#i hate actors turning into influencers and wanting to sell us whatever

[baronessblixen]

https://www.tumblr.com/baronessblixen/715686074901528576/a-lot-of-people-actually-criticize-her-new-gspot She worked with a drinks expert who has spent 40 years in the business so it's not like she hasn't done this legitimately. And tbh a huge amount of celebrities these days are into creating their own products, whether it be perfumes, face creams, make-up, or a wine range, or clothing line. It's more common than not. And if it doesn't interest you, just scroll by. No one, literally no one, is forcing you to care.

Yes, I know many celebrities are doing it. Look at Gwyneth Paltrow and Goop. That doesn't mean I have to like it. In fact, if I remember correctly, I recently mentioned how much I disliked this in reply to another anon.

Anon, I did scroll by. I reblogged exactly one post because what Gillian said was relatable. Other than that I haven't posted anything about it. I answered an ask about it - on my blog - where I expressed my opinion on the matter. Again, on my blog.

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Psycho Analysis: Spider-Man Movie Villains

(WARNING! This analysis contains SPOILERS!)

Spider-Man, Spider-Man, he does whatever a spider can. And what do spiders seem really good at? Amassing huge quantities of hatred and animosity! True to the wily arachnids that inspired him, Spider-Man has quite the impressive gallery of foes, one that I might say rivals Batman as the greatest in comic book history with how colorful, crazy, and creative they are. Even villains derivative of one another, like Hobgoblin and Green Goblin or Carnage and Venom, manage to carve out unique niches that help make them fun and memorable.

And thankfully, these qualities usually translated pretty well to film! I’ve talked about how good Mysterio, Vulture, Kingpin, and Prowler are before, so now it’s time to cover the others all in one fell swoop! From the Raimi trilogy, we have Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Harry Osborn, Sandman, and Eddie Brock/Venom; from the Andrew Garfield duology, we have Lizard, Electro, Rhino, and Harry Osborn again; and leftover from Into the Spider-Verse we have Olivia Octavius, Tombstone, Scorpion, and that film’s brief take on Green Goblin! Oh, and why not throw in Riot from Venom while we’re at it, because he sucks way too much to get his own Psycho Analysis.

Motivation/Goals: A lot of villains are motivated by the classic motivation: revenge. All of the Green Goblins manage to have this as a main part of their actions, making them remarkably consistent and very easy to discuss. The Norman of the Raimi films wants to take out his anger at being frozen out of his own company, and his son wants revenge for his death, while the Harry of the Garfield films wants his vengeance because Spider-Man wouldn’t help cure him of his otherwise incurable disaease that would kill him (a fact made worse because Spider-Man is his actual best friend, Peter Parker, who is coldly condemning his pal to death). The only one who doesn’t really fit is the Spider-Verse take on Green Goblin, and that’s more because he has extremely limited screentime and spends all of it fighting Peter and being scary as hell.

Eddie Brock/Venom is a very interesting case as both halves of the character are motivated by different reasons. The symbiote half is, of course, motivated by the fact that Peter has tried to rid himself of it via using a church bell to kill it. Eddie, on the other hand, has the most absolutely hilarious motivation ever: He wants Peter Parker to die because Peter exposed him for submitting fraudulent pictures to J. Jonah Jameson. Eddie literally breached journalistic ethics but apparently Peter’s to blame for exposing his literal, actual crime! And he prays to God for Peter to die! This version of Eddie is cartoonishly hilarious.Finally, we have Max Dillon, AKA Electro, who is lashing out at a world that did nothing but belittle and demean him, giving him a far more sympathetic motive for revenge.

Kurt Connors is an interesting halfway point between the Doc Ocks and the villains above, because he is not really evil and his whole transformation came about for altruistic scientific reasons, as he tested his serum on himself because they were going to test it out on the public without consent. While the serum drives him mad, he initially only goes after those who were going to use his formula with people as guinea pigs.

Interestingly, the two Doc Ocks contrast each other. While both of them are doing evil deeds for scientific reasons, Otto Octavius is being forced by his tentacles and genuinely wishes to make the world a better place otherwise. Olivia, on the other hand, is a gleeful sadist who doesn’t care who she hurts as long as she can get some sort of scientific knowledge from it.

Sandman is interesting case because his motivations are entirely sympathetic and despite being the man who killed Uncle Ben, it was entirely accidental and he always regretted it. He only ever wanted to get money to save his daughter. It’s really hard not to sympathize with a guy who turned to desperate measures because the American health care system sucks even in a universe where a dude dressed in a bright red suit swings around New York.

Then there are all the rest. Aleksei Systevich, AKA Rhino, is just a criminal, and has barely any screentime to establish a motivation beyond that. This is especially hilarious because the ads really hyped this guy up, only for him to get maybe five minutes of screentime, with most of it at the very end of the movie before the credits (we don’t even get to see his final battle). Tombstone and Scorpion are basically just lackeys for Kingpin, with little established beyond that. Scorpion almost shows up entirely out of nowhere, just popping in for the fight at Aunt May’s house and then the final battle. And then there’s Riot, who just wants to start a symbiote apocalypse on Earth.

Performance: Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, and Thomas Haden Church as Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, and Sandman in the Raimi trilogy are, in a word, iconic. Dafoe brings a gleeful, cackling hamminess to the Goblin that perfectly suits him and manages to steal every single with how delightfully, cartoonishly evil he is combined with some hilariously chummy moments with Spider-Man. Molina as Ock goes in the opposite direction of hamminess, where instead of making Octavius cartoonishly evil, he gives him this air of gravitas to the point where he somehow manages to make this villain with giant metal tentacles that are controlling his mind come off as sophisticated and serious as Hannibal Lecter. Church meanwhile just looks eerily perfect as Sandman, as if he were ripped straight from the comics and put onscreen, and then of course there’s how well he manages to sell the emotional moments of the character.

The Harrys are a rather mixed bag, sad to say. James Franco and Dennis DeHaan aren’t really bad actors, but they unfortunately have the problem of living in the shadow of the actor who played their dad (Franco) or being in a really awful movie with a terrible script (DeHaan). Franco at least makes up for this by being hilariously, cartoonishly evil to the extent of his dad in the third Raimi film, but DeHaan unfortunately falls rather flat. Topher Grace as Venom is a choice that seems baffling until you realize Raimi cast an actor like this on purpose because he hates Venom so much he didn’t want to give him any dignity.

Jamie Foxx as Electro seems odd at first, but I feel it’s actually a great casting choice, and despite how unbelievably stupid the script is, he’s actually able to do a fairly good job. If his character was in a better movie, he’d probably get a lot less flak (and he’ll be getting his chance soon enough, apparently). Overall, he’s the best part of the Garfield films. Rhys Ifans and Paul Giamatti as Lizard and Rhino are serviceable, but neither film they’re in really gives them much to work with. Giamatti at least gets to steal the show with his brief scenes by being an absolute ham, but Ifans is sadly a bit forgettable in his role (though not for lack of trying on his part).

Now onto the Spider-Verse ensemble! Considering how I gushed over her delightful performance as the Wicked Witch of Westview in WandaVision as well as the fact she is solely responsible for me resurrecting this series from its long hiatus, it should come as no shock at all that Kathryn Hahn as Olivia Octavius is just perfect. Controversial opinion, I know, might get some flak for this hot take. Jorma Taccone as Green Goblin, Joaquin Cosio as Scorpion, and Marvin Jones III as Tombstone all do well for what they’re given, but it’s clear most of the love among Kingpin’s henchmen was given to her (and Prowler, but he got his own review where I talked about how great he is).

Oh, right, Riot. I forgot about him. Riz Ahmed, who plays the human villain Carlton Drake I forgot to mention because he’s incredibly boring, is a really good (and sexy) actor. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get to be quite as good and sexy as an actor like him should be in his dual role. In an interesting subversion of how things usually go, he ends up being rather bland compared to the hammy, bonkers hero. This was Tom Hardy’s show, and no one was stealing it from him.

Final Fate: The Raimi films were all made during a time when, if your name wasn’t Magneto and you were a superhero movie villain, you were dying, a trend I’m certainly glad is finally starting to die off. Thankfully, Green Goblin manages to stick around and posthumously influence Harry, so in his case it’s not so bad. Harry and Doc Ock both manage to overcome the darkness in their hearts at the end and sacrifice their lives to help save the day, while Eddie dies after becoming such a simp for the symbiote he leaps into it while Peter is blowing it up. With Sandman, Peter actually has a touching reconciliation with Sandman at the end, forgiving him for the death of Uncle Ben before Sandman dissolves into dust and floats away on the breeze. And no, this is his power, not Thanos’ snap reaching across time, space, and dimensions; Sandman actually gets out of these films alive.

The other villains actually get off easier, as most of them go to jail. From the Amazing Spider-Man films, DeHaan’s Goblin and Rhys Ifan’s Lizard both end up in prison, and it’s safe to assume that the villains of Spider-Verse are going to jail alongside Kingpin. Octavius was hit by a bus, sure, but considering how popular she ended up being it would be really dumb to have that actually kill her. With Electro and Rhino though, it’s really ambiguous, the former because he’s made of electricity and the way he was defeated means it is possible he survived, and the latter because we never actually see the outcome of his battle with Spider-Man. If the film they were in was actually good and warranted sequels, we may have found out what their true fates were, but at the very least Electro is moving over to the MCU alongside Molina’s Doc Ock.

Oh, right, forgot Riot again. He dies.

Best Scene/Best Quote: I’m combining these this time just to make it easier on me, because in at least in a couple cases the two are the same.

Green Goblin has a lot to choose from, to the point where it’s easy to cop out and just say every scene he’s in is amazing. I’ve always been fond of his chummy chat with Spider-Man on the rooftop, or the scene where he terrifies Aunt May, or the scene where he attacks the parade and vaporizes the board of directors with pumpkin bombs.

Dock Ock is easy: the train battle. This might be one of the best action scenes in any superhero movie ever, and since he’s the villain in it, it almost goes without saying..There’s a reason this scene is singled out so often.

Eddie Brock and DeHaan Goblin actually have their best scenes also be their best lines. Eddie praying for God to kill Peter Parker and DeHaan!Harry screaming “YOU’RE A FRAUD, SPIDER-MAN!” after Spidey refuses to give him a life-saving blood transfusion are just so absolutely hilarious and memorable that you can’t hate them.

Aside from the powerful forgiveness moment at the film’s end, I think it’s really indisputable that the best scene from Sandman, and perhaps the Raimi trilogy as a whole, is the scene of Sandman’s creation. Words really can’t do it justice, so just watch:

Electro’s best moment isn’t even actually part of the movie, unless you want to count his rendition of “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider.” No, his is from a Tumblr post, proving definitively that Electro’s power can not be contained.

For Olivia, I’d say either of the reveals for her are great. You can go with the twist that she’s the Doc Ock of Miles’ universe, or the twist that she might have fucked Aunt May. Either way, you can’t really go wrong.

The rest of the villains… yeah, I’ve got nothing. At least with Rhino you can say his entire time on screen was fun, but the rest? Nope. They’re kind of just there.

Final Thoughts & Score:

Green Goblin

Where to begin with this guy? He is everything I look for in a great villain: he’s hammy and cartoonish, he can be terrifying and threatening when he wants to be, he has a ridiculous yet memorable costume, every word out of his mouth is hilarious and memorable, and he’s played by an amazing actor. It’s hard to dispute that Doc Ock is the best villain in Raimi’s trilogy, but Goblin is definitely the most fun. If you thought he’d get less than a 10/10, you thought wrong.

Doctor Octopus

Aside from Green Goblin, Doc Ock is Spidey’s most iconic and memorable foe, nd this adaptation of him does not disappoint. By making him a more tragic and somewhat anti-villainous figure and putting him in the hands of someone as awesome and talented as Alfred Molina, they managed to make such a cartoonish villain retain that comic book silliness while still being a legitimately imposing antagonist. I suppose it helps that a director who knows how to balance silly and serous like Raimi helps. It’s absolutely not a shock that the MCU wants to bring Molina back, because really, I can’t see anyone making the dubious doctor nearly as cool as the 10/10 performance Molina gave.

Harry Osborn

Franco’s Harry has an interesting arc, but one that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense under scrutiny. Frankly, his descent into villain is handled well but when he actually gets to be a villain in the third film, things fall apart.. But at any rate, he gets to be cartoonishly hilarious while he pettily ruins Peter’s life, so I think a 3/10 is warranted just for how goofy he is.

Eddie Brock/Venom

For the longest time, I hated Eddie Brock, but loved the Venom symbiote for its fantastic design… A design hampered by the fact Topher Grace keeps sticking his face through the symbiote and talking in his normal voice. But then one day I remembered Eddie literally prays to God for Peter Parker to die, and I realize that as crappy as this version of Venom is, he’s undoubtedly hilarious. A 3/10 mainly because of how hilariously bad he is, though the design of the symbiote is unironically great. Shame Grace kept sticking his face through and that Raimi hates the character.

Sandman

Sandman is a villain who deserved a better movie. Sure, Spider-Man 3 is fun and funny, but a character with this much depth and emotional weight deserved a film of the caliber of Spider-Man 2. At any rate, he adds a bit of class and dignity to the proceedings, and Thomas Haden Church really nails it. He’s a 9/10 for sure.

Lizard

Lizard is just a very boring villain, which is a shame because Lizard is not a boring villain in the comics and other media like the cartoons. I don’t really know if he was the best choice for Spider-Man’s first outing; I’ll at least give him that he’s a more inspired choice than doing the Green Goblin again, but that doesn’t score him higher than a 4/10. As boring as he ends up being, that library fight was pretty cool and had a great Stan Lee cameo, so I can’t say he’s the bottom of the barrel.

Electro

Electro is a villain who desperately deserved a better movie. While his backstory as a nerdy fanboy who got kicked around by the world is nothing new, or fresh, or original, Jamie Foxx manages to make the character work fairly well even though almost everything around him is unbelievably stupid. The fact he managed to make “Don’t you know? I’m Electro” sound cool and badass is a testament to his skill, and thankfully he’s coming back in the MCU in some way, so I guess Electro’s power can not be contained to a single movie. Still, this iteration only manages to get to a 6/10, because while all the elements of greatness are there, he’s hampered by the abysmal writing.

