#thank you Brian Murphy for this character

[infernal-house-demon]

Riz has always been one of my favourite characters of all time. I love an investigator character who stays up into the night making mystery boards with red string and tries to put all the clues together. Then combine that with like being nerdy and kind of an outcast and finding a group of friends he loves but also sometimes feeling out of place with them too (the stuff about everyone else getting into romance in sophomore year and then making sure he’s not being taken advantage of in junior year). Absolutely perfect. But this season especially makes me want to just crawl into his brain. Every time he’s in a scene I am hanging on every word. The way Murph portrays the stress of being a teen trying to keep up with all the demands of school on top of everything else happening outside of it? Phenomenal. All his gadgets? His owlbears arc? The one scene where he literally doesn’t even know what month it is and Sklonda pulls over just so he can take a nap? I am desperate for him to get more time with Jawbone and see their dynamic and dig into his character more. Also he’s got a gun. He has tattoos. He ate the guy who killed his dad. He has a fun nickname. His best friend’s grandfather (Telemaine) seems to have unexplained beef with him. There’s another dimension in his briefcase where the fake roëmænce partnær he made up lives. He’s smol but absolutely lethal. Kipperlily sees him as an arch nemesis and he didn’t even know she existed. He loves his friends so much that he takes on their stress to help them succeed.

Character of all time.

[ruby-red-inky-blue]

For the ask thing: is there a media (written, film, series...) you're really into right now?

Whelp, I doubt any of my followers managed to avoid noticing the giant Dimension 20-shaped hole I fell into like half a year back, and it's currently airing the third season of the silliest sweetest High School drama and these characters have my entire heart. I've not been that well for a while I think, and watching both people in their thirties just be very close friends and also watching the very thight-knit teenagers they're playing is giving me so much serotonin by proxy. It is addictive and frankly a bit of a problem, but I do really recommend it, everything they do is so fascinating narratively and I think it's taught me a lot about writing.

It's also invigorated a dormant trait of my personality which is that I was apparently abnormally into Grimm's fairy tales even for a German child? This comes up every now and again and then I immediately forget it but I've been really wanting to buy a copy and read some of them again, dark confusing fairy tales are my absolute catnip and maybe I could actually do it on purpose for once.

[whookami]

From the depths of the New York sewers, to the infinite stretches of the Universe, to my very own bedroom, arrives the Sacred Rat himself!

Rat Jesus, Kugrash himself, has descended to come crash at my place for a bit (sadly I only have a cat bed to offer), and enjoy some string cheese and hot dogs, before getting back to that whole cosmic omniscience thing he’s got going for him.

It’s my birthday, so I asked if he could use his cosmic awareness to help me win big at a casino, but he said it would fuck the timeline up like in Back to the Future 2, apparently he watched it with his kid, Wally. He cried for a few hours after that. Not sure what I should ask for as a present instead. I’m getting kinda hungry, I guess, and that bagel he’s holding looks pretty tasty…

[stone-stars]

in which murph has a very normal time at the hands of his players

Transcript:

Murph: Wel-come back to Bahumia everybody! [Jake, Emily, and Caldwell echo him with "Bahumia!". Caldwell sounds incredibly enthusiastic.] Murph: He's so excited! Caldwell Tanner, thanks for being here. Caldwell: Ye-ah! Murph: It's not your turn yet, dude! Caldwell: I'm so sorry sir! Murph: Okay? I'm your Dungeon Master Brian Murphy, joined by Jake Hurwitz-- Caldwell: Bahumia! Jake: [laughs] Hey! Dude! Murph: Caldwell! Caldwell: Sorry! Emily: [laughs] Bahumia! Bahumia! Jake: I'm trying to rhyme, man! Murph: Quit stepping on him with your enthusiasm! Caldwell: I'm just so ready to go! Emily: Bahumia! Jake: I worked really hard on this. I di-- [sighs] well forget it. Fuckin' forget it. Murph: No you gotta! Emily: Bahumia! [Overlapping crosstalk as Caldwell and Murph encourage Jake.] Caldwell: You've got this. Murph: You got this. Jake, go ahead, don't let these two enthusiasms get in your way, alright? Jake: Yeah. Alright, no, yeah. I got this. I got this. Yeah. Caldwell: Whoo! He's got this! Jake: Fighting alongside-- Caldwell: You've got this man! Do it! Murph: Stop! You have to stop! Jake: I know I got it! I'm doin' it! (Calder voice) Fighting alongside a frog and a bard with my brand new sword, Shard. [Emily and Caldwell laugh.] Murph: Yeah! Pretty good. I do feel like we built it up though, at a certain point. And there was just-- there was no way you could fully deliver. Jake: Yeah. It would've been perfect if I got it out clean right up top as soon as you introed. Murph: Yeah, if we did a super low energy intro. [Jake: M-hm. Yeah.] Caldwell: I think it was great man, I think it was amazing, I can't wait to hear it again! Murph: Who is this person. And then of course we've got Emily Axford-- Emily: Bahumia! [Everyone laughs. The others continue laughing harder as Murph talks.] Murph: Ohh. Okay?? That's the name of the world. Her character's name is Calliope Petrichor. If for some reason episode 57 of campaign 3 is the first thing you've listened to. That's Emily Axford. (laughing) She plays Calliope Petrichor. She did say before we started, I think almost as a counter-bit to Emily's bit, before we started (laughing) Emily said "I'm not gonna do a rhyme I don't feel like it." And I said "wild energy to bring into the episode!" so Caldwell went the opposite and went overenthusiastic. They're just fucking with me! Everything we do is just an inside joke to make me upset. Caldwell: And now you're caught up! Murph: Yeah, and now we're caught up. Caldwell: Bahumia! Murph: And-- [laughs] and Bahumia. And-- Uh, and then of course we've got Caldwell Tanner-- Jake: (yelling) Bahumia! Emily: Yeah!!! Jake's in on it!! Caldwell: See, it feels good! It feels good. Murph: Okay. Caldwell Tanner, of course, plays Sol-- Caldwell: Ohhh, Sol Bufo [Murph: Okay.] I'm feeling fine, just found out I'm two of a kind, [Emily: ooh!] and now I'm gonna go and find out if Swag's still alive. I'm really trying to thrive here. Bahumia. [The others laugh. As they talk, Caldwell laughs too.] Murph: You lost me. But you had me for a moment. And that's more that can be said for the other guys. Jake: Wow. Emily: Bahumia. Murph: [laughs] Bahumia. Jake: Bahumia, guys. Murph: Sure. Hey guys, Bahumia. We did it. We did it everyone. Alright? Everyone settle. Settle? Okay?

[The others sigh as if relaxing, and chorus "yeah."] Murph: Ready? Alright. Let's do-- let's do-- Caldwell: Eldermourne. Murph: Not the right campaign. Not the correct campaign. Caldwell: Shit, sorry. Murph: Let's go ahead and do a little-- [laughs as Emily interrupts him] recap-- Emily: That's Calliope's middle name. [Everyone laughing.] Murph: (through laughter) Shut. The fuck up. Everyone. Alright. [Pause as everyone continues to laugh.] Jake: S-- sorry. Murph: So last time, you left Calder's home to pursue Gowan to the Ice Knife, but received a call from Albin along the way-- [laughs] Shut up, dude. Jake: Bahumia. Bahumia. [Everyone laughs.] Murph: This is precious information! Jake: Bahumia! Emily: Bahumia! Bahumia. Caldwell: (exaggerated) Bahumia! Murph: Yeah, okay. You guys are like pokemon now? [The others laugh.] Okay. Alright. Worst bit ever. Okay. [Jake: Bahumia] You recieved a message from Albin--

Murph: -- You were greeted by a ghostly message in the ice that said Friends… Murph and Emily: Betray! Emily: I remember! Murph: You remember. Good job, Em. Jake: Holy shit. She's back. Murph: You get a sticker. Emily: I wrote it in my notebook. Murph: Very good! [Emily: Yeah, yeah, yeah.] That almost makes up to your behavior for the first three minutes of the show [The others laugh.]

