#overall everything just looked a lot simpler in the movie but

[chaos0pikachu]

4 Minutes and the Cinematography of Nipples

I said before that I thought 4 Minutes was pretty instantaneously the best looking BL on the market for 2024 after one episode. Which, not gonna lie, is a pretty big fucking claim. There’s been a lot of BL that’s come out that’s looked good, and I do think there’s been a steady improvement overall in the market in the last few years. Personally I think Japanese and Korean BL have a stronger production quality over a majority of Thai BL but like, if that’s a hot take I guess I prefer my food spicy. 

The point being~ if I’m gonna make such a hyperbolic statement, well I better back it up right? 

So I’m gonna break down a few scenes from the first episode, what I liked about them, why they worked for me, and why on a technical level I think 4 Minutes has just got it going on.

For better readability you can also check out this essay here.

Sidenote: my google docs kept trying to autocorrect “Bible” to “the Bible” and idk how to teach google I mean the hot Thai actor and not the book of Jesus. 

To start, I’m going to break down this scene featuring Great and his nepo baby cat: 

I thought starting with this scene would be good because it’s such a low-key scene and honestly making these simplistic scenes visually interesting is very difficult! But if you have the basics down, the foundations of cinematography and film making, these simpler scenes can be really memorable. 

Like yeah we’re all gonna remember this scene because shirtless Bible and oh my god Akira!? - I have only recently learned who Akira is; why is this cat getting a bigger bag than me? - but beyond that, what makes it cool to watch? What makes it interesting? What information does it showcase to the audience? 

One thing I added to the video was a grid for the rule of thirds. 

Rule of thirds is a shot composition technique applied to both film and photography. It’s the grid you see if you film a homevideo and helps a Director and Cinematographer figure out where to place the subject or subjects of the shot. The idea is the gridlines show you where you “should” place the subject(s) of said shot. 

Like everything, the rule of thirds is a guideline in filmmaking, not a hard and fast unbreakable rule. Filmmakers like Wes Anderson like to play more with central composition shots, rather than ROT. 

Anyway on to the opening shot, right after our credits and we’re moving into the shot. 

To start, the first thing I notice is the scene’s color grading. Color grading in film is the manipulation of raw film footage to create specific color tones throughout a project. Sometimes this grading is more pointed and obvious, think The Matrix, while in other films it’s not as obvious but still very prominent, think Killers of the Flower Moon. 

It’s not that the before credits scene looks entirely, jarringly different from the opening scene, but the hospital scene is surrounded by whites and blue tones, it’s darker, and only a single source of light exists. It gives the entire scene a much more frantic, uneasy aesthetic but it’s not so far off from the darker muted tones of the next scene that it feels jarring or out of place. 

The second big thing I noticed in the episode is the use of aspect ratio. I’m not 100% sure what aspect ratio the production used exactly, but the use of widescreen as opposed to full screen in my opinion, gives the episode a more cinematic feel to it in comparison to other Thai BLs. 

Example, if you look at Century of Love (2024) it appears to be filmed in the standard full screen - which I believe is 16:9? - while 4 Minutes is widescreen (thus the black bars at the top and bottom). Widescreen can give a show a more “movie like” quality to it which is part of the vibes I get from 4 Minutes. 

(source)

Onto Great’s actual introduction scene.

We’re not starting the shot with static movement, but with a camera panning right. I’ve talked about camera panning and such in BL before and it’s something I’ve found doesn’t happen as often as it should. Which is a shame! It’s such a simple technique but it adds so much. 

Imagine if we entered the frame with a static center shot, and then a cut to Great sleeping and turning off his alarm clock, and then another cut to above the bed. Think about how much more boring that could be visually. 

Instead, we enter the scene with movement, panning over and creating some interesting visual framing. 

So here’s our opening shot, do you notice anything interesting? To start, what I like about this shot other than the panning movement in, is that we don’t see Great’s face yet. In fact we don’t see his face in full until about 30 seconds into the scene. This builds anticipation, yeah we all know what Bible looks like, but for the audience who doesn’t this helps build anticipation. 

Who is this character? What does he look like? What’s his deal? 

It also engages the audience more, if you notice part of the composition of the shot has Great in the mid-ground slightly blurred out, while the foreground emphasizes the things on his desk. He’s distant from us, the audience, sleeping off his hangover not yet ready to “join” the world yet. 

Here’s another two more things I like about this shot:

Lines. 

Using lines and shapes can make a scene more visually interesting and invoke different feelings to the viewer. In this shot, I get a sense of symmetry, the camera panning right, lightly drags across the screen alongside the lines below and above Great, almost creating a frame within a frame effect. As if Great is boxed into a clock in and of itself. 

You can also see the use of balance in the scene as well, connecting back to that visual theme of symmetry as well as blocking our view of Great’s face. The lava lamb and champagne bottle are almost the same height, which helps create balance in the shot. The champagne bottle informs us Great has been drinking or does drink since it’s positioned so close to his bed, whilst also continuing to hide his face away from the viewer. 

I also like that the lava lamp is a bright spot of color. The tone of the scene is mostly muted greens, and gray, but the bright orange lava lamp and even the pink champagne bottle draw our attention but don’t overwhelm us either. It provides the scene with some warmth but doesn’t offset the overall tone of the color grading. 

And then, the last bit of this shot:

We have Great knocking over the champagne bottom, and turning off his alarm clock. Notice that the alarm clock and the champagne bottle hit those ROT dots almost exactly. There’s also the use of lines by the length of Great’s arm - I just forgot to add a line I’m a failure, a fake, fml - we see him knock over the bottle, and then we follow the line of his arm directly to the alarm clock which is also a shape, a circle. 

I like that they used a clock with a specific notable shape, since by the end of this scene the clock is relevant to the story as a whole. Using a shape makes the clock more visually noticeable and memorable to the audience. 

So in the next cut we’re above Great - just like Great’s gonna be above Tyme, fuckin hell I’m corny - in a medium-full shot and there’s a couple things I really like here. 

I really like the use of lines here with the bed going in one direction but Great’s body going another. It’s disconcerting, and off kilter a bit. 

The use of patterns plus the opposing symmetry, whereas in the previous shot the lava lamp and champagne bottle were providing balance, here one side of the bed is patterned, while the other isn’t. This creates a sense of imbalance and makes the shot more visually interesting.

This medium-full shot at a high angle makes Great smaller, and continues to showcase his dishevelment, keeping him distant from the world itself. Also notice the lack of color here as well. 

What could this say about Great as a character? Or his story? 

So this next cut is the one that actually inspired me to write this essay to begin with and know what I’ma eat some crow here. I originally said it was a great ROT shot but I was wrooooooong. It’s definitely a center composition shot. 

Notice as well, the bed itself is its own shape - rectangle - center in the frame, and yet the shot almost looks unbalanced again because of that singular patterned rug. It’s the only pattern in the entire shot, not even Great’s pillows have noticeable patterns on them. 

The above view camera angle in a full shot creates almost an omnipresent feel, as if the audience - or something else? - were looking down upon Great. Whose face we still haven’t seen! It makes him smaller, less powerful, and almost vulnerable. Shots like this are often used in horror films like James Wan’s Malignant (2021) where the horror spector will be looking down above the would-be victim. 

Another thing I like about this scene though is we have Great moving. It would be simpler and easier to have his phone just by his alarm clock, or under his pillow, but think about how much more visually interesting it is that he has to move down the bed and reach for his phone. It creates action in an actionless low stakes scene. 

And now, 30 whole seconds in and we’ve finally seen Great’s face! 

Fun fact, with the ROT grid the gridlines fall right across Bible’s nipples. That’s not a film analysis, just something I noticed entirely intentionally. Thanks Madam Director Ning Bhanbhassa Dhubthien.

The actual shot is in center composition again, as Great rolls over and reveals his face the camera begins to zoom in. 

This creates movement in the scene instead of leaving the camera to statically observe it’s now, finally, inviting the audience to meet Great. Pulling us in towards him whereas before we were kept at a distance. Great’s awake and, well as ready to meet the world as somebody with a raging hangover can be. 

I also like how Bible is moving constantly in this scene; he rubs his eyes and nose, he twitches his fingers, titles his head back and forth, etc it’s nothing revolutionary but it’s appreciated. 

When the scene cuts, we get this shot: 

I didn’t put the red dot on his nipple, it just landed there. This is all Madam Director Ning chepie. 

But you can see how Great’s body is landing on all those gridlines pretty solidly. Also in the background we see his alarm clock again, a bright blurred circle in the distance. I also like the angle of this shot, as it creates depth in the frame, with Great’s head being in the foreground his lower body in the mid-ground and the background blurred out. 

What follows is Akira appearing in frame. Which was really difficult to capture so I don’t have a screenshot. But what I really like is Akira entering the frame out of focus. They could have just cut to Akira, but instead they opted for Akira to enter the frame which is more interesting. 

When we do cut, Akira is firmly on one of those dots so we don’t miss them in the frame. I think it’s also interesting that we’ve pulled out again, into a mid-full shot, hanging above Great, and we see that clear symmetry line again between the patterned rug and the regular carpet. 

I also really love that when we got to Great sweet-talking Akira and feeding them we’re not just doing a cut, we’re panning downwards which continues to add movement to the scene. And we get that moneyed sponsor shot! 

Durex can’t pay for everything okay?

So in the final bit of this scene we get focus on Great, who’s in focus, before he gets up and leaves the frame where the camera then focuses on the clock behind him. 

See how in the first frame the background is all blurred out, but once Great walks out of the frame - again, great that he walks out, movement!! Y’all don’t understand how boring 1000 Stars was for me to watch because of the lack of this stuff okay? - and then the focus shifts to the clock. Which is round. 

God I know that sounds so dumb, but imagine the clock without that ring light bit on it, it’s just a tiny little rectangle. Not as fun or interesting to look at right? Or as noticeable especially from a distance? 

This shift in focus also tells us “this is important” whatever “this” is. The subject of the shot goes from Great to the alarm clock but they are positioned as equally important. We’re meant to pay attention to this seemingly innocuous item, which we learn later in the episode is time. We’re meant to remember and note that time will be important to the story - I know with a title like 4 Minutes you’d fucking hope time would be important but have y’all ever read Youtube comments? It’s rough out there for visual comprehension okay? 

So all in all this scene is only 1 minute and 40 seconds give or take. It’s very short, but I don’t think it was boring at all. I think it’s a really solid introduction to a main character. Think, Korn didn’t get this much time to showcase his introduction, his scene is shorter - though also well done - which showcases which character is more of a story priority. 

This scene eases the audience into the story, inviting us to wake up into the world like Great is. It uses techniques like lines, shapes, symmetry, color and focus to make what could be a very boring scene into an interesting one. 

There’s so so much I probably and certainly missed, I’m far from an expert, but I hope I was able to articulate what I liked about this scene, and why I think it looks good. 

Stay tuned for more if I can manage to focus long enough to breakdown more scenes lol

Also red dots on Bible’s nipples are just funny to me it be what it be. 

Further Reading: 

Composition in Cinematography / THE LAST OF US

Center-Framing vs Chaos-Cinema: Mad Max vs Transformers

Camera Framing: Shot Composition & Cinematography Techniques Explained [The Shot List, Ep 2]

The Ultimate Guide to Camera Shots (50+ Types of Shots and Angles in Film)

Color Grading 101 - Everything You Need to Know

Mixing Film And Digital Footage: Killers Of The Flower Moon

In Praise of Subtle Cinematography

[captainimfangirling]

Lisa Frankenstein Review

Really wanted to see this movie because 1) I love the 80s even though I'm not from the 80s, 2) I'm a fan of Kathryn Newton from Supernatural, and 3) love zombie romance (like Warm Bodies).

Overall I thought the movie was ok. I didn't think it was worth going to the theater for (movie tickets cost so much these days plus I take the bus). I think you should wait until it streams and seems like a lot agree because there was only like 5 people in the theater with me and it just came out few days ago.

Cole Spouse's character is my favorite even though he hardly said anything but he was very expressive. I enjoyed the animation in the beginning of the film telling the story of The Creature. It explains why he did what he did.

Warning: Spoilers

The creature knew what it was like falling in love with someone and for that person to not love them back and fall for someone else. When he saw Taffy's car he knew she and Michael were in a relationship and it as going to hurt Lisa like how his past love hurt him. So he took Michael's d*ck because he thought hey I can use this to make Lisa happy when you can't.

Lisa to be was more confusing than the monster. What was the point of having her mother killed by a psycho murderer? Was it to make her desensitized to seeing someone get killed by the creature? It doesn't make sense to me since it only happened once to her. I think it would've been more interesting if she actually did kill her mother and her reaction to seeing people get killed the creature would've made more sense.

One thing I'm disappointed about is that the trailer makes it seem like Lisa was in love with the Creature during the entire movie but really she was in love with Michael. I feel like she started falling for the Creature when she realized how much he loved her. I mean it would've been ok if it didn't feel very sudden.

Also did anyone think the Creature acted too modern? It's not just about him knowing how to drive but he knew about fashion. He's from the Victorian Era, he would've gotten Lisa to put on something that would've covered her ankles not give her black sexy lace outfit.

I hated her step mother but she was right about Lisa being a selfish person. I mean she did go through something traumatic but still she was very self centered. Like when she got mad at Taffy for sleeping with the boy she had a crush on after everything Taffy did for her. I think Taffy would've fought with her mother about putting Lisa in the mental hospital if given the chance. Also Lisa didn't even realize the Creature was in love with her until the very end when she didn't get the man she wanted. She didn't seem to care when the Creature was cried twice (it was the smell of his tears but still). Also she didn't even notice how better looking the creature was getting after he kept getting electrocuted. If she at least said oh you're looking more handsome maybe I can see it has her falling for him.

The last scene was opened ended. I think the Creature killed someone for a tongue so he can speak to Lisa at her grave. She heard him from beyond the grave and decided to come back when lightening stroke her grave (exactly what happened to the Creature in the beginning). So it's his turn to take care of Lisa like she did for him. Another theory is that the Creature became like a mad scientist stealing Lisa's body to electrocute it to bring her back to him. Either way I think they're gonna keep killing and stealing body parts for Lisa because she's the new bride of Frankenstein.

Like I said it's was a fun movie but wait until it's streaming. It actually gave me Totally Killer (from Amazon Video) vibe because that movie was also set in the 80s. Why are new movies set in the 80s? Times are very hard right now (for a while) and people tend to gravitate towards those times when life was simpler and fun. The 80s does look like a lot of fun with all that color and music.

Will it become a cult classic? I have no idea because I don't get why some movies become a cult classic even though they suck.

