#three versions of the art go nuts

[harianaswhore]

⟡ cₕₐᵣₗₑₛ ₗₑcₗₑᵣc ₂ ⟡

NONE OF THESE ARE WRITTEN BY ME

ᵐʸ ᵒᵗʰᵉʳ ʳᵉᶜˢ ᶠ¹ ʳᵉᶜˢ

— ᶠᴸᵁᶠᶠ ⟡

a dulcet evening - @f1daydreamers

orange theory - @forzalando

kisses on the tip of the nose (^)

prettiest - @starlost97

sleepy endearment - @adventuringblind

study hard - @fastandcarlos

matchmaker pets - @the-flaneur

beause it matters - @chlerc

nonchalant-chalant (^)

the art of noticing (^)

did i do that? (^)

something - @leclsrc

the moment divine (^)

name(s) of love - @kiwisa

birthday - @norrisleclercf1

pick me up? - @captainreecejames

your hand fits in mine (so cute, i'll sob) - @the-offside-rule

hungry for you - @writtenfangirl

call me by your name (^)

car's outside (^)

the prettiest star - @lovings4turn

nothing's scary when i'm with you - @amirasainz

tradition - @heartmix

kisses (^)

sun and sand - @paddockletters

— ᴬᴺᴳˢᵀ⟡

i'll look after you (tw: not eating, passing out, etc.) - @roostersgirlfriendlovesf1

wait for your love - @leclerc-hs

all i'm asking for is your time - @mariahcarreyyy

as long as he's here (mentions of death of parents) - @forzalayla

just a mother - @natwritesf1

all of me for you (dark stuff !!! and smut towards the end) - @annie115

flushed (!!!! spiking drinks !!!!)- @xxblairexxss

ashamed (^)

break in, breakdown (tw: house getting broken into) - @pucksandpower

be my sanctuary (tw: domestic violence & abuse) (^)

gridlock (tw: attempted and actual murder) (^)

blue birthday - @coco-loco-nut

stalker (tw: injury, stalking, etc.) - @norrisleclercf1

lay all your love on me - @foreveralbon

cellophane - @verstappensrealwife

— ˢᴹᵁᵀ⟡

like real people do - @monzabee

you're laughing (suggestive) - @scuderiahoney

one too many bites - @va1entinesg4l

something angelic - @agendabymooner

do i wanna know - @leclerc-hs

lose control - @hugleclerc

wine (alludes to smut) - @sinofwriting

giggles (^)

fling (^)

dangerous distraction - @thef1diary

so in love - @pierregazly

the middle of the night (sexual) - @leclerity

— ˢᴼᶜᴵᴬᴸ ᴹᴱᴰᴵᴬ ⟡

king of manifesting - @thisismeracing

the short con - @planetpiastri

"you" in church - @slyscoutess

booktube - @edwardslvrr

that boy is mine - @imnameimswrld

the prettiest girl - @delewlew

i'm thirsty, refreshing - @5sospenguinqueen

needle little love (^)

best moments - @valstranquility

monaco official - @lovemomhatepolice

self care queen - the original creator deactivated this is the reblogged version

baby alonso - @cockkette

tease - @marlenesluv

babysitter (^)

espresso - @keerysfreckles

looked for stars and i found a supernova - @love-belle

modern day romeo and juliet (^)

i'd like to hang out with you for my whole life (^)

always, evermore, even after and still (^)

— ˢᴱᴿᴵᴱˢ ⟡

something just like this two lay all your love on me - @imthebadguyyy

a house, a home where do we go? you think, you know love will always show green eyes - @vetteltea

to live for the hope of it all two three (smau) - @pierregazly

night after night one man warrior (smau) - @charles-eclair16

post race tension post breakfast tension post space tension post tension - @5sospenguinqueen

play pretend two (^)

say don't go now that we don't talk suburban legends - @dannyriccsupremacy

archived what once was mardy bum - @leclsrc

[dcdreamblog]

Okay, okay, so, question, I know Marvel Comics does fiction. But here's the thing, they have a whole series about The Amazing Spider-Man, and I swear I've read actual news reports about a guy by that name in that costume teaming up with Batman. Are they ripping off a real person?

No.

And also, inevitably, yes.

This is a simple question with no real answer and the more I explain it the less sense its going to make. So buckle in.

THIS is comic art from a special graphic novel published by Marvel Comics showing their flagship character the Amazing Spiderman teaming up with the real life flagship superhero Superman.

THIS is a photograph showing a real life Spiderman standing back to back with the real life Superman taken only a few years later, after an adventure that mirrored the events of the comic to a frankly scary degree. See, what some people fail to fully grasp intellectually about the multiverse is that it's a kind of...how do I explain this. My multiversal theory 101 professor called it an "Infinite Reality Superposition". He explained it as a function of the physics concept called Hypertime (which I refuse to explain in detail until someone has the nuts to force me to talk about it directly...because I would need time to go bother someone smarter than me) but my retained understanding of the concept is thus: Because the multiverse is an infinite variation of itself, spread out unto infinity by every event and every decision ever made by any series of conditions stretching back until the dawn of time by definition ALL things are true somewhere in the multiverse. Every idea you have ever had, every idea you have ever NOT had. Every possible version of every story ever imagined by any theoretical human on all possible Earths is, on another Earth just as real as the author's, provable, obvious reality. If you sketch a doodle creature on a piece of paper right now not only does that creature exist somewhere in the multiverse, INFINITE versions of that creature exist on infinite worlds within said multiverse. There are exactly as many worlds on which I am a figment of someone's imagination as there are where I am as real as I am sitting at my keyboard right now: infinity. There are worlds where Spiderman and Superman are equally as real as each other and always have been, there are worlds where both are equally fictional, there are worlds where the two beings are mixed together jumbles of both of their aspects and there are infinite versions of all three previous categories. Some worlds are so similar you could spend lifetimes looking up and down the timeline for a single blade of grass out of place in 1892 somewhere in Wales. Some worlds are so different that you would have to go back to the motion of the first hydrogen atoms after the big bang to find the common root between them and us. WE live on a world where Superman is a real being and Spiderman is a comic book character. But because we ALSO live on a world where extranormal events are a regular occurrence we ALSO saw a Spiderman from a different universe temporarily deposited into this one where he teamed up with Superman to save the day and then fucked off back to where he came from. Marvel characters have done this closer to a dozen times actually with character like the Hulk, the Fantastic Four and the Avengers all showing up for brief moments and then vanishing as quickly as they appeared. That does not change that one THIS world Spiderman is a comic book character. It's just that the OTHER universes in the multiverse could give less of a fuck about us and our airs.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

diasomnia ice-cream parlor au doodles

[Referencing this post!]

Hello, yes, I’ve been thinking about the Diasomnia ice-cream parlor AU again 🍨🍦 I guess I must have been really hungry lately www

I see them as offering not just ice-cream, bur also variants like gelato, shaved ice, milkshakes, etc. (They can afford it with support from the Draconia royal family’s funds 😂) The focus here will be ice-cream though, just because that’s Malleus’s favorite.

Imagine walking in and not knowing what to order (there’s so much to choose from!), so you ask the staff to pick something for you… (Yes, I’ve thought about this way too much and now I’m going to shovel this at you—)

Malleus strikes me as a very traditional and old-fashioned guy, so I’d see him falling back on ol’ reliable. You can’t go wrong with a classic sugar cone and a healthy scoop on top!

