#gwendoline is so lovely i just adore her

[viivenn]

“The Dark at the End of Everything.”

[no-phrogs-in-hats]

Can I request a gwendoline Christie X an actor reader where they secretly got together during the movie they're in together.

They're doing interviews for it and fans are shipping them both a ton because they honestly can't keep it in their pants and are super handsy/constantly flirting completely accidentally...for the most part.

Until one Gwen is on an insta live and the reader doesn't realise and comes up behind her and starts trying to make out because the reader is complaining that Gwen was always so busy and how they could help her "relax" ;) when ends up yelling she's on a live and the reader dies from embarrassment while Gwen dies of laughter?

A Best Friend Like Her

Gwendoline Christie x reader

Warnings: none

A/N: Hi anon! I hope you enjoy this! I tried to stick to the request as much as possible.

To you, accepting a role in Star Wars was the best decision you had ever made. You had never been happier, even if it was a smaller part. But what mattered was the outcome.

Now, you’re waking up in a shared bed in a modest London flat beside the most beautiful woman you had ever laid eyes on. Very few people had known–only close friends and family. There was suspicion from fans, tweets surfacing and gaining traction almost instantly with people agreeing that something seemed up.

‘Screenshot from #SDcomiccon of Y/N and Gwen on the #StarWars pannel…I just know something is up here.’

‘These BTS pictures of Gwen and Y/N are ADORABLE, there’s no way they’re just friends.’

There was even a Youtube video titled, ‘Every time Gwen and Y/N have flirted with each other but they’re “just friends.”’

“Morning,” you mumbled as you met the sleepy eyes of Gwen.

She pecked you on the lips before pulling you into a warm embrace. “Graham said we have to arrive about an hour before the show starts.”

There was something you loved so much about her raspy morning voice. “Do you think they’re interviewing only the two of us to capitalize off the rumors of our relationship?”

“Erm…” Gwen sighed heavily. “I never thought of it that way.”

“I mean, they’re certainly gonna get some views. We’ve been the hot topic on Twitter for a while,” you said.

“Let’s make a bet.”

You sat up, leaning on your elbow as you peered down at Gwen. “On what?”

“I bet you…ten pounds, that Graham will ask us about our relationship less than ten minutes in,” Gwen snickered.

You smiled back, amused. “Alright, fine. More than ten minutes in.”

__________

The pair of you sat in front of an audience of at least a hundred people. The bet you had made with Gwen was still lingering in your mind as you sat side by side, listening to Graham’s commentary on Star Wars and answering questions about the other roles you’re playing currently.

Game of Thrones was mentioned multiple times with Gwen and the tv show you starred in was mentioned too. 

“So,” Graham began, adjusting his position in his chair, “there have been some rumors.”

You and Gwen eyed each other.

“Twitter has been abuzz about you two,” he continued. “Some fans have been watching you two in interviews, red carpet events, and such. They’ve–and everyone else for that matter–have agreed that you’re both close.”

How the hell would you get yourself out of this? Well, the same way you did when other people asked.

“Well, I grew up without many friends,” you explained. “Throughout my life I’ve never had a close friend. And, Gwen is the only person I’ve become close to. I consider myself very lucky to have a…best friend like her.”

Best friend. Bullshit.

__________

“How long do we plan on keeping this a secret?” you asked on the drive home.

Gwen, in the driver seat, sighed. “I don’t know, darling…I’m…I’m ready, though, if you are.”

“I don’t know,” you huffed. “Every worst possible outcome is all I can think of. Losing roles, friends, the media backlash…”

“Sweetheart, it’s the media that’s stirring this up. Both of our parents know and our closest friends do too.” Gwen stayed focused on the road as her hand came to squeeze your knee. “I don’t think we’d lose any roles over this either. There are laws put in place for things like these.”

At your flat, you stood in the kitchen preparing dinner for the two of you. As you sauteed broccoli, Gwen was in the living room, typing away on her computer. You heard her speaking every now and then and assumed she was simply taking a phone call by the sound of her talking about scripts and shows and movies she’s been in. 

When dinner was ready, you plated the food, setting it on the kitchen table before going to find Gwen. She sat facing away from you as you tiptoed over, encasing her in a surprise hug. She flinched before growing stiff as you placed soft, chaste kisses over her neck.

“I’m so proud of you,” you smiled. “You did so well today, but you owe me ten pounds. Graham mentioned our relationship eleven minutes in, so I won.” She said nothing and you looked at her, confused. “What?”

Gwen peered up at you with an awkward grin and her eyes darted from you to the phone that leaned against the bright computer screen. “I’m on Live…”

Your stomach dropped and all the color drained from your face. “You–what?”

“I’m talking to a few hundred thousand people right now, sweetheart,” Gwen chuckled.

Your words were stuck in your throat and you managed to squeak them out, waving briefly at the phone where comments of ‘OMG’ and ‘NOW WAY’ were flooding the screen. “Erm…right…well…dinner is ready and on the table.”

You turned and rushed out of the room, embarrassment pooling in your cheeks and humiliation creeping up your throat. As she watched you leave, Gwen faced the phone, the brightest smile on her face since she first kissed you a year before.

[silverwings22]

Moth Fixes It: The Sequel Trilogy

This is a very long rant about the sequel trilogy, based on a conversation I (Moth) had with my husband (Mr. Moth) and my best friend (Lamp) who was more a victim of my yapping than anything else. My plan for how to fix the sequels below the cut!

MOVIE 1: The Force Awakens

This is our introduction movie. Let's start with our big bad: it should be Captain Phasma. The comics (according to Mr. Moth, I have not had the pleasure of reading them) says she grew up poor and found that chromium for her armor off Palpatines' old personal Nabooian yaht. So lean into that. She's obsessed with Vader/Anakin. She's obsessed with the idea of the poor slave kid who became the Fist of the Empire. She's the one fixated on Ben Solo, and seduces him into being Kylo Ren. (Give Gwendoline Christie more screentime, and let her be sexy. Dammit, I love her.)

Speaking of Ben Solo: I want him to be a doe-eyed dumbass the whole movie. She's molding him and manipulating him, he's trying to be the shadow of Vader she wants because he thinks he's in love and he's young and stupid. Show him jerking him around. Let her be the femm fatale and he's the halpless dolt trying to make her happy. Show him hesitate until she urges him. Show him with hickies and bruises on his wrists. Fuck that man up.

Keep Finn's backstory. A defected stormtrooper is INTERESTING. Lean into it. He was kidnapped as a kid? Show him questioning who his family was. Show him wondering if he was thrown away or if they had no choice. Let him be angry, let him be sad, LET HIM BE HUMAN because that's what his whole character is. He's human, despite what the First Order wanted him to be. Then let him defect because he's afraid, as he should be. And let him run straight to Rey.

Rey, however, needs MORE backstory. Gimme more than a nightmare or two about parents she can't remember the faces of. And start introducing the concept of the dyad early. She pops up in Kylo/Ben's bedroom right after a fight with Phasma where he's nursing a black eye? They share dreams? Whatever it is, scrungle him TF up so he looks good and pathetic, and she offers to help him. Give me an open hearted sugar cookie of a soon to be Jedi, despite everything she's going through on Jakku. Let her offer him some of her depleted little bacta stashes.

When she meets Finn, same thing. Let her offer him one of her measly little food portions. Let her be protective of him immediately. When they dip for the Rebellion together, let him confess who he is quickly, and her be the one to offer up that people can change for the better. Give her some unyielding hope to hold this being-found family together.

When they meet Poe with the Rebels, they quickly click. Finn and Poe make besties, they both adore Rey, the trio is born.