[floofballsammy]

So, after having a few days to calm down from my hype and actually process everything, I'm ready to give my (NON SPOILER) thoughts on the FNaF movie. Spoiler thoughts will be in a seperate post.

[Cutting it off because this is a bit long and I dont want to clutter your timeline! :D]

My overall outlook on this movie is still very positive. I really liked it, and that's not just the hype speaking. I went in with practically no expectations, only having watched Matpat analyse the first trailer (to have atleast some idea of what i'm getting into) and was pleasently surprised in the end. And honestly I think that was the best way to approach this movie.

Yeah, I've waited 8 years for this movie, yeah, FNaF is a big franchise, but it's still, well, FNaF. We weren't gonna get some expertly crafted story that will change our lives forever. Not to mention we've also been so desensitized to dead kids and murder that this specific horror aspect will be somewhat underwhelming for us. So I admit, I was a bit worried where they were gonna take this at first. But they took (in my opinion) the best route, with a simpler story and some good jumpscares mixed in. Ya know, Classic FNaF 1.

This movie was clearly made with lots of genuine passion and love for the franchise. And it's really charming. The decision to go for actual suits and props rather than CGI was the best decision they could have made. The animatronics looked stunning and were a nice change of pace from other movies.

The referrences were also fun! I caught a lot on my first watch, but there are definetly some I missed. The movie also doesnt use these as a selling point or hinges on then, which actually let me focus on the movie itself.

But how is it for non FNaF fans? Good question! I went in with both someone who is a big fan and someone who barely played the first game. Later also meet some people who had only surface level FNaF knowledge. We all generally liked it. The plot wasnt hard to follow along and doesnt require any former knowledge. It all gets explained in the movie, fans will just pick up on things or come to conclusions quicker than non fans. But it's never alienating. So, new fans or non fnaf fans can watch it without having to stress over learning the lore.

All in all, it was a good movie. I went in expecting a FNaF movie and got a FNaF movie. It's not the best movie I've ever seen, but a movie I really like and will positively stay in my mind for a long while. Definetly one of my favourites.

[fancysasquatch]

Just saw the new Hunger Games movie after obsessively consuming the book over the course of the past few days. 900+ word review below the cut. Spoiler warning for Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, obviously, but spoiler warning for William Friedkin's Bug (2006) too.

The short version of this is going to be that the movie works fine enough on it's own, but is very disappointing as an adaptation to a book I really enjoyed.

Before I start getting into negatives, I'll start with what I liked. The acting was overall fine. Jason Schwartzman was no Stanley Tucci as the tv host but he was still pretty good. Viola Davis knocked it out of the park as the mad scientist Dr. Gaul. Peter Dinklage didn't have much to do outside of one monologue at the end which was ruined by poor direction.

I also really liked the art design of the movie. The brutalist architecture was reminiscent of post-war Europe, particularly the Soviet Union. The military uniforms were sufficiently Nazi-esque without being tasteless. I saw a social realist-style poster in the background in District 12. The technology in the Capitol had a postwar Mid-century Modern aesthetic while in the poorer districts it looked like older technology from the 30s and 40s (including a video chatting device that looked like a candlestick telephone). Altogether it conveyed the idea that this happened decades ago, in relation to the original trilogy, and took place not too long after a major war. Very well done.

Now to get into the parts I didn't like too much. I'm still too much of a philistine to pay much attention to the directing/editing/cinematography side of things during my first viewing of a movie, but there were a few things that stood out to me. As I mentioned, Peter Dinklage has a monologue at the end which could have been very good it it wasn't filmed in flat shot-reverse shot with uninteresting framing, blocking, set design, and lighting. There was also a moment in the middle of the film which where the main characters have their last conversation the night before one will be fighting and possibly dying in the Hunger Games, but most of it is filmed in a profile shot of their faces leaning into towards the bars of her cage. The visual metaphor was a bit too on-the-nose, and the shot itself was framed in an awkwardly claustrophobic way.

That was all preamble though, and the bulk of this review is about the writing, specifically how they condensed a 500 page book into a 150 page screenplay. Obviously a lot had to be cut or shortened, and sometimes they did it well. For instance, the first minute or two covers several different page-long flashbacks which tell you all you really need to know. But some changes really hurt the pacing and even quality of the story.

The first part of the book covers the month leading up to the Hunger Games, but the movie condenses that down into a few days, so everything seems rushed because you have a week's worth of plot development happening in a single busy afternoon. The two main characters fall in love after meeting 5(?) times for a total of about 30 minutes. There was also a scene rewritten for no reason which was completely ruined, where a girl willingly sticks her hand into a cage of snakes she nows will attack her rather than admit to lying about helping on an essay (in the book she's tricked into it as part of a cruel test).

Almost the entirety of the Hunger Games itself was rewritten, although that's something I was fine with because it was different but not worse. The games as written would have been boring, and the version they had was a solid ~30 minute substitute.

The last section of the movie might have been butchered even worse than the beginning. A lot of that section of the book is Snow experiencing a simpler life in District 12, so when he gets a chance to go back to the capital there's a question of whether he chooses that life or his new life, which plays into the books themes of control and freedom. The movie barely shows his new life, so it's more of a question of whether he gets everything he wants in life or some girl he met two weeks ago he sorta likes.

The climax is also heavily bungled. Instead of his paranoia getting the better of him during one of his downward spirals, causing him to turn on Lucy Gray when he thinks she turns on him, she actually just turns on him. It's possible for a movie to capture losing your grip on reality like that, like the climax of Bug where the main duo feed into one another's mania until they burn themselves alive (that movie rules btw), but this movie didn't use any of the moviemaking techniques that . She also pretty unambiguously survives which is worse than the book, where her fate is left up to interpretation like the Wordsworth poem she's named after.

Just in general this movie suffers because it lacks the insight that came from the book being from Snow's point of view. We lose all of his internality, good and bad, so he's much flatter and less consistent. That theme of control vs freedom I mentioned runs throughout the book, but mostly in his internal dialogue, so in the movie we just get a few disjointed "this is what I believe" monologues from various characters that don't work as well.

To end on a positive note, I'll say there was one more change I liked. At the end of the movie, Snow's cousin Tigris very visibly sees Snow for what he is and is reasonably scared of him, which is better than in the book where they're all one big happy family.

[elstreem]

Taking a Look at Bedivere's Outfits

Why not, I want to do something silly and fun :b

Long post so I'll put it all under the cut.

Gotta start with his default outfit, of course! 100/10, I do so love his overall look. The silver and green color scheme is just so pleasant to look at, and it really fits his personality, somehow.

One little detail I appreciate now after watching the Camelot movie adaptations is that Bedi's sword is actually positioned so that his left hand draws it - makes sense, his left hand is his actual flesh and bone arm! It's a shame that in the game he holds his sword in his right hand regardless, but in the movies they show Bedivere often holds his sword in his left hand.

Butler outfit! He looks so sharp and dapper in this one, 100/10 would keep him as my butler forever. I also appreciate that in this outfit, Bedi's default expression is to smile. He deserves to look happy! Also the character art details his eyelashes and that's a neat detail, not a lot of other illustrations give Bedivere eyelashes the same color as his hair. The teapot he's holding is different from what's actually used in the battle sprite though, he uses a silver one.

I do enjoy drawing this outfit since it's a bit simpler than his armor to draw, heh. Also it's good practice to think about how to draw suits.

The "I'm forever salty if they don't ever release this outfit" summer hoodie. I know since Bedi got his butler costume he probably won't get another one...but I can dream. Or just give us a summer version! Let Bedi have his fun, Gareth apparently has a summer version, why not Bedi... Ahem. Anyway, ranting over, I really do love this outfit! I know the summer KotR is shameless fanservice lol but at least Bedivere's is a really cool look. I wish I had this hoodie in real life, the colors are so cute. I won't be able to pull it off shirtless though lol.

Specific neat details - the sectioning of the colors on his hoodie and the x-shaped threads on the shorts are reminiscent of his armor. For a mischievous AI that's a bit out of wack, BB has pretty good taste when she gave this outfit to Bedi.

And idk why, but I find it cute that Bedi wears sandals. And let's not forget, we have shades Bedivere because of this, too.

This dork (lovingly).

Also I remember joking with friends that Bedivere Alter uses guns and then the Summer Fest rerun happened and I remembered Bedivere does practice on the shooting range with you...so Gun-ivere is actually a possibility lol.

Now for some CEs! This is Festive Outfit Bedivere for one of the anniversaries. 100/10, so cute!!! This is one of my favorites actually, and I'm biased as blue is my favorite color, but the blues and oranges are so cute and pop in a good way. Also that cap is just adorable. Everything about this outfit is so cute. Love it to bits!

One of the Camelot movie release celebrations CEs! Back to being dapper again. He looks rather scholarly, with these glasses.

90/10, it's a good look and a bit different with the hat and glasses! But man Bedi sure loves his suits and coats doesn't he, haha. Altria's outfit is also really good in this one, it might be my actual favorite outfit of hers.

I think this one is the 5th Anniversary celebration, the one that's titled like Under the Same Sky? Look, any CE with Bedivere smiling and enjoying his life gets a 100/10 from me. His smile here is especially precious!

The outfit itself looks so cozy. Same as the festive outfit one, his outfit here has little touches of orange, which I really like.

Apron Bedi from one of the summer mangas. Simple, but super freaking cute. Please help him, he's probably the only responsible one in this household. He definitely cooks and cleans. 100/10, prime husband material.

Oh hey....I just realized that in this one, Bedi doesn't have a metal arm. Did Ritsuka and co. do that to separate their manga Bedi from Chaldea Bedi?

The formal craft wear! I wasn't playing F/GO when this released so I'll never have it in game :'''''). But I spotted it in the 5th anniversary video! I posted about it before, but I just find it funny that in this video they made Bedi's hair super long, it reaches past his hip when normally his hair falls to around the middle of his back.

This one is pretty fancy, and looks a bit busy with the cape and tassels. It's a good look, don't get me wrong, but I don't like this as much as his other fancy outfits. Idk, it doesn't feel as cohesive to me, I guess? Lancelot wears a similar outfit but I think his looks more suited to him. Though I do like that the sleeve is cut out on Airgetlam's side, I think it's more practical to not have any cover on it.

This one is from one of the promotional images for the Solomon movie! I do like this one a lot, I just really like the colors of it (enough for me to draw it as a chibi). Seems even Bedi got tired of wearing a coat though lol, he's just holding it here.

Here's from one of the Chaldea Boys' Collection CEs! Though we don't really see much of his outfit here, so it's a bit hard to comment on. The cap looks a bit silly though, it's just awkwardly sitting on his head.

This one is from the earlier Chaldea Boys' Collection, which I also didn't get since I wasn't playing the game at the time. I am tempted to get it on the Rare Prisms exchange though...

I do actually like the colors of this one, and it's a bit similar to the butler costume he ended up getting, though this one is in white.

While I do want to get it since Bedi is in the CE and all, is it just me or something is a bit off with Bedi's faces in both of these Chaldea Boys's Collection CEs? Idk why, but the way Bedi's face looks in these comes off a bit...creepy. I hate to say it that way since it makes me sound like I'm picking on the illustrators - I'm not, these are beautifully detailed, the way Bedivere looks is just not up to my preference.

There's a bunch more I didn't get to, a couple of CEs and some more promotional and product images released during the Camelot movie (like the Wendy's one, that still floors me to think about, knowing art exists of the Camelot cast in Wendy's uniforms lol). A lot of it involves him in suits though, so I'm gonna be repeating a lot of points if I collect more of them.

My top favorites aside from his default look are the festive outfit one, the Solomon promo image and the summer outfit (I'm still begging the devs to release a playable version). Special shout out to a super cute acrylic I saw though, the Cafe and Diner one which was also released as Camelot movie merch? That is also super cute.

[unblinded-by-nostalgia-blog]

The Story The Story is about a young boy with a magical Samisen who is guided my his Shikigami and a rounnin kabutomushi to find the three artifices that will defeat his evil grandfather, Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto. If you are confused by what I described, don't worry, since the film makes this a whole lot simpler for the audience, by making as NEVER explaining it or oversimplifying the information so much, it makes it even more confusing. They even go as far as calling the Japanese Macaque a "monkey". (Did 4kids Dub this movie?) I watched this with my parents (we usually watch movies on the weekends) and my parents were confused by the characters actions and important story plots. I hate to brag here, but I have been learning Japanese for about 6-7 years now, and I know a good chunk about the culture and the mythology, so I had to explain to my parents why Characters did and said certain things, because the film doesn't tell the audience about Japanese culture. It just assumes that you are an expert and it leaves the majority of audiences confused unless they have someone explain what a Gashadokuro is. Because the film NEVER does! And when your trying to educate the masses about a culture very different from our own, you need to explain things, but not oversimplify the information given. This film does fail at that, but once I explained the more "confusing" aspects of the film to my parents, they understood enough to enjoy the film. The Story of the film itself is very creative and the creators certainly did their homework when studying Japanese culture (it is definitely clear that this film takes place in the Okinawa prefecture, being a island where there is no other island for miles and that it snows heavily there and they do practice the Bon Matsuri (celebration of the dead)) Some of the scenes did unfortunately feel a bit rushed (especially in the last third), but it is overall a great story. The Characters The Characters work off each other so well. The relationship between Kubo and his Shikigami is just great. I didn't feel like Kubo and the ronin had that much chemistry, but the Shikigami and the rounin's interactions were just fantastic. Those two bicker at each other about everything, but it's sweet bickering, not annoying bickering like in most films. I felt like the villain, Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, wasn't given enough development to be that good of a villain, and I wonder why they chose the "carp dragon" as his dragon form (he could of formally been a carp, but the film NEVER explains this, it would of been better if he turned into a monster rabbit (Japanese people say there is a rabbit on the moon and you can see the rabbit on the moon if you look carefully enough) than a "carp dragon". The two tsuki-on'nanoko sisters were much better villains than Mikoto, they had a much better explanation of why they hated Kubo's mother and his Shikigami so much. The Animation/Special Effects The film looks more like CGI than a stop-motion film. It is just that good! But the frame rate does drop from time to time (especially in the dialogue parts) but considering that the rest of the film must of been VERY time consuming and expensive at the time, I can't honestly blame them for cutting corners that only a sharp eye could see. But I'm criticising the final product, not the entire production! Final Thoughts Overall, this film is great for those who understand Japanese culture. Most people will get lost and/or confused by the film and not understand it (since the film never explains Japanese mythology or culture to the audience), it really does push away a good majority of audiences. It is still a great film, but poor choices in the story (or lack of explanation,) especially the last third of the film and the villain not being very interesting is what drags this film away from a "masterpiece" rating. If you don't mind using Google for most of the film, you'll enjoy this film. The Story 4/5 The Characters 4/5 The Animation/Special Effects 4.5/5 Overall 4/5 And where was Amaterasu-ōmikami? You can't have a film about Japanese mythology without the god of gods being present! Was she having a day off or something while Kubo was being chased by one of her children? I guess mothers (and god's) need a break once in a while.

