#should I do a full music video for the Star Wars one?

[shroombloom248]

Intro Post!

cus I never made one, and I probably should...

Helloooo various peoples! My name is ShroomBloom, but you can call me Shroom (maybe one day I shall reveal my real true name...)! You can also try to give me another nickname if you want, I don't mind!

I'm an AuDHD theater kid with bad anxiety, insomnia, religious trauma, and a tendency to call my friends sluts; I'm currently a junior in high school (you can infer my age from that ig), and have many obsessions, including but not limited to: TADC, Arcane (my favorite show of all time), Stranger Things, FNAF (LOOOOOREEE), and Life is Strange (my favorite video game!).

Right now, I go to an arts high school, and at my school we are able to focus on a type of art to study, so I'm studying acting, with the hope of one day becoming a Voice Actor!

I'm AFAB and identify as Genderqueer and use She/they pronouns, but I'm cool with anything! I'm also Pansexual/Panromantic, Ambiamorous, and Demian (if anyone doesn't know what those identities are, just send me an ask and I can answer!). I'm not currently in a relationship cus my romantic life and luck are REALLY fucked (if you want the full story, ask me!).

There is a small chance that someday I'll write some fan fictions, we'll have to wait and see! This blog will mostly be me just sharing my thoughts and some randomness.

Some fandoms that I'm in that I didn't list earlier are:

Star Wars (NOT THE SEQUELS), HTTYD, Wednesday, Marvel/the MCU (I don't like a lot of the newer movies and shows, but some of them are good), Good Omens (I've read the book, but haven't actually seen the show yet, however I do know the plot), Murder drones, Trollhunters (and Wizards and 3Below! I don't acknowledge the movie.), EPIC the Musical, The Last of Us, Genshin Impact, Heathers (the musical, I haven't seen the other stuff), and there are probably more but I can't think of them right now.

Please ask me questions about shows and movies, especially Arcane, cus I have THOUGHTS.

uh what else.... Oh! If you want proof that I'm not a vampire, ask me how I make pasta! ummmm I really like Neoni (they're my favorite musical artist!).

One small note: I'm legally a minor! please don't message me with anything NSFW or sexual! generally, I'll answer any question I'm asked, but if I'm uncomfortable with something I'll set a boundary. please respect the boundaries I set.

Thats it for now! enjoy my weirdness!

[glassshard]

Whenever I don’t like a major piece of media I really like to analyze why. Ever since the RLM Star Wars Prequels reviews I’ve found this exercise super helpful. I think it’s even more helpful than analyzing why I love a piece of media, since my heart is a lot more shallow than my head, and will happily latch onto media with all kinds of problems simply because a boy was stabbed in a sexy way or the music was good.

But after ten hours of Baldur’s Gate 3 this weekend, I just had to drop it. I don’t like the game. It charmed me at first with its high production values and its excellent exploration, but my ardour cooled quickly as it began to butt up against my personal predilections. At first it did so in totally subjective ways with its unlovable D&D mechanics. I don’t know D&D and the game did not have any interest in teaching me about it. It just kinda throws you into a system that has no place in a video game in my opinion, full of unnecessary tedium and opaque mechanics. But you know what, that’s just me. Plenty of people love it. I could deal with bad gameplay, I like lots of games that play like crap. Let me sing you a song of the Legacy of Kain series.

But then the story failed to grip me. It’s written like fanfiction, with no explanation for any of the races, proper nouns, or concepts because you’re expected to already know them. I love in media res, but c’mon. Ya know what though? Still just my opinion. Open world games are super popular, lots of people love them. Remember how much you enjoyed Dark Souls? Look at that vampire, keep going. Sure he’s walking around during the day and vampirism in this setting just seems to equate to some Spirit Halloween accessories but it’s fine!

But then! But then! Then that vampire killed my character in a cutscene! And I thought that was GREAT. Unexpected! Finally! The game’s getting good! I’m invested! I’ll need to save scum and reload but-

Wait, I don’t need to? That wasn’t a game over? I can... I can rez my character? My character died in a story cutscene and I can have another character rez them with a scroll? And then... then I can go talk to the vampire because he’s still hanging around? But I can’t even tell the other party members about it? This is... this is not right. This feels objectively not right.

You can’t use a game mechanic to rez a story death. That’s not how this works. That’s like if Cloud had pulled out a phoenix down on Aeris or Corvo just started shoving jellied eels down the dead Empress’ throat. That is deflating the very concept of death in the game. There are no stakes now. Why should I care about anything? Why do people even hate vampires in this world if death can be cleaned up with a square of toilet paper available from any shop?

Still, I pushed on, in a stubborn daze. This was a sixty dollar game, I had to keep trying!

The underwear inventory slots felt juvenile but that’s fine, that’s fine. The character designs are extremely Ren Faire, but no big deal. One of the party members is named after a Care Bear but don’t be superficial, Ashley. I can equip armour I’m not proficient in and the game’s not going to tell me why I shouldn’t, but I’m not going to take it personally. The mind control mechanic is making every interaction feel cheap and silly, and all the parasitized party members feel fake and offputting. It seems very contrived that they’re traveling together, and I don’t understand why my character would remain in the company of ANY of them when he himself knows they have his same mind-control powers and can never be trusted and sometimes the illithid powers are framed as course-altering and sometimes they’re not and nothing is consistent except the cartoonish characterization of the “evil” races but it’s fine, it’s fine, keep going

But then I got to a portion where my character was able to ask a dead Mindflayer questions about the plot. And I realised, sharply: I do not care about the answers. I do not care about this world or this cast or any schemes at play. No immersion will be happening; my suspension of disbelief is irrevocably snapped. This is a Saturday morning cartoon with dicks.

And it all really went back to rezzing that story death. While a lot of my gripes about this game are completely subjective and to do with my own tastes, I think it’s objectively bad design to allow a story death resurrection. It deflated everything for me and I couldn’t recover.

So! I did not like Baldur’s Gate 3, and in my mind my character’s story ended when their trusting nature was exploited by a vampire, and they were killed. But the experience did teach me some interesting things about my own tastes, and what I require to become invested in a video game narrative.

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

tuesday again 1/23/2024

listen i got my last job through one of youse on here so weirder things have happened: i got fired bc the nonprofit wasn’t doing so hot. let me know if you have a weird data/database or market/tech research job. i promise my worksona is so so so nice and pleasant to work with. remote only, looking more in the $75k range but can be a bit flexible if it’s a cool enough job, i am in the central time zone of the USA and will not need sponsorship anywhere but DO need the cadillac of healthcare and dental plans. portfolio, publication list, and linkedin with my government name available on request!

listening

both of these are from my sister! this is another FULL ALBUM rec (good lord). The Offline’s album La couleur de la mer is a soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t exist, inspired by his long walks in the fog on the French Atlantic coast. a little spacey, a little soul, very sixties/seventies neonoir. i am quite fond of the very first track, Thème de la couleur de la mer.

she’s also sent me a bunch of tiktoks with Perfect (Exceeder) by Mason and Princess Superstar. hell of a goddamn music video for this thing. mid-aughts clubbing music at its finest. stopped me from dissolving into a puddle of emotions on the way to and from the vet today bc it’s too goddamn bouncy to be sad around

reading

im reading a trilogy i want to discuss as a whole whenever the third one comes through as a library hold, and a book by a friend. i do not typically talk about books or fics by friends here bc none of them have ever asked for critique, and i dont want to play favorites or inadvertently miss someone’s work. so here’s a story about porn on Wikimedia, which is the kind of database drama and technical arguments that fascinate me.

given the number of articles from 404 Media i shout about here and elsewhere i really should sign up for their $5/mo subscription tier when i have a steady income again

watching

somehow missed Star Wars Visions 2, their second anthology of weird little shorts. i was not super impressed by the overall storytelling this time around, but it was fun to see them reach out to more global studios and see a wider range of styles. there’s some goddamn incredible stop motion in here.

i particularly enjoyed Journey to the Dark Head, which not only has some interesting fringe Force believers and beliefs but has one of the sickest anime bullshit lightsaber fights in this season. this one is by Studio Mir, most known for the Legend of Korra.

also really liked The Spy Dancer by Studio La Cachette, partly bc it’s incredibly beautiful and i like when Star Wars leans into art nouveau, and partly bc it felt the most like a complete short story. emotional arc and everything! strong beginning middle and end! this IS a really low bar, but a lot of the shorts this season did not have a coherent little story to tell or a strong emotional arc, or fumbled their arc partway through, and were just kind of vibes and animation showcases? nothing necessarily wrong with that, also how i felt about most of the last collection. my expectations are underground for any Star Wars media.

playing

as is tradition i dithered about this section the most. this is more of a What’s Next? planning ramble.

