#the fight choreography was brilliant too

[swan2swan]

So The Marvels was a 10/10 film, not because it was flawless, but because it did ALL of the Comic Book stuff and had fun with its medium.

Science?

DON'T CARE! IT'S COMICS! The Space Lady can jump across the galaxy whenever she wants!

Didn't watch the shows?

DOESN'T MATTER! IT'S COMICS! You can't be expected to read every issue! Let's do a quick recap!

It rocks.

[fuckyeahisawthat]

Furiosa thoughts

About 48 hours after watching, I think my take on Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is coalescing into: I enjoyed it as a Mad Max movie but found it disappointing as a Fury Road prequel.

Any Mad Max movie made after Fury Road was always going to suffer the fate of being compared to Fury Road, which is the best action movie ever made. So like, compared to any other action movie you can think of, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (we'll call it FMMS going forward) is very very good! It just isn't Fury Road.

The rest is under the cut for spoilers:

The action sequences were compelling. (I was aware I was hunched forward in my seat in tension/anticipation almost the entire time.) Some of them were even brilliant. That long sequence where the Octoboss and the Mortiflyers (yes those are their names) are attacking the War Rig with all kinds of airborne contraptions? Phenomenal. I was like yes okay now we are in a Mad Max movie! Other than that one sequence, though, in which we see Furiosa and Praetorian Jack begin to trust each other, I thought they rarely achieved the kind of wordless advancement of character relationships through action beats that is the lifeblood of Fury Road. So the action was good, but it was just normal-good, not Fury Road transcendent.

I did miss John Seale's cinematography. While I thought the action choreography was great, the shot selection was just not as dynamic and interesting as in Fury Road. I also really did not vibe with so much of the musical themes being recycled from Fury Road. The Fury Road score is SO memorable and the music is such an integral part of the momentum and feeling of every scene in the movie; I can play that score and see every beat of the action unfolding in my brain now. I wanted new score that felt like it was a part of this new action that we were seeing.

I loved all the new worldbuilding details and finally getting to see inside Gastown and the Bullet Farm. Those locations and their unique features were utilized really well for the action that took place in them. Loved the new details we got about the Citadel. The grappling hooks just dipping down to yoink people's vehicles during battle? Fantastic. The hidden Citadel ledge with the little pool of water?? That was such a fanfic-ready location. Pretty sure I already wrote at least one fic set there back in like 2016.

The Green Place! Very different from what I imagined but so much worldbuilding in just a few shots.

In general I thought the new cast rose to the challenge. Alyla Browne who played little kid Furiosa I thought was phenomenal actually. That's a tough role, both emotionally and physically, for a child actor and she slayed it. Casting Indigenous model and actress Charlee Fraser to play Furiosa's mother certainly made the Stolen Generation parallels more obvious. I'll have a lot more to say about Dementus down below, but Chris Hemsworth brought a great combo of bonkers and menacing.

I never doubted that Anya Taylor-Joy could bring the emotional intensity needed to the role--she can do crazy eyes like nobody's business, and with the growl she put in her voice she really did sound like Charlize Theron a bit. I found her physicality convincing for a young Furiosa. But she is not Charlize, through no fault of her own. Charlize is tall and she has broad shoulders and she just takes up so much space when moving and fighting as Furiosa and I think it was always going to be hard to replicate that. As long as they didn't try too hard to bridge the gap between the characters I was fine with it. But that one scene at the end where she's bringing the Wives to the Rig I was very viscerally like that is NOT our Furiosa. (I almost wish they would've used Charlize's stunt double for that scene the way they popped Jacob Tomuri into Max's place.) They could have simply left a time gap--based on the "15 years" she says to Dementus and the 7,000+ days we hear about in Fury Road there should be at least a 4-year gap between the film timelines, although in terms of bridging the look of the two actors it feels like it should be more like 10 years.

If FMMS had been a self-contained movie about a character named Furiosa in the Mad Max universe, I think I would have found it very satisfying. But as a prequel to Fury Road there were a bunch of ways I thought it was lacking on a story level.

I think it's pretty clear that this is not the backstory, or at least not the complete backstory, that Charlize Theron was imagining while playing Furiosa. Which...there's nothing objectively wrong with that; word of God and what actors think about their characters doesn't supersede what's on film for determining what is canon. However, Fury Road positions Joe as Furiosa's main antagonist, and while we don't get the full story behind the incandescent rage she directs at him, we know that rage is there and is a big part of her motivation. In interviews at the time, Charlize talked about the idea that Furiosa had been stolen to be a Wife but then was discovered to be infertile and discarded, how she survived by hiding in the Citadel and eventually rose to a position of power, how she saw her actions not as saving the Wives but as stealing them, and that her motivation at least starts out as more about hurting Joe than helping these women.

We get only the tiniest suggestion of Furiosa's backstory in Fury Road ("I was taken as a child, stolen") and the rest we piece together by implication. She is a healthy full-life woman working for a man who keeps healthy full-life women as sex slaves, hoping one of them will produce a viable male heir for him. She is effectively a general in his army, projecting his power on the wasteland, a position no other woman seems to occupy. She tells Max she is seeking "redemption." Redemption for what? She doesn't say. But "whatever she has done to win a position of power within this misogynist death cult" seems like a pretty obvious answer.

And that's interesting! That's an interesting backstory that engages with some of the core themes and moral questions of the Mad Max universe. These movies deal a lot with the tension between self-preservation and human connection. Do you screw someone else over to protect yourself? Even if it means putting them in the terrible position that you yourself have clawed your way out of? Even if it means enforcing your own oppressor's power over them? Or do you take the risk of helping people and caring enough to connect with them, even though this carries an emotional and physical risk?

FMMS doesn't really engage with Furiosa's relationship to Joe like, at all. It's not like Joe comes off looking like a good guy. He's just hardly in the movie. I don't know if this would have been different if Hugh Keays-Byrne were still alive. I don't know if there was pressure from the studio to cast an A-list male lead actor alongside Anya Taylor-Joy (who's a hot commodity now but wasn't what I would call an A-lister when she was originally cast). I don't know if, once Chris Hemsworth was cast, that affected how central his character's role became, since he is certainly the biggest name attached to the film. I would have actually been fine with Chris Hemsworth or another actor of his ilk playing a younger Joe, and us getting to see some of the charisma that attracted followers to him.

But the end result is that we have Dementus, who is a perfectly fine Mad Max villain, and quite entertaining at times! But not the most compelling antagonist you could give Furiosa.

The four Mad Max movies that feature Max go through an interesting evolution. In the first two movies, the villains are people "outside" society--criminals and roving gangs--and the people Max is defending are "civilization." So we have Mad Max where Max is a very fucked-up cop, and Road Warrior where Max is the prototypical western gunslinger, riding in to town to protect the settlement from an outside threat, but ultimately unable to accept any of the comforts of civilization for himself.

Then in Thunderdome and Fury Road, the dynamic switches. Now the antagonists are warlords and dictators. They are civilization. And the people Max ends up helping are trying to escape them.

To me, Dementus feels much more like the earlier kind of Mad Max villain. If there's another Mad Max movie I can most compare FMMS to, it's the first one. Dementus is Furiosa's Toecutter. (Kills her family, gives her her signature disabling injury, movie ends with her seeking revenge on him but it doesn't feel heroic or triumphant.) The whole end of FMMS when Furiosa is implacably hunting down Dementus? Extremely Mad Max 1.

But violent revenge holds a different symbolic place in Furiosa's story than it does in Max's. The end of Mad Max is a tragedy because Max tells us it is. He explicitly states, early in the movie, that he needs to stop being a cop or he'll become no different than the violent criminals he's pursuing. So he leaves his job and goes on an extended weird vacation with his wife and child, trying to get away from the violence of a collapsing society. But that violence finds him anyway, and by the end of the movie, Max has become the exact thing he said he didn't want to be. It's a tragedy not because the people Max kills in revenge for killing his family don't deserve it, but because seeking violent sadistic revenge is damaging to Max. That is not what he needs in order to heal from the loss of his wife and child. What he needs is to take the risk of human connection again. This is what he starts groping toward in the following two movies and fully realizes in Fury Road.

But Furiosa doesn't have the same arc. Her story in Fury Road is about how a few people struggling against their oppressor can be the catalyst that brings down a whole regime. Furiosa getting to rip Joe's face off is fucking satisfying, and it's supposed to be! So it's a bit weird, then, to spend an entire movie giving her a backstory that not only is not about Joe at all, but implies that seeking and getting revenge against Dementus for killing her mother and Jack is what made her into the person we see in Fury Road.

Aside from questions of revenge, what I thought Furiosa's goal was going to be is set up in the beginning of the movie. "No matter what happens, find your way home." Very clear objective there. And then we see her try to get home like, 1.5 times. I thought we were well set up to follow the tried and true film story format of "simple goal, big obstacles, high stakes." I wanted to see her trying over and over again to get home, and being thwarted in different ways every time. I wanted to see grief and guilt over her mother's death turn her mother's last command into a mission for which she would sacrifice anything (and anyone) else. I wanted to see her justify working for Joe and accumulating power in the violent world of the Citadel as what she has to do in order to get home. I wanted to see "Have you done this before?" "Many times." But we didn't really get that either.

Ultimately, I think the least frustrating way to think about the film--which the film itself encourages--is as one of many possible Wasteland legends about a character called Furiosa. Maybe it happened this way. Maybe it didn't. Maybe this is the Furiosa we see in Fury Road. Maybe it isn't. It all depends on how much you believe of the History Man's tales.