[aliceblisss]

helloo!! can you write a steve rogers x reader fic where the reader (who has a crush on steve) accidentally walks in to sharon flirting w steve and then she walks away and cries when clint, bucky, wanda, nat and tony saw her and asks her why. they knew why short after, and reader goes for a walk outside the compound. steve searches for her eventually as the other avengers asks him to confess and solve the misunderstanding. steve found the reader at the big christmas tree in rockefeller center making a wish and he confesses to her there 🥺 im sorry if it’s too specific!

Hi!! Thank you so much for your request and thank you for being so patient! I changed up a few of the details I hope you don’t mind <33

CW: language lol

A/N: I really liked writing this one. Send me more Steve and overall MCU requests!! Also remember to reblog as it helps a lot! <3

——————————————————————————

The annual Christmas party is Tony and Pepper’s pride and joy.

It’s December 24th, Christmas Eve. A lot of us don’t have much family left to spend the holidays with, and those that do bring them along.

It’s the one night a year where we’re normal people. Everyone’s laughing, singing, dancing. Some drink a bit too much eggnog. But all in all it’s a fun, wholesome night.

“Did I ever tell you about the time I fought an army of five hundred men alone? Just me and Mjollnir” Thor sat beside me on the couch with probably his hundredth eggnog; to his and my surprise it appears to actually be kicking in a bit. In his defense Nat made it extra strong this year.

I sigh and smell the mix of eggnog and hot chocolate in my breath, “Yes Thor, you did. Like three times already and you keep adding people. The first time you told it was only two hundred men” I can’t help but laugh.

He furrows his brows and frowns, realizing I caught him, “No, I think you’re remembering it wrong”

I pat his knee, “Sure honey, whatever you say” with a smile.

Regardless of all that he begins to tell the story for a fourth time. Clint’s kids and Scott all listen to him in awe. Meanwhile I spot something across the room that made my heart sink.

I see Steve and Sharon laughing together, standing close to each other, being very touchy-feely. It made my stomach churn. But I was frozen in place, I couldn’t stop staring at them. Like that moment in a scary movie where you know something bad is about to happen but you can’t bring yourself to look away or close your eyes.

I know I shouldn’t really feel jealous. Steve and I are just friends. Obviously him and Sharon get along very well, she’s beautiful and clearly a better fit for him.

But I can’t help it. It makes me miserable. I’ve been in love for him for so long now I honestly wish it’d just go away at this point. Everything would be much simpler that way.

That way, I could just enjoy being his friend without my heart racing every time we touch or hold eye contact for longer than three seconds. I wouldn’t be over analyzing everything he says. I wouldn’t continuously get my hopes up thinking “maybe he does feel the same way”.

And then, just as that feeling of tears started to burn in my eyes, I noticed it; the mistletoe.

They were standing right below mistletoe. I started praying they wouldn’t notice but they did. Sharon looked up and smirked, Steve’s gaze followed. That’s it. Now’s the time to look away. I’m not gonna continue to torture myself here, much less with the sight of them kissing.

I got up abruptly and left the room, tears already streaming down my face. I went into another room and quickly closed the door behind me. Only to find Nat and Wanda in there.

They instantly got up with worry in their eyes. I could tell they were having a good time, talking and laughing. But it all disappeared off their faces in an instant when they saw me crying.

Immediately Nat walked up to me, holding my face up gently. “Hey hey, what’s wrong?” she asked.

But I just kept silently crying, ruining my makeup no doubt.

Natasha put her arm around me and led me to the couch where both her and Wanda sat with me and held me as I cried.

Wanda’s not the best at comforting, but I know she tries her best and I know she truly cares.

“Who do I have to hurt?” she said with a trace of her Sokovian accent that is more noticeable when she’s angry.

I manage to get the words out, “No one” in between sniffles.

“Then why are you crying?” she asked. I didn’t wanna say. It’s too embarrassing.

But Natasha took a good look at me and sighed, “I think I know”.

I turn to her, and she gives me a small smile and says, “Would this have anything to do with you liking Steve?”

My eyes widen. “How did you know?”

She raised an eyebrow at me, “I just do”

“You have feelings for Steve?” Wanda asked, genuinely surprised. I simply nod in response.

“Don’t worry, you’re fairly good at hiding it. It took me a while to figure out so I doubt anyone else knows. Especially him” Nat reassured me.

Wanda brought a tissue to me from across the room with her powers. I thanked her and cleaned up my face a bit.

“What happened though? Why are you crying then?” Wanda was still eager to know.

I took deep breaths to calm myself before recalling the memory. “It’s him and Sharon. I’ve seen how they are together, and just now they were all flirty n’ shit. And they were under mistletoe; I saw they were about to kiss”.

“Did you actually see them kiss?” It was Natasha who asked this time.

I shook my head, “I left before I could witness it”.

Nat kept rubbing my back while Wanda let me rest my head on her shoulder. I was still crying.

“Y/n there’s—” Nat started to speak but before she could continue Steve walked in.

“There you are” he said with a smile while looking at me. His face dropped when he saw the state I was in.

“What’s wrong?” he hurried towards me with worry in his eyes. I can’t face him right now, it’s too much.

I quickly get up and walk past him as I mumble a quick “Nothing” and leave the room. On my way out of the compound I grab my coat and I get in the elevator. Just as the doors were closing I saw Steve trying to catch up with me.

Once I’m out I put my espionage skills to use; right now I wanna be left alone. I decide to head for the big Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center thinking that’ll cheer me up a bit.

The loud sounds and all the sounds of the city start to overwhelm me but I just think that once I get to the tree I’ll be fine.

I arrive at the giant tree and stand in front of it feeling tiny in comparison. It was raining earlier so the water droplets make the lights look extra twinkly. It’s very cold, I shiver and fold my arms tightly regretting not bringing more than just my coat.

Despite there being so much commotion around me when I focus on the tree it all kinda fades away. So much so that I almost didn’t notice Steve standing at my side. I look at him through the corner of my eye; he’s also staring at the tree.

After a few seconds in silence he turns to me and says, “I figured you’d be cold”. When I turn to him I see he has my fuzzy hat and scarf. I can’t help but smile at the gesture, he give me a small smile too.

He then puts the hat on my head and wraps the scarf around my neck. I can feel myself blush but hopefully my cheeks were already red from the cold and he won’t notice. He smiles at me with gentle eyes but I force myself to look away, to focus on the tree. Because if I don’t I’ll drown in his eyes.

We both stand in silence staring at the tree. Our silences aren’t usually uncomfortable. But I know that he knows. So I’m silently freaking out on the inside.

“I tried to count all the lights once” I break the silence and my internal panic.

He snorts, “Of course you did. How far did you get?”

“Two-hundred and seventy-seven” I mumble, slightly embarrassed. Although I’d rather this embarrassment than the alternative.

“Wow, that’s determination” he said, genuinely impressed.

I held back a smirk, “Yeah, I looked at the tree dead in the eyes and said, “I could do this all day””.

We both started laughing. It’s nice to know we can laugh together no matter the circumstance. Even if he probably already knows I’m madly in love with him.

“Fuck off,” he said in between the laughter. I giggled in response.

After the laughter died down it was back to silence. Until…

“I know, y/n, I know why you were upset” Steve said.

My heart sank again, I was filled with fear. Fear of the inevitable rejection. “It’s—I’m sorry I—I’ll get over it” I fumbled over my words not know exactly what to say. But I was bracing myself for the worst.

He turned to me and took my hand of my pocket; mine were cold but his were warm. “What are you apologizing for?”. I saw the confusion in his expression. But also a tinge of pain which I couldn’t decipher. Did he feel sorry for me?

I sigh, I can see my breath in front of me, “For falling in love with you” I say feeling defeated at this point.

He takes both my hands now and holds them tightly as he says, “Do you feel sorry for how you feel about me? Because I don’t”

Now it’s my turn to be confused. “What?” my voice is small and frail.

“I am in love with you, y/n. I’m crazy about you. And I’m an idiot for not telling you sooner” he confessed.

I felt my heart thumping faster in my chest. Is this real?

“You are?” I asked, he nodded with a smile, “You are” I laughed nervously, and he laughed with me.

But then I remembered, “But wait, what about Sharon?”

“Sharon is a good friend, nothing more” he reassured.

“And the mistletoe?”

He let go of one of my hands and got something out of his pocket with a mischievous grin on his face. “You mean this mistletoe?” he raised his arm and dangled it above us while pulling me closer to him.

“I never kissed her. The only person I ever wanna kiss, is you” he said while looking back and forth from my eyes to my lips.

“Pepper’s gonna be mad you took the mistletoe” I tease.

He pulls me even closer and says, “She’ll get over it” and kissed me deeply.

I nearly melted in his arms. He dropped the arm that was holding the mistletoe and put it around my waist along with the other one. I threw my arms around his neck; holding on for dear life.

It was warm and soft, yet desperate in the sense that neither of us wanted to let go. When out lips finally separate he leans his forehead on mine, keeping his eyes closed. We start to giggle like little kids.

Suddenly we hear cheering, hooting and clapping. It’s Natasha, Wanda, Thor, and Scott.

We were embarrassed but couldn’t help but laugh.

“ABOUT DAMN TIME!” yelled out Nat.

“IM SO JEALOUS OF YOU Y/N” Scott yelled which made all of us burst into laughter.

“I guess I am pretty lucky huh?” I said to Steve.

He caressed my cheek with his thumb, “I’m the lucky one”.

[mcrmadness]

This is just me talking about (my) asexuality and aromanticism and mainly about how I figured I'm aroace. I'm from Finland and recently turned 30 so my experience and "lgbt+ history" might not be what you know it as, especially if you are not from Europe, or if your native language is English.

Also this is highly personal, so I doubt anyone here will have 100% same experience. But that's fine because remember: we're all individuals here and these are NEVER universal. You're still valid even if you wouldn't relate to what being aspec is to me.

It might be IS a long post so beware, but I've just been feeling like writing down some thoughts so here we go...

What I have been able to track is that I was 17, in 2008, when I first stumbled upon the term "asexuality". I don't remember exactly how, but I just remember reading about it and immediately going "yeah that's me". But what I do remember is that no one talked it being about sexual attraction. Basically how understood it was: asexuality = sex-repulsion.

I was 17, and somehow I knew I was sex-repulsed, but at the same time also thought I'm just a minor, so it's normal to be sex-repulsed. But even after turning 18, I don't recall ever feeling sexual attraction. I didn't think of myself as a "late bloomer" but just as someone who just has no interest towards sex. At some point I became really anxious of men, however. Nothing has ever happened to me* but still I, for some reason, developed terrible fear of men. I'm afab and just did not want to be seen as an object, and it made, still makes me, terrified to think someone might look at me and have Emotions. I know that we can't control our brains, I mean, I can't look at someone and force myself to feel attraction - just like those who do feel attraction, can't force themselves to stop feeling attraction. They can only control their actions. But yeah, I also had horrible (sexual) intrusive thoughts due to my generalized anxiety disorder at some point, which did not really help. They got a bit better when I came into terms with my asexuality and aromanticism, but sometimes they still come at me and it's never fun, but at least they're not as strong as what they used to be.

*(Unless if you can count that as sexual harrasment when, CW, I was 11 and a classmate was "into" me and tried to touch my face and talk "sweet things" to me but made it into a show despite me being uncomfortable and usually crying cos as a neurodivergent I didn't know how else to react.)

But anyway, back to the topic. So for years I understood asexuality as sex-repulsion, but I guess it's because I, well, am a sex-repulsed ace. So if I'm sex-repulsed, why would I then look at someone and feel something if I'm repulsed by the thing anyway? Like, it probably can't get any simpler than this :D And I know today that it's not as simple anymore. But that was 2008, at school (in ~2005) they only talked about gays a little, on one page in a sex.ed. book that otherwise was maybe 100 pages long. Only one page. About gays. And it was basically "Some boys like boys or some girls like girls and it's totally fine." and that was it, but the overall assumption was that everyone likes someone. And also there were no romantic orientations. Liking someone = both sexually and romantically. Not liking = not a thing except when you were depressed or otherwise mentally ill, or autistic or mentally disabled (which is a SUPER ableist take btw). I don't remember teachers ever talking about this, but it could also just be my adhd, maybe they did mention, but I just don't remember. At least in my notebooks there is no mention of this, everything was very much heteronormative and amatonormative, and also there was only two genders. I don't remember ever hearing about transgender people, apart from foreign documentaries and in them they were always portrayed as some shocking freaks of the nature, and loads of wrong terms were used. And this is still the mid and late 2000s we're talking about!

So this takes us to the other part aka aromanticism. Back then asexuality was not only sex-repulsion but also merged together with aromanticism, because people didn't talk about romantic orientations yet. So asexuality was not only sex-repulsion, but also you simply just not wanting a relationship. Again, nothing about attraction, just someone who did not care about sex nor relationships. A "forever single", if you will.

This was already annoying me a lot back then because I was really annoyed by sex "running the world". I was so angry because why is asexual the only sexuality that doesn't like sex? All the other sexualities had the assumption of them always wanting to have sex. Like, even think about someone who is straight, you hear that someone is straight, and you automatically assume(d) that oh they're into sex too cos why wouldn't they be. This was really driving me nuts because I was sure there are people who want to have a partner, but never want to have sex! I was still experiencing crushes, and I knew for sure it was nothing sexual, so it annoyed me that just because I'm asexual, it means I can't have crushes. That's why I actually called myself as "asexual bi" for a while, because "bisexual" indicated I would have not been sex-repulsed and I wanted to point out that I'm NOT into sexual things, at all - and remember that this was still the late 2000s or early 2010s and I had not heard of romantic orientations yet! So I was up to something, there just were no terms for that yet! Today that would be called bi-/panromantic asexual.

I haven't been able to track the exact date or even year when did I figure out I'm aromantic, or when did I hear about romantic orientations for the first time. From the messages I've been able to find, I was already in my early 20s. Aka somewhere around maybe 2011-2013. In those, I have still been wondering what I am or if I even want to have a relationship, not being really able to tell what I wanted or didn't want. Again, no one told me romantic orientations are about ATTRACTION and not about whether you have commitment issues or not (this as a half-joke, cos I have severe commitment issues with everything :D I need to feel free!).

