#movies listed below if you want to guess without knowing —

[stingrayextraordinaire]

Thank you so much for the tag, @valiantarcher! I'm posting a gif from each of my top 10 movies without saying what they are and then tagging 10 people.

I’m tagging @moonlightandstarshimmer, @daisyejones, @effulgentpoet, @amiablesummer, @cozy-possum, @ladyrock18, and anyone else who would like to participate! :)

[pianokantzart]

I can’t stress enough how insanely underrated the Luigi flashback scene in the Mario movie is. Genuinely phenomenal visual show, don’t tell storytelling.

You know what? You bring up a good point. That scene absolutely didn't have to go that hard.

Don't get me started about the subtlety of Luigi's facial expressions throughout; the way his eyes widen, then refocus into a thoughtful expression when he realizes the castle below strikes a chord with him, and he takes a moment to recall why...

Seamless transition. We see toddler Luigi playing happily by himself until he starts getting harassed by a bigger kid, and then we see Luigi's natural defense methods come into play: he shuts down, holds his arms out to protect himself, and lets the larger kid do what he wants, even if they're breaking his stuff and taking his things.

Then comes Mario, making a beeline from the other end of the playground to forward-aerial this schmuck.

He returns his brother's toy flag without breaking eye contact with the threat. He stands firm between Luigi and the bully, tiny hands clenched at his sides in anticipation of a fight.

The bully decides to cut his losses and run off, and Mario turns to Luigi with a big, proud smile on his face.

Then we crossfade from Luigi as a toddler, smiling warmly at his brother, to modern day Luigi looking completely helpless and loss.

He lifts up his bounds wrists, examines them for a moment, then slumps over with a sad, far-off look in his eye.

What is going through his mind at that moment? Regret? Guilt? Insecurity? Homesickness? Wistfulness? Self-deprecation? A mixture of all of the above? We can only guess, but we can surmise three things:

Mario has always been there for Luigi in the past

Luigi has always admired his brother's bravery

Luigi feels bad about how weak he is

And it would've been so easy for this scene to have just been Luigi reminiscing about Mario out loud in Bowser's prison, saying outright his thoughts and emotions. The three points I listed above could've been delivered in a half-serious manner with a few jokes sprinkled in to keep things lighthearted. But instead, the sadness and longing Luigi is feeling in that moment is treated with perfect seriousness. All dialogue is replaced with a swelling, emotional score as the specifics of what Luigi is thinking is left to the audience's interpretation. It's really really good.

[wannab-urs]

Pedro Pascal Character Fic Recs | Vol 42

AO3 | Kofi | Main Masterlist | The Spreadsheet Masterlist

Howdy Folks,

guess who's back! I don't know if I'm back to doing these consistently, but I have a hell of a list for y'all. Tags and summaries provided by the author, commentary provided by yours truly.

Mindfuck - Dave one shot by @whatsnewalycat

He said he could rattle the bees from your buzzing honeycomb brain. All you had to do was trust him with this power. So you did. And you do. Your valiant beekeeper meets you at this hotel every other Tuesday night, except on holidays.

Hypnotism, hypnosis-kink, Imperfect Praxis of Hypnosis, Humiliation, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Praise Kink, Smut, unprotected piv, D/s dynamic, Dom Dave, Mindfuck

One of the weirdest things I've ever read, but also one of the best. I was super into this. Mindfucking is WILD.... I'd read more of this universe in a heartbeat

Bittersweet Love - Dieter one shot by @ozarkthedog

Dieter is in recovery from drug addiction, the disease that cost him you. This is his first premiere after getting clean and his first one without you.

angst but with a happy ending! mentions of drug use and alcohol but nothing graphic.

This is such a sweet fic? That might be a weird way to describe it. I just love Dieter getting his shit together and all the good coming his way because of it.

Starlet - Dieter one shot by @whocaresstillthelouvre

Your husband has a big movie premiere, sure he looks great, but his co-star looks even better.

PWP, threesome, smut, fingering, oral (f receiving), lesbian fun, unprotected p in v sex, cum eating, addiction talk, sober Dieter, Kit Kats, I wrote this for the bi girls.

This fic is a dream, seriously. I want a hot movie star husband to bring pretty movie star women into my bed please and thank you.

Pas de Deux - Din series by @burntheedges

When Din Djarin – principal dancer at Concordia Ballet Company and generational talent in the classical style – suddenly left CBC and joined the Nevarro Ballet Theater mid-season, it shocked the ballet world. You never would have guessed that he would change your life, too.

modern AU, ballet AU, fluff, angst, flirting, dancing, lots of ballet terms (I’ll define things/link videos/etc. -- see below), misunderstandings, character study, romance, pet names (sweetheart, beautiful), lots of tension, later: smut, kissing, grinding, fingering, p-in-v sex, creampie, each chapter will have its own tags, Din lifts reader (see note below about reader)

This is one of the few modern Din AUs I've read, as I tend not to like them, but I can't recommend this enough. I was drawn in by the summary and hooked by the first chapter!

Never Let Me Go - Ezra one shot by @yopossum

Loving, reverent domestic smut with sweet, submissive Ezra.

SMUT; no plot that’s it just porn but with FEELINGS; sub!Ezra; established relationship; super duper in love; domestic fluff; comfort; gratuitous pet names; praise kink; body worship; body hair; grinding; breast and nipple play; teasing/edging if you squint; light bondage; riding; PIV; no condom (there’s come y’all); religious language and imagery as literary device; Ezra the human thesaurus; prose gettin purple; making grown men whine and cry; reader is not gendered, has breasts and a vulva/vagina, is described as having puffed nipples and dimpled thighs, can straddle Ezra, but no coloring, size, appearance, age, or ability is otherwise noted; Ezra is an amputee and healed and we love it (no gore or trauma or background re: his arm); but I did write this because I was watching Prospect without actually watching and was inspired by *~*those sounds*~* out of context tho; Beatrice is not reader’s name, just a nerdy Dante reference; I stole this title from Florence Welch; old person on tumblr; is this spacing wack?; not a beta in sight; 18+ only no minors

SUBMISSIVE EZRA!!! I loved this. Such a gorgeous fic.

Stick Buddies - Frankie series by @auteurdelabre

You and Frankie find yourselves in a complicated situation when invited to Benny's wedding for a week in Mexico. Despite your strained friendship, you both pretend to be a couple to save Frankie embarrassment when seeing his recently engaged ex wife. However as you navigate through this charade, old feelings and unresolved issues resurface.

friends to enemies, angst, fake relationship, bickering, there's only one bed, destination weddings, enemies to lovers, jealousy, idiots in love, revealed secrets, mutual pining, smut, HEA, so many fucking tropes.

friends to enemies to lovers??? Sign me the fuck up.

Where You Left Me - Frankie one shot by @chaotic-mystery

You meet Frankie for a date and reminisce about your relationship.

MAJOR character death. No movie AU but fuck Tom. This is overall angst heavy and please take care of yourself. Grief & loss, sadness, memories, I think that’s it? It’s just overall a bittersweet and tragically lovesick story. There’s no physical descriptions of reader other than wearing a black dress at one point and having hair that tickles Frankie’s nose. no y/n used

This shit made me cry in the best way. Please read this.

One of Your Girls - Frankie one shot by @pedropeach

unpacking some of frankie's old things leads to a revelation about his past. (OR to put it simply: frankie morales x triple frontier boys circle jerk)

Circle Jerk, Sub!Frankie, Bukkake, Facials, Cumplay, Cum Swallowing, frankie is literally a cum dumpster (and loves it), Praise Kink, Pet Names, Dirty Talk, oral (m receiving), Deepthroating, Cock Worship, Use of restraints, Sexy Photographs, Sharing, brief mentions of anal sex (m/m), for story purposes you are frankie's current gf, frankie x all the guys individually, this includes tom but he's not part of the circle jerk, sry tom

Really was not expecting this to be as tender and soft and sweet as it is considering it's one of the more filthy things I've ever read. Absolutely love it.

I'll Carry You - Javi P series by @almostfoxglove

You reunite with your childhood best friend when he arrives home from Colombia. Javier's sudden return to your life exhumes buried heartbreak, but he longs to set things right.

Eventual smut. Reference to canon-typical violence, injury, and the death of a parent. Plenty of alcohol consumption, yearning, and angst. YEARNING!!!

The yearning is exquisite. The fic is exquisite. I'm in love with this fic

Remorse for Remedy - Joel series by @pedgito

Alone, the Miller's brothers seem like your only hope. The outbreak is still fresh, weeks after the fall and all that matters is survival and the unlikely comfort that comes along with a man who wants nothing to do with you.

early outbreak, canon typical violence, morally grey!joel, smut (warnings given with each chapters), exploration of kinks, enemies to lovers, age gap (early 20s/mid 30s), unhealthy coping mechanisms, detailed warning with each chapter

I haven't ever read a series about Joel immediately post outbreak, which is wild. It's always raider!joel or qz!joel or jackson!joel. I love this new perspective and I'm so excited to read more.

Biology - Joel one shot by @endlessthxxghts

Joel hurt his back at work, so you've been helping him around the house until he heals.

able-bodied, female sex anatomy, and inherently fem!reader. No description of reader, everything is neutral (ex. “your bottoms,” “the curve of you” — nothing is specific in the way “you” are described). Age gap (reader early 20s, Joel in 50s). EXPLICIT MATERIAL PRESENT. HEED THE WARNINGS. WEIRD boundaries are crossed…you're not blood-related to Joel, but you were raised like you were. You call him “uncle.” Pet names (baby, darlin’, sweetheart, etc.). Pussy pronouns (she). Innocent touches until it isn't. Sexual tension galore. Slight dub-con. Icky Joel. Icky reader. Pussy grinding. Dirty talk. Slight degradation (“bitch” is used only once). Multiple orgasms. P in V unprotected. Reader is on top. Lots of teasing about the nature of yours and Joel’s relationship.

Well slap me silly and call me an uncle fucker because this fic was amazing. (they're not really related don't. look. at. ME.)

The Savage and the Sanctuary - Joel series by @justagalwhowrites

After the death of his daughter, Joel Miller fell apart. But when searching for answers at the bottom of a bottle and within his own rage doesn't fix it, he resigns himself to working for his brother in private security. It's a job that starts him down the path to stability and a semblance of a life, even if it's not one he particularly wants. At least it does until you show up. The biggest movie star in the world with your newly adopted niece in tow, you throw everything about Joel's life into flux. Is he capable of letting himself feel something again while protecting the only things left in the world that matter?

Protective Joel, Ellie & Joel Bonding, Joel is Bad at Feelings, POV Joel, Joel Needs a Hug, Alternate Universe - No Cordyceps Outbreak, Enemies to Lovers, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn

So pumped for a new Kit fic. Super into bodyguard Joel. The angst right out the gate is so beautifully painful, I just know I'm gonna cry once a chapter at least. (i've only read one chapter, so I have some catching up to do!)

Professor's Pet - Joel one shot by @chaotic-mystery

Professor Miller wants you to teach the class tomorrow morning & you need help being less nervous. What if he’s the reason you’re nervous, though?

Age gap but not specified, power imbalance (professor x TA, reader stutters when nervous, academic weapon, teasing, fingering, one (1) pair of panties ripped to shreds, oral (f receiving), spitting, pussy slaps, praise kink, name calling (good girl, sweetheart, baby, smart girl), dirty talk, talking you through it, spanking, condescending a little bit, cum eating, face riding, nasty freaky kisses to share your cum, no use of y/n

I cannot begin to explain how hot him helping her practice is. And then the smut.... I need a shower

Call It What It Is - Joel one shot by @joelsgreys

A disagreement over patrol duty leads to declarations that have been long overdue.

JACKSON ERA JOEL. established relationship. HEFTY AGE GAP (reader is in her 20’s and joel is 56). ellie and joel are fine bc i said so and they deserve nothing less. reader handles a rifle, joel’s a little too overprotective and almost seems controlling, but i promise he is not. well, maybe just a smidge. arguing, admission of feelings, joel miller says i love you (yes this is ooc, no i do not care bc i need this old man to tell me he loves me). angst, fluff. quite a bit of side character interaction before we get to joel and reader in the second half. the only physical description of reader is that she is shorter than joel.

We love overprotective Joel in this house

The Guard Dog - Pero Tovar one shot by @avastrasposts

Sent to your uncle's bleak castle in the north of England, you expect only a dreary existence until you meet his groundskeeper, a scarred, frightening Spaniard. But love in the Victorian era is not easy and life doesn't follow straight paths.

this is mainly all fluff with a bit of angst. Some of that casual racism and predjudice of the period rears its ugly head though. I've tried to keep the reader as blank as possible, but it's Victorian England and she's a lady so I have to presume she doesn't speak Spanish and has fair skin. No use of y/n.

This was so beautiful. I love the setting, I love the characterization, I love the story

Bloody Kisses - Tim Rockford/Dio series by @perotovar

shane has been in denial about himself for a while. newly single and with the help of one of his favorite singers, he opens his eyes to a new venture he could possibly take: the cop he sees on a semi-regular basis, detective tim rockford.

takes place in the early 00s, age gap (shane is 23, tim is 40), internalized homophobia, hurtful names (fairy boy, faggot, queer as a slur, etc), a gay porn magazine, lots of references to peter steele of type o negative (and his playgirl issue), male masturbation, acab, angst, protected p in a, fingering, excessive amounts of lube

I started reading this a while ago, but I never added it to the spreadsheet. I'm in love with how soft Tim is with Dio UgH

In the shadows of others, we grow - Tim Rockford/Dave York series by @sin-djarin

What happens when you put two different areas of law enforcement in the same room a few times a year to atone for their 'sins'? You find common ground and figure it out. Together.

M/M, Established D/s dynamics, each chapter contains individual warnings.

This pairing?? Obsessed. The feelings?!?!? Give me 14 more fics in this universe PLEASE

An End to Drought - Javi P one shot by @almostfoxglove

The future of your family's homestead hangs in the balance as Javier Peña comes home in the middle of a drought.

Javier Peña Smut, Soft Javier Peña, Sweet Javier Peña, Javier Peña Has a Big Dick, Smut, Fluff and Smut, Fluff, Neighbors,Javier might be a god? who knows!, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Porn with Feelings, Penis In Vagina Sex, Oral Sex, Creampie, Sex, Vaginal Sex, unprotected piv, Freyr, References to Norse Religion & Lore, Post Season 3

I'm obsessed with the way the challenge was interpreted. Is Javi a god? We don't know... but he sure fucks like one.

Some shit I wrote:

Make it Hurt - Logan Howlett x f!mutant!reader - sparring + pain kink

Morning Ride - Logan Howlett x f!reader - soft morning sex

You're So Dark - Dave York x f!reader - prof!Dave x student!Reader

[andreaheartscats]

Ellie Willams

->stressed out reader about school work. -> fluff i guess? no smut. ->roommate Ellie

a/n: helloo there beautiful people! i hope you like this little fic i came up with, please dont mind any bad grammer (if there is any..i hope theres not) english isnt my first laungage so yea. love u all!

Five hours. Youve been studying for five hours now, the tiredness and sleepeness was carching up to you at this point. But the stress was like no other.

It was the last semester and you had so many tests coming up from every possible direction. You were sure that your eyebags had eyebags now, if thats even possible.

The dask was filled with random papers, books from diffrent subjects and many of your mostly filled notebooks. While looking through the papers you had laid messily around your desk, a gentle knock was heard from your bedroom door.

"come in." as you said those words the door opend slowly and there stood Ellie, your roommate and your best friend....and the person you had feelings for.

For a momment Ellie just stood there leaning on the doorframe as she looked at you for some time and finally spoke up. "havent seen you much today." she seemd a bit upset as she said those words.

"sorry Els, im really busy with studying.." saying that, you let out little sigh as you take your reading glasses off to rub your temples in frustration. Ellie takes a notice of your messy desk. Your tired eyes and the empty cans of many diffrent energy drinks laying around your bedroom floor.

Her face frowns a bit as she sees you in this state, honestly feeling bad for you. She noticed how much work you put in school and how much you try.

She walks towards you and crouchs down infront of you while you sat comfortably in your chair. The sight of her this close to you set shivers up and down your spine.

"how 'bout you take a little break yea?"she said with a soft smile forming on her face. The idea didnt sound too bad.. i mean you were pretty tired and a little break couldnt hurt.

Without saying much you just nodded your head at her while giving her a tired smile. You both laugh a little and decide to go to your shared living room and watch some TV.

"alright, you just sit there and ill get you somethin' to snack on babe"

you plop yourself onto the comfortable couch you two bought. Babe. those words triggerd the butterflys in your stomach. Even if you two were just friends, you melted every time she used some kind of pet names.

After sometime, Ellie came back with a bowl of popcorns and some other snacks. She sat them on the table carefully and looked at you with a proud smile. As if a kid would look at their parents when they do something good.

You couldnt help but smile at her. She sat next to you and threw her hand over your shoulder which caught you off guard a bit but you didnt mind.

