#the quote is a bit meh but there wasn't too much to go on with and that also fit the gifset itself

[thedawningofthehour]

I don't know how you do the hurt/comfort so well in the book even though it is really messed up.

One example is the chapter 5 in the botanist portion. Specifically the eating the orange section and the “you know what my fathers work is.” hopefully I quote that correctly.

But when I am writing I can hurt but comfort is difficult. Like I feel like I do good with hurt no comfort fics. But I don't usually like those fics.

Ironically, that scene was supposed to have minimal angst lol, they were there so I could show Gale infodumping about plants and let Raph have a swim. Which is why I have Gale cut away when the conversation gets too heavy-that's not the purpose of the passage.

I think something a lot of people get hung up on is trying to do EVERYTHING. They want to acknowledge every injustice, represent every kind of person, explore the entirety of someone's character and trauma or whatever in one scene. (I could write a paper on the new trend of having eight-episode shows and allowing every plot point and character exactly two seconds of exposition because that's all the screentime they can get when the studio wants an epic told in the length of a novella and how this is affecting people's expectations for how storytelling should be done, but my oven timer just went off and I'm gonna eat soon) The thing you have to remember, nothing can be everything. You have to specialize at least a little bit or your ocean of storytelling becomes a wide puddle of meh.

One thing I ask myself is what is the goal here? What are the themes that I want to get across in this scene? Do they work with each other or is it jarring for the reader? What do you want the reader to take away from this? The scene in the first chapter where Draxum and Gale are doing Raph's intake exam, part of it's just exposition and me dumping background information and psuedo-science on the audience. But it's also meant to show how Draxum interacts with Raphael now that he's an ally, and show Raph how Draxum and Gale typically interact with each other. The scene with Gale taking out the explosive charge in Raph's collar is meant to highlight how very much Donnie Gale still is, how he isn't entirely obedient to Draxum and does what he does because he genuinely believes in what he's doing-and likewise, he doesn't believe Raph should be here if he doesn't believe in their goals.

The greenery scene is meant to show Raph's pre-conceived notions of who Draxum is being challenged. He sees Draxum as wholly evil, whose only goal is to do bad, like the villain of a cheap 80s Saturday morning cartoon. So far he's rejected every suggestion that Draxum has genuinely positive intentions and goals besides destruction, that might have a point even if he's going about it the wrong way. Seeing that Draxum grows fruit, that a major area of study for him is agriculture cultivation-food has traditionally been a symbol of life, peace, support, so the fact that Draxum is a horticulturist challenges the image of heartless, evil Draxum that Raph has built up in his head.

But at the same time, in the same place where he grows oranges lovingly cultivated to provide nutrition for the people who will consume them, there's poison meant to kill. It shows the depth of Draxum's intentions and the full breadth of his actions, that he wants to help life thrive but will not hesitate to take life if necessary. And Raph is also coming to terms with what he was created for, what his purpose in life was supposed to be and how he's playing into it now. He wasn't just a weapon, he was a sword meant to be wielded along with a shield. He was made to kill, and Raph doesn't agree with that-but he doesn't wholly disagree with the logic that led Draxum there. And he's very unnerved by that.

Another thing, the actual storytelling is definitely important but don't forget-it's secondary. Your real priority is manipulating the reader into feeling things against their will. You can have a completely shit story and get by if it's told entertainingly or if it made people cry. The most interesting plotline will still be a slog to get through if it's boring. You're trying to write like Donnie, but you gotta be a Leo first and foremost.

[canirove]

Erling Haaland Imagine | one

Author's note: Like happens with my Mbappé imagines, so far I’ve only shared my Haaland ones on Wattpad because that’s where I’ve been getting the requests, but since people are liking them so much, I thought about starting to share them here too 😊 The other day I posted some kind of masterlist with links to Wattpad, so some of you may have already read this, but I wanted to post it here for people who don’t have an account there, don’t want to open it, or just want to have these imagines archived somewhere. Hope you like it, and thank you for reading! 💜

Little summary: The request for this imagine was for something related to married life or a proposal and with a woman, so it is from a female pov.

Masterlist

"I am so cold. I swear I can't feel my toes."

"What? It wasn't that cold."

"Maybe not for you because you were running around and come from the North Pole. But I am not used to this, and was sitting on the stands doing nothing."

"You could always sit in the private area with the others."

"That's boring."

"Then don't complain about getting cold" Erling says, sticking out his tongue.

"Meh, meh, meh" I reply, rolling my eyes.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"To put on my pyjamas and the thickest socks I own. Maybe make myself a cup of tea."

"May I make it for you?"

"Aww, that's sweet."

"Anything for you, love" he says with a big smile.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Feeling better?" Erling asks me when I walk into the living room.

"Almost. Once I've had that cup of tea, I won't be feeling like a Frozen character anymore."

"You are such a drama queen" he laughs. "I still don't know how you survived when I took you home for Christmas."

"I survived because I was an onion."

"What?"

"Layers, Erling. I was wearing layers of clothing to not freeze to death, and onions have layers."

"Are you quoting Shrek?" he laughs again.

"Yes, I am. Can I go get that cup of tea now?"

"Of course, love" he says, taking a sip of his while trying not to laugh.

"Erling..." I call from the kitchen.

"Yeah?"

"What is this and where is my tea?"

"What?"

"This" I say when I walk back into the living room, showing him my mug. "What is this?"

"Your favourite mug. The one I got you on our first date."

"Yes, I know that. But what is this?" I ask again, moving the mug so he can see what is inside it.

"I don't know" he shrugs.

"You don't know?" I ask, arching a brow.

"Nope."

"So whatever this is, it just randomly ended up on my mug, when you said you were going to make us some tea?"

"I guess" he shrugs again.

"Erling..."

"Why don't you check what it is?"

"Fine" I say, rolling my eyes and turning around my mug. "What the... Erling?"

"That's my name, yes. You are gonna wear it out if you keep saying it" he chuckles.

"Can you please stop being an annoying little shit and tell me what is this?"

"A box?"

"Yes. A ring box. What does this mean?"

"I..."

"Please don't say "I don't know". If you do, I swear I will kill you."

"Ok" he laughs. "Why don't you open it and see what is inside?"

"I'm pretty sure I know what is inside."

"Or maybe not. Open it."

"Urgh" I say, doing as he says. Inside the box, instead of finding what I supposed I was going to find, there is a little paper. "What is this?"

"Open it. Maybe it says something interesting."

"Interesting, yeah" I mutter, my hands shaking a bit as I unfold it.

"Can you please read it aloud? I'm a very talented man, but I still can't read minds."

"Ok" I say, taking a deep breath. "To my dearest love. Thank you. Thank you for choosing me to be by your side despite being a little annoying shit like you always say. Thank you for letting me share my life with you. For letting me love you. For loving me. You make me the happiest and luckiest man in the world. Though there is something that would make me even happier. Look down. What?" I say, looking down.

"My love" Erling says. He's kneeling in front of me, a beautiful ring on his hand. How did he manage to get there without me noticing? I call him a little shit, but he is not little. "My love" he repeats. "Would you marry me and make me the happiest man in the whole wide world?"

"Are you being serious?" I chuckle.

"Never been more serious. I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Even if I'm constantly complaining about being cold?"

"Even so."

"Ok."

"Ok what?"

"I will marry you, Erling."

"Thank God" he says.

"Thank God?" I laugh. "Thought I would say no?"

"Honestly... There was a part of me that thought you would, yes."

"Well, that part of you was wrong. Because I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"May I, then?" he says, finally smiling.

"You may" I reply, offering him my hand.

"Perfect" he says, getting up after putting the ring on my finger. "Do you like it?"

"I love it, it is beautiful. But I can't believe you just asked me to marry you while I'm wearing my pyjamas" I laugh.

"They are my favourite ones."

"Really? They are Disney pyjamas."

"And they also are super soft. I love cuddling with you when you wear them" he says, grabbing me by the waist and pulling me closer to him.

"I didn't know that."

"Now you do" he smiles. "And to be honest, it doesn't matter if you are wearing your pyjamas, jeans or a Dior dress. You always look and will look beautiful to me, future Mrs. Haaland."

"Thank you" I giggle. "But wait, what if I don't want to change my last name?"

"Then you don't" he shrugs. "As long as we are together, I don't care about anything else."

"Aww, cute" I say, putting my arms around his neck. "I love you, you little annoying shit"

"I love you too" he says before kissing me.

[lonesplashy]

Ok I see ppl on Tumblr talking Abt how much they liked the final episodes but honestly I was severely underwhelmed by the fionna and cake ending. If you don't want to see me just list out everything I like and dislike and why according to my arbitrary personal preferences scroll now.

The second half of the fight with scabby was meh and repetitive. At least the gumlee was cute. Fionna is still the bestest even if her final fight kinda sucked. I love her dearly and I hope she is living her best life.

The lack of Ooo Marceline in the end was literally so disappointing too I wish we could've seen her again at SOME point.

