#hans zimmer never misses

[w1ld-wr1t3r]

Carlando 26 ❤️🧡

Hmm . . . okay. This is an interesting one! This song is from the soundtrack for "The Creator" (great sci-fi movie, highly recommend it) and I have, admittedly, lightly toyed with the idea of an AU based on it. I've never done anything with it because I've never been able to decide which people should fill which roles and what kind of story arc I want for everyone, but every now and then I think about it again. I'll consider this a little trial run of sorts. :)

All referenced lore comes from the movie. The only term I throw around that might not make sense without context is "simulant," which is a term in the movie for an AI individual who has a human appearance and human emotions. This scene also directly mirrors a scene from the movie.

26. A Place In The Sky by Hans Zimmer

Carlos never thought he'd be here, stuck in the middle of pro-AI territory all on his own and with probably half the military after him. He also never thought he'd willingly share company with another AI, not after the last time he was here. He had worked for the anti-AI movement his whole life. He thought he'd left this godforsaken place behind a long time ago.

But he'd just had to let himself get talked into this mission, hadn't he?

And now here he was, stuck with some simulant that for some reason was the most important bot in the whole world, tasked with getting them out of the country so that his bosses or his bosses' bosses could pick it apart and learn what kind of advantage it was supposed to have.

This bot was some sort of kid . . . somehow. It was a simulant but a kid. That wasn't supposed to be possible. And what was a kid supposed to do to turn the tide of the war? Drive the enemy crazy with incessant questions? It was already doing that to him.

Well. Okay. Maybe it was more innocent than incessant.

But he wasn't going to admit that out loud.

"If people aren't made like robots are," the child - man, he really should give it a name already - asked softly, "then how are they made?"

Carlos didn't look at the kid, watching the trees pass by outside the bus instead. But he did answer. "They're made by two people who are in love."

The kid absorbed that before asking another question. "What's it like to be in love?"

"It's like . . ." Carlos started, trying to find words that a nonhuman kid could understand. "It's finding happiness in someone else. Like finding a missing piece of yourself."

The kid looked at him innocently. "Do you love someone?"

Carlos paused, shifting his jaw. He didn't know why he was entertaining this topic. But . . . "Yes. I do. I did."

Lando. The one he'd been tasked to follow and study, all those years ago. His target. A person of interest. Connected to a key pro-AI figure. Supposed to be the enemy.

The only man he'd ever loved.

It was unprecedented for them - an AI supporter, and an AI fighter - to fall in love. But they did. They'd found the keys to each other's hearts. They'd made a life for themselves. They were going to have a family.

But then it had all been ripped away.

Their home. Their unborn child. Lando himself.

All because of a goddamn botched raid.

He would never forgive himself for lying to Lando about who he really was. Seeing the betrayal in his eyes as he caught Carlos trying in vain to call off the raid, finding out he hadn't truly abandoned the side of anti-AI. It had made Carlos want to go back in time and slap himself, scream at himself for hiding it from Lando, for not just giving up everything for him. Because before he'd lost everything anyway, he was afraid he'd lost Lando's love, too.

He would never forgive himself for that.

"Off," he finally choked out, using a term that the kid could understand. "He's . . . off."

The child absorbed this solemnly. "Where do people go when they're off?"

Carlos tried not to get choked up as he watched the scenery pass by. "Heaven," he said. "It's a peaceful place in the sky."

"Are you going to heaven, too?" the child asked.

A tear finally rolled out of his eye. "No," he whispered. "You . . . you have to be a good person to get into heaven."

The child was silent for a long time. Then they finally spoke again. "Then . . . we're the same."

Carlos finally turned to look at them in confusion, meeting the eyes that had reminded him uncannily of Lando from the very start. It was part of the reason why he didn't look at the kid any more than he had to.

The kid looked at him serenely, yet sadly. "Neither of us can go to heaven," they explained simply. They looked down at their hands. "Because you're not good. And . . . I'm not a person."

Something about the way the child said it . . . the emotion in their voice . . . it stirred something in Carlos.

Maybe the kid wasn't so inhuman after all.

Gently, he lifted his arm so that the kid could lean against his side, snuggling closer and getting comfy for the long ride they still had ahead. As they finally lapsed into silence, Carlos returned his gaze to the window, thinking about bright laughs and whispered words of fondness in a home he had once shared with the person he loved.

He didn't dare hope that they might be reunited one day. But maybe . . . maybe, he could still make Lando proud somehow.

[pretentiouswreckingball]

A place among the stars

“How did you know I was going to come back?” Harry asks, still not believing this is real.

“Because you promised me,” Draco says and Harry can see that same determination in those grey eyes, the same fire they had when Harry left, all those years ago. “My Harry promised me.”

Harry's bottom lip trembles. “The library, the books on the shelf trying to communicate with you; Draco, you were right, it— it wasn’t dark magic, it was—”

“It was you,” Draco squeezes his hand lightly, “You were my ghost, Harry, you were with me even before you left but,” he searches Harry’s face, eyes softening at him, “You never really truly did, did you?”

Harry shakes his head lightly, kissing Draco’s knuckles.

“Never.”

[l1ghtfromthecloset]

Some funny/wholesome headcanons I have for some of the YGO DM characters:

Yugi: Can never find anything. Like ever. Yami used to help him find missing things and now that he's gone, anytime Yugi can't find something, it ends up on his bed exactly 20 minutes later magically. Every. time.

Joey: Is amazing at braiding hair. He used to do it for Serenity all the time.

Téa: Despite being amazing at dancing, she's not that great at singing. But she's also really good at lip syncing so it makes up for it.

Tristan: opposite to Téa, he is severely uncoordinated when it comes to dancing, but pretty good at singing. He also owns a guitar in his closet.

Mokuba: He likes to eat straight up coffee beans. Like, just the beans. Straight from the bag. Seto walked in on this one morning and now he is forever secretly terrified of his little brother in the morning.

Seto: He listens to lofi and Hans Zimmer when he works. He listens to metal when he builds decks, and he listens to "You're not me" on repeat regularly. (I made an entire Spotify playlist based on this).

Seto and Mokuba: they combat train together. It's how they bond. And Mokuba somehow beats Seto every time.

Bakura: despite being the Bri'ish little fella we know and love, he hates tea. Especially black tea. Even if it's sweetened. He prefers coffee over anything.

Marik: used to love tea but stopped drinking it once he found out that Bakura hates it. Now he drinks coffee, despite not liking it that much.

Rebecca: she secretly still sleeps with her teddy. She also reads a quantum mechanics book before she sleeps. 💀

Duke: He has a small side hustle in making resin dice. He has a pretty creative and crafty side.

That's all I can think of for now :p

Lemme know if y'all want more. You're free to add on your own to this if you'd like :)

[darthgloris]

Our Padawan III

Pairing: Anakin Skywalker x fem!Jedi!reader

Warnings: death, heartbreak, angst, grief, sad Ani, traumatized Ahsoka

Summary: After the chaos in the gorge, Ahsoka and Anakin descend the cliffs to look for Y/N. The young girl finds her sprawled out on the ground and hopelessly tries to get her to wake up. When Anakin finds his Padawan trying to make her get up, his heart crumbles. As he grieves the love of his life, Ahsoka guilts herself into believing it was her fault.

A/N: and here comes the saddest one of them all! A moment of silence for Mufasa and Y/N. I promise that after this one I'm publishing lots of fluff!

Song: Mufasa Dies - Hans Zimmer

Our Padawan // Our Padawan II

☆☆☆

Ahsoka hopped down from the rocks and the thump of her feet echoed through the dead-silent gorge.

She tried to look for her Master through the clouds of sand and dirt. She caught sight of a silhouette under the broken tree and her heart clenched as she walks towards it. She takes slow, careful steps as she inspects the unmoving figure.

Y/N was on her side, hand curled on the floor by her face, hair tousled up and drooping over her forehead. She looked peaceful, almost asleep, except something felt different... she didn't have that spark of life.

No.

She has to be okay.

"Master?" Ahsoka looked at her, desperate for a sign of life. "Y/N, come on."

She walked closer and pulled on her arm, "You gotta get up." Completely still and a bit cold, her arm flopped back into place.

"Y/N..?" She whimpered. "We gotta go home..."

The young girl moved to stand near her head and tried to shake her awake.

But she wasn't moving.

"Help!" She called, her hopeless yell echoing through the gorge, now fallen onto deaf ears. "Anakin!"

Ahsoka walked back and forth through the gorge, screaming for anyone to respond. "Rex! R2..!"

Her shoulders slumped in defeat, but she still refused to admit her Master was gone. Forever. "Help..." her breath shook as tears filled her eyes, but she didn't let them spill. Instead, she walked over to Y/N's still figure and knelt down next to her, resting her head in her lap. "Come on, I know you're still there... you have to be..."

Footsteps echoed through the silence and her head snapped up, looking for the person. "Snips?"

"Master!" She said and rushed to hug him.

Anakin's heart crumbled and seemed to never be able to be put back together again.

The love of his life, his angel, his Y/N... lifeless on the floor like an animal.

He dropped to his knees beside her, defeated, devastated, destroyed.

Every moment they ever spent together flashed before his eyes like a movie: all the secret meetings and the kisses and the nights spent together... all gone. It was all gone.

His eyes filled with tears as Ahsoka tried to grab onto his arms and pull him towards her. "Master, help, please... I can't get her to get up..."

"Snips..." he couldn't even put the words together. He couldn't. "She's... she's not going to get up..."

The girl seemed to get lost in herself for a moment, and Anakin pulled his favourite person's dead body onto his lap, holding her close for the last time. He held her cold, peaceful face over his chest, right where she would rest after a long day. He started sobbing uncontrollably as he clutched onto her for dear life. He couldn't bring himself to let her go.

"I'm sorry, Master..." Ahsoka spoke up, her voice heavy with tears.

"Snips, don't do this, please..." Anakin begged. "You have nothing to apologise for."

"It's... it's my fault..." She said as she looked at her broken lightsabers in the distance.

"No, it's not, Snips, don't say that..." he denied without missing a beat.

"She'd... she'd still be alive..." she thought out loud, trembling as she took a few steps back. "I can't, I'm sorry..."

"Ahsoka, wait!" Anakin called, but she had already taken off running. His breathing quickened as his eyes flickered from the dust his Padawan kicked up to Y/N's pale and tranquil face. He couldn't take it anymore.

He let out a blood curdling wail of grief. And then he kept screaming. He screamed until his throat ripped raw, until he felt his voice dying into his trachea.

Anakin felt numb. He felt as if he lost the sense of time, place and touch. He couldn't get up, he couldn't pull his skin away from hers. He just couldn't. Because he knew that if he let go, he'd never touch her again. If he walked away from her, he'd see her once more at her grave and then never again.

...

Ahsoka's step faltered as she heard someone speaking and a response by commlink.

"Did you do it?"

"I did. She's dead."

She gasped silently as she poked her face out from the wall of stone. Dooku was on the line with someone... with Palpatine?

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure. Skywalker's screaming over his loss and the little girl felt so guilty about it that she ran away."

"So what are you waiting for? Go find her and kill her!"

As if on cue, the Sith turned around and caught the girl spying. She yelped and stumbled away, rushing back to look for Anakin.

She reached the broken tree and saw the ship waiting for Anakin to get inside. "Master!"

"Snips! You're all right!" He said, relieved, as she threw her arms around him again. He held her tightly as he felt a sudden wave of affection for her. He was going to protect her with all he had, at the cost of his life. His last attempt to keep a part of Y/N alive.

"Go on, go back to the ship." He said and she obliged wordlessly.

As he picked her up bridal style and walked inside the ship, he felt like it was the longest walk he ever took. With the love of his life still limp in his arms, he pressed a button to send a message to Obi-Wan.

"Y/N's gone, Obi-Wan. Alert the Council."

[foreststarflaime]

I did my part today in The Bad Class, it was me in the trenches with one other guy defending stories told in mediums other than books against the world (the entire rest of the class) 🫡 (things I used below the cut)

It saddens me that the academic community is so biased towards anything other than published books. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a writer myself and I adore books, but they’re missing out on so many good stories that hit so much harder in mediums other than words on a page!!! ✨Stories of all kinds are equally precious✨ pass it on

Defending movies: Inception!!! If you’ve not seen it, it deals a lot with dreams and layers of dreaming, and thinking about reality. In it, there’s a gimmick where you have a certain ‘totem’ (item) that you can use to determine if you’re in a dream or awake, and the main character’s is a top—if he’s in a dream, it will never stop spinning, but if it’s reality, the top will eventually be stopped by gravity. (Spoiler alert) At the end of the movie, the mc finally gets home to his kids like he’s been trying to the whole movie, and as he embraces them in the background a little out of focus, you see his top on the table, spinning—and right before you could expect it to start to wobble, the soundtrack peaks (thank you Hans Zimmer you master) and cuts off and the screen goes black, leaving you to your own conclusions. It’s such an effective moment and it really would not be the same in a book!

