#the laszlo plot was one of his best

[cottoncandysprite]

Honestly the more I think about Freddie the more I both hate it and admire it

[monstrousorchids]

what the fuck kinda ending was that???

a filler season with no true plots that tie everything together. barely see nadja and laszlo being kinky spouses. no colin subplots between the main plots of each episode. nandor and guillermo are "just friends" and nandor supposedly has a crush on the guide. we barely see the guide and she never really gets the validation and acceptance she's been craving from the group for so long. we don't see guillermo and nadja interact apart from that weird finance bro side quest. laszlo's dad appears in one episode but does nothing. we don't see the baron, the sire and the rest of their little family. there's that nowhere subplot of another vampire that existed among them decades ago but only appears in this season and has nothing to do besides forget that he and colin were friends, be a sort of rival to nandor in the affection of the guide, and try to take over the world, then die? laszlo makes his own frankenstein monster and despite being there in the house he almost has nothing to do besides two episodes. there was that weird episode where a cop tv show was filming in their street.

we don't see them run around town in their usual locations getting into hijinks with humans. no night market, no clubs, no vampire council. we don't see much of sean and charmaine. nandor and guillermo didn't admit their feelings for one another and have gay sex in nandor's coffin. like what is going on? none of these characters felt like themselves and their dynamics were so off, especially with the additional characters. no laszlo and nadja moments, laszlo and colin moments, colin and guillermo moments, nandor and nadja moments, nadja and the guide moments, the guide and colin moments. we don't see nadja's doll self at all except in the background, and she doesn't interact with guillermo, colin or the guide.

i'm so sad. i hardly laughed once this season and this was supposed to be the finale. and instead it just feels like a half-baked filler season between 3 and 4. none of these beloved characters get a proper send-off nor are their arcs concluded in any meaningful way. i don't understand how the show was able to end on its own terms and yet drop the ball with the stories it had been building for years.

i understand if they wrote the season that way because they didn't want it to feel like the end, keeping in line with the documentary aspect and how their lives will continue off-camera. but it felt so forced and rushed. it felt like a cop out. all of that build-up into the relationships of the characters and their growth as individuals and the questions of what they'll do next just thrown out the window. granted, season 4 and 5 weren't the best and showed signs of decline in focus on what the show was about, but they were still funny and they still focused on the characters and tried new things to explore the lore of the vampires.

now i know how game of thrones fans felt.

[murfpersonalblog]

My 2 Cents on the WWDITS Finale - 9/10

I LOVE WWDITS, but ngl I didn't care much for Season 6. I barely laughed, and found most of the eps depressing. I was hoping for more overarching plot threads, and felt disappointed & my expectations were too high. I loved S5, but I think the "plot" ended there, and S6 felt all over the place--which I guess was the point. As such, I LOVED the finale, cuz of this right here:

Jerry's introduction and the 1950s footage cemented that these silly vampires are perfectly fine doing the same thing they've always done for all eternity.

On the one hand, they are stuck in their ways, from their outdated clothes to their accents to their hobbies--even Colin Robinson, the most modern one of them all, is trapped in a perpetual 100-yr loop and never remembers anything that happened in his past lives (unless he checks the archives he's hermetically sealed in his basement vault).

However, the bit about them having learned nothing at all was a red herring. Cuz ALL of these vamps actually HAVE grown & learned a great deal.

Laszlin's Monster--a creature with real emotions & a heart/soul, who is WELCOME in their family--is right there watching footage of Laszlo's previous failed attempts to create life from death. Laszlo AND Nadja are visibly cringing at how disastrous Laszlo's experiments used to be. But S4-S6 gave us the beautiful Laszlo-Colin partnership. Laszlin's Monster says "I LOVE BOTH MY FATHERS, NOW KISS."

Laszlo had been doing everything by himself and failed--it was only once he got off his high horse and finally accepted help from Colin (the person he'd once looked down, then had to RAISE as his father in S4) that he finally achieved a scientific miracle. Laszlo & Colin have been my fave characters this entire series, and it paid off BIG TIME.

Nadja's arc was more of her coming full circle as the only sensible vampire in the room, with very simple yet perfectly effective solutions for all the knots they (AND we the viewers) tangle ourselves in:

She does the exact same quick problem-solving in the pilot--which the finale's end credits even show the vamps watching old footage of--when Nandor's blabbing about hygiene, and Nadja's bored out of her skull (cuz she knows they can just label their corpses with Sharpies):

And ofc the "perfect" solution leads to the elephant in the room: Nandermo.

IMO Guillermo was most interesting as a vampire slayer. His character arc bored/irritated me the most whenever he DID get overly ambitious--trying to lead the Vampiric Council through manipulating Nandor in S3; and working at Canon Capital in S6. I was happy to see him & his cousin team up to save the vamps in 6x9, cuz that's literally what Memo's best at, cuz he IS a killer--of vamps. I actually WANTED a whole season with Nandermo cosplaying as Batman & Robin--it's so effing adorable!

Memo THINKS he wants bigger & better things, and maybe he would've thrived as a full time analyst at Canon Capital--but is that what he REALLY wanted? Ofc not! He's gleeful like a little kid at Xmas when Nandor lets him finally sit in his coffin.

Cuz even though Memo's matured & grown enough to realize that BEING a vampire literally sucks, he still loves the ALLURE of vampires. He's THRILLED to finally be allowed to sit with Nandor in his coffin, and is IMPRESSED/AMAZED that there really is an underground lair. He's STILL that kid from the pilot in love with being Antonio Banderas' Armand from Interview with the Vampire!

Nandor has always been the Marius to Guillermo's Armand. The promise of adventure & excitement is still there in the end. The finale's a whole NEW beginning for Nandermo, and Memo's happy as a clam to follow Nandor's lead on a new series of hijinks in the secret lair. Like he tells Nandor: "You'll ALWAYS be 'Master' to me."

