#no like it does drive me crazy how in many ways armand was right. but also armand himself defies his own predictions. oh god it’s so sick

[vaperarmand]

been thinking lots about Daniel being turned and the whole red light green light speech. red light, he dies of old man causes in the tower while drinking and talking to Armand. red light, Armand drinks from him. Armand almost drains him to death, he flashes back to the moments in his life that echoed Armand's predictions. I am the quiet you've always been longing for, and the light goes green when he's past the point of no return. green light, Armand's blood calling out for him. if he died of a heart attack, there would be no drum except Armand's. green light, flashes of what Louis told him and how that impacted his life, he doesn't move. I just think like. the image of Daniel at a stoplight when he dies, seeing in his rearview these vampires that devoured his life, and pausing before he becomes one. and Armand's speech has been haunting me

oh.

[bandedbulbussnarfblat]

fic request fill

For the anon who wanted Daniel and Armand fighting. Here you go:

Daniel wanders to the pool because he can't sleep. Too much information, too many questions. Most centered around Armand. Namely, why doesn't he remember him, if he was there?

The man in question is at the pool, swimming laps faster than a human would be capable. Daniel approaches and sits at the edge of the pool. Dangles his feet in the water. Armand spots him and slows down to a normal pace, swims over and props up on his elbows over the side of the pool. Daniel looks down at him, studies him carefully.

Probably mid to late twenties when he was turned. Refined muscles, lean but compact. Easy on the eyes. Who turned him and why? He doesn't remember much from that original interview, but he remembers the name Armand. Can't remember how he knows it, but it's familiar. Did Louis mention him that night, all those years ago?

But on to more important things.

“You really think this book puts Louis in danger?”

Armand all but sneers. “Those older and more powerful will come. They will drain him dry, they will-”

“So, that's a yes,” Daniel cuts in.

Armand glares at him and pulls himself out of the water. His swim trunks are black and soaked to his body. Daniel can see every line, every curve. A droplet of water runs down Armand's chest and sinks into the band of his swim trunks.

It's distracting. But Daniel is a professional and he doesn't let these things take his attention from the story.

“Then why let him? Something tells me you're the one whose in charge here.”

Armand smiles ever so slightly. “Louis is my equal in all things.”

“Bullshit.”

Armand's face flickers into an expression Daniel can't read for a moment. Then it hits him—it's astonishment. Armand is astonished anyone would talk to him such a way. Daniel kind of likes it—these vampires need to get taken down a peg with their egos.

Armand laughs at the thought. “You think you could do that, Mr. Molloy? Take me down?”

His voice is smooth and rich; amused, yes, but something darker as well that Daniel can't place. “I think if I poke enough holes in the narrative I won't have to.”

Armand steps closer to him. Daniel stands up. There's a dangerous glint in Armand's eyes, but he finds it exciting. It means he's getting somewhere. “Why are the bookshelves so high? So Louis has to ask you to reach? So you can keep track of what he reads? What he remembers? Who tore out the missing pages?”

“Everything I do is for Louis, I take care of him-” Armand's voice is rising, nearly a shout.

“You put him in a cage,” Daniel says. He isn't sure if it's true, but Armand's reaction so far is telling.

“I-”

Daniel presses on. “How does it feel, hearing the love of your life swoon over their ex? Because he isn't over him, and you know it. Does it drive you crazy?”

“Louis is with me. I wouldn't expect someone with your limited comprehension to understand-”

Daniel cuts him off again. Takes a shot in the dark, but he's learned to trust his gut now. “What don't you want him to remember?”

The next thing Daniel knows he is pressed to the cool tile wall, Armand's arm across his throat. “I could destroy you.”

A flash of memory, blurry and fleeting floats into his mind. Armand with his hand on Daniel's neck, teeth stained with blood. Daniel pulling him back down, Armand shaking his head. “I could kill you.”

Daniel shoves Armand off him. He's wet now from where their bodies touched, but he can't think of that right now. What was that? Why can't he remember?

“What did you do to me?!”

Armand's eyes widen a fraction. “Ah, you're remembering.”

“You did something to my head,” Daniel accuses. “Did you fuck with Louis' head too? Is that the only way you can get someone to stay you? Play with their memories?”

“You wanted to forget,” Armand hisses.

“Like hell.”

Daniel thinks, trying to redraw the image in his head. Armand glares at him and closes the space between them, presses their foreheads together. “Remember, Daniel.”

Bits and pieces come flooding back, too much to process at once. Armand's mouth on his neck. His mouth on Armand's wrist. Their bodies pressed together in the dark. The shouting and the fighting and the crying. It's like waking from a dream.

He slaps Armand. Has a vivid recollection of slapping Armand, years ago, and Armand laughing. He wants to slap him again.

Armand grabs his wrist before he can attempt it. “Careful, Daniel. Don't make me lose my temper.”

“Or what? You'll kill me? I'm already dying.”

