#not completely original vibes of course - this used to be a horror show

[ryuichirou]

Replies

A lot of replies; a bunch of them are for asks that are already pretty old… sorry for the wait.

Talking about the types of tropes I like, and also a bunch of miscellaneous twst-related stuff (including a surprising amount of older asks about overblot sex).

Anonymous asked:

What are your and Katsu’s favorite tropes in media?

Katsu replied to you sooner that I have, Anon, so if you haven’t read it, you can read Katsu’s reply here!

I’m sorry to keep you waiting for this long, especially considering that I realised that I wrote a post about it some time ago as well… But I don’t want to just waltz in like two month after you sent this ask and say “hey, read this post instead”, so I’ll add some more thoughts!

Gap moe!! But specifically the type of gap moe when a character that seems very stern and antagonistic at first ends up having a huge soft spot for the protagonist, ending up as kind of a pushover, someone who gets bullied by the narrative and a cutie overall. Examples of that would be Levi from SnK or Barok from TGAA; it’s kind of subtle with them, but it’s enough for me to woobify the shit out of them lol

Also it’s probably super obvious because of my horror comic + the kind of spooky twst content we post sometimes, but I really love the “cryptids among us” trope, especially when it’s genuinely creepy and the comedy aspect is a bit unhinged lol When someone gets bad vibes from a character and it turns out that they’re either cursed or not a human at all, or when a character tries to hide his inhuman nature… it’s a pretty broad description and this trope doesn’t work for me all the time, but I hope you understand what I’m talking about!

Hmm, when it turns out that the bad guy is genuinely bad. Like when the story makes you feel bad for feeling sorry for them or humanising them for a moment there. I feel like it doesn’t happen too often, but one example I could give is Eric Cartman lol Maybe jjk Sukuna in a way? I just like the feeling of oh no we shouldn’t relax around this guy, he really is that bad.

I also love subversion of tropes, but only when it doesn’t feel like the authors are patting themselves on the back too much for being original. I don’t know, sometimes it gets annoying lol But I really love when you watch a show, kind of subconsciously expecting a certain outcome, and then something happens that completely switches the narrative, even its tone sometimes. Hunter x Hunter gave me this feeling a lot, and the Boys as well (mostly the first season), for example.

Anonymous asked:

Love your art as per usual! This is kinda unrelated but have you played the Bayonetta games? And if so what Twst boy do you think would pull off her outfit the best?

Thank you, Anon!

We haven’t, but of course we’ve seen Bayonetta around :) she is iconic, after all.

Who would pull her outfit the best… Malleus has a perfect presence for it, but Vil would absolutely nail the posing and those high heels!

Anonymous asked:

Graceful as shit

Anonymous asked:

That seems oddly fitting... Does spark a question in me, who would you put in which dorm other than their own? Like what would you say is option no. 2?

Thank you, thank you!

Also to the second Anon, it’s a very good question; I remember that the boys had to answer it themselves in one of their birthday interviews, but I don’t remember who said what, which is for the best. I’ll think about it a little and post this part of my reply separately some other day! (you won’t have to wait for months I swear)

Anonymous asked:

I love how Jades little black hair streak gets its own roller

Thank you!! Yeah, he is just being silly lol

We joked that he's going to straighten it back when he wakes up as if he didn't spend the night curling it. Just to mess with Epel's head a bit.

Anonymous asked:

I love it, the art, characters, Azul boobs…

Especially Azul boobs… and they’re pretty covered this time, too!

I’m glad you like it, Anon <3

Anonymous asked:

Why don't try make the Heartsaball more sexy? Hmm?

Oh I know what you mean, Anon. 😇

When the time is right (=when you expect it the least)…

Anonymous asked:

You know, we've talked about the bottoms getting fucked out of their overblot, but honestly If Idia got on the scene Azul's could have been over real quick too

Might be wrong but I think his curse can burn other's blot too, he could have sucked him dry in two ways

Solider on a mission to provoke a guy into shoving his tentacles into him, it's for the greater good

Whenever I come back to this ask I start nodding, Anon. Now THIS is a good way to apply the Shrouds’ curse! Idia really can suck him dry in two ways until he calms down… in two ways.

I wonder if waking up with not only his overblot being taken care of, but also with a post-nut clarity would make the situation even more embarrassing for Azul… he’d definitely feel much more satisfied though.

Idia is such a trooper…

God, ch3 where everything is the same, but the final battle is just Azul tentacle-banging Idia while the rest of the guys present watch in silence.

Anonymous asked:

Do the boy sexier in overblot, like instead of semen, is blot-ink

But imagine semen mixing up with blot and slowly disappearing into its darkness though…

This world needs more overblot sex though, that’s just a fact.

Anonymous asked:

We have talked about fucking people out of overblotting which is great but also like revenge sex after the overblot? Some of these guys are so bitter about being thwarted

Azul is easy enough because he can go straight to the source

The others would have to do a whole song and dance to a make a bid for jealousy and try cucking them with the other guys tops

Jamil could probably fuck the tweels though or one up that and have sex with every Octavinelle student except for Azul just to be petty

Doesnt work that well because they arent all mad about being stopped but ssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Woah, Azul really could go straight to the source…! And considering how bitter he is at Leona (he is still not over it!), I think he is legally entitled to have his revenge sex. That would pacify his soul AND satisfy his body AND boost his ego!! Maybe he has something planned, who knows… this man believes that revenge is a dish best served cold. And it’s definitely going to be a 4-course meal with this guy.

When I started reading about Jamil, I thought “aw, but Kalim wouldn’t really care that much would he”, and then I realised that you mean Jamil cucking Azul by sleeping with every Octavinelle student but him DAMN THAT’S COLD (hot) 😭 Azul is going to overblot again, and then he’ll have another bitch to prepare a 4-course meal for.

It really is difficult to think about this for other guys, but hey, Leona has a chip on his shoulder about his plan not working. I don’t go where to go with this thought though, but who knows…

irregardlessly-tish asked:

Since I first listened to the song Alter Ego by Doechii I thought "this is a Leona song", and he's probably my least favorite twst boy... but when I listen to the song I think that maybe if he was actually that bitch™, if he could truly reach the levels of cunt a character based on Scar should reach... maybe I'd like him more. He could serve so much cunt, he has the potential! But he's probably too lazy to even do that... such wasted potential.

I see what you mean! And yes, the lack of Scar-ness is one of the things that make me not like Leona as much as I would have otherwise, so I really feel you. He really was born to serve cunt and be a cunt…

Well, at least now we have a song to listen to while we daydream about what could have been.

adrianacopycat170 asked:

i feel like crewel has flash backs to when he was thinking about having sex with Mozus when he sees Deuce cus Deuce reminds him of himself when he was younger

idk man

You know, there are a lot of similarities between Deuce and Crewel, with both of them being troubled bad boys when they were younger + the teacher crush thing lol Maybe he does see himself in Deuce a little bit, but maybe he also thinks that he wasn’t as pathetic as he is right now back then.

He is wrong though, he was just as smitten and pathetic, he was just expressing it differently…

Anonymous asked:

Yo, freaky question time : obviously Lilia tops, but considering how experienced and slightly deranged he is, do you headcanon him using toys on himself while toping for maxed out stimulation? In my head he'd try to get as much pleasure out of intimacy as possible. Like, he has a prostate, even if no actual dick goes near it do you think he still makes use of it? And the other way around, would he use toys on the ones he tops to also wreck them not only by topping them but using every nerves available they have? Asking purely for science and serious reasons

Good question, Anon!

Because of our biases and preferences when it comes to tops, we wouldn’t really headcanon Lilia stimulating his own butt, but I get where you’re coming from. I also think Lilia is very intrigued by sex toys though! So yes, to answer your second question, he would absolutely wreck anyone he’s sleeping with if he comes across a toy that seems like something new and exciting (so any toy lol). And using all of them at once to keep every area overstimulated sounds like a very Lilia thing to do.

Also, we’re going to have a hc post about sex toys hopefully soon, so I’ll talk about this topic again…

Sorry for the wait, and thank you for your ask!

Anonymous asked:

Jade getting Trey into mushrooms (They taste very good and can be quite good in desserts). Trey getting Jade into teeth (your teeth are designed for chewing this so if you bite in this way it will do this to you lover  vs biting that way will…). Then the two of them term up suing their newfound two shared interests to absolutely destroy Idia. Forget his legs. His jaw and head are going to be in pain for days from all the weird mushrooms and how long his mouth was forced open for.

Also Rook was there while they had their fun. No he was not invited. No they do not know how he got there as he was very much not there one second and when the turned around there he was (Oya~ Oya~ When did you get here). He very much is enjoying show (Rook put your pants back on!). No they could not get him to leave. He got to watch from up close rather than through the binoculars. Trey refused to let him take part in any way or to take off (or reach inside) any of his clothing. Trey was hoping that the lack of adequate stimulation would drive Rook away. It awakened something in him instead. Vil was edged many times when Rook returned to Pomefiore.

Trey and Jade had some private time with Idia a couple weeks later without a stalker/interloper when Vil mysteriously got dosed with an asphoradic (You made me a special healthy cake to fit in my diet Trey? Very well, I suppose I shall give it a try at some point) and Rook was taking care of him.

Anon, sorry for the late reply!

You really took me on a journey, but in a good way. That’s one sexy criminal drama… this world doesn’t want Jade and Trey to unite their forces against someone, and Idia absolutely wants it the least out of everyone, but who is going to ask him? This poor guy… he really is a perfect victim lol

The thing with Trey is that when he is enabled, his actions could lead to unexpectedly bizarre circumstances, so I can actually see Jade being amused by what else he could do to Idia.

Also, poor Rook! He has the right to join – he is also in the science club, after all, he could add some of his own freak to this already wild mix! But I guess that would be too much for Idia lol Oh well, at least now Vil is also a victim of these guys’ shenanigans…. That’s what friends are for after all – to make special healthy cakes for their friends’ lovers.

Anonymous asked:

This year we got some tweels/Malleus interaction since he duos with both (Jade club card and Floyd's new bday card) plus he appears in Jade's nightmare suit vignette. I love seeing some of the characters who rarely interacted with the other before get focus, like Trey and Silver in bday vignette (idk if they talked before this).

So, i'm curious what's your take on tweels/Malleus 👀

I find it funny how Malleus call them both Leech- he stands by calling everyone by their last name, even siblings- wouldn't that be confusing-

(Also i rly hope you understood what i said, my mind is all over the place from excitment)

Dear Anon, it’s been so long, I hope you are still somewhat excited… because it is a great thing! Malleus absolutely should get paired with the tweels more often – it’s such a fun combination! Malleus should get ALL the duo options!

And yes, he really does call both of them Leech… although I feel like we’ve seen him refer to them by their names a couple of times – even the Shrouds couldn’t make Malleus ditch his habit of calling everyone by their last name, but I guess “left Leech” and “right Leech” doesn’t work as well as “Shroud” and “smaller Shroud” 😭 It’s so funny…!

Another Tweels+Malleus moment that comes to mind is that Malleus and Floyd had to operate a cotton candy stand together (…with Sebek as well!) during the Portfest, and that was pretty funny as well.

As for the ship, I think it has a lot of potential. Be it with one of the tweels or with both of them at the same time, Malleus absolutely is going to get confused by them a lot, but also amused by their mischievous minds. I think they would also remind him of Lilia a little bit, which is always a plus for Malleus.

As for the tweels, they do like shiny and interesting toys, and there is no one in this school who is more powerful than Malleus, and his entire character is so unique and new to them, they could really get into it.

Also I absolutely agree with you in terms of character interactions; I really love that twst has a lot of events that forces random characters to talk to each other, and a lot of times it makes our shipping minds go “hm? What was that? 😳”

Now you made me think about Trey and Silver…

[summer-oil]

hi ari!!!! hope you’re doing well!! 🐟🐟 these days the weather is so so nice and the sea is so tempting……………… i went ahead and took some days to swim like the fish i am! surprisingly the water wasn’t so cold and it seems i wasn’t the only one who thought of swimming because the beach was full of people 🙂‍↕️ it was really fun!

anyway!! i wanted to ask you, which films and/or cinematic universes you think your jjk favs would suit the most??? :33 if it is too restraining you can name tv series, of course!!

(p.s.: oh, i’m glad you liked my silly rant about statue!gojo TT 🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼 it has been rotting in my mind for months now but i’m a procrastinator and i have too many wips… i think it might be that summer is near and i’m super inspired but i don’t know where to begin lmaooo. my notebook is overflowing with half-finished prompts and chapters that are waiting to be completed……. 😭😭) — 🐟 anon

HIIIII MY LITTLE 🐟 ANON!!!! :33

i’m so happy that it’s getting warmer where you are!!!!! the weather is starting to take a turn for the better here too hehe….. but wahhh!!!! beach trips!!!!!!! i miss them i do…. you’ll have to have double the fun for both of us!!! <3333

AND . GULP. that’s a super fun question and also super tough bc i don’t watch …. a lot of movies……… 😔😔 i’ve been watching more recently!!!! but honestly i have a lot of trouble remembering series and movies that i’ve watched….. my brain doesn’t store a lot of them. HOWEVER . yk what i do watch??? and adore????

