#hey remember we talked about joe being after han :-)

[dxsole]

@hbkhtl | Liked For A Starter

“Officer--” Han began, slowly and steadily despite the laborious breaths he took. His latest mark was...well, Han completed his latest hit and this lone beat cop just happened to find himself in a very bad situation. Han didn’t care about witnesses, they were easy to put down if needed and it wasn’t as though he had much of an identity to trace aside from the ever popular alias of John Doe. “You make any sudden movements and I put one between your eyes. Don’t do it.” Han warned, not really wanting the label of cop killer to outshine the hard earned title of hitman but also not minding to step over that boundary if the cop tried anything.

[thimbil]

Having some thoughts about the references and inspirations used for the Bad Batch’s designs.

So Boba Fett is my absolute favorite character and Temeura Morrison was perfect casting. I went to see the 2008 TCW movie in theaters because I was so excited to see him again, even if he was animated. You can imagine my disappointment. Whoever was on screen was not Temeura Morrison. You could sort of see a resemblance if you squinted and didn’t think too hard about it. They replaced Temeura with Racially Ambiguous G.I. Joe. If I didn’t know better and someone told me the animated clones are space Italians from the moon of New Jersey I would buy it. One Million Brothers Pizzeria and Italian Bistro. Not that there’s something wrong with being space Italian, I just don’t think it’s the right choice for the Fetts. The design got slightly improved by season 7 but it still bugs the hell out of me.

I did eventually get into the show later and (of course) got invested in the clones. Unfortunately, they were largely sidelined by the Jedi storylines. Out of the two new main characters created for TCW, Ahsoka definitely got more development and focus than Rex. When they announced The Bad Batch, I was excited to see a show specifically devoted to the clones… at least that’s what it said on the tin. We have all seen what lurks beneath those stylish helmets.

Jango Fett, you are NOT the father.

So who is?

Based on interviews with Filoni, it sounds like the Bad Batch was a George Lucas idea. And like all his ideas, it’s super derivative. The original trilogy directly lifted elements from sci fi serials, westerns, and samurai movies, more specifically Kurosawa films like The Hidden Fortress. For The Bad Batch character designs, the influence is obviously American action and adventure movies.

Now let’s get specific. Bad Batch, who’s your daddy?

Hunter

Sylvester Stallone as Rambo in First Blood 1982. That bandana has become an integral part of the iconic action hero look. You see a character wearing one and it’s a visual shorthand for either “this character is a tough guy” like Billy played by Sonny Landham in Predator 1987, or “this character thinks he is/wants to be a tough guy” like Brand played by Josh Brolin in The Goonies 1985 or Edward Frog played by Corey Feldman in The Lost Boys 1987.

Hunter’s model is closest to the original clone base. If you look closely you will see the eyebrows are straighter with a much lower angle to the arch. His nose is also not the same shape as a standard clone like Rex, including a narrower bridge. It’s certainly not Temeura Morrison’s nose. Remember what I said about space Italians? It didn’t take much to push the existing clone design to resemble an specific Italian man instead of a specific Māori man. The 23&Me came back, and Hunter inherited more than the bandana from Sylvester.

Crosshair

The long narrow nose, the sharp cheekbones, the scowl. That’s no clone, that’s just animated Clint Eastwood. Not even Young and Hot Clint Eastwood from Rawhide 1959-1965. With that hair, I’m talking Gran Torino 2008. The man of few words schtick and family friendly toothpick in lieu of cigar are pure Eastwood as The Man With No Name from Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns A Fist Full of Dollars 1964, For a Few Dollars More 1965, and The Good the Bad and the Ugly 1966.

In a way, this is full circle because the actor Jeremy Bulloch took inspiration from Clint Eastwood for his performance as Boba Fett in ESB.

Wrecker

In an interview Filoni lists the Hulk as an (obvious) inspiration for Wrecker. Ever seen the old Hulk tv show from 1978? Well take a look at the actor who played him, Lou Ferrigno. Would you look at that. Even has his papa’s nose.

You could make the argument that Wrecker was influenced by The Rock, an appropriately buff ‘n bald Polynesian (Samoan, not Maori) man. But look at him next his Fast and Furious costar Vin Diesel and tell me which one resembles Wrecker’s character model more.

Tech

Tech is a little trickier for me to place. If he has a more direct inspiration it must be something I haven’t seen. That said, his hairline is very Bruce Willis as John McClane in Die Hard 1988. His quippiness and large glasses remind me of Shane Black as Hawkins from Predator 1987. In terms of his face, he looks a but like the result of McClane and Hawkins deciding to settle down and start a family. Although, Tech’s biggest contributors are probably just everyone on TV Trope’s list for Smart People Wear Glasses.

And finally,

Echo

Oh Echo. Considering he wasn’t created for the Bad Batch, he probably wasn’t based on a particular character or movie. But if I had to guess, his situation and appearance remind me a lot of Alex Murphy played by Peter Weller in Robocop 1987. However, Robocop explored the Man or Machine Identity Crisis with more nuance, depth, and dignity. Yikes.

The exact tropes and references used in The Bad Batch have been done successfully with characters who aren’t even human. Gizmo from Gremlins 2: The New Batch 1990 had a brief stint with the Rambo bandana. I could have picked any number of characters for Defining Feature Is Glasses but here is the most cursed version of Simon of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Suffer as I have. Marc Antony with his beloved Pussyfoot from Looney Tunes has the same tough guy with a soft center vibe as Wrecker and his Lula (also a kind of cat). Hell, in the same show we have Cad Bane sharing Cowboy Clint Eastwood with Crosshair. I actually think Bane makes a better Eastwood which is wild considering Crosshair has Eastwood’s entire face and Bane is blue.

So we’ve established you don’t need your characters to look exactly like their inspirations to match their vibe. So why go through the trouble and cost of creating completely new character designs instead of recycling and altering assets they already had on hand? Just slap on a bandana, toothpick, goggles, and make Wrecker bigger than the others while he does a Hulk pose and you’re done. Based on the general reaction to Howzer it would have been a low effort slam dunk crowd pleaser.

But they didn’t do that.

So here’s the thing. I like the tropes used in The Bad Batch. I am a fan of action adventure movies from the 80s-90s, the sillier the better. I am part of the Bad Batch’s target audience. Considering what I know about Disney and Lucasfilm, I went in with low expectations. I genuinely don’t hate the idea of seeing references to these actors and media in The Bad Batch. I don’t think basing these characters on tropes was a bad idea. If anything it’s a solid starting point for building the characters.

The trouble is nothing got built on the foundation. The plot is directionless, the pacing is wacky, and the characters have nearly no emotional depth or defining character arcs. They just sort of exist without reacting much while the story happens around them. But I can excuse all of that. You don’t stay a fan of Star Wars as long as I have not being able to cherrypick and fill in the gaps. This show has a deeper issue that shouldn’t be ignored.

Why do the animated clones bear at best only a passing resemblance to their live action actor? In interviews, Filoni wouldn’t shut up but the technological advancements in the animation for season 7. So if they are updating things, why not try to make the clones a closer match to their source material? Why did they have to look like completely different people in The Bad Batch to be “unique”? Looking like Temeura Morrison would have no bearing on their special abilities and TCW proved you can have identical looking characters and still have them be distinct. In fact, that’s a powerful theme and the source of tragedy for the clones’ narrative overall.

Here’s Filoni’s early concept art of Crosshair, Wrecker, Tech, and Hunter. (Interesting but irrelevant: Wrecker seems to have a cog tattoo similar to Jesse’s instead of a scar. Wouldn’t it have been funny if they kept that so when they met in season 7 one if them could say something like “Hey we’re twins!” That’s a little clone humor. Just for you guys 😘)

None of these drawings look like the clones in TCW, much less Temeura Morrison. Let’s be generous. Maybe Filoni struggles with drawing a real person’s likeness, as many people do. But he had to hand this off to other artists down the line whose job specifically involves making a stylized character resemble their actor. Yet the final designs missed the mark almost as much as this initial concept. Starting to seem as if the clones looking more like Temeura Morrison was never even on the table. It wasn’t a lack of creativity, skill or technical limitations on the part of the creative team. I don’t think there is an innocent explanation. They went out of their way to make the final product exactly how we got it.

