. The Diasomnia gang + Maleficent and Aurora had a sleepover in the dorms to “better know each other”. I also think Aurora would feel sympathy for Silver if the conversation of him tending to fall asleep came up. Heavens knows she still has her sleepy spells even after her curse was broken.

Also- wofhenod I just imagine Aurora and Silver walking in the forest together and a bunch of animals surround them. (Yuu finds them and cries when they actually attracted a bunch of adorable puppies (or whatever animal you find cute). Cute, adorable animals that are so gentle with them that they start to cry due to stress from being at NRC (Silver and Aurora look at Yuu with concern and gently start comforting them)

Winfendien Suddenly I want a twin dynamic with Silver and Aurora. Even a sibling dynamic would be cool. Just two sleepy siblings that won’t hesitate to kick your ass.

[masqueradeball]

How about number 3? Like, tell us all about it if you want :)

Oh my gosh 🥺 thank you so much for giving me my first ask! 💖 I'm eternally grateful I get to spill all my pheels out.

3. What is my favorite Phantom tv/film adaptation?

My absolute favorite Phantom is the 1925 Lon Chaney silent film. He just embodies everything that I like about Gaston Leroux's Erik for me and he is both horrifying and pitiable. I dislike the ending but I can live with it given it's what test audiences wanted at the time. I truly love his Red Death costume. You can find it on Youtube and the Tubi app for free.

My first runner up would be Claude Raines in the 1943 because his Erique so soft and tragic in that film I cannot help but love him. This was one was my grandma's favorite 'classic monster' movies that she loved, so I have a special place in my heart for this one. I love his hair and appreciate that he was one fine silver fox before the revenge and jealousy issues set in. The opera parts are a little boring, but the costumes and the sassy diva rival to Christine are worth the watch. We get 2 handsome Raouls who end up going to dinner together at the end of the movie and a Christine who gets to bask in the limelight of her career while not choosing any suitor, which is the best possible outcome for her. Double play for the win in my book! You can watch it for free on the Peacock app.

My next runner up is a 3 way tie between Robert Englund, Gerard Butler, and Charles Dance.

I honestly enjoy all their performances because they each bring something unique to the role.

I cannot stress enough how violent the Robert Englund version is if you want to give it a go, but Erik Destler is insane, twisted, and fabulously murdertastic in this. I love the creepy, evil vibes the man gives off. Think of this film as a time travel AU of the original novel. I feel like he nailed Leroux Erik's darker, snarky personality that some people tend to forget he had and the gothic horror parts of the original novel are there. Bonus: they keep the Faust parallels like in the novel!

I'm gonna say it: I love the Charles Dance miniseries. I know it's not the best, but damn, he is so dry and sarcastic I cannot help but enjoy his performance. I want to pinch his cheeks and smother Cherik with the love his father never gave him everytime I see him. Again, this one focuses on the operas a lot, and for me it's a bit boring. But the backgrounds, settings, and props in this thing are fantastic and the costumes are wonderful too.

That leaves Gerard Butler in the 2004 movie. No he is not the world's greatest singing Phantom, but I don't care. I absolutely love his facial expressions and body language. The Phantom is an emotional, expressive dude and the Red Death costume scene is pretty good. I love how kind and sincere Emmy feels in this film and I appreciate she's not overracting and doesn't feel fake compared to some other Christines *coughSierracough* Being the film version of the ALW musical, this Phantom story focuses on the romance and Gerard excels at that. When he and Christine are singing Past the Point of no Return, I FEEL THEIR PASSION! And that's what counts more so than hitting the same notes we've all heard a million times before.

Now for the versions in the 'I will eternally like this' category 😊 :

The Phantom of the Paradise from 1974. This is also a very violent and dark film so fair warning if you haven't seen it. It's a bizarre rock musical, but if you're weird like me and enjoy Rock & Rule or the Rocky Horror Picture Show, this might be a film you'd like too. I don't want to spoil it too much but the Faust/devil parallels are here too, as is various pop culture references. His teeth and mask are terrifyingly cool, and so is the electronic voice box he uses. It makes sense Daft Punk was inspired by this film. Maybe G1 Soundwave was inspired by this film too, but that's a debate for another day 😉

Next is the animated 1988 film. This one features animation on par with other 80s tv cartoons of the time. I love that they kept the Persian and the torture chamber from the novel. The Phantom's death scene is pretty damn epic. Christine is kind of a flake, but animated Leroux Erik is hilariously insane and terribly charming, especially when he calls himself a Don Juan. It's worth watching just for his antics and his dialouge.

You might not expect a Goosebumps episode to do a Phantom story any justice, but here we are: 1995, The Phantom of the Auditorium is a spooky fun take on the story and honestly, I'd like to see the full play the kids at that school are putting on cause it looks better than some of the live Phantom stage scenes I've seen. Both young boys playing the Phantom are fantastic actors and the plot twist at the end is great.

I absolutely have to give a shout out to Wishbone's Pantin at the Opera. He is the best, cutest, most adorable Raoul de Chagney ever and I will fight you if you dare talk smack about this version. I'm not even a Raoul stan by any means but like, this dog is precious and I enjoy this episode so much.

Also in the animated category and cute dog category is Scooby Doo Stage Fright made back in 2013. This movie is one of my fave Scooby Doo films (yes I own almost all of them on dvd) and there are multiple Phantoms, a reality tv show contest, and Fred and Daphne finally kiss each other! Lots and lots of hidden Phantom references in the background and lots of voice acting talent for those of us who appreciate that.

Now for the versions I intensely dislike 😏

The 1962 Herbert Lom version. UGH where to start. The sets are so small and everything looks dirty and of the wrong time period. The color in the film looks washed out. The clothes look too modern somehow (maybe it's their hairstyles?) and it bothers me. It feels low budget in a bad way and it shows. This phantom is not likeable or pitiable even though his backstory is similar to the Claude Raines version. He has no romantic interest in Christine, so it feels off. This guy is such an old a$$ piece of sh*t, he literally slaps Christine as she's singing for him for no damn reason. His paper mache mask looks like a Kindergartener's botched art class project. His personality is like somebody locked up cranky grandpa in the basement and he's PMS-ing because y'all forgot to give him his daily prune juice. This squatter's lair lacks creepiness, and his bizarre sidekick is annoying and yet somehow more interesting than the Phantom. The pervert manager trying to bang Christine aggravated me and simultaneously made me want to vomit. Raoul is the only likeable character in the whole damn movie. The Joan of Arc opera scene makes up for some of the film, but it's still terrible.

Next on my meh list is the 1983 made for tv movie starring Micheal York and Jane Seymour. Now, this one has some likeable and applaudable scenes: the various murders and general creepiness of the Phantom, and the lair scene when she wakes up in his bed and the Phantom gets all up in her face is so intense and so Leroux I absolutely love it. The rest of the film is a jumbled hot mess at best, but Jane Seymour is 🔥 and she gets some damn good sex, so hell yeah to that!

And lastly, I do not like the Royal Albert Hall 25th anniversary recording. I should preface this by saying it is Sierra I don't like. I like Ramin, I love Hadley, everyone else is wonderful but I cannot stand Sierra. She tries too hard to make Christine a Disney Princess- and that doesn't fly with me. It comes off as insincere or mocking the source material at best, and at worst it makes Christine look like an airheaded ditz. Apparently Sierra played Ariel at one point which is hilarious because of all the Disney princesses, I dislike her the most. But that's a different rant for another day.

And finally, the one I hate most of all:

The 1998 Argento film. This is the worst Phantom adaptation I've ever seen. It is a whole lotta nope for me. Between the rats, the unecessary and pointless telepathy, the r*pe scene, and the unfunny weird vibe from the murder going on in this film it's a disaster from start to finish. Honestly, it's the rats and his hair that bother me from a visual standpoint alone and it's beyond disgusting the way this a$$🤡 treats Christine. I don't like any of the characters in here and for good reason. It's not worth watching and if you do, be ready to bleach your brain afterwards.

💖 Sorry if this was a long read! Thanks again for giving me an ask and I will cherish it forver!!!! 💖

[hxlcyon]

ammy what do you like about silver

what DON’T i like about silver twisted wonderland??

— Silver ˎˊ˗

here are 10 reasons of why i love yet another silver-haired anime boy because i am. predictable.

this is ALSO propaganda for silver—you will love him too 🔪

1. His Arms

look if someone offered to turn me into a vegetable just so i would be held tenderly by silver™️ twisted wonderland i’d say thank you as i slowly plantmorph into my new basil existence

2. wow, it’s almost like we’re the same person—

he’s a sleepy bitch, i’m a sleepy bitch, we’re made for each other.

like, genuinely, he gives off the impression of someone who’s just so comfortable to be and sleep around?? he doesn’t seem to talk to fill the space and that’s honestly super refreshing

3. Pretty™️

i don’t even think that i need to elaborate on this—like? what do you want me to say? vogue shakes at his natural, flawless skin? if it weren’t for diasomnia and their inability with technology, chapter 5 would just be about silver ruling the vcd? vil’s coming for him as we speak???

4. could spin me right round baby right round (literally)

he uses a sword! so, whatever, he’s probably pretty strong considering that he’s also a trained guard for malleus (and have you read about his childhood games?) he could probably pick me up with one hand and then throw me like a football WITH some extra spin too

5. How Much He Tries

he’s really diligent! hardworking! will push his boundaries and isn’t afraid to recognize his own faults! honestly, i wouldn’t be surprised if some of his efforts were attributed to his background of being a human among fae. maybe he had to train to compensate for his lack of possible innate magic (though, he does have light magic which brings up a whole bunch of other questions). we admire a hardworking king who could take care of himself and me

he knows his limits realistically and how to pace himself—and honestly, though it seems boring, i just think he’s reliable in the sort of way people forget how to be for themselves

6. haha sword

whoa.. you know how to use a sword..? ahaha.... that’s.. kinda ahaha 😳😳.. oh... the techniques and skill put into your years of tireless practice has trained you to become someone strong enough to protect those that you love? *twirls hair* omg that’s soooooooooo interesting!!!!!!!

7. Merch

well. i made this point and realized that it’s both a good and bad thing that i don’t get as much merch of silver as, say, like dorm leaders so this is a win-lose deal for me. plus?? if i don’t count general diasomnia merch, i can just save money not getting collaboration items for silver

edit. twst merch is pain.

8. His Smile™️

he smiles like he’s so fondly exasperated or like he’s not quite sure of what he’s doing and i’m just so fond of him—he’s so cute

9. he’s a horse boy

actually, this is an unforgivable sin. /j

10. Literal Disney Princess

considering that he already shares so many traits with sleeping beauty, silver is bound to have all of the minor abilities that disney princesses have too (he already has an affinity for animals)! so. you know. that means that he’s probably a great singer too:

his voice actor (Nobunaga Shimazaki) also is an actual singer too! he voice acts Aizo Shibasaki from the Honeyworks group, LIPXLIP, and it’s literally the cutest duo in the world (love wins)! it genuinely wouldn’t be a stretch to see silver sing someway or somehow in the future now

he also conveniently has no last name and do you know what that means?

i can give him mine that he has MYSTERY and FLAVOR to him.

and most importantly:

HIS.... ARMS.........

tldr: he’s hot. that’s it. that’s the post. check out the playlist i made for him too while you’re at it.

[sierrabinondo]

2020

damn my last tumblr post is the last day of woodland creatures, did i not do a 2019 wrap up?? i feel like i did. oh well lmao

so, arguably the most tumultuous year in modern history (at least, american history- all pandemic and political events considered) is about to come to a close. it was very not fun experiencing a pandemic as millions lost their loved ones to covid. i was part of the 20% of people that became unemployed as a result of the economy taking a huge dump. i would not want to experience this same year again if it meant that every life lost could be saved. with the year i was given, i made the best out of it that i could. 

like every other person on this earth (except for where the virus was already spreading), this year started out normal as hell for me. i was hating my job but chugging through each week, with the occasional show to worry about and then planning our band’s 2020 release plans. despite my salaried job, i was barely making enough to put anything away in savings, forthcoming disney trip aside. i really felt like i was putting in all this work at a full time job just to barely stay afloat and it grated at my soul. i don’t dream of labor, and i only take jobs like this because nothing i am passionate about truly makes money and the marketing jobs i would actually care about are never available to me/never come to fruition after submitting myself for consideration. 

disney was a huge highlight of my year despite being deathly sick. i keep wondering if i had covid (i never figured it out), but it sure as hell felt like it. i feel like if i did have it i would have passed it on to jeremiah and his family but i didn’t. i could still kinda taste, but not smell because i had the worst sinus infection i ever had in my entire fucking life. like i know i get them a lot but really, holy shit. i really had it bad. it started when we were in the studio the 2nd to last weekend of february on the last studio day. i had to go back to the studio several months later because i was that unsatisfied with how the vocals came out. i didn’t want to fuck up these releases and have my performance be mid so i was willing to pay to have to re-do everything. i assumed if this was like any other sinus infection, it would go away in a week.

lmao.

i had that infection for THREE WHOLE FUCKING WEEKS. i played a show with that monster sinus infection, and went to disney with it. i went two weeks without meds because i really was convinced it would go away on its own. before we left for disney i finally got antibiotics at urgent care and couldn’t drink most of the trip which sucked. but that finally did the job, and the infection waned when we returned from disney. despite being physically weak, in pain (there was one friday my body pains were so horrible that jeremiah contemplated taking me to the hospital), and leaking snot all over my sleeves the entire trip (LIKE IT WAS THAT UNCONTROLLABLE. I HAD NEVER GONE THROUGH THAT MANY PACKS OF TISSUES IN MY LIFE. I WAS LEAKING SO MUCH I HAD TO LOCATE THE BABY CHANGING STATION IN MAGIC KINGDOM. IT WAS LIKE A SECRET STERILIZED TROVE OF HAND SANITIZER, WIPES, TISSUES AND BABY OIL.) i had an amazing time at disney. and it was my first time going with a significant other so it was incredibly fun. it was also a wonderful opportunity to spend time with his family. the only very not fun part was missing our nephew in the main street parade because some bozos fucked up the info they gave my sister-in-law and we were out walking around when his high school band had actually marched earlier than we thought.

it’s funny, because that weekend after we returned was the last weekend of “freedom” everyone had before lockdown. we were weary of covid while in florida but still living it up on vacation. at that time, there had only been 3 cases in orlando. 3!!!! i had plans to go to a party once home but i cancelled only because i still wasn’t completely out of the woods and 100% well again. i felt so bad cancelling because it was for my friend’s party and she never really did parties usually :( and i thought it wouldn’t be a good idea considering i may or may not have had covid. 

then... the following week came. 

