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crescentrivers · 2 months

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I wrote down my thoughts while I watched working boys and so I don’t make a million posts about it here’s just everything I wrote, under the cut because it’s a little long and cause spoilers

I never really understood the obsession with minor background characters some HF fans have until now, Hailey ily

It takes balls kind of goes hard but that’s only because all the singers are incredible

The reveal that Hidgens getting struck by lightning was how the workin boys died was insane. I actually wasn’t aware the workin boys died until the pit stop in Hatchetfield stream I thought they were fine until getting infected in TGWDLM. RIP the mark chastity is workin boys Mark joke headcanon

Why is Grace even watching the show if she thinks it’s about hookers??? also is Grace friends with Richie and Ruth in this timeline

Everyone is so good at singing aaaaaaaaa

Also can I point out how Hidgens gets more and more deranged every time we see him? Like he was a little crazy in TGWDLM then ape-man happened, and now this. He’s on a downward spiral and I love it

Workin Boys is clearly very personal to Hidgens him saying it’s loosely based on personal experiences is such a lie. He listens to the girls’ AMAZING singing and then says everything is horrible because it’s not like his boys

Are the zombies their real ghosts or is Pokey being silly. The blue lighting isn’t helpful in me figuring this out.

Hidgens is gay for Chad (we kind of already knew that but it’s just more obvious now)

Okay this is definitely Pokey’s fault I doubt the workin boys are that evil cause they’re suggesting he kills or something

Poor Ruth, would yall hate me if I said this made me feel more sympathy for her than just for once (maybe my opinion will change if I rewatch NPMD but this is how I feel right now) just for once is a good song though

The girls are incredible singers please don’t let them die

I won’t stand for this Hailey abuse

HES GONNA KILL THEM OH NO

RUTH PLEASE LIVE RICHIE IS IN THE CROWD HES YOUR FRIEND (and I think Grace is her friend in this timeline too???)

Oh that’s some gore

Linda saying good about the actresses being dead-

The Starlight Theatre is small actually (I know that’s probably just budget things and it’s bigger in universe but it’s interesting to think about considering the touring production of mamma Mia went there)

Ted got shot in the head like in TGWDLM

Grace saying wow after shooting him. She’s a little bloodthirsty in every timeline I think

The gore??? It’s crazy

Grace saves people from deranged killers but ends up becoming a deranged killer herself, this is becoming a running theme in the timelines

(She doesn’t know about the LIB in this timeline so maybe things will be fine this time but I don’t trust that)

Linda clapping at the end of the show-

I’m sad about Ruth dying and I’m sad that her friend(s) were in the audience too

This leaves me with more questions than answers about the zombies, like I’m assuming blaming Pokey is reasonable but we also don’t know so-

Rip Ruth rip Hailey rip the rest of the girls rip the workin boys rip Ted rip Hidgens

All the songs are great also

#my post #Hatchetfield #hatchetverse #starkid #workin boys

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appledotcodotuk · 3 years

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why the hive fckin suck at its job: a rant

spoilers for tgwdlm ahead!

first of all, it's important to consider what exactly the hive's job is. my answer is... who the fuck knows. literally. what is the hive's aim. what do you want Paul? more like, what do you want hive? let's find out!

it kinda evolves, as the play progresses. the intial aim of the hive, and one that does actually remain consistent is the constant burning need to grow and devour and gain more and more (insert capitalism metaphor here).

however, this is distorted by the people it possess who influence that aim, as we'll see later.

also the fact it crashes into a theatre displaying Mamma Mia gives the hive the motive it need to fit the world around it to the structure of the musical. having no originality of its own, the hive instead just picks up what is given to it. kinda like an evil baby.

it wants uniformity, that is indeed its ultimate goal and desire, no duh. it thinks it can achieve that through musical theatre, shame that the hive is dead wrong. cause the hive fucking sucks at its own job / aim / ultimate purpose / one concrete goal that motivates all its actions.

can't maintain control over its subjects

okay, so, the hive wants uniformity. it wants everyone to be dancing to the beat of its own tune. right? yeah. shame it literally can't keep its own possessed subjects in line at all. at the risk of sounding like the 10th doctor waxing lyrical abt humanity for the 50th time, humans are really difficult to control cause we're not really motivated by an altruistic allegiance to one primary good. we've got icky emotions that often move us to do stupid unpredictable stuff way more. it makes me wonder if the reason the hive wanted to use musical theatre to try and persuade ppl was cause it seems to think that is how theyll get emotive humans; through emotive songs. anyways. let's look at some examples shall weeeee?

Mr Davidson:

so, Mr Davidson. funnily enough, he's the guy whose in part acting as the hive trying to figure out what it wants through his interactions w/ Paul. every person it possess gives it just a bit more humanity and curiosity abt the world it is currently taking over. at least I think so. hence why as the musical develops u get character's like possessed!Alice wondering 'why does it hurt to love?' - the change in music and mood to something much more introspective really suggests to me that the hive is beginning to question the thoughts and emotions of its human hosts.

Mr Davidson is a family man through and through, he loves his wife Carol. she's his muse, his source of light. his feelings for her are not concrete or easy to explain and solve - hence why his sudden ahem demand of her is so hilarious and also jarring. it completely clashes with the 'I want song' which is simple, and often pushes forward a wider cause. not so with Mr Davidson, he just really loves his wife man. enough to break a frickin alien possession.

tbh I think its hilarious that (at least to me) the hive has to force him to forget and continue with the song, like, he straight up is just talking to his wife in that phone call, talking, not singing. so, no possession until he reverts back into song. ergo, the hive cannot maintain the uniformity it wants. even from the get go when theoretically its control should be stronger cause it has less ppl to co-ordinate. bad. at. its. job.

Paul:

this one hurts folks. yes, I know it's generally agreed, though somewhat debated that the state of Paul by the end of the tgwdlm is not purely possessed. I agree. once again, the hive is unable to truly enforce uniformity.

at this point, the motives of Paul and the hive are kinda just mixed, neither fully human nor fully alien. hence the constant shifts between pleeing for her to get away, to hide, to stay safe: 'what if the only choice is you have to sing to survive' and just full on old style hive nastiness 'let me puke in your mouth and just open your food bin girl' (so romantic 🥰 /j).

the hive has gone away from its original aim, and become something... different. no longer stuck to just one type of genre or style of song, it's really clever to show the developing complexity of the hive by showing how it is now juggling lots of different motifs with references to all the old songs from before recontextualised in a new way - its learning. evil baby... no longer uniform.

general miscommunication:

there are several instances of the hive not fully having uniform control over its subjects. for instance, right after not your seed with the three teens having to like... calibrate. they aren't just completely connected then?? also, this is a very small thing, but uhhhh at the end of inevitable when Paul is about to say the apotheosis is upon... the chorus interrupts him with USSSSSSS. interruptions??? not very in sync of u hive.

I think this inability to exert uniformity is also shown in the contrast between genre of musical theatre. my alien abomination cannot decide whether it wants to be the more modern edgy rock musical (join us (and die), not your seed ) or super happy go lucky old style musical theatre (lah dee dah dah day, and inevitable). it tries to do both, even while trying to encourage union, and sticking to one thing. hypocrite!!!!!