As Ellie scrolled through the list of series and movies, she looked at you from thr corner of her eye. "you know..i just wanna help you a bit to relax. Youve been working so hard lately."

Her words were so calming. You snuggle into her, your head falling on her shoulder as she traced a little circles on your upper arm. "thanks Els"

you mutter quietly but making sure she knew you were greatful for her and for the things she did. In response Ellie just hummed as she choose a movie.

For the first hour of the movie you enjoyed it. Ellies arm around you as she held you close to her while your head was comfortably laying on her shoulder.. But for the next hour of the movie Ellie heard little snors coming from below her.

She glanced down and noticed you fast asleep. Not daring to move even a inch, not wanting to wake you up from your peacful sleep, she just stayed there watching the rest of the movie untill she finally feel asleep too.

Honestly this might be the best sleep you ever had. Literally cuddling Ellie, "your best friend" , roommate and most importantly your fucking crush!

[theamityelf]

Hey! I love your descendants fic so fucking much I think I’ve read them all (The Worst Is Now The Victor is like one of my all time favorite fanfics of all time), I was wondering if you had any recs for fics like yours? Specifically sea three fics that don’t villainize the sea three? Thank you!

First of all, thank you so much!

As for recommendations:

Mysterious Fathoms Below, by MissKate. This one has a really broad focus on lots of the characters and locations and concepts, but as someone who pretty much refuses to read almost anything that doesn't heavily feature Uma, I was satisfied with how much emphasis she got. The storytelling and the magic are really the star of the show, for this fic. I think probably all of the fics on this list do a really great job of bringing canon Disney characters in who don't have an established role in the Descendants movies and doing great things with them. This one did a REALLY cool thing with the Disney princesses. I made a TV Tropes page for this fic, so if you read it, you can check that out and maybe add to it, if you want.

We'll Light the Fuse, by evanescentdream93 (@edream93 on Tumblr). After D2, Ben keeps his promise to give Uma a chance. Very fun fic, and it explores the characters and world in a way I really enjoy. The elements of it that I remember most are ones I don't want to spoil, so I encourage you to read it. It's discontinued after Chapter 21, but the author provides an outline for the rest. I also made a TV Tropes page for this one, so feel free to add to that.

Til the Storm Comes and the World is Quiet, by elphaba_swan (@kindofchaoticgood). Okay, so this one is BRUTAL towards Auradon in a way I really like. The inherent violence of the situation is really interrogated, but the story starts very shortly before things are about to change, so you're not just immersing in how bad things are, if that makes sense. It's cathartic. And focuses a lot on Uma and her crew and how much they love and care for each other. I had to check to see if I made a TV Tropes page for this one, and I guess I didn't. It deserves one, though!

Without Crowns, Without Borders, by StainedGlassSpecs (@stainedglassspecs). Okay, I remember this one for having great character moments. I think the plot is that Uma and Ben are trying to open a community center on the Isle. I remember really liking it a lot and obsessing over the minor details; highly recommend! And give the author some love, because I think I got too busy to keep reading this one, and I feel bad about that. Also deserves a TV Tropes page.

Something About Her, by generic_epiphany. I'll be honest, I remember this one being DARK, but also I was definitely subscribed to this one. As I recall, it's very Huma-centric but also rather anti-Audrey. So, you win some, you lose some. But it's a good time, if you can handle some grim subject matters. (I don't know how hard to endorse this one, because I don't remember how grim it gets. As I recall, it didn't go into too much detail, but it did establish some very unpleasant things about some of the characters' pasts.)

Compound Interest, by TrueColours (@trueishcolours). Huma-centric, Harry and Uma growing up together, I won't spoil it, but it's seriously, seriously great. One chapter, over 10,000 words, really good.

NocturnaIV (@nocturna-iv) has a bunch of fics; just go ahead and check those out.

Same deal with the-knight-of-the-stars (@the-knight-of-the-stars). In particular, Children of the Reign is a cool reimagining of the characters and premise.

[lilbrattyratty]

A Guide to Lewis Hamilton and Peter Bonnington

Recently I have been convincing people to become obsessed with whatever Lewis and Bono have so instead of repeating myself unnecessarily I have decided to make this handy dandy Bible guide to their journey together!

1. The Basics

Lewis and Bono have the longest running engineer and driver pairing in the history of the sport.

————————————

Sir Lewis Hamilton: if you don’t know who he is then I’m slightly surprised you are here but I am not here to judge. Sir Lewis Hamilton is a British F1 driver who has won 7 world championship titles with the Mercedes team! He’s a legend in the sport. He made his debut with McLaren in 2007 and has been with Mercedes since 2013.

Peter “Bono” Bonnington: Bono is senior race engineer for Mercedes. He has been race engineer since 2011 where he worked with other 7 time world champion Michael Schumacher. After Schumacher left Bono was paired with Lewis and they have been together ever since! He has been widely regarded as the most successful and most well known race engineer.

Note: for some reason there was a misconception going around that Bono was 10 years older than he really was. Let’s put this to rest: his birthday is 12 February 1975. Source

It’s Hammertime: maybe one of the most famous Lewis radio messages. Bono explains that during the years where radio messages were more strict they needed a code word to let Lewis know it was time to really go all out. So they suggested “put the hammer down” before it became “it’s hammertime”. Source (timestamp 18:17)

Austrian GP 2014: the very first Hammertime. Link

2. The Partnership

Out on track the race engineer is the critical link from the team in the garage to the driver. They must analyze all the data and determine what the driver needs to know without overwhelming them.

————————————

Platonic or romantic or brotherly no matter how you may view their relationship it has been stated many times by both of them that their relationship takes a lot of trust and open communication. They share a deep bond and connection that they feel is integral to their success.

In this interview you will find Lewis speaking about the depth of their trust and love for each other. Link

“It’s like a marriage, I guess.”

“There’s love, and real friendship, and loyalty.”

This interview is where Lewis speaks about the support that they show for each other. How he feels that they are always there for each other to bring out the best. Link

“I don’t know if I can do this for you…”

This interview where Lewis again talks about how much he loves Bono and how important their bond is to him. Link

“I think he is also one of the few people who can handle me on good and bad days.”

In this Instagram post you can read that Lewis is always thankful for Bono and recognizes that his success is thanks for many people but Bono in particular… Link

“Forever grateful for my guy Bono, blessed to have him by my side.”

Now Bono may be more media shy but he does have this interview where he talks about working with Lewis. Link

“He’s the rockstar and I’m the one in charge.”

Occasionally Bono will not be working with Lewis and you can see how awkward it is sometimes when you aren’t used to the replacement. Link

“That was a lot of information, I don’t understand what you just said.”

A moment when you can hear Lewis trying to calm Bono rather than the other way around. Link

The Egg: Bono brought an egg to the 2021 Brazil and Jeddah GP because Lewis loves the movie ‘Cool Runnings’ and it really inspired him when he was younger. In the movie they kiss their lucky egg. Source

Podiums: Bono has been on the podium a few times with Lewis and each one is super fun and special! A full list can be found here!

3. The Fandom

“I love Bono and I wouldn’t want to work with anyone else. Don’t write that I love him because I haven’t told him.” -Lewis Hamilton

————————————

Below I have compiled fic recs as well as just shippy moments from the two of them.

Notable Moments:

British GP 2014: Lewis wins his home GP and Bono tells him to “lap it up, boy”. Link

Austin GP 2015: who can forget the iconic hug? (pictured above) The way Bono leaps into his arms and he bounced him up and down… simply iconic. Video link of the hug

US GP 2018: Lewis tells Bono he’s not gonna go steady. Link

Russian GP 2019: Bono tries to hide behind the crowd but Lewis won’t let him. Link

ALSO at that same GP! They stared at each other from the podium in beautiful iconic cinematography… link

Abu Dhabi GP 2019: Lewis (and others) dump champagne on Bono’s head and make him very very wet… link

Lewis Hamilton and Valentino Rossi: Where Rossi asks Lewis if “this is your guy?” And Lewis replied “yeah.” Link (timestamp 2:39)

Mexico GP 2019: Lewis dedicated his win to Bono. Link

British GP 2024: Lewis tells Bono he loves him ❤️ Link

Also from that same GP, Lewis says he always feels safe with Bono Link

Notable Blogs:

@storm3326: creates wonderful Bono and Lewis fanart

@queerbenched: makes beautiful Bono and Lewis edits

@still-we-rise @teamroscoes @princemick @l8tof1 @husbono @flatspot: All post a lot of good Bono and Lewis content. I scrolled through a lot of their blogs a lot while making this post.

There are of course plenty of other wonderful blogs out there and I appreciate every single one of them.

Fic Recs:

This thing called us by Dutchiedragon Rated: Gen.

Summary: Brazil 2021 brought so many emotions, it left the Mercedes team completely burnt out. Lewis ends up alone in his hotelroom with a thousand thoughts running through his head, so he seeks out the one person who might bring him peace.

Or: Lewis needs help taking out his braids. Bono is there.

So long, longing by ohfrecklefreckle Rated: Mature.

Summary: Engineering is a dirty job but someone's got to do it. What happens when you're almost telepathic but still can't say what you need to?

The contours of things by The_Orange_one Rated: Mature.

Summary: Lewis belongs to so many people, but Bono mostly just belongs to Lewis.

Love in the major key by ambiguouspace Rated: Teen.

Summary: Bono, in particular, looks surprisingly alert tonight.

In fact, James notices, as his brain clicks out of analysis mode and into observation, he’s positively glowing. His eyes are bright, face a little flushed like he’s been working out. James looks down, catalogues the rest of his appearance. Bono’s t-shirt hangs slightly loose on him, nothing like the cut he normally favours, and the print on the front is unusual, an oversized image of something James can’t quite see but looks oddly familiar and—ah.

Lewis and Bono and the unsubtle art of workplace flirtation.

Lost in My Own Incidents by glasscushion Rated: Explicit.

Summary: “What do you need, Lewis? This bit I can do.”

“This,” he says, his eyes still closed. “Can we just stay like this?”

Lewis lifts one side of the blanket for Bono to take and he grabs a handful, laying it over his own lap, the wool heated from where it’s been resting against Lewis’ skin. The urge to reach out beneath, to soothe, to touch, is almost suffocating.

“Not a problem mate. No problem at all.”

Author’s Note: This is not a complete list and may be updated as they continue to be insane about each other!

[changenameno]

It’s been a long time…PART 1

(Complete, link to the second part down below ⬇️)

 Summary: Gus March-Phillips was gone for about four years. Leaving behind the one woman that he loves. He’s hoping against all hope that you’ve waited for him. Becoming more and more anxious as they pull into the harbour and you’re nowhere in sight… Did you grow tired of waiting? Have you found another in his absence?

Pairing: Gus March-Phillips x Fem. Reader

Warnings: cursing apart none whatsoever, just angsty yearning buut with a fluffy ending (smut/physical reunion in the second part, though Can Be Read As A Stand Alone)

Word count: 2.1K

A/N: Okay, guess who’s finally watched the movie yesterday? And loved every second of it?!!

As I’m always writing while listing to music, one song in particular inspired this (= One More Pull by The Wellermen, The Longest Johns!) Any mistakes are my own. Comments and reblogs are much appreciated. Thank you! Hope you’ll enjoy…❤️✨

 

! Neither the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare nor the OC’s like Gus are my creation. The parts of lyrics I worked into my story aren’t mine either!

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PART 1

 

A cold drizzle had started. Still he stood unmoving outside on deck, trying to look beyond the darkness. Trying to make out the harbour that would surely come into view any time now.

“Captain why don’t you come back in? Where it’s warm?”

Lassen’s booming voice mocked, “Pretty sure he’s got his eyes fixed on something special, am I right?”

Gus turned, not nearly as amused as he’d normally be at their banter. “Shut up. Go back inside.”

“Uh oh, sore spot? You’d think you’ve fallen…” Lassen’s mouth closed, upon seeing the angry, stormy Blues fixed on his face. He immediately knew he’d gone too far, trying to lighten the mood this way had not been one of his best ideas apparently.

“Just go back inside.”

At last Freddy and Lassen went inside, letting him be.

Usually he could take quip after quip from his men, without so much as pulling a face, but today wasn’t just any day. It was a day he’d promised you, would come way earlier than it did.

He’d assured you, he would only be gone for eight month. However that wasn’t the case, as their mission had been more complicated than they originally thought.

Now it’s been nearly four years, since he’d made that promise.

Growing anxious as more and more time went by, without hearing back from you. Gus and you had written a lot of letters, back and forth, yearning for each other. Telling the other of your day, sometimes even going as far as describing what you’d do once he’d be back.

Though his letters had become quite apologetic after ten long month, when there still wasn’t an end in sight for the mission.

After the third year, not being able to return to you, your letters had stopped altogether.

Making him sick with worry. Had something happened to you? Where you discovered? Tortured for information on him?

Or something else entirely…Had you found someone else? Someone who’d stay by your side? Someone that wouldn’t leave you alone for four years? Someone that wasn’t him?

Every time, those thoughts surfaced (which were often), he’d felt like Freddy. Just a burning desire to blow something up. Or to shoot whoever was responsible for the sudden stop of your writing.

Though he didn’t cease writing letters. They even got rather poetic at the end, because he was trying to impress you, wanting to let you know how much you mean to him. He simply couldn’t lose the only woman, he had ever loved. He will ever love.

 

The last one he’d written, was the one where he poured in everything he felt. The frustration at your silence. The hope you’d wait for him. The desperation. The deep, honest love he held for you… even the despair he’d felt for being away for so long. But now he finally headed home, to you. After all, you were his home.

 

This last letter of his, read something along the lines of:

 

// Dearheart,

I know I’ve promised to be back a long time ago. And I haven’t.

Regretting every second I’m not by your side. Though my love for you continues to grow stronger every day. My love for you, is both as calming as a sunny day near shore and as wracking as being in the middle of a storm on the high sea. Wave after wave of regret washing over me, threatening to drown me, because I’ve left you behind.

The despair I feel for having been away for so long, is shattering my heart, like a hammer would glass. Every splinter feels like it’s painfully piercing through my chest. More so, since you’ve been silent, every letter not returned, is a shard of my heart crumbling even further.

Now that I finally return to you, everything that’s left of my heart, may be just a fine powder. And like the untamed sea, you decide where to take the leftovers of said heart.

Will you drown the fragments like they haven’t been anything of value? Or will you carefully carry the particles of my heart through the storm, until they reach safe harbour?

For now the hope I feel is still somewhat able to sustain me. I know expecting you to wait, is not fair. That’s why I’m hoping. Because hope is the one thing that’s left, keeping my naïve heart beating, longing for you.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you. Will you be waiting when we dock in three days’ time, my love? Because soon we’ll draw closer and my journey will be done.

Yours to command, yours to love…

Gus //

 

 

Never before had he written anything like that, it was very unlike him. But he’d also never felt for someone like that before either, so he’d sent the letter. Again getting no answer.

 

Gus thought he was the most anxious when your letters had stopped, but right now as their ship approached harbour, his mind was beyond restless. The unease and dread he’d pushed down for months, creeping up just then, though making him stay frozen to the spot as his gaze was fixed on the lights that slowly came into view. Just when he thought he couldn’t take not knowing anymore, a huge paw landed on his shoulder.

“Here,” Lassen held out a spyglass, nodding at him to take it. In fact not just he had come out, his whole crew stood behind him, as if they were cheering for him.

Appleyard smirked; “Go on then, you surely can’t see without that.”

Gus shook his head, smiling though, he knew his men had his back no matter what. He took one deep breath then lifted the monocular to his eye.

Darkness, then he moved it back and forth until one of the houses on shore came into focus. From there he moved it until he saw a few smaller boats and then further to the right where he knew they’d dock. Where he hoped you’d wait.

There was nothing there, just three men sitting by the sea, probably drunk if their swaying was anything to go by. Not wanting to give up just yet, Gus moved the spyglass up, up, up, over the rooftops of the small town. Even further up into the mountains, where he knew your house sat, a little above the treeline. It seemed just as deserted as the dock, no lights, no nothing that’d point to the fact that you were awake or that’d you’d been waiting.

After one last desperate and frantic search of the harbour, he lowered his arms. You were nowhere to be found.

When he turned, all his men stared at him expectantly, which was the last straw, making him more furious than he’d thought possible. With an unnecessary violent shove, he barrelled the spyglass into Lassen’s chest with the words, “Not here.”

Bumping into Hayes, on his way inside the cabin, slamming the door shut behind him. His crew remained outside, unsure how to proceed. Gus grimaced. What had he been thinking? Why would someone like you, wait for someone like him? He was no prince, hell he wasn’t even a catch, so to speak. Angrily pacing up and down.

When he couldn’t take it anymore, he flung the door open again, growling, “What are you waiting for?! We are leaving!”

Bewildered at his aggressive outburst, Freddy carefully phrased his next sentence, “But…it’s dark. Maybe…”, he didn’t get to finish, as Gus seethed nearly screaming, “We are leaving! Now!” And with another slam, he disappeared back inside the cabin.