the laptop gets shipped back to my old job today so i will no longer have a working modern computer. i have to dig the switch out and see what’s up. maybe start a whole new run in breath of the wild or whatever the last pokemon game was. i think i also have the sword boyfriend game everyone was up in arms about two years ago? and i think i am somehow part of a switch family plan that lets me have some older games?

this section may look very different in the next ??? amount of time until i get a company laptop again. or finally replace the motherboard on my personal desktop but that sat in my car for several weeks during the heat wave this summer while i did not have an apartment and i am really REALLY afraid to open that box.

oh the free epic game this week is a platformer, a genre i have historically not cared about. godspeed to those of you who do

making

soup bc aldi had alphabet pasta and that jolted me out of myself for long enough i was briefly convinced making alphabet pasta soup would fix me. so i found this recipe while in aldi. despite this not being a very good soup or a very good recipe, i feel a little triumphant bc i now know enough to brown the tomato paste before putting it in the soup. unfortunately i overcooked the pasta. there’s kind of a lot of texture happening here, and i wish i had chopped things finer, but i will probably steal my best friend’s blender tomorrow and blitz some of it down.

it’s edible. im going to eat it all. it will not be going in the rotation

[ilkkawhat]

tagged by @room-665 and @judyalvqrez, thank you both!💜💜💜💜

last song: Children of the Elder God by Old Gods of Asgard--in full. After that I was skipping through songs as I pulled into my neighborhood and driveway lol. honestly still seems like AW soundtrack music is like, the one thing I never skip since I got into it last November.

favourite color: Purple!

currently reading: House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski, have been for a while lol I gotta get back on it. My mom got a bit of a kick out of seeing me moving the book around and flipping to the back and such 😂

currently watching: Series wise, nothing really since I finished Sorjonen...I've been just kinda watching a lot of youtube videos or movies. Been thinking about getting back into Only Murders in the Building (I watched the first two seasons I think? Maybe the 3rd? See I just gotta start over lol) and then watching Poromafia for my next Ilkka series (beyond just skimming), and I'm probably gonna start Interview With a Vampire sooner or later cause it's all over my dash EDIT: FUCK i forgot I'm watching Star Trek Enterprise! very slowly, I watch it while I chill downstairs with my dog when my parents go out shopping (he's got bad separation anxiety and is not allowed to go up the stairs anymore for his safety so I just go to him)

last movie: Rewatched Hell House 2 in full, started watching Butterfly Kisses last night but couldn't stay up to finish it. Trying to get in the mood for spooky season and last year I got really into the found footage sub-genre.

sweet, spicy or savory: Savory...not good with spicy (lol says a woman who works with chipotle peppers. We mill dehydrated pods and it was so strong the other day I legit threw up on my way out) but on a mild level I'm okay with it. Do like sweet stuff but I do have limits with it.

relationship status: Single, probably always gonna be that way and that's fine lol. But if I happen to meet someone maybe I won't be as much of a coward as I have been with other potential relationships I could have had...it also sucks cause I can't say I'm surrounded with the most pleasant relationships (my parents especially)

current obsession: Primarily Alan Wake, secondary Ilkka Villi and really just the Remedy Verse as a whole--I think work's just beating me down too much to enjoy really anything right now but god do I just crave for the atmosphere and aesthetic of Alan Wake 2 right now

tea or coffee: Coffee though I'm not against tea at all and will admit I haven't drank as much coffee as I used to, I stopped during one summer cause it was too hot and I think I may have lost my idk taste? tolerance? for black coffee but I do get iced french vanilla coffee from mcdonalds like once a week lol. (really I just drink a lot of celsius for my daily caffiene fix)

the last thing i googled: Rune Factory 5 cause I saw it's on sale on the Nintendo e-shop and I'm debating getting it even though I have tons of other games I should be playing and let's be real, I'm just gonna continue playing Alan Wake 2 for the tenth time tomorrow instead of even playing the recently bought Star Wars Outlaws 😂😂 but RF5 is like, 20 bucks and that's the cheapest I've ever seen it so it can't hurt just to get it in the library and maybe start it later

breaking the tag chain but if anybody wants to do this, go for it and say I tagged you

[lifblogs]

Tagged by: @sindar-princeling

Are you named for anyone? Nope, not really. I have a name I might switch to irl, which is my name here, Lif. So really I just named myself after the human woman who survived Ragnarok by sleeping through it.

When was the last time you cried? Last night at midnight. I had to hold in my sobs so hard, and it was literally just over a character death. It really hits me.

Do you have kids? Does a very needy kitty boy count? I'm on mom duty with him for hours every day, and I lost sleep in high school doing all the mom stuff: feeding him, burping him, giving him medicine, giving him baths, reading to him so he could sleep okay, singing him to sleep (these were all vet recommended, and they helped his temperament a lot [he's mentally ill]). I do want kids someday. Almost had one in 2020. I still think about her, especially as May is coming up, and she was supposed to be born then. I don't bring this up to make anyone sad, or feel pity. It's just, part of my life, you know?

What sports do/have you played? Archery!! I haven't been able to do it since an injury in 2013 (yes, I realize this happened forever ago at this point), but it was fun. I should maybe try getting back into it. The lanes are expensive though, and I would need a lot of good places to sit down in between shooting.

Do you use sarcasm? That I do.

What's the first thing you notice about people? Same as sindar-princeling, I think. Probably the facial expressions. Next I look for something to compliment them on.

What's your eye colour? Really dark brown.

Scary movies or Happy endings? I feel like these are not opposite ends of a spectrum or anything. I want to say happy endings, but my favorite Star Wars movies are the tragedies: Revenge of the Sith, Rogue One, The Siege of Mandalore.

Any talents? Oh heck yes! I can play the clarinet, sing, compose, act, write, cat photography (trust me, it is a talent and a skill), edit pictures, and bake (I'm better than average at decorating though, but still kinda suck at it).

Where were you born? New England, USA.

What are your hobbies? Right now it's mostly reading, watching TV and movies, listening to music, playing video games, and writing.

Do you have any pets? I have 2! A maine coon girl named Alley Cat who will be turning 17 this Saturday! She's so silly, and a sweetie, and just full of love. Sometimes she annoys me because she thinks I'm her littermate (we were kids at the same time). She also still snurgles (suckling while kneading at the same time)!! And she loves food. She’s just so stunning and adorable. And then there's Loki! That's my baby boy. He picked me to be his mommy when I was 15. I've been there for him through almost everything (sadly couldn't be there for a scary hospitalization when I was in college a few states over). He's silly, he's lovable and loves giving love, he loves kissies, he likes to be brushed, he loves making biscuits. He loves playtime, and he loves getting into trouble. I have the best kitties.

How tall are you? 5'4 (I still want to cry about somehow growing an inch in my early twenties)

Favourite subject in school? PHYSICS AND BAND!!!

Dream job? I really don't know anymore. I wanted to be a professional clarinet player, but that couldn't happen, I wanted to be an actor, but that wasn't able to happen, I wanted to be an editor: again, nope. Screenwriter? Maybe? Author? I don't know anymore.

And here are my kitties!

Alley is on the left, and Loki is on the right. I forgot to mention that he’s an American Ringtail.

Tagging: @miss-mouse99, @feeling-uncomfy, @evilwriter37, @cascigarette, @knowerofuselessfacts, @err404r, @poisonedyouth, and @vanillachip101.

[fffrost]

Hihi hi!!!! So I think I should make an intro post for myself even though I’ve had this account for a while- specifically I’m gonna cover my stance on nsfw asks and messages because I’ve started getting more varying asks!

Hello! My name is Frost, I go by she/they pronouns. As you may see I’m an artist and I enjoy sharing my art!! I’m an enjoyer of multiple fandoms! Prominently: The Locked Tomb, Mortal Kombat, Star Wars, and a few more! I love talking and interacting with people who enjoy the same things I do ! Feel free to slide into my ask box or dms whenever :)

About using my art:

For phone backgrounds: no credit needed! Have fun (please show me it would make me so happy to see) and go wild- if you’re gonna edit it and put filters and such over it that’s fine!!

For pfps/banners/profiles: fine by me! Please credit me somewhere though!

For edits (musical, video edits or such): if you do this I’ll kiss you. Credit me please still and TAG ME TAG ME I WANNA SEE WHAT YOU MAKE

For edits (editing my art): erm, so long as you don’t draw over like any existing features or whitewash or do weird shit you’re fine. Doodle over them, color my sketches (once again, tag me if you do I’ll cry happy tears) put filters on them make memes- if you reshare my art in any way credit me please!!

Reposting: I’m ok with reposting as long as you credit me!!!

Using: it should be obvious but don’t make any profit off my art. It’s mine, not yours to sell.

That’s all for that!!