DO NOT have Han Solo and Leia just be talking again after years of being estranged. Han's whole character arc in the original trilogy is becoming the guy that STAYED. You expect me to believe he ditched his wife and Luke and went back to being the scruffy looking nerf herder he was 20 years ago? No, fuck that. He's been with Leia all the time. He's not Han Solo, he's Han Organa cause he took HER name. And they're running this shit show spectacularly, General and Captain. Rey and Finn can still turn up on the Falcon, he just sold it to help fund the Rebellion or something and the old girl found her way home anyway.

During their introduction to Han and Leia, let them meet a couple people who wear less orange jumpsuits and more brown with a couple funny looking braids in their hair. Leia can explain they're former padawans from Luke's temple who escaped and survived.

While the new trio is getting acquainted with the finer art of war, Kylo is being toured around his awful, hot, evil girlfriend's laboratory she's funding with her shiny chromium credits. None of this "somehow Palpatine returned" bullshit, he returned because Phasma got ahold of Hemlock and Pershing's research and she's cloning things. Throw in some sniffly looking little genius chained to a lab table for good measure.

We learn what a dyad is from Kylo’s research, and figure how that’s how he and Rey are connected. Throughout this Rey keeps trying to get to Kylo, as she learns more about who he is and gets to know his parents. She tries to help him, to hold the door to the light open for him to be brave enough to run through. "I'll help you. Just take my hand. Please." He answers this in typical shithead behavior by attacking the rebellion, injuring (BUT NOT KILLING) both his parents. (Can't reconcile if your parents are dead. The Jedi are about forgiveness, I need them alive to forgive.)

The movie ends with Palpatine coming out of the tank, not old and decrepit but young, in his prime, and pissed at the entire Skywalker lineage. He's not about to make Kylo his new apprentice, he's going to take Phasma as his new Fist of the First Order and focus on immortality instead of training a new Sith. He'll be his own apprentice, with blackjack and hookers. He tells Phasma she can keep Kylo as long as she keeps him in line, but if he so much as looks in the direction of Anakin-level drama Palps is gonna use lightning to turn him into Mongolian BBQ.

And I want doe eyed dumbass Kylo to be standing just outside the room, back to the door, listening in terror and with a recently bloodied lip, as he realizes that Rey was right. Phasma doesn't love him, and he's in fucking danger.

MOVIE 2: The Last Jedi

This is the BIG PLOT points movie, with the action. Start with Kylo fucking bailing on Phasma, running for his life pursued by angry giant pretty ex girlfriend. He has NO IDEA where he's going, and the dyad snatches him and Rey together on some poorly inhabited planet. (Bonus if it's cold, so they gotta cuddle). Build a believable romance starting there ala Zeb and Kallus from Rebels, where they gotta work together to survive. Poe and Finn, in all their bravery, find them because they'd never give up on Rey.

Kylo tells them how Palps is back. Poe calls Leia, who tells them the last person to defeat him was her brother Luke, who's been living in shame in the ruins of his Jedi Academy. She decides to go find Luke, so she can train to defeat Palps. Kylo goes with her, cause he's gotta start a galactic apology tour.

Finn meets Rose during a Rebel battle (I love her, such a wasted character, the actress deserved better and I'm giving it to her) and she obviously doesn't trust the ex stormtrooper. But he's been mulling over Rey going to fight, and parses the idea to her: let's steal their troopers. These two go on a harrowing adventure posing as Storm Troopers, getting into the barracks, inspiring other troopers to rise us and fight back. To take back their autonomy, and show them they're not just pawns. They lead a mutiny, they steal a ship, then they decide to do it again with a bigger ship. And a bigger one. Fuck it, they're stealing a goddamn fleet. Fuck the fathier races and the knife quest, they are inspiring people to take charge of their lives. (Have someone mention clone troopers that fought back for a callback to someone like Howser on Ryloth in TBB, maybe?) He's stepping into Han's shoes as the runaway who's learning to stay and find his place.

While this is going on, Hosnian Prime takes a Death Star to the face. The New Republic's seat of power is gone. Let's NOT act like it's not a big deal, and instead have the rebellion splintering at the seams because their two main leaders are injured and down for the count. Poe is the one who's pulling them together, forcing them to remember their on the same side. No contrived, unnecessary fight with Vice Admiral Holdo. She can be beefing with another leader or something, but a valid beef instead of "the script says I'm a bitch on a powertrip but I got no real reason." Poe gets all of them to pull their heads out of their collective asses. Let him step into Leias shoes as a military leader.

Now for Rey. You still want sad Luke, okay. He's ashamed he failed to protect his nephew from Phasma. He's ashamed he couldn't keep his students alive. Show him in the graveyard of the Academy, talking to the headstones. Have Rey show up with an apologetic Kylo who gets on his knees and begs Luke for forgiveness. Then let Luke 'There is still good in Darth Vader' Skywalker... forgive him. Cause that's who he is. Then Rey gets training. Actual training, not just with Luke but with Mara fucking Jade. Show him a path back from the Dark side from Auntie. And let them learn to control the dyad together.

Meanwhile, Rey’s still burning to know about her parents. So she and Luke finally sit down and delve into the Force, turning up a Force ghost nobody’s seen in a while. And fuck the “Rey is a Palpatine” angle. She’s Korkie Kryze’s kid, who’s Obi-wan and Satine’s. (This is where Lamp started cheering at the idea. She’s a Obi-wan Kenboneme girl.) Confirm that lineage. (And get a fun tie in to the Mandalorian too, making her have Mando heritage. It gives you more to work with on future projects if you want, too.)

Then give me a Kenobi and a Skywalker synergy, and the dyad making sense. Anakin and Obi-wan were two halves of a single warrior, and their grandkids took that shit literally.

MOVIE THREE: The Rise of Skywalker. (Let’s rename this. The Rise of Kenobi? The Rise of the Light? Something.)

Kylo/Ben and Rey are ready to fight, together. Luke and Mara Jade lend their sabers to them, but can’t leave to go with them because their place is here at the Academy. They literally pass the torch (but without dying. Mr. Moth is violently opposed to this trope and I’m inclined to agree) and the two go to leave. When they do, Luke turns around and goes to the equivalent of their Archives, and activates a beacon/sends a comm message harking back to Obi-wan’s “do not return to the Temple” from Revenge of the Sith but this time telling the scattered escaped Jedi that the time has come to return. We see comms blinking on wrists all over the galaxy, from the First Order stolen ships Finn and Rose are on to the Rebellion and everywhere in between. At least one woman is standing next to Lando Calrissian. Leia and Han see it too as they recover together.

Rey and Kylo send coordinates to Poe, but no one can get through to Finn. (Perhaps comm damage, out of range, etc. Gimme some juicy arguments. Holdo etc thinks it’s too dangerous with the Rebellion being so scattered. Poe demands to ask Han an Leia, there’s delays because ‘they’re still too weak, they almost died’ (we gotta fill 2 hours, lets get some emotional depth to this). Maybe they confer with another general, a graying blonde woman with a heavy tan and very distinct clone accent perhaps? (General Omega, General Omega, General Omega!) Or Hera Syndulla and a grown up Jacen? You can’t tell me they wouldn’t be there.

The argument is interspersed with Han and Leia doing what all older people who’ve seen some shit do: do it their damn self. They’re sneaking on the Falcon to bang on the long range transmitter, acting like they’re still twenty because they know their son is alive, well, and back on the right path. They’re so fucking proud. And while they’re attempting percussive maintenance to get a message to Finn and Rose, they get found by someone and then the whole arguing body is now in the Falcon.

They eventually decide to press the assault.

