#netflix would never give me a budget

[kaiserin-erzsebet]

My hottest take: if we must continue to make shows with Empress Elisabeth, I want a long series in the style and spirit of The Crown about Franz Joseph.

I think freeing Sisi from being a girlboss critic-of-monarchy main character would actually be much better.

[andhumanslovedstories]

for people who also have a mild impulse shopping problem, I've found it useful to identify the itch I want to scratch: is it spending money or is it getting things? If it's spending money, I trick my brain by paying off something I owe. Like a few years back when I was feeling dangerously shoppy, I would drop a big chunk of change as a student loan payment. When I was buying an entire new mouth of teeth, I'd transfer money from my checking to my secret ultra hard to access tooth account.

If paying myself or paying a debt doesn't work, I find a charity or gofundme that's worth supporting. (You gotta be careful with that last one, it's really easy to be spend way more than you should, budget-wise, because it makes spending money feel good morally, which can be an incentive to keep going.) I also like to keep cash on hand so if I see someone who needs money, I can give it to them. It's a financial decision made impulsively for an opportunity I won't get again (giving $20 to this exact person at this moment of need). All this soothes the spending beast inside of me, and I don't deal with the Money Shame that comes with $100 of amazon orders.

If I want to acquire things, I download a lot of research articles I know I probably won't read, or I get an enormous stack of books from the library that would be impossible to finish before I have to return them, or I'll download a bunch of albums I tell myself I'll get to someday. Sometimes it's enough to just make a list of things of things I want to do or own. A list of one hundred movies I've curated from best of lists that in this moment I feel motivated to watch. Add tv shows to my watch list on netflix. Add fics to my "to read" list on ao3. Anything that feels like I'm adding to a hoard.

If I still want to shop, well, I'm probably gonna spend more money than I mean to, but I at least make sure I'm deliberate about my spending. If I'm gonna blow my cash on something, it should at least be worth it. That means either very cool or very useful. And honestly, the things you tell yourself are useful while in the shopping haze are never that useful, so you might as well go for very cool.

This is all to say I fell into a trance last night and this morning woke to receipts and tracking info from etsy dot com. And I am like "yikes." But I did get something that is so so so stupid that I can't wait to show it to you all when it arrives.

[noircheols]

🪓୨୧ — THE MONSTER AND ME . . . ♡

synopsis. scenarios of seventeen and their monster!s/o

genre. fluff, established relationship, horror (ish) prns. they/them cw. NOT PROOF-READ, gore (duh), death, being murdered (decapitation, fire), the ring movie reference, I PERCHANCE HAVE APPROPRIATED WITCHCRAFT IM SO SORRY TO ANY WHO PRACTICE, pet names (sweetheart), toxic relationships, cheating, allusions to suicide, GROSS!!!! in a sappy way

an. happy (belated) halloween!! I COULDNT COMPLETE THIS SMH CUS I HAD MEETINGS FOR A WHOLE WEEK

THE VAMPIRE. ⸺ seungcheol, mingyu, seokmin, seungkwan, chan

he thinks it's cute; your love of fashion. how every outfit you manage to coordinate is always so emblematic of your personality and the long life you have led.

"where's this one from?" he asks, gingerly twiddling the cool metal of the necklace dripping just below your chest. he could pretend all he wanted, but 400 years of living didn't fail you when it came to hearing the surge of blood pumping through his heart. and it certainly didn't help that he was slightly blushing. it makes you happy to know that even after three years of living together, you still had that impact on him.

"this one's from 1894!" you moved closer to him, wanting to feel his warm skin against your cold flesh. "long story short this random guy who stole from the nearby village came to my cabin to hide but i kinda-sorta-maybe decapitated him!!"

"that's nice sweetheart WAIT WHAT"

he also thinks it's cute how desperate you are for cuddles. he is more than aware that you love the sound of blood flowing and how much you love being pressed into him, because it meant you could hear it up close. he knows it has nothing to do with you viewing him as your next meal, but the reassurance that he was still alive. he was not gone yet, like all the others in your life. he knows you would never dare to go as far as graze your teeth against his skin. although... he wishes you would. what? he goes crazy for your teeth poking out every single time you smile. why else do you think he puts so much effort into being funny?

the most cute thing about you though? when you pout over pictures. what's the point of mirrors and phones if you can't see if you look good or not? if you can't record the most precious moments of your long life? how are you supposed to know if purple is your colour? but he simply laughs when he hears your complaints, kissing you deeply and telling you "you are everything i could ever have wished for."

THE GHOST. ⸺ jun, wonwoo, minghao, vernon

he knew something was wrong with his house the day he moved in. when the wires were still intact, the TV kept switching from his desired great british bake-off to the deluded brain-rotted show that was dance moms. what? can you blame a guy for wanting to see what they had in store for patisserie week? it only got worse from then on. he knew he had reached the boiling point when he had left for groceries, only for the magnets to be arranged ever so crudely.

TV

sorry, but he didn't have the budget to buy more magnets. in this economy too? whatever, maybe mindlessly scrolling through netflix would give him purpose. as he settled himself into his couch once more, he noticed another set of eyes. big, doe-like eyes, but haunting. his imagination, right?

another click, and he noticed an elbow tear through the screen, slightly distorting the actor's face. he wished he had the strength to get up from his seat, but something about you was pinning him there. you were like a predator staking out its prey, the way you focussed on him. but good lord you were hotter than anybody else alive. maybe everybody else unalive too. he knows now that he doesn't regret sitting there. legs began unravelling themselves as you slithered out the TV screen, crawling on all fours. you stood up as you unfurled your hand towards his chest, he braced himself, hands digging deep into the sofa. his eyes still remained trained on you. was it right to think you are attractive?

"chill out, i'm a ghost." you smoothly responded, trying to hide your smirk from the startled man sitting in front of you. "although... you don't seem too scared of me. what are you? are you also a ghost?" you mused, floating just enough to try and touch his hair. it looks so soft, you mused to yourself. when's the last time you played with somebody's hair again? he yelped a little, shutting his eyes for what was about to happen. to your disappointment, your hand went right through his head.

"so you're the one messing around with my TV- putting on all those trashy 2000s reality shows." he huffed, brushing himself off. weird. you put your hand threw his head but he doesn't feel anything.

"guilty as charged." you sighed, spinning around mid-air. you swirled around the man, fascinated by the newest tenant. "can you blame me for being nostalgic?" you explained how you had moved into this house with your then-boyfriend. things began to go sour and you never knew why. all you knew was that every single time he came home angry and slamming the door behind him, you knew it was time to turn on the TV and melt the world around you. soon enough you realized he was cheating on you, and when you confronted him about it, push came to shove. your last memories were the TV engulfed in flames, and you choking on smoke as the door quietly closed itself. "i used my ghost skills of manipulating electric currents for the first time by turning on the news and realizing that the police ruled my death as a suicide."

you have both developed a symbiotic relationship. he would let you watch your TV shows and re-introduce you to the joys of the mortal world, like reading books and making soup. he didn't banish you from your house, but looked after your every need (its shocking how many things ghosts need), and for the first time, loved.

as a ghost, you could touch whatever was important to you when you were alive. the TV, fruit tarts, and the magnets you would hang your to-do lists on. weirdly enough, you could touch your new roommate. "maybe i'm becoming super important to you." he teased. "would that make you feel weird?" you remarked, as you entwined your fingers among his. "no at all." he hummed, enjoying the way you traced the warm skin of his palm. peering up to look at him, you eagerly asked. "am i important to you, then?"

more than you could ever know.

THE WITCH. ⸺ jeonghan, joshua, soonyoung, jihoon

as a witch, the burning of incense and candles were familiar spells, intended to expel bad energy. but right now, you need more than to expel bad energy. you needed a guarantee from the universe that the life you lead now would be like this forever. being a witch was isolating, devoting time to a continuous cycle of researching and perfecting non-stop. like being a phd candidate, only minus the glory of being called "doctor." normally, witches have familiars, or "animal friends" as disney would like to call them that substitute the regular human's need for friends. but you didn't have one of those either. it was why it was such a blessing when he had entered your life by accident. all you remember is him asking for your number and the next thing you know you spent your days lounging in his studio apartment, with the coffee table scattered with copies of old esoteric spells from a bygone time.

as you heard the apartment entrance creak open, you knew your beloved was back. likewise, he knew you were doing well. the smell of cinnamon burning was comforting to him because it meant you were at your best condition and continuously experimenting with new spells. it was your way of saying "i've been thinking about you." that you spent hours concocting the best spells to guarantee your and his eternal happiness. it was an absured thought to him, for you to be slaving away when you already had what you wanted.

"i'm sure you don't need to worry, we're just fine without magic." he remarked, flopped onto the couch. he gazed into the kitchen, noticing you submerging a piece of paper in a bottle of water.

"have you ever thought that magic is what's keeping us together? and you're taking it for granted?"

