#which they should because its a banger but also. only if prepared

[n7punk]

candy store still slaps so fucking hard

[the-cooler-king]

Oh yeah..... midnight gospel be hitting.... sitting in my bed fuckin. Crying. Get a grip girl

[pb-dot]

Film Friday: A Quiet Place

This week's movie is another favorite of mine, the 2018 horror/thriller about a family eking out a living in the shadow of an apocalypse where alien invaders hunting by sound have functionally made the Earth their hunting grounds. It's a movie that is frequently spoken of in terms of the "gotta be quiet"-gimmick and the logic of its worldbuilding, but I feel like considerably less attention has been paid to the story and the characters, and that really is a shame. I hope to remedy this in whatever small way I can. As usual, here be spoilers. If you care about the review part this movie is an absolute stone-cold banger and everyone should watch it. The exact reasons why I think this follow below the cut.

Lee and Evelyn Abbot are managing the post-apocalypse just about as good as one can expect. This despite the grief from losing their youngest, Beau, to the kind of tragedy that strikes unexpectably yet inevitably. The family's two older children, Reagan, who is deaf, and the nervous Marcus struggle with grief and the constant pressure of having to live a life in silent mode. Meanwhile, Lee and Evelyn are, perhaps unsurprisingly, mostly concerned with preparations for Evelyn's pregnancy to come to term, since completing a birth and nursing a child through its early days without producing much sound is a challenge indeed.

A Quiet Place builds a compelling day-to-day setting, showing the various measures the Abbots have taken to keep themselves silent and safe. Lee in particular have been tracking the local alien hunter population as he can without endangering himself or his family, and he keeps a keen ear on the radio waves, just in case his family aren't the only one who made it.

The peril in A Quiet Place is interesting to me because while part of it is the quiet the Abbots have to live under on pain of death, it is not the only thing ratcheting up the tension. A Quiet Place knows that the way things go wrong in situations like these aren't big and showy, it is disaster building up by inches, rounding errors in otherwise perfectly serviceable plans adding up no matter how careful you are. You're only human, and to err is so incredibly, incredibly human. The entire movie serves, from a tension perspective, to set up the final sequence, where enough things that were planned for go just wrong enough to land our heroes in hot water. It's not a grand disaster, it's not a new, more perceptive monster, it's just the right things happening at precisely the wrong time. Yeah, there are coincidences, some diabloi ex machina to complicate things, but the main thrust of the story isn't that these specific things would go wrong, but that eventually, enough wrong things would happen at once.

Before I go on to talk about the emotional core of the film, I should speak (not so) briefly on how language is used in the film. Seeing as Reagan was deaf also before the apocalypse, the Abbots are all proficient in ASL, which needless to say comes in handy in the "make noticeable sound outside and you're dead"-post apocalypse. However, what's subtly tragic is that the Abbots, sans Reagan, still have their most emotional talks in spoken English. While they all speak ASL, talking about their emotions, fears and hope all happen in spoken English, either in quarters so close that whispering is sufficient, or in the proximity of natural sources of noise, such as a waterfall.

This isn't done with any ill will towards Reagan, she isn't present for these conversations so it's not like they speak to exclude her, so it's more emblematic of how the family, particularly Lee, doesn't connect emotionally with his daughter on the same level as the rest of his family. This is, granted, a problem with many sources, as they both feel shame for not preventing the tragedy with Beau, the aforementioned language split, and there's probably some gender business in there too.

This isn't to say Lee doesn't love his daughter, but it seems like he is bad at expressing it. His repeated attempts at making a functioning hearing aid for her can be read as an attempt to bridge the gap. Similarly, I suspect that taking Marcus to the excursion to the waterfall and not Reagan is an attempt to "save" that trip with Reagan for the time when he has managed to construct a hearing aid good enough to allow her to hear him. Now, while I think this is an admirable instinct from Lee and that all of this comes from a place of love, it's also undeniably Lee's biggest character flaw. As it so happens, this flaw is also an integral part of the scene that takes this movie from Good to Great, namely Lee's last stand.

This scene starts near the tail end of a harrowing chase. Marcus and Reagan have found (temporary) safety from the monsters in a truck at the top of the hill. The Monsters are close, and even if Reagan were to disengage the handbrake and let the truck roll down the hill to the Abbot Farm proper, they would be out of the frying pan, into the fire. Enter Lee. He tries to fight the monster that threatens his children but is, put plainly, bodied. There isn't anything he can do for his children, he has failed them. Except, that's not entirely true.

Lee makes eye contact with Reagan, and, with large and intentional signs, signs to her what he should have told her before, what he should have told her every day in a million ways, in all the ways Reagan could understand it. "I love you. I have always loved you." With his final message to his daughter delivered, Lee Abbot does the last thing he'll ever do, the only thing he can do. He screams. A furious, terrified primal scream that has been brewing deep in his chest since the day Beau died, making DAMN sure that every monster within hearing range comes for him and him only.

The movie doesn't end on that, as there is some more business with Reagan finding out that feedback from her hearing aid is uncomfortable enough for the monsters for them to drop their guard long enough for Evelyn to blow it to smithereens, but the emotional climax of the story has passed. The storm has been weathered, and actor/director John Krasinski sends us home with a triumph and a hope for the future. It's perhaps a little cheesy, but after a tense, emotionally draining experience like the movie has been up to that point, it is a great coda to see Emily Blunt kick some ass with a shotgun.

A Quiet Place is one of those movies that I enjoyed upon first viewing for the sheer captive atmosphere of it, and while my esteem for it have only grown through the years, there's no denying the viewing experience is spectacular. The sound mixing is made with a focus on quiet and ambient sound, yes, but it also does a good job of filling the soundscape and make the silence feel tangible. Seeing this movie in a theater was one of my favorite movie going experiences, if nothing else for the collective sigh of relief once the credits rolled. I can't be sure in retrospect, but I think I didn't even hear people eating popcorn when the movie got going, it truly was captivating. I recommend A Quiet Place no matter where you get the chance to see it, but some sort of home theater setup (or a cinema if you happen to live close to one that shows anything but the current blockbusters) is surely the ideal way to watch this particular flick.

[blaqueswanzaghouliishiilikeda]

Lestat: You feel as if you’re dying, because you are.

this is when i knew i was hooked. this scene is so dark and so funny at the same time. both Jacob and Sam’s performance are so great. the disposal of the bodies and the horrifying reality of Louis not being properly prepared or informed about what it would be to accept this dark gif juxtaposed with the casual air with which Lestat disposes of the priests and fills Louis in on what he’s experiencing its just so good. i loved episode 1. but I think this is when i became obsessed, obsessed.

the high [tower] feeling of becoming an overpowered undead immortal being/companion to be followed by the groan of being an overpowered undead immortal life draining parasite on humanity

Lestat really wanted a partner in crime lol

Lestat: a pair of oak aged cabernet

an early thread of Lestat consuming blood like wine. a little moment here that has a bigger moment later.

Lestat said aht aht! no you won’t go after that hot sailor. and i agree i think he did a disservice to Louis’ transition 😅. definitely doesn’t understand that Louis sitting in hours of connecting with the man’s humanity was not the way. he has not been removed from humanity long enough.

also Lestat, i think, in trying to give Louis a vastly different experience with adapting to vampirism than he had, he loses sight of the fact that Louis is not alone left fending for himself and his survival having to accept that this is how he exists now in the way Lestat was, so overcompensating for his own experience is not going to help Louis. He really should have tried more to understand that Louis was not going to be able to accept killing like he did even tho yes he would eventually have to come to accept this new way of existing.

jacob managing to look so cute and hot and bored, and hungry, and horny and unsettling all behind those dilated contacts. who’s doing it like him?

Louis slurping on that spoon…soo unnecessary 😖

Sir you came all the way to their home, left the bar with two strange men to drink more and speak in private about farm equipment/tractors?? i mean i’m not convinced, but i won’t push the matter.

Lestat: No, you don’t bite the blood, you suck it!

another banger. 😂

Louis getting to a point where he refuses to make clear cut life choices i’ve said before can really be understood when you look at how his choices have come out of and led to so much trauma. He wants so badly to undo accepting the dark gift. he wants to go home, but home is not a place, but a different time and space altogether. one that’s already past. one he’ll never be able to reach again. one before this endless night began. one where Paul is still alive and he can stand to see the sun. only he’s about to face that he can never go back in the most brutal way ever. that he really can no longer stand in the sun and Paul is never coming back and he will always be an immortal monster forever more. [groooaaaaaaaannn]

obsessed with how turned on Lestat is by being shoved across the room!! he really can’t even hide it. he decides he’ll make up for letting louis face the sun without warning by getting naked later and possiblly giving him pleasures of the flesh in the coffin. they left that up to us to decide. i say they fu-

we ask about why tf Lestat wouldn’t have told him about the sun, but I think it falls in line with his strict/harsh approach to teaching his fledglings. like his harsh truth moment with Claudia later. this is his harsh truth moment with Louis. In both cases the boyfriend/husband/partner is burned.

Lestat carrying Louis up the stairs is kinda so cute. it’s a foreshadow that happens in the shadow. but yeah it’s cute with the underscore groan of why he needed to be carried in the first place. nothing exists in any one way. many things can be and are layered and true at the same time

i think lestat does have an awareness that desire and pleasure (he strips down and saunters about seductively) and the appeal of tenderness (“a vampire romance”) would make this easier for Louis. i think he does want Louis to have those experiences while adjusting to all this, but he wants to be the one who gives it and yet isn’t always the best person to give it seeing as how long he’s been removed from the full breath of humanity. so i do think it’s fair to say he let his insecurity about the sailor got in the way of what might have been a better experience for Louis.

and in 2022 Louis states that he felt rushed. though i’m not sure what kind of pace you can take when your survival depends on the life blood of humanity and you’ll die in the light of the sun if it touches you. [groooaaann]

iwtv ep 2 rewatch thoughts

the groan…a sound that comes from the building being at the height that it is makes you wonder if it should be that high. its obviously so loud it cant be ignored and it’s not a nice sound. sure it’s a rare experience to live in a place like that like just that image is rare and beautifully crafted but there’s something off about it that makes the building groan just like that rare work of being the work of Marius with Marius being who he is, which we’re reminded of by all of this being explained by Rashmand. Louis covets the rare experiences in life despite whatever groan comes with it like being a billionaire living in Dubai despite the groan of it being a city built by slave labor and the groan of his sexuality being condemned there and illegal and the groan of his own exploitation of others in the way he exists there (i.e the blood farm, the men who come and offer up their blood for pay). the groan of the excessiveness and extravagance of his meal with Daniel. the groan of fixed roles he insists upon (but does not truly exist as) in between him and Rashmand despite both claiming its for the best there’s a groan of something not being right a lack of true freedom to fully express. (an over correction to the roles of the past. a trauma response to choices made that led to disasters) The groan of Louis apologizing for shedding a single blood tear and calling it losing control. whether it’s his own doing, someone else’s or both he is not free to fully express he is not free to fully be. etc. etc. the rare has a jarring cost every time. like the rare experience of being an immortal vampire and the groan of losing your place in humanity.

this is the episode where Louis is at the height of his undead life/self expression/companionship/career but its always underscored by the groan of what it means to be an immortal monster/fledgling. something he can’t reconcile with. something he can’t ignore. his world has been opened to experience and express the full breath of who he is for better or for worse, but that is underscored with the groan of that freedom to be, being conditional to how he can or can’t live out his roles with his society and his family and the expectations that come with his role as Lestat’s fledgling/companion. it becomes more and more apparent that regardless of the fact that Lestat wanted to free him from all his hats, regardless of the fact that he probably meant it when he said it, he cant free Louis from everything. he never could. and he also actually isn’t able to relinquish control over their lives and the groaaaannnn of the fact that he will demand Louis to once again exist in a box he doesn’t fit/and doesn’t want to fit (strict gendered role). plus the groan of Lestat never understanding and often times disregarding the box Louis can’t escape and in some ways don’t want to leave behind (societal/racial). he enjoys the rare experience of being in a queer interracial relationship, the rare fact that people know but they get away with it because the power and access of wealth, status and being vampires but the groan of the fact that they have to hide elements of the truth to remain under the radar, the groan in the fact that in choosing a life with Lestat and the dark gift he can’t balance his life with his family and is slowly but surely isolated, ostracized and made a scapegoat in their eyes. the groan in the dubcon nature of that choice in the first place. he covets the rare experience of being a successful black-owned business in that time on that particular street and yet the groan of the success of his career being on the backs of the exploitation and labor of poor, disabled, black women. the groan of who he has to do business with and who he the clientele are. the groan, the groan, the groan. truly what is that sound!?

Daniel: Seven? How many courses are there? Fattening me up for the [groan] inevitable end?

the rare coursed meals given to Daniel are an experience of the fine dining that comes with Louis’ elitist lifestyle underscored by the groan of much of what he’s eating being endangered species in the same way he is an endangered human amongst vampires. (groaaan)

the groan of Louis consuming a rare blood type that could be being used as a necessary blood transfusion to save someone’s life but its being hoarded and consumed by a billionaire vampire with access to a private blood farm for his consumption and his consumption only. the groan of exasperation at Louis refusing to acknowledge this personal evil that calls back to what he knew to be true about himself as a human. he is the keeper of knowledge in this exchange leaning into that power he was once denied he is now unbound of his past strict role as the “hysterical wife” (and yet the underscoring groan of not allowing himself to show any emotion at all in all the ways he exists and expresses himself now)

memory being a monster both a rare over powered immortal monster and an endangered human share. the thread to humanity that Louis doesn’t have to fabricate.

i love the music eventually being a touch too loud.

[catalists]

Chrome’s shadowgast fic rec list, vol 1

Well, well, well, if it isn’t the consequences of my own obsession with wizards. I might make another one of these eventually if y’all keep churning out absolute bangers, but in the meantime, here is a list of my top Shadowgast fic recs.

One rule here: I’m limiting this to one fic per author--but many people on this list have a broader oeuvre you should definitely check out.

Your disclaimer: this is not a full literature review, but rather my personal favorites. Caveat lector!

* = fic is rated M or E

sleeping in the shadow of an other self by nonwal | @nonwal

Essek has a moment to consider that gravity-based trust exercises have never worked for him, and then the spell hits. He leans back into it, falls, falls.

(In which Essek is resurrected by the Mighty Nein and framed for innocence.)

Okay, listen. If you haven’t read it yet, you’re missing out. There’s a reason it’s at the top of the list. 30k of absolutely phenomenal characterization of not only Shadowgast but all the M9 and the coolest plot to ever plot. Not only a fantastic first read, but a phenomenal re-read as well.

multitudinous echoes awoke and died in the distance by mousecookie | @ariadne-mouse

Caleb takes a step forward and stumbles.  As he catches himself he realizes something very odd.  His hands are shadowy and translucent.  His whole body is a shadow, in fact.  If he holds his palm up to the sky, he can see the stars twinkling faintly through it.

Sharp talons of panic dig into his chest.  He feels solid - if he grabs his own wrist, he has mass, but it is wrong.  Everything is wrong.  What is happening?

Prepare Fireball, commands a voice in his head.  

The voice is familiar.  

It takes him a moment to realize it’s familiar because it’s his.

An absolutely fabulous pre-relationship fic, written before the end of the show but you wouldn’t know it from how perfectly it nails the dynamic. Ariadne has written a ton of other fabulous Shadowgast fics and I encourage you to read them all--I’m just limiting this list to one fic per author to try and cover more ground.

Great Minds by bluebirdsongs

Essek uses more high-level dunamancy in battle, and Caleb tries to reverse-engineer it when he can't sleep. AKA What if we were both wizards and I cast Tether Essence on us to save your life?

This is a gorgeous fic, both for how it handles Caleb and Essek’s conversation--with profound deftness--and for the treatment of magic-as-math. A beautiful exploration of both dunamancy and Caleb and Essek.

to make a cradle of your palm* by renquise

Essek offers Caleb his spellbook, open to the page of a new spell.

As Caleb suspected, his adaptation of Essek's gravity spell was different in its conception, for all that the result was the same. The architecture of this similar spell speaks of a different thought process, a different set of basic assumptions. It is beautifully engineered, efficient in its use of components and energy: a simple spell requiring only a length of silk thread and yet capable of reaching over a great distance and causing great damage, if applied with intent to harm.

“If you would like, you can, ah. You may—" Essek gestures at his own throat, a quick, inelegant spread of fingers. "Test the application of pressure that the spell exerts."

It takes Caleb a moment to register what Essek is proposing. He is a delicate speaker, as always.

Oh man, this one just goes for the jugular (ha) in the most perfect way. The prose here, like everything renquise writes, is absolutely masterful, and the tension between Caleb and Essek is exquisitely rendered.

fist-fighting with fire just to get close to you by kaeda | @the-kaedageist

Caleb caught Essek’s eye across the dome, and Essek returned his small smile. “It would seem that it is trickier than expected to keep things on a…private channel,” Essek thought at him.

“Unfortunately,” Caleb replied.

“Unfortunately for all of us,” Fjord interjected.

(Spoilers for campaign 2, episode 138)

Kate has a fabulous gift for getting the Mighty Nein’s voices exactly right, and this fic is no exception. This takes the hive mind/telepathy of the eyes to its hilarious, heart-warming, logical conclusion and it’s an absolute joy to read.

(perhaps i may) elaborate by demonstration* by marsastronomica | @marsastronomica

After the second fight, they rest again. There’s still time left in the day, and they may as well push as far as they can. Essek and Caleb find time between action to talk. And negotiate.

This one is an absolute banger. The flirting! The tension! The incredible intense game of chicken that Essek and Caleb are playing this whole fic...it’s amazing, you can hear the dialogue in their voices, this is another one that I read and then had to tell everyone about. And now I’m telling you about. Go read it, it kicks ass.

I’ve been lost before (and I’m lost again, I guess)* by toneofjoy

Caleb has plans to take down his old coaches. Essek has secrets. They climb rocks, make new friends, explore professional boundaries, learn about consequences, and maybe even fall in love. It’s the Shadowgast climbing AU.