 

Gus tried to calm down. Closing his burning eyes, concentrating on his breathing and the footfalls of his men, getting the ship ready to turn around. Heart thumbing unnaturally fast within his ribcage. Forehead leaned against the door, then he heard it.

“Fuck. No WAIT!!”

He straightened, it couldn’t be? He strained to listen again, certain his mind was playing tricks on him. But that sweet voice? He didn’t have to wait long, when a second much louder curse could be heard.

“Arrrg you fucking ASSHOLE!!! WAIT!!! OI don’t you DARE LEAVE!! FUCKING STOP!”

Gus couldn’t help but grin, as he threw the door open.

He was greeted by Lassen’s smirk, “I think there’s something you might wanna see captain.”

Everybody stood by the railing, looking down into the water. He quickly made his way over, as well.

And there you were, seated in a tiny rowing boat all by yourself, angrily screaming up at him, shaking your fist.

“There you are. You SON OF A…”

All the happiness within was suddenly trying to bubble to the surface, seeing you down there. Not only had you waited, you rowed out onto the sea, alone, at night, to get to him faster.

He swiftly interrupted your rant, “Is that a way to greet your captain? Hey there, love. I’ve missed you, too.”

For a second you were too stunned to continue screaming. Then his deep timbre sounded again, “Well what are you waiting for, hoist the boat up, boys!”

This time around they gladly followed their captain’s orders immediately. Throwing ropes down, that you knotted around your small boat, so they could pull you up and swing you on board.

As soon as your feet touched the wooden blanks of his ship, you whirled around to glare at Gus, leaning against the railing. Sure you were beyond happy that he was back, but you were also furious that he had you waiting, for four fucking years. So you stormed over to where he stood, clearly expecting a hug, because his sturdy arms were already reaching for you.

Though instead, you began attacking him with your firsts, repeatedly punching his chest. Getting out all the despair, pain and agony you’ve stored inside you, all these years. And he let you, not moving an inch, even though it hurt. A lot.

You didn’t even notice the tears streaming down your face, that just added to the cold drizzle still coming down. After a few minutes placing hit after hit, you suddenly felt so exhausted, you simply slumped against him.

Then he put his arms around your shaking body, at last.

Embracing you as if he was afraid you’d disappear if he let go. You buried your face deeper into his chest, arms around his midsection, drawing him even closer.

One of his hands reached for your chin, tipping it upwards, so he could look at your face. His calloused thumb swiped over the soft skin of your cheek, wiping away the stray tears.

You couldn’t look away, you’ve never seen so many emotions swim in his Sapphires. If you weren’t mistaken, they even glistened with unshed tears, when he murmured, “I’ve truly missed you, dearheart.”

“And I you, so much. Just promise to never leave again. I couldn’t take that…”

His loving gaze roamed your face, “Never, I promise.” Then he leaned down, sealing his promise with a kiss. Your lips felt like heaven. Sweet and soft, moving in perfect harmony with his.

Unconsciously you softly hummed, making him smile against your lips. This in turn made you giggle, because his beard had tickled you.

“I love you.”

You replied, slightly biting you lip, “I love you, too.”

 

You two had been so caught up in each other, you had completely forgotten the others, surrounding you, until, “Aaargh, get a room…disgusting display of affection…”

Your head whipped around, looking at the biggest smirk on Lassen’s face as his voice had held no real bite. Gus only laughed in turn.

“Let’s get you inside. You must be freezing. And we still have to dock, don’t we boy’s?”

There was shuffling again, as they prepared the ship to take harbour. You weren’t really paying attention, you only had eyes for the handsome man that still embraced you tightly.

PART 2

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Taglist:

If you're interested in being on my taglist, please let me know! And if you want to be taken off (my taglist), feel free to tell me!❤️✨

[trainsinanime]

I sometimes reblog posts about US Americans being weird here, but honestly I don't love how angry or smug most of these posts are. It's just that angry and smug posts tend to get more traction, and so they get reblogged more, and so I tend to see them and reblog them myself. Hm, maybe there's a lesson for all of social media and for me in particular here.

Anyway, what I want out of these posts is not for any US Americans here to feel bad; it's just "funny" and perhaps, perhaps a tiny bit of consideration for how being US American means you experience the internet on easy mode.

This is not your personal fault. Nor is it ethically wrong. It's just a thing that exists, and it may be worth thinking about it.

Examples of that easy mode include:

It's your language. The vast majority of people on the internet need to know a second language to at least participate passively, let alone actively post. It's not just the internet; for e.g. my job, all documentation for all the tools is only in English, and I was required to listen to English lectures and write both my bachelor's and master's thesis in English, my second language, to pass. That's why e.g. posts about bilingualism tend to cause a bit of a discussion, because knowing a second language isn't a special skill but a necessary survival tool.

It is your world-wide culture. The list of most popular video games, TV shows, movies and songs tend to be fairly similar across the world (in particular the part of it we call it the western world, another discussion that I'll get into below), and they're dominated by the output of US media. There is no equivalent to e.g. Disney anywhere outside of the US.

It's your debates and discussions. Because of the huge importance the US has economically and culturally (not to mention militarily), we tend to discuss US topics a lot, and we tend to discuss them from an American point of view.

This introduces American oddities into a lot of the world. For example, I'm a STEM guy, I have a STEM education, a STEM job and my primary hobbies are also STEM based, so what I notice are imperial measurements like feet and inches. Those are not "one of two equally valid choices", they're the unique hobby of the English-speaking countries, and within them, increasingly only the US. But we still tend to see them here as if they were a normal usual thing, and often europeans (including me) feel compelled to provide translations into these units.

But it's not limited to that, court room dramas are another example where courts in the English-speaking world tend to work very differently from those in the rest of the world. E.g. there's no pleading guilty or innocent in most of the world. There are boundless more examples of that, and these things can be grating every once in a while.

As I said before, I don't think there's any moral value here either way. You're not wrong for being an American (but you're also not better because of it). As I hinted at before, I'm still in a very privileged position myself, being from a wealthy European country, and my culture even without Disney is still far closer to that of the US than it is to most of the rest of the world. I'm sitting in the very same glass house, just maybe a different corner (TODO fix this metaphor before posting).

For example, I'm talking about court rooms and inches versus meters, but if we're thinking about history and ethics, there's deep issues in both of them. When it comes to measurements, it's ultimately the question of whether you use the measurements of London or those of Paris. For most of the world it's a colonial imposition either way. You can make arguments for why one is better for technology than the other (and as you can probably guess, I have strong opinions here), but in the grand scheme of things, neither of them is more "ethical" or more "universal", not really anyway. Same with the way legal systems work, where again, countries either adopted (and more often than not were forced to adopt) either the English system or the French system (with quite a few countries choosing to adopt the German version of the French system as well).

I know that's a boring digression but it's something that's usually missing from these posts, especially ones written by europeans, including some I've written myself. I don't really have a conclusion to any of this either, except perhaps that this is something that's worth being aware of.

[littleskeletonprincessss]

Anniversary

Congratulations you all get a lil schlatt smut that my brain won't let go so i'm writing it so I can get enough sleep to go to church tomorrow. MDNI below the break!

Lol I thought about titling this 'blurb' but uh nvm i guess.

"Shut the fuck up, broad."

"Oh real original, Schlatt. That's all you can come up with? Dumbass. I know it's so terrible that I wanted you home at a decent hour on our goddamn anniversary!"

"You know what, you're on your own tonight. I'm going out where I won't be annoyed to shit."

Schlatt had slammed the door shut after grabbing his keys and jacket.

Schlatt had had a slight temper as long as you'd known him, and you were usually able to put up with it. You were usually the one to talk him down from his tantrums.

But tonight you were in a bad mood when he finally opened the front door after being at work all day. It was your anniversary, and not only had he done nothing to acknowledge it all day, not even a quick text, he was late for the dinner you'd spent all week learning and all afternoon cooking. You'd even told him that morning that you were making something special for dinner and to please not be late.

You knew how hard he worked to provide for your little family, and it's not that you weren't grateful, it was just less of a family without him and instead a pathetic lonely woman with her cats.

When he'd finally opened the front door, he'd walked in, stumbling over one of Jambo's toys that the tabby had dragged around all day wanting to play with you.

"Y/N what the fuck is this? I spend all day at work and you can't even bother to clean up?"

That's what had started the back and forth yelling match bringing you to your current place, sitting at the kitchen counter, picking at the meal you'd prepared, the spat chasing your appetite away, but not your thirst, which was evident by the emptying bottle of wine you'd opened.

You missed the Schlatt you dated before Youtube, Twitch, Chuckle Sandwich, Sleep Deprived, and the growing list of his companies. Before he was always so high strung and stretched this way and that. He'd come home, excited to sit down for dinner to tell you about his day. You two would move to the couch for a movie before eventually making your way to bed. You missed the simple, happy moments when you'd adopted Jambo, and then later when you'd adopted his brother.

You loved Schlatt, you really did. But did you deserve the attitude that he always seemed to have?

Deciding you'd had enough, you pushed your plate away and climbed the stairs to your bedroom. Opening the closet you reaching to the top shelf to pull down your suitcase, laying it on the bed and unzipping it to start filling it with anything you'd need for a temporary hotel stay.

While putting the last few items in, you heard the front door for the 3rd time that night. Schlatt didn't say anything, but you heard him hanging his jacket and walking to the kitchen before starting towards the stairs.

"Honey?"

You stayed silent, as you heard him move his way down the hall, his heavy footfalls signaling his every move.

Zipping your suitcase you lifted it off the bed and onto the floor as Schlatt stepped into the doorway.

"Baby, what are you doing?" he asked, eyeing the suitcase in your hand.

"I think we need some space, Schlatt. Obviously we're having some issues and I think it's best we spend some time away from each other."

"What? No. Sweetheart, please." Schlatt grabbed your wrist trying to pull you to him.

"Let me go, Schlatt."

"No, y/n. Please lets talk about this." Being as strong as he was, despite your resistance Schlatt was able to sit on the bed, pulling you into his lap.

Pushing off his lap, you opted for sitting next to him, crossing your arms and bringing your knees up.

"Baby i'm so sorry for earlier...It'd been a long day, and I know that's no excuse for yelling but I--"

Sighing, you uncrossed your arms slightly, leaning your head back against the headboard.

"It wasn't just that, Schlatt." you said, cutting him off. "I'm used to being your punching bag after work. Someone to vent you frustrations to. But what made it worse tonight was that tonight, of all nights, I asked you to be home on time for dinner. I thought I'd do something nice for our anniversary." You whispered sadly, your head falling to look at your lap.

"Shit, I forgot. Baby, I'm so so sorry." Schlatt brought an arm around your shoulders, leaning and pulling you to rest on him. He placed a gentle kiss to the top of your head. "Let me make it up to you? We can go downstairs, heat up dinner, pretend earlier never even happened. We can even watch one of those cheesy movies you like. Cuddle on the couch, just you, me and the boys. Huh? How's that sound?" You could hear the hope in his voice.

"Schlatt, I'm sorry. But I don't think i'm in the mood for any of that anymore."

Schlatt let out a defeated sigh. "Okay, baby. How about a bath? I'll make you up a nice one with candles, a bath bomb, nice warm water, a nice relaxing bath."

"I don't know, Schlatt-"

"Sugar, please. Let me try and fix this." Schlatt looked at you with the desperate puppy dog eyes, big and brown, he'd learned you couldn't resist over the course of your relationship.

Seeing those eyes made you almost forget why you were upset with him. Hearing his desperate pleas, and how much he wanted to set things right, this was the Schlatt you'd fallen in love with.

Giving in, you pull him into a kiss. Feeling his shoulders relax some, knowing he'd broken through the icy exterior you were giving him, he whimpered into your kiss, he wrapped one arm around your back, holding you close as he leaned more into the kiss, moving to lying you down, hovering over you.

As the wine you'd had earlier started to kick in, the kisses got less gentle, and the touches got a little less innocent, while the feelings of love, passion, sorrow, forgiveness, were all heightened. This was nowhere near your first time having sex with Schlatt, but few times before had it felt this way.

As you drew closer to your climax, you looked up at the man hovering over you, arms on either side of your head supporting the majority of his weight as the rest pressed deliciously against you, his hips snapping at a steady rhythm into you, soft grunts escaping his lips.

Threading your fingers through his dark curls, you pulled him into another kiss, one that your tried pouring your entire heart into. Every feeling, every thought you tried conveying through it. Schlatt did the same, as his thrusts sped up, pressing deeper into you, and you moaned into each others mouths as you came together.

Pressing his forehead against yours, grounding each other as you came down from your high, Schlatt pressed a chaste kiss to your lips.

"Please don't fucking scare me like that ever again, y/n. Please don't give up on me. Don't give up on us."

"Oh baby, I won't. I promise."

"I'm serious, Princess." Schlatt stated, looking into your eyes. "My love, you are the most important thing in my life and the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, bar none. If I ever lost you-" Schlatt choked out the last sentence, as he looked away.

"Schlatt, baby are you crying?" You whispered, bringing his face back to yours. He wasn't making eye contact with you anymore, but now that he was facing you, you were able to see the tears forming in his eyes. "Oh, handsome, come here." You cooed, pulling his head down towards you. Schlatt buried his face in your neck, and you could feel the hot tears he had been trying to hide, your fingertips trailing across his bare back as you comforted him, trying to calm the deep breaths he took as he cried into your neck.

"I love you, Schlatt." You whispered in his ear, once his sobs had quieted.

"I love you, y/n. So much."

A few minutes passed as you laid in each others warmth, soaking in the raw feelings hanging in the air.

"So about that bath.." You started, smiling feeling Schlatt grin into your shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. In a minute. I was at work all day you know and just went through some very extraneous activity."

[1moreff-creator]

how often was ace guessed as the ch2 culprit during the hiatus? i wasn't around for it so im a bit curious

Not very often, but he wasn't, like, the most unheard of. This Accirax poll from august had him in fourth, as well as this reduced cast Star poll, so he wasn't as "clear" as people like Charles, David, etc. Below the is the impression I got as someone who was only here for part of the hiatus, I didn't visit Tumblr very often after 2024 began up to the release of CH2 EP12.

Levi was by far the most common guess, as everyone and their mother called that Arei had his secret and that made him look suspicious from a meta sense. And Hu has this funny thing where her secret quote in the source code of her character page, "I want to pay for what I’ve done. But even then, I still want to live," is the most "blackened" thing in existence, so she'll probably never escape top guesses for culprit no matter what. Add in the ideas that Levi could have broken Arei's neck without rope (strength argument) and Hu's wire was in the Ace-Nico crime scene (many believed the culprit of both would have to be the same for one reason or another), and they were the two big picks across the general fandom. Especially for those not insane enough to do full murder theories and stuff.

J was also up there because of MonoTV's comment that the Movie Screening Room's wall connected to the playground, which many believed could mean there was a secret passage she could access with her Universal Remote, and that made her shady. Clearly the comment was just to give a general idea of the spatial disposition of the building and room, but I understand why many thought it would be more important than that.

Probably the funniest situation was Eden, though. Because the tape thing and lockdown reasoning (that only Teruko, Ace and Eden were in the room were the tape, used in the murder, disappeared) was something the theorizing fandom was very aware of. You know, that think that actually ended up pointing at the culprit? Yeah, we knew that. A lot of people argued against its importance, but we were aware of it at least.

In fact, the linked accirax post mentions "the 1moreff-creator/thebadjoe scripture" because (at least here on Tumblr) we were some of the biggest exponents of Eden!Culprit with our respective theories, and we both used the tape's disappearance as reasoning for it. Now, make no mistake, there were always plenty of people that thought Ace could have been the one to take the tape, and in fact I'm sure that could have certainly earned him some votes in the linked polls, but a lot of people that pointed to the tape believed that, based on the way the scene played out, only Eden could have taken it.

We were wrong.

Sorry about that, Eden :v I swear I would have picked Ace as the culprit if the scene made it a bit easier to believe he picked up the tape T_T

That said, if you looked hard enough, there were always people who guessed pretty much everyone as the blackened. From guessing that David could have manipulated someone into murder and he'd be the blackened (even then, the main guess for murderer in this case was Hu I believe), Whit because of the "hanging out" comment (and general Whit bullshittery), Arturo because he was one of the only people who we knew would have heard the Arei-Eden conversation referenced in the note, Rose as a bit of a wild card guess because of her lack of alibi at night, to Charles (somehow) because the handwriting in the note is strikingly similar to the handwriting in the custom weapons list. Hell, after LGI some thought David would replace Teruko as the protag, maybe there was some kind of Teruko!Culprit theory out there. We had a lot of fun :D

So, as a final answer, I'd say there were four big "tiers" of characters in terms of character suspicion. "Main Suspects," being Levi and Hu, "Popular Alternative Guesses" including J and Eden, "Some Guesses Here and There" including Rose, David, Whit, etc., and "No Shot" including things like Xander, Min, Arei, Teruko and possibly Charles. I would say Ace fell in the lower end of "Popular Alternative Guesses" tier, take that as you will.