Stance for nsfw content is under the cut so I don’t make this too long :)

So recently I’ve gotten some NSFW stuff in my asks which while it’s ok since I’m an adult I just wanna clear things up.

1: do not share your personal experiences with me. I am a stranger online. I don’t know you. Stay safe!!!!! I don’t want to see that stuff, I don’t want to know about your wet dreams!!!

2: if you come into my DMs with nsfw hcs or talking about NSFW content prepare to be blocked. Once again. I’m a stranger. I don’t know you. If we have had conversations and they’ve lead that way it’s ok, but please. Don’t go right off the bat into that.

3: asks. This one is iffy. I’m not a NSFW account but I’m not strictly SFW, I’ll repost suggestive things, I’ll draw suggestive art, but not full on porn. (If you want that you have to go to twitter. Where I don’t post anymore. Or become a close friend on discord.) please don’t send me NSFW asks talking about characters, ships, or any hcs or art. I’m aware I have a large following of varying ages and I want to keep my account safe.

4: regarding if I DO end up posting or reblogging any sort of NSFW content, I will tag it! So filter that out!! If I am posting suggestive art I will label it as such accordingly. If it is NSFW I will put it under a cut with warnings and tags.

I am not mad or upset at any people who asked things with NSFW content- I get it! But please if you want to talk about it so badly with me just DM me- and ask first.

Thank you!!

[pinkacademic]

My Top Ten Barbie Movies

With the movie approaching, I'm dubbing this Barbie Month, and pushing back on the Studying part of the Masterpost for a little longer. July is pink party time!

Today, I’m sharing my Top Ten Barbie movies, which I wonder if they’ll be controversial! Share yours, lets compare!

10: Christmas Carol. She cast herself as the villain, we love that! This is unironically a good adaptation of A Christmas Carol. It doesn’t beat the Muppets, but there are many worse adaptations that get way more praise. Eden Starling is a fantastic Barbie-fied Scrooge, and I love Morwenna Banks.

9: Star Light Adventure. I love Star Wars, I love Star Trek, I love big dumb himbos whose entire motivation in life is Eat Food, Drive Fast, Drink Respect Women Juice. Sometimes Barbie movies should be ranked by their Ken, and Prince Leo is just great. Also, a unique sci-fi plot that could only come from a Barbie movie.

8: Spy Squad. Listen, sometimes I just like dumb, fun movies. This is a stellar spy movie with a fun premise, quirky characters, a spy HQ in the H of the Hollywood sign, and the baddie is just their rival in a wig. Its cute, its colourful, they give Barbie a knock-off lightsaber. No complaints.

7: Big City, Big Dreams. We’re finally back to a good, queer-leaning Barbie movie! I love Malibu and Brookln’s dynamic, I think they’re so cute platonically or romantically, and I had fun with Mermaid Magic and Epic Road Trip too. I don’t love the tragic miscommunication moment, but I guess they had to add conflict in the last ten minutes. I love the songs and their final performance enough that all is forgiven.

6: Video Game Hero. I just think its fun, ok? This is the “there’s more than one way to ___” thing that Pink Shoes tried (and I still love, just not enough to Top Ten it) but went the wrong way about in my opinion. Video Game Hero is not a groundbreaking political commentary, or a classic musical, but it just has a special place in my heart.

5: Three Musketeers. I genuinely do not care for any other version of Three Musketeers. No one will ever beat Barbie. I love the secret society of swordfighters, I love that Prince Louis changes his tune by the power of… well, the Power of Four forevermore, I guess. I love that every version of Three Musketeers features precisely 0 muskets, and the Barbie version took that new heights with one of them fully just having ribbons.

4: The Fairytopia Trilogy. I think they get better and better with each iteration. I love the story of a wingless fairy getting wings, and then giving them up selflessly in 1 and 2, and I love that the ultimate message is that of kindness and courage. It’s also absolutely just me being blinded by childhood nostalgia, but Laverna is a top tier villain too.

3: Magic of Pegasus. I have a lot of positive thoughts about this one, but the main one is Aiden!! I think his story is quite unique and complex and he’s one of the strongest love interests of any of th Barbie movies. I also think this one is so pretty and purple, and Cloud Kingdom is glorious, and the quest plot is fantastic.

2: Princess and the Pauper. Now I know this one will not be controversial, except that it’s nt number one! Annaliese and Erika are both delightful, Julian and Dominic too, and even the characters lower on the roster are fun. Not to mention the best songs that make me want to do a full stage production.

1: Princess Charm School. This probably comes as no surprise if you’ve read my essay. I think that the socioeconomic implications are intense, I think that the murder plot is exciting, I think Hadley and Isla as Gardania Unsolved have to be among my favourite Friend Characters, and I think Blair is actually a great character too. I also love Delancey’s redemption, and how it comes from being faced with real-world consequences.

[jaeellec]

Patreon🔹Instagram🔹Wattpad🔹Ko-fi🔹Art Tag

Formerly apirateslifeforbudgie

Welcome! You've had the misfortune of stumbling upon my blog, but may as well linger while you're here!

My ask box and messages are always open! I don't mind chit chat about common interests or OCs, just be sure to keep things kind!

Commissions are currently open! I need to make another comm post, but feel free to message me in the meantime! I offer character art ranging from simple busts to full design sheets, Log Collection covers, Wattpad covers, wanted posters, devil fruit design, Hanafuda cards, fake screenshots, so on and so forth. And I have a graphic design background, so I can do logos too! Whatever you need, I'm your girl~

I've got all the basic bases covered above, but *Starship Troopers voice* would you like to know more?

I go by Jaeelle! At least on the internet I do. This is a One Piece blog that I made for the sole purpose of posting my fanart and fanfiction with JJK content showing up from time to time. You will also see my OCs often - especially my main character - I've had most of them for a very long time and they are a major part of me. Currently, they are in the world of One Piece while a handful are also in JJK at the moment. I will talk more of my fics a little further down!

As much as I love One Piece (despite trashing it for years and years please forgive me), it is not my only interest! I am very much into plenty of other anime (literally too many to name), video games (ranging all the way from Stardew Valley to the SoulsBorne games. Monster Hunter World, The Witcher 3, Skyrim and Fallout 3 are personal favorites), horror movies, TV shows (GOT/HOTD, The Boys, Love Death & Robots, Yellowjackets, Spartacus), comic books (I used to own a comic shop!), music, and dragons! I love, love, love dragons.

Clearly, I am very much into many fantasy tales of all medium. If there's anything to know about me, it's that I love deep-diving into lore and background for characters and worlds alike, and I hope that presents itself in my writing. And speaking of...

As I mentioned, my characters are currently in the worlds of One Piece and JJK. While I have written or posted nothing for JJK (and am unsure if I will), below is how the One Piece story has shaped itself!

ONE PIECE: WANDERING STAR - (In Progress/Unpublished for now) This is the main story! It focuses on the Captain Trio and is led by my main character, as this is her story - the classic One Piece tale of reclaiming a kingdom but take it a little darker. Lots of revenge, so much beheading, but a little wonder and romance sweetens the adventure.

If you would like to sample some snippets from the story to see if you're into it, check them out here.

There is also a playlist I made for the series here!

BLACK STAR - (Not Started/Not Posted) If Wandering Star is dark, then this prequel story of Carmen's time in Eventide is downright gritty. Glimpses will be given in WS, but this is the brutal uncut tale, and it takes place roughly around the events of Sabaody and the Summit War.

DAMN THE STARS - (Select Scenes/Not Posted) This is Wandering Star's sequel! It's a Kid Pirate story that runs parallel to the in-anime events ranging from just before Punk Hazard to the start of Wano. Still undecided how far I wanna take the mature content in this one.

There are also anime inserts to be written for my main character! While there are some earlier mentions, her first "official" in-anime appearance would start at episode 603 and (as of today) end at episode 1112. But I'm sure there will be more to come!

That should be a good start! Enjoy your adventure!

[dannyreviews]

Steamboat Willie (1928)

2024 had opened with the greatest rejoicing among fans of Disney and old school animation. After 95 years, the earliest version of Mickey Mouse is now in the public domain and is owned by the public. Immediately after midnight, YouTube account "Corridor" uploaded the iconic Disney short "Steamboat Willie" and as of this writing, the video has 376,000 views and is sure to go up. I thought I would celebrate by reviewing this 7 minute masterpiece which shows the inception of an American icon.

The cartoon opens with the famous shot of Mickey commanding a steamboat down the river, although without the permission of his boss, the giant Peg-Leg Pete (although without the Peg-Leg). Mickey is forced to do his chores while Pete's parrot taunts him. The steamboat picks up a bunch of animals including a cow and a goat. Minnie is also picked up and the two have fun playing music when the goat eats sheet music of "Turkey In The Straw" that Minnie brought aboard. The fun continues as Mickey and Minnie play the animals like musical instruments, using a duck quack, the cow's teats and a bull's set of teeth. Pete discovers the jam and orders Mickey to peel potatoes, again with the parrot taunting over him, but Mickey throws one of the potatoes to shut the parrot up, ending the cartoon.

