#i'm not much of a tv/film watcher for the most part so i was like ??? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

drunkkenobi · 5 months

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Hi bb, ty for the prompt to write my thoughts!

So I can't get on tumblr at work anymore unless I go outside to get good signal on my phone so I have only been privy to what's going on here today from friends on discord. So maybe I'm missing some nuance or the what my mutuals think and I apologize in advance for that but I'm going to speak plainly.

This is the only way Watcher is going to survive.

The view counts have been steady through Mystery Files season 2 but they aren't, like, astronomical. A video with a million views nets a channel between $10,000 - $30,000. Guys. That's nothing for Watcher. They have to pay each of their 25+ employees a salary with insurance and benefits and for everything else their channel requires. Steven said in the video today that a season of Ghost Files costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. I don't think everyone is hearing that part and understanding how much money that is, especially compared to many other YouTubers they watch. I'm not an expert on other YouTubers but I look at the Sims people I watch. They are successful with views in the hundred k range because they are a company of one. Themselves and maybe paying a freelancer to help edit their videos. For one person, the stakes are lower and the potential for profit is higher! Especially for gamers that are filming in their homes. YouTubers like this, making niche content on the cheap, are who is going to make it in YouTube now.

Watcher is none of those things. They have, from day one, wanted to make high quality unscripted content. All of their shows are shows. They aren't just "Ryan and Shane do [thing]" or "Steven eats [whatever]". They are shows, like ones you see on cable TV or any streamer. And shows are not cheap. Unscripted is cheaper, sure, than scripted. But that doesn't mean cheap. Especially not with the sheer production value we've seen on all their shows, in particular Ghost Files (hundreds of thousands of dollars). That is how much something like Ghost Adventures costs, which is on Travel Channel, an actual TV network that puts up all those costs.

So. That's why Watcher has to pivot to survive.

I think it's a great idea, personally. And yes, I am in a position where I can financially afford it no problem, which I know is a privilege! I am very lucky in that regard. And I understand that many people are upset they won't see the boys as easily on YouTube anymore. That is valid! But they have openly said they are totally fine with password sharing and I think that's a great way to cut down on costs for some folks. Also right now there's a great deal on the yearly sub for early subscribers. $40 for a year is cheaper than any streaming service and it doesn't go to anyone other than Watcher.

I understand that people feel hurt and blindsided, but I think Watcher is also feeling this too. They have been so excited about this and being able to make whatever they want without having to worry about sponsors and now they're mostly seeing anger directed their way. Especially at Steven. Steven is not rich. You know who's rich? David Zaslav, a man who is single-handedly ruining Warner Brothers and making himself a billionaire while he's at it. THAT is the kind of person we should be directing our anger at streaming prices and quality of the media landscape at. Not one small business that is just trying to survive so they can continue paying their employees.

And one more thing. I've seen folks saying they'd rather watch more ads than pay and while I get that, that's not going to help Watcher make what they want. YouTube famously demonetizes videos with swears which is why I can't watch a video with DRAG QUEENS without every other line being bleeped and Watcher has been so good about not bleeping their content because they know we would hate it. And YouTube does this because of advertisers. Advertisers only want to appeal to the most broad of audiences so that means not supporting anything slightly left of center. Having to deal with ads sucks from the creator perspective and does not help them in the long run.

Anyway, this is all a bit rambling, but these are my thoughts on WatcherTV. I'm extremely excited to subscribe and make them make more Weird Wonderful World. I hope to see you all there.

#watcher #steven lim #ryan bergara #shane madej

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hadesoftheladies · 4 months

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FEMALE MOVIE/TV RECS (PART 1 / FANTASY)

got inspired from a recommendation post so decided to make a list of movies and shows with female-centric stories/female protagonists. since i can't post all of the genres in one post, i'll split it into multiple posts and y'all can save or add to the list as you wish. (disclaimer: i have watched most of these, but i only know about the existence of others. not every movie/show on these lists will be my recommendation. my recommendations will be beneath the list with reasons. also some of these are way better than others in terms of storytelling/performance--which is why i'll list my faves separately):

#1. FANTASY/ADVENTURE (LIVE ACTION)

Common Themes of Media In the List:

-Strong female friendships

-Romance critical (or anti-romantic centrism)

-Emphasis on female-female relationships

-Warrior girls and women

-Revenge against awful men

-Distrust of male love interests

Ones I Haven't Watched:

His Dark Materials

Everything Everywhere All At Once

Paradise Hills

Crimson Peak

Outlander

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

House of the Dragon

The Nevers

Cursed

NOT LISTED BUT QUALIFIES

Pan's Labyrinth

Mary Poppins

Twilight

The Craft

The BFG

PERSONAL NOTES FOR THE ONES I'VE WATCHED

The School for Good and Evil

5/10

There were many things about it that were good. The chemistry between the two leading actresses, the primacy of friendship over romance, the effects, the costume and set design, the insane cast (Charlize Theron, Cate Blanchett, Michelle Yeoh, Kerry Washington?!) and the score. Some of the performances were good, too. The pitfalls of the film had more to do with the writing and directing. Some scenes were rushed, some dialogue was embarrassingly bad, some plot points were just nonsensical and childish. The magic system was also not well executed (though I've seen worse).

It's mostly mid, but the ending is refreshing for the fairytale genre and if you like fairytale fluff, you'll probably be more willing to forgive the film's transgressions. If you can, there'll be a lot of fun left to have with it.

2. Damsel

6.5/10

More action than fantasy and with a much smaller cast. Most of the movie focuses on Millie's character. The performances in this were pretty good, though. If you like heroines getting revenge, non-cliche fantasy stories involving princesses, and dragons, this movie is right up your alley! Also the costuming is delightful! It's predictable, but it is also entertaining.