[t00thpasteface]

Howdy! Long-ish lurker, first time asker. Your posts the other day(s?) about encouraging people to put themselves out there, and also the general vibes of your shebbz shouts have inspired me to start blogging. But that's not important! What IS important is that recently I managed to introduce my friend to Superman TAS (unrelated to your blogging about it) and we've been having a blast. His thoughts pretty much boil down to: Lois being sassy towards Perry? EPIC! Livewire being sassy towards Superman? AMAZING. Lex Luthor being Lex Luthor? OFF THE CHARTS. But this is only important for context!

What's REALLY important is that a few days ago we were watching the two-part opening to Season 2 and we started noticing that in some frames Mala has rounded ears, and in others she has pointed ears. Then we noticed the same thing is going on with Jax-Ur's ears! We started paying more attention until we spotted one scene from 8:15-8:22 where Jax-Ur's ears shapeshift frame-by-frame before your very eyes and we were HOWLING with laughter and replaying it over and over

MUAHAHAHA!!! YES!!! MY EVIL PLAN (to encourage people to interact with each other and use the microblogging site for actual blogging and human connection) IS COMING TO FRUITION!!!! also good to hear other people are liking this show. it's such a fun way to wind down and have a giggle when i'm too tuckered out to draw between classes, and the fight choreography is both impressive on a technical level (the mail truck scene is a personal fav) AND just plain cool and hilarious to watch.

i take a lot of random screenshots of brilliant, funny, or weird stas & btas frames to send to my friend, but several of the pics i took of that two-parter were just "oh mala looks great here".

i admit i love mala VERY MUCH. she's serving boethiah to me. she's so CUTE and SILLY and about as jacked as they'll let a chick get in these shows. i think she should be let out of the hell dimension to blow stuff up for fun here and there as a special treat because i like her. I SUPPORT WOMEN'S WRONGS!!!!

[writefullyrobin]

No spoilers past the current ep if possible folks! I’m going in blind!

3x05 – Rage thoughts

It is probably a bad idea to accidentally confess to an affair with your best friend’s husband when said best friend is wielding a bat…

I’m not going to go into Michael’s plot with the police roadside stop. I’m not an American and I’m not black. This was ultimately a very cultural heavy subplot that I honestly can’t relate to and don’t feel comfortable commenting on. It did result in one of Michael’s best scenes though with Harry and trying to explain everything to him.

Arrested? Fight club? Really, Eddie? I commend Lena for trying to give Eddie an outlet but I’m sorry, what exactly qualifies her to decide this is the outlet he needs? He’s spinning out. He can’t really help Chris, only time will to process everything. He can’t speak to Buck. He’s looking for control with this. Not sure this is healthy though. But I’m not too upset. It did give us a shirtless Eddie scene… which I may have watched again… just to really appreciate the fight choreography of course…

I think all I can conclude from this lawsuit arc is this show should probably stick to 911 emergencies. How they carefully trod the line of not actually making anyone the “bad guy” in the situation so that when the team do come back together again properly there are no hard feelings from the characters (or the audience) made it just that little bit lacklustre.

I might be completely wrong in this, but I think this arc was more about a lesson for Bobby than Buck. Don’t get me wrong. Buck has some issues because he’s insecure about his place in the team without a doubt and this is probably the first place that’s felt like home to him. But Bobby never got to experience letting a kid go off and do their thing regardless of how he feels about it and so I think they’re using Buck as his pseudo child in this situation.

Fear makes you do stupid stuff, no matter your age. No one came out of this arc looking particularly brilliant. Even the rest of the crew felt a bit clique-y and petty. All the info brought up about their own injuries and returns etc. would have been easy to find out and would have been raised with or without Buck’s input.

For all that it isn’t my favourite plot, it did give me an absolutely hilarious Buddie moment in the grocery store. Do they even know they’re arguing like a divorced couple?

And everyone’s faces when Eddie mentioned jail? Too funny!

I had hoped Bobby might’ve seen from the grocery store how this divide between him and Buck is fracturing the team and extended his hand to Buck out of readiness to work on fixing it, but then he made the “my house, my rules” comment. No resolution just yet I guess!

[today-it-is-this]

today, it is this — i watched romeo + juliet on broadway yesterday. yes the one starring kit connor and rachel zegler <3 i had written so many of my thoughts in my journal yesterday but i have more today so i thought i'd type them here. i'm so in awe of the whole ensemble, truly. and this applies to most theatre! day in, day out, they show up and consistently perform for a different group of people every single time. that must take so much energy, and for romeo + juliet specifically, they're on stage, running up and down the aisles, climbing up and down the ladders, jumping off the ledges, executing fights and choreographies... all while balancing delivering those shakesperean lines with absolute precision and emotion. two hours and 30 minutes almost everyday, sometimes even twice a day. it's mind-boggling to me! and the fact that they'll be doing this for five months total is even crazier. kit and rachel are amazing on stage and have such intimate chemistry. it's wild to me to watch these two, who've always been on film and tv, give live performances. it is such a privilege to watch them perform live (and SING live too!!!) with no cuts or edits. pure and raw performance. they draw you in and take your breath away. i remember feeling so mesmerized by kit when he was speaking to benvolio, really close to my side of the stage. the pure joy and relief in his eyes! his and rachel's soliloquies are so beautifully done! however, i do think that the rest of the ensemble really solidify the whole show for me. every single one of them is so ON it. and of course, sam gold's direction, sonya tayeh's choreo, and jack antonoff's music. this idea to make romeo + juliet for gen z was so off-putting to me that i thought it was gonna be dumb and corny, but sam gold did it so well. it makes so much sense. it's old english, yes, and the emotional beats are never taken lightly, but certain intricacies and mannerisms here and there feel so accurately rooted in gen z culture. it's unafraid to be hedonistic (lots of close make-out calls, grinding on each other, and vaping) and gen z humor was incorporated so seamlessly (especially from gian perez. so iconic I LOVE). i love that despite being limited to a small circle stage, they maximize and think outside the box to make it feel as BIG as possible, using all the aisles, under the stage, the overhead walkways. it's brilliant and just adds to the production value. i'm so happy to have my doubts proven wrong. this was such a blast, i hope everyone involved is so proud of themselves.

13/10/24

[legion1227]

X2: A Movie Review

This has been a good year for everybody's favorite mutants so far.

So far, we are halfway through X-Men 97, a sensational return for the original X-Men cartoon, picking up where it left off and blowing away expectations. Meanwhile, we are still three months away from the release of Deadpool & Wolverine, which will feature the return of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine and possibly other surprises from the X-Men films released back in the 2000s, among other Marvel films from then.

With the success of X-Men 97 and the upcoming release of Deadpool & Wolverine, it makes sense to look back and celebrate the X-Men films to come beforehand. At the time of this writing, I have rewatched the X-Men (2000) and X2 only. X-Men: The Last Stand has not been reviewed yet, and X-Men (2000) was good, but X2 is the topic of discussion here, as it's not only better than its predecessor but one of the great comic book films to grace screens.

The last time I watched either X-Men film may have been as a kid during the 2000s. The rewatch all these years later proved how stellar X2 was, buried under the wave of Marvel films to follow throughout the 00s, 10s, and today. If you don't know or have forgotten, X2 introduces its main antagonist, Stryker, played by the brilliant Brian Cox; a man who threatens the existence of mutants with the proposed mutant registration act. After launching a full-front assault on Professor Xavier's school and after Magneto breaks out of prison, the X-Men, Xavier, and Magneto must band together to face a common enemy that threatens their very existence.

From the opening scene of Nightcrawler fighting his way through the White House to make it to the president, the film establishes more clearly than its first one how it has the sauce. Nightcrawler poofing his way throughout the halls and dispatching the guards one by one with opera music in the background is one of the best openings to a CBM. Overall, the action scenes here are a vast improvement over the first one, whether it's the opening scene, the raid on Xavier's school, or Wolverine vs Lady Deathstrike. While the first film's fight scenes were decent, the choreography harbors more dynamic action that contributes to an overall more enjoyable time.

The character work here varies across characters and performances. Ian McKellen has one of the best performances once again. While his role as the antagonist in the previous film was great, his partnership with Xavier, Wolverine, and others forces a compelling dynamic. Magnus breaking out of prison using the iron in a guard's blood was badass. Then, to see him forced to work with his enemies provided entertainment beyond belief. From there, unfortunately, it's a bit of a mixed bag from the other actors and actresses and their characters.

Hugh Jackman's Wolverine is iconic for good reason. He brought gravitas and an aura of savagery that was always entertaining to witness, whether here or in virtually any other film the character appeared in, especially in Logan. Patrick Stewart's Charles Xavier is a tour de force in his own right as well, but it's the other members of the X-Men that bring apprehension. While I enjoy James Marsden as an actor, he brought nothing to the table as Cyclops, and reminded me why others for years have hated the Scott Summers character; Coinciding with his performance, Famke Janssen as Jean Grey isn't given many intriguing things to do. It's a bit infuriating when juxtaposed with the performances and stories told in X-Men 97. The X-Men and X2 spend too much time on a love triangle where only one-third of the people involved are engaging to watch on-screen. (Although if X-Men 97 focuses more on the love triangle after the time of this writing, this may age poorly, lmao.)