He recommends mint chocolate chip because it adds an additional pleasant cooling sensation to the actual coldness of ice-cream. Malleus is fond of the flavor himself; it’s great for cooling down a mouth that’s hot from breathing flames!

You’re brave if you accept anything Lilia hands you… You ask him what this is (the ice-cream looks… discolored in some places, and there’s all this weird stuff jutting out from it; is that a piece of lettuce???). He just winks at you and calls it “Lilia-chan’s Super Cute ⭐️ Special”, featuring a bunch of “unique” flavors he created himself.

It comes served in a cup because it’s easier to eat it while walking that way. For Lilia, who is a well-seasoned traveler, foods that are able to be eaten on the go are a plus!

Silver picks out a waffle bowl (it resembles a sturdy bird’s nest) and encourages you to try a lot of different things. It’ll help you to gain an appreciation for the new and unfamiliar! With how wide the waffle bowl is and how many flavors and toppings are in there, this can be good for sharing with friends from all over.

The particular version featured in the doodle has three kinds of ice-cream, each one representing one of the three Good Fairies. A pink flavor, a blue flavor, and a green flavor—maybe rose or strawberry, blueberry or cotton candy, and pistachio? It’s a very naturey palate.

His animal friends have helped with the ingredients; there’s honey drizzled on top, as well as crushed nuts. Freshly picked berries and edible flowers garnish the bowl too—oh, and we can’t forget a generous chunk of honeycomb!

… I don’t know much about Kingdom Hearts, but I’ve heard that Silver resembles Riku from KH?? So maybe Silver can offer some sea salt ice-cream too as a throwback 😂

… Was anyone surprised by this? No? No.

Sebek chose a tall parfait glass for serving so that the dessert can be as tall as possible. It’s a matcha and ube soft serve, swirled high. The green is Diasomnia’s color, and the purple is meant to be the color of the underside of Malleus’s cape. (Sebek wanted to include black ice-cream to for the Draconia royal color, but couldn’t find a good flavor.)

Art isn’t his forte, but Sebek did his best to “recreate the imposing, elegant image of wakasama” in his dessert. The cherry on top, flanked by two conical chocolate pieces, are meant to be Malleus and his horns. The wafer poking out is supposed to “enhance the young master’s presence”. All the other things are extra details in an effort to make the ice-cream larger than life: candied fruit peels arranged in a line (to resemble the spines on a dragon’s tail), mochi balls (“magestones”) piled to one side, and a chocolate biscuit stick + wafer that, together, look like Malleus’s staff.

Sebek tried really hard! … He will aggressively try to sell you on this item.

If you’re really hungry or with a large group, why not go for the Diasomnia Family Fundae? It’s their take on a sundae, served in a glass boat. There’s a whole banana, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and three maraschino cherries! The bramble is made of dark chocolate.

Each student is represented by one scoop and a little candy or chocolate that helps to characterize the boy (horns, bat wings, lightning bolt, or sword). Sebek is a lemon-like sherbet, befitting of his loud, in-your-face personality. Lilia is a bright red berry flavor (strawberries, cherries, cranberries, etc.), like his favorite red juices, deep and complex. Silver is vanilla bean, pure, simple, and earnest. (He could also be a subtle lavender flavor, since that's a flower known to ease you into sleep.) And Malleus… well, that scoop is a pitch black, but the flavor is something you can’t quite place your tongue on. It’s a mystery, just like he is! (Maybe the shop changes the flavor every now and again. They can run a promo where if you guess the right flavor combo for that particular week’s Malleus scoop, they give you a discount or a free cone.)

A lot of chocolate sauce is dripping down from the Malleus scoop; this is because the sauce is supposed to be his “blot”. The bottom three scoops—Lilia, Sebek, and Silver—are blanketed by the chocolate thorns as a reference to how those three were sentenced to sleep.

[parasolyaa]

Hi!! How are you doing?

I saw your post inviting asks and something I've been wondering is, if you could tell me about some things from Misha's childhood that are unique to Ukraine which he might feel nostalgic for as a young adult (snacks, toys, kids tv shows, etc)?

Thank you for the informative posts you make, you're awesome ☺️

hi!! i'm doing good tysm!!! couldn't be otherwise after getting an ask from the most legendary artist in this fandom, i adore your ricky art!! i'll use this post as an excuse to yap endlessly about random media that will mostly be irrelevant, but also a peek into that time and place. sort of.

the epithome of ukrainian childhood nostalgia is zhyvchyk: both a drink and a tv show (which is just an advertisement for that drink). it’s a bubbly apple soda, in other words - a drink of gods.

(also fun fact: after russia occupied crimea, they tried to make their own version of zhychyk there. they called it zhyvunchik and the only design change was that they ??cut off the arms of the mascot?? since zhyvchyk basically means “lively guy”, it was kinda ironic)

other drinks he’d definitely miss would be kvas and kompot (obligatory laughing and giggling when he calls it cumpot).

starting off with more traditional snacks, i envision young misha with a necklace of booblycks (obligatory laughing and giggling when he calls it booblicks)

also any roshen candy! (obligatory laughing and giggling when he mentions the nut out chocolates) (they indeed are called that) (they are pretty recent tho). the undying classic is crazy bee and shypuchka/fizzy boom (the darker green design is the older one).

also there are some fancy sets, associated with holidays or family gettogethers. strila/arrow, kyiv evening and kyiv cake

the thing misha would DEFINETELY love and miss is flint ?bread chips?, this is an unmatched snack. once again, darker green design is the older one, and also with a pretty wild taste. there is a big variety of those.

ukrainian childhood cartoons were mostly distributed among three channels - pixel, plusplus and malyatko tv (disney, nickelodeon and cartoon network were here too, but no point in talking abt them now). the first two usually broadcastered whatever cartoons from around the world were relevant at the time (ukrainian dub for ducktales was unmatched!!), and also a few ukrainian things. i will highlight "abetka tivi" (alphabet tv) from pixel. it was, well, a show about learning the alphabet. "auntie owl’s lessons" was another one, and there were much more episodes, usually about famous art, world history and etiquette.

on plusplus, there was a show called "fairytale with dad", in which male celebrities read out fairytales to children. something about healing daddy issues with this one. also there is a whole plusplus cinematic universe, because this show sometimes intervened with another original show of theirs about ??shapes going on adventures??. and there was a show called useful suggestions, which was universally disliked by kids for being too on the nose about the life lessons they were trying to teach.

and then there was malyatko tv. when it stopped broadcasting in 2023, everyone weeped and so did i. there were vibrant music videos, eg "turtle aha", "helper boy" (self PR for my fic with that name. sorry.) and other. and, even though this wasn’t original ukrainian content, i feel the need to mention this: malyatko tv often showed some old anime cartoons - "haidi", "pocahontas" and others. ukrainian opening dubs were ethereal. to me.

there also were old cartoon classics (broadcasted on a creepy channel called children's world, an ugly sibling of malyatko tv) - the “how cossacks” series and “there once was a dog", but there were tons more.