"Steamboat Willie" is every bit the piece of film that is found in every montage celebrating the cinema of the 20th century. Mickey at the helm of the Steamboat is as iconic as Charles Foster Kane whispering "Rosebud" or Rick Blaine saying "Here's looking at you kid". And yet, the animation is primitive, the music by future Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies composer Carl W. Stalling is generic and the dialogue is unintelligible. All of that can be excused due to the art of animation being in the developmental stages and that it was the first animated sound film. Taken for what it is, "Steamboat Willie" resonates with people of all ages just for the very idea that it was Mickey Mouse's debut to the world and that's what really matters. It's the same thing with "The Jazz Singer", despite being the first full length talkie, it is really a mediocre film, and had it not been for the history, no one would care for it. If anything, the flaws are actually the most fascinating part.

Back in 1928, "Steamboat Willie" was the warmup feature for a now lost film called "Gang War" starring Jack Pickford (brother of Mary) and Olive Borden. The audience were blown away by Mickey Mouse, for the sheer brilliance of the cartoon as if it was other worldly. Also, the fact that "Gang War" was another early talkie that most likely was devoid of a musical score and the dialogue tended to be bland and inaudible. The film was panned by critics calling it another cliche flick. The critics had all the kind words for the cartoon preceding the feature which was more revolutionary. The audience demanded "Steamboat Willie" be repeated and the rest is history. I wonder if a copy of "Gang War" will surface and if it will find a new audience who might be receptive due to its association with "Steamboat Willie". Maybe, maybe not.

What will come from this new public domain status for early Mickey Mouse? Much like the plays of Shakespeare or the art of Leonardo Da Vinci, there is an audience willing to put their interpretation of the classic character in their own art, literature or parody. 2024 and beyond should and will be filled with endless possibilities.

9/10

[miss-tribulationperiwinkle]

A lot and forever.

I keep thinking about the last time I saw you, how I had to let your hand go very quickly so that you wouldn’t start crying while I was holding back the tears. I should be the strong one anyways, I’m the adult, right? 

I hate saying goodbye to you. Sometimes it’s even harder and I can feel the water on my cheeks before I get on the taxi, sometimes I wait until I’m in the car to let it all go. 

Sometimes I’m lucky and the driver doesn’t ask me anything, they just let me cry. But there are other times when they ask me about you and my heart gets a little broken while I answer. How can I explain to a stranger what you are to me? How can I tell them that you are my favorite person even though I am a thousand years older than you? 

They didn’t see me holding you the first time I met you with a heart full of hope and a mind full of fears. They didn’t see us dancing to the Hadestown music when you couldn’t even walk yet. They didn’t see us smiling around bubbles. They didn’t see us laughing while reading Creepy Pair of Underwear. They didn’t see us fight over Skittles. They didn’t see us argue about Uno rules. They didn’t see us talking about Star Wars. 

I’m not your mom, I’m not your sister, I’m not your aunt. We don’t have one drop of blood in common inside of us. And yet, my heart breaks everytime I have to leave you. 

I know we had the same thought the other day after you asked me to show you my house on a video call, when I was showing you my Millennial Falcon and the pictures of you I have on my wall. You are here with me, always, but you are not really here, as I’m not really there. I can’t have breakfast with you every morning before school and see your teeth fall. I can’t see you come home every day. I can’t sit on the couch to eat strawberries with Nutella while watching movies with you every Friday night. 

I can’t. But I can do one thing, and that is to promise you that no matter how far away we are, you are always and you will always be my favorite person. I need you to know that. I always tell you this, “I love you, a lot, and forever”. I don’t say things that I don’t mean. Please, don’t forget that. I will be thinking of you until I can hold your hand again, with you smiling and me holding back happy tears.  

[i-am-brandon]

my life story chapter 8

Sorry about the health freaks thing, I think that’s what people called them but not me. At the private Christian school they had a wrestling ring, and I was on it and they didn’t want me on it they thought it might not be safe, I jumped on it, it’s like a trampoline, so as far as I know you land on something soft that seems not bad. At my private Christian school some people showed up and they showed everyone there veggie tales before anyone knew about that, it’s a cartoon about talking vegetables and it’s a Christian show or movie, I don’t know if this private Christian school would talk about Christian music concerts like dc talk was a random Christian band. Class would consist of memorizing bible verses and normal school stuff. mcgee and me I used to watch that show. I think there was a guy named Nathan that might of been the Christian school but I’m not sure, he said to me girls like me, I said why, he said I don’t know, I wanted him to help me with girls he didn’t though. I think me and Nathan used to play this video game I think it was a dragon ball z video game, it was a fighting game, and it wasn’t easy to beat anybody up in this fighting game because of health regeneration if you waited you would have full health again so it would be a tie a lot and you would play it until you got bored. Than there was Justin he wanted to kill himself, I don’t know if I asked him why, Justin said because I don’t have any friend’s, I might of said to Justin I’ll be your friend, and he didn’t kill himself because of me. Justin liked Star Wars. Me and Justin went to the Star Wars phantom menace premiere in California. A random guy talked to me and Justin and he said do you want to hold darth mauls lightsaber. Me and Justin agreed to that. He brought out something that seemed like it was made out of metal it was kind of heavy so maybe darth maul lifts weights. I think Justin is still alive and he plays bass guitar in a random band. One random day I ditched class, and I thought I should hide in a bathroom, and sit on a toilet seat and not show my feet, and than I don’t know how long I was sitting there not going to the bathroom, well 2 people walked into that bathroom and they were stoners, but I was I don’t even know what age I don’t even know if I knew what drugs were. So I looked at these stoners 1 had a big liter of soda, was it 1 liter, 2 liter I don’t know, I’m assuming they made a bong with it next, comedians say stoners can make a bong out of anything, 1 of the stoners was paranoid, he kept leaving the bathroom to see if anyone was watching that seemed like suspicious behavior to me now that I think about it, I didn’t do drugs I don’t do drugs or drink the Al key hall. I was in the wrong place at the right time. Which is why you shouldn’t ditch school, ok back to the stoners part of my life. So I started to smell something it smelled like a different cigarette, I was like what’s that smell it smelled like some unknown plant. I for some reason thought the janitor was smoking a cigarette. Than a cop showed up. A cop said is anyone in the bathroom, I showed myself. I don’t know why I didn’t tell the cop what happened, I guess I thought it doesn’t sound good to say I wanted to ditch class. I’m scared of cops, he asked me questions about drugs that I didn’t know the answer to he thought that might be kind of innocent. But what confuses me to this day is why didn’t he test my urine. The cop somehow knew I was innocent. But I think a guy that looked like billy idol was arrested that day and maybe his friend not sure, but the guy with billy idol hair was arrested that day at the school I was at. Well now for a memory I am not proud of, i was at a hot topic in Irvine, California, I always liked goth girl’s, so I used to stalk her because I didn’t know what stalking was and that you are not supposed to do that, I would stalk her at that same hot topic, don’t do that girls aren’t into that, movies teach you this leads to love no it doesn’t, so yeah goth girl didn’t like me doing that.

[chocolatechimsugakookie2]

Now introducing… HALLOWEEN*TOWN👻🎃

It’s that time of year again for the lovely 4Town-

Tae: SPOOKYTOWN!!

Yes Tae SpookyTown!

Jesse: No no no it should be FourrorTown

Tae: 🙄

Jesse: you get it? I put Four and horror together and-

Tae: WE GET IT!

T: I’m feeling CreepyTown but you know whatever

Jesse and Tae:………

Anyways Its the time of year for the lovely iCantMakeUpMyMindTown to pick costumes! Now let’s see what they have in store!

Tae: LETS GET TO HAUNTING😆

I’ll be showing each members Halloween costume for this year 2022 and 2002.