AUs can be a tough sell for me, but this one’s not. Half the joy in this is the fabulously vivid world that is built by the author who absolutely knows the ins and outs of competitive climbing and expertly shares it with the reader. The other half is the beautiful growing relationship between Caleb and Essek, which is a consistent joy to read. It’s still a WIP, but I promise it’s worth reading along.

the other things that make us* by saturday_sky | @saturdaysky

Essek returns, when he can, to the sanctuary of Caleb's home. The peace of it is a balm against the tedious peril of the road, which has more misery to share than Essek had ever thought. It's nice to have a place where he can lose himself: in a book, in arcane study, in the confusing allure of Caleb's smile.

It's nice. And the cats miss him, Caleb says.

[First chapter is a complete story. Second chapter will be a follow-up epilogue to it.]

This one hurts in the best possible way. I can’t highlight my favorite bits without giving it away, but the emotional beats of this absolutely beautiful post-canon fic are top-notch and the reveal of information is perfectly executed.

darkness to me is only water to the sea by treeviality

Essek knows how his story ends. There is a place in Rexxentrum where executions are carried out, wooden steps leading up to a wooden platform. There hangs a noose, swaying lightly in northern wind, while polished cobblestones shine bright in golden light.  

There will be birds, Essek imagines, and when the lever is pulled and gravity takes hold of him one last time, he hopes they take flight.

This now-AU take on Essek being arrested is lyrical and beautiful and the author has a tremendous grasp of language and also how to rip your heart straight out of your chest and then gently replace it.

---

And, if you’re still looking for fic, I have a few, but one of my favorites is:

we never do go over (we always gotta go through) by Chrome

In the last fight with the Tombtakers, Essek Thelyss bends reality to keep them all alive and pays the price. As he copes with the aftereffects of his own magic and the party takes the long journey back to the surface, Essek and Caleb finally confront what they are to each other.

or,

Five times Essek woke up with level(s) of exhaustion and one time he didn't.

[thesims4blogger]

OFFICIAL BLOG: Harold Tours The Countryside in Cottage Living

The Sims team has released an official blog for The Sims 4 Cottage Living

I’m in Henford-on-Bagley!

Sul Sul… Is this how it goes? No matter. Hey there, it’s me, Harold the Llama, and before you go about wondering how a llama like myself managed to prepare a blog, I’ll have you know these nails have been trimmed to perfection to reveal the capable keyboard connoisseur that I am. But my motor skills are not what this is about! It’s about my charming home of Henford-on-Bagley.

Sim legends of old say that Henford-on-Bagley was created from the perfect mingling of earth and water… but I’m pretty sure some Sims loved the nearby Cordelia Falls and that the River Bagley runs through it in all of its glory. Hmmm, majestic.

Anywho, in order to get to know more about this charming village, we will have to visit all of its neighbourhoods. Our first stop is Finchwick, where the action happens!… Sort of… in a manner of speaking. Finchwick prides itself as a historically bustling and tight-knit community.

Finchwick is the home of the weekly – yes, weekly – fair in which locals put their skills to the test in creating the most sophisticated and delicious creations, such as pies, as well as show off their most prized animals *cough cough* myself included *cough cough* and oversized crops – trust me, the bigger the better – to be judged, as it is tradition, by the Mayor no less! Winning or just participation will get you a reward, but to be honest, it is all for bragging rights and what is better than bragging rights anyway, am I right?

This neighbourhood hosts the historic square which is also home to the busy marketplace – perfect if you love window shopping – and the village pub – ‘The Gnome’s Arms.’ The marketplace is where you’ll find Goldbloom’s Grocery Shop, home of the best produce! But don’t take it from me, try some yourself! I recommend their aubergines… that’s an eggplant for the non-locals.

Another iconic spot is the Crumplebottom’s Garden Shop, owned by Agatha Crumplebottom, and run by Agatha and Agnes! This shop will serve all of your gardening needs, as well as some extra things… not quite for gardening, but for enjoying nonetheless such as conserves and jams… mmm, jams. Now I want some crumpets and jam, the superior option to buttered crumpets – fight your chickens about it, not me. I should ask my keeper to make some… but who am I kidding, I can only eat feed for llamas (well, sometimes a treat) *sigh* A llama can dream after all. Just don’t tell Agatha if you make some, or she’ll send her gnomes to take them for sure as they are her favourites.

But, back to The Gnome! If you’re feeling quite curious or in need of a little drama for your llama, you can enter The Gnome’s Arms for a chance to listen in on the village’s gossip, history, and what is happening around it. Owned by the Scotts, Simon and Sara, this pub has been a dream come true, despite Simon running randomly into chickens – or me for that matter – along the way. This is where everyone knows everything about everyone, so take advantage of that as you visit! And their food is amazing, make sure to try their Bangers and Mash or their Beef Wellington; I hear it is fantastic. Enjoy the convivial mood by having a Henford Heart-to-Heart with or offering a Finchwick Favor to Sara, who should be minding the bar, for good measure. Sara can give you advice if you seek it, or maybe share some ghost stories if you want to know them.

If you’re in a helpful mood, you may also help Sims with village errands and learn more about their backgrounds, interests, and what they do around town! Or just for the good rewards, if that’s your bag.

Trotting along, we find Old New Henford. A fun piece of trivia for you all: it was originally named ‘Little Henford.’ However after some consideration, it was proposed that ‘New Henford’ would be better suited… more posh if you will. Unfortunately, there was a mishap with the national mapmakers and the town apparently ceased to exist for two whole weeks! Ha! Imagine that? Well, after that of course the town needed a new name and Old New Henford was picked, and here we are.

This part of the village is known for their lush estates, rolling hills, and their small – but beautiful – community garden. This neighbourhood used to be one giant property owned by the Watson family, who sold plots of it over the years. They still own a sizable estate perched at the top of the Olde Mill Hill – you can’t miss it.

You will find that this part of town is perfect to have a lot with a garden and space for livestock and oversized crops! You can always take notes as you stroll around the area and see how the townsfolk are doing with their gardens and plots.

Old New Henford is the perfect place for those that love animals like yours truly. In this neighbourhood you can find rabbits hopping about, wild birds you can sing to, and cheeky little foxen that you can befriend… but beware of their mischievous nature! They will want to surprise you and *mumbles* you’ll want to be sure your chickens are accounted for *mumbles.* This part of the town is also great for those who love to fish. Who knows, maybe someone finally will catch that wolf eel I keep hearing about.

You can even say that it is an idyllic place for a new start. Just ask Cecilia, one of our newest residents who moved in recently from the big city looking for a new life after having her heart broken. Now she shares her life with us living in a fab, refurbished barn. She loves keeping her garden, and her chickens! She is a lovely neighbour. I hope one day she finds true love. Unfortunately for Michael Bell, the local Creature Keeper, he is not her chosen one, but at least Cecilia has a long term commitment to all critters that visit for now.

Like Cecilia, if you welcome Wild Animals for visits, some can become your friends for life and even bring you gifts.

From the rolling hills of Old New Henford, we arrive at The Bramblewood.

The Bramblewood is the natural beauty of Henford-on-Bagley.These woods have a storybook-like aura that delights anyone who visits. It has long provided a picturesque place for many wild birds, rabbits, and foxen to call home, so you may find yourself among friends here including our friend Michael, our Creature Keeper, who roams the woods on most days caring for animals and plants.

It is truly a wonderful place, where you can forage Chocoberries and mushrooms, including nightcaps – some say that you can only find them at night… aptly named! The Bramblewood can be full of surprises, especially if you encounter the Isle of Volpe, named after Lord Volpe, founder of Finchwick. The Isle of Volpe is one of the most iconic hallmarks of Henford-on-Bagley, not only because of the history reflected on its ruins, but also because it is the most romantic spot in town. Generations of Sims remember their first kiss in the Isle of Volpe *love sigh*, so if you are coming with your sweetheart, you should spend some time there to experience its splendor. Just be careful not to disturb the Creature Keeper’s home. He is a gentle but private Sim.

But if romance is not something you fancy, head out for a bit of adventure and visit the Isle of Volpe Park. Run through the path that leads you to Sophie the Snail, who is always happy to take a picture. If it is calm and serenity you seek, be sure to spend some time visiting Cordelia Falls. In the end, wherever you spend your time in this part of town, it is said that the Bramblewood can change your life forever, and so far there have been no truer words to live by.

And so you see, my friend, whether you decide to come for a visit or move here to my humble countryside town, there is always something happening, something to do, something to dream about, but most importantly, know that we welcome you with open … erhm… feet!

We hope to see you soon!

Cheers!

[ohmystarsitisilegeek]

Someone has probably done this already but here are some of my ✨many✨ reasons that we need more Julie and the Phantoms seasons asap.

So here we go, in no particular order:

More absolute bangers (seriously I know every song by heart because they’re all amazing, and I need 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒)

More amazing outfits. Julie is a fashion goddess. (I think about the butterfly outfit at least twice a day) Not to mention the boys, Flynn, *cough cough* Willie’s sweater paws.

It’s my comfort show and it’s only 9 episodes and that’s tragic.

The friendships??? Are all??? So wholesome??? The boys have one the healthiest relationships I’ve ever seen teenage boys have in media. They’re all 17 and they love and support each other so much. They’re all so affectionate!!!! It’s amazing!!!! But they properly roast each other on a frequent basis too and I love it. Flynn and Julie?? My girl Flynn pretending to be the reasonable one even tho she was fully prepared to egg Julie’s window. They’re dynamic is amazing and the die hard support Flynn has for Julie is wonderful. Julie and the boys!! Oh my goodness. I’m pretty sure in every episode except ep.1, because they didn’t hear her play and sing until the very end, they all say how incredibly talented she is. Alex: “and idk, maybe tell her how amazing she is?” Reggie: “That girl has the voice of an Angel.” Luke: (I could list the many times Luke has said how amazing she is but) “You’re a star Julie.” I could go on about these friendships forever. And I want more.

Julie’s family dynamic!! Her and her dad have such a supportive relationship. He’s so proud of her all the time and the fact that he knows how important her band is to her and he never even considered taking that away even when he was mad that she snuck out. Carlos being the classic little brother with, “maybe a normal sister for starters” but also trying to help her when her dad found out she wasn’t in the music program anymore. Vowing to protect her from the ghosts (his heart was in the right place). The joy and love on both Carlos and Ray’s faces when they heard Julie singing again for the first time in a year!!!! I just love this tiny supportive and loving family.

The fact that I have so many unanswered questions. Why did Caleb go after Nick? How did Caleb get to where he is? (Because in You Got Nothing to Lose he mentions someone giving him an offer he can’t refuse and all the songs in the show are very foreshadowing and I want to know more about that) The boys say they were in a dark room until Julie played the CD, do all ghosts go through something like that?? Why did no time pass for them? Bobby?? Literally his whole backstory starting from the night the boys died, because something is going on here. Also we know how questioning Alex is about being a ghost but no one seems to question why Julie is the only one who can see them? They question how she can make them visible when they play, and how people can hear them otherwise, but for some reason no one seems to be wondering why she’s the only one who can see them??? IS THE TOUCHING THING PERMANENT??? PLEASE SAY YES. Pretty sure I have more questions but those are the only ones I can think of right now.

Obviously, 𝑜𝑏𝑣𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑙𝑦. More Juke content. I love them. They’re so precious. Not only their friendship, which is beautiful. The love? The support? The fact that Luke was essentially the one who got Julie to play music again with his speech in ep.1. The fact that they write music together all the time. “Luke and I spent the whole weekend writing songs together.” “I think you make me a better writer.” “I think we make each other better.” The 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡 heart eyes, like good lord they 𝑘𝑖𝑙𝑙 me. Everytime they sing with each other in the mic is beautiful and intense and very very close. The way they were carefully touching each other’s faces after that hug, the tears in their eyes, the happiness when they realized they could 𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑙 each other (Don’t touch me I’m crying). Guys I need more juke.

Y’all. The lighting, the choreography, the sets. They’re! All! So! Pretty! The way the sun comes up behind Julie when she sings Wake Up. The darkness of the Orpheum with the golden glitter backdrop as the boys show up. The dance number from I Got the Music. The Dirty Candy numbers. Don’t even get me started on Perfect Harmony, 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡. All the plants in Julie’s moms studio. The boys just walking the streets of LA. I want more pretty dance numbers guys.

So I think I’ve gone on longer than I should but there are so many reasons we need more Julie and the Phantoms you guys. So many. But I think the most important one is how this show has touched so many people with its beauty and music and message and let’s hope we get confirmation for season 2 soon 😌.

[eurosong]

Undo my ESC '21 (semi-final two)

Good afternoon folks, and welcome to the second part of Undo my ESC – my annual quest to make the year’s Eurovision better (at least, for me xD) by making a feasible change in each country – it could be something as small as altering a lyric or a staging detail, or as big as a different artist entirely winning the NF. Semi-final one was here so let's jump straight into SF2!

🇸🇲 San Marino: We're thrown into the deep end here with a fan fav that doesn't do at all for me. I'm one of maybe 5 people on the planet who prefers Freaky by far, I guess? I'm happy for Senhit to be getting so much love and for the diminutive serene republic to finally have a shot at a good result - but I'm not so keen on the way it's been done. There's a bit of cognitive dissonance for me because my favourite thing about Adrenalina is Flo Rida's rap, but I don't like the idea of bringing in famed American artists like "ringers" to elevate a song above one with "only" local talent. I would be so tempted to give the rap part to local artist IROL instead to spit some hot bars in Italian.

🇪🇪 Estonia: I had hope this year, I really did, for my era of absolutely adoring Estonia at ESC to be revived after 4 painful years. There were so many good songs at this year's Eesti Laul, like those of Ivo Linna, Egert, Gram of fun, Heleza - but ultimately, my huge favourite was, as expected, Jüri Pootsmann. Anyone who followed this blog back in 2016 knows how much I adore Jüri and was desperate to see him get a redemption arc at ESC itself. Magus melanhoolia was one of the best songs of the season for me and one of the best stagings. As much as I prefer '20 artists to get their shot in '21, problematic Uku with his toxic ex vibes song will have to step aside and let the Jüri renaissance happen here.

🇨🇿 Czechia: I really dig Benny Cristo - he has personality, presence and his own enjoyable style. At first I was kinda disappointed with Omaga because I was expecting something more in the vein of Kemama, with more pronounced Afrobeat influences. But it has grown on me a lot too. My change? Add more Czech than just one blink-and-you-miss-it line, mate! (Article continues below)

🇬🇷 Greece: I see this being talked up as potential televote top 3 and I just don't get it. Maybe it's the way the chorus rhymes dance with itself three times (and uses the term rockin' romance unironically); maybe it's the way that there are better 80s-inspired songs both in ESC and many fallen tributes in the NF season... it just leaves me cold. I actually preferred Supergirl and my change would be for Stefania to bring something with some actual Greek flair.

🇦🇹 Austria: I’ll echo what I said last year about Österreich – how did they go from Conchita to a guy who wished he wouldn’t have gay kids like this? I find both of this guy's songs insipid in different ways and I would invite Pænda back instead to avenge her getting robbed with the beautiful Limits. Or give a second shot at glory to the incredible Cesár!

🇵🇱 Poland: Unpopular opinion, but I absolutely love The Ride, and I feel bad for Alicja, but I much prefer it to Empires. What started as an ironic fondness for Rafał's cringy uncle vibes ended up being genuine appreciation - it's one of the few 80s-inspired songs that sound like they actually could have come out of that decade rather than like modern pastiches. And Raf actually does have an awkward charisma. My change - insert some Polish! Poland does so well with natural sounding bilingual efforts in JESC, they should bring it to the main contest too!

🇲🇩 Moldova: I was lowkey prepared to be disappointed by Moldova - I actually enjoyed Prison a lot and the news that they were going in a completely different direction didn't sit so well with me. And yet, I also love Sugar. Natalia's power! My changes: get rid of that weird scene with literally egg on her face - too on the nose for me. And incorporate a bit of the stellar Russian translation, Tuz bubi, because I'm always going to be advocating for more linguistic diversity xD

🇮🇸 Iceland: Daði Freyr can literally do no wrong with me. Whilst it doesn't have the same intense extra-fandom hype that Think about things did, I think I like Ten years even more. Nothing to change here.

🇷🇸 Serbia: It's no secret that Hurricane were far from my favourites at Beovizija 20, and that I find this a downgrade for Sanja compared to her powerful '16 song. And yet... Hasta la vista grew on me a lot, and so has Loco loco. It's something that is definitely scratching an itch at this year's ESC and the burst of anarchic energy it'll provide will be amazing. I am seriously tempted to change to the acoustic version, though, which has all the attitude of the original but is more beautiful for me and lets the girls' voices shine more.

🇬🇪 Georgia: Georgia keeps serving acquired tastes, and as a patron saint of marginal genres and I love them for that. This year, they've gone for something that even many fans of Tornike find hard to swallow - gone is the roaring rock of last year, replaced with a much more contemplative, soft effort that reminds me a little of Lou Reed. I enjoy both songs, but I can't deny preferring 2020. At the same time, I admire the chutzpah required to send something so different. I just wish there could be a moment to properly showcase T's powerhouse vocals.

🇦🇱 Albania: It was an odd Festival i këngës this year, outdoors in the freezing cold and without the orchestra that makes the songs soar so much more for me. Karma is a perfectly respectable winner, albeit one that lacks the immediacy and rawness of Shaj, Ktheju tokës and Mall. In my ideal alternate reälity, Arilena Ara would have been invited back. She'd bring a song as beautiful as Shaj - and not do a revamp into English that removes its edge this time.

🇵🇹 Portugal: 2015-2020 was a full on Portugal stan era for me. I want to believe that this year is an aberration and that in 2022, our lusitanian neighbours will produce the goods once again. Because ending a colossal streak of not sending songs that don't include Portuguese for this? I am baffled. I wanted the anthemic Joana do mar, produced beautifully by Luísa Sobral, or the timeless Contramão, which sounds like it escaped a Nouvelle Vague soundtrack. Saudade, Por um triz or a number of others would have been grand too.

