Tumgik
#tv show from the 2000’s WE ARE SO BACK
b1rdeyes · 4 months
Text
HOUSE MD TRENDING LETSGOO
Tumblr media
8 notes · View notes
9w1ft · 11 months
Note
Interested to hear your interpretation on Suburban Legends
first off the song and beat sounds so similar to mastermind and gold rush. particularly mastermind. listen to the opening seconds back to back! she sings through a lot of it similarly in my opinion
and it has some of the similar mechanics of mastermind in that it leads you to believe the song is going one way but then pulls a switcheroo on you at the end and the swell in the music aids that at the end which makes it a really sweet and emotional listening experience. i’ll get to that in a second.
Tumblr media
i think at the beginning of taylor knowing or being aware of karlie (so like, your kitchen or mine times), this was very much the situation. karlie is in her peripheral vision (on her radar) but just as taylor described in gold rush, karlie seemed like something utterly unattainable. in lover as well we get the line “i’m highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you” and i think this fits with this description of karlie.
Tumblr media
i didn’t come here to make friends echoes their entire conceit of mastermind, and a lot of the kaylor discography that uses the word ‘friend’ — another way to say “i don’t want you like a best friend” etc
also this is a sort of throwaway point but “i didn’t come here to make friends” was a 2000’s reality tv phrase that came into popularity via the show America’s Next Top Model. it was iconic and soon every competitive reality tv show under the sun had contestants saying it.. but it’s origins are from a show about models! of which karlie is one.
more importantly, the “you kiss me in a way that’s gonna screw me up forever” is like the follow up to the gold rush “eyes like sinking ships on waters so inviting i almost jump in” language. it’s cruel summer’s “snuck in through the garden gate every night that summer just to seal my fate” because falling in love with karlie lead to taylor wanting her complications too
Tumblr media
mismatched star signs works because fire signs traditionally match best with air signs. also visually, stars mismatched fits in with mastermind’s “the planets and the fates and all the stars aligned” — things that weren’t in alignment coming into alignment.
there’s a bunch of story page chapter stuff throughout taylor’s discography, some of which makes its way into kaylor but i’d probably write for way too long so i’m just gonna skip over that for now
Tumblr media
this part might be a bit tricky but i sort of blame it on many kaylors not talking that much about really early kaylor possibilities out of (a sort of unearned) respect and the one way street principle of staying in our lane but the idea of taylor saying “i know that when you told me we’d get back together and kissed me that you remember[ed] we were born to be national treasures” isn’t that too wild of a statement if you imagine them as maybe briefly connecting or talking at some point before taylor made her plans to make karlie hers. indeed, we know their paths crossed several times before they were first connected at the 2013 vs fashion show.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
*for posterity, i included the apple music lyrics as the genius lyrics appear to be worded partially incorrectly
this is the part of the song which i just think is so beautifully done. in particular i love the “you don’t knock anymore” of it all
at first it sounds like she’s saying karlie doesn’t knock anymore because she come around anymore, or this idea of there having been a breakup or a period of not being together or something sad, which is matched by the tone of how she sings it for the first time. the waves crashing to the shore feels like a storm.
but at the end of the repetition her voice becomes more upbeat and it dawns on you, you’re like, oh wait karlie doesn’t knock anymore because she doesn’t need to knock anymore, she has a key! (“is that your key in the door?” anyone?)
and suddenly the waves meeting the shore is a pleasant image of unification and happiness. she closes with the thought “you don’t knock anymore and i always knew it” which makes it feel a bit more like mastermind’s “you knew the entire time, and now you’re mine” — always knowing they would get together, taylor always knowing karlie was the one. “and my life had been ruined” is sung in a sort of sweet resignation, one that i find throughout a lot of kaylor music, the idea that she knows its complicated but that its what she chose.
so yeah! that’s why suburban legends is a kaylor song to me 😌
253 notes · View notes
sgiandubh · 8 months
Text
Friends and friends of friends a network make
Boys are back in town, no rings (Real Life, not Instabuzz) and active networking:
Tumblr media
In this case, those who are missing from the pic are as (if not more) important as those who made it, riding in the rain.
Let's unpack:
John Laurie, Managing Director at the Glenturret distillery, where my personal favorite blend (oh, well, The Famous Grouse - I know, really LOL, but it is what it is) is made. A long, interesting career that started in 2000, as General Manager of a fitness club network headquartered in Irvine, California (LA Fitness) and got him more and more involved in whisky business since 2014, as General Manager of Edrington, the Macallan distillery. If it sounds familiar to you, well... always remember that #silly old slogan on the Pall Mall cigarette packs: 'wherever particular people congregate'. I know I do 😎.
Tumblr media
Something immediately piqued my interest in this short bio: 'opened a fine dining restaurant that achieved a Michelin star inside 7 months'. And it is, of course, true: part of the reasons I am always using LinkedIn to place people, is that it would be counterproductive to blatantly lie, there. Or childish: even McSideburns knows that, with his very empty page and 1 contact - but what the hell do I know, though, he's more private than if he worked for the MI-6.
The one starred Michelin restaurant who got 'le macaron' in seven months is The Glenturret Lalique Restaurant, that opened in July 2021, on the distillery's premises and got it by February 2022. The first time a distillery wins a Michelin star, by the way:
Now, where did I read a similar business story, not so long ago and wrote about it? Oh, that's right, Tom Kitchin's first restaurant in EDI apparently followed the same yellow brick road to instant success, back in 2007:
Again, I am sensing a theme, here. Associating with young, dynamic and daring entrepreneurial voices in the whisky business. Not exactly the manwhore, closeted gay, peasant and crook some hypocrites would like to portray. I have to say, I am always, always over the moon glad to see the real thing showing up from time to time: a consistent effort to get things done, properly.
But sure, you believe what you want. I cannot force anyone to go beyond a sometimes very limited world view.
Second person being missed is David Coulthard, F1 legend, but also...
Tumblr media
Company Director at Whisper Films, one of the most dynamic, fastest growing UK media groups. He founded it in 2010, along Jake Humphries, BBC F1 commenter extraordinaire and Sunil Patel, a former BBC producer, but also a Board Member of the Edinburgh TV Festival:
Tumblr media
And for those who might not know it (I didn't), Coulthard hails from Dumfries & Galloway. Mmmhm. Well done, S. Well done.
S knows exactly what he's doing, where he's going and when and with whom he is seen. By this point in time, I think we might safely think his somewhat lackadaisical recent Insta follows (Romanian female MMA athlete? ROFLMAO, really and I howled) as gently trolling this very obsessed invested fandom. As I wrote it many, many times already, the Scottish Mafia is a reality - and good for him, really, to use what is readily available. And if you still had any doubt that was a business informal meeting, The Highland Chieftain tagged SS in his story.
He's going to laugh all the way to the bank, this one. You'll see. Great news and I will always be here to put it in context. Some of the things being heavily peddled around in here might not be very interesting to me - but this yes: this is exciting.
Also, many, many thanks to the two of you who immediately keep me up with these: you know who you are and you are loved, of course, why even ask?😘🙌
145 notes · View notes
crowleysgirl56 · 3 months
Text
Something that I’ve been thinking about for a good 6 months now, ever since Good Omens season 3 was green lit, and that was the three sentence description of the plot that Neil gave in his official announcement interview:
The plans for Armageddon are going wrong. Only Crowley and Aziraphale working together can hope to put it right. And they aren’t talking.
It really makes me think about the book sequel he and Terry had discussed and what was going to be included in that story.
Season 2 was thought to be that story. But then Neil confirmed after the season aired that it was in fact a bridging season that he wrote deliberately in order to get us to season 3, which would be based on the story that he and Terry plotted together in the 90’s and early 2000’s.
Neil also famously never gives anything about his stories away, always excited to tell us to ‘wait and see’. The fact we get this much of a description is quite exciting.
At first glance it doesn’t seem like anything we didn’t already know:
The plot involves Armageddon: Metatron told us as much when he mentioned the second coming at the end of season 2.
Crowley and Aziraphale need to work together: they have always done so before, so this time shouldn’t be any different.
Crowley and Aziraphale aren’t talking: very evident from where we left off.
But did you notice something else? Something hiding in plain sight? The plans are going wrong. And they hope to put it right. So what are these plans? Why are they going wrong? Who made them go wrong? What exactly does going wrong mean? What does putting them right mean? Also, notice how Neil doesn’t say Crowley and Aziraphale need to work together to stop it. Interesting choice of words right?
Now let’s think about the book sequel for a second. For a moment, let’s pretend that the TV series doesn’t exist (*shakes everyone by the shoulders* HEY, STOP SCREAMING! CALM DOWN! The show STILL exists! Just go with me for a second here, and you can go back to remembering the show in a moment! It’s OKAY! *pats everyone until the screaming subsides*). The Good Omens novel is structured with flashback sequences of Aziraphale and Crowley together over time as the story of the Anti-Christ and the Non-Ageddon unfolds. What if the three sentence description of season 3 that Neil gave was the actual tagline of the book sequel? Like, this is literally what he and Terry came up with? Something happened between Aziraphale and Crowley between the end of book 1 and the beginning of book 2, and the second book is telling us the story of the second coming, whilst at the same time providing us flashback scenes of exactly what happened between A&C? That part of the book is the mystery of why these ineffable husbands who spent the last 6000 years together were suddenly no longer talking.
Can you imagine reading that blurb and thinking “WWWHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAATTTT?”
Whether the intended sequel involved the story of a memory wiped Gabriel is up for debate. But I understand why Neil devoted an entire season to telling this story, because I don’t think there would have been room to do the second coming storyline and devote enough time to exploring the relationship breakdown at the same time in just 6 episodes.
And if my theories are correct, this is why I don’t think we will get any further flashback sequences in season 3. If we’re really lucky, maybe we’ll get a 1941 part 3 flashback, and a “what happened when they went back to Crowley’s apartment and body swapped” flashback (I’ve drafted some wildest dream posts on these, so look out for them coming in the near future). But unless they’re relevant for the plot, I think we’re out of flashbacks. This next season is likely going to be focusing specifically on the second coming, the consequences, and answering the question what does putting it right mean?!
This is obviously all opinion and conjecture and I could be completely wrong. I just like putting my thoughts down and sharing with others. So if you want to discuss comment or reblog! Let me know your theories! (And as always, please don’t tag Neil)
57 notes · View notes
spider-gem · 6 months
Text
Alright so there’s been something that’s been driving me CRAZY in Hazbin Hotel, and I haven’t seen a lot of people address it, so I’m going to. What is it? THIS:
Tumblr media
I know it’s obvious to some, but I don’t think that enough people grasp the likelihood that Alastor and Vox used to be FRIENDS. Like, close enough friends that Alastor let Vox take a PICTURE with him. We’re talking about the same radio demon that never lets anyone take a clear photo/video of him.
So, if they were so close, what made them fall apart? Again, stating the obvious, but it probably (most definitely) had to do with Vox’s need to stay with the times vs. Alastor loyalty to his chosen media from the past. Here’s how I think their relationship developed and fell apart, which I’m hoping we’ll get to see in the show:
Alastor died in the 1930’s and Vox died about twenty years later, sometime in the 1950’s. We know that Alastor rose to power at an alarming rate, according to Mimzy. So when Vox died and went to hell, it’s likely that Alastor already had a strong reputation. Being new in hell, a good way to rise to power is to ally oneself with those already in power, right? Maybe Vox even idolized Alastor, seeing that both are some type of media demons. Maybe Alastor saw potential in him. So it’s very likely that Vox allied himself with Alastor, even forming some type of bond, and began to rise as a fellow overlord.
I think it’s also important to point out that Vox didn’t start out as a modern flatscreen tv in hell. He died in the 1950’s, remember? And we’ve seen in an old photo with Valentino (which I will come back to), he seems to regularly update himself to whatever modern advancement there is. So his head probably looked like one of these:
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Now, Alastor likely still had his radio-is-superior mindset, but was still willing to ally himself with the new media demon. They’re both really similar, after all. We’ve seen the parallels. They probably bonded over their ambition and use of media to manipulate others. While they likely jokingly jabbed at each other on whether tv or radio is better, it was never anything to serious. That is, until Vox started to change himself. That’s where that photo with Valentino comes in.
Tumblr media
This let’s us know that Vox consistently made updates to himself whenever there was an advancement in television. These changes didn’t sit well with Alastor, which is where the riff began. While Vox was determined to change with the times, Alastor was committed to his past. And as Vox changed, he likely wanted his closest friend in hell to change with him.
Now, in Stayed Gone, Alastor says that Vox asked him to “join his team”. This team, the Vee’s, couldn’t have started until Valentino was introduced to hell after his death in the 1970’s. And Velvette died much later, approximately around the early 2000’s to 2010’s. So, I see this playing out as Vox befriending Valentino, who showed some potential, shortly after his death. And there’s no way in hell (hehe get it) that Alastor liked Vox’s new ally. Vox and Valentino keep updating to stay with the times while Alastor stays the same.
After forming some sort of team with Val, which will expand and lead to the powers that the Vee’s now have, Vox wants Alastor to join them as well. After all, Alastor is his oldest ally and friend in hell, so of course he wants him by his side. However, there is a condition. If Alastor is to join this team, he would have to make changes to himself as well. If this team is going to stay fresh to the eyes of hell, an old timey radio demon on the team wouldn’t be a good look. So when Vox asks Alastor to do this, our favorite radio demon is undoubtedly pissed.
He’s looked the other way while Vox has made updates to himself. He hated it, which occasionally stirred up an argument, but nothing past that. But now? Vox has the nerve to tell him to do the same? And not only that, but to also join a TEAM? We know how prideful the radio demon is, he has an ego that puts the entire Pride Ring to shame. To be asked to join a TEAM is an insult to him and his power. He doesn’t need anyone (bullshit, but okay). And for Vox to just ask him to not only join this team, but also change for it? It’s almost like a betrayal, and he feels like his friend is attempting to use him. So, as we know, he turns down the offer. And that pisses Vox off.
Vox also feels betrayed and hurt. He thought they had each other’s back. They TRUSTED each other. How could Alastor turn him down so quickly, without a second thought? If they worked together, they could become the most powerful force in hell! There are sinners left and right that would kill for this offer! Had that trust been a lie? Was Vox just misguided in thinking that they were actually friends? So, to Vox, this decline is a massive “FUCK YOU” and a slap to the face. They get into an argument that leads to a huge, ugly fight between two petty media overlords who would rather hurt each other even more than talk about their feelings.
This is where the rivalry is born. Years pass and the rift between them grows. Vox and his team gains more power, especially after Velvette joins him and Val. The Vee’s now terrorize and control large portions of hell, having almost if not equal impact as that radio demon that broadcasts sinner’s screams. Through the years, Alastor and Vox have more back and forth battles, whether in banter between their broadcasts or in combat in real life.
The rivalry becomes an obsession for Vox. He wants Alastor to see him and his power, and see that he was wrong to turn him down. Deep down, he wants Alastor to change his mind. Val and Velvette don’t understand why the radio demon has such a hold on their partner, but support Vox’s desire to take him down. After all, the radio demon does currently hold more power than them. The more overlord’s they take down or control, the more power they gain.
We all know that prior to the seven years Alastor went missing, he and Vox had some sort of huge fights. And, according to Val, Alastor “almost beat” Vox. We don’t know what this fight entailed, but the word “almost” is interesting. This implies that either Vox barely beat Alastor or there was some sort of stalemate. I like to think the later, because it suggests that they are equals in a way, which is something that the would rather die than admit. Nevertheless, they are equals in power and in pride, which makes their parallels more impactful. These two idiots are trying to prove who is better, but they can’t. Because, in many ways, they are the same.
