#i've got 3 as a directors cut but i want them all

[stuckinthedeadlights]

Someone tell me to stop looking at all the Uncut and Directors Cuts of the saw movies on ebay

[harunayuuka2060]

Vil: Did you manage to resolve the issue?

MC: Yes. It was a bit difficult at first, but the client listened in the end. 

Vil: …

Vil: You shouldn't have disclosed that you used to work as a concierge. 

Vil: Now everyone is bothering you. 

MC: *smiles* That's better than doing nothing. 

MC: I'm not here for relaxation anyway. 

Vil: …

Vil: Anyway, I received news from Dad. A director, who is a friend of his, needs a stand in. 

Vil: And he wants to hire you for this.  

MC: Huh? 

Vil: What do you think?

MC: …

MC: Is physical appearance a requirement? 

Vil: He didn't specify. Although he might need you for doing action stunts. 

MC: …

MC: Alright. 

Vil: Hm. Great. We'll be meeting him this afternoon to discuss it. 

MC: Okay. 

The casting director: *after seeing MC for the first time* Oh my seven… 

MC: …

The casting director: Their face, their eyes, their built… *turns to look at Vil’s dad* Oh, Eric! Where did you find such a fine specimen?!

Eric: *chuckles* They're a friend of Vil. 

The casting director: *turns to MC again* Do you have any experience in acting?

MC: …

MC: Yes. But it was a long time ago. 

The casting director: Oh? How come I've never seen you in any movie? 

Vil: They usually played as a double at that time, especially for action scenes.

The casting director: A double? With this gorgeous face? 

Eric, MC, and Vil: …

The casting director: Oh sweetheart, you are straight out of a fairy tale! 

MC: Um…

The casting director: Everyone! We found our protagonist! 

The staff: *cheers* 

MC: …

MC: *smiles* We might've some misunderstanding—

The casting director: Thank you so much, Eric, for bringing me this one! 

Eric: *chuckles* You're welcome. 

Vil: …

Vil: Dad. 

Eric: Er, I didn't know she was looking for someone to be a protagonist. 

Vil: …

Vil: *has managed to convince the casting director to do a screen test first before deciding on MC* 

The casting director: MC, don't be nervous. Okay?

MC: *nods*

The actress: Good luck. *smiles kindly at them* 

MC: *smiles back* Thank you. 

The casting director: Okay! Let's roll the camera! 

Vil: …

The casting director: Action! 

MC: *looks at the actress with a gentle gaze* *then subtly smiles* 

Vil: …

The actress: …

The actress: *ends up blushing* 

The casting director: Cut! Cut! That is perfect! 

Vil: …

The actress: I-I’m sorry. 

MC: *feeling slightly embarrassed* It’s alright.

Vil: …

Vil: Looks like you'll be doing separate work now. 

MC: Yes. But I won't still be neglecting my duties here. 

Vil: …

Vil: Have you told the news to Che’nya?

MC: Yes. *smiles* He was really happy about it. 

Vil: …

Vil: I haven't congratulated you yet. Let's have a toast?

MC: It's already late and you have an appointment tomorrow. 

Vil: You're right. 

Vil: Let's do it tomorrow then. 

MC: *smiles*

MC: Why are you still awake, Che’nya?

Che’nya: I wasn't able to call you all day, nya~. 

MC: Yeah, I'm sorry. Something unexpected happened. 

Che’nya: That you got scouted for a movie and received the protagonist role?

MC: …

MC: How did you know?

Che’nya: Nyaha~ The actress you practiced with is Neige’s co-star before! 

MC: I see. 

Che’nya: Congratulations nya~. 

MC: *smiles* Thank you. 

Che’nya: When will the taping start?

MC: In the next couple of weeks. 

Che’nya: Hmm… Does that mean you have to stay there longer?

MC: Hm. Yes. 

Che’nya: …

Che’nya: Nya love~ 

MC: Hm?

Che’nya: I miss you nya~! 

MC: *chuckles* I miss you too. 

Che’nya: *squeals* So sweet~! Bye-bye~! *ends the call* 

MC: *smiles* 

Neige: How did it go?

Che’nya: Nya love has no idea we're here! 

*Both of them has arrived to the airport* 

Neige: Oh Che’nya, I told you to inform MC. 

Che’nya: Nope! I'm surprising my spouse! :3

[aaronhotchswife]

Behind the scenes

Drew Starkey X Female Reader

You and Drew catches feeling while filming a love scene

Warnings : mentions of sex

"I would get it if you say it makes you uncomfortable to do a sex scene with me," Drew said, looking at the ceiling.

I had invited the cast for a movie night. Everyone was mostly gone, leaving Drew in my living room, laying down on my sofa. I was sitting on the floor next to him, fidgeting with the glass in my hand.

"Not uncomfortable, just stressed," I answered, letting my head fall down to the sofa behind me. "I've never filmed a scene like that before, completely topless I mean, and plus, I don't really have a choice, Rafe and Charlotte are finally going to have sex," I laughed.

"True. After 2 seasons of hating me, you finally fell for my charm," he said dramatically.

"That must be it Starkey," I chuckled, rolling my eyes in the air.

**

As I got out of the shower, getting ready for bed, I hear my phone ding. I check it, seeing a text from Drew.

You ready for tomorrow ?

A bit nervous

You'll do good ;)

I smile to myself, putting my phone on my nightstand. I'll do good.

**

"Alright ! 3-2-1, action !" the director yelled.

Drew is walking towards me, in Rafe's character.

"You don't get it Charlotte," Rafe says, walking towards Charlotte.

"No ! I don't Rafe. I don't get it. I don't get why you can't let me flirt with other guys when you're the one who says that he was not interested in me."

Drew in his front of me, his hands grabbing my face.

"Fuck, I love you so much Char," Drew says, his hands grabbing my face, kissing her. "I'm sorry that I've acted like that, but I just wanted you for myself."

He led me on the bed, hoovering over me. His hands caress my body, lifting my shirt. He looks at me before taking my shirt off and unclipping my bra, his lips all over my mouth and my neck. His lips make their way to my breast, kissing them. I try to control myself, putting myself in character, trying not thinking that Drew's mouth is kissing my breast. I moan, as my character is supposed to do. I'm doing good. His mouth makes its way down my belly, his fingers working my jeans. He takes my jeans off and I can feel the camera being back to our faces. I kiss him, letting him the chance to place himself as he supposed to. To place himself as if he was going to have sex with me. He's kissing me everywhere in my face and in my neck, his finger making its way to my mouth, wanting me to suck it. I feel Drew moving his body to create an impression of us having sex. I can feel him against my core, his breath getting heavier. I moan, he moans. He looks at me and at that moment, I can see Drew's looking at me and not Rafe. It's Drew looking at me, with something different in his eyes.

"Fuck, Y/N..."

He says, before the director yells cut.

**

I finish the scene, a sick feeling in my stomach. Drew left the set quickly, nothing saying goodbye to anybody.

"Drew !" I yell, seeing him leaves his dressroom. "Drew!"

"What? I don't wanna talk," he says.

"What ? What's going on ?"

"You know what's going on."

"The fact that you moaned my name ? C'mon Drew, it's okay. It could happen to anyone."

He looks at me, his face breaking before leaving. I don't know what to do, but I know that he will come to his senses by himself.

A couple of days later

"...Hi ! My name is Y/N, and we're the cast of Outer Banks, answering fans questions !"

"So," Chase said, "the first question is: what is your favourite scene from season 3 ?"

"Mine would be when the Pogues finally found the gold !" Madelyn answered.

"True! Especially when you see them a couple of months later, where they all have what they wanted," I answered, getting a few approbations look from my castmates.

"Mine is definitely when Charlotte and Rafe had sex," JD said laughing. I can see Drew hitting him gently on the arm, making funny eyes.

"Omg true! After 2 seasons, it was time guys!" Madison laughed, looking at me and Drew.

I blush, feeling Drew's eyes on me.

"It is a great scene," Drew responded, his eyes still on me.

"Next question !" Lacia spoke, feeling something weird between me and Drew. "The most embarrassing moment you had on set."

Drew looks at me and I give him a shy smile, the question making us both very uncomfortable.

"I think mine would be when I had to run from the police for a scene and that I tripped, in front of everyone," I say.

"Yeah, that was funny. I mean, not really for you, because you had all your knees and elbows scratched," Drew said, smiling softly at me.

Because the interview finished a bit earlier, it was a great occasion of having coffee with the girls.

"Do you see how Drew looked at you ? He was blushing everytime you looked at him !" Madelyn asked me.

"What ?"

