#crime rates portrayal

[in-sightjournal]

Ask A Genius 995: A Sense of False Balance

Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What is there in the sense of false balance in the United States? Rosner: We just had a discussion where you said I went on a rant, which I believe to be accurate, about it being a Republican strategy to appeal to less informed voters because they are a capturable demographic. The GOP has been trying to capture them and has been largely successful since the 1970s. Where we…

[lo-shouldve-been-an-email]

Why hello there.

Listen,I don’t have much to say about the newest LO episode so here’s an ares ranking to go along with the other ones.

Spoilers.

Percy Jackson:

6/10

Look,Ares is a really weird figure when it comes to how the media presents him.

Almost always they present him as this sexist frat boy when in mythology he is:

A reported protector of mistreated woman.

The patron god of the amazons and was worshipped to the point that their leader had 2 babies with him.

Scored the GODDESS PF LOVE AND BEAUTY and there is no way you cannot convince me she doesn’t have some pretty high standards(even though apparently you can convince most of the writers on this list)

And as much as I love Percy Jackson,it is not devoid of crimes.

In the first book,he helps Luke/Kronos steal Zeus’ master bolt and Hades’ helm of invisibility as to start a civil war within the gods.id say this is a pretty good portrayal overall.

…until we get to the second book.

This myth will be very important so long story short:a daughter of ares got r*** by a son of Poseidon so Ares,like any reasonable and bloodthirsty god of war,fucking killed him.

After this,he got put on trial for murder as if he wasn’t the literal god of bloody war,and all the ladies vouched for him so he got set free.

Let’s just say,Rick Riordan didn’t know of this myth.

In the second book,there’s a scene where Clarisse La Rue,a DAUGHTER of ares talks to him through a magic mirror.

There,he threatens her and says he should have sent one of his sons on the quest.and keep in mind she is his FAVORITE DAUGHTER.

So yeah.

I don’t really like this portrayal but he gets points for bringing Clarisse and (technically)Frank into this world since I like them both.also the fact that Percy could tell he had beef with him even without having any other memory.

Lore Olympus:

1/10

FUCK THIS GUY

Remember when I said that modern Ares was more often than not a sexist frat boy?we’ll add “predator” and “Reddit nice guy” to that list because RS can’t write.

If in Percy Jackson Aphrodite had terrible standards here said standards are so much worse.

He spends MONTHS trying to seduce a 19-YEAR-OLD and then tries to marry her without her consent.

Also,sir,YOU HAVE THE GODDESS OF LOVE AND BEAUTY FULLY AT YOUR DISPOSAL AND YOURE PICKING A GURL WHO DOESNT EVEN KNOW HIW TO USE A COMPUTER????

Great.this guy is a predator,Reddit nice guy,AND stupid.

I remember saying that the only character who could get a lowers rating than LO Persephone being LO hades and then I remembered this fuck existed.

Fuck him.

Hades:

10/10

Your know when you see something and then immediately want to wash your eyes with soap?this is my soap.

He is my third favorite Olympian in the game,coming third to Hermes and Artemis.

So here’s a few reasons why I like him:

Doom anything with impending doom and the increasing doom damage boon does absurd amounts of damage.

Curse of nausea is one of the best duos in the game.

He respects woman.(oh look they finally Aphrodite standards)

His quest is stupidly easy and he was the first Olympian who’s bond I maxed out.

I know this joke has been made so many times but.he really is a Chthonic simp.

He doesn’t get too pissed if you don’t pick him is trial of gods.hes just here for the bloodshed.

It may be just the fact that almost every other interpretation of ares is bad,but I really like him.

Also Aphrodite wearing his face paint in hades 2-

OSP:

7/10

He’s cool.

I really don’t have much else to add except the helmet stays on during sex.

Gods school:

5/10

Welp Back to the incels-

Him straight up telling Aphrodite that he can do whatever he wants because she won’t leave is just.why.

I don’t get why people go to this myth,turn it around,and act as if they’ve done a service by making Ares miserable when in the myths it was already a good ending.

What is with the obsession with making ares a toxic ex boyfriend when in the myths him and ‘dite were literally love and war.

Another issue I have with gods school is the fact they made Aphrodite a Karen Smith when in the myths shes a Regina George but that’s a problem for the Aphrodite ranking.

Also I just realized the Aphrodite Hephaestus ares myth is the og “I fell in love with a bad boy story”-

Epic:the musical:

8/10

I don’t have a physical picture of him but I already like him.

The only time he he appears is during a bit of an unfinished song but he does bring up some pretty good points,like the Scylla thing.

Also the fact Athena didn’t directly refute any of his points but instead persuaded him with the fact that the moment Ody gets home the suitors are going to be fucked is surprisingly great.

Also can I just say how absolutely hyped I am for god games?Aphrodite’s part fucking rocks and I’m excited for Apollo and Hephaestus.

Also here’s my ranking for epic Hermes since I wasn’t part of the fandom back then:

10/10

*insert dolphin laugh here*

[shamelesstragedyenjoyer]

Let's delve into the intricacies of an Omegaverse society, drawing insights from both biology and evolution. As a social science student myself with a background in anthropology, I aim to explore various aspects of this complex world, including its prison system, bathroom arrangements, treatment of the transgender community, societal norms, stigmas, reproduction dynamics, birth rates, and even the portrayal of sexuality through pornography.

Collaborating with my best friend, a medical student well-versed in anatomy, we've pooled our knowledge to shed light on how such a society might function, drawing parallels and extrapolating from existing data in our world.

So. Within the Omegaverse, there exist two overarching categories, male and female, each subdivided into three distinct statuses: Alpha, Beta, and Omega. Over time, the majority of individuals have transitioned beyond the Alpha and Omega distinctions, akin to how the human female body evolved past its reproductive heat cycles during the paleolithic period, marking a pivotal moment in human evolution.

In the distant past, during the age, Alpha males and Alpha females coexisted alongside their counterparts, Omega males and Omega females. The differences between Alpha males and females were minimal, much like the similarities between the two Omega sexes. However, there still were differences in genitalia where only Alpha females and Omega males displayed intersex characteristics. The enlarged clitoris of an Alpha female, resembling but distinct from a penis, possessed a knot—a feature absent in Alpha males— because of it's inability to produce sperm which necessitated an evolutionary adaptation towards a larger knot, in order to increase the chances of pregnancy.

Like stated before, the transition into a largely Beta population occurred even before the neolithic era, resulting into a similar contemporary societal structure as we know today. However, there being secondary genders didn't stop the historical oppression of all women. Only now it extended to impact Omega males, though they can pass as Betas if their genitalia remains private. Contrary to popular beliefs, there is no discernible scent associated with Omegas in heat; instead, it is their aura and demeanor that undergo noticeable changes. A "sex appeal", if you will, that affects everyone except Beta women for a vast number of reasons i'll touch upon later.

Legal frameworks exists to address non-consensual interactions with Omegas in heat, and sometimes even with Alphas in ruts. Statistical data still reflects a disproportionate involvement of Alpha and Beta males in such crimes.

In cases of rape involving an Omega in heat, the perpetrator might exploit societal biases to justify their actions or even escape punishment altogether. They might argue that the Omega's biological state somehow diminished the severity of the crime.

Similarly, in cases of rape involving an Alpha in rut, the legal system might downplay the seriousness of the offense due to the perceived status and power of the victim over the perpetrator.

In such a society, power dynamics based on genetic status and gender could heavily influence the legal process as well. Despite the vulnerability of Omegas in heat and the potential vulnerability of Alphas in rut, the legal system might consider it an extenuating circumstance for the aggressor.

In the Alpha Beta Omega prison system, inmates are segregated based on their genetic status and gender to ensure safety and maintain social order. Alpha males and Alpha females, Beta males and Beta females & Omega males and Omega females are all housed in separate facilities due to the perceived risks associated with mixing different genetic statuses and genders.

This segregation is justified by concerns for safety, as it is believed that males, regardless of their secondary gender, have the potential to overpower females. By separating inmates in this manner, authorities aim to mitigate the risks of violence and maintain control within the prison environment.

Alphas and Omegas are not exceedingly rare, but they remain somewhat uncommon, often noted and remembered as peculiarities. Their presence evokes a similar level of curiosity as encountering a left-handed person or a natural redhead—an intriguing aspect of diversity that captures attention but is ultimately regarded with a level of casual interest.