To wrap up this analysis, which ended up longer than I thought it would, I would like to go full circle and return to that ripped photo of Alastor and Vox. The photo that got torn in half by Vox in a that I like to imagine went down like that one scene from Mean Girl’s. You know which one. Not only did Vox tear it up in a fit of rage, but he KEPT IT. After all these years, he held onto that photo. The photo that is a reminder of a friendship now torn apart. A reminder that the radio demon once trusted him enough to let a photo be taken of him by his side. A reminder of what he lost.
Anyway, these two pathetic and petty losers are driving me insane, so it’s nice to finally get this out of my head and onto a post. I can’t wait to see more of them in season two and get more context behind their rivalry. I’ve got a good feeling that most of what I theorize will be proven true.
103 notes · View notes
tiannasfanfic · 1 year
Text
Jackass
Eddie Munson x Reader (Fluff)
Tumblr media
| Eddie & Steddie Masterlist | AO3 Link |
Summary: When the cast of a popular reality tv stunt show is hired to perform in Corroded Coffin’s new video, Eddie Munson finds himself an unwilling participant, as well as a new love interest.
Rating: General Audiences
Author Note: Gender neutral Reader, they/them pronouns, no Y/N. Strangers to lovers, Rockstar!Eddie x Jackass!Reader, early 2000’s setting. I’d like to give a huge shoutout to the Eddie’s Sluts Discord Server, particularly @strangerxperv and @kleenexwoman for their encouragement to turn this very stupid idea of mine into a fic. 🖤💜
CW: Slight Fuckboy!Eddie x Fuckgirl!Reader in the beginning; allusions of hooking up; surprise tazing; mention of a ankle injury (no details).
Word Count: 1,539
Tumblr media
WARNING! The following show features stunts performed either by professionals or under the supervision of professionals. Accordingly, MTV and the producers must insist that no one attempt to recreate or re-enact any stunt or activity performed on this show.
One of the songs on Corroded Coffin’s latest album is a fun, upbeat rock song about doing stupid shit when you’re young. All four members contributed stories for it, as well as some of their friends, but while it was extremely fun to write, everyone just assumed it would fly under the radar.
We all know what they say about assuming.
The song quickly blew up upon the album’s release with audiences finding it funny and extremely relatable. The label quickly began promoting it as a single and a music video was ordered to be made.
While the guys had the initial idea of the video, which was to show each one of them taking turns doing the stupid stuff Eddie was singing about, the director took it a step further. The crew of MTV’s hit show Jackass are brought in both to ramp the situations up to ridiculous levels and execute them while Corroded Coffin performs in the background just slightly out of harm’s way.
Gareth, Jeff, and Grant are all hyped since they are big fans of the show, but it isn’t all that exciting for Eddie. He’s never seen it. The whole concept has always sounded stupid as hell to him, which is only reinforced every time someone makes him watch clips from it.
Even though you had consulted on a few technical aspects for the stunt choreography, you hadn’t been needed for the video initially. A frantic phone call from one of your producers changed that thought when they realized you had some of the safety gear they needed. Since this was vital equipment, the shoot had to be put on hold, so you quickly loaded it all up and high tailed it down there. You decided to stick around to help since they were a couple hours behind by the time you arrived.
Since you weren’t at the morning meeting when all the Jackass crew members were formally introduced to everyone on set, Eddie doesn’t recognize you and assumes you are just one of the few extras that recently arrived on set. But, regardless of who you are, he thinks you’re hot, and since performing always makes him horny, he decides you should be given the opportunity to help him relieve it.
But while Eddie doesn’t recognize you, you instantly recognize him as soon as he approaches you. You can hardly believe it when he immediately starts flirting with you. Though, calling it flirting is putting it mildly. Even though he’s being incredibly smooth about it, it’s obvious he has only one thing on his mind right now. You are perfectly okay with this, however. You weren’t about to turn down the opportunity to get railed by the lead singer of a band you really like, and so you return his advances. Once lunch is called, it doesn’t take long before the inevitable invitation slides from Eddie’s lips when you ask what his plans were.
“I usually go back to my trailer to eat,” he says, licking his lips at that last word as he lets his gaze slowly wander down your body again. “Care to keep me company?”
His voice dripped with honey, his tone making the warmth between your legs grow. You smiled, opened your mouth to accept his offer…
And then your friends struck.
It all happened extremely fast, and with all of Eddie’s attention on you, all he knew was, one minute, you were looking at him with the sort of bedroom eyes that had the blood flowing to his cock already, and then then next, your body lurched forward into his arms as you let out a bloodcurdling scream.
You immediately jumped away from the now stunned Eddie and whirled around. That’s when he saw a man running away from you both while laughing his ass off.
“Ryan, you motherfucker!” you roared before taking off after the man. “I’m gonna fuckin’ kill you!”
Confused, Eddie watched you running away until some wild, boisterous cheering caught his attention. He looked over to see a small group watching the whole fiasco that consisted of the other members of Corroded Coffin and a few of the guys from Jackass. They had a video camera out and were all roaring with laughter as they recorded you chasing the guy named Ryan around the video set.
“Sorry Eddie!” called Gareth through his laughter.
This drew everyone else’s attention to Eddie. The camera pivoted towards him as one of the guys, a man named Johnny, jogged over to him with a good natured, but cocky grin on his face.
“Yeah, sorry about cockblocking you back there, Eddie,” Johnny said, his voice sounding anything but sorry. “But, man, we owe you a big one for that, we’ve been trying to get them with the Taser Cam for MONTHS.”
The Taser Cam, as it turns out, was your idea initially and you oversaw the planning and execution. It was one of the most popular skits on the show and that’s because you were a sneaky little shit with it. Even though they all knew you could be packing a taser at any given moment, they all had a bad habit of letting their guard down around you.
Even though they’d been gunning for revenge for a while, all attempts to tase you in return had failed miserably. This wasn’t entirely a problem since you all had a healthy level of paranoia and distrust for each other by now, it was just highly annoying for them all. You always managed to work out when they were trying to set you up, even if it was at the last second.
So, when Gareth made an offhand comment to Jeff about Eddie trying to get his dick wet at work again, and drew Johnny’s attention, he saw how engrossed you were in the man, he couldn’t resist. This really was the perfect opportunity, your attention had been entirely on Eddie, and Johnny recognized this as their big chance.
Eddie was so dumbfounded by the whole thing, he wasn’t sure if he should be pissed or impressed.
In the end, he does get you stretched out on the couch of his trailer just like he wanted, only not in the way he expected. It was the closest place to lay you down at so the onsite EMTS could look at you. While you were perfectly fine from the tasing, you had tripped while running after Ryan and now you couldn’t put any weight on one of your feet.
“It doesn’t look like a break,” said one of the paramedics as she finished looking you over. “Probably just a bad sprain, but you should have some x-rays taken to be sure. Need us to take you?”
“Nah,” you said, shaking your head. “Tremaine will strangle me if I take an ambulance for a non-emergency again.”
Eddie blinked a few times in surprise while Johnny and Ryan laughed.
“Yeah, he’s already gonna explode when he hears about this,” Johnny said, taking off his sunglasses to wipe tears from his eyes. “You just got released yesterday.”
“Right?” you sighed as the paramedics let themselves out. “Wonder how much longer this is going to put me down for.”
The whole situation was so ridiculous that it had rendered Eddie speechless, thus he had been uncharacteristically quiet since your tasing. But the current conversation piqued his curiosity.
“Released?” he asked looking over at you.
“Yeah, by my doctor,” you said, nodding. “I’ve been off work for, what?” You looked over at Johnny. “Two months now?”
“Almost, yeah,” he said, nodding, then burst out laughing. “Man, Ehren’s gonna be pissed. This means you and Bam can’t do the boarding segment next week.”
You looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.
“Why would Ehren be pissed?” you asked, confused. “He’s not in that one.”
“No, he’s not,” said Johnny, and then a grin spread across his face that gave Eddie goosebumps. “But I think you being off with another injury is a good reason for all of us to be a little more safety conscious, wouldn’t you all agree?”
You and Ryan burst out laughing.
“Safety First!” the two of you then cried out in unison and Johnny clapped.
As badly as Eddie hated to admit it, you now fascinated him. Granted, he thought you were batshit insane at this point, but that only piqued his interest more. He ended up being thankful for the interruption.
With as thankful as he was for that, it didn’t compare to how thankful he was later when he found out exactly how close he came to getting tazed instead of you. Since they had to be so sneaky and quick about the whole thing, Ryan almost missed. One inch to the left and it would’ve been Eddie who received the jolt of electricity.
A few weeks later when Uncle Wayne found out who his nephew was dating now, he started going back to church.
Unlike Eddie, he actually does watch the show.
165 notes · View notes
Text
Hollywood’s Angel 🎬 | Javy ‘Coyote’ Machado Imagine
Tumblr media Tumblr media
TGM Masterlist
Characters & Pairings: Javy ‘Coyote’ Machado x actress!reader (romantic)
Content warnings: slight profanity, fluff | female!reader (she/her) | wc: 5k
Requested 📨 Yes/no (for @stephthestallion 🤍)
Premise: Lights. Camera. Action!! Whether it be on the big screen in movie theaters across the globe or at home streaming the latest hit show, the name Y/n L/n would forever be known one of the world’s greatest entertainers. From humble beginnings the odds didn’t appear in her favor at first, but sometimes taking a risk could lead to endless opportunities. And maybe even love along the way…..
Note: This was so fun to write and I’m so sorry it took so long. I’ve been so busy lately with work and trying to get stuff settled. I hope I did this work justice for you 🥹 Also Y/Z/S stands for your zodiac sign.
—————————
“Hello, my name is Y/n L/n,” A beaming smile was sent to the camera once the producer gave a thumbs up. “And I’m here to do the Wired autocomplete interview.” She clapped her hands, “Let’s do this.” Handed a card stock with a printed google web search filled with blanks save for the, ‘Who Y/n L/n….’, her eyebrows rose with curiosity.
“You know I’ve watched dozens of these interviews in my free time. My favorite being the one with Ryan Renolds and Jake Gyllenhaal.”
“Have you ever searched yourself?” The producer asked off screen. Y/n’s response was a cheeky smirk.
“A long time ago when I was teenager and social media was first becoming a thing—you know when we had MySpace, but since then I have not. While I love the internet sometimes it can be a little,” she makes a face, “too much you know.” Focusing back on the card stock, Y/n takes a deep breath as the nerves start to arise. “I’m starting to feel a little worried but what I’m gonna discover is searched about me on Google.”
Her fingers grip the first piece of paper, reading off the statement as it peels away, “Who is Y/n L/n?” An instant chuckle leaves her lip, turning to the camera. “Y/n L/n is um…,” she shrugs, not sure how to really answer the question, “a 28-year-old woman who started out as a child actress in the mid 2000s. She’s a Y/Z/S, a newly-wedded wife, producer, and sometimes sings and dances or models in her free time.”
In truth, Y/n L/n was so much beyond that. Her name and legacy was embedded into history at such a young age the whole world knew who she was by the time she was 14.
Born to a middle class family in 1995 in New York City, Y/n’s parents were hardworking people who raised her and her siblings to appreciate the beauty in life. Though there were times of struggle, living paycheck to paycheck and having to sacrifice the lights in order to have food on the table, there was always love, support, and care in their family. Y/n witnessed her parents do everything they could to provide for them, her mom working double shifts at the hospital and dad on the road thirty weeks out of the year as a truck driver, and made the vow to repay them. Whether it be working her ass off in school in order to graduate from a prestigious university with a degree that would get her a stable career, or succeed in her dreams of breaking through in the entertainment industry.
Acting, singing, dancing. One could consider it the love of her life. Being on stage to a crowd made Y/n feel on top of the world. Playing dress up and house with her friends and family, pretending to be someone else was so much fun to the little girl. Y/n loved the little school plays she would do in preschool and kindergarten.
“One day,” she said to her childhood best friend while they swung on the swing set, “I’m gonna be on Tv like Disney Channel,” a squeal left her when she leaned back a little too far. “In front of cameras where I get to be someone else.”
Little kids always tend to dream big. Their desires and goals often shift. One day they wanna be a popstar. The next a veterinarian or an astronaut. But Y/n always knew what she wanted in life. To be in Hollywood with her face on the big screen for the world to see. To give back to her parents and support her family so they could accomplish their own dreams and aspirations.
She was destined for greatness. Now fast forward to the present, and Y/n is celebrating 20 years of being in Hollywood.
“Who was Y/n L/n’s first TV role?” The next question read, mentally traveling the actress back to the year 2003 when she was eight years old. She had been in Los Angeles to visit her grandparents and practically begged her grandma to take her to open auditions. Whether it was for a commercial or as an extra in a show, Y/n simply wanted to at least try despite being so young. She’d maybe auditioned for six roles in various media before getting a call back.
“My first role,” she begins with a grin at the memory, “was Rosie Whittman on Law & Order: SVU. Season five, episode 25 which was the season finale and the most viewed episode of the season,” Y/n remembered how intimidating the whole experience was, but loved every minute of it. “I was eight-years-old. No agent, no experience in Hollywood and was only in town to visit my grandparents for the summer. My grandmother took me to auditions that were open—because I didn’t have an agent and was a nobody,” she couldn’t help but laugh. “My parents obviously let me watch SVU as a child, but I wanted to audition for every open casting I saw so it took a lot of convincing on my part for my parents to allow my grandma to take me.” Boy it sure was a lot. Y/n was fighting for her life on the phone while her mother voiced disapproval.
“I was a pretty confident child,” a smirk takes her features, “I went in and did my thing—impressing the casting director, the producers, and Mariska Hargitay who happened to be there to do a chemistry read— since the character I was auditioning for was being questioned by Olivia Benson for what she witnessed.” Y/n pauses for a brief moment. “And yeah, Mariska was very impressed with me, going as far as to set me up with my first agent. I really owe my entire career to her and I love any chance we get to work together. She took a chance on me when I was just a child with big dreams with little connections and,” Y/n lifts her hands, “look where it got me. Here with Wired to see what people have been searching for about me over the years.”
After a few more questions about her personal life before she was an Emmy winning actress, Y/n moved to the next card. “What was Y/n L/n’s breakthrough role?”
Y/n made a face to the camera, “This is an interesting question. And I say this because depending on who you ask, the answer might be different.” She tilted her head back and forth, “Most would say Wren Stone—after all I played that role for nearly a decade. I got quite a bit of recognition in the 2000s as Viper in the X-Men films and of course as Padaline in the Hunger Games franchise—you could say people who grew up with those films know me best by that. But,” she licks her lip, “I would consider my run as Jodie Pip to be my breakthrough role.”
Jodie Pip, the longest running companion to the Tenth Doctor in the BBC hit series Doctor Who threw Y/n into worldwide recognition. After appearing in episodes of television hits like Criminal Minds, Grey’s Anatomy, Gossip Girl, and Dexter, Y/n took a risk by traveling to England in hopes of securing a main role in a show rather than a supporting one. She was itching to play a character for longer than one episode. And sadly, Hollywood just wasn’t doing it for her.
Therefore going across the Atlantic seemed to be the solution. A decision which would change her life for the better.