Thanks for the ask! It was fun to reminisce!

[lifewithdavefarts]

DaveFarts - Episode 27 “Spicy Gas” [Episode List] Dave and Dana try to spice things up in their sexual life.

POV: Dave

Spicy Gas

Fuck, I’m freezing in this car.

It’s worth it though: I’m picking my girlfriend up from work and we’re going back to my place together. Tim (my bro and roommate) is out of town because of some needy client so, yeah, you know where this is going: a sexy, hot, movie night until we fall asleep on the couch.

When you’re past 30, this is considered a massive win.

It’s about 7:00 PM and I parked right where Dana asked me, in the mostly desert underground car park below the office building she works at. She works (usually overtime…) in a law firm and she’s as badass as she sounds; it’s a demanding job, though she’s up for it, as she told me many times without me asking and not in a nervous way at all. 

Yes, she sounds stressed, but I know her, she���s got it, I’m here if she needs to vent. Sometimes that’s all you need and if it’s not, well, we’re just gonna talk abou- why is this car so cold?!

I hope Dana’s on her way ‘cause if she’s not she’s gonna find his boyfriend dead of hypothermia. Before picking her up, I made a quick stop to a fast food nearby to get some french fries on the fly, because my body may be a temple, but it’s a crumbling one. But not even junk food raised my body temperature. 

This is how it ends, Dana, with your handsome boyfriend being murdered by this harsh, cold Winter in his own car, a coffin made of plastic and steel.

Truth is, I was bored and tired, so I was basically falling asleep, until I heard someone tapping on the car window right next to me. That made me jump, that always startle me for some reason… and she knows it very well, given the idiotic, beautiful smile on her face.

“Hey babe.” I said from inside the car, but she could barely hear me.

She walked around the vehicle and got inside, sitting on the passenger seat, next to me. We exchanged a quick peck on the lips and I then went for the keys to start the car.

“Wait, I need a moment.” Dana said, putting a hand on my shoulder.

She wasn’t mad nor sad, she just wanted to smoke a cigarette before leaving, all while she (as I said) vented about some co-worker acting like a bitch.

“‘Do not let Bennet know about it’ I told him and guess what he did?!”

“He… he told B-“

“He told her!” she had a puff of her cigarette. “Can you believe it? Now everyone knows we’re behind schedule because that idiot had to lick my boss’ ass.”

“Wow” I replied. I swear I’m listening, I’m just a bit on auto-pilot.

And freezing.

“And my boss… oh my boss, she got so mad, and rightfully so. We could handle the schedule, we do it all the time, but no! He had to rat us out like the kiss ass he is.”

“Is that him?” I said, casually glancing at some guy walking in the empty parking lot. “I can run him over if you want to.” I joked… and I hope she knows I’m joking.

“Yes, but don’t do anything, don’t move, don’t make any sound. He’s such a kiss ass that if he notices us he’ll come here to cha- I told you not to make a sound!” she said, almost laughing, as my enormous fart cut her off. 

Yes, one of my usual farts, powered by those fries I got earlier (not that I need any particular fuel to rip a good one).

You all know what I’m capable of, my bro Tim definitely does.

I hate how warm it felt compared to the sheer cold of the car. My girl is very familiar with all of my talents, including this one. 7 seconds and I was done.

“Are you done shitting yourself?” she politely asked.

I leaned towards her and we exchanged another quick peck, but me moving meant that the gas trapped under my ass now was free to pollute the entire car.

“I’m your pig, remember?” I whispered.

“I literally never called you that.”

“Really? Must have been one of my other girlfriends then.” I joked.

She playfully slapped my shoulder and I sat back in front of the steering wheel, ready to start the car.

“Wait.”

“Oh please can we go home? I’m freezing.” I lamented.

“Just a minute…” she looked at me amused, but thoughtful. “There’s something I’d like to talk you about.” she put out her cigarette and put it in the ashtray.

“You okay?”

“Sure.” she replied, calmly.

A few seconds of silence followed. I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel, waiting for her to say something.

“I actually… do like when you’re a pig.” she smiled, but still being serious and calm about it.

I gave her and inquisitive, amused look.

“Don’t judge me.” she noticed my expression.

“I’m not judging you babe.” I said. “It’s our thing, we’re very open about what we like.”

“I know… you’re awesome.”

“Of course I am.” I confirmed, with a smug smirk, fully knowing how annoying I am.

“And I, too, am awesome, thank you very much.” she added, giving me a funny scolding glare.

We laughed it off.

“So what’s up, babe?” I genuinely asked. “You know my kinks...” I leaned closer to her. “What’s your dirty secret, Mrs. D?” I whispered, trying to act cool and sexy, but all I got was another playful slap on my shoulder.

“It’s not… what you did like a minute ago.” she said, gesturing towards me.

“Oh you mean this?” I pretended to push one more fart out, but this time I actually had nothing brewing (incredible, huh?). I was amused by her reaction though. “Just kidding.” I quickly said.

She actually laughed at that.

“You’re so nice and it’s not that I like you being disgusting but… dammit, I admit that… sometimes… when we do our thing… maybe I’d like you being a bit more… dirty.”

I let out a surprisingly nervous cackle.

“That’s it? You want to spice things up?” I asked, reaching for my phone. “Because I’m pretty sure Google can give us some tips.”

She calmly but firmly extended her arm towards me. She grabbed my phone and threw it in the backseat. She then put her left hand on my jeans-clad right leg.

“If you’re cold, Mr. D” it was Dana’s turn to whisper. “I know just the way to warm you up.” 

That got me instantly aroused.

My girlfriend’s hand moved closer to my crotch, touching the tent I pitched between my legs.

“Oh… are you nervous?” she asked, gently caressing my boner, still in-character, whatever the character was.

I nodded.

Why did I nod? Am I an idiot?

With a deft movement, she untied my belt and her hand slipped right into my jeans and underwear, going straight for my hard cock.

As that happened, I let out a very short high-pitched scream, not because I wasn’t used to this, but because Dana’s hand was way colder than I was expecting. She broke character to laugh a bit at my very manly scream, then quickly went back into this femme fatale persona she was impersonating.

I was sweating.

But then I realized...

“Wait… r-right here?” I stuttered.

“Are you scared, Mr. D?” she asked. “Are you… too much of a nice guy for this?”

The fuck I am. 

I grabbed her head and kissed her, her tongue going down my throat as she wrapped her cold fingers around my warm, throbbing cock. 

I don’t know what was going down there… I mean I do know obviously, but the way Dana was moving her hand and fingers this time almost made me cum on the spot. She did in fact spice things up, so I guess I could do was return the favour... in my own personal way.

I sat back normally and spread my legs wide, my cock still being massaged, and ripped a loud, vibrating fart, a loud blast that made the entire vehicle shake. A quick 5 seconds rip which, weirdly enough, made Dana moan as she listened to it.

“You’re such a pig.” she scolded me, now literally strangling my cock, so much so that that I actually felt a bit of pain.

And I was loving the fuck out of that.

I saw a car passing by but the thought of them noticing us only made me harder.

I then ripped another big fart, because I’m the master of this shit. I could feel the vibrations of this one even on Dana’s hand as she jerked me off, something that she seemed to enjoy.

All of this was disgusting and yet we found it hot as fuck.

My girlfriend was as thirsty I was and finally managed to pull my cock out of my jeans.

“Oh there it is.” she said, leaning down to give it a quick lick. "Let me have it."

Not the first time we do this stuff obviously, but dammit that one move was indeed a dirty one. Pre-cum dripped down from the tip of my penis as I ripped another monstrous fart, the warm gas fogging up the car's windows. I was hot-boxing that whole place and my girlfriend didn’t care; instead she once again slipped her tongue down my throat.

“Time to sleep, pig.” she then whispered right into my hear, right before biting it.

After that, she strongly tightened her grip on my cock and then twisted it. I clenched my teeth as that happened, but the arousal that it gave me was insane.

That final move made me cum, a white fountain appearing between my legs as Dana bit my ear again. 

That was quick… for my standards at least, but she didn’t seem to mind at all. Actually, she was a sweaty mess herself. She licked her lips and gave me a quick peck on my own.

“Try finding that on Google.” she said, as she sat back on her passenger seat.

As if the spirit of some femme fatale left her body, she turned to me and smiled, opening the car window by her side, now realizing how terrible my gas was.

“Yeah, fuck Google, ammirite?” literally the most unsexy thing I could have said.

She handed me some napkins to clean the mess. And a cigarette, which we shared.

“Still cold?” Dana asked me, once again giving me a certain look.

I started the car in response, then I turned to her, looking straight into her brown eyes. 

I let out a loud, muffled fart that shook the seat, narrowing my eyes as I pushed it out. It was warm, it was vibrating through my jeans-clad ass. I winked at my girlfriend as the thunder kept going, something that she, against all odds, seemed to appreciate.

12 seconds, then my ass went silent.

“Are you?” I asked back to her, with a smirk.

The End

[ghostbustermelanieking]

i've never really considered myself a theater kid (mostly because i've never involved myself in productions outside of like elementary school) but this is an inaccurate self evaluation, i think. anyways, i coincidentally got to see wicked twice onstage (once on broadway), and the constant bombardment of advertisements led me to see the movie last night. and i had a surprising amount of thoughts! below the cut, bc there are some spoilers (for the movie and for both halves of the musical)

i should start by saying that i really did enjoy this adaptation a lot, way more than i would have guessed months or years ago, and that's pretty cool. in my mind, the extended run time works to flesh out some things that felt rushed in the original musical, and just to build the world more, and i really enjoy it. in some ways, i think this movie is closer to what little kid me was envisioning when i read the wikipedia synopsis

i frickin loved the shout outs to the original wizard of oz, like the title plates (which i MISSED the opening title but i've seen pics), or the bike elphaba rides, etc. i've probably missed a lot from this story bc i've only ever seen these characters as vague shapes through nosebleed seats, but listening to the soundtrack before going to see the movie helped me pick up on a lot of easter eggs in the lyrics i'd either forgotten or never noticed (holy fuck the wizard and i kills me 😭)

my favorite song from this musical since i saw it in 2019 has been what is this feeling, i don't know why i ever doubted myself

i love how they did the green elixir part of the opening song, but i'm shocked spotify just like. put jeff goldblum's name in the track listing, like we're not supposed to know that yet. they went through the trouble of only releasing half the soundtrack for lack of spoilers, but then they spoil elphaba's father in the credits??

this was basically me internally the entire fucking movie

in every fucking scene, but particularly when they hold hands, and when elphaba yells let her go its me you want! during defying gravity, and the fucking dance scene ahhhghgdhgh

obviously i ship the hell out of elphaba/glinda, it's so obvious, but i do admittedly have a real soft spot for fiyero/elphaba. i vibe with it, particularly the way they frame it in this movie

the solution is a three way

admittedly glinda is an interesting and frustrating character, and i'm curious to see how i'll feel seeing part 2. my memories of the stage musical are so fuzzy bc it's been years. i feel like i'm consistently so frustrated with glinda's limitations when it comes to elphaba and her cause, and i know that opening scene is her acting, for a reason, but it leaves a weird taste in my mouth without the second half to wrap it up. perhaps that is the point?

i really can only kind of remember the stage version -- there's like certain moments that pop out to scratch my brain every now and then, but also probably a lot i forget. the movie helps to pad out the story and make parts of the musical feel less rushed -- more on that later -- but there's some things i'm uncertain as to whether or not they're additions; can any fans of the stage production help me out?

i'm 90% sure elphaba not being intended to stay at the school is something they added (i love that explanation as to why she and nessa were starting at the same time), but i'm not positive

i also feel like that first scene of glinda and elphaba in the room was an addition, but also unsure?

the scene where fiyero runs into elphaba in the forest?

did elphaba get glinda in with morrible in the original musical or did the movie add that?

i know the oz history segue in one short day is an addition, but where did they discuss the grimmerie in the original musical? i do not remember its introduction

i feel like the guards going after glinda and elphaba saying it's me it's me is an addition, but i can't be sure (part of me hopes it is, because in my heart it's a tribute to sarah fier, but it probably isn't)

most of the additions were excellent. i loved the setting switch to a secret animal meeting in something bad. i love the addition of the bear nanny to elphaba's backstory. i love that they actually include a chase scene before defying gravity, bc i cannot for the life of me fill in how elphaba gets to sing defying gravity in the stage production

also i've seen other people scream about the choice to have elphaba fall and take her childhood self's hand before she flies, but i'll add to it. i fucking loved that

now for the things i wasn't as big a fan of

some of the song/montage sequences went on for what felt like way too long for me. particularly defying gravity (i hate to say it, but my god, i was like lmfao how have the guards not caught them??) i love most of the sequence and i'm not even sure where the cuts would be made, but i've seen someone joke that the last song played for like 30 minutes and that is kind of what it felt like

the idina/kristen cameo (ALSO spoiled by spotify!!) made me smile so much, buuut it did feel like their moment dragged on a little too long. and this is a stupid thing to complain about, since it's in every fucking trailer, but i wish idina hadn't done the little defying gravity moment because it felt like taking away from cynthia's moment at the end, at least in my mind

like maybe it would've worked if they'd made the joke in the 2nd part? idk

even though the length is not an issue to me, i do wonder why we didn't get more time in the middle part where elphaba and glinda are just close friends. it feels like everything between popular and the train scene was more focused on fiyero and the girls, which like... it's important, for sure, but i was hoping the run time would add just some more meat to the friendship (like i'm fully invested ofc but there's a little voice inside me going "shit, this is a big turn around; i need more of this and the why." like that little moment before popular where elphaba flinches away and doesn't want to be vulnerable? her stepping away when glinda calls her beautiful at the end of popular? i wanted a little more of that lonely girl uncertainty)

i am still surprised i had this many thoughts, but what are you gonna do? i really enjoyed the movie and a year is too long

[splathousefiction]

I have been in the creative field since I was 18. While I am most popularly known for my work here at Splathouse, "Jack The Warlock" isn't the only face I've worn in the 16 years I've been making things in a professional space.

In no particular order, a (in)complete list of projects I either created myself or have been a part of is below the jump. Details at this time will be kept vague. You are welcome to make your guesses and DM/Comment down below. If you get it right, I'll tell you.

An actual hard-copy account with my complete involvement along with website addresses, email accounts and passwords is currently within my safe in my own hand writing. It's to be scanned and made public upon my death, serving as (if nothing else) a testament to "try everything".

I started an absurdist magician sect. I was originally inspired by chaos magic theory, but sought to refine their ideals. As such, it takes the element of the concept of belief itself as a malleable thing that can shape the world without ever being spoken or made physical via ritual work. "If you think it, it can happen"-be that in the ego or the id. The sect is still operating internationally today and has over 100 members. We're small, but we're there. None of the members have ever met me or have any idea who I am.

I've published two short-horror collections as a female author in her forties. They were released for free and are pretty openly available almost everywhere you can pirate books. The books are incredibly popular with queers, with booktok most notably covering them pretty hotly for a month. None of my readers have absolutely any idea I am behind both collections and still send emails (without hope of ever getting a response) today. Many assume I'm dead.

I released an experimental dark fantasy hip-hop EP that was inspired by this album by Earl Sweatshirt and MF DOOM. It's a five track album that totals in at 21 minutes. Much like the horror anthology collection above, each track can be enjoyed by itself, but when played in sequential order tells a Berserk-like story. The album took six months of my life and features encoded secret messages in the audio, with the "lore" being that it's a form of sigil magic. To date, it is the most popular audio project I have ever recorded and vastly surpasses anything I have ever made for Splathouse. Absolutely no one knows that the vocals, the producer and the song writer are one guy, nor do they know it's me. They've been waiting for a follow up EP for years. I will never release another one.

I have been a writer and creative director for several ARGs. One of which was a darling of the early days of Youtube Explainer videos. The project "concluded" because I was intensely disgusted by the growing cottage industry of "curators" destroying the mystery of such things. As they still do this and have careers directly profiting off the creative works of others, I see no need to join such a project ever again. Absolutely no one involved in the projects had any idea who I am, and the projects I started myself have never once been connected back to me.

I've co-wrote several webcomics. One or two of which gained middling popularity. No one working on these projects has absolutely any idea as to who I am or my larger sphere of work. I left the field because of audience treatment of webcomic creators.

I've had original artwork I created featured in multiple gallery showings that highlighted "abstract" and "outsider" art, back when I still enjoyed doing artwork. Anything you find by me on deviant art in the "Splathouse" era was me attempting to wrap my head around digital art; my neuro divergency prefers physical mediums. Every single one of these submissions was under a different name chosen at random.

I've acted in precisely two indy movies under a popular name used by directors who don't want their names attached to projects. Film buffs know the one. I was the lead character in one and the side character in another. The films are connected, but aren't sequels, a series, nor is there a prequel involved. The films were highly experimental and shot in the "guerilla"/"Gonzo" tradition. They went through the indy circuit and won [insert number of awards here]. I wasn't compensated nor were the films profitable. We didn't care and I haven't spoken with anyone from the cast since, who simply asked for a name and nothing more. Some of them are still in the industry. One of them is a reasonably successful B-movie director now.

