#this is a remake of the og one but going to make a version b eventually too 🥺

[randomestfandoms-ocs]

Kirsty Gilmore ✤ My Way ✤ Season 1

Freshman year had not been kind to Kirsty Gilmore, and she was looking forward to a new year, a fresh start, a chance to leave her mistakes in the past and try again. But when she suddenly finds herself transferring to Chilton with Rory, change takes on a new meaning. With classmates more familiar than she cared to admit and more secrets than she would ever want to face, Chilton is shaping up to be more of a haunted house than the perfect stepping stone to Yale.

Tag List: @airwolf92 – want to be added?

(unofficial belated gift for @the-witching-ash for the twins' birthday)

[lavellenchanted]

okay I have a bit of a theory that was inspired by your Yuna Aerith parallel gifset, while I immediately thought of Yuna during that scene as well, I didn't really think about it beyond it being a reference until seeing your gifset again just now. A lot of people think there are parallels between ff7/ffx already and that maybe the games are connected in some loose way. And thinking about Yuna's story... how the game revolves around her intending to make this big sacrifice in order to save everyone until we find another way and are able to put an end to things for good without her needing to die (a better ending than her sacrificing herself and restarting the cycle). Not to mention other parallels between her and Aerith in general. And a lot of people are unsure if the ending of og FF7 is actually a "good" ending. And I am now wondering if Aerith's lifestream dance scene was more than just a fun reference and it was actually more of an intentional nod to her and Yuna's similar stories and maybe a hint to the fact that she doesn't need to die for us to win in the end (ofc Aerith already meeting her fate in rebirth has happened, but with the other worlds etc we know things can potentially be altered somehow in game 3 and that we may have saved a version of Aerith already). Perhaps this time we can get an even better outcome. Defying fate/destiny is very relevant to Yuna's story and is a heavy theme in this re-trilogy which I would like to see have a purpose beyond faking us out. I feel the direct comparison between her and Aerith does potentially feel more intentional along that line of thinking

apologies that got quite lengthy and disjointed but hopefully made some sense hah

That's a really good catch! I think as well it's interesting to note that as well as Yuna not having to sacrifice herself, they also brought back Tidus at the end FFX-2 - albeit only in the hidden ending that you have to 100% complete the game to get. So clearly SE aren't against bringing back characters that appear to be gone for good.

I definitely think that Aerith is going to live at the end of Part 3 - the lifestream dance is obviously a nod to Yuna, but in terms of FF7's narrative I think it was also deliberately meant to show is that Aerith can and is learning to control the lifestream while she's alive, so she doesn't need to die to be able to manipulate the lifestream to help defeat Meteor.

I'm absolutely convinced we'll get a payoff to the idea of defying fate, just because otherwise it would be really bad writing. They very carefully set it up in Remake with Aerith and Nanaki having full knowledge of the future, and Cloud having fractured visions of it and have then built on it further in Remake; both through Marlene having gained that knowledge from Aerith, and using the interludes with Zack to establish a) that characters we expected to die could survive and b) the rainbow motif to show when fate's been changed, a motif that then appears when Cloud blocks Sephiroth's sword and in both scenes when he's holding Aerith and she wakes up. To suddenly undo that in Part 3 and return to the status quo of the OG would be a complete narrative letdown and anti-climax after everything they've teased, and I think the devs are better than that.

The OG ending is a complicated one and was always intended to be bittersweet, but it's telling that in an interview in the Rebirth Ultimania, Kitase said that he hopes all the characters find happiness at the end of Retrilogy, implying that he doesn't consider that they did at the end of the OG. And if you want everyone to have a happy ending . . . well, the characters that had the most obviously unhappy ending of all of them were Aerith, who died, and Cloud, who was broken by her death.

Not to mention that Nomura said in the same interview that Kitase asked for "a very major something" that wasn't in the OG for Part 3, and I really don't see what else that would be except a ending in which Aerith, and possibly Zack, both get to live and Cloud and Aerith are reunited.

[lipglossanon]

Heya! it's been a while since I submitted an ask but what are your thoughts for omegaverse? (aka alpha Leon🤭)

-💗

Hiya 💗 anon! 👋

Welcome back! ✨ 🤭

And I love a/b/o dynamics 🤤 that’s another thing on my dream list to write 🤣

Alpha Leon could go so many ways 😩 depends on which version we get RE2remake where he’s just like this overeager, out to prove he’s the best alpha for you type of guy

Or re4/re4 remake Leon: OG Leon is a cocky know it all who casually doms you and spoils you rotten all the time 🤭 whereas Remake Leon is a broody soft boi who’s like your second shadow cause he wants to make sure you’re safe and taken care of

And then there’s older Leon (RE6, Vendetta, etc) who’s been around the block so he knows all there is to know about being a good alpha 🥵 🥵

So yeah 😌 one day I’ll write something 🤭

[tactical-mode]

Here we are, take-off! So, this episode is kind of a cheat, haha, as the first three minutes are just letting the fireworks do their thing. That said, I’m still going to blog about each scene as various mods and things are introduced.

[Chapter 01] Scene 01: Opening

An FMV. The SFX and Music are baked together in Remake’s FMVs, which means that I could not feasibly remove the Carmina Burana lyrics nor the shot of Cloud riding the train. Purists are already pissed at me, I’m sure. I did omit 7R’s opening few minutes, and I was even able to remove Remake’s credits due to the modding efforts of TeamYuffieCloudVincent, a team you’ll see that I use a LOT. Shout out to them.

The 1:47 mark is where I cheekily make my entrance with our shiny new (old) logo replacing Remake’s title image. This show is an adaptation of Final Fantasy VII, it is decidedly NOT a remake. Otherwise, this is a simple re-recording of the source scene.

Scene 02:  EXT. Train Platform - Night

This was another scene I basically didn’t touch, although here is where I began hacking the game and filming from multiple angles - I just didn’t use any of the shots in the final cut haha. While I’m here, though, the Universal Unreal Unlocker by Otis_Inf is what makes this project possible. You also get to see Barret with slightly scruffier eyebrows courtesy of Gojeeb.

Other than the mods on display, this is Remake’s version of the arrival. Not much different from OG, except that Barret and Cloud arrive to different musical cues. In OG, Uematsu’s score introduces Barret with a marching timpani, and Cloud leaps onto the platform accompanying two hits of the orchestra.

In Remake, the timpanis introduce Wedge, Barret arrives to the two hits of the orchestra (almost as a jump-scare) and then the music is re-orchestrated to make Cloud’s entrance a huge buildup of tension and release upon his landing. It’s a nice thesis statement for 7R - this is going to be Final Fantasy VII on steroids. Every gun is going off, and we brought extra guns.

I wouldn’t have bothered filming it at all, except a) just to see if I could and b) my great esteem for Uematsu’s original score. While I adore Remake’s soundtrack, particularly the orchestrations by Shotaro Shima, they riff on Uematsu, as you will see more in Episode 2. Anyway, I did spend about 12 hours re-filming and re-cutting this scene to try to get the exact tempo of the OG. At this time, I don’t know how to turn off the depth of field (DOF) so these shots went to the cutting room floor, aka the ancillary hard drive. Here’s a still from one shot that I quite liked.

All the clips in scene were actually re-shot once I was able to outfit Cloud with two materia (as in OG) rather than just the one that he has in 7R. In the next few episodes, see if you can spot any shots of Cloud’s sword with a missing materia, that would be from my first pass through!

Scene 03:  “Follow Me.”

Wait, isn’t this the same scene? Let me explain: I have over 150 clips for the scenes in this episode, pared down from dozens of hours of filming. Every change-of-state in the game is thus marked with a scene change, simply so that I can find clips with greater ease. 

Moreover, I organize my scenes by the Remake’s “chapter” system, which organizes the opening act of FF7’s story into 18 different environments and world states. That’s why scene numbers won’t necessarily correspond to the traditional episode script.

This sequence is triggered by player input, it draws two MPs onto the train platform. This is where my work truly starts, as I have to somehow convince an audience that this is a film instead of a gameplay clip. This is also the scene where I have to grapple with dialogue for the first time.

On the lack of voice acting:

As is, there’s no voice acting. Each episode comes with closed-captioning, and teams around the world should be encouraged to dub and re-release this series in the language of their choice. I didn’t want to steal/hack up the stellar voice performances of John Eric Bentley and the rest of 7R’s cast. Besides, in many cases they don’t have the dialogue I need them to say. This show’s script more closely matches “Echo-S” - another fan project - so if I were to use voice actors, I’d sooner collaborate with them than steal voice performances from 7R. The scenes are timed to match the length of time it would take to deliver the OG’s lines, and the closed-captioning presents my suggested english phrasing.

On the script (for closed-captions):

FF7 has been translated into english twice officially, twice by fans, and there are video essays and huge spreadsheets delving into the subject. I'm a native english speaker, so I'm taking all the available transcripts I can find and picking which exact phrase to use on a line-by-line basis.

I will try to add as few words or "battle shouts" as possible, unless I absolutely cannot get the information across any other way. My goal here is to adapt, not to embellish.

So what does this mean? Here was my process on how I chose Barret’s line:

“Ikuzo shin’iri! Ore ni tsudzuke!” (JP)

“C’mon newcomer, follow me!” (PS1/PC/Beacause)

“Get down here merc! You’re up!” (7R/Echo-S)

“Come on, new blood! Don’t fall behind!” (SAC)

“C’mon new guy! Follow me!” (A suggested alternative from the Tim Rogers series Found in Translation)

“Let’s go, recruit!” (A trailer for Remake from 2015)

"Get down here, merc! This way, merc!" (EC)

In this instance, I’ve gone with 7R, and for a similar reason to the musical cues I described in Scene 2. There are worse corners that 7R will back me into. So I’m not going to tear my hair out about this line.

Scene 04:  Combat: Cloud vs. 2 MPs

This is where the fun begins. Cloud quickly dispatches two MPs with his giant sword in a luscious, slow-motion phantasmagoria.

Through an unnatural hybrid of science and nature, I have manipulated a digital creature into serving my every whim! The camera on display here is being directly flown about by me. I cannot control both the camera and the game at the same time. Sometimes this means that I am switching back and forth between takes, inputting commands and then lettin’ er fly. Sometimes this means setting up the game on auto and hoping for the best, flying around and catching lucky shots.

The goal with this combat was to display the kind of flow that encounters in this show will have. L-a-n-g-o-u-r-o-u-s, slow-mo affairs with Matrix-esque sensibilities and a variety of cuts to match the music.

I can only tell so much of a story using a semi-improvised video game combat, but while things are simple (one player character, two enemies) I manage to display the battle “in order.” The round-by-round breakdown:

Cloud unsheathes his sword while two MPs approach him

Barret slips past the MPs and runs towards the station house

Cloud dashes forward and cuts down one MP with a single stroke

Cloud brings his sword up in a defensive stance over the MPs dead body

The other MP attempts to shoot Cloud

Cloud blocks the bullets with his sword

Cloud surges forward, killing the second MP with another series of strikes

I filmed this encounter for a few hours, getting 62 usable clips, of which are included in the final episode. Some of the best clips are on the cutting room floor as they were too awesome to tell the story properly. 

Final Thoughts

And that’s it! Episode 1 is in the bag. 

It may seem like it ends abruptly, but this is on purpose: in this series, the important story moments will happen at the beginning of episodes, and if a combat breaks out, you can trust that the next major scene will be at the start of the next episode. This is to keep episodes short, and to set up an expectation for viewers that once the slow-motion joyride starts, they are free to zone out or skip to the next episode for the next story beat, only missing combat and environment shots.

[blogthebooklover]

Movie Recs In Honor of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

I decided to write out a list of movies to watch in honor of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes coming out very soon. This list will feature movies with apes besides the POTA movies, or movies with weird and bizarre friendships/found families.

