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jmdbjk · 3 months

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Episode 8: Promise for Tomorrow

Beyond the Star, produced by HYBE Media Studio

You could say the Yet to Come concert in Busan was the final cap on Chapter 1 or you could say it is the bridge between 1 and 2 for the group.

It was controversial from the start. There was a lot of turmoil surrounding the planning of this concert, the reason it was planned and the actual logistics of making it happen in less than 3 months. K-Army fought hard for this event to take place responsibly and safely.

That stadium they performed in was in terrible condition just WEEKS before they were to perform. Panels were missing all around on the outside due to being blown off by a previous hurricane. We're talking MAJOR REPAIRS had to be made in a matter of FOUR WEEKS when they finally settled on this venue after going back and forth on where to hold the concert:

By the miracles that the universe keeps bestowing on BTS, the venue was ready, the city was in festival mode and over 50,000 concert-goers attended this event FOR FREE.

This concert was very emotional for all of them. It was the last moment for them as a group for a long time. I'm glad they were able to finish off the first ten years like this. It was epic.

The members talk about the unknowns, how they might present themselves in the future. They want to see if they can come back as a proper group and show it can be done and done well, even in their 30s.

Namjoon says they hope they can comeback with a balance between group and individual activities, they want to try to show how an idol group can mature and still be successful. They are all on the same page with this.

But they and Army must have faith in each other to let the time go by in order for the growth to happen and in order for them to fulfill their obligation.

Yoongi said they had something to prove with their performance at Yet to Come in Busan: that they still had it. They worked hard, reported to work early, stayed behind late to keep practicing. He feels strongly this won't change with them as time passes.

This is someone who is able to see the synergy of the individuals who make up the whole.

By this time, Hobi had already released Jack in the Box and had performed at Lollapalooza and was feeling more confident about all of it:

From the very structured days that Hobi likes to the totally free-spirited Jungkook, they have shared some very intimate moments in this episode.

Hobi says they have to learn how to rest and be on their own, do their own thing, think for themselves.

Tae and Namjoon individually speak about how this level of fame and success they've achieved, especially in the last three years, is something they had trouble grappling with. That level was not what they'd anticipated. They have to ask themselves what was it they had initially wanted to do?

Then we get a big reveal: Jin's posse of friends. They are in the car going somewhere and the music track playing is Life Goes On, a callback to the opening scene of the song's MV. They are going camping. Jin shares that these guys hang out at his house even when he's not there, welcoming him home when he gets there. Jin, a gamer guy who's told us he can play video games for days and forgets to eat while doing it, made us think he was all alone ... and here has had this great group of friends this whole time. He knows his group of friends are rare to have in the world of celebrity.

And an extremely intimate moment when Jungkook visits his healthcare provider for a health visit. He's just like me, I can't watch them sticking that needle in my arm to take blood or whatever it is his healthcare provider is doing. Omega-3 supplements after midday and evening meals and vitamin D at night. And he is guilty of patient non-compliance because he's not drinking the liquid supplement they prescribed. For as healthy as he seems to be, that's a lot of prescribed supplements. And this is some very, very personal information he's sharing with us.

This episode is hard to watch, y'all. I keep having to stop and dry up my tears. Omg then Take Two starts to play after Jin gets his head shaved. One heart rip after the other... and then the credits roll while Spring Day plays.

Bottomline, this series shows the tightness, the oneness, the knowledge that these seven men have forged a bond that makes them family and will keep them together as they continue on with their lives. They've tied their identities to BTS so tightly that they will never not be known as the seven original and only members of BTS.

They all want the same thing. As Tae says, they now have to make it through their military enlistment healthy...

We were shown a much wider picture of how their lives are and were especially since 2019.

Their words, their tone of voice, the memories, the visual cues and reminders are all to help us understand what they've done, how far they've come and what they've had to overcome and how they felt about all of it.

The docu-series concept overall was to convey the members thoughts about their careers, past, present and future. I was extremely interested in hearing in their own words, what it was like being a member of BTS in those first years.

I listened to what the members had to say, I assimilated that into what I already know. It moves chronologically. If you think of it as the members of today telling their story, it plays more like a narrated movie. A movie of their lives.

We saw images that helped us understand the things they were talking about, the things they'd been feeling and thinking as they sorted through the years. Each episode focused on a period of time.

The basic things they said: they went through some hell, they tried to figure out this popularity thing, pandemic fucked with them, mental health issues were a problem, they worked through that, they finally worked through what enlistment and after could be and they are all in a good place. Through it all, they remain committed to each other and to the group.

I know some were saying the editing was choppy or events were out of order, but this docu-series was not supposed to be a chronologic retelling of the history of BTS and it wasn't just a listing of their milestones. Whoever said that didn't watch any of it.

It moves along in a way that conveys how they started, what their mindset was then and shows us how they've evolved over time. Scenes from the past help convey emotions and feelings, reflecting on the depth of memories they have from their career. The clips we see can't begin to convey how dense and rich all of those experiences are for them and don't come close to touching the number of hours they've spent on stage during their career.

Production of this documentary began long ago, as shown by all the different interviews conducted. When producing a documentary created from interviews, there is an outline of points to convey and obviously there was a camera person and probably a director/producer to prompt the interview. In other words the interviewer may have said "tell us what your favorite concert memory is" or "let's talk about how you felt when the MOTS tour was cancelled." The member talks, and then maybe the next question is "what were you feeling/thinking when you sat on your sofa for days?" and the member talks, then "when did you feel like (insert whatever)... (member talks)... etc. and let the member being interviewed say everything they want to say, or if they go off on a tangent, they'd bring them back to the topic to make sure there was enough footage/soundbites from each member. There is typically no dialogue "script" for a documentary unless it has a narrated voice-over. I have done this sort of thing in the course of my work career. Documentaries can be very flexible but are meant to be factual.

My criticisms: I saw one or two instances that should have been corrected: they labeled the UN building as Oakland. There were a few translated phrases that were a tad awkwardly structured.

Anyway, long-time fans might already know the history of BTS and know wayyyy more details about how everything went down, even more so than what was shown in this series. It's the newer fans that will benefit a lot from watching this. As we know, the amount of content to "catch up" on is ENORMOUS. Ask me, I know this. This documentary series is a very condensed history that would definitely benefit newer fans.

I hope I was able to summarize everything clearly in these blog posts.

#bts beyond the star #jimin #jungkook #hobi #yoongi #namjoon #jin #taehyung

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nihilnovisubsole · 29 days

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phew! finally a weekend where i can set aside enough time to type up The Promised Endwalker Stream-of-Consciousness Post. i finished the base story... a month ago? but work has been busy, and i think tumblr benefits from me being quiet sometimes. anyway, what a ride. when you've been building up to the end of your arc for a decade, you want to hit it like an earthquake, and that's exactly what they did.

i think people love endwalker because it fires on all cylinders. it returns - in both story and vision - to the eorzea we love, and the dev team gets to show off everything they've learned. the dungeons and boss fights are dynamic and imaginative and colorful and bring the game's epic sense of scope to bear. the story callbacks are juicy. the music is orchestral again. we're back home, and we're saving the galaxy. what's better than this?

i love that we go to garlemald. i don't - i mean, you know, i don't like garlemald. i shouldn't have to qualify that. but it's hugely narratively satisfying to see the face of the enemy we've been fighting since the first few hours of ARR. you don't think about them when you're beating them up in castrum centri or ala mhigo. they're star wars bad guys. then you meet them on their own turf. you observe firsthand how they starve and cannibalize their own people to feed their obsession with state power and military strength. the wintry environment makes it seem all the more barren and desperate. my favorite part by far. i wish we'd spent more time there.

actually, on that note:

there is an argument that endwalker should've been two expacs. i've heard similar about stormblood - ala mhigo should've been the whole thing, and doma should've been either patch content or an expac of its own. the prevailing theory is that, after ARR, the devs are afraid of letting arcs run long. i can't speak to that, but i wouldn't have minded, that's for sure!

i won't pretend not to be biased. i've noted in many xiv posts that it hurries through its political plots to get to the magic stuff. i felt more conscious of it in heavensward and especially in stormblood. i made peace with it in endwalker. with dessert this good, who am i to complain? i can do small character drama on my own time. for now, the game wants royce to be a big damn shonen hero, and that can be fun, too.

speaking of characters, urianger and estinien have grown on me. this is the arc where, for me at least, the scions have congealed. they're all good, but with any large cast and custom player character, you tend to form the meatiest bonds with a few specific ones. i think royce appreciates urianger's cooler, more mature head. they're both so formal. he realizes she's someone he can confide in. i think she sees estinien as a gifted, but hotheaded whelp, which i find very funny. patience, child. stop sulking. do your breathing drills.

i love thancred's MGS sequence and in from the cold too. they're stressful, but i love that the team tried, you know what i mean? the fact that you can fight enemies in a pinch makes those duties way more bearable than some other games that experiment with stealth.

in from the cold as a whole, honestly. If You Know, You Know

all right, i can't avoid referencing spoilers anymore, sorry. there's a sense of classical tragedy to the whole elpis sequence. it's like watching macbeth or hamlet. you know how it's going to end, and you know you're powerless to stop it, but if they'd just made that different choice! but we had to leave eden. the warrior of light had to end up where they are to finish what elpis started. i don't do fate/destiny plots, but this? i'll take it.

i also knew what would happen going into ultima thule and still came away from it moved. it's strong writing. that's all there is to it. sure, the visuals are haunting, but the dialogue has to sell a gauntlet of difficult character moments, and it pulls it off. on the design side, there's some interesting intentional friction that forces you to linger in the zone and sit with its sense of despair. that part where you have to search the empty park for signs of life? oof

with the majority of the MSQ under my belt, i started sniffing around for what else there is to do ingame. i tried ninja. did terribly. i tried sage. did terribly too, but at least that gave me access to the healer role quests, which, ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°). the nier raids are gorgeous. i even did the controversial werlyt quests, and terncliff is so cute. i kind of wish we could have another story there!

what's next? i dunno! right now i'm burning through the hildibrand quests before i continue on with endwalker's patch story. the field operation stuff seems interesting to do after the MSQ, in a "hey, you saved the world, but we have more missions for you" way. i've also contracted Triple Triad Collector Disease, so that'll keep me busy for a long time.

all right. one last thing. Real Gamer Moments: i was in a mount-farming party recently, and i said that i sort of collected mounts, but only used the ishgardian chocobo. it's a roleplay thing - it's the chocobo royce took when she ran away from ishgard. one of the party members said "haurchefant would be proud of you." AUGH

#ffxiv #long post

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13docwriting · 5 months

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So I'll start with the fact that I am, indeed, a fan of Chibnall's era. I am an even bigger fan of the 13th Doctor. I'll also start with the fact that I quite literally grew up with RTD's writing and loved Ten with all my heart. But now I am an adult and some of RTD's writing has left me a bit scared. Here's my "live streaming" review on The Star Beast. SPOILERS BELOW!

I'm going in order of how I processed things, so it's gonna be chaotic. My first essay is this: You know why this post is so long? It's because we're not livestreaming things anymore. I'm not immediately with other fans in real time, typing out our little posts. I'm quite literally doing this at my leisure. I'll miss watching DW live. Now then, in order! 1. The music? Ten out of ten. I have always loved Gold's compositions and he did not let us down. And this opinion is only being generated from the new(er) theme song. Which leads me to...

2. Look at the B U D G E T. Even the opening credits has a budget that you can just FEEL. Those stars/galaxies? Very nice... And then I have to chuckle over the low level lighting / 2000s era effects of David Tennant's full profile voiceover of Donna and his story.

3. Him taking the boxes, seeing Donna's face, and slowly putting the boxes back is an RTD special and I LOVE that kind of comedy. It just makes me chuckle. And then him having a full blown panic over hearing Donna shout "Rose!" which... 4. Having these little call back moments feels rather bitter since we're calling this a reboot of the show. UNLESS the reboot is when Nucti starts up? But the fact that I'm confused just shows how bitter I should be. Again, my Chibnall love is showing. I don't believe in yet another reboot for DW, but that's a marketing thing over anything else... I hope. 5. I'm glad the 2000s Rose/Doctor shipping era lives strong through the name Rose. I know those fans are going to be happy and they deserve it. 6. NOW... Donna having a family. Okay. I'll have a separate post but... Does anyone else think that Donna having a husband just doesn't fit for her? Especially with her memories erased? Idk, I just never envisioned Donna getting married after the whole Lance thing. BUT I'm glad she's happy and the husband seems so nice. 7. Donna giving up that lottery money? Also strange considering she lost her memories. The first time we meet Donna we get this feeling that she's a bit shallow, which makes sense because she has to develop as a character. That was her character development so here KEEPING the money would have made more sense here. Which...

8. Rose. That's all. She's great!

9. Hey, can't help but notice, but when did the 14th Doctor have time to make a new screwdriver, huh? What gives? AND - AND there's not a single hint of 13's sonic on there. HMM. What the heck!

10. FORGOT SOMETHING. Whatever the line was "that says mistress" "Oh, catch up, will you?" I don't know how to take in this scene quite yet, but it's making me pause. It felt... Off kilter. Maybe cause I love 13 so much, I don't know. There's always callbacks to other faces when the Doctor first regenerations, but this felt... Wrong? Also, TEE HEE my mind went to Missy IMMEDIATELY and I love that little connection my fic writing brain is going wild.