"So true! He couldn't keep his eyes off you during the interview! My guy was mesmerized," Lacia added.

"Now that he kissed you he can't stop thinking about you. I mean, I would be the same if I were him," added Madison.

"You're sweet," I say. "But, I don't think. I mean, sometimes I feel like it could be it and I would love I think but I don't know, I don't want to imagine things and get disappointed."

"Well, in my point of view you should definitely check his version because that man is hooked on you," Madelyn added.

**

I'm at Lacia's, a movie night going on. Since the movie is over, everybody's talking in different corners of the apartment, while I'm outside, taking some air, a drink in my hand.

"Can I sit with you ?" A voice asks

I look over, seeing Drew closing the patio door.

"Of course," I add, smiling to him.

"Having a good night?"

"Yeah, it's okay."

"Listen, I wanted to apologize for the way I acted these couple of weeks. I shouldn't pin it on you the fact that I got kinda excited during our sex scene...I'm sorry but I just cannot manage to make it through the day without thinking of you lately."

I look over him, my eyebrows scrunched together, as I'm trying to process the fact that Drew just admitted his feelings to me.

"It's true, Y/N," he says, his eyes leaving my gaze. I reach for his hand, this move forcing him to look at me.

"I feel the same," I answer before reaching his face to kiss him.

[tan1shere]

Film Wife

Young Miko x Female Reader !

A/n: hey all ! Some of you have been asking for this so I'm here to provide for yall ;) this is in English because I am not Spanish what so ever so i'm very sorry to disappoint but for all the fans who would like to read this in English this is for you girlies, enjoy ! (I'm so fucking down bad for this woman this was so yummy to write.) Also if you want any others with Miko please lmk ! Gimmie as many requests as you can think of :)

Summary: You know how theres a thing called 'work wife'? Your Mikos film wife ;)

Warnings: smut ! Mdni. Car sex 😏 don't ask me why but I just know this woman either has an army green strap or a rainbow one. I'm convinced!! Just filthiness like usual-

Pt 2 , pt 3

Masterlist

"Cut!" The director screams. You were currently on set of a singers music video. Everyone loved having you in them you were quite popular. You walk over to your manager, walking past the artist giving them a smile. "You have another music video later on." Your manager Stacy tells you. "Do we know of this person." She shrugs. "You might." She states, showing you her phone. You have a look at the photo she shows you. "Young Miko, or Baby Miko. She's filming a video for her latest song Lisa." You look over the photo, looking at it all very clearly. You were stunned, she was incredibly attractive. She was wearing a beanie, big short sleeved t-shirt, tattoos that immediately catch your attention. "Go home, get changed and I'll send you the dress code." She flashes a toothy smile at you.

Later rolls round fast, you were currently just sitting on your couch in your apartment scrolling on Instagram. Your curiosity got the better of you. Heading to the search bar and looking this mysterious woman up. You scroll a bit, looking at every picture carefully, you would be lying if you said you weren't already obsessed with her. She looks like so much fun. The thought made you smirk to yourself, letting out a slight giggle. This was going to be good.

You had arrived at the studio, seeing your manager and going over to her. "So, what's my part in this." You set your bags down. She points to a bed. "You will be filming a rather, heated scene on this with the artist herself." You couldn't help the blush that spread across your face. You enjoyed these types of scenes, especially when the artist is extremely attractive. "Sounds good." You head over to the bed, just getting into the clothes Stacy had said to. You weren't paying much attention when you felt the bed dip just a little. Bringing you to gaze up. You're met with those beautiful blue eyes. "Y/n? Correct?" You nod. "I've been told you don't speak any Spanish?" You shake your head. "No, I mean I might know the basics, but not well." She nods, herself. "That's quite alright. Good thing I'm good with my English huh?" She smiles at you.

But there was something in the smile, something flirty. "Action!" The music starts playing, Miko gets closer to you, slowly but surely. It makes your heart slightly race, she was so much more hotter in person. She was tall, cheeky. Just over-all attractive. She looks at your lips for a quick second then looks into your eyes, seeing her slyly smirk and lean into you. The kiss was soft, but slowly turning more heated. You put your hands so that they're resting on her neck, as she put hers on your hips, slowly pushing you down on the bed and getting ontop of you. Everyone always asks how you do these and not immediately fall inlove. You were the best liar because honestly it wasn't easy. Miko continued the kiss, deepening it. You felt her tongue swipe across your bottom lip, and how could you deny this oh so yummy makeout.

That went on for a tiny bit more before the director called cut. Signaling that it was the end of the shot. You furrow your brows, not expecting it to be so short. You dreadfully wanted more, but how on earth would that happen. "That's it for today." Stacy says coming over to you, your water in hand. "I didn't expect it to be over so soon." You state. "They got what they needed." She smiles at you. You watch as she walks off, knowing it's it for the day. You feel a tap on your shoulder, turning around to see who it could be. "Do you do kissing scenes very often?" Miko asks, looking right at you. She towered over you just slightly as you were quite short, making your breath go uneasy for a second. "I do actually, that's one of the jobs I get frequently." She smirks to herself. "I can see why. You're a hell of a good kisser." You swallow at the compliment. Not knowing where all your bold attitude had gone to, but you were so hoping for it back. She comes a bit closer to you, leaning down to your ear.

"Why don't I take you home." Your eyes grew wide. Definitely taking up that offer right away, not only because you want to see where this goes with her, but because you had come here in an Uber. "I'd love that." She nods, putting her hand on your lower back. Watching as you walk to get your belongings. Was this really going to lead to something? Yes. It infact was. As you head out with her to her car you can help the butterflies at everything you're thinking right now. As you get in the passenger's seat, she wastes no time into kissing you, grabbing your face to bring you closer to her. Melting into it almost immediately, gaining that slight confidence and boldness back by situating yourself on her lap. Her hands roam your body, touching your waist, hips, sides. Even a cheeky little touch on your breasts every now and then. She guides her beautifully tattooed arms up your body yet again.

Sliding them under your shirt letting them rest over your bra. She pulls away from the kiss. "Can I take these off?" You bite your lip, nodding nonetheless. She swiftly does so, letting your tits spill out. She keeps eye contact with you, going to wrap her hands around them, lightly squeezing. Miko wraps her lips around one, sucking hard. Her hands held onto your back as she did so. You let your head fall back as she gently bites your nipple. Letting out breaths, even hearing a small noise emerge from her lips letting it vibrate slightly around you, as you put your hands in her soft hair. "Mmmm, please-" You purr out, wanting more and more of this. Of her. It was intoxicating by the minute making you more needy for her. She pulls away just admiring the slight purple tinge to your breast. She had sucked so hard it literally started to form a hickey. Her cockiness increasing at the sight.

You move your hands to her slightly toned arms, feeling the slight dents of muscle that formed in them. Admiring every tattoo on her. She gently moves your hips on her lap, feeling the friction of her thighs against you. You whine desperately wanting to feel so much more. "Patience Mami." She looks directly at you as she says that. You could feel yourself getting wetter at the name. "You wanna know something." You hum as she says that, her voice husky and lustful. "The oh so amazing thing that you're currently desperate for. Matches my microphone." She whispers in your ear. Sending cold shivers down your spine, her warm breath didn't change that it just made you colder, shakier, with need. She gets you to take off your jeans, but keeping on your black lace underwear. Guess she liked that.. Alot. You move your hands so that they're rested above her jeans. Letting them hook around her belt slightly. "Why don't you take them off for me." She looks at you, leaning back into the seat, and putting her arms behind her head.

You bite your lip a little harder this time, feeling your panties pool at this point. You do as told, unlooping the belt and sliding it out from its space in her jeans. You let it go into the backseat, discarding it for now. She doesn't budge, nor say anything. Keeping her eyes on you. You knew what was going on in her brain, she was filthy. She wanted to watch you do this all on your own, didn't she? You go to unzip them, sliding them down enough to get what you were after out, giving a quick glance and the band on her boxers, but immediately paying attention to the gold. And she wasn't lying. There it was, the rainbow strap. You could've sworn there was drool gathering at the corner of your lips, the thought of her sitting there, watching as you basically fuck yourself on it got you even more aroused.

Grabbing it slowly, positioning it at your entrance. Moving the fabric out of the way. "Rip them off." She suddenly says, eyes growing dark as she watches you. Your eyes go wide. "I'll buy you new ones." She subtly winks at you. You smirk at her, ripping the thin material in half, discarding that to the backseat also. "Good girl." That made you desperately claw for the strap, wanting nothing more then to be full of her. You begin to sink down on it, letting your mouth hang open at the delicious feeling. She continues to watch. Watching your facial features every time you'd move. Every little noise you made. She was stunned by you, how beautiful you were, how drawn she was to you. Keeping her arms behind her head just relaxing. She never takes her eyes off of you, only on occasion to watch as the strap dissappears inside of you. You couldn't help but let out a moan, feeling your breaths pick up.

