#looks like bad ghost movie from the 70s

[motherfuckingcat]

[70sscifiart]

The Last-Minute Sci-Fi Gift Guide

There's only one thing worse than procrastinating on getting gifts for your loved ones, and that's procrastinating on putting together a guide to help out everyone else with all those gifts. It's Dec 12, so you can decide for yourself which I'm doing.

Art book: Worlds Beyond Time, $32

If you follow this blog, you might have heard of this one. I published Worlds Beyond Time: Sci-Fi Art of the 1970s this year after five years of work on it, and I think it's really good! 400+ images, 100+ artists, with lots of fun art history and jokes.

Also, it's just $20 right now if you order through my publisher and use the code SKIPTHELINE! Cheapest it's ever been!

Card game: Coup, $14

In this "social deduction" card game, you play as a government official in a future dystopia who needs to backstab their way into power. Everyone starts out with just two cards in this bluffing game, so the tide can turn pretty quick when players start assassinating each other's cards. The fast pace makes it a good gift for someone who loves spies but thinks they don't like card games.

Game to play over Zoom: Bad Spaceships, $3

If a bluffing game stresses you out, try Bad Spaceships: It's a collaborative world-building game in which you roll dice to see what area of your spaceship connects to another, forcing you to spitball exactly why this is the case. As the game puts it, you might fix the hull by playing Tetris, or charge your weapons in the swimming pool. You're basically getting weird prompts to tell a story that can evolve over the course of the game.

It's such an indie game that it comes as PDFs you download from itch.io, but you can play it just as well over Zoom, if you're looking for an excuse to catch up with your old digital nomad college friend.

Movies/TV: Streaming service gift card

Gift cards are all well and good, but you can personalize them by recommending a few of your favorite shows as well. I suggest:

Hulu: Cowboy Bebop

Apple TV+: Severance

Criterion Channel: Ravenous, Paprika, Strange Days

Paramount+: Yellowjackets

Amazon Prime: The Devil's Hour

But to be honest, this entry is just an excuse to talk about the new Max show Scavenger’s Reign. Inspired by the work of French artist Moebius and with a clear debt to famed 70s animated film Fantastic Planet, this stylish sci-fi show features a bunch of humans trying to survive on a beautiful but hostile alien world. Perfect for lovers of fictional nature.

Vintage sci-fi

This Etsy shop has some good stuff, like the 1971 Frank Kelly Freas NASA poster above, a bit of history that I even mentioned on page 167 of my art book.

Penguin science fiction postcards, $28

These postcards have a ton of very cool sci-fi covers I've blogged in the past – great value if you want a lot of art for a low cost.

Meteorite pendant necklace, $34

I think we all know what kind of rock your loved ones need around their neck: A chunk of meteorite straight out of the 1576 Argentinan meteorite fall.

Book recs

For astronauts: Packing for Mars by Mary Roach, The New Guys: The Historic Class of Astronauts That Broke Barriers and Changed the Face of Space Travel by Meredith Bagby

For comedians: Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir, Even Greater Mistakes: Short Stories by Charlie Jane Anders 

For sleuths: Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty, Drunk on All Your Strange New Words by Eddie Robson

For crafters: Knits of Tomorrow: Toys and Accessories for your Retro-Future Needs

For the resistance fighters: The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley, An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

For slasher movie fans: Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare

Syd Mead "Biomorph Vehicle" button down shirt, $49

T-shirts aren't classy enough for the world's coolest visual futurist, Syd Mead. I haven't actually bought this incredibly odd shirt, but I really need to.

Art prints (and more) from 70s sci-fi artists

Artist shops can be surprisingly hard to track down on the internet, but here's a short list of ones I've come across. All of these artists are featured in my book (except one), so you can read up on them before you commit to a print.

Michael Whelan 

John Harris

Syd Mead

Don Maitz

David B Mattingly

Peter Andrew Jones - Jones was one of just a few artists who declined to be included in my art book, but he has a distinct, colorful style that I would have loved to have featured!

Finally, here's one extra bonus, just for everyone who made it to the end of this article: The UK-based educational charity Centre for Computing History sells three big officially licensed John Harris posters featuring these three artworks, famous for their use as covers for Sinclair programming manuals.

It's a great deal that I've never seen mentioned anywhere, and Harris' work has a timeless quality that makes it great for an unassuming wall decoration. If you're outside the UK, the shipping costs will be a pain, but there's no better deal for a classic sci-fi poster.

[trollprincess]

Okay, so. “The Apprentice.”

Before we go in, if you’re going to watch this film, keep in mind trigger warnings for marital rape and racial, religious, and homophobic slurs.

Now, I would cut for spoilers, but I feel like at this point we should all know enough about Trump’s past that none of this is a spoiler. It’s a bit like saying “The boat sinks” about “Titanic.” Well, yes, it does, but the devil’s in the details.

Anyway. The movie focuses on a younger Trump’s mentorship under attorney, known scumbag, and gay-but-let’s-pretend-he’s-not Roy Cohn. (Let’s put it this way. If he’d died now instead of ‘86, the “I didn’t know the leopards would eat my face” song would be playing over celebratory TikToks.) Cohn proceeds to mold him into the douchebag we all know and loathe, and ends up getting bitten in the process. (Just as a note, this prompted me to get a Cohn biography so I could beef up on just how awful he was in even more detail than I already know.)

The film itself is very well-made. There are choices in terms of camera usage (making it look more 70s and 80s), storytelling, foreshadowing current events, etc., that are very well done. At the beginning, you almost have a smidge of sympathy for Trump, although it’s a HUGE almost. (It’s clear he was raised by a dick and wants to be like said dick, when maybe he would have been better off if his father croaked when he was little and his mother had all the control over his raising and that of his siblings.) Like, there is a *hint* that he might be redeemable if the right person got their hands on him. Instead, it’s Roy Cohn, and we have the six-foot pile of chinchilla diarrhea we have now.

So here’s the thing. I think anybody who heard Jeremy Strong was cast as Cohn thought, “Now that’s perfect casting.” And it is! He looks like him, he sounds like him, he plays him as manipulative sewer sludge. I will be incredibly surprised if he doesn’t get an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor. Every time he’s on screen, you’re drawn to him. He’s a monster, but a monster you want to keep your eyes on, either to see what he pulls next or to see if he finally gets what he fucking deserves.

But you know what was a delightful surprise? Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump. No, I’m not kidding. I mean, no, Trump is not delightful, but I know a lot of people were like, “Aw, SebStan as Trump? Come on.” The thing is, he’s *good*. Obviously, Trump in 2024 is an absolute cartoon of a human being, but all those tics and vocabulary choices and style choices came over time. The Trump at the beginning of the movie is a sliver of what he is now. You can see him if you squint, but you’re still working on SebStan in a bad wig. By the end of the movie, though? He IS Trump in the late 80s. He moves like him, speaks like him, brags like him. It’s as if the current Trump is him turned up to eleven, and SebStan at the end of the movie is him at about five tilting toward six. The last scene is him speaking to the ghost writer of “Art of the Deal,” and you can see Marla Maples-era Trump *right there.* It’s not a comic impression, it is a very real and respectable performance.

I feel like I should also mention that Maria Bakalova portrays an empathetic Ivana, especially given the mentioned rape scene and the moment when she shows Cohn something approaching real sympathy. I think she may be overshadowed in terms of awards by Strong and Stan, but she does a commendable turn as the first of the three wives Trump bulldozes through as his desires change with the wind.

It’s entirely unsurprising that the Trump campaign wouldn’t want this movie released. I mean, for starters, the marital rape scene is horrific and upsetting. But I think they should also be worried about just how much Trump seems to lift wholesale from other people without attribution - Cohn’s rules for life, Reagan’s campaign slogan - not to mention Cohn repeatedly getting him out of shit that should make any average American enraged. Why in God’s name would you support someone who got out of federal discrimination charges and $160 million in taxes for building a hotel using Cohn’s expertise with blackmail?

Of course, that requires the entire movie to be true, and … well, even the most historically accurate movies have their flaws. The problem here is that the people who worship him aren’t going to believe anything bad about him, and the people who wouldn’t piss on him if he was on fire are bound to feel that even if something isn’t true, it *sounds* like something he’d do. So fact-checking “The Apprentice” is like fact-checking Cocomelon. Your toddler doesn’t care as long as you give them the damn iPad. But at least with Cocomelon, if you just give them the iPad and walk away with your hands up in defeat, your toddler is probably not going to threaten to set the house on fire because Cocomelon told them to.

So yes, anyway, an excellent movie. I hope someone else is president when it gets nominated for Academy Awards because Jesus fucking Christ.