IMO, the one who's MOST stuck on his ways & never changing is Memo. Season after season he leaves & comes back; even in the finale he fakes like he'll never see Nandor again just to give the film crew good "closure" footage. So I reckon he's gonna grow old in that house, cuz he can't ever bring himself to leave for long--he needs them as much as they need him, codependency at its finest. Memo'll probably end up just like Benjy, Nandor's elderly S2 Familiar that Nandor made a vamp in his old decrepit age.

(WWDITS thinks they're SO SLICK with the Benjy-Benji reference!)

It won't be cuz Memo wants to be a vamp, but cuz he's old AF and afraid of dying & leaving the vamps behind to go on without him. Nothing from this season/finale gives me confidence that Memo will actually move on, but I don't think that has to be a bad thing, if moving on is NOT what will make Memo AND Nandor happiest--which is obvs from how sad Nandor was at the prospect of them NOT working together as Batman & Robin.

Nandermo love & need each other, the finale confirmed it, and I'm satisfied.

[thebennsofdallas]

Before the next to last episode

Even though I wasn’t wild about the last episode, I still believe that season 6 has been the best of the series. Our unserious show has done what we never thought possible — have the vampires (and you too, Guillermo) display and actually express some real, adult, human-like affection for one another. 

But I already did that post. Just for funsies, I thought I would make a few notes about elements of this season that made me go hmmm. Such as—

Jerry. I’m still, like, wtf was that all about? An entire episode of this precious final season was taken up with that nonsense. Couldn’t The Baron have been the catalyst for the whole taking-over-the-New-World thing? It was his idea in the first place!

The first 8 episodes were devoted to reestablishing Nandor’s warrior credentials. Then, in Come out and Play, he just runs away and lets Nadja and Laszlo fight the attacking vampires? 

Laszlo went back to his monster experiment because fucking Jerry reminded him of it and he said the monster would be their new familiar. But then in COAP, it’s purely a creation to protect Nadja? Hmmm.

The whole plot of Laszlo’s Father. Booo.

In Sleep Hypnosis, all the vampires introduce themselves to each other but they have no reaction to delicious little Guillermo. Nandor’s lack of curiosity really, REALLY made no sense. As little sense as his overblown reaction to The Guide.

Nandor and The Guide. *sigh* So much of this season has been kinda — sweet, with vampires openly showing love for each other. Even Colin Robinson got some sugar. Why couldn’t they, in the last season, have allowed Nandor and Guillermo to give in to their feelings and start openly flirting?

I went back and looked at the pilot episode because I haven’t seen it in a while. And the glitter portrait. It would be so cool if it figured in the last episode somehow. In a way, this season has been a call back to that first episode with the Baron and his evil plan for the New World. Way back then, Nandor saw he and Guillermo as vampires together. There are two more chances to make it happen.

[inmyhorrorsera]

S5E5 "Local News" thoughts

Vampires being scared of the dumbest shit and making a situation worse than actually is ("Brain Scramblies", "The Curse") its one my favorites recurring plots.

This one doesn't top "The Curse", but it's not a fair comparison considering S2E4 is probably one of the best episodes this show have ever made.

LOVE LOVE LOVE that Guillermo is so caught up in his own drama that he forgets his mother's literal birthday!! I also love when the show remind us that he can be selfish and scummy and not the poor innocent angel some of yall wanted him to be for whatever reason.

I repeat my love for Colin making all these traps to defend their lives. It's so refreshing seeing him being part of the group and not the typical "the vampires are crazy and Colin rolls his eyes at their stupidity".

🚨🚨🚨GUILLERMO SINGING THE FEMALE PART OF "MI CUCU" THIS IS A LATINOS ONLY EVENT, GRINGOS GO HOME!!!🚨🚨🚨

Guillermo's mom with her best intentions placing the crucifix necklace on him who cant tell her how much it hurts: something something catholic son who was afraid of coming out for 30 years and now he has another (worse) secret that he's afraid to share something something.

I miss when Laszlo and Nadja were always on the same page. Saying that I NEED to see better pics of Laszlo's plans he had scattered all over the room.

Biggest laugh of the night: The dolly suddenly having blonde hair too (i have the stupidest sense of humor).

One-sided Guidja real.

So Nandor IS upset at Guillermo not being there to prevent him of doing stupid shit. The smallest nandermo crumb so I can't die of hunger.

I love that the Guide had tv lady as a snack, one win for my lesbian loser.

Here's the thing: I don't feel that bad for Guillermo. Honey, you wanted this. You chose to become a vampire. You actively seek it. Even your "friend" with +500 years of vampiric experience told you it isn't that great of an existence but you ignored it and continued to wanting this and rushed behind the back of your friends and family to become one. So… reap, sow, etc, etc.

I miss his cool vampire slayer era, this season his role has been mostly "being anxious".

I know its tv budget, but those CGI traps and balls of fire looked so bad 😭

Anyway, where's the Djinn??

[megaawkwardhuman]

if you can't tell by my sudden increase in reblogs I FINALLY WAS ABLE TO WATCH THE FIRST TWO EPISODES OF SEASON 5!!!!!

within two episodes guillermo has been covered in blood twice 10/10 best season

OK TIME TO ACTUALLY GIVE MY THOUGHTS FEOJBWDIUW

note: I will try to keep my episode 1 and episode 2 thoughts together and I'll also try to keep them in the order they happen but overall it's just what I think about as I type

LOVE LOVE LOOOOOOOVE seeing them fuck with the whole this is a documentary thing

I wanna see guillermo lose his patience with the documentary crew and kill one of them at some point LMAOOOO

HOPEFULLY WE GET MORE DEREK (and by the looks of it we will)

THE VAMPIRE EYES OEIJ2HBIHJW2OHW0JDBEHFK DO2IPJEFBHKVJHIPJ

overall I'm curious to see how memo's transformation goes I wanna see how creative they get with the whole fucked up vampire thing

oh yeah and the way they're going about the whole guillermo being turned by derek not nandor thing reads like he cheated on him AND I'M NOT GOING TO BE OK WHEN NANDOR LEARNS ABOUT IT

NANDOR IS ACTUALLY TRYING TO DO THINGS FOR MEMO OJIQNBDIJBEIHBWIUQD THE ONE FUCKING SEASON WHERE GUILLERMO IS GOING TO HAVE TO AVOID HIM FOR BOTH OF THEIR SAKE 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

ok but like guillermo why didn't you think about the possibility that this would come and bite you in the ass? like if it was that easy MORE FAMILIARS WOULD LEAVE THEIR MASTERS??!?!

glad that at least ONE vampire feels that something is up with guillermo

ok but we can all agree that laszlo is lying to nandor when he says he's not great at hypnotism right?