And just in general the ending felt really rushed, I feel like if they had some more episodes to work with it would've been a lot smoother.

Simons pov was just so severely underwhelming, it just felt like filler to me.

I literally didn't care if it was going to be happy or sad ending for Simon as long as it made me feel things like the last couple of episodes did but it just felt totally flat. It didn't really feel like an ending at all. I wouldn't even mind the breakup angle they took under normal circumstances if it wasn't for the fact he like. Literally spent 12 years basically being in a constant mental breakdown, and a thousand years before that subconsciously searching for her, and her literally driving herself to insanity and becoming golb to keep him safe, but wow suddenly everything's chill cuz he played a video game. Ok. Simon just realized that whoops he didn't always take Betty's feelings into account and they parted ways.

And I will repeat: I DO NOT MIND THE BREAK UP ANGLE. IT MAKES SENSE OBJECTIVELY. HOWEVER. IT FEELS LIKE THERE WAS LIKE. TWO MINUTES OF THOUGHT PUT INTO IT. DEFINITELY NOT SUPER HEARTSTRINGS PULLING TO ME. DO NOT GET IN MY COMMENTS BEING WELL ACTKULLY THIS IS JUST ME COMPLAINING ABOUT CARTOONS.

I liked the golbetty in the bus and the golbetty statue. I could bs something about them going their separate ways on a journey the other can't go on and insert trigun quote here about how the ticket to the future is always blank but I just really like golbetty. She's great shes monsterous she's perfect.

Just in general Simon and Betty felt off to me during the final episodes, I can't really put my finger on it but they just felt weird. I'm sure Betty's been doing a lot of thinking in the void and all but it still fell to the left of them I think. The whole time I was watching I was just like. Hm.

Edit: got it. Betty has always been wanting to keep Simon thinking about her. Always. With AI Betty head she flat out said "I knew it would drive you crazy but at least you'd always be thinking about me" and it's like a core thing she does stuff for the Dramatics. While you can argue she's been doing a lot of thinking in the void and matured because of it she's also been a goddess of CHAOS. If anything she's gonna go more loony rather than more mature.

Not to sound like a doomed crazy yuri enthusiast but there are literally no normal or healthy actions you can take after literally becoming a god for someone.

Maybe I'm just too committed to the bit but I'm a solid believer that if you start a weird fucked up path you gotta end on a weird fucked up note. Although the severe disappointment of nothing happening is probably the most fucked up thing they could do to me.

Ik it's supposed to be some sometimes life doesn't give you a tidy ending stuff but also this is fiction I get enough fuck yous like this from reality and ignored job applications I want my fuck yous from fiction to be not sadly vague. Or at least better written.

At least Simon's in therapy. About time.

And the little emoticons he's using in his phone. :)

Do feel free to put your own opinions in on whether you liked or disliked the ending just play nice 🤙

[chrissdollie]

talking about each of rory's boyfriends

dean: ugh. ik EVERYONE says this, but s1 dean was just like soo perfect. too good to be true. he was cute, charming, and kind. i think he was a good 1st bf for rory. besides the fact that he freaking dumped her just because she wasnt ready to say "i love you back" and didnt respect her opinion on donna reed. and theres more. s4, took advantage of her and took away her virginity (im not fully blaming him, rory made me really mad too). like dude, he was MARRIED. poor lindsay didn't deserve being treated the way she was also. she just wanted to be with her husband. and then he based their (rory and dean) little relationship on sex. LIKE HUH?? when he was drunk the night before his wedding, he was saying how rory could fix the world, he loved her, and how she was so smart. what happened to that like what.. overall, i think he was great for a while until he wasn't. he also didn't have any character development at all. jess: in case you haven't seen any of my other posts, i am 100% team jess. i could write an essay about why he was the best bf, but i wont. and im not saying he was perfect at all. like ofc not, no one is! but the little things he did were just soo cute even when they weren't together. like buying rory's basket for $90! ughhh i love that episode sm. anyways, i love the fact that they were genuinely great friends before lovers. AND LETS TALK ABOUT SEASON 6. "wHy did you drop out of yAAleE?" iconic. okok so i absolutely adore that he was being totally honest with her. he was just real. like "rory, wtf are you doing?" he got her head back in the game. omg i saw this one post that was saying how when logan bought rory that birkin bag, she thought it was nice but didnt really know how to respond, but when jess gave her a copy of his book, she was really happy. because she has something special with him. ALSO did anyone else notice how jess was the only bf she didnt have sex with?? not really too important, but just wanted to say that. in AYITL, he gave rory the idea to write a book. i feel like he was always there for her. always. as a friend, bf, ex, and then friend again. through her ups and downs, he was there. fight me all you want, they shouldve been endgame. i was a upset when he got all angry when rory didn't want to have sex with him in another person's house. ik that he was moody or wtv but still. AND THE FACT THAT HE JUST LEFT WITHOUT TELLING RORY. im not saying he shouldve stayed (well i kinda am) but i was so mad that he just left her in the dark. also totally not necessary, but here are some of my fav quotes from him. "ernest only has lovely things to say about you", "i love you", "an innocent boy like me should not be raised in an atmosphere like this! i wanna be good, life's just not letting me", "i like this shirt. it brings out my eyes", "it feels like im with rory and youre not", "wanna push me in the lake?", "22.8 miles. do you YAHOO?" i have more in the dungeon logan: 2nd fave bf. he was meh. sometimes he was an absolute jerkk but i do like how he pushed her out of her comfort zone a bit. AND how he tried the whole boyfriend-girlfriend thing because he liked her so much. and personally, when jess went to visit rory in s6 ep8, i think he had a valid reason to be upset. like he literally pulled up to richard and emily's to see rory with a random dude going out. and the first thing she said to him was "when did you get back? i thought you were coming home tomorrow?" i mean i could totally see why he thought something was going on. (but he did overdo it a little. at first it was understandable but as the night went on, he was just being plain rude). on the other hand, he was kinda boring to me. i feel like he didnt really have much of a personality besides being rory's bf. BUT I HATE HATE HATEEEEE that he was hooking up with rory and ENGAGED TO ANOTHER WOMAN in AYITL. its like dean all over again smh. tbh im glad rory didnt end up with him. BUT HES HER BABY DADDY (im pretty sure) LIKE NOOOO anyways, these are just my opinions and feel free to disagree just dont bash me please <3

[afniel]

Man okay we have been In The Process of getting a new bed for a bit now and I finally got rid of the old platform the day before the new one arrives...I picked out a company, no big deal, asked for a quote. They gave me a quote for someone else's furniture. I said nah man I have a platform and frame. So they gave me an estimate. I said okay, it's pretty awkward, on the second floor, definitely a two person job. They said yeah that was fine. How about this afternoon? Or tomorrow? To which I said, now hold on, I still need to empty it out. How about Saturday or Monday? They didn't get back to me until Tuesday to say hey let's do it Wednesday, and by that time I was just like, you know what, sure, whatever gets it out of the house.

Wednesday happened (today) and they were scheduled to show up between 10:30-1. So I got up and finalized all the stuff I needed to do still by 10:30. Drawers empty, sheets off because we're keeping the mattress but it obviously had to be moved, hide the unmentionables in a box, you know. Bribe the Boys to go into their cat room and play with a nice treats ball full of freeze-dried chicken. The usual for having a contractor come out. I kinda needed a shower and a proper breakfast or lunch but I figured, meh, they'll be here too soon, I can do it after.

Which of course wasn't the case! They called at 1:30 to say they'd be there at 3:30 and also am I totally sure that it had to be a two guy job? I said yeah I'm sure, it's not something you can disassemble, it's a pain in the ass. So they go, well, okay, I'll find a second guy. Meanwhile thinking to myself that this guy is at least as organized as I am.

Eventually they showed up at 4:10. Yeah. And it went okay after that, but then he was like, well it was really awkward and hard to move, and told me a final cost higher than the estimate. Which means that I ended up breaking into the holiday money my dad gave me to cover it because we didn't withdraw more cash than the high end estimate plus a tip, because like...why would we, right?

This was also the third day in a row that I only slept four hours and I'm starting to feel it pretty hard...the new bed comes tomorrow but thank fuck it's not until well into the afternoon so I can catch up a bit. At the risk of sounding vaguely my age, my back is killing me...but then again it's been doing that my whole life so it's not saying much I guess.

Also the delivery guys with the furniture company are actually really good and I've dealt with them before so I'm not worried, just...fuck man I am tired and want a day without shit happening this week and that's not looking likely yet.

Also also I'm still waiting to hear back from the builder about the fact that the hot water Isn't quite a bit of the time. It worked fine, then it started dropping temp after a bit, and if it weren't a tankless heater I would probably even have some idea what to do about it but it's a very nice tankless so I'm kinda clueless. And we have some broken screens from window and gutter cleaning because they were installed so ungodly tight in the frames that they literally cannot be removed now, which is less than ideal for a whole lot of reasons.

AND WE STILL NEED TO ORDER BLINDS? I didn't even know where they came from until I realized I could just ask my mom? I'm handy enough with objects but processes, not so much!