"touche. but i still think-"

you could argue his spells were just as effective too, and that maybe he was a better witch than you could ever be. the way he brews your coffee just right in the morning, like an effective energy potion singing through you and keeping you awake. maybe that coffee also contains a love spell in it, because it makes you think about him non-stop. after all, the only reasonable explanation for the blooming feeling your chest had to be magic. "when will he come home?" "he's gonna be so excited when he figures out i made his favourite!" all those dumb, sappy, romantic thoughts plagued your mind. it's humiliating, but... maybe love is a force that not even the greatest of witches can control. wait- why did you catch him looking at your spells? did he take a peek at your notes?

@noircheols DO NOT RE-POST/COPY/TRANSLATE

[tetsunabouquet]

I just saw that you also write about Diabolik Lovers??? Could I request headcanons about what it would be like to date Shuu, Kanato and Subaru? And also about what type of girl they're into? ::0

A/N: A request for my personal top 3 Sakamaki brothers? Of course, you've got great taste.

Shu -Considering he's the brother who's most prone to having pets, I feel like being an animal lovers is a trait he finds desirable in a partner as he would love to have a pet with you someday. -If you already have pets, they are a surefire tacic to wurm into this boy's heart. Sending him your endless collection of adorable snaps of your pets and you, etc, he eats it up. -Because he's incredibly lazy, he wouldn't like extremely tasking dates like a cute hiking trip. Shu's more of the type who'd get hold of your favorite movie or turn on Netflix with you in bed and getting Reiji to make your favorite snacks. -He also likes a girl who's a little playful but not completely hyper. Someone who energizes him a little more and makes him smile, but not one who pushes him too far. -The two of you exchange a lot of teasing comments and casually flirt with one another all the time. "Has someone ever told you that you look sexy when you snore, Shu?" Kanato -I feel like he's into maternal girls. Aside from his creepy thing for his mom, with his childlike tendencies and the dynamic with his brothers, you'd certainly need mother-of-several-young-children levels of patience to deal with the drama. -Kanato loves giving hugs when he's sleepy. He'll attach himself to you like you are his diabolical teddybear. -Surprisingly, he allows you to pick any sort of dating activities though if he doesn't likes it, he'll make you suggest something else. Kanato can be a little indecisive with this, you know? -Kanato also really likes girls that are a fellow 'kidult' like him and share his love for toys and sweets. I can totally see the two of you discussing doll lines, doing face-ups together and dressing up like your favorite dolls together. -The two of you will also go to every annual doll collector events and all the vintage markets. Kanato never expected to have a girl with whom he could go on shopping dates like these and he's excited for them every time. "I hate how we already spent our budget. That fish plushy looked SO cute!"

Subaru -Well, he'd like his girl to be at least be more sane then his mom. Not saying you need to be 100% mentally healthy 24/7, but having a stable sense of reality it necessary. -Bonus points if you actually know a bit about psychology and the consequences of being a KOPP (Dutch acronym meaning Kinderen van Ouders met Psychiatrische Problemen - the English translation is Children of Parents with Psychiatric Problems. So far, I've never encountered an English version of the acronym) -His choice of dates is surprisingly romantic but they're generally low-key. Like cute picnics, far away from everyone where he can just enjoy the serenity and simplicity of the way you make him feel. -He also really wants a girl who supports him, outside of his traumas and family too. Like a girl who encourages his talent for poetry and helps him come out of his shell and be confident in expressing himself outside of violent tantrums. -He loves writing about you, he really does. He actually, after a a sweet friendship, dared to confess with a love poem he sent through a xt message because he knew he'd snatch back the letter and chicken out if he actually wrote it down on real paper. "If only I weren't so craven, I'd tell you all there is resting in my soul, That your voice sounds like heaven And your smile makes me whole"

[stan-rabelais-et-diderot]

Small thoughts on the Netflix Three Body Problem adaptation

1) We are making it international" they said. They replaced all the international collaboration, the counsel of world leaders that we see throughout the books with... two British dudes deciding everything by themselves, not accountable to anyone. They managed to make it less international than the book. But more than that, they perverted the very themes Liu Cixin wove into his books, the very ideas the books revolve on: group mentality & collaboration versus the individual, banal or exceptional. The Netflix show removed the very notion of collective, of group mentality, without which there is nothing to contrast individuality against.

2) They made Ye Wenjie an unrecognizable shell of herself. Her back is not held up straight. An old Ye Wenjie, cursing, sloushing, moving to England. Is it really Ye Wenjie? It bothers me so much that they could get away with saying this is Ye Wenjie. This is not her.

3) They "simplified" the science to a point where nothing is explained, nothing can survive through any kind of analysis of the logic of the things shown & the actions taken. Just one example, because I’ve seen the headset being praised for looking “cool”. It’s not cool if it’s at the expense of a logical plot. The futurist headsets we are shown imply that either 1° the Trisolarians are able to send sizable physical objects [which they physically can't, the limit to what they could send through space is clearly explained, it is the two protons they did send Earth] or 2° the Trisolarians shared schematics of advanced technology with the ETO, letting them to develop the headsets. But that is the one thing the Trisolarians would never do, as their entire plan rely on humans’ technology not being able to develop any further than it already has.

4) I thought it was gonna be lesser than the Tencent show. I didn't expect it to be so utterly lacking on all front. If there was one point of worthy comparison, one point where I expected Netflix to do a good job, if only to show they had a bigger budget, it was “the” boat scene. Tencent spent 25% of their budget on that scene, so I expected Netflix would try to make their boat scene more spectacular, better on a technical level, to show that the US special effects are undefeated or something. I would have never expected that they wouldn’t even try to compete. That scene happened in the episode 5 of the Netflix show & it’s underwhelming. It has no gravitas, but of course it can’t have any gravitas, it’s not the culmination of the collaboration of humans across the globe, demonstrating that they can fight back & achieve greatness when they are united, of course it can’t be the same when it’s just 10 British people working in isolation. They didn’t just do something underwhelming on a technical level, they did something underwhelming on a narrative level. Just like the scene with the insects, the culmination of the Tencent show had no weigh & no impact when done by Netflix.

5) The misguided belief that somehow an American show could show Chinese history (the cultural revolution) to an international audience better & with more accuracy than a Chinese show to a Chinese audience because of the censorship in China is laughable. An international audience would need more context to understand a historical time that they or their parents didn’t live through, but that’s not what Netflix did. What they showed was mildly violent & shocking to be sure, but not very accurate to the content of the book. They cut out a lot of plot, but they could have done that, simplified it without stripping it of context or changing the story so much it resonates wrong. I'll just give small examples:

on the stage when they condemn Ye Wenjie's father (with microphones in front of a huge audience???) they keep saying "lies", which makes no sense, that's not the logic, the charge is propagating western propaganda, upholding western values & a capitalist way of thinking, not lying (see the end of page note on that point).

they call Ye Wenjie comrade during her time at the Red Coast (in the book [& in the Tencent show] her status as a political dissident & therefore NOT a comrade is emphasized, stated explicitly. If you don't understand the social implication, let's simplify & say that being a comrade is like being a citizen, not a comrade, not part of the group, not trusted).

Netflix Ye Wenjie unironically says: "how awesome would it be if China was the first [country to make contact with aliens]". She says it, mind you, not in front of the political commissioner because she is asking for something & need to butter him up, no, she is just enthusiastically patriotic? She is shown to be enthousiastically patriotic toward China & LATER she sells out the planets to the Trisolarians.

The inconsistencies are not only baffling deviations from the source materials that display a complete lack of comprehension of Ye Wenjie as a character, as well as an astonishing disregard for the accuracy of the ideology of (Mao-area) communism & the history of Maoist China. They didn't show a lot of content, so they could have easily avoided making such basis mistakes.

What really pisses me off is that I keep seeing press pieces saying that the Netflix version “doesn’t shy away from showing”, “won't censor” the part of the story taking place during the Cultural Revolution, sometimes outright saying it as a reason to watch the Netflix version over the Tencent one, implying to the readers the Tencent version is heavily censored, when in reality the Tencent version spend a lot more time than on it than the Netflix one, showing how bad it was, in an accurate way, very close to the content of the book. The political rhetoric fallacies, the bureaucracy, the hypocrisy, how miserable everything is, is shown very well.

[Disclaimer, I'm not Chinese, it's not my culture, it’s not the country I live in. But in France there are Maoists, so I’ve learned just enough about the history of Mao & the Cultural Revolution to hold very negative views about it. In reverse, in a very racist, sinophobic way, many Westerners think Chinese people can’t think for themselves if they don’t hate every single thing about China & they lump in the country, the people & the Xi Jinping administration. It’s absurd to ask other people to hate their country, to have no pride in anything from their country. What hypocrisy, in every country, nationalism is taught to us from the time we first attend school. Patriotism is a requirement, it’s ingrained, internalized in all of us. We can be critical of our country’s history, of our government, or many things & still find pride & love for some things. I know that’s the way I feel about France.]