OK SO GUILLERMO'S GLASSES MIGHT DIE ONCE ALL OF THIS OVER (at least I'll have a season to morn)

sean you hot mess never change

POOR GUIDE JUST WANTS FRIENDS :(((

ok I'm assuming the good act nadja is going to do has to do with the doll and the whole body swap plot we're going to get

NADJA IS SO HAPPY GOING THROUGH LITTLE ANITPAXOS OFKENOEIJNJINIEEBHBE

nandor trying to fit in is a fucking moooooood

THEM STEALING A FUCKING COP CAR IHBIDCWBUIBWIEJOFJBOJBOE

sean and his gang are just a bunch of high schoolers in adult clothes and I love that for them

and finally the 2nd episode just ending with laszlo telling guillermo he's FUCKING HAD ME DYING FOR A SOLID MINUTE

overall great start to the season

I'm scared for my blorbos

and if guillermo isn't covered in blood at least once per episode I'll be disappointed /j

[episodeoftv]

Round 5 of 8

propaganda and summaries are under the cut (May include spoilers)

The Good Place: 1.13 Michael’s Gambit

Shawn has decided that Fake Eleanor, Chidi, Jason, and Tahani must decide among themselves in thirty minutes which two of them should go to The Bad Place. Chaos and confusion ensues.

I’m a firm believer in spoilers not ruining a plot twist if the twist is good enough and this is the best proof I’ve seen of that. Yes, it was intended to be shocking, but it made perfect sense with everything we’d seen before. Every scene leading up to this episode had a double meaning, one you get the first time you watch if you haven’t been spoiled, and one you get every time you rewatch. Also the fact that this show was a network sitcom and yet it was plotty enough that you couldn’t just turn it on at any episode and get what was happening is so groundbreaking, and this episode turned it up to 11 by blowing up its entire premise.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael%27s_Gambit

What We Do in the Shadows: 5.03 Pride Parade

cw for nudity and sex (the sex scene is completely clothed, common for this show).

The vampires help Sean host a Pride parade; Nadja helps her doll achieve a long-held dream.

So much is happening. Nandor's having his little jealousy arc over Guillermo spending more time with Laszlo than with him. Meanwhile, Guillermo's transformation slowly and grotesquely continues. Laszlo makes suncream from Guillermo's sweat and literally gets to frolic in the sun for the first time in centuries! Also, they try to disprove some common vampire myths, like having to count grains of rice that fell on the floor (true) or their powers of flying. Nandor claims he can fly to outer space, and tries to prove it only to impress Guillermo. Meanwhile, Nadja (who broke the legs of the Doll Being Possessed By The Spirit Of Deceased Human Nadja offscreen between seasons) switches bodies with Spirit Of Deceased Human Nadja (yes, in this show a woman is possessed by the spirit of herself). We find out that Human Nadja died a virgin, so they enter her into a speed dating event. It turns out that Human Nadja is even worse at interacting with modern humans than Vampire Nadja is. Nandor then flies to space, equipped with a go-pro and a selfie stick. They then literally have Colin Robinson ALSO possess the body of Vampire Nadja, which ends in some sorta Harry Potter 1 (it's the best comparison ok) type creature with Nadja's face in the front and Colin Robinson's face in the back. Meanwhile, the underlying plot of this episode is that they are all actually helping their Human Neighbour Sean with organizing a pride parade (a ploy by him to increase his voting block with the LGBTQ+ community), and finally the parade begins. Nandor literally crashes it as he falls down from space, getting up buck naked and slightly charred, gloating to Guillermo about how he did it. Then the pride parade begins, and the highlight is clearly Guillermo (who came out as gay to his family last season), having his own little cart where he's just holding a sign that says "Gay Man". He's been scrutinizing this whole event from the second it was suggested, but in the end, he slowly starts to get into it, learning to enjoy himself. The episode ends with Laszlo fucking the body of his wife, which inhabits two different people, while his actual wife in her doll body sits on his shoulder. This is very much consensual by all parties involved.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pride_Parade_(What_We_Do_in_the_Shadows)

[ladykatibeth]

Why Guillermo Turning Back Human Was An Awful Writing Choice, A Meta

So here’s the thing, for a “what you want isn’t what you need” plot to make sense and improve a story, it has to do one of two things

1. Convincingly establish that the want and the need are mutually exclusive or

2. That the need is more beneficial to certain goals (especially emotional fulfillment ones) than the want.

It also has to establish that the need hasn’t already been met somewhere else, and that the reasoning behind discarding the want makes sense.

What does/has Guillermo wanted? His main 13 year goal, vampirism. He worked unpaid for years, got people killed, dealt with disrespect and completely fucked up his sleeping schedule to achieve this.

There’s a few things I think of that Guillermo could reasonably be said to need based on the show so far:

1. A community/family outside of his biological one

2. Respect from the Vampires, especially Nandor

3. To explore/get in touch with himself/his roots

4. Stay in touch with bio family

5. Gain confidence

6. Deal with his repression

7. Experience human things he may have been missing out on due to his chosen profession

8. Expanded social network

9. Maybe resolve his Nandor feelings?

Unfortunately none of these meet the requirements, they have all already been achieved or aren’t mutually exclusive.

Guillermo has in his own words two families, he has achieved this, as far back as season three he’s using his position in the family to get political favors but still a little excluded….(Note: The vampires assume Guillermo will be around, it’s The Guide who makes him go to the closet, and that lasts like…an episode?)