monday we got a weird email from our CEO saying there was going to be salary cuts and that it was essential for the company to survive a downturn. i pouted but my parents consoled me saying it was better than nothing; maybe look for a new job. and then- i got the nothing! a day or two later, i was let go. and i could tell my manager was absolutely not souped to be giving me this call at all. she literally prefaced it like, “this sucks, but-” and gave me the news. and i was utterly devastated, sobbing controllably, because i was just scraping by on this income to begin with. and i had JUST, finally, received health insurance through this job. i was asked to continue working through friday the 20th, which i would be paid for, and then i would have to return my laptop and any other work materials (like printouts and promo stuff) i had possession of. 

that day and the days following i had coworkers calling me or emailing me telling me they were so sorry. i was the first to be let go, and they were kind enough to extend words of encouragement to me. clients i worked closely with, a couple of them around my age, assured me that i could use them as a reference. many of my colleagues were my higher-ups, but were very down-to-earth people. one call that stuck out to me was from my colleague sarah. 

sarah was candid with me and said, “y’know how i was unemployed for 6 months?” i knew this well though we had only worked together for a year and a half; it was an important part of her path to where she was in her career now and why she chose it. she continued, “those were the best 6 months of my life.” 

and i would come to find out that yes, me too being unemployed was the best fucking time of my entire goddamn adult life.

when i posted i was officially unemployed i had an outpouring of support from my friends, and received enough animal crossing commissions to pay one month’s rent. the first day i finally felt peace was when i was sitting on my porch on an abnormally warm march day playing animal crossing following my last day at my company. it was like the universe was giving me a hug and telling me everything was going to be all right.

what would come was a pretty chaotic couple of months. jeremiah, my roommate and i would stay up until 3 am either watching anime or playing video games, subsequently sleeping until 11 am or noon. pair having fun, drinking (mostly me lmao) and lounging about with the scary realization that thousands of people every day were dying of covid and it could be my high-risk parents. i would cry at night and be so fucking scared. my sibling would tell me my family was being reckless, running unnecessary errands, and whenever my dad showed up to drop off food or necessities i would cry because i couldn’t hug him. i’m even getting choked up thinking about it now. and it was a fear that returned during the second spike around the holidays because it is the loss i fear the most.  

amidst this really horrible time, i would play games almost every other night online with my friends and it was so much fucking fun because all of us were either unemployed, furloughed or working from home. we’d laugh so goddamn hard our voices were hoarse. one of my favorite memories is playing quiplash with the creatureposting gang and then my big friends from college. and a really fun night in particular was SIIE release night, i popped a bottle of champagne and got absoluely zonked lmao. every few days i would have something to look forward to, some sort of virtual plans with my friends. this would continue until july when my friends were slowly starting to go back to work.

most of my early quarantine days were as follows: wake up, watch anime, work on commissions for most of the day, order extremely good food for delivery, play video games, and then bed. at one point commissions became so overwhelming i started to get slower at churning them out. though this became a daunting project, WOW it really forced me to become a better artist. and this year i got to spend so much more time drawing, which was fantastic. 

one thing i DID NOT spend a lot of time on at all? ugh. MUSIC. FUCKING MUSIC. i barely touched my guitar, stopped writing lyrics after july, and barely completed the instrumentals for about 3 songs. the only thing i consistently practiced was singing (because i would literally curl up and die if i didn’t). do you have any idea how much i blabbed to my therapist in 2019 about how much i would get done if i didn’t work full time and could just focus on my creative endeavors? and then life HANDED that shit to me on a silver platter the following year. i really did nothing insane musically with my time. and now i am really kicking myself for it. if i think about it, it was mostly because i was so exhausted from doing AC commissions, and partly because i was really intimidated about the prospect of struggling through songwriting. now i really wish that i had tried. 

one thing i started doing this year was streaming. i originally planned to just do it for fun, because i am horrible at video games and i really didn’t expect much out of it. i thought it would be cool if my friends could watch me play animal crossing. and then i unfortunately learned that this 3rd expensive pasttime is actually really, really, really fun. i started to spend half my week streaming and it led me to either getting closer to some online friends i only talked to a lil previously and making new friends. viewers would ask me if i continue to stream after the pandemic was over, and i enthusiastically assured them i would. and i meant it. even with the difficulties of returning to work and the band playing shows again considered, i really wanted to. i don’t get invited to things anymore anyway, so fuck it if that’s what i stand to lose lmao.

when the curve flattened in jersey i decided to become lenient again and start meeting with my bandmates. we spent the year trying to finish some new material and chip away at what work we have to do for the full length (yes, a full length). we had plans to tour this year and it sucks that fell through. we also had plans to do so much more content during the pandemic and we faltered under the stress of... well, existing in a pandemic. we did finally get to drop a new single though, and the difference in hype now vs when we dropped our last work was incredible. i am so thankful we were able to build an audience with nothing new for two years. i still often beat myself up because god every day i look around me, at our peers, and wonder where the fuck we’ve gone wrong to have such a slow build. and even daily just trying to stand out and prove that we have cut our teeth/deserve a chance is so demoralizing. i feel like it’s even worse than before. i literally have to talk to myself out loud, both alone and during interviews lmao, to remind myself that we truly have accomplished so much. and to take in and appreciate the little positive things. because this could all be over in a second. and this won’t be forever. the older we get the more we are risking for this, both time and resources, and it won’t do to let myself get bogged down over my inner competitive voice. but god it’s hard. like even with new music we still didn’t even TOUCH any of the goal numbers we set for ourselves in may. though we did put out less music than we had planned, and we really hope to change that in 2021 forreal. 

there was a single we were supposed to put out this year that’s on hold due to some pending assets but goddamn. if we really don’t break some sort of ceiling with this one i don’t know what will. i have the strongest gut feeling about the next single and in my opinion, it’s the best one we’ve had to date. when we play it at shows, the air in the room sometimes shifts. i’m eager to see what the response is and i’m so ready to push it with everything i have.

fuck this is getting so much longer than i planned i have to try to wrap this up lmao.

with our government stimmy money we turned around and got the dog of our dreams. we figured, i’d be home enough to watch him, and it was finally goddamn time. it’s why we moved into a house and not into another apartment. i was so scared meeting the puppy parents, and totally on edge the entire day. we went out to meet the breeder to test my allergies and see how i would react. samoyeds are not 100% perfectly hypoallergenic, but they were often lauded for being so. honestly? i still didn’t feel confident after two hours with the dogs because the pollen out there was bad (one of my WORST allergies) and i had mysterious hives on my arms i couldn’t figure out where they came from. for months jeremiah and my parents had to calm my nerves and remind me i lived with 3 cats before i moved out (i’m more allergic to cats) and that i would be fine. i had to do a lot of work on myself to get out of my own way about being excited about finally owning the dog of my dreams.  

this little fucking boy. i couldn’t believe he was real. neither in the pictures i often looked at about 20 times a day on the breeder’s facebook page nor when we went to meet him. and he was truly, truly perfect. our little shithead. when we went to go pick him out, he sat apart from his puppy pile of brothers, sniffing around the room and trying to rip off his ribbon collar. we locked eyes and he fuCKING APPROACHED ME. i could not fathom any other puppy in the room being brawly. this was the one. we could already tell he was a mischevious smartass, because once he untied his ribbon he proceeded to rip off the ribbons of all the other puppies. but he was the cutest, flopping over on his back when you were near to get belly rubs. 

ever since we have picked him up he has simultaneously been the biggest joy in our lives and the most source of stress lmao. that first week, and the next couple, werE FUCKING ROUGH.  i had a horrible anxiety attack when i couldn’t calm him for bedtime the first saturday he was home and i was loudly sobbing to jeremiah that i couldn’t handle this shit lmao. he was so scared i was having regrets but i am just a fucking anxious wreck and not used to having a DOG!! this is my first dog!!! but while i can remember what life was like before him i cannot imagine going back. the first time he got sick and we took him to the emergency vet i cried so hard. when he is wagging his tail happy to see me and he looks like a fuckin seal because his ears are folded back it is the best feeling. i’m so excited for when he gets older and we’re vaccinated for covid so that we can take him on so many adventures. he is truly the best.

there is so much more i want to say but this is long as shit. this is even painful for me to read lmao. it’s always been for me, a guy with dogshit memory, to remember everything, but so, so much happened. so i’m gonna wrap up the real descriptive stuff with this.

being unemployed allowed me to just experience life. to wake up each day, enjoy the sun in my backyard, have time to try new recipes, go for long walks, GET A DOG, get better at art, get better at singing, spend more time with friends (virtually), bond even harder with my amazing, beautiful boyfriend, create amazing work with my bandmates, improve at video games, connect with people all over the world, and so much more. all my life i let money dictate my every move. i am insanely privileged to have experienced this but when i had to just live within my means off unemployment i did just fine. i once believed i was perpetually indebted to my employer when i was discarded like it was nothing. i can get a job anywhere and be fine. it strengthened my class consciousness and while i have control over my own destiny it is our country that has so royally screwed us of living the lives we should be living. our lives do not revolve around labor. so until we win the fight and get what we deserve, i will be returning to work next month (full time... in commercial real estate.... again), but i will do whatever it takes to replicate the everlasting feeling of joy i felt this year for the rest of my godforsaken life. if that means struggling for 2021 to build up my twitch channel and the band, working 9 hour days and then streaming/writing music for another 4, so be it. i felt from a young age i was not destined to live a normal life and that feeling has stayed with me no matter how much i have tried to play the game of life as i have been told. i finally have the confidence to pave the life i want.

so, if you are here at this very spot because you read everything, thank you. if you are here because you scrolled to see how long this was, here’s the TLDR of my best parts of 2020:

- tapping out cover

- the 2 shows we played lmao, maybe 3 tops

- disneyworld

- ACNH outside on the porch on release day in warm weather

- making banana bread

- learning how to BRINE meats

- watching anime until 3 am, namely the time we watched pokemon journeys until 3 am 

-watching so. much. anime. 

-watching livestream concerts with my friends (the chon one was a real good time)

-playing jackbox with my creatureposting friends, the volcano saga (if u know u know)

-playing jackbox with my big friends

-the first time we ever had panchos and juanchos

-finally having sushi again after painful cravings and being grumpy

-the first time we had chinese food again after the lockdown began

-hitting the punching bag for the first time in forever (my dad bought me one)

-the first time we had ramen in forever

-surprising joe with cake at his doorstep for his birthday (we thought he would be the only one with a pandemic birthday lmao)

-playing monopoly and wheel of fortune on the switch, surprisingly having fun

-jeremiah’s birthday

-getting PAID for my ART

-writing + recording ONE (1) acoustic demo

-finally finishing the singles, fixing the vocals 

-shooting band promos

-unus annus

-meeting samoyeds

-meeting BRAWLY

-streaming except for the times 13 year olds cyberbullied me

-my birthday when my mom got me a terrifying singing birthday candle contraption and my sibling curbstomped the shit out of it (i was literally crying laughing like that kind of noiseless laugh cause you’re laughing that hard)

- getting the stamp of approval from andrew wells and anthony green 

-my friends having their first baby!!!

-dying from thanksgiving charceuterie board

-that week i binged ghibli movies on an hbo max trial and did nothing else

-filling the front porch with plants and most of them SURVIVING the fall, possibly winter but we’ll see in 2021 lmao

- (in general) nailing riffs i fucking sing over and over when practicing but prob won’t get down good enough to sing in front of others lmao

-solo inflatable pool hangs

-thursdays with sarah in the fall playing with the puppy

-the release of the first WSA single in two and a half years

-virtual movie night with sarah watching happiest season

-the music video shoots

-brawly experiencing CHRISTMAS

-receiving really thoughtful gifts from jerry and my parents

-deciding i would work towards being a full time streamer to supplement being a musician

[art-by-rozzai]

had a bad day so more band au headcannons

anyone who wants to write a fic for this is absolutely allowed if they tag me, i’m not gonna make any full length ones but i might post some one shots eventually

anyway i had a really shitty day so here’s me self projecting and creating more band headcannons

check out the first here~

check out the second here~

tag list~

@athenashipsthings @thelesbianspoon @flowersheep @insert--self--hatred @nafsbluebery @sunflowerss0 @nerdiegurlie @stars-and-rose

okays lets do this✨

so last when we left the boys, it’s the day before they release their album “death of a bachelor”

to celebrate, roman suggests they get dinner out and maybe go see a movie??

logan is suprisingly the first to agree, saying that if he doesn’t get to watch the “scary stories to tell in the dark” movie soon he will explode. plus there’s no food in the fridge

virgil is also down to go see the movie, but is more reluctant to get dinner. he hates formal things, so to make him feel more comfortable roman offers they go to the local diner that he knows has virgil’s favorite chicken parm dish and virgil can’t say no to that

patton doesn’t want to see the movie at first-he really doesn’t like scary movies. but he wants dinner with his friends and he might be able to latch onto logan during the scary parts so he goes with it

so patton offers go help virgil with his hair and they end up getting ready together! they talk about everything they can think of as patton does hair and virgil does makeup and they both do each other’s nails and then they’re ready to go out whooooppp

meanwhile roman collapsed on logan’s bed an hour ago and began complaining about how he needed to impress virgil to get him to fall in love with him and has been talking ever since

logan doesn’t mind tho, roman helps him pick out a nice outfit and gives tips on how to woo patt

even though it’s not a date

yet

anyways they get to the diner and they all have an incredible time! by the end of the meal they’re in tears laughing at each other, from roman’s hysterical stories to virgil’s banter to logan’s fun facts and spilt tea to patton’s enthusiastic impressions

they love each over like family :)

and the movie is top notch. virgil is in love with it, him and logan spend the whole time guessing what’s going to happen while roman hides behind virgil and patton shoves his face full of popcorn and squish himself into logan’s arm

and yes virgil can’t stop laughing and logan’s immediate tensing up and blushing

after the movie they just don’t want to go to bed quite yet, so the friends head to the park and enjoy lying in the grass, talking and letting logan point out the stars while roman makes up stories of the aliens and space princesses that protect the galaxy

virgil makes everyone his famous hot chocolate and they stay up until midnight to release their songs

and then the clock strikes 12 and death of a bachelor is available to download

the boys decide that staying up and watching the comments flood in is a terrible idea and instead they put on some disney films and fall asleep on the couch

it’s nice

they wake up to millions of notifications

everyone is freaking the fuck out

this album ??? is beautiful ???

all of the fans are in love but also have a lot of questions-so the fab four start doing monthly live-streams to just chat and answer questions and catch up with their fans

“are y’all single?”