2. aims are guided by the people it possess

so, I mentioned this a bit already, but the hive isn't only mutating the humans, the humans are mutating the hive right back. this is more an interesting observation than any actual analysis but let's goooo.

greenpeace girl:

I think it's very likely that greenpeace girl is one of the first to be possessed. This is probably easily debunkable but whatever this analysis is flying by the seat or its pants anywayyyyy. why? cause where else would it pick up that whole 'this planet needs fixing' thing? it's interesting too, cause it morphs from expressing the desire to join hands and sing together, unity and peace with no actual action behind it. this then goes right to the other end, with the hive going 'fine I'll do it myself' and trying to save things by enforcing a dictatorship on the world. it develops and changes, and strays from its original means of accomplishing its aims! speaking oooooof...

3. inconsistent in means of accomplishing aims

okay, ur an evil hive mind. u think musicals are the way to win over these silly humans cause they're all weak and emotive and seem to respond to them. but, wait! schwoopsie! you haven't realised that for emotional depth and growth to mean anything, you need there to be established development and well... growth. otherwise the sentiments are as vague as the ones expressed in What Do You Want, Paul?

this show has genuine emotional moments, just not really during the musical numbers WITH EXCEPTIONS. any strife is smoothed over quickly, and so the development and change that would have to go into such growth is just gone. (see, You Tied Up My Heart) all so it can achieve its own desire to grow and grow and grow, maybe a metaphor for art being killed under late stage capitalism??

what actually matters is the impact the songs have afterwards, in causing a death - because we have a bond and care abt these characters. those short scenes between Paul and Emma are actually way more resonant than any song. except... inevitable, and also not your seed a bit. at this point the hive has learnt a thing or two, and can actually twist human emotion a little. but for it to do that, it has to reject the uniformity it prizes, and be adaptable. point towards being more human than it first thought? methinks so. and yet it's just not enough...

it's also why let it out, to me, feels really ingenuine. Paul has expressed himself in much better ways already. what they're doing is clearly paining him, and hurting the guy. he's terrified bless.

you can't force someone into being emotional vulnerable, man.

it's why all the deaths for the characters who are forced to express themselves are really violent, involving them being ripped open - literally forcing them to expose themselves from the 'inside out' as Alice reflects in Not Your Seed. you can't force genuine emotional connection, it has to be fostered, shown in the much more affecting relationship of Paul and Emma. the only reason the hive actually has power over our characters is because of these genuine emotional connections, which it tries and often fails to take advantage of, resulting in just resorting to brute violence. messy hive, very messy.

at the core, the musical's a kinda attack on that toxic positivity mindst: trying to force people to reach the sort of easy solutions by sharing feelings in a way that feels pretty invasive and deciding you are instantly fixed. the problems these characters face are jarringly not really what you'd expect a character in a musical to face, cheating, a lot of it, mid-life crisis. problems that are bland, or wayyyy too real. this is purposefully done, to reveal just how silly the hive's aim to use musical theatre to solve everyone's problem is. life is more complex than that smh.

4. a human can write a much more expressive, and genuine song than they ever could lol

u know which song I'm talking abt. what more is there to say. so much for making persuasive songs to tempt people over.

5. make me sad cause they took some perfectly nice ppl and funked them up 😭

this was a stupid point lol. basically I'm just bitter that this hive took a bunch of perfectly okay ppl and gave them hive brain. screw u hive. I swear I'm gonna watch Black Friday soon, cause I'm sure it's gonna completely destroy every thought I've had so far, but whateve,,, just take this as a look at tgwdlm like it's a stand-alone piece.

these guys are supposed to all be 'individuals' on one level, but also 'appendages of a much larger organism'. there's a little too much individualism and fracturing to be cohesive enough to do that I feel. the hive to me is not an infallible, unstoppable force, in fact, every human it takes over only brings it closer to understanding us. so that's maybe a slight positive note??? idk ?! I just have lots of thoughts and feelings abt this musical even if this doesn't make sense I'm proud i wrote it down hehe.

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cto10121 · 3 years

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The bad Shakespeare takes keep coming, I see. This one had the cleverness to couch itself as a personal narrative (makes it much more interesting, tbh). But as bad Shakespeare takes are my bread and butter, my boon and bane, mamma mia here we go again, with Merchant of Venice.

“But those who thought the play was irredeemably antisemitic were, the consensus went, vulgar and whiny—and, completely coincidentally, they were also Jewish, which somehow magically invalidated their opinions on this subject.”

I’m glad (is that even the right word?) this author found scholars that don’t think this play is anti-Semitic, but my experience with scholarship has been way more mixed than that. Suffice to say, this is literally all the play is known for these days, and views of the play as anti-Semitic are everywhere (Rosenbaum even had a hot take that since the Nazis liked it, it must be anti-Semitic). Didn’t know Harold Bloom thinks this play is anti-Semitic, though. That in itself is a bit of a red flag, as Bloom is a notoriously poor reader of Shakespeare.

“[I]n Merchant, Portia unhappily fulfills her father’s requirements of her suitors, while in Il Pecorone, the lady enjoys drugging her suitors and robbing them blind. By removing this detail, Shakespeare removed the suggestion that malicious schemers come from all walks of life.”

Or, by removing this detail, Shakespeare removed the clear and abhorrent sexism of his original source that turned a woman robbed of her autonomy by her father’s will into a criminal. It’s almost as if you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

“Dr. Lopez, one of the most respected physicians of the 16th century, had indiscreetly revealed that he once treated the Earl of Essex for venereal disease. The earl took revenge by framing Dr. Lopez for treason and arranging for his torture; while on the rack, Dr. Lopez “confessed”—though “like a Jew,” as the court record states, he denied all charges at trial, while the attorney for the Crown referred to him matter-of-factly as “a perjuring murdering traitor and Jewish doctor.”

This is a very twisted account of the Lopez affair and Essex’s motives in going against him, at least to my understanding. For context, Lopez was accused of receiving loads of money from the King of Spain to poison Queen Elizabeth.

According to Stephen Greenblatt, in Will of the World: “Essex had tried some years before to recruit Lopez as a secret agent. Lopez’s refusal—he chose instead directly to inform the queen—may have been prudent, but it created in the powerful earl a very dangerous enemy. After his arrest, he was initially imprisoned at Essex House and interrogated by the earl himself. But Lopez had powerful allies in the rival faction of the queen’s senior adviser William Cecil, Lord Burghley, and his son, Robert Cecil, who also participated in the interrogation and reported to the queen that the charges against her physician were baseless.” Lopez apparently had been taken bribes from various sources, and confessed (freely? under torture?) “that he had indeed entered into a treasonous-sounding negotiation with the king of Spain, but he insisted that he had done so only in order to cozen the king out of his money.” Weird.

Greenblatt isn’t a historian, though, and Essex was indeed an asshole to Lopez, (and for what is worth, I feel Lopez was innocent; I just get those vibes) but so far I can find no other source that Essex actively framed Lopez. Most likely he did some sleuthing, dug up some questionable, compromising stuff, and tried to blow a hearth flame into a firestorm.

“After all, the historical record gives Queen Elizabeth a cookie for dawdling on signing Dr. Lopez’s death warrant; her doubts about his guilt even led her to mercifully allow his family to keep his property, not unlike the equally merciful Duke of Venice in Shakespeare’s play.”

Again, Lopez had powerful allies (doesn’t get much higher than Burghley), and again, re: Greenblatt: “According to court observers, Elizabeth gave Essex a tongue-lashing, ‘calling him rash and temerarious youth, to enter into a matter against the poor man, which he could not prove, and whose innocence she knew well enough.’” A cupcake, then?