She doesn't necessarily agree with the pace you're going at, so she begins to fuck up into you, making you latch onto the shoulders of the seat. Having your mouth slightly drop at the feeling. "Miko.." You whine out enjoying this so much. "Hm? Enjoying this. I bet you do, don't you?" You nod vigorously. "You're a slut huh.. letting me watch you fuck yourself on me. How very filthy." You bite your lip again, so much that it draws a little blood. The taste was irony, and bitter. You couldn't care less though. Miko leans forward, bringing her lips to your neck as you keep moving yourself on her. She sucks hard, loving how your tits had looked before. Wanting to mark a more visible area next. She moves the kisses from your neck, to your plump, slightly red lips.

She tasted the tiny bit of blood, making herself go crazy at everything that was happening. She grunts quietly into your mouth, moving her hands so they rested on your hips. "Gonna cum for me?" You lazily nod, feeling fucked out and tired. "Go on, I know you can. Make every director that's still in that building know, how good you're being fucked right now." That alone sent you overboard, feeling the knot tighten at her beautiful voice. You were inlove with it, scratchy but yet so pretty. She goes to your neck again, leaving kisses and a few hums, leading up to your ear again. She could tell you loved her voice, it's as if she could truly feel you clenching around her. "Mmm that's it Mamacita." She nibbles. "Cum all over me." And just like that, you did. Feeling yourself gush over her strap, letting your body fall into her touch and resting your head in her neck. You felt completely fucked out, letting out breaths as she gently rubbed your back.

"Im telling my team that you're gunna be in all of my upcoming music videos." You let a smile spread across your face. "How's that sound, film wife?" You close your eyes. "Just perfect."

[stephdrawsjohnlock]

DE – :Kim and Harry: Procreate on iPad Pro

So I recently finished Disco Elysium after the Director's Cut became available on the PS Plus Game Catalog. I've wanted to play it for a few years, and was excited to finally see what all the hype was about. First of all, it was NOT what I expected, in the sense that I usually play more action-based games, so playing a narrative RPG was really a different experience. Secondly, WHAT an interesting universe this game takes place it... I think I loved it because it was essentially a Sherlock AU, with a neurodivergent player character and his stoic and long-suffering partner, solving a really interesting case... (GUYS they even had a Three-Garridebs-style moment in it!!!). And thirdly, GOSH the voice actors in the director's cut REALLY makes the game super special. Kim's voice is yummy, please read me the dictionary, sir 🙃

AND THEN THERE'S THE TWO PROTAGS. OMG I LOVE them so much. Kim is my little mew mew, I love him so, SO much. I love Kim and Harry's dynamic (if you play the game so that Kim trusts you) and some of the best one liners in my playthrough came from him, LOL. Just, ugh, I now see what all the hype was about for this game when it came out. And of course I inevitably shipped them, as is my way, and I was SO UPSET that I couldn't romance Kim, LOL. Sad that a second game probably won't ever happen (after reading about what happened behind the scenes, anyway), but I've immersed myself for the past 3 months in the DE fanfic rabbit hole, OMG. I'm so obsessed. It prompted me to then, of course, want to draw them. So here we are.

Not my best at all, but more just I was itching to draw them so much and I got this one done faster than anything I SHOULD be working on these days, LOL. I hope you'll excuse my burning needs, hahha. If it wasn't for that other stuff I have to get done, I probably would have a huge backlog of DE fanart like I do with DBH and Moon Knight, hahahhaha.

Anyhoo, Kim and Harry, best cop duo on this side of Revachol, LOL. I will absolutely be drawing them again once I'm done my FTH pieces! This is my current hyperfixation and I am very happy about it LOL

🖼 I’M ON INSTAGRAM at stephdrawsfanart 🎨 @stephratte is my Primary Fanart Blog! Art © to S.G.M. Ratté. Do not repost or sell.

(Tags below cut, dm to be added/removed)

@queerbeess

@ayryn-art

@antisocial-otaku

@havetardiswilltimetravel

@yorkiepug

@tea-and-gingernuts

@quantum-sparrow

@chinike

@chained-to-the-mirror

@almosttomorocco

@loveismyrevolution

[borninwinter81]

I've been rediscovering my love for Clive Barker this week due to finally managing to see The Ultimate Cabal Cut of Nightbreed (some kind soul has uploaded it to YouTube) and then re-reading Cabal, the book it was based on.

Cabal is amongst my favourite books ever written (though as a bibliophile that list is extremely long!) and one of my favourite movies. I originally saw it in the early 90s when I was probably far too young, and read the book not long after.

I backed the Occupy Midian campaign in 2012 when the lost footage was being searched for and reintegrated into the movie, and I attended a screening of one of the early edits where I met Nicholas Vince and Simon Bamford (Kinski and Ohnaka in Nightbreed, but better known as two of the Cenobites from Hellraiser). This led to the eventual DVD/Blu-ray release of The Directors Cut (which I got a physical copy of) and then The Ultimate Cabal Cut (which I didn’t, and which I haven't seen until now).

It's an oversimplification to call Barker's work horror, especially in Cabal/Nightbreed - this was the mistake the production company made when originally editing and marketing it.

Clive Barker's vision shows us the beauty of the weird, the macabre, the abnormal, and the supernatural, and the true horror in his work comes from the "normal".

In Cabal/Nightbreed his monsters are not evil, they're simply different - undead, mutants and supernatural beings, a metaphor for anyone who has ever felt othered by society. Midian is a place where they can live safely with no fear or judgement. The evil characters are "naturals", humans who hate and fear the monsters for being different even though they pose no threat, and ultimately try to destroy them.

As a member of the LGBT community it's easy to see where Barker's motivation for this metaphor came from, but it could equally apply to just about anyone who feels like they don't fit in. Certainly as a lonely, bullied, weird child when I first read/saw it, who then grew up into a reasonably weird adult, I'd love for the monsters to come and take me away to Midian.

Anyone seeing this who isn't familiar with the book/movie, I'd urge you to look them up, as well as others by Barker. More of my favourites by him are Imajica, Abarat and of course The Hellbound Heart, filmed as Hellraiser. The Forbidden from short story anthology The Books of Blood was also filmed as Candyman.

Below I've linked The Cabal Cut of Nightbreed. Even if you know and love the original theatrical release I'd still urge you to watch this (quick as you can in case its removed due to copyright!).

In addition to doubling the movie length from 1 hour 40 mins to 3 hours 20 mins, a number of the actors voices have been re-recorded as they were overdubbed in the theatrical version for some reason, notably those of Rachel, and Lylesberg, played by Doug Bradley. It was a crime to remove that man's beautiful voice and wonderful to hear it back where its meant to be.

Also, rather than being a standard horror movie heroine who seems to be there only to scream and be rescued, in this version Lori comes across as much stronger and more well-rounded character.

As it says in the opening text, although much of the footage was of good quality there are some sections where all they had available were degraded VHS tapes, some of which were without audio. This means the editing is also a little clunky in places. However the makers of this version wanted to include everything they possibly could in order to bring it in line with the original shooting script and Clive Barker's epic vision for the piece.

[steveshairychest]

previous anon! :D

child actors steve and eddie who worked on a movie together and developed crushes on each other. after the movie, they dont see each other again until eddie is playing music at this fancy party. he recognizes steve immediately because steve became a famous model. it takes steve a second to recognize eddie, but steve knows it's eddie because of his eyes. they have a reunion and kiss. 💅🏼

oh this is delightful! Child actors steddie has got my brain worms spinning around.

The first and only movie they ever did together became quite a hit. Steve and Eddie both played the love interest for the other young girl in the movie, but the reason the movie became so popular is because of the amazing chemistry between the supposed rival characters that Steve and Eddie played.

They spent a lot of time together on set. Eddie was 14, Steve was 13, so they got in quite a bit of trouble for causing mischief on set, as was to be expected of teen boys. They also rehearsed their lines together and when no one was looking, Eddie would lean in close and kiss Steve's cheek just like he had to do with the girl. "I've got to practice!" He'd say.

Steve never denied him. Not even when he accidentally misjudged and planted a kiss right on Steve's lips.

That was Steve's first kiss. Eddie's too.

"Look at her, not at Steve!" The director would scold Eddie while he was giving his lines. He never looked at Steve on purpose, he just found his eyes wandered while giving the sweet lines.