🇧🇬 Bulgaria: I wasn't expecting much from Bulgaria - I really didn't and don't like TGS and the majority of songs in Victoria's NF-but-not-really aren't my cup of tea. I was happy she got her second chance, but resigned to not liking the song much that would get picked. And then, my fav, which was last in many community ratings, ended up being her pick. I adore GUIGO and believe it has the possibility to do very, very well at Rotterdam and be one of the 'moments' of the evening.

🇫🇮 Finland: CRIMINAL how YLE treated Aksel - it felt like he wasn't the defending champion, and that Erika Vikman had won the previous year. They also - I believe, deliberately - split his vote by making his just one of a number of ballads, so of course what stood out most were the two decidedly non-ballady songs. Finland only two years ago had a single-artist UMK. They could and should have brought it back for Aksel. I'd hope Hurt would win it, because that song is stunning.

🇱🇻 Latvia: I was, and am, delighted that Latvia stuck with Samanta Tina. The lady lives and breathes ESC, even wrote a university thesis about it, and if she tried so many times, finally won and then DIDN'T get to go to ESC, I would have gone to LTV headquarters personally to remonstrate. I really like both her songs. The moon is rising is poised, powerful and like nothing else this year. The only thing I'd change is adding some Latvian because it's a gorgeous language and we've been waiting for ages to hear it again.

🇨🇭 Switzerland: Gjon's song is once again not really my cup of tea, or tears - but I enjoy it better than last year's and I'm glad he's back. Highkey wish it did include Albanian or Romansch like confused commenters last year thought it did.

🇩🇰 Denmark: There is literally no excuse for Denmark's treatment of Ben & Tan. I'm not even a big fan of their music at all, out to not even allow them to compete in DMGP to defend their win with Iron heart? Even though there are songs that competed in DMGP that I prefer a lot, most notably Står lige her, I would probably have let them have a proper second chance.

And the automatic qualifiers voting in this semi -

🇫🇷 France: For me, France had an absolutely enthralling, sincere, perfectly Gallic entry that hit me so hard in the feels. And whilst I respect Voilà, no, that wasn't it. It was Pourvu qu'on m'aime, easily one of the best songs I heard all year inside NFs or out. I find Voilà a little too mannered and affected, whilst PQM is a shot straight from Juliette's heart into mine. In my dream, it'd have won CVQD and be receiving the same love that Voilà is right now.

🇪🇸 Spain: Whilst it is getting next to no love in the fandom and seems quite forgotten, I find Voy a quedarme one of the best songs sent from this country in several years - and I say that having preferred Memoria. I am proud of Blas and love that he had a hand in writing this song. My change? He said recently that the staging in Rotterdam won't be inspired by the poignant music video despite wanting it to be - I would incorporate elements from it in the live.

🇬🇧 United Kingdom: Frankly, I think almost all the Big 5+1 brought it this year, with the notable exception of Germany. Embers is the banger that I never thought was coming from James Newman, and it's been one of the biggest earworms of the season. I wouldn't change anything about it - I'd just ensure that the staging replicated the energy of the video as much as possible!

[queenofnohr]

Twisted Wonderland: Jade Leech Scary Outfit (SSR) - Voice Lines + Personal Story

Voice Lines

SSR Summoning Quote: For this long awaited day, I have prepared for you the finest quality horror. Summoning Line: I will do my utmost to ensure everyone has a wonderful Halloween. Groovy: The way you look running away, screaming…… it’s irresistible. I can’t help but chase after you! Set Home: Who wants to be bound by fear? Home Idle 1: You want to see me scared? Fufufu, by all means, you may try scaring me at any time. Home Idle 2: There’s no such thing as jack o’ lanterns under the sea. I was surprised when I learned about landweller culture as a first-year. Home Idle 3: Have you tried the limited-time Halloween menu at the Mostro Lounge? I, too, came up with a recipe. Home Login: Trick or Treat. …...I see you’re not so scared you won’t accept treats to eat. Home Idle Groovy: Oh my, you intend to play a trick on me? I’ve prepared sweets, so pardon me for today. Home Tap 1: Ruggie helped me make a jack o’ lantern. The result was fast, cheap, and beautiful. As expected of him. Home Tap 2: Dehydration is deadly for merfolk. Being dried out like a mummy…… It’s frightening to even think about. Home Tap 3: Floyd, don’t eat too many sweets. After all, you have a high risk of getting a cavity here, unlike under the sea. Home Tap 4: The way the bandage adornments look like jellyfish tentacles is beautiful, isn’t it? I especially enjoy the asymmetrical design. Home Tap 5: It seems you’d like to become a mummy. First, we’ll have to bandage your whole body, then we’ll leave you to dry…… Just kidding. Home Tap Groovy: What’s Halloween like under the sea? If you’re interested, I’d be happy to guide you.

Personal Story

Could You Please Teach Me? : Chapter 1

-Classroom-

Ruggie: I’m coming in. Kalim: I’m begging you, Jade, make it work somehow! Jade: Kalim, this amount is regulation. No exceptions are allowed. Silver: Zzzz, zzzz…… Floyd: I’m so bored of you guys arguing~. Jellyfishie over here is also so bored he fell asleep. Goldfish, do something funny. Riddle: Why me!? I have a better proposal— how about you go somewhere else, Floyd. Ruggie: Wow, it’s pretty lively in here. You guys in the middle of something? Jamil: Silver and I just tagged along. Pay us no mind. Kalim: You’re gonna have to wait a little longer, Ruggie. I’m talking to Jade about the budget. Jade: Kalim. As I’ve said before, the budget cannot be negotiated. Please cut down your expenses more. Kalim: Don’t say that, Jade. After all, the flashier the exhibit, the more the guests will enjoy it, right? Riddle: Kalim, the entire school has a budget. Scarabia would do well to follow the rules. Ruggie: Jade, take this. It’s our budget application. You’ll be able to take care of my business right away. Jade: Yes, of course. …...Kalim, please seek to emulate Savanaclaw’s example. Look here, they’re precisely within budget. Silver: Zzzzzz...... Jamil: Silver got so tired of waiting he fell asleep…… Let’s go back and reevaluate it, Kalim. Kalim: Okay…… I guess we should. Oh, has everyone else settled on what costumes and decorations they’re gonna have? Ruggie: We’ve already decided. This year our theme is gonna be pirates. ???: My, my, what a troubling theme. Jamil: So you’re here now, too, Azul. Azul: But of course. When I passed by the classroom, there seemed to be quite the commotion. Jade: Pirate ghosts who left behind many legends of how they sailed the seas, raising havoc in search of treasure…… they certainly are quite frightening. Ruggie: Jack’s the one who thought of it, but I don’t think that’s what he had in mind. I think he thought it suited Savanaclaw, since we have a lotta tough looking guys in our dorm. Floyd: That’s real good for Halloween. Kalim: By the way, do you guys celebrate Halloween in the Coral Sea? Jade: Yes, of course. At this time of year I’d usually be busy collecting shells and starfish for decorations. And on the day itself, everyone stuffs sea sparkles into bottles…… I believe you’d call it a lantern on land. You carry it around with you. Floyd: We also got musical performances where we play some bangers~ Kalim: Nice! Music is always needed for banquets and festivals. Jamil: The shape and sound of instruments in the Coral Sea must be different from instruments on land. Silver: Carrying around a lantern of sea sparkles is also a really interesting custom unique to the sea. Riddle: It sounds like it’d be a magical sight to see. Azul: It’s an honor to have you all take such an interest in our homeland. If you so wish, we’d even be willing to put together a package tour on long breaks where you’d be guided around. Jade: Azul. As fun as that sounds, we’ll have to chat about that another day. Now then. As everyone has pointed out, Halloween on land is quite different from under the sea. We’ve been continuously surprised at the cultural differences since coming to land. There are many things I don’t know yet. As a member of the Organization Committee, I would like to deepen my understanding of how Halloween is celebrated on land in order to liven up the event. Could you all please teach me how Halloween was celebrated in your hometowns?

Could You Please Teach Me? : Chapter 2

-Classroom-

Jade: Could you all please teach me how Halloween was celebrated in your hometowns? Riddle: …...Halloween, hm? In my hometown, it seems standard for children to gather in the town square for a “fun party.” Jamil: “It seems”……The way you said that makes it sound like you’re talking about someone else. Riddle: I’ve only participated once before, and never again. So I’m not too familiar with it…… What did leave an impression on me was everyone bobbing for apples. Floyd: Goldie, what’s bubbling for…… what’s whatever that apple thing you just said? The name sounds kinda tasty. Riddle: It’s a traditional Halloween game in the Rose Kingdom. You have to use your mouth to grab one of the apples floating in a large basin of water. Of course, you can’t use your hands. Jade: I see…… that is a game unique to land. Azul: Yes, under the sea the apple would float all the way to the surface as soon as you let go of it. Jade: If we turned it into a game of chasing down an apple quickly floating upward, we could play it underwater. Floyd: It could be fun. Silver: But…… is it even possible to grab an apple with your mouth? Riddle: It seems like smaller-than-usual apples are used, but…… it’s still very difficult. Jade: It seems to be a game in which a child with a good physique would have the advantage in being able to grab an apple. Riddle: You’re right. Not only the size of one’s mouth, but the amount of strength you can put into your jaw is necessary to have an advantage. Ruggie: Then wouldn’t Jade and Floyd have an edge over everyone at this school? They’re huge and their teeth are jagged. Jade: Fufufu, I wonder. I’d be embarrassed opening my mouth so wide in front of everyone…… We may not be able to get the apple due to being unexpectedly sluggish. Floyd: So how d’ya decide who wins and loses? Riddle: I think the rule was that whoever gets an apple in the shortest amount of time wins. Even in the Land of Shining Stones, there are places where this game is played. Cater told me that in his hometown, they competed based on how many they were able to get. I couldn’t quite get the hang of it, so both my face and clothes ended up completely soaked…… But now that I think about it, it wasn’t the result that was important. Laughing and making a ruckus while struggling to get an apple…… I think that was the point of the game. Jade: It certainly would be a very interesting sight, seeing you desperately chase after an apple with your mouth hanging open…… Yes, it would be very much worth seeing. Riddle: And just what is that supposed to mean? Kalim: I get what Riddle is saying. After all, having fun is more important than winning or losing! Riddle: Yes…… that’s right. Kalim: It’s a little different than the Kingdom of Roses, but Halloween in the Land of Hot Sands is also a lot of fun! Jade: Oh, what is the customary activity characteristic of the Land of Hot Sands? Kalim: In the Land of Hot Sands, it’d definitely have to be the feast! When Halloween comes around, we make so many dishes they can’t fit on the table. Jamil: So that we may eat together once again with the ghosts that have returned…… that is its purpose. Sweet, salty, spicy……. We prepare a wide variety of food, from light appetizers to huge platters. As Halloween approaches, the kitchens get filled to capacity with everyone starting to prepare the ingredients. Jade: I would very much like to see such a magnificent dining table someday. Are there any customary dishes? Kalim: If we’re talking about the Halloween feast…… I like that one thing. What was it, it was like baked vegetables topped with some kind of sauce. Jamil: Huh? Kalim: Oh, your face totally made it click. It’s the thing with potatoes, eggplants, and tomatoes! Jade: ……Is it like lasagna, but with the pasta replaced by vegetables? Kalim: Yeah, they might be similar. It’s super good right out of the oven. Azul: I see. It seems like it would be favored by those that prefer healthy foods. Jade: Jamil, may I ask the name of the dish? Jamil: Sure…… it’s a local dish called moussaka. Kalim: Yeah, that’s it, that’s the one! When I was young, I really wanted to eat it on a day when there was no feast, so I asked Jamil to make it for me. Jamil: I was scolded harshly. My parents and the other servants said, “Children can’t use fire by themselves!”…… Kalim: Whaaat!? Really!? Jamil: It was because I was still only in elementary school at the time. I hadn’t cooked as much as I do now…… Even starting a small fire would be a big problem. Looking back on it now, I can understand why my parents and the others were so upset with me. Kalim: Oh jeez, I’m super sorry. But the moussaka I ate back then was really delicious. I still remember it well. Just remembering it makes me wanna eat it. Hey Jamil, please make it again sometime! Azul: I’d also like to request it. It might be good for our new Mostro Lounge menu…… Jamil: Absolutely not. Kalim: Awww, don’t say that~ Jamil: Moussaka is a time-consuming consuming dish to make since it requires many ingredients and two sauces. I simply don’t think it’s suitable to serve in a cafe. Jade: From what you’ve said, it seems to be made in an oven. The oven in the lounge isn’t that big…… It would certainly prove difficult to make a large amount. Azul: Aren’t there many ways to increase the turnover rate, like making a lot on a big platter? Ruggie: Octavinelle is the same as ever. Jade: Fufu…… To get the details, how about we have a nice, calm chat over some of your home-cooking, Jamil? Jamil: Oi, hold on, I never said anything about cooking for you…… Jeez. Silver: Zzzz…… Zzzz…… Jamil: Look, Silver fell asleep while you Octavinelle goons were getting excited over profits. Jade: Oh, my sincerest apologies. It seems I’ve derailed the conversation. Silver, please excuse me. It’s time to get up now, isn’t it? Silver: Ah…… Sorry. You wanted to know about Halloween in the Valley of Thorns…… didn’t you? Jade: Yes. Please tell me. Silver: If we’re talking about Halloween, then I can’t remember anything but my old ma—…… I mean Lilia’s costume. Riddle: Oh, that’s right, you two are from the same town. Jade: As expected, the Land of Thorns has costumes…… Wearing costumes is a common custom on land in every country, it seems. Silver: Do merfolk not wear costumes? Jade: To begin with, we don’t really make a habit of wearing clothes. Because it isn’t familiar to me, dressing up in various styles on land is quite novel. Silver: Actually, it’s hard for me to associate costumes with fun memories. Even remembering it now makes me shudder. Floyd: Huhhhhh, wouldn’t that little Flapjack Octo be even smaller back when he was in his hometown? Silver: Well, he didn’t look much different than how he looks now, but…… It was only on that Halloween that I saw Lilia-senpai have such a terrifying appearance. Jade: Oh, that’s very interesting. Especially considering how much he’s proud of his own cuteness. Silver: The horrifyingly frightening appearance of Lilia-senpai in his costume…… Sebek and I watched him together, trembling in fear. We were so afraid to sleep that night, both of us promised to stay up till morning. Jade: If I were to witness something so horrifying, I’m sure I’d start wailing. Floyd: Ehhhhhh, I wanna seeeeee. We’ve been together since we were born, but I’ve never seen you do anything like that. Ruggie: So, did you and Sebek end up gracing the morning sun with your tears? Silver: No…… I fell asleep before I knew it. Riddle: I knew it...... Silver: Sebek was so scared he couldn’t use the restroom all night, and the next morning he angrily called me a traitor. Ruggie: Wow, so even Sebek can be cute sometimes. Jamil: Then how did you spend Halloween, Ruggie? Ruggie: Me? Halloween in the slums isn’t really great for reference. Jade: Now, now, don’t speak like that. Every tale about life on land is fresh and educational, so please teach me all about it. Ruggie: I guess I don’t mind talking about it, but…… Don’t wrinkle your nose after I tell you. “Trick or treat”...... It’s normal to play a trick if you don’t get treats, right? But Halloween in my hometown ain’t that cute. If you didn’t give us candy, we would go home till we got some…… It was a 24 hour candy collecting marathon.