“And it is of course entirely unclear whether this trial and public humiliation of an allegedly greed-driven Jew attempting to murder an upstanding Christian, rapturously reported in the press with myriad antisemitic embellishments, had anything at all to do with Shakespeare’s play about the trial and public humiliation of a greed-driven Jew attempting to murder an upstanding Christian—which Shakespeare composed shortly after Dr. Lopez decomposed. Most likely these things were completely unrelated.”

Nearly all the major Shakespeare biographies and articles I’ve read literally and explicitly talks about the possible influence of Lopez’s execution on Merchant of Venice and names it as an inspiration: Greenblatt, (he even headcanons that Shakespeare watched the execution!) Bate, Ackroyd. That’s how Horn managed to ping my BS radar something awful—because I had read about it, many times, even if it was mentioned in passing. It’s solid, legit Shakespearean academic fanon. The sarcasm is really unwarranted, and childish besides.

“It was damned hard to hear the nuance while parsing lines like “Certainly the Jew is the very devil incarnal,” or “My master’s a very Jew; give him a present, give him a halter,” or explaining what Shylock meant when he planned to “go in hate, to feed upon / The prodigal Christian.”

The first two are the fool’s, Lancelot’s, lines, I think. As for Shylock’s hatred toward Christians, while ugly, it’s entirely understandable given the Christian characters’ treatment of him pre-play and during it (Antonio spitting on Shylock’s gaberdine and then asking him to borrow money from him is called out by Shylock himself for its sheer hypocrisy). It also fits Shylock’s character as an unassimilated Jew, resenting Christian hypocrisy and racism.

“The actor began the brief soliloquy that every English-speaking Jew is apparently meant to take as a compliment: ‘I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? . . . If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?’

“Wait, that’s the part where he’s more human?”

[…]“Sure,” I told my son, game-facing him back in the rearview. “He’s reminding us how he’s like everyone else. He’s a normal person with normal feelings.”

My son laughed. “You seriously fell for that?”

[…] “What do you mean?”

“Shylock’s just saying he wants revenge! Like, ‘Oh, yeah? If I’m a regular human, then I get to be eee-vil like a regular human!’ This is the evil monologue thing that every supervillain does! ‘I’ve had a rough life, and if you were me you would do the same thing, so that’s why I’m going to KILL BATMAN, mu-hahaha!’ He’s just manipulating the other guy even more!”

And then the crowd applauded, Harold Bloom cried, and the mayor gave the author’s six-year-old son a gold medal for his Brave Hot Take. Honestly, this was the most unbelievable part of the essay I’ve read. Unless this kid has been reading academic essays on MoV that posit this exact same interpretation (“Shylock was just using humanistic rhetoric to justify his ~bloodthirsty revenge!”), this one’s for a fake Internet stories anthology. Shylock may be a dour, miserable pain in the ass, but he is no Barabas, an actual anti-Semitic caricature—he has a character, and a recognizably human one, and the play bears it out that he is right in his anger.

“I reviewed the other moments scholars cite to prove Shylock’s “humanity.” There were two lines of Shylock treasuring his dead wife’s ring, unlike the play’s Christian men who give their wives’ rings away. But unlike the other men, Shylock never gets his ring back—because his daughter steals it, and becomes a Christian, and inherits what remains of his estate at the play’s triumphant end.”

Er, this is a non sequitur—that last has nothing to do with the first. The point is, Shylock doesn’t give away his ring; the fact that his daughter stole it means nothing to his treasuring it. It may be proof of the play’s marginalization of Shylock (which accurately if sadly reflects real-life systematic marginalization), but not his humanity. Shakespeare just doesn’t do backstories, even for major characters, so it is significant that he gave Shylock a wife/beloved in the first place.

“Finally, scholars point to the many times Shylock explains why he is so revolting: Christians treat him poorly, so he returns the favor. But for this to satisfy, one must accept that Jews are revolting to begin with, and that their repulsiveness simply needs to be explained.”

This makes absolutely no sense at all. If one accepts Jews are inherently revolting, then no explanation need be given for when a Jewish character acts revolting! The racist accepts the revolting Jewish characterization without qualm. The fact that the play insists on his grievance is significant.

“We listened together as Shylock went to court to extract his pound of flesh; as the heroine, chirping about the quality of mercy, forbade him to spill the Christian’s blood as he so desperately desired; as the court confiscated his property, along with his soul through forced conversion; as the play’s most cherished characters used his own words to taunt and demean him, relishing their vanquishing of the bloodthirsty Jew.”

YMMV, but to me there are no cherished characters in this play. That’s the whole point! Everyone is so mired in this dreary capitalist materialism that denigrates genuine human connection into mere transaction. Everything to these characters is money, money, money (and class), or at least tainted by it. Shylock is simply the most overt (and honest) of the lot. Love relationships, religion are impoverished; Portia and Bassanio are scarcely more suited than Portia and her other suitors. Shylock and Antonio are Jews and Christians in-name-only: They are capitalists first and foremost. Portia is a smarter, more likable Karen. Lancelot isn’t funny. Jessica is okay, but her leaving her father is framed as a asshole moment at least in one instance. Portia is probably the most lovable, but she has her asshole moments too. There are no truly awful characters, but you don’t need to demonize and dehumanize your whole cast into two-dimensional racists just to make a point.

Merchant of Venice is not the best of plays. It is one of Shakespeare’s experiments, a proto-problem play before his Jacobean era, using dark comedy and a slight bent of farce to explore and elucidate social issues, racism and discrimination, chiefly. At least it tries, anyway. Taming of the Shrew is the first proto-problem play done completely farcical, which at least makes it compelling in a slapstick-satire way; Merchant is much more sociologically astute, but also more dull and coolly distant even from its own concerns. I don’t blame anyone, much less Jewish people, for not liking the play or thinking it a masterpiece. I myself don’t, though for reasons that have nothing to do with the usual ones. I like what Shakespeare was trying to do and I think he did some things very well. It has ambition and thought. But I feel like for most of it Shakespeare was on writing autopilot while mentally looking around for something a bit meatier to adapt and develop. It’s a jogging-in-one-place play; he has a couple of those.

In sum: Author argues for complicated play’s anti-Semitism, ends up just saying the racist slurs by the flawed/asshole Christian characters made her and her son uncomfortable (feat. A distorted and even misleading account of the Lopez affair). Plus some internalized anti-Semitism to sort through, methinks.

#the merchant of venice #shakespeare #cristina metas #shakespeare meta #kind of #cristina reviews #also kind of #merchant is not even one of my liked plays but these takes are just wearying

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wigwurq · 6 years

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WIG REVIEW: MAMMA MIA - HERE WE GO AGAIN

Sometimes, there is a movie that so boldly defies the constructs of logic, time, plot, society, reality or gravity that we have to collectively decide if we can accept it as it is or let our eyeballs roll into the Mediterranean. And then sometimes that movie has a sequel. This is that sequel. This is 2018. Our lives are a garbage fire and this movie is a chardonnay soaked poncho blowing in the fake Greek breeze. I suggest we soak it up because it might be all we have left that might bring us joy. EVEN THE WIGS. Let’s discuss.

We begin 10 years after the last movie (or maybe just 5? Or maybe sometime in the early aughts for the flashback timeline to work or maybe just who cares?) and we are dealt a terrifying blow that no movie should ever start with: MERYL STREEP IS DEAD. WHAT. NO. WHY THOUGH. Like everything in this movie, it is not explained why or how this happened. It is just something we must sadly accept and move on to learning more about her former self as played by Lily James because just go with it.

