#i love how absolutely gleeful matilda is here

[heatherfield]

When Bae is dishing out your punishment and you gotta pretend to be sorry.

Headless: A Sleepy Hollow Story, Episode 5 “The Chaos in Court” [x]

[thestylesindependent]

Harry Styles is a pop star people will talk about for generations. Over the course of three albums and two packed-out world tours, he’s topped the charts and found a home in the hearts of audiences seemingly everywhere he goes. He’s sold out venues around the world, some several times over, and is one of just three musical artists to have a permanent banner hanging in the rafters at Madison Square Garden. He’s broken records, won Grammys, and near-single-handedly revived the feather boa industry – and the list goes on.

When he takes to the stage at Wembley Stadium for the first of four sold-out shows there, the venue erupts into celebration. But tonight isn’t about an artist at the top of their game appearing in front of an adoring audience of thousands (though that also happens to be true). Harry’s show is, as it always has been, a celebration of love, connection, and absolute bangers.

In the city that’s been his base for 13 years, in a venue just down the road from where One Direction first formed, seeing him perform feels especially momentous. “Honey, I’m home!” he sing-songs as he settles centre-stage, his own gleeful way of letting the audience know that not only is he exactly where he belongs in this moment, so are they. This place is a safe space, where – as he requests of the crowd at every show he performs – you can “feel free to be whoever it is you’ve always wanted to be.”

His fans welcome that invitation and run with it. There’s sequins and glitter a-plenty, feathers and rhinestones galore. Giant fruit costumes? There’s so many. It’s emboldened, it’s expressive, and it’s full of joy – and really, isn’t that what live music is all about?

From the moment he first bounds across the stage to the swaggering melodies of ‘Daydreaming’, almost falling onto a podium elevating one of his bandmates in the process, Harry holds the 90,000-strong audience in the palm of his hand. “Okay,” he beams sunnily in response to their sung-along request to ‘Adore You’, “but just tonight.”

For two hours, he treats his audience to a career-spanning set that leaves no era forgotten. ‘Little Freak’ and ‘Matilda’ are made heart-achingly tender in front of a crowd, while ‘Music For A Sushi Restaurant’ becomes a literal jamboree. Teasing the chorus of One Direction’s ‘Best Song Ever’ before launching into ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ prompts an all-out dance party that feels practically euphoric, and a moment of stillness as he drinks in the sight of fireworks exploding during ‘Sign Of The Times’ is enough to have the whole venue swooning where they stand.

Strutting across the stage as he gives ‘Medicine’ an irregular outing (sir, we thank you for your service) before holding out his microphone as the crowd sing along to every word of the unreleased fan favourite, Harry is a godlike figure in custom Gucci, commanding and exalting his audience every step of the way.

He treats them with the same reverence as they treat him. Pausing between songs to check in, asking “are we all feeling emotionally stable?” he takes it in stride when the answer is an emphatic “NO!” After a shower of flowers is thrown towards the stage during ‘Grapejuice’, before he leaves, he shares his flowers out among the crowd. “I know how important it is to be here tonight, what it means to me to be here tonight,” he tells the room in a moment of unguarded sincerity. “It makes it feel like it’s supposed to be something all unto itself.”

“It gets really scary that it might never live up to what I think it’s gonna be,” he continues, expressing gratitude to his band, his crew, the staff, the room, every person in front of and behind him. “I want to thank you, because every single time I come here you give me these memories that I know I’m gonna be thinking about for the rest of my life.”

He’s not the only one that’ll carry tonight with them. Gathering at the edge of the arena to practice the boot scoot dance routine between bands, joining up in a conga line during ‘Treat People With Kindness’, swaying arm-in-arm with friends and strangers during ‘Matilda’, lying down to look at the stars during ‘Fine Line’, his fans jump heart first into every moment not just with him, but with each other.

Together, they make this surreal, sensational experience feel like home. This isn’t just Harry’s show; it’s everyone’s.

[harristops]

Did you watch the first Group stages for the Olympics? Thoughts? Do you think the US could have done better if Ash/Ali were there?

Not surprised by any of the stage results so far, tbh. Let's break it down team by team and go from there with my hot takes lmao:

GBR vs. CHI

Chile, while they have a GOAT in Endler, just doesn't have anything else to win, so they're never going to get passed the group stage, or if they do, it will be on a miracle. Like we've seen, good GKs can only keep your team in the game, whether or not they can stay in it is up to them. England has a strong squad and had a great start, and I think they'll hold up just fine in their group even against Canada or Japan for that top seed. They have enough gelling for them to work.

JPN vs. CAN

Two words: Steph Labbé. This is the Ashlyn Harris/Alyssa Naeher combo we all wish we could have. The heart she had to commit the PK, and then save it? A legendary move and I honestly felt for her that she had to be subbed out. Kailen, though, she's still so young and this is a great experience for her and knowing her, she's only going to continue to drive to improve and be better next game (even though that goal was a really tough one to save and came off some poor defending) - the CANWNT run into the same problems as the Pride sometimes; they're not out there to go and score a whole bunch of times, rather they score once and then defend the rest of the match. I need to see more attack from someone other than Sincy (congrats on her 300th cap and 187th goal, btw, absolute lengend) or Prince. Get some more attacking power in there because Japan isn't a team that will go down quietly, just likely they showed today.

