#it's part of the trend of the death of movie stars .

[gael-garcia]

detest the new practice of CGIing the older actor's face on the younger in flashback scenes or whatever

[mariacallous]

Star Wars fans have lived with Mon Mothma for a long time without ever really knowing her. The ethereal Rebel leader has been a regal but enigmatic figure for four decades, but all of that is about to change with episode four of Andor, the Disney+ series about Diego Luna’s devoted spy that also chronicles the strengthening of resistance in the galaxy far, far away.

Genevieve O’Reilly portrays Mon Mothma on the show, which will finally delve into the intense personal story behind this politician from the planet Chandrila. “In her public role, there is a requirement to be calm, there is a requirement to project serenity because the cost is so high, the danger is so extreme,” O’Reilly tells Vanity Fair. “Mon Mothma can't step into the drama that is often surrounding her. But I think what Andor allows is to see the private alongside the public. You can reveal so much when you take that public mask off.”

Even casual fans of the franchise will remember Mon Mothma’s striking first appearance in 1983’s Return of the Jedi, with actress Caroline Blakiston playing the caftan-clad, priestess-like figure who advises Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Han Solo, and Lando Calrissian about the Empire’s construction of a new Death Star. “Many Bothans died to bring us this information,” she intones gravely.

Star Wars faithful still don’t know what a Bothan is, even after all this time, but they’ve caught glimpses of Mothma here and there. O’Reilly first played her as a younger woman in 2005’s Revenge of the Sith, which revealed that Mothma was a novice galactic senator back when Darth Vader was forged and Emperor Palpatine took over the galaxy. Her speaking lines exist only in a deleted scene, but her appearance as a silent background figure in the finished film was unmistakable.

Fans were left to connect the dots between how an upstart politician became the leader of a guerrilla space resistance until 2016. That’s when O’Reilly reprised Mothma for a more substantial role in the stand-alone prequel Rogue One, serving as a kind of M to Diego Luna’s galactic version of 007, Cassian Andor. The new series is set five years before that, when the two were still unknown to each other, living distant parallel lives—the powerless refugee, and the frustrated powerbroker, both trapped in a corrosive system they hope to change.

The patience of Star Wars fans is about to pay off. The so-called Mother of the Rebellion is now coming into sharper focus.

“This woman has been a part of this universe for so long—and with great respect to George Lucas who created her as a female leader of the Rebel Alliance back in the early ‘80s. That was, I'm sure, as ambitious then as it sounds now,” O’Reilly says. “ I have always really loved the opportunity to step into this woman's shoes. There is something in Caroline's original portrayal of her. I always go back and watch that scene just to remind me how they originated it. I think there is a pain at the center of that.”

For her, it all comes back to the Bothans, those unknown spies who gave their lives for the information she relays. It’s information that she knows will necessitate a battle that will certainly cost even more lives.

“She has that very famous line that people will say to me: ‘Many Bothans died…’,” O’Reilly says. “I always wondered what that was. I always wondered what she was carrying, what her own personal sacrifice was, what the cost to this woman was—and continues to be.”

Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy (The Bourne movies, Michael Clayton) predicted in May that Mon Mothma will become a trending topic when episode four airs. That day is now upon us.

“She's this figurehead of liberal democracy that will fail, and ultimately, she'll go to the Rebel Alliance. We stick to the timeline and the major events. But as you can see, we're saying, ‘You don't really know what's going on with her,’” Gilroy says. “Nobody has really known what's going on with her. She's had a much harder time than we knew.”

The revelations about Mothma are more intimate than Star Wars storytelling usually gets. Andor shows her not only struggling to hold together the nascent rebellion, but it also bears witness to her tumultuous and combative marriage to a husband named Perrin (Alastair Mackenzie). Fans have seen Han and Leia trade barbs, but they’ve never seen anything like these two.

“Just wait, just wait,” Gilroy says. “Their marriage is as complex as any marriage I've ever written in any show I've ever done, or any movie I've ever written. Their relationship, how they negotiate it, where it ends up, the shifting power dynamics of it… It's as complicated as anything I've ever worked on.”

Part of the problem is that Mothma's husband Perrin is all too comfortable living in the luxury of the Empire. “She's the boss. She’s the senator. And he's an epicurean,” Gilroy says. “He just wants to live life, man. ‘Why can't we have fun? Why does everything have to be boring? Why we have to do all this political shit? Who cares about this revolution? The revolution's a pain in the ass, man. Let's have fun!’”

It would be a spoiler to reveal how that relationship plays out, but Gilroy and O’Reilly are willing to describe the origin of this mismatched couple in advance. “They were married at 16. That is a very big thing in Chandrila,” Gilroy says. “She has a daughter. It was somewhat of an arranged marriage.”

If that seems shocking, it’s worth noting that 16 was also the age when Mothma became a senator. That sort of thing happens in the Star Wars universe; Padme Amidala, Natalie Portman’s character in the prequels, was also “elected” queen of the planet Naboo when she was a child.

O’Reilly says Andor confronts what it’s like to live with so much responsibility for so long. In some ways, she says she and her character have grown up together. 

“I have played her since I was very young and Mon Mothma was one of my first roles,” she says. “What is it to live within that orthodoxy? And what is it within that familial culture where the woman has the more powerful public role? What does that do to the balance of power within a home? How difficult or easy is that to navigate? And what if your husband has lent into the very voices that you are trying to oppose?”

For O'Reilly, it’s not just a story of good vs. evil. It’s about the many sides of a conflict that can exist sometimes within a single person. 

“There is a public space and then there is a private space. And with Mon Mothma, we are definitely walking that tightrope in Andor,” O”Reilly says. “What can I reveal in a private space? What is the cost to her? How dangerous is it? How dangerous is it to have a voice—or to risk having a voice—in this very volatile political climate? How costly is it to speak up against autocracy? How is it to navigate not only a public space but also your private home when your voice is very different, when you are a woman speaking in a very male-dominated, arguably aggressive world?”

O’Reilly’s hope is that Star Wars fans will realize that Mon Mothma is not such a mystery after all. There are versions of her all around us.

“You don't have to look too far, no matter which profession you work in, to see women who are trying to effect change from within,” she says. “I looked to different female leaders around the world and sadly we don't really have enough of them still. Often they are lonely voices, or voices that others are trying to silence. I see a correlation with those voices and with Mon's voice. For me, I didn't have to look too far to see the women that I believe can be reflected in Mon's fight. I recognized her. I recognized her fights. I want to stand up for her as a character because I think we can all recognize her.”