Meanwhile, Ben and Rey hand on whatever ship/planet Palps has made his evil base. Exegol is fine, we’ll go with that for the example. They’re dealing with young Palps and Phasma, along with tons of First Order, a fleet in orbit, and those Knights of Ren assholes. Cue EPIC lightsaber fight, I want this to rival Obi-wan vs Anakin on Mustafar. John Williams will do us proud with the score, he never disappoints. The battle is hard, but they take down the Knights of Ren and ground troopers. Phasma’s still trying to battlefield seduce Ben, but he finally gets to stand up for himself. He protects Rey from his former abuser. It’s very clear she’s got nothing on him, and we see the absolutely unhinged rage you get when a narcissistic abuser loses power over a victim. As she loses control, she finally makes a mistake and is taken down. The Rebellion turns up, and they’re getting it handed to them in orbit. We can keep that moment of despair Poe has in canon, where he thinks they’re going to lose and he apologizes while still fighting.

And then the stolen fled Rose and Finn had turns up full of pissed off former storm troopers with a lot of anger to work out. Let’s see good guys in TIE fighters (these are Mr. Moth’s fave SW ships, they deserve a little love.)

Let’s see my favorite line in all of Star Wars not get wasted this time. Rose’s “This is how we win, not by killing what we hate but by saving what we love” put to good use. Let her, Finn, and the fleet dive to put themselves between the First Order and the Rebellion, protecting them with the better and newer ships as shields. Flash cut to Rose and Finn’s hands gripping each other as they do this together. (I wanna ship it so bad and canon gave me nothing to work with!)

Rey and Ben face Palpatine, full dyad powers working together. He’s raging that he’s the most powerful being in the galaxy, all the great bad guy monologing. Let him reference the folly of the Sith Law of Two, because of how Vader betrayed him. How he’ll live forever, he needs no one, they’re weak and cowards because they won’t face him alone.

And then let them show what Star Wars has always been about: that you’re never alone. That doing the right thing will bring you to your people, and you’ll stand together against evil that seeks to divide and conquer. They are the Two that are One, and they whip his ass and destroy him, once and for all. (How many times to we have to teach you this lesson, old man?)

And they return, victorious, the First Order defeated, back to the Rebel base. Ben can apologize ot his parents on his hands and knees, and get hugged and forgiven. Maybe even a few of those padawans wave in his direction.

And the last scene should be Rey and Ben landing back at the Academy, with a couple other ships full of those same Padawans, and handing Luke and Mara back their lightsabers before Luke smiles and says “come on then, padawan. We have work to do.”

This fixes the GAPING plot holes, I think makes better use of the characters we got (they gave me great people and did NOTHING with them) and sets the stage for future projects while tying in some stuff that wasn’t put to great use either.

So if you read through all this: thoughts? Do you like it? Did I fix SW, or do you have better ideas? Yap with me, my friends.

[atopvisenyashill]

general thoughts

damn we started this season strong but once we get past the first catelyn scene it started making me mad lmao

once again…..ATE these bitches up and LEFT NO CRUMBS

shae screaming at tyrion after he tells her to shush is so funny

see this sex scene is fine, whether renly can get it up is actually plot relevant and they’re trying to characterize margaery as a proper player, and show renly is kind of in over his head as well. like it’s a topless scene that at least makes sense to be there.

theon writing then burning a letter warning robb about the attack……….

another sex scene and this time it’s a crazy joffrey one.

oh fuck i completely forgot about dany lmao

cat pulling a knife on petyr. listen i don’t think stoneheart will kill petyr but damn hot damn. do i want catelyn to rip him to pieces slowly ramsay snow style. i can’t wait for red wedding 2.0 that’s the main reason i need the winds of winter, i need to see cat go INSANE killing a few pathetic freys isn’t enough I NEED A REAL WAR CRIME I NEED HER SLAUGHTERING INNOCENT BABIES LET HER ENTER HER VILLAIN ERA FOR REAL

“for the sake of the mother who bore us” CASSANA ESTERMONT MENTION LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooo

can i say i think finn (loras) isn’t that good here either

cersei day drinking omg she is so slushed right now when she raised her cup and slurs out “and i say we should thank them”

the tyrion and lancel scene is so good lmao

now what is the point of this random tiff between irri and doreah

this whole scene where dany is scolding aggo and jhogo over trying to steal something from xaro and then her & jorah talk about how savage the dothraki are……did i just experience a racism akskdjd

when catelyn takes brienne’s hand to swear to her and brienne’s face goes so soft, like she wasn’t expecting the affection. gwendoline christie u r a genius and an icon to all queer people everywhere

i might do something with bran and osha first, they make my heart so soft

changes i noticed

i adore shae & sansa. i love this change i think it’s the best change they ever did. the way sansa just went through this intense dinner & is taking her anger out on shae, just a lowly maid, but shae is so unflappable & notices sansa is crying and just decides to stop bitching. sansa wanting someone to brush her hair when one of the first scenes we got of her was catelyn brushing sansa’s hair…

keeping lommy saying he’ll yield and his murder when he asks to be carried but not the original “what do i do if the wolves come” “yield” joke is so fucking LAME I HATE THESE PEOPLE

talisa…….do i do my talisa rant now or later. do i get super high when i rant so it’s funnier and i don’t get legit angry like i want to omg the westerling disrespect never ends

so the margaery character change is the next big one (i’m not ranting about talisa yet). i understand wanting to focus in on her, how she plays the game, how she ~weaponizes~ her femininity in order to gain status. the thing is. i don’t like the ultimate decision to make margaery & olenna the acting heads of their houses when in reality, the tyrell plot is often olenna trying to act AROUND her dumb ass son!! i think this goes back to aging up those 14 year old characters - just makes their stories a bit hollow imo. also this first dress is so ugly omgggg

WAIT I JUST REALIZED THEY CUT WEASEL??? THE GIRL IS IMPORTANT TOO YOU ABSOLUTE FUCKING FUCKS

i love to drag dany for naivety in Qarth but this adaption isn’t even naivety it’s just stupidity. she just throws a fit on their doorstep, makes some threats, and thinks that’s gonna get her inside. when i tell you how much i fucking hate dany’s story in s2. is dany actually learning about politics & magic not interesting??? compared to this temper tantrum?!??????

show renly and robb should have hooked up

…..details are fuzzy but iirc brienne doesn’t kill anyone here? catelyn convinces robar royce to let her go, and then LORAS kills them & he believes that brienne killed renly until jaime says otherwise

i will give them “i want to be THE queen” is such a good line

i don’t care for the roose/tywin change. they could have cast someone with more star power as roose if they really just wanted to have maisie playing off someone cool for a few episodes.

i have a conspiracy theory i’m not ready to share yet. we’ll circle back next season.

[thelastbraincellofthehive]

I'm rewatching Wednesday (again) and I just gotta say:

Having Jenna Ortega being so adorably short and Gwendoline Christie being so awesomely tall in so many scenes together was such a great idea? I love it, I love them both, I really hope Weems will be back next season.

I seriously still can't believe how shippeable Weems and Morticia are for some reason lol like, the show literally goes 'yeah they both had feelings for Gomez so Larissa really doesn't like Morticia' and my brain just goes 'ok so they should totally date right? Obviously a poly GomezxMorticiaxLarissa is the only way this goes!' lol

I've been watching reactions and I just love how everyone sees Enid in chapter one and are like, cautiously interested in the oposites dynamic but afraid She's gonna be annoying (we all remember Amanda lol) and then by chapter 2 Enid has already been adopted and must be protected. That's ver power.

Listening to Xavier talk about how psychic powers are influenced by emotions and Wednesday is not great on that front makes me question if maybe that's actually why her visions always became true. Weems says that Morticia's visions were very unreliable but the show again and again shows us that Wednesday's are not. Maybe it's because her emotions are not jnterfering that much (which makes me very curious to see her visions become more vague and unreliable as she opens up in future seasons, it would make for an interesting plot point if she notices she's feeling more probably thanks to and for Enid and having to decide if those feelings are worth losing her impartial visions)

I'm also hoping Thornhill Is back next season because Cristina Ricci, c'mon Netflix you know you want her!

