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wallylinda · 2 years

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may i ask what was the comic you hated? or rank the worst comics you've ever read? ffgjfjf

yes absolutely here are the top ten comics never to fucking touch if you even remotely value yourself and your mental health, in ascending order of how much I fucking hate them:

Animal Man (1988)

Okay, right off the bat, I'll have to admit: Morrison's run is decent. But everyone who claims that this comic is a "classic" or a "masterpiece of what you can accomplish in the medium" has thankfully only ever been subjected to Morrison's drug-fueled meditations on the nature of parallel universes and the importance of animal rights and not the complete and utter shitshow that was 50+ issues of: Animal Man turning into the knock-off Jersey Devil, Animal Man losing control of his powers and running around the suburbs naked and howling at the moon, Animal Man turning his daughter into the figurehead of a cult for reasons I still do not understand and do not care to comprehend.

Like I cannot even describe to you how divorced these plotlines are from any semblance of thought processes other than "how do I make this as fucked up as possible?" And I know it's a Vertigo title and I know that it's kind of par for the course in that regard but surely. Surely we can do better than this. Anyway, my favorite character was Animal Man's son, Cliff, who didn't deserve literally anything that happened to him I hope he has a good life.

2. Aquaman (1994)

I know. I know that a lot of people like this book. It is apparently a great book when you close your eyes and ignore everything that actually happens in the book. And let me tell you I tried. I read about ~60 issues of this garbage fire before giving up. It's just gritty, meaningless nonsense intermixed with feeble attempts at worldbuilding and increasingly icky romantic ventures. Like, Aquaman loses a hand to a bunch of carnivorous piranhas (haha), gets possessed by alien technology he found under Atlantis (???), and flies into frequent rages over the people around him, understandably, refusing to obey his every command (good for them). He's an asshole! And not even in a good way! No one in this comic has any semblance of an emotional connection to each other, be it good or bad, and their motivations often fall flat because of that. Not to mention that the colorist just. Pinkified the Inuit character. Great. Awesome. I hate it here.

3. Plastic Man (2004)

How. How did this book get an Eisner Award. Did we read the same fucking comic??? Was bribery involved??? I feel insane. All you need to know about this book is that its very last issue had a joke about the act of necrophilia on a minor. And for a book that was marketed based on its humor, it had one (1) funny panel, and that was it. Bad. I'm so sorry Plastic Man maybe you'll get a series I'll actually enjoy reading one day...

4. Green Lantern: New Guardians

Congratulations, you gave Kyle superpowers equal to a god! Now what interesting and impactful stories are you going to tell with this newfound power of his that doesn’t completely detract from the previous themes or further convert the franchise into blatant military propaganda? ...What do you mean you’re going to make Ganthet into Kyle’s father figure. Why did you create a romantic relationship between him and Carol. Why is every modern Green Lantern comic obsessed with the supposed benefits of a universal police presence when everything prior to the 2005 series consistently denounced it. This entire book was just a paltry imitation of the Ion arc of the 90s, and you should that instead of this, because this was just OOC nonsense.

5. Green Lantern: Rebirth

Parallax retcon written by Geoff Johns. Enough said.

6. The Flash (2011)

Once again mutilated from the corpse of actually good material, this comic is a coagulated monstrosity of editorial bullshit and increasingly desperate attempts at portraying the cops as the Good Guys. Hell, during this shitshow of a book, Barry arrests his own future nephew for spray-painting anti-Flash sentiments onto an alley, who, may I add, was introduced in this scene, and as a black character. Love that. Furthermore, Barry’s personality solely consists of being overly attached to his work and his primary motivation to being a hero is a rip-off of Batman’s origins. Iris has been dumbed down and smoothed out into unrecognizability and her romantic relationship to Barry has no basis or emotion to it. Just. Everything about this comic is OOC and completely disingenuous to previous canon and deliberately mean-spirited towards its fans. It doesn’t even feel like it wants to tell a good story. It just feels like it wants to shame the readers for liking the characters and themes that existed before the reboot.

7. Fate

The epitome of everything wrong about 90s comics. A powerful protagonist with no motivation behind any of his actions, overly complicated storylines with no plot cohesion, and a constant gritty and pessimistic atmosphere that serves no purpose other than to exemplify the main character’s unlikability. You could, in theory, say that that was the entire point of the comic, but that still doesn’t change the fact that this book is needlessly preachy and self-absorbed and just plain boring. Loved it when the main character died in JSA. Bad.

8. Secret Six (2006)

On rare occasions, I see individuals lauding Gail Simone as this beloved icon of feminism in the comic industry, and I urge those same people to read Secret Six because their opinion will change. The one WOC, Chesire, is demonized into one of the worst racist caricatures I have ever had the displeasure of reading, which of course means that she has the dubious honor of playing the part of the Dragon Lady and the Asian Baby Mama trope. Jade is a completely different character in this, and the text is all but too happy to ignore her prior history in favor of making her as immoral and sexualized as possible. Everything has to relate to sex. The dialogue is clunky and unrealistic. And like, this comic has been upheld for its queer representation before, but having queer characters doesn’t mean that it is any way good, and it certainly doesn’t mean that it should be excused for the blatant mess that it actually is. I hate it so much.

9. Heroes in Crisis

Do I even need to explain.

10. Green Arrow (2011)

THE WORST COMIC I'VE EVER FUCKING READ. MY GOD. You might be thinking to yourself right now, “oh, how bad can it really be?” and the answer to that question is BAD. Here are some plot points: Ollie fucks a group of triplets in the wilderness while being chased by bears (idk but i’m not rereading this goddamn thing to give you the exact details) while everyone around him rightfully assumes he’s died in a ditch, Ollie finds out he’s the rightful heir to a magical arrow cult and gets tortured by his father for it (???), and Shado, a woman who in previous canon was involved with Ollie, now has a daughter with his father. Like. It’s bad!!! Nothing about it is salvageable!!! Nothing about it is a Green Arrow comic!!! Don’t fucking read this!!!

in conclusion: i hate all of these please please please take my advice and never touch them. do this for yourself and not for me. also if you are a fan of any of these comics sorry that i despise your beloveds or whatever please make your hate post about me on your own blog and not on mine thx 😭🙏🙏

#only reason identity crisis isn't on this is because i haven't read it. if i ever read it i know that i'll explode and die #also praying this doesn't end up in the tags i would love to stop the streak of weird anons i've been getting for the past month 🤡🤡#asks #dc

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the-one-where-casey-watches-tv · 10 months

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Barry episode 4.08 "Wow"

Bill Hader in "Wow". Image courtesy of IMDb.

There is really no better word to describe this show than unique. Which might sound like I’m sugarcoating a less than positive reception, but this time I mean unique in the very best way. I often say, in writing and in life, that it’s a good thing when there’s nothing else like you in the world. If someone’s already done what you want to do exactly the way you want to do it, then what’s left for you to do?

Barry is so itself. I generally categorize tv into either a drama or a comedy and don’t really break it down any more than that, but Barry forces the issue of nuance. It’s a true dramedy in the way it combines short form narrative with a gritty action/thriller plot to tell a story that is, at its core, a deeply ironic commentary on the entertainment industry. It’s not haha funny, but the juxtaposition of the hit man/Chechen mob world with that of Hollywood highlights the senselessness and silliness of each. And the way the series wraps up really hits the nail on the head of these comedic themes told through a dramatic lens. I said “wow” out loud as the final credits began to roll, and then couldn’t hold back a smile as I learned that was the title of the episode.

This is one of those shows that has a very different feel by the end, and I think it’s because rather than people changing, we learn with more and more certainty who they have been all along. I had a friend watch this show all the way through for the first time recently, which was a fun journey to see unfold because I’ve been watching Barry from the beginning. She fell in love with it at first but was given some pause when Barry killed Janice Moss.

It felt different from his other killings, less justifiable. I remember feeling the same way when I first saw it, but as the show progresses, we realize this event isn’t an outlier, but rather our first glimpse into who he is and always has been. So much of the show is catalyzed by Janice’s death because it isn’t a moral gray area. It was wrong. But how do people handle right and wrong and justice when a coveted acting role is on the line? Or a lot of money? Or love? Or the flex of having a boyfriend and looking like you have your life together?

After avoiding an attempt on his life and escaping from prison, some deep flash forwards in season 4 find Barry living an intensely strange and religious life in the middle of nowhere with Sally and their young son John. Their house looks like it’s in the middle of open desert, much like where a young Barry once first met Fuches. Barry and Sally’s son doesn’t even know their real names. It’s pretty bleak, but Barry seems deeply deluded while Sally and John are miserable.

At this point, we’re not even pretending that Barry is somewhat sane. In no way is he the good guy, or even the anti-hero of this story. He’s deeply childlike, his entire moral compass being driven by the father figure he’s latched on to- we’ve watched it shift from Fuches to Gene Cousineau after a phase of teen-like rebellion, and when he was rejected by both of them, we watched him spiral, absolutely lost with no sense of direction. It seems that after this he couldn’t make sense of the world without turning to the ultimate father figure- God.

The thing about God is you can put words into His mouth, and he can’t dispute them. We’ve seen his pious life with Sally and John but this episode especially had a very darkly religious underbelly as Barry returned to LA to kill Gene, listening all the while to a Christian radio station debating the ethics of murder.

When Sally and John are kidnapped by Noho Hank as a ploy to deliver Barry to Fuches (more on all of them in a minute), Fuches is deeply moved by Barry’s son. In an abrupt but sincere change of heart, he lets Barry, Sally, and John all go. In the previous episode, in one of the best depictions I’ve ever seen of a character ‘deciding’ to do something, she had tried unsuccessfully to give up Barry and turn herself in. The thought of continuing to live as they had been, with no end in sight, was unfathomable to her. That night, after escaping Noho Hank and Fuches, Sally urges Barry to turn himself in. Barry’s takeaway, though, is that he has been spared and redeemed by God. He tells Sally she must just be tired, and, in the morning, they’ll get out of LA and clear their heads.

Anthony Carrigan in "Wow". Image courtesy of IMDb.

