#this proves that michael and david's chemistry is what made go what it was

[ingravinoveritas]

The people that keep saying not to ship Michael and David together in real life because of their relationships to Georgia and Anna are also the same ones who keep begging to have the two girls appear in the next season of GO as a couple because of Anna’s little joke of making out with Georgia. Seriously people saw that tweet of hers and immediately decided to ship them together and call them the “ineffable wives” but Michael and David have come out with soooo much more adorable moments of the love and joy they have for each other and everyone starts saying that it’s disrespectful to ship them when their “married” to females in real life 🤷‍♀️ I mean…. The hypocrisy is astounding and disturbing on levels I can’t even comprehend. The fact that Georgia, who is known to search her and David’s name on Twitter and answers back to anyone that tags or even mentions her didn’t even acknowledge Anna’s tweet says sooooooo much about this “best friend dynamic duo”. The fact that Anna is resorting to jokes about kissing another woman just for attention also…. WHEW. If this isn’t the biggest cry for attention I don’t know what is. And the fact that people feed into her attempts also and are petitioning for them to kiss and show up in GO!

Lord. I've seen so much talk about casting female actresses in regard to fem-presenting Aziraphale/Crowley over the past week, and while it is disappointing, I am not at all surprised. The first inkling I had was upon seeing the reactions when a behind the scenes photo of Crowley as Bildad the Shuhite was posted just before the release of GO 2:

It seems that a lot of folks were expecting/hoping for fem!Crowley, as we saw in Golgotha in season 1 (on the right), and when that turned out not to be the case, the reaction was to call Bildad!Crowley ugly, to say that he should shave, and other comments essentially making fun of this particular look. Obviously, much of this could have (and likely was) made in jest, but the overall consensus was clear: You can't be feminine with a beard.

(Which...I'd like to see someone tell that to Michael Sheen, because yes, the fuck you can...)

So from the outset, I was already bothered by what seemed like the hypocrisy of on the one hand celebrating a show where the characters are genderfluid/nonbinary by definition, and then on the other hand getting upset when one character doesn't fit into a prescribed, conventional idea of femininity.

When Neil subsequently mentioned that there had been a storyline for female-presenting Aziraphale and Crowley in the 1960s, it was dismaying (but again, not surprising) to see these same fans casting female actresses in the roles. Never mind that you already had David playing female!Crowley and Nanny Ashtoreth in season 1. Never mind that both Michael and David have played...well, "drag" doesn't seem like exactly the right word, but they've played women, and brilliantly subverted gender roles in their own ways. There is no reason to think that they couldn't do a fabulous job as fem!presenting Aziraphale and Crowley, except that (again) some fans seem to have a specific idea of femininity that they think does not or cannot apply to Michael and David.

Which then brings us to the apparent clamoring for Anna and Georgia as female Aziraphale and Crowley, which has again left me scratching my head. In all of the tweets and hubbub, I have not seen one person say why they think AL and Georgia would do a good job in said roles--like, "Oh, Georgia was so good as [insert role]" or "I loved Anna as [insert role]"--only that they would be "so amazing." This leads me to think that the only reason these fans want AL and Georgia in the roles is because they are Michael and David's partners. They are assuming that this is somehow a guarantee of the same profound understanding of the characters and their connection, despite there being no evidence of such a correlation. (I mean...I fooled around with my former grad school professor last year, but that doesn't mean I have a PhD...)

What it also seems to indicate is that these folks are not thinking of what is best for the characters, either, or indeed if playing female!Aziraphale and Crowley is something AL or Georgia would even want to do. Neil recently said that Georgia turned down a role in GO 2 supposedly because the character was older than her and she didn't feel it was appropriate. If this is the case, why would Georgia want to play the role of a middle-aged character? Because that is what Aziraphale and Crowley are--ageless celestial beings, yes, but beings who have chosen to present as middle-aged. That is a key part of who they are, so to have the female versions of them played by younger actresses makes no sense and seems downright disrespectful.

There is also what you said, about AL's cringey tweet from a little over a week ago. Georgia could have absolutely responded to or acknowledged it by now, as she has responded to several other tweets since then...but she hasn't. Not a reply, not even a 'like.' And I agree with you that that seems to speak volumes, and that it would probably be a good idea if people looked beyond the Staged-driven narrative of "Georgia and AL are BFFs" to see how Georgia actually seems to feel about her.

(And to echo another thing you said, I will never understand how it is somehow completely fine for fans to ship Georgia and Anna/want to see them make out despite neither of them showing that level of affection toward each other or having any visible chemistry, yet not okay to ship Michael and David who do have that chemistry and have been making their feelings for each other very obvious for the last several years...)

So yes, those are my thoughts on the whole female Aziraphale/Crowley fancasting situation. I just hope that if we do get them as fem!presenting in season 3, that it is Michael and David, because there is no way any other two actors could give us what we got with Aziraphale and Crowley the way Michael and David did. I guess we'll see what happens...

[ingravinoveritas]

How do you "act" this? How do you create this tension--sexual, but also something else, something deeper and wistful--if it doesn't exist naturally? If there isn't a part of you under the skin that hasn't thought about this--hasn't thought about having to say goodbye (but not forever) to the person you love more than anything as they are standing right in front of you? Everything Michael and David do between the words--the cords bulging in David's neck, the sparkle fading from Michael's eyes--speaks volumes. The way they each come to accept the quiet, painful truth: This isn't our moment. How you ache for me and I for you is the same--it's blissful, carnal, perfect, and we both feel it to the deepest place in our souls. But it can't happen. Not now. Time itself seems to stop, and all we are left with is this place where it's only the two of them suspended in motion, in the middle of this dance that they will one day come back to finish...

GOOD OMENS | 2.06 EVERY DAY

I don't hear anything.

[invisibleicewands]

I know you were being serious but calling David an expert guide made me giggle, it's ridiculous how true that is by now.

I get where the other Anon is comfing from, with Michael being able to be difficult and also with the PR assumption, but I think that we can be 100% sure by now that they have genuinely become best mates. They even made fun of people not buying their closeness in Staged 2, which only proves how comfortable and confident they are in their friendship. Even if they weren't as close as they easily have us all believe since 2019 their chemistry on screen is astonishing and that's good enough for me and probably what spurs Michael on and has him so delighted about working with David.

If Michael's putting on airs and graces here and there I'll happily give that to him, he's earned that position and is rightfully proud of it. So what if he can be a diva, he is doing so much good with his money and influence and he has a good heart. Which is why I love him and why I think we can all forgive him the occasional antics. ❤😊

You know what, though? It will be interesting to see how he's going to handle the Good Omens fandom once Season 2 comes out. He's never been involved with a fandom that much and he seems to enjoy it tremendously, but hopefully not too much, we don't want him to lose his feet and he is in more danger of that happening to him than, say, a David Tennant. So that'll be an interesting and hopefully fun ride next year.😅

Hi, Anon.

You used the right word: a ride (also for us who try to follow any single news about). This is how is gonna be next tour of GO2, but a lot of things have changed since 2019, and with a a bigger family to care I don't know honestly if MS can be able to spend so much time with fandom like he did in past. Let's see.

[aion-rsa]

5 underrated Richard Donner movies you need to see

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Richard Donner will forever be remembered as the filmmaker who created the blueprint for the modern superhero blockbuster with 1978’s Superman starring Christopher Reeve.

Yet that doesn’t tell even half the story of the Bronx-born filmmaker’s brilliant filmography.

Donner was in his late 40s by the time Superman came along, having made a name for himself in Hollywood two years earlier, with 1976’s suitably terrifying The Omen.

Prior to that, he was a budding director making the transition from the small screen to the world of cinema. Donner worked on everything from Gilligan’s Island to The Twilight Zone. Even then, it was clear he was destined for bigger things though, as anyone who saw  “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet”, the iconic episode of The Twilight Zone he directed, starring William Shatner, can attest.

While a disagreement with producers ultimately saw him walk away from Superman II, the 1980s saw Donner establish himself as an incredibly versatile big budget director capable of handling everything from the epic family adventure fun of The Goonies to the balancing act of action and comedy found within the buddy cop antics of Lethal Weapon.

It was a skillset that drew admiration from the very best in the movie industry, including Steven Spielberg who was among the first to pay tribute to Donner after learning he had passed away, aged 91.

“Dick had such a powerful command of his movies, and was so gifted across so many genres,” Spielberg, who worked with Donner on The Goonies, said.

“Being in his circle was akin to hanging out with your favourite coach, smartest professor, fiercest motivator, most endearing friend, staunchest ally, and – of course – the greatest Goonie of all.”

Donner may not have had the same impact in the 1990s and early 2000s but he still enjoyed major success with the Lethal Weapon franchise and as a producer with movies like Free Willy and X-Men.

More importantly, the other films he made during that period and in the years between some of his biggest hits remain well worth revisiting or seeking out for the first time – starting with these five.

Ladyhawke

Coming hot on the heels of The Goonies and two years prior to Lethal Weapon, Ladyhawke represented another major departure for Donner. A dark medieval fantasy, it centred on Rutger Hauer’s mysterious Captain Etienne Navarre and his female companion Lady Isabeau (Michelle Pfeiffer), a pair of star-crossed lovers on the run from a vengeful bishop who has placed a demonic curse on their heads. While Navarre transforms into a wolf by night, Isabeau exists as a Hawk by day. Teaming up with petty thief Philippe Gaston (Matthew Broderick) they embark on a quest to overthrow the evil bishop and break the spell.

Something of a passion project, Donner had attempted to get Ladyhawke off the ground several times before finally getting the green light from Warner Bros and 20th Century Fox in the mid ’80s. The film then suffered another setback when Kurt Russell, originally cast as Navarre, dropped out during rehearsals. 

That ultimately proved a blessing in disguise with Hauer going on to deliver arguably his best performance since Blade Runner. Not everything about Ladyhawke works – Broderick’s character feels a little too close to Ferris Bueller while the runtime could be trimmed down – but it remains a beautifully realised fantasy epic, full of memorable action set pieces, stunning cinematography and a spellbinding turn from Pfeiffer.

A box office bomb upon release, Ladyhawke has stood the test of time too, garnering a cult following as an authentic and fresh take on the sword and sorcery formula. 

Maverick

Maverick is the film Will Smith must have hoped Wild Wild West would be; a funny, clever action comedy based on a classic TV show. Coming in an era when most westerns were deadly serious, Donner’s film also felt like a breath of fresh air and benefited hugely from a masterful William Goldman script that was both witty and unpredictable.

The latest in a series of films featuring Donner’s muse-of-sorts, Mel Gibson, this time out Mel plays Bret Maverick, a brilliant card player and equally impressive con artist trying to collect enough money to earn a seat at a high-stakes poker game. Along the way he is forced to contend with a fellow scammer in the form of Jodie Foster’s Annabelle Bransford as well as lawman Marshal Zane Cooper, played by James Garner, who starred in the original TV series.

While the glut of cameos from country music stars and the likes of Danny Glover can be a little distracting, there’s something wonderfully charming about Maverick with Gibson, Foster and Garner all on top form and boasting an undeniable chemistry that helps keep things entertaining. 

The climactic poker game which sees Maverick face off against Alfred Molina’s psychopathic Angel is also expertly handled by Donner, who cranks up the tension as Maverick reveals his final, decisive, hand with a slow-motion toss of the final card towards the camera. A critical and financial success, Maverick has been largely lost in the shuffle since its release but should be sought out.

Conspiracy Theory

There’s something strangely prescient about Conspiracy Theory given the current predilection for such thinking on the internet at large. One of Donner’s most inventive and intelligent outings alongside Gibson, this time out Mel plays Jerry Fletcher, a New York City cab driver with a penchant for paranoid conspiracy theories.