[thenerdofthegroup]

So, about the finale, as a lesbian I feel I can speak about this. And I think it’s slightly different to how others view it

Yes you can be disappointed. But the kiss WAS NOT the kiss of death. Agatha absorbed her magic. She didn't need to kiss her. She didn't need to caress her face. That is the last thing Agatha ever wanted. She wanted to kiss Rio that passionately, she wanted to feel her face, she wanted to be with Rio in her last moments, only her. That is beautiful. Yes she dies (but I don't mind her dying IF IF IF THEY SHOWED HER TRULY LOVING AND LIVING IN HER PAST but oh well) but it wasn’t the kiss. The kiss was her trying to truly live before she goes. Finally feeling love that she hasn’t felt in centuries.

Actually if I were to pin it, and it is using something someone else said, the kiss was forgiveness. Him bringing up nick was bad but she didn’t sacrifice herself for him. She did it as an apology. Rio did do so much for her BUT a mother will never have enough time with her child. And Agatha is an angry person. She will never see what Rio did as a gift in her rage but IN THAT MOMENT she realised. She realised it was a gift that she hasn’t paid back. This is her paying it back. And she knew she could be a ghost so… it was a calculated risk! She apologised and through it she can still be around

But…

Now, if I could add two thing that wouldnave made all of this fine and not fall flat (and learnt they did actually do the first which makes it worse):

Agatha FULL history. From birth to the present. That episode should have had 30 minutes more AT LEAST of just her backstory

They should have had a talk in the after life. Agatha and Rio. A proper conversation. No lying. No false. Because Agatha was still being fake for a lot of it. I fully believe they were not really fighting they were pissing about. Because two of the most powerful magic users just throwing energy blasts?!?!?! No. One of the only truly real things we got in 8 and 9 from Agatha is her kissing Rio. That was pure love. For Rio and for nick. We needed a continuation. So the death didn't feel like the end. Yes Agatha is a ghost but it was the stopping point for her and Rio. What should have happened is a conversation in the afterlife where Agatha calls for her and Rio appears and they just talk. They talk about why Agatha has been so cruel, why Rio has been doing everything. Just a talk. That's all we needed.

What Kathryn and Aubrey did give us in the time they allowed was beautiful. And learning that they apparently removed so much of Agatha's backstory so Billy could have the last third hurt. It really did. (Toast of twitter said that the entire finale was her backstory but they changed it).

So yes, the update is I'm still curious about the stuff we didn't get and it ending with billy trying to fucking banish her, give the lamest dialogue ever and suddenly Agatha wants to help find Toby. I still fully believe she is only tagging along to find Wanda but yeah. Agatha’s story in the end was thrown to shit for billy but fine. What SHPULD HAVE BEEN is we got more. And I'm positive we did get more before Disney got it’s guillotine to it and the very few Rio seems we would have gotten because Aubrey was filming a whole different movie she clearly wanted to do more than this, they cut. Because there was meant to be more. I am positive of it

But safe to say, I love ghost Agatha. And the grey hair is personal to me. Do I wish it will become a curly bob and she looked like, to me, her closest resembling comic panel (below, like tell me that isn't Kathryn in her 70’s) yeah. But that's nitpicking because her hair is long and luscious. The nits I will be picking is above. Because the above would have made everything fine.

[luminianna]

Hey all! Welcome to my first fic! I won’t be writing constantly but I may have one pop up here and there. Feedback is always appreciated ❤️

Hugh Jackman x fem!reader (using Y/N)

Warnings: a bit of swearing, keeping it fluffy mostly

Summary: Hugh tells you he likes you! (That’s about it)

Hugh stared at me in awe. Yeah, I was 17 years younger than him, but it didn’t seem that way to him.

She’s such an old soul, he thought, as I was dancing around with my eyes closed, singing to ‘Runaround Sue’ by Dion.

I was so wrapped up in the song, I didn’t notice Hugh starting at me hypnotically until I came face to face with him.

“Shit, Hugh! You scared the living hell out of me!” I screamed, giving him a light shove in his chest.

“Y/N, you never cease to amaze me”, he said, his voice filled with joy and disbelief, while his hands slowly moved towards my waist.

Just as he did that, ‘Unchained Melody’ by the Righteous Brothers started playing. He looked down at me, with a smirk on his face.

“Don’t tell me you know this song, too?” He asked, his voice soft as he stared into my eyes.

“Of course! I think we’ve all seen the movie ‘Ghost’. It was such a 90’s classic” I replied, staring back into his eyes with a smirk of my own.

His grip on my waist tightened, and before I could react, he pulled me closer. I could practically feel the heat radiating off of him. Once I was pressed against his chest, I felt his feet start to move and his hips start to sway. He moved his hands from my waist to my own hands, placing them on his broad shoulders. He replaced his hands around my lower back and pulled me closer, never breaking eye contact with me.

Hugh and I had always had this sexual tension between us, like an unspoken attraction. We were friends, but it never stopped us from the intense flirting and sharing dirty jokes. He would call me ‘old lady’ whenever I sang along to an old 60’s or 70’s song, or when I would get excited about watching an old movie at the local small theatres. I always told him I felt like I was born in the wrong time, always wishing I had gotten to experience the older decades. I guessed it made him feel like he wasn’t so old around me, that there wasn’t a slight age gap. To me, 17 years didn’t feel so bad. I have my fair share of grey hairs and wrinkles right now.

Hugh held me close as we continued to sway to the song, the world fading away into the background. He then closed his eyes and placed his forehead on mine.

“Look,” he spoke, almost above a whisper, “I’m just going to come out and say this… I’ve grown quite fond of you the past few months. I’ve never met anyone quite like you”.

I kept my gaze on him while he was telling me this. A small gasp escaped my lips, which caused him to open his eyes to observe my reaction. Now, his eyes were filled with a mix of relief, adoration and a little bit of hesitation, as he wasn’t able to read my face in the moment.

I must have been staring at him hard for some time without realizing it, as he started to have a panicked look on his face. He suddenly stopped his feet and scanned my face.

“Y/N, please say something” he pleaded. “I’m sorry, but I needed to tell you. Look, I completely understand if you don’t feel the same, but I…..”

And like a light bulb going off, my brain finally registered what he just said. He likes you! Do something, you idiot, before he regrets it!! You can’t let Hugh Jackman get away!!

My eyes widened, and before I could think of anything and before he could finish what he was saying, I pulled him closer to me with my hands that were still on his shoulders and crashed my lips to his. A small moan escaped his throat at the contact. I moved my hands from his shoulders to his face, running my fingers at his grey scruff on his cheeks. His hands that were on my lower back pulled my body incredibly close to his, I could feel his tight chest against mine.

I pulled away and looked into his eyes breathlessly. His eyes opened, staring back into mine. A small huff escaped his lips, then turned into a half smile while his eyes were filled with adoration and lust.

“I… guess we are on the same page. I … might have always had a thing for you, Jackman”, I finally said, still trying to catch my breath and wrap my head around what happened.

The song in the background was coming to an end. Hugh was still tightly gripping onto me, just as my hands were still placed on his cheeks. He nuzzled my nose briefly before placing a soft kiss on my lips.

“So I guess there’s only one thing left to do”, he whispered as he pulled away but still hovered over my mouth.

I raised an eyebrow, not knowing where he was going with this, considering our sometimes perverted sense of humour around each other. He noticed the expression on my face and couldn’t help but giggle

“I was gonna say let’s go get supper”, he said, finding my reaction amusing. “ Get your head out of the gutter, darling. Besides, a proper first date, then dessert”, he smugly added with a wink.

[octuscle]

New start, new chance

Actually, Benjamin didn't really know why he went to the fun fair in the first place. Roller coasters used to be fun for him. But today, all his bones would certainly ache. Chain carousel? He was definitely too fat for that. Cotton candy? Beer? Bratwurst? He didn't like any of them. And the audience here was too young, too loud, too chavvy… So: What was he doing here? Benjamin shrugged his shoulders inwardly. Maybe he was longing for a time long gone, when he himself would have liked to be young, loud and chavvy? In fact, he never was. He had always been a well-adjusted child with few friends. And chess or astronomy hadn't exactly been loud hobbies for the cool kids. Maybe as he drove past the fun fair in the cab, he had remembered BIG. One of the first movies with Tom Hanks. My God, he had seen it at the movies. How many years ago was that? Fifty? He had no idea. But the overnight transformation of the hero had been the first transformation where something like a sexual fantasy had shown up in him. He really hadn't been to a fun fair in decades. But maybe here he found the miracle to transform his old, sick and completely out of shape body.

Of course, there was no ancient machine here that looked like the one in the movie. There was no enchanted tent with a creepy fortune teller either. There were bumper cars. There was a ghost train. And at least there was a lottery booth. Well, it couldn't hurt to buy a lottery ticket. And sure enough, it wasn't a loser. It was a small, cheap-looking picture frame. But in it, after all, was a photo of a young man who looked young, loud, and chavvy. Oh well. Benjamin put the frame in his coat pocket; he could always throw it away when he got home.

