#this scene however is a fantastic adaptation

[selkiewife]

“I wish...”

A Song of Ice and Fire: A Storm of Swords, Tyrion X by George R.R. Martin | Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister in GAME OF THRONES: “The Laws of Gods and Men,” Season 4, Episode 6 | Alice in “Vinegar Tom,” by Caryl Churchill.

[blluespirit]

Overall NATLA Thoughts

Okay, now that I've watched the series, I can give my thoughts.

Overall, I thought it was good!!! I had fun watching it! I'd rate it a solid 6.5/10. It's nowhere as good as the original, but it was definitely enjoyable and made some nice changes here and there that I liked. There were also some things I was also Not a fan of too.

I said in another post that it's best to treat this like an AU of the original. There will things that are great and things that are bad. That's the nature of adapting something.

Having said that, I need to get my initial thoughts off my chest... here we go.

Things I thought were good:

Sokka's characterisation - I really enjoyed him! I thought Ian did a good job! He played the funny moments well and retained the underlying seriousness/cautiousness. It wasn't perfect, but I enjoyed the changes a lot and think it was overall a solid performance.

Zuko's characterisation - Like Sokka, I do think I was most satisfied with their performances. A lot of Zuko's moments from the cartoon are sometimes... well, cartoonish and definitely wouldn't translate to live action, but I think Dallas did a nice job at balancing Zuko's desperate anger and that occasional sassiness well.

Zuko and Iroh moments were great. Had me on the floor crying. As it should have.

The bending looks a trillion times better than the movie - I understand it would not have been easy for the actors but, overall, I was very happy about it.

The scenery was stunning. It just looked so beautiful. I loved it so much.

Absolutely ADORE that they made Zuko a good calligrapher and artist. I read a fic about a million years ago where Zuko is a fantastic calligrapher and I thought it was perfect and made so much sense, and now I can say it's canon. This is perfect for me.

S U K I

The Freedom Fighters were ✨ perfect

They were so real for making Oma and Shu lesbians

Koh, Wan Shi Tong and Hei Bai looked fantastic, but I have more to say about all of them below, unfortunately.

I actually like the change they made that Katara is Aang's sole waterbending teacher.

Aang is not perfect, and needed more goofy scenes HOWEVER, I did like how they've had Aang's guilt more prominent in the story. The original didn't do a very good job with that, imo.

Zuko entering is breaking and entering era by breaking into an impenetrable Earth Kingdom prison is just perfect.

In Masks, I like how Aang and Zuko got a longer conversation - that was pretty cute.

I liked how they changed Yue a bit and got her out of the arranged marriage... how Yue saw Sokka in the Spirit World before meeting him in the real world.

Things I didn't like:

Far too much info-dumping/exposition. So much spelling things out. It was not as egregious as the movie, and I get there's a lot of information that needs to be conveyed well and quickly... but sometimes it really took me out of the show.

Why are Mai and Ty Lee here.... I was hoping the live action would give them a bit more depth (and they might as it goes forward!), but why put them in season 1 at all if they're just going to stand around???

Some odd changes - putting this as one point, but there are some bizarre changes that didn't make sense to me, as they did not benefit the story or deepen the characters. I have two main examples: a) making it so Aang didn't run away from home, and b) making it so Zuko actually fights Ozai in the Agni Kai.

Characterisation of Katara was Not Great. I don't think I got many hints of the reckless, compassionate, badass Katara until the end when she fights Pakku and rallies all the women together to fight (which happens off-screen). She was sweet and kind, but she just lacked the fire that OG Katara has.

Azula's characterisation - Azula is desperate to impress Ozai and so her character is just…. brewing with anger, frustration, desperation. I was SO excited to see the Azula we are introduced too… perpetually and irritatingly calm, calculating and ruthless. She's perfect, she's terrifying! She's literally the character of all time. But this Azula had more Zuko vibes? I don't think there's anything wrong with giving Azula more concrete motivation by wanting to impress Ozai and establishing that Ozai is abusive to both his kids, but I do think trying to do that right off the bat is a mistake.

WHY is Wan Shi Tong here. I love Wan Shi Tong, but like I said: Why Is He Here? Why could we not have his iconic, ominous as fuck introduction from The Library, and instead he's introduced in a random season 1 episode giving Aang Information(tm) about the Spirit World.

When Aang gave Koh the statue, and then he just takes it and immediately lets all the villages go, and neither of them even say anything, I actually laughed out loud. Like, I am so sorry, but what in the jesus fuck was that.

Speaking of Koh - I think Koh is better the less we know about him. Roku saying ~all Koh wants is a family like the rest of us~ just pissed me off?? I like my Koh the Face Stealer Terrifying and Unknowable, thank you.

NOTHING EVER REALLY HAPPENS WITH HEI BAI!!?? where's my precious spirit bear?? Like Aang never really does anything with him and the replacement Koh story is boring and it sucks.

Bumi.... sorry I just didn't vibe with him at all.

Things I can't decide on:

Fancy spirit knife to kill the moon spirit annoyed me a bit, but I guess they wanted to Kuruk something to work with and a little bit more interaction with Aang which I get but idk. I really flip/flop on this one.

I've been very on the fence about having Azula (and Ozai) being in the show in season 1 in general. I'm not sure if it benefited either of their characters.

Azula & Ozai's dynamic - Okay, so, I think they're trying to give Azula more depth, right? They're trying to establish what it was like for Azula to live with Ozai and that she's also (like Zuko) trying to desperately prove herself to him, but Ozai using Zuko's... achievements to do that just felt so weird. I get he's doing it to manipulate her, but that just felt so wrong when in canon it's very obvious that Ozai just didn't give a single fuck about Zuko. Ozai pits Azula against Zuko by saying he's a failure, he's a bad bender etc. Azula is born lucky, Zuko is lucky to be born - like, Ozai says that to Zuko's face. I don't know if I am communicating this point very well, but it just didn't seem right to me??

Zuko vs Zhao in the Siege of the North... I genuinely do not know how to feel about it! I didn't love it, I didn't hate it. I don't know how to feel about Zhao telling Zuko that his mission is a sham and that Azula is the prized one... It feels like it's saying the quiet part out loud? In the OG we all know that Ozai sending Zuko on that mission was an excuse to get rid of him, but we can work that out, no one actually says it. And then Iroh just fucking killing him/mortally wounding him instead of the Iconic scene where Zuko reaches out to save him despite everything Zhao has done to him, but Zhao's own pride gets in the way from letting him accept help from Zuko.

Zuko’s crew being the 41st is not necessarily a bad thing at all!!! But I do just want to say that in the original, the attack goes ahead, and presumably, those soldiers die. It’s horrible. Zuko’s sacrifice is in vain, and it was always going to be in vain because the Fire Nation as it stands would not allow Zuko's compassion to win. Ozai would not allow it. While not necessarily a bad choice (all the soldiers bowing to Zuko on the boat was so sweet I loved it!) but I think it does take away some of the horror of Zuko’s story (same as it does with making Zuko fight back in my opinion) because the whole point is that Zuko did the right thing - and he was punished for it, and those soldiers died anyway.

anyway...

Okay!! got that off my chest. I know I just had a big whine here, but I still had a lot of fun watching this show. I think some of the backlash is a bit over the top and unwarranted. It was never going to stand up to the original - and that's okay.

Enjoy it for what it is!

[224bbaker]

So, hypothetically speaking, if someone had never been interested in Sherlock Holmes before but wanted to get into it because of Fawx & Stallion... Where should they start?

Oh my GOD, anon, so upset we didn't see this until now because what a great question and also, our show inspiring someone to go check out Sherlock Holmes?? Deeply upsetting for our characters but SO exciting for us!

Hopefully since you sent this you've just dived in to the stories--because, honestly, that's how both of our writers got into them as kids, and also because despite what roughly 40 contradicting scholars will try to tell you, the timeline is nonsense and Watson's continuity doesn't make sense (we have made our own peace with this and addressed it in-universe because we didn't want to go on deep-dives to decide what puns we were allowed to use for the place we're at in the timeline it's fine, we're fine).

However, just a quick sidebar before we jump into The Stories--if you would rather start with an adaptation than the original ACD stories themselves, there are two options we'd recommend as starting points that are pretty true to canon while remaining engaging in and of themselves:

The Granada TV series with Jeremy Brett and David Burke/Edward Hardwicke: It rules, and most of it's on YouTube! Highly recommend their Solitary Cyclist, Speckled Band, Scandal in Bohemia, and Blue Carbuncle (we may be biased towards the early, David-Burke-Watson entries). These actors and sets are what we picture when we read Holmes.

For an audio adaptation, the 1989 Bert Coules radio adaptation, which you can get for a single credit on Audible in full and has basically the whole canon! Incredible dramatization work that preserves the stories and really deepens the character work in a way that we're obsessed with. Big fans!

If you're liking the vibe of these, you'll probably like the stories themselves! In which case, there are also awesome online book clubs like Letters from Watson that have great communities here on Tumblr (just peruse the tag, it's super fun!), and also over on Discord.

SO. If you're still here and looking for our direction on the stories:

If you just want to start with what is/will be relevant to Fawx & Stallion, we recommend:

Our goal is that our audience doesn't NEED to have read any Sherlock Holmes to understand anything in F&S. We'll hopefully lay things out or give context clues. However, we do have little jokes for the fans, and in season 2, some subtext may be a bit clearer, or have a bit more weight, if you've read some of the stories.

A Study In Scarlet: I know, I know I know I know, Holmes fans, the Utah Mormon stuff, I get it, BUT. Holmes and Watson meet in this one, and it's incredible. The first few chapters of them meeting, starting to live together, going from roommates with a mutual fascination to, through Watson's unintentional insult of Holmes's writing and a fateful invitation to a crime scene, actual friends, are electric. It's a crime (pun intended) that we have so few dramatizations of this in the canon era (we're trying to fix that), we love it so so much. Sacrilege, but, wikipedia the stuff in the middle, enjoy the fantastic meet cute that bookends the thing.

Hound of the Baskervilles: Happening during the events of Fawx & Stallion season 1. I don't need to tell you this one is a banger, we all know this. Less Holmes content than you expect, but a GREAT setting, mood, and roster of suspects, and a thrilling, well-paced mystery with some great Watson.