Jerry’s life takes a turn for the strange when he finds himself being targeted by a set of shady government goons led by Patrick Stewart’s Dr Jonas. He quickly realises one of the conspiracies he has been promoting in his weekly newsletter (this was the ‘90s) is based more in reality than he thought. The question is: which one?

An engrossing thriller featuring Donner’s trademark dashes of witty humour, Conspiracy Theory is bolstered significantly by the presence of the ever-reliable Julia Roberts as a government lawyer with a soft spot for Jerry. Despite a lengthy run time, Donner also keeps the action moving along at an engaging pace while Gibson’s performance is just the right side of manic to keep you rooting for him.

A first foray into the kind of deep state conspiracy thrillers that were commonplace in Hollywood at the time, the film also boasts some genuinely striking moments, not least the sequence where Jerry undergoes “psychotic testing” at the hands of Dr Jonas, which wouldn’t have looked out of place in A Clockwork Orange.

Though it was a hit with audiences, Conspiracy Theory earned mixed reviews but appears increasingly worthy of reappraisal.

Timeline

Some movies are big, dumb but lots of fun. Timeline sits firmly in that category despite what many naysayers would have you believe. It’s a brash, simplistic sci-fi flick to rival the likes of The Core and Geostorm and thoroughly entertaining to boot.

The fact that it features Gerard Butler, as well as the late, great, Paul Walker only adds to that sentiment.

Walker plays Chris Johnston who, along with Butler’s Andre Marek and a team of fellow archaeologists travel back in time through a wormhole to 14th century France to rescue their professor, Dr Edward Johnston (Billy Connolly), who just happens to be Walker’s character’s dad too.

Based on a book by Michael Crichton, Donner had been in the running to direct Jurassic Park a decade earlier and jumped at the chance to adapt Timeline for the big screen. While filming went off without a hitch, Donner repeatedly clashed with Paramount Pictures in post-production and was forced to re-cut the film three times in a development that saw the release date pushed by nearly a year. The resulting edit did not sit well with Crichton either, who disliked it so intensely he stopped licensing his work for a few years after.

Whether Donner’s original cut would have earned better reviews or Crichton’s approval remains to be seen but what remains of Timeline is still a well shot, enjoyable sci-fi yarn with some neat medieval action flourishes. 

16 Blocks

Donner’s final film also ranks among his most unappreciated. On the surface, 16 Blocks sounds like the perfect fodder for a game of buddy cop movie bingo.

It stars Bruce Willis as Jack Mosley, a worn-out NYPD Detective with a drinking problem tasked with transporting Mos Def’s trial witness Eddie Bunker to court. Problems arise when some of Jack’s fellow officers arrive to kill Eddie and prevent him from testifying. Eager for redemption, Jack decides to take the would-be assassins on and get Eddie to court on time.

A formulaic enough premise, 16 Blocks is emboldened by the fact it plays out in real-time with Eddie required at the courthouse by no later than 10am. In this sense, Donner found himself in new territory with an action thriller that thrives on a unique sense of urgency. 

While the filmmaker is no stranger to the action formula, this setup sees him imbue events with a renewed sense of chaos, as Jack and Eddie fight their way through armed adversaries, busy crowds and bustling traffic, all against a cacophony of shouts, car horns and gun blasts.

Ostensibly a chase movie on foot rather than four wheels, the action traverses 16 blocks in 118 minutes and rarely lets up for a second with Donner proving a dab hand at balancing the action with the engaging back-and-forth between Willis and Def who are both understated yet effective throughout.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Throw in the ever-watchable David Morse as the leader of the shady cops baying for Eddie’s blood and you have arguably one of the most underrated action thrillers of the early 2000s 

The post 5 underrated Richard Donner movies you need to see appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[tabloidtoc]

OK, March 29

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Panic at the Palace -- Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Prince William, Duchess Kate Middleton

Page 1: Big Pic -- Kevin Bacon and Juliette Lewis were among the many artists who put on a performance for Linda Perry's Rock 'N' Relief Live Stream Concert Series, benefitting Sean Penn's CORE Response organization

Page 2: Contents

Page 3: Contents

Page 4: Sparks are flying between Sandra Bullock and Brad Pitt on the set of their new action movie Bullet Train and not just when the cameras are rolling -- their chemistry is through the roof and Sandra lights up whenever she's around Brad and some of the cast and crew could swear they've seen him blushing in her presence -- Brad and Sandra have been hanging out more than your typical costars and they have a lot in common and seem to really enjoy each other's company and they'll frequently spend their breaks socializing and they can often be heard laughing over each other's stories and topics of conversations range from mutual friends and house repairs to more personal stuff, like kids

Page 6: Bruce Willis turned 66 on March 19 and as he celebrates the occasion, he has been reflecting on his life and it's been quite the journey but Bruce looks back at it all with that classic smirk

Page 7: Producers of the Gossip Girl reboot have been begging Blake Lively to join the cast of the new show but she's turned up her nose at the idea -- she's not ungrateful, because the original show made her star, but she closed the book on that part of her life a long time ago -- she's blissfully content in her role as a mom to daughters James, Inez and Betty whom she shares with her husband Ryan Reynolds and being a stay-at-home parent and filming an occasional movie sounds way more appealing to her than returning to that hothouse Gossip Girl universe -- she says she had her show and wants the new team to have theirs, but to die-hard fans, it still feels like a major snub

* After calling it quits on her romance with Ben Affleck in January, Ana de Armas is ready to play the field and Hollywood's heartthrob du jour, Rege-Jean Page has caught her eye and she was over the moon when the Bridgerton hunk recently signed on to her new thriller The Gray, which also stars Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans -- of course, Rege is gorgeous, but Ana also likes that he isn't your typical Tinseltown success story and comes from a rich cultural background, just like she does and she's hoping to get to know him better once they start shooting in L.A. -- while Ana has been warned that won't sit well with Rege's live-in girlfriend, Emily Brown, that doesn't seem to bother Ana

* Janet Jackson's life story is set to get the full documentary treatment next year, and no stone will be left unturned when it comes to her famously dysfunctional family -- the family is freaking out, as well they should be -- Janet will be brutally honest about her late father Joe Jackson, who bullied her and made her feel like she was nothing with out him but her siblings say they had it much worse especially when it came to Michael Jackson, who suffered verbal and physical abuse from Joe throughout his childhood -- Janet, who became a mom at 50 with her businessman ex, Wissam Al Mana, is also ready to tell all about their divorce and custody battle -- doing this documentary has been incredibly cathartic for her and she can't wait to shed light on her family's deep, dark secrets

Page 8: Angelina Jolie has been legally single for two years, and now she's finally ready to mingle -- she's been laying low since her 2016 split from Brad Pitt and she's feels it's time to get out there and she's eager to meet some new and interesting men and the mom of six is open to being hooked up by Hollywood pals like Ellen Pompeo, whom she was seen dining with in Beverly Hills and Angie likes the idea of dating a fellow A-lister who can relate to her about living in the spotlight and Ellen's been helping out with suggestions -- Angie is even open to joining an elite dating service and now the hunt is on to find a suitable bunch of candidates -- she wants fun and adventure again and after months of just being Mom, dressing up, putting on some perfume and engaging in stimulating conversation sounds good to Angie

* It's only been six months since Drew Barrymore launched her chirpy daytime talk show, but behind the scenes, she's on the verge of a major meltdown -- the multitasking mom who shares daughters Olive and Frankie with ex-hubby Will Kopelman, has no idea that juggling work and family would be this hard and she's feeling pressure from every side -- she desperately wants to be there for the kids, but she's trying to make her show a hit, and with her production company, she has a million others things on her plate as well -- the stressed-out star has also been chowing down on junk food and drinking too much caffeine so she can't get more than a few hours of sleep a night -- Drew doesn't want to let anyone down, but if she doesn't dial it back, she's going to collapse from exhaustion

* Matthew Perry announced his engagement to his on-off girlfriend Molly Hurwitz in November, but he seems to be having second thoughts -- he's crazy in love, but he's scared of messing up a good thing by making things official and he also worries what kind of husband he'll make given his health woes and battles with addiction -- Molly has faith in Matthew, but she can see wedding planning is stressing him out, even more so now that the Friends reunion is set to start shooting and he's pushing himself to go through with it, but his doubts are gnawing away at him

Page 10: Red Hot on the Red Carpet -- stars show some skin in dramatic decolletage-baring frocks -- Nicole Richie, Aja Naomi King

Page 11: Kate Hudson, Becky G, Mindy Kaling

Page 12: Who Wore It Better? Kat Graham vs. Nicole Kidman in Erdem, Oliva Wilde vs. Bella Hadid in Ralph Lauren

Page 13: Danielle Bradbery vs. Paula Abdul in Hamel

Page 14: News in Photos -- Machine Gun Kelly and Megan Fox stepped out for dinner in West Hollywood

Page 16: Ariel Winter brightened up her monochromatic look with a pink face mask during a trip to the hair salon in West Hollywood, Justin Theroux went for a walk with his beloved dog Kuma in NYC, Arnold Schwarzenegger was spotted on his daily bike ride in L.A.

Page 17: Susan Sarandon stopped to get her caffeine fix while shopping solo in Soho

Page 18: Lea Michele proved to be quite the doting mother while walking with her son in a stroller in Brooklyn, Lucy Hale and her dog Elvis were inseparable during an outing in L.A., Krysten Ritter took her RadRover electric bicycle out for a spin in L.A.

Page 19: John Stamos and his wife Caitlin McHugh stopped by an antique shop where they purchased a bunch of old goodies in Santa Monica

Page 20: This year, instead of a traditional runway show, Moschino released a 12-minute film featuring Karen Elson, Shalom Harlow and Amber Vallera wearing new styles from the Fall/Winter 2021 line

Page 21: Alessandra Ambrosio caught up with a pal while walking dogs in L.A., David Harbour eating a treat while out and about in NYC, Daisy Ridley stopped by The Graham Norton Show in London

Page 22: Amelia Gray Hamlin and boyfriend Scott Disick caught some rays while vacationing in Miami, Katie Holmes and boyfriend Emilio Vitolo Jr. color-coordinated their gray-and-black outfits for a lunch date in NYC, Rebel Wilson taking a walk around the neighborhood in L.A.