Censorship does exist in China, it’s exist materially in a way that differs from the Hays Code in the US in both the scope of its autority & its function. It is enacted by a governement agency called the NRTA & everything that airs on tv has to be clear by the NRTA first. A clear guideline is not provided, we know what passed it, creators know what didn’t, so to a lesser extent we know what doesn’t passes NRTA censorship: graphic violence, nudity, sex, ghosts (or BL since 2021...) et caetera. It would be dishonest to pretend that the topic of Cultural Revolution is a taboo that cannot be spoken about, as if the current administration has a positive view on it & would therefore not allow it to be criticized. What is censored (as far as we know, what is different from the book) in the Tencent show is the opening scene, a very graphic violent scene. That’s it. It’s censored, probably more for the violence than anything else. Some people find it disappointing, but the symbolic meaning of that violence in not hidden in the narrative & the event are instead visually & auditory implied in a short flashback at the end of one episode.

NB) In the opening scene of the Netflix show (the same one that was cut on Tencent), the political tribunal has someone accusing: "Lies, all lies!". But lying is not a political charge. It sounds ridiculous. They just had to follow the book, they didn’t have to understand communism, but no, they had to come up with things themselves... My best guess it that the creators didn’t realized that "lying is bad" is a cultural value that is not universal.

I don't know if "lying" is a big deal in China, but I know it's not a big deal in my culture & in a Marxist/communist political context, lying is just not "a thing". They are a lot of charges you can get in a political tribunal:

-individualist behavior,

-liberalism/imperialistic thinking,

- lack of self-criticism (Maoism famously has the three principles, one of which being the practice of self-criticism so you/we can do better).

-deceiving the masses with xx propaganda [so they don't revolt when they would if they knew the truth], that’s as close to lying is a political charge can get,

-aspiring to bourgeois comfort [that can mean profiting of other people's labor, not doing enough or not wanting to sacrifice your life for the cause],

- treason & of course

- being counterrevolutionary / working against the revolution, are the two big ones !

Can you see what is not on that list ? Lying is not on that list.

[burst-of-iridescent]

atla live action thoughts: season one review

first things first: anyone who says the Movie That Does Not Exist is better than the live action is straight-up lying. the shymalan film fails on the criteria of even being a decent movie, let alone an adaptation. the netflix series, for all its problems, is at least an enjoyable watch with great effects, music and (mostly) appropriate casting. there's absolutely nothing to compare here - the netflix version clears easily.

now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's delve into the series, starting with the positives.

the good:

visuals and cinematography. they really did a great job of making it feel like a fantasy universe you wanted to be in & i love how vibrant the saturation and colour grading was. it made the world feel so much more dynamic and alive instead of the same flat, boring dullness that so many movies and shows have these days. sometimes i didn't even mind that i was being fed obvious exposition because at least they were giving me something pretty to look at lmao

effects and action. the bending was surprisingly good for the most part, and they did a good job of making the elements feel unique through the stunt choreography and the actors' movements. i'm immensely thankful they didn't try to skimp on budget by merely cutting away from fight scenes or showing us as little as possible. almost all the action sequences were fast-paced and engaging, and i was never bored watching them

acting. the main four were all great, but gordon cormier and dallas liu have to be the standouts for me. gordon brings such an earnest, innocent sweetness to aang that you can't help but like him, and dallas plays all of zuko's facets perfectly: the angst, the explosive anger, the bratty snark, and especially the deep-rooted pain that characterizes so many of zuko's actions in book 1. the range he has, especially when flashing from younger to older zuko, was insane. special shoutout to maria zhang and sebastian amoruso as suki and jet respectively, because they killed it

music. leaves from the vine instrumental had me tearbending and i love how they kept the iconic avatar theme while making it a little darker for this iteration of the story. in general, the soundtrack felt very true to the animation while still being a fresh spin on it

zuko and iroh's relationship and expanding on zuko's crew. i think the fandom universally agrees that lu ten's funeral and zuko's crew being the 41st division were the best changes in the series, so i'm not going to talk about it further other than to say that these scenes show me what the show can be, and that's why i'm not giving up on it

the bad:

characterization. almost all the main characters are missing the little nuances that made them so great in the original, but the greatest casualty is katara. i hate that they took away so much of her rage, and gave many of her traits and struggles to sokka. i don't think this is a problem solely with the writing though, because certain lines do feel like things animated katara would say, but the directing and line delivery don't have the same punch that made her so fierce in the original. this is an easily fixed issue though, so i hope they take the criticism and let my girl be angry and fuck shit up next season

exposition. this was primarily a problem in depicting aang's personality and the relationship between the gaang, because a) why are you TELLING me that aang is mischievous and fun-loving instead of just showing me and b) the gaang do NOT feel like close friends, mostly because they spend so much time apart in every episode that they have little screentime to actually bond and develop intimacy.

lack of focus on the intricacies of bending. for a show whose tagline is "master your element" the characters spend very little time actually... mastering their element. zuko is never shown to struggle with firebending (which is going to have ramifications when it comes to developing his relationship with azula), and neither aang nor katara ever learn waterbending from a master throughout the the entire show. i'm pretty sure aang never willingly waterbends ONCE in the entire eight episodes, discounting the avatar state and koizilla. bending isn't just cool martial arts, it's closely linked to the philosophies and spirituality of each nation, and i wish that had been explored more.

pacing. they really needed to do a better job of conveying that time passed between episodes because an 8-episode season is just going to FEEL shorter than a 20-episode one. the original animation felt as though they'd truly been on a long journey before arriving at the north, but here it feels like the entire show happened in the span of a fortnight or so because each episode seemed to pick up right after the previous. they needed to have more downtime within episodes instead of just rushing from plot beat to plot beat because it made everything feel a lot more rushed. give the characters and story time to breathe.

final rating: 7/10.

overall, i would describe the live action as a better version of the percy jackson movies - not an accurate or perfect adaptation, but a decent story that's very fun to watch. but what really makes me root for this show to get a season 2 is that it has a lot of potential and more importantly, a lot of heart. it's evident that the people who worked on it do genuinely love and respect the original series, and it shows onscreen.

regardless of anything else, this show created opportunities for so many asian and indigenous actors, writers and creators to tell the kinds of stories and play the kinds of roles they don't usually get, and that's something worth supporting. if they take the criticism from this season and improve, i believe they really do have something special on their hands which - although it might not be the original we all know and love - could still be a story to be proud of.

[sgiandubh]

Hi there. I enjoyed your post about Sam’s brand and it got me thinking. I feel like he’s stuck between trying to do what other people tell him he should to “make it” and trying to do it himself. Other people: you’re hot, show it off, do action movies, date blonde floozies. Himself: I want to be a good person and a decent actor, but what if I’m not? Guess I should work a lot, build a non-acting brand just in case I get fired, but try not to pay too many people to market it, I can do that myself; the liquor has the added benefit of getting his name out there and hopefully giving him another income stream if acting goes to shit. Where this all becomes problematic is that he’s not the person others tell him to be, so he comes off as fake, inconsistent, disingenuous, contradictory. I worry though that he can’t break away from these “advisors” because of whatever hole he and caitriona have themselves in with Starz and their bosses. We may not all agree on what happened in 2016 or why, but it’s obvious something did. The difference between them both since then is stark. The light has dimmed. They’ve aged exponentially. They’re guarded. They’re not the effervescent dynamos they started out as. She looks pissed all the time, like she’ll trot Tony out if necessary, but she won’t look like she enjoys it. She’ll go to awards ceremonies, but she won’t look as gorgeous as she easily could. She won’t be their ingenue. I don’t know, I think they’re stuck and are limited in what they can actually do for themselves, as much as they might like to. I can only hope there is an end in sight for them and they can persevere until then!

PS, I watched She Said last night. Highly recommend for anyone who doesn’t think a network executive could or would force their tent pole stars to deny a relationship.

Dear She Said Anon,

I liked your submission so much, I have read it three times in a row (and damn the late hour!). I have very few things to add to your excellent assessment of what I think is a very complicated situation. The proverbial Scottish parsimony could explain the choice of a minimally budgeted, all hands on deck sales and advertising approach. But we are quickly passing this stage and he should seriously think of hiring true professionals, if he really wants to make a financial lifebelt out of SS.

Yes. There's a price to be paid for all the games they are being served to play (and yes, something terrible happened in January 2016, of which we will probably never have the full details). Both of them are now striving to show us they can (scantily, painfully) exist without the magical Other. She, with that colorless, wrist-grabbing, fist-clenching literally dumb person (strictly meaning that we never hear him). He, with that (forgive me, Father, for I am about to sin) questionable, loud and tacky Oriental consigliere (it is high time I should write that paper on the Persia I know and love, lest you or other Anon think I am racist, or something). You can't figure out more opposite add-ons to Those Two, both serving, I believe, the same purpose: to deflect, at all costs, any attention given to the real state of play.

