#how happy kateryna is!!

[tuituipupu]

some cute moments i captured from go_a’s livestream tonight 🤍

[floralcrematorium]

What are some of your most essential hcs for Ukraine? :)

I interact with Hetalia in a weird way because I've noticed most people like characters depending on what nation's history they're interested in, but with me, it's the opposite. If I find a character compelling, I want to look into their history to figure out what events would have shaped them into the person they are. I don't typically write nationverse because figuring out the whole immortality thing hurts my brain and freaks me out, but I'm trying to come around to nationverse.

Disclaimer: I know nothing about Ukrainian history other than Very Basic Stuff, so these headcanons are just how I tend to portray her in my own writing thus far:

• She's fat. That's it! I just wanna see a fat girl thriving, happy, and loved.

• She's perfectly capable of being snarky or backhanded, but it's often disguised as a compliment. It's not very often, but if you're being rude and it's deserved, she'll have you wondering what she meant. SHE STANDS HER GROUND!

• Rather physically strong. Be it from farm labor or maybe even some weights training, this girl could throw you over her shoulder like it's no big deal.

• She's very sentimental. She'll choose to hold onto old items even if they're thoroughly worn because of their sentimental value. For that reason, her house is full of hand-me-downs from ancestors and items from her childhood. Lots of heirloom jewelry.

• Gold jewelry girlie through and through.

• She'll mend things until it's not possible. She's rather handy, actually. She can definitely figure some tech out, but it's not her strong suit. Can definitely figure the mechanics of heavy machinery out.

• While I think she makes friends very easily, she may often feel like she may not matter to them. She worries people don't value her as much as she values them. From this, she's gotten particularly good at being alone and keeping herself occupied, but it gets isolating at times. She deserves a fun night out on the town with the girlies.

• I've realllllly been liking the idea of Hungary x Ukraine recently and their friendship with Liechtenstein. Their trio to me is like. A sapphic couple in their mid thirties - near fourties accidentally adopt this seemingly helpless college aged girl. Hunkraine and their accidentally adopted lesbian, Liechtenstein (plus her older brother, on occasion)

• Poland friendship intrigues me. Hmmmm

• There's mutual jealousy between Kateryna and Natallia. I have a mini comic about this in the works, but I think Kateryna envies Nat's opportunities. Kateryna sacrificed a lot for her younger sister to give her the life she did. She also may have some body image insecurities just due to the way sisters are compared nonstop. Nat envies Kateryna's independence and ability to be so warm and extroverted. Their sisterhood being the only canon sister & sister relationship we have is something I value as an older sibling to someone who reminds me a lot of Natallia.

• Her cooking??? Fantastic.

• Big fan of flowers and flower pressing.

• I will forever and always be a CanUkr stan.

[spicykat9]

For the Kink Alphabet: B, F, I, J, K, P, S, T, V, W, Z for Matthew?

oooh yay! Thanks!

Kink Alphabet Ask Meme

B = Brat: How obedient do you like people to be in the bedroom? Is disobeying fun?

He's not really a brat tamer, but it's always nice to have a bit of defiance from his sub. Though harsh punishments aren't really his thing.

Though he doesn't sub often he prefers to please his partner so he'll rarely disobey unless that's what his partner wants.

---

F = Fucking Machines: Have you ever had a chance to ride a fucking machine? Would you?

Maybe not yet, but he'd be down to try.

---

I = Ice: Are you in to temperature play?

I never really considered this before. But I think he'd be open to it.

---

J = Jack Off: How often do you masturbate and what’s your favorite way to do so?

It's a great stress relief after a long day of work. He keeps it simple, jacking off, but he's got some suggestive to down right dirty pics of his partners (with their consent of course) that he sometimes looks at while he does it.

---

K = Kitten: In to pet play? Do you prefer kittens or pups?

Personally not one of his kinks, but he's more than happy to indulge his partner (Not me thinking CanGer shenanigans. In that context he's very much into puppy play because Ludwig is so into it and he loves watching Ludwig's brain turn off for a little while).

---

P = Pubes: Full bush, trimmed, shaved, waxed, what do you do? What do you prefer?

I'm between saying he's full bush or slightly trimmed. He doesn't have a preference for his partner though.

---

S = Switch: How often do you switch or are you exclusively one role in the bedroom?

He's usually a dom. Though for the right person he'll sub (Mainly thinking for Kateryna and Jan).

As for top and bottom, he's a bit more even in switching between top and bottom.

---

T = Teasing: How much is just the right amount of teasing before somebody gets dicked down? And what are you favorite means of teasing?

Matthew loves to tease his partner until all they're desperate and begging.

---

V = Vanilla: What are you favorite ‘vanilla’ things for when you’re not in a particularly kinky mood?

Slow morning sex. Just lazily fucking your partner nice and slow, exchanging sloppy kisses. Just warm, cozy and tender. He loves it

---

W = Wildcard: Answer any question submitted to you but you can only give Yes/No answers

P = Pubes: Full bush, trimmed, shaved, waxed, what do you do? What do you prefer?

Yes.

---

Z = Zzz: Have any fantasies involving sleep?

He'd probably be into eating his partner out/sucking their dick to wake them up. Or alternatively waking up to his partner sucking his dick.