I liked Shawn Ashmore as Iceman and the scene of him coming out as a mutant to his parents. A decent allegory for a teen coming out as gay to their parents, and I think the scene, as well as Iceman/Bobby Drake in general, work well for the movie. Aaron Stanford's Pyro was also a fun slow-burn, watching him turn heel towards the end of the film. I'm really excited to see him return in Deadpool & Wolverine. Others like Rogue, Beast, Mystique, and Lady Deathstrike, to name a few, I would've liked to have more screen time to grasp these performances and their character moments better. Overall, X2 could've utilized some characters better, but some of the characters get so right and attributed to one of the quintessential 2000s CBM movies out there. There are a handful of iconic scenes to witness or reacquaint with in the first two acts. The third act may waver a little bit, but this is still a great film that warrants a rewatch to appreciate the X-Men further. 4/5.

[ninjadeathblade]

Moulin Rouge Discotrain AU (part twelve)

Summary: (Post-game canon) The Conductor and DJ Grooves agree to finally work on a movie together. They come up with 'Moulin Rouge', a musical drama filled with romance. Over time the two directors grow closer and discover that maybe they don't hate each other as much.

Beginning | Previous | Next

Word count: 1,475

Warnings: None

Author's notes: This was actually one of the first chapters I wrote and we've finally reached it. Apparently this is my 1,000th post too??? This is one of my favourite chapters I've written so far to be honest. How these two haven't realised their feelings is honestly mad. Enjoy!

"Darling, I really must go, I'm meant to be at rehearsal," Grooves insisted, watching the Express Owl hurry around with fabric.

"Please sir, just a minute longer, I want to see how well this colour could work!" They called.

Grooves sighed, looking up at the clock on the wall.

He could already feel the harsh sting of the Conductor's anger at him arriving late.

"Sir! You've got to go! They're about to start!" Owlice said, out of breath as she burst into the changing room.

Grooves stood up, casting one look at the other panicked owl who was sorting through fabric, before putting his coat back on.

He'd gotten it back off the Conductor that day they both spent in the owl's office.

It had been nice, to not worry about acting for a while and just joke around together.

"Of course, sorry. I'll be back later," Grooves apologised before hurrying out the room, rushing towards where they'd constructed a makeshift set that resembled one of the rooms on the Owl Express.

"Where were you?" Snatcher asked as Grooves slipped into the booth next to the ghost's.

Hat Kid grinned and waved at him as he slid in beside her, before she resumed drumming her hands excitedly on the tabletop.

"One of the owls made me stay late for costume fitting," Grooves explained, picking up a glass of water from the table and downing it. "So, how's Pinguini doing? Is Conductor mad that I'm late?"

"Oh, he's mad alright. And Pinguini is sick. Apparently someone's standing in for the poor guy. D'you want me to make a contract with him so he doesn't get sick? All it'd cost would be his soul," Snatcher offered and Grooves stared incredulously at him.

"No! Heavens no darling! I've already told you, no contracts aside from the ones with Hat Kid!" Grooves protested, running a flipper through his hair as his nerves got to him. "Where is Conductor anyway?"

The lights dimmed and a spotlight went on as the trapeze began to lower.

Grooves and Snatcher stared up at the yellow bird sitting on it and Grooves couldn't quite believe his eyes.

"I think you just got your answer," Snatcher whispered.

Light glinted off of the sparkling headpiece Conductor wore, refracting around the room.

"The French are glad to die for love."

The recital of Satine's first line of dialogue was brilliant. Grooves' beak fell open, staring up at the Conductor.

"They delight in fighting duels. But I prefer a man who lives and gives expensive jewels."

The music Grooves had composed began playing over some speakers in the background but it barely registered in Grooves' mind.

Hardly anything did as the Conductor followed the choreography perfectly, step by step.

Snatcher disappeared at one point and then reappeared beside Conductor, the two of them performing their moves together as if they'd been practising together the whole time.

And all of a sudden, the Conductor came to stand in front of their booth.

"I believe you've been expecting me." Grooves blinked dumbly until Hat Kid nudged him.

"Um, yes," Grooves breathed, glad that his mind blank was what had been scripted as well.

Conductor smiled down at him, a rare occurrence for it to be when they weren't alone.

But it vanished almost as soon as it appeared when the Conductor turned back to everyone else on the set.

"Alright peck necks! That's the end of today's run! If you've got other jobs then do them! If not then get outta here! We don't want yer!" He snapped, taking off the headdress and motioning for Grooves to move over. "Where were you?! I could've used my co-director a while back!"

"Sorry, they were looking at different colours for my outfits," Grooves apologised, moving over while his brain still tried to catch up with what just happened.

"Nice moves Conductor," Snatcher commented as he walked past, gesturing for Hat Kid to follow him.

The little girl nodded, waving bye to the birds as she skipped after him.

Conductor picked up a couple glasses of water at the table, drinking one quickly before having the other slowly.

"Darling, when were you going to tell me you were such an amazing singer?" Grooves blurted.

The Conductor spluttered, hitting his chest a couple times before speaking.

"I wasn't gonna tell you," he admitted.

"Why ever not?"

"It's embarrassin'."

"It's talent. It's what we need in this film!" Grooves insisted, watching with slight amusement at the way his co-director's feathers poofed and ruffled at the compliment.

"It's nothin'," Conductor argued, finishing his glass of water.

"Where did you learn to sing like that?" Grooves persisted.

Conductor mumbled his reply, a ripple going through his feathers as he shivered.

"What was that darling?"

"I learnt ta sing when I went to a theatre club when I was younger," Conductor admitted.

"You used to go to a theatre club when you were little? Darling, that's adorable!" Grooves squealed and Conductor put his head in one clawed hand. "What made you stop?"

Conductor ran his hand over the feathers at the side of his face, mouth turning downwards.

"They did too many musicals. And they didn't like my accent, forced me to learn to sing without it. Some of the other birds said how I was funny lookin' for an owl too. I didn't like it," Conductor explained, tone more sour than it had been a moment ago.

"Well, I think you're fine." Grooves placed a flipper over Conductor's hand still on the table.

Conductor looked over at him and Grooves hesitated before continuing.

"And…I think we've found our Satine."

The owl rapidly withdrew his hand from the penguin's, jerking back as if he'd been hit.

Grooves frowned, not prepared for how negative the reaction was.

"No."

"Why not?"

"We need a director not acting when we're filming scenes so we can see how they work," Conductor stated half-heartedly.

"Darling. You always have a role in your movies. Why is this so different?" Grooves asked.

Conductor sighed, resting his head on the tabletop.

"Feels weird for this one. Dunno why. Maybe because I don't have full control. Maybe because I've not wanted to do romances in a while. Maybe because I'd have to play lovers with yer," he said before trailing off with a groan.

"Can you think about it at least? Oh Connie, no one could play her like you could," Grooves insisted.

The Conductor stood, drumming his talons on the tabletop a couple of times before replying.

"I'll think about it." The owl walked off.

"Are you together or something?"

Grooves jumped as he looked over at Empress, not even having noticed her in the booth that Snatcher had been in.

"Sorry, what?"

"You and the Conductor. Are you two together?" Empress questioned, resting her head near her joined hands as she leaned forwards.

"Well yes, we work together on the movie, I thought that was obvious-"

"No, you idiot. Are you two dating? Are you going out?" Empress cut in, tail flicking with annoyance behind her.

Grooves' beak opened and closed several times in a row, mind blanking.

"No, no- uh, no, we're not- pffft, why would you- how dare you- we're not- no!" Grooves stammered.

Empress raised an eyebrow sceptically.

"Seriously! Don't give me that look!" Grooves protested further.

"It's not any of my business as to your relationship with one another." She held up her paws defensively before lowering them back onto the table.

"But from an outside perspective, that's sure how it looks."

"It really isn't-"

"Just shut up a minute. I really don't care what's going on between you. I'm just letting you know what it looks like."

She dug her claws into the table, dragging them slowly back towards her.

Wood peeled away from the table, curling back in the trail she marked.

"If you two end up together, then just remember this little chat. Good luck making it through the movie where you play lovers without something happening."

She tore her claws out of the table, walking out of the room.

Owlice entered, skittering past the large cat as they crossed paths.

"Did I come at the wrong time? I wanted to get the headdress back," Owlice squeaked, pointing shyly at the discarded outfit piece.

"Go ahead," Grooves absentmindedly replied.

"Are you okay sir?"

"Not really darling."

"Oh. Should I get Mr. Conductor?" Owlice asked, eyes going wider than usual behind their wire-framed glasses.

Possible responses swam around in Grooves' mind.

"No," he said, still slightly uncertain. Owlice nodded nervously before offering him a smile.

"Your acting is great by the way, sir," she complimented.

"It's really funny, I had commented to Mr. Conductor how funny it would be if he ended up playing Satine."

Grooves looked up at her, scattered thoughts slowly drifting back to him.

"Yeah. Funny."

[beyondkailani]

One Piece Episode 5 Live Action

I've not finished yet but I'm going to come out and say I think the Baratie set is going to be my favourite! It looked stunning! I'm so, so glad they went with building practical sets and so on as much as they could because it really paid off with such an iconic ship!

Zeff and Sanji were wonderfully, wonderfully perfect and the little eggplant comment was spot on!

Speaking of Sanji, another perfecting casting choice! I don't know how they did it but they got the perfect people for these roles! Sanji was perfectly balanced as kind, goofy and of course a dreamer just like the rest of the crew.

Then we get the ending! I seriously don't know how they've done it but it feels like Mihawk just literally walked off the page of the manga and into live action. I was concerned some of the costumes for some characters might be a little too cosplayer like and I felt Mihawk would be tricky with that enormous sword but that is not the case at all! He's brilliant! The actor nailed him.