“Picture this: you’re twelve-years-old in a country you’ve only been to maybe once and this time around you’re looking to permanently move there. Your family is back in America waiting for the call from your Agent, who’s your legal guardian at this point, to tell them you’ve got a contract and will be there for God knows how long.” Y/n lets out a sign, reliving the nerve racking first few months in England with only her agent and Godmother with her. “It was a stressful time. I was losing hope while waiting patiently for a sign. Getting the call that I got the part—I was going to be the companion to one of the most iconic television characters of all time…” she shrugs as if it was obvious, “Getting to work with David Tennant, Freema Agyemen, Catherine Tate, and Alex Kingston….It was the best day of my life.” Placing her hand on the next slip, she adds, “I cried for a good couple hours—pure happiness.”
“Is Y/n L/n British?” A full blown laugh escapes, hand flying up to muffle the sound. “Oh my Gosh this is too funny. The amount of people I meet every year—whether it be costars, colleagues, or fans at cons—who are so surprised to discover I’m not British,” she raises a hand in defense, “It doesn’t happen quite as often as it did ten-fifteen years ago. And I understand why people assumed I was because for so long I played characters who were.” Making herself comfortable in the chair, Y/n explains her career further in depth.
“First was Jodie, who I played for three years from 2007 to 2010 and then again in 2013 for the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special. Playing her put me on the map in the UK. I was on Skins for several episodes, one season of Merlin. I had supporting roles in the Golden Compass and Nowhere Boy. And because I had worked with Steven Moffat and Chris Chibnall on Doctor Who, I booked Eurydice on Sherlock and Shania on Broadchurch years later—getting to work with the lovely, talented, and amazing David Tennant for a second time.” Y/n’s face turns semi serious, “I love that man. He’s like my work dad for real—he was at my wedding,” she counts off on her finger, “I was at his. I’m Godmother to his daughters..he’s my ride or die.”
Getting back to the original point, Y/n snaps her fingers twice, “But back on track. Jodie, Eurydice, Shania..then of course playing Wren Stone on Game of Thrones for eight years had everyone on the planet believing I was British.” Wren Stone was the bastard of Jon Arryn in HBO’s critically acclaimed series Game of Thrones based on the books by George R. R. Martin. A ward of the Arryn family due to her status, Wren was introduced in the first season and went on to become a close ally to the Starks as well as a one of the longest running characters on the show when she appeared in all eight seasons. A fan favorite, her surviving the last season was one of the only good things to come out of it.
Cause…well we don’t talk about season 8.
“The last BBC show I did, what had me move back to the U.S permanently, was Killing Eve since it was with BBC America. By the time I booked Hunger Games and Ellie,” she corrects herself, “Negasonic Teenage Warhead in Deadpool, people were like, ‘you do a great American accent.’ And I just smile and nod, going, ‘yeah, I’m from New York.’ Their reaction,” she laughs, “every time was priceless.” Going to remove the next strip, Y/n pauses and looks back at the camera, ending with a wink, “Considering I’m joining Bridgerton this upcoming season as Sophie Beckett, I feel I will be having this question come up again a lot.”
‘What are some movies Y/n L/n has been in?’
“Well,” the actress rubs her chin with a knuckle, deep in thought. “I’ve been in a few—give or take,” she winks again. “My first movie role was X-2 in 2003, playing Viper although the role was minor compared to what it was in The Last Stand and Days of Future Past. In Spider-Man 2 I was in the train scene for a brief moment,” she pauses to laugh, “now that I think about it I have been in several projects related to Marvel. X-Men, Spider-Man and Deadpool. Not to mention I'll be taking on the role of Felicia Hardy in the MCU—that I’m really excited for. Umm what else,” she clicks her tongue to think.
“I had a small part in Constantine with Keanu Reeves, who along with David Tennant is someone I’ve worked with several times and love him to death,” she points a finger up, “The Golden Compass and Nowhere Boy as I mentioned earlier. In the 2010s I was in several features like Snow White and the Huntsman, The Help, New Year’s Day, Furious 7. I was in Catching Fire and parts 1 and 2 of Mockingjay—again I would say is one of my most recognizable roles. John Wick Chapters 2 & 3. In 2017 I was in The Greatest Showman. Oh!” She exclaimed with a grin, “Can’t forget I was in three Bond films: Skyfall, Spectre and the most recent No Time To Die. Another example of why the whole world believes I’m from England. Honestly England is my second home and where my career initially took off. I miss it there terribly, but coming back to the States has been a blessing—being close to my family and getting to do projects in Hollywood which was my dream since I was a little girl.”
Biting her lip the actress finishes up with, “my most recent movie roles have been Annihilation in 2018, Knives Out, Dune, The King’s Man, Uncharted, and Mortal Kombat—both of which are based on popular video games.” If she were being honest, playing Mileena in Mortal Kombat was one of her favorite movie roles to date—especially after having to fight with the studio to give the character justice when they were the ones calling her for the role. As a fan of the game and character, Y/n wasn’t going to settle for a small cameo. Ed Boon loved her interpretation of the character so much he asked her to voice Mileena in the next installments of the game.
Not to mention in the last several years any project with Y/n attached to it already had support and a loyal fan base to promote the show/film. After winning five Emmy’s—for her roles in Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, Sherlock, and Euphoria—Y/n was a household name.
So yeah, she wasn’t gonna be cheated out.
“Last year I was in Elvis plus back to back features with A24. X and Pearl were a lot of fun—and we’re currently filming the final installment to the trilogy, maXXXine.” Moving on she revealed the next statement, “Who was Y/n L/n in Euphoria?”
“In Euphoria,” she clears her throat, trying not to physically cringe at the thought of its creator, “I played Rue’s cousin Reece, who like every character on the show was dealing with difficult issues. I did a lot of research into my role so I could remain authentic and true to the character and the real life struggles people like her face.” Y/n softly smiled, “I won the Supporting Emmy next to Zenday’s leading—and it was a wonderful feeling to be recognized for a fifth time by the Academy while next to one of my best friends. Zendaya and I met when we were teenagers and have been so close. Working together on Euphoria was a wonderful experience and I’m so blessed to have received the honor alongside her.”
‘What episode of Black Mirror is Y/n L/n in?’
“Nosedive,” she turned to the camera, “it was in season three with Bryce Dallas Howard and Michaela Coel—both whom I adore. Aaaaand the episode was terrifying.” She simply said with a blank expression. “Watching it back gave me actual chills because one day technology will be so advanced that what took place in the episode could become our reality. And when I read the script my immediate reaction was like, ‘this is gonna be intense,’ and sure enough it was.”
‘Does Y/n L/n sing?’
A childlike grin appeared once again, “I do sing! Anytime I get a chance to sing I immediately say yes. It’s something I love. All the time on set I’ll be humming a tune or belting out lyrics to whatever music is playing. I got to sing a lot in The Greatest Showman so I was very happy about that. It’s my actual voice in the karaoke scene in season 2 of Euphoria. The one at Maddy’s birthday party—I had to beg them to let me do it live and not pre recorded. So when you see Lexi, Maddy and Kate filming me it’s actually Maude, Alexa, and Barbie using their personal phones, not the ones their characters use.” Offering a smirk she finishes with, “A little BTS you may have not known.”
‘Who does Y/n L/n model for?’
“Hmmmm” the actress puckers her lips. “As someone who was a fashionista growing up, I am filled with gratitude at being able to answer this.” Where could she really start with this? Having been labeled a fashion icon in 2020 Y/n had a long resume of working with brands and designers. “To start, I am an ambassador for Prada as well as its subsidiarie Miu Miu. We’ve partnered together for years and I’ve gone to the Met Gala with them a few times—most recent being in 2022. I’ve done campaigns for Calvin Klein and Stella McCartney. I recently did a collaboration with Dior. This year I went to the Met with Chanel—wearing vintage Chanel and ended up doing a campaign with them. Donatella Vesache and I have worked together.” Y/n scrunches her nose, “Every year I look forward to fashion week as you can imagine.”
‘Does Y/n L/n have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?’
“If you asked me this the other day I would’ve said no,” she replies cheekily, “But….if you’ve seen the news recently then you would know that I’ve been selected to receive one this year and I….can’t even put into words the feeling. I better stop before I get emotional,” she felt her eyes well up slightly. “I’m extremely honored and blessed to receive such recognition. All I dreamed about as a kid was to have my name on one of those stars and now it’s coming true. I’m overjoyed.”
‘What did Y/n L/n win the Tony for?’
“I won the Tony back in 2018 for my role in Wicked.”
“Will Y/n L/n be in DW 60th special?” Throwing a look to the camera, smirk threatening to appear on her lips she goes, “I don’t know…you’ll have to watch and find out.”
“Is Y/n L/n in Stranger Things?”
“I am not, but I would love to be,” she shrugs with a smile. “I love that show and everyone is so talented. I can’t wait for season five—it needs to hurry up before I lose my mind.”
‘Who is Y/n L/n in Star Wars?”
“So I voiced the absolute badass and Jedi master Ahsoka Tano during Clone Wars from 2008 to 2014, returning for the Rebels series form 2014 to 2018,” she pauses to cross her legs to make herself more comfortable. This was one of her favorite characters to play and despite the criticism and dislike for Ashoka in the beginning, she grew to become a fan favorite in the Star Wars fandom. “I was thirteen when I first voiced Ashoka and I got the privilege to bring her to life again by playing her in live-action for the Mandalorian and Book of Boba Fett—not to mention getting to have a voice cameo in The Rise of Skywalker.” Y/n gets ready to move on, “Now you’re about to see Ashoka again for her spin off show coming this summer on Disney plus.”
‘What all has Y/n L/n and David Tennant worked on?’ The question made her chuckle, surprised it was a top search on Google.
“David Tennant—the man, the myth, the legend. I’ve been lucky to work with him on several projects over the years,” the memories appear in her mind as she recalls them. “We first met in 2006 after I got the role of Jodie Pip opposite his Tenth Doctor. That lasted almost three years but during that time we both did Clone Wars—he voiced Huyang and he actually will be retuning as Huyang for the Ashoka series.” The moment she got the news the woman had FaceTimed him screaming. Although he was only voicing the droid they still made plans to reunite since they hadn’t seen each other since before Covid when Y/n moved back to the states.
“Broadchurch happened a few years after we both left Doctor Who—around the same time as the anniversary special—and then I got to work with him again when I appeared in an episode of Good Omens as one of the demons passing judgement on Crowley. Finally I wanna say before the Ashoka series the last thing we did was Staged back when quarantine was a thing.” Y/n’s face turns serious, “Anytime I get to work with David I take it. Like I said, he’s my ride or die,” she crosses her fingers, “we like this. And I love when people send me those YouTube videos where it’s like, ‘Jodie Pip and The Doctor sharing a brain cell for 10 minutes straight,’ or ‘David Tennant and Y/n L/n being a father-daughter duo on and off screen.’ Really brightens up my day.”
A few more questions went on, Y/n answering as best as she could with details. Doing this interview really gave viewers a more personal outlook on the actress. She was known for being reserved and private in her career expanding two decades. As a child star, her agent really shielded her from a lot due to the cruel nature of Hollywood and the media. And as a result of criticisms Y/n only was active on social media when it came time to promote projects and events.
She had a large and loyal fan base. Probably one of the largest for a celebrity due to her being in so many popular shows and high-grossing movies. On TikTok she & her characters were the most edited when it came to fancams. Pinterest had its own board dedicated to all the outfits Y/n wore.
She was Hollywoods Angel. Fans loved her, celebrities adored her. Before joining the cast of Bridgerton she met them at the Bafta’s the year prior and had them all starstruck when she approached. Nicola Couglan, who plays Penelope Featherington, even mentioned in an interview how the cast pretty much lost their minds when they found out she would be coming onto the show.
“No one knew about the end credit scene at the end of series three,” she told Graham Norton, seated alongside her costar/leading man, Luke Newton aka Colin Bridgerton on the show. “It was a big secret between Shonda and the crew. After we wrapped up, they went ahead and secretly filmed the scene with Sophie getting ready for the masquerade ball,” Nicola raises her hands, grinning from ear to ear, “and when I tell you we all were freaking out.” The audience laughed, Graham leaning foward in his seat with an awe-struck expression.
“So how did you find out? Was it when you watched the finale?”
Luke was the one to answer. “When I watched the episode,” he points to Nicola, “and I think you said you did this too—same with some of the others, I exited Netflix once the credits started to roll. Not thining much of it,” he shrugs, “then later that night Claudia Jessie who plays Eloise FaceTimes the iMessage group chat we have—.”
Nicole gently cuts in, “I’m surprised so many picked up.” That ignites a laugh from everyone.
“Yeah,” Luke agrees as he sits up. “Luke Thompson, Johnny Bailey, Simone, Nicola, Bessie, and I all answer—one after the other—and Claudia is shouting, ‘Did you see the end credit scene!?!’ Of course I’m confused because I’m like, ‘what is this, the MCU?’” Nicola bursts into laughter along with Graham. “Everyone’s asking what the hell she’s talking about because we’ve all seen the finale and were texting about it—but nobody mentioned an end credit scene. It completely went over our head. So…as you can imagine we all turn our tv, still on FaceTime mind you, and low and behold not only is there end credit scene….but Y/n L/n is gonna be Sophie Beckett.” Just the name alone ignites eruption from the crowd.
“Wow,” Graham exhales, “And you guys met her at the Bafta’s last year, yes? I remember seeing a picture of you two and other cast mates from Bridgerton with her.” Nicola nods excitedly.
“We did. It was such a surreal moment. She was with her then fiancee and the Euphoria cast—it kinda looked like a school mixed with Euphoria cast on one side and us on the other. But she came over and we were all buzzing in the corner, ‘Y/n L/n is coming over here. Oh my God-oh my God.’ Most of us have been watching her since she was on Doctor Who so this was like meeting your childhood idol,” Nicola used her hands to emphasize the point, “And she expressed how she was a fan of the books and loved the show. She even made a joke like, ‘Tell Shonda to call my line.’”
“And did you?” Graham asks for the audience and viewers at home, on the edge of his seat. “Cause didn’t they work together before on Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal?”
Luke nods, “we brought it up during press for series 2. I forgot Y/n was on those shows actually so when I told Shonda I thought ‘there’s no way they’re gonna get her’.” He glances at Nicola, excitment on his features, “I think everyone is ready to get back to set and start filming series four. I know I’m already missing everyone and I’m excited to pass the torch to Luke and Y/n.”
Coming down to the final cardstock, Y/n was sad to end the interview. It was fun seeing what people searched on the web and giving a more in-depth look at her life.
Peeling back the paper on the final card, the statement read, “Who is Y/n L/n’s husband?” Cue the butterflies in her stomach, picturing the man’s gorgeous face. “My husband is Lieutenant Commander Javy Machado. Although he is known to his colleagues as ‘Coyote’.” Lowering the cardstock she went on to say, “Javy and I met four years ago in 2019, he’s a fighter pilot for the Navy and was stationed in San Diego for an assignment. It happened to coincide at the time I was filming a small part in ‘Friend of the World’.” A small independent film her friend was producing and asked if she would take a small role to help promote the project. It’d been the first film Y/n had taken on after moving back to the States following her nearly 12 year residence in the United Kingdom.
If she thought hard enough, Y/n could feel the warmth of the sun on her arms and smell of the ocean salt water as her eyes landed on a group of people playing football with two balls. Instantly drawn to the man sticking his tongue out at his friends when running backwards to the end line. “My costars and I had wrapped up for the day and decided to go to the beach. We were waiting for this bar to open at five so we strolled for a good bit to pass time. That’s where I saw him playing football with his colleagues,” a shy smile stayed on her lips the entire time Y/n relayed the story.