[koolkat9]

Drag Queen Mattie AU- The Beginning

CW: implied queerphobia, parents kicking out/disowning a child, just Matt’s parents being bigots in general.

Since he was a pre-teen, Matthew had always had a thing for makeup. His friend Kateryna did his makeup once when they were hanging out just to try it out and Matt was never the same. But it wasn’t until he lost a bet to his buddies and was dared to dress in drag and perform for them that he realized how much fun and freeing drag could be. He didn’t know what it was at the time, but after stumbling upon Drag Race everything clicks. 

His friends are actually very supportive because they realize how happy and confident he is when he can perform that way. Alfred is more neutral on it. He’s conflicted because their parents aren’t that open-minded, but he loves seeing his brother happy. So he agrees to not say anything when he finds out. Their parents are not so supportive. So Mattie and his friends hide his hobby from his parents. They take him to events, hide his dresses for him, just going above and beyond to keep him safe but also engaged with his interests.

While engaging with this community, Matthew ends up befriending two older drag queens Lady Grey (aka Arthur Kirkland) and Creme Brulee (aka Francis Bonnefoy). They become like a second family to Mattie who knows his home will never accept him. They offer him advice both about drag and dealing with unaccepting families. Lady Grey also had an unwelcoming household, not for drag, but because she is trans. But “to bigots, it doesn’t make a difference.” She warns him not to come out with the drag or bi thing until he knows he will have a safe place to go if the worst cases happen (his parents turn violent or kick him out).

Time goes on, and everything is normal. The two sides of Matthew’s life stay separate. Francis and Arthur agree to keep Matthew’s dresses and make-up at their drag house so Matthew’s friends don’t have to keep sneaking around. But eventually, the truth somehow comes to light. And they’re pissed. Alfred is there for the first half of the fight, but gets scared and locks himself in his room. It’s only Matthew and his parents. There is a lot of screaming, crying, and Matt begins to wonder if all this was worth it. It finally ends with them saying to pack up his things and get out. 

Matthew is devastated, terrified, begs his parents to reconsider, even promises he’ll stop doing drag. But they brush him off. It’s late and he doesn’t want to bug his friends, so he goes to the only place he’s ever felt safe: Arthur’s and Francis’s drag house. 

At first he isn’t allowed in. It’s not an all ages show. But he begs the bouncer that he has to talk to Arthur and Francis, it’s an emergency. Luckily, Francis passes by and sees Matthew in distress and ushers him into his and Arthur’s private dressing room. 

Matthew tells them everything and breaks down crying. Francis immediately agrees to let Matthew stay with him and Arthur for as long as he needs. Arthur is ready to fight someone. Unfortunately they have a performance to get to, but they let Mattie stay in the dressing room until they’re done.

Mattie is left alone with his thoughts. He recognizes one of the boxes in the dressing room. His box, filled with all his dresses and makeup. He’s ready to destroy it all because for a moment, he blames drag for ruining his life. 

But then he picks up his first make-up palette. The one Kateryna first gave him. He takes it and does his makeup in Francis’s mirror. Makeup always put him at ease and made him feel better. Arthur enters again, deciding to leave his show early to take Matthew to his and Francis’s apartment. But first, he brushes out Matthew’s curls so his hair is just as pretty as his face. Matthew may still be hurting, but getting done up like this, even just a bit makes him feel better. And it reminds him drag is one of his greatest comforts. 

[mildlytired]

So sick of hairless boys (if that's how you draw them tho I respect that)

Like Timo? Hairy

Sev? Hairy

Toyls? Hairy

Ivan? Hairy

Norge? Hairy

Matt? Hairy

Kiku?? Hairy

Yao? Hairy

Ecuador? Hairy

Cuba????? You bet your fucking ass he's hairy

Erzsébet? Hairy

Kateryna???? Hairy

Alfred, baby skin, hairless, not even a happy trail smh

You get the point

[valeriesportfolio]

Working With Actors: Building Trust

As You Wish was my first experience of getting the actors involved during the development stage. The part of Valentine was written for Kateryna Sibirtseva because I’ve worked with her before and knew that she could bring quiet magnetism to this mysterious character and make her seem more dimensional. 

The dynamic between the two leads is at the heart of the story, therefore, it was crucial to find an actress who could not only dance and believably portray a charming schoolgirl, but who would also have chemistry with Kateryna. Looking back, I believe I should have specified in our casting call that it was open to all races and ethnicities seeing as we didn’t receive many applications from people of colour due to the stereotypes associated with period dramas. However, after a rigorous casting process during which we’ve created shortlists, scheduled interviews and held auditions, we found our Ava. 

During the rehearsal process, the actors were asked to do ice-breaking and trust-building exercises that allowed them to get to know their own characters better, discover their lowest and highest points in the film, and figure out their backstories. We have also scheduled an archery training session to ensure that the actors could embody the physicality of Edwardian students who were well-trained in aristocratic sports, as well as spend quality time together and bond. However, aside from building chemistry between the lead actresses, it was equally important to use this time to establish trust between them and me as a director. 