Could You Please Teach Me? : Chapter 3

-Classroom-

Kalim, Silver, Riddle: A 24 hour candy collecting marathon!? Jade: Candy collecting…… Only hearing about it, it seems the same as a normal Halloween tradition……. But judging from how you talk about it, it seems that the reality is quite different. Ruggie: That’s right. It’s because we rarely get to have candy. So the fact that just by saying, “Trick or Treat,” nets you candy feels like getting blessed. It’s impossible for hyenas like us to pass on a chance to fill our bellies. Jade: Ruggie, whenever you help out at the Mostro Lounge, you always bring tupperware. I take it that means your appetite hasn’t changed from how it was in the past. Ruggie: I’d gather all the neighborhood kids, decide who was in charge of each area, then go around the entire village. ……We didn’t miss even a single house. Jamil: That’s an incredible amount of tenacity…… Ruggie: And so long as it’s not the same faces, you’ll get sweets again, so we’d switch out members and hit the same house over and over again. Silver: If you go that far…… I feel like it’d cause problems. Ruggie: And you’d be right. Some odd years ago our patrol strategy got found out by the manager of the neighborhood association…… They immediately issued a trick or treat ban. Jade: Poor things. Was everyone disappointed? Ruggie: You bet. I was just a kid, so I didn’t know how to quit while I was ahead. And I was the one scolded the most since I was sorta like a big-brother figure to all the kids in the area. Jade: It occurred to me while you were talking earlier, but you’re surprisingly good at taking care of others, Ruggie. The image you put forth is that of someone who only works for a reward, but…… Ruggie: ……Well, putting that aside. My grandma couldn’t stand seeing sad kids, so she made pumpkin pie for us. Riddle: Pumpkin pie…… Boy, that sure sounds delicious. Jade: It seems we have a new candidate for our Halloween menu. Ruggie: Oh, I’ll charge you extra if you’re asking me to leak the Bucchi family secret recipe. Shishishi. Jade: How shrewd— as expected of you, Ruggie. It’s something prettier than simple muffins and cookies, and most importantly, seems filling. Ruggie: Of course. Looking pretty’s got nothing on being able to fill you up. It’s ‘cause it’s made from the pumpkin guts after you hollow it out to make a jack o’ lantern. Jade: My, my…… I wouldn’t have been able to devise such a clever way to use such a thing. Ruggie: So then, the next year, I started a part-time job carving jack o’ lanterns to use for pumpkin pie. Azul: You’ve had very much experience doing part-time jobs…… I’m even more impressed. Ruggie: If you get a part-time job doing that, the client provides you with the pumpkin, and you get to take the hollowed out contents for free…… “You’re just gonna let me have all this delicious stuff!?” was how I felt. Halloween’s really the best! Jade: How wonderful! I must follow your example of having the willpower to turn anything into profit. Silver: ……Seems like everyone enjoys Halloween in different ways. Kalim: Yeah. Let’s enjoy Halloween at the academy to our heart’s content, and make a bunch of good memories! Floyd: “Enjoy it to our heart’s content?” Azul: Good memories……? Kalim: ……? Don’t you enjoy Halloween? Jade: It’s not a holiday with that kind of feeling attached to it, at least not for us merfolk from the north. After all, those who lose their lives at sea are often consumed by regret and despair. Those who were caught in storms, those who exhausted all their strength aboard their ship, hopelessly lost at sea…… Whatever the case, it is not uncommon for the ghosts that return to be ferocious. Azul: Indeed. And pirate ghosts top that list. Jamil: Didn’t you guys say before that Halloween was celebrated with sea sparkles and lively music? Floyd: The lanterns are anchors for merfolk to stop ‘em from accidentally wandering into the next world. And playing music means the ghosts won’t be lonely. Azul: It’s also intended to soothe their sorrow and rage. Riddle: ……No way, you mean there’s ghosts all over the ocean floor? Jade: While I haven’t actually seen one, personally…… During Halloween there was a notice issued from our school. In it contained places one shouldn’t approach, times one shouldn’t go out…… since there were people that went missing every year. Ruggie: Hold on a sec…… That’s way too creepy. Floyd: Now that I think about it, when we were in middle school, I felt like I saw 3 Jades in different places~ Jade: There was also a time where I thought I was talking to Floyd, but I remember when I spoke to him the next day, he said, “You didn’t tell me anything about that.” At the time I didn’t pay it any mind and thought he simply hadn’t been listening to me, but…… Azul: It’s because it was Halloween. Those kinds of things are to be expected. Jamil: “Those kinds of things”…… as if it’s normal. Silver: The sea is a terrifying world outside the farthest reaches of the imagination…… Jade: The Coral Sea is a place where you can experience thrills you normally wouldn’t on Halloween. Floyd: Well it’s not boring, that’s for sure~ Azul: Just as Ruggie said earlier, it’s wonderful that we have so many business opportunities! Jade: Putting aside Azul’s talk of work…… I do love Halloween both under the sea and on land. It’s exciting to think of what unexpected things might happen. As I was selected to be part of the Organization Committee, I’d like if I could make everyone on land experience different feelings than usual. Because we hail from the sea, the thrills we can provide are far more than simply “fun.” This year, let’s have a wonderful Halloween that won’t lose to any other. Fufufu……

-

T/N: Two things- “sea sparkles” are Noctiluca scintillans, and yes the real colloquial name for it is “sea sparkle.” Secondly, I’m aware that the name of Cater’s homeland (the Land of Shining Stones) can be read as the Land of Pyroxene/Augite. I personally feel that name feels REALLY out of place compared to the others so unless the specific stone augite/pyroxene is thematically relevant or canonized beyond a doubt somehow, I separated the kanji into shining/glittering/sparkling + rock/stone/etc. 

[recentanimenews]

Those Snow White Notes – 01 (First Impressions) – Challenge Issued

AOTS Alert. Repeat, we have an Early AOTS Alert. Those Snow White Notes is an absolute joy to experience from beginning to end. Its absolute banger of a first episode tells a story of inspiration, loss, loneliness, listlessness, self-worth and self-actualization, jealousy, love, and much more—so much it feels like a little self-contained mini-film.

Oh yeah, did I mention it centers around a shamisen player, so the show’s music is supervised by The Yoshida Brothers, in addition to being directed by the fellow who not only gave us the tone-setting first episode of Rakugo Shinjuu, but both seasons of the excellent Master Teaser Takagi-san, of all things? We’re clearly dealing with some talented folks, so it’s amazing it doesn’t feel nearly as pretentious as it should.

A lot of that has to do with how simply and how efficiently the story is laid out and how easily it is to slide into the lives it follows. We start with Sawamura Setsu and his big brother Wakana listening through a cracked door as their grandfather plays to a transfixed crowd. An aside: I’m probably not alone when I say the sound of a well-played shamisen activates my sense of musical awe in addition to my ASMR, resulting in persistent goosebumps every time I hear it…or even think of it!

That said, as soon as the sweet music is over, the warm scene is replaced by a face-slap of a bitter winter scene, in which the Setsu is leaving home. When his gramps died, his “sound” disappeared too, so he’s going “somewhere loud” in hopes he can get it back. He doesn’t know if Tokyo is that place, but he knows he can’t stay home, saying “there’s nothing here anymore.”

We’re only two minutes in, and we’ve already learned so much while being treated to what is the first but hardly the least shamisen number. (It’s also clear I’m going to end up writing way too many words in this review! If only we had an editor around here…)

SWN’s next efficient-yet-effective character portrait is of Tachiki Yuna, an actress/model who is paying the bills with a hostess club job, having to keep smiling and pretending to be happy to be there even after her agency notifies her that she was passed over for a role. After her shift she’s encouraged by her boyfriend Taketo’s texts, and she considers herself fortunate to “have a man who’s talented.”

Yuna happens to be in the bustling streets of Roppongi when Setsu literally bumps into her after getting temporarily dazed by the sheer brightness of the city lights. The two part ways, but Setsu immediately bumps into some less savory characters who start to beat on him. It’s here we learn that Yuna has a heart of gold, as she comes to the Setsu’s rescue with some karate kicks.

After dreaming about his grandfather essentially telling him to stop playing the shamisen if he dies, Setsu wakes up in girly pajamas in Yuna’s cozy apartment, and she cooks the two of them breakfast. Setsu learns that Yuna is a 22-year-old gravure model. Yuna learns Setsu is a Tsugaru shamisen player, but he can’t play for her because he’s “empty inside”, which just happens to be how she’s been feeling lately.

When Wakana hears from Setsu in a letter, he assumes his little brother just went to Tokyo to get laid. But seeing in Setsu a kind of kindred soul, she proposes he continue living with her and doing the housework until he can get his sound back. Before long, a week passes, the longest he’s ever gone without playing since first picking up a shamisen.

Yuna takes Setsu to a restaurant to meet her great and talented boyfriend Taketo along with his band, and Taketo is revealed to be a preening, self-involved jackass who is far beneath Yuna. Setsu intervenes when he sees Taketo trying to extract some serious cash from Yuna to pay for studio he’s renting. He then tells her he’ll be too busy writing music to hang out later that night.

When Yuna and a bandmate have to hold Taketo back, Setsu peaces out, running through the crush of people and noting just how much noisier Tokyo was than a bumpkin like him could have imagined. He gets caught up on a word his gramps used about his sound—”disgraceful”—not because Setsu sucked at shamisen, but because all he ever did was imitate his gramps.

But right here and now Setsu is mad and wants to express it. He wants to play. So he sits down beside the river and plays. Yuna happens to pass by as he’s starting to play, and while he’d later describe the performance as rough and ugly due to the rust of a mere week, but Yuna and I become entranced.

As someone who can only understand between 1-10% of any given spoken Japanese sentence, the language itself is a kind of music, although I know enough words and phrases to know that it isn’t, so it remains separate from the real thing. But pure music like Setsu’s strumming transcends words as it expresses emotions, ideas, and memories of both player and listener.

In Yuna’s case, she’s transported back to her meeting with her agent, who was trying to get her to audition for racier movies and TV. Rightfully insulted by the insinuation she’s nothing but a pretty face and body, she throws a glass of water in his face, and is warned that she won’t go far if she turns such jobs down.

In the midst of listening to Setsu’s raw and angry performance, Yuna takes comfort in knowing even if her career doesn’t amount to anything, at least she has a good man in Taketo. She stops by the good man’s place to find him with having slept with some other woman, to whom she says “you can have him” and leaves as Setsu’s piece comes to a bitter, final note.

When Setsu comes home, Yuna is still awake, and tells him she heard his music. When she did, she realized they’re not alike at all. Setsu isn’t a “sad person with nothing going” for him like she is, and so she can’t help but feel jealous of him. She says she’ll be going away for a while, and asks him to vacate her apartment while she’s gone.

Another day, Setsu encounters Taketo on the street, who is preparing for a concert with his band. Taketo decides to use Setsu as a hostage, telling Yuna he’ll break his arm if she doesn’t show up. For this shitbaggery, Taketo is promptly punished with a Karma Kick from Yuna, coming to Setsu’s rescue once more.

She apologizes for involving Setsu in her drama, but with the wind kicked out of Taketo, she needs to ask for him to be involved a little bit longer. They need someone to go out there and entertain the crowd until the scumbag recovers. Just like that, Setsu finally gets a stage and a crowd on which to test whether he can get his lost sound back. Three guesses as to whether he manages this.

The ensuing powerhouse of a performance by Setsu calls to mind the best music scenes of Your Lie in April, only in this case the crowd was expecting a rock band, not a Tsugaru shamisen player. As he nervously tells the initially confused crowd, he plays “Jongara Bushi”, and as he does, he recalls in black-and-white memories what his grandfather had to say about the peice.

Gramps described the beginning as passionate and hot-blooded, but it starts to calm, grow progressively sadder and heartrending, weakening and waning. He’s basically describing a life. But, unlike a fiery youth who calms down in middle age and eventually withers and passes away, “Jongara” claws its way back, refusing to be beaten down, issues a challenge with its final furious crescendo.

The crowd watches in dead silence, just as Yuna did, and you can’t help but think of what is flashing through their heads while they listen; while they’re being taken on this roller coaster ride of powerful emotions. Just like April, the stage lights illuminate dust motes to give the simultaneous appearance of snow and magical sparkles. Setsu is casting a spell on everyone in that hall with his sound, and not even Taketo can deny its power.

Not only that, but the performance is being live-streamed on the internet, where even if it doesn’t go viral, it’s being watched from home by someone Setsu is sure to meet at some point; perhaps someone who like him has been around shamisen music enough to know that by their standards his performance was just okay. But I’m with Yuna, Taketo, and rest of the crowd: that was fucking awesome.

Also awesome? Yuna doesn’t take Taketo back. They’re done, and he knows he “lost himself a good woman”, even if Yuna would argue that she’s good at anything. Also, while I’m sad to see her go, Yuna does go on her trip to find her…well, not sound, but I guess to find what it is she can contribute to the world and feel good about it. Modeling and porn were decidedly not those things, but I hope the show won’t lose sight of her journey.

Setsu continues to live in her apartment after she leaves, but Taketo tends to come by a lot, so it’s clear that while he’s an asshole, he and Setsu will probably continue to interact with each other, if not outright befriend each other. While Setsu has the kettle on, he recalls walking Yuna to the train station, gives him a kiss before pushing him away and boarding the train with a final wave goodbye. Assuring him that whatever girl he ends up with “will be very happy”.

Back at her apartment, Taketo says that Setsu seems most alive when he’s playing, but if the shamisen is what gives him life, then sooner or later that world will “drag him in.” Taketo is hitting the nail on the head when their talk is abruptly interrupted by the most ridiculous occurrence in the episode: on the snap of a woman’s fingers, the door to Yuna’s apartment is forced open, a smoke bomb goes off, and two SWAT officers flank a glamorous woman with silver hair, blue eyes, and an April O’Neil jacket.

She’s here for Setsu, whom she calls “Baby-chan”, and Setsu calls her Umeko, but I know from the initial description of the show that this is his mom…who it’s immediately clear is a lot. Looks like however much of his sound Setsu believes he’s found in Tokyo, Umeko will have an unnegotiable say in his life…at least as long as he’s still a kid!

By: sesameacrylic

[letterboxd]

Horse Power.

The Nest’s writer-director Sean Durkin talks about creating atmosphere, watching films without judgment, and the best movies of 1986.

Downfalls in Hollywood movies tend to be chaotic, dramatic and a lot of fun along the way. From Citizen Kane to The Wolf of Wall Street, outsized ambitions are realized on screen in castles, exotic holidays, wild parties, sweeping us up in the extravagance of it all, before the inevitable crash. The Nest takes a slower, far more British view of ambition and its effects on family—or, as Charlie writes, “this movie is a reminder that people who call themselves entrepreneurs should instead be stay-at-home dads”.

The new film from writer-director Sean Durkin, the brain behind cult-survivor slow-burn Martha Marcy May Marlene, is less “strap in and enjoy the ride”, more “slow disintegration of all sense of sanity”—a tense psychological drama focused on the person who usually gets hurt the most: the wife. And that horse-lovin’ dream wife Allison, as played by Carrie Coon, is a character to behold (and the subject of many obsessive The Nest reviews on Letterboxd).

Just as Durkin takes time to carefully explore Martha’s vulnerability in his earlier film, in The Nest, he closes in on Allison, as she and their children adjust to 1980s life in an English manor, far from the comfort of Allison’s American home, while wheeler-dealer husband Rory (Jude Law) chases a new opportunity.

There are thematic similarities in both films; a case to be made that ambitious men wreak a comparable mental destruction on their families as cult leaders do on their followers, breaking them down with charm, persuasion, false promises. There’s also something about the juxtaposition of periods in the film—the fifteenth-century manor vs the ’80s bangers on the soundtrack—that adds to The Nest’s unnerving atmosphere (other parts of the soundtrack are composed by Arcade Fire’s Richard Reed Parry in his first film-score credit).

Keen to understand more about Durkin’s influences and memories, Jack Moulton put him through the Letterboxd Life in Film interrogation.

Carrie Coon as Allison O’Hara in ‘The Nest’.

The Nest feels like a very personal film. In what ways are the emotions of the premise personal to you? When I was making Southcliffe in 2012, I was back in England where I spent my childhood and I hadn’t been back in close to twenty years. It really struck me how London and New York felt very similar now but they didn’t when I was a kid. I thought maybe I wanted to make a film about a family that moves in that time and how a move can affect a family. As I wrote the script, I became a parent, so it became as much a reflection of modern adulthood as it did about my childhood in the ’80s. Although it’s a period piece, I wanted to make it feel very close to today to look at the celebrated values of the time and how those are still very relevant.

The mansion the family moves into is the titular ‘nest’, and the use of space and atmosphere contribute so much to the film’s subtext. What were you looking for when location scouting for the house? Was it an easy or difficult process? Yeah, it was difficult. It was like doing an open casting call. I had a very specific idea in my head but [my production designer] was able to put it into actual architectural terms so we were able to find a house that a successful commodities broker would live and commute from in Surrey. We needed something beyond that, but if you go too far, you get small castles. Once we located the right exterior, there were a bunch of [houses] that would’ve been great, but when we got inside, there were no open spaces. I wanted to have long hallways to be able to see through multiple rooms to create that isolation—the opposite of the cozy American house that they were living in before, to really highlight the good life they left behind.

Carrie Coon and Jude Law in ‘The Nest’.

We love the soundtrack; not just the choice of songs but the way that they’re mixed. Can you give us some insight into the song selection? When writing, I build a playlist that I write to. This one was a mix of personal memories from childhood—like Simply Red, which takes me back to falling asleep in the back of my dad’s car—so there’s a way into writing there on a sensory level, and then I build upon it with songs that I love from the time. I was listening to Richard Reed Parry’s Music for Heart and Breath album a lot and he ended up being the composer of the film, so his music was always part of the heart of the movie as I was writing it.

I would spend my drives to set with my assistant talking about music and he would turn me onto some stuff that would make it into the movie. It was a mix of a long-running preparation and things that I pick up in the moment then making that all work at the right level so it feels of the world. Like with The Cure, we actually played that off a tape cassette when Allison walks into the room.

Since your debut feature in 2011, you’ve had a prolific career in television and as a film producer; you’re a founding member of Borderline Films with fellow directors Antonio Campos and Josh Mond. Do you see yourself more as a producer who only occasionally directs films yourself? No, I don’t really consider myself a producer. I’ve produced movies for filmmakers and friends and I help people where I can. I’m not someone who’s out getting properties and thinking about how to put together a film, I’m only thinking about my own work as a writer and a director. Between finishing Southcliffe in 2013 and The Nest in 2018, I had a five-year gap where I was developing lots of projects one after the other—two features and a television show—that were both so close to [being greenlit] but something fell through, which was really bad luck.

What film made you want to become a filmmaker? The Goonies and Back to the Future were those movies as a kid that first made me want to make movies and tell stories, but the moment where I realized what filmmaking is was seeing The Shining. I saw it for the first time when I was eleven or twelve and a friend showed it to me because his older brother had the VHS. It was my first time understanding atmosphere and direction and I just had a sense that I could do it too. It was a really crucial moment, and I kept that thought to myself for a very long time.

Cinematographer Mátyás Erdély shoots Carrie Coon in Soho.

What’s your scariest film that is not technically horror? AKA, your area of expertise. Oh man, scariest? Something I’ve watched recently is The Vanishing and it’s probably one of the most unsettling films I’ve ever seen. It was incredible to rewatch it because I’d last seen it when I was in college—I watched everything back then—and I’d also seen the American remake, so when I watched it this time, I was trying to remember things [that were different] from the remake. I was like “he’s gonna get out, right?—oh no, that’s in the American version!” I find it an astonishing movie. There’s a real human element to the pain of the killer.

Let’s nerd out: what’s your top film of 1986, the year that The Nest is set? [Laughs] I’ve no idea what came out in 1986. Can I look up a list and I’ll tell you? Let’s see, films of 1986… This is fun! Alright, “popular films of 1986” I’m seeing: Blue Velvet, Short Circuit, Stand by Me, Platoon, The Color of Money, what else have we got here? River’s Edge… Pretty in Pink… Ferris Bueller’s Day Off—Ferris Bueller’s gotta be up there. Big Trouble in Little China! That’s it! I’m sure there’s other things, but from my quick search, I’d say Big Trouble in Little China. That was a movie that was always on in my house because it was one of my dad’s all-time favorites.

Which is Jude Law’s best performance? I love The Talented Mr. Ripley so much. I constantly rewatch that movie—it’s perfect. I also loved him in Vox Lux recently.