“And then when the bar opened that night we formally met.” Man what a night it was. Every social media platform was buzzing with pictures and videos of Y/n behind the bar of The Hard Deck surrounded by patrons. The bartender, Penny, was so cool and didn’t mind the actors coming in despite the madhouse they caused. She did, however, have to close the doors once it got too packed due to locals sending word the five-time Emmy award winning actress was there. Before she knew it, Y/n was making drinks with her while taking pictures and signing autographs to everyone who approached. Y/n even rang the bell a couple times and bought the first round for those in attendance.
And when Javy appeared in front of her, it was like time had stopped. The noise eloping them was muffled, movement slowed to where the only clear focus was on each other.
“Hi,” he beamed, looking at her like she was the only person on the planet. “I know you’ve heard this all night, but is it alright if I get a photo with you?”
“Of course,” Y/n found her voice after a second, smiling wide as she inched closer to the bar counter. Javy thanked her, moving so his back was to the surface since the bar stood in between them and positioned his phone so it captured both of them. They posed, Javy snapping a couple pictures with Y/n making a kissy face at one point. When it ended Y/n motioned to the draft beers beside her, “Can I get you anything? Round is on me.”
Well Javy couldn’t say no could he? Pocketing his phone he replied, “Whatever you recommend, I’ll take.” Had he been to the hard deck several times in the past two weeks? Yes. Did he know what all was on draft and bottled? Sure did. But he wasn’t gonna pass on the chance to flirt with one of the greatest actors Hollywood had ever produced.
It was Y/n L/n for Christ’s sake. Hollywood’s Angel as they called her.
But what the pilot didn’t expect was to have found the love of his life. The same went for Y/n. Sure they had a moment movies often depicted as ‘love at first sight’ but c’mon, that was only in the movies…right?
Well perhaps it wasn’t just in the movies.
“Okay I see you!” Javy hollered from the side, standing on the red carpet a few paces away from where Y/n was posing for the cameras. Dressed to the nines in a black tux, Javy hyped up his fiancée like he always did at premieres and carpet events. This one happened to be at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of Elvis. “Give me face—yes ma’am! Work it-work it! Mmmh.”
Giggling the whole time, Y/n reaches out with her hand for him. He skips over, stopping to snap a picture on his phone. Pressing a kiss to her cheek, the two embrace for the photographers—who eat up every second they get with the couple. Ever since they announced their relationship in 2020 they were the it couple of Hollywood despite Javy not being in the industry. But his energy, personality, and of course his adoration for Y/n, made him well liked by her fans.
He worshiped the ground she walked on. Never did he give any indication he was with her for malice. Social media accounts he had were private and mostly to keep in touch with people he worked with. Her family loved him and his loved her. Whenever reporters approached him to try and ask invasive questions Javy would redirect to whatever project was staring in. “Isn’t the show amazing? I would say this is her best work yet—and the cast was amazing throughout.” He was definitely a keeper.
With similar personalities, though Y/n was more reserved in the public eye, the two were like a lock and key. Fitting together with a love so natural they couldn’t believe they got to experience it. They enjoyed going to concerts and the movies—getting into disguise whenever they didn't want the paparazzi following them. Sang and danced in the kitchen while they cooked, having their own karaoke parties with friends.
At one point in their relationship Y/n was to play a fighter pilot. So, what better way to prepare for the role than to shadow her partner and his colleagues. Once they got the green light from the Navy, Y/n had to do all the necessary training a pilot did to get into a jet. From there she was allowed to get in the backseat with either Javy or Natasha flying.
Flying with Natasha went smoothly….but her boyfriend was a different story. Of course she trusted him with her life and knew he would never put her in harm's way, but damn did he unlock his inner Maverick when she got in the plane with him.
“Javy Machado!!” She screamed, holding onto her seat for dear life when he flipped them upside down. “I swear I will kick your ass in the afterlife if you kill us!”
“Relax, baby,” he laughed, earning a groan from his girl. “I promise we’ll have a graceful landing.”
“It won’t be graceful when I’m puking my guts out!” She actually did vomit in the bag he provided her with before they took off. Instead of embarrassment she was just annoyed with him, but still enjoyed the ride no less. “I’m sticking with Natasha from now on.”
When it came to the squad, they were Y/n’s biggest supporters. After the initial shock and fangirl/fanboying—nearly shitting their pants at the fact their best friend was dating an absolute Icon—Y/n became part of their family. They pre-orders tickets to her movies, attending midnight premieres and after parties the actress invited them too. Sunday nights were reserved for watching her HBO shows, while Netflix series that were to binge watch were planned accordingly.
Nat loved having another gal in the group. It was a breath of fresh air and the two would go to lunch or have their own movie nights. “I’m surprised Machado hasn’t crashed in yet,” the pilot commented with a mouthful of popcorn as they sat in Y/n’s living room. Javy was in his office playing COD with the guys after pouting when Y/n said no to him joining in on their girl time.
“He’s occupied with his game. I’m surprised we haven’t heard any screaming at the tv yet.”
“WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT, JAKE??”
“Spoke to soon.”
The couple were stars at award shows. It was no surprise they were always the best dressed. People constantly tweeted their excitement to see them attend, and expressed disappointment when they would not. And often the two’s reactions to cringe/unexpected moments resulted in them becoming popular memes—something Y/n already had a reputation of long before they got together.
2022 Oscars? Y/n’s Twitter froze due to the amount of tags from the snapshot of her and Javy’s expressions to Will Smith slapping the shit out of Chris Rock. “Did he just—?” “he did.” “Holy shit. Where’s the popcorn—I feel I need some right now.”
2023 Met Gala? People kept replaying the moment the couple did a double take at seeing Doja Cat dressed up as Karl Lagerfields cat. “What the actual…” “now that’s what camp should’ve been.”
And of course they couldn’t forget the most recent one of their unimpressed look from Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue at the most recent Oscars. “Should I go up there and pull a—.” “Don’t you dare finish that sentence, Machado.”
Expect YouTube to be filled with videos complications titled, “Y/n L/n & Javy Machado being flabbergasted at award shows for 15 minutes straight,” and, “Y/n L/n & her husband Javy being Hollywoods favorite couple.”
Then there was Javy’s to die for reaction to Y/n recieving her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at only 29 years old. The only other day besides their wedding day where the man was in a heap of tears. “I’m just—,” he sniffed, “so proud of you, baby. You’ve earned this.”
When it came to live reactions at events years after getting married and Y/n embedding her legacy as the greatest actress of her generation, let’s just say Hollywood’s Angel and the Navy’s Coyote would always be its champions.
………….
TGM Tag List: @avaleineandafryingpan @caitsymichelle13 @poppyalice2001 @cutelittlepotatofry @luckyladycreator2 @americaarse @elenavampire21 @back-tooo-black @wildellaa @artemissunn @pinkpantheris
239 notes · View notes
des2dream · 2 days
Text
Ranking MLP Generations!💗🦄🌈
Tumblr media
For over 40 years, we have been exposed to colorful horses. Colorful horses who can talk....and sing....and dance....and fire mega rainbow lasers at their enemies! Colorful horses who also made their way into our collections. My Little Pony was introduced in 1982 following after the original My Pretty Pony toy that dropped in 1981 which was meant to sell toys for the young female demographic.
Tumblr media
The rest became history! MLP grew to become a popular toy during the 80s which spawned a movie in 1986 and a TV show that came out three months later. As the years went by, MLP went through multiple changes gaining new fans for new generations. I've decided to go over each generation and rank them based on my opinions, thoughts, and overall feelings of satisfaction I have toward them. I don't necessarily hate any of the generations that will be placed lower on this list, I just don't feel as attached to them nor do I feel like having an interest in them. I also won't discuss much of the toys, but I will discuss heavily on the TV shows based on them since I've seen more of the shows than I collected the toys. We'll start with the worst, then save the best for last. Let's go, everypony!
8. My Little Pony Generation 2
Tumblr media
The fact that I didn't even know this existed until years later doesn't help its case. The toy sales were so low that there wasn't even a cartoon to go with it. Only a video game. This generation released in 1997 before it ceased distribution in 1999 due to lackluster sales. However, it did find some success in Europe. I don't have much to say about this since I hadn't known about it. I originally thought My Little Pony Tales was Generation 2! One positive I can give is that I love the designs as they give off slightly more realistic horse-like features and it's a cool look. I didn't have any toys nor saw anything on TV with there being no series. I'm sorry, G2! Unfortunately, you hit the bottom of the barrel.
7. My Little Pony Generation 3.5
Tumblr media
Now, this spot is interesting! The third generation of MLP dominated the 2000s with newer colorful ponies like Pinkie Pie and Minty. On top of that, multiple specials began selling in DVDs that also aired on TV. By late 2009, Hasbro decided to revamp the series twice (sort of). They gathered a group of ponies who were well known in G3 (Pinkie Pie, Starsong, Rainbow Dash, Cheerilee, Toola Roola, Sweetie Belle, & Scootaloo) and gave them a redesign as well as likely aging them down for younger audiences. There was a 45-minute holiday special titled, Twinkle Wish Adventure as well as a couple mini episodes and new toys that spawned from this revamp.
Tumblr media
It eventually led to the second revamp titled, Newborn Cuties where the characters aged down to babies....you had to see it to believe it. I actually owned a G3.5 Pinkie Pie, a Newborn Cuties Pinkie, and a baby singing Starsong back in the day. These redesigns couldn't do it for me after being mesmerized by G3. I remember being upset that even Ponyville got a resign and it looked so bland compared to how the town looked early on. Newborn Cuties also looks extremely off with their pony heads and baby bodies. This generation is mostly hated by the fandom and I can see why. At least, it had more to offer than Generation 2. It was a nice distraction for young girls. It's now best to be left alone by an older me. If any of you like seeing fillies and baby ponies, this is the generation for you.
6. My Little Pony Generation 1.5/ My Little Pony Tales
Tumblr media
Let's go back to the year, 1992! You're sitting in your room and you're watching, Disney Channel. You're watching your favorite shows like, Goof Troop, The Little Mermaid, or Raw Toonage and you come across this colorful horse show. After Generation 1's series came to a close in 1987, we are now hit with a new series for pony fans in the 90s. This is the generation I previously thought was Generation 2. That is in fact not the case! We follow a group of pony friends as they spend their days in Ponyland going to school, hanging out for milkshakes, having sleepovers, and feuding with the resident boys. Our main ponies are Starlight, Sweetheart, Melody, Bright Eyes, Patch, Clover, and Bon Bon whom we follow in their daily lives. I find this show to be.....innocent, but weird (and not in a good way). It's passable for a Saturday morning cartoon and it does have funny moments, but something was off.
Tumblr media
Generation 1 left quite the impression on young audiences during the 80s. Ponies that not only sung and danced, but ponies that went through continuous magical adventures involving dragons, princesses, witches, evil kings, and all sorts of mythical creatures. My Little Pony Tales has talking and singing ponies, but there was an odd lack of magic with the show emphasizing more on Slice-of-Life. Not that I have any issues with that genre! It just feels odd seeing these magical horses not doing any magic and living in a modernized world. The characters also have annoying moments which is likely because the writers wanted to portray preteen behavior (since the ponies are preteens in this show), but it also falls into some cheesy 90s writing. Like I said, it is passable so I believe there's an audience for this one. It can make nice riffing material too!
5. My Little Pony Generation 4.5/ Pony Life
Tumblr media
Here are the table scraps of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic....except, these table scraps were pretty okay. This show came onto streaming services and YouTube from November 7, 2020 until May 22, 2021. This was supposed to be a successor, spin-off, and reboot to FIM. The previous show had already ended, so I was chill with seeing the characters again in a different style. This generation was.....bonkers, to say the least! It was already kind of a struggle seeing fans adjust to the new chibi art style, but it was also a struggle keeping up with the show's new format. Pony Life was incredibly energetic as each episode was around 5 minutes (10 since they're in two-parts). There was also some crazy new quirks to the cast with Applejack breaking The Fourth Wall, Fluttershy shrinking and massively growing at will, and everyone casually drinking potions left and right. For me, it was hard to keep up with the fast pace of the show. However, I did appreciate the cast of The Mane Six reprising their roles for this show.
Tumblr media
Season 2 introduced viewers to Lightning Flash Chill (the tiger), Sugar Snap (the peacock), and Echo (the bat). Meet The Wild Siders! They're unicorn-hybrid creatures who work at a healthy food restaurant called, Salad Bowl Junction in their home realm. I honestly enjoyed them! They give off similar vibes to The Care Bear Cousins which is fascinating because the 80s actually did a spin-off toyline with a similar premise by having other pretty animals. There have also been episodes where characters from the previous series make an appearance such as Spike, Trixie Lulamoon, and Discord. I enjoyed this more than My Little Pony Tales and the characters are still likable, but it still has issues. I'm still put off by the constant energy in almost every minute. I don't feel attached to this show, but I do see myself watching it once in a while because the episodes aren't that long and I've grown used to the art style by now with how cute everyone looks. Also, it's nice seeing The Mane Six again!
4. My Little Pony Generation 5
Tumblr media
The year is 2021, it has been a couple years since Generation 4 ended, and this had some major horseshoes to fill! September 22 of that year presented us with a debut film on Netflix titled, A New Generation featuring stars like Vanessa Hudgens and Sofia Carson. It was actually pretty good! I instantly loved the characters, the animation, the story, and all the songs! It was a great introduction to G5. Personally, I enjoyed it much better than the early concept which was going be having The Mane Six meet each other all over again in a new Equestria. Twilight would've been an Earth Pony, Pinkie would've been a Pegasus, Fluttershy would've been a Unicorn, and Applejack was on the verge of likely getting replaced with a new character. Instead, Generation 5 is supposed to take place DECADES after the events of G4 with ponies and other creatures becoming separated from fear and prejudice. While it was shocking since G4 ended with bringing creatures together, it does make sense for history to repeat itself. The Mane Six have now become what you call, "An Old Pony's Tale" and The Magic of Friendship has been abandoned....until one pony stood up. A pony named, Sunny Starscout!
Tumblr media
We follow her along with her friends Izzy Moonbow, Princess Zipp Storm, Princess Pipp Petals, and Sheriff Hitch Trailblazer on their mission to restore magic in Equestria and bring everyone together. After the film, we got a series on Netflix titled, Make Your Mark as well as a series of shorts on YouTube named, Tell Your Tale (I wish it was actually Tail) that took place after the events of the movie. I have mixed feelings on both series. On one hand, I enjoy the art styles, I love the songs still, and I like the characters that were introduced like Misty Brightdawn and Sparky the Dragon. On the other hand, the episodes can be messy. We get pieces of information on how magic faded from Equestria, but it still doesn't feel like we're getting the whole picture. The IDW Comics have been giving a little more than the series. I also have many questions on G5's villain, Opaline who is an ALICORN! How did she become an alicorn or was she born one?! G5 wants to be its own thing, but it also clashes with trying to be a sequel to G4. It's a mess, but it's a beautiful mess! I do want to see more.