The Original Planet of the Apes Franchise (1968-1973, Amazon Prime)

Honestly, I've only watched the 1968 movie a handful of times. I decided to watch all of the original franchise leading up to the release of Kingdom. They're all a lot of fun, with social/political commentaries at the time of each film. If you're a movie collector, or like behind-the-scenes/director's commentaries, I highly recommend buying the Blu Ray compilation pack.

2. Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes (2001, Disney+ or Amazon Prime)

I know, hear me out. Yes, it's over-hated, and yes, there was A LOT of potential for this movie. There were definitely too many "cooks in the kitchen" when drafting this movie. Imho, I think it's a guilty pleasure, popcorn movie. If you're a fan of makeup effects, Rick Baker (THE modern makeup effects master) does an absolutely phenomenal job with the designs of the apes in this movie (and check out his Instagram too). I do like the production and the ape costume designs for this film as well.

Tim Roth and Paul Giamatti are such a blast in this movie, too!

And the posters for this movie look so cool.

3. Planet of the Apes Reboot Trilogy (2011-2017, Amazon Prime)

I think this is what the 2001 movie should have been, and was trying to go for. While the three movies did make their money back at the box office, I have two theories why they almost went under everyone's radar (again, this is my opinion):

A. Because of the mixed reception from the 2001 movie.

B. Because of the abundance of comic book & remake movies coming out during the 2011-2017 years.

I put this trilogy right up with the Lord of the Rings and Star Wars. The storytelling is great, the special effects hold up well, and this reboot's version of Caesar has became one of my favorite main characters in modern film.

4. Mighty Joe Young (1998 remake, Disney+)

I don't know why this movie doesn't get talked about that much. Rick Baker, once again, does incredible work on the special effects for Joe. There's also a great musical score by James Horner. And Bill Paxton and Charlize Theron give amazing acting performances. And I think it's actually one of the better remakes that came out from the late 1990s.

In fact, the team that worked on the 1933 King Kong also made the 1949 film. Even Robert Armstrong (Carl Denham) came back for the '49 film. Ray Harryhausen worked under the supervision of Willis O'Brien for the special effects for the original movie. He also has a cameo appearance alongside Terry Moore (Jill Young) in a party scene.

Aaaaand I just found out the writers, Mark Rosenthal and Lawrence Konner, also did an uncredited rewrite for the 2001 POTA movie.

5. Tarzan (1999, Disney+)

Of course, who doesn't love Tarzan??? And Phil Collins's A.M.A.Z.I.N.G soundtrack???!!!

6. King Kong (1933, 2005, Amazon Prime/MAX)

Okay, technically it's a giant monster movie and the OG prior to Godzilla. And it also set the standard of film making overall. However, it is also a bit of a Beauty and the Beast story, hence the lines: "It was Beauty killed the Beast" and the "And the prophet said: And lo, the Beast looked upon the face of Beauty. And it stayed its hand from killing. And from that day forward, he was as one dead." I also recommend watching the extended cut of the 2005 remake.

7. Lilo & Stitch (2002, Disney+)

Again, who doesn't love Lilo and Stitch???

8. How to Train Your Dragon Trilogy (2010-2019, Amazon Prime/Peacock App)

Once again, who doesn’t love HTTYD (and why are they remaking it as a live action movie????)???

9. Gorillas in the Mist (1988, Amazon Prime)

This movie is about Dian Fossey (played by Sigourney Weaver), a primatologist who studied mountain gorillas and she was part of a trio of women who studied great apes; the amazing Jane Goodall and her study of chimpanzees, and Birute Galdikas who studies orangutans. The movie is also based on her book of the same name.

I use past tense for Dian, because she met a tragic and horrific death while she was conducting her research on gorillas. I have in-lined a link to Dian Fossey's Wikipedia article for further reading.

Rick Baker, once again, does some amazing practical creature effects work for the gorillas.

10. George of the Jungle (1997, Disney+)

One of my favorite Brendan Fraser movies, and such a fun, and a bit of a campy movie based on the cartoon series (which is also a spoof of Tarzan). I quote this movie every so often. Unfortunately, Rick Baker did not do the ape designs for this movie. The creature effects this time around was done by none other than the Jim Henson Creature Workshop!

[cadybear420]

Rating, Replacements, and Additions for LI Wardrobes: Aiden Zhou, OG HSS Book 3

Sort of a spinoff of my Cadybear's MC Wardrobes series, I've decided to do a similar thing for some LI wardrobes. The wardrobes for LIs tend to be very limited compared to that of MCs, so a large portion of this series will be dedicated to making new outfits for LIs in events where MC gets to have a new outfit, or any special events.

First up is the one and only Aiden Zhou!!! I'll be submitting this for @aidenzhouappreciationweek! For the Day 2 Prompt Fashion/Design!

Directory for the other parts will be included in the reblogs after I've completed the posts for all books!

Canon Outfit: Spring Casual

I like it. Formal-ish, but still casual. A lot more casual.

Verdict: Keep it as is.

Of course... I think it might look good as a shorts outfit too...

:DDD

Event: Hearst Kids Tour

I feel like Aiden might wanna have a distinguished look when giving the tour. So I gave him the "spring fever" outfit from m!MC's wardrobe. I also think either of his spring casual outfits would work. All 3 of them sort of match the color scheme of Evie's tour guide outft.

Event: Caleb's beach party

He! Deserves! A! Cute! Little! Outfit!

I imagine soon after starting to date Evie is when he becomes a lot more open to experimenting with more revealing/risque clothing. The first of which is this romper.

Event: Open Mic Night at Pindarus

I feel like he might go with the semiformal Maria's birthday outfit for this one. Something tidy and distinguished because he's playing one of his songs, but also not overly formal.

Event: Punk Concert Premium Scene

Arguably his most daring outfit in this series. I totally have a headcanon about Ezra and Myra taking him clothes shopping in preparation for the concert. (And yes, I know there's this whole bit where Aiden's worried that he and MC are dressed too normally, but I renounce it. Aiden must wear the cute outfit.)

Semi-Canon: Promposal

In the CG, he was basically just wearing his homecoming suit but without the boutonierre. So I thought I'd make a sprite of it.

I was tempted at first to give him a new suit for the promposal, but A) I don't wanna have to edit or remake the CG and B) him wearing his homecoming suit can be a signifier of how when he first asked her + made a song and played it for was for homecoming

Canon: Spring Band Concert

So cute! So sharp! And Evie is DEFINITELY checking him out in that.

Verdict: Keep it as is.

New: Topless Spring Casual

As per that one truth or dare scene where our favorite repressed bisexual Max Warren dares Aiden to take his shirt off. Except I can not for the life of me see Aiden having defined abs (which is why all of the outfit edits where Aiden's stomach is bare has two versions: the in-game abs sprite for people who liked that and also guys with abs can still rock crop tops + the smooth tumby sprite for my headcanons), so that scene happens differently IMO.

I'm still working out the details of how that scene would happen differently, but I do know that Zoe will still say Evie is one lucky girl.

Canon: Prom

Fun fact, when I did a "best Aiden outfit" poll some months back, this one one. And rightfully so. He looks so sleek and sharp.

Verdict: Keep it as is.

Of course... I think we all deserve to see Aiden in that f!MC's premium dress again. But with a few extra versions...

The orignal one, of course. A version that's more purple. Some green ones, because his canon suit is green. A silver one, because the outfit is named "Silver Goddess" in the game and Aiden deserves to look like a silver goddess (or really just a goddess in general). And a black one because black suits him.

[the-indie-owl]

Finished Reading Felix Salten's "Bambi"

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK, IF YOU ARE ONE OF THESE PEOPLE WHO HAVE ONLY SEEN DISNEY'S ADAPTATION AND NOT HAVE READ THE SOURCE MATERIAL, THIS POST MIGHT CONTAIN SPOILERS SO PLEASE BE WARNED.

So I have recently finished reading the Original Book of Bambi after being in such a Cervine mood when re-watching the Disney films for the Past Two Months.

I felt like that when reading a Non-Fairytale Book for the very first time felt like something that I wanted to try on something new to rely on reading some books. Even after taking a brief look at The Russian version of the Source Material, it seems like something from what I knew when watching the Two-Part Movie live action adaptations that Human Ballet Animal version felt a more accurate approach than Disney's version when visiting the book.

For starters, I am not really a big fan of the Upcoming Soulless Disney Remake nor the Upcoming Garbage Horror B Movie (nor would I even want to see it) as I have been in the Bambi Fandom Two Years ago as I've seen that "Half" of the Fandom cares more about Fetishization or Crossovers in General for that Matter (*cough*, *cough*, Stephen King's Carrie, *cough*) while the Side of the Fandom are the ones who have read the Source Material and even done their own interpretations of the Other Characters (most likely the Deer characters) that never been fully adapted and were left out in the Disney universe (with the exception of Geno, Gurri, Boso, and Lana in the Comic Adaptation of "Bambi's Children").

But I really wanna talk about the Original Book version since a lot of People don't really know much about it since whenever we tend to think about "Bambi", most people would only think of the Popular Disney Version (yes, there are others that have seen Other Adaptations as I am aware that there are possibly more Bambi movies out there than both the Soviet and Disney ones).

Without any further, here are some personal plot points in the OG Book that were completely left out or missing (again, major spoilers to anyone who has never read it before);

So the Book actually has a lot more Story Plots than the Movie itself to make it more easier, simpler, and even shorter than how the book handles the story (presumably I believe that's the reason as to why that the Midquel exists for a reason as a suggestion to a "Part 2" of the story). In the meantime, both the Book and the Movie take a huge approach through a Deer's POV of Wildlife (that being Bambi himself) since both versions do teach Kids the Lessons and the Values of Life (how it can be Beautiful in both of a Dark and in a Light way) since Life can take you through many strange places around the world as you go to blend within the feels of reality.

Aside from the fact that the Disney movies has its Supporting Animal Characters, the Book has a lot more Animal Characters that haven't been fully adapted or were just left out (in terms on how that some of them might've been replaced). There's a Hare called "Friend Hare", in the Movie, it's Thumper. There is an Owl in the Book but he's just known as "Screech Owl", yet, in the film, it's "Friend Owl".

The Other Characters from the Book that we've never seen are the Magpie, The Two Jays, The Pheasant Couple, A Squirrel, ect. Did I also mention for a fact that there are actual other Deer characters that were also completely left out with the exception of a few?

The Book however explains that the Stags that we see are actually known as "The Young Princes" with Bambi's Father (which we all know him as "The Great Prince of the Forest")'s actual title is "The Old Stag" (which is more different than what Disney changes his title in the adaptations). On the other hand of the differences of being Titular Ruler of your own Animal Kingdom, while the Movie explains that being a Prince means you'd have to watch over and protect your own People, the Book however does it quite differently that being a Prince of the Forest doesn't mean that you have to be a Watcher but rather, it's something more different as the book explains to gain more wisdom as you grow.

Also, I wanted to say on how funny it is when people tend to ship Bambi/Ronno as crack, when in the book, Ronno was actually a lot older than Bambi as he was actually a Good Guy and hold no hated guts nor was a bully like how you once thought he always was (Aka, in akin on how the film portrays). However, as Bambi and Faline grew, he did challenge Bambi to see on which Buck would be the perfect mate for Faline (similar in nature on how Deer mate in RL) (but I'll get to that point later on). Ronno also had a Partner named "Karus", in which that both Ronno & Karus were actually the Young Princes in the Stag group, being very respectful towards the Animals in the Forest (including Bambi) until when Bambi grew older (again, gonna get to that part very soon).