Houses are one fucking thing after the other, guys. Like it's great but also, Jesus fucking tapdancing Christ.

[aimedigital]

[Skip to the dotted line for the rules]

HI EVERYONE! Today, I'm super, so very excited to share with you AIME! So, I do understand Hazbin Hotel won the poll, but I'm extremely attached/adoring of this TADC OC (and my only TADC OC eheh... :'D). But that's okay! I'm only sharing the oc for now, maybe some art of her every once in a while or in different AU's. So, here goes! Put a lot of work into the design, super proud.

The most recent design in the bottom one (just realized I forgot to draw the shoulder straps, oop-). But color scheme is still the same. Top left is from one of my old styles (I still use it from time to time), to right is also older, and bottom, again, is most recent.

Aime has a rather complex yet simple personality. So buckle up babes, because this is about to get DEEP!

Aime is from The Amazing Digital Circus. She was 21 when she first got to the circus. So basically, she's the youngest one there.

She gets easily angry. Like PISSED. She'll glare at you across the room and you know your in for it. Anger issues~...

She has a cool but lovestruck personality. So like, Aime will just be casually leaning against the wall, rolling her eyes at whatever Caine says. But she also sometimes acts a bit obsessed. Again, lovestuck gal here. She wasn't always like this though. In the beginning, when she first got to the circus, Aime was curious and easily flustered. Now, she's harder to crack and built up her whole new self after hanging around everyone.

Aime is originally welcomed in by Jax (who actually treated her really well! She got the pranking gig down now!). Before Pomni came into the picture, she, Jax, and Kaufmo had their own little band of goofballs who just went around pranking and cheering up in a way. Once Kaufmo left, she did rather miss him. A lot. But like her other friend, she'd rather bottle it up. For his funeral in episode two of TADC though, she does go up and quietly places down a small locket including a photo with her, Jax, and him making silly faces at the camera. Aime then sets it next to Gangle's drawing and mumbles a quiet, 'Thank you, Kaufy,' and again, quietly, walks out.

Treats Caine like a father. This was part of her original story. And I'll still keep it! Aime is the kind of person to also manipulate others to get what she wants. She became close with Caine for that reason, but eventually it turned into a father-daughter like relationship. She suggests adventures all the time for everyone, and is practically the queen bee.

Aime also doesn't like the idea of leaving the circus. she said, 'Here, we can be who we want to be!" (incorrect quote). She likes being Aime instead of herself. She likes the people here. And she's scared that if they find the exit that's all gone.

She also sorta has a thing for Jax? Like, I really don't want her to be that oc, which is why I'm including this not as the first thing. Except she does have a crush on Jax. I originally planned her to be going around making it obvious to everyone, but I'm thinking she only does accidentally or when she's acting defensive. But their relationship is complicated. Again, at the beginning for her it was like love at first sight. She loved the personality, loved the act. Anyhow, she was lovestruck (told you ;P). After Kaufmo started acting more crazed, she became nervous and drifted away from that group, residing in Kinger in Gangle. But Jax did stick with him, resulting in Jax and Aime drifting apart. But at the same time though, they were getting closer. More just them time. No Kaufmo. So, they were mischievous on their own. Jax did name her! Aime, he said, was pretty. And unique. And stupid too. (another incorrect quote). Aime said, meh, okay.

Though she did still start hanging around the crybaby and crazy bug-obsessed chess piece more. She loves how silly they are, and it's her beat. She doesn't really care for the others much. She thinks Ragatha's a tryhard, and flirts with Zooble. Zooble's her flirt target because they're so difficult to get to. And Aime occasionally likes talking to Bubble about weird little things :3

So, Aime doesn't like Pomni. She hates Pomni. Boo, Pomni, she says. Aime is mostly just jealous that she isn't the newbie anymore. All the attention is diverted to Pomni instead. Aime is the 2nd newest character besides Pomni, and even though it's been a whole year since she got there when the newbie shows up, she's still pretty jelly. On top of the fact Pomni is obsessed with the exit, which is what Aime's against.

Aime's whole trauma-fear-thing was what I was talking about before. About leaving and losing everyone and being a whole new her. Don't think that needs too much elaborating.

P.S: Aime is tall! Like, Jax tall! But an inch shorter.

(This all may be edited later but for now I'm wiped out and tired, heh.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RULES!!! I'm good with fanart. In fact, I'd very much love it! But again, no pressure eheheh...! /lol. NSFW? Nahhh...doubt anyone will get up to that with Aime but I suppose? Just keep it respectful, please.

OC is 100 percent originally mine, any use of her please do credit me.

I think that's pretty much it though! Just please don't steal, I trust you all :]

But THANK YOU, for reading this through, sorry it was a bit longer. See you all next time!!!

-AimeDigital

[P.S- do feel free to ask me anything in the ask box! Makes me feel appreciated, so don't be shy!]

[tomes-of-fenwyrm]

October Wrap-Up

The Graveyard Book - Neli Gaiman

4/5: Lovely writing as usual, and a perfect cozy tale to get into the spooky spirit. I loved the characters especially, and the style of telling individual stories was really well done. Solid read.

The Halloween Tree - Ray Bradbury

3/5: I usually love Ray Bradbury but this one just didn't thrill me. I don't know if it was just me not being in the right frame of mind but I just wasn't vibing. It had some fun moments but it was just ok for me.

Batman: Arkham Asylum- A Serious House on Serious Earth - Grant Morrison

4/5: Beautiful art by Dave McKean once again which bumps up the rating considerably for me. The writing was really nice at times if not a little too pretentious at times. Also, not being super knowledgeable about Batman previously makes it a little bit of a difficult read sometimes. Characters that aren't clearly named, etc. The plot was also a little confusing at times but honestly, I was just excited to see the art so...

If We Were Villains - M. L. Rio

3/5: This was a little meh for me. It's often compared to Secret History and it is extremely similar. I didn't connect with any of these characters as much as Secret History and it felt a little forced. I do like the use of quotes from Shakespeare being used in conversation as if it's their own words so the line between actor and character is blurred. I enjoyed those moments especially. But, otherwise, I found it predictable. Still a solid read.

Death of the Endless #1-2 - Neil Gaiman

4/5: This is a compilation of comics about Death from the Sandman series. She's my favorite character so by default, I'm going to enjoy it a lot. Most of the stories were very engaging but a few didn't hold my interest as much. Overall, had a great time.

House of Leaves - Mark Z. Danielewski

5/5: This is one of the most unique reading experiences I've ever had and I really loved it. Was I scared? Not really. But if you love things like Cain's Jawbone, research, or puzzling, this is an excellent book. The format was totally unique and it made it hard to put down. I do feel like this is another one that really benefits from reading it multiple times (as is evident by the community for it on Reddit) but even on this read through I can see all the possible solutions to the mystery inside. I love how philosophical it got most of the time and it really delves into how we perceive horror. Some of the sections did drag a bit, but arguably, that's part of the point. This was a world I was excited to escape to. I also listened to the album his sister Poe wrote alongside the book and I highly recommend it as well. It became my favorite album to listen to this month. :)

Long Live the Pumpkin Queen - Shea Ernshaw

2/5: I gave this a very generous 2/5 which is honestly too much. I didn't like it. It has some nice writing at times but it felt rushed and forced and ugh. Also (SPOILERS) why does Sally need a backstory? And a predictable one at that? It was totally unnecessary and I just felt bored the whole time. It doesn't feel like my Nightmare Before Christmas. I feel like Disney was really pushing this one and maybe Ernshaw didn't have enough freedom or passion to make it truly good.

The Sandman Book 3 - Nell Gaiman

4/5: Excellent as always. Lots of good stories!

The Hellbound Heart - Clive Barker

3/5: This was a suggestion from my brother who loves the Hellraiser movie. I read it. I enjoyed it. It's not my usual bag and honestly, I liked basically no one in it. Kristy was nice though. I couldn't help feeling that everyone deserved exactly what they got. The mood was pretty good but I guess I was expecting there to be a bit more? It is meant to be more of a pulp horror though, so at face value, it's solid for what it is. That being said, I don't have any huge desire to read more Clive Barker.

The Yellow Wallpaper - Charlotte Perkins Gilman

5/5: Wonderful! I loved the writing, and I loved the way the story slowly progresses. I prefer a psychological horror style so this was an absolute delight. Excellent discussion on mental health, women's roles, etc. It was also a perfect size to read one morning with my coffee. This was an instant favorite and I'll be reading it again.

I read a lot more than I thought I would be able to! I have a lot more I wish I could've fit into the Halloween season so I may continue reading a few into November.

[victoryrifle]

Another pitiful cur disposed of, she thought approvingly. She removed her stifling helmet and savored the invigorating bite of the wind upon her face. Lustrous black hair, now soaked with sweat, was plastered to an elegant visage worthy of a Grecian goddess. By the dark gods, I grow weary of this butchery.