um

well yes

but uh

this question is not goOD ROMAN WHAT THE FU-

anyway virgil comes to patton one day, slams the door, puts his face in a pillow and screams “PATT IM SO GAY HELP”

because roman called his hair pretty this morning and yes it’s stupid and it happens all the time but this time was different

don’t worry tho they won’t admit their feelings to one and other for another three months

death of a bachelor does really well-all of the songs end up going either gold or platinum

their song “victorious” is played on the radio all of the time

so november rolls around and the friends decide it’s time to go on tour! starting with just north america, they post a video on the youtube channel that gives all the locations and dates

it’s to start in april:

virgil is extremely nervous. being on the road for so long and preforming live in front of thousands of people and will anyone even show up and-

logan is slightly nervous but honestly he really enjoys preforming-once he ties the tie around his head like a bandanna he almost transforms into the punk rock bassist he is known by the fans to be

patton!!! is!!! bouncy!!!!!!!! he wants to meet all these people!!!! and he can’t wait to give back to all of them by preforming and meet and greets and social interaction makes him really happy!!

roman is so excited-preforming is his thing. when he’s on a stage, he’s in his element! he can’t wait to show off and travel and be with his friends for even longer :)

but they can’t go on tour with their boring old instruments sooooo

roman and patton team up to paint and decorate all of the instruments

virgil’s piano matches his jacket, lots of purple and swirls and patton paints the classic nightmare before christmas scene on the front (u know, this one but stationary)

and they decorate the microphone stand purple and silver and black

logan gets a dope space themed bass-the outside is dark blue and the inside is painted like a galaxy, with a plain silver pick

roman paints his gutair with a castle and sunset in the back, with a bright red pick to play

patton’s drums have clouds on them nowww like a sunny day with blue puffy clouds

they’re ready to go! but it’s still only december so u kNoW whAt ThaT mEaNs

CHRISTMAS!!!!!

since none of the squad are jewish, (although technically patton is half jew since his mom is, but he just really loves christmas and always celebrated that growing up so)

they decide to celebrate at their house

they invite all of their close family to the apartment and have a lovely dinner

and yeah virgil doesn’t invite anyone cuz he was adopted by a shitty family who he doesn’t talk to anymore, bcuz all they did was try and get money out of him

and yeah he has a panic attack when all of his best friends are excitedly talking about their family coming over

and y e a h roman helps him calm down and swears that he will always b there to protect virgil bcuz he’s never met anyone quite like him and it’s not easy to explain but he just wants virgil to know he’s safe with roman

and yeah virgil wishes he could stop falling for roman but the ground keeps disappearing beneath him

so time skip a bit closer to christmas and logan bursts into romans room with an idea

“i can rap”

“we know”

“you can rap”

“kind of but okay”

“christmas rap song for fun”

“yeS”

so they write “gonna kill santa claus” (look it up) and decide to post it on the youtube channel on christmas eve

they film a music video for it where they jokingly set up different traps for santa like poison cookies and fire cracker chimneys and more

virgil sings the chorus, logan raps the rap parts, roman does the bridge, and patton lays down a pretty sick beat

it comes out really nice and honestly really fucking funny

so after a delightful family dinner with everyone over, the friends release that video and the internet fucking dies it’s so funny and logan can rap (??????) and ohmygod all of them are so cute what the fuck

anyway back to christmas dinner

roman has like 6 little sisters, and his mom and dad and papa and nana over

(he’s latino, his mom and dad are both from the dominican republic)

patton invites his mom and dad and little brothers, thomas and dee

and logan invites his two moms

everyone comes over for lunch and gets along reallyyyyyy well

logan’s got the punk mom and soft mom dynamic whereas, patton’s family is all super kind and like homey and boisterous and romans family is wild and crazy and funny and they all instantly click

presents are passed around, lots of money and books and movies and stickers and jewelry

really sweet stuff

and then everyone goes home and the friends have their own little gift exchange

virgil got logan the stephen king book “insomnia” and a (sort of) joke blanket with benedict cumberbatch’s face on it that he can use when he goes stargazing at night

logan gets virgil some noise cancelling headphones and a framed picture of a wedding with virgil’s face cropped on one and gerard ways face on the other

they both can’t stop laughing at the fact they attacked each other’s celeb crush

virgil gets patton a cute little cat stuffed animal that when u push the hand it’s a recording of all of them saying “we love you!!!” and a really sweet card

patton gets virgil a eyore necklace that was super expensive but matches patton’s winnie the pooh one and a itunes card for him to buy more music (and yes a really sweet card)

virgil gets roman two tickets to see mean girls on broadway and a framed picture of the two of them

yeah roman tears up a bit fuck u

roman gets virgil a collage of him and roman and a handmade hoodie that virgil is never going to take off oh and also meet and greet passes to see dan and phil at their interactive introverts tour

and maybe virge gets a little teary too

roman gets patton a recipie book and an apron that says “you BAKE my day”

patton gets roman a new ukelele and a printed out pamphlete of theatre song chords that he can play

roman gets logan the sherlock script and an empty box just to fuck with him

logan gets roman the entire grimm fairytale series and tapes a note to the front that says “bcuz u are an illiterate fool😜”

patton gets logan a phone case with the stars that were out on the day they met, hand painted framed picture of him and logan, and comic con tickets for this spring

logan gets patton tickets to the art museum downtown, a gift card to the coffee shop next to it, and two gold hoop earrings with a note that says “next week, friday at 7. it’s a date ;)”

so christmas is pretty good for all :))))))

and that’s the end of this one i’ll make a part four soon lmao

[imagitory]

D-Views: Mary Poppins

Hello, everyone, and welcome to another installment of D-Views, my on-going written review series where I dive into and analyze movies from Disney’s extensive film library, and even occasionally those influenced by that library. For other reviews in the series for movies such as Frozen, Enchanted, The Little Mermaid, and Lacewood Productions’ The Nutcracker Prince, feel free to consult the “Disney Reviews” tag! And as always, if you enjoy any of my reviews, please consider liking and reblogging them!

Today, thanks to the votes cast by @karalora, @banana-9-pancakes, and @aceyanaheim, we’ll be looking at the story of a magical woman -- one who is prim, proper, and practically perfect in every way...Mary Poppins!

Production-wise Mary Poppins is in some ways the culmination of everything Walt Disney learned in his thirty-year-long film-making career. It adapted a classic, whimsical story as an charming, emotion-heavy screenplay, like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs -- it featured a fresh-faced, but extremely talented young singer in the title role, like Sleeping Beauty -- it seamlessly combined animation with live action, like Song of the South -- it had state-of-the-art special effects, like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea -- and it featured music by two songwriters who later went on to write Disney film scores for decades. But all of that started with a tiny, little spark. As a little girl, Walt’s daughter Diane had started reading the Mary Poppins books, and when Walt read along with her, he was absolutely enchanted by them and knew he wanted to adapt the stories for the silver screen. All the way back in 1938, one year after the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Uncle Walt had his first meeting with Mary Poppins’s creator, P.L. Travers, but as anyone who has seen Saving Mr. Banks knows, the two did not see eye to eye. Uncle Walt spent the next twenty years trying to convince Travers to give him the rights to her stories, but unlike in the film where they had a sincere meeting of the minds, Travers recalled their final meeting where she gave him the rights as being more like Walt “holding up a gold pocket watch and dangling it tantalizingly in front of [her] eyes.” Admittedly one factor in the situation was that Travers herself had been having some financial trouble, and Uncle Walt’s payment for the rights to her books, as well as a portion of the gross profits for a film adaptation, was a boost that Travers severely needed. Despite the rights being given to Disney, however, Travers retained script approval rights, and for the next few years of production, she had quite a few complaints about the product. Even at the premiere of the film -- which, incredibly, she had not originally been invited to until she shamed a Disney executive into action -- Travers was very vocal about how much she disliked the film. The animation, done by some of the best in the business? Had to go. The story, which created such memorable and likable characters? Lacked teeth. The score written by the young Sherman brothers, who later went on to win awards for both Poppins and their other works? Left her cold.

Now, here’s the thing...do I agree with Ms. Travers? No. Do I like her as a person? No -- one would be hard-pressed to really admire a woman who decided to adopt half of a pair of twins from a poor family, raise the boy thinking he was her biological son, and then try to prevent her son from seeing his twin when the twin came to see him. (Yes, she really did that.) Do I think she was a malcontent who probably wouldn’t have been satisfied with anything? Absolutely. But at the same time, I must acknowledge, as a writer myself, it can be very difficult to share your creations with others. It can be hard even letting others read your works, given how personal and emotionally resonant the things you create often end up being, but it’s even harder letting others add onto your work. In a way, it’s like giving your child to a babysitter, except that unlike babysitters, most filmmakers who aim to adapt books don’t have a great track record in respecting the author or their vision. And in regards to Walt Disney specifically, his studio has never exactly been very interested in “staying true to the original story” -- the Walt Disney Company adapts the heck out of anything it touches. Even more modern Disney projects based on books like Ella Enchanted and Tuck Everlasting are great examples of this (if you’d like to delve into those films as adaptations, please look up Dominic Smith/The Dom’s wonderful Lost in Adaptation episodes for them -- they’re both fabulous!!). And in a way, Travers never saw her magical nanny as something light and cheerful -- this was an immortal woman who in later books once took the Banks children up into the Heavens on Midsummer’s Eve. Like the famous 1939 film adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, there was definitely some dry wit and edge lost in translation from book to screen...and just like with The Wizard of Oz, Mary Poppins the film has largely taken the place of the original novels in the public consciousness.

But you know something? For what it’s worth...I think that, just like The Wizard of Oz, Mary Poppins succeeds in being a well-written, well-directed, well-performed, classic film, even if it’s so different than the book it was inspired by. And honestly, the world seems to agree. Mary Poppins grossed over $28.5 million at the box office, making it the most profitable film of 1965, and completely won over both critics and audiences alike. Even now at Rotten Tomatoes, it still boasts a rare 100% Fresh rating. It was nominated for 13 Academy Awards and won five (including Best Picture, which made it the first and only film Walt ever produced to win that honor) and also earned both a Golden Globe and two Grammys. Not only that, but the profits for the film were so high that they helped Uncle Walt fund his “Florida project,” which would eventually become Walt Disney World Resort. Mary Poppins later went on to inspire both a Broadway musical and a sequel, Mary Poppins Returns, and even today you can still meet both Mary Poppins and Bert in the Disney theme parks. So yes, “I recognize Ms. Travers had her opinion, but given that it is a stupid-ass opinion, I’ve elected to ignore it.”

PFFT, I’M KIDDING, ONLY KIDDING. Let’s talk about Mary Poppins.

Perhaps it’s appropriate that from the very beginning, the overture embraces us with the melody that will become the story’s main theme, Feed the Birds. The overture, like all the best Sherman brother overtures for films like Bedknobs and Broomsticks and The Sword in the Stone, is just a smooth, glamorous kaleidoscope of music. I also have to applaud the special effects team right off the bat with their overlaying of Julie Andrews as Mary onto the mat painting of London underneath our opening credits -- even now, when one can more easily guess how the trick worked, it’s still rather neatly done.

In this opening sequence, we also meet Bert, played by Dick van Dyke. The character of Bert was actually a compilation of several figures from the books, but that results in a very interesting, almost transient sort of character. This cheery, optimistic Jack of All Trades may have an accent that wouldn’t convince anyone, but is nonetheless unbelievably charming, and van Dyke’s physical comedy is so ridiculously on point. My mum and I have had a soft spot for Dick van Dyke for a long time because my late grandfather, although he was quite a bit older, resembled him quite a bit not just in appearance but also in attitude. Even now I look at Bert and fondly remember going to see the Broadway production of Mary Poppins with my grandparents, who ended up loving it and its music just as much as I did. It all the more makes me lament the end of the Soundsational Parade at Disneyland, which always concluded with a Mary-Poppins-inspired float covered in chimney sweeps and merry-go-round horses, one of which was ridden by Bert.

One of the changes that Ms. Travers was most disdainful of was the idea that the Banks family -- especially Mr. Banks -- had flaws that needed to be addressed and fixed by Mary Poppins. The flaw in the parents’ case is that they’re so focused on their own work and goals that they neglect their children’s emotional needs -- a plot point that would eventually get beaten into the ground in films that came later, but is not done half bad here. After all, the film doesn’t try to frame Mr. Banks’s job or Mrs. Banks’s activism as unimportant or bad in any way -- it’s just that the parents are solely focusing on those things. Mrs. Banks’s activism in particular, which is something that doesn’t appear either in the books or in the Broadway production, is something I really like. Sister Suffragette, which actually helped bring Glynis Johns on board to play Mrs. Banks, is just such a ridiculously fun song to sing. Although I wouldn’t ever say it’s the best song in the film by a mile, it’s still insanely catchy and entertaining, and I sing along to it every single time. WOMANKIND, ARISE!

David Tomlinson, who plays Mr. Banks, is easily the weakest link singing-wise, but fortunately he gives an acting performance that more than compensates for his poor vocals. From the very beginning, he comes across as incredibly pompous, self-centered, detached, and sexist, and yet he’s never shown to be an inherently bad person. He can be very cheerful, and even the way he’s framed makes it clear that a lot of his bluster is a front for his actual feelings, such as the way he falters when he realizes that Katie Nana has left the family. In the wrong hands, this role could’ve been despicable and shallow, but Tomlison handles it carefully enough that one can always see the emotion and suppressed softness in his eyes even long before he has his change of heart.

After an excellently paced entrance that involves effortlessly blowing away the line of nannies outside 17 Cherry Tree Lane, we are finally fully introduced to the magical lady herself, Mary Poppins. It is unbelievable when you remember that this was Julie Andrews’s first film role ever -- she’d previously only been a stage actress, but after finding success in both My Fair Lady and Camelot on stage and being denied the role of Eliza Doolittle in the film adaptation of My Fair Lady (which was later given to Audrey Hepburn), Julie accepted the role of Mary Poppins. Interestingly Julie was the only actor in the movie that P.L. Travers actually expressed some approval for, and honestly, I don’t blame her -- Julie is just flawlessly cast here. The role combines all of her performing strengths -- a great singing voice, expert dancing, inherent charm, sophistication, intelligence, pride, grace, and a touch of sass -- together in a cohesive, memorable character. Mary’s first song, A Spoonful of Sugar, really showcases Julie in her prime, spotlighting her flawless falsetto and precise pitch (as well as her impeccable whistling), and beautifully accompanies some of the at-the-time-revolutionary special effects. Although yes, it’s easy in the modern day to see how the effects were done, they’re never out-of-place or distracting, which is a testament to how much better practical effects can sometimes age in comparison to computer-generated effects. The things that tend to stick out most to my eyes are the green-screened stuff, simply because of how much that particular technique has been used in film and television since Mary Poppins’s release, but the nice thing is that it’s only one of many effects used, which helps in distracting the eye away from getting too used to one effect. Sometimes the effect will be stop-motion; sometimes the effect will be reversing the film; sometimes it’ll be green screen; sometimes it’ll be combining separate shots together. It makes it so that you would have to watch every scene several times and very carefully in order to pick out specific techniques, rather than just being able to go, “That’s fake, that’s fake, aaaaand...that’s fake,” the way you can while watching movies using only CGI.