And that duel with Zoro was fantastic! The choreography was brilliant. Big shout out to the production and stunt crew for making these wacky impossible anime fights look so good.

Only 3 episodes left!! I'm gonna try and finish them tonight if I can.

[wandringaesthetic]

Regarding Rebel Moon: feels like it was written by an edgy twelve year old in both the positive and negative sense. I didn't see the twist coming because I thought the things that were not adding up to me were just a product of the movie being stupid instead of something that was actually supposed to not add up. A couple of times hits on something kind of brilliant, maybe despite itself. Needed some workshopping. Needs to have about an hour of extra footage where we develop this weird cast of characters. Or maybe not. It hardly breathes except in the first 30 minutes or so, where it breathes too much. That's where the most cringey parts are.

Visually brilliant, ofc. Everyone is so attractive. Very nice, brutal fight choreography. Enough things that I'm curious about to hook me into the next part.

Overall, Feels like some kind of edgy 90s comic book. It did not exceed my expectations but it did meet them. I Will be watching the next one.

[hakyeonsmonstercock]

ok gonna make a masterpost rant on my thoughts / hopes for #hakyeonsolodebut bc he’s coming back soon and i know hwang sejun follows me personally so 

1. pre-release digital single

option 1: summer

song: ok i know someone at that fuckass company is gonna be like “omg you should totally do a ballad” so i thought what if we didn’t have to suffer and it was just a little teaser for the album like dream and free tempo and hyuk’s songs were and not the main song? if we have to get a slow song, rather than a ballad i want something soft and sweet like choco chip cookie.

outfit: a mix of the ceci photoshoot and big issue, oversized shirts but less pink and more.. sparkly? i’m seeing stickers on his skin and glitter on his hair but idk that might be a vision for another time. anklets if we’re doing a beach thing. hair curly and parted so his eyebrows show a little (put some glitter on them like aoa cream king) maybe even some novelty hair clips

m/v: aesthetics..... the overused 3:4 aspect ratio solid color background with some objects in front omg.. but i’d eat it up for hakyeon honestly if it was more pastel and told a story. cutesy nostalgic with a girl maybe so he can trend for being boyfriend material again. balloons, very colorful, sunny summer-like, 

option 2: autumn

song:  i know vixx generally don’t do trends (thank god they never did beat drop chorus noise /barf) BUT, and hear me out, CITY POP is kinda on the rise and his #aestheticcore ass would GO ALL OUT. yukika - neon is like, representative intl stan choice but it is actually amazing. i can see hakyeon going upbeat retro but in my mind the prerelease single is a slightly faster ballad over a vaporwave/futurefunk/citypop instrumental (can you tell i don’t listen to that cringe shit). i can also see some trot elements being thrown in that suit fit hakyeon’s voice 

outfits: imagine this picture but with highwasted brown pants instead and a much flowier white/blue shirt with like puffier sleeves? maybe an extra button undone. then a beret (!), huge fucking dangly earrings, and his hair styled wavy like for the big issue magazine. black shoes with a high heel because fuck you or whatever these shoes are called because fashion. 

m/v: yeah i want it melancholic and rainy and dark and him singing to a stand mic late at night reminiscing.... the night sky.. stars.. starlights.. get it?

2. title track

option 1: sexy

song: if hakyeon went for a sexy concept, and i could totally see him do cunt very well, bass down low and heavy, something like shinhwa’s first love (!!!), hashtag’s freesm, sujeong’s tiger eyes, OR something with a western pop influence: poison, give it up to me, or even hara’s midnight queen

but the ideal? this song is everything i could ever want for hakyeon’s solo debut. the jrock-pop-dance-edm influences are brilliant, it’s fast paced and hot and leaves plenty opportunities for what hakyeon does best, and that’s stare at a stage camera seductively. 

dance: mm a lot of hip work and some flowy arm movements. a little contemporary dance break for hakyeon to flex. female and male back up dancers falling over him/fighting for his attention/serving as his chairs (which he did already lmfao). also that thing where one person moves from stage left to stage right and the dancers behind them copy and freeze in various poses/wave choreography. ALSO there’s a smirk and panting and a growl in this song... if no one got me i know hakyeon’s facial expressions got me!

outfit: THIS gay ass shirt is the ONLY choice wtf!!! taemin move promotions inspired but with higher wasted pants to suit hakyeon’s body type. no necklaces either, maybe gloves, dr martens... the highlight of this outfit would be his arms and lipoma <3 in an ideal world id ask for a little red gradient lip too but whatever, the eye makeup can go crazy instead

m/v: literally let’s bring it back to 2012 give me a box set and 50% dance shots 50% head shots i don’t give a fuuuck!

option 2 / follow up promotions (maybe featuring a female idol): i didn’t ask to be born latina

song: k hakyeon is canonically latinx so his debut song should have a lot of latin dance or even bollywood influences! i’m thinking if solo: koda kumi shake it, , tomochin’s loca, enrique iglesias’ bailamos or if he wants to be quirky he can plagiarize ACCHA ACCHA (get it????)

and if he invites one of his bitches shakira’s la tortura, cocosori’s mi amor, enrique iglesias’ takin back my love . he already covered havana and choreographed it and put his girls in those flamenco dresses soo... we know you want to king

dance:  i trust hakyeon to make troublemaker the 2nd most controversial performance in recent history. honestly just want him to do this to shake the table a little bit if he decides to go for a feature.

but if it;s a solo song... belly dancing!!! hello?????/ literally unfulfilled potential all up in this bitch! when he starts feeling ethnic >> he’s gonna be my cousin shakira said my hips don’t lie... 

outfit: RED! hello?? arguably his best color? when we put him in a sinfully tight shirt and add lace details and a huge leather corset-like belt and a deep v neck cross with long wide sleeves with details on the chest so it’s borderline a figure skating costume and HELLO WHEN WE CONVINCE HIM TO WEAR A CROP TOP AND BELLY DANCING PANTS AND THOSE SEQUIN SEE THROUGH SKIRTS AND DANGLY ACCESSORIES AND SOME INTRICATE WAIST CHAINS ohHoHHohhhpdhp yes it’s all coming together *brain fuckng explodes* also she should grow out his hair kinda like taekwoon hyde era? embrace your heritage king

m/v:  a whole storyline set in like the 50s in which hakyeon is a bartender/cleaner at a cabaret club and he stares wistfully at all the performers on stage and imagines himself up there and practices and then the climax of the song has him receiving standing ovations and as the song closes he’s like jolted from his daydream :’)

OR one of those stereotypical man having an orgy with a bunch of women mvs

4. pussy eating anthem

stellar - vibrato imagery. nuff said.

3. ft. yikyung

obviously this is just wishful thinking but since yikyung’s pretty active rn and has a whole song it’s not too far fetched? what’s far fetched is how close they are irl but i don’t doubt hakyeon will get a lot of his friends to feature, whoever they are. 

5. ballad

6. ft. vixx

aww in my light fashion i do think hakyeon would all but force vixx into the studio to do a cute little gift for the fans song <3 i don’t doubt he’d try to include h*ngbin too in some way. i don’t have concrete ideas for this one cuz fan gift songs suck but he’d probably be involved in the production/lyrics <3

[agentnico]

John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) Review

There really is something truly amusingly spectacular in witnessing Keanu shooting baddies whilst doing car donuts next to the Arc de Triomphe. It’s almost like an action parody, yet still super badass. 

Plot: With the price on his head ever increasing, legendary hit man John Wick takes his fight against the High Table global as he seeks out the most powerful players in the underworld, from New York to Paris to Japan to Berlin.

Who would’ve thought back in 2014 that this little action flick about an ex-hitman coming out of retirement after some silly buggers shoot and kill his dog starring lovely Hollywood star Keanu Reeves would span such a major scale combat franchise that’s now on its fourth instalment, with multiple spin-offs on the way too. All this over a puppy?? Well, pet-lovers, John Wick and studio execs would aim to disagree, so here we are with Chapter 4. 

Look, straight away I can say if you enjoyed the previous instalments you’ll enjoy this one too. It’s more of the same, only bigger and grander. Indeed the action sequences are all nothing short of superb, with Wick despatching enemies in a lethally balletic style, very much showing inspiration of Bruce Lee in the fight choreography. It’s all really impressive and is very much a commendation for director Chad Stahelski and his team for constantly finding more and more creative ways of filming straight up mass murder. That seems like a very peculiar observation to make yet here I am. It’s true though, from the long takes to the real-life stunts, this movie looks and feels at times like a video game. There’s even a uniquely stunning scene involving a battle-weary Wick charging from room to room through an abandoned decaying building with the camera tracking his progress  in a long, unbroken shot from overhead/bird’s-eye-view as he guns down attacker after attacker using an incendiary rounds shotgun. It’s mad and great! However for all the amazing ground-breaking fighting shots this movie does suffer heavily from being too bloated and excessive. With the meandering runtime of nearly 3 hours, there’s a lot action that does get repetitive. There’s only so many creative ways you can headshot kill someone, you know? 