As You Wish is a personal story, however, the rehearsals gave me a chance to slowly pass the characters on to the actors. In Weston’s words, “directing is an adaptation of the script” (2021, p. 166), therefore, I ensured that the actors felt safe to experiment and explore their characters, without feeling like I’m looking over their shoulders. Giving them this freedom allowed me to fine-tune the dialogue and pacing, as well as make the relationship between their characters more believable. Doing all the physical and vocal warm-ups with my actors allowed me to gain perspective into how vulnerable they must feel. I had to learn to give honest feedback when their performance needed improvement so that they could trust me when I was happy with the take. However, I also worked closely with our producer and cinematographer to ensure that our schedules allowed us to get extra takes for actors, in case they felt like they needed one. In the future, I will work on becoming more comfortable with giving notes to more experienced actors like Annie Sheppard (Miss Brook), because even the greatest actors want a director and I believe that the film would have benefitted from me being more open with my feedback. 

The extended rehearsal period has also enabled me to make bolder filmmaking decisions, this video gives insight into the preparations that went into making the final scene of As You Wish:

[moonmoonthecrabking]

Happy platonic valentine's!! Idk how this is valentines related but (i suppose it's because I LOVE kateryna pavlenko)

CRYING TYSMMMMMMMMMMMM

[dialmelys]

one of the best things to come out of this eurovision is the italian-ukrainian friendship. WE BESTIES

[andzl-blog]

So, I did another thing?! I was so inspired to draw each performance! Love them all! I’m really happy how it turned out. My personal favorites are Kateryna and Gjon’s Tears! 😊 💖  If you wish to have any of these as stickers and support my art, here’s a redbubble page! https://www.redbubble.com/people/andzl/explore?asc=u&page=1&sortOrder=recent

[thetowniearchitect]

The MODERNO. Living Room Collection. (Public Access)

My first CC. set has finally arrived and it takes inspiration from the Organic Modern Style of interior Design. The set as the name of the pack is named is a Collection of modern pieces made for a living room space. Now the name of the Collection is not a typo but it's how the word "modern" is written and said in Spanish. Pronunciation: mow-dare-no or maybe just google translate. :)

The Collection includes a set of 21 Pieces:

• Abstract Wall Sculpture

• April Coffee Table

• Ceramic Vase

• Console Table

• Gravity Floor Lamp

• Gravity Large Lamp

• Gravity Table Lamp

• Gropius Chair

• Layered Back Sofa

• Layered Back Lounge Chair

• Marble End Table

• Metal End Table

• Wooden End Table

• Marble Potted Plant

• Pouf Ottoman

• Plush Rug

• Spheric Pillow

• Throw Pillow

• Small / Mid / Tall Fireplace

You can find all items under the search keyword MODERNO in the build & buy catalogue.

For this set I was inspired by textures and materials such as wood, metal, marble, and stone. I've always been inspired by the Organic Modern Style of interior design, which usually incorporates the use of textiles and natural materials with a combination of neutral and soft color palettes. The whole set aside from the Plush Rug consists of original mesh creations. The plush rug is a mesh edit of the city living rug which I know most builders are a fan of. I thought it would be nice to create a refined version with useable swatches. All furniture pieces are Simified versions of real world pieces, such as the Sofa, Lounge Chair and the Gropius Chair, respectively made by furniture designers, Paolo Ferrari and Kateryna Sokolova.

I hope you enjoy the items as I have had in making them. I won't lie, but the process of learning how to make CC. was a journey but it was well worth it. I'm proud of my first set and I can't wait to unveil the 2nd part. Stay tuned and Thank you for visiting this page. :) Happy Simming

All items are base game compatible.

Now on Public Access, Originally Early till Oct 2nd.

[zatdummesmadchen]

Made some hetalia ships out of picrew! <3 and some thoughts about certain au’s.

Romerica: they both are cute farmers, Catherine is an Italian immigrant and Alfred is a city boy who has recently moved near her farm uwu. He thinks he’s the shit but he comes off as boyish and awkward. Catherine is frankly very annoyed with his antics, nonetheless he’s a hardworking boy when it comes down to it and she respects that.

Fraita: Francis is an aristocrat who has fallen for middle class Alicia, she has no idea what does the guy wants and he’s pretty intimidated and shy to say anything much. She works for his cousin and so he decides to ask the man for advice on how to woo a certain Italian mademoiselle.

Gerhun: Ludwig is a young man who has fallen for an older woman, Erzsebeta, strong and beautiful. Confused and also very intimidated, he decides to try his best and plans to get closer to her, to get to know her better. His feelings are pretty obvious to the lady, finding him rather endearing and gentlemanly, not bad at all if she says so herself.

Prukraine: Gilbert finally requests Kateryna to pay him a visit at his estate to which she agrees, they both are aristocratic, Kateryna finds him charming, handsome and respectful while he is absolutely smitten by the wonderful woman. they are about to have a picnic :3 Ivan might know about this, but as long as it strengthens relationships it doesn’t matter. albeit he is wary, nonetheless they both enjoy each other’s company.

Ruseng: Anya has visited England to discuss some diplomatic matters, Arthur blushes at her beauty and tries to cover it up by chastising her for not wearing proper winter clothes; Anya is taken aback by his concerns although it’s not that cold for her but doesn’t object to him as he leads her towards his home to get her a scarf. she finds it very charming and adorable.