3. Willow

7/10

This show was just fun. Fantastic effects, female heroics, tomfoolery, lesbians, action, evil forces, cool costuming, lesbians, sword-play, riddle-solving, dumbass princes, sarcastic mentors, and lesbians! This show knew exactly what it was trying to be. Aside from some poor performances, my overall impressions is positive.

4. Wednesday

7/10

I personally enjoy Wednesday Addams' character wherever I see her. Having a whole show of her was just a treat. I didn't care for the typical highschool-shenanigans (like the cliques) as much, but there were many enjoyable elements in this for me. Particularly, the effects, the crime, the other female characters, and the ending. It's entertaining and pretty to look at. Also I'm always on my wenclair propaganda.

5. Shadow & Bone

6/10

I've read the Six of Crows duology and the first book of the Shadow & Bone trilogy, so for me this show was a let down. For new watchers, however, you'll find interesting female characters, cool effects, and an entertaining (though sometimes choppy) plot. Inej Ghafa is my queen forever, regardless.

6. Renegade Nell

7/10

This is puts the fantasy in revenge fantasy. I love all the actresses from Derry Girls, and Louisa Harland is still charming in this. It's basically if Gentleman Jack (same director, I think) and Tinkerbell teamed up. Or if Little Women was also Pirates of the Caribbean but instead of taking to the sea it was highway robbery! The action sequences are so fun, the villains are nuanced (particularly the villainess) the comedy isn't overbearing (like I forgot I was watching a Disney show tbh) and the silly towel boy from Ted Lasso is here! I personally had fun. I hope it's renewed.

7. Alice in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass

7/10 (i love these so much so it's 8/10 for me)

It sucks that Depp is in this, but I can never ever forsake my girl Mia Wasikowska. I just love these movies. I love the design, the music, the costumes, the irreverence toward marriage and romance, Alice's personality and relationship with her mother, how it tackles the pathologisation of female autonomy, the performances, etc. The books are one of my favorite books of all time so there's that.

8. Maleficent

7/10

I really loved the performances in this, the metaphor for rape, the satisfying revenge. I don't mind that it was cliché. I love Maleficent movies. AND the Lana Del Ray cover for "Once Upon A Dream." Also, the first one makes me tear up every time. The mother-daughter love is just so touching to me.

9. Warrior Nun

(?/10)

I love the premise of this show and I can get behind the characters. The protagonist just annoyed me so much so often I have taken multiple breaks and can't remember the story. I am all for imperfect, asshole girl characters. But this protagonist was just whiny and careless beyond reason. And it was taking too long for her to get with the nuns. Like I was not invested enough in her running away arc. Like sis get your ass to the coven you are not that main of a character!

She took up so much screentime when literally every other character in the show was more interesting than she was.

At least there's lesbians.

10. Snow White & The Huntsman

(8/10)

What can I say? Kristen Stewart was hot in this, as was stepmother. Effects? Stellar. Direction? Stellar. Performance? Mostly stellar. Drama? Action? Magic? All there. Thoroughly entertaining. Refreshingly anti-Disney. Unfortunately there are some annoying men involved (I'm talking about the dwarves of course) but it never gets too overbearing. This is, however, the least feminist of the entire list and scores lowest on the above common themes.

#radblr #female centric media #female fantasy movies #feminism #fantasy heroines #hadesoftheladies rec list

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widowshill · 6 months

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How do you think Dark Shadows would differ if made today? Would it still be the cult classic or is that kind of writing lost to us?

with the disclaimers that I don't think you can set out to make a cult classic, and also I only know as much about the entertainment industry as the next person, and also I don't really think the writing in Dark Shadows is that good, I do think it's an interesting question! I'll do my best.

To start: for me, the lion's share of the show's enduring appeal is in its earnestness, and part of that is the palpable shoestring budget. things like flubbed lines, camera man and mic shadows in the shot, and other genuine mistakes are part of what you watch the show for, they do not detract but add to the experience. this contributes a similar sense of watching live theatre (paired with most of the core cast being new york theatrically trained and bringing that acting style with them) because you know you're seeing something usually done in one take, where the mistakes bleed through, where who the actors are as people is alongside them on the stage. they flub, and recover, and this is part of the story: so too do the Collinses make vast mistakes, and go on. it is an imperfect world riddled with faults.

This is not something you're going to get in the current media landscape from one of the big networks like ABC; I find it almost impossible to imagine a daytime show being produced with the kind of natural errors Dark Shadows contains. To capture that same kind of poor theatre troup earnestness you would have better success as either a) actual serial theatre, b) a webseries / tiktok series / etc, c) a low-budget independent or college tv station, or d) a miniseries, possibly. If a major network took it on and purposefully put those mistakes in, it would not feel the same. I'm a bit bored of the constant insincerity/irony in a lot of 2020's media, and I think it would rapidly veer into that genre of work.

As far as being a daytime serial, specifically, I don't think the current media environment is exactly right: part of the reason they aired a gothic horror soap opera to begin with is it was part of the broader cultural conversation, next to television like Bewitched, The Addams Family, I Dream of Jeanie, The Munsters, The Twilight Zone, etc. American entertainment in the late 60's had a love affair with the occult (with witches, monsters, ghosts, the works) and this permeated broad aspects of arts and culture: The Haunted Mansion opened at Disneyland in 1969, Monster Mash was number 1 on the Billboard chart in 1962 (and #91 in '70, and #10 in '73). Pair that with prominent artists like John Zacherle's discography, Vincent Price's film credits, 70's gothic horror comedies like The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Phantom of the Paradise, and of course the wild popularity of gothic romance paperbacks in the 60's and 70's. This isn't everything, of course, but just to broad-strokes the landscape.