Armand smiles and it's a terrifying thing. “There are things worse than death, Daniel.”

Something in Daniel's lizard brain shivers at that. Yes, there are worse things than death. But he needs answers. 'Why did you do it? Why make me forget?”

“You wanted it! You wanted-”

“Oh my god,” Daniel says, coming to a sudden realization. “It's because I left you. You didn't like being dumped, so you threw a tantrum.”

Armand's grip on his wrist tightens. “You were pathetic, a junkie addicted to my blood. I saved your life, making you forget.”

Daniel is furious. “You made me an addict so I wouldn't leave you!”

“Lies!”

Daniel wrenches his wrist free. “I'm leaving.”

“You cannot leave, Louis is determined-”

Daniel rolls his eyes. “No, you idiot, I'm leaving the room. I don't want to look at you.”

Armand blinks in shock. Daniel supposes not many people call him an idiot. He steps back and lets Daniel pass. Daniel keeps walking without looking back all the way to his room. Once he's safely inside, he leans heavily on the door and sighs.

He's absolutely fucked.

[bestnoncannonship]

Alright..I'mma get in on this VC fancasting debate.

As a director, I often have a LOT of opinions on people's casting decisions. A LOT. (Someday, I'll write a novella on Ken Brannaugh's casting.) So as I see a LOT of fancasts casts based on how people look and few based on whether or not the actor can likely handle the role, I'mma throw my hat in the ring. (Warning....the more I write the less technical and more shitposty this is gonna get!) So here you go! The Vampire Chronicles series if I got to cast and direct it!!

The Brat Prince:

Most importantly....we gotta get us a Lestat. And the choice is clear:

Evan Williams: this fabulous shitposting aesthetic trash is as close to the one and only Vampire Lestat as we are gonna get on this plane of existance. He is all charm and quite light in his loafers and a complete mess.......but most importantly, he has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is able to play a character that does inexplicable and morally reprehensible things while still being read as highly sympathetic, likable, and even a hero. That's what I worry about most with Lestat. He really is a very terrible person who doesn't learn or face too many consequences. And he has to be very very very sympathetic. Not just "Oh I Stan that villain" likeable.....but a true hero. And it takes a very. Special. Actor. To pull that shit off. And this is it. This is the guy. He was hired to play an Iago-esque gay villain type in Versailles, STOLE THE SHOW OUT FROM UNDER GEORGE BLAGDEN (no mean feat as Blaggy was giving a hell of a performance) and made his character a beloved icon. Yeah....I trust him to lead a show. I trust him to be Lestat.

Nicholas L'enfant:

Okay not gonna lie I struggled with this one. There was someone else I wanted to see in this role....but I decided he was better employed elsewhere. And this is who I ended up with:

Yep. George Blagden. See...in the grand scheme of things Nikki is a very low-screentime role that has a LOT of impact on the story. And who better to trust with low screentime that the god of grantaires, who took a few small shots and lines and GAVE US A FULLY CHARACTERIZED GRANTAIRE in the Les Mis film. He is very sweet faced, and easy to like, can make being an on screen depressive fascinating instead of dull and has proven time and time again that he is the master of the complete mental breakdown, complete with horrifying but tragic crazy eyes. Also.....he bears a strong enough physical resembles to.....

Louis!!!!:

Our beautiful depressed dark angel with a vampire eating disorder who has no self esteem and is still in love with his abuser needs nuance. He needs soul. And he needs a sweet and delicate beauty. And so:

Alexaner Vlahos!!! The soulful eyes!! The delicate bone structure!!! The slight tones of simmering resentment!!! The ability to play a character that could have become VERY one note VERY quickly with goregeous amounts of nuance and sympathy!!! Vlavla has quite the varied resume. Mordred. Phillipe. Romeo. Captain Hook. To put it lightly he has a LOT of range and the one through line is he is NEVER boring. He plays a lot of roles that could very quickly become boring and one note (Romeo? Captian snooze right there!). But every second he's on screen or stage he is so completely alive in whatever he is feeling. I TRUST him to keep the entirety of Louis's brooding nuanced and fascinating for an audience and to physically and facially convey Louis's very important internal monologue that we will not be able to hear because this version is going to be from Lestat's point of veiw. I toggled with the idea of making him Nikki for a while....but ended up with Louis for 2 reasons. 1) he doesn't need the scripted plot drama Nikki has written in to make a compelling character and 2) he and Williams share such beautiful chemistry. Whenever they're together, even off screen, their focus shifts so that they orbit each other like bianary stars and any director can see that that's something that should be explored and exploited to add demension to the Louis/Lestat relationship and justify why they keep coming back to each other.

(And so ends the Men of Versailles segment of my fancast. So sue me. There's some incredible actors there.)