Rhino

Paul Giamatti certainly looks like he’s having a blast here. His attitude is almost infectious, but alas, his time is too brief to bring any great joy, and his jarring appearance out of nowhere at the end of the film certainly do him no favors. Still, Giamatti keeps Rhino from sinking any lower than a 5/10.

Harry Osborn

This Harry is just a joke. His arc makes no sense, his actions are unbelievable, and he ends up looking like a really poor Warwick Davis Leprechaun cosplayer. The only thing of note about him is that he’s a Harry who becomes the Green Goblin before his father, something that doesn’t happen very often, and that’s not enough to score this loser higher than a 2/10. Not even killing Gwen Stacy makes him any more impressive, and that’s a real shame.

Olivia Octavius

Olivia Octavius is widely beloved by just about everyone who sees the film.. myself included. This is just a really fun, clever twist on Doctor Octopus, and it’s the sort of character you really hope gets a Harley Quinn-level break into becoming an iconic character across multiple forms of media. Kathryn Hahn’s fun performance and the wonderful design and fight sequences really make Olivia a 9/10.

Tombstone

Tombstone is a villain you might actually forget is in the movie, which is a damn shame. He’s an albino black man, a badass bodyguard, and has a striking design, but he gets a single line of dialogue and is tasked with bodyguarding a man who not only has cyborgs under his employ, but who murdered Spider-Man with his bare hands. Tombstone ultimately feels really superfluous, which is a shame because around the same time Into the Spider-Verse came out he had a very memorable and well-liked appearance in the Spider-Man video game. It’s a real shame but I gotta give this version of Tombstone a 2/10.

Scorpion

Scorpion has a lot of problems of Tombstone above, but he makes up for a lot of his flaws by having a really cool and striking design. Does it really make him a great villain? No. He’s not particularly well-characterized and he’s really just there to look cool and give Olivia backup. He’s a 4/10 at best, saved from being lower only by his awesome look. Looking cool really can get you far in some cases.

Green Goblin

Out of all the really minor villains in Spider-Verse, this version of Norman might be the best. His role is tiny, only appearing during the scene where the Peter Parker of Miles’ universe gets killed, but his battle with Spider-Man is what sets the entire plot in motion. His cool and terrifying design definitely help make him stand out enough to earn at least a 6/10.

Riot & Carlton Drake

Look, there’s a reason I kept forgetting these guys. They’re not memorable in the slightest. Venom may be a fantastic work of art, but that’s because Tom Hardy kills it in his dual role as Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote. Drake is just a boring corporate villain, the kind I hate talking about and the kind I’d only ever even bother mentioning in a review like this. And Riot is just a generic Big Gray CGI Monster for the hero to have a final battle with. Neither of these two are particularly interesting, and neither deserves more than a 2/10.

That’s it, right? There can’t be any more villains, I must have covered them all. Well, not quite. There’s one more character who is most certainly an antagonist and who I really, really want to talk about. And you’re absolutely not going to believe who it is.

You ready?

Psycho Analysis: Emo Peter

“Now wait,” you may be asking, “Emo Peter? Really? How does he count as a villain?” Well, as Schafrillas pointed out in his video on Spider-Man 3, Emo Peter is actually the antagonist for much of the second act. Peter, influenced by the symbiote, becomes a raging jackass and hurts and alienates everyone around him by being a colossal douchebag, not to mention how violent he gets as Spider-Man. This is very much an extreme case of the hero’s greatest enemy being themselves, because literally, Peter’s enemy in the chunk of the movie with Emo Peter is his own overinflated ego

Motivation/Goals: I mean, at the end of the day, it’s still Peter. He still wants to do the typical Peter Parker stuff, he’s just a jackass while he does it.

Performance: It’s Tobey Maguire busting loose and getting to act like an absolute doofus. There is literally nothing about this that isn’t amazing and I’m sorry if you can’t see it.

Final Fate: Peter eventually comes to realize that maybe the symbiote making him act like an egomaniacal tool is not a good thing, and so rebels against it, ultimately leading him to the roof of a church where Eddie Brock is praying for him to die and, well, the rest is history.

Best Scene:

Best Dance Move:

Final Thoughts & Score: Emo Peter has gotten a bad reputation over the years, but Schafrillas’ video really made me rethink why. As he puts it, Emo Peter comes off not as someone cool, but as what a loser thinks a cool person would be (which makes him still a loser). It seems fairly likely that the audience isn’t supposed to be rooting for Emo Peter or finding him cool, but instead finding him insufferable, ridiculous, and funny. We’re supposed to be laughing at Peter’s egomania, at his absurd and hammy showboating, not cheering him on and desiring to emulate him.

And that ultimately makes it more satisfying when Peter overcomes his ego and decides to rid himself of the symbiote. It might seem like I’m giving Spider-Man 3 a lot of credit here, but even Sam Raimi half-assing a movie wouldn’t leave things completely devoid of underlying brilliance. Emo Peter isn’t a villain in the sense that he’s some superpowered antagonist, he’s a physical representation of the negative impacts of fame and ego on Peter. This is Peter letting go of what makes him a hero and just reveling in being an absolute jerkwad to everyone around him.

I love the memes as much as everyone else of course, but Emo Peter is also a pretty clever symbolic foe. But even though I’m giving him an 8/10, we all know the real reason why he’s scoring so high:

Ok, but that’s it now, right? No more Spider-Man villains? Well, maybe for now. But don’t forget:

There’s gonna be Carnage.

[astagfirullah-house]

Cuffs

- 1 - "Ugh, I hate working with him!!" Bano said to the mirror while the makeup artist tried to smudge her eyeliner. "Does he have to be so annoying" She grimaced. _And handso- no_ Bano stopped herself from finishing that thought. That insufferable human being cannot be attractive. Not at all.

"Ma'am they are requesting your presence" came the voice of a boy who was assigned to her and Jungkook both. 

It wasn't a glamorous enough production house to have a lot of production and support crew, but it wasn't small enough to not warrant any attention.

Bano sighed and stepped outside her trailer that she shared with another junior star and saw Jungkook steeping out of his trailer. _I hope he falls_ Bano though as Jungkook's effortless walk was interrupted by him tripping over seemingly nothing. He looked up to see Bano laughing loudly and scowled at her. 

"Sherbano good to see you in such a humorous mood. But then I guess since you're working with me that's to be expected". Bano's expression immediately soured and she turned away without responding. 

They both walked up to the set as the director started chatting with them. Thankfully both of them had memorized their scripts well. Though running lines with each other was not preferable but sometimes they both had to do unappealing stuff for their jobs. They were stars, but not big enough to be able to influence the selection of their co-stars. 

"Okay so you, Junho come in with your hand behind your back, and grab her hand ..." the director continued to explain the scene while both the costars listened attentively. Despite their unfriendly feelings towards each other, they were both good at what they did and that meant listening and understanding the scenes without letting personal feelings get in the way. "Positions!" the director yelled and immediately everyone began to clear the set and the actors took their places, Jungkook with a handcuff on his right wrist. "And action!" the director yelled.

"Please give me another chance" Jungkook said with as much emotion as he could bring in his voice and on his face. "I can't Junho, I'm sorry" Bano said sadly and turned away. "Stop, Yejee" Jungkook grabs her hang and swiftly handcuffs her left wrist. "Now you'll have to listen to me. I won't let you get away" Jungkook looked at Bano. The scene ended at Bano's horrified look. "Excellent!" the director yelled. "Good job you two". 

"Thank you" Bano and Jungkook bowed to the staff and the production crew around them thanking them for their hard work. Suddenly there was a commotion near them.

"I was carrying it but it slipped from my hand and fell in the gutter. What do I do!" they both heard the staff member say. With sudden horror Bano realized what this could be about. She rushed forward ignoring Jungkook's yells of slow down and used her free hand to grab the staff's shoulder. "What do you mean it fell! You're talking about the key to these" Bano lifted her handcuffed hands infront of her, and now even Jungkook looked horrified. 

- 2 -

"I'm so sorry!!" the staff member, her tag read Soha, said. "There's an extra but its with assistant director Yoon - these are her handcuffs, I mean her personal ones if you know what I mean - and she left to visit her grandparents in Jeju and won't be back by tomorrow at the latest" Soha was almost frantic, thinking she might lose her job over this. 

"It's ok" Jungkook tried to calm her down. "We'll manage, and don't worry you won't be punished. It was an accident" He - or they - went and explained the situation to the director and requested the day off. 

"What are we going to do" Bano almost yelled next to him. "I can't be trapped with you".

"Oh and I want to be trapped with you, you insufferable little ... thing!"

"Watch your mouth or i'll punch your teeth in" 

"Will you be able to reach my mouth shorty?"

"YOU-" she fell silent fuming with anger. 

After five minutes of both trying to calm themselves down, Jungkook reluctantly broke the silence. "What now? I mean where do we go?"

"We can't go to my place, I have a roommate and she's not gonna welcome a buy one get one free offer, especially if its of the opposite gender"

"Well, since we can't spend the whole day out, we have to rest. I'm pretty tired, how about my place? My roommate is out of town so it won't be awkward"

Bano hesitated for a moment, knowing that she would be going to his place - alone. But what other choice did they have? "Sure let me grab my bag". She moved, and unwillingly dragged Jungkook beside her to the female trailer and knocked on the door.

"Uh...there's a slight...situation here so is it ok if uh...Jungkook enters with me?" "Sure come on. Inha already changed and left" the makeup artist said as she opened the door and looked at their cuffed hands, and burst out laughing right in their faces.

"Thanks for asking how I'm dealing with this" Bano darkly muttered as she stepped inside. She accidentally knocked her bag and her stuff spilled out. 

"Great, just great" as she started gathering the items, Jungkook also bent down to help. 'Umm...uh...here. Sorry" Bano couldn't believe her eyes. Jungkook was blushing! and then she noticed what was in his hand and she started blushing along with him. "Umm thanks" she quickly stuffed the blue packet in the inner pocket of her bag.

They both left the trailer. Jungkook went to grab his stuff and then they both walked towards the parking lot. 

- 3 -

"Oh no. NO WAY!" Bano had almost forgotten that Jungkook rode a bike. A black, sleek and sexy bike that made him look 10 times sexier. 

"Look while I've always wanted to sit on a bike with the boy of my dreams, you're not that boy. Obviously. So let's catch a taxi and head to your place ok" Bano said trying to reason with him while her heart was yelling a lot of swear words with his name thrown in between. 

"Come on I'm every girl's dream boy. Besides you expect me to leave my bike here? No way!" he said approaching it. Bano stopped and dug her heels in, ready to take a stand. Jungkook glared at her and nudged her and for a few minutes they both had a tug of war match. Of course Jungkook won. His muscles weren't for show after all.

He opened the seat and grabbed a helmet for Bano. "Here. Now I know it's gonna ruin your hair and all but for safety reasons you have to wear it". Bano glared at him and grabbed the helmet, putting it on her head, struggling with the clasp. "Uff looks like I have to do everything for you" Jungkook mocked as he grabbed the clip and clicked it in place. 

"Oh please! it's because of the cuffs. Not because I can't do it by myself". 

"Sure sure whatever". He grabbed his helmet and put it on effortlessly. "Come on" he said as he swung his leg over the bike, connecting with something hard. He glanced back to see Bano rubbing her jaw. 

"YOU-" if only looks could kill, Bano's would have incinerated him in 2 seconds. 

"You shouldn't have stood close to me. Not my fault Sherbano" Jungkook shrugged.

"I think standing far would be DIFFICULT since we are HANDCUFFED together for the day Jungkook", Bano said trying to control her anger. 

"... JK"

"What?"

"My name. It's JK. Fells like my mom when you call me by my full name. Only mom and grandma call me Jungkook"

"Whatever" Bano huffed as she swung her leg and sat behind Jungkook.

"You'll have to grab my waist. To not fall off you know? because falling off is not good" Jungkook said in a patronizing tone.

Bano replied by grabbing his waist, making sure her watch bumped him hard.

 "Wait. We can't go! you can't drive with one hand. Let's grab a taxi" Bano was about to jump out when Jungkook tugged her hand. "I'm capable of driving with one hand. Besides, I can move the cuff till the middle of my forearm. You'll have to grab my arm and we'll have to sit more snugly. I'll be able to reach the handles". 

Bano was in no mood to argue anymore so she just sighed and grabbed his arm, digging her fingernails into his skin.

"Gently" Jungkook muttered. "I'm driving". 

He revved the engine and smoothly pulled out of the parking lot. Once on the main road, the bike gained speed and Bano found herself grabbing his waist tighter. He's so warm - What no! Bano!! he's as cold as his dark heart. Her inner monologue continued all the way to his apartment.

- 4 -

"Uhh you can let go of me. Though if you don't want to ... ouch" Jungkook jumped as Bano got off the bike and kicked his leg.

"Chill. I'm kidding. Let's go" He took off his helmet and Bano's and put them both in his seat compartment. 

They both go up in the elevator, both for once quiet and trying to ignore the awkwardness hanging in the air. They reached his floor and Jungkook opened his door. "Welcome aboard!" he said to Bano.

Bano was expecting the typical bachelor pad, and that is what she saw. Apart from the huge leather couch and black table in the tiny living room, PS4, Wii and a large TV took up space on one wall. There was an open kitchenette and two doors leading to the bedrooms, his and his roommate's. Jungkook opened one door and gestured "My bedroom" as if a salesman trying to sell an apartment. 

The bedroom was messy, with one wall covered with producing equipment - even though Bano had no clue what producing equipment looked like, she could guess from the Mic - and the other covered with a daybed. A built-in closet and an attached bathroom completed his room. 

"So I'm pretty tired. I'm gonna take a nap" Jungkook said as he moved towards the bed. He pulled out a built-in drawer and unfolded the mattress and suddenly the bed became a double bed. "You can lie down if you want" he offered.

"You can't be serious!" Bano looked incredulously at him. "I can't sleep in the same bed with you"

"Your choice" Jungkook moved forward and dived on the bed, pulling Bano along with him. She fell with an umph on top of Jungkook. For a few seconds both of them lied still, until Bano shot up and punched his chest. "What the hell are you trying to do".