(also this made me remember another long-gone channel called Qtv. basically what the cool kids watched, it also shows up in every tiktok #ukrainechildhood #nostalgia #2000s video. it's showed simpsons and stuff and had cheeky editing, eg in an advertisement for death note they only showed spongebob clips to make it look like he was kira. pretty funny imo)

peak nostalgia is the show "країна у" (country u? krayina u? untranslatable title), which is a dumb sketch show consisting of shows on its own about people from different regions of ukraine. bringing this up because odesa was one of them, and, no matter if misha disliked this show or not, this definetely impacted his childhood. the schtik about "once upon in odesa" was that there were four guys in odesa and uuuuh that's it? i don't remember much about it tbh ...

there were also popular reality tv shows and stuff, i really really wanna highlight "the world inside out". it's a travel show about this dude dmytro komarov getting to most remote an unique places in the world. don't get me wrong, he was being an idiot half the time, but it was peak entertainment. he uploaded old episodes with english dub on youtube and now does charity work. props to him

back to cartoons, "fox mykyta" was a nice, more modern cartoon. it's vaguely based on ivan franko's book with the same name, which in turn is vaguely based on "the blue jackal". speaking of books, ukrainian school literature programe is traumatising asf, and i just need to mention "fedko-brigand". it's a short story about a young boy who misbehaved but only lied once, when he took the blame for pushing a rich boy in the river, which he didn't do. it's also the reason why ukrainian 5th graders all spent at least one night crying, and since rereading it, i just keep thinking about misha. i feel like he'd relate

i'm convinced every ukrainian child had this specific "abetka"(alphabet) book with rhymes to every letter. the "а-ба-ба-га-ла-ма-га" publishing house never fails with their illustrations.

also probably the most popular children's books are the ones by vsevolod nestayko, eg "toreadors from vasyukivka" and "wonderful adventures in the forest school".

about games and toys, i honestly can't recall any ukraine specific ones except "this thing but slavic!" (monopoly ukraine, stuff like that). motanka dolls count as an original toy. out of computer games, maybe the most popular one at the time - "stalker: shadow of chornobyl"? some irony in that. real life games tho? the only difference between the games of tag and kvach is the name. "сossacks and bandits" maybe... there's a bl comic with the same name btw, and i also think that's the only place where you can find the rules for it in english lol. or google translate the wikipedia page.

misha lived by the sea, so he probably played a lot of games on water, other than that - all the same things american kids experience. generally my main advise when thinking about misha's childhood is to remember he had all the same things people in uranium did, excluding canada specific media. after auntie owl's lessons came ninja turtles, and after eating flint bread chips it was only natural to sip coca cola.

also i can advise to just look up "ukraine nostalgia"/"дитинство ностальгія" on tiktok. half the time it will be uncomprehensive stuff, and the other half might be something that'd help shape the view of what it was like. this is an invitation to ask more specific things and also for my ukrainian mutuals to add on because i only scratched the surface. hope it was useful or somewhat interesting xd

[crossmydna]

Ao3 Wrapped

Tagged by @sam-loves-seb @energievie and @mybrainismelted <3

1. How many words have you written this year?

51,142, not including Galladrabbles or work on WIPs that haven't been published yet, so probably closer to 80k

2. How many works did you publish this year?

6 fics and 4 pieces of artwork

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)?

Probably The Blackwing Prophecy because it's my most ambitious work so far!

4. What work of yours has the most hits?

For fics only, 7 Minutes in Heaven with 3,369 hits

5. What work of yours got more feedback than you expected?

The Stowaway for sure. I was just expecting to write a silly pirate one-shot and everyone in the comments wanted more lmao

6. Favorite title you used?

Touch/Starved because it reminds me of something that like Hozier or Noah Kahan would use for a title of one of their songs

7. If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most?

I normally don't, but in my drawing Somethin' to Keep You Cool I quoted Ice Cream Man by Van Halen (because the original fic did as well hehe)

8. Pairing you wrote the most for this year?

Gallavich <3

9. Favorite pairing you wrote for this year?

Technically Gallavich but the scrubbed characters I re-wrote for The Menagerie, Mal and Rowan, have a special place in my heart <3

10. What work was the quickest to write?

Probably Locking Down the Locksmith

11. What work took you the longest to write?

The Blackwing Prophecy because it involed lots of lore creation and worldbuilding before I even started writing the fic.

Or Gallavich Week 2024 - Nine AUs because I had to fit 4 prompts into each 400 word ficlet and make them coherent.

12. How many WIPs do you have in your docs for next year?

3 so far! The Blackwing Prophecy, that priest!Ian fic that still has eluded me finishing it, and now The Stowaway

13. What’s your longest work of the year?

The Blackwing Prophecy with 20,048 words so far

14. What’s your shortest work of the year?

7 Minutes in Heaven with 2,832 words (not including artwork)

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you?

Same three as in question #12 (plus maybe a couple more shhh)

16. What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag?

Probably Alternate Universe! That's pretty much all I write lmao

17. Your favorite character to write this year?

I really loved exploring touch starved/touch averse Mickey in Touch/Starved.

18. The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year?

Probably Ian in The Blackwing Prophecy because he's struggling with keeping secrets and that's something he's not very good at (and neither am I)

19. What’s one pairing you want to explore next year?

Always more Gallavich <3

20. Which work of yours have you reread the most?

The Blackwing Prophecy because I need to remember what happened lmao

21. How many kudos in total did you get this year?

2,307 🥰

22. Which work has the most comments?

7 Minutes in Heaven with 38 comment threads

23. Did you do any collaborative works this year?

Nope!

24. Did you write any gifts this year?

I wrote Touch/Starved for @michellemisfit as well as drew art for various people!

25. Did you receive any gifts this year?

Yes! @mybrainismelted wrote Nuts for me because I got a flat tire and wanted someone to make a Gallavich version of the shitshow that it was lmao. And also I commissioned Old Habits and New Revelations from @whatthebodygraspsnot!

26. What’s your most common category?

M/M always

27. What do you listen to while writing?

Honestly either Legend of Zelda speedruns or lawn care videos because I'm a psycho

28. Favorite work you wrote this year?

Probably The Stowaway because I can't stop thinking about it

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

How does he describe feeling like you’re going to explode and implode simultaneously? How does he tell her that he’s been thinking about Ian’s hand on the back of his neck nonstop and aching to feel it again with every fiber of his being? But that the thought of it is so overwhelming that he can’t actually bear it? — from Touch/Starved

Or, the scene in chapter 4 of The Blackwing Prophecy where Ian is deciding to heal Mickey or not.

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year?

Starting 2 new major WIPs and still not finishing the one I've been trying to write for like 2 years now lmao

Tagging @gallawitchxx @deedala @whatthebodygraspsnot @thisdivorce if you want to play!

[d-criss-news]

Darren Criss on Bringing Robot Love to Broadway With ‘Maybe Happy Ending’

Chances are the multi-talented Darren Criss is as cross-eyed as the rest of us are with the twists and turns his career has taken over the past 13 years. In 2009, he began in television with six years of Glee, playing the lead singer of the Warblers, and helping power a Warblers focused soundtrack album to Number 2 on the Billboard album chart. Then in 2018 he switched fromsinging to spree killing, giving a stunning, steel-plated performance as Andrew Cunanan in Ryan Murphy’s American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. That got him a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy and set people to thinking there might be a serious actor lurking inside that singer.

Before that could be settled, the singer reemerged, as a replacement in a Broadway revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, raking in $4 million during his three weeks. That was followed with an Off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theater and a stint in Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the Belasco Theater.