Defending video games: Crisis Core lmao. I love how it uses game mechanics to characterize Zack in such a unique and creative way!!! The DMW is the main thing that comes to mind here, in particular in the final battle, but over the whole game and how it gets you used to it as well. You get a new thing every time Zack gets a new friend, and that’s the source of your strongest attacks throughout the game, a thing you’re constantly thinking about and relying on—which is such a cool way to characterize Zack, because then you realize your thought process has basically been turned into his! He loves his friends, they’re everything to him, and they’re the source of his strength! Which makes the final battle so so devastating when they’re fading away and you get to see, nay experience, his last thoughts as they’re happening. It’s so devastating in a way I’ve rarely been devastated before, and it would not be the same in words. Also there’s the funny haha that this adhd puppy’s brain runs on gambling because he has to get extremely lucky to be able to focus on anything lmaooo

Defending comic books: Loki Agent of Asgard!!!! My beloved! So this is the comic book run where Loki becomes the god of stories, and everything about how it was done here is just. SO so genius. When I say these comic books were a formative experience for me I mean it. But I’ll focus on the things that were great specifically because of the medium here, otherwise I’d be gushing for hours. Yknow how comic books generally have little narrator text bubbles telling you what you need words to describe? And then maybe have a different one for the thoughts of the character? Well this had that, and the narrator bubbles were styled like little scrolls. When you get towards the end of the run, after Loki has realized his power as the god of stories, you get to a part where he’s facing the gods of the gods, telling them a story—and then the little narrator scrolls have the speech bubble thing drawn off from them, to Loki. It’s been him as the god of stories narrating his own story the entire time, writing his own destiny. Such a powerful moment, blew my mind—you could do something similar in a normal book I guess, but it was just so impactful here that I think it wouldn’t be exactly the same. And also, earlier (I think in the second volume), a different future version of Loki is time travelling using his story god powers to write the past to his own ends (you don’t know his connection to story yet, so this is an example of such good foreshadowing), and to do this he reaches out of the panel and jumps into the margins to travel around the story!!! Mind-blowing stunning 1000/10

The strength of books: I just realized why I like my specific imagery-laden style of writing so much in the middle of class while I was explaining this. So in On Fairy Stories (the book the discussion was about for the day), Tolkien talks about how the invention of the adjective was the most important thing for the invention of fantasy, because it helps you change things—for example you can say things like the red sky or the green sun, and people can imagine that. There’s a linguistic concept called mental models which explores how we think in metaphors to understand more abstract concepts—for example, a lot of people tend to view how electricity works in terms of the flow of water. In fantasy, we can take our words and especially our adjectives and metaphors, and we can craft new mental models that wouldn’t work in the real world, and create our own worlds doing that to great effect. I find myself doing this SO much now that I think about it! And that’s something you can do really really well with words that doesn’t lend itself as well to adaptations in other mediums.

And that’s the thing, really—you can do things to amazing effect if you write them using the strengths of the medium you choose! That’s why adaptations rarely work I think, people just don’t play to the strengths.

[agentnico]

Gladiator II (2024) review

Been there done that.

Plot: Years after witnessing the death of Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius must enter the Colosseum after the powerful emperors of Rome conquer his home. With rage in his heart and the future of the empire at stake, he looks to the past to find the strength and honor needed to return the glory of Rome to its people.

So me and my wife only recently rediscovered the first Gladiator film and having previously only watched it once when I was a child I evidently did not appreciate the grandiose mastery at play, as that first Gladiator movie is fantastic. From the powerful performances to the epic action to the high spectacle set pieces to Hans Zimmer’s incredible emotional music score…. makes me think of that meme with Homelander proclaiming “it was perfect!”. Truly me and my wife would both now say that Gladiator has sky-rocketed to the top of our favourite films of all time, and also makes me appreciate how great of a director Ridley Scott once was. He still makes some decent projects now such as The Martian and The Last Duel, however he’s very much a hit and miss director at the moment. But back in the day with the likes of Alien, Blade Runner, Thelma & Louise and the aforementioned Gladiator, the guy can like REALLY make a movie! As such having grown a new appreciation for his Roman epic, I was really looking forward to but also sceptical over the upcoming sequel. For one due to so much time passing since the original, and also lack of Russell Crowe for obvious reasons and the trailers suggesting that this new one is essentially a copy of the original. The latter aspect especially was a concern, for the original film was a multiple Academy Award winning motion picture, so trying to recapture that same flame would be silly. So my hope was that Scott and the team would try and do something new and different whilst still in-keeping the world created by the original film. Question is, was it worth all this wait, and more importantly, was I entertained??

Look, I don’t one to be one of those snobs who compares a sequel to its original, but it’s difficult not to (so seems like I’ll be snobbing it today!) due to the reputation of the first one, as well as the fact that Gladiator 2 (or II if you’re into your Roman numerals) is in essence a repackaged version of the first movie. Well, part of it is. The whole plot line involving Paul Mescal’s Lucius going on his revenge quest into the Colosseum is that rehash, and unfortunately it is the primary storyline of the film. The issue with this is it naturally ends up living in the shadow of its predecessor. The other more interesting narrative is one that involves acting legend Denzel Washington (spawning a lovely American accent in Rome but the man is so entertaining to watch you cannot help but forgive him his transgressions) where he tries to take over Rome by weaselling his way to the top of Rome’s political hierarchy. That stuff is actually great, and him manipulating the two emperors and causing their eventual downfall was really intriguing to witness. Shame that this story beat only really came to full effect in the last 30 mins of the movie.

As for the performances, as this one boasts a stacked cast. I’m sorry to Paul Mescal fans, but he’s really stale and bland in the main role of Lucius, or more-so Maximus 2.0. It doesn’t help that the script by David Scarpa lacks any depth or character development that made the original Gladiator so compelling, but even on the basics of acting Mescal doesn’t do much with his role. Like his wife dies and I never really felt like he gave that much of a crap. Or whenever he had to deliver any level of emotion, I never felt it. In the original Russell Crowe manages to portray so much through his eyes. The versatility of his face with watching him switch from emotion to emotion was actually incredible. For example when Commodus tried to goad him into attacking him, and you can physically see this breaking Maximus’ mind and then taking every ounce of being to hold his composure and pulling himself back together and then saying “I will kill you but not right now” or something along those lines….like guys that was pure cinema! So yep, Paul Mescal has none of that. He delivers what is supposed to be an inspirational monologue at the end of the film about strengths and honour and I did not give a single dollop of a turd.

Pedro Pascal was in this film less than I expected. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Pedro, but here for the few scenes he’s in he spends moping about wishing for a better Rome, which was all good and sound only that that was his only character trait! Like seriously I cannot underline how weak of a script this movie has! Take the two tyrannical emperors for example. Joseph Quinn (aka Eddie from Stranger Things) to be fair as Emperor Geta was quite watchable, but his brother Emperor Caracalla played by Fred Hechinger was a straight up knock off of Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus from the first film. Except that the brat that was Commodus was given the necessary build-up, as you could tell from the beginning of the movie that his dad (played by the late Richard Harris) was probably a terrible father who spent too much time wanting to build up the empire by endlessly invading everywhere rather than spend time with his children. As such Commodus is raised to be a wuss, so his actions in the film have sense. In Gladiator 2 though Caracalla literally is an unstable prick and that’s it. So again I cannot necessarily blame Hechinger as his performance was based on the limited info that was given to him, but this doesn’t result for a compelling character. Connie Nielsen is one of the only returning characters (aside from Derek Jacobi) from the first film, and I’ll give her props, she seemed to be acting her ass off, so much so that when she shared scenes with Mescal even he showed glimmers of emotion. Finally we have Denzel Washington, who to be fair from the trailers I expected a much more extravagant and absurd performance from, but nevertheless he seems to be having a lot of fun in this role, and to be fair the movie really turns up a notch every time he appeared. Also did not expect by the end of 2024 to be shipping Denzel with Tim McInnerny from Blackadder yet here we are.

The direction from Ridley Scott is strong to be fair, and the impressive set piece of the Colosseum and the tense blockbuster-level action fights in the arena were great to watch, now with the added flavour of baboons and sharks (yes, sharks). Costumes and make-up are all great and there was something nice about seeing a true historical epic at the movies. I give Scott props, he’s the only major filmmaker currently still trying to keep that genre alive, with his recent other releases being Napoleon and The Last Duel.

The music though by Harry Gregson-Williams is a very generic historical epic score, and very much a downgrade from Hans Zimmer’s masterclass work in the original. That’s the thing with Gladiator 2 - basically everything about it was done better by the original, and it really feels like it too. I’m still happy that this movie will be seen in the cinemas though (my screening was absolutely packed and most of the screening for the film on the day were sold out too) as it allows for the genre of historical epics to still live on. That being said though, I am not entertained.

Overall score: 4/10

[onbearfeet]

Queerwolf By Night: Queercoding, Media Literacy, and Werewolf By Night (part 3)

Lovely to have you back for this, the final part of our examination of WBN being queer as fuck. If you missed the earlier presentations in Media Studies and Writing Hacks With Kat, Part 1 is here and Part 2 is here.

We've gone through the Hays Code AND the AIDS crisis so far, and that's a lot, so could I interest you in a cup of coffee brewed over a campfire?

Thanks, Ted. You're a peach.

So let's look at the final scene of WBN through a queer lens. There's a needle drop, color is restored to the world, and we see Jack waking up in the woods to drink coffee, grunt at Ted, and eventually decide that sushi should happen.

(Side note: I have a whole rant about queercoding and sushi, but I cut it, so here's a gif of Aziraphale gayly eating sushi in Good Omens, which you should watch.)

Okay, enough queer angels. Time for more queer monsters.

First things first: this scene is SO DOMESTIC, y'all. They're literally playing house in the woods, in that Ted has built Jack an adorable little house and brewed his morning coffee. The camp is littered with little domestic touches like the French press and the guitar. It's a homey, if slightly eclectic, vibe. (Where did Ted find a payphone?)

There is no explanation for these objects being there, afaik; Ted and Jack both have presumably come from some distance away, involuntarily in Ted's case, so there's no reason Ted would know the location of a well-stocked camp to put an unconscious Jack down in if Jack even set one up. Presumably the camp is Ted's work, but there's never an explanation for where he got any items other than the robe and the phonograph. (I'm particularly curious about the flower mug, personally.) Yet the objects are not remarked upon, and the entire scene is played as if this is a relatively normal morning for the two of them.

In fact, most of the mechanics of the scene are effectively those of a morning-after scene, perhaps a morning after characters fall into bed for the first time. Jack wakes up groaning, crawls out of bed to see where he is, and finds his partner has laid out something like breakfast for him and is prepared to discuss the events of the night before whenever Jack is ready.

And speaking of that discussion, we once again have displays of queercoded masculinity: Jack and Ted being physically affectionate, playful banter, and emotional vulnerability when Jack asks about Elsa. You know the drill by now. The camera pans up as "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" swells and fades out.

Wait.

Rainbow?

Let's talk about music in this film.

Michael Giacchino is primarily known as a composer of film music. WBN is his directorial debut. I guarantee you've heard his music before, because it's basically in every summer blockbuster franchise. If you can't get John Williams, Danny Elfman, or Hans Zimmer (all of whom are getting long in the tooth), you get Giacchino and he turns in a fucking SCORE.

Now, I am not a music person. Not at all. But even my musically illiterate ass knows that traditional film scoring derives a lot from classical music, especially Romantic composers like Beethoven. And that means LEITMOTIFS, baby!

(I learned about leitmotifs from Bugs Bunny and Star Wars. Do not be impressed.)

A leitmotif is a short musical phrase that can be used to signify a character, object, or theme in a larger work of music. For a very basic example of this, look up the Force theme from Star Wars and watch a supercut of all the times it was used to indicate that someone was using the Force. Or just watch this Sideways video about why the music in Rise of Skywalker was ass:

Anyhoo. The point of leitmotifs is to give an audience a feeling without necessarily tipping them off to exactly WHY they're having that feeling. And Giacchino LOVES his leitmotifs.

So when he uses someone else's music, he's extremely aware of the emotions that can come attached to that music. It's literally what he does.