It's not that we don't have supernatural media today — horror is one of the highest performing movie genres, and there are shows like Ghosts and WWDITS, and Watcher Entertainment — but it's not quite the same explosion of culture (in my opinion). Making a gothic romance-horror-vampire serial would be more at home in the 2010's among the love affair with Twilight, True Blood, The Originals, the dominance of horror game Youtube, the height of Supernatural, Crimson Peak, What We Do In the Shadows 2014, etc. One imagines this is why the 2012 film adaption came out when it did; the cultural moment was conducive, overall. Most nighttime network television today (and I am generalizing) is dominated by legal, medical, and police drama; current soap-operas (especially General Hospital) reflect that, and there are only three soaps getting aired, period. Nothing is impossible: but a soap in the Dark Shadows vein (ha) getting green-lit today seems unlikely, vastly unlikely with the ebb in vampire fervor.

What I will say that works better in today's production moment for a potential series revival (revision?) is we're starting to see an embrace of practical set building / prop making / etc that was lost to us for a little while, especially among the horror genre. For example: Blumhouse's FNAF utilizing the Jim Henson creature shop, the beautiful set work on Haunted Mansion 2023, the use of practical effects in Beetlejuice 2. This is something that to me feels integral, for making Dark Shadows. You may disagree! But I don't think the heavy dependence on CGI did 2012 any favors. The magic inherent in the show (curses, ghosts, whatever you want to call it) is supported by movie magic and the invisible (or sometimes visible) artisanal hands crafting the world for us.

Moreover, with Bridgerton, especially (but also Emma, Little Women, The Gilded Age, The Great, etc) there's been a bit of a renaissance of lush period pieces. The current fascination with historical romances (and anachronism!) lends itself very well to a dive into 1795 or 1897. My best guess is that if we produced a revival right now, there'd be a very heavy focus on one of the alternate time periods (probably 1795), and they would lean on anachronism (and sex) very heavily, and the present year would be a very very minor presence, if they bothered with it at all – and maybe they wouldn't!

As for the writing, specifically? There's nothing that extraordinary about Dark Shadows' writing, to me, what is extraordinary is the characters and the actors' management of them (and Lela's direction) and what they are able to do with the script (aside from a few standout moments of memorable lines). There are brilliant television writers out there who could write a lovely gothic adaption. Some of our priorities in terms of storytelling are different: one thing you would have to acknowledge that the original show rarely dealt with and never performed well on is race. However a lot of the dominant concerns in the cultural landscape do reflect the issues at the forefront of the themes in the writing: especially women's bodily autonomy (Barnabas' hypnotism and forcing Josette's identity onto the nearest brunette/the inherent violation of biting and enthrallment, the way his victims are 90% of the time poor women, or sex workers, or the criminalized and otherwise vulnerable); women's economic position (Liz running the house and business, Victoria and Maggie's subject to endless horrors for a wage, Carolyn free to kick getting married down the road because she's economically secure) and the rigid dominance of the hetero-nuclear family structure as it is entwined with economics in America, and its subversions; and, especially, the way that the American houses (architectural, economic, genealogical) are built on the exploitation of those beneath them, often demanding the physical sacrifice of bodies and blood.

If I had my choice — and this is not what I think is probable, what is probable is a lean into the literal vampires and witches and sex associated in a modern-day setting — a current version of Dark Shadows would lean heavily into those themes, and take the reflection of the literal monsters (Barnabas, Angelique, Quentin, Laura, etc.) on the metaphorical monsters (Elizabeth, Roger, Burke, David, etc.) seriously. Preferably I'd want it set in the 1960's-70's again, because, like Collinsport, we seem to repeat the same sins over and over again, currently we are engaged with and reversing much of the progress that was made by social movements of that era, so in some senses we are returned to that time, culturally. Preferably I would emphasize the mystery? the permeation between the boundary of human and monstrosity? that dominated the early supernatural arcs with Laura and the beginning of Barnabas; and emphasize the terror, especially the terror of violence contained within the charming, and genteel, and refined, and beautiful. Above all I would not begin any first episode of anything with Barnabas, who should be first and foremost a reflection on the family so ready to accept him as like kind.

cult classic? I don't know. I think there's an appetite for earnestness; for long-form storytelling; for the quotidian — to learn about characters as they eat breakfast and bicker, as well as fight monsters. and theatre-trained enunciation that you can hear. I would hope, with sufficient intimacy training, the kissing and sex scenes would be a little better and not make me so very miserable.

#➤ answered. ┊ Collinsport 4099.#➤ ooc. ┊ she’s nauseous，she’s hysterical，and she’s exhausted.

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maikeymonroe · 2 months

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Maika Monroe on the Scream Queens panel for Hollywood Fame's Comic Con

1.) Can you tell us about the character(s) you have played?

"Shit, how much time do I have? I didn't do it on purpose, but I ended up finding a little cozy nest in the horror world which means I have quite a few. Let's see... Jay from It Follows and Anna from The Guest were the two to kind of put me on the map. Jay is your typical, teenage girl trying to tackle a sex demon. You know, normal things. I've actually played two characters named Julia in the horror world, plus one named Jules. My first Julia was in Tau and she was pretty much tortured the entire film. Second Julia is from Watcher about a woman who moves to Romania with her husband and feels as if she's being watched and stalked. Jules was from Villains which is a bit more light-hearted. My most recent little freak is Lee in Longlegs, which is currently in theaters, who is very, very different from my usual final girl in that she's incredibly awkward and reserved. More horror characters who just deserve honorable mentions were Clare, Ruth, and Erica. And now I swear I'll stop yapping and let us all move on."

