#ANYway lol - enough reminiscing! There's all this current silliness! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

satsuma-saturn · 3 years

Note

This might be silly but how do you think the boys (or just Lucifer) reacting to seeing MC simping over their favorite fictional character (only to learn that they share some similar traits to them)

A/N: Okay, so I’m not entirely sure if you wanted me to answer this like answering a question or in the form of headcanons, but I just decided on headcanons. I also chose to do all of the brothers. Beel’s and Satan’s are a little shorter b/c I didn’t know what to write about, but I did my best lol. Enjoy!

Warnings: none

The Brothers’ Reaction to an MC Simping Over a Fictional Character Similar to Them

Lucifer

- He doesn’t understand why you love a fictional character so much

- When you give more attention to a fictional character than him, he’s a little bitter

- It reminds him of Leviathan

- If you start ordering random fan items off of Akuzon, he is going to take your internet privileges away

- He’s had enough to deal with with Levi’s orders causing the whole household trouble

- In fact, you only started the show when Levi wanted to watch it with you

- He makes a mental note to ground Levi, since he got you attached to a show that’s consuming your attention

- Normally, he isn’t bothered by others’ interests, but for some reason, it’s all he can think of

- One night, he kidnaps you to his room to waltz to classical music

- Maybe you’ll develop a more...refined habit, such as waltzing

- He doesn’t need you becoming a shut-in like Leviathan

- He watches it with you after a lot of convincing

- The show is stupid, but the character you like so much is actually somewhat likable

- A refined man who enjoys the simple things, like classical music and fancy alcohol

- Very loyal to another character, who reminds him of Lord Diavolo

Mammon

- Damn it, you’re just like Levi, obsessing over some fake person

- Don’t get him wrong, he’s not jealous

- In fact, he doesn’t even care that you’re in love with this fictional character

- That’s why he's currently researching this character

- HE IS NOT JEALOUS OF A FICTIONAL CHARACTER, OKAY?

- As he reads about the character, he notices something familiar about this character

- Something about crushing on another character and being unable to admit it, as well as being kind of a money-obsessed moron

- Sounds like his kind of guy

- If the character was real, he could imagine being friends with them

- Wait, no. If they were real, that would give MC more of a reason to be in love with them

- Damn it, MC!

Leviathan

- He gets it, having plenty of fictional characters that he loves and simps for

- That still doesn’t stop him from being jealous, but that’s in his nature

- Of course you’d like a fictional character and not a yucky, shut-in otaku like him

- Hold on a minute, this character is also an otaku

- Wait, that doesn’t matter. The character is an attractive otaku, not a yucky otaku like him

- Maybe you’ll like him more if he was more like the character

- A lightbulb goes off in his head

- He begins work on a cosplay, so that he can attempt to emulate this character

- Even if he looks like the character, he isn’t good enough for you to like him more than the character

- He understands wanting to live in a 2D world over a 3D world

- Just please don't abandon him

- He really loves you, even if he knows that you'd never like a yucky otaku

Satan

- Another brother who doesn’t understand

- After all, it isn’t like you can actually speak to said character, so it doesn’t make sense

- He doesn’t want to judge, though. Everyone has their own coping mechanisms

- Still, he is curious about the character

- The character is reminiscent of himself

- Book smart with a charismatic persona

- Also a bit of a temper

- Unlike most of his other brothers, he isn’t jealous

- From what he’s noticed from Levi, latching onto a fictional character is some sort of coping mechanism

- He does want you to have healthier coping, though

- Unlike Levi, you’re mortal and you can’t just waste your life on a fantasy world

- That’s why he’s dragged you to the library

- Reading is a much more interesting and intellectual hobby than rotting your brain on a television show

Asmodeus

- You remind him of Leviathan and his weird obsession with Ruri-chan

- Why can’t you like something normal, like makeup or skincare?

- He sits in your room one day, painting your nails

- The character you like so much almost reminds him of himself

- Except he’s way more attractive than said character

- Even so, if the character was real, he’d want to date them

- He doesn’t want you to want to date them, though

-Why would you want to date anyone but him?

- He’s perfect

- Come on, MC. Why are you obsessing over a fictional character when you can obsess over me? ♡

- Still, he isn’t going to let it bother him. There’s no way you can adore a fictional character more than you adore him~

- On the off-chance that he starts to feel jealous, he’ll just have to convince you that a 3D lover is much better than a 2D lover

Beelzebub

- Watches a show with you one night, after you bribe him with popcorn and candies

- The main character of the show kind of reminds him of himself

- Well, the always eating part

- He doesn’t pay much attention to the character’s personality, which is emotionally intelligent and kind

- The food is what keeps his attention, looking like Studio Ghibli food

- In fact, the food looks delicious and he’s already finished his popcorn and sweets

- When his mouth starts watering, you have to turn off the tv

- You don’t want him trying to take a chunk out of your tv

- The next day, he asks you to make him the food from the show the two of you watched

- Don’t refuse him, or it might upset him

- He just wants to know what the food from the show tastes like

- It looks so good

Belphegor

- To be honest, he doesn’t even notice your obsession over a fictional character

- He’s too busy with other things, like sleeping

- Still, he does notice that his napping partner hasn’t been napping with him

- Why are you being difficult? He just wants you to nap with him and now he has to put in the effort to find you

- After wandering around, he finds you in your room, watching some show

- You blew him off for a tv show?