The Final Problem: Occurs right before the events of season 2, and though you again don't need to have read it, some stuff might hit better if you have, particularly in the back half of the season. High recommend. On the same note, The Beryl Coronet is also mentioned a few times, which is the case right before this one.

Ok, with that out of the way, we highly recommend:

The "Jump Around To Whatever Short Story or Novel Sounds Cool" Approach

This is the move, in my opinion. As I've said before, the timelines are nonsense, you CAN try to get into the weeds of continuity as we have and there is delightful madness to that, but would I recommend it as an intro? No. They're short stories! They're serialized! Treat it like a TBS rerun series at 1 AM and just pick one that is on/sounds cool!

Now, if you want our PREFERENCE? There are different genres of Holmes mysteries, different types of mysteries for different preferences, but we're going to recommend one particular sub-genre of Holmes mysteries that we find particularly fun/unique: The "It's Not Necessarily A Crime Yet But the Vibes Are There" Mystery.

We love these. They're the best. Not depressing or gruesome off the bat, usually starting with some whimsy at Baker Street, these stories usually begin with a client coming to Holmes and the following interaction happens

CLIENT: Um, hi. Honestly it's pretty silly that i'm even here. It's probably just a Weird Thing, you probably don't-- HOLMES: No no no please tell me I love Weird Things. CLIENT: Ok. Well. My boss/guardian/brother/[insert-person-who-has-power-over-them] has been doing this Thing where he [insert extremely weird thing that again, is not a Crime, but the vibes are there]. It's kinda weird. HOLMES: Yeah, super fucking weird. CLIENT: I know! But it's not a crime, so I don't know, you're probably not interested, I'm just a [not rich not male not high class not privileged identity] so there's really no point in checking that out-- HOLMES: No girl (gn), we are DEFINITELY checking that shit out there's a crime in there somewhere and we're gonna find it!

And we're off! If this sounds interesting to you (and it SHOULD), check out: The Solitary Cyclist, The Red Headed League, The Copper Beeches, The Greek Interpreter, The Speckled Band, The Stockbroker's Clerk, The Musgrave Ritual, The Resident Patient, and honestly probably some others we're missing because it's REALLY common.

Other fun Holmes bangers:

Holmes overworks himself and Watson takes him to the country to rest, only to solve ANOTHER FUCKING MYSTERY: The Reigate Squires

The Christmas One!: The Blue Carbuncle

The Dancing Men: I don't have a fun little thing for this one it's just a banger and the Granada Adaptation rules!

The One Where Sherlock Holmes does NOT fall in love with Irene Adler but does get completely owned because 1) he thinks women don't get up early, and 2) he wanted to have a sleepover with Watson: A Scandal in Bohemia

There are a ton, and hopefully you'll find one that you like and just jump in!

[katerinaaqu]

Hello!!

Since I've seen that you've listened to both Epic and Paris the musical, I was curious to know what are your toughts on them! Did you like how the myths and characters where handled? What do you like best and worst? (If you'd like to share, what's your favourite song/moment in each?)

Thanks :]

My my you really wanna get me have an even bigger target on my back than the one I put already! Hahaha! Ok so be it! Hahaha If this gets waaaaaay too long or too runty forgive me! ^_^

You have noticed from many of my comments and my notifications, memes or jokes. I am not a fan of EPIC. Not at all. I believe I am one of the most disliked people on Tumblr on mythology matters because I so openly speak my dislike against EPIC and being annoying about it! Hahaha! XD The thing I absolutely love about it is of course the guy's passion with the project, the way the music works and all (undoubtedly the guy is a very talented composer and can combine the scene with music and emotions and the tricks he uses with music are great) but the way the plot of Odyssey was twisted beyond recognition and to the point that to me you can literally change the names of the characters to anything else and still have the story he presents with the Musical. Maybe that was his goal but in my head that is not what a retelling or an adaptation is about. A retelling to me is not something that seeks to change literally as much as possible from the plot to fit the modern standards or the fanbase. A retelling is something as the word says that "retells the story" aka adapts the story as loyally as possible and adapts it to the audinece by taking creative liberties that are still generic to the story as it was originally told so that it will fit more to the modern standards or ear.

I believe we have so much twisted the word "retelling" that nowadays "retelling" seems to be equivalent to "let's change the hell out of the story because the original plot is not even THAT important to be salvaged and no modern person would watch it anyways" which in my opinion is not the case at all. Unless of course one writes satire. Then it doesn't matter, as I mentioned to another ask of mine.

I lost interest and was massively disappointed from the end of second saga and the song "Storm". The first two sagas were a masterpiece. The creative liberties were amazing to make sense with the plot and give the characters motivation (for example "I'm just a man" was FANTASTIC! The way the myth from Iliou Persis that gave us only one phrase "Odysseus kills Astyanax by throwing him off the wall" is now transformed into a marvelous emotional dilemma and a painful decision). In this case the creative liberty work WITH the plot and not against it. I didn't mind it as much that they made Polites a fluffy guy for no reason to fit that stereotypical "innocence of the team" plot because Polites is a clean slate character in Odyssey. However after Storm I started seeing your typical "Hollywood film 'adaptation' logic with changing stuff at the plot". I was intrigued at how they decided to give Polyphemus an excuse to kill like the guys enter a cave that is obviously habitable and kill an animal that is obviously domesticated and they do not know someone lives there? In the original it was clear someone lived there which made Odysseus curious to interract with them. I was willing to ignore that because ok creative liberties but then Athena was there!? And she gave Odysseus every opportunity to kill him while Odysseus was just "TOO NICE?!" like since when? Odysseus was all about killing him but he had no guarantee he would plus he needed him to open the cave. And the way he revealed his name in the musical was so rush and almost "out of spite" for Athena not a result of a secclusion in a cave for days and days and then his pride speaking up when Polyphemus called him a coward (which I tried to capture to my fic, not sure if I succeeded but still). So anyways at that point I was sure we wouldn't see the last of it with the changes. Poseidon destroys the ships instead of the Laestrygonians (no surprise there, rarely ever see anyone even mention the Laestrygonians yet alone show their contribution to the Odyssey) but then Circe happened and I just knew that we would have to derail from the original more and more

Circe's role was incredibly diminished for the sakes of making her actions more mellow and pass the message of loyalty and kindness. Circe in the original gives Odysseus valid information for his trip provisions and much more. In Epic not only we do not see the importance of Odysseus selling himself to Circe and we have Circe for some reason seducing him to kill him (removing her humanity from when she got scared that her magic won't work on him, potentially thinking he is some kind of god, begging for her safety to then suggesting her bed as Hermes predicts) I mean she had lions and wolves to her disposal she doesn't need to seduce him to kill him. Then of course Jorge realized that a big chunk of plot is missing and so he made Odysseus find out about Skylla by the sirens?! Like...okay... Even Tiresias gives him almost nothing (in the original he also tells him how to break the curse) Which seems interesting how Odysseus breaks down with "Monster" in Tiresias when he has received an act of kindess before. Wouldn't it be more amazing if he had that breakdown AFTER he paid the price with Circe with his own body? That even kindess has a terrible price? Of course the most iconic scene of the Odyssey after the murder of the suitors and Cyclops, the Sirens were twisted to whatever we had there; Odysseus listening to their song was of massive importance to his natural curiocity and we didn't get that (not to mention how would the sirens spell work on him and have Penelope there if he didn't hear their song in the first place?) and of course the fact that he kills them?! Like...how that even works I have no idea and like in the original people were running for their lives. Didn't even look back. Apparently they had all the time in the world to capture them, they knew apparently exactly how many they were and then they kill them?! Like I won't even say that they used the medieval mermaid instead of the sirens and then they "leave them drown" (how you drown fish people is beyond me! Maybe they are sharks that need to keep moving lol) and of course again that scene seemed to me that it was there only to show that "Odysseus is a monster" which makes no sense Odyssey-wise for many reasons. and then of course again Skylla; Odysseus doesn't gear up to protect his men, he is the one who chooses the sacrifice out of spite etc etc

Many others got sped up like the Helios cattle but ok I guess that is expected up to one point even if it could be handled differently but of course then we have also Zeus being a jerk and again making Odysseus choose? The storm that took the lives of his men was a natural consequence, not some twisted thing to prove how "monstrous" Odysseus is. In fact Odysseus tried till the last moment to sail away and save the lives he could (see my other analysis here) and of course again as many people said on God Games and all how Zeus was twisted yet another time although in Odyssey he had zero reasons to object apart from the natural hubris nemesis sequence. He never called Odysseus "shameful" either. In fact he says he agrees with Athena that calls him the most pious.

I think the massive change that I believe is abused by modern retellings is the whole "monster to man" trope. Odysseus losing his moral compass and "becoming the monster" and the plot around revolving to it. That was never the pont of Odyssey in my opinion. Odysseus never really lost his moral compass it is just his morality was not all pure and lovey in the first place. Was he changed by his experiences to be more ruthless in general? Absolutely but he was never changed to a monster according to Homeric version (because post-homeric versions already treat him as a villain from the get-go)

As for the things I liked about it, I had made a post you can see here:

I do love the harmonies and the music in it and I love the passion and the talents of the people in it. It is just that the whole plot for me is just not it. Also maybe I am also mostly annoyed with how the "fandom logic" has taken over it. Like internet getting swarmed by it. Epic quotes or facts getting literally mixed up or associated with the original or the fact we can no longer speak on the original unless someone brings up Epic the Musical... This annoys me to no ends. Of course I recognize the passion of the fans of the musical. Is just a personal thing to me. I felt the same when people were using Percy Jackson or Miller's books to talk on mythology before. Is the same here.

Of course I need to say this all the above is my PERSONAL OPINION. I have literally NOTHING against people who love the musical and the original equally. I am just NOT one of them. Also i have nothing against the artist either. I just do not agree with his outtake. Still appreciate his hard work. However when I saw the firsttwo sagas I knew this guy KNEW his mythology which is why I feel so disappointed that his later sagas felt like "Hmm...let me use that knowledge I definitely have on Odyssey just to change the hell out of it!" And that had me very sad and lowkey annoyed because I think this guy had some real stuff to create an actual Odyssey adaptation and yet again we had your average hollywood film plot where you barely see any of the plot he ellegedly adapts

Now on Paris the Musical I had answered another ask you can see here

I will not take more space on this already huge and runty post that probably made me more annoying and irritating around Tumblr! XD Generally again has little to nothing to do with Iliad but I loved the music (it was arguably one of the most original choices for music for a musical) and the songs I mention to the ask. Apart from that I am ot ecstatic by it either (arguably stage musicals do not seem to work for me when it comes to the ancient classics to a large degree because of how much the plots need to be overly simplified to fit the time frame) but I am more happy that it din't get blasted out of proportions like Epic was so the plot of it doesn't even need to be pointed out that it is not accurate and all. It is self-evident. The fact that the creator of Epic needed to "warn the fans" on how inaccurate his work is, speaks volumes to me.