Second out of three parts coming right up, Tumblr won't let me post more images !

Also stay tuned, next part is gonna include a list of the Batfam members who I think are Omegas

[gaysails]

The Wire is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by American author and former police reporter David Simon . . . Set and produced in Baltimore, Maryland, The Wire introduces a different institution of the city and its relationship to law enforcement in each season while retaining characters and advancing storylines from previous seasons. The five subjects are, in chronological order; the illegal drug trade, the port system, the city government and bureaucracy, education and schools, and the print news medium. . .

Simon has said that despite its framing as a crime drama, the show is "really about the American city, and about how we live together. It's about how institutions have an effect on individuals. Whether one is a cop, a longshoreman, a drug dealer, a politician, a judge or a lawyer, all are ultimately compromised and must contend with whatever institution to which they are committed."[5]

The Wire is lauded for its literary themes, its uncommonly accurate exploration of society and politics, and its realistic portrayal of urban life. During its original run, the series received only average ratings and never won any major television awards, but it is now often cited as one of the greatest shows in the history of television.[6]

. . .

Salon has described the show as novelistic in structure, with a greater depth of writing and plotting than other crime shows.[27]

Each season of The Wire consists of 10 to 13 episodes that form several multi-layered narratives. Simon chose this structure with an eye towards long story arcs that draw in viewers, resulting in a more satisfying payoff. He uses the metaphor of a visual novel in several interviews,[7][48] describing each episode as a chapter, and has also commented that this allows a fuller exploration of the show's themes in time not spent on plot development.[5]

. . .

"We are not selling hope, or audience gratification, or cheap victories with this show. The Wire is making an argument about what institutions—bureaucracies, criminal enterprises, the cultures of addiction, raw capitalism even—do to individuals. It is not designed purely as an entertainment. It is, I'm afraid, a somewhat angry show.[52]"

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Reading the Ginny, Luna thought. I have a question, can you rank the Weasleys? From least to your favourite one, and your thoughts about each one of them. Why you like them. what made you dislike them. and the general what do you think of the Weasleys as a whole? I personally don't really like them, but I also don't hate them, I respect them. As I do with every other character that's not Harry, Luna, or Severus.

Well, I'm a bit more loving towards the Weasleys than you are since I'm at least okay with most of them. I think they're not as perfect of a family as some fans think, but I don't think they're as bad as some bashers say they are. I think they are flawed and human and I wouldn't have written them differently for this story if I had the chance to (for the most part). Now, when it comes to my favorite, I know Muriel is a Prewett, but if we're counting her, then she's my favorite. I live for her gossip. But if I'm just ranking the main nine these are my highly subjective opinions about them:

9. Ginny Weasley

I have already explained that I don't like Ginny many times. I find her incredibly annoying.

I don't like her attitude, I don't like how she treats Luna, Harry, Ron, and even Hernione. I despise how she acts towards fluer. She is arrogant as a facade without much to back her behavior up and she's trying to be someone she isn't for all the wrong reasons.

I think she fails at being a well-written love interest, and I dislike her as a person. So she's obviously last.

8. Arthur Weasley

Spots 5-8 were hard to rate since they're kinda the same. Unlike Ginny, it's not that I dislike them. I just don't like them as much as the other Weasleys. Mostly, my feelings about them are just not as intense.

I placed Arthur last here because I think he's kinda stupid. Like, with this scene:

“Harry said good-bye to you,” he said. “Didn’t you hear him?” “It doesn’t matter,” Harry muttered to Mr. Weasley. “Honestly, I don’t care.” Mr. Weasley did not remove his hand from Harry’s shoulder. “You aren’t going to see your nephew till next summer,” he said to Uncle Vernon in mild indignation. “Surely you’re going to say good-bye?”

(GoF, 48)

He's either malicious or an idiot. I'd rather believe that he's an idiot. Unfortunately, I don't like well-meaning idiots that much because I have a competence kink and I like my characters intelligent and capable.

So Arthur is here for the crime of not being to my taste in fictional characters.

7. Molly Weasley

I think she's fine, I don't think she's an amazing mother the way some portray her, but I think she truly loves her kids and Harry and does what she believes is best for them, even when it's not the case.

I think she's a realistic portrayal of a person who grew up the way she did (+ how she was affected by the first war and her brothers' deaths)

I think there's a lot of interesting stuff that could be explored with her character that the fandom kinda ignores, actually. I mean, she's a Prewett. The Prewetts seem to be a way more respected family than the Weasleys. Muriel's behavior, her tiara, and the fact Lucretia Black was allowed to marry Ignatius Prewett — all paint the picture that the Prewetts were a semi-wealthy, well-respected pureblood family. And then Molly goes and marries Arthur, which probably changes her entire lifestyle. Like, idk, I think you can do interesting stuff with this.

5. Bill Weasley

Bill is the cool older brother, and that's basically it. There are some things you can extrapolate into a more interesting character, the fact he left home as soon as he could, his rebellion against his mom (haircut and marrying Fleur), him being a Curse Breaker and therefore having really good grades. He probably studied Ancient Runes and Arithmancy and is an academic guy. I mean, Curse Breakers are basically nerds who like danger far away from home.

Unfortunately for Bill, he's just kinda boring to me. I like him well enough for what he is, he's just a little bland to my taste. I don't have anything interesting to chew on.

5. Percy Weasley

I think Percy can be pretentious and annoying, but he didn't deserve any of the shit he got from his family. I appreciate that he is a critical thinker capable of thinking outside of what his parents tell him, even if he ended up being wrong, his conclusions weren't illogical. He is intelligent, he just makes mistakes, like people do.

I think he is pretty brave for sticking to his guns, to what's important to him and who he really is even when he's constantly made fun of for it. Like, some fans say he should be a Slytherin for ambition, but, I think he is brave, just, not in the way we usually associate with Gryfffindor. I mean, you need to be brave to be a stickler to the rules in Gryffindor, we see how he and Hermione are treated in their house. Plus, everything that went down with him and the family is super interesting. I'm just, not super passionate about his character.

4. Charlie Weasley

Okay, he's the first I actively like on this list. Charlie is basically Bill, but shorter, more autistic, and his special interest is dragons. I think he takes the formula of Bill's character and improves upon it tremendously even though we see way less of him.

There is nothing deep about my love for Charlie. I just think he's cute and I agree with him. Dragons are awesome and if I lived in the Wizarding World I'd probably be a wandmaker, but taming dragons is such a cool profession and would be like number 3 on my list of preferred professions (after magical theorist, assuming that's a thing).

2 & 3. Fred & George Weasley

I like the twins, I think they're funny and I'm not choosing which twin is better, that ain't happening. There is nothing deep about my liking of them as characters either, I just think they're neat. I genuinely find them funny and while they can definitely be cruel, they are being cruel in a world where violence is much more acceptable since most of it can be fixed with a swish of a wand or a drop of potion.

I'm not saying they don't have their flaws, but I find them charming. Also, they clearly can be considerate:

“It’s a simple matter of causing a diversion. Now, you might have noticed that we have been rather quiet on the mayhem front during the Easter holidays?” [George] “What was the point, we asked ourselves, of disrupting leisure time?” continued Fred. “No point at all, we answered ourselves. And of course, we’d have messed up people’s studying too, which would be the very last thing we’d want to do.” He gave Hermione a sanctimonious little nod. She looked rather taken aback by this thoughtfulness.

(OotP, 657)

They're also so smart with their inventions. Like, they invent spells and potions and could probably get these coveted 12 NEWTs if they wanted to, they just don't care for academics for academics first. And they're not just smart magically, they are clever, and they can start and run a successful business.

And they clearly think for themselves outside of their family's opinion. Both in setting up their shop and even they have doubts about Dumbledore (not just Percy):

“Moody was a great wizard in his time,” said Bill. “He’s an old friend of Dumbledore’s, isn’t he?” said Charlie. “Dumbledore’s not what you’d call normal, though, is he?” said Fred. “I mean, I know he’s a genius and everything . . .”

(GoF, 161)

1. Ron Weasley

I love Ron. I think he's genuinely funny, he's got the most emotional intelligence in the Golden Trio and holds that friendship together, he's super loyal even if he has his bad moments he acknowledges his mistakes, and he's so smart.