While I'm very into the fandom side of Wenclair (you guys are really awesome), I'm still a firm believer that Wednesday needs to make it up to Enid because Enid was not treated fairly by her until very late in the season. And also, that Wednesday needs to learn how to be a good friend before romance gets involved. If (and I hope when) they go with the Wenclair router, I think a mid/slow burn is necessary.

But I wouldn't complain if they go fastburn I do love me some fastburn lol

I kinda want Pugsley to get into Nevermore next season too. Why isn't he here? ... Well, probably Nevermore would crumble in pieces with both Addams siblings there at the same time tho lol.

Also going back to the Wenclair thing, it's gonna be so funny and weird if the show never references an Addams family curse or Enid knowing greek or any of the things the fandom just collectibly accepted lol that's why I love ship fandoms.

[yourmomwhitediamond]

someone sent me this, so imma just continue the chain-

"list 5 things that make you happy, then send this to the last 10 people who liked/reblogged something from you! get to know your mutuals and followers!"

Oo, five things! Here we go! Sorry, I didn't reply sooner. I'll probably change my mind on most of these things later.

1- I don't know what to put here. I'm so indecisive so this will remain empty. I'm annoying, I know >:)

2- Reptiles. I own five of my own and I adore each of them. I know they aren't everyone's cup of tea, but I still love em'

3- My online friends and the lovely people who like, reblog, comment on my blogs and follow me. Every like makes me happy.

4- Gwendoline Christie. I met her at Liverpool Comic Con last year and I almost cried. What a wuss, am I right? I could hardly get any words out, I was so scared but she was sweet as pie.

5- My old primary school teacher. She's lovely and I have a crush on her. I've been wanting a hug from her ever since I got ill. Is that weird? How is she always so happy?! She is amazing with my youngest brother, who's autistic, great at approaching him if he's having a bad day.

@cowboydeers @littlepputo @bleachdr1nker @caughtmesimpin @imjustalittlepenguin @leesucks @clowningsworld @ast-jime @camilaxmartin @rerarlo

@lickthefloor

[thebonerpit]

31 Days of Dragon Age

Oct 21 - Introduce your Inquisitor

Here's my girl!!

So my first EVER Inquisitor (and first ever Bioware character) was a Trevelyan. Gwendoline Trevelyan, who was a sword and shield warrior, who I modeled after Brienne from Game of Thrones, who romanced Josephine and it was SO CUTE, and who I adore with all my heart. But since it was my first time playing a Bioware game I made... some interesting choices lol. I know I can kind of "retcon" them if I want and tbh I'll probably go back and replay her again at some point, but I wanted to bring an Inquisitor into DAV that I felt more in control of, if that makes sense.

And clearly, a Lavellan is going to probably have the most impact in DAV from what we've seen. So I went in knowing pretty much all the major choices I wanted to make, but some things still surprised me. I really like my headcanon for her relationship with Blackwall even if it makes me kinda sad. I see Tara as someone who loves listening to stories, heroics, fairy tales etc. so she was really excited to know a Warden, but she was just heartbroken by him lying to her the whole time. It wasn't even what he did necessarily, just that her trust was broken. I think she has more trouble regulating her emotions than she lets on, tries to cover it with humour or deflections, but she's quite sensitive.

Solas's betrayal hurt even more since she was really, truly in love with him. She wanted to be angry but she was just desperately sad. And yes, against all logic she wants to save him, she wants him back with her, and she KNOWS it's stupid but she can't help herself.

It's hard to make a reluctant hero in Inquisition but that's kind of her vibe. She was happy with her clan. She likes being in nature, being creative, playing, taking each day as it comes with no real big plans. She never wanted to be the Inquisitor but felt obligated to see it through (and couldn't exactly say no with the big glowing mark on her hand). Post-Trespasser she did disband them but of course is still searching for Solas, but in a much more informal way that feels more comfortable to her. She would never abandon her friends though and tries to visit them as much as she can!

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb: Heartstopper meets A Knight’s Tale in this queer medieval rom com YA debut about love, friendship, and being brave enough to change the course of history.

It’s been hundreds of years since King Arthur’s reign. His descendant, Arthur, a future Lord and general gadabout, has been betrothed to Gwendoline, the quick-witted, short-tempered princess of England, since birth. The only thing they can agree on is that they despise each other.

They’re forced to spend the summer together at Camelot in the run up to their nuptials, and within 24 hours, Gwen has discovered Arthur kissing a boy and Arthur has gone digging for Gwen's childhood diary and found confessions about her crush on the kingdom's only lady knight, Bridget Leclair.

Realizing they might make better allies than enemies, they make a reluctant pact to cover for each other, and as things heat up at the annual royal tournament, Gwen is swept off her feet by her knight and Arthur takes an interest in Gwen's royal brother. Lex Croucher's Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is chock full of sword-fighting, found family, and romantic shenanigans destined to make readers fall in love.

Review:

A queer historical romance set in Camelot featuring the very distant descendant of the original King Arthur. Arthur is the distant, 100 year, distant relative of the original King Arthur. Arthur is betrothed to marry Gwendoline (Not to be confused with Guinevere) ever since they were young, they're big secret is that they are both queer, Gwen is harboring a massive crush on the lady knight and Arthur is falling for Gwen's brother, the future king. Arthur and Gwen have to spend the summer in Camelot together, yet when Gwen discover's Arthur's secret they both begin to realize that they have a lot more in common than really not wanting to get married to each other. Filled with family drama, forbidden crushes, and political coups, this is Gwen and Art in Camelot like you've never seen. I had a lot of high expectations for this one and unfortunately this one was a bit of a miss for me. Nothing much really happens in this book and it felt kind of boring and lackluster sadly. I really wanted to be invested in the romances and the characters but I just found myself getting kind of bored. I was so looking forward to a queer romantic story set in Camelot and there is queer romance, yet it just felt slow and boring. It's not a bad book by any means, it's just kind of lukewarm for me. I adore Camelot stories this one just was okay.

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[scrambled-eggsed]

basically im super gay for gwendoline christie, and thanks to a kickass edit by @lavender-knives-ahs (who i think unfortunately deactivated? so the link is to one of my reblogs) i have developed several Thots about Weems and Mary On A Cross by Ghost. so here's a surprisingly long, self indulgent in a fun way, dramatic essay, analyzing the parallels between Larissa Weems and the character of Mary in the song!

the main point that makes me connect weems with the song is her role as a sort of mother figure to Nevermore - especially her relationship and conflicts with Wednesday (about which i will elaborate later), but also in general the care she has for all her students - and the tragic, dramatic end she comes to. meanwhile, "mary on a cross" is such a powerful image of the idea of a maternal figure giving everything she can to her kid - Mother Mary taking the place of her son on his cross, in a supreme act of love and devotion. its a bit sad to think about it, but to be honest if weems hadnt died this comparison wouldnt be as powerful as it is. in any case, weems' death ties her into that same theme of death/sacrifice for someone under her care.

to talk more about the edit - i gotta start with the on-point opening, "not just another bloody mary" playing during weems' scream at the rave'n. it's such an important character moment for Weems - up until the rave'n, the audience knows she has bitter history with the addamses, and that she has something to do with the cover up of rowan's murder. when combined with the coldly immaculate looks and mannerisms she keeps up, it leads to her being a very intimidating character, and extremely suspicious to the audience in regards to the murders. basically, while very compelling and intriguing, she seems distant, cold, and likely to be a cold-blooded killer ----- until the rave'n.

i can definitely say that for me, the scream she lets out was 100% the moment i stopped suspecting she was the killer, and saw that while she might be ruthless, intimidating, and possibly - probably - very flawed, shes also very... normal. as human and as messy as anyone, behind the professional front. after several episodes where she seemed to be distant and cold, that scream suddenly reverses the notion created by the previous episodes, of her being othered from the audience. and i GOTTA reiterate just how perfect the opening of the edit is!!! this scene, coupled with the line leading to the image of poor mary on the cross... *chef's kiss* its such a good choice of scene and lyrics to immediately draw up the comparison between weems - as an empathetic character under a lot of pressure in regards to keeping the children under her care safe - and an unconventional, scared and disheveled character of mary, protecting her son.