……. musicals >:33

so here are some musicals that i associate w my jjk favs!!! I HOPE THAT’S OKAY… i got a little too into it i think 😭

gojo - legally blonde

I JUST THINK HE WOULD LOVE IT SO MUCH……….. i know him personally . honestly i would’ve given him the movie if i had followed your original assignment bc it just screams gojo to me either way!!!! i think he loves chickflicks. :3 and this is definitely one of his comfort movies…… the musical is also just SUCH a bop i knowwwww this man is terrorizing his coworkers by singing ”gay or european” in broad daylight (specifically to nanami)……

sugu - the phantom of the opera

THE PHANTOMMMMMMM OF THE OPERA IS HEREEEEEEEE 🎶🎶🎶🎶 …. <- sugu doesn’t sing along to musicals + doesn’t rlly like them that much in general but i know in my heart and soul that he would hum this part quietly to himself . what can i say….. this is just a very classy musical that i think would appeal to him <3333 he’d read the book beforehand too. he’s a lil pretentious but it’s okay :3 he’s veryyyy picky abt what musical renditions he enjoys tho…….

shoko - the guy who didn’t like musicals

MY PERSONAL FAVORITE MUSICAL OF ALL TIMEEEEE <333333 i just know she’d adore it. the blend between horror and comedy is soooo shoko and i feel like she wouldn’t like musicals at ALL lmao so she’d appreciate the meta commentary!!!! it’s just. suchhhh a good musical….. i love starkid so much it hurts………… AND THE WHOLE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE THINGGG she would eat that up!!!! pls watch this one if you haven’t 🐟 anon you can find the full thing on yt and it’s INCREDIBLE i’ve watched it like 10 times!!!! it’s my most beloved!!!!

kenny - beetlejuice

BEETLEJUICE 👏 BEETLEJUICE 👏👏 BEETLEJUICE 👏👏👏 okay so i actually lied this one is ALSO my absolute favorite . and i’m giving it to kenny solely based on vibes :3 HE REMINDS ME OF BEETLEJUICE OK…. and i think he’d love it a lot. the songs are so fucking good and i know he’d appreciate them. the theme of life/death is also very kenny obv !!!!

toji - black friday

ANOTHER STARKID MUSICAL. this one is just…… soooo good and funny and also . tragic. one of the characters reminds me a lot of toji :’3 former veteran w a dead wife…. who struggles to show his son how much he cares…… and the theme of capitalism and money and how it corrupts ppl also feels in line w toji’s character!! but above all else this musical is abt. Family. and that’s more toji than anything!!! :((( this is another musical that i rlly recommend checking out, it’s set in the same universe as the guy who didn’t like musicals but like . an alternate timeline. it’s not my favorite in the series but the songs slap and it made me cry so <3333 yeah.

nobara - heathers

was lowkey considering six the musical for my beloved nobara (bc of the gorgeous women and catchy fun songs) but . i think heathers fits her more!!!! i just feel like she’d ADORE it…… i know she’s singing along at the top of her lungs too LMAO especially to dead girl walking <3333 it’s just such a fun badass musical and i think she��d be obsessed. she does NOT like jd tho god bless 🙏🙏

[hellerfanboy91]

Edvard's Supernatural Guide: 3x15 Time is on My Side

Contains spoilers for 3x16, 4x11, and 4x16, as well as discussions of sexual violence.

The penultimate episode of series three is a monster of the week episode whose grimness feels slightly out of place. Supernatural sloughed much of its early horror aesthetics and vibe with the beginning of series three in favour of being more like Buffy with an age rating of 15, but this episode is a return to the original mission statement of a mini horror film every week. While it is a bit frustrating to have the second to last episode before Dean’s death be a MOTW, the story shows a level of planning unusual to Supernatural and would be more at home in Buffy. The monster in this week is an immortal man inspired by folklore and possibly Lovecraft: the man’s key to immortality involves harvesting living organs from humans in order to replace his worn out ones. Such a thing could (theoretically) get Dean out of his deal, but the cost would be to sacrifice his humanity and let an untold number of people die in order to save him from Hell.

This episode is used to present Dean with a possible way out at the eleventh hour as a test of his moral fortitude and character. Consequently, it does serve the overall plot of the story almost as much as plot-arc episodes, and means that – though the formula would likely not have saved him anyway – Dean chose to die again. If you have read my analysis of 2x20 What is and What Should Never Be, you might remember the comparison between Dean’s sacrifice of his dream world and Jesus’s acceptance of his death by crucifixion in the Bible. A similar comparison comes to mind here.

But all in good time. 3x15 begins with a plastic surgeon being kidnapped on his way home from what appears to be a gym or health centre. The next the audience sees of him is an untold length of time later when he appears at an A&E in nothing but a coat. The scene is unpleasant (and we later learn that the man died of his wounds) but the nurse’s behaviour was unrealistic: the man was clearly concerned about much more than his ‘modesty’ and a nurse should have recognised he was putting pressure on a wound at the very least and let him keep doing it. Also unrealistic was the nurse’s reaction to what was presumably his intestines falling out: nurses have seen stuff: it takes a lot more than that to make them scream. This show has never been all that great with portraying medical professionals, though, so onwards and upwards…

Directly after the title card, Dean and Sam are shown interrogating yet another demon for information. As is par for the course on Supernatural, the demon is snarky and clearly has not learnt that Dean and Sam are to be taken seriously. I understand the writers intend for the demons to seem derisive of the brothers in order to make the demons look like serious threats who are unfazed by being captured and tortured. The result, however, is to make the demons look like try-hards who are a few brain-cells short of a picnic. The show also never explains why precisely the demon was more afraid of Lilith than Dean or Sam.

The scene was not simply another generic demon torture and exorcism: it is one of precious few moments where some of the real horror of Hell is revealed for the audience. This was in both the demon taunting Dean about how much it and its friends were looking forward to torturing him, as well as in the helpless terror in Dean's eyes.

The word ‘torture’ has been used so many times that it has become somewhat of a cliché, so it is worthwhile to think of it differently. What came to mind first when the demon threatened Dean was prison rape or rape as a weapon of war. One of the first thing conquering armies do is rape civilians, the point being humiliation, dehumanisation, and breaking spirits. It is a complete violation of integrity and autonomy, and studies have indicated victims of rape are much more likely to experience PTSD than combat veterans. This is not to mention the physical damage a person can sustain. I once read a story about a Congolese man who was not only permanently incontinent, but had to wear sanitary towels because his rear end never stopped bleeding after being raped three times a day for three years. Other men like him who were captured by enemy soldiers were raped to death. (Edit: I finally found the story here.)

In Stephen King’s Finders Keepers, the character Morris Bellamy (disappointingly not a red-haired blue-eyed man in television adaptation) was imprisoned for home invasion and murder. While in prison, he too was repeatedly gang-raped and is described as shaking and sweating in fear while waiting for it to happen. It is never made explicit in the novel, but I expect his motivation in the main story of the novel is to try to make the trauma he experienced meaningful. (For a more in depth discussion of depictions of male victims of rape and sexual violence, you can read 2x15 Tall Tales Part II.)

As well as this, a handful of scenes from Sofi Oksanen’s book (and film) The Purge came to mind, scenes involving Soviet officers using rape and the threat thereof to interrogate, terrorise, and torture their Estonian subjects. One scene involves the protagonist Aliide being gang-raped by Soviet men in the town hall’s basement as punishment for refusing to coöperate with the Soviets. A later scene involves Aliide being forced to enact sexual violence on her niece Linda, the trauma of which left Linda non-verbal for the rest of her life.

The point of raising this topic was to drive home some of what is waiting for Dean. The show never states it explicitly, but there are definite ‘sexual’ undertones to some of the things Alistair says to Dean in 4x16 On the Head of a Pin.

Meg is also shown to be tortured much later in the show (6x10 Caged Heat, if memory serves): strapped naked to a table, the torturer’s knife is shown travelling to below her midriff and then cutting noises are heard off-screen while Meg screams. This is all the evidence we need that sexual violence is part of torture in Hell. ...As if we need evidence. The reason it was necessary to raise this topic is because the show itself never truly delves into the horror Dean endured nor the damage it wrought on his psyche to be debased, dehumanised, and violated again and again and again. In 4x11 Family Remains he makes vague references to having been cut until nothing was left, but other than that, very little is stated.

I raised the subject of sexual violence first because it is one of few forms of violence which the average person can read about or watch and be deeply affected by it. We can watch shows like Hannibal which are full of violence and not be especially perturbed by any of it, but the idea of a similar show with a serial rapist instead of a cannibal psychiatrist would be a much, much harder sell. ...Unless the rapist is a woman and the victims are men á la the painfully unfunny Norsemen, in which case it is apparently a laugh riot. Somehow I doubt the idea of a man wearing a necklace made out of the clitorises of women he had raped and killed would be considered funny, but clearly a woman raping and killing men then wearing a necklace made of their penises is hilarious. I stopped watching at that point.

But sexual violence is by no means the only form of violence which would be inflicted on Dean in Hell. The damage done by rape is serious, but so is other damage. In my analysis of 3x07 Fresh Blood, I discussed the Arabic trade in slaves from Europe and Africa and the fact that a huge proportion of the millions of white and black men sold as slaves into the Muslim world were either castrated or had their entire set of genitals removed without anaesthetic. Most men subjected to this treatment died, and those who survived were left with severe physical trauma. History does not record their mental trauma. I have elsewhere also discussed the links between the relatively minor surgical procedure of routine infant male circumcision and both cot death/SIDS and PTSD-like traits in adulthood. Men might not remember being strapped down and cut up by doctors when they are a few days old, but their brains and bodies can be fundamentally affected by it.

This is relatively minor, but I have had the misfortune of having to talk a young man out of suicide once; the root of his suicidal ideations was circumcision grief. The humiliation, dehumanisation, anger, betrayal, and hopelessness he expressed were exactly what one would expect from a rape victim.

While I greatly dislike graphic violence and gore on my screen, the lack of it in showing what happened to Dean in Hell is disappointing. I have no especial desire to see, e.g. Dean’s entire body being cut up three inches at a time starting with his left foot, but there was a time when he had just arrived in Hell. There was a time when he was first strapped to a torturer’s table, and a first time when his torso was cut open and his organs ripped out. There was a first time when he choked to death on his own blood, or screamed so loud he burst his eardrums. And he woke up the next day, his body whole but his brain remembering everything. This is far from ‘relatively minor’, and Dean had to endure it every day for thirty years. Take a moment to think about that.

The reason for writing several hundred words on this subject was the fact that the show goes to all this effort to tell us how horrific Hell is and hints at everything Dean endured… but undermines the gravity of this in order to make a joke about a bloody Pomeranian in 4x06 Yellow Fever.

I have had this on my mind for a long time, ever since first writing about castration and emasculation in 3x07 Fresh Blood and the Tolkenian orcification process in 3x09 Malleus Maleficarum. I am agog at how badly handled this storyline and its effects on Dean were. At the end of the demon-torturing scene, Dean is terrified and trying to cope with the knowledge that all power, agency, and integrity is to be stripped from him and demons are going to laugh while they defile and destroy his body over and over again. There was so much material available there for future usage, but most of it was squandered.

Supernatural really is the show of wasted opportunities.

That said: Jensen’s acting, Dear Reader! Dear Reader, Jensen’s acting!

Moving on, this episode was important for Sam and Bela as well. Usually I enjoy heaping scorn on Sam, but I actually empathised with, understood, and almost liked him this time. His intention in going on the Benton case was to try to find the secret to Dr Benton’s immortality in order to help Dean escape is deal. This was well-intentioned of him, and is how he should have been acting earlier in series three instead of screeching at Dean like a fishwife or trying to guilt trip him for ‘not wanting to be saved’. Though I do not understand people saying the show is ‘about the brothers’, I would have liked to see far more of how their brotherhood is depicted in this episode and much less of how it is elsewhere.

That being said, Sam’s hope that Benton’s secret would save Dean was likely as desperate and ironically hopeless as Dean hoping ’John’s’ advice in 3x14 Long-Distance Call could save him from his deal. Even the argument between Dean and Sam around halfway through the episode was completely believable and not especially irritating: both brothers had good justifications for wanting to do different things. Dean wanted to go see Rufus in hopes of finding the colt, whereas Sam wanted to stay and find Benton (and thereby the formula for immortality). Sam’s behaviour in the argument was also unusual for him: rather than bitching at Dean, he let Dean do what he wanted but just refused to go along with him. This made Sam’s wishes plain and gave Dean the freedom to choose for himself. Things did not turn out how Sam wanted, but such is life when dealing with independent adults.

This is an exception for Sam in this episode because the rest of it is full of bad decisions. One such bad decision is gong to Benton’s cabin alone at night, and another is not reversing the car over Benton’s prone body over and over again then burning the remains. It is almost as if Sam learnt nothing from not shooting Gordon in 2x10 Hunted, or not smashing Jake’s skull in 2x21 All Hell Breaks Loose Part 1 when he had the chance. If he had killed Jake at the first opportunity, Dean would have never made his deal in the first place and they would not be in this mess at all.

Of course, that raises the question of how on Earth it was possible for Benton to sneak up behind Sam when Sam was in his own room without even any headphones on, not to mention how Benton managed to find out where Sam was in the first place.

Before we continue: note that once again the only people to die in this episode were men, while Benton’s female victim was saved at the last minute.

Tv Tropes had this to say:

If the story requires random anonymous characters to die just to move the plot forward, they'll likely be male. If the plot requires a tragic death that motivates the protagonists or shows how evil the villains are, the victim will be female. One exception to this is a Heroic Sacrifice that is commonly committed by a man and often for a woman and/or The Hero. Similarly if the story demands random mooks get a beat down by a character to up the sense of danger or because they are generic enemies in a video game, or just show off how awesome the protagonist is, they will be male.

Rufus makes his entrance in this episode. Since he makes so few appearances in the show, I do not especially care for him, but I do think the show could have benefited from making better use of him. Mostly I like him when he does appear, and his relationship with Bobby is usually fun to watch.

Bobby probably called ahead of Dean to let Rufus know he was on the way and there is a very food chance Rufus was just messing with Dean, but this time his act grated on me a bit. I really dislike when I have to do all the work in a conversation and still get nothing in return. It reminds me too much of dating apps. Inside Rufus’s house, Dean is surprised to find out Rufus knows about his deal, though as Paula pointed out in her analysis: ‘Sam and Dean spent all season three talking to everyone in their hunting world about Dean’s deal. Not like it was a secret.’