This goes beyond homage. They could have made the same pop culture references and character tropes without completely stripping Temeura Morrison from the role he originated. It was a very purposeful choice to replace him with more immediately familiar actors from established franchises and films. It wouldn’t shock me if Filoni, Lucas, and anyone else calling the shots didn’t even think hard or care enough about the decision to immediately recognize a problem. And I don’t think they believed anyone else would either. At least no one whose opinion they cared about. Those faces are comfortingly familiar and proven bankable. They are what we’re all used to seeing after all. They’re white.

Lack of imagination, bad intentions, or simple ignorance doesn’t really matter in the end. The result is the same. Call it what it is. They replaced a man of color with a bunch of white guys. That’s by the book garden variety run of the mill whitewashing. There’s no debate worth having about it. For a fanbase that loves to nitpick things like whether or not it’s in character for Han to shoot first or Jeans Guy in the Mandalorian, we sure are quick to find excuses for clones who look nothing like their template. Why is that? If you don’t see the problem, congratulations. Your ass is showing. Pull your jeans up.

[ends-of-the-wayward-storm]

Frozen--Book 1--Chances

Chapter 5--Distasteful Hatred With a Dash of Research

_________

Summary

Hans is granted a second chance by a criminal known as the Mystery, someone people have only heard rumors about. How and why the Mystery decided to go out of his way to do this was beyond Hans, and frankly it bothered him. But once the Mystery’s plan goes into action, it’s only a matter of time before something bigger begins to develop.

(AO3 version) (Prologue)

_________

King William Westergaard slammed his fist onto the armrest of his throne, his dark eyes glowing with anger.

“Your men are hunting them down as we speak, Your Majesty,” the advisor said.

William ran his fingers through his black hair and massaged his forehead. “Tell me again how this happened.”

“According to the co-head guard they were attacked by shadow first, and then the people went into panic. That’s when the Mystery appeared.”

“I see.”

The advisor continued on with the explanation that the king’s attention drifted back and forth from. William was the fourth son to his parents, who were now deceased. He had an heir who would become king. He had his queen. He had clawed his way to the throne and didn’t plan on giving it up any time soon. There was no way he was going to let his little runt of a brother take his throne now.

“. . . with your permission we’ve sent someone out to warn Arendelle about them.”

“Why did I agree to that when they could call that a threat, going unannounced or uninvited? We’re not exactly friendly to each other now.”

“That’s under control, sire.”

“But my brother isn’t. He’s an accident waiting to happen.”

“Of course sir.”

~~*~~

Various books laid scattered across a table lit by sunlight. Most of them were about the history of neighboring countries. Some were about criminals deemed a myth. But there was one book that a certain princess was currently scrutinizing.

The history of Corona was an interesting one, and Anna was wondering why she hadn’t even touched this one in all of the spare time she’s ever had. (Or maybe she had brushed upon it in her lessons and she couldn’t remember much.) It spoke of a long and bitter war between the kingdom and its sworn enemy Saporia. Both sides had fought with such ferocity, it was bizarre to Anna how much anger the two kingdoms had.

At some point General Shampanier of Saporia invaded Corona, and while her soldiers flooded the kingdom she eventually breeched the castle itself. There was where she faced off against King Herz Der Sonne, her sworn enemy. The two were said to have engaged in a heated duel to end their feud once and for all. But, when Shampanier discovered that the last pages of Der Sonne’s journal revealed his feelings for her, she realized the feelings were mutual. Their love for each other was made known, and the war between Corona and Saporia ended peacefully, uniting the kingdoms forevermore.

“Hah! True love does conquer all,” Anna thought aloud.

She continued to skim over the book and its talk of prosperity and other small wars until she came across a passage that piqued her curiosity.

~~Queen Arianna had fallen gravely ill while with child. In an attempt to save his wife, King Frederic and his people searched high and low for a way to save their beloved queen—

The rest of the sentence was hastily scribbled out, and Anna had to squint to even decipher it.

“ ‘Ma . . . gol . . . er . . . with . . . gni . . . ent . . . he. . . .’ How can anyone read that?”

Anna was squinting so hard her eyes were nearly closed. But the rest of the passage carried on despite the mistake.

~~With the cure found, the queen and her child were saved. Their child, named Ra—

Knock knock knock.

Anna jumped. “C-come in!”

The door opened, and all she could see was a mini snow flurry coming her way.

“Oh. Hey, Olaf!”

“Hello.” He looked at her table. “That’s a lot of books.”

“I’m hoping to go through all of them to help Elsa out with the Mystery.”

“What mystery?”

“No no the Mystery’s a person. He’s the one that stole some food last night and . . . scared everyone.”

“Oh.” Olaf went on his tiptoes to look at the books on the table. “Did you find him?”

“Not yet, but I did find something else.” Anna showed him the partially scribbled out sentence. “This part’s been taken out. It’s like someone didn’t want people to know what cured the queen here.”

“Sounds like another mystery!”

“Right? It’s so weird. . . .” Why would anyone not want people to know what helped someone?

“Ooh! Maybe I can help.”

“Oh sure! Uh start with. . . .” Anna looked at the book she had blindly grabbed—Deadliest Criminals Known and Unknown to Man. “Not this one.” Anna put the book down and gave Olaf a history book before continuing with hers.

~~Their child, named Rapunzel, would soon grow up to become the new queen of Corona.

But that was not meant to be.

“What happened?” Anna murmured.

~~In the night, the princess was kidnapped, and she was never seen or heard from again. The king and queen were devastated, and so were their people. So, in hopes that their princess would return home, the kingdom released hundreds of lanterns into the sky on her birthday so that she may find her way home.

And eighteen years later, Princess Rapunzel did find her way home to her family—with the help of expert thief and criminal Flynn Rider.

“Hey I’ve read a book about him!”

“About who?” Olaf asked.

“Flynn Rider. Or Flynnigan. Oh wait until I tell Elsaa-ohh woah wait a minute. Focus, Anna. Focus! I have to help Elsa.”

Olaf gave her a quizzical expression as she held the book closer to her face. But after a few moments a small squeal slipped out of her.

“But he was an actual—person! Oh I used to love reenacting his adventures!”

“Ooh! I love adventures!” Olaf beamed. “Tell me about his!”

~~*~~

“Keep those sails steady!” the captain ordered.

The messenger’s gray eyes studied the horizon with little to no real attention on it, the sea breeze gently tugging at his blonde hair. He hadn’t been a messenger for too long, but it was long enough to know the routines.

If he was being honest, the boy actually liked Hans (all murderous intents aside). To him the man was misunderstood, which was something he could relate to. The messenger was just your average Joe; a bit unsure of himself sometimes, loyal, and pretty intelligent. If anyone found out that he didn’t agree with the whole “execution of Hans” thing, he’d be toast.

He was looking forward to seeing Arendelle with his own eyes, though. Prince Lars had told him it was a lovely kingdom with quite the equally lovely landscape. Its people were kind, and its monarchs were just as so. As of recently the current ruler was Queen Elsa, having been crowned upon the death of her parents. Of course, the only Southern Isles royal that had actually gone to her coronation was Hans. And everyone knew what happened with him.

“People have said Arendelle had been shrouded in mystery,” Lars had told him. “It didn’t interact as much with its allies and trading partners until recently.”

“Weird,” the blonde had replied. “Why do you think it was so mysterious?”

“No one’s sure. Maybe they were just shy, but that’s highly doubtful. Of course you’ll be heading there soon, so you’ll be able to see for yourself. You’ll let me know what the kingdom is like, will you?”

“Uh sure. Might as well update that bank of knowledge of yours.”

“How about that Mystery, ey?” one of the crew members started, rousing the messenger from his thoughts.

“Why did he even bother rescuing that forsaken prince in the first place?” another said. “The whole family despises him!”

“Not his late mother. She was a kind soul, no doubt.”

“The complete opposite of that Mystery. My luck’s on him getting to that blasted disgrace of a prince first.”

“I heard tales of that one!” a third crew member shouted. “Ruthless wretch, he is. I read he could’ve rivaled the Stabbington brothers.”

The messenger swallowed. He’d read about those two in a history book. The brothers were ruthless, cruel, and wouldn’t hesitate to kill you in cold blood.

“You’re exaggerating,” the first member said.

“Nonsense!” the third member justified.

“My brother can barely walk thanks to that wretch,” the second crew member spat. “I’ll hang that Mystery myself when I get my hands on him.”