another line that was really interesting to me is "your beauty never ever scared me", a line right in the middle of the edit. its such a simple sentiment and expression of adoration, and imo on its own its already strangely captivating, and even more so in the edit. the lighting is suddenly bright and larissa's face is the center of the screen, really letting you focus on her beauty. this line being a change in the chorus from all the repetitions before also helps underline how much the object to whom the singer is directing the line - so, mary, but here also weems - is regarded by him as a pristine, uncorrupted being.

the "never ever scared me" part of the line ties it to the singer's repeated request of having mary run away with him, despite the consequences, and really that sentiment will always hit just right when it comes to weems - if only for the contrast between her usual performance of perfection and the stress underneath (see the previous point), mistakes and eventual death (see the next points).

im saving her death for my final point, but imo her actions leading up to it also create more ground for comparison between her and mary in the song. in a really sad way, many of the things she does for the school contribute to marilyn's betrayal and her own death, and leaving the students to deal with the danger on their own. as the headmistress, she keeps fighting for control over the situation - she is convinced that she knows best how to handle everything that is happening, and so she insists to do things her own way, which includes keeping wednesday in check and not investigating the murders. right up until the very last minute she is alive, she constantly beats wednesday down and claims to be in complete control of the situation.

this is a result of what is, in my opinion, one of the most compelling traits of weems as a character - just how much she is always in charge, to an alarming degree. she is always composed, professional, polite, but even beyond that, she always holds herself gracefully, elegantly, not a hair out of place, in a way that always emphasizes how she's the one in control (i really could go on forever about this, her design is brilliant). everything about her character screams how she undoubtedly holds most of the power in the show - at the very least on the same level with the mayor, if not more than him. she tries to orchestrate the chain of events in the way she sees as optimal, and she undoubtedly has the power to do that. through most of the show she dismisses wednesday and doesnt take into consideration any of her input and opinions, and due to her being absolutely convinced that she knows best, she essentially lets laurel continue her plans until the point where it becomes too late.

this is all to say that weems is headstrong and stubborn, but in the ends its that same stubbornness that ultimately leads to her being murdered, as a sort of unbelievably magnificent failure of everything she tried to achieve. this progression of events is, i think, similar to the narrative in the song, of an unconventional presentation of the character of mother mary - a subversion of her story through the metaphor of a crucifixion, as well as the characterization of her as more of an individual person facing some sort of decision, rather than the known story of her as a mother. throughout the song, the singer wants them to run away together, but he warns her of what would happen, how he would essentially take away from her purity - this is mostly in the phrase "you go down just like holy mary", which could be both "you go down" meaning sex, but also "you go down" as a way of warning her that she would be ruined or corrupted in some way, sexual or other.

both in weems' and in mary's case, theres similar contrast - ruining something uncorrupted, diving headfirst into a dangerous situation, while not necessarily aware of the consequences. while weems is a much more domineering character than mary, they both suddenly face a situation very different from what they know, and end up dying, not even necessarily as a sacrifice - mary's death in the place of her son is also being referred to as something vulgar, and possibly a sort of retribution for the loss of her innocence. meanwhile, weems' death is accidental, sudden, and despite being tragic and emotional it doesnt actually help the school - its not a sacrifice, but a culmination of weems' stubbornness and need to be in control (a very disappointing culmination imo).

weems' death (she isnt dead nope nope nope shes fine. anyway) itself is also a good point for comparison, just for how sudden, messy and somewhat humiliating it is. she was surprised by a quick, deadly attack, from the person who was really the only adult we saw her be genuinely friendly with. she then collapses gracelessly, foaming at the mouth, and then shes just dead, with a final look of fear and hurt she gives wednesday. continuing the previous point, i think this connects to the song through the same narrative of a woman's story ending in sharp and painful contrast to what she knew before - similarly to how mary's crucifixion is depicted in relation to her going down a path that defies purity, through sex or just general rebellion.

while on one hand im not sure theres much to say about weems' character in relation to the sexual interpretation, on the other hand, along the same idea of ruining something pure or clean, weems' clumsy and humiliating death is so shockingly opposite to her usual poised and perfect self. the death itself has so much contrast to her character that it underlines just how much weems' own confidence and headstrongness - insisting to cover up the murders, insisting not to let wednesday investigate, etc - contributed to her being killed by a trusted colleague, and possibly a friend. in a quick turn of events, she finds out that she was wrong, that wednesday was right, that she herself let the killer into the school she cared for so much, and before she has a chance to properly react she is already poisoned and dead. and obviously, thats the perfect scene to end the edit, with a final suggestion from the singer to mary to run away, advance towards her own downfall.

i need to point out that ive really been stretching the narrative of both the song and the show - the image of mary on a cross isnt a clear or necessarily literal progression of events from the choice the singer presents to her. in addition to that, i think weems as a character was just really under-explored in the show, and thats a shame, so many things i said here were my own interpretations and opinions. still, despite all that, the parallels here still hit painfully hard. imo. thanks for reading to the end lmao ily

[viivenn]

— 𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐳𝐚̈𝐡𝐥𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐭 𝐛𝐢𝐬 𝐳𝐞𝐡𝐧…

i think rammstein fits her very well. especially this song , that’s why i made some edits before posting it to here. gwen unfortunately didn’t see it , mission failed successfully. but that’s okay , there’s always next time , she has upcoming roles im sure !

all i could think of was a porcelain doll, a beautiful cracked piece of art. she’s just so perfect , i’m envious.

[cissyenthusiast010155]

Only for You ~Principal Larissa Weems xFem Reader

A little blurb about reader surprising Larissa Weems with lingerie for her birthday... also, I included the set I was imagining (; 

Inspired by @daydream-cement & @suckerforcate 

Mommy...Master List 

Prompt-List

Warnings: NSFW, age gap, established relationship, implied sex, implied exhibitionist sex, implied exhibitionist kink, clothing kink...?, implied body adoration, the jaw dropping Larissa Weems (Gwendoline Christie)

464 words

Enjoy (;

It was Larissa’s birthday today. And like always, she was busying herself with a million tasks and neglecting herself. You had been seeing Larissa Weems for a few months now. She ran a school for out of the ordinary students called Nevermore. And she made her life that school constantly. Constanly. 

You had met Larissa in town on your usual herbal run in the supermarket. You were a witch who lived in the nearby forest in a modern cottage. No, you weren’t one of those old hag witches. Witches honestly got a pretty bad reputation from that misconception. No, you were a young, modern, and innovative witch. And you immediately fell for the one and only Principal Larissa Weems.

So, due to all this, you decided that today you would go up to the school and surprise her. You had found a lacy, white, corset lingerie set, while you had been out of town visiting some friends. It immediately caught your eye. It was perfect.

So, you made your way to the school and up to her office, wearing nothing but the lingerie set and a coat to cover yourself. Scandalous... but she’d love it.

You knocked on her office door, and you heard a mumbled, “Come in.” You entered her office and locked the door behind you. Larissa didn’t look up from her paperwork when she started spreaking, “What can I do for... Ohhhh.” 

Larissa had looked up mid-sentence to see you, leaning against her office door, your lingerie on full display. Both of you blushed. 

Larissa was first to say something, “And to what to I owe this pleasure?” a playfulness coating her voice. 

“Happy Birthday!” you exclaimed with a hint of mischievousness and a smirk.

“Did you walk all the way here with nothing to cover you up but a coat...?” she asked, taunts and lust clearly making their way into her throat. 