By 4 he’s included in the 5 person co-parenting of Colin Robinson, gets his own space in the home improvement show, is Nandor’s literal best man, helps Nandor negotiate wishes, is employed in finance at the nightclub….

(Note: Guillermo taking on a care taking role still is not something that’s exclusive with being in a family, in his own words he takes care of people he considers family just as a matter of who he is)

So….not unfulfilled. Also knocks off 2, in S4 he’s included in everything, he’s fairly respected he’s fairly confident (more on this later) even if one made the argument that he needs to have this achieved /as himself/ first…he has. As his regular human self. It wouldn’t be less as a vampire. It fulfills neither 1 or 2 or 3 for this plot.

Okay so…3 and 5 go together. Guillermo needs to connect with himself as a badass slayer, gotten some power not necessitated by being . a vampire, and gain some confidence, be more willing to stick up for him—

……..

*Looks at all of S2 and S3* hmmmm

So Guillermo up until now has killed hundreds of vampires, extremely well, become super badass, beat Nandor in 2 fights, figured out how to balance his inherited vampire murder instincts and his love of vampires….well…seems like a success. He’s a badass vampire slayer. He’s connected with his background.

He feels comfortable making fun of and criticizing the vampires (the perfect FUCKING wedding, so she’s your number 2…., his “is that necessary” about Nandor and Laszlos tmi details, bickers with Nadja about her need for a golden toilet…) he’s got confidence. He can stick up for himself. So 3 and 5…..not relevant.

Get respect from Nandor.

Nandor calls him a badass slayer multiple times. He calls him a warrior, let’s Guillermo bicker at him, respects his advice (see Nandor and Guillermo negotiating with the Djinn) makes him his best man, calls Guillermo his closest companion…..as a familiar…

Sure there’s Freddie…but honestly I don’t think Nandor wouldn’t also do that to a vampire. Nandor is in general…a huge bitch (Queen bitch ha)

Which brings me to 6 and 9

Since we’ve already seen Guillermo be respected by Nandor as a human and we know Nandor dates human women regularly there’s no issue with him being in a relationship with Guillermo when he’s a vampire. It wouldn’t imply it’s necessary for him to be a vampire to date, because of the background info we know. Him resolving his feelings is species neutral.

Same with dealing with his repression, he doesn’t need to be a human or vampire to do that.

So maybe it’s the human things he missed out on which as far as I can think might be…sunlight? And going on dates…

He goes on dates with his boyfriend Freddie during the day, very normal and human…he enjoys it! That must be it!

His long distance English boyfriend. Who he doesn’t need to commit much to. Then when he’s upset with Nandor for the whole two Freddie’s thing…it’s about Nandor and Guillermo. Not Freddie and Guillermo.

Guillermo’s upset, but not enough to hold a long term grudge. He seems to mostly care about experiencing mundanity….as a concept not a practice

He quickly goes back to the uze, aside from food and the sun (which he’s already sacrificing somewhat (food quality and day time) but still experiencing while he’s been working. Anything else can be done at night. As a vampire.

His family…Well Guillermo’s mother calmly let Nandor look at his baby photos, a vampire she has no personal connection to, and was quickly waved off from talking to Guillermo. Nothing implies this will be the line. Guillermo keeps himself from killing his vampiric loved ones on the regular.

So 4 and 7 cleared.

Expanded social network….the witches, Derek, Jenna, also if Laszlo from the 18th century can make human friends there’s no reason a vampire Guillermo has to stop.

None of these things are mutually exclusive with being a vampire, he’s already achieved all the emotional fulfillment things as a human familiar…the needs are met.

Okay so…..

What does it make sense for Guillermo to want? To really think about as a human?

Family? Check for bio and vamp. New career options? He can do that as a vampire and I don’t see the show going in that direction. Nandor? He can do that as a vampire. Respect? Gained. Power? Gained. Confidence? Gained.

What can Guillermo being a human still add to the narrative…

Oh we can see human Guillermo with newfound respect and confidence being part of the family!

Wait we’ve already seen that, in season 4! Multiple times! That’s just a repeat of 4!

Guillermo as a full vampire?

What does this add?

Well….

How does he handle his new powers? We get to see Nandor guiding Guillermo through his new experiences (cute). How does he handle his family? Does he hide it? Is he comically bad at it? Do they get a new familiar? How does he handle that? Is he more lenient? Does he think they need to earn it like he did?

How does Nandor adjust to vampire Guillermo? How does Guillermo adjust to not the sunlight and food restrictions? Oooh we’d get to see him learn how to hunt….What about technically being a member of the same species now, but one that’s still very very young in comparison?

It adds a lot. Questions and concepts. You want a narrative that adds interest. That’s why this route was the worst to take.

It didn’t leave new room to facilitate character growth that wasn’t already there in season 3 and 4. The reasoning for hesitation doesn’t make sense based on Guillermo’s character. He spent 13 years doing murder and murder adjacent things.

(And seriously if I was one of Guillermo’s victims I’d hate him so much more if I found out he was 100% fine with feeding me to his friends but it wasn’t even to become a vampire,I died for, I guess, nothing)

It’s the same concept as previously, it actively stifles concept exploration….its not about Guillermo having to get what he wants, its just bad for the story! It’s a poor use of this trope.

It doesn’t make it more interesting. There’s so much humor possibilities for human Guillermo too. It wasn’t a necessary reset.

It wasn’t even necessary to show nandermo as possible, Nandor has always loved Guillermo in the show, he put in the time to make him glitter art! In S1 E1! Plus this ships is at its best when it’s a little mutually toxic! Mutually! Key word!

It’s just…….it adds nothing. The worst thing a writer can do.

[resident-sean-expert]

(update : I'm wrong, actually it has been told in a podcast, Seanie isn't going to die yeyyy :D)

wwdits theory : Why I think wwdits S5 will end on Sean's death.

I know that the plot twist of season 3 was already the supposed death of a character (Colin) fortunately we learned at the last second that he has reincarnated

But let me explain, we reached the ideal tension for Sean's death to be relevant to the story.