Aside from the fact that we all know who Bambi's BFFs are in what terms that Disney tries to suggest us of a Bunny and a Skunk, Thumper and Flower were sadly never a thing in the Book as Bambi's friends were mostly Fawns around his age. However, while Friend Hare was turn into Thumper for a reason with Flower being an Original Character for the Film, Faline and Another Deer (who was her Brother), "Gobo" were actually long childhood friends of Bambi as their own Mothers actually have known in each other for a very long time. That's right, you heard Me, in the Original story, Faline had a Brother and that Brother was indeed a Very Friendful Deer (much to his sister's dismay of being more "childlike"). Gobo was actually the only Deer who was captured by the Hunter as a Fawn, but was brought and carefully raised by the Hunter as he grew up living with the Human (believing in the fact that not all Humans are bad since Half of the World that we all live in is filled and invested by Half of the Good/Bad of Humanity as our Neutrality is still running even to this day).

Now, for the Part about their own Mothers, needless to say is that Faline and Gobo's Mother is called "Aunt Ena" (suggesting that somewhere down the line that perhaps Bambi's Mother and Ena are Sisters, making both Bambi, Faline, and Gobo equally as Cousins). Granted, I'm not too sure about the "cousin" part as I am deeply aware of the fact if Salten was trying to do the whole "Blood Relation in Nature of Animals is not Illegal because Animals have No Laws unlike How We Humans have" thing, but I am assuming that Bambi's Mother and Ena are perhaps long-time friends, therefore, it wouldn't specifically make Bambi and Faline cousins if you're one of the few that's gonna think it's too much of nature with incest, but I believe that the relation between the Two Mothers is left completely unexplained in the Book (so I don't think that Bambi and Faline are truly cousins are not as some would suggest that).

On the topic of Bambi and Faline's romance, I will say in the least that like Simba/Nala from "The Lion King", it's sad that we don't get to see enough of Bambi's romance with his love interest (Faline) in the Disney films when technically the book version expands more on their relationship.

They started off as childhood friends (like in the film) but only when do the Two Fawns are in a Trio with Gobo, playing with other Fawns and even having some playful time in the woods. There were also Other Deer such as Old Nettla and even Marena were also part in their lives as they did play an important role in the story (Old Nettla is an elderly figure who doesn't deserve to have fawns of her own while Marena ended up becoming Gobo's Mate until his Death by the Hunter).

Eventually (like in the film), Bambi and Faline do see each other again when they're both Adults when Bambi starts to recognize his childhood friend while instantly being in love with her but unlike in the film, Faline was unaware of Bambi's blossomed crush on her. If Disney wants you to believe that Ronno is the Secondary Antagonist, you might want to re-think again because during Mating Season, Ronno and Karus were also in love with Faline as well as they even challenged Bambi for a duel for Faline's love just in the movie until Bambi eventually wins. Aside from what I believe was cut down from the original story is that (if I do remember correctly) was that Bambi and Faline were on their Mating Night during their Honeymoon.

So to speak on their behalf of their Romance, it was actually a lot more generically more "Lovely" rather than "Cute". Considering that Faline has been described as Playful and Childlike, there always has been a potential for Bambi and Faline to become Lovers given on how that their Chemistry was really sweet and innocent when Faline was like the special one to be friends with a Prince like Bambi as when they met again as adults, Bambi did grew fond of her as the Book clearly states that He loves Her "with all of his Heart". So you can say that in the least that their Dynamic does heavenly work as the "Childhood Friends to Lovers" trope like Christine and Raoul from Gaston Leroux's "The Phantom of The Opera".

Anyways, back on Track; I think that we seriously need to take about the Most Important Character of what Most of the Animals fear and see him as "The Devil" would none other be "Man" himself.

Given through the concept of the idea based on what Nature tends to portray Humanity through an Animal's POV, An Animaltaker is a Caring Angel Guardian. A Hunter is a Huge Threat. But what is that Man has in common with both in the Book and in the Film?

While we never get to see on what Man is truly like as a Character, he is only referred by Two Options;

A Regular Hunter whose just doing his own Hunting Job.

The Audience, in which this is what we are aware if our own Kind is the Main Villain of the Story.

The reason as to why I'd bring Man up is because the same thing cannot be said towards this Hunter from the Book (or at least, what he was originally referred to similar in the film).

In the book, Man was actually only referred to as "He" is what most of the Many Animals referred to him in the book. Only then, do "Man" and "He" whom most of the Animals call to is quite similar in how Rudyard Kipling's "The Jungle Book" when the Animals simply refer to "Fire" as "The Red Flower".

While Man was probably one of the few Disney Villains that scared a lot of our childhoods, the He in the book was actually describe pretty neutral. Just a regular human hunter just doing his own hunting job.

What's interesting though is that while a Hunter is still the biggest threat to all of the Wildlife, he was actually the one who raised Gobo after when he found him straitened during the Winter time (yeah, compare to the One who burnt down all of the Forest by stupidity, this one on the other hand takes up a caring approach towards an Animal after he tried to shot it), as it turns out, Gobo was actually taken care of through his new life with Man. So there's like this "Conflict" between One whose raised by Humans and the Others who are shocked but are still feared/hated by Men. There's also a part where one of He's hunting Dogs is scolded by the Animals for being one of the domesticated ones to obey their own Human Master, while catching a Fox.

I think we can all agree that this would possibly be the most accurate depiction of Reality of what Half of Nature's Animals could see the Neutral Complex in Humanity whenever we Humans hunt or care for a creature. And how life is up to you to make your own decisions.

As for the plot of the Original Story itself, it's almost the same as the Disney movie, but the Source Material does take its own Nature story in an Individual way while still exploring the Harsh Reality of Nature within how an Animal's Life deals within the Animals themselves. With its many characters and more plot points, the Story is more of a re-telling of a Child's life from both Childhood and Adulthood as half of the Book tends to explore both Bambi's Childhood and Adulthood alike as well as his relationship with his own Parents (something that Disney gave his own Childhood more screen time as we only see Bambi's Adulthood half through the movie, which cuts down the Whole Last Part of his Adulthood). As both endings due have Bambi becoming a Father with the birth of his Children from Faline (Geno & Gurri).

However, the only man difference is how on what Disney is telling you what their own version of how a Great Prince of the Forest is vs. How Salten tells you truly on how being a Ruler of the Forest is like to gain Wisdom in order to gain Power while being Protector of the Forest.

In conclusion, while so far that the Many Changes within Disney's classical film compare to the Other Bunch of Disney Movies (that most of them are drawn from the Old Century Stories that Disney popularize to this day), I would say that Disney's take on Salten's Bambi is the largest of the pop culture today with Most People not knowing the Original Story (in fact, it's sad to say in the least on how that the Popular Adaptation overshadows the Source Material. With the Disney version still taking a Dark approach with a Cutsey Animal feel to it inside of a Mashup, the Book's approach on Nature is much more Accurate and More Realistic without any Adorable "Feel" behind to it.

However, aside from the fact that both Books are Good, does that mean I'll prefer the Book over the Famous Adaptation that is more familiar with? Well...Not really, tbh, in fact, while both can be flawed in their own way, they can actually be both unique in their own way.

So for the Book's Rating, I'd give it a 8/10, because it's still a Good Story compare to the Movie (which is still a Cinematic Masterpiece) IMO.

[c0rpsedemon]

as a big figure collector myself i'd love to hear your hot takes

oo okay i'm going to ramble abt freeing b-styles for a bit bc it's what mfc is imploding itself over this week so they're the first thing i could think of. i think freeing's b-style line Might be the most mismanaged figure line within recent history.

the thing abt b-styles is that they have the potential to be so so so good sometimes. the siren song of "huge figure of my fave" is real and common, and it's p hard to fuck up enough to make a playboy bunnysuit look bad. but not even freeing knows what the b-style line is even meant to be, it's not their 1/4 line bc of the 10 count and i'm-being-harrassed-by-the-sexiest-man-of-the-year 1/8 scale bunnies (put a pin in those two), and it's not their bunnysuit line bc of the mikus, fate characters, touhou girls etc. which are all part of the line and yet in their canon outfits. additionally, freeing's paint jobs and sculpts have notoriously been lacking. i think gil's b-style is a good example of what i mean by this, partially bc i think it's more than safe to assume you're very familiar w him, but also bc he's the fig that made me start to pick up on b-style's common issues. i like him a lot and i want to love him but his pose looks more like that of a cosplayer replicating his iconic pose than one he's making naturally, and his face is... not the worst gil face i've seen but also farrr from the best. his shading, especially on his hair, is near-nonexistent in photos and his armor is more piss yellow than gold. and he's an average b-style quality-wise, not one of the particularly bad ones, like the marin mydressupdarling one that mfc is currently flipping its shit abt, or the melody oc w the pink hair and green lingere. b-style is prone to (and getting increasingly comfortable with) releasing figures w bad qc, minimal shading, and merely 'ok' sculpts for ~30,000 jpy (with increasing prices).

additionally, i think their rerelease policy is somewhat predatory. it used to be a widely agreed aspect of figure collecting that bare-leg bunnies are kinda really ugly but w the kirigiri danganronpa bare-leg going up for preorder, the bare-leg activists have been coming out of the woodwork under the impression that they're an oppressed group bc of their... anime figure preferences. subjective taste regarding bare-legs aside, there's no claiming that a bare-leg release is the same as a rerelease, especially when the tights being real fabric is part of the original's selling point. the few remakes that actually change something besides the tights, ie. recolors or like. tiger taiga, are always something fans want more than the og and always announced not until after people who would have otherwise skipped out on the plain version had already paid for it. it's all deliberate. if freeing doesn't do straightforward rereleases, then their aftermarkets continue to skyrocket, and they can charge more no matter how subpar their figures can be bc people have gotten used to paying insane prices for b-style bunnies.

and then there's the actual designs of the bunnysuits themselves. don't get me wrong here, freeing has done a great job on some of its bunnies. madoka and homura come to mind as some of its best original bunny designs, and they've done a great job adapting some canon bunny designs, like miku and haruhi's, percival's even came out so nice that i'm this close to playing eiyuu senki just to justify hunting her down. and i'm not even completely opposed to plain bunny designs, i adore black rock shooter's b-style and there are a lot of complaints to be had with hers if you're looking for them (she's literally had canon bunnysuits which were more visually interesting + almost all brs figures are variants of THE gsc 1/8 scale just w slight differences and this one is no exception + the combination of the two make it downright lazy). but most freeing bunnies tend to fall less into the category of 'how would this character wear a bunny suit' and more 'we put this character in a bunnysuit!' the love is war girls come to mind as an example, but there's also that one girl who always wears an american flag bikini top in her show, and who got a bikini top on her bunny but it was just plain blue, or komi, famous anime girl from a show i've never watched, who every1 briefly lost their shit over bc (allegedly) she's wayyy too shy to wear something like that and also should've been a cat and although i don't know who tf she is, i'm inclined to agree w them. you could remove the head of almost every b-style bunny and without fail it'd be hard to guess who's who. which is where some of the criticisms regarding 'hey why are there so many underage characters being made' come in, and while i think that it should be judged on a case by case basis (esp considering how bunnysuits seem to have a slightly different cultural connotation in japan vs the west), a lot of the time when underage girls' heads are thrown on the bunnysuit-clad body of what could have easily been any other adult, and when the bunnysuit takes priority over the character, i can really get where they're coming from. i want to praise bicute bunnies as being better than b-styles in regards to character > bunnysuit but tbh i think they sort of moe-blobify every1 they make but so far it's only been miku, sonico and re:zero girls so. it remains to be seen.