I've created several text adventure games. Most people are familiar with the Splathouse ones, which released in the early 2010s. What they aren't familiar with are the ones I released on itchio under an different name with a disposable email address. The games were reasonably popular with that niche sector of the gaming community, and still get regularly recommended.

There's more I could add to this, but I feel I'm done for now. It's late, I've work in the morning.

If you've made it this far in the list and you're still curious-no, you aren't going to get me to tell you any details about any of these projects. Even my best friends couldn't get that out of me. If you're curious as to why I did literally any of this, the reason is two fold:

Because I could.

why not?

[farshootingstar]

The silliest boy is finally done and we finally get a cover of a guy without creepy eyes going on. I thought I would get some sleep before finishing this cover and stuff, but my body said no and Bear (my cat) is judging me hard over it.

Here's Kadsey's playlist for all the Main Squeezies! I'm not going to lie, this particular playlist is a weird one and I won't blame anyone for questioning my tastes here. I did what I could and certain biases are showing. You'll definitely notice I feel a stronger need to explain myself on this playlist, so buckle in for the long haul if you want to understand these weird choices I've made.

When I saw dubstep was listed as a favorite genre of Kadsey's (complete with a pic of Skrillex), I knew without question what the first song would be. It just had to be Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites by Skrillex.

The second song, the one that tends to be more about character vibes, sort of is and isn't when it comes to Kadsey. I gave him the song Spoiled little brat by underscores, since I liked the hyperpop vibe of it and that it definitely has references to e-celeb culture. Also, I can't help clowning on Kadsey just a little bit because of certain events in REBOOT (well, one specific one, but no spoilers in this section). Incredibly, I think this is the first song in one of the playlists to mention taking a picture. Took long enough! :p

Spoiler cut below, as usual.

The next couple of songs are some bangers to dance to. Also, the starting example of my Jamiroquai bias, since I think Kadsey would also like some acid jazz on occasion. Yeah, though: Canned Heat, Eat Sleep Dance, and Move Your Feet are all a ton of fun. I particularly have fond memories of Move Your Feet as a song I would sometimes play on Dance Dance Revolution.

One of the distinctly odd ones is next and I absolutely feel like I need to justify myself on why I put the song Skiptracing by Mild High Club in here. It's very chill, so I think it makes a good breather in general, but also I couldn't help thinking of this song for Kadsey chilling with Ashton. Don't know why I get that mental image, but I feel like this song could fit for Kadsey realizing he loves the guy. Is that kind of weird? I mentally debated over this inclusion for a while, but ultimately put it in the playlist. I can just sort of imagine they were hanging out, generally vibing, and Kadsey had a spark of realization. Also, it's interesting that the song is called Skiptracing when there's no actual mention of skiptracing to be had (skiptracing is basically tracking down someone's whereabouts, particularly when it's someone on the run, if I recall right). I guess I should trust my instincts, since I picked up on the crush in the first game but brushed it off by thinking that was stupidly presumptuous. Clearly, I was Boo-Boo the Fool all along. The next song, Mine by Slayyyter, kind of piggybacks off of that crush aspect I mentioned.

Since I kind of think the crush stuff in general probably started before the whole "discovering the code" business, I put in Virtual Insanity next to somewhat cover that event. I don't think Kadsey would feel so condemning towards the whole thing- since he was always more moderate with messing with the code for pranks and so just saw it as a little fun- but things do start going downhill sometime after that. It doesn't seem to right away, though, so I tossed in Bangarang next for some extra fun.

Digital Love and Meet Her at the Loveparade are the selections kind of around where things start going wrong and the player makes an entrance. I feel like Digital Love can be especially apt for Kadsey's awkward position in the weird love polygon going on, since he has an unrequited crush on Ashton, Ashino has an unrequited crush on Kadsey, and how the player feels can be a bit of a mystery (personally, I'm cool with being Main Squeezie Numero Dos). On a side note, I recommend checking out Interstella 5555 (an anime movie/music video that was made for Daft Punk's Discovery album, which Digital Love is from). And hey, Meet Her at the Loveparade is our second Radio Edit version song and instrumental track in the playlists, two things that both showed up in Ashton's playlist previously. Does it mean anything? No, but it's kind of fun to note.

I'll admit, when I saw there was a Skrillex Remix of the song SICKO MODE, I was just like "YES" and slapped it in. I just think it's neat. The energy kind of fits in around the time Ashton starts murking everyone and leads us into a strange little choice...

Yes, I did put in an EDM cover of Total Eclipse of the Heart in this playlist. Consider it my own little jape.

The next one has a title and artist name that I can't type at all. I mean, just look at the playlist. That's a nightmare to puzzle out. Anyway, it's an atmospheric song I chose for when Kadsey's stuck out in the void that is the recycle bin after Ashton got the drop on him in the first game. Poor guy had a really bad time.

Luckily, he at least gets back out of that particular situation soon enough, leading us to World's end Rhapsody and Hysterical Us. Little side trivia, but I decided to try looking up what lyrics were in World's end Rhapsody and what I found didn't look like what I was hearing, so I carefully listened to it for a while and I think it changes part of the way through and people tend not to notice because of how repetitive it is. It sounds like it starts as "Check it out, baby. You're gonna find, that I love you." and changes after the instrumental break to "Oh, baby. (Don't tease me.) Check it out, baby. You don't know why, I love you." and then back again. I found that interesting and I'll fully admit I put this song in because I really miss Nujabes (gone too soon). I feel like Hysterical Us is a bit more straightforward in terms of being "Wow, that was terrible and we're all kind of traumatized, huh?"

D.A.N.C.E. is when we start getting into more stuff to dance to, though I can never shake the feeling that this song sounds a bit desperate. Hence it being in the general area it is.

Give Me Back My Man- Party Mix is another one I knew I'd have to include. I always had a feeling I'd stick in a B-52's song somewhere, though I could totally imagine someone predicting something like Love Shack, Rock Lobster, or maybe something like Your Own Private Idaho. Nope, though. When I saw there was a Party Mix of a song as tragic as Give Me Back My Man, I knew it would be the pick. Also, I like the slightly more aggressive guitar in this version. Fortunately, Kadsey's not stuck with futile efforts in the search of someone lost and very likely dead (the song heavily hints that the man in question is at the bottom of the sea), so there's more coming.

Next up is Space Cowboy both because I wanted something chill but fun and also because it's totally a weed anthem. I headcanon that Kadsey occasionally tries a little and I will hear nothing to the contrary. Skiptracing also had one little mention of marijuana in it. I guess we can also take the whole song being about the return of the space cowboy to also potentially reference getting Ashton back, especially with the line "Everything is good, oh, and green. Say, I'm red again." Come on, it may be a weed reference, but it also fits.

And, if we need something more straightforward, then there's About Damn Time. I really wanted a happy song in there about getting through some shit and this felt right. We could all use some more Lizzo positivity, please and thanks.

Last of my Jamiroquai bias shows up with the song Seven Sunny Days in June, the other song regarding Kadsey's crush. They've been friends too long for it to be a thing, but it is some closure. Also, I just realized that so far, Kadsey has the most songs with references to drinking. That's kind of funny since, in an answer to a fan question on everyone's favorite alcoholic drinks, it's pointed out that Kadsey has been banned from drinking by the entire group.

Next up is Sandstorm and DARE, both as a fun little treat. Besides, if you're going to have EDM in a playlist, then Sandstorm is one of the most obvious picks to go for. I am not immune to the practical meme that is Darude Sandstorm.

Interestingly enough, Skiptracing has a very short and even softer cover by Luna Li called skiptracing lullaby and I decided to stick that in at the end as a fun reprise. Never really had the opportunity to put in some form of reprise in the playlists. So far, what happens at the end of REBOOT is still unknown, but I really hope things turn alright for Kadsey. That dude's been through a lot.

Next up will be Vincent and, surprisingly, I have even more to say on that one since several songs are classical pieces.

[spooniechef]

Lamb Dopiaza (1 spoon)

Curry’s one of those dishes that always seems very complicated. There are a lot of ingredients - something that’s easy to tell just because of the sheer vibrancy and complexity of the flavour profile in a good curry - and it’s easy to wind up thinking that it’s not a thing that would be easy to do at home. However, with inflation racking up the price of basically everything, ordering a takeout or eating in a restaurant isn’t a luxury a lot of people feel they can afford, myself included. So I went looking up recipes for a couple of my favourite Indian dishes, and discovered that most curries, at least, are as easy to make as the average stew. Honestly, that’s all a curry is at the end of the day - stew with a very different flavour profile.

Lamb dopiaza is my favourite, and apparently there are as many ways to make it as there are people, because there were a lot of recipes when I looked. I picked out two - from Fatima Cooks and Sprinkles and Sprouts respectively - but couldn’t decide between them. So instead, I picked what I thought would be the best from both, and added a couple of variations of my own. So the recipe’s more or less my own, I guess? And honestly, it needs very little in the way of notes about how to make it easier because it really doesn’t get any easier than this. Not to cook, anyway. There will be some notes after, but that’s on making the cleanup easier. Not a lot of chopping, very little stirring, but a lot of measuring spoons.

Here’s what you’ll need:

About 1.75lb (800g) diced lamb (use shoulder; see notes below)

12 cloves garlic, finely diced

5 onions, chopped into eighths

4 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon tomato puree

1.5 teaspoons ginger-garlic paste

2 teaspoons coriander

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

1 teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon peppercorns

1 stick cinnamon

0.5 teaspoon clove

0.5 teaspoon turmeric

0.5 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 black cardamom pods

3 green cardamom pods

Sounds like a lot, I know, but it gets way easier from here. You want to use lamb shoulder because this will be cooked a long time and a more tender meat will make it fall apart. Mutton can also be used, as can beef (skirt or shin), but probably best not to use chicken without seriously modifying the recipe or at least the cooking time, since it will turn to mush.

Here’s what you do:

Throw everything on the above list into a big pot with about a half-cup of water.

Cover and simmer on low heat for 1.5 hours, stirring once or twice.

Remove cover and simmer on high heat for about a half-hour to boil off some of the excess liquid.

Serve.

That is literally it. You cut a lot of onions into eighths, chuck a significant amount of garlic into a mandoline with a “finely diced” attachment on it (or just cut them very fine, if you don’t have one; I still heartily recommend one), dump that into a pot with some lamb and a bit of water, measure in your spices, and then you turn it on low heat and go sit on the sofa and watch a movie, more or less. I stirred the whole thing maybe twice and I probably didn’t even have to do that. It is the easiest thing in the world ... except for the clean-up.

There’s going to be a lot of debris with this dish, mostly in the form of onion and garlic skins. Easiest way to deal with that, if you bought pre-packaged meat from the grocery store, is to set aside the containers and use those as interim garbage cans. This is also helpful for the paper towels used in the next two hints. It’s a useful tip in general; this way, all the detritus is contained in one place and only requires one trip to the garbage can.

A lot of these use teaspoon and half-teaspoon measurements, and most people only have the one set of measuring spoons. I got around this by wiping the spoons down after each use, and saved the ginger-garlic paste for last. That way I was mostly only wiping away dry ingredients, which are easier to just brush off, until I could just dump the half-teaspoon I was using into the washing-up bucket.

Chopping five onions can be a painful prospect with the burning, watering eyes. If that starts getting too painful, or if you’re tearing up too much to see, just wet a couple of paper towels in cold water and hold them against each eye for a minute. That’ll help the burning.

Keep a small plate on hand as a place to rest your stirring spoon between stirs, and wipe up any spills immediately. Curry - turmeric specifically - leaves a bright yellow stain that’s very hard to shift, so it’s best to clean things up as soon as possible so a stain doesn’t have time to set.

I’m really glad I tried this one. It’s delicious, it’s easy, it makes lots of leftovers, and I get to have one of my restaurant favourites at home more or less whenever I want. Plus if my experiments are any indication, there’s a lot of wiggle room with the spicing, so don’t be afraid to add a bit more of something or make some substitutions if that ends up more to your taste. Like any stew, it’s really forgiving.

[the-rewatch-rewind]

Another special guest episode!

Transcript below the break

Jane

Hello and welcome back to The Rewatch Rewind! My name is Jane, and this is the podcast where I count down my top 40 most frequently rewatched movies in a 20-year period. Today I’m going to be discussing number 21 on my list: Disney’s 2007 fantasy comedy Enchanted, directed by Kevin Lima, written by Bill Kelly, and starring Amy Adams, James Marsden, and Patrick Dempsey.

In the mystical, animated land of Andalasia lives a fair young maiden named Giselle (Amy Adams). She finally meets her dream prince Edward (James Marsden), and seems destined for the happily ever after she’s been wishing for, but there’s a complication: Edward’s power-hungry stepmother, Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon), will lose her throne when he marries. Refusing to let that happen, Narissa pushes Giselle through a portal to the live-action New York City, where she runs into divorce lawyer and single father Robert (Patrick Dempsey). Robert doesn’t quite know what to make of Giselle at first, but as they become better acquainted the two very different people start to care for and learn from each other.

This episode I will be joined by my dear friend Sophie Lesher, who made the art for this podcast and is also an enthusiastic Enchanted fan, so I knew I needed to have her on to talk about it with me, and we had a very fun conversation about this movie and Disney movies in general. But first I’ll give you the breakdown of when I watched this movie, since I tend to forget to do that when I have guests. Obviously Enchanted wasn’t out yet when I started keeping track, so I know I hadn’t seen it before 2007, when I saw it once, then four times in 2008, twice in 2009, once in 2010, twice in 2011, twice in 2012, once in 2014, 2015, and 2016, and once in each year from 2019 through 2022. It is perhaps a surprisingly romantic movie for my aromantic self to have seen 19 times, but it’s so entertaining and well done that the emphasis on romance doesn’t really bother me. So without further ado, let’s talk about it!

Hi, Sophie!

Sophie 

Hi, Jane! 

Jane 

I'm so excited to have you.

Sophie

Thank you!

Jane

Not only did you make the wonderful podcast art, but you also came up with the name for this podcast. 

Sophie 

That is true. 

Jane 

So it is wonderful to have you on The Rewatch Rewind.

Sophie 

Thank you for having me. I assume that you asked me to talk about this movie in particular because I am a princess. 

Jane 

Yes. You are the most princessy person I know. 

Sophie 

It's funny because my partner, who has asked that I mentioned them in this podcast, was telling me last night when we were watching this movie that she thinks I'm the closest thing to a Disney Princess she knows which obviously she's biased, but I do have a certain kinship with Disney princesses, and Giselle is probably… Is she the first live action one? 

Jane 

Well, I mean, do we count Mia Thermopolis? 

Sophie 

Well, true, she is Disney and she is a Princess. But I don't know if she's a Disney Princess because she doesn't sing and she doesn't have a talking animal companion. Unfortunately, Fat Louie does not say anything. He gives sass. I will give him that, but he doesn't communicate verbally his feelings, but yeah, I think there has to be like a musical component to it as well.

Jane

Yeah, that's fair.

Sophie

I don't know, there's like a list of requirements. They also have to like, I guess technically she saves Genovia. Because she doesn't abdicate her throne. 

Jane 

Yeah, she saves… saves it from the… the Baroness and Baron. Who just wanted to be on a postage stamp.

Sophie 

The the postage stamp! Yeah! 

Jane 

OK. But we're here to talk about Enchanted.

Sophie

Yes.

Jane

Which came out… six years after Princess Diaries, I think?

Sophie

Mm-hmm!

Jane

So I remember that I saw Enchanted in theaters twice.

Sophie

Oh! Lovely.

Jane

And the first time I was like, this is amazing, but also kind of sad because it was like exactly the kind of thing that I would have wanted to write if I was going to write a movie. And I was like. Oh dang it, they already did this.

Sophie

Ugh, I hear you!

Jane

Because it's just such a perfect combination of, like all the things that were great about particularly the Renaissance…

Sophie

Right

Jane

…Princess movies and the like, classic Princess movies and just sort of with a modern twist, and that was… it was everything I wanted from a movie. 

Sophie 

It's funny because I was thinking, and I wrote this in my notes, I like that it takes what was kind of funny about movies like Shrek in the like tongue in cheek. We're like, you know, turning the classic Princess story on its head a little bit and like poking a little bit of fun, but not in a mean way. What I think- I don't particularly like Shrek, but its downfall to me is that it it gets a little mean. Like you know, you're stupid for liking these fairy tale stories, and I think Enchanted does so nicely the like making jokes, making references but also being like fairy tales are great and it's OK to believe in happy endings. And one thing that Giselle teaches the characters in the movie – Morgan doesn't really need this education because she she's already a believer. But she makes a good point of being like it's, you know, it's OK to live in reality and have hard times, but you can also believe in happy ever after and dreaming. And you know, there's things to hope for. 

Jane 

Yeah, yeah, very much so. I think that the thing that makes Enchanted so great is that it's like sort of making fun of the tropes and turning things on their head, but in a very loving way.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

It's very like, we love these stories, here's a way we can kind of mess with them a little bit. But still like-

Sophie

Yes.