I will close this runt now because is already too long. I think both Epic and Paris musicals have little to nothing to do with the things they adapt but Ironically Paris the Musical changed less stuff than Epic in comparison to magnitude. Both are passionate projects with great potential and very good music but plot wise I am not anymore surprised that they do not follow the actual plots or character developments. I am surprised that Epic was more accurate to the character development of Eurylochus than the main protagonist Odysseus! Made me focus more on Eurylochus than Odysseus! Hahaha!

I am glad that the musicals make more people willing to read the originals though. For that I am grateful.

And if I have to pick one song from each musical I would say "Just a Man" and "Business" respectably but of course I like others as well especially from Epic such as "Horse and the Infant", "Will of the gods" and "Storm".

I hope this answers your questions! I will elaborate further on some of the points I make here if you want! ^_^

[toorumlk]

Hey! Do you think there’s any chance they might not make Romione canon in the upcoming HBO series because of the popularity of other pairings and JKR’s somewhat recent statements concerning the ship?

fair warning this is gonna be a long post!

you know anon, i’m not gonna deny that the possibility of romione not being canon in the hbo series doesn’t keep me up at night HOWEVER COMMA-

I believe romione will be safe because i’m placing a lot, if not all, of my faith in the upcoming hbo series being repeatedly described as a "faithful" adaptation of the 7 novels. which we can deduce to mean romione friends to lovers slow burn endgame and all that good stuff (maybe i'll talk about the potential of book romione and the serial tv medium some other time)

and sure, it can all be marketing/pandering/etc. but i find it so hard to feel cynical about hbo because i love LOVE their shows and i'm of the belief that they know how to tell a good ass story (and romione happens to be a good ass romance subplot). i also have such positive feelings about the showrunner Frances Gardiner (consulting prod on succession and also has killing eve under her belt) who JKR chose herself and one of the exec producers of the show who's set to direct of a bunch of episodes Mark Mylod (succession, the menu, tlou, got)!!!! and if you know me at all you'll know that succession is one of the main pillars of my personality and i fucking love that show so bad I would follow anyone who was part of the making of that show off a cliff if they asked me to. and Mark Mylod is a fantastic fucking episodic director who's directed and produced some of the best episodes of television ever, so i know he knows how to tell a good story. and though i'm a lot less familiar with Gardiners' work, she is a female creative who has some of my personal favourite episodes listed in her imdb (chiantishire, living+, tailgate party) who's pitch of the show made joanne give her the job so.... and y'all know im a canon bootlicker and love the books so all i'll say is.. real recognizes real.

so knowing the creative team behind hp series had a direct hand in making my favourite show of all time gets me so excited and giddy!!!!

but here's where my personal theories and speculations start: I really think with this hbo series, JKR is on a mission is create something wholly and newly hers. she was barely involved creatively in the production of the movies until DH pt. 1 and 2 and the movies have almost become an entity of its own that's drifted so far away from her. of course i realize me even just talking sympathetically about JKR is deeply touchy and might piss some people off but as a fellow creative, i feel for her man!! when i think of the best books in the series in my opinion that are filled with the best bits of world building and political commentary, what i find is that GoF was handed to a director who didn't even read the book, OotP was the shortest movie in the franchise despite being the longest book and how it entirely missed the Quibbler plot and all of harry's rage, or HBP that was filled to the brim with *chefs kiss* tom/voldemort lore which was done a complete disservice in the grey and brown sludgy mess that is the HBP movie.

and knowing that JKR now has a strained relationship or had a falling out with most of the top dogs involved in the films like Kloves and Yates (hallelujah what who said that) and Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe means this show has the chance to be a behemoth that’s entirely joanne’s, like the books are. it’ll be free of Kloves' Hermione and harmony (harry x hermione) favouritism or Watson's take on Hermione's character that makes my ass itch or Yate’s complete inability to direct his actors and make non-action scenes have heart, soul and heft. but i also can’t not address the elephant in the room: this section of the discussion is filled with every shade of grey possible because what led to the falling outs was that they all vehemently disagreed with JKR's anti-trans views and good on them they absolutely should! but like.............. i hated kloves' writing and his butchering of ron's character, i think yates is a static and boring director and im not a fan of emma's acting so like... a win is a win? NO IT'S NOT. but IT IS. BUT IT'S SO NOT. but do you see what i'm getting at???

the point i'm trying to make is that joanne is not the same person she was when she was first writing the books or when the movies were being made. I think she's a lot more ruthless and cutthroat now and while i disagree with her methods and condemn her transphobia.... i think this newfound hardness to her will lend itself to making the hbo series the best HP adaptation it can be, I'M SORRY it's absolutely fucked and i acknowledge and abhor her gender critical politics as a queer woman but im also an artist who just wants good, high quality stories to be told 😔😩

and as for the other popular ships and JKR's somewhat recent comments about romione:

I think its safe to say that joanne dgaf about this fandom and what's popular in it anymore LMFAOOOO 😭😭😭 i genuinely respect that she's always stood ten toes down about how draco's not some antihero, bad boy love interest and at best is a cautionary tale on prejudiced bullies, so I don't think that's changing anytime soon. especially considering that the dramione cottage industry that its fans have made is more or less a reactionary "fuck you" to joanne and canon which they do by writing fanfic about crimes against women and making merch and binding physical copies of said fanfics (really showing it to the big baddie transphobic DV survivor by *checks notes* auctioning hermione off as a sex slave) so I doubt she'd ever consider other ship's popularity seriously. as for the possibility of harry and hermione becoming endgame um..... if the show plans to faithfully adapt the books then we'd get harry and hermione’s quintessential sibling dynamic plus we’re already free from Kloves (also i have faith in francesca and mark knowing that harmony are just plain BORING) so i think the chances, again, are low. and if joanne really wants to stick it to her old colleagues, she can go down the route of pushing romione that much harder (and she really wouldn’t have to do much, it’s all in the books already) 😭

as for the comments on romione that she’s made in recent years, i think a lot of it’s been blown out of proportion or have gone through a terrible game of telephone. what she said (paraphrasing here) about ‘wishing she’d handled ron/hermione differently because a lot of what went into them was a wish fulfillment fantasy’ has turned into ‘jk rowling regrets making romione endgame???!!’ which is just *takes a drag from a cigarette* just another tuesday around here. i also would link to two meta posts by @saintsenara on the topic of endgame romione which i wholeheartedly agree with it

all i have to say is that going into making this show i hope joanne remembers that she based ron’s character off of a person in her life she liked when she was younger and who is still a good friend of hers now 😭😔

you guys probably know i’m in animation school which is basically film school in a different font. so i’m quite literally training to one day work in the story department on projects and work alongside writers, directors and producers, so this stuff means a lot to me! she and the creative team behind this upcoming show have the chance to make something really special and i’m finding it hard not to root for them!!!!!

[nyerus]

Hello! I'm really sorry to bother you with some stupid questions but I'm a little bit confused. Can you tell me about the TGCF revised version and what to expect from it? I made my research a little bit but I'm not sure I get the full picture. I just finished reading all the novels in official EN translation and it bugs me a little that I just got everything settled in my brain and now...smth will be changed in the revised version? What does it mean for canon?

I'm sorry it I make no sense, just a little bit disoriented. Thank you for answering in advance!

Hello Anon!

I totally understand how confusing it could be! I'll try to help clear it up, so no worries!

There are two main versions of TGCF now:

Original/Serialized

Revised

The original webnovel was released in a serialized manner, and this is the one all existing printed translations are based on. Including the official EN translation! This is also what the manhua and donghua are adapting. It was never released as a printed version in mainland China.

The revised version was released in early 2023, in mainland China only (thus far). It has significant changes here and there such as: removal of some minor characters, revision of certain characters' backstories, fleshing out of some inter-character relationships, expansion of existing Hualian-centric scenes, several additional scenes (mainly Hualian-centric), modification of some arcs/plots (e.g. the Bloody Banquet is quite different -- all the way from the lead-up to the ending -- though the broad strokes of it remain similar to the original). Plus just a lot of general streamlining! However, the overall structure of the story and the main plot remains the same.

The printed revised version that was released in China is also a censored edition (for obvious reasons). There is no publicly available uncensored edition available for us to read. That being said... the audio drama is actually working on the uncensored revised version (which they got from MXTX directly, it seems)!

The AD is absolutely fantastic, and if you're interested in checking out the revised version, I HIGHLY recommend it. It's easily my favorite adaptation, by far. This is an old guide on how to purchase + listen, but it still mostly works (you can purchase the entire season with google pay now too). Follow this for enabling EN subs (MTL). There are folks doing fanTLs, but those are not yet complete and still in the very early episodes as of now.

Additionally, there is a fan translation for a few select chapters from the printed revised version, done by Clearnoodle256. Though while yes, it's censored, the plot stuff and extra scenes are absolutely amazing. There's a lot of extra insight into Hualian especially, but also other characters like Lang Qianqiu! Check it out here!

If you'd like more information, I also made a twitter thread about the different versions, but it's similar to what I have already outlined here!

MXTX has said that both versions are just as "canonical" as each other, and fans are welcome to pick-and-choose aspects of both. Personally, I adore what I have seen and heard of the revised version thus far (though there are a few parts where I prefer the original ver). It doesn't feel like a whole new story, but more like seeing the same story with fresh eyes and getting a lot more details! It's very exciting to be able to somehow experience TGCF all over again! 💖

[aotopmha]

I saw Sonic movie 3.

And it was a really solid movie, in fact, surprisingly strong in terms of theme and character writing in particular even if I already expected an improvement.

But I think the blunt nature of the movie was my favourite aspect of it.