Underworld: Evolution novelization by Greg Cox

for @georgeromeros

[a-moth-to-the-light]

My Delightful Little Agnostic Life: Good Omens on Christianity and Life's Meaning and Stuff

I finished Good Omens (the show!) yesterday, and here's a little bit from my journal entry on it that I thought would be fun to post because I like how it turned out! Spoilers for the whole thing. I need to get my hands on the book as soon as possible because I fell in love with the show right from the opening monologue, and I can only imagine that the book's narration includes even more tongue-in-cheek humor from God! I'm really excited :)

"[Adam] couldn't see why people made such a fuss about people eating their apples. But life would be a lot less fun if they didn't. And there never was an apple, in Adam's opinion, that wasn't worth the trouble you got into for eating it" (episode six). The ideas in this quote, strewn throughout all six episodes, are what I love most about Good Omens. It looks Christianity in the eye, creates a world where traditionalist Christianity is right about all* the things the religious and secular sectors have been fighting over for years (is God real? was the Earth created by the divine? do demons actually exist?), but then it just looks at all of it and says, "Meh". Like yeah, in Good Omens God has rules and there's hell and all that, but life isn't so bad, even if you just do whatever you want--the comparison between sin in general and Adam stealing apples from his neighbor's garden sets a lighthearted, sunlit tone to what Christianity considers wrongdoing, a far cry from "for the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23. Hell, I'm glad to know the verses church burned into my mind have some use!). One of our protagonists, Aziraphale, decides he likes sushi more than heaven, and our last sight of him is talking animatedly with Crowley while eating at the Ritz--he snubs God and still finds happiness, maybe not divine but certainly worthwhile (food is good! I would have chosen it, too!).

In the same vein, it's established by Gabriel in episode 6 that "the entire reason for the creation of the Earth" was to stage an all-out war between heaven and hell. It drives me absolutely wild that, canonically, Adam says no to 6,000 years of divine planning and THE ENTIRE MEANING OF LIFE because he kinda wants to go home and play with his friends. I relate to that so much: as a lesbian who grew up Christian, I've heard all that stuff about how I'm going to "miss out on God's plan for me" by wanting to be with women, and those comments really did send me into spirals of confusion at first. But now, I feel a lot more like Adam and Aziraphale--God's plan doesn't sound that fun anyway, and I like what I have going on here already much better.

As you've probably guessed, I'm an ex-Christian, and Good Omens' "whatever" in the face of God is a statement of faith (well, the lack thereof, I suppose) that I couldn't agree with more. I left my faith not because I was convinced that God isn't real, but because I enjoy a godless life far more than I enjoyed my former life as a closeted, constantly conflicted lesbian in the church. Sure, maybe God is real and maybe she hates queer people like me, but I just kind of stopped caring about that kind of thing. Creator or no, I'm happy without her. I like sushi (especially California rolls!), and that fills me with joy and sense of personhood that divine ordinances never did. At the end of the season, Aziraphale and Crowley are just hoping they can keep their supernatural brethren away from them for a while, have a bit of peace before the next disaster. And that's how I feel. I doubt I can kill God, can decidedly prove to myself that there is no divine, but I don't really mind. I don't plan to waste time trying, that's for sure. If I can just contrive to keep God away for a while, to say "no" and put Christianity out of my mind, to find a pocket of peace and live my delightful little agnostic life, I think I'll be just fine.

*Well, almost all. I love love love the inclusion of queer and queer-coded divine characters in both heaven and hell, and I'm glad they left queerphobia out of this one! I think it's important to talk about the damage traditional Christian values do to queer people, especially to queer children, but it can be quite nice to get a break and just giggle with some fun queer characters for a bit! I feeI similarly about Adventures of God, a Webtoon I haven't caught up with in a while but that I absolutely adore :)

[sisterssafespace]

Salaam beautiful, first of all thank you for everything you're doing on this blog ❤ I'm lucky enough to know you personally therefore I know how trustworthy and benevolent you are, my dear. After weeks of reading the stories of all those sisters I would also like to share mine. It's a story that happened to me not long ago and only marks the tip of the iceberg, unfortunately. Without further ado let me directly jump into the story: Currently, I'm learning to drive. I'm taking classes. But to save some money my father wants me to drive with him for at least one hour a day. Sounds great, unless one knows what kind of person he actually is. I thought after all those years of living in this household I've already gotten used to his shouting, accusations and insults. But nope, I restarted crying on a daily basis. Until now, every little mistake I make while driving leads to him shouting louder and louder at me. Which makes it very hard for me to stay calm (even though I'm a very calm person) and not to lose my concentration. It's a vicious circle. There is no point in talking to my father because he doesn't see any mistake in his behaviour. In his eyes I'm the problem. I'm not only stupid and ungrateful but also wasting his time and ruining his health because he gets upset so often. I'm not even such a bad driver. Whenever I'm driving with others they tell me that I learn quickly and that they feel very safe. Two weeks ago we were on the road again. He already wasn't in the best mood because of his affair who didn't text him back immediately. (But this is a different story.) So as always I was nervous and started making some tiny mistakes. But this time he didn't punished me verbally. He thought it would be more efficient to punch me on my upper arm every time I made a mistake. Retrospectively, it was as embarrassing as surreal. Me driving our big family car in my hometown while crying and getting punched. I'm still praying nobody recognised me. I don't remember how many times I got punched but when I arrived at home my right upper arm was fiery red and hurt so much. Even now two weeks later the haematoma is still covering my whole upper arm and hurting. I know that there isn't really a solution to this. I just needed a safe space to vent and write it all down. It's already late so I'm very sorry if my storytelling might have been a bit confusing. Please, just make Dua'a and don't worry too much about me. I know Allah is always by my side and sooner or later everything will make sense, In shaa Allah 🤍

Okay, I am gonna start with something " fun " to alleviate the saddness of this ask. It gets me really curious and frustrated when you girls say on the anons that you know me personally but you don't say how you know me and you don't leave me any hints 😅 and I feel like had I been another type of person I wouldn't be able to even sleep at night getting all itchy wanting to know who this is or how to interpret the 'hints' 😂 except that I am too " meh " for this 🤦🏽‍♀️🙈 But I do have a couple of people on my mind. Both amazing girls. Both I love and admire 😌🤍 //

------------------------

Permission to give you a hug? Sometimes words can't do much, they would feel so hollow and superficial. But hugs are worth a billion words.🤍

I just want to say that I am so sorry. I am sorry you have to go through this all over again. I am sorry for the little girl inside of you who hasn't healed yet. I am sorry that even though Allahuma barik laki you are an established gorgeous successful driven young woman ma shaa Allah, these things still trigger you and affect you. I am so sorry for that. I am so sorry for you and for the millions of girls who can relate to this and who have been through this and might still be going through this. Like I said in a previous ask, maybe knowing that you are not the only one going through this would make it feel less horrible? There is a quote that I saw somewhere that I love so much : women and the earth have to put up with (or something more poetic).

I wish I could say that things would get better, and that this can be fixed. But there are things in this life that are beyond us. Here, we are dealing with an accumulation of generations of abuse and violence and inability to love nor to show affection. Your father (and I am not defending him) still has a little boy inside of him who was never loved the way he was supposed to be loved, he was probably never shown affection from his own father nor ever heard the words " I am proud of you " , a little child who was hit and verbally abused on daily basis, probably called names and insults, probably told that he would never be successful or amount to anything. A little child who was told to suppress his feelings and never cry and be tough cause he is a man.. you get me? All I am saying is, even the villain in our story is a victim at the end of the day. I think the change really happens when we can finally see the pain in them that's hidden behind the tough face and the insults. I hope one day you can reach a phase where you are comfortable enough, brave enough and peaceful enough in your life to see things from this perspective. I don't want you to force yourself or guilt-trip yourself or pressure yourself into forgiving him for his abuse. I just want you to understand where it's coming from, and hopefully you find peace in understanding.

Our mission is to create a generation of women who are healed (or healing) enough and brave enough to break this cycle and not let the pain and the abuse be transmitted to the future generations. And that's one tough job, not for anybody. Only the special ones, the toughest ones, the extraordinary ones, so embrace it 🤍🤍

On a positive note, here's a thought: there is balance in this life. Nobody has positive things and goodness, only. See, having a good caring supportive father wasn't written for you. It wasn't given to you. But for everything we don't get, we get something much much more valuable and far better. So, look around you, count your blessings, and see if there is anything or anyone in your life that you got from Allah swt that could make us for the lack of love and affection on the father's side. Maybe your mom? Maybe a good sibling? Maybe a personality trait in you? Like your kindness or your intelligence or your beauty or your health or your faith? Orrrrrr.. maybe ME 😅🙈🤦🏽‍♀️ JK.

Now the question is: would you rather give that blessing back in exchange for a different version father or would you keep things this way? Always look at the bigger picture my dear, even what seems unfair, makes sense on the bigger scheme of things: always look for the balance.

May Allah swt increase your faith and your hidayah my beautiful sister, may Allah swt ease your pain and heal your deepest wounds. May Allah swt fill your heart with sakinah and peace. Ameen 🤍🤍.