With only 40 minutes of screentime, Sean managed to mark the spirit of the fandom in spite of his short appearance

So much so that when we mention the character, we immediately want to shout "SEANIEEEEE", while other characters who appeared often have marked us less (Simon, or even the Guide who has been present for more than three seasons but we really know nothing about her)

Whereas for Sean, we all got attached to him in a certain way.

Already because he managed to get rid of the cliché of a racist homophobic white man where he could have fallen very easily into

He appears regularly throughout the seasons and is always one of the characters who delivers the best and often funniest lines

We know enough about him to get attached to him (his 'previously' messed up marriage, his alcoholism, his gambling addiction, his difficult relationship with his father) but not enough to consider him as a main character

"You're my main man. I'd die for you. " he told Laszlo in the Casino episode

And Sean has been known to predict events in the show :

Like when he compared Colin to a fetus or said that Nandor was probably a big sleeper (super slumber)

Sean avoided death from over-hypnosis (probably because it was already empty/hj), and he almost died in the Pine Barrens episode three times :

One while sleeping with a loaded gun under his neck, another time while being attacked by the Jersey Devil, and then by shooting himself in the foot.

So my final theory is that out of love, he will sacrifice himself for Laszlo, because all their friendship is based on acts of service.

And his death will impact the fandom enough without killing a main character.

So I hope that Nandor will have a wish left if this scenario happens.

[cookinguptales]

Sigh... Okay. I've had a couple weeks away from wwdits and I've finished the major work project that has Consumed Me so I guess I can talk about my thoughts a little bit.

There are a lot of reasons that the very end of s5 bothered the hell out of me and a lot of reasons that I hate it. There are things I liked about the last two episodes (most of them being... before the last ten minutes of the season) like that metaphor coming full circle and Nandor giving Guillermo a better (uhhh metaphorical) sexual experience where he was listened to, cared for, supported, and helped along at his own pace. I do have interest in ideas like Nandor's loneliness being worsened because he believed that Guillermo would have a terrible time as a vampire and knowing that avenue of immortality is closed to him. But none of that feels worth it, I guess, and here's why.

Yes, I hated the whole... Guillermo realized that he never really wanted to be a vampire thing, at least how it was done. It wasn't Guillermo realizing that he didn't need vampirism (which I would've been quite happy with) but learning that he just didn't have the stomach for it. I hated the way that seemed to betray Guillermo's earlier characterization. I hated the way that made the "supernatural as queer, as Other" metaphors they've been using with very little subtlety suddenly feel very problematic indeed. I hated the way this made it canon that Guillermo really does see vampiric lives as lesser than human ones, and I hated that Guillermo had power taken from him rather than power claimed. I hated the way this upset the power dynamics of the household (particularly Nandor going back to ordering Guillermo around) and I hated the idea that Nandor thought Guillermo was weak and he was right. I hated this somewhat paternalistic idea that Nandor really did know best all along and Guillermo was just a silly little boy who didn't understand what he really wanted. Again, the power dynamics are so thoroughly fucked right now.

But the biggest thing, really, and the reason why I just can't bring myself to care about about the things I did like, was that it just... The message was so clearly that past episodes of the show did not matter. I always knew that there was a vibe change after Jemaine Clement left (especially because that vibe very much traveled to WP instead) but there was always enough dedication to the fundamental building blocks of the series that I didn't mind the way things had changed too much. But... this season really seemed to hammer home that they do not feel beholden to the first two seasons of the show and I liked those seasons.

I remember feeling kind of uneasy when little pieces of canon were discarded, like the way that it was stately clearly and repeatedly that Laszlo was better at hypnosis than Nandor in the first two seasons and then it was the opposite in s5. But like... I could forgive small changes like that. Little retcons. Guillermo, though. Guillermo.

I have never loved Guillermo more than I did at the end of s2, and I'm not sure we're ever going to see that version of him again. We got to see Guillermo go gloriously feral several times in s2, we got to see him kill an entire room full of people several times, we got to see him take his power and own it. And he really has never done it since, has he? He always tries so hard not to kill people, and the very few times he's done it since s2, it's been entirely in self-defense. And I just kept thinking it didn't have room in the plot, but they'd do it! Of course they'd do it! But then to have Guillermo straight-up say he doesn't have the stomach for killing... It made me realize that they'd brought Guillermo to heel as a conscious choice. They'd purposefully neutered his character, and in doing so, reduced the complexity of him that I'd always loved. Guillermo has always been a sweetheart and a murderer, and I loved that about him.

And then... you know, you have to come to wonder what other intrinsic parts of characters, intrinsic themes, they're going to feel okay with discarding when they feel like it. If they're going to retcon Guillermo, who was borderline sociopathic in the first two seasons (just look at how angry he was they didn't kill Jenna after he brought her to them), as a weak, naive familiar who really doesn't have the stomach to be a vampire... Like he wasn't paying attention at all for the last 13 years?? Like none of his choices were real or mattered? What the fuck? That's a major change.

And then you look back at the rest of s5, at Laszlo's entire storyline of "I'm going to do experiments on Guillermo to figure out how to 'cure' him so Nandor can turn him", and you realize they didn't even have that cohesion within the same season. Laszlo's entire season-long plot line makes zero sense once it's revealed that they knew (somehow) that killing Guillermo's sire would revert him. Like -- forget that it goes against his knowledge level in s3, forget that it goes against his knowledge of how to finish Jenna's transformation in s1, it goes against his stated knowledge of things within the same damn season.

And if they're not going to care about those things, why should I? If they're going to ignore details, plot lines, characterization, hell, the overarching themes of their own show, why should I get invested in them? Why should I care about Nandor seeing Guillermo's baby pictures or the idea of Nandor's loneliness or the fact that Guillermo only decided not to kill that human after self-centeredly tying him to his own experiences?

What else am I going to get invested in that they're going to ignore? What other choices that characters make are going to be pointless later? What other storylines are going to be dropped after just one season?