[wander-wren]

sometimes i wonder about what fandom is going to look like in 5 or 10 years. i think we might have already started to see a shift.

because, look, most of the oldest, biggest fandoms are from tv shows and movies, in particular ones that go on for years and scores of episodes. star trek, star wars, stargate (is everything star?), doctor who, supernatural…even sherlock really got its biggest popularity boosts in the modern day from tv adaptations. marvel and dc were comics first, too, but movies made them more accessible; their “cinematic universe” tags are the biggest on ao3 by far.

but what tv shows are we getting now? short, 8-episode things that get canceled two or three seasons in, that are usually less-than-faithful adaptations of other media anyway.

what movies are we getting? well, marvel turns more to slop every day, and everything else is remakes and sequels no one asked for. the general populace will still go see them and find some good movies that they like, but there’s not much really for fandom to grasp onto.

the best shows for fandom that we’ve had recently, that i can think of, are stranger things, game of thrones, and maybe our flag means death. stranger things is dying off, especially since they’re looking at a 3-4 YEAR gap between s4 and s5. game of thrones’s popularity plummeted after its final season, we all know that. our flag means death is still chugging fairly okay, but after that second season a lot of the fandom dropped it, and with it now being cancelled, i don’t see it sticking around.

yes, we can chalk part of this up to a new generation to of fans having this growing idea that fandom is super temporary, to be abandoned as soon as its not on trend. but media used to be on trend for a whole lot longer than it is now. seasons were longer, we had filler episodes, things were lower quality sometimes but at least they came out on a consistent schedule. i don’t mind if supernatural isn’t an artistic masterpiece, but if i was a stranger things fan waiting until 2026 for the final season, i would be annoyed if it wasn’t damn near perfect. that’s assuming i watched it at all—we’re all so used to not getting endings and moving on, so why would i bother?

i think there are two types of shows doing sort of okay about this. one is procedurals—9-1-1 is a popular one i’ve run into, and it started in 2018, around the beginning of the decline, but it’s managed 7 seasons in those six years, most of them with 18 episodes. the other is, honestly, anime—though we can and SHOULD talk about the terrible working conditions that make the fast turnarounds there possible. look at how big some anime fandoms are.

judging by the relative fandom popularity of other procedural dramas (grey’s anatomy, law & order, criminal minds), i think that’s going to remain sort of niche. fandom likes fantasy and scifi best, and they just don’t tend to have as strong of an overarching arc to dig into. at least, that’s why i wouldn’t watch them. i think there’s also a good chance these will start to die out in the coming years as well.

anime could also die out a little bit. better working conditions would necessitate less/slower content, and it’s true that most of the popular anime fandoms have been around for years, even decades.

so, what, no new, lasting tv show or movie fandoms anymore?

what will the biggest fandoms be in 5-10 years?

podcast fandoms have a shot. the magnus archives is still going strong, and i’ve been seeing a lot about dungeons and daddies. i think we’re kind of almost past the golden age for podcasts, but i am an outsider, so maybe that will change.

book fandoms seem like a kind of obvious choice, but they just don’t get as big without, you guessed it, a movie or show adaptation. and the downsizing has hit them, too—can you think of anything from the last 5 or 10 years that rivals harry potter, percy jackson, warriors, lord of the rings, hunger games, acotar…even game of thrones (asoiaf) again? i can’t. the collapse of the publishing industry is another post entirely.

2020 is really what cemented these changes, though they were starting in the late 2010s, at least. with actual industries shutting down, there was room for indie creators making things alone in their houses to pop up, and people had more time on their hands to try new things out and get into them.

the two things that have really been on the rise since 2020 is rpf and video game fic—often both combined. we’ve got genshin impact, call of duty, minecraft of course being huge, rpf of various youtubers, and k-pop rpf. now, i think rpf is contentious enough that it won’t really become the main fandom, but video game fic…might be it.

even video blogging rpf can often be a blurred enough line that people are more comfortable with it. and the thing is…youtube creators are actually more reliable than mainstream television these days. they need to be, to maintain their platforms. they need to not cancel series and to live up to their own hype as best they can and to not abandon the channel for 3 or 4 years at a time. and again, you can talk about burnout and unrealistic expectations and all of those things, but it’s still true.

maybe i’m completely wrong. maybe in 10 years the film and publishing industries will all sort themselves out and we’ll go back to the status quo. but i think this position fandom is finding itself in is interesting, and i wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if what’s most popular (both in the specific source material sense and the medium/genre sense) is different some time down the road.

[ifwebefriends]

Tumblr Moments 2024

January

Steamboat Willie goes into the public domain

Luca x Alberto (Luberto) fanart from the story lead and co-director of Ciao Alberto dropped

Talking about the Percy Jackson TV show

TF2 Heavymedic is canon

MatPat announces his retirement from hosting Game Theory

The Hbomberguy death note post

Confused Ryan Gosling at the critics choice awards

Talking about Hazbin Hotel

Star Trek Threshold Day

The Elmo Twitter ask comic

Sonic X Shadow Generations Trailer Drop

February

Sonic 3 film teaser trailer drop

King Charles III gets diagnosed with cancer

Knuckles series trailer dropped

Deadpool and Wolverine trailer dropped

QSMP at the streamer awards

David Tennant at BAFTA 2024

Nimona drops on YouTube for free with subtitles

Photomatt being transphobic and people talking about it/making jokes about it

Pokémon Z is announced

James Somerton releases his response to Hbomberguy

March

Marijuana-induced tragedy prediction tweet

Dune part two came out

Minecraft wolf update

Roosterteeth shut down

Celebrating Akira Toriyama

Cursed cat Alastor

The entire FNAF movie on Spotify

The Bride and the Ugly Ass Groom

Waiting for ConcernedApe to finish his coffee for the Stardew Valley update

Avatar the last airbender started trending for seemingly no reason

April

The Great Boopening of 2024

Dan and Phil Crafts comes back for April Fools after seven years

Smosh Shourtney WeddingGate

Buck on ABC’s 911 is bisexual

20th anniversary Dannypocalypse

10-year-anniversary of Captain America: The Winter Soldier

The Solar Eclipse

1-year anniversary of the Owl House Finale

The Magnus Protocal episode drops

Keanu Reeves revealed to be playing Shadow in the Sonic 3 Movie

Friendpilled visitmaxxer

Yuri On Ice movie cancelled

Watcher paywall controversy

Beta The Owl House Bible dropped

Dungeon Meshi boobs gif

Helluva Boss Season 2B trailer dropped

Destiel would have been “balls deep” if CW hadn’t blocked it

Arizona Diamondbacks game is delayed due to bees

It’s Gonna Be May

May

Fighting off spam bots invading the #asexual tag

The Amazing Digital Circus episode 2

Classic tumblr star @justgirlythings got married to her girlfriend now wife

Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef unexpectedly gets onto tumblr

FaceTiming fan at a concert meme

Tears of the Kingdom 1-year anniversary

First look at The Last of Us Season 2

Supernatural actors DJ Qualls and Ty Ollson announce their engagement to each other

The King Charles portrait

Slurpy faggi, the first AI generated gay Star Wars character

Death of Kabosu, the dog from the Doge meme

Jensen Ackles talks about Destiel at purcon and says the confession scene was clearly romantic

Pope calls everyone a faggot by accident

Phil Lester goes blonde

Rebecca Sugar posts pearlrose art of Pearl shapeshifting into Greg at some point

Donald Trump found guilty of 34 felony charges

Helluva Boss Full Moon drop

June

Venom: The Last Dance trailer dropped

Jason Todd from the DC universe died again but was brought back quickly

Dragon Age: The Veilguard drop

House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1 release

Nintendo Direct that announced various games including but not limited to: a new Mario&Luigi game, a new Legend of Zelda game where you can play as Zelda, and an official translation of Ace Attorney Investigations 2 that has been region locked for 13 years

Doctor Who sutekh

Helluva Boss Apology Tour dropped

Presidential Debate

Urusei Yatsura opening parodies

Old unuploaded Technoblade video was uploaded to the Technoblade channel, mcyt fandom reacts

July

Ao3 down for maintenance for 10 hours

An Extremely Goofy Movie trends because of Maxley

Crowdstrike worldwide Bluescreen day

Moon Landing Day

Biden dropping out of the race Supernatural trending

“I’m not calling you a good boy” meme

Gravity Falls the Book of Bill drops

August

Olympics Chocolate Muffin guy

Deadpool and Wolverine releases

Why dis [____] look so mad? Meme

Legend of Zelda Echoes of Wisdom second trailer drop

Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart at the Olympics

Christmas trends for some reason

Drawing Hatsune Miku from different cultures

Sonic movie 3 trailer drops

Helluva Boss short Weaboo boo drop

September

Our Flag Means Death September 1st dickwads gif

Aftermath of Hatsune Miku’s birthday

Minecraft movie trailer drop

Ace Attorney Investigations Collection drop

Dracula Daily September 8th entry

Taylor Swift at the VMAs

Venom: The Last Dance Final Trailer drop

Friday the 13th

Dead Boy Detectives gets canceled by Netflix

Undertale 9th anniversary

Steven Universe Pearl x Greg art comes out that may or may not be by Rebecca Sugar themselves