- He’s a little grumpy, especially when you refuse to turn off the show

- Fine, he didn’t want to nap with you anyway

- Why aren’t you trying to call him back to your room?

- Fine, he’s staying. He isn’t happy, but you can’t get rid of him

- One more episode and you have to nap with him

- A character on the show seems to always be sleeping

- That he can relate to

- He notices that you seem to be really fond of that character

- Is that why you watch the show?

- Well, he’s basically the same as the character, but he’s real

- He’s not jealous or anything, but he does shut off the tv

- Just nap with him, you don’t need a fictional character

#headcanons #obey me headcanons #request #request answered #anon #obey me #swd #shall we date #shall we date obey me #swd om #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #fluff #obey me fluff

270 notes · View notes

wildselkie · 4 years

Text

Top 10 Scenes in TDP Season 1 (pt. 1/3)

*not ordered in which is better or worse, but it will be in chronological order*

Also some things are worded weirdly. I have a pain in the ass time trying to get my thoughts across in words so... I thank you for your patience :))

_________________________________________

1) The scene where Callum, Ezran, and Rayla find the dragon prince. Ep. 2

I think this is one of the more pivotal moments in the show. I mean it is literally the scene that sets the story in motion after all! Two human princes, an elf assassin, and the lost dragon prince (who was thought to be dead/gone/egg destroyed(?)).. this is just IT.

*also i’m aware that Ez probably found the egg first cos he already knew about this secret area but still

2) Viren (attempts to) proposes the idea to trade his life in for Harrow. Ep. 3

Now there are other well thought and well written posts on this scene with Viren and Harrow, so I won't waste your time with all the gushy stuff. I find this scene important because it shows the lengths that Viren would go for his friend. Whether he's doing out of the goodness of his heart or some other selfish reason... maybe both(?)..

!WARNING! MINI VIREN POST ALERT EVEN THO I SAID I WOULDN'T GET INTO IT

In the book Moon, it dives deeper into the plot along with expressing the characters' thoughts and feelings. As for Viren, it's stated in the book that he wanted to:

"offer his life for Harrow's, but he wanted him to understand that this was more than just a sacrifice of a subject to his king. This was personal"

"... he would need to be straightforward. He wanted to say simply I love you and I will die for you" (Ehasz 80).

I have no doubts that Viren didn't not love Harrow or anything of the sorts, but at the same time it feels like there was another motive. Maybe there was, who knows.

All we know about Viren is that he's a father of two (Claudia & Soren), divorced/ separated from his wife, and he's a dark mage. Of course there's some more (like he's taller than Harrow according to the character line up)... also his staff... like if you look at it, it's the same one as the mage who faced Sol Regem all those centuries (?) ago. Maybe he's related to him, or possibly descended from one of the followers. I'd imagine that teaching dark magic may be a thing within his family and ancestors... he taught Claudia dark magic. That doesn't prove anything but it's a small thought.

ANYWAY-- this scene is one of many scenes that show Viren in a vulnerable state. The book gives a look into how he felt when he decided to sacrifice himself and everything. It's just interesting and I'm here for it.

3) Amaya and her weapons grade baguette Ep. 4

On a less serious and more fun note, the fact that Amaya is a breakfast connoisseur is just perfect. Amazing. Fantabulous.

"As a breakfast connoisseur, she was offended that Ezran would neglect a hearty morning meal" (Ehasz 120).

I only emboldened and italicized "offended" because in the show YOU CAN LITERALLY SEE HER FACE WHEN EZ TELLS HER.

Bruh she was so offended lmaooo

It's right at 13:36 time in the show... the slow zoom in and all 😂

4) Amaya and Gren meeting Viren at the statue Ep. 5

I’m trying to see if I should have paired this with the first scene where Amaya arrives first. That scene is pretty calm but has a somber feeling. It introduces the relationship of Amaya and Sarai without having to directly say it.

But this scene here is... interesting. Not in a good way or bad way, but we see they’re reminiscing of the past. At some point, they all got along nicely. Callum even noted in his spellbook that Viren’s family became like a second family to him when he moved to the castle.

This interaction was cute tho. It started out positive (sort of) with them joking about Viren eating the last jelly tart which pissed Sarai off lol. But then Viren went on to apologize to Amaya and reassured her that what he does is out of the goodness of his heart and love for Katolis. But...

“Aaaaand, he’s back, Amaya thought” (Ehasz 150).

And then went on to sign that he’s on a bunch of bs. See? Even Amaya knows he’s full of shit lol. But really tho... it makes me wonder how much of bs Viren goes on even before the events of the current story line.