I don't know. The whole thing makes me so damn tired. To see all of Guillermo's struggles with his sense of self, his sense of power, his sense of Otherness, be reduced to "actually he's too squeamish to drink blood because he doesn't have the heart to kill anyone" is so... I'm so frustrated, and it makes me not want to get invested in anything they make anymore.

I've been really struggling as a creator, because like... I always made fanworks for this show because I genuinely loved it, I genuinely loved the characters. I respected what they'd created. But now I just feel like I'm getting overly attached to something that's just going to keep hurting me and... where do I go from there? Do I start writing canon divergence fic? (Never thought I'd end up in a place where I wanted to ignore canon here but if they can do it, so can I.) Do I just pull back a little and force myself to be a more casual fan?

I've been part of fandoms that hurt me before and I don't... wanna do that again. lmao. When I left comics fandom I was like "as god as my witness, I'll never stay in a fandom that makes me unhappy again!"

And.... I'm unhappy. :(

idk man, I'm still kind of stewing in it. Getting into other canons has actually helped tremendously in removing the sting from it all, but how to proceed going forward... I guess I still don't know. I don't want to write anything right now, and I assume that'll change, but... I don't know. : /

[poorly-drawn-dinosaur]

i’m writing my full ass complaints now cause people be annoying me on tumblr 💀 spoilers below

i get that it’s the shit and fart show and it’s supposed to be silly and not really have depth but like. they’ve set up all this depth. yeah some of the stuff fans are pulling out of their asses, but most of it was GIVEN. so many episodes in previous seasons, specifically s3, gave the vampires more three dimensional personalities. and it was GREAT !! but this season it just. it went all out the window. guillermo’s characterization was the WORST !! IT DIDNT MAKE SENSE !! especially the finale dude like he admits to luring people i think he’d care A Little Less.

it also just felt like the direction the writers took wasn’t great. in past seasons, there was usually One Running Bit (the baron coming, guillermo discovering he’s a van helsing, nandor being a big baby, etc) that carried through the story for most of the episodes. guillermo being a half vampire could have been SUCH an interesting bit but they didn’t use it well. the experimenting thing should’ve been a one off thing, and there should have been more episodes highlighting his weird powers i feel, like him trying to hide them or use them to save the vampires. like there wasn’t anything done with it and that’s my biggest gripe: so many ideas were set up but not complete. they seemed to shove most of it at the end.

SPEAKING OF THE END THE FUCK KIND OF FINALE. the coppiest cop out i’ve ever fucking seen. even if guillermo wanted to be human again, they didn’t use the djinn (which why even bring him up), they didn’t make guillermo deal with the curse, NOTHING. they just killed derek (which i thought they established you couldn’t kill your original vampire or you die, so besides being stupid it’s inconsistent), and moved on. WHAT WAS THE POINT. i just don’t understand creating a big deal of something if it’s just gonna be undone at the end. guillermo’s whole reasoning was to break the cycle, but they just fucking put him back in. it doesn’t make sense.

the worst part about wwdits s5 is the fact that it wasn’t funny. it had a few highlights (shoutout to the pride parade episode and the circumcision bit), but overall it was just…forgettable. s4, while not the best season, was memorable and fuckin HILARIOUS. like if the plot on s5 was bad but it was still hilarious i wouldn’t be as mad but just. so many things didn’t land. the whole freaks episode was stupid, they did little with colin’s memory, the antipaxian episode with laszlo was mid. really nothing.

i’m really really disappointed in this season. this makes s4 look so much better than it really is and that. sucks. it’s not a media literacy thing, it’s not even me being mad about nandermo; it’s me being mad at my favorite comedy show not being comedic and making me not excited to watch anymore

[cottoncandysprite]

Rewatching season 3 (and remembering how absolutely peak it was) and honestly episode 3 I think has the best rewatch value knowing what happens at the end of the season. Not for the nandermo plot, although petty Guillermo is my favorite thing ever, but just the fact that, at this point Laszlo knows about Colin's time limit, and one of the running gags this episode is that he accidentally keeps inflicting what would be mortal wounds on Colin (if he wasn't semi-immortal).

Like, it's not only making us believe that he can't die, but watching it with the mindset that Laszlo KNOWS he's dying soon, you can definitely see the brief moments of panic before Colin reveals he's okay. Watch the scene where he sets him on fire again and you'll definitely feel a little tense.

And after season 4, it's also nice seeing Laszlo start to open up about his childhood to Colin in this episode! It may have been brief, but them bonding in this way before the dadzlo arc is also pretty good on rewatch.

It's such brilliant lore and foreshadowing that you won't even understand fully until you've seen the whole season, and I love it so much

[sonkusarenitesh]

Blog Post- 01

Traditional and Experimental Narratives in Films.

Narrative Structure is one of the important elements that gives a seamless storytelling flow in a cinema. While traditional films follow the framework of the 'three-act structure', experimental films often disrupts these methods. In this blog post, I will analyze the difference between traditional and experiments narrative structures in films, comparing how films like Casablanca (1942) and Donnie Darko (2001) illustrate these two approaches.

Key Feature of Traditional Narratives in Film-

Traditional narrative structure in film often follows a linear path of classic storytelling. Two of the most prominent styles of traditional storytelling are:

Cause and Effect Structure- Every event in the film has a cause that leads to an effect, creating a flow of continuous action that ends at a certain point.

Three Act Structure- In this the story get divided into three parts 'setup, confrontation and resolution' following a clear path with a beginning of a story, a middle and end.

The Three-Act Structure in Casablanca (1942)-

Hollywood's one of the most iconic films in its golden era, Casablanca (directed by Michael Curtiz), follows the traditional three-act structure. The film starts with the setup, in this key characters are introduced (Rick, Ilsa and Laszlo) and the setting is (Vichy-controlled Casablanca during World War 2). The middle act involves the confrontation, where Rick is seen struggling with his past relationship with Ilsa while going through the political challenges in the resistance. The resolution in the final phase reveals the self-sacrifice done by Rick to help Ilsa and Laszlo escape, creating the climax in his departure to continue the fight against the Nazis.