Let's return with

Gabrielle De Lioncourt:

The incomparable Alex Kingston, lately of River Song fame, though I met her as Elizabeth Corday, and Doctor Corday is driving this casting choice. I wanted an actor who was an appropriate age to play Williams's mother cause we don't fuck with that women are "old" at 30 shit in this house. And she can carry off the kind of "I will not hesitate to kill a man" BDE that Gabrielle requires without trying, but she's also proven herself comfortable and competent with the level of CAMP that VC requires. I can see her easily showing up on set for a few scattered episodes, slipping easily into the verse, and nailing the kind of woman who can put Lestat in his place then run back off to the jungle. Also....that De Lioncourt hair!!!!!

Marius "Daddy" Romanus:

Yep. This fuck. I can hear it now.... "Why isn't he lessssaaaat??? He's so blonde and prettttyyyyy????" Well....mainly because....I ain't sure this lil fuck can run a show as a very despicable but likeable hero yet. He's admirable. A good actor. A great villain. But not a hero and not heroically likeable. Personally, I'm of the opinion that in 10 or 15 years he will have grown into the ability to play something as complex as Lestat with likability....but for now.....DAMN is he a creepy imperial thing. He's got that "My house, my rules" vibe down. He's preditory. He's distinguished. He is Marius. And he's go the best Roman coin profile I've ever seen.

Armand:

N/A

Ok. Controversial decision....but I want to see a complete unknown as Armand. Send casting out to cast a wide net, scour the world for the Botticelli death machine. But definitely don't pull him from the pool of already famous younguns. Because your Armand needs to be deep. Skilled. And primarily UNSPOILED by the school of child acting that is forced upon child actors. (I was a commercial kid and child stage actor. It was terrible.) Go out and get some twinky fresh faced raw talent so you get depth.

Claudia:

N/A

Big old ditto on what I said above about child actors. A nice doe eyed unknown, preferably without a stage mom.

AKASHA:

Yikes. So many amazing choices!!! How do you follow Aliyah??

With literal human perfection Gina Torres of course!!! Again....I wanted to go with an older woman. Someone who would be seen as an authority to all vampires. Someone god damnned goregeous. And someone who I find intimidating. Also, since I'm skewing a little tall with this cast (at least as TV actors go) I wanted someone who comfortably stands among and above most of them! She's a seasond tested actor, and certified badass. And we know she can steal a scene. Besides if she can look regal as a queen in that weirdass dress they gave her in the serenity movie she can pull off whatever monstrosity costumes comes up with to follow the Aliyah getup.

Khayman:

Don't @ me but....I have a LOT of feelings about Khayman. I love his particularly breed of immortal insanity. I love the way immortality drove him mad into a childlike enjoyment and curiosity. And I knew exactly who has to be casted to play that combination of intimidating ancient and innocent curiosity:

This is Howard Charles. He is capable of playing both an intimidating giant and a sweet soulful cinnamon roll at the same time. I cannot sing this man's praises enough. Am I scared of him? Do I want to hug him? Both? He's also one of the best scene SHARERS I've seen on screen in a long time and that's very important in a supporting role.

Maharet:

Just because Anne Rice doesn't know shit about Mesopotamia doesn't mean we have to follow her in that. I wanted to pull from Middle Eastern or Indian populations for her to best reflect the look of the region in a time that's roughly in line with the pre-dynastic Egyptian mish-mosh associated with Akasha.

So I'm gunning for Indira Varma. When I say this woman has timeless beauty.....I mean timeless. She's as prehistorically hot as she is today. And she's such a strong actress, I want to give her a role that isn't 50% sex scenes. She's got both the warmth and the commanding strength to play Maharet. I would ideally like to get a dancer to play Mekare....someone who can handle the physical interp of the role. Probably an Indian dancer to match Indira Varma.

David Talbot:

In the newly declared tradition of Doctors playing Talbot:

This is the only current Gif I could find of Sylvester McCoy. Known to many as the Seventh Doctor. And to many as Ratagast the Brown. He embodies that sort of huffy aging britishness that David projects, but has the over the top personality that can give us those hints of the vitality of David's youth. Basically I can see this man telling stories about hunting tigers in India. Then when he gets the hot young Raglan James Body:

Luke Pasqualino. Swarthy young troublemaker. But for all the youthful good looks, he proved that he was able to play grace and gravitas as D'artagnion in the final season of the BBC Musketeers. I'd love to give him a chance to explore that deeper part. I also trust his ability to match the energy of a cast, which he did repeatedly on musketeers, and portray both the impulsive self aggrandizing Lestat in the Raglan James body and to play the DarkAU Musketeer type that is Raglan James himself.

That's literally all the Gifs I can put in a post. I know I skipped Daniel......but that's because I have surprisingly few opinions on Daniel.......he's very much a vanilla audience connecting character. I'd almost like to see an unknown in that role....just to see what we a new face could make.

And thus ends my casting of the Vampire Chronicles!!

[awfully-sadistic]

The Hellowoon Diaries ft. Armand || #2

Oct 23rd

Today was a difficult mission, I think.