2.) Who would be your dream final girl to team up with?

"Literally every single one of these beautiful women on this panel. Put me in a film with any one of them and I'll be as happy as can be."

3.) Do you think you would be able to survive a horror movie?

"I want to have faith in myself so badly. With all of the horror experience I have, you'd think I would know what to do to survive, but I feel like I would be that dumbass that finds weird explanations for everything and ends up getting killed for it."

4.) What is the most interesting part of making a horror movie come to life?

"Oh, God, all of it. When you're filming, it really doesn't feel like 'wow, this movie is scary,' you know? You're chilling with your friends and reading words from a page. So I think the way it can go from just a bunch of people having fun and doing what they love to then get edited into something that's going to scare the shit out of people is so cool."

5.) What horror scream queens from the past inspired you?

"Forever inspired by Jamie Lee Curtis. I think she is just phenomenal in what she does and she helped pave the way for the rest of us."

6.) What did you to unwind after a day of intense scenes?

"A whole lot of reality tv and a glass of wine. I learned the hard way earlier on in my career how debilitating constantly putting yourself in such a traumatic state can be for your mental health and have worked really hard to prevent that. I bring a friend to set a lot. For the last few films I've done, I actually got my friend hired as an assistant so that I can have someone who I can snap back to being myself with."

7.) Would you like your movie(s) to get a sequel? If so, where do you see your character going?

"I was always really scared of sequels, because more often than not, they're cash grabs and don't always add much to the original film. However, David Mitchell, the writer and director of It Follows, wrote a killer sequel that I'm truly so fucking excited about. Was terrified when they first approached me about it, but I swear the script is insanely good and I can't wait to start filming that soon. Can't say anything about Jay just yet, but she's in an amazing place and it's going to be killer."

8.) Would you ever return to making another horror movie/series?

"Always. Horror's my home. If it's a good script, I'm in."

#hfrpcomiccon24 #we're gonna pretend the outfit is the same as her actual cc outfit but i wanted to do a “panel” photo lmao

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looosey · 1 year

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Film Review: Summer Movie Rec Masterlist

Getting this out early for @notesoncrocs, sorry I'll add more descriptors later!

There has not been a more apt time to post a list of recommendations, as a lot of us actual ihouse are apart from each other, away from home. I watched these in the past month, so best believe these are certified fresh.

Movies.

Asteroid City: artsy Wes Anderson film about science fairs and plays, and alien visitations with a star-studded cast.

Past Lives: a slow-burn angsty A24 film about 인연 (in-youn), a Korean American girl and her childhood crush reignite sparks as they live their separate lives throughout the years and reminisce on what could've been. I thought some parts were funny, but movie overall just made me think that ordinary love is unspectacular but still moving/spectacular.

Pride and Prejudice: the classic enemies-to-lover story. I don't know if Mr. Darcy wooed me as a watcher, but I will say the movie captures the feeling of "yearning" really really well, much better than Past Lives.

The Roundup: No Way Out: stellar action movie from Korea. I am a sucker for these.

Barbie: Hilarious and fun for my eyes. Some scenes really hit for me, a deep fear of the world as it is today. Made me think of Virginia Woolf's writing:

"The most transient visitor to this planet, I thought, who picked up this paper could not fail to be aware, even from this scattered testimony, that England is under the rule of a patriarchy. Nobody in their senses could fail to detect the dominance..." - Virginia Woolf's, A Room of One's Own

Nothing Serious: a nerdy columnist is tasked with writing a sex column, so he dives into hook up apps and meets a girl, a low-key sex addict. I liked the blend of fun in the movie, casual sex, and the more moral questions, ethics of surveillance.

Argo: Action movie about the CIA operation in the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis that put together a whole fake Hollywood alien movie script/company in order to extract 6 Americans who escaped the embassy and were hiding in Tehran for months.

TV Shows.

Atlanta: College dropout (Donald Glover) sees his cousins rise as a rapper as a way to change their lives. The humor, the colors in the shots, the range of the fundamental human experiences covered, and the crazy crazy episodes that leap out of the story line, make this show like no other I've ever seen.

My Mister: Written by my favorite kdrama TV-writer, a girl in her early 20s lives a miserable, lonely, guilt-ridden life, chased by loansharks, burdened her ailing grandmother, and with no hope for any better. She enters a 9-5 company as a temp, and meets an older married guy who is as miserable as she is. She likes him a lot and the drama teeters around her morals and their ill-adjustment to society.

My Liberation Notes: Same writer, this time a depiction of what it's like to be in the outskirts of Seoul life, but quite literally/geographically. A girl in her late 20s finds little meaning in what every one in her Seoul office find meaningful, nor her family in the country side. This ones as equally about familial love as it is about romance, about hatred.

Beef: Y'all have all already watched it already. I'm watching it again with Hanu and Diego.

#movie recommendations #tv recommendations #tv shows #kdrama #netflix

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signalwatch · 1 year

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#The Signal Watch http://www.signal-watch.com/2023/07/90s-watch-south-park-bigger-longer-and.html

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araekniarchive · 3 years

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how do you make your webs, like finding so much information that pertains to one idea? do you save every piece of media that you come across that speaks to you, or do you have a particular method of searching?