Anyway, I do remember my key moment with aromanticism, or the "aromantic awakening" as you could call it too, was when I was 17 or 18. Or maybe I was older? I don't know, I have time blindness. Anyway, I had this one online friend I had a "crush" on (I think it was just undiagnosed adhd's person hyperfixation) and I even told her about it. Everything just is super shady, from those years, I was not really on my best and there are so many overlapping memories that feel like different alternative universes instead of memories on a same timeline. Anyway, I just remember at some point thinking about this girl and I thought about some "romantic" stuff, like kissing, and I just remember my brain going "NOOOOOPE!" I had wanted to meet with her some day so bad, but when I started thinking about actually meeting with her, I started to nope the fuck out. All I had in my head was awkward embarrassing "first kiss" scenarios from movies and I just was not having it! I basically went "lol I guess I'm aro too, then XD" but I still don't remember when did I have this realization. Was I 17? Or was I, say, 22? I guess I need to go through my old MSN Messenger and Skype convos some day to investigate this further because I really want to know. I couldn't even find anything from my Tumblr from those times (I registered here in 2011), but I don't know if that's just me not tagging or Tumblr search functioning normally (aka it never finds anything).

But yeah, I am touch-repulsed. And kiss-repulsed, and romance-repulsed, too, (unless it's my OTP we're talking about). I'm still not exactly sure if I'm touch repulsed because I'm aromantic, or if I'm aromantic because I'm touch-repulsed. I only know that because of my sensory issues (I'm neurodivergent), I have never liked touching nor being touched. Even as a little kid I hated hugs and never liked sitting on anyone's lap. I only tolerated my parents, mainly my mom, because they were my safe place as an extremely shy baby/toddler/kid, who was especially wary about men. I can't explain the latter, but there was something about adult men that caused me (as a baby) to hide my face against my mom's shoulder if they talked to me. I did that to everyone I didn't know, but especially to men I didn't know. No idea why.

I also remember how my siblings loved to sit on people's laps and were always climbing onto their laps, and I didn't like this. And once my (late) grandma was so touched when she asked me if I want to sit on her lap (I was maybe 5-7?) and I agreed just to make her happy. I still remember how it felt, and I did not like it at all, but it still made my grandma so happy that I THINK she almost cried when she told my mom I actually agreed to sit on her lap. I'm not sure how real this last part of the memory is because I was so young. But I do remember thinking I do that for a change because I knew my grandma would be happy.

So yeah, my touch-repulsion is not exactly a new thing but just something that has been a part of my personality forever. But is that the core reason for why I only feel aesthetic attraction? I never look at people and feel like I wanna touch. More of the opposite, the idea of having to touch them or them touching me makes me go "eeewww". If you have seen that video of a gibbon shaking their whole body after seeing a rat in their exhibit? That's what I feel like when I think about touching or being touched, in just any way, also platonically.

The only time I feel "sensual attraction" is when I see photos or videos of animals. The urge to pet a tiger is insane. But the feel of another human's skin or muscle (or hair or whatever) is very repulsive to me.

I still remember how disgusting it felt to e.g. sit on a cousin's lap. We sometimes used swings like this, and somehow I was aware of it not feeling nice, but still not doing anything about it cos it also was okay? Only later I have realized I really, really loathe the texture of human skin. Or the warmth and overall feeling of a human body. For example, I was at least 7 or younger when I sat on my cousin's lap while we were sitting on a swing and STILL, after over 20 years, I have that all in my body memory. I remember how the thigh bone felt under my legs and how freaking disgusting the muscles felt inbetween. Also at school, on the 1st grade, we often had to walk in a line of twos after the teacher and hold the pair's hand so no one gets lost. My then-friend had so ridiculously dry skin that the only thing I could think of was how I felt like throwing up because the skin on her palm felt so damn disgusting. I still can feel that in my hand when I think of it. That's one of my "core memories" from 1st grade - how disgusting the human skin can feel like.

I don't think I have ever felt actual romantic attraction towards anyone. It's really difficult to differentiate because as I mentioned, I get those people hyperfixations easily. I guess it's the same hormones but I never really want to do anything with them? I guess it's the emotional intimacy that "attracts" me and what gets me excited, but I'm still not exactly sure what emotional intimacy means to me. I don't exactly fall into the QPR category either, in a way I wish I had a best friend whose best friend also I would be, and that neither would have anyone else who is "better" than the other one. But the only intimacy there would be emotional intimacy, nothing else. And I need my freedom so I wouldn't move in with any human being, either.

Sometimes I've thought my "ideal partner" would be a robot because if I get annoyed, I could just turn it off and stuff into a closet and leave there, and if I felt like not having a "relationship" anymore, I could just remove the harddrive and destroy the robot, or both. That way I would be the only one with the memories, and I wouldn't have to worry about someone out there knowing things about me, things that only the closest can know, and I'm really afraid of letting anyone close in case it won't work (also with regular friendships) because I can't stop thinking about how much I wish I had that MIB memory cancelling device so that they would again know almost nothing, or at least much much less about me. There's already one friendship that ended a few years ago and I still keep thinking about how I wish I could take everything back and how I wish they delete(d) all the files and drawings and stuff I sent them. There are so many things about me I wish I never told them, now as we are no longer friends. Back then it felt like "of course this is gonna last a lifetime!" but turns out that nope, not all friendships will.

I guess it's time to stop rambling. This post is really long already. If you read it all the way here: congrats. And thanks. You probably just wasted your time but... that's on you I guess :DDD But yeah, some thoughts from a 30-years-old aroace who has been aware of their identity for at least or almost 10 years now.

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Anonymous asked: I noticed you did post to acknowledge the death of Uderzo, the co-creator of the Asterix comics. I have to ask Tintin or Asterix? Which one do you prefer?

It’s like asking Stones or Beatles? I love both but for different reasons. I would hate to choose between the two.

Both Tintin and Asterix were the two halves of a comic dyad of my childhood. Whether it was India, China, Hong Kong, Japan, or the Middle East the one thing that threads my childhood experience of living in these countries was finding a quiet place in the home to get lost reading Asterix and Tintin.

Even when I was eventually carted off to boarding school back in England I took as many of my Tintin and Asterix comics books with me as I could. They became like underground black market currency to exchange with other girls for other things like food or chocolates sent by parents and other illicit things like alcohol. Having them and reading them was like having familiar friends close by to make you feel less lonely in new surroundings and survive the bear pit of other girls living together.

If you asked my parents - especially my father - he would say Tintin hands down. He has - and continues to have in his library at home - a huge collection of Tintin comic books in as many different language translations as possible. He’s still collecting translations of each of the Tintin books in the most obscure languages he can find. I have both all the Tintin comic books - but only in English and French translations, and the odd Norwegian one - as well as all the Asterix comic books (only in English and French).

Speaking for myself I would be torn to decide between the two. Each have their virtues and I appreciate them for different reasons.

Tintin was truly about adventure that spoke deeply to me. Tintin was always a good detective story that soon turned to a travel adventure. It has it all: technology, politics, science and history. Of course the art is more simpler, but it is also cleaner and translates the wondrous far-off locations beautifully and with a sense of awe that you don’t see in the Asterix books. Indeed Hergé was into film-noir and thriller movies, and the panels are almost like storyboards for The Maltese Falcon or African Queen.

The plot lines of Tintin are intriguing rather than overly clever but the gallery of characters are much deeper, more flawed and morally ambiguous. Take Captain Haddock I loved his pullover, his strangely large feet, his endless swearing and his inability to pass a bottle without emptying it. He combined bravery and helplessness in a manner I found irresistible.

I’ve read that there is a deeply Freudian reading to the Tintin books. I think there is a good case for it. The Secret of the Unicorn and Red Rackham's Treasure are both about Captain Haddock's family. Haddock's ancestor, Sir Francis Haddock, is the illegitimate son of the French Sun King – and this mirrors what happened in Hergé's family, who liked to believe that his father was the illegitimate son of the Belgian king. This theme played out in so many of the books. In The Castafiore Emerald, the opera singer sings the jewel song from Faust, which is about a lowly woman banged up by a nobleman – and she sings it right in front of Sir Francis Haddock, with the captain blocking his ears. It's like the Finnegans Wake of the cartoon. Nothing happens - but everything happens.

Another great part is that the storylines continue on for several albums, allowing them to be more complex, instead of the more simplistic Asterix plot lines which are always wrapped up nicely at the end of each book.

Overall I felt a great affinity with Tintin - his youthful innocence, wanting to solve problems, always resourceful, optimistic, and brave. Above all Tintin gave me wanderlust. Was there a place he and Milou (Snowy) didn’t go to? When they had covered the four corners of the world Tintin and Milou went to the moon for heaven’s sake!

What I loved about Asterix was the style, specifically Uderzo’s visual style. I liked Hergé’s clean style, the ligne claire of his pen, but Asterix was drawn as caricature: the big noses, the huge bellies, often being prodded by sausage-like fingers. This was more appealing to little children because they were more fun to marvel at.

In particular I liked was the way Uderzo’s style progressed with each comic book. The panels of Asterix the Gaul felt rudimentary compared to the later works and by the time Asterix and Cleopatra, the sixth book to be published, came out, you finally felt that this was what they ought to look like. It was an important lesson for a child to learn: that you could get better at what you did over time. Each book seemed to have its own palette and perhaps Uderzo’s best work is in Asterix in Spain.

I also feel Asterix doesn’t get enough credit for being more complex. Once you peel back the initial layers, Asterix has some great literal depth going on - puns and word play, the English translation names are all extremely clever, there are many hidden details in the superb art to explore that you will quite often miss when you initially read it and in a lot of the truly classic albums they are satirising a real life country/group/person/political system, usually in an incredibly clever and humorous way.

What I found especially appealing was that it was also a brilliant microcosm of many classical studies subjects - ancient Egypt, the Romans and Greek art - and is a good first step for young children wanting to explore that stuff before studying it at school.

What I discovered recently was that Uderzo was colour blind which explains why he much preferred the clear line to any hint of shade, and it was that that enabled his drawings to redefine antiquity so distinctively in his own terms. For decades after the death of René Goscinny in 1977, Uderzo provided a living link to the golden age of the greatest series of comic books ever written: Paul McCartney to Goscinny’s John Lennon. Uderzo, as the Asterix illustrator, was better able to continue the series after Goscinny’s death than Goscinny would have been had Uderzo had died first, and yet the later books were, so almost every fan agrees, not a patch on the originals: very much Wings to the Beatles. What elevated the cartoons, brilliant though they were, to the level of genius was the quality of the scripts that inspired them. Again and again, in illustration after illustration, the visual humour depends for its full force on the accompaniment provided by Goscinny’s jokes.

Here below is a great example:

There’s a lot of genius in this. Uderzo copied Theodore Géricault’s iconic ‘Raft of the Medusa’ 1818 painting in ‘Asterix The Legionary’. The painting is generally regarded as an icon of Romanticism. It depicts an event whose human and political aspects greatly interested Géricault: the wreck of a French frigate, Medusa, off the coast of Senegal in 1816, with over 150 soldiers on board. But Anthea Bell’s translation of Goscinny’s text (including the pictorial and verbal pun ‘we’ve been framed, by Jericho’) is really extraordinary and captures the spirit of the Asterix cartoons perfectly.

This captures perfectly my sense of humour as it acknowledges the seriousness of life but finds humour in them through a sly cleverness and always with a open hearted joy. There is no question that if humour was the measuring yard stick then Asterix and not Tintin would win hands down.

It’s also a mistake to think that the world of Asterix was insular in comparison to the amazing countries Tintin had adventures. Asterix’s world is very much Europe.

Every nationality that Asterix encounters is gently satirised. No other post-war artistic duo offered Europeans a more universally popular portrait of themselves, perhaps, than did Goscinny and Uderzo. The stereotypes with which he made such affectionate play in his cartoons – the haughty Spaniard, the chocolate-loving Belgian, the stiff-upper-lipped Briton – seemed to be just what a continent left prostrate by war and nationalism were secretly craving. Many shrewd commentators believe that during the golden age when Goscinny was still alive to pen the scripts, that it was a fantasy on French resistance during occupation by Nazi Germany. Uderzo lived through the occupation and so there is truth in that. Perhaps this is why the Germans are the exceptions as they are treated unsympathetically in Asterix and the Goths, and why quite a few of the books turn on questions of loyalty and treachery.

Even the British are satirised with an affection that borders on love: the worst of the digs are about our appalling cuisine (everything is boiled, and served with mint sauce, and the beer is warm), but everything points to the Gauls’ and the Britons’ closeness. They have the same social structure, even down to having one village still holding out against the Romans; the crucial and extremely generous difference being that the Britons do not have a magic potion to help them fight. Instead they have tea, introduced to them by Getafix, via Asterix, which gives them so much of a psychological boost that it may as well have been the magic potion.

I re-read ‘Asterix in Britain’ (Astérix chez les Bretons) in the light of the 2016 Brexit referendum result and felt despaired that such a playful and respectful portrayal of this country was not reciprocated. Don’t get me wrong I voted for Brexit but I remain a staunch Europhile. It made me violently irritated to see many historically illiterate pro-Brexit oiks who mistakenly believed the EU and Europe were the same thing. They are not. One was originally a sincere band aid to heal and bring together two of the greatest warring powers in continental Europe that grotesquely grew into an unaccountable bureaucratic manager’s utopian wet dream, and the other is a cradle of Western achievement in culture, sciences and the arts that we are all heirs to.

What I loved about Asterix was that it cut across generations. As a young girl I often retreated into my imaginary world of Asterix where our family home had an imaginary timber fence and a dry moat to keep the world (or the Romans) out. I think this was partly because my parents were so busy as many friends and outsiders made demands on their time and they couldn’t say no or they were throwing lavish parties for their guests. Family time was sacred to us all but I felt especially miffed if our time got eaten away. Then, as I grew up, different levels of reading opened up to me apart from the humour in the names, the plays on words, and the illustrations. There is something about the notion of one tiny little village, where everybody knows each other, trying to hold off the dark forces of the rest of the world. Being the underdog, up against everyone, but with a sense of humour and having fun, really resonated with my child's eye view of the world.

The thing about both Asterix and Tintin books is that they are at heart adventure comics with many layers of detail and themes built into them. For children, Asterix books are the clear winner, as they have much better art and are more fantastical. Most of the bad characters in the books are not truly evil either and no-one ever dies, which appeals hugely to children. For older readers, Tintin has danger, deeper characters with deep political themes, bad guys with truly evil motives, and even deaths. It’s more rooted in the real world, so a young reader can visualise themselves as Tintin, travelling to these real life places and being a hero.

As I get older and re-read Asterix and Tintin from time to time I discover new things. 