Our client was a bad person. Dot says he enlisted our help to pull us into his sick game. And he wanted to get caught.

It started when he came into the office asking for help with his house; the time was perhaps mid-afternoon. I remember because we haven’t had lunch yet and Dot was passing around pamphlets with fast-food restaurants on them so we can decide what we wanted. I remember he came in as I was looking up what a crab rangoon was--I still don’t know what that is, by the way. 

Crab Rangoons consist of a crab and cheese seasoned mixture often fried or baked in wontons.

Ah! Thanks, D.A.D. Sometimes I forget that you are listening. What are wontons?

A Chinese dumpling.

I suppose that’s my mystery solved.

Where was I? Oh yes. He was the only person to come into the Sanctum that day. He was easy but not easy to remember if that makes sense. I didn’t notice anything weird about him but Dot says that sometimes monsters look like you and me, that they’re not always Bigfoot out in the woods. Not always obvious.

He believed that his house was haunted. He wasn’t wrong in hindsight, I suppose. There were so many souls trapped in that labyrinth. 

If it’s not clear by now, we somehow picked up a serial killing client. We still have no idea why he felt it was our duty to stop him or what kind of reasoning convinced him to hire us, but Dot and Dodger took up the case and we were driving an hour out of Ashbourne in order to judge whether our client’s home was haunted and what to do in case it was. It was supposed to be a simple case, that’s what Dot said. It seemed simple and the guy didn’t give off the uh... what did Dot call them?

“Heebie Jeebie vibes” I think. She said she wasn’t picking up any red flags and Dodger stated he lied to us with ease. He seemed genuinely worried and managed to actually feel that way so she would pick up the emotion and it could help sway her decision on helping him. What Dodger said made sense but the implication was... scary.

It meant he knew what Dot was and not many people outside of the Agency or the office knew Dot was an empath; one of the only ones in this world and quite a powerful one at that.

Dot said she immediately hated it. She said it made her uncomfortable that there was someone out there who knew about her and was able to “trick” her as well as he did; she said she knew it meant something but she didn’t know what just yet. I don’t blame her. I would have been upset as well.

I’m inclined to agree with her, too. There’s never good intentions behind tricking someone especially if you’re trying to lure them someplace. Since Dot is our boss (she denies saying she and Dodger are partners but Dodger says that if it weren’t for her, he would still be at the Agency), she sways all our decisions in regards to where we end up taking jobs and how to do the things we’re supposed to do. If Dot could be swayed to do something, then we follow. Dodger said it would put all of us at risk so they knew who to appeal to and how to do it.

It didn’t give Dodger or me a good feeling at all. Despite being a ghost, I know I won’t be harmed by a lot of things. It’s the occult items I would have to worry about but Dot and Dodger are not ghosts. And Dot is more susceptible to harm than either Dodger or myself. We also worry about Dot because she could be debilitated by a person’s emotions if they react too strongly.

I could see it in Dodger’s face. Especially around the eyes, he squints when he’s thinking really hard or when his brow does that thing that dips in the middle. His jaw was clenched pretty tightly, too, that I thought he was going to break his teeth. He wasn’t happy. None of us were but I think Dodger took it the hardest. I would ask Dot why but I don’t think she knows, either. Perhaps it is because Dodger is really responsible and feels like he has to take care of us? I know he watches over Dot even if she may not realize it most of the time. He’s always behind her, making scary faces whenever she talks to someone we don’t know. I think it’s funny, it’s like a show. Dodger is a strange person but he’s really good at protecting.

When we got to the house, the first thing Dot said was that it was big and ugly. She was right. It was big and really ugly. The house was dark wood it almost looked like a gray charcoal. Or perhaps it was because it looked like it survived a fire? The grass was really tall, there was weeds everywhere, and it looked like some of the wood was splintering and broken in places like the stairs that lead up to the house and the hand railings you should be able to hang onto for support. It didn’t look like it was supporting anything anymore. 

Some of the second story windows were broken, too. 

...I didn’t say anything to Dodger or Dot at the time, but when we pulled up, I know there was someone staring at us from one of the second story windows. I recall seeing a woman. But that was all I could see. By the time we parked and I looked back to the window, she was gone. The curtain was in place like it had never been moved. I know I didn’t imagine it. I knew I was staring at someone like me. Mainly because the client said he lived alone.

I have a lot of questions about the afterlife but the solace in that is I am not the only one. 

It seems ironic that I’m a ghost and I don’t know what the afterlife brings or even if I could recognize if I’m staring at another ghost or not. Dottie and Dodger tell me that people experience different things when they die. Ghosts are those who remain behind for a number of reasons; cases vary. We don’t know what happens to those who don’t come back as ghosts.

Is there a heaven?

Is there a hell?

And if there’s neither, where do we go? Are we reborn?

These are some of the questions that not only I ask, but my friends, too. Dot tells me try not to think too hard on these questions because it’s going to drive me crazy. People have been trying to figure this out since the beginning of time.