It was just a coincidence that his eyes always found Steve while delivering the line, "I think I love you."

After the movie and all the press was over, the boys went their separate ways and very rarely saw each other.

Eddie sometimes saw Steve's face plastered on billboards while he walked the streets because Steve had abandoned acting and chosen to model. If he stopped and stared for an obscenely long time, well that was his own business. Eddie always used to tell Steve he was pretty.

Acting didn't work out for Eddie either. He got enough money from the one gig to set him up but now he spent most of his time making music and performing at other famous people's parties. It's not the type of stage he wanted to perform on but it was better than nothing.

He was performing at his old co-stars party that night, the girl from the movie, he barely remembered her name. The only thing he remembered from back then was Steve. He still knew that Steve's favourite colour was sunflower yellow and that he liked 3 sugars in his coffee. They used to drink so much coffee at that age to stay awake.

Sometimes he wondered if Steve would even remember him. Would he stop and say hi if he saw Eddie on the street or would he keep walking? Would he add him back if Eddie was man enough to follow him on instagram? Probably not.

Eddie had changed since they were kids. Lots of tattoos and piercings and long hair instead of a buzz cut made him nearly unrecognizable. Steve had barely changed. Eddie could still see the young boy he'd had a crush on in the handsome face that stared at him from billboards.

He's tuning his guitar while the party guests meander into the crazy huge mansion when he spots a familiar face in the crowd. A face that caused him to stop and just stare, his eyes unable to look away from Steve Harrington. He watched Steve glide through the crowd, his smile bright and friendly as he hugged and greeted people, some he kissed on the cheek which made Eddie remember the first time he kissed Steve's cheek.

Steve didn't see him at first, his focus on the people around him, but then Eddie bumped into the mic and caused a feedback screech to echo around the building. "Sorry." He laughed into the mic.

And then Steve's eyes meet his and Eddie could see no hint of recognition in them at all. He smiled up at Eddie as if to say, 'It's ok', but then something changed. His smile dropped and his mouth fell open into a surprised little oh.

Eddie could see Steve mouth his name, could see the realization wash over him as he took in Eddie on the stage.

"Hi." Eddie said into the mic, both to the audience and to Steve, who was walking slowly towards the stage.

"Hi." Steve mouthed the words to him.

Eddie was glad that he took this gig, was glad that he took the time to put on his best outfit and brush his hair.

But most of all he was glad that Steve remembered him.

[big-cheesy-productions]

Sonic Movie 3 Review

Non-spoiler first, then spoilers below the cut.

I've gotten some of my negativity out and am having some post movie clarity. I do think my expectations were incredibly high, but also believe the crew and marketing promised a lot more than they delivered on.

I think there was too much Jim Carrey and not enough Shadow and Team Sonic. The pacing was a bit weird and moments that should have gotten time to breath didn't in favor of gags, and I do think the Jim Carrey-ness hurt this installment more than helped.

Some story threads felt unresolved or just didn't make sense within the movie, which made it feel like the movie was supposed to be longer, or it was rewritten, or something happened to fit either time constraints or forced family-friendliness? I'm not entirely sure.

But focusing on some positives; Shadow was fantastic, the sound design was great so the hits felt like they HURT, I always love when we get a little more personality to build on for Maria, the moments we did get with Team Sonic and the Wachowski family were good, I just, again, wish we got more.

I'm disappointed that I'm disappointed, but I am excited for the future of Sonic movies, though I will be going in more skeptical than I did with this one.

6/10

Spoilers below.

I did feel a bit nostalgia-baited by the Sonic Adventure 2 stuff. I think the second movie did a really good job of making any references or nostalgia feel organic, while this movie was like "We're not doing SA2, but we are kind of doing it, and we're going to reference it a lot, but we're going to change a ton."

I want to reiterate that I am totally okay with the movies doing things differently. They are an AU, I get it. But the core of SA2 and Shadow and Maria's story felt like it was missing. I think they missed the mark on that. We got a glimpse of the broken, revenge obsessed Gerald, but the rest was just gag after gag. And GUN just released him? Because he built them the Eclipse Cannon? This is what I meant by threads that either were dropped or didn't make sense. If they wanted to include Gerald in present day, I wish they had done it differently. It's like they were really afraid to make GUN look (as intensely) bad, but that's the whole point of this story. Military and political corruption.

I don't like the implication that Shadow is just Black Arms (or just from space), and wasn't created by Gerald. I do think that changes a ton about his character and his motivations. Maybe it just worked better for movie to say "we don't know where he came from!" but they also relied heavily on SA2 references and assuming fans know that story, so why not just... do that story then?

I did like how they did Shadow's turn from revenge, which was a more gradual thing, than one big speech. That was one of my hopes, and I'm glad they want that direction. But again, just wish all that build up had more time to breath. But oh man, when Gerald shuts down Shadow's questioning of what Maria wanted, and when he told Ivo "you're no Maria"? That was juicy. I wanted so much more of that from Gerald.

I appreciate that they are setting up Stone to take over as the villain. I really, really love that, and think that would be great.

Amy is amazing, and Metal Sonic is here, and I that was honestly the part I was most excited about in the theater.

I'd really just love a director's cut when the movie is out on DVD, because ultimately, it just felt like there was A LOT missing, and they could have made this a 2.5 hour or two part movie, if they just cut it out with the Jim Carrey shenanigans. It didn't work in this one, and I can forgive everything else, except giving Jim Carrey so much screen time over Sonic and Shadow.

I could dig deeper, beat for beat, but I don't really want to, and I already did in the car with my friends after the movie.

I think Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is still the best/strongest of the trilogy so far.

[bobokitty]

I'm sure this varies heavily depending on advertisement vs serialized shows and also budget and time constraints, but how 'super particular' can a production be about the way something is animated/how something looks, etc? Even though everything is preplanned, there are guides/model sheets to follow, and drawover/ correction artists are there to help keep consistency between different artists' works, there are still massive differences.

I had always been curious about how in Nocturne (wow, what a shock I'm bringing this up hahaha), the exact same character will look slightly different per cut or that the way a character moves is slightly different to the point where you can start mentally picking out who worked on what. This also brings the question of how much an artist's own style is allowed to peak through? Whether that be how they treat the movement of the character or just how a character is drawn. Or are the differences just preplanned out?

This got really long my bad but tldr;

How pedantic is a production on strictly following style guides? Does it get looser depending on the constraints or does it stay the same throughout?

2. How much is an artist's own style allowed to shine through in a project?

Thank you for reading my wordy question, I hope it makes sense and hope you have a nice day :D

Very good question! The short answer is that it depends on both the artist and production schedule.

For Nocturne Season 1, one of our animators, Tam Lu, has a very unique style. You can see it in episode 3, which he directed. He's basically well-known enough and liked by the Deats bros to go and lean into that. He can also do on-model normal anime stuff if need be as well if the scene calls for it. When you get to a certain level/notoriety, you get some more leeway. Like, if you bring in Masaaki Yuasa to work on an Adventure Time short, you're gonna get something VERY Yuasa in style.

When you're a smaller artist, you're going to have less bargaining power, unless the director really likes your work and wants your style to shine through even more. Basically, the director or showrunner get's to decide how on model you have to be.

Next comes production time. Let's say, you're an animator brought on Nocturne, who is good at motion, but struggles with putting Maria's cat on model. If you're fast enough, there's time for drawovers and redlining from one of the supervisors. But what if you ran behind and animation needs to get shipped out like, tomorrow? Well, the only time to correct them is going to be in post, unless the outsourcer cleaning things up does it (most likely will not). Now it's kind of a well shit situation. The team does what they can to fix things before air but sometimes there's not enough time and you gotta hope nobody cares ahaha.

ALSO. The budget of a show determines how much time you have making style sheets. Look, we'd all love to have the insane bibles that 2D Disney movies used to have. I've seen some of them, and it's like, woah. You have a whole section just talking about how hands are done for this one movie. It would be nice if we could have more information to give the animators on how to put things on style. Alas, that is not the case. You get what there was time to make and then you pray AHAHA.

With all this said and done, it's impossible to completely erase someone's unique touch on a piece. That's just the way art goes. When you have a show that outsources it's animation, anything done in-house is going to stand out. The shot is going to have more love and time spent on it. The outsourcers are wonderful artists in their own right, but when you got a quota and deadline, you can't spend any time giving something that extra love. A walk cycle is going to be so basic and evenly timed cuz you got way more on your plate (and honestly not enough pay but that's another conversation). You can see it in kid shows in the US where you're like hold up that shot was so pretty and well done ohhhhhhhhh it was done in house ahaha. It would be nice if everything could be done in house, but networks aren't going to give use Arcane budgets LOL. God....imagine... 250 million for a season.... You could do all the personal walk cycles....