Like, I hate what the movies did to Ron. He is a member of the Golden Trio with the most common sense. Like, Hermione has book smarts, Harry has cunning and insane magical powers, and Ron has common sense. It's so important that Harry and Hermione have someone who doesn't want to keep people in jars.

I did write about Ron being capable of being mean and ruthless on occasion, and that's a good thing, sometimes that's what you need, and Ron's a strategist, he knows this. When he offered to poison Umbridge I cheered, I really thought we should've let him test it out, as a treat.

I love his friendship with Harry and how much he gets him. Ron knows Harry and he knows to read him better than Hermione does. He lightens up the mood when Hary's angsting or Hermione takes herself too seriously. Like, when things get desperate and dark, Ron tries to make jokes to make the other two feel better, and that shows the emotional intelligence neither Harry nor Hermione have. Like, Ron is such an integral part of the trio.

I love him and his arc and I'm so mad at JKR for undermining his arc in book 7.

[deathonthe]

mona lisa's smile | 1418

pairing: fernando/lance

rating: teen and up

word count: ~7000

tags: pre-relationship, 2021 season, non-driver lance au

summary:

Two-time world champion. Robbed from his third. A villain’s making—a slow descent from glory, trajectory fixed on an unfulfilling end. Back from his sabbatical. Fernando Alonso.

director's cut:

don't let my ramblings influence ur interpretation of the fic!

these are my notes/reflection on the fic. they don't have to be urs. different minds can come to different conclusions that are equally fantastic!

mona lisa's smile is supposed to disappear when u view her directly, but out of ur peripheral, she is always smiling mysteriously (eerily). i thought it was fitting given the characterisation of lance and the facade he kinda keeps up in the fic

my obvious issue is that since it is an incomplete fic, the focus on lance and esteban's friendship overshadowed his developing one with fernando

i thought the risotto scene was corny, i'm glad people liked it

yes, it's written so that u can't really tell if someone's talking about something or somehow implying it or thinking it

i'm impartial to when people portray lance as having daddy issues and lawrence being a bad father. obviously i don't know jackshit about lance's relationship with his dad, but i wanted to depict it in a positive light this time around

whether or not scotty was going behind chloe's back with daniel is up to u. i couldn't decide whether he would or wouldn't so i left it vague

i don't know shit about ice hockey. i had to google who the canadiens were. they're not mentioned more because i couldn't be stuffed doing more research

i back read way too many articles about lawrence buying racing point, because i thought the dts portrayal was a bit inaccurate

lance and esteban do speak french when they're together so i'm glad i at least got that part of their characterisation correct

i actually started taking duolingo lessons for french because of this fic

the style is choppy on purpose because i hate grammar and tense

the line of 'offers security physically in the only way he knows how' is not implying that lance fucks este. i think lance often grabbing parts of himself to kinda subconsciously reassure himself, i tried to transfer that vibe into his friendship with esteban

to be clear, fernando does not give a shit about lance really until he meets him again when lance is like 20/21

the part that goes 'lance had watched from the grandstands that day. the crowd roared. he hadn't thought much of it' was actually regarding fernando's abu dhabi retirement donuts, and not him winning in spain in 2013

if misappropriating classical writing in my trashy fics was a crime, i would be on death row

at this point, it is not clear whether fernando is approaching lance as part of his El Plan or if he's genuinely interested in him

re: esteban and pierre possibly both being in renault. hindsight is a beautiful thing

fernando's "we are like lions. podiums soon" is another reference to the iliad. i wasn't sure if the implication was strong enough

i was originally going to scrap the 'must've misheard italian for indian' line because i wasn't sure if it would offend people

in the risotto scene, sebastian is actually oblivious as to what's happening. he's not pretending to be. he is fully unaware

my most despised line in this fic is: a son of a billionaire he may be, but a waster of food he is not. i think it's too cheesy and doesn't fit with the style of the fic. looking back now, i'm not sure why i kept it

i think the 'lance's lack of passion' character choice stems a lot from how f1 fans think lance is somehow detached from the sport and doesn't really care for it as much as, let's say, fernando or max, who are always very clearly enthusiastic about racing. it's probably also got something to do with lance's 'monotonous voice' that people like to complain about. it's ok, though, because lance is plenty expressive in his face and body language

fernando's post-race interview after his bahrain dnf is an amalgamation of some of the actual post-race interviews he's given

my favourite line in this fic is: Un jour, vous en ferez l'expérience. Cela fait battre votre cœur pour la première fois et votre cœur ne cessera de battre après. too bad it had to be in french

the ass-tap was inspired by the video of fernando congratulating lance after lance got p3 in the wet qualifying for brazil 2023 (i believe, need to double check on that)

the aston engineer is 100% suspicious about lance and fernando

thanks for putting urself through all of that!

[cometomecosette]

Les Misérables" musical character interpretations: Madame Thénardier

Here are the four main musical characterizations I've seen of a nasty woman we all love to hate.

Whenever I want to shorten her name, I've used "Thénardiess," Charles Wilbour's translation of Hugo's "la Thénardier" ("the Thénardier woman").

The Giantess

            This boisterous, imposing Mme. Thénardier embodies Hugo’s description of the character as a “mastodon,” who “swore splendidly” and could crack nuts with her fist. She’s typically a very large, masculine-looking woman, with a gruff, booming voice, but regardless of what she looks or sounds like, her personality is larger-than-life. She’s loud, coarse, money-grubbing, hard-drinking, and fun-loving, yet with a monstrous temper. Her abuse of Cosette is ferocious: while her bellowing might get laughs just for being so over-the-top, they won’t laugh at the way she grabs, shoves, and threatens to beat the little girl. But apart from this, she tends to be the more comical Thénardier spouse compared to her slimier, more sinister husband, and she gleefully hams up all her comic business: faking sobs at the news of Fantine’s death and over her fake baby in “The Robbery,” slapstick at the wedding, etc. Yet broadly funny though she is, she isn’t stupid. It varies whether she comes across as her husband’s equal partner in crime or a the real “brains of the outfit,” but either way, her brutish exterior hides a scheming mind, and though she bickers nonstop with Thénardier, he couldn’t get by without her. At any rate, he won’t dominate her; this Thénardiess is indominable.

The Witch

         This Mme. Thénardier is less physically imposing than the Giantess, but she’s arguably more sinister. She tends to be thin, angular, and bony, and she likely has big teeth with a gap or two in them. Physically, she’s all sharp edges, more like a stereotypical witch (hence her name) than like Hugo’s “ogress.” Those sharp edges extend into her personality too. Where the Giantess tends to be the more comical of the Thénardiers while her husband has a darker edge, the Witch is the more serious and blatantly ruthless of the two: the embodiment of the villainy her husband hides behind his amiable façade. Her humor is sarcastic and bitter, and while her abuse of Cosette is probably less loud than other Mme. Thénardiers’, it’s more venomous, without playing any lines for laughs. Whether she comes across as her husband’s equal partner in crime or as the one in charge will depend on the portrayal of her husband, but either way, she’s at least just as cunning as he is and likely more so. It’s also likely that within her sharp, sinister demeanor, there’s a hint of mental instability. If the novel’s version of Éponine were to live to middle age, marry a man she didn’t love, and become much less sympathetic, she would probably resemble this version of her mother.

The Oppressed Oppressor

            While still a comic character and still a villain, this Mme. Thénardier is more sympathetic than others. While the Giantess best captures the grotesque and brutal qualities of Hugo’s character, this one captures her pathetic aspects. Like Hugo’s Thénardiess, this one is dominated by her more cunning husband, and he treats her shabbily. Throughout “Master of the House,” he’ll be shown treating her more like a servant than a wife, and when Valjean arrives, Thénardier will direct her every move: when to feign tears, when to stop, when to fish for more money, when to stop so as not to seem greedy, etc. It’s clear that she’s both bitter and utterly exhausted by this life. Yet at the same time, she might convey unrequited love for her husband. (Foreshadowing her daughter’s plight?) During “Master of the House” she might genuinely try to attract him, only for him to repulse her and flirt with younger women. Thus, her string of insults toward him stems from weariness and hurt, and she makes it comical as a coping mechanism. Of course, none of this can excuse her treatment of Cosette (who clearly serves as an outlet for her general frustration), or her willing role in all her husband’s schemes. But whether we like her or not, we understand where she’s coming from.

