#really impressed with ritchie too

[torisprlng]

💬

[vanessagillings]

Please talk about your favorite animated movies and what makes them special to you! I'm really curious about what you enjoyed about them both in the past and now?

haha, okay you asked!

I LOVE animated movies. My theory on this is that it took me a long time to emotionally relate to most media growing up, where I felt next to nothing watching most movies and shows as a young kid, and didn't relate to books until I was quite a lot older (I read picture books until I was around 10, and then suddenly in middle school, I hopped right to adult novels like 1984 and the entire Darkover series by Marion Zimmer Bradley, ha). But even before I emotionally related to fiction, I really enjoyed watching animation. It was nice to look at, and I enjoyed watching everything move and change. I grew up in the 90's where animated movies were largely 2D, and I spent hours watching and re-watching my favorite movies just studying how the characters moved -- it's definitely a lot of where I got my understanding of human expressions from. But I also think as I got older and started to relate more to fiction, animation was easier to parse emotionally than live action. The body language is clear. The stories are direct and not as forgiving of bad human behavior (I get frustrated sometimes with the defeatism in adult media, that assumes that People Just Act Badly, and that just needs to be accepted). Facial expressions are also exaggerated and more stylized -- think of a single arched eyebrow, for example, an expression that's commonly drawn to express one particular emotion in animation/illustration but which you next to never see on a real human face. My first introduction into serious reading was also manga -- a highly visual medium -- which uses a lot of the same tactics stylistically as western animation: big, expressive faces, bold gestures and big stories. Compare manga with western comics being printed at the time and it's even more obvious to me why I didn't particularly like comics until I was given manga as an option -- and thankfully I lived close to a kinokuniya, so I could spend all my allowance on untranslated books and magazines, which is also where I learned Japanese (もうたくさん忘れてしまいましたけど).

As far as my favorite movies? THAT IS SO HARD. The first animated movie that BLEW MY MIND was The Lion King. I saw it in theaters when I was eight and I was obsessed; it was definitely one of my first special interests. I know that entire movie line by line, frame by frame, and I had the stuffed animals and the trading cards and the clothes (man, was I teased for those clothes!). My other favorite movies as a kid were The Land Before Time, American Tale, and The Secret of NIMH (I was a big Don Bluth fan!) which have left deep impressions on how to approach storytelling for children; I warn you, I go hard on emotions for kids, because I needed that as a kid, and I know I'm not alone. Some of my other favorites are anything Miyazaki but especially Howl's Moving Castle (I relate to Sophie a lot), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (what I watch when I'm In A Mood), Ratatouille (a huge source of echolalia for my husband and me, we often detect nuttiness, let me tell you), Wallace and Gromit and Fantastic Mr Fox, which I watch every fall as an autumnal tradition. Even as an adult who likes live action, too, I still tend to like slightly over the top directors like Wes Anderson and Guy Ritchie, or movies that are highly cinematic like Road to Perdition, which is still one of my favorite films of all time.

In my opinion, animation is a super important medium outside of it being a very beautiful one. I truly believe it helped me access and understand emotion better as a child, and as an adult, it's a massive source of inspiration in my own work 💛

(Sorry for length, but you did ask!)

[sergeifyodorov]

plz share the willy xenophobia discussion at your leisure i would love to read about it

Right. So.

Willy was drafted in 2014, a top-ten pick with legacy pedigree, and unlike the other two in Toronto's Big Three, took a little longer to develop -- Marner spent his D+1 in the OHL before coming up, Matthews made the team right away, but Willy spent time in the SHL and about a year and a half in the Marlies before joining at the end of the 15-16 season, after Marner was drafted but before Matthews was. Needless to say, expectations of him weren't quite as high, but he was firmly expected to be part of the Big Rebuild, too.

He's also Swedish. The first Europeans in the NHL were Swedish, and to this day the highest proportion of non-North Americans is Swedish. However, in order to understand the Swedes, we have to talk about the Russians.

The 1972 Summit Series is probably the most important single event in the history of hockey -- eight games, the first true best-on-best in the world, since the NHL and the Olympics have always had a fraught relationship and they weren't allowed to attend. If we really wanted to talk about the Summit Series, we could be here for years, but, the point: on this particular world stage, it was finally understood that Europeans -- Russians, but everyone else, too -- played a different style of hockey, one that emphasized a side-to-side possession-based game instead of the Canadian dump-and-chase style. The Euro style involves far less checking. And less fighting.

North American (largely Canadian, but nonetheless) hockey has always had a culture of hypermasculinity around it, and this relative lack of violence, as well as pre-existing stereotypes of the time, gave the impression that Europeans were "soft."

Back to Willy. Go back to look at draft-era Willy, before he learns how to grow facial hair -- not Mitch's baby face, but not Auston's full-grown jawline. A layer of puppy fat that disguises all but the most defined of his muscles. Silky blond hair and a dopey smile. He dresses expensively, breaks into fits of giggles in interviews, doesn't seem to take anything as seriously as he should. Because this is Toronto, and we feel as if we are about to enter a new golden age, we expect the most out of our prospects -- solemnity, hard work, not a flaxen-haired nepotist idiot. Especially not a soft flaxen-haired nepotist idiot.

Willy Nylander, raised and trained on a different continent, doesn't hit much, preferring to carry his puck in than dump it. He's speedy, patient with a shot, would rather make a dangerous chance than one through three lanes of traffic. He doesn't fight, doesn't get mad, scores less when the team's really going, and he held out to the last possible moment in his RFA negotiations. Every single one of these drives people mad -- people here trailing all after Don Cherry.

If you're not familiar with Don Cherry, imagine the worst Leafs uncle you could possibly realize, give him opinions of similar attitude on the rest of the NHL, and then understand that he had a national platform for decades. Cherry, fervent nationalist that he is, touted the "tough" Canadian forechecking style, adored players who would walk off injuries -- never mind their lives afterwards -- and once expressed his disdain for visors (you know, the thing that... protects your eyes... and a lot of your face...) by saying that only the Europeans and Francophones liked them. (He also got kicked off of Hockey Night in Canada for anti-immigrant statements. Yee haw.)

Cherry hated Nylander the entire time, explicitly citing his Swedishness (and implying a lack of toughness, or winning quality, which he equated) as a reason that the Leafs would never win with him. Here's an article from right around draft day with Cherry's opinion -- he says the Leafs, should they choose to contend, should forgo Europeans and instead take Canadians. He also cites Ritchie's high penalty-minute count as a valuable item. (I don't know about you, but generally I think regularly putting your team on the penalty kill is a detriment, not a strength).

Furthermore, there's a poll at the end of this article asking the reader if they think Cherry was right. Most people think he was. He was hugely popular not only because he was a charismatic figure (I keep talking about him as if he's dead; he's not, just no longer working) but because his ideas were popular. People believed, and still very much do, that Swedishness is softness and that softness is bad. And as -- as a Leaf -- arguably one of the most visible Swedes in the NHL, one of those tasked with shouldering the weight of the most known franchise, Willy bore a lot of it.

I think part of the reason I didn't mention it in the original post was because unlike Mitch, Willy doesn't seem to let it get to him a lot -- he's a blissfully oblivious Barbie-doll idiot -- and, again, because expectations on him weren't quite as high. That being said, it's still important to discuss imho !

[lauren-no-why]

how about dale redmayne for the character ask?? :]

YEAH DALE MY BOY DALE

I have so many thoughts and I am going to try not to spend all night writing this even though it's sorely tempting. It's surprising to me just how much we can pull from the little we've been given and like some idiot dog I've taken that and run off with it while shaking it in my mouth

First impression: Pretty sure the first I became aware of his existence is Fool for Love, which is tricky because Buck is the world's least reliable narrator so it's really hard to know how much of that video to trust (and also confusing that they cast Stevin here as Dale, I... have to assume because it was just convenient but in retrospect after watching Vide Noir this could also represent some real confusion on Buck's part I guess). I guess the best I can say is that he was intriguing and I was a quick fan but also like, there wasn't much more to say. Some point afterward I became aware that he's the writer for all of the Phantom Riders' music and boy that is where the fun starts.

Impression now: Dale my beloved mess, Dale I feel so bad, Dale!! You keep losing people!!! god

Basically, here we have a guy who is clearly pretty brilliant at songwriting, both in terms of instrumentation and lyrics. He has to have a ton of creativity, intelligence, and passion to pull this off, I mean, consider all of the Phantom Riders' tracks and work out how those lyrics could have come from the mind of a Latino kid growing up in East LA in the 50s-60s, where the state was not exactly prioritizing their education. It would have taken an enormous amount of drive to shrug that off and start a band and write songs like these and make that work somehow (and certainly people did - Ritchie Valens might be one of the most well known today but there were many others).

Somehow he's able to balance that with evidently some kind of leadership status in the World Enders (both he and Alex have been named leaders, and since they're brothers, possibly co-leaders? that's how I interpret it but there are other options, like Dale left most of the leadership to Alex so he could pursue music, perhaps). Whether he's top dog or not, if we can trust Fool for Love at all he has some kind of higher status and a close circle of trusted folks who will fight by his side. Between these two facts, gang leader and rock musician, he probably has a pretty charismatic personality that lends itself well to leadership and stage performance, on top of the clear intelligence and creativity the music shows us.

And then! Somewhere in here, his brother is murdered, and Rigo (the band's drummer so presumably also a good friend) goes missing. A lot of the song lyrics seem to be a response to Johnnie's death in some way. My heart goes out to this poor dude so much because he lost a lot but the World Enders do truck on with their nihilism and he'll cope in whatever way he's able while accepting that death is just another fact of life even if it fucking sucks when it's your little brother and who knows if Rigo is dead or alive now too.

What? Oh that was supposed to be my impression now. I have so much impression.