Hope that answered your question and shed some light on production!

[lostinthewoodsomewhere]

Could you rank Jesse's outfits?

Hell yes I can!!!! Strap in lads, I've decided to put this under the cut because it got... long. Thank you so much for this question anon, I'm sorry if it's not quite what you wanted, it kind of ran away from me!!! But please know that I had so much fun doing this!! I'll take any excuse to talk about Control fashion!!!!

Okay, so:

The Director's suit

What can I say, just look at it, 10/10, no notes (well, lots of notes, but all about how much I love it!!!) Absolute perfection!!! The details on this outfit!!! The triangle on the back, the little triangle on the shoes, the cut outs on the jacket, the hair pin?????? It's truly everything to me, and I love it's story significance of visually showing Jesse embracing her role as Director, it's just the perfect example of everything the FBC and Oldest House is!!

(Also, fun fact, the first thing I thought when I saw it was 'oh, yeah, I understand why this is one of Julia Drawfee's favourite games now'...)

2. Asynchronous suit

Again, what can I say??? Look at it, this thing is just gorgeous!! Oh, the details!!! The structure is so beautiful, all the different shapes, the Brutalist nature of it all!! Also her cute little boots, I love them and the way they blend into the leggings!

Also, as someone who would desperately love for Jesse to get a skirt at some point, the half skirt and the way it moves in combat is everything to me, ahhh it looks so good!!!

3. Civilian outfit

I love her original outfit so much!!! It's so simple, yet it manages to be so iconic!!! I remember someone I was watching complain that her outfit wasn't great because it doesn't stand out enough, doesn't make her look like enough of an outsider, but personally I completely disagree! Control is such a high aesthetic game, and Jesse's civilian out so perfectly compliments the aesthetics of the Oldest House through its colour scheme and silhouette! Especially the back of the jacket, I absolutely adore the structure of it, it kind of has a similar energy as the Asynchronous Suit with the sharp Brutalist energy it has. But at the same time, by making it a leather jacket and jeans, it stands out so clearly from the (sometimes unnecessarily extra) formal shirts and trousers/skirts the others wear.

Anyway, love it! Also adore the bright blue of the original jacket!!!

4.Janitor's Assistant

Love it!! Love it so much!!! I adore the rolled up sleaves and trouser legs (whether this is for fashion or practicality, I do not know, but it is aesthetically pleasing none the less). Also, I love the detail that's she's wearing her original boots with this outfit, it feels like a cute visual cue of how comfortable she feels in this outfit/role. Also, the fact that Ahti gives it to us personally for a job well done just, perfection...

(also look at her little hammer and plyers, she deserves them!!!)

5. The Golden Suit

I do indeed enjoy the Golden Suit, I mean, it's a variation of my beloved Director's Suit, and has a lot of the same details I love that one for, but it just doesn't hit the same for me. I think I would prefer if it had a white shirt, or the shirt was a little darker as the greyish colour just isn't quite for me, (though it could be the darn lighting in the Oldest House). But still, I do indeed love it, I mean look at her, she still looks incredible even if its not quite my style!

6. Expedition Gear

You know what, I used to think I didn't like this outfit, but it grew on me as I was looking at it for this, and you know what, I love it now!! Like, to begin with it's one of the outfits that has the ponytail, and I absolutely adore this hairstyle!!! The way it moves in combat is gorgeous, and I enjoy the effort made to give her a high pony style that doesn't make her look like Beth Wilder!! But again, rolled up sleeves, super cute, the zipper/clasp detail on the side, it's all giving practical but fashionable, and I'm so hear for it!!

7. Extradimensional Suit

She's cool!! I mean, this outfit has the ponytail, so that's already a win! It's not my style, or the sort of thing I'm interested in, but I can appreciate it for what it is. The colour scheme is gorgeous, I love all the textures and shapes, particularly the piping around the neck (it reminds me of the mail room/pneumatics!). And as always, she looks incredible in it, so a solid outfit all round, just not one that makes me go feral, you know?

8. Office Assistant

I do very much love this outfit, I think she looks adorable, there's just not that much going on. I do love her little sensible heels, and the fact that the shirt is pinstripe rather than plain, it's cute!!! It's also just, it just is the FBC, it's such a recognisable look throughout the game, so I very much appreciate it!!

(Can you imagine if we got the pencil skirt version too????? Sigh, I can only dream...)

9. Candidate P7

Again, like, story wise this outfit is fascinating- (I've been thinking recently, like, at what point did Darling decide Dylan was a lost cause, and what did that mean for their pursuit of Jesse?? Is there a reason they just happened to have a prime candidate outfit ready for her, exactly in her size???)

Anyway, fashion wise there's not much to say, though I never realised you could run round the Oldest House in little socks, that's cool!! It also looks so cosy, but it has far too many lore implications for that, so unfortunately it does come last, but it's still cool!!

Bonus Round- Pre order exclusives

1.Tactical Response

You do not understand how unbelievably sad it makes me that this was an pre-order exclusive and I can not have it, because I love it so so much, it is gorgeous!!!!!!!! Look at her, she looks incredible!!!! The pony tail, the monochrome, it's like her civilian outfit but just elevated to the highest degree, I love it so muuuuuuuuuch!!!!!!!!!!

2. Astral Dive suit

I feel similarly about this outfit as I do the Extradimensional suit. Not quite my style, but I highly appreciate it, it's beautiful!! Also her hair, ahhhhhhh!!

3.Urban Response

It's cute!! It has a lot of the things I love about the Tactical Response, but the colour scheme just doesn't hit the same! The top is so cute though, I love it!!!!

And, uhhhhhhh, thats it :) If you made it to the end of this, thank you, I am incredibly impressed!!! Anyway, the clothes in Control are incredible, and this is only Jesse's outfits, there's so many other amazing clothes in this game!!! Like genuinely, the commitment to fashion in Control is incredibly important to me, and will always be one of the things I love most about this game!!!!

(I am literally always ready to talk about it, so never hesitate to message if you want to talk about it with someone!)

[miasiegert]

Hi Cats Tumblr People,

So I heard you like pics.

Please bear with me (AND TEACH ME) how Tumblr works/if I'm doing it wrong! I'm literally the "How do you do, fellow young people?" meme. Our Etsy is linked (unless I messed that up!) Right now it's bare (LOT of work and VERY old photos in the banner) but we'll be posting some cossies soon that are ready to retire. Some of our prices sadly will have to rise (we undercharge honestly for the amount of time put into them... we just LOVE making them). Anyway...

These are our original designs. We have taken inspiration from different productions, from the US tour to Gothenburg to Australia to Japan, less UK because it gets the most attention and we like COLOR! but this is all us. Our goal is to a) have characters be recognizable and b) make swing unitards in palates that could pass as at least 3 characters for emergency. When our rentals go out, swing unitards go with them, and ultimately it's the director who decides what makes the final cut (so a less yellow Demeter for example--but we LOVE that one).

If we ever do a production of Cats with Chaz, you'll notice one in Red, White, and some Black (but mostly Red and White, with fan ears, that is a design David created and is Chaz's FAVORITE design of all time. Any time he does a show, if we're hired, that costume goes. Usually Electra, but any ensemble/swing kitty and can cover for Sillabub or in a pinch Bombalurina. Yuka wore it at Interlakes before she did Victoria on the last US Tour! You might notice an Admetus in tans and GREEN undertones--that was my design he loved. We also did the purple twins (which was vetoed and I said, "Okay" then did it anyway because I knew he'd love it, which he did!), and REBA Gumbie Tap Suit was completely mine (everyone thought I was out of my MIND when I started making it! Even David! Then the shoulder pads came, and the belt, and tail, and BEDAZZLING!!! SO MANY RHINESTONES!!!!) Our Misto coat lights up but we still have a lot to learn about arduino since we'd eventually like to make it blink to music. The Misto coat is also created to fit a multitude of sizes, basically the theatre using their department for alterations since we make use of stretch fabric. I've known Bronson for almost as long as Chaz (he even designed my author website!!!) so when I saw him cast, I showed him his costume (a much, much browner/redder Gus than most see--I was serious about liking color) and let him choose between two coats. He said he wanted pants and we went, "NO! PANTLESS PRODUCTION!" because we thought he was joking! We didn't realize... HE REALLY WANTED PANTS!!!! SORRY BRONSON! So shout out to Wichita for making him pants! LOL!