11. WHY DOES UNIT HAVE SO MUCH MONEY???? Look at this uniforms, holy cow! I almost don't like it? Like, they're an underground agency. WE JUST SAW THEM GET DESTROYED BY CYBERMEN IN THE POWER OF THE DOCTOR. Are we just ignore that entire episode or...?

12. Donna not being able to keep a job? Yeah, THAT one I believe haha.

13. "I will burn down the world for you, darling" says Donna Noble to her transgender kid. WHICH IS AMAZING, WHICH MADE ME SMILE SO WIDE I WAS HAVING A PARTY IN MY BRAIN. There's my Donna! 14. "Gramps used to talk about flying saucers" oh god my heart. I teared up a little, not going to lie. Wilf, I think about you every single day. You made the Doctor the person he is today.

15. MEEP IS SO CUTE. OH WOW. I know "evil" is coming but SO CUTE RIGHT NOW.

16. To go from some excellent animatronics from the Meep to whatever those alien, fly things are was HILARIOUS. What, we'd run out of money for those costume's? Were they meant to look like a typical RTD alien back in the 2000s? How does that work?

17. WHAT THE ACTUAL FLYING FUCK WAS THE SONIC DOING. Wait, did Disney give the sonic some magical powers? Why are we suddenly writing in the air? How are we getting readouts of the ship from the sonic like that? Could it do that before? Why would we not do that before? I'm dying that's so funny.

18. Shirley seems cool!!! I hope we get more of her! And I love the nod to PROPER representation. Chibs did a good job of that as well. Edit: REAL representation! Good on RTD. The scene with the stairs and she says "don't make me the problem"... I am not a wheelchair user but I do hope that was properly done. 19. "I absolutely love her [Donna]" LOOK AT 14 HAVING FEELINGS! Aww, I hope 15 follows through with the feelings! 11, 12, and 13 have been so locked up, so scared to love... Having a Doctor that's ready to loudly embrace their love for things would be such a good character development. (My fear would be RTD ripping that away in the most tragic way possible, but that's a future problem I suppose).

20. I'm at the scene where Rose is talking to the Meep in the shed, and just, again, THE MUSIC. We did have some good musical moments in 13's era but, even I have to admit, nothing as pretty as this. It really is something, round of applause once again.

21. LISTEN. L I S T E N. I don't condone slapping the Doctor. I don't. In fact, it's wrong. It's very wrong. And you can't slap 13, can you? So slapping 14 shouldn't make sense. It's the definition of sexist. It's just not something you should do. BUT. B U T. Jackie's "stitch this, mate" is always in my head and now THIS "here we go again" after Sylvia gives the Doctor a good slap... I laughed, okay? It was funny! But really, in the good year of 2023, there shouldn't be comedy like that. That joke should have died. BUT I LAUGHED. So I'm to blame as well.

22. "Never mind about the ferret from mars." I LOVE the mars callback from Donna, thank you very much.

23. Kate looking after Wilf damn near brought tears to my eyes. Kate, you are the real hero of the DW universe. Thank you.

24. This is... This is gonna be another post. But. Okay. So. The whole "you're assuming he as a pronoun". Right. Okay. I know groups of people that talk like that. Both online and in person. Personal life spoiler, I work(ed) in musical theater. I've seen it all. I, personally, do not like this whole... "Let's be really obvious about it" thing. And also highly believe in someone else first telling me, when it fits, what their pronouns are. Having someone pull the defensive "YOU ASSUMED" crap doesn't work because humans don't think like that. It's a whole other rant, but yeah. This felt forced and I hate when shows do that. Representation is important but FORCING that representation doesn't help.

25. what's the. what's the sonic doing. what. how'd it. we got lines in the air. we got unbelievable shield. we. he waved it like a wand and now. what the. how'd. (Yo, not me head cannoning that this is 13 banging around in 14's head demanding that they have a better way to protect their friends. Love it). I WILL HAVE A LOT MORE THOUGHTS ON THIS.

26. DW has money now. That will continue to blow my mind.

27. "This is a sonic screwdriver and if it's good at one thing, it's resonating concrete". Oh yeah, Doctor? I'd like to bring forth you, never once, being able to do it. Not once! (And now it's good at creating magical shields and complex, alien holograms, but that's point #25)

28. Where'd in hell's name did he get that wig and how soon can Donna throw it out a window?

29. MEEP YOU - YOU UTTER AHOLE. Man, it was SO CUTE

30. O k a y. I take back, holy crap what point am I on? I take back point #7. So there's some of the Doctor left in her, eh? That's why! I dig that. I really, really dig that. Sorry for being a downer, that was my mistake.

31. I too can come up with technobabble bullcrap that means nothing. I sometimes think that's RTD's biggest failing, his incessant need to over describe things. EDIT. JEEZ, a good five minutes later as we're STILL talking gibberish.

32. Hey, I see you "glass wall between Donna and the Doctor" and raise you "glass wall between Wilf and the Doctor". OW. I demand emotional compensation!

33. Listen, I just got over 13 keeping every. single. emotion inside of her. She never raised her voice, she never really cried, she never had a chance to just scream and yell and be angry at the universe. The fact that there's 14 RIGHT HERE, screaming, because to save Donna, he has to lose her YET AGAIN. Just angry and devastated and grieving... It's a stunning scene, it's a scene that makes sense, but my 13 loving little heart says that this is 13's moment to be angry and it was taken from her.

34. Also, ha, I know Disney bought DW, but did we just "Winter Soldier" Donna Noble. We gave her trigger words to keep her memories at bay? Really?

35. "Hold on a minute," said in Ten's/Fourteenth's voice... Was that.. Was that ELVEN'S theme music while Donna was being, well, Time Lady Donna? Because that was... That was GOLDEN. How amazing is that? What a great idea!

36. You MONSTER, RTD, making Fourteen hold Donna the same way he held the Master? What the hell is that about?

37. The.. The nonbinary, but binary. I... It's... Something! Okay, I'll get there. I'll have a post about it. Maybe. But. Yeah, it's something!

38. DOES UNIT HAVE AVENGERS *cough* sorry it's been a while for Marvel me *cough* STARK TOWER. WAS THAT STARK TOWER? Damn, Disney, you really did bring us back to superwholock Avenger's "Clint in the vents" era, huh?

39. "It's a shame you're not a woman anymore, because she would have understood... Something a male presenting Time Lord will never understand." You can't... You can't do the whole "nonbinary" thing and that just immediately point out gender like that. What. The defeats the entire purpose. The whole point you're trying to make is that gender DOESN'T matter, and yet... And the Doctor has always, always been nonbinary. I refer to the Doctor as "they" when speaking as a collective whole, and many of us have done that. I use pronouns when talking about specific Doctors because humans have always used pronouns. Again, 11 and 13 have made mention that gender has NEVER mattered to them. I just... You can't be poking a bear and then expecting the bear to not to come after you if you've changed the poking object from a stick to a teaser.

40. I gotta laugh that Rose and Donna had the most peaceful "regeneration" we've ever seen. Somewhere in there, a Doctor or two is screaming lol.

41. Oh... The TARDIS is ugly. DON'T HIT ME. STOP HITTING ME. I MEAN It. Not, for real though, Oh my god, what. Why. The colors. Or lack of colors, really. What the fuck. Where's the... Where's the personality? Where's the sass? I've loved every single TARDIS change but THIS... This is a hard one to swallow.

42. The TARDIS having an shit fit over Donna spilling coffee on her is WONDERFUL. That's so funny to me. With everything she's been through with 13, that was just the best way for her to get her revenge! All in all, strange episode, yeah? I mean, what WAS that plot? It was really more of setup for the next episode, and double really meant to reunite ten and Donna, which was well done, but also... Why? It just felt a bit all over the place but very much cushioned by nostalgia. I'm done now. My fingers HURT. As always, and as I say in all my fics, I'm here if you want to chat. Reblog this, PM me, tag me in stuff!

#dw spoilers #dw #doctor who #david tennant #donna noble #dw 60th #doctor who spoilers #dw specials #the doctor #fourteenth doctor #the star beast #DW the star beast

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tacticalhimbo · 1 year

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Faith: The Unholy Trinity - Soundtrack Analysis

Hi Faith fandom! I forgot I had the soundtrack courtesy of Steam and I made some interesting discoveries! So I figured I'd share them here too, since:

I'm sure the more musically-inclined or historical nerd (/pos) fans can scrape even more from it

I know y'all are creative as hell, so hopefully I can fuel the flames... pun intended :3c

With that said, I'll toss my findings below the cut! I'll try to include the relevant audio files as well, though I'm not too sure how that all works here so I'll just...

DISCLAIMER: I do not own or claim to own the soundtracks provided on this post. All credits go to the composing artist(s), and to the development team of Faith: The Unholy Trinity.

I also hit a track limit... so I made sure to include the vital discoveries and include all mentioned titles!

There will be spoilers for Chapter 3, so reader discretion is advised.

I'll start us off with the titular discoveries.

The true ending (re: exorcising Amy, leaving with either Lisa or Father Garcia) theme is called It's Okay. The track is also something of a lullaby/harmony! There's a lot of callbacks happening in the track. Track below:

Gary's boss fight music is a remixed Revolutionary Etude, which was (allegedly) originally composed by Chopin around the time that Russia invaded Warsaw during the Polish uprisings. Track below:

Tiffany's boss theme is titled I am Beyond, very fitting considering her whole characterization stems from trying to surpass Amy (and perhaps even Gary) to earn the reverence she believes she's owed. Track below:

Side note: I am Beyond is easily my favorite soundtrack from the game. It's so unnerving.

And finally, the theme that plays when John is in the psychiatric ward (when the floating demonic face (belonging to Miriam) in Gary's Labyrinth captures him) is titled Not Here... which is just painful. Poor John. Track below:

Not relating to titles, but in the track that plays when fighting Super Miriam (re: Gary/Astaroth and Malphas possessing her corpse and spirit), you can hear Astaroth and Malphas being chanted in the background. The track's name is, fittingly, Super Miriam.

Similarly, in (what I assume is) the cult's theme, there is Latin chanting. If it weren't for my auditory processing issues, I'd provide what's being said. Alas, a bitch can't hear well enough to make it out. The track's name is Gary.

This next note is a bit more analytical, but Airdorf uses two compositions from Erik Satie's Trios Gnossiennes (more specifically, the first and the third; though not in order. The third is played before the first). I can't attach them here, sadly. I can, however, provide a bit of historical insight into the Trios Gnossiennes.

The track that plays in Chapter 2, during John's time at the church and cornfield, is Gnossiennes 3. The track that plays in Chapter 3, during John's time both outside of the clinic and the apartments, is Gnossiennes 1.

The Trios Gnossiennes were composed in the late 1800s and were entirely experimental compositions. We're talking no time signatures and a few other technical reworkings that couldn't classify them within existing compositional categories. In fact, Satie made up the term Gnossienne entirely.

Some scholars allege that the term drew inspiration from Satie's involvement in gnosis, or the (widely Hellenistic) belief that there's spiritual knowledge into humanity's real nature as divine. Within the Hellenistic era, gnosis was often used in reference to the occult, or "mystery cults" according to research.

Early symbols for gnosticism include a lion-faced, serpentine deity (potentially: Demiurge)... which is also of note considering Gary's demonic namesake, Astaroth, is often depicted as a serpentine (though more dragon-esque) deity.

On the other hand, some scholars attribute the word to the Cretan knossos (alt. gnossus), linking the published Trios Gnossiennes to the myth of Theseus, Ariadne, and the Minotaur (perhaps respectively? though it's not clear). While I'm failing to draw the parallels between the cornfield/church and the Minotaur, I can say that if the Gnossiennes are respectively attributed... The Theseus imagery for John is just... perfect. The whole concept of John's diminishing faith and the question of how much faith a man can lose before he is no longer faithful is... UGH. So good. And a very big question asked throughout Chapter 3.

To add onto this imagery... There's two very interesting track combinations that I feel could be expanded on!

First off, Gary's boss theme (re: Astaroth) and Malphas' theme are... strikingly similar in their composition. Same general vibe, with a weaving kind of interaction. There are parts that the two songs harmonize with one another, and then parts where they clash.

I've attempted to overlay the two tracks to illustrate this, though please note I am not an audio mixer ^^; Track below:

I think any symbolism here can be attributed to the fact that Gary (Astaroth) and his cult can summon Malphas to Earth. This, and the actual demonology surrounding Astaroth and Malphas.

Both Astaroth and Malphas are pretty significant figures. Both are said to be great leaders in Hell (Astaroth being a Grand Duke, Malphas being a "mighty Great President") who commanded legions of demons as a second in command to Satan.

From the research I conducted, it seems like they're almost one in the same? Astaroth is the more popular second in command, though Malphas makes his appearances in The Lesser Key of Solomon seemingly in Astaroth's place (re: the similarities within their roles).

Maybe this could signify some sort of rivalry? A battle for power while united under a common goal (re: The Second Death and the Profane Sabbath)? This could explain why Gary's demise is him being consumed (considering that Malphas is known for accepting sacrifices then deceiving the conjurer).

And secondly, the Unholy Trinity.

The Mother (The Clinic Demon), The Daughter (Tiffany), and the Unholy Spirit (Miriam/Miriam's Carved Face). These are the three demons needed to break the seals of the Crucible.

Respectively, their themes are: Mommy, I am Beyond, and Not Here.