Dean also receives a lot of pessimistic negativity from Rufus about the lot of hunters and how it either ends bloody or lonely for them. This is in essence exactly what Dean was raised to believe his life would be, one more reason why 15x20 is an utter shambles. Anyway, after Dean gets Rufus nice and lubed up (stop it!), Rufus presents him with a folder of information on Bela he acquired from a friend of a friend of a friend, as well as information on her whereabouts: Hotel Canaan, room 39.

Generally speaking, Rufus is quite a lot like Dean if Dean had survived to his late fifties and were living alone. Rufus presents a tough, world-wearied facade, but his actions belie the conclusion one might draw from that: Rufus did let Dean into his home, did provide him with vital information, and had Bela’s information printed out and neatly organised in a folder for Dean. He clearly cares a lot more than one might first think, which leads on to the possibility that Rufus actually remembers Dean from when he (Rufus) and Bobby used to hunt together.

As for Rufus’s eventual death: why? What was the narrative point? That was one of the stupidest deaths I have ever seen. And I watched 15x20!

Anyway, Rufus points Dean in Bela’s direction and he finds her packing and panicking in her room. There follows a scene where Dean finally gives Bela the treatment she deserves after her shenanigans.

Something which was news to me is that apparently some people saw the threat of sexual violence in that scene, and that apparently some people see Dean’s treatment of Bela as evidence of misogyny. It is very strange to me that some people think Dean is a woman-hater because it is clear that he treats women exactly the same way he treats men. What I see in Dean is the lack of benevolent sexism with which many women are accustomed to men treating them: being extra nice, gentle, friendly, and warm with them because they are women, for example. The catch to this benevolent sexism is that it and malevolent sexism are often two sides of the same coin: men who think women should be afforded special treatment because they are women tend to also treat women as if they are weak, stupid, and in need of special protection.

Dean does neither of these things, but rather treats women as his – and other men’s – equals. He does not treat women with any especial friendliness nor especially value them simply because they are women. He does not treat them as ladies: he treats them as equals, and they get exactly the same treatment from Dean that a man would. If that perhaps seems cold, harsh, cruel, and threatening to you… welcome to being treated the same as men, I suppose.

Dean’s treatment of Bela in this scene is, however, pretty harsh, but she does deserve it. Other than getting people killed in 3x05 Red Sky at Morning out of spite towards Dean and Sam, she blithely put them at risk of a Gordon-induced death in 3x07 Fresh Blood, then stole the colt in 3x10 Dream a Little Dream of Me while pretending to help them. The colt was Dean’s best chance of surviving his deal, and the penultimate scene in 3x16 No Rest for the Wicked could have been a lot different if either Dean or Sam were appropriately beweaponed to face Lilith.

I cannot remember whether this has been made explicit in the show, but there is a very good chance that Bela is completely aware of Dean’s demon deal. Dean and Sam have, after all, been talking to every magic man and mystic in America for the last year trying to find a way out of the deal: Rufus knew about it, so Bela probably did too. She stole the colt hoping it would save her while knowing full well it would doom Dean to Hell. In case you missed that, she screwed Dean over to save herself. Compare this to Dean’s refusal to even consider becoming like Doc Benton to save himself, and it is plain to see who the better person is here. Dean had every right to kill Bela then, as she had essentially done the same to him, and would try to kill him AND Sam at the end of the episode.

However, Dean’s revenge on Bela is not to shoot her, but to let her be killed by Hellhounds and get dragged to Hell, exactly the fate she tried to avoid. This is poetic justice, and is one of two instances of Dean passing judgement on humans in this episode.

As much as I loathe Bela’s character, I like Lauren Cohan, and mostly because of that I do find Bela’s end rather sad. Her history of abuse at the hands of her parents (or at least her dad: nothing is said of her mum) is gross, and I can see the path she took from abused child to fiercely independent adult trying to save herself from a decision she made as as a scared child. However, as I said with John, trauma is an explanation not a justification, and her suffering vomit-inducing abuse as a child does not let her off the hook for using other people as tools in her quest to save herself. The men in 3x03 Bad Day at Black Rock died because of the rabbit’s foot, something she knew would happen but let happen anyway, and this is just one instance. How many other people has she done the same to over the years? As Paula wrote in her analysis:

‘To say that this is a disgusting stereotype that is disrespectful to victims of child abuse (especially those who apparently “got lucky” for not having suffered sexual abuse) would be an understatement. I know I’ve talked before about how the relative lack of life experience shows through with some of this show’s writers, but I have to say this is one of the few times (and arguably the worst case) when the episode’s writer made me really angry at him/her. If you don’t know enough about a real-life trauma like this to treat it with the respect it needs in order to be done properly – stay the hell away from it.’

Dean gave Bela what she deserved and he was rather scary about it, not to mention possibly vindictive in calling her at the end just to tell her he knows what it going to happen to her and that he let it happen. That said, I would have liked to see her back in some capacity, perhaps after Bela had become a demon. There were actually plans for that very thing to happen, but unfortunately Lauren was busy with The Walking Dead at the time and could not make an appearance.

This was perhaps for the best, though: the writers did a bad job with Bela. She could have been a fantastic character if written well, but the writers actively sabotaged her and in the end completely mishandled the story of a woman who was taken advantage of by both her parents (or, at least her dad) and a crossroads demon leading to her gruesome death at age 24. Perhaps it is best that Bela's story ends here, though as Dean's parting words to her suggest, he may well have seen her again in Hell.

Dean’s recognition of the Hellhound repellent above Bela’s door once again shows his knowledge of the supernatural Otherworld is a lot deeper than a lot of people seem to give him credit for, but his feint and trickery in stabbing Benton with a chloroform-soaked knife showed how cunning he can be. His chosen punishment for Benton is also almost as chilling as what he did to Bela: burying Benton alive in a fridge. Whether or not Benton would slowly degenerate and eventually die is never made explicit, but Benton’s need to periodically replace his organs strongly suggests he will eventually die in the fridge.

As for why Dean and Sam did not simply kill Benton, the answer is possibly because he is still human. Killing humans is a line Dean does not like to cross (remember how affected he was by killing The Loquacious Terminator in 1x22 Devil’s Trap), and in spite of how monstrous Benton had become, he was still a human. This raises the question of whether Dean really would have shot Bela if he had not seen the talisman above her door.

Returning to Bela for a moment, both she and Dean are clever and tricksy, and this episode showed that ultimately Dean is a match for Bela. She did lure Dean to the hotel room to get information from him, but in the end he got the better of her. This episode features two representations of aspects of Dean he is battling with: his ability to use his brains to outwit others for his own benefit and his desperation to find some way to save himself, even if it hurts others. Bela is what Dean could be if he decided to be self-interested, callous, and British. As for Benton, he is a representation of what Dean would become if he chose to harm others in order to save himself. By the end of the episode, both are dead or as good as dead, meaning Dean has killed those two parts of himself.

Sam for his part saw precisely what would happen to Dean if he chose Benton’s path, and knew exactly what it would entail (see his line about needing a new pancreas in fifty years), but still wanted Dean to go through with it. In spite of this being the ‘immoral’ choice, that Sam wanted Dean to do it made Sam a bit more relatable and human. It also foreshadows some of the things he will do near the end of series four, but I do not think he is being influenced by Ruby or ‘having come back wrong’ here. He is just a man who wants his brother to live, and I liked this far more than any other story Sam has been given.

Regarding the alchemy in the episode, one of the common goals of alchemy was to try to find the secret to eternal life. This should be familiar to anybody who has read Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which should actually be named neither Philospher’s Stone nor Sorcerer’s Stone, but rather and the Alchemist’s Stone. Same referred to alchemy as ‘weird science’, and that is in a sense exactly what alchemy is. Like science, alchemy was an attempt to understand the world in a methodical way, and like scientific consensus, there were alchemical theories and concepts which eventually proved to be wrong. Alchemy in the end failed and fell apart, to be replaced by the new study of chemistry. Funnily enough, the ‘chem’ in both alchemy and chemistry could be derived from an ancient name for Egypt, ‘Keme’, the birthplace of alchemy. The word has come to us in the English language through Arabic ‘al-khemiya’ meaning ‘the Egyptian science’.

One prominent symbol featured in the episode in the ouroboros, or the snake eating its own tail. This represents the cyclical nature of things such as life, death, and rebirth, as well as fertility and immortality. The motif of the autovorous serpent appears in myths all over the world, with one of the most famous being Jörmungandr from Norse mythology, the child of Loki and Angrbođa who is so long that he encircles the whole world and chews on his own tail. In Norse myth, he can perhaps be thought to represent time and stability keeping the world together: one of the events of the Norse apocalypse is Jörmungandr coming up out of the sea as the world ends, perhaps a representation of the cyclical nature of life and death being broken as the world falls in to chaos.

But do let us save the Norse mythology for much later on in the series when the writers show their knowledge of the myths goes no further than the Marvel films (hint: Loki is Odin's blood brother, not his son). This episode was not one of my favourites, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed watching and analysing it. It is a grim story and does not bode well for the end of series three. I was also a bit sad to find out in writing this that Billy Drago (the actor who played Benton) died of a stroke in 2019 aged 73). I remember him from Charmed and the episode of The X-Files which taught me what voodoo dolls are actually intended for (7x14 Theef). I wonder how many other deaths I will have to comment on before I have analysed every episode of this show: the first I learnt of was Nicki Aycox (Meg 1.0), then the actress who played Susan in 2x11 Playthings. I hope not many more at all.

You can read more of my analyses here:

Series 1

Series 2

Series 3

Sundry

And you can read Paula's here.

[sharonisthebettercarter]

Slipknot Vermillion Butchlander.

FUCK. YES.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHH~<3<3<3 buckle in buckle in y'all cause this about to be a DOOZY<3!!

songs if ya hadn't heard them~<3 (def give them a listen, pt.2 is like an acoustic version, both lovely~<3, same general themes tho different vibes which-- ;))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

anywho~<3

FIRST OF ALL. YES. absolutable~<3

you beautiful beautiful little monster, this is PERFECT. okay, okay, yes, i'm getting too excited lmao. BUTT--

"I won't let this build up inside a me--"

this is an absolutely perfect opportunity for a deep dive into billy's psyche, psychosis, and an incredible exploration of psychological horror~<3

and it starts~?

with a *married* butchlander<3<3<3 OOH~<3!! (altho fair to use for for other ships with butcher, just doesn't get to the same level of psychological turmoil from the whole *husband is the villain* thing--;)))))))))) ANYWHO<3

basically butcher and homie are in a loving, *healthy* relationship. john is a good husband. maybe they even have ryan<3 or a little baby in billy's belly on the way<3<3<3 (or both~! lmao, always gotta throw that in-- ;))))))))))) a/b/o always an option, trans/intersex billy too, the world is the oyster~<3 any explanation like homie can just knock dudes up i guess lmfao--maybe that was the start-- :O ;)))))))) anyway, everything's perfect--except...

billy's having a bit of psychological... trouble. in which for some reason, his brain seems to be fabricating an entire reality with a loving and perfect wife, becca/becky--where his husband is the villain who tore them apart... and the situation in turn... starts to drive him and john apart...

and at first, of course, they'd be managing, between medications, care, brain scans, billy having nightmares and dreams, john trying to help, fighting and screaming, moments homie would have to hold billy down because he's having a meltdown, john having all the proof to keep billy from going nuclear/make it clear that he's... unwell, and that he's there for billy. maybe even a dna test to show that ryan is *theirs* and no one else's if a baby still in billy ain't enough--

but trust is wavering.

OOH, exploration into billy falling down that rabbit hole and believing it so much, he makes an effort to investigate and run away while homie always comes to get him/find him, drag him back home--and always *always*, refuse to hurt him even while billy is at his worst trying to force his hand, maybe even asking john to kill him so this doesn't continue--and again, his husband refusing.

now here's the kicker<3<3<3

this story could be done in two main ways (with expansive variations~<3, 3 if you count the middle road<3<3<3)

OOH! but before i dive into that, i should also mention that billy potentially being the *villain* in his own mind--in which he kidnaps and tortures and holds captive this *perfect* woman while john is none the wiser--ooooooohhhhhh... we'll come back to that one~<3 ;)

back on *john* being the villain in billy's mind.

"she isn't real. I can't make her real--"

and there in lies the *question*...

whether or not billy *is* experiencing psychosis and john is *actually* the villain, is it's own exploration~<3<3<3. depending on which version (regular or pt. 2), you channel the vibes of lmao

pt. 2 def feels like it could be more of a tragic rendition of this idea, where billy really *is* experiencing psychosis and john *is* a loving husband who *is* trying to help and care for billy<3

but the original...? mmm. let's just say there could be various... hints of a completely manipulated world around them--signs of a world *rewritten* or people silenced ,sides to john that he never *ever* shows to billy. certain... *things* that would certainly *imply* he is the *monster* billy's mind has made him--maybe it's billy's real memories trying to spill through whatever homelander did to him-- ;))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

mmmmmhmmmm~<3<3<3

BUTT, my personal fave?

*open. ended*

in which... there are... hints that might suggest one is true, and then the other, or even elements of both, but there's never truly an answer given... OOOH<3 FUCK YES. OOF, just the IDEA def gets me lol

i do feel the songs lean towards the 'she isn't real' factor (for obvious reasons lol) but for a fic~? ;))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

for variation in that exploration (and maybe an easy way to dig into the open ended vibes, but with a twisty lean~<3), maybe *most* of the 'hints' implicate one way with extremely *vague* BLINK AND YOU MISS IT hints for the *other* end, and one very *strong* hint/scene that ties together all the *vague* hints and makes them... impossible to ignore~<3

gawd i love psychological horror<3<3<3 lmao can you tell?

NOW. what about *billy* being the villain~<3?