Benjamin made his way home. A cab wasn't coming by. By the time he had climbed the stairs to his spacious old apartment on the third floor, he was actually a little out of breath. Taking off his coat, he noticed the picture frame. For one night, that could sit quietly on the nightstand. By the time Benjamin had eaten dinner and gotten ready for the night, he had long since forgotten his visit to the fun fair and the photo.

This can't be true! This is a cursed dream! There is no magic! Benjamin walked through his apartment the next morning, completely distraught. It had been like in a bad movie. Benjamin had gone to the bathroom to pee. As was his habit, he sat down to do it. At his age, he could no longer aim well. Suddenly he noticed that everything was different. He had a tight morning wood. His morning wood had an impressive Prince Albert piercing. He held the morning glory in his hands, skin colorfully inked but otherwise immaculately smooth. Curses. He turned around in the guest bathroom and looked in the mirror. His reflection was the young man from the picture on the nightstand. So not one-to-one. He would say his reflection looked like he would have looked when he was maybe 22. If he had spent a lot of time at the tattoo artist. And if he had played a lot of sports. The picture, where was the picture? He had put it on the nightstand. But it wasn't there anymore. There was a picture of him as he had looked last night. An old, sick man in his late 70's. The photo was carefully staged, he looked good. And the frame was sterling silver, like most of the frames of his pictures of friends and relatives he had long since buried. And this picture frame also had black crape stretched across one corner. Curses! Was he dead? Was this heaven?

The apartment looked the same as it had last night. His cleaning lady had just been there, everything was neat and clean. He had a nice apartment where he had accumulated many nice things in his life. The only thing that didn't fit in the apartment was a naked, athletic young man in his early 20s who had tattoos all over his body and, in addition to the PA, had a pretty fat rod stuck in his nipples. Fuck!"Fuck" obviously suited him better than "Curses." Fuck! Actually, he would put on some tea at this hour, now he needed something stronger. Somehow he felt like a whiskey, but he didn't have anything like that in the house. A cognac. Oh well, better than nothing. And maybe some music would calm him down. There was still a recording of "Four Last Songs" by Strauss in the CD player from last night. That would help. My God, was the music loud, had he really been so deaf. Startled, he turned down the volume.

The cognac helped, the music helped. And then the doorbell rang. Fuck, he was still naked. And his clothes wouldn't fit him anymore. There was a heavy knock on the door. What was he going to do now. He still had an old pair of track pants in his closet. He had gone to physiotherapy in them God knows how long ago, they should fit to some extent. The knocking continued. "Hello!" he heard his neighbor call from downstairs. "Is anyone there?". Benjamin pulled up his pants, pulled the drawstring as tight as it would go, took a deep breath, and opened the door. Mrs. Gruber flinched in fright as she looked up into his face. But composed herself surprisingly quickly. And smiled at him, to his horror. "You must be Ben," she said, extending her hand to him. "Your great uncle has told me so much about you. And he wasn't lying, the family resemblance is amazing. Allow me to offer my sincere condolences." Benjamin didn't understand anything. But he pulled himself together and invited Mrs. Gruber inside. He apologized for being upset, but lied that his suitcase had been lost and that he had to see if anything fit him here. Mrs. Gruber waved him off. Apparently, the older lady liked what she saw a little, too. "It's all good," she replied. "I'm just glad to meet you. I don't want to be a bother at all, either. If there's anything you need, I live right below you." She squeezed his hand and left the apartment. Benjamin realized that she would have to visit the neighbors one by one and tell them about the news. Condolences? Great uncle? What the hell? He didn't have a brother who could have a son to carry on his name. And he wasn't dead. Or was he? The picture on the bedside table said so, after all. Benjamin went into the study. There on the desk were a number of unopened letters that had not been there yesterday. Letters from his life insurance companies. Letters from his bank. A letter from the district court. He took the letter opener and opened it. It was the probate of his will. Obviously, he had died yesterday. And today was already a few weeks later. And he was Ben now. And he was his own universal heir. And after opening the letters from the bank and the life insurance companies, he was a very wealthy universal heir. But who the hell was he himself? There were no clothes that matched him, there was nothing to indicate anyone but his old self in that apartment. On the dresser next to the door, keys and wallet lay in the bowl. Just as they always were. With trembling fingers, he took the wallet and pulled out his ID card. He was Ben Horner. In two months he would turn 23. He had just re-registered and now lived in this apartment. There was no driver's license. Well, he knew from the grandchildren of acquaintances that this was no longer common. But there was a debit card from his bank with his new name. Ben, not Benjamin. And on the cent as much cash as he had had in his wallet yesterday, about 500 euros.

Ben sat on the sofa and sipped the cognac. Fuck, that was a dream! But God knows, not a nightmare. This was better than being in BIG. While he was thinking, he started to play with his cock, lost in thought. And with his nipple. Awesome how the piercings felt. And insane how his cock reacted. When had he ever had such a hard-on? Never, not so big, so plump. Fuck! Ben cummed. Shit, don't fuck up the pads, he thought. So he massaged his own cum into the skin on his chest. Still, he needed something to wear now.

With the tightest fine-rib shirt he could find, sweatpants and his old adilettes Ben left the house. Because the noble Montblanc wallet didn't match this outfit, he had simply put the cash and the EC card into his pants pocket. At the door, he had to think for a moment. Where was he supposed to buy something now. He remembered that there was a second-hand store around the corner, where young people like him often went. That's where he headed. A good choice! Behind the cash register stood a young man who was hardly less inked than himself. And who was similarly well-built, as he himself. Fuck! Couldn't he get his dick under control at all? Ben had come up with a little story. Visiting the city, suitcase lost by the airline, now he needed something for the next few days. For sports, for going out. And for driving lessons on the motorcycle. That had always been his dream. He wanted to put it into practice immediately. The young man had asked about his budget. Without thinking, Ben said € 2,000.00. The daily limit of the EC card did not allow more, if he remembered correctly. The young man said with a grin that one could do quite a bit for that, assessed Ben's size, sent him into a changing room and began to pick out things. Two hours and € 2,000.00 later, Ben stepped out into the fresh air again. Biker boots, torn jeans, a tank top that showed plenty of skin and over it an old black motorcycle jacket that smelled of leather and sweat. Trying it on had given him a boner again. But this time the attendant had come to his rescue. For the first time in his life, Ben cum in another guy's face.

The rest of his purchases were stowed in an old duffel bag from the National People's Army of the GDR. Money and his EC card, which was non-functional for today, were in a wallet attached to his studded belt by a heavy chain. Now he desperately needed a cell phone. George, the horny guy from the store, wanted his number, but he had never had a cell phone. So he had to give him his landline number. And promise to send him a message as soon as he had a phone.

The next few days flew by. He had given the contents of his closet to the old clothes collection without thinking about it. Everything, without exception. And he had made every effort to fill the closets again. He loved his new body. And wanted to show it off. He had quickly found his new style. Slim jeans or leather pants, tank tops and T-shirts preferably in black or white, leather or bomber jackets. Tracksuits, sleek and shiny. George sold some old pieces of army surplus from Eastern Europe that were a great fit for Ben. He quickly learned to use his new iPhone. He had a harder time with the driving lessons at the beginning. But he mastered that, too. And after just one month, he was proudly driving a used BMW in front of his new favorite café. Twice a week, he took it to the motorcycle workshop to learn more about the engine. He wanted to learn everything. He had learned a lot about how to use his boner from George. He had quickly shed his shyness about being a virgin.

With friends visiting him more and more often, even at home, he had at some point made the decision to part with his old household goods as well. What he had not sold after two months at antique dealers he knew from his last life, at flea markets or on ebay, he finally had picked up. To celebrate the empty apartment, he had invited a few friends. At least since that time he was no longer greeted so friendly in the staircase. For a while, he had considered opening a shared apartment in his old apartment, but the stuffiness of his neighbors pissed him off. So he had hired a real estate agent to sell the apartment and took a room in a student flat-share. Here, no one minded if a party escalated. And the parties escalated frequently.

A year after his great uncle died, Ben stood on the small terrace outside his room and lit a cigarette. God, he loves to smoke. Too bad he had hardly known Benjamin. At least he was only a vague memory now. He owed everything to his great uncle. Tonight, some of his buddies were going to the fun fair with him. Boozing and bawling, drunkenly riding bumper cars. He hadn't done that in a long time. And should he see a sign that a young man was wanted as a temp, he had made up his mind to apply. A year or two would certainly be fun. For some reason, he loves the fun fair.

@fullleatherman, great picture, awesome inspiration!

[a-new-vers]

~H5~

Woke up today to find out Halsey has set the stage for a new hunt for fans to go on. In true Halsey fashion, it's cryptic with a distinct visual style we can probably expect from this era.

So let's explore, shall we?