"Hey sorry forgot about the cuffs for a minute. Relax. I'm not gonna have my way with you I have plenty of willing girls for that" Jungkook smirked at Bano. He lied down and pulled the covers over him while Bano sat at the furthest corner of the bed, their hands stretched between them. Jungkook's breath evened out and he fell asleep.

For a while Bano stared at the room, bare walls and plain curtains. She looked around trying to find anything interesting to keep her attention, staring at the production equipment. But she couldn't fight her exhaustion and heavy lids. Just for five minutes, I'll lie down and relax. she though as she lied down at the edge of the bed, closing her eyes.

- 5 -

Somewhere in the living room, Bano could hear her ringtone. But she was so cozy, her back was warm and her pillow was soft. She didn't want to get up and get her phone. She turned around and snuggled in her comforter, feeling relaxed and warm. Her consciousness was returning to her in bits and pieces; her wonderful performances, Jungkook's arrogant ass, the cuffs and bike ride, and then his - shit, Bano realized that she wasn't snuggling with her comforter, she was snuggling with her enemy! His hand was around her waist, his breath ruffling her hair, a slight smile on his face. Bano realized she was staring at him and suddenly got up, pushing his arm. It banged into the wall and woke up Jungkook.

"Wha- huh?" he looked around confused for a moment. "Oh you" he looked at Bano and turned around. 

"Get up! Don't you have anything else to do beside laze around" Bano retorted, trying to hide her blushing cheeks. Half-asleep Jungkook looked even better than fully-awake Jungkook, Bano realized. 

"Sure. Just five more minutes" Jungkook groaned.

"No. Get up!" Bano kept nudging her arm until Jungkook got annoyed. 

"Ok. Ok stop" he got up with a groan. His face became alert as a sudden realization crossed his mind. "Umm...how do we go to the bathroom?"

"Shit" Bano glared at him. "If you think -"

"What ? You think I want you to stand beside me while I pee? No thank you" Jungkook glared back.

"Oh alright then don't go to the bathroom till tomorrow genius" 

Bano couldn't believe this was happening to them.

They both sat down at the edge of the bed. "Well... the loo is right beside the door. So like one of us can stand outside while the other does .. uh business" Jungkook rubbed a hand against his neck, a nervous habit he couldn't seem to let go of.

"Ok...that sounds...ok I guess. And we could play loud music so that ...uh ...we don't have to hear anything we shouldn't"

"Right that sounds...right ok"

They both got off the bed, Jungkook grabbing his phone as he stood up. He played a heavy metal song with lots of screaming and raised the volume to max. 

"You go first" Bano said as she stood outside the door, closing it until it rested against their hands. 

Five minutes later they were both back to their usual bickering. "I'm not going to a mall so you can hang out with a bunch of your friends who would be as obnoxious as you I'm sure"

"Why are we even discussing this. I haven't seen them in months, I need to go" Bano said. 

"Well I won't go. You can go alone"

"Well sure. I'll just cut off your wrist. I'm sure you won't need your hand" Bano replied sweetly.

Ten minutes later Jungkook finally gave up. "Oh god my head is going to blow up because of your non-stop whining"

"Then let's go".

- 6 -

An hour later they were walking hand in hand in the mall. 

"Is it really necessary for you to hold my hand?" Bano whispered while smiling at the passing people.

"I'm sure if we don't people will notice our cuffs. And they won't be thinking nice thoughts about it either" Jungkook said.

Bano just sighed in response. It was getting tiring being stuck with Jungkook. And it wasn't even lunch time yet. 

They hurried to the café where she was supposed to meet her friends. She stopped for a moment to study her friends, already chatting happily with each other. L_ was as usual wearing her cool shades. H_ was laughing loudly. T_ was attacking the complimentary piece of bread. M_ was hitting W_ - probably because she made an inappropriate joke. She smiled looking at her friends. Finally she was gonna meet them after so long!

"These are your...friends?" Jungkook asked incredulously. 

"Friendship has no age limit" Bano said. She dragged him to their table. 

"There's our maknae", M_ said as she got up to hug her. 

"And an extra", T_ said as she smirked at Jungkook and their hands.

"Unnie! Its not what it looks like" Bano showed her cuffed hands to the girls.

"Oooo ... k-" Bano didn't catch what else T_ said but M_ started hitting her and W_ almost fell laughing. 

I shouldn't ask, I shouldn't ask in front of Jungkook, Bano muttered to herself. But she did anyway.

"Since when are you into...that kinda stuff" T_ said. The whole table erupted into laughter, Jungkook included. Bano blushed furiously. 

"Bano you little devil" L_ winked. "I like your friends" Jungkook whispered to her, while to the other he extended his hand. 

"I'm Jungkook. Sherbano's coworker. We had an act and the staff lost the key. The extra will take a day so for now we are stuck together" 

"Ooooo see its innocent" M_ glared at T_. "Yeah and disappointing too. Let's sit"  

- 7 - They all sat down. The conversation flowed easily as it always did in their chats. H_ and L_ made everyone laugh with their awesome sense of humor, W_ and T_ kept making dirty jokes in between, M_ kept hitting them with shouts of "Ya!" and doing aegyo and Jungkook surprisingly kept the conversation going. Bano hadn't felt as comfortable with Jungkook as she did here, sitting among her friends. She could almost believe that he was her friend too. Almost.

"So Bano" W_ started. Bano immediately got suspicious looking at W_ trying not to smile. "Is this the same guy you kept talking about?" 

"When did I ever talk about him" Bano feigned confusion.

"You know when you called him a bast-- " T_'s sentence was interrupted by Jungkook's muffled ouch. Bano accidentally kicked Jungkook instead of T_. 

"Are you sure this cuff thing was an accident? because the way you're playing footsie with him right now..." W_ trailed off.

"Are you sure nothing's going on" M_ joined in. Even H_ and L_ chimed in with ooos and ahhhs trying to tease the two. 

"Yes I'm sure" Bano huffed. "Lets walk around. I wanna buy some stuff". They left the restaurant and started towards the shops. 

"So Jungkook. Tell us about yourself" H_ said. 

"Umm nothing to know much. I wanted to be a singer so I came to Seoul for auditions. I lived in Busan originally. But I got scouted for acting instead. I get second leads mostly, but its good work. I do cover songs in my free time. Hopefully one day I'll be a lead character and maybe a singer too" Jungkook said. 

"Oooh so what are you currently working on with our maknae", L_ asked.

"Well it's kind of a drama/romance genre. Me and Sherbano are secondary characters, but we have our own arc. I'm a struggling musician who's supposed to be in love with this girl Yejee who's the creative art type. But as soon as we start to date more, double dating mostly with the main leads, Yejee starts to realize that I'm more in love with the idea of her that I made in my mind than herself. It's weird because Yejee is not the person I think she is, but I'm constantly trying to make her seem that way, misinterpreting her motives deliberately. She starts to realize this and leaves me but I'm not mentally sane. I'm struggling with my music and the idea of her is my muse, so I use her to make music that ultimately starts selling. When she tells me she's leaving I panic. I think I love her, but I also love my music. So the day she is supposed to move out of our apartment I come in with the handcuffs and trap her with me and lose the key. I can't let her go as that perfect person I have in my head, but at the same time I also can't let my muse get away. It's a kind of selfish love you know, almost to the point of an obsession" Jungkook suddenly stops. "Sorry I got carried away" he says sheepishly.

"No its interesting. Go on" M_ says.

While Jungkook is talking Bano is captured by how passionate he sounds about his character, how deeply he understands him. Maybe that's why acting comes naturally to him; he understands his character so well that he becomes that person. Maybe he's not so bad after all, Bano thinks as she watched him talk so enthusiastically. Maybe the air of confidence and arrogance he gave off was because he was that good.

- 8 - 

After long hours of chatting, T_making a joke about Bano needing to go to Victoria's Secret and Bano glaring at her, W_ nudging Bano so she kept bumping into Jungkook, M_ trying to make both of them talk to each other, L_ and H_ joking around, they finally end their time together.

"Bye" Everyone's hugging everyone and its chaos.

"Bring him around next time too. Preferably as your boyfriend" L_ told Bano.

"Unnie!!" Bano whined while they both walked away.

"So they seemed nice enough. How did you meet them? They don't even work in the same industry" Jungkook asked.

"Well. Umm we met at this fan event at the beginning of the year. It was awesome. We talked so much and enjoyed ourselves. We became fast friends. I know its only been months, and we all are at different ages and I know you're gonna say that it won't last ...but it will. Because its us" Bano looked at Jungkook, who had a strange expression on his face. 

"So...you were nerdy enough to attend a fan event?" Jungkook laughed loudly.

"Ya! there's more to me than meets the eye" Bano.

"So it seems" Jungkook said softly.

"This is not the apartment" Bano said an hour later. They were standing in front of a run down building's back door.

"How observant of you" Jungkook muttered as he moved towards the door. He knocked twice and a guard opened the door. "Hey", Jungkook greeted the guard. They bumped fists and chatted for a while and then he lead them in, looking curiously at Bano.

From inside came loud chatter of voices and music, flashing lights and sensory depravation. Or that's how it seemed to Bano who had never come to a place like this.

"Where are we" She shouted over the loud music.

"What do you mean? You've never been here? It's a bar"

"A what?" 

"A BAR"

"WHAT? You brought me to a BAR!!!" 

"Yeah well you met your friends. I have to meet mine"

- 9 -

"Let's dance"

"No"

"Don't be a loser. We're here to have fun"

"YOU are. I'm not"

"Well I can't very well dance alone because WE ARE STUCK TOGETHER" Jungkook said in exasperation. "Look I know you're mad that I introduced you to Jimin and Taehyung as my girlfriend but what else was I supposed to say? With your hand in mine? I couldn't tell them about the cuffs they wouldn't let me live that down. Come on please?"

It was the please that did it. Jungkook had never said please to her before. Maybe she shouldn't be angry, but when he introduced her as his girlfriend, her heart skipped a beat. She was more angry at that than anything else. How she went from bashing his head in to somewhat finding his company tolerable, even likeable, she didn't know. Maybe it was the fact that he hadn't judged her for her friends, all older than her. Or the fact that he didn't find it weird that they sort of met randomly through a fan event and mostly communicated through Whatsapp. Or maybe it was how he got along so well with them, and how they liked him so much. She knew they liked him because as much as her unnies were shameless in their chat, they were shy in real life especially in front of boys. And yet they talked so freely with him as if he was one of their own.

At this rate, her head was gonna explode. 

They both got up from their bar stools and ended up on the dance floor. It was actually fun dancing in this crowd of people, where people couldn't see clearly and judge others. They both danced together for a while until Bano told Jungkook she had to sit down.

"I'm exhausted" Bano said sitting heavily.

"Yeah me too" Jungkook said breathing hard.

They sat down, each facing the opposite direction because it was just too awkward. The way they danced on the dance floor - carried by the frenzied atmosphere - as if they actually were a couple. Bano found it hard to look into Jungkook's eyes. They tried to lean away as far from each other as they could, stretching their cuffed hands.

Bano was sipping a coke when a guy sat beside her. 

"Wanna dance?" the guy asked Bano.

"Umm no thank you". 

"Oh come one! Just one dance. After that I'll leave you alone". 

"Umm". Maybe dancing with him will make me take my mind off Jungkook, Bano was just about to reply when Jungkook spoke.

"Backoff. She's my girlfriend". 

"Oh ok sorry dude" the guy went away to dance alone.

"Hey I wanted to dance with him". 

"Yeah I'm sure when he asked you to dance he wouldn't have appreciated a third wheel" Jungkook lifted their cuffed hands to make a point.

"Oh alright! you're right" "Bano sighed. She suddenly felt extremely tired. "Can we leave?"

Jungkook was about to protest when he looked at Bano and saw how exhausted she was. "Ok. Let's tell Tae and Jimin we're leaving. The other hyungs just arrived, let's greet them and get out of here"

"Thank you" Bano couldn't believe she just thanked him. She wasn't in her right mind she decided. She needed rest. 

- 10 - 

They went home and ordered pizza. They both tried to wash up as best they could given their circumstances without either of them falling flat on their face or yelling at the other. Once they were done they came out and sat in front of the TV. 

"Let's play Wii" Jungkook picked up the remote and switched it on.

"Uff games" Bano huffed. "I never understood the fascination".

Five minutes later their was a lot of yelling going around. Bano and Jungkook's competitive side was showing as they continued the racing game trying to beat the other. So far Jungkook had won two games and Bano one, but she was determined to win this one too when the doorbell rang. 

"I'll get it" Jungkook paused the game and got up and suddenly fell on his butt. "Ow. Forgot about the cuffs. You'll have to come with me" he said to Bano and they both got up to get the pizza.

"I was clearly winning"

"Yeah right!! you won only one game. I won two"

"Yeah well if the pizza guy hadn't interrupted I would've won this one too"

"Sure. If you're delusional that is"

"I'm not. I was gonna win admit it"

"Ok ok let's call it a tie and watch a movie while eating ok?" Jungkook got up and turned on the TV. He pulled up the Netflix screen and handed Bano the remote. "Select one".

"How about a romcom" Bano looked through and found The Vow. "Let's watch this one it's my favorite". 

"Ugh ok. But only because I'm too tired to argue". 

"Sure sure. Whatever you say". 

- 11 -

Before they knew it, the box of pizza was empty and their bellies were full.

"Don't you think it's too much for her, how he's hell bent on trying to pretend everything's normal without thinking about her? I mean come on! She lost her memory. If you want what's best for her then let her go with her parents even though they are awful. But maybe that would be good for her!"

"No you see, it's not just her whose world has changed. I mean think about it. Leo is scared. His wife can't remember him. Like at all. If he let her go then she might not come back". 

"Yeah but if he loves her he should want her to be ok. He shouldn't be thinking about her leaving him" Bano said.

"But see that's the thing. He loves her but he's also selfish. He wants to keep her no matter what. He's not really thinking about her as much as he's thinking about himself too. He loves her so he doesn't want to let her go. He can't see how much she's confused because he's thinking about himself and how confused he is too. Love isn't as unconditional as novels say. It's usually tinged with selfishness. That's what this movie shows. Do you know its based on a true story? It's brilliant!" 