Unfortunately, this one seems like a bit more of a stretch when overlaid in comparison to Astaroth and Malphas. Though I did find when removing Mommy from the lineup, there are a few sections where I am Beyond and Not Here do almost align... Though this one could be more coincidence than an intended effect.

Just for reference, though, I did include the trimmed and overlaid audio below:

To explain this mix, I removed the portions of I am Beyond that are a bit more... technical? The train-like sounds. I removed those and left the more unique (for a lack of better wording) sound bytes to mesh with Not Here. Again, maybe coincidence (or my ears deceiving me) or maybe not!

Woe, knowledge be upon ye! Feel free to ask any questions or add onto this! I'd love to see other interpretations of these things :3c

#txt #meta post #faith the unholy trinity #john ward #gary miller #miriam bell #faith chapter 3 #father garcia #faith airdorf #tiffany robinson

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mortallyclearwonderland · 6 months

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''I'm a star'' - Wish

This is a part to my previous post. You don't have to watch the previous and the upcoming post to understand this one. I'm making a post about each song from the movie Wish and going into detail as to why I think they're ''not good'' to say the least. I'm not saying that singer or the music is terrible. I'm focusing on everything wrong with the lyrics. If you're able to enjoy a song because it sounds nice that's fine. But because Wish is a musical the purpose of a song is to help tell the story. Of the lyrics are confusing and contradicting the plot will suffer.

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1. Valentino is contradicting himself. One moment he sings that he knew the entire time and joins in explaining that we're all stars but there are moments when he's as confused as Asha.

2. A butt joke + Lion King reference.

3. Those are North American/USA native animals and with how small the island is I'm not sure it would be able to house so many animals. It's a callback to how in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs animators used animals they knew, like racoons. Even tho they shouldn't be in Europe, especially when Americas haven't been discovered yet.

4. They want to superficially be ''like the movies from the past'' but it actually shows how out of touch those filmmakers are that they don't know what made those classic movies special. Animals who fallowed Snow White, Cinderella and Aurora were their friends because they were so kind. Are those animals Asha's friends or just random animals that decided to sing exposition at her?

5. I also hate ''Get that through your system!'' ''Solar!''. It doesn't work! It's a ''solar system'' not ''system solar''! He should have interrupted earlier. Yet again, modern talk and trying to sound cool. How do those animals know so much about space and have modern scientific lingo for it?

6. ''And If you just see the mushrooms than you'll understand'' What does that mean? That we need to look to nature for answers? Is Asha high? Those mushrooms are creepy!

7. ''We eat the leaves and they eat the Sun'' (While showing the Moon because the song is at night. I guess the Moon is reflecting Sun's light but it's still contrived.) It's too confusing for small children and too simplistic for adults (or rather anyone who is knowledgeable about space and biology). Mice aren't little pure vegetarians. ''They eat the Sun'' because photosynthesis. I get what the song is trying to say but it's so clunky.

8. Just awkward things that are supposed to be funny. A bear with a gay lisp going ''YeaS''. That one stupid/high dear the goes ''You're a star.'' I understand using different voices for differentiate characters to show their characters and emotions but it doesn't work because it's the first time we see those characters, so it comes out of nowhere. Compare it to how different soldiers sang in ''I'll make a man out of you''.

9. ''If I'm explaining it poorly, I'll let Star do it for me'' again it's like ''It's unlikely that you'll be unhappy''. What's with the lack of confidence in their writing!?! It's as if the writers know this song doesn't explain anything.

10. Also, in a good song ''I'll let Star do it for me'' would be a transition into the Star singing but because Star is mute and can only use sound effects she doesn't sing. What's the point? Star doesn't explain anything!

I have a theory. A FILM THEORY!

For those who don't know, in an early concept art, Star was supposed to be a boy. But not any average boy able to talk. He was supposed to be shapeshifting spirit and a young version of Ash's grandfather. They supposedly changed him from a boy into a star from Mario because he resembled genie too much.

That explains the weirdness of the song. It was probably supposed to be him shapeshifting, making voices and that's why the animals know so much about space. It was supposed to be him singing. And after ''Let the Star do it for me'' he would star singing.

But I think that change goes deeper than that. He so clearly was changed from a human to a literal star so it can be another cute marketable thing besides Valentino. They can't say it outright so they make excuses. They could've made him mute, use sound effects and body language.

I think they also changed star from a boy into a cute sidekick, so people wouldn't think it's a romance movie because . . . sexism. I understand not all stories need a romance plot or subplot but it has been over 10 years since the last romance in Frozen and even longer since a good romance in Tangled.

One other reason I think they changed star from Asha's grandpa spirit into a cute sidekick because it was supposed to be a twist. And Disney learning the wrong lesson decided that ''twists are bad''. Completely omitting that the bad writing is the problem.

Also, we know internet. If the trailer dropped showing some cute and emotional moments between Asha and Star (her young grandfather) without reviling they're actually related because that would spoil the twist, people would start shipping them. And then the twist would come out. That would be awkward to say the least.

Special thanks to toaverse for discussing Wish with me.

#disney wish #princess asha #toaverse #wish 2023 #Youtube

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telomeke-bbs · 2 years

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BAD BUDDY RERUN SEASON – EP.2 (NOTES ON THE REWATCH)

As we move on during the BBS rerun season, this write-up is a listing of observations made during my rewatch of Ep.2. 😊 (For notes on the Ep.1 rewatch, see here.)

Ep.2 begins with a little blooper – the establishing shot is the exterior of Pran's home (55/158 Ek Charoen 10 Alley, Lak Hok, Pathum Thani Province; Pat's house is number 55/159) but the interior is Pran's student apartment.

The opening sequence sets up a few things. We are introduced to Pat and Pran's personalities – Pran is ordered and disciplined, likes a schedule, and makes decisions with his head. Pat, on the other hand, does what he likes and lives in the moment.

Pran wakes up on the dot at 7.00am, but takes more than an hour to get ready. Pat gets more than an extra hour of sleep, and dozes through two alarms. But even as Pat barrels out unshowered and rumpled after oversleeping, we see that he still manages to leave earlier than Pran. The boys have differing styles, but their different approaches work in their own way, and neither is necessarily better than the other.

There are also hints to their mindsets when we look at the slogans they've put up in their apartments. Pat's is on his door – "I'm not arguing; I'm just explaining why I'm right" – and summarizes how he has little regard for the status quo once he's latched on to a goal for change. Pran's is pinned to the wall above his computer – "In design, thinking wrong is right" – and seems to be a reminder to him that it's OK to break the rules in the right circumstances.

It's clear that Pran has a lot of respect for rules, mores and discipline in his life – but behind the scenes, free of expectations, we're shown he's just as capable of going rogue for the greater good with partner-in-crime Pat (e.g., when they manipulate their friend groups in an effort to bring about peace in Ep.1, and also when they dupe their parents about their relationship in Ep.12).

We are also shown what becomes a running gag later – just before Pran exits his apartment, he remembers something and goes back for it. He'd almost forgotten his keys (the keychain has a little identifying astronaut that we also see at Ep.2 [2/4] 2.14) AND his earphone case (which we see him open to retrieve the earphones at Ep.2 [1I4] 3.29). Throughout the series and all the way to Ep.12 it's a thing with Pran that he always forgets/misplaces his earphones. This is the first reference to Pran's trademark foible in BBS.

The scene when Pat covers Pran's mouth in the toilet stall (Ep.2 [1I4] 6.22) is played for laughs, and is also a callback to the two scenes in Ep.1 where Pat did the same thing (thanks for pointing this out @weirdetta! 😊👍).

I also think this is the first of several scenes where Pat intrudes inappropriately (but also innocently enough) on Pran's personal space. He's not actually conscious of why he's doing it (e.g., at the music shop in Ep.3 [3I4], and in the staircase when they get spooked by a cat in Ep.4 [1I4]) but it looks like Pat is subconsciously seeking out physical closeness with Pran all the time, and it's not motivated by anything dubious or sinister.

This scene in the toilet stall shows it for what it is – there was no need for Pat to push Pran into the stall and cover his mouth. It's not like Pran was going to yell or anything (unlike the two scenes in the preceding episode – at Ep.1 [3I4] 1.13 and 6.01 – when there was a real risk Pran might have called out in surprise and blown their cover).

Pat was acting on instinct here, but somehow in his golden retriever brain the message of "I must protect Pran" got mixed up with his subconscious "I need to be physically close to Pran", and we get the first comic and chaotic instance of our hero-boy collapsing in on Pran's personal space when it wasn't quite necessary (his unwashed hand also foreshadowing where this closeness will be heading later after they become a couple 😉).

At Ep.2 [1I4] 8.24 Pran is not humming tunelessly to himself while working on an assignment. He's actually trying to write what will become PatPran's personal anthem Our Song (humming the first notes of the chorus) and this shows he'd been working on it for some time – since the beginning of first year at university in fact.

We know from later episodes that Pran isn't going to be able to complete Our Song anytime soon (complaining about how hard the songwriting process is to Wai at Ep.3 [1I4] 1.26). Pran only finishes composing it toward the end of the following year, in Ep.11.

This is in contrast to Just (a) Friend that he co-wrote, apparently quite easily, with Pat in high school. The reasons for his songwriter's block aren't made very clear (it's not just separation from Pat), but there will be clues to the explanation in later episodes. 😉

The idea that their mobile phones are metaphors for their hearts and minds (based on their chat ID exchange in Ep.1, analyzed here) is given resonance by Pat and Pran's text conversation starting at Ep.2 [1I4] 8.51, wherein Pran suggests Pat is behaving like a boyfriend and Pat suggests they're so close they might as well share a bed:

The text exchange on their mobile phones appears to be giving voice to Pat and Pran's own heartfelt, subconscious desires for their deepening relationship. Pat is still clueless about the meaning of his impulses here, but for Pran (who's in love with Pat) the subtext is significant, and he counters it with a vomming emoji:

This is an early example of Pran's constant self-denial, where he outwardly communicates the opposite of what he truly feels inside (another example is his reply "I… hate you" to Pat at Ep.4 [4/4] 17.08).

When Pran leaves Oishi green tea at Pat's door as an (anonymous) apology for eating the misdelivered salad (Ep.2 [1I4] 10.40), he also encloses the receipt folded into an origami bird that Pat interprets (erroneously) as a sign of romantic feelings from a secret admirer:

Although we're not shown any other examples of Pran's paper-folding prowess, it's something that Pat remembers – he mentions origami as one of Pran's favorite hobbies when shouting out his love for Pran during the khan maak challenge at Ep.10 [1I4] 11.25. 💖

When Pat (anonymously) leaves khanom jeep dumplings for Pran to say thank you for the green tea (Ep.2 [1I4] 13.02), Pran's buddies (correctly) interpret this as an attempt at courtship:

The word jeep (จีบ) that Louis mentions at Ep.2 [2/4] 0.32 means pleated when describing these dumplings (and refers to the crimping of the shaomai skin). But khanom aside, jeep also means to court or to flirt, and this is why Louis also says "It's not just some food." (The significance of the dumplings to their Ep.7 courtship competition is explained more in detail here.)

Pat also drew a little heart on the note accompanying the gift, so his romantic intentions here are unmistakable. Underscoring the premise that homophobia is non-existent in the universe of Bad Buddy, Pran's friends also have no problem with the fact that it's clearly a guy hitting on Pran (evidenced by Pat's use of the male particle krap/ครับ).

When Pran's friends tease him with Pat's second anonymous gift of khanom thong yod (Ep.2 [2/4] 4.00), the confectionery actually has a long and interesting backstory (explained here):

When PatPran's rooftop rendezvous (Ep.2 [2/4] 4.55) goes awry because neither was expecting their blind date to be their childhood "enemy", it was actually the first in a series of their encounters at the roof of Chana City Residences, that marked key stages in the progress of their relationship:

Their Ep.2 encounter here was a first (failed) romantic assignation;

At Ep.5 [4/4] 11.35 they have a do-over with the Epic Rooftop Kiss, but then Pran runs because he's not ready;

At Ep.7 [4/4] 1.40 Pran pleads with Pat to take on the role of Riam in the Architecture play, but it turns yet again into a battle of wills – and this is actually part of their own version of the dating phase in their relationship, except that they use competition instead of conventional courtship to draw closer to each other;

At Ep.8 [2/4] 3.10, with PatPran a newly-confirmed couple, they have a private romantic dinner where they learn more about each other's values and norms (e.g., personal boundaries);

At Ep.10 [4/4] 12.42 they support each other as united partners, confronting challenges to their now-established couplehood.

When the subtitles tell us that Pran calls Pat "Mr. Dumpling" on the rooftop, the words that he uses in Thai are actually a bit more barbed – it sounds like Pran is actually addressing him as "P'Num Jeep"(พี่หนุ่มจีบ), which translates to something more like "Big Bro Casanova" or "Mr. Man of Seduction" (explained in the khanom thong yod write-up referred to above, also linked here). This is of course more sarcastic than affectionate, since Pat's romantic efforts to woo his fantasy "Green Tea Girl" had come to naught.

When Pat and Pran hash things out in Pat's apartment at Ep.2 [3I4] 8.36, at first it looks like they're just arguing about each other not controlling their troublemaking friends (and not without reason too).

But then it escalates – to the point where Pran says with outrage "You said you were doing fine without me!" Remembering that they were close friends (behind the scenes) up until the time Pran was sent away, I think this shows that they're not just complaining about each other's friend groups behaving badly here. For Pran at least, there's also an element of emotional hurt at having been replaced so easily by Korn, Mo and Chang ("crap" friends, he calls them) in Pat's life.