Favorite moment: We are shown very little of him in action but I'm pleased that Miguel gets to briefly and temporarily depict him having a hell of a good time on stage in the underground club in the movie. I would love a whole fictional recorded live performance because the guy must absolutely have so much stage presence. Alternatively please give me more of his non-music side as delightfully violent gang leader alongside his brother. This is now a wishlist of moments.

Idea for a story: I'm interested in the balance between public and private life when you have someone who is a rock musician known well enough to have been on TV for a live performance in the 60s, and also absolutely a notorious criminal. I know obviously that this is a real scenario for a lot of folks these days but most current gang members that I am aware of who are releasing music are mostly doing a lot of self-promotion on, say, youtube. The social media and music industry environments today are very different from how they were in the 60s - there would have been a lot less opportunity for everyone to try to make it big back then, I feel like, meaning that somehow Dale is getting on using his real name and face and everything on television performing and like, there were fewer TV channels then, he has an opportunity to be a household name for his music, and then somehow he is able to step off stage and slip his black jacket and knife back on and get to business carjacking or whatever. Aside from "why has he not been arrested after a gig yet", what is that shift like, from street to stage and back? I don't know if I'll write that but it's an interesting thought to explore.

Unpopular opinion: Man if anyone has popular opinions about him to begin with I don't know them.

Favorite relationship: Well, like I said with Alex, his brothers. This trio is just so much trouble and I need to know more. Unlike with Alex, Johnnie doesn't mention Dale by name in the film (which is weird but hey I didn't write the script) - but it's obvious he still has a lot of affection for his brother's band, and vice versa Johnnie is on the cover of the Phantom Riders' album Black Brained in between two unnamed members, which may well be in honor of him after his death, so, there's a lot of love there, once again.

Favorite headcanon: Oh you want even more headcanon do you? Cool. I write Dale as the smug, cocky, very self-assured middle brother. The one who, unlike the other two, actually tries to keep up with the news, who has probably already burned his draft card while laughing hilariously about the audacity of the government to ask that of him while they give nothing in return, and who is very visibly a womanizer while quietly treating himself to pretty boys on the side. It's sex, drugs, and rock and roll all the time and you can't and won't stop him, and if you don't notice that he's smarter than he lets on, all the better, he doesn't give a single shit what you think. The World Enders are his family and he will fight fiercely for all of them, and meanwhile he'll play guitar while working on music at any hours he pleases and fuck you if you think you get to complain about that, take it or move out.

I love Dale. A lot. Oh and he also has great tattoos. Those will get posted soon.

[lesvegas]

ritchie’s🎃💀 ABCs of Horror Movie Marathon!! 💀🎃

Horror movie challenge prompted by @quintsmachete

Day Three - C is for Cloverfield (2008)

In the seventh grade, a kid newer than me would bring up this movie at least once a week. Any request for suggestions on activities was always met with "let's watch Cloverfield!" followed by annoyed groans from everyone else. I genuinely think he kept a Cloverfield DVD in his bag at all times because the one time, the one time our teacher caved in, he just happened to have brought it to school and was ready to go. We got about 5 minutes into the movie before the teacher ordered him to shut it off because the opening was a house party scene where someone probably mentioned sex or drugs.

After a cursory google, I discovered that a lot of people think this movie was way over-hyped back in the day, but I was too out of touch to have seen any of that, so I went into this with relatively tempered expectations. All I had to go off of was the trailer and two semester's worth of hype from one classmate from a decade and a half ago. So was whatshisname right about this movie being totally awesome?

Yes. He was extremely right. And I just KNOW he was seething when we were forced to stop watching just 2 minutes before it got good.

I always wanted The Blair Witch Project (1999) to be my first found footage movie, but I honestly have no regrets seeing this one first. It might not be the origin of the genre, but it's easy to see how it helped popularize it. The whole movie flew by and I was having a blast the entire time save for maybe the first five minutes or so and I was genuinely impressed by so much of it.

I was honestly shocked that the entire film (save for the opening and closing credits) was from the perspective of the exact same camera, even when it came to scenes that were non-linear. I was expecting there to be some non-'recorded' scene or a cut to another camera at any moment and was pleasantly surprised when the movie ended entirely contained within the one tape.

Through most of the movie, I felt invested in watching the main characters go through all this and wanted to see at least one of them make it out alive. I didn't fall in love with them enough to get disappointed when some died, but I did find them more relatable than a lot of other horror/disaster/monster movie protagonists. Off-camera and mentioned deaths felt like a genuine loss, too.

I also really liked how realistic and thus kinda fucking scary it all felt. Most of the choices made and logic followed felt reasonable, and any place you could think to escape through like bridges or the subway or shops and buildings were all tried and proven to be unsafe. And while some of the CGI hasn't aged the best, I'd say most of the effects fucking ruled and had weight to them, especially early on.

Genuinely way better than I was expecting and I'm glad I saw it. I will be getting it on DVD and keeping it in my work bag at all times just in case there's an opportunity to suggest watching it.

This one easily gets 5 fuckin clovers outta five babey 🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀

[buggy-samaaa]

S/I Part 1

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8

Audience: *weakly applauding when Buggy enters the ring*

Me: *clapping wildly* *continues clapping and whoo-ing even after Mohji puts the "applause" sign down*

Buggy: ok who's the goddamn CHUCKLEFUCK that is MOCKING ME RIGHT NOW?! HUH??!

Me, yelling from the crowd: ME! I MEAN -- I'M NOT MOCKING -- I SWEAR -- I'M JUST A REALLY BIG FAN!

Buggy: Well! Finally, someone who understands their place! CABAJI! BRING THEM HERE

Cabaji: *does*

Buggy: What's your name, pal?

Me: *speechlessly grinning* *can't talk rn* *too overwhelmed*

Buggy: You're taking up precious time, kid, just tell me your name so we can get on with the show

Me: 😀

Buggy: Great thanks GIVE IT UP FOR THE ONLY ONE HERE WITH AN OUNCE OF TASTE!

Audience: *applauds stiltedly*

Buggy: *turns me around, detaches hands and pushes me back to my seat* *reattaches hands and wipes them on his shirt* Alright... anyway... ... ...Goddamnit I'M THROWN OFF, NOW! DO-OVER! PLACES, EVERYONE! FUCK!

——

Later

Buggy: You've been great, folks! Truly a CAPTIVE... audience! Hahahaha! See you again tomorrow! Buh-bye now! *Turns to leave the ring, sees me waving frantically and sighs* WHAT?

Me: Buggy-- Sir-- Captain-- can I have your autograph??

Buggy: Heh. Sure, sure. *he pulls out his wanted poster, signs it, then hands it to me* Anything else I can do ya for, kid?

Me: 😀

Buggy: You have a problem. *turns to leave*

Me: LET ME JOIN YOUR CREW!

Buggy: *slowly turns back around* Ha?

Me: 🫡 I swear my allegiance to the Buggy Pirates!!! 🫡

Buggy: HA?!

Me: Please!! 🙏 My captain!! 🙇

Buggy: *stunned* *crosses arms, grins and shakes his head* You've got spunk! But. It takes more than spunk to join MY crew. MOHJI!

Mohji: Captain!

Buggy: Take this one to the ship.

Mohji: *unfastens chains and pulls me along with him*

Buggy: We'll talk later, peanut gallery. Enjoy the brig! Bye-eeee!

——

Mohji: To be honest *walking me along*

Me: Yeah?

Mohji: We don't really have a brig. It's more Ritchie's room since he can be pretty destructive when I'm away. *continues walking me toward the ship*

Me: Well where are you taking me then?

Mohji: Captain's quarters. 

Me: SO DIRECT--

Mohji: What?

Me: Isn't that... Buggy's... boudoir?

Mohji: Uh... yes?

Me: EEEHEHEHEHE

Mohji: He's going to regret this so much

——

45 minutes of being chained to a chair in Buggy's Boudoir later 

Me: *at the end of the chain, trying to snoop in everything I can*

Buggy: *opens door, sees me, jumps back and shrieks, having completely forgotten me*

Me: CAPTAIN 🙇

Buggy: STOP THAT!

Me: SIR 🫡

Buggy: You're not a part of my crew!

Me: Yet!

Buggy: *sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose* Alright, babe. What can you offer me?

Me: 😳 I can offer so much

Buggy: Why are you drooling

——

Buggy: *snaps his fingers in my face* Hey, wakey-wakey. Answer the question. What can you offer?

Me: I, um… *frantically searching for a talent* I can… draw?

Buggy: *not impressed*

Me: Oh! I could be a caricature artist for your audience!!

Buggy: *strokes his chin with a detached hand* Hm… I guess I could see how that would be useful…

Me: Yeah, you could advertise it and lure people in! Then you wouldn’t have to force anybody to—

Buggy: “FORCE”? You think people are FORCED to see my show?!

Me: Um. Well you kidnapped everybody, so. Yes?

Buggy: They like it so it doesn’t count.

Me: That’s problematic but I’ll pretend I didn’t hear it

——

Buggy: You better be able to prove that you can draw, peanut gallery, or else.

Me: *curiously* Or else… what?

Buggy: *hadn’t thought that far* You’ll… walk the plank!

Me: Right next to the dock? I could just get out of the water.

Buggy: Well obviously, I’d take you out to sea and THEN you’ll walk the plank where there’s no hope of survival!

Me: You’d be willing to put up with me for that long?? That’s so sweet :)

Buggy: Just— shut up! Show me you can draw! *shoves a paper and pen at me*

Me: Okay, fine. Jeez. *looks around for a surface*

Buggy: *sighs, turns around so I can draw on his back, but he flips his head backwards so he can see the paper as I draw*

Me: *ignoring how creepy that looks* *quickly sketches Buggy but in a caricature style, so his features are greatly exaggerated… especially his nose*

Buggy: Excuse me. What. Is this supposed to be. *he jabs his detached finger at the nose, which looks like a kickball glued to his face*

Me: A drawing of you

Buggy: DON’T PLAY STUPID!! *he turns his head back around, grabs the drawing and rips it to shreds, then stomps on it and digs his heel into the paper* *heaving breaths as he calms down* You’re lucky you’re cute. One more chance and that’s it. *presents a new paper, turns around again*

Me: *blushing a bit at his comment* *draws him again, this time with more realistically-sized features* What do you think?