It had the brisk pacing and concise writing of the best Dragon Ball movies.

I saw some reviews say the second act was slower than they would've liked, but I never felt any kind of slowdown myself.

There was some stilted exposition here and there, but because the movie was so propulsive, none of it ever overtook the story to the point where it started affecting its overall quality, same for the pop culture references or human characters (helps that the roles the humans got were relevant to the story at hand).

Some of the references were actually funny because of the more snappy execution – among other elements the comedic timing for jokes improved considerably here (though I personally still could do without most of the referencing).

They did exactly what I think they needed to do, which is to tighten the pacing and focus on the strongest aspect of their writing: the forementioned themes and characterisation.

Team Sonic was great, the Robotniks were great and Shadow was great.

Though by the end, there was a mild nagging wish for just a little bit more of everything on my part.

All of the above elements were great, but because there were so many characters to focus on in a relatively short span of time, the exact opposite issue for pacing in comparison to the previous movies popped up in that I think the movie needed just a little bit more runtime to let some scenes sit a little more.

Because it was so larger-than-life, I also had no issues with the back and forth between comedic and serious scenes like I saw some reviewers say they had, as well, not just because it is a movie about an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog, but also because the movie did a great job of setting the tone to make the more ridiculous elements work.

The best I had to say about Sonic 2 is that it was a live action cartoon and Sonic 3 fully embraces this element of itself.

So, the movie is as fantastic of a Sonic Adventure 2 adaption you could get given the time limitation of a movie, but just short of truly amazing because of it, as well.

What truly surprises me is that I think I can recommend this as a generally good movie, not just a good movie for Sonic fans.

I brought this up with the other two, but these movies feel like classic 90s kids' movies and this movie is that ten fold.

Definitely, absolutely go see it if you're a Sonic fan, though.

SPOILERS FROM HERE.

They totally killed both of the Robotniks because they don't know if they can get Jim Carrey back, and if they are able to get him back, they'll absolutely bring him back.

He was at his peak performance here in my eyes, but more than that I love how he ended up also having a character arc that tied to the themes of the story along with Sonic and Shadow.

Putting everything else aside, I think the part of the movie which earned that 88% Rotten Tomatoes rating with the critics is the strong thematic throughline augmented by the extremely economically told character stories.

Gerald Robotnik's existence allowed to explore Ivo Robotnik and his lack of any familial connection similarly to Shadow's and Sonic's familial losses.

Robotnik's farewell and acknowledgement of Stone at the end of movie not only paid off his arc in the movie (the realisation that he did not share his grandfather's hatred for humanity), but also all of the screentime Stone and Eggman had in the other two movies.

While Sonic's similarity to Shadow was highlighted when Shadow attacked and seriously injured Tom (even without willingly wanting to do so) and Sonic temporarily went down a similarly vengeful, solitary path.

Unlike Shadow, however, he ultimately chose the different, better path, by sparing him.

And both of them understood each other by the end because of their shared experience of loss.

I think how Shadow and Knuckles were handled actually was the best example of this movie's extremely tight script.

Shadow actually didn't talk that much, with a very large chunk of his story actually being "shown" via flashbacks characterising Maria, but when he did, it always felt like it had gravitas.

And to me the absolute best of this was the scene at the tail end of the movie where you actually see Maria die; the cinematography transitioning to present Shadow powering the Eclipse Cannon said everything it needed to say just via the visuals and nothing else. It was a fantastic example of "show, don't tell".

Because it is all so firmly consistent, when it all comes together in the final 20 to 30 minutes, everything feels natural and earned.

Everything connects and makes sense on a character level, even if the plot itself uses a bunch of coincidence/contrivance to streamline the order of events and, in turn, all of the side characters tie into this three-way web.

I mentioned Stone, Tom (earlier in the movie, Tom also has a thematically good, if more stilted heart to heart with Sonic) and Maria (who I also like because she's just a fairly normal kid in this interpretation of the story), but I actually really want to highlight Tails and Knuckles, as well.

Moreso Knuckles because I like how the argument throughout the movie about the team name evolves from Team Sonic or Team Knuckles to just "team" by the end and I really like how Knuckles responds to (and opposes) Sonic recklessly asking to use the Master Emerald, which ties into the themes of the second movie. It's a surprising bit of refreshing nuance.

I think Tails is the most standard out of all three, serving as a mediator and the brains of the operation, mostly staying the same from the previous movie, with perhaps simply less prominent admiration for Sonic.

Everything, from sometimes to the smallest of lines or visuals to the most impactful ones is tied to the theme of family and familial loss.

Eventhough they have such comparatively small roles in the movie, even Tom and Maddie wanting to join the insanity is a great payoff when thinking about where their characters started.

This story has a theme that is extremely old, but you can't argue with rock solid thematic/character substance (and so can't the critics it seems).

Do I myself think as highly of the movie as the current Rotten Tomatoes score?

Not really, I think I see it more in the ballpark of a firm 7-8/10, but it certainly is fantastic for what it is trying to be.

Thinking a little bit about the future, though, I'm really curious about what they'll do with Metal Sonic and Amy because I think CD and Heroes are to this day my personal "flawed favourites" of the series.

CD was my favourite Sonic game when I was younger because I loved the aesthetics of it, from the intro to the zones to music and Metal Sonic might be my favourite rival character for Sonic because of how the game presents its set pieces.

Unfortunately, I think it just doesn't hold up in terms of level design, in the same way how I think Heroes has awesome level design, but does not hold up because of the control issues and glitches.

So if there's one Sonic movie made "for me", it'll be this 4th one.

I certainly have much higher expectations for it with the context of this one, at least.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

"Children believe what we tell them. They have complete faith in us. They believe that a rose plucked from a garden can plunge a family into conflict. They believe that the hands of a human beast will smoke when he slays a victim, and that this will cause him shame when a young maiden takes up residence in his home. They believe a thousand other simple things.

I ask of you a little of this childlike sympathy and, to bring us luck, let me speak four truly magic words, childhood's "Open Sesame":

Once upon a time..."

Initially, screenwriter/director Jean Cocteau and cinematogropher Henri Alekan clashed over the filming style of 1946's "Beauty and the Beast.". Alekan wanted to use soft focus to create his version of what a fairy tale would look like. Cocteau, however, insisted a more hard-edged style would make even the most fantastic scenes seem grounded in reality. After the first few days of shooting, Alekan declared the rushes laughably bad. As Cocteau persisted in pursuing his personal vision of the film, the cinematographer gradually came around.

Star Jean Marais originally suggested to Jean Cocteau for the beast to have a stag's horned head, remembering it from a detail in the fairy tale. This would have evoked the mythical echo of Cernunnos, the Celtic stag-headed god of the woods. Cocteau however refused the idea, fearing that to the modern audience a stag's head would turn the beast into a laughing stock.

During the shooting of the film, Cocteau became very ill because of a bad skin disease and eventually had to be hospitalized. While he was recovering, René Clément served as the director. For the role of the Beast, Marais's outer body was covered with animal hair. "On my face," he said, "there's a plenty of cracks, wounds and itches and my hands are bleeding." Cocteau wrote when he was hospitalized during filming, "the face and the hands of Jean Marais are covered with a so painful crust that removing it is similar to suffer my treatments."

Walt Disney was interested in adapting the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast" into an animated feature, but when this film released he felt discouraged and believed it wouldn't be as good as what Jean Cocteau did. Eventually, Walt Disney Pictures would adapt the fairy tale as "Beauty and the Beast" (1991), to great acclaim; however that feature is greatly influenced by this film.

"Film will only become an art when its materials are as inexpensive as pencil and paper." (IMDb)

Happy Birthday, Jean Cocteau!

(Cinema Society)

[fancy11schmancy]

Finally, after all this time, 1920’s AU Link’s Main outfit concepts are all done!!! It’s been a challenge traveling for work and having time to work on art, but I am slowly getting better at it! (Sorry this took so long ;;)

AU Main Summary:

Since travel has been restored between the light realm and the twilight realm, a newfound unity flourished between the two societies. New friends, new towns/cities to explore, never-before-seen technologies and fashions at their disposal- all seemed well...until nefarious rumors of a returning great threat started to spread... Brief Lore of Link’s Role In The AU: With the new alluring land of Twilight open for entry and for any and all visitors, Link jumps at the chance to visit the amber-hued and shadow-filled world as Zelda’s accompanying guard for the latest council meeting. What and who lies in wait for Link to meet in this parallel reality? A world far more alien and advanced than his own? Rumors of an ethereal beauty shrouded in shadow? ___________________________________________________________ Link, a kindhearted, brave and daring country boy, is ready to make a name for himself as Hyrule’s greatest explorer! He’s known across the land as the “one-man army” for being extremely adaptable and prepared for any situation at any time with his wide arsenal of tools at his disposal. Some may also call him the “evergreen mountaineer” being as there is no mountain or peak he cannot scale- and by the fact he is always seen donning his famous dark green field coat, cap and his pickax of legend. He always greets friends and acquaintances alike with a warm smile and a firm handshake with a hearty hello (or ‘howdy’) with a slight southern draw. (A trademark from those who hail from “across the field," the Ordon Region.)

With his natural talent for exploring and his insatiable hunger for discovery and adventure, he’s charted vast ancient ruins, several dungeons of lore, and has uncovered a fantastic array of numerous treasures on both land and sea. Because of this, he’s occasionally seen as a young, irresponsible and reckless lad, especially due to the extreme nature of most of his exploration missions and his tendency to throw safety to the wind. He may seem like a “lone wolf” most of the time, but he always manages to bring along his dear friend Princess Zelda (and sometimes Midna) for any excursion he may be heading on…but in secret, of course. If the King of Hyrule were to ever find out about the “dangerous” adventures he’s been dragging Zelda onto, surely it would not go well…. Besides adventuring, Link spends his time helping his adoptive family back in Ordon with their expansive pumpkin farm and raising goats that are for producing the finest of goat cheese known region-wide. Any other spare time he has is at the right-hand side of Zelda, helping her with daily royal errands, solving mysteries, or just going out on the town to a local pub or to a delightful picnic in Hyrule Field. When he is at the pub, he can be seen boisterously playing an array of instruments, ranging from drums, stringed instruments, and most notably, his Ocarina (a very cherished gift from Zelda). While Link may be a bit of a country boy, he is no less capable of assisting Zelda in her pursuits of solving the various mysteries popping up around Castle Town, often providing a unique perspective from being the most skilled survivalist around. Once Midna arrives on the scene, she often enables Link’s craziest ideas- bringing out his secret (or not-so-secret) mischievous side. However, Link absolutely loathes Zant, Midna's towering Valet, due to his arrogant nature and his occasional mocking of Link’s short stature.