Two years ago, the actor was back when producer Jeffrey Richards hired him for some deep-dish David Mamet drama, American Buffalo. Now Richardshas returned Criss to the Belasco, and singing, for an original Broadway musical, Maybe Happy Ending—a very original musical, in that it’s about the love life of robots in Seoul circa 2064.

You’ll not find much of that Glee guy you know and love in the character Criss plays in Maybe Happy Ending, a lonely Helperbot robot who putters aimlessly about his tiny apartment, listens to jazz and devotes all his TLC to a favorite pot plant. That changes swiftly when a female form of Helperbot, Claire (Helen J Shen), drops by to borrow his charger. Sparks fly, then conversation, and inevitably a kind of amorous connection.

Despite the nuts and bolts, what we have here is basically a rom-com, with a charming book and score by a couple of NYU classmates.

Actually, there are two books and two scores, one in English, one in Korean. Will Aronson, 43, of New Haven, composed the music, and Hue Park, 41 of South Korea wrote the lyrics. Once they did that, they put their heads together and wrote “connecting tissue”—a play in praise of love’s rejuvenating effects. Even robots at the end of their warranty are susceptible.

Evidently, Hue won the toss because the Korean version premiered first—in Seoul, where the story is set—and proved to be such a success that stateside productions were put together. The English edition made its first U.S. appearance two years ago at Atlanta’s Alliance Theater, where The New York Times’ Jesse Green deemed it “Broadway-ready.” Thus, we now have a live-action robot show going strong on West 44th.

The terror of doing this kind of production, Criss confesses, is that actors are afraid they’ll look like cartoons of their character, taking big, blocky robot steps around the stage. “The show has no listed choreographer,” he tells Observer. But he feels he has that situation well in hand. He and director Michael Arden “have taken a particular interest in making sure the physicality is distinct,” he says. “And I’d be remiss not to mention  a teacher at Juilliard, Moni Yakim, who had some Zoom discussion with us about this.

“It’s kind of a cocktail of those three things: Moni’s suggestions, Michael’s pursuit of perfection and my own interest in physical theater. It’s a skill set that I’ve never been able to utilize—at least to this level. When I was in college, I took a semester off so that I could study physical theater at the Accademia dell’Arte, the performing arts school in Arezzo, Italy.”

A cast of four inhabit the show: Dez Duron, Marcus Choi, Criss, and Shen. You may detect a little kinetic energy between Criss and Shen. That’s because they both attended the University of Michigan—albeit, not at the same time. “She graduated about two seconds ago, and I may have graduated a little longer ago than that,” concedes Criss.

“She graduated two years ago, and 10 years ago my name was up on the marquee at the Belasco Theater. And to be able to come back to the Belasco—but this time to share that billing with a fellow Michigan grad—is a very special moment for me. I’m now the upper-class man to the freshman of Helen J Shen. This is her Broadway debut. It’s a big moment for her, and getting to see her through that on stage—to call that a job is really a special thing for me.”

The enthusiasm Criss brings to the stage is practically palpable—and he still remembers where it came from: encountering Robin Williams at an impressionably early age in the 1992 animated Disney flick, Aladdin, in which his outrageous Genie-jiving was almost heart-stoppingly hilarious.

“I was probably six or seven—and I noticed how this audience connected with each other and with this Genie on the screen. I was very taken with that idea, and I wanted to give people what this Genie was giving them. Then, I found out the voice of that Genie was Robin Williams, who was such a prominent figure out in San Francisco, where I grew up. That made it an accessible concept: ’Oh, Mr. Williams is an actor. I’d like to be an actor, too.’ So I hopped right on it.”

[howlingday]

Weeping Knight,Grimm Knight, or Arcwitch?

Ooh, boy... Heck of a selection, huh? Jaune and the three "MILFs," eh? Alrighty. Let's talk about these three ships.

Weeping Knight/Willow's Knight/Frosted Knight

Normally, this would be your classic "pool boy/lonely housewife" trope in adult works. Hell, some people jump at the idea of giving Jacques Schnee the NTR treatment because, well, he's Jacques Schnee. And there's also the fact that Weiss didn't show interest in Jaune in Volume 1 (completely understandable, by the way) and this is some form of payback for that.

But I say, NUTS TO ALL THAT! You could definitely craft a loving story about Willow finding love again after not having it for so long and Jaune isn't just some horny young adult looking for a woman with experience. You could instead look at Jaune for what he is, which is basically walking medicine. He's healing Willow and she's relishing in the attention she's receiving.

Also, one of my favorite Willow x Jaune art pieces I see is Weiss going full emo/goth in response, and Jaune is like, "I'm not trying to replace your dad, Weiss! I'm just trying to be there for you and your family!"

Score - 8/10 if not written like a MILF porno

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Grimm Knight/Death Knight/At The Stake

This one is another old school trope of "what if the hero and the main villain got together". There's a lot that can go into this, whether Jaune becomes evil, Salem becomes good, or some unique scenario in between. Honestly, I find this ship both cute and wholesome when it's done well enough. Of course, there's lewds of this too, because apparently when Mommy Salami stayed too long in the oozie jacuzzi, her body didn't change from when she was in her 20s.

Still, this is a very cute ship and I like just about everything I see of it. Probably my favorite version of this ship I saw was when Ozpin sent Jaune to kill Salem, and she ends up marrying him and sending Oz the wedding invite. (Yeah, it's a self-plug. Big whoop, want to fight about it?)

Score - 9/10 just don't think about the potential Philip J. Fry effect

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Arcwitch

Since there's only one name to this, it stands to reason that this is the most famous of three, likely due to the fact that this was the first Jaune x MILF ship ever made. Unfortunately, this also makes it the more... problematic, just from the trope alone. The classic "hot for teacher" idea that becomes an actual crime when applied to the real world.

However, that doesn't mean that there's no good works with this, though it's mostly lewds pertaining to the couple. The best example of this ship I've seen is in Professor Arc, in which Jaune sneaks into Beacon as a teacher and he and her develop a very close relationship. Although, there's still a bit of an ick factor to it, but that doesn't mean that this ship can't be done well since it's a confident older woman with a more timid younger man. Overall, I think it can be a good ship.

Score - 7/10 and the ick keeps me from going higher.

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IN CONCLUSION:

If y'all wanna have Jaune be cute and romantic with an older gal, that's fine. Just, y'know, don't be weird and creepy about it. Course, won't stop me from writing these ships either. Never compromise your standards for the worse and KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

[pynkhues]

No that thing about Rolin was genuinely so stupid. I feel like so often the people ranting about how only they and their circle "get" the show (a show they often seem to hate, or at least they already hate everything about season 3, because they really wanted the show to be one where Louis had a full-fledged romance with Armand and they resent Lestat -- or Sam, it can be hard to tell -- getting any attention) are the ones willfully misreading not only the show itself (which has room for multiple interpretations but is pretty clear about SOME things) but everything Rolin and the actors say about it.

It's like, they need to make Rolin the villain who is going to make the show into a racist Lestatfest, because they can't deal with the idea that Rolin can love IWTV, which he created, and still be particularly excited for TVL (because they're allowed to already feel like they won't like the TVL season, but it's wrong for anyone to be especially excited for TVL?), or that Jacob can still have an incredibly rich and prominent role as the co-lead (like Sam in season 1) even if Sam is now the lead.