Speaking of special effects, we have to talk about the sequence that made P.L. Travers the most upset -- the Jolly Holiday segment, set in an animated, living chalk drawing. Not only is the song just excellent, but the colors and energy of the piece are...well, practically perfect! It only serves to plus a song that was already pretty great and turns it into something amazing. Something else I like about Mary and Bert that I actually have to thank P. L. Travers herself for is that they are not romantically involved. Ms. Travers specifically indicated that that should be the case, and for a film made in the 60′s when male and female characters were almost always neatly paired off, it’s really neat that the two characters, despite some faintly teasing, flirty affects, never act like a couple. And really, having had both male and female friends since I was a kid, I really enjoyed seeing an attractive leading woman and man as friends. On the note of Mary, Bert, and songs I love singing along to, I would be very, very amiss if I didn’t also bring up Supercalifragalisticexpeliadocious. It’s really a very short number, but packed into it is so much energy that it feels like it never takes a breath. It’s like a sugar buzz, written into song form -- exuberant and big and loud and energetic...at least until the inevitable decrescendo as the rain wears away Bert’s chalk drawing and Mary, Bert, and the Banks children sadly return to the real world.

Our next adventure with Mary takes us to dear old Uncle Albert’s, where the aforementioned uncle, played by Mad-Hatter-voice-actor Ed Wynn, is rolling in the air laughing. This scene in particular showcases the various practical effects used in the film, whether hanging the actors on wires, putting them on one side of a seesaw, or even flipping the entire set on its side or upside down. Admittedly it’s very obvious that Katie Dotrice and Matthew Garber, who play Jane and Michael Banks, are having a harder time laughing convincingly than Dick van Dyke and Ed Wynn, which honestly is unsurprising given how many times they had to film this particular scene so as to get different shots. One story from the set of this film centers around Matthew Garber, after getting tired of recording the scene, receiving a nickle every time he had to go back onto the wires and in the end earning an “absolute fortune.” For child actors, Katie and Matthew aren’t awful, but it’s fortunate that they’re almost never the sole focus of a scene, as the more talented adult actors understandably overshadow them. And before you try to tell me it’s unfair to hold child actors to the same standards as adult actors, I grant that that’s true, but child actors can still give good performances that make them stand out as individuals...take Georgie Henley in The Chronicles of Narnia or Kirsten Dunst in Interview with a Vampire, for example. And as much as I’ll give Katie Dotrice and Matthew Garber credit for their performances, neither of them quite stands out that way. It’s admittedly a little harder for me to be that critical of Matthew’s performance, though, given that ten years after he retired from acting, he sadly passed away of pancreatitis at the age of 21. It’s very fortunate that thanks to his performance in Mary Poppins, Matthew will be remembered fondly for generations to come.

Walt Disney’s favorite song is frequently cited as Feed the Birds, and honestly, it’s little wonder why. As I touched on earlier, the song sort of sums up what the film Mary Poppins is trying to say -- that the smallest, seemingly insignificant gestures can mean so much. And isn’t that so integral to Disney, or even movies and entertainment in general? We all know of a character in a movie or TV show -- a line in a book -- a song someone wrote -- a simple smile from a stranger -- that somehow brightened up our whole world, that inspired us in ways we could never have imagined. And all of that comes back to sincere, gentle feelings, and how we can share those feelings with others. Mary Poppins, in short, is about compassion...and isn’t it little wonder why such a message resonated with so many people?

After an absolutely disastrous visit to the bank, the Banks children run out into the streets of London alone, where they’re fortunately found and walked home by Bert. Accompanying the jaunt back to Cherry Tree Lane is the Academy-Award-winning song Chim Chim Cheree, which is definitely catchy and, if I may say so, very fun to whistle. I admittedly am a little sour with Mrs. Banks that she doesn’t get a bit of a reality check when she ends up choosing to leave Michael and Jane alone with someone who’s effectively a stranger to her to go help her suffragette friends. It’s just fortunate that the “stranger” ends up being Bert and that Mary Poppins ends up coming back despite it being her day off, as otherwise Mrs. Banks’s negligent parenting could’ve had serious consequences. But the leap in logic does end up leading us into one of the best parts of the movie -- Step in Time!

Step in time, step in time, come on, matey, step in time! Hahaha, yes, this sequence easily has some of the best dancing ever recorded on film, right up there with the choreography in West Side Story and Singin’ in the Rain. It’s especially remarkable when you know that prior to Mary Poppins, Dick van Dyke had had no formal dance training, and yet he keeps up seemingly with ease with dozens of professional dancers. It blows me away every time. And despite the unending repetition of the song, it miraculously never becomes annoying due to the variety of the dance breaks and the high level of energy with which it’s performed. And really, despite the insane length of the song (it running over eight minutes all together), it amazingly never feels like padding. Perhaps it’s because the talent on screen is just so on display and integrated so perfectly with the building orchestrations and well-chosen special effects that it only serves to plus the musical action more and more and more until it finally culminates in the chimney sweeps escaping down the Banks family’s chimney and dancing off into the street.

As fun as everything has been with Mary Poppins and the chimney sweeps, however, Mr. Banks is now in danger of losing his job at the bank, and Tomlinson’s talent is made very evident once again in how, even after seeing all of his character’s mistakes and faults, we still feel very sorry for both him and for his family. Mr. Banks at first feels the impulse to blame Mary Poppins for his change in circumstances, but thanks to some pointed guidance from Bert and some compassion from his children, he comes to see the cracks in the foundation of his world view. And this goes back to the entire family needing help -- Mr. Banks is a very, very flawed man, but at the same time, as Bert brought up to Jane and Michael, he feels he has to handle absolutely everything on his own, and it’s largely thanks to the support of his children that he’s able to face the threat of losing his job with his head held high. Something I love a lot about the part where Mr. Banks makes his way to the bank alone is the Feed the Birds instrumental that accompanies his walk and that comes to a head when Mr. Banks reaches St. Paul’s, only to see the bird woman no longer there. Whether you choose to read it as the bird woman simply having left or having died or whatever else, it’s clear that every opportunity for charity and kindness we are offered is fleeting. Compassion is and will never be a passive thing.

Fortunately everything turns out for the best. Mr. Banks makes up with his children and he, Michael, Jane, and Mrs. Banks go fly a brand new kite in the park, alongside the film’s final song Let’s Go Fly a Kite. Mr. Banks even ends up getting his job back thanks to a joke that he told Dawes, Sr. the night we sacked. Even despite the cheer, however, it doesn’t feel completely saccharine and lacking of substance to me because Mary Poppins does still leave in the end. She doesn’t achieve the same kind of happy ending that she gave the Banks family -- instead she simply takes off into the air, presumably to give some other family help, with a faintly sad smile on her face. It’s remarkably mature of an ending for something that P.L. Travers thought was “all fantasy and no magic.”

Mary Poppins is not that much like the Mary Poppins books originally written by P. L. Travers. Perhaps at some points it sanitizes or misses out on what inspired Ms. Travers to write the books in the first place...but for all that is lost, I’m confident in saying that a lot was also found. There is a lot of heart in this movie, from a family growing and improving through the intervention of a wise, magical woman to finding deeper meaning in the seemingly insignificant things in our everyday lives. This movie is ridiculously fun to watch, but it’s not like the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, where there was never supposed to be a point and it was just there to entertain children. There are lessons one can learn here, and they’re not heavy-handed or pretentious in their delivery. One can learn the value of a sunny disposition, resilience, and empathy in less than stellar circumstances and see how a family full of love is the wealthiest and luckiest of all. And the best part? Those are lessons that both children and adults could stand to learn and re-learn through watching this movie for many, many years to come. Mary Poppins is an immortal figure, and even if this film was made by human hands and so couldn’t possible recreate P. L. Travers’s vision of her, the film is just as eternally relevant itself.

[upontheshelfreviews]

Of all the animated Disney films out there, few have had a history as troubled or as fascinating as The Black Cauldron. Shaped less by the average process of transforming a novel to film and more by the decade, regime, mindset towards animation and internal struggle of power of the studio that made it, The Black Cauldron is considered the black sheep of the canon; those who worked on it have few fond memories of the experience, and the result of all that blood, sweat, tears, and voodoo curses hurled in Jeffrey Katzenberg’s direction is an odd creature Disney is content to let wallow in relative obscurity. To this day it’s looked down upon by all but a few loyal fans who’ve elevated it to semi-cult status. The story of how and why this is is worth a documentary of its own.

As for my thoughts on the film itself…well…

“It’s complicated.”

I honestly can’t talk about my feelings towards The Black Cauldron without putting it into some context first. And there’s a LOT of context that needs to be explained. Hence why I’ve decided to split this review into two parts. This first half will go over the history of the movie and behind the scenes shenanigans, while Part 2, which is the review I know you’ve been anticipating, will be released next week. So if you want to avoid an engaging history lesson that discusses the climate in which The Black Cauldron was created in depth and go right to the film itself, I suggest you return at a later date. Or go watch Waking Sleeping Beauty. It’s a fascinating, personal look into the struggle that shaped Disney’s Renaissance era and they devote a good chunk of the beginning into what went down during the making of The Black Cauldron.

By the 1980’s, Walt Disney had been dead for nearly twenty years and his enterprise as a whole was lacking a good leader to keep everything together. The live-action films were woefully behind the times, Walt Disney World’s recently-opened second park EPCOT wasn’t meeting attendance expectations, and while the animated films were holding up surprisingly well, the department had to deal with their budgets continually being slashed in order to make up for the failures of the previous two branches of the company.

Politics within the animation studio threatened to tear it apart as well. It was time for the stubborn old guard of Walt’s day, which included the revered animators known as the Nine Old Men, to pass on everything they knew to a ragtag band of fresh recruits with newfangled ideas about how Disney animation should be. Needless to say there was plenty of headbutting and saltiness from each end throughout the ordeal. One of the outcomes was that two no-name pipsqueaks decided to jump ship – Don Bluth, who committed high treason in his contemporaries’ eyes by forming his own animation studio (and giving Disney some admittedly much-needed competition to get their act together), and Tim Burton, who was dissatisfied with the direction The Black Cauldron was taking and felt his own inventive if bizarre contributions were going unappreciated. Bluth is still considered a persona non grata in Disney’s circle for his mutiny, but I can imagine their parting ways with Burton going something like this:

“Tell ya what, loser, if you manage to gross over a hundred million with those weird little films of yours, we’ll make that stop-motion singing skeleton picture you always wanted!”

Things came to a head after it was announced that Disney’s next animation project would be Lloyd Alexander’s popular high fantasy series The Chronicles of Prydain – or rather, taking the first two books of said series and combining them into one 80 minute film.

“It worked for Ralph Bakshi!”

“No it didn’t.”

“Come on, what kind of cockamamie studio would we be running if we devoted an entire movie to each entry in some crummy little fairy tale saga? Or hell, splitting one book into two movies to cram everything in! How do you expect to make bank on that? We’re not made of money, you know!”

“Sir, the contractors are here to go over the building of your swimming pool to contain all your other swimming pools.”

“Thank you, Ramsley. Tell them they’ll receive their deposit once we get the box office returns on Herbie Goes Bananas.”

“Of course, sir.”

Now the 80’s were a golden age for cult fantasy flicks. You couldn’t swing a dead elf around without hitting a Labyrinth or a Princess Bride or a Last Unicorn or a kajillion overlooked Baron Munchausens. Disney tried their hand at this genre with fare such as Return to Oz and Something Wicked This Way Comes and I think they’re good films. Like, really, REALLY good films. But unfortunately they share something in common with the previously mentioned fantasy movies, and that is they were major flops upon release. Yet the animators’ toiled away under the sincere hope that The Black Cauldron would be the one to break that losing streak. They were going to do something unique, something that no other animation studio – least of all classic Disney – had ever done before…

…or they might have if the old guard hadn’t kept stepping in to curb their creativity.

I understand where the former generation was coming from; I’d be pretty grouchy too if I had to train these too-big-for-their-britches whippersnappers who were going to replace me, but one of the reasons why the Disney company was this close to declaring bankruptcy in the decades after Walt’s passing was because it was adhering dangerously close to the mentality of “What would Walt do” instead of trying new things and evolving with the times. The very idea of “What would Walt do” is a paradox; none of us – not me, not the most religious of Disney fans, not even the workers who knew him the longest – could ever really know what his course of action on creative decisions might be, and yet the one thing we do know for certain is that Walt Disney always chose to move forward instead of clinging to the formulas or modes of thinking that were deemed the most successful. His whole body of work reflects that. Walt was one of the first studio heads to embrace television as another method of entertainment instead of fearing its growing popularity over theatrical venues. He not only revolutionized the theme park business but he kept building upon what was already there to enhance the experience and bridge the gap between man and machine, rather than just letting Disneyland sit in the middle of Anaheim and churn out money while it gathered dust. And as for features, well, after he was pressured into making sequels to the successful Three Little Pigs which proved to be less popular than the first, he infamously said “You can’t top pigs with pigs!”. Walt hated repeating himself in order to triumph, and he took every opportunity to push the envelope when it came to the story or technical aspects of anything he touched. He dove head first into the new, and if he made a mistake along the way, he learned from it instead of retreating back into the safe zone. Sadly, in a misguided attempt to keep Walt’s legacy alive, the old regime forgot about that and micromanaged every aspect of the company until it became a time capsule instead of a thriving creative business.

Look no further than the artwork made during the concept stage of the film’s production if you need an example. Here’s some of what the new crowd came up with:

Pretty neat, huh? Now here’s what Milt Kahl and some of Walt’s homeboys pressed on to them.

Compare these sketches to something from Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone or any silver-era Disney film. It’s too close to the house style from back then. You’d think it was rejected concept art from one of those films. Poor Tim Burton got the worst of it. He shared some awesome ideas for the Horned King’s henchmen, his gwythaints (aka dragon things), and just about anything having to do with the guy not excluding his own living space. The animators adored them, but management, in a move that would be the last straw for Burton, told him they wouldn’t spare the time or expenses needed to revamp the look for the film.

“Redo a bunch of doodles so it’ll look like a bunch of DIFFERENT doodles?! We’re stretched for cash as it is!”

“Sir, your 30-foot diamond sculpture of yourself has arrived. Where shall I have the men place it?”

“Eh, stick it in the ballroom with all the other diamond sculptures, I’m busy!”

“Very good, sir.”

To further quash morale, the animation department was unceremoniously booted out of the original building it was housed in from back when Walt Disney built the studio. They now worked in what was basically a cramped little trailer park across the street.

Tensions were high all around.

Animation, once the lifeblood of the Disney company, was now on life support.

Certain higher-ups were even questioning if they should pull the plug and turn their focus to the parks and live-action films.