By now, she had completely forgotten about any paperwork. Her eyes were completely glued to you and your entrance. 

You just nodded in eager glee and anticipation. 

“Lock the door.” she ordered. God, was she sexy when she commanded you...

“Already did.” you quipped, quite happy with yourself.

Larissa’s eyes filled with a dark lust and need.

“Get on the desk.” she purred threatingly.

Now, your eyes matched hers, as you eagerly made your way onto the desk, knocking all the paperwork off it. 

Larissa hungrily kissed you, and you gladly reciprocated. You were both quite breathless, when she began sucking and kissing along you neck line, making you moan.

“Wait...” you breathlessly tried to get out, “What about a silencing charm?” 

Larissa darkly chuckled, “No... I want you to be as quiet as you can or the entire school can hear how much you belong to me...”.

[kingpreciouswrld]

Hello hello 👋!

Could I request Gwen x fem reader? Gwen playfully pushes reader up against the wall but R gets turned on by how tall her wife is ?

I hope it makes sense 🤣

pairing: Gwendoline Christie x Reader

word count: 460

A/N: I definitely wanna try that TikTok challenge with Gwen...hopefully you know which Tiktok challenge I'm talking about here :')

It was a day where the two of you had off. It was a rare occurrence but you loved it when it happened. You could cuddle and snuggle with Gwen all day if you could.

This day you introduced her to TikTok. She's heard of it but never went so far as to make an account. You've always showed her funny videos or relatable videos and it piqued her interest.

There was this one particular TikTok challenge you wanted to do with her and you thought it'd be so funny with your height difference.

Gwen and you were cuddled on the couch, Gwen watching T.V. while you were on your phone. 

"Hey, babe, can we do something real quick?"

Gwen hummed and looked away from the screen, "What is it?"

"Well there's this one TikTok trend I wanna do with you but we gotta be standing." You got up off the couch before pulling Gwen up after you.

You led her over to the nearest wall and showed her your phone, "Basically, I'm gonna push you up against the wall and intimidate you."

The blonde raised an eyebrow, "Darling, I love you but you only intimidate me when I've done something to upset you. Just standing up against me won't be intimidating," she chuckled and petted your head.

You huffed and swatted her hand away, "I can so be intimidating, just stand in front of the wall."

Gwen gave you a knowing look, amused that you were worked up over this. But, not wanting to upset you further she stood with her back to the wall.

"Like this?"

"Perfect."

You (somewhat) roughly pushed Gwen up against the wall and laid your hand to the right of her shoulder (she was too tall for you to put your hand by her head).

Gwen thought you were just adorable. You just barely met her chest and she couldn't help but burst out laughing which made you pout, "Y/n/n, my eyes are up here love." 

You huffed and pulled away, "Fine, you do it then."

Gwen gladly switched places with you and pushed you up against the wall. She towered over you which made you shrink back with a whimper.

The blonde had her hand to the right of your head and leaned down close before gently guiding her knee in-between your legs, "Like this?"

God your wife was hot. Her overpowering presence added with her leg in-between yours was making your head spin and all you could let out was a small whine as you gripped her hips.

"Does my little bunny want something?" the blonde whispered against your ear.

"Gwen please…"

She chuckled darkly before pulling away slightly, "why don't we move somewhere more comfortable my love, hm?"

[peacefulomens]

I’m only four episodes into The Sandman and I am in love. The way that they use different camera lenses and angles to give a feeling of the immateriality of the Dreaming and how Dream moves through the world is spectacular. And the colors!! Oh my god the color schemes. They’re pulled pretty much directly from the books and even though I haven’t read them in years the exact images immediately pop into my head. The style of the effects is giving me MirrorMask vibes and I am here for it. Fantastic. I love the indie-artsy style. It’s so *chef’s kiss*.

I also adore the casting choices. Tom Sturridge is absolutely wonderful. Whoever did his hair deserves an award cause it’s just perfect. As close to the drawings as it can be. I love it. Jenna Colman as Johanna Constantine instead of John makes me wonder if there will be a flashback with John as her ancestor instead, but even if there isn’t it’s fantastic. And Cain! Abel! They look like the characters come to life! (Abel more so than Cain, given that Cain’s a different ethnicity, but it’s so good!!) As does the Corinthian! Lucienne is also brilliant and I love her outfit. Oh yeah. PATTON OSWALT IS THE PERFECT PERSON FOR MATTHEW. I didn’t know that’s what I needed until it happened and I’m so happy. David Thewlis is brilliant as usual, and once again, whoever did the hair got. it. right. (Idk why, but hair is apparently important to how I see these characters).

It seems like this season is just focusing on Preludes & Nocturnes and if that means we get a season for each novel I will be over the moon!!

Ok, I’m done gushing for now. There’ll probably be more as I keep watching the show. Especially since they’re going to Hell in the next one. I am so ready for Gwendoline Christie’s Lucifer.

[katkafe]

HELLO, IVE JUST FINISHED WATCHING WEDNESDAY

because i am the biggest dumbest nerd when it comes to the addams family: ive made a crappy list of why wednesday is everything i hoped for and more and why it is absolutely fucking perfect. spoilers.

im not entirely sure on how to start slow with this one so im getting right fucking into it. enjoy reading the disaster of my thoughts on this masterpiece:

AMAZING CASTING. jenna is incredible as wednesday, catherine and luiz are the perfect morticia and gomez, i adored seeing christina ricci KICKING ASS. gwendoline christie was amazing as weems, fred armisen as fester???? lost my shit he was so perfect. i don’t think there was a single cast member i wasn’t amazed with.

no genuinely i loved all of the nevermore students

fell in love w enid so fast omg i was rooting for her so hard her arc was so awesome (her and ajax are so cute too)

rip rowan you would’ve loved wenclair

THING!!!: its not the addams family without thing, and its especially not the addams family if thing isn’t being a little shit stirrer the whole time. perfect beautiful i love him A++ 

THE WEDNESDAY/PUGSLEY DYNAMIC WAS SO ON POINT they literally have the actual best sibling dynamic

i now know that you have not lived until you’ve seen wednesday addams stuck in a love triangle. she is not a character that you would expect to have a romantic interest but now in my mind she’s just beautifully a-spec and probably demiromantic. yes obviously i love xavier.

don’t get mad at me but i don’t ship her w enid that much?? at least not romantically but hey i would not complain if we had a polycule or qpr!!!

also it was genuinely so cute to see wednesday making friends like. why was i sobbing so much when she hugged enid. holy fuck.

THE DANCE SCENE. SHES AN ICON SHES A LEGEND AND SHE IS THE MOMENT

i am referring to both her actual dancing and ofc “they couldn’t even spring for real pigs blood. its only paint.” so real.

cant even stop myself from mentioning that jenna ortega looks very hot covered in blood which happens a lot in this series. like almost every episode. jesus fucking christ i am so in love with her.

i am a huge edgar allen poe nerd so i fucking adored every little reference to his works. also the idea that he was an outcast is so real to me.

speaking of outcasts: ngl definitely could’ve come up with a better name, “outcasts” just made it sound weirdly like some awkward teen high school drama but you get used to it

wednesday’s visions were so cool??? i loved the whole goody addams thing their interactions were really cool and god i just was not expecting that at all.

ok tbh it was really weird that her name was goody, since “goody” is the puritan equivalent of “mrs.” (its short for goodwife) so idk why they did that but ok i’m still here for it

honestly in general they do a really good job of keeping you guessing. i was suspicious about almost every single character throughout the whole series. 

in retrospect i should’ve known tyler was gonna be an asshole from the start cause. i mean. his name is tyler. no offense to my tylers, but be real when have you ever seen a tv show character named tyler that wasn’t a douche. i’ll wait.

i’ve typed tyler too many times and it no longer looks like a real name

episodes are nice and long but i obviously wish the series was longer, but it was super bingable and i’m probably gonna rewatch it 3 million times until the next season inevitably comes out.

not to be dorky but i loved how every episode title was a pun w the word “woe” 

i have really horrible media literacy in the sense that i overthink EVERYTHING so to me like almost everything in that was beautifully executed symbolism and maybe it was but when i say i lost my shit when i noticed wednesday stand on enid’s side of the room and fsr thats the only example i can think of rn BUT STILL

overall 5 stars 10/10 show i cant wait for more i love the plot i love the characters i love the cast i will be recommending it to everyone ik and more

[grigori77]

REASONS TO LOVE Netflix’ The Sandman series

WARNING!!!  If you haven’t watched it (particularly if you haven’t read the graphic novels, although it’s not essential for enjoying it) there are potentially some serious spoilers coming up here, so be warned ...