The Fallen Beauty

            This Mme. Thénardier is very, very different from Hugo’s character, but within the musical, she can be effective. This Thénardiess is neither a brute nor a frump, but a sensual and reasonably attractive woman. Yes, she’s aging, blowsy, and mean, with a gaudy fashion sense, but she was clearly a beauty in her youth, still has charms, and knows it. She specializes in flirting and seducing men to pick their pockets or manipulate her way out of trouble. We’ll see her do this successfully with at least one inn customer during “Master of the House” and later attempt it, not so successfully, with Valjean and Javert too. And the same erotic hold she has over the drunks at the inn she also has over her husband, enhanced by the fact that she’s smarter than he is. While in front of others she lets him talk more and pretend to be in charge, she’s unquestionably the true “master of the house.” Both she and Thénardier enjoy this arrangement. The insults she aims at him are playful: though his blundering exasperates her, she really is happily married. As for the rest of her demeanor, she sometimes shows a temper, but in general she’s an understated schemer, with a distinctly dry, deadpan sense of humor. Hugo’s Thénardiess she’s not, but she’s an interesting comic character in her own right.

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Is It Really That Bad?

I don’t think I’ve ever felt like the universe actively conspired against something until I witnessed the production of The Flash.

Since 1991 there have been quite a few proposals for Flash movies, but they never really got off the ground for whatever reason. Following Barry’s debut in Justice League, a movie finally was announced before multiple delays due to rewrites, in particular to cut Ray Fisher’s Cyborg from the story after he went public about the awful shit he had to deal with under Joss Whedon. Things seemed hopeless until It director Andy Muschietti came onboard, at which point production on the film finally started to go smoothly. Sure, there were rumblings about Ezra Miller having episodes on set, but that’s just typical actor nonsense, right? Surely it couldn’t get any worse!

Look, I’m here to review a movie so I’ll keep this brief: Miller committed crimes. Lots of crimes. So many, in fact, you’d think they were method acting for the role of Reverse-Flash. The thing is, despite all of this, Miller was basically given a slap on the wrist by the studio, being forbidden from doing promos and press tours (oh no! The horror!). And as if the situation wasn’t already a fucking mess, while Miller’s crime spree was ongoing WB canned the nearly-complete Batgirl movie that featured Michael Keaton and Academy Award-winning actor Brendan Fraser while simultaneously inflating The Flash’s budget to nearly $300 million with reshoots. It seems baffling to cancel a movie that was nearly done and that people were marginally interested in for the sake of a movie that people were losing interest in quickly due to its star’s erratic behavior, but remember: Leslie Grace isn’t white, while Ezra Miller is. WB is never beating those racism allegations at this rate.

With a normal movie, this is where the nonsense ends. BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

This film was meant to smooth out the clusterfuck continuity of the “Snyderverse” with a soft reboot, with Henry Cavill filming a end-of-movie cameo alongside Miller, Gal Gadot, Keaton, and Supergirl’s actress Sasha Calle to establish the new direction of DC going forward. Unfortunately, the hierarchy of power at DC changed, and Gunn shot that down. While this meant the ending would probably not get people confused with regards to upcoming projects, it also meant the movie wasn’t going to really have any closure for the old universe. Affleck, Cavill, and who knows who else are just gone, and the future is just a big old question mark. At least Aquaman is safe, maybe?

Literally none of this news was very reassuring to fans. Nothing above is any good for a film’s perception to audiences under normal circumstances, but here we have all this news coming to a fanbase that genuinely did not want this fucking movie. The DCEU was already divisive when the film was announced, and Miller’s portrayal of Barry doubly so; the fact it was adapting Flashpoint was seen as lazy and uninspired, not to mention its not really a story that lets Flash stand on his own merits, making it seem more like this movie was just an excuse to reboot; it was a multiverse story in a day and age with an abundance of such stories, and it was releasing around the same time as Across the Spider-Verse to boot; and Gunn’s reboot plans meant this story was likely a narrative dead end. This movie had an uphill battle the likes of which haven’t been seen since Sisyphus.

But much like that mythological figure, the boulder came crashing right back down when the numbers came in. The movie would likely need to gross $500 million at minimum to break even after factoring in the reshoots and advertising, and it only managed half of that with a pitiful opening weekend followed by a massive 73% drop. It now sits alongside films like The Lone Ranger and Mortal Engines as one of the most expensive bombs in history, to the point where WB would have saved more money by cancelling it like they did with Batgirl. And despite glowing praise from the likes of Tom Cruise and Stephen King, it received middling reviews from mainstream critics.

Audiences haven’t been any less mixed, but considering most people weren’t particularly excited or invested in this film’s existence this is basically a miracle. Sure, there’s plenty of people out there saying this is the “worst comic book movie ever” like they do every time a new superhero movie drops, but even more people are saying they enjoyed the film… although even they tend to have some severe criticisms.

Even though I knew most of what was going to happen in the movie going in, I wasn’t really sure what to expect given everything surrounding the movie. But you know me, I’m willing to give almost any movie a chance, and bombs this big don’t happen every day, so even before it was voted on I was trying to make time to check it out. So sit down, microwave yourself a snack—

—and watch as I try and determine if The Flash is really that bad.

THE GOOD

The biggest shock of this film is that Ezra Miller is actually really good here.

Their Barry is still a bit of a goofball, but he’s clearly matured as a character since his precious appearances. They managed to make him much more charming and likable than he ever was, and this gets compounded when he interacts with the younger Barry and gets confronted with how annoying he was before. I think young Barry could have come off as really insufferable, but the fact he annoys everyone around him and also ends up maturing makes him a lot more endearing.

Miller really kills it with the emotional moments, particularly the ending encounter with Barry’s mom and the scene where old Barry snaps at young Barry. The film is really carried by the dramatic, emotional moments far more than any of the superheroics, and Miller manages to sell a lot of it very well. It was to the point where I started thinking, “I really wouldn’t mind if they stick around.” Then a scene where Barry says the Justice League has no real psychiatric help or where his younger self ends up repeatedly exposing himself in public by accident happens, and then I remembered, “Oh yeah, aren’t they a mentally unwell criminal?”

Unsurprisingly, Michael Keaton absolutely kills it in his role as Batman, but much more shockingly is that Ben Affleck's brief return as Bruce is pretty great as well. I always thought Affleck, much like Henry Cavill, was desperately trying to give a great performance while weighed down by bad writing; here, he gets an actual poignant scene where he talks to Barry about how dwelling on tragedies isn't the way to do things, and you should try and move forward instead. It shows he really could have been great if given better material to work with.

Okay, enough being nice to Affleck, I wanna talk about Keaton again. As much as the marketing hyped him up and as much as he is obviously the most blatant fanservice possible, it's still so cool to see him in the suit again. I am not immune to nostalgia pandering, and as corny as it could have been from anyone else, the zoom into his face when he says The Line really is a highlight of the movie. Keaton has a great deal of charisma, and while there are issues with Batman they aren't his fault at all. Most impressively, he doesn't steal the show away from Miller like I thought he would; he enhances the scenes he's in without stealing the spotlight completely from their performance. I feel like this is a problem in a lot of movies like this, where the lead gets overshadowed by a hyped up character, but somehow The Flash of all things managed to avoid this.

And as bad as the cameos could get, this movie gave two of the greatest cameos ever put to film with the return of the GOAT George Clooney Batman and, best of all, Nicolas Cage Superman from the unmade Superman Lives, fighting a giant spider to the death just as God intended. I am not immune to the charms of Nicolas Cage.

Overall, this movie presents us with a solid story, plenty of fun moments, great character dynamics, and more... for the first two acts, anyway.

THE BAD

Once this movie hits the third act, it basically just loses any and all focus and becomes a big dumb video game-esque battle against Zod and his forces in a bland desert landscape. While both Barrys admittedly get some pretty cool moments sprinkled in and Keaton’s Batman’s second death is actually a well done emotional moment, Supergirl ends up being completely wasted, with her sole role being to angrily scream and then die repeatedly.