So I don’t try to dwell on it. But sometimes, the questions pop up. I can’t help it.

The instant we walked into the house, we knew that something was off. It was in the air. We didn’t need to be a psychic to feel the oppressiveness weighing down on us as soon as we crossed the threshold and stood in the foyer. It was uncomfortable and along with it came the nagging feeling at the back of your mind that something wasn’t right. Something wasn’t normal. 

Dot burst into tears soon after. She had to step outside and explain that it felt like she was suffocating; there was so many conflicting emotions, she felt confusion, anger, sadness, scared, hurt. We know now that it was the client’s many victims buried around the house grounds that filled the air with those emotions. 

Dot said that it was her fault that she walked in half-cocked with her shield. She had to explain that she usually does; a normal person’s emotions don’t really reach her unless she reaches out to experience what they do deliberately. It wouldn’t be smart not to have a shield at all. Dot says she usually keeps it “half-rolled down” so she could be open to whatever is broadcasting stronger emotions. When people need help, that’s how they reach out first--in terror or sadness. However, that’s where she gets overwhelmed. She doesn’t expect them to hit her as hard as they do especially if they’re particularly strong emotions. She says that her shield is a work in progress and she that she needs to remember to walk into these things with her shield all the way up, so she doesn’t get overwhelmed as often as she does.

Dodger pointed out that it’s not only that; she also wears her heart on her sleeve and it leaves her vulnerable but I looked and I didn’t see her heart there at all. Whatever he meant, he said that it kept her on the look out at all times whether she knew she did it or not. Dot said she didn’t and that was when Dodger said that’s why he was there.

I told her I’m there for her too even if I didn’t understand what he meant fully. I just didn’t want her to forget! 

We walked back inside and this time, Dot had her shield prepared. She explained though that it saps a lot of her strength trying to protect herself like this so she had to take breaks outside whenever she started to feel weak or knew that the house’s emotions were getting too much for her.

I volunteered to take her out every time that way Dodger can still do the work he was doing without being interrupted. Of course he didn’t mind but I figured the sooner we can finish with the house, the sooner we could leave and Dot wouldn’t have to be subjected to the bad feelings in the air.

Dodger had upgraded the A.R.T.I.I. glasses. I don’t use the glasses so I don’t know what they do just yet but he explained that with their help, he was able to pinpoint the room with the most activity.

It turned out to be the boiler room in the basement.

Dot said “Of course it’s the basement” and I can only assume that everything bad that has ever happened has happened in basements and Dot knew this because they always had to do them in basements. I’ll ask her later to tell me those stories so I can be on-the-know.

It is, “in-the-know”, sir.

Ah, yes, thanks, D.A.D. It was close. 

When we get into the boiler room, we see... many newspaper clippings and what Dodger had called “shrines” to disappearances going back at least forty years. There were boxes among boxes of clothes, jewelry, IDs, and other personal belongings that just didn’t make any sense.

Dodger was still wearing the A.R.T.I.I. glasses at this point and warns us not to use ours in the room. He finally understood why the house was being haunted and why it was as haunted as it was. Apparently, he spared us the gruesome discovery ourselves.

Under our feet was ...what he explained were mounds and mounds of skeletons and even newly decomposing bodies. He said it was like a graveyard but instead of plots, tons of people were just thrown in what he could describe as a pit. That was when Dot mentioned that the ground was covered with fresh soil and she started to get agitated or something. She started to hop up and down on her feet and dashed for the stairs, making nervous sounds and feeling “grossed” out by stepping on all those ...people. I made sure to float over them because Dot was right; there was just something really... disrespectful about standing on all those bodies even if we couldn’t see them under the ground.

Dodger stated the A.R.T.I.I. glasses were showing a strange symbol on the ground that could only have been highlighted in the glasses view because when he took them off, he couldn’t see the marking anymore. But when he put them on, he could see it. We don’t know what could cause something like that to happen and I know for certain I would never understand.

I do believe at this point, I was standing on the stairs with Dot and letting her hold onto me. We were both nervous. I was nervous because I wasn’t certain how long it had been since Dot had taken a break for her shielding and Dot was nervous because, well, I would assume that the emotions of the deceased were starting to bear down on her. She was also starting to look a little pale.

I was thankful when Dodger told us that we should head back upstairs and alert the police. We weren’t dealing with just the Supernatural anymore. We were dealing with a very disturbed client as well and one who was no where to be found.

When the police showed up, we had to hand over our client information and stayed for questioning. It was a long and arduous process. I know for certain that I do not like the questioning more than paperwork. Why did the police make it seem as if we were the guilty party responsible for killing all these people? If it weren’t for Dodger’s video and meticulous record and video keeping, I’m sure we would have been implicated in this whole ordeal. Dot even agreed; she said thanks to him, they got a lot of good pictures of him for their “stupid useless wanted posters” and the information we keep for clients when they hire us.