Stay safe my dear 🤍

Fi Aman Allah 🤍

- A. Z. 🍃

[gracie-p8-officialblog]

Spilling Tea On Phantom of the Opera 2004

DISCLAIMER: I just want to say from the start that it is not my intention to offendanyone, you're entitled to your opinions and I'm allowed to have mine...

Ok, so, I just watched this movie a few days ago on my laptop and it was pretty much my first time sitting through the movie. I watched a few clips of the movie on YouTube but... Then, I decided to watch the whole movie. And this was my reaction.

Don't get me wrong! There WERE parts I liked but... That was just half of the movie... But overall... Um... It was meh. Ahem. Down to business!

My opinion on Gerard Butler as the Phantom? Um, wow. And not in a good way. I feel like this was a case of a talented performer being grossly miscast as the Phantom. I think this Tumblr post best describes on what I thought of his singing.

"He's supposed to have the voice of an angel, but it sounds like he's been gargling vinegar" ~Quoted by @faded-florals

Don't get me wrong. His voice is quite good for an untrained singer but... The Phantom is one of the biggest musical theatre roles of all time! It's right up there with Jean Valjean. It's really not a role that could go a competent singer, someone who's never sang professionally before but could be good once they've been trained up a bit. The role demands a truly great singer... And he wasn't right for the part.

His voice felt too strainy, growly and rock-ish for the Phantom. I didn't like how Joel Schumacher bought into the whole "sexy Phantom" thing and cast a hunky heart-throb, who was nowhere near disfigured enough. It's meant to be a gothic thriller novel with a small romantic subplot, not a B-grade vampire romance movie!

As for Emmy Rossum as Miss Christine Daae... it's true, her voice is good. She should know though, should she wish to excel, she has MUCH still to learn (Heeeeehee. Sorry. Couldn't resist.)

Emmy's Christine had little-to-no character growth and personality but I don't think it reflects her as an actress, but reflects more on the director and casting director because of how young she was (but more on that later)

Not only that, her Christine was SIGNIFICANTLY dumbed down and oversexualized. I mean, the entire point of the story is that Christine grows strong enough to overcome the trauma of an abusive relationship and make sure that her abuser never hurts anyone ever again but still shows the Phantom compassion and sympathy. I mean, her story arc is her becoming strong-willed enough to overcome the Phantom's pull/spell/enchantment/hypnosis or whatever you percieve it as on her! And don't get me started on her costumes because of the SEVERE lack of modesty.

The chemistry was a little flat because she was underage and her two male love interests were both in their 30s (which totally isn't HER fault, of course, but the directors could easily have cast someone else older)

Her voice, too, strikes me as being much too young and undeveloped. She has a very pretty, sweet-sounding quality to her singing but she doesn't sound rich and operatic enough to be a convincing Christine. Rebecca Caine and Amy Manford do the best job of singing the way I think Christine ought to sound- a maturing opera voice! Though POTO is NOT an opera (you wouldn't believe how many people actually think it is...), it does revolve around opera, and Christine is an opera singer, not a pop star.

And now onto... Everyone's favourite vicomte!!!!!!

C'mon people, put your bottles down. It is a truth universally acknowledged (or at least in the wee Raoul Defense Squad Circle) that Raoul is one of the greatest and most underrated boyfriends to ever exist in musical theatre and it's almost impossible to hate him because of how relatable he is.

Ladies, puh-leeze. He's much more relatable than you admit and face it, we all have a little bit of Raoul in us. Failure to see things staring us in the face, saying or doing the wrong thing at the wrong time, having a 'see it to believe it' attitude when we have little-to-no evidence on something... yeah, don't pretend you don't see a trend. Raoul is relatable whether we want him to be or not.

My thoughts on Patrick Wilson as Raoul, he was one of the few redeeming qualities of this not so great movie. Yeah, the swordfight and Tarzan leaps were a little too much but can you blame him?! And though I feel like that foppish wig made him look more like a magic elf prince than a vicomte, he couldn't control that!

His Raoul was so gentle and caring! Yeah, his acting was a bit stiff but at least his voice wasn't a chore to listen to, it has this warm, tender, comforting quality to it which suits Raoul. I really loved the way he sang "Don't throw away your life for my sake" and "I fought so hard to free you" in the Final Lair (😭😭😭) It feels like Raoul is genuinely apologising to Christine.

I know, I know... The Hadley Fraser fans are approaching with menacing expressions as we speak but let me clarify. I still think Hadley is amazing but... His Raoul kinda felt a little too shouty for me and his Raoul was closer to the LND-canon than POTO-canon (not his fault though).

Miranda Richardson (aka. Rita Skeeter) as Madame Giry is kind of weird. I mean, I know Madame Giry's supposed to be a little Strange and Mysterious. But this Mme. wasn't really Strange or Mysterious at all, or even slightly Spooky at all. She was just kind of an oddball. Popping up in random places to give warnings about the Phantom and looking at people as if she were questioning their life choices or something. As for her daughter... well, Jennifer Ellison's Meg was so-so. She's got a sweet-sounding voice and that added scene where she looked for Christine in the lair was a nice touch... But... Her Meg was kinda forgettable and uninteresting. Meg is supposed to prance around shrieking that the Phantom of the Opera is here, not whisper it in a blase manner that you half expect to be followed up with, "by the way, what's for lunch?" Not to mention, she rivaled Christine as far as low-necked costumes went.

Minnie Driver as Carlotta was spot on! Yes, I know she didn't sing the score but her acting was alright. She was very over-the-top and self-centered, which is great for Carlotta, but I felt her portrayal was a little too childish to be accurate. Carlotta is a successful middle-aged diva who's willing to scream and storm when she doesn't get her way, but she isn't a two-year-old pouting and throwing tantrums. (Yes, there's a difference.)

Ciaran Hinds and Simon Callow played Firmin and Andre, respectively. Their managers kinda felt like twits and nothing more. Also, Firmin's masquerade costume was ridiculous. The stupid kind, not the funny kind. ...Well, okay, it was a little funny.

I'm not going to touch on every song here, but I will say that "Hannibal" was beyond awful (if you thought the costumes in the stage version were a bit risque, you should see the movie ones- no, actually you shouldn't) and that "Think of Me," while very nice, was not particularly memorable. Christine's dress, however (despite its less-than-ideal neckline) was GORGEOUS, even though it looks completely out of place in a musical that supposedly takes place in ancient Alexandria.

"Little Lotte" kinda lost its charm by being spoken instead of sung. And Gerard Butler's voice in "The Mirror" was too rough and raspy for my ears and made me cringe in sympathetic shame. The title song was like a cheesy, campy B-grade horror movie tbh, trying way too hard to be spooky and chilling ("ooh, look, Phantom's Lair! It's DARK and SCARY down here!") and succeeding only in being cringeworthy. Not that I've actually ever seen a bad horror movie- or any horror movie at all, for that matter. Unless you count this one.

Christine's costume, too, annoyed me no end. She was basically wearing a corset and drawers under the dressing gown. *facepalm* The dressing gown is supposed to go OVER your COSTUME to keep it CLEAN, peeps. It's not a BATHROBE. And the amount of eye makeup she had on would terrify a raccoon. Yikes.

Though I liked the random horse because of its nod to the Leroux novel.

"Music of the Night" was so blah-slash-touchy-feely that it made me summarily uncomfortable.

I'd like to be able to say something nice about "I remember/Stranger than you dreamt it" but I have none. One thing that bugged me to no end was how Christine is no longer wearing stockings, like dude, that gives some GROSS implications. Anyways, let's skip to Il Muto!

Oh, but first I should say that "Notes" was rather a flop and that "Prima Donna" is unmemorable and indeed should probably be fast-forwarded as there's a rather unsavory bit involving a crew member showing the audience what he thinks of Carlotta's behaviour.

"Il Muto," I must say, was pretty doggone funny. Carlotta's "Your part is silent. Leetle toad," cracked me up into a bunch of giggling little pieces, and the little vignette of the Phantom tinkering with Carlotta's throat spray made her croaking later on a lot more believable.

Now for "All I Ask Of You", SQUEEEEEE!!!!!!!!! I honestly can't understand how anyone could listen to this song and still maintain that Christine and Raoul don't belong together. He represents everything she needs- stability, protection, a guiding hand and affirmed affection. She represents everything he needs, in turn- someone to show affection to and his childhood friend.

One thing I definitely think could have been left out was the scene in which Erik kills Buquet- we totally did not need to see him being chased, terrified, through the rafters and finally strangled. Gross.

And the Phantom and his rose crouching behind that statue... I think this was supposed to be sad, but there was too much snot mixed with tears for it to be sad. It was, again, gross. So was Gerard Butler's pathetic attempt at the "all that the Phantom asked of you" line. And the lack of a chandelier crash in that scene made the song anticlimactic.