Page 24: While on the set of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Rachel Brosnahan shielded herself with a see-through umbrella, a newly brunette Lady Gaga in a white suit as she left her hotel in Rome to film the upcoming Gucci biopic, The Masked Singer panelist Jenny McCarthy gave herself a last-minute touch-up before posing for some promo shots

Page 26: Inside My Home -- Chelsea Handler's sleek setup -- she is checking out of her longtime L.A. home

Page 28: In 2009, LeAnn Rimes made headlines when she was caught hooking up with her costar Eddie Cibrian while they were both married to other people and now, more than a decade later, she is opening up about that time in her life and spilling secrets that she's never shared before -- looking back, LeAnn thinks it's unfair that she got raked over the coals like that and the public shaming caused her to suffer panic attacks and all LeAnn did was fall in love -- of course, there are likely big regrets about the way everything happened, but she and Eddie never meant to hurt anyone and they just had this connection they couldn't walk away from and a few months after their romance was revealed LeAnn parted ways with then-husband Dean Sheremet and Eddie filed for divorce from Brandi Glanville and they wed in 2011 -- while LeAnn has been a great stepmom to Eddie's sons Mason and Jack, she'd love to have a child of her own someday and she and Eddie have tried and tried with no success and now that she's pushing 40, they know time is ticking and they could always go the surrogate route, and they just might do it if it doesn't happen naturally in the next few months

Page 29: Liam Hemsworth has been dating Gabriella Brooks for 15 months, and he's so smitten that he could put a ring on it any day now -- Liam's made it clear that he's ready to walk down the aisle again after calling it quits in longtime love Miley Cyrus in 2019 -- everyone is thrilled because Gabriella is so sweet and easygoing, which is just what Liam needs -- Gabriella has already gotten the stamp of approval from the Hemsworth clan, who had long been skeptical of Miley and when Liam brought Gabriella home, his parents thought, that's more like it -- now that Liam's settled in at his new $5 million spread on Byron Bay, all signs point to him popping the question because he's never been happier

* Shedding post-pregnancy weight is never easy but luckily Katy Perry has a secret weapon to help her get back in shape which is Orlando Bloom -- Katy had already dropped 35 pounds since giving birth to the couple's first child, Daisy Dove, thanks to her fitness-obsessed fiance and Orlando has her eating five small vegan meals a day and he follows the same diet to make it easier for her, and Orlando makes sure she hikes or swims at least five days a week and those are the type for fun activities where he can join her -- Orlando's also her biggest cheerleader: during their recent Hawaiian getaway, Katy was nervous because she felt she hadn't lost enough weight but Orlando told her she was one sexy momma and he really is her biggest supporter

* Despite the pandemic, Nicole Kidman's remained one of the busiest women in Hollywood, which is getting under her stuck-at-home husband's skin -- while Keith Urban was forced to cancel his concert tour last year, Nicole had a whirlwind 2020, shooting her miniseries Nine Perfect Strangers in Australia and her historical thriller The Northman in Northern Ireland back-to-back and it's been incredibly hard on Keith because it drives him crazy not being able to get out there on stage -- Nicole hates seeing him the dumps, but she's told him he's lucky to be able to spend so much time with their daughters Sunday and Faith -- with Nicole set to play comedy legend Lucille Ball in Being the Ricardos, which starts filming this spring, that can only put more stress on the marriage but Nicole has no plans to slow down, and she's not making any apologies

Page 30: Patrick Duffy and Linda Purl went from zero to 60 practically overnight, but their turbo-charged romance appears to be slowing down -- ever since Patrick and Linda reconnected last summer, the late-in-life lovebirds have been joined at the hip at Linda's Colorado home, where things have gotten too close for comfort because Patrick's a laid-back guy, but he hasn't had a moment to himself because Linda is always pushing him to get outdoors and do stuff with her and Patrick feels the need for more space and some along time -- spending every moment together and hanging on each other's every word was fun for a while, but they don't want to lose their independence and they realize they need to bring their relationship back down to earth if they actually want to go the distance

* After nearly five blissful years together, Britney Spears and Sam Asghari are still going strong, and it looks like a baby could be in their near future -- Sam recently sent tongues wagging when he revealed that he wants to take their relationship to the next step and be a young dad and Britney is totally on board because she has always wanted another child and now with Sam raring to go, she figures it's the perfect time -- growing her family would be a welcome distraction from Britney's bitter battle with her father Jamie Spears over her controversial conservatorship

* Love Bites -- Jenni "JWoww" Farley and Zack Carpinello engaged, Morena Baccarin and husband Ben McKenzie welcomed a son named Arthur, Nicolas Cage and Riko Shibata married

Page 32: Cover Story -- Palace in Crisis -- the Royal Family is in disarray following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's bombshell tell-all -- what really offended them was how much Harry and Meghan said they love Queen Elizabeth in one sentence and attacked the institution, everything she stands for and works for, in the next -- it's going to take a miracle for Harry to reconcile with his family after what he and Meghan revealed

Page 36: Celebrity Hall Passes -- stars reveal the Hollywood crushes their partners have granted as freebies -- Eric Decker gets Jessica Alba and his wife Jessie James Decker gets Post Malone

Page 37: Lisa Vanderpump gets George Clooney, Seth Rogen gets Charlize Theron while his wife Lauren Miller gets Brad Pitt, Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa both get Cynthia Bailey

Page 38: Taron Egerton gets Rachel Weisz while his girlfriend Emily Thomas gets Daniel Craig, Kyle Richards wouldn't let her husband Mauricio Umansky near Eva Longoria or Demi Moore but he gets a hall pass for Betty White, Beau Clark gets Bethenny Frankel while wife Stassi Schroeder gets Joaquin Phoenix

Page 40: Interview -- Queen Latifah -- the entertainment icon is having a blast kicking butt in her new TV crime drama The Equalizer

Page 42: The Great Outdoors -- these stars know fresh air and fitness make a killer combo

Page 46: Style Week -- Hailey Bieber has been named global ambassador for Superga's Spring/Summer 2021 season

Page 48: What's Hot Right Now -- lifestyle brand Sporty & Rich just launched chic athleisure pieces to help you look effortlessly cool this season -- Amber Valletta

Page 49: Stylish Shades -- shop Ashley Graham's flattering frames the model's new collection with Quay

Page 50: Chic House Dresses -- trade knits for airy frocks that will make you feel beautiful all through spring -- Whitney Port

Page 52: Girls' Getaway -- planning a safe spring break with a few BFFs? Pack these stylish essentials to easily look fab on the fly -- Rita Ora

Page 54: Entertainment

Page 55: Q&A with Wayne Brady

Page 58: Buzz -- Lady Gaga sent the internet into a frenzy after sharing a behind-the-scenes photo of herself with Adam Driver from the set of their Ridley Scott movie, House of Gucci

Page 60: Sound Bites -- Cardi B on staying away from celebs, Mary Steenburgen on husband Ted Danson, Kate Hudson on her iconic yellow dress from How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

Page 61: Paul Bettany on his stunt with Tom Hanks in The Da Vinci Code, Jada Pinkett Smith on not focusing on exterior beauty at age 49, Nikki Bella on being intimate with fiance Artem Chigvintsev, Charlize Theron on homeschooling, Julia Garner on her roles of choice

Page 62: Horoscope -- Aries Jessica Chastain turned 44 on March 24

Page 64: By the Numbers -- Paris Hilton

[mostweakhamlets]

responses to staged stuff under the cut everything tagged as “staged wank” for your blacklists 

lovinghorsedonutsalad:

With all due respect but has it ever crossed your mind the fact that they are both back could actually help? With this second season they may reflect how the world is dealing with the virus after lockdown when everyone’s trying to get back to a sort of normal life. Michael may have given Simon and co inputs on how it is to go back to work with all the new regulations and things they have to pay attention to keep everyone safe.

Plus I don’t think they would go for “we are two actors trapped at home” when it’s no longer the case. First because it wouldn’t be true, second because it’s something they dealt with in the first season and third it wouldn’t reflect the current times so people would relate to it.

*wouldn’t relate to it

I would love for them to take this route! I think it’d be interesting! However, based on how series one went, I don’t see them doing that. The point of Staged was that it was an “actors trapped at home during a new stage show.” That worked really well despite its shortcomings! I think that they had a great idea and that there was great chemistry between the characters. It just wasn’t executed as well as it could have been. 

My main concern is that there’s been a very, very short amount of time between series one and two. I don’t think that that’s enough time to reflect on things that could have been better (and that’s always a step any creator should take) and then re-work things. From the small clip that we saw, they’re still going with the same characteristics of Michael Sheen being the grumpy guy prone to outbursts and David Tennant being the awkward peace-maker that doesn’t achieve much. I really doubt that if they didn’t change that, they aren’t going to change much else. 

But I would love to be proved wrong! I would love it if the women in the show were written better and if they treated some topics with more sensitivity. 

* 

blueturkeycroissanttrash: 

Yes both David tennant and Michael Sheen are back at work. And I think Just like the first season reflected the times we lived in few months ago, the second season would reflect the current times we live in; how hard it is to go back to our lives, to go back to work while social distancing and stuff. And I’m curious to see how it turns out.

And I think you’re missing the point. It’s supposed to entertain people, to make them laugh and give them a distraction to every day worries. Michael Sheen and David tennant are trying to move on with their lives just like the rest of us. Whether it is in their huge houses, with their nannies I don’t really care, because that’s not really the poi t

Plus I don’t know why people are already throwing shit at something they haven’t seen yet.

And frankly I’m grateful that my favorite actors are making context for me to watch while the world is falling apart

I’m hoping that it does have a more updated feel. I just worry that any Covid Comedy right now is just going to be very insensitive and tone-deaf no matter what. 

I don’t think I’m missing the point at all! I understand it was for entertainment. I was entertained by it until I thought about all of the criticisms I just made. The women are written poorly. The topics were handled poorly in hindsight. I think I made very good criticisms of the show. 

And it’s not that we’re “throwing shit any something” we “haven’t seen yet.” We saw Staged! We saw series one! Some of us don’t feel like it’s worthy of a second series unless they make massive changes (which as I said above, I really can’t see having happened in such a short span of time). 

I can judge Staged just like I can judge any other media I consume. It was a show that was good at the time, but looking back it wasn’t executed as well as it could have been. I have my criticisms and say that there needs to be major improvements to the show, but I can also acknowledge that people enjoyed it. 

[grigori77]

Summer 2020′s Movies - My Top Ten Favourite Films (Part 1)

20.  THE OUTPOST – it’s been a great year for war movies already, but summer was definitely where the genre really blew up, showering a TRIO of crackers on us, starting with this intensely rugged actioner about the Battle of Kamdesh in 2009 Afghanistan, in which a small group of American soldiers fought against an overwhelming Taliban force in extremely hostile terrain.  Director Rod Lurie (The Last Castle, The Contender) hasn’t had the most impressive career so far, but he shines here, as does a powerful ensemble cast which includes Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones and Orlando Bloom.

19.  BIT – the first notable feature from indie director Brad Michael Elmore is an enjoyably offbeat little vampire flick in which small-town transgender teen Laurel (Supergirl’s Nicole Maines) moves out to Los Angeles and gets swept up in the strictly girls-only revolution of local head vamp Duke (Goliath’s Dianna Hopper) and her feminist pack. Maines and Hopper are both phenomenal, while Elmore does wonders with his tiny budget and really pays off on his film’s intriguing ideas.

18.  DA 5 BLOODS – Spike Lee’s latest joint must be the most tripped-out and subversive Vietnam War movie since Apocalypse Now, letting his politically-charged mixture of reportage and personal drama run riot with particularly colourful results as we follow a group of ageing black Vets on their journey to retrieve the remains of a fallen comrade and a fortune in illicit gold. The cast are uniformly excellent, particularly Delroy Lindo as traumatised hothead Paul, while there’s a magnificent turn from Chadwick Boseman in one of his final roles.

17.  THE LOVEBIRDS – director Michael Showalter reunites with Kumail Nanjiani, star of his indie hit The Big Sick, for this riotous screwball comedy in which lovers Jibran and Leilani (Nanjiani and Insecure’s Issa Rae) find their faltering relationship tested to breaking point when they’re forced to prove their innocence after being framed for murder by a corrupt cop.  The laughs come thick and fast, but there’s an endearing warmth that adds emotional heft to the story, bolstered by the leads’ palpable chemistry.

16.  UNHINGED – Russell Crowe brings every motorist’s worst nightmare to life as Tom Cooper, a deranged psychopath who harasses struggling divorcee Rachel (Slow West and Mortal Engines’ Caren Pistorius) and her son to increasingly terrifying extremes after one bad day leads to a road-rage misjudgement.  The overblown revenge thriller plot works best if you don’t think about it too much, but the incredibly game cast give their all and director Derrick Borte (The Joneses) keeps the tension cranked up to breaking point.