OOOOHHHHHHH!!! now *that* one has some *real* hard potential for gut wrenching love from john<3<3<3 (i should also mention, *def* an option for psychosis with *john* there and OOF gotta stop giving myself expansions into this but it's just so FUCKING GOOD, LISTEN TO THE SONGS DAMMIT AND FEEL INSPIRED--)

similar enough deal, except with billy believing he's committed these horrible crimes to an innocent woman, a wonder of it might have been real or not and john trying to be by his side and settle his mind--and of course, the potential for a seriously covered up horrific crime because john's not about to lose his husband *for any reason*<3<3<3

maybe billy believes he committed the crime when it was really john and they covered it up together but billy--

this of course works just as lovely for the *canon compliant* show option with *john* feeling the full brunt of his psychosis--and billy trying to cover it up... *OR*... did it really happen at all? is billy right, is ryan really *their* son and there was no becky/becca?

;)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

oh i know i am absolutely TERRIBLE I KNOW-- but listen. LISTEEEENNNN... I FUCKING LOVE PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR, OKAY!?!?!

anywho~<3

there's also an element of serious *danger* involved with homie being the one to experience psychosis (powers and all, def one with billy too but not nearly as savage--unless a course ya give him powers too<3), especially if homie *convinces* himself that he *is* this *monster*, and therefore *must* act as this monster.

ooh, def some dives into comics themes but it go a little somethin'... like this:

"i think, therefore i am" or cogito, ergo sum (heeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyyyy that's a title if i ever done seen one for this one lmfao only if 'vermillion' isn't used i guess, alternatively 'cinnabar'<3)

and

"i can, therefore i must"

but the comics actually have a perfect set up for this too--OOH! it kinda goes back to that 'detective husbands' prompt lmao (expect a little different obviously) where instead of being a 'convinced i'm right when i'm wrong' dickwad billy or even *homie knows he didn't do it* (he would have to be on that edge of sanity/not know for sure for this one to work<3) we have a billy who actually legit *explores* and *investigates* what happened to becky because he *sees* that things don't add up *before* he starts actively making it worse. instead doing his own *solo* detective work~<3

maybe even stalking, meeting, getting to know homelander (*john*) personally. possibly even with the motive of finding his weakness, etc. and then tripping and landing on his dick and falling in love along the way~<3<3<3

lmao could be that billy even *abandons* the boys to get to the bottom of what really happened-- but also cause he ends up knocked up after realizing homie *was not* in fact the culprit<3<3<3

do feel the homie versions (show or comics) would deal less with the 'vermillion' vibes or i guess less chance for *open ended* horror themes, and more of a cut clean *he did it/he didn't do it* and is losing his mind sorta feel. in a sense, *becky* def *wouldn't* be real for comics homie because they never actually interacted (while the show version could be actively trying to remember her/struggling with who he *used* to be--OOH!! jason blood is def a place to look for inspo there~<3), so the tie in could be *exquisite* for sure, but it def is a slightly different feel lol

honestly might consider writing the comics/vermillion themed one (at some point, i have promised myself to other shit), it would explore billy instead of using homie as an excuse to be his worst self, homie becoming billy's excuse to hold onto what becky actually wanted for him/turn homie good (which is cute and sad in it's own way but could be SO fucking precious<3) and that would be some GOOD shit<3<3<3

FUCK! this is probably gonna build up inside a me i--

[popentertainment-moviereviews]

APARTMENT 7A (2024)

Starring Julia Garner, Dianne Wiest, Jim Sturgess, Kevin McNally, Marli Siu, Rosy McEwen, Amy Leeson, Scott Hume, Andrew Buchan, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Rosy McEwen, Nikkita Chadha, Julia Westcott-Hutton, James Swanton, Brooke Walter, Hannah Morley, Patrick Lyster, Dylan Baldwin , Mellanie Hubert, Anton Blake Horowitz and Eva-Marie Kung.

Screenplay by Natalie Erika James & Christian White and Skylar James.

Directed by Natalie Erika James.

Distributed by Paramount Pictures. 104 minutes. Rated R.

There have been a ton of horror films over the years that have ripped off Roman Polanski’s classic 1968 horror film Rosemary’s Baby (I’ve seen at least two which stole scenes from it in just the last few months), so it is kind of a surprise that it has taken so long for an official reboot of the movie.

Apartment 7A is not a remake of Rosemary’s Baby – it’s actually a prequel – but the film is based on Ira Levin’s classic novel (as was the 1968 film) and has a very similar storyline and old-fashioned style to the original. In fact, it seems that the movie was originally conceived as a remake as written by Skylar James, but when that project didn’t take off, writer/director Natalie Erika James reconceptualized the story to show the happenings in the Bramford, a mysterious old apartment building in New York. (As with Rosemary’s Baby, the Bramford is filmed in the famous Dakota on Central Park West in the Upper West Side.)

In fact, the makers of Apartment 7A are being a bit coy about the connection, not really pushing the fact that it is a part of the Rosemary’s Baby story, particularly not in its very generic sounding title.

However the lead character Terry Gionoffrio did appear, briefly, in the Rosemary’s Baby novel and film. This film is that woman’s backstory. (I won’t go into details as to how she fits into the original storyline, because that could be considered a bit of a spoiler for Apartment 7A.)

The basics of horror cinema have certainly changed a whole hell of a lot since Rosemary was released in 1968, and interestingly Apartment 7A sort of settles into the old-fashioned, more measured, spooky vibe of its predecessor. Which makes the film rather interesting, if occasionally a bit slow-paced for modern audiences.

We meet Terry (Julia Garner) as an aspiring Broadway dancer. During a performance, she badly injures her foot, leading her to have to stop her promising career for a period of months. (The accident becomes so well known that on Broadway she is broadly referred to as “the girl who fell.”) She tries to hurry herself back to work before she is ready by using painkillers, eventually becoming addicted to the pills.

After a particularly humiliating audition, Terry follows the producer Alan Marchand (Jim Sturgess) to his home at the Bramford. When she is unable to get through to him, she passes out due to her drug use. She is brought in the building by a sweet-seeming older couple named Roman and Minnie Castavet (Kevin McNally and Dianne Wiest), who quickly offer to put Terry up in an apartment that they own. Of course, if you have seen Rosemary’s Baby, you know that the Castavets have ulterior motives. (Wiest, in particular, does a stunning job of recreating the character as played by Ruth Gordon in the original. Close your eyes and you may think it was the same actress.)

In fact, their plans for Terry are very similar to their later plans with Rosemary. In fact, according to this storyline, the satanist residents of the Bramford have tried similar acts several times with multiple women.

None of it is completely surprising �� if you are familiar with the original story, you have a pretty good idea how it will all end – but Apartment 7A is still an interesting chapter of the tale.

Jay S. Jacobs

Copyright ©2024 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: September 19, 2024.

[feelingdeadandshitty]

So I did a thing (extra rare)

I ended up moving to the US for college, so I watched some fucking movies during my flights (so fun!!). I legit texted my friends the same things about these movies, but like, who tf cares actually, right???

First plane: Frankenstein theme apparently cause after watching the first movie, my brain went, "heY, how funny would it be to watch another movie with this specific aspects in commoN, but the vibes are COMPLETELY different?" 1. Poor Things: uH it was interesting, though there was a ton of sex lol, which I either skipped or spaced out during cause I wasn't interested in that, though I get why they put it. This specific movie left me sorta conflicted since it's interesting to see a character like Bella gain her independence through the course of the story due to her mental age rapidly changing from infant to adult woman and gaining experience through exploring the outside world. However, I also see how the "born-sexy yesterday" troupe can be used to describe her, even though the point of the movie was for her to find herself sexually and intellectually. Most of the men in the movie, even her father figure, who implanted the infant brain in her, has referred to wanting sexual relations (her father/creator does say it as a passing comment) or sexually takes advantage of her (Mark Ruffalo's character legit "touchs" her within a minute of meeting her cause of his rakeish nature) and the original person's whose body she's in's husband is one of the people of all time 🤠. However, that was probably part of the point to show her discovering herself. Maybe her father's assistant "Max" was the most chill outta them, but I feel like I'm missing something about him idk. Overall, it was a polarizing movie, but unless most ppl who either loved or hated this movie, I'm somewhere in the middle. 2. Lisa Frankenstein: Lisa Frankenstein was just a fun movie, like it didn't take itself seriously plus Cole Sprouse being the love interest working better since he has to keep his yap shut for most of the movie until the last scene is so funny to me. The main girl is really good at being the lead of campy horror, like her delivery is really good man - and I probably should watch more movies she's in- Second plane: pride month mF / Rachel Sennott IS the theme actually- 3. Bottoms: insane as fuck, like maN, I can't begin to explain it, like whoA- uH, comedy of the fucking century, the one liners and fucking HAZEL JESUS IM GAY 😭 4. Shiva Baby: anxiety the movie fr, like brUH?? Rachel's character kept making mistake after mistake but people always asking her to do stuff within the movie at random points and her using them them as ways to escape consequences temporary is jusT- not her sending her nudes to the guY when his WIFE and BABY were there and when his wife found out, OHHHHH BOYYYY, not her forcing Rachel's character to hold the baby when she was basically the side chick (which she didn't know about until that day, but still continued, but I support women's wrongs iG 🤷‍♀️) and the gAYS in the CAR, I will take that hand holding at the end as a happy ending fuck EVERYTHING-

[7grandmel]

Todays rip: 18/07/2023

The expanse of meme in past was split, A fiendish trap has now been set; Behind a tree the villains sit, Terror of sport, the Robbie's Net.

Season 5 Featured on: The SiIvaGunner Spooktacular Halloween Horror Special: Curse of the Fallen Angel

Ripped by Blookerstein

In deciding what would be todays post, I had to make a REALLY hard choice between this rip and the equally as excellent When the Impnosktor is Void, both by the same ripper made under the same event. They're both absolute titans of Season 5 and rips that never leave my mind, but I have to play toward my We Are Number One bias just this once.

You may recall (or have just seen, thanks to the reposts) that I covered a We Are Number One post very early on into this blog's life, throwing bunches of praise onto Nape Mango's ability to wield it in Chillin' Like a Villain. While I did touch on just how cool its been for the YTPMV community to have the entire WANO stems and source files available for use, what I wish I'd sold home even more is what that has LED to: A bunch of WANO arrangements with moods and theming wholly different from the original's ska silliness. That's of course notable in Chillin' Like a Villain itself having a far happier, more holiday-cheerful vibe to it due to its original song's instrumentation, and on the complete opposite end of that you find...todays rip, that I won't be spelling out the name of for obvious reasons. This time, shit's SINISTER.

Through the mixing of WANO's instrumentals and the source track's organ backing, this insane boss theme manages to retain almost every aspect of its original oppressive mood despite being sung by Robbie Rotten from LazyTown. Its an absolute treat to the ears to try and decipher what parts of the original WANO are being used where in the song, so densely layered together specifically to create that same dark atmosphere. I think my favorite part althesame is the vocals - in a way, the goofiness of Robbie's original performance starts to fade out of focus thanks to this aforementioned atmosphere, leaving nothing but the overacted villain role performing with full sincerity. Near the middle of the song there's some really clever and well thought out spacing and added reverb to the vocals to specifically make them sync up with the hits of the original song, and it just hits so perfectly. Its not a mere mashup or an automated conversion, but filled with tons of these small little tweaks and layers of depth to ensure the song's full potential is realized.

I remember both this rip and its other potential candidate for the day having a sort of reverance upon being uploaded, due specifically to the sparceness of Hollow Knight rips on the channel before them. The SiIva team have a tendancy of responding to fan requests in a very tounge-and-cheek way, which they'd done previously in the season with Hollow Knight as well, but on this day - the Grimm Trouppe's 4th Anniversary, in the midst of the season's Halloween event - everyone was celebrating with genuine quality. Blookerstein is one hell of a guy to committing to this anniversary as hard as he did, and trust me, he WILL show up again in the future.

[brendanmoviedate]

"The question is, do you have it in you to make it epic?"

2024 was a somewhat weaker year for film than 2023, due in part to the various industry strikes that shut down production for months at a time leading to less films being made. That being said, there were still a number of incredible films this year from old favourites and promising new talents.

As I stated in last year's post (actually written last week), I cut myself off at the 2025 Academy Awards. Any films from 2024 I haven't watched before the Oscar telecast can't be included in this list, which, because I'm actually writing it at a timely moment, means that only Gladiator II is disqualified from consideration (spoiler: it wouldn't have made the list anyway).

10. Alien: Romulus

As bummed as I am that Ridley Scott's David trilogy of prequel films will likely never see completion, if that means we're getting more films of the calibre of Alien: Romulus, then I can take some solace. Set after the first film, but before the sequels, Fede Alvarez's interquel see the alien from the original film wreak havoc on a science vessel that captures it and the scavengers that board it in hopes of leaving their planet.

Like most horror franchises, it's difficult to keep the core premise of Alien from feeling stale after so many films, as the very specific life cycle and kill tactics of the Xenomorph can start to feel repetitive. Rather, the specific alchemy that needs to happen to make these films work is having a group of well defined characters that mean something to each other and consequently to the audience. Romulus does a great job of establishing Cailee Spaeny's Rain and her friends as they struggle to pay their way out of a mining colony indentured servitude well before any of the horror transpires. By the time the xenomorph shows up, we actually want (most of) the cast to make it.

Here's where the film could easily have fallen back on the hallmarks of the alien franchise - face-huggers, chest-bursters, acid blood, etc. And while the film does of course utilize these elements, they're incorporated in exciting and often innovative ways.

The climax of the film is truly disturbing and brazen. I had some inkling where it was headed, but the way it played out was truly unhinged. Loved it.

9. Longlegs

Longlegs, while billed as a horror film, is actually more thriller along the lines of Seven, with Maika Monroe playing a police detective on the trail of a serial killer played by Nicholas Cage. The film is truly menacing, particularly due to Cage, who wears heavy prosthetics and an all white wardrobe and speaks in a high-pitched voice. Monroe, perhaps the best current "scream queen," continues to find new avenues to portray menaced characters dealing with past trauma.