Scotfra: Alistair and Francine are on a date in Paris after many years they have decided to finally get together once again. Alistair is very excited and Francine remembers the moments and the reasons she had chosen him, in the end. these both charming and insufferable dorks are very much in love no matter what anyone else says.

Nedtai: Taiwan has once again dragged her lover during a winter evening to have a little date with lots of snacks and a movie night with their friends. Lars is not amused in the slightest, he would be lying tho, if he said that seeing her happiness doesn’t make him feel happiness too.

Ruspan: they both are classmates; hanging out with their friends, Ivan decides to give Sakura a flower in secret as he calls her cute; the idiot not knowing his crushing so hard on her. the others decide to let him figure it out himself as they watch the couple in amusement.

Spabel: Childhood friends au. enough said. Emma has visited Spain after a long time and Antonio is more than delighted to accompany her and in the process, maybe ask her to stay with him during the stay. It’s been a long time since they met after all. call it a surprise date.

Romabel: Lovino is a simple farmer who is completely smitten by the supposedly ice princess; Natalya who is just a simple upper class girl, having no intentions to return the man’s advances. until one day, she pulls him along with her and orders him to be her date for the dance. blushing and scowling at the same time. not that he’s complaining, an absolutely beautiful lady asking him for a dance and you think he would say no? not happening.

[betweenthetimeandsound]

Three Minutes to Eternity: My ESC 250 (#40)

#40: Go_A -- Shum (Ukraine 2021)

"Заплетися, шуме, барвіночком Я тобі співаю весняночку"

"Shum, get twined with periwinkle I’m singing the spring song to you."

If you remember my "what could have been" segment before this top 50, Solovey was my favorite of 2020 and I was really happy to see Go_A represent their country this year. They had a unique take on electronic and traditional music and wanted to see where they went with it. Though the route to their song was a bit...funky.

In January, they released Shum--but it was the four-minute, version 1.0 for the song. I found it quite neat; I liked the mix of white-voice and the gradual build to a really exhilarating climax. It was at first considered for Eurovision, and then it wasn't, and then it joined a shortlist, and then it became Ukraine's entry. Of course, it became my joint favorite upon release...and then it was cut down to three minutes with a different set of lyrics.

At first, I found it quite clunky against the instrumental, though the latter flowed smoothly and retained the most important parts. Through the next several days, however, I listened to it over and over again. I loved the accelerated build and how it fit with this feeling of everything blooming again. It wasn't my favorite anymore, though I still loved it to bits.

What's also interesting was the contrast between Solovey and this one. Whereas the former is contained in the standard "verse-chorus" structure, and has a pretty consistent feel until the end, Shum is a lot more chaotic. Mixing techno with traditional Ukrainian lyrics, Go_A takes its inspiration from the coming of spring, with a melody imploring Shum (either "noise" or the god of the forest) to make everything bloom and get the world moving again. Inspiring, but also befitting, considering the pandemic and all.

Also, I feared this would fail to qualify, until the delegation revealed its staging. In another way, Shum managed to come to life in Rotterdam, with the contrast between Kateryna's ensemble and the cold winter landscapes. The minute before everything explodes is a total masterclass in camerawork and engaging the whole collective. With the final minute, everything goes nuts.

For this, Shum got rewarded handsomely--not only qualifying for the final, but also getting into the top 5, including placing 2nd in the televote. And it got a good amount of commercial success also, including topping multiple viral charts on Spotify, garnering millions of hits, and becoming the first Ukrainian-language song to appear on the Global Spotify chart at #69.

Not bad for the first Ukrainian-language song at the contest, not bad at all.

Personal ranking: 2nd/39 Actual ranking: 5th/26 GF in Rotterdam

[koolkat9]

EngUkr I am interested!!!!!

I don't know if you are referring to the ship bingo but just in case I made one. I always share my thoughts about the ship after the ship bingo after all.

I love them. One of my top England ships. The peak big, tall women x short, scrawny man. Arthur is absolutely smitten with her and is less reserved with showing it. She's just so soft and gentle, free of judgement where Arthur can be more open and honest. And in turn Kateryna is just as smitten and really appreciates how Arthur makes her feel about her insecurities (ex. how tall she is, how curvy she is). He loves them and tells her that they make her beautiful.

It's really hard to come up with some things to say though because really what draws me to this ship is how cuddly they'd be. Arthur is a touch-starved little gremlin and he's got this warm, squishy girlfriend who will give him all the cuddles he wants. He will hug and hold her whenever he gets the chance.

Another idea I really like for them is that Arthur makes Kateryna clothes/alters clothes so they can fit her in a way she likes. Being taller than the average woman and also quite busty, it's hard to find affordable clothes that fit her nicely and are cute. Arthur being well versed in sewing, knitting and making clothes decides to help her out.

Also just Kateryna picking Arthur up and making him flustered.

For more indepth, specific thoughts you can see some thoughts from both myself and fireandiceland linked below

An OTP ask game thing I answered

My Fic "Tailor Made for You"

A kiss prompt by fireandiceland

fireandiceland perfectly summing up this ship

Me rambling about them

Okay, I think i summarized it best here:

"But it’s one of my fav m/f relationship. Bisexuals with tall gorgeous woman and a short, kind of average guy. Arthur fucking worships her because she’s beautiful and he feels lucky so he doesn’t dare let his pride jeopardize things.