3. My Little Pony Generation 1
Tumblr media
Welcome to the generation that started it all! Say "thank you" to this generation for being the franchise's starting point please! Also, let's give a BIG "thank you" to My Pretty Pony for making this all possible! Before we got a full series, we got two TV specials titled, Rescue at Midnight Castle then Escape from Catrina in 1984 until we got a full-length film in 1986 many know as, My Little Pony: The Movie featuring the voices of recognizable names like Danny DeVito and Madeline Kahn. I've always found this generation to be fun to watch while having some 80's cheesy moments. There was a mixture of magic, action, adventure, and pure pony fluff that kept me sitting through multiple episodes. G1 had messy dialogue, some messy hand-drawn animation, and sometimes messy plot, but it was always charming and to the point. There were times where the pacing was very fast, but not as energetically exhausting as G4.5. This show brought a lot to the table with mystical adventures and characters. This generation gave us unicorns, pegasi, twinkle-eyed ponies, sea ponies, Spike the Dragon, witches, and dear sweet Megan Williams.
Tumblr media
After Generation 1, there was no longer a use for any human characters in MLP (unless if we count G4's Equestria Girls) and while it is a little sad, it does make G1 a little more unique. While Megan is the bearer of The Rainbow of Light, she's always there for her pony friends whenever they're in trouble and will always be down to have fun in Ponyland. She even includes her younger siblings, Danny and Molly into the mix. Aside from having human characters, there's also a fair share of creatures like dragons, penguins, and giant crabs. We also have other familiar names in this generation like Applejack and Twilight. This show even introduced memorable villains like Tirac, The Smooze, and Grogar. I feel like we owe a lot to this generation even if it's not everyone's favorite. I wouldn't be making this list if not for this show leaving such a a huge impact and leading into future generations to come. If you're feeling nostalgic, I think you'll have a good time checking this out.
2. My Little Pony Generation 3
Tumblr media
I know some of you are shocked....trust me, I know! Let me explain!....I can't help but love G3! I grew up with G3! I enjoyed it so much when I was little and I can't help but still like it today! Is it perfect? No! Is it messy? Yes! Did I have fun? Very much, thank you! In the year of 2003, we were presented with a lineup of new and improved MLP toys different from the previous gens and a Direct-to-Video special titled, A Charming Birthday which introduces our new ponies. As each year passed by, we got new specials and new ponies like Star Catcher, Princess Rarity of Unicornia, Wysteria, and so much more! This generation also includes Spike from G1! One thing I loved about G3 was watching all the specials and movies that came out. I'd always watch A Very Minty Christmas every time December rolled around! I thought Sky Wishes and Star Catcher's friendship was so cute to watch during Dancing In The Clouds and I absolutely adore Star Catcher's design. When Spike was reintroduced debuting in The Princess Promenade, I thought it was interesting that he was more knowledgeable and cultured rather than the sweet and innocent personality he had in G1. We were also introduced to fairy-like ponies called, Breezies. While G3 had little to no antagonists, less magical creatures than G1, and a slice-of-life feel like G1.5, there was still plenty of magical adventures to be had.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
I absolutely loved the aesthetic G3 was giving to its audience at the time as I couldn't get enough of the color scheme! I've never seen so many shades pink, purple, blue, and even hints of light green since watching Barbie movies! Their hometown, Ponyville looked so beautiful with the purple/pink castle standing front and center. Even other places like Unicornia, Butterfly Island, Breezie Blossom, and Rainbow Wishes Amusement Park are fun to look at. I didn't find the characters annoying and I loved watching their adventures while learning lessons. However, this generation was given a handful of hate like G3.5 mainly because pony fans though it "doesn't reach the same standards as G4" and it made me a little sad. G3 wasn't meant to be groundbreaking or anything. It was just meant to sell toys while using movies and specials to showcase the ponies making new friends, solving problems, and having fun. The same thing can be said about all the generations, really. I get why people don't enjoy it, but I don't think it's warranted of all the hate that it gets. The stories can be too simple and the executions might not be the best, but they're charming. Okay, everypony! We're reaching the end here! Let's see what my favorite generation of My Little Pony is!
1. My Little Pony Generation 4/ Friendship Is Magic
Tumblr media
There was no competition. There was no doubt. If anyone asked me what my favorite generation is, I would say G4 in an instant. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic really changed the game for the franchise as a whole! Lauren Faust (animator, writer, director, producer, creator of DC Superhero Girls, and married to Craig McCracken) got this show going in 2010 and it was a MASSIVE success! Toy sales were through the roof, comics were made, music albums were made, merchandise was highly recommended, and the show practically dominated the whole decade as it lasted for nine (technically ten) seasons from 2010 til 2019. Everyone fell in love with Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy. We just call them, The Mane Six! This was actually a technical reboot to G3 with such familiar names in this gen. There's also familiar names from G1 that are present like Twilight, Applejack, Spike, Grogar, and Tirac (except he's renamed Tirek). I couldn't get enough of this show! I remember watching the first episode when it aired for the two-part series premier instantly wanting more when the first episode ended with, "To Be Continued...." and I was hooked! Each season gave us memorable characters, fantastic locations, exciting lore, amazing songs, and everyone's character growth throughout the series. This generation sparked a fun spinoff called, Equestria Girls where Twilight travels into a different universe where everyone is a human and Megan Williams from G1 even makes a cameo. There was even a full-length movie in 2017 featuring stars like Emily Blunt, Zoe Saldana, Sia, and Taye Diggs. This series also led the way for Pony Life to be made into G4.5 and Generation 5 as its sequel series.
Tumblr media
Of course, I can't keep going on about Generation 4 without mentioning The Brony Fandom! With Friendship Is Magic being such a successful show, it didn't only reach younger audiences. It also reached adults too....mainly targeted towards men hence where the term, bronies came from. For a whole decade this fandom has made so many fantastic projects inspired by the series. Music videos, fan songs, remixes, audio dramas, fanart, fanfics, animations, OCs, AUs, and so much more! You had to see it to believe it! I know just as many Brony songs as I do official G4 songs! This generation and its fandom changed my life! I don't know which season is my favorite because there's so many good episodes. Not every episode is perfect and maybe there are some who are put-off by the art style, but it's a really good time. Who would have thought that a show about magical animated ponies would make THAT much of an impact?! I highly recommend that you give G4 a watch if you're interested because you'll definitely have something to write home about.
Conclusion
Welp, that's my list! Thank you for sitting down and reading my thoughts. My Little Pony has been a successful franchise for up to 40 years (and still continuing)! I'll always love these colorful ponies no matter how messy each generation can be. MLP played a big part in my childhood so it was nice to look back on every generation as an adult. I'm looking forward to see what the future holds for newer generations and I hope any of you pony fans have a generation that holds a special place in your heart.🐎❤🦄💕
Tumblr media
Images (in terms of artwork) by: KacperKrysiak, Lea Dabssi, Justasuta, Tony Fleecs, ASKometa
14 notes · View notes
youraveragebtsstan · 4 months
Text
💫✨ Supernatural, but it's an early 2000's teen drama. (Think 'The O.C' meets 'One Tree Hill' vibes) ✨💫
Imagine, it's a gorgeous Saturday afternoon in 2003. You're in the kitchen pouring a bowl of Resse's Puffs when you hear Ain't It Fun by Paramore from the living room TV. (Pretend this song was out then.) Knowing the hit TV show Supernatural's theme song by anywhere, you rush to the couch.
Since the hit TV show aired in the early 2000's, its all anyone can talk about. Staring heartthrobs Jensen Ackles and Jarred Padalecki, this show tells the story of brothers Sam and Dean as they navigate life raised by their father John since their mother Mary's pasisng.
🤫 Allow me to set the scene...
Tension between Sam and John has been brewing since Season 1, always butting heads on the littlest of things. Dean says it's because they're an awful alot alike but neither party seems to see it. After moving from school to school, town to town, by Season 3 it's at its peak.
Season 3 opens on an 18 year old Sammy filling out an application for Stanford. He does so in secret, knowing Dean would bitch about it and John- well John probably won't be around to care anyway. Thoughout the season we see him rebell, staying out late and going to parties he probably shouldn't be. Dean tries his best to reason with him, but Sam needs to come around on his own time.
By the season finale, tension is at an all time high. Dean reveals to Sam he knows he's leaving them for Stanford after stumbling across his acceptance letter. This prompts Sam and Dean to get into an argument which John overhears.
After some awkward back and forth, Dean eventually blabs to which John says, "Like the college?"
Sam says, "Yeah, Dad- the college."
Dean says, "Isn't that something? He didn't even tell us he applied."
More silence sits netween them before Sam asks John what he thinks. After some thought John says, "Well, if you want to go, go."
Sam looks shocked, "Really?" he asks.
"Yeah," John nods. "But if you're gonna go, you might as well stay gone."
Sam's heart drops, Dean grumbling at his father's carelessness.
This ensues a BIG argument between John and Sam, to which Sam eventually Sam says, "You know what, I will."
Sam heads upstairs to pack, Dean once again trying to be the peacemaker. Eventually the season ends with Sam walking out of the door with a classic one-liner that absolutely shocks the hearts of millions across the world.
Sam isn't actually seen in the following season (S4), giving the audience well needed view of Dean's devotion to John (but also because Jared begins his stint on Gilmore Girls.) His welcome back to the show occurs at the end of the next season where the Original Supernatural starts, but done with a little more class.
On the last episode of Season 5, we see the infamous Impala pulling up outside a college dorm. Someone steps out of the Impala but we can't tell who it is, not just yet anyway. The person walks up to the door and maybe contemplates ringing the doorbell. Eventually he sneaks in and we see him knock something over on the way in.
Upstairs a girl sound asleep hears a noise. Waking up, she shakes her boyfriend saying, "Babe. Babe, I think someone's downstairs." We got back to downstairs where the man is now looking around in the dark- but wait, there's someone behind him. Someone with a bat takes a swing at him, tackling him to the ground. They tussle back and forth, until the burglar is revealed. We zoom in to see Dean, laying on his back with a smile.
"Dean?" says familiar voice.
"Hiya Sammy," Dean replies.
Boom! Hard cut to Sam's face and the crown goes wild!!! Sam says Dean what he's doing there to which Dean says, "Dad went on a hunting trip and now he's missing. I need your help."
Cut to black, end of Season 5.
~~~~~~
Lol, dramatic I know, but I just get this awesome feeling of nostalgia whenever I imagine Supernatural as one of those teen drama, sentimental shows. (I've been binging those lately and they're all I can think about..lol)
22 notes · View notes
hetaologist · 6 months
Text
APH America "Ethnography" and Headcanons (SFW)
The United States of America, Alfred F. Jones, Mr. Stars and Stripes, 'Merica, Pretty Boy, um... or just simply America.
Here is a list of data I have gathered from this country and oh boy, what an interesting specimen we have here....
Ethnography
You will find this find this mythological creature at your local Walmart superstore during the evening hours on a weekday, sporting flannel loungewear pants (The plaid kind), a cotton t-shirt that definitely has been worn no less than two (2) times, Old Navy $1 flip flops, and a gray jacket.
When asked about his late night runs to the popular supermarket chain, his answer is just simply:
"There's nothing else to do and no where to go."
America's Cart Inventory for March 22nd:
One (1) package of "Mega Stuf Chocolate Oreos" for $5.97, One (1) 6-Pack of "Starbucks Frappuccino Chilled Coffee Drinks" in Caramel Flavor for $7.98, One (1) Family Sized Bag of "Flaming Hot Cheetos" for $5.94, One (1) "Furby Interactive Toy" for $39.19, and One (1) Stick of " Axe Apollo Men's Deodorant Stick" for $4.97. Total of purchase was $64.05 before tax.
When questioned about the "Furby Interactive Toy", he replies:
"Yeah dude, there's this thing I wanna make that's called a "Long Furby". Wanna come by my place and check it out?"
I agreed to the invination as it would give me a better look into his living space and lifestyle. He's very friendly person.
Living Space (Home):
Oh dear god, why did I agree to come here?
House is a what you would expect from a typical American college student such as:
"Saturdays Are For The Boys" banner flag, Marvel and DC posters, a very unsettling looking blue leather couch that looks like it has been through hell and back, random dumbbells and untouched exercise equipment, every game console from the 1972 "The Magnavox Odyssey" to the PS5, action figures from various popular TV shows and comics, an old KFC bucket with half eaten chicken on the coffee table and a shelf with a huge vinyl record and CD collection.
Conclusion: What a fucking gross nerd.
America offers a cold can of Coca-Cola, I accept it.
He shows me a very long light blue "Long Furby" from his collection, further proving how much of a dork he was.
When asked what kind of music he liked (in regards to his music collection), he replies:
"That's hard to answer, it changes every week. Because of my diverse music, I pretty much like everything. One week I could be listening to 1980's classic rock, 2000's techno-pop, Bluegrass Country, 1990's Hip Hop or anything. But, if I had to give you this week's favorite artist, it would have to be Taylor Swift and Doja Cat."
"Interesting..." I replied.
I have recorded enough data for today (the smell was bothering me) and left his home to do further extensive research.
Headcanons:
America has a deep love for cars and trucks, he can be seen working on his vintage 1968 Dodge Charger R/T called 'Thunderbird' (an absolute speed demon that can reach at top speeds of muthafuckin' 156 mph), and his enormous 2019 Ford F-150 'Big John' that he loves to drive to world meetings because he is a total stud muffin showoff.
Oh yeah, he defiantly modded 'Big John' horns with airblasters. So when he parks his car and he sees other nations come out of their vehicles, he pounds on that horn and scares the living shit out of them.
He totally does 2 am donuts in the Thunderbird the front of Walmart parking lots with his brother Canada to freak him out.
Other than seeing him work on his cars while listening to "Waking Up in Vegas by Katy Perry" on the radio, he's in his room sorting out his action figure and comic book collection.
Damn, what what a geek.
He has an eBay account where he buys, trades and auctions his collection as his interests constantly change.
If you think him being a geek, dork and a nerd is gonna save him from getting a basic ass Stanley cup, you're wrong.
He has a navy blue one that he takes to meetings and he would get dirty looks from the other nations.
"Goddamn it America, you do not need that much coffee."
"Fuck you, you scone sucking twink. It's not coffee, it's the Panera Super Charged Lemonade mixed with Redbull."
"I beg your fucking pardon..."
He gave Canada a red one for his birthday that he also takes with him to meetings.
"Canada, mon ami~. That better not be that merde American drinks that makes your heart explode."
"No, it's Tim Hortons iced coffee."
"Well.. that's better than what America drinks..."
20 notes · View notes
berriespunches · 20 days
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
lara mooney for @melien’s BC
workaholic ✩ animal lover ✩ mooch ✩ ambitious ✩ diva
Working so hard every night and day And now we get the pay back Trying so hard, saving up the paper Now we get to lay back Working so hard every night and day And now we get the pay back The pay back, the pay back
✩ Luxurious - Gwen Stefani
Lara aspires to be CEO of a Mega Corporation. Girlie came from a small town and an even smaller community. She was working at her part-time job at the local supermarket when she saw the advertisements for Cornelia Archer's Bachelorette Challenge coming from one of the TV’s for sale and it made her eyes light up: it was finally her turn to indulge in her long-awaited luxury. The Bachelorette is so, so beautiful, and even though Lara isn't a romantic sim, she was drawn to joining the show as Cornelia's got her attention. Her best chance is to befriend Cornelia and hope for the best. Luckily, her diva personality won't get in the way.
Lara can be a diva sometimes and that can be a pain in the ass.
She’s most of the times focused on her big dreams of becoming CEO, but also hoping for a partner just like Cornelia to be the light of her life.
Lara is an animal lover under that roughness
She’s an ambitious workaholic girl, who also likes to mooch (we don’t talk about it)
Lara is a huge fan of Gwen Stefani.