“Hmm, they did make those wacky duck cartoons I liked when I was five…then again, I’ve been wanting my own private archipelago for some time now. Oh, nobody has it harder than I do!”

“Sir, just a reminder, you have a meeting with Misters Eisner, Katzenberg and Wells at four.”

“Who?”

“Your new bosses? The former heads at Paramount Pictures? The men who greenlit hit after hit for film and television including Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley, Raiders of the Lost Ark and the Star Trek motion pictures?”

“…Doesn’t ring a bell.”

Indeed, a solution of sorts came in the form of a sweeping management makeover. Out went Ron Miller, in came Michael Eisner and Frank Wells. Together they were something unprecedented – they ran the company in a manner parallel to Walt and his brother Roy, and it WORKED. See, Walt was the idea man as well as the amicable people person; he was able to generate ideas and see them through thanks to his power of persuasion and ability to inspire others. Roy was the sensible subdued banker who calculated what could and could not be feasibly done and brought Walt’s dreams into reality. Through their lifelong partnership and ability to compromise commerce with art, they founded one of the biggest entertainment enterprises on the planet.

I’ve noticed any time where Disney’s CEO is just one person, they’re rarely able to handle that balance of creativity and finance without leaning heavily towards one aspect – which nine times out of ten is always the financial one. When it’s a partnership like these two pairs, however, the company has flourished. Wells was approachable, knew how to appeal to his employees, a good risk taker and vicariously enjoyed the process of bringing a project to fruition. Eisner was known for having some pretty stupid ideas – ideas he’d carry with him once he was given full command – but his business savvy brought the company out of the red and into a new golden age. Working together they shaped Disney into the company we know it as today. Wells was Walt, and Eisner was Roy; the only difference between them being it was Eisner who was the charming face of the company thanks to his many appearances on TV via holiday specials and the Wonderful World of Disney.

“…which is why it came as such a FUCKING HUGE STAB IN THE BACK when he cut corners in the parks, started the direct-to-video sequel line, and divorced Disney from traditional animation, the greedy bastard!! SHELF SMAAAASH!!!”

Also along for the ride at Eisner’s behest was Jeffrey Katzenberg, who was tasked with overseeing the animation studio. Eisner recognized from his years in television that there was money to be made in marketing nostalgia, and what gets people more nostalgic than Disney animation? This decision proved to be both a blessing and a curse. Sure, Jeffrey was one of the pillars in revitalizing Disney’s animated films, but his adjustment from working with the live-action medium to pencils and paper was rocky at best. He quickly developed a reputation among the staff for being passionate about his work but highly volatile. No one knew what could piss him off one day or make him laugh the next. The one certainty was that Katzenberg was a man with a mission. He wanted to bring Disney animation back to its glory days. To the days when the name Disney meant something. In his own words, to wake Sleeping Beauty.

Joel Hale, producer on The Black Cauldron, scoffed at this. He already didn’t approve of the new animators acting like privileged children and he certainly wasn’t fond of these Hollywood big shots coming in and shaking up the status quo. “Who do they think they are? Sleeping Beauty’s already awake,” he replied.

He was fired almost immediately after.

And so, down one producer, up several more, nearly seven years after production began and several million dollars over budget, The Black Cauldron finally entered the most anticipated and dreaded stage of the Hollywood assembly line, the test screening. When it got to the part with the cauldron born, animator Mike Peraza counted down to the second the moment he knew the screaming in the audience would commence. And he was right on time. According to well-documented testimonies, the children there not only screamed and cried but fled the theater. As for Katzenberg’s reaction to The Black Cauldron as a whole, it wasn’t a far cry from what was happening on screen.

Indeed, the animators succeeded in creating something Disney had never done before – and Katzenberg HATED it. It was too violent, too frightening, and too distant from all things associated with the Disney name. Granted, I can see why he would feel that way; Disney has gone dark before (The Headless Horseman, Fantasia’s Night On Bald Mountain, the entire second half of Pinocchio, you get the idea), but at this rate The Black Cauldron was coming very close to earning Disney its first R rating. Not mincing words here. The film we have today is the freaking Care Bears Movie compared to the original cut that was screened. There were some pretty gory deaths in the action scenes, the Horned King’s own demise was somehow even worse than the one we’re familiar with, and most notably the cauldron born sequence not only had them kill some unnamed henchmen onscreen but explicitly showed one dissolve alive in the mist. To this day, individual cels of that scene circulate the internet as proof of its existence, and I can only imagine the awe and terror of seeing it play out as it was meant to.

Desperate to salvage whatever he could with as minimal mental scarring as possible, Katzenberg demanded the directors cut fifteen minutes from the film. Not any specific fifteen minutes, mind you, just fifteen minutes. It went down almost exactly like the scene from Amadeus where Emperor Joseph praises Mozart’s opera but asks if he could cut a few notes because he thinks there’s too many. He thankfully backs down when Mozart pointedly asks him which notes he wants him to cut. Unfortunately, trimming a couple of seconds here and there wasn’t enough to mollify Katzenberg, and he took it upon himself to fix his own perceived problem.

Pictured: Katzenburg preparing for an editing session.

Katzenberg shocked all present when he said that this film needed to be edited. They protested that there’s no way you can edit an animated movie, to which Katzenberg replied “Of course you can!” In a way, he was correct. All films, including animated ones, can and should be edited to some degree; either to give a moment some breathing space or get to the point of a scene. The problem is, Katzenberg was NOT an experienced editor in his own right.

Imagine you’re given a fine steak to eat and someone offers to cut it for you. They trim off the fatty bits first, then carve it into equal portions. Seems good, right? But then they start to cut away parts they think may have too much gristle, or look burnt or undercooked, or has one peppercorn too many sprinkled on – parts that you might actually enjoy and would make the experience of enjoying this meal more complete – and you’re forced to watch as they turn a culinary treat into a dinner with an unfortunate amount of its flavor and meat stolen from you. Once you recognize where Katzenberg made those haphazard cuts and alterations, you see the film in a new light, like that steak. You’re left wondering what could have been, how a pretty decent movie could have become a potentially great one.

And how is it that I am privy to such arcane truths?

Because, hand to God, my boyfriend managed to procure a shooting script of The Black Cauldron that was produced before Katzenberg did his hack job.

What, you don’t believe me? Then tremble before me and despair, you heretics!

“BRING. IT. ON.”

• TO BE CONTINUED •

Artwork by Charles Moss.

Milt Kahl and Andreas Deja production sketches courtesy of Andreas Deja’s blog Deja View, which I can’t recommend enough.

October Review: The Black Cauldron (1985) PART 1 Of all the animated Disney films out there, few have had a history as troubled or as fascinating as The Black Cauldron.

[toukenra]

Saniwa’s Birthday Headcanons

Hello everyone!

I hope you guys are doing well! I am so so sorry that I have been unable to post anything for the past weeks or so. I have both good news and bad news. Good news is that I have now returned to college along side half a million other students in my province who had been affected. The only downside is that our school year is now compacted and I will only be able to have a week–maybe less–of holidays until we return to continue our semester.

Anyway, enough about me. I have written this head head cannon as a gift to those who will be celebrating their birthday in the next few days/weeks/month. Mine was just 2 days ago~

Please do enjoy.

-Mod Catharia.

For once the Saniwa was allowed to sleep in a few more hours and was woken up by Shoukudaikiri and Taikogane who presented them breakfast in bed.

A few swords passing by would peek into their master’s bedroom to greet them both a good morning and a happy birthday.

It would be such a boisterous and lively morning but a smile would be plastered on the Saniwa’s face the whole day.

Younger-looking words such as Imanosturugi and Houchou would just walk in their master’s bedroom in the pretense of greeting them but are genuinely curious to see what the two other swords had prepared–at the same time hoping to get a bite of whatever their master was having.

Obviously the Sainwa would not mind sharing a few bites but Shokudaikiri would repremand his comrades who would be taking advantage of the situation.

All the swords would eventually be forced to leave their master’s room once Hasebe comes and shoos them out.

Secretly, Hasebe had initially prepared a speech about how blessed they were to have an amazing and kind master but seeing as their Aruji as still in their pj’s, he would hold off

Instead, he would just shortened his speech into less than a minute before letting them know that they would be waiting outside to accompany them for the day.

Once the Citadel’s master is dressed appropriately for the day, they would be immediately bombarded with hugs and greetings once more when they walk though the hallways.

The more openly affectionate charges such as Akita, Mutsunokami, Namazuo, Yamabushi and Iwatooshi are more likely to hug master happily as a greeting.

On the other hand, the more timid swords such as Maeda, Gokotai, and Tonbokiri would give their beloved Aruji a bright smile as well a small hand crafted gift like a ningyō (human Japanese paper dolls) that looked quite similar to their master

A few aloof swords such as Ookurikara, Honebami and  Oodenta would just stand nearby staring at their master before walking away–the ever faint traces of Sakura petals surrounding them indicating that they were in a good mood even if they were scowling.

Throughout the day, the Saniwa allowed visitors to come visit them in their office–happily letting whoever interrupt their paperwork much to Hasebe’s displeasure.

Small trinkets and ornaments are created by the Toushirous and Kunihiros and then presented to the master of the Citadel in which they graciously accepted.

A number of vases filled with various wild flowers were perched on the Saniwa’s desk and a few nearby tables were provided by the Samonji brothers.

Different books about poems, warfare, flower arrangement, and medicinal herbs in courtesy of Kasen, Doudanuki, Hachisuka and Yagen appeared in a small neat stack on desk.

And lastly, small bowl of Coffee Jelly was presented by Azuki as a snack

Later on in the evening, the Saniwa was presented with a few parcels by Horikawa, Daihannya and Hachisuka claiming that their master is invited to attend dinner in the Main Hall.

Packed in the boxes was a whole new outfit which consisted of a formal kimono, an obi, socks as well as a few accessories.

Shortly, Jirotachi, Kashuu and Midare entered their master’s room as they were struggling to change into the new clothes and  insist on assisting them in getting ready or else they would be late.

Once the Saniwa makes their way to the Main Hall, they are greeted by rather loud bang when they open the door, realizing that they had been covered with streamers and confetti

The smiling faces of her charges and a rather loud and lively ‘happy birthday’ rang through the room with Tsurumaru, Sohayanotsurugi, Kikkou’s faces being quite close to their master’s own–the first one, asking if they were genuinely surprised.

The master is then ushered to their seat and the swords surround them, singing happy birthday although a little off tune. Shortly after, dinner is immediately served.

Soon enough, Shokudaikiri alongside Azuki presents a rather modern type of dessert– Almond Honey Cake with Strawberry Ripple Cream Icing–earning them much admiration and awe from both the Saniwa and the other swords.

While dessert is being handed out, a group of swords announced that they had prepared something for their master.A small play had been devised–directed by Kasen and Daihannya–which composed of the Sanjou swords, the Genji brothers,  Kogarasumaru, Uguisumaru and a rather reluctant Ookanehira. Surprisingly, the swords have decided to adopt an old classic tale: Cinderella

Kogarasumaru as the Evil Stepmother

Kogitsunemaru as Cinderella

Mikazuki as the Fairy god mother

Ishikimaru as the King

Imanosturugi and Iwatoshi as Cinderella’s animal friends

Higekiri as Anastasia

Hizamaru as Drizella

Uguisumaru as Prince Charming

The little play started out quite well until the next few minutes passed when it inched towards borderline chaotic

“Step sisters! I have a letter from the Royal Palace has arrived for you!” Kogitsunemaru exclaimed as he tried to push Mikazuki’s borrowed bandana over his head.

“Give it to me!” Hizamaru snatched the envelope from the fox’s hands but it was also immediately taken away his brother “Bro-Sister!”

“Ahaha~! I will be the one to open it!” Higekiri laughed but jolted when the letter was plucked out of his hands by Kogarasumaru

“Look! We are invited to the Prince’s ball at the Royal Palace!” The oldest Tachi hid his smile behind a fan. “Quick we must get you two dressed!!”

“I-I wish I can come along too…” The silver-haired Tachi wiped at the imaginative tears in the corner of his eyes with his sleeve.

“You? Come along to the ball?” Hizamaru smirked as he flipped his non-existent long hair rather vainly.

“You must be joking…” The elder brother dressed as the eldest sister covered his smirk behind a fan.

“You may come along…” The citadel’s eldest sword began as her began to walk out of the scenery. “…Once you finish all the internal affairs before we leave!”

“…I think the proper word is ‘chores.’…” someone commented in the back

“Hush!”

“Shhh!”

“Have a great night working, Cinderella!” Hizmaru taunted as the three walked out of the scenery.

As the scene began to pan over, everyone could hear the Genji bros. talking

A soft whisper of “Why are you following me? Who are you again?” was shortly heard from Higekiri caused Hizamaru to quickly run out of the room, covering his face wailing “How could you brother!?”

The acting swords continue on with their little play while the guests stared at the two siblings who were quickly running out of the room

Throughout the play, laughter escapes the Saniwa and the other swords as the actors acted and wore rather disney-esque clothing–no one knowing where they ever got it

Mikazuki eventually enters the scene, wrapped in a cloak that looks a little too similar to Yamanbagiri’s’s own, introducing himself as Cinderella’s fairy godmother.

“Do not cry, Kogirella…”

“I-It’s Cinderella, old man.” Kogistunemaru corrected but only got a shrug from the raven-haired Tachi. “A-Anyway, I want to go to the ball…It’s too late for me now.”

“It’s never too late!” Mikazuki smiled brightly as he began to tug at his comrade’s clothes, intent on getting him changed. “I will help you get to the ball! All you need to do is strip.”

From there onwards, the play just became filled with amusing side comments and slight changes to the play

Once the play ends, the group is rewarded with a round of applause and cheers with the Saniwa standing up to give them a standing ovation.

If the Saniwa was of age or not, they are entitled to a drink…or a litre at least according to Jirotachi who had almost finished 2 bottles of sake already

The party would carry into the night and even a few of the Tantous had been able to sneak a few cups of  sake before being forced to got to bed by their elder brothers or guardians

The drinking party would carry into the night…until out of pure drunkenness the Saniwa may have started to challenge others to a dance battle…

Surprisingly, Yamanbagiri, Ichigo and Shishou accepted the challenge–using the alcohol as an excuse for their erratic movements

80% of the swords had passed out in the Main Hall or in the hallways having been too inebriated to return to their rooms

On the other hand, the Saniwa had most likely been tucked into bed safely by more responsible swords like Horikawa or Tomoe

The next morning, everyone has been allowed to sleep in for a bit and had painkillers ready by their bedside for those who had a horrible hang over.

All Campaigns, Internal Affairs and Resource Gathering is Cancelled.

…Can we just imagine Ichigo with his tie wrapped around his head sleeping on a half-dressed Yamanbagiri with his cloak missing and Shishou cuddling against the teal-haired Tachi drooling all over his sleeve?