15.  THE NEW MUTANTS – the last ever Fox-based X-Men movie slumps into cinemas with little fanfare after a series of increasingly lamentable delays with an inevitable sense of Marvel Studios going through the motions out of mere obligation to what was once the franchise that MADE them.  It’s truly criminal treatment because this is a CRACKING film, the property taking an intriguing swerve into horror movie territory as five young mutants trapped in a shadowy government institute are terrorized by their own worst fears.  The Fault in Our Stars’ director Josh Boone shows a surprisingly sure hand with the superheroics AND the scares, but the film really belongs to its uniformly excellent young cast, particularly Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams as shapeshifter Rahne Sinclair and Anya Taylor-Joy as fan favourite Illyana Rasputin.  It’s another worthy mutant-fest, which makes it all the more heartbreaking watching with the knowledge that, now that the X-Men and their ilk have been officially folded into the all-encompassing behemoth of the MCU, it’s the opening chapter of a new franchise we’ll never get to see …

14.  BECKY – ambitious indie directing duo Jonathan Millott and Cary Murnion have been on my ones-to-watch list for a while now (ostensibly after their horror comedy Cooties but mainly thanks to supercharged single-shot action thriller Bushwick), but they’ve really outdone themselves with this left-field survival horror, in which a pack of neo-Nazi prison-breakers led by brutal genius Dominick (a cannily cast-against-type Kevin James) find themselves up against something they never bargained for – Anabelle: Creation star Lulu Wilson’s eponymous, unexpectedly lethal 13 year-old girl.

13.  THE VAST OF NIGHT – despite its far more understated, super-low budget origins, there’s a strong dose of Super 8 in the DNA of this astounding debut from writer-director Andrew Patterson, an intriguingly ambitious first-contact sci-fi thriller set in small town America in the 1950s.  Some Kind of Hate’s Sierra McCormick and newcomer Jake Horowitz are the endearingly sparky core of the film, putting the rich quick-fire screenplay through its paces while Patterson displays uncannily sophisticated flair behind the camera.  I can’t wait to see what he’s going to deliver in the future …

12.  IN SEARCH OF DARKNESS – not just the best feature I’ve watched so far in what’s already been an unusually strong year for documentary films, but one of the best I’ve watched in a good long while, this epic examination of ALL the key horror cinema releases of the 1980s and their enduring cultural impact makes for undeniably engrossing viewing.  Despite clocking in at OVER FOUR HOURS, it never outstays its welcome, with writer-director David A. Weiner’s fascination for the subject proving overwhelmingly infectious.

11.  GET DUKED! – four wayward teenage boys are pursued by gun-toting aristocratic psychopaths in the Scottish Highlands while doing their Duke of Edinburgh Award (well, it was that or Borstal) in this gleefully OTT comedy masterpiece from debuting writer-director Ninian Doff.  One of last year’s major festival hits, it’s an absolute riot, a blissfully unapologetic non-PC laugh-fest powered by a quartet of astonishing turns from its young leads and brilliant support from Eddie Izzard, Kate Dickie and James Cosmo.

[problematicwelshman]

Following their collaboration on the TV adaptation of Good Omens, Michael Sheen has discussed his on-screen chemistry with co-star David Tennant.

In the show - based on Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's apocalyptic novel - Sheen portrays angel Aziraphale while the former Time Lord plays his powerful opposite, a demon named Crowley.

Chinwagging with Digital Spy at the recent British Academy Cymru Awards, Sheen opened up about the beauty of their relationship during filming.

"It's something that either happens or it doesn't, and I think David and I were both admirers of each other's work. I think we both instinctively felt that we probably work in similar ways, which proved to be the case in the sense that we both put a lot of work into what we're doing, we're prepared and we make choices," he said.

"I think we're both quite open to what the other actors are doing and are open to direction, but we come with a lot of our own stuff. I like the choices that David makes and I think he felt the same way, so there was a similar taste," Sheen added.

"So, it was a really lovely opportunity. But like I say, even with all of that, you still don't know if there's going to be actual chemistry - we've known each other for a long time so we knew we liked each other, but working together is a different thing."

The actor, who's currently shooting a project inspired by Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, also mentioned how the writing team made everything easier for himself and Tennant.

"A lot of the work is done for you in the writing because the characters fit together so well. I think the only thing that matters to us both is: 'How do I serve the writing as well as I can - how can I portray this character the best way that I can or make this scene work the best way that I can?'.

[imbellarosa]

Good Omens

Okay so I wrote a thing on the book a while ago, and I reread the book about a week before the show came up and I LOVED IT AGAIN BUT. I’m going to take a more critical eye now. Before we start, I’m going to say that id do a rewatch of the show. It’s gorgeously made, and most of the characters are compelling, and the story is brilliant, as always, if a bit different. So over all, for me, 8/10. Good? Good!

Now! Let’s start w the parts I didn’t love:

1.) the narration. This is zero surprise to the people who have been following as I watch this, but I think that if I’m watching a story through a visual medium, I’d like to WATCH it, not have the book read to me w pretty pictures over it. Episode 5/6 have the least narration and are, no surprise, some of my favorite episodes!

2.) Newt and Anathema. These characters had the least amount of life and were...not funny. I think that too much time was spent on them, and there was no real justification for it. They work (sort of) in the book, but I think they could have cut most of their scenes in episode 4, put more heaven/hell dynamic/ Adam’s arc, and had a stronger episode for it.

3.) Jon Hamm was tragically under used. Gabriel wasn’t a character in the book, really, but if your going to have JON HAMM play someone, and do it well - he did it really well - flesh him out a bit! They would have had less random angels, but this one really brilliant actor/character should have had more time!

4.) Adam’s transition to darkness. It felt. Really sudden. Like - he saw the picture of Satan and was like “yup I’m evil”. They didn’t mention the really powerful part of this story: he wanted to make the people he loved happy. And I love how in the book, he doesn’t hurt his friends - he would NEVER. In fact, it’s when he realizes that the world isn’t his - it’s THEIRS - that he comes back to himself. I LOVE THAT ARC, because it is LITERALLY "the road to hell is paved with good intentions", and I also love the kids that played the Them, and I think that they should have had that nuance.

5.) Episode 4. Just. Way too random and a mash of mostly unnecessary scenes.

6.) They tried for whimsy, and sometimes it worked (Freaky Friday was great!) and sometimes it just...didn't (Shadwell's finger - like. wtf)

Okay! So here are some bits that confused me a bit?

1.) the sudden tone shifts - I honestly didn’t know that Aziraphale and Crowley had been dating the whole time until episode 3? And I don’t think that Neil Gaiman did either. Also, I didn’t know if some of the scenes were being played for a laugh or not, and that’s sometimes because the words and the score/tone didn’t match.

2.) the whales thing. It popped up like...several times, and while I’m a Star Trek fan and I appreciate the references, I was starting to feel like it was a bit of a Chekhov’s gun, and it never went off.

3.) shadwell, as a character. That’s it. That confuses me greatly.

4.) Armeggdon means the end of everything, right? Bc that’s what it means in the book? So I was SUPER CONFUSED when Crowley kept suggesting they run away?? Like...okay, cool, but you’ll just die out in the stars vs on earth. I don’t think it was ever explained that it was just earth that was ending. In fact, Crowley explicitly said that after the end of the world all that would be left was eternity, not “eternity and the stars”, so while I LOVE ineffable husbands, this plot line confused me

Now for the good! And there was so much of it!!

1.) Crowley and Aziraphale. That was easily the best and most interesting part of this show. I’ve said it in a few tags and I’ll say it again: this is a HUGE step forward for the fantasy genre. Not only are these unlikely heroes gorgeously written, but they are CANONICALLY IN LOVE, and it made this a more interesting and a deeper story. ALSO it made me engage with the source material in a different way. Which I loved, because at first I had thought that they were the tiniest bit in love, but they're not. They're MASSIVELY IN CAPITAL L LOVE, and they're willing to prove it, and they do, over and over, and it's more than magical, it's ineffable, and God thinks so too.

2.) Michael Sheen and David Tennant. If the first point was about the characters, the second is about the actors. They had so much love for these characters, and brought so much nuance to them, and they played off of each other so well, that when they were on screen, you could believe that what was happening was real. They elevated this show in such an amazing way. Also, David Tennant could have chemistry with a rock. Bravo.

3.) The scene with Adam and his father. When he was explaining what it meant to be family. This meant a lot to me personally, and I think this one, along with the scene right before it, were the best scenes of the entire show. This book, and then the show, have always been about how loyalty is based on love, and how the strongest bonds form over time and shared experiences, not because it's written somewhere (*side eyes Newt and Anathema*).

4.) The scene where Crowley stops time, and they tell Adam that no matter what he chooses, they support him PLUS Aziraphale telling Adam that he's human and that means he has a choice, and them holding his hands, because he is a scared little boy and they do love him.

5.) The fact that this story is a love letter to humanity. This should be higher on the list, but I'm typing them as I remember them, so. This story is about loving both because and in spite of. We should save the world in spite of the fact that Death is always among us. So is war, and famine, and Pollution and pestilence. We should save the world in spite of the fact that humanity can be the worst of hell. Because between all of that bad stuff, there is also incredible kindness, and love, and peace, and friendships that change you and form you. In between the worst of hell, you find the best of heaven, and in between that, you find old cars and backwoods and red boots and bookshops and families that you choose and make and let go. And if any of it is worth fixing, then all of it is worth saving, and this story understands that.

6.) The drunk scene. I've never laughed so hard as I did when David Tennant screamed that the point was dolphins.

7.) The soundtrack was art. I loved how they interwove Queen songs with these gorgeous instrumental pieces, and then the last song was just a stroke of genius.

8.) The cinemetography, sets, set pieces, and costumes were amazing. The attention to detail was phenomenal. This was a triumph for the director, the set crew, the costume department, camera crew, and, of course, the post production crew.

9.) Pepper. That's it. That's the point. She's amazing. So are the rest of the Them, of course, but Pepper? Iconic.

10.) Episode six. The whole thing was beautiful.

So I loved it. I really wanted to, but I was so scared that I wouldn't and then I DID AND IT WAS GORGEOUS. I will definitely be rewatching this soon.

[searchingwardrobes]

Natural Opposite: Re-post of 2/16

Many thanks to my beta, @distant-rose, as well as my artist @optomisticgirl. You can check out her chapter art here: Chapter Two I love the way she captured the craziness of Comic-Con when our OTP first meet!

Summary: Dance is more than Emma Swan’s career; it’s practically saved her life on more than one occasion. But when it comes to reality TV shows, she’s always danced in the shadows of her twin brother David and her sister Elsa. Her first season as a pro on Dancing With the Stars was a disaster, and she enters her second season determined to prove herself. All she needs is a good partner. Hollywood bad boy and ladies’ man Killian Jones isn’t what she had in mind.

Rating: M for mature themes, steamy dance routines, and sexy times (But NOT smut)

Trigger warnings: discussions of online solicitation of a minor, bullying, statutory rape, and emotionally abusive/controlling relationships; stalking; anti-Rumbelle, anti-Neal

Can also be read on Ao3

Tagging: (let me know if you want to be added to my tag list) @snowbellewells @kmomof4 @jennjenn615 @kday426 @bethacaciakay @teamhook @whimsicallyenchantedrose @snidgetsafan @delirious-latenight-laughs @winterbaby89 @followbatb @onceuponaprincessworld @hollyethecurious @ohmakemeahercules

Chapter Two: Anywhere But Here

“So we’re on our way to San Diego,” Emma said into the camera, forcing a stage smile onto her face. She also used a peppier voice than she normally would. She had been dancing since she was in her early teens; she knew how to act. Yet even her decade’s worth of stage experience couldn’t mask all of her nerves. She kept gnawing on her bottom lip and rubbing her palms up and down her jeans as she glanced out the tinted windows of the limousine.

Emma looked back into the camera and chuckled. “Now I know how the celebs feel when they meet us! I have no idea what to expect.”

“I think that’s enough for now,” the camera guy told her flatly as he lowered his equipment to his lap.

Emma sagged against the leather seats in relief. One thing she would need to get used to if she wanted to win the mirror ball trophy was the constant presence of the cameras. They called it “reality television,” but this was Emma’s second show like this. She knew better. On So You Think You Can Dance, they told Elsa she didn’t seem excited enough when she came out of the auditorium with her ticket to Vegas, so they made her do it over again. On Dancing with the Stars, the pros knew to turn it on or dial up the drama whenever the cameras were present. Elsa and David had both warned her how draining it became as the season wore on. And here she was, weary on day one.