This actually highlights the problem with Kara in this movie: She’s basically nothing but a plot device and has zero personality, and a good 80% of her dialogue is just angry screaming. As hot as Sasha Calle is and how much she obviously wants to make Kara compelling, she is given so little to work with that her efforts end up being fruitless. She does nothing of consequence after helping Barry get his powers back, and could be replaced or written out of the story and it would still make perfect sense.

Zod’s inclusion is pretty baffling as well, especially since they chose to water down one of the only good things from Man of Steel into a boring, generic doomsday villain. You can really feel that poor Michael Shannon would rather be doing anything else, and his bored performance just highlights how poorly implemented Zod is in the plot. Like, the Fladh has some of the best and most colorful DC villains in his rogues gallery, one’s that are often overlooked because Batman’s villains sell more toys. Why not highlight some of them instead of taking a Superman villain and stripping him of all personality to the point the actor clearly has no passion for the role? Cutting Zod would make cutting Supergirl even easier, and then two of the biggest problems with the movie are gone!

The third act does manage to mostly rerail itself once it goes back to Barry trying to unfuck the timeline, with only a disgustingly egregious bit of fanservice that I’ll discuss in the next section hampering it. But at the end, despite the incredibly based George Clooney cameo, there’s just so many unresolved and unanswered questions, with the biggest one being who killed Barry’s mom? Considering her death is what kickstarted the whole plot, you’d think this might come up, but it never does. A lot of other things come up and get dropped too, like whatever was going on with Batman in the opening, but maybe I’m just crazy for wanting elements introduced in a plot to have significance beyond just being there to be cool.

Even beyond that, there’s the fact that Supergirl and Keaton!Batman’s final fates are never really resolved, something that apparently wasn’t a problem in early versions of the film since they showed up alive in the final scene. As much as I loved seeing Clooney, I think trading him for getting some closure for Keaton and Calle would have been more satisfying.

Everyone harps on how bad the CGI is—and it absolutely is, don’t get me wrong—but for the most part I found it endearingly bad. Like the opening with the CGI babies? That’s too goofy for me to hate. But once the movie revolves into bland grey and black CGI bad guys and creepy deepfake celebrity cameos, I stop being quite so forgiving.

Oh, and on the subject of cameos, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen one as pointless and unfunny as Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman showing up out of nowhere (complete with theme music) to make Bruce and Barry look like dumb assholes. Imagine thinking this was a good idea.

THE UGLY

The biggest point of contention surrounding this movie is the CGI necromancy used in the aforementioned cameo clusterfuck from the climax, which gives us George Reeve, Christopher Reeves, and Adam West posthumously reprising their DC roles in non-speaking appearances (there’s archived audio from West, but his cameo isn't really focused on to the point you can barely tell it's him) where they just stand there before the camera swoops around like in that Saul Goodman gif.

I think this is one of the very few times where I actually think the outrage is mostly justified. To be clear, I’m not getting mad on behalf of dead celebrities I never knew, and as long as the filmmakers went through the proper channels and the estates of these stars were properly compensated, I don’t have any legal objections. All of my distaste is coming from a subjective, moral standpoint.

I have never liked this CGI necromancy ever since Rogue One popularized it. I find it really gross and distasteful, and in most cases I think finding a lookalike actor would be preferable than playing Weekend at Bernie’s with a computer generated facsimile of a dead person. In The Flash, I understand having lookalikes would diminish the wow factor of the crossover, but there was an extremely easy workaround to this: Have cameos from all the living DC stars.

Was Brandon Routh not available to put on the Superman tights? Would it have been so bad to let Grant Gustin pop in for a cameo? They acknowledge Helen Slater, so why not Melissa Benoist? Hell, if you want to reference bad, campy movies, have Shaq show up as Steel or Josh Brolin pop in as Jonah Hex! Or even Ryan Reynolds, I’d bet he’d be down to return if you gave him a real suit this time!

Like there’s just no excuse for ghoulishly parading around dead guys when there’s so many alive guys you could use instead. People can complain all they want about the fanservice and cameos in the past few Spider-Man films, but at least they only had returning characters played by living actors. And when this movie already has the niche, out-there Nic Cage Superman cameo, proving they were down to do things as out there and inoffensively creative as reference unmade movies, it’s really just inexcusable. It doesn’t ruin the movie for me, but it makes me lose a bit of respect for the people who okayed this over less offensive cameo ideas.

IS IT REALLY THAT BAD?

To my surprise, this film actually turned out to be pretty good. Not “great,” not “the best superhero movie ever,” but genuinely mostly good and enjoyable.

My opinion is that the movie is good in spite of itself. The third act is truly a hot mess, the stupid desert battle against Zod is awful and boring, Supergirl is depressingly pointless, so many plot points are just dropped or otherwise forgotten, and the CGI necromancy is nothing short of ghoulish. But the rest of the movie is truly a lot of fun. Barry and his younger self have a fun dynamic, Keaton really manages to take what little he’s given and show that he’s still got it as Batman, the Clooney and Cage cameos were delightful, and most importantly the emotional moments are actually effective.

I think with a bit more polish this film could have actually lived up to the hype around it. There is a great movie in here being suffocated by fanservice and CGI but still managing to get a few gasps of air regardless. I think if they’d kept the conflict more grounded or made Reverse-Flash the primary antagonist, things might have turned out better.

I think its score is pretty fair. My friend @huyh172 described this as “the worst good DC movie,” and it’s an assessment I fully agree with. It’s not as good as Aquaman, Wonder Woman, The Suicide Squad, the Snyder Cut, or Shazam!, and it’s definitely not as bad as stuff like Wonder Woman 1984 or Josstice League. It’s also a bit too enjoyable to be mid. It’s just a really solid movie held back from true greatness by some damning flaws… and really, that makes it the perfect capstone to the "Snyderverse," a cinematic universe that had some solid movies but was held back from greatness by incredibly bad ones.

[supercalifragipopculturevomit]

Has there ever been a more beautiful man than Alain Delon in the 60s?

Currently on a marathon and except for Rocco and His Brothers which was a little too melodramatic for my taste—PTSD from growing up with telenovelas—I feel like I’ve stumbled upon a motherload of cinematic gems. When they say “they don’t make movies like these anymore” this is what they mean…

Purple Noon is the first film adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley. Gotta suspend your disbelief that Delon would (literally) kill to be someone else during that era, but it’s still a gripping watch. From the fashion to the cinematography, a visual feast as well.

I only knew that Le Samouraï was a highly-rated classic and that it was a crime thriller… I wasn’t aware of its legacy. As the story unfolded though, it dawned on me: “Ahhh this is the film all THOSE other movies want to be.” David Fincher’s The Killer was foremost on my mind. And Delon’s Jef Costello, to this day, lives on in many characters, particularly in portrayals of antiheros.

There WAS a reason La Piscine reminded me so much of Luca Guadanino’s A Bigger Splash… it’s the source material. I’d bet good money the storyline in the second season of HBO’s White Lotus (the one with Aubrey Plaza, Will Sharpe, Meghann Fahy, and Theo James) also took inspiration from this. What a film though. Although I could anticipate where it was going, it still held me in rapt suspense. The lush cinematography, the tight script, the beautiful quartet spiraling into pyschological warfare… I loved every gnarly sexy minute of it.

Going slightly off-topic, if they ever make a biopic of this man's life, I can totally see Daniel Brühl playing him.

Hear me out: he has a similar mix of manly and boyish features (dude could probably play the 25-year-old version if he shaved off his beard); he's not French but he can speak the language well and also has that European charm and elegance going for him; he has a way of capturing a person's essence even though he doesn't resemble them much in real life (e.g. Niki Lauda in Rush and Karl Lagerfeld in Becoming Karl Lagerfeld); and he's a phenomenal and dedicated actor known for his portrayal of morally ambiguous characters, which, from what I've gathered, Delon was.

That he was a massive fan growing up probably helps, too. I wouldn't be surprised if he's seen all of his movies. This was from decades ago, but it's the most Delon-esque photo of Brühl's I could find...

[scotianostra]

Happy 76th Birthday the excellent Scottish actor David Hayman.

Hayman, one of Scotland’s most acclaimed actors of stage and screen was born in Bridgeton, Glasgow on February 9th 1948.

David Hayman grew up as one of three children in a working class family in Drumchapel, Glasgow. Leaving school without any academic qualifications he started work as a would-be engineer at 16. One day, wearing his grease stained boiler suit, he marched into the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and announced his intention to become an actor. He still has no idea where this came from, he is basically a shy person and there was no family history of acting. He took advice and joined an amateur dramatics group and a year later was accepted to study drama and has never been out of work since.