Jane

Yeah, they're still great. So that's what makes it great. I mean, we could just end the podcast here. But anyway, so how did you get introduced to it? Because I just thought with my family the first time. I remember my uncle was there the second time I saw in theaters. 

Sophie 

Oh, that's nice. Yeah, if I remember correctly, this is a movie that my parents saw without me, and I'm not sure exactly how this happened because my parents are not Disney people and they're certainly not really musical people, although my dad did musicals in high school, but they saw it probably because, like Amy Adams was in it and, you know, they're fans of actors. And they were like, oh, this is great. This is something that Sophie would love. And then I was like, absolutely not. I'm never going to see it because this is something that my parents recommended to me. And people who know me know that I've talked about my parents… did not have the best track record of introducing movies to me. There were several movies they showed me that either were very much not my style or I was too young for, so I'm not sure exactly when I decided that I was gonna bite the bullet and see this movie, but I didn't see it when it first came out. But it is everything that I love. It's a musical. It's funny, it's very sweet. It's got the family element to it. So yeah, when I eventually did see it, I loved it, but I haven't seen it very many times because I came into it sort of late. 

Jane 

Yeah, that's fair. I I still can't believe it's… what it's 16 years old now?

Sophie 

Old enough to drive. 

Jane 

Ridiculous.

Sophie

That's horrifying.

Jane

Yeah. Oh man. So one of the things that I absolutely love about this movie that I've noticed more and more the more times I rewatch it, is all of the Easter eggs and like little references to to Disney movies. I know that when I saw it the first time, I was with my brother, who is like the biggest Little Mermaid fan, and as soon as we see Roberts secretary, he was like, “It's Jodi Benson!” and like, he immediately recognized her. So that's fun that we get the voice of Ariel gets a pretty big part. I noticed in the credits Paige O'Hara's name. And she was the voice of Belle.

Sophie

Yeah!

Jane

And it took me so long to find her. But she's like in the, like, soap opera that they're watching. 

Sophie 

I think she's credited as like the soap opera vixen or something, which is very funny because I hadn't noticed her until you pointed it out to me. And then I was looking for her and I when I found her, when we watched it yesterday, the line that she has is like, “How could I ever love someone who doesn't love themself?” And I thought that was so funny because that's very much Bella's arc in Beauty and the Beast.

Jane

Yeah, exactly.

Sophie

And then you just get like a close up on the actors face and he's like, you know, look into camera like on the Office. That was very funny. 

Jane 

It was great and also like if you listen to the background music, it's very like it sounds like the Beauty and the Beast music right there, and I think it's great cause, of course, Alan Menken did the music in this movie, and that's perfect because he did so many of the best…

Sophie

He’s fantastic.

Jane

…the best musical Disney films, and so that's great, yeah. And then there's also just like other really quick things, like when Edward is watching the news and he finds out where they are, like the reporter says the address of the building. She says her name is Mary Ilene Casalotti, which is like a combination of Mary Costa, Ilene Woods and Adriana Caselotti. 

Sophie 

Oh, that's lovely. 

Jane 

The like voices of the original princesses. It’s just, very quick, fun little thing. 

Sophie 

Yeah. Well, and of course, where he goes to look for her is at Bella Notte restaurant, which is where they were.

Jane 

Right. 

Sophie 

So yeah, I've I've written some of them down, like in Happy Little Working Song, when Giselle is on the floor scrubbing, there's little bubbles, which is a very iconic scene in Cinderella. There's lots of Snow White references with the apple. And Narissa obviously has a dragon form, which is like Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty. The ball ends at midnight and she has to eat the apple before midnight, which is Cinderella. The opening, of course, has the the beautiful like story book animation where the story opens, which is very iconic like early Disney. 

Jane 

Yes! And the narrator of the beginning and the end... 

Sophie 

Of course is our Queen Julie Andrews. 

Jane 

Julie Andrews. This does count as one of the four movies that made it to the list that she's in. She's just barely in it, but…

Sophie

Oh perfect.

Jane

But yeah, I love that. 

Sophie 

There are a couple of Sound of Music references. There's a lot of Julie Andrews references because there's a Sound of Music reference, obviously, when Giselle makes the dress out of the curtains. There's also when they get to Central Park before the big song, How Does She Know? She spins around in the middle of Central Park and she has her arms stretched out wide, which is obviously the opening of Sound of Music. And then the woman with the bird seed is charging to feed the birds, which is a Mary Poppins reference. So there are a couple little Julie Andrews Easter eggs in there, which is very fun. 

Jane 

Yeah, big part of the reason why I love this movie. It's really it was really made for me specifically is what it felt like. 

Sophie 

Correct. Yes, they should have just said in the opening credits: for Jane. This is for you. 

Jane 

Yeah, that's really what it felt like. 

Sophie 

Yeah, it's great. 

Jane 

And then Amy Adams is, like the perfect…

Sophie

Yeah

Jane

…Disney Princess and she she's so versatile, like everything I've seen her in, she's amazing, and she's played characters that are completely different from this, but I think this might have been like one of the first things that I actually saw her in.

Sophie

Mm-hmm.

Jane

But it was just like, she is a Disney Princess in this, like, she perfectly personifies that and I I love that so much. 

Sophie 

And not like she's- Giselle, is very exaggerated, obviously, because, you know, they're trying to harken back to the early, like, very emotive princesses. But it's never- like even though she's super expressive and very naive, it's never like…grotesque or like, foolish looking like she's very believable, as you said in this role. Yeah, it's really impeccable casting. 

Jane 

Yeah, again because it's like it's definitely got some parody elements to it, but it's like it's still saying, these princesses are real people. And I think that it's interesting that like because obviously it's making fun of the whole idea of, like, you meet and you get married immediately, but that doesn't actually happen in any of the Disney Princess movies. Like, nobody immediately gets married right after they meet.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

And I think that a lot of times, especially like with Cinderella, Cinderella has like such an unfair reputation of like, it's like, oh, yeah, she just does chores and waits around for a man. But if you actually watch the Disney Cinderella like she has so much agency and she's like very strong in like breaking away from her… situation and like her horrible, abusive stepmother and and I feel like with this movie it's kind of doing that. It's like saying, like, Disney princesses are stronger and cooler than you think they are, and like Giselle is really cool, but it's like they've been like that the whole time. And this is just taking it to the next level. 

Sophie 

Well, yeah, and I just saw an interview clip with Ilene Woods the other day, who was, as you know, the voice of Cinderella, who was talking about that. And she was just like, if you look at the movie, Cinderella has never, she never says, “Oh, and I want to find a Prince. And you know I'm going to the ball with this express purpose.” She has no interest in the Prince. She just wants to go to a party. She wants to get out of her disgusting situation for a little bit and have you know a space to relax. And she's been dreaming about not finding a Prince, but going to the castle. She wants to travel. She wants to be away from her oppressive situation, and it's just happenstance that she finds this man and decides, you know, this is someone that I want to explore a partnership with. 

Jane 

Yeah so I think that this movie is sort of an answer to the people who criticize Princess movies. And I mean it is explicitly saying like we are turning this on its head like especially when when she's fighting the dragon at the end. That's like, this is a twist. Like usually it's the Prince who does this.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

But I think Disney princesses were always strong. And so I think that this was such a good way of showing that.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

Oh, also going back to the references, I do think it's amazing that Idina Menzel is in this movie and so like it's sort of a retroactive… like, she hadn't been in Frozen yet.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

But like now, Elsa is in this movie too, which is so cool. 

Sophie 

Although I will say it is heart wrenching that they had Belle, Ariel and Elsa in this movie and not a single one of them got a chance to sing.

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

And then I mean, I know we're not talking about Disenchanted, but the song that they gave Idina to sing and Disenchanted was… weak. 

Jane 

Yeah, it's not the best song in that movie. But I did… I feel like there was an interview with Idina Menzel where she said that she was happy that she got to…

Sophie

Just straight act?

Jane

…just be in this movie and not sing because she was like, “I knew I wasn't just cast for my voice. It's like I was cast for acting too, which is cool.” She's very fun to watch in this movie. 

Sophie 

Oh, absolutely! If we can… if we can take a moment to talk about Nancy, I feel like watching this movie when you're a kid is very different. One thing I think this movie does not do particularly well is have, you know, female friendships and… and not pit people against each other because while Giselle tries to steer away from it, I do think there is an element of jealousy between Nancy and Giselle for obvious reasons. But I- it's you know, that's not my favorite thing and I wish there could have been a way to have them, you know, have this…conflict over this, you know, love square situation without it turning into, like Nancy feels threatened by Giselle. But I think growing up is realizing that Nancy was never the villain in this movie. And I I love her character. I love everything about her from. The first line she has when she shows up at Roberts apartment, she's like, “Hey, girlfriend!” Like,

Jane 

“Ready to kick it?”

Sophie

I love it!

Jane

So funny! Yes! 

Sophie 

I love her so much! 

Jane 

Well, and I think that like one thing is like, yeah, she feels threatened by her initially, which is fair because she walks in when-

Sophie

Right.

Jane

…she's, like, naked…

Sophie

Correct.

Jane

…on her boyfriend.

Sophie

And she's like, “Who the hell is this?”

Jane

But I- one thing that I really love is that, at the climax, when Giselle is unconscious and Edward is trying to kiss her and it doesn't work, that he's like, “Ohh, it must be you!” and Robert’s really hesitant, and that Nancy goes, “Kiss her, it’s okay.”

Sophie

Mm-hmm.

Jane

And I love that so much. Like she recognizes, like, OK, clearly you guys have something like, I'm going to be fine with it rather than fighting, and I love that! 

Sophie 

Right. 

Jane 

And I I love that at the end she's just kind of like, “Oh, she left her shoe,” and then gets that great moment with Edward and, and that she gets a happy ending too. 

Sophie 

Yeah and she gets to be spontaneous for once, cause you sort of get the feeling that Nancy has, like, been this strong sacrifice you know, “I'll do whatever you want in order to make other people happy” kind of person? Like, she, you know, she's never really fought with Robert about like, “why am I not being like, more integrated into yours in Morgan's life?” And now she gets to, like, run away to Andalasia, and just, like, leave all of her responsibilities behind and have this fun adventure, which seems to have worked out for her because ten years later they're still together, so... 

Jane 

Yeah! Well, and Robert is very wary of anything romantic because he was so heartbroken when his first wife left him.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

And so like he… he… when he's talking to Jodi Benson, he's like, “I want to be very practical. Like we don't need all of that stuff,” and it kind of seems like Nancy does want that, but she also like respects that he's not into it and and is like, that's OK. But she gets really excited when she gets the doves and is like, “Oh, it's so roman’ic!” I love that she says “roman’ic.” 

Sophie 

I know I love, I love Idina, like bringing her whole, like Long Island upbringing into this character. It’s very fun.

Jane 

Yeah, it's weird that I love it so much because it's so romantic, and I'm not like that into romances usually. 

Sophie 

Right. 

Jane 

But, I don’t know, I think that the way that this is done is so interesting that like everybody thinks they're on a certain path and then…

Sophie

Right.

Jane

…they're like, oh, actually, the way I thought this was going to go is not how it's going. 

Sophie 

Well, yeah, and it's all about, you know, making sure that it's the right person for you and making sure that there's not only comfort because I think Robert does have to get uncomfortable in order to be with Giselle. But there's there's more of a cohesiveness. He's not, like forcing Nancy to give up part of her personality in order to be together. They're just like compatible. So I do think that that doesn't necessarily have to be about romance. It's about being with the people that make you feel the most like yourself, which could be, you know, a message for all relationships, not just romantic ones. 

Jane 

Yeah. Well, and I, it almost feels like Robert was suppressing part of himself.

Sophie

As well, yeah.

Jane

Yeah. So I think that Giselle helps him let go of that and be the true version of himself. 

Sophie 

You get the sense like he mentions… because Morgan is what 6 or 7? 

Jane 

Yeah, I think she says she's 6. 

Sophie 

And he mentions that he and Nancy had been together for five years, so he'd only, like, been apart from his wife for like, a year at this point and had a baby. So from Morgan's, you know, infancy to her first birthday was the only time that he was ever without a partner. So I think there is an element of his relationship with Nancy where he was just like, emotionally healing, and now he's mostly healed or, you know, on his way to recovery. And he is able to be his full self with Giselle, which is sort of sad, you know, in terms of like Nancy not getting his full personality. But I do think it worked out for the best. 

Jane 

Yeah, and it's it's almost like… she was OK with being there for him and when he needed somebody but recognizes by the end of the movie that she wasn't getting what she needed out of that relationship and…

Sophie

Right.

Jane

…that being spontaneous with Edward would be better for her.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

And like you say, apparently worked out because they're still together in the sequel. 

Sophie 

Yeah. Which is good. I hope they're happy. 

Jane 

Yeah! Definitely! I and I love that, that everyone gets to be happy… except for the villain.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

But even the villain sidekick gets sort of a little bit of a redemption. 

Sophie 

Yeah, Nathaniel is a published author at the end of the movie. That's very fun.

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

Although in fairness, it's, you know, it's not Nathaniel, it's Peter Pettigrew in my head. And it's not, it's not Prince Edward, it's Corny Collins. Although you know James, James is great in whatever role he does. 

Jane 

James Marsden was the perfect Edward for this.

Sophie

Yes.

Jane

When was Hairspray?

Sophie 

Hairspray was the same year. 

Jane 

Okay, yeah, because I feel like I definitely saw this first. 

Sophie 

So yeah, I saw Hairspray in theaters, so…

Jane

Ohh.

Sophie

I think I like went with some of my camp friends cause we had been listening to the Hairspray soundtrack all summer, and then when it finally came out, we like, went to see the movie together. But yeah, James Marsdenn is fantastic and I I will say, as a lesbian, he's very dreamy.

[Jane laughs]

Sophie

He is, as you said, perfect casting. 

Jane 

Yeah, he just he looks like a Disney Prince. Like, he's perfect for that. And I also like a lot of the classic Disney princes, like, didn't even get a name, so he's more developed than most of them…

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

…as a character. 

Sophie 

And he has a full nose, unlike the Prince in Snow White, who just has nostrils. 

Jane 

Yeah, that Prince doesn't have a name. The Prince in Cinderella doesn't have a name.

Sophie

I know.

Jane

We do get Prince Philip in Sleeping Beauty. He gets and he gets to fight a dragon. So he's good. The Beast doesn't have a name… 

Sophie 

Yeah. We just have Phillip, Eric, and I guess technically Aladdin. 

Jane 

Yeah, but he's like the protagonist. So like, that's a little bit different. 

Sophie 

Right. Aladdin and Flynn are royal by marriage, not by blood. 

Jane 

Yeah, well, and I've heard arguments that in Aladdin, it's kind of gender swapped and that Jasmine serves the function of a Prince. 

Sophie 

Of the Disney Prince, yeah.

Jane

Yeah, so…

Sophie

But she's not a prize to be won. 

Jane 

She's not a prize to be won. But, anyway, so yeah, so I think that they did a great job with the Princess. Great job with the Prince. Great job with making them not end up together and that that made sense. 

Sophie 

Well and like… it's funny, I thought of you when I listened to the first song, because the line in I've Been Dreaming of a True Love’s Kiss is, “For lips are the only things that touch.” That's that's very ace-coded. That's like, “No, we're not going to do anything else.” 

Jane 

[laughs] Yeah. 

Sophie 

“You can kiss me, but no tongue. And we're not gonna do anything else.” 

Jane 

[still laughing] That's a good point. Ohh yeah, that's funny. Yeah, well, and there's a little bit of that, like throughout the movie of like, after Nancy finds them together, and Robert’s, like, “She thinks that you and I?” and Giselle’s like, “Kissed?!?!?! [gasp]” And he's like, “Uh… yeah, definitely… that.” And then there's the part when they're shopping, and Morgan says, “You know how boys are: they're only after one thing,” and she says, “What?” She says, “Oh, I don't know,”

Both

“No one will tell me.” 

Sophie 

Well, good! No one should have told you the first thing, six year old!

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

What is- Who is talking to you? Like, who is her babysitter? Because they need to be replaced. 

Jane 

Also, that is… that is a very weird scene.

Sophie

Yes.

Jane

When Giselle comes in and Morgan's by herself in the apartment. 

Sophie 

Like, how did Giselle get in? Why is Morgan alone? How does she know where the AmEx is in the drawer? ‘Cause that's not something you tell the six year old because they don't have impulse control. 

Jane 

And where all the good stores are. 

Sophie 

Yeah, and the weird like product placement with the Elie Tahari, why is this the store we're going to? Yeah, they went to too many stores. That whole thing was very weird. And then, like, did she not get the memo that it was a costume ball?

Jane

Right!

Sophie

She's the only person in there who’s not dressed like a Renaissance fair person. 

Jane 

And I'm like, is that because she thinks those clothes are normal and so, like, the clothes she's wearing are like…? 