There is a HUGE joke about Tumble thirsting for Tugger more than the girls so you'll notice that with the Tugger ABOUUUOUOUOUOUOUOUUUUUUUUUT THAT.

Hope that's of interest! And no, I'm not procrastinating on edits when my agent deadline is Sunday. Haha... ha... ha... ha... ha... Sera, if you're reading this I PROMISE I'M WORKING OKAY??? I DIDN'T KNOW WE GOT ON BROADWAYWORLD!!!

We also saw some comments about casting in general and some confusion/questions about different dancers doing different parts (Alonzo vs Plato). Would anyone be interested in learning more about the casting process in general and things that directors/choreographers need to take into consideration? Please note, I will not discuss ANY performers we work with. Ever. All are extraordinary and these are tough calls that aren't easy to make and based on other factors, including the ensemble at large, and sometimes huge changes are made.

[dangerously-human]

Reached out tonight to the professor for the Clinical Research Methods in Public Health class that's my second choice for an elective after the assessment class was unceremoniously cancelled, to request his permission for an override. Assuming he says yes, I still have a couple more hoops to jump through, but I think they'll be fairly easy (fingers crossed). I don't see any reason he would say no; I outlined my coursework that's equivalent to the epidemiology/biostatistics prereq as well as my professional role, which really should set me up for success in the class. I know we are cutting it close, but I'm hopeful that it will work out, even if I have to just show up as an unofficial attendee this week. I do kind of wish I'd known sooner that I could take classes in other programs for my electives; I don't know that it would really change what I ended up taking, but there are sooo many biostatistics courses that look so fun! I was talking to my parents tonight and said maybe if I do decide to go the biostatistician route in the future, instead of a PhD, I'll go back for a second master's and make it an MPH this time. The coursework is a lot more intense than an education-based degree, and I would have absolutely died if someone suggested this four years ago when I started my current program, but it might open enough doors for me to get what I want without a doctorate. Or maybe I will suck it up and do the PhD thing after all, if that's the best way to where I want to be. Really I'm hoping that this degree is enough to get me what I want, given that I've already got my foot in the door and people in the right places championing my cause... even if it might require more time, patience, and flexibility than I initially hoped. I mean, at least in theory, I'll be up to 10-15% of my time on research by this summer, with the possibility of stacking a few more projects on top depending on which grants come through, and mentor-director's plan is to just keep chipping away like that until we're looking at enough of my time to discuss a real role change with my uber-bosses. I think it probably won't hurt my cause that my current position may very well not exist, or at least, won't be funded the same way, a year or two from now, yet I know they want to keep me if they can. This role also isn't meant to be long-term, people usually stay in it 2-3 years and move on, so the fact that I'll have been here 5 years at the start of next fiscal year and everyone's seemingly in agreement that we do not need the next level up of data analyst means it won't exactly come as a surprise that I am giving them an ultimatum to either make room for me as a scientist/statistician or I will be leaving for somewhere that can, with their blessing and no hard feelings.

[optimisticaudience]

My Top 10 Unhinged Movie Recommendations

This isn't top 10 favorite movies. This is my top 10 movies to recommend when I want to make sure that person NEVER asks me for recs again. When I want to go nuclear in my weird shit(TM) this is what I go with, in ascending order. 10. Freaks by Todd Browning

I love showing this to people. Folks are like "oh hey is this a horror movie?" and then I show it to them. It's not a horror movie, unless Normies are the horror. I love sitting in a room where people slowly realize this isn't a horror moive, but a well done domestic drama. It's just a drama where the cast doesn't look like hollywood stars. It's a god damn masterpiece about a man who is forsaking this family to find mainstream acceptance and how his family fights to save him despite everything. 10/10 Masterpiece. Some folks question whether or not it is exploitative that Todd Browning made this movie. I've made sure the guy is dead so no matter what he's not going to make money either way.

9. The very beginning and very end of Streets of Fire.

Patrick Willems was right about this. Watch the first bit and then skip to the end to get a dramatic epic of rock music, motorcycles, and Wilhem Defoe fighting in a sledgehammer duel. Beautiful movie. Then people request to see the full movie, the fools. I show the full movie because they know not what they do. Then they don't like it. I told them this at the beginning. There are no sledgehammer fights in the middle of the movie. Why watch this if it's not a musical number or hammer time?

8. The Dark Crystal's bootleg director's cut

Cowards watch movies in languages they understand. Sometimes they use subtitles to pretend they are open to new experiences. Watch a god damn movie in a fictional language that no one speaks, you plebians. No subtitles, no explanations. Just watch the movie and have a great experience seeing the puppets portray the story using body language. Expand your horizons. It wasn't made on drugs, it just was made with more courage than you or I will ever have. Get fucking weird before you die.

7. Harry Potter and the Deadly Weapons

The last one was a bootleg reconstructing a lost film. This bootleg creates a new movie. Harry Potter with GUNS. It starts with an old guy shooting out all the lights in a street, and keeps on going from there. You want to see true cinema? Watch Emma Watson shoot Neville Longbottom in the face.

6. Lo

Romance is dead. There was a romance here. But it got killed and dragged to hell. This man is trying to summon love from hell. All he summons is ham and also overly dramatic soundtrack. Most of the movie is two actors sitting in the dark being assholes to each other. They actually have amazing chemistry. The Demon, Lo, is amazing and my scrungly blorbo or whatever the fuck people say. It's also a musical.

5. The Man From Earth

This is actually just a good movie. It's like what if a movie was also a bunch of smug people's podcast. However, they all are used to being smug and podcasting as most of them are from Star Trek. Beautiful and wonderful performances about a bunch of nerds arguing about a caveman Buddhist Jesus. It's a palate cleanser for what else is in store.

4. Existenz

People like to talk about Cronenberg and how shocking Videodrome is or something like that. Thing is people don't talk about this weird shit as much. David Cronenberg is a gamer and he made the ultimate gamer movie: where the scary stuff is physical contact and metaphors for sex. Watch people graft new orfices on to shove gaming consoles into them. What if the matrix had a gun that shoots teeth? Yeah it doesn't have the gunfingerpenis from other cronengerg movies. However it does have a game controller made of asymmetrical nipples.

3. Lair of the White Worm

Scottish Snake Vampires. That's actually pretty cool and sounds great. Hugh Grant and the Doctor from Doctor Who have a bromance. Why is it on here? Because the director was too horny. Random nudity is the most tame and normal part of this movie. I am not against the human body being used in art. I also think people shouldn't be ashamed of their bodies.

Except this director. He ends the movie with Hugh Grant lifting up Peter Capaldi's kilt and Capaldi bites him. Want to make movie night uncomfortable for everyone? Show this. Porn is less horny.

2. Wizards

This movie has so many great bits. The thing is you know about the great bits because no one wants to watch the whole thing. Imagine a movie with all the issues of Lair of the White Worm, while also made by a man who is by volume 80% cocaine, 10% rivalry with R. Crumb, and 10% mommy issues. Then have Mark Hamil show up for like five minutes. Then turn it into a commentary on fascist propaganda. It's the greatest artistic achievement in making movies that will make no one happy at movie night.

Possession (uncut version)

This is the nuclear option. If i don't want people to talk to me ever again, I'll show them this movie. You want to see a film made by the most Divorced man ever? Sure let's watch this. Elon Musk wishes he was this movie, but he, like everyone who sees this film, is a coward. The fucked up film that was banned in the UK for decades tells us the truly greatest fear of men: A version of the man who is a better husband than they are, especially if it's a living pile of raw viscera that is better at satisfying their spouse in bed.

No one i've shown this movie to has talked to me afterwards. I use it like pest control folks used DDT back in the day. Ironically, the movie has the same effect on Condor eggs. One day, however, i will show this to someone and they will like it. In that case, I will have three options:

-The person will be my new best friend.

-The person will be a cinderella-glass-slipper true love fit for me.

-This person will kill me in the next 24 hours.

All three of these will be true. The person who fits this will inherit my social media accounts, and be cursed with them until they complete this cycle again with someone else.

Anyways thank you for liking and subscribing to my Ted Talk.

[aeithalian]

……you MUST know I want your director’s cut thoughts on a shard or two lol xoxo MJ/kiwiana-writes (my kingdom for asks from sideblogs)

OOOOH hehe hello MJ i keep seeing you pop up reccing a shard or two and just know that every time i see it, i send up a little prayer that your pillows are cold on both sides.