5) Rayla saves Bait from the sea monster Ep. 5

Let us give a round of applause for Rayla going against her fear of water to save Bait, the grumpy frog who hates her. I think this just goes to show how compassionate Rayla really is. This would include the time when she goes back to grab bait back in the banther lodge in episode 4.

6) Viren giving his kids their *secret* missions Ep. 6

Okay this isn’t just one scene. I cheated yeah yeah whatever >:3

When Viren is telling Soren what he must do when he finds the princes, at first he doesn’t fully get it, but then.. OH n0

Viren’s intentions are starting to unfold and come together as one. Like, this man just told his own SON that should he find the princes, he should kill them. This 18 yr old bby

bruh

And Viren didn’t say it aloud, but he heavily implied it. Only to then gaslight him later on when Claudia confronts him in prison.

As for Claudia, Viren tells her that she must retrieve the egg. And do everything in her power to bring it back, even if it means that she’ll have to sacrifice Soren... her own damn brother ;-;

7) When Callum finally lets Rayla hold the egg Ep. 6

This scene is pretty big. Rayla knows that Harrow is long gone and is trying to find a way to tell them. Obviously she doesn’t choose the best time to try it.

They were in a dire situation that could potentially kill them (even tho they had plenty of those moments already). The reason why this scene is so big is because it shows her struggle to break the bad news (ever since the right binding fell) as she continues to grow closer to them. Here you can see Callum passing the egg to her, despite her hand being in the terrible state that it is in. It is also the scene where right before passing it, he finally tells Rayla that he trusts her.

8) Human Rayla!! Ep. 7

Human Rayla is so corny but it’s the good kind of corny. One of the best comedic jokes in the series!

That is all cos human Rayla needs an AU of being a nighttime tv host or smthg

9) Viren and Runaan Ep. 8

yo this is alot okay. The scenes with these two introduced some Moonshadow philosophy and such (ie. not being scared of death). Runaan being the stoic and serious assassin that he is. And Viren not having any of this shit.

There are three major things here:

Runaan knows about the mirror and is most likely aware of who Aaravos is. He literally says, “That mirror? You have found something worse than death.” Goddamn...

And then Viren just... trapped his soul.. his essence into a goddamn coin. Just like that? wow. And hold it, almost admiring it in front of Gren.

Also this is the first time we officially see Viren in that form. In the beginning of episode 5 we are given a darkened silhouette of Viren and the butterflies. But here we see the damage resulted from years of having done dark magic, and it’s horrifying. He is the high mage and all but goddamn. I mean with every action there are consequences so-

10) Callum destroying the primal stone Ep. 9

I feel like this is one of the “of course it’s this one!” scenes but it really is! Callum realizes that only a sky dragon can be hatched in the eye of storm and there he is with a literal storm in his hand. By now, Callum has come to understanding what feels right and that being a mage is his destiny. But he also understands that he needs to sacrifice some things for new beginnings. This whole journey was to get the lost dragon prince home and restore balance and peace and with the egg starting to die... well you can’t really do that without the egg.

It’s at 18:50 where he realizes all of this. It’s one of the big boy moments in the show. Seriously, it’s a big moment and the suspension helped get the feels in. And we got a cute baby dragon!!

End, begin. it’s all the same. (pls someone get that reference ;-;;;)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some honorable mentions:

- Episode 7: Claudia and Soren interacting. I love their sibling bond; it’s so silly and sweet and I love it. It makes me wish I had an older brother of some sort.

Ellis and Ava,, I like the flashback story given when they meet the dragang. I just like it, okay? Smol chiald w/ smol wolf pup and a hippie Lujaane seeing the beauty & strength in Ava.

CGI Coran. That all I have to say about that guy lmao

- Episode 8: When the group is going up the cursed caldera and they encounter that giant leech. Like can we just appreciate Callum’s funny way of making out a plan? Fat respect for that.

Another is when the group split up and waited for the leech to leave. The conversation between Ellis and Callum were sweet as was the one between Rayla and Ez. I loved Ellis’s admiration for Callum being a mage. And her expectations of what a mage was is pretty hilarious. So wholesome. The same goes for Ez when he gave Rayla that daily fill of positivity.

Like... Ellis is telling Callum how smart and confident and cool he is. And meanwhile Callum is like... it’s not me, it’s this. *whips out primal stone* And she goes on to tell him that she believe he’ll be amazing with or without the stone.

And Rayla is telling Ez how she failed in her job of killing the enemy. And Ez is telling her how she’s awesome at everything she does.

this is the positive wholesome shit I come for like... this is parallels but GODDAMNIT it’s so.. ;;;;-;;

Yo this is long ENOUGH! Thank you so damn much if you read to the end. You’re the real beauties. Anywho... uh parts 2 and 3 will be up soon.