Bano could hear the same passion she had heard earlier in his voice. I guess he has a thing for real depiction of daily life in movies. That's why he's so picky with his roles. She was starting to understand this person a little better. Bano could no longer fight the exhaustion. Through half lidded eyes, she saw Paige breaking up with Leo and going back to her family. Even though she knew the ending, it still made her sad. Her head drooped onto Jungkook's shoulder but she didn't move away. Instead she snuggled into him. Maybe she was too tired to make up excuses anymore, or maybe she didn't want to anymore. She couldn't care at the moment. It had been a long and exhausting day, Jungkook wasn't as bad a person as she thought, she was sleepy and so she didn't care.  

"Umm Bano" Jungkook nudged her.

"Hmm". It was the first time he didn't refer to her by her full name. She snuggled closer and Jungkook sighed. 

Jk. I should call him Jk. After today I'm sure we're friends. She felt him move and suddenly her cuffed arm moved behind her back as Jk grabbed her and picked her up bridal style. It was a little uncomfortable, but with cuffed hands he couldn't pick her up in any better way. 

He laid her down gently on his bed and pulled the covers over her. Not knowing what else to do, he laid down beside her and put a pillow between them - that was as much of a gentleman as he was gonna be.

Two hours later he still couldn't sleep. He kept staring at Bano, sleeping so peacefully and looking so different than the person he chose to see every time they met on set. He thought she was shallow and snobby but it had turned out she wasn't. She really wasn't that person. He smiled to himself and saw her opening her eyes. 

"What time is it?" She asked through half-lidded eyes.

"It's ok. It's only 4am. You can sleep more" Jungkook said but by now she was a little more alert. Thankfully she didn't jump this time when she realized they were sleeping in the same bed.

"You know, you aren't as bad as I thought" Bano whispered.

He suddenly had the strongest urge to kiss her, so he moved forward, his forehead resting against hers, his lips inches away from her asking permission.

When she didn't move away, he covered the distance and pressed his lips to hers, grabbing her cuffed hand in his and threading their fingers together, his other hand on her cheek. He kissed her for a long time until they were both breathless.

"Well, you aren't so bad yourself" Jungkook said with a half smile, still breathing hard. Bano shrugged and kissed him in reply, moving down his throat and back up.

"Umm Bano slow down. I know I'm hot and all, but let's not move too fast yeah?" Bano smacked him with a pillow in reply and suddenly they both began a single handed pillow fight. 

They laughed and talked and kissed all night long, and when the next morning came, they surprised the crew with their quick smiles and shy glances at each other. 

A few weeks later they would officially start dating, a year later Jk would land a lead role in a drama that would go viral. Four months later Bano would be his co-star as a main lead in another drama. Two months later they would both be asked to star in a movie. They would move in with each other at the start of the production and approximately 60 days later, as soon as the movie production would end, Jk would get down on one knee on the last day at the production studio and propose to her. She would say yes and the production crew would cheer. By the time the movie would premiere, around 6 months later, they would be married and attend the premiere as a happily married couple. Another few years they would both be nominated for Oscars and after the third nomination they would win the award for "Best Foreign Film". They would have 3 kids, twin girls and a boy and they would see them grow old and struggle for their passions. They would happily grow old together, and when the day came they would be buried next to each other. 

But for now, they continued talking blissfully making up for time lost in hating each other. 

- 12 -

~Every night I close my eyes and pray we have forever 'Cause I love the way we're growing old together~ -Richie Mcdonald

- The End -

A/N: This fic is really close to my heart. It’s my first story with kind of a plot. Usually I’m not good with writing long pieces since I lose attention easily so I really love my effort on this one

[bigskydreaming]

notjustawave replied to your post:

If the only evidence of a character not being...

me seeing ppl act like deadpool movies are the pinnacle of representation like i HAVE to laugh

Like....we’ve been hearing this “oh, progress takes baby steps, one little thing at a time” crap for our entire lives, and guess what? With the exception of representation created by actual marginalized creators who manage to get a platform for it against all odds, most other so called representation from major studios and companies and franchises looks barely any different from the scraps they were giving us twenty years ago.

Baby steps my ass. Just say you’re trying to keep marginalized viewers on the hook watching your stuff without pissing off the homophobes and racists enough that they stop watching your stuff. That’s what it comes down to. That is the only reason most representation is still half-assed, blink and you miss it.

Major billion dollar corporations and highly successful and influential actors who makes millions off every movie honestly have people bending over backwards to say they’re trying or progress isn’t easy and it takes time, like these people are actual victims and like....boxed in by the evil homophobic society or whatever....instead of the tastemakers whose prioritization of straight white heroes for generations is the reason we have to fight so hard to get actual representation in the first place! 

They’re not powerless to do more in the face of a still largely homophobic society, they’ve just made the conscious choice that they care more about making sure homophobes still buy tickets to their movies than they do actually making a difference.

And like, if that’s what they want to do, then fine, they can do that, but what kills me is this idea that we’re supposed to be grateful for whatever little hint of not-straightness or not-whiteness that they shine a spotlight on for 2.5 seconds in a movie before its back to business as usual.....as though they’d do more if they could, really they would, but that’s just the best they could manage because The Homophobes and the Racists, y’see.

The movie Deadpool only happened because Ryan Reynolds wanted it to happen so badly, he wouldn’t let the project die in development hell. He kept making the rounds himself, kept the push on to keep new scripts for it getting made, and he has enough star power and a big enough fanbase that he was able to make it happen when lots of other actors couldn’t. There’s that post going around about how there’s a Bea Arthur T-Shirt he wore in the movie that they had trouble getting in because copyright stuff, so he paid $10K out of his own pocket for the licensing stuff to go through. And on and on.

Like, these aren’t small, innocuous things, they’re a display of the fact that people have power and influence in Hollywood and use those things every single day to get what they want or do things they care about. If the Deadpool production team and star really WANTED Deadpool the character to be the kind of meaningful representation they’re obviously all too happy to accept accolades for having provided already? Then they absolutely had the power to to give Wade an actual romantic history with one of the men in his films, or even one of them as an actual love interest or reciprocated flirting with one of them responding to his come-ons with like, interest of their own. Because notice how that suddenly, magically, turns what WAS just Wade obnoxiously using suggestive humor purely aimed at getting an audience laugh rather than an actual reaction....into two men having a moment like happens hundreds of times throughout every other summer blockbuster between a man and a woman and given the same degree of consideration and attention.

And yes, before someone comes at me with ‘bi and pan people don’t need to be in a romantic or sexual relationship with the same gender to be bi or pan’, like yes, thank you, I, a bisexual man, am aware of the fact that I remain equally bisexual when single, dating a man, dating a woman, or mid-orgy. My sexuality is not dependent on anyone or anything other than my own identity.

But we’re not talking about a real life human being’s identity here. We’re talking about REPRESENTATION, which is a thing created deliberately by human beings making conscious choices about what they want to display and what they don’t, and their reasons for both.

So yes, a bi or pan character is still bi or pan whether we see them kissing the same gender or not, but you can not act like a living bi man’s romantic and sexual interests being driven by his own unique choices as an individual....this is NOT the same thing as a bi or pan character who just so happens to be romantically interested in women love interests save for the occasional suggestive joke aimed at the nearest male character.

Because the former is born of that real life bi man’s entire life, experiences, personality, his BEING. The latter is born of human agendas and creative decisions and studio politics and yes, the fact that Fox and the Deadpool production are more than happy to throw LGBTQ+ viewers just enough table scraps that they’ll stay invested in supporting it, but not so much that it might risk them losing tickets in large numbers from the homophobic sector of their audience.

If I ignore the five men in my vicinity and focus on the one woman because I feel more of an attraction or connection to her for whatever reason, I get to do that because I am my own person, and people can assume whatever they want about what my motives or thought process might be but guess what? It doesn’t matter, because my choices are for me and me alone.

If Deadpool ignores the five men in his vicinity to focus on the one woman, its NOT because he feels more of an attraction or connection to her, because HE DOESN”T FEEL ANY OF THOSE THINGS. He is a fictional character. He only feels and acts upon whatever the writers decide he should feel and act upon, and THEIR motives and thought process absolutely get to be called into question, because they are not individuals making personal choices that are for them and them alone, they are creators of content that benefits and profits from the positive responses and continued support of whomever they choose to cater that content to in order to gain their support and positive response.

And bottom line, they still care more about selling tickets to homophobes than they do about creating real, positive, meaningful representation, and like....people should say that?? We do not owe it to million dollar franchises to say thank you, can we please have some more because of whatever they deign to dole out. Not while still blatantly making it clear PS, glad you liked that little moment there in Act Two Scene Five but tbh, we still care more about not pissing off the dude who lives in his parents’ basement in Kansas and has five guns and every Deadpool action figure ever made and cries into his pillow every night because Sara Lee rejected him when he asked her to his high school prom because he’s weird and ugly and nobody understands his pain like Deadpool, who is also weird and ugly and thus he NEEDS him, and just because he makes dumb jokes to guys onscreen sometimes, that’s no big deal, everyone does that sometimes, its not like he’s REALLY into guys, that’d be weird and also he can’t be because then he wouldn’t be like that homophobic shitbag who lives in his parents’ basement and trolls LGBTQ+ fans on twitter with “Lulz, dumbass losers, just accept that Deadpool doesn’t really represent you and never will, he’s OURS.”

They understand what actual representation looks like, because they’ve been representing the infinite shades of Shitty Straight White Human Being for generations now, and every single straight white man in Hollywood has a story about the character they identified with most as a child and made them want to write or act and basically shaped their entire life.

They know what actual representation looks like and what it means, but they have no interest in providing it so long as it might alienate who they see as the real moneymakers still, knowing they can still keep marginalized viewers watching by doling out the bare minimum and saying “there’s more coming, its just progress takes time, we need to take baby steps” like they’ve been doing for actual, literal decades, with very little actual change to show for it.

Sorry not sorry, but you tell me here’s five cents for you and hand me a nickel and then turn to the shitbag human being standing on the other side of you wearing a GOD HATES GAYS T-shirt and say “and here’s a twenty dollar bill for YOU, don’t spend it all in one place, lol” and then you and he share a hearty laugh while I’m standing there holding a fucking nickel?

LMAO, you can keep your five cents, you’re not like....actually doing me any favors there and I’m not going to feed your ego by pretending you did anything other than give me a shitty fucking nickel you probably picked up off the sidewalk.

[a-splash-of-stucky]

my thoughts on: I, Tonya

So ya girl finally got the chance to watch I, Tonya and ooooh damn, I’ve got some things to say about it. Spoilers and general ramblings under the cut. 

So first and foremost, I’m gonna be straight with y’all and say that my opinions on I, Tonya are probably biased, because Seb is in it. Bear this in mind, as it’s a point I’ll return to later on. Also, I’m not the most knowledgeable person when it comes to acting technique and etc, so like…I don’t really know what I’m talking about here.

I’m gonna say this first, because it doesn’t really fit in with the rest of the ramble: the music had me living y’all. It wasn’t really my usual ‘taste’, but it was well-suited to the film, in my opinion. Also, I liked the structure of the film, the way they shot it as if it were multiple interviews. I’ve never seen that done before and to me, it was novel and well executed.

Every single member of this cast was OUTSTANDING. Yes, I’m probably biased, as I’ve been rooting for this film ever since TIFF, but nonetheless, I had high expectations for this movie and they were EXCEEDED™. Before I talk about the main cast, let me kick things off with a short spiel about—

McKenna. She made me tear up. She has a rather minor part in all this, but the few minutes she has on screen are BRILLIANT. Truly, honestly, impactful. The part when she cried as her dad was leaving? Lord help me, I wanted to give that little girl a hug. I feel that this is a significant moment in the movie, because…I get the sense that Tonya’s been abandoned. She’s alone. And no child should ever have to feel that way.

Jeff Gillooly (Sebastian Stan)

Now. Sebastian. Y’all know that he’s 80% of the reason why I wanted to see this movie so bad. Warning: this part basically consists of me gushing over him. No, not in that way. If you’re not interested in reading about that, skip ahead, y’all.

Seb was funny and cute and an asshole, all at the same time. I kinda loved the moustache (le gasp). Also: HIS VOICE. It was…fucking hell, the accent and the way he speaks (when he’s not shouting) was so cute, I think my heart stopped a couple of times. And you know how Seb’s really good at being kinda bashful and dorky in interviews? Well, that comes across here, too. He pulls off that side of his character really well.

He was also really good at being a controlling, selfish maniac. Seb’s rage reminded me of a lion. Also, he says ‘fuck’ a lot, and for whatever reason, I have a thing for hearing him swear, so that part of me was satisfied.

Seb looked good. I, like most people, wasn’t a fan of the ‘stache when I first saw pics of it. But…it grew on me, over the course of the movie. Seb makes it work. There’s something about it that I kinda like. I was also impressed by the extent to which he transformed himself physically for this role. Like, there was no Beef™ in sight.

I will admit, my first thought when I saw Seb playing young Jeff was: damn he’s cute.

I think this is important, because I, as an audience member, could empathise with Tonya - like I can see how she could have fallen for Jeff. As the viewer, you (or at least, I) experience the same emotions that she does. But then again, that’s just my personal experience and could be due to the fact that I already have a deep-rooted love for Seb in general.

Now, I’m not gonna deny it - his character was a fucked-up asshole. But, if we separate Seb and Jeff for a moment, I think that Seb portrayed Jeff in a conscientious manner. Obviously, I don’t know Jeff personally, but you’d have to be blind to not notice the little mannerisms that Seb throws in. He’s so damn good at conveying emotions through body language and through nothing but his expression alone. I know that Seb will forever be known for his role as Bucky, but I think this film (and some of his other works, I’m sure), truly capture his capabilities as an actor.

Also - did we get a flash of the booty? For like, 0.3 seconds? I mean, I ain’t complaining about it, if we did — but the situation in which we got the booty flash wasn’t the nicest, I agree.

Having gushed about Seb - let’s now move onto the star of the show.

Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie)

Margot was PHENOMENAL™

‘nuff said.

Seriously. How did she not get any nominations from this? She was robbed. Cheated, I tell you — just like the character she was playing, funnily enough.