And Kateryna is just so soft and gentle. Able to gently peel back the last layers of Arthur’s emotional defenses.

They give each other the affection they both crave. Kateryna needs someone who respects her, who looks at her not just for her body, who asks her what she wants, who puts her needs first. Arthur needs someone who is patient, gentle, who will attempt to communicate instead of blowing up when he gets defensive and know when he needs space to calm down and then talk."

But if you ever want specific headcanons, just give me a prompt and I'll be happy to ramble.

[priya-san]

And now for the shitpost headcanons that no one asked for!

Which Eurovision 2021 performance did the Devil May Cry characters enjoy the most? Please enjoy this super indulgent, niche content that I've thought too much about.

Dante

Look we all thought Dante’s favourite would have been Italy, but he was actually gunning for Serbia! This man stans powerful women and Loco Loco by Hurricane showed just that. He thought their performance was a banger, and constantly gets their song stuck in his head.

Vergil

Ugh, why would you even ask him that question? Obviously he didn’t care to watch the show, but stupid Dante had to go and make him. He would never admit it, but he’s pretty pleased that Italy won with Zitti e buoni by Måneskin. They had the best style, obviously.

Nero

This little emo was so fucking hyped when he first heard Dark Side by Blind Channel. Finland absolutely killed it and Nero was totally headbanging along during the final.

Lady

Lady stans a stylish queen, and no one rose to her standards like Kateryna Pavlenko. Shum by Go_A was a masterpiece from start to finish and while Lady was disappointed Ukraine didn’t win, she was so happy they made it to top 5.

Trish

From one powerful woman to another, Trish thought Russia completely dominated their final performance. Russian Woman by Manizha went on to her workout playlist immediately.

V

V could not go past the absolute poetry that is Tout l'Univers by Gjon’s Tears. The intensity of Switzerland’s performance almost brought him to tears. It just beat out Norway’s performance, although TIX’s song was just a little too real for him.

Nico

Azerbaijan’s performance just spoke to Nico. Mata Hari by Efendi was strong, playful and sassy just like her. She also loved just how much fire was in the performance.

Kyrie

This cinnamon roll had to love the most wholesome performance in the entire contest. Iceland’s song and story were her favourite by far. 10 Years by Daði og Gagnamagnið gave her all the feels and she’s mentally adopted the entire band.

[eurovision-del]

I’m back home after watching Eurovision with a friend, and I want to get my thoughts down!! (This is going to be a long post)

Top 5

Italy: Wow! I thought they could do it, but seeing them actually pull it off and win the whole thing is incredible! I can barely describe how happy I was when they won, I definitely found the voting a lot more stressful when my fave had a real chance at winning, but the payoff when they were announced as winners was worth it all! I’ve been a fan of Måneskin for a few years now, so seeing a band I like go from there to competing in Sanremo, to making it to Eurovision, to winning the whole damn thing is undescribable! Zitte E Buoni is such a fantastic song, and it’s going to continue to be one of my all time favourite Eurovision songs for many years to come!

Italy’s third victory was a long time coming, they’ve been consistently great over the past decade, but I’m very glad it was this song that did it for them! I also like it when a winner shakes up the perception of what a winning song should be, like Portugal 2017. This is the first time since 2006 that both a group and a rock act have won Eurovision, and personally I’ll be very glad if this causes a resurgence in both over the next few years. It’s also notable for being a song not sung in English, but I’ve got more to say on that later.

I always think it’s best when the televote winner is the overall Eurovision winner, so I’m very glad to see Italy topping the televote, and they did it by a decent margin, just over 50 points!

France: A very deserved second place. Barbara performed wonderfully and brought the magic to the Eurovision stage, she should be so proud of what she achieved. She was just unlucky that there was a better song this year, in another year Voila could have easily won. I wouldn’t mind seeing her, or especially her co-writer, Igit, who I’ve liked since he did Destination Eurovision in 2018, make a return to Eurovision, either as singers or songwriters.

Switzerland: I liked Tout l’Univers well enough based on the song, then it grew on me even more in the second semi final, so I was very happy to see it do well! Like Barbara, Gjon gave a brilliant performance tonight, and should be very proud of his third place! It’s great to see Swizterland, a country that struggled so much throughout the 2010s, pull off two top 5 finishes in a row at the turn of the decade. I’m hoping for more good things from them in the future!

Iceland: It’s such a shame that Daði and Gagnamagnið missed out on the chance to perform live in Eurovision, but thank goodness they were able to get that second rehearsal performance done as well as they did! The song and performance are so heartwarming, they utterly deserved this result. I’m really excited to see where Daði goes from here, I’ve actually already got tickets to see him live next year!

Ukraine: Like Italy, Ukraine managed to achieve the same result in the actual contest as they did in my personal ranking! I was worried the song would be too divisive, but the performance was perfect and elevated the whole thing, and Kateryna’s vocal perforamnce was flawless. Very pleased to see them achieve second place in the televote!

I’ve watched Eurovision since 2014, and I can say with confidence that this is the first time since that year that I’ve had no complaints about the top 5. I’ve also gone back and watched every Eurovision ever, and I’m struggling to think of a year that I’ve been this happy with the top 10, every place from 1 to 9 I think is either well deserved or better than I was hoping for! It’s not until you get to Greece in 10th place that I reach a song I think is mildly overrated in the results.