...

...

Neil Gaiman basically shepherded the whole thing in, so this is VERY MUCH EXACTLY what he always intended a Sandman series to be.  Long may he remain on the show, because this is about as perfect as a TV series can get, especially an adaptation of SUCH A BELOVED PROPERTY as this ...

Tom Sturridge is PEAK casting genius.  Not only is he spectacularly spot-on with Dream’s speech and mannerisms, but he just LOOKS like the character stepped right out of the comic pages.

But I also love how, while the series IS about the Dream King himself, he’s not necessarily the main, DOMINANT character here.  Sure, in the first half of the season (essentially adapting volume one, Preludes & Nocturnes) it’s very much about his imprisonment, escape and the subsequent battle for him to regain his powers and kingdom, but EVEN HERE there are times he’s more like a supporting player in his own story, letting other characters into the spotlight, especially in the second half when the show adapts volume two (The Doll’s House), when it becomes far more about Rose Walker ...

Speaking of which, Rose is FANTASTIC.  Kyo Ra is a sweetheart and her Rose is adorable and lovely and just the purest cinnamon roll and must be protected at all costs.

Matthew the Raven.  OMG Patton Oswalt.  I knew right away he was gonna be great in this but he surapassed all my expectations as one of my very favourite characters.

The relationship between Dream and Lucienne is PERFECT.  She respects her boss immensely but is not prepared to put up with his shit for a MICROSECOND, and if that means letting him dangle to prove a point she’s gonna do it.

So what if John Constantine is genderbent?  Jernna Coleman’s always AWESOME and she just GOT the character.

Episode 6, The Sound of Her Wings.  Sweet mercy that is a PERFECT HOUR of television right there, completely flawless.  In a season that’s already pretty legendary in its faithfulness, this note-perfect transplant of Gaimain’s flawless writing is a solid gold JOY to experience.

Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Death ... OH MY GOD.  My girl was brought to life with flawless perfection, I’m a happy puppy after this.

The Corinthian.  Boyd Holbrook’s another example of perfect casting here, and the rogue nightmare is a PERFECT Big Bad for this first season ...

Lucifer ... yeah, I love Tom Ellis in the show as much as anybody, but Gwendoline Christie is GOLD.  She just GOT the role, clearly.

The duel in hell is AWESOME.  Perfectly done.

Merv Pumpkinhead!  Mark Hammil ladies and gentlemen!  The man can do no wrong.

The Diner Experiment in Episode 5 gave me CHILLS.  That was as close to the perfect nightmare that scenario could have gone, but thankfully without going QUITE as far as it did in the comic.  THAT might have been a bit TOO MUCH.

While we’re there, David Thewlis’ John Burgess is a fantastically complicated and enjoyably HUMAN supervillain, and you’re never quite sure if he’s ENTIRELY WRONG, which worries me greatly.  As it should ...

Also Charles Dance once again proves he’s incapable of delivering a bad performance.

Cain and Abel are a darkly comic delight.

Stephen Fry as Gilbert!  YAY!!  Love that man in everything, he was born to play Fiddler’s Green in human form.

I loved how they got the motley collection of misfits in the Cape Kennedy B&B absolutely right.  Hal, Barbie and Ken, Chantal and Zelda, I love you all, you’re adorable.

Yay!  Martin Tenbones!  Looking forward to seeing him again when they do A Game of You in one of the later seasons.

The “Cereal” Convention.  Haliariously funny in a jet black way guaranteed to get your skin crawling too ...

Desire and Despair.  Sure, they’re only in this a little bit, but like Death I’m looking forward to seeing more of them in the future, they’re both spot-on.

The Gault and the way she protects Jed despite being a nightmare, that’s so wonderful.  I love the idea that a constructed creature can try to be something other than it was intended to be, just like the rest of us.  Gaiman is so spectacularly deep.  And then we get that beautiful payoff at the end of the season where Dream’s learned his lesson and lets her change for the better ...

This whole season is just pitch-perfect in the visual effects and the sound and the music and the design and the wayit’s shot and cut.  It’s a feast for the eyes and I’m glad Netflix were willing to spend the money to let Neil realise his vision without restraint.

Netflix, this is PERFECT.  Give us a full series, let Neil do the entire story through to the end, no matter if it takes more than your holy three seasons to do it.  This is TOO GOOD for you to NOT let him do it ...

[yukinojou]

The Sandman on Netflix - first impressions

Okay, not so much first impressions as "I mainlined the lot in 26 hours and it only took so long because I was stuck at work for the first 7 watching on my breaks and then had to actually break for sleep". Spoiler-free above the cut, spoilery below it, criticisms at the end.

Caveat: I've been a Sandman fan for 22 years. I first read the books in a big bookshop, doing the surreptitious reading at the bookshelf for two weeks in snatches, because I was in London with very little money and graphic novels were very expensive. It took me five years to buy the lot, and it was only then that I found out how the story ended because I didn't manage to get that far in those two weeks. The Sandman was absolutely foundational for my philosophy, aesthetic, and dear gods Desire was a revelation - "You mean you can be both???" I never liked Preludes & Nocturnes' horror bend, so it's my least-reread volume, but Doll's House is my second favourite after Season of Mists. I've read all the Gaiman-penned addenda and most of the first run of The Dreaming. BIG Sandman fan.

And the show blew me out of the water:

Perfect cast is perfect. I had a lot of reservations because of the announced ones, only Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park and Gwendoline Christie immediately seemed right for their parts. But somehow they've dug up Exactly The Right People and let them play it with a richness of nuance that is so rarely allowed in American drama.

The pacing. The show breathes! There are quiet moments, there are very few action sequences, and the big plot moments are people talking. Let the words tell the story, let the actors act, let the scenery breathe and shine.

The filmography is quietly lovely. It starts "typical BBC Period Drama" but veers so soon into the just-off, just-bizarre. All the taxidermy at Fawney Rigg, the richness of every set (messy rooms!), the texture of everything. And even when it's not recreating the panels one by one (which, closest adaptation of a comic I've ever seen), it's shot in such a graphical way, drawing the eyes to the action with the composition, especially in the first episode. Much appreciation for clear vivid lighting in such a dark show too, I didn't have a single moment when I didn't know what was going on. And the colours in the second half are so bright, a very glam lighting that disappears for mists and shadows as the spell breaks.

I saw someone on Tumblr mention this is a bit like Sandman fanfic, that sensibility of fleshing out motivations and behind the scenes actions. And it is, and it works, plus it tightens plotlines in a way that hopefully makes sense to people watching for the first time. Which I'm very much not, as someone who can quote whole pages.

The rewrites are - the first word that comes to mind is Kind. Neil's a more mature writer now, not a shock jock in his twenties, there's no template of gritty 80s comics he has to adhere to in order to get the show to our screens. In the comic, the kindness only really arrived with Death in issue 6. Here, the tweaks let it be present from the beginning. And all the nuance and richness - you can see where he took characters that were flat stereotypes and then jiggled them until layers spread out. More about that below, in the spoilers...