Good question! I only started this blog a couple months ago, so even though I have been trying to document media I come across now, it'll take a while for my own 'archive' to be full enough to reference - I actually use the goodreads quote function a lot (although, beware, there is a lot of rubbish there, a la Cassandra Clare and JK Rowling) as things are pretty well tagged to an extent, and I use tumblr to search the 'web weaving' tag for ideas relating to what I want - for example, I found some pieces of my most recent web on 'the watcher' aka male fantasies by searching 'web weaving the male gaze' and scrolling down to see if I saw anything I felt would fit. I'll also go manually through my own 'words' tag on my main if I vaguely remember something relevant, and I do occasionally go through other, much older (and better) web weaving blogs - here I will plug the incredible @luthienne whose incredible weaves and archive actually made me decide I wanted to make my own web weaving sideblog rather than just stick to keeping it all mixed into my main, very crowded blog - using tumblr's (incredibly temperamental) search function with relevant key words.

The majority of my webs do come from my own (dubious) memory, such as the Only Ever Yours quote from 'the watcher', which I read when I was seventeen or so and stuck with me, or the Dead Like Me screencaps in the 'grief in tv shows and film' web where Clancy talks about thinking he had more time with George. But often I'll remember a quote, but not remember where it's from, and that's where these other search functions become particularly helpful. If you want a part of a book, archive.org is a free resource full of books scanned in by libraries that you can borrow for free online for anywhere between an hour and two weeks, and it also has a search function where you can type the part you're looking for into the search bar and it'll tell you exactly which page it's on (and I'd actually recommend archive.org for reading full stop, whether its for work or leisure, it's an amazing resource and helped me get through my dissertation). Sometimes this search function doesn't work, or it's awkwardly spaced out or some other issue, which is when I enlist my good friend Paint 3D and screenshot and crop, highlight, underline and otherwise edit it until it looks how I want it to. Similarly, with song lyrics, lyrics.com (despite being one of the worst formatted sites I've ever seen) does a pretty good job of matching the lyrics you remember to a song, which can then be searched elsewhere (I'm partial to genius.com, but once you have a name and an artist, you can find lyrics in dozens of places) for a cleaner presentation.

I also use TinEye, a reverse image search extension to properly source what I use; there's nothing worse than using an image or quote without proper credit, and that allows you to look for the earliest use of an image that isn't from pinterest/weheartit. A good example is this image which I found on a grunge aesthetic board - I popped it in TinEye (google image reverse search is alright, but it doesn't give you dates and only really works for famous artists/artwork, everything else it uses from a 'most similar' basis rather than an exact match) and it came back one weheartit, one flickr favourites page, one pinterest board, and a twitter. I clicked on the twitter, and unfortunately it had been deleted; however, it gave me the twitter name ezoreno in the now broken link, which I put on the image after a quick scour to double check somebody under the same name was not on tumblr or instagram or some other social media that I could link to instead.

Lastly, I do use 'ranking' lists if I'm unfamiliar with a topic - although I used several shows from my own memory for the 'grief in tv shows and film' web, there are several I used despite never seeing the shows - Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Wandavision were all shows I've never watched but had seen specific moments referred to in a Buzzfeed article, which itself was ripped from a reddit thread. One of the replies I got on it, funnily enough, was saying how The Walking Dead should have been included - they're probably right, but as I responded, I haven't seen The Walking Dead and in my search didn't come across any specific moment mentioned that I could've found (episode numbers and transcripts are great for locating where in the episode to cut to).

In short, I research and borrow and cut and copy; in other words, I cheat. Hopefully this demystifies the process a bit (and stops me feeling like I'm tricking people into thinking I'm smart/at all organised).

#asks and answers #the process

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rivertalesien · 5 years

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This is going to look totally random but I'm asking a few people what they think of the influence of Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Good? Bad? How do you see it?

Oh wow that’s a really big question.

I was in my teens when it started, so I was in the target audience for it and I loved a lot of it. Buffy was The Show everyone in my age group and older was talking about, it was my first real exposure to fan fiction and memes and I spent waaaay too much time on the Kittenboard (we didn’t have Tumblr, so that’s where the queer kids hung out and discussed all things Willow/Tara or Buffy/Faith and shared fan art and fiction and every form of crack). For fans, our lives kind of revolved around collecting quotes from the show and things like comics when they started coming out (I still have quite a few).

But the show wasn’t perfect and it indulged in negative tropes, like fridging (Jenny Calendar and Anya deserved better) and Tara’s death pretty much ended the show for a lot of us. If I remember right (and there were a lot of rumors then, so getting facts straight today is hard), Joss Whedon and some others on his staff had been saying they knew what the dead lesbian trope was, they weren’t going to go there, then a year later they did and no apologies, it was his show to do with what he wanted (that this got repeated almost note-for-note on The 100 was a big anger trigger for a lot of people). I remember the anger and grief on the Kittenboard, how it lasted for months and created this huge conversation on the topic. When Xena was killed off like a year later, that didn’t fly too well, either and then 9/11 happened and suddenly the age of macho assholes and torture porn was upon us. Women’s roles in tv and films started taking back seats again.

For a long time, it felt like shows like Buffy and Xena were outliers that would never happen again, even as shows like Veronica Mars struggled and The L Word was on and pissing off a lot of people for different reasons. Buffy (and Xena) were shows that came out around the same time and offered up Strong Female Leads while the men were, for the most part, comic relief or just the romantic interest (in Buffy’s case though, Angel and Spike sometimes overwhelmed and threatened Buffy’s integrity, while Joxer and Ares on Xena never really did).

These shows were also known for their humor and having basically pitch-perfect casts who played their characters in such relatable and endearing ways that you either wanted to be them or be with them and that’s like the perfect storm of pop culture: smart humor, smart writing, supernatural elements, characters you love (even if they’re not the nicest people), villains that are genuinely provocative and interesting and not always evil. It just worked and created a template for a lot of showrunners to follow today.