Sophie 

Right. Like, her dress-up clothes, yeah. 

Jane 

Yeah, that's the only thing that I can think of because I'm like, that dress is completely inappropriate for that ball. 

Sophie 

Yeah, from when Giselle and Roberts say goodbye to Narissa turning into a dragon is a very draggy… Like, I I love Giselle and Morgan shopping together. I think that's very cute. The dialogue is weird. And then there's like that weird song that is also out of place at a Kings and Queens Ball. 

Jane 

They say it's a waltz and it's not in 3-4 time and it's very weird. Like, I mean, I like that song by itself. 

Sophie 

Yes, but it does not fit in the scene at all. 

Jane 

Yeah, I don't really understand what they were doing there. Well, and based on the bloopers - because I have the DVD, I've watched the bloopers many times - it seems like Robert and Nancy were supposed to have some dialogue while they were dancing that ended up getting cut because you see them like doing that and messing it up. So I feel like they just couldn't understand how they were going to get through that transition. 

Sophie 

Yeah and like I get that they had to have some sort of weird convention for Giselle and Robert to dance together. But like, how is this the pinnacle of your dance? It's not a waltz. It's a weird song, and then you're having strangers dance together? Because ostensibly, you didn't, like, come as a group.

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

So you just have to ask a random person to dance with you for like the Kings and Queens Waltz. That’s very weird.

Jane 

Yes, but and it's also like. The song is about how we're so close to reaching our happy ending, but not, and so it's like, are you supposed to be dancing it with the person that you really want to be with but aren't like it's it's very uncomfortable… 

Sophie 

This is only for people in a love triangle or love square, and you can only come with the person that you don't want to actually be with. But you're keeping it a secret. 

Jane 

Yeah, so then you're dancing this dance with someone that you're secretly - or not so secretly cause now everybody knows - in love with so, like, everybody goes home from that ball fighting. 

Sophie 

Everyone's like, OK, divorced. I mean, it's a great place for Robert to show up because he's a divorce lawyer. 

Jane 

Oh yeah, there you go. Yeah, that's that's really why he wanted to be there. He found out what it was for, and he was like, this is where I'm getting all my clients now.

Sophie

Yeah exactly.

Jane

I think a lot about the couple that was like getting divorced at the beginning and then, like, Giselle talked to them and they were all together and like, do, do they have a long term relationship or do they like does that last for like a few days and then they go back to fighting? 

Sophie 

Yeah, that would be good to know. I hope they made it work. Phoebe and Ethan. There's some weird like… like I get that Giselle's naive I get that she was, you know, raised by forest creatures. But there are some, like, very uncomfortable racial and other minority group moments. 

Jane 

When she grabs her hair, yeah. 

Sophie 

She's like “Ohh so beautiful!” Like, no, don't do that. 

Jane 

I kind of feel like because it's Giselle, like she would have done that to anyone. 

Sophie 

Yeah, it's just it's not in the best taste. 

Jane 

Yeah, I agree. 

Sophie 

And then there's the scene at the beginning where the person walks underneath her dress.

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

And she's like, “Oh, Grumpy!” and it's like, did we need to do that? Was that necessary? 

Jane 

Yeah, it's a little… it's a little, uh… uncomfortable and like I get, I get the point they were trying to make, like that she's just naive and doesn't understand the real world. 

Sophie 

But like there could have been something else where she was like, oh, this is, you know, fairy tales… like she could have been like talking to a mirror and it like not responding and everyone was like, what is wrong with this girl? 

Jane 

Well, I mean like the knocking on the castle billboard thing kind of does that.

Sophie

Yes!

Jane

Like, that's funny.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

That… that works. 

Sophie 

Although I have never seen a seedy casino in New York City, I don't know if they were confused as to where they were. If they thought they were in Vegas, but they're actually in New York. But yeah, that was very cute. 

Jane 

Oh, maybe they were just advertising very far away or something. But yeah. Yeah, no, I think that part's funny. I also- it's so interesting how the animals still respond to her song in the real world. Like, why is that? Like nothing else works the way she thinks it will, but... 

Sophie 

Yeah, one thing that my partner pointed out when we were watching it is how does Narissa still have her magic? And also, where does she go? Like, well, first of all, she catches fire spontaneously. She spontaneously combusts when she falls off the tower. I'm not exactly sure how that happens, and then she just disappears. Does she also fall into the sewer grate? And if so, then she's still there when Edward and Nancy go back.

Jane

Ohh yeah…

Sophie

But she just like disappears. She falls into the ground and then Boof into sparkles so I don't… I don't know what happens to her. 

Jane 

Yeah, I don't either. I I don't really understand how she's able to again still have her powers, but maybe because like she controls the portal between the worlds? 

Sophie 

Maybe. Andalasia is a very interesting land because they just have a portal in the middle of the castle courtyard, and then they also have, like wands that grant your innermost desires just lying around. 

Jane 

The wands can pull magic through the portal somehow. And yeah, the sequel is confusing. It's like in this one they don't explain some things, but to a certain extent, you can just suspend disbelief. Be like, OK, because magic, like whatever. It doesn't matter how this world works. And then in the sequel, they're like trying to get into how the world works, and it just doesn't really make a lot of sense. 

Sophie 

No, they don't have time for that, which is fine. I like the sequel. 

Jane 

Oh yeah, me too. 

Sophie 

It's just they weren't really sure what track they wanted to go down. I did like and I noticed this on this rewatch. And Nancy, I guess is like a designer or seamstress or something, cause when she gets the dove flowers, she's like at her studio or whatever. And then I guess Giselle takes that over and turns that into Andalasia Fashions or whatever it's called at the end of the movie. So that was that was nice. That was a little bit of tying up of loose ends, which I thought was lovely. 

Jane 

Yeah, they really do take over each other's lives very well. Because like Nancy goes to marry Edward and do exactly what Giselle was going to do.

Sophie

Right.

Jane

And Giselle takes over her business, I guess. But and it also makes sense because she clearly knows how to sew because she can make dresses out of curtains in like, no time. 

Sophie 

Right. Yeah. Giselle's wardrobe is pretty incredible. Unfortunately, we don't… The the blue dress that she makes out of the curtains is gorgeous, but she also has the like… it's the dress that she's wearing I guess the day that they say goodbye. So she wears it on her date with Edward.

Jane

Mm-hmm.

Sophie

Which, by the way, he's wearing like $100 worth of New York branded merchandise. I don't know where he got the money for all of that. 

Jane 

Well, that's what I was thinking the whole time that that Edward and Nathaniel are there is like they're like eating out and like, they're staying at a motel like, I mean, I know they're not going to like, super fancy expensive things, but how do they have any money at all? 

Sophie 

Still, I mean Chinese takeout in New York is like 80 bucks. 

Jane 

Yeah so like they did they like because I'm sure he had things that were extravagant on him. Did he just like trade them in and be like here, take this shiny thing? Like I don't... I don't know. They don't explain that at all. 

Sophie 

Although we do, we do see Nathaniel doing some odd jobs, like he's somehow in the kitchen at Katz's deli when they have the confrontation with Pip?

Jane

Oh yeah.

Sophie

Because that's where they are, which is one of my favorite places in New York. That was really fun. So he's like working in the deli and then he becomes a cab driver somehow… 

Jane 

And he's like selling caramel apples. 

Sophie 

…when he also does brown face… Yeah, well, yeah, he's he's at the he's at the popcorn vendor when he tries to poison Giselle with the caramel apple. Yes, and then he's working at the Italian restaurant. So he's, you know, he's he's a Jack of all trades. He's getting that bread. 

Jane 

Do they pay him after just like a few hours of work? It's like, “Thank you! Here's some money!” 

Sophie 

Maybe he, like, pretends to be an immigrant and they pay him under the table in cash or something, I don't know.

Jane

Ohh.

Sophie

But yes, it's better if you don't think about it too much. 

Jane 

Which I guess is true of most Disney movies, like a lot of them if you really analyze it’s like wait, this doesn't make any sense, but like, it’s fine, it's fine.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

If you’re just focusing on the main story, I feel like it works really well things. Things tie together nicely. 

Sophie 

Yeah. Let me see if there's something else… In Happy Working Song, she rhymes “la-da-dum” with va-cu-um.” 

Jane 

Oh, I love that. 

Sophie 

Which is a great rhyme. 

Jane 

Yeah that song is amazing. 

Sophie 

That's very underrated. I feel like the first song and How Does She Know get all of the play, but Happy Working Song is really fun. I think that's one of the ones that's got the most like inside jokes and references to other things. 

Jane 

Yeah, because there's so many, especially Princess movies but also like Mary Poppins, where they just like, clean really quickly…

Sophie

Right.

Jane

And like, so it's sort of like, yeah, Disney princesses have this power of just being able to clean an entire house in the time it takes to sing one musical number. 

Sophie 

Correct As much as I feel like there's really no point to having Narissa in this movie – like, I think we can agree that the real villain of this movie is capitalist society - the elements of having Narissa is very funny, like she's sort of like a discount Yzma because at Katz’s when she like appears in the pot of soup, she's like, “I'm boiling in here,” which is a hilarious line. I love that.

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

And then I'm not sure if this is true, but King Kong feels like the only movie that they referenced that's like, not a Disney property, cause Narissa does kind of King Kong on the…

Jane

Oh yeah.

Sophie

…whatever building when she's a dragon, but the other Easter eggs that I caught were all like Disney. 

Jane 

Yeah, although I don't know that Disney owned Sound of Music at the time that this movie was made, I don't think they'd acquired Fox yet. 

Sophie 

Oh, OK. Well, that makes a little more sense. I want to know, going back unfortunately to the don't think about it too hard. I don't know why Narissa cares if Edward and Giselle aren't together anymore. Because by the time she goes dragon, they've already decided not to be together and like her whole point was like, “I can't let Edward be married because then he's going to take over the throne.” I don't know why she's still pissed. 

Jane 

I think that like she's mad because everybody's happy for Giselle and she's like…

Sophie

Ohhkay.

Jane

She's like, “No, I want to be the center of attention!” 

Sophie 

OK, well, that's fair. 

Jane 

“This did not go how I planned. I’m mad. You should be scared of me because I still have power.”

Sophie

Okay, I’ll take it.

Jane

Also, doesn't Edward say that he's gonna dethrone her and exile her? 

Sophie 

Oh, because she because she tried to kill Giselle, maybe. 

Jane 

Yeah I think that he does say that. I think that that's why. Her objective has changed, clearly. And now she just wants to kill everyone. 

Sophie 

Now she's just mad. Yeah OK, well, that's, you know, that's reasonable. I'll take that. 

Jane 

I also love how punny she is when she's a dragon. There's so many, just like she keeps going and it's just like love it, love it so much. Love those punny villains there. 

Sophie 

They’re so much better when they're funny. You know they're not just angry. Yeah, I do, I do love that this movie allows Giselle to be… like, you know, I said her touching the black woman's hair made me feel uncomfortable. But she is very like body positive because she when she sees the statue in the lobby of Robert’s building the like, you know, it's like a big statue of a naked fat woman and she's like, “Oh, she's so” like she has to stop and look at it and be like, “She's so beautiful,” which is like, that's so nice! Like she's, you know, she's very inclusive of of everybody when she sees beauty and things. 

Jane 

Yeah! Well, and she wants to talk to the like old homeless man. 

Sophie 

And he like smiles without teeth. And she's like, “Oh, your smile is lovely!”

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

She really does see beauty in in all things. 

Jane 

Yeah, and I think that that's something that that is sort of underrated about those types of characters of like they are very naive and don't don't look into things, but it's like it's so great to be able to see beauty in everything, and the things that other people dismiss or don't want to look at, and being like, “But-

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

“These are people. These are other beautiful things.” Yeah, I really love her attitude. Just about life and she's just seems like she's so happy.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

She can turn situations around that don't seem like they're going very well, and like she's she is surprised when the like rodents show up to help her clean, instead of her normal friends. She's just like, OK. Cool.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

These new friends!

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

Like she sees beauty in the cockroaches, rats and stuff.

Sophie

Mm-hmm, yeah.

Jane

And the line about “So friends, even though you're vermin.” 

Sophie 

Right. 

Jane 

OK. 

Sophie 

Yeah, and it's, you know, I think she's a really positive person, but not like a toxic positivity?

Jane

Mm-hmm.

Sophie

She'll still listen to your problems, and she'll still, you know, try to make you feel better if you're sad. Like I love her relationship with Morgan. Because, I mean, you know, I'm also a non-biological parent to a six year old girl, so that's like particularly moving to me at the moment, but she's someone who's very lonely and looking for, like, companionship and someone who understands. Because I think as we said earlier, with Robert, like dealing with his grief, he doesn't have the capacity really to deal with anybody else's emotions. So Giselle is a really nice person to have in her life to, you know, not just try to paper over the pain, but sit with her and actually try to make her feel better and remind her that, you know, there are good things as well as bad things in life. 

Jane 

Yeah, well, and I think, like, Robert even says, “We don't talk about it. Like, we don't talk about her mom.” And it seems like Morgan really wants to. And like Giselle, is willing to talk to her about it, which is really nice. 

Sophie 

Yeah, like asking her, “Do you miss her?” And “I'm here for you if you want to talk about it.”

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

Which is, I think really important.

Jane 

Yeah, it is good that she's not just like, “Everybody should be happy all the time.” It's like, we should address these things that people need to talk about and don't just push down the sad emotions. That's a good point.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

She's a great character.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

I love what they do with her in the sequel too. I think that that's such an interesting thing to have her like, slowly becoming evil, but trying really hard not to. 

Sophie 

Yes, like she's aware of it and she's like, “No, I don't wanna do this!”

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

Yeah, I love that. One thing, cause I relate a lot to Giselle, I love the scene where she and Robert are having their like first real fight. And she's like, “You're making me so…” And she, like, can't name the emotion. And then she realizes what it is, and she's, like, “Angry!” And she's so excited about it. The first part is very me, like, not being able to admit it, but I would not be excited about being angry. But she, it's like it's this new, exciting thing for her, which is really fun. 

Jane 

Yeah, well, because earlier we've established like, because he says he's angry and she's like, “Angry???” He's like, “Have you heard of it?” 

Sophie 

“I don't know what that is!” 

Jane 

She's like, “I've heard of it…” like, she's never been angry before, and so then she's like, “Wow, this is this is interesting! Now I’m angry!”

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

And then she, like, punches him or something. “I’m ANGRY!” He's like, “Are you OK?”

Sophie

[laughs] Yeah

Jane

[laughs] Oh man. Yeah, there's a lot of really great moments in this movie. That's How You Know is like one of my all time favorite musical numbers in a movie. And I a lot of times when I watch this movie I go back and rewatch that scene a few more times because it's so good. 

Sophie 

It's a truly perfect scene. I have no notes. 

Jane 

It’s amazing. It's like just so great how all these different groups of people come together and do this amazing dance number. 

Sophie 

Well, yeah, it's it starts and he's like, please, please do not sing in public. Please do not sing to me in public. And then the guys on the steel drums and they're like they know this song too?! Like, where did you guys? And he's like there's more like how how did you all learn this song, which is very funny. And then it he just, like I there's nothing I can do. It's gonna be a musical number. And then just it goes on and on, and there are so many fun little… like, like the old people. We love to see actors over 40 getting work. 

Jane 

Yes! Again from special features on the DVD, they talk about how especially the old guys that like have the flowers?

Sophie

Mm-mm.

Jane

Some of them were chimney sweeps in Mary Poppins, and like in the West Side Story movie and like they were, like, iconic dancers in their time. 

Sophie 

Oh, that's so fun! 

Jane 

So it's fun to like, get to have them show up in this movie too. 

Sophie 

Mm-hmm! Yeah, and then you have the brides. And you have the people in the canoe. 

Jane 

Yeah, there's like, a mariachi band. 

Sophie 

Oh yes, the mariachi band. 

Jane 

And that all the like workers that are like flipping around and… 

Sophie 

Yes, the blue jumpsuit guys. 

Jane 

Yeah, in one of the interviews on the DVD, Amy Adams is like, “That is the most scared I've ever been on a set was people flipping right in front of my face and I just had to stand there smiling.”

Sophie

Oh no.

Jane

But yeah, there's a great special feature on the DVD of like how that number came together and just showing all these different groups of people rehearsing. 

Sophie 

That's so cool. What I want to know is what day of the week is this? Because because Morgan went to school, so, like, it's got to be a weekday. So what are all these people doing in the middle of the work day in Central Park? Um, I do, I love the German festival. I love like the Maypoles and stuff.

Jane

Oh yeah.

Sophie

And then one thing I thought was funny is Rapunzel wasn't a Disney movie yet, but I think it would be… well, Princess and the Frog came next, but I wonder if they were, like, working on Rapunzel at the time, and that's why they had the girl in the park do Rapunzel?

Jane 

Yeah! Oh, yeah. That's that's a good point. I also love that moment when when Robert, just like smiles and puts his hands out really sarcastically. Like, “Fine, I'll participate in this!” 