October

Spooky month begins once again 🎃

October 3rd, a special day in many fan circles including Mean Girls, Full Metal Alchemist, Dracula Daily, Milo Murphy’s Law, and the nation of Germany

The Amazing Digital Circus episode 3

Out of Touch Thursday Friday

Minecraft Live new update

Digital Circus 1st anniversary

Sunrise on the Reaping cover drop

Rickrolling Wikipedia article poll

Sonic x Shadow Generations drop

Vatican reveals anime girl mascot Luce

Boops return for Halloween

November

Election anniversary of November 5th 2020

Arcane season 2 drop

My Chemical Romance announces new tour

DreamSMP world download drop

Spirk became canon

Sonic and Shadow twitter takeover reactions

Sonic 3 poster drop

Arcane season finale with three ship kisses

Helluva Boss Mastermind drops

December

Luigi Mangione

Dan and Phil won an RPF poll against Jesus Christ and Judas Escariot

Okami sequel gets announced at Game Awards 2024

Helluva Boss Sinsmas drop

Sonic 3 movie drop

Hazbin Hotel Abel drop

[dukeofriven]

A couple days ago that post was going around about that scene in TOS where Spock breaks down and cries after being hit with a virus that limits his ability to control his emotions in The Naked Time. It's a famous performance, one that I think works even better on a rewatch with a stronger understanding of Spock's character (or, rather, what his character will become). The rarity of those tears, the rawness of the performance, the power of it all makes it stand out as something really powerful. I cordially dislike many of the choices Strange New Worlds makes for a variety of reasons, but perhaps one of the most potent is how often Spock cries, how often Spock is emotional, and more than anything its unspoken belief that the human side of Spock is the only valid side. This has long been a tension in Trek: more than any other race besides the Borg, Vulcans are often presented not as different but wrong. Humans needle Vulcans to' be emotional' in a way they don't, say, needle Klingons to be pacifists, or needle Benzites to breathe oxygen. Star Trek Enterprise was really the original sinner here, especially given that—due to clumsy writing and a particular beefy American arrogance on the part of one J. Archer—the Vulcans are repeatedly shown to be completely correct that humans are not ready for space travel. And yet their entire philosophy is sneered at, treated as an aberration of values. The Abrams movies picked up this baton: Spock could only show he loved Kirk by screaming with rage and trying to beat a man to death with his bare hands. Vulcans as Vulcans, as an alexithymia-adjacent species, were always in the wrong, always assholes, the very idea of being un- or under- emotional presented as contemptuous. Freakish. Discovery continued this trend: raised-by-Vulacans Michael Burnham is unrecognizable within a few seasons as she has seemly disposed of the entirety of any Vulcan nature she once possessed. Discovery has to do this because much (not all, but much) of modern Trek relies heavily on pure, unrestrained emotional catharsis for its story beats. Many episodes lack much internal logic or clever plotting:the act breaks all lead to emotive moments and then swing to the next, so that by the end of an episode you're ready to tweet about all the emotions you and the character had—regardless of whether or not those emotions made any sense, or actively undermined the characterization. Perhaps no one is more damaged by this in modern Trek than Spock, who—like my anxious cat—is permanently a single overheard harsh syllable away from some kind of openly emotive reaction. Vulcans have emotions, Spock has emotions, but their central conceit is the way in which they are not ruled by them. In a storytelling world, however, in which being ruled by emotion is equated with being relatable to an audience, Vulcans aren't just different from humans, they're wrong. And so Spock's Vulcan side must constantly be rejected, first Discovery and then SNW: if he's not emoting, then he's not relatable, then he's being wrong, so Spock must sigh, Spock must cry, Spock must constantly wander around looking like a kicked puppy. It doesn't drain the power of Nimoy and that scene for the Naked Time. But it does fail, utterly, to comprehend it.

[otomiyaa]

Top 23 of 2023

Top 23 of 2023 on Tumblr is out and it made me remember something....!!! For those who also remember, I started this game last year and I just thought it would be nice to do it again. For reference, my post is ofc long gone, but here's Mia's~~

Tagging: @ticklygiggles & Everyone who wants to do it lol

Part 1: Fandom Faves 

01. Favorite new fandoms of the year: Red, White & Royal Blue, Honkai Star Rail

02. Favorite new ships since this year: Henry x Alex (RWRB) Sampo x Gepard (HSR), Ballister x Ambrosius (Nimona)

03. Favorite anime/TV shows of the year: Atarashii Joushi wa Do Tennen, Our Flag Means Death Season 2, Niehime to Kemono no Ou

04. Favorite movies of the year: Red White and Royal Blue, Nimona

05. Favorite characters of the year: Furina!!!! (Genshin Impact), also Gepard Landau (Honkai Star Rail), Miguel O'Hara (Across the Spiderverse), and a big honorable mention to the Fontaine gang in Genshin Impact (especially Freminet and Neuvillette)!

06. Favorite soundtrack of the year: Genshin Impact - Fontaine soundtrack and the Our Flag Means Death Season 2 soundtrack

07. Favorite book/manga/comic of the year: The Work Love Balance manhwa, and RWRB which is older but I discovered it thanks to the movie coming out.

08. Favorite games of the year: Genshin Impact, still my fav^^

09. Highlight of this year to remember: Bowuigi trending as a ship.

Part 2: Community Review

10. Favorite Tumblr moments of 2023: Tickletober with the very own list Mia and I created, and even though it was a negative thing at first - getting swarmed with kind words from you guys after I lost my blog. I'm a mere humble person but you guys seriously made me feel a little important for a moment there ^///^

11. Favorite fan art of the year: Hard to say, but I'll say this sampard piece I got from Val baby for my bday, and this Ukatake commission by @dokidoki-muffin, this spiderdads commission by @giulscomix, and this Ittorou commission by @chibimochii have also stolen my heart!

And ofc all other commissions of this year (the bowuigi one fs;ijogij; and miguel one omggg, the pokemon commission so CUTE). And *wiggles fingers* I have more on the way....

12. Favorite fic of the year: Hard to say but I've been enjoying a lot of the Tickletober works specifically by @lovelynim and @ticklygiggles, and also this Nimona fic by @bambinella has become a fav, and all RWRB fics by @kourtniwritesagain!!!!! I still need to reblog them here.

13. Favorite ask game of the year: I can't remember which ones I played, but I remember there was a time I had reblogged "post your anonymous confessions" or something, and it resulted in the most interesting asks and conversations with you guys^^ I liked that.

14. My top achievements as a writer/artist/creator/blogger: If I'll be around in a year, this won't be 'writer' but 'blogger', but for this one as a writer, it'll again be completing all 31 days of tickletober right on schedule despite a minor intervention.. :"D

15. My own best fic/post of the year: I have no idea! But if I ask AO3, it answers that my best fic of this year is my bowuigi fic mahahaha (based on kudos btw).

16. My most underappreciated fic/post of the year: Let's give that award to these 2 poor Tickletober fics (which I enjoyed writing a lot) that were not reblogged by anyone meaning they are no longer on Tumblr since my account loss:

Day 21: Horns/Fangs | Sariphi x Leonhart, King of Beasts (Niehime to Kemono no Ou) 

Day 23: Party | Momose x Shirosaki (Atarashii Joushi wa Do Tennen) 

17. A post of mine that got more popularity than expected: My comeback post! The comments, likes and even reblogs, I couldn't have ever imagined.