Unsurprisingly, Barry wakes up the next morning with Sally and John nowhere to be found. In a panic, he rushes to Gene’s house, convinced they’re there. Instead, he only finds Gene’s lawyer, who also encourages Barry to turn himself in as Gene as somehow twisted himself into looking responsible for this whole thing. Barry was never going to do that, but the interaction is cut short by Gene entering the room with a gun and shooting Barry in the chest. Barry looks down at his wound, up at Gene, and says a genuinely earnest “oh wow” before Gene puts another bullet between his eyes.

One of my favorite things about Barry is the very realistic use of speed and sound. This is the kind of moment we’d expect to have a lot of buildup, a highly emotional scene, but it’s very abrupt. It all happens fast- as fast as it would in life, without ample time to reflect. And this also drives home the point that Barry is just a very tragic pawn. He was a pawn to Fuches and Hank, and even to Sally and Gene, though in their case a poorly used one that led to their downfall. He was also a pawn to the narrative, as all the thematic takeaways really have to do with everyone else and how they used Barry, rather than Barry himself.

So let’s talk about these other guys. To me, by the end, there are two important throughlines to this story, both of which involve Barry but neither of which are about him. First, there’s Gene Cousineau and his addiction to attention. When the flash forwards begin, he’s been off the grid, but he emerges when he hears that a movie is being made about Barry and his killing of Janice. Janice’s father is still intently investigating the murder and his suspicions of Gene are confirmed when Barry (in a childlike apology) inadvertently confesses to having given Gene $250,000.

Jim Moss is smart. Gene receives a call from an agent wanting to talk to Gene about someone playing him in the movie about Barry. He doesn’t want to hear it, that is until the agent admits that the actor is Daniel Day Lewis, wanting to come out of retirement to play Gene Cousineau. Gene’s tune changes on a dime. He agrees to meet with the agent, where he overindulges in his self-importance and clandestine admissions that he was like a father to Barry, that Barry is misunderstood and would have listened to anything Gene had to say. He even went so far as to try to humanize him so that Mark Wahlberg- up for the part of Barry- wouldn’t feel bad about playing a cop killer. The incident he is supposedly outraged over, that ruined his life, is actually not so bad if he’s going to be credited in its star-studded dramatization.

Charles Parnell, Robert Wisdom, and Gary Kraus in "Wow'. Image courtesy of IMDb.

Gene and the agent hurry back to the office to meet with Mark, where we learn that the ‘agent’ was an actor hired by Jim Moss, who now believes Gene to be complicit in Janice’s murder, if Barry loved him so much and was such a ‘sympathetic soul’. Gene’s dug himself a hole he can’t dig himself out of, which brings us to the moment Barry arrives at his house looking for Sally and John. Barry is the only one who could clear Gene’s name, but Gene kills him before he gets the chance.

In another decade’s long flash forward, John, now in his late teens, amicably parts ways with Sally. He goes home with a friend and steels himself to watch the movie that really did get made about Barry, Gene, and everything that happened. The movie ends with on-screen text revealing that Gene is serving life in prison for the murders of both Janice and Barry, while Barry is buried in Arlington memorial cemetery with honors.

Again, it’s not ha-ha funny, but it’s a grimly comical look at the extent to which Hollywood will twist tragedy for the spotlight, even to its own detriment. It’s a satire in which all of these bleak characters are the punchline. But what really gives this theme heart, is Noho Hank. The character who started out as the comic relief for this series ends up being the real emotional gut punch. It’s hard to sympathize with Gene, who brought all this on himself with his sleazy personality, but Hank was endearing and his love for Cristobal was real.

Hank and Cristobal were both the comedic and emotional light to this show in the last couple seasons. They were both fun and funny, and they were so entrenched in the violent realm of this story that their violence was more normalized than Barry’s- it was more reminiscent of an action comedy than a poignant ethical dilemma. You can’t help but root for them, especially as they embark on something as silly and harmless as selling sand.

But Hank didn’t want to settle for selling sand. He wanted a life with Cristobal, but he wanted that life to be an empire. So he made some plans behind Cristobal’s back, killing their partners in the sand venture and shaking hands with people Cristobal would never have agreed to. When Cristobal finds out, Hank begs him to get on board, knowing what will happen if he doesn’t. But Cristobal insists on walking out, promptly to get shot dead before he can reach his car.

Hank mourns this, but gets back to work, even partnering with Fuches to build his empire. But when Fuches toasts to Hank, and his willingness to sacrifice Cristobal to make this happen, Hank snaps. Hank refuses to admit to sacrificing Cristobal, and in fact, their deal is off for Fuches having even suggested it. The two quickly end up in a violent feud, trying to kill each other as everything else in this season progresses. Eventually, though, it’s clear that Hank is no match for Fuches, leading to his abduction of Sally and John. This was his white flag to Fuches, if he would come over to Hank’s compound he will use Barry’s family to lure Barry there and deliver him to Fuches.

This is where Fuches has his first human moment of maybe his entire life. He looks at John and admits to Hank that he is a bad person who does bad things- and he is ready to put all the weapons down if Hank will just admit the same thing. If he will say out loud that he is responsible for Cristobal’s death, they can put this all behind them. Hank and Fuches both have a small army with them, and the crowd is silent as Hank thinks and tears well up in his eyes. But he can’t do it. He can’t admit to himself what he and everyone in the room already know to be true. He opens fire, and everyone follows suit. Everyone dies, save for Fuches, Sally, and John.

Anthony Carrigan in "Wow". Image courtesy of IMDb.

Hank has his final moments sitting at the feet of a statue of Cristobal. Blood drips from his mouth as something in another plane makes him gasp and whimper in fear. His hand shoots up and grasps Cristobal’s bronze fingers. And then he dies.

I honestly don’t even have any guesses as to what he saw, but I think the takeaway is that it wasn’t good. To me, this is the real heart and heartbreak of Barry. The real consequences of denial, of being power-hungry, of refusing to take accountability. It adds stakes and emotion to Gene Cousineau’s silly little tale of the same pitfalls. I watch Gene and Sally and the whole Hollywood scene, and think “wow, entertainment really is like that. Our world today really is like that”. Then I watch the Shakespearean tragedy that is Hank’s story and think “wow that is so sad”. Together, they make Barry an on-point reflection of our society, and a cautionary tale of the consequences of all those traits. And it really just made me say wow.

Did you say wow? What do you make of Gene’s killing Barry, or of Sally letting him in to the extent that she did? Did the ending hit for you or were the flash forwards too much? Let me know!

#bill hader #barry #barry berkman #gene cousineau #henry winkler #noho hank #tv review #tv criticism #tv

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krimprim · 2 years

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what are some classic horror movies that you always recommend, and some more obscure ones that you love but don’t get a lot of attention? love your blog btw!

Got my first anon!! And it's super nice too 🤧 This is so lovely I'm really happy you asked.

I'm biased towards sci-fi horror and horror comedy's, but I've tried to give a bit of everything here. For classic ones I'd recommend? I'm taking some of my favourites from different eras so you can get a good feel for the changes horror went through. Noting here that I have not watched many movies from countries outside America, Australia and western Europe, just wanted to let you know in advance. Trying to fill out my horror repertoire between work and study 💀 Also this is long lmao sorry not sorry.

For early stuff my favourites would be The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (the original horror film you could say, featuring my beloved Conrad Veidt), wonderful silent German expressionist horror from the 20s.

On top of that I really loved Universal's 1925 adaption of The Phantom of the Opera ft Long Chaney and Mary Philbin. If you like that one I'd 100% recommend watching some documentaries on youtube about it cause it's really fun, Chaney bought the rights to the film himself as he really wanted to play Erik and adapt the story to screen. He did all his own makeup and stuff too it's great.

Further down the track you have all the universal monster movies, I have unfortunately not watched them all yet but I really liked The Wolf Man, and have memories as a child seeing Creature from the Black Lagoon and enjoying it. This ties in to more obscure films I think more people should watch, but Them! also came out in this era and I love it so dearly. First horror movie I watched properly start to end, it's about giant mutant ants, and has a small cameo of Leonard Nimoy in one of his first roles :)

Right after that in the 60s you have a big uptick in Hammer horror, which is where you get a lot of fun stuff (I can't give personal recs. I've only seen their phantom..which is good but like I'm embarrassed 😔). At the same time there was stuff like Rosemary's Baby (fuck Polanski) and Night of the Living Dead.

Then there are the infamous slashers. There's a lot of them, and like the other stuff on the list it depends on what you like what you'll take to in a slasher. One of my favourites is Black Christmas (the progenitor of the slasher. idc about Psycho, Hitchcock can have nightmares about blonde women for eternity) which had a surprising nuanced look into things like abortion and critiques on classic relationship dynamics. I'm goofy though so I also like it because of the villain Billy Lenz. Goofiness is also why I adore Child's Play <3. The Original Texas Chain Saw Massacre I think is a good one to get to as well, interesting themes and even though the main characters aren't that deep I do really like Sally and Franklin. My favourite type of horror protagonists have always been family members, especially siblings. And again, if you're a fan of silly you should definitely watch its sequel, which is a horror comedy.

Non slasher classics of the 70s/80s I recommend are Stepford Wives, The Thing, Suspiria, The Fly, Possession, The Lost Boys, Alien and Aliens, plus Evil Dead 1 and 2. They're all pretty well established here on Tumblr so there's not too much to say. I've watched the most films from this era if it isn't obvious haha.

By the time the 90s came around I feel like things got a bit all over the place, in a positive way. You got a bit of everything, though there was a bit of emphasis on horror movies becoming more "serious/gritty" compared to the slashers that came just before them. If I had to pick one film it would definitely be Candyman though. Tony Todd did an immaculate job and gave life to one of the most magnetic and charismatic horror villains ever. The movie is gorgeous and I adore the writing of it too.

Runner up would be Silence of the Lambs, Clarice and Hannibal both get a big kiss on the lips from me <3

I'm not sure if it's been long enough to claim movies past the 2000s can be classics but I'll quickly list some ones I think are neat: Ginger Snaps, The Ring, [REC], Saw, Noroi, The Orphanage, Creep, I Saw The Devil, Get Out, Annihilation and His House.