A Lil' Timeline:

Halsey played the 27th at Lollapalooza India. During their set before they began to play Gasoline, a visual on screen displayed a URL: FOR MY LAST TRICK (click to go to the site).

Click HERE to see a video of when it was displayed at the concert.

The Website:

The theme behind the website seems to be opening a miscellaneous stick/patch packet.

The first thing is prompting the user to "pull to open" as in a tag to swipe off. You can see the collection of patches behind the plastic wrap. Once you finally open the package, all the patches will disperse.

This is where the Internet sleuthing begins, people. 24 unique patches (technically 25, but I'll get into that later) with different meanings. Let's get into it.

1 - SNA Flight Tag

So really obscure, but googling Air California flight tag brought me to this used bookstore site. In any case, the thing to notice is the date it is attributed with, 1968.

2 - Vintage Blotter Art

According to this blog (which is the only place I could find the image), this is a vintage blotter from 1994. Blotter art is an "...art form printed on perforated sheets of absorbent blotting paper infused with liquid LSD."

3 - Blythe Dolls

I believe this doll is a Blythe doll. Image reverse search does not come up with an exact result, but from the details you can make out, the dolls eyes are quite clear. Which looks a lot like Blythe Dolls, a doll brand that came out in 1972. Their gimmick was that the eyes could move left to right.

4 - Witch Halsey

Unsure, but it would seem it's Halsey as a witch. The aesthetics are similar to IICHLIWP (H4).

If the main theme here is the 70s, there’s the movie Season of the Witch that came out in 1973, February 14th. It’s apparently commentary on traditional American suburban lifestyle through the perspective of a housewife who does not like her place in life. She meets a witch and progressively gets into the occult.

5, 18, 19, 23 - Outside of USA

5: It's hard to tell what most of the words are, but the text "Pagado" (Spanish for "paid") is on the piece of paper. . The particular location might be Palenque, a Mexican city. Relevant date: June 25th, 1977.

18: Belleville. Based on a real winter carnival programme. Belleville is a a city in Ontario, Canada. Relevant date: 1971.

19: “We smokers all want to be non-smokers too” or something along these lines. I'm trusting online translation for this (German to English). Unable to find when this was made.

23: “For Us.” French. The image search doesn’t result anything. Unable to find when this was made.

6 - Peril is My Pay

Based off of a detective book involving traveling. The font is the exact same as one of the book covers. It was published in 1960s.

7 - I have something to tell you

A sign up. I assume it has to do with being updated on any album news.

Looking through the inspect tab you can see the information is being sent to “Sony Fan Music.” It does take note of which country you are in and your address.

8 , 9 - Round visuals

I think these are visuals to give grasp to the 70s theme. It’s reminiscent of 60’s/70’s clothing/aesthetic.

10 - Michigan license plate.

1971 comes up in the plate. Michigan has come up in HFK (H2), on Bad At Love. I doubt this has anything to do about the “boy back in Michigan” but perhaps traveling back throughout her albums.

11 - Ghost

Jan 27th 2014, interesting date to put since this is the date this is all happening, just a decade after.

I've seen some people say this is meant to be the anniversary for Ghost, the song. Although it came out in 2014, its release date was in July, and it originally came out on sound cloud on February 3rd. So unsure why Jan 27th is there. EDIT: I have been made aware that Jan 27th 2014 was its international release date! I am but a fool.

The text can be in response to the lyric “Where did you go?” and the themes on the song of someone leaving. IDK, this could also be a meta thing. If a theme here is traveling and visiting locations/people, then perhaps one thing you won't find if the ghost?

Additionally, this follows the theme of revisiting her previous albums.

12 - Cannel 17

WPHL-TV is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, serving as the local outlet for The CW Television Network. The logos here are form the 60’s/70’s.

13 - Master Mystifier

Or, alternatively, Harry Houdini. The date I do not believe has any relevance here but perhaps the idea of magic.

I came about the google search “Houdini’s Last Trick” where his last trick is widely asked about. It would seem to be an inspiration for the name of the website. So potentially Halsey will lean into magic, tricks, and deception.

14 - Calling Cards

Text on card: “Compliments - May I See (C) You (U) Home? If not, please return this card.”

“May I See You Home” seemed to be a common phrase for calling cards. They were handed out to ask people out. Again, the font and images are similar to H4 aesthetic. These were used in the 18th and 19th century.

15 - B&W Hair

Oh, I actually no idea.

16 - Candy

The closest I could get to finding what this meant is when this font was used for the book Candy by Maxwell Kenton, published in 1958.

As wiki describes the plot "Candy Christian, aged eighteen, is an extremely pretty and desirable but naïve young woman, who finds herself in a variety of farcical sexual situations as a result of her desire to help others. The men in her life, regardless of age or relationship, wish only to possess her."

17 - Southern-Belle

Clearly the saying southern belle. A girl born form the south, typically with certain attributes. The saying came from the idea that “... a girl who was expected to grow up into a lady. She was supposed to be fragile and flirtatious while also sexually innocent. She was beautiful but risky to touch, like porcelain.”

https://historyengine.richmond.edu/episodes/view/2259#:~:text=Course%3A,risky to touch%2C like porcelain

20 - Rabbit

I couldn’t find anything that looks the same, but I assume it has to do with Alice and Wonderland. Concerning dates, the book was published in the 1800s, while the arguably most famous iteration (the animated movie) came out in the 50s.

However, this can relate to the potential theme of magic and deception and girl/womanhood. But I’m also inclined to think the rabbit might have nothing to do with Wonderland and might be something else all together.

21 - K-Mart

Wiki comes in handy here. As described, “Satisfaction Always icon seen on Kmart branded packaging until the mid-to-late 70s, adapted from a hanging sign displayed in every early Kmart store.” So 70’s themed.

https://logos.fandom.com/wiki/Kmart_(United_States)/Other?file=Kmart_-_1960s_(Satisfaction).svg.

22 - Eye, Eye, Eye, and Eye

The eyes. Girl IDK, they’re eyes. They kind of remind me of the biblically accurate angels and the eyes they have. Although, I doubt that's what they're meant to be.

24 - Cigarette

People seem to think this relates more to Badlands, and I’m inclined to agree.

Themes:

Here are overall themes that seem to be present within the collection.

- Travelling

- Magic

- 60s-70s

- Eyes

- Books

- A Feminist Lens

- Past albums

A Tangent on Web Dev:

I just kinda wanted to point out the cool coding stuff they've done. When the patches are still in the plastic bag, they're always randomized in which order they're in (you have to refresh to notice this). They also disperse in a randomized order. I thought maybe the way they disperse could be a trail of sorts, like a map. But it seems totally random. I still find it cool how they've done that, every time in a different location, as if you open the package they come out uniquely for each person.

Oh and about the 25 patch, it seems the first patch in your packet appears twice when you open it. Idk if the number 25 matters or if this was done by accident. But the 25th patch is a duplicate, and never one in particular, just which ever is the first in your shuffle.

The End

For now.

[hhimring]

Tolkienshortfanworks: a showcase

Showcasing some of the variety of work posted to the tolkienshortfanworks collection on AO3: the most recent pieces by ten authors: spanning ficlets and poetry, serious and humorous pieces, Silmarillion and Lord of the Rings canon, and a range of characters, themes and relationships.

This AO3 collection is for works written for the challenges and prompts  at the tolkienshortfanworks community on Dreamwidth.

Please note: Although I would rec all of these, this is NOT a top ten. For various reasons, it also cannot be a fully representative selection of the challenge responses and does not claim to be so. The order here is simply by date.

In Middle Earth Lived Elves (1931 words) by SonOfMandos Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Maglor (Tolkien), Fëanor (Tolkien), Blue Wizards, Alatar (Tolkien), Pallando (Tolkien), Galadriel (Tolkien), Oromë (Tolkien), Námo | Mandos, Manwë Súlimo Additional Tags: Prompt Fill, Back to Middle Earth, Crossposted from Dreamwidth, Crack Treated Seriously, Attempt at Humor, Fourth Age of Arda (Tolkien), Fëanor isn't too much of a nuisance this time, The blue wizards are, As wizards tend to be, Valar - Freeform, Harad, Valinor, unbeta'ed we die like Fëanor Summary:

“Amateur,” Galadriel muttered behind her teeth.

The Marsh Where the Dead Sleep (465 words) by Narya_Flame Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Additional Tags: Poetry, Horror, The Dead Marshes, Ghosts, children's songs - Freeform Series: Part 32 of The Mathom-house, Part 57 of Nárë a Lindalë Summary:

“They lie in all the pools, pale faces, deep deep under the dark water. I saw them: grim faces and evil, and noble faces and sad. Many faces proud and fair, and weeds in their silver hair. But all foul, all rotting, all dead...”

- 'The Passage of the Marshes' from The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien.