18. Something I changed on my blog since this year: You tell me 😂 No but besides the whole blog change, another change is that I got over my embarrassment and was brave enough to commission a couple of artists this year. Me and my money are now in a happy place!

Part 3: Next Year

19. Something I didn’t post this year but would like to do next year: A fic recommendations/faves post (from other writers). Wonder if I'll ever get to it, since my reading and fic reblogging is already not what I like it to be, meaning that every fic I reblog would probably belong on that list lol. But alright, I'd like to make a faves of the faves list then.

20. Goals for next year: Read more...!!! Read more books, more manga, more webtoons, more tickle fics. I love them, so I should read more! My truest ambition.

21. 2024 releases I look forward to the most: Every single update for Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail, and also: Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, Inside Out 2, Deadpool 3, Venom 3, Kimi ni Todoke S3, and Beastars Final Season!

22. Something else I look forward to next year: Traveling to Japan with my boyfriend! Also: receiving more tickles cuz why not. And last but not least, seeing Taylor Swift live at the Eras Tour in Amsterdam!

Part 4: Spreading Love

23. Shoutouts to people who made my 2023 a better year: I know, and you might know, I didn't do so well last time since I tagged a bunch of friends but also forgot to mention some... not because I didn't care about them but because I am a flopper. So to prevent this embarrassment I won't mention any names this time.

I especially would like to thank everyone who is still around, who is reading this, who followed my new blog. To be honest, on my old blog I felt flattered to have so many followers but I was also aware it was the effect of being active for 7 years in a ton of fandoms, and that it didn't say anything about the accurate number of people appreciating what I was posting.

But to be at already almost 500 followers on this blog? Where I only post shit? Now that's a compliment I will gladly accept. Thank you to all of you for the support!

Last but not least, special shoutout to the friends I talk to on Discord sooo much now, you know who you are!

Question list for copy paste below!

Part 1: Fandom Faves 

01. Favorite new fandoms of the year

02. Favorite new ships since this year 

03. Favorite anime/TV shows of the year 

04. Favorite movies of the year

05. Favorite characters of the year

06. Favorite soundtrack of the year

07. Favorite book/manga/comic of the year

08. Favorite games of the year

09. Highlight of this year to remember

Part 2: Community Review

10. Favorite Tumblr moments of 2023

11. Favorite fan art of the year

12. Favorite fic of the year

13. Favorite ask game of the year

14. My top achievements as a writer/artist/creator/blogger

15. My own best fic/post of the year

16. My most underappreciated fic/post of the year

17. A post of mine that got more popularity than expected

18. Something I changed on my blog since this year

Part 3: Next Year

19. Something I didn’t post this year but would like to do next year

20. Goals for next year

21. 2024 releases I look forward to the most

22. Something else I look forward to next year

Part 4: Spreading Love

23. Shoutouts to people who made my 2023 a better year

[honeydiamonds]

Rohini is the birth of Eve or the cosmic “woman” herself and Uttara Phalguni is her awakening. 🍎 🐍

———

UPH moon Doja Cat’s “Woman” is my theme song for this nakshatra. In the video, she also dresses as the Tree of Life (another name for the Banyan tree). It’s the tree which Adam and Eve ate off in the Garden of Eden in order to maintain immortality. In Tuck Everlasting, UPH sun Alexis Bledel must make the decision to drink from a tree to become immortal so she can live with her love interest (played by a Krittika native) forever. Krittika is Adam, immortal in the Garden of Eden, and that’s EXACTLY how this book/movie captures him.

It takes his father, played by a UBP (the funeral cot) sun, to teach her that death is part of the Circle of Life and that no life is worth living if it cannot end. He tells her this so that she doesn’t choose to remain immortal and stuck as a girl forever. He persuades her to grow older and create her own life and to not hold her life back for a boy who will forever be stuck unaware in the Garden of Eden (Krittika = Adam’s birth). This plot says a lot about Uttara Phalguni women in my opinion, and how they won’t let themselves be held back by anything including men. It also connects to how this nakshatra is all about growing up and how these natives, as children, oftentimes need guidance to grow up, especially from outside of their own family (usually their fathers are not present in some way. Look at Simba & Will from the Fresh Prince).

The Tree of Life connects to amrita (the Elixir of Life; immortality). Aryaman is King of the Immortal Ancestors, who are only immortal because their consciences are embedded within their descendant’s DNA. This ultimately alludes to the fact that our ancestors are simply past versions of ourselves, which is seen directly in the incredibly Uttara Phalguni coded chow Avatar. Aang is Uttara Phalguni DOWN to the point where he learns to align his chakras. Aryaman is the ruler of the sevenfold path towards enlightenment. He essentially represents manhood or the path of the Arya as well.

Uttara Phalguni is pure life force energy in the first pada. In the last three padas, it is life force energy growing on Earth (6H). It is the soul within us all. The collective conscious. That’s why these natives appeal to many. They are relatable and highly sought after in terms of status, creativity, success and they are also desired by many. It is also why they set trends and are “milked” by the industry. Think of Doja, who has called herself a “cash cow.” She is the only female rapper to give Nicki Mnja credit on a song outside of Megan. They’re both UPH moon. UPH is the beneficiary of the ancestor’s fruits. The descendant who inherits fruits from previous generations. Doja has even said this on “Attention.” Think of how Britney Spears was the first real, modern archetype of a “pop star.” After her era was over, it was Nicki Minaj who became the pop/rap mogul that created trends and styles that the masses highly enjoyed mimicking. These women’s consciousness are so creative and powerful that they create personas that the world loves to mimick and take inspiration from. That’s why they are the BLUEPRINT along with Krittika & UA. For every generation (UPH= generations) there is a famous Uttara Phalguni woman who enters the spotlight and amazes the masses with her unique identity and creativity which then churns their respective industry and inspires the world.

[austinramsaygames]

A friend was asking on twitter about why Gen X men are obsessed with Pulp Fiction, Not Tarantino broadly, but that movie in particular, and that got me wondering too.

I have a theory after looking at box office numbers for that year and the 3 preceding it, and also considering what followed it.

1) the box office was mostly sequels, comedies, and/or family friendly. The power of sequels wasn't really proven until the 80s with Star Wars. Pulp Fiction was a wholly original film which by itself made it stand out, and Gen X grew up with the sequel explosion.

2) Gen X boys read a lot of comics. The 70s and 80s were huge for comics and, crucially, comics with mature and violent themes. Pulp Fiction is explicitly inspired by a specific kind of "trashy" story that would have appealed to the teens who grew up with Speedy, Green Arrow's sidekick, getting addicted to heroin in the comics. In part because of point 3...

3) Pulp Fiction is an anthology of stories but those tales are connected to each other in little and big ways. A type of story telling that eventually hits it HUGE with the MCU and was exposed to Gen X through comics. The Gen X comics fan sees Vincent get gunned down on the toilet and already has the training to realize that it's Jules absence that lets that happen, and that absence is from an earlier story where Jules decides to quit being a hitman because of an even earlier story with a near death experience. "Editor's note: see 50 minutes ago"

So why does Pulp Fiction hit this way but Batman, released around the same time, does not?

Tim Burton's Batman is surreal and not in a way that can be explained away with comic book logic. Pulp Fiction is "real" like the "mature" comics from the 70s and 80s!

/theory

More I think about it the more it really does seem like a precursor to the trends of gritty reboots AND shared universes, which both started appearing around the time that Gen Xers would be taking leadership positions in media.