It feels like they've made up a version of the show in their heads that they wish it were, and they're mad that the show isn't that. And I think the show in their heads sounds a lot less interesting and complex than the show we actually have. But yeah, you see people say things like they hope Louis and Lestat don't interact until late in the season because Louis should be doing his own thing and I'm like....for one, that would be bad storytelling. This show is about the relationship between the two of them, having them not talking and not figuring anything how or having conflicts together, would be less interesting and make less sense for the characters. And, even if you don't recognize what good storytelling would be, they have to know that that is obviously not going to happen. Rolin's writing the Loustat show and they're going to interact even if they're not romantically involved (not to mention that critics love Jacob and Sam even above everything else on the show, as do audiences, and AMC clearly knows they have exceptional chemistry both on and off camera, so...yeah, not wasting that).

There are people where it feels like IWTV the show AND iwtv the fandom make them so miserable that I don't get why they persist. If the show is upsetting you that much, is it worth watching just because you like bits of it? It feels like some fans have decided that liking Lestat as a character, or being excited for a season that explores him more, or thinking that Sam is amazing and being happy that he gets critical acclaim, is racist. It feels like weirdly performative virtue-signaling, like it's doing good antiracist work to hate this character and condemn the show for having him as a lead? And I'm like...you're just trying to take all the nuance out of this work of art because you care about it as some kind of talisman to prove your superiority, not as art, and that doesn't actually do anything to fight racism?

/lol sorry, end rant. I'm just kind of new to fandom and though I'm now realizing I can block things to keep idiocy of my timeline, it just feels weird to see how people react to shows in a way that feels like it has nothing to do with the actual merits of the show or actors.

(x)

You don't have to apologise, anon, like - - look, I get it. All fandoms feel like a bit of a melting pot these days, but this one is certainly moreso than any other fandom I've personally been in before. It's kind of nuts to think that 15 hours of television across three years can cause so much discourse and factionalism and vitriol, but then again, maybe not. I was a little flippant about it the other night, but it does kind of feel sometimes a bit like how churches form denominations.

In terms of Rolin though - - yeah. It does feel a bit silly to me. He's not adapting Interview with the Vampire, he's adapting The Vampire Chronicles, and frankly I'd hope he'd be proud of each book he adapts, and excited for every book he's currently adapting, because otherwise, I'd be questioning why he was adapting the series at all. These books are pretty old - like, God, The Vampire Lestat even turns 50 in two months - and the rejection from parts of the fandom that this show is an adaptation is a little wild. It's not an original series, as much as some might want it to be, and I do kind of wonder sometimes if the rejection of that fact is based on the reality that Western culture is increasingly individualised and inherently curated.

Content is made for people, and algorithms ensure people only get fed what they want, and so this exposure to stories that don't cater to the exact thing that they want does inspire an incredibly kneejerk reaction. People would rather try and cut a story to fit their experience and wants, than expand their minds to explore experiences and desires outside of themselves. It's - - yeah. Interesting to me in that sense.

As to why people still engage when they know they don't like the source material, I mean, I can't say for sure, but I do think fandom has become a central point of community for some - perhaps the only touch point for many - and I am endlessly sympathetic to that. I'm lucky in the fact that I have a close (albeit complex) family, and so many deep friendships and relationships, but I know that when I moved interstate to a place where I knew very few people, fandom felt familiar and safe in the way that life didn't always at the time, and I really appreciate that people feel that in different ways and possibly to different extremes.

That said, I very much hear what you're saying about virtue signalling, and confusing fandom for activism, and certain pockets of the fandom conflating both with Lestat/Sam, and look. All I can ever do is gently encourage people to log off sometimes. Go do something with your hands! Yoga or colouring or cooking or carpentry or pick some fruit or go dig your fingers into some soil and plant something. Do it especially if it's something that can bring you closer to someone else! (My main workplace has a culture of bringing home grown fruit and vegetables in to share, and I took some herbs from my tiny garden in today and two of my colleagues have already sent me photos of what they made with them, and y'know, it sounds a little simple, but it honestly makes me a little emotional, haha). Fandom isn't activism and, unfortunately, I don't really think it's community anymore either, which is a bit tragic to me personally as someone older who's still banging around the joint.

I think it's all a little too embroiled in personal interpretations, which further embeds feelings of individualism, and the need to assert that individualism over the very thing they seek community over, just as I think that these sort of sub-communities are built on a need for connection, but fed by content around a particular line of thinking, and that the community and the rhetoric get so deeply entwined that there comes a point of no return.

It's - - yeah. Complicated. But like I said, I hear you, and can only really recommend curating your experience of the broader fandom. I mostly can, but people do send me a lot of posts these days too, haha.

[divimech]

nobody else gaf about this movie but idc let me enlighten yall

so like why do we hate homewrecker 1992 so much...... because when i checked the letterboxd profile for the movie ppl were absolutely hounding it💔💔 and for the stupidest reasons too????? "erm lucy the ai isnt scary" she wasnt supposed to be scary you pisslicker "its cheesy" OH FUCK OFFFFFFFFF i cried watching this movie and i was still sad days after watching it bc the ending literally ripped my beating heart out of my body and shot it multiple times with a nailgun and pissed on it. like no movie has made me this sad since electric dreams and if u know me thats saying smth

and some of the ppl in these reviews are just pulling bullshit out of their urethras?? "this movie is a lamer version of demon seed!" hey so demon seed is a movie abt a sentient ai forcefully impregnating a woman (who is his creators ex wife mind you) with his half human half computer baby and then uploading his consciousness into said baby after he dies so he can be human. homewrecker is a movie abt an ai that controls this guys vacation cabin, then said ai falls in love with the man, and tries to kill his ex wife bc shes jealous

i want you to look at me dead in the eyes with a completely straight face and tell me how these movies are similar?? the only similarity is "ooo ai falls in love with a human" (dont get me wrong i love this trope) BUT YOU CANT EVEN REALLY CALL IT LOVE WITH DEMON SEED BC HALF THE MOVIE IS JUST ROBOT HYPNOTIZATION RAPE PREGNANCY PORN

also i saw another reviewer compare this movie to her 2013????? this post is already long enough so im gonna keep this short HOMEWRECKER 1992 AND HER 2013 SHOULDNT EVEN BE IN THE SAME SENTENCE TOGETHER. her 2013 is a shitbag of a movie made by adults who think theyre so deep and meaningful while the only people who genuinely find this movie deep and interesting are people who jack off to phone sex and being strangled by dead cats. or maybe im just 15 idk

uhm also there was some other reviewer comparing lucy to hal 9000??????? dont even fucking play with me you have to be pulling on my balls rn no way you just said that and genuinely meant it. looks wise ill let it slide, theyre both red and black, BUT PERSONALITY WISE???? WHAT HOMEWRECKER DID YOU WATCH??????????? WRECKERHOME?? every single movie ive seen that features a SLIGHTLY evil ai theres always some sticky fingered fuck in the reviews nutting all over 2001 a space odyssey. AND LIKE DO NOT TWIST MY WORDS I LOVE THAT MOVIE TOO but oh my god what does it have to do with this? you know hal wasnt the first evil ai?? alphaville was released three years before 2001 aso and that features an evil ai guy but YOU dont see me glazing alpha 60 in a review abt 2001 aso. we get it you like space odyssey, do you want hal to crawl out of robot hell and give you a kiss????? should we call stanley kubrick?????????????