The story too suffers from, well, not being there. Look, the original John Wick had the simple yet brilliant premise of the guy getting revenge for his killed puppy. It was bizarre yet perfectly apt for the character of Wick. However since then the sequels have all been revealing this crazy assassins world involving the High Table that everyone follows, as well as the various rules and codes that these assassins follow. And also that minor factor that whenever there’s a massive fight out in the open, regular people walking by act completely unaffected by all this and continue going by their regular day-to-day. So anyway, it was a very interesting world that was delivered in all its wonderful neo noir style, however by the fourth time around it’s kind of become the same thing again, has it on? Wasn’t John going after the High Table in the last one? And also he had a high price for his head in the last film, and same here, so again, the movie fails to have that feeling of freshness outside of some of its action sequences.

In terms of the cast, both old and new are great. Keanu Reeves lives and breaths John Wick, and also the fact that he throws himself into all these stunts is worth all the praise and more. However slight knit-pick - his character doesn’t have that much dialogue in this one, and I am totally okay with that as I imagine John Wick is not a man of many words. That being said when he does speak, most often all he says is “Yeah” in a very brooding voice. Look, say it once, you’re cool. Say it twice, we get it, you’re a badass Mr Wick. Say it thrice, alright, we get the point. Fourth time? Okay, now it’s just stupid. John Wick says “Yeah” so much I was half expecting Alex Winter to show up and them together scream “EXCELLENT!”. As for the rest of the cast, both Ian McShane and Laurence Fishburne return and bring the respectful gravitas to their element as one can expect. Lance Reddick is always nice to see, and it’s a shame to hear of his recent passing, yet his role in this movie is ironically apt to work as a tribute towards him and his legacy. As for new cast members, the likes of Hiroyuki Sanada, Clancy Brown, Scott Adkins, Shamier Anderson and Rina Sawayama all are given great characters to work with that fit in smoothly into this universe. But special shout out to Pennywise himself Bill Skarsgard! What a great villain! He was an absolute a**hole from beginning to end and I loved it! He even had a French accent and all which tied it all nicely into a neat bow. He was such a bastard and made for a memorable baddie.

Donnie Yen was awesome. End of paragraph.

The musical score and soundtrack was surprisingly impactful and accompanied the action and on-screen events superbly. Like more so than the previous films the music here really amplified the entire experience, so thought I’d mention it.

Overall John Wick: Chapter 4 features a lot of great fighting sequences, a host of old and new great characters and is probably the best of the John Wick sequels (first movie is still the best). However it is also a movie that is starting to show this series’ wrinkles, as such signifying that maybe its time to end John Wick and his killings. You’ve had four solid films, leave it whilst it is still on a high. Donnie Yen was awesome though, did I already mention that?

Overall score: 7/10

[rookie-critic]

Rookie-Critic's Film Review Weekend Wrap-Up - Week of 3/20-3/26/2023

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023, dir. David F. Sandberg) I think that this Shazam! sequel is really just a dialed up version of everything that worked in the original. More Zachary Levi, more Jack Dylan Grazer, more funny jokes about the fact that he's a kid in a super-powered adult's body. It makes the film a very fun watch, but at the same time, a lot of the jokes don't land because it really feels like they're trying too hard. Also, because they went so heavy with Zachary Levi's screen time, Asher Angel (who actually plays Billy Batson in his normal teen-form) is barely in the film. It kind of creates a disconnect with the kid-adult dynamic that's at the core of the film's humor. That being said, a lot of it is till very funny, the acting is good, especially from Levi, Grazer, Grace Caroline Currey, and of course Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu (who are honestly so good they feel like they're from a different movie), and I had a fun time, even with the myriad of problems the movie had. A nice, turn-your-brain-off distraction.

Score: 6/10 Only in theaters. You can read my full review of Shazam! Fury of the Gods here.

John Wick (2014, dir. Chad Stahelski) [REWATCH] I'm not ashamed to admit that I adore Keanu Reeves. I think he's a fine actor given the right material, and he clearly found his niche the day he decided to star in John Wick. I'm of the, for some reason, unpopular opinion that the first John Wick film is the best in the franchise. The story is engaging, and while the action might not be as balls-to-the-wall crazy as the later installments' would be, it's still some of the most tightly constructed, well shot action choreography modern action filmmaking has given us. There's also an allure to the mystery of the assassin underworld the we barely dip our toes into in the first film that, of course, doesn't exist in the later films. It's just a fantastic action film that covers all its bases.

Score: 10/10 Currently streaming on Peacock.

John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017, dir. Chad Stahelski) [REWATCH] This is probably my least favorite installment. The story is less interesting. Santino D'Antonio is a wholly uninteresting villain, and the fights largely feel very generic (although they're still insanely well-designed fights). This film has two saving graces. One, it gave us Laurence Fishburne's The Bowery King, who is my personal favorite character in the franchise (possibly second, we'll get into that in a minute). Fishburne plays Bowery King with the perfect amount of gravitas and bravado to make it the character wonderful. The second saving grace is a particularly brilliant fight scene between John Wick and Cassian, a character played by Common. This fight, which takes place in part in a crowded subway station, is easily one of the more memorable of the franchise and keeps this from being a middling ho-hum sequel to an amazing first outing.

Score: 7/10 Currently streaming on Peacock.

John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019, dir. Chad Stahelski [REWATCH] I remember not being a big fan of Chapter 3 when it first came out. I remember thinking that the second film had written its successor into a corner that said successor doesn't really do a great job of digging itself out of. I can definitely see why the me of 2019 thought that about Parabellum, but really the me that rewatched this on Thursday night thinks it's a really fun entry into the John Wick franchise that contains a few fantastic set pieces and houses another handful of greatly-choreographed fight scenes. Mark Dacascos' Zero also makes for a vastly more engaging and interesting nemesis for Wick than Santino D'Antonio was in Chapter 2. Their final fight and the ensuing madness that descends upon the New York Continental at the film's end were awesome and, needless to say, I have a higher opinion of this one now than I did when I first watched it back in 2019.

Score: 8/10 Currently streaming on Peacock.

John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023, dir. Chad Stahelski) This one comes so close to achieving the greatness that the original had. The John Wick franchise's biggest issue has always been that, with each new installment, as the action gets bigger, the story is sacrificed. Thankfully, Chapter 4 subverts that pattern and almost is able to find that perfect balance. I won't say too much, because a full review of this will be dropping at some point this week, but what I will say is that the fight choreography in Chapter 4 is, hands down, the best in the franchise, and Donnie Yen's Cain is quite possibly the greatest character of the franchise, as well, even more John Wick himself. It could have been maybe 20-30 minutes shorter, though.

Score: 9/10 Only in theaters. FULL REVIEW COMING WEDNESDAY.

Waterworld (1995, dir. Kevin Reynolds) You know, I've always heard that this is one of the worst films of all time, and that it was one of the most famous flops of all time, and I gotta say the latter is just factually incorrect, and the former is, in my opinion, not even close to the truth. It's not a good movie, by any means, but really it was kind of, just, ok. There's a lot here that makes absolutely no sense, and the story just kind of chugs along, uncaring as to whether or not the audience has the tools necessary to chug along with it. My friends and I watched the theatrical cut of the film, and I understand that there is a 3-hour cut called the Ulysses Cut that would probably explain a lot of the more confusing holes in the film's story line, but, honestly, I don't think I could sit through 3 hours of Waterworld. I just didn't find it that interesting and I can guarantee it didn't even need to be as along as the version I did watch to make everything make sense. I'm glad I finally watched it, it was a huge film history blindspot for me, but I'm good not having seen the "ideal" version, I'll be able to live with the fact that I'll never get more info on why Captain Joe Hazelwood is idolized by the Smokers, but no one even knows that there are cities beneath their feet at the bottom of the ocean.

Score: 4/10 Currently available to rent/purchase on digital (iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, etc.) and on 4K, Blu-ray & DVD through Universal Studios (I believe this disc does include The Ulysses Cut, for those interested. If it doesn't, I know it exists on the Arrow Video Blu-ray from 2015).

I also watched Scream VI again with my older brother Sunday morning, but y'all have heard me rant about how much I love those movies enough for now. Just know that, yes, even upon a second viewing, it still rocks.

[themovieblogonline]