Remembering too that their relationship always had (and will continue to have) a competitive, battling dynamic built-in (evident even in Ep.12), it's possible to read their argument here also as PatPran falling back into their comfort zone (especially when they start accusing each other: "You're trying to start a fight"/"Yes. So? YOU'RE starting a fight"). On some level that must also have been familiar and comforting to them, as odd as it may seem.

However, when Pran says "Things don't end well whenever I'm close to you" at Ep.2 [3I4] 9.01, it's a verbatim repeat of what he said at Ep.1 [4/4] 3.28. And in Ep.1 – less than a minute after he says this – he and Pat get caught for fighting by Ajahn Pichai. In Ep.2 – less than a minute after he says the same thing – Pat's dad comes knocking at the door.

Both times, Pran's mantra seems to get some strange cosmic confirmation, and it must have merely reinforced his belief that closeness to Pat would only end (again) in heartbreak. We are also shown the first time Pran learnt this painful lesson, in Pat's flashback at Ep.2 [4/4] 5.36, when the boys collaborated on the high school Christmas Song Contest and Pran got sent away as a result.

In Ep.1 we saw Pran allowing himself a bit of new-found happiness at having Pat, his longtime crush, back in his life again. So when Ming turns up unannounced and almost catches Pran in Pat's room, this mantra of "Things don't end well whenever I'm close to you" must have been ringing in his head again, especially with Ming's extended litany of complaints about him and his family expounded right above his hiding place under the bed – another very real (and almost in-your-face) reminder of how closeness to Pat had always ended badly for him.

This is why he has an immediate change of heart and announces his decision to move out once Ming is safely out of earshot; it seems Pran truly did believe that allowing himself to get close to Pat would only end in heartbreak. He was probably also beating himself up for all his little micro-splashes of happiness as he drew closer to Pat in Ep.1. 😢

In Pat's flashback of the Christmas Song contest, we see the boys exchanging looks across the classroom when Kruu Sunee assigns Pran to be the vocalist for the band (Ep.2 [4/4] 5.30).

The first time around watching this, I interpreted it as the frenemies' trepidation at having to work together, but now on the rewatch we know better – the two good friends behind the scenes finally had an excuse to work closely together, and spend time together, publicly.

So the look the two rascals share is more one of smug, conspiratorial secrecy, not apprehension. But it all ends badly though – when Dissaya got wind of their collaboration, Pran was uprooted and sent away. At Ep.2 [4/4] 7.51 Pat's friends blame him for Pran's transfer and call him Pran's jinx.

This is partly why Pat strives so hard to mend things with Pran later and explains the exchange at the LogTech lift lobby in Ep.3 [2/4] – "I'm your lucky charm"/"More like a jinx". At Ep.2 [4/4] 8.41 (as Pat relives the pain of Pran's transfer) and 9.56 (when he says "I owe you for saving Pa's life. And that time when you got transferred because of me") we see he does blame himself for Pran being sent away.

But when Pat surprises Pran at his condo viewing and offers to move out instead, Pran immediately wrenches control of the narrative at Ep.2 [4/4] 10.16, and shifts the situation into more of their usual dynamic – clashing and one-upmanship – by refusing Pat's offer. In doing this, he blocks Pat from evening out the score between them and keeps the conflict going – which is also his way of keeping them entrenched in their familiar refuge of battling each other. This leads to some physical rough-housing, and then at some point they both suddenly sense the stirrings of impulses that are more than just platonic (Ep.2 [4/4] 11.28):

Pran of course recognizes this moment for what it is, while Pat remains oblivious to the meaning of it all (and will continue to be so, until his senses are awakened in Ep.5).

But I think this scene also foreshadows the portrayal of their impending romantic relationship, in that it will always contain some element of competitive push-and-pull (e.g., when their version of courtship is to compete against each other in Ep.7 – explained here – and when they have a drinking game in the epilogue of Ep.12).

This framing of romance within a context of wrestling and wrangling is further highlighted when Pat barges into the lift afterwards at Ep.2 [4/4] 13.29 – we know there's going to be more rambunctious scuffling afoot as they continue their argument, but the amorous undercurrents are also unmissable since this sequence is clearly a send-up of another well-worn BL trope – the elevator tryst (that gets a callback later in the LogTech lift as well).

The episode then closes with the Archi-Engine fracas in front of the bus-stop – without the peacemaking presence of Pat and Pran, it was bound to happen:

But with the brawl coming so soon after Pat and Pran's squabbling at the condo viewing, it distracts the viewer (or at least it distracted me the first time around) from fully registering the romantic tensions underpinning all of Pat and Pran's own skirmishes in the second half of Ep.2 (their awkward on-bed clinch at Ep.2 [4/4] 11.28 notwithstanding). 👍

[Afterpost Edit: for notes on the rewatch of other episodes, see these links here: Ep.1, Ep.3, Ep.4 and Ep.5. 😊]

#bad buddy #bad buddy analysis #patpran #telomeke #bad buddy episode 2

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thelastbraincellofthehive · 1 year

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V3 was finished, and I'm still not ok you guys : D

One would think it would get less painful as time goes on, but nope, still hurts like a bitch. Well done RT, well done.

I gotta start by saying the I may fall fighting sequence will forever have a special place in my heart. The moment we finally understood the lyrics to that song, the moment we finally saw Velvet fighting to her full potential, the callback to the trailers and everything Monty put into this show, the moment Weiss finally was able to summon her knight. It was perfection.

Also, the part were the music drops as Velvet calls on Penny's backpack will always make me tear up, and I always enjoy seeing the same in reactors lol we're a cruel fandom, but it's just because we understand.

Another also; the fact that Weiss just ran straight to put herself in between Velvet and the palladin even before she knew she could summon or that the knight would show up. That's growth. I felt so proud of her, she has come so far<3

Cinder saying 'not a foot out of place' and then Amber discovers them for Emmerald's foot raisikg diste, can't believe I hadn't caught that lol. I wonder how much things would've been different if that didn't happen, because it looks like the rest of plans were already in motion by the point Cinder went after the Powers...

Could've we have Pyrrha still if Cinder had killed Amber in time? I feel horrible for asking, but hey, it's Pyrrha.

I gotta say that as much as Adam is garbage and I always remember him with this picture:

His design is so fucking cool... I've always loved his hair honestly, and the Rose design in his jacket? Amazing. Why do cool designs happen to awful people?

That pink apron saying 'Please do nothing to the cook' made me headcanon Ren as a Birromantic Ace, I still think the headcanon makes sense so I hold it lol. Also, I still want one of those aprons, my girl is Ace and she loves pink lol.

I always thought it was so cool and sad how so many storylines got interrupted or just never started thanks to the fall of Beacon. We never got to know what Penny's plan to stay at Beacon was. We didn't get to see the timelime where Yang ran away with Qrow to meet Raven. Arkos was barely trying to raise from the ground when it was shot down. So many little plans that can't be anymore, because that's life.

I know it's a very serious moment but I can't watch the scene when Yang calls Blake to make sure they're ok and ask for Ruby, and not remember when Arryn and Barbara said that Blake and Yang are probably always on a facecall with eachother lol.

Tell me I wasn't the only one who thought Port and Oobleck were gonna die when they told the kids to leave the coliseum? I remember being so sad when Port said 'one final match! Place your bets!' and I couldn't believe it when they appeared again during chapter 12 lol. I'm happy they didn't die, they're so great <3

Speaking of 12. I still can't believe they released that chapter on fucking February 14th. That was just cruel...

Yes I'm avoiding talking about Penny... I just can't, sorry.

Kevin the Wyvern grim is a friend <3 I would totally buy a plush of him if shipping to México wasn't so ridiculously expensive </3

Honestly why aren't there more grimm plushies? They're like Pokémon but Black and white and more deadly!

I.. I gotta go ahead and say It... I really, reaaaaally don't like Taiyang... Sorry, but I have never liked him, don't think I ever will... Never considered him a great or cool dad, kinda feel he only gets that rep because of Burnie. Burnie's cool, but Tai's not for me*shrugs*

Qrow saying that 'sometimes bad things just happen, you just have to move on' after knowing about her semblance is painful. This volume is just full of pain.

THE FUCKIN' MAPLE LEAF!!!!!

Cold being a song about Monty that also perfecto fits Pyrrha it's so heartbreakingly poetic to me... THE world is cruel, but sometimes there's beauty in that cruelness.

As a side note is it weird to get a tattoo of someones signature? I've always wanted to get something to honor RWBY and Monty and his signature is so cool...other ideas include a couple lyrics from Indomitable or Penny's symbol

Emmerald's face when she says 'it's almost sad' was the moment we knew she would get her redemtion. Girl's just alone and needing friends, I'm happy to know where She's gonna end later. I still think we must protect Emmerald.

Seriously I didn't remember how much I missed seeing Pyrrha fight until I saw her again. I wish we could see her again!

Speaking of things I wish we could see again: Roman and Neo fighting together was so great, it's a shame we only got one fight with them. Also, I miss how much Neo used to loved causing mayhem with Roman. Neo in the newer volumes always looks so angry and sad, she literally lost the one thing that gave her happiness </3

Seriously why do Robots eyes' always turn red when they go evil? Lol.

Yang talking to Ruby on that last scene Is the literal embodiment of "I don't care, I say caringly, while I care a lot."

Blake why you must hurt your girl so much? And we're now into the separated Bees period! I loved this period of the fandom lol.

Ironwood against the beowolf is honestly pretty epic. Good job RT, you really sold us the character there.

Remember when we saw the Arkos kiss, and that was the moment we knew Pyrrha was not making it out alive? Yeah, that sucked... And still does.

Divide Is probably my favorite ending credits song to this day. It's epic, it's dark, I love how we got all that insight towards Salem just after meeting her. Definitely a fave. Also, Salem's reveal scene always gives me chills<3 Another favorite part to watch reactors get to.

The call back to players and pieces with Ruby running up the wall<3 I was so happy for a second, then it stopped. I haven't been happyever since (?

And so it starts the very long list of things that Ruby needs years of therapy for. I hope that girl gets the happiest, more perfect life after all this is over. Protect the RuBean. And honestly just give everyone therapy.In a world where negative emotions are literally a magnet for death you would think people would try to take better care of their mental health.

Oh yeah, also. People who get mad at Jaune for getting distracted at the vault:. Dont talk to me. Jaune doesn't deserve that hate, I know I wouldn't fared any better, cut him some slack on this.

And there's that... Fuck this volume hurts. Great thing we got chibi to help with the pain a little lol.

Anyways, thanks for the talk guys! Next one is v4! Spoiler Bout that: I was so traumatized by 3 that I 100% thought Ren or Nora were dying on that finale. Thanks for that CRWBY.

#rwby #pre volume9 rewatch #just salem rambling around #long post #but seriously the velvet scene lives rent free in my head #it was awesome

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sonicskullsalt · 1 year

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Fav things about TLOVM s2e5

(possible spoilers because I watched the campaign and might reference it)

Baby Keyleth / Little Flower 🥺

You look more mature.

I can't believe they kept the "outhouse convo"! Could have made it happen in any other kind of circumstance, but no, they stayed true to canon 🤣 Of course, they did.

Since we're here, Craven Edge's exasperated sigh. Cravy didn't have the easiest time with Grog

It's what I've been training for my whole life ... everything they do to set up Scanlan's storyline is just ouch - so good job, I guess

Vax can't take off the armour? What?

I will restring your lute with your own pubic hairs!

They got Aimee Carrero to voice an unnamed Ashari girl, and they make her yell 'Mother!' of all things 😄 I'll refer to her character as Nancy from now on.

The fact that Robbie Daymond can sound like that...

You know what you fight fire with? - Fire? - Me. (motorboats)

We can certainly try

Shit, I'm very flammable! (In the distance, you can hear Victor go: Don't blow yourself uuuup!)

Obviously, all of Keyleth's fire trial. The optics, the music, the new outfit, Marisha's acting. It might be my favourite part of the whole season ❤️‍🔥

The callback to 'I think you'll be needing this'

Kimallura kiss

#critical role #tlovm #tlovm s2e5 #vox machina #my post

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antonia-gergely · 3 months

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Kristin Hayter

Literary Art truly is art.

although that's her real name, ironically Kristin Hayter was raised to be a devout catholic. she studied interdisciplinary creative arts at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts. she earned an MFA in Literary Art from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island in 2016. since then she created the persona Lingua Ignota between 2017 and 2021, releasing what she called 'survivor anthems', in an attempt to process abuse using religious imagery and music, often subverting the patriarchal messages embedded within.

t.w. if you do listen to her work as Lingua Ignota, there is mention of s/a, abuse, violence etc.

the below excerpts are from Vice

https://www.vice.com/en/article/kzqzwn/lingua-ignotas-liturgical-noise-is-a-celebration-of-obliteration?callback=in&code=MTNKYTIYMDETMJQ5ZC0ZZWYYLWI4OGITMGY0YJHKMJAXNMY4&state=bd7f92445dcd4b7485e2a217dea600a4

'Raised Catholic, Hayter's religion distinguished her from others and continues to inflect her musical practice. "I was in parochial school until sixth grade. My Catholic upbringing is huge in all the stuff I do, as far as the way liturgical music has influenced me, and the rituals of the church and even that homogeny and having to conform to a very specific mold of existing, of moral existence, of appearance."'

after finding a nevermind casette left behind by her cousin while in high school, hayter became enamoured with the vocal style of kurt cobain and enrolled for classical singing lessons.