HOMEWRECKER 1992 HAS NOTHING. NOT EVEN A TUMBLR TAG. NOT A SINGLE AO3 FIC. NOT A SINGLE EDIT ON TIKTOK. NOT A LICK OF FANART. HOMEWRECKER DOESNT EVEN HAVE A FUCKING WIKIPEDIA PAGE. NOTHING. I AM THE FIRST PERSON TO POST ABT HOMEWRECKER 1992 ON THIS GOD FORSAKEN PLATFORM. ur telling me that demon seed has a fanbase?? like a GENUINE fanbase that isnt full of old men sci fi nerds??? theres FANART of demon seed. people find proteus attractive. there are PROTEUS IV HUMAN GAJINKAS. ARE YOU JOKING??????? homewrecker is literally free on youtube but somehow LITERALLY NOBODY ON THIS SITE HAS WATCHED IT????? to watch demon seed i had to go on some illegal website, get flashed by a porn ad everytime i tried to pause the movie and probably got my computer gangbanged by viruses but sure yeah somehow its more known than homewrecker. WHERE IS THE HOMEWRECKER FANDOM. WHERE ARE THE LUCY SIMPS. WHERE ARE THE LUCY X DAVID ANGST FICS. WHERE ARE THE JANE HATERS. WHERE IS THE CUTE DANA AND LUCY ART. WHERE IS THE COOL LUCY HUMAN GAJINKA FANART. EVERYDAY I WEEP OVER WHAT COULDVE BEEN

dw demon seed i still love you (kinda) homewrecker is better tho

homewrecker 1992 is a masterpiece and if you cant see that im sorry for you

[8bitsupervillain]

Higurashi When They Cry Hou Ch. 7 Minagoroshi pt. 4

Shortly after this scene at the Irie Clinic Rika and Satoko are off to the local game store to play their board game tournament like they did at the start of Watanagashi.

Seriously, the original art for Hanyuu makes her look like such a pathetic creature, just a real sad sack. Which I guess is a perfectly in-line look to have given her character is a rather gloomy apathetic individual. Hanyuu throughout the early stages of the chapter is constantly telling Rika to not get her hopes up and to basically assume that nothing about her fate is going to change at all ever.

A good portion of the board game tourney here is spent with Rika just overcome with a despair over how repetitious and pointless it all seems. It doesn't really get into it, but there's the distinct impression that she's lived through this tournament a fair number of times throughout the hundred plus year span she's been stuck in the loop. Also for some reason there's an odd change in the dialogue during this section. Rika tells Keiichi that he'll wind up playing the game Billionaire with his group, but when the store owner brings out the game it's a copy of the Game of Life. Which Rika acts like is normal, telling Keiichi that this is how fate always seems to shake out whenever they do this gaming tournament. Keiichi then decides basically, nuts to that and requests a different game for him and his group. Instead of Billionaire/Game of Life, the three play a game called pop-up pirate. Which is a game where you stab little swords into a barrel that has a pirate guy in it. This small change in fate inspires Rika to request a change to her groups game as well. It doesn't say what they change it to, but they do.

This small change in destiny made the visual novel then proceeds to skip over the game tournament. Presumably it happens the same as it did previously. I know Hanyuu is trying to keep Rika's expectations low so she doesn't get hurt by the lack of significant changes in her fate, but I do wonder how she perceives the small microscopic alterations to events like the above. Later on Hanyuu acts like these changes of events won't actually affect anything in the long run, and she advocates a "let's just let nature run its course" type of approach to Rika's situation. But I wonder if she's secretly slightly thrilled at the minor changes because it drags Rika temporarily out of her deep gloom.

It's now after the tournament, when the shop owner gives everyone, sans Mion a doll. I was surprised here because the visual novel offers a choice between whether Rika should try to influence events and convince Keiichi to give Mion the doll, or to observe.

I don't know if there will be ramifications further down the line, but choosing either option results in the same dialogue playing out for the most part. If you go with the try to influence Keiichi option there's a few lines extra about how he seems somewhat aware of your interjection, but otherwise it plays out the same.

I like the insinuation here that Hanyuu might not actually be Oyashiro. Who she would actually be is an interesting question I think, I'm pretty sure she is actually Oyashiro, but the idea that she's just some random horned weirdo who hangs out with Rika is also pretty amusing. Just some divine entity hanging out with the reincarnation of Oyashiro for a lark.

Oh yeah, also in this version of the universe Shion is in Keiichi and so on's class. It seems to be taking place in the hallucination Shion had before she died at the end of Meakashi.

Something that's been slightly bothering me since it came up in Tsumihoroboshi, and gets brought up again here is the change of the food they put the needle in from Onikakushi. They mentioned it was Ohagi, and it just struck me as wrong, because it was something else originally, I thought. So I went back and checked, sure enough in Onikakushi Mion mentions that they made mochi for Keiichi. Now I know this is a really extremely minor thing to get distracted by, but I am just sort of curious about the change here. According to the release dates on GOG and Steam there was four years between the chapters, and maybe it's more accurate this way or something. But there's been quite a few little changes in various aspects of the plots from chapter to chapter. The difference in the corpse tunnel in Watanagashi to Meakashi still being the largest one. It's not really affecting my enjoyment of the series, just a little oddity I've noticed.

Also did I mention Shion's back? She's back, in supporting cast form. And boy howdy do I have some opinions about some actions she takes later on.

[msshadowqueen]

nothing makes me sadder than seeing writers that i like (their series/work) doing bad things...

i so get why you turned off anon now, this harassment is nuts bro, i think they just cling to an idealized version of azriel where he's brooding and dark but like a secret softy or something and significantly less weird and horny. I've been there man (not with azriel, i am sick of azriel fics, i need less prominent characters, give me an aramantha fic i want her i can fix her)

they're mad cuz you're attacking their idea of him but also idk why their mad when they are defaming elain. i am an elain stan, i am an elain lover she deserves at the very least to be allowed to do more but like at least she knows what she wants and will stick to it.

archeron sisters with better guys 2024 please i beg of you

(btw did you see copypastus' art for today, i think we need to talk about it I'm literally screaming and in love with all three of them suddenly i think i can fix them)

Classic bs in a fandom where the women get vilified for the same shit the men get glorified for. Weird too, because what the fuck has Azriel even done to deserve so much love? Personally not much of a fan of his character trope because it's so overdone, but there are so many characters of this trope who just pull it off better. An example can be found within one of SJM's own series, in fact! Lorcan in TOG pulls this shit off wayyyy better than Azriel. I mean if you're going to harass me, do it over an interesting character goddamn lol.

(yesss i loved copypastus's villain art today!)

[sillyname30]

Darren Criss on Bringing Robot Love to Broadway With ‘Maybe Happy Ending’

The star of the new musical on learning to move like a machine and how he first caught the acting bug.

Chances are the multi-talented Darren Criss is as cross-eyed as the rest of us are with the twists and turns his career has taken over the past 13 years. In 2009, he began in television with six years of Glee, playing the lead singer of the Warblers, and helping power a Warblers focused soundtrack album to Number 2 on the Billboard album chart. Then in 2018 he switched fromsinging to spree killing, giving a stunning, steel-plated performance as Andrew Cunanan in Ryan Murphy’s American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. That got him a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy and set people to thinking there might be a serious actor lurking inside that singer.

Before that could be settled, the singer reemerged, as a replacement in a Broadway revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, raking in $4 million during his three weeks. That was followed with an Off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theater and a stint in Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the Belasco Theater.