and this is the point where i have to cycle back to the 10 count and i'm-being-harrassed-by-the-sexiest-man-of-the-year bunnies and the fact that freeing is weird abt the concept of anyone amab being viewed as attractive, esp in a bunnysuit. i feel like bunnymen have to be one of the most highly sought-after figures by the rapidly expanding female collector-base (esp those on tiktok and youtube) and yet there are.... 4 b-styles by freeing, and all 4 are 1/8 scales instead of 1/4s like the rest of the line. more specifically, they're the only figures in the line which are less than 1/4 scale, save for one singular 1/6 that wasn't Just produced by freeing (it has 2 manufacturers listed) and seems to be a much more complicated case than any of the others so i'm just going to ignore it as the exception that proves the rule. it's almost as if ppl who are attracted to men are being de-prioritized in the eyes of freeing as lesser consumers. it's not even justifiable to say something along the lines of "oh. well clearly they were taking a risk and thus decided to go with the most popular scale" bc 1/8s are... not that. 1/7s have ruled the figure world for a while (and for good reason) but that's not what male figures would have you believe, as 1/8s are the most common scale. i just think that it says a lot for the figure line which has a gimmick of making figures that are huge going for the literal most common scale (which is also tiny) the second it comes time to make a man is. hm. freeing does have an amab nonbinary* (*i've never watched the show but the wiki uses they/them) 1/4 scale bunny coming up of rimuru from the fucking. slime isekai. but. 1. they look more like a girl in the b-style than they do in p much any other figure of them, and 2. with the extreme popularity of certain similar characters, why is this only happening now? and it's at this point where i have to turn to a question which has been bugging me since i started writing this: why is there no bridget b-style? i honest to god think that, out of the wave of bridget announcements that swept through last wonfest, freeing b-style has to be the only major figure line that didn't announce a bridget. which could mean nothing. but also there's no b-style of felix from re:zero, who actually didn't get any mass-produced figures overall so i guess she wasn't that popular in japan, poor girl, and despite the fact that my introduction to figure customization was through b-styles being made of this character, and i've never seen a b-style custom that Wasn't of this character (beyond putting tights on a bareleg or w/e), and this character notably having an alternate bunny-themed outfit, there's still no b-style astolfo. and yeah. could mean nothing. but also if it does mean nothing that's a massive loss of revenue on freeing's part. but it generally rubs me the wrong way to think abt how the only """male""" (which i say bc figure collectors can be inc transphobic at times and i doubt there's that big a gap between customer and manufacturer in this regard considering... everything) figure who isn't openly presenting masculinely allowed to be in the 1/4 scale b-style line is uhm. technically a slime. and thus isn't polluting the good pure bunnies w the presence of a penis.

also this is a nitpick but the fate b-styles are generally inconsistent and it makes me mad. gil artoria^2 in their normal outfits i get bc they're super popular but also it'd make even more sense to have mash there. a few canon fgo bunnies (scáthach artoria ruler koyanskaya) makes sense but i'll still be upset abt no saberstolfo and there's an infinitely larger audience for her than koyanskaya. and then there's chloe and illya from prillya and all i can think of is who wanted this. i mean i know who but they're proof that type-moon aren't stopping freeing from putting their characters in bunnysuits even when they don't wear them in any official sources so like. where are the f/sn heroines. why aren't there more fgo bunnies. where's nero. freeing's character decisions upset me a lot of the time.

also the marin mydressupdarling bunny is lazy and looks bad and they should be ashamed of themselves for that one.

[hidingoutbackstage]

@naturalkillercyborg Oh bestie you have no idea the rant I have just locked and loaded about how much I hate remake Ashley

Prefacing this ofc with the fact that I LOVE og Ashley, she’s a great character whom I adore, and my hatred for her remake version comes from all the things they removed from og Ashley to make her so bland and digestible.

You mentioned the eyes, which you’ve seen me complain about endless times, but while the eye color change from brown to blue does suck, it’s part of a larger issue I have with remake Ashley: she’s too pretty. Capcom apparently got it in their heads that female characters MUST be wearing makeup at ALL TIMES, so Ashley, throughout the ENTIRE game, has glossy pink lips, a highlight-like shine on her nose and cheeks, and shimmering brown eyelids. This isn’t Ashley exclusive, Ada and Hunnigan are wearing makeup at all times too, as are Claire and Jill in the 2 and 3 remakes (women b wearing lip gloss ig) but it pisses me off because Ashley was bare faced in the original. Her lips were almost the same color as her skin, she had no makeup on, AND THAT’S PERFECTLY FUCKING FINE, BECAUSE SHE WAS KIDNAPPED TO ANOTHER CONTINENT.

Ashley’s also too pretty because she’s an Instagram model, and that’s not an exaggeration. The face model for Ashley was a literal Instagram model named Ella Freya. I don’t know her, she’s a perfectly fine and attractive woman, but again I must state how plain Ashley looked in the original. She had a soft round face, a cute nose, normal eyebrows, charming big ears, she looked plain and she looked normal. Ella Freya, though, is an Instagram model in the year 2023, so remake Ashley now has a slimmer face, slimmer nose, perfect eyebrows, blue eyes that I hate, and, to my absolute dismay, her hair now permanently covers her ears at all times (unless you give her the casual outfit which was a cosmetic only available for preordered versions of the game but I’ll stop there before I go on a completely different rant).

Still continuing the “too pretty” rant, she’s wearing THE stupidest blazer and scarf I could POSSIBLY think to put a 20 year old in the year 2004 in. Her og outfit was perfectly fine and charming and fit the time period, and her beta outfit was even better, because it was cute yet functional, an orange coat, gray scarf, gray gloves and black pants. The remake though, kept her original silly cute outfit but added sheer tights (which is dumb, just give her pants) and a blazer that no one under the age of 30 and isn’t a senator would ever wear. The blazer also has a stupid eagle pin on it because duh Ashley’s “Baby Eagle” that’s her code name she’s the daughter of the president that’s all she is!

Which leads me to my next grievance, remake Ashley is THE DEFINITION of a prop character. She could be a bag of money stolen from the White House and NOTHING story-wise or gameplay-wise would change. In the original, saving Ashley felt like a real escort mission. She had her own health bar, she had a personality that was spunky, she was mostly helpless and afraid being out of her element here (WHICH IS FINE) but she still persisted at being brave. She had a short temper at times when it was justified (mostly sexualization jokes or straight up SA at her expense) AND she got to do things like drive the forklift, operate the wrecking ball, save Leon from his Plaga, and playing as her in her sections is fun if you can ignore the panty shots. She feels like a real young woman who’s really on this adventure with you, and you genuinely feel terrible for her as her infection worsens or when she gets kidnapped.

But NOPE apparently og Ashley is tooooo hardddd so there’s no health bar for her this time, she can get captured or hit and still be fine, she doesn’t drive the forklift, she operates a different wrecking ball in a fight scene that feels like it was done that way to pad the 9 hour play time (with a stupid line that I’ll get into) there’s no sexual assault this time (thank GD) so she never gets to be upset or fiery or spunky or able to communicate ANY gd damn emotion that isn’t “happy for Leon” or “uwu so scared and meek and helpless” and it’s OBNOXIOUS. The scene where Luis comments on Ashley’s boobs has been changed (again, thank gd) to him calling her señorita, to which Ashley just says “Señorita has a name, it’s Ashley. You are?” like it’s just a question and there’s NO anger or malice behind her voice when she corrects him.

Before I get into how basically every line remake Ashley said pissed me the fuck off I’m gonna go over her play style, because yeah, you get to briefly play as Ashley in this game. In the original, Ashley gets separated from Leon, and you have to play as her by traversing the halls, solving puzzles and avoiding enemies to get back to Leon. It’s scary because you’re used to having Leon’s ammo and health items at this point, so playing as Ashley, you’re almost completely defenseless. It’s a fun play style. I say “almost” completely defenseless, because there is one thing Ashley can do, and that’s pick up the lanterns around her and chuck them at enemies, setting them on fire and killing them. And that’s BADASS and I was so STOKED to see how they did this in the remake so much so that upon my bf’s first playthrough I made him let me play the Ashley section.

And I was real fucking disappointed because GONE is Ashley’s (and thus the player’s) sense of helplessness. Why? Because Ashley is given a lantern that temporarily freezes the enemies sneaking up on her in place, allowing her to escape. It’s a dark room so the lantern acts as your only light source, which is fine as a gameplay mechanic. But Ashley, our too good sweet unflawed innocent girl this time around, gets to do NO killing and is basically INVINCIBLE for most of her section, because she’s given impenetrable armor in the form of this lantern. At the end of her section she loses the lantern and you do just have to run for it, but that’s a short burst of speed down a hall and then you’re safe. There’s no challenge to Ashley’s section this time.

Okay real quick before I get into how her lines piss me off, I’m gonna talk real quickly about her lack of personality BESIDES her lines that refuse to give her one. So, we learn a SINGLE new thing about Ashley in this game, and that’s that she is in a sorority at college. We only know this because she has a sorority sticker on her cell phone. That’s it, that’s all the new information we get about this character.

There are also plot beat changes that piss me off with their lack of personality given to Ashley. The two main ones I can think of are when Leon first finds her, and when they get separated in the castle. In the og, when found, Ashley throws something at Leon to defend herself before curling up into a ball in the corner. She does this a lot in the game, cowering in fear by making herself smaller, which is an interesting character thing, yes it’s possible for characterization to come from movements. In the remake, Ashley brandishes a candelabra and tells Leon to let her go (mistaking him for a ganado) and he just easily disarms her, and when trying to explain herself she escapes out of the room. It just feels like an attempt to quench to complaints about Ashley being too weak in the first game, which could’ve been fine if she was actually a stronger character in this, but she isn’t.

The second plot beat pisses me off so fucking much. In the original, while walking in the hallway, Ashley starts coughing up blood due to the parasite. Leon asks if she’s okay, and, panicked, runs down the hall away from him, a gate separating them and chasing her down the hall until she’s captured, ending with the two being separated. You have to play as Leon to find your way to the room where she was taken and shoot off her restraints to set her free. Ashley has a cute quip there, and then has to escape the pursuing Ganados, leading to the “playing as Ashley” section. In the REMAKE, Ashley is instead taken control of by Saddler using the Plaga inside her, threatening to slit her own throat with a knife, allowing Saddler to put distance between her and Leon so a gate can separate them. Ashley is then let go of the mind control, she drops the knife, panics, and runs away. The gate is immediately lifted, and you have to play as Leon to find her, where she’s just…sitting in a room and crying. Leon gives her a pep talk about being brave, which somehow works because this is a shell of a character, and you move on.

Apparently people complained about Ashley running off frightened in the original, so in the remake they make it so that it isn’t her fault she and Leon get separated, because GD FORBID a victim act out, act irrationally, or have FLAWS.

Okay now we’re going to get into her lines/dialogue, if you couldn’t tell, I was holding back before. Shocker I know, but I’m really miffed about these.

Ashley's ENTIRE EXISTENCE and EVERY SINGLE LINE in this ENTIRE GAME is dedicated to one of two things: 1) hyping up how cool Leon is, or 2) telling us how scared she is. That's it. No personality. No character. No backstory. No insight into who she is as a person. No mannerisms that tell us anything about her. Ashley might as well have not existed prior to the start of Resident Evil 4 because she has no character AT ALL. This woman is a KIDNAPPING VICTIM who is the ENTIRE FOCUS OF THE GAME and she doesn't get anything about her that makes her unique.

I was expecting AT LEAST ONE LINE FROM ASHLEY about her father, that she was excited to see him again, that she loved him, or the opposite, that they have a complicated relationship, that he's not a great dad because he's the president and busy all the time, SOMETHING. But nope, none of that. We have no idea how ASHLEY feels about the FATHER you're supposed to return her to. A pretty BASIC relationship to establish if you ask me. In the original, and I chalk this up to misogyny in the script writing, because Ashley's the president's daughter, they only mention her father throughout the game. They never say "parents" or "family" they ONLY say father. In the show Infinite Darkness, we see on the president's desk that he has two pictures of Ashley, one of the girl by herself and the other of just the two of them with their dog. No mother in the pictures. I thought that had the potential to be an interesting character thing, maybe Ashley's mom was dead or had gotten a divorce from her father, maybe the remake could have at least a throwaway line about it. NOPE. Ashley's only established emotional relationships in THE WHOLE GAME are Leon, the man rescuing her, Luis, the man helping her, and the cult who kidnapped her (obvious negative feelings for that one).