Writer-director Oz Perkins, son of Psycho actor Anthony Perkins, is a talent to follow. We won't have to wait long as his next film, The Monkey, is already out at the time of writing.

8. The Fall Guy

I'm a huge fan of Ryan Gosling in funny mode. From SNL to Barbie, he's always to down to make the audience (and often himself) laugh. This version of Gosling is used perfectly in The Nice Guys, so the fact that The Fall Guy gives me vibes of that film acts in the film's favour. Fortunately, The Fall Guy stands on its own merits as a funny and exciting action-comedy that operates as a love letter to stunt performers. David Leitch, a former stunt performer himself, directs the film from a script by Drew Pearce. Perhaps due to his time doing stunts, The Fall Guy is Leitch's best film so far, perfectly balancing the comedic and action-thriller tones.

Unfortunately, the film was a box office bomb (as was The Nice Guys), which hopefully doesn't signal a departure from Gosling's funny mode.

7. The Substance

Coralie Fargeat's feminist body-horror film about an aging actress (Demi Moore) who split's herself into two parts - one old and one young - plays with it's influences and themes a little too heavy-handed, but is still effective. As the body horror elements ramp up, the film truly starts to assert itself as its own entity and Fargeat makes a case to stand with Cronenberg and Ducournau as masters of the genre.

6. The Brutalist

In the past I've found Brady Corbet to be both pretentious and callow as an actor and a director. The Brutalist will do nothing to assuage accusations of pretension, but Corbet has shed most of the trappings of immaturity for an epic look at a post-war immigrant architect trying to reestablish himself in America.

Featuring great performances from Brody and Pearce, the film operates as a tense struggle between artist and patron in creating a magnum opus.

While the film struggles, both with the vocation of architecture, and with some broadly applied metaphors, it can't be denied that The Brutalist is visually astounding and a magnum opus in its own right.

5. Anora

The surprise juggernaut at the Academy Awards, Anora is an immensely fun and frantic film. While at first it looks like little more than an excuse for graphic nudity and sex, the film quickly spirals out into a borderline screwball comedy as outside forces try to tear the titular Anora apart from her newly betrothed son of a Russian oligarch.

4. Monkey Man

Dev Patel's directorial debut is a masterfully constructed and visually impressive treat, featuring well choreographed action while championing many of the underclasses of India. Hopefully Patel will get to direct again, as he has a keen visual sense.

3. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

Mad Max: Fury Road is my favourite movie of all time, so I had to temper expectations going into Furiosa. Fortunately, the film operates on it's own level and doesn't try to emulate Fury Road too much. Instead, Furiosa operates more like a revenge-thriller, focusing on the emotional toll of this world rather than the incredible stunts that Fury Road is known for. That being said, there are still some incredible stunts in this film that would put many other films to shame.

2. Challengers

A surprise snub at the Oscars this year, Luca Guadagnino's Challengers is the most dynamic and energetic film this year. From Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' propulsive soundtrack to the frenetic editing, Challengers is truly electric. Beyond the incredible craft of the film, Challengers also features 3 incredible performances from Zendaya, Mike Faist, and Josh O'Connor as three promising young tennis stars and the love triangle that forms.

While the tennis scenes are impressive enough to pull you into the theatre, it's the quieter scenes off the court where the characters truly come alive. I'll be watching this one again for sure.

1. Dune: Part Two

Denis Villeneuve also makes a good showing on these lists, yet Dune: Part One, barely made it in the number 10 spot. I'm not sure why, but that movie, while good, didn't quite reach the heights of Arrival, Sicario, or Blade Runner 2049. Going in to Part Two, I was confident the movie would be good, but was blown away by how much Villeneuve knocked this out of the park.

Because the first film carried all the weight of introducing the characters and stakes of the plot, Part Two was afforded the opportunity to spend more time developing the characters and relationships between them, making the eventual climax all the more impactful for all involved. Paul's (Chalamet) path to leading the Fremen to a galaxy spanning war despite the cost to himself and his burgeoning relationship with Chani (Zendaya) is both tragic and inevitable.

As with all of Villeneuve's films, Dune: Part Two is a gorgeous film, demanding to been seen on the biggest screen. In a world where every blockbuster film is CGI goop, Dune: Part Two is a refreshing masterpiece, with every element finely crafted with care for the biggest impact.

Honourable Mentions

There were a lot of movies that almost made the list, including a couple I'm already reconsidering leaving off. Conclave was a fun, cheesy "thriller" about electing a new pope, which should have given Ralph Fiennes is much deserved Oscar. The Apprentice, while flawed as a film, features an incredible performance from Sebastian Stan. Nosferatu is an intentionally campy Gothic horror film from Robert Eggers that is a lot more fun than you would expect. Late Night with the Devil is a well crafted independent horror film taking place during a late night 1970s TV show. Megalopolis is a epic, sloppy mess that needs to be seen to be believed from Francis Ford Coppola.

2025

There's a surprising number of exciting films coming in 2025 from filmmakers that have previous been featured on these lists, including Predator: Badlands (Dan Trachtenberg's follow up to Prey), The Naked Gun (featuring Liam Neesom in the lead role from director Akiva Schaffer), The Monkey (from Longlegs director Oz Perkins), Havoc (from The Raid's Gareth Evans), Ballerina (a John Wick spin-off with action reshoots from Chad Stahelski), Fantastic Four: First Steps, Hope (Michael Fassbender starring in a film by The Wailing's Na Hong-jin), No Other Choice (from Park Chan-wook), Flowervale Street (from David Robert Mitchell, director of It Follows and Under the Silver Lake), Bong Joon-hoo's Mickey 17, Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning, Black Bag (from Steven Soderbergh), Materialists (from Past Lives' Celine Song), Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein, and Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another.

That's a lot to look forward to. It might be worth comparing this list with my list to see what under the radar films come out this year. Something that's actually possible by writing this in a timely manner!

[brunosreviews]

In This Moment - Godmode Review

I've been an on and off listener to In This Moment. I've always enjoyed the edgy, dark, and sexual vibe they bring to the table. Yesterday night I decided to give their new (2023, but I'm late) Godmode album a listen. I hadn't heard any of the singles so it was a completely new experience. I noted down my first impressions and I will complement them here with the further listening to the album I've done since. And we are doing it track per track!

Track 1: Godmode

First contact. Wasn't convinced by the new synth voice and sound at first, and I still think this song is the worst off the album. It's quite different from what I expected from ITM sound wise. I noted, "I don't know if all this new noise is doing anything," which I will namely contradict as the album runs its course. Wasn't convinced by this one, and it's the only one off the album I didn't save.

Track 2: The Purge

Very interesting beat and groove. Really good singing and delivery from Maria Brink, which is not new but it is worth noting. She really sells the lyrics with her voice. This is not a song that went where I expected it to go, which is also a recurrent theme in the album for me personally. Love the riff and the long bridge scream is definitely worth listening to again. I think it has to grow on me, and I'm also convinced it will.

Track 3: Army Of Me

This is the point where In This Moment sold me with their "new" sound. Really bold choice of song to cover, and Brink shows again just how versatile her voice is. I'm not super familiar with Björk's original (sorry) but I loved this version, and I'll be listening to it a lot. Big fan of this one.

Track 4: Sacrifice

I found this track off-putting in a good way at first, sound-wise. The chorus really caught me off guard, but the more I listened to what they were going for, the more I found myself enjoying it. It's the kind of song I have to get used to. I don't have a ton of notes for this one. When I first listened to it, I was moderately high, and something about it fried my brain.

Track 5: Skyburner

Engaging. Ethereal in ways I never thought ITM would go for. Once again, really good singing. By this point, you can tell how much her voice is carrying a first listen. Not to say the music is bad, but it is very different from, say, 'Whore' or 'The In-Between', or to me it seems so. Also worth noting are the enunciation and at times phonetic choices in the vocals.

Track 6: Sanctify Me

Ear-catching introduction to one of the best songs in the album. I can't help myself from pointing out constantly how good Maria Brink's delivery of the lyrics is. I've always thought her singing had a lot of performative elements, and she's definitely acting out the song vocally. Lovely lyrics too. Not surprised at all this got a music video.

Track 7: Everything Starts And Ends With You

While I was not as into the lyrics of this one initially, the band really sells them well. I loved the pre chorus and the chorus with a passion, and on subsequent listens, it's become a favorite of mine. Feels monumental. Really cool choices on the vocal melody, which is another recurrent album theme. Surprised it got no video. I think it might be a favorite as well.

Track 8: Damaged (ft. Spencer Charnas)

When I saw Charnas was in the song, I immediately got excited. I love Ice Nine Kills as its own band, and Spencer Charnas is the very king of horror lyric delivery (just look at 'Funeral Derangements' and 'Hip To Be Scared'). Dream collab, both of them are amazing singers who really act out their lyrics, and I love it. It's lovely seeing how they influence each other in the song. The song itself is good, doesn't stand out to me except for the fact it's a collaboration, but it adds good vocal variety to the record. It's also very catchy. The second verse is possibly the best part of this.

Track 9: Fate Bringer

Their unpredictability shows again in the best way. Interesting lyrics, more than their other albums. Killer beat, and such a flowy chorus I'll get stuck in my head. Unsure of how to even classify this song, so I won't, but it has its place in the album and I support what they're doing with their sound fully even if I don't adore the song.

Track 10: I Would Die For You

Closing track. Her vocal performance is insane in this one. I noted in my high haze, "She could be singing the newspaper and I'd be rapt." It is definitely a surprise favorite. This chorus is so fucking good and different to older ITM. The way the song expands and grows in scale is monumental. With its progression and the way it simply opens up it feels like I'm inside a church having a religious epiphany, which is fitting. Another masterpiece song. Had no idea it was in John Wick til I checked the comments, and now I wanna see the movie.

-

All in all, it is a really interesting and engaging collection of songs that I greatly enjoy and will be listening to obsessively for a week minimum. I think the new 'noises' as I put them and the new sound fits them well, even if it's a big change. A fun album to go through and pay attention to! I'd recommend it if you like female-fronted metal, devotion, dramatic delivery and obsessions.

[phoenixwatchesmovies]

What I'm Watching: Speedrun Edition

*shrug* I kinda forgot. I was kinda overwhelmed. Here's everything I watched in August and September with my thoughts on it in three sentences or less.

The Last Voyage of the Demeter

I was not disappointed. I fucked up by not seeing this in a theater setting. It will have its own post when I get around to watching it again.

House On Haunted Hill (the original)

Silly, goofy, completely unserious, and a total banger. I've been meaning to watch more classic movies in general, and you can't go wrong with Vincent Price.

Saved!

This aged a lot better than I would have assumed, based on the terse description on Prime, and thus proved the old adage.

The Birds

Ok, I know I just said I wanted to watch more classics and you don't get more classic than Hitchcock, but how did this manage to feel slower and more uneventful than movies that are longer and have less action?

Suck It Up

Quiet but emotional indie flick about grief and regret that felt like what a non-horror Mike Flanagan project might look like. So obviously, I liked it.

Killer Klowns From Outer Space

Garish, fluorescent, live-action cartoon acid trip of a movie. I love the vibe and the aesthetic, and I want to watch this with a group of friends. It seems like that type of movie.

Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil

You know I love this one. Moving on.

House of 1000 Corpses

Easiest way to describe this is, if Texas Chain Saw Massacre was less serious and more horny. As I put it to my sister, I feel like if you put this movie under a black light, you might not like what you saw.

Overboard (the remake)

If you didn't even know there was a remake, that makes two of us. The gender swap threw me off and I don't know if it was meant to be different for the sake of it or to make the premise a little less :/ but if it's that last one, it didn't work. Regardless, it did what a rom com is supposed to do and gave all the fun and fluffy feels.

Over The Garden Wall

Mandatory seasonal viewing. It looks the way I wish fall still felt. How does a show that came out in 2014 and I've only seen twice feel so nostalgic?

And of course, hours upon hours upon h o u r s of Sailor Moon. Will I do better about keeping up with these posts next month? Who knows. We'll find out together.

[birdhousemp3]

hiiii ok this is a complete list of every horror movie that i’ve rated 4+ (out of 5) stars on letterboxd:

the love witch, seoul station, get out, us, jennifer’s body, train to busan, what we do in the shadows, aliens, the craft, teeth, nope, mother!, annihilation, a quiet place pt ii, the babadook, the fly (of course), videodrome, no one will save you, ginger snaps, his house, cobweb, cargo, la llorona (the guatemalan one not the u.s. one), the company of wolves, tale of tales, hungry wives, lyle

and honorable mention 3.5 star movies that i’d also recommend:

american psycho, scream, a quiet place, barbarian, talk to me, bodies bodies bodies, smile, ready or not, rocky horror picture show, cabin in the woods, raw, creep, when evil lurks, the host, vivarium, the invitation, gerald’s game, one cut of the dead, dead ringers, alien resurrection, triangle, hell house llc, day of the dead, society, piggy, the girl with all the gifts, anna and the apocalypse, tammy and the t. rex, blood red sky, sissy, the wretched, zombie for sale, here alone, the thing

based on the fact that u like the fly these movies will probably be most similar vibes-wise: aliens (would also recommend watching the original alien but i just don’t like it as much as the second movie), videodrome (obviously), the company of wolves, dead ringers (also obvious), society, tammy and the t. rex, and the thing. i also think u might enjoy the love witch, the craft, teeth, ginger snaps, hungry wives, and scream…if u want any more specific recommendations based on genre etc just lmk i love talking abt horror movies <3

ahh hehe thank u thank u thank u!!! all will be added to my watchlist <33

i will let u know my thoughts!! ily <3

[superectojazzmage]

What was is that Cates was trying to do in his run, but failed at?