She made me cry, which is saying a lot because I don’t usually cry when watching movies. Now, I will admit: Tonya isn’t the most likeable person. Like, she isn’t the kind of person that I would necessarily want as a friend — but that’s kinda the point of the film, I think. To show you that she never quite fit in, that she was always kinda going on her own, isolated from people her age. It was hard on her.

That being said, there are qualities about Tonya that I loved. Her stubbornness, her fierceness of character, her ‘I take no bullshit’ attitude. Was she rough around the edges, untactful and crass at times? Yes. I do think that’s a product of her upbringing, however.

Margot played her beautifully. You see her grow up in the film, really see it. Tonya is a complicated character to play — she’s vulnerable and strong, weak and empowered, and the fact that Margot was able to tread the balance between the two amazes me.

At the end, when Tonya was told that she could no longer skate? My cheeks were wet, man. Margot should have been nominated on the basis of that alone.

Her character’s entire life revolved around skating. All the sacrifices she had to make to live her dream! When she said that not being able to skate would be “like a life sentence”? Augh, my heart broke. I wholeheartedly agree with her. Whether she was responsible, or had part in, the assault or not, I do believe that that was a harsh verdict.

LaVona (Allison Janney)

Imma quickly talk about Allison, before I delve back into Seb and Margot.

I hated LaVona. Like, I disliked Jeff and Tonya at times, but I truly Hated™ LaVona. I think that’s the point, though. She was, to me, the true villain in all this (no matter what she says about making ‘sacrifices’ for her daughter). Do I think that she was a villain born out of a particular context? Definitely. She’s unstable, but that instability and questionable parenting method is, I believe, a symptom of some underlying issue.

Is she a monster?

Meh. I honestly can’t tell you.

Allison was fabulous. She won an award and she deserved it. She deserves a million awards. Like I said, I hated LaVona, but I would not feel this strongly opinionated about this particular character if Allison hadn’t played her so well.

A short spiel on the Jeff/Tonya chemistry

So: Seb and Margot, Jeff and Tonya.

I can’t even imagine the amount of trust that was involved in filming those domestic violence scenes. Like, they were intense. There was no fucking around with the fighting, man — like, the hits and punches looked authentic. Though they were portraying a dysfunctional couple, I think that as a pair, Seb and Margot really worked well together.

That scene where Tonya was making her costume and Jeff was telling her his Wizard of Oz story? I loved that scene. The little neck kisses melted my heart. I loved that scene because it was them being playful and happy — and it really serves a purpose. Because both of them fell in love with a version of the other person. But the thing with love is that — you have to take it all. You want the good? You gotta take some of the bad. Sometimes, it gets to a point where you wonder if the good really is worth all this bad.

You wonder why she came back to him. Tonya, I mean. She came back to him after the divorce because her career meant that much to her. She was willing to risk her life so that she could skate. She came back for love — not her love for Jeff, obviously, but for her career. The sacrifices she made were unreal. I don’t necessarily agree with her decision, but I am impressed by the fact that she had the balls to go through with it.

My point is: their relationship was not simple. There is no good guy, there is no bad guy. Partly, I think this is because each person has their version of the truth. But also, I think this is a relationship where both individuals fluctuate between good and bad, on a ‘continuum’ of sorts. I…felt for them. I truly wanted them to be happy.

fuck, I’m rambling. Let’s wrap it up with a few more bits and bobs.

Some profound thoughts:

The story is still unsolved, at the end of it (or maybe…I was just too spaced out to truly understand it???). You’re still not exactly sure who was behind the incident. You don’t know who knew what info, because the facts keep changing. Everyone’s tryna sell someone else out and pin the blame on another person and I’m just like ??? But, I will say that I didn’t know anything about the Harding/Kerrigan incident, but having watched this movie — I am very intrigued.

I also find it interesting that they didn’t include Nancy’s views on her supposed friendship with Tonya. There could’ve been any number of reasons why this wasn’t done, but I think that that would’ve added another element to the story.

As I left the cinema, my thoughts turned to a lecture I had recently. My lecturer (I love him, btw, great guy), said something that I thought was pretty funny, at the time. Now, in hindsight, and especially after watching this movie, I do believe that his statement is SO FUCKING TRUE.

He said: Objectivity is in the eye of the beholder.

And that’s basically what this movie is trying to get at. “There’s no such thing as truth.”

Everyone has their own version of the events that happened, and everyone is influenced by their own unconscious bias. Out histories, our social context, our economic situations — so many things influence how we perceive the world. That doesn’t mean that our perception or interpretation is wrong, however. Each one of us is probably right, to some degree, but the important thing is that “true facts” should never be taken at face value.

I think that that’s a message that is really central to the entire film.

Remember what I said at the start? My opinions on this film are heavily influenced by the fact that I love Seb, and I’ve been hyped up by the positive reviews I’ve seen floating around the internet. You’ll notice that there’s barely any negativity in this piece, which in itself says something. Don’t take my “facts” at face value. Sprinkle on a pinch of salt.

So should you watch it?

Like I said, this film extensively features (kinda graphic) scenes of domestic violence. I, as someone who has been fortunate enough to never experience any of that sort of thin, found the movie uncomfortable, but watchable. I also don’t have any triggers or mental health issues, so that’s something to bear in mind.

If the domestic violence has been something that’s been putting you off, I say…it’s worth your time. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed myself, as I feel that’s inappropriate, given the context of the film, but I think that it was a couple of hours well spent. I don’t think you will be disappointed.

[violetganache42]

My Thoughts on the Logan Paul Controversy

WARNING: The following post contains descriptions of the graphic material that was recorded on Logan’s most recent vlog, which was thankfully taken down. It also consists of opinions on his and Jake’s unforgivable actions prior to this incident, as well as cursing and the possibility of some heated rage, in which I would like to apologize for in advance. If I also come off as rude in some aspects, then I’m sorry for that too. No one ever thought 2018 was going to start off like this and leave them with intense fury over it. I would also like to apologize if the topics of depression, mental illnesses, and suicide upsets or triggers anyone who is reading this. That is not my intention whatsoever. This is my overall opinion on a very controversial issue and I don’t mean to upset or trigger anyone in doing so. With all that said and done, reader discretion is advised.

Okay, I never talk about them, but because of what recently happened, I want to quickly address the elephant in the room: I hate Jake and Logan Paul. Actually, “hate” is not the right word to describe them; how about “loathe?” Maybe “despise?” “Spite?” “Resent?” Whatever the word choice is, the two are both terrible celebrities together and individually for a variety of reasons. 

As you already know, both Jake and Logan achieved their fame back in 2013 when Vine was around, achieving 5.3 million and 3.1 million followers respective by the time of its shutdown. When they switched over to YouTube on November and September of 2016 accordingly, it all went downhill from then on. In general, they spew diss tracks at each other, churn out frantic videos in order to gain viewership and consume free online content, and sell merchandise from their clothing lines instead of being TV actors. The only problem is kids between the ages of 8 and 15 aren’t necessarily part of America’s economy, so combining their focus on this specific demographic with their insatiable thirst for fame and greed, it’s basically a lose-lose situation for them. But that’s not all I have to say about them because looking at them individually, they have their own brand of problematic behaviors and content.

In Jake’s case, he endured the most controversy because he’s been exposed as nothing but an annoying douchebag who did the following: made racist remarks on his minor characters in his videos, accused of emotionally abusing and manipulating his ex-girlfriend Alissa Violet, cyberbullied and brought down people online, constantly disrupted his peaceful neighborhood and his neighbors with his stunts and pranks, delivered pop culture phrases in an obnoxious manner during an interview that came off as—how the kids describe stuff nowadays—“cringey.” Not to mention his atrocious music video for his song “It’s Everyday Bro” dealt some serious damage to his career by receiving over 3 million dislikes on YouTube. He even got fired from Disney mid-season of Bizaardvark on July 24 for acting like his fame gives him the freedom for doing whatever the fuck he wants. What grinds my gears about him is he made all these apology videos and keeps claiming that he’s changed and moved on, but there is strong evidence that proves otherwise.

As for Logan, he has managed to escape controversy up until now by having roles on films and TV shows like Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Weird Loners, Airplane Mode, the YouTube Red film The Thinning, and in the upcoming movie Valley Girl, taking part in a partnership with Dwayne Johnson, and opening his own brand called Maverick. Heck, his diss song, “The Fall of Jake Paul,” had managed to gather better reception from his fans, scoring only 173,000 dislikes, which is far less than the 3 million dislikes from “It’s Everyday Bro,” because of the actual effort put into it and the massive controversy Jake currently has. Of course, it still doesn’t change the fact that he is still a horrible person when you consider the info above, and his newest vlog helps showcase it. Without further ado, it’s time for me to stop talking about the past and focus on the present… and boy, do I have a lot to say about this.

For those of you who not aware or are just hearing about this, allow me to explain what exactly happened; however, I am generously giving you the choice to skip this because what I am about to describe may make you feel uncomfortable. For those of you brave enough to read the issue, please keep scrolling.

Earlier this week, on New Year’s Eve, Logan and three of his friends were traveling in Japan when they stumbled upon Aokigahara, which is best known as the country’s “Suicide Forest.” They all ended up going in the forest when they discovered the corpse of a man who hung himself, one of the most common methods suicide victims use to kill themselves in there. One of the friends was feeling uneasy about what they were witnessing, and despite his seriousness, Logan laughed it off and soon referred to it as “a moment in YouTube history,” only for him to get one hell of a reality check. As of now, so many people via YouTube and Twitter have reacted in absolute anger and/or disgust at what he had done and have been calling out on it, including Robyn from Anime America, Joey the Anime Man, Gaijin Goombah, Lost Pause, Game Theory, Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul, Game of Throne’s Sophie Turner, JackSepticEye, Stefan Karl, and even PewDiePie of all people. The immense amount of backlash had gotten to a point where he deleted the video and posted two apologies, one each on Twitter and YouTube. I will get to those later, but for right now, let me give my input on this.

First off, let’s break down the group’s reaction. Since the video was removed, I was able to find snippets of their dialogue from it thanks to CNN, which can be found here.

Logan: This is a first for me. This literally probably just happened.

Friend: I don’t feel good.

Logan: What, you never stand next to a dead guy?

Friend: No.

Logan: *laughs* It was gonna be a joke. This was all a joke. Why did it become so real?

Friend: Depression and mental illnesses is not a joke. We came here with the intent to focus on the haunted aspect of the forest. This just became very real.

Oh, boy. Where do I even begin with this? Logan, your friend is absolutely right. Depression and mental illnesses are not jokes, let alone FUCKING suicide! This was his first time seeing an actual dead body with his own two eyes and you laughed it off like it was nothing! For all we know, this could’ve been your first time seeing like this too, but why the fuck would you joke around like that if you were originally planning to explore the Suicide Forest’s haunted atmosphere?! It completely depletes the initial intent of your plans for your vlog all because of your “humor” in this! On a side note, whoever his friend is, can we please give him a round of applause for having the knowledge to understand what is and isn’t a joke? Because at least he gets the situation they were in.

And that brings me to another point I want to bring out: why he was joking around with what he saw. After they all ran out of the forest and into the parking lot, Logan said this that really caught my attention:

Logan: “…the smiling and laughing… is not a portrayal of how I feel about the circumstances. Everyone copes with shit differently… I cope with things with humor.”

WHAT?!

I’m sorry, but no! That is utter bullshit! Using humor to cope with something such as fear is fine, but using it to deal with the fact you stumbled across a REAL corpse?! That’s crossing the line! It helps illustrate that what you did was inhumanely wrong, and you know what?! The backlash proves it! When it became known to the public with around 6.5 million views, the viewers were repulsed by what you did! You showed them, from fans and people who don’t like to YouTubers, celebrities, and the media, that you have zero respect for the suicide victims through your insensitivity and voyeurism of this seriously important subject!

Not even your “Viewer Discretion is Advised” banter helped prevent this from happening, which leads me to readdressing your target demographic! For all we know, there could have been little children watching this and they would have either been scared that they saw the same hanging corpse or influenced negatively as shown by this tweet below!

“The other day my 7 year old sister showed me logan pauls video on the dead body and i was disgusted and told her to turn it off.My sister is 7 YEARS OLD and loves and watches logan paul all the time. later we went outside to do painting and she painted a hanging man in a forest” — Aoife Dormer (@aoife_dorma)

If anything, you could have emphasized your warning on how there are graphic material that are not suitable for children/minors, replaced “Advised” with “Recommended,” and made the video 18+ so that they would’ve been unable to watch it! Even so, it still didn’t change the fact it broke one of YouTube’s policy: prohibiting the depiction of violent, gory, or graphic material in a shocking, sensational, or disrespectful manner unless the footage is used for educational or documentary-based purposes. I’m not gonna touch upon how the staff aren’t pressing this forward or why they didn’t react sooner, but I digress. In my opinion, not changing the rating of your vlog—and having it violate a YouTube policy regardless—was part of a completely careless move on your part.

Oh, and this doesn’t end there; this actually leads into my next point: the apologies and the aftermath.

In the midst of the swift outcry of the enraged public, Logan deleted the video and tweeted an apology on New Year’s Day at exactly 10 PM about what he posted, but instead of taming the flame, it made things worse… and I can easily tell why. Much like the last remark, this one contradicts what he says.

“I didn't do it for views. I get views. I did it because I thought I could make a positive ripple on the internet, not cause a monsoon of negativity. I intended to raise awareness for suicide and suicide prevention and while I thought, 'if this video saves just ONE life, it'll be worth it,' I was misguided by shock and awe, as portrayed in the video.”

Dear God, there is a shit ton wrong with this tone-deaf apology it makes me want to scream! What pisses me off the most is his claim and there is strong proof in not only this tweet but also in my thoughts on the vlog that highlights how that is bullshit as well!

You should’ve thought about your actions ahead of time! You were given multiple choices on what to do when you and your friends encountered the hanging dead body in Aokigahara: “Should I keep this vlog?” “How should I feel about or respond to this?” “Should I edit it out or leave it in?” “How will everyone else react?” At the end of the day, you chose the wrong choices and it resulted in heated negative consequences.