*pats self on back*

[denimbex1986]

'Musician and actor Eliot Sumner’s latest role in Netflix's Ripley marks the second instance of a sad trend for the performer following their outing in The Gentlemen, Guy Richie's 2019 action comedy. The child of Sting — the frontman, songwriter, and bassist for new wave band the Police — and actor Trudie Styler (The Night Of), Sumner started their entertainment career as a musician under the name I Blame Coco. Their debut album, The Constant, blends pop, punk, rock, and electronic music, and helped launch their successful solo career as a musical artist and songwriter.

Although Sumner had small parts in 2001's Me Without You and 2007's Stardust, their first role as an adult actor was in Ritchie's The Gentlemen. Following the $115 million action-comedy flick, Eliot Sumner appeared in 2020's James Bond film, No Time to Die, before landing roles in the Naomi Watts-starring adventure thriller Infinite Storm as well as Ripley, Netflix's latest psychological thriller. While Sumner's role in the black-and-white TV show is a recurring one, they have a substantial impact on Ripley, the latest project to adapt Patricia Highsmith's 1955 novel, The Talented Mr. Ripley.

Eliot Sumner's Characters In Ripley & The Gentlemen Both Have Tragic Deaths

The Actor's Biggest Roles Have A Sad Twist In Common

Freddie, Eliot Sumner's character in Ripley, comes into contact with the titular Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott). Hired by Greenleaf, Ripley is supposed to convince the wealthy man's son, Dickie Greenleaf (Johnny Flynn), to return home to New York. Instead, Dickie would rather live a leisurely life in Italy with Marge Sherwood (Dakota Fanning). The obsessive Tom soon enmeshes himself in Dickie's life, kick-starting a tangled series of fraudulent and deceitful acts. Sumner's Freddie Miles is a wealthy playwright who becomes increasingly suspicious of Tom's motives. Soon enough, Tom bludgeons Ripley's Freddie to death with a paperweight.

In The Gentlemen, Eliot Sumner's character, Laura Pressman, dies as the result of a drug overdose. Aside from No Time to Die, The Gentlemen and Ripley mark Sumner's biggest on-screen roles so far — and both end so tragically. Some actors, like Game of Thrones' Sean Bean, have made a career of playing characters who just so happen to meet tragic ends. Sometimes, that's just the way the cards fall. Since Sumner has mostly appeared in thrillers and action movies, murder is par for the course. Hopefully, their next cinematic role comes to a different ending than Ripley.

Eliot Sumner's Real Life Connection To Italy Makes Their Ripley Role Even Better

Eliot Sumner Was Born In Italy & Felt At Ease On Set

Born in northern Italy, Eliot Sumner noted that they felt really at ease on the set of Ripley, which was largely filmed in Italy (via Netflix). The setting, a kind of infinite summer that's far away from the "real world," is incredibly important to the series. For Tom (and Dickie), Italy is something of a fantasy or an escape. Freddie is a more grounded character in that way, so casting an actor like Sumner, who's familiar with the location, works well as a contrast. Plus, it's great to see someone so at ease in the otherwise suspenseful (and stressful) Ripley.'

[nightcoremoon]

my experience in the Harry Potter fandom (before we all realized Rowling was a talentless hack, an attention whore, and a spiteful bitch) from ages 6 to 12 was blind adoration, until the last book came out and was a steaming pile of shit thus killing my interest in the series and turning me into the most jaded of teenagers you’ve ever met in your entire life.

i still read the odd fic here and there, but ages 13-16 I was way more into avatar the last airbender, avengers, pokemon, jak & daxter, warcraft, inheritance, death note, invader zim, and all of my contemporaries were into HP and twilight and thus by extension so was I. and I still occasionally was like okay yeah the books are mediocre schlock at best but hey they helped destigmatize the occult in the mainstream eye, and the movies did the best job they could with what they were given, and the books COULD have been good if only you’d just changed like 90% of them. the fandom wasn’t about the books themselves, it was all about the culture that the books had created. because nobody really read any of the books more than once because everybody just watched the movies (DON’T EVEN LIE AND SAY THATS NOT TRUE).

we all rolled our eyes at rowling jingling her keys to make us talk about it again and again but it’s like, ok so dumbledore is gay but you didn’t fucking show it and you made the actual gay character lupin die offscreen, ok so snape was apparently a good person underneath being a toxic shitlord but you didn’t fucking show it and you made the actual only good person hagrid a complete non-entity, ok so Anthony Goldstein was apparently your jewish representation but you didn’t fucking even say his goddamn name once in the entire series and the only black characters were racebent for the movies because you didn’t fucking even mention they were black because we know full fuckin well that every single character was white except for CHO. GODDAMN. CHANG.

all you really had to do was say, okay yeah in my youthful ignorance I accidentally made a contribution to problematic media and so I will now strive to fix my mistakes and write a new series that shows how I have grown as an author. except she didn’t do that. she just greenlit the cursed child and accepted royalties for fantastic beasts. and if it weren’t for eddie redmayne and the fact that it’s part of a licensed franchise, the movie would have totally flopped. it was not very good. and jude law and johnny depp did their best but the script was awful and it suffered from prequelitis (which so far only Star Wars has avoided and even then only very narrowly due to saturation). rowling didn’t even have any fucking writing credits on the movie but she made a fat stack of cash anyway. that’s a trend you’ll notice.

every single way I ever found enjoyment in the fandom was in reading people on here suggesting ways to improve it, or to parody it. like desi harry and black hermione, a very potter musical, potter puppet pals, a billion different rewrites that were all way better than the source materials. i even read my immortal, AND YES IT IS REALLY REALLY BAD not even in an ironic so bad it’s good kind of way, I mean that it was just absolutely godawful in every conceivable way, and was only a highlight of how not to write a fanfic. it was so bad that I reread the original books as a palate cleanser. and let me tell you this, harry potter and the sorcerer’s stone is one of the clumsiest books I’d ever read as a teenager. it’s completely amateur in every way, and it made me understand just why it was so popular with the 13-16 year old crowd. it was written at their reading level. the passages from the actual HP books are all virtually indistinguishable from fanfictions I read over a decade ago made by people who are in their early 20s now. in fact there are plenty of fanfictions written by teenagers that are better written than even the least shitty HP book which is defaulted to half blood prince if only because for once there’s actually some narrative cohesion that isn’t a complete and total ass pull and because if you’ve written five full length books then you goddamn well better understand the basics. engaging with the source material was not fun at all and the only way to milk any fun from it was to make fun of it. and by age 16 I was sick and tired of the cynicism. and around that age is when I joined the my little pony fandom.

and they were the two best years of my life at the time. it was nice to be engaging with wholesome content while also making memes that poked fun at its occasional harmless flaws. I watched other fandoms from a distance but MLP was my primary and honestly it still is, I just haven’t been as heavily involved with it these days beyond listening to the music and rebubbling fanart and even on occasion dabbling in the fanfic realm. but it was integral to me figuring out that hey wait a second I’m not a boy after all haha oops. so when I was 18 and finally transed my gender everything was… fine. ten years later I’m more into games that end with craft lmao

and then everything changed when the terf nation attacked.

by the time the queer parts of the Harry Potter fanbase (who weren’t abject pieces of garbage) were shocked & appalled by the betrayal I was the old coot in my rocking chair holding back the urge to say I FUCKING TOLD YOU SO. when people went back and were like, hey actually wow the books were full of racism and antisemitism, all of the black brown jewish etc parts of the former fandom did not hold back the urge to say we fucking told you so. but as a whole white trans people didn’t really seem to care about its problematic natures until it affected them. which is not a good enough reason to bully harass and suicidebait them especially since they were like 12. thankfully that seems to have done wonders in having the collective media literacy of white trans teenagers increase somewhat. that was a few years ago now and I’ll freely admit that I’m somewhat out of touch with the youth right now, I don’t have a tiktok, I don’t use twitter or instagram, I barely use tumblr. i couldn’t tell you the name of one single popular singer these days, and if I did it would be someone that the kids would roll their eyes at and call me a boomer because I said rihanna or beyonce or nicki minaj or something from the 00s and/or 10s. my favorite musicians all started in the 90s. if I asked out somebody who was only 20 it would be weird and creepy. i know where I stand in society these days and that’s fine. but I don’t exactly know where things stand as far as where most teenagers are at. i hope they’re doing fine. i hope they escaped the clutches of the damage HP did. oh wait I forgot about the blood libel game, gOD DAMN IT-

[romancomicsblog]

What the new "Heroes" of Superman Legacy can tell us about the DCU

To somehow everyone's surprise, it seems DC has jumped the Gunn. (See what I did there?)