Sean Durkin and Jude Law on the set of ‘The Nest’.

What is the best film about marriage and why does it resonate with you? Shoot the Moon was really influential for me. I’d say it’s a bit more about divorce and family than it is about marriage but [it depends on] if you take the ending to mean that they’re going to stay together—I kind of do. You could say a separation is part of a marriage. I love that movie for how it finds light in humor. Albert Finney is struggling with his masculinity where, even though he’s the one who left, he still thinks he owns it all, and Diane Keaton is quite liberated by this scenario. It’s like their journey to find language again. I find it very beautiful.

Which film was your entry-point into international cinema? I’m trying to think back to what I would’ve seen, there certainly wasn’t a lot growing up. In college I really discovered Michael Haneke and Michelangelo Antonioni. L’Avventura made a huge impact on me. I think [because of the way] the mystery kind of dissolves and it’s about the journey, not the solution.

What film do you wish you’d made? I don’t. Filmmaking is personal and it’s so much an expression of perspective when done with care and love—though obviously, there’s stuff that’s just churned out. I never see something and say “I wish I made that”. One of the things I find hard is when people critique films and say they would’ve done this differently. I’ve become very sensitive to that over time because every choice you make as a filmmaker is so specific and thought out. I try to consume movies without knowing anything about them or making any kind of judgment. I just let them be what they are and wash over me.

Which newcomer director should we all keep our eyes on? I don’t think I’m looking out for new stuff necessarily. Once I get to see something, everyone else already knows about it. One person I would say is Dave Franco, who I just worked with on The Rental. I was an executive producer and I was a creative bounce-board for Dave through the process. It’s his first film and it’s astonishingly directed. We were getting dailies from the first week and we were like, “This is his first movie? This is insane!” I think he will do some exciting things.

Finally, what’s your favorite film of 2020 so far? I was absolutely blown away by Eliza Hittman’s film Never Rarely Sometimes Always. I miss having retrospectives at local theaters, which I’m always keyed into no matter the city I’m living in. I’ve started watching a lot of Criterion Channel and I watched a movie recently that’s taken over my brain: Variety, by Bette Gordon, from 1983. It’s set in New York City around Times Square, and it’s this incredible journey that this woman goes on that captured my mind.

Related content

Sean Durkin’s Life in Film list

Sean Durkin’s Sight & Sound Top 10

Clarissa’s list of films that burn slowly

Everything Carrie Coon watched during quarantine (and the best of that huge list)

Tracy Letts and Carrie Coon’s 24-Hour Movie Marathon

Follow Jack on Letterboxd

[youngboy-oldmind]

ALBUM REVIEW: The Lost Boy

“Try to take a walk up in my shoes/A n**** rapping like I really got something to prove, Cause motherf****er, I do/I climb hills, n***** was sleeping, on Nyquil/ Paint a picture vivid, dawg, on everything, my life's real”

Overall Thoughts

Maryland rapper YBN Cordae plants a solid footprint in the rap game on his debut album The Lost Boy: a 45 minute masterpiece filled with excellent storytelling and production combined with a unique style that proves he’s definitely an up and comer to look out for in years to come.

The Lost Boy was my favorite rap/hip-hop release of 2019. Cordae’s first studio album is contender for one of my favorite debut albums ever. In my opinion, related artists’ (Chance the Rapper, Logic, Bas, J Cole, Kendrick, Amine) debut album’s fall to The Lost Boy. And at 21, his debut releases at an age younger than everyone in that group. To have an excellent project at such a young age is another feat on its own.

One commonality I notice with debut albums is that new artists tend to sound like their biggest influencers; the biggest culprit being Logic. But Cordae stands out with his own style that doesn’t sound too similar to any of his numerous influences. His delivery, word choice, and flow (while not always mind blowing), is not a carbon copy of a rapper from the 90s-00s. Here, Cordae’s sound is his own.

His pen game on this project is consistently above average, but rarely mind blowing. Tracks like “We Gone Make It” and “Thousand Words” exhibit his strongest lyricism. However, Cordae’s story telling abilities are consistently powerful. Tracks like “Bad Idea”, “Thanksgiving”, “Nightmares Are Real”, “Family Matters” all have Cordae illustrating his experiences. He emphasizes his perspective as a young man who’s finding himself through all these experiences. Even his most bragging and banger tracks still feature great humility and storytelling elements, the stand out being “Broke as F***”.

The features on The Lost Boy are all top notch. Cordae includes Chance the Rapper, Ty Dollar $ign, Pusha-T, Anderson .Paak, and Meek Mill, all of whom bring elite verses to their features. It’s even better that the guests don’t completely outshine Cordae. Cordae brings enough weight to each song that its not completely engulfed by the feature. Songs like French Montana’s “No Shopping”, Logic’s “Homicide”, Chance’s “Handsome” all suffer from a feature that outclasses the main artist. But Cordae goes toe to toe with each feature.

I should also mention the two skits, “Sweet Lawd” and “Grandma’s House”. Both are pretty good as far as skits go. I can’t help but assume they were influenced by Kanye West’s “I’ll Fly Away” from The College Dropout, both of which sound very reminiscent to. They display Cordae’s singing abilities and soulful sound. And its touching to hear Cordae’s grandmother on the latter track.

Overall, I can’t really find a weak spot on this project. The runtime, theme/tone, uniqueness, production, and lyricism are all excellent. As far as debut albums go, Cordae made has created one of the best I’ve ever heard.

Album Breakdown

The common theme throughout this project is Cordae’s experiences being young and lost in a chaotic world. I love this theme because it doesn’t limit the scope about his topics. He can make fun tracks, political commentary, and emotional deep cuts while staying tonally consistent.

1. Wintertime

"Wintertime” features a smooth, mellow, jazzy beat; The vibe feels like a instrumental off of J Cole’s 4 Your Eyez Only. Cordae introduces himself, compares where he started to where he’s at now, and discusses some everyday plagues that stress him (anxiety, maintaining success, pressure to appear problem-free) while also aiming for the top and hoping nothing he creates fades away. Great intro.

2. Have Mercy

This next track is lyrically nothing deep or profound, just a banger track with a dope instrumental. The echoy, bassy sound that develops on the last leg of the song is especially great. I also found Cordae’s music video technique interesting. He released two videos, Path A and Path B, that illustrate opposite tones. Path A brings more zainy, flamboyant visuals while Path B is much more dark and eerie. I personally think Path A is the more appropriate for the track. Overall, not a bad banger.

3. Sweet Lawd- Skit

This skit features Cordae singing the hook off “Have Mercy” over a church-like piano. As I mentioned early, strongly reminds me of “I’ll Fly Away” off Kanye West’s The College Dropout. Cordae’s voice is soulful and pleasant to listen to as well. The first gospel-esque track.

4. Bad Idea

Chance the Rapper and Cordae team up to create one of the best songs on the album. They both deliver great verses, Chance’s middle verse being the best. Here they talk about the downsides of Home and the impact those experiences had on them. They borrow the beginning chorus lines “It might not be such a bad idea if I never went home again” from Gil Scott-Herman’s “Home is Where the Hatred Is” and heavily styled like Kanye West’s “My Way Home”. Although Cordae is the main singer on the chorus, he layers his voice to make it sound like an ensemble of singers. A great stylistic choice. And the heavy piano X light strings perfectly end the track. Between the strings at the end, the Kanye West sample, and Chance’s (a huge fan, supporter, and protege of Kanye) involvement, I definitely smell influence from West’s sophomore album Late Registration.

5. Thanksgiving

“Thanksgiving”, the first deep cut on the album, has Cordae introducing a girl to his family during Thanksgiving. However, she’s fake and never stays around, making him question their relationship while remaining hopeful they can maintain it. Cordae demonstrates his powerful storytelling abilities. The overall mellow tone in the production allows his lyrics to fit perfectly in the instrumental; it doesn’t outshine but it doesn’t get over shadowed either.

6. RNP

Anderson .Paak has collaborated with Andre 3000, J. Cole, Rhapsody, Kendrick Lamar, BJ The Chicago Kid, Pusha-T, and Q-Tip, so I wasn’t surprised when I saw Cordae would be collaborating with the talented singer. However, I couldn’t prepare for the amazing back-and-forth chemistry between them. You wouldn’t think when listening to them trade bars that they have a 12 year age difference between them. Also fun fact: J. Cole produced the track.

Both these artists are just having fun over a bouncy beat, talking about the “problems” they’ve experienced being rich. Definitely be favorite fun track so far.

7. Broke As F***

This is tied for my favorite track on the album. Cordae’s lyrics aren’t necessarily the most complex and deep, but he brings such a indescribable energy to his storytelling. He basically tells the story from him being a baby, being in high school appreciating hip hop, where he came from, and where he’s going to go. The great thing here is that its not solely bragging about his possessions. Its a commentary on what he’s GAINED. This adds a touch of humility. And at the end, he comments on how he’s lost, still searching, and doesn’t “really have a lot of answers”, tying into the theme of the album. Perfect.

The spacey instrumental on the chorus, the beat drop after the first line of the first verse, and the beat change midway through makes this one of the best instrumentals on the album. And the ending drums transition to the next song perfectly.

8. Thousand Words

“Thousand Words” has some best verses on the album. Here Cordae talks about the toxicity of social media and how people create false perceptions to hide true pain. While already an intriguing topic, Cordae goes a step further by admitting he’s not holier than thou. He admits everyone lowkey wants to be a little famous, and nobody wants to be “nameless”. I love that. It’s easier to say Instagram and Twitter are toxic (Logic on Confessions of a Dangerous Mind). But to admit there is some validity and positivity to social media...very profound for someone so young. My favorite lines are:

“Living in this false reality that's in this picture gallery/ Based on a n***** profile, we guessin' salary/ The lifestyle you advertise was quite strategized/ Make a minimal amount and then we maximize/ These n***** cappin' with lies how they capitalize/ Creating they own perceptions, what a massive facade/ Digital marketing schemes even broader regime/ Live how you want on the internet, who thought of this thing?”

9. Way Back Home

Ty Dollar $ign stands out on the feature, talking about not letting fame and success pull him from reality. Cordae sings the chorus and most of his verse. Admittedly, I wasn’t a fan of Cordae’s parts; It felt underwhelming. But the instrumental and Ty’s verse carry a significant part of the song. I especially loved the high pitched melodic voice that pops in the beat throughout the song. I also love the sci-fi, techy “WORP” effect throughout the instrumental. But ultimately, this felt more like Ty’s song than Cordae’s.

10. Grandma’s House- Skit

Between “Grandma’s House” and “Sweet Lawd”, I prefer this skit. The harmonious vocals that echo Cordae’s grandma’s vocals give off an amazing gospel vibe. The simplistic yet soulful and intimate aura of this skit makes it one of my favorite interlude-skits off any rap album.

11. Been Around

Another mellow song on the project, “Been Around” has Cordae talking about the development of his career and how he’s going to keep moving forward and not let doubters or bad situations slow him down. I like the chorus more than the verses, but overall its not a bad track. It maintains the tone of the album and flexes Cordae’s pen game a little.

12. Nightmares Are Real

This was the most intriguing collaboration on the album. Pusha-T and Cordae have very different sounds and styles; Pusha-T brings much more aggressiveness whereas Cordae is softer. Cordae’s hardest verses don’t compare to Pusha-T’s baseline intensity. Although they don’t demonstrate strong chemistry, they both bring solid verses. Both tell stories of how they started in the rap game, however, Pusha-T’s wordplay and lyricism is a step above Cordae’s. He talks about dealing with selling crack while developing his skills in rapping. Particular set of lines had me shook.

“Asterisk, skipped school, recorded with The Neptunes/ We was makin' high school classics/ Before I took a kilo and I wrapped it, I rapped it/ Around the funeral with the casket/ Coke avalanche, like a landslide/ Only grew my hair this long because my man died/”

I don’t wanna go too far into explaining these lyrics cus genius will do better job. But Pusha-T brings fire to this track. The tone of the instrumental matches Pusha-T’s intensity as well. As solid of a collaboration this is, its not in my top 3 collabs. That goes to show how amazing this project is.

13. Family Matters

"Family Matters” is tied with “Broke as F***” for my favorite song on The Lost Boy. Cordae talks about the stress of witnessing family traumas and difficulties while experiencing his own success. He expresses feelings of guilt and selfishness when his family hides things from him so he can focus on achieving his goals. He talks about abandonment from baby daddies, aunt’s raising kids that aren’t theirs, a cousin in an abusive relationship, a cousin addicted to xanax, and another aunt who’s a prostitute. All of this is happening while he’s worried about “plays and streams”. It’s an interesting sentiment. Is it selfish to focus on yourself when your family has a load of obstacles and difficulties? Every time he succeeds he has to look back at where he came from and be reminded his family does not share his accomplishments. Nearly brought me to tears when I first heard it.

As I already stated, lyrically this is one of Cordae’s top songs. Arin Ray brings a choir on the chorus that sounds amazing, adding to the gospel sound sprinkled throughout the album. And the light violin strings at the end encapsulate the emotional turmoil Cordae expresses.

14. We Gone Make It

Another top track, “We Gone Make It”, features a collab with Meek Mill to make political/social commentary on todays world and encourage others to keep pushing to succeed. Unlike the other three collaborations “Bad Idea”, “Way Back Home”, and “Nightmares are Real”, Meek Mill’s verses are actually equal with Cordae. Although I’m not a huge fan of Mill, he brings in a succinct, powerful 12 bars and a hook so dope he, as Cordae puts it, had to “sing it twice”. Also fun fact: Cordae used a modified version of the first verse on H.E.R’s “Lord is Coming (Remix)”.

Instrumentally, the beat accompanies the message without overshadowing it. The piano melody and vocal chops throughout mix well with the verses. I personally love the piano keys in the final minute. It adds an aura of delicacy to a song with such an intense message.

15. Lost & Found

In the perfect closing track “Lost & Found”, Cordae displays pride, stating “I was lost boy, now I’m found”. Over a bumpy, bassy beat with epic trumpet harmonies, he comments on everything throughout the project. However, now he has assurance he’s not lost nor insecure from his experiences. And he knows things are going up from here. Like the rest of the album, he’s lyrically above average, reflecting on his life while introducing a fun, braggadocios vibe. Kinda like a “the balls in your court” to the rest of the rap game. Loved it.

Final Thoughts

I look forward to Cordae’s next album. This was a near perfect debut solo album. At 21 years old, Cordae displays strong lyricism and production skills. His ability to story-tell and introspect indicate incredible feats in career. The lowest parts of this project are still amazing, and the high points put this project as my favorite of the year. I don’t know how else to say it. The rap game better watch out for this Maryland born “Lost Boy”. If The Lost Boy indicates the trajectory of his future, Cordae will have the crown in no time.

Top 3 Tracks:

1) Family Matters

2) Broke As F***

3) Bad Idea

Overall Grade: A+

[blackpinkfanpage3-blog]

Blackpink Became the Biggest K-Pop Female Band in the World

Blackpink fan page

It is very taken just four several years for Blackpink to become most significant girl bands in the world, having members Jennie, Jisoo, Rosé, and Lisa continuing to be able to smash new records along with forge new ground. These folks were the first K-pop girl class to play at Coachella in order to reach 1 billion Dailymotion views-now they’re the most-subscribed-to music group on the platform, as 2019, they broke several Guinness World Records together with the single “Kill This Like, ” which has had in excess of 312 million plays in Spotify and over 824 , 000, 000 YouTube views, a mere tiny proportion of the quartet’s billions of revenues, downloads, views, and admirers. That same year in addition, they undertook the most financially productive concert tour by a Korean language female group. They’re front-row fixtures at runway demonstrates and the faces of brilliant brands, including Chanel, The puma company, Louis Vuitton, and Dior. Or any this with just a few songs in their repertoire.

Blackpink fan page

Currently, as they prepare to release their particular latest album in Summer, it may be time to ask: The way on earth did they do the item?

Excitement prior to Blackpink’s July 2016 debut had meant to a fever pitch, when they were the first girl set in seven years beyond YG Entertainment (home for you to K-pop legends Big Fuck, 2NE1 and formerly, Psy). There were big shoes to help fill: The reign with the trailblazing four-member girl team 2NE1 was over, in addition to Blackpink was expected to resuscitate the bold EDM go crazy sound they’d embodied. All their debut, Square One, ended up being an overnight smash, the particular insistent build of “Whistle” and cocky chorus about “Boombayah” making for a small but thrilling introduction.

With November 2016, their secondly single album, Square A couple, featured a pop banger (“Playing With Fire”), a acoustic version of “Whistle, ” and “Stay, ” a country-influenced track that will allowed them to spread their very own vocal wings away from all their “girl crush” concept (K-pop vernacular for a fiery search and sound that’s shown immensely popular with international audiences).

Though they were dubbed “the new 2NE1” during their novice days, some of their first hearings on Korean variety indicates bring into focus but not only Blackpink’s chaotically entertaining reputation but the determination to create their own identities. Vocalist Jisoo has become a face for magnificence brands Kiss Me as well as Dior; rapper and performer Jennie has branched available as a soloist and a powerful influencer; New Zealand-born Rosé’s particular vocal sound has found her on hits with regard to G-Dragon; and Thailand-born artist and dancer Lisa is a most-followed K-pop star with Instagram.

Then, and now, many people recognize the need for each other to carry out the group alchemy here is endeared them to millions. “I don’t think a specific new member should do more dancing as well as one member does considerably more singing. I think Blackpink’s relaxation is complete because of each one person’s energy, ” Jennie told Vogue Korea prior this year.

The long-standing imaginative and prescient vision of K-pop as a blinged-out, ultra-slick fantasy world is made by three labels: YG Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and also SM Entertainment. YG is acknowledged for maximalist visuals and a hefty, club-friendly sound devised by simply in-house writer-producer Teddy Park your car, the man behind some of K-pop’s biggest, hookiest hits. With Blackpink’s 2018 “Ddu-du Ddu-du” (“DDDD” for short), these elements aligned to produce the irresistible pop package.