Ashley was so hated in the og I guess that the writers of the remake built her entire existence on endearing her to the player. See, she doesn't need your health items anymore! See, she doesn't scream "annoyingly" anymore! See, she cries out for you when you get hurt and close to death! See, she's pretty now! See, she doesn't get mad at you for looking up her skirt (yes that's a real mechanic in the og and yes it was removed)! See, she does NOTHING but tell you how cool and awesome you are and how much she believes in you! See, when she gets separated from you it's not HER fault! See, she actually lovesss the American government and military and she's soooo patriotic! See, she wants to be your agent partner rather than having a crush on you! Like OH MY GD IT IS FINE IF NOT EVERY ASPECT OF A CHARACTER'S PERSONALITY IS ENDEARING. IT'S FINE. IT'S FUCKING FINE.

I mean ffs Luis is a flawed but good-hearted character and this stupid fandom fucking LOVES him (mostly because they can ship him with Leon though) so why does Ashley have to be held to this impossible standard.

One of the Ashley lines that pisses me off the most is the line Ashley says when she gets in the wrecking ball i mentioned earlier. Leon asks if she can operate one of those things, and this dumbass compares it to "drivers ed." Drivers. Ed. Are you fucking kidding me. All you did there was make her look like a ditz for equating operating construction equipment to driving a fucking car. In the original, Ashley was able to easily drive a forklift and wrecking ball with no problem, even proudly proclaiming "Leave it to me, Leon!" as she climbs in the forklift, to the point that Ashley being "forklift certified" became somewhat of a joke/meme (at least among my friends) because again it's a character moment. This is just stuff she knows how to do. It's silly but it's endearing, and you chose to replace that with "it's just like drivers ed." Givemeagddamnfuckingbreak.

Another Ashley line that I only came to hate recently comes from the DLC Separate Ways where you play as Ada. Ashley in the base game has a couple lines related to Ada, but all of them are about Leon's relationship to Ada, so once again, her entire focus is Leon. Whatever. In the trailer for Separate Ways, there's a shot of Ashley during the final boss fight looking towards the camera, implying that Ashley was going to interact with Ada, and I was SUPER EXCITED about that because none of the three main women EVER interact in this game (Ashley, Ada and Hunnigan) and I wanted to see what kind of conversation Ada could have with Ashley. Maybe Ada showing a rare bit of sympathy for this poor, fearful kidnapped girl, maybe offering her a ride out of there (though Ashley would just say "not without Leon" which. whatever) or ask about the Plaga or even just say "You okay?" or ANYTHING.

Well imagine my disappointment when that didn't happen. Ada walks up to where Ashley's nervously watching the fight go down, Ashley turns to Ada and says "Leon needs help. Hurry!" and that's IT. Ada doesn't even say anything BACK, she just goes to help Leon. Once a-fucking-gain, Ashley's ONLY there to service Leon, even when talking to someone else.

Ashley's commitment to being patriotic and wanting to be Leon's partner pisses me offfff too. It's not even my anti-American side, it's simply the fact that this game is trying so hard to be patriotic. Which is REALLY fucking weird considering the og was the complete opposite of that, but again that's a separate rant. Again it's another move to endear her to the player, since Leon is a government agent and the people playing this game probably also play Call of Duty so they think the American government and military is cool.

AND. AND AND AND! The creators said they wanted it to be clear that there was nothing romantic between Ashley and Leon. Which is fine! I'm cool with that! I prefer it actually! BUT they removed some elements that I think would have been MORE endearing to see. In the original, Ashley and Leon hug several times, and it's always cute and sweet, feels very older brother little sister with the way Leon pats her on the head, and very genuine when Leon cures Ashley of her Plaga, how she sits up and throws her arms around him as a thank you. Makes me wanna cry. In the remake they hug ONCE and it's brief. After Leon has been cured of his Plaga and wakes up, Ashley cheerily smiles at him and gives him a hug because, as she says, "I thought you were gonna die." and Leon simply pats her ont he back, doesn't even hug her in return. Like what the HELL??? This girl has been through SO MUCH these past few days, and she doesn't even get a gd damn ACTUAL hug???? Why????? There's nothing inherently romantic about that.

The other removed element is from an early concept for the remake that was scrapped, and that was a hand-holding mechanic. basically you could hold Ashley's hand if you wanted her to stay close to you while you were running somewhere. The creators scrapped it because they didn't want Ashley and Leon to seem "too close." Why? Holding hands isn't inherently romantic, and even in Japan that kind of PDA is fine. Leon grabbed Ashley's hand (albeit in scripted cutscenes) in the og and they were never romantic, so why not here?

I am fully aware that the Ashley in my head isn't completely the same as og Ashley. Og Ashley isn't jewish, doesn't canonically dye her hair blonde, doesn't canonically have a dead mom, but it's still all based on stuff in canon that relates to her personality and characterization. Remake Ashley is fucking nothing, there's nothing to springboard off of, and although the fandom pisses me off for their refusal to engage with women, when it comes to remake Ashley there's not exactly anything worth engaging with since her entire existence revolves around you, despite your mission revolving around her (they could still try harder though).

Was watching og 4 gameplay for writing reasons and was struck by just how much I miss og Ashley 😭😭😭 babygirl I’m soso sorry for what the remake did to you

[bananaofswifts]

Taylor Swift Turns on a Facsimile Machine for the Ingenious Recreations of ‘Fearless (Taylor’s Version)’: Album Review

Swift recreates her entire 2008 album literally down to the last note, then gives herself room for stylistic latitude on six never-before-recorded "vault" tracks.

By Chris Willman

Swift recreates her entire 2008 album literally down to the last note, then gives herself room for stylistic latitude on six never-before-recorded "vault" tracks.

There is no “best actress” award at the Grammys, perhaps for obvious reasons, but maybe there should be this coming year. And the Grammy would go to… Taylor Swift, for so persuasively playing her 18-year-old self in “Fearless (Taylor’s Version),” her beyond-meticulous recreation of the 2008 recording that did win her her first album of the year trophy back in the day. It’s impossible to overstate just how thoroughly the new version is intended as an exact replica of the old — all the way down to her startling ability to recapture an untrained teen singing voice she’s long matured and moved on from. It’s a stunt, to be sure, but a stunt for the ages — mastering the guile it takes to go back to sounding this guileless.

There are two different, very solid reasons to pick up or stream “Taylor’s Version,” regardless of whether you share her ire for the Big Machine label, whose loose ways with her nine-figure catalog precipitated this, the first in a six-album series of remakes where she’ll be turning on the facsimile machine. One is to marvel at her gift for self-mimicry on the album’s original tracks, where she sounds as possessed by her younger self as Regan ever was by Pazuzu. The other reason is, of course, to check out the six “vault” numbers that Swift wrote during that time frame but has never released before in any form, which dispenses with stylistic fealty to the late 2000s and frames her “Fearless”-era discards in production and arrangements closer to “Folklore.” Those half-dozen (kind of) new tracks really do sound like modern Taylor Swift covering her old stuff.

But those original lucky 13? It’s the same damn record… which is kind of hilarious and marvelous and the kind of meta-ness that will inspire a thousand more think-pieces than it already has, along with possibly efforts at forensic analysis to figure out how she did it.

It would not be surprising if, as we speak, Big Machine was putting a combined team of scientists and lawyers on the case of the new album’s waveform readouts, to make sure it’s not just the original album, remixed. Honestly, it’s that close. The timings of the songs are all within a few seconds of the original tracks, if not coming in at exactly the same length. The duplication effort doesn’t allow any detours. If “Forever and Always” had a cold open then, it’s going to have a cold open now. If the 2008 “That’s the Way I Love You” had slamming rock guitars with an almost subliminal banjo being plucked beneath the racket, so will the 2021 “That’s the Way I Loved You.” A drum roll to end the old “Change”? A drum roll to end its body-snatcher doppelganger. And if she chuckled before the final chorus of “Hey Stephen” 13 years ago, so will that moment be cause for a delighted giggle now.

Of course, much analysis will be put into whether the new laugh is a more knowing-sounding laugh. And that will be part of the fun for a certain segment of audiophile Swifties who will go looking for the slightest change as evidence of something meaningful. When “Love Story (Taylor’s Version)” first came out weeks back to preview the album, there were reviews written that swore she’d subtly changed up her phrasing to put a contemporary spin on the song. And maybe they were right, but, having done a fair amount of A/B testing of the two versions of the album, I found myself feeling like I do when vinyl buffs insist there are significant sonic differences between the first stamper version of an LP and one that was pressed a year later. If you can spot those very, very, very modest tweaks, go for it.

But my suspicion is that if Swift has decided to turn a phrase a little differently here or there on this album, or done anything too differently aside from brighten the sound, she’s doing it more as an Easter egg, for the people who are on that kind of hunt, than anything really designed as reinterpretation. Because the last thing Swift wants most of her fans doing is A/B-ing the two versions, the way I did. The whole point is to have folks retire the OG “Fearless” from their Spotify playlists, right? The Swift faithful were already threatening to rain down damnation on anyone caught sneaking an audio peek at the old version after midnight. What she intended was to come up with a rendering so faithful that you would never have a need to spin the vintage album again. In that, she has succeeded beyond what could have been imagined even in the dreams of the few self-forgers who’ve tried this before, like a Jeff Lynne.

Is there any reason to find value in the new versions if you couldn’t care less about the issues of masters and contracts and respect in business deals that made all this strangely possible? Yes, with the first one being that the new album just sounds like a terrific remastering of the old — the same notes, and you’d swear the same performances, but sounding brighter and punchier just on a surface level. But on a more philosophical one, it’s not just a case of Swift playing with her back catalog like Andy Warhol played with his soup can. It’s really a triumph of self-knowledge and self-awareness, in the way that Swift is so hyper-conscious of the ways she’s matured that she has the ability to un-mature before our very ears. With her vocals, it’s virtuosic, in a way, how she’s made herself return to her unvirtuosic upstart self.

On Swift’s earliest albums and in those seminal live shows — at the time when she was famously being told she “can’t sing,” to quote a song from the follow-up album — there was a slight shrillness around the edges of her voice that, if you lacked faith, you might’ve imaged would be there forever. It wasn’t. That was partly youth, and partly just the sheer earnestness with which she wanted to convey the honesty of the songs. She’s advanced so much since then — into one of pop’s most gifted modern singers, really — that the woman of “Folklore” and “Evermore” seems like a completely different human being than the one who made the self-titled debut and “Fearless,” never mind just a woman versus girl. It wouldn’t have seemed possible that she could go back to her old way of singing at the accomplished age of 31, but she found and recreated that nervous, sincere, pleading voice of yesteryear. And maybe it was just a technical feat, of temporarily unlearning what she’s learned since then, but you can sense that maybe she had to go there internally, too, to the place where she was counseling other girls to guard their sexual virtue in “Fifteen,” or wondering whether to believe the fairy tale of “Love Story” or the wakeup call of “White Horse,” or proving with “Forever & Always” that writing a song telling off Joe Jonas for his 27-second breakup call was better than revenge.