'"When we sing classically, we try to create seamlessness between the registers—between the head and the chest voice. What I try to do is play with the spot between them where my voice breaks, and I write most of my songs to have my break be central, so that I move between the registers quickly and it creates this destabilizing sense ... that the voice is in this state of constant flux, dynamic and imperfect, alchemizing itself." In other words, although her music has beautiful passages, it also travels into abject spaces. "There will be half a phrase of straight classical singing and then it will drop down to a weird death growl or ... Bulgarian-like belting and then extended technique, a rush of air. I'm very intentionally manipulating my voice to make these kind of gross glides and transitions between these two registers."' the voice as a tool for art, music as a tool for art has been widely explored, although this strikes me as some uncharted realm of working.

'At Brown, she completed a thesis called Burn Everything Trust No One Kill Yourself, a 10,000-page manuscript composed of appropriated material—"lyrics, message board posts, and liner notes from subgenres of extreme music that mythologize misogyny, […] [and] court papers, audio recordings, and police filings from [her] own experiences of violence"—assembled using a Markov chain. Prior to this, she attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where she studied across disciplines. "I ended up in visual/critical studies and art history. I was really into research and having a research-based practice, and then I got into writing, and then I got into the sonification of the voices I had written."' I read that the thesis was made up of 10,000 pages as it approximated her weight at the time.

'"Not ascribing to traditional models of healing such as gentleness and self-love has allowed me to be very raw and aggressive in my recounting of abuse through art. I think that's the part of it that maybe touches other survivors: mine isn't the way we're accustomed to addressing such things. I was reading several books about surviving abuse and they're basically like, 'be nice and get a hobby.' I feel like this enforces patriarchal models of civilized femininity"'

Her persona Lingua Ignota proved unsustainable, as Hayter found it harmful to dwell and rehatch her past experiences. Now going by Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter, her newest release, Saved! is a fascinating blend between literary art, musical experimentation and the avant garde. She takes existing music, hymns, religious songs and motifs and reworks them, the songs have a disconcerting crunch and occasional disconnection and imitation of tape warps. Reminds me of art appropriation and the dada and detournement movements in their reworking and recontextualising of existing imagery and ideas (usually to subvert)

The glossolalia (speaking in tongues) within the album is derived from the practice of Pentecostal and charismatic Christians. i find her work a fascinating blur between performance art and a genuine search for some salvation, which hayter mentioned she felt. I'm not religious, I have nothing much to do with Hayter's music at all, but it resonates with me as a hybrid of performance, fantasy and a desperate desire for faith which I have never seen before.

even her poster contains a persona, her artwork is central to her music. it's all intertwined and lines between writing, performance and visual art are blurred.

the below excerpts are from Kerrang (a more recent interview)

https://www.kerrang.com/reverend-kristin-michael-hayter-kerrang-cover-story-interview-lingua-ignota-new-album-saved

'“I became really interested in the idea of religious transcendence and using that analogy for personal healing ... In Pentecostalism, for instance, you can speak in tongues, you can be healed, and you can utilise extreme, unorthodox methods to develop a relationship between yourself and God. So, I wanted to see if I could develop a direct line between myself and God. I was earnestly attempting to be saved. And to get saved ... I don’t know if it worked or not. I’m not sure." In researching the project, she’d attend a lot of worship services, witnessing people experience “true joy” in tandem with the uglier side of “something really hateful and othering”.'

To prepare her mind and body for the performances, she carefully fasted and engaged in sleep deprivation techniques.

“I wanted to create as raw an emotional state as I could,” she explains of the process. “What you hear on the record is from a 30-minute session when I had not really eaten or slept"'

SIDE NOTE, in her work as Lingua Ignota, Hayter's song 'Do You Doubt Me Traitor?' repeats the phrase 'I don't eat, I don't sleep' harking back to her struggles with anorexia and insomnia in the wake of her abuse. The line reminded me of Marina Abramovic's performance The House with the Ocean View. That calls to mind a thesis I read, available in the college library, about starvation and the ethics implied between using potential disordered eating as a means of spiritual healing, performance art or political activism. Fascinating read, I do recommend. Bit of a pointless tangent but a link nonetheless.

'“I honestly don’t know what I believe. I think my work is trying very hard to engage with that question in a sort of desperate and insane way.” SAVED! may not be literal. But its purpose absolutely is. “In a lot of ways, I wanted to show healing,” Kristin explains of her intentions. “I don’t even like the word ‘healing’ because it’s so pop-psychology ... But I wanted to show the kind of ugly, complicated process that it can be. So, I think that finding this analogy of getting saved and using that to talk about my own experiences is kind of the intellectual fortress that I’ve built to protect myself through that. The attempts to find God have been in absolute earnest. I really was trying. I think out of desperation, to find something to believe in.”

Hayter's work is a testament to the wide ranging and indefinable nature of art, and how it can take many forms. i might do a masters in literary art /hj

Her music is an escape from grounded, faithless reality - someone described it as the sound of praying in a burning church - but it doesn't push faith or religion on anyone. As Hayter said, she herself doesn't know what she believes. It's definitely evocative, sometimes disquieting, and it's been a long time since a musical project has enticed me this much.

#art research #avant garde #experimental music #art theory #religion #faith

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tyrianluda · 5 months

Text

So I watched Emesis Blue for the first time today and I wrote my reaction

Here's my reaction

Note: SPOILERS (Obviously), Swearing and mild Simping, Also this is a long post since I had a lot to write

Also the film itself has a lot of blood and gore, as well as flashing lights. Please take this into consideration if you plan on watching it.

(I started writing 23 minutes in)

Love the colors and the use of sound

Having soft and pleasant music for it's most fucked up scenes is an amazing choice

Soldier is still a dumbass but I'm perfectly fine with it

I really like the voice acting, even if you can tell that they are impersonations

Oh god

Scout what the fuck happened to you

(right after) Oh that's what happened to you

Engineer is scaring me rn, his voice

"You look lost, boy" Jesus, that's getting me to shiver in my boots

Scout's voice acting specifically is amazing personally, the screaming feels so painful

"Before you get us killed" 5 seconds before disaster

The camera angles are amazing

The anticipation on some scenes are absolutely chilling

Engineer what the fuck

I should stop flinching when something happens but damn

WHAT THE FUCK WHAT'S WITH THE PIANO

GET HIS ASS MEDIC

OOOOOHHHH THE MUSIC CHANGE

The impact of the hits are so visceral I love it

Medic saying "Nien!" when Engie is about to kill him hits hard

(when Medic is brought back to life) HOLY FUCK HE RESPAWNED

THE FACIAL EXPRESSIONS ARE FUCKING ME UP I SEE THE RAGE AND REVENGE ON MEDIC'S FACE

DAMN

The sigh of relief from medic OMG

It sounds like the voice actors are right next to me when they are breathing heavy or groaning or panting like Bro, I need to be scared, not horny

The argument between spy and soldier is agony bro, it feels like a divorced couple;

"You're gonna shoot me?"

"We're done!"

SNIPER??????

HOLY FUCK IT'S SNIPER

SOLDIER YOU DUMBASS NO

AYO HE (soldier) MADE IT???

SOLDIER YOU DUMBASS I LOVE YOU

"let him bleed" BRUH

soldier? What the fuck is up with you?

(right after) oh

SPY OH GOD

"SOLDIER, DON'T LEAVE ME" *leaves*

the suspense between spy and the masked man oh god

The violence conveyed through the shadow on the wall is amazing. I know this has already been done before but still

The symbolism of the U.S. flag burning behind him is not lost on me

WAR FLASHBACK??? Possible inference of Soldier having PTSD here

DEMOMAN MY GUY :D

THE REPEATED DIALOGUE FROM EARLIER OH DAMN

woah

THE GORE DAMN

the cracking sound effect when soldier picks up the hands is so crunchy

What the

"Goodbye" (on the wall) AH FUCK

The music still pleasant despite the scene being gruesome

I just like the sounds man

DEMOMAN IS AWESOME HERE I LOVE YOU

OH god MEDIC, GET CONTACTS MY GOD

YOOO

I LOVE THE FACIAL EXPRESSIONS FROM HIM (medic) MY GOD

HELIX slander

THE FEAR IN SOLDIER'S EYES UNDER THE HELMET

FUCK OH NO

DEMOMAN AND SOLDIER NO

Medic holy fuck you're the GOAT

the lights buzzing when the... nevermind they turned off

God I feel bad for everyone here jesus christ

HIS LAUGHING IS USUALLY SO UNHINGED AND FUN BUT HERE, IT'S JUST DEPRESSING

"A new car. My own personal assistant. I think I've earned it." JESUS THE CASUAL TALKING DESPITE WHAT HE'S DOING

"I saw the Devil in their eyes" demoman having an line that goes hard

Demoman, my beloved

I forgot to say the writing is amazing

The Shining reference is great right now

Engineer's laugh ..just his laugh...I don't know if I'm scared here or simping

Engineer talking about the respawn is so chilling "It's a purgatory"

I love the aesthetic of this film

"Y/N" I'm getting fanfiction flashbacks

Jules, I saw you for like 5 minutes and I already despise you

"Tata :D" SHUT YOUR ASS UP

The screaming still unnerves me

The callback with the elevator with blood from the start of the film. Also it might be another Shining reference since that was in the movie too

Spy unmasked is kinda attractive ngl, not a great time to say it but still

The baseball possibly being symbolism for Scout and having it be seen when Medic is in emotional distress. I just love symbolism, my bad

The eye contact from Medic looking at the camera like

Medic having delusions from earlier scenes and interactions and having it unnerve him further

WAIT SO THOSE AREN'T DELUSIONS???

WAIT I THINK HE'S STUCK IN A TIME LOOP

the fucked up mercenary designs are amazing and terrifying

Possible religious symbolism with the cross

CLONES. IT'S CLONES

Soldier seeing Demoman again but he's... putting his head against Demo's chest UGH I'M FEELING PAIN AND AGONY AND SADNESS

Soldier unclipping the piece of the grenade OH GOD

MEDIC IS WEARING THE CROSS. I FUCKING KNEW THERE WAS SYMBOLISM

he looks kinda hot with the cross on him. I mean who said that.

I keep repeating this but whatever, I love the voice acting

THE SOUND WHEN MEDIC IS USING THE AXE IS ODDLY SATISFYING WHAT THE HELL

Jules being a war criminal made sense actually given mercenaries IRL are already legally dubious

Spy is speaking facts rn

YESSSS JULES IS DEAD

Spy's face looking burnt and fucked up is oddly aesthetically pleasing

OH GOD THEY'RE DOING RUSSIAN ROULETTE

SOLDIER SAYING 'YOU'RE GONNA MAKE IT" RIGHT BEFORE MEDIC DIES IS PAINFUL

MEDIC

SPY YOU MOTHERFUCKER

I thought the roulette scene would be more drawn out and slow to make the outcome more painful but having it be so quick works well still

"A true enemy has yet to reveal themself."

DEMO, WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT IMPLY

Soldier being in the place where they dump the corpses and having it resemble the traditional perception of hell, OH GOD

THE SCREAMING IS STILL UNNERVING

I have a feeling the film is doing the "when you stare at the abyss for too long, it stares back at you", when Soldier is looking at him and Scout from earlier

I THINK SOLDIER IS HAVING DELUSIONS TOO LIKE MEDIC

SOLDIER IN CASUAL AND NORMAL CLOTHING WITHOUT THE HELMET FEELS SO WRONG

GOD I FEEL SAD

THE MANN BROTHERS

"I need you to sit down." BRUH HE'S ALREADY SITTING ON A WHEELCHAIR

THE ARGUMENT BETWEEN THE BROTHERS BEING PETTY AS FUCK IS FUNNY

(I PAUSED TO MAKE A GUESS. SOLDIER IS NOT GONNA FOLLOW THE SCRIPT)

(I FUCKING KNEW IT)

SOLDIER LOOKING AT THE MASKED SPY WITH SUCH ANGER WHEN SPEAKING INACCURATELY ABOUT JULES'S DEATH. COMPLETELY UNDERSTANDABLE

"Did you kill him?" I'M ROOTING FOR THE OLD MFS

(NEVERMIND WTF WAS I THINKING)

MEDIC YES

HE FUCKING SHOT SPY

DAMN MEDIC LOOKS GHASTLY

(I PAUSED AGAIN TO PUT ALL MY THOUGHTS IN ORDER)

MEDIC REALLY JUST SHOT A GUY AND LEFT THE FUNERAL HOME WITHOUT A WORD

MEDIC'S FUCKING THOUSAND YARD STARE

"I OUTLIVED YOU BROTHER >:D" *dies right after*

THE COMEDY AND HORROR IN THIS FILM IS AMAZING

ENGINEER'S VOICE IS ASMR RN AND I DON'T KNOW WHY

THE PIANO CHORDS FROM EARLIER YOOO

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY A SHINING REFERENCE

ENGINEER, YOU SON OF A BITCH

also I never said this yet but the cinematography is spectacular

The silence is unnerving me rn

JULES????