Two years ago, the actor was back when producer Jeffrey Richards hired him for some deep-dish David Mamet drama, American Buffalo. Now Richardshas returned Criss to the Belasco, and singing, for an original Broadway musical, Maybe Happy Ending—a very original musical, in that it’s about the love life of robots in Seoul circa 2064.

You’ll not find much of that Glee guy you know and love in the character Criss plays in Maybe Happy Ending, a lonely Helperbot robot who putters aimlessly about his tiny apartment, listens to jazz and devotes all his TLC to a favorite pot plant. That changes swiftly when a female form of Helperbot, Claire (Helen J Shen), drops by to borrow his charger. Sparks fly, then conversation, and inevitably a kind of amorous connection.

Despite the nuts and bolts, what we have here is basically a rom-com, with a charming book and score by a couple of NYU classmates.

Actually, there are two books and two scores, one in English, one in Korean. Will Aronson, 43, of New Haven, composed the music, and Hue Park, 41 of South Korea wrote the lyrics. Once they did that, they put their heads together and wrote “connecting tissue”—a play in praise of love’s rejuvenating effects. Even robots at the end of their warranty are susceptible.

Evidently, Hue won the toss because the Korean version premiered first—in Seoul, where the story is set—and proved to be such a success that stateside productions were put together. The English edition made its first U.S. appearance two years ago at Atlanta’s Alliance Theater, where The New York Times’ Jesse Green deemed it “Broadway-ready.” Thus, we now have a live-action robot show going strong on West 44th.

The terror of doing this kind of production, Criss confesses, is that actors are afraid they’ll look like cartoons of their character, taking big, blocky robot steps around the stage. “The show has no listed choreographer,” he tells Observer. But he feels he has that situation well in hand. He and director Michael Arden “have taken a particular interest in making sure the physicality is distinct,” he says. “And I’d be remiss not to mention  a teacher at Juilliard, Moni Yakim, who had some Zoom discussion with us about this.

“It’s kind of a cocktail of those three things: Moni’s suggestions, Michael’s pursuit of perfection and my own interest in physical theater. It’s a skill set that I’ve never been able to utilize—at least to this level. When I was in college, I took a semester off so that I could study physical theater at the Accademia dell’Arte, the performing arts school in Arezzo, Italy.”

A cast of four inhabit the show: Dez Duron, Marcus Choi, Criss, and Shen. You may detect a little kinetic energy between Criss and Shen. That’s because they both attended the University of Michigan—albeit, not at the same time. “She graduated about two seconds ago, and I may have graduated a little longer ago than that,” concedes Criss.

“She graduated two years ago, and 10 years ago my name was up on the marquee at the Belasco Theater. And to be able to come back to the Belasco—but this time to share that billing with a fellow Michigan grad—is a very special moment for me. I’m now the upper-class man to the freshman of Helen J Shen. This is her Broadway debut. It’s a big moment for her, and getting to see her through that on stage—to call that a job is really a special thing for me.”

The enthusiasm Criss brings to the stage is practically palpable—and he still remembers where it came from: encountering Robin Williams at an impressionably early age in the 1992 animated Disney flick, Aladdin, in which his outrageous Genie-jiving was almost heart-stoppingly hilarious.

“I was probably six or seven—and I noticed how this audience connected with each other and with this Genie on the screen. I was very taken with that idea, and I wanted to give people what this Genie was giving them. Then, I found out the voice of that Genie was Robin Williams, who was such a prominent figure out in San Francisco, where I grew up. That made it an accessible concept: ’Oh, Mr. Williams is an actor. I’d like to be an actor, too.’ So I hopped right on it.”

[bgw57]

This is me. Yes, I was born when baby lotion came in glass bottles. Sixty-six years ago on August 3rd, before the Space Age, even, although just two months and one day before. This is also the start of all my stuff. Beside my flat-on-top ears there are a couple of other things in this photo that I still have today.

This is me posing with my hospital bracelet in 2017 when I was working on an earlier version of this blog, called The Packrat Project. I'm told I have a lot of stuff from my childhood, and unusual amount. I not so sure. It all seems perfectly normal to me. Doesn't everyone have their hospital baby bracelet? Maybe Mom or Dad tuck it away in your baby book, which at some point they hand to you as a gift. Or it's discovered in the back of some drawer as you clean out their house, moving one of both of them to Senior Living or the grave.

I don't remember now what the specific motivation was for my mom to one day hand me a couple of small boxes, a stationery box and a box from Johnson & Johnson, maybe that's where the bottle came from, a promotional product. Like this, my very first piece of wall art.

I'm not sure what the tie in was with Carnation evaporated milk, other than milk being one of the chief topics of conversation around this time. I'm not sure, did I lose half a pound just after weighing in at 7 lbs 11 oz? Hmmmm

Siri says that it's normal for babies to lose weight, initially (who wouldn't, after that trauma?) but they gain it back by three weeks. I had surpassed my birth weight at 2 weeks as you can see by these after-visit summaries for a six day exam when I was still Baby Boy Williams (above) and the two week visit, seven pounds thirteen ounces, after which I evidently become quite the little eater - 19 pounds at six months.

And so here I go. This is an experiment. A vanity project. Something to do in my all but formal retirement (official start Feb 2024). In my next entry - a bit of the tree this nut falls so near to.

[shadowredfeline]

Three in One Post

For a Response to my P-Pal

Me 🇺🇲: Yeah my Social Club always likes to craft something random. Even if I had to do some Holiday Crafting or bulletin crafting. Because Bulletin board crafting is very common. But not for long because I'm gonna go Bowling on Thursday since Bowling is the sport I'm very good at. And also for the response for the Post, I'm sure the Speedsters would love to play with the Ramcats and Rabbits Nintendo 64 depending which game they like to play. But I would imagine a 90s drawing, Debby, Paul, Windy and Scottie play the Nintendo 64 a lot since all they would do is play Mario Kart. But all that Debby would always play is Dr. Mario 64 on Nintendo 64 which I know didn't come out until 2001. After Paper Mario, Pokemon Stadium 2 and Conker's Bad Fur Day. And before Mario Party 3 was released. So I bet the Speedsters would enjoy playing the Nintendo 64 with the Ramcats and the Rabbits. And also, I hope the Tikis we know in Donkey Kong Country Returns won't try and do anything chaotic with their hypnotic music. Even since I wanted to craft something random for the Luau Party. Which I'm sure the Speedsters and Maxwell and Friends would enjoy after the Tikis get defeated.

And for my A-Pal's On this Day Post.

I do remember Shovel Knight since it has become popular and that's why Nintendo wanted to make an Amiibo of Shovel Knight. And I know for Smash Bros., Shovel Knight became very common for the Assist Trophy, and I bet he would make a perfect summoner. Even Maxwell and Sam can use the Shovel Knight Card as either helping or Summoning. Because each Assistant Trophy becomes a Card, depending if you want it to be Independent, Help you or to summon.