Jesse💙

For 2022 Halloween Jesse is definitely going to be

Captain America

We all know that 4Town are the biggest fans of Marvel! So it’s no shock when one of them decides to dress as a Marvel character😭 Everyone knows that Jesse would make a great Captain America, especially with the handsome and tall stature, with blonde hair and blue eyes! That being said it was the other members idea for him to dress as Captain America this year, and he went along with it because “why the heck not? I’m sexy and strong” “And Old!!” Their words not mine👀

For 2002 Halloween Jesse is going to be

Darth Vader

Jesse is definitely a Star Wars fan and he loves the villains just as much as he loves the heroes in Star Wars. He knew a Darth Vader costume would be more iconic, and he definitely nailed it. He definitely stayed in character and did the heavy breathing. “Z, I am your father”. “……You are A father… but you ain’t MY father”. Everyone died laughing after hearing that😭

Robaire💚

For 2022 Halloween Ro is going to be

The Weeknd from his After Hours album

Everyone is a big fan of The Weeknd’s music, especially Ro, and when the album came out, Ro was totally intrigued and loved the whole theme and story The Weeknd told! The group had recently went to Orlandos Universal Studios and went to Halloween Horror Nights, and he loved the haunted house they had for The Weekend, so he thought it would be a great idea to dress as him! *Ro in full costume just burst out singing* “Save your tears for another dayyy”. “Ro. Dude. Please this is yo 20th time singing it man give it a rest” (fun fact, I actually just went to Orlando for horror nights, which is how I came up with this idea, and The Weeknd’s house was truly the coolest thing ever)

For Halloween 2002 Robaire is going to be

A werewolf, specifically Michael Jackson thriller

This costume was a total hit for Ro however, it almost did not make the cut because he couldn’t decide whether he wanted to be just a werewolf or wear the iconic thriller outfit, And that’s when Z said “dude, just be the werewolf from thriller” and Ro took the idea and ran with it! He hired people to do everything right so he can look just like the video and they definitely did him justice. He scared away plenty without trying.

Aaron T🧡

For 2022 Halloween T is going to be

Captain Jack Sparrow

Now I know this costume is old but Jack Sparrow is one of T’s favorite characters and he can do the best impression on Jack Sparrow, so he waited for the right moment to pull this costume out of his sleeve. He also wants to film a TikTok of him running like Jack Sparrow because he is that good at it😭 (saw someone say this before) he went around quoting the movies every second “This is the day you will always remember as the day you almost caught Captain Jack Sparrow.”

For 2002 Halloween T is going to be

The Terminator

T does the best impression on this character too! He is just a huge movie guy at this point! Him and Tae we’re trying to see what T should be by naming all the characters T would look good as! They first were going for a greaser from The Outsiders or Danny Zuko from Grease, but T of course wanted to have guns😭 “you’d make a great Ninja” “But I want a leather jacket” “Okay fine be Dally or Danny Zuko” “But I want-”. “WHAT!?!? WHAT DO YOU WANT?!”. “I WANT GUNS TAE!” *they both gasp in realization*. “The Terminator The Terminator”

Aaron Z💜

For 2022 Halloween Z is going to be

Miles Morales

As we all say 4Town are big Marvel fans, but we all know Z is the BIGGEST fan! Spider-Man is one of his favorite superheroes, so once he finally thought of he he was going to be he wasted no time buying the whole Miles Morales Into The Spider-verse outfit! This man literally bought every piece to pull it off from the AirJordans, the shorts, a red hooded jacket, the green jacket, and most of all the Spider Suit! *Z walks in with the full costume on* “Well look who came to save the day”. “Shut the hell up”. “He definitely is the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man just without the friendly”

For 2002 Halloween Z is going to be

The Joker

Now Z did not choose this costume at all😂 if the team is not doing group costumes, then he will be the last person to buy his costume because he is very last minute when it comes to these things! Especially when he can’t think of anything! Three days before Halloween he decided to be ghost face but the rest of the members were getting on him! “Dude do you know how many people are going to be him?” “literally! Five people are going to the party with that costume already ” “ well, I don’t know what else to fucking do”. “leave that to us then😏”. “ I think I already know😏” “Oh boy 😟” let’s be honest here! T just wanted an excuse to spray paint Z’s hair green, and Ro just wanted an excuse to paint a clown on Z’s face

Taeyoung 💓

For 2022 Halloween Tae is going to be

BeetleJuice

This is definitely one of Tae’s favorite movies and not only that but he is a big fan of the musical version too! So it was no surprise when the members saw him running back and forth shopping for this costume! Just like T, Tae can do good impressions as well so he definitely stayed in character! “You got to say my name 3 times”. “Okay!😃 joker, joker, joker”(Jesse’s kids) “Wait no I’m not the Joker I’m Beetlejuice!” “Who?” “You’re definitely the joker Uncle Tae because your hair is green and you look like a broke clown”. “I- ….. okay yeah”

For 2002 Halloween Tae is going to be

Woody from Toy Story

Now in the beginning Tae was talking to Jesse about wanting to be an “attractive cowboy ” but Jesse gave him that look and told him to “keep it pg, or you’ll be mistaken for a bachelorette party dancer ” “But jess I’m 18 now”. “Okay okay you can be a cowboy sure🙂” “W-why are you smiling like that” And next thing you know Tae is standing there in a Woody costume. At first he wasn’t happy about it but it grew on him since one he does like ToyStory and two he is cute so he pulls it off!

This was extremely fun to make and also semi long, so I’m sorry for the wait😅 but I truly hope you all enjoy

Thank you @4townn for the name “SpookyTown”

Thank you @random4townheadcanons for the name “Halloween*Town”

Thank you @golldenvallion for the name “FourrorTown”

Thank you @aaronzsbiggestsuperfan for the name “CreepyTown”

[lil-tachyon]

Hey logan, i'm trying to get into sci fi more, do you have any media, movies or otherwise you'd say it's a must watch for someone starting to get into it? Thanks

Super broad question! And precisely the thing I love to talk about. Although unfortunately I really don’t watch a lot of movies or TV so the best I can do for you is list some stuff I like and hope that you find something you enjoy. If we were talking sci-fi literature, that’s something I would probably write a full essay on- if anyone’s interested in reading my thoughts on that and getting my really long list of recommendations, just let me know. I might even do it on my own anyway, just for fun…

I guess if we’re going to talk about “must-watch” sci-fi movies then we have to talk about Star Wars first just to get it out of the way. I’ll keep it brief, far too much ink has been spilt regarding this franchise and you can find more in-depth opinions somewhere else. The original trilogy is great- there’s a reason it launched one of the biggest media franchises of the past 45 years. Endlessly rewatchable, somehow still looks better than basically any other big budget SFF popcorn movie and just plain fun. If you somehow haven’t seen the OT yet, get to it. 

You don’t really need to watch any other Star Wars stuff aside from the OT. The prequels aren’t exactly essential and they’re unquestionably worse in terms of dialog, acting, pacing (i.e. the nuts and bolts of storytelling.) If you’ve never watched Star Wars before you won’t have any nostalgia for them so you can skip them. Don’t even bother with the Disney sequels- pointless and incoherent. If you DO for some reason want more Star Wars in your life I can give you two recommendations: 

First is the masterpiece that is Genndy Tartakovsky’s (creator of Samurai Jack) Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003) (no, not the CGI Clone Wars show you’re probably thinking of). Split into 25 episodes ranging in length from two to twelve minutes, the whole show is only about two hours long but boy is it sweet. There are no main characters and not much in the way of an overarching plot. Instead the show is composed of a series of rapid-fire vignettes that take place across the entire Star Wars galaxy and tell dozens of unique microstories. It’s pulpy and fun and never takes itself too seriously and the whole thing is on YouTube because for some reason Disney actually hates everything that made Star Wars good and hasn’t taken the time to copyright strike it.

Second recommendation is the Mandalorian. I didn’t believe it when people started raving about it, but it really is great and tells a poignant, self-contained, original story. It’s not perfect and it definitely suffers from the Disneywars curse of really obnoxious references to the OT, but it’s absolutely worth the watch.

Damn that’s so much more time than I wanted to spend on Star Wars. I always forget how much of a SW geek I am until I start talking about it…

Quick list of the other big “essentials” that I’ve seen and can recommend before I get into more personal stuff (in no particular order):

Alien (1979) - Weird and creepy and gross and with impeccable visual design in every single frame. I need to rewatch it, only seen it once.

Akira (1988) - Massive, groundbreaking, unsettling, beautiful. Brought cyberpunk into the visual realm, brought anime to the West in a whole new way. I could rewatch it a hundred times. 

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - A foundational film that moves at a foreboding crawl and leaves you feeling unsafe and unsure of what you just watched. (Also my dad’s band referenced the monkey scene in their big-label debut music video, so that should be reason enough to watch it)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) - UFOs, the American West, and the most 70s-looking cast imaginable. It feels more a product of its time than most of the others on this list, but I love it for that and it does nothing to make it any less impactful or engrossing.

The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) - I waited waaaaaay too long to watch these. I only got around to seeing them this past year in fact. I had always just written them off in my head as nothing more than cheesy 80s action flicks but my God are they good and so much different from what I expected. The first one is basically a sci-fi slasher film and the second is probably the best sequel film I’ve ever seen and takes everything in a totally different direction that still manages to build on all the groundwork laid by the first. Please watch, don’t be like me and wait until you’re twenty-six. 

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) - My favorite Ghibli movie. For being a film about people flying airships and fighting bugs in a giant toxic jungle, it really has a lot of important stuff to say and says it very well.