(At the scene where it turns out Medic died driving the ambulance)

...holy fuck

CHAD PAYNE, I LOVE YOUR WRITING AND DIRECTION AND VOICE ACTING AND-

#mostly untagged because it's kinda just insane ramblings #there's some analysis somewhere but there's also some simping #so it's a mixed bag #love the film so much #the horror elements were genuinely impactful in the best ways

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bilgisticallykosher · 2 years

Text

Oh, look, cool, an anniversary video- wait where's Virgil and Logan oh my gosh is this an episode?! I can't believe you've done this on the Unus Annus deathiversarry.

Oh my gosh, is this the season finale?! I thought it was a quick birthday thing. Vibrates. NEW SERIES?!

Five years? No omfg, even joking about that all a dream thing, I hate that trope. YEAH THIS IS SEASON FINALE IT HAS TO BE! Haha, murder, arson, and jaywalking. Went to the mall. "One of those self-indulgent interviews" like you're about to do, I know your humor, sir. Oh hey outfit change. Skull shirt and brown leather jacket. Oh Logan's right there?! Listen, nine and a half hours feels like a lot-

That cutaway, perfect. Awww, nicknames. Microsoft Nerd, Pop Star. Ha ha I'm sure this will be fine and I Won't Be Sad At All. Eating the chalk- they're all drinking- oh no bad juice, okay. Okay. Oh no, Roman sobbing... nope? Just? Dramatic? Haha five years of me. Hm. Virgil somehow sounds different.

Bananaconda. He gets his music. Listen, Janus nobody said they were perfect discussions. "Fun *discomfort* additions" Awww oh no he's ripping into all of them. AHAHAHA INFINITESIMAL. Oh no he's not going to do that compliment thing to him is he. Okay, Roman in the clear, actually legit compliment??? That fother mucker! What happened between- NOBODY TALK REMUS'S ASS IS ON SCREEN oh hey his symbol- His symbol is on his butt. I'm. I need a minute.

Sit different! He asked knowing he'd regret it- Anti spoiler spray. KNIFE! Oh it is an insult? Different nicknames every time! Is Logan's wine getting bigger? Some salt from Logan. What did he do in Thomas's mind omg. Mind palace. REMUS AND I YES HELLO CANON INTERACTION!!!! No omfg DDR pads. Dukey and Pissy. Hey, that's a healthy way to interact for them.

Virgil why you lying. !!! Puppet Virgil. Who broke this vase?! Oh oh no, callback. Oh it's Forbidden Fruit. I do not get that reference. Oh the 12 days. Teehee Janus and Lies. I fixed that in the latest TA chapter. YES IT CAME FROM REMUS!!!! Newest- oh! Nico. Of course. Scare-amore and the Prinxiety shippers go nuts. Space marriage. Hmmm. Patton has reservations about Nico. HOLY CRAP VETAL MIKING THE SOUND I MADE!!!! Oh yeah, Valerie flirting. It wasn't that bad, but uh. I mean, it wasn't the cringiest episode, y'know.

Listen if cringe culture wasn't dead- LOGAN that glass is totally growing. Hmmm. Patton. SACAGAWEA IS IN HIS HAT. "No use your brains-" SHE'S IN HIS HAT! Oh gosh it's a wedding cake. Pfftffftfff. Stock image. Oh wow, look at Logan. Oh dear, Patton here it comes- no we love falsehood. Chugging that bottle. "A lack of attention to detail-" that's not- oh okay. He hasn't been Patton the whole time has he?

You have grown, sweetie! Aw Virgil appreciation hours. "They think they feel that way" Logan you're the wine mom. Awww Roman still sad and oh no. Remus is a great uncle out of jail. Janus is wine aunt confirmed!!! What do you think is next?

Oh. Oh no, Roman's putting a lot of stock in Nico I think I saw a theory about that a while back... Patton's so uncertain. Virgil's accurate. I'm sure he will hate it.

"To better receive acceptance and praise" He's lying- ah there we go. Hey they're not green! Happy Anniversary!!! Cystic surgeries.

No, don't show Logan at the beginning omfg please. That was horrifying the double finger guns. "There's no knowing where we're growing" Willy Wonka?

New series yes preview this- woah art. Nice poem. Hmmm that's definitely Thomas, though- What woah!!!!! Roman DnD?! Nope not literally-

Huh, I thought there'd be an orange side thing- oh. Wait. Oh I love hate this music. NO!!! THAT'S MY JOKE, THAT BASTARD! Do you know how often I reference Orange Side with A Literal Orange?!?!?! Ugh. But also okay that didn't actually feel season finale-ish. So. One more episode?

#sanders sides #new video reaction #remus sanders #logan sanders #roman sanders #virgil sanders #patton sanders #character!thomas #janus sanders #ts spoilers

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ecoamerica · 24 days

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youtube

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!

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ships-bynoa · 3 years

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some thoughts on episode 6 of y or of yorick and 355 adventures:

how pretty was that a cappella of karma police, and apt too.

you gotta give a little to get a little as agent 355 found out in "weird al is dead" and in a surprisingly (to her) hurtful way. yorick wants in, he has from the beginning with his 21 questions, it's who he is. unlike 355 he's wide open. but she's been keeping him at a distance because she believes it's how she can best do her job. it's clear in this episode how much yorick has come to care about 355 because while she's trained at hiding her feelings, he wears his on his face and sleeve, but also, he uses his words. "i' wish you'd talked to me about this." and this after he found out she lied to him.

her defense for not telling him about jen not authorizing their plans was that he asked too many questions, which felt like a callback to the previous episode when she fought agent 525. She said, "we're not supposed to ask questions." I loved that conversation between the agents because it gave us a peek into how they've functioned in the world while not asking questions. She's leaning hard into her training because the world and her world along with it has been flipped upside down. but her time with yorick is going to show her there's another set of skills she'll need to survive, skills he already possesses. vulnerability. she's locked hers away to protect herself from the deep pain that is ever so evident in her (because ashley is fucking killing it).

the first time she was traumatized probably would've been as a child (according to the dream where she and her child version looks on at a wrecked car with the lights blinking). Then as 525 suggests, she was picked up from foster care or juvie and recruited to this secret organization. now the thing that "saved" her is gone. with the end of the world as they know it, her world is being flipped for the second time which is triggering and that's why these dreams are happening.

that paired with yorick pushing is going to crack 355 wide open and i can't wait to see what's inside.

agent 525 spent weeks at their recruiter fran's safe house because she didn't know what else to do. she doesn't know how to live a normal life as a normal person, she's spiraling outward, whereas, agent 355's survival mode was to lean into what she knows; assignment, assuming a role and completing the mission. she's spiraling inward.

that's why i love that yorick forced her to slow down and feel the music. he made her stop a minute and breathe, and appreciate what was around them because she is always planning ahead. in fact, she lives in her head. her life has been made up of all the things she doesn't say and doesn't want to feel. i find her character so fascinating and satisfying at the same time.

when that tear rolled down her face *grabs heart* she is reliving her trauma every time she goes to sleep, and she's nearing on empty because she won't accept help.

#y the last man #y: the last man #noa posts #agent 355 #yorick brown #ashley romans #ben schnetzer

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reynie-muldoons · 3 years

Text

'The Dance of the Celestial Orb' liveblog!

for real this time lmfao

book and show spoilers below

I'm ✨nervous✨ please let our children be okay

0:10 this Sticky arc hurts me so kuch

1:35 this music is BUMPIN

2:22 I just wanna know how she got under there without the dude seeing her

2:47 "all systems go" for the Improvement.... yikes 😬😬😬

2:55 she didn't wait even 5 seconds after they left, the door was still closing when she popped up 😂 can you imagine if one of them doubled back right at that moment

3:18 they look like the dudes from that veggietales movie, I think it was Esther- the island of perpetual tickling?? Anyone??? 😂😂😂

4:00 Kate vented.......

4:51 "not a rat" yeah no shit

5:07 if not for the suspense, I would be jamming out lmaooo

6:10 Mr. Benedict is looking at the shoreline, is he about to watch Kate dive in???? Because I mean that's where she's gotta be going

6:20 "memory challenges"? Is Rhonda talking about Milligan's amnesia, or has short term memory been affected as well??

6:29 .....thank you for answering so efficiently 😂

6:42 "I buy it. I completely.... buy it." RHONDA THAT'S NOT HELPFUL AHSKSHDJKD

6:56 can you imagine seeing your friend go down in a sub then hours later seeing the sub float up in fucking PIECES

7:06 KATE! KATE! KATE! KATE!

7:06 please let it be reunion time

7:25 oh hello that's a drop

7:38 *to the tune of Bezos I* come on Katie u can do it pave the way put ur back into it

7:51 she craves that mineral

8:06 Sticky, my child

8:20 oh my gosh they went out and LOOKED FOR HER I care them 😭😭😭

8:23 SHE KNEW HIS DREAM SHE KNEW HIS DREAM TELEPATH TELEPATH TELEPATH

8:34 STICKY STOPPPP

8:40 "jumping to conclusions is a failure of character" wow that really is something Curtain would say

8:52 angry Reynie. He is in rare form

8:54 "and you helped put her there!" OOOOOOOH I SCREAMED

9:03 "I shouldn't have yelled" okay but you kinda should have Sticky needs a wake up call

9:06 "dont apologize. I like this side of you." IS THIS THE START OF REYNIE AND CONSTANCE HAVING THE BEST SIBLING RELATIONSHIP

9:22 "if you really cared about me, you'd want me to be happy instead of standing there telling me who I am" oh Sticky my dude I am NOT digging the manipulation

9:36 Reynie pulling out the BFF card!!! Also Reynie digging in his feet because he knows he's right!!!! That's great setup for his arc as a strategist later

9:48 "I'm telling you, Kate's fine." Narrator: Kate was not, in fact, fine.

10:03 "they'll notice." Sticky has made one (1) good point.

10:11 oh dear god are they fingerprinting this bitch

10:19 all this equipment, has no one walked up to the cliff and looked down???

10:23 HAHAHAHA WAIT THEY ACTUALLY HAVEN'T

10:27 "we've been out here all night" that means Kate has been clinging to a cliff by her fingers and toes ALL NIGHT????

11:04 babe I know it's been a long night but maybe wait a second for them to actually leave before you climb back up

11:15 BUCKET NO

11:22 she has to go get it. There's no way someone wouldn't find that shit, it's in plain view

11:37 "WAS"???? WHY ARE WE SAYING WAS????? NO PAST TENSE HERE MILLIGAN'S FINE

11:43 "I only wish we could've known him better" NOOOPE NONONO WE'RE NOT DOING THIS

11:47 Rhonda back at it as the voice of reason!!!!!

11:59 "I have never met a more competent swimmer" throwback to "the baaAAAYYYY"

12:10 MR. BENEDICT'S FACE HAHAHAHA HOLD ON LET ME TAKE A PICTURE IM DYING

12:11 NUMBER TWO, NOT HELPING

12:14 RHONDA'S FACE HAHENDJDKDN

12:33 "we will go rescue him" because of COURSE he would

12:36 Rhonda is his best wingwoman omfg she's so consistent

12:54 MISS PERUMAL??????

12:56 MISS PERUMAL!!!!!!

13:00 SHE KNOWS HE'S RIGHT GAKSHDBDHEKSNND

13:09 "how hard can it be? It's an island!" PFFFFT

13:16 oh SQ baby boy please get out of there

13:25 "I certainly have my own suspicions" he said, looking at SQ why are you looking at SQ like that

13:31 SQ GET OUT OF THERE PLEASE IS2G

13:36 here we fuckin go

13:43 the captions have the f in forest capitalized like it's this special place

13:43 new hc that the Forest is a magical place like pixie hollow

13:57 TWO THINGS: 1. YES stand up for yourself baby!!!! 2. Shepard Quaid? Interesting! I don't think we ever got SQ's full name in the books, I hope TLS made that decision!

14:08 your "father hat"??? Oh my gosh shut the fuck up right there don't even continue

14:16 oh yeah real fuckin cute put on your "steward of this institution hat" and call that a good reason to be a shit person

14:43 "No." GOOD FOR HIMMMM GOOD JOB SQ

15:03 Kate's struggling right by the shore where a certain someone would be returning after a very hard swim, it would be a great time for a meeting wouldn't you think

15:09 KATE THE GREAT

15:11 "THE TRAPESE GODDESS" I WILL REFER TO HER AS NOTHING ELSE

15:26 sorry but that green screen of her falling was kinda funny

15:28 soooooo is someone, a very certain someone, gonna catch her...??????

15:36 YEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH

15:43 IS THIS IT????@?@?!?

15:46 awww poor baby girl you can tell how tired she is

15:46 just putting this out there- they look so good in frame together

15:46 the actor who plays Milligan is fucking huge in stature so I wasn't sure how that would go but it looks so good

16:00 THE WAY HE'S LOOKING AT HER WITH HIS HAND ON HER SHOULDER I CANT DO THISSSSS

16:20 "keep going." 😭😭😭😭😭

16:23 "you dont understand." Ohhhh I think he does

16:25 "I think I do." What did I tell you, he's got your back babygirl

16:45 I'm so glad she's talking this out, and with Milligan of all people

17:01 it makes so much sense for Kate to feel alone in that situation, and when Kate feels anything less than positive she goes and does something, whatever that something is.