If at first you’re not inclined to notice that Swift has re-adopted a completely different singing voice for the “Fearless” remakes, the realization may kick in when those “vault” tracks start appearing in the later stretch of this hour-and-50-minute album. The writing on the six songs that have been pulled up from the 2008 cutting room floor seems primitive, even a little bit by the standards of the “Fearless” album; there are great lines and couplets throughout the rescued tracks, but you can see why she left them as works-in-progress. But she doesn’t use her youthful voice on these resurrections, nor does she employ the actual style of “Fearless” very strictly. Of course, she feels more freedom on these, because there are no predecessors in the Big Machine catalog she’s asking you to leave behind. Her current collaborators of choice, Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner, divided the co-producing work on these fresher songs, as they did for the two all-new albums she released in the last year. (The “Fearless” recreations are co-produced by Swift with Christopher Rowe, someone who worked on remixes for Swift back in that era.) They co-produce the vault songs in a style that sounds somewhere between “Fearless” and Folklore”… a more spectral brand of country-pop, with flutes and synths and ringing 12-string guitars and a modicum of drum programming replacing some (but not all) of the acoustic stringed instruments you’d expect to be carried over from “Fearless” proper.

Of the previously unheard tracks, Swift was right — she’s always been her own best self-editor — in putting out “You All Over Me” first, in advance of the album. With its imagery of half-muddy stones being upturned on the road, this song has advanced lyrical conceits more of a piece with the level of writing she’s doing now than some of the slightly less precocious songs that follow. Still, there’s something to be said for the sheer zippiness with which Swift conveys teen heartbreak in “Mr. Perfectly Fine,” which has a lyric that shows Swift had long since absorbed the lessons Nashville had to offer about how to come up with a high-concept song — the concept, in this case, being just to stick the word “mister” in front of a lot of phrases relating to her shallow ex, as if they were honorary titles to be conferred for being a shit, while she employs the “miss” for herself more sparingly.

Some of the remaining outtake songs go back more toward the sedate side of “Fearless”-style material; she didn’t leave any real bangers in the can. “We Were Happy,” the first of two successive tracks to bring in Keith Urban (but only for backgrounds on this one), employs fake strings and real cello as Swift waxes nostalgic for a time when “you threw your arms around my neck, back when I deserved it.” It’s funny, in a good way, to hear Swift at 31 recreating a song she wrote at 17 or 18 that pined for long-past better times. The next song, “That’s When,” brings Urban in for a proper duet where he gets a whole second verse and featured status on half a chorus, and it’s lovely to hear them together. But, as a make-up song, it doesn’t feel as real or lived-in as the more personal things she was writing at the time — and the fact that its chords are pretty close to a slightly more balladic version of the superior “You Belong With Me” was probably a pretty good reason for dropping it at the time.

the 18-year-old Taylor Swift is a great place to visit, but “Folklore” and “Evermore” are the place you’ll want to return to and live, unless you have an especially strong sentimental attachment to “Fearless”… which, sure, half of young America does. It’s not irreconcilable to say that the two albums she issued in the last year represent a daring pinnacle of her career, but that “Fearless” deserved to win album of the year in 2008. Has there been a greater pop single in the 20th century than “You Belong With Me”? Probably not. Did the album also have lesser moments you probably haven’t thought about in a while, like the just-okay “Breathe”? Yes. (I looked up to see whether Swift had ever played that little remarked upon number in concert, and according to setlists.fm, she did, exactly once… in 2018. Because she’s Taylor Swift, and of course she did.) It’s not certain that her duet with Colbie Caillat really needed to be resurrected, except it’s fun, because hey, she even roped former duet partners back into her time warp. But there are so many number that have stood the test of time, like “The Way I Love You,” an early song that really got at the complicated feelings about passion and fidelity that she would come to explore more as she grew into her 20s… and just kind of a headbanger, too, on an album that does love its fiddles and mandolins.

It doesn’t take much to wonder why Swift put up “Fearless” first in this six-album exercise; it’s one of her two biggest albums, along with “1989,” and it’s 13 years old, which does mean something superstitious in the Taylor-verse. In a way, it’ll be more interesting to see what happens when she gets to more complicated productions, like “1989” or “Reputation.” But maybe “Fearless” did present the opportunity for the grandest experiment out of the gate: to recreate something that pure and heartfelt, with all the meticulousness a studio master like Swift can put to that process now, without having it seem like she’s faking sincerity. Let the think-pieces proceed — because this is about six hundred different shades of meta. But, all craftiness and calculation aside, there’s a sweetness to the regression that’s not inconsequential. It harks back to a time when she only wondered if she could be fearless, before she learned it the harder way for sure. What they say about actors “disappearing into the role”? That really applies to Taylor Swift, playing herself.

[geekgemsspooksandtoons]

Resident Evil Welcome To Raccoon City

Let me warn you all that this is still my first reaction. And before I get into certain details. There will be no spoilers. I also just checked to make sure...I’ll mention it when I talk about the movie. But the first I’m gonna do, and I am gonna sound childish(As in I’m gonna hold shift when typing done my reaction). Again, my first reaction. I’m worried my viewpoint may change. But opinions can change. Yet after worrying and being excited for this movie. I’m gonna say what I first said in my last post, and to my mom(That time was without the swear).

-

I FUCKING LOVED IT!

WHY DIDN’T WE GET THIS IN 2002!? OH MY GOD! THIS IS EASILY IN MY TOP FIVE VIDEO GAME MOVIE ADAPTATIONS! THIS IS WHAT I WANTED! AND WHATEVER ELSE I WANTED TO SAY! FORGET THE CRITICS! IT WAS WORTH SEEING THIS! I NEEDED TO GET IT SEEING THIS OUT OF MY SYSTEM! I WANT A SEQUEL! GIVE ME NEMESIS AND EVEN CODE VERONICA! I WANT MY BOY NEMESIS! JOHANNES ROBERTS YOU DID IT! I LOVED THIS MOVIE!

I’m trying to think what else I wanted to blurt out. But in all seriousness, despite what else I will talk about in this film. I trust Johannes Roberts. Because there was some people in the theater with me. Not a whole lot though. 

I was worried it was gonna be a TMNT 2014(A film I feel could’ve been much better) and Venom(A film I’m fine with. But want it to be better too) situation. Yet, I love this movie. Yet I need to talk about it a little more in depth.

But I wanna say this. As a fan of this franchise. The classic games, the remakes, and a lot of other things. I loved this movie. And Johannes Roberts has gained my trust.

I just written the whole thing. I’m gonna add a keep reading option so no one is annoyed.

-

I understand from what people have said. That maybe it’s best for this series to go in a more Evil Dead kind of route. Maybe with later movies. But oh my lord, this is so much better than the Paul W.S. Anderson films. I actually felt a little tense or something. This was actually a horror film. The director/writer knows his shit. This was shot well, and it felt scary. Like how the games are meant to be.

Again, I get the ‘B movie’ approach and all that. I feel like and not to sound weird. This is such a better representation of the games than any of the other live action movies.

Everyone did fantastic in their roles. Especially ones such as Kaya Schelario as Claire and Robbie Amell as Chris. To be honest, this is their movie to be exact. This is a Chris and Clarie movie. Even Hannah John-Kamen as Jill was cool too. And I strangely like Avan Jogia’s portrayal as Leon. I do get the direction they were taking that he’s the rookie. And it’s silly, in a good way. This isn’t a RE4 Leon basically. XD

Yet I do wanna say considering characterizations. Which I feel like die hard RE fans may have a problem with how some characters are written. But honestly, the two or THE ONE I think most are gonna have a problem with is Albert Wesker himself. 

Tom Hopper did fine as him. But...some of the direction they take him in...if you love Wesker as a character. You might be bothered by it. Yet I can understand of Roberts I think trying to take this in a, “Realistic” direction. Which some OG fans have rightfully criticized for understandable reasons. But with the mid credits scene. And before writing this, I had to make sure there was no other post credits scene. There’s just one. I decided not to stay for the full credits because I REALLY had to go to the bathroom. XD

But yeah...I hope if we get a sequel...he may end up like the Wesker I really like. Let’s just say he’s maybe a...less dramatic version of the game version. Yet he does do something I strangely predicted but in a way just...damn...

And the other one is Irons. I can get the direction they were going for him. He is still antagonistic. But not as much as...his game self. I should just admit that William Birkin is the main villain. And...I question how the fans would feel about the villain portrayals. 

But honestly, here’s the issue I noticed. Sorry to say this, don’t expect much more depth. And I did think this would happen and I don’t want to say it. This is mainly a movie for the fans in a sense. If you’re a fan of the franchise, particularly the games. You’re gonna love this possibly if you let loose and accept some changes with this version.

This film was made by people and a director/writer who appreciated the games. But I think some changes are gonna turn off some people. If you’re a casual viewer, and you haven’t seen any RE movie or played any games. Then you’re likely gonna be confused by some things.

Especially I may seem to agree with the direction to combine both Resident Evil 1 & 2 into one movie is insane. Yet the way they do it is nicely done. Yet...I feel like this should’ve been longer possibly. Mainly for some characters to develop more. 

If you’re a fan of the franchise. You’re gonna understand things easily. But if you’re not...likely not. But I’m maybe thinking too much about that. I did wonder if Roberts is trying to reintroduce this series. Which is why some things are not fully explained. Which I can understand.

Also, I want to say this. I can totally see his John Carpenter influence in the movie. That shit did not disappoint. That was damn good inspiration for this movie honestly.

Fuck, I want this to have a sequel. Wikipedia says the budget is 25 million, and it hasn’t made that yet. If that is the budget. Because I want a sequel where they could improve upon things and I want to see more of this version of Resident Evil. I want it to be directed by Johannes Roberts. And again, I wanna see my boy Nemesis. Yet I feel the most logical step forward is Code Veronica. We’ll have to wait and see.

And I just found out that Roberts said if there were to be a sequel. That he would like to adapt Code Veronica or RE4. And Robbie Amell wants to return and to include his boulder punching scene. XD My God, I want a sequel if these guys want this! And hopefully we can change Resident Evil 8 too while we’re at it! XD

I hope this does well at the box office. 

Overall, I really liked the movie. While some character development may be lacking. The effects were good, I liked the acting. And it felt like a genuine Resident Evil film. The 2002 film is well...the second best. I’m just so fucking grateful we have a RE film that isn’t one of those! This is a legit RE film...my lord. I feel like I enjoyed this more than MK 2021. And I thought that film was fine. This is definitely in my top 5 video game movie adaptations. 

[lesbian-in-leather]

So it's a little late but I finally made the extended version of this post

I'm just going to rewatch the trailer and write down all of my thoughts, but actually expand on everything this time (and it'll actually be mostly in order)

Maybe it's just the cut for the trailer, but the lawyer scene feels very rushed. BBC made it comedic in its own right, not just a setup, but here it feels very much like "have some exposition so we can get to the ghosts". The ghosts should not be the only point of comedy - they're important, sure, but "Samantha" and "Jay" should be able to carry a scene by themselves

"Samantha" doesn't think it through. At all. She cuts off the lawyer after his first buyer suggestion, and "Jay" doesn't seem to be on board with the idea. In the OG, they were both into this (admittedly bad) idea, so the responsibility was on both of them. Yes they rushed into it, but it was way more thought out than just hearing the words "bed and breakfast" and deciding that's your new plan

Why did they age down Pat for "Pete". I hate it. He's younger and skinnier and there's no reason. Like yeah, the OG doesn't have AMAZING diversity, but it's better than this - don't take out diversity in a remake. Didn't think I'd have to spell that one out

The sage joke is admittedly funny. However, it gives us some insight into the ghosts that I'm not the biggest fan of, and let's us see a lot of their new designs. Let's go across, shall we?

"Issac" is so much less dignified than Thomas. I understand that Thomas isn't always as poised as he'd like to think, but there's a level of class that's missing from "Issac", right down to the way he stands

"Flower" looks high. How can a ghost be high, you ask? No idea. But here we are.