So basically, back during the whole Secret Empire period of Marvel, Donny Cates and Al Ewing both pitched ideas for big Hulk runs at the same time. Ewing’s pitch was a horror saga that eventually became Immortal Hulk. Cates’ run was his Smashtronaut story about “the Hulk’s Hulk”/an evil darkness entity and Bruce and Hulk having a super-adversarial relationship where they’re straight up enemies. Editorial basically made a compromise where Ewing could do his pitch first, and once he was done, Cates could do his if he still wanted to. So Ewing did Immortal Hulk, and Cates went off and did his Venom run (where he ended up using a number of ideas from his Hulk pitch; this is suspected to be where Knull originated from).

Immortal Hulk, of course, went on to be a massive hit and one of the greatest runs on Hulk ever, a series-defining run on the level of Peter David and Greg Pak’s work. It completely upended the status quo of Hulk and went in bold and insane new directions that really reinvigorated a series that had been badly stagnating. Ewing left the book hailed as one of the best Hulk writers ever.

So Cates had a pretty high bar to clear. And instead of reworking his old pitch to account for the changes brought on by Immortal… he just said “fuck it” and tried to do his pitch EXACTLY as he originally planned it, without regard for anything that happened in Immortal, and when he rarely did acknowledge Ewing’s work, is was in a very quick and dirty way that didn’t jive at all with how Immortal ended.

More than that, Cates’ run was SUPPOSED to be, apparently, a very dark and edgy sci-fi adventure kind of story that essentially raised questions about which personality was the real monster, Hulk or Banner, while also taking Hulk on a crazy cosmic journey. Cates seemed to really think he was breaking new ground. But he wasn’t. His run, particularly coming off the truly daring Immortal Hulk, was extremely derivative of better prior runs (an evil Hulk personality just like Paul Jenkins, going to space like Greg Pak, etc.) and showed a deep misunderstanding of the characters and prior lore, sometimes in deeply uncomfortable ways (Bruce’s especially vicious relationship with Savage Hulk in Cates’ run was clearly written without realizing that the previous runs REALLY drove home that Savage is LITERALLY a kid; turning Cates’ Bruce from a man at the end of his rope into a horrific abuser exploiting his power to torment an innocent child who — in the very previous run — had made peace with Bruce and risked his life to save him). It was an attempt to do something crazy and new that instead felt like a massive step backwards for the book. And that was before Cates’ crumbling personal life led to him struggling to keep writing and eventually having to step away early.

Philip Kennedy Johnson’s new run seems to be doing a vaguely similarish premise to Cates’ — Bruce and Hulk as enemies — but is doing it in a radically different and much more well-written way while being much more thematically and continuity-wise linked to Immortal Hulk, not only returning to the horror vibe of Immortal and picking up that run’s hanging threads and sequel hooks, but also all but ignoring Cates’ run. PKJ is essentially doing what Cates should’ve done and just picking up where Immortal Hulk left off while telling a genuinely new and unique story unlike anything Hulk has done before.

[wildwren]

Okay, so I watched 1899 this week and,,,, I’m actually gonna drive myself insane if I don’t get some thoughts out about it — like I’m not even saying these thoughts are deep or mind-blowing or extra special analyze-y or anything, I just need to write ‘em down so my brain can get some space because they're are currently chewing holes in the ol’ lobes. Anyway!

Warning: Spoilers for 1899, mild Dark slander, spoilers for Severance 

I went into 1899 pretty excited. I love historical fiction, I love boat stories, especially boat disaster stories, I very much enjoyed Dark (although I would not call it a masterpiece or a perfect story or some of the other things people call it), I love watching shows that are not (entirely) in English. I love sinister mysteries/horror/surrealism, etc. Seemed like a pretty good vibe! 

For me, Dark was a very enjoyable ride and certainly a good use of viewing hours, but I personally wasn’t entirely moved by the scale of its sci-fi premise. I found the central time-loop conceit and all its twisty convolutions ultimately less interesting than the character work they were doing, the ways in which they were using the sci-fi premise to explore character by placing different versions of the same characters in relation to each other and seeing how they responded. However, the writing suffered imo from a sort of over-ponderousness — long philosophical monologues delivered by disembodied voices extrapolating on the nature of reality and time, full needle-drop montages at the end of every episode which were sometimes emotionally impactful and sometimes not. And while I appreciate their choice to end it at 3 seasons instead of continuing the story interminably, when it was all said and done, it felt rather long-winded to me, as if an even shorter form and a more condensed structure might have actually served the story better. 

Most of the critical reviews I’ve read of 1899 have been comparing it unfavorably with Dark, naming it as a failure to live up to the showrunner’s first big project, but I can’t say I agree. For starters, it’s hard to compare the two when Dark is complete and 1899 is not. But I’m pleasantly surprised by 1899’s attempts to correct the indulgences of Dark. There are essentially no ponderous monologues delivered by disembodied voices! Hallelujah! The needle-drop montages are still there and are still personally underwhelming for me, but they are quite punchy and short. The pacing feels much more spry (although some critics are calling it interminably slow? Disagree). The character work is still strong, but instead of focusing on a bunch of white middle-class teenagers and their parents in a comfortable suburb, it widens its scope to include a much greater range of experiences and stories. And it does so very effectively! 

It’s the character work that hits the hardest for me. I was particularly impressed by the secondary characters in 1899 (by that, I think I mean everyone other than Maura, Daniel, Elliott). Each one of them felt richly drawn and complex, and their backstories were revealed by means of the sort of slow-building, situational exposition which keeps me engaged. Not one of these characters felt stock or rote, but were allowed to be fully real and messy, driving the failed loop narrative forward by playing out their own pain and suffering and love in compelling ways. The strongest of these stories for me was probably Tove and Krester — two siblings bonded by a shared trauma event and their desire to escape it, who nevertheless continually fail each other over the course of the story with heartbreaking consequences. A very close second was Ángel and Ramiro, who I originally worried would be reduced to “scummy gays” but whose relationship held so much complexity — at turns toxic, at turns tender — that I ugly cried at Ángel’s death. Ling Yi and Yuk Je were another pair of heartbreakers, and even Olek, perhaps the most uncomplicatedly “good” character in the narrative, carried a darkness with him that haunts me. What was going on with his brother? What happened in that oil drum? As for the Frenchies: I didn’t quite feel the chemistry between Jérôme and Clémence, but they were both lovely characters and Lucien had an enjoyable meow meow quotient as well. And more importantly, they had an effective arc: starting at a place of tension or outright hostility along every axis of their weird little throuple and evolving into a makeshift care dynamic by the end. 

There was a special quality of tenderness to this writing which continues to effect me: the tone was neither grimdark disaster fic nor some cloying “saved by the power of love” message. There was a deep practicality to their attempts to band together and save each other as their numbers dwindled, which made their inevitable failures all the more heartbreaking. 

I guess I’m writing all this out because a lot of criticisms I’ve seen of this show argue that the central premise made these characters defunct. That as soon as the nature of the simulation was revealed, their deaths and their suffering failed to have impact or meaning. I’m struggling to grasp this argument. I do agree that the last episodes favored the drama of Maura, Daniel, and Elliott, who I found perfectly serviceable as the A story, but ultimately less compelling than the secondary characters. I don’t really care that much about the big sci-fi premise reveals, and would have preferred for the secondary characters to remain in greater roles of agency, but I understand why that had to shift to serve the story they were telling. The scope of the sci-fi premise is SO big, requiring the narrative to zoom out a LOT in order to give us the reveals that they did by the end of the season. So yea, we were left at a certain distance from some of our characters. 

But all of these characters are still very real — currently onboard the Prometheus spaceship (or in a B simulation, if you subscribe to that theory) — stuck in a world where they can only act out their trauma and never recover from it, where they can only hurt each other and then try, desperately, to save each other, and then FAIL. Where the love they have for each other is always just out of reach — unspoken or unconsummated or unrealized before its too late. I’m not sure how understanding that it’s a simulated loop makes that pain less impactful. But to each their own, I guess. 

It’s at this point in this rambling, long-winded rant where I have to make the inevitable comparison to Severance. Spoilers for Season One of Severance! There are um … a LOT of similarities between this show and Severance. Both stories involve characters who are trapped in a sort of half life, separated from the full versions of themselves and the full stories of their own memories. We haven’t got confirmation of this for 1899, but it’s my suspicion that similar to the folks in Severance, these characters made a consensual choice, a choice to perhaps avoid or passively delete their own pain, which has now imprisoned them in a different sort of hell. Their actual life experiences in 2099 or wherever they really are (analogous to the Severance ‘Outies’) might take a different shape than the memories and traumas we saw play out on the ship (their ‘Innies’), but they’re two sides of the same coin (or perhaps three sides of the same triangle, tell me to shut up now please). Moreover, there are massive similarities between Maura and Helly R., both in their actual roles within the story and in the ways in which those roles are revealed by the narrative. 

Given these similarities, I think, if anything, that 1899 accomplishes some things more effectively than Severance (someone’s probably going to fight me for this). My biggest gripe with Severance was how heavily it favored Mark’s narrative at the expense of everyone else and how much more interesting I found the other characters, particularly Helly, in contrast to him. 1899 essentially has the Helly character in the main role and in my opinion, draws its secondary characters in more satisfying ways than Severance was able to do given its framing choices. I’m not saying there aren’t some things Severance did better— I think Helly is a more fascinating character (so far) than Maura, and I find the subtlety of Severance’s premise more effecting than the grand cosmic gestures of 1899, but I think we need future seasons of both to determine how they pay off their character work.

Jesus fucking christ I’m going to stop talking now, if you read this, wow, I’d love to hear your thoughts, I’m literally bursting at the seams to talk about it so. Feel free to DM or drop me an ask. I will squeal. (unless you're an asshole)

(Also sorry I didn’t talk about Eyk like, at all, in this. I like him, he’s good, he’s interesting, I was deeply biased against him because the reuse of Andreas drove me crazy for some reason, so it was actually surprising to me how much I liked him. His character felt very different from Older Jonas. It worked!) 

[allthefilmsiveseenforfree]

Dear Evan Hansen

You may have seen some ~online discourse~ about the film Dear Evan Hansen, an adaptation of the 2016 Broadway musical, and you might have wondered what all the hubbub is about. I mean, it’s a feel good story about a senior in high school, Evan Hansen (Ben Platt), who has some pretty severe anxiety and depression. While trying to fulfill an assignment from his therapist to write a letter to himself, his letter gets picked up by another student, Connor (Colton Ryan) - and later that day, Connor kills himself. Connor’s grieving parents and sister Zoe (Amy Adams, Danny Pino, and Kaitlyn Dever) are desperate to learn more from the boy they think was Connor’s best friend - after all, Connor’s suicide note was a letter addressed to “Dear Evan Hansen.” And, as you can imagine, Evan tells them about the unfortunate mistake and sits with them in their grief as they struggle to pick up the pieces of their lives. 

Just kidding! He lies to them, repeatedly, elaborately, expansively for months, constructing an entire false friendship with Connor that never happened, and ingratiating himself into the wealthy nuclear family he never had, in large part because he wants to get into Zoe’s pants! THIS IS THE PROTAGONIST OF THE STORY. Oh, and it’s a musical so there is a lot of singing and crying and singing WHILE crying and sometimes crying and not singing at all. But the #inspiration, you guys. 

Things I liked:

Pretty much everything but the story and Ben Platt’s performance. The supporting cast is stacked, and all of them do a great job at elevating material scraped directly out of a diaper worn by someone who just chewed their way through a copy of the DSM-5. 

A couple of the songs are damn catchy - “Waving Through a Window” and “You Will Be Found” are standouts for a reason - and here’s the thing, Platt sings them well. But as you’ll discover, there’s a lot more to a movie musical than just singing your part. 

Stephen Chbosky, the man behind every deep thought I and a lot of people in my generation had in 2006 after he wrote The Perks of Being a Wallflower, is a pretty good director. I particularly enjoyed the fanvid-type cuts in “Waving Through a Window” in conjunction with the lyrics, and his use of interstitial shots to flashbacks (and sometimes flashforwards!) is a neat little bit of shorthand that I thought was used sparingly enough to be effective. 

Amy Fucking Adams. She’s holding on so hard, so desperately to the idea of who her son could have been, rather than the reality of who he was, and she is full of such deep pain that is masked by an almost endless supply of patience with Evan and relentless positivity. All this made me want was Enchanted 2 even worse than I already did. 

Super into everything Zoe wears - the costuming department did a great job, and now all I want to do is live in mom jeans and baggy sweaters.

Did I Cry? I teared up a couple of times because I’m not a completely heartless bastard and when Amy Adams offered Evan Connor’s college money, my heart broke for the lie Evan had thrust upon her, and Julianne Moore’s song got me good, because she’s just a single mom to Evan who is doing her goddamn best. 

Things I hated more than the time I dropped a frozen gallon container of fruit cocktail on my pinkie toe in my parents’ garage and it turned black and I thought it was gonna fall off:

Ben Platt is 28 years old. He originated the role of Evan Hansen on Broadway, so in many respects it makes sense that he plays the role in the movie, except for the one kinda sorta important thing where he looks like a wizened old crone standing amongst a sea of children doing his best twitching, cringing Hunchback of Notre Dame impression. If you want someone to convincingly play 20 years their junior, hire Paul Rudd. Otherwise, please don’t ask me to believe that this supposed 18-year-old has crow’s feet. 

And that twitching nervous energy is a huge part of the black hole at the center of this film - he’s playing to the cheap seats and walking through the halls of his high school like a wet chihuahua. It’s an excruciating acting choice to watch - he doesn’t just have anxiety, he is on the verge of a nervous breakdown seemingly every second of every day. Like honestly, where is only-mentioned-never-seen Dr. Sherman, because this young man’s meds are NOT WORKING DR. SHERMAN. 

There’s such a lack of self-awareness on behalf of the writing, directing, and performance by Platt. There’s one song, “Sincerely, Me,” that offers the only glimpse of commentary about what Evan is doing, by pointing out the malicious ridiculousness of him writing a series of fake emails as proof of his and Connor’s friendship. 