Other Countries

Finland: I won’t do a full run down on Lithuania and Russia, two of my other  favourites, as I’ve said it all by saying I’m so happy with the top 10, but I want to give a special mention to Finland. For a second I was really worried when their televote result was so high, as I thought it might indicate the vote for the two  rock songs had been split. I’m so thankful to be proven wrong, and for these results to show that not only is there a place for all kinds of rock and metal music in Eurovision, but that they can exist alongside each other and do well. I also really want to congratulate Finland on achieving their second best result ever! While I like it when countries switch things up I won’t complain if Finland look at their previous results and decide that they’ve found their niche in rock and metal music.

The Netherlands: My biggest disappointment in terms of result. I wasn’t too surprised, based on the neutral to negative reaction of the fans at large and the odds, but I still don’t really understand it. This song deserved a lot more than 11 points! In my ideal Eurovision I’d say this should be the sort of song juries reward, they should have the time to look at lyrics and composition and cultural influence and reward songs as good as this one. But apparently it wasn’t to be. I really hope no one gets discouraged by this result, and I’d be very happy to see more artists representing their stories and their non-European cultures at Eurovision in the future.

United Kingdom: Look, I have to talk about my own country. I’m honestly more worried about the backlash the media here is going to have than I am disappointed in this result. But I am still a little disappointed. I don’t think this song was the worst in the final, sure, it was definitely in the bottom half, but I can think of serveral songs worse than this. And the nil points was totally undeserved. That marks our second nil points, the only other being Cry Baby in 2003, and this song is leagues better than that ever was, putting them in the same category feels like an insult. That said, I can’t complain too much. This year was very strong, and I’m not actually sure where the points would have come from. Embers is a nice song, but it’s not strong enough or interesting enough to be anyone’s favourite, maybe it should rank in the middle for everyone, but why would it rank in their top 10?

I’ve seen an idea that maybe the BBC should just give the competition to ITV for a few years, and while I don’t think that would solve our problems, we do need a shake up. The BGM deal seemed like a good move, but if it’s only going to continue to produce ‘nice’ songs rather than ‘impactful’ songs, it’s not going to help us on the scoreboard. I fully believe that there’s no reason the UK shouldn’t do well at Eurovision. In an ideal world, we’d organise a national finla filled with unique entries, not the drivel that our last national final contained - I don’t think our strength is actually going to be in our pop industry at Eurovision, I think it’ll be in our less mainstream stuff. I’d love for us to also try sending a song in Welsh, Gaelic, or even Scots, something that’s full of cultural identity and couldn’t come from anywhere else in the world. It might not be a winner, but I think a song like that would have a far better song of catching people’s attention and doing well at the contest than songs our current strategy produces ever would.

Other Thoughts

This year was a victory for the unique and artistic, there’s not a single song in the top 9 that could be classified as a straightforward pop song. I also want to note that the entire top 3 is non-English, Italian and two French entries. This is the only time that’s ever happened since the language rule was abolished, and since the last few years of that produced English podium placing songs, it’s the first year it’s happened since 1995. I really hope that sends the message out loud and clear that songs in native languages can and do succeed at Eurovision!

In 2019 I talked a bit about the Juries vs the Televote, and how I wasn’t too keen on the Jury results that year. This year, aside from overlooking The Netherlands, I’d say they did their job pretty well. The combined results seem very fair, better than both the Televote and the Jury results individually, and I think that shows the system is working at its best. I’m very glad to see Portugal score well, I thought the whole entry was brilliant and it deserved the boost the juries gave it. Likewise I thought Lithuania deserved a top 10 result and was glad the televote responded to it enough to put it there. The best countries, however, scored well in both, I was happy to have a year without a surprise jury favourite. Switzerland was definitely a fair jury winner.

Closing Thoughts 

Eurovision 2021 has been brilliant! We got a really strong set of songs, some fantastic performances, and a set of results I generally really agree with, completed by my ideal winner! Maybe when the buzz has died down I’ll reconsider, but right now I’m very confidently calling this my favourite of the contests that I’ve watched live - maybe my favourite contest ever? Either way, it’s been a good one, and I’m already eagerly anticipating next year!

[crystal-methionine]

The Post-Eurovision ranking and comments from an American that nobody asked for:

1. Switzerland 🇨🇭 Gjon’s Tears - Tout l’univers: I absolutely was enamored by this song, its artistry, and the artist. He can really sing and one of my early favorites from this year. So happy for him to get in the top 3 bc it was well deserved. 100/10

2. Italy 🇮🇹 Måneskin - Zitti e Buoni: Deserved winners. As queer as you can get and I am here for it. Another early favorite of mine constantly fighting with Switzerland for the top spot. 100/10

3. Iceland 🇮🇸 Dadi og Gagnamagnid - 10 Years: A beautiful song dedicated to his wife and deserved Top 5 for sure. Last year’s song would have won hands down so I’m bummed he couldn’t win the first one for Iceland but brilliant song and I hope the group stays together to produce more music. 99/10