We don’t know where the client went or for sure, why he wanted to hire us. Like I stated earlier, Dot believes he wanted to be caught; at least, he wanted the notoriety about his crimes to be brought to light because he had been getting away with it for so long. The news reports on television wasted no time jumping on this story, either. They are calling him The Grave Robber.

Dot said that was the dumbest name she’s ever heard. “He doesn’t rob graves, he just put people in one giant one!”

She’s right! That name makes no sense now that I think about it.

Dodger wasn’t even interested, he was typing away at his laptop all night. So I hope that this report also helps him. 

The night is coming to an end soon and Dot and Dodger are packing up to go home. Dodger said he’s going to be staying with Dot for a while. I know he is worried about Dot and I think that’s a good idea, too. I wanted to go as well so they’re taking my clock with them so I’ll be able to recharge at Dot’s home. :) I can’t wait to see what it looks like!

I guess the day wasn’t all bad. I am looking forward to this sleepover. It’s so exciting!

Goodnight, D.A.D.! Goodnight, everybody!

Armand, signing off.

[thenightling]

NOPE BOOK TAG!

Tag creator (A BookTube Book) - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQt_…

1. NOPE Ending: A book ending that made you go NOPE either in denial, rage or simply because the ending was crappy.

This is a tough one.  I rarely hate how literature ends.  I’ll name a few comics and then move on the literature.

Novels: The Man who fell to Earth by Walter Tevis (Love this novel but hate the ending.) The Dresden Files: Changes The Frankenstein Papers by Fred Saberhagen (He writes Dracula so well but his Frankenstein Monster...  Spoilers, he’s a f--king alien with amnesia.  That’s the twist.  He just THOUGHT he was created by Victor Frankenstein.  It’s so... Stupid. The Last vampire by Whitley Strieber.   Lilith’s Dream by Whitley Strieber   On my Honor

Lolita.  WHY is this a classic?!?

______________________________  

Comics: The Sandman: The Kindly Ones.  I know it’s a classic but out of all of the original Sandman this is the one I liked the least, loved the rest. The Dreaming (1990s to early 2000s version).   It’s just... awful. Madman & Monster (written by Steve Niles and published by IDW).  I hate the ending but like the premise.

Nineteen eighty-four by George Orwell.  Great novel, just very depressing.

Manga:

Return to Labyrinth.  The author (Jake T. Forbes) just wanted his cake and eat it too.  He establishes that Jareth is Sarah’s true love but at the same time decides that they can’t be together “For reasons” and has Toby give a “I learned something today” speech that lasts several pages to justify it.   No, if it’s true love, they’re supposed to be together.  Don’t try to placate both the shippers and the fans who want them to not be a couple, you won’t appease anyone if you try to appease both.    

Wolf’s Rain: It’s just so sad.   Why!??

 _______________________   

2. NOPE Protagonist: The main character you dislike and drives you crazy.

Novels: Miriam from The Hunger, The Last Vampire, and Lilith’s Dream by Whitley Strieber.   

The Vampire Armand from Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles.   He’s too much of a Sadist.  I don’t understand the appeal.   Lolita.  WHY is this a classic?!

Comics:

Echo from The Dreaming (Late 90s / early 2000s version) 

Riri Williams, the current writing of the Captain Marvel comics,  actually pretty much all of Marvel at the moment... _______________________________________________ 

3. NOPE Series: A series that turned out to be one huge pile of NOPE after you’ve invested all of that time and energy on it, or a series you gave up on because it wasn’t worth it anymore.

Novels:

The Hunger book series by Whitley Strieber 

Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles, most everything after Tale of The Body Thief and Tale of the Body Thief wasn’t that good... The Dresden Files.  I don’t know, my interest just kind of waned and also I came across a few unpleasant fans who legitimately believe women and men “talk differently” and “use different language” when speaking and told me a woman can’t write male characters and visa versa.   Mary Shelley begs to differ!    Comics: The current Sandman Universe comics...

Morbius: The Living Vampire (1990s run)

Manga:

Return to Labyrinth.  The author (Jake T. Forbes) just wanted his cake and eat it too.  He establishes that Jareth is Sarah’s true love but at the same time decides that they can’t be together “For reasons” and has Toby give a “I learned something today” speech that lasts several pages to justify it.   No, if it’s true love, they’re supposed to be together.  Don’t try to placate both the shippers and the fans who want them to not be a couple, you won’t appease anyone if you try to appease both.     

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4. NOPE Popular pairing: A ship you don’t support.

I don’t really hate many pairings...

Oh, wait.  Lolita.  Do I really need to explain? Comics: Joker and Harley Quinn (original versions as created for Batman The Animated series.) Cain and Abel and their sister-wives in The Dreaming (late 90s to early 2000s comics).  That was just...  Oh, my God. Was that just to be edgy!?    For God’s sake, Abel’s fraternal twin sister was Cain’s wife and locked in attic!?   WTF?!? Lucien and Nuala (also in The Dreaming late 90s and early 2000s version).   Essentially “Hey, the people we’re in love with are dead.   Why don’t we hook up?” “Okay!  You’re good enough.  Let’s settle on each other.” 