[the-100-days-of-junkan]

Day 92 

Queen of the Convenience Store by an Orphan Account

It’s the one where Junko and Mikan get blazed on weed.

Okay I summarize it like that for the bit but this is another personal fave, and alongside that it’s also pretty interesting in a similar way to Yesterday’s Fic! As this is, as far as I can tell, the first fic on AO3 to use the Non-Abusive Enoshima Junko/Tsumiki Mikan Tag! Or at the very least its the first one listed and doesn’t seem to have any other fics beating it out for that. Might be strange to commemorate the first use of a tag, though I can say for sure I’m super happy to have something like that. Makes the initial wave of binge reading very easy when I get an intense hunger for reading Junkan fics!

Oh right! I forgot to mention it (I think) in previous days, but with the exception of Day 99 every post for the remainder of the event will be fully finished art rather than colored sketches. I thought it best to just go all out by this point . . . which granted is weird to say given the amount of effort I’ve put in by this point but IGNORE THAT!~ 

For today's art instead of making a direct adaptation of a scene like yesterday, I opted to make a cover for it. Which was a bit harder than expected! Cover Art is actually something I kinda struggle with, representing an entire story whether short or long through just a single image requires so much meticulously fedangling in the brainspace, and that’s not even considering the actual contents of a story. So, how does one make a cover representing a short story where Junko and Mikan get stoned and eat snacks? Get a lil weird with it. The original idea was actually going to be a normal piece of them running down the street to the titular convenience store. That seemed too basic, so then I kinda just metaphorically smashed the idea with a meat mallet until it was more malleable. 

I took the Sidewalk, made it float, put the field and tree where they were cuddling in the back, and dropped our two baked girlies into it alongside a bunch of snacks. It was pretty fun once I figured out what I was doing! 

As for the story itself, it’s cute! It should be noted that this seems to be one part of a larger series by the original author, though the stories beyond and before this point are focused purely on Mukuro x Kyoko x Makoto, so if you liked this fic and that’s your thing you’ll have plenty more!~ 

The story does feature a lot outside of the main couple, from the aforementioned throuple, to even the appearance of some Komahinanami! It isn’t till a little over halfway through that focus is completely on Junko and Mikan.

That said when it does focus on them I find myself quite enjoying it! The story shows its age of course (2017! I think that was actually the year I got into Danganronpa? Before it hit me with the girl beam like, a year or two later), but I don’t see a need to be hypercritical of it given that I still wouldn’t consider myself all that fantastic of a writer when i manage to force myself onto the keyboard.

I love how sweet Junko is to Mikan over the course of the story especially once they’re baked. And during the earlier parts I just, love Mikan fuckin passing out when she realize Junko actually asked her out. Like that’s one of my favorite tropes sadlfhsdljfs.

Okay but for the actual main event of the two getting BLASTED on weed. I love it tbh.

I’ve had a very long history with weed, I’ve basically been doing it since I was legally able to. The reasons varied, to focus on work, to improve my art, to have some fun, make myself feel a bit more confident, relieve stress. It varied by the day. However I did recently quit the stuff as my relationship had gotten unhealthy with it over the course of this year, will I go back? Someday, but for now i’m vibin. Point is, having a lot of experience with Weed means that I have a bigger appreciation for this fic than I probably would have otherwise. In terms of how accurate this is to what Weed can do to you, it should be noted that Weed can have different effects on people. For me, it can make me mellow or hyper active depending on my stimuli, some people become panicky and paranoid, and some people just aren’t affected by weed at all no matter the dosage. This is just me going off my own personal experience.

Those girlies were toasted as shit and it’s adorable. For Mikan, calming her down some makes a lot of sense, and while speaking from experience her coordination increasing a bit seems a bit questionable I can’t write it off entirely. I’ve used weed to reduce stress or put back my darker thoughts in the past, so it checks out! And Junko using weed to make her brain stop running at max constantly might seem a bit weird and unrealistic, however, you do enough weed you can just kinda shut down your ability to think and feel under the right conditions. Speaking from direct experience. Obviously an extreme end of the spectrum I just described there, but it means this checked out! 

Beyond that, the way these two talk from here feels very on brand with how I would often speak with friends in call when I would get high. And it’s just so fuckin cute! They’re just sayin shit y’know? I don’t wanna just describe every little thing that happens like a recap, so it’s kinda hard to describe? Like none of what they’re saying really matters, but at the exact same time it actually really matters. It’s the forward momentum of it y’know??

Them describing what kind of chocolate they are is very silly and super god damn adorable while they’re just cuddling in the grass and laughing with each other. But they’re also like trying to verbalize themselves in a light and fun way that lets the other understand them, AND it leads to that really cute line at the end where Junko talks about liking Orange Cream! Also the part where Junko tries to call Mukuro just to see if she’d show up was really funny, I just love the mental image of it all alsdjfhlsdjfhsd. 

It’s just a really fun little read going through one very cute night with these two, love it!

As always, Reblogs, Comments, and Little Notes in the Tags are appreciated!~ They always make my day!~

[yurimother]

Yuri Anime Review - Whisper Me a Love Song Series Premiere

A delightful school romance that captures unfettered joy and attraction

2023 was nothing short of an incredible year for Yuri anime, packed with an astonishing lineup of new offerings, including Yuri Is My Job!, Stardust Telepath, The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess, I’m in Love with a Villainess, my personal favorite, the runaway success that was The Magical Revolution Of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady and of course the continuation and conclusion of the surprise Yuri sci-fi Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury. Whisper Me a Love Song has the unenviable task of following up and providing a cap on this unprecedented boom of Yuri anime. The adaptation of Eku Takeshima’s high school romance manga was initially announced alongside many of the aforementioned works. However, it ended up being delayed from its initial January debut for various reasons, not the least of which was the switch in directors from Xin Ya Cai to Akira Mano.

Further compounding the pressure on this series is the comparisons it will draw to Bloom Into You, one of the most beloved and well-received Yuri series of all time. Now, these comparisons are mostly unfair, as Bloom Into You had the mighty weight of Kadokawa’s marketing behind it, although, to be fair, Whisper Me a Love Song’s campaign has been no slouch. Moreover, the two series are very different, save for their shared high school setting and Yuri romance. Bloom Into You was a slow-burn romance that leaned into shounen drama, while Whisper Me a Love Song takes a noticeably lighter tone and incorporates more slice of life elements. It does not help that the Whisper Me a Love Song manga debuts the same year that Bloom Into You concluded its serialized run and would go on to replace the latter as the top Yuri series in many audiences’ eyes, and for myself, would go onto fill the same niche of an extended high school romance. All this is to say that the expectations around Whisper Me a Love Song are unreasonably mammoth. However, the anime’s debut episode assured us that we are in for a warm and harmonious display of young love.

The Welcome Concert

The show begins as Himari Kino (Hana Shimano) wakes up for her first day of high school. At a welcome ceremony for new students, she witnesses the light music club band, SSGIRLS, perform their song "Humming Love,” and the temporary lead vocalist, Yori Asanagi (Asami Seto), instantly enchants her. This scene catalyzes the series’ ongoing story and helps highlight some of the most critical aspects and features of this adaptation: the music and the animation. 

Whisper Me a Love Song does not set the world on fire visually, boasting animation that, at its best moments, can be described as “pretty good.” Yet, it does more than a serviceable job, smartly utilizing its resources and clever framing that keeps the viewer’s attention and makes the story easy to follow while saving on animation. There are some flaws, such as stiffer animation during dialogue-heavy scenes and the noticeable use of 3D CGI elements for background characters and objects, like flower petals. However, these do not distract from the narrative nor detract from one’s enjoyment. However there are positives as well to point out here.

For one, the series does a fantastic job with its lighting, applying generous highlights to characters’ faces and hair, enhancing their features, and preventing them from coming across visually as flat or simplistic. The frequent use of a light, soft background that bathes the subjects in a warm glow matches this choice, and they work together in tandem to help convey the anime’s light and happy tone. The anime occasionally employs this lighting to accentuate story beats, such as when Yori peaks through the curtain at the crowd, casting most of her body in shadow as she worries about performing in front of such a large crowd.

This welcome ceremony has noticeably different animation than the rest of the episode. Here, the members of SSGIRLS are injected with an electric sense of movement, playing their instruments with enthusiasm and energy that honestly felt jarring when compared to the more limited shorts of Himari reacting to the performance. Given its importance in the story and the fact that the anime reuses this scene for the opening theme, it is clear why the animation was given more attention and resources. However, and I am likely in the minority here, I actually dislike it for this reason. The heavily referenced footage stands out a bit too much, especially given that it is intercut with more straightforward static shots of Himari, creating a jarring effect that pulls focus away from the characters and their feelings.

The Musical Advantage

Where the series did not disappoint me is musically. In recent years, Yuri works have drawn more and more from musical-themed settings, including Hello, Melancholic!, The Moon on a Rainy Night, and Amongst Us, not to mention the myriad of “Yuri-ish” musical series. However, the apparent disconnect is that manga and webtoons are visual mediums devoid of sound and score. While some titles, such as  After Hours and The Guy She Was Interested in Wasn’t a Guy at All, mitigate this flaw by releasing companion playlists or soundtracks, it is not the same as incorporating the music into the product itself.

Here, Whisper Me a Love Song’s jump to animation truly adds to the experience, elevating it above its source material. Himari’s instantaneous infatuation is so much more believable when we, the viewers, can experience the music alongside her; her “loving” obsession with Yori made that much more real because we also hear the upperclassman’s performance, provided by Kana Sasakura’s wonderful singing voice. Studios Cloud Hearts and Yokohama Animation Laboratory are, of course, aware of music’s central role in the story and have done it justice, giving the fictitious SSGirls multiple chances to shine, not just in the episode itself but also in performing the opening theme, “Follow Your Arrows.”