Back in England (?) of 1979 (??? again, do NOT do the math), Meryl Streep aka Lily James aka Donna has just graduated from college with her two best gal pals (aka the Dynamos) and has used it as a forum for singing b-side ABBA songs. Most of the a-side ABBA songs were used in the last movie so just take what you can get.

Lily James is fine and doesn’t wear a wig and is perpetually tan and being called brave and has a nice singing voice and falls in water a lot. She is certainly no Meryl Streep but we must all count our lucky stars that Young Donna was not played by Anne Hathaway or (SHUDDER) Taylor Swift. THINK ABOUT THAT. Her two gal pals (aka young Tanya aka Christine Baranski and young Rosie aka Julie Walters) do have wigs and they are actually ok! The pixie cut on Rosie is a little upsetting but it’ll do in a pinch and this Tanya bob is 1000x better than anything Evangelline Lilly wore in Ant-Man.

The most troubling part of these flashbacks with Tanya and Rosie is that we are led to believe that their fabulous girl band, DONNA AND THE DYNAMOS are not actually as fabulous or world-renowned as the first movie (or stage play) would have had us believe. I guess they just performed maybe in college and had some great bellbottom costumes and ultimately just performed once for a few Greek people at some rando restaurant? Huh? Still, great bellbottoms.

We also meet the young versions of all of Amanda Seyfried’s would-be dads! First up is Young Sam (aka Colin Firth) in this busted ass wig. Man wigs are always bad and this one is...not great. This is the best wig of the trio and he’s the best singer of the dads, though, and gets the one non-b-side: WATERLOO! As performed by a French waitstaff in Napoleon costumes because OF COURSE.

Back to that hair: please someone make better man wigs.

We then meet Young Bill (aka Stellan Skarsgard). He is absolutely the most handsome of the dads but is wig is: WOOF.

Even covered up in a sailor hat: I see you, wig.

We then meet Young Sam (aka Pierce Brosnan) - Donna’s ain’ true love who she ends up with before dying for some reason. Sadly, Young Sam is the least attractive and has the worst wig of all the dads.

LOOK AT THIS SCRAGGLY ASS THING. When he ultimately breaks Donna’s heart I wasn’t even sad (also because we know they get back together) because GOODBYE BAD WIG.

Back in present day (????) all the dads are looking good and wigless and having the goddamned time of their lives dancing on boats and wearing whatever the hell quilted shirts because WHO EVEN CARES YOU DO YOU. There are many many more b-side ABBA songs to be sung!

A friend of mine described the musical sequences as feeling like karaoke videos which vaguely have a plot but really make no sense. This is exactly right and the whole movie basically is a long strung together collection of karaoke videos which as a whole add up to less than nothing plot-wise but truly everything fun-wise.

Speaking of fun: Christine Baranski and Julie Walters.These two ladies are having the wine-soaked Mediterranean girls trip of our goddamned dreams. Julie is wig-less and Christine’s wig is as perfect as her high kicks. The quality of this wig - the texture and perfect imperfections - rival perhaps only Julianna Margulies as far as wigs you could wear every day to work and fool all of America’s moms in the process. And for that, this movie clearly has the correct priorities. May we all be blessed with Christine Baranski’s wig budget someday in our lives.

WAIT I TAKE IT BACK. MAY WE ALL BE BLESSED WITH CHER’S WIG BUDGET. So yes - EFFING CHER is in the movie. Yes, she is 3 years older than her “daughter,” Meryl Streep but as I said: DO NOT DO MATH IN RELATION TO THIS MOVIE.

So here’s the thing: if we view this as hair that Cher is passing off as real hair, then....this wig is a no for me. But who are we kidding? Cher hasn’t showed up without a wig in almost as long as our Lady of Perpetual Wigs, Dolly Parton so of COURSE WE ARE SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE THIS IS A WIG IN THE CONTEXT OF THE MOVIE. So on that level, this wig is basically RuPaul quality which is to say: PERFECT.

Also Cher wears 2 WIGS (and this second one is truly blessed by Mama Ru) so: yes, we should definitely believe these are just great wigs. And like everything in this movie: JUST GO WITH IT HAVE FUN. This movie is a fever dream of nonsense but OH MY GOD do I want to just live in it.

I truly believe that the only antidote for the garbage fire of 2018 is Cher walking down some stairs in a silver tinsel bolero singing “Fernando” to Andy Garcia wearing a neckerchief while fireworks go off in the background and 200 gay men applaud (I saw this in Chelsea). If this scene cannot cure what ails you, then we are all just doomed.

Oh and Meryl DOES show up in the end to sing us all into a sobfest and why did they have to kill her off again? SOBBING.

In the end, my verdict was a tough call because all 3 young dad wigs are so godawful but both young and old Christine Baranski wigs are wonderful and: EFFING CHER. Since there is no math in this movie, and just because, I’ve gotta go with Cher.

VERDICT: WURQS

#wigwurq #mammamia #mammamiaherewegoagain #mammamia2 #cher #merylstreep #wigbudgets #christinebaranski #juliewalters #badmanwigs

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a-walk-in-silence · 6 years

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Just A Dream

Pairings: Steve Rogers x Stark!Fem!Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Summary: You’re in the delivery room, having a baby, but something is just missing from your life. A dream helps you feel better about everything.

Warnings: Infinity War spoilers kinda?, semi-descriptions of birth, off-screen character death, cursing, family drama, bad parenting (smh Howard)

A/N: Y’all, ik it isn’t WCBB or my other writing challenge prompt but I saw Mamma Mia 2 and I fell in love with one song in particular just because the scene it happens in is so good and so tear worthy (I loved the whole show tho and all of the songs are 10/10). So thus, this song fic was born!

Key:

Y/N - Your Name

Y/N/N - Your Nickname

Y/H/C - Your Hair Color

Y/E/C - Your Eye Color

Song Inspiration(s):

My Love, My Life - Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again Cast Recording

I’ve never felt this strong

I’m invincible, how could this go wrong?

No here, here’s where we belong

You screamed in pain, clutching Steve’s hand for support. Contraction after contraction, it never seemed to end. Your forehead was drenched in sweat, plastering your Y/H/C to your face.

With is free hand, Steve pushed your hair out of your face. He was clearly flustered and so unsure of his movements. “It’s going to be okay,” he tried to reassure you.

“You try pushing a damn baby out of your fucking body, Steven Grant Rogers!” you practically screamed at him before grasping his hand as another contraction hit. You finally whimpered as it passed, your head slamming into the back of the raised bed. “I can’t do this...”

“No, no, no, you can do this.” Steve gave your hand a tight squeeze before meeting your Y/E/C eyes. “Come on, Tony wouldn’t want you to give up here. Besides, you’re so strong. You’re almost there. Come on, Y/N, you can do this.”

Gulping, you nodded despite the fact that you felt so much pain and a huge want to just give up. Still, you knew you had to do this, not just for your loving husband clutching your hand. You had to do this for Tony.

Tony...

Your brother was killed after the events of the Infinity Wars, as it would be come to dubbed in mainstream media, had come and passed. After everything had been fixed, everyone brought back from being turned to dust... your brother didn’t make it. And he never did find out about your pregnancy.

The thought of your brother, your last living blood relative, being gone made your heart swell. No, you would make it through this. You would make it through this god damn birth because, dammit, Tony wouldn’t give up... if he could ever have a child.

You laughed at your own thoughts, which seemed to make Steve relax. You looked towards your husband and nodded. “Okay... okay, I can do this.”

His lips pressed against your forehead before Steve smiled at you. “I know you can, doll. You can do this.”