Be prepared to witness Sonu Sood in his never-seen action avatar! He makes his directorial debut with the Hindi action-thriller titled “Fateh” which hit the Bollywood big screens on January 10, 2025. With himself as the titular lead, Fateh also features Jacqueline Fernandez, Naseeruddin Shah, and Vijay Raaz. Fateh (2025) Synopsis: Cybercrime, the word is a high alert nowadays. Many innocent people fall victim to cyber criminals who ply online to track and harm their prey. Be it financial fraud, brutal killings, or pornographic content, cybercrime involves everything. An ex-special-ops officer, Fateh Singh (Sonu Sood), embarks on a mission to destroy a cybercrime syndicate that was robbing Indian citizens of their hard-earned money. Not just that, this cyber mafia even conducted merciless killings of innocent individuals in an electric chair which they streamed online for views. The Track “Hitman”: Actor, Producer, and director Sonu Sood Presents Himself as Fateh Singh with Yo Yo Honey Singh! https://youtu.be/pXm66TuSKAs?si=R8tv8T-bOO1xLnUw Starring Sonu Sood and Jacqueline Fernandez https://youtu.be/m-gAltoErGw?si=MFFMCvA48d20DJHC What really put Fateh Singh on this dangerous mission? He was doing well handling his village dairy farm! It was a simple girl in his village named Nimrit Kaur who fell prey to this murderous syndicate. They had kidnapped her. Fateh along with an ethical hacker, Khushi (Jacqueline Fernandez), must track and rescue her from the cyber mafia before it’s too late! Fateh (2025) Official Trailer: https://youtu.be/_qC4mq13crc?si=56ySJSHQbZCnbcrW The Good: Forget about the acting here. Sonu Sood might not be a great actor but in this action-thriller, where he is the writer, producer, director, and titular lead, he has performed some screen-blasting and bone-chilling action! If you have watched the bloodbath in the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Animal, well, then let me tell you that Fateh has even more serious bloody, and gory sequences. Extreme gun violence, bloody fist fights, and vicious killings with knives, pointed objects, and axes; such sequences consume major parts of the aggressive screenplay. The action choreography here is raw and intense, perhaps even more than Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo Series. Fateh has some applaudable dialogues. In fact, the best and funniest dialogue that I ever heard was not from Sonu Sood, but from one of the villains who was trying to intimidate and degrade him before a mass massacre happened. “Har che footiya Bachchan nahi hota!” that’s what he said. Meaning, “Every six-footer is not Amitabh Bachchan”. Naseeruddin Shah as the lead cyber gangster Raza, and Vijay Raaz as his right hand Satya Prakash were the antagonists and they gave brilliant performances. The editing has been kept crisp and the sequences are fast-tracked although the screenplay fluctuates back and forth at times. The film’s duration is just 2 hours and 10 minutes. The cinematography included wonderful scenic views of rural Punjab, San Francisco’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge as well as Dubai. Fateh (2025) Official Trailer 2: https://youtu.be/nfSmatMKqqE?si=tpsq1jQonC89d_ND The Bad: Even with the sharp editing, there were certain stretchy moments within the screenplay as a story comprising cybercrime and loan fraud can be, at times, complex for ordinary audiences to understand. The first half seemed a bit loose but as the screenplay proceeded, it picked up pace. There were scenes where Fateh destroyed hundreds of henchmen. The kill count in this violent action-thriller is massive. However, a certain action sequence involving hundreds of henchmen confronting Fateh in the climax was exactly similar to that of Animal. I don’t know if that sequence was copied from Animal or if the makers of Animal had taken the idea from Sonu Sood for their scene. The immense number of killings in the end made this movie as toxic as Animal. Moreover, Naseeruddin Shah has aged and I was thinking that Sonu Sood as Fateh would spare the old man at least, even though he was a criminal. I really felt pity for him in the end although he was the lead villain. But wait! Fateh Singh shot the unarmed old man mercilessly! Sorry for spoiling the thrill for you readers, but I had to bring this point to your notice. Because if I were in Fateh’s place, after demolishing all the evil villains, I would have at least spared that unarmed old man who sat down to talk to me. He told Fateh before getting killed, “There are no good or bad people, just unfortunate people”. Embrace the Action with Sonu Sood! https://youtu.be/DL3lCyGrlbk?si=H2F5xnB48Vm1zxyv The Verdict: Combining action and suspense, Fateh is a big-screen entertainer! Although there are no impressive tracks in this movie, the bouncy track "Hitman" during the end credits by singer and rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh added some life. Fateh killed maybe more than a thousand people in the movie, walked free, and continued handling his dairy farm in Punjab. The fact is that while watching toxic action thrillers like this, you only need to enjoy and ought to leave your logic at home!     Fateh (2025): Booming at your Nearest Theaters! https://youtu.be/MmdjNGtIL2A?si=hccqWRXVQjURY6VC Read the full article

[cherrygorilla]

My first impressions of The Outsiders musical (plus my extra notes on your reaction to ✨Starlight Express✨)

As promised, I've compiled all the notes I made whilst I was watching the show you so graciously introduced me to into a neat little post for you to read. I know it's not nearly as exciting as a video, but hopefully you can still enjoy reading through them as much as I enjoyed watching it. It was so cool getting to watch it after knowing how important the story has been to you over the years, and how much it inspired your characters. It felt like I was unlocking new Danelle lore - I loved it 😂 But anyway, enough wasting time! I'll start with my reactions to The Outsiders (the overall show and each song), and then I'll tag on my comments about Starlight at the end. I did them as little bullet point-esque comments as I went along to try to stop myself from rambling too much, but I don't know how successful that was... 😅

The Outsiders:

Okay, first of all, I love that you can hear time period accurate music playing in the theatre before the show starts - I love when productions do that; it adds that extra layer of immersion and helps you get even more excited for the show to start - at least it does for me anyway.

The actor playing Ponyboy has a really unique voice - but I think it works well for the character. It feels really authentic. 

The use of the screens in the set to show the movie scenes at the start was cool - for what sometimes felt like a more limited/sparse set with the sort of scaffolding backdrop, it added an extra element of interest.

The contrast between the Greasers and the Socs in that first number was shown in such a cool way too - with all the Greasers playing around and doing their own thing to reflect their imperfections, but good hearts nonetheless - and then with the Socs being more reserved and putting their jackets all in perfect synchronisation to show how much more 'put together' they are. That's such clever choreography! 

The staging of everything is great too - it feels like such a big set but they use the space so effectively. And all the gravel on the stage is a great touch; it helps set the scene so well! I think I saw actual water in that tire too, which is another really cool feature.

Tulsa '67 - great song to set the scene - sets everything up really well - no notes - fantastic opening number 👏

The car pulling onto the stage was so cool - it reminded me of when I went to go and see the Back to the Future musical last month (which was amazing btw - gave me some very entertaining ideas for a one-shot 👀), because the way they used the delorean in that, and made it drive, was genuinely incredible haha.

Whilst I felt really sorry for poor Ponyboy when he had that run-in with the Socs, the way they did the fight scene (and all the ones that followed) was just brilliant. The way the lighting and the sound design and the way they did the choreography with the slow-motion sections - it was fantastic!! I've genuinely never seen anything like that in a show before - no wonder it won so many Tonys haha. It deserved to after seeing that!

Also - no matter how many fight scenes there were - I still couldn't work out how they got the fake blood all over themselves. Maybe it was just too late at night and I wasn't paying close enough attention - but that felt like genuine magic to me 😂

Grease Got a Hold - fun song to show the brotherhood of the Greasers - very time period accurate too - at least it sounds it to me lol - which works really well to help sell the story - it did a great job at introducing us to the way all the different main characters act too

Runs in the Family - really liked Darrel's character in the show - maybe it's because you made that connection with him being so similar to Miles, and you know how much of a sucker I am for that guy lol - but I also did just genuinely think he was a great character to add an extra layer of conflict - and the actor did a brilliant job of portraying it; I really believed him in the role, and I thought his voice was beautiful.

The scene with Ponyboy and Sodapop talking on the bed definitely gave me Bentley and Royce vibes - especially because they share a room. That moment about the book and how many pages it had got a laugh out of me too - the guy who plays Sodapop acted that bit really well. That whole exchange was just really sweet - they played out that super close brotherly bond so well - I can definitely see how their relationship could have influenced how you wrote the Murphys.

Great Expectations - really moving song that was great for showing off the guy who plays Ponyboy's voice - it was so powerful! I've got to admit I'm not always overly fussed about slower songs/ballads in shows, so I didn't necessarily love this at first - I thought it was a good song, but I don't think I fully appreciated it until I came back to listen to it again and could link it back to the rest of the show; I think it becomes more meaningful once you know the whole story - at least it worked that way for me

The exchange between Dally and Johnny Cade (I can definitely see why you thought August was a good match for him btw) was really sweet - they really sold that chosen family vibe between them. And it was clever how they incorporated the set-up with the switchblade knife too, what with it being so important later on. 

Friday at the Drive-In - nothing really groundbreaking, but it was a fun, catchy song - and I liked the choreography!

I loved getting to meet Cherry for the first time - with her bravery standing up for herself I can definitely see Vivien selling that almost defiant confidence really well. And how she speaks to Ponyboy afterwards - I could so see Vivien acting that out with Bentley. I sometimes forget how close of a bond Vivien and Bentley have because I usually think of them as a trio, or just Vivien with Royce - but I'd love to see them tackle this scene together; I think they'd do a great job. 

Going on from that - I Could Talk To You All Night - such a pretty song that is so enjoyable and easy to listen to - it works so well for the scene, and I think Vivien and Bentley would kill it - BUT, your idea of a one-shot with Miles and Carrie pre-relationship is absolute perfection for this song. It works amazingly - right down to their places in society and everything!! Aaah!!

I loved Cherry sticking up for herself when her boyfriend barged in and started being an asshole too - she's such a strong-willed girl, I'm obsessed with her. I could very much see elements of Carrie and Eric in her and Bob's relationship (unfortunately lol) - especially in TMM. If only Carrie had the same balls Cherry did to actually put herself first lmao.

Runs in the Family reprise - whilst I understand it was a little overkill for Darrel to fly off the handle like he did, I can appreciate his point of view and how he cracked under all the pressure he'd placed on himself. Like you said in your post, it's hard to imagine the Murphy brothers ever arguing like this - but it could be something interesting to play with just as a one off, to see how they would react - especially that element of Darrel talking about all the things he could do with his life if he wasn't tied down to providing for his brothers - I feel like Miles could share at least some of those struggles (I just don't ever think he'd express them lmao - especially not like that). Also - I feel like in this reprise, even more than with the song the first time around - part of the melody reminds me of What'd I Miss from Hamilton. Maybe it's just me though lol 😂

Far Away from Tulsa - what a pretty song! And what a sweet moment between Ponyboy and Johnny Cade - this was such a good way to show how close the characters are. And omg just imagining Bentley and August singing it 🥹 - I couldn't cope

Probably just me watching too much Starlight Express (as usual), but the "you're nobody" part of the following run-in with the Socs was very reminiscent of the "he said nobody, so he's nobody" bit in the show when the other trains are all picking on Rusty. Weird coincidence haha. But again, the staging of this fight was just brilliant - it was like I couldn't look away! And the underwater effects!! That was so cool!!