It’s 11 now so I need some sleep. goodnight kids

#callum #ezran #rayla #tdp #the dragon prince #zym #hot brown morning potion #applause for the beautiful show that is tdp #tdp soren #moonshadow elves

14 notes · View notes

simplyshelbs16xoxo · 7 years

Text

‘Of Assumptions and Snogging’ Chapter 7 (The Final Chapter)

This epilogue of sorts turned out to be way longer than I had planned but I hope it's nice to see a look into their established relationship. Thanks so much y'all for reading and reviewing. Thanks again to @writingwife-83 for allowing me to adopt her prompt lol. Until next time :)

Sherlock had a skip in his step as he reentered 221B. John had left after Sherlock was well on his way to Molly's. He stepped inside his bedroom and opened up the bottom drawer of his dresser, digging through the clothes he rarely wore to uncover Molly's gift from five years back. Carefully undoing the ribbon and wrapping paper, it revealed a small keepsake box of sorts. He lifted the lid to find a worn paperback book, a disc in a jewel case flipped over backwards and a letter on top. He opened the letter first, finding the need to read Molly's words and hear her voice in his head.

Dearest Sherlock,

Though you claim to be above sentiment, I don't wholeheartedly believe that's true. I know you secretly appreciate sentimental things. At least that's what I personally deduced about you seeing the items scattered across your flat each time I brought body parts for you.

Anyways, I'm rambling, so here, have a box full of sentiment…my sentiment. The book is the first in a trilogy that I adore. It reminds me of us a bit. Okay, a lot but if you do enjoy the first book, I'll be more than happy to hand over the other two. I have another set, so it's okay. The other gift you'll find is a CD full of music. As to what it pertains to, you'll see when you flip it over to read the inscription.

And for another dash of sentimentality, do you remember the first time we met? Everyone had warned me about you as I was new and replaced the old head pathologist. From the snippets I processed from their warnings, it all seemed to come down to one thing: they didn't think you to be "normal." Well, I had told them that normal was overrated and terribly boring. Meeting you, I was, for lack of a better word, enchanted. The things that made you different are the things I found most charming about you. Anyways…

Merry Christmas,

Molly xxx

Sherlock smiled to himself. He never knew that that was how Molly felt even before they met. He turned the disc over and read the inscription.

I love you, but I'm not good with words.

Things I never said.

She loved him even then and it grew throughout the years into something deeper. The difference between love and being in love came to his mind. The book was revealed to be Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare. It was obviously her personal copy, little sticky tabs poking out every which way. Flipping through the pages to give it a glance over, he found her annotations in the margins, sometimes accompanied by a doodle. It was an incredibly personal gift and he mentally praised her bravery. His phone pinged then.

Did you open it yet? MH

Yes. SH

And? MH

I love it. I love you. SH

I'm glad. I love you too, Sherlock. MH

A month later, Molly was tugging on her rubber gloves, preparing for an autopsy. Greg had just given her the run-down of what had happened; or supposedly happened. Sherlock was supposed to arrive any moment now. Molly flicked her eyes over every corner of the room before speaking.

"Pssst, Greg, do you have any tens?" Molly asked, referring to Sherlock's rating system for cases, but it went right over the detective inspector's head.

"Eh…go fish?" Greg shrugged. Molly closed her lips tightly in an attempt to keep herself from bursting out with laughter.

"I was talking about cases," Molly explained. "Do you have any that Sherlock would consider a ten?"

"No, sorry. Why? Is he bored already?" Greg chuckled.

"No, I was just trying to do something special for him," Molly sighed. "Oh well, I'll think of something."

"Lestrade," Sherlock nodded as he flew into the morgue. "Molly," he smiled, caressing her name on his lips as if it only contained the best letters in the alphabet. With a chaste kiss pressed against her cheek, they began to work together, throwing observations at one another until the cause of death and the man's associations were revealed.

"So you've got everything?" John asked Sherlock.

"Yes, I'm perfectly capable of taking care of Rosie while you're on your double shift," Sherlock insisted. John raised an eyebrow.

"Don't worry, I'll keep him in line," Molly smirked.

"Don't you always?" Sherlock asked, flashing a smile at her. John left for work, leaving the godparents to it. Molly held Rosie in her arms, cooing at her.

"We'll make sure Uncle Sherlock stays out of trouble, yes we will," Molly told Rosie in her baby voice. Sherlock was too awestruck to be annoyed at the remark. Seeing the woman he loves handle Rosie with such care with her natural motherly instincts warmed him. He knew then that one day, he wanted a family with Molly. He could see a little girl with Molly's hair color but in curls and her eyes or even his.

"Sherlock? Did you hear me?" Molly asked.

"Hmm?" he muttered, snapping back to reality.

"I said, why don't we go out for ice cream?" Molly reiterated.

"Sounds wonderful," Sherlock agreed.

"Uncle Sherlock's silly, isn't he?" Molly laughed. With a kiss to her temple, he took her hand in his as they left for the ice cream shoppe.

Sherlock had Rosie in his lap as he fed her the creamy vanilla ice cream.

"Mmm," Rosie hummed in delight with every bite. Molly was enjoying a cup of mint chocolate chip. She couldn't help but think that Sherlock would be such a wonderful father. Her heart jumped at the idea and she knew then that she wanted a family with him.