"Sasappis" (I read in an article that this is a character name and I believe tis the Native American guy) has such a tiny reaction I almost missed it. He barely moves while everyone else freaks out. I'm hoping they didn't create this character out of the 'emotionless Native American' stereotype but... I guess we'll see

"Hetty" is the replacement for Lady B, and she's super expressive, protective of the others, and so much younger. She was supposed to be a grumpy mother/grandmother figure - why is she literally leaping in front of the others to protect them? That should be the Captain's job but they've axed him so I guess it falls to her now. Also, why did they make everyone so young?? Like, none of the ghosts look over 35. Why. This was unnecessary and, quite frankly, stupid. Why is everyone at this house dying so young? Just so they can market them as fuckable???? L o a t h i n g

Viking Man also barely moved. He seems interested in the sage and is basically a "cooler" version of Robin as far as I can tell. They seem to have taken away the joy of Robin's character, leaving only Some Guy which would be bad in any genre, but ESPECIALLY a comedy. He has potential in theory, but I feel they aren't going to utalise it

"Trevor". I have so much loathing for this man. Let's have some overall analysis, shall we? First of all, we'll start with, what I hope is a well known fact: Julian is not a good person. I love him as a character and he is starting to learn and grow, but at no point does the BBC or the other characters try to justify his behaviour. CBS saw this, and made Trevor. Trevor is younger than Julian (because for some reason they AGED EVERYONE DOWN), which also makes people far more likely to excuse his actions. They seem to be trying to make him a 'loveable fuckup' who makes bad choices because of privaledge, and I am. So worried. That they're going to try and excuse his actions. He already feels like a writer's self-insert and that never bodes well, especially in this type of character. Mark my words, they're going to market him as the 'relateable' one while having him spout misogynistic views (probably also homophobic and maybe even mildly racist/xenophobic ones too)

MOVING ON

Why is "Pete" sarcastic? I don't like it. Pat wouldn't be the one yelling aggressive comments while everyone's actually doing something together - he should be happy! Encouraging! He should be trying to catch up to the moving group instead of attempting to draw attention away from it!

Everyone looked so happy for the dead relative when she moved on. Hate that - it was so funny in BBC when they were like 'fuck off why does she get to leave' - having "Pete" be happy is fine, but the rest of them? WHY IS "HETTY" HAPPY.

Oh look, "Travor" actively flicks "Pete's" arrow to cause him pain. Why. That was so unecessary. None of the ghosts should try to hurt each other out of pure malice, and they certainly shouldn't get joy from it. It feels like CBS is trying to turn us against "Pete" and put us on "Trevor's" side, which I called, but am not a fan of.

And here she is. "Alberta". What the FUCK did they do to Kitty. She has Kitty's colour palette and fits the diversity demographic, but that is where the resemblance stops. Kitty is SUCH a wonderful character because she was an upper class black woman who was allowed to be soft and sweet and innocent and the others all protected her and I LOVED IT. Do you want to hear some fun descriptors they gave to "Alberta" in this article?

"In her time, she dated a bootlegger and has “seen it all,” and is a bit of a diva. Though tough and not one to take crap from anyone, she has a maternal streak and often acts as the protective den mother to the “family” of ghosts"

This is not only far closer to so many stereotypes, but it's the polar opposite of Kitty!! Having a flapper was a pretty cool idea but she could have had the same character traits as Kitty! Why change that! There was NO REASON TO RUIN HER. Also is it just me, or does it seem like they've made way too many of them sarcastic? Like, they've taken away Alison's snarky streak but given sarcastic lines to way too many of the characters

Also can I just take a moment to question the sheer amount of ghosts they've included. I understand that technically there's about the same amount. But with so much less of American history to draw on and the questionable character choices they've made, it feels like there are so many undefineable characters. Like, how do we differentiate them?? Even in the trailer there are so many scenes where most of them are just... standing around. In BBC, they're all so distinct and you get so much out of rewatches because they're all always doing something - look in the background of any shot and the ghosts who aren't talking have a reason to be there! But in this they're just... standing around. Do better.

I've just realised I'm only 0:59 seconds into a 2:16 trailer so I'm going to split this into two parts

Part two is here

[thankyoumskobayashi]

I didn't expect Tenebria to get in, but I'm glad she did! I'm going to tell everyone about her because I can. First of all, under no circumstances should anyone subject themselves to this game. The latest update where they added very disorienting animations to the summons banners still makes me seasick. Second of all, Tenebria is a villain. If this bothers you, you are free to leave. Ok goodbye. Now on to the good stuff! Spoilers for the game's main storyline below. Also tw for character death.

Tenebria is a villain, which means she fights on the side of the Archdemon, who's in a constant tug-of-war game with his twin sister the Goddess. Every time he destroys the world, his sister remakes it completely and the cycle begins again. Typical sibling behavior. As one of the Archdemon's three Acolytes, each time the world is reset, Tenebria is tasked with demoralizing the enemy and reviving the Archdemon. Her powers revolve around showing a dream of what the person she's near most desires (Kamen Rider OOO fans can understand why I'm intrigued by that sort of power). It's apparently rare to have the willpower to be able to break out of her illusions. She doesn't show many emotions, but she has complex reasons for that. Mortals, to her, are actors in a grand play. And she's a harsh critic.

The reason she fights for the Archdemon is also tied into her lack of expressions. As a B-plot to a limited story quest, it was revealed Tenebria was born a noble girl, tired of being proper and bored with her daily life. Magic stuff was her special interest and stories about it where the only way to get her to do things she hated. When no one was looking, she touched the cursed magical artifact that killed her entire castle, possibly even her town (exact area of effect was never specified but she reacted to the castle inhabitants at least). Horrified by what she'd done and refusing to face that she was the cause of it, she locked away all her emotions in that cursed artifact and made judging humanity as an unamused immortal her entire persona. Which, on its own, fascinates me. Because I think she's actually judging her past self whenever she judges humans. She just can't unlock her emotions long enough to actually admit that she was wrong. And the kicker is also that she uses the thing that killed her home and a bunch of random civilians to stay alive. I wonder what runs through her head every time she's defeated or the world starts to end. I wonder if, in that moment, she ever thought "finally, I get what I deserve."

There's three different versions of her in the game, and two of them have pink hair. Ice element Tenebria is from a canon AU where she's the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland, which is a story I don't remember enough of to analyze right now. But her kit revolves around baiting the enemy team to attack one of her teammates. Which matches her ability to read what humans want. The Fire element Tenebria, the OG, has a kit geared towards giving enemies the Sleep CC and slowing them down so they can't fight as easily. This also matches her role as the Acolyte who makes illusions in dreams and sows disorder among the Archdemon's enemies.

In conclusion, I appreciate her for the role she plays in the story, her powers, and her emotional complexity. If you've read this far, thanks! Have the only canon picture of Tenebria smiling

Pink Hair Swag Tourney, Round One, Part Eight

[the-lost-media-blog]

Original Unedited Jeff The Killer Image

WARNING: Brief mention of suicide as that is part of one of the theories

Now, I have to admit, yes, the story (or at least the well known Jeff Woods) is well known in the community. But the origins of the image aren't, in fact, we do not know what's the truth here.

This is the image in question. It's paired up with both the original and the more well known late 2000 or early 2010's remake, which the latter can be read here warning it's a super long read, as I have no clue where the very first one is.

But, this isn't about any of the stories and more so the image.

There's a few things that are tricky about this image, and that is:

A) Where did it come from? B) Was this an edited image of Katy Robinson? C) Who made it or who is in it?

I'll go over those points today as an apology for being away so long and I didn't get to do my planned April Fools prank as I forgotten about it till now.

First, where did this come from?

One video on YouTube, that's entirely in Japanese, uploaded in early August of 2007 (could've been earlier), shows the image near the end of the video after showing the audience an odd looking baby. It's flashed for a bit before black screen with Japanese text.

This is one of the earliest appearances of Jeff, and it could've been earlier than that because Japan has their own video sharing site themselves. And I heard it's a meme there? I'm not to sure about that, I'll leave a link at the very end where I got the inspo to make this blog post.

But, people don't seem to like that theory so we move onto the Katy Robinson Theory.

For those who don't know, Katy Robinson is a girl who went into 4-Chan, posted a photo, got bullied and sadly killed herself afterwards. The following is an image often linked with this theory.

Now, while yes, if this is the case, it's a very tragic one. But the thing is, another image of Katy was found on a Christian website, on a section of email's they've gotten. Those emails were sent after she died, so unless her sister (the one who posted the above image) sent them out of her sis looking gothic then it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Also, her name might be Heather White, not Katy Robinson.

Now onto the last topic, who made it/who was in it?

It couldn't have been Katy/Heather, as the story attached to that theory could be false; so the first of them is plausible, at least to me. The first one is that it's a Stickcam girl, and the other is of a mask made by Sessur (the original maker of the OG more or less unknown version).

The Stickcam girl story is very simple. A girl posted a picture of her trying to look good, some 4-chan users made up some edits and one of them blew up because people thought she wasn't that attractive. This thread is most likely lost to time unless someone screenshotted it to high heavens, so we most likely don't know what the OG thread looked like. As for the mask theory, in an interview with Scare Theater Sessur says that the image was simply a latex mask with eyes added with red eye lids for blinking that had black rings over it.

However let's take another look at the image once again:

Now, I haven't worn a latex mask, but I have seen several in person and this doesn't look like it really is latex. For example the sides of the lips look drawn out and 'feathered', most likely in Photoshop (which could be the case, but it's never specified), and the lighting is off. If the face is so bright while the background isn't? I know that this might've been a pic taken by someone in the story (maybe? please correct me), but if the flash was on then you might've gotten more of the background than this.

Also here's an actual Jeff the killer latex mask below for comparison. Notice how the smile doesn't seem super drawn out and 'feathered' like it does in the above image?

So this is where we stand. An unknown origin for a famous creepypasta image and a few theories out there. Here's the video that was my inspo for the blog post and I hope that y'all check out my previous post for giving me suggestions on what to cover next!

CURRENT STATUS:

Unknown/lost

[canonicallyanxious]

hi, If you are still doing taking asks for the top 5 of whatever, I have one. Top 5 (or 10) scenes in the skamverse?

anon this is a really good ask and i’m unfortunately absolute trash for the skamverse so it’s gonna have to be my top 10 skjdnfskjdnfs in the interest of fairness though I’m going to try my best to limit myself to one scene/clip per season [also cut on this one bc it got long oops]

1. Minutt for minutt [og skam s3]

Words cannot express how much this scene still means to me four years after i first saw it. Like this is the scene that made Even and Isak’s relationship so special to me, this is probably the scene or at least one of them that tipped this show from “oh this is really good” to “i will fucking die on this hill for skam” for me. like, just the tenderness of Isak quietly watching Even as he sleeps. the soft physical affection a mentally ill character is allowed to have on screen. this beautiful yet grounded dialogue about coping with mental illness which cheesy as it might sound is also something i’ve very often taken to heart in my own struggle with coping with mental illness since. like god. truly groundbreaking, honestly.

2. David’s coming out scene in druck s3 ep 8 - “i am a boy. i just have to try a little harder” [druck s3]

this scene came very, very close to beating minutt for minutt and honestly on a different day it might have done so, just today i decided to put minutt for minutt at the top simply because it’s been with me for longer. but i think this was probably the most emotionally moving clip for me in the entire season, and i had the privilege to watch it in real time which makes it even more special to me. it was everything i could have ever wanted from david’s coming out - soft, aching, quiet, devastating writing that broke my entire heart. and “i am a boy; i just have to try a little harder” is probably a line that’s going to stick with me for a very long time. i can’t think of another trans person’s coming out scene in mainstream media that has touched me as deeply as this one.

3. Fatou and Kieu My’s museum date in druck s6 ep 6 [druck s6]

this scene has everything. EVERYTHING. space imagery! soft and tender kisses! hands brushing in the dark! yearning looks! playful banter! serious conversations about feelings that move forward both their development! like it just reminds me so viscerally of falling in love for the first time as a teenager. druck in general i think does a very good job of portraying teen romance but the fact that this teen romance is about two wlwoc [one of whom is vietnamese like bitch!!!!] means EVERYTHING to me. like this more than anything else in the entire skamverse is something I wish my teen self had gotten to see. i’ve probably seen this clip about twenty times because part of me still can’t believe it exists.