Run Run Brother - what an exciting end to the first act! Again, the staging of it was brilliant showing their escape - and I loved the song in this one too; I feel like it showed off Dallas' voice really well. 

Justice for Tulsa - this was a really cool opening to the second act - I loved the way they staged it with the interrogation; that was so clever and it set the tone really well how everything is a little darker and more tense compared to the bright and cheery opening of the first act. I really liked the second part of the song too with Cherry sticking up for the Greasers even though everyone else was turning on her because of it - she's definitely feeling like one of my favourite characters at this point. The tone of her voice is so pretty and clear too - you can tell there's a lot of power behind it as well. She's great!

Also - I know it's not really a comical show - but that cut back to Ponyboy after they'd cut and bleached his hair… 😳 Girl. I gasped. That wig. I know the point is that it looks bad but I was still speechless 😂 The poor guy! Wanted as an accessory to murder AND looking like a clown?! He can't catch a break!

Death's At My Door - what a sweet duet - not the most exciting of songs - but it's really heartfelt and showed off the characters' close bond really well. 

Throwing in the Towel - I already had a bit of an idea what this was like from the TV performance of it, but omg seeing it fully staged, and knowing about everything that led up to this point, made it so much better! What a beautiful song! Everyone put so much emotion into it - and then when Ponyboy started singing too to show how they were all thinking of and missing each other despite being apart - ugh, it was so good!! Definitely a stand out song of the show for me. Brilliant vocals, and amazing acting too from all three brothers. I can totally see the similarities to your Murphy brothers as well, which made it all the more enjoyable to watch. The actor who plays Darrell did a particularly great job here, and as an oldest sibling myself, I definitely felt the most connected to him - he's another favourite of mine from the show.

The comedic timing on that "Do I look like Julie Andrews?" line was impeccable - that whole section with them talking about Ponyboy's hair was so good - they delivered the lines so well; it felt so authentic. And Dally's reaction just made it even better.

Soda's Letter - another really pretty song - you could really feel the sentiment behind the lyrics - it felt (at least to me anyway) that even the music itself was showing that internal conflict in Ponyboy: the need to stay safe and loyal to his friends, but also that comforting pull of his family back home. It was really beautiful!

Dally's monologue that followed was really powerful too, with him trying to keep his 'found family' safe - definitely felt like his advice was driven by the fact that he didn't have a choice in his matter of just keeping moving on though, and that he was potentially a little jealous that Ponyboy did have a loving family he could go back to. There felt like there was an element of pride there too - where he felt like their new big brother who could look after them, especially after his talk with Darrell, so he didn't want them to go back and not have them solely relying on/looking up to him anymore. He wants to try to keep that control over them  - maybe because there's nothing else he can control in his life? Idk, maybe I'm reading too much into it lmao.

Hoods Turned Heroes - that whole fire breaking out really took me by surprise, but it was so brave of Ponyboy and Johnny Cade to go save all those kids despite being so weak and tired themselves. No wonder they were deemed heroes! It was a fun song to show off the upswing in luck for the Greasers back home though - and it provided an even starker contrast to the next scene with Dally carrying Johnny Cade like that. That was a really powerful moment.

Hopeless War - another beautiful song showing off Cherry's actress' voice - I'm obsessed with it. She's really great. Definitely gives me turf war vibes that could be used in a throwback one-shot/au or something before the surfers and bikers made up.

The set-up for the rumble had me so nervous ngl - I really appreciated Darrell coming back and trying to help though, even offering to take Ponyboy's place and fight for him (not that Ponyboy was ever going to let that happen, but you know, the sentiment was there haha). Very good big brother energy - very Miles energy too. I liked it haha.

And then the rumble itself: genuinely unbelievable theatre. I know I've said it before, but the way they used the sound, and the lighting, and the choreography of everything - and the rain and the fake blood too - it quite literally took my breath away. Sooooo insanely brilliant. I can't believe how synchronised everything was - it was really, really impressive. 

Little Brother - another seriously powerful song, made even more powerful by that amazing performance by Dally's actor. Omg he totally killed that - the pain and the emotion in his voice - he sounded totally broken, it was such a brilliant performance! And aptly heartbreaking after what happened to poor Johnny Cade - it's just a shame Dally felt so lost and angry that he ended up meeting the same fate.

That conversation between the three brothers centering around Ponyboy and his grief was so emotional and, again, really powerful. They acted it out so well - I could really feel their love and frustration with one another. Again, I could totally see the Murphy brothers acting in a similar way if they were ever in that situation, especially with the way they were talking about their parents and how they're all each other has left. May or may not have helped me a lot with later parts of TMM too hehe 👀

Also - the part with them saying Johnny Cade's mum never showed up to the hospital to collect his things: what the hell! That's so sad! Poor boy deserved so much better 😢

Stay Gold - I've always known about this phrase being linked to The Outsiders in some way because I think you've had it in your bio at some point, but I didn't know the full meaning behind it until I listened to this. And omg what a beautiful song - definitely one of my favourites from the whole show. It's so delicate and heartfelt and pretty - that melody is just so gorgeous. It really feels like Johnny's last way of comforting and reassuring Ponyboy, all wrapped up in a song. Sooooo pretty. I loved the touch of them getting Johnny to be the one to sing it too; it sounds so much more meaningful coming from him. I could totally picture August singing this as well - the lyrics all felt very 'him' with that soft, almost poetic edge and the link to nature. At least that's the vibe I have in my head of August anyway haha.

The way they brought Ponyboy's writing back to end the show with felt so satisfying - it was a great way to tie it all together as one big story and show how their lives had changed, but part of it would always stay the same. A great way to end it with some really nice harmonies!!

So yeah, in case you couldn't already tell, I really loved the show - thank you so much for introducing me to it! I'm so glad I'll finally have an idea of what you're talking about when you bring it up now lmaoooo. And I'm so excited to see your reaction to it, because I feel as though it'll just make me love it even more!

Anyway, speaking of reactions, here are all the things I had to comment on after watching your reaction to Starlight Express. They're in that same sort of bullet point-y style, and I didn't comment on everything because I'd have probably bored you for hours. But here were at least my main things I wanted to share with you! So yeah, thank you again for putting that video together for me; I had such a fun time watching it and seeing you experience the show for the first time. I can't wait to see what ideas it sparks for you in the future (even if they're just new, awesome nail designs 😉)

Starlight Express:

It was so cool hearing you say that you bet you'd have loved the show when you were a kid because that's when I fell in love with it - and how you hoped that there are kids in the audience that fall in love with musical theatre because of the show because that's exactly what happened with me, and is exactly what the musical set out to do. Andrew Lloyd Webber has said many times that Starlight was designed to get kids into theatre and get them excited about going so the fact you picked up on that so early on was so cool! 

I LOOOOVE that you fell in love with Greaseball so early on - Greaseball's always been one of my faves, and this London version just cemented it for me. She's such an icon. I always used to love Dinah because she got to be WITH Greaseball - now I just want to BE Greaseball 🤣

That's so cool that you've seen stuff from the Bochum version (and that you've been learning German?! That's awesome!), and that you can appreciate the costume changes and everything. This video version of the London production might not be the best because the costumes aren't all finished off with the lights on their chest yet - since it was taken during the previews - but I agree that they all still look insanely cool. 

Also - with Dinah being one of my all-time favourite characters in the show - those Dinah inspired nails you got (which I may or may not have clocked in the intro because I'm a freak like that 🤣) are AMAZING! They look so good!! I'd love to see what you get done for Greaseball/The Outsiders if you end up getting them.

I loved your interpretation of the coaches being like the Muses in Hercules - that's such a cool connection; I'd never thought of that before but you're so right! And I loved your comments/analyses on their costumes too - they were so fun to hear. And as someone who LOVES really reading into details - especially when it comes to colours and things - listening to you talk about everything you picked up on was soooo fun. 

You giggling at that moment at the end of Whistle At Me was so cute 🥰

Also, I know you realised by the end of the show, but they definitely do sing AC/DC in Electra's main song - which is cool for both the music connotations, and because of the alternating current/direct current electrical terminology connotations hehe. 

I LOVED your reactions to Pumping Iron because that's one of my favourite songs in the whole show - it's just so FUN - and I had a blast watching you experience it all. Also - the way that your homemade slushie exploding lined up perfectly with Control saying "uh oh" had me cracking up so hard 😂

You picking up on Pearl saying "lovers" in Make Up My Heart was so entertaining too - the characters used to be a lot more romantically motivated in other versions of the show, and carrying songs over without changing the lyrics much (this one in particular) doesn't always work so well 😂

Totally agree with your score for Momma's Blues too - I love Momma as a character, but I always skip that song because it's just so random and unnecessary - genuinely don't know why it was ever included other than to give the Poppa/Momma character something else to sing 😂

I'm OBSESSED with Rusty's voice in this production too - obviously all the other Rustys I've seen have done an amazing job too, but there's something about Jeevan's voice that is just sooo beautiful. It made me appreciate 'Starlight Express' and 'Starlight Sequence' so much more than I used to because of how gorgeous his voice is to listen to. Also, can you believe he was only 17 when he started the show?! Insane!!