I haven't watched She Said yet and I welcome and thank you for the suggestion. On a lighter note, I trade for it Call My Agent (I have already mentioned this very, very witty French series, dealing with the life in a Parisian talent agency) - it shouldn't be a problem to find it on Netflix.

Good night, Anon. This one below is me thanking you for your trouble and time writing this wonderful post. Just look at Mitsuko Uchida's genuine Joy while playing Beethoven - same energy as Two People We Know, back in 2014, right?

[shipcestuous]

Killer Body Count 2024 (b/s) (submission)

Hi, Shipcestuous. ShipCestFan here to submit the 2024 movie, “Killer Body Count” which I didn’t see on your lists.

TL;DR:

A young wayward woman is committed to a a sex treatment center that takes a Catholic faith-based approach and is run by a pair of 30-something siblings. Soon, a killer starts killing each of the young patients for their lustful sins. But the righteous and God-fearing sister and brother are a bit hypocritical cuz they’re having hot-monkey-sex with each other at every secret turn.

DETAILED SYNOPSIS:

(WARNING: NARRATIVE AND GIFs MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS)

Okay, okay…I know… it’s another cheesy, horror guilty pleasure from ShipCestFan. But to my defense, it’s getting harder and harder to find very good cestship movies or shows with deep emotional meaning that aren’t already on your lists or discussed at length. I’m doing my best to add variety to your site! ;)

So back to this movie. Believe it or not, it’s a 2024 Tubi original! And 10 minutes into the movie, the viewer realizes Tubi doesn’t have the budget that Amazon or Netflix have. lol. The production values and acting are…okay. And the story is pretty cliché: A group of young adults at a rehab center for the sexually deviant start getting picked off by an overzealous, religious (and masked) killer.

Cami plays our protagonist who’s sent to a treatment center for the sexually deviant by her father who thinks Cami is a sex addict when the 20-something young woman is really only trying to figure out her sexual identity. There, she meets other supposed sexual deviants her age.

The treatment center is faith-based and uses religion and cliches like the fear of God and going to hell to scare the young adult patients straight. But the hot young adults (all attractive with great bodies) don’t listen and frequently hook up with each other – male/female and female/female. Soon, a masked killer begins killing those young adults refusing to reform and the movie becomes a typical slasher horror flick that’s a step above B-budget but doesn’t quite reach that A-budget status.

But followers of your blog would be most interested in the cestship revealed by the 30-something brother and sister who run the treatment center. Tawny and her older brother, Eugene, were part of a very Catholic family and raised on the grounds of the treatment center run by their father and uncle. Explanations – mostly provided by sister Tawny – reveal that the siblings had only themselves growing up and when their family members passed away (presumably at the hands of the killer), the center was left to them and it’s been only the two of them running it. The siblings are extremely religious and everything at the center revolves around God and following God’s path. But the fact that they have never married and have been living together in a small cabin on the premises immediately raises eyebrows and makes them sus’.

Tawny, especially, likes to remind the young patients about the sins of the flesh and tells the women of the co-ed group that they are the Whores of Babylon. She wants to convince the viewer that she is a God-fearing woman. But Tawny is a bit hypocritical, also enjoying unbridled sex with her brother, including oral sex (implied in one scene) and hot, spur-of-the-moment explosive sex in another scene where Tawny is getting off listening to herself cry out passionately how she has gone from sister to wife which pushes her to orgasm. Yikes.

For me, personally, this hypocrisy is very appealing, especially when it involves a cestship. Two opposing forces, if you will, of “righteousness” vs “immorality”existing in the same person who has no qualms breaking cestship taboos but then goes to church or prays or…whatever. So this aspect, especially coming from the sister, Tawny, kept me watching the film til the very end. I’m thinking many of your followers will enjoy that aspect, too. Throughout the movie, Tawny and Eugene give off respectable brother and sister vibes to everyone else. If anything, they are, maybe, a little too over-the-top with their religious fanaticism. But behind closed doors, their disregard for Scripture and temptation to continue their loving and very sexual cestship is obvious.

A personal note. I’ve mentioned before how I believe that many cestships IRL develop because of circumstances or situations that “present” the cestship to two people and it serves as a “trigger” for them to consensually move into it. Even though this movie was fiction, it presents one of these situations that could IRL be very much the way a cestship develops. Think about it – a brother and sister have no one but each other and grow up together on an isolated, family-owned campground. As they grow up and their burgeoning sexuality is piquing their curiosity, they turn to each other to explore it while the family is preoccupied with adulting. And as they move into adulthood, they have no desire to marry or leave each other, living together to continue running the campground and moving fully into a romantic and sexual cestship. There is even a scene in the movie that supports this where – during sex – Tawny is crying out a verse and she says, “She is indeed my sister…and became my wife.” This is exactly how I think it would happen IRL.

So… the movie has a few twists and turns, so I’m not going to give away the ending since the cestship is not the primary plot or theme of the movie – it’s a titillating subplot thrown in by Writer/Director, Danishka Esterhazy. A quick online google of Danishka indicates that she has some chops, having her films previewed at film festivals and winning several awards. Her movies are female-driven, and this is the case with Killer Body Count, where LGBTQ+ themes are prevalent. But what I liked was that the movie never sacrifices one gender to promote the other. Everyone stands on their own.

The movie is available for free on Tubi and might be a fun Friday night romp for anyone wanting a light, horror flick with cestship themes. I hope this helps some of your followers decide on whether to watch it or not? Here are a few GIFs from the movie – focusing primarily on the siblings. After all, that’s what we’re all about here, right?. :)

--

Looks like there are plenty of scenes related to Tawny and Eugene’s relationship, even though they are not the focus of the movie. Thanks for your hard work on all of the gifs and the detailed description of the movie. I’m sure many will be glad to see that it’s on Tubi!

[flanaganfilm]

Hey Mike, can you talk about your work on Revival? What was it like reading the book, writing the script, making it all work? I know people thought it was going to be like Midnight Mass, but King is tackling religion far differently & I would have loved to see your adaptation of that. Furthermore, why did you decide to leave the project? I read somewhere it had to do with the film rights, but I’m sure there’s more to that story & id love to hear your side of it.

Also, Life of Chuck…. 1.85:1 or Scope? C’mon, Mike! Spill the beans!

Thanks!

I was very excited about Revival. King had given me the rights after I finished the script for Doctor Sleep, and we took it around town as a pitch. Warner Bros. picked up the project and commissioned the script.

I wrote a script I love, and turned it in to Warner Bros. It couldn't be more different than Midnight Mass; that was always a very weird and unfair comparison. The only thing they have in common is that each story features a priest; any comparisons wouldn't have survived opening weekend, that was never really a thing.

Revival is one of King's scariest and most effective books, and I was madly in love with the movie. I stayed very true to the book, and the story spanned over decades. It was a character-forward epic about mortality, and the futility of hope, dealing with themes of lost love, addiction, and hubris. In fact, it has way more in common with Frankenstein than Midnight Mass, and I was stoked to make it. It wasn't cheap, though - the set pieces were big, the VFX budget was intimidating, and it fit into a type of budget that isn't typically made these days.

For those reasons, ultimately, after Doctor Sleep's disappointing performance at the box office, Warner Bros. didn't want to pursue the movie. They had really liked the Frankenstein comparisons, but that only comes into play at the very end of the story. Their pitch was to start the story there, and jettison most of the actual novel in favor of a new, heavily Frankenstein inspired narrative. It was a bridge too far, and changed the source material too radically.

Warner Bros. faith in the project had been seriously damaged by the box office performance of Doctor Sleep, and the character-forward epic I was pitching was just too risky given the hefty price tag. Ultimately, I wasn't willing to change the story as drastically as they wanted to, and it just didn't make sense to make it for that budget - so they opted not to make the film, and that was that. I didn't leave the project at all - the studio just didn't want to move forward with it. Revival is not the most obvious project. It is more expensive than a lot of comparable horror titles, and we didn't want to do it as a streaming movie - we bet the farm on a theatrical feature, and the cards didn't fall in our favor this time. My window of availability as a director rapidly closed. I was heading fast into Midnight Club and Fall of the House of Usher for Netflix, so without a viable attachment from me for at least a few years, the project couldn't move forward at all, and the rights reverted back to Stephen King. We discussed whether we wanted to try to keep it alive, but we were already deep into talks about The Dark Tower, whose rights were about to become available after years of being tied up. Steve doesn't like to give the same person multiple rights as a general rule, because he doesn't want his projects to stall out in development, which makes good sense. Given the choice, we absolutely wanted to focus on The Dark Tower. We let Revival go, and last I heard, some other people were developing it as a TV project. I absolutely love the script I wrote, and I'm disappointed that Warner Bros. didn't want to make it, but it's their studio and their prerogative. I can't say I blame their reasoning. In fact, I completely see their point. I could have dug in and fought harder to keep it, but that might mean I wouldn't have gotten the rights to The Dark Tower.