Divine Things Well Envelop'd (918 words) by StarSpray Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Legolas & Gimli Characters: Gimli, Legolas Additional Tags: Fangorn Forest, Trees, Caves, Travel, Post-Canon, Friendship Series: Part 67 of Wisdom of the Evening Star Summary:

Legolas and Gimli pass through Fangorn Forest, and it isn't as bad as Gimli had expected.

Sanctuary Revisited (219 words) by Anerea Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien, TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Ereinion Gil-galad/Erestor, Erestor & Glorfindel (Tolkien) Characters: Erestor (Tolkien), Glorfindel (Tolkien), Ereinion Gil-galad, Elrond Peredhel, Keiliss - Character Additional Tags: Ficlet, exes who are still friends, very old friends, Friendship, Modern Era, Elrond is still taking photos, Erestor and Glorfindel get a teeny bit nostalgic, Gil-galad ensures he's driving from now on, nineteen pink flamingoes, Reminiscing Summary:

Set in Keiliss' Sanctuary 'verse, where Erestor, Gil-galad, and Elrond road trip around modern day South Africa, looking for a missing Glorfindel. This takes place after they find him but before they return to Europe. I guess he wanted to take them to a special place special he knew, before they left.

Seven Lanterns (70 words) by Zdenka Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Eärendil & Elrond Peredhel, Faramir & Boromir Characters: Fëanor, Finrod, Túrin Turambar, Elrond Peredhel, Gilraen (Tolkien), Faramir (Son of Denethor II) Additional Tags: The White Tree of Minas Tirith, Poetry, Lanterne Poem, Implied/Referenced Character Death Summary:

Seven poems in the lantern(e) form about various Tolkien characters.

A Star In The Darkness (887 words) by gabrielseven Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Angrod | Angaráto/Edhellos | Eldalótë Characters: Angrod | Angaráto, Aegnor | Ambaráto, Edhellos | Eldalótë, Original Female Elf Character(s) Summary:

Angrod's hopes for a new life in a strange new land with the object of the Noldor's wrath residing to the north, may not be as easy as he believes.

Beleriand Falling (222 words) by lferion Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Additional Tags: Fixed-Length, Challenge Response, Community: fan_flashworks, Apocalypse, Beleriand, First Age, Weather Summary:

Was it the end of the world?

In This Together (222 words) by elennalore Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Fingolfin | Ñolofinwë/Maedhros | Maitimo Characters: Fingolfin | Ñolofinwë, Maedhros | Maitimo Additional Tags: Challenge Response, Ficlet, Himring, Secret Relationship, Kissing, Rain, Sea-longing (Tolkien) Summary:

Maedhros and Fingolfin scout the hills near Himring when a sudden change of the weather makes them seek shelter.

Signs of Spring (500 words) by LadyBrooke Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Finwë (Tolkien), Elulindo (Tolkien) Additional Tags: Hope, Cold Weather, Implied Hunger/Starvation Issues, Winter, Angst, Hopeful Ending Summary: Even the coldest winters end in time. Oromë may have left the Elves alone, but hope returns with the first flowers.

A Toast to the First-Day (991 words) by Linaewen Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Characters: Boromir (Son of Denethor II), Faramir (Son of Denethor II) Summary: The Men of Gondor stationed at Cair Andros celebrate the coming of the new year.

[nerendus]

Okay, under the button since it's like almost two hundred movies, but I want to start making some progress on watching these films, but despite it being two hundred, my brain says that it is still a small list, so I am once again looking for more movie recs. 🙇

1. Requiem for a Dream

2. Pacific Rim

3. War Games

4. Sharp Objects (2018) dir. Jean-Marc Vallée

5. Les soeurs Brontë (1979)  

6. Crimes of the Future

7. Videodrome

8. Jackass

9. Novitiate (2017)

10. The Sons of Katie Elder

11. El Dorado

12. Raw Deal

13. The Running Man (arnold)

14. The Mist

15. Black Mountain Side

16. In The Mouth of Madness

17. The Fifth Element

18. The Many Saints of Newark (will watch show first)

19. James Bond series

20. Resident Evil (seven thousandth watch)

21. The Boy and the Heron

22. Moulin Rouge

23. Bill and Ted (second watch)

24. The Day The Earth Stood Still

25. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 

26. Jurassic Park (second watch)

27. Robocop

28. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

29. The Boondock Saints

30. Legally Blonde (second watch)

31. The Fog (second watch)

32. Llamageddon 

33. Hellraiser

34. Candyman

35. Shaun of The Dead (second watch)

36. Scarface

37. The Shawshank Redemption

38. Ghost in The Shell

39. No Country for Old Men

40. Kill Bill series

41. The Wolf of Wall Street

42. Watchmen

43. Lone Wolf and Cub series

44. Last Night in Soho

45. Throne of Blood

46. Fargo

47. Hereditary

48. David Lynch:: The Art Life

49. Wayne's World series

50. I Am Legend (second watch)

51. Grease 

52. Good Will Hunting

53. The VVitch

54. Leatherface

55. Fantastic Planet

56. Blue Velvet

57. Pulp Fiction (second watch)

58. Twister (second watch)

59. Donnie Darko (second watch)

60. Tales from Earthsea

61. The Secret World of Arrietty

62. Late Spring (1949)

63. From Up on Poppy Hill

64. Rashomon

65. Intermezzo

66. Casablanca

67. When Marnie Was There

68. The Wind Rises

69. The Tale of Princess Kaguya

70. I Married a Witch

71. David Bowie: The Last Five Years

72. Vampyr

73. Kill Boksoon

74. Glass Onion series

75. The Wonder (2022)

76. Hook (1991) (second watch)

77. Time Trap

78. The Yin Yang Master

79. Hold The Dark

80. All Quiet on the Western Front

81. The Cloverfield Paradox

82. Reservoir Dogs

83. Spider-man (2002)

84. The Karate Kid series

85. Unknown Cosmic Time Machine

86. The Good Nurse (2022)

87. What Did Jack Do?

88. Banyuki

89. Amina (2021)

90. The Colony (2021)

91. Cities of Last Things

92. The Metamorphosis of Birds

93. The Mirror (andrei)

94. Andrei Rublev

95. Nostalgia (andrei)

96. The Sacrifice (andrei)

97. Ivan's Childhood (andrei)

98. The Steamroller and Violin (andrei)

99. Sunset Blvd (1950)

100. Ikiru (1952)

101. Seven Samurai (1954)

102. Citizen Kane

103. Dr. Strangelove

104. La La Land (2016)

105. Noriko's Dinner Table

106. The Godfather

107. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

108. The Good The Bad The Ugly

109. Mad Max Fury Road

110. Goodfellas

111. Indiana Jones series

112. Fight Club

113. Galaxy Quest

114. Dunkirk

115. Groundhog Day

116. Star Trek movies

117. Full Metal Jacket

118. Pink Floyd: The Wall

119. Naked Lunch

120. The Iron Giant

121. Chinatown (1974)

122. Minority Report

123. Velvet Goldmine

124. Dogma

125. To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newma

126. The Prestige

127. Annie Hall

128. Taxi Driver

129. Dead Poets Society

130. The Matrix

131. The Green Mile

132. Django Unchained

133. Your Name

134. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

135. Inland Empire

136. The Elephant Man

137. Lost Highway

138. Woman in the Dunes

139. Meshes of an Afternoon

140. Tokyo  Decadence 

141. Limbo (1999)

142. Maps to the Stars

143. The Machinist

144. Under the Silver Lake

145. The Northman

146. Kingdom of Heaven

147. The Grand Budapest Hotel

148. The Revenant (alejandro)

149. A Clockwork Orange

150. Incendies

151. Apocalypse Now

152. Knight of Cups

153. Once Upon a Time in America

154. Valhalla Rising

155. Inception

156. Interview with a Vampire

157. But I'm a Cheerleader

158. Angels in America

159. Pan's Labyrinth 

160. Clue

161. Asteroid City

162. Anastasia

163. Jo jo rabbit

164. Fantastic Mr. Fox

165. Rambo

166. Mission Impossible 

167. Suspiria

168. Jarhead

169. Macbeth

170. Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters 

171. Visions of Ecstasy

172. The Handmaiden (2016)

173. The Fly (cronenberg)

174. Dead Ringers

175. Tenet

176. Sicario

177. Vanishing on 7th Street

178. Invasion of the Body Snatchers

179. Gladiator

180. Once Upon a Time in the West

181. Children of the Corn

182. The Revenant 2016

183. Transformers series

184. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

185. Gaslight (1944)

186. The Road

187. Vesper

188. The Hills Have Eyes

189. Tentacles

190. Die Hard series 

191. Freddy Got Fingered

192. The Day After Tomorrow 

193. The Song of the Scarlet Flower (Teuvo Tulio, 1938)

194. Jane Eyre

195. Northanger Abbey (2007) 

196. Lady Chatterley`s Lover (2015)

197. LA COLLECTIONNEUSE (1967) dir. Éric Rohmer

198. The Lion In Winter

[maguro13-2]

The Dark Beginnings ~ Origins of the Ink Demon Chapter 0 Pt. 3 ~

Sammy Lawrence : Destroying a guard like that was spectacular! But too bad that we had to skip it due to budget cuts.