Returning to the episode, after the welcome ceremony, Himari runs into Yori and begins to fangirl over her, confessing that she “fell in love at first sight.” Yori is stunned by this sudden confession and taken with Himari’s cuteness and openness. After confiding in her bandmates, she realizes that she has fallen in love, much to the other’s delight.

Supporting Characters Steal the Show

These conversations are excellent, as they give us the chance to get to see more of the series’ other characters. Like the original manga, Whisper Me a Love Song has a terrific supporting cast that adds to the humor and drama. Each of the other characters has a striking, unique design and personality that helps them stand out, like the drummer Mari, who is slightly more stoic and comes from a wealthy family. She is contrasted well by the playing keyboardist, Kaori, who often flirts and teases Mari. Siblings Miki and Aki act as the best friends of the lead characters, usually providing them guidance and encouragement. Each girl excels on screen thanks to some stand-out writing and performance. While each is different from the others,, they all have one unifying characteristic: their encouragement and excitement for Yori and Himari, which is infection, making us want to root for them, too. The lone exception is Aki, who herself harbors feelings for Yori, which will come into play in future episodes.

I like these supporting characters even more than I did in the manga, thanks in no small part to Minami Yoshida's fantastic work adapting Eku Takeshima’s characters to the screen. They capture each character perfectly; Himari is cute, ditzy, and full of adoring exuberance. Yori’s appearance portrays her as cool and elegant, but her movements and posture help convey her more anxious and apprehensive nature. And, of course, each of their friends is striking and memorable, and their depiction matches their personality. For example, Mari is prim and proper, weaning her uniform and hair unadulterated from modification and maintaining a hardened, no-nonsense expression. However, Kaori has a more rounded, goofier face, complete with a dopey smile and a bright yellow hoodie, betraying her more playful personality.

Rooftop Romances

The episode's high points come in its second half, two scenes on the rooftop with Himari and Yori alone. The first begins with Yori singing as she thinks about Himari and her confusing feelings for her, while unbeknownst to Yori, Himari walks upstairs thinking about Yori’s singing. It is an excellent reflection of the central conflict these two will face in their upcoming “romance,” the fact that their feelings of love for each other are different, with Yori’s being a more mature romantic attraction and Himari’s a child-like obsession for the older girl’s singing.

Put plainly, it is beautiful, showcasing the best singing we hear from Yori, a light, melodic hum, and some of the best emotional work of the episode as she makes sense of her feelings. Unfortunately, this scene also showcases Whisper Me a Love Song’s weakest aspect, its pacing.

The rhythm of the manga was already a frustrating issue, as it both fussed about with little for extended stretches and introduced and resolved conflicts with little time for rumination or exploration. This issue is only exacerbated by the anime’s truncated story. The first episode alone covers two and a half chapters of the manga and sees Yori change her emotional state about a half dozen times, first being anxious about singing, then confused by her feelings for Himari, then realizing she might be in love, confessing that love, feeling the embarrassment of her misunderstanding, and at last confirming that she is in love with Himari and vowing to make the other girl recognize and reciprocate her feelings. It is less of an emotional rollercoaster and more of a rapid, rambling barrage of issues and feelings that have no time to breathe or create any real impact in the story. I wished they had spent a few episodes playing out this arc, letting Yori slowly come to terms with these new feelings of love for Himari and working to overcome her trepidation surrounding them.

After plotting with her friends how to make Himari fall for her, the episode ends as Yori walks up to the roof to find Himari already waiting for her, a nice flip on the previous rooftop scene. There, Himari requests Yori sing for her, which she does. It is an exceptional sequence. The characters' feelings and differing attractions for each other come across so clearly. Himari is so visibly excited to hear Yori sing, and the older girl has such a wonderful mix of cool and collected affection and awkwardness that you cannot help but smile while watching it. Both girls have such a warm, gentle, and loving disposition, perfectly matched by the soft orange sky and quiet, empty rooftop. As Yori sings, the perspective shifts and employs some scenic Yuri, focusing on the sky and indirect views of each character until finally settling back on Himari’s blushing, glowing face from Yori’s perspective, a perfect encapsulation of the adoring girl that she has fallen in love with.

Conclusion

I am so happy with Whisper Me a Love Song. The anime did everything it needed to, from maintaining the manga’s fun, light tone of young love to adding excellent music that helps you understand how these characters became drawn to one another. It has flaws, with middling animation quality and an unfortunate dedication to the poor pacing and speed of the manga. Nevertheless, these do not distract from an overall adorable and fun experience. Most importantly, the anime nails the excitement, affectionate, and intense joyfulness of its two characters and their love for each other. I cannot wait to enjoy every second of their relationship and confidently declare that this Yuri series is an easy recommendation, untainted by the usual list of qualifications or warnings I am usually required to make. Whisper Me a Love Song is just a sweet, simple, and delightful school romance that you should absolutely watch. 

Ratings: Story – 8 Characters – 10 Art – 6 LGBTQ – 9 Sexual Content – 0 Music – 7 Final – 8

You can stream Whisper Me a Love Song with English subtitles on HIDIVE.

This review is made possible by Avery Riehl and the rest of the YuriMother Patrons. Support the Patreon today for early access, exclusive content, and to help fund LGBTQ+ content.

[callmearcturus]

(i posted this but tumblr fucked up the formatting SO BAD and then the editor would not open so here's a re-do i guess!

bless u, bc this is the one that's gonna be Another Batshit Arcturus AU

except all the scenes I have sketched out are massive Act Two spoilers.... so instead, I'm gonna share the work-in-progress outline for Act One. or, specifically the modern day half of Act One. this story is told in approximately 2024 and 2011 concurrently, with the 2011 plotline providing vital context for the 2024 plotline.

for context: Ted is a director working with Rebecca's A24-style production company. Trent is a writer. Keeley is Trent's agent who managed to convince him to sell the movie rights to one book. act one is Ted trying to get those rights before a larger studio snaps them up. Act two is the filming of the movie. Act three is post-production and press tour.

One piece of additional context is that Trent is a reclusive writer who keeps writing extremely location-accurate novels set in America. Ted is shocked to learn the guy's not American, tbh. Here's the bibliography i made up for Trent:

[SPOILER, REDACTED]

editor for a few anthologies

The Sarpedon EP, 1968 (moody psuedo-mythical story about psychedelic/progressive rock in Nashville)

An Aquarian Guide to Atlantis, IL (weird, almost ergodic story of a hitchiker trying to get from St. Louis to Chicago and finding a strange town)

The Tides of Static (an anthology of seemingly disconnected vignettes that wind up linked by a radio DJ working a remote blowtorch tower)

Paris of the Plains (a sports drama/romance about a journalist uncovering a massive scandal in Kansas City football while trying not to rekindle her love of an old fling who's now working on the same team embroiled in the scandal. later adapted into the film The Time After The Last Time, directed by Ted Lasso, produced by Rebecca Welton)

so here, a glimpse of how I outline a story

ACT ONE: Pre-production

Storyline A (Ted POV):

Ted, modern day: Ted has to find Rebecca. She's supposed to be on vacation and Ted would never dream of interrupting her HOWEVER there's a scoop in Variety that Trent Crimm is auctioning the rights to his latest book despite years of resistance. Ted is terrified that someone is gonna buy the rights and make a bad movie or worse sit on the rights and never make anything out of them.

finding Rebecca takes some doing but Ted is determined and he knows all her offices and hiding places.

Ted is a huge fan of Crimm's work, has read all his previous books and has been keeping an eye out for him to maybe offer something up for adaptation. That it's specifically the one about a football scandal in Kansas City with a fantastic sense of space and also is a romance? Ted HAS to direct this movie, but Rebecca's studio can't compete with the huge prices that a Paramount or Disney would be throwing around. So they need to make a direct offer before the sale.

Rebecca emails Crimm's agent. This first attempt gets a polite, impersonal dismissal. So Ted is the person to reply (as Rebecca watches over his shoulder to ensure he's not making a fool of them) and tries to convince them to reconsider bc Ted is specifically interested in doing it right.

Still no.

T: "Get me an address, I'll fly out--" R: "Fly out? The address available through his agent is in London." T: "Okay, wouldn't've called that."

Rebecca gets Ted the address and Ted takes the Tube to get there bc he still doesn't have a car-and-driver. (He claims its organic location scouting.)

The address seems to be Trent's house but he's not there, just Keeley and Adelaide Crimm. They will not reveal where Trent is.

Ted notices Adelaide's accent and is relieved Trent is American. Adelaide says no, he's super british, but he took a job in America when she was young and brought her along.

The house is fully of photos of places. Addy is a photographer. Ted is thrilled to see shots of the Paseo, the Plaza, and other KC landmarks.

Keeley explains they are not really looking to option the book out because, well. They're not.

Adelaide kind of likes Ted and how he talks about her dad's books so she texts him later, gives Ted her dad's email. the one he actually checks, not the fake ones that get listed.

A turn for the epistolary as Ted attempts to reach Trent Crimm.

Ted emails Trent, who is baffled that he found this email address. Thanks Ted for his interest but tells him it was difficult enough to decide to offer up any rights and he frankly doesn't want to talk about it further, goodbye.

Ted takes a little time to try to read/watch every interview he can with Trent Crimm. They are basically non-existent and the ones that do exist are fully text.

Emailing each other continues: Eventually, Trent admits he's hoping the book rights are bought and sat on forever. Keeley was the one to convince him this was a good way to ensure Adelaide was set up for years to come and he could write his next few books without concern about money. But actually seeing such a movie? He wants nothing to do with it.

There's something unique about this email, a slip-up: Trent mentions he's in KCMO. The moment Ted realizes, he's inbound, racing to get there in time.

All for naught: Ted makes good time, probably the best possible time a guy can make from Heathrow to MCI to Emmanuel Cleaver Blvd without use of a fighter jet.

Still: Trent's gone, and Keeley's there.

Ted hangs a lampshade on the running gag: How in the sam hell is she always there instead of Trent?! "Yanno, I ain't ever seen the two of you in the same room together, Ms. Jones." Keeley cackles. "He's a slippery one! But trust me, you'd know him if you met him. He's got that aura of irritable uptight fiction author."

Ted is extremely discouraged that he missed Trent yet again, tells Keeley he is bound and determined to make sure this movie's done right but doesn't know what to do anyone. Keeley cracks, sympathetic, and gives Ted the Actual phone number for Trent. "Do not call him. He blocks all unknown numbers. Text."