“The three-act structure is central to the Hollywood storytelling tradition, with its careful management of tension, release, and eventual resolution. This structure ensures that audiences experience a satisfying arc.” — David Bordwell, Narration in the Fiction Film (1985)

Experimental Cinema: Redefining Traditional Narrative Films-

In contrast to traditional storytelling, experimental films are more likely to challenge the viewer's outlook. These films often depend on visual storytelling and a nonlinear structure of narratives that mainly consider theme and atmosphere over classic progression.

Nonlinear Narrative in Donnie Darko (2001)-

Richard Kelly's Donnie Darko is the best example of an experimental film that challenges traditional narrative films. The film follows Donnie, a troubled teenager who experiences disturbing visuals of a man in a rabbit suit and has strange time-bending experiences. The plot takes a nonlinear path, with the moments that make it difficult to differentiate between reality and hallucination. It seems that the events in the film are not well connected at times, making it difficult for the viewers to keep a track of cause and effect relation.

Instead of relying on a clear progression, Donnie Darko gives a narrative where time travel, existential dilemmas and personal conflicts are connected together in a way that demands the audience's active attention. During the resolution of the film, the closing sequence gives a various parallel realities and paradoxes leaving multiple readings of the film's conclusion.

"Experimental films ask not only 'What happens next?' but 'What does this mean? How does this sequence relate to the rest of the narrative?'" — Laura Mulvey, Visual and Other Pleasures (1989)

Wrap up-

Both the Traditional and Experimental Narratives serve different purposes in cinema. Traditional films offer satisfying, emotional and well-connected storytelling experience by following the established narrative rules. On the other hand, experimental films challenge these ways providing a complex audience engagement. By examining the narrative structure of these films, one can better understand the power of storytelling in the cinema.

Reference List-

DaVinci Emporium. (2024). Casablanca 1942 3 Sheet Movie Poster Lithograph. [online] Available at: https://davinciemporium.com/casablanca-1942-3-sheet-movie-poster-lithograph/ [Accessed 18 Dec. 2024].

The Movie Database. (2024). The Movie Database. [online] Available at: https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/141-donnie-darko/images/posters?image_language=es [Accessed 18 Dec. 2024].

Bordwell, D. (1997) "Narration in the Fiction Film" [online] Available at: https://library.herts.ac.uk/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=214446 [Accessed 6 Jan. 2025].

Mulvey, L. (1989) "Visual and Other Pleasures" [online] Available at: https://library.herts.ac.uk/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=35837 [Accessed 6 Jan. 2025].

[ednacrabapple]

So I just finished watching the six individual episodes that got Emmy nominations for outstanding writing in a comedy series like I've been threatening to do and here they are ranked from best to worst:

Pride Parade - WWDITS

This might be the best episode of any sitcom I have ever seen in my life. There is so much that happens in this episode. I've seen it a million times and I still don't know how they fit everything in AND made sure everything got enough time. This episode has EVERYTHING. Nandor goes to space. Laszlo terrorizes people at the beach. Colin Robinson and Ghost Nadja both posses Nadja's body. It's insane. This episode absolutely deserves the Emmy (though we all know it won't win). And I still want to know why Nandor wasn't speaking to Matthew (the little bird that flew into his room that he was trying to befriend) anymore lol

Also Natasia Demetriou absolutely should have been nominated for a best actress Emmy for her performance in this episode alone but that's a story for a different time

2. Orlando - Girls5eva

The 30 Rock vibes are immaculate. I had no context for anything that was happening and I still loved every second of it. I was literally laughing the entire time I was watching this episode. Paula Pell especially is outstanding. This one episode made me want more and I need to watch the entire show now. I loved it

3. Brooke Hosts a Night of Undeniable Good - The Other Two

God this episode was so fucking chaotic and insane. I literally don't even have anything specific to say about it. It was just so fun??? Also that fricken song that Cary and the other gays were singing is stuck in my head. Amazing episode no notes

4. Career Day - Abbott Elementary

Now, I absolutely adore Abbott, which I'm sure you can all tell by now, so it really hurts me to put it so low on the list, but honestly Career Day was the weakest episode of the season in my opinion. It was still good - the whole plot with Melissa and Gary was so well done and heartbreaking, and some of the jokes about Ava going to Harvard to use their wifi to earn a degree from Grand Canyon university were hilarious, but overall I think this episode could have been way better. It just felt like something was missing, ya know? I think there are some other episodes from this season, like Smoking or Party, that were better overall and maybe deserved the nomination more. I still love this show, but this episode is kinda meh

5. Bulletproof - Hacks

I know absolutely nothing about this show or the characters, but the episode was still so compelling. This is definitely a show that handles the whole "dramedy" thing well from what I can tell. I definitely enjoyed this episode, but it just wasn't quite as good as some of the other episodes that got nominated. Also, that scene on the plane with the sorta proposal was amazing lol

6. Fishes - The Bear

This show is not a comedy. Full stop. It is a drama. Like, sorry it can't compete against Shogun, but how is that WWDITS' fault? Or Abbott's fault? Or Girls5eva's fault? It should be in the drama category - NOT stealing nominations from actual comedies.

That being said, this episode was just not good. It was so boring. It couldn't hold my attention for more than a few minutes at a time, and it was just so long. It felt like it was never going to end. And I swear it was 90% people yelling at each other and nothing else. But don't worry everyone, I'm sure this is the episode that will win the award, despite being the least deserving by far 🙄

[twittercomfrnklin2001-blog]

Targets

Made before director-co-writer Peter Bogdanovich knew what he couldn’t do, TARGETS (1968, Criterion) is one of the screen’s most audacious directorial debuts.  As good as some of his work is, I’m tempted to call it Bogdanovich’s best film. And it certainly gave Boris Karloff one of the best roles of his career, essentially playing a variation on himself.