And I hate to say it, but Revival would have taken a similar narrative approach to Doctor Sleep, and - well - audiences just didn't show up for that movie. It's entirely likely that the same would have happened here - this was another long, character-centric story that wasn't entirely a mainstream horror tale, and it was expensive. And this didn't have The Shining connection to lean on. I am so sorry to say this, but I don't have a lot of faith that audiences would have supported us if we'd bet the farm on a theatrical release of Revival as I wanted to make it. So honestly, I think it all worked out for the best. You win some and you lose some in this business. Who knows, maybe it'll come back some day - I also lost the rights to Gerald's Game back in 2014 when we couldn't find a partner who wanted to make the movie. They eventually came around again, and the timing worked out. The same could happen here - maybe we get another chance, or may we revisit it down the line as a limited series. Stranger things have happened. Ka is a wheel. Or, maybe this new television production of Revival will get off the ground, and if it does I wish them nothing but the best with it. It's a phenomenal story, and I'll be first in line to see it.

[meenawrites]

So.. I finished Alchemy of Souls

Guys, the amount of tears I just shed in front of my entire family in the last episode of part 2 is crazy.

They were just sitting there like, you good? It's fiction as I'm sobbing my eyes out.

Anyway.

I have many thoughts. So many. And I lowkey want to make a separate post for each of them.

But for now I do want to leave some of my impressions about the finale: (spoilers ahead obviously)

I thought it was pretty well done. I expected to be a bit more shocked about the whole Jin Buyeon is Jin Seol-ran plotline but it honestly made sense to me and I feel like it was actually foreshadowed pretty well for the most part, even in season 1.

Also they definitely got me good with the deaths of Park Jin, Maidservant Kim, and Jin Hogyeong (if that's how you spell her name). Like that's when I started crying tbh. (I could care less about Mama Jin tbh, she sucks, but that deserves its own post). And I'm glad that them actually being alive didn't feel like a cop out to me. They established early on that Jin Seol-ran knew what would happen and used that to their advantage so it was believable and didn't feel like a Deus Ex Machina move for them to be saved. Well, maybe one of them should have died (cough–Mama Jin–cough). But it's fine.

I do feel like the last two episodes were kind of rushed though. I don't know if they had budgeting constraints or if Netflix didn't give them more than ten episodes, but I think that they should have had at least 12. Two more episodes would have allowed for more expansion on the climax and allowed them to up the drama more, which I think would have done well for the series over all, and would have been a better payoff.

I think the time could have been used well to flesh out some of the side characters arcs more. I feel like Danggu and Jin Choyeon were kind of pushed off to the side this season, and especially in the latter half, but I would have liked to see more of them and their relationships not only with each other but with Jang Uk and Naksu/Jin Buyeon.

For all intents and purposes, Naksu/Jin Buyeon lived as Jin Choyeon's sister for three years, and we can see that despite everything that happened three years prior, Choyeon did treat her as her sister even knowing the soul was Naksu's and cared about her. I think that could've and should've been expanded upon, her choosing to care about Naksu/Jin Buyeon or how that came to be. Also, after Naksu regained her memory AND found out Jin Mu had been for sure controlling her at the end of Part 1, I would have loved to see the conversation between her and Choyeon about what she did, an apology and an explanation that she would never have done that if she were sane of mind. What I said about Choyeon applies to Naksu as well because she lived three years as Choyeon's sister, and we can tell she cares about her, so I would have loved to see more of her feelings towards her, especially upon remembering all that had transpired in part 1.

When it comes to Danggu, I mean, he's one of Uk's best friends, and he was left out of the loop a lot when it came to anything Naksu-related. I would have liked him to find out or for Uk to tell him at some point and see how he makes peace with that. Because Danggu and Mudeok were friends in part 1 and he supported her (erroneously) in her supposed romance with Seo Yul. But then she killed his fiance's father and tried to attack him. I can't imagine the sense of betrayal he felt, but also finding out that it wasn't her fault and how he could come to terms with that would have been great to see. I also think his whole experience/trauma from part 1 was kind of glossed over. Like his main thing this season was his broken heart after Choyeon didn't end up marrying him, and I think that was making his feelings a bit too one-dimensional there. They do talk about how he feels slightly uncomfortable/doesn't know what to do with Jang Uk at the beginning of the show, but once Seo Yul comes back, that's kind of forgotten about and the three of them just start hanging out again no problem. I would've like to see a bit more about him struggling with becoming Leader of Songrim as well and how he adapted to that amidst his heartbreak for both his love and his friend who he doesn't even know how to act around anymore, and even towards Naksu/Mudeok who kind of ruined his future and that of his best friend but also being intuitive enough (because he is and he has one of the best hearts we've seen in the show) to realize that there's more to the story than her just going on a murder spree.

I've seen some talk about people saying they didn't like the actress for season 2 as much as season 1 (forgive me, I forgot their names), but I think both brought something good to the table.

Season 1 actress for Mudeok was really good. Her facial expressions were spot on and her chemistry with Lee Jaewook and the other cast members was really good. I think she definitely had great stage presence and made the show popular in the first place. I just don't agree that season 2 actress was worse.

I think season 2 actress definitely put in the work and embodied who Naksu/Jin Buyeon was for the majority of the series. There were times where she made expressions that perfectly resembled/echoed Naksu/Mudeok's that really got me like yes they are the same person even if she doesn't remember. She may have been cuter than we were used to with out sharp-tongued and emotion-resistant Mudeok, but I think Naksu needed that. As Mudeok and before then she didn't have the luxury to be more emotional and girly, it's only now in this body that she does, and I'm glad she had the opportunity to express that side of herself that had never seen the light of day.

We did get a glimpse of that side of her at the end of part 1 where she's playing around with makeup and what might make her look pretty, and it really spoke to all that she had missed out on and had to give up in order to survive. So yeah despite all the angst, I'm glad Naksu/Jin Buyeon had that opportunity through season 2 actress who played it really well while keeping in line with the essence of Naksu/Mudeok.

This whole thing about Naksu being the shadow to Jang Uk's light and if light exists then it needs a shadow broke my heart you guys, it was so perfect. And the fact that they were each other's light and shadow at different points but were also wholly necessary to each other in that was beautiful. I want to talk more about this in a separate post, so I'll table this metaphor for now.

Shout out to Crown Prince Go Won, a great character this whole season in terms of both comedic relief and massive character growth. So good.

Uk's arc was fantastic too but again want to save that for a full post.

Those are my out of order first thoughts about part 2, but I have SO MUCH MORE to discuss, so I will come back for sure. I just needed to scream to the world for a bit (virtually of course).

Question though for all of you more knowledgeable in the k-drama world: is there going to be a season 3?

[ncisfranchise-source]

here’s a lot of talk about how handsome Glen Powell is and how he’s bringing back the vibe of the old-school Hollywood leading man. But if you want to understand who he is deep down, just note that when he got the chance to write his own lead role, he made himself the dorkiest character imaginable—one who masquerades as a succession of increasingly ridiculous figures in outrageous outfits and absurd hair.

That was Netflix’s Hit Man, directed by Richard Linklater, a fellow Austinite who gave him his big break in 2016’s Everybody Wants Some!! We’re thrilled to have Powell as part of our 2025 Hollywood Issue. Here, he delves into not just his impressive string of hits, but also the lean years when he was a Hollywood nobody. If he happened to get invited to the party back then, he says, he’d have to smuggle in his own drink in a flask because he was so broke.

Vanity Fair: In Hit Man, your character gives a speech in which he talks about living on the edge, and how you’ve got to have some danger and excitement in your life. There are many things not to live your life by in that movie, but that’s not a bad message, is it?

Glen Powell: You don’t want to take all the lessons from it. [Laughs.]

Your filmography is very eclectic. You’ve got romantic comedies like Anyone but You, you’ve got big-budget tentpoles like Top Gun: Maverick, visual-effects action movies like Twisters, you’ve got indie-feeling, cross-genre films like Hit Man. Are you deliberately mixing it up to avoid being pigeonholed?

When it comes to that, the thing I’ve really tried to chase is a feeling, like, “I hope I have it in me,” right? I’m trying to do ambitious things that scare me a little bit, because when they scare you, it means that you have to rise to the occasion.

You don’t just want to do the thing that has already been a success.

I understand why some people would just play the greatest hits. But at the same time, you get into trouble when you’re trying to diversify for the sake of diversification, and you leave the audience out of it. And that’s where I try to be really thoughtful. I try to think, “Audience first,” rather than, “Me first.”

What does the audience want to see? How can I fit into a role that really challenges what I do, where I’m not settling into any sort of groove that feels too familiar or too monotonous? Do you know what I mean?

I do. You see that phenomenon all the time: Actors will have a number of hits and then suddenly get the chance to make something they want—and they make something that nobody else wants to see!