I held you close to me

Felt your heart beat and I thought: I am free

Oh yes, and as one are we

In the now and beyond

Nothing and no one can break this bond

A cry filled the air as you relaxed back into the hospital bed, exhausted. “It’s a boy,” the doctor shouted over the cries of the newborn baby.

A small smile tugged at the corner of your lips as you looked over to Steve. His eyes were lit up, a huge smile tugging at his lips. A boy, your own little boy...

The small baby was placed into your arms, pulling you from your thoughts. Your voice choked on a small sob, looking at the small squirming baby. “Hello, my love.” You smiled brightly at the baby, your fatigue slowly edging away as he silently squirmed in your arms. With the baby pressed against your chest, you could feel his hammering heartbeat. You practically melted from the overwhelming joy that filled your body. “My boy...” you mused.

Steve smiled and kissed the top of your head as all six feet of him leaned down to your height to watch your baby move around in your arms. “He’s amazing,” he responded, almost as dazed as you were by the small infant.

“I want to name him Tony,” you quickly said, not even aware that the words had left your own mouth for a moment.

However, you were aware of Steve’s response to what you had assumed were your thoughts. “I think Tony is a great name,” Steve responded, holding you closely to him. “Tony James.”

Slowly, you nodded, silent tears falling from your cheeks. “Tony James Rogers. Named after his uncle, godfather, and you. It’s perfect,” you finally said to fill the silence, smiling down at the bundle. You held your son close to your chest, a small laugh escaping your throat. “Our parents would be proud, wouldn’t they?”

“Yeah, yeah they would,” he said, kissing the top of your head once more. “As annoying as Howard was, he would be proud of you.”

“Even if he never showed it.” You couldn’t help but sigh at the memory of your father. You had been young when he had gone from the world, and it still hurt. If only you had had more time with your father...

The doctor cleared his throat, once again pulling you from your train of thoughts. “We’re going to have to run some tests on little Tony, but we should be done soon. In the meanwhile, I would suggest you get some rest, Mrs. Rogers. Captain, you’re more than welcome to stay by her side.”

You handed the little bundle over to the doctor before relaxing back into the bed. “Please don’t leave me, Steve,” you murmured to your husband, relaxing into the bed.

In answer, he dragged the chair from the window over to the bed, sitting down and grabbing your hand. “I wouldn’t dream of leaving you, doll.”

You smiled softly to him before finally lulling off into sleep.

Like an image passing by, my love, my life

in the mirror of your eyes, my love, my life

I can see it all so clearly

All I love so dearly

You stirred gently before lifting your head to take in your surroundings. You were no longer in the hospital room in those silly gowns. Instead, you were standing in your childhood home.

“You know what?” your father said, smirking as he leaned against the piano that was in the grand foyer. “I never thought I’d see Steve with anyone but Peg. Even if she got married to someone else. Hell, I figured he was as good as dead, but then he showed up in... 2011, right? Well, rambling aside, I have to say I’m proud that he ended up with you, even if he is some 65 years older than you.” The man who stood before you was hardly the man you grew up with, he was much younger and definitely more relaxed. He was easily in his early 30′s. Still, he was definitely still your father.

“Dad?” you asked, shocked.

“Hiya, Pumpkin.” He pulled you into a quick hug before he took the time to admire you. “You sure have grown since I last saw you. You were 9 the last time I saw you in person. And I probably looked a helluva lot different, didn’t I?” He chuckled to himself before walking over to the small bar, pouring a tumbler of whiskey. “You want a drink? Childbirth isn’t an easy thing, your mother can vouch for that. She did it, twice.”

You shook your head in answer, looking around. “Is mom here? What about Tony?”

Howard only waved his hand in dismissal. “They’ll be here soon enough.” He took a seat on the white couch, patting it for you to sit beside him. “I figured I’d show up here early and get some talk time with my girl before everyone comes to congratulate you.”

“Talk?” you questioned, sitting down where he had motioned. “Talk about what?”

“You. How much you’ve grown. You know, you were a surprise to both your mother and I. You were a last minute surprise and, given both of Maria and I’s ages at the time, a complete and utter shock.” He laughed, taking a swig from his whiskey. “But you know what? I’m damn proud of you.” You scowled in response and he only sighed. “Your brother did the same thing when I told him. I know, I’m terrible at showing it. But I am proud of you. Of both of you.”

“You didn’t have a terrible way of showing it. You had a shitty way of showing it.” You cleared your throat, fully ready to mock some of the things he had said to you as a child, when a voice interrupted both of you from speaking.

“Howard, I better not see you antagonizing the poor thing,” said the soft voice of your mother. “She just gave birth to your grandson.”

Like reflections of your mind, my love, my life

Are the words I try to find, my love, my life

Yes I know I don’t possess you

With all my heart, God bless you

You stood up and turned to see your mother and brother standing there. You wanted to act normal, like you weren’t happy to see them, but the moment your eyes landed on Tony standing there, the same as you had last seen him, your heart broke.

So, instead, you ran up to your brother and wrapped your arms around him tightly, sobbing hysterically. “Tony, you’re here...”

His strong arms wrapped around you, too, holding you tightly. “If by here you mean whatever weird dream thing this is, then yeah, okay, I’m here.”

“Anthony,” said the warning voice of your mother, but you pushed her voice to the side.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled, hiding your face in his chest. “I’m sorry I never told you about my pregnancy and I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you. I’m sorry, Tony... I’m so sorry.”

Suddenly, your arms were unwound from his torso as your brother held you at arms length. “Hey, none of that sorry crap. You shouldn’t have even been on the battlefield if you were pregnant, Y/N/N. Besides, I’m not sorry, especially since you named the kid after me.” He pointed a finger at your father. “You owe me money. Why the hell did you think she would name the kid after you any way?”

Howard only rolled his eyes, getting up to his feet to refill his tumbler with whiskey. Once it was filled, he turned his attention to the two of you. “I don’t owe you anything, Tony. We’re dead.”

“You made the bet, old man. Can’t pull this shit here.”

A calm hand landed on your shoulder, forcing your attention to your mother. Now she... she looked exactly as you remembered her. Her white hair was pulled back tightly in a bun, but her eyes were just as sweet as the day she left.

“My love, you need to wake up,” she said calmly, her smile soft. “Steve and Tony James are waiting for you.”

You took a step back and examined your family. Tony and Howard had finally stopped bickering and we’re giving you bright smiles. Your mother was leaning into Howard, her head resting on his shoulder. Once again, you felt tears threatening to spill

“Hey,” Tony said, pulling your eyes back to his brown ones. “Don’t cry, got it? And definitely don’t give up on my behalf. This kid needs you. You’ll see me again when you’re ready.”

“But I miss you. Why’d you have to go?” Finally, the waterworks started as tears started to stream down your face.

“Aw geez, come on, Y/N/N. What is it that Steve would say? Uh...” He racked his brain for a moment before snapping his fingers. “‘Every war has its casualties.’ Well, it sucks because it was supposed to be Pepper and I having the kid and all, but.... I suppose my nephew will have to do.” You rolled your eyes, fighting the smile that was threatening to take over your face. “Doesn’t matter. I still love you, kiddo. So go on and make the world a better place, got it?”

You simply nodded, unable to find the words to answer.

But I know I don’t possess

With all my heart, God bless you

You’re my one and only

You woke up in the hospital room and glanced over at Steve, who was on the phone in the corner of the room, talking away to whoever was on the other line.

“... Yeah Sam, I know. A boy... Yes, you can see him once we’re out of the hospital.” His eyes glanced over to you, lying on the bed, and a huge smile took over his features. “Hey, I’ll call you back, Y/N’s awake.”