From Asterix, there is something about the notion of one tiny little village, where everybody knows each other, trying to hold off the dark forces of the rest of the world. Being the underdog, up against everyone, but with a sense of humour and having fun, really resonated with my child's eye view of the world. In my adult world it now makes me appreciate the value of family, friends, and community and even national identity. Even as globalisation and the rise of homogenous consumerism threatens to envelope the unique diversity of our cultures, like Asterix, we can defend to the death the cultural values that define us but not through isolation or by diminishing the respect due to other cultures and their cultural achievements.

From Tintin I got wanderlust. This fierce even urgent need to travel and explore the world was in part due to reading the adventures of Tintin. It was by living in such diverse cultures overseas and trying to get under the skin of those cultures by learning their languages and respecting their customs that I realised how much I valued my own heritage and traditions without diminishing anyone else.

So I’m sorry but I can’t choose one over the other, I need both Asterix and Tintin as a dyad to remind me that the importance of home and heritage is best done through travel and adventure elsewhere.

Thanks for your question.

[datsquillid]

Quick Review: Raya and the Last Dragon

Studio: Disney

Director: Don Hall, Carlos López Estrada

Overall Score: 8/10

Story 8/10

I really liked the story of this film; it has an epic scale inspired by a lot of interesting mythologies and cultures. The story, however, is also one of the major problems of the film, as it is almost too grand for the small amount of run time that it has (about an hour and 40 min). If it had been two hours and twenty minutes or so, maybe it could have been pulled off better, but just maybe. It could definitely have worked as a series as well. I can’t say for sure if there’s a limit on how long a children’s film should be, though. Although the story does feel rushed the worldbuilding is very interesting and sucks you into the film from the start. It is so well-built that it would have been nice to have moved through the world slower, but even so it is very fun to watch. The themes were very relevant and executed well. The one thing about the themes I would say is this: one of the major points of the film is the characters learning to trust one another. The exact word “trust” is spoken in almost every other scene, to the point where it feels repetitive. There were certain times in the movie where saying the word so directly made sense, but I feel like the same thing could have been conveyed differently most of the other times. Another thing I would say, that I know other people have mentioned, is Sisu talking about group projects towards the beginning of the film. Similar to the trust thing I would say that it does take you out of the film a little because that is a very modern thing to say, and it could have been conveyed in a way that made more sense for the world of the film. And lastly, I also wish we could have gotten to know Sisu better. Like maybe more of her backstory, her relationship with her siblings, and the reason why she can swim very well but not use magic like the others. Her inferiority complex is touched on a little bit but isn’t expanded on much, and I kind of wish that there had been more shown about that (and how it changes based on her relationship with Raya). But overall, although very fast paced, the story was quite good and fun to follow.

 Art Style 8/10

This film has the signature 3D Disney style you see is most of the studio’s other 3D films, and as always, is top-tier 3D when it comes to technical achievements. I know a lot of people were talking about how Sisu’s design looked a bit too human when the film first came out, and I partially agreed. I think Sisu’s face does look a little human, but I actually warmed up to the design a lot more over time. Maybe adding whiskers to the dragons would have helped alleviate some of these concerns. If the creators didn’t want to make the character too complicated, I think adding whiskers would have been a simple addition (although it’s far from simple to animate those things). Look at the dragon in Wish Dragon, for example. He has a fairly simple design (simpler than Sisu in fact) and he has whiskers that allow him to look more dragon-like. But overall, I like the designs of the dragons, especially Pengu, as well as everything else. The colors especially were really well done.

Animation 10/10

Really good, as expected. The expressions and character acting were really improved in this film. I really enjoyed how realistic the expressions of the characters were at times. And the scenes where Sisu was walking on raindrops and swimming were also really well choreographed and executed.

 Music 10/10

James Newton Howard did a great job. I’ve listened to the soundtrack on its own a few times, and hearing it in the movie made the scenes so much richer.

 Editing 10/10

Great. The world was really well conceived and action-packed scenes were really nice to watch.

 Voice Acting 10/10

Very good. I am a fan of Awkwafina, and I think her voice fit Sisu well. I’ve heard from others that Sisu came off as obnoxious at times, but I thought that Sisu’s voice had a good balance of silly and serious when it needed to be. Other than that there’s not much I can say because the voice acting was excellent. Hard to believe it was done during quarantine.

[laryssa-f]

Response to Video & Article

I’m first going to start with my response to the Max Stossel video. I felt that this video was very eye opening for me. He really explained everything about social media down to a science, even the behind the scenes of social media. There were a couple of things that really stuck with me. The first was when he was talking about the people that are working behind the scenes of these social media platforms. The purpose of their job is to find ways to keep us looking at our phones. They go to work every day to find new ways to keep us engaged on these social media platforms and staring at our phones for hours every day. When it was explained like that to me in the video it really made me view these social platforms differently. I think when I get on social media now, I am going to be more aware of the things/ tactics they are implementing into the platform(s) to keep me on them. The other thing that stuck with me from the video was towards the very end when he answered a question from an audience member. She asked something about if our phones could hear us. Max Stossel’s response was to the questions was scary. He explained that there is such a good profile and imprint of us in the data on our phones that they can correctly guess ads that individuals want to see and have them pop up in their feed. What really got me was that he proceeded to explain how advertising companies and platforms are going to know us just as much or more than we know ourselves in the future.

The Emma Rathbone article was very inspirational. It really shows you how much technology takes away the little yet important moments in life. I think these moments that it’s taking away from everyone are the most important in figuring out who we really are as people. These moments we aren’t getting could bring a lot of clarity to us if we did get to have them. They could teach us what we enjoy doing, what inspires us, what motivates us, what brings joy to our lives etc. There was also a point during reading that I started to reminisce because I remember a short period of my childhood where life resembled much of what she was talking about in the article. A time before my parents decided to get me a phone. A time that when I was bored, I didn’t have a phone to pick up, instead I asked one of my siblings to go outside and jump on the trampoline with me or play hide and go seek. A time when life was a lot simpler, and everyone wasn’t feeling constantly judged about everything that they did. Technology has brought a lot of good to the world, but it has also brought a lot of negativities and I think that this article really makes you think about the negative aspects of technology.

I think social media has a huge influence in my everyday life. I think the biggest thing that it is for me is a distraction. I don’t feel like doing homework, so I pick up my phone, I don’t want to clean my room, so I pick up my phone, I have twenty minutes until I leave for class, that’s not enough time to be productive in any part of my life, so I pick up my phone and the list goes on and on. I honestly don’t think I can remember a time when I didn’t have access to the internet for an extended period. The last time I can remember was probably when I was on a plane to Florida, and I was still staring at a screen watching a movie the whole time then. However even then it bothers me that I can’t text or call anyone and that’s just a couple of hours. Some things I would like to do to be more intentional about my use of technology is to start my mornings off without it every day and see how much that effects the day I have in terms of the use of my phone as well as my overall mood.

[thealmightyemprex]

1960′s Bond films ranked

,1960′s was the era of Bond mania ,and it was the decade with the most movies ,with 7 movies(Second to it is the 80′s with 6 movies ,then the 70′s with 5 ,90′s and 2000′s both only had 3 each ,and 2010′s only had 2 ) ,and since the 60′s is the most classic era of Bond ,I decided  to rank the 60′s Bond films 

7.Casino Royale(1967)

Yup I am counting the unofficial movies too  and this is the only film on the list I would say is baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad.This is  a crappy movie,pure insanity  with no clear vision and it commits the biggest sin of a comedy :ITS NOT FUNNY .....Woody Allan as a Bond Villain is a funny joke though 

6.Thunderball(1965)

Only Bond film in which I have read the book.It’s an OK book ,love some of the characters  but it was just fine  .....But I like it better then the movie  .This is a boring movie  to me ,Largo is only remembered fondly cause he has an eyepatch as he is a lame villain  ,Domino is a lot less interesting then her book counterpart ,there is a cringeworthy scene with Bond blackmailing a physiotherapist into sleeping with him ,there is a random character who is important to the plot but the film doesnt treat him this way ,the Q scene feels less playful and more meanspirited  and underwater battles sound cool in theory ,but are dull in practice .That said I do like aspects ,Connery  is good ,I like the SPECTRE scene (Love Shadowy Blofeld ) ,the pre title action scene is great (Complete with ACTUAL WORKING REAL JETPACK ),The theme song performed by Tom Jones is AMAZING ,and  I do love the films main henchwoman Fiona Volpe ,she is such an awesome baddie I wish she was the MAIN villain  .I know it’s considered a classic but I just cant get into it 

5.You Only Live Twice (1967)

THis one I am .....Mixed about . I think it’s directed well ,there are some cool camera movements,the Little Nellie gyrocoptor is awesome  ,the fight scene against the driver (Played by Peter Maiva ,the grandfather of Dwayne “The Rock “ Johnson ,which is awesome )  is pretty badass , The Volcano Lair is SPECTACULAR (PRobabbly the best villain lair in the series ) ,Tiger Tanaka is a likable ally ,Aki is a great Bond Girl,Nancy Sinatras theme song is good ,it’s cool seeing a snapshot of 1960′s Japan ,the final battle is epic ,and Donald Pleasence is FANTASTIC as Blofeld ,bringing such a creepiness to a character who has been built up for 5 movies .....But  what holds it back for me is Connery looks so damn bored throughout the entire movie ,the plot I dont really care about ,Helga is just a rehash of Fiona and not even in a interesting  way ,KArl is such a boring henchman ,Aki is killed off just to be replaced by Kissy who is less interesting and I dont know why they didnt just have one Bond girl ,DOnald Pleasence is barely  in the movie ,and then you have Bond going undercover as a Japanese man......Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaah.This is just such a mixed bag of a movie for me 

4.Dr No (1962)

Now lets get to the good ones.This is a lowkey Bond adventure(As they couldnt afford to do one of the bigger stories ) ,and I imagine that can be jarring for someused to the high octane globe trotting adventures of the other films,and I have seen some calll it Vanilla  .....And I kind of like the simpler vibe of this film .Connery comes out the gate swinging ,he is suave and with moments of  brutality.Both the Bond girl and villain arent in the film long but Ursula Andress is memorable as Honey Ryder  and Joseph Wiseman as Dr No while only getting really one scene to show off has a cold  detached delivery to his lines that makes him extremely eerie (Would’ve preferred a Chinese actor  and am distressed none were even considered but thats the 60′s for you ) .Anthony Dawson  makes for a good secondary villain as Professor Dent  ,Jack Lord is a cool Felix Leiter ,John Kitzmiller is great as Bonds ally Quarrel ,the film sets up Bonds dynamics with both Bernard Lee’s M and Lois Maxwell’s Miss Moneypenny ,both making strong first impressions ,the film is brutal with it’s action ,and overalll it’s a good introduction to the world of Bond  

3.Goldfinger(1964)

The iconic Bond film .This film is fun ,plain and simple. It has flaws (Mainly there being a whole section of the plot involving gangsters that makes absolutely no sense and how Pussy Galore turns good is REALLLY cringeworthy) but I feel like the rest of the film is awesome  .The villain Auric Goldfinger is one of the best  (Easilly my second favorite in the series )ruthless and greedy but with an odd sense of charm ,I just love watching him .The films main henchman Oddjob   is also awesome  ,a super strong  silent loyal thug  who kills people with a toss of his killer bowler hat .Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore  is fantastic ,easily one of the best Bond girls,and while I dont like how her arc is handled,I do like that she starts off as a baddie .The film is full of classic moments from Goldfinger and Bonds golf game ,the laser scene (And the classic exchange “You expect me to talk”*Chuckles*”No mr Bond ,I expect you to DIE!!”),the fight between Bond and Oddjob in Fort Knox (Which is a gorgeous set by Ken Adam ) and of course the iconic image of the dead woman painted gold .I also have just a personal fondness for this film as when I was a kid we had a whole bunch of Bond films on VHS (From Dr No to Live and Let Die ) and this was the one I watched the most 

2.From Russia With Love (1963)

I flip flop on whether I like Goldfinger or From Russia With Love more ,and I think I prefer From Russia With Love ,for one simple reason :Goldfinger is a fun action romp .....From Russia With Love is a genuinely intriguing spy movie .It’s also cool cause it is a direct sequel to Dr No which is an anomaly in the classic Bond films. There isnt one villain in this film ,it’s an organization ,SPECTRE ,meaning we get a whole ensamble of villains (Including creepy evil genius Kronsteen and SPECTRES head thug Morzeny),but the stand outs are Red Grant  played by Robert Shaw of Jaws fame, a sadistic assassin who is sort of Bonds dark mirror  and Lotte Lenya as Rosa Klebb ,a former SMERSH agent now working for SPECTRE ,who is commanding in every scene .....EXCEPT fore when she is around the films true villain Blofeld,in those scenes  she is TERRIFIED ,and thats a detail I love cause it adds to Blofeld mystique,that if he can scare KLEBB he is a force to be reckoned with  .I also love that we dont actuallly SEE Blofeld beyond his hands stroking his cat  ,and yet personality wise we get everything we need to know (That and his deep commanding voice which I LOVE ) .We also get Kerim Bey who is hands down the BEST Bond sidekick ,he is so lovable and charming,it’s hard not to like him.Connery is excellent  as usual ,all the action is awesome including Bond evading a helicopter ,a climatic boat chase,an encounter with a deadly piece of footwear,and a absolutely brutal fight between Grant and Bond on the Orient Express .If I have one  complaint I am not that fond of how the Bond Girl Tatiana  is written but  Daniela Bianchi does a good job .Overall this is a great movie  

1.On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)

This is my favorite Bond movie .It is at it’s core a love story and a damn good one .Diana Rigg steals this entire movie as Tracy  ,she is the best Bond girl .Telly Savals is charming ,intelligent ,but also tough as hell as Blofeld ,he is my third favorite Bond villain  and hands down my favorite Blofeld .I think the film contains one of the best evil plans (And surprisingly relevent over 50 years later ),Irma Bunt is a terrific henchwoman ,Gabriele Ferzetti is  entertaining as Tracy’s criminal father Draco ,Louis Armstrongs We Have All The Time In The World is a terrific love song  ,I love the setting of the Swiss Alps ,the film somehow makes a BOBSLED chase badass ,and the ending  is unforgettable .Now the one common complaint people have is George Lazenby ,and while I agree he isnt great ......He is a good Bond ,and he hits the dramtic  notes when he needs to .I adore this movie and reccomend it to non Bond fans  even

[mulletcal]

if my heart had a voice - a (bi/aro) calum hood blurb.

a/n: okay so i’ve had this idea in my brain for so, so long and i had hesitated a lot writing it but i’d like to give a special thank you to: @frontmanash​, @softbabiestan​, @sexgodashton​, @goth5sos​, and @irwinkitten​​ for giving me motivation and being so sweet while i wrote this, i appreciate all of you so, so much you have no idea.

this is my first time writing something like this, so i hope you enjoy. it’s a genderless reader insert!

word count: 2.6k

warnings: struggles with romantic orientation, mentions of smut but no actual smut.