The film opens with the finale (almost) of one of Roger Corman’s most delirious films, THE TERROR (1963), which starred Karloff and the largely unknown Jack Nicholson. It then cuts to a screening room, where Karloff’s Byron Orloff has been unhappily watching the last of three low-budget horror films he’s just made. He informs his ambitious young director-writer (Bogdanovich) that he’s retiring without having read the young man’s new script, which you may suspect is the script for this film. The argument moves to the street, and suddenly we cut to Karloff seen through the sights of a sniper rifle. That moves us into the parallel story of Bobby Thompson (Tim O’Kelly), who’s stockpiling weapons for a killing spree. Bogdanovich switches between these stories almost effortlessly with the help of editor Verna Fields. The idea of the classic horror star who feels he’s no longer relevant in a world of real-life horrors like those perpetrated by O’Kelly may be a little too pat, and the inevitable merging of the two plots a little too convenient, but the ideas behind all this trump any objections.

Karloff is magnificent, giving a performance even more impressive when you know that between scenes he had to return to a wheelchair and breathe through an oxygen mask. He’s a master of subtlety. He never wastes a gesture, and he doesn’t just speak his lines; he makes love to them. O’Kelly is also strong, projecting a lot through long silent stretches. Bogdanovich wisely never explains the specifics that led him to mass murder (there’s a sense that he has father issues), but you get the impression that he and O’Kelly know exactly what’s going on in the character’s mind. Laszlo Kovacs did the pristine cinematography, with subtle camera moves to disguise the cutting and build tension. Bogdanovich’s then wife, Polly Platt, co-wrote the original story (there were uncredited writing assists from Sam Fuller) and did a terrific job designing the sets. Thompson lives with the family, and their home is a fascinating combination of story book setting and sterility. It’s the middle-class dream moldering around the edges.

[rachelkaser]

Stay Golden Supplement: Season Three Recap

The Golden Girls' third season was almost as much of a rollercoaster to recap as it was to watch. Let's go over the highs and lows of this tumultuous season, check the slice ratings, and pick our favorite episodes -- and we have a lot of good ones from which to choose.

Picture It...

Season Three of The Golden Girls is a delightful headache, containing some of the best and worst episodes -- some of them right next to each other. Not to get too personal, but recapping this season has been especially difficult for me due to a number of unrelated factors. Because of that, it's hard for me to tell if this season feels so chaotic because it is, or because my life around it was even more so.

That said, it's also the season where we were introduced to some amazing new characters, had several touching tearjerker moments, and just generally had some of the biggest laughs of the shows entire run. So perhaps a bit of chaos is neither unwarranted nor unwelcome. While I wouldn't call this my favorite season, it's a solid one overall.

Cheesecake by the Numbers

5-slice episodes: 5 4-slice episodes: 7 3-slice episodes: 8 2-slice episodes: 5

I usually feel confident in my slice ratings when things are evenly balanced between the four rankings (and, again, if we leave off the singular one-slice episode of the series). This season seems to trend a little more towards middling, with a larger number of 3-slicers. I made only one slice change this season, because I felt the rating didn't reflect my analysis -- I was probably playing it safe.

Slice change: "Nothing to Fear But Fear Itself" I originally ranked this one at 3-slices because Sophia was in relatively little of the episode. However, watching it again, I think that's a bit reductive. Blanche, Rose, and Dorothy hold down the A-plot so well that it's impossible not to smile at least once while watching it. It features some of the silliest performances, as the three Girls act out women being confronted with their deepest fears all at the same time (continuity breaker though it is).

Best Episode: "Old Friends"

It's hard sometimes to sit through a Very Special Episode in what is predominantly a comedy series -- but sometimes it's very, very worth it. In this episode, the tonal shifts of Sophia's friendship with a very sick Alvin hit like a punch to the gut, and Estelle Getty gives one of her greatest performances of the series. The fact that this touching A-plot is contrasted by one of the funniest, most ridiculous B-plots just makes it even better. I defy anyone not to cheer when Rose rescues her teddy bear from a little girl with a well-timed shove.

Worst Episode: "Strange Bedfellows"

Episodes involving rifts between the Girls can go one of two ways: Either they're great episodes where the actresses' natural chemistry makes their acidic remarks even funnier than usual, or they're horrible episodes that are very hard to watch. If there's a man involved, it usually pushes the episode in the latter direction. In this case, Dorothy and Rose treat Blanche terribly, refusing to believe she didn't have a tryst with a local politician -- massively hypocritical of them, no less. I always, always skip this one if I have the option.

Best Guest Performance: Tony Jay in "The Artist"

"The Artist" is a personal favorite episode of mine, in part because I love Tony Jay's performance as Laszlo. He captures that eccentric, genius artist vibe and plays very well off of the Girls. This is one of the few times I can understand why all of the Girls are so drawn to a man, as he's very charismatic and persuasive when he asks them to model for him. This makes the final revelation -- that his attention to them was definitely not romantic -- even better.

Scoundrel of the Season: Mister Terrific in "Mister Terrific"

It took every ounce of willpower I possess to not pick Jeremy, Rebecca's boyfriend in "Blanche's Little Girl" for this honor. His horrendous verbal abuse of Becky is genuinely difficult to watch … however, this award only goes to men that the Girls themselves date in the season. In this case, Bob Dishy's Mister Terrific takes the cake: A narcissistic, delusional actor who puts Rose in the most physical danger anyone on the show could possibly be in. He barely seems to even like her, snapping at her for not a pin with his name on it. Just one big pile of ick all around.

Special Season Award: Best Non-House Set

I didn't notice this until I was reviewing all of the episodes for this season, but it feels that we spent far more time away from the Girls' house this season than we have in previous ones. Several of the episodes take place almost entirely in other locations, and the sets for those have become more elaborate as well. The set of "Grab That Dough" is my favorite, a spot-on parody of game shows of the time, complete with a host who sports an unnaturally white smile.

My favorite joke of the season

There's a reason "The Artist" is one of my favorite episodes of all time, and has been since I was a kid. As an adult, I can better appreciate the absurdity of the Laszlo storyline -- however, as both an adult and a kid, Sophia's pranks have me rolling on the ground. The best part is, she even waits until she's out of the room to deploy some of them.