Sophie 

Yeah, that's a really fun number. 

Jane 

Yeah, just it just keeps getting better. And then like, right at the end, Robert’s actually getting into it and then he catches himself. He's like, wait, what? 

Sophie 

It's like, no, this is not no. I'm not supposed to do that. 

Jane 

And I think it's… it's just, it's such a great way of imagining, like how you could do a musical number in the real world, cause in Giselle's world in Andalasia, people just burst into song and there's magically music and it just happens. 

Sophie 

Well, and everybody knows the song which is… you know, that's how they show that Giselle is like becoming more comfortable in reality is when Edward is like singing to her. And he's like, “…and now you…” 

Jane 

And it's weird because she it's not like it was a conscious choice for her to not be singing because she seems really surprised. He's like, “You're not singing.” And she's like, “Oh, I, I’m not!” Like I think that that's really interesting that like showing that originally it was just so natural to her that she couldn't help herself. And now she's sort of like, oh, “I guess I would normally be singing now and I'm not.” And yeah, it's it's a great way of showing that and that Edward, even though he spends quite a bit of time in the real world too, he never gets to that point.

Sophie

Right.

He's never at all considering, like, changing. He's like, “We're going back to Andalasia. That that's where I belong.” 

Sophie 

Right. And it's also, it's the perfect line because he's like “you were made…” the line is “you were made to finish my duet” and she's like “but I'm… but that's not that's not me” like, “you need to find somebody else” and then they go on their date that she's, like, trying desperately to extend so they don't have to leave. And she's like, realizing like, this is not… it doesn't feel right…

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

…anymore. 

Jane 

Yeah, it's so interesting how then, like, Narissa picks up on that and tells her that the apple will make her forget. It's not like, oh, this apple will make all your wishes come true or like whatever, it’s just like, it will make you forget that you ever met Robert. It will make you happy to go back with Edward, and that's what she wants at that moment because she's like, I have to go back. 

Sophie 

Because otherwise I'm going to be sad here. Yeah. 

Jane 

Yeah, it's it's, it's good, it's good! The writing is good! The acting is perfect! It's just it's a… it's a good movie! 

Sophie 

It's great. 

Jane 

I also really enjoy… I I think some of the Pip stuff gets a little bit… tedious and like I don't love it, but I do think it's very funny how he keeps trying to get Edward to understand him, and he doesn't understand him until the end when he speaks in rhyme.

Sophie

Mm-hmm.

Jane

Because like the whole time Edward is trying to interpret it into a rhyme, and then like at the end he says a rhyme and he's like, “Oh, of course, I get it. Why didn't you say that in the first place?” And it's just so funny. I don’t- It's like there's no reason why that should be, but it's very funny. 

Sophie 

I love Pip. I think in Andalasia, Pip, like, talking in a New York accent is how I imagine all animals inner monologues, are just like, very gruff. Like, “Hey, I'm trying to be walked here!” But also, they're just so many, like, little like, if you're not paying attention or if you're not, like, focusing on what it is, it's not as funny, but, like… Nathaniel crucifies Pip? On a… on a pants hanger? And then puts the do not disturb sign around his neck, like that's… and then he zip lines with the hanger, like everything about that sequence is so funny and yeah, him like, very like Scooby-Doo-esque, like, contorting his body into like being Giselle and then being Nathaniel and Edward's like, “What are we talking about if not me? Like, I don't… I don't know how to… I don't know how to focus on anybody else.” 

Jane 

He does the whole thing of like acting out the poisoned apple thing, and then Edward’s just like, “You’d die without me here!” It's like, uh… how did you…? 

Sophie 

We're not focused on you right now, buddy. 

Jane 

And then Nathaniel is so like, he's so funny in that too, because he knows exactly what Pip is saying. And he's just, like, very worried about it, and then is like, “Oh, he's not getting it. He's not getting it. It’s fine.” 

Sophie 

Right, but still he tries to, you know, suffocate Pip in the popcorn box, and... 

Jane 

Well and he's gonna… he's gonna kill him with a dinner knife too. Like, I'm like, I don't think that's sharp enough.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

But yeah, I think that that's… well and especially compared to some of their other like… “live action” animals that they've done more recently, like Pip actually looks pretty good in this movie. 

Sophie 

He doesn't have to look like an actual chipmunk. I mean, he looks like a chipmunk. He doesn't have to be, like, hyper realistic. Flounder in the new Little Mermaid – because that just came out – is very creepy. He doesn't need to look like that. 

Jane 

Why would they make them that creepy? I haven't seen it, but I'm, I’ve seen the like... 

Sophie 

…the promo pictures. Yeah, it's just like I, I I don't know who this is for really, because like we- talking about our six year old, like, we really wanted to take her because you know, it's a, it's a black Ariel and it's really…impactful. And, you know, my partner wants to see it because she loves underwater and mermaids and stuff like that. And as, you know, a black woman, she's interested in seeing it. And we, you know, offered our child to take her. She was like, “No, it looks scary,” which, like, valid.

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

It does. But then I don't… I don't know who this is for then because it's like, it's not an adults movie because it's still the same story.

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

But the visuals are creepy. 

Jane 

I mean is it just counting on people that grew up watching the animated movie will want to watch it? But I'm like, you can still watch the animated movie! 

Sophie 

Correct. And there are three of those. 

Jane 

Yeah. If I want to watch Little Mermaid, I'm gonna watch the 1989 movie that launched the Renaissance. I'm not gonna watch this live action one. Although I did see that there was a very cute thing with Jodi Benson and Halle Bailey.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

Jodi Benson was endorsing her, and kind of like, “It's so great that you get to do this too” kind of thing in the- 

Sophie 

Yeah Jodi has been lovely, and her dress at whatever like premiere was really gorgeous. I just think she's a class act. She's good in whatever she does. She's obviously great in her little role as Sam in this movie, but she's also the voice of Thumbelina. She's also the voice of Ariel. 

Jane 

She's the voice of of the tour guide Barbie in Toy Story 2. 

Sophie 

Yes, she does so many things. 

Jane 

And I think Barbie in Toy Story 3 is her too.

Sophie

Oh cool!

Jane

Also so like she sang, like Bible songs on CD's that I had growing up. 

Sophie 

Oh my God! 

Jane 

So like, I listened to her singing… it's like “Songs from the Beginner’s Bible.” There's like these Bibles with like stories that are distilled down for like preschoolers? And so they would like they had songs that were kind of based on those Bible stories that Jodi Benson was singing. So I like, think of her as as the voice of my childhood in these like random songs.

Sophie

Aww.

Jane

There was this one song about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego that I loved as a kid, and I like made up this whole dance to it. 

Sophie 

That's one of the most Jane things I've ever heard. 

Jane 

Yes. So Jodi Benson also sang the song of my childhood.

Sophie

Okay.

Jane

I think it was right before The Little Mermaid II came out, which I don't remember exactly when that was. But like, maybe like early 2000s

Sophie

Two thousand…ish?

Jane

Yeah, right around then. So she was like performing at a mall near me and like, my parents took us, my siblings and me, and they didn't tell us that she was going to be there. They were just like, “We're just going to the mall!” and then like, she was like performing. And…

Sophie 

Oh my gosh! 

Jane 

So my brother was really little and really into Little Mermaid. And so so we had seen her perform.

Sophie

Wow!

Jane

Because I remember she was talking about Little Mermaid II, and like explaining what it was going to be about. I just remembered that she said like that Ariel and Eric have a daughter, and so someone asked, “Is she a mermaid or is she a person?” And and Jodi Benson said, “Well, she's both!” It's funny, I have this memory of Jodi Benson specifically promoting Little Mermaid II at this random mall near my house, so... 

Sophie 

That's so fun. Well, it's funny. So we just moved into a new building, as you know. And our new building has a pool and the pool just opened yesterday, and they have, for whatever reason, because residents are not allowed to have like big pool floaties or anything, but they have these inflatable dolphins in the pool. And first there was one and my partner decided that his name was Eric or [screeches and clicks like a dolphin as Jane laughs], um, in in dolphin language, but Americanized to Eric. 

Jane 

Right. 

Sophie 

So then we found a second one. So I was like, well, if his name is Eric, then his girlfriend has be Ariel. And then there now there are two little ones. So we said, Ariel, Eric and Melody, and then the other child one is named Andante because we thought that that would be a good name to go with Melody. So we named them, we named our little pool dolphins yesterday, a little Disney, a little Mamma Mia. 

Jane 

Yeah, perfect. Which you know, I love both of those things, so…

Sophie

Right, exactly.

Jane

Yeah Mamma Mia 2 did not get enough views to make it on here because it's too new. But I have seen it many times considering it only came out a few years ago.

Sophie

Yes.

Jane

But yeah, and The Little Mermaid did not make it into my Top 40 either, but we get to talk about it a little bit. It's still a great movie. I think some of the best songs in the Disney canon are in that movie. 

Sophie 

If only you had started keeping track at birth. 

Jane 

I know, right? 

Sophie 

Maybe you would have made it. 

Jane 

Yeah, well, I definitely didn't watch it nearly as much as my brother did.

Sophie

Yeah, that's fair.

Jane

But there will be more Disney to come on here. 

Sophie 

Did you have a favorite Princess, Jane? 

Jane 

Um… yes, it it would have been Belle.. 

Sophie 

That makes sense. That tracks I was going to say maybe either Belle or Pocahontas because I know you liked Pocahontas. 

Jane 

I did really like Pocahontas. I think I really liked Pocahontas because I really liked John Smith's hair. That was like the thing that I really liked about that movie when I saw it as a kid.

Sophie

That’s funny.

Jane

And now I'm like, that movie is kind of very problematic, but...

Sophie

Yeah…

Jane

It has good songs though. 

Sophie 

Yeah. I think I was very anti-Pocahontas because I grew up in Virginia, so I was very anti-Felicity Merriman, the American girl and anti-Pocahontas, because I was like this is… no, I learned about this in school. I'm not interested. My favorite Princess was Ariel, and I had Little Mermaid pajamas, and I very distinctly remember, like being in the kiddie pool as a child and like, doing the like doing cobra pose essentially?

Jane

Oh yeah.

Sophie

In the pool and like being like, “Oh my God, I look so cool!” And I'm sure I looked like a drowned rat, just like trying to flip my hair back and pretend like I was balancing on a rock. But now I think it's probably Cinderella or Rapunzel. I mean, I I still love Ariel, but I think, yeah, I think Cinderella has edged her out as I've gotten older, which is for a lot of the same reasons that we like Giselle because she's just very kind and soft spoken and she's not denying that she has issues. But she is willing to work through them, which I think is really powerful. 

Jane 

Yeah, definitely. I was not into the Disney Cinderella because I grew up watching the Rodgers and Hammerstein Lesley Ann Warren Cinderella?

Sophie

Yep.

Jane

And so I was like, “That's the good version and the animated version is the bad version,” which I don't know why. They they can both be good. Like there's so many versions of Cinderella. 

Sophie 

Yeah, I think there are so many different Cinderellas to choose from. There's Ilene Woods. There's Lesley Ann Warren. There's Julie Andrews. There's Brandy, which is a one that I love. There's Lily James. Which is another one that I love. Yeah, I think they're all so different. I think, you know, it's it's hard for there to be a right one because they're…

Jane

Yeah!

Sophie

They're just all really special. 

Jane 

You get all the modern retellings of of Cinderella too. There's just been so many versions of that story. So back to Enchanted, it's nice that it's like a combination of all of those fairy tale stories. I do think it's it's very funny the part when when they're having the weird conversation when they're shopping, and Morgan's worried about having a stepmother. And Giselle’s like, “They're not all horrible! Edward has one!” It's like, um that's not a good example. 

Sophie 

“I've never met her, but I'm sure she's lovely.” 

Jane 

And then she immediately, like, shows up and is like... 

Sophie 

Trying to kill you. 

Jane 

Yeah, it’s like, umm…that was not a good example of a good, good stepmother. And then that in the sequel they talk about that whole thing even more that like because she's the stepmother she must be evil. It's just very interesting.

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

But anyway… so… we’ve talked about a lot of things that weren't all directly connected to this movie. 

Sophie 

It's tangential. That's fine. 

Jane 

Yeah, because the thing is that like, when my brother and I were younger, we wrote this story called Taking Over the Disney Castle and we like, made it so that all the Disney characters were living in this castle together and it was run by the Beast from Beauty and the Beast. 

Sophie 

Certainly the best landlord Disney has to offer. 

Jane 

There was some villain… I think there were actually several villains that had, like different plots to try and kill the Beast and take over the castle.

Sophie

Oh my gosh.

Jane

And so then it was like all these different characters from all these different Disney movies were like together. And it was, it was like, basically fan fiction. But it was just like, silly. And we actually like, had printed it out and got it bound and it was like in the elementary school. Library for a little bit.

Sophie

Oh my gosh!

Jane

And so that would have been like, not too long before this movie came out. And so then when it came out, I'm like, “Wow, this is, like, basically what I've wanted to do is, like, combine and all the Disney stories. But this makes way more sense than our story.” [both laugh] And also we had like one of Ariel's sisters, be important in it except the name that we gave her was not actually the name of one of the sisters. 

Sophie 

Well, she could have been in the new one because they changed all the names of her sisters, which is fine. They're like, named after the seven seas, I think… is the point? But, you know, nothing comes between me and my starts and ends with A sisters. 

Jane 

Right! I do wish the sisters were better developed. We get a little bit of that in the third one.

Sophie

Mm-hmm.

Jane

But anyway, talking way more about Little Mermaid in this conversation than about Enchanted, it seems like. 

Sophie 

You would think Jodi Benson played the lead in this movie. 

Jane 

Yeah. Jodi Benson is the best part of any movie that she's in. OK, the one thing that I don't understand is why does Giselle put that fish in her mouth? 

Sophie 

I wish I knew. I also… so OK, so the lore that they talk about and Disenchanted is that she was like a foundling and the forest creatures raised her. So I guess that makes sense as to like, A why she has a kinship with animals and B maybe why she doesn't know a lot of fish, I guess?

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

I mean, I don't know what kind of water situation was like in the forest. I don't know if there were a lot of like freshwater fish, but what I don't understand is, like, why she's so trusting of humans then, if, like Edward is the first human that she's ever met. 

Jane 

He must not be. Like she must have met other humans at some point, like, cause she's aware of humans. 

Sophie 

Right. She she can speak English.

Jane

Yeah.

Sophie

That's one of those things. Like, you can't examine that plot hole too closely. 

Jane 

I mean, I guess she has no reason not to be trusting of humans because she's never been betrayed by one except for her parents, I guess? I I I don't know. There's so many mysteries in this movie.

Sophie

So true.

Jane

But yeah, you just you can't think about it too hard. And like, why would there be a portal that goes through a manhole in the middle of the street? Like...

Sophie

Right.

Jane

I don't know. But it doesn't really matter. The point is, it is, and that meant that Giselle and Robert found each other. 

Sophie 

Yes, that is true.

Jane

And they're happy.

Sophie

Happy ever after. 

Jane 

Forever and ever. I do think it's really funny whenever someone just says “forever” that she has to add “and ever” like, is there a forever that's not and ever? Like there's different levels of forever? 

Sophie 

It's like, just to be sure. Just so we're on the same page. 

Jane 

Yeah, I don't know, but yes, I love her. She's such a great character. And…

Sophie

Yeah.

Jane

…that really makes the movie. I feel like that we really needed a really good Giselle at the center of the movie and it's perfect. Amy Adams is the perfect Giselle.

Sophie

Yes.

Jane

So good job, Amy Adams, if you're listening. You did almost as well as Jodi Benson. [laughs]

Sophie

[laughs] Yeah.

Jane

Okay, is there anything else you want to talk about before we wrap this up? I feel bad that I don't have more interesting things to say, but it's just it's it's truly just a great movie. 

Sophie 

It is it's…it is fantastic. No, I think we covered everything that I wanted to talk about anyway.

Jane

Okay!

Sophie

Thank you for having me on. 

Jane 

Well, thank you so much for being here and uh, yeah, if if you want to come back for a future movie, that would be great. We could talk about something else later. 

Sophie 

I am always happy to be on your podcast, Jane. 

Jane 

Well I'm very happy to have you.

Sophie

Thank you!

Jane

Thank you very much to Sophie for that delightful conversation, and thank you to everyone else for listening. I had so much fun overanalyzing this movie, and I hope you all did too. And with that, we are now halfway through my top 40 list! All of the movies to come are those I’ve seen at least 20 times, so when I started this I thought about just talking about the 20 movies I watched at least 20 times in 20 years, but I’m glad I decided to talk about numbers 21 though 40 as well. I feel like I’ve already learned so much about myself and movies and storytelling from this project, and I’m so grateful to have you listeners along on this journey with me! I hope you’ll enjoy the top 20 list. Next up is another fairytale-inspired story from the 2000s, and I will be joined by another special guest, so stay tuned for that. As always, I will leave you with a quote from that next movie: “Look, I think it’s only fair to warn you that I’m practiced in the ancient art…of origami!”