But Emma chalked it all up to this scheme of Regina’s. Since when were both the celeb and the pro in the dark? Emma had a notoriously prickly personality, and Regina knew it. This little meeting could go sideways fast. At least with Leroy, she had time to prepare herself.

The limo pulled around to the back of the convention center and parked near a door marked “security entrance.” A young woman with a lanyard around her neck with an official SDCC tag greeted Emma and the camera crew, who had already started filming again. She guided them inside and down a hallway so dark, Emma had to push her sunglasses on top of her head. The woman stopped right at a door with a star taped to it. When Emma read it, her jaw dropped, and she turned to stare in surprise at the camera crew.

“Have fun,” the woman said almost enviously as she scurried away.

Emma blinked rapidly. “This, this doesn’t make sense.”

If Regina had wanted a reaction, she was certainly getting one. The star on the door read “Cast of Neverland.” It was ABC’s biggest hit show. And actors on hit shows didn’t do Dancing With the Stars. They just didn’t. Emma’s mind raced as she approached the door. She could discount the show’s lead right off the bat. Killian Jones, who played Captain Hook, was the hottest thing in Hollywood right now. His face graced every magazine; both the legitimate ones and the tabloids. No one that popular did a show like DWTS. It would hurt their career more than help it, or at least, that was the assumption.

She thought maybe it could be Robbie Malcolm who played the show’s villain, Peter Pan. Teen actors, even popular ones, could get away with competing on the dance show, and it even helped some of their careers. But everyone knew that he had just been cast in the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie; no way did he have time to do the show. So that narrowed it down to one of the minor actors. Rufus Black, who played one of the lost boys, or maybe Christopher Rogers who played Mr. Smee. But did those minor cast members even attend Comic Con?

“Ms. Swan?” one of the crew asked tentatively.

“Right,” she said, shaking her head and turning the door knob. “Hello?” she called tentatively as the door swung open.

A raucous cheer rose up as Emma walked through the door. Of course. They knew one of their cast members was meeting his pro dancer today. Emma’s gaze traveled over the group in the green room, her eyes landing on a group of teenagers in one corner. There was Robbie Malcolm and the three actors who played the Darling children. John and Michael Darling! She had forgotten about them. Surely one of them was her partner. She took a step tentatively towards them.

“Which one of you is my partner?” Emma asked. She didn’t have to force enthusiasm this time. A partner from a hit show was a huge advantage, even if the actor was thirteen or fourteen years old.

The boys blushed and shoved one another. Robbie Malcolm clapped a hand on the younger one’s shoulder. “They wish!” he chuckled.

“I hate to disappoint you, lass, but your partner would be me.”

Emma felt the color drain from her face as she turned to face the man who owned the deep, British accent. Killian Jones sauntered towards her, looking unfairly handsome in skinny jeans and a sky blue shirt. Her first thought was that his eyes really were as blue as they looked in photographs. Then he had the audacity to wink at her. She should have known.

“I was hoping it would be you,” he said to her with a waggle of his eyebrows. And before she even knew what was happening, he took her hand, bent, and kissed it.

Before Emma remembered the cameras, she rolled her eyes and snatched her hand away. “So you’re an old-fashioned gentleman, huh?”

He smiled a dazzling smile that should have been illegal. “Oh, yes. I’m always a gentleman.”

Great. She would be spending the entire season dodging this playboy’s pick-up lines. Regina better not expect her to flirt back. The last thing Killian Jones needed was for his ego to get any bigger. Emma wasn’t one to follow celebrity gossip, but even she knew that the man had a reputation.

Emma crossed her arms and glowered at the man in front of her who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. Until one of the crew cleared his throat loudly. Emma dropped her arms to her side and forced a friendlier expression on her face. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get a word out, the young woman with the clipboard returned.

“We gotta move,” she told everyone, “your panel is starting.”

Killian turned to her with a lopsided grin and a tiny nod, “See you on stage, love.”

Emma shook her head, confused. “No, genius, we have to rehearse. Or did they not spell that out for you?”

He only grinned wider at her surliness. “They told me you were a feisty one. “ He reached out and fiddled with a lock of her hair, then leaned closer. “I know I will be in your capable hands all season, Ms. Swan. I was referring to the exclusive announcement of my dancing partner. For the fans?”

“Mr. Jones!” the woman behind them called.

He winked one last time and left her in the now empty green room, feeling completely turned upside down.

“Ms. Swan,” the woman called, “you need to come, too.”

In a daze, Emma followed the woman back down the same dark corridor. As they walked, the sound of frenzied screaming grew louder and louder. Emma and the SDCC worker caught up to the cast of Neverland, the camera crew following them. They all gathered at the bottom of a set of risers. Two of Emma’s camera guys followed the clipboard lady around the curtains so they could film from in front of the stage. The hostess of the panel discussion was whipping the crowd into a fervor, asking if they were ready three or four times. Emma rolled her eyes again.

“First up is everyone’s favorite evil teenager. The most villainous, sadistic version of Peter Pan. That’s right – it’s Robbie Malcolm!”

Fans cheered loudly, several teenage girls screaming, “I love you!” at the top of their lungs. Rose Moore, who played Tinkerbell, was announced next. Then the hostess really laid it on thick.

“And now, the man who brings the house down every year. Everyone’s favorite pirate. The devilishly handsome KILLIAN JONES!!!!”

Emma watched him jog lithely up the riser steps and wave to the crowd as he found his place beside Rose. At least he’s coordinated, she thought wryly. The rest of the cast was announced (Emma vaguely wondered if it hurt their feelings that they didn’t get as many rousing cheers as the first three), and then the hostess started asking questions collected on twitter. Emma had never actually watched the show, so she couldn’t really follow everything and quickly got bored. It was the story of Peter Pan turned on its head, that was all she knew. Hook was the hero while Pan was the villain. And Tinkerbell was Hook’s love interest. Emma would have to be living under a rock not to know that. “Captain Fairy” shippers went insane over the fictional couple.

“Killian, I have to ask,” a breathless fan asked from a microphone set up at the back of the ballroom, “are you and Rose a couple in real life? You have such amazing chemistry.”

This was something else a person would have to live under rock not to know. The two actors were constantly posting selfies from set and hitting the night life together around LA. Emma craned her neck to see Killian Jones’s answer.

“We do have chemistry,” he said, turning to Rose and lifting her hand for a kiss just as he had done with Emma earlier, “but alas, we are just friends.”

Emma rolled her eyes again. The man was full of it!

“Speaking of chemistry,” the hostess segued, “I heard a rumor that you’re going to need some on the dance floor, Killian?”

The crowd obviously didn’t get it yet, although there was a wave of excited whispers.

“That’s right,” Killian said, leaning into his microphone, “I will be doing the next season of Dancing With the Stars.”

The audience went absolutely wild with the news, and it took the hostess a few moments to calm them down. “Wow, that’s exciting,” she enthused, “and do you know yet who your partner will be?”

“Yes, I do,” Killian replied, flashing that dazzling smile of his, “as a matter of fact, she’s right back stage.”

Emma started fidgeting with nervousness as the crowd once again went wild. She wasn’t a very big name yet on DWTS. Elsa would have been an exciting partner, or Ruby, or Ariel. But Emma? She hoped the crowd wouldn’t be too disappointed when she made her appearance.

“You guys want to meet her?” the hostess asked, practically bouncing with excitement. The crowd cheered in the affirmative. “Okay, then, let’s bring her out!”

Emma was almost blinded by the flashbulbs going off when she walked on stage. She managed to smile and wave despite the spots dancing before her eyes. The panel hostess yelled her name over the raucous cheers of the crowd. The sound relieved Emma even as it pounded in her ears. Killian rose from his chair, and Emma accepted his friendly hug with an equally friendly smile. Killian then took a step back and bowed to her.

“Shall we dance?”

If the cheers from the crowd were deafening before, they were about to burst her eardrums now. She played along, tilting her chin and smiling down at Killian flirtatiously as she accepted his hand. She may have botched their initial meeting, but Regina would eat up her performance now. Killian placed his other hand at her waist when he rose. Emma took a mental note of all the things she needed to fix about his frame, but she kept the smile plastered on her face. The crowd was chanting, “waltz! waltz! waltz!” She could only guess it had something to do with the show.

Killian turned to the audience, “She’s a pro, so I don’t need to tell her the one rule, do I?”

The audience chanted back almost in perfect unison, “Pick a partner who knows what he’s doing!”

Killian began a simple box step, and Emma was pleasantly surprised at how he led her around the tight stage. He had at least learned the basics of a waltz on Neverland. Maybe this partnership wouldn’t be so bad after all.

But then he pulled her close, and Emma almost gave a small shout of surprise. The audience hooted. Then Killian Jones dipped her.

Smirking down at her, he said, “I’m ready to get whipped into shape, pro. Don’t be afraid to, you know,” here he winked, “really get into it.”

Emma took it back. She was going to kill Regina.

[rebelsofshield]

Panels Far, Far Away: A Week in Star Wars Comics 9/12/18

Darth Vader builds a house and Luke pulls a really wizard move in this week’s batch of Star Wars comics.

Star Wars Darth Vader #21 written by Charles Soule and art by Giuseppe Camuncoli and Daniele Orlandini

On a certain level, Charles Soule’s latest Darth Vader epic is the origin story of a house. Given, it is a very cool house that sits on top of a volcano and blends brutalist and gothic architecture, but it’s at its core, just a house.

While Soule’s characterization and Giuseppe Camuncoli’s pencils (helped along here by Daniele Orlandini) are as sharp as ever, it is easy to go into “Fortress Vader” expecting a familiar origin story that fills in an aspect of the titular Sith Lord for the new canon and little else. Soule even plays up these expectations by introducing a new character that functions more or less as an Imperial architect.

However, just as the reader begins to settle into the narrative rhythm that Soule has laid out, a clever and even disturbing twist is executed that rockets the arc into more mysterious territory. Playing with similar elements that made his Lando miniseries such a standout, Soule steers Vader into the realm of cosmic horror and the results are intriguing and exciting. It makes for a strong issue that sets up the remainder of the story to be equally unpredictable and twisting. Fans of Dark Side lore are sure to be salivating.

Camuncoli and Orlandini’s art proves just as twisting. The issue opens up with yet another glimpse into Vader’s psychology that is pure nightmare fuel. David Curiel’s colors also capture the heat and sweeping lavascapes of Mustafar very well. There are a few moments where characters faces are rendered in awkward fashion, but it does little to take away from what is overall a very engrossing installment.

Score: A-

Star Wars The Last Jedi #6 written by Gary Whitta and art by Michael Walsh

The showdown on Crait is a dynamic and emotional finale to what is already a film overstuffed with content and spectacle. While as controversial as much of the rest of the movie, I have always found the finale to Rian Johnson’s movie to include some of its strongest moments especially in the conclusion of Luke’s story arc.

Despite some of the sloppiness that came before it, writer Gary Whitta mostly manages to capture these highlights well. Thankfully, the internal monologue from Luke returns and proves once again to be insightful and beneficial in allowing us as readers to understand the wizened Jedi’s thought process and emotional landscape in these important moments. These tiny peaks into character have always been the standout of Whitta’s scripting and they prove beneficial here.

That being said, Whitta’s scripting still feels awkwardly paced in its layout of dialogue. Moments such as Luke and Leia’s reunion which in many ways is the most emotionally true moment of the film version read as utilitarian here and lack the chemistry and somber characterization that made this stand out on screen.

Michael Walsh’s art and Mike Spencer’s colors turn in some of their best work of the series here. Spencer makes the inspired decision to not color the surface of Crait at all. It makes the whiteness and streaks of red that the battle cuts through it pop visually and actually manages to capture the same gripping visual effect of the film surprisingly well. Similarly, Walsh’s layouts of Luke standing down the First Order and the choreography of the action scenes are crisp and striking.