4. The Carnival scene at the end of the last episode of skam austin s1 [skam austin s1]

honestly i think the entire last clip of skam austin s1 is just pure excellence [even if they made me watch Meg and Marlon have sex in a car wash smfh]. like one of my favorite things about og skam was how it really gave their characters room to breathe and take their time with their conversations and i think this clip is probably one of the ones that come the closest to capturing that energy for me [no wonder i guess since julie andem was so involved with this season]. but i love the carnival scene in particular because i love the energy it captures in meg’s dynamics with the other characters and it’s just such a nice opportunity for them all to finally breathe after a difficult season. also i will never ever forget the pure euphoria of watching Shay become a confirmed lesbian on screen in real time [even if i still think the way it was done was kinda meh]. i think i was giddy for the rest of the fucking night after i saw that.

5. Nora breaking up with Miquel for good in skamesp s3 ep 8 [skamesp s3]

i actually think skamesp s3 is one of the best remake seasons of the skamverse. An incredible feat for skamesp to make me rank a NOORHELL season near the top, but honestly skamesp s3 is much more than a noorhell season, like i think the story it tells is hard to watch but very important to tell. i especially love this clip because it’s just such a well thought out culmination of Nora’s arc throughout the season. and it’s so devastating in how understated it is. the acting is phenomenal, the lighting is gorgeous, my breath was taken away by the way Nora said “don’t touch me” with her hair blowing gently around her face. just very good.

6. Josh and Nora’s second break-up scene at the end of druck s5 ep 9 [druck s4]

what does it say about me that this is the THIRD BREAK UP CLIP on this list skdjdnfksdnfsdkn. i genuinely did have a really hard time picking one clip for s5 [other top contenders include the last clip of ep 8 and the cuddle clip at the beginning of ep 6] but i went with this one because a. i love to suffer and b. the way josh plays with nora’s jacket and then she gently pulls away and his hands still linger bc he can’t quite bring himself to let her go just yet fucking HAUNTS ME. watching this scene genuinely made me feel like i was going through a break up myself, maybe because it reminded me so much of my own first break up in a lot of ways. kudos to the strong writing and stellar performances from the actors here.

7. Best of Islam [og skam s4]

Yousana the true og m/f relationship i was overly invested in... i miss they... anyway this clip is really good just on its own and i think it’s a good encapsulation of everything i wanted this season to be. i love that Sana got to talk about her experiences and her relationship with her religion; i love that yousef listens to her carefully and talks about his own experiences and feelings; i love their playful energy; I LOVE YOUSEF GIVING SANA THE FLOWER. truly it doesn’t get better than this.

8. Amira and Mohammed get back together at the end of druck s4 ep 7 [druck s4]

i love this scene because i think it showcases the very best of Amira and Mohammed’s dynamic. the way they listen to each other, their playful manner with each other, how utterly taken they are with each other. i love also that Mohammed finally got to talk about his experiences as a refugee and how that connects to his religion. and the whole exchange about baklava still has me so ;-; ;-; the chemistry these two have is absolutely unreal. i will never get over Amira being cheated of the last few episodes of her season. the greatest injustice to experience after a clip like this, truly.

9. Life in Italics [skam austin s2]

aside from the first ep this might be the only clip i’ve actually seen from this season but i stand by this choice sorry not sorry shay dixon performing an absolute bop in a pink wig is just too iconic

10. Crisana cuddle scene in skamesp s2 episode 6 [skamesp s2]

I think I’ve loved basically every remake version of the iconic s3 ep 5 cuddle clip i’ve seen but this one has stuck with me in particular just because it was really special to me to be able to see two girls be so soft and gentle and loving with each other. no excessive make-up, no hypersexualization, nothing glossy or glamorized about it. i honestly often have a really hard time connecting to teen wlw romance but this was one of those times it actually felt real to me. also the song choice for this clip is simply chef’s kiss

Ask me my top 5/10 anything!

[thegirlwholied]

ten faves

Rules: name ten favorite characters from ten different things (tv, movies, books, etc.). 

Thanks for tagging me @bibliophileiz ; exactly the sort of distraction I both needed (and that my current concentration-level is capable of) at the moment! Hard choices ~ especially as many of my favorites come in pairs! ~ but my top ten today...

...after draft error #97 or so, sorry in advance for the scroll, and for anyone else who winds up responding, do not draft on your phone take my word for it... 

Princess Bride: Inigo Montoya

Which character don't I love in Princess Bride? Even Humperdink is such a pitch-perfect villain. But while I'd choose Westley if I was picking a date... Inigo's the one who captures me, every time. It's not the desire for revenge itself that's compelling; it's the love for his father - the heartbreak, the dedication, even the defeat and the rise again (the "you told me to go back to the beginning scene" comes to mind as one that stays with me and is probably a huge influence on things I think of but haven't really written yet...)

Harry Potter: Sirius Black

Yes, that's a gif of Midnight Mark from Pirate Radio, because I very much mean the book version (sorry, Gary Oldman!). Is anyone following me surprised by this one?

I'm so fascinated by all of the Marauder era characters, both as they are on the page and the hinted-at aspects of them explored in fandom; love Lily/James... but Sirius is the Harry Potter character I think of first (honorable mention to non-HP Edmond Dantès, as I love Count of Monte Cristo and think much of Sirius' plotline owes that a clear debt). Aside from being a tragedy, aside from all his great lines, what a *fascinating* character and twist, in a way, on the fairy godmother plot in his first book 3 appearance (getting Harry the Firebolt, his permission slip, etc). I could say SO much more but will avoid writing an essay.

Smallville/Superman comics/adaptations: Lois Lane

Always a favorite character for me, but Erica Durance in Smallville is my favorite version. I feel like they gave her a bit of Marian Ravenwood (specifically in the outdrinking the frat boys scene) and leaned into the modern comics "army brat" angle so well.

Anne of Green Gables: Anne Shirley.

With honorable mentions to of course Jo March, other fellow aspiring writer Emily of New Moon, and Pippi Longstocking, other fun redhead of my childhood reading... Anne, and all her drama and dreams and mishaps, wins out as most relatable for me. Book heroine of my heart.

Speaking of childhood book heroines...

Star Wars: Jaina Solo.

Look, this is partly to save me between picking a favorite between Leia and Han (a dilemma which has haunted me since childhood, in part because, guiltily, it's Han), and serious honorable mentions to Mara Jade and especially Jyn Erso here... but Jaina was *everything* I wanted in a heroine as a girl. We're talking about the Young Jedi Knights series here... though I actually started with Junior Jedi Knights featuring Anakin Solo (oh Anakin Solo 💙💔)... going into the New Jedi Order, as I stopped following the EU so passionately around there.

Jaina, who is brash and so her father's daughter but has a harder time seeing she's also her mother's, the Rogue Squadron pilot, the wielder of a purple lightsaber, the mechanic... my inner little girl will never quite forgive the sequels for failing to give me a Solo daughter (sorry, Rey; I still think Daisey Ridley was pitch-perfect Jaina Solo casting... and honestly part of me considers the sequels the "weirdest Jacen & Jaina fan fiction ever" 🤷🏻‍♀️)

BtVS (out of the whole Whedonverse really): Buffy

My other favorites in the show are really also doubles/foils for Buffy: Cordelia Chase & Faith. But the first episode of the show I ever saw was "Anne" and so I've always known I would watch an entire show with just Buffy (... I would also watch an entire show of her friends dealing with her absence, but that's more about *plot* than character). I love the concept alone of Buffy's character - overturning the blonde damsel in distress trope by making her what monsters fear - but I mostly just love her; favorite Chosen One ever. “No weapons, no friends, no hope. Take all that away, and what's left?"/"Me."

...and now it gets very hard, where my early choices were more instinctive and now I keep thinking of others and can't decide. Tempted to make a bracket (I feel like Sirius and Inigo have some crossover, but how could I put them against each other)?

But ("if you had to choose, if you had to choose") to get at some of my other favorite character types and embodiments thereof...

2010-me would never believe I'm going to say this, but: Jaime Lannister.

I'm usually not a villain girl... but of course, he isn't a villain, though he starts out cast in that light. Slightly annoyed I’m picking Game of Thrones (yes, even grouping the books in that, as post Storm of Swords, I remember thinking "this could really benefit from the tightening the show will likely give it" ahahahahahahaha whoops). And yet. Where did that "came for the Starks; stayed for the Lannisters" quote come from? I feel very attacked by it.

"The things I do for love". The boy who wanted to be Arthur Dayne and somewhere along the way became the Smiling Knight. The reveal that he's not (or at least so much MORE than) who he seemed : perhaps not the comparison you'd expect but ah yes that Mr. Darcy twist always does it for me. So much character development (let's not speak of how the show ended, but still). 

The motives, in particular:  I love the Spike backstory reveal in Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Fool for Love, and in many ways I think Spike and Jaime hit the same note for me. He’s definitely a character that stays with me. Also, he hits that "golden boy" type I also like but in a *very* interesting way (and oh no now mentioning golden boy is making me think of Aron and Cal in East of Eden, I don't have room to even consider them on this list but know I love them both...)

Speaking of golden boys (also I cannot believe this is the only character from a musical I'm choosing, and Eponine’s a character that haunts me too, but...)

Enjolras.

Michael Maguire is not a golden Enjolras but was my introduction to the character and still a (the?) favorite. Love both book & musical Enjolras in different ways. But inspiring idealists with the light of rebellion abalaze in their eyes...? Facing death & despair still waving the flag? Ah yes. Top ten, 10/10.

Favorite detective out of all mysteries really, but especially from the Nancy Drew & Hardy Boys Super Mysteries: Nancy Drew.

An icon. Why is it so hard to have a good Nancy Drew adaptation? (The new TV series lost me with going with actual ghosts - I love my supernatural shows, but I don't need that with Nancy Drew.) Detective characters tend to be some of my favorites; honorable mention to Shawn Spencer from Psych here, but I was reminded in watching that recently (as Maggie Lawson, Jules on Psych, had once played Nancy Drew in a Disney movie! ... that I need to find and rewatch as I remember almost nothing about it) a) how much I love a good mystery and b) that Nancy is the OG.

Speaking of icons... out of all the folklore & mythology I love, it’s clear what character I love best: Robin Hood.

Oh, I love my Arthurian knights, but I love all Robin Hoods more. Trickster heroes, rob-from-the-rich-and-give-to-the-poor-justice, true love... cheeky 1952-movie Robin Hood is my favorite - both favorite Robin and favorite Marian, and their childhood-friends-to-lovers romance is the epitome of that trope for me! - but I also love the fox version...and am very alarmed at the prospect of a CGI remake of that; I'm sorry but that is not live action... and also Errol Flynn! It has to be Robin. If this was a ranked list (it’s not) he’d probably take #1. 

My ten slots won out to other characters, but also I love every Tamora Pierce character and if I had to pick one, it would be Daine Sarrasri, YA fantasy heroine out of all magical girls (and yes over the lady knights; sorry Alanna and Kel; Daine had wolves for friends). Also shout out that I love a LOT of characters named Marian, aside the already-mentioned Maid Marian -- Marian Ravenwood (& Indy!), Marian ‘the Librarian’ Paroo (& Harold Hill!), X-Men’s Rogue (usually named Anna Marie when a name’s revealed, but a Marian in at least one version, & her own thief Gambit)... to quote Thin Man, “You got types?”

I’ve got types. 

If you’re reading this and have types yourself, please @ me them! But tagging, if you’d like, @conniecorleone​ @aliform​ @aurorawest​ @vivacephoenix @justkeeponthegrass