“What are you three going on about?” the captain retorted, making the trio and the messenger jump. “Get back to work!”

The trio sounded replies before going off toward their stations, and the messenger couldn’t help sighing in relief. Any more talk about the Mystery and he would’ve jumped ship.

Just focus on what Arendelle will be like. Yeah that’s a good idea, he thought.

[All right so according to A Frozen Heart Hans’s dad is still alive so this is another reason why this is basically an AU. I’m also assuming his mom is still alive, as well.]

_________

(Prologue) (Next chapter) (Previous chapter)

[halfofwhatisayismeaningless]

Home. // Joe Mazzello.

AN: Hey, lovelies . New Joe Imagine. I absolutely love writing Joe. Also guess who wrote this on her period and really sad, haha, me. You know you have the spanish version down below.

Also I’m finishing my exams (yay!), so I’ll have time to write. Please send me REQUESTS. And I want to start doing tags lists, so if you want to be there you just have to send me a message or ask or whatever you want.

Summary; (Y/N) feels insicure after going public.

Words: 1k-ish.

Warnings: just fluffness, lots of that.

You heard Joe's keys entering the door lock. You tried to clean up the tears on your cheeks, but it was in vain because you couldn't stop crying. You didn't want him to worry, you didn't want to make a drama out of it. You were together, and that was what really mattered, what others though wasn't important in your relationship... right?

"(Y/N)?" the boy asked confused by the lack of light on your New York apartment. You saw in the reflection of the window, where you were sitting, how he entered the lounge. He saw you right away, in the chair where you like to read, in front of the New York's skyscrapers. "(Y/N), what is going on?" you turned your face in his direction, hoping that he didn't realise that you were crying, but Joe knew you really well. He approached quickly, dropping his bag to the floor. "What happen?" you moved your head and hugged him, crying on his sweater, the one you gave him on his last birthday. You tried to talk, but you couldn't. "Tss, calm down, you don't have to tell me now. It's fine, you're gonna be fine." you kept the embrace for a while. "I'm gonna make you tea, sit on the couch and we'll talk, right?" you nodded, a bit more calm than before. He approached the lights, you were in the darkness, you liked it in the darkness. "I'll turn on the little one." Joe sat by your side and handed you the tea."

"Joe, do you ever wonder if you should be with me?" he gave you the strange look. "Of course I don't, I love to be with you, I love you quite a lot" you felt to tears roll down your cheeks. "That was the matter?" you denied with your head. "Do you remember when we went to that restaurant your mom told us about in Brooklyn?" Joe nodded. "Someone was in that restaurant, I don't know if it was a paparazzi, or a fan. But someone took pictures of us, inside and outside the restaurant" You showed him the photos. Joe looked at you surprised, he knew that you didn't like to be on the public eye, but you haven't been careful enough. In the photos you were kissing, holding hands, normal stuff of a relationship. "(Y/N), I'm sorry, I know you..." you interrupted him "That's not why I'm like this. I don't know how or who, but they've found out who am I, they're all over my social media. They insult me, they say mean things, about my body, about me being your girlfriend because I'm a gold digger, thar I only want a bit of the Bohemian Rhapsody fame." Joe looked at you shocked. He knew this could happen, and it happened, and it affected you a lot. "Joe, you know I have never been the most confident person of the world. I was afraid of going public because of this. Because I'm clearly not to your height, you are a great actor, handsome, talented, you are actor of one of the most important films of the year. And I'm..." Joe stopped you, "And you what, (Y/N)?" you hold his hand. "And I'm a girl of the heap, just an identification number on the count section of a big multinational who did nothing important in her life. I don't belong to your circle of people, I don't belong to Hollywood, I belong to the ordinary, and you are far away of ordinary. And I feel like I'm the one who is breaking you away of that social environment. For example, the other day after the awards. You were supposed to have dinner at some producer's after-party, instead you came back home to eat precooked pizza because I wasn't invited."

Joe looked your intertwined hands. "I can't believe that the most extraordinary girl I know it's telling me that. (Y/N), I assure that you not belonging to that environment is the least thing that matters to me. I know that you love me because of what I am, not because of the money or fame. And you are far more important than all the money I have ever earned. Believe me, Hollywood is filled up with ordinary people, and because of their arrogance, they look extraordinary. But not even the one percent of them is as clever, good, funny or beautiful as you. I wouldn't change you for anything of that world, or for anything from this world. You are what keeps me grounded, seeing you waking up every morning to go to work makes me realise that what I live it's not the day a day reality. And I would rather eat precooked pizza with you than have dinner with celebrities faking a smile all the days of our lives." You looked at each other eyes for some seconds, while he wiped out the tears of your cheeks. "I mean it, I'm not moving away of you ever, you are the best thing that happened to me and the best thing that is gonna happen to me."

You hugged for a while, until Joe offered "cooking one of those pre cooked pizzas". You went to bed and when you had turned off the lights, he approached to your body. "Are you feeling a little better?" you nodded "Yes, I'll live with it. As long as we stay together." Joe looked you through the darkness. "I swear I would do anything to make it stop." you looked at him and smiled, "I know honey." he kissed you "You are the most beautiful thing and what I love the most in life." you smiled, you felt so secure and safe and happy in those arms... "And that smile that I like so so much..."

The next morning, while you were working on some clients account, your mobile buzzed with an Instagram notification.

@joe_mazzello tagged you on a photo.

You went in to look what was it, it was a photo of your trip to Paris. The place where you were staying was near the Eiffel Tower, the balcony was just in front. You had never seen that photo, was in black & white, and it was unfocused because you were turning around, smiling to the photographer (Joe).

"Every Time I am sad, happy, tired, worried, or just living, I think or look to this photo and everything is a little brighter. I do not plan to leave my home, and it turns out that you are my home."

Oíste las llaves de Joe meterse en la cerradura y girar. Intentaste limpiar las lágrimas de tus mejillas, pero no podías parar de llorar así que era en vano. No querías preocuparle, no querías hacer de esto un drama. Estabais juntos y eso era lo importante, lo que los demás pensaran no influía en vuestra relación… ¿verdad?

“¿(Y/N)?” el chico preguntó confuso ante la falta de luz en vuestro piso de Nueva York. Viste por el reflejo de la ventana frente a la que estabas sentada como entraba en el salón. Te vio de inmediato, en la silla donde te ponías a leer siempre, frente a los rascacielos neoyorquinos. “(Y/N), ¿qué pasa?” tú giraste la cara esperando que no se viera que no podías parar de llorar, pero Joe te conocía demasiado bien. Se acercó corriendo a ti, dejando la mochila al suelo. “¿Qué ha pasado?” tú negaste con la cabeza y le abrazaste, llorando sobre su jersey, el que le habías regalado en su último cumpleaños. Intentaste hablar, pero no pudiste “Tss, tranquila, no hace falta que me lo cuentes todavía. Está bien, vas a estar bien.” seguisteis abrazados un rato. “Voy a hacerte un té, siéntate en el sofá y hablamos, ¿vale?” tú, un poco más tranquila, asentiste. Cuando volvió se acercó a las luces, seguíais a oscuras, te gustaba estar a oscuras. “Voy a encender la pequeña.” tú volviste a asentir. Joe se sentó a tú lado y te dio el té.