As we come to the conclusion of this mini-series, it’s still hard to see why Marvel sees adaptations of these films so late after release to be a necessity outside of tradition or cash in. While Whitta and Walsh have turned in a decent enough effort with this miniseries, it is still hard to recommend to anyone outside of serious collectors. It’s not a wash, but there are better ways to experience this story.

Score: B

[aion-rsa]

Why Evil is the Only TV Procedural Worth Watching

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This Evil article contains spoilers. You can read a spoiler-free review of the show here.

Who knows what evils lie at the heart of CBS’s Evil? Shadows know. We consulted a book of shadows (not the one Leland Townsend (Michael Emerson) skims, too many spoilers there) to cut into the left ventricle of the darkness feeding the network’s supernatural series, now in production for season 2. The blood of the police procedural pumps through the veins of the paranormal investigation show, but Evil transcends the statutes of those limitations. Occasionally by papal decree. The series is intelligent, filled with symbolism, and its main character, who is training to be a priest, drops acid on a semi-regular basis. And he’s not microdosing. Look at those baggies.

Evil doesn’t debunk demonic possession, which is the main thrust of the team’s investigations. It never treats it as campy. The series believes demons are real, even giving the audience a breakdown of the six different forms possession take. But it deliciously stops short of giving full commitment. The show also explores how to parse out personal responsibility when there’s a supernatural being to blame. In episode 7, “Vatican 3,” we learn “the court does not acknowledge demonic possession” in determining guilt or innocence. The series further muddies the waters when the crew has to take a hard look at a murder committed by someone who wasn’t possessed, such as when the parents of what they believed is a demonically possessed child kill him. The series further turns the screw because the kid they killed to save their other children was born evil. It was literally in his genes.

Evil shares DNA with The X-Files, and David Acosta, played with charisma and empathy by Mike Colter (Luke Cage), is the new show’s Fox “Spooky” Mulder. He is looking for answers beyond the veil, which has the same letters as evil, and he is putting the pieces together like a hidden map of old Manhattan. There’s a truth out there and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to understand it. He’s not in it to solve any crimes against venal sins. He is looking for deeper meaning, and this alone puts the series above most procedurals. David’s got a bit of the scientist Dodge from original The Planet of the Apes film in his cinematic character. One of the first astronauts to delve so deep into the outer reaches of space, “He’d walk naked into a live volcano if he thought he could learn something no other man knew.” David is the same. He was a foreign correspondent in war-ravaged Afghanistan who got to know the soldiers whose stories he reported. Truth and knowledge are the most noble of callings, and ultimately come before his religious calling.

While the basic premise of a spiritual believer teamed with a dissenting psychologist is procedural trope, Evil is out to debunk the law of its diminishing returns. First, the show teams David with not just one skeptical voice, but two. Katja Herbers’ Dr. Kristen Bouchard plays the same role Agent Dana Scully played to Mulder, and with a similar arsenal. She comes from a different perspective, though. Bouchard does indeed believe in miracles, but thinks they all have scientific explanations. She is confident the only reason something might defy natural principles is because science hasn’t been applied properly yet. Scully, who wore a cross and took her faith seriously, accepted miracles on faith. David and Kristen rarely come to the same conclusion.

Ben Shakir, played by Aasif Mandvi, brings common knowledge, and shades his skepticism with cynicism. The former Daily Show correspondent takes on the weight of all three Lone Gunmen but with more constructive skills. Before joining the paranormal team, he was a carpenter, just like Jesus. Ben knows how things work, and when everyday mechanisms like sinks or faulty wiring are the root cause of supernatural phenomena, he can turn the screws, and spot the mold. Ben, “the Magnificent,” as Kristen’s children call him, is also tech savvy, and quite capable of hacking hackers.

Evil also throws things at Ben which he can’t easily spackle over with even the best of tests. Try as he may, and he tries, he can’t explain the light of an angel in the frame of a surveillance video. There is no evidence of doctoring, even at the most expert levels. “The world is weird,” David passes off as dating advice when Ben asks about potential girlfriend Vanessa (Nicole Shalhoub), who wants to know she if she should detach from her dead sister before committing to a new relationship. Vanessa thinks she is “tethered” to her phantom sister by the right arm.

Supernatural science is bizarre, creators Robert and Michelle King (The Good Wife, Braindead) believe. They push the show to diagnose causes the external evidence of exorcisms and stigmata, the bleeding wounds which correspond to the wounds on Christ’s hands when he was nailed to the cross. Because stigmatics display their wounds as they are portrayed artistically, rather than how the Romans historically would have done the crucifixion, it proves it comes from a psychological source. Internal belief causes the phenomena, not external spiritual forces. Evil explains that, allowing ample room for skepticism, belief, and even poetic reasons for spiritual incursions. David quotes Shakespeare to enunciate his faith. The concept of free will doesn’t come up in most procedurals. Neither does the way sociopolitical issues are turned into supernatural questions and tied to the origins of evil.

Evil is almost a character in Evil, and has relatable entry points. Real demons first get to Kristen’s four young daughters through an augmented reality videogame. A little girl who never takes off her Halloween mask almost gets the sisters to bury one alive. We don’t know how much of the characters’ perceptions is the result of a demon character’s influence on them. Each character is slowly being tempted by the dark side.

Kristen joined the team as a rational thinker but has had to accommodate uncomfortable ideas and adjust her comfort zone accordingly. In her usual line of work, she’s analyzed the criminally insane, but the show has pushed her into close contact with people who are evil in the Biblical sense. She is being pushed incrementally by forces in and out of her control. Her own mother Sheryl (Christine Lahti) sides with a manipulative competitor, Leland, over her daughter, and he’s made direct threats. The first season can be seen as Kristen’s slow corruption. The second season may see Kirsten apply her skills to her own situation, which will delve further into the dichotomy between the spiritual and pragmatic.

This is because Kristen may have already fallen. The final episode includes a telltale blood stain, which she wills Ben to unsee. On any procedural this is considered a clue, but here on Evil, the evidence actually points further than a mere homicide. It is the first sign that a main character has gone to the dark side. It is confirmed when the touch of a crucifix blisters her hand. There’s no such thing as an original sin and Kristen has been flirting with temptation long before this.

Kristen is a married nonpracticing Catholic who lost her faith. She’s sexually attracted to David, a man on his way to becoming a priest. When this subject was broached on the classic 1970s cop comedy Barney Miller, a prostitute who was supposed to be a young priest’s last fling before he entered a monastery said “I break laws, not commandments.” It feels like Kristen reminds herself of this every time the two of them are on screen alone together. Their sexual chemistry is that palpable. Yes, this is very similar to the long-gesticulating romance between Mulder and Scully, but he was no priest and she wasn’t married. Not only is Kristen married, but she’s got half a brood of daughters. Annoying things, really, but at least one of them has an excuse. Another reason Evil is the only procedural worth watching is because everyone on it just might be cursed. That’s not found in the manuals.

Evil towers over contemporary procedurals in how it’s going dark. Most procedurals chase a morally compromised arc, but Evil treats it like an encroaching corruption. Kristen, who is sworn to uphold the law, may have gone more than rogue vigilante. Besides the crucifix-burning season closing, David has visions of a goat demon waiting for Kristen with a scythe. She’d been tormented by her own personal demon throughout the season but when the George, the demon-like creature who visits Kristen during sleep paralysis, falls on the knife, it changes nothing. He is just one of many demons. One of them set up practice and is taking office hours with Leland.

The Demon Therapist is an all-male Goat of Mendes, or Baphomet. The show gets into how different biblical angels look from how they’re perceived artistically and by the contemporary faithful, but won’t present a faithful representation of Baphomet. It’s as patriarchal as Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Evil keeps it vague whether the goat demon is real or in Leland’s head. The Demon therapist appears in Kristen’s dreams as well. Lexis (Maddy Crocco) disabled the house alarm for the visiting devil therapist when he invites her to “the next level,” making it seem she is at least susceptible to underworldly influence. The kids are irritating, but they are a bargaining chip and their father, Adam, put them up for grabs when they chanted together offering an exchange of souls. Kristen was co-opted into evil through protective motherly instinct. She doesn’t see the mark of the devil as a badge of honor. When Kristen puts the cross in her palm, she doesn’t look like she expected it as much as feared it.

While the network show will never have the freedoms afforded cable series, the acting is top notch all around. Series like HBO’s Perry Mason or even Showtime’s reimagined second incarnation of Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, provide a wider range of emotion and carnality. But Evil gives us muted, for the most part believable performances, very often underplayed. As are the special effects and use of technology as a narrative device. Too many procedurals treat high tech surveillance and other investigative tools like they are all-seeing eyes which can count nostril hairs.  It has become normalized. Evil doesn’t waste intellectual space with unreasonable gadgets. The tools Ben or Leland use to their computerized ends are believable. At one point, Kristen asks Ben to record a cell phone conversation which is already halfway over. She is surprised he can’t with all his special skills.

The series incorporates real world horrors into mundane life. Even some of the most normal looking settings carry a sense of unease, to underscore the show’s thesis that the supernatural is natural but never quite normalized. Many of the scenes are shot vertically, drawing the viewers’ eyes upward and inferring something is always going on above. The series’ many wide-angle shots put a distance between characters even in close-ups.

The show isn’t afraid to wear its influences on its sleeves, and on several occasions has a lot of fun with it. For Dr. Kurt Boggs’ (Kurt Fuller) arrival at an exorcism, they recreated Father Merrin’s introductory scene in the horror classic The Exorcist, shot for shot, even getting an exact replica of the light post and the same make car, though different year, from the film. They gave nods to Rosemary’s Baby, Misery, Cabin in the Woods, and Children of the Corn.  The climbing ax which Kirsten grabs on her way out to do damage on the serial killer Orson looks like it has teeth. As did the walking stick Lon Chaney’s Larry Talbot carried in The Wolfman. The demon George looks like Freddy Krueger’s good-looking cousin. The tonality of the show is reminiscent of Charles Laughton’s immeasurably influential Night of the Hunter.

The main reason Evil shines above most procedurals is because it is scary, and those scares have been building slowly and deliberately. Commonplace settings feel off, and the world around is filled with conspiracies and coverup. The Vatican asks the team to determine whether a woman who knows the hidden history of the church is a false prophet. The fertility clinic Kristen and her husband Andy used when conceiving Lexis corrupts fetuses with satanic insemination. A witty but innocuous internet meme, Puddy’s Christmas song, is a hummably foreboding earworm. Anything can go evil on Evil.

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Evil season 2 is currently in production. Read more about that here.

The post Why Evil is the Only TV Procedural Worth Watching appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[ingravinoveritas]

Hello there! I hope you are doing well (as well as someone who has completed watching season 2) First of all congrats on moving into a new house! I'm still having lots of Feelings™ to process after finishing the second season.. oh god the acting, the genuine emotions on the faces of both Michael and David this time around... I'm simultaneously radiating happiness and being utterly destroyed. And the increasing intimacy between them in the interviews is not helping matters either... I think (this has been marinating in my head for a while) one of the reasons they are doing this is to physically reassure each other that they are not apart, they are still a team and still on their side, because after the heart wrenching ending of the season, it would have been very hard for them to come to terms with it, as they had put their whole beings, their whole souls into playing Azi and Crowley, which might have made it difficult to draw a line where the characters ended and they begin... So the touches, their body language became a sort of coping mechanism, something which said 'hey, don't worry, I'm still here.. I have not gone away, we're still together' and this makes me wanna cry again 😭

I hope my word vomit makes an iota of sense (English is not my first language by a long shot, so) and I hope you do find some time to rest and have a warm beverage of your choice while unwinding. Stay safe and blessed!!