Murph: And that's where we are now. Caldwell: Alright! All my real betrayal heads get ready! Emily: Yeah! Caldwell: This is where it starts! Murph: [laughs] Shut up. All of you. [Everyone laughs.] Caldwell: (through laughter) I can't. I have to talk for another hour at least. I'm so sorry. Murph: It's all good. Alright. So--

Murph: Sweet, well we'll talk more about this over on our Patreon. That's patreon.com/naddpod that's N-A-D-D-P-O-D-don't sing yet-- [Emily and Jake start to sing "We"] Caldwell: Bahumia! Murph: Yeah, remember that. [laughs] D-- Do you guys remember that? Uh-- Emily: Bahumia! Caldwell: What are you talking about, man? Murph: Bahumia! Does anyone else have anything they'd like to plug? Emily: Bahumia! Murph: Bahumia, yeah. Jake: Oh, yeah, I would love to plug Bahumia. Murph: Yeah. Check it out. Campaign 1, campaign 3. Caldwell: The world. Emily: Oh! [Murph: uh-huh] Uh, actually can I plug Bahumia? Murph: Great. Really good job, guys. Awesome. Caldwell: It's an incredible world. Incredible place. [Murph: yep!] Check out all of the incredible environs there. Murph: Yeah. Check it out. Uh- You can follow us on, uh-- Emily: Bahumia. Murph: You can follow us on social media that we may or may not use. @ chmurph's me, @ caldy's Caldwell, @ eaxford's Emily-- [Emily: @ bahumia] -- @ jakehurwitz is Jake-- Jake: I'm actually-- I'm actually @ bahumia. Murph: Follow our campaigns on Bahumia-- Emily: I'm also @ bahumia. Murph: I don't think you are. And you can tweet about the show using #naddpod that's N-A-D-D-P-O-D. [They sing "We are, We are" as the audio fades out, but Caldwell and Jake replace the words with "Bahumia"]

[lucyswinter]

Request guidelines

Requests are : OPEN<3

Masterlist

Who/what I write for:

-Cillian Murphy/ characters: (Jackson Rippner, Tom Shelby, Neil Lewis, Jonathan Crane, Kitten Braden, Jim: 28 days later, Emmett: a quiet place part II, Raymond Leon, Robert Fischer, Tom Buckley)

-Criminal Minds: Spencer Reid, Aaron Hotchner, Derek Morgan, Emily Prentiss, Penelope Garcia, JJ,

-The Bear: Sydney Adamu, Richie Jerimovich, Carmen Berzatto, Sugar Berzatto

-Saw: Lawrence Gordon, Adam Stanheight, Mark Hoffman, Peter Strahm, Amanda Young, Jill Tuck, Lynn Denlon (for ships: I’ll do chainshipping, coffinshipping, and shotgunshipping/lynnmanda!)

-American Horror Story (All seasons up to Cult with the addition of 1984. Only ships if they are canon (by season, I mean)! i.e: I won’t do Kit Walker (s2) x Madison Montgomery (s3) or anything! And for canon relationships, I will do any season besides NYC and Delicate as long as they are already together. For example, I would do Montana and Richard from 1984.)

-Nip/Tuck: Sean McNamara, Christian Troy, Matt McNamara, Julie McNamara, Liz Cruz, Eden Lord, Sophia Lopez, Kimber Henry

-DC villains (from the Nolan trilogy or Gotham tv show! I will specify from which one I mean. I’ll also write Batman but that’s the only “hero”/vigilante)

-Peaky blinders: Luca Changretta, Tom Shelby, Alfie Solomons, Finn Shelby, John Shelby, Arthur Shelby, Oswald Mosley

-Top Gun/ Top Gun: Maverick: any characters! (For ships, I only rlly know IceMav 😭 but I’m open to others! I’ll also do penny!reader)

-Bridgerton/ Queen Charolette: Daphne x Simon, George x Charolette, Anthony x Kate, Colin x Penelope (and all of these characters individually as well as Benedict, Violet, Eloise, and the Featherington sisters! *Edit for season 3*: Lord Debling, Lord Stirling, Lady Arnold, Lord Anderson, Francesca Bridgerton, Cressida Cowper)

-Community: Professor Ian Duncan, Jeff Winger, Abed Nadir, Britta Perry , Annie Edison, Troy Barnes

-Impractical Jokers: Joe Gatto, Sal Vulcano, James Murray, Brian Quinn

-Supernatural: Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, Castiel, Destiel (will not do Wincest or Wincestiel)

-X-files: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, MSR

-BBC Sherlock (only JohnLock)

-Good omens (only Ineffable husbands)

-Hannibal (only Hannigram)

(Any other characters im open to! Just PM me to see if I know the fandom/media they’re in, or rec with a few options! I’ll ignore if I don’t know them <;3)

I will write: A bit ooc (depends on scenario 🤭), fluff, smut, small-ish age gap, AU’s, non romantic pairings, alternate endings, fem!/gn!/afab!reader, character x reader, character x character

I won’t write: Male!/nonbinary!/trans!reader (im a cis female so I will write gender neutral reader if requested, but most fics (unless specified) were written with a fem reader in mind :)), incest, underage reader (or character), dub/non-con

Thanks for reading! Feel free to PM requests if you aren’t comfortable sending them through the question button or want to work through the request :)

[captainsophiestark]

So something crazy happened this week - I hit 1.5k followers! 🥳

Genuinely thank you all so much for following me and supporting my writing. When I first joined Tumblr, I truly never could've dreamed how wonderful the community, friends, and fandom I've found would be. I love you all so much!

I've never done a follower celebration before, but I really wanted to do one for this milestone, so here we are! It's D&D themed, but no knowledge of D&D is required to join in the fun.

Our 1.5k follower campaign is going to be running from today, May 29th, to Wednesday, June 6th. During that time, feel free to send me as many things off the list below as you like! Interacting with people on here is one of my absolute favorite parts of Tumblr, so feel free to come into my ask box as many times as you like 😄

I'll be tagging all posts for this celebration as #Sophie's 1.5k Follower Campaign. You don't have to follow me to participate, but it would be greatly appreciated. Without further ado, here are the actions you can take during this campaign:

Zone of Truth - Send me an ask with a game, like KMK/FMK, Would You Rather, or anything else you can think of!

Roll Initiative - Roll some dice and send me a character from the list at the bottom of this post, along with the numbers you rolled! I have prompt lists left over from my Year of Fic planning, and I'll put your character and your dice rolls togeter to write a corresponding headcanon (or possibly longer fic, if the inspiration really strikes!). Roll one of the following, some of the following, or all of the following: 1d8, 1d10, 1d12, and 1d20. You can roll with real dice or by typing "roll dice" into google! Please specificy if you have a strong preference between a romantic or platonic fic.

Nat 20 (2 left) - Send me a character I write for and a request, and I'll write you a oneshot! My time's a little limited right now, so I'm capping these at 3 total requests. In the immortal words of Brian Murphy, "Roll three Nat 20s in a row!". If you want to also roll a d20 and send me the result, I'll add a dialogue prompt corresponding with the number you rolled to the request. Please specificy if you have a strong preference between romanitc and platonic fic.