So Ted does. Takes a photo of the fountains at the Plaza at night and sends it to Trent.

TL: I think the fight between Kit and Moses happens here at night, when they turn the lights on under the fountains and it's beautiful, all that watery glow. The contrast there, it reminds me of how painfully obvious it is that Moses wanted to take her there for real, to see her son playing in the water. It's the right place and the wrong time, it's always right place wrong time with them. LONG pause but Ted sees the text has been marked as "Read". Honestly he's surprised Trent has read receipts on. TC: Why are you in KCMO? TL: Flew here hoping to catch you. Last email, you accidentally hinted you were at your rental off Emanuel Cleaver. TC: Ah. An amateur mistake, I see. But I've slipped your net again, it seems.

Ted returns back home to London, resigned to taking another project and letting this one go. Pulls his copy of Paris of the Plains from his bag, reads it on the plane back.

Gets off the plane and he's missed a call from Trent Crimm. Shocked, Ted immediately calls back.

TC: "You have one shot, Mr. Lasso, so make it count. Tell me why you're so determined. It's not the job of a director to try to cajole a reclusive, unfriendly author into optioning his book to a boutique film studio. So why?" TL: "When I first moved to the UK, I was missin' home so much, I was turning into a barely-functioning daydrinker, and I almost gave up, went back to Kansas, gave up my career. But Beard loaned me his copy of Atlantis, IL and you... knew those roads and those people. You gave me a home I could carry around in my bag. Dunno if I would have survived without. Then I read Sarpedon, and Rebecca got me an advance copy of Tides of Static for my birthday." TC: "So you're a fan." TL: "No! I mean, obviously I'm a huge admirer, yeah, but... Trent, I just flew almost nine thousand miles just for a chance to talk to you about this, so I'm not gonna split hairs here. I need to be the guy to direct this. No one else is going to get it right, and I need it to be right, 'cause I know it. If you give me a chance, I'm going to move the whole production out to KC, I'm going to take what's in my head and put it on the screen. And I-- I think it's what's in your head, too." TC: "You know, it's supposedly my worst book. That was part of the little joke of it all; Keeley convinced me to sell something, so I picked the one the critics hated. You'll need someone good to do the adapting." TL: "Heck, if I need to write the treatment myself, I'll do it." TC: "..... Alright." TL: "!!!!" TC: "Nine thousand miles is an absurd ordeal to put yourself through and the writer in me wants you to get some payoff for it. So. Tell Ms. Welton to tack on another five million and its yours."

[simonbreeze]

Time to visit the grim, dark of the Black Library once more with a Tyranid invasion story, Leviathan.

'The dream.... it is a portent... of the end.'

A decorated Lieutenant of the Ultramarines recognises the signs of an imminent Tyranid attack and launches a desperate counter-offensive to save Regium, a proud Imperial world.

I didn't find this story as entertaining as I was hoping for. With the book being tied to the 10th edition launch of Warhammer 40,000, I guess I was hoping for.... more.

The writing is good, however the characters and the story felt lacking scale and depth. One element particularly really niggled me. The Tyranids from hive Leviathan in the Warhammer 40,000 universe have evolved beyond other Tyranids and therein is the rub. I expected the Tyranids on this story to be like the raptors from Jurassic Park, outsmart in the humans in ways that they hadn't considered and being really clever and terrorizing and something to actually fear. Instead, what we got was 'dumbed-down' Space marines being out maneuvered by Tyranids consistently throughout the story. There's even a scene where the Tyranids went left instead of right and the space marines always assume they go right, to make if worse, there's scenes before this happens where it's been established by the Space Marines that the Tyranids have adapted and evolved are using new strategies and tactics. But, belligerently the Space Marines still continue doing the same old same old and the constantly surprised and caught out by the Tyranids. I found this element really frustrating to read, and it is a shame, because the rest of the stories okay, and there are some interesting characters. If you want to read a good Tyranid story, go grab a copy of The Great Devourer. It's a fantastic read, and it's one of my favorite Warhammer 40,000 books - it leaves this one in the dust.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

[professorhayforbreath]

my blog probably gives the impression that i think the show is bad as a whole, but the reason this show frustrates me so much is because it's definitely NOT 100% bad

like... the movies are bad adaptations. everyone knows it. they have some great moments (an embarrassing amount of which are better than the show lol) but overall they are widely considered blatantly bad adaptations. it's easier to make peace with that

the show, however, is far less consistent and i find it much more difficult to wrap my head around. there are parts that are bad and i'm happy to say that with my chest, but underneath numerous questionable-at-best writing choices, there are glimpses of really, really good stuff. the first few episodes had so much promise—percy burning blue jellybeans and praying to sally, the consensus song. these are brand new additions but they're good, they capture the spirit of the story and characters successfully

and sprinkled throughout the rest of the show are other strong choices! for example in the last episode i really liked that they set the betrayal scene during the fireworks, it created a fantastic ambience. i liked that grover left camp at the same time as percy and annabeth so the three of them got to part ways as a trio on half-blood hill

there are good changes being made, but they're almost all small in the grand scheme of things. in my opinion, the bigger, more consequential things are where they missed the most marks, and that prevented me from fully enjoying the show as a long time book fan

when it comes to writing nothing frustrates me more than wasted potential. mediocre writing is one thing, but mediocre writing that could have clearly been so much better is INFURIATING. i don't dislike the show because i wanted it to be a 1:1 recreation of the book, i dislike it because it's just okay when it could have been great. it so EASILY could have been great and i don't get why it's not. a lot of the writing choices are just baffling in their mediocrity, and sometimes technical weakness, when compared to the well written and effective source material. i wish i could have been a fly on the wall in that writers room when they were making some of these decisions, seriously

the cast is phenomenal. their budget is more than sufficient. they marketed it as a "redemption from the movies", as the adaptation that would finally give fans book accuracy. and the show we got is... fine. it's all right. it's not all that book accurate even though it was advertised as such. there's plenty to like but it comes hand in hand with plenty to dislike. it's only natural for people to be disappointed

i know my critiques can come off as venomous but please never mistake my harshness as hating for the sake of it. i adore the original pjo books so i really wanted to adore the show as well, but unfortunately i can't get there yet. "yet" being the key word because there's still plenty of time for this show to pick up the slack, and for that reason i'm glad it got renewed. i don't have the most faith the writers will listen to the feedback but i'm rooting for them to prove me wrong

[theflikchic]

Hey, is your mind boggled by Trump's constant yapping about Hannibal Lecter? Never seen Silence of the Lambs and are invested in the trainwreck of American politics? Well have no fear. In their most political post yet, a Canadian whose special interest is The Silence of the Lambs (aka me) breaks down Trump's misunderstanding and obsession with Hannibal Lecter.

Basically, we have three major points:

1) Hannibal is coming across the border because the border is weak. Hannibal is bad.

2) Hannibal is a great actor, now dead, he eats jerks, and one time, he said he liked Trump. Hannibal is good.

3) Hannibal is currently in America. Which is bad because every mentally ill person in America could be Hannibal. Hannibal is bad.

What Trump has not mentioned is the jerks Hannibal eats (this is important). Specifically, the version of Hannibal Trump is referring to is Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal in Silence of the Lambs. However, Trump has never said Hopkins' name, just the name of the movie movie. He knows it's a movie but somehow has not ever acknowledged that Hannibal is fictional, implying that a) he thinks everyone knows the name of the actor who played the Hannibal he's talking about (only in a perfect world, D-man) or b) he thinks Anthony Hopkins is Hannibal Lecter (soooo who does he think Mads Mikkelsen is? my mother asks).

Trump is clearly trying to make a metaphor with points 1 and 3. People like Hannibal, not Hannibal himself, are stalking America: immigrants and mentally ill people, sometimes both which is the scariest of all and which Hannibal canonically is.

However, because Trump never specifies a difference between Hannibal and Hopkins, it appears that he doesn't realize Hannibal is fictional at all and really does fear that he's either in America or coming to America to eat people. And yet, he keeps praising him? Why? Especially he's so scared of him, or the ideas he represents and is meant to represent so that we actually simultaneously fear and humanize him through the film's epic protagonist Clarice's eyes while Chilton hates him.

Let's talk about Chilton. In Silence of the Lambs, if you haven't seen it, Chilton is an abuser. He's the man in power at the asylum where Hannibal is. He is intended to be perceived as ableist, self-centered, and misogynistic (something more *ahem* modern adaptations I think have forgotten). At the end of the movie, Hannibal kills Chilton off-screen as revenge and it's...fantastic. It's meant to be.

Although Hannibal is a rich, white, cis man (definitely not straight though, I headcanon bisexual) and although he does horrendous things in this film (I cannot stress enough how disgusting he is), he is still being abused for his mental state. So him killing Chilton is basically the audience being put into the shoes of a revenge fantasy while the abused never learns his lesson of what it's like to be on the other end of that ableism (Hannibal isn't kind about his own patients he had when he was a psychiatrist). Trump recognizes that the ending is meant to be great. He praised Hannibal recently for it. But here's the thing: Trump is Chilton.

He's a misogynist, a preener, and importantly: someone who fears foreign mentally ill people and uses that fear and claim that only HE has the power to control these people to win votes and attention (Chilton does this, resulting in the iconic mask scene you've probably seen pictures of). But again- explicitly- Trump praised Hannibal for killing Chilton. So this leads to two theories that lead into two more theories:

1) Trump is secretly self-aware and knows deep down he's Chilton. But he pretends not to be so he praises Hannibal for killing him because, well, Chilton effing sucks.

2) Trump has no self-awareness and just feels the undertones of that epic final pun Hannibal says (and yes it's Hannibal's final line in the film) so he quotes it because he thinks it's cool and has no friggin clue what's really happening in the scene (this is the most likely theory imo).

Trump has also taps into Chilton by referring once to the Baltimore State Hospital in the film as a "mental hospital on steroids" (which he again recently said to describe irl asylums). He uses this as fear-mongering, to explain to Americans why asylums are necessary and why they should fear the borders being open: asylums are needed to keep these dangerous mentally ill people inside and they're ALL like Hannibal so when they're released...where do they go? In your neighbourhood.

Yet, he seems to love that damn final scene.