Hi there! Thank you so much for the congrats on my move, I truly appreciate it. I've actually had a very rough couple of days, as on top of the move, my Facebook account was hacked earlier this week, and it essentially pushed me over the edge and I was crying for much of Monday and felt like I had a crying "hangover" all day Tuesday.

You do not at all have to apologize for your Ask--your English is very good!--and I'm glad to read your thoughts as I make my way through all the Anons still residing in my inbox. Truly, we are fortunate to have GO 2 and Michael and David to focus on, as well as the abundance of interviews we've gotten after months and months of little to no content.

To start: I absolutely agree with you, re: the intimacy between Michael and David in these interviews. It's been so fascinating to see them get more flirty and touchy-feely with each progressive interview (I know we don't know the order in which they were done, but I imagine the flirting/touching increased as the day went on). And while I can definitely see them doing what you described--reassuring each other, touching and being close as a coping mechanism--my feeling is they already did all that last year, probably right after filming That Scene. (There is actually a gorgeous MS/DT fic on AO3 right now that depicts exactly that, and it's definitely worth reading.)

But in terms of all the intimacy and touching in the more recent interviews (from last month), I think what we're seeing is something else. I think Michael and David are beyond the need for reassurance because they are so comfortable with each other and know they're still together, permanently. There's no more of the uncertainty of parting ways after the promo interviews end--only the promise of seeing each other again as soon as both their lives and schedules allow it.

There have been so many moments of telling body language and touches and expressions, but if I had to pick a favorite (well, a few), one would be them walking arm-in-arm onto The One Show:

And the other would be David leaning so far over and draping his arm around Michael in the Amazon Q&A video:

...And of course (and possibly most notable), Michael and David seemingly unconsciously moving closer to each other in the TV Insider interview:

It's so telling that there is no urgency or desperateness to any of this--only comfort and very much that sense of "on our side" that you mentioned. Walking out arm-in-arm as they did in particular adds to that "us against the world" feeling and the not-so-subtle implication that while they were Michael Sheen and David Tennant on the season one press tour, here, now, they are Michael and David. Inseparable, always intertwined, and having so much more of themselves in the characters of Aziraphale and Crowley than in the first season.

So yes, everything you wrote absolutely did make sense, and I appreciate you writing in to share your thoughts with me. I have a lot more thoughts/analysis about GO season 2 still to share, which I hope to do in response to the numerous Anons still waiting in my inbox. Thanks for writing in! x

[ingravinoveritas]

I think maybe that’s exactly what it was. Because I felt the same way, particularly in Michael’s delivery of the “smitten” line...

It’s the way his voice goes so much lower here than in any other part of the scene. It’s that it feels so impossibly domestic and comfortable that you know Michael and David have sat and chatted fondly exactly like this countless times. It’s that he managed to imbue one single word with so much meaning and subtext using just his tone and microexpressions. It’s also that Michael just recently talked about how everything he and David brought to Aziraphale and Crowley is the result of what has happened between them in real life in the last four years, and that is what we are seeing on camera: The quiet, everyday intimacy of two people who have fallen in love...

In the "smitten" scene Aziraphale's gaze is softer than I've ever seen before. I can't stop watching and wondering if it's genius acting or if Michael Sheen was a just bit tired that day and it shows. But it feels so so real. Mr Sheen has proven yet again that he's an incredible actor, but in this scene idk it feels like it's beyond acting, it's hard to describe it. I feel like I'm watching a real person chatting fondly with the love of his life.

[scarecrowandmrking]

    Although I was pretty excited when I found out the writers had made a part for me on End Of Days, I kinda expected my arrival on the TV show wouldn't exactly be welcome.  My father produced the show and people were crying nepotism over it and saying that the character and story surrounding her were rushed and only created to appease my dad. And it hurt. I'd been in lots of films, including Michael Bay, Peter Jackson and James Cameron epics. I’d done Broadway and had trained in ballet at the world renowned  Paris Marais School. And still everything I ever achieved always, always, came back to my father. But I was determined to make the best of it. To prove to everyone that this demon character I was playing wasn't some bone thrown to me, it was my character. It was all me.       I was kind of surprised when Mark Pellegrino, who played the main protagonist on the show, invited me to one of his workshops at Playhouse West. Though I played a demon minion of his character in End Of Days, we seldom ever hung out or anything. I was close to all the other actors on the show, but not really to Mark. The man was at times an intimidating presence on set, depending on if he was in character or not. In fact, the first time I had met the tall, blond haired actor, I had walked up to him while he was  in full demonic make up and he had stared up at me as if he wanted to rip my face off. I didn't speak to him for a good two months after that. And, though I knew he had quite the fangirl following from the show, I found him to be too imposing and intense for my liking.      Mark had been dating the lead actress and writer on the show for a while now. Though from what I understood they had broken it off yet again. Now there was a new thing going on where the writers were having my character getting closer to Mark's, apparently because his ex wanted some space or some shit. When I first found out about it I must admit I ground my teeth a little. The fans already thought my being around was nepotism, now they were frothing at the mouth about my character breaking up the main couple on the show. Fucking perfect.      When I sat down in Marks class at Playhouse West I wasn't sure what to expect. Certainly not for Mark to come walking up to the front of the class in a black blazer and jeans. And sporting a pair of black horn rimmed glasses. I hadn't really seen that side of him before. That was new. Everyone in class seemed to love him. Many of the girls, and a few of the guys I noticed, staring at him like little lost puppy dogs. Id picked a spot at the back of the class, hoping not to be noticed by the Pellegrino loving horde. I wasn't really a big hit with the Pelli fans at the moment.      Today Mark was going over the nuances of playing villainous characters. I stifled a chuckle. This was something he would no a hell of a lot about, since the only cuddly character I had ever seen him play was Gavin off The Closer.  Mark stood in front of the class, his arms crossed, his eyes looking at each students face in turn. When he got to me, his gaze lingered a second longer than the others and I found myself nervously looking away. Fuck, his stare could melt titanium or something.      "First off, I know nothing about acting the story from the writers point of view. For me, the antagonist kind of is the story in the sense that he is the one, or she, pursuing and end passionately to the point of even death. And they force the other characters in the story to either rise up and meet them with contrary values or physical force. The antagonist is the one who brings out the heroic nature in the hero."      Mark moved around the class handing out scripts to the students. "These are scenes from shows and movies highlighting the different aspects of what it means to be a villein. And no, there aren't any Lucifer scenes in here."      The class erupted into laughter at the Supernatural reference as the actor moved to the front of the room.      "Everybody is going to divide up into pairs and come up here. We'll go through the nuances of the scene, first from the protagonists point of view. Then the antagonists. And we'll discuss how the scene can be improved by understanding what the characters want and how that affects the scenes dynamic."      As the students gathered into pairs Mark came over and plopped a script down in front of me on the desk. I looked down, my face turning a bright shade of red as I read the name upon it. Mark had chosen a scene from Creed: Legacy, a Joss Whedon series I had made a few years back. I'd starred as an apprentice witch assassin who's mother had been part of a society that hunted dark witches and demons. This scene had been a sexually charged exchange between my character and the leader of a witch hunting organization, a group of humans devoted to the genocide of the supernatural. Critics and fandom alike had hated the pairing, mostly because the actor and I had no chemistry. Though, to be fair, it hadn't been much of an issue back then. We'd both had even gotten a good laugh off of it.  I had never really considered it an insult to my acting ability. And thinking Mark had chosen this scene for me because he might think it did pissed me off royally.     "Want to go first?" he asked me, giving that famous little wink of his I recognized from having studied his work.    "Who's going to be my partner, you?"     Mark looked around. All the students were already standing around in their self made pairs. "Looks like you and I are the only ones left. Don't worry, I've had a little experience at this. I promise not to make you look bad."  I gritted my teeth and shook my head. "Why did you give me this? This scene was done just the way it was suppose to be. It was executed perfectly. Why are you trying to teach me things I already know?"    Mark's face became suddenly serious, and his eyes took on a coldly intelligent gleam that made me lean away from him a little. "The scene lacked authenticity. You went through the motions, adding nothing personal to the story. What was Amelia feeling about falling in love with a murderer of her kind? About the man who was directly responsible for her mothers death? Was she afraid, ashamed, angry at herself? You played the scene as it was written on the page. But I don't want to see what the writers wrote on the page. I want to see you."      He gave me another wink before returning to the front of the class. He had the paired off students go through their scenes, stopping here and there to explain to the class what was going on the scene and how they could improve their performances. I was actually quite impressed with him. He had a beautiful way with words and was never harsh or unnecessarily cruel in his critiques, giving praise where it was do and only using gentle prodding when students failed to grasp what they needed to learn. I found myself slowly starting to have a kind of begrudging respect for the man. He obviously cared about teaching. And I found his soothing voice and charismatic ways endearing, as much as I hated to feel anything of the sort for a guy who often made me want to hide under a rock.     When the class was over I felt a pang of sadness that I wouldn't be seeing more of Mark taking the students through their paces. This hadn't gone as badly as Id thought it would. I gathered up my stuff and prepared to hand the script back to Mark where he stood at the door.     "Hey, where are you flying off to?" He closes the door to block any hopes of my escape.     I tilted my head, giving him my best expression that would convey my wish that he leap out of the nearest window. "Come on, Mark, I've got better things to do than this."      He gave me puppy dog eyes, a sight that melted my resilience so fast I found myself both loving and hating the man in equal measure. "Oh, come on. Humor me. And if you do I'll never ask you for anything again. We're going to be having a lot of scenes together soon. Aren't you curious to see how that's going to work?"      "Ok," I replied, finally relenting under the onslaught of his continued rueful gaze. "But its gonna be cut down. No kissing. No touching. Disney stuff."     "Disney. I promise," Mark said, grabbing the script away from me and tossing it across the room.    "Hey!"    Mark motioned for me to follow him to the center of the room. "So, lets start off where my henchman brings you in. You stand right here and ill be right here. Now I want you to keep in mind what I said. Think about Amelia, not as a character, but as a real live person. With thoughts and feelings. She wants to be loved, but her life has always been about the fear of losing someone like how she lost her mother. My character is someone who threatens everything she believes about herself. A threat not only to her life but to her very being."     I fought hard not to roll my eyes. "I know the character, Mark. Played for her for seven years. How long have you played-"      "Did anybody tell you why I'm doing this or is it just because I'm evil?"      My head snapped up when I heard the words. Mark had already started the scene without me. His whole demeanor had been altered,  though it wasn't really something easily put into words. His stance, his voice, even his presence in the room had changed. His glasses were also nowhere to be seen, I noticed. I had seen actors switch into character before, obviously, but never this fast and never to quite this degree.     "Actually, I don't care," I told him, slowly stepping towards him. My hand clenched the imaginary dagger my character had snuck into the room. We eyed each other, circling one another and looking for any sign of weakness. "You think I don't know guys like you? I've dealt with guys like you all my life. You talk a big game, you act like you don't give a shit, but deep down you're all torn up because mommy didn't love you enough or some girl didn't go with you to prom."     Mark lunged out towards me, his speed and agility much faster than the original actor's had been. David had made the gesture almost playful, like a lover pulling me into his arms after a row. This was a predatory move, filled with the promise of greater violence and filled with malice. I gasped, struggling against his chest as he held me against him, the imaginary dagger falling to the floor as the real one had done in the original scene.     "I've studied your kind for years. Think your mother was a saint? Think she didn't slaughter innocents in her time? You don't know anything about me. I've never killed anybody who didn't deserve it. Never stripped anybody of their powers who didn't deserve it. How many of your kind can say the same?"      I stared up at Mark, this was the point in the scene where my character decides to seduce him in order to escape. In the original scene I had smiled at the actor playing him and playfully stroked his cheek. But that felt wrong in this scene with Mark. I decided to do what my training had taught me to do, go with my instincts.     Fuck it.     I grabbed Mark by the head and pulled him down so I could crush his lips to mine. He did something I didn't expect, he pulled away from me, staring down into my eyes. I read so many things in his deep blue eyes. Fear. Loss. Pain. I felt in that moment that I truly understood his character more than I ever had before. That he was a man on a mission to destroy what he believed to be the most dangerous abominations on earth. And that he both wanted to make love to me and kill me. And he hated himself for wanting either. And both.      "I hate you, You ruined my life" I whispered, but I reached up to stroke his face, the gesture betraying my words.      Mark kissed my forehead. "I know. Sometimes I don't like myself much, either."      He kissed me and I moaned into his mouth, leaning against him. He felt so good against me. And I found my hands wandering over his tall, powerful body. I bit and sucked his lower lip, enjoying the little jolt that went through his body. The scene we were doing became mixed with the reality of me and Mark in my mind. One minute I was the End Of Days actress looking for mentoring and the next I was a young witch being kissed and stroked by a hunter of my kind. And it felt breathtaking and wonderful. I couldn't get enough of his mouth on mine, his hands running up and down my back. His voice whispering my name.     "You think any of this is easy for me?" Mark asked, still staying in character as he pushed me towards the front of the desk. "I could have killed you so many times. I could put a bullet in you right now and nobody would bat an eye."      He threw me on top of the desk. I reached out and pulled off his tie, gazing up at him defiantly. "Yeah, well why don't you?"      Mark spread my legs and leaned against me, grabbing me by the back of the head and nipping teasingly at my lips. "Keep pushing me and you'll find out."     "Maybe I like pushing you," I told him, rubbing him through his jeans before unzipping him and stroking his hard cock. "And maybe you like it to."  Mark shuddered, kissing and nibbling my neck as I jacked him. He thrusted against me  few times before taking my hand away and leaning me further back across the desk. His eyes never left mine as he rubbed his cock over my wet pussy. I cried out his name and begged him to fuck me. He stopped for a moment, taking time to enjoy the sight of me wiggling in impatience beneath him, an affectionate, indulgent sort of smile on his face, before pushing his cock into me in one brutal thrust. I groaned as I took him in. Fuck, he was a big man, and his cock was proportionate to the rest of him.      "Take all the time you need," he tells me, pausing to lick and suck on my tits. "You're so beautiful. Wanted you for so long. Since the first time we met."     "Fuck me," I begged him, trying to move up and down on his cock myself.      "Fuck me."     He set a hard and fast pace in and our of my dripping wet pussy. I wrapped my legs around him, encouraging him with mouth, hands and impassioned pleas. No lover had ever fucked this damn well and he was actually getting me close to orgasm, which I'd never had through regular fucking. I wanted to come so fucking bad. The rise and fall of my pussy trying to come on his cock was driving me insane, and I found myself clawing at his back and shoulders. My wet pussy kept clenching around his cock, telling him that I needed it, that I needed him.     "Come for me," he says in my ear. His arms wrap around me and his thrusts become faster, more frantic. "I'm so close to coming for you."      I leaned my head back as my orgasm reached its peak, Mark groaning as he made two last deep thrusts to come when I did. The feeling of his hot spurts inside of me spurned my climax to go higher, deeper. And I heard his answering moan of pleasure as my pussy contracted, gently milking him of the rest of his cum.      When it was over we held each other, Mark planting kisses on every naked inch of skin he could find.  "I think I might have learned a few things," I told him, lovingly stroking his blond head.    "I'll give you a B for effort," he tells me.     I pull away, pretending to be offended. "What? That sounds kinda unfair to me."    Mark gives me the cutest little grin, one that melted my heart instantly. And I knew in that moment that i was falling for him. That I had been falling for him for a long time. "Well, if you're interested I could give you some extra credit."    "What kind of extra credit, sir?"     Mark takes my face in his hands and covers his mouth with mine.