---

Friends with benefits - it’s something that sounds easy in theory, but movies and TV shows would lead you to believe otherwise.  Complicated was a word that was often associated with it as well, stating that no two people could simply have sex, that feelings would always end up involved.

That wasn’t the case for Calum, well, not really.  He had met you, and the two of you hit it off right away.  You talked into all hours of the night until the sun came up about anything and everything; he felt heard, he felt appreciated, he realistically felt what most people would deem as a crush, or romantic attraction.  Calum couldn’t bring himself to call it that though, because that’s not how it seemed to him.  It felt natural when the two of you fell into bed together, a tangle of limbs and breathy moans, but he never was drawn to the idea of asking you to be his partner.  You never seemed to mind either, which Calum was grateful for; he had so many questions that constantly circulated through his mind, he wasn’t sure if he was ready for a conversation about why he didn’t want more with you.

Calum’s racing thoughts seemed to never cease, a constant question of why didn’t he want more with you; or simply why he never wanted more with anyone.  His last relationship ended because what he thought was love turned out to be nothing more than just a physical attraction, lips never parted long enough to sort out emotions before it was too late.  Love had been uttered in a fruitless attempt to keep her around long enough to hopefully truly feel something, but it never worked. 

Another Saturday night rolled around, and the two of you had started a movie you never saw the end of, too distracted with exploring each others’ bodies.  Seeing you lie next to him, chest heaving with a small smile on your face brought a smile to his own lips, admiring you basking in the glow from the TV screen.  Calum often wondered what you were like around your other friends, if you made them laugh as hard as he did, or would also text them in the middle of the night with a random thought or meme.  Panic crept up on him at the thought, suddenly fully aware that he could be caught up in some sort of TV trope - did you have romantic feelings for him? Was there a possibility of losing you forever if he didn’t reciprocate the feelings?

His mind couldn’t settle that night, tossing and turning, mind racing at the thought of losing you.  Would he lose you? Banished to a new level of weird and uncomfortable - running into someone in public who you know has seen you naked, or even more seen your face when you’re about to fall over the edge. 

Morning came much too soon, and Calum sighed, glancing over to you as the sun came streaming in through the curtains and casting you in some sort of ethereal glow.  Maybe if he went to make some breakfast rather than staring at you it could help to clear his head.  It wasn’t often that you decided to stay for breakfast, but he hoped that sharing a warm meal together would encourage him or sway him one way or the other - to talk to you, or maybe feel something more romantic towards you.

Stretching as you came into the kitchen, you smiled at the sight of Calum there flipping pancakes, “Eating for two, are you? Calum, is there something you’re not telling me?” You faked a gasp, laughing lightly.  He swatted at you with the spatula, just barely missing you.

Calum knew you could sense something off with him, just by the way you carried yourself about the kitchen, taking a seat at the island.  Your movements were gentle, calculated, as if one small thing could set him off - not that had ever happened, but you were walking on eggshells and he knew he needed to say something.

The two of you ate in silence for the first few minutes, Calum glancing up at you to make sure that you were enjoying the food alright. 

“Can I ask you something?” Calum had stopped eating, a serious expression on his face, causing you to put your fork down.

“I was going to pull the old ‘you just did’ bit but it doesn’t seem like the time for that,” you chuckled, tucking your chair in so you could lean your chin on your hand. “What’s up?”

“What’s wrong with me?” He asked, worrying his lower lip between his teeth.

You furrowed your brow, slightly confused, “I’m not following.”

“Like… I’ve been thinking a lot lately. I broke up with my last girlfriend because while I felt a connection and we got along great, the… romance just wasn’t there? I’ve gone on dates, and there’s nothing. I thought it was just that I was going on shitty dates, but then I met you - you have all the qualities I could want in a partner, and clearly I’m attracted to you; but I don’t find myself wanting to be involved… romantically?” Calum was playing with his fingers, not meeting your eyes. “I hope that doesn’t hurt you.”

You laughed lightly, reaching across to take his hand in your own to stop the wringing of his hands, “Calum I’m not offended, not in the slightest. What we have going on is good, but I understand if you want to stop that too.”

“I don’t-” He said quickly, laughing as he scratched the back of his head.  “I feel like it sounds like such a stereotypical dude thing to say that I’m cool with continuing to have sex with no emotional attachment.  Not that I don’t feel anything towards you, I just-”

“Calum, I get it,” You grinned.  “I hope you know I wasn’t here looking for love, yeah? Me and you get on great, and the sex is great.  But if I wanted a boyfriend, I would have told you from the start, I promise.” Your reassuring words had Calum letting out a breath he wasn’t aware that he was holding, squeezing your hand that was still in his.

“I just feel like I’m… Cold, I guess? For not wanting more?”

“Love, you’re the least cold person I know.  You’re so genuine and kind, and you have so much love for your friends and family.  You’re so cuddly, always down to hold hands, or just hold someone if they need to be held. It’d be different if you didn’t show you care, but you do in the ways that matter.”

Your answer seemed to be good enough for Calum, because he went back to eating with a small smile on his lips.

It helped to ease Calum’s worry that he was going to lose you because of how he felt, but the lingering question in the back of his head ate away at him of why he felt the way he did; also, why it was just bothering him now.  So, when you left,  he did what any millennial would think to do: he Googled it. 

He wasn’t sure what to search for at first - it wasn’t something like an ache or pain in his body where you could look up ‘shoulder pain’ and find out you only had 4 days to live.  It seemed much more complicated, to put into words how he felt; but he ended up settling on ‘lack of romantic attraction’, and he was shocked to find that it was, indeed, a thing.  Calum had learned within minutes of his Google search that this wasn’t just a ‘one or the other’ kind of thing, but that there was a whole variety of people.  It made his chest warm to read blog posts of people coming to terms with their romantic orientation, seeing how many had struggles similar to his own.  The term ‘Aromantic’ seemed the most fitting to him, and he liked the idea that maybe one day romance could happen, but if it never did he wasn’t weird for wanting the physical only.

**

It was a few after Calum had come to his realization about his orientation overall, and he found himself as he usually did - in his backyard with Ashton, a couple cups of coffee deep while they both scribbled into their songwriting notebooks.  He knew that none of his friends would judge him, they may be a little confused because no one in their group had “different” romantic orientations - they simply assumed they’d end up with a partner one way or another.

Ashton had been in the middle of a thought when Calum interrupted, “Hey Ash?”

Ashton furrowed his brows, eyes lifting from the page to look at his friend, “Yeah?”

“You ever heard of the term ‘aromantic’?”

“I don’t believe so, why?” Ashton placed his pen inside his book, closing it to give Calum his full attention.

“I’ve been kinda struggling a lot lately, doin’ a lot of self reflection and all that,” He started, letting out a heavy breath before he continued, “It seems like a term that really resonates with me.”

Calum couldn’t really read the expression on Ashton’s face, instead being met with the man’s furrowed brow and fingers lightly drumming on the cool metal of the table. 

“What does it mean?” Ashton was now leaning on his elbows, more engaged in the conversation.

“In like… Simpler terms, it mainly just means lack of romantic attraction.” Ashton’s face read a little confused, but Calum carried on anyway, “I’ve learnt in the last few days that there’s a difference in sexual orientation and romantic orientation.  With my last girlfriend, I thought I loved her, but it was more about the sex than anything. I d’know if it really sums me up, but you know my whole friends with benefits scenario.  I thought it would make sense for me to fall in love with them.”

“But you haven’t? Fallen in love with them, I mean.”

“No, which is what led me to this point to begin with.  If I were to make a list of everything I’d want in a partner, they would check all the boxes.  I do care for them, deeply and genuinely, but it’s not in a romantic sense - more of a ‘you’re one of my best friends in the whole world, and sometimes we fuck’.” Calum hadn’t realized how red he had gotten, but it definitely made him fan himself as he let out a small chuckle, “I’m sorry, that was… A lot of information.”

When Ashton broke out into his signature grin, Calum couldn’t help but to mirror it with his own grin, “Well brother, you know I love you and support you no matter what you choose to do.  I told you I’d help you hide a body, but I do hope it never comes to that point.  Just don’t be an asshole and I’m always here for you.”

Calum laughed again, rubbing a hand over his face, “That made me so fucking nervous man.  When I was thinking about it, I was kinda like ‘this sounds so cold’.”

Ashton cut him off from going any further with a scoff, “We all know that’s the last thing you are.” With that, Ashton reopened his book and continued on with a lyric he was talking about previously; and Calum couldn’t wipe the grin off of his face.

Over the next few days, Calum had told his friends individually - being met with open arms and plenty of questions. Of course he didn’t mind, but it was relieving to him to feel like things were going back to normal, and he was starting to feel more like himself again.  He hadn’t gotten to see you since that morning at his house, but he had texted you to tell you about his new findings - your congratulating text in return, saying how you loved him and were proud of him, had him grinning the rest of the day.

The Fourth of July came quicker than any of them had anticipated, and Calum’s group of friends scrambled to come up with some last minute plans.  You had to work during the day, so you would miss the planned barbeque at Michael’s house, but you would be off in time to meet them at the local park to watch the fireworks that Calum had seen a sign for a few days prior.

There was nothing easier for Calum than being around his friends; and while he knew they accepted him and easily accepted his realization about his romantic orientation, he still worried.  Worried that things would be different, or they would feel the need to treat him differently.  But as he sat there, beer in hand, warmth washed over him when he noticed no palpable tension in the air; instead his ears rang with Ashton’s giggle as he laid on the lawn with South and Moose, wrestling with the two dogs.

With everyone thoroughly fed (and a majority tipsy), they all decided to make the small trek to the park, Calum offering to walk with Moose along the way - his secret favourite of Michaels’ dogs, though he’d never say so.

It was long after they had gotten there did you arrive, the sun finally starting to set to hopefully cut through some of the heat from the day. Moose launched herself at you to signal your arrival, which in turn set off South - before you knew it you were on the ground being bathed in puppy kisses.

“Quite the welcome,” You teased, scooping up South into your arms when the pair had finally eased up.

“They know how to roll out a welcome mat, what can we say,” Calum laughed, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek, enveloping you in a warm hug.  The hug was more rigid than you were used to from Calum, and it gave you a weird sense of tension off of him.

Sitting down next to him, you frowned when you noticed his breathing was shallow on top of the weird tension that was coming off of him in waves, “Are you okay?” You never hesitated to be honest with Calum, and you’d hoped that he’d be as honest as he was that morning, especially if something was wrong.

Calum nodded, pursing his lips in thought for a beat before finally speaking, “This is just the first time I’ve seen you since that morning, I just wanted to make sure we were good.  I know I haven’t been the best at keeping up communication lately.”

“You were never much of a talker, love,” Your shoulder nudged his, prompting him to look at you.  “We’re good… Never better, I’d say.”

Calum’s shoulders visibly relaxed, his wide, charming smile reappearing on his lips.

“There’s the squishy man I know and love,” You said, reaching your fingers up to pinch his cheeks.  “You gonna come lay here like they’re doing or what?”

Glancing around, Calum saw everyone paired up one way or another, couples and best friends alike had one person leaning against the other; the last bit of sunlight casting a glow over all of them.  A feeling of calm settled over the crowd, and Calum especially - he had waited to feel like he had purpose, waited to feel wanted.  As he settled against you, you began to play with his hair gently; and he understood that his purpose was just to be who he was - a man who loved his friends and family wholeheartedly, to want what was best for others, rather than want for himself alone.

tag list:  @haikucal​ @talkfastromance4​ @softbabiestan​ @boyfriend-cal​ @calum-uncrowned​ @wildflowerirwin​ @irwindoll​ @gosh-im-short​ @atlcalm​ @thesubtweeter​ @heavenisapeach​ @ridingcthood​ @loveroflrh​ @mantlereid​ @inlovehoodx​ @irwinkitten​ @n-ctarinenga​​ @g-l-pierce​ @thecurlsofgod​

[juniaships]

Actiontoongorlz's Top 8 Canon x OC Ships 💖💖

I've been looking at OTP/Couples memes for a while and decided that it's time for me to make my own! For an extra surprise I'm not putting Ben Tennyson x Jora Holiday on this list because I focus too much on them anyways & I want my other OCs & their loves to have the spotlight for a change. The timing couldn't be more perfect as we're close to Valentine's Day!!! If you don't support canon x oc or find my ships displeasing then move along because this is a Happy Place! 😁😁 Again these are couples that I consider my personal OTPs in regards to canon x oc. That and making more content with my ships in general! Be warned the text is long and contains spoilers for certain shows and such!!

Clarify: these are my own ocs so there's not going to be anyone else's oc/canon. I might have to save that for another post in the future! 💚 But yeah these are characters that I came up with :]

Alright I'm done ranting, let's get started!

1. Sonic x Lani: I never quite gave much thought into this pair as I should so I promise to do something with them in the future! I promise! What I appreciate about SonLani is that there's little drama, like everything is super chill because both parties are chill. It's not a big deal and they don't need grand gestures to show how much they care about each other. Unlike Preboot Archie with its carts full of poorly written romance and strangely OOC moments on Sonic's end, SonLani had a lot of time to grow, while keeping his established personality in check. They actually communicate with each other, and stick by each other thick and thin. Lani loves Sonic for who he is & has no plans on changing him. Likewise Sonic has someone he can rely on when things get tough; not to mention he can really be himself around her without going all "iLl sLOw dOWn fOr U." Plus the ship name I gave them is a huge nod to the games ^_^

2. Jason x Vanessa: A recent pair due to Vanessa being a new creation but I'm honestly in love with them right now. In-universe they are regarded as the prime example of 'Opposites Attract' in Odyssey. They didn't get along very well in Jason's first couple of months in town due to his hardheaded self and her aloof demeanor. But through events such as Blackgaard and Novacom they gradually learn to trust one another. They see each other in a different light, Vanessa realising that Jason is a lot more thoughtful than he lets on, and Jason discovering her hidden fun side and kindness. Vanessa provides challenges and a sense of normalcy Jason can enjoy away from spy business. Meanwhile Jason fulfills her thirst of adventure & simultaneous desire for a peaceful life as well as spirituality. They're a equals, regarding each other as such and not to mention the BANTER! Hard to believe a former nun can keep up with a secret agent both physically and trading barbs XD. There's also the Forbidden Love factor of Vanessa being the duaghter of Regis Blackgaard, Jason defending her because he KNOWS she is nothing like her old man. Their friendship and romance overcome so many obstacles. I can honestly say that if Vanessa was canon she'd be the type of person Jason would like to be with especially over Jillian Marshall *gags*

3. Kaysha Wallace x Leo Hamato: Now here's a ship that I want to get more into 😁😁 Honestly I love the idea of this pairing: the serious leadee x bubbly spirit! Kaysha is very perky yet understands Leo's feelings on shouldering so much responsibility (she being the oldest child in her family). She's very willing to support him because she doesn't want to see him get all weary from burden. Likewise Leo can be himself around her, and teach her to be more responsible. He doesn't doubt her potential and sees her as an equal even during those periods where she was not on par with the other ninja. Kaysha shows Leo it's okay to relax and let other people help him out and not shut everyone out. When Leo expresses his ability to give her a safe life she simply laughs it off; the way she sees it him simply there in her life is enough. The most interesting facet is their dynamic varies between shows, so you'd see different scenarios and reactions as well as similarities and differences in their romance subplot.