Achievements lay in the catchy se?alar refrain, the memorable finger-gun dance, and a gloriously increased video, but also in Blackpink themselves as aspirational yet emulatable, aesthetically fierce and not intimidating, killer onstage nevertheless adorable off it. Often the four-track EP, Square Upwards, would go platinum in Sth Korea, “DDDD” would arrive at gold in the U. S i9000., becoming their first billion-view video, and “Kill That Love” would make them typically the first-ever Korean girl party to enter the U. E. singles chart.

These milestones came via a fandom in which had grown rapidly due to the fact late 2016, but which will had to wait eight several months for 2017’s single “As If It’s Your Continue, ” then an entire calendar year for its follow-up, Square Right up. One release per year used to be standard in K-pop, if there were fewer groups dealing with for a share of a modest domestic market. Groups currently average two or three releases (known as “comebacks”) a year in a very bid to grow and maintain fandoms, but YG Entertainment, considered one of South Korea’s oldest K-pop agencies, remains unapologetically invested in less is more.

It’s not really a huge fail-safe plan-it draws continual fan criticism, petitions, along with boycott threats-but the old-school approach, in an era connected with oversaturation and instant prime, has created heightened desire in addition to demand. It’s turned just about every comeback into a global affair and has funneled the fandom’s streaming power into the types of headline-making, spreadsheet-melting numbers that contain seduced many a point executive.

Like many profitable musicians, Blackpink understands the capability in marrying the oceans of music and manner. Their innate understanding of model has made them hot residence, with the girls now front-row fixtures at Fashion 1 week. In September 2019, Jisoo popped over to London regarding Burberry, while Rosé wowed at Saint Laurent (and was also asked by means of Anthony Vaccarello to be it has the brand ambassador). Meanwhile, Jennie found herself next to Cardi B at Chanel, intended for whom she is a brand ambassadress.

In February 2020, Lisa-currently a muse for Hedi Slimane’s Celine-took a trip to Hong kong for Prada’s fall 2020 show, and just this week, placed a #WFH look to seducre her Instagram account (high-waisted light-wash denim, a Celine button-down shirt, and Bottega Veneta’s latest envelope clutch) this garnered more than 5 zillion likes.

Given their tested selling power-magazines have claimed needing to print quadruple reports to supply demand; their adventures sell out in seconds-the romance between the band and fashion’s leading houses will longer continue to flourish.

Blackpink seemed to be signed to U. Nasiums. -based Interscope Records at the end of 2018, a direct play for any American market and something not any South Korean girl class had tried since Girls’ Generation in 2012. Even with their skill and practical experience, Blackpink’s awkward, lackluster January 2019 performances on Hello America and The Late Indicate With Stephen Colbert ended up widely panned. But in the front of a vast, mostly K-pop-unaware audience at Coachella, often the universality of the group’s sounds bloomed, earning rave critiques. A high point was the great “Kill This Love, ” the title single from their completely new EP.

It’s rare the fact that members aren’t busy, regardless if there isn’t a let go to promote. They often turn to Instagram to communicate with their blended 128 million followers (including the main Blackpink account), and get focused on solidifying their A-list status as fashion building (such as Jennie’s new collaboration with luxury glasses brand Gentle Monster), marketplace mentors, and accidental virus-like queens (Lisa’s stint for the survival show Youth To you and her performance videos that became a Made it happen Work? meme).

And finally, 1 year after their last file, the wait is almost over. There are the forthcoming Lady Gaga relationship, “Sour Candy, ” for a laugh album Chromatica, and a July comeback from the band themselves. Could Blackpink eventually as the first K-pop girl set to break through in the West? An opportunity is there for the taking, although that means new successes need to be capitalized upon and previous strategies reexamined and polished. Now might be the time to get Blackpink to really be the emerging trend.

[rosy-night-sky]

Of Treasure and Adventure

Genre: Treasure Hunter/Indiana Jones AU

Pairing: Ot7 x reader

Summary: Your grandmother gave you a gift that she won in a game, so naturally you are curious as to the origins of it. A decision was then made that you should seek the answers to your questions. However, you never expected your decision to lead you on a treasure hunting quest.

Tag List: @sevenincubistolemyheart @xxqueenwxtchxx

Chapter 3

The mechanical hum of the plane you were in resonated throughout the cabin as you looked out the window, admiring the beautiful Indian sky, which had shifted into a pale blue ever since you and the rest of the team had taken off. Wisps of cloud fluttered by your window like tufts of cotton. As you glanced to the earth below, you noticed the forested terrain had turned more rugged and hilly, and small villages dotted the land here and there.

You and the team had been traveling for nearly two weeks at this point. Apparently while you had been unconscious, Namjoon and Jin had taken the time to study your tapestry, and they determined that the next step in the plan was to make their way toward the mountain ranges in the Bengal and Assam regions. Ever the one to be prepared, Jin had previously purchased an airliner with a capacity of anywhere from nine to seventeen passengers and a needed crew of three. Once you all had your supplies packed, you were off.

The plan was to land in Darjeeling and then take a vehicle up through the mountains. You were hoping that the time it would take to get there would fly by -- both figuratively and literally -- but with having to stop every five hundred kilometers or so for fuel, it grew more and more wearisome.

Most days you spent reading up on the history surrounding the tapestry, although you also attempted to make light conversation with the others every once in a while. It wasn’t that you disliked the boys, but rather you just couldn’t find anything to talk about other than the expedition. You formed all sorts of conversation starters in your mind, but when they would begin talking to you, your mind would go completely blank.

Your daydreaming is interrupted when you see Yoongi wandering toward you from the cockpit, fiddling with something in his hands. He stopped in front of you and, without a word, handed you what you realized to be a camera. You turned it over in your hands before raising your eyebrow in an unspoken question.

“Jin wanted me to give you this after I was done tinkering with it,” he explained as you inspected its leathery and sleek appearance. He folded his arms. “Don’t break it. I already have enough stuff to fix as it is.”

You smiled, remembering when Namjoon accidentally broke one of the armrests, causing Yoongi to go off on a rant about how if he had known Namjoon was such a hazard, he would never have taken this job.

“Thank you. I’ll try not to be as clumsy as the others,” you replied, carefully placing the camera to the side. Your mind was at a blank again. Shit, what should you say? Should you ask about the maintenance of the plane? Should you ask something more personal? “Um, so, what’s your favorite food?” You mentally cringed at your words. Why the hell did you ask that?

Yoongi quirked an eyebrow. “I guess anything with meat in it. Can’t resist a good steak.” He then grinned. “What, are you planning on cooking our next meal?”

You took a moment to ponder that. “There’s only so much rations I can take. Maybe I will cook. I’ve been craving bangers and mash,” you suggested. “Or perhaps bubble ‘n squeak?”

Yoongi’s face wrinkled in slight disgust. “I forget you British people have no sense of taste,” he remarked, leaning against one of the seats with his arms still crossed.

You couldn’t help but laugh at his comment. “My American colleagues would agree with you, but I can assure you that my shepherd’s pie is anything but disgusting,” you mentioned.

“Pie? Who’s making pie?” Taehyung suddenly butted in, tampering with some mechanism in one hand. You and Yoongi noticed a stick of dynamite sticking out of the contraption and flew from your spots to the farthest corner from where Taehyung stood.

“What the hell?!” Yoongi shouted angrily, pressing you close to the wall and holding an arm out in front of you for protection. “Are you trying to kill us all?!”

Taehyung stared at you both in bewilderment for a few seconds before glancing down at the mechanism in his hand. Realization dawned upon him as his mouth formed around a silent “oh.” “Geez, calm down, you two. It’s defective. I wouldn’t just walk around with an explosive in hand in a flying plane,” he laughed, removing the stick and twirling it between his fingers.

Yoongi relaxed a bit and shook his head in disbelief, finally moving away from the wall. The smell of oil and metal left with him. “Y’know, these days, I'm not so sure,” he sighed, jabbing a finger at him.

“What’s going on in here?” Jin asked as he walked in. His eyes, too, landed upon Taehyung and the stick of dynamite. You could practically see the gears turning in his head. When the dots finally connected after a few seconds of stunned silence, his eyebrows shot up as he flung himself back and screamed at the top of his lungs, fear etched into every part of his face.

You had never seen a man so scared in your entire life.

Taehyung rolled his eyes. “Jin! It’s defective!”

He seemed to calm down a bit at those words, but fear and paranoia remained imprinted in his features. His eyes were glued to the explosive. “Well, get rid of it then!” he snapped, recomposing himself from such an embarrassing ordeal.

“Can everyone please stop yelling?” Jimin shouted from his seat in the cockpit. “It’s a little hard to concentrate with all that commotion back there!”

Jungkook poked his head out from the cockpit, slight concern growing on his face. “What’s wrong-”

“Before you start screaming,” Taehyung interrupted, jabbing the dynamite at a now surprised Jungkook, “it’s defective.” He then brushed past everyone and unceremoniously tossed the stick into a cardboard box labeled in black marker ‘defective’. You all flinched when it landed in the box but relaxed after a few seconds of anxious silence.

Jin sighed, his broad shoulders sagging. “Tae, what have we said about messing with the explosives?” he asked, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

“Don’t touch them unless absolutely necessary. But you know who made that rule?” Taehyung pointed at himself. “Me. I’m the expert here, and I say it’s absolutely necessary to check every once in a while to separate the defects from the working explosives.”

“Just do it away from us so we don’t go into cardiac arrest,” you said, crossing your arms.

Taehyung shrugged his shoulders before leaving the group, probably to go check on the supplies once more. Jin collapsed in a nearby chair, his hand resting on his chest. Yoongi shuffled away, mumbling something about fixing whatever recent thing Namjoon had broken. This left you alone with the millionaire and the muscle.

Jungkook rubbed the back of his neck before turning to Jin. “Hyung, would you like a drink?” he suggested, knowing fully well the guy needed it.

Jin nodded, “Get me a soju.”

Jungkook went over to one of the nearby boxes and pulled out a green bottle. Looking up to you, he asked “Would you like anything, too, y/n?”

You considered the offer for a few moments, wondering if now was a good time to be drinking. However, after that scare with the dynamite, a drink sounded amazing. “Sure, I guess I’ll also have a soju.” You then smirked. “As long as it isn’t drugged.”

The bodyguard chuckled at your comment as he took the green bottle and three shot glasses. He popped off the cap using one of the nearby armrests and poured the clear liquid into the shot glasses. “Have you ever had soju?” he questioned as he handed you your drink.

You shook your head. “No, but I can’t think of a better time to rectify that.”

“It tastes like watered down vodka, in case you’re wondering,” Jin described to you as he received his glass from the younger man.

You held the glass out and observed it for a few seconds, taking a moment to watch the liquid swirl around. “Vodka, huh? I expected you to be more of a wine guy,” you commented, bringing your drink back down.

“I am,” Jin replied, looking out the window at the cloudy, blue sky for a few seconds before turning his gaze back to you, “but this situation calls for something a little stronger.” He then lifted his glass up in the air for a toast. “Geon bae.”

You also lifted up your glass. “Geon bae,” you cheered, causing Jungkook to chuckle at your attempt to replicate Jin’s pronunciation. You all threw the shot back, and you felt the liquid burn in your throat as you swallowed it down. Ah, you could feel its warmth pooling in your stomach, and you released a sigh you felt had been trapped in your chest for a long time. “It does taste like watered down vodka.”

“This is from Jimin’s stash,” Jungkook confessed. He lifted a finger to his lips and smirked at you, narrowing his eyes in a conspiratory manner. “Let’s keep this a secret between us.” You weren’t sure if your cheeks were heating up because of the look in his eyes or because of the alcohol.

You grinned back at him, trying to ignore your flustered state. “Just as long as you don’t tell him I took some of his rations,” you bargained, surprised at your own banter. It had to be the alcohol, right?

His smirk was replaced with a mirthful smile as he laughed at your comment. “It’s a deal then,” he concluded, still laughing to himself.

“Then I guess I might as well admit that I used some of Jimin’s cologne when he wasn’t looking?” Jin added, clinking his fingers against his glass sheepishly.

“Everyone probably uses Jimin’s stuff when he isn’t looking,” you noted casually, remembering the time when Jimin was looking for his comb when Taehyung had secretly swiped it.

“Gentlemen and... gentlewoman... we are now arriving at our destination. Please buckle yourselves as we descend into Darjeeling. Thank you for flying Jimin Airlines!” The pilot in question announced over the overhead speakers.

Jungkook chuckled to himself as he took yours and Jin’s glasses and placed them back in the crate he pulled them from. “What a dork...” He seated himself in the chair next to Jin, and buckled himself in with a resounding ‘click’.

Namjoon soon entered the cabin, nose deep in his book which, from the looks of it, was written in Bengali. He gave you a polite greeting before he took a seat in front of Jin. You decided to sit next to him, since you haven’t had the chance to talk to the archeologist yet. As you buckled yourself in, you peeked at Namjoon’s book again. You admired the beautiful artwork that adorned one of the pages he was currently reading.

“How’s the book?” you asked, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear.

Namjoon turned his gaze to you, unsure if you were talking to him at first. “Oh, um, it’s good,” he answered, setting the book in his lap. “It’s all about the history of the Bengali and Assam regions. I thought I’d refresh my memory, since our expedition is taking us here.”

You nodded in understanding, finding his research to be both fascinating and impressive. “So, what’s this about then?” you inquired, pointing at a page.

Namjoon glanced down at where you pointed, his dark eyes wandering over the page. “It’s just talking about how the Pala Empire formed under Gopala I,” he explained. “Both regions were a part of the empire until the Hindu Sena dynasty dethroned the Pala Empire in the 12th century.”

You were impressed that Namjoon didn’t simply read the page verbatim, instead summarizing based on his own memory and understanding. You knew he was incredibly intelligent the moment he dated your tapestry, but he continued to impress you. Before this had all began, when you were still arranging a meeting with him about your tapestry, you had done some research of your own on the man, which had led to an impressive list of books all written by the historian. Of course, you hadn't done enough research to find out he wasn’t actually an active professor like he had led you to believe.

“Y/n!” you heard your name being called in a cheerful tone. Hoseok bounded into your view and sat down in the flight seat in front of you, smiling brightly at you. “You almost forgot your camera in the back seats.” He held out the leather encased camera, and you mentally chastised yourself as you took it out of his hands. “You’re lucky it was me who found it and not Yoongi.”

You imagined the scowl and rant you would have received from the mechanic and were extremely thankful to the doctor. “Yeah, thanks for saving my neck, Hoseok,” you chuckled, tightening your grip on the case.

He laughed. “Well, I am the doctor. It’s what I do,” he smiled his infectious smile. “Oh, and please, call me Hobi. The others already call me that anyway. You might as well too at this point.”

“Dr. Hobi,” you tested the name on your tongue. “Sounds like a character from the cartoons in the papers.”

“Oooh! I like the sound of that! Dr. Hobi to the rescue!”

—————————————

Just as planned, you landed in Darjeeling and were currently helping the other boys bring the supplies to the motel rooms Jin had booked for the night. You placed all of the crates you could manage onto your flat and started pushing it past the other boys. Big mistake on your part. Why? Because it was currently thirty degree celsius and very humid, and the boys were doing manual work, which meant, yes, they were indeed sweating.

Most of them had their sleeves rolled up and their shirts unbuttoned as sweat rolled down their faces. You could see Jungkook’s muscles flex as he carried heavy equipment to his flat and Namjoon’s sculpted calves clench as he lifted his share of the crates. You felt the blood rush to your already warm cheeks, and you willed yourself not to look at them.

Get a grip, woman, you scolded yourself internally.

You had to remind yourself that they were your teammates, not men you could fantasize about. This was all strictly professional, and you intended to keep it that way.

“Need a hand, boys?” you asked, wiping the sweat from your brow as you tried your very best not to notice the way Jimin’s shirt was currently very see through.

Taehyung grinned at you mirthfully and sauntered over. Dear Lord, he was wearing a tank top. “Could I add something to your flat?” he asked hopefully.

You nodded. “Yep! Just put it right here!” You pointed at an open area.

“Thanks, y/n.” He then stretched himself out on the flat and wrapped his arms behind his head. His eyes fluttered shut as he continued to grin cheekily. “Alright, darling, take us over.”

You gaped at him. “You cheeky monkey!” you scolded, smacking him on the shoulder, rousing a chorus of laughter from him and the rest of the team. “Get up!”

Yoongi looked wistfully at Taehyung. “Why didn’t I think of that earlier?” he wondered out loud to himself.

You shook the flat hoping it would cause the demolition expert to flop off, but he stubbornly stuck to his spot. Exasperation flood over your being as you threw your head back. Wasn’t this man supposed to be an adult? Then why was he acting like a child? “Taehyung, get off!” you chided, giving the flat another good shake. However, your efforts bore no fruit.

Taehyung pouted slightly. “Why? I get a nice view of you from down here,” he bluntly remarked, his pout forming into a bold grin.

You sputtered for a few seconds, your mind at a complete loss for words. Did he just…? No, that can’t be right. You must’ve heard wrong. Maybe he was talking about the nice view of the sky? Yes, that had to be it.

Jimin giggled at your bothered state, crouching down slightly so his arms rested on his thighs. “Aw, look how flustered you made her, Tae~” he cooed, tilting his head amusedly. “Looks like someone isn’t used to getting complimented.”

Your cheeks were inflamed at this point, and you were fairly sure everyone could see how embarrassed you were. It wasn’t that you weren’t used to being complimented, but rather the boys were taking it a step further than complimenting. It was on the border of flirting. “Of course I’m used to being complimented!” you refuted, trying to recompose yourself. “It’s just that-! I-!”

“Liar!” Hoseok interjected, wrapping an arm around Yoongi’s shoulders. “You’re sooo not used to getting complimented.I think we should fix that, don’t you agree?” He looked at Yoongi for answer.

The mechanic shrugged his shoulders. “If we fix it, then we won’t get to see her all embarrassed again,” he mentioned, looking at the other’s for their opinion.

Hoseok let out a noise of agreement before adding, “You’re right! She looks so cute when she’s shy!”