“Joe, ¿tú alguna vez te planteas estar conmigo?” él te miró, extrañado. “Claro que no, me encanta estar contigo, te quiero muchísimo.” notaste dos lágrimas caer. “¿Era eso lo qué pasaba?” tú negaste con la cabeza. “¿Te acuerdas el fin de semana cuando fuimos a ese restaurante que nos recomendó tu madre en Brooklyn?” Joe asintió “Alguien estaba en ese restaurante, no se si un paparazzi, o un fan, no lo sé. Pero alguien nos sacó fotos, allí y fuera cuando nos íbamos.” sacaste tú móvil y le enseñaste las fotos. Joe te miró sorprendido, sabía que no te gustaba estar en el ojo público, pero no habíais tenido el suficiente cuidado. Salíais besándoos, dándoos la mano, las cosas normales de una pareja que sale a comer. “(Y/N), lo siento, sé que…” interrumpiste a Joe “No es eso por lo que estoy así. No se cómo ni quién, pero han conseguido saber quién soy, están por todas mis redes sociales. Y me insultan, dicen cosas muy crueles, sobre mi cuerpo, sobre que si estoy saliendo contigo ahora es porque soy una aprovechada, que solo quiero fama de la que estás teniendo por Bohemian Rhapsody.” Joe te miró, perplejo. Sabía que esto podía pasar, y ha pasado, y te ha afectado muchísimo. “Joe, tú sabes que nunca he sido la persona más segura del mundo. Tenía miedo de ser público por esto. Porque claramente no estoy a tu altura, tú eres un actor de éxito, guapo, talentoso, actor en una de las películas más importantes de este año. Y yo…” Joe te paró, “¿Tu qué, (Y/N)?” tú le cogiste de la mano. “Yo soy una chica del montón, que es un número de identificación más en la sección de cuentas de una multinacional y que no ha hecho nada importante en la vida. No pertenezco a tu círculo, no pertenezco a Hollywood, pertenezco a lo ordinario, y tú estás muy lejos de ser lo ordinario. Y siento que soy lo que te frena a desarrollarte en ese entorno. Por ejemplo, el otro día, después de los premios. Se supone que tendrías que haber cenado en una fiesta de algún productor, no volver a casa para comer una pizza precocinada porque a mí no me habían invitado.”

Joe miró a vuestras manos entrelazadas. “No puedo explicarme como la chica más extraordinaria que conozco me puede decir eso. (Y/N), te aseguro que lo que menos me ha importado es que no pertenezcas a ese entorno. Sé que me quieres por lo que soy, no por el dinero o la fama. Y tú eres mucho más importante que el dinero que haya podido recibir por hacer nada en mi vida. Créeme, Hollywood está lleno de gente ordinaria que por su arrogancia parece extraordinaria. Pero ni un uno por ciento de ellos son tan listos, tan buenos, tan graciosos o tan bonitos como tú. No te cambiaría por nada de ese mundo, ni de este. Tú eres lo que me mantiene en el suelo, verte levantarte cada mañana para ir al trabajo me hace darme cuenta de que lo que vivo yo no es la realidad del día a día. Y preferiría comer pizza precocinada contigo antes de cenar entre famosos fingiendo una sonrisa todos los días de mi vida.” Os mirasteis a los ojos durante unos segundos mientras él te secaba las lágrimas de las mejillas. “Te lo digo en serio, no voy a separarme de ti nunca, eres lo mejor que me ha pasado y lo mejor que me puede pasar.”

Os abrazasteis un rato, hasta que Joe se ofreció a preparar “una de esas pizzas precocinadas”. Os fuisteis a la cama y cuando ya habíais apagado las luces te acercó a su cuerpo. “¿Te encuentras un poco mejor?” tú asentiste “Si, podré vivir feliz con ello. Siempre y cuando estemos juntos.” Joe te miró a través de la oscuridad “Daría todo lo que fuera porque parara, te lo juro.” le miraste y sonreíste ante esa frase, “Lo sé, cariño.” se acercó a besarte “Eres lo más bonito y lo que más me gusta de la vida en general.” tú sonreíste, te sentías tan segura y tan querida entre esos brazos… “Y esa sonrisa que me encanta...”

A la mañana siguiente, mientras trabajabas en las cuentas de un cliente, tú móvil vibró con una notificación de Instagram.

@joe_mazzello te ha etiquetado en una foto.

Entraste a ver que era, y era una foto de cuando estuvisteis en París. El piso en el que os quedabais estaba muy cerca de la Torre Eiffel, el balcón quedaba justo delante. Nunca habías visto esa foto, estaba en blanco y negro, y estaba desenfocada porque te girabas al fotógrafo (Joe), muy sonriente.

“Cada vez que estoy triste, feliz, cansado, preocupado, o simplemente viviendo, pienso o miro en esta foto y todo va un poquito mejor. No planeo irme de mi hogar, y resulta que tú eres mi hogar.”

[sithlordintraining]

Knight of the Night (Modern Superhero/Vigilante Au!Matt)

A/N: I’m trying to keep this on a schedule of “Superhero Sundays” and I finished this Monday and it took everything in me to hold it. I hope you like it and it’s not bad. I’ve recently been obsessed with the song Mine by Bazzi and then legit I met this guy at school and omg he’s so cute, his smile is adorable and I can’t wait to see him again!!

Summary: Matt Organa-Solo, a 21-year old psychology student at Academia: University of First Order. He was the only child of Senator Leia Organa-Solo and Retired Chief of Police Han Organa-Solo. It was a problematic community, but not as terrible as some other towns and colleges. But somehow, he always found himself always somehow saving someone, literally. After a crazy night, will Matt dare venture to become the hero this place needs?

Knight of the Night Collection

Vol. #6- The Rule of Two

Matt’s finger swiped across the screen to finish the transaction on his apple watch. Being Kylo Ren was hard work, especially traveling around, so when your drunk self-mentioned a Batmobile, he had to admit it would be helpful. His mind wandered to you; he hadn’t seen you since that night and scolded himself how he had been so preoccupied being a superhero than being with you. Well, as a friend, he reminded himself. After he had blown you off, there was no way in hell you would want to continue to pursue him. He wasn’t paying attention to where he was walking even though his head was straight ahead of him. But he felt his body collide with something or someone. “Matt?” Your voice pulled him out of his thoughts that was coincidentally filled with you. “Y/N?” His brows furrowed as his hands found their way to your exposed arms. Goosebumps started to form and you looked down because you couldn’t find the confidence to look into his eyes.

“Hi Matt, how’ve you been?” You asked as he began to remove his hands from you. “Um...I’ve been good, just school.” He shrugged. You nodded. “School, yeah, I understand. I had to take a break. It was a beautiful day so I thought I’d treat myself.” You shook the iced fruit drink in your hand. Matt nodded. His eyes soon went to your (y/h/c) curls that waved back into a curly puff, then to your black choker and black satin slip dress and he began to laugh. Your glossed lips twisted to the side. “What?” You asked. “Your outfit, you like North West.” He joked. Your eyes rolled behind your black sunglasses. “Shut up, dork.” You lightly shoved his shoulder. “It’s true! But all jokes aside, you look beautiful.” He sighed and you could feel your heart beating faster. “Thanks, Matty.” You said softly. “Are you doing anything, right now?” Matt scratched the back of his neck. You shook your head no with a smile. “Do you, maybe want to go to the park?” The blush started to rise contrasting against his skin and yellow shirt. “I’d like that.”

That goofy smile that he hated so much was present throughout your whole outing. His attention was fully focused on you and every little thing you did. From looking over your sunglasses to see the color difference of the sky to how your fingers always checked to see if your choker had shifted, but his favorite was how you would bite your lips and ears would move back before you laughed. You always wore your hair out and he never noticed how cute they were, just like everything else about you. With the sound of the children playing, music from the court, and other sounds that you would hear in a park, Matt strangely could hear someone yelling stop all the way down the trail. At first, he thought it was just a mother scolding her child, but then he saw a sketchy man running with what seemed to be a hot pink purse. Behind him was a large dark man in a navy suit hot on his trail only to be stopped by a jogger in his way. You were so busy telling him a story, you missed all the commotion as the scene grew closer. Slyly, Matt extended his foot causing the man to tumble forward. You gasped as Matt wrapped his arms around you as the suited man retrieved the purse handing it to the distraught woman. The man looked at Matt and gave him a nod. “You know him?” You turned to Matt. “No...I just saw him chasing the guy.” Matt told you. “Wow, that was...crazy.” You said. Of course, something like this would happen while he was with you. Matt couldn’t just get a day with just giving you his undivided attention.

Matt bit his fingernails pacing back and forth staring at his bike. It was beautiful! Absolutely sick design of obsidian black matte and metal SILENTHAWK that he had bought off the black market, hopefully without a trace, if he remembered the instructions Hux had did to buy kinder eggs. As bad as it sounded, Matt was hoping someone needed his help because he wanted to try it out. Not to mention he had bought a pilot helmet that allowed him to speak with it on, even if it distorted it a little. Realising that wishing harm to someone was bad, he turned off the light to the garage and made his way to the den. The tv was on a low volume but allowed him to hear his push notification from Instagram. Matt scoffed as he hated that he had made a fake Instagram to basically stalk your page. But Instagram just wasn’t his thing, and you had thousands of followers, you wouldn’t notice. Opening it up, he saw you with a rose in your mouth and skin glowing, as usual, he couldn’t help but smile. He clicked the tagged locations ‘Carmen’ a Spanish restaurant and club located on the edge of the city. You were probably with your other friends and it was confirmed when he saw you in more pictures with the same location. Pressing one of the photos, he realized it must’ve been your former dance members as the account name was @dinoballerino. Matt sighed, all he wanted to do was spend time with you like these people were. His apple watch alerted him that someone needed Kylo and he was rushing to the garage.