4. Artie x Rhodanthe: Another couple I seriously need to give more attention to, they're meant to be is the foil to Shrek and Fiona in several ways. Artie and Rho may come from different social classes but they're both searching for a purpose to prove their haters wrong. Artie lacked confidence while Rho was overconfident believing she didn't need help. Together Artie learns to stand up for not only for his kingdom and loved ones hut also for himself; Rho's pride gets tempered by Artie's kindness and willingness to compromise. Another thing I like is that Artie has someone who loves him for him not because he is attractive and of royal blood. Likewise Rho has someone who respects her in spite of her social standing & shares her beliefs in making life easier for the poor & outcasts. While both lacke the physical prowess of Shrek and Fiona they rely on each other's resourcefulness and strategic thinking to get by. Unlike Shrek and Fiona they don't get married at the end of their focus movie, resolving to figure out where to take their relationship next. They still have their own life goals and don't want to rush into a relationship which sends a pretty good message. However they have their disagreements - in fact they got a huge argument that became a plot point in Shrek Forever After - but through it all they rediscover the things that made them fall in true love with each other. I'm really loving the subplot I have planned where they forget their memories and slowly fall back in love again.

5. Finn x Alma: Surprise! Yes8 I have a Cars OC (that was originally a fanon Disney Princess) who is the niece of Tow Mater in my verse and she enters a relationship with Finn McMissile. The thing I love about this pair is that it allows Alma to use her skills to flourish, treating amd healing injured spies. She's also into travel and adventure so she can pretty much keep up with Finn. Likewise Finn realizes she is more than just a pretty face or a one-off fling but someone with the passion to face challenges head on; Finn seems to love a good challenge! But overall they'd make a nice pairing, Finn showing Alma the world and Alma showing Finn some of the more simpler things in life.

6. Alexander Paine & Qiu Jin: Well well well look at what the cat dragged in? If it isn't our first villain pairing? XD Just kidding only one half is a genuine villain. What makes this couple so unique in that their storyline goes way back to before the events of the show, he being a agent and she a mechanic. They loved each other deeply, even to the point of starting a family, but forced apart due to some troubling events. When they do get back together it's not so much a bittersweet reunion as Paine became a full villain and Qiu Jin had spent years in&out mental institution before being released There's visible pain & regret, Alexander desperately wanting a semblance of what they once had. He seeks power not just for himself for to heal her. But Jin refuses to go along with his schemes wanting nothing more than to move on and see their children. Jin is a huge Mortality Pet for him, but his own selfish desires for power is a major obstacle their love can't overcome. It's the more bittersweet of my pairings but an important one nonetheless.

7. Bruce Wayne x Nicola Holden: Ok the Brooding Guy/Gentle Girl trope is a mixed bag these days but I really like this trope in regards to Brucola. Like with Artie/Rho, Bruce and Nicola come from different social classes but has that same compassion and drive to help others. Nicola is someone Bruce can trust but at the same time she lets him know there are boundaries (aka don't use my weaknesses as a contingency plan). I also feel like Bruce needs a sort of normal love interest, while he has canon normal girlfriends most of them were pretty boring. At least with Nicola she has has a life outside being a love interest her own goals and motivations. She also loves Bruce for him, not because of his money and good looks. It's a generally healthy dynamic built on honesty & empathy. Another reason why I find this pair adorable is that it actually matches with the rest of the Trinity; you know, like how Superman is with a journalist and Wondy is with a soldier/agent. Nicola & Bruce having different ways of pursuing justice while still sharing similar moral codes. It helps that Nicola is actually a hero rather than an antihero/villain/straight villain (Bruce dating a villan would only make him look like a hypocrite). Nicola sees all facets of Bruce's life and makes the choice to stay; provides some much needed light not just in his life but also the rest of the Batfam. In turn Bruce has another connection to the normal world that is willing to be in his life and see him genuinely happy. They're mature adults who ground each other and build each other up.

8. Optimus Prime x Malina Lovelace: Okay is it just me or do I think TFA Optimus Prime needs more love? What's funny is that at first Malina didn't like the thought of being outshined by newcomers in her superhero career. Spending time with Optimus makes her realize that there's more to being a superhero than fame. Optimus doesn't look down on her, and is more than willing to work with her and appreciate her work. She becomes touched by his friendliness and aceepts him and the other Bots. At the same time Malina reminds Optimus that it's okay to make mistakes and move on, and that it's okay to cut toxic people out. I even wrote a noncanon ficlet where Malina calls out Sentinel and Blackarachnia for the way they treat Optimus. OptMalina is a romance built on respect despite the obvious differences. Not to mention they have each other's back, and they learn about each other each time. And just like with KayLeo and BatRose there's different continuities which means unique versions of the Optlina pair. The Bayverse *chortle* and Prime versions are a few I'd love to explore in the future!

Miscellaneous

- Chad Charming x Soraya Nedakh: Essentially snobby rich kid who learns to be self sufficient and see past appearances through a positive influence. Soraya helps Chad to understand that being royalty isn't just pretty clothes and parties but actually using that status to help others. And Chad actually has his views challenged: Soraya doesn't back down easily.

- Jetta x Zane: The concept of JettaZane (or A Touch Of Snow/IceMagic) is that the robot teaches the human what it's like to be human. Jetta started out as an extremely cold person and a loner, but her time with Zane - the literal ninja of ice - gradually melts her heart & she becomes more caring and accepting. So the robot programmed to be human helps the human raised to be a cold machine unlearn her toxic traits and reclaim her humanity. Also Pixane is kinda boring imo, like they're only together because they're both robots. Not very compelling if you ask me.

- Brian Crown x Kelly Arbol: The wellmeaning goofball and the beatnik poet are something I rarely see much of, but that pretty much sums up their ship. Brian may be a bit self centered but he has a heart of gold and through Kelly's influence he becomes more confident in being a worthy successor to his dad. Meanwhile Brian respects Kelly in and out costume and teaches her how to have fun. Not to mention Kelly interacts with someone outside her circle, which is a welcome change from the trope of only dating someone within your circle.

- Janus Lee x Lenora Rose: Another pair from the same show as Paine and Qiu Jin, there's not much to say on them other than it's one of the most tragic couples. Lenora died a long time ago due to circumstances beyond her & Mr. Lee's control and it's her death that was the catalyst to his gradual descent into evil. As the show goes on we see glimpses of their life together and realize that Lenora is more than the Ghost, she was someone with her own dreams and motivations. She and Janus were outcasts who found companionship in each other, and were able to build a life together using their hard-earned resources to help others. Even in the last few months of her life she didn't go down without a fight, wanting her legacy to be one of love and hope. It's her memory that may be the key to redeeming Mr. Lee in the future of A.T.O.M.

- Ben Florian x Paige: Again not much else to say but they're the antithesis of Mal x Ben. One thing that bothers me about Mal & Ben is that they are supposed to be equals when it's pretty darn obvious from the scenes they were not. With PaigeBen it's clear that they ARE equals who respect each other. Ben's agency isn't reduced to just love interest, he has someone he has good communication with and wants to see him succeed. Paige has someone who shares her interests and see her more than just that One American Newbie. They LEARN to work together without love potions involved. Plus we haven't had a commoner Disney Princess in a while so Paige fills in as someone who works her way into high status then uses that status to help others with Ben at her side.

That's enough of my Canon x OC OTPs! I hope to explore them more throughout the year :) I work hard to flesh out my OCs and their romantic storylines as if they're real 💚😌

I do have KayLeo week planned for Feb 14 to Feb 21 so don't be shocked when I start posting rottmnt stuff or art of Kaysha! Anyways these are my personal ships that I enjoy despite the lack of content I made of them, so hopefully I have the creative juices flowing to make more stuff! Final note I'm working on a platonic oc x canon meme to show that love doesn't have to be romantic. A

[violethowler]

The Elephant in the Room

In my previous essays, I have covered how the Kingdom Hearts narrative follows Maureen Murdock’s template of the Heroine’s Journey, as well as how various characters and story elements tie in with the overarching themes of the framework. Before I can continue to dig further into other themes and archetypes, there is something I need to address first. While I have avoided directly touching on the topic in my previous essays, I have now reached the point where it is no longer possible to talk about the Heroine’s Journey in full without acknowledging the elephant in the room: 

Romance.

In ongoing serialized stories such as TV shows and video games, conversations about potential relationships in canon are often treated as inconsequential to the overall story. Something that is separate from the main plot. At worst, I have seen fans who openly center a ship in their analysis and theories be dismissed and criticized as biased - or worse, delusional. They are treated as being so obsessed with their pairing that they try to make everything about their ship and jump on any excuse to declare that it’s viable in canon. 

Among the Kingdom Hearts fandom in particular, this has often taken the form of someone trying to dismiss other fans’ hope for a ship to be canon by saying that the series is about friendship, not romance.

While friendship is absolutely an important theme in the Kingdom Hearts series, to insist that this is mutually exclusive from depicting the development of romantic relationships ignores the continued presence of canon Disney romances in almost every game in the series. In each “main” game where Sora is playable, he has directly or indirectly been involved in getting those Disney couples together in the KH universe. So it’s not out of the realm of possibility for the series to turn the tables and give some attention to his romantic interests for a change. 

A story having other major themes is not mutually exclusive from showcasing the development of a romantic relationship. There are many popular movies, shows, books, comics, and video games in which a romantic relationship plays a central role in the narrative but there are still other plotlines going on that are equally as important as the romance. This is especially true for Disney and Square Enix.

The reason why it’s impossible to fully talk about the Heroine’s Journey without acknowledging romance elements is best encapsulated by this quote from She-Ra showrunner Noelle Stevenson about her show’s endgame pairing in an i09 interview after the release of the final season:

“The show’s not a romance show. It is about a lot of things. It’s about choice, destiny, fighting, tyrants, you know, all of these other things. I grew up with so many stories—like sci-fi and fantasy—that I was so passionate about. And it would be considered no big deal to have the hero get the girl and to have a kiss at the end, without it suddenly becoming a romance or ‘Oh, the shippers got what they wanted.’ It was just a part of the story. And to actually see it be a central part of the plot and to fulfill the arcs of the characters in a way that felt satisfying. I really want to take it beyond ‘Oh, the shippers got what they want.’ Like, it’s not just a ship for me. It is a plot point. It is the necessary conclusion of each character’s arc, separate and together.[1]”

While not every story known to follow the Heroine's Journey features a romance for the main protagonist, those that do make the romance an integral part of the narrative. It’s not something thrown in at the end to please shippers, but a central component of the story. Therefore, when analyzing a Heroine’s Journey story, it is vital to acknowledge and discuss textual support for potential romantic relationships in order to have a full understanding of the narrative.

Even if one is not aware of the Heroine’s Journey, Sora’s repeated interactions with Disney romances indicate that there is a high probability that he will be in a romantic relationship himself by the end of the series. Every story I know of that follows the Heroine’s Journey broadly adheres to a pattern in regards to how the romantic relationships of a main character are set up.

By examining the series through these patterns, we can narrow down who Sora’s endgame romantic partner will be. 

Because the themes and character dynamics emphasize resolving internal conflict through balance, the Heroine’s Journey lends itself extremely well to Beauty-and-the-Beast, rivals-to-lovers, and enemies-to-lovers relationship dynamics. A major component of the Heroine’s Journey is the main character learning to accept themselves, and since the Animus as a Shadow figure can represent the parts of themselves that they haven’t accepted yet, it is simpler to symbolize that self-acceptance via a romance with the Animus rather than attempting to build a separate relationship on top of the existing story framework.

For these reasons, the Animus is more often than not the main character’s endgame love interest, their feelings for each other made into critical aspects of their respective character arcs. The only Heroine’s Journey stories with romance that I know of where this wasn’t the case are ones where executive meddling resulted in the finale being rewritten to kill off the Animus despite established narrative set up for them to have a happy ending together[2], while the protagonist was either forced into a relationship with a different character or left single.

And like I said in previous essays, the one character in the series who fulfills all criteria for the Animus role within this storytelling framework…. 

Is Riku.

[Image Description: Sora supporting Riku as they walk toward the ocean on the Dark Margin at the end of Kingdom Hearts II. End Description.]

As mentioned in my earlier analysis, this narrative framework emphasizes the importance of balancing contrasting attributes, which fits in extremely well with Kingdom Hearts’ focus on balance between light and darkness. For stories that follow the Heroine’s Journey in a visual medium, that dichotomy is often incorporated into the characters’ look. Height differences are common, while their color schemes and outfits are designed to make them complement each other. Further adding to the focus on balance between light and darkness, the visuals of the story frame the romantic leads with imagery associating each one with light or darkness to create Yin-Yang symbolism when they are finally in balance. 

In Re: Chain of Memories, Vexen openly calls Riku the “Hero of Darkness[3]” as a counterpart to Sora’s role as the “Hero of Light”, and their combination attack in Kingdom Hearts II utilizes moves that reflect both elements. In the Ultimania for the original game, Tetsuya Nomura said that Riku’s look was intentionally designed to balance Sora’s[4], and the contrast between their respective color schemes is maintained in each of their new outfits. In Kingdom Hearts II and Dream Drop Distance, Riku wears white and blue, while Sora in those same games wears black and red. Two different pairs of contrasting colors. Kingdom Hearts III has them both in outfits that are primarily black and grey, but still emphasize the blue and red that have been part of their respective outfits since the first game. 