You were NOT raising awareness for suicide prevention, which is the main reason why this tweet makes me livid! The vlog proves you laughed at what you saw and cracked jokes about it, despite your friend’s input on this unsettling discovery! A lot of people, even YouTube, agree that the material was shocking for the viewers, you sensationalized at said material, and you were outright disrespectful about it by treating suicide like a fucking joke through your “coping mechanism!”

You were not “misguided;” basically, this third reason ties in with the second one.

Because of this, an insane amount of criticism was unleashed, with Sophie calling Logan “an idiot,” his claim “mocking,” and his apology “self-praising,” Aaron referring to him as “pure trash” who can “go rot in hell,” and surprisingly Rebecca Black stating that how someone with “such power and influence could intensify “an entire family’s grief beyond measure.” And guess what? She is right! One of the people calling out on him was Anna Akana, who and her brother both had to deal with the loss of her sister after she committed suicide! Not only that, but there are also people struggling with depression and have contemplated suicide, especially in Japan, who are infuriated and sickened by what they watched/heard because they knew what he did was an epitome of bad publicity... No, “bad” isn’t the best way to describe this; what they discovered was appalling publicity! It’s even worse when you realize publicity is one of the main contributors to suicide contagion, especially when a young age group is exposed to it! Given Logan’s fanbase mainly consists of children and young teenagers, that vlog was a repulsive influence on them and would most likely worsen suicide contagion despite it being removed from YouTube, which reiterates Aoife’s tweet about her younger sister painting a lynched man! The damage has already been dealt and it pisses me off so much that he would influence minors like that!

And that is just the tip of the iceberg because he posted a longer apology video on YouTube the next night amid the rampaging counteraction. Did it do anything to at least settle this dispute? Let’s find out.

“I've made a severe and continuous lapse in my judgment and I don't expect to be forgiven. I'm simply here to apologize. So what we came across that day in the woods was obviously unplanned and the reactions you saw on tape were raw and they were unfiltered. None of us knew how to react or how to feel. I should have never posted the video. I should have put the cameras down, stopped recording what we were going through. There's a lot of things I should have done differently but I didn't and for that from the bottom of my heart I am sorry. I want to apologize to the internet, I want to apologize to anyone who has seen the video, I want to apologize to anyone who has been affected or touched by mental illness or depression or suicide but most importantly I want to apologize to the victim and his family. For my fans who are defending my actions, please don't, they don't deserve to be defended. The goal with my content is always to entertain, to push the boundaries, to be all inclusive. In the world I live in I share most everything I do. The intent is never to be heartless, cruel or malicious. Like I said I made a huge mistake. I don't expect to be forgiven. I'm just here to apologize. I'm ashamed of myself. I'm disappointed in myself. And I promise to be better. I will be better. Thank you.”

*frustrated sigh* Oh, dear Lord. There is a reason why posted the transcript of his apology than share the video itself, which I’ll get to after I give my two cents on this. ...Ever since last night, I had a difficult time trying to find a way to reply to this. I read a couple articles saying the video was emotional and somber because of how he was on the brink of tears and it left me at a point of uncertainty; I kept asking myself if he really does deserve to be forgiven or not, but after seeing other posts and getting an update on his newest video, it snapped me out of my state and told me that forgiving Logan would mean defending him, just like his fans... and there was no way in hell I would succumb to a level as low them supporting him. So with my spark reignited, it’s time for me to break this shit down once again!

Logan, let me start this bit off by saying this: it is far too late for you to apologize. What you did was irredeemable, vulgar, disgraceful, and plain rude of you to not only those suffering from depression, mental illnesses, or suicidal issues, but to the entire country of Japan. During your trip, you behaved immaturely by making a complete racist jackass out of yourself in front of foreign tourists/residents while wearing a kimono and made a complete fool out of Americans and Westerners, but your vlog on New Year’s Eve took it too far! You desecrated a corpse, went through him to see if he had any of his belongings with him, laughed and joked about it, and showed no remorse or empathy about what you and your friends came across! Because of you, Japan is now coated in anger; you made them hesitant on us being part of the 2020 Olympics, Tokyo tweeted at you to get out, and you’re now denounced by the Japanese Suicide Prevention Group all because you ridiculed their strict laws and significant efforts into helping lower suicide rates and gave a giant middle finger to country in general by treating it like it’s a fucking playground! What you did was an act of pity because of the imminent backlash and I will never. Forgive. You.

That’s not all; as it turns out, even though Logan clearly said he doesn’t expect forgiveness, his fanbase—like I’m gonna call them by their referred fandom name—still forgave him because they believe “he didn’t mean it” and even had the audacity to attack a Japanese vlogger named Reina Scully in a racist manner all because she criticized his Suicide Forest vlog. ...Okay, first: WHAT?! Second: THE FUCK?! Like before, I apologize for suddenly snapping, but that’s NOT how you defend someone! You do not make harass the harasser by sending them racist remarks, let alone telling her and the Japanese to kill themselves! That is just sick and inhumane! No wonder people are telling others to stop supporting the Paul brothers; their fans are worse than the commonly known bad fandoms!  *sigh* Well, at least it was best of me to not apologize to Logan because there was no way I was going to stoop as low as them. It was also perfect timing on my part because I recently discovered on that his apology video was monetized; in other words, he made thousands of dollars off of it...

Holy fuck! This is all kinds of despicable and messed up! Making between $8.5K and $68.1K off of a simple apology?! Now I am so glad I ultimately kept to my opinions about this sicko instead of accepting him like his other fans because this is one of the many examples of being greedy and money-hungry. 

Because of this, people immediately took to Twitter to repeatedly slam him until it was promptly demonetized. Shortly thereafter, conflicts began to surface regarding YouTube; a petition opened up calling for Logan to be banned from the site (which now has over 130K signatures) and many are giving the website and its staff flack for being hypocritical of the way they review the content of videos. To be honest, I don’t blame them. Although I’m glad they commented on the issue, it obviously wasn’t enough. What used to be a site that got its start from cat videos has become its own economy with terrible decisions they’ve made, from the Fair Use dilemma to labeling LGBT+ videos as “mature content.” Seeing how significant the past few days has become, they really need to wake up, get their humungous sticks out of their asses, and actually contribute than just simply stating what rule Logan violated. Regardless, with all of these factors combined into one, it is easily safe to say this second apology was typically a clear bust.

And what does Logan do now that both apologies were shown to be practically useless? He announces his hiatus last night on Twitter, stating he is “taking time to reflect.” Of course, and not surprisingly, there is a long thread which consists of a division between his effortlessly influenced fandom of youngsters and those who despise him for what he has done, both over the years and on New Year’s Eve.

...I’m done. I’m fucking done. I’m not dealing with this shit anymore. Everything about this is wrong and I am certain I am going to get a headache out of this. I don’t care if he is “reflecting;” knowing him, he is still going to be the same idiotic frat “celebrity” that he is, especially when Maverick Apparel came forward today to say they lost $4 million in profit because of him… and Jake dissed in him in one of the most inappropriate ways ever. Ugh!… Can this nightmare end already?! I swear, it keeps finding ways to make me want to continue this rant! Well, guess what? Not. Anymore. I am concluding this right now and I don’t care what will happen to these two sickos in the near future.

*sigh* Well, to wrap things up, Logan is nothing but a stupid, inane, thick-skinned, money-hungry, thoughtless jackass who only cares about getting richer and, much like Jake, using his fame to do whatever the fuck he wants because he believes there is no such thing as “bad publicity…” until now, that is. He may have been able to dodge controversy in the past, but thanks to his obnoxious, immature personality, he has made him a danger to three important fields after his trip to Japan; he has demonstrated how much of an inadequate influence he is to juveniles countless times in the past and has managed to do so once again with his now-deleted vlog, he has made the entire Japanese country hate him for even stepping foot on their cherished land, and he has sparked yet another battle against YouTube’s policies and regulations.

Logan, I’m going to say this once and only once: it is your fault you showed Japan just how disgustingly inhumane you are by not only fucking around with their cherished laws, traditions, culture, history, and landscape. It is your fault for recording the footage of the corpse, laughing and joking about it, and not giving a single shit about suicide, depression, and mental illnesses. It is your fault you unleashed hell on earth that pitted most of the social media users against you. It is your fault for creating your half-hearted apology tweet and your equally monetized apology video that only added fuel to the fire. It is your fault Japan hates you for treating them poorly. It is your fault you’re now facing serious consequences after showing the world what you did in front of that dead man. It is your fault for ending 2017 and starting 2018 on abysmal notes. I hope your multi-millionaire empire crumbles by having the YT staff banning your vlog channel. I hope the actions you—and Jake—have illustrated over the years and the consequences you face will deal more major blows to your precious careers.

To everyone reading this, I want to say I am genuinely sorry that you saw that vlog or heard what has been going on. I am even sorry at myself for subjecting myself to this horror of learning who the Paul brothers are just to get this rant out of the way. They have a horrible sense of humor and none of the stuff they do is funny, let alone how serious suicide is.

Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US, claiming an average of 44,965 American lives every year, and for every 25 attempts that are made, it annually costs the country $51 billion. In Japan, despite now having over 21,000 people claiming their lives every year—with the majority caused by men—and its suicide rate declining, it still remains as one of the highest rates when compared to other countries. The most common place for the Japanese to kill themselves is in Aokigahara, which has received its infamous nickname, “the Suicide Forest.” It earned its name and has become the 2nd most suicidal place on Earth because around 100 Japanese residents travel there to commit suicide because of its thick trees and its seclusion; two of the frequent ways they kill themselves is through drug overdose or by hanging themselves though other methods are not uncommon. Since then, Japanese officials have been putting their best efforts to decrease the suicide rate.

Suicide is an urgent situation, with depression being the #1 cause of it if left untreated, undiagnosed, or ineffectively treated and mental illnesses, disorders, and contributors such as physical ailments, previous suicide attempts, limited access to mental health treatment closely following suit and cannot be left unnoticed. If you or a loved one is experiencing suicidal thoughts or actions or have had a series of suicidal thoughts or actions, it is not too late to seek help. Whether it is in America, Japan, or anywhere else in the world, call the numbers below based on what country you live in:

United Kingdom: 116 123

United States: 1-800-273-8255

Canada: 5147234000

Mexico: 5255102550

Ireland: 116 123

Brazil: 212339191

Argentina: +5402234930430

Spain: 914590080

Portugal: 225 50 60 70

France: 0145394000

Greece: 1018

Germany: 08001810771

Italy: 800860022

Poland: 52770000

Holland: 0900-0113

Denmark: +4570201201

Sweden: 46317112400

Finland: 040-5032199

Norway: +478153300

Belgium: 1813

Austria: 017133374

Switzerland: 143

Egypt: 7621602

South Africa: 0514445691

Israel: 1201

India: 8888817666

Australia: 131 114

New Zealand: 045861048

Singapore: 1800 221 4444

Philippines: 028969191

Russia: 0078202577577

China: 85223820000

South Korea: 112

Japan: +810352869090

You can also donate to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the Suicide Prevention Lifeline, or any resourceful suicide prevention organizations you know because your gifts will serve them as a reminder that you are contributing to fight against this worldwide epidemic.

Don’t wait. Call now or donate to help save a life.

[bluetriangels]

You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say STAND WITH HONG KONG AGAINST THE CCP!

You both like mckirk, stucky, cherik, sparrington, and sterek.

Stranger: [Sparrington!]

Stranger: [There's more of you out there and I'm so happy. Do you want to write something?]

You: [there is someone alive! Wow. Thought this place was dead. Sure!]

Stranger: [I'm alive! Yes. Do you prefer canon or AU?]

You: [No preference. Though setting it in canon might need great timing.]

Stranger: [We could always branch out more with AU. The only thing is I may only be able to see Jack in certain situations because of how great he fits in his time era, whilst James is a bit more versatile.]

Stranger: [But I do love canon too, like so much.]

You: [That's true. we could make in an AU within their time period?]

Stranger: [Yes! Did you have any ideas? It's okay if you don't, we could outline stuff and reach a conclusion, I have a few ideas.]

You: [James doesn't have to be the Commodore/Admiral?]

Stranger: [He definitely doesn't! Did you have something else in mind for him? Would he maybe just be an aristocrat? Artist? Writer?]

You: [I didn't consider a writer before but now I love it.]

Stranger: [Maybe he's writing poetry, or novels. Oh, that makes me wonder! Who would you prefer to write for?]

You: [I love them both so no preference there. Maybe he could write plays?]

Stranger: [Oh my gosh, yes! Like a budding Shakespeare. Oh my god I have the perfect idea.]

Stranger: [What if he hires actors, like poor men that fit the bill for what he had in mind and he gets them to perform. Maybe he pays them a small fee - like the host of the show was like, okay I can't pay you much for this so you can't hire well-known actors.]

You: [yes! Starting actors as he's the starting screen writer!]

Stranger: [Well not the host of the show, whoever has ownership of the stage or land.. I'd have to do more research on the proper terminology.]

Stranger: [Yes! Technically Jack's father is a pirate aristocrat. So we could either have him as a delinquent and rebel who's going to see the show or a beggar.]

Stranger: [There was a HUGE divide in London in the 1800s, because of the plague and everything.]

Stranger: [The rich got richer, the poor got poorer.]

You: [Oh that sounds like an amazing idea!]

Stranger: [I don't think it was the plague, actually. It was some other disease that broke out. Sorry, I have SO many events in my mind, they're a bit scrambled atm.]

Stranger: [Would you prefer Jack to be a rebellious aristocrat or a beggar?]

Stranger: [It all comes down to in the long run which would be better for us to expand on.]

You: [Both have their charm really. He could be both]

You: [Too rebelious and ended up like that]

Stranger: [Oh my gosh that's a marvellous idea. Cause then we could have his father looking for him maybe because of the current divide and everythingggg.]

Stranger: [Okay! Who do you want to take? I know you said you had no preference but I like to give a choice anyway.]

You: [I really really really love them both too much to choose :D ]

Stranger: [Can you tell I hate making choices? LOL]

You: [We could throw a dice ]

Stranger: [Ooh, yes!]

You: [if you can't pick either lol

Stranger: [Okay let's do heads or tails. Best out of three. Heads is, I get Jack. Tails is you get Jack.]

Stranger: [You get Jack!]