So again, Trump is aware it's a movie. But he still doesn't seem sure that Hannibal isn't a real guy. Chilton would never praise Hannibal so why is Trump?

And why the late great stuff?

Hannibal doesn't die at the end of the film and if you consider the 2001 Sequel That Shall Not Be Named canon (I don't), he doesn't die there either! So why all the warnings and then praising? Here are my next two theories and both could be true at this point:

1) Trump seriously does think Hannibal is a real person and that he and Anthony Hopkins are the same person. So he flops back and forth because he gets scared that Hannibal will come and eat him if he criticizes him too much. Thus, he says "he's great".

2) Trump genuinely has no clue what "the late great" actually means in the English language. I'm serious. He keeps saying "late great" because it sounds good, not because he knows what it actually means.

To top it all off, Trump covered all three of those points in the exact same speech. Plus, I don't think Anthony Hopkins has really ever endorsed Trump. He did an impression of Trump on TV once back in the 90s (he's good at impressions, autistic king) and I seriously think THAT'S what Trump is thinking about.

So what does this all mean? What's the grand conclusion?

Uhhh... I dunno. Trump saw Silence of the Lambs, and it scared the everloving shit out of him but he doesn't want to admit it and now America is in hell because he thinks Hannibal's gonna kill him? He thinks everyone is Hannibal now? That's all I got. I'm honestly surprised he hasn't roped Buffalo Bill (the other villain of the movie) into this what with America's current transphobia and all (please God I'm begging, don't let him bring Buffalo Bill into this).

Uhhh...if you read this far? Thanks. This is how I cope. All I gotta say is if you have the stomach, watch The Silence of the Lambs. Seriously, do it. Watch it chunks if you have to, sound down, with the lights on, in a safe place, any way you want to. I wish it was more palatable for people because it's a very important film, for better and for worse, and criticizes a lot of bullshit happening in the West right now. It's still very relevant...even if now for the wrong reasons (Trump).

[burningvelvet]

Quickly and poorly reviewing and ranking adaptations of Jane Eyre (1996, 1997, 2006, 2011) by their pros and cons:

1996 pros:

Best fire scene, easily. It actually gave me that excited feeling that good cinema gives a person. Much of the cinematic art was enjoyable altogether, including the costumes.

This film probably has ond of the best Bertha's in my opinion. She's truly sympathetic, beautiful, and fierce. probably tied for my favorite Bertha actress with 2006. She and Poole are given little time in the story, however.

Most adaptations shit on St. John. Here, that isn't the case. What little time he has is spent in making him much more appealing than I've ever seen him, both physically and characteristically. I like this, because many forget that Jane did love him in her way, and he is supposed to be attractive and nice despite his zealotism.

1996 has the best Adèle, which is amazing for me as a big Adèle fan. There is more focus on her and her relationships with Jane/Rochester. I particularly love the scene where J draws R and Adèle tries to play cupid a little, and when Adèle is offended when the ladies insult Jane.

Best Lowood plot by far. This is the first time I've been able to stand the Young Jane scenes, and little time was devoted to her early life with the Reeds, just enough to let us know she was abused. I like this choice. The young actresses playing Jane and Helen were the best and most rebelious I've seen yet. Their hair cutting scene brought tears to my eyes, which rarely ever happens for me.

Good Blanche plotline. I absolutely love the cinematography/aesthetic & set design.

1996 cons:

the actors are individually endearing in some ways (the scene of Jane and the mirror is particularly touching, as is their reunion). However, The biggest downside to this adaptation is that the chemistry between Jane and Rochester was lacking in my opinion. this is particularly notable in their meeting scene and first proposal scene.

William Hurt is a fantastic actor, and he's likeable, but he's not my favorite Rochester ever. He's alright. On a rewatch I could see myself warming to him more.

I love Charlotte Gainsbourg more for her music than her acting. Granted, she was young here like Jane is supposed to be, so I do not blame her. Visually, aside from her height, I can absolutely see her as Jane. As the film went on I warmed to her acting style; Jane Eyre is a hard role to perform due to her inwardness. I don't think she was horrible, but Anna Paquin (of later True Blood fame) as Young Jane Eyre somewhat outshined Gainsbourg.

I was disappointed in Adèle being sent away to school before the disaster and her not coming back in the end (why couldn't they have had her running with Pilot in the landscape shot!!!).

1997 pros:

Maybe the most accurate Jane and Rochester. I wasn't expecting to like him at all but he blew me away. excellent chemistry between the actors. The dancing scene was very captivating, as was the scene with him jumping from the walkway, their outdoor talks, him chasing her down the stairs — really, I was impressed, because I thought I'd hate this film. Like in the novel and in 96, both actors are a bit conventionally unattractive (well, compared to 11 and to some extent 06) - and like them, the characters grow on you.

BEST ST. JOHN (although 2006 has the best Rivers sisters) - St. John is described as being nice though serious, and looking like a statue of a Greek God with all the coldness AND beauty - and this movie is the only one who relatively understood that assignment (96 came close emphasizing his niceness). Most adaptations adapt his coldness but not his conventional Eurocentric good looks, which not only symbolize his colonizer attribute but also his appeal to Jane and the others. It's also important to have a conventionally handsome actor play St. John just as it's important to have a conventionally less attractive Jane Eyre because one theme of the novel is the critique of Victorian physiognomy & beauty; Jane/Rochester being unconventionally attractive is a contrast to Bertha, St. John, Blanche, Georgiana being attractive, so I think this element is not inconsequential. The difficult part is that beauty is highly subjective, so relying on conventional standards is key, as is the reminder that Victorian standards were a bit different from our own.

good Lowood plotline, good Gateshead plotline, fantastic Adèle with lots of adorableness & miraculous though OOC bonding between her and Rochester, fantastic costuming (though I don't know about accuracy), good Blanche plotline overall. Probably my favorite Bertha plotline for being sufficiently creepy.

1997 cons:

this isn't really a con for me but many people may dislike 97 Rochester for being passionate to the point of coming off crazy, and physical domineering as when he grabs Jane when she tries to leave — however, this does kind of fit for canonical Rochester & I don't mind it since he's supposed to be that way, but this is still arguably a con nevertheless. he does come off as too forward but i get they were trying to capture the whole overpassionate thing. it does come off as a little more toxic than other depictions perhaps!

I have very few complaints overall. I don't think the chemistry is as appealing as 2006, but it is accurate. I wish there was more Adèle, but you can't have everything.

The posters are bad and make the actors look worse than they are which subsequently turns people away. I think 1996 was marketed a bit better but that 2006 also suffers from bad poster syndrome which had an effect on me also. Presentation is important; marketing and advertising are also important in cinema. The aesthetic isn't as good as 1996 although I don't think the visuals are bad overall.

Jane is a little dissociative seeming, which can be off-putting for myself and other viewers I assume, but to be fair she is described as being like a weird little elf creature in the book, and the actress plays this very well, actually looking quite ill when Rochester asks if she is.

2006 pros:

Best chemistry between Jane/Rochester by far and for this reason will always be my favorite because it actually made me fall in love with Rochester in the end though I didn't like his portrayal at all at first (that's power! — and my love for this Rochester should arguably be a con for the sake of my sanity and pride). best Rochester imo and a fantastic Jane. I love love love the way they did the Rochester storytime flashbacks and fleshed out his character as a result.

Best and most enjoyable Blanche Ingram plotline by far (although no one likes the lack of Rochester-in-drag, the party scenes & insertion of the twin flame theory was delightful).

some of the best dialogue, fantastic Adèle plotline, good Bertha plotline, best Pilot, best Rosamond, good costuming, good sets/locations (the fairytale ambience of Jane walking outside before meeting Rochester! Rochester's weird study!), I like the extra focus placed on themes such as nature/genetics/science, religion, travel, sexuality, etc.

2006 cons:

I dislike the way they did the Lowood and Gateshead plots, and although the Rivers sisters were good, I resent their St. John plotline for the most part. I disliked the lack of mystery surrounding Bertha; I think they made it way too obvious & not creepy enough, especially in showing her perspective from the window and giving her lines (one line, calling Jane a whore in Spanish) which no other adaptation does. I was sorely bored before and after Thornfield and only really revived when she got back to Ferndean (although Jane's flashbacks and some of the St. John plotline [the references to love, reminding us of her inner thoughts of Rochester] kept me alive). I suppose there were prices to pay for the excellence of the Jane and Rochester moments. - in comparison these seem like small prices, but still!

2011 pros:

deciding to go with a non-linear structure was a fantastic choice though I was skeptical of it at first, good St. John plotline for the most part & which they put emphasis on, really fantastic Jane with a lot of good fierce moments & lines, maybe the best Gateshead plotline including Mrs. Reed & the Red Room scene (although the lack of red was disappointing, and the lack of explanation for the chimney monster is conflicting – was it all in her head?), good young Jane, one of the best Richard Masons, star-studded cast, good dialogue, maybe the best costuming, Aesthetic™️

2011 cons:

least favorite adele (not insulting the child actress, this is the fault of the writers/directors)

— this is where i call security to protect me from an onslaught of jane eyre 2011 fans here on tumblr. alright, maybe i should watch it again — but i was expecting a lot more. particularly from michael fassbender as mr. rochester. probably my least favorite rochester by far & the least sympathetic. this rochester captures the dark and dangerous part of him but imo not so much the higher feelings that define him. the lack of humour & lack of unrepressed passion/drama/rage is noticeable - rochester isn't supposed to be quiet; as toby stephens (2006) said in an interview, rochester never shuts up in the book, he's really too eccentric to even be adapted accurately; he has to be toned down to be realistic, but here he's muted too far. - i felt like mia was carrying all of their scenes on her back & that the chemistry really rested on her primarily.

Cinematography-wise, there are some gems in the stills (famous hand holding gif), but I dislike the overall muted palette of the film; many will think this suits the tone and in some ways I agree, however, I will always prefer color and dislike the epidemic of desaturation we've seen so often in 21st century cinema. For this reason, 96, 97, 06 all triumph against 2011 aesthetically for me personally, although I still recognize some of the artistry of 2011, it is not my preference.

My overall ranking: 2006 (primarily for Jane/Rochester), 1997 (excellent overall), 1996 (good but flawed), 2011 (I tried but overall did not enjoy it).