In a Heroine’s Journey, the love interest is typically an active character in the story and usually serves as the deuteragonist. This fits with Riku having been a mandatory playable character in multiple games since 2004. In addition, series producer Shinji Hashimoto said before the release of the HD 1.5 Remix collection[5] that the main focus of the series is how Sora and Riku develop both as individuals and as a pair, which fits with how the central conflict of the Heroine’s Journey revolves around the dynamic between the Protagonist and their Animus. 

A common viewpoint held by many fans of the series is that Kairi is Sora’s love interest, and it’s not hard to see why people get that impression. He has sacrificed himself to save her in two separate games now. He’s charged enemies head on in order to rescue her whenever she’s been captured. He even got down on his knees and begged for her freedom when Saix demanded he show how important she was to him. Multiple characters have talked about how special she is to him, and Roxas refers to her as “that girl he(Sora) likes.” 

However, there are multiple elements in the narrative that point to them not being the endgame romance. Kingdom Hearts III foreshadows the final shot of them sitting on the paopu together at the end of the game with Sora disappearing from the cover of the 100 Acre Wood storybook, textually framing Winnie the Pooh as a parallel to Kairi. While many fans regarded their sharing paopu fruits in the base game as the beginning of a relationship between them, he still only refers to her as a friend in Re:Mind, and even compares his bond with her to the bond between Ventus and Chirithy. 

Sora also does not treat his promises to her with the seriousness he would if they were going to end up together. The promises to return her lucky charm and to come back to her that he makes in the first game are never treated as anything urgent when he awakens in Kingdom Hearts II. Instead, he declines the opportunity to return to the islands and check in with her in favor of searching for Riku. When Kairi says in The World That Never Was that they’ll be together every day, Sora agrees, yet he was content to spend the rest of his life on the dark beach at the end of the game as long as he was with Riku. 

Meanwhile, the most consistent theme regarding Kairi in relation to the Destiny Islands trio is the idea of childhood friends drifting apart as they get older[6][7]. This is particularly highlighted in Kingdom Hearts III, with Kairi writing letters to Sora that she never sends, thereby keeping her thoughts to herself. Merlin also emphasizes this when he talks about forging new connections after Sora’s visit to 100 Acre Wood. This parallel frames the ending of Re:Mind as the two of them recognizing they’ve drifted apart and choosing to put in the effort to renew their friendship by spending time together.

On a structural level, her portrayal does not fit with how love interests are typically depicted in the Heroine’s Journey, both as an individual and in relation to the main protagonist. There is no contrast between her and Sora’s designs or roles the way there is between his and Riku’s. Her color scheme is predominantly pink, which does not have the same contrast with Sora’s red as Riku’s blue. Because she’s a Princess of Heart, there is no dark and light contrast, and the combination attack she shares with Sora in Re:Mind only utilizes light-based moves. It took 17 years after her first appearance in the series for her to be made a playable character, and even then, playing as her is not mandatory. They are never portrayed as equals, and she is not an active force in his emotional growth. 

The Heroine’s Journey was crafted for narratives revolving around identities that have been Othered by society for one reason or another. Murdock designed her template as a tool to help women deal with being shamed by society for expressing and pursuing their desires. In a similar way, LGBTQ+ people also face stigma from society for expressing and pursuing their desires. So it makes perfect sense that a framework for narratives of people overcoming internalized stigma against important parts of themselves would be ripe for stories featuring LGBTQ+ protagonists of any gender.

As mentioned in previous essays, stories that follow the Heroine’s Journey challenge the biases and blind spots of the audience. A relationship between Kairi and Sora does not challenge anything because she has largely been regarded as the endgame love interest by default since the beginning. Meanwhile, a romantic relationship between Sora and Riku challenges players to recognize heteronormativity within themselves and in the media around them. It challenges people to examine the lens through which they perceive the story and rethink how they look at what’s happening in the narrative.

In summary, the portrayal of Kairi and her bond with Sora is not consistent with how love interests are commonly depicted in the Heroine’s Journey, while the portrayal of Riku and his bond with Sora is. If Sora’s story is going to continue on this storytelling formula to the end, the structure of the Heroine’s Journey narrative leaves Riku as the only thematically viable candidate for the role of endgame love interest. 

Now, as some people bring up in conversations about Soriku, there is a potential obstacle in the form of corporate executives. It is entirely possible that Disney will drag their heels and try to force the development team to downplay or remove any open same-sex relationship the series may try to depict. They do not have a strong track record of LGBTQ+ representation that isn’t a minor character who only appears for one scene. Given that their last IP to follow the Heroine’s Journey - the Star Wars sequel trilogy - crashed and burned at the end, executive meddling is my greatest fear for this franchise.

But the thing to keep in mind is that Tetsuya Nomura is stubborn as hell. One of the reasons the long gap between Kingdom Hearts II and Kingdom Hearts III was because he was holding out for permission to include Pixar movies in the game, outright refusing to start work on KH3 until they were given that go ahead[8]. If you want further proof of how stubborn he can be, this is how he described the meeting where he first pitched the series to Disney in a 2012 interview with the late president of Nintendo[9]:

Iwata: Their ideas were different from yours, naturally…

Nomura: Yes. They appeared to believe that we would make whatever they wanted us to make and came up with rather specific requests such as, "We'd like the game to feature this character." They were really excited, explaining their ideas... To be honest, though, I wasn't really interested in any of them. (laughs) 

Both: (laughter)

Iwata: You wanted to borrow Disney's characters in order to make a new game that could compete with Mario 64, and you already had a vision of what this game would look like. I suppose their ideas didn't fit in with this vision.

Nomura: They didn't, no. In the end, I actually stopped a presentation halfway through. We didn't have that much time, and it looked like it was all going to get taken up by various Disney presentations. So, I interrupted them and told them the conclusion by saying, "I won't make such games."

Talk about nerves of steel. This man basically said “we do this my way, or we don’t do it at all” TO MOTHERFORKING DISNEY, AND. HE. WON. If there is any human being with enough force of will to make the Mouse House cave in and allow the depiction of an openly LGBTQ+ relationship in the Kingdom Hearts series, it is Tetsuya Nomura.

I cannot say with 100% certainty how things will go. But everything I know about storytelling patterns and narrative structure is telling me that Kingdom Hearts is a textbook Heroine’s Journey with a romance between Sora and Riku at its core. A relationship between the protagonist and the Animus does not truly begin until the “Integration” stage at the end of the Journey, and we are rapidly approaching the point in the narrative where the two leads traditionally become aware of and acknowledge their feelings in order to be on the same page for the finale.

Sources: 

[1] “She-Ra's Noelle Stevenson Tells Us How Difficult It Was to Bring Adora and Catra Home” May 18, 2020

https://io9.gizmodo.com/she-ras-noelle-stevenson-tells-us-how-difficult-it-was-1843419358

[2] “Death of a Dark Youth, Desecration of the Animus”; December 20, 2018. https://www.teampurplelion.com/death-of-a-dark-youth/

[3] Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories. Square Enix, 2007. 

[4] “A Look Back: Kingdom Hearts Ultimania Gallery Comments Part 1″; August 30, 2019;

https://www.khinsider.com/news/A-Look-Back-KINGDOM-HEARTS-Ultimania-Gallery-Comments-Part-1-15519

[5] “How Kingdom Hearts III Will Grow Up With Its Players;” September 24, 2013.

https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/09/25/how-kingdom-hearts-iii-will-grow-up-with-its-players.

[6] “E3 2018: Tetsuya Nomura on If Kingdom Hearts 3 Is the End of Sora's Story”; June 14, 2018.

https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/06/14/e3-2018-tetsuya-nomura-on-if-kingdom-hearts-3-is-the-end-of-soras-story

[7] “Character’s Report Vol. 1 Translations”; Jul 16, 2014

https://www.khinsider.com/forums/index.php?threads/characters-report-vol-1-translations.195560/

[8] “Edge Magazine Features Kingdom Hearts III Cover Story”; January 9, 2019. https://www.khinsider.com/news/Edge-Magazine-Features-Kingdom-Hearts-III-Cover-Story-14331

[9] “Iwata Asks: Nintendo 3DS: Third Party Game Developers, Volume 12: Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop Distance], Part 2: It’ll definitely be fun”; April 2012. 

https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/3ds/creators/11/1

[monkey-network]

The Glory of No More Heroes

Who would’ve thought a Wii game by Suda 51 would be the best slap in the face. Let’s not beat around the bush, No More Heroes throws you right in. When Travis says, “It’s Game Time”, he means it. The swinging of the light saber, the splatters of blood, the essence of this badass looking weeb fills me with joy every time I play. NMH is a game I cherish and I wanted to express why.

The Touchdown

Honestly when I think of a realistic take on an anime anti-hero, I immediately think Travis Touchdown. He’s basically Saitama from One Punch Man except not invincible, considerate, bald. He doesn’t have a luxurious status compared to everyone he meets and he’s fine with that. Then again, they both have this subconscious pride in either looking for a challenge or, for Travis, becoming #1. Then again, where Saitama’s story is about understanding the humility of being a hero, Travis’s story is more macabre with how far you’re willing to go with your aspirations.

Travis isn’t facing any bad guys that are out to take over something like the city or whatever. They’re cantankerous mercenaries where the job of assassin has driven them to the deep end. Travis goes down the same path, the garden of madness, but in a different light; he at first gets a kick out of facing his enemies like its a movie where he’ll get the girl at the end, but soon enough empathizes with the idea that not everyone feel the same way and everyone has their own goals in this gig. 

Beyond the finale, he doesn’t really possess a chip on his shoulder in the first game and that clashes with everyone that’s been through a lot. The game does a great job veiling the haunting spiral Travis goes through by making his attitude towards it all eclipse the harsh reality of his journey. He’s becoming a remorseless killer, but that never gets in the way of the thrill you and Travis gets when slashing down some dudes or talking shit. 

At the same time, he’s not a complete asshole in spite of how sees this game. This is generally where we have to talk about...

The Ranked Fights

Every assassin in NMH is memorably unique, some more than others but they nonetheless capture the point of the game, without ‘em this would’ve been a standard beat ‘em up all things considered. With the exclusion of one, the assassins aren’t as enthused with their job as Travis is and even that excluded one, Destroyman, takes it to a level far beyond Travis’s likeness. That is the thing, all of them are Travis yet taken to differing yet equally extreme turns as assassins. For Letz Shake and Dr. Peace, it’s a euphoric calling. For Shinobu, it’s about the honor of the fight. For Bad Girl and Holly Summers, it’s all they think they have for a life. Each believing that being an assassin was their exit to something better but, aside Shinobu who was spared, had their fate sealed until Travis showed up. It’s kinda how Batman internalizes his “No Kill Rule”, you kill one and you’re potentially going to continue until someone stops you. And really, you probably appreciate every one of them. A couple fall by the wayside personality wise, but most the assassins has their moment before and/or after that makes fighting them feel gratifying. It’s almost impossible to hate them and they each subconsciously welcome you to give it your all.

This helps makes Travis a great protagonist. Moments like when he holds the mic for the defeated Dr. Peace, when he spares Shinobu, especially when he feels remorse for not killing Holly himself are what shows the true man in him, the growing protagonist. He tends to be cocksure, but isn’t a full on scumbag to everyone and is never rewarded for his shitty moments. Travis has an ego, literally rising in the ranks, but he doesn’t consider himself so above the people he fights. He’s kinda the hero in a way of giving each assassin a humble end, a sense of satisfaction that comes with the 1v1 challenge. Travis doesn’t cheats his way to the top and the assassins aren’t stripped of their humanity regardless of the downward spiral that came with the job. 

He is no hero and the people you fight aren’t either hence the title, but at the end of the day, as badass as everyone is, everyone is human wanting that paradise. But, with that want comes...

The Work

I often think of No More Heroes as a balanced Male Power Fantasy. DMC5 and Bayonetta are ones where while the action is earnest and the cutscenes are spectacle gold, the joy lacks in everything else. NMH fixes that by making exploration genuinely fun to do. The jobs, the challenges, the training, the clothing you’re able to get, all pay just as well in investment as getting to the main event. I seriously get in the zone when I finally maxed out my combos, got the final beam katana, and get to the timed challenges where I’m slaying as fast as possible. The previous two I mentioned are already badass in their own right and it’s mostly up to you, the player, to make them dance with your gameplay. But I say NMH takes that extra step, while having simpler controls, to where it’s not just your gameplay that makes you feel epic, but taking your time to gradually make that epicness come to fruition not just with earning money but doing the odd jobs and exploring the city.

Santa Destroy feels like more of a character and you feel better integrated in that world than you admittedly do in most hack and slash games. It also helps that getting to the next ranked fight isn’t as frustrating in the grind. There are a couple stinker jobs and assassin gigs but they all pay well that beyond getting to the first event with Dr. Peace, earning money never felt like an insufferable chore. Once again, this plays well into Travis as a character. He’s not immediately given immense power locked away inside him; he earns it all. You train him, you collect those balls for the special moves, you earn money for those beam katanas, he’s strong enough to suplex and pile drive people effortlessly, but you know he’s capable of becoming better. The only thing you generally got no charge is the motorbike which honestly is the sweetest damn thing in the game. It adds up to a character that, in a typical modern environment, you make happen.

The Beauty

I say the genius of No More Heroes is its portrayal of everything. You’re not the chosen one destined for greatness, you’re an average anime lover that got his fighting skills from VHS tapes and won a weapon from eBay. You’re not fighting in grandiose locations but everyday buildings like a school, parking lot, the beach, train station, warehouse, etc. And again, you’re not fighting chaotic supernatural enemies but people with lives that just happen to love killing people. NMH makes a playground out of the mundane without making it cynical or boring; honestly reminiscent of home movies where you’d have epic battles take place in the backyard or mall lot but given that legit bloody action flare of video games. With the humor and music being the jimmies and cherry on top. 

This is why 1 works far better than the sequel but that’s for another time. 

Suda overall sets you in an believable environment to go nuts in but doesn’t sucker punch you when shit gets real. He gives you exactly what you crave but doesn’t make you out to be an emotionless killing machine. The synergy between the player and Travis is what makes NMH great, potentially underrated, and it never shames you for enjoying it. Even when there are no more heroes on every front, 

You still feel like one in the end

The Conclusion

So yeah, I love this game. It’s one where I’m just into playing it in one sitting and as I grew up, came to appreciate more than before. It isn’t the most complex unless you really dive into Suda51′s “Kill the Past” lore but doesn’t need to be. Like I said before, compared to most big titles nowadays, this one jumps right in and whether you find it deep it or not, it’s all compelling. It’s up there as a favorite with Great Teacher Onizuka where it’s an underrated celebration of the no shits given badass counter part of pop culture while having some meaningfulness in what it actually says. I’m glad I got into this game series.