I will try to be succinct for the obscure stuff (im not sure how obscure these are tbh but oh well) since I know this is getting really long lmao but here 💕

Them!, as previously mentioned.

The Phantom of the Opera from 1989. Absolutely glorious and gorgeous slasher style take on the story. I love it a lot. Has Robert Englund of Freddy Krueger fame.

Basket Case 1, 2 and 3, got to these after watching Malignant and hearing them brought up several times in reviews. They're fantastic B horror and so lovingly made it hurts.

The Hitcher!!! The original of course, which is dripping with so much homoerotic subtext it's crazy. Rutger Hauer plays obsessive freaky man so well and I love him for it.

Stigmata starring Patricia Arquette and Gabriel Byrne. It is so of its time in terms of the editing, pacing and music that I couldn't help but adore it. Suffers from unnecessary romance imo but still a great movie.

Event Horizon is thee absolute shit. Laurence Fishburne is my babygirl in every movie/show he's in and this one is no different. I was blown away watching it and my brother and I couldn't stop discussing it for like two hours after it finished haha. Hoping the director's cut will be released at some point cause I'm dying to watch it.

Joy Ride with Paul Walker. Got this one from a random horror movie generator. I still think about it a lot, there's something mesmerising about a movie with an evil truckie. I havent watched any fast and furious movies but the first one came out the same time as this so I like to pretend it's a prequel to it.

The Slumber Party Massacre remake and Slumber Party Massacre 2. The former for being one of the best remakes for horror I've seen and the latter for being batshit fun. The main villains weapon is an electric guitar drill idk what more you need.

That's enough I think, feel free to psychoanalyse me in the notes. Also if you ever want to send me a DM or another ask on or off anon or whatever that'd be fun, I don't bite :)

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#sorry this took a while i was so excited to get an ask i was like i have to go into research mode haha #its very fun thanks again 😼#asked #horror #film #idk whether to tag the movies in here...theres too many :|#im super interested in horror history which is why i wanted to include some of that stuff #im only a novice rn and im trying to read more books about it cause its so interesting. hoping everything i said was correct cause um #yeah thatd be embarrassing #long post

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pynkhues · 4 months

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I feel very uncomfortable abt the Fred Astaire biopic given he absolutely did not want one to happen and was extremely clear about that. If it ends up happening I will 100% think less of everyone involved including Tom, it is a sign of extreme disrespect imo and Tom does not need the money it is just a fuck you I can do what I want, akin to spitting on FA's grave.

I think the problem with Tom Holland isnt his agent because lets be real, his agent and team are excellent. I think from interviews etc Tom is not that interested in film as an art form, doesn't seem aware of indie or foreign directors doing interesting work, and is pretty anti-intellectualism in general. So when he tries to "go indie" he tries to go for projects that seem gritty or interesting on paper, but end up flopping and coming across "THIS IS ACTING, TAKE ME SERIOUSLY." Tom has the power to approach indie directors he likes and get movies funded for him to star in like Robert Pattinson with Safdies, Claire Denis, etc etc. But Tom is not the type to know who Claire Denis is. He should work with someone like Jeremy Saulnier, that is my advice to him lol

I totally respect your uncomfortable feelings about it as a topic, anon! You're right, Astaire was clear about not wanting a bio pic on his life, because he - in his own words - never wanted to feel misrepresented, and any adaptation or exploration of his life as a result feels inherently disrespectful of that wish.

At the same time though - - I don't know. I guess I tend to have two questions about a bio pic, which is a) what is its purpose? and b) who's it for?

(Full disclaimer: I don't disagree with you - I just also have mmm, a mixed bag of feelings on the topic, I guess, haha.)

So let's talk a little about bio pics

Because it's an interesting conversation, right? They've always been a staple of filmmaking, both for better and for worse, and I do think they vary a lot as a genre. Some of them are naked mouthpieces for the individual or their estate, some are ways to enshrine or disparage an historical figure, some are about capitalising on a current popular trend, some are ways to explore a historical movement or era, to lend it greater understanding or cultural context through a particular person, or to keep an important figure from being forgotten or remembered in a way people with a vested interest might not want them to be remembered, and hell, sometimes I think a bio pic is just about telling an interesting story.

Does intent matter? Yeah, I think so, and I can understand why, in that context, intent can feel immediately malicious when the person a story is based on or inspired by was against the idea, but I don't necessarily think that's automatically the case.

I guess, in that sense, that brings it back to who a bio pic is for. I actually tend to think bio pics are at their worst when they're for the person they're about. Like, I enjoyed Elvis as a piece of entertainment, but as a bio pic it fails on more counts than it doesn't, in no small part because it was for Elvis. It was for his legacy, his daughter and grandchildren, his diehard, uncritical fans, and, in my more cynical moments, for Graceland too. It was about reinforcing a legacy instead of truly exploring it.

And exploring it is important. Good bio pics can help to shed more light and bring a deeper understanding to crucial moments and figures in history, and how someone wants to be represented or understood in that I don't think is entirely their decision. We don't exist in a vacuum; our stories, our histories, the roles we play in the world, aren't ours alone to dictate the terms of. We play roles in other peoples lives, from those who know us, and in the case of many public figures, those who know of them, and to make the decision unilaterly that our legacy can't be explored beyond us is I think both naive and potentially dangerous.

I don't know. It is complicated, and I'm not even saying that I'm entirely comfortable either with the fact that it's happening, especially given there are two Astaire bio pics in the works right now (ironically the other one's cast Jamie Bell, which is kind of funny from a Billy Elliot trivia standpoint), but like I said in my last post, I don't know if I believe that Astaire's wishes should stand so resolutely as others. After all, the law doesn't recognise that stipulation, and if it did, what would there be to stop other people using that as a sort of media gag to prevent critical bio pics that challenge the legacy of a public figure i.e. the counter point to Elvis being able to be this year's Priscilla?

I guess I'm saying that our histories might feel like a thread that belongs to us, but they're ones stitched into the fabric of time and of culture. They inform relationships and families, and in Astaire's case an artform and an industry, and to me, I don't think that means that he owes anyone more than what he gave in his lifetime, but I do think a version of his story lives beyond him - both in the lives he touched and the culture he influenced - and for better and for worse, that's not something he'll ever have complete control over.

Let's talk about Tom Holland

I agree and I disagree on this front - as a total cinephile, I truly feel the pain of him not having known who Pedro Almodóvar was in that one interview, haha, but I don't necessarily think that's an issue. After all, it's literally what he has an agent and a manager for. They should be looking at talent across the board and guiding him towards people they think he'd work well with, especially given he has worked with indie directors before - like, gosh, Kornél Mundruczó was the establishing director on The Crowded Room, and Antonio Campos directed The Devil All the Time.

But you're right - the projects aren't right, and I don't think that it helps that he doesn't seem to be well versed in cinema enough to be able to articulate what it is that he likes and doesn't like, and I also don't think that it helps that he skews young and doesn't really match the styles of the directors he's said he wants to work with (Tarantino in particular I think he doesn't fit the type for, but in looking up a couple of things to reply to your ask, I found out he did meet with Bong Joon Ho last year who I actually think could be a good fit for him).

I like your picks for directors a lot though! I think you're right about Jeremy Saulnier in particular. and while I'm not his biggest fan, I think Justin Kurzel could have a really interesting role for him in that sort of similarly masculinity-soaked indie vein. I also think (and gosh, these aren't even that indie these days, haha) Alex Garland, Karyn Kusama, Dan Gilroy and Marielle Heller would be interesting directors for him.

And while they're not indie, I do also think he'd do well in a Coen Brothers or a Baz Luhrmann.

But who knows at this point. He certainly runs the risk of being Peter Parker forever right now.

#funnily enough his agency according to imdb is curtis brown #who i actually met with a couple of times as a writer #(well the au office)#and the agent i was meeting with just did not get my stuff at all and she kept saying she liked my writing but asking me if i had #anything else to send #and i got to a point where i didn't #and i was like 'okay #cool guess i need to work on stuff'#and then i got my current agent and was published by a big five and she came knocking again #which was wild #but then i spoke to industry people and they were like oh yeah cb is really commercial #like they're looking for broad appeal which your writing style isn't necessarily #so idk if that's interesting to think of in the terms of how they might be advising him?#again this was the au office though not the uk one #and obviously writers not actors haha #probably very different #industry asks #welcome to my ama

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unicyclehippo · 4 years

Note

prompts?: beau - shattered OR jester - poisoned. physically or emotionally lol

haha i’ve got a great idea, y’all are gonna hate it

The fog that steams from the bull - the massive bull, its strange, swollen form gigantic in improbable ways, metal muscles strapped upon metal muscles - has them all coughing, lungs seizing. It isn’t like the poison that had splattered from the zombies only a couple days ago (and it’s that awful, isn’t that bizarre, that Jester can know such a thing, that she knows exactly what it feels like to be covered in the burning, pitting stuff). Breathing in the fog is like breathing in dust, the particles gritty on her tongue, and she can feel it coating the inside of her. She doesn’t realise, at first, what it does; Jester backs up out of the cloud, sleeve covering her mouth and nose (not that it helps) and looks for her friends.

When the fog settles, another layer of stone-dust over the brittle forest floor, they’re all still standing. Caleb is clutching to the roots of a big tree, Caduceus not far from him. Nott is hovering in mid-air - which is super fucking cool - and Yasha looks fucked up but intent on the bull. Fjord looks the worst out of all of them, bleeding heavily from where the bull had gored him.

And then she sees Beau.

She’s standing directly in front of the bull - has one arm cocked back, the other counterweight, legs braced. She looks like she’s about to punch the thing again. Only, her arm doesn’t move.

Grey begins to flake from around her mouth and nose so fast that Beau’s face doesn’t get the chance to change expressions from the deep, intense scowl she wears - her fighting face, with a little extra scowl thrown in after what the bull had done to Fjord. It’s good, in a way. That she’s scowling.

Jester wouldn’t know what to do if she looked scared.