Does Caitlin R. Kiernan have any concept of love, at all?  Steve and Bucky. Not because it’s a bad ship or because it’s gay but because the fans who support it are so rabid and if you suggest it’s not canon they immediately assume you’re a homophobe and send you hate.

SwanQueen (Emma Swan and The Evil Queen in Once Upon a Time) similar reasons as above.   ____________________________ 

5. NOPE. Plot twist: A plot twist you didn’t see coming or didn’t like.

The Frankenstein Papers by Fred Saberhagen.

(He writes Dracula so well but his Frankenstein Monster...  Spoilers, he’s a f--king alien with amnesia.  That’s the twist.  He just THOUGHT he was created by Victor Frankenstein.  It’s so... Stupid. _______________________________ 

6. NOPE. Protagonist action/decision: A character decision that made you shake your head NOPE.

Faust and his hornness for FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD Gretchen and almost everything he did because of that horniness. 

7. NOPE. Genre: A genre you will never read.

I don’t think there’s a genre I’d never read. But I’m not a big fan of young adult romances or bodice rippers and torture porn.    I’m not into errotica or graphic violence even though I adore Gothic Horror.

8.  Nope format:

Umm....  I prefer hardcover to paperback but I don’t avoid any particular format.  I do hate when the new Barnes and Nobel classics call things like Edgar Allan Poe and H. P. Lovecraft, Mary Shelley, and Bram Stoker “Gothic fantasy” written across the cover.  It perpetuates the idea that horror is lowbrow and it angers me that we refuse to consider good quality horror to be horror anymore. 

Anne Rice’s Prince Lestat (when I read it with wet hands and the dust jacket off) the color on the cover started to turn my fingers dark blue.   I never want that to happen again.  

9. NOPE. Trope: A trope that makes you go NOPE.

Long lost child that the protagonist didn’t know they had because the mother (or in rare cases someone else) thought it would be best the child never know they are related to the protagonist because their life is too dangerous / cursed / ect...  I hate when parental rights are stomped on for plot, and especially when “it’s okay because it’s the mother who did it and the mother just wants whats best for the child.”  

10. NOPE. Recommendation: A book recommendation that is constantly hyped and pushed at you that you simply refuse to read.

I’ve never refused to read a recommendation but I have later thought “Why did you think I’d like this?!”

Twilight “Because you love vampires.” Oh, and Frankenstein’s Monster: A Novel by Susan Heyboer O’keefe.  Just because he looks like the version from the Shelley novel doesn’t mean he acted like it.  That as awful.      

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11. NOPE. Cliche/pet peeve: A cliche or writing pet peeve that always makes you roll your eyes.

Wasn’t this already number 9?  I thought we covered this with tropes.  Many tropes are cliches.   Oh, well...

Long lost child that the protagonist didn’t know they had because the mother (or in rare cases someone else) thought it would be best the child never know they are related to the protagonist because their life is too dangerous / cursed / ect...  I hate when parental rights are stomped on for plot, and especially when “it’s okay because it’s the mother who did it and the mother just wants whats best for the child.”    (Cough) Susan in The Dresden Files. (Cough.)

Oh, and “He’s blue collar so we’re going to use him as the serrogate racist / bigot now even though he wasn’t before.”  (Cough)  Merv Pumpkinhead in the new version of The Dreaming. (Cough.)

12. NOPE. Love interest: 

I thought we established this with the ship conversation?

I don’t feel like re-writing it, just re-read that one.  Same answers apply.   I guess I can add The Corinthian from Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman.  You know if it ever gets a film or TV series adaptation someone somewhere will find him attractive and start making errotic art and fan fiction about him...

13. NOPE. Book: A book that shouldn’t have existed that made you say NOPE.

The Dreaming Late 90s early 2000s version.   I don’t really like saying any book shouldn’t exist. But there are some that are really awful sequels or insults to an established lore because of how subpar they are.   ___________________________________ 

14. NOPE. Villain: A scary villain/antagonist you would hate to cross and would make you run in the opposite direction.

The Corinthian from Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman and pretty much any antagonist created by George R. R. Martin. 

15. NOPE. Death: A character death that still haunts you.

Morpheus in Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman.

And even Abel’s death even though he comes back later.

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16. NOPE. Author: An author you had a bad experience reading and have decided to quit.

Anne Rice.  She doesn’t even remotely write the way she used to . It feels vapid now.  And i have trouble reconciling myself that the angry bird aliens from Brevena and the Replimoids exist in the same universe as Interview with the Vampire.   

Also she’s been very cruel and unprofessional in her behavior to those who have criticized her work and “I didn’t know I was sicking people on anyone” shared negative reviews with direct links to pages on her Facebook over the years.  it got nasty.  She even dug up one of my old reviews for Blood Canticle that I wrote FIFTEEN years ago!   