Stranger: [I've never done Norrington before, this is gonna be exciting.]

You: [I only did Jack once, but I do hope to work on my writing so I'm fine with that hah.]

Stranger: [Same here. I'm always trying to improve.]

Stranger: [What if we start from when Norrington approaches him?]

You: [oh that sounds good!]

Stranger: [Lemmie get us started then!]

Stranger: Writing had always been a passion of his, becoming a playwright was in his cards it seemed. Mother had died during childbirth, whilst his father had formed these ideas about nurturing your son being toxic. Already, as a boy, Norrington had seemed soft, when he'd turned to books, his father had grown disappointed as he'd not loved the cutlass nearly enough as his father would have wished him to. His heart grew fond of the feathered fountain pain, where he'd detailed all his thoughts in ink. The format made itself known, tackling world issues. While he was hoping it would make it onto stage, perhaps the Globe Theatre where the gracious Shakespeare had performed, he mostly wanted to deliver a message in the form of action. While his work wasn't amateur, he was new to the scene and therefore had no reputation to back him up. The owner of the area had said he wouldn't pay him much, therefore to be wise on who he picked. Besides, a name meant everything and his didn't ring with the finer actors, but this would only make his message all that more prominent. Many had joked and said that if he went to the diseased parts of town he would only find illiterates and billigerents. James did not find humour in that. On his horse, he rode through the richer parts of town down to the poor neighbourhoods, their homes falling apart, some of them at the hooves of his steed with their palms outstretched, hoping coin would fall out of his pouch with the heavy trot. When he reached the gate that sectioned them off, he found a few people under the bridge, huddled up in front of a manmade fire. A face stuck out to him, he was told to fear them but what was there to fear? "Excuse me, Sir? May I speak to you?"

You: It was a day like any other. No food unless one managed to steal it, or make enough begging to actually have someone to take pity of them and sell it to them cheaper. Both would still require Jack to move to the outskirts of the richer parts of the town, sooner or later, getting the looks of the rich people. The one that made it obvious just how disgusted they were, how afraid, downright scared they were of getting any and all illnesses. The greed they had was worse than anything people here could have though. Jack was about to get up and start going through the plan, when someone stopped by and Jack opened his mouth slightly, staring up with one eye closed. Huh? "Speak to me?" Jack asked, pointing to himself and looking around for the good measure. People whispered and hissed behind his back - people dressed like this guy, but they didn't usually stop to TALK to him. Huh. "Whatever you're missing, mate, I didn't steal it." Not yet at least.

Stranger: It wasn't an every day thing, hooves on cobblestone, but when they rode through they didn't stop. They had the gatekeeper at the ready to open the heavy metal doors, in hopes that any pestilence will be kicked off by the wind brushing through their coats. They had to ride to the port at times, or other neighbouring lands where they would trade silk or food. It's what kept the town running, at least a part of it. That's why when the man was confused, James wasn't surprised. His father had influenced him far more than he would have liked, regarding the way the poor were viewed. The only thing he feared was disease, it was prominent because of their lack of medical care, anything they touched would have to somehow be sterilised. That's something he paid close attention to. A matter of fact, when one woman began her coughing fit, he stepped aside, praying to God above to help him make it out alive. Illness was a very serious thing, even something minor could kill someone and he had to think about his friends and family, he didn't want to spread it onto them. "I'm aware. I have a proposal for you." Minimum wage was two shillings an hour, and he decided he would up the pay to twice that or more. "I am willing to pay you five shillings an hour for a favour."

You: Jack opened his mouth, then blinked when he woman started coughing. Oh great. Another one. It wasn't good if people here were sick. And if he remembered correctly, this woman had those two small sons running around - whom he didn't see running around for a while now, actually. He sighed, before pulling off his coat, offering it to the woman as she passed, before lightly making the shooing motions at her. He didn't plan to get sick, thank you very much. He sighed and turned back to the guy, looking him up and down slowly. He wasn't bad looking. And it wouldn't be the first time people from the inner city came to the corners to see if there was someone mostly clean for a quick satisfaction for them... but Five shillings wasn't that much for a 'favor' like that. Someone else might just be tempted though. Wait. "Five an hour?" He asked, his eyes narrowing. Either this man trusted himself too much or it was something else entirely. "What favor are we talking about here?"

Stranger: If he could count the times a Navy soldier came bragging about the lass he... did things to, he wouldn't have any room left, not even on his toes. It was a despicable thing, really. Among their superiors, they never said a word as it was viewed as a rather dastardly thing to do but every one of them knew the other did it, even if it was an unspoken crime. What bothered him more was the way they spoke about the women, how they dehumanized them, it was always some fellow bragging in a piggish way about how he'd done her and she did this and that, never mentioning their silent cries for help. That was their only way of making money. "I've written a play, I would like for you to perform it along with a few other people I'm going to pick. I'll be providing you with some training, the script and help if you require it. And er, it's policy that you're checked with a fine bill of health," he's saying, "I'll be referring you to my personal doctor." The kindness this man had, offering her his coat like that.. they watched out for one another down here, you'd not see that among richer men. They'd laugh at someone's misery, they would let them wallow in it. What had they become? It was never a wonderful time, with what went on with pirates, wars, but now.. it was getting increasingly worse, he could see the desperation on their faces, their hollowed out cheeks, the dirt on their face... No wonder they never stopped, they'd.. they'd feel exactly like he was feeling now and it was better to ignore that.

You: Jack rolled his eyes at the man. Of course. Too scared to bring sickness to wherever he was from. It made sense, because no one would want to get sick - no one would want to bring the threat to their own lives to their own home, obviously, but it was still irritating. THough still... five shillings for something as playing pretend and to have him checked to make sure he was healthy? Jack would be stupid if he didn't take it. "I'm not paying for the doctor." He said and his eyes narrowed. "Also no knives on the guy." He did not trust doctors that were too happy with seeing blood of their patients. "How long would it last then? How long would you need us there per day?" He asked, his mind already counting the money. It wouldn't make more than stealing a heavy money bag, but Jack won't have to rush to hide at least.

Stranger: Per day. Of course, he was counting his money. "I would not expect a poor man to pay for a doctor. That's absurd." That's why he was limiting the crew, they would each play two characters they fit the criteria of, it would lessen the medical bills that were going to rack up. Besides, the owner wanted a large percentage of the final pay. About twenty-five, he said, which was a lot considering the turn out might not be good and he'd be losing money. It was playing the devil's hand, really, with his actors coming from poor neighbourhoods but he'd already sent his assistant to distribute the hand drawn flyers all across town. Another man by the name of Swann had promised to put in a great word for him, he was more of a father to him than his own but he'd never say so. "Eight hours every day. We are to work hard as the play is only in a couple of weeks. Two, actually. I am hoping it won't be a complete disaster. If any of you fail to meet the requirements, I'll have to terminate our contract and you'll leave empty-handed. I'm not, by any means, tolerating impertinence towards my hard work or others that are doing their best to make their wage. Agreed?" There was no hesitance in his voice, it was stern, boisterous, with his brows knitted together tightly. There was a contract he had written up that had been wrung into a scroll and put in the saddlebag.

You: That would make forty a day. Forty. That would make sure that there was enough food, for him and Gibbs. That would make sure he could get some of the warm blankets he wanted to, and maybe even get rid of some of the holes in the house. He grinned, wide and happy, before leaning closer to the man, nodding. "Of course, sir." He said, snatching the scroll from the man's hands, opening it and not even reading it through. "Got anything for me to sign it with? Not my blood I'm guessing, since you're not sure if it's not icky yet." He beamed, nodding. "How many people are you even looking for?"

Stranger: Forty shillings was no joke to a beggar. That would be around two hundred and four pounds, whereas the working man made about sixteen pounds every week. That would definitely cover the costs of many things, it would feed a town, really. It would repair holes, provide shelter, who knows what these people bought? They certainly had to prioritise one thing over the other. They couldn't go around buying paintings or fabulous ink. When he was about to open his mouth again, he heard protesting begin at the back of the crowd, "Fancy that? One of us gets plucked off when they need us. They don't seem to care otherwise," he's snapping. That seemed to create an uproar, with a woman rising, making James cower but not because he was a coward, but because he saw the boils on her face. "We've got little ones out here! Dyin' in 'ar arms, they are!" Clearing his throat, James is attempting to ignore the protesting, blinking his eyes but it only got louder. To which he responded, then, "I'm terribly sorry... I.. wish things were different but I'm working on it," he's saying, handing Jack the pen and waiting. "A few more, my play isn't very long."

You: Jack huffed, quickly signing down his name without thinking, before pushing the parchment at the guy and turning around to face the crowd. "Now, now, let's calm down, shall we?" He asked, before motioning to the guy. "We're talking to the rising star here, a future maestro." He said, grinning. Sometimes these people needed things explained. Not that Jack minded. They were still much more truthful than the rich lot, much more feeling and caring and knew how to share. "Which means if his plays are good, he'll need more people to work for him. Which means he'll be looking for more people." He pointed out shrugging. "He could've picked anyone really, could've gotten to the tavern and picked whomever there, but mates, he came /here/." He grinned. "You know what that means? It means that if we won't try to hunt him down with this yelling and stop being annoying, he'll come here again, for other people. That's a good situation. Now stop gawking around being annoying and at least pretend you're doing something so he won't think we're not hard working. Shoo, Shooo." He said, shaking his head, before turning to the man again. "Sorry, mate. People here get touchy about the likes of you."

Stranger: [Think we can continue elsewhere? My bunny is being a nutter at the moment and my mum's over.]

Stranger: [It's fine if you don't do it outside omegle but just thought I'd ask since this ship is so rare and I'm enjoying it.]

You: [Bunny.]

You: [beanXD]

Stranger: [OH MY GOD]

Stranger: [Gem?]

You: [aye XDXD]

Stranger: [OH MY GODDDD HAHAHAH]

Stranger: [This is amazing. I'll talk to you on Discord. I'm saving this log. <3]

Stranger: [See you in a bit.]

Stranger has disconnected.

[goodvibesatpeace]

Ways To Calm The Overactive Mind

Have you ever laid in bed trying to sleep while a constant stream of thoughts flow through your mind?  Do you perpetually think about random thoughts throughout the day?

Law of Attraction

According to the Law of Attraction, you will receive whatever is predominantly on your mind.  If your mind is producing chaotic, non-random thoughts, then this is what you will attract in your life.

Even in the dream world, your predominate thoughts and worries will be reflected.

Hijacking the introverted mind

We have been indoctrinated into a society that places ego and materialism above everything else, so many people will end up thinking about these things and how they are being perceived by others.  Our self perception has been hijacked by the mainstream media, who portrays fictitious characters leading the make-believe lives which many people feel they should be living.

It is estimated that approximately 75% of the population are extroverts and virtually all television programming is geared to reinforce the “all-about-me” persona while deterring people to look within for answers, which is the key trait of an introvert.

Carl Jung defined extraversion as “an attitude type characterized by concentration of interest on the external object”, (the outside world). and introversion as an “attitude-type characterized by orientation in life through subjective psychic contents” (focus on one’s inner psychic activity).

Reinforced irrational thoughts

By allowing the mainstream media to influence our thoughts and perceptions, we are creating irrational thought processes based on completely fictitious ideas, premises and images.

This is why you will NEVER feel good after watching the nightly news, which is mainly fear-based propaganda designed to keep you living in lower vibrational thought patterns.

Even if you don’t watch the news but still watch your favorite TV programs, the television commercials are equally as bad by showing you groups of extroverts leading the fictitious life the mainstream media is trying to sell you.  Of course, these actors are mostly above average looking which is telling you on a subconscious level, “If I buy this product, then I am beautiful and will have a large group of beautiful friends.”

What these commercials are telling you is that you are not good enough the way you are while reinforcing the overactive mind to understand the differences that never truly existed.

Time is money, money is time

We have all heard the expression, “Time is money.” This is why every word needs to be precisely written and every second is accountable in any given television program.  On a subconscious level, we accept this premise as reality, creating additional cognitive dissonance.  We end up feeling as if every second needs to be accountable and we make up excuses for not finding the “time” to connect with nature or to meditate.

The precept of time is equally as fictitious as the bullshit they’re selling on TV, yet we all buy into “time” and “money”.  What is not being portrayed by the mainstream media are the mundane moments that we all experience.

Much of what the overactive mind is doing is filtering the rational and irrational thoughts, which creates cognitive dissonance.  In other words, you may be subconsciously persuaded to believe in these fictitious stereotypes portrayed on TV, newspapers, magazines, etc…  while another part of your subconscious mind is telling you the exact opposite.  Your active mind plays out all of these scenarios and your thought processes dictate the internal chaos that will continue to be reinforced as thoughts create reality through the Law of Attraction.

The mainstream media also refuses to show the importance of connecting to nature.  while you will see various nature-related programs, the connection to body, mind, spirit and soul through nature is rarely, if ever, emphasized.

Social anxiety disorders

Sometimes, a social anxiety disorder is the cause of an overactive mind. In this scenario, a person may feel as if he or she is constantly being judged by others.  If you are one of these people, then be assured that when someone judges someone else, they are generally insecure about that of which they are judging you.  In other words, they are detracting attention away from themselves and are projecting it upon you.  This is THEIR issue, not yours!  The best way to handle this is to envision yourself as a mirror that deflects all negative thought patterns from other people and reflects it right back at them. By doing this, you are no longer absorbing the insecurities that they are projecting.

12 Ways To Calm The Overactive Mind

1. Eliminate the clutter

The easiest way is to eliminate the clutter.  What are the themes to your overactive thoughts?  Many of these thoughts are related to money issues and our economic subservience to the system of control. Perhaps it’s time for a change in jobs or to find a job that you truly love to do?  The easiest way to determine this is to ask yourself, “If there was no such thing as money, then what would I be doing with my life?”  After having fun or traveling, you would eventually do something you love to do.  At this point, try to find ways of doing this, even if it means working a job that you hate while doing this new activity on the side. The worst case scenario is that you spent time doing something you love to do and helped to eliminate the clutter from the overactive mind.  The best case scenario is that you will find ways to make an income from it and will be able to quit your present job.

3. Meditate

One of the biggest excuses that people will give as to why they do not meditate is they don’t have the time.