17:05 "So.. I...." "fell off a cliff and nearly died." Thanks for putting things into perspective Milligan

17:05 Milligan is such a good dad stop

17:19 "most of the way" is an understatement LMFAO

17:29 I'm so glad we know the intimate details of Milligan's illustrious swimming abilities 😂 out of all the new things wfrom the show that one wasnt on my radar

17:52 leave it to Milligan to come up with an escape plan off of an island with no water vessel with four kids in tow

18:08 THEYRE SO CUTE 😭😭😭😭

18:08 lowkey I'm super surprised they didnt take this opportunity to have Milligan's arduous swim force his memories out and have the father daughter bonding time they deserve. I hope they give that moment ample time to flesh out.

18:13 BUCKET!!!

18:13 wait that shot is so artsy hold up lmfao

18:13 this looks like someone's photography final hahahaha

18:26 THE TENDER MUSIC STOPPPP 😭😭😭

18:41 Sticky is still on that jumping to conclusions bs he got from Curtain

18:44 WETHERALL'S WIDGET 😭

19:31 "Kate... she's in danger..." NO SHIT SHERLOCK

19:36 "and it's all because of me." Not just because of you but love to see you taking responsibility

19:52 once again I am asking WHY ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THIS IN THE OPEN

20:26 "Kate. She has changed." "Not really. She's always been who she is." "Her clothes. She changed clothes." PFFFT HAHHAHA they really took a moment of self-reflection and made it so much better

20:55 AYYYYY KATE'S DEPENDENCY ARC CONTINUESSSSS

21:35 yikes yikes yikes

22:16 I love that Mr. Benedict got closure in telling Miss Perumal that her words stuck with him

22:40 the way she just knows Reynie took the position of leader 😭😭

22:54 SHE WROTE HIM A LETTERRR

23:02 "Would it be possible to get this to him?" Ma'am what part of undercover spy don't you get

23:54 it's still really weird that we are now in a position where Reynie is the one who is not trusted and Sticky is the one in Curtain's favor

24:13 and here we see Curtain's thinly veiled anger issues shining through

24:21 "the little things matter. Every minor detail, it all matters!" CALLBACK TO MR. BENEDICT TELLING THE CHILDREN THAT THEY ALL MATTER

24:55 "I can tell with complete accuracy when a person is lying." first of all, no. second of all, I cannot wait for him to talk to Constance.

26:33 why is Mr. Benedict graphically explaining the children's potential trauma so funny to me

26:40 "you're catastrophizing." "Yes. I am. Quite severely. Thank you." WHY IS THIS FUNNY

26:58 MADGE!!!!

27:16 she's so prettyyyyy

27:33 GOOD JOB MADGE!!!!!

27:36 wait did she just take the LETTER??? she's delivering the LETTER?????

28:05 WHAT DOES "OKAY FINE" MEAN??? REYNIE??????

28:22 it's sad because it's true 🥺

28:24 "I miss my teacher from the orphanage" the best lies are the ones rooted in truth 🥺🥺🥺

28:48 roll credits

29:16 Reynie honey Orion's Belt isn't on the ceiling

29:29 the way he was so confident that he had it right 😑 Curtain Stop Being a Pretentious Fuck challenge

29:52 our babygirl is so smartttt

29:55 did Milligan plant his prints 😳 oh no OH NO

29:57 MARTINA???? WHATSUEJHDKD

29:57 is this the replacement for when they pin cheating on her????

30:03 THE KEY CARD!!!!

30:11 MADGEEEE

30:21 "one attacked me as a small child" honey you are a small child

30:24 "it did not win," she said, smiling menacingly

30:40 "so we dance again" WHY DID THE MUSIC REV UP WHEN SHE SAID THAT HAHAHAHA

31:01 ✨woodworking is a passion✨

31:58 "was it functional?" "Well I guess that depends on how you define functionality" RHONDA'S FACE IN THE BACKGROUND HAHAHAHA

32:10 OH HEY MARTINA

32:17 wait 🥺

32:22 that has to be SQ :)

32:28 hi sweet boy

32:34 please tell me they did that shot of the sandwich because Madge is about to take it

32:39 LMFAOOOOO

32:44 hi good girl!!! Enjoy your snackies

32:50 oh god oh no the LETTER

33:25 oh wow we're doing this NOW??

33:52 and here we see another example of Curtain's thinly veiled anger issues bubbling to the surface

34:10 hey what if you uhhh weren't such an asshole

34:33 that man's voice is buttery

34:52 REYNIE'S TRYING TO TELL SQ????

35:02 and they're talking about this right in front of the office door, WHY??

35:24 AND THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE OFFICE DOOR, WHY????

35:55 he's letting him go 🥺🥺🥺🥺

36:14 why does that look like a body bag

36:17 oh my gosh it definitely is a body bag, hey Martina

36:25 yep, that's about what I expected

36:36 "whoever did this to me, they're gonna pay" oh girl do I have some bad news for you

37:12 ahhhh, so Martina is the burnt out gifted kid who keeps going out of spite and sheer force of will

37:12 everything makes much more sense now

37:30 ohhhhh my gosh feelings time

37:44 "I think it's awesome." "Yeah. I know you do." THE SHIPPERS ARE THRIVING

37:54 THEY REALLY WANT TO MAKE THIS AS PAINFUL AS POSSIBLE HUH

38:10 "it's the least I can do" that's an understatement 😬

38:14 AAWWWWW SHKSHSLSBDK

38:20 "I don't know what I'd do without you, Wetherall" STOPPPPP

38:30 HEY BUD UH MAYBE CLOSE YOUR DOOR???

38:38 he's been writing letters to her every night and now he finally gets one back 😭😭

39:34 so Miss Perumal wrote this letter with the intention of it being sent to him, right- why did she write it like that?? 😂

39:34 they've gone to such lengths to communicate in code but the letter kind of undermines that- it was written in such a way that an onlooker would know Reynie was a spy but wouldn't know what he was doing or why. No wonder SQ was pissed

39:41 KATE!!

40:10 BREAKING NEWS: local bastard man treats everyone like shit

40:15 ohhhhh SQ bud please be careful

40:30 "always have time for my son," he said in a clipped voice that implied that he does not have time for his son

40:35 ohhh he's getting RIGHT INTO IT HUH

40:41 you mean to tell me he's never asked about Mr. Curtain's work?? Ever???? Somehow that doesn't seem right to me

40:57 hey uh what if you didn't talk down to SQ at every opportunity

41:02 "would you care to reconsider that answer, son?" "No." DIG THOSE HEELS IN SQ!!!!

41:22 I'm really not digging that Curtain is using the guise of openly expressing his feelings to communicate his anger and his unasked question. Not cool bitch head

41:33 the fact that he didn't answer SQ's spoken question kind of also answers his unspoken question

41:45 "I knew there was something off about that girl. But espionage?" "How do you so convincingly fake a tetherball obsession?" I love that this entire conversation could be about Martina or Kate interchangeably

42:34 WELL THAT'S NOT GOOD

42:36 IF IT WAS THAT EASY TO FIND WITH BINOCULARS HOW HAD THEY NOT BEEN SPOTTED UP UNTIL THIS POINT?!!?#? HOW????

43:05 Kate advocating for Martina with the Society 🥺🥺 the interaction I didn't know I needed

43:58 "I definitely don't like to leave anything unfinished." "That's true, I've seen you eat." PFFFFT

44:05 YESS YOU GO STICKY USE YOUR ACCESS FOR PRIME INTEL

44:19 "well, you can't succeed without me, so..." baby girl you have no idea how right you are

44:28 please let that be Milligan PLEASE LET THAT BE MILLIGAN

44:32 YEAAAAAHHHHH

44:35 I simply adore him

44:45 "would you mind helping me down, please? I'm stuck." Your honor I would die for this man

44:54 oh shit, Martina's tryna sleuth it out herself.. this can't end well

45:04 is she about to find Kate's marbles or something?? Callback to the book?

45:26 the absolute MURDER in her eyes

45:31 FUCKIN YIKES

45:41 "the clothes of someone who had given up" ASEJDGEIDNDLFK

45:47 well that's not good

46:00 WELL THAT'S NOT GOOD

46:04 PLEASE let them be on their way already, please

46:14 THEY MADE A BLIMP????

46:17 Goodyear is QUAKING

46:35 why the fuck is Number Two in red, that's upsetting on principle

THEYRE JUST ENDING IT THERE???? goddamnit!!!!

How surreal is it that next week is the finale?? Idk if I'm ready for that????

#mbs disney+#mbs liveblog #the dance of the celestial orb #the mysterious benedict society #charity's talkies

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salvatoreschool · 3 years

Text

Kaylee Bryant On "Legacies," The Importance Of Queer Rep On TV, Hosie, And More

"I have so many people constantly telling me that watching Josie on the show has made them feel more comfortable in themselves."

This week, Kaylee Bryant squeezed us into her schedule to talk about their role as Josie Saltzman on Legacies. As a huge Josie fan, I couldn't think of a better way to spend a morning than talking to Kaylee about The Vampire Diaries, Hosie, our favorite books, and more! Here's everything we talked about:

1. What was your audition for Legacies like?

My audition process was very interesting because they kept a lot of it a secret. I had no script and a fake character name. And then I had my second audition, a chemistry read, which Jenny Boyd [Lizzie] wasn't even at. I walked in and immediately just flat-out asked, "This is for the twins, right?" So it was long, but short and intense at the same time.

BuzzFeed: Wait, did you know which twin you were going to be playing?

I initially auditioned for Josie, and then during chemistry reads, they started asking me to read for Lizzie. And then we had our final callback where I finally met Jenny and we both read for both roles. They never told us [who was playing who] until Jenny had her appointment to go dye her hair blonde.

2. What's a typical day on set like?

Gosh, it changes every time. If it's a busy day on set, we're talking like 8 a.m. call time where we spend about two hours on hair and makeup and go straight into rehearsals. If it's a big sort of episode that involves stunt work and wire work, you're talking about doing maybe two scenes in a day. But if it's an average day, we can do anywhere from three to five scenes and we can start at 8 a.m. and wrap at 8 p.m. It really depends. I'm surprised if I'm not surprised.

3. You’ve said you’re a huge fan of The Vampire Diaries. Josie played Elena in the musical episode — what was that like?

It was surreal for sure. They had talked a little bit about doing a musical episode since Season 1. And I always thought that they were joking when they talked about doing Salvatore: The Musical!, so when they said Josie would obviously play Elena, I was like, "Hahaha." And then I got the script and realized I actually was playing Elena. The musical aspect of it was the easy part. The difficult part was, I think, getting into the iconic Elena attire and trying to feel normal. Because we have a lot of crew members that worked on The Vampire Diaries, and they kept coming up to me being like, "This is weird. I feel weird."

4. Do you have a favorite scene you’ve filmed with Courtney Bandeko (Finch) this season?

I really did love the scene that we had in the town square [when] we got on a moped. There were so many fans in the town square that were huddled in the rain — it was pouring rain, freezing cold — trying to snap photos of us. And it was kind of one of those surreal moments where it felt full circle, that I was on a Vampire Diaries spinoff in town square. It was a lot going on, but it was a lot of fun. It's always fun working with Courtney.

5. You and Danielle Rose Russell (Hope) also have amazing chemistry — what’s your favorite scene you’ve filmed together?

Oh gosh, we have a lot that are pretty amazing. Honestly, I'd say [Season 3] Episode 14 — we finally got to do a lot more scenes together. And it's always fun, especially when it's Josie, Lizzie, and Hope, because we have so much history character-wise. Any time you really get to dive into that, we love it.

6. I know Josie and Finch are working through some things right now, but I gotta ask — how do you feel about Hosie?

I love it. Danielle and I loved the idea of Hosie starting from Season 1, and we kept asking and asking and asking for it. So it's kind of funny and full circle that now the fans have kind of taken our side with things, and now they won't stop asking for it. All we want is this beautiful, dynamic relationship. And I think that the fans want that as well.

BuzzFeed: Yeah, I mean, people have even been asking me about Hosie, and I don't work on the show!

Oh, I'm sure! [Laughs] Obviously I love it, though.

7. Is there a particular Josie moment you’re really proud of?

Josie has a scene coming up in Episode 18 — or 19? — I don't know, but it's good. It's sort of the pinnacle of everything that Josie has felt over the past three years kind of culminating into one moment. So, I'm excited for people to see it.

8. You recently came out as queer. How has playing Josie, who’s pansexual, impacted you personally?

I felt a lot of pressure when I initially booked Josie because I was still figuring out who I was and what my label was. And playing a character who was so comfortable in who she was, it was inspiring [to me] in a way that I think a lot of other people watching the show have been inspired. I have so many people constantly telling me that watching Josie on the show has made them feel more comfortable in themselves. It's kind of amazing that we all have the same experience in that having queer representation makes you more comfortable.

9. You’ve been vocal about your Asian identity, and your character has spoken Japanese on the show. Did you have a hand in incorporating that into Josie’s character?

No, not at all! So, I spoke Japanese a few times on the [Instagram] Live and one of our writers, Penny Cox, saw me speaking Japanese and immediately went to Brett [Matthews] and was like, "We need to make this happen somehow." And then all of a sudden, I had a script in my hands. So it was a surprise, but a fun one.

BuzzFeed: Are you fluent in Japanese?

Gosh, no! I'm barely fluent in English. [Laughs] I would say I speak at the level of maybe a second-grader on a good day, though.

10. If you could pitch any storyline for Josie, what would it be?

I always joke that I want an episode that takes place overnight. That way, we all have to be wearing pajamas the entire episode. I just want to wear some comfy clothes for a whole two weeks, that's my main goal. So we can have a pajama episode, that's my pitch.