Buggy: Hm. *he studies the paper and smiles a bit despite his recent outburst* *he frowns again, acting as though he isn’t actually as happy with it as he is* That’ll do. Welcome aboard, Resident Ar-teest!” *he claps me on the back, unchains me from the floor, then pins up the drawing of himself next to his mirror*

Me: YES!! WOO-HOO! Thank you thank you thank you!!! *I hug him tight, squeeze him and then let go to run around the room whooping*

Buggy: *blushes but covers up his emotions by looking angry about it* *releases anger and chuckles to himself at me* *laughs louder* That’s right! I’m the best in the East Blue! The rest of the crew could learn from your hootin’ and hollerin’!! *laughs triumphantly* *grabs my arm and tugs me toward the door, which he kicks open* ALRIGHT, MEN! MEET OUR NEWEST MEMBER… … *he falters, realizing he doesn’t know my frickin’ name*

The crew: *awkwardly watch him struggle* *a bird caws in the distance*

Me: *whispers to him*

Buggy: MO! I knew that. I was just waiting for a drumroll which NO ONE PROVIDED! *glares at crew*

Someone in the back: *starts a drumroll*

Buggy: IT’S TOO LATE NOW, DIPSHIT! *mutters to himself then turns to me* Mo, talk to Cabaji, he’ll set you up with a bed and whatever else. *he goes back to his room but stops and mentions this with a bit of embarrassment,* thanks for the drawing. *shuts the door*

——

Me: *lays down in the hammock Cabaji led me to and swings from side to side giddily* This is so awesome… I can’t believe I’m actually part of the Buggy Pirates! I’m in the Big Top RIGHT NOW! *rotates in the hammock like a high-speed rotisserie chicken* EEEE!! *stops* Wait. Something isn’t right…

Pirate failing to nap nearby: Is it that you’re talking to yourself when people are trying to sleep?!

Me: No *springs out of hammock and out the door* *runs to Buggy’s quarters and knocks like mad*

Buggy: *wrenches open the door, pissed* *gets knocked on the nose multiple times* *swats my fist away* OW! FUCK! WHAT IS IT *winces as he pats his nose, checking for blood (there isn’t any)*

Me: Ah, my bad!

Buggy: DON’T “MY BAD”—! Ugh… how does it look?

Me: It’s pretty red

Buggy: *sputters with rage at himself for walking right into that one* Just—Just—!! What do you need?!

Me: *suddenly very serious* I realized… I don’t have a clown motif.

Buggy: *straightens and looks distraught* You’re right. *grabs my shoulders* We need to fix that immediately. BOBO! 

Bobo, the ship’s tailor: Oui?

Buggy: Get Mo something to wear! Quick!

Bobo: Oui! *hauls me away to his nook of the ship, which is filled with fabrics and notions of all sorts* *he gets my measurements in seconds, holds up various fabrics to my skin, finds a color he likes, and starts to drape on his dress form*

Me: *stunned as I watch him, in mere moments, whip up a bright teal jacket with jester horns on the hood* 

Bobo: *puts the jacket on me and has me turn around for him* *he snips off a loose thread and nods* Oui.

Me: Holy shit! Wow! Thank you!!

Bobo: *beams*

Buggy: *saunters over* That’s Bobo for ya!

Me in Buggy’s eyes: *turns around in slow-motion, jester horns on the hood swaying a bit as I face him, I smile wide when I see him and my cheeks blush in his presence*

Buggy: *blushes too* Whoa.. *glances away nervously* Y-You look… Really good

Me: *reddens even more* Thanks…

Buggy: *clears throat* Yes, “thanks”… to Bobo! Thanks to Bobo you look good! Heh. Anywho. All set, now. So. *yells to the rest of the ship* LET’S CELEBRATE OUR FLASHY NEW CREWMATE! WHO WANTS BOOZE?!

Crew: *CHEERS RAUCOUSLY*

Buggy: *to me* C’mon. I’ll get us the good stuff. *grin and heads toward the ship’s store room*

Me: *chuckles and follows him down, looking forward to a fun night*

——

In the ship’s stores

Buggy: *grabs a few bottles and hands them to me* Here, this swill is for the crew. And this… *he opens a trap door and pulls out a fancy bottle of tequila* This is for us. *wiggles the bottle with a smirk*

Me: *sparkle eyes* Aaah I feel so special~ Captain Buggy~

Buggy: St-Stop being weird, don’t make me regret this!

Me: *shuts eyes but the light from the sparkles still shines through my eyelids*

Buggy: The fuck—

——

We go back up the stairs and Buggy has me hand out the bottles to a very joyful crew. I finish chatting with some of the crewmates and come back to Buggy, who has set up a couple of shot glasses for us.

Me: Alrighty, can’t wait to try this tequila! *reaches for a shot glass but Buggy snatches it away from me* Hey!

Buggy: Let’s play a game. *he has a glint of mischief in his eyes*

Me: …Were you planning this?

Buggy: *scoffs* No! *releases the shot glass and places it in front of me* “Answer or drink.”

Me: Answer what?

Buggy: That’s the name of the game. I ask a question, and you either answer it truthfully or you take a shot. And vice versa.

Me: Hm… Okay! You go first.

Buggy: Heh. Let’s start easy. How did you learn about me and my crew?

Me: *drinks*

Buggy: Wh—Yo— You can’t even answer that?!

Me: I just wanted to drink.

Buggy: THAT’S NOT HOW IT WORKS!

Me: I know. My turn!

Buggy: *grumbles* Fine!

Me: What’s your favorite circus feat to perform? *assuming he’s proficient in all of them*

Buggy: *can’t even juggle* Uh… *drinks* 

Me: This is gonna be a short game.

Buggy: Are you leaving behind any family, joining my crew?

Me: Nope. I was on my own.

Buggy: No friends?

Me: Hey, it’s not your turn! Um… is this your hair? *pulls the long blue stuff coming out of his hat*

Buggy: OW! Yes! *lifts his hat to rub his pained scalp*

Me: Wow, it’s so long… *strokes it* And soft! Are these little braids? Aww…

Buggy: *stuffs hair into his hat grumpily, blushing* Shut up! Hmph. Why don’t you have friends?

Me: …

Buggy: *realizes he’s struck a nerve as I take a shot*

Me: *more serious* Why are you so curious about me?

Buggy: …

Me: *looks at him curiously as he takes a shot, avoiding my stare*

——

About three hours later

Buggy: Mmkay, it’sh my turn ag’in…

Me: Mhmm

Buggy: And thish time, you better not *hic* drink

Me: Yeh ho’kay

Buggy: *slaps table* Wouldjoo… ever… *hic* Hm.

Me: Hwhat

Buggy: Hmn. Heh. I’m too embarrasshed

Me: Hwhat??

Buggy: Nho. Nho nho nho

Me: HWHAT, D*hic*AMNIT

Buggy: Heh… wouldjoo ever… *shakes head, blushes and drinks*

Me: Huh?! ‘S zat a new rule?? Can’t ashk yew gotta drink??

Buggy: Captain sez.

Me: That’z shtoopid.

Buggy: Ashk your question alreddy

Me: Buggie… kin I…

Buggy: C’n yew… hwhat

Me: *leans closer* Kin… I… ‘m…

Buggy: *blushing as I glance at his mouth*

Me: *falls forward* Zzz

Buggy: HA?! *barely manages to catch me* *he tries to prop me back up but I just fall forward toward the table* *catches me again and gently lays my head down on the table* *sighs* *looks around the ship* *the rest of the crew is in the same state as me, all laying around and snoring* Heh… C’mon. *he manages to stand, and he pulls me off my seat* Oof— he’vier th’n I thought. *struggles and ends up dragging me to the room where my hammock is*

Me: Zzz

Buggy: *heaves me onto the hammock, which swings in an arc and plops me face-down on the floor* H’oh shit—

Me: *muffled snoring*

Buggy: *lifts me up again and is too scared to try putting me back in the hammock* M’kay, ah… *he sighs and drags me back out of the room, fumbles with the knob to his quarters, and pulls me inside, plopping me on his bed like a sack of potatoes*

Me: *smiles in my sleep and nuzzles into his pillow* Buggie…

Buggy: *blushes wildly, falls backward and scurries out of the room* *fumbles for the knob, opens the door and darts out, shutting it quietly* *exhales* G’night, Mo.

——

The next morning

Me: *stirs* Hm… Wha? *notices I’m in a nice fluffy bed* Huh?? *sits up and glances around* *face drops and I blush when I realize I’m in Buggy’s room* *leaps out of bed in a karate position, not sure what to expect next* *relaxes pose when I realize I’m alone* How did I end up in here…

Buggy, who slept outside the door: *is awoken by getting stepped on the face by Bobo* GAH *punches him in the nuts on reflex*

Bobo: HORK *doubles over and trembles* Je suis désolé, C-captain

Buggy: *stands up quickly, has footprint on his face* SORRY AIN’T GONNA— oof… *sits back down and grips head, hangover taking over*

Me: *slams open door, which pins Buggy between the door and the wall right on his head*

Buggy: GH—HRGLE—

Me: Oh no!! *closes door and rushes to his side* Are you okay?!

Buggy: *tears in his eyes, footprint on his face, cheeks red from being smacked, nose throbbing, missing a tooth* Yeah I’m good

Me: Whew

Buggy: I’M OBVIOUSLY NOT GOOD

Me: Oh!

Buggy: *turned away* So oblivious…

——

Ten minutes later, we’ve gotten up and have started drinking coffee, which Buggy demanded Bobo to make simply because he was nearby. We both sip our coffees and sigh happily.