There are two pieces of music used in WBN that Giacchino didn't write: a late 1930s recording of Vera Lynn singing "Wishing Will Make It So" and Judy Garland singing "Over The Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz. Let's start with Vera Lynn.

Vera Lynn was an English singer most associated with big band music before and during WWII. During the war, she was known as "the Forces' sweetheart", both for her efforts to entertain the troops and for the fact that she was kind of every British fighting man's waifu. What Betty Grable's legs were to American GIs, Vera Lynn's voice was to British servicemen. She's best known for the song "We'll Meet Again", which is about exactly what it sounds like. She was a nice lady, by all accounts, and there is a ferry boat named after her now.

A Vera Lynn song about childhood and wishing is what Verussa plays in the labyrinth, apparently to annoy Elsa, who switches it off (even though that's going to inform everyone of where she is). For the purposes of queercoding, Vera Lynn is mom and apple pie, or possibly mum and fish and chips, and above all she is safe, compulsory heterosexuality. The Forces' sweetheart.

Judy Garland, on the other hand, is a queer icon.

I can't overstate what a Big Deal Judy Garland and Dorothy Gale from The Wizard of Oz are in queer culture. The themes of the story, including acceptance of the unusual and embrace of a found family (along with the sapphic elements of some of the books), resonated so deeply with queer people that for several decades, "are you a friend of Dorothy?" was code for "are you gay?" The US Navy actually launched an investigation to find the mysterious "Dorothy" who was supposedly the ringleader of all the gay sailors.

And then there's the song itself, with its theme of longing for a faraway, more colorful place where those who don't fit in at home are loved for who they are. It's, uh, pretty resonant with the queer experience.

So I now draw your attention to the phonograph. Gramophone. Record player. Whatever it's called.

In WBN, we first see the player set up in the labyrinth, presumably by Verussa or at her orders. It's playing a Vera Lynn song about childhood and wishing, which apparently annoys Elsa so much that she switches it off, thus alerting Jack to her location.

The next appearance of the player is in the camp, where it's now playing "Over the Rainbow" beside Jack as he wakes up. Ted has presumably stolen it; there's no other candidate for that, and we already saw him swipe a murder robe for Jack, so why not a record player too?

In other words, Verussa Enthusiastic Heterosexuality Bloodstone sets up the Compulsory Heterosexuality Machine, after which Elsa Ally-Coded Bloodstone turns it off in disgust, and Ted swipes it and turns it gay for Jack's benefit.

That's the coding. That's BARELY subtext. I really don't know what else to tell you. This essay started with my making an offhand joke to bluemoonperegrine about Ted and Jack being "literally friends of Dorothy" and then realizing nobody else in the conversation had noticed this stuff.

So what do we do about all this? Is WBN queer? Does all the Wolfstone stuff pale in comparison to the glory of Russallis? Am I trying to start a ship war in a fandom so small it probably wouldn't fill up Vera Lynn's namesake ferry boat?

Jack, you can answer this for me.

Nope. Not trying to start anything. I happily read Wolfstone, and technically have written some. I love all three WBN leads and am happy to enjoy them in any configuration (although my personal preference is group napping in a puppy pile, because these characters deserve naps).

I just figured it was worth documenting all this so people who haven't had the benefit of my very strange education would be better equipped to recognize (and ideally enjoy) old-style queercoding when they see it.

Wait a minute. You promised writing hacks. It's in the series title and everything.

Shit, you caught me.

Obviously, queercoding isn't a universal tool. There are plenty of storytelling contexts in which it's much better to make characters explicitly queer. Representation matters, and all that.

But sometimes you won't have time for explicit confirmation (like when your story takes place overnight and nobody really has time to play tonsil hockey). Sometimes you won't be able to include it due to outside constraints (like Disney being Disney).

And sometimes, you'll remember that there are plenty of people who can't or won't pick up explicitly queer media. Homophobic parents who won't let their kids watch Love, Simon ... but who WILL let them read your YA novel about unicorns or whatever where there are two female unicorns who are, uh, life partners. Grumpy uncles who refuse to acknowledge their nephew's boyfriend until they notice that, hey, they kinda act like Finn and Poe from that Star War. And so on. Sometimes, coded rep is the best rep you can get ... and so it's useful to have. A good toolbox has ALL the tools.

So if you're building characters for your story and don't or can't have specific queer goals, throw in a little coding. Put a rainbow T-shirt on a kid. Let two boys hold hands or have literally any feelings. Let a girl say a girl is pretty. Look up some of the older symbols for queer love and have someone growing lavender in their garden, or use newer queer symbols and have a character crack an egg in a key scene. Have a character who's content without a romantic or sexual relationship, and has an arc about something else, because aces and aros exist too.

There's a whole universe of coding out there. Go add some layers to your work.

Or better yet--see if they're there already. You might surprise yourself.

Sometimes the monster has a familiar face.

[lostfirefly]

Life Must Have It's Mysteries (Ch.8)

Hey. hey!! I hope you missed this couple! English is not my native language, errors may occur. As always, feel free to share your thoughts :) Masterlist is here.

Description: Buggy and Catherine (OC from my “You’ve Got the Same Dream as Me” series) collected all parts of the scepter.

Warnings: Fun, fluff, arguing, sadness, adventure, swearing (as always). Shitty shit again:)

Words: 4224 (Yay!)

Taglist: @gingernut1314, @operationroots, @hey-august, @rorywritesjunk, @yujo-nishimura (I hope you still like it!)

The title is taken from “Life Must Have It's Mysteries” by Hans Zimmer (OST Inferno).

✎﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7

✎﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

“Cotton candy, what are you doing? Stop!”

“No, I won't. I love playing with your hair. They are so long, blue, and beautiful. Do you want a crown braid? A regular braid? Or something else?” They both sat on the sand. Catherine knelt behind Buggy and ran a comb through his hair.

“I don't want anything, Catherine. Leave my hair alone.” He carefully removed her hands. “I'll curl my ponytail later.”

“So it’s gonna be the crown braid!” She kissed him on the cheek, hearing his groan, and took a small strand of hair in her hands. 

“Geeez!” Buggy rolled his eyes.

Smack. “Oh! Let me make you a bun out of your hair. Two braids and the bun!” Catherine said happily and continued braiding his hair.

“Little shit! Can you even hear me? Why are you doing this to me?” Buggy removed her hands again, stood up, muttering something under his breath, and walked towards the car.

“Buggy Bear, what's wrong?” 

He looked at her silently.

“You know, I think you should give me a schedule of your moods.” Catherine crossed her arms and looked at him instantly. “One day you are silent when I touch your hair or kiss your nose, now you are unhappy. And I don't even talk about the fact that I’ve lost count of how many times a day your mood changes. You never say anything, you just get angry, get up and leave. I don't get it. Did I hurt you? You know perfectly that I will never do that. I just love playing with your hair. I’m sorry.”

“I just…” Buggy watched as Catherine became sad and began to move her hand along the sand. He sighed, walked back to her and sat down with his back to her. “Don’t like it sometimes.”

Catherine started stroking his head and asked softly. “Did something bad happen to you before? Did someone hurt you this way?” 

Buggy looked at her, showing with his eyes that he didn't want to talk about it, and moved his back closer to her.

She knelt down and hugged him from behind. “Who did all this to you? What have they done?”

Buggy was silent, but Catherine felt that he became more relaxed in her embrace. 

“Do you want to continue? Can I touch your hair?” She gently placed her hand on his shoulder. 

“Fine!” He said quietly. 

“Buggy Bear, you can trust me.” Smack. Catherine carefully took a strand of his hair and started braiding it. “Gosh! The color is amazing, love it and love you.”

“I don't understand why I let you braid my hair. It's not love, Cathie-pie. Admit, you just adore mocking me, right?” Buggy smiled and poked her in the side with his finger. “By the way, I'm hungry, when are we going to eat?”

“You're unbelievable. When it comes to food, drink or sex, you're instantly cheerful.” She looked at the fire where the sausages were being roasted. “Soon. I think another 10 minutes.” Catherine gently took another strand of hair and, humming softly, began to braid it. She noticed a slight smile on his face. “I wonder if you were offered food or sex with me, what would you choose?” She gently ran her finger through the braid. “Buggy?! You didn’t answer.” 

“Wait, I’m thinking.” He got lost in thought. 

“Fucking clown! I can't believe you're choosing between me and food.” Catherine sniggered. 

“Because you ask difficult questions, baby. Food is very important to me.”

“I'll remind you of this the next time you start pestering me.” Catherine made a bun, took a bobby pin out of her hair and stuck it in his hair. She made a crown braid on top. She took a picture on her phone and showed him the photo. “Look! Shouldn't you walk around like this at home?” 

“No way! It's disgusting.” Buggy responded with a laugh. “What did you do to me, red-haired shit?”

Catherine hugged him from behind by the neck, standing on her knees, and pressed her cheek to his cheek. He placed his hand on her wrist.

“Cotton candy, I…”

“Shush, clown! Don't spoil the moment.” She sat there for another five minutes in silence. “You're unshaven and prickly.” Catherine gently ran her fingertips over his stubble. “I love it and… you!” She suddenly squealed joyfully, smacking his cheek. 

“Fuck! My ears!!” Buggy covered his ear with one hand. “I lo~...” He sniffed. "What smells?"

“Shit! Sausages!!” Catherine jumped and ran towards the fire. “Good new, it doesn’t seem like they were burned.” She took a bite. “No, they are fine. Go have breakfast, my blue-haired love!” 

Buggy looked at her carefully.

“Why are you looking at me? Come here. Breakfast is ready.” She put food on disposable plates.

“I’m coming!”

Catherine watched as Buggy split into parts, flew to her and assembled himself piece by piece. She looked at him in surprise. “What was that?” 

“Meh, I was too lazy to go.” He shrugged his shoulders. 

“You're such a fool! So. We have hot dogs, donuts and warmed up pancakes. What do you want?” 

“I want everything!” Buggy poured Catherine coffee and kissed her temple. “Here. Fresh coffee for my Egyptian girl.”

“Thank you!”

Catherine made him three hot dogs and put some pancakes on the plate. She watched as Buggy happily took a bite of the hot dog and started stroking his head. “Tasty?” 

“Delicious!” He said with his mouth full and narrowed his eyes joyfully. 

“Chew first, Buggy.” Catherine took the mug in her hands and took a sip of coffee. She blushed when she noticed his gaze on her. “Stop looking at me like you love me.” 

He swallowed the food and said quietly. “But I lo~.. I.. I just.. I don’t understand how I got you. You take care of me. Come on, you're cooking me sausages in the middle of the desert. Of course, you sometimes squeal like an ultrasound, but.. Why are you with me?”

Catherine put the mug on the sand, crawled up to him on her knees, hugged him, kissed him on the cheek and felt how he place his hand on her back. “I thought you had long ago gotten used to all this,” She stroked his head. “Okay. Then I'll say it more often. Do you want me to say it more often? I love, love, love you! And even though I'm tired of constantly wiping your lipstick traces off of me, I still love you. And when I become a decrepit toothless old woman with a saggy ass, I will still love you.”

“You'll never have a saggy ass, cotton candy.” 

“I will, if you keep grabbing it. Stop doing it right now, Buggy!” She hit him on the arm. “Okay! Eat your breakfast. I’ll bring my notes and the scepter.”

Catherine got up from the ground. “Hey, clown! I let you look at my ass! Watch me walk to the car.” She moved her buttocks left and right several times, and joyfully began jumping from one foot to the other towards the car.

“You're amazing, Cathie-pie!” Buggy said loudly, chewing the hot dog.

Catherine grabbed things from the car and ran back joyfully, slightly squealing. She plopped down on the sand next to Buggy, grabbed a pancake and, chewing, pulled out three pieces of the scepter. These were small pieces of gold, clearly once decorated with stones. Catherine twirled each piece in her hands for a long time. 

“I think if we don’t find anything and this fucking thing doesn’t fall apart in my hands, we can sell it too and get some good money.” She heard him laugh. “What are you laughing at, clown.” 

“Me? I'm just wondering where my honest, decent girl went.” Buggy started imitating her. “We can sell it too.” 

“Oh, fuck you!” Catherine raised a piece of the scepter to the sun and squinted one eye. “Look. There are inscriptions on all three parts.” 

He moved his face closer to see the scepter, chewing the food. “And what do they mean?” 

“I don’t know yet. There is a mixture of languages ​​here. A little archaic ancient Egyptian, which was in the pre-dynastic period, and ancient Egyptian, which was in the time of the pharaohs.” Catherine looked in the notebook and started writing all the symbols down. 

“Anything?” Buggy looked over her shoulder.