You panicked once more. Cute? You can’t remember the last time someone called you cute. All your friends squealed about how cute your cat was, but never had anyone recently called you cute. You placed a hand on your cheek to feel if it was indeed inflamed, and you were fairly certain your cheeks were never this hot before. “Okay, okay!” you cried out, throwing your hand at your side. “You can stop with the bloody teasing!”

“We’re not teasing,” Jungkook rebutted, leaning against his flat with an amused twinkle in his eye. “If we were teasing, we’d talk about how you look like a deer caught in headlights.”

“Or a schoolgirl when a boy flirts with her,” Jimin added, running his fingers through his raven hair. Damn, he shouldn’t be doing that when you’re already so flustered.

“I wish I could use your camera and take a picture of you right now,” Jin teased playfully, gesturing to the camera that hung from your neck. “The pictures would be hilarious!”

“If you do,” Namjoon butted in, a coltish grin spreading from ear to ear, “give me a few. I’d like to have something to look back on and laugh.” He then snickered seeing the gaped look you were giving him. When did these boys get so cheeky with you?

“Alright! That’s it! Enough of that!” The boys laughed wildly at your now provoked expression, knowing fully well that they managed to get under your skin. You just had enough of their silly teasing! Anymore and you would’ve imploded.

“Huh, she gets angry when we either compliment her or when we tease her,” Yoongi remarked, folding his arms as a disappointed look crept onto his features. “You’re a mean girl, y/n.” The way he said ‘mean girl’ made your body feel things you know fully well you shouldn’t be feeling.

“Hmmm, I do seem to recall that you like to tease us a lot, too, y/n,” Namjoon referred to, rousing up remarks of agreement from the other boys. “That’s a bit unfair.”

“Ooooh~ does that mean we get to tease her more then?” Jimin inquired, a mischievous smirk tugging at the corners of his lips.

Hoseok lit up at Jimin’s suggestion, his eyes flickering with a spark of excitement. You could practically see the many plans of future teasing running through his thoughts. “I like that idea! Perhaps we could tease her about how she talks in her sleep? I mean, last night she was mumbling about wanting to interview a farmer in charge of an ostrich farm so badly!” The other boys squealed in laughter, imaging you eagerly wanting to meet the ostrich farmer in your dreams. Some of them were laughing so hard they used the crates as support.

You couldn’t believe where this was going. “No! No! Don’t team up against me!” you protested, jabbing a finger at all of them. “All I want is get him off!” You gestured dramatically at the man who was still lying on your flat.

Taehyung stopped laughing and pouted once more, his behavior resembling one of a child who was told no. Lord help you with these boys. “But I’m so tired!” he whined, clinging to the flat.

After a few seconds of chastising Taehyung to no avail, you managed to convince Jungkook to carry the demolition expert off so you could continue on with your job of moving crates and avoiding the sight of sweaty, attractive men who wanted nothing more than to embarrass you.

You pushed your flat onward, glancing at the slip of paper given to you by Jin that had the directions to the motel written in rather professional looking handwriting. The town you and the boys had landed in was rather run down looking. You saw a few kids playing in the streets and could hear loud, cheery voices coming from the pubs, but other than that the town looked dead. You assumed that it was because of how late it had gotten.

You admired how the sky had turned into a beautiful mix of red, orange, and pink as the sun had begun to set, and if it hadn’t been so bloody hot, you might have decided to go for a walk after you had dropped off the supplies at the motel room. The temptation to just go off on your own little brief adventure was very strong indeed, but, again, the humid weather manage to convince you otherwise.

You managed to find the motel after a few minutes of pushing and shoving, and the sweat that clung stickily to your body and clothes made you desperate for a cold shower. Perhaps instead of that walk you were contemplating, you would take a shower.

You found the room no problem, and, after a few minutes of moving the crates, you had successfully stored the supplies in your room. Luckily, you convinced Jin to book you a room all by yourself, not wanting to have to change or shower knowing the boys were right there. Your room wasn’t amazing, but it was certainly better than other motel rooms you’ve stayed at. You didn’t spot any cockroaches right away thankfully. The only thing that probably revealed its mediocrity was the discolored ceiling and walls. Other than that, it seemed to be in rather good condition.

When you realized just how sweaty you were, the bathroom began to call to you with the promise of a heavenly cold shower, but you knew that you had to, unfortunately, take the flat back to the airport. Ugh, you really didn’t want to have to deal with the boys possibly teasing you once more, but you knew that you didn’t have much of a choice… again. Sighing to yourself, you trudged back to the hallway outside the motel room.

When you opened the door, the first thing you noticed was the strong stench of alcohol that filled the air, accompanied by the sight of a pair of shoes and pants that didn’t belong to any of your teammates. Fear slowly washed over you as your fight or flight instincts screamed at you to get away as soon as possible. Your eyes slowly dragged themselves up, hoping that your instincts were wrong, only to find yourself face to face with a man you didn’t know.

A man who was holding a knife directed threateningly at you.

[stokan]

The Top 20 Things of 2019

1. “Shallow” at The Oscars How can something be so anticipated, so hyped, so seemingly bigger than the freaking Oscars themselves, and yet still somehow exceed all expectations? We now know the answer: by completely subverting them. That’s why it makes perfect sense that the greatest moment of Lady Gaga’s career would be the simplest one. Her and Bradley Cooper simply standing up from their seats still gives me chills every time I watch it (and I’ve watched it A LOT). And the close up on their faces needs to be shown in sex ed classes.

If I could travel back in time, sure going back to kill baby Hitler would be great, but mostly I’d just want to go back to the exact second the curtain starts to raise on this performance, before I knew where it was headed next.

2. Olivia Colman winning Best Actress at The Oscars If you think it’s weird that there are two separate things from the same awards show on my list of the top things from the entire year, then, well, you’ve come to the wrong place.

This is the absolute platonic ideal of someone winning an Oscar. Our genuine shock at hearing their name, THEIR genuine shock at hearing their name, the genuine emotion from everyone involved, a speech that is heartfelt, human, funny, and charming in a way that only a true star could ever dream of being, all in equal measure. And it’s all part of a YouTube clip you can watch endlessly and find new things every time. (Glenn Close’s reaction when she loses is like an entire drama in and of itself.) Sure awards shows may be dumb, but then also, this is why they’re not.

3. Sharon Van Etten - “Seventeen” in advance of this year’s Oscars I just want to be on record that my favorite movie from 2019 about aging, feeling that life is passing you by, grappling with mortality, the passage of time, and the generation coming up behind you is Closing My Eyes And Listening To “Seventeen” By Sharon Van Etten. It has it all: the creeping melancholy and regret, the sense of doom that you try to dance away, the feeling that the past was maybe just a dream, the urge to yell into an increasingly uncaring void.

Part of the curse of aging is everyone becoming their own Casandra. Now you know, but no one will listen. And part of the joy of aging is realizing it doesn’t really matter if they do.

4. The writing on Succession

“Proof that, as long as the writing is there, TV doesn’t need to be anything more than people having conversations in rooms.” - theringer.com

I have a rule with these year end lists that I can’t feature something I’ve listed in a previous year. But it’s actually illegal to write about the best of 2019 without mentioning Succession. So I’m going to get around my self-imposed rule by this year specifically highlighting the writing on the show.

The amazing thing about Succession is how watchable it is not despite, but almost BECAUSE of the fact that not much actually happens. People talk a lot about things they are GOING to do, or MIGHT do, but there’s not a ton of actual DOING. And that’s actually great, because what we’re really here for is the talking. Every character talks with the biting wit of an Armando Iannucci character, the deep intelligence of an Aaron Sorkin character, and the realism of an actual human being. I find myself constantly rewinding just to make sure I took in the brilliance of each dialogue exchange. And literally every line Kieran Culkin is given to say would be the best line of the entire season on 90% of the shows on TV.

Everyone talks about how great the acting on Succession is, and rightly so, but actors are nothing without good words to say. And on Succession, to paraphrase a president of the United States that I’m sure ACN would love, they have the best words.

5. The chemistry of Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein in Booksmart My favorite movie of 2017 was Lady Bird. My favorite movie of 2018 was Eighth Grade. So suffice it to say I was well prepared for how much I loved Booksmart. But what I was not prepared for at all was the incredible chemistry of two actors I had previously never even heard of before: Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein. It feels impossible that the two of them aren’t real-life best friends. Life-long friendship is such a specific bond it feels impossible to fake, and yet somehow Kaitlyn and Beanie pulled the magic trick off. Experiencing the giddy contact high of their chemistry felt like being in the presence of a miracle. And anyone who says the romantic comedy is dead clearly didn’t see Booksmart, because maybe the best romantic comedy of the decade was the story of two people realizing the deepest, purest, most unique love of all can sometimes be the love you have for your best friend.

6. Fleabag Season 2 What on earth is there left to say about Fleabag that hasn’t already been said? And yet somehow even with all the discourse about this show it has still maintained its status as the rare cultural phenomenon with a 100% approval rating. To be as massive and as beloved as Fleabag and yet inspire zero backlash, not even a stray contrarian take from an online troll, feels impossible, and yet also, in the case of Fleabag, totally right. If (the now VERY problematic) Louie was the beginning of giving people money to make their idiosyncratic, personal, not-quite a drama not-quite a comedy TV shows, then Fleabag is the end. The apex of the art form. There’s nowhere to go from here but down. 2019 was the year television finally peaked. It was the year we all witnessed perfection. And it was the year that we fittingly all had a priest to guide us there.

7. Chelsea Peretti’s monologue at the WGA Awards Ironic that the year that proved that awards shows don’t need hosts is also the same year that gave maybe the best example ever of what a great awards show host can do. Chelsea goes so far inside baseball it gives new meaning to the phrase “corker”, and it’s all the better for it.

8. Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride If you don’t think Father of the Bride is the best album of 2019 then congrats on not being a late-30s straight white man. But as a late-30s straight white man myself I’ve got two big things going for me:

1.) A life that has benefited from a history of privilege and near-total control over society stretching from the beginnings of civilization up until today 2.) An understanding that Father of the Bride is the best album of 2019

But what about Bon Iver and Wilco and The National and Sturgill Simpson and Big Thief, didn’t they all put out albums for late-30s straight white men this year you ask? To which I say: did any of those albums have a song on them called “Unbearably White”? No they did not! And that sort of ironic self-awareness is the kind of shit that has fueled a million straight white male sketch comedy scenes. It is the air we breathe. Also, have you heard “Harmony Hall” lately? Or “This Life”? Or “Stranger”? I mean, come on, leaving Brooklyn to make your “settled down in LA” album is the sort of late-30s straight white guy catnip James Murphy could only DREAM ABOUT. I may not have much these days, other than unlimited power and privilege, but at least I will always have Vampire Weekend, and they will always have me.

9. Lizzo Every year there is one thing that defines the year. One thing that 50 years in the future when someone mentions that year, it will be the first thing that pops into everyone’s head. And in America for 2019 that thing will be the impeachment of Donald Trump. But if there is a second thing, then it’s Lizzo. She was there when the year started, only got bigger as the year progressed and was arguably still getting more popular as the year ended. And she was everywhere. She was on massive stages and behind tiny desks. She was at the movies, she was on TV, she was coming out of every open car window. And she was definitely at every wedding you went to this year. Lizzo WAS 2019.

With the impeachment of Donald Trump I don’t know how far down the presidential line of succession we have to go before we get to Lizzo, but I know we would all be better off if we would hurry up and get there. Lizzo is the best of us.

10. This picture of Baby Yoda 

Ok I was wrong. Take everything I said about Lizzo and double it for This Picture Of Baby Yoda (you know the one, or if you don’t, click the link above). On the wikipedia entry for the year 2019 that definitely needs to be the picture. 

11. Kodi Lee on America’s Got Talent I realize you probably weren’t sitting around watching America’s Got Talent this summer. I certainly wouldn’t have been if I hadn’t happened to be working the live show tapings. But lemme tell you, if you didn’t see the show, you missed out on something truly magical this year. Something that makes you rethink what human beings are capable of. Something that goes so far beyond inspirational that I don’t think our language has a word to fully express it. Kodi Lee is a real life superhero, and provoking emotion is his superpower. Making it thru a full Kodi Lee performance without crying should be the new Turning Test. Forget America; Humans Have Talent indeed.

12. Taylor Swift - “Cruel Summer” Look I didn’t expect to ever find another “Teenage Dream”, but, well, here we are. I mean, a Taylor Swift single produced by Jack Antonoff and co-written by Annie Clark is pretty much genetically engineered to be one of my favorite things ever, but still: wow. Do the kids still use the term “banger”? Because if so, this is why the term was invented. I would have more to say about how great the rest of Lover is as well, but sorry, I gotta go now. I have to listen to “Cruel Summer” for the eight millionth time.

13. Michelle Williams in Fosse/Verdon If there was an award for best acting performance in any medium this would be the clear winner for 2019. In fact, can you win an EGOT for one single performance? What about a Nobel Prize? I can’t come up with an award or a title big enough to truly honor Michelle Williams’ work in Fosse/Verdon.

As a fellow actor very rarely a performance will come along that will make me think: ok we’re done here. Let’s all the rest of us pack it up and go home, because someone just won acting. This is one of those performances. So congrats to Dame Michelle Williams, you’re the new Pope.

14. American Factory My favorite line in all of Shakespeare is “there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so”. And nothing is evidence of that more than the piece of art I have thought about most this year: the documentary American Factory (available on Netflix right now!). So many of the things we in western societies believe are universal bedrock virtues and value are in fact simply products of the society in which we were raised. Individualism, personal expression, autotomy, the importance of leisure time, and so many other things, are not absolute human values, only relative ones. What is important to someone in America, can be ridiculous and incomprehensible to someone in China. And vice versa. And neither side is right or wrong, only thinking makes it so.

American Factory is documentary that doesn’t say WHAT IF EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW WAS WRONG, but instead shows something that is perhaps even more powerful: what if everything you know is simply just that, a thing you know.

15. White Claw Life is an endless parade of infinite options, possibilities, and choices. So I have no idea how you personally chose to spend your 2019. With one exception: I Know What You Did Last Summer. You drank an alcoholic seltzer water. Probably many of them, but at least one. At a park, at a beach, in a backyard, definitely at a party. If at some point this summer your paws weren’t wrapped around a White Claw (or a similar product) then you didn’t actually experience 2019. Because this is the year we all collectively got obsessed with combining America’s two hottest drink trends: flavored sparkling water and…hold on, lemme look up the name of this stuff…alcohol?

History may record summer 2019 as Hot Girl Summer, but those us who actually lived it know the truth: it was Hard Seltzer Summer

16. Marriage Story A movie that fundamentally misunderstands things I care about deeply - theater, Los Angeles, how the entertainment industry works - is my favorite movie of the year because of how deeply it gets right the thing I care about most: human beings. The way we talk, the way we behave, the way we love, the way we hurt, the way we create bonds that never fully go away. It’s been said a lot, but part of the beauty and magic of this movie is that it doesn’t take sides. Both people are right and both of them are wrong. And that’s how human relationships often work in real life, but rarely in art. There are no heroes, there are no villains; there’s only being alive.


(Also, Adam Driver, Imma let you finish, but Raul Esparza doing “Being Alive” is one of my favorite YouTube clips of ALL TIME. If you ever need to weep uncontrollably and you don’t have time to watch Marriage Story, then Raul Esparza’s “Being Alive” will do the trick)

17. Lil Nas X - “Old Town Road” “What kind of music do you like” used to be a very important question. Your sense of identity used to be defined by the type of music you listened to and what that choice said about you. But now music-as-cultural-signifier is as dead as the concept of owning music itself. Rap music is for elementary school kids. Country music is made by queer black Americans collaborating with Dutch teenagers. Billy Ray Cyrus and Korean pop stars appear on remixes of the same song. A song about an old road and an antiquated mode of travel becomes a massive hit thru the brand new music app TikTok. What kind of music do we like in 2019? All of the “kinds” of music at once, in one marvelously inescapable two minute burst of joy. Music is dead; long live music.

18. Chernobyl If you thought it was crazy that the year’s biggest song was a novelty country/hip-hop track by an unsigned artist rapping about trying to find parking for his horse, then wait until you find out what the summer’s biggest hit TV show was about! I mean, nothing screams “summer fun” like nuclear radiation and shooting dogs. But as always, no one ever truly knows what people will want until you give it to them. And clearly what we really wanted in our LOL Nothing Matters age was a captivating reminder that life on earth truly could end at any moment. Some things very much DO matter. And that something as dramatic, devastating, and consequential as Chernobyl could have happened in the fairly recent past and already have been largely forgotten about is incredible. But if you can take such a compelling story and tell it as well as the makers of Chernobyl did, then people will watch and learn and better understand an issue of vital importance, no matter how seemingly uncommercial it might be. So in a very 2019 sentence: thank you creator of the the Hangover franchise for your miniseries about a 1980 Russian power plant explosion. It was our collective summer obsession. (2019 was a weird year.)

19. Raphael Bob-Waksberg - Someone Who Will Love You In All You Damaged Glory

“I think about how loving someone is kind of like being president, in that it doesn’t change you, not really. But it brings out more of the you that you already are.”

Back in the day, Raphael Bob-Waksberg had a tumblr that was so good it both single-handedly inspired me get much better and writing my thoughts and putting them on the internet (thus what you are reading right now) and intimidated me out of doing it more often (why I now do this only once a year). In fact, I’m almost positive I had his tumblr listed as one of my top things of a year in the past, which is really the highest honor a tumblr account can receive. It was one of the single most impactful forces in the direction of my creative life. And now Raphael has taken the voice that created that tumblr and created my favorite TV show (BoJack Horseman) and wrote my favorite ever Craigslist post, and used it to create a book about love and loss and being human. And it feels like a wonderful treasure that was written just for me. It IS my worldview, expressed better than I ever possibly could. When I meet people now rather than doing the usual introductory small talk I am just going to hand them a copy of this book.