And "Masquerade" was so-so but... The Phantom's entrance is anticlimactic somehow, and his Red Death costume (if indeed it's supposed to even BE the Red Death) is unimpressive. I don't like how Raoul just runs off to desert Christine as soon as things start looking ugly (yes, I realize he was going to get his sword, but still... something could have happened to her while he was gone. Duh, did this guy learn anything from "Little Lotte/The Mirror"? Just sayin)

As for Madame Giry's flashback immediately following, I like how it gives us some of the Phantom's backstory, but it seems really abrupt. You don't even realize until she's done that she was talking to Raoul the whole time- it sounds like she's just randomly reminiscing about Stuff, and if you didn't know the story you might be sitting there thinking, "who is this strange woman again?"

Also, Christine leaving wherever-it-is at, like, five in the morning to go to who-knows-where, completely oblivious to the fact that the Phantom is driving her. Whaaaaaaaaa? How'd he know she was planning to go for a graveyard stroll? Was he watching her through the mirror again? THAT'S JUST CREEPY.

"Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" was rather mediocre and dulled down the fact that it is a Christine Empowerment™ song. Why, exactly, does Christine's father have the biggest monument in the cemetery? If he were a rich and famous violinist as his crypt seems to suggest, why on earth was his daughter struggling along as a chorus girl taking free music lessons?

The swordfight... Well... I had mixed feelings about it. Sword fights are all well and good, but... The swordfight takes away the element of mysterious danger to the Phantom. Okay, fine, Christine getting Raoul to spare the Phantom's life is a nice touch, I guess, but did it strike no one else that his "now let it be war upon you BOTH" makes absolutely NO sense after that? If she just saved his life, why would he suddenly be all, "thanks, but no thanks, I'M GOING TO MURDER YOUUUUUUUUUU"?

And "Twisted Every Way" was after "Wishing" which made ZERO sense. Plus, I didn't like how they cut most of it because in the musical, it gave Christine a spine!

"Point of No Return"? Hooooooo boy....... There are so many things wrong with this number. Let's just a list a few.

*HOW did no one recognise the Phantom through his "disguise"?! At least in the stage play, it made more sense because of how he was wearing a cloak that obscured most of his body.

*Christine's sleeves falling down over and over again were REALLY annoying.

*It was just too touchy-feely for my taste.

*The fact that Emmy Rossum was a teenager during filming made this scene gross because of the way they oversexualized Christine in this scene.

*Gerard Butler's voice in that scene made me cringe and shake my head in sympathetic shame.

*In the stage play, Christine ran from him, showing her own agenda and resistance to his pull! While in the movie, she didn't resist him!

*Now for the one that took the cake... The disfigurement! Or it would be a disfigurement if it actually made him look, y'know, deformed. Instead, as several people have put it, he looks like he got a bad sunburn or something. It's really rather pathetic. It makes him look more like a drama queen than he already is! Yeah.... I really don't like this movie.

On to... Final Lair!!!!!!!! It was a flop. From Raoul's whining and flailing around and his stringy hair flopping about (shallow complaint, I know, but it's so ugly) to Christine's sappy melodramatic "don't make me choooooooose" faces to the Phantom's prancing around with his ropes and maniacal laughter that somehow wasn't really scary at all... yeah, it was a flop. A major, major flop. And though The Kiss wasn't all that bad, all I could think of was, "She's SIXTEEN! SIX! TEEN! THIS IS CREEPY, DISTURBING AND GROSS!"

Which is why it's so difficult for me to admit that, um, I... cried at the end.

I COULDN'T HELP IT GUYS HE WAS ALL ALONE THERE IN HIS LAKE WITH HIS MONKEY AND HIS SMASHED MIRRORS AND HE WAS CRYING AND IT WAS SAD.

And then that rose on the gravestone? That single red rose? And the look on Old Raoul's face (still Patrick Wilson, by the way, under all that makeup) when he saw it and realized he wasn't the only one visiting Christine's grave? Yup, I lost it again there, too. And I really didn't want to. Because I tend to cry over movies I love, y'know? And I didn't love this movie. At all

Yet I still cried at the end. I'm not really sure why. I think perhaps it had something to do with the way the story still "got" me, deep down inside, despite the lousy casting and less-than-perfect singing and ridiculously unnecessary elements that totally didn't need to be there. It's still a tragically beautiful romance, and even a bad film can't kill that.

In conclusion, I think Mary Poppins can best express what I thought of POTO 2004.

In conclusion, I rate it a 2.7/5

[wyrmalien]

local man forgets to post review but it's fine because a maximum of two people know what I'm even talking about

nonsense and rambling ahead I apologise mutals 😔 written on my phone so there may be mistakes now and then :"0

For context: this is a fourth response to these three asks

Signum Crucis: Unholy Mutation

This one I already knew I was going to like bc signum crucis is absolutely one of my favourites. The guitar is SO GOOD AUGH, and I love the little clips of the original song that fade in, especially Mazurewicz joining the choir and ofc the ruin of souls part. One thing I did catch was him saying his last confession was 30 years ago??? Which fair enough i suppose I am down for Elwood returning to Arkham and getting into another mess. His voice actor changing messed w me a lil bit but that's to be expected. Also the READING OF JENKINS' LINES WITH MAZUREWICZ'S BENEDICTUS DOMINUS FROM THE TITLE SONG IN THE BACKGROUND????? GOES INSANE AUGHHHHH THAT WAS SO SO COOL

Sleepwalker: Waking World

OH MY GOD. OHHHHH MY GOD. OK OK OK OK. Sleepwalker in the rock opera is a little meh-on-the-good-side for me; it's really short and you don't know what's going on unless you know the story. The only thing really saving it is the fact that it's the main theme in the Dark Adventure Radio Theatre adaptation of DitWH (which you should check out if you haven't! it's done by the same people and includes the same actors. I can happily provide a link to the production, though I highly recommend purchasing the MP3 file direct from the HPLHS website since they could use the support!) which I go INSANE over. Like when I first made the connection I flipped I couldn't stop thinking about it for several hours it is just. so cool. SO COOL you are so clever troy sterling nyes. But yeah, it didn't really have a lot going for it other than the connections to DART.

WAKING WORLD THOUGH? OH MY GOD

While it makes possibly even less sense lyric-wise, this absolutely changes the game why wasn't this one the one used in the rock opera. The part of the story Sleepwalker represents is Walter, Keziah, and Nyarlathotep kidnapping Ladislas Woljeko, which is extremely confusing in the original Sleepwalker because it's just Walter singing. But now? Keziah gets lines too!! AND it's the only duet between Keziah and Walter which I think really accentuates how deep he's been drawn in (you can travel space and time but you can not return etc etc). Plus Nyarlathotep not singing in this actually makes for a better reveal for him when he sings Azethoth.

Honestly I think this might be my favourite out of all of them <3

The Refuge of Penitence

Fr. Iwanicki time YESSSS ohhh this would make for such a neat epilogue if madness is my destiny didn't exist (which no hate I love mimd, it makes no sense at all and I like to make stuff up for what's going on because I can). You were right, anon, this voice fits him much better! I think it's actually the same guy who voices Dombrowski? But don't quote me on that I might be wrong. I LOVEE the cello in this woaah, love the tune being an altered version of Sleepwalker, too. The extra character that Iwanicki deserves, the doubts piling up during/after Elwood's confession and ESPECIALLY between reality and dreaming. Good for him, payback for being cut by HPL in the original draft of DitWH

Agro Navis: Heart of Darkness

FEMININE AZETHOTH VOICE?? OHHH WHAT WE DESERVE. Unfortunately between the guitars, the recitation being pitched lower, and my audio processing issues I only got like half the words rip but the music was incredibly cool and the return of the "aaaaazuuthoth" motif from the rock opera was so so neat (they are a recurring musical themes enjoyer). Also Keziah showed up again briefly!! I wonder if this was a concept for Azethoth initially because there's a lot of talk of signing the book/receiving a secret name, and, unless I misheard, it's said that Walter's secret name is the Agro Navis of the title?? I looked it up and ot translates to "field of the ship" so who knows, maybe I'm grasping at straws. But it's still cool to think about!!! I'll stick it in the same mental folder that contains my ideas of Walter being related to the Gilmans of the Gilman House in Innsmouth, I suppose

Astrophobos 1917

Art songs I don't understand but are still bangers....<3 once again the orchestrations are SO GOOD, and the madness is my destiny piano motif showed up which made me !!! Don't know who the narrator is (the title gives me 0 hints since DitWH takes place 32-33 rip) but I'm enjoying the vision of a mad poet lost in the dreamlands. Very neat overall

these were all SO COOL thank you so so much for introducing them to me, anon!! Sleepwalker: Waking World, Refuge for Penitence, and Agro Navis gave me so many thoughts bouncing around in my head like bees !!!! Downloading them all for sure, too

[randomstuffbyfox]

Burn The Stage: The Series - Review

Umm... Hello... Hi! How are you? Well that's awkward, haven't done this in months but yeah...