The grey hardens. Disguises some of Beau’s features with the texture of stone and keeping others smooth and fine as though she had been lovingly scultped from it - the curl of an ear, the sharp cut of her left cheek and eyebrow, almost detailed enough to capture the bump of her scar. It continues. Down her neck, flooding down her body, over her clothes and the sparking gauntlets to the tips of her fingers, to her boots dug an inch into the sand and soil.

It happens so fast.

Someone screams.

The bull takes one step back and another. Yasha’s sword gleams, sunlight slicing through the air, catching on rust and blood; it screams as it makes contact with the beast, metal clawing across metal.

The bull ignores her. It lowers its head, scuffs its hooves into the sand and dirt. And it charges.

It happens so fast.

Beau is fighting the beast, then she is petrified, and then - then she’s gone.

Someone is screaming again and there is no doubt in Jester’s mind at all that it’s her. There’s no room for doubt; there isn’t enough room, even, for the agony that rips through her as she watches Beau shatter. The agony has to go somewhere and it rips from her throat, brittle like stone, cold as ice, and the bull is engulfed - a column of flame exploding from beneath its hooves. And a crown of ice, shards embedded deep into the forehead of the thing.

Jester doesn’t see it, doesn’t see the way she has lashed out at the thing. All she sees is Beau - the statue that was Beau - as it splinters into hundreds, thousands of pieces. Far too many pieces. Parts of her dust now.

Too soon, too soon, too soon. This doesn’t happen yet - Jester saved her from the fucking hag for this? This doesn’t get to take her yet.

The symbol is in her hands. Her hands are glowing, the symbol is glowing, both are glowing with a verdant light, and for an instant the world stands still.

They will tell her, later, that her eyes were glowing too. They do not tell her that she was still screaming. The world stood still and silent - silent, that is, save for Jester screaming Beau’s name.

The Traveller - Artagan - whoever he is - appears in a burst of that same green light. His hair is a wild mane around his head, leaves and twigs and a distressed looking beetle strewn throughout as though he had been dragged backwards through a hedge and deposited before her. He regains his composure with a bubbling laugh, opens his hands wide in welcome.

‘Jester! What a surprise!’ His smirk curls into a smile. ‘I didn’t know you could do that - how fascina-’

‘Heal her.’

The Traveller blinks. Turns to look over his shoulder. ‘Who - ah.’ The Traveller bends to examine the broken statue, touches just the tip of a long, white finger to one shattered portion and examines the dust that clings to his finger. When he stands again, turns back to face Jester, it is with a face of true and deep regret. ‘Jester,’

‘Heal her,’ Jester interrupts before he can say it.

‘Dear... There’s nothing I can do.’

‘Heal her!’

‘Healing I can do. Restoration, I can do, but this?’ He waves a hand toward Beau. What is left of her. ‘This is - not my domain. I’m - I’m sorry, Jester. Truly, I am.’

Jester stares up at him. For only the second time that she can clearly remember, she sees the face of the man who is her god and her mind empties of everything except for this white-hot agony that lances through her chest with every breath.

‘You - you need to at least try.’ He sucks in a breath, pain dark in those luminous eyes. He tries to step forward, to hug her, and she holds up a hand between them. The symbol - his symbol - still held in it so tight it bruises. ‘Please,’ she cries, ‘Please, Traveller.’

‘This isn’t my domain, Jester,’

‘None of this was your domain!’ she yells. Tries for anger, but cold tears pour down her cheeks. Cutting through the crusting stone-dust. ‘Being a god wasn’t your domain! But I’m your follower and you’re my god and - and - and you said that my faith changed you.’

The Traveller stares at her. His eyes shift from their glowing green to the dark of the forest floor, deep shadows. ‘That’s true,’ he agrees.

‘So, so, if I believe that you can do it, then...’

‘Then theoretically,’ he continues from where she trails off, and in the deep shadows of those eyes there is a glint of light, a golden spark hidden at the bottom of a deep, green still pool. ‘I could do it.’

Jester swallows. It hurts, her throat raw, stinging. ‘Not theoretically,’ she rasps. ‘You can do it. You have to do it.’

‘If you believe I can. Do you believe, Jester?’ he murmurs. ‘In me? That I can do this?’

Jester looks from him, to the statue, and back. ‘Yes.’

‘You have to be certain.’

‘This world isn’t right without Beau. It’s not - it’s not.’

The walls of this world, this space, this frozen time she has created shivers. Threatens to break along with her voice.

The Traveller reaches out and touches her chin. ‘You’ve learned a lot about me recently,’ he says softly. ‘It would shake the faith of anyone. Even you. But this? Your faith - in me, in her, in the way this world should be? I can work with this.’

He reaches out then, not with his hands but with his power, and begins to pull and pull and pull from her. It starts small, like the tickle of a healing spell, and then grows and pours and floods from her until it feels like every healing spell Jester has ever cast, every restoration, like a swarm of bees is trapped beneath her skin, and the tattoo that hugs around her shoulders begins to burn hot and cold and cold and cold and

She’s screaming still and it finally breaks as Jester collapses to her knees, breathing hard. Her fingers claw into the wet sand in clumps and she hacks, sucks in a rough breath.

‘Jester!’ A warm hand curls over her spine, another arm around her waist helping her up. The warmth blooms, sinks into her, soothing the scrape in her throat, the bruises and breaks in her skin. ‘Jester,’

‘Did it work?’

Yasha’s hand pauses in its wide circle. ‘Did what work?’

‘Did it - is she -’

‘Caleb got the bull -’

‘Not the bull, Yasha,’ Jester cries, and she pulls away, rips away from the reassuring touch. She can’t help the way her eyes flick up, drawn to where - ‘Beau.’

‘She’s - the bull did something,’ Yasha tells her, and the words come through faint. Like there’s cotton in Jester’s ears. ‘She’s stone. Like Caduceus’s family.’

Jester’s breath catches. She scrambles up despite the exhaustion that pulls at her like she is made of stone herself. Hurrying toward the statue, toward Beau, she sees the statue, the smooth, lovingly carved sculpture - sharp cheekbone and brow, the faintest hint of a scar. Exactly as she had been before.

‘I have something for this,’ Nott rasps, popping up at her side, and she begins to rifle in her satchel, glass beakers clinking in the depths of it. ‘It’s this oil, you have to use it within a minute of them being petrified,’

‘Then fucking do it!’

Nott scurries around Beau, climbs up onto her back and pours the oil over her shoulders, starts to work it into the stone and then her skin as the grey begins to fade, brown skin blooming out from underneath it.

Jester stares. Stares until the moment she sees blue eyes blink, stares until Beau drags in her first breath.

#cr tag #tagging my stories #prompt fill

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january-summers · 3 years

Text

I feel So Freaking Done right now.

When news first came out about Fate the Winx Saga, I was cautious. I’m aware of the history of adaptational media, it’s rarely super good, but I was willing to put my judgements on hold.

When the Trailer dropped I was disappointed: this wasn’t my Winx.

I tried to think of positive things, maybe the plot would at least be good? Maybe this show could be a good enough stand alone series that I could watch it as a young fantasy drama as long as I ignored what it was supposed to be.

Then I read the released chapters of the Novelisation and it felt like I was being spat on.

I’m an OG Winx fan, the folks behind the adaptation keep saying it’s for me, for my generation of fans.

Every time the novel mentioned something from the original series, it was not “hey, remember this, bringing it back so a whole new generation can love it,” it was instead “hey, remember this? isn’t it totally cringe? aren’t you so embarrassed that you liked that? it so lame! haha!”

It made me angry.

Especially when the novelisation spent so much time driving home the single personality traits of the characters and turning Stella into a sexed up version of Diaspro masquerading as Stella.

Learning that the show runners think they’re staying true to the show, that they’re letting the friendships shine felt like being slapped with a fish. It stung, startled and came out of nowhere.

My final tether of hope that there was something good in this show snapped today-

Over the course of the six-episode season, Bloom and her friends attend a few classes, get drunk at parties, and flirt with boys from the adjacent military academy—all while battling a mysterious threat in the form of creatures called the Burned Ones. The creatures seem to be connected to the main conflict of the season, which is about Bloom investigating her true origins and their link to her powers. It manages to feel simultaneously slow and rushed, with uneven pacing that never quite manages to resolve itself by the end. There were times I was super bored and tuned out, only for the next scene to jump in with a bunch of big events or expository dialogue that took me by surprise.

It’s also really dark. Not only do the Burned Ones leave a lot of bloody corpses in their wake (RIP sheepies from the opening scene), but there’s a substantial amount of sex and drugs and other “adult” content. I swear Fate can’t go three minutes without someone throwing out an F-bomb. All of that isn’t weird on its face, since showrunner Brian Young worked on The Vampire Diaries, but it is strange when you consider the origins of this show.

-when I found out about this article.

This show they said was for me? Isn’t for me. It was never for me.

I keep finding out new information, and being disappointed, and then hoping that it’s just pre-series vitriol, you know, the kind every fan gets when there’s a new big change in their series they haven’t had a chance to really see and get used to, and I start thinking: maybe it won’t be so bad when I get the chance to judge it in it’s complete form.

But I’m just... really tired.

I’m tired of being told “this series is for your demographic” and it’s dark and gritty and angry, and I’m tired of being dark and angry and gritty.

I want what I found in the OG Winx series.

#fate the winx saga

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blooms-of-ice · 3 years

Text

RP Log: Some time in the past, Wyda welcomes Sven to the company!

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn has spent the afternoon tending to the front yard. ‘Gardening’ (if you could call basically drowning plants in water that) and keeping everything tidy! With a broom gripped between her hands, she sweeps the stepping stones leading to the company building with a hum and a tune.

Sven Anovsch walks up slowly, seeing the person 'tending' to the lawn and stepping stones. This unsocialized Hrothgar walks just enough to not step on the stones before clearing his throat and speaking. "Ahem, you are employed here?"

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn stops sweeping and gives Sven a beaming smile. “Hello! Oh, yes! I’m employed.” A beat. She clears her throat. “I’m one of the officers of Heartwood. What can I help you with?”