Castle in the Sky (1988) - Hits a lot of the same plot beats as Nausicaä and, imo, suffers a little bit in comparison but still a great anime sci-fantasy romp. 

The Thing (1982) - Disgusting sci-fi horror in the glacial Antarctic wastes

The Twilight Zone (1959-1964) - The first, the best. Sure, it’s inconsistent in terms of quality, but it’s at least consistently weird and inventive and the good episodes are really damn good. Also something I love about it is the acting- it’s very over-the-top expressive and exaggerated. Feels more like it’s meant for the stage than for the small screen. You don’t see a lot of TV like that these days. 

The X-Files (1993-2002, 2016-2018) - Absolutely in my top 5 TV shows. It was great to watch as a 14-year-old because I was still young enough to find it scary, and it’s great on every re-watch because I can really appreciate how much chemistry Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny have and how fun, goofy, and overall weird it is. As I recall it starts to decline noticeably in season 8. Season 9 you’ll have to grit your teeth to get through. The 2016-2018 revival is half composed of unwatcheable “storyline” episodes and half surprisingly good-to-great “monster of the week” episodes.

Cowboy Bebop (1998-1999) - My number one favorite anime, I love everything about it. So much effort goes into small background details and characters that only appear for a few seconds and it really goes a long way to making the whole universe of the show feel so real that you could see yourself living in it. Also the soundtrack is top-notch, I listen to it regularly. 

Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995-1996) and End of Evangelion (1997) - Another one that I took too long to get to and to be honest I probably would’ve been more into it had I watched it when I was younger, but it’s still great and I recommend it. Features a classic “inflation suit” episode

Stuff that’s less “essential” but I really like it:

Planetes (2003-2004) - My second favorite anime. Starts off as a workplace slice-of-life and slowly builds into a really, really emotional conclusion. Can’t recommend it enough.

Forbidden Planet (1956) - A sci-fi adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Tempest (I’m an illiterate piece of shit so I can’t tell you how good an adaptation it is). It’s slow-paced and eerie, and way more atmospheric than its decidedly 1950s visuals would lead you to believe.

Digimon: The Movie (2000) / Summer Wars (2009) - A short story: as a kid I probably watched the Digmon Movie about a million times. It was huge with kids my age and was probably an entire generation’s first introduction to ska-punk. It’s a great movie. Anyway, fast forward about a decade and a half and at some point I sit down to watch Summer Wars with my brother on no other information than that we heard it’s good. And it is! But pretty soon into the movie we both notice something odd- it seems to feature almost the exact same plot as the Digmon Movie. After a bit of digging we find out that they were both directed by the same guy and it seems he just had this idea in his head for a story that he really wanted to make for over a decade because Summer Wars is basically a more mature and less merchandisable remake. Watch them both!

Samurai Jack (2001-2004, 2017) - the first cartoon I saw as a kid that really made me say “finally, something for me!” I wouldn’t get another TV show aimed at me that was “cool” and “epic” and “badass” until ATLA came out. Nothing beats watching a samurai fight a million robots and bounty-hunters on an endless quest to go back to the past. Also the season 5 revival is great and I genuinely don’t get why a lot of people seemed to really hate on it. 

Moon (2009) - It’s been a LONG time since I watched it, but I liked it quite a bit. A lonely lunar miner runs into what seems to be his double and things get spooky…

Prospect (2018) - More space miners running into trouble! Really great costume and prop design on a super small budget (but you wouldn’t know it from how good it looks). 

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket (1989) - Listen- I’m not a gundam guy. I don’t care about all the different robots and I’m not about to watch 40 years of TV to try and figure out the story. Which is why War in the Pocket is great because it’s six episodes long and it just tells a really touching story punctuated by cool robot battles and you don’t need to know anything about Gundam to enjoy it.

Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise (1987) - A story about a space race set on an alternate world. What really sets it apart is the visual design- every detail from books, to currency, to texts to vehicles, to architecture is unique enough to feel totally alien but also grounded enough to somehow feel familiar. It’s quite an achievement. Trigger Warning: there’s a very uncomfortable rape scene in the middle of the film that seems to come out of nowhere. I’m still not sure why they chose to include it.

Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999) - Military police get up to some real nasty stuff in alternate history fashy 1950s Japan. Very depressing, all my friends complained to me about how sad it was even though they went into it knowing what it was about and agreeing to watch it with me. You just can’t win sometimes!

That’s about all I have for now. I know it’s all kind of basic bitch stuff but like I said, I don’t often watch movies/TV. Hope it helps and thanks for the great question!

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #558

Top Ten “Weird Al” Yankovic Songs

In retrospect, I should have done this last week and the Tarantino list this week. But really, what is more Al than just randomly getting something very, very slightly off? Because there’s a fillum out and I want to celebrate. Weird: The Al Yankovic Story stars Harry Potter as “Weird Al” Yankovic in a hard-bitten biopic of drugs and excess that is only available on a streaming service you’ve never heard of that isn’t even accessible in the UK, and is both the true story of Yankovic’s rise to success and also completely made up. And as someone who’s been a huge Al fan for over twenty years, this is incredibly exciting, hilarious, and rather frustrating in equal measure. Anyway: to celebrate, here’s a list.

Yankovic is an incredibly gifted musician and performer, something that I think is often hidden by the fact that he’s most famous as a parodist. But it’s one thing to just change the words of a song to make a joke; it’s another to spend forty years adapting multiple genres and styles of music, as well as expertly recreating famous videos, as well as making parodic references to everything from Star Wars to Santa Claus. The breadth of his talent and musicality, to say nothing of how funny and effective he is as an overall writer and performer, is frankly astonishing; in his career he’s turned is hand to everything, from gangsta rap to piano ballads and all sorts in between, to say nothing of his legendary polka medleys of popular songs.

All this brings us to the list itself, which at the end of the day is just my favourite of his songs. And I tell ya, it was hard! This was one of the hardest ones I’ve done, I think! Like with all kinds of music, really, you veer towards different songs at different times, so how does one compare American Pie to Pretty Fly for a White Guy, the works of Billy Joel to the works of Coolio? So we just come to my basic criteria, which is: how much do I enjoy the song? How funny is it? And, if it is a parody, how well is it doing with the parodying? Because one of the things I love about Al is that, as well as homaging different styles of music or plots of films, he often peppers his songs with lyrics that reference so much stuff. It’s a delight unpacking them from a comedic standpoint. Sometimes it’s not even a reference, sometimes it’s just hilarious wordplay. So that’s all factored into my complex algorithm. And this is the result!

The Saga Begins (1999): whilst I was broadly familiar with his work, this is song that really made me a fan. I remember it being a news story on the Empire website, and trying to watch it on my flaky dial-up at the time – probably the first music video I ever watched online. And I still think it’s just hilarious. I think the funniest thing is that, unlike some other songs, it’s not really parodying Star Wars; it’s actually a fairly straight retelling of the events of The Phantom Menace, just sung to the tune of American Pie. But the lyrics are golden; “My, my, this here Anakin guy/Maybe Vader someday later now he’s just a small fry”. It’s so perfect that it’s not only damn funny, not only a beautiful love letter to Star Wars, but also it just works as a song. I’ve sung it so much I know all the words and it was actually a bedtime lullaby I sang to my kids. And however much I love some of his other songs, I can’t say that about The Night Santa Went Crazy.

Dare to Be Stupid (1985): is it possible that I love this one so much because it was the first Al song I heard? That it is, in fact, featured on the soundtrack to The Transformers: The Movie? Almost certainly yes, but I don’t care. I am not, in truth, very familiar with Devo, so the intricacies of its parody are mostly lost on me; I get that he’s doing a bit on their songs and the video is referencing them too, but for me it’s just a really catchy song full of terrific, hilarious lyrical gags and references. And it’s played when Hot Rod and Wreck-Gar are dancing on the planet of Junk.

Don’t Download This Song (2006): rather than lampooning a specific song, this is a satire on a genre, perfectly parodying the pretensions of those Band Aid-style charity singles by earnest celebrities. As well as skewering the style so succinctly, it also has a tremendous target for the early noughties – the downloading of “free” music from file-sharing sites. Whilst incredibly of its time, it’s full of on-point references, including Lars Ulrich’s famed disdain of downloaded music, as well as mocking celebrity excess. This is all incredibly hilarious for me as, after really getting into Al in 1999, it was finding more of his music via Napster when I was at university that really made me a huge fan of his back catalogue. And don’t worry – I’ve also bought it on CD, too.