And to a lesser extent, J. K. Rowling.   Her views of Americans and especially “Nomaj” (linguistically) just makes me cringe internally.  Americans are the more old fashioned with language, not hipster (i.e Elevator vs. Lift, Cellular phone vs. Mobile). Not to mention cloistered religious-style orders (like Catholicism) use the same terms from country to country.  This is also true with Wicca.  Linguistically the American terms in Fantastic Beasts do NOT make sense.   

@sorry-for-the-chocolate @thesaramonster @zal001 @missghostlymoonshadow @kaimaciel @endlessemptynight @deathlyendless @vagaryhexxx @thegreatvampirekiller @unnecessaryhorns @sweatyeddieandaliengoo

[its-theraphaellus]

What would be YOUR ideal casting for the series? I'm so curious!

Hi anon…

This is going to be the most dissatisfying long reply ever. I would love to be able to do a list of people and have amazing pictures and for you all to be like WOW, that’s good casting!! 

But I can’t do that because I don’t actually have any particular actors in mind at all. I have a general idea of what things I think would be important for each of the characters, but I can’t put a name to who would fit the parts the best. 

I think the castings for Lestat, Armand and Marius are the most crucial. I’m not saying the others aren’t important, but I think these three are both the most crucial and most difficult to get right. 

For Lestat I think it would have to be someone who is either completely unknown, or that has a smaller cult following and who’s done minor roles in other shows or movies. He’s probably someone who’ll come in from the side as some sort of casting wild card (kinda like in LOTR when Viggo Mortensen was cast last minute to replace the original actor). Previously I have mentioned Caleb Landry Jones because I’ve seen him in a few movies that I really liked (e.g. Heaven Knows What, in which he plays this scary manipulative abusive junkie boyfriend. I also liked Antiviral because that was creepy too and the aesthetics!!!) He’s got that kind of crazy charismatic flamboyant psycho vibe going on - which imao is perfect for Lestat. And have you seen him in interviews? He’s nuts! (And yes, I know he’s a redhead but that doesn’t matter at all - hit the jump to read a rant about how annoying I think it is when people are writing off a person because they might not look exactly like what the book says before hair and makeup) 

For Marius I think it would be good to have someone who’s an experienced actor and who can bring a certain gravitas to the table. I don’t know who. I think they’re going to go with someone who’s a bit older, possibly even older than the book suggests, but I would be ok with that. 

And then Armand. Well. You all know he’s all I care about. I have opinions about the other characters and their casting, but in all honesty I could not give two flying fucks about any of them in comparison to how I feel about Armand. Here’s what I think. Armand is the most difficult to cast because of two things, his age, and his complexity. Lestat is not complex, he wrote a hell of a lot of books about himself and none of them read as complex to me - he’s a characters yes, but compared to Armand? 

Also, Armand has not been portrayed right in any VC related screen thing I’ve seen, so they have to at least attempt to get it right this time or the fans with be livid.

Anyway… I want someone completely unknown to play Armand. I agree with the comments I’ve read about them having to go with someone who’s not 17 because they’d change too much over time for it to be believable. I think maybe someone who’s 23 - 24 ish? It depends on the person I suppose, people age very differently. And they’d have to be a brilliant actor of course (I don’t even think they’d have to even choose a male actor at all, I want VC TV to be as queer as possible) Choosing someone of a different hormonal structure to standard male might even help with the aging thing. I mean, would they ever go in a direction like that? No, they wouldn’t, it’s Anne. But it sure would be interesting. As for looks I don’t care. Again, wigs and contacts, it’s not a big deal. They can be tall or short or whatever, it does not matter - it’s TV, they have their tricks. I would like them to try and match the character description though and not just go for a black wig if there’s an auburn alternative. 

I could go on for hours, but I’ll stop now because this is already ridiculously long. 

I used to follow the discussions about casting on the VC FB pages and on Anne’s page, but I stopped because it was genuinely infuriating and even though I never participated in the discussions I would be steaming with rage when I logged off because people are idiots why are you suggestion dead people ffs stop being so stupid if you suggest David Bowie one more time I will kill myself. What would especially drive me up the wall was when people would get into full on FIGHTS IN KAPITALS WITH TOOOOOOO MANY VOOWEEELS, over how a suggested actor was not blond enough or had the wrong eye colour… because apparently make-up and hair are not departments that exist in Hollywood, the actors all have to be born with those exact attributes or they won’t fit the part (I mean, no one has ever been born with violet eyes let’s just be honest, and Armand? There’s no way anyone has ever looked like that in real life) 

In the end what’s important is the actors ability to portray the characters. If they simplify Armand and make him a classic villain with no hints to why or that the characters is more than that I will be very hurt. If Lestat is a pompous asshole with no feelings I will be very hurt. These characters mean a lot to a lot of people, it’s not just Anne’s feelings that matter :)