She loves the 2000’s fashion and everything that revolves around those years.
her custom content:
hair / nosemask / noseshine
private download (public if eliminated)
11 notes · View notes
autisticempathydaemon · 2 months
Note
Hello! I hope you’re doing well! This is for your redacted match-up game since I thought it looked fun to do :)
(I also wanted to mention that it’s really fun seeing what songs you pick for the match-ups and has introduced me to some new favorites)(No pressure to do this quickly ofc <3)
What song are you fixated on at the moment? What lyric or verse, and why? A totally basic song, but I’ve resparked my obsession with Taylor Swift’s song “Wildest Dreams”. I love the lyrics “Staring at the sunset, babe / Red lips and rosy cheeks / Say you'll see me again / Even if it's just in your wildest dreams”. The whole song is very, like, yearning and honestly does remind me of a vibrant sunset just before it softens into a pink and yellow glow. And I like the “wildest dreams” lyric because I daydream a lot. Not to mention, I enjoy the music video for it.
What is your Enneagram type? Type 9w1
Do you love gargantuan Youtube video essays, and if so, which is your favorite and why? I like watching long videos in general. Sometimes it’s just gameplay, sometimes it’s social commentary, sometimes it’s ghost hunting videos, sometimes it’s something that randomly popped up in my for you page and looked interesting. The most recent one I watched was “Exploring the Secret Lesbian World of Interwar Paris” by Kaz Rowe.
Tell me about your childhood imaginary friend. I didn’t really have one, but I pretended to have an imaginary “boyfriend”. People at my elementary school were obsessed with dating for some reason even though we were, like, 8 and so that’s the main reason why I said it was a bf. (It’s also funny bcuz now I’m listening to imaginary boyfriends).
What is your go-to way to fall asleep? If I’m too awake from an exciting/busy day I’ll watch youtube videos to calm down. I sleep with my childhood stuffed animal. I feel bad if I don’t and hugging it makes me feel better. I also usually sleep with a night light because I hate not being able to see things if I wake up in the middle of the night. 
If you had to change your name, what would it be, and why? (In tandem, if you have changed your name, why did you pick that one?) Well, I like the name “Meri”. But if I actually had to change my name, I’d probably just switch my middle name and first name with each other, since I like them well enough.
What is your favorite of Redacted’s audios, and why? I really like David’s “Watching a Scary Movie With Your Alpha Werewolf” audio. I love his laughs so much (I could  s q u e a l  into a pillow)! It’s also really calming in the sense that it’s relaxing in a fun way (just chilling and watching a movie), so I go back to it a lot.
What Redacted boy holds no appeal to you, and why? Like, not the one you hate but the one who you don’t get the hype for. (I won’t judge, I promise.) Ollie. He’s really sweet and I don’t hate him at all, but I can only watch two of his audios in a row before wanting to change to something else. 
Tell me about that one book/movie/tv show you know all the words to. Oh! I have one for each of these: If it’s a book, then “The Princess and the Fangirl” by Ashley Poston. If it’s a TV show, then “Gravity Falls” (I watch it as a summer solstice tradition). And if it’s a movie, then “Miss Congeniality (2000)” (I love those 90s/2000s romance and comedy movies). 
Which Redacted boy are you platonically attracted to? Like- forget dating, which dude do you want to be your best friend? I totally get the romantic appeal of Sam, but I would like him as a friend because he’s very down-to-earth, caring and I like his vibes. (I'd also include Caelum, I DON'T want to date him at all, but he's a cute little guy that makes me smile a lot).
Do you have a go-to thing you ramble about when you’re tired, and if so, what is it? (For example, my boyfriend knows I’m ready to sleep when I start talking about space.) I don’t think I ramble about anything. I’m pretty quiet when I’m tired. Although, sometimes I do get “slap happy” and find a lot of things hilarious before I eventually get to the exhausted point of ‘no-talking’.
Tell me your go-to gas station and drink combo. KitKats and Coca-Cola (slushie or the actual drink)!!
Tell me about your favorite playlist at the moment. One of my private playlists that’s a mix of 2010s EDM and pop, 90s and 2000s rock, alternative music and country songs.
What’s your guilty pleasure media, and why? Listening to Redacted Audio is the biggest, and also reading/writing fanfiction. It’s embarrassing to talk to any of my IRL friends or family about it even though I’m fully supportive and excited about discussing all of those things, it's just the weird reputation it carries.
And whatever else you think tells me about who you are! I’m introverted. I have two cats! (I didn't realize how many cat lovers were in this fandom). I believe that I’m biromantic and demisexual. Some things I like to do are: write, read, go camping with friends (I love hanging out, playing card games, swimming and eating campfire food), doing karaoke, and playing dress up in costumes/outfits I’ve collected over the years. Sometimes I’ll draw or paint but not as often. I often have dance parties or a good cry to de-stress (which are like two different vibes XD but it works). The video games I like to play are Minecraft, Stardew Valley, and The Sims. I like to take quizzes. I used to take Buzzfeed and Quotev quizzes a lot when I was younger, but now I mostly go on uquiz. (I like pressing buttons).
I also really like paleontology. I can watch ghost hunting videos (as stated before) BUT I cannot do horror movies. I’m assuming it’s because I get too involved with the movie, and ghost hunting does not have as high of stakes. I guess I would describe myself as someone that is pretty quiet until you get to know me. I tend to be very watchful and cautious when I’m out in public with friends or family (which probably comes from my ‘older sibling need’ to make sure that the younger ones don’t get kidnapped or hurt). I count myself as an early bird, since I wake up around 6-7am most days. My style is pretty casual, maybe sometimes dark academia inspired if I’m feeling stylish. And my main love languages are quality time and words of affirmation. (I hope all of that helps!)
Tumblr media
Your entry gave me so much trouble in the most delightful way. You paint me a picture of someone so easy to get along with that it was hard for me to pick one redacted suitor over the other. In the end, looking at the charming ways you’d contrast one another, I like Asher for you best.
You’re a cat person; he’s a literal dog person. You’re an introvert; he’s an extrovert. You’re an older sibling, he’s a younger sibling. You’re a morning person; he’s sleeping in till noon if you let him. You’re a cozy gamer; he’s an FPS, COD kind of guy. Yet, you two get along so well. Type Nines are characterized by a desire for peace and quiet, typical of an older sibling, and Asher as the emotionally intelligent beta of the Shaw Pack would be able to provide that. One thing that particularly convinced me was your love languages in that Asher strikes me as one of the most verbally affectionate and forthcoming of the redacted men and would be best suited for your love of words of affirmation.
That’s not to say he doesn’t indulge your need for quality time either; he’s perfect for that. Asher loves your cats, and they love him (once they get used to his shifted form). He orders pizza and wings for your romcom movie nights, most of which he hasn’t seen yet but is super happy to watch them for the first time with you. He’s always down for a good karaoke sess, whether you asked for one or not. He picks up and gets good at Stardew Valley immediately, especially when he finds out y’all can work on the same farm and that he can craft you a wedding ring. (That is, when he’s not trying to get himself an NPC husband. He is down bad for all those men, but he has a soft spot for Shane, can’t tell you why.)
Song:
We're making out inside crashed cars/ We're sleeping through all our memories/ I used to waste my time dreaming of being alive (now I only waste my time dreaming of you)/ Turn off the lights and turn off the shyness/ 'Cause all of our moves make up for the silence/ And oh, the way your makeup stains my pillowcase/ Like I'll never be the same
If you love 90’s/00’s rock and alternative, and I’ve given you Asher, could I give you anything other than a Fall Out Boy song? Obviously not, especially this era and track of Fall Out Boy. There’s something about their older songs that capture young, first love in the best, most singable way. Also, the title is a reference to the romance classic movie, Casablanca, and that coincidence really cinched my choice.
Runner-ups:
Huxley would be a gorgeous partner and runner-up for an early bird who loves camping. He’s also one of my favorite picks for someone on the ace spectrum; he just gives that vibe. (I’m also an asexual who loves Huxley, so that may be my bias coming through.) David is also a runner-up, one who almost beat out Asher except for the fact Asher would be more outwardly affectionate off the bat and would like your cats more.
Read this post and send me an ask if you’d like a match-up of your own! 💌
10 notes · View notes
Text
NIGHTWISH Singer And SABATON Drummer Welcome Their Second Child
Tumblr media
NIGHTWISH singer Floor Jansen and SABATON drummer Hannes Van Dahl have welcomed their second child, a daughter named Lucy.
Jansen and Van Dahl already have a six-year-old daughter named Freja, who was born on March 15, 2017.
The Dutch-born vocalist revealed the news in a social media post earlier today (Friday, October 20). She shared a photo of her, Hannes, Freja and Lucy holding hands, and she wrote: "There she is! With great happiness we can announce the birth of our second daughter Lucy! Big sister Freja is delighted with our dark haired little girl too!
"Health is not a given fact, and so it's humbling to report that both our baby girl as mom are in a great one! We are enjoying these special moments to the fullest and ask for understanding of our privacy in this intimate time! Big thanks for all the love and support we received during the pregnancy! We have now welcomed our dear Lucy into this beautiful world".
Shortly before Freja was born, Hannes was asked by Spain's Metal Journal whether his family situation would have an impact on his ability to tour with SABATON. Hannes said: "Well, you know, as far as I'm concerned, nothing will really change, 'cause this is what I do, an this is… this is what I do to make a living. People have had kids before in this business. So, to stop any worries — 'cause I know a lot of people are worried [about me] quitting the band — I will stay in the band. And as far as I can say, when it's time, I need to go and be there with my family. But when I've done that, I'm going back to touring. So I won't leave. I will be there."
Jansen herself had spoken about the challenges of raising a child while being in a touring band like NIGHTWISH. She told Finland's Radio Rock in 2016: "Of course, it's a very challenging combination, and I was very happy that the way [NIGHTWISH is] today — or, actually, have always been — it's a very open group; we can talk about things. And the guys, actually, were curious. A few months ago, we started talking about it, like, 'So, 2017… How about kids? Yeah?' So it's great to think about things together: how can we combine it? Also 'cause my partner is in a successful band, touring a lot. Yeah, then you need the cooperation of the people that you are family with also. So I am not afraid that won't work. It will be a challenge, for sure, but, yeah, a little SABATON or NIGHTWISH daycare program sounds lovely, doesn't it? [Laughs]"
Jansen also dismissed rumors that she would leave the band after welcoming her first child. She told Mariskal Rock TV: "No, I won't [quit NIGHTWISH]. I love this way too much; don't worry. You don't even have negative speculations one way or another. Things are great, and let's keep on doing this forever."
NIGHTWISH played its last concert before its current break from touring on June 17 at Lemonsoft Stadion in Vaasa.
In November 2022, Floor revealed that she was "cancer free" after undergoing surgery to have a tumor removed following a breast cancer diagnosis.
In April, NIGHTWISH surprised fans by announcing that the band was not going to be playing any live shows for the foreseeable future and would be not be touring in support of the group's next studio album, which is tentatively due in 2024.
Floor's debut solo album "Paragon", arrived in March.
As part of NIGHTWISH, Jansen has landed two number one albums in Finland, and Top Five albums in Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.
Born in the Netherlands, Jansen joined her first band, one of the world's first symphonic metal bands, AFTER FOREVER, when she was only 16 years old. The group went on to release five albums from 2000 to 2007, before they broke up in 2009.
Jansen's next band, REVAMP, released two albums in 2010 and 2013, before she joined NIGHTWISH as a full-time member. NIGHTWISH's first album with Jansen as the lead singer was 2015's "Endless Forms Most Beautiful", which landed in Top 10s around the world. This was followed by 2020's "Human. :II: Nature." , which was also an international success.
Jansen has toured extensively with the band and appeared on three of NIGHTWISH's live albums "Showtime, Storytime", "Vehicle Of Spirit" and "Decades: Live In Buenos Aires".
In 2019, Jansen participated in the popular Dutch TV show "Beste Zangers" where she scored a big hit with "Phantom Of The Opera" together with Henk Poort. She was recognized with a Dutch Popprijs award — a prestigious accolade for artists that has made important contributions to Dutch music. In the same year, her first solo tour sold out in less than 24 hours.
Jansen performed live with NIGHTWISH for the first time on October 1, 2012 at Showbox Sodo in Seattle, Washington following the abrupt departure of the band's lead singer of five years, Anette Olzon. Jansen officially joined NIGHTWISH in 2013.
52 notes · View notes
canmom · 1 year
Text
Animation Night 155: Kunihiko Ikuhara
...or Ikuni to his fans. The Utena guy.
Tumblr media
Since the very beginning of this series, Ikuhara’s been someone I’ve been desperate to cover. He’s exactly the kind of weirdo we like around here. And you know how much the Tumblr girlies love Utena.
But only now, at Animation Night 155, is Ikuni getting his due. Why so long? Well, let’s put it like this. Ikuni’s very much a TV guy. Revolutionary Girl Utena is 39 episodes and a movie. Mawaru Penguindrum: 26 episodes. Yurikuma Arashi is 13, as is Sarazanmai.
And if we’ve managed to cram in 13-episode series into this format, it’s always been with difficulty - take Heike Monogatari [AN91], Alexander Senki [AN125] or Houseki no Kuni [AN97]. It generally takes multiple nights. So I thought, that’s fine, we’ll do Adolescence of Utena, the movie, and, um... hmm.
Luckily for us they just made a new Penguindrum compilation movie! Problem solved let’s go!
And with such a long wait behind us, let’s try and do the guy some justice.
Tumblr media
So. Who is this guy with the rabbit? (Picture from his website. Though this is a plain outfit by Ikuhara standards!)
If you were trying to summarise Ikuni’s works... you could probably say something like this: surreal, densely symbolic stories about the difficulties of real human connection. Sort of like the anime version of Lynch. But if that sounds too cerebral, let’s not forget that an episode of Utena involves a character gradually turning into a cow for no particular reason. He’s just as much a goofball who loves to tell lies.
Ikuni came into the business back in the mid eighties, at Toei. [c.f. AN149 for a brief history of Toei!]
So. In the late 70s, Toei had established a powerful niche to themselves in long-running, wildly popular series such as Galaxy Express 999, but most of their work was much less high-profile. Take a glance, see how many of these you recognise - I would guess not many! Hot out of art school, Ikuhara became an assistant director under the wing of Junichi Satō, later well known for shōjo anime such as the avant-garde Princess Tutu (2002-3), or Ojamajo Doremi (1999-2000).
But of course, the most renowned Satō project is Bishōjo Senshi Sailor Moon (1991-7, Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon). Satō directed the first half, and then Ikuhara took the reins for the rest. For Satō it was his debut as a director,  I’ll talk more about his tenure on Sailor Moon in just a minute, but first, let’s get a little context about... magical girls!
Tumblr media
(quick! tell me which sailor this is! you have five seconds)
Magical Girls! 魔法少女 mahō shōjo. An ordinary high school student makes contact with a powerful magical being, who may also be a cute mascot character, and agrees to help. Now she can transform: manifest a stylish outfit, gain suitably themed powers, and fight monsters of the week... but she’s got to maintain a double life as a regular student. The henshin (transformation) sequence itself will usually be an extremely elaborate sequence that is played regularly (a ‘bank’ shot).
By now it’s one of the absolutely central anime archetypes, one people are likely to recognise even if they’ve never watched a magical girl show. It’s been parodied, it’s been genderflipped, it’s spun off a dark otaku-oriented variant.