I think the rebooted Doctor Who benefited a lot from being a post-Buffy show and making the female “companions” the real protagonists who were full of Buffy-ish sensibility and humor; Russell T. Davies could have basically modeled Rose on Buffy in a lot of ways, while Steven Moffatt seemed to take a more superficial influence: instead of the companion as protagonist, he made them the focus of the Doctor’s obsessiveness (and more often than not, domme kink). The Silence were basically The Gentlemen re-imagined (nursery rhyme and all). The current iteration of the show is pretty much free of any Buffy-ness, but that seems to represent more a leap in maturity without offering as much definition.

One of the issues I had early on with Buffy was her having an older man as her Watcher (even if Giles was a lovable “dad” figure), while her mom was mostly absent. Buffy was heavily influenced by male characters from Giles to Angel to Spike and often rejected her role because she just wanted a “normal” life with a boyfriend. I felt this sometimes undermined her character, even in a show that was meant to flip teenage conventions on its head: the chosen one who doesn’t want to be, but later embraces the role is standard boy-hero fare, and Buffy just wanting to be “a girl” mimics this. And it might have looked subversive if it weren’t for the fact that most female characters are written this way anyhow.

I couldn’t help but wonder what Buffy would have been like with a female Watcher, if they hadn’t embraced some serious racist tropes with Kendra or the First Slayer (we have no excuses today and there were no excuses then, either), if they didn’t spend so much time building up Spike into the kind of creepy anti-hero who is Cool and whose relationship with Buffy was heavily romanticized (while Tara continued to be sidelined). The show points out this isn’t healthy, but wasn’t trying too hard to be convincing on that score (esp since it doubled-down on Spike-as-Hero in the last season).

Buffy never needed a male counterpart, and the show was never completely confident about this: there was Giles, Xander, Angel, Riley and Spike always around to be the Wise Man, the Protective Friend, the Lover, the Manly Man, the Rebel. Their stereotyping might have been an unintentional reflection of how female characters are often stereotyped, but without a sense of irony.

But, to me, the show’s strengths were almost always its downfall.

Faith, the fuck-up slayer whom no one was very good at taking responsibility for (she was a teen too), but great at exploiting for Bad Girl points and a little sapphic subtext, without ever Going There. She too finds some redemption via Angel and the male hero savior biz was alive and well in Joss Whedon’s world long before his involvement with Marvel.

Willow, the nerdy genius with too much responsibility and too little nurturing, was just starting to blossom in college when she met Tara and that should have been the beginning of something powerful: instead, the show kept treating Tara like a walk-on and fridged her at least twice so Willow could go darker and darker. In her final season, she was the voice of responsibility and maturity and it was devastating to lose her: it was such a waste of a character who should have been empowered but was kept in the background.

In fact, I kept hoping until the last moments of the season that we’d find it hadn’t been Tara shot at all, but Amy in disguise and that Tara would show up at the last minute to stop Willow destroying the world. Maybe give her a good kick and show how powerful she really was in the process. Instead, they reinforced the evil/dead lesbian cliche and the influence of that…something Clexa fans got to be on the receiving end of some 15 years later.

Joss Whedon got a lot of flak for killing off Tara, but it didn’t stick to him the way it has to Jason Rothenberg (who should have known better, probably did and didn’t care anyway). There was no Twitter back then so he went mostly unscathed from criticism and it’s telling that he’s never had a single lgbtq character in any of his work since.

Learning too, how Whedon took advantage of young actresses while painting himself as a feminist (and went on to write some of the most sexist stuff in any of the Marvel films) makes it hard to look back on Buffy with much fondness, it’s tainted in some ways by that association. It isn’t fair to all the other talents involved who deserved better, but that’s part of the show’s influence too: the kind of standard Whedon set for showrunners is one plenty have wanted to copy (including Moffatt and Rothenberg) and it’s not much of a surprise to see the same kind of sexist, homophobic tropes showing up in their work, too.

So I can look at the show itself and remember how happy it made me to have Willow and Tara and angry it made me when they killed her off and destroyed Willow’s character in the process. I wish it had influenced more shows after it (more female-led shows) but it seems like 9/11 cut off whatever was in the process of happening with shows that centered women: and with the exception of things like Gilmore Girls and The L-Word, there weren’t many run by women at all. Whedon, like a lot of white men of privilege, got his way in with some Marvel films and almost got Wonder Woman and Batgirl; fortunately some wiser heads prevailed (but WW was still written/produced by an armful of men and who knows what will happen with Batgirl).

If anything, the “influence” now feels decidedly post-Whedonesque, with more women showrunners like Emily Andras and directors like Patty Jenkins pushing forward, Jordan Peele stepping in and raising the bar on horror that Whedon could only dabble with via empty satire in The Cabin in the Woods.

Buffy had her time…but in my opinion, it’s time we move on from Whedon and those other privileged white men who sailed into showrunner slots they weren’t competent for just because the Whedon model suggested great things. I think we can still appreciate a lot of it, but we need to open the doors to real diversity and the hope for better representation.

#questions #buffy the vampire slayer #joss whedon #90s tv #willow rosenberg #tara maclay #dead lesbian cliche #representation matters #pop culture

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apostatemages · 8 years

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You want a lot of questions?! Even numbers! All of them. Because I'm horrible ?