“Shush! Don't distract me!” She moved her pen over the paper, periodically muttered something under her breath, then put the pen in her mouth and fell silent.

“Cotton candy? Cotton candy!” Buggy snapped his fingers in front of her face. “Catherine?! Do you hear me?”

Catherine poked her pen at the letters and symbols on the sheets, glancing at Buggy periodically, then wrote something down again. 

“It's written that this scepter belonged to the one who could cut mountains, breakthrough springs.”  She began to assemble the pieces of the scepter until she heard a click on each connected piece. “Look. It's beautiful, isn't it?” Catherine raised the assembled scepter into the sun. “And here are the coordinates on the edges. See?” She pointed her little finger at the small numbers. “Let's see where they point.” 

They both bent over the map. Catherine compared the numbers on the scepter and on the map. “My blue-haired love, we need to get this place.” She pointed her finger at a point on the map.

⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥫⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭⥭

Catherine sat on the hood of the car and looked at the pyramid with a flat roof and sloped sides, with six layers, one built on top of the other. There was a smile on her face, her eyes were wide open. 

“Cotton candy, you surprised me.” Buggy closed the car door and walked up to her. “You’re silent.” 

She didn't take her eyes off the pyramid. “Do not tease me, clown.” 

He leaned his back against the hood. “Come on, squeal.” 

“Can I?” She looked at him. 

“Of course you can.” He made a gesture with his hand. 

Catherine jumped off the hood, clenched her hands into fists and began jumping around, squealing. 

“Well, where are we now?” Buggy asked, glancing at her. 

“My love! You’re looking at the very first pyramid in the world. Djoser’s pyramid. It was built almost 5,000 years ago.” She joyfully pointed to the structure. “Just fuck me! The ancient pyramid may contain what we're looking for.”

Catherine grabbed her head, turned to Buggy and broke into a smile. He exhaled, spread his arms, inviting her to jump on him. She threw herself on his neck with a squeal. “Love.” Smack. “Love.” Smack. “Love, love, love you!” Smack. Smack. Smack. 

He wrapped his arms around her waist. “I’m happy you're happy.” 

“You know, this pyramid was built by the very first Egyptian architect.” Catherine turned around, pressed her back against his chest and took his hand. “It is believed that the steps carry some symbolism - along them the pharaoh was supposed to pass to the kingdom of the dead. According to the notes that I have and what is indicated in the map, we will need to find the king's eyes peeking out through a hole. And we need to be more careful. This pyramid is also included in the tourist route. But it also has fake paths. I don't know what's in them. Traps or attempted tunnels. Be careful, please.” She stroked his palm with her fingers. 

“Why are you telling me this?” Buggy asked in surprise.

“You almost got stuck in some hole when you pulled out the third part of the scepter, clown. I don’t want to lose you ahead of time.” Catherine reached out her hand and laid it on his head. “Okay, let’s go and try to find this fucking diamond.”

They collected their things and headed towards the entrance. As they walked towards the pyramid, Catherine told Buggy that it was all considered a vast complex, including courtyards, sanctuaries, temples, and dwellings for the priests. They reached the pyramid, which made of six-tiered “stepped” layers of stone and clay. Buggy listened to her with interest. They bought entrance tickets and, together with a group of tourists, went inside the pyramid. 

“Oh my God! We are now inside the very first pyramid in the world. Can you imagine?” Catherine pulled Buggy's hand and turned her head, trying to look at everything as best as possible. “Awesome, huh?”

“Not bad.” He shrugged his shoulders.

“Not bad.” Catherine rolled her eyes at him. 

They stood in a small room between columns. It was the central courtyard, from which eleven different tunnels branched off in different directions. 

“Look.” Catherine took out a notepad. “We are in the central passage now. It was built above the sarcophagus of the pharaoh. The sarcophagus itself is located at the bottom of a very deep vertical shaft, which is covered with a dome. In addition, the tomb contains 11 carved burial rooms for members of the pharaoh's family. But there are also a lot of tunnels that lead to a dead end. The pyramid has not been fully studied, so the data may be incomplete.”

“Yeah-yeah, I remember.” He started imitating her, walking away to look at the wall. “Be careful. Buggy. You're such an idiot that you can go down the wrong corridor.”

Catherine exhaled, walked up behind him, buried her head in his back and took his hand. “You're my idiot. Just be careful. Okay?”

“Fine.” He squeezed her hand and replied with a smile on his face. “Where are we gonna go, my Egyptian girl?” 

“We need to go to the southern part of the pyramid.” She took the map out of her bag. “It's this way.” 

They walked along a corridor decorated with ornaments and paintings. Some walls were covered with blue tiles, reminiscent of a reed mat, and were also decorated with reliefs depicting the pharaoh performing various rituals.

“You know, it was previously believed that these corridors and the rooms next to them were used for burial. But do you see these drawings? They simply describe the life of the pharaoh and his family. There is no trace of the ritual nature of these rooms. They clearly look like they were once residential.” Catherine walked from wall to wall and carefully moved her hands over the drawings. “That’s amazing.” 

They walked through several corridors, went down a few steps and found themselves in a part of the pyramid with narrow passages. 

“Wait.” Catherine looked around. “Where is everyone? We followed the notes and the map, but I don’t see a single tourist now.” She took out her notepad and map again. “See? We went this way, this way. Then we turned here.”

“Maybe we took a wrong turn?” Buggy looked at her notes.  

“No, no, impossible. We walked clearly along the corridors that were indicated on the sheets.” Catherine tapped her finger on the notes in her notebook. 

Buggy scratched his neck. “Is there any possibility that this corridor where we are now is not intended for tourists? As I understand it, these Egyptian guys of yours were very fond of such things.”

“Perhaps. But everything indicates that we need to get through this narrow passage.” Catherine squatted down and looked around the small tunnel. “There's some light further down there.” She pulled out a flashlight from her bag. "See?"

Buggy sat down next to her and squinted. “Yeah. And what do your scribbles say?”

“It's not a scribble. Stop making fun of my handwriting.” She poked him in the shoulder and checked the notes once again. “They say we need to crawl there.” Catherine pointed with a flashlight at the tunnel. 

“As a true gentleman, I will allow you to crawl first.” Buggy chuckled idiotically and nodded towards the tunnel with his head.

“You're not a gentleman. You just want to look at my ass!” Catherine rolled her eyes.

“I can't deny that, cotton candy!” He lightly spanked her buttocks.

“You're disgusting!” Catherine slapped his hands. “I hate you!” 

“Lord, a blow to the heart!” Buggy rolled his eyes theatrically. “How can I live now?”

“Oh, shut up, please, clown. You like pissing me off, right?” She slapped him on the head. 

“My baby gets angry. Love it!” 

“Go fuck yourself, Buggy! Seriously, be focused!” Catherine looked at him angrily and then stroked his head. “So what? Shall we go back or shall we go forward?”

“You and I didn’t come this far just to go back, right?” Buggy shrugged. “If your notes say that we should go this way, we have no choice.” 

“Okay!” Catherine put the notebook and map in her bag, stuck the flashlight between her teeth, got down on all fours and climbed into the tunnel.

“Fuck, yeah! My favorite view of you” Buggy grinned happily, rubbed his hands and also climbed after her. 

“Shtp! I’ll pnch u!” She mumbled through the teeth. 

They crawled along a narrow passage and found themselves in a large room, the walls of which were made of pale yellow slabs of granite mixed with limestone. In the middle of the wall, everything was decorated with drawings and inscriptions in the form of intricate carvings. 

“Where are we?” Buggy asked, looking at Catherine. 

“I have no idea. Wait.” She took out all her notes again. “So. You and I walked past the hall with the cobras, past the visitation with the double columns. Then we went down through the side passage. And if we walked correctly, then we are now in the southern passage under the underground galleries. Remember, I told you that the pyramid is not fully explored? We are diffenetly now on those paths that are not listed in the boring guide for boring tourists.” 

Buggy took out a second flashlight from her bag and shined it on the walls, “Cotton candy, there are some people drawn there again.” He pointed the light at the walls. 

Catherine came closer and began muttering something under her breath. 

“Cathie-pie?” Buggy came closer to her

“It says “Hathor and Amset will lead you through the gate. But you cannot go straight..  Start where Amset defeated the enemy”. This is some kind of nonsense.” 

“Cotton candy, there’s some kind of lady painted on this wall.” Buggy pointed at the wall with a flashlight. 

“Where? Where?” Catherine jumped happily and ran towards the drawings, pushing him aside. 

“Geeez, woman!” Buggy walked closer to the wall. “Who is this?” 

“This is Hathor. She is Horus's wife and was responsible for strength, love, beauty and was revered by women.” Catherine studied the drawing carefully. 

Buggy tapped her on the shoulder. “Listen, is it normal that a piece of the ceiling is lighter than all the other slabs?” 

Catherine shone her flashlight at the ceiling and looked at it. “No. Wait.” She looked at the drawing for a long time and muttered something under her breath. “These are not just light spots on the ceiling. This is.. the Milky Way?!”

“What?” 

“Well, of course! The ancient Egyptians believed that Hathor's milk was the Milky Way. So we need to find the stars there. Remember, in the last pyramid I told you about Amset and the fact that he is associated with the stars.” 

“Cotton candy, we had wild sex that day. Believe me, I remember you naked, loudly moaning my name, my tongue between your legs and not some mythical guy in heaven.” Buggy guffawed idiotically. “I bet if we did this in his pyramid, he would look at us from his Egyptian clouds and be jealous.”

“Seriously, clown?!” Catherine waved her hands. “You said this in front of the face of an Egyptian goddess?”

“Oh, come on!” Buggy came closer to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “What will she do to me? Will she crawl out of the drawing and gore me with her horns?”

“You're disgusting.” Catherine shone the flashlight on the floor. “Look! There are stars on the slabs here. And you see, on each slab they are drawn only along the edges. Wait! Amset are the stars. Start where he defeated the enemy. Exactly!” She snapped her fingers. “It was believed that Amset defeated the enemy on the right side. So, we need to start from the right side. See? The Milky Way is like a curved line.” Catherine ran her finger in the air, the second drawing is on the ceiling. “We just need to step on those stars that the pictures above point to.” 

“This is very exciting. But may I ask a question?” Buggy asked with interest in his voice. 

“Sure!” 

“Why is this woman... Hat.. What's her name? With horns. Why is she drawn with only one leg?” 

“And look. The pattern of stars matches on these plates.” Catherine pointed to the right side.  “And on those slabs that are closer to you.” She pointed to the left side. 

“The distances between the plates are not the smallest. Sorry, baby, I don’t know how to stretch myself. I ate only one devil fruit.” 

“This riddle is not for one. This riddle is for two.” Catherine whispered. 

“What?” Buggy asked in surprise and widened his eyes

“These slabs are for two people. Hathor with one leg. And do you see? There are more drawings of her further down, and she is also on one leg. But look, in the next pictures she changes her supporting leg. She pushes off with different legs. So we need to do the same and just jump on the stars. Nothing complicated.” Catherine smirked. 

“Nothing complicated? Am I an acrobat or something?” 

“You run the circus! Stop whining. Stand on the slab on the right on the left side, I'll stand on the ones on the right.” 

“Maybe I should try to split up? Well... One leg here, the other there.” Buggy scratched his head. 

“I don't think this will work, to be honest. I don’t see any different option. Let's try! Stand on the left side!” 

They went to different sides and stood at the first slabs. 

“Are you ready?” Catherine asked. 

“I have not the foggiest idea.” 

“Stop whining, Buggy! We stand on one leg and jump on the count of three. Ready? One, two.. three!”

Jump.

They both took a leap and looked around. 

“So. Since nothing is going anywhere, that means it’s already good.” Buggy heard a nervous chuckle in Catherine's voice. “Now the next slab. Jump to those stars in the upper left corner. Okay?” 

“Ok.” 

“One. Two. Three.” 

Jump. 

“Great! Just to keep your balance!” Catherine spread her arms out to the side for balance. “I haven’t done this since school. I look like a seagull! Wooohoo!” She made seagull sounds.

“Stop talking and making fun. Where to next?” Buggy tried to keep the balance. “It’s not easy.” 

“You're so boring now! Top corner on the right. Ready? One, two... three!” 

Jump. 

“I even started to like it!”

Buggy heard a note of joy in Catherine's voice.  “I'm glad you're happy, my lovely seagull. But where to next?” There was irritation in his voice. 

“Upper left corner again. One. Two. Three.” 

Jump. 

“Shit! Stand still, Catherine! Stand still! Damn it!” Catherine staggered and put her other foot down on the slab. She looked around. “Nothing seems to be happening, right?” 