Brute Boris : What guard did she defeated? (We then show Petey Pirahna who was defeated by Inky and turns into paint-like goop) Guess it was made from paint after all, at least it's not chocolate.

Sammy Lawrence : My, my! What fascinating skills you got there, Inky. So my eyes were correct, you Inky Albarn, is Drawcia Family's dangerous threat to Mankind? But why on earth would you be in that throne room for so long? 70 years later, I'd still be amazed if it weren't for you and these heartlesses that has been guarding the Studio as their base of operations.

Inky Albarn : Tell that everyone is waiting for me, I will see you there in the meeting at the basilica in Florence.

Sammy Lawrence : Basilica in Florence?!

Inky Albarn : It will be the place for me and that Crona Kid, one of the experiments that you created.

Sammy Lawrence : What experiment? he had been in that room with a heartless that looks alike that awful witch from the museum in Boston! (Leaves)

Inky Albarn : Today, I will bring judgement to the heartless that wrecked everything and for the love of life.

"Meanwhile later at San Francisco..."

Pilot : Sigma Alpha 2 heading due south over the-

Man on Radio : (groans) Enough with the Sigma Alpha crap! What's the status on the new prisoner aboard?

[Let's Make it - Jun Senoue]

Pilot : Well, it's not blue hedgehog this time. But we really did manage to capture a guy with sharp teeth and uhh...Wait, what are you doing now back there and...Huh? What the-? Hey! What's going on?!

(sounds of people get beaten up)

Man of Radio : What?! I didn't get that, over--!

Pilot : No, stop! What are you doing?! Hey come back here! G-Give us back that emergency snowboard! Get back in your seat, mister!

Man of Radio : Who's taking the emergency snowboard, over?!

(DOOR SMASH!)

Soul Evans : The only thing that I am good at, is being free, numb nuts! (Hops on the chopper wings and get aboard the snowboard) Here's something about low budget flights, no food or movies, it's that simple! I got something to say this one little bit! (To the viewers) I'm Soul Eater Evans and this is Jackass! I'm gonna fly down to San Francisco to get a good view! (Jumps off the helicopter to skydive into downtown) YAHOOOOOOOO!!

"STAGE 1 : City Escape"

[Escape from the City - Ted Poley & Tony Harnell]

News Reporter : According to eye witness on the scene, former music prodigy and juvenile Soul Eater Evans, a member of the wealthy Evans family, has escaped from a helicopter transport and finds into hiding--

Soul Eater Evans : Finally! After getting out of the Evans residence that is now haunted by Ghosts, I will get myself to Tokyo to meet the girl of my dreams! I'm always a cool guy that needs a break from the law and I can get pass that them! You'll never take me alive, coppers! Now let's see what this old newspaper has something from King Boo himself?

[Newspaper : GIRL WITH MYSTERIOUS POWERS WIPED OUT JAPAN'S POPULATION]

Soul Eater Evans : So. It's about that incident of that girl who caused amount of energy to create an explosiove shockwave that destroyed Japan's population. Sounds like that she's the dangerous threat to humankind as well, that mean one thing. I bet it's the power that combines Anger and sadness, grieved with the Despair given out by Sephiroth or a mysterious being responsible for the facade of the Ohkuboverse! Whatevs! If anyone is responsible for that crap, who might knows what lies in the face of true evil itself? Now then, who would've thought that a girl would might be surprising for me to find a girl to get?

[scene flips]

Soul Eater Evans : Gee! This is hard! I only needed a bike that would really pay up for my motorcycle insurance. I got my bike destroyed by that Densuke guy from Eiken, who got caught in an accident riding around on it! So I need to pay up with that guy's medical bills, I need a bike. I really, really, super cool awesome bike. (Gasped in awe) I gotta have me one of them babies before! Thanks for the hog, loser!

*MOTOR RUNNING+TIRE SCREECHING*

[Lethal Highway - Jun Senoue]

*GLASS SHATTER!*

Motorshop Keep : Hey, dude! I was like gonna give you that for free!

Soul Eater Evans : Keep the change, sucker!

Motorshop Keep : Why did I even own a bike shop that people steal things like Grand Theft Auto?

Soul Eater Evans : Alright I got myself a motorbike! Now all I need to get away from the cops! So that they won't ever find me! This is what I call myself a "HOG RIDER"! YEE-HAW!!! Man! This ride is really wild and has such quite a punch. I wonder if some chick would get a ride with?

Maka Albarn : Excuse me, but are you Soul Eater Evans? May I take a ride with you?

Soul Eater Evans : Sure anything you want, ba... (attempts to say "Babe", but stutters) H-he-he-Hello! Who are you stranger? You need a ride?

Maka Albarn : I was wondering if I could ride to get a great view of this beautiful town.

Soul Eater Evans : That's wonderful babe. Then hop on. I'll take you for a ride.

Maka Albarn : Sure. It'll be funs as--EVEEEEEEER!!! [Runs off]

Maka Albarn : Wow! You're really fast! Where did you get this cool bike of yours!?

Soul Eater Evans : You don't wanna know.

Maka Albarn : Well, I haven't known you since 1994.

Soul Eater Evans : 1994? That was around 9 years ago. You didn't met me on that day since kindergarten. You might be the girl that caused the explosion to wipeout 80% of Japan's population 9 years ago.

Maka Albarn : Yeah, that would be me that is responsible for Japan's Destruction. I was that girl after the masked boy saved my life from destroying everything. So it's good that my family is with me and I'm glad that nothing bad happens to me. So anyway, I'm Maka Albarn, what's your name?

Soul Eater Evans : It's Soul Evans, you can just call me Soul Eater.

Maka Albarn : Soul Eater Evans? That's a weird name for a guy like you. Well, in that case. It's good to meet you, Soul. I think that we should get along, as friends together!

Soul Eater Evans : Yeah, friends together!

"Who said anything that friendship is really different to a relationship?"

"That's my way of thinking of a cool guy."

~ Prologue 3 : Pair of a Duo ~

[harapeveco]

miss harapeveco since we are in the topic of anime pls drop some recommendations I don’t have anything to watch 

Omg oks so I have a very shitty taste in anime so this will be a very disappointing list but the ones I mostly recommend are:

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun: literally every scene is funny and iconic, it also invented m/f yaoi don’t ask it makes sense

Owari no Seraph: I mean this very unironically this anime fucking sucks but in a good way like nothing is ever explained, nothing makes sense and they gaslight you into believing the main boys are gonna be endgame by showing you a homoerotic scene of blood drinking. Just roll with it and don’t ask questions it’s better that way

The Persona 3 movies and the Persona 4/5 anime: the movies are really good they did a good job condensing +80 hours of gameplay in 4 movies (except the third movie but we don’t talk about that). Now when it comes to the persona 4 anime you can tell they didn’t give a shit that thing is just 24 episodes full of jokes and comedy the game wishes it had holy shit it’s really funny for no reason. The persona 5 anime is more complex in the sense that it’s very unwatchable if you go to it expecting something good. It’s bad it’s very bad it’s poorly animated and rushed and it’s just borderline unwatchable but it is really funny if you wanna have a good laugh about how bad something is I recommend it

Osomatsu-san: the first episode of the first season being yeeted into oblivion bc it was very much illegal to show all of it makes it worth it. Keep in mind this is an adult show (even if it doesn’t look like it) so there’s a lot of crude humor and sex jokes but all the characters are such trashy people I like to see them suffer 

Kiss him not me: if you are a shipper this one is for you. Basically the MC is a yaoi obsessed fan girl who wants to see her classmates date each other yaoinly but they want to date her instead 

ID Invaded: really good anime with a really good mystery and plot! Main character did everything wrong but I still love him also Sou did the opening for it 

Happy sugar life: very fucked up horror about a high schooler in love with a literal child but it doesn’t go like you think it goes, they don’t portray it as romantic or cute they very much portray it as the fucked up thing it is and how wrong it is. It’s good if you like feeling unsettled and like to watch things go from 0 to 100 real fast

The promised neverland: amazing series with an amazing mystery and atmosphere! It’s a shame it only has one season tho I hope they make a second season of it in the future but it’s a shame it only has one

Dr stone: it has science, it’s horny, you have over the top characters, what more do you want

Natsume book of friends: you love to cry? You wanna cry after watching every single episode? Ofc you do! This shit will hit you in the gut so hard you will never recover. A beautiful story about acceptance, platonic love, found family and yokai with the best and most realistic character development I’ve ever seen 