The whole university was buzzing about the mysterious vigilante and his new ride. The masked figure whose ride which was carried by the wind and snuck up on the bad guys, it had earned the name ‘Silencer’. Matt smiled as he passed a group of guys who were talking about his motorcycle. He strode with an air of confidence that easily deflated when he saw you with Joe Clarkson. You were waiting for Matt in the lecture hall apart from a mandated meeting. Your bag held an empty seat for him, but Joe and his crew had basically surrounded you. “Matt!” You grabbed your bag and he made his way over to you. “Hey, Y/N!” A blush began to hit his cheeks as his brown orbs fell on Joe who was grilling him. You pulled Matt to sit down and turned all your attention on him. Behind your curls, he could see Joe brush you off and talk to someone else. The meeting was long and boring, Matt sat tensed as your head threatened to fall from your propped arm onto his shoulder. You groaned in frustration and turned to Matt. “Let’s leave.” You whispered. His eyes bulged out. “Y/N, we can’t. There are professors guarding the door.” He told you. Before you could speak, a professor was looking at the two because they were talking, you covered your mouth and started to dry heave. Matt froze unsure what had caused the change. “Miss, are you alright?” the professor whispered. You looked up at him with watery eyes. “I-I think she needs to go to the nurse.” Matt stuttered. “Yes, you’re right.” Matt was pulling you up and grabbing your bag and leading your staggering self out of the auditorium before the professor could object.

As soon as the pair got far enough, you pulled yourself up and fixed yourself. “Y/N,” Matt said shakily. “I can’t believe I just did that, my heart is beating so fast feel it.” Your laughter was so melodic he missed that you had pressed his large hand to your chest. He didn’t put it together until his heart rate surpassed yours. “Um, so what do you want to do now?” He pushed his glasses up his nose. You shrugged with a smile and he swore he was going to have a heart attack. “I didn’t think that far. My plan was just getting out, so now it’s your turn.” She turned it on him. “Maybe something indoor because we are wanted, men.” You giggled at his answer. “What were you doing before the meeting?” You asked. “Honestly, I was binging Bob’s Burgers.” Your eyes lit up in a mischievous way. “Netflix and chill it is.” Matt’s face was a bright red at your words as you began to push him towards the dorm. Matt was nervous about taking you back to the dorm, the only girl that had been in there was Phasma. He wasn’t worried about the cleanliness, a lot of people were surprised how well kept the room was.  You opened the door to see a nicely furnished living room. “Oh, this is nice!” You said taking everything in. “Thanks, it’s all Hux,” Matt replied. A chuckle escaped your lips. “Figures, he always reminded me of Schmidt from the New Girl.” You told him. “Don’t tell him that,” Matt said. “Don’t ever tell him that unless you want to hear an endless rant.” Another chuckle fell from your lips. You plopped down on the couch and Matt stood in the kitchen. “Do you want something to drink?” He asked. “Water is fine.” You smiled and he thought you looked so precious. He was soon sitting down beside you with two water bottles. He turned the TV on and pressed play to resume the episode. Your head fell on his shoulder as you pulled yourself toward him cuddling with him. His arms snaked around your waist, smiling softly.

Even though it was something small as hanging in his room was, it reassured him that you still wanted to be around him despite the numerous times he had blown you off to save the day. That’s why now he was looking for someone who could possibly help him. Not just so he can spend time with Y/N, but he felt bad for dismissing others who were reaching out to him. So now he was hidden in the shadows waiting for the right time to come forward. The guy at the park had been perfect, Sherman Richards was his name. He was a graduate student, ex-marine and worked as an analyst for some start-up company. He was really big in the military affiliations on camp and did a lot of volunteer work for poor communities. Behind his helmet, he watched as all his coworkers left leaving Sherman to be the last one. When he was sure that no one else was there he approached the man. “I’ve seen you found my invitation.” The distorted voice filtered through the mask. “Yes, and I have taken some time to think of my answer.” The mask tilted waiting for his answer. “I swore that I would support and defend the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Just because I don’t have a uniform doesn’t mean I’m going to stop.” The man nodded. “Good, training starts tomorrow.” The mask said.

Matt was very surprised when Sherman had shown up to the hidden passage of the mansion and surprised that he wasn’t offended when he kept his helmet on. It wasn’t a lot of training, seeing how Sherman was in such great shape and very attuned to everything around him, it was more of seeing where his strengths and weaknesses lie. Well, it was for the both of them as the two sparred. Sherman had respect for what the man was doing and would help in whatever way he could. It was soon that he was gifted with his own apple watch, helmet, gear and the moniker ‘Nassar Ren’. People were absolutely roaring at the badass duo who went fighting in the night. ‘Knights of the Night’ was the nickname that followed them. It was amazing how no one even knew who any of them were, Sherman didn’t even know that the blond from the park was really Kylo. But having someone else was really good because he knew that his partner was responsible and dedicated and he trusted him to do it alone. Especially at times like these, when he was with you; the two were in your kitchen making macaroni and cheese for the potluck that Phasma had invited you all two. Matt was trying to steal some of the cheese you had cubed but your arms were well-versed in the art of blocking. A smile on both of your faces, Matt continued to playfully bother her as Bazzi played in the background. A message popped up on his watch alerting him that Kylo was needed. He hesitated to swipe as he looked up to see you so happy, he couldn’t leave you. At the moment, he got a message from Nassar: “I got it, boss.” Matt smiled and continued to bother you. Maybe he should get more Knights so he could stay with you all the time.

tagged: @btw-imalex , @kylo-renne, @bluelightsaberjedi, @hoe-for-kylo 

P.S.: Hope you liked it, it’s a filler if you haven’t guessed. 

[trendingnewsb]

5 Ways Disney Can’t Stop Screwing Up Star Wars

Star Wars. You love it! You think it’s great. But what if Star Wars stopped being great? That would be bad, right? And bad things aren’t great! Everybody knows that! Seeing as how we’re all in agreement here, let’s talk about the possibility that Disney’s entire strategy for Star Wars might be, as a whole, actually madly deeply verifiably bad. I know it’s painful to fathom such a terrible possibility — I mean, The Last Jedi looks just bonkers — but I can’t help to notice a few glaring red flags. Bad flags. So without further ado …

5

So Far, The New Movies Seem Afraid To Take Chances

For staunch Star Wars nerds burnt out by years of jackass Expanded Universe stories, adding to the Star Wars canon sometimes feels like writing new chapters to the Bible wherein Jesus comes back to fight ISIS with the aid of a talking car. And seeing as how the folks in charge of Star Wars are the ones who grew up on it, the new films feel a smidge unadventurous at times.

Read Next

5 Insane Answers For Questions You Didn't Know You Had

It’s no secret that The Force Awakens mirrors every character and plot point from the Original Trilogy. But what I find staggering is how every new character also geeks out over the old cast. Kylo Ren worships Vader. Poe and Rey know all about the adventures of Han and Luke. It’s as if the screenwriters wanted to make “relatable characters,” and so naturally wrote them as Star Wars fans. The filmmakers aren’t blind to this. Rogue One director Gareth Edwards has spoken multiple times about the balance between writing an original story and keeping to the Star Wars tone. But with Rogue One, Lucasfilm’s definition of “original story” was “the movie takes place literally a few days before A New Hope.”

And remember Ass-Face Roy and Joe Walrus from the Mon Eisley Cantina? Hooray or something, they came back in Rogue One!

LucasfilmTheir plot arc is: “Get drunk and wander around the Galaxy.”

This scene is similar to one later in the movie, when we see C-3PO and R2-D2 on Yavin, watching the fleet roll out.

LucasfilmJust in case you’d forgotten what franchise you were watching.