He hung up the phone and returned to your side. “Hey, how long was I out?”

“Only about thirty minutes.” His hand brushed along your face, pushing your hair back behind your ear. “Doc said he’d be back in a couple minutes with little Tony and your release papers.”

You hummed in response, leaning into his hand. Your mind flashed back to your dream... dream? Was that the right word? Well, whatever it was, you thought of it, and of how your family was there and how much they loved you. And Tony... Your heart broke just a little, remembering your brother.

The doctor entered the room again, your son nestled into the crook of his arm with a stack of papers wedged between his arm and the side of his body.

“This little one is for you,” he responded, handing over the baby, “as are these.” The papers went to Steve. “All of the paperwork is signed for. You’ve given birth to a healthy baby boy. You’re set to leave whenever you’re ready.”

With that, the doctor once again left. You smiled down at your son and his brilliant blue eyes. Just like Steve. “Do you think he knows how much he’s going to be loved? And how many unofficial official aunts and uncles he’ll have?”

A chuckle came from Steve as he leaned down to look at his son. “I’m sure he does. Especially since Sam’s in the waiting room with some of the others, waiting to see the little squirt.”

The two of you laughed quietly to each other before looking back at Tony. You sighed in contentment before nodding your head. “Yeah. He’s going to be loved by everyone, I can feel it.”

Tags:

@uservalkyrie @youreafangirl-harry @thedaydreamingwriter @starksparker

#steve rogers x reader #steve rogers imagine #steve rogers headcanon #steve rogers #chris evans x reader #chris evans imagine #chris evans headcanon #chris evans #captain america x reader #captain america imagine #captain america headcanon #captain america #marvel #infinity wars #avengers 4 theories #one shot #userkavvy #emmmahi

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ashlerber-blog · 6 years

Text

Cat’s Out of The Bag

Jensen Ackles

Word Count: 2000+

Warnings: Probably swearing I think. Actually no, everything will be swearing.

A/N: Oh look another one, but instead of supernatural it’s the actors of supernatural! Much wow! So basically I don’t have a weekend this week because I’m super busy. Not like I wanted to be. I blame my parents. Much fun. I might be writing some new things. like a Peter Kavinsky one. We’ll see. So, when you’ll be seeing this I probably won’t be home.

Masterlist | Request <--- Hey! Psssttt Click Me :3

"Can we somehow answer everyone's questions in like the time we have?" I asked Tyler.

"Depends on if you guys fool around." He shrugs. Jared responded by touching his heart and scoffing.

"How dare you accuse us of fooling off. We are very professional." Jared responds. I let out a laugh from my throat and Jared turned his gaze at me. "Do you have something to say, Y/n? Hmm?" I didn't respond and just shook my head.

"That's what I thought. Now, since Y/n is done fooling around how about we get a question from, someone." He suggests. I roll my eyes at him playfully as someone gets handed a microphone.

"Hi um, my question if for Y/n." I smiled and looked at Jared.

"Ha!" I said towards him. Jared rolled his eyes at me and shook his head.

"First I just want to say I love you all and I was wondering what were you doing before you started being Dean's significant other?" The girl asked. I sucked in a breath and laughed.

"Oh gosh wow. Well, I try to hide this from everyone because I hated it so much. However, it did gain me a roll in Mamma Mia-"

"Wait you were in Mamma Mia?" Jensen asked interrupting me. I looked at him with a glare.

"Yes, you dumb fuck. I made you watch it just because I was in it. The damn leading roll you idiot." I said punching him.

"Okay okay." He laughed as he moved away from me after pushing my hands away.

"Anyways as I was saying. Before I got the roll in Supernatural the same year I was singing, and I didn't earn even a penny from it so I quit it." I shrugged.

"Oh, this outta be good. You have to sing now." Jared pushed.

"No," I answered looking at him dead in the eye.

"Actually I have a bunch of videos of her singing just on set." Jensen shrugged as he pulled his phone out.

"Don't you dare, Ackles." I death glared at him. He chuckled at me ignoring me and looked over at Tyler.

"Is there like any way we can project this and get sound?" He asked.

"Oh totally." He jumped up as tech crew came out. I kept my glare at Jenson and started to shake my head.

"You are so going to pay for this," I muttered. Jensen laughed at me and just responded by shaking his head.

"Fun fact about the video you're about to see. Y/n was tied up and started singing I want to break free and it was the funniest crap ever." He explained, "It was so good that they kept that scene for a rainy day."

"How do you even remember the lyrics so well?" Mark asked as Britsh he could. We all looked over at Mark and just gave him the look.

"Because most of it is just instrumental," I answered with a shrugged. Soon after the video popped up and I shook my head covering my face. Jensen chuckled at me and forced my hands away from my face. "I am so killing you." I mouthed to him.

"Okay wait there is another funny one. The last episode of season five after Lucifer fell with Michael and crap, Y/n started singing we are the champions." He laughed. I groaned and laid my head backward and looked at the ceiling.

"How about we move on to another question?" I asked popping back up. Soon another person was handed a mic and they stood up.

"So, my question is a duo one meant for Jensen and Y/n, and I bet just as much everyone else wants to know this. On the show, your characters have such great big chemistry with each other. Just by the way Dean looks at Y/c/n we all can tell that he loves her with all his heart. How do you guys do it?" She asked. I looked over at Jensen as he looked over at me.

"Fun fact, I never took Chemistry." I blurt out to push the question away.

"Wait you never took chemistry?" Jared asked confused.

"Yeah, I never did. I took a different class since I suck at science." I explained shrugging.

"Didn't you ended up taking some type of space class?" Jensen asked. I nodded back an hummed a yup to him.

"Who the hell takes a space class unless they were going into space crap." Jared askes.

"I suck at science okay. I wanted to take an easy class." I explained.

"Are you going to bloody answer the question or are you just so dumb?" Mark asked looking at us.

"Well, I don't know how about you," I say with a British accent.

"Making fun of the British guy. I see how it is." Mark rolled his eyes. I turned my gaze back at Jensen who gave me the look and then shrugged. I sighed and nodded. Jensen smiled softly and turned towards the crowd.

"Y/n and I are dating. So, I guess that's why." He explained. That's when the crowd erupted into screams and so many more noises that I couldn't explain. I chuckle and just shake my head.

"Alright next question," Jared said laughing at the reaction the crowd had.

"How did you two meet? Was it on set or?" The girl asked. I looked at Jensen and raised an eyebrow.

"You wanna tell it or me?" I asked.

"Well, I spilled the beans how about you tell this one?" He asked. I nodded with a smile and turned my gaze back to the crowd.

"Well let's see we were about three years old, well I mean I was you had to be about six or five and you stole my ice cream. Then we became friends. Fell apart around college. Met back around a party with the song Tell her about it was playing and well he just did that. So, that's basically it." I shrugged.

"Oh come on it was way better." Jensen laughed.

The year was well awhile ago. I remember the day like it was a couple hours ago. I was in my normal dress for a three-year-old and my family took me to my favorite park. I begged my parents to get me some vanilla ice cream and after begging and crying they finally bugged and bought me one.

I sat on the end of the seesaw eating my ice cream with the plastic red spoon when a boy older then came up to me and pointed at my ice cream.

"I love vanilla ice cream!" He smiled with a beam of happiness. I smiled back at him and held it towards him.

"Do you want some? My parents taught me that sharing is caring," I smiled, "but don't eat it all." The older boy nodded and took the ice cream out of my giving hands and took a spoonful and handed it back.