While many were convinced the antagonists of the 2025's Superman Legacy would be The Authority, The Elite, or even a mixture of the two, it appears for now it may be a prototype version of the Justice League.

James Gunn has casted three JLA members including Isabela Mercad as Hawkgirl, Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific, and Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern AKA Guy Gardner.

While the Authority, the Elite, or even another major Superman villain can play a part, I believe the spot of heroes who "do what they have to" may have been taken.

While this is a shocking turn of events, and one that may be regretful as over world building was the death of the DCEU, I do think these castings and choice of characters tells a good deal about Gunns priorities.

You see, unlike Black Adam, which brought together a team Justice Society members who it seemed Warner Bros said The Rock could have, this team seems purposeful.

So let's go through the characters and see their potential for the DCU:

Starting with the one I'm most excited for:

Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl

You thought I was gonna say Green Lantern, didn't you?

Isabela Merced is a fairly young actress, known for roles like Juliet in Hulu's Rosalind, The Widow Queen in Maya and the Queen, and most famously....

Dora Dora Dora the Explorer.

Merced is a bright young talent, who has been consistently working since 2014 and landed decent roles in big projects. Whether she continues on to be a great character actress or a leading actor, adding Merced in the DCU early almost guarantees having a star down the line.

But even more importantly than any of that, Hawkgirl is a great choice to begin a DCU.

Like Clark, she is an alien, a young hero, and a brawler. The two can find common footing and begin a very heartfelt friendship that can last throughout the DCU.

Unlike her counterpart Hawkman who isn't really any interesting, Hawkgirl was a founding member of the team for many peoples introduction to DC, The Justice League and Justice League Unlimited cartoons.

More than that, her betrayal for her home race of Thanagarians is one of the most iconic parts of the show.

If that is part of the larger narrative Gunn is trying to tell, that tells me Gunn is honoring what fans actually love.

Plus having a Peruvian woman play Hawkgirl just makes my Latinx/Hispanic heart happy.

Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific

I'm glad Darwin is getting another shot at this superhero thing.

Known for his roles in X-Men First Class, Twilight, The Blacklist, and The Harder They Fall, Edi Gathegi has also had a rather impressive career.

I like this trend Gunn has currently with Gathegi, Merced and Corenswet of actors you may recognize but not know.

What's more interesting than the cast is the character.

Mister Terrific is considered the third smartest person in the DC Universe. While he is known to use T-Spheres as a weapon, he also is an extremely skilled hand to hand combatant, a Renaissance man if you will.

To put him in perspective, he often has a friendly rivalry with Batman.

Terrific is a fan favorite character, and one we haven't seen before in film. He can bring a dynamic fighting style, and a perspective of advanced intellect that can challenge Clark. Gunn clearly wants to bring in the characters people love, in a way they don't expect.

Which leads me to:

Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern

Just not the one you're thinking.

I could go into Fillion's history, but you know him. Castle. Firefly. The Rookie. He's an icon.

While he was famously fan casted and even voiced Green Lantern Hal Jordan in several pieces of animated media, Nathan Fillion is now the DCU's Guy Gardner.

Which is, bizarre.

While Fillion is more than a capable enough actor, and has the comedic timing to play the role, I never would've expected a Green Lantern in the first Superman movie, let alone THIS one.

For those not in the know, Guy Gardner is the asshole Green Lantern. He was a football star who suffered a career ending injury in college, and kind of lives in his glory days. He's a more aggressive, often more obnoxious Lantern. Definitely the least heroic of the bunch.

Introducing Guy as the first Green Lantern, and likely leader of the JL that lost their way, makes a lot of sense. It could tempt Clark to be more like Guy, and even better, remind Guy what it means to be a hero.

In any case, character shows me Gunn is not following a specific playbook. There is no order to which Lantern comes first, nor Flash, nor any character.

Which is kind of exciting.

James Gunn has hit us with a huge curveball, basically telling us to expect the unexpected.

Which to me is a breath of fresh air.

Thank you for reading! If you'd like to support me you can follow me on my socials here!

[heartsfm]

↻ ⊲ Ⅱ ⊳ ↺ obsessed - mariah carey 0:01 ❍──── 4:28

(  kaya scodelario,  cis woman,  she/her )  —  🎬  just  announced,  AMELIA COSTA HEART has  been  cast  as  CHARLOTTE YORK in  the  upcoming SEX AND THE CITY  reboot.  the  twenty six year  old  is  trending  as  people  are  debating  if  the  vintage chanel sunglasses that once belonged to her mother, glasses of champagne that are sipped a bit too quickly, walks around new york with a shakespeare & co tote bag, smudged makeup, being the inspiration behind more than one song that  they  are  known  for  is  enough  to  make  them  as  good  as  original.  a  quick  google  search  shows  that  their  fans  call  them  intellectual,  but  internet  trolls  think  they’re  more  manipulative.  i  guess  their  newest  interview  for  variety  where  they  talk  about  her life as a broadway child star will  let  people  to  know  them  better. 

basics:

full name:  amelia costa heart

nicknames:  amy, ames, occasionally ellie

gender:  cis woman

pronouns:  she/her

sexuality:  bisexual

age:  twenty six

ethnicity:  brazilian-american, white

hometown: new york city

residence:  has both a mansion in l.a. and a fashionable apartment in new york, though she has a clear predilection for her hometown

personality:

traits:  intelligent, loyal, romantic, confident, obsessive, manipulative, selfish, occasionally self destructive

mental health:  has been struggling with depression and anxiety since childhood, but has it mostly under control nowadays

physical health:  could be better, since the cigarettes and alcohol mostly tip the balance over her good exercise routine and eating habits

hobbies:  is an avid reader and writer. likes to play tennis or go riding on her free time

character inspo: blair waldorf (gossip girl), charlotte york (sex and the city), venetia catton (saltburn)

family:

mother:  clara costa, a famous brazilian writer who wote many acclaimed broadway plays and prestige television shows

father:  james heart, from an old money new york family

siblings:  none

pets:  two ragdoll cats called pippin and merry

bio:

amy doesn't really remember when she started acting. she played a baby on one of her mothers tv shows when she was barely a year old, though played is really an exaggeration. at six years old she was already starring in a broadway play, which led to a series of musicals such as annie, the sound of music and matilda.

the peak of her career as a child star was at 13, when she was cast in a brand new movie version of the wizard of oz, as dorothy gale. though amy remembers the movie clearly, it also stands very solidly as the end of her childhood, and the start of a much more troubled part of her life.