So, I had a review account on Instagram, but for some reason Instagram in general pissed me off, but i still want to share my thoughts somewhere so the only place left is tumblr. As you can see from the title, my victim of today is Burn The Stage: The Series. Even if I'm months late, because I will be seeing the movie, i had to finish series one day, and that day was today! So this is like my big comeback. Not really big, and not really a comeback. Just me maybe starting doing the thing I love again and maybe it will later become a review series on this blog, it's named random stuff for a reason. I'm rumbling to much, meh, let's just go.

I've started watching the series the time it was released, but stopped, because it was time consuming and the end of the last school year was a bit of a mess, to say the least. Have no idea why I haven't finished it in summer, maybe because I was scared, don't know. But now, I've forced myself to actually finish it. I had like 3 episodes left so it wasn't too much for a Sunday morning when i would not do anything either way.

In one sentence, this series was too much. We saw pain, tears and anger, stuff that BTS and others artists are keeping behind the curtains. There was a lot of food. I'm happy, because the guys do take care of themselves while being on tour, but at the same time, i haven't had neither breakfast or lunch, so those parts were a bit, you know xd

Obviously, I knew nothing about Bangtan. Yes, I'm an ARMY for nearly 2 years, yes, i do follow their every achievement, every post, yes, i know their faces, that guys put on while being in public, yes, i do know their songs and their meanings, but still, it's not like being a fan you know everything about your favourite artist or group. Although, after watching Burn The Stage: The Series (that's probably not official name, I should check, but I don't want to and it looks cool) I could say I'm a little step closer, a really really little step, and I can't be more happier.

While watching or reading something, I'm the type of person who likes to stop, take some quotes, absorb the information. And for that I really want to thank my teacher from grade 7 and 8, she was an angel. So, i gathered few of my favourite ones, i will just show them with little or no explanation, because at least for me, those quotes speak for themselves.

Looking for answers when there aren’t any, but we still learn. Isn’t that what life is about?

- RM

'If you don't get mad or sad, you won't feel happiness.'

- JUNGKOOK (as far as I remember, this one should be from Burn The Stage, at least i hope so. But even if it's not, still and amazing quote)

"It's normal thing to fight. It happens, but depending on how we deal with it as time goes by, it could effect our teamwork."

- SUGA

"We can't fix it for you, but we are here to give support"

- BTS (They said it to Taehyung, when he was having a harder time. I chose this one because everyone needs to have people like that in their life. Even if you don't have them now, I pray that you will have one day)

"That's when I realised this, unless you open up and share your feelings, no one can understand what you're going through."

- V

In conclusion, I really hate myself for not finishing it earlier, but hey, everything happens at the right time, now I'm more than ever ready for the movie. Series was really incredible, we got to see more then ARMYs would even deserve. It's just, I sometimes feel that Bangtan love us so much and we, as a fandom won't ever be able to give the same amount. They are seven guys and we are millions of people and still, you know what i mean? Because I don't know hoe to say that in words

See you in less than 3 weeks for sure, premiere is on 15th of November and i will be going to the first showing, I'm so fricking excited!

I don't know if Burn The Stage: The Movie will be the only review i will make in these 3 weeks, but that's the only one i can promise.

In the mean time, stay warm, drink enough water, get some good food and I love you

Amelia💜

[the-princess-with-pancakes]

Emma Roberts Movie Week

It’s actually a bit unexpected. I didn’t plan this, I just watched Scream IV and her character made me love her even more, then I did after Chanel. So I thought, why not, no matter that I planned Brendan Fraser Movie Week.

 Day 1: Scream IV (2011)

It’s not the movie I want to talk about (because I plan to make a post about the whole franchise, after watching the TV Series), but about he character. I mean, how awesome is watching Emma Roberts as psycho killer. Especially a very convincing psycho killer, trying to kill Sidney. After watching Scream Queens and knowing how well she plays bitchy characters, so it was very entertaining. The third act of course. Watching her as a side character was just okay. That’s really all I can say. So yeah, there you go folks. Also the villain monologue was fun. Just read for yourself:

Favorite Jill quote:

Jill Roberts: My friends? What world are you living in? I don't need friends. I need fans. Don't you get it? This has never been about killing you? It's about becoming you. I mean, for fuck's sake, my own mother had to die, no great loss there, so I could stay true to the original. That's sick, right? Well, sick is the new sane. You had your 15 minutes, now I want mine! I mean, what am I supposed to do? Go to college? Grad school? Work? Look around. We all live in public now, we're all on the Internet. How do you think people become famous any more? You don't have to achieve anything. You just gotta have fucked up shit happen to you. So you have to die, Sid. Those are the rules. New movie, new franchise. There's only room for one lead, and let's face it, your ingenue days, they're over. A bit long, yeah, but how great. Isn’t that weird, that her monologue is longer then my text about her character?

Day 2: Wild Child (2008)

A very linear teen drama, but in England. Why would I pick that? The real question is: Why not? I mean, yes, it’s stupid, and yes, I’m an adult, but I’m still a kid inside, and I know it’s a bad movie, but it was still entertaining sometimes. Again, watching Emma playing a bitch is fun, for 20 minutes, but it was still fun. If we got through the best part, let’s get to business. Her character growth was okay, her friends were okay, their relation was okay. The school bitch was awfully stereotypical, no matter that her first appearance said otherwise. I hoped at least that from that movie, but it didn’t even give me that, so...

The fun part tho was just turning my brain off for an hour and half, and just watch Emma hanging out with some teenagers with British accent. It’s still one of my favorite female celebrities. Also her name was Poppy! It could belike the flower, but hearing “Poppy” made me think about That Poppy. Which is always a little plus. Wow, that paragraph about the things I liked is too short. Hey, Nick Frost! 

The montage was awful... it broke me from the movie every 30 seconds, which was hard to watch. Also the scene quick before the end was so cringe. At least for me. They were losing, then made a dance, and magically they won! (The dance was cringe, if someone were wondering)

Well that’s all, it was between average and okay.

Favorite quote:

Poppy: I didn't start it, it wasn't my fault, and if this were America, I would sue.

That’s true, OMC. America is beautiful, I love it, I want to visit it someday.

 Day 3: The Art of Getting By (2011) 

There is a thin line between being a good movie, and being pretentious. This movie sadly is on the wrong side of the line. 

Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed watching this movie, it got to me, I love the main character, George, I can see myself in him, somehow. I always wanted to be that weird guy on the side, or I just want it, because these guys (like in this movie) alwayse ended up happy at the end, and I want the same thing for myself. But that’s a theme for different post. I liked seeing the world through his eyes. The scene showing how he wanted to get over Sally was great. Or when she broke him with the weird sex questions, during their “date”. Freddie’s acting was very convincing, and I didn’t saw the actor, I saw a boy with problems. The relations between him and the other characters and the way he reacten to every rational thing, he should do, but just couldn’t. I can also say a good thing about the side characters. I really liked them. The way they were created, even if some of theme didn’t have a lot of screen time, I had still fun spendind time with them. Like when Sallys’s mother told her, that she should be with George or when the painter struggled to be with Sally. I could also say about how I liked the montage and directing, but who cares? Also I liked the “development” of Freddie’s character, like in the first and second part who was becomind worse and worse...

Sadly the thing I was most anticipating in this movie was Emma Roberts and... well, Sally totally blows. I disliked her after 5 or so minutes. I’m not really sure if she’s such a bad actress, or it was just like her character was written, but Sally was so wooden. She was pretty, yes, but that’s just one of two things, that I think George could see in her (the second is, that she really cared about him and liked him, for example the scene, when they were sleeping next to each other, or when she called him every 5 minutes, whe he left her). I also really, really disliked her, when she broke my precious George! I mean, who does she think she is? (that’s not a blame on the movie, just another reason to not like her character, which isn’t a bad thing) Sally was the second most important character, but she dind’t develop at all. It was painfull to watch her in some scenes, beacause I knew that she would hurt George, because he wanted to go forwrd in some way, but she was staying the same all the time. Another thing I didn’t like was most of the third act. How George suddenly (I know it was because of his mother, he didn’t to upset her any more) change his attitude to life and so quickly straightened everything. It just wasn’t convincing for me. Also it was very predictable. Him, getting the diploma, her, going back to him, the painting, being Sally. Sad. Sadly. They could work on that a little more.

Favorite qoute:

Sally Howe: What were you like as a child?

George Zinavoy: I was such a better person than I am now.

Sally Howe: Come on.

George Zinavoy: I'm serious. I was happy. I was open. I was curious. But I'll tell you this: I knew when it was ending. I was overwhelmed with sadness when I realized that I was going to change, and that it was all most likely going to get worse, like a nostalgia for the present. I couldn't shake it... 

And it’s sad to say, that I dind’t like her creation. It really is. I hope it’s not her acting and I can see her again in a small movie, but with more. More to play and that she actually does it well. For now I like her justas the bitchy/psycho type.

 Day 4: Nancy Drew (2007)

Hey I’m actually keeping up! Only three das/movies left.