Me: So…

Buggy: *serenely enjoying his coffee* Hm?

Me: Did you take me to bed last night?

Buggy: *chokes* NO! Well… Yes? B-but not like THAT! *blushing, tries to focus on coffee, slurping it awkwardly*

Me: Hahaha! Why are you so flustered??

Buggy: I’M NOT— *red as a beet* *grumbles*

Me: *grinning, pats his back* I’m just messing with you! I know you’re too shy to try anything.

Buggy: SHY?! I’m not shy!! I could do… stuff!

Me: *teasing* Oh yeah? Like what?

Buggy: *mouth is a thin line as he tries to talk but can’t. He just gets redder, grunts and turns back to his coffee*

Me: HAHAHA

Buggy: Tch… *leans away with his chin in his hand, trying to hide his smile*

[sweet-baby-bird]

There's a prevailing fanon about Dean's seventeenth birthday, as outlined in John Winchester's Journal, a non-canon supplemental novel to the TV series.

The events as described in the novel go like this. John sends Dean on his first solo hunt on Dean's seventeenth birthday, which John calls a "test." The mark being the ghosts of two mission nuns who had fallen in love, been discovered, and committed suicide. The Winchesters had investigated the site, and theorized that some item belonging to the nuns is the source of the haunting. John expects Dean to handle the salt-and-burn easily. Dean returns from the hunt as expected, but John thinks he won't send him on another solo for a while. “That was a little tense,” he writes.

The popular fanon goes that John somehow caught onto the possibility that Dean is bisexual. John sent Dean on a case involving sapphic nuns as a sort of punishment, to expose Dean to queer suffering and quite literally “scare him straight.”

I think there is room for that interpretation. But I don’t really subscribe to this fanon. Nothing in the passage to me gives an indication that John is upset with Dean in any way. If this birthday story is meant to imply John disapproves of his son's queerness, then it would make sense to include a passage about John suspecting Dean is getting too close to a male friend or engaging in stereotypically gay behavior. But there is no such story, at least not in this novel. IIRC, Ritchie is the only male friend of Dean's John mentions. And that's seven years later, when Dean and Richie hunt a succubus together. Neither the novel nor the show give the impression that Dean and Richie are romantically/sexually involved (not that I'm opposed to that headcanon). John comments at times on Dean's womanizing, and he laments that dragging Dean into the hunter lifestyle has prevented Dean from settling down with a woman and being a father. There is something to the idea that John is invested in Dean performing normative heterosexuality, but I feel like John would have brought it up if Dean ever strayed from that. Also, nothing about how John writes about the nuns implies disgust or disapproval of their being queer. He is matter-of-fact. At worst, kind of cold. Bigotry can take more covert forms than, say, shouting slurs, but I don't read John as being averse to queerness here. I also don't see this as being any more cruel to the nuns than the Winchesters' other ghost hunts.

Again, I do think this popular reading of the novel is a valid one. It is interesting that Alex Irvine, the author, has Dean confront queer "monsters" during this formative moment in his adolescence. He may well have been trying to say something about Dean's relationship to queerness here. John does not elaborate on what makes the hunt "tense," so it's left up to the reader's imagination. I just think interpreting it as John's homophobic attack on his son requires making some assumptions. John Winchester abused his sons and did a shit job of raising them, but I don't interpret him as the incarnation of every possible evil. I think he's a complex and interesting character. So that's why I'm kind of bummed that Dean's seventeenth birthday and the "homophobic John" headcanon are the fandom's main takeaways from the journal. I'd really like to hear other interpretations people have of this story and of the novel as a whole.

[agentnico]

Argylle (2024) review

Mr Cavill, you sir are fine class gentleman. But that flat-top haircut is a disgrace and you know it.

Plot: Reclusive author Elly Conway writes best-selling espionage novels about a secret agent named Argylle who's on a mission to unravel a global spy syndicate. However, when the plots of her books start to mirror the covert actions of a real-life spy organization, the line between fiction and reality begin to blur.

I have noticed critics have really been harsh on this movie, with as of this writing Argylle holds a 35% review approval from Rotten Tomatoes. It’s not that bad. In fact it’s really enjoyable. Yes, it’s really dumb, but it’s also fun. Director Matthew Vaughn’s latest is gladly a crowd-pleasing action spy flick that is full of twists and bombastic set pieces, that takes inspiration from the 1973 French comedy The Man from Acapulco starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, where the novelist too was getting mixed into their fictional created spy world. Yes, there are an abundance of twists, so much so that if you really look into it there are so many logical gaps and absurd plot holes, however this movie embraces its silliness and simply tries to out-do each twist with another one, as if in a personal race of wit. Some turns are predictable, some less, but it’s all good fun and every time the story threw another narrative curveball I couldn’t help but have a smile on my face.

That’s really what this movie boils down to - it’s an irreverent over-the-top espionage blockbuster that’s a ton of fun, featuring an all-star cast of famous people, most of whom are only cameos (Dua Lipa fans please reserve your expectations), all of whom are having the best time ever and you’re enjoying the ride alongside them. Henry Cavill does his best Bond impression, however even though he’s the titular character he’s actually hardly in the movie. I’m serious, aside from the opening sequence he pops in maybe 5 minutes total in the whole film? Yep, guess that’s your first twist there. Argylle hardly has any Argylle. Nevertheless Cavill as always is a charmer, but maybe wait till Guy Ritchie’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare to get your proper 2024 fill of Henry Cavill. Dua Lipa does a dance; John Cena’s in there somewhere but I couldn’t see him (almost as if he’s, dare I say, invisible!); Catherine O’Hara excels; Bryan Cranston does the evil-dude-in-a-lair trope with the gusto of Walter White for he is indeed the one who knocks, and Samuel L. Jackson is heavily under-used, acting as only a MacGuffin to give the movie’s finale some extra stakes, though that does fall a bit flat. However the main characters of Argylle are Bryce Dallas Howard and Sam Rockwell. This is their movie. With Howard playing writer Elly Conway with a delightful spark, but it’s Sam Rockwell who’s the MVP, which shouldn’t come as a surprise as he’s great in these type of sarcastic roles. He gets one of the best lines and moments, and honestly he’s on top form.

In terms of negatives, the CGI is bad. Like astonishingly bad. There are some truly cool action sequences, but they were consistently hindered by the overused obvious green screen which was so jarring, and at times it felt like even when characters were standing just talking that they were still enveloped in CGI. Heck, this movie includes a cat which by the way adds nothing to the plot, but it’s there and for the most part it’s a CGI cat, which just looked daft. Also at over 2 hours the movie could have easily cut off a little fat and shortened its runtime, as it did overstay its welcome a little. That being said this is the most fun I’ve had with a Matthew Vaughn flick since his first Kingsman movie, and it was nice to switch off my brain and simply enjoy a silly nonsensical piece of entertainment. Oh, and the soundtrack choices throughout were great. Can never go wrong with a lil’ Barry White.

Overall score: 5/10

[terramythos]

A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Reading Notes

Full Review Here!