amy's entire family has a troubled history of mental illnesses, and by 15 she started heavily self medicating and drinking to deal with a newfound explosion in fame. she always loved dancing and the crowded, barely lit atmosphere of hot new york clubs provided her a decent escape from her own overactive mind.

her teenage years were marked by incredibly successful movies, scandalous affairs with more than one musician and parties that lasted for several days. it was also marked by the sudden and tragic death of her grandmother the day she turned 20. amy was so out of it her parents were only able to contact her two days later. that's when she decided to get her shit together.

amy took a break from acting, got a literature degree in yale, published a book about her life and then another one, not about her life. she came out of hiding a much less self destructive person, though old habits die hard.

the sex and the city reboot was a bit of a one eighty as far as projects go. after the wizard of oz amy become known for high brow indie projects, but the tv show proved to be exactly what she needed.

personality

like many born and raised rich girls, amy can have an over-inflated ego. it's not really her fault, and if you can get past that then you'll see a very sweet and caring person. she just so happens to think the world is her personal country club.

she likes to party and is not ashamed of it. though she is quite more restrained than she was as a teenager, it's not hard to find pap pics of her and her friend on a night out.

is quite intellectual and likes to discuss books and movies with anyone who has half a mind to engage with her rantings. though she tends to be a bit of a know-it-all.

a part of her is still obsessed with childlike ideals of friendship and romance, which means she is loyal to a fault. she tends to get caught up in people, even when they're clearly bad for her.

[laughingsour]

This story is a Fairy Tale...

Those are the words that open the movie Puss in Boots: the last wish. And it can’t be understated how crucial those words are for the entire film.

Because I think that part of what makes this movie work so well, other than the clever jokes and heavy themes of course, is something that Shrek managed to do before and hadn’t been truly replicated anywhere else.

You see, something that isn’t usually brought up, is that for all of it’s ruthless mockery of Disney and fairy tale tropes it popularized, Shrek still plays like a fairy tale with such earnest sincerity that it’s heart warming to think about it.

(Heavy spoilers ahead, don’t read if you haven’t seen this movie yet)

Sure, at the beginning we have the ogre tearing a page from the book to use it as toilet paper. Saying:

But in the same movie we have a truly epic encounter with a fire-breathing Dragon.

A sidekick who sticks with you through thick and thin.

The noble knight riding to save his beloved.

And of course, a romance between two people who seemingly can’t be together but manage to find a way.

It’s surprisingly easy to make fun of something and point out how bad something is. But It takes a special kind of talent to stop the mocking and do something better instead, even with the very thing you were tearing apart not just three seconds ago.

Puss in Boots: The last wish follows this trend and, while some of it’s best laughs are at the expense of Disney, it doesn’t stop it from treating this story like a fairy tale with all the excitment, wonder and heart that entails.

How so?

Well, there’s the first lines I mentioned that appear in the screen, before Puss recites the Star light-star bright poem to wish on stars, then tells the story of the Wishing star. Acompanied by some soothing guitar notes.

It’s relaxing, hopefull and yet exciting and wondrus, like a good bed time story should be.

And this narration not only provides us with the mystique of the movie, it also introduces us to our setting, the Dark Forest, what setting is there more fitting than a forest for a fairy tale?

Speaking of which, while Death is never called the Big Bad Wolf in the film (And there’s already an actual big bad wolf in Shrek), we still have a Wolf, the oldest of fairy tale villians. Played with complete and terrifiyng seriousness for once.

Then there’s the idea of wishing on stars that’s been with mankind for maybe millenia and heavily associated with Disney since 1940′s Pinocchio.

Imagine if one day you heard that a there’s a single star out there that can grant you the thing your heart most desperately desires, it sure sounds like something to get your imagination on fire, right?

And the star never loses that sweetly hopeful aura about it even when confronted with the reality of some people’s selfish wishes.

Although the quest for anything they want was capable of bringing out the worst in some people (Like cowardice, selfishness, perfectionism, etc) What most of the characters want isn’t exactly bad but taken the wrong way. Like wanting to stay alive, a place where people love you for what you are, or someone you can trust.

The star isn’t wiling to give it’s wish to someone like Jack Horner but still subtly pushes the misguided to see what they truly have and want. In the end, those who did deserve it got what would make them happy.

Another rather obvious thing Puss in boots takes from Pinocchio is the concept of a conscience. Which also goes along with the Sidekick.

It made fun of the trope with the apperance of Jimminy Cricket trying to apeal to Jack Horner’s better nature. But long before that it was played straight with Perrito acting as a conscience of sorts to both Puss and Kitty.

While the Cricket fails to bring out the best in Jack, Perrito’s loyalty and kind-hearted nature does win over Puss and Kitty and they become better people.

It has also been noted by many before me, but fairy tales without the Disney filter can be very brutal as they often served as cautionary tales. And Jack Horner certainly provides with that, giving us plenty of hilarious but still haunting ways to go every time he shows up in screen.

Cautionary tales of course can be annoyingly preachy if done poorly, but there are some times in which a good moral is not only well delivered but also enhances the plot. In this case it’s a simple one. Never take your life or what you have for granted, because you won’t like to find out what you have when it’s gone.

[ncstalgics]

(  vanessa morgan,  cis woman,  she/her  )  —  🎬  just  announced, america “amy” roberts  is  casted  as  jenna sommers  in  upcoming  the vampire diaries   reboot.  the    thirty one  year  old  is  trending  as  people  are  debating  if  the  preppy clothes, polaroid pictures scattered on the floor, a weeping angel, falling asleep in the dressing room, fading away into a blank canvas  that  they  are  known  for  is  enough  to  make  them  as  good  as  original.  a  quick  google  search  shows  that  their  fans  call  them sentimental,  but  internet  trolls  think  they’re  more  critical.  i  guess  their  newest  interview  for  variety  where  they  talk  about  how she gave up pre-law to become an actress  will  let  people  to  know  them  better.

BASICS:

Name: America Renee Roberts Age: 31 Birthday: May 15th (Taurus) Sexuality: Heterosexual Marital Status: Widowed Positive Traits: sentimental, tidy, energetic, intelligent, logical Negative Traits: critical, anxious, indecisive, awkward Hobbies: Painting with watercolor, watching movies, taking Polaroid photos, decorating

THE STORY (tw; death by car accident):

The fable of the fallen angel began in 2011. America Roberts was a determined, tenacious, and cutthroat student. She went to a very prestigious high school that was known for getting kids into Ivy League universities, and her parents wanted no less for her. They pushed her hard, often comparing her to the students who bullied her as a tactic to get her to work harder. It all came crumbling down, piece by piece, when she fell in love with movies. Amy loved movies. She would watch all the director commentaries, the deleted scenes, the “making of” documentaries. She wanted to be part of that magic. She snuck in a few acting classes at USC, but when her parents found out, they disowned her, which forced her to drop out of school. Luckily, a friend in her class took her in as her own sister. Amy was cast as Spencer Hastings in "Pretty Little Liars" at 20 years old, and since then, it's was almost as though life was getting easier and easier. She filmed "Les Miserables" between season, which got big Oscar recognition, and gave a promising career and very strong start. She even met her husband in the industry, too. Vincent was as a script writer, one of the best in the business. He was strong and passionate and thoughtful. He didn’t know how to laugh, but his stoic expression is what made her giggle. By 2017, they were married at age 25. Life could not get any sweeter... and it wouldn't. He wanted so badly to be with Amy that he left early to finish his script at home, where his muse was. He rushed home and a pick up truck driver made an arrogant choice that cost Vincent his life. The tabloids only read that “Husband of Pretty Little Liars Star Tragically Killed” and it angered Amy, seeing how he was reduced to a single headline and nothing more. For two years, America Roberts hasn’t been seen by the limelight. She dropped out of all of her projects, lived off of Vincent’s family’s inheritance, and stayed home most of the time. She grieved. She got a part time job doing something mundane and useless from home. Her absence was noted as one of the most tragic falls from fame. It took a lot of convincing, but they promised to start small, something that would only last a couple seasons. Aunt Jenna from The Vampire Diaries reboot was practically written for her as a way to reintroduce the great Amy Roberts back into the light. Maybe her star could learn to shine again. Maybe she could fall in love all over again with the art of storytelling. Or maybe it would bring back all of those happy, yet painful, memories.