But it wasn’t always so! Everything must begin somewhere. Very quickly reeling this off then... Osamu Tezuka’s 1953 manga Princess Knight is seen as the earliest proto-magical-girl work; Himitsu no Akko-chan (1962-5) as the earliest true magical girl manga with the elements of the genre, and 1966′s Sally the Witch as the big populariser. In the 70s, Toei started producing them in a big way, known collectively as 魔女っ子 majokko series (‘little witch’).
The actual phrase 魔法少女 mahō shōjo was introduced in 1980 with 魔法少女ララベル Mahō Shōjo Lalabel. With the economic bubble in full swing, other studios started to join the party - notably AshiPro with Minky Momo, and Pierrot, the studio behind epoch-defining megahit Urusei Yatsura, who entered the arena with Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel (1983-4). Why is she creamy? I don’t know, but that’s her stage name as an idol; the manga was designed to promote an actual idol singer Takako Ōta. This business model proved wildly successful, and even today anime production committees usually include record companies who use the show as a vehicle to promote a song or group. Toei no longer had exclusive hold on the matter of girls, magical.
Tumblr media
Visually here we’re seeing 80s-style bishōjo, the same as over the fence in sci-fi series such as Macross. Mostly the stories are comedies, following in the footsteps of Urusei Yatsura.
What was missing from the formula at this point? Surprisingly, the henshin sequences! It’s not that magical girls didn’t transform, but they would be more likely to transform into something like an aged-up version of themselves, and the act of transformation wouldn’t be given the same importance. This final ingredient was to be found over in tokusatsu land - Kamen Rider and Super Sentai.
So, that’s where Sailor Moon came in at the beginning of the 90s - first a wildly successful manga by Naoko Takeuchi, and in very short order a TV series at Toei. Takeuchi came up with the idea of fusing the magical girls with sentai: instead of a motorbike-like Rider suit, the girls would get sailor fuku. And that means every magical girl transformation is in a sense a homage to this one.
youtube
Sailor Moon tells the story of a girl called Usagi. She’s a clumsy and forgetful audience-identification character - perhaps even to point of being a Huineng-type character? - but she’s informed by a talking cat that she’s the guardian of Earth, soon to be joined by a number of other girls from her area who are, collectively, the Sailor Guardians (セーラー戦士 sērā senshi). To fight, she activates a magical brooch and, that ^ happens.
Why? Well, the Dark Kingdom is invading! They want to free the villainous Queen Metaria. In past lives the Sailor Guardians fought those guys, and now they need to get back on the job. The forces of the Dark Kingdom (and numerous subsequent enemy factions) arrive in the form of a series of themed villains, much like the villains in a tokusatsu show. Outside of fighting those guys, it’s gentle comedy with a large cast, not so far from the works of Rumiko Takahashi. In fact it’s apparently a fair bit more comedic in tone than the manga, and a chunk of that can be credited to Ikuhara’s influence.
It’s hard to try and summarise the 90s for anime, it wasn’t just one thing. Even as the economic bubble popped, the movies got increasingly ambitious, reaching for more complex emotions and darker themes with incredibly complex animation to match. And to a certain extent, that was also true on TV, by which I mean “Evangelion happened”. But it was also an age of a return to more limited animation. If you wanted to make a TV anime, you had to be smart about using all the tools you could to cut corners. You could keep a bank of reused shots, or for a joke, transform a character into a much simpler caricatured design with more limited animation. At the same time, photography was getting more advanced, and animation techniques were getting more sophisticated.
Even so, a lot of the credit for the art of working effectively in limited animation goes way back to Osamu Dezaki, who back in the 60s and 70s established many of the iconic ‘anime’ techniques. I’ve written about him before back on Animation Night 95, but as much as that covers the history, it doesn’t say a lot about Dezaki’s style. So let me pull in this video, which will helpfully illustrate the important examples...
youtube
The relevant period is when Dezaki directed on Aim for the Ace! (エースをねらえ! Ēsu o Nerae!) - where, in contrast to his earlier work which was comparatively cinematic, he started to push in a more theatrical, abstracted direction, prioritising conveying emotion over realism. Still frames (with the famous ‘postcard memory’ effect), simplified background details framed to draw attention to the important stuff, repeating an important shot multiple times - oh, that’s just Utena, huh? And while Dezaki influenced just about everyone, but for Ikuhara, he’s a massive touchpoint.
Designs were also changing - in contrast to the rounded bishōjo of the 80s came more angular and blocky designs. Take Slayers for example:
Tumblr media
Hold onto that thought because we’re going to talk about Utena in a minute. Sailor Moon didn’t go quite that far, but Kazuko Tadano’s designs were very effective in conveying a lot of appeal in quite simple shapes. Usagi in particular has an instantly recognisable hairstyle. But it’s also a style very amenable to simplification.
Tumblr media
TV anime in this period ran long. Nowadays, the norm is one cours (‘cour’ if you’re not feeling pedantic) of 12-13 episodes, sometimes not even that. Back then you could easily see counts in the 50s or even hundreds. Such is true of Sailor Moon: crazy popular in both Japan and, in its heavily localised dub, America, and with a premise flexible enough to run for years. In the end it racked up some 200 episodes and several movies.
The Ikuhara period starts with the Sailor Moon R movie in 1993, then the series proper starting mid Sailor Moon R and then Sailor Moon S in 1994. Not sure which episode he took over, but S begins at 90. This is a post about Ikuhara (no, really!) so we should ask, how did Sailor Moon change once he took the reins? Let’s have a look at some of his favourite themes, as they appear in the Sailor Moon R movie, based on his own notes...
Tumblr media
Lesbians - Not so much in the R movie, but once S gets going... big controversy! Sailors Uranus and Neptune were a couple whose dynamic was one of the most popular in the show, but this would be heavily censored in nearly every localisation, notably the American one which made them cousins.
Flower imagery - Ikuhara decided to set his first project as director in a botanical garden, naturally.
Lost connections, the distance between people - to quote the linked blog...
Ikuhara compares the reunion between Fiore and Mamoru with that of being stuck on a train in-between stations when suddenly you notice you’re standing next to an old friend you haven’t seen in years.
At first you’re both excited to see each other again and kill the time by catching up on each other’s lives. But eventually you run out of things to say, and the conversation just kind of dies off, leaving you both standing there in awkward silence.
Creative editing, use of music - 18 second long scene of Tuxedo Mask getting stabbed? Musically timed fight? Mm.
Darker themes - let’s watch the girls incinerate a field of flower monsters! At one point Usagi would nearly die! Ikuhara tried to keep it ‘fun’ and lighthearted, but just couldn’t do it, he says. Nothing on the level of where his later work would go, but definitely harsher than your average episode.
Vaguely hinting that some element is key to understanding everything, and then refusing to elaborate further - oh yes.
Tumblr media
Which isn’t to say that Ikuhara’s Sailor Moon instantly became Utena. Rather, the seeds of his interests as a director, the sort of emotional arcs he’d like to portray, were there. I regret that I can’t really comment in much detail on what Ikuhara did in his actual run on the TV series - I’m sure I have some big Sailor Moon fans here who could fill me in and tell me if I’ve described anything wrong.
Working on Sailor Moon, in any case, also got Ikuhara used to technical elements that would become part of his stylistic fingerprint. We mentioned the transformation sequence, the elaborate bank shot with accompanying music that would recur in nearly every episode. I am less sure about other Dezaki-esque elements, like jokes based on repeating the same sequence with minor variations.
Eventually, Ikuhara’s run on Sailor Moon would come to an end. The final arc of the show saw the Sailor Guardians facing... themselves, from a distant bad future. But for that final season, Ikuhara had already stepped down. Where did he go...?
You see, Ikuhara chafed under the creative restrictions placed on him by Toei. Turning down an offer from Anno to work on Eva(!), he set off to found his own group, Be-Papas, along with...
the famous shōjo manga artist Chiho Saito, animator Shinya Hasegawa, writer Yōji Enokido, and producer Yuuichiro Okuro
and before long also recruiting composer J.A. Seazer, known for his work with avant-garde dramatist-filmmaker-writer-poet Shūji Terayama - another big influence on Ikuni, incidentally. What did Be-Papas make? Just one anime, after which they disbanded. That anime was... Albert Ei-
youtube
That anime was Utena.
Oh man. This is the one.
少女革命ウテナ - Shōjo Kakumei Utena. In English, Revolutionary Girl Utena. Now the time has finally come to write about it, I’m nervous. Could I possibly do justice to Utena in a single blog post? Is that why I spent so long writing about Sailor Moon?
Let’s start with the aesthetic: French Revolution-esque outfits that would be comfortable in Rose of Versailles. A school made of white stone; architecture that is strange, avant-garde. Roses. So many roses oh my fucking god. It draws heavily on the Takarazuka Revue, which I wrote about previously on Animation Night 92 in the context of Ikuhara’s protege Tomohiro Furukawa.
Utena is about a girl called (wait for it) Utena, who attends a school of sorts called Ohtori Academy. But it’s a school only in a fairly abstract sense - it’s more like a palace. She wears a distinctive masculine uniform, and shortly after transferring in, discovers a mysterious underground duelling society who go to a strange abstract battle arena outside of school hours. There, they attempt to strike the rose from the other duellist. The winner of the duel gains custody of Anthy Himemiya, the ‘Rose Bride’. At some point, whoever possesses Anthy will gain the nebulous power to ‘revolutionise the world’. With me so far?
Tumblr media
Utena walks in and immediately wins her first duel, establishing an initially frosty relationship with Anthy. But the White Rose duellists won’t take this lying down. Over the first series of episodes, we learn about each of the duellists and their motivating conflicts, culminating in an attempt to defeat Utena. (She walks up the stairs every time.) They lose every time, but the point isn’t really about whether Utena will win or not - it’s about introducing us to a collection of fucked up guys, and then making them even more fucked up.
But it’s not all high drama. A lot of Utena is just straight-up antics, which is to say, just about any time Nanami is on the screen. There’s a greek chorus of shadow girls who comment on the events of the episode. The broad strokes are hard to miss, but the subtler, more obtuse stuff is the sort of thing that can get you into an almost endless rabbit hole of analysis. Don’t take things too literally! You could probably call it at least a little Brechtian in how much it foregrounds its own artifice.
After Utena’s defeated just about everyone at the White Rose, the Black Rose arc introduces a new element. Now, characters from beyond the duelling circle will go down an elevator to guy who renders a fucked up sort of anti-therapy which will motivate them give into their worst impulses and have a go at Utena. Utena, meanwhile, is harbouring a complex where she needs to live up to an ideal of fairytale prince following an incident from her childhood -  and oblivious to what’s actually going on with Anthy.
Then at last Anthy’s brother Akio shows up - the actual prince from the upside-down castle in the sky that represents the power to revolutionise the world, and the architect of the monstrous system. It turns out he’s been incesting Anthy, that she’s complicit in all his shenanigans (guess who was behind the Black Rose thing). Moreover, Utena is pulled in to Akio’s orbit, an ugly, abusive relationship... that is conveyed mostly through visual metaphors involving cars.
The finale is... complicated to explain. But it gives us one of the most iconic pieces of cinematic lesbianism ever animated, as Utena reaches for Anthy, refusing to be pushed away (by stabbing) or let Anthy remain in her state of self-inflicted pain, and they are able to escape the academy and its system, at the cost of being separated. What future they have outside the academy is left unspoken...
Tumblr media
And that’s just scratching the surface. If you ask the hardcore Utena fan, just about every element of every shot is dripping with meaning. You can’t take everything too literally, but you definitely have to take some portion of it literally or you don’t have a story and characters at all.
Visually, the characters in Utena are designed by Shinya Hasegawa - and as much as they are recognisably ‘90s’, they really push it. People are long and faces - noses and chins especially - are pointy. Characters tend to be reserved and stoic in their facial expressions, unless they’re Nanami, in which case all bets are off. Animation-wise, JC Staff did the work under Be-Papas’s direction - and as much as it uses limited animation for effect, it’s really got the goods, especially in the duel sequences and the bank shots (Utena climbing the stairs? Not CG!).
Did you know Yoh Yoshinari was on it? I didn’t until today! So too was Mamoru Hosoda.
Remarkably for such a deliberately challenging show Utena was pretty successful! This was the era between Eva and Lain: it was an excellent time to be making something really experimental and push those genre boundaries. (One thing I don’t really know is how Utena got funded in the first place, but all the big names attached to the project probably gave them some pull.)
Tumblr media
Alongside the anime came a manga by Saito - but neither is really an adaptation of the other, they’re just two different interpretations of the same general concept and premise, produced at the same time. And in fact, Ikuhara and Saito clashed heavily over the direction of the series, particularly in regards to whether the relationship between Utena and Anthy should be presented as romantic. Saito did not believe that shōjo audiences would be on board with the yuri, but Ikuhara refused to back down. (Saito eventually changed her mind.)
With all this success, they went ahead to make a movie. Now, usually a compilation movie of a successful TV series will cut out down the story to fit the runtime, reanimate a few scenes and call it a day. But this would be all but impossible with Utena, which is so tied to its episodic structure and use of repetition. And in any case, Be-Papas had bigger ambitions!
The film would be titled 少女革命ウテナ アドゥレセンス黙示録 Shōjo Kakumei Utena: Aduresensu Mokushiroku, literally Revolutionary Girl Utena: Adolescence Apocalypse, though in English it’s usually given the shorter title Adolescence of Utena. It is kinda sorta a condensed version of the series at first... and then in the latter half it goes completely off the rails. This time Akio is long dead. And he’s not the only one! It ends with this absolutely nuts sequence where Utena turns into a car to drive Anthy out of the academy, pursued by Shiori, who also turns into a car. I still can’t say I really understand it, or how it relates to the ‘car is a rape metaphor’ role in the TV series? But it looks beautiful.
Tumblr media
Compared to the series, the movie features the expected higher drawing counts and flashier animation... but the really novel aspect is the architecture. This movie goes absolutely wild with it: the Ohtori Academy this time is far stranger and more intricate, looking less like a regular old European palace and more like something dreamed up by the Russian avant-garde.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
It’s less of a summary of Utena and more of a companion piece. Seen on its own by someone who’s not familiar with either... I’m not sure how it would come across! Maybe you’ll just think I’m insane. Maybe you’ll be right.
So, some 3000 words into this post, I’ve finally told you the first movie we’ll be watching! That’s right: we’re going to jump in at the deep end and enjoy Adolescence of Utena. You don’t need to have seen the series.
After Adolescence, Be-Papas disbanded, as if following Monsieur Dupont’s injunction that radical groups must exist for a single purpose and then disband. Ikuhara left anime for a long time, like twelve years. He wasn’t entirely cut out from the industry, occasionally dropping in to storyboard an episode or two (for example, Episode 2 of Diebuster, or the OP to yuri series Aoi Hana). But for the most part, he turned his attentions to other mediums.
In that time he published a shōjo manga, which was poorly received for being a lot more conventional than Utena; he also wrote a novel called Schell Bullet which, get a load of this...
As a result of gene manipulation, society is segregated by genes into "Majors" – intersex humans who maintain a monopoly on stronger genetic material – and lesser dual-sex "Minors". (Ikuhara stated that he chose to make the Majors intersex because he wished to create "a race which combines the good parts of both women and men."[1]) Protagonist Ors Break is hired by the intergalactic trading company Balt Liner Corporation to pilot a schell, a bio-organic mecha, by claiming to be a Major. When the truth of his Minor status is revealed, he comes to an agreement with his superior, a Major named Delbee Ibus, to continue working for the organization.[1][2]
...and another serial novel called Nokomono to Hanayome, described as ‘Lolita hardboiled’ (I believe as in ‘Elegant Gothic’ rather than as in ‘Nabokov’s novel’). This last was a precursor to Penguindrum - animal costumes, the a story about the 1995 Tokyo sarin gas attacks.