The Saniwa hopes that maybe next year, the swords will adapt another Disney movie as a play…maybe convince Izuminokami to play Rapunzel? Or have Akashi act as Sleeping Beauty…??

[dukereviewsmovies]

Duke Reviews: Robin Hood

Hello, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews Where We Are Continuing Our Look At Disney...

By Talking About Disney's 21st Animated Feature, Robin Hood...

No Synopsis Today, Let's Dive On Into Robin Hood...

We Start With The Opening Of A Book As We Meet Our Narrator, Allan-A-Dale (Who's Not Only Voiced By Roger Miller But Is A Rooster)...

Who (After Singing Our Intro Song, Which You Just Heard) Introduces The Tale Of Robin Hood (Voiced By Brian Bedford) And Little John (Voiced By Oh, What A Shocker, Phil Harris) With Our Next Song...

(Start At 0:13)

And It's A Good Song, Probably One Of The Most Memorable Of This Movie...

Anyway, One Day While Robin And John Are In A Tree, A Royal Coach With Prince John (Voiced By Peter Ustinov) And Sir Hiss (Voiced By Terry Thomas) Passes Through Sherwood....

So, Knowing That The Carriage Is Laiden With Riches, They Decide To Disguise Themselves As Fortune Tellers In An Attempt To Rob John Of His Gold...

Placing A Bounty On Robin And John's Heads, John Makes The Sheriff Of Nottingham (Voiced By Pat Buttram) His Personal Tax Collector, Taxing Everyone In Nottingham Including A Famiy Of Rabbits...

But Luckily, Robin Gets Back Some Of Their Money And Even Gives A Little Rabbit Named Skippy, His Hat And Archery Kit Of His Own For His Birthday...

Going Out To Test It, Skippy Ends Up Firing An Arrow Into The Grounds Of Maid Marian's Castle. Sneaking Inside, Skippy And The Children Meet Maid Marian (Voiced By Monica Evans) And Lady Cluck (Voiced By Madame Morrible From Wicked)...

There, Marian Reveals That Her And Robin Were Childhood Sweethearts But She Has Not Seen Robin For Years, But Despite That, Cluck Tells Her Not To Give Up On Her Love For Robin...

Visiting Robin In Sherwood, Friar Tuck Tells Him That Prince John Is Hosting An Archery Tournament And That The Main Prize Is A Kiss From Maid Marian So With Robin Disguising Himself As A Stork He Enters The Tournament While Little John Disguises Himself As The Duke Of Chutney To Get Near Prince John...

But As The Old Saying Goes "Fool Me Once, Shame On Me But Fool Me Twice, Shame On You" And Robin's Identity Gets Discovered By Prince John Who Has Him Arrested To Be Sentenced To Execution, Despite Maid Marian's Pleas...

But When Little John Threatens Prince John, It Leads To A Fight Between Prince John's Soliders And The Townspeople, All Of Which Escape To Sherwood Forest....

Later That Night, Robin And Maid Marian Fall In Love Again As Our Next Song Plays...

And It's All Right...

It's Not Very Memorable, In Fact I'm Not Even Sure I Would Call It A Song. But Still If You Like It I Guess It's All Right...

Meanwhile, The Townsfolk Hold A Troubadour Festival Leading To Our Next Song...

And It's A Good Song, I Absolutely Enjoy It And I Can't Help But Dance To It Every Time I Hear It...

Hearing The Music From His Castle, Prince John Is Enraged To The Point That He Raises The Taxes So Badly That Half Of The Townsfolk Who Couldn't Afford To Pay Went To Jail, This Leads To Our Next Song...

(Start At 1:53)

And It's Okay...

While Again Not Very Memorable, It's Just Not My Favorite Song Of This Movie..

It Gets Even Worse When The Sheriff Of Nottingham Takes A Coin From Friar Tuck's Church, He Lashes Out At The Sheriff For Taking From The Church, Which Leads To Tuck Being Arrested For Attacking A Lawman, Interphering With His Legal Duties And High Treason To The Crown...

And Knowing That Tuck Is In League With Robin Hood, Prince John Orders Friar Tuck To Be Hung, Knowing That Robin Will Come And Rescue Him...

However, When They Learn Of John's Plot, They Decide To Sneak In At Night So, Little John Can Get The Prisoners Out While Robin Steals All Of Prince John's Money But When Hiss Spots Robin Fleeing Chaos Insues..

Little John And Skippy Fear That Robin Is Lost But He Eventually Surfaces Safely After Using A Reed As A Breathing Tube As Prince John Sucks His Thumb When He Realizes He Burnt Down His Mother's Castle...

Shortly Afterwards, King Richard Returns To England And Places His Brother And Sir Hiss Under Arrest As He Allows Maid Marian To Marry Robin Hood, Turning That Outlaw Into An In-Law...

Now There's Something I Wish I Didn't See, Anyway, That's Robin Hood And It's Okay

While Not Really A Bad Film, It Does Have It's Moments And Good Songs, It's Just That Of All The Films In What I Like To Call The Silver Age Of Disney Animation, It's Just Not My Favorite Of The Bunch...

But I Will State That If There Was A Film That Is Like The Status Of Our Nation Now, This Is It...

People Are Sick And Dying Due To Coronavirus And Our Government Is Overtaxing Us All, While The Phoney King Of Washington Sits On His Throne, Sucking His Thumb And Crying Out For His Mom...

Anyway, Either Way I Say See It...

Now Next Week On Duke Reviews, We Are Not Continuing Our Look At Disney, Why? Because This Thursday Is The Beginning Of October And You Know What That Means....

It's Monsterween Time...

But Don't Worry, We'll Be Back In November With A Couple More Disney Reviews Before Moving Into Duke's Holiday Reviews In December

But, Till Then, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

[brokengem]

For the Dancing and the Dreaming

Fandom: Descendants Word Count: 1923 Pairing: Evie/Harry Hook Other Characters: (minor) Uma, Gil and Mal. Others are mentioned. Notes: This is super sappy, cause I’m a hopeless romantic and all that jazz. This is probably considered a song-fic. Not the original version of the song, but this is how I was imaging it. [Yes I was constantly listening to this while I wrote this little one-shot.] I highly suggest checking out his other covers as well. He does amazing Disney and other animated cover songs. Anyway, feel free to let me know what you thought! [Go here for the AO3 version]

The ball was at its peak, dozens of couples dancing and laughing in the middle of the dance floor. The night felt young and yet Evie found herself anyway from the grand party, gazing out into the night sky. Not that she didn’t want to be inside with the others. Any time spent with her friends was precious, but she needed a moment to herself.

Her feet ached, Harry barely allowing her a chance to rest since they arrived. A smile came to her lips as she thought of the sea loving man. Funny how life continued to surprise her. Four years ago she would have laughed in the face of anyone who’d told her she would be in a fully committed relationship with Harry Hook. The hot-headed pirate had been nothing but a thorn in her side from the first day he was pardoned and allowed in Auradon.

Always the handful, his beginning months in Auradon had been hell. Uma and Gil had assimilated themselves well enough into their new lives, but Harry was another story. He had taken some time, the man far to feral compared to his friends. Only two weeks had passed before there were talks of returning the teen to the Isle.

‘Far too dangerous,’ Fairy Godmother had whispered.

‘He’ll kill someone if left to his own devices,’ the former King declared.

But Ben, sweet King Ben, wasn’t having it. He listened to every word said, took them all in for consideration, but he wasn't one to give up. He had faith and a plan. Tutoring he had called it, but everyone knew it was nothing more than a glorified babysitting job. A job that had ultimately found it’s way in Evie’s hands.

‘Mal and I have royal duties to attend to,’ he had smiled apologetically, ‘Jay would rather snap his neck. Carlos already refused. Lonnie has her own duties and Jane is far to skittish to handle him, not that Fairy Godmother would let her even she did agree.’

She had tried to decline, but there was no one else to offer up as a substitute. In the end she had been Ben’s last hope and she gave in. To say their adventure together only had a few bumps was the biggest understatement. Harry had been hostile. He quickly learned  Evie was not going to deal with the poor attitude he continued to  throw at her. Instead she forced him to focus on his studies and to try and avoid as much trouble as possible. If his temperament got the better of him it wasn’t above her to threaten him with sweet violently laced words of her own.   

Harry seemed to forget she was from the Isle. She knew how to be bad. Magic was forbidden but there were many ways to poison a person without the use of a magic spellbook. She still remembered the quickest flash of fear that had appeared in his ocean blue eyes as she calmly delivered the threat. The smirk that came to his lips a second after held silent respect. All sessions that followed brought the slightest of shifts to their relationship.

“There you are, Blue. I found her!” a voice shouted from behind her. Evie jumped despite recognizing the voice as Uma’s, her heart threatening to burst from her chest in fright at being torn so harshly from her thoughts.

Scowl on her face, Evie attempted to turn around. Her action stopped by a pair of strong hands. She just made out the sound of Mal’s laugh as her vision darkened, a blindfold tied tightly over her eyes.

“What is-” she tried to strangle out of the grip on her, “Uma, what are you doing?”

“We have a surprise for you, Princess,” she could hear the smirk in Uma’s voice, “so just relax and let us take you.”

“When Harry finds out-” a gag wound over her mouth, her words nothing but muffled huffs. Oh Uma and whoever was helping her were going to pay for this.

“She all secure?” Uma asked.

“Yeah, I got her,” Gil replied. Of course, she should have known.

“Is all this really necessary?” Mal asked, “I’m pretty sure she would have come willingly.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” Uma snapped back.

Evie tried to relax in Gil’s hold, knowing the burly man would never hurt her. The situation only made her tenser. She had no idea what was going on or why Uma and Mal were working together in her kidnapping. She’d wait till they took her where they planned and give them hell when she was freed. She wasn’t going willingly, the heel of her shoes alternatively dug into Gil’s side as they walked. His grunts of pain certainly helped to make her feel better.     

                                                    ~X~

It seemed like hours before Gil finally set her gently down. Taking advantage of being grounded, Evie stomped on his foot. The man yelp as he released her. She lost her bearings for only a moment before she straightened herself. Evie quickly removed the blindfold and gag, eyes narrowing dangerously on the smirking Uma and sheepish looking Mal.

“What the hell is your problem?”

Uma’s smirk only grew wider, “like I said we have a surprise for you.”

“For the record,” Mal cleared her throat, “the blindfold and gag were all Uma’s idea! I was just going to ask you.”

Evie shook her head, at the moment not caring to hear whose fault it was. All she wanted to know was why and where were they.

“Are we at Belle’s Habor?”

“They made it!” She heard Carlos yell from somewhere behind her.

“Not yet,” Mal grabbed her hand before she could turn to check on him, a blinding light illuminating the docks. Her friends began to appear from different locations around them. Lonnie and Jane looked beside themselves with excitement as they each came into view, clearing knowing something she didn’t. Evie’s confusion only grew as she caught sight of Snow White and her Charming standing besides Queen Belle and King Adam as they smiled fondly at her.

“What’s going on?”

“Now you can look behind you,” Mal smiled softly, giving her hand a squeeze before releasing her. Evie’s brows knitted together, catching Snow White’s eye once more before turning around.

A small gasp escaping her at the sight.

“I’ll swim and sail on savage seas,”

The Lost Revenge, now fully repaired and functional, was hooked to the dock. Harry sat in front of a beautiful black piano staring at ivory keys as he sang. He looked as handsome as ever in the dark red suit she’d made him, if moreso illuminated beneath the brilliant lighting. She barely took note of Jay, Carlos, Ben, Gil, Chad and Doug smiling from around him.

“With ne’er a fear of drowning. And gladly ride the waves of life,” He took a deep breath. She could see how nervous her fearless pirate was despite him not once looking up at her, “If you would marry me...”

Harry took another shaky breath. Her hands shot up to cover her mouth as he continued to sing. Eyes closed, Harry began to play. Not many knew of Harry’s talents with the piano and as far as she knew only Uma, Gil and herself had ever had the pleasure to hear him.

“No scorching sun nor freezing cold, will stop me on my journey. If you will promise me your heart, and love for all eternity.”

Captivated, Evie began to slowly walk to him. Everything seemed to melt away around them with each step she took, he was all she saw at that very moment. It was just them beneath the beautiful star filled sky.  

“To love and kiss and sweetly hold, for the dancing and the dreaming,” the manner in which he played grew more and more confident with each stroke of the keys, “Through all life’s sorrows and delights, I’ll keep your laugh inside me.”

She’d never heard anything so beautiful, the pirate singing so sweetly despite knowing it was going against everything he stood for. Evie stopped when she finally came to the stand besides the piano, her hand resting on top of the beautiful instrument near his prize silver hook.

“I can not bring you rings of gold, I can not write you poetry. But I would keep you from all harm, if you will stay beside me.”

He still hadn’t looked at her, his eyes firmly closed and yet here she was unable to look at anything but him. She zoned in for a moment to catch the men around them softly joining in. Harry’s voice only grew stronger as he continued.

“I’ll swim and sail on savage seas, with ne’er a fear of drowning. And gladly ride the waves of life, if you would marry me.”

Not wanting to disturb him, Evie carefully slide onto the space beside him. Tears of pure joy began to well in her eyes as she watched him, her pirate king moving with the music he created.

“No scorching sun nor freezing cold, will stop me on my journey. If you will promise me your heart, and love for all eternity.”

Ocean blue eyes finally opened and turned to her, the smile he only carried for her on his lips. She flushed beneath his gaze, feeling all the emotions he only ever allowed her to see. Evie itched to touch him. To answer his question, but she allowed him to continue. Listening as he poured all the love her had for her into his final words.

“So promise me your heart and love for all eternity.”

The song ended with a hauntingly beautiful melody, Harry not once looking away from her. His chest heaved as he finished, his hand reaching out for her. Evie nuzzled her cheek into his hand, eyes fluttering shut at the contact she’d been itching for.

“No need to cry, Love,” he whispered, drawing her closer, his thumb wiping at the tears leaking for her eyes.

She laughed despite herself, “how could I not?” Evie met his gaze once more, “that was beautiful, Harry.”

“Sappy be a better word, Princess,” he smirked, winking playfully at her. There was her pirate, covering up his nervousness and embarrassment with teasing words and flirty gestures.

She wasn’t going to let him hide now. Not when he played the most beautiful song for her in front of their friends and family. “You never give yourself enough credit.”

“Aye, ye be right. Ah don’t,” Harry sighed, shaking his head. He straightened and reached for his hook, warmth radiating from him as he stared down at her, “put a pirate out of his misery? What say ye, Princess?”

His hook appeared between them, a gorgeous ring stubbed in rubies and sapphires on its curve. She silently wondered how she had missed it when she first arrived, but knew she had been to captivated by his words to care for anything else.