11. What's it like getting into character for Dark Josie scenes?

It's different in the sense that I know Josie so well. And knowing Josie in turn makes me understand Dark Josie. I have a whole different playlist of music that I listen to for Dark Josie — and I have the wig, which helps a lot with getting into character.

BuzzFeed: Well, now I have to ask what music is on that playlist!

I think "Bury a Friend" by Billie Eilish is a great one for Dark Josie. Also, "Villain" by K/DA is a prime example of a perfect song for Dark Josie, so I listen to that one as well.

12. What's your go-to Starbucks order?

Plain black iced Americano. Aria [Shahghasemi, who plays Landon] says I drink coffee like a sociopath. [Laughs]

13. What TV show are you currently binging?

I just finished watching Alice in Borderland, which is a Japanese show on Netflix. And I know Feel Good Season 2 just came out, so I think that's my next binge.

14. Damon or Stefan?

Stefan! They're both beautiful and I love them very much, but I'm Team Stefan when it comes to Elena.

15. If you could work with anyone from The Vampire Diaries, who would it be?

Ian Somerhalder has a lot of dogs. So, maybe I want to work with him for the sole reason of just talking about dogs. [Writer's note: Kaylee revealed she has two rescue dogs, one whom was sleeping right next to them during the interview! Kaylee described the dogs as "both complete and total nuts," but said she misses them about five minutes after getting into the car to go to work.]

16. Do you think you’re most similar to Josie, Lizzie, or Hope in real life?

I would say I'm an eclectic mix of the three. I can be very headstrong like Hope, very outspoken like Lizzie, and I try to be as loving as Josie, but sometimes that doesn't always work. But I'd like to think all three.

17. Is there a role people would be surprised to learn you auditioned for, but didn't get?

I've been auditioning since I was eight, so there's quite a few Disney Channel shows and movies. And I'm sure people would be surprised because I think I auditioned for like, all of them. It's very funny, one of the first jobs I ever booked in television was Kickin' It with Leo Howard [Ethan]. Talk about full circle — going from being 12 years old and having no idea what I'm doing to being a series regular on [Legacies] and welcoming Leo to the set.

18. Who's your favorite Disney princess?

Oh, I love Mulan so much. She was, like, my first crush ever. I also love Moana, but it's Mulan 1,000%.

19. If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I mean, I do eat rice every day. So maybe just white rice — you can make rice into candy and...yeah, let's go with rice.

20. If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only bring one book, what would it be?

Oh no! I recently read The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, and I really enjoyed that book. Oh god, Is that the one that I want to bring, though? I mean, I really enjoyed it and it has many different aspects to it. I don't know. Or should I go with Harry Potter? I go through different genres too, like right now I'm in a big sci-fi phase, but other times I'll go the opposite direction and only read biographies. Yeah, that's super hard. I don't think I would know!

21. On that note, what's your Hogwarts house?

Initially, when I was younger, it used to just be straight-up Slytherin. And now, I recently took the Sorting Hat Quiz and I got Ravenclaw. So I'm going to go with Slytherclaw.

BuzzFeed: What's Josie's house?

Josie would be Slytherin. She tries very hard and, you know, not everyone in Slytherin is evil. She just, you know, has her way of going about things.

22. Has anything super funny or embarrassing happened to you on set?

I trip a lot on set. I get scared very easily — if I come around the corner and somebody is walking the other direction, I get scared. Everybody knows to walk slowly around me because I get scared so easily.

23. What's your wildest fan story?

I've had people cry before. And I'm an empath, so if somebody starts crying, I immediately am like, "Please don't cry, because I'm gonna cry." And then it turns into this whole thing. Once we were shooting in the town square and this young girl with her mom started crying, and I just hugged her and I didn't know what to say. So there's a lot of that. There's also the occasional, "Where's your twin?" and...I don't have one, sorry! But yeah, I would say the people who cry always throw me for a loop.

24. How do you unwind after a long day?

I have an hourlong drive home from work, so I usually listen to a lot of music. And by the time I get home, taking off all of my makeup is very therapeutic. Because over time, we're working 13-hour days, 16-hour days, and it's just powder constantly building up on my face. So, washing my face is always very therapeutic. And then just laying back and reading a book and petting my dog is the best.

25. Is there a celebrity you get told you look like a lot?

Most recently, Sara Waisglass [from Ginny & Georgia and Degrassi]. We follow each other on social media now and I completely messed up because I don't know how Twitter works at all. I forgot that there's a DMing interaction, so we followed each other and I was like, "Oh, that's nice." And then just recently, I saw that she had messaged me being like, "We're twins! We should be friends!" And I immediately messaged back, "I'm so sorry, let's be friends!"

26. Who's your biggest celebrity crush?

Oh, I have so many. But consistently since I saw Orphan Black, Tatiana Maslany. Hands down.

27. Finally, have you ever caught someone watching a TV show or movie that you're in on a flight or anywhere else?

We were all, as a cast, flying to — was it New York Comic Con, or San Diego Comic Con? — one of the Comic Cons. And we were all sitting there and we saw that Legacies was actually on the airplane as an option. And we were all just uncomfortably staring at each other. Yeah, that was surreal.

Be sure to catch Kaylee in Legacies, which airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on The CW!

#legacies #theoriginals #thevampirediaries #tvd #kaylee bryant #josiesaltzman #siphoner #witch #gemini coven #lizzie&josie #saltzmantwins #salvatoreschool #mysticfalls #julieplec #thecw #queer

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topweeklyupdate · 3 years

Text

TØP Weekly Update #142: A Formidable Album (5/21/21)

So... how 'bout that album release week?

There's so much to cover; the release of nine new songs, the hype that's building for the World's Best Band to return to the stage, and (if we're able to come up for air) the massive speculation of what the future brings for our band.

I'm gonna get right into it, laying out my thoughts regarding this bold new album and covering all the most notable news from the week. I'll be sharing my (mostly) positive opinions about Scaled and Icy under the Read More line; I hope they're the start of a fun conversation with all of y'all who have stuck around through this last year.

Scaled and Icy Review

First, my general thoughts on the album: It's good! Really good. Do I think it's a no-skip like Vessel or a cohesive piece of art like Trench? Absolutely not! But it's also not the potential misfire that I worried that we might be getting when I first heard "Saturday" (more on that later); I think all of the songs are at least good, and some of them are downright great tracks that hold up with anything else that our band has ever released. It is also indisputably very different, but I think that generally works pretty well. Many of the songs evoke '60s rock or Britpop sounds and structures that you can tell Tyler is still trying to navigate, but I think he does a very solid job at adapting them to suit his strengths- namely his lyricism and knack for melody- rather than change to suit them. Unfortunately, this does result in a bit of square-peg-in-round-hole syndrome at times; most of the rap verses on the album feel like they're here just to fulfill an obligation to fans who would be mad if they weren't here, and most of the songs that use them are the weakest ones in the project.

"Good Day" plays a major role in getting the rest of the album to work as well as it does. Its gradual ramp-up, introducing the sound that will be used throughout the rest of the album. Its playfulness belies its message about how one can project a somewhat false optimism for oneself in the midst of tragedy: the type of dark stuff in a bright package that Tyler is so so good at. It's perhaps not an instant classic, but I am excited to see how it comes across when it's eventually used as a show-opener. 9/10

I've of course already discussed "Shy Away"; an anthemic, inimitably catchy track that I just wish had a bit more going on under the hood. Still going to be so good to hear thousands of voices scream "An 'I LOVE YOU' that isn't words!" someday. 9.5/10

"Choker" definitely took a little bit to grow on me. I think part of that was a bit of disappointment from over-inflated expectations and the environment I was in when I first heard it. With further listens, I fall more and more in love with the melody of the song... well, most of it. Like the rest of this album, the biggest weakness in the song is when Tyler tries to tick the box of having a rap verse; it just feels really out of place, unfinished, and almost amateurish, and it doesn't end the song on the note that it really should. Without it, it'd be one of my favorites on the album; with it, "Choker" is a solid 8.5/10.

Speaking of unfinished-sounding songs really hurt by their rap verse: "The Outside". There's a definite something to the vibe of the song, but that seemingly nonsensical verse is one of the two weakest parts of the entire project for me. The way the song meanders only adds to the feeling that there wasn't as much energy and attention paid to it compared to other parts of the project. It's pretty easily my least favorite track on Scaled and Icy, and the only one I might regularly skip. I've also seen plenty of people saying it's the best song on the album, so please tell me why I'm wrong! 6.5/10

"Saturday", as mentioned above, had me really nervous about this album. Like "Choker", it's grown on me a bit since I first heard it, in part because it fits better with the context of the rest of the album. However, this one really does feel undercooked lyrically and overreliant on the novelty of using a disco-inspired sound that seems to chase trends more than almost any other TØP track. The inclusion of that very sweet audio clip from Jenna boosts the song in some ways, but also adds to the disappointment in others; there are many other songs on this project that would be more worth surrendering time watching Friends. Thankfully, those come next. 7/10

"Never Take It" is fascinating. I never thought I'd hear a Rolling Stones-style song from Tyler Joseph featuring a gd guitar solo of all things, and it actually sounds pretty great. However, I also predict that this song will see some of the greatest critical scrutiny out of all the songs on the album. The lyrics seem to be Tyler's criticism of the media for playing up division in our society, but he's extremely vague when discussing which entities are spreading said division and ultimately recommends that people "educate yourself, but never too much". I'll be honest: maybe it's the fact that it sounds like something my dad would listen to, but it feels like this would get tons of play on Fox News. Since it makes specific reference to the events of last summer, it's hard not to feel like song is at least partially inspired by Tyler's brush with cancellation last year. Maybe I'm reading too deeply into it, but those reservations come from the song's lack of specificity, which is an issue of songwriting more than politics. They hold me back from truly loving a song that still manages to be one of the most exciting the band has ever put out. 8.5/10

"Mulberry Street" seems like the perfect realization of the entire album's intended tone. It is so pleasant, so lush while also simply produced, full of great lyrics, metaphors, and imagery. It really brings the whole project together, even if it's missing That One Line to really move this up to the top tier of the canon. 9.5/10

"Formidable" is the best song on the album and one of two songs I would truly rank in the top tier of the band's canon. Extremely pleasant and brimming with well-crafted lines to make your heart swoon. Jenna (and Rosie) is (are) a lucky gal(s). Or is it about Josh? Who's to say? 10/10

"Bounce Man" is just plain wild. I think Tyler's smuggling someone to Mexico to escape the feds? The playfulness of it all really covers up any frustration I might have with the clarity; it makes it clear that there's not really stakes here, just vibes. 8.5/10

"No Chances" sees the album take a turn that I'm sure the Reddit Clique is going to have an absolute field day with; it and "Redecorate" both sound quite different from the rest of the album and evoke enough elements of Trench to make me think that's it's actually possible that all this 'SAI is Propaganda' stuff might actually have something to it... until I actually pick apart the lyrics, then I'm even more confused. The song has some of the best rapping on the album, though that's not saying much (the feng shui line is a groaner right out the gate) and the gentle pre-chorus is really pleasant. I still haven't made up my mind on whether the chorus is effective or just plain goofy. This one might get worse or better on repeat listens, impossible to say for now. 7.5/10

"Redecorate" rounds out the album by opening with a Clancy quote (Tyler, you bastard), firmly setting this as a coda to Trench more than the album we just listened to. The rest of the song is really storytelling, with Tyler describing a bunch of people who are struggling deeply. The idea of "redecorating" here stands for how they are faced with the option to clean and resort their own spaces and lives or leave that to their loved ones to do after they're gone. By the time it gets to the album's name drop, you begin to wonder how much of this is potential autobiographical of the last year. It's moving stuff, a callback to some of the great strengths of the band's discography. 10/10

If I average those scores all up, this project ranks below almost every album among the Pilots discography on my rating scale, very narrowly edging out Self-Titled. That's still a very solid 8.6. Scaled and Icy is a very good album on first listen. We'll see how I feel about it after having a little more time to sit with it, but I've rambled enough: let's move through the rest of the week's news.

Other News

Of course, there was a lot else going on this week! To accompany the release of "Saturday", Zane Lowe over at Apple Music dropped an interview with Tyler. As usual, Zane did a pretty solid job of getting to the heart of the craft and the creation process. However, Tyler also wound up skirting a lot of the questions to just talk more about how much he loves being a dad, which makes me happy; if the cost of getting a little less attention and mental energy devoted to the music is that little girl getting all of his attention, that's honestly preferable for me.

The album rollout is not even close to over. Later today, the concert will be streamed live. It's our first real performance that we've gotten from the band since 2019, but the previews that we've seen have completely exceeded any of my expectations, and really anything that we've seen from the band. It appears that they've transformed the entire arena (which I think is the ol' Schott at Ohio State) into a whole TØP world, with different sets laden with Easter eggs and a cast of backup dancers. If the website can hold up to the traffic (and I acknowledge that might be a big ask), this could really live up to Tyler's promise of this being the best livestreamed concert ever.

Oh, and this guy dyed his hair pink.

What a time to be a fan. Catch you all tomorrow.

Power to the local dreamer.

|-/

#twenty one pilots #scaled and icy #tyler joseph #josh dun #good day #shy away #choker #the outside #saturday #never take it #mulberry street #formidable #bounce man #no chances #redecorate #top weekly update

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