4. Bulgaria 🇧🇬 Victoria - Growing Up Is Getting Old: Eurovision fandom will forever say Imaginary Friend or Ugly Cry was the better song to send, but I don’t think they would have won the contest either. This year was strong, and I personally think Growing Up was a perfect choice from Victoria. It deserved top 10 so I was pissed that it came 11th on the night and received so few televotes. 97/10

5. Ukraine 🇺🇦 Go_A - SHUM: To all y’all who said this wouldn’t qualify when the new version came out, eat those words hun. This was a masterpiece, and the live performances just elevated it further. Honestly, Kateryna could step on me, and I would let her. Who doesn’t love an ethnic modern fusion rave? 95/10

6. Serbia 🇷🇸 Hurricane - Loco Loco: I honestly have to say when it came out, it was never breaking my top 20, but here we are. This group of gals is amazing. The choreo, hairography, and the still great vocals won my gay ass over. They served and deserved top 10 in my eye. 90/10

7. Greece 🇬🇷 Stefania - Last Dance: Much like Serbia, I kinda dismissed this as a top 10 song at first, but after many listens and then the live shows, it was one of the best songs this year. Last year’s song was nowhere near a qualifier for me, and then I thought they had a good chance of being top 5 this year. Amazing improvement and can’t wait to see what comes next from Stefania. 80/10

8. Malta 🇲🇹 Destiny - Je me casse: Not going to lie, the studio definitely did more for me. It was up with Italy and Switzerland for winner contention until the live shows. Don’t get me wrong, Destiny is still amazing live, and the song is a deserved top 5 song. However, the costume and staging just really didn’t add to the song and I think detracted a bit. Her song last year was also much better in my opinion. 75/10

9. San Marino 🇸🇲 Senhit ft Flo Rida - Adrenalina: Oh boy this was a party, and the fact Flo Rida actually was there made it even better. The staging and costuming was absolutely camp, and I was here for it. This was definitely not underrated by fans beforehand, but the jury and televote were beyond robberies in my opinion. Granted I know the backing vocals were carrying the chorus a lot so in terms of vocals, I can see where this song got dinged, but this should have been San Marino’s best ever result at Eurovision, and it wasn’t so I’m mad. 60/10

10. France 🇫🇷 Barbara Pravi - Voila: The new Edith Piaf and probably one of the most representative of the country’s culture for a song. A definite deserved runner up on the night but for me 10th place. I loved the staging, the costume, the emotions. It was all right for Eurovision and me. 50/10

11. Cyprus 🇨🇾 Elena Tsingarou - El Diablo: Come through Cyprus with another female pop banger. I’d say if the formula ain’t broke don’t fix it, but wasn’t really enough to crack top 10 this year. Another early favorite of mine this year but soon got eclipsed. Still going to be listening to El Diablo for a while. 49/10

12. Russia 🇷🇺 Manizha - Russian Woman: I can’t lie that at first, this song was absolutely trash to me but quickly rose the ranks and became one of my faves. Same thing happened last year with Uno. We also always love a good female empowerment moment with the native language thrown in. Manizha is a girlboss without the gaslighting and a true queen. Deserved top 10 the night of. 40/10

13. Lithuania 🇱🇹 The Roop - Discoteque: An earworm for first listen and was top 10 for a while for me but like Cyprus, lost out to some others. No doubt this is a deserved top 10 the night of. 35/10

14. Croatia 🇭🇷 Albina - Tick Tock: The first song to get me pressed on it’s placement. Deserved to be in the final over both Israel and Norway (please come for me I don’t care). They freakin rocked that stage during the semis and the song is absolutely a bop. Albina deserved better. 30/10

15. Sweden 🇸🇪 Tusse - Voices: A beautiful song by an amazing artist. Sure the lyrics were a bit cliche Eurovision but guess what...it’s Eurovision. I can hear the voices. Keep carrying on Tusse. 25/10

16. Albania 🇦🇱 Anxehla Peristeri - Karma: This song grew on me a lot. I liked it but wasn’t a don’t skip for a while on my playlist. The live performance changed it for me. She slayed and the staging was everything for Miss Thing. Also native language brownie points. 24/10

17. Finland 🇫🇮 Blind Channel - Darkside: Before you come for me for having this at 17th, keep reading. I’m not a big fan of the lyrics but the song is absolutely fantastic. This style of music isn’t something I pull out on a playlist often, but I had my middle fingers up for this one (and pointed at Germany but we’ll discuss later). Deserved top 10 as they rocked it on stage. 20/10

18. The Netherlands 🇳🇱 Jeangu Macrooy - Birth of a New Age: I absolutely do not understand the hate for this song. I was also a huge fan of Grow last year so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised for being generally alone again. The fact it got 0 points in the televote and only 11 in the jury is not surprising but extremely disappointing to me. This song is a masterpiece much like the ones ranked above it. Jeangu, you are amazing and deserved so much better than this. 20/10

19. Belgium 🇧🇪 Hooverphonic - The Wrong Place: Fantastic song but fantastic artists. Always here for a dark pop moment. Gonna go get my own Johnny Cash T-shirt. 15/10

20. Spain 🇪🇸 Blas Cantó - Voy a Quedarme: Such a heartfelt ballad. I enjoyed it quite a bit and don’t understand the hate it has. Didn’t deserve 0 points in the televote. 14/10