Jurassic Park (1993): this song is probably unique in the annals of all parody songs by virtue of it being more sensible and making more sense than the song it’s a parody of. The genius realisation that “Jurassic Park” scans perfectly with “MacArthur Park” is just the start, as it runs through the events of the film in hilarious manner (“I admit it’s kinda eerie/But this proves my chaos theory”). Apparently the stop-motion video was approved by Spielberg himself! Nobody leaves a cake out in the rain, however.

White and Nerdy (2006): talk about your references, this is the motherlode; and, quite frankly, it speaks to me. A veritable spreadsheet full of nerdy ephemera, the hilarity obviously coming from the juxtaposition of edgy rap with, well, Al Yankovic, almost every geeky IP or pastime is namechecked: Star Trek, Wikipedia, D&D, bubble wrap… the exquisiteness of the lyrics and speed at which Al cycles through them means it requires multiple listens to catch all the gags. And it has perhaps my favourite of all his lyrics: “The only question I/Ever thought was hard/Was do I like Kirk/Or do I like Picard”.

Ode to a Superhero (2003): ah, now we’re back to the soft gentle ballads and another recounting of the events of a summer blockbuster. Somehow singing a song about Spider-Man to the tune of Piano Man is perfect; after all, both Peter Parker and Billy Joel are New York legends (one’s from Queens, the other’s from the Bronx). Like The Saga Begins, it’s funny not just because, well, singing about Spider-Man is funny, but also the specificity of the references; like Mary Jane preferring guys “who can kiss upside down in the rain” or Norman Osborn wearing a “dumb” mask but being “scarier without it on”.

It’s All About the Pentiums (1999): another fabulously fast-paced rap about something exquisitely geeky; except this time it’s honing in on millennium-era computing technology. It’s another example of playing spot-the-reference but one thing that I find increasingly delightful in this case is that it’s so fabulously outdated; references to Y2K, newsgroups, “a hundred gigabytes of RAM”, and even the very fact that it’s got “Pentium” in the name. I can’t help but feel that this one’s just gonna get funnier as it gets older.

Pretty Fly for a Rabbi (1999): again we see the comedy emerge from the collision between a fast-paced, hard-edged style of music (in this case, millennial American punk) and frankly ridiculous lyrics. It’s not just the silliness of something as benign as a rabbi being the focus of an edgy rock song; it’s also the incorporation of Yiddish and stereotypically Jewish turns of phrase into the lyrics. Partly responsible for my assumption that Yankovic himself was Jewish!

Amish Paradise (1996): an infamous Weird Al song in that, whereas usually the original songwriters are chuffed to have him parody them, this one actually pissed off Coolio (RIP). But it’s part of the genre of tough songs about silly shit, the gangsta rap ballad of inner-city life and crime transmogrified into the badassery of the Amish, raising barns and milking cows. Perhaps it’s a bit mean to the Amish, in retrospect; but “you know I’m a million times as humble as thou art” is still a cracking lyric.

Bedrock Anthem (1993): I don’t think I’ve really expressed enough just how on point his parodies are; how well he raps, how closely he mirrors the style of the homaged artists, even in videos. But this is exquisite; somehow Al even looks like a Red Hot Chilli Pepper. And it’s just bonkers; I mean, how on earth do you get The Flintstones from Under the Bridge? I’m guessing – and this is just a wild guess based on nowt – that it was doing the “Yabba-dabba-dabba-dabba-do now” to the chorus that spawned the rest of the song, but who really knows? And once again we have lyrics that give me such joy, especially the way he throws in – out of nowhere – references to Bedrock life, such as “got a baby elephant vacuum cleaner”. Joy!

Now whilst I am gutted I didn’t find room for Bob, Yoda, or Santa, I’m also a bit gutted that I never got round to one of his polkas. These are really impressive works, how he manages to translate such a wide variety of songs into a polka style, and then turn it into a big medley, bouncing from track to track and even from genre to genre within the same song. Seriously, the man’s a musical genius. Maybe that’s why only Daniel Radcliffe could play him; he’s used to playing wizards.

[martelldoran]

WHAT'S THE CAUSALITY LOOP THEORY

Why Emma, thank you so much for asking. I’m not going to waste time before jumping into this because this is gonna get long so without further ado...

Steve Rogers’ Ending and How Endgame Doesn’t Support a Causality Loop and other such rambles

Last month, I came across a TikTok that proposed that Steve’s ending made sense because it existed within a causality loop. I would link the TikTok but I didn’t save it at the time and trying to find videos on that app is impossible. You think Tumblr’s search function is bad? 🙄 But I digress. The TL;DR of the video is that due to time travel and Steve choosing to go back in time to be Peggy’s husband, it created a causality loop where he was always meant to be her husband because he went back in time and stayed there. The TikToker supported his argument by using Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (PoA), another film that uses time travel and has a clearly defined example of a causality loop. However, his argument is fundamentally flawed so I’m going to combine my knowledge of my two biggest fandoms to tell you why.

Continued under the cut because I have no chill. Beware, it's long.

To first tell you how Endgame (EG) doesn’t support a causality loop, we must establish how PoA does establish one and does it successfully. The TikToker specifically mentions the scenes that take place at Hagrid’s Hut surrounding Buckbeak the hippogriff’s execution, so we’ll look at those first. What the film does really well is establish early on that there is something weird going on well before anyone actually goes back in time. There are three things that happen in quick succession during this scene which sets up the causality loop we see later in the film. First, a rock flies through the window and breaks a jar. Second, another rock hits Harry in the back of the head. Third, once outside, Hermione hears a branch snap and thinks she sees ‘something’. There are also two additional moments later on in the film once the Harry, Ron, and Hermione have come out of the Shrieking Shack which should also be noted: a wolf howl that distracts Remus Lupin in werewolf form from attacking the group and somebody casting a full-bodied stag patronus at the edge of the lake to save Harry and Sirius from the Dementors.

Of these occurrences, the first is arguably the most important because it does the most to establish that there is something going on outside of the Trio’s current understanding of their situation. The film makes a point to frame the jar breaking as Important Information the Audience Must Remember because it shows a visibly confused Hermione reacting to it as she picks up the rock for closer inspection and we the audience are given close up of it in her hand. Not only is it framed front and centre in the shot but the rock itself is very distinctive. It’s almost wholly smooth but for a swirl of fossil, thus marking it as not just any rock but An Important Rock To Be Remembered. This was an intentional choice by director Alfonso Curon because he uses this rock to connect this moment to its mirrored scene later on once Harry and Hermione use the Time Turner.

The audience and the characters find out about the causality loop at the same time. There are clearly stated rules of time travel that say that they aren’t to meddle with time but when Harry and Hermione see that Dumbledore, the Minister for Magic, and the executioner are on their way to Hagrid’s hut they panic because their counterparts aren’t leaving. Then, we see Hermione notice something in the pumpkin patch: a distinctive rock, smooth with a swirl of fossil. Again, we see have a close up shot with the rock centred to show its importance. Stylistically, it’s very similar to the shot we saw earlier in the film which gives the audience an emotional pay off for noticing the connection. When Hermione throws the rock and breaks the jar, it sets the causality loop in motion. The jar was always going to break because they went back in time to throw the rock that breaks it.

And it’s the same with all the other instances. Hermione throws the second rock that hits Harry in the back of the head to alert him to the fact they need to get out of the hut. Hermione snaps the branch and is almost seen by her counterpart in the past. Hermione makes the wolf call to distract Lupin from attacking. Harry, and not his father as he had assumed, casts the patronus to save himself and Sirius from the Dementors. But each of these moments are set up clearly in the ‘first run through’ to set up their payoff when the characters realise, ‘Oh, I did these things. They were always meant to happen.’ From a narrative standpoint, these are planned out moments to clue the audience into the fact that there’s something bigger at play. It keeps them ‘in the loop’ as it were.

This doesn’t happen in EG.

To successfully have set up a causality loop that made sense and had the same kind of set up and pay off as we see in PoA, it would have had to have been established as early as 2014 in Captain America: The Winter Soldier (CA:TWS). This does not happen. One of the main themes of CA:TWS is moving on from the past. Peggy Carter herself even says, “I’ve lived my life, my only regret is that you didn’t get to live yours.” Then saying soon after, “Sometimes the best thing we can do is to start over.” Peggy’s character in Captain America: The First Avenger is set up as someone who acts as the backup/back bone of Steve’s own moral compass. When Steve falters at Azzano about what to about the captured 107th, Peggy is there to remind him of what is right. She serves a similar narrative function in CA:TWS. Steve is struggling with life in the present. He’s just seen the helecarriers and argued with Nick Fury about protection vs fear after the botched Lumerian Star mission. Morally, he’s in turmoil and has turned to Peggy for council because he’s trying to find purpose in world where his rigid morality seems to have no place.