Yeah, totally. There’s always been this phrase, “One for me, one for them.” And I just completely disagree with that idea. I think it can be all for them, and it can be all for you, and you just have to be really deliberate about what you’re a part of. You just have to find roles that are flavors that you’ve never explored, or just because a movie’s smaller doesn’t mean it has to be unappealing to an audience. I find that there’s this interesting creative drunk driving where you’re like, “Okay, I’m going to go do a small movie for me, a big movie for them.” That’s not a plan.

People refer to you as a classic movie star. You’ve got the matinee-idol good looks, but you also have the instinct to make stories that don’t just rely on that. I think it’s interesting that the movie you cowrote, Hit Man, has you in all of these ridiculous costumes and haircuts.

For me, I’m just having fun. Hit Man is an example of a kind of movie that I really, really like, but also I got this great joy out of wondering if I could pull it off. The more I researched the real-life Gary Johnson, the more that I was like, “Wow, this is a tall order and not necessarily a natural fit.” Gary and I don’t share, I would say, a lot in common in terms of the way we orient our lives, and yet it’s really fun to step into the skin of someone like that.

It doesn’t seem like the kind of movie studio executives were offering you.

Hit Man was one of those that really taught me. The business—as we were selling it—didn’t understand what it was. We pitched it around town and people were like, “Oh, great, we want to be a part of this.” Then they were like, “Actually, we don’t want to be a part of that. Can we change that?”

And [director Richard Linklater] and I were always excited about the potential of what we were creating. It was unique and it was different. Audiences couldn’t get out ahead of this movie. It didn’t really fit into one genre.

To get to create that kind of story, you have to have status. Do you feel that there is a performance aspect to just being a lead actor in this industry? In addition to being in front of the camera, do you have to play a part in Hollywood?

I’ve failed for a lot longer than I’ve succeeded. I’ve really gotten a chance to see other people do it. And what I realized is, I think the trap is trying to fit into the mold of something like that where it’s inauthentic.

I guess what I was thinking about was the New York Times article in which you and Sydney Sweeney talked about playing up flirtatiousness in public, even though you weren’t in a relationship, because that’s what the audience of a rom-com like Anyone but You wants.

I think what people forget about with a press tour is that it’s its own sense of entertainment. I don’t think it’s duplicitous. For Twisters, I had the best time because I’m getting to literally live in a world of trucks, and tornadoes, and the South, and country music, and all these different things where I was like, “This is authentically all me.” Shotgunning a beer onstage with Luke Combs is press, but that’s also something that I had the greatest time doing. That was so damn fun.

It sounds like you’re saying you and Sydney would have to be actual friends to play up that kind of thing.

I love her. She’s the greatest. If you’re not having fun with this job, then I think you get burnt out. We just had a really good time. So we have just such a great friendship and really cheer for each other and it’s been a fun ride to do this thing together.

What was it like for you in the years when you weren’t in demand, when you were in your 20s?

As a struggling actor, there’s no harder place to live than being in Hollywood with nothing going on. The currency of that town is how relevant you are and what your last job is. It makes you oppressively self-aware. Where people can get caught in a rut is where they just want to continue spinning the roulette wheel without any thought of why. They just stay at the table for no reason other than to stay at the table.

How did you cope with having nothing going on?

Even at the darkest moments in that town, when I really didn’t have anything happening, you sort of have to lie to yourself, at least a little bit, and act like this is that chapter of the story where things just aren’t going right. You have to believe in the Hollywood legends of those people that you admire, the people that you’re chasing, that had those long stretches of famine as well. I’m very grateful about getting a chance to understand a lot about writing. I had to occupy different types of jobs that allowed me to understand how to finance things, and produce things. I started understanding a facet of this business that’s really serving me right now.

What type of things were those?

I’d hit random people up and I’d try to drum up money for other people’s shorts to turn them into features, or I’d try to hunt down stuff and pitch people to get a small role in things. In LA, you are really just hustling to just try to be a part of the experiment at all. People are like, “Oh man, auditioning must be tough.” And I’m like, “No, auditioning is a luxury.”

Finding an agent, finding anybody to talk to you at a damn party, having enough money to pay for headshots, these are the things that no one talks about. Trying to pay for acting class, and trying to get better. Auditioning feels like you’re at the party. You’ve gotten past the velvet rope. You may not be able to afford a drink at the party, but you’re in it, you can taste it. But so often in Hollywood, most of the time you are outside that velvet rope. Most of the time the bouncer is not even allowing you anywhere in the vicinity.

What kind of bit parts paid the bills?

That’s the other interesting thing about this business right now—how much it’s changing. The business no longer supports struggling actors the way it did when I was kind of coming up. I would do an episode of NCIS, and that would keep me afloat for a year. You know what I mean?

But only if you’re careful with the money.

My overhead’s not high. You’re not living a lavish lifestyle. You’re hiding a flask in your boot if you go out for a drink. You’re not necessarily able to afford anything significant in that town, but you are able to stay there. Those little jobs, like getting a commercial, keep life in the system.

What’s it like doing a small part in a big movie? I saw one of your credits on IMDb was a stock trader in The Dark Knight Rises, which is a massive movie, but you’re only a small part in a machine like that. What do you remember about doing that?

I remember everything. You never forget the feeling. It’s something I carry to every set I walk on now, which is just the reverence for being on a set in general. But I remember on Dark Knight Rises the feeling of being able to walk onto a set and you knew everybody in the world wanted to be on that set, right?

Even though it was a small role, I auditioned several times for it. I was getting to work with the greatest director on the planet, Christopher Nolan. And you’re sitting there and all of a sudden Tom Hardy walks in as Bane. It’s electric. It’s sort of out-of-body. That was one of those movies when nothing was going on in my life. I was just fighting for every inch. And when Christopher Nolan casts you in his movie, it’s a validation that’s hard to explain. And I’ve talked to Chris about this. We’ve run into each other at different things. I saw him during his amazing Oppenheimer run, and he’s very proud that he plucked me early. I’m just very grateful that he took a shot.

[blazehedgehog]

What would happen if Nintendo became bankrupt or closed their doors forever? how would that effect the gaming industry?

I am of the opinion that if Nintendo goes bankrupt then they are the last ones left in the game industry and them closing up shop is the end of the market entirely.

Sony and Microsoft are the types to burn the candle at both ends. Always have been. I dunno if it's always been true, but at least as of the Xbox 360, the Xbox brand has never been profitable. Not even once. The strategy was always to sell hardware at a loss and make up for that in software. They do that because they charge developers to print discs.

But now the physical market is going away. And guys like Sony and Microsoft are trying to pivot to a subscription model where as long as you give them the total cost of one or two games a year, then that's good enough for them. But that is incredibly toxic to the market, and we're already seeing that with Microsoft's shift in perspective where they just aren't putting out a lot of big, exciting, great games. Game Pass is our "Netflix for Games", including all of the parts that make Netflix suck.

Nintendo has always been budget-conscious and frugal to a fault. They are here to make a lot out of a little. Their hardware is noticeably less powerful so they can generate profit from console sales alone. And I've said it before, but Aonuma once claimed Wind Waker HD cost more money than the original Wind Waker did, even though it was mainly just a couple of graphical filters and some minor gameplay tweaks. Which says to me the budget for Wind Waker must have been very, very, very tiny.

And Nintendo games are priced very aggressively. There's no such thing as a "cheap Nintendo game" and they rarely do deep discounts. And if you look, multiple Nintendo games crack the best selling games of all time. If anyone is making any meaningful profit in the games space, it is Nintendo.

So if Nintendo is turning out the lights, that's the end of the industry. Period. Maybe it still keeps going on the PC, since PC being an open platform seems to give it some immunity, but console gaming will be well and fully dead at that point.

[morbidapples]

watch me show up outside the writers' houses in a mob with torches and pitchforks cause what the fuck was season four? the first two episodes weren't even that bad, but everything went downhill after that. like i'm genuinely speechless, this is one of the worst endings to a show i have ever seen, and honestly, i'd rather it have been cancelled than have gotten whatever this flaming hot, high budget, cgi supportive, gore quotient raised, character arc destroying, weird relationship having garbage final season is. the umbrella academy has been one of my favorite shows for years now, and seeing it all go to shit is incredibly disappointing. they made me like luther over the last couple of seasons, they made me like most of the characters actually. but they also made five and lila so awful this season that luther took lila's spot in my top five tua characters. i loved her in season two and three, but they completely ruined her. and they ruined five, because seasons one through three five hargreeves would never say he wanted to kill diego. i mean, seriously, were the writers high on fucking cocaine when they wrote the entire script? five literally went through hell and back to try and save his siblings, and you expect me to believe he'd actually pull that crap? the writers made him a standoffish little bitch who kept causing problems this season, and it was a waste of a perfectly good character. all that character development for him, and for lila, just to throw it away in the second half of season four. i mean, jesus christ, what were they thinking? did the writers really think people would be happy with how it turned out? no wonder the cast always looks dead inside during interviews, they've gotta know how fucking bad it is. this is genuinely so upsetting as a long-term fan of tua, it's horrendous. and making aidan gallagher and ritu arya have not only one, but multiple romantic scenes is actually disturbing. he's twenty, and she's thirty-five outside of the show, and the characters have a major age gap in the show, too. seriously, netflix couldn't give us one last good season, they just had to screw everyone over. it's mind baffling that they thought people wouldn't be upset over this. they ruined two of the characters with the best plot lines, and then killed every single fucking character at the end. i've never been so disgusted by a series finale in my life.