Sven Anovsch blinks and forces his head back at the sudden almost excited and quick response. "A-ah. Well good then." He takes a few steps forward. "I have been loitering around that tavern? Hall?" He shrugs before continuing. "In Ul'dah. I saw a few fliers of other companies but figured I'd see if this was a proper one for me...." He realizes he is just talking to much. "I'm just looking for a position is all, what can I do to start that?"

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn steps to the left for a moment to lean her broom against the wall, and returns with her hands empty. She then presents an open hand to Sven and waits for him to shake it. “A recruit then? Welcome! All you have to do is shake on it.”

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “...Okay, there’s a bit more to it. I can walk you through what you can expect to do here, if you decide to join. Ahem. But we can get into the nitty gritty stuff inside over a cup of tea.”

Sven Anovsch cants his head looking down to her hand. "That...Is it? Ah, what of questions o- I see, I see. I will agree to that so far." He extends his hand to take hers for a shake. If it was just a normal shake, and no funny business, it would just be a normal but firm shake. Expected of an average Hrothgar.

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “Let’s head on in. If we stay out too long, then we might get a nasty sunburn.” She eyes Sven curiously, and is about to ask him if Hrothgar can even get a sunburn...but she holds her tongue. Wouldn’t be polite. Wyda steps away and pushes the building doors open, ushering the recruit inside.

Sven Anovsch just perks a brow, but nodding as he follows her lead. "Thanks." He says as he is ushered through the door.

Sven Anovsch takes a decent look around. "Interesting floor." He just stares at the ground now. Obviously completely confused on it and how it is even maintained here inside, though he focuses his attention back on Ais. "A nice building though. A lot better than some dingy building that some companies have." He gives a quick chuckle.

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn grins, suddenly feeling a little bashful even though it’s the house being complimented. “We take good care of the place...and we take good care of the members. One sec.”

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn grabs a folder of documents from the front table and then dashes over to the cafe. Bam, the papers go on the table. Bam, she brings over a pot of tea and a couple of sweets from the bakery. And then bam, she sits herself down and gestures for Sven to join her.

Sven Anovsch gives a nod. "It seems your company does take good care of the place." He follows along and sits down across from Ais. "Do you treat all recruits like this? Or is it a ploy to persuade anyone who wishes to join?" He smirks lightly. Is this a joke? Who knows, but now his eyes lay on the papers. A sigh and nothing further said as he stares.

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “All genuine! Nothing fake about this.” She grins, and then pulls out a pencil with the intent of filling out the form in front of her. She stops the moment she tries to fill the first square. “Shoot! What’s your name...what’s my name! I’m Wyda. Ahhh, I was so excited that I forgot the first step in talking with people.”

Sven Anovsch widens his eyes as he forgot himself as well. That's it...He blew it...Another awkward social interaction. He shakes his head before finally speaking. "Sven, it's Sven. Apologies." He sighs, shaking his head. He is better suited for working rather than talking most definitely. Stupid hermit Hroth.

(Sven Anovsch) Love it xD ) (Sven Anovsch) Sven just literally hasn't talked to anyone since he was like 14 or 15 and he is in his early 30's now haha ) (Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) he's pretty good at talkin for someone who hasn't talked for 15 years! O_O )) (Sven Anovsch) Lmfao well he's been here for like a few months aaand I don't feel like typing like that xD ) (Sven Anovsch) May seem awkward, but he's smartish. He tried suuuper hard to learn the language. We will go with that lmfao )

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “Sven! That’s a nice name. S-v-e-n...Sven.” Wyda fills in the first box. “So, we’re a group of adventurers from all sorts of places. Limsa Lominsa, Ul’dah, Coerthas...you name it. Why don’t you tell me a bit about yourself?”

Sven Anovsch is obviously not too excited to talk about himself, though he knows he must. "Thank you. Ah, well I am a warrior, of course. I have only recently came down from way up beyond Ishgard. You can imagine why I am sure. Though, I am not opposed to groundskeeping, brewing or stilling. But I still flourish with fighting, as it seems typical around here to be anyways." He wonders if that suffices.

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn nods as she listens and jots down notes based on what he’s telling her. Ishgard. Warrior. Groundskeeping. Brewing. “Quite a journey if you made it on foot. Now, we’ve got a gardener already, but I’m sure she won’t mind a helping hand now and again. But brewing...now that’s interesting! Erm..” Her eyes light up as her inner alcoholic tries to make itself known. Wyda scrunches her face for a second and forces it back down.

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “Ahem. ‘Fighting’ is generally how we pay the bills. Guard jobs, hunts, you name it. It’s dangerous, but everyone here is someone you can trust your life with. And if you -do- get hurt, we’ve got a clinic in house.”

Sven Anovsch actually smiles and nods. "Yes, was mainly on foot until I got a bit of coin to be able to afford going down to Ul'dah. A fellow Hrothgar told me it is friendliest to travelers there? Or at least to him. But...I've been stilling a few things for many summers, I've tried a bit at brewing. Not as tasty as like stilling mead or just the stuff that makes you pass out, but good regardless." He chuckles for a moment before continuing. "Seems with at least fighting, I fit in, yes?"

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn leans back in her chair. Ah, Ul’dah...the city of opportunity, but also the city of shady deals. “Before I found Heartwood, I went to Ul’dah too. Nice enough place, but I’m glad to be where I am now. And I think you’ll fit right in - you’ll find we’re all weird in our own way.”

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “Do you think you could show me how to brew alcohol sometime? I’m a bit of a...” Her mind searches for the right word. Drunk? Accurate, but no. “I’m a connessier.”

Sven Anovsch smiles warmly at that. "It's a bit barren down in Ul'dah. Opposite of what I am used to, but I suppose it does have good food." He chuckles before continuing. "I'd be happy to show you though. It takes a while, but if you do it right, it comes out quite good. By my standards at least."

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn fills a cup of tea for herself and Sven. “I’m sure I’ll enjoy it! When you make something with love, then it will always taste good.” Wyda says this with absolute seriousness, completely unaware of how cheesy she’s being. God, the cheese.

Sven Anovsch blinks at that. Feta cheese. "Yes...Or just the good quality hops." He chuckles looking down to the cup of tea she poured for him. He reaches to pick it up, giving it a sniff before continuing. "How many members are working here?"

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn similarly picks up her teacup and wraps her hands around it, appreciating its warmth. “Hm...60 to 70. But some folk are the type to return home in a blue moon while they’re doing their own thing. Certainly, there are regulars like myself. And if you hang around the bar, you’re sure to see the same faces quite a bit.”

Sven Anovsch gives a nod. "Then perhaps I will linger around here more often. I'm assuming this company also partakes in contracts that require bigger groups?" He sips at his tea which leads to an odd reaction. Not a displeased one, but one of just curiosity as he sniffs the tea again? why? He takes another sip and just holds it under his face a bit as he waits for her response.

(Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) lmao what is this strange hot leaf juice xD )) (Sven Anovsch) Lmfao, he's used to his shitty teas he learned to make which are essentially just random shit mixed together. Comes to Eorzea and holy shit there's good tasting tea? Not just 'medicinal' kinds? haha )) (Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) now he's in the lap of luxury, comparatively ))

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “Yeah, maybe...once or twice a month. Depends on whether Eorzeas on fire or not.” She shrugs her shoulders with a lighthearted chuckle. “We’ve fought all sorts of things. Amal’jaa, robot spiders, an aether sucking auracite...It can get pretty dangerous, not gonna lie. I much prefer the time between jobs where we can just kick back and relax.”

Sven Anovsch cants his head. "Robot spiders...?" That's a new one to him. Robot? He shrugs. "Complacency can kill someone, so don't let yourself get too comfortable and relaxed." There it is, the boneheaded Hrothgar attitude. "So, you have me convinced. I'd like to join. What all must I do?"

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn sighs. How she wishes she could relax forever...but she can’t. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she was slacking around while others risked life and limb for the good of Eorzea. “Not much. Just sign here, and here.” Wyda points to two spots on the forms. They’re the usual stuff found on free company applications. The company isn’t responsible for any untimely deaths, a promise to represent the company in a positive light, etc...

Sven Anovsch can't read...What does he do...He looks over where she pointed but somehow already lost his place on where he is supposed to sign...Sign..? What does that exactly mean. "Uhm..." Is all he says.

(Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) oh noo )) (Sven Anovsch) Lmao BUT HOW DID HE FIND THIS PLACE?!?! wonder of the universe lmfao lots of awkward interactions in asking for help lmfao )) (Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) the universe is a magical and mysterious place............... )) (Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) wyda isn't much sharper tbh ))

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn looks up at Sven, then down at the paper, and then back up. You can practically hear the gears move in her head. “Oh! Umm, just. Just do this. Please hold still.” Wyda tries to blacken the Sven’s fingertip with the end of her pen, in an attempt to use his fingerprints in lieu of a signature.

Sven Anovsch just lets her do what she is doing. "I think I understand..." He then takes his freshly inked fingertip and just makes a smudge with it. Not a fingerprint...A smudge... He looks up smiling. "There! It all works, yes? I must admit, I am quite excited to see where this company can take me. It smells positive here, which is a good thing before going out and fighting or something like that, yes?"

(Sven Anovsch) I try to fill in logic holes as I go lmfao. )) (Aiswyda Nuthalwyn) fdsf this is cracking me up ))

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn picks up the paper and holds it against the light. The smudge is immediately noticeable, like a bowling ball in a field of snow. “Hm.”

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “Perfect!” She practically glows with positive energy.

Aiswyda Nuthalwyn: “And I’m excited to welcome you to Heartwood! So I’ll say it again...welcome, friend!”

Sven Anovsch perks up even more. "Great! I shall eventually bring all my brewing stuff over. I'll even let you use it as you wish. Best way to learn is just experiment." He chuckles. "But, I look forward to working with the people here." And a confident nod at the end there.

#ff14 rp logs #Aiswyda Nuthalwyn #Sven Anovsch #very wholesome but also very much like #1 braincell shared between these two haha #the signing part LOL #the everything tbh

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myhockeyworld87 · 5 years

Text

Nervous Regrets - Tyler Seguin - Part 9

Word Count: 4708

POV: Reader

Warning: Hmmm I may have not used a curse word, but I can’t be sure...haha!