-while I am going into these mostly blind (literally my max exposure to Sherlock Holmes is some of the show Elementary and the Guy Ritchie films) this specific story is a little spoiled for me. Oh well -there is licherally no publication year on my copy lmao What (1887, thanks Google) Part 1 (ooo a two parter- scandalous) Chapter 1 - Mr. Sherlock Holmes -ill be real I have like no context for the afghan war except Classic British Colonialism part six billion or whatever -"the great wilderness of London" lmfao -I feel like I vaguely knew Watson was an honest to God doctor but its still surprising considering what I know of other adaptations -shout out to Holmes inventing a fictional(?) version of luminol? Which apparently was discovered early 20th century, lol. -too bad forensic evidence is still so sketchy a century and a half later, Holmes -BOY I WISH THE POLICE WERE A THING OF THE PAST, BRO. -Holmes meets Watson for the first time and almost immediately stabs himself in the finger to prove a point. The serve Chapter 2 - The Science of Deduction -"haha no way is he addicted to narcotics" oh my sweet summer child -watson: I swear I'm only super fascinated by Mr Holmes because my health sucks and I'd be bored otherwise that's it I swear. -ooh I like the observation that Holmes is basically self taught and ignorant of a lot of things people take for granted. I don't think I've gotten that impression about the character before -i mean it's impossible now not to know Holmes is a detective, but since this was the first story, I have to wonder if some original readers really didn't know going in. If so this bit would be fun because based on the character study and Watson's list of Holmes' knowledge you can figure it out yourself. -watson: man this writer is full of shit, what a moron Holmes: me? :) God that's funny -the unintentional prophecy of Holmes wanting to "make my name famous". God lmfao Chapter 3 - The Lauriston Gardens Mystery -oh hey the actual crime mystery is here -rip random American dude I guess? -goddamn that setting description really digs into a bleak tone, huh -my main observation is the apartment was seemingly abandoned if the dust is any indication, so he was not a resident but brought there. Poisoned makes sense if he was not injured -ok, lol, the Rache thing NOT being Rachel is the thing I had spoiled, and they've already dropped that in the intro chapter to the crime. So I guess I don't know where this is going. Fun! Chapter 4 - What John Rance Had To Tell -watson is smart actually -though I think RACHE being a red herring as Holmes suggests is way too easy -tho Holmes guessing the murderers appearance leads me to believe it's someone he knows. (Also weird that Rance is also a five letter R-E word). -could even make the argument that it could be a fucked up version where the C and H are switched and mutilated, but I have no clue why if the murderer supposedly did it -then again I also don't know why the murderer was the injured one with no sign of a struggle. Maybe a third person? Or something unrelated/accidental? OR the dead dude wasn't actually poisoned, we only have the police's word on that -OH HE SAID THE TITLE OOOOOHHHH -also Holmes seems more invested in the fun of the mystery than the fact some dude was fucking murdered, presumably by a friend based on what he said earlier Chapter 5 - Our Advertisement Brings A Visitor -watson be like "well the guy was fuck ugly so it's probably good he got murdered" like bro??? -yeah no way is this the culprit. Like we're maybe a quarter into the book. If it IS him then there's way more to it -Some Rando In Disguise It Seems -tho I have to say putting an ad out for a (potentially?) valuable piece of lost jewelry like a wedding ring would attract grifters whether they had any relation to the murder or not. Seems like a weird oversight to the plan. Chapter 6 - Tobias Gregson Shows What He Can Do -seeing how 3 different papers frame the murder, specifically political motivations, is a little funny even if I'm missing some of the context of the time. -interesting frame for the chapter, someone else telling a story to the leads. I guess it adds some variety to the presentation (and lets us see red herrings that wouldn't trip up Holmes) -some of the terminology didn't age well, which is unsurprising -- "street Arab" rather than "street urchin". -HOW THE TURNTABLES. THE PLOT THICKENS. ETC Chapter 7 - Light in the Darkness -RACHE again. Hmmmmm. Only this time it WOULD be the victim's blood, not the murderer's. Is the handwriting the same? Plus the original height observation? And the first RACHE was almost hidden, but this one seems more in the open based on what Lestrade said. -again the use of framing where one of the less capable detectives talks about what they've done and discovered to add some variety -ok so this guy was murdered in a much different way than the other, which seems odd, unless someone else did this one. -and the pills point to Stangerson killing Drebber, but then who killed Stangerson? If he was poisoned he would have been stabbed independently of that. -and why two different kinds of pills. Is one an antidote to the other, maybe? It's possible the murderer planted it in Stangerson's room, but why, if the goal was to implicate him? So it probably is actually his. -holmes just knowing and there being some plot contrivance why he can't say does kinda fizzle the stakes a little (never mind this gets resolved in like 2 pages) -but assuming he IS right, I was correct about there being 2 people... which might explain the differences in the 2 murders? -the cab driver! He was mentioned early then everyone seemingly forgot he was present around the time Drebber died. -"it's the end of the mystery!" Uh yeah except the second person is almost certainly at large and there's an entire second part to the story, Holmes. Lol. Lmao Part 2 - The Country of the Saints Chapter 1-- On The Great Alkali Plain -colonialist worldview ahoy -doyle my guy you know quite literally nothing about ecology here like it's ok to admit it -*lists 3 predators* "these are the only guys that live here, in the great miserable American plains," that's not how any food chain works. Also you live in fucking London -I'll stop roasting him lmao -i guess it's like the Nevada salt flats or something?? A little more valid I guess -... huh. -this is quite the framing for part 2 of a murder mystery I'll be real. -the idea of this huge mass of white people traveling through the western desert and biblical references in the like makes me think of Mormons more than anything... -and Stangerson makes his appearance here which sure is fascinating if the dude fucking died (unless the whole antidote and fake death thing is the real shit). Or he has a twin or something. Or this is the past. -oh my god they are Mormons -why are there Mormons making pilgrimage in the salt flats in the first Sherlock Holmes murder mystery??? This shit is wild -"my kid now" ok, word, Ferrier -bringham young is in this SHERLOCK HOLMES story and is also a fucking dick. I'm going insane   Chapter 2 - The Flower of Utah -ferrier gay as fuck let's just be real here -so is this like where the backstory for the wedding ring comes from? If so this is pretty extensive. I do wonder how it all ties into the first story. Like we went full cowboy western here -twu wuv exposition etc Chapter 3 - John Ferrier Talks With The Prophet -"the Mormons suck by the way" ok Doyle go off? -i have to emphasize again that Brigham Young is a character in this fucking Sherlock Holmes story. Like. A villain. This is just crazy to me lmao -The Danites were a real thing apparently? Man. -my guy put in a FOOTNOTE and CITATION about Mormons being misogynistic. There are no footnotes anywhere in the story except to be like "no really they called women heifers here's the guy who said it" I am literally not making this shit up. Doyle based actually??? Chapter 4 - A Flight For Life -we are like half through the second part and I have to fucking state again this is a Sherlock Holmes murder mystery thats just straight up a western now with Brigham Young as the antagonist with the title character nowhere in sight -it hasnt been like outright stated and he could just be tan but theres so many references to Ferrier having brown skin it does make me wonder if he isn't white. The only thing that would be odd with that is he isn't racially discriminated against in a Mormon compound. Especially since his adopted daughter is deffo white & he is discriminated against for NOT taking wives. I can't see that really happening if he isn't white -"there are two ways out of the room... there is the door, and there is the window. Which do you care to use?" DAMN dude -Stangerson & Drebber really do be 2 complete cunts huh. Fuck those guys -doyle: I need to name the guy who rescues Ferrier and Lucy from the Mormons. In America. I got it! "Jefferson Hope" Chapter 5 - The Avenging Angels -we got 3 chapters left??? -"once safe in Carson we may rest for the remainder of our lives" is that on the nose foreshadowing -at least now the wilderness is being described in beautiful terms -Oh RIP Ferrier I guess. They bothered to dig a grave, lol? -honestly I'm a little surprised they didn't try to hunt Jefferson Hope down for good measure since they're supposed to be ultra vindictive. Unless they didn't know he was with them? I guess maybe they didn't? -... nope, they knew and put out a warrant. Again why not try to track him? Too hard? -and convenient random guy Hope happens to know who doesn't hate him who we havent ever seen before -lmao he just leaves her to die I guess? "Oh well some rando married her so it's all over"?? Surely true love would, I dunno, trump social conventions? I guess not LMAO -i guess that's one way to circle around to the first half of the story Chapter 6 - A Continuation of the Reminiscences of John Watson, M.D. -I'll be honest, it could be because this is the first story written about Holmes, but I'm pretty confident this WASNT a mystery one could figure out based on the evidence presented, which is something I was led to believe was a staple of these stories. But I guess it's possible the style just wasn't nailed down yet -maybe you could figure out how the crime was committed but not the motive -that line about vengeance might be the quote to use -I like this part of the narrative where we really see into Hope's actions. I think so much of the story in America was unnecessary; I just didn't feel strongly about the characters like I do actually seeing his perspective here. Why bother with the whole stranded in the desert thing and going into so much detail about how Lucy and Ferrier came to live in Salt Lake City? I dunno, I think it might have been better to be shorter and from Hope's perspective if you must include that section of the story at all - and again, it's not like you could have figured out all that shit based on the first half of the story. I appreciate the kinda experimental time jump but I don't think it worked great -ok the Russian roulette pill thing is a bit weird but sure king, go for it -i know it's metaphorical probably but I like the kinda Gothic touch of Lucy and Ferrier following him to the murder   -"let us see if there is justice upon the earth, or if we are ruled by chance" ok that's pretty raw, go off king -i mean if I have to choose a revenge story from around this period I'd definitely go for Monte Cristo but this is fun too -why try to cover up the crime with the whole Rache thing if you know you're gonna die tho lol -i guess to buy time to kill Stangerson too? Chapter 7 - The Conclusion -I do like the detail that the murderer's blood was on the scene but not the victim. That WAS revealed early but I never suspected a bloody nose to be the source. If it had been a wound there probably would have been evidence of it; a limp or something. That is pretty clever. -but on the other hand, Holmes WAS privy to information we never get (Hope's name and connection to Drebber), so I wouldn't call this a fair mystery. -lestrade and Gregson getting all the credit as predicted lmao -my man closes with Latin? I gotta look it up -"The public hiss at me, but I cheer myself when in my own house I contemplate the coins in my strong-box." -basically, I'm awesome even if no one knows it Well! That was interesting. I liked the mystery itself, and the revenge narrative portion of the conclusion. It's a strong start to a famous character. I think we get a little lost in the weeds with the time jump in the second half of the story, way too much detail and I don't think it focused on the right characters for most of it. Also I have to be a stickler on the fair mystery thing; there are some things you can deduce, but Holmes literally had info we never receive so it's ultimately not fair. I hope this does genuinely change in future stories. I certainly didn't mean to start with the first one, that was an honest accident lmao

[severingt]

SoulPM Playlist 25th November

Better – Ruby Winters

Bet You Never Thought – Gene Chandler

Our Lives Are Shaped By What We Love - Odyssey

It Sure Is Groovy – Gil Bernal

Home Is Where The Hatred Is – Esther Phillips

The World Can't Stop (Me From Loving You) – The Originals

Another Chance – Four Larks

Lonely Too Long - Sandpipers

You Never Should Have Loved Me – Freda Payne

Stop! Leave My Heart Alone – Two People

Now Is The Time – Sisters Love

I Can't Wait To See My Baby's Face – Spyder Turner

Stay With Your Own Kind – Patrice Holloway

The Winds Kept Laughing – Betty Turner and the Chevels

Don't Tear Me Down – Charlie Rich

All Night Long – Loinel Ritchie

Baby Love - Supremes

Big Boss Man – Jimmy Reed

Feel the Fire – Teddy Pendergrass and Stephanie Mills

Fortune Teller – Benny Spellman

How Deep Is Your Love - BeeGees

It Takes Two – Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston

Its A Shame – Detroit Spinners

Lovin You - Shanice

Papa WasA Rolling Stone - Temptations

People Get Ready - Aretha Franklin

Please Mr Postman - Marvelettes

Progress – Booker T Jones

Slow Motion – Gerald Alston

The Girls Alright With Me - Spinners

The One Who Really Loves You – Mary Wells

The Young Mod's Forgotten Story - Impressions

War – Edwin Starr

With You Im Born Again – Billy Preston and Syretta

[deathbecomesnerds]

20 questions for fic writers

Thanks for the tag @supermarine-silvally! Sorry for taking so long on this!

How many works do you have on ao3?

I have an impressive 81 works.