His film and television credits are, frankly, much too numerous to list but include his superb portrayal of hard man Jimmy Boyle in “Sense of Freedom” and, of course, he is recognisable everywhere as Detective Chief Superintendent Michael Walker in Linda La Plante’s long running Trial and Retribution series.He has also starred in the hit Scottish cop drama Shetland as well as Scottish comedy shows Scotch & Wry, Rab C Nesbitt and Still Game.

Hayman has also directed numerous films and TV shows as well as regularly treading the boards in the Theatres.

Away from acting, David established his Glasgow-based charity Spirit Aid in 2001. It has gone on to become one of Scotland’s most successful small scale humanitarian organisations. He started Spirit Aid because he wanted to do a Scottish Live Aid at Hampden, but his rock stars let him down. “They were all, ‘Oh, man, I’m burned out,’ and I was thinking, ‘You’re sitting on your fat arse on your sofa with £40 million in the bank. Go and sit in a refugee camp in Afghanistan and tell me you’re burned out’. But I thought, I believe in this, I’ve got to keep going.”

He spends several months every year visiting his charity’s relief projects where he employs indigenous workers wherever possible. His fundraising operations include Operation Loo Roll, a project selling toilet paper that raised £100,000 in 2007. The charity undertakes humanitarian relief projects from Kosovo to Guinea-Bissau, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Malawi and South Africa.

Hayman is a big campaigner for a Scottish film studio, which is looking like happening soon, he says “It takes the Americans to come in and build a shed where they shoot Outlander and that’s the nearest thing we have to a film studio, think of all the movies that we’ve lost, all the money that we’ve lost all the way back to Braveheart.”

David was recently in the fab comedy from Scottish director Michael Caton-Jones, Our Ladies, “set mainly in Edinburgh a group of Catholic school girls get an opportunity to go to the capital for a choir competition, but they’re more interested in drinking, partying and hooking up than winning the competition” it is an adaptation of Scottish author, Alan Warner, of Morvern Callar fame’s third novel Sopranos, I read the book in the late 90’s it is a laugh out loud book, and the film is also very good.

Hayman was in an interesting film, My Neighbor Adolf, last year, which I haven’t got round to watching yet, set in 1960;s Brazil he plays a “lonely and grumpy” Holocaust survivor convinces himself that his new neighbour is none other than Adolf Hitler. We also saw him in the sequel Fisherman's Friends: One and All, both films get ratings of 6.2, and 6.4 on IMDB . I have just started a binge watch of Chemistry of Death, a Brit crime thriller series which is on Paramount plus. Last year David played a Chieftain in the Disney Star Wars prequal series Andor.

David won a top theatre award for his portrayal of northern Irishman, Eric, in the acclaimed play Cyprus Avenue last year, he has a couple of projects lined up, Jailbroken, an action crime thriller described as "the day before a violent criminal is due to be released from prison he receives a threatening call. Armed only with a mobile phone he must somehow save his family - and himself."And at the other end of the spectrumis a fantasy called Assassins Guild, "After the Mermaid Wars, Iliad's city is attacked by dark forces. With the city full of rancor and corruption, Death herself forms an alliance and offers Atticus, an elite fighter, the chance to return to life. This gift comes at a price."

[startrekmemequeen]

4, 6, and 10 for the ask game :3

4. Least favourite character

It's hard to choose cause there are so many characters in star trek 😅

From the top of my head, Gul Dukat. I hate him with passion.

Also Kivas Fajo cause he hurt Data and it's just a crime against humanity.

5. Favourite alien race?

I really like klingons, they have one of the most well-written cultures in star trek. Also i don't remember star trek enterprise well cause i watched it in 2017 but Xindi are so cool as a concept. 5 (if i'm not mistaken) intelligent species evolving on one planet. Aquatic Xindi having spaceships filled with water. It would be cool if it happened to our planet too.

10. Do you read fanfiction? If so, what are your faves?

I read it a while ago but i liked it. Summary: A slanging match turns into a competition as two men of science and engineering pit their creations in a head-to-head race. For a young android just emerging into sentience, will the pressure prove to be too much? Or will it change the way it views humanity, and itself?

It has Noon ^^ (honestly i don't remember how well he was portrayed there but at least the portrayal wasn't bad you know what i mean). But the desription of the race is breathtaking. This fic made me feel feelings.

Summary: It's Cadet La Forge's first year at the Academy and his only goal is to be the best engineer that Starfleet has ever seen. On his first day, he meets the most unusual student that's ever attended the Academy - a highly advanced android named Data. As the two grow closer, however, it becomes apparent that certain cadets don't want Data to succeed ... and will go to catastrophic lengths to stop him.

A daforge fic with very interesting plot (no smut, rated M for the angst and injuries and stuff like that). Amazing slow burn.

Summary: "You know, Data, I've been thinking about some of the times we've had. Like that time we went sailing on Devala Lake. You remember that?"

"I have a complete memory record of that day."

Beautiful. Just beautiful.

Summary: Noonien Soong is an undergrad at the Daystrom Academy with a desire to accomplish great things. Maybe too great for his capacity.

The high expectations himself and others put on him always gave him the need to be the best at what he does, but the recent doubts that his promises might not be fulfilled has taken a toll in his self confidence.

Academy Noon! This fic has my whole heart. Wonderful characterization.

[chillibeanos]

WELCOME TO THE APOCALOVERSE

"WHEN PUSH COMES TO SHOVE AND OTHERWORLDLY POWERS COME INTO PLAY, THE BEST THING YOU CAN DO IS TO EMBRACE THE WEIRD!"

hi there!!! the name's Chilli!

You may know me from other platforms, in-game tags or in real life! Well, whatever the case may be, I'm excited to have your attention! :3

More about me:

I go by Chilli or Max! Whatever you prefer

I like various franchises and hobbies but my main interest is my own ocs! I hope you love them as much as i do!

I have a huge passion for art and film! I'm hoping to one day become an animator, screenwriter or storyboard artist.

My best buddies are @local-soda-can, @pastriibunz, @your-favourite-goat and @eretsimons12!!!

WHAT IS THE APOCALOVERSE?!?

The Apocaloverse is a collection of stories derived from various sci-fi, supernatural, horror, comedy, old-timey and fantasy elements.

With 4 stories in total, each tells the tale of a protagonist in their daily life within the town of Auburn, USA.

Although, not all is as it seems...

Every story has angsty moments and elements that can tug at even the strongest of heart strings. Every character is also crafted to have a sense of immorality and moral greyness. No characters are going to be completely goody-two shoes in this franchise, sorry.

Below are the individual stories and their basic premises:

THE MISADVENTURES OF BEAN SPROUT

Classification Rating: MA 15+

<MA 15+ rated material contains strong content and is legally restricted to people over the age of 15. It contains elements such as sex scenes and drug use that could have a strong impact on the viewer.>

Following the life of the titular Bean Sprout, a galactic rabbit hybrid outlaw, as they go through the trials and tribulations of their daily life.

After being separated from their mother at a newborn age and being experimented on, they've lost all hope for life and resort to violence and hostility due to those experiences. They are noisy and chaotic and cause all sorts of shenanigans whether it's dropping anvils on passerbys, having affairs with random people, being a terrible mayor to Auburn or just being just a huge dick in general, they always know how to be a menace to society.

This all changed after a while though. After a heist gone wrong, they began getting hunted by the Nebula Enforcement Bureau, an intergalactic and interdimensional organization bent on exterminating any major threats to the universe. Bean happened to get on this list and is now hunted everywhere and everyday of their life.

Will Bean be able to defeat the 10 NEB segments and move on with their daily life of crime or will the universe come apart trying to escape the never-ending cycle?

THE TIME CAVALCADE CARNIVAL

Classification Rating: M

<Films and computer games classified M (Mature) contain content of a moderate impact. M-rated films and computer games are not recommended for children under the age of 15. They include portrayals of elements such as violence and themes that require a mature outlook>

When Noah Rosebud is taken by his sister to the exciting amusement park in Auburn known as Paradox Paradise, he expects what any 19 year old would: a relaxing yet fun laidback vacation to forget all the stress in life from being an adult now...