So I just looked up (on Wikipedia, I’m not a detective) that, as I thought, the movie is based on a book series for teenagers, with the same name. 

I start with the things I liked. And don’t let it fool you, there were’nt as many. The start was quite fine and fun to watch. The city and the charachters living in it. Just the world created around Nancy in her home town was adorable, just to be fine for a few minutes. I also liked Nancy at some point. I guess Emma can play charismatic characters, not just bitches. Which is good, but it wasn’t very good acting, since it also wasn’t a role that needed a good actress, just because the writting was so doll. Ahh, I wanted to say, what I liked first. So I also liked the side characters from her home town, like her father and Ned, or some of the LA characters: just Jane and Leshing. And the styling. I think the setting around our main characters was cute. Her dressing style, the style of that “hounted” house or her home town (I didn’t remember it, I’m really not familiar with the book series). Hey, Bruce Willis!

That’s sadly all, not many good things, that I could talk about. The writting tho. Ugh! It was so, so bad. Mished with that acting was just terrible to watch. Just because I liked some charachters, does not mean, I think they well written well, or that they were acted well. They weren’t. None of them. Maybe Nancy and her father a little, but that’s all. The story... Just meh. After half an hour I wasn’t feeling any mistery. And talk about tension, there was none of it. Even the scene when they were just about to kill Nancy, I was felling nothing. Oh wait, I was annoyed. Because the side characters from her new school had appeared on my screen! I hated them. Especially Corcky. uhh... I just felt like a story written by a teenager, and I think not a teenager has written it (no, it were two adult people). I mean, do they know, they can make a movie for children (and this, BTW, felt like a movie for 3-6 years old), that’s also entertaining for adults? Look at Teen Titans GO: To the Movies! (2018). That’s a good example.

Favorite quote:

Carson Drew: Phone call. Long distance from Scotland. Something about the Loch Ness Monster and some missing diamonds. Nancy Drew: Another case!

Well, despite how I disliked ths movie, I would definietly watch a sequel with Nessi. But it didn’t gross much, which I’m not suprised with.

 Day 5:

Got distracted, by discovering “The Pitch” from ScreenRant. Totally got me. Binge watched like 20 episodes.

 Actual Day 5: Paradise Hills (2019)

What a weirdly boring movie. Maybe I didn’t pay to much attention as I should, but it didn’t get me at all.

I wanted to watch something new, to see how her acting “grow” with her, but... Again, she didn’t get much to play. Which is very dissapointing. 

To start with the good things. The movie is extreamly beautiful. It looks so magical. The movie has just a 6 million budget, but it was still enough to hire Emma Roberts, Milla Jovovich, Awkwafina and to build a gorgeous set. The CGI was very visible, but only in two scenes (like the car on the beginning for example). And... That’s all? The acting of most main cast fine, I guess. 

OMC, where to start even? Idea for the story: very, very unoriginal. It’s actually felt much like The Island (2005) and a little like Sucker Punch (2011) (although I don’t remember it very well), maybe a mix of bouth. It’s not bad, it’s just made not so well. The script: dull, slow and predictible. I don’t like saying this, because I mostly shut of my brain, try to have fun and don’t predict anything, but it was hard. The ending tho. Seriously, to predictable. And no, I didn’t predict, that Jovovich is playing a fucking rose witch/vampire. That actually suprised me. The characters: they we’re okay, but mostly still to stereotypical, like for eample Milla’s witch, Emma’s main and the sidecharacter singer. Again just complaining on the same things I complained the last three movies.

Favorite quote:

Duchess: *screams, while changing into a bush*

I still have one critycally acclaimed drama (to see her acting on a good script) and a good movie to end the marathon happy :3

Day 6: Palo Alto (2013)

I can’t say. I liked this movie. Not a lot, but it was still enjoyable for me.

I thought Emma will play the main character, which she has and hasn’t in a way. She was one of the main characters with Teddy i think. Yeah, okay, I’m almost sure. I know I was supposed to watch a critically aclaimed movie, and this isn’t one, but, eh, it has 69% on RottenTomatoes, so not so bad. Also! It’s stars James Franco. I liked the acting. I’m still dissapointed, that Emma stil does not have much to play. I’m not sure if she’s just okay at acting, or she takes parts of empty blonds. I still love her, it’s just... it’s getting harder and harder to watch her as not charismatic characters. Anyway, I liked the acting, even much. I’m not sure if the actor playing Teddy (Val Kilmer’s son! and Val KIlmer played April’s father xD) was playing him self, but I’m happy with what I got. The same goes for Fred, the coach and April’s father. Finally after these few dissapointing movies, I got something, that dind’t speak to me much, but at least I liked the characters and had fun watching them get better, or worse, or not changing, or having a quick cameo. 

The story was... okay. But connected to this characters, I don’t really have much to complain. The tempo was a bit slow with April’s story, and a bit to fast with Teddy’s. Like The Art of Getting By (2011), this movie crossed a bit the thin line, of being too pretencional. But this doesn’t botter me that much.

Favorite quote:

April: I'm not depressed, why do you always think I'm depressed? I'm just tired.

Day 7: It’s kind of a funny story (2010)

I absolutely loved this movie! It took me from teh beginning with that scene on the bridge. Totally my kind of humor. The main character was easy to equate with, at least for me, like, being a bit assholish on the beginnig, and then turning in a fully good and  empathetic person. The perfect character arc for a feel good movie, like this one. It hit me by suprise, how good it was. The movie has average ratings and is rotten on RottenTomatoes. I know why, but the things, that for others were a flaw, for me was a good quality. I dind’t read the reviews, but I saw flaws in the movie, and in the story. I know, I know, it’s a basic story, a bit (maybe a lot) predictable even. But I turned my brain off for one and a half hour and had a lot of fun. The charachters where, no, seamed 3-dimensional. Everyone, at some point even. I totally believed, these are not actors, these are people. Especially the main trio, obviosly. I dind’t know  Zach Galifianakis can play something more then a stupid fat guy, by playing a not so stupid fat guy with problems. And Emma, still not what I’m expecting from her, but a lot better, then the other movies I guess (with exceptions of course). Even Craigs parents felt so real, and his friend and his love interest in the beginning. The main advantage of the movie is, that, as I pointed out earlier, it makes you feel better. It made me thing, that there is something more for me, that I don’t have to be this sad, fat guy, working and sitting by the computer all the time. Also the acting, OMC. It was great. How thought, to bring Viola Davis to this project? Great idea, even for these few minutes. But, yeah, I also pointed that out already. And, I liked, how the movie was directed. The scene, where they sang together, fabulous.

So what’s the flaws? It was predictable, if you just try to think a little. I dind’t realise that, till after the movie. Also, some characters, from being fine written, turned to flat characters, to drive the plot. Yes, I mean Nia, that was so unnecessary. It was just so Noelle would get mad at Craig. And will winning Noelle back be hard? It’s gonna be (quoting the screenwriter from Pitch Meeting) “super easy! Barely an inconvenience.” Which is dissapointing. 

Favorite quote:

Craig: Do you like music?

Noelle: Do you like breathing?

Bonus: A few words about Channel and whole Scream Qeens (2015-2016)

This series also took me by suprise, a bit. I loved Ariana Grande at that time, but since she quitted acting, and got mostly into music, I started to watch this show. And, as dissapointing as it was at that time, Chanel #2 was killed in the first episode. But since this was a slasher, and I do love those, I stayed. Who am I kidding. It dind’t stay because of the killing, but because of the story, characters and humor mostly. Jamie Lee Curtis is a wonderful actress and watching her going “against” bitchy Emma Roberts, was like watching a unicorn... I don’t a good compare, but you get it. It was extreamly entertaining. The world building, so caricature, it was so fun. Chanel killing a random lady? Yes please. These show was filled with mains driving the series with just themselfs and the sideones adding to it a lot. Even if they get killed eventually. Obviously the first season was way better, then the second. But the second was even more bizzare, which recompensed a bit the flaws of it. Do I like the decisions, who got the be the killers in both seasons? Yes, of course! For example, the chemistry between Dr. Cassidy and Chanel #3 was great in the second half of the second season. Just awesome.

Oh, yeah, a few more about Chanel. Wonderful, stole every scene she was in. Not a character, you could lift a show on, but the definietly good to be one of the mains.

Favorite quote:

Chanel: Good morning, sluts.

Chanel #2, #3 and #5: Good morning, Chanel

Like I could pick any other, than this.

--

So what do I think about Emma in the end?

She’s not a great, but a good actress, she could lift the whole movie, if she get’s a good character to play, like in Wild Child (2008), which was not much, but she was still a teenager then, and made it. 

Do I see her in drama roles?

Yes, actually. I love her, when she plays bitchy, charismatic, or even psycho characters, because she’s great at it, but I still want to see her other side. A hard part to play, in which she can shock everyone in how good of an actress she is. She didn’t have the chance yet.

I hope she gets more lucky and popular at some time. She’s still under 30 (28 years old), so she has most of her live before her, and already an impressive filmography. I wish her all the best.