"That's so good!" He beamed raising his hands up in the air. I giggled at his silliness and we both finished ice cream together rather quickly and then we were just playing.

"So what's your name? Mines Jensen." He smiled proudly.

"My name is Y/n," I responded to his question.

"That's a pretty name." He said as he slides down the slide.

"Thank you. My parents gave it to me." I said after I slide down the slide right after Jensen.

"Y/n! Come here we have to go home!" My mother yelled for me. I stood up on my feet and looked at Jensen.

"Well, I have to go. I'll see you at some point." I waved.

"Definitely! Bye Y/n!" He beamed as I ran towards my mother.

"Who was that boy Y/n Y/m/n?" My father asked as he grabbed my hand as he looked back at Jensen.

"That was my friend Jensen! I like him a lot." I explained to my father. My father responded by nodding and turning his head in front of us as we headed off towards the car.

"And that's how it went." Jensen fully explained. I gave him a look of 'really' as he just laughed at my reaction as the audience was still all over the place.

"Since you loved explaining that one will you explain the fully telling me that you loved me so much that you might die if I wasn't in your life?" I asked raising an eyebrow at him.

"Why I would love to." He smiled.

Parties usually weren't my thing. However, for some reason, I came to this one. I just had this feeling that something was going to happen. Something I would never expect. There were a lot of people there. Shouldn't complain since it was a college party anyways.

Somehow my friend has convinced me that instead of staying in my dorm room and watching some movies and singing along to songs that I should come out and enjoy the fresh air of drugs and beer.

Somehow at some point during the night Tell Her About it started playing and I was in complete shock that such a party would have such music playing. I was in the middle of everyone and just dancing and mouthing the lyrics as my eyes meant a very familiar green set across the room and just froze.

He spotted me also and smiled with a chuckle coming out of his lips and made his way towards me. This man, who I stuck by with most of my life was, coming towards me after so long of being apart.

"It's been a while," Jensen said once he reached me. I nodded and smiled softly at him.

"Yeah what have you been doing?" I asked with a raised of my eyebrow.

"Been acting ya know." He shrugged. I chuckled and started to shake my head.

"And here you are at a college party talking to a college girl. Scandalous of you Ackles." I point out.

"Not when that college girl is about to graduate. Yeah, I kept count since I'm such a perfect friend." He smiles proudly of himself.

"Do you maybe want to get out of here? Talk somewhere else where we don't have to yell?" I asked. Jensen smiled and nodded taking my hand and leading me out of the party house. After we reached a fair bit away from the party I turned my gaze up at Jensen for a bit before returning it back in front of me.

"So, what was the real reason you were at a college party?" I asked.

"I was looking for you actually. I wanted to share some news with you." He explains. I raised my eyebrow and we both stopped and looked at each other.

"Which is?" I asked. Jensen sucked in a breath and looked down at his feet before back at me.

"Well um for starters I earned a roll on this new tv show and well I wanted you to be a part of it. Even as an extra. Your ending college and will have nothing to do so I figured since we both did plays as kids we would you know." He says.

"Wait, first off, how did you find me?" I asked.

"I um... I um... Your roommate." He says.

"Man she has the biggest mouth ever." I chuckle.

"Yeah, and I also came because I can't stand being this far from you." He explains. I pause in everything and look at him with a confused look.

"What do you mean?" I asked. Jensen reached his hands down and picked my hand up in his and intertwined our fingers and smile softly at me.

"After all these years being friends and telling ourselves we won't fall for the other. Lying to ourselves to make sure we don't ruin our friendship for fear the other won't return your feelings, but I couldn't care less anymore. I am so head over heels for you that I want to flat out marry you right now." Jensen explained as the smile never left his lips and I smiled so big at his feelings.

"Jay... I-I love you too."

"And here we are still not married." I laughed. Jensen rolled his eyes and playfully punched my shoulder.

"I'm just waiting for the most perfect moment to pop the big question. You won't even tell it's coming. It's just going to be like BAM in your face!" He smiled as his eyes sparkled. I smiled lovingly at him and rested my cheek on my hand as I looked at Jensen.

"I'm in tears. That was beautiful. Now Mark wanna explain our love story?" Jared popped in. I laughed at him and then looked at Mark.

"Please tell please!" I pumped.

"That's my girl," Jensen mumbled smiling brightly.

#asupernatural #supernatural #supernatural imagine #jensen #jensen ackles #jensen ackles imagine #imagine

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inloveandwords · 5 years

Text

The Buzzword Readathon starts on Monday and I’m SO ready.

OK, maybe not SO ready, but kind of ready and also nervous because I have a lot of physical books on my list and only one audio. Finding time to sit down and read a physical book is always a challenge for me, but that’s the whole point right?

If you’d rather watch this TBR and rec, check out my video here:

youtube

Otherwise, keep reading!

Buzzword Readathon TBR

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch in the forest, Xan, is kind and gentle. She shares her home with a wise Swamp Monster named Glerk and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon, Fyrian. Xan rescues the abandoned children and deliver them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing the babies with starlight on the journey.

One year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. Xan decides she must raise this enmagicked girl, whom she calls Luna, as her own. To keep young Luna safe from her own unwieldy power, Xan locks her magic deep inside her. When Luna approaches her thirteenth birthday, her magic begins to emerge on schedule–but Xan is far away. Meanwhile, a young man from the Protectorate is determined to free his people by killing the witch. Soon, it is up to Luna to protect those who have protected her–even if it means the end of the loving, safe world she’s always known.

What if it’s Us by Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera

Arthur is only in New York for the summer, but if Broadway has taught him anything, it’s that the universe can deliver a showstopping romance when you least expect it.

Ben thinks the universe needs to mind its business. If the universe had his back, he wouldn’t be on his way to the post office carrying a box of his ex-boyfriend’s things.

But when Arthur and Ben meet-cute at the post office, what exactly does the universe have in store for them?

Maybe nothing. After all, they get separated.

Maybe everything. After all, they get reunited.

But what if they can’t quite nail a first date . . . or a second first date . . . or a third?

What if Arthur tries too hard to make it work . . . and Ben doesn’t try hard enough?

What if life really isn’t like a Broadway play?

But what if it is?

Anywhere but Here by Stephanie Hoffman McManus

Seven years ago, I left Conway, South Carolina swearing I would never go back. I put that town in my rearview and didn’t stop until there were several hundred miles between me and the memories I wanted to leave behind. But you can’t outrun your own heart. The past always comes back, and it didn’t matter how far I went, I couldn’t erase the mark he left. I’d never met anyone like Kellen Nash before. He made me feel so . . . alive. Until I made the mistake of falling in love with him. I spent seven years trying to forget only to be forced to come face to face with him again. I wasn’t prepared for old wounds to be reopened or for him to still have this effect on me. He nearly broke me once. I won’t give him the chance to do it again, even if he does still look at me like he can see everything I keep hidden inside. There’s too much history between us, like the North and the South, to forgive and forget so easily, but the longer I’m back, the more I start to question what really happened then, and the more I worry about what will happen if he discovers my biggest secret.

At seventeen she was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen, and not at all what I expected. A girl like her didn’t belong with a guy like me, but that didn’t stop me from wanting her, or breaking her heart. I never thought I’d see her again, but she’s back. Only she isn’t the girl I knew. In her place is an angry spitfire even more gorgeous than I remember, and she’s determined to take all that anger out on me. I’ve spent seven years missing her, living with the regret of letting her go, and when I start to catch glimpses of the girl I loved, I realize it’s never too late. Or is it?