Notes: Sorry this took so long to post. I was hoping to get more writing done this weekend, but it didn’t happen. Then the internet was down most of today because of a storm. At any rate, here’s part 9, the one where you tell your parents. Enjoy!

The trip down to your parent’s was completely uneventful; Tyler and you chatted about nothing of consequence for most of the ride. A sense of déjà vu hit you, this was your little ritual at times with Tyler; chatting essentially about nothing when he was on the road until he would have to get ready for the game. It was fairly easy to fall back into old habits with him; though you prayed some habits would be broken.

Turning onto the street where you grew up, your stomach got queasy; however it had nothing to do with the baby. An overwhelming sense of dread hit you that you were finally going to have to tell your parents everything that had happened in the last few weeks; well, not everything, some things were better left unsaid. They could be demanding at times, more so your mom than your dad. It seemed as though she always sought perfection in each of her children; that she couldn’t see that your imperfections were what made you unique, was a struggle in your relationship. You were sure that she’d see your reconnection with Tyler as one of the biggest mistakes of your life; praying, you hoped she wouldn’t see the baby that way as well.

Pulling into the drive you took a deep breath and gathered your courage. Grabbing your bag, striding through the front door, you said, “Hello, it’s your favorite daughter.” Technically you were their only daughter; so by default you were their favorite. Rushing from the kitchen, they came out to greet with hugs.

“You made great time,” this from your dad as he led the way back to the kitchen. “We’ve got your favorites in the oven for dinner.”

“It smells delicious.”

Busying herself cleaning up dishes that were dirty from food prep, your mom added, “You’re looking more yourself this time. Things must be going well with Robert.”

Leave it to mom, to just get right down to the nitty gritty; if she only knew the real Robert. “We’re not seeing each other anymore.”

“Really? I thought he was so nice, and from such a good family. Didn’t you two go out last weekend?”

Questions never ended with her, and it seemed as though she remembered every insignificant detail that you’d ever told. “It just wasn’t meant to be mom.”

“Can’t you see she doesn’t want to talk about it.”

“Thanks dad. So how have things been here? The big bad world of investment banking treating you well dad?” He always thought daddy’s little girl could do no wrong; hopefully he’d still be thinking that in a few hours.

“Works been great. We just won another trip.”

“Excellent, where are you off to now?” The investment banking business had been good to your family; affording them many luxuries in life. A nice home, financial stability and adventurous vacations were just some of the benefits your family had received from your dad’s hard work.

“Your father is in his glory with this trip, they’re sending us on an Alaskan cruise.”

“Oh wow, that sounds amazing. Are you going to go fishing up there?” It was one of the interest both he and Tyler shared; they would spend endless hours chatting about what flies and lures to use. It all seemed a little mundane to you.

“I’m hoping to. There’s a couple guys on the trip that want to take a float plane in and do some fly fishing.”

“Oh, Ty….” Shit you were almost going to say Tyler would love that but quickly you caught yourself. Coughing hoping to cover up the slip; you went and grabbed a water out of the fridge. “Sorry, throat’s a little dry from the drive, but that sounds amazing.” The timer went off on the stove; you were literally saved by the bell from having to answer anything more.

Dinner went well, you caught them up on what was going on with work, and things that were happening with your friends; that you kept leaving out the most important information, wasn’t by accident. There was never going to be a right time. So as you loaded the last of the plates into the dishwasher; you decided there was no time like the present. Sitting back down at the table, feeling your heart beat fast, you started. “So, I’ve kind of have some big news to tell you.” Preparing both you and them; you paused briefly. “It’s kind of complicated…and well….I didn’t expect it at all.” Ugh you were no good at this, maybe you should start again. “Anyhow, I ran into Tyler; and we’ve been talking. We’re getting back together.”

“OH (Y/N), you’ve got to be kidding me.” There was disapproval dripping from your mother’s voice. “After everything that he did, how can you even contemplate taking him back.” Your dad remained silent.

“Well there’s actually more.” It was kind of like ripping off a bandage, you were either the type of person to take it off nice and slow, or one that ripped it off all at once; all at once was your choice at the moment. “So I’m pregnant, and before you ask its Tyler’s. And yes, it’s part of the reason we are getting back together, but it’s not the whole reason. I love him. I never stopped loving him and I just want the best for all of us. And he’s really trying, I think this time things will be different.”

“Don’t you know once a cheater, always a cheater?” Your mother would focus on that as the most important part of anything you’d just said.

“People can change mom. Is that how you feel about Sean? Because I believe he was the one who cheated on Kristen. Are you saying that he’ll do it on Jessica as well?” It wasn’t right throwing your brother under the bus when he wasn’t even here to defend himself; however, his first marriage had ended because he’d cheated on his ex-wife. That it was with his current wife shouldn’t matter.

“You know that’s different.”

“Is it? I don’t think so mom. It’s only different because Sean is your son. But look he’s been married to Jessica now for five years and things are great with them. I don’t think he’d ever cheat on her. But even if he did, if they love each other can’t they both find a way to work through it.”

“She does have a point.” This from your dad as he watched the exchange between you too. “But I think you’re missing the point here dear. Our daughter just told us she’s having a baby.” He grabbed your hand then and gave it a gentle squeeze; tears started to well in your eyes. Inhaling deeply you closed your eyes willing them not to slip out; the last thing you needed to show your parents now was weakness.

“You’re making a horrible mistake.”

It was all you let your mother say, “My child is not a mistake mother. I will never look at him or her like that. I love Tyler and I love our baby. So please do not say that again.”

“I meant you taking Tyler back is a mistake, not the…” She waved her hands motioning to your belly, as if the word baby had too many syllables in it and she couldn’t get them out. You knew this wouldn’t be easy, but you didn’t expect her to be so negative about your pregnancy.

Growing up you’d constantly butted heads with your mother; in the last few years you’d thought that rift had mended. Though right now it was as if foreshocks were coming across a fault line; preparing you for an earthquake bigger than any that had happened before. “It’s a baby mom, you can say the word.”

“Yes I know what it is. I just don’t feel that you are going about this the right way.”

“And what’s the right way? Don’t you think I would’ve loved to have been married before I was pregnant? Because I would, but sometimes things don’t go the way we envision it.” A tear slid down your cheek, angrily you wiped it away; hating the way you always cried even when you were frustrated.

“Is this why you broke up with Robert?”

That was it, you snapped. “Fuck, Robert mom. He’s nothing but a self-absorbed child that forces himself on people when he doesn’t get what he wants. He has absolutely nothing to do with this. This is about my baby, the one I’m having with Tyler. If you can’t get that through your head, then that’s your problem.” Shoving yourself out of the chair you stood up, anger emanating off of you. “I knew this would be hard for you, but you’ve either got to learn to accept that Tyler is in my life or I don’t need to be in yours. Do you understand me?” Silence ensued, neither one of your parents saying a word. Shaking from the encounter; this was the first time you’d been this forceful with your parents. “I need some air.” Grabbing your purse, you headed out the door straight to your car.

Pulling out of the driveway, you tried to calm your nerves. In your teenage years, after certain rows with your mom; you’d often just go for a drive. Coming back things always looked clearer; you weren’t so sure this time. Aimlessly you drove around, no real destination in mind; until you found yourself parked in front of your brother Matt’s home. Matt was always the voice of reason growing up; he’d put out more fires between you and your mom than you could recall. You’d often joke that he was her favorite; even though he was the middle child. His front door opened, long strides had him standing by your car in no time.

“Hey brat, are you going to sit in the car all night or are you coming in?”

“Are my favorite kiddos in the world here?” Matt had two little ones, a girl and a boy, Rylynn and Reese; they were by far one of the best reasons for coming home.

“Nah, Melissa took them to get ice cream. She thought maybe we’d need some time to talk.” Giving him a quizzical side eye; he answered you before you could even give voice to your thoughts. “Dad text me, and said you and mom had it out.”

“Did he say anything else?”

“Nope, I was hoping you’d fill me in.” Getting out of the car, you followed him into the house. Strewn across the floor were dozen of toys, but instead of looking unkempt; it looked homey and inviting. Your mind conjured a time when your home with Tyler would look the same, only with three dogs milling around as well.

Sitting at the kitchen island, you sighed heavily. “Where do I start?”

“How about the beginning?”

“Well….Tyler and I are back together.” Matt, god bless him, didn’t say anything; just raised his eyes slightly. “I know. We’re working things out. Not gonna lie, I don’t trust him one hundred percent, yet. That’s going to take time, but I love him Matt. I’ve always loved him.”

When you didn’t say anything more, he added, “So mom’s pissed about that huh?”

“Wait…there’s more.” Eyebrows going up further this time, “I’m pregnant.”

“Oh…wow…ok.” He took a moment, regathering himself. “Congratulations little sis. You’re going to be a great mom.” The dam let loose, a flood of tears just coming out of your eyes; Matt came over grabbing you in a hug, as you sobbed. This is what you needed, that one person that believed in you; had faith that you were making the right decision.

Getting your emotions under control, you pulled back; looking up at your brother, you hiccupped out a “Thank you.” Why couldn’t your parents be like this; well correction really your mom. Your dad really didn’t get a chance to voice his opinion.

“Look sis, I’m gonna give it to you straight ok?” If there was one thing about your brother, it was that he never pulled any punches; but sometimes it was better to just take your medicine without sugar coating it. “Mom’s always been tougher on you. I have a few guesses as to why, but that’s for another conversation. Essentially, she only wants the best for you, for all of us really. I don’t think you know how hard it was for her to watch you go through the shit you went through with Tyler. Look at it from her point of view once; you’re going to be a mom now. What if your baby is a little girl and her boyfriend cheated on her; now take it one step further and watch her go through it in a public scandal. How would you feel?” He paused letting his words sink into your brain. “I know how I’d feel if it was Rylynn. It would be really hard to hear that she’s getting back together with him; and having his baby. You need to give her time; she’ll come around.”