Also what high schoolers email this much?? I know this was written in probably 2014 or so, but has a bitch never heard of a text? Even a DM? This whole plot is constructed around the premise that high schoolers are just constantly, constantly emailing each other. 

Everything - and I mean EV-ER-Y-THING - about Evan’s relationship with Zoe is so creepy and disturbing that with a soundtrack change, this could easily be a horror movie. He attempts to get her to like him by describing to her all the things her brother noticed about her - oh wait, I’m sorry, all the things HE noticed about her while he was skulking in the shadows following her around for years, watching every move she made, and it ends with him singing repeatedly “I LOVE YOU” because following a girl around and never having a conversation with her or knowing her at all is love, right? This was clearly written by the same people who chose “Every Breath You Take” as their wedding song because Sting is hot and they never actually listened to the damn words. 

And it gets about 10 billion times worse when Zoe goes to Evan’s house alone, takes him up to his room, and sings “I don’t need reasons to want you” and that was the moment I was that person I hate in a movie theater and I pulled out my phone to Google who wrote the music and lyrics to the musical (we were in the back row of the theater no one was behind me THIS WAS AN OUTRAGE EMERGENCY) and of motherfucking course it was written by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, 2 men who heard about meeting an actual human woman from a friend one time but otherwise are unfamiliar with the concept. 

Lastly, enormous serial killer vibes from Evan sending unlabeled flash drives anonymously through the mail with no note in an attempt to right his wrongs. That’s not catharsis, that’s how the next installment in the Saw franchise starts, with Evan in a Billy the clown doll mask showing up on the screen and asking if you want to play a fucking game. 

Also, I know it’s not possible for the narrative to justify this in a way that could be satisfying based on Evan’s actions, but what is with this thing where single working-class mom Julianne Moore is turning down rich people’s money for Evan to go to college? Like, obviously we can’t have that happen in the movie but in real life, fuck your pride! Take those rich people’s money!

I also know how movies work but nothing annoys me more than a giant group of high schoolers all getting beeps and boops to indicate text notifications all at the same time because I don’t know a single person under the age of 55 who keeps their ringer on. That shit is on vibrate AT MOST, and I feel like that’s a millennial thing. 

The emotional climax of the film is obviously Evan’s WAY TOO LATE confession, but the idea that it’s prompted by Connor’s family suddenly getting a lot of internet hate is, frankly, laughable. If Sandy Hook taught me one thing, it is that no tragedy is immune from trolls who live only to cause other people devastating emotional pain on the internet. That shit starts day 1. Apparently no one involved in this production has ever been on Twitter?

Also it feels like there should have been a dog somewhere in this movie and there was no dog, so points off for that too. 

Perhaps Dear Evan Hansen isn’t nearly as deep as it aspires to be. Perhaps it’s a morality play, a simplistic message of “Don’t lie, kids, lying is bad!” Major studio movies wrap themselves up with a nice bow at the end so everyone can feel good about themselves and leave with a happy ending, but the moronic cruelty on display here makes that feat feel impossible. We’re left with Evan in an orchard, reading Connor’s favorite books and staring into the big blue sky with all the self-actualization he’s earned now as a lil treat. And if Evan Hansen looked like an actual 18-year-old, it would be a lot easier to extend more empathy to him and his not-fully-developed prefrontal cortex, but it’s a little harder with this fully-grown, weathered man who was old enough to remember seeing Liar Liar in theaters. 

Dear Evan Hansen, 

Get some actual help and a haircut and maybe you can grow up enough to have an actual healthy interaction with any other living person, ever.

Sincerely, 

Me

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[carriagelamp]

Art of Aardman

I found myself a cheap copy of the Shaun the Sheep movie, so I was rewatching a bunch of Aardman films earlier this month and decided to hunt down some books too. For anyone that doesn’t know, Aardman is a British stop-motion studio that does fantastic work like Wallace and Gromit, Shaun the Sheep, Chicken Run, Early Man… tons of cool stuff. They’re always quirky and funny and warm-hearted. This was just a very nice art book for anyone that’s a fan of Aardman stop motion and wants to see a bit extra; it shows some cool concept art and blows up the neat details in Aardman work, especially in their intricate stuff like The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!

Asterix and the Picts (Asterix and the Chariot Race, and How Obelix Fell Into The Magic Potion)

I decided to try a couple of the new Asterix comics that were done by the new team, just to see if they stand up to the old ones (that and How Obelix Fell Into The Magic Potion cause I’d never read that one before). They were pretty decent! Asterix and the Picts was my favourite of the two though I wouldn’t say either are going to contest for my favourite Asterix comic... but still! The art looks good and the stories felt like what I would expect, they made for a pleasant couple evenings of reading especially since it’s been so long since I’ve read a new Asterix comic. If you’ve never read Asterix it’s one of the biggest name French comic series in North America, as far as I know and very worth the read. It’s about a single Gaulish village that’s holding out against the invading Romans through sheer force of will, slapstick hijinks, and a magical super-strength potion brewed by their druid. Lots of fantastic visuals and cute wordplay, even in the English translations.

Bear

I found out about this bastion of Canadian literature via tumblr post that was losing its collective mind over the fact that some bizarre bear-based erotica novella somehow won the most prestigious literary prize available in Canada. Since I too found this hilarious and unspeakably bizarre I had to give it a read, obviously. And yes, the flat surface level summary is... a librarian moves out into rural Ontario and falls in love with a literal for-real not-supernatural-not-a-joke bear. And I have to say… it is actually worthy of an award, which I was not expecting given that I was there for a laugh. It has beautiful writing, and the subtextual story is pretty interesting… it kind of makes me think of The Haunting of Hill House actually in terms of themes. (Womanhood, personhood, independence, autonomy partially achieved through escaping the male gaze by claiming non-human lovers... listen if I were still in university I would right a paper comparing the two novels).

I dunno man, it’s fucking weird. Actually a well-written book, but sure is about a woman falling in love with a literal bear. Give it a read if you want something bonkers but like… high-brow bonkers.

Hunger Pangs: True Love Bites

Best book I have read in like… a while. A long while. I am not a fast reader, and I consumed 90% of this book over a weekend. It’s not at all like Terry Pratchett, but at the same time it scratched an itch for me that I haven’t had satisfied since Pratchett’s death. A very clever, hilariously funny poly romance between a disabled werewolf, an anxious vampire lord, and an incredibly powerful woman, with heaps of social satire, political commentary, and sinister undertones. The whole thing reads a bit like fanfiction and I say that in the most flattering way possible -- it is so easy to jump right in and be immediately taken over by the characters and the world and the plot, you never feel like you’re fighting to engage even though the world-building is fascinating and expansive. It welcomes you in right away, it was the book equivalent of a quilt and a hug which is something I sorely needed with all this pandemic bullshit. If you read any of the books on this list, go read that one while I sit here in pain waiting for the sequel.

Kid Paddle

I watched the cartoon of Kid Paddle as a kid and was thinking about it recently, so I decided to hunt down some of the original comics online. They’re fun and weird, with a cute art style and fantastic monsters designs. (My favourites are always about Kid either daydreaming or playing games that involve Midam’s weird warty troll creatures. It’s like a cross between Calvin and Hobbes and Foxtrot with the fun sort of quirks that I love in Belgian comics. Unfortunately, unlike Asterix, I’ve only come across these ones in French, but if you can read French it’s totally worth popping over to The Internet Archive and reading the ones they have available.

The Last Firehawk: The Golden Temple

The lastest Firehawk book. Despite being written for quite young readers, I did enjoy the early books in this series quite a bit. They’re about a young owl and squirrel who found an egg for a magical species that was believed to be extinct. With the newly hatched firehawk, the three of them head off on a mission to find an ancient firehawk magic that could save the entire forest. Very basic adventure story but a good intro to the tropes for children. Unfortunately the quality really feels like it drops with each subsequent book; this will probably be the last one I bother reading.

Lumberjanes: The Moon Is Up

I honestly think I enjoy these Lumberjanes novels even more than the comics just because it really gives time to delve into each story and examine how the camper are really thinking and feeling about everything. (Also I’m always weak for novelizations of anything.) The Moon Is Up is a book that focuses more on Jo, and takes place during the camp’s much anticipated Galaxy Wars, a competition between cabins that goes over several days. While the campers prepare for these challenges though, they also run into a strange little creature with a penchant for cheese and theft. Roanoke cabin needs to keep ahead in Galaxy Wars and somehow deal with the fearsome Moon Pirates that a closing in...

Lumberjanes v4 (Out Of Time)

One of the Lumberjanes comics, a cool, girl-focused, queer comic series. Honestly, this is just a fun series that I never got as into as I should have. My advice is honestly to skip book one because it gets better as it continues, and I’ve really been enjoying the later books now that I’ve given it another go. It follows five campers at Miss Qiunzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet’s Camp for Hardcore Lady Types (Jo, April, Molly, Mal, and Ripley) as they handle all sorts of challenges, from friendship to crushes, camp activities to supernatural horrors, getting badges to not being brutally killed. Great if you liked the vibe of Gravity Falls but want it to be queer-er.

Mooncakes

Another queer graphic novel, but unfortunately not a very good one. It really looked appealing and I had high hopes, but the book itself really didn’t hold up… I actually couldn’t even finish it, the plot was just too… non-existent. The art is fairly mediocre once you actually look at it, especially backgrounds, and it feels very… placid. Not much conflict or excitement or even a very compelling reason to keep reading. If you just want a soft queer supernatural you may get more mileage out of it than me, but it didn’t really do it for me. There’s better queer graphic novels out there.

New Boy In Town

One of the worst books I have ever read. My girlfriend had ordered a very different book online but through a frankly stupendous error was sent this 1980s pulp romance instead. Absolutely nauseating on levels I couldn’t even begin to enumerate here. Naturally we read the whole thing out loud. Probably took us 10 times longer to finish than it warranted because I had to stop every two sentences to lose my mind. If you like bad decisions, baffling hetero courting rituals, built-in cultural Christianity without actually calling it that, and gold panning then boy howdy is this the book for you.

(seriously, you better have patience for gold-panning if you attempt this one, because I sure learn that I don’t)

Piggies

This was a picture book I enjoyed as a kid and had a reason to reread recently. Honestly it’s just very cute and simple, and the art is completely mesmerizing. Wonderful if you know a young child that would enjoy a simple goofy boardbook.

Shaun the Sheep: Tales From Mossy Bottom

Related to my Aardman fascination earlier this month. I tried reading a varieties of Shaun the Sheep books — most of which are mediocre at best — but the Tales From Mossy Bottom Farm series is genuinely good. Just chapter books, of course, but the illustrations match the series’ concept art and each story feels like it could have jumped directly out of an episode. They’re just cute and feel-good! Kinda like Footrot Flats but more for kids, and from the sheep’s perspective moreso than the dog’s.

[novelist-becca]

Won’t you let me in?

Fandom: The Owl House

Relationships: Eda & Luz

Summary: After the events of Separate Tides, Eda and Luz have a talk. Title is from the song “Strange Sight” by KT Tunstall.

AO3

What a day this is turning out to be, Eda thought as the so-called “Golden Guard” approached her and Luz. 

The witch had originally planned to take the money back to the house after checking in on the Selkidomus. 

But then she got caught, and it turned out Luz was on the ship instead of safe at home. (She had expected Luz to follow the cart home after they started driving back to the house) The kid had apparently wanted in on the bounty hunt, once again not knowing what she was getting into. Forget the money that was forgotten in the boiling sea, Luz was more important! Eda had of course questioned her.

“Now why were YOU on that ship to begin with? You could've gotten killed!” 

And then the Golden Chump showed up, and here they are. 

“Hello, criminals!” He said. “What's about to happen should be relatively painless. If you just do what I say.” 

“And why would we do that?” Luz retorted.

“Because none of you can use real magic.” He said, pointing a finger at the both of them. 

Eda narrowed her eyes and pointed back. “You don't know that.” Sure, glyph magic was different, but she won't stand the talk of it not being “real”. They haven't seen Luz in action.

The Golden Guard shrugged. “Maybe not. But I do know you're standing on a plant that eats flesh.” 

On cue, Eda and Luz looked down to see that they were indeed, standing on a flesh eating plant. And just in time, both of them could already feel the thing burning through their shoes. They yelped and lept to the side as the guard just watched. 

Ugh, stupid Golden Guard…, Eda thought. 

“Ahahaha! Okay.” He chortled. “The human will remain a sailor to repay all the money she lost.”

Eda tensed up at that idea. As if she'd allow Luz to become a pawn for the stupid emperor, just for some stupid money! 

Luz needs to be safe at home…

“While the Owl Lady will be arrested, again! For attacking one of the emperor's ships.” 

Luz looked at Eda, surprised. “Emperor’s ship?” She repeated. 

“They're the only ones worth robbing.” Eda replied. At least the kid didn't know. She thought. She supposed Luz wouldn't have gone if she knew this was a setup from Belos. She turned back to the guard.

“Why are you guys hunting the Selkidomus? It's a peaceful creature and you're provoking it!” Eda demanded. 

“The emperor ordered me to slay one. I'm just following orders.” The guard said nonchalantly. 

Losing her cool, Eda glared at him. “Well I'm just gonna smack you around a bit!” She shouted, snapping her arm off. Unfortunately, the Golden Guard was too quick for her, dodging her to the point where she tripped. 

“Leave Eda alone!” Eda heard Luz shout. Then the kid was tossed aside next to her. 

Apparently, the dingus wasn't finished with them quite yet, because he then threatened to dip them into the Boiling Sea, ouch, but then he changed his mind. 

“I don't have to be that mean.” He said snarkily. 

Titan I hate this guy already…

“No one will have to be a sailor or get arrested. If one of you follows those Selkidomus tracks and slays the beast.” He ordered. “Here! I'll help!” Then the guard materialized a sword into the air, dropping it in front of them. 