TLDR; Amy was supposed to be a pre-law student, but when her parents found out she wanted to act, they disowned her and she was forced to drop out. She got taken in by her friend's family, who got her the audition for Pretty Little Liars and kicked off her career. She even married a script writer at 25, but he tragically passed away 2 years ago. She pretty much pulled a Taylor Swift and disappeared for those years. Now she's back to play Jenna Sommers in The Vampire Diaries.

CHARACTER COMPARISONS: Amy Santiago (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), Isabela Madrigal (Encanto), Jane Porter (Tarzan), Elsa (Frozen), Wanda (The Fairly OddParents), Katara (Avatar: The Last Airbender), Kate Sharma (Bridgerton)

WC's:

I'm Coming Out by Diana Ross: I'm mostly imagining any friends she had in the industry before Vincent passed away. They're not that close to her, so they sent her some sweet text messages every now and then, but now that she's back, Amy's really looking forward to reuniting with these people. Ain't No Mountain High Enough by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell. Her best friends, the ones who took her in when her parents disowned her, the ones who were right there beside her during her grief. She's lost A LOT and they've always been right there through the absolute worst of it to keep pulling her out of it. Ain't No Sunshine by Bill Withers. Maybe someone who had a thing for her before she got married? Would have been sometime around 2015. Or maybe an ex from back then? Lil Boo Thang by Paul Russell. This is just an idea, we can kinda build based on chemistry and what happens. But I'm thinking now that she's kinda ready to move on (one step at a time, of course), I would love for someone goofy and funny to kinda surprise her out of nowhere. The one thing about Vincent was that he didn't really have a sense of humor, so giving her something new to look forward to would be sweet.

I'm hoping to go more off of chemistry, so these are just ideas we can kind of build off of. Don't feel like you have to stick to any of these, but if you get inspo, I would love to hear what you're thinking!!

[greensparty]

Movie Review: The Stones and Brian Jones

Beyond the sub genre of music documentaries, there's almost a mini sub genre of docs about The Rolling Stones. Some of the best include Gimme Shelter, Cocksucker Blues (I got my bootleg DVD of this unreleased doc), Shine a Light and Crossfire Hurricane. But within that mini sub genre, there's been a trend in recent years of docs about members of The Stones: 2001′s Being Mick about Mick Jagger, 2015′s Keith Richards: Under the Influence, 2019's The Quiet One about Bill Wyman, and 2020's Ronnie Wood: Somebody Up There Likes Me about Ronnie Wood. Now there's a new doc about Stones guitarist Brian Jones, who co founded the band in 1962 and died in 1969 at age 27. Nick Broomfield's The Stones and Brian Jones opens this week.

movie poster

Director Nick Broomfield has always been a fascinating figure in the world of documentary, in that he doesn’t play by the rules. He has made docs about musicians and public figures, but also socio-political docs as well. While some have accused him of being sensationalist in some of his films, the bigger issue some have is that he inserts himself into his docs and his making the film is as much a part of the film as the subject. Purists believe that documentarians should not get involved with their subject. I say break the rules if you’re going to do it in an interesting way! His 1998 doc Kurt and Courtney about Kurt Cobain was something I had mixed feelings about. While he brought up some interesting conspiracies about Cobain’s death, it also felt like Broomfield had an axe to grind with Courtney Love. But I digress. His 2019 doc Marianne & Leonard: Words of Love, about Leonard Cohen's muse Marrianne Ihlen and their relationship, was very impressive. Now he is turning his attention to Brian Jones, who he had some interactions with as a teen.

Early Stones circa early 60s: Wyman, Richards, Jagger, Watts and Jones

Guitarist Brian Jones co-founded The Rolling Stones, the British blues band influenced by American blues, who went on to become the biggest band on the planet for over 60 years now. He had quite a run with the band through the 60s before Mick Jagger and Keith Richards kicked him out of the band he founded due to his erratic behavior in 1969 and months later he died at age 27 (a member of the 27 Club). While Mick and Keith get the majority of recognition for The Stones, this doc makes the case for Jones' significant contribution to their sound. Through this blog I've been lucky enough to review a lot of Stones albums, including a number of them featuring Jones, i.e. Their Satanic Majesties Request 50th anniversary edition, Let It Bleed 50th anniversary Deluxe Edition, Rock and Roll Circus 2019 reissue, and On Air. The doc features interviews with a number of Jones' ex-girlfriends, friends and peers. What truly made this more than just another Stones doc was Bill Wyman. As we saw in the Wyman doc The Quiet One, he has been a lifelong archivist and photographer documenting his own life. In this doc, in addition to being a featured interviewee, he served as a historical consultant and the archival footage is spectacular! Some of it I was amazed how good it looked. At times it borders on For Fans Only, but this is an important archive of a notable musician whose work is still being heard today! Now, let's get some documentaries on Charlie Watts and Mick Taylor STAT!

For info on The Stones and Brian Jones

3.5 out of 5 stars

[gleefulhq]

character name. sugar motta

age & date of birth. 29, may 2

gender identity & pronouns. cis woman, she/her

occupation. social media influencer

personality traits. generous, optimistic, ambitious, abrasive, impatient, judgmental 

here’s what you missed on…

following graduation, sugar motta…didn’t do a whole lot. she didn’t need to. with her dad’s money filling her pockets, she didn’t need to try and find herself a job and with her socialite mother’s fun parties every second weekend, she didn’t see a need in going to college either. she could do all the cool socializing and friend-making parts of college without having to do all the boring study parts! so, sugar spent a couple of years twiddling her thumbs during the day and then going partygirl-wild at night. sugar finally found her calling when the headquarters for motta’s pianos was relocated to new york. when she was in high school, sugar had dreamed of being a performer. of being picked from a crowd or from the street by some casting directors like in the movies. but after meeting and getting to know real broadway stars? count her out! it seemed miserable! all that work and torture? all that auditioning and all those no’s? yeah, it just wasn’t for sugar. 

sugar began making tiktoks about her life as something to fill the time. get ready with me’s, videos in her car talking about her day, rant sessions about living in the world as an autistic woman (because she now had a fancy paper from a doctor and an accompanying diagnosis! no more self-diagnosed anything, haters!), make-up tutorials. she didn’t even notice they were blowing up at first, she was just having fun making them. before she knew it, xoxosugar was getting paid sponsorships and doing collabs. sugar was born to be a shining star, so it was only natural. sugar’s fans, the sugar babies, are some of the most ruthless fans online. they’ll fight to the death for sugar, and she loves them equally in return.

when sugar got the invite to return to mckinley, she obviously said ‘yes’. she had a blast back in high school! even if some people were super jealous and tried to act like she couldn’t sing. she was more than happy to prove those people wrong, and get to make a whole bunch of trending videos with her old classmates. some of them were famous now too, so that would be great for engagement! plus getting to show off her performance skills to her followers and fans would be super awesome! her covers always got heaps of views and comments!...not so many likes, but that was all because of jealousy, obviously.

the role of sugar motta is portrayed by jade thirlwall, and will be written by june.