Gegege no Kitaro: this one is very broad bc no kidding this anime gets a new adaptation every decade. There’s a 60s version, a 70s version, an 80s version, a 90s version, a 2007 version, a 2008 version that is more adult and follows the manga and a 2018 version too if you like recent stuff more. Most of these are lost media tho good luck trying to find any version that is not the 2018 one. I forgot about the plot of it yeh uhhh basically a kid ghost is a medium between humans and yokai but he mostly play favorites with the yokai and sometimes fucks the humans over so idk if he’s really a medium, he’s very biased about it

The dangers in my heart: I talked about this one before but I’m talking about it again idc. Really cute and wholesome the MC is kinda horny but he’s like 14 boys at that age are pretty horny we have to stop pretending they aren’t. The first 3 episodes are so cringe they are very painful to watch but if you can go through them you will witness what I think it’s the cutest romance after horimiya. I don’t usually read manga bc I have the attention span of a rock but even I did a binge read of it bc it was just so good

King’s game: edgier than shadow the hedgehog 2006, it’s painfully bad like I can’t even begin to explain how horrible this anime is but good lord it made me laugh all the way through 

Chuubyo gekihatsu boy: one of the main characters is a catboy called Rei Tsukumo and another character is a cringe Utaite what more can I say? It’s just dumb cringe kids being dumb as fuck for 12 episodes and you know what? It’s very good at it

Horimiya: just watch it for the love of god just watch it

Sasaki to Miyano: you have miyano who is like “I wonder if I’m gay??? I’m not sure???” While he reads gay manga and straight up imagines himself kissing his guy friend in the mouth like bestie COME ON

Thats all the anime I can think of the top of my head, well adding anime classics like fullmetal alchemist brotherhood, haikyuu, my hero academia (I only follow it bc the Todoroki family drama is the only thing well written in it), dragon ball (not dragon ball z bc as much as I like it I prefer dragon ball and the cutesy adventure aesthetic it has) and ofc how to forget sonic x 

[theharpermovieblog]

#HARPERSMOVIECOLLECTION

2024 MOVIE LIST

www.tumblr.com/theharpermovieblog

🎃HALLOWEEN 2024🎃

I re-watched Tombs Of The Blind Dead (1972)

Another classic I haven't watched in forever.

Knights templar rise from their graves to seek revenge.

I grew up watching a lot of these 70's Spanish horror films on old beat up VHS compilations and late night TV.

Films, like this one, by Amando de Ossorio and other Spanish directors, like Paul Naschy, offer classic monsters, templar zombies, dessicated skeletons and good old fashioned spooky shit...along with hot women and bad english dubbing, these movies come dripping with atmosphere and undead thrills and chills.

"Tombs Of The Blind Dead" is the movie I'd recommend to anyone looking to get into Spanish Horror of this period. It has everything there is to love about Spanish horror in the 1970's, and unlike some other films, it executes all of these things extremely well.

The historical context of using the accusations of heresy and witchcraft against the Knights Templar is something that makes for a great and eerie ghost story.

If you think about it, we don't often see horror involving ghostly and ghoulish villains like this anymore. Stories about risen knights or warriors bound by an ancient curse. Or even movies like "John Carpenter's The Fog", which features un-dead revenge seeking pirates. It's a sub-genre of horror that I have a lot of Love for. Our ancestors rising up and returning to reclaim what was once theirs. The fear that even death can't stop the villains or the mistreated of our history.

Sure, "Tombs Of The Blind Dead" probably doesn't scare like it once did, but it's awfully fun and still manages to be nightmarish at moments. Watching these skeletons use their rotten teeth to slowly bite people to death remains disturbing to this day.

If you're looking for something creepy and love grim looking skeletons, this is for you. It's an especially great movie for Halloween night.

[onlyhereforghost]

So a little something from me…

I grew up an only child, with a mother and a step father. I was, at times, babied, and at other times, pushed to be an adult before I needed to be. My mother was not an affectionate woman, my step father made it clear he didn’t care much for me, despite him being in my life since I was around three or four years old.

My familial love came from my grandparents whom I adored.

Both my parents put career before me. My mother worked full time, roughly 60-70 hours a week. My step father spent six months of the year working abroad. I ended up living with my grandparents as a result.

When I was 12, my mother was seriously injured at work, which meant she could no longer go to work, and I ended up moving back into my parents home. That same year my grandfather died. I lost my best friend and biggest supporter when he passed. My extended family also fractured, my mother fell out with her sister, and they never spoke again after this falling out.

I spent the rest of my mother’s life seeking approval from both her and my step father, basically begging for crumbs of affection. I had a child at 24. I wanted somebody to love me. My parents tried to take my child from me. I’m glad to say my kid and I have an incredible relationship and that even tho he’s now 21 he is still at home with me. (He drives me up the wall sometimes but I love him unconditionally, and I tell him I love him everyday)

My mother died six years ago. All I have left is the step father who hated me. We have a strained relationship at best. I still seek his approval even in my 40’s, and he still treats me like I’m stupid.

So… Ghost.

This band entered my life during a time when my depression was BAD. And suddenly, things seemed a little less dark. My son also loved them. I discovered them through him. “You like rock music mum, try this band Ghost…” “I dunno kid, your musical taste is questionable at best…” He wasn’t wrong, I immediately fell in love with the music. Prequelle had me in a choke hold even tho by this point Impera had been out a couple of months.

Then I discovered THE LORE. Oh boy, hello rabbit hole, my name is Alice, let’s go explore! (My name isn’t Alice. It just worked for this narrative).

Copia. My beloved Copia. I see so much of myself in his story. His desperation to be loved. His eagerness for approval. His lack of familial bonds. His hyper-fixations. The happy silly mask he wears for others when inside he feels like crying.

I learned about Tobias and his story too. How he lost a family member he adored at a young impressionable age. How he had family who disapproved (his father and step mother) and how he constantly pushed himself to create something that would bring people happiness.

This band mean everything to me. They are my happy place. They’ve brought people into my life who I love and adore and would fight tooth and nail for. (Looking at you @callmemamaemeritus )

In the end, when Tobias said Ghost fans seem to be lonely, in my case he was right. I think a lot of Ghost fans are a little broken, a little battle scarred, we’ve been through some shit in our lives. But then we found Ghost. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been a fan since Opus or found them on TikTok, this is a solid fandom (90% of the time, there’s always people who try and ruin it, I ignore those people). This fandom is sweet, and loving, and kind, and all kinds of talented - look at the art! Look at the fanfic! The cosplay! SO. MUCH. TALENT.

All this to say, thank you OP for your observations about the movie. Thank you Ghost for existing.

Thank you Tobias for giving me a family. For giving me the love and respect and affection I spent my whole life chasing.

Thankyou Copia. You will always be MY Papa.

(And if you read this whole rant of mine you’re a real one and deserve a cookie. So go get one. 🍪)

RHRN spoilery talk

(about grief and mental health and the ending, the way I see the movie and why I love it so much)

I am feeling so many things about the fact that Copia was so unwell and anxious during the movie, trying to push away the reality of the end of his time as Papa as well as the visible signs of illness in Sister, that he dissociated the moment he stepped off stage, that he saw her sitting in a regular chair instead of the wheelchair, blended out the doctors and IV bags to see her how he wanted to see her, this strong powerful woman who has been by his side, pushing him, and who he only recently learned was his actual mother. It is so very easy to get lost in your anxiety about the future, in the anticipatory grief of what you'll lose, struggling to stay mindful and here where you have actual power over your life.

And looking back at the chapters this is what he has been doing, clinging to his little comforts (think of the whipped cream moment in the movie vs. the video games, the tricycle rides, the movie scene re-enactments), pushing away unwanted thoughts (not doing his taxes, the fact that neither his father nor his mother openly admitted to the parentage despite all signs being there, letting him float in uncertainty), playing it off like he's cool about everything while feeling dread and anxiety on the inside the closer he comes to the end of his era and presumed death (think of the coffin scene, the intro to the movie).

This man had no family so he picks role models that are close to him and suddenly when he learns that they were family all along he loses them, learns that he has been lied to most of his life and worked hard for others, to fill their shoes (first his father, now his mother). Despite Nihil treating him awfully he continuous to try and reach for approval for his achievements which he does not even get by the end as he's promoted ("I hope this new guy doesn't disappoint like you did"). He will never get emotional fulfilment from his father despite having small bonding moments, something that is fucking hard to accept and that he brushes off by throwing silly insults at him because it hurts. Because yeah, this is the type of pain that makes you feel like a child searching for breadcrumbs of affection from parents who do not know how to meet your emotional needs.