This is weird, considering that they’re in that very fleet in A New Hope. Fans have already done the mental gymnastics required to fix this obvious mistake (“They must have taken a shuttle later into the war zone, because that totally makes sense!”), but the obvious answer is that Lucasfilm simply wanted to shove these characters into Rogue One and didn’t bother to think about it too hard. And hey, when this kind of nostalgia callback inevitably wears off, people will have to confront the merits of the writing itself, y’know?

And let’s talk about the spinoff movies (like Rogue One) for a second. These could explore enigmatic side characters like Boba Fett, jump forward or back centuries, or even completely switch genres. Who wouldn’t want to see a Star Wars noir-style detective film? There are so many amazing options …

BBCOh.

Or make a Han Solo origin, I guess? Hey, wasn’t A New Hope already the Han Solo origin? See, there’s a reason that film began when it did: It was the most interesting point to start. We didn’t need to know what Han was up to before saving the fucking Galaxy any more than we needed to see how Leia got the Death Star plans. These are footnotes to a bigger story. Devoting films to them is like if Peter Jackson made a two-hour Lord Of The Rings spinoff adventure about Aragorn hitchhiking to the Prancing Pony.

What frustrates me here is that it’s not like there aren’t popular Star Wars characters that it wouldn’t be awesome to see the origin of. (Yoda has no doubt seen his share of adventures and/or psychic goblin orgies.) But I think the reason we’re getting Han Solo is because it’s safe from a writing perspective. He’s a beloved character, a known quantity. His “origin” will undoubtedly be a series of unbearable callbacks to minutiae from A New Hope. In other words, brace yourself for a nail-biting “Kessel Run” sequence in which the prize is a vest.

4

Forcing A New Star Wars Every Year Means Rushing Out Crap

Everyone knows that classic I Love Lucy bit in which Lucy’s wrapping chocolate on a production line, and the conveyor goes so fast that she gets desperate and starts eating the candy to keep up, but Lucy still makes billions worldwide, because people will eat chocolate no matter how sloppy and slapdash it is.

If you haven’t puzzled out my brilliant analogy, Star Wars is the chocolate and Lucasfilm is the hilarious 1950s comedienne. Disney has decided that the world deserves a new Star Wars film every 365 days, because nothing says “quality” like deciding the release date before knowing what you’re making. (That’s why restaurants always bring your meal out in exactly five minutes, no matter how undercooked it is.)

The moral of the story is “rushing is dumb.” It’s why back when most TV shows had 20+ episodes a season, we’d get hogwash like clip shows and that one X-Files where the villain was a clowder of cats. We learned over time that it’s better to have a smaller amount of high-quality things than a large amount of poor-quality things. This applies to 99 percent of everything humanity has ever created. And if you don’t believe me, look at the small library’s worth of articles about Lucasfilm’s current production problems.

As The Hollywood Reporter notes, Lucasfilm’s schedule is so nuts that they’re hemorrhaging writers and directors. The script for A New Hope took three years and four drafts to complete, but the process for Rogue One was so zippy that they were writing pivotal scenes during post-production.

So if you’re wondering why these new films seem to borrow so much from the originals, it’s because who has time to think of something new? Who has time to consider plot holes or character inconsistencies when you’re barreling toward a release date? This is the kind of dumb idea that forces you to panic and fire your directors five months into filming.

So yeah, slow the fuck down, Disney. No one is going to forget Star Wars exists if you skip a year. The world once went, like, 16 years without a new Star Wars movie. Those were some wild days.

3

And, Uh, Stop Hiring Indie Directors

Let’s talk about Colin Trevorrow. For those unaware, Trevorrow got his start with a low-budget film called Safety Not Guaranteed, which was based off of a funny fake ad in the newspaper. It’s a perfectly existing movie. So how did he go from that straight to directing Jurassic World? Well, the studio originally wanted Brad Bird (The Incredibles) to direct, and when Bird declined, he referred them to Trevorrow because he liked Safety. In a world full of qualified sci-fi and action directors, this one reference boosted an indie comedy guy to Spielbergian status. And Hollywood being Hollywood, Trevorrow also got a Star Wars out of the deal, because why the hell not.

That’s when things got stupid. After being personally hired by Spielberg for Jurassic World, the newbie director asserted himself hard during the production process and reportedly became difficult to work with. And while a good director is supposed to lead the charge, his lack of experience contrasted with his overconfidence and created a toxic mix, not unlike electing a reality TV show host to be the president of the United States.

And so when his next film, The Book Of Henry, proved to be a confounding disaster, Trevorrow was hastily dropped from Episode IX and replaced with the much more experienced J.J. Abrams. Look, I have nothing against Trevorrow as a director, but the guy was, well, two movies into his career when they hired him for this massive task. And yet for Star Wars, this is a painfully common practice that almost always leads to problems (which I have pointed out again and again).

When Lucasfilm hired Chris Miller and Phil Lord — directors known for improv-heavy comedies like 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie — one would assume they were there to bring that element to the Han Solo film. And you know what? Neat! Considering what I’ve already said about that premise, a Han Solo comedy about improv space shenanigans would have been kinda awesome. But it turns out that wasn’t what Lucasfilm had in mind, and the directors’ slower shooting style and frustration over lack of creative freedom led to them being replaced with smilin’ Ron Howard.

See the pattern yet? Lucasfilm inexplicably hires inexperienced or unique directors, refuses to let them express themselves, and ultimately has to shitcan them. I’m gonna go ahead and call it “Trank Mania” after Josh Trank, whose troubled times directing the 2015 Fantastic Four reboot reportedly led to him losing the Boba Fett solo movie. (Also, “Trank Mania” sounds like an awesome WWE special, so there’s that.)

2

There’s No Single Person In Charge Of The Story

While he didn’t direct two-thirds of the Original Trilogy, George Lucas did oversee the writing and production of all of them. Today we have similar “George Lucases” for other series — Zack Snyder and the DC Extended Universe, Kevin Feige for Marvel, J.J. Abrams for the new Star Trek films, and Peter Jackson for the Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

And so here’s my question: Who is in charge of these new Star Wars films? Is it Kathleen Kennedy, the president of Lucasfilm? Not really. By her own admission, she and Lucasfilm “haven’t mapped out” the direction of the new trilogy, and have been largely leaving it up to each director to figure it out. And that’s kind of insane, isn’t it? Most film trilogies are championed by a single artist keeping track of the details. And without that, you run the risk of setting up plot points with zero payoffs, or adding twists that contradict previous scenes.

To give you an idea of why this is important, when Alan Rickman played Severus Snape, he was made aware (before anyone else) that his character always had a thing for Harry’s mom. That knowledge dictated the way he played the role long before that twist was revealed. Imagine how less effective that performance would have been if he was told, “Oh, by the way, we decided you’ve been good all along!” at the very end.

And right now, the directors of Star Wars are absolutely making those kind of last-minute decisions. You know the ending of Force Awakens, when Rey and Chewie and R2-D2 show up on Luke’s island of Jedi guano and bring him his lightsaber?

Well, it turns out that J.J. Abrams originally planned for BB-8 to be there, and swapped droids at the request of Last Jedi director Rian Johnson. We don’t know why Johnson needed the switch, but it sure seems weird that they’re doing stuff like that. Meanwhile, J.J. is coming back for the final film, and who knows if his plans will match up with what Johnson has set up?

In fairness, both of these directors are good at what they do. But the whole process still seems like they are flying blind with one hand tied behind their backs. And the oddest thing of all is that no one seems to know exactly where it’s all heading, or really why we’re making these films beyond the fact that people love Star Wars. And that brings me to a pretty dark question …

1

Maybe Star Wars Was Never A Repeatable Premise?

There was no fucking way the Hobbit trilogy, or even a Hobbit solo film, was going to be as good as the Lord Of The Rings films. Tolkien wrote Rings as an epic sequel to The Hobbit, and by reversing that order, the movies lowered the stakes. This is the same problem I’m sensing with Star Wars.

The first films were about the saving the entire goddamn Galaxy from tyranny. They were a definitive, standalone series that highlighted the most important event to happen in that universe. Anything else is supplemental and pales in comparison. The prequels worked (on paper) because they didn’t attempt to tell that same story, and focused more on one man’s transition to the Dark Side. (The delivery did have some issues.) But these new sequels seem unable to do much save repackage the same threats from the original films. “They had a Star Destroyer? Well, we have a Mega Star Destroyer!” “You thought the last Death Star was big? Well, ours is even DEATH-IER!”