Perception Check - I have a good amount of writing queued up for my Year of Fic and a few other projects, so send me this for a sneak peek of works to come! If you want to include a few fandoms or characters you'd most like to see included in the sneak peek, feel free to do that! Just no promises that I'll have something including them to show you

Behind the DM Screen - Send me the title of an existing fic of mine, along with specific questions if you have them, and I'll give you a little info on the process of creating the fic!

Free Action - Come into my ask box and chat with me! About fandoms, cute pet pitcures, or whatever else! Anons are welcome as usual, and if you feel like you want to be recognized without coming off anon, then you can claim an emoji and use it as a signature on your asks, so I know who you are! As of now, 🥰 emoji is the only one taken

Thank you again to every single one of you who's here with me now, from the beginning of this blog or from earlier today! I'm so happy to have you here and as a part of the party!

Writing Request Character Options:

Bridgerton: Anthony Bridgerton, Benedict Bridgerton, Colin Bridgerton, Eloise Bridgerton

Crescent City: Tristan Flynn, Ithan Holstrom, Lidia Cervos

DC: Dick Grayson, Jason Todd

Marvel: Grant Ward, Jack Thompson, Daniel Sousa, Angie Martinelli, Harley Keener, Pietro Maximoff

*Riordanverse: Luke Castellan, Thalia Grace, Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, Piper McLean, Jason Grace

Star Trek: Jim Kirk

Star Wars: Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Padmé Amidala

Top Gun: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, Jake "Hangman" Seresin, Natasha "Phoenix" Trace

The Vampire Diaries: Mason Lockwood, Klaus Mikaelson, Kol Mikaelson, Damon Salvatore, Enzo St. John, Kai Parker, Caroline Forbes, Matt Donovan

*All characters in the Riordanverse are going to be book-based, since that's what I know best, and will be written as their ages at the end of Heroes of Olympus or older for requests involving romance

****************

Tagging a few mutuals who I've absolutely loved getting to this point with 🥰 thank you guys for being such a wonderful part of my experience in this place!

@ghostofskywalker @bandshirts-andbooks @trekkingaroundasgard @arttheclown-coveredinblood @flowers-and-fichte @everyhazyday @dawn-petrichor-world @space-helen @ro-is-struggling @writeroutoftime @shadowdaddies @hawaiianpizzaenjoyer

[spiderdreamer-blog]

Tarzan (1999)

It's hard to define sometimes where the end of the Disney Renaissance period from the late 80s through the 90s is. After the release of The Lion King, the 2D animated features steadily made less money and critical acclaim became more mixed. There was a sea change occurring thanks to more competition from companies like DreamWorks and Warner Bros., as well as the advent of the computer. For me, the dividing line is 1999's Tarzan, mostly because it's after this point that we get to what I and others call the 2000-2004 "experimental" age with films like The Emperor's New Groove, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Lilo & Stitch, and Treasure Planet. But Tarzan has much in common with those films, representing a step away from the Broadway musical traditions and into a new, intriguing arena of animation storytelling. It's genuinely one of my favorite Disney films to revisit, and I hope this review helps explain why.

The story takes Edgar Rice Burroughs' initial novel Tarzan of the Apes as a guideline more than an actual adaptation, namely ditching concerns about nobility wealth inheritance and unflattering black African caricatures (the spinoff TV series would deal with the latter in trying to be, uh, less problematic about such). We pick up with Ye Olde Dramatically Convenient Boat Wreckage in a truly commanding opening sequence set to Phil Collins' anthemic Two Worlds. Tarzan's unnamed parents land in Africa and are put in parallel to gorillas Kala (Glenn Close, at the time coming off a very different performance for Disney as live action Cruella De Vil) and Kerchak (Lance Henriksen). Tragedy strikes for both families, and where one loses his parents, another gains a son. But Tarzan (Alex D. Linz as a child, Tony Goldwyn as an adult) grows up knowing he is "different", desperate to prove himself as an ape and belong. He seems to find an equilibrium, becoming best friends with Terk (Rosie O'Donnell) and Tantor (Wayne Knight at his most nebbishy), and even managing to vanquish Sabor, but then strangers arrive. Strangers who look like him, in the form of British scientist Archimedes Porter (Nigel Hawthorne), his daughter Jane (Minnie Driver), and their guide Clayton (BRIAN BLESSED). Now things steadily grow more complicated as Tarzan wishes to learn all he can about these outsiders and himself, but what might it cost?

One of the first, most notable things about the film to me is its complexity in the writing and characterization. Looking back, the Renaissance can have a problem in terms of male leads being love interests who don't get as much focus or slightly bland focus-tested "likable". This isn't true for ALL of them; the Beast has many layers to his personality, while Simba and Quasimodo are great, imo, because they have more baggage tying them down and thus more to rise above for true heroism. Nor does it make most of them bad characters. But it was notable enough, as was the tendency for them to be overshadowed by the villains or sidekicks, for co-directors Kevin Lima/Chris Buck and writers Tab Murphy/Bob Tzudiker/Noni White to slightly...course-correct.

Ergo, Tarzan himself is very much the main focus here. There's only one major sequence that he's not really involved with, and even when he's not onscreen, the other characters are as intrigued by his contradictions as the audience. (Insert your own Poochie jokes here, though obviously it doesn't come CLOSE to that) We truly feel his anxiety about fitting in, and the lengths he goes to are intensely relatable even at their most self-damning.

The other characters, too, feel richer and more lived-in than many of the standard types. Kala is a mother figure, one who tries to make Tarzan feel like he belongs, but is deeply scared of losing him. Kerchak is possibly my favorite character in the film because of how much you have to read into his actions because he holds so much back emotionally until the very end. Even then, he comes off as a more realistic harsh father figure than a caricature, and we can always understand where he's coming from. Jane is one of the best Disney love interests, meanwhile, feeling like a modern romantic comedy heroine with a lot of drive and initiative, as well as being just genuinely nerdy, which you don't often see even today. Clayton manages a nice two-step of seeming like an obvious bad guy but playing things down the middle until he gets what he wants. Even the comic relief gets good moments, such as Professor Porter gently supporting the romance or Tantor standing up for himself at a critical juncture.

Of course, what helps here is that said characters have some of the most beautiful environments and animation backing them up in Disney history. The African jungle is depicting as a kind of painterly, hyper-real fantasy, with impossible tree shapes and vines that bloom in the sunlight. And the then-revolutionary Deep Canvas CGI process allows Tarzan to soar through them, the camera spinning and rotating with each movement. The design sensibility is "classical" Disney to a large degree, but with slightly longer faces or larger eyes to add expressiveness. The California, Parisian, and Florida animation teams all clearly busted their asses to make this come to life. And Glen Keane's work with the Paris studio on Tarzan might be the best of his legendary career in terms of the variety of movements and subtleties in expressions. So too goes the rest of the supervising animators: Ken Duncan makes Jane truly lovable and wholly distinct from the likes of his Meg or Amelia; Randy Haycock gives Clayton a macho swagger that feels entirely his own rather than feeling like a Gaston ripoff; Bruce Smith combines remarkable anatomy work and microexpressions with Kerchak; Russ Edmonds' Kala is warm and motherly while never letting you entirely forget she's a gorilla; Dave Burgess makes Porter funny with his slightly squat, short shapes; and Mike Surrey and Sergio Pablos make for an excellent duo on Terk and Tantor in terms of contrasting their size, as well as the latter giving nervous-nelly body language to such a huge character. That's harder than it looks.