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review (June 25-July 8, 2023)

I picked a bad time to skip a week lol

Ultraman Blazar, the 35th entry in the Ultra Series, has made the scene. Episode 1 throws us right into a battle between humanity and a space monster. Blazar's the pushy type, all but forcing Gento to transform, but he doesn't speak Japanese—just yowls. For now, that makes him the show's central mystery. The show's defense team, SKaRD, won't actually form until the next episode, at which point we should have a better sense of it. But I'm intrigued so far.

Free streaming TV service Pluto TV has added a Godzilla channel. It boasts, or should soon boast, all of the Japanese Godzilla films minus King Kong vs. Godzilla and Shin Godzilla, plus Rodan, all the Mothra movies, The War of the Gargantuas, Godzilla (1998), and Godzilla: The Series. A Blu-ray.com user has composed a detailed rundown of the versions of the films used—short version, nothing we haven't seen before apart from a few small changes.

I got to see Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken before its official June 30 release date thanks to Regal's Monday Mystery Movie series. I guess I didn't retain much memory of the trailer, because it surprised me how early in the film the title character first grew into a kaiju. I can't give it an especially enthusiastic recommendation—comparisons to Luca and Turning Red are inevitable and don't flatter Ruby at all. But I get a kick out of seeing kaiju in such alien territory as a hyperactive animated kids' movie, and they continue to show off their flexibility as metaphors (Ruby is plainly neurodivergent). 7 outta 10.

Nimona dropped on Netflix the same day, and that's one anyone reading this column should sprint to watch. It saves its kaiju for the third act, and I've held off on posting much about that part of the story yet, but trust me, Ishiro Honda would be proud.

After years of lackluster Gorgo home video releases, Vinegar Syndrome seems poised to finally do it right in 4K Ultra HD. (If you're like me and don't have a way to watch such discs yet, don't worry, it comes with a Blu-ray.) New scan, new audio commentary, special features both new and old, and a killer cover. For those unfamiliar with the company, note that this release is "only available on [the Vinegar Syndrome] website and at select indie retailers. Absolutely no major retailers will be stocking them."

Every episode of Chibi Godzilla Raids Again is now subtitled, a fine excuse to get acquainted with one of the Reiwa era's biggest surprises. No stakes, no budget, just a bunch of Toho's biggest stars acting like a bunch of fools.

There's always more Godzilla toy news than this column can hope to cover, but a few highlights:

Bandai's ever-expanding Movie Monster Series will release Gamera 1965, Gyaos 1967, and Battra larva later this month. The defunct Daiei Kaiju Series last offered a Showa Gamera in 2006, and never covered any of his foes from that era; here's hoping Gyaos is the first of many.

Hiya Toys now has the license to produce figures from the Toho Godzilla films, not just the Monsterverse.

Super7 will be selling ReAction figures of Godzilla chomping some helpless people on a subway train at San Diego Comic Con. They just get it (and hopefully the many of us who aren't going will have some way of getting it that doesn't involve scalpers).

The new unit in Godzilla Battle Line is Monster X/Keizer Ghidorah. The former evolves into the latter after his first death. Keizer is a heavy hitter with a twist: he regains 20% of his health with every defeated foe. Great against swarms, but you don't see too many of those these days.

Believe it or not (many are still in denial), but Pacific Rim turns 10 on Wednesday. Thankfully, per this Tweet from director Guillermo del Toro, the effective start of the Kaiju Renaissance (and one of my all-time favorite films) won't go unrecognized on its first big anniversary. I'm guessing a cast reunion?

More translations from Noah Oskow await on Toho Kingdom, these a collection of synopses of early versions of Godzilla vs. Mothra, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, and Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla from the Toho DVDs. Much of this has been translated in greater detail already, but the later drafts are interesting.

[clairedaring]

/surprise leap out from your screen! Hahahha!

Yo Claire, first! I gotta say, I didn't expect to read BL meta essays when I followed your blog, but now that it's part of my dashboard, I like it! I'm not familiar with BL culture and stuff (the only BL stuff I really like is this Japanese manga named The Summer Hikaru Died, and even then I'm more sucked in by it being of the horror genre with interesting philosophical explorations), so these essays are so interesting to read!

And another thing! This post about the highest-grossing GDH movies mentioned The Medium (which I liked!), and that reminded me: I need Thai horror recommendations!

I don't know if you're into it, but maybe some of your friends do? And they can give me some good stuff? It's been so long since I've watched Thai horror—I grew up with that shit, man. I figured that someone who watches a lot of Thai media probably knows quite some newer Thai horror films I can watch on a weekend or something. Thanks!

(P.S. I realize I still have so many thoughts about สาธุ. I'm rewatching it when I have the time and realized there are still more details I forgot from the first viewing. A lot of them is embodied by the actors so well! I hope to find the time to write some essays/rambles about those things these days! Honestly... this is the only thing I can contribute to the สาธุ/The Believers tag 🫡🥲)

Hiiii Lyn! You are always welcome in my humble inbox.

You cannot imagine my happiness knowing you will soon fill he สาธุ/The Believers tag with insightful metas/essays. No pressure though but I am now indeed impatiently waiting for more สาธุ posts.

Aw, I'm so happy to hear that you've enjoyed the BL metas I've put on your dash even though queer love series are not usually ones you would watch because they're mostly romance based. ಥ_ಥ

Okay now onto the main part of my answer. Even though romance and comedy are indeed my favorite genres of series, as an enthusiast and follower of Thai actors and their works, it is inevitable to come across horror works (films or series) starring my favorite actors. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of horor (i'm a huge scaredycat), the genre has never stopped me from watching works of my favorite actors before -> I've definitely watched more horror media than I wanted to (┬┬﹏┬┬). I'll separate my recommendations into two part: one for series and one for films.

Thai Horror Anthology Series Recommendations

1. Girl From Nowhere Season 1 & 2 (2018 -2021)

Synopsis: A mysterious, clever girl named Nanno transfers to different schools, exposing the lies and misdeeds of the students and faculty at every turn.

Thoughts: although it would qualify more as thriller than a horror, girl from nowhere offers sharp commentaries about violence, sexual assault, bullying and various social issues. The series is more like an anthology with each episodes presenting a different story. The way my jaw dropped when I found out that the storylines in the episodes are inspired by actual real news reports/stories. Watching both seasons, you may feel that S1 is less budgeted than S2 which is true because S1 wasn't funded by Netflix Thailand. After picking S1 for streaming, Netflix decided to invest in a S2 for GFN and the cinematography for S2 is just immaculate.

2. After Dark (2020)

Synopsis: When the night falls, humans are more of a threat. Composed of 4 interlinked horror stories:

"Blind Date": Pink, a dating app addict, meets Q, a mysterious handsome guy. They establish a deep connection that ends up with Pink having a strange pregnancy which haunts her until the end.

“Requiem of the Adolescent”: Lada, a nurse hired with a vast amount of money to take care of Her Serene Highness Srisaang. Her terrors awake when her patient abnormally gets better.

“Death Channel”: Off and Boat, a successful youtuber and an idol team up to create a paranormal activity channel that has been sponsored by an anonymous user, they never know what is waiting.

"Into the Hole”: Chai, a charismatic person is a one-night stand expert in hopes to record a sex tape to earn a dime. Then he meets Dao, a charming woman. His mischievous behavior continues, but this time it would not be as easy as before.

Thoughts: it's gory, gross, raw, rough and scary as hell. some of the most visually traumatic series i've ever watched. incredible acting performances.

3. Angkhan Khlumpong The Series (2021)

Sypnosis: It is made based on ghost stories that people called and shared on the "Angkhan Khlumpong" radio program.

Thoughts: Episode 5 'Imaginary Friend' is scary as hell. All the episodes are quite scary in general. The stories rely a lot on jumpscares but Thailand is really good at making scary ghosts, the makeup team is always going all the way.

Note: Netflix Thailand is producing the sequel series Terror Tuesday: Extreme (2024), which comes out in 10 days (August 20). Netflix Thailand has never really disappointed with their budget so I'm pretty sure it'll be spooky.