2. What's your total ao3 word count?

*checks A03* Holy Banana Nut Muffins...a whopping 664,798 words. That's impressive, Liz! Thanks, Liz!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

So, I currently write mainly for the Guy Ritchie universe? But I focus on 'The Gentlemen' but that doesn't mean some characters from any of his other works don't creep in.

I write also for 'Control', it's my favorite video game. Everyone should play it.

Sometimes, depending, I do write the occasional Stranger Things fic.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Trouble (The Man From U.N.C.L.E): 240 Down, But Not Out (The Man From U.N.C.L.E): 189 Little Girl/Old Man (Stranger Things): 151 Mess (The Gentlemen): 125 Til Death Do Us Part (Stranger Things): 110

5. Do you respond to comments?

Sometimes. It depends on what is said. I like to let comments/reviews be, but every so often they'll say something or ask a question and I feel compelled to answer.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Ooff. Umm...The Imposter? Maybe? I don't know. I like to make sure all of my work has happy endings for the most part.

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

'The Unfortunate Reunion'. All the shit went sideways, people died, and a pregnancy was lost. But the bad guys were killed, and there was peace and love...

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes. I do. I guess I write all kinds of smut? Idk, it's smut! What more do you want? lol.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Sometimes? But not really. I like to keep all my dollhouses separated.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yes! A long, long time ago...and it was translated into Spanish, too!!

12. What's the longest you've spent working on one fic? And the shortest?

I guess my ongoing one, Bark Like A God. I'm going on two years with it and I've still got a long ways to go.

My shortest? I'm not sure. I do write a lot of one shot/stand alones. But if you are talking about something with multiple chapters, probably 'The Unfortunate Reunion', or "...And Baby Makes 3', I wrote them both in two months.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

I prefer to write OC's, and like to pair them with characters.

BUTTTTTT...I am a sucker for Jesse Faden/Dr. Casper Darling (Control) and you can fucking fight me on that one!

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

There is this one fic, "Did You Hear About Jackie?', it's a Castle Rock fic, I've gotten 3 chapters in and then dropped it for my current fic spiral of 'The Gentlemen'. I'd love to get back to it and finish but I doubt it. It's been like, 3 years.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I'm not sure. Character development? Dialogue?

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Run-on sentences and paragraphs. Like...I go full blown Stephen King with describing things sometimes.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I wish that I knew other languages so I could very openly do that. I do use Google Translate, or if I happen to know someone who speaks the particular language, I'd ask them.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Okay, hear me out...CSI: Vegas. I was in middle school. Greg Sanders/OC. The fics I still have on my A03 & FF.Net accounts. They're horrible written. Lol.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

Y'know what, I am so proud of 'New Daddy', it's a smut that I literally spent a whole year writing. Nobody really paid it any mind, but I don't care. I put so much time and energy into it. I fucking love it.

I guess I'll ask @rayslittlekitten @kesskirata @autumnleaves1991-blog @spacegoldilocks

[rookie-critic]

Rookie-Critic's Film Review Weekend Wrap-Up - Week of 3/6-3/12/2023

-Return to Seoul (2022, dir. Davy Chou)

I wanted to like this more than I ended up liking it. What could have been an incredibly moving story about the detriments of trying to fill voids in your happiness with the idea of others and not with love for yourself is kind of lessened by a main character that was very selfish, mean, and outside of her life situation, was mostly unrelatable. I just couldn't find an in with the protagonist of the film, Freddie, and it kept me from fully enjoying what is mostly a well-made film.

Score: 7/10

Currently only in theaters. See my full review on here.

-Argentina, 1985 (2022, dir. Santiago Mitre)

An incredibly gripping courtroom drama about a piece of South American history that more people in the world should know about. A true, mostly inspiring, but also frightening in ways, story about fascism in 1980s Argentina and how, even after it was defeated, the seeds of it remained in the democratic government set up in its place. The struggles of a handful of young law professionals as well as the work of Argentinian DA Julio Strassera. At a whopping 140 minutes, Argentina, 1985 never once feels its length, and that is just one of the many impressive things about this film that makes it one of the best non-English language films of last year.

Score: 9/10

Currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

-Rocky V (1990, dir. John G. Avildsen)

I've heard that his is the Rocky film that fans of the franchise don't want to touch with a 10-foot pole and I don't really understand why. It's not really bad, it's more just kind of boring. The story just doesn't really go anywhere and the final fight, while an interesting subversion on the previous 4 films' largely similar structure, isn't particularly gripping and is very aged, and not in the best way. Sage Stallone does a decent enough job playing Rocky Jr. and Sly Stallone is just as motor-mouthed and lovably dumb as ever as Rocky, but again, everything here mostly just ok. I don't really think I'll remember too much about this going forward.

Score: 5/10

Currently streaming on Netflix.

-All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022, dir. Laura Poitras)

This was a wonderful documentary about renowned photographer/activist Nan Goldin; half about her life coming up in the counterculture of 80s New York City during the AIDS crisis, and half about her more recent work as an activist against the Sackler family and their involvement in the opioid crisis. The two halves of Goldin's story are weaved together and related to each other wonderfully by the film's director Laura Poitras and editors Joe Bini, Amy Foote, and Brian A. Kates. Goldin's own photographic slideshows are mixed with other archival footage and modern interviews to make a story that way more succinct and whole than I was expected from something that, one the surface, seems like it would be disjointed.

Score: 8/10

Currently available to rent/purchase on digital (iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, etc.) and coming soon to Blu-ray & DVD through Criterion.

-Blonde (2022, dir. Andrew Dominik)

I really wanted to give this one a chance. Ana de Armas does a brilliant job as Marilyn Monroe, but really the film dips it's toe too often into the wrong side of exploitation, and it makes the film hard to watch. Not in a way that makes it profound or thought-provoking, but in a way that feels cruel and unusual. The film is shot well, but the things happening on screen are more often than not too bizarrely horrible to keep your eye on. At certain points it almost felt like it reveled in portraying Monroe's suffering. This isn't to mention that it is based on a book that is self-admittedly more fiction than fact by the author. I'm interested in learning about Monroe's actual life, and I don't feel like this gave a clear image of that at all.

Score: 4/10

Currently streaming on Netflix.

-Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre (2023, dir. Guy Ritchie)

I was not a fan Ritchie's last film, Wrath of Man. I thought it took pride in all the worst parts of machismo and was an oddly self-serious film in his filmography. Thankfully, Operation Fortune doesn't have this issue. The Guy Ritchie that made Snatch and The Gentlemen is back. The misogyny that is normally the dark spot on most of his movies is dialed way back here, which is nice. Now, the plot is almost non-existent and non-important and the characters and their motivations and personalities are similarly non-important and paper thin, but the film is funny and entertaining, and that's all I ever really want out of a Guy Ritchie film. Hugh Grant gets a special shout out for stealing every single moment he's on screen.

Score: 7/10

Currently only in theaters.

-Rocky Balboa (2006, dir. Sylvester Stallone)

Overall, probably my favorite of the Rocky films. Rocky is just a sweet old man looking to connect with his son and remember his wife fondly. Bringing back the little girl from one scene of the first film as a fully fleshed-out adult character was an inspired choice, and, while Paulie is still a giant pile of trash on fire, he actually shows a bit of remorse for his actions over the previous five films, and that can't count for nothing. Just a very impressive, deceptively incredible late-stage entry in a beloved franchise.

Score: 8/10

Currently streaming on Paramount+.

-Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (2022, dir. Anthony Fabian)

As someone who hasn't seen either Paddington film, I imagine this is as good as a film can make you feel without actually being Paddington. Lesley Manville is absolutely marvelous and beautifully kind as Mrs. Ada Harris. This was one that I skipped out on seeing in the theater because it didn't seem like something I would enjoy, but it ended up stealing my heart and making me feel ashamed for shrugging it off before. Watch this if you're feeling down for an instant shot of serotonin.

Score: 9/10

Currently streaming on Peacock.

-Scream VI (2023, dir. Tyler Gillett & Matt Bettinelli-Olpin)

I won't gush about this anymore than I already have. Radio Silence have done a great job picking this franchise up from where the wonderful Wes Craven left it off. The acting is superb, the horror is superb, the story is superb, Scream continues to be the best slasher franchise by a significant margin. Way to go.

Score: 10/10

Currently only in theaters. See my full review here.

-Tell It Like a Woman (2022, dir. Catherine Hardwicke, Taraji P. Henson, Lucia Puenzo, Leena Yadav, Maria Sole Tognazzi, Mipo O, Lucia Bulgheroni & Silvia Carobbio)

As well-intentioned as this is, it's not a film, it's a PSA. Half of these are barely stories and more like a video that would play in the middle of a self-help seminar to prove a point. Only one of these seven stories feels like a legitimate short film, the one directed by Japanese director Mipo O, and it's the only stretch of the film that doesn't feel like a complete waste of time.

Score: 3/10

Currently available to rent or purchase on digital (iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, etc.).

-The Quiet Girl (2022, dir. Colm Bairéad)

Last year, right as I was about to cut off my viewing for the 2022 season and post my Best Of list, I saw The Worst Person in the World, a non-English language film the ended up ranking towards the top of my list. This year I didn't think that was possible, as 2022 was a truly magnificent and special year. My Top 20 (hell, my top 35-40, even) are all so amazing it's hard to imagine anything cracking into the upper echelon of the list. Yet, somehow, The Quiet Girl has managed just that. This massively slow-paced film managed to not only to maintain my interest, but right at the end. When you wonder how the film could possibly bring all of its themes and messaging together in a way that feels uniquely whole and satisfying, the titular Quiet Girl, Cáit (played with the emotional depth of a thousand oceans by newcomer Catherine Clinch), utters two words; or rather, the same word twice, but with two deliveries so utterly different that it shatters your soul into a million little pieces and breaks the walls of the even the most hard-hearted person on the planet down until you're just a mess on the floor of theater (not really, that's nasty, but you get the idea). Any qualm I may have even remotely had with the slow trot at which the majority of the film clips along in is immediately dashes, thrown out the window and never to be heard from again, all from just two softly spoken little words. It's truly powerful and within the next couple weeks when you see me make my Best of 2022 posts, I guarantee you'll be seeing this somewhere, and most likely pretty high up.