The aural end is just as good. Much hay and memery has been made of Phil Collins going ridiculously hard on the storytelling songs, which I fully support. But it really is true that they add so much here and take the burden off the characters in terms of singing save for the improvisational scat number "Trashin' The Camp". I'm partial to "Strangers Like Me" in terms of the earnest yearning and connections that Tarzan makes over the course of it. And of course the various versions of "Two Worlds" are essentially the mission statement of the film, complete with absolutely bitchin' percussion. Mark Mancina's accompanying score is also excellent, sounding like a fusion between The Lion King (which he produced/arranged for both the film and Broadway show) and his action movie work on projects like Speed or Bad Boys. Particularly great is the cue that plays when Tarzan defeats Sabor and builds up to his classic yell, which milks the heroic triumph for all its worth.

The voice cast is also excellent top to bottom. Goldwyn has a deeper timbre than many Disney male leads, less of an ingenue, and this adds to the stormier emotions; we truly feel his pain on lines like "Why didn't you tell me there were creatures that look like me?" But he's not TOO grim, thankfully, and gets some good subtly funny moments such as sounding out monkey noises in a conversation that Jane only hears one half of. Close is properly maternal, of course, getting her best showings in emotional one-on-ones with both Linz and Goldwyn as they hash out their relationship. Henriksen, like the animation, wisely underplays Kerchak and lets the emotion come out through his gruff, gravel-pit voice rather than obviously signaling things. Driver is hilarious and winning as Jane, getting some of the best laughs and most sweetly tender bits of the proceedings. It's all the more impressive when you consider she played Lady Eboshi in the Princess Mononoke dub the same year, which is the utter opposite of this performance. BRIAN BLESSED doesn't do a lot of his patented BRIAN BLESSED yelling outside of some choice bits at the end, but he makes a meal of Clayton regardless as a charismatic asshole, and I like how he plays a climactic bit of manipulation in particular. Hawthorne gets a much better showing here than his previous Disney voice role as Fflewddur Flam in The Black Cauldron, daffily sweet and humorous in equal measure, while O'Donnell and Knight are familiar vocally but use that to inform their characterizations rather than distract.

I think what I like most about this movie is that it feels incredibly well-rounded. Some Disney movies from this period might have a great villain or sidekicks but a weaker protagonist in Hercules or strong protagonists/villains but a weaker supporting cast as in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. (Then you have Pocahontas, which sucks on ALL ends!) In Tarzan, everything feels of a piece, and nobody jars against the tone or mood. Combine that with the dizzying highs of the animation and truly excellent emotional beats, and you've got a real winner that stands the test of time in my eyes.

[saintsir4n]

Hi Girl,

I’ve literally just come back from work but I’ve been thinking about you all day none stop and felt like I had to get this out, I want to thank you for your stories and your art as it never fails to amaze me. It’s artistically beautiful the way you write these characters being in love with their respective black love interests. Growing up as a bookworm, I found it impossible to find stories or especially fics that have black love interests not written in specific ways. However, you manage to achieve this so naturally and make it heartwarming to be seen as a possible love interests to characters that we’ve either fell in love with or thirsted over. I just finished Stereo Love and your Saltburn fic and both are just written in a way where it’s obvious the main character is the centre of her love interests world and that she truly is the epitome of beauty to them. Growing up, it’s been hard for many black girls (including myself) to feel desired and loved romantically, so thank you truly and I so can’t wait for what you have in store for us. Most importantly, looking after yourself is the most important so just know we your fans truly have the best interests for you in terms of treating yourself kindly. All the best lovely, I thought I would just give my two cents.

PS: do you mind giving your top ten male crushes (they can be fictional, from television or movies) and these can be current or like childhood crushes?!

Lots of love- 🐜

Honestly, this love and appreciation is making me cry. The type of support I’m receiving today is amazing and very heart warming. I try to write my characters as authentic and true to not just me to black readers, black girls and women. Growing up being black wasn’t as popular or glamorous as people showcasing today and I’m glad our people are being made to feel like themselves in spaces where we’re usually ostracised, so I’m glad that these stories speak to or help people. When I write my OCs I like to write them as desired, or loved, considering the lack of roles for black women in shows/films/books where we are seen in such a way.

After understanding the love interests (Felix Catton and Brian O’Conner) and how they view their respected partners I find it easier to insert my OC, of course I have to acknowledge the role of their race before hand whether it’s subtle or integral to the plot of my stories or canon.

At first when I started writing I didn’t know which part of the black experience to include, without bringing people out of their “fantasy”. Many people equate blackness with struggle or negativity, when there are so many positive and popular things we do whether it’s our hair, our style, our music or just us overall especially in the eras these films were set in/ released (early 2000s)

I’m glad you’re enjoying my stories, the next one I’m publishing is a House of The Dragon book, hope you’re interested. And I also hope you’re taking care of yourself as I try to. I’m so blessed to have this comment honestly as well as fans like you!

And atm for my TOP TEN MALE crushes (fictional/non fictional):

1. Jon Snow. Kit Harrington this role… I can’t get over his season 6 appearance. Most Targaryen men are good looking and yes people still say he’s a stark, which he is but damn, he’s something else.

2. Xolo Maridueña (Miguel Diaz from CK) love the actor in the show, he’s fine as hell especially with his longer hair and is thankfully older than me.

3. Damson Idris. Stunning, great smile, talented too!

4. Cillian Murphy. Must I explain this one?

5. Dylan O’brien. ALWAYS I just hope he doesn’t do some bs and let me down.

6. Brian O’Conner (specifically in the first and second films)

7. Kingsley Ben Adir. This man is just tall and fine.

8. Zayn. Been rocking with him since 2011 and his amazing voice.

9. Hector Bellerin. Just like Zayn, they’re fine men. And even though I don’t watch football, I watch his clips and that’s enough.

10. Lando Johnson. I only watch clips of All American Homecoming, I watched the original show up until season 3 and won’t start watching the spin off until I find out Simone ends up with Lando and his beautiful self.

This list took me a WHILE, especially for top 1, but I landed on Jon Snow, because how he is with a sword, his hair and how everyone in Westeros calls him pretty. Plus I did write a story for him a while ago, which I want to add to or change up in the future.

[denimbex1986]

'Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" is set to be one of the biggest (non-"Barbie") films of the summer, a grand historical drama with a vast A-List cast and intense exploration of one of humanity's greatest errors. It's a chance for Nolan, a filmmaker never short of ambition, to stretch himself even further as a storyteller, but it's also a rare opportunity for its title star to take on a leading role. Cillian Murphy is a Nolan ensemble staple, having played the Scarecrow in the "Dark Knight" trilogy and made appearances in "Inception" and "Dunkirk." 

The Irish actor and "Peaky Blinders" favorite has long been an underrated presence on screens big and small, having spent well over two decades establishing himself as a striking character actor and reliable talent. He's made horror films with Wes Craven, fought zombies in "28 Days Later," romanced Scarlett Johansson in "The Girl With a Pearl Earring" and told stories of the Irish War of Independence in Ken Loach's "The Wind That Shakes the Barley." He's done it all. He's even dealt with the peril of an atomic weapon and the threat of mass extinction on Earth in a movie before! Thanks to Danny Boyle and "Sunshine", Murphy is familiar with this quandary.

Sunshine is an apocalyptic horror sci-fi

In between his zombie horror "28 Days Later" and the Oscar-winning drama "Slumdog Millionaire," Danny Boyle aimed for the stars. Screenwriter Alex Garland, with whom Boyle had worked on his messy adaptation of "The Beach," took inspiration from the likes of "2001: A Space Odyssey," Ridley Scott's "Alien" and the Russian classic "Solaris" for his jaunt towards the center of our solar system. In "Sunshine," it is the sun itself that is dying. With it, so will all life on Earth perish as the planet's temperature drops beyond the means of human habitation. Eight astronauts from around the world have been tasked with flying towards the sun on the spaceship Icarus II and planting a bomb on it that they hope will reignite its solar fury. As many a sci-fi horror featuring people in enclosed spaces floating through the vast nothingness can attest, it doesn't take long for things to go wrong.