"Isn't your Aunt Molly beautiful?" Sherlock asked Rosie, gaining a loving smile from his girlfriend.

It didn't take too long before Molly figured out exactly what she wanted to do for Sherlock. It was more of a sentimental route, but she knew he'd appreciate it, as he had grown into his emotions. She had left him a heart in his refrigerator from an autopsy that she performed a couple days ago. When the consulting detective opened the door, he discovered the heart for his experiment with a sticky note on either side of it. I love you is what it essentially said. Their shared morbid sense of humor made it all that more personal.

Friday rolled around and Sherlock was surprised to find Molly at his door.

"What happened to work?" he asked her.

"Traded shifts so I could have the day off," Molly smiled, biting her lip.

"So, what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" Sherlock smirked.

"Here," Molly said, thrusting a rolled up paper into his hands. He unrolled it, revealing a map of various landmarks. She had drawn it herself, symbols depicting each different area.

"What is the significance of these places?" Sherlock questioned.

"Well, you see, that's for me to know and you to find out," Molly teased.

"Consider me intrigued," Sherlock replied. "I take it that 'X' marks the spot where there's buried treasure?"

"Figuratively," Molly laughed. "So, are you up for an adventure? I bet it'll be a ten in your book."

"Then what are we waiting for?" he asked, throwing on his Belstaff and scarf. "The game is on."

Their first stop was Bart's Hospital, where Molly had only written the word 'hello' on the map. They traveled to the currently empty morgue.

"This is where we first met," she told him. "A bit morbid, I know. Loads of other things happened between us here at Bart's." Her tinkling laugh filled the room.

"I remember," Sherlock mused. "You were the first person at this hospital to treat me so kindly. The only person."

"Remember the day after, you were waiting outside of those doors and I was rushing down the hallway because I was late," Molly reminisced.

"Yes, I recall that you ran right into me." Sherlock chuckled. "And then promptly fell down." He laughed once more.

"But you helped me up and made sure I was okay," Molly smiled. "That was the day my crush began."

"I'm always learning something new about you," Sherlock smiled in return.

"So, all of these places have sentimental value, I take it," Sherlock deduced.

"Mhmm," Molly confirmed, walking hand in hand with him. They went inside a building and Sherlock took in the familiarity of this particular stairwell.

"The day I took you out to solve crimes," Sherlock pointed out.

"Our first date, according to you," Molly laughed. "That day, you said things to me that indicated you thought of me as more than a friend."

"Experienced my first heartbreak here," Sherlock told her. "It wasn't fun but I wanted you to be happy."

"I wasn't; not really. If you had come back six months later than you did, I'd be in a loveless marriage right now. Well, maybe not loveless but I knew I wasn't in love. I was settling," Molly explained. "You made me realize that when you came back."

"How so?" he asked.

"When you went to kiss my cheek, all I wanted to do was turn just enough to kiss you properly," Molly admitted.

"Why don't we have a second go at it?" Sherlock smiled. And then he was leaning into her, pressing his lips against hers. He pulled away after a moment and spoke again. "Kiss me the way you wanted to then." That was all Molly needed. She tugged at the lapels of his coat and captured his lips in a most passionate kiss. It was gentle and hard at the same time. It was, in a word, illogical. Beautifully illogical. His fingers found the belt loops of her jeans and pulled her closer, unable to get enough of her. They broke the kiss and leaned their foreheads against one another. The silence was broken by a familiar voice.

"Sherlock Holmes?" Howard Shilcott questioned in disbelief.

"Ah, Mr. Shilcott," Sherlock greeted, pulling his face away from Molly's.

"Miss Hooper," Howard nodded. "I knew there was something between you two. Congratulations." And with that, he stalked off onto the streets of London, leaving Molly and Sherlock to their fit of laughter.

They stopped at her flat, where Sherlock was supposed to search for a note. He found it stuck to her bedroom door, where he used it as a bolt hole. The words written on it only said,

Home is…

The mystery was solved when they arrived at their last stop where 'X' marked the spot: 221B Baker Street. There, Molly handed him the other note that she had kept in her pocket the whole time.

…Where you are.

"Molly," Sherlock whispered, his voice thick with emotion.

"I was thinking, maybe, if you wanted to—" Molly began before being cut off with a kiss.

"Yes," Sherlock told her.

"Do you even know what I was going to ask?" Molly laughed.

"Yes, I want you to move in with me," Sherlock smiled. She should've known he would have deduced it.

"I love you," Molly told him, placing a hand against the side of his face. He snogged her senselessly all the way to his bedroom, now theirs, laughing against each other's lips in a moment of pure bliss.