“I think that far wall is moving.” Buggy pointed to the direction they came from. 

“What?” Catherine squealed.

“The wall is moving! Congrats, Catherine! You grumble at me most of all, but hello! You’ve just launched some kind of ancient Egyptian crap!” He put his foot down and clapped his hands. 

“Enough of the theatrics!" She imitated his clapping. "So, what should we do?” 

“Fuck!!” Buggy ran up to Catherine, threw her over her shoulder and ran to the other side of the hall. 

“What about the stars?!” 

“Are you kidding me? Better think where to run!” 

“Look for the horns! This is the sign of Hathor!” 

“I see something ahead! It looks like horns!” 

“Faster, Buggy! I think the wall is moving faster.” 

“Fuck!!” He ran faster and carried her to the other end of the hall. “Here are the horns!” He pointed to the drawing. 

“It's a door! Try to open it!” Catherine started tapping his shoulder. “Faster! This fucking wall is getting closer!” 

“Does not work!!” Buggy tried to push the door. 

“Faster, please! Otherwise, we'll get crushed!” 

“And who is to blame for this?!” He said with a grunt in his voice, trying to push the door with the pattern in the other direction.

Catherine began to examine the wall. “There is a passage here! Quickly!” She grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the passage. 

They crawled into a small tunnel when they heard a rumble behind them. 

“Fucking Egyptian traps!” Catherine muttered as she crawled out of the tunnel. “Buggy?” 

“I'm coming!” He followed her out of the tunnel. “Are you okay, cotton candy?” 

“Yes! Thank you! You saved my life again, my blue-haired hero!” She hugged him and rested her chin on his chest. 

“Always at your service!” Buggy wrapped his arms around her shoulders.  “So. Now where are we?” 

“I don’t know. Look, there's something here!” Catherine walked into a small recess in the wall and ran her hand over the drawings. 

At that moment, a rumble was heard, and the grate came down, locking her inside the room. 

Catherine looked at Buggy through the bars. “It seems like I'm an idiot now, yeah? Damn!”

[serenityfails]

early stage DATV thoughts

okay well first off here's my sweet baby angel Rin

smooch smooch smooch smooch smooch i love you little bouncing baby elf

kissy kissy mwah mwah mwah

baby.

i failed to get screens of bren before i left the cc because i was hitting the wrong screencap button. i deserve only death.

okay now the rest of the game.

i truly am withholding judgment until i get further in because i know i am in the very early part of the game. i've only gotten harding, neve, bellara, and lucanis so far. i can sense that they are keeping you pretty tightly on the rails and slowly drip-feeding tutorial shit throughout until you get everyone. that's fine, sure.

howeveerrrrr i am not a huge fan of the feel of this on-the-rails section. it feels............ mobile game-y. and i think part of that is the art style in varric's narration sections? they're trying to riff on nick thornborrow's very distinct art style that we saw previously in the games and of which i am a big fan and the replacement art style is like.... murder mystery match 3. i don't like it.

i'm trying to unclench and lean into minrathous being more futuristic and like, ye olde cyberpunke, but i'm not quite used to the slickness of it all yet. it doesn't feel dragon agey. this is something i might get over in time, or i might not. i'll wait and see.

i also don't find the music very distinctive but hans zimmer is imo a deeply boring composer. i miss u inquisition ost...

so far all the dialogue and characters also feel very flat. i am also hoping this is just because i am still stuck in the world's longest tutorial section and that they'll start to ease into being people instead of exposition dispensers soon. i know there's always the section at the beginning where they have to act like people regularly explain known facts about the world to everyone. it just feels particularly glaring here for some reason. like how many times is harding gonna bark something completely obvious at me. i heard you the first five times and also the tone indicators on the screen seem to think i'm an idiot robot who doesn't understand dialogue and feels the need to summarize every cutscene for me.

that aspect is really sticking in my craw bc the thing i LIKE about dragon age is that it lets you draw your own conclusions about what the characters say and what they're trying to convey to you when they say it, i don't want some fucking subtitle being like BY THE WAY HERE'S THE SUBTEXT OF THIS SCENE, shut the fuck uUUuuup

neve is hot but her affect is very flat and i haven't found the hook for her character that's made me interested in her yet. i like lucanis more than i thought i would, but i did just meet him. bellara gets on my nerves but i'm trying to give her time to cook. harding never struck me as an "interested in dwarven lore" person so i am also waiting to see where that goes.

so far the character i like most is.... my Rook. lmao

i sound like a negative nancy rn but i do like the mage combat gameplay despite being bad at video game combat. it's really fun. dagger and orb forever. also the game is reeeeeally pretty. i think the faces don't always look great in motion and the lip flaps seem mushy delivering the dialogue but you know what it still looks better than like any of the other games so whatever. the hair is so whooshy. can't believe they finally did it, the absolute madlads

all right i should probably sleep or something. will continue to Ponder as i play

[stardewnoodles]

Salmonids totally have Gladiator-esque rituals that are a remnant of humanity’s thirst for blood sports in their ancient times. Considering their fearlessness of death, considerable desire to eat one another, or pass on their nutrients through their destruction, etc., it’d make sense that (in the same way they have bands for Salmonid encounters) they’d have tournaments to harden and test certain classes. Perhaps it’s how they’re able to be given the roll they desire, or how they choose who gets to be in the Griller. Iirc, they consider the greatest honor to be smushed into that thing. If it’s such a great honor, they may as well fight for the right of it.

Occasionally, a lost who didn’t get on the chopper may get roped into it. Even if they come back, they probably would have nobody believe them. Grizzco would pass it off as propaganda to protect his image. All that. Agent 4 being sorely missing makes me headcanon them as someone who grew up getting bit into studying different species and their culture/past. Perhaps, they’re not present because they’re on a self recon mission attempt to engross themselves in what Salmonids do, or at least observe. Inkadia’s Champion, the underdog that the crowd never gets enough of, just like a lot of true stories. Oh, sorry, I must’ve been listening to “Gotham’s Reckoning” by Hans Zimmer again while doing rotations on Bonerattle Arena.

Like this is totally bullshit idea spewing because it sounds cool but if the devs one day were like “here’s new Salmonid for Splatoon 4 and here’s a human looking one that you never saw because they were busy fighting in contests as morale for their people” I wouldn’t be surprised.

[unlicensedmortician]

welcome to bad movies with j&j, the segment where @ghostcasket and i watch bad movies while alex is gone. this time it’s divergent.

- i’ve never read any of the books or watched any of the movies before. btw

- oh this is gonna be terrible

- OH THIS IS GONNA BE TERRIBLE. THE EXPOSITION.

- they’re color coded,,,,,

- “there’s everyone else and then there’s dauntless who are cool hot sexy cops” jesus

- wow she doesn’t fit in,,, who could have seen this coming

- that is the most Blonde White Girl i’ve ever seen

- THIS IS SO STUPID. THIS IS SOOOO STUPID.

- they can’t look at mirrors for too long,,,,

- and they’re fucking color coded

- there are literally five personality traits and that is a real explicit part of this media

- better lock into one of those personality traits miss white girl protagonist. wonder what it will possibly be

- i can’t believe their social organization system is literally just “so we’re gonna put every teenager on an acid trip and see what happens”

- white girl discovers she has multiple personality traits, is incredibly distressed

- what’s up with how this movie treats homeless people.

- i want to claw my eyeballs out

- wow this dialogue isn’t even stilted at all

- she picked 12yo boys in gym class. obviously

- hey is run boy run by wood kid ruined forever now

- yes girl climb that piece of infrastructure. is this a big moment for you or

- why pick the doing stupid shit option if you don’t wanna do stupid shit i guess

- i shrieked out loud when i saw the love interest. why he fugly

- it’s the pit 👍

- THIS IS SO FUCKING STUPID

- this is fucking crazy

- plot point: she’s too frail and delicate and skinny 🙁

- that tattoo is so stupid and also ugly

- she’s a threat to society because she is so so special and good at everything. i fucking guess

- ok. sure. training montage. i guess.

- he just looks so much older than her that this is unsettling

- so ur saying that u have to be fucking stupid to be a part of the cool hot people class. great.

- i cannot believe it’s real and a key plot point that the biggest threat to their society is people with multiple personality traits

- of course she’s getting on the train anyway. whatever.

- people actually thought this was good??

- imagine if christina and tris had been the main couple. it wouldn’t have solved anything but it would have been cool for me personally

- girl you are about to get so hazed. oh nvm it’s a zip line

- this romance plot makes me want to start killing and im being serious

-OH MY FUCKING GOD. SHES NEURODIVERGENT. AND THEY JUST TOOK THE NEURO OFF OF THAT AND WENT YEAH THATS THE TITLE. IM LOSING IT

- o shit her mother defected. lmao

- that’s not even a little bit how any of this works at all. fear serum? kill me

- this is so fucking stupiddddd

- this is just. crazy insane contrived.

- like what do you MEAN one personality type is leading the whole government. that’s crazy. i’m gonna start hitting people with cars. i’m gonna take up smoking.

- yeah of course this mf shows up to save her. as opposed to literally any cooler option. more points to the incredibly contrived romance plot.

- jesus fucking christ????

- hey i know u just showed me all of your worst fears. can u strip

- oh okay they’re. making out now?

- smart people evil. i guess.

- she’s just tooooo special.

- the only good thing about this movie is the soundtrack thank you hans zimmer

- oh my god one of her worst fears is boning

- hello what the shit is happening. oh my god they fucking shot him. damn this is crazy.

- gasp he’s divergent too who could’ve seen this coming except for literally anyone ever.

- of course they killed her fucking mom

- oh And her dad? equal opportunity parent killing!

- ok well. that movie happened. and made so much money. thank god it’s over. i’d like to be financially compensated

[meonlyred]

Finally got around to look into DAV, all I say I don't want to step foot into the tag again. DA fandom, never change

Braving than any US marine. I will never go into the tags. I get enough that leaks into my dash as it is.

I have blocked more DA fans in the past month than I have tumblr bots. I knew this was coming. I was joking with my friends on discord that I couldn't wait to block most of the DA fans. That the 17 of us on that server are the DA fandom to me.

I am going to use this opportunity to rant a bit. Sorry. I have been very good at trying to keep it all contained to private conversations. I deserve to take people to task as a treat. (And threat.)

I am trying to be as light one spoilers as I can. This also ended up being a fucking shit load longer than I meant. I just have a lot of bitching to say.

I have criticism for the DAV but they really come down to very personal tastes. For example, I miss DAI's tinting station for armor. I miss the Golden Nug so I can just have all the armor looks I want right off the bat. (But that was added in later DAI patches. I can't recall if the tinting station was too. It been too long. There might be hope for that.) I was also upset at how long the bug that kept resetting my Rook's appearance took to get fixed. That really sucked.

Besides that, there is nothing that takes substantially away from my enjoyment of DAV. It was another Bioware game that did that to me.

I thought the pacing at the beginning of DAV was way too quick but then I remembered how Bioware games usually go. Ostagar, Haven, the Citadel, and the Nexus is what I liked to call my Bioware graveyards. Its where all of my new characters go to die. The plot comes to a screeching halt at these areas. Bioware has always does good with their openings; action, intrigue! Let's go! But once you get through the flash opening... now wander around for a few hours picking up fetch quests and talking to 30 people all with so much dialogue to dump on you. Some of it is not bad dialogue but some of it is wholly unnecessary or way too much in one go. Like Varric's 10 minutes of "remember what you did in the last game?" Its bad when I dread talking to Varric of all people or just skip through his dialogue.

I appreciate the quick pacing much more on subsequent play throughs. It keeps me moving until well after recruiting Lucanis. By then its even out into a steady pace that keeps me engaged.

As for the fandom, which I hesitate to even call them that, because I don't think they even like Bioware games, has some of the most bizarre criticism. Again, I excepted it going in, but the subjects of their ire has me so confused and disappointed.

I have seen people saying that Hans fucking Zimmer's soundtrack for the game is bad. Which?????? No???????? Its not?

This song playing while fighting dragons with Taash has me so pumped. I want it in my veins.

The romance theme (that also plays at other moments) is beautiful and heart aching. Which fits the tone of the scene when it plays. The saddest banging ever.

And those Inquisition leitmotifs really got me good. Never thought DAI nostalgia would hit me so hard but here we are.

I have also seen people mad about the ending credits song. And I can't say that I'm not EXTREMELY fucking suspicious as to why they don't like the ending credits song. Is it because its R&B performed by a black woman and not sad indie white woman????