Tumblr media
In 2011, Ikuhara came back to anime. Why? And why did he leave in the first place? itsamystery.jpg. In any case, his new project was... Mawaru Penguindrum. It’s about, I guess you might say, the abandoned children of cultists who connect to a supernatural penguin being through a hat. But honestly it’s even tougher to attempt to summarise than Utena. There’s a “child broiler” involved. That’s just the start. And this post is already very long.
So, it’s time to split it. You’ll be able to read more about Penguindrum tomorrow (or later today, if you’re also staying up insanely late in the UK).
Animation Night 155, in its cosy new Sunday timeslot, will be running (if all goes according to plan) at 8pm UK time. That’s about 13 hours from the time of this post. The plan will be to watch Adolescence of Utena and the two movies of Re:cyle of the Penguindrum, for a total of about five and a half hours. (Sorry Sailor Moon fans! I’d really like to squeeze in the R movie too, but I underestimate how long Penguindrum is in movie form. We’ll find another day to do Sailor Moon though!)
If you’ve read all this so far, thanks so much! I’ve wanted to do a proper Animation Night on Ikuhara for ages, and there’s so much I can write about. So far it’s all history, but we wanna do some analysis too. For now... hold on tight.
94 notes · View notes
bunnzi-bunny2 · 8 months
Text
Tumblr media
Sound asleep [part 1]
Bunny!Izuku x Reader
Categories: sfw, fluff, heartwarming, slight angst, gender-neutral reader pov (so no gender conforming terms)
Contents: spooning, kissing, sleeptalking, cuddling, nesting, heat cycle
Warnings: this version of bunny!izuku is what I will call Anthro. His body shape and all that is human, but he also looks like a rabbit. Think of it like beastars! Also, he’s an english lop!
Terms: “Blank sneeze” is a term used for when someone performs a sneezing motion without actually sneezing. “Binky” is when a bunny jumps in the air and flops it’s ears and legs in a fit of happiness or excitement. “Murphy’s law”- if anything can go wrong, it will go wrong.
Edit: hey, side note here, i said it in the comments aswell, but the “spooning” and “kissing” tag will make its debut in part 2 and the sleeptalking tag will appear as more than just mumbles.
(Not exactly proofread)
Word count: 2000+ (I REALLY felt this one)
Every night was always the same routine. The both of you would have dinner, watch an old movie or tv show, then fall asleep together on the couch. Most of the time, you’d end up carrying the lil bun to bed, but tonight was different.
There you’d lay, fast asleep against his fluffy, shirtless chest, his strong arms wrapped loosely around your resting figure. The movie the both of you were watching has ended and darkness began to enshroud the living room as the screen fades to black. The TV proceeded to display similar movies as it had always done, this time however, you shifted ontop of Izuku, only to hit the controller with your foot. Izuku jolted awake by the sound of the Netflix gong, his heart racing after the startle as he tried to comprehend his surroundings. He stills his breathing when he realizes you’ve fallen asleep on top of him, he’s staying as quiet as possible as to not wake you.
Izuku sighed. “Puppy…” He moved to retrieve the controller from under your heel, holding his breath as he gently lifts your leg. One wrong move and you’d be awake. Holding down the home button, Izuku turns off the console and then the TV, making sure to be as quiet as he can. Izuku is always so careful to not wake you up, he knows how difficult it is for you to fall back asleep, even when he’s by your side. Carefully, Izuku moves you into a position that makes it easier to pick you up. Your content sighs and mumbles have the bunny’s heart swooning. He can’t get enough of you. He traces his eyes all over you as he carries you to the bedroom. Your soft hair, your rising chest with every breath you take, your delicate gaze looking up at him, your- WAIT- your gaze? Izuku’s cheeks redden as he comes to realize that you’re awake.
“Mmmn… ‘zuku?” You mumble your beloved rabbit’s name while nuzzling into his chest. You placed your ear over his heart to listen to it beat.
“Yeah? What’s up puppy?” Izuku’s face softened into a lovestruck expression as his delicate ears picked up your sleepy voice.
“What time ‘s it?” Your words slip before you can think about what you’re saying.
Izuku looks at the clock in the kitchen, stiffling a chuckle when he sees the time reads ‘3:05am’. “It’s 3 in the morning puppy, in other words, super late.” He only smiled as you groaned at the cold draft that swept through the hall. “I think we left a window open, d’you want me to close it now? Or do you want me to tuck you in first honeybun?” Izuku awaited your response.
You’d only stare in awe. “A new name?” You whispered.
“Oh! Sorry, I thought you’d like that name.” Izuku’s ears twitched in regret.
“No! No, I love it.” You huff out distractedly. Izuku looked down at you only to see that starstruck look in your eyes.
“Woah….” Izuku’s lips form a small smirk. “You must really like that one.”
“I do, I really do.” You peck a kiss at his twitching nose, only for him to blank sneeze out of reflex. You giggle at his silliness.
“It’s not funny!” The fuzzy bunny pouted. His cheeks puffed as he stuck his tongue out at you, the fur of his cheeks bristling slightly with the movement.
You move your arms to wrap around his neck, remnants of his shedding summer coat stuck to your arm with static. “You’re shedding so much this year, are you gonna fill another pillow this time?” You coo jokingly.
“Only if you use that deshedding brush.” Izuku replied, turning around and using his butt to push open the bedroom door.
“You can put me down if you want, ‘zuku.” You moved your legs, ready to be let down, but he only pulls you closer.
“mm mnn.” Izuku shook his head in protest. “Not yet.” Using blackwhip, he pulls back the sheets on your side of the bed.
“You’re really tucking me in, aren’t you?” Your tone was soft and sweet, stirring his heartstrings into pure fluff.
Midoriya gave a slight binky in response, only raising his heels instead of jumping. He truely adored you and every word you said to him. He places you down on the soft mattress, the sheets were mint green with a slightly darker floral pattern fading across the top and stopping at the seams. They were the ones Inko made for you as a “welcome to the family” gift. Izuku proceeds to pull the heated blanket over the sheets and gave you a look asking if you want him to turn it on. You gesture a nod and he proceeds to turn on the blanket, pulling it up and over your chest, resting it at your shoulders. He pecks a kiss at your forehead before he walks to the dresser to change.
About 20 minutes later, you finally muster up some words out with a yawn. “Did ya find something comfy yet? Or are ya gonna make me sleep alone tonight?” Your sleepy lids raise just enough to peer over the sheets, only to find that Izuku has made a nest out of yours and his shorts and sweatpants. Your heart sinks a bit. It wasn’t that time… was it? That’s only supposed to happen in spring right? Even though he was on suppressants, it still didn’t stop his nesting habbits or increased appetite. You remember the pamphlet of side effects that were at the bottom of the box. ‘Irregular cycles may occur. If cycles do not regulate within 2 years of taking, stop taking and call a doctor immediately.’ Izuku’s cycles were mostly normal, the only ‘irregular cycle’ was 3 years ago when his cycle didn’t come till late summer. You stumble out of bed and walk over to the whimpering bun. “Hey, are you alright?” You press a hand to his forehead and he melts. “Good lord! You’re practically molten!” Your worries rise as you try to think of a way to comfort him.
“They couldn’t get my suppressants in this year.” Tears pricked at his eyes. “They said I’d have to tough this one out. ‘Nd now I’ve got two in one year…” his burning cheeks seared his tears before they could even leave his eyes. “What am I gonna do? I can’t be around you when I’m like this!” His mind began to panic, horrid thoughts of him losing himself and hurting you took over his Murphy’s law-coded brain.
“No, it’s okay! I’m going to help you through this, just come to bed with me.” You reach a hand out for him but he only slaps it away.
“NO! I COULD HURT YOU!” He shouted in panic. You jump at his sudden outburst and began to tear up. Upon realizing his volume, he shoots up from his messy pile and reaches over to you. “W-wait, I-I didn’t… I didn’t mean to..” he sniffled
“s..stay back…” you instinctively whispered under your breath. You prayed he didn’t hear you say that but the mortified look on his face told you otherwise.
Izuku backed away and curled into a ball of regret, sobbing and crying out about how sorry he is. “I’m a monster.” He mutters out in hiccups.
“No you’re not! What you are is my everything Izuku!” Dispite having been yelled at, you reach out to him again, you sit on your knees and start to stroke his ears. “Even if we scare each other, yell at each other, get angry… it’s all part of being together.” You tried your damdest to soothe him. You place an arm around him and lean against him, his sweat causing his shedding fur to stick to you like macaroni art. “It’s okay, we all have overwhelming moments, it’s nothing new sweetie.” You smothered his arm in kisses until he unhid his tear-stained face. “Listen,” You cup his face with your free hand, your other arm still holding him close. “I understand how you feel, I get that way too.” You smile at him. “You think of something that scares you, then you try by extreme measures to make sure it doesn’t happen. Even when it’s something as silly as your heat cycle.”
“B-but-“ You cut him off with a kiss before he can even speak.
“But nothing. If you were going to hurt me, you would have done so already. Look at me, look at you… you’re fine. We’re fine.” You sit him up and pull the puddle of bunny into your arms. “Hey,” you say as you wipe his tears away. “Let’s go make a nest on the bed instead.”
“What about this mess?” He questions. His arms snaking around your torso.
“Leave it. We’ll deal with it tomorrow.” You sigh, lifting your small ball of panic into your arms bridal style, carrying him over to the bed. He can only muster a slight shaky sigh into the crook of your neck in response. You lay him in his side of the bed, making sure to leave the sheets and covers off of him so he doesn’t explode. With a peck on the lips, you leave his side once more just to grab a thin pair of shorts for him. “Here, you may be made of lava but even volcanoes are covered with at least something.” You snickered, walking over to his side. Instead of grabbing the shorts, he grabs you instead.
“You’re not afraid of me? Even if I do lose control… you won’t be afraid?” He muttered, nuzzling his face against your ice cold (to him) thighs.
“Not at all.” You brushed his hair out of his face. “At the end of the day, no matter what happens, you’ll always be my bunny.” You boop his nose on the last word. Izuku nuzzles you again in response, mumbling something about not deserving you. “Cmon, lemme get to my side of the bed before I collapse and leave you helpless.” You tease with a yawn.
“Mmmnnn fineee.” The boy’s arm’s melted off of you, leaving you to go to your side of the bed. “We can still cuddle, right?”
“I thought you were burning up? This blanket along with your heat will just fry your veins!” You pouted at him.
“Forget the blanket, you’ve got me.” The bun flipped over and opened his sweaty arms. His eyes droopy and tired, look over to you with a pleading sheen.
You just sigh. “Wipe that sweat off with the sheets first.” You say as you ball up the sheets and throw them at him.
“Hey! Watch it!” Your bunny shouted. “You nearly hit me in the eye!” Izuku looked at you in playful disbelief.
“If you would have took a shower, you wouldn’t have this problem.” You throw your words at him as an extra blow to his ego. Wait… a shower… A SHOWER! A cold shower should cool him down!
“Puppy?” Izuku grew concerned as your face went blank and unresponsive to touch. “Puppyyyyy? You alright?” Again no response. Your internal monologue drowned him out completely.
“A SHOWER!” You jolt. Grabbing him at the shoulder and shaking him violently.
“GYAH!” Izuku froze from your sudden movement.
“Hang tight! I’ll be right back!” You scurried off into the master bath, leaving Izuku frozen, speechless, and even more confused than before.
A few minutes go by and he begins to grow curious, and warmer too. “Puppy? What’s going on?” He spoke as he rose out of bed. You didn’t respond. “Hey, could you answer me please?” He began to walk over to the bathroom. “Is there something you’re hiding from me?” He pushed aside the bamboo curtain he replaced the door with only to see you pouring ice into an already cold bath. You turn your head around and freeze in place, quite similarly to how Izuku had just a moment ago.
“Uuuhhhh….” You couldn’t muster up the words to explain. Your mouth just kept opening and closing like a fish out of water.
Izuku took one look at the water and it just clicked. “N-no explaination needed.” “I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t put on those shorts huh?” He walked over towards the bath and stepped in, purposely splashing some of the water on you, bringing you back to your senses.
“You got me all wet!” You shout, ringing out your T-shirt.
Izuku’s dirty mind took over. “Heh, wouldn’t be the first time.” He smirked.
“Uht-! You dirty little!” You poured more ice straight over his groin and he jolted with a yelp. “You get what you deserve!” You snap, still a little upset that he got your favorite shirt wet.
With a shivering jaw, Izuku sinks into the water with embarrassment. “S..sorry puppy… I wasn’t thinking… but it’s still your fault for scaring me like that!” A sheepish yet nervous smile plastered across his cooling face.
“Did I hear you correctly? You said more ice?” Your expression grew plain and devilish as you grabbed another bag of ice.
“NO! NO, NO! PLEASE! IT’S COLD ENOU-” He’s cut off by a high pitched squeal as you pour the ice right over his head. His nose began to twitch sporadically as his body became over encumbered with ice cold pins and needles. “I….I’m gonna get out now….” He stuttered out, growing fearful of your next move.
“Did you learn your lesson?” You flash a look at him.
“Y-yes Y/N.” He jolted.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.” You glare into his faltering expression.
“I said.” He grabs your hand and pulls it in for a kiss. “Yes, Y/N.” His eyes shoot back a fighting glare.
Surprised by his actions, you waiver. “You win ‘Zuku…” Your face falters into a soft smile. “I’m done playing this charade, I hate seeing your nose twitch like that…” You stand up and reach a hand out to him. “Let’s get you outta there.” He accepts your hand, not saying a word. Only lending you a smile. His eyes grew quiet. “Umm, ‘Zuku?” You grow worried. He steps out and stumbles into you a bit. “Woah! Baby?”
“‘M okay…. Jus…. Just stood up to fast.” He put a hand to his head.
“Ugh, c’mon, we’ve already done more than our fair share of scaring eachother tonight.” You chuckle.
“Hey, you said it yourself, even if we scare eachother, it’s all part of being together.” He lifted his head and smiled at you.
“Need a towel?” You ask.
Izuku looked down at his sopping figure. “Uhh… yeah… I could use one.” He couldn’t help but laugh at himself. You come closer to him and wrap the towel around him in an embrace. Even though he’s not burning up anymore, he melts into your touch all the same.
45 notes · View notes
revindicatedbyhistory · 8 months
Text
ok i had thought of it before but i hadnt voiced it because i wanted to give the moffat era the benefit of the doubt but it´s been two seasons so i gotta say i do feel like this show´s politics do get worse compared to the RTD era lol
i mean literally any time they talk about gay people is as a joke, which even if not homophobic per se starts to feel kinda mean spirited (while the representation in the RTD era might not be always what we´d consider great in our modern day it was the mid 2000´s, and at least jack got taken seriously. also RTD is actually gay)
and uh there are literally no nonwhite characters who are relevant? or relevant outside one episode
and the treatment of women is uh. well amy is only a character with Writing sometimes, female characters begin to feel sexualized, and moffat is obviously really horny for his girlboss archetype thing
and well by now i think the whole class/capitalism theme has switched to being a much more typical "sometimes some rich people suck" thing. which is not awful on its own i guess but i do feel it´s less interesting than what we had back in season 1
(i know some of my points get changed later but this is my perspective from my point where im at ok. i think 2 fulls seasons of a tv show are enough to make a judgment)
25 notes · View notes