BRA vs. CHN

Marta magic baby! The link up between Marta and Debinha, and just everyone on this team is so inspirational to watch. I honestly would LOVE to see them pull through and win this whole thing because no one deserves an Olympic Gold than Marta and Formiga. Their retirement is going to be the most emotional moment in women's football, even more than when Abby and Christie retired, tbh. China has some moments, but again, Brazil brings so much experience. I don't know how deep they can run into this tournament given how old their best players are, but they'll give it everything, no doubt. I want them to make it to the final rounds, or at least for the Bronze medal match, because the OGs deserve to go out with a medal.

ZAM vs. NED

Boy, this was an absolutely thrashing. I mean, there was absolutely no mercy by the Netherlands, but major kudos to the Zambia team for fighting hard to make that GD 7 instead of 10. They managed to score on a very good keeper and cut through a solid defense, even if they got blown out of the water. The drive was unreal and massive props to them for fighting to the last second. The Netherlands proved in this match why they were the 2019 finalists, and honestly, I'd be surprised if they're not back in the finals again this year. They're strong, meticulous, lethal on the attack, and defend very well. Not to mention they have a great blend of youth and experience for depth.

AUS vs. NZL

I mean, I hate to say it, but I don't see either of these teams going too far in this tournament. They both are big bodied, rough and tumble teams, but I honestly think it's a bit of a disadvantage than an advantage. NZL has never been particularly good, but kudos to them for clawing back and not getting shut out. On paper, the Matildas should have a great chance of going far, but I don't know if they can given who else is in their group. Maybe they can be in the top third? I still don't see it as likely, but no way is NZL going anywhere further.

SWE vs. USA

The match of the hour, huh! I mean, are any of use actually surprised at this result? The USWNT have been playing lower tiered teams and NOT blowing them out for the past year. Vlakto has made decisions to bring on older veteran players and barely healthy players like Jill did in 2016, except with a slightly weaker/disjointed defense. Look, I won't hide my inner glee at the karma inflicted by the soccer gods on this "the Olympics should be easy" USWNT team, but I'm gleeful. The revenge story fell flat and they showed themselves to be unable to make changes on a dime or adjust to the context. The ball to the face from Tobin's own kick was an accurate summation of the match. Now look, the USWNT will most likely bounce back and they'll probably at least make it to the semi-finals if not the finals. But, given the performance of Sweden, the Netherlands, and even Brazil, I'm not sure how they can withstand the firepower and strength of these teams when they've not played higher-calibre teams in a long time. Sweden put on a clinic with how organized, level-headed, and clean they were with their efficiency. The absolute dedication to pushing and attacking and defending and knowing their roles was outstanding and an absolute joy to watch. I felt happy for them and I believe that the USWNT are going to need a lot more than a redemption arc to get far in this tournament, but still, I think they should be okay so long as they don't rack up injuries or get gassed. Alyssa Naeher is the only reason they didn't get blown out, tbh. She is a star on the USWNT even if she's subpar in her club performance. She thrives at the international level and is so, so good and clutch.

Now, to answer your question about Ash/AK, no I don't think them being on the roster would change anything. Ash would never see a start even if she's a better club player than Alyssa, and tbh, she wouldn't make a difference here. Alyssa did a really great job and she definitely still is the #1 USWNT keeper even with the three goals conceded this match. Ash is great in clutch moments, but she has no big tournament experience so it's hard to tell if she could thrive under the pressure (I think she'd be fine, but there's no real evidence to back that claim since she has never played in a big tournament). AK might have added some leadership/consistency to the backline, but again, she didn't have a great performance in her last camp and her club performances have been rather inconsistent, even if they're still good. I don't think she should've made the cut or been on the roster.

The only person that should've been on the roster, in my opinion, but wasn't is Midge. She has proven time and time again she can play at any position and is versatile, strong, tough, and fast. She should've been the alternate over either Kruger or Lynn any day of the week. It will be interesting going forward how Vlatko rotates his players or if he will play the same Starting XI against a weaker NZL team. If everyone starts and subs, I worry about depth and conditioning especially for the older vets like Pinoe, Becky, and Llyod.

[reidyoulikeabook]

Amelia bestie “i'll read you a million bedtime stories” is killing me,, dad!spencer telling his kid renditions of classic novels - he does it before the kiddo can even speak but they just love his voice and it instills a love of books very early on.. taking them to a library for the first time the absolute glee on their face perfectly mirrored in his own.. going out together for the day and coming back with mile high piles of books in their arms and matching sheepish expressions (the receipt for how much the books cost goes mysteriously missing before his partner can see how much he spent) .. just.. dad!spencer watching his kid grow up to love books as much as he does.. 🥺🥺🥺

scarlet ... you're so right it actually HURTS 🥺 he'd tell super condensed child friendly versions of them, like i absolutely imagine him explaining norse or greek or roman mythologies and his child thinks he's making them all up and claps and asks for 'one of his special stories' which naturally he milks because it means HE gets to be the one to put her to bed because the stories live in his head 🥰

the entire last part 🥺🥺🥺 scarlet the day you write cm fic is the day i perish. i will simply lay down. because it melted my entire heart 🥺 it reminded me of the bit in matilda where she's pulling the cart full of books and i imagine her reading matilda when she's old enough and then her telling him she's like matilda 'except she has a mean dad and i have the best one' 🥺

everything you said here is perfect and i'm going to think about it for days. days and possibly weeks (definitey weeks). gleeful spencer carrying a mountain of books with his mini-me. you really just : thought of that and derailed my last bit of coherency huh