(But thanks Bioware for introducing me to another amazing artist to add to my collection.)

Another thing that sticks out to me is the polarizing topic of Mary Kirby writing Lucanis with the intent for him to be pansexual/demisexual. Which she didn't need to say that for me to pick up on it when I was playing through his romance. One of my most beloved OCs is demi. (And I kind of think I might be too. But labeling my own sexuality is something I really don't bother with.) Detractors seem to bad for ????? I don't understand know why. Because demi doesn't mean his romance with Rook or Neve is a chaste, no sex/little sex, relationship. They clearly fucked in the romance scene. The best way I can explain demisexuality is sexual attraction might not happen until a strong emotional bond it formed. Which is exactly how it plays out for his romance. It also explains why he won't romance Rook if a certain game choice is made. I know demisexual falls under the ace umbrella but I know a lot of people who have been wanting a strictly no sexual ace romance. So when the dev said there wasn't an ace romances, I think they weren't lying.

However, I also despise are the people who were asking Mary Kirby if Lucanis was a virgin. And I am seeing "Virgin Lucanis" tags on Ao3. And let me preface this by saying I visceral hate anything concerning the virginity of characters or people. Because I have never not seen it used as a way the track someone's purity or as a way to disparage them. Making them out to be a naive clown. Virginity such an arbitrary thing, a made up concept that people hang a lot of hats on. It triggers an immediate flight or fight instinct in me.

In my experience and the experience of other queer people I know, your journey to understanding yourself is not always a clear defined path. You experiment, you do things that you realize afterwards don't fit with who you are. Sometimes you know from the beginning, and yay, good for you. I am sure you are very proud you got it in one.

But sometimes you aren't sure you're a lesbian until you have sex with a guy and realize nope, definitely lesbian. Sometimes you think you are cis and try to live that way and realize you hate it. And sometimes you are ace and had sex and realized it wasn't for you. These journeys are just as valid an any other and there are myriad of reasons you make decisions that you do. My point being Lucanis can be demi but also not a virgin. It doesn't fucking matter. Running to his writer on Bluesky to have her tell you point blank that he is a virgin is weird and inappropriate. Stop it.

The handing out of "good stars" pisses me off. It screams the same kind of homophobia I got when people found out I dated a bisexual guy and "ew, aren't you disgusted he sucked dick before? Aren't you afraid he'll cheat on you with a guy?" This being said to my face when in the back of my mind I was thinking "I like guys and girls too. But you will never know that about me because now I know I can't trust you."

So why does anyone care if an ace/demi character had sex before? Why do you really care? Hm?? All I hear with people asking if Lucanis is a virgin is "ew, he hasn't had SEX before, right?! I don't want to touch him if he has!!"

This is an extremely sore topic for me because I additionally I grew up being told that my worth was directly tied to me not having sex. Spoiled goods and all that.

Virginity is not a real thing, fuck off about it.

And then also that Lucanis and Neve can start a relationship if Rook doesn't romance either of them. I have see the most vile shit about Neve because of it. She isn't stealing your man. No, Lucanis does in fact care for Neve as much as he does Rook if they are in a relationship. There is no such things as soulmates, there is no such things as people being "meant" for each other. Rook and Lucanis' relationship is different than Neve and Lucanis' relationship because shock/horror they are different characters.

As much as I do ship some BG3 together, this is exactly why I am glad Larian didn't do this. Not because I don't like companion entering relationships together. I love when they do actually. I just knew people could not be fucking normal about it.

Speaking of Neve, I never unfollowed and blocked someone faster than "Bioware is wrong Neve only likes women." Queer characters in media are only barely starting to catch up with varying levels of blink and you'll miss them quality. Neve is already a queer woman, she already is queer representation in media. This fandom is just so fucking mask off biphobic.

As for romances being "too short" in general. I know I am ruined forever by BG3's romances. I knew I would be, I curved my expectation accordingly. It also helped that I went back and replayed DAI right before DAV's launch. Replaying, I remember just how short the romances were. DA2 more so. DAO, y'all don't remember DAO's unmodded romances.

Okay I am being unfair with the DAO dig. The talking part of the DAO romances were nice. Just those cutscenes, oof. ME1 came out just 2 years before DAO and it's romance scene wasn't this rough. More fade to black was the right call actually. Bioware you need to hire Larian's intimacy coordinators please.

But it is true we have had 10 to 15 years to make up in our heads how these romances played out. Years of art and fanfiction to make us make it more than it was.

I was privately streaming my DAI with some friends. We got to the part in DAI where Morrigan reveals herself to the Inquisitor. One of my friends who was watching is younger than us. He was too young to play DAI when it first came out and made fun of who jerky the animation of Morrigan descending the stairs was. Another friend and I explained about how rewatching it now, we were both caught off-guard by it too. Because in our heads we remember Morrigan floating gracefully down the stairs. When in reality that wasn't the case and it was all in our heads. Nostalgia is a hell of a drug.

Continuing, I have seen some people mad about a character from the books who is in the game. A character who is corrupted by the Blight. Who does bad things. People are mad they "did this character dirty." You mean the character corrupted by the evil Blight does things that are corrupted and evil?! Did they expect being horrifically Blighted would make them good????????? Man, DAO/DAA ruined Tamlen and the Mother too, huh?

And this is super fucking controversial, I think having only 3 imported choices was the right call. I would have like maybe a couple more choices carrying over but that is neither here nor there. The choices in Dragon Age Keep were so fucking bloated is was not funny.

Quick without looking her up: who was Ginnis and why was there a flag option in for whether or not she was alive? Who was Ghyslain and why did it matter if he was told his wife was dead or not? Why was blackmailing Ser Thrask a thing? Has getting Cammen and Gheyna together ever come up? What about Athras' wife? What about Zerlinda and her kid? I don't see anyone upset that Ignacio didn't show up in the DAV Crow story line. Why were any of these flags there in the first place? Did the writers think it was ever going to be brought up again if you feed the prisoner the guard's lunch? Even looking at Dragon Age Keep and the wiki I barely remember these characters. There was no reason to have these flags at all.

Speaking of killing your darlings. No we were not robbed when we saw the concept art. Its concept. Putting all of it in DAV would have been bad. Sometimes you have to leave things on the cutting room floor because including is not worth it in the end. And use as players will never know why it didn't work out. Use the concept art the same way as the devs did. Its there for inspiration. Now go draw it or write fanfiction about it.

People like to say that choices in DA used to matter, no they did not and never did. How was DAI actually different if Hawke chose to support the Mages over the Templars? You know, the crowning choice in DA2? Was the mages stronger in DAI? No, Fiona tells you that they are losing the war. The mages didn't have bigger numbers. You don't get any kind of stat or narrative boost. All choices in all the games are a net zero gain. Aside for some dialogue flare. The world state does not change crossing from game to game.

I do like that call back as much as anyone. I liked Hawke talking about their love interest in DAI. But if I wanted to truly experience that romance I have to go back to DA2 and play it again.

I have also seen people bitching about Taash's gender journey realizing they are non-binary. I am sorry I have a hard time caring about stranger's negative opinions about it, when I have loved non-binary friends talking about how they were deep touched and got emotional over Taash's story. Maybe Taash's story isn't your story but it is someone's.

We don't have the token trans character this time. We have three non-binary character. One a companion, one an ally healer, and one who turns out to be a bad guy. Which is in fact okay to have villain queer characters when you have many more queer good guys. We also have two trans characters who play more than passing roles.

Speaking of "trans" is "too modern" of a term. Trans is a Latin word. Tevinter speaks pseudo Latin. Next.

I just do not understand. If year after year you get so fucking upset about Bioware games, please just stop playing them. You don't have to buy them, you don't have to buy them at full price. Just go do literally anything else.

There are games I was going to play this year then saw something I didn't like about them and went, I'll pass. I didn't make hating that game my entirely personality.

Edit: Oh I forgot "DAV isn't dark fantasy like the others." No you are thinking about DAI. DAI was pretty much high fantasy with a couple kind of dark parts. DAV has too much body horror and bio horror to not be horror. Giant cysts and boils of blight organic matter that infects people and turns them into corrupted zombie like creatures. How much corrupted tentacles, human centipede trees, people getting ripped apart, eye teeth, and literal bloodbaths do you need until "dark fantasy"?

[lady-phasma]

Nine people I'd like to know better

"I have never felt so loved!" - same @thought--bubble 💕 And thank you for the tag, both you and @schniiipsel (maybe another one I missed?)

Nine people I'd like to know better

Last song I listened to: A Time of Quiet Between the Storms - Hans Zimmer, Dune Part 2 Soundtrack.

Currently watching: rewatching Hemlock Grove this week, Ripley (OMG Andrew Scott is fantastic in this), and finishing Masters of the Air this weekend

Sweet / savory / spicy: I got really specific the last time I did this one so I'll just say savory here LoL

Relationship status: aromantic/arospec so I don't really know how to answer that

Current obsession: Alright, I don't want to hear "I told you so" from the peanut gallery! I have two or three current obsessions and I just added Austin Butler to the list. Happy now?? 😉😂

No pressure tags (I'm sure some of you have already been tagged and sorry if I tagged main/side incorrectly LoL): @sansaorgana @aemondstark @viiisenyas @immortan-valkyrie @marthawrites @vhagar-balerion-meraxes @alexagirlie @theothermaidoftarth @jennathearcher

[mistressemmedi]

That being said, I will be 🏴‍☠️ the soundtrack because Hans Zimmer never misses

[grigori77]

2024 in TV - My Top 10 Shows

10. TWILIGHT OF THE GODS (Netflix)

Yeah, I know, first entry here’s probably gonna be a controversial choice – how could I pick THIS over so many far more worthy properties? Honestly, I just REALLY LIKED THIS, and this is my FAVOURITES for 2024, it ain’t a purely CRITICAL list, and I’m a person who LIKES a bit of trash occasionally, which this DEFINITELY is. But it’s REALLY GORGEOUS trash, and it’s FUN, so live with it. Seriously, even before Rebel Moon Zack Snyder was already considered one of the most shamelessly adolescent and pure sound-and-fury filmmakers out there, but given the sort of material he usually makes animation is actually the PERFECT art form for him – this is a medium in which it often PAYS to exaggerate things, to deliver glossy overblown action and stripped back archetypal storytelling and character development. Snyder’s THIRD collaboration with Netflix, therefore, is the perfect encapsulation of his entire aesthetic, but also deserves to be considered amongst his VERY BEST WORK, almost as good as early highlights like Dawn of the Dead, 300 and Watchmen. Besides, a full-blooded, ultraviolent and just plain SEXY reimagination of classic Norse mythology is the perfect project for him to work on, and he delivers in fine style here, aided in no small part by co-creators Jay Oliva (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Ark, Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas) and Eric Carrasco (Supergirl, Foundation), along with an extremely game vocal cast which includes Sylvia Hoeks (Blade Runner 2049, See), Stuart Marten (Rebel Moon, Miss Scarlett & the Duke), Rahul Kohli (iZombie and most of Mike Flanagan’s TV series’), Jamie Clayton (Sense8, Hellraiser) and heavyweights like Pilou Asbæk (Game of Thrones) and the mighty Peter Stormare, who bring the fascinating collection of jaded, indifferent gods and vengeful, rebellious vikings to vital life. Coupled with beautifully offbeat, highly stylised 2D animation (which carries strong hints of Cartoon Saloon throughout) and an intense and oppressive score from Hans Zimmer, this is a dark and seductive feast for the senses.

9. THE GENTLEMEN (Netflix)

Back in early 2020, Guy Ritchie was rightly lauded for his long-awaited return to London gangland-based cinema (a film which many considered to be a real return to form, even though I never thought he’d actually fallen off, and I know I wasn’t alone), and we were all enthusiastically onboard for a sequel, especially after this film’s much deserved critical AND commercial success. Then the Pandemic hit, and (for that and other, more unfathomable reasons) his career seemed to take something of a shocking (and entirely undeserved) nosedive … so the arrival of this spinoff series from Netflix in the New Year came as a much needed and very welcome surprise, and the final product definitely lived up to expectations without reservations. Theo James (the Divergent films) is our enjoyably complex “hero”, Eddie Horniman, a former soldier and the new Duke of Halstead who returns from a UN Peacekeeping mission to take over his late father’s estate only to find himself in a very tricky spot indeed when he discovers his inheritance comes with some very problematic strings attached because his father was keeping everything afloat by renting out his land as an expansive and lucrative cannabis factory for a particularly ruthless London drug firm headed by incarcerated kingpin Bobby Glass (Ray Winstone) and his Machiavellian daughter Susie (The Maze Runner and Skins’ Kaya Scodelario). Eddie’s attempts to find a way to wriggle out of this increasingly smothering obligation make for some enjoyably offbeat shenanigans, Ritchie’s eclectic sense of humour and deftly skilful balance of anarchic fun and casual violence making for a rewardingly edgy thrill ride. The cast is, as has become par for the course with this particular filmmaker, also uniformly on top form, with the ever-reliable James and Scodelario joined by the likes of Joely Richardson, Giancarlo Esposito, Freddie Fox and the welcome return of one of Ritchie’s original good luck charms, Vinnie Jones, although the show is consistently stolen by Daniel Ings (Lovesick, The Crown) as Eddie’s black sheep elder brother Freddie, who got passed over in the line of succession for being a truly spectacular fuck-up. In the end, not only does this pay great respect to the original film it (sort of) follows, but it’s another perfect example of what Ritchie does best, and I’m very much looking forward to the already greenlit second season.

8. STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS (season 5, Paramount+)

I was a bit late to the party for this, having only actually gotten round to checking out Solar Opposites creator and Rick & Morty writerMike McMahan’s animated comedy series early this year, but I fell in love with it FAST, and it’s now become one of my very favourite shows in the ENTIREStar Trekroster (putting it into DIRECT competition with Strange New Worlds, in fact). This was always a show that’s been made with clear love and respect for the source material, which is, of course, how all the best lampoons work, and the final season maintains that high quality to bring the whole saga to a fittingly grand close. Jack Quaid’s OTHER best creation (alongside The Boys’ Hughie), neurotic super-nerd Brad Boimler, and Space Force’s Tawny Newsome’s unrepentant rebel Becket Mariner remain the core focus of the main cast, but my heart will always belong first and foremost to the endlessly effervescent bright spark that is Orion junior science officer D’Vana Tendi, still voiced with endearing charm by Master of None’s Noël Wells, and it’s nice to see her friend (and occasional foil), Gabrielle Ruiz’ new Vulcan officer T’Lyn, finally get promoted from guest star to main cast, too. Once again, this is filled to bursting with goofy, anarchic and perfectly pitched comedic twists on classic tropes, conventions and lore from across the entire gamut of the various series AND movies, once again throwing more brilliant cameos from old favourites into the mix (right down to a truly inspired Brent Spiner appearance), but there’s no denying that this is also one of the most consistently well-written and thoroughly INSPIRED shows in the entire canon, often putting far more high profile and expensive series to shame with the embarrassing WEALTH of creative talent displayed by everyone involved. It genuinely feels like the end of an era, and given that I’ve only just discovered this it feels like it’s over WAY too soon ...

7. 3 BODY PROBLEM (Netflix)

All right, first off I have NOT read the original novel by Chinese author Liu Cixin, so I have NO frame of reference regarding how faithful adaptation this actually IS, so I can only go off my own personal gut reaction to the quality of the material itself … but I REALLY LIKED THIS a whole lot. Then again, there’s a genuinely fascinating premise at its core – a group of bright young academics find themselves at the centre of a disturbing and potentially cataclysmic intergalactic conspiracy after a strange immersive video game revolving around a fiendishly difficult astronomical physics problem turns out to pertain to a VERY REAL approaching alien invasion … Game of Thrones’ co-”creators” David Benioff and D.B. Weiss are clearly looking to achieve career-based some retribution after said series’ frustrating final season, and for now it looks like they’re succeeding, teaming up with co-showrunner Alexander Woo (best known for his work on True Blood and The Terror) to craft a rewardingly labyrinthine slowburn suspense thriller bursting with intriguing ideas and well-rounded, exquisitely crafted characters. Of course, it helps that they’ve assembled a truly exceptional cast to make things so much easier, with Jovan Adepo (Fences, Overlord), Eiza Gonzalez, breakout star Jess Hong and, in particular, Alex Sharp (The Trial of the Chicago 7, How To Talk To Girls At Parties) all standing out alongside GOT alumni John Bradley and Liam Cunningham and heavyweight veterans like Benedict Wong and Jonathan Pryce. This is definitely one of the most singularly inventive and challenging series that Netflix has put out in some time, a fascinatingly immersive intellectual thrill ride that poses some really intriguing BIG QUESTIONS but stubbornly refuses to provide any REAL answers until late in the game in the best tradition of well-executed “mystery box” television … meanwhile the Panama Canal sequence is destined to go down as one of the most spine-chilling and nightmarish set-pieces I have EVER seen on the small screen. That scene ALONE makes this worthy of a place one this list ...

6. DELICIOUS IN DUNGEON (AKA Dungeon Meshi) (Netflix)

My latest favourite anime series is a very strange beast, genuinely one of the weirdest shows I’ve EVER come across, but very much in that wonderfully committed way that only anime can really pull off. Essentially it’s a culinary show, where obsessive attention is paid to EVERY ASPECT of a recipe before we get some genuine food porn payoff shots of the finished cuisine before watching the characters indulge in the resulting taste sensations. But it’s also a perfect lampoon of classic high fantasy action adventure tropes, taking wickedly accurate potshots at the likes of Dungeons & Dragons and its ilk that can ONLY be performed by someone who actually knows and LOVES the material they’re poking fun at. Then again, this is an almost RELIGIOUSLY faithful adaptation of an immensely popular manga series from fiendishly talented writer/artist Ryoko Kui (Terrarium In Drawer) which is regarded as one of the most unique and inventive titles out there right now … this is nothing less than PERFECT, a frequently HILARIOUS delight as we follow a motley crew of misfit adventurers on a dungeon crawl as they try to rescue one of their number from a fate worse than death, all while being forced to cook and eat the bodies of the various monstrous creatures they encounter along with way due to scarce supplies. The characters are all wonderfully original creations, each with deeply fascinating backstories and enjoyably complex personalities, particular co-leads Laios Touden (Damien Haas in the English dub, best known for his work on Fire Emblem and Like a Dragon), a hyper-focused super-nerd human warrior with a deeply ingrained obsession with monsters, and Marcille Donato (live action One Piece’s Emily Rudd), a high-strung neurotic elf mage who’s pretty much the absolute DEFINITION of girl-fail, although it made me SO HAPPY when later episodes saw the long-awaited arrival of fan favourite (and mine) Izutsumi (Fire Emblem and Goddess of Victory’sLaura Stahl), the prickly, picky and endearingly abrasive cursed catgirl that so brilliantly defies and challenges so many of the medium’s established conventions regarding this particular character trope. The results are one of the most addictive and genuinely “moreish” anime series I’ve ever come across – just what you want from a show so intrinsically focused on FOOD ...

5. THE LEGEND OF VOX MACHINA (season 3, Amazon Prime)

Is it any wonder that, for the third year in a row, Amazon’s animated adaptation of Critical Role’s legendary (ahem) first Dungeons & Dragons campaign has made my list, and again scored SO HIGH? Really? Never mind that I’ve been a pretty rabid Critter myself ever since I first stumbled into the fandom during Campaign 2, this is a genuinely BRILLIANT piece of work in its own right, Matt Mercer and co continuing to pull off a pretty beautiful job of distilling hundreds of hours of in-depth live tabletop roleplay into another twelve 20-some minute episodes of compellingly dynamic television. So strap in for another exciting rollercoaster ride through the embattled high fantasy lands of Exandria as our much put-upon band of adventurers continue their seemingly hopeless battle to defeat the monstrous machinations of the evil dragon collective of the Chroma Conclave, taking in blossoming romance, crises in confidence, family drama and more than one major character death … once again this is a tour-de-force achievement for all involved, although the lion’s share of the praise once again MUST go to the hard-working animators at Titmouse for delivering everything they were asked for and SO MUCH MORE. This is about as good as fantasy television gets, effortlessly pulling off in less than 300 minutes what whole seasons of shows like The Wheel of Time and The Rings of Power are really starting to struggle with in a whole lot more time (not you, House of the Dragon, you’re doing just fine darling). The main story arc may be over for now, but the scene’s nonetheless been seamlessly set for the next (and most devastating) chapter of the saga moving into season 4 (if you know you know), and I for one cannot wait.

4. HAZBIN HOTEL (Amazon Prime)

God bless Vivienne Mededrano, she has one of the most exciting minds in television right now. Her anarchic, profane and wonderfully unique animated series Helluva Boss on YouTube has already been a balm to the soul (and the second, far more emotionally resonant season has proven to be a particular improvement on what was already SO GOOD), but her magnificent spinoff series for Amazon genuinely leaves it in the dust – this is solid 24 caret gold showrunning, she deserves all the awards she can get for this one. Taking the comedy musical concept of the already very impressive YouTube pilot and running with it, this spectacular refinement of a first season is a genuine MASTERPIECE, Medrano and co crafting an epic saga packed with expansive vision, powerful emotional resonance and a gleefully dark sense of humour. Erika Henningsen (the Mean Girls musical) is a blinding ray of sunshine as Lucifer’s effervescent daughter Charlie Morningstar, unshakeably chipper in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds in her mission to use her titular hotel to help cleanse the souls of her supposedly irredeemable patrons, while Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s own Rosa Diaz) provides loving support as her far more cynical girlfriend Vaggie, and the cast is rounded out by a spectacular collection of top drawer vocal talent that includes serious Broadway talent like Alex Brightman (the School of Rock and Beetlejuice musicals), Christian Borle (Spamalot and the Legally Blonde musical), Jeremy Jordan (Supergirl() and Krystina Alabado (American Idiot and Mean Girls) alongside the silky tones of the legendary Keith David, but the show is roundly stolen by breakout star Blake Roman as the sassy and acerbic spidery pornstar Angel Dust. The musical numbers are truly legendary, easily the equal of anything we’ve seen in any of the big shows, the comedy never fails to hit and the animation is genuinely beautiful even when it’s at its weirdest, but the thing that this show has above anything else is true HEART, hitting us right in the feels as much as the funny bone. I am genuinely IN LOVE with this series, and I’m waiting with bated breath along with the rest of the fandom for the already greenlit next THREE SEASONS ...

3. SHŌGUN (FX)

One of the first serious, grown-up TV series I ever remember getting into when I was a kid was the 1980 miniseries adaptation of James Clavell’s sprawling historical epic novel, which told the story of John Blackthorne, an English navigator in the early 17th Century who finds himself shipwrecked on the mysterious islands of Japan and becomes a pawn in the deadly battle of wills between squabbling political factions within the samurai nobility vying for control of the nation after the death of the emperor. I loved the old show so much that I read the book, loved it even more, and subsequently read it a bunch of times since, so I was REALLY EXCITED when I found out that FX were pulling out all the stops to give it a lavish new long-form treatment. And then, within the first ten minutes of the opening episode, I knew this was something TRULY SPECIAL … this is a VERY JAPANESE series, not just because of the setting and subject matter but also because, while the focus IS on a Western character, the vast majority of the cast is Japanese and ultimately very little of the dialogue is actually in English (subtitle haters beware, there’s A LOT of reading involved in truly enjoying this show). Then again, being a proper Japanophile I absolutely LOVED IT. Cosmo Jarvis (Lady Macbeth, Calm With Horses) does make for a suitably robust and eloquent leading man, giving Blackthorne just the right balance of fish-out-of-water exasperation and wily precociousness, but the true heart of this series lies with the double threat of Anna Sawai (Monarch: Legacy of Monsters) as glacial Christian interpreter Lady Mariko and living legend Hiroyuki Sanada, who effortlessly steals every scene he’s in with mesmerising subtlety as the powerful and ambitious Lord Yoshii Toranaga, who realises this intriguing young sailor is a potentially powerful tool in his plan to ascend to the titular position as supreme political master of all Japan. This is one of the most sumptuous and masterful historical epics I have EVER SEEN made for television, co-creators Rachel Kondo and her husband Justin Marks having seemingly come out of nowhere to create one of the greatest long-form series I’ve seen not only this past year but quite possibly for this decade so far! The dialogue is incredibly rich and endlessly quotable, the narrative immersive and rewardingly twisted, and the production and costume design, seamless effects work and action sequences are never anything less than FLAWLESS. It’s gone on to perform a CLEAN SWEEP at various primetime awards and RIGHTLY SO, this is a genuine MASTERPIECE, and FX definitely saw sense in taking what was originally intended to be a standalone miniseries and expand it into at least two more seasons moving forward. I can’t wait.