Fanfiction.Net | Ao3

#Sherlolly #Of Assumptions and Snogging #my fanfiction #for writiingwife-83 #Sherlock Holmes x Molly Hooper

32 notes · View notes

hockeychik13 · 7 years

Text

Honest Reviews: The Die Hard Franchise

I would like to start a series with this blog called Honest Reviews. In it, I will honestly review some of my favorite pieces of entertainment. Believe me, I am truly passionate about the things I enjoy, but I'm also not completely blind to their flaws or the things about them that may alienate certain audiences. Plus, I just genuinely love talking about movies and TV shows. To kick things off, today I want to talk about the Die Hard franchise.

I will preface this review by saying I enjoy some of the movies much more than others, but I do not hate any of the films in the series.

Die Hard

This is by far one of my favorite films of all time. It is witty, entertaining and is a perfect example of an every-man turned hero. It also introduced us to the late, great Alan Rickman and I think we owe this film a sincere amount of gratitude for that piece alone. It is also the first time we got to see Bruce Willis as a badass.

Believe it or not, the studio didn't want to cast him in the role because of his fame for the TV show Moonlighting. Which had a similar feel to Castle as being a funny, witty crime sitcom type show. That's not really the image you get when you think of Bruce Willis now, is it? Me either. However, at one time, that's what he was typecast as and we almost didn't get the ass-kicking Bruce Willis we know and love today.

Anyway, the film itself is entertaining. There are sort of bloopers and perceived plot holes (I, for one, never questioned how McClane knew Bill Clay was really Hans Gruber), but from start to finish it keeps you interested. There's enough personal backstory to make you care about the characters emotionally. And Rickman managed to create a new kind of villain in Gruber that almost had you rooting for him out of sheer respect. Die Hard gave us a lot of things that cinema had been missing up to that point and countless films have tried to re-create that magic to no avail. I will also point out that it is a Christmas film. So, if you're anything like me and have a distaste for traditional Christmas films, this makes an excellent replacement.

Now, comes the criticism: It didn't exactly age well. Now, it is pretty much a timeless classic and those of us who experienced life before high speed internet and smart phones seem to have a better appreciation for films that have outdated technology, however to a newer audience I think all of this films charm would be lost. There are far too many things in the movie that could easily have been solved by the institution of modern technology that for audiences who have never lived life without these modern conveniences would just not make any sense. Also, there have been so many copies and homages of this original film at this point that it wouldn't be new even for a first time viewer. The fashions are very dated and someone laughable at this point, which is something newer viewers would be quick to point out. Unfortunately, at this point in our lives this movie requires a lot of explanation to new audiences to express its true significance. And people really don't like things that they need explained to them.

Die Hard 2

I will start off by saying that despite the many, MANY times I have seen this movie, it is truly forgettable. Despite bringing back familiar characters and introducing a new and fairly impressive villain, the plot is really quite weak and it seems like a rehashing of the original without the heart, wit or simplicity. The plot is overly complicated and the happenstance by which John McClane gets involved seems really kind of forced. There's a terrorist plot at an airport where his wife is supposed to be landing that makes her plane unable to land and then there's a war criminal that the terrorists are trying to release who is supposed to be flying into said airport. Also, there's a snowstorm.

So, John McClane is back, doing what we love him doing. Fighting bad guys, saving the day, doing the impossible because if not him, then who? The movie's setting is really what will ruin it for modern audiences. Anyone who has traveled in the last 10 years can tell you that if you even mention certain words in the airport you're rush tackled and smuggled away for questions and a cavity search. In this movie we have people firing guns in airports, baggage claim attendants being murdered and no one noticing, terrorists dictating flight patterns and whatnot. And yet, the airport seems to be pretty business as usual. Today, it would be a media frenzy and the entire airport would be shut down before anyone could blink. For anyone watching the movie today, the airport and security response would be unfathomable. And the need for McClane's involvement would be completely laughable. Also, the bit about his wife being trapped on a circling plane running out of fuel (with the dickish reporter from the first movie no-less that she punched in the face) just feels tacked on to add a human element to a film that seems to have dropped any semblance of character development in favor of a confusing plot and lack-luster action sequences. It's a good watch for a lazy day of silly entertainment, but it is easly forgotten and that isn't a bad thing.

Die Hard: With a Vengance

This movie makes a triumphant return to the franchise's roots with a clever plot and engaging characters. They went simple and moved the action to John McClane's home turf of New York. They introduced Samuel L. Jackson as a new every-man hero to play off of McClane's tired and too-often tested anti-hero at this point. I call him an anti-hero because when we first see him he is a rough-looking, hungover shell of the man that we came to know and love. We learn that things never did work out between he and Holly and he has been living with the consequences of the previous two movies in the time we have not seen him. We don't usually get a glimpse into the reality of the weight being a hero can put on a man and it's refreshing to see a movie deal with that head on. There are also touches on the issues of racism that are dealt with in a far more realistic sense than I've seen previously. The lines aren't black and white between bigotry and acceptance and that is depicted beautifully in this film.