I feel just incredibly seen by all of this, the grief, dealing with sick relatives, emotional neglect, absent fathers you try to get love from but never will, lack of familial support, depression, trying to hold on to what comforts you in the darker moments, struggling to stay present in the face of anxiety and the world at large. I know this plot means little to some people, that you'd wished for more drama or something different altogether, but I feel like if you paid attention to the chapters then this is only the natural progression, the natural conclusion of his arc. It is very raw if you look past the comedic relief, and it is very well done in a way that keeps the campy, silly vibes of the chapters while still approaching these subjects in a very tangible, relatable way. It just makes me love the band even more.

[magazineprefecture]

Can you share some of your greatest love poems? Can you share some of your poetry in general?

And who said I wrote poetry? In the words of someone awful, I write “such bloody awful poetry”. The poetry I write is typically meant for certain people - oof the cheek. That said, I went to a bar last night and whilst I was waiting for a friend, wrote this as an answer to your question:

With lips like those, And a laugh like that, Is there space in-between those cheeks, Beyond the words, the wit, the wiggly bits, For a kiss, One spare for me, Scrawny, admiring, and lonely. 

If you're looking for liquor like words of love and pages of subtly on those I yearn for. I cannot give them. I am better at speaking them than writing them down. I prefer to write about cities and people from afar. I'm not very good at writing about those close to me.

I recently saw this response given by a man when asked about his wife:

I still see the 19-year-old university student I met in 1972 with whom I shared an umbrella in a late summer rain shower when I look at her.

On top of that, I think like most people, music stirs me. These feel like love poetry to me:

Music the makes you feel like you did in that first moment: >Every Kind Of Way - H.E.R >いい時間 - EVISBEATS >17 - Wunderhorse >Moon River - Frank Ocean >Don’t Delete the Kisses - Wolf Alice

Music that sounds like love: >Your Sweet Love - Lee Hazlewood >Love’s theme - The Love Unlimited Orchestra

Music for remembering why you love her: >Sound of Sounds - Gomez >Everything she does is Magic - The Police >Into My Arms - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Music that warmed me when I realised i'd finally got over someone: >How Time Slips Away - Willie Nelson >Better Days - Graham Nash

Music to have passionate and loving sex to (pretending you’re some 70s band member in an LA hotel bedroom): >Jump into the Fire - Harry Nilsson >Sweet Emotion - Aerosmith >Get it On - T. Rex >Paranoid - Black Sabbath

A vanilla kind of roleplay. I also tried to smoke whilst having sex. That looks way fucking better in the movies than it feels in real life. You have to contend with the ash, and you're out of breath so just chuffing on the thing like a retired dock worker.

I had a long think about your first question - 'have you met anyone who you thought could’ve been a great love in your life but slipped your grasp?' There may have been another. A northern Irish girl I met last summer. I felt a rush, real prospect. I was genuinely excited and could feel myself getting carried away. I reckon I could given myself to her and fallen quite sickly in love. We went on a few dates. Kissed under the flash of a nike advert on a billboard at Piccadilly square. I really like her.

She ghosted me. We weren't right in that moment.

[brokedex]

5, 21 and 22 for the horror ask thing. For 5 personally I'd love to see more folk horror (like the wickerman) but no othee folk horrors hit the same. Maybe thats just my Scots Bias tho. Anyways i love seeing people talk horror. :)

thanks so much for asking!!! I love seeing people talk horror too, and I've never seen the wicker man so I gotta see it now :D

5. a subgenre you would love to watch more of/see more movies being made in the subgenre technically a movement rather than a subgenre, but german expressionism! I fell in love with everything about “nosferatu,” and though it’s not horror, I adore “metropolis” too. next I really need to watch more films like “the cabinet of dr. caligari” and “the golem: how he came into the world”. the influence this movement had on later films is absolutely bonkers and I love it

21. a horror movie you like that a lot of people dislike I feel like most unpopular movies I like are horror comedies/ones that get silly and campy with it. some that are intentionally self-aware spoofs on established genres are “dracula! dead and loving it” (mel brooks/leslie nielsen madness), “psycho beach party” (a wild blend of a bunch of 50s-70s genres and also lots of queer subtext/text), and “renfield” (you saw the ads. the cop character sucks but everything else about it is as if they made a movie specially tailored to 13-year-old me). then there are others that are so damn stupid it loops all the way around to being a blast: “jason x” (jason…in SPACE!), “the evil clergyman” (jeffrey combs and barbara crampton in yet another lovecraft story, this time with evil ghost priest sex and a man-faced rat), and “sundown: the vampire in retreat” (featuring bruce campbell as ultra babygirl van helsing). I blame my love for bad horror comedies on watching svengoolie as a kid lmao. if you haven’t already, check out his show!!

22. a horror character that actually creeps you out/scares you honestly, the clowns from “killer klowns from outer space”. I don’t have a problem with clowns anytime else, it’s just with these guys there’s something about their eyes and how flesh-y and tangible they look… which is a big testament to how great the practical effects are! to me, practical suits and puppets are always scarier than CGI, but usually my fascination with how they work (like in “the thing,” “an american werewolf in london,” and “from beyond,” chef’s kiss x10000 holy shit) overpowers the fear :}

thanks again for asking! if you or anyone else have any horror reccs i’d love to hear them :]

[rltodcnder]

기생충 시계방향 소파신 다시보기 (PARASITE 2019)

기생충 시계방향 소파신 다시보기 (PARASITE 2019) 링크<<

기생충 시계방향 소파신 다시보기 (PARASITE 2019)

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Like the Star Wars: The Clone Wars series, Dave Filoni participated in the production as a general manager, and the screenplay was written by X-Men's Simon Kinberg, Rogue One's Gary Whigg, Clone Wars' Henry Gilroy, as well as Greg Wiseman, Charles Murray, and Kevin Hobbs. has participated

On October 3rd, the TV movie was first aired on Disney Channel, and season 1 was aired on Disney XD in earnest on October 13th. In Japan, it has been airing since October 2015 on TV Tokyo. The season 2 TV movie premiered on in April 2015 and premiered on Disney XD on June 20. Ralph Macquarie participated in the design, and he passed away in 2012. In honor of Haja, many of the concept images drawn in the past were changed or discarded. For example, the design of the early A-wing that appears in the work appears as a concept image version he drew, and the spider-type monster 'Krikna' that appears at the end of season 2 is a design of a creature native to Dagoba that was not originally used in The Empire Strikes Back. was one of them.[1] C1-10P uses the earlier R2-D2 design.

And season 4 was confirmed as the final season, and it was aired on October 16, 2017, and ended on March 5, 2018. It's not bad. Still, the evaluation is good compared to the Clone Wars theatrical version, which marked the beginning of the Clone Wars series.[4]

There are many opinions that the expressions using the Force, like the Clone Wars animation, look a little weak. This direction may be intentional, as Kanan has only been trained to the Padawan level, and Ezra is just a newbie. Lightsaber Duel is said to be as satisfying as Clone Wars 3D. The problem is that the lightsaber design is very thin compared to the Clone Wars series, and there are many fans who are dissatisfied with this. If you don't like it, put it like a toothpick. In addition, there are no descriptions of sparks or flames that occur when lightsabers face each other, so there are many complaints that it seems like fighting with a glowing LED bar. The reason for this change was that the Rebel crew referenced the design of the early concept art of Ralph McQuarrie, who drew the concept art for the first Star Wars series in the 70's.[5] Maybe that's why the thin lightsaber design that came out here doesn't come out in other media, and the lightsaber of the characters from the rebels appearing in Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes also follows the thick sword design of the original.

In the same vein, Karazeb Orelius' design was also taken from the original Chewbacca's design in the same concept art. Also, Darth Vader's helmet has more ferocious eyes and a more protruding chin than in the movie, and this is also the result of partially reflecting the design of the concept art.

Unlike The Clone Wars, there are many parts that pay homage to the original trilogy. The aerial battle between the Ghost and TIE Fighter in the short animation pays homage to the showdown between the Millennium Falcon and TIE Fighter in A New Hope, and the speeder bike chase scene is also similar to the chase scene in Return of the Jedi. Unlike the Clone Wars TV series, which mostly used its own OST, the soundtrack of the original trilogy was used for the background sound, and the artwork also used the clunky and clunky sound of the original trilogy, not the smooth look shown in the clone wars and prequels. It appeared with a rough design. The phase 1 helmet of the clone trooper that appeared in the work[6] was changed to a design similar to the movie version rather than the design seen in the previous clone wars, and the character design was rounded and the costume or alien design was simplified.

Until season 2, the 15-year-old main character, Ezra, never killed anyone. It's not that people don't die, but it's not like the clone wars 3D, and in many scenes, stormtroopers hit by blasters bounced off with lightsabers are shown a lot of falling and wriggling, expressing "they're not dead." However, all of the tie fighter pilots who dogfighted with Ghost were killed. However, in season 3, Ezra, who has grown up, uses mind tricks to make stormtroopers shoot at each other and just slices them up with a lightsaber, so we can no longer see the non-killing principle.