2. FALLOUT (Amazon Prime)

Now I’ll admit, not being a gamer I’ve mostly gotten to know the Fallout games through osmosis (mainly on here), but I definitely saw the potential in adapting it for television. The fact that it was Westworld co-creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy doing it just convinced me that it was guaranteed to be GOOD … and by the gods was I ever RIGHT in that estimation. This really has turned out to be Ella Purnell’s year (as well as Sweetpea she’s also returned to a particular star-making series we’ll talk about more later), the promising young Brit actress landing another well-deserved breakout lead turn as Lucy MacLean, a naïve young Vault Dweller forced to undertake a dangerous quest in the irradiated wasteland of post World War III California in order to rescue her abducted father Hank (Kyle McLachlan). Lucy’s massive culture clash as a literally sheltered youth raised in a nuclear bunker having to survive in a world where EVERYTHING is out to kill her in the worst ways imaginable makes for a suitably compelling central driving force for the series, while Aaron Moten (Disjointed) provides a similarly involving tangential narrative focus as Maximus, a squire for the militant Brotherhood of Steel who essentially STUMBLES into becoming a mech-armoured Knight as his own accidental hero’s quest brings him into Lucy’s orbit … the TRUE core of this series, however, is Walton Goggins as the Ghoul, an unapologetically amoral bounty hunter whose own dark past holds the key to the far greater overarching mystery at the heart of the whole story (not to mention that he consistently steals EVERY SINGLE SCENE that he’s in). Amazon have pulled out ALL THE STOPS to make this the very best viewing experience it can be, and every single penny of its impressive budget is right there on the screen, the worldbuilding really is some of the most impressive I’ve ever seen while the set-pieces are just as robust and enjoyably NASTY as you’d expect from an adaptation of such a subversively FUN video game. It’s also got a pretty jet black sense of humour, Nolan and Joy clearly appreciating the opportunity to do something a whole lot more irreverent after spending years on a property as serious as Westworld, although this does still pluck at the heartstrings with due skill when needed and definitely poses some VERY deep and pretty disturbing questions about war and capitalism and how often the two are inextricably tangled together. The end result is definitely the best live-action series we got in 2024 (sorry, Shogun), and I look forward to the second season.

1. ARCANE (season 2, Netflix)

Seriously, are any of you even surprised? I ADORED the first season of this series, despite the fact that I’m no more familiar with League of Legends than I am with Fallout I really have resonated with the property and I just LOVED what Riot and Fortiche put together in those simply PERFECT nine episodes, so I was so excited to see what they were going to do with what was intended to be the closer to this first story within their larger creative universe. Thankfully they have (essentially) pulled it off with similar skill, dropping another nine episode season that EASILY lives up to the example set by its predecessor while offering a suitably satisfactory payoff, as well as breaking ground for whatever they plan on when they move forward with new stories in promised follow-up Runeterra-based series. Sure, it’s not QUITE as perfect, there are parts of the narrative that feel a little truncated in places in the rush to reach a suitable climax, but what flaws there are ultimately prove insubstantial enough that they really don’t detract at all from our enjoyment of the work as a whole. It’s certainly hugely enjoyable getting to see everybody get their own well deserved rewards (or comeuppance), while also seeing some of our most beloved old faces (and some similarly brilliant new ones too) meet heartbreaking but nonetheless poetically powerful ends that are definitely given their due chance to have a real impact. Much like the first season it’s best to just go in good and cold, so spoilers are definitely best avoided … suffice to say this is JUST as gorgeous as what came before, Fortiche again producing a truly cinematic work of art that leaves anything else we’ve seen in animation this year choking in their dust, while the exquisite complimentary mixture of visuals and a magnificently opulent soundtrack once again provides suitable sensory joy throughout. In the end this is just as well-written, well-designed, well-performed, well-directed and just downright WELL-EXECUTED as the debut that won all the awards and much-deserved critical acclaim back in 2021, and it’s been a genuine privilege getting to see it all unfold. I’m just hoping they don’t leave us waiting ANOTHER three interminably long years for whatever they give us next ...

Honourable mentions:

Sweet Tooth (season 3, Netflix), Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End (Crunchyroll), Sweetpea (Sky Atlantic), The Penguin (Max), Invincible (season 2, Amazon Prime), The Edge of Sleep (Amazon Prime), The Brothers Sun (Netflix), Dead Boy Detectives (Netflix), Helluva Boss (season 2, YouTube), What We Do In the Shadows (season 6, FX)

[a-silent-symphony]

We got Nightwish's Tuomas Holopainen to rank every single album by the band from worst to best

We asked Nightwish founder Tuomas Holopainen to rank the band's albums from worst to best - and some of his choices surprised us

From fantastical realms to elaborate filmic sagas and love-letters to Darwinism, the Nightwish discography is rich in intrigue – and low on dullmoments. As its central creator, Tuomas Holopainen is inextricably bound to the sounds, feelings and memories that saturate each of these nine albums.

His life is in this music. But if it came to it, in a castaway situation, which albums would he most (and least) want to be stuck with? It’s a tough call. “They are my children,” he pleads, “how would they feel if they saw the ranking? Wishmaster would be so sad!” Still, he did manage to settle on an order, and here it is...

9. Wishmaster (Spinefarm, 2000)

“It went to No.1 in Finland, but to me Wishmaster is one of those albums that was kind of ‘in-between’. It doesn’t stand out to me on a personal level. There was nothing revolutionary about it after [1998’s] Oceanborn.

It was made in a really good spirit – everybody in the band was happy after the success of Oceanborn – so this was just a natural continuation of that. But it didn’t really introduce anything spectacularly new for me personally. I think that’s my problem with it. If Ihad to pick a favourite song, I think I’d pick Dead Boy’s Poem; lyrically, it’s very much in the essence of Nightwish.”

8. Angels Fall First (Spinefarm, 1997)

“Our debut sounds so innocent because it was done as a demo. It was never supposed to be released, but we sent it to the record label and they said, ‘Let’s put this out!’ It still has my parents’ home address on the booklet.

“When I founded Nightwish in July 1996, I just wanted to do moody acoustic music. Since me and Emppu [Vuorinen, guitars] had a strong metal background, it was a natural transition to do something heavier, but that original acoustic band idea can be heard strongly. We couldn’t find anybody to sing, so I kind of dug a hole and fell into it myself.

"We played Elvenpath years later on the Decades tour, and I can’t understand how Floor was able to keep a straight face singing those lyrics – to her credit, she did! I just remember the kid that I was back then, writing those songs, and I kind of miss that kid, because it was all about Donald Duck and fantasy books and snowmen and things fantastical.

"Nymphomaniac Fantasia? Not my proudest moment. But it was done because there was a young kid who had some, I don’t know… issues, ha ha ha! Love-life gone wrong or something. It was a different time.”

7. Century Child (Spinefarm, 2002)

“After Wishmaster, I seriously considered quitting the band, especially thanks to the departure of the [original] bass player [Sami Vänskä] and my slight burnout. Then I went on a hiking trip in Lapland with Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica, and he talked me over that.

"We needed a new bass player, and we needed management because until then it was me and Jukka [Nevalainen] the drummer taking care of the business side. So we got management, and we got Marko [Hietala, bassist/ singer until 2021], who was already a big name in Finnish metal – we were all big fans.

"There was a lot of bad stuff happening in the band as well – that’s reflected on the album. Slaying The Dreamer was a way to get rid of all that frustration. Artistically I found film music, Hans Zimmer above all, and that really can be heard on Century Child. But the album didn’t take us much on the next level. Artistically it did, but not commercially.”

6. Dark Passion Play (Nuclear Blast, 2007)

“It was a really easy album to write because all the emotions were there so strongly, after what happened with Tarja [Turunen, original vocalist who was dismissed from the band in 2005], and everything in my personal life. I was about to lose my mental health, and then doing the songs for this album saved it.

"I’m a very private person, but I write about some really personal things, and these people – Anette [Olzon], for this record – are singing it out for the whole world to hear. Ineeded to do a song like The Poet And The Pendulum, where I killed myself in the lyrics; I had to do it for my mental health, and it ended up being a wonderful piece of music.”

5. Imaginaerum (Nuclear Blast, 2011)

“Again, this was a pretty easy album to write – we all had a good time with it. When it comes to songwriting, I’m a morning person. I’ll wake up about six when I’m at home, then a litre of coffee and I’m off. Usually I’m done by two or three o’clock. I write songs upstairs in my little home studio – just a keyboard and a lakeside view. In the studio with the band, the other members and the engineers are more night owls. Also in the tour bus it’s always me up first, making coffee downstairs.

“It was clear from the start that this would end up being a film. We thought, ‘What haven’t we done yet? Let’s do a music video for every song on the album, and then somehow combine them to become this really weird film.’ It’s a very optimistic album. It just puts a big smile on your face.”

4. Once (Nuclear Blast, 2004)

“One of the best times that this band has ever had was 2003- 2004, making the Once album, and the first part of the tour after that. In late 2003 we flew to London to record the orchestras. I rang the studio doorbell and Rick Wakeman opened the door. I think I said, ‘Errr… [makes incoherent starstruck noise] Thanks!’

"We went to the studio, started playing Ghost Love Score and my face melted. Like, ‘I’m next to Wembley, listening to the orchestra playing a song that I wrote, this is really life at its best.’

"Something happened with that album – all the stars were aligned. I remember looking at the album charts and seeing ‘Nightwish, Michael Jackson, Anastasia’ and going ‘Really?!’ I don’t think any of us were quite prepared. You get sucked into this massive world of big tours and worship from the fans, then the money starts to flow in, and it’s easy to lose your perspective. Impulse purchases? I did a round the-world trip on my own, it was wonderful. But money has very little meaning to me."

3. Oceanborn (Spinefarm, 1998)

“Our ambition went through the roof after Angels Fall First, because we all realised that this is actually really fun. I was studying biology, Tarja was studying singing, I think in Germany, Jukka was studying to be a computer engineer, Emppu was working in a carpet factory.

"Music was just a hobby. And then we realised, ‘There’s something going on here, so let’s put all the focus in Nightwish for maybe a few years, and see what happens.’ It was eight hours every day in the rehearsal room, playing the songs and just really feeling it. It was the watershed album for us, it took us to the next level.

"All the guys, we had just gotten out of the army so we all had short hair, we had no idea about the metal scene at all. We were complete countryside hickeys who just happened to like metal music, and we were given this chance to show what we could do with a three-album deal. It shouldn’t have worked on paper, but somehow it did.”

2. Endless Forms Most Beautiful (Nuclear Blast, 2015)

“If Floor hadn’t come along, I think that would have been the end of the band. We got over an ugly divorce once [with Tarja], then again with Anette, then Floor comes along and everything shines bright again. She learned the setlist in 48 hours – when I called her, she was at her sister’s wedding. Even from the first show the fans embraced her. So we took a lot of that good feeling for Endless Forms Most Beautiful [named after a line from Charles Darwin’s On The Origin Of Species].

"We went to Röskö campsite in Finland to record. It’s a four-hectare area by a lake in the middle of nowhere, belonging to the Boy Scouts. We stayed for three months. Every morning we’d rehearse for a few hours, have lunch, go back, rehearse and then spend the evening with each other by a campfire, barbecuing, playing acoustic guitar, singing, going to the sauna and talking about the songs all the time. The Greatest Show On Earth, that’s the Nightwish desert island song. I’m sure we’ll play that at the end of the setlist until forever.

"We recorded Richard Dawkins’ part in Oxford. He’s quite the character. I’m a huge fan, so I was really starstruck. He did his parts beautifully, it was over in about 30 minutes and then he gave us a ride back to central Oxford in his Tesla. And halfway back he asks us, ‘So are you musicians or something?’ Ha ha! So his head’s somewhere… all the time! But he’s a wonderful guy.”

1. Human. :II: Nature. (Nuclear Blast, 2020)

“I immediately knew after Endless Forms Most Beautiful that ‘OK, we have to do more songs about this.’ And so the idea of Human. :II: Nature. was first to have songs about humankind, and then you play the other CD and relax and go into nature. My memories of making the album are of happy times, no conflicts. We returned to Röskö to make it.

"When the pandemic hit, it was like, ‘Should we postpone the release?’ But it was all printed and the advertisements had gone out to the papers. So the record label said, ‘Let’s go with it. Maybe people will have more time to concentrate on it…’

"Noise was a big single, but there’s also something about Shoemaker [named after famed geologist/astronomer Eugene Shoemaker]. It’s on the artsy side, but not in a pretentious way.

"Realising what evolution is… it’s about realising our mortality, at least for me. And it’s made all the difference. When I kind of realised that this is very likely the only life we’re gonna have – it’s only after that that I started hugging my dad. I never hugged my dad before that. I’ve just felt much more liberated and in the light ever since.”