"Sunshine" has an enviable good cast, the kind of ensemble of character actors and future leading icons that would put most films to shame. Alongside Murphy, who plays the lead physicist Robert Capa, are a pre-Captain America Chris Evans, Rose Byrne, Michelle Yeoh, Cliff Curtis from "Fear the Walking Dead," and Benedict Wong of "Doctor Strange" fame. To have the cast form a tight bond, Boyle had this ensemble live together for several months and undergo space training and scuba diving. He also took them on a tour of a nuclear submarine to give them a sense of the claustrophobic living conditions of real astronauts, and even sent them up on a zero-G plane to experience weightlessness. Murphy worked with physicist Brian Cox (not that one) so that he could fully understand the awesome scale of the bomb required to make the sun work once more. He found the experience of making "Sunshine" so revealing that it made him an atheist!

Why Sunshine is so terrifying

Many scientists grumbled over the inaccuracies of "Sunshine," from slow-motion movement during weightlessness to whether or not a bomb really could reignite the sun. For Alex Garland, such details were beside the point, although both he and Boyle did hire a number of advisors to shape the science of the film into something believable. The real power of "Sunshine" is in its portrayal of isolation among its astronauts. The crew of Icarus II are shaken, both by the magnitude of their mission and the sheer psychological terror of being stuck in space for an extended period of time. As a viewer, you feel entrapped in the space this ensemble shares, made all the more stifling by Boyle's refusal to cut back to scenes on Earth that are common in this genre. Everything is designed to make you feel trapped, including the space suits that have a post-box-sized slit to see through rather than a full-face visor (the suit was nicknamed Kenny after the character from "South Park" because of this choice.)

The other recurring theme is an age-old one: science versus faith. The mission of Icarus II is stridently atheistic, one of pure logic designed to do for humanity what nobody else can or will do. They are following in the footsteps of Icarus I, which went missing seven years prior while trying to deliver its own bomb to Earth. When the crew discover this lost ship, they find its crew charred to death save one astronaut, Pinbacker (Mark Strong playing, of course, a villain). After years of loneliness and untreated first-degree facial burns, Pinbacker has gone mad and tries to sabotage the Icarus II mission, claiming that God (meaning the sun) has told him to send all of humanity to Heaven. This third-act frenzy makes "Sunshine" a more traditional horror film than its preceding parts, and it does become less satisfying as a result (although there is a moment where Pinbacker has the skin pulled from his arm that is truly horrifying).

Sunshine is more relevant than ever

Despite positive reviews, "Sunshine" didn't inspire audiences, and only grossed around $32 million from a modest $40 million budget. Reviews generally agreed that the third act was weak and let down the rest of the film's more metaphysical approach to the sci-fi horror genre. It didn't hurt anyone's careers, least of all Cillian Murphy, who went on to a strong career in film and TV that has culminated in his acclaimed role in "Oppenheimer." It's a movie that makes excellent use of his unique face and ability to convey a blend of unnerving and empathic (which is perfect for J. Robert Oppenheimer, the man who became Death, the destroyer of worlds.)

Audiences did eventually find their way to "Sunshine." Its philosophical terror remains potent, arguably more so as we experience the disintegrating effects of climate change in real-time. Much like its cinematic predecessors, "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Solaris," "Sunshine" acutely captures the gargantuan scale of the galaxy and how it cannot help but overwhelm you, the mere human being, trying to be its equal. In the film's first two-thirds, the enormity of the mission is inescapable. If these mere mortals do not succeed, billions of people will die and that is a weight that smothers them, as it would for any of us. 

Ultimately, we are but specks that populate a slightly larger speck floating through the vast nothingness of the universe. When we confront that painful reality, especially as non-believers in an omnipotent deity, it's understandably tough to deal with. It can break you. Yet there is also awe here. The astronauts are left dumbfounded by the sight of the sun so up close. It's no wonder that Pinbacker gazes upon it and sees the face of God. We are but debris in the grand scheme of life and "Sunshine" nails that sensation, but it also believes in fighting to survive amongst it all. There is hope amid the desolation, and that's worth saving.'

[not-actually-human]

Favorite fictional character of all time?(or top 5 or whatever’s easiest lmao)

hello! hmm this changes so much but ill go with what it is right now (these are in no particular order) (also i cannot choose just five so im gonna keep going till im done lol)

ianthe tridentarius. i am so sorry to my irl friends who have to hear about her all the time. i just love her a lot

jaina bronzebeard. brian murphy thank you so much she is my most favorite npc ever. ack

magnus chase. i dont really talk about pjo or mcga on here but its literally my oldest hyperfixation. and magnus is one of my favorite protagonists ever

scary marlowe. angry teen girl. enough said

jay ferin

ylfa snorgelsson

im probably missing soooo many but heres at least some of them! thx for the ask :]

[ruby-red-inky-blue]

small things on my second (third?) unsleeping city rewatch, pt 1

truly nothing compares to that first episode. I've never seen characters and a world so deftly introduced in such a perfect tone, setting up so much of the reveals down the line in everyone's first goddamn scene

I ADORE Margaret Encino, I really do. I still think that TUC1's Pete is my favourite Ally character of all time. Watching him stubbornly refuse to accept that this is not just a bad trip is so good, and honestly good on them for introducing their character with a fake name to half the party and keeping that going literally until Brennan forced them to drop it. They're playing the trust issues so well and it bringes such a fantastic crunchy tension to the group dynamic, bless them for going so hard on this character

the dynamics on the right side of the table have my entire heart:

Ally still being occasionally overwhelmed and Murph hovering at their shoulder like an excited dad teaching his kid to drive

the brutal and beautiful clash between Misty's and Kug's vibes at all times

whenever Pete is doing anything blatantly illegal and Kug the character is taken over fully by Brian 'Lawful Good' Murphy the person. It'll always be Ally doing their scene and Murph being So Scandalised beside them

Siobhan and Murph low-key egging each other on whenever it's about playing the Party Elders

"Do you want me to roll for you?" "Yes, I do, actually! I might make Siobhan my designated roller."

Siobhan and Ally just absolutely shattering at the Wally reveal

honestly so in love with how endlessly polite Ally and Murph are about trading their dice back and forth, every combat there's just a pleasant background chatter of "here you go" "oh thank you" "you're welcome", it's a very small thing but it's so pleasant to see

all three of them being SO nosy and sympathetic about each other's rolls

.

god I love the Pixie wedding so much. The atmosphere, the endless Godfather references, the massively creepy intro to Robert and co, the silly dancing, poor Sofia struggling hard (and Murph and Ally commiserating even harder), "It's my special day so, if you're gonna cry, you should leave", Ally's face when Robert mentions the bubbles, the absolute perfect suspense move of casually going "Kugrash you know this guy" when even Misty didn't, it's all SO good

honestly the perfect episode maybe?

Zac, Murph and Emily's reaction to La Gran Gata is so funny. They're truly The Most Cat People

also Murph's long-suffering but extremely fond "...always needs a familiar"

Emily and Murph are SO tuned specifically into each other all season (can't help but suspect this is a natural consequence of the seating arrangement tbh), but narratively it makes so much sense! Kug was Sofia's intro to the Unsleeping City so she turns to him for everything, and he knew exactly how miserably she was doing and how new this is for her so he's looking out for her and trying to cheer her up in his trashfire ways (and also probably feels some kinda way about seeing someone so shattered by their husband's abandonment). This friendship forever and always

I'm outspoken absolute trash for Sofia and Kug, but the first Dream Team's party dynamic overall is probably my favourite ever party dynamic. There's so much respect and admiration and history and mistrust and fondness and protectiveness and perfectly calibrated power imbalances in terms of knowledge of the word vs. actual magical power, every two characters together have individual conflicts and connections and dynamics, it's just. Perfect.