According the the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Watching TV was the leisure activity that occupied the most time (2.8 hours per day), accounting for about half of leisure time, on average, for those age 15 and over. Socializing, such as visiting  with friends or attending or hosting social events, was the next most common leisure activity, accounting for nearly three-quarters of an hour per day.”

What this statistic is saying is that people would much rather be programmed by TV than to visit friends and neighbors.  It also says that they would much rather be, literally, programmed than to use that time constructively, meditating.

Another excuse of why people don’t meditate is that they have an overactive mind and have difficulty clearing their predominant thoughts.

There are many different styles of meditation, so one should experiment with as many as possible and either find a method that is conducive to eliminating the clutter or to create one where they are able to find that “inner peace”.

The meditation that I recommend to those with an overactive mind is called an “Open Eye Meditation” where you place two objects approximately 6 feet away from you and each other. (See Amazing Open Eye Meditation).  While trying to focus on these objects, your mind will not be able to process any other thoughts.  I also suggest to try this technique for more than 5 minutes, as many people will easily give up too quickly.

4. Remove the ego

Many people will live their entire lives never knowing who they truly are while pretending to be what society expects them to be.  Once again, these irrational thoughts are reinforced by the mainstream media.  Ultimately, we are spiritual beings having a human experience and our bodies are just shells for our souls.  Once you begin to accept this concept, you will then begin to realize how we are all connected.

A good way to learn how to remove the ego is to practice empathy by envisioning how other people may feel.

Through empathy, you will see how our egos help to keep us separated as individuals instead of a collective consciousness.  For example, many people are too detached from worldwide atrocities, such as famine and starvation in third world countries.  They may think to themselves, “If it doesn’t affect me, then it doesn’t exist.”  What if it was YOU who was starving?  Would you want others to know or care or would you prefer to have people say to themselves, “If it doesn’t affect me, then it doesn’t exist.”  The truth is that we are all in this together and if one person is suffering, then we all suffer.

5. Your body is your temple

Diets that are high in sugar and caffeine content may affect your thought processes.  Fluoridated water has been proven to calcify the pineal gland (your 3rd eye).  GMO’s have been proven to cause tumors in laboratory testing of rats. Too much alcohol will generally magnify any issues you are thinking about, so try to avoid excessive alcohol consumption if you have an overactive mind. Avoid stimulants.

Be conscious about what you are eating and drinking because these all play into your vibratory level and will in turn, affect how you think or what you’re thinking about.

Most importantly, listen to your body.  If you are experiencing heartburn, then eat more high alkaline foods instead of taking an antacid.  On your day off, if you are tired, take a nap no matter what time of the day it is.  Your body will always tell you when it is out of synch, so listen to it!

6. Exercise

They say a healthy body is a healthy mind, so if you are physically able to, then find ways to integrate exercise into your daily routine.

7. Escape time

On your day(s) off, learn how to escape time.  Time keeps us locked into the constructs of the “work week” so on your day off, don’t look at your cell phone, don’t watch TV (TV is all scheduled on “time”) and just “wing it” in regard to any activities for that day.  Try  not to place any time constraints on this particular day’s activities.

By escaping time, you are also getting away from the matrix that keeps us all entrapped as economic slaves to the system, so this will help to eliminate the overactive mind’s thought process by giving it one less thing to think about.

The next time you have a week vacation, try listening to your body as to when to go to sleep for the entire week.  If you feel like taking a nap at 3PM, do it!  Stay up as late as you want and go to bed when your body tells you that it is time to sleep.  You’ll find that you will be able to fall asleep easier and much faster when you listen to your body.

8. Have fun!

Start doing things that you truly enjoy to do.  Let your mind focus on fun instead of trivial items that are out of your ability to control.  You’ll find that your thought patterns will change drastically when you are doing things you enjoy.

9. Release the need to control everything

Many people with overactive minds have the need to remain in control of most everything in their lives.  it is very difficult for a controlling person to relinquish control because they might feel that if they do not have control over their circumstances, then they have no control over themselves, which is not true.  Events will come and go whether you control them or not.  All you need to be is responsible for your own actions.  When you begin to start controlling other people, you are creating more things to be concerned about which in turn will feed the overactive mind.

10. Start a journal and/or dream diary

One way to release the constant flow of thoughts is to start a journal or dream diary.  By simply putting it in writing, you can provide yourself with a simple outlet to help eliminate the clutter in your mind.

11. Live in the “now”

The overactive mind is constantly thinking about the past or future.  By living in the now you will be able to release that of which you cannot control.  This doesn’t mean that you instantly become unaware of what has happened or what is about to happen. It is more of a realization that the past cannot change and the future hasn’t occurred, so why waste time thinking about either?

12. Connect with nature

Find the time to connect with nature, whether it’s taking a long walk in the woods or at the beach or where ever brings you inner peace while being immersed in nature.  While in nature, try not to think about “every day life” and simply appreciate what nature provides.  Try listening to the cadence of the wind or from a babbling brook.  What animal or bird sounds do you hear?

The Elephant and the Fly

A disciple and his teacher were walking through the forest. The disciple was disturbed by the fact that his mind was in constant unrest.

He asked his teacher: “Why most people’s minds are restless, and only a few possess a calm mind? What can one do to still the mind?”

The teacher looked at the disciple, smiled and said:

“I will tell you a story. An elephant was standing and picking leaves from a tree. A small fly came, flying and buzzing near his ear. The elephant waved it away with his long ears. Then the fly came again, and the elephant waved it away once more.”

This was repeated several times. Then the elephant asked the fly:

“Why are you so restless and noisy? Why can’t you stay for a while in one place?”

The fly answered: “I am attracted to whatever I see, hear or smell. My five senses, and everything that happens around me, pull me constantly in all directions, and I cannot resist them. What is your secret? How can you stay so calm and still?”

The elephant stopped eating and said:

“My five senses do not rule my attention. I am in control of my attention, and I can direct it wherever I want. This helps me to get immersed in whatever I do, and therefore, keep my mind focused and calm. Now that I am eating, I am completely immersed in eating. In this way, I can enjoy my food and chew it better. I control my attention, and not the other way around, and this helps me stay peaceful.”

Upon hearing these words, the disciple’s eyes opened wide, and a smile appeared on his face. He looked at his teacher and said:

“I understand! My mind will be in constant unrest, if my five senses, and whatever is happening in the world around me are in control of it. On the other hand, if I am in command of my five senses, able to disregard sense impressions, my mind would become calm, and I will be able to disregard its restlessness.”

“Yes, that’s right,” answered the teacher,” The mind is restless and goes wherever the attention is. Control your attention, and you control your mind.”

~ Remez Sasson

Balance

An overactive mind is a sign of imbalance and can be corrected but one must want to see the change within themselves in order for this to occur.  There is a saying, “As within, so without”.  If your body needs rest, then so does your mind.  If your mind is constantly processing activities, events and possible scenarios, it will resist sleep by continuing this process, despite your body telling you that you are tired. This is why it is so important to listen to your body.

By eliminating the clutter, you will find that in the worst case scenario, you will continue using your overactive mind in a positive way without fear or the need to control others.  You will also have an increased sense of intuition, an easier time falling asleep and your dreams will become more prophetic.

Be kind to yourself and take it easy

Much Love To All

[tothemetaverseandbeyond]

LEARN DIALOGUE IN 10 MINUTES

“LEARN DIALOGUE IN 10 MINUTES” | The Backstory, Screenwriting Staffing

via Screenwriting Staffing by Founder of Screenwriting Staffing, Jacob N. Stuart

Hollywood has a short attention span. Unlike writers, who think they have all day to sit and ponder, plotting out their next script, or revising and revising a screenplay until their fingers are numb, the truth is: THEY DON’T. So in between your writing breaks (or more like looking yourself up on Google) take 10 minutes to learn the key recipes for success when writing dialogue.

SUBTEXT. Ben: “You can never ask me to stop drinking. You understand?” Sera: “I do.” – (“Leaving Las Vegas”, Oscar Winner.)

I think this is one of my favorite line(s) in ANY movie. Any dialogue examples will only make sense to the reader if the reader has watched the film. But for anyone who has seen ‘Leaving Las Vegas’, this quick, yet intense exchange of words, holds invaluable subtext. Ben’s line is on-the-nose, and purposely done. We know he’s lost his wife, son and job. He has sold his belongings, and methodically plans to kill himself in Vegas by use of the bottle, no exceptions. But when Sera says “I do”, does she understand? The words “I do” is only a quick fix, an answer that clearly masks how she feels, but can momentarily end this conversation. Sera is not concerned about his drinking habits. His purpose in her life, at least for time being, serves as a selfish distraction from her prostitution life. And finally ,after many years of sorrow, she’s found someone who is “worse off” than she is. So what is Sera “really” saying? She’s saying “No, I do NOT understand. But who cares, as long as you stay.” Subtext in dialogue is the ONLY truth in a character’s speech. Subtext is the underlying meaning of the character’s “surface” dialogue. But this can only be achieved when the writer understands the real motivation of his characters.  It is very common for actors to cross out any “parenthetical” direction under the character’s dialogue. An actor wants to personally interpret what the character is really saying. This will not only influence the actors “actions” during their dialogue, but also what words they emphasize. Without subtext, your characters are dull. And you will unfortunately find that the audience does not truly understand your characters, which will later force you to add too much exposition dialogue.

EXPOSITION. There is nothing I hate more than watching a TV pilot which shows a married couple sitting on the porch and listening to the husband saying, “Honey, you know we’ve been married for 25 years.” Of course she knows! But writers feel the need to add information that is not only organic, but OBVIOUS. How can a writer ensure that the audience knows the couple have been married for 25 years? Simple. In your action and description lines, highlight family photos with kids in their later teen years, or a wedding photo that is well worn and faded with the couple looking dramatically younger. And instead of having the couple cuddled on the couch hand in hand like a newlywed bride and groom, show them stretched out on the couch, with a bucket of ice cream in between them. Get the point? Add subtle action and description rather than obvious dialogue. There is a time for exposition. And it IS needed. For the most part, every film has expositional dialogue. But the best films take advantage of this at the beginning by communicating key information that the audience MUST have in order to fully understand the story. But remember, it’s always better to show, not tell.

GENERIC ROLES. It was always so embarrassing in film school when we held casting calls. It’s bad enough we can’t pay the actors for their time and that the film will never be seen by an audience, but the fact we brought these actors in to read a line for a ‘front desk clerk’ at a hotel which says, “Thanks for staying with us, come back again.” First, you must ask yourself if this scene is even needed, and if it is, does there really need to be dialogue. Can’t the clerk just wave goodbye? Try giving the front desk clerk something interesting to say, something that gives the audience a clear understanding about the hotel’s charm, size, and personality. You can also use this opportunity to give insight into your protagonist’s personality by having the front desk clerk do something silly or even obnoxious. This will allow the audience to see how your “hero” reacts. But please, don’t waste an actor’s gas money just to read a generic line by a generic character.  

SPEECHES. It is said that dialogue should be only of maximum of 2-3 lines. Having white space on a script is very important. And while “real” people don’t typically give long speeches , every great script should have ONE long and powerful speech. This should not be done at the beginning (unless it pushes the story forward) but at the end.

One of my favorite examples of a great speech is in “Scent of a Women”. The script is full of fabulous one-liners and memorable quotes, but one of the most stunning parts of the film happens when Colonel Frank Slade delivers his bombshell support for Charlie at the school. The impact of his “speech” was breathtaking, and the film wouldn’t have worked without it.

SILENT FILMS. Think silent films are dead? What about 2011’s Oscar-winning Best Picture : The Artist?  We go to the movie to see moving images. If we want lengthy dialogue and text we will read a book. Now I’ll admit, I go to Tarantino’s films to hear his characters speak, but he’s an exception. But writing is not a visual art. Turn the volume off on your favorite movie. Watch it all the way through. Do you still understand the characters goals? Do you understand the theme and message the director is trying to capture and preach? If the film was done right ,this can be achieved. It’s not uncommon for writers to write their script with only action and description first, and then later add the dialogue. I do not personally use this method, but many writers find it’s more important to tell the story visually before they tell the story verbally. Think about it.

COMMANDING A VOICE. I’d say over 75% of scripts that are never produced can be credited to the lack of “voice” for each character. It’s 120 pages of a writer speaking in the same tone and voice, giving us a boring sermon. Screenplays that work owe much of their success to “real” voices which come from “real” characters. Try this: Black out the character’s name in your entire script. Then go back in and re-read the screenplay. Can you differentiate between characters? Do you know who is speaking and who they are speaking to? If not, you are setting yourself up for failure. As a previous screenplay reader covering multiple scripts in a day, I wanted to scroll through these scripts as fast as I could. The ones which were most impressive and enjoyable were the ones I didn’t need to “check” and see who was speaking, I just knew.

VOICE OVER. I love voice-overs and will continue to use them when needed. But when do voice-overs destroy a screenplay? Well, there are many explanations on why and how this happens. But when a writer, for whatever reason, can’t fix character development or plot holes, they tend to revert to voice-overs which is a cop-out. So, before writing a voice-over you need to ask yourself, “Can my voice-overs be removed yet the story will still makes sense?” If yes, consider taking them out. Think of a director who watches his film and comments on it to an audience while they watch it. The director is adding insight, added bonuses, and layers to the story — something the naked eye may not see. Could “Shawshank Redemption” work without Morgan Freeman’s voice-overs? Yes, it could. But what the voice-overs provided was flare, personality, and a sense of continuity. The film’s success was achieved by clever writing and by allowing the characters actions to dictate the story first. The voice-overs were just the icing on the cake.

CONCLUSION: THE CONCEPT. Look, screenplays are bought on concept, not dialogue. So every writer should first focus on the overall concept of the script. When a writer has a compelling story to tell, the script is already half- way to selling. But dialogue should not be overlooked. It can add a great break when a script has a lot of action. Dialogue sticks with us, quoted by people for years and years. It can make us cry and laugh at the same time. Just remember, if you create a story worth telling, characters that are memorable, and an ending that will blow an audiences socks off, adding in the dialogue will come naturally, a total breeze.

Good Luck, & Get Started!

Article written by Screenwriting Staffing Founder, Jacob N. Stuart