From the point of view of creating a causality loop, one would think that this scene in the hospital would be the place where an initial set-up could be made and alert the audience to the long term plan for Steve’s character. Instead, we have Peggy mourning the fact that Steve didn’t get to live his life the way it should have played out, and why would a woman who has supposedly been married to another version of Steve tell him to move on? In addition, when Steve visits the Smithsonian, he watches a video where he sees Peggy talking about how he influenced her life and how during one of his missions, he saved the man that would go on to become her husband. This is the only mention of Peggy’s husband in the entire franchise until Steve reappears as an old man at the end of EG.

Captain America: Civil War (CA:CW) also offers an opportunity to set up the causality loop at Peggy’s funeral but again, this does not happen. The only family we are introduced to is Sharon Carter, Peggy’s grand-niece. When it comes to filmmaking, every choice made is intentional. From the hair and makeup to the clothes, to the music used, everything in a film means something whether it is to further character development, world-building, or the plot. Filmmakers have a limited amount of time to convey a story and anything that doesn’t matter isn’t shown. Therefore, we can conclude from the text of the film that Peggy’s husband doesn’t matter to the narrative. The person in Peggy’s family who matters to the narrative is Sharon Carter which is why she is given prominence during CA:CW’s funeral scene. Had the causality loop been set up here, there would have been a defining moment like in PoA where the audience is clued into the larger story arc. Maybe someone says something, or he meets his older self, but that doesn’t happen. It should also be noted that apart from a small scene in Ant Man, Peggy isn’t mentioned again until EG.

In Endgame itself, the film still fails to set up a causality loop. It could be argued that this is the most important film for the set-up because this is when the audience gets the payoff. The first thing we see after the 5-yer time jump is Steve in a group therapy session for those that survived Thanos’ snap. Survivors share their stories and Steve talks about Peggy, a woman who has been dead in canon for 7-years and who died of old age. It’s incongruous and sticks out because narratively it doesn’t make sense for him to talk about her and not someone he watched disintegrate in front of his eyes. Steve watches his best friend and hundreds of others turn to ash around him and that film ends on his horrified face as he sits by his best friend’s ashes. Narratively, this is the thread that should carry through to EG but instead, he talks about missing his chance with Peggy. However, unlike PoA, there is no indication whether through dialogue or framing that clues the audience into Steve’s eventual ending at the end of the film.

Even when he goes back to the 70s, we see him looking mournfully at Peggy through the blinds in her office and a picture of him, pre-serum, on her desk. Steve and Peggy’s relationship prior to Endgame is supposed to represent the bittersweet loss of the life he could have had had he not sacrificed himself to the cause in CA:TFA. Then, since the audience knows from Steve and Peggy’s conversation in the hospital in CA:TWS that she moved on from Steve to live a happy life, we can assume that this picture is meant as nothing more than a fond memento of someone that meant a lot to her. Once more, there is no indication that Steve is ever meant to be her husband.

It’s impossible to infer a causality loop here in the same way as we saw in PoA. In PoA, there is a payoff for every single unusual or weird moment the story presents the audience before and after the use of time travel but this is something that’s completely absent from Endgame’s narrative. Steve himself doesn’t even vocalise a desire to go back in time at any point in EG nor at any point during the other films he appears in. In fact, when questioned by Tony Stark about the possibility of ‘going home’ in Avengers: Age of Ulton, he says, “The guy who wanted all that went in the ice 75 years ago. I think someone else came out.” While it is indicative of his unhappiness in the modern-day, it does indicate a level of acceptance of the fact that this is his life and he has to make his peace with it. He’s taken what Peggy said in CA:TWS on board. He’s starting over and moving on.

With time travel, and Steve choosing to stay in the past came the fan theory that one of the pallbearers carrying Peggy’s casket in CA:CW is Old Man Steve, her husband. When presented with this fan theory, writer Christopher Markus said during an interview with the LA Times at SDCC 2019,

“I would very much like that. There is no set explanation for Cap’s time travel . . .I mean, we’ve had public disagreements with [directors Anthony and Joe Russo] about what it [time travel] necessarily means, but I love the idea of there being two Steve Rogers in the timeline. One who lived a long life with Peggy and is in the background of that funeral scene watching his young self carry his wife’s coffin up. Not just for the time travel mumbo jumbo of it, but for the just weird, personal pain and satisfaction that would be happening between two Steve Rogers there. I kind of love it.” [emphasis mine]

This shows that unlike in PoA there was no intention of creating a causality loop prior to Markus writing EG with his writing partner Stephen McFeely. In fact, it makes clear that the actual rules of time travel were in contention and that even those making the film didn’t have a unified idea of what they wanted to create in the first place. The fact that there is confusion surrounding EG's time travel is due to the fact that the people behind it, didn't seem to know what they were writing or consider the consequences of it.

What all of this shows is that an argument of a PoA style causality loop doesn’t hold water. The film doesn’t support it, nor do any of the previous films, because there aren’t any indicators for the audience to latch onto. There is no moment of the rock breaking the jar, or the patronus chasing away the dementors, no moment where that the audience is told to hold into this information for later because there’s some timey wimey stuff going on. Ultimately, when examined, there is no set-up for a causality loop that supports the theory he was always supposed to go back and be Peggy’s husband, particularly when examined against a film that successfully lays it out from the start.

Right, the more academic (lol) part of this post is done. I just want to address one more TikTok that bothered me because I have opinions and MCU Captain America is my Mastermind specialist subject.

The TL;DR of this one was that Steve’s ending made sense because he got out of the fight and was at peace and that that has been the ultimate goal of his character arc. This person argued that Steve used the Avengers to distract himself from the fact that he’s this man out of time and he can’t find peace without a fight which to some extent, I agree with. I don’t deny that that is a major driving force to his story. We see that in Age of Ultron with his WandaNightmare. I don’t deny that that is key to his character. However, this creator then made a comment at the end of this video to the tune of, ‘bUt BuCkY iS hIs StOrY aRc’ and tried to play it off like this wasn’t true or that people were wrong to think that this is the case.

These two things aren’t mutually exclusive. They’re both true. They’re intertwined. But you cannot say that Bucky Barnes isn’t at the heart of Steve Rogers’ story. Bucky was the catalyst for every single one of Steve’s movies. He becomes CA because of Bucky. He goes against SHIELD because of Bucky. He defies 107 countries and the Sokovia Accords because of Bucky. You take Bucky out of the equation and what do you have? What happens in those films if you take Bucky Barnes out of the equation? Viewing it objectively, and even without shipper goggles on, you simply cannot sit there and claim that Bucky Barnes isn't a defining component to Steve’s story. Steve Rogers is motivated by Bucky Barnes. Steve Rogers is motivated by the depth of their relationship and the fact that Bucky Barnes is one of the few things connecting his new present to his old life.

You can definitely see the fact that Steve is uncomfortable in the modern world. He doesn’t address any of his trauma but he still attempts to move on. However, if they wanted him getting out of the fight and finding life as a civilian to be the natural end to his story arc then there was a way to do it which didn’t require him going back to Peggy. It would have been a better and more satisfying ending if he’d actively chosen to retire because I often see the argument that him going back to Peggy is him finally allowing him to be selfish after shouldering so much over the past decade or more. If Steve chose to retire and put himself first, then that sends a better message. He’s still getting the chance to ‘be selfish’ but he’s not throwing the life he’s built away. At this point in EG, he’s spent a huge portion of his adult life in the modern-day. This isn’t the future for him anymore, it’s the present and he’s lived a life and made real connections with people. The MCU does a piss poor job of showing the interpersonal relationships between the Avengers but he is at least shown to be friends with Sam, Nat, and Bucky.

But he goes back to a delusion. Or an idea of something that was never his in the first place.

When I see people make these videos and share their opinions, I can see their points but it’s like they’re taking EG on its own when that's impossible. Endgame only ‘works’ if you have the context of 10 years’ worth of films. You have to at least be somewhat familiar with the characters, who they are and what they’ve done up until now to be able to make sense of it.

However, in saying that, they wrote and filmed the movie in a way to make you think you didn’t have to take into account anything you’ve seen in the past ten years. If you only watch Endgame, you only see a grieving man mourning the love he never had. You see a man, regretful that he didn’t get to be with woman he loved. So at the end, of course it would make sense that he goes back to her. But you can only do that if you completely divorce Endgame from its ten-year canon and in a franchise like this where they make a big deal about everything being interconnected, it simply doesn’t work. Steve’s story arc in Endgame is incongruous to the narrative arc we’ve been presented in previous films.

Ultimately, Endgame is a movie you’re supposed to watch once and then not think about again. It’s made for that first viewing when everything is shocking and exciting because if you stop to think about it even a little bit, it falls apart under scrutiny.

Finally, I think that the downfall of a lot of these ‘Steve’s ending makes sense’ posts is that made by people who are most certainly MCU fans but not Steve Rogers fans and it shows.