Also to celebrate his sister's birthday. That too.

When riding on one of the many roller coasters, disaster decided to strike. The track of the back roller coaster car derails, killing his sister by throwing her onto the steel beams. When he tries to save himself from impending doom, he stands up to try and grab onto the beams, hoping to latch on and be safe when the coaster eventually crashes. He then accidentally collides head first into one of the beams and...lives?

Noah finds himself in a confusing position. He's seemed to have found a weak point in reality itself, transporting him to a position between time and space. He is now traveling between different dimensions, looking for answers on what could have caused this...

With the help of interdimensional creatures, strange contraptions and celestial beings, he finds himself in a never ending struggle to make it back to his correct position in time, seeming to never come close to his goal.

Although, with all this fabric of time and space being messed with, a certain organization is not going to take these actions lightly...

MONSTERS AFTER DARK

Classification Rating: M

<Films and computer games classified M (Mature) contain content of a moderate impact. M-rated films and computer games are not recommended for children under the age of 15. They include portrayals of elements such as violence and themes that require a mature outlook>

After a seeming jump in time, Alicia Rosebud is a freshman in college, looking for a degree in computer science! She has been very successful in life from having good grades to being responsible so there's nothing she can't do.

She is still sad that her brother left town without a given reason though. That's gonna be a huge weight on her shoulders for a long time....

When exploring the basement for old computer parts for a project, she uncovers very cryptic lyrical notes, ethereal objects and dusty old books. Given the context clues, she thinks these must be from an old witch society. It's not until she uncovers a ruined carpet with a gateway to the underworld that the reality sets in.

Alicia goes on various capers with lost souls, overlords, creepy monsters and even one of the NEB segments!

Although...the horrors of the underworld and its existence bring a bit of thrill to the place...

LIMELIGHT

Classification Rating: R 18+

<R 18+ material is restricted to adults as it contains content that is considered high in impact for viewers. This includes content that may be offensive to sections of the adult community>

Reese Verlice is a starring comedian and songwriter with a sharp wit and hilarious sense of humor. There is never going to be a moment where he's not cracking a joke!

One day at his office in downtown Auburn, he meets Elijah Rodriguez, his new advisor/manager.

At first, he didn't think much of him, but that slowly developed overtime. They started talking and both of them were head over heels in love with each other.

With time, they came to marry, having the best time of their lives together as a gay couple. They would shower each other with love and affection on a daily basis while Reese still got to balance his celebrity job...

But as he got more famous, an opportunity came up.

A man by the name of Clastott Chamberlain offered Reese a substantial deal one day while he was in his office. With a lack of creativeness at the current moment, Reese accepted, not knowing his fate was sealed the moment he did so.

Reese started...changing. He was no longer as social as he used to be, his style of comedy and songwriting was vastly different and he also started to go down a spiral of alcoholism...

He was no longer at his best and struggles to keep up with the public demands everyday. His new fragile masculinity and violent tendencies are again tearing him and his family apart from one another...

It's like he's being...puppeteer'd in a sense...for the masses and their messed up form of entertainment.

Important Stuff

The Apocaloverse Discord Server:

Creator Tiktok:

---

Credit for borders:

@saradika @saradika-graphics @benkeibear @enchanthings @urdadsfavegirlblogger

[theflixdiary]

The Green Mile (1999) directed by Frank Darabont

age rating: 18+ genre: drama, fantasy duration: 3h 8m country: United States language: English screenplay: Frank Darabont

major cast: Tom Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan, David Morse, Bonnie Hunt, Michael Jeter, Doug Hutchison

plot summary: Paul Edgecomb (Tom Hanks) is a death row prison guard in the 1930s, who encounters John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan), a gentle huge man with supernatural abilities, who has been convicted of a heinous crime. as Paul and his colleagues witness John’s miraculous powers, they begin to question the justice system and the true nature of guilt and innocence.

if you enjoyed this post, don't forget to show some loves by leaving comments / likes / reblog / help me to spread the words. follow me for more reviews!! ❤︎❤︎

read my thought below (may contain spoiler):

this is it! this is it! The Green Mile is the film that truly tugged at my heartstrings and played with my emotions like a full blown orchestra concerto. seriously, who knew I’d develop such a soft spot for inmates, especially those on death row? after being mesmerised by Prison Break TV, I let this film do the same - had me hooked in ways I never expected. let me tell you, I cried like a waterfall throughout this movie — Del’s execution? waterworks! John’s heartbreaking fate? don’t even get me started! and Mr. Jingles, that poor little mouse, just trying to live his best life! honestly, I think I need to buy a whole box of tissues before sitting down to watch this masterpiece again. now, let’s talk about the duration. at over three hours, you might think that’s a hefty commitment. but trust me, I was glued to the screen the entire time. not a single moment felt wasted! every scene was crafted with such care and intention that I didn’t even notice the clock ticking. the emotional depth of the characters was so captivating that I was invested in their stories and struggles.

Tom Hanks, as Paul Edgecomb, is simply flawless. his portrayal of a man torn between his duties and the compassion he feels for John Coffey made my heart ache. and Michael Clarke Duncan? wow! his performance was nothing short of monumental. the sheer kindness and innocence he brought to John was utterly spellbinding. I honestly can’t imagine anyone else in that role. every time I thought I had a grip on my emotions, the film would throw another curveball. the relationships between the guards and the inmates, especially with the beloved Mr. Jingles' appearances, added layers of warmth and humour, reminding us that even in the darkest places, light can shine through. the way the story unfolds, with flashbacks and poignant moments, kept my attention span fully engaged. I felt like I was part of the story, walking that long green mile alongside Paul and the other inmates, feeling their joys and heartbreaks. I haven’t read Stephen King’s novella yet, but I think I’m going to have to pick it up after this cinematic experience. I can only imagine how much deeper the emotional impact might be in written form. if the film made me cry buckets, I can only brace myself for the literary version! would I recommend it? absolutely! The Green Mile is more than just a movie; it’s an experience that lingers in my mind long after the credits roll. it’s a tale of humanity, compassion, and the moral complexities of life and death.

poster & stills credit: IMDb edited using canva

[imaginelegends]

Hirsute

hairy

Lux likes cats. They seem like pleasant creatures and a fair amount of people welcome them as pets. She would gladly own a cat herself. Unfortunately, the life of a decorated war hero and active duty representative at the Institute of War prevented such frivolous indulgences.

But, despite the lack of cats in her life, Lux fancies that she’s knowledgeable regarding a cat’s general behavior and proclivities. For example, she knows for a fact that domestic felines have a tendency to hack up hairballs as a natural consequence to grooming. She’s never witnessed this happen, of course, but it’s a well-documented phenomenon. Also, Sona occasionally complains about her cat ruining the carpet by spitting up a tangled gunk of fur.

When the main doors open - the doors leading to the infamous Summoner’s lobby, the grand and ostentatious entry into the Institute’s grounds, everyone stops to stare. Those doors never open, unless some visiting dignitary is here and the Institute wants to put on a show. Behold! All the taxpayer monies at work!

Except, no one announced the visit of any VIP (which is essential to put on a good show). There should be no reason for the main doors to open. Certainly, no one is ready to present themselves as proper champions. For pity’s sake, the red-side Summoner has Clarity and Clairvoyance in their spell slots. Only the mentally-afflicted take Clarity and Clairvoyance!!! Or worse, the Summoner could be trolling, which would actively harm any positive impression.

But the Institute is not, in fact, sabotaging their image by springing a surprise visit on the Champions and the Summoners. No. A small company of soldiers march through the doors, led by a senior Institute staff. In between the hulking, heavy armor, there’s a flash of sequins, shiny beads, and strawberry hair. Incredible. Such theatrics to simply welcome a new Champion? Well, perhaps welcome is not the correct term as clearly this Champion is more of a prisoner, shipped to the Institute as punishment for unknown crimes.

Lux finds herself mildly impressed because small time crooks and their ilk don’t land themselves a spot on the rift for petty theft. This criminal must have done something incredible - a feat of unparalleled skill or intellect - a deed (however heinous) that remains worthy of the title Champion. And with all this security theater - really, a whole damn parade of armed guards for one frail girl, the Institute is either advertising the inherent threat that this coerced Champion presents or they’re inadvertently disclosing a weakness - they aren’t confident in their ability to keep this girl captive. And isn’t that just curious?