ANYWAYS (most of my followers on this blog aren't RWRB fans but who cares) a shard or two is definitely a weird fever dream of a fic. I read the entire book in like 24 hours (this was just before the movie came out, so less than a year ago) and I, having a strange interest in politics, was like 'hmm, you know what? not enough politics'. So now we have a shard or two. I've always had a interest in politics and I always felt weird about being that person who has a strange in-depth knowledge about the US government, but I think writing the fic helped me think about politics in less of a pessimistic way, like 'here's what I would want to see in modern-day politics'. It also kind of raises the philosophical question of how good people function in a corrupt system without being corrupted themselves, and Alex is such an interesting character to play with on that front because I view him as so idealistic that he refuses to be corrupted purely out of spite and stubbornness.

So, that's how it got started, I think. I told myself I wasn't going to start another WIP while I have one going for a different fandom, but here we are. I originally intended for it to be way shorter than it was (here I was thinking last October that 20k was an insane length for chapter 1, and then chapter 3 ended up being 100k all put together), but it's been such a fun passion project and a real stress-reliever for some reason, and a great way to develop my writing. Somebody in the comments asked me if I write professionally (I do not, and I likely never will, but I appreciate the sentiment).

As for director's commentary, I'm just spitballing here but I have so much fun stuff to share so here ya go.

I know there's this whole debate in the fandom about whether or not Alex goes into politics post-canon, like either go into local politics or start his own firm or whatever, and I generally don't see a lot of people saying that he would go into upper-level politics like he does in the fic. Very rarely do I see any post-canon fics that delve into what Alex's future career might look like if he ran for any office, so I kind of just did it myself, as one does. I do remember seeing CMQ say on their Instagram that Alex wouldn't run for president, but he might run for governor of Texas, but I kind of pulled a Harry Potter fandom and ignored the author (sorry not sorry), but I did make a reference to it early on in chapter 3 for anybody who's looking for any easter eggs). Regardless, it's very fun writing a Gen Z politician who gives no fucks (Alex is Gen Z, I'm taking no critiques on this). I'm so excited for people my age to start running for office. We're going to kill it, I feel it in my bones (you won't catch me up there, but maybe in some health policy behind-the-scenes work, who knows).

The names for the characters were a ton of fun to come up with, and I tweaked them all the time, but here are some tidbits behind some of them:

Edward McKinney's (opposed the amendment in chapter 2 and was Alex's opponent for the Democratic nomination in chapter 3) last name is a play on William McKinley (the 25th US president) to kind of bring this mindset to the table that McKinney is exactly who your stereotypical politician is who would run for president.

Pinkley's name is also a reference to Charles Pinckney, who ran for president in 1804 and 1808 as a Federalist. For no particular reason. I was just having fun with it.

Treacher's name actually comes from the word 'treacherous' because I originally intended for him to be way more of a villain than he ended up being, because I thought it would be interesting to have a political opponent who isn't necessarily an enemy.

Aksel Wolter's (the guy who overthrew my man Onderburg for the Baltonian presidency) name was originally going to be Signe Wolter, but then I saw a cool TikTok that compared some enemies throughout history and saw how similar their names were (George Washington & King George, Jesus & Judas, Obama & Osama, etc.) so I thought it would be cool to have an Alex and an Axel, but the spelling was too similar so that's how we ended up with Aksel because that's also a way it's spelled in northern Europe.

Erik Onderburg's (you know who he is, RIP 😈) original name was Henrik, and that got all the way into the published version of chapter 2 (he's mentioned towards the end), and then when I was writing the first scene of chapter 3 and realized that Henrik and Henry were way too similar, I had to change it.

Ellie (full name Elena) is named after Ellen, with a bit of a Hispanic twist. I think Alex and Henry's deal was if they had a girl, they'd name her after Ellen, and if they had a boy, they'd name him after Arthur. I like to think the middle name would have been Orion either way.

Hunter Weaver (the in-universe replacement of Anderson Cooper) has nothing to do with WASPY Hunter. That was a total coincidence and completely unintentional. But, hey, if you want to believe they're the same person, go for it.

All the research in there is legit! Wikipedia has been a fucking godsend for election results and facts about government structures outside of the US, but it kind of sucks trying to relay stuff into two decades in the future. You never know what kinds of issues are going to be important in 20 years, so I actually kind of avoided that problem by just relating it to some of our current issues today: queer rights, specifically in trans communities, election fraud, 3rd party candidates, human rights issues (ikyk) and so on. And the makeup of NATO, the UN, G20, etc. haven't changed because I can't see into the future.

I also had to do a surprising amount of math? Trying to figure out dates and stuff was way more difficult than I anticipated, especially for election results and percentages, but I realized I really don't need to pull out my TI-84 calculator for a fucking fanfic, but I'm also terrified of the prospect that somebody will correct me on any of my math or research so the calculator stays. It makes for some funny moments, though, like when I realized that if Alex actually ran in the 2040, he would really have Teddy Roosevelt beat for the post of 'youngest president' by, no joke, 3 weeks. So that's kind of fun (and how I firmly decided to have that be the timeline of things).

I write most of the speeches the characters give myself, but I use chat gpt to get me started sometimes (the product is always pretty bland, so it's really just a reference for structure), but I use real-life speeches for reference too. For example (and a bit of a sneak peek), in chapter 4, Alex is giving a speech to the UN General Assembly, and I lifted a couple phrases directly from one of Obama's speeches.

Writing this fic on google docs was a terrible decision. When i was writing chapter 3, the entire word count was well over 160k and the software was getting so laggy every time I needed to control f something for reference. So chapter 4 and beyond is currently being written in a new google doc. Speaking of which, having to switch all my formatting over onto ao3 with chapters this long is a pain in the ass. 0/10 do not recommend having to go through each chapter and fix the formatting every time just because I wanted to have fun little article inserts.

I was going to make it smutty and then i chickened out. i deeply apologize for my cowardice (i've never done smut before).

I guess if you want a couple sneak peeks for chapter 4, I can do that too 😜

If this next chapter had a motto, it would be "every president has their tragedy". Yes, that should probably scare you. (honestly, I'm a little nervous to write it too, just because I know it's pretty dark but hey, if Disney can show Mulan killing 2,000 Huns in an animated children's movie, then I can tag this as mature and not be worried about traumatizing people, okay?)

If it had a theme song, it might be 'Fourth of July' by Sufjan Stevens or 'Abstract (Psychopomp)' by Hozier. (Don't be scared, you'll be fine, because if the chapter after that had a theme song, it would be 'Dog Days are Over' by Florence and the Machine)

So, all the chapters are titled with 5 stages of career development (completely arbitrary, I worked off Indeed's for a while and then I said 'fuck it'). Stage 1 was Establishment, stage 2 was Maintenance, stage 3 (spanning ch. 3 and 4 on ao3) was Advancement. So stage 4 (ch. 5 on ao3) will be Obstruction, so take that how you will. But stage 5 (ch. 6 on ao3) will be Resolution, so that should make you feel better. They're sister chapters, so although the conflict itself is resolved in chapter 4, the lasting changes and long-term effects of that conflict will be mostly featured in chapter 5 (which, honestly, is the one I'm most excited to write because I feel like it's that moment when Alex really grows into himself).

And a little fun knowledge just for you: there's actually going to be a stage 6 (ch. 7, on ao3). I was going to surprise readers by adding on a chapter after I publish stage 5 with a 'psych! you thought this was over, suckers'. Stage 6 is titled 'Reflection', so I'm planning for it to be about how Alex leaves office dealing with the idea of his own legacy and accomplishments (but as I teased in Stage 3, he won't actually be 'done').

I think that's all I've got in me. Chapter 4 is in the works, but it's taking way longer than I'd like (I've only just started part 1 😬) since I started a new job that's kind of sucking the life out of me. I'm very excited to share it, though! I'll be sad when it's over (maybe I'll do a missing moments oneshot series after, who knows).

director's cut ask game

[twig-tea]

2023 BL/GL/QL Round-Up Post

I thought for posterity I'd post a reflection on everything I watched that completed in 2023. For me, that means anything that started in 2022 but the last episode was in 2023 is on this list, but anything that will still be airing after 31 December 2023 11:59 my time (EST) is not on this list, even if the bulk of the show did air in 2023.

A few stats:

110 discrete pieces of content (series/films)

clocking in at est. 600 hours of NEW BL/GL content only

from 9 different countries (Cambodia [1], Philippines [3], Hong Kong [1], Japan [18], Korea [19], Myanmar [1], Taiwan [6], Thailand [56], Vietnam [7])

~50% of the content I watched on this list is from Thailand

~85% of my content was on YouTube [40%], GaGaOoLaLa [23%] and iQIYI [21%].

[Note that this year a lot of older GMMTV shows moved off of YouTube and onto Viki so if you're looking at these stats to decide what to pay for, this won't account for that.]