Why did your brother always have to make so much sense; he seemed to have a way of putting things so that you could see it from your mother’s side. You’d only known you were pregnant for four weeks now, and you already loved your child so much, that you would do anything for him or her; now multiply that love by twenty some years. Going through your own heart ache is one thing; watching someone you love go through it, and not be able to help, that pain would be gut wrenching. “I see your point. Maybe I’m being a tad unreasonable. It’s just…”

Cutting you off, before you could say anything more; “I know you love him, and you’re right; mom can be irrational about these things. Ultimately, it’s your life (Y/N), and she has to let you live it; and she will. But like all of us, she’s going to be leery of him for a while. I’m telling you right now, if he does something stupid again; I’ll beat the fucking shit out of him.”

Smiling at that, you knew your brother would defend you within an inch of his own life. Truth was he could whip Tyler’s ass with one had tied behind his back. Matt had been a state champion wrestler in high school, as well as running back for the football team; he’d maintained that physical robustness even years after graduating. While he’d never been one to go looking for a fight; he could hold his own with some of the best. “I’m banking on you not having to go that far, but thanks for the offer. Thanks for everything, you always know just what to say.”

“I’ve got your back sis, not matter what; even if it comes down between you and mom on this one. Which it won’t. Now please tell me how all this went down, to my knowledge you haven’t seen Tyler, for what three months?” When you nodded your head, he continued. “So, you’re what thirteen or fourteen weeks pregnant? Have you known that long and seriously not said something to your favorite brother?”

Spending the next thirty minutes, you filled Matt in on everything that went down. That was until four little feet came running through the door; both yelling for your attention, which you happily gave them. At ages three and five they were full of energy but also full of love. The three of you played with all the toys in the family room for the next hour; while Matt, you assumed, filled Melissa in on everything. Helping Melissa with their bath time ritual, you thought about bathing your own little one soon. The three of you then snuggled into the couch and watched the Stars play for a bit before bedtime. In no time the two of them were asleep; you always had that light tickle touch and would rub their little backs, putting them right to sleep. Matt carried them upstairs as you finished watching the game; the Stars falling to the Blues. Tyler had played well but you knew he’d beat himself up about the loss.

Matt came back downstairs then, “I put the kids in Reese’s room, so you can have Rylynn’s bed. I also took the liberty of texting dad and telling him you’ll be back over in the morning.” He really was the sweetest brother in the whole world.

“Thanks, but all my stuff is at their house.”

“It’s one night, you can just borrow something of mine to sleep in.” This from Melissa as she was picking up the stray toys on the floor; getting up you helped her. “So now that the kiddos are asleep, tell me how you’re feeling? Is the nausea gone? Because it seemed like mine lasted the whole pregnancy.”

“I’ve been pretty good lately. The PA we saw this week, wants me to gain more weight, which I’m trying.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. It seemed like I ballooned out and wasn’t even trying. It’ll happen. Are you going to find out if you’re having a boy or a girl?”

“Well as you know we (Y/LN)’s like surprises in life. So nope, we aren’t finding out.”

“See I told you Melissa, you can’t ruin the only one true surprise of life.”

“Ugh…I really wanted to know, and this one right here wasn’t having any of it. I think I heard that no true surprise in life thing, until I was going to puke; which sometimes I did.” Laughing she went over to Matt. “But honestly it was the best moment, when the doctor’s like you have a little boy or girl, since we got both.” Matt and Melissa were amazing parents; you could only hope you and Tyler would be just as good. “Come up and I’ll give you some clothes to sleep in and stuff. I’m sure you’re exhausted from the day.”

“Yeah I kind of am, but I’m trying to stay awake to talk to Tyler for a bit.”

Walking into Matt and Melissa’s bedroom, she asked, “So how is that going? Are you happy?”

“I am and I think Tyler has really changed. I know he loves me and the baby. I think we can make this work. I just hope that eventually everyone will accept him again.” Even after your conversation with Matt, you still had doubts in the back of your head about your mom coming to grips with the whole situation.

“Everything will be fine, you’ll see. Especially after that little one is born. You know, you can call me with any questions about being pregnant or babies. I know I asked my sister a ton of questions when I was pregnant.”

You’re brother had the best wife ever; Melissa was sweet, kind and an excellent mom. “Thanks, I’m sure I’ll be taking you up on that.” Handing you some pajamas, you made your way to the bathroom to change; then said a quick good night to Matt and Melissa. Putting your phone on vibrate, you laid in bed waiting for Tyler to call. The walls were covered in a light shade of pink; Disney princesses scattered here and there. It was perfect for a little girl; and had you dreaming of what you wanted to do your baby’s room in.

The phone buzzed then, “Hey you, sorry about the game, thought you guys were going to pull it out there in the end.”

“Yeah, it wasn’t one of our best, that’s for sure.” Tyler’s voice carried a hint of disappointment; that seemed to melt away with his next comment. “How are my babies doing?”

“We’re good. Just fighting off sleep so I can talk to you.”

“So how’d it go today with telling your parents?”

“You don’t want to know. Let’s just say, I’m staying at Matt’s tonight.”

“That bad huh?”

Your mind drifted back to your argument with your mom; you debated on how much to tell Tyler. “Well there was no congratulations going around that was for sure. I didn’t think it would be easy, but I didn’t expect it this bad either. Though Matt has been a god send. I’m going to go over tomorrow, with a new perspective; and hopefully things will be better.”

“Look (Y/N), I know I’ve got a lot of repair work to do with your family; probably more than I do with you. But I’m going to show them, that they couldn’t ask for a better man for their daughter and sister, than me. They’ll come around in time I’m sure.”

“I know you’ll do everything you can Ty, but you’re right it will take a little time. But we’ve got that.” Hopefully you could mend some of the rift tomorrow; which would help shave off some of that time.

“Have you been eating?”

Ever your personal trainer in baby weight gain, Tyler would ask that question. “Of course I did. Plus the kids brought me ice cream.”

“How are those two munchkins?”

“They’re great. They were excited to see you play. Reese even wore his Stars pajamas to bed tonight. I know they’re excited to see you.” Their sweet innocence had protected them against all the negative criticism directed towards their Uncle Ty, as they referred to him; they still loved and missed him being around.

“Awww that’s sweet, I can’t wait to see them.” He yawned, which in turned made you do the same; both of you exhausted from the day. “You know I could talk to you all night, but I should probably let you get some sleep.”

“Yeah, I think we’re both pretty tired. Call me tomorrow when you land?”

“Of course babe. Get some rest and good luck tomorrow. I love you.”

“I love you too. Sleep well.”

With that you hung up the phone and drifted off into a dreamless sleep; not waking up until streams of light came streaking through the window. Rolling over checking your phone for the time, you found that it was just shy of eight. Willing yourself to have a positive attitude for the day; you got up. Voices floated upstairs; you knew the kids were up. It was one in particular that caught your attention; distinctly you recognized the laugh as your mom’s. Well there was no time like the present; so, you glided down the stairs making your presence known.

“Morning,” you greeted the group.

Two little forms came hurling at you, “Aunt (Y/N) you’re awake, yay!!” Embracing them in a big group hug, you kissed them both on the head; drawing strength from their exuberance.

Slowly you made your way over to your mom, who remained at the kitchen table as you drew near. “Alright kiddos, time to get ready for school.” Melissa ushered the kids upstairs quickly, giving you some privacy; Matt trailing after her, mouthing the words, good luck.

Deciding to break the ice first, you said, “Hi mom.” Awkwardly you sat down next to her. “Look I’m really….” She halted anything else you were going to say by putting her hand up.

“Please don’t say anything else. Look I thought a lot about our conversation yesterday, and I’m sorry. I didn’t handle myself or the situation very well.” Blinking, had your mother actually apologized; it had to be the first time that ever happened. “You’re a grown woman now, and I sometimes forget that; because you’re always going to be my baby girl. I just love you so much and only want the best for you and if that includes Tyler; then I am one hundred percent behind you.” There were tears welling in both of your eyes. “I just can’t believe my baby is going to have a baby. I’m so happy for you sweetie, I really am.”

With that she stood up and just enveloped you in her arms; both of you crying happy tears. “Thanks mom, I’m so sorry about yesterday too.”

“Shhh. I don’t want to hear anything about that; we’re just going to put it all behind us.” Holding you at her arm’s length, she continued; “Now, tell me everything. Well wait let’s go grab breakfast somewhere; I know your brother has to get off to work and such.” Gathering your stuff you headed out with your mom to fill her in.

The next twenty-four hours were like a whirlwind. During the day you and your mom gallivanted throughout town; stopping for pedicures and manicures and just doing mother daughter things. You spoke to Tyler for a spell as well; then the family headed out for dinner. On Saturday, your brother Sean and his wife, Jessica, headed up from Houston for a family get together. The day was full of joy and laughter, as you chased the kids around the lawn and reminisced with your family about all the memorable times you’d had; as well as the new ones that you were going to make.

Busying yourself in the kitchen, since your dad had requested one of your famous homemade cakes; you hunted around for an extra bag of flour. “Mom, I can’t seem to find the flour. Did you move it or something?”

“Damn, I think I forgot to buy that the last time I was at the store.”

“That’s why you always take a list dear.” This from your dad, as he stole a piece of fruit from the bowl you’d been cutting up.

Playfully you smacked your dad’s hand, scolding him; “You know I won’t have enough for the cake if you keep eating it. I’ll just run to the store and go get some.”

“I’ll come with you.” Your brother Sean piped in; not having a chance to really get a one on one conversation with you since he’d learned about everything. “But I’m driving, you’re a horrible driver, sis.”

“Oh really? I’m not the one with three speeding tickets, mister lead foot.”

Taking his hand he clamped it over your mouth, “Shhh, mom doesn’t know about those.”

Whispering low, “Seriously, you’re afraid to tell mom about that.”

“What can I say?” Giving him a sympathetic look; for you knew exactly where he was coming from. “Toss me your keys, your cars at the end of the driveway.” Getting in the car, the two of you headed to the store. “So, how are you doing, I mean with everything? It’s got to be a lot.”