Look, I’m honestly not certain I’m 100 percent right about this, but I think somewhere down the line, we overestimated how repeatable of a premise Star Wars really was. The originals were a self-contained trilogy, and after they came out, even George Lucas attempted to pivot off of them and find the next big franchise. (Unfortunately, it was called Willow and failed hilariously.)

But Lucas still continued to spend the next decade searching for original stories for his company to tell, eventually giving in and re-releasing Star Wars in the late ’90s. When Titanic knocked the re-release from the #1 box office spot, he went full tilt and dug up his idea for the prequel. And after that, the world’s never stopped wanting more.

But I believe that through all his attempts to revive the franchise, Lucas knew in his heart that the most important, most epic, and beloved part of Star Wars had long been told.

He knew, deep inside his hirsute gullet, that it was time to move on. That Star Wars would never be as special as that first time.

Unfortunately, it might take the rest of us a bit longer to figure that out.

If you’re George Lucas and wanna vent (or maybe just hang out sometime), contact Dave on Twitter.

The new Star Wars movies may be flawed, and we know porgs are just marketing gimmicks. But goddamnit we want still want porgs.

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[furederiko]

It's the 1st post for March, so let's march it up with a Random-News-Digest!

Disney Live Action

As marketing promotion for "Beauty and the Beast" continues to ramp up to herald its imminent premiere, another live action adaptation title is moving along nicely. No, not "Mulan" or others, but this time it's "The Lion King".

Eventhough the movie will likely not go into production until the sequel for "The Jungle Book" is completed (or is it? Hmmm...), Disney has assembled two of its core cast. Donald Glover, who is currently in production for "Han Solo: A Star Wars Story" has been cast to play Simba, the titular lion king himself. And he will be joined by a legend. James Earl Jones, a.k.a Darth Vader, is set to reprise his role as Simba's beloved father, the wise Mufasa. Yes, he's reprising this role, because he was the original voice actor in the original 1994 animated movie. Don't bother doubting these reports, because it's director Jon Favreau himself who announced them via Twitter. He revealed that he first met Glover back in December, and that the director's teenage son is a fan of Glover's music.

This is a fantastic news, and I can already see how the movie is shaping for greatness. I'm crossing my fingers that Nathan Lane and Bernie Sabella will return to reprise their roles as Timon and Pumbaa too. I doubt other actors would be able to bring justice nor the same levity to their iconic "Hakuna Matata" number. Here's hoping Favreau read this (though the chance of that happening is close to zero LOL). As I said, the movie might not begin production until perhaps later this year, so we still have plenty of time to get more cast confirmation. I wonder who will be cast to play Nala, and others like Zazu, or Scar? Hmmmm....

DC Films

You're one of the few who is expecting Warner Bros to get their act right when it comes to DC Films? Well, don't get your hopes too high too soon. Remember the news that Matt Reeves was in talks to direct "The Batman", taking over Ben Affleck's prior role? Well... said news has been followed by a tsunami of strong waves, that surged both high and low, giving a rather concerning sign. Not long after the news went buzzing, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that talks have ceased between Reeves and WB. It's unclear what went wrong, but it's possible there was a major creative difference happening between the director and the studio. Looks like the damage done by both Zack Snyder and David Ayer is too much to fix, eh?

But even that has become an old news so quickly. Yes, in just a week passed, WB announced (via the same outlet) that Reeves has finally closed the deal to not only direct, but also produce the solo Batman movie. Hooray for DC Fans! But should we even rejoice? I dare say, don't. Not yet. Judging from the quick come and go in DC Films, things can still easily turn for the worse along the way. Sure, Reeves stated that he's a fan of the character, and WB's President and Chief Content Officer Toby Emmerich is singing praises for him right now. But dejavu much, haven't we been in the exact same situation before? After all, if "The Flash" is any indication, Reeves might still simply pull a last minute surprise and walk out during the pre-production process. Look no further, because Ben Affleck is the living proof to such uncertainty. Speaking of Affleck, while his brother just won an Oscar for an exceptional acting performance in "Manchester by the Sea" (something he hasn't achieved), Ben's fate in the DC Films might be in a dangerous flux. Why? Because his name was mysteriously NOT mentioned in the report. Suspicious, huh? WB commented that they only wanted to focus on Reeves in this recent press release. But that felt too much like mere sweet-talking to me. It has become, pretty much a troubling question in everyone's head for now. But you know what? I totally won't be surprised if "The Batman" turns out be another soft reboot that introduces a new actor to take over Affleck's shoes.

Interestingly, whether with or without proper confidence, WB is still moving forward with their superhero adaptations. Until the well runs dry, right? Since both Flash and Batman, their most popular characters, have been quite troubling lately, it seemed WB finally turned their head to secondary characters. And by secondary, that means one prominent member of the Bat family. Who else, but the ever charming butt-tastic Dick Grayson, a.k.a Nightwing! Following the success of "The LEGO Batman Movie" that many critics are praising for its strong understanding of, and respect to the source material (looking at you Zack Snyder!), WB has approached its director Chris McKay to convince him to helm "Nightwing". Bill Dubuque who wrote "The Accountant" is also in negotiation to write the script.

My reaction to this? Took them LONG ENOUGH. Even as Robin, Dick Grayson has been gypped a lot in the live action adaptations, subtly showing that WB simply couldn't care less about this fan-favorite character. Yes, the character Robin (Grayson version) did show up in "Batman Forever" and "Batman & Robin" as played by Chris O'Donnel, but he has been treated poorly ever since. Don't forget, a Robin's (presumably the Jason Todd version) mysterious DEATH was one of the most annoying and unnecessary plot in "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice". Assuming you still remember that ugly movie, of course. If, and only IF WB manage to get this movie right, this is possibly the first DC Films title that I'm interested to see. After all, Dick Grayson is a character with massive potentials to be more than just great. His relationship with Bruce Wayne would be vital, as it was the catalyst that evolved him from a mere orphan circus boy, to half of the dynamic duo Robin, into the all mature crime fighter Nightwing. It's a movie that can assure fans that WB knows their shit and won't be disappointing audience any further. Nevertheless, for me personally, it all depends on the casting as well. WB had already failed me big time with "Aquaman", and they can always do the same with this one. I sincerely hope that's not the case, but you know what? I'm not getting my hopes up too much. I don't want to be fooled twice. Let's just see what happens next, okay?

X-Men Universe

Looks like FOX is doing much better than WB in the superhero department. "Logan" is getting rave reviews, despite being out of sync in its own universe, and "X-Force" is moving along nicely. According to Collider, Joe Carnahan, who is working on the script for Shawn Levy's adaptation of "Uncharted", has been revealed to be writing this ensemble movie as well. If the movie follows the continuity of "Deadpool", then we will likely see Wade Wilson himself, alongside Domino and Cable to be part of the roster. Right now, it is said that he's only serving as a writer, but there's a possibility he might continue in a directorial role. IF the script is deemed worthy by FOX.

As for the not-much-anticipated "X-Men: Supernova", there's a buzzing rumor that producer and long-time writer (a.k.a the person to blame for the continuity errors) Simon Kinberg is looking to make this his directorial debut project. As I said before, I couldn't care less about this movie. And the fact that Kinberg will not only be writing and producing, but might also direct is totally my last straw. Those who enjoyed his work however, can be excited. Why? Actress Sophie Turner recently revealed that production for this title would commence very soon. So it IS happening folks. Eventhough nobody asked for it.

A new writer apparently has joined the gang of "Deadpool 2" as well. Unlike the director that had been replaced, writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick have long been confirmed to be returning. The new name joining him would make comic books geeks and nerds everywhere happy though. Yep, Drew Goddard, the guy that wrote "The Martian", the acclaimed "Daredevil" TV series, and almost did "Sinister Six" for SONY, is onboard this project as a consultant for the screenplay. According to the report on Collider, the script is close to finish, so we can expect to hear an official release date for the movie. As always, let's just be patient and wait for it to come...

Marvel Studios

After being teased on social media, the latest and likely final trailer for "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2" has been released. It debuted several hours ago (or last night in PST time) via Jimmy Kimmel's Live. If that's not enough, it came alongside one very flashy but cool-looking poster. The trailer includes one important bit: the long awaited official look of Kurt Russel's Ego the Living Planet. 'Official' because it HAS already been revealed several days ago, via Hasbro's figure line during the New York Toy Fair. Even Marvel had shown it too in their coverage video!