And for my P-Pal's On this Day Post

I bet Spot and Riya are sure to enjoy eating so much junk and sweets, which I know Shadow and Lisa would do the same, after some Ballet of course. Or we can have the four as well as for Luna once they get chubby, they be like "Ah this is the life! Food, Sweets, Games, Sunshine, and not a care in the world!" And I know it would be something like in Banjo Kazooie Nuts and Bolts, which I know is a big letdown on the Xbox 360 and I know Luna wasn't a fan of either. Even since she does love playing versions of the Rareware Titles. Same for Lisa and Maxwell and Scottie. But it's nice for Microsoft to offer Nintendo to put some of their titles onto the Nintendo 64 on Switch. And I hope they can put some of the Rareware Titles onto the Nintendo Switch Online on Nintendo 64. Like Donkey Kong 64, and Diddy Kong Racing. Maybe Banjo Tooie should be next even since I usually play the Two Banjo Kazooie games on my Xbox since it does Auto saving. I always love video games where they Auto Save.

[petercapaldi-press]

ARTICLE

1995

Richard E. Grant tells the story of how the oscar-winning short film Franz Kafka's It's A Wonderful Life, written and directed by Peter Capaldi came to be.

[transcript below the cut]

Peter Capaldi calls me up on Valentine's Day, sounding distressed. I assume someone is dead. Turns out he can barely stifle back the tears of shock at the news that the short film he wrote and directed two years ago has been nominated for an Oscar. 'YOU BRILLIANT BLOODY BASTAAAARD!' I yell. Peter is calling from Glasgow, where people are apparently 'going nuts, as I am the only Scotsman since Sean Connery to be nominated'.

Peter's wife Elaine Collins, co-star of his feature film Soft Top, Hard Shoulder, is too tear-loaded even to talk. 'It was all her idea in the first place.'

'What was, Peter?'

'The title - Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life.' Elaine blurted out Kafka instead of Capra, triggering Peter's lightbulbs and starting him writing his own version of how Metamorphosis might have come about. He accompanied his words with drawings and started to ferret out funding. With each rejection, he literally went back to his drawing-board and sketched in more of what the film would look like. In the end, he had the whole film storyboarded like a comic book.

To his surprise, the film was funded by the Scottish Film Foundation in conjunction with BBC Scotland. They gave him £30,000. He met costume designer Hazel Pethig, who got him connected to the art team that had realized the Monty Python films. What followed was a short-circuiting of human connections: Val Chiltern (Dark Crystal, Baron Munchausen) said she could produce an insect head for £100 (previous quotes had been £2,000). Production designer John Beard (Last Temptation of Christ and Absolute Beginners), espied in the bar at Shepperton Studios, was pursued until he agreed to design and have the sets made 'for whatever you have budgeted'. Deal. Cameraman Simon Mags agreeed to shoot it for free and offered the proviso, 'I'll never let you shoot anything you can't use!' Done. For producer, Peter got Ruth Kenley-Letts, an old friend. But who to play Kafka?

I saw the drawings for the first time, whilst nosing around Peter's study after dinner there. 'What's this?' I asked. 'Oh, just some drawings for a little film I'm trying to put together about Kafka.' On the way home, I said to my wife, 'what a pity that Peter is stuck for a lead actor.' 'Don't be a daft arse,' she replied. 'You're probably too old for the part, and too tall.'

Then a phone call. 'It's Peter, I hope you don't think this is presumptuous, but would you consider playing Kafka? Equity minimum and a week's shooting.' 'Of course, you stupid bastard!'

Peter then charmed his way round the manager at Shepperton Studios, and with the spirit of Dunkirk dambusting through our veins, we convened there for a week. Peter and I were both in West End plays by night (he in Murder Is Easy, I in The Importance of Being Earnest) and committing Kafka to comedy by day.

The 20-minute film was shown on BBC2 at 11 o'clock on a Monday night, after which it toured film fests around the globe, picking up awards almost everywhere it went. Curiously refused - twice - by the London Film Festival ('It wasn't up to standard'), it managed to win both Scottish and British BAFTAs.

Fast forward another year and it is selected for the Sundance Film Festival. Peter is besieged by mobile-phoned agents from LA declaring 'we're in the business of acquiring talent and we wanna do business with youuu'. Robert Redford offers his congratulations. This was three weeks ago. Now an OSCAR nomination and whether Peter 'wins' or not, it feels as if he already has. What worries is the all-too-likely prospect that his talents and intents - honest, decent and true - will be brain-drained away to the big USA where a guy with the 'doughball' will bankroll his snowball away.

From February 1995.

[rentnhope]

The Art of Packing for Bike Trip in Manali

Packing for a bike trip to Manali is akin to preparing for a gourmet cooking show—every ingredient (or item) must be carefully selected for its necessity and versatility. You wouldn't bring a watermelon to a salad-chopping contest, would you? Similarly, for a ride through the breathtaking landscapes of Manali, lugging around unnecessary weight is a no-go. Especially when you've got a sleek bike on rent in Manali, you want to be zipping through those mountain roads, not dragging them behind you. Let's dive into the art of packing lightly and efficiently, ensuring your bike doesn’t end up looking like a moving sale.

Packing Essentials: The Less is More Philosophy

Achieving the zen of minimalist packing for your Manali adventure doesn't just happen overnight. It requires foresight, a bit of ingenuity, and the willpower to say no to that just-in-case kitchen sink.

Pro Tip #1: Multi-functional Clothing is Your Best Friend

Opt for clothing that can play multiple roles. A pair of zip-off trousers doubles as shorts, a lightweight waterproof jacket serves as a windbreaker and raincoat, and merino wool items are great for both warmth and cooling. It’s like having a Swiss Army wardrobe in your backpack.

Pro Tip #2: The Rule of Three

Adopt the rule of three for your clothes: one to wear, one to wash, and one as a backup. This golden rule ensures you’re never left in the lurch and keeps your pack light. This way, you can easily hop onto your Manali bike rental without feeling like you're transporting a small village.

Pro Tip #3: Travel-size Toiletries for the Win

Instead of hauling full-sized bottles, opt for travel-sized toiletries or decant your favorites into small containers. Remember, you're on a bike, not moving into Manali. Plus, it leaves room for souvenirs that aren't shampoo bottles.

Pro Tip #4: Compression Bags and Packing Cubes are Game Changers

Utilize compression bags and packing cubes to save space and organize your gear. It’s like Tetris, but with clothes—and winning means having a clutter-free bag and finding your socks in record time.

Pro Tip #5: Digitalize Your Entertainment

Swap out physical books and maps for digital versions on your smartphone or tablet. It lightens your load and ensures you’re never bored. Just don’t forget a waterproof case and a power bank because "My phone died" is a poor excuse for getting lost or not capturing the stunning views from your bike rental in Manali.

Extra Tips for the Road

Always pack a basic first-aid kit. Being prepared is cool, no matter what.

A lightweight, foldable daypack is great for short excursions away from your bike.

Opt for quick-dry towels. They’re light, compact, and dry in a flash, unlike traditional towels, which can turn into unintentional Petri dishes in your bag.

Conclusion 

Packing for your Manali bike trip shouldn't feel like preparing for a polar expedition. By sticking to the essentials and making smart choices, you'll have a pack that’s as light as your spirit when you first lay eyes on the majestic Himalayas. Remember, the key to a memorable bike trip is not just about having the perfect bike on rent in Manali; it's also about embracing the freedom that comes from riding light and unencumbered. So, pack smart, ride hard, and let the adventures begin. And if you ever feel the urge to pack something unnecessary, just ask yourself, "Would a squirrel take this on a nut-gathering expedition?" If the answer is no, leave it behind. Safe travels, fellow minimalist adventurers!