"Hey Pete, I... bless you with the blessings of um, uh... some pidgeons who died... near a church..."

coming from Twilight Sanctorum where Murph was on an unreal lucky streak for his standards, seeing Kug and his abysmal rolls is truly so funny

given that this is the season that spawned "I'm all the bad guys", I always forget how benevolent a DM Brennan is in TUC. Like, Zac is rolling badly in Ricky's first real talk with Esther? No dude you were funny, take some inspiration (is this literally the only time Brennan gives inspiration on D20???). Emily is disappointed when she doesn't find cool shit in the Bodega? No, you just saved the cat, it's giving you advantage!

the whole weird sexual energy happening between Sofia and La Gran Gata, special shout-out to Murph's face when Sofia says "I'll be waiting, but not in an impatient, desperate way" and "You are not the first woman to turn to a cat when her marriage has fallen apart"

Ricky, Ox and Kug the busted mutt having a jogging sesh will never not be funny, "It's fine, fuck me, go! You stupid kid! You goddamn beautiful boy, you fucker! You absolute asshole!"

"Animal control has decended on you"

Ricky being canonically too hot to stealth

"Just another perfect day for the luckiest, hottest man in New York"

Ricky's selfies and texts to Esther, my beloved

"Misty goes in, word-perfect, note-perfect-" "Please roll low, please roll low..." and Murph's absolute delight at someone else rolling a nat three

Misty and Alyssa tho. Siobhan is ice-cold. "No, I know you're sorry." "This will never happen again -" "No, it won't."

Kug in David's home, just. That whole scene. Crushing. The letter?? Everyone around the table bracing for impact before Kug even opens it. "I leave the letter... because I'll remember it."

we all know this, but Kingston and Liz's talk at the precinct is ICONIC. "Because of you I live in a fucking cartoon now!" lives rent-free in my head

Sofia's tiny meltdown in the drugstore is so funny. Also, her reaction to a random man getting all up in her business is an immediate "Okay! I fight him!" I love her so much

Spaghetti's Bakery, my beloved

The Cry Booth (and half the table cracking up at Pete’s incredibly quick “oh yeah he mistimed the pour over” excuse)

God I love how hateable Priya is. I love nuanced characters a lot but occasionally. You need a villain. Who is just a raging manipulative bitch. For the catharsis

The Talk About Pete?? Incredible. Kingston's devotion gaining such a dangerous edge, like damn, Lou, out the gate with "if things get out of hand, we put him down. Straight up." Kug, searching for a way to explain why he hates this whole situation and landing on just interrupting this extremely serious discussion by yelling "I have kids! I have kids! I fucked up raising my kids!". Misty wanting to lock everyone that bothers her in a cave (it can be a nice cave!). Ricky, the goodest of good beans, pointing out that if they're protecting all of New York, that also means protecting Pete.

All Hail Kug's rat swarms, I love them so much! "Our lives suck anyways!" "We prefer death!" Truly just a LotR girly gifting another some sewer Rohirrim (aka, "sorry i made you play superheroes buddy, can i interest you in some tiny high fantasy dynamic to make it better?")

Brennan revelling in his players outrage will never not be funny

Kingston continues to go so hard, casting heat metal and taking equal damage himself, "What do you say to her?" "Nothing."

the idea of some poor train driver hitting a mounted cop in a subway tunnel

"Live like a rat, die like a rat." !!!

The LOVE for the city radiating off of Brennan and Siobhan in particular is so so sweet

Pete opening the mind link and then just being silent on the line, ultimate power move

god I fucking LOVE this fraught dynamic so much. Always give me groups that have secrets!!!

WALLY AND KUG

just a reminder that Sofia has pictures of Kugrash hugging his son :(

Nod is so fun. The talking cherry tomatoes, the mobsters literally sleeping on the bottom of the river, the dreamworld literally receeding from Kingston, Brennan's mind is just incomprehensible to me

"Ricky, you're gonna get a clue one of these days!" "I know, I think I'm close!"

Siobhan reading The New Colossus!! Also, Emma Lazarus as a Vox Phantasma!

"She's gonna kill you." "Only if she can get here, and I have her goddamn shoes!" God, I love Misty so much, what a pompous little old savage

The Hell scene is SO GOOD though, with the coked-up rat men all scrambling for a finite amount of money!! Murph's "Oh no, this isn't subtle at all!" will always make me crack up. Also can I hear a hell no on the concept of "you weren't so much transformed as made to take the form of your soul"?

Ricky being complimented by the Statue of Liberty

"the danger, of course, is losing the dream in the pursuit of your ability to obtain the dream"

Sofia's (and Emily's tbh) RAGE at the Dale revelation, GOD

also "He's got a job to do on earth! He has deer in the backyard to watch!" Emily!! She cannot keep getting away with this

I really love Pete's evolved wild magic mechanic so much

The Kingston Brown biographical exhibit :(

Goddd Sophie and her brother!! The most tense of scenes!! My love for Sofia knows no bounds

[beholdthemem]

Popped back into tumblr to discover that @thestuffedalligator had tagged me to list one favorite character from ten pieces of media- thank you so much! This was such a fun (and unexpectedly challenging, only ONE character from each?? You're killing me here) thing!

1) Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano from the Percy Jackson books. I loved her from the first chapter she was introduced, and years later I still do. ¡La reina de mi corazon!

2) Eddie Bloomberg/Kid Devil/Red Devil from DC comics. I first encountered this dude at age 11 in a stack of comics somebody had donated to the library, and just kind of imprinted on him- I used to secretly imagine him as like, the big brother I didn't actually have, but desperately wanted. Now matter how bad things sucked, no matter how mean people were, no matter what was going on with him behind the scenes, Eddie always tried his damndest to be the nice, goofy friend that everyone needed while keeping the sinking ship that was the 2003 Titans run together.

Growing older than him was the weirdest thing. 'Oh shit, now I would be his big sister. I would have to, like- drop by the tower all the time to affectionately call him a dipshit, and secretly make sure his teammates weren't being dicks."

3) Syb Rook from NADDPOD's Eldermourne. Their gender is fantasy greaser, their pronouns are they/them/bastard (probably), and they have my undying affection. I love this criminal-with-standards, what-kinda-loser-doesn't-sit-like-A.C.-Slater, multiple-cigars-at-once ass jerk. I miss them so much. Either I need to get wiser about picking plot related favorite characters, or Brian Murphy needs to stop being so good at making side characters to get attached to.

4) Chrissy Cunningham from Stranger Things.

My brave, brave girl.

We saw Chrissy for one episode, and in that time she managed to leave a handprint on my heart the likes of which I have never before experienced. Kudos to her actress, I was living under the impression that I am a stone-cold bitch, and unfortunately it turns out I am NOT. I think what grabbed me most about this girl is that she is silently going through hell, has absolutely nobody she feels that she can safely admit that to, is surrounded by people who love the person they THINK she is and the life they THINK she has, while having never once noticed one real thing about her...

...and she still tries her hardest to be kind.

If she wanted to be a bitch to people, if she wanted to start smashing windows, I would get it. I would probably have done worse in her position. But she doesn't. She's like 'That's my problem, it's nobody else's fault, I don't have the right to take it out on anybody else,' and really tries to back that up. She's genuinely disappointed in herself when she can't remember the name of Eddie's band from six years ago, and makes an effort to try and recall it. When she remembers at last, she's as delighted as Eddie is. She was just... a sweet girl in an awful, lonely situation, and I wanted more than anything to watch her heal from her mother's abuse, recover from her eating disorder, and find people she could be honest with. Who'd be there for her when her family never was.