The plot itself is simple. A so-called terrorist is sending John and his reluctant partner Zeus on a series of scavenger hunts and having them solve riddles to find and diffuse bombs around the city. It all turns out to be a cover up for a heist, which is wonderfully reminiscent of the original film. It manages to pay homage to its origins without copying what has already been done. The villain is engaging and interesting, much like Hans Gruber was and Jeremy Irons manages to create a villain that keeps us guessing and wanting more. The pairing of Willis and Jackson was also a fantastic choice as they play well off of each other with banter but they are also equally intelligent. They work as an equal team, not hero and sidekick.

This film has actually aged a little better than it's predecessors. Although the use of pay phones wouldn't make any sense to modern audiences (what's a pay phone? lol) there is little else that wouldn't make sense overall. The police responses make sense with current times and the cast is more recognizable to newer viewers. Given that it came out in 1995, the fashions were less dated the locations in New York were more recognizable. The film also has a more updated look instead of the grittier look of the older films. It is smooth and higher definition which is a medium that modern audiences are much more accustomed to.

My only criticism of this film would be the somewhat tacked on personal relationship stories. Despite Bonnie Bedelia's (Holly McClane) absence from this installation completely, there is still the underlying theme of John calling his wife to try to reconcile. Given the fact that the first two films take place two years apart, it is conceivable that after the events of the first film they would be able to reconcile and still be in a good place by the second film. However, there are 5 years between the second film and this one, making it probable that the issues the two had at the onset of the first film would have become issues once again (they were never actually solved by the events in the first movie. She was just really happy because he saved her from terrorists and stuff). It's evident from the first film that they have very different expectations for their relationship and their love for each other really wasn't enough to overcome any of that. There's also the random relationship between Jeremy Irons' Simon and his right hand henchwoman Katya. Although it's completely conceivable that they grew close and forged a relationship while working together for their shared cause, it seemed tacked on and served little purpose other than to add a sex scene somewhere in a movie where it doesn't really fit.

This movie is worth watching multiple times. It's a great Saturday afternoon bit of entertainment and the nice thing is it can be watched completely independent of the other films. Although they are still dealing with McClane's failed relationship, you don't need to know their rocky background to assume that the cop who started the movie as a drunk would have an estranged wife. Even if you're not a fan of the original, give this one a look. You might find your interest in this franchise piqued.

Live Free or Die Hard

This installment came out 12 years after the previous film in 2007. It gives us a John McClane whose life has gone pretty much in the direction we could have assumed from the last film. However, this movie chooses to address his relationship with one of his children. Lucy McClane was present in the first film and her brother John was only mentioned given that he was the baby of the family. She makes her adult debut in this film as a central character with closer ties to the plot, giving John that personal element to his heroism that was slightly lacking in Die Hard with a Vengance (although this isn't a bad thing in this film).

The movie itself deals with more technological themes which makes it much more complicated. However, the addition of Justin Long as his sidekick in this film helps to diffuse some of the tech jargon with wit and bits of comedy. Although the joke is that McClane doesn't understand modern technology, few of us actually understand the technology (besides cell phones) being referenced in the film. McClane is us and that's part of the joke. However, Justin Long's Matt is also us. He isn't a fighter or a physical hero like McClane. He needs McClane to protect him and I'm fairly certain we would need that too. This movie allows us to be more involved in the story because we can see ourselves more clearly in it. Yes, there are unbelievable moments and things that aren't physically possible in the real world, but that doesn't diminish the movie's entertainment factor.

Also, part of the fun of the film is that they chose not to use CGI and instead rigged up incredible special effects to get what we see on screen. So, yes, they did actually throw a real car at a real helicopter. The movie is worth a watch just for the special effects knowing that they didn't use computers to create them. They also actually demolished pieces of freeway (a piece that was scheduled to be demolished anyway and the film was able to use for their special effects) as well which makes for both a more realistic feel to the effects and fantastically interesting behind the scenes footage of how things were created.

Unfortunately, the technology is actually a detriment to this film. Although it was attempting to move the franchise into the modern era with its inclusion as a main plot point (not a bad idea given our reliance on technology), it actually serves to date the movie even more than the use of pay phones. Technology is growing and changing at an alarming rate in modern times, which means that even when a piece of it is brand new, it is quickly outdated in a matter of weeks now. Which means that the technology used in a movie now 10 years old seems ridiculously antiquated and silly by today's standards. Which is sad because this is actually a very enjoyable film. But, modern audiences are fickle. And I'm not sure that Justin Long's charm, Bruce Willis' reluctant hero shtick, Timothy Olyphant's sociopathic villain and a guest appearance by Kevin Smith are enough to entice new viewers to look away from their cell phones long enough to appreciate anything this movie has to offer.

Once again, it's an enjoyable film. Fun on a day when you have time to watch special features along with this film to see how things were done. Although it doesn't work as well as a stand alone film. Without knowing the backstory of the McClane family and why Lucy may be angry with her father, this movie feels more like a rip-off of Taken with some tech thrown in than it does a Die Hard movie. So, it's really something that should be watched in context, not out of it.