[ljones41]

"THE BOURNE LEGACY" (2012) Review

"THE BOURNE LEGACY" (2012) Review Following the success of the 2007 movie, "THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM", Universal Pictures announced its intentions to release a fourth movie featuring the amnesiac CIA assassin, Jason Bourne. However, their plans nearly folded when actor Matt Damon announced that he would not do a fourth movie.

Damon's announcement failed to put a final kibosh on Universal's plans. Instead, the studio and writer-director Tony Gilroy went ahead with another movie about the CIA assassination programs in which Jason Bourne had participated. Instead of bringing back director Paul Greengrass, Universal and Gilroy (who had written the first three movies) hired Academy Award nominee Jeremy Renner to portray a second CIA assassin named Aaron Cross. With Gilroy in the director's chair, the results led to the fourth movie called "THE BOURNE LEGACY". The movie's title came from Eric Van Lustbader's 2004 novel, but its plot is completely different. "THE BOURNE LEGACY" introduced a third black ops program called Operation Outcome. Unlike Operations Treadstone and Blackbriar, Outcome was specifically created by the U.S. Department of Defense and it enhanced the physical and mental abilities of field operatives through pills referred to as "chems". The movie opens with one of its operatives - Aaron Cross - engaged in a training assignment in Alaska. After Cross traverses rugged terrain to a remote cabin, he meets its operator, an exiled Outcome operative, Number Three. During Cross' time in Alaska, the Blackbriar and Treadstone programs were publicly being exposed (during the events of the previous film, "THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM"), leading the FBI and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence to investigate CIA Deputy Director Pamela Landy, Blackbriar supervisor Noah Vosen, Treadstone clinical researcher Dr. Albert Hirsch and CIA Director Ezra Kramer. Kramer requested help from Eric Byer, a retired Air Force colonel responsible for overseeing the CIA's clandestine operations. Byer, who had originally recruited Cross, discovered potentially damaging video on the Internet in which the lead researchers for Treadstone and Outcome - especially Hirsch - appear at professional functions in public. To prevent the Treadstone/Blackbriar investigation from finding and revealing Outcome's top-secret scientific advances, Byer decided to end Outcome and order the deaths of the program’s agents and medical personnel. He saw this sacrifice as acceptable because the government had already separately initiated next-generation "beta programs". Byer attempted to kill both Cross and Number Three by sending a drone bomb to destroy the cabin in Alaska. Number Three is killed and Cross managed to survive, due to being outside when the bomb dropped. Byer made another attempt to kill Cross with a second drone and unbeknownst to him, ended up killing a wolf pack. Cross then learned of a massacre at Outcome's private research lab, conducted by a chemically brainwashed scientist. The sole survivor turned out to be geneticist Dr. Marta Shearing, whom Cross later saved from CIA assassins. He had hoped that Dr. Shearing could help him wean or "viral" off the chemicals and at the same time, save both of them from being killed by Byer and the Department of Defense. When Universal first leaked news of a fourth movie with Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, I did not exactly embrace the idea. As far as I was concerned, three  movies were enough. When Damon announced that he would not reprise the Bourne role, I felt a surge of relief. As much as I had enjoyed the third BOURNE movie, I felt it was a bit of a comedown after the first two movies. Then I heard news that Universal and Tony Gilroy was going ahead with a fourth movie . . . without Damon. Again, I dismissed the idea of going to see this latest BOURNE movie, until I learned that Jeremy Renner had been cast in the lead. Since I am a fan of Renner's, I decided to go see this fourth film. However, I did not believe I would enjoy it as much as the first three. Like the previous three movies, "THE BOURNE LEGACY" was not perfect. One, I never understood the need for Tony Gilroy to create a third black ops program for the franchise. Considering that the Treadstone and Blackbriar programs were in danger of exposure by the end of "THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM", I was surprised that Gilroy did not simply make Cross a Blackbriar operative. In other words, I found the addition of a third black ops program rather irrelevant. Unfortunately, the movie also featured the continuing presence of CIA Director Ezra Kramer. His presence in the third movie struck me as writing blooper on Gilroy's part. His presence in this fourth movie is a continuation of that blooper. For some reason, Gilroy decided to utilize Paul Greengrass' shaky cam style of filming . . . much to my annoyance. My biggest problem with "THE BOURNE LEGACY" was the ending. I found it vague, rather sudden and anti-climatic. When the movie ended with Cross and Dr. Shearing somewhere in the South China Seas and Pamela Lundy in trouble with Federal authorities for revealing the details of the Treadstone and Blackbriar programs, the first words that left my mouth were "Was that it?". As far as I was concerned, the BOURNE franchise required a fifth movie to tie up the loose plots . . . which never materialized. Despite the ending, despite the continuing presence of Ezra Kramer and despite the Greengrass filming and editing style; I enjoyed "THE BOURNE LEGACY" very much. Who am I kidding? I enjoyed it a lot. In fact, it became my favorite film in the franchise. I felt that Gilroy did a slightly better job of meshing the plot from "THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM" with this film, than meshing the third film with the second one, "THE BOURNE SUPREMACY". A throwaway discussion between Kramer and Noah Vosen regarding Pamela Lundy in the third film finally came to fruition by the end of this movie. The movie also explored - during most of its 135 minutes - Cross' difficulties in dealing with his dependency upon the "chems".  Like the other three movies in the franchise, "THE BOURNE LEGACY" featured some first-rate action sequences. My favorites include Cross' use of the wolf pack to distract the second drone bomb from himself, the massacre at the Operation Outcome labthat featured a chilling performance by Željko Ivanek, and the long chase sequence in Manila, the Philippines. But my favorite sequence featured Cross' rescue of Dr. Shearing from the CIA assassins. The best thing that Tony Gilroy ever did for this movie was to avoid making Aaron Cross into a Jason Bourne 2.0.  He did this by creating Cross as a completely personality - verbose, more extroverted and an acute judge of character. But what really made Cross worked as a character was Jeremy Renner's performance. Some critic once said that what was the point in watching a BOURNE movie without Matt Damon. Well, the first BOURNE production I ever saw was the 1988 miniseries starring Richard Chamberlain. And he was great. I also enjoyed Damon as Bourne, but . . . honestly? I did not really miss him, due to Renner's performance. The movie also benefited from Rachel Weisz's excellent performance as Operation Outcome medical researcher, Dr. Marta Shearing. Weisz's Shearing was a quiet, intense personality, whose ordered life was thrown upside down by her brainwashed colleague and later, the CIA. Weisz was exceptional in the scene featuring the CIA assassins' murder attempt on her. More importantly, the actress and Renner proved to have a superb and somewhat humorous screen chemistry. Another excellent performance came from Edward Norton, who portrayed the ex-Air Force colonel Eric Byer. What I liked about Norton's performance was that he portrayed Byer without the occasional frantic behavior that marked David Strathairn or Chris Cooper's performances. Stacy Keach, whom I have not seen in several years, portrayed a high ranking Federal official named Mark Turso. I cannot recall ever seeing him in a villainous role (at least not to my knowledge), but I must admit that I found his performance very impressive. Dennis Boutsikaris gave a very sardonic and entertaining performance as Terence Ward, the CEO of the company that created the “chems” for the Outcome agents.  Oscar Isaac was effective and subtle performance as the other Outcome agent, Number Three. I could also say the same about Donna Murphy, Michael Chernus and Corey Stoll, who portrayed Byer’s employees.  I was very impressed by Elizabeth Marvel’s balanced portrayal of a tough and no-nonsense C.I.A. assassin sent to kill Marta Shearing.  It was nice to see Joan Allen, David Strathairn, Scott Glenn and Albert Finney again. But they were not on the screen long enough for me to judge their performances. Like I had earlier stated, "THE BOURNE LEGACY" was not perfect, but it seemed a far cry from the failure that some believed it was.  A far cry.  In fact, not only do I believe it was a first-rate political thriller despite its flaws, I am seriously beginning to regard it as the best film in the franchise.  Thanks to Tony Gilroy’s direction and screenplay; along with a first-rate cast led by Jeremy Renner and Rachel Weisz, I enjoyed it very much.