I would've liked that.

5) Glenda Sugarbean from Discworld, and you CANNOT IMAGINE how hard it was to narrow this down to just one character. What I love about her is that she carries on the grand Pratchett tradition of furiously caring about people when the world hasn't, but unlike Vimes, or Granny Weatherwax, Susan, she has no special power- magical or political- to do it with. All she has is her own two hands, common sense, an unparalleled gift for cookery, and a spine of steel- and she makes it work. She's my hero.

6) Ash Campbell from Sally Face.

A fact about me, which rarely serves me well but has nevertheless been true for as long as I can remember- is that in a fictional friend group that's All Guys, One Girl, I am always going to be ten million times more interested in the girl than I am the dudes. There's tons of dudes. They're interchangeable. You can swap em all out for each other, who cares, talk to me about HER.

What drew her there? What's her relationship like with the others? What's SHE like, period? I wanna know!

The thing with Ash is that intentionally or not, I think she was set up to be a pretty interesting character. We get a lot of offhanded tidbits of information about her that aren't really explored or followed up on, but- when put together- end up painting a very intriguing picture. We know she has difficulty expressing her emotions openly- she has a social, friendly front that might not be a complete fabrication, but that ends up being almost the only one anyone sees publicly. She'll get angry at times, she'll threaten violence and vengeance on her friends' behalf, but when someone's upset rather than angry, she doesn't know how to react. She's got nothing in her emotional toolkit for this.

We know that she doesn't feel comfortable showing a vulnerable side in front of other people, no matter WHO those people are- in chapter 4, she mentions her brother accusing her of being 'some kind of soulless monster' over her lack of tears during their grandmother's funeral. She tries to play this off like a joke, like this was a ridiculous thing to say, but the fact that she brought it up at all seems to indicate it genuinely hurt her. But she still can't say that, even to Sal, who she trusts a lot. She just has to trust that he understands.

Why? Was she always like this, or did something happen to make her feel this way?

We know she has family members in Nockfell, but we never actually see them. She mentions them a lot throughout chapters 3 and 4, but in 5, they never come up- even during the apocalypse. Did they cut contact with her over her years spent trying to prove an alleged murderer was ill instead of malicious? Did she cut contact with them? Were they among the townspeople "replaced", and she doesn't have the luxury of mourning them?

We don't know.

I love her for her potential, because exploring characters that canon didn't care enough to flesh out is my favorite thing to do.

7) Pete Conlan, from Dimension 20's The Unsleeping City. I adore this motherfucker. He is a disaster of a man, trying his level best to be a better person. He desperately wants to be in love, but has the worst taste in women and an undying attraction to English accents/things that are bad for him. As soon as he realizes a small child looks up to him, he immediately starts trying to model himself into a Good Big Brother despite the fact that this small child is probably thousands of years older than him. Irrelevant. Pete wants to be a better role model. I want nothing but good things for him, and someday I'm gonna have to get Dropout and find out what happens to him in Chapter 2.

8) Robbie Reyes from Marvel comics 2015 Ghost Rider, MARVEL, IF YOU DON'T GIVE MY BOY A REGULAR SERIES AGAIN, I SWEAR TO FUCK-

He loves his little brother more than anything else in the world. His parents died, and he stepped the fuck up as a young teenager to make sure the kid would never want for anything. He has an undying passion for nice cars. He only ever indulged this once, for the sake of providing for Gabe while doing one of a limited amount of things he feels he's actually good at it. It almost cost him everything, and all he could think about while facing death was 'I'm so sorry Gabe'. One of his classmates pretended she needed a calculus tutor to trick him into spending a night doing something fun with her because she correctly assumed that the only way she could get him to relax and do something for himself was if he thought he was doing it to help somebody else. He deserves the world.

9) Kohaku from Dr. Stone. She has an incredibly strong sense of justice, she's five foot nothing and still manages to be the group's undisputed tank, and when she heard somebody say he intended to marry her high ranking, chronically ill sister for power and then leave her to die because he didn't feel like taking care of her, she immediately tried to kill him in front of a live audience. A girl after my own heart.

10) Kaldur'ahm from Young Justice. I loved him in middle school, I love him now. I am very happy he now has a relationship with somebody who puts him first, but every time I see his boyfriend I can't help but be like 'Bro, are you SERIOUS?'

'WERE GARTH AND ROY BOTH BUSY?'

'If that's what you want, fine, but I PROMISE YOU HAVE OTHER OPTIONS-'

If you guys are up for it, I tag @sandpancakecat @grimmalkerie @oreozfox @humble-wayside-flower @alwaysatomicconniseur @kyonite @faithluvscabadre and... pretty much anyone else who wants to!

[rmd-writes]

Hi! Just wondering, is 911 LS a good show outside of Tarlos? Not trying to sound snarky, I just don't trust Ryan Murphy shows at all. I'm curious about it since so many of my favorite RWRB authors seem to like it so much but I promised myself I wouldn't get invested in another Ryan Murphy show. (Can you tell I survived the glee fandom? 😂)

Hi anon!!

Even if you were being snarky, well I am not opposed to snark at all 😅

But to answer your question, if you take away the Tarlos of it all, Lonestar is an entertaining first responder show. Is it completely unrealistic sometimes? Of course. Will characters sometimes annoy you? Possibly. But it’s a show with interesting characters and has a great cast in general, who have great chemistry with each other - you can tell that they’re friends irl!

Also, Ryan Murphy doesn’t actually write for the show if that helps. Though according to Brian Michael Smith, the close fit of their pants his his doing, so we can thank him for that 😉

[moviegeek96]

Daily Movie Blog: Red Eye

Red Eye is an American Psychological Thriller from 2005. It is amazing alright. Rachel McAdams plays a nice character trying to go home to Miami. Cillian Murphy plays a creepy stalker who knows everything about her for the last six months. It is basically a horror movie but I think it is a Thriller. It also Co-Stars Brian Cox. Wes Craven is the GOAT for this movie.

Also, Please welcome me to the blogging world. I am a big fan of movies. So every day I will post a blog about a movie being reviewed. Also, I will post another Blog about my life struggles.

Thank You!

MovieGeek96

[marjaystuff]

Interview with Kate Pearce

Three Cowboys and A Baby

Three Cowboys and A Puppy

Three Cowboys and A Bride

Kate Pearce

Kensington Pub.

The “Three Men” by Kate Pearce novels are cowboy books with three heroes who are former Marines that have PTSD and are now cowboys, working on the ranch. The characters are enthralling and likeable with plots that are riveting and engrossing.

Three Cowboys and A Baby is inspired by the 1980's classic hit, “Three Men and a Baby.” The book has an old military buddy turning up at the ranch with his child and asking his three former Marine buddies to help with the care of his baby boy, Sky. One of them, Noah Harding, realizes his friend has skipped out overnight, leaving his baby boy behind. Noah is designated as the one to take care of the little one until his mother, Jen Rossi shows up. Because of a long winter storm, she is stuck on the ranch with her baby, Sky, and the three men. The proximity has Noah and Jen constantly miscommunicating including their feelings and the parenting of Sky. Three Cowboys and A Puppy is a friends-to-lovers romance. The hero, Luke Nilsen, is attracted to Noah’s sister and asks his female bestie, Bernie Murphy, to use her womanly expertise and give him relationship advice. He is oblivious to the fact that she is in love with him. The book has several storylines including Luke's inability to see that Bernie's in love with him, and her reaction to her absentee father, Brian, who now wants to get to know her. Then there is Bernie who is trying to juggle her involvement in an upcoming puppy auction, adding an on-line ordering and delivery service to her cafe, expanding her business and needing additional staff, and constantly dealing with the people around her who make her feel second rate. Luke eventually gets some sense knocked into him more than once thanks to friends and family, that make him realize Bernie is right for him.  Complications in the relationship exist because Luke almost loses her, when he won't talk to her about his PTSD and is so blockheaded that he forgets to tell her that he loves her. It takes an intervention from friends and family to push these two to their happily ever after.