As you can see on the trailer, the design of the toy figure looks exactly like the way he is in the movie. To be frank, it doesn't look groundbreaking or anything. It basically looks like Kurt Russel in a thick beard, who wears a space cowboy suit. That's all. LOL. Intriguingly, while the trailer showed many new footages, it didn't spoil any key moments or any surprises from the movie itself. Everything that was shown is inline with what Kevin Feige, director James Gunn, and many of its actors had revealed during the set visit interviews. Obviously, there's something that meets the eye here, and that Gunn is deliberately making sure that nothing crucial or important is revealed too soon. Hey, this is a guy who spoiled Peter Quill's father's identity in advance, right? I'm positive there's something more he's hiding.

Meanwhile, nothing much is happening on the other movies. Everyone's focused on the Oscars, so it's a slow news week for Marvel movies. "Avengers: Infinity War" is still in production, and is set to head out to film in Scotland for several months. The same goes for "Black Panther", that's still filming in Atlanta. There aren't any rumors, or announcement regarding both. Everything is being tightly wrapped from the press. There is however, a news surrounding a movie that hasn't even found its director: "Captain Marvel".

Because Brie Larson is currently on a press tour to promote "Kong: Skull Island", of course members of the press would start asking question about her upcoming superhero project. IGN specifically asked her opinion of the character Carol Danvers, and Larson sort of hinted what to expect in the movie. She said that she liked Danvers because she serves as "a bridge between two worlds, that she can go to Earth and go to Space and that her own personal place is in the littlest place in between where Earth ends and space begins". Naturally, that IS the key component of the character, enabling her to be both a member of the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy. Of course, that doesn't necessarily means that she will be the same in the movie. Perhaps, she might have a different origin story? It's still too early to tell. But Marvel Studios is known to be faithful to source material, so I don't think we can expect a drastic change. As for the looks, Larson can't share anything about how Danvers would be. Whether she will have the long hair like before, or short like the most recent version, either she knew about it but chose to stay silent, or she's simply clueless is the question. She just pointed out that some folks aren't going to get what they want, which once again can mean anything.

Could we be hearing more tidbits about the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies during similar press tour? After all, Larson is travelling from one country to another alongside other MCU actors like Tom Hiddleston and Samuel L. Jackson. Surely a reporter or two would ask their involvement in the upcoming movies too. Let's just wait and see, okay...

Marvel TV

At long last, we finally have a cast announcement for Marvel's "The Inhumans"! It's high time for it to happen, I mean, duh... it's starting production REALLY soon, right? Took them long enough. For now, we get two of the core characters confirmed: the King, and the Big Bad.

Let's start with the big bad, as his actor was the first to be revealed. Playing Maximus Boltagon, is "Game of Thrones" alumn Iwan Rheon. Maximus the Mad, as he's commonly called in the comics, is a despicable character whose inner desire is to usurp and dethrone his older brother as the Inhuman King. He has a non-visual ability to manipulate others via speech, sort of similar to Kilgrave in Marvel's "Jessica Jones", thus can be really scary. I'm not familiar with GoT, because I haven't seen the show (Don't ask. It won't even legally gain access to this country, due to its full frontal adult nature), but I'm not at all surprised with Rheon's casting. Why? Scott Buck is the showrunner of this 8-episodes mini series, and if Marvel's "Iron Fist" is any indication, then obviously the guy favors GoT's alumni. Remember, both Finn Jones and Jessica Henwick who are playing lead characters in "Iron Fist" ARE indeed GoT's grads. According to those who are fans of GoT however, casting Rheon (who played Ramsay Bolton) as the manipulative and villainous Marvel character is nothing more than pitch perfect. So I guess I'll just have to take their words on this. At the very least, he already nails it looks-wise.

The other character, is none other than Maximus older brother, the Inhuman King himself, Black Bolt. And who's the lucky actor that has been trusted to bring this generally mute character to life? "Hell on Wheels" lead, Anson Mount. Based on the official announcement, this character already sounds very much faithful to the comics. As for the actor, interestingly, it has been rumored that a "Lost" alumn would be part of the core cast, and looks that rumor is referring to Mount. I personally haven't seen much about his acting, so I can't really give any solid opinion. But just like Rheon, looks-wise, Mount and his stern eyes, chiseled jawline, and athletic physique can be considered spot on.

To be honest, I initially didn't remember about him, despite feeling that his name rang a bell somehow. It wasn't until a fansite frequent member commented about his past work: Britney Spears' "Crossroads", as well as his inclusion in Liam Neeson's "Non-Stop". Yep, that's when I finally remembered him. Not just that, thanks to Wikipedia, apparently he's also the lead actor for ABC's new series "Conviction" (playing Jim Steele), that had Peggy Carter's Hayley Atwell as its lead actress. Does this mean "Conviction" has been officially cancelled? That's anyone's guess. Then again, if that's the case then I really don't mind. After all, Atwell can now return into Marvel's "Agent Carter" and ABC can now hire Shawn Ashmore to play Karnak. That would be AWESOME!

Power Rangers

The currently airing Power Rangers season "Power Rangers Ninja Steel" has only reached episode 5 so far (and honestly? ...NOT doing great *sigh*). But that doesn't stop Saban and Bandai America to start planning ahead. Talking on the 2017 Bandai Toy Fair, Bandai of America revealed that highly likely they will skip "Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger" and go straight to adapting "Uchu Sentai Kyuranger" for the 2019's Power Rangers season. It's not yet set in stone, but the representative did say that the Zyuohger's rubic-cube gimmick is just not workable. This statement was rather unclear, whether that is meant for US taste or something else, but I won't be surprised if they choose to go ahead with Kyuranger instead. After all, it has been widely reported that Kyuranger had direct inputs from Bandai of America regarding its designs. So eventhough the company will need to create different molds for each Kyuranger (since everyone's unique), clearly they are going for the space theme.

This is... a little disappointing IMHO. Yes, I can understand the limitation of Zyuohger. But plot-wise, that show has a great potential to explore discrimination, equality, and all kinds of important social issues that the US are dealing with right now. Then again, story has NEVER been Saban's forte, especially if we're talking about weak seasons like "Megaforce" or "Ninja Steel". So highly likely they will ditch the theme of connection if they ever decide to adapt Zyuohger. That's how I feel, so what do you think? By the way, assuming they ARE taking Kyuranger directly, I wonder what will the US title would be? "Power Rangers... Space Rebeliions"? "Power Rangers Global Defense Force"? "Power Rangers Star Wars" or "Power Rangers Guardians of the Galaxy"? Let those last two sink in your head... XD

The King of Fighters

Huge updates are coming to "The King of Fighters XIV". At the end of the "KOF XIV World Championship", SNK greeted its devoted fans and also other attendees with this pleasant surprise. I don't think it's available officially yet, but the announcement can be seen through this candid video filmed by fans.

Several new costumes were announced as DLCs. As previously announced back in November, Classic Iori Yagami costume that would give a nostalgic kick especially when paired with Classic Kyo Kusanagi, has been made available on February 23 JST. Kula Diamond's Sundress, Meitenkun's Pajamas, Sylvia Paula Paula's Little Red Riding Hood (that made her look like "Masha and the Bear"), and Angel's Diabolo costumes will be available in Spring. Which can mean this month, if not the next. After all, Spring starts in April in the country of Japan. 2 new stages will available for free as well. One of it came from the "Fatal Fury" or "GARO" series, while the other came from KOF classic.

More importantly, there will be new DLC characters coming to the game! The silhouette didn't look quite clear (this one is a lot more difficult to decipher than "Street Fighter V"), but I think it's showing 3 to 4 characters. As for who they are, it's anyone's guess. But I won't be surprised if these are the Orochi characters like the trio of Yashiro Nanakase, Shermie, Chris, and probably Chizuru Kagura. Considering the way the story mode plays out, their return should feel organic. Beside, even Mature and Vice have both been revived from the death due to the dimensional rift. SNK promised to reveal more details this month, so let's just wait and see whether my theory is sound or not. Would be dope to get fan-favorite characters like Blue Mary, Ryuji Yamazaki, and others though...