Score: 10/10

Currently only in theaters.

-Mandy (2018, dir. Panos Cosmatos)

Watched as a part of my college friends' Nic Cage Fridays movie night, I was very, very excited to see this. I was shocked when we were three quarters of the way through the film and everyone else except for me and one other person was cracking jokes and making fun of the film like it was The Room. It for sure has a decent number of issues: the beginning act of the film is dreadfully slow and begins to outstay its welcome, the plot of the film (if you could call it that) is so unbelievably thin, and Cosmatos' work and experiments with color in frame, while definitely a strong vibe that I liked, doesn't necessarily add anything artistically to the film. I wouldn't say, however, that it is worthy of the ire it was receiving from the crowd. Nicolas Cage's performance as Red, while sparse throughout the first half of the film, kicks into absolute high gear in the second, and manages to make the film have one of the craziest, most fun, and absolutely phantasmagorical third acts of any film I've ever seen. I guess it's not for everybody, but please, if you haven't seen it, Google it, take a look at some stills and read the basic setup of the plot, and if it sounds even remotely interesting, give it a shot. I found it to be a very rewarding watch.

Score: 7/10

Currently available for rent or purchase on digital (iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, etc.) or on Blu-ray & DVD through RLJ Entertainment.

-Champions (2023, dir. Bobby Farrelly)

This ended up being surprisingly heartwarming and funny. A film about intellectually disabled adults that never centers them as the punchline of the joke, but rather the ones delivering said punchline, Champions excels at giving these oft-belittled members of the human race their own voice and space to be not only taken seriously as individuals, but also raucously hilarious. Directed by one-half of the Farrelly brothers (of Dumb & Dumber and There's Something About Mary fame), there are only a few moments of the signature gross-out Farrelly humor, and honestly they're the most out of pocket, odd moments of the film. Woody Harrelson and Kaitlin Olson give good performances as the central protagonists of the film, but truthfully the spotlight and the majority of the kudos should go to the basketball team at the heart of the film, namely Madison Tevlin, Kevin Iannucci, and Casey Metcalfe. Honestly, the entirety of the Friends (the name of the team) deserves the highest of praise, and I don't mean that patronizingly. They steal the show every moment they're on screen. The framework and overarching story isn't really anything special or new, but criticizing a film with this big of a heart feels disingenuous, so I'll just say I liked it and leave it at that.

Score: 7/10

Currently only in theaters.

-Thirteen Lives (2022, dir. Ron Howard)

I don't have a ton to say about Thirteen Lives other than that I really liked it. I think this is the big awards snub of the year, receiving basically no attention which, for a film like this that Academy voters generally eat up, is very surprising. It's Ron Howard's best film since 2013's Rush and, much like Argentina, 1985, is a film about real-life events that runs over 2 and a half hours that absolutely never feels like it. A thoroughly enthralling and awe-striking cinematic experience. It's an Amazon Prime Video original, but one can imagine how magical this would have been to see in the theater.

Score: 9/10

Currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

-65 (2023, dir. Scott Beck & Bryan Woods)

This was definitely a movie. There was a story and an Adam Driver and spaceship crashes and dinosaurs and a kid and everything that a movie needs to be, well, a movie. It doesn't make the most of its premise, which is disappointing, and also doesn't make much use of the dinosaurs, which is disappointing. I think what saves the film is Driver's general talent and the parent-child chemistry of Driver and Ariana Greenblatt, which is good and generates an interest in seeing them survive this prehistoric sci-fi ordeal together. This will be something I'll most likely forget a lot of in the coming months, regardless of how much fun I had while my butt was in the seat watching it. I'm not going to say don't see it if you were already interested, but I'm also saying that if this wasn't something that interested you in the first place, you're not really missing out on anything spectacular.

Score: 6/10

Currently only in theaters.

[lesvegas]

ritchie’s🎃💀 ABCs of Horror Movie Marathon!! 💀🎃

Horror movie challenge prompted by @quintsmachete

Day Seven - G is for Grave Encounters (2011)

I don't really like ghost stuff. Ghost shows and movies have always freaked me the fuck out even when they're cheap. But if I was able to build up a tolerance to gore, then surely I could do the same with ghost crap, right? And a Canadian found-footage ghost movie seems like a step in the right direction. I can get through Kairo (2001) without closing my eyes, how bad could this be?

I don't really have a lot to say about this one, so I'm just gonna put it in bullet points:

I may have been spoiled by Cloverfield, because I wasn't super impressed by the found footage techniques here. Pretty much everything was filmed on cameras in-universe, but there are so many different kinds and different perspectives that it didn't feel that organic. But I can't *really* knock it for that because it's all based around an attempted ghost show; the numerous and somewhat artificial perspectives make complete sense here.

The one thing I liked most about this movie is how much it reminded me of the few ghost shows I saw growing up. This movie isn't that old, but it came out not long before I graduated elementary school, so it ended up being a nostalgic time capsule by default, and I'm always a sucker for that. Also, it satirized fake ghost shows in a pretty amusing way, down to the fake psychic and casual ableism.

I wasn't expecting 'spiral' elements like hallways moving around, doors leading to places they shouldn't, time going by within the hospital while it remains dark for over 24 hours outside... it definitely made things more interesting.

Sadly, I still can't stand ghost shit in general. Conceptually it's fine, I don't mind seeing stuff moving or anything, but the sight of ghosts always gets to me even when it's goofy or unbelievable. I ended up covering the video with a game tab for most of the second half of the video, and if it wasn't for my partner telling me when not to look, I'd miss a lot more.

While I didn't 'fully experience' the jumpscares, they were well telegraphed and didn't feel *too* cheap. I'd prefer a movie without jumpscares at all, but I also can't really imagine a ghost movie without them.

Overall this movie was fine, but I probably wouldn't watch it again. It gets two out of five lobotomized brains 🧠🧠🗌 🗌 🗌

[aliensunflower-fics]

Marinette The Perfect Daughter In Law: A Prompt

[ I've seen a few ‘everyone loves Marinette AU’s’ and a couple Marvel DC ‘all the mentors want THEIR kid to end up with Marinette AU’s’ and well frankly! I felt inspired! So I present to you my new prompt / AU thing! In which all the most powerful / rich / popular people in Paris decide to play matchmaker… ]

It starts when Adrien and Kagami have a less than AMICABLE break up according to their parents and the media anyway in reality it was a really REALLY dull break up. The pair have been ‘dating’ (using each other as an excuse to go out and experience normal teenage stuff) since they were 15. Now at 17 soon to be 18 the pair decided to publicly break up in order to pursue other people and interests. The problem is they never told their parents the truth so both Gabriel and Kagami’s mother Tomeo feel protective and concerned about what must surely be an upsetting first heartbreak for their child. And okay maybe both parents take that out on each other and both get a bit defensive and protective. And MAYBE it ends with Tomeo vowing to get revenge for her daughter. Enter, Marinette. Up and coming fashion designer for the rich and famous! She’s single, talented, and as far as Tomeo knows Gabriel is interested in the girl for her talent. So what better revenge could exist but having Marinette take an interest in Kagami!

Kagami has no idea why her mother suddenly has an interest in Marinette but she wont complain about having more time with her very cute designer friend. And all the outfits Tomeo is paying Marinette to make for Kagami is giving the young fencer plenty of up-close and personal moments with Marinette. And okay Marinette is VERY cute and Kagami wont question why she suddenly has all this tine with Marinette, eating ice cream with the girl and having brunch. But she knows shes absolutely head over heels when Marinette shows up at her fencing tournament gives her a luck charm and cheers her on wearing HER colors. Obviously Kagami wiped the floor with all the competition she cant be seen hesitating in front of Marinette!

On Tomeo’s side of things she makes sure that the paparazzi still lurking around after Kagami and Adrien’s breakup catch photos of what could easily be interpreted as dates between the girls. After all this is a revenge ploy but also Marinette is fantastic so Tomeo is 300% down with Kagami ‘bringing her into the family’ something she tells Kagami after the first paparazzi ‘date photos’ leak into the news. Kagami still has no idea this was an orchestrated affair and just thinks her mothers caught on to her feelings and is overjoyed that Marinette is approved of because after the cheek kiss Marinette gave her for winning the fencing tournament Kagami was preparing to fight her mother for the right to pursue the young designer seriously. After all she never hesitates! 

But Tomeo never realized Gabriel isnt the only one interested in Marinette. Audrey Bourgeouis has been keeping an eye on Marinette trying to find a way to get Marinette on to her side and away from Gabriel. So when she sees the photos of Kagami and Marinette she sees an opportunity. After all if Marinette isnt exclusively into men (and those photos of her flushed cheeks as Kagami cleans ice cream off her bottom lip are a clear indication shes not) then Audrey smells opportunity. After all Marinette was Chloe’s first crush! How cute would that be! The next day Marinette is being offered yet another opportunity to intern under Audrey this time with much looser restrictions. When Marinette accepts she suddenly finds herself working with Chloe… A LOT. The pair are modeling together, often paired together for shoots in perfect complementary clothes that screams ‘opposites attract’. Chloe is also helping manage Marinette’s brand and the two start to get along very well. The model photos and their business lunches are soon plastered alongside the Kagami and Marinette outings with parisian gossip blogs finding their interest picked by this potential love triangle.