Three Cowboys and A Bride has the hero Max secretly married to Phoebe for the past four years. Seems he's been married and never told his best friends. He was married in Reno to a British lady name Phoebe who has returned to America to find Max because she needs to prove to her family she does have a husband. She needed to be married to get her trust fund that her family is holding hostage. Her father has now passed away and her brother is still holding the purse strings. While in the US, Phoebe surprises everyone by helping with the ranch chores. She can ride and doesn't have a problem getting dirty. The longer she and Max are together, both come to realize maybe being married to each other is a good idea. Navigating miscommunications, self-doubt, fears and emotions, they grow as individuals and partners, bringing out the best in each other.  With a little help from their friends, they overcome their hesitancy and stubbornness to realize they love each other and want to stay married.

What is great about all three books is how Pearce has the previous characters all back with a continuation of their stories. Readers will enjoy the humor and sense of family the group formed, even if all are not related by blood, but remain a family just the same. 

Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for the series?

Kate Pearce:  This is a three-book series plus a novella. I have written a lot of cowboy books. My editor suggested a title, Three Cowboys and A Baby. There is a movie “Three Men and A Baby,” where the mother leaves the baby, but in my book the dad leaves the baby, with the mother having a perfectly good reason why she cannot be there. The men immediately assume that the mom is a problem, that she is a fault. I would describe my book as a 21st century take on the movie. Even though these are romance novels I try to put very important themes: how war affects people, and how hard is the world of ranching and being a cowboy in real life. 

EC: Why did you have PTSD play a role with all the three men heroes in each of the three books?

KP: I have talked to friends of mine who have been in the service as well as friends who are spouses of those serving.  It seems PTSD comes on differently with everyone. There is this book quote by Jen, “Combat does weird things to people’s minds.  No one is the same after dealing with that. You create order out of your chaos rather than unleashing it on the world.  That is admirable.”  I wanted to show a shared experience but how they reacted differently because of their personalities. Noah reacted by controlling everything with his spreadsheets and life mapped out. He is very rigid, a black and white guy, someone who is obsessive.  Luke never leaves his surroundings.  He seems so in control, on top of everything, but has a vulnerability where he does not feel safe including afraid of the forest when dark.  Max is the one who everyone thinks is the problem child.  But he has releases and has come to terms with PTSD better than the other two. He can express his emotions and has not bottled them down. 

EC:  How would you describe Dave, the father of Sky?

KP:  Charming, a fly by night person, not a good parent. He is a playboy, inconsiderate, not responsible, not reliable, and self-centered.

EC:  How would you describe the heroine in the first book, Jen?

KP: Sarcastic, witty, an optimist, someone who seeks solutions and tries to avoid conflicts. She is patient, a peacemaker, honest, and has a sense of humor. 

EC:  What about the heroine in the second book, Bernie?

KP:  She has her hand in many projects including the Humane Society for Animals, and her bakery.  She is impulsive, a go getter, ambitious, direct, yet sometimes has low self-esteem. She is like Jesse from “Toy Story” in personality and appearance.

EC:  What the heroine in the third book, Phoebe?

KP: She is like an English princess.  She is honest, polite, likes to fit in, and wants to stand on her own two feet. Because I am British it is easier for me to write British people. She is very proper, like a Mary Poppins person.

EC:  What about the hero of the first book, Three Cowboys and a Baby, Noah?

KP: Responsible, speaks his mind, old-fashioned, judgmental, gentle, a planner, and over-protective. He is not very good at expressing his feelings.

EC: How would you describe the hero of the second book, Three Cowboys and a Puppy, Luke?

KP: He is a planner, detailed, calm, level-headed, and likes to hide his feelings. He was the hardest to write.  Outwardly he is a together person, but he has visceral fears of the darkness which is why he does not sleep. 

EC:  What about the hero in the third book, Three Cowboys and a Bride, Max?

KP: He likes to tease, does not mince words, and is outspoken. Sometimes he is not a people person and is known to have a temper. He is efficient, chatty, and jokes.  He can be suspicious and stubborn because he does not take criticism very well. He is very good at giving advice.

EC: What role does the baby boy Sky play?

KP:  He is sunny.  I think he helps with the humor in the book and brings Jen together with Noah. I usually do not write children in the books.  

EC:  What about the relationship between Noah and Jen?

KP:  It starts off bad because he makes accusations towards her.  Because of his misconceptions he holds a grudge towards her. As they get closer, they do not know how to handle themselves. She has her own expectations, and the relationship becomes very frustrating. Max is a kind of matchmaker.  He gets them to think about things.

EC:  What about the relationship between Luke and Bernie?

KP:  They are best friends.  Luke has taken her for granted and is oblivious to her true feelings about him. He is the object of her dreams.  She can overreact towards him, while he presents barriers. Max speaks his mind and gets them to speak with each other.  Banging their heads together in a sense.

EC:  What about the relationship between Phoebe and Max?

KP: She captivated by this maverick cowboy.  From the moment he saw her he was smitten.  He tries to do everything right by her and thinks she is awesome. This was my favorite to write.  They were so different but are compatible. They complement each other. He makes her feel safe and she offers him stability. 

EC:  In the third book Noah and Jen got married.  How did that play a role?

KP: With a wedding there can be different conversations, misunderstandings, and everyone gets involved with their little moments.  It gave Phoebe a chance to become integrated into the ranch family and to get to know the women.  This is a book where the women were nice to each other, welcoming to her. 

EC:  Do you think all these books show how they are an extended family?

KP: Yes, this is crucial to the books.  Noah is the protective one of everyone. Max is the advisor to everyone.  Luke is like the commander he was in the Marines to everyone. The ranch is their home.  They care about each other and love each other.

EC: Next books?

KP: I also write cozy historical mysteries as Catherine Lloyd, set in Regency and Victorian England. The daughter of an aristocrat who died in disgrace becomes a companion to an industrialist.  It goes from there. I will also be writing historical romance and historical fiction.

In December there is a novella coming out that continues with these characters titled Here Comes Cowboy Claus. Pen from the B & B will be the heroine.  I wrote it with my daughter in mind who has ADD and so does the heroine.  This will be the last one in the series.

THANK YOU!!

[pynkhues]

For the movie asks: 15 and 24!

Thank you!

15. A movie ruined by the ending

Answered here, but ooo, another one, I think I'd probably say Red Eye? I still like the movie a lot and think it showcases a lot of why Wes Craven is a master of B-thrillers and horror, but the absolute tension of being trapped on a plane and then in an airport together is pretty much lost when the characters are no longer in it, and it goes from taut to just kinda silly. The cast is killer though - Rachel McAdams! Cillian Murphy! Brian Cox! And it's worth it to watch them ham it up, haha.

24. A silent movie you like

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927) is it, baby. The premse is pretty simple - a farmer has an affair and is convinced by his new lover to murder his wife. While there's definitely parts of it that veers into madonna/whore territory in its treatment of his wife and mistress respectively, it's also I think genuinely ahead of its time and a pretty staggering film interested in how the foibles of men become compounded to create bad men - through financial insecurity, through their work, through their personal angers - and how much women are the ones to bear the consequences of it.

Plus visually, it does some really interesting stuff with film layering which you can see a glimpse of in the gif above.

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