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right?

Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself.

The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not?

Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up. Two bottle caps, a movie ticket, a folded note, a box of matches, a protractor, books, a toy truck, a pair of ugly earrings, a comb from a motel room, and every other item collected over the course of a giddy, intimate, heartbreaking relationship. Item after item is illustrated and accounted for, and then the box, like a girlfriend, will be dumped.

Roar by Stacy Sims

Women are not small men. Stop eating and training like one.

Because most nutrition products and training plans are designed for men, it’s no wonder that so many female athletes struggle to reach their full potential. ROAR is a comprehensive, physiology-based nutrition and training guide specifically designed for active women. This book teaches you everything you need to know to adapt your nutrition, hydration, and training to your unique physiology so you can work with, rather than against, your female physiology. Exercise physiologist and nutrition scientist Stacy T. Sims, PhD, shows you how to be your own biohacker to achieve optimum athletic performance.

Complete with goal-specific meal plans and nutrient-packed recipes to optimize body composition, ROAR contains personalized nutrition advice for all stages of training and recovery. Customizable meal plans and strengthening exercises come together in a comprehensive plan to build a rock-solid fitness foundation as you build lean muscle where you need it most, strengthen bone, and boost power and endurance. Because women’s physiology changes over time, entire chapters are devoted to staying strong and active through pregnancy and menopause. No matter what your sport is—running, cycling, field sports, triathlons—this book will empower you with the nutrition and fitness knowledge you need to be in the healthiest, fittest, strongest shape of your life.

♥ ♥ ♥

Buzzword Readathon Recs from my Bookshelf

Hideous Love by Stephanie Hemphill

An all-consuming love affair.

A family torn apart by scandal.

A young author on the brink of greatness.

Hideous Love is the fascinating story of Gothic novelist Mary Shelley, who as a teen girl fled her restrictive home only to find herself in the shadow of a brilliant but moody boyfriend, famed poet Percy Shelley. It is the story of the mastermind behind one of the most iconic figures in all of literature: a monster constructed out of dead bodies and brought to life by the tragic Dr. Frankenstein.

Mary wrote Frankenstein at the age of nineteen, but inspiration for the monster came from her life-the atmospheric European settings she visited, the dramas swirling around her, and the stimulating philosophical discussions with the greatest minds of the period, like her close friend, Lord Byron.

This luminous verse novel from award-winning author Stephanie Hemphill reveals how Mary Shelley became one of the most celebrated authors in history.

What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick

Gwen Castle has never so badly wanted to say good-bye to her island home till now: the summer her Biggest Mistake Ever, Cassidy Somers, takes a job there as the local yard boy. He’s a rich kid from across the bridge in Stony Bay, and she hails from a family of fishermen and housecleaners who keep the island’s summer people happy. Gwen worries a life of cleaning houses will be her fate too, but just when it looks like she’ll never escape her past—or the island—Gwen’s dad gives her some shocking advice. Sparks fly and secret histories unspool as Gwen spends a gorgeous, restless summer struggling to resolve what she thought was true—about the place she lives, the people she loves, and even herself—with what really is.

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

Everyone in Shaker Heights was talking about it that summer: how Isabelle, the last of the Richardson children, had finally gone around the bend and burned the house down.

In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is meticulously planned – from the layout of the winding roads, to the colours of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules.

Enter Mia Warren – an enigmatic artist and single mother – who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenage daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than just tenants: all four Richardson children are drawn to the alluring mother-daughter pair. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past, and a disregard for the rules that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.

When the Richardsons’ friends attempt to adopt a Chinese-American baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town and puts Mia and Mrs. Richardson on opposing sides. Suspicious of Mia and her motives, Mrs. Richardson becomes determined to uncover the secrets in Mia’s past. But her obsession will come at unexpected and devastating costs to her own family – and Mia’s.

Little Fires Everywhere explores the weight of long-held secrets and the ferocious pull of motherhood-and the danger of believing that planning and following the rules can avert disaster, or heartbreak.

When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore

To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees, and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town. But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up.

How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry

The enchanting story of a bookshop, its grieving owner, a supportive literary community, and the extraordinary power of books to heal the heart

Nightingale Books, nestled on the main street in an idyllic little village, is a dream come true for book lovers–a cozy haven and welcoming getaway for the literary-minded locals. But owner Emilia Nightingale is struggling to keep the shop open after her beloved father’s death, and the temptation to sell is getting stronger. The property developers are circling, yet Emilia’s loyal customers have become like family, and she can’t imagine breaking the promise she made to her father to keep the store alive.

There’s Sarah, owner of the stately Peasebrook Manor, who has used the bookshop as an escape in the past few years, but it now seems there’s a very specific reason for all those frequent visits. Next is roguish Jackson, who, after making a complete mess of his marriage, now looks to Emilia for advice on books for the son he misses so much. And the forever shy Thomasina, who runs a pop-up restaurant for two in her tiny cottage–she has a crush on a man she met in the cookbook section, but can hardly dream of working up the courage to admit her true feelings.

Enter the world of Nightingale Books for a serving of romance, long-held secrets, and unexpected hopes for the future–and not just within the pages on the shelves. How to Find Love in a Bookshop is the delightful story of Emilia, the unforgettable cast of customers whose lives she has touched, and the books they all cherish.

♥ ♥ ♥

Buzzword Readathon Recs I’ve Read

Atheists Who Kneel and Pray by Tarryn Fisher

Yara Phillips is a wandering muse.

She dates men who need her, but always moves on to something new, never staying in one place for very long.

David Lisey is in need of a muse.

A talented musician lacking lyrical inspiration. When he first sees her, he knows he’s found what he’s been looking for.

Yara believes she can give David exactly what he needs to reach his full potential: A broken heart.

David’s religion is love.

Yara’s religion is heartache.

Neither is willing to surrender, but religion always requires sacrifice.

The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

Adrift after her sister Bailey’s sudden death, Lennie finds herself torn between quiet, seductive Toby—Bailey’s boyfriend who shares her grief—and Joe, the new boy in town who bursts with life and musical genius. Each offers Lennie something she desperately needs… though she knows if the two of them collide her whole world will explode.

Join Lennie on this heartbreaking and hilarious journey of profound sorrow and mad love, as she makes colossal mistakes and colossal discoveries, as she traipses through band rooms and forest bedrooms and ultimately right into your heart.

As much a celebration of love as a poignant portrait of loss, Lennie’s struggle to sort her own melody out of the noise around her is always honest, often uproarious, and absolutely unforgettable.

Where the Silence Gathers by Kelsey Sutton

In this companion novel to the critically acclaimed Some Quiet Place, Alex must choose between Revenge and Forgiveness.

For as long as she can remember, Alexandra Tate has been able to see personified Emotions, and she’s found a best friend in Revenge. He’s her constant companion as she waits outside Nate Foster’s house, clutching a gun. Every night since Nate’s release from prison, Alex has tried to work up the courage to exact her own justice on him for the drunk driving accident that killed her family.

But there’s one problem: Forgiveness. When he appears, Alex is faced with a choice—moving on or getting even. It’s impossible to decide with Forgiveness whispering in one ear . . . and Revenge whispering in the other.

Buzzword Readathon TBR & Recs! + {New Video} The Buzzword Readathon starts on Monday and I'm SO ready. OK, maybe not SO ready, but kind of ready and also nervous because I have a lot of physical books on my list and only one audio.

#buzzword readathon #recommendation

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