20. The New One - Mike Birbiglia Speaking of art that felt deeply personal to me…just hearing even a rough outline of the story Mike Birbiglia tells in The New One was enough to start me on a path of perhaps reconsidering one of my most deeply held beliefs. By talking about parenthood in a refreshingly honest and shockingly open way, he is able to possibly change lives. I know finally actually seeing the show in person (and it’s now available on Netflix) felt like a possible turning point in mine. Is it theater? Is it standup? Does it matter? Here’s what there are no questions about: it’s hilarious and deeply felt and perfectly constructed. It’s an absolute master class in story telling. And it’s my favorite thing I saw this year.

[snkpolls]

SnK S3E12  Poll Results (Manga Reader Version)

The poll closed with 487 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that this is the results of the manga reader poll. Anime only watchers are suggested not to read if you do not wish to be spoiled about certain events! Anime only viewers, click here to view your poll results!

RATE THE EPISODE 481 Responses

The final episode of the first half of S3 was another banger with positive reactions. Compared to earlier in the season when manga readers seemed more dissatisfied with the adaptation, we are happy to see that the final episodes of the arc turned out to be a much more positive experience!

Considering this episode was essentially just the calm before the storm, I was pleasantly entertained by it. Not the best episode because not a whole lot happened, but still it did what it needed to do.

I was super worried they would change something in this episode but thank Ymir-sama it's okay.

IT WAS AWESOME AND THAT ENDING IS ONE OF THE BEST THING THIS ANIME HAS EVER MADE!

This episode was so good! And funny! And angsty at the end! All the ingredients that make a good AOT episode

Very good, the preview was spooky and the whole episode had humor to lighten the mood, some emotional stuff and High Anxiety Cliffhangers to finish us off. Its gonna be a long 6 months.

HOW WOULD YOU RATE THE FIRST HALF OF SEASON 3 AS A WHOLE? 481 Responses

Overall, the first half of season three was satisfying for manga reading poll takers despite the changes.

All in all, absolutely stunning season. From the bottom of my heart, thank you WIT.

It was a really good episode. It followed manga perfectly. Every ep. of Uprising should has been like that. Too bad it wasn't, that why I rated the whole series pretty lowly. Honestly, I expected something better. But that was fine, not the worst. Yet, I would have changed a lot.

Really good way to end this half of the season. Can't wait to see the next half. It was nice to see a "calm before the storm" episode.

It was a brilliant idea to end the first part of season 3 right there, by doing this we were given proper construction to this arc.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE SEASON TAKING A BREAK UNTIL APRIL? 481 Responses

About 37% of respondents are sad to see the anime take a break, but nearly half of voters are fine with the break stating that it’s not too bad of a wait, with some who are even looking forward to the breather for a bit (we’re looking forward to having a good rest as well although we will miss the anime!).

I'm okay with it since it means that we will a get a really well made RtS arc. But they really should've said that the break was going to be this long earlier. Or just called it season 4

Waiting is something we SnK fandom know how to do, unfortunately

As a manga reader it's easy to not be too upset since we'll have plenty of chapters during that time.

It's nice to get a breather before shit hits the fan.

I don’t mind waiting 6 months when I know it means the animation will look a lot nicer as a result

I feel like i would have been less upset if they just told us from the start how its gonna be... I hated the uncertainty

If it means a fantastic second cour then I'm all for it. I mean my life is empty and I wish I were dead, but other than that I've accepted it!

6 months for preparing myself to let Erwin rest in peace

I AM NOT READY FOR RTS THIS IS LITERALLY THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO A HIATUS WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WIT

WAIT Studio

Does Annie have some space next to her for the next 6 months?

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING SCENES WERE YOUR FAVORITES? 480 Responses

The Survey Corps’ sendoff was the most favorite moment of the episode, followed closely by Eren and Jean’s nostalgic fight. Levi and Erwin’s talk after the meeting made it to third most favorite scene of the episode, followed closely behind by Eren, Armin and Mikasa’s conversation. Everyone losing their minds over meat was another favorite.

Erwin was so perfect, I loved his little laugh, I thought the whole interaction with him and Levi was done so well... god, I'm gonna miss him so much, it actually hurts.

Good breather episode, comedy gold with the dinner scenes, and the send-off was just as fun as it was touching. Also, the extra scene was creepy and great, but I hope anime-only watchers don't spoil themselves trying to find the meaning to it...

I think they did a really good work with the Erwin x Leviv talk, and EMA talk... Since enfatizing Erwin's reasons, and showing Armin's, It became more clear Levi's choice in future

I loved EMA talk... it made me pretty sad because of the events which now are taking place in the manga. That was good to see them together in the anime.

My Eruri shipping heart was in tatters, I tell you. I've been looking forward to the ""I'll break your legs"" scene for ages now, and shit, watching it was a literal punch to the gut. Erwin's beautiful roar of victory on the wall, his final ""SUSUME"" just... I was in awe.

Sasha nomming on Jean’s hand was even funnier animated

The 104th dinner scene was just perfect! It's been so long since we had a scene of such warmhearted camaraderie, it really brought back all my season 1 feels for the babies. Beautifully done.

Overall great Episode, really liked how they foreshadowed Erwins Demise and his conversation with Levi, EMA talk was great too, and the serumbowl scene made for an amazing cliffhanger

DID THE GLITCHED ENDING SCARE YOU? 483 Responses

The abrupt reminder that SNK is a horror anime definitely seemed to work!  The majority of people were scared by the ending at least a little bit, and some were thoroughly terrified.

"Blink and you'll miss it" my a**

Honestly it reminded me of how horrid the show actually is. I forget it's not all cute and funny scenes with a tinge of "yikes" that happened, but instead vice versa

I knew it was coming in the ED but didn't know WHEN and I was just anticipating it like a dark corridor in a horror movie XD

Moreso that scare me, it got under my skin and just stayed in my head the rest of the day.

Scare is not the right word. The option I'm looking for is FUCKING WRECKED

I learned that apparently a lot of you watch shit alone in the dark. But to answer the question, no, not at all.

It thrilled me to see them cleverly setting up the next half of the season this way

Only the Levi's distorted "you guys". The glitched ending was awesome

I saw some screencaps of it prior to watching so I was somewhat prepared but it was way creepier than i thought it would be, it spooked me

It wasn't actually SCARY, but I fucking loved it. So twisted and creepy

rip ears in that ending, it makes for some great youtube reactions though lol

Well, mark me down as scared and horny

SHOULD ZACKLEY’S ART BE REALIZED? 478 Responses

We suppose the real question is, when will Zackley’s “art” stop becoming something we ask about? :P All in all, most of you agree that it should not be seen or talked about. 21% of you are still finding humor in it.

HOW MUCH DID YOU ENJOY THE SEQUENCE OF EREN AND JEAN FIGHTING? 483 Responses

Most of the viewers enjoyed Eren and Jean’s antics with 84% rating the scene with a 4 out of 5 or higher. 

Mikasa letting them fight and not dragging Eren way is the best part! It's such an important character development for her. Also this Episode was full of parallels to their training days. Great episode.

Eren and Jean bringing the Drama™ (as expected of Eren and Jean)

THE SURVEY CORPS HAS NEVER EXPERIENCED A SEND-OFF LIKE THEY DID IN THIS EPISODE - FAVORITE PART OF THIS SCENE? 481 Responses

The surreal experience of getting a positive send-off like this made Erwin’s smile and shout the overwhelming winner here, and for good reason!  A smaller portion of respondents enjoyed Springlestein being themselves and a few called out Levi’s face in the comments:

All of it. Because it will be the first and the last time we'll see it

YYYYEEEEEEEAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH

Levi looking at screaming Erwin like "WTF Erwin"

Hange smile

LEVI'S SOFT LOOK

I like the manga version better because Levi's smile was softer there

Levi's expression when Erwin did his triumphant shout.

literally everything about it was perfect

WOULD YOU LET LEVI BREAK YOUR LEGS? 480 Responses

While 58% of respondents cannot understand why anybody would want their legs broken by Levi, a small percentage were even asking for it.

THE EPISODE WENT EXACTLY AS THE ORIGINAL MANGA! 478 Responses

So, the story behind this one is that one of the pollsters posted this “question” on our original document as a joke while another one of us was at work. When the one at work got off, they put the question onto the poll form while the person who created the “question” was not online, not realizing it was meant to be an unpublished joke. This was completely overlooked during the final proofread. It was never actually intended to make it onto the poll but since one of us always tries to rush through things, here we are! In any case, we hope you guys had a good laugh, because we all collectively lost it when we realized the mistake much too late!

wow y'all throwin shade with this Q huh

Yes, it is Erwin's birthday celebration after all

Glad that Erwin and the crowd’s screaming was a ‘dialogue’ and that he screamed again.

Makes sense, given how its purpose is to set up the new arc. Not much need to leave things out for the sake of pacing.

They done it so perfectly! I love that episode and love the hope in the air, my man similing and being happy, I love they see people cheering for them. THAT was earned.

It still modified some moments like Armin thinking of Eren and Mikasa instead of the bullies in the manga. Maybe it's better and more consistent with the following events.

Thanks God! The whole series should has been this way. Compared to the sad 1st episode of Uprising, this one was a true masterpiece.

u people need to get the salt in your blood checked, let others be dissatisfied with something they care about? please and thanks

i don't care if it went exactly as the original manga or with some changes as long as the episode is good

THE CHAPTER SIGNIFIED THE START OF A NEW ARC, BUT THE ANIME USED IT TO END THE FIRST COUR, WAS THIS A BENEFICIAL DECISION? 478 Responses

The majority of folks thought shifting the send-off to the end of the cour to create an uplifting cliffhanger was a good way to end the season.  Several people called attention to how much contrast was felt between such a positive ending and the credits scene.

I think it works great, especially the triumph of the send off and the "oh shit, what's happening" moment in the ED

should have been the first ep of the next arc, with the send off as the cliffhanger

It was a nice, fun send off for the arc. Has the suspense of the scouts going towards the foes. The next episode with the next chapter/s will be perfect for getting back into the series after 6 months

WAIT Studio used it as an effective cliffhanger but from an adaptation perspective it's just like the Wall Titan. Something to keep the audience's attention at the cost of the narrative's flow. If the season was going to be split then rushing the Uprising Arc at breakneck speed resulting in one extra episode was pointless.

The opening of 73 is a perfect opening for the second cour, so I knew from the beginning of the season that ending in this chapter would be their aim. The second half won't struggle for content, and they can either push ahead flashbacks (I expect some of Bert's parts from 96 making it into the adaptation of 77) or content that didn't make it in the first half used to extend other parts (Eren's experiments for Armin realizing how to beat Bert in 81)

I think this will help the second part by being on the way to Shiganshina to start it off.

Heck cliffhangers!

LEVI WASN’T EXPLICITLY SHOWN EAVESDROPPING UNTIL THE END OF EMA’S CONVERSATION, DO YOU THINK THIS DIMINISHED THE FORESHADOWING? 478 Responses

The vast majority of respondents agreed that as long as we saw him listening to them, that’s ultimately all that matters. A small few believe that not showing him listening in on them earlier will diminish the overall impact when he makes his decisions later, however.

I don't think it matters, especially if the anime includes a flashcut to this moment post-decision, which will make its important even more obvious for viewers who may not remember this scene at all.

I'm not sure, I guess it did seem more ambiguous here. They'll flashback to it when serumbowl happens though.

Wouldn’t have spent more time on it. This show is about subtle details. I think its ok.

It still worked, but I would have liked it to have been made clear that he saw Armin's expression when he was talking about the ocean

No, but i think it was nice in the manga to see that at the beginning of the conversation he was standing and ended up on the floor by the end of it. Small detail, but i took it like he didn't mean to listen in the beginning but decided to stay in the end because of what he was hearing?

No, because it was a detail it meant a lot more. Subtle details have greater impact in visualities, manga is a different medium and the scene was used properly for its medium.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WIT SHOWING *THAT PART* OF THE RTS ARC AS A TEASER? 480 Responses

38% of respondents believe that the teaser was a great way to keep interest in the series high. 20% specifically feel that it will keep the anime only fans invested. About 21% of respondents combined don’t think it was the smartest choice on WIT’s end while almost 10% are just not ready to see that animated at all.

Even though I already know what will happen, my body *isn't* ready for this shit to come, except for the lightning spears

Honestly, I thought it was stupid as fuck and a cheap way to keep hype up for anime-only people. I would've preferred my anime-only friend to go into RTS completely blind.

I think it's great because it lends itself a lot of hype for the next half as well as leaving it very open ended. Especially because they cut out lines about the serum.

I think this teaser shocked more the manga readers than the anime onlines.

It's the worst part of the manga they could spoil. I'm not sure what they intend to do by showing such a controversial moment

It was brilliant. Anime only watchers don't often get the experience of agonizing over certain cliffhangers monthly, but with this flashforward looming in their head, they have a whole season of suffering ahead of them. SUFFER LIKE US, ANIME ONLIES!

I really liked it but I think they could have shown a part of Bert/Reiner/Zeke’s convo since we saw Bert and Reiner at the end of the episode, and it would have anime-onlies wondering who the glasses guy is

I was shocked and hyped at seeing them include this scene, but at the same time I’m sad that anime-onlies were spoiled that at the very least Mikasa, Eren, and Levi will survive until this scene, destroying any tension of them dying

I'm really conflicted; on one hand, I was very surprised in a positive way, cause it was a ballsy and unexpected move. On the other hand, I understand that anime viewers might be sick of spoilers bc of the scene at the beginning of ep1.

It gave me anxiety lol. Please someone save my babies from their horrible destiny

One hell of a cliffhanger and I can't really imagine anything better to show everything going wrong (Colossal nuke is way too obvious, for example), but the people complaining about spoilers do have a point...

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR RTS’S ADAPTATION? 480 Responses

WHAT SEGMENTS OF RTS ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING ANIMATED NEXT COUR? 481 Responses

Over half of respondents feel that the Return to Shiganshina arc will be delivered just as well as Uprising was. 37% of respondents feel it will be much better than Uprising’s adaptation. A small few don’t have much faith in the second half of the four.

FUCK ME UP!! R.I.P. ANIME ONLIES

GIMME THE 2ND COUR NOW!

I don't know if I'm emotionally prepared for this arc

I’m going to have 6 more months to mentally prepare myself for the return to shiganshina arc and I still won’t be ready

from an adaptation perspective it's going to be the same as the previous seasons. WAIT Studio excels at certain aspects of packaging SnK into anime, but as a whole it's a bad, rather than amazing, adaptation.

Is there a "NOPE I am not ready for RtS arc" in the questions?

WHAT SEGMENTS OF RTS ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING ANIMATED NEXT COUR? 481 Responses

The most anticipated segment of the Return to Shiganshina arc is the suicide charge + Levi totally wrecking Zeke. Following closely behind are the basement reveal, the serumbowl, Grisha’s diaries and flashbacks, the ocean and the showdown with the 104th and Reibert. 

Kill me! I cannot believe I have to wait 6 months for RTS. 6 months until I can see Reiner and Bertholdt in action and the FREAKING BASEMENT!!!! I was fine with a 3 months break but 6 is too much ;____; I want to see Grisha's past animated

What everybody is waiting for the RtS Arc: the basement, Reibert fight, Levi soloing the beast titan, the ocean. Me, an intellectual: THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS THUNDER SPEARS (and Grisha's backstory)

can't wait to see historia looking graceful as hell in front of the sunrise while the SC goes off to fuck reibert and zeke up

The only thing I can think about is Zeke.... *screams* ZEKE AND EREN! THE JAEGERBROS! AND THE GRISHA FILES! SO MANY JAEGERS *dies*

I'm definitely looking forward to RTS okay, but I'm dreading it more, honestly. But the one thing I'm looking forward to, and really hoping they'll animate, is Levi taking down those Titans on the way to Zeke. I know the focus is on Erwin's last charge in the manga, and rightly so, but DAMN, I want to see Levi do that -I honestly don't think anyone, even Mikasa, could do what he did there.

I have a fever, and the only prescription is Season 3 Part 2

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

A pretty decent choice for a midseason finale. But most important, a pretty good choice for episode 49. Once we're back in April, the series will be celebrating having made it to 50 episodes. Just 2 years ago, we were wondering if we'd ever get episode 26, and now we're getting to a landmark episode that will be exciting and memorable! Nothing between chapters 70-72 could've worked as such a landmark, in my opinion, but chapters 73-74? Absolutely perfect for it.

And my ship finally got some screen time

But damn wit... I almost got a heart attack because of the glitched ending!! Please, I at least want to survive to see manbun Eren animated

For anime watchers: I enjoyed watching your confusion over that ED. May you all be prepared by April 2019.

My heart is filled with so much Eruri that I may cry. You could literally see how much concern Levi had for Erwin in his eyes.

I love Bertoto and Raina more than myself. Guess, I'll die in April.

I'm an Erwin Lover™ and the show is gonna come back right around my birthday so this was Great and I'm Fine

It was out of character to see Eren fully clothed.

The moment when SC were cheered up and Erwin was so confident and happy and then they left into the sunset gave me goosebumps and almost made me cry :') it was a beautiful, strong, encouraging moment for SC!!

Let me just tell you how fucking HYPED I am for the next season after those previews during the ED. HYPED. And Jesus fuck yes, Armin looked like a charred French fry that got left behind in the oil. THANK JESUS. I was afraid WIT might downplay that, but no, my boy gonna be the CRONCHIEST.

The glitches were great and not too spoiler-y but WIT absolutely ruined it with the Eren/Mikasa/Levi scene. They showed too much.

rip ears in that ending, it makes for some great youtube reactions though lol

Erwin looked fine as fuck

Wit, you better be paying for my doctor visit. My ears were bleeding with your little trick you pulled at the end.

This episode. THIS FUCKING EPISODE. Man what a way to end the cour. REALLY, standing ovation to WIT. That glitch ending was just like that tiny Titan-in-the-wall scene at the end of season 1 that made me go looking for the manga. Absolutely brilliant stuff.

Thanks for these polls.

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 446 Responses

Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming Uprising Arc poll!