Who could this mysterious girl be?

“Ugh, can we move a little faster? At this rate, I’ll die of old age before you can put me in a cell.”

Lux chokes, as if a slimy, tangled gunk of hair got stuck in her throat. Air grows scarce in her lungs as she desperately tries to breathe and throw up at the exact same time. She coughs and she hacks and she spits but nothing helps. Of course not. She’s not actually choking because there’s nothing in her throat. And yet, she continues to cough and hack and spit. Her teammates notice - her opponents notice - they have no reason not to notice the young, blonde woman and her eerily accurate portrayal of a cat with a hairball.

“Are you-” Karma asks, reaching out to lay a hand on her shoulder.

Lux waves her off - stubbornly stuffing oxygen into her lungs with a noisy gasp. “Fuh-Fine. Just. I swallowed some hair. Maybe.”

Karma doesn’t seem convinced, but she backs away. Lux grimaces as a flush colors in her cheeks. Great. She just humiliated herself in front of everyone. Perfect. Avoiding the concerned looks from her teammates, the curious stares from her opponents, Lux finds her sight landing on a pair of all too familiar reddish-pink eyes.

Jinx watches Lux from between shining pauldrons.

Well. Shit.

It’s really her.

[haggishlyhagging]

Ideologically, our world is in the throes of a major regression to the woman-hating dogmas of both Christian and Islamic fundamentalism. There is in literature and film an unprecedented barrage of violence against women, of graphic portrayals of woman-murder and rape compared to which the earlier literary violence (of a Taming of the Shrew or a Don Juan) pales to insignificance. Also unprecedented is the current proliferation of hard-core pornography that, through a multi-billion-dollar industry, blares out into the home from books, magazines, comic strips, movies, and even cable television the message that sexual pleasure lies in violence, in the brutalization, enslavement, torture, mutilation, degradation, and humiliation of the female sex.

As Theodore Roszak noted, the resistance to the nineteenth-century feminist movement was marked by an increase in what crime records term aggravated assault, severe, bone-breaking domestic beatings, the setting of a wife on fire, the putting out of her eyes. Because throughout recorded history violence against women has been the androcratic system's response to any threat of fundamental change, in the wake of the twentieth-century women's liberation movement has come a substantial rise in violence against women. Examples are Indian bride burnings, Iranian public executions, Latin American imprisonments and tortures, worldwide wife batterings, and the global terrorism of rapes—which scholars estimate now occur in the United States at the rate of one every thirteen seconds.

Viewed from the perspective of Cultural Transformation theory, the systems function of the massive and brutal violence against women today is not hard to see. If androcracy is to be maintained, women must be suppressed at all cost. And if this violence—and the incitements to violence through the revival of religious calumnies against women and the equation of sexual pleasure with the killing, raping, and torturing of women—is mounting all over our globe, it is because never before has male dominance been as vigorously challenged through a global, mutually reinforcing, synergistic women's movement for human liberation.

Never before has the world seen such a mushrooming of governmental and nongovernmental organizations with memberships in the millions—groups ranging from the official All China Women's Federation to the National Women's Studies Association, the National Organization for Women, and the Older Women's League in the United States—all dedicated to improving the status of women. Never before has there been a United Nations Decade for Women. Never before have there been global conferences attracting thousands of women from every corner of the world to address the problems stemming from male supremacy. Never before in all of recorded history have women from every nation on this earth come together to work for a future of sexual equality, development, and peace—the three goals of the First United Nations Decade for Women.

The growing recognition by women—and men—that these three goals are related stems from the intuitive perception of the dynamics we have been examining. For once the function of male violence against women is perceived, it is not hard to see how men who are taught they must dominate the half of humanity that is not as physically strong as they are will also think it their "manly" duty to conquer weaker men and nations.

Be it in the name of national defense, as in the USA and USSR, or in the holy name of God, as in the Muslim world, war or the preparation for war serve not only to reinforce male dominance and male violence but, as illustrated by both Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Russia, also to reinforce androcracy's third major systems component, authoritarianism. Times of war provide justification for "strongman" leadership. They also justify the suspension of civil liberties and rights—as illustrated by the news blackout during the U.S. invasion of Grenada in 1983 and the chronic martial law in embattled nation after nation in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

In the past, the pendulum has always swung back from peace to war. Whenever more "feminine" values have risen for a time, threatening to transform the system, an aroused and fearful androcracy has thrust us back. But must the current swing backward inevitably bring on more and more domestic and international violence and, with it, more and more suppression of civil liberties and rights?

Is there really no way out of another—now, nuclear—war? Is this to be the end for the cultural evolution that began with such hope in the age of the Goddess, when the power of the life-giving Chalice was still supreme? Or are we now close enough to gaining our freedom to avert that end?

-Riane Eisler, The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future

[bijouxcarys]

My Top 5 Dustin Hoffman Movies

(In no particular order)

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Set in New York, a country boy moves to the city in pursuit of success. Upon learning it’s much harder than it looks, he realises he must sell his body to support himself and his new “handicapped,” TB-ridden friend.

Midnight Cowboy is a touching one. It received an X rating upon its release due to the “connotations of homosexual behaviour” between the two main characters. The beautiful thing about this movie is the ambiguity of that very thing. It is a love story. Platonic and romantic. It’s the audience’s perception.

Dustin was nominated for best actor at the 1970 Oscars, but lost it to John Wayne for True Grit. Snubbed.

Rain Man (1988)

Upon learning his recently deceased father had left $3 million to a mysterious beneficiary, Charlie Babbitt pays the beneficiary a visit, only to find that it’s his long lost older brother, the autistic Raymond.

I know this is considered a bad representation of autism, but as an autistic person, I have no problem with this movie. It’s a representation of autism in one individual, whether you like it or not. Considering its release year, it’s a large step. And Dustin nailed it.

Unlike many, I don’t see this movie as using the autistic character to make the neurotypical look better, or “improve” as a person. To me, this is a heartwarming story of a man bonding with his brother, who he hasn’t seen since the age of 4. Does he grow as a person? Possibly. But does it also shed a light on the existence of neurodivergence in someone other than a child? Absolutely.

Dustin won best actor at the 1989 Oscars for this performance, and rightly so.

Kramer vs Kramer (1979)

When his wife leaves him out of the blue to raise their 5-year-old son alone, Ted Kramer learns to balance his career with being a single parent. Until his ex comes back and files for custody.

This is a truly beautiful movie, despite the female lead being one of my least favourite actresses of all time. I adore the nuanced portrayal of single parenthood and the hardships single fathers of the 70s faced when raising their children. The development of the relationship between Ted and his son is very intricately documented through immersive performances from both parties.

Dustin had practice runs with over 70 kids to find the right fit; he worked on realism and wanted the bond to be as strong as possible.

My favourite quote from this movie is when Ted is on the stand: “Where in the law does it state that a woman is a better parent by virtue of her sex?”

Dustin won best actor in 1980 for this role.

Straight Time (1978)

When Max is released from prison after 5 years, he has to learn to adapt to the real world under the supervision of a corrupt parole officer and the knowledge that crime is what he does best.

This is a more obscure Hoffman movie that deserves a lot more credit. It’s a great deep dive into the life of ex-cons and the struggle of reintegration into society. It’s a very real depiction of the human condition, and the repercussions of being pushed over the edge.

It’s a tense movie, immersive, and offers a lot of opportunities for introspection in an otherwise distant context.

The Graduate (1967)

Benjamin, a naive college graduate, enters a scandalous affair with his parents’ married friend, Mrs. Robinson. Along the way, he finds feelings for her daughter, Elaine.

A subject of a ton of references and spoofs. I adore this movie for more than its iconic moments. It’s a masterpiece of an era laden with disillusionment, uncertainty about governing bodies and the rebellion sparking in the youth movement.

Ben and Elaine represent the generation that seek for a revolution, a new way of life. To break free from the cookie-cutter mentality of American domestic life. A complete rejection of the nuclear family ideals. The confusion that leads to ill decision-making and heartbreak.

The ending scene is ominous, open, and has no real finalisation. The perfect depiction of the unsure direction in which life as they know it will take.

This was Dustin’s breakthrough role, at the age of 30, after being in the New York theatre scene for a decade.