“Yeah, it is; but I’m really happy. Tyler’s been pretty great about everything.” He glanced at you questioningly. “I know, it’s kind of hard to believe; but he’s really trying. I didn’t say anything to anyone yet, but he bought us a new house. He told me yesterday that the seller’s accepted our bid.”

“Woah, that’s big; so obviously you’ve moved back in with him.” “Not yet, but once the papers are finalized; I’ll move into the new house with him.” The excitement in Tyler’s voice yesterday, was contagious; and had you just as thrilled to move into your new home together. “I’m looking at it as a fresh start for us.”

“That’s great sis. I’m happy for you.” The light was red, turning over to look at you, he become all serious. “I can’t believe you’re going to be a mom. You know you’re always going to be my pesky little sister though; who I’d do anything for. So if you ever need anything, anything at all I’m here. All you have to do is say the word.”

Pregnancy hormones really sucked; you seemed to be a weepy mess all the time. Looking over at your brother, eyes shining with tears; you loved your family so much that sometimes it just couldn’t be put into words. The light changed then and you proceeded through the intersection. That’s when you saw it; a car barreling towards you. “Sean look out!” It was the last thing you said; hands went instinctively around your mid-section to protect the baby from the impact. Please God let us all be ok; it was the last thing you thought, as your head smacked the passenger window and everything went completely black.

Side Note: Please don’t threaten to punch me in the face like one of my best friend’s did after reading this...hahah! Peace, love and hugs y’all!!!!

#tyler seguin #tyler seguin imagine #tyler seguin imagines #dallas stars #dallas stars imagine #dallas stars imagines #nhl imagines #nhl imagine #nhl fanfic #hockey imagines #hockey imagine #hockey fanfiction

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queenpersephonesgarden · 4 years

Text

from my song to yours

Wangxian Week Day 2: Music

“Perhaps we should save the rest of our speculations for the morning.”

Lan Wangji blinked gritty eyes and looked up from where he’d once again been studying the malevolent disembodied arm currently floating just above the qiankun bag it was normally kept in, meeting Wei Ying’s eyes across the table.

“Already?” he asked, mildly surprised; more than one memory of cheerful laughter and quicksilver smiles shining in the light of the moon served to remind him just how late into the night Wei Ying preferred to work and play in equal measure, and one quick glance out the window confirmed the moon hadn’t even fully risen into the sky yet. “You’re tired?”

Wei Ying snorted a laugh, a lovely, light-hearted sound that seemed appropriate coming from a face as young as the one he now wore.

“No, no, I’ll be fine for another four hours at least.”

A finger rose to point accusingly right at Lan Wangji’s face, who blinked placidly.

“The investigation can wait for tomorrow because of you! I know all about you Lans and your ridiculous nine o’clock sleeping schedule!”

Can also be read on AO3

He was worried… about the Lan sleep schedule?

Lan Wangji raised a placating hand. “I am fine.”

“Are you?” the rising of Wei Ying’s right eyebrow was entirely skeptical.

Confusion made Lan Wangji’s own eyebrows furrow the slightest bit. “Night hunts often run far past midnight on serious cases-”

“But this isn’t a serious case,” Wei Ying interrupted, then quickly amended “Well, it is serious, but it’s not the kind of case we can solve in a single night of staring intensely at the problem, so instead of doing that, we should focus more on things we can achieve in a single night. Like sleep!”

Without waiting for Lan Wangji to attempt a response Wei Ying swept the resentful arm back into its pouch, tying the bag firmly shut before setting it back down on the table where they could easily keep an eye on it.

When Wei Ying stood, Lan Wangji haltingly tried to slow him down from heading back to sleep in his own room next door. “We. Don’t have to-”

“Hanguang-jun.” One eyebrow rose imperiously as Wei Ying scrutinized him with too-dark gray eyes. “If we go any longer, you’ll sleep in past noon and bring some calamitous dishonor upon your ancestors. How would the Cloud Recesses ever recover?”

Such a bizarre statement said with such gravity almost made Lan Wangji reach across and press fingers to Wei Ying’s forehead, thinking perhaps he had somehow contracted an unnoticed fever, before the slightest shine of amusement in Wei Ying’s eyes gave it away.

Ah.

Still playing the madman he’d been reincarnated into.

While he wished fiercely Wei Ying didn’t feel the need to keep up the act around him, Lan Wangji couldn’t deny that it was… nice, to be the focus of this strange farce, because as elaborate as it is it still feels intensely familiar.

It was such a nonsensical, roundabout way of showing concern.

It was unnecessary.

It was bizarre.

It was- it was exactly the kind of ridiculous game he would have tried to play in their youth, reaching across a sun-dappled table in the Library Pavilion to tug at Lan Wangji’s sleeve, crying dramatically, “But who in their right mind is ever tired at nine o’clock, hah?”

The tidal wave of nostalgia makes it hard to keep steady when he stands from the table.

Wei Ying, eyes sharp as ever even in a new body, caught the infinitesimal slip in posture and grinned triumphantly. “See? I was right all along!”

“Of course.”

Two slim hands laced their fingers together and rose up above Wei Ying’s head in a languid stretch. “Well, I suppose I better leave you to sleep,” he sighed contentedly.

Stay.

The thought comes unbidden, but not unexpected; letting Wei Ying leave his sight for any length of time since his return has been difficult.

The reluctance in his silence must be truly palpable, because Wei Ying pauses and looks back at Lan Wangji despite not allowing even a single muscle in his face to so much as twitch in protest.

Dark gray eyes light up with some unspeakable mischief. Lan Wangji does not glare as he once would have as a teenager, another stark difference from his memories.

“Aiya,” Wei Ying bat his eyelashes in an outrageously flirtatious manner. “Would the great and noble Hanguang-jun like this one to sing him to sleep?”

Despite the sour pang in the pit of his stomach at the tease, the clash of foreign-familiarity of the new face and old mannerisms had Lan Wangji responding without thinking especially hard about it. “Mn. If you wish.”

Wei Ying stared, frozen in an exaggerated coquettish pout.

Lan Wangji stared back, resolutely keeping his expression as blank as ever even as his ears grew hot. He refused to regret the slip.

“….. huh.” Wei Ying said intelligently, looking genuinely poleaxed, and if Lan Wangji were a pettier person he might have felt the slightest bit smug for their positions during many an afternoon in their youth to be reversed. But he didn’t, of course, because the Second Jade of Lan was not petty.

“Haha, um, I don’t know very many songs suited for a lullaby.” Desperate verbal backtracking was something Lan Wangji had never expected to see the most shameless person he’d ever known do, but there it was.

Lan Wangji turned and padded over to the bed, fingers trailing up to pull the pins that held his hair in place out with a confidence he didn’t really feel. “You are clever. I am sure you can think of something appropriate.”

A strangled sound came from behind him, and for the first time in a very long time, Lan Wangji resisted the urge to smile the slightest bit.

Yes, being the one to initiate the teasing was far more enjoyable than getting teased himself, he decided.

For a moment he balked the slightest bit at the thought of slipping into bed with Wei Ying still in the room, the far more recent memory of his warm weight laying across him making his breath catch, but Lan Wangji could admit to himself that he was always stubborn to a fault; if either of them was going to back out of this, it wouldn’t be him.

So, he slipped into bed, and did a rather remarkable job of keeping an expectant look off his face when he glanced over at where Wei Ying was still standing rather awkwardly next to the table with the qiankun pouch.

Wei Ying stared back, still clearly flummoxed, but rallying to the challenge.

A softer grin painted his new face in a different way under the moonlight, and Lan Wangji felt his heart stutter.

“Oh, don’t worry, er-gege~,” Wei Ying said cheerfully in that way that always made an aborted shiver run down Lan Wangji’s spine. “I think I know just the right song for someone as lovely as you to drift off to!”

And because time was cruel and heartbreak was his oldest friend, he began to hum the song Lan Wangji had written himself in the throes of frustrated, sun-drenched love as a teenager, and his blood froze solid.

This was-

This was a mistake.

This was a mistake, and Lan Wangji was a fool, but if he asked Wei Ying to stop, to sing something else, he would ask why, and Lan Wangji-

He couldn’t.

His eyes fell shut, but only because looking at Wei Ying as he was now, happy and lovely in the muted candlelight and singing the song Lan Wangji wrote for him, felt too raw.

The only solace, Wei Ying knew the melody, but that was it. He’d never heard the lyrics before, the words Lan Wangji had slowly dared to thread through the harmony during thirteen years of waiting. Thirteen years of yearning. Thirteen years of missing Wei Ying with every breath of air in his lungs.

But that was alright, because those painful words were still locked behind Lan Wangji’s heart, and the melody was still all that was needed for an impromptu lullaby.

It seemed a much kinder reversal of the first time Lan Wangji had sang it to Wei Ying, trapped deep within a cave with no guaranteed escape, the both of them injured and wracked with fever for days on end.

Yet it was also strangely crueler, because despite the gentler setting they were still so very far apart. In the cave, at least Lan Wangji had been able to touch Wei Ying, to try and soothe him between intermittent bouts of shivering on the cold stone floor.

Here, now, Wei Ying hummed the song that had taken root in Lan Wangji’s heart on the night they had first met, and Lan Wangji desperately tried not to drown.

Do you know?

Do you know what that song means to me?

Did it ever mean the same to you?

In the wide empty space of the bed, fingers clench almost painfully hard around a handful of fabric.

Did it ever mean anything to you?

Only decades of discipline kept his face as smooth as unfeeling jade when the song tapered off slowly, Wei Ying’s voice – so different from before, slightly higher in a not unpleasant contrast to Lan Wangji’s even tones – growing quieter and quieter with each repetition until he ended it with a deep, quiet sigh that tugged incessantly at Lan Wangji’s heart; the voice was different, but the cadence was exactly the same.

I know you, some wild thing shrieked in Lan Wangji’s head. I know you, how could I not? How could you ever think I would forget how you are when you’re happy?

A rustle of fabric, a squeak of a floorboard as Wei Ying stepped away with a small sound of satisfaction, a soft breath of air as the candle was blown out.