Unfortunately Greaseball is always kind of a jerk to Dinah in the shows, which is such a shame because they are so cute together otherwise. I've seen a few different interpretations of it though, like where Greaseball's so hellbent on winning that they don't want any distractions from anyone (no matter who they're from), and their desire to win just completely takes over. But another interpretation I thought was quite cute was that Greaseball is so desperate to look tough in front of their competitors that they have to disregard Dinah so that they don't look weak, because every time they DO properly acknowledge Dinah (like at the end) they're just like putty in her hands haha. 

I'm glad you still liked UNCOUPLED so much too, because as much as I also love it, I feel like it works much better with an American accent. Every other English-speaking version of the show has had Dinah being American, and since that number is so country music inspired, I just think it sounds better with an American accent. Eve's acting definitely helps to sell it though - and the more I listen to it, the more normal it's starting to sound. So maybe it's growing on me after all 😂

Your analysis on the 'money-driven' aspect of Slick's character was really cool too. That's a new aspect for this production too, because usually it's CB in that position just wrecking the trains for shits and giggles because he's a little psycho - but the link to the big oil rigging industry is a great one to make! I kind of wish they did more with Slick's character tbh - I feel like what they show of her is a very base level of her character - I wish we saw more of her desperation and intensity. And like I mentioned with how I imagine Abby would play her, I wish there was more of an element of Slick wanting to help Greaseball because she idolises her, what with their almost identical colour schemes and their joint reliance on oil. I think Wide Smile, High Style kind of falls a little flat because Slick's motives were never really shown up until that moment. But oh well, I suppose the show can only be so long haha. 

That moment after Rusty wrecks in the first version of the final race being Royce and Vivien coded is so true!! I'm so pleased you saw elements of them in those roles like I did!

It was so cute seeing how excited you got about Hydra each time he came on stage too - everyone seems to be really loving him, which is great since he, and all the other fuel trucks, were new additions for this production. He just seems like such a cool, chill guy - he's great. And that musical hook of his is really catchy haha. I'm pleased you could see how I could link him to Ethan lmao.

I love that you enjoyed One Rock and Roll Too Many - that's such a fun number in the show. I wish they'd made it more obvious that the trains had wrecked though, because in other productions they roll out in tattered/falling-apart versions of their costumes, which I think sells it more. But I also understand that that might not have been possible this time around with the way that the costumes are so rigid/plasticy. Either way - it's still a really fun number.

In terms of their makeup too - I've seen some of the cast on tiktok doing videos about their makeup and they have to do it all themselves! I think they were taught how to do their specific looks initially, but they have to do it all themselves every night, which is super impressive.

Also - yes - I totally agree Hydra should have been up there on the podium with Rusty at the end. Pearl didn't even race with him once!! 😂

And your utter confusion with Greaseball's poor spelling 😂 I love Al's portrayal of Greaseball but I don't think she hams up the dopey/dumb and embarrassed aspect of that part where she struggles to spell 'sorry' nearly enough. 

Overall, I absolutely loved your reactions though - getting to introduce people to stuff I love and seeing their reactions is one of my favourite things to do, so getting to watch you experience the show for the first time and fall in love with it was soooooo special. I can't wait to see your reaction to the Outsiders one if you choose to do one for that too!

And with that, I think I've got through everything. And to save you from reading through even more of my ramblings, I'll leave it here. Thank you so much for getting through it all if you made it to this point though - you're a real one haha. On a serious note though, the dedication you've put into editing together that video and watching the show purely because you know how much I enjoy it, and going to the trouble of helping me watch The Outsiders, is insane - you've gone above and beyond any of my irl friends with all that, so thank you soooo much. You truly are the best! 🥰

Now, back to TMM! 😂

[solarsonicsoda]

Rating 500+ Theme Tunes - #10: Ben 10

We have our first ongoing franchise, and I don't know how exactly this will be formatted as I write this, but for now at least I’ll be going back-to-back with these shows! It’s Ben 10! These shows follow 10-year-old Ben Tennyson (which is a name choice I just have to respect) who ended up the bearer of the Omnitrix. This device allows him to transform into 10 (but later more) alien races to defend Earth and the universe. The theme here is 10.

If you aren't familiar at all with Ben 10, I have to seriously question you somewhat. This franchise was one of the biggest success stories of late 2000s cartoons and firmly placed itself as the number one action show in the medium. It was an old formula done new: one half classic 80s toys-to-TV strategy, one half 2000s attitude with a well-developed world and continuous plotline. The Ben 10 universe had real development and depth to it that definitely justifies the various aliens and their respective merchandise opportunities. So naturally, it just makes sense that it became the juggernaut that it did. 

Firstly, there was the original 2005 show. Ben, his cousin Gwen, and Grandpa Max (who is voiced by the Colonel from Metal Gear!) are on a summer holiday road trip when Ben first gets the Omnitrix stuck upon his wrist with secrets that it hid. The show hits a strong balance between being episodic and having an ongoing story, with some of the most intriguing reveals, secrets, and questions of its time. It was definitely ahead of its time in this way, and lays some foundations for shows like Gravity Falls. Man of Action also brings their brand of fight choreography brilliantly with animation and designs that stands out, and fun writing too. It can be a bit (extremely) infuriating how Ben’s lessons never truly sink in beyond an episode’s end due to the nature of the show, but if nothing else it's accurate?

As you may be able to tell, I love this show. I think I saw every single episode as a kid, supported by the awesome box set I had. It was a big box with decals resembling the Omnitrix, with the screen being holographic and showing various aliens from different angles. Then the spines of the 10 DVDs lined up to show a design of all the aliens in that cool highly-detailed style. It was the shit. But as you can see, this is a sentimental favourite of mine. It rules so much and I just think the whole show has an awesome aura created by the world, writing, animation, and action. Also like, the end of Season 1 following all the build-up will always be famous to me. Brilliant stuff. Let's get to the theme.

Ben 10 Theme Song

C’mon. Like, come on. It's the original Ben 10 theme. We all know it is one of the greatest pieces of music ever put to paper, what do you want me to say? In all seriousness though, you can't really argue against this one for my money. To start, there's that sci-fi, mysterious sorta sound which I’m always a sucker for, setting the perfect otherworldly tone, before the more familiar, more modern beat comes in. It's a great combo as it goes on with the alien synths coming in harshly with a nice rhythm. The odd vocals lay down some of the greatest bars known to man and I just love the way it sounds. There's a lot of development across this short tune too, which I always love to see, as we move into a more sung segment which still carries a nice flow. The whole thing just perfectly embodies the show, and I mean perfectly. It really sums up the show really well in my opinion, which is a perfect thing with an intro. 

I feel like with this one, it is dazzlingly obvious what I’ll give it, and if you watched this show I know you’ll agree. Plus this is a very widely loved tune amongst my age demo. This is an easy easy easy S.

Stay tuned for more and be sure to send in any suggestions for other shows you'd like to see done (after the 500 already in the pipeline that is). Check out the intro to this series here, and check out the tier list.

[woozi]

hiii yza! it’s car crash anon… now that we’re a few weeks into god of music’s release, I was wondering if you had a ranking / any thoughts on the tracks for seventeenth heaven?

also, when there’s a comeback, is there anything you tend to anticipate / are super excited for outside of just the MV?

for me I’m OBSESSED with the dance practice behinds. any behind for award ceremony practices are also pretty fun, but I just personally loveee hearing them sing little bits and pieces of the song live in the dance practices. this is actually how I characterize booseoksoon in my head—they’re the three members most likely to burst into song (seriously. that mmtg vid I pointed out before with hoshi imitating a violin player? in that vid seungkwan starts singing manmanhani by ukiss and dk and hoshi join in. yeah I just know this in my head. no I couldn’t tell u a single member’s bday in svt I just keep lots of strange and minuscule factoids in my head)

anyways, because of that I TREASURE the inside seventeens for fighting (the dance practice, the promotional activities, and the circle chart awards practice) because there’s just so much. ~performance~ going on. impromptu singing and such. I actually wasn’t a biggest fan of the song but after watching the behind stuff and the going seventeen (mr. cha you’re an icon to me) I was completely sold on the vibe of it all.

also I think I just like dance practices. every month I remember some svt performance and text my friend like “listen I just think whether you like the song or not spider has such a good choreography. like it absolutely represents the feeling of prey and predator so well. also like the props are so effectively used like. it’s literally just glorified pull-up bars but the layering of them creates this really interesting enhancement of Depth and makes it really FEEL like one is being pulled deeper into a web—and when they switch to a side view, these same props almost give off the image of prison bars. the execution is genuinely so brilliant—” [cut for time] I could do this abt most svt choreos tbh I LOVE picking out details!

hello bestie 🥰🥰🥰

my ranking atm is GoM > back 2 back = monster = yawn > diamond days > headliner > sos (sorry the lyrics make me .... 🤨🤨🤨 jkdsfjsdkjkdskjds 😭😭😭 but it's understandable eng is not their first language!!)

hONESTLY????????? i always look forward to the dance practice fdfdkdfkjdfjk i think it's because i also used to dance and i just find it very fascinating (esp bc the choreo/performance aspect is a huge part of what svt has to offer)

ALSO WIGGGGG ure so valid for that <3 it rlly is nice to see what goes on behind the scenes!! would also add jeonghan to the burst-into-song unit 😋

ALSO NOT MR CHA 😭😭😭😭😭 icb we lived to see that, also love how they try not to break character but ultimately fail 😭😭😭

AGREED W SPIDER TOO????????????????????????????????/ and ure right omg i havent thought abt The Imagery