This doesn't include re-watches or catching up on old shows [e.g. I re-watched Love Sick, My Ride the Series, Semantic Error, ITSAY/IPYTM, Our Dating Sim at least 3 times lol, and anything with a s2 I re-watched s1 to prep, among others, watched Fujoshi Ukkari Gei no Kokuru (2019) for the first time] or non-QL [e.g. Heartstopper s2, Our Flag Means Death s2, Taskmaster s. 15 & 16, Uncanny Counter s2, One Piece s1, etc.] but does include films as well as shows, though I don't count special episodes separately (so Wedding Plan counts once, though I watched both the show and the special).

I hope you all appreciate that with this much content, and with my general brand of being unable to make decisions, I really struggled to narrow down a top 10 list. What follows is the best I could do lol

Top 20 Shows I'd Recommend From This Year:

Moonlight Chicken

Our Dating Sim

Bed Friend

The Eighth Sense

La Pluie

Sing My Crush

Tokyo in April Is...

Wedding Plan

Laws of Attraction

I Cannot Reach You

I Feel You Linger in the Air

What Did You Eat Yesterday S2

I Became the Lead in a BL Drama

If It's With You

Love in Translation

Our Dining Table

My Personal Weatherman

My Beautiful Man: Eternal

My School President

Be My Favorite

+10 I liked but I would only recommend with caveats:

Love Class 2

The New Employee [for the Rainbow Rice Cakes]

Let's Eat Together Aki and Haru

Never Let Me Go

Kiseki: Dear to Me

Unintentional Love Story

The Day I Loved You

End of the World with You

A Breeze of Love

Jack O'Frost

Bonus: Not a BL but worth calling out:

One Room Angel

Midnight Museum

Grand Guignol

The Warp Effect

Sadly, of the GLs that aired this year, I wouldn't recommend any of them. The best one was Show Me Love, which was not actually good but had very gorgeous women and a LOT of flirting.

The other huge thing that happened this year was that I stopped lurking! Thanks specifically to @lurkingshan and @bengiyo demanding everyone start talking about La Pluie, because they got me to post my first meta post. And because I started actually talking to people, I started making actual friends, and participated in organizing things like the Be My Favorite clown checkpoint for ep 11. I also disappeared a month because of life, and am still catching up on everything I intended to write this year. But it's been really rewarding finding this corner of tumblr with likeminded people who like good shows, like to think about these shows, and who are interested in talking about them in a way that's insightful and respectful.

It's been a long time since I felt comfortable enough participating actively in a fandom, and I just want to say to everyone I've interacted with this year: Thank you!

Full list under the cut for anyone curious! [Mostly in order it aired but may be slightly off].

Love Bill

Director Who Buys Me Dinner, The

Star Always Follow You, The

Cutie Pie 2 You

Between Us the Series (Hemp Rope)

Reason Why He Fell in Love with Me Special & S2 [international release]

New Employee, The

I Will Hit You/I Will Knock You

Individual Circumstances

609 Bedtime Story

GAPYuri / GAP the series

My School President

HitBiteLove the Series

Never Let Me Go

Moonlight Chicken

History 5: Love in the Future

Oh My God (ToDo) the Series

Warp Effect, The

End of the World, With You

My Blessing the Series

Our Winter (miniseries)

All the Liquors

Once in Memory: Let Me Be Yours

Shoulder to Cry On, A

Jack O'Frost

Our Dating Sim

Midnight Museum

Me, My Husband, and My Husband's Boyfriend

My Colleague at BL Shop might be My Meant-to-Be

Unintentional Love Story

Chains of Heart

Bed Friend the series

Bad Brother the Series

Stormy Honeymoon

Eighth Sense, the

Bad Brother the Series

Future Series

Tin Tam Jai the series

Crush on You

House of Stars the Series

Happy Merry Ending

Boss and a Babe, A

Pastsenger the Series

Love Mate

Love Syndrome the Series

Promise the Series, The

Day I Loved You, The

Our Dining Table (Bokura no Shokutaku)

Our Skyy 2

My Story the Series

Starstruck

Love Tractor

Naked Dining

Luminous Solution, The

Omai Series / Is My Roommate A Foreigner

Stupid Genius

Step By Step

La Pluie the series

Tie the Not

Sing My Crush / Follow the Wind

Tokyo in April Is .../ Shigatsu no Tokyo wa

Senior Love Me?

Be My Favorite

Show Me Love

Dinosaur Love

Low Frequency

Stay Still

Stay By My Side

Jun & Jun

Wedding Plan the Series

Laws of Attraction, the

Love Class s2

Minato's Laundromat S2

Hidden Agenda

Bon Appetit

Why RU the Series [Korean adaptation]

Be Mine Superstar

Star, The Season 2

Love In Translation

My Beautiful Man: Eternal

My Personal Weatherman

Bump Up Business

Naughty Babe Series

Only Friends

Grand Guignol

Dangerous Romance

If It's With You / Kimi to Nara Koi wo Shite Mite Mo

Y Journey: Stay Like a Local

I Feel You Linger in the Air

Venus in the Sky

Kiseki: Dear to Me

I Cannot Reach You

You Are Mine

Breeze of Love / Weather Forecast of Love

Mr. Cinderella 2

Let's Eat Together Aki and Haru

One Room Angel

Marry My Dead Body

Lucky My Love the Series

Pure Vanilla: Recipe for Romance

Absolute Zero

Memories, The

My Dear Gangster Oppa

Shadow

What Did You Eat Yesterday? S2

Middleman Love

Beyond the Star

Bake Me Please

You and My Stars

I Became the Lead in a BL Drama

[fairytale-poll]

ROUND 1C, MATCH 9 OUT OF 16!

Propaganda Under the Cut:

Touya:

His performance as Cinderella in his school play is played for laughs, but the thing I really appreciate is that the comedy comes from how ill-fitting his personality is for the character, not his gender. The episode was funny, sure, but it was also surprisingly progressive for a children's anime from the 90's (then again, so was the rest of the show haha). Also he's the only Cinderella who gets sent to the ball by a talking can of mackerel.

Saki:

Psychic goth girl who was cast as Cinderella in a school play. The play was so poorly cast overall that the entire script had to be rewritten, thus “Cinderella-ish” was born. Hanajima played a Cinderella dressed in all black, and when confronted by the fairy godmother, she simply wished for meat.

idk if this is what you meant by 'acting' as Cinderella but in-universe she got cast as Cinderella in the school play, and the characters ended up re-writing the entire play to work around her because she was too Goth and disinterested to play a classic Cinderella character.

She plays the best version of Cinderella. All she cared about was going to the ball for the barbecue. The episode she's in is a really good one as well.

Overall Saki is not a Cinderella character, but you did say we could submit them if they were Cinderella in an in-universe play, and that she was! In Season 2 Episode 23 "It's Cinderella-ish", her class puts on a production of Cinderella and she ends up getting cast as the titular role, which a lot of other characters think is crazy because she's this straight-faced, emotionally-repressed, exclusively-wears-black kinda girl. Also her best friend Tohru (the anime's protagonist) gets cast as an evil stepsister, and she's one of the sweetest people ever and has so much trouble being mean to Saki even fakely and vice versa. Of course, Saki has no problems being rude to the Prince Charming character in the play, played by Kyo, a guy who's sweet deep down (but only to Tohru and his adoptive father) but is other wise a hot head who's always getting into fights. So between Saki as Cinderella having a genuine love for her stepsister and a general animosity with the prince, in addition to the fact that when she goes to the ball, all she wants to do is eat, not mingle, she makes for a very interesting Cinderella.

so this shoujo series has a storyline where the class puts on a Cinderella play but instead of the heroine playing Cinderella, shenanigans happen that lead to the heroine's goth best friend, Saki Hanajima, aka Hana-chan, aka Demon Queen, playing the lead role. Hana-chan's Cinderella dresses in all black against the wishes of the play's director, does not give 2 shits about the prince, and is just a general menace to society. I know she's probably not gonna win but I just wanted to share her with all of you bc I love her and the Cinderella-ish arc is to this day some of the funniest shit I've seen in a manga

their high school class decided to randomize who played which characters in their production of Cinderella & the creepy goth girl got cast as Cinderella & her painfully kind-hearted bestie got cast as the evil stepsister (among other mismatched roles) so they rewrote the play into "Sorta Cinderella" & Cinderella became a deadpan, lazy girl who only wants the best for her darling step-sister & who only went to the ball for the food.  in the end, instead of marrying the prince she takes his money & opens a restaurant with her sister & I love that for them <3