What is it with the coven and slaying innocent creatures?!

Luz looked at the sword, and back up to the guard, pleading with her eyes. 

The guard rubbed his mask. “Ugh, you're making this difficult. Go, or I drown the bird.” He said, revealing King behind the cage he had. Thankfully, the demon appeared unharmed. 

Eda looked at Luz, seeing her conflicted face. If she had Owlbert with her right now, she would've grabbed her kid and tried to make a break for it, as if the ordeal never happened. 

But of course it wasn't that simple. 

Luz sighed. “Fine.” And to Eda’s alarm, she picked up the sword. “I'll do it.” She said in a low voice. 

Eda reached out an arm as Luz headed towards the cave. 

“Luz, wait!” She pleaded. There had to be a way out of this other than killing! “Luz!” 

~ 

On the way to the area where the Selkidomus was, Eda was trying to disuade Luz from doing what she was about to do. 

“Luz, don't hurt the Selkidomus. We can find another way out of this.” She said. 

But Luz kept walking. “You heard what he said, Eda. If you and King want to be free…” Luz stopped in front of a ditch and jumped onto a shipwreck. “Then I have to do this alone.”

The witch found it hard to ignore that Luz excluded herself from the “being free” deal, and her heart started pounding at the sight of Luz being above a ditch again. She didn't like where this was going at all. 

“What's this ‘alone’ business? Don't you remember?” Eda tried reminding her. “Us weirdos have to-” 

“What? Stick together?” Luz snapped. She looked at Eda, forlorn, almost startling her with the sadness in her face. “Because you stuck with me you lost your magic! You almost got turned to stone, and now you can't even afford your apple blood because you're worried about what I need to eat!” She rambled, looking down sadly. 

Eda stared at Luz, her heart breaking for the girl. She knew Luz was going through some things, but she didn't think it was this bad. Only a week and a half of them being together again, and Luz still blames herself. She should've paid more attention in the last week. Eda tried to find the words to tell Luz that no, this isn't your fault, you can come down from there and we can find a different way to go back home together. 

But before Eda could come up with an answer, the Selkidomus below growled, meaning it was awake. Luz kept her balance on the beam, then looked away from Eda.

“It's my fault all this happened, that's why I've got to do this alone.” She looked back at Eda, smiling. “I'll make it all up to you, Eda the Owl Lady. I promise.” 

Then, to Eda’s horror, Luz let herself fall off the beam and down the ditch. She couldn't help reaching her hands out, as if she could actually catch her. Her heart dropped to her stomach and she couldn't help crying out Luz’s name. 

No, no, NO-

Suddenly, Eda was reminded of that day on the bridge. Her sister tossing Luz aside like a ragdoll, into the ditch, that terrified little girl screaming as she fell, onto the spikes- 

“LUZ!” 

Eda shook herself out of her stupor, reminding herself of what to do. 

Thinking quickly, Eda grabbed a nearby vibe and lept down the ditch to find her kid.

She just got her back, and she'll be damned if she lost her again.

Soon enough, the witch found a safe ledge to stand on and Eda spotted the kid on the ground, preparing to throw herself at the Selkidomus, which was already defending itself. Eda spotted a nearby branch, thick and strong enough to use. She tugged on it, preparing to swing. 

Just as Luz had catapaulted herself in the air with her ice glyph, Eda swung in just in time. She wrapped an arm around Luz, holding her as tight and as close as possible under one arm so she wouldn't be dropped. 

I gotcha, kiddo!

Thankfully they were able to avoid the creature’s jaws and landed safely in a bush. 

As soon as they landed, Luz had tumbled out of Eda’s arms and clumsily sat back up. Eda recovered as well, turning back to the kid. 

Eda pointed a finger at Luz, and she stared back with wide eyes, startled. 

“You think throwing your life away is gonna help me? Well it won't.” Eda said firmly. She needed Luz to hear this. Luz deserved to hear this. 

“You helped me find King’s crown when you barely knew me, you saved me from turning to stone,” Eda averted her eyes from the kid, starting to feel emotional. “And you even got me talking to my sister again.” She looked back up, seeing that Luz was still listening. 

“So…unfortunately for you…my life is pretty great because I'm friends with Luz the Human.” Eda finished, her voice wavering. 

That seemed to be exactly what Luz needed, because now she was looking at her with glistening eyes and a trembling lip.

Eda blinked her eyes hard to keep the tears at bay, and her face got serious again.

Focus, Eda, we need to get out of here.

“Now,” She snapped out of it and grabbed Luz’s face, startling her. “Your guilt-ridden brain is clouding your judgement.” She said, poking Luz’s forehead. “There’s gotta be a way out of this where no one has to get hurt.” Eda let go of the kid’s cheeks and looked around the cave.

Just then, a small noise made them turn around. A baby Selkidomus had approached them. Luz looked at it for a moment, putting the pieces together in her head, then turned back to Eda.

“Eda,” the witch looked at Luz, willing to hear any plan she had right now.

“Do you wanna learn your first glyph?” She asked with a determined smile, holding up one of her light glyphs.

Not for the first time, Eda marvels at just how bright her kid is.

~

Later, Luz and Eda had managed to create a fake Selkidomus out of plant glyphs and made it work by using the light glyphs to fool the Golden Guard into thinking they were fighting the real thing.

The power of theatrics and a bright young mind. 

Moments later, Eda had gotten up and used whatever paper was left to draw more light glyphs on the ground. 

She still remembers the first time Luz casted these glyphs. They were so beautiful, and Eda always found them comforting. And now she gets to draw them herself. It only took a week for her to finally try it, but it was worth it.

It wasn’t long before Luz returned with King safely out of the cage. When she approached, Eda took a ball of light in her hands and glanced up at Luz.

“My first glyph! Did I do good?” If she was being completely honest, Eda felt like a giddy little kid again, learning new magic and sharing it with the people she loved. It felt wonderful.

Luz observed her with a bright smile. “Yeah! You did great!”

The baby Selkidomus returned, quickly worming its way toward Luz, nuzzling her, which delighted the kid as she was hugging back.

“Baby, awwwww!” She cooed, and a part of Eda was relieved to see the Luz she knew begin to return.

“Wait- what is that?!” King asked, alarmed.

“Don’t worry, King, once the mother saw we weren’t a threat to her baby she calmed down.” Eda reassured, patting the baby gently. Then she turned to the mother behind them. “This area is dangerous,” she explained. “You need to move further out, into the sea.” 

Understanding Eda’s warning, the creature nodded. Then something strange happened. It started...gagging. Until it puked up a pile of some gold goop, which Eda recognized to be Selkie Gris.

Mother of Titan, they hit the jackpot!

Luz stared at it with disgust for a few seconds before Eda excitedly pulled her close in a side hug. 

“Hot dang! It gave you the treasure of the sea!” Eda said in excitement, holding her kid with one arm and holding the other arm out to present their prize.

“Gold? ...Tuna?” Luz said in confusion.

“It’s Selkie Gris!” Eda let Luz go and scooped some of the stuff into her hands. “People pay big money for it at the night market!” Seeing Luz’s still confused face, she got an idea. The witch smushed it in her hands and took the opportunity to rub it on the kid’s face. “Ahh, feeelll the money, Luz! Luxuriate it!” She teased. 

“No, no, Eda! Ahh!” As expected, Luz protested and squirmed against the touch, but she was starting to laugh, which is what Eda wanted. 

Eda smirked, taking hold of the kid’s hands as she tried and failed to get away. “What? Don’t like to luxuriate? There’s a whole pile of luxury right here!” Then she grabbed Luz’s arms and swiftly tossed her into the pile, earning a yelp from the girl. “Move over!” Eda said, following suit and landing face down.

“Edaa!” Luz protested, but she broke out into laughter with Eda. It filled the witch with much joy to see Luz laughing and smiling again. She deserved it after the rough day they just had.

With that being said, after a minute, Eda got up and decided it was finally time to head home. Maintaining her balance, she reached her hands out to Luz and hoisted her up, keeping a tight grip on her so she wouldn’t fall. 

Thankfully, the Golden Guard didn’t obliterate her boat, so they had a way back home. Eda used an extra sack she had to bag the Selkie gris so they could take it home. It was significantly lighter than the snails. They would have to make a trip the night market to trade it off soon. Something had finally gone right today!

“You ready to go home?” Eda asked, turning to Luz, who was settled behind her with King on her shoulder. 

“Aye-aye, captain!” Luz said, saluting. 

That’s the Luz I know and love, Eda thought. “Alrighty then, brace yourself!” and she, King and Luz started their way back home.

~

It was seven in the evening, and the trio had made it home. After Lilith had presented her scrying potion, Eda had gone off to order their takeout, leaving Luz alone with her thoughts in the hallway.

...Something Luz really didn’t like doing. 

A lot had happened all in one night, from her and Eda getting ambushed by the Golden Guard, to her being forced to go slay the Selkidomus (knowing she was about to take away a baby’s mother back there made it worse to think about), to Eda talking her out of it. 

In all honesty, Luz felt like she needed to hear those words. Eda was right. She had done so much to help her, and she did seem happier whenever Luz was around. Maybe she wasn’t a burden after all…

She was snapped out of her thoughts when the witch in question came back around the corner. 

“Well, I’m tired. How about you, kid?” She said, yawning. 

“Hungry.” Luz said simply. 

“Don’t worry, food should be here in about a half hour.” Eda replied, ruffling Luz’s hair. Then she noticed a familiar look on her face. “You okay, kid?”

Luz shook herself out of her thoughts. “Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

Eda put a hand on her shoulder. “I know that look. You’re deep in thought.” Luz looked down at the floor. “Do you wanna talk about it? You know you don’t have to if you don’t want to.” The witch knew it would only make it worse for the girl to keep things inside. And after what happened in the cave, she wanted to know how it got this bad.

Luz supposes it wouldn’t hurt. She trusted Eda. “Okay…” she gave a small nod. 

Eda slung an arm around her shoulders. ‘’C’mon, walk with me.” and the two walked slowly down the hallway. 

“A lot just happened tonight.”

“That’s for sure.” Eda agreed. “I- you really scared me back there, you know?” she said, hand tightening on Luz’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry.” Luz answered. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt Eda. She supposes she doesn’t always consider that endangering herself contributes to that. “I just...wanted to make things right.”

They stopped walking as Eda turned to her. “You don’t owe me anything, Luz. You know that, right?” She said, meeting the girl’s eyes.

“But-”

“No buts. I promise I’m not angry, kiddo, I just hate seeing you like this.” She sighs. “I wish you would’ve told me before things got this far.” Noticing Luz starting to sag, she guides them to sit against the wall so they can talk more comfortably.

“I promise I’m not angry.” Eda repeats softly. “You're just a kid, you really shouldn't have to carry shit like this…”

Luz takes a breath and continues to speak. “I hated seeing you and Lilith have such a hard time with money. And most of the money that we did have was spent on me. I-I thought that if I got a big enough bounty, you wouldn’t have to worry so much about me anymore, and I wouldn’t be such a burden to you.” Luz could feel tears starting to build up. “But I guess I messed that up.”

“Hey.” Eda said, tilting Luz’s wobbling chin up. “Listen to me. Don’t you think like that.” She moved the hand to Luz’s shoulder. “You were never a burden, okay?”

Luz looked at her with teary eyes. “Really?”

“Really. A burden is an unwanted responsibility. But you?” Eda used her thumb to gently wipe away some of Luz’s tears. “I’ll never get tired of you. You're the best thing that's happened to me in a long time. I want to take care of you. You mean so much to me.” 

At this point, Luz is smiling wide with a few stray tears rolling down her face. “Do you really mean that?”

Eda nodded, cupping her cheek. “Of course I do. I told you a week ago that I don’t regret anything. You’re a wonderful kid, Luz. Anyone that calls you otherwise is stupid.” Luz giggles at that. “I’ll pummel anyone that says otherwise.”

Luz hesitantly moves in for a hug, and Eda draws her in easily. “You promise?”

Eda nods, pulling Luz closer. “I promise. It’s okay.” She begins to stroke Luz’s hair a little bit. Then another thought intrudes her mind. Her grip tightens around her kid once more. 

“You really scared me when you jumped down there…” Eda spoke. “I thought I was gonna lose you again.” The memory of Luz falling towards those spikes is never going away anytime soon. The witch felt like her nightmares were coming true. No way in hell does she ever want to go through that again.

Luz nuzzles closer. “I know… I promise I’ll be more careful.” She isn’t sure it’s a promise she can keep, but she’s willing to try. A part of Luz notices that Eda’s becoming more and more casual with touch, but chooses to ignore it.

“Good.” Eda pulled away from the embrace, still holding Luz by her shoulders. “Remember that, okay? I don’t want you talking to yourself like this.” She said, tapping the kid’s head.

“I will.” Before they got up, Luz moved in for one more hug. “I love you, Eda.” Not for the first time, Luz was grateful that Eda made no small effort to just be there for her. She underestimated her.

Eda hugged her back. “I love you too, Luz.”

Then, a knock at the door, and a screech from Hooty.

“Looks like the food’s here! You still hungry, kiddo?” 

“Oh my god, yes.” Luz groaned. 

Eda laughed, stood up, and offered a hand to help Luz up. Unfortunately, the girl stood up too quickly, causing her to stumble a bit.

“Ahhh, head rush, head rush!” Luz murmured. She held onto Eda’s hand.

“You good?” Eda asked with a laugh.

“Yup, yup, I’m good. Just stood up too fast.”

“Wanna race to the kitchen?” Eda offered. “I’ll give you a head start.”

Luz chuckled. “You’re on!”

Yeah, Eda thought, looking fondly at her kid. I still don’t regret anything.

And Luz looked at Eda, seeing her heterochromatic eyes. True, the witch might've lost all her powers, but she didn't lose her love.