Spoilery plot bits:

I actually love Ethel the most of the changes? She's such a pistol and a conwoman and legend in her own right, using Roderick and probably so many others to learn and forge a life on her own terms. I love the fact she let John use the ruby as a child, that we saw her arrival at Fawney Rigg and all the research she must have done to recognise Alex offhand, and that she showed up the Corinthian in five minutes flat, only letting him get close because she knew that's how she makes people go splat. I already liked her in the book, especially the way she calmly let her co-conspirator go splat there, but letting her shine was very much the right choice. I adore complicated women, and the way her sacrifice was echoed in Unity at the end, though honestly I would have had John grab the amulet from her rather than refuse.

The Corinthian's plotline - more about HIM later because oh my favourite eye munching nightmare was perfect, but that's the fanfic bit. He doesn't exactly change anything in Preludes & Nocturnes, but it makes perfect sense that he'd be doing it, because he's a smart cookie who doesn't want to go home and play nice. And in the Doll's House he actually pulls the plot together a lot. All a logical extrapolation, and building on both his popularity in the Kindly Ones and The Dreaming, and the fact they managed to cast Exactly The Right Guy.

The rewrites in 24/7 - damn, I'm going to have to rewatch this one, aren't I? Ugh. But I've seen Lourdes' character called a tiger woman and she's very much not, she's just trying to forge her happy ending and her equal partner, trying not to poke at the insecurities he has while still supporting him and not diminishing herself. And Bette, so desperate, so fragile there with all the things she won't let herself feel in order to be safe in her small town as a vulnerable single mother, and that's death as a writer, that's why she can't write her book. The scene where she burns her manuscript just made my heart hurt. The whole sequence is so much quieter and less graphic and yet more heartwrenching. You're so ready for Dee to go down with a bang.

(Rosemary! I had an inkling she'd survive when she was Black - because optics of her getting shot in that situation - and when the dog appeared because Neil knows if he killed a dog just after Gregory's sacrifice we'd riot, but oh the layers in the way she did survive, giving up on everything, just pleading for the dog, the way it showed how much a hurt simple kid Dee is too... Rosemary is so much love.)

Doll's House revisions give people more agency, and Gault is adorable as a sort of light mirror of the Corinthian, but I was a little sad about losing Lyta's confinement in the Dreaming, a pregnancy that lasted years. Some of that languidness was there in the series, but the hair brushing and lack of agency in the comics made the explosion of anger after Hector disappeared into a more wrenching shock.

I read about the Cereal Convention years before I attended my first WorldCon, and mwahahaha. Still a loving sendup of literary cons, with their panels and awkwardness and small talk and the flash of recognising a fellow obsessive. Gilbert ducking in and out of panels was brilliant.

Lucifer doing the Oldest Game was absolutely logical (honestly, Choronzon almost besting Dream always felt like a stretch), but oh the ending. As above, Season of Mists is my absolute favourite Sandman volume, and Gwendoline's Lucifer stepping down and shutting out all that racket of demons who dared command them will be the very best. How soon can we have season two?

Casting, broken out separately because the squee is strong:

Tom! Okay, I liked the Sandman Audible thing, and James McAvoy is a favourite actor, but it let me down with the kind of Morpheus voice so much I was resigned to not having the voice-in-my-brain in the series as well. But it is, and it's the grave white-on-black baritone in my dreams. He also acts so subtly with the eyes and makes the best faces, so much I'm willing to forgive the fact he often forgets to close his mouth completely. (He does have lovely lips, doesn't he?) The moments where the stubble comes through were jarring at first, but also very true to the comics. And oh, his 17th century wig was the best, shadows of Michael Wincott in The Crow. Plus the way he shows Morpheus thawing and cogitating desperately each time a woman yells at him (which is roughly twice per episode) is so clear and almost adorable. Oh, the ending is going to hurt so much.

Boyd! I was honestly worried about him because I hadn't seen him in anything before and in his usual offstage look he's - a bit awkward, like completely not what I imagined the Corinthian as, and also not the right voice (again, offstage). But oh, I should have trusted him. Because this is perfect, this is MY Corinthian, the eye-munching gay nightmare I've loved for two decades. True to himself, so much joy of life (ice cream scene!), crafty and in love with adulation, so flawed and bright in ways that completely don't address the serial killer part. I love that even more than Morpheus, he has chemistry with everyone. Like, people see him and want to make out immediately, and you buy it because he's charm on a stick. And he does it all in sunglasses, dammit. And he's so funny! I can't wait until The Kindly Ones, because Boyd and Patton Oswald are going to be a HOOT.

Vivienne! I literally had a phone named Lucien, that's how much I love the character, and she's perfect and open-hearted and frustrated. I really hope they'll bring up her raven past at some point, because that's the core of her devotion and the clear-headed way she sees Morpheus.

Kirby! Oh, she's just THERE, she's Death, that's her and her kindess and cheer and frustration with her boneheaded brother. That bit with her taking off her shoes was just *chef's kiss*. She's there and she's Death and she looks perfect in a 14th century headdress while daring her brother to strike a friendship that'll last centuries.

Come to that, Ferdinand Kingsley was adorable and also very confusing because at some angles he looks very much like my cousin. But his chemistry with Dream was perfect and I can't wait to see him again.

Gwendoline, of course, was dreamy and poisonous and oh, that smile at the very end killed me dead. I didn't know she had so much malice she could drag up to the screen like that, and even that slightly dodgy Rose of Versailles wig couldn't get in the way. Her clothes, on the other hand, mmm.

Mason! I was sold on them as Desire as soon as I looked up them doing Frank'n'Furter and Cabaret MC, but oh, you can see they love Desire the way I do, the way Desire as Dream's sister-brother was a revelation and a breaking of gender chains, and Mason's having so much fun with it. Plus they totally sold me in both sibling scenes, the very tactile and adoring way they were with Despair, the way they kept pushing Dream's buttons to the very end.

(I adore Despair's upgrade to comfy clothes and crocs. Despair's such an everyday thing, so insidious and hiding in plain sight, it fits so well.)

*flails* Everyone else was great too, with honourable mention to Emma Duncan, who gave away so much with her eyes, and Ernest Kingsley (Kai'ckul) who managed to copy Tom's performance to the letter while doing very heavy eye-emoting in just moments.

Criticisms:

I wish Cain and Abel had more time, because I love them. They bring out the Dreaming's creepiness nicely, but it wasn't even mentioned that Secrets are always true and Mysteries are stories. (And yes I mourn Gregory, but it was a well-written sacrifice and Goldie tied the knot nicely.)

I really don't think the budget was as high as rumoured, because the CGI is - sparse? I mean, it's beautiful, but at some points it's C-drama streaming budget, not millions per episode. Really visible outside Hector and Lyta's house, where all people are Very Pastede In, and outside the physical sets like the throne room and the library, the Dreaming suffers from lack of texture at times. The Threshold too, the outside was well done but the inside is just red. I'd love more organic textures there.

Relatedly, the dreams of the house dreamers in Doll's House aren't weird enough, especially when they start to merge by just dropping people into the same meadow. The vortex effect was pretty cool, but before that, no blurring, no overlapping, and the dreams themselves - I loved Zelda breaking Chantal's recurrence, but the dreams weren't different enough. They could have done so much with different lighting, CGI and whatnot, the way they did Dee's attack on the throne room, but I suspect budget was running out and they were relying on the actors to sell it (which they did, but I love that sequence so much in the comic).

And okay, some of my favourite quotes didn't make it in. "Beware the march of ideas!" "I give you a name and the name is lost!" And of course I imagined the summoning incantation differently, more frantic, more building up, but then they surprised themselves that it worked...

And that's everything out of my brain in the first hours. Maybe now I can actually sleep? And someone stop me from writing fanfic with Ethel and the Corinthian because whoa, that chemistry sizzled.