A Good Day to Die Hard

This movie was released six years after the previous film in 2013. Since the last movie dealt with the relationship between McClane and his daughter Lucy, this one deals with his relationship with his son John. This seems like a great idea on paper, but in practice it lacked a lot. Overall, the movie felt out of place in the Die Hard franchise. Instead of being the every-man hero, McClane is shown as the antiquated dad with good intentions who is really just in the way. It is obvious from the start that the sole purpose of this film was to kick start a revitalization of the franchise following John Jr (or Jack as they like to call him so we don't get confused) as the new hero.

There are two huge issues with this movie that made revitalizing the franchise virtually impossible:

The first is the plot. For the first time in the Die Hard franchise we leave the country. A big part of McClane's appeal was his quiet patriotism. Doing what's right for his country and the people he protects despite great personal sacrifice. This film has him in Russia trying to bail his son out of a Russian prison. Then it turns out his son is really special ops. And is an angry child even though he's a grown man. He has no respect for his father or the lengths to which his father has gone previously to do the right thing (which plays into the cliched "daddy didn't love me enough" theme so common in action films). The plot is way overly complicated and involves double crosses and sub plots and a climax in Prypyat (which is the city now laying abandoned after the meltdown of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor) that never really seem to come together to form a coherent plot. Although the plot didn't seem to be what was important. At the center of it all seemed to be the desire to introduce Jack as the new hero who will step up so his father can retire.

Which brings us the the second issue with this movie. The casting choice of Jai Courtney as John Jr/Jack just didn't work. He isn't horrible. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate him and he is a good action star. However, to take the place of John McClane both on the big screen and in our hearts there needs to be a certain spark that he just doesn't have. He's not an every-man. He's insanely muscular, which is impressive but really just makes him another Schwarzenegger-like invincible hero. Which has been done to DEATH. Looking at him, he's the hero we expect. But he isn't he hero that we know. He's not the beat cop who would show up to a routine 911 call and save the day. He's not the guy on the street who would help someone because it's the right thing to do. He's the guy in the movie who saves the world and looks good doing it. Fitness aside, he doesn't have the personality for the role. Yes, he's good as an action hero, but he's not a McClane. He doesn't have witty one-liners and when he tries they don't work. And the way his character was written in the film, I found myself rooting against him and pitying his father. Which made the whole "saving the world" plot fall into the background and seem sort of useless.

I'll be perfectly honest, despite having seen this film multiple times, I don't actually even remember what the main plot really was. I know that the relationship between father and son felt forced, but not in the way they were hoping. The previous film addressed the tensions between McClane and his children but allowed that tension to have layers that made sense given the history we know about John. This movie just goes right to the cliches and never lets up. Jack is angry at his father, rebelling in every way (despite being way old enough to have established his own life and moved on from the anger at his father) and seeming to consist of nothing but a distaste for his father. He is the embodiment of an angry teenager dealing with his parents divorce inside the body of a grown man. Even though they end up working together for the greater good, just like there was no true resolution of the issues between John and his wife, there isn't between John and Jack either.

Jack also isn't likeable. I can't imagine following him on similar adventures like we've seen John, but only because I can't see Jack being humble enough to take on the role of a true hero without his pride getting in the way. If I were to suggest a better casting decision for Jack it would have been Channing Tatum. I know, I know, but hear me out. He's good looking, much like Bruce Willis was when the series started (he's still good looking but not exactly heartthrob status anymore) and he's in good physical shape so his ability to fight bad guys wouldn't be questioned. However, unlike Courtney, Tatum has an endearing quality about his features and has proven to be quite adept at both comedy and wit. Although the movie wasn't fantastic, White House Down had a feel of Die Hard in the White House because of his ability to be a believable every-man hero and give the audience the wit and humor needed to break up the tension and violence of an action film. He's also proven more than once that he has the ability to carry a feature film on his own or work beautifully with ensemble casts. Courtney has also struggled in these areas with his other films making it next to impossible for him to be able to carry the franchise beyond this film. Tatum's humor would have also played well with Willis' and as a duo they would have been more believable as father and son with a rocky relationship. Tatum also has more similar features to Willis like a trademark smirk and softer eyes, whereas Courtney never seems to be able to break serious face.

Although I'm not saying that this film isn't worth a watch, if you haven't seen it, you're really not missing much. It was a disappointing installment in an otherwise impressive franchise. If you're a fan of the franchise already, give it a watch, but if you're new to it I wouldn't bother. It wouldn't encourage new audiences to give the rest of the franchise a shot and is really quite forgettable as a stand alone movie.

Overall

I know this has been a long-winded post, but if you have made it this far with me, I thank you! This franchise holds a very dear place in my heart. I know I got a bit harsh with the last installment, but that's mostly because my expectations have been set so high by the rest of the series. I'm proud to own all of the movies. I'm happy to introduce new people to the series and I'm always thrilled to discuss it with other people. It's a great set of action movies and Bruce Willis is a great hero to root for. Now excuse me while I settle in for a Die Hard movie marathon.

Yippee-Ki-Yay!

#diehard #bruce willis #hans gruber #honest review #movies #reviews

2 notes · View notes