Right, well, first off, fuck you :)

second, this is going under a read more

third, I’m leaving out the ones I know you already know/I don’t want to answer

2: Do I have any nicknames? Ninzz3: Zodiac sign? Aquarius4: Video game I play to chill, not to win? Tomb Raider Legend. I got every achievement possible in it years ago so it’s like a comforting, familiar walk for me.5: Book/series I reread? The only one I constantly reread is Memoirs of A Geisha, which I’ve read over 25 times, but I have read 1984 and the Call of Cthulhu several times as well.6: Aliens or ghosts? If I had to pick one, aliens. Because my space parents are always dicks to me and the other ones figured out how to paralyse me7: Writer I trust enough to read whatever they write? I don’t have one of those because I’m not a huge reader in the conventional sense and most of my favourite authors are dead.10: The word that I use all the time to describe something great? Awesome or nice11: Favourite song? Right now it’s Darkwave Surfer or Innsmouth, both by Aural Vampire12: The question you ask new friends to get to know them better? What books and movies they like. It’s always a good yardstick 14: The last person who hurt me, did I forgive them? Yes. I could never stay angry at you for long15: Last song I listened to? Right now I’m listening to Burning For You - Blue Oyster Cult. Before that it was Jane - Jefferson Starship16: TV show I always recommend? It depends very much on what the other person is asking for, but in a more general sense? Buffy, AHS, Xena, Parks and Rec, Breaking Bad, Brooklyn 99. I’m not a huge TV watcher, I never saw any of those on TV when they were on, only on tape, DVD or streaming services. 18: Movie I watch when I'm feeling down? Girl Interrupted, Memoirs of A Geisha, Star Wars, Practical Magic, The Matrix. These always bring me out of a bad mood19: Song that I always start my shuffle with/wake-up song/always-on-a-loop song? My alarm is Gimme Shelter - Rolling Stones21: What am I most afraid of? Onryo34: Someone I always think about? You!35: Am I excited about anything? My moon phase tattoos, which I’m getting in just over a week37: Favourite TV shows as a child? Buffy has been a firm favourite for as long as I can remember. All my favourite kids shows were like... Mona the Vampire and Arthur, 38: Do I have someone of the opposite sex that I can tell everything to? No, not really. I’m weird about men39: Am I superstitious? Yes41: Do I have any strange phobias? I wouldn’t say any of mine are strange. Irrational, perhaps, but not strange.42: Do I prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it? I love taking photographs of people, but I rarely get the chance. To be in front of the camera it would have to be a stranger paying me to do it, or someone I trust very much.44: Last book I read? Right now I’m reading Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. One of my best friend’s brother recommended it to me.45: Last film I watched? In Her Shoes50: How do I destress? If I’m really stressed out I’ll just pull a fanon hux and fuck myself until I pass out. I’m too boneless and sated to care about anything else51: Do I like confrontation? A sick little part of me does take pleasure in it when it’s someone I don’t really like54: Do I sleep with the lights on or off? On because I see things in the dark and it scares me55: Play any sports? No, but I enjoy swimming and gymnastics.59: Afraid of heights? As much as any sensible person is.61: What was the last concert I went to see? I’ve never been to one, not as such. I saw a live performance when I was a kid by some singer that committed suicide a few years after. 62: Am I vegetarian/vegan/pescatarian? No. But I could probably be vegetarian if I needed to be?63: What occupation did I want to do when I was younger? I wanted to be a vet.64: Have I ever had a friend turn enemy? Not as such, but I’ve had friendships turn so toxic that I’ve had to end them.70: Can I sing? I’ve been told I can so I guess, yes. I don’t feel I’m very good though.71: Something I wish I could do? fucking anything, lol73: Have I ever skipped school? Yes. Once I went out and smoked weed with a couple friends and went back into the school, where I then held onto a sink and had an existential crisis because it wasn’t weed, it was fucking skunk!!77: What is my current desktop picture? A picture of Rey on a speeder, half naked78: Early bird or night owl? Night owl for sure79: Sunsets or sunrise? sunset80: Can I drive? Yes81: Story behind my last kiss? I was leaving for my train home, it was a goodbye kiss.82: Earphones or headphones? Headphones84: Story behind one of my scars? I have a chickenpox scar in the middle of my forehead. And one on my left middle knuckle from trying to punch someone and hitting the wall because they moved.88: What makes me really angry? People who have lots of money asking me why I can’t just, like, buy the things I want??89: Kindle or real book? Real books, I detest kindles.90: Favourite sporty activity? If walking doesn’t count, swimming or climbing. I can’t do much of either these days because CFS92: What was my favourite subject at school? Geology. I’m a dirty rock lover94: What was the last thing I bought? A case for my new phone, because my other one got broken, oops96: Can I cook? If I follow a recipe exactly I’m great, but if I don’t... It’s pretty disastrous.97: Can I bake? Same rules as cooking.103: Sexual orientation? This is a question that perplexes me too! I have figured out that I’m gay mostly because I am unable to trust men enough to even form true friendships with them without doubting their motives. They always want sex from me, most have gone to ridiculous lengths to get it from me, and when I refuse? They force their attentions on me. 106: Last time I cried? Last week. I had a breakdown when the above finally occurred to me during therapy, among other similarly unpleasant revelations107: Guilty pleasure? ???113: Favourite accents? I dunno, I like lots of different ones.114: A place I have not been but wish to visit? Maine!117: Am I religious? Yes, I am. I consider myself pagan but I’m not sure what subset I fall into.119: Do I like the deep ocean? I suppose so, It’s interesting! There are lots of strange little creatures down there that could be my friends.121: Am I allergic to anything? No, not that I know of.122: Can I curl my tongue? Yes123: Can I wiggle my ears? No126: My current project? Your birthday gift. After that I plan to start a Star Wars tarot deck.128: Do I admit when I wrong? Yes, I try to. Sometimes I’m so stubborn that I don’t realise I’m in the wrong but the moment I do I try and apologise129: Forest or beach? I love both very much. I couldn’t choose one. 130: Favourite