Thai Horror Films Recommendations

1. Hoon Payon (2023)

Synopsis: Tham searches for his brother Te in order to deliver the news of their parents' passing. Te is ordained as a monk at a temple on Don Sing Tham Island. On arrival, Tham meets Jes, the grandson of the former abbot. Jes makes hoon payon, enchanted effigies of the dead. Tham learns of a rumour that Te vanished after murdering the abbot. Tham doesn't buy the story nor does he respect the villagers' strange reverence for the sculpture of Pho Pu Sing Tham. Though his appearance is unsettling to Tham, Pho Pu Sing Tham is said to protect them. Soon, a girl goes missing, a wild predator roams the island, a vengeful ghost is rampant and worse yet, the figure of Pho Pu Sing Tham is destroyed. The enraged villagers prepare to curse and hunt down the unknown culprit.

Thoughts: I watched this for Up Poompat who plays Te and I was genuinely shocked by his performance. Not scary enough as old Thai movies but still very thrilling.

2. Shutter (2004)

Synopsis: Tun, a young photographer, and his girlfriend, Jane, were driving home after drinking with friends, when suddenly they crash into a girl that was walking in the street. Panicking, Tun tells his girlfriend to run away. The next day, Tun discovers mysterious shadows in his photographs, and his girlfriend start seeing strange things in his house.

Thoughts: This is a classic Thai horror film and arguably the best horror film Tong Banjong (the director of The Medium) has ever directed. Director Tong's forte is really horror so please don't mind that the next 3 recommended films are all from him. They are truly THE classic horror films of Thailand.

3. Alone (2007)

Synopsis: Conjoined twins Ploy and Pim are very close until Pim meets a boy named Wee, causing her to decide to separate from Ploy. The surgery is performed but Ploy does not survive. Years later, Pim and Wee are living together in South Korea when Pim suddenly has to return home to take care of her mother after she has a seizure. While back home, Pim is haunted by a ghost from her past.

Thoughts: I really don't know what Director Tong is lacing in his horror films but they're always keeping me on the edge of my seat and most of the time my hands glued to my eyes 😭

4. Phobia (2008)

Synopsis: A horror movie anthology containing 4 stories-Loneliness: a woman confined to her apartment starts to receive texts from a stranger, Deadly Charm: a group of high school delinquents get cursed by a student that they bullied, The Man in the Middle: Four friends go on a camping/rafting trip that turns out far differently then they had planned, The Last Flight: A flight attendant has to accompany the body of a princess, the wife of her lover.

Thoughts: Another horror classic from GTH studio. I can't remember the details to all these stories but I can assure you when I was closing my eyes through half of this film because of how scared I was. I wanna say it's because I was young when I watched it but I'm sure I'd still be keeping my eyes close shut if I watch it again.

5. Phobia 2 (2009)

Synopsis: A horror omnibus consisting of five stories - Novice: a teenager takes refuge at a Buddhist sanctuary after committing a crime, Ward: a biker has to stay overnight in a hospital room with a strange man after an accident, Backpackers: a Japanese couple hitchhikes across Thailand until; they accept a ride from the wrong person, Salvage: karma visits woman who has successful business fixing up cars that were involved in fatal accidents, In The End: the movie crew working on a horror sequel experience a night of real fear.

Thoughts: They're all scary but I think the scariest segment is 'In The End'. I would say this is one of those rare occasions where the sequel outdid its predecessor Phobia.

6. Sick Nurses (2007)

Synopsis: A group of sexy nurses who harvest organs are haunted by the vengeful spirit of one of their dead patients.

Thoughts: this is more slasher than horror but i remember watching this when i was younger and i was scared as heck. I don't even dare to search up the trailer to embed here.

Bonus: 'not purely horror, only has creepy elements but deserves a honorable mention on this list because it's super underrated' film

Malila: The Farewell Flower (2017) dir. Nuchy Anucha Boonyawatana

Synopsis: Former lovers Shane and Pich reunite and try to heal the wounds of their past. Shane is haunted by the tragic death of his daughter, while Pich suffers a grave illness. As death approaches, Pich dedicates his remaining time to making Bai Sri, a ceremonial ornament. Meanwhile, Shane decides to become a Buddhist monk until one night at a graveyard, he encounters his lover in another form.

Thoughts: not horror but i think this film is the first that pops into my head while watching The Medium. Similar feels in their portrayal of Thai rural village lifestyle and Buddhism being a big part of both stories.

You may notice that most of these horror films from GTH Studio share similar directors, screenwriters or other creative staffs with The Medium. And that's because GDH 559 is basically the successsor of GTH Studio (which got dissolved in 2015). I've always a big fan of GDH films and I do try to watch as much GDH/GTH works as possible, but horror is really not my forte so I can only offer you these humble recommendations. I hope you'll enjoy at least one among the ones in this list.

[rosellerivers19]

Raayan- I have high hopes (thank you tamil cinema)

I have for some time lost hope in telugu cinema improving in diversity of tropes and performances but with recent stars and movies I have been brought back

Gam gam ganesha, prasanna vadanam, Hi nanna (kinda iffy for some reason but diverse storyline), and Hanuman

And I am waiting to see Kalki 2829 AD which I think will be definitely a big game changer given its dystopian setting something Indian cinema hasn't really approached a lot before especially on this kind of budget.

I've been limited to telugu movies for a long time because language barrier but due to subtitles and Telugu dubs my options have increased recently I watched the hindi movie Maharaj on Netflix in telugu which I really loved despite people claiming its hinduphobic while the movie is based on a real case and the movie claims yet again how hindu practices aren't bad but people misusing them is then again not a lot of people have comprehension or actually watched the movie and jump the train on any movie that slightly criticizes the religion or even raises just a few questions

*cough* *cough*

"Hindi movie PK starring Amir Khan"

I've watched a few good tamil cinemas when I was younger I didn't watch a lot of Dhanush movies because of the language barrier the only one I saw maybe was Maari 1 and 2 because it was dubbed in telugu but now I've grown to watch a lot more realizing he has a lot of diverse scripts and am so glad this man exists I need to binge his movies over the summer.

So I was listening to telugu songs on youtube when I came across this one called

"Peechu Mithaya"- telugu version

It's from the upcoming movie Raayan and oh my god just seeing this lyric video made me want to pay anything for this movie to come out right now and watch it.

Not only is the music beautiful ( i can listen to this for hours I don't know how I found this gem but I did and I'm grateful)

But the visuals and implications we are given is something I am screaming for.

PLUS SIZED ACTORS ON SCREEN HAVING AN ACTUAL LOVE STORY!!!!

Indian cinema has a lot of colorism especially to heroines especially from what I've seen in telugu movies. And they have to fit this perfect bod I've never seen a heroine be remotely big or a bit chubby even if it would show off their curves thats how the industry is and that saddens me.

But then we get this song and we see Aparna Balamurali who is first of all a plus sized character in the film with a dark complexion not milky white now tamil fans may be used to this but for me being born in Telugu cinema this is a jackpot especially when I have to really dig for inclusive films. The only cinema I've watched which supported a plus sized heroine having a love story is "Size Zero" starring anushka shetty an Iconic queen but I honestly have not seen any other films having a plus sized heroine or at least side heroine as a plus sized character with actual depth where we see her love story or ability to get happiness I think there was one Allari Naresh film but I don't remember it well.

edit: Totally forgot HanuMan existed which is also a good representation even though the mc's sister dies she was empowered and was on the brink of marriage so love that

In the Lyric Video "Peechu Mithaya"

We see an unconventional girl (Aparna Balamurali) who doesn't fit the beauty standards end up with an average/ attractive character (sundeep kishan) or at least have a romantic relationship in the songs visuals and a healthy one so far.

I am primarily gonna be watching this movie for them seeing the side hero carrying the plus sized side heroine brought me joy knowing that it would give hope to other women who aren't the conventional beauty standard or plus sized that they can be loved and have a love story like them that they aren't too heavy and the right guy will do anything to make them feel appreciated.

Look at the way he carries her and looks lovingly into her eyes!!!!!!

And there's just something about seeing this man looking so utterly in love with a girl who thinks she won't be good enough because of her physical appearance or other insecurities and he wants to prove her desperately wrong that makes me go feral.

Do you see what I mean!?!?!?

And I don't know if they will even delve into that kinda trope in the movie but I really wish they will since its something women especially women who've not been exposed to that kind of concept in their media want. Keep in mind we don't even have a trailer for this movie yet so pure speculations

And there's just so many cute clips like-

Nudging each other playfully!?!?!?

Having a couple argument/ confrontation!?!?!?

Riding on a bike together?!?!?!?

*cues internal screaming montage*

I love LOVE especially something so simple yet beautiful we need this more than Pushpa bribing Srivalli with money for kisses and putting his hand in inappropriate places without her consent. Or men just stalking in general and normalizing it????

Now I know that this couple might not even play a big part in the movie maybe one of the characters dies yadayada but knowing that scenes like this exist in the movie and that we'll have an entire song dedicated to THEM just quells my heart.

Dhanush sir thank you for this 4 minute montage that ignited my hope in Indian cinema and is making me want to delve into tamil cinema even more