Chloe for one, was confused at first. Sure she knew her mom was interested in Marinette but she never thought SHE would be working so closely with her first crush. And Chloe tries to ignore it, after all those are dead feelings! And Marinette woud never forgive her anyway so why even- Wait. Is that Marinette in a downright gorgeous golden dress? A-and she will be posing right next to Chloe for their shared shoot? Well… Chloe always thought herself deserving of royalty and damn if Marinette aint the princess of her dreams. Sorry Adriken’s you had your chance to get the girl, but now its winner keeps all and Marinette is the only prize shes interested in. For the record Alya is freaked out by Chloe being nice, but shes more weirded out by Chloe being protective and handsy and downright shamelessly flirty with Marinette. Audrey is pleased when she hears the news and is quick to give her daughter encouragement acting as if none of this was premeditated at ALL.

Oh but they have no idea that this is just the beginning. Because guess who's moved back into town. Adrien’s favorite cousin and aunty. And Felix’s mom is quite the busybody and dammit Felix needs friends! And maybe a cute girlfriend! And oh whos that pretty girl on the magazine cover? Marinette? The one her celebrity connections have nothing but praise for? Perfect! Shes invited to lunch with Felix and herself on friday to discuss movie costumes! And oh Audrey dear dont you think Marinette would look fabulous sandwiched between TWO blondes! Felix hasnt modeled in a while but come now. So suddenly Marinette is being spotted with Felix guiding him about paris and modeling with him AND Chloe under AUDREY’s brand NOT Gabriels.

Felix thought hed really hate Marinette; he tried to ignore her he really did. But shes funny, witty and sweet. Not to mention trustworthy, so a good candidate for a business partner. And thats it, but then he has to admit hes impressed when he rolls up to a photoshoot and Chloe! The definition of brat personified is acting… Bearable. Yes, somehow Marinette has done the impossible! She has tamed the beast known as Chloe. And yes fine he will admit shes drop dead gorgeous and how intelligent of her to learn all sides of the fashion industry and boost her rep with modelling! Soon hes spending more time with her, he tries to argue he needs a guide, that shes the most bearable person to be with! That she is just a friend- Oh god. No it cant be! He sounds like-! Like ADRIEN! And Chloe already told him about THAT mess! No! Absolutely not! He will not lead on Marinette like his idiot cousin! Marinette is a rare and beautiful woman! She could be his queen! And god he has to admit it much as he loathes too Marinette’s smile is enough to make him thank every non-existent god. He will win her heart, show her that she deserves better than his brain dead cousin! Felix is sure mother will approve of his decision to pursue the girl, now he just needs to do more shoots with Marinette...

And that's what finally gets Gabriel to snap. Because REALLY Felix!? Is there no loyalty to FAMILY. Not to mention he was totally drafting a potential contract for Marinette when Audrey snapped her up the witch! But its fine! Marinette has always been interested in Adrien! Surely she still is? Surely she's not been swayed by any of her new suitors! Right? Gabriel knows he can't mess with Audrey’s contract so he goes through Adrien, freeing up his sons schedule and telling him to spend time with Marinette to help her ‘adapt’ to the harsh world of fashion and modeling. He uses Adrien’s heroic nature to make it sound like hed be saving her from Chloe and Felix. And sure enough Adrien bites, using his friendship with Chloe to worm into fittings, meetings, and photo shoots. At first hes just there to make sure Chloe and Felix arent hurting sweet Marinette. But when he sees the blondes fighting for her attention, flirting with her, posing with her in some rather romantic settings. Suddenly hes less worried and more… Jealous? No! Not him! Hes concerned, confused, suspicious! Obviously he needs to spend more time with Mari- Wait! When did Kagami get here to take Marinette to lunch! And why are they all ignoring him!!!

Now Marinette is fully in the public's eye. Gossip blogs are being fed bits of info writing up each ‘candidates’ appeal as THE romantic partner to the Marinette Dupain-Cheng paris new darling, the girl with a heart of gold too oblivious to see the trail of hearts following her around! But there is still another contender yet to enter the game! Jaggeds been away on tour teaching Luka his up and coming protege all the tricks. And lets not lie Luka has his own fans now, enough to rival all the others. Jagged sees Luka as his own son, even calling him as much! Hell hes even adopted Luka and Juleka and when I say adopted I mean Jagged literally got shared custody of the kids when their real dad tried to start trouble once Luka started gaining fame. Luka and Juleka for one love their adopted father and his wonderful fiance Penny. But back to Jagged, being Jagged. 

The moment Jagged is back in Paris he's checking up on his favorite designer and hopefully future daughter in law! When… WHAT'S THIS?! All the other ritchies in Paris are playing his game! Trying to get Marinette married into THEIR families! Not rock and roll at all! He was here first! And so being Jagged he decides to make Luka’s stake in the race for Marinette’s heart clear! By spamming social media with photos of Marinette being cute with Luka, taking his measurements, going out with him, the pair babying Fang, the two passed out against each other after a long concert. And he has photos going back at least a year or two! Soon Luka’s fans pick up the hype starting a trending hashtag finding the pair cute! Jagged feels confident that hes won! When Audrey retaliates, and from there its a complete train wreck. Before long each pair has a hashtag filled with cute moments and arguing over whos dating the model / fashion designer! 

Meanwhile Adrien is drowning in denial as he goes through each hashtag seething about how many MORE photos everyone else has with Marinette, when HE is her very good friend and was here first! Felix, Chloe and Kagami on the other hand have declared open war after they tried to talk to each other about the hashtags reasonably only for it to devolve into “so you agree Marinette is best with me!” - “WHAT! No! Thats not what I said! Besides she clearly is best with me!” - “Ridiculous!” And so on. Poor Luka is having an entirely different reaction hiding in shame unsure how to face Marinette because he WAS going to ask her on a proper date now that she seems over Adrien, because even with everything she's the melody playing in his heart and he had a plan! But now his mom and sister are texting him and teasing him and apparently he has MORE competition! Who do these people think they are to deserve Marinette! No! Luka won't lose Jagged has been teaching him to be bold and confident! And Marinette is worth all of his efforts! Jagged REGRETS NOTHING even if Penny confiscated the tv remote!

Marinette meanwhile has no idea what's going on because the whole class made a dumb bet on when the designer would notice with one of the bet conditions being that no one could tip Marinette off and that they have to keep her away from Paparazzi so they dont spoil it either. And sense Alya is helping manage Marinette’s social media Marinette hasn't looked at it yet so she has NO idea what's happening. But her birthday is coming up next week and Chloe definitely didn't get dibs on planning a surprise party for her all so she could spoil the girl and RUB her GREAT relationship with Marinette into her competitions FACES! The competition however (and Adrien JustAfriend Agreste) have decided that they really aren't going down without a fight!

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[epicspheal]

Pokemon Journeys Episode 116

This was an extremely enjoyable episode in my opinion. Right off the bat I really enjoyed the fact that this episode was really allowed to just focus on the battle. I talked a bit about this in my last episode review but I think it's good that so far the rest of the maters 8 matches seem to have whole episodes dedicated to them. Lance and Diantha's respective speech was a huge personal highlight for me. It was really nice to just see them talk about their pride of being champions and realizing the weight on their shoulder being representatives of different regions (and in Lance's case, two). Another part about their speeches that I loved: the cameos! We knew from a few weeks back that there would be some surprising guests watching the masters 8 matches. I did not expect to see Ritchie, Jimmy, Vincent, and Marina watching the match but it was a touching nod to the OS series. As someone who started watching the anime as a kindergartener back in 1999 these are some are the characters that I remember seeing and making me fall in love with the franchise (although admittedly even as a kid the Ritchie vs Ash league battle kind of annoyed me). So seeing them watching Lance's battle was a nice touch. Of course, it was also nice to see Shauna, Tierno, Sawyer, and Trevor watching it for Diantha but I definitely expected to see them as cameos. And then of course there was the slow realization from both Goh and Hop that Ash knows the entire masters 8. I love how despite all of his achievements and connections, Ash manages to stay rather humble about and not namedrop all of the powerful people he knows. Now onto the battle. I personally am glad that Diantha won this. It was nice to see the series put some respect on the Kalos' champion's name. She gets a lot of flak from the fans, especially her game counterpart. Admittedly yes, I'm pretty harsh on her as well at least for my Cactusverse AU. That being said, after doing a Y replay to simulate how my Kalos champion OC would fare in the region, Diantha can be a lot tougher than many fans give her credit for. With a water-monotype team and EXP share turned off the battle was more evenly matched and not as one-sided when I first played Y back in undergrad. So with that, it was very nice to see a close battle between her and Lance. I know there have been a few complaints that Lance used too much brute force but personally, I didn't see that as too much of a problem. Lance often uses more outright offensive moves in his game appearance (there are some status moves too) so I think it lined up well. Diantha's Pokemon tend to use more status moves in the games (both her champion's matches and at the Battle Chateau) so seeing her in an all-out battle using more defensive methods made sense. I also really enjoyed the mega vs Dynamax battle. Admittedly I would've liked to have seen that in the Leon vs Alain battle, but seeing it here is also a good choice because between two separate battles it shows that both gimmicks are equal in strength. I'm glad Diantha got her flowers in this battle and seeing Steven and Leon being so impressed by her was really touching. It was really symbolic given that Steven has been seen interacting with Diantha in XYZ and with Leon being her next opponent. I can't talk about this episode without speaking about Team Rocket. Admittedly I'm not their hugest fans, but it was really entertaining to see Jessie be kind of "meh" about Diantha until she showed a Gourgeist. I know a lot of people in the fandom sometimes like to say Jessie doesn't care for her Pokemon but I feel like this episode alone should put those thoughts to rest. Also, it was hilarious seeing her tell Diantha in the post-match interview to finish with Gourgeist the next time. We'll see if that happens in the Leon vs Diantha match. Finally, I really enjoyed the ending where we get to see Ash greet both Iris before her battle with Cynthia and Lance after his defeat. It was nice to see Lance tell Ash good luck and Iris being just so pumped to face Cynthia, especially after that battle they had all the way back in BW. All in all, it was a good episode in my book