piece of advice? ‘Stay afraid but do it anyway’131: Am I a good liar? When it suits me. Acting like a bad liar makes it all the more convincing when you need to do it for real.133: Do I talk to myself? Literally all the time, I basically respond to my own thoughts by talking.135: Do I like gossip? I despise it136: Do I keep a journal/diary? I keep several: One for mind stuff/events/feelings, one for dreams, one for sexual fantasies, one for magical information, one for ideas, and one for general information. I also keep notes on my calendar. Whenever I go on a trip I keep a journal specifically for that and save all my ticket stubs and leaflets and photographs.137: Have I ever hopelessly failed a test? I must have at some point but I can’t say I remember.138: Do I believe in second chances? I’m a bad for giving people extra chances when I really shouldn’t.139: If I found a wallet full of cash on the ground, what would I do? Take the money and then put it in a lost and found.140: Do I believe people are capable of change? I suppose so. At their very core, perhaps not.141: Have I ever been underweight? Yes. Quite severely - about 90lbs146: Have I ever been overweight? Never. I’ve been more muscular but that doesn’t really count. I had an extra 20lbs of muscle a few years ago.147: Do I have any piercings? I have my ears, a labret, and the left side of my nose. I had my nipples pierced for about a year149: Do I have any tattoos? Three right now, soon to be four. runes on either wrist, and script that reads ‘destiny rules’ on my left shoulder150: What is the best decision I have made in life so far? To not go to college. I would certainly have killed myself by now if I had151: Do I believe in Karma? yes 152: Do I wear glasses or contacts? glasses, contacts in this house would be a very bad idea because of all the dust and fluff155: Who is the most intelligent person I know? The friend that recommended Brave New World. I’m quite intelligent but he makes me feel very, very stupid.158: Have I ever pulled an all-nighter? Yes, many times159: Which do I value more in others, brains or beauty? Brains, obviously. I’ve known some very beautiful people that are just horrible.160: What colour mostly dominates my wardrobe? No single colour, actually. I have a lot of white, blue, purple/burgundy, and black. Also earthy, light tan colours.161: Have I ever had a paranormal experience? I’ve had too many to list!162: What do I hate most about myself? That I’m so jealous. Especially of people with more money than me, I think about that almost every day and it makes me boil with rage.163: What do I love most about myself? That’s a very hard question to answer without seeming narcissistic. I guess I like that I’m a loyal friend, willing to deal with a whooooole lot.165: Do I believe in fate? Of course, or I wouldn’t have that destiny rules tattoo would I166: Favourite animal? Hard to say. I like snakes, spiders, dogs, cats and all sorts170: One of my favourite quotes? Just one? Awwww. ‘We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far.’ - H.P Lovecraft171: Do I hold grudges? No, I don’t. Or else I would become the very thing I fear.172: Do I trust easily? No, not at all! It takes a long time for me to trust a person, if I ever do174: Best gift I’ve ever received? Hard to say. In terms of sentimental value, these: your japor snippet, Noodle and Leia, the velvet dress, Agnetha, my tattoos, the Kylo bear... those are all I can think of right now. In terms of usefulness, these: my previous phone, drawing tablet, TV, leather coat and trousers, that sort of thing.175: Do I dream? Yes, often.176: Have I ever had a night terror? Many times thought it happened more when I was a child.177: Do I remember my dreams, and what is one that comes to mind? I remember them vividly when I do, and I remember one where I missed a train. The station was underground and all steel, grey and sterile. Someone told me to run through a tunnel that reminded me of the book tunnels in Apocrypha, in that it stretched out in front of me as I ran through and in the gaps was Holly, riding a unicorn. It was very odd.179: If I were immortal, what would I do? If it meant I didn’t have to eat anymore then great! I could do anything I wanted.180: Do I like shopping? I would, if I actually had money. 181: If I could get away with a crime, what would I choose to do? Murder182: What does “family” mean to me? People that love you unconditionally and are there for you when you need them185: If I could master one skill, what would I choose? Sex, because then I would be able to do what I love and be boss at it186: What is my greatest failure? Boy, let me count the ways187: What is my greatest achievement? I don’t actually know. I can’t say I’ve achieved anything of note. I’ve done some cool stuff, but are they achievements? Probably not.188: Love or money? Love of money is the root of all sin, but money cannot buy love189: Love or career? Love, I couldn’t give a shit about careers194: If I could choose my last words, what would they be? See you next time195: Would I ever want to encounter aliens? I have done. Some, I would never choose to meet but the others I don’t mind196: A movie that scared me as a child? The Ring, thanks to that shit I have a psychological complex about onryo197: Something I hated as a child that I like now? Being spanked201: A nightmare that has stayed with me? Always the onryo, I remember every nightmare I have about them very vividly203: Do I judge a book by its cover? everybody does to some extent, right? it has to catch your eye in the first place204: Have I ever had my heart broken? I’d say so, yes. I am recovering.205: Do I like my handwriting? I guess so. It changes a lot, I never think about it206: Sweet or savoury? savoury208: Do I collect anything? I collect lots of things; bottle caps, coins, vhs tapes, etc etc209: Item of clothing or jewellery you’ll never see me without? My japor snippet and my siberian blue quartz pendant. And my various piercings. I’ve had the same earrings in for about 3 years now. 211: How do I handle anger? badly212: Was I named after anyone? Inanna, the Sumerian goddess of love, fertility, sex, and war.213: Do I use sarcasm a lot? Yeah...214: What TV character am I most like? Probably a strange mix of Andy and April from Parks and Rec215: What is the weirdest talent I have? I don’t have one, now that I think about it. I have hyperextended elbows216: Favourite fictional character? Tough one, tough one. Right now it has to be Kylo. But the most enduring would have to be Padme. I have a sticker of her on my bedroom door that I put there in 2000.

#ask #ask meme #long post #walkingtheskyline #lane

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