“Yes,” she breathlessly answered, “Yes, for all eternity.”

He choked out a laugh at having his own song used against him. Harry carefully removed the ring and slide it on her waiting finger. Hands cupping her face he pulled her forward, capturing her lips fiercely with his own. Evie matched the intensity of his kiss with her own, her hands covering his.

Lost in each other, the pair took no heed to the cheers and whistles around them. All that matter was they belonged to one another and nothing was going to tear them apart.

[gourmetbooty]

Katsuhira Yuuta+Shuuta

Hi, I thought I’d make a post about my Tokyo Ghoul oc, Katsukira Yuuta, and his dynamics with Tsukiyama Shuu!

100% japanese, 27 years old, born 17th june, full ghoul, ukaku

wavy brown hair (see Harry Styles 2017), dark brown eyes, full lips, earrings (tiny and black/silver, nothing too flashy), 1,90m tall (6’2” i think??)

pretty fit but not over the top, likes football and sometimes roller skating for fun

small heart shaped mole under his right ear, Shuu loves it

bisexual, realized it when he was 18 but has always been pretty chill about it

backstory: relatively normal/happy childhood, his father died when he was 16 because of the CCG, that’s why he accepts to join GOAT so easily

his mom died when he was 22, she was a very positive female figure in his life 

got along well with both his parents, especially his mom

momma’s boy

dropped out after 2 years of university to help his mom, studied Biology

likes animals and plants

keeps a “bad boy” appearance to seem tough but he’s just really sweet and has a lot of love to give

likes books, most of them are similar to Shuu’s tastes

fav tv shows: the walking dead, naruto, game of thrones, sailor moon

fav animal is polar bear, fav color is blue

he often wears his dad’s leather jacket

considers his motorcycle as his child and calls her Baby

usually cheerful and flirty, especially with someone he likes

has had 2 girlfriends and 1 boyfriend, but it was never something serious

he doesn’t cry often, except with the lion king, the last Indiana Jones movie, the wizard of oz and armageddon

has had an emo phase at 13-15

he doesn’t mind studying, as long as it’s not too much

before joining GOAT he worked at a genius bar in an apple store, he likes computers, phones and tech in general

what he feels for Shuu kinda scares him at first bc he has never felt something like this for anyone, but he quickly accepts his feelings and learn to love him, and he promises to himself that he will help him in any way he can bc he loves this boy so much

knows like 2 words in French but wants shuu to teach him

he just wants shuu to wear glasses and a sweater vest, giving him the professor vibe

doesn’t mind kaneki but he kinda doesn’t like him at the same time for what he did to Shuu

nihsiki and banjou are his bros

has never rly built a relationship with touka

has instantly fell in love with Hinami and after a while he begins to consider her sort of like his lil sister, they bond over disney movies

is a pretty skilled fighter but still needs some polishing, so sometimes he spars with nishiki, naki or someone else, but mostly Shuu

who wouldn’t mind flirting if they weren’t currently fighting

Now I’ll list some headcanons I talked about with @sandypenguin6 !!!

sometimes Shuu wears Yuuta’s leather jacket and Yuuta adores it

after a while Shuu gets more comfortable and initiates physical contact gives Yuuta kisses and sits in his lap

Shuu loves holding hands

he’s never had much physical contact so he glues himself to Yuuta

pirate!Yuuta and mermaid!Shuu is a thing

Shuu would lure him in with singing but he’s too cute to kill so he drags him back to the shore

Yuuta wakes up and sees something disappearing, he wants to know what saved him so he comes back to the shore every day until he meets Shuu

sometimes he goes mailing alone and Shuu follows him in the water

Yuuta: “did you clean your pants with windex bc i can see myself in them” Shuu: “i’m leaving you”

Yuuta uses terrible pick-up lines and Shuu looks at him with murder in his eyes but at the same time he thinks “oh god i can’t not fuck him”

during the first days of their relationship Yuuta is pretty sure it’s not gonna be anyhting too serious, then he wakes up one morning, looks at this beautiful sleeping angel in his arms and thinks “uh oh”

they’d do anything to protect each other

during a fight a dove has Shuu cornered and says “your friend won’t save you now” and Shuu just decks him and yells “he’s my boyfriend you dumb slut”

Mirumo would be so happy his son got over that “goth young man”

he’d be so supportive, even after Shuu tells him Yuuta has a motorcycle

he’d come back a day later with condoms and lube and tell Shuu “you’e now an adult, be responsible” bc he’s not a regular dad, he’s a cool dad

Yuuta would be a little intimidated by him at first but they’d get along really well

he’d show him Shuu’s baby and teenage pictures while Shuu screams in the background

Shuu has told Yuuta some adventures of his Gourmet days, like that time he ore off and ate a councilman’s balls, and Yuuta is impressed

“i also tried to eat kaneki-kun while he ate someone else” “you didn’t tell me you were this kinky”

Shuu feels undeserving at first bc he’s still not over Kaneki and Yuuta deserves someone who can love him unconditionally, but Yuuta shushes him, holds him and kisses his worries away

sometimes Shuu doesn’t cry but he looks for Yuuta, pulls him in bed and climbs onto him like a koala without a word

Shuu is confused because he’s not used to receiving this kind of affection, or affection at all, but he loves it

when Yuuta finds out he makes sure to kiss him and touch him all over to assume him that he’s there

Shuu would be the first one to say i love you! Yuuta has known for a while but didn’t tell him because he didn’t wanna pressure him, but one day Shuu blurts it out and Yuuta pushes him against the walls and repeats “i love you, i love you” between kisses

Shuu manager to get over Kaneki in 2/3 months but he’s still sensitive when he’s around him so Yuuta holds his hand to remino him that he’s there

if they could they’d elope to get married bc Shuu thinks it’s romantic

Kaneki is a little disappointed and he thinks of Shuu as “the one who got away” but he’s happy that Shuu is finally happy

Kaneki is still super important to Shuu and he’s very attached to him, just not romantically anymore

Yuuta feels a little threatened not by the actual Kaneki, but the image of him Shuu has created in his mind, but he gets over that quickly and Shuu has eyes only for Yuuta

Shuu is late for a meeting and when he comes in he looks at Yuuta first and Yuuta knows there’s nothing to be worried about

sometimes Yuuta smokes but he eventually stops for Shuu

Shuu is weak every time Yuuta wakes up with light stubble and begs him not to shave

if Yuuta gets sick he insists that he isn’t and tries to seduce Shuu by seductively rubbing Vaporub on his chest and making noises, and of course Shuu gives in

if Shuu were sick Yuuta would become a super mom

Shuu is a cuddle monster

Yuuta knows that he’s Shuu first boyfriend and he tries to make every experience the best he’ll ever have

“i’m happy i’m your first” “and hopefully the last too!”

as of marriage proposals, Yuuta would think of something super elaborate and romantic but he’d just blurt it ut during a makeout session and tries to ignors but Shuu tackles him and accepts his proposal

the ring is silver with a small diamond in the center

Mirammo would be crying tears of joy, Hinami is super excited and Nishiki jokingly asks Yuuta if he’s really sure, Yuuta looks at Shuu adoringly and says “yes, 100% sure”

a few days later Kaneki calls Shuu and gives him a handmade black yarn bracelet bc he wants to congratulate Shuu and indirectly tell him that he’s sorry

Shuu thanks him and tells him that he has to move on but Kaneki will still be a huge part of his life and they hug tightly

one day when they’re not together yet Yuuta walks in a room while Shuu is working out and doing the splits and Yuuta has an aneurysm

Yuuta tries to play it cool and starts doing lift but he’s showing off for Shuu and even adds groans that sound like sex noises before taking off his shirt and splashing water all over his chest

Shuu starts salivating and he has to get up to wrap his sweatshirt around his waist bc of a “little” problem

the next workout Shuu wears a pair of booty shorts so tiny they might as well be slips and bends over right in front of Yuuta who combusts

hey’d start a seduction contest, seeing who’ll break first

one time Shuu arrived late for a meeting, there were no seats left and sat down in Yuuta’s lap, who can’t concentrate at all

NSFW headcanons!

Shuu is inexperienced so Yuuta always takes it slow and makes sure Shuu is super comfortable

if only Shuu gets to finish and he’s tired, Yuuta would go to the bathroom to finish himself off and come back for cuddles

Shuu loves hickeys

Shuu is loud during sex bc he’s not used to it and it feels so good, so Yuuta is always shushing or kissing him but it doesn’t work and if there’s someone in the rooms next to theirs they hear everything

when Yuuta is behind him Shuu mons louder just so that Yuuta would cover his mouth with a hand and be a little rougher

when he tops for the first time Shuu is always asking Yuuta if he’s okay, if it feels good and Yuuta praises him the whole time

afterwards Shuu complains that it’s too tiring and collapses on Yuuta, who just chuckles and kisses his forehead

Shuu’s flexibility comes in handy

they love leasing the fuck out of each other, both during sex and also with things like making bedroom eyes at each other in public and playing footsie under a table/touching each other's thighs/ass

Yuuta has an unhealthy obsession with Shuu’s ass and more often than he’d like to admit Shuu finds himself with bite marks on his asscheeks

[houseofswords]

Gael Fletcher

Theme song / Theme song (fallen) / Moodboard / Moodboard (fallen)

Divinity: Gelahran (songs, navigation, tracking, the cardinal directions, patron of the lost and forgotten)

 

BASIC INFORMATION

Full name: Gael Morrigan Fletcher Gender: Male Age: 33 when he disappeared and hasn’t gotten any older since Birthday: 11th January

Myers-Briggs: ENFP Zodiac: Capricorn Tarot card: Five of Cups

Nationality: American Birthplace: Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Sexuality: Homosexual Relationship status: Why can’t things go back to how they were?

Occupation: ‘Ghost’ (previously: theatre actor, ballet dancer)

 

APPEARANCE

Height: 5’7” Weight: 140lbs

Hair: Light brown and soft, shoulder-length, usually tied back into ponytail or messy bun. Eye colour: White-blue

Physical characteristics: He’s built like a whip—slender, wiry and surprisingly muscular. Strongly resembles his son, Ash, with a similar youthful, heart-shaped face. His eyes are almond-shaped and sultry and he has full, pink lips. His fingers are long and thin. Other traits: Pierced tongue and bellybutton, with a silver stud in each, as well as a piercing in each ear. Tattoos: Two geometric tattoos encircling his arms, one on his right bicep and the other on his left wrist.

Clothes: Typically a tee or baseball shirt with jeans or capris. He likes plaid flannels in cooler weather. Wears a pendant on a cord around his neck, a crystal Ash found which is the same colour as their eyes, and likes crystal bracelets too. Often goes barefoot.

 

TRAITS

Personality: A cheerful, kindhearted soul with a knack for making people feel better about themselves, he goes out of his way to lend support and comfort to those who need it. He’s highly sympathetic and easily connects with and understands the feelings of others. Easily excitable and amused by the smallest things, he always finds something interesting to look at in the world around him, whether he’s out on the beach or sitting in a waiting room. His childlike enthusiasm and fondness for pranks, however, hides an old soul burdened with wisdom and stories.

Motives: Gael only ever wanted to be happy. To settle down with his family and just… live, until the end of his days. He put too much faith in whispered promises that everything would be alright. But now there is no end, and things seem ever more out of his reach. He can’t deny what he did or what he has become—looking in the mirror every day reminds him of that.

Values: No one is perfect. He tried to be, once upon a time, and it only ended in misery. But it’s these mistakes that make us human, and he’d like to think that there’s still a little human in him somewhere. He wants to be for others what they were for him once, a support, a rock to hold onto in rough seas, and maybe they won’t slip beneath the waves the way he did. He believes that everyone deserves forgiveness, a second chance—and hopes that he does, too.

Fears: Cleithrophobic, dislikes being shut in and unable to go where he pleases, uncomfortable with shut doors and being restrained. But the only thing that truly terrifies him is the thought of losing Ash.

Weaknesses: Despite his travels and experience, Gael is far too trusting and believes that everyone is capable of good if given the support they need. He doesn’t really expect that anyone has a reason to hurt him, as he has little of material worth to give. The existence of evil is a visceral shock to him and he tries to ignore it until his next painful reminder.

Quirks: Often sings or hums to himself under his breath while focused on something, not always in English or in any recognisable language at all. Likes to climb things he’s not supposed to, will start to fidget when bored.

 

STRENGTHS AND SKILLS

Skills: Extremely fit and stronger than he looks, a professionally trained ballet dancer with countless routines committed to memory. Has a remarkable talent for getting what he wants with words alone. Slippery, charming, and very good at getting into places and things (and people) he’s not supposed to. He learned to pick locks while on one of his many overseas adventures.

Hobbies: Singing along to music when doing housework or cooking, and dancing when he isn’t. If he’s moving and making noise, he’s happy. Going for walks in parks just to find fun new things to climb, where he can sit and watch the clouds go by, or staying home and baking just for fun.

Powers: — Innate sense of direction, always knows where he is, where to go and how to get there. If something is lost, he knows where to find it. — He is able to pull people into the spaces between spaces, to take them where they need to (or where he wants them to) go. Walls are no barrier in this state, nor is distance. — Able to put people into a suggestive state, or an outright trance. — He shows a certain degree of control over wind currents and magnetism. The weather shifts with his mood, and a thick fog rolls in from the sea when he wills it. Compasses spin wildly in his presence. — He always seems to have the right tool for the situation, and small lost objects appear in his pockets with startling regularity. They disappear when he puts them back in his pocket.

 

OTHER FACTS

Favourite music: Musicals and Disney songs. Favourites include Hot Patootie, Footloose, Summer Nights, Bells of Notre Dame, etc. Favourite films: Rocky Horror Picture Show, West Side Story, Grease, anything from the Disney Renaissance, Little Shop of Horrors, The Sound of Music Favourite food: Cake, macarons, anything with apples but especially apple pie, noodles, food from around the world—he’ll try anything once. Favourite animal: Dogs Favourite colour: Lilac Likes: Roadtrips with friends, walking barefoot on grass and on the beach, the smell of rain, kids, singing loudly and without shame Dislikes: People who trample in his garden, when people talk themselves down, the smell of liquorice, hot and dry weather

Misc. info: He and Mike were in a committed relationship before his death. Things are different now, but they’re figuring it out. Gael wasn’t religious per se, but did come from a neo-pagan family—hence his odd name.

[s3venpounds]

1 - 102

ASK MEE RIDICULOUSLY PERSONAL THINGSSSSSSSSSSSS YEEEEEEEEEEEE i love this shit

thanks for the ask anon, at this point im sure yall already know everything about me but hey whats a couple more questions c:

1.) what’s a song you depict with your childhood?