21. Denmark 🇩🇰 Fyr og Flamme - Øve Os På Hinanden: Look we all know this song is cheesy but it’s the cheesiest Velveeta queso loco so it’s ranked so high in my opinion. This is a nod to the whacky and weird Eurovision I love. It’s always in my head and I always find myself dancing along. Deserved to be in the final over two of the songs in Semi 2. 13/10

22. Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 Efendi - Mata Hari: As far as the song goes, it’s enjoyable, but the stage show was a hot mess in my opinion. The choreo looked a mess and the different sheer legging configurations on the backup dancers was not the correct fashion choice in my opinion as I was distracted by the thought of why are they all different. Did deserve their spot in the final though. 12/10

23. Moldova 🇲🇩 Natalia Gordienko - Sugar: The studio version of this song is a heavily replayed one on my playlist bc of the drop and dance-ability of the song. However the downfall of the song was it’s live performance. The staging was fine and the choreo was great but those attempted sexy whisper vocals were not the choice to go with. I don’t want to sugar-coat this 😝 so they were terrible. Glad she made it but I felt her position in the final was one of just pure luck. 11/10

24. UK 🇬🇧 James Newman - Embers: The nul points was a huge ass oof. This song isn’t bad but I can see where people didn’t vote for it bc it’s not super memorable in terms of who all was participating this year. I like the song and always sing and dance along. 10/10

25. Israel 🇮🇱 Eden Alene - Set Me Free: This is how to do a revamp and be successful. Eden is a fantastic artist who can clearly sing, but the live performance was not all that sans the whistle tones. Yet the whistle tones aside, the song is lacking a lot. When looking back at the songs available, this one should not have been the selected one. I was always on the fence with this one and still am. 9.5/10

26. Czechia 🇨🇿 Benny Cristo - Omaga: The live definitely hurt this song in the first minute and a half. The second half was absolutely what should have happened in terms of vocals. Still like the song and listen to it often. 9.25/10

27. Ireland 🇮🇪 Leslie Roy - Maps: This song was a victim of a super strong bloodbath and shoddy staging ideas. The song is arresting and a bop. Leslie’s gruff voice mixed with the modernized Irish sounds is a match made. The staging of this song that required Leslie to run along with the beat and the distracting and constantly changing bits of the performance we’re definitely it’s downfall. It didn’t deserve last place in Semi 1 though. 9.25/10

28. Portugal 🇵🇹 The Black Mamba - Love Is On My Side: I am the first to admit that while I don’t like the song, it deserved the final. The staging and atmosphere elevated the song. 9/10

29. Austria 🇦🇹 Vincent Bueno - Amen: In the battle of the Amens, this one wins solely based on the classy and amazing staging. Don’t get me wrong, Slovenia’s was also elevating but this one did it better. 8.5/10

30. Australia 🇦🇺 Montaigne - Technicolor: This song is a fantastic one for studio. The live since the Sydney Mardi Gras performance has been rough and didn’t necessarily improve. I feel bad bc I do really love this song but it definitely didn’t deserve to qualify. This being said, I love Montaigne, and Don’t Break Me was my runner up last year, and I still listen to it as my anthem when I’m feeling down. I wish I could rank this higher but I can’t. 8.5/10

31. Romania 🇷🇴 Roxen - Amnesia: This song is great in the studio but it got old real fast for me and I don’t know why. This mixed with the poor vocals and the bizarre costume:stage combo was really what did this in and got this low in my ranking. 8.25/10

32. Slovenia 🇸🇮 Ana Soklic - Amen: The loser of the Amen battle, but just barely. The song and vocals are better in my opinion but the whole package was just barely edged out in the end. 8/10

33. Latvia 🇱🇻 Samanta Tīna - Moon Is Rising: Look, this song is nowhere near as good as last years. The queeeeeen sashayed away with that annoying trap beat. 8/10

34. North Macedonia 🇲🇰 Vasil - Here I Stand: Leave it to the gays for bringing musical theatre to Eurovision. The song honestly isn’t that special or memorable but he’s higher up bc his stage and voice are amazing. 7/10

35. Norway 🇳🇴 Tix - Fallen Angel: A great message on mental health outside of the song and Tix seems like a quality fella but I do not like the song. I preferred it in Norwegian. And this low ranking is not at all influenced over him beating out Keiino (but maybe a slight bit tho). 5/10

36. Estonia 🇪🇪 Uku Suviste - The Lucky One: While this was 1000% better than last years entry, it still was relatively boring. The stage was equally as boring so sorry Estonia, but you didn’t make the mark. 4.5/10

37. Poland 🇵🇱 Rafael - The Ride: This throwback to the 80s was a bad one. The attempt at a one hit wonder vibe really hurt it along with the artist’s terrible vocals. Also half the time, he was behind the pyro and relying on backup vocals. 4/10

38. Georgia 🇬🇪 Tornike Kipiani - You: You really should not have to wait so long for the more upbeat rock ending of this. If it was that last 30 seconds for 3 minutes, it would be much better. A definite step back from last year. 1/10

39. Germany 🇩🇪 Jendrick - I Don’t Feel Hate: Jendrick might not feel hate but I do bc that is all I feel when this song comes on. 0.5/10