YIKES tough right off the bat huh? it would have to be the opening to digimon frontier ayyyyyyyyyy i still listen to that shit every fucking month. its that or disney’s hercules i can go the distance that shit was just MMMMMMM good shit2.) did you have a memorable childhood pet?

yep a blue and white love bird my family called quick silver we taught it to do adorable little tricks like pick up our pencils when we do homework and it rolls away3.) have you ever been drunk?

hehe yeah fun times4.) have you ever tried drugs?

yup! curious about trying more hard drugs but also i dont wanna get addicted or like idk die/get arrested5.) have you ever completely regretted what you’ve said?

ALL THE FUCKING TIME. infact at work i told a customer we didnt have a thing and the customer was like whats that right behind u, and it was the thing they were looking for i felt so stupid lmao6.) have you ever made someone cry?

yeah.7.) has someone ever made you cry?

yeah.8.) have you ever been in love? if so, describe the moment you knew it.

honestly idk if i ever have been in love. I would think that i have but yknow you never know what the future holds so looking back something in the past could pale in comparison to something in the future9.) which came first the chicken or the egg?

the chicken, evolved from some other bird10.) are you part of the lgbtq+ community? do you support them?

dunno if im part of the community by status but i wholeheartedly approve and support them. speaking just for myself though I just think I’m me and nothing else. whether im non binary or male or female or something else doesn’t matter to me. im attracted to who im attracted to, feel what i feel, and do what i want with a hint of salt. If plants can have like 10 000 genders or whatever, then anyone can be whatever they want unless its something fucked up like age fluid lmao if youre 60 youre 60 even if you have the “mind of a 14 year old”11.) how many siblings do you have?

412.) have you ever been in love with someone you couldn’t love?

yeah in fact just recently13.) are you a good cook?

fuck no. i fucking wish tho, not even a good cook i just wanna be able to copy recipes on tasty’s facebook page hahaha14.) what is your favorite tv show?

right now i dont have one and i definitely dont watch tv shows often unless you count anime then haikyuu!! or My hero Academia15.) what is the last movie you cried during?

i think it was a tyler perry movie something about a funeral and a family reunion honestly i cry when any movie has a really strong family sorta bonding specially if the family was broken at first and they all healed together and became closer as a result16.) what are songs you’ve cried to when you first heard them? (if any)

none, i did cry whe i was listening to wild wild love by GRL and pitbull for some reason? 17.) do you have a middle name?

nope i do have a nickname given to me by distant relatives18.) have you been out of your country?

yeah thankfully ive been out of canada multiple times19.) are you a chocolate fan or not?

love chocolate in fact im drinking hot chocolate right now, little cold going on so i need it20.) how many people have you kissed?

lips? less than 15, in general no matter where? couldnt count21.) what is your favorite album?

the only album i loved in its entirety has been marianas trench master piece theatre22.) what is your dream car?

2003 dodge viper23.) what is your lucky/favorite number?

i always wanted to be ironic and say 13 but i’ve kinda been leaning towards 10 like hinata’s jersey number24.) what is your favorite flower?

lilacs cuz the color25.) books or movies, why?

movies, less thinking for me26.) have you ever been on a blind date?

nope but i’d love to try it27.) has one of your friends ever backstabbed you?

yep28.) have you ever backstabbed one of your friends?

i dont think i have? not consciously.29.) what thing do you symbolize love with?

an act of self sacrifice or something handmade or personally tailored to the individual receiving30.) do you have neat handwriting?

i adore neat handwriting! its like a breath of fresh air, simple and precise to read, and it feels like you can read faster when it is31.) do you have a friend with benefits?

nope but i’d love to have one!32.) do you want a friend with benefits?

just said but yeah i’d love one!33.) if you could be anything in the world, what would you be?

A hero.34.) have you ever been blackout drunk?

nope but my body refuses to drink any more alcohol once i get to my good buzz point. like all alcohol makes me wanna throw up the second i get past the point its almost like my mind and body are two seperate beings lmao35.) have you ever met someone famous?

i think i have? one time when i went bowling with some relatives, there was a crowd gathering around this blonde dude who was playing house of the dead and this one guy in the crowd approached me saying “ do you know who he is? hes famous?” and then i blanked out after that because i just wanted to watch someone play and mentally check out for an hour36.) how many concerts have you been to?

3 concerts! all which were very fun !37.) which concerts have you been to?

one was an ed sheeran concert for his divide album, another was a marianas trench concert in klondike days edmonton, and the last was a country concert im not sure who it was my sister wanted me to go with her38.) do you have a hidden talent?

i can match any generation 1 pokemon just from their cries some generation 2 but beyond that only a handful from each other generation39.) what do you do when you’re stressed?

masturbate. honestly its the only sure fire thing i’ve done that clears my head for the longest time and relaxes me lmao40.) do you think money can buy love?

of course! just depends how you use it! like if youre just throwing money at random people like “hey love me” itll be fake, but if you say, pay off a struggling student’s loans in full and give em a good fresh start im sure theyll be grateful to you for years to come. or if you pay for someone to get super super expensive surgery so they can die from old age rather than a disease or something then yeah they’d love you forever41.) how old would you date?

honestly not sure, i havent really tried dating anyone a lot older than me i usually date within 4-5 years older or younger? though i dont think i’d see a problem dating someone 10 years older than me42.) have you ever done something illegal?

hehe. ye.43.) what is your biggest fear?

death. too long to elaborate44.) what is an unusual fear you have?

fear of what happens after death45.) can you drive?

nope but i plan to learn how to and take my exam within the next 2 ish months46.) do you believe in supernatural creatures?

of course! as many evolutions that were made common place theres bound to be evolutions that somehow spurred legends and mysteries47.) do you believe in karma?

of course! 100% of the time i expect some stranger to just walk up to me and start slapping me or punching me or throwing water or soda in my face for something i did, though i also prepare myself to say” okay i probably deserved that but can i ask why?”48.) what is one quality you need in your partner?

need to love physical affection, if not i dont think i can last with them, physical affection is so important to me its just as important as saying i love you, it like reassures me that theyre there with me in that moment and that theyre happy and just. physical stuff tells me a lot ok49.) do looks matter?

on first impression? oh hell yeah. keep in mind strictly first impression. im not gonna cut off a potential friendship or relationship because someones not my type or whatever i cut people off if they do something fucked up and horrible50.) does size matter?

to some people im not one of them51.) who is the last person you forgave?

I can’t really remember, i forgive people for small stuff all the time but with big personal mistakes i usually hold grudges52.) what is your favorite ice cream flavor?

French Vanilla53.) what languages can you speak besides english?

none but i plan to learn sign language eventually that and visaya54.) ever been on a plane?

yep! i’ve been out of the country so that definitely means by plane i dont know anyone who goes on roadtrips long enough to get out of the country55.) ever been on a boat?

yeah! i thought i’d be seasick but turns out i enjoy being on the water its kinda calming56.) is there anyone you’ve lost touch with that you wish you hadn’t?

yeah my childhood friend ralph, cool dude but our friend groups and interests just kinda diverged57.) are there any friendships you regret?

yeah..58.) are there any friendships you wish you could make?

oh hell yeah! there was this one girl who always ate at the same cafeteria as me and my friend group and i regret not inviting her over and being her friend59.) have you ever stayed awake for 24 (+) hours?

yeah! specially during summer it really sucks and i only do that when my mental state is at a record low self punishment i spose60.) have you ever walked outside after 12 am?

hell to the yeah! its the best! like a music video or adventure but it really just helps me clear my mind. oh wait i guess that kinda counts for the calms me down thing so late night walks and masturbating bahahaha61.) have you ever seen a sunrise completely through?

yep! one time with an ex girlfriend! we stayed from 2 am till 10 am i think singing songs and talking and cuddling on those big swings with a bowl at the bottom62.) are you scared of rollercoasters?

NO !!! I LOVE ROLLERCOASTERS!!!! im kind of an adrenaline junkie!63.) on a scale of 1-10 how stressed are you usually?

i personally feel like a 3 but thats probably because im already used to a 7 because of old issues i need sorted out that i’ve just kinda grown to live with the stress64.) do you have any plans this weekend?

considering its sunday? no, next weekend? im working65.) do you miss anyone right now?

yeah. i miss em a lot.66.) who do you wish you were talking to right now?

K,Z, and C i miss em67.) if you could have any superpower, what would it be?

the power to fly or have wings that can make me fly. I associate flying with true freedom. 68.) who is your favorite superhero?

All Might69.) are you dirty minded?

ridiculously70.) what is your favorite song from every decade starting at that 80’s?

im too lazy for that shit bro…71.) how many kids, if any, do you want?

2 preferably? 72.) who is your biggest OTP?

im not super into shipping just cause it can get pretty toxic but asami and korra73.) what is your favorite food?

aw man im too much of a carnivore to pick just one thing man. uhh fried chicken or this one pork dish my mom makes thats super easy to make its like canned beans with this orange sweet kinda sauce and pork belly slices and potato chunks omggggg i eat so much of that. the last time my mom made that i actually ate the whole thing and i had to make more for everyone else lmao74.) do you want to be married one day?

yeah. it’d be nice not to have to worry about being alone for the rest of my life75.) dogs or cats?

dogs are great and so are cats though i have more patience for cats than i do for dogs. dogs to me are like energetic little kids and thats fine as long as im not dealing with them for an extended period amount of time i get drained pretty easy. cats are like roommates show you love and attention when they want but arent opposed to keeping you company the whole day76.) do you drink enough water daily?

i have no fukcing clue i literally just drink water whenever i have an excuse to drink.77.) have you ever seen a shooting star?

not that i know of? like theres a few times i think i did but i wanna see one thats like unmistakably a shooting star or comet thatd be neat too78.) if you had the opportunity to go to the moon, would you?

not long term? yeah id love to, just to feel what zero g feels like and the view of earth

79.) how many best friends do you have?

3 ish……..80.) when was the last time you cried?

a few nights ago when they stopped talking to me i cried like a little baby lmao ahhhhhhhhhh yikes81.) have you ever laughed so hard you peed yourself?

nope82.) have you ever made anyone laugh so hard they peed?

i think? there was this one dude who literally thought everything i said was genuinely funny though to this day i have no idea if he was serious or not. i also have not seen that dude ever since83.) if you could travel any where in the world, where would you go?

Venice Italy.84.) what are 3 words you would use to describe yourself?

Lonely, Filth, dependant85.) do you consider yourself a loyal person?

no, if my loyalty gets in the way of what i think is the right thing to do then i disregard the loyalty86.) what is your favorite season and why?

Winter. for some reason growing up i always felt like winter was unappreciated and i had this train of thought like “ even the cold needs to be loved” that and most of my wardrobe is just winter stuff. plus midnight walks feel so much nicer since its so cold out you know for a fact no one else would be walking around because whos gonna wait in a dark alley at -30 to mug, rape or kidnap someone.87.) have you ever told anyone you loved them, and didn’t mean it?

nope. if i ever said it i meant it.88.) do you know how to play any instruments?

not reliably. like i know some songs on guitar from youtube tutorials but i can’t play the guitar in all circumstances yknow like i learned the song without mastering the basics89.) do like like falling asleep to music or not?

nope. i need like silence to sleep but ambient noise is preferred. music gives my brain something to focus on and thus stay awake90.) what are you allergic to?

pet fur or feathers and stuff. my eyes get puffy, my nose clogs up and my skin itches91.) have you ever wanted to be someone else for a day just so you could see what there life is like?

a sad, extremely rich person and a happy, extremely poor person. to show me what to be grateful for92.) if you could be any character from your favorite tv show would you, and if so, who would you be?

huh, thats tough… if its haikyuu i’d love to be daichi, if its my hero academia its hawks or deku93.) if you could be best friends with any celebrity who would it be and why

Gal Gadot, I feel like she’d be such a positive influence on my life and that thing she does to people who are shorter than her where she cups their face in her hands omg i’d melt everytime. i just kinda wanna be like a little brother to her lol

94.) are you outgoing?

i would say i am?95.) have you ever wanted to kiss someone, but weren’t brave enough to?

oh fuck yeah im fucking gutless96.) are you a good flirt?

nope. awkward and weird af97.) have you ever been turned down, or have you ever turned anyone down?

yup all the time. part of life98.) which planet is your favorite?

never really thought about planets much but i do stan pluto as a planet99.) are you superstitious?

to an extent100.) are you a good listener?

i’d like to think i am101.) are you a good kisser

also like to think i am probs not102.) would you kiss any of your friends?

all of them honestly well not all of them. mostly cuz yknow theyre taken or theyd probably hate me if i did some of them are super defensive about physical intimacy

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10,20,30,40,50

Oh wow, thanks lovely! 

10. Introduce an OC with a complicated design? 

I’ll be honest, I’m not 100% sure what this means. I’m assuming like if I was to draw them? In which case, it would have to be one of my villains, Jackaby Thomas. Think of him as sort of like the Disney Mad Hatter only evil. Long cane, topped with a silver fox’s head, black gloved hands curled around it, a long coat over a pale white shirt, a high top hat, with a deep purple ribbon (so dark a purple, it is almost hard to distinguish it from the black of his hat) wound around it.

Actually, I would fucking love to see a drawing of him if anyone wanted to do one (please bear in mind that he is a dark skinned black man if you do decide to). 

20. Do any of your OCs sing? If they sing, care to share more details (headcanon voice, what kind of songs they like etc)?

Quite a few of them sing! 

Cal will sing chants or incantations for the spells and rituals she performs. When she does its quite low and guttural, almost unnerving to hear.

Ren also sings incantations and has a beautiful voice, something like what you could expect to hear in a gospel church. Besides magic though, you could expect to find her singing beautifully along to her favourite pop songs (and a lot of Hayley Kiyoko). 

Dex is a singer too, her voice is deep and rich and vibrant, used in voodoo spells and for other arcane dealings.

As for Sawyer, she can’t really sing all that well, she’s a little out of tune, but she loves to sing along to songs on the radio.

30. Which one of your OCs would most likely have a secret stuffed animal collection? 

It’s Dae! Without a shadow of a doubt, she would have a tonne of cute cuddly creatures tucked up in bed with her (although actually maybe they wouldn’t be so secret?).

40. Any fond memories linked to your characters? Feel free to share!

I don’t know if its linked to the characters themselves exactly, but certainly many aspects of the book are going to be things I look back on fondly in the future.

For example, I first got the idea for the book while on my camping holiday in Cornwall, so the two will always be linked together for me.

Similarly, I’m currently working at the local hospital and it’s my first ever job. Some key scenes are now going to take place in a hospital because of that influence, so I’ll always be reminded of this period of my life too!

50. Give me the good ol’ OC talk here. Talk about anything you want!

I think the main thing to use this space to reveal, is that there are thirteen characters who are part of the COVEN OF THE LOST, each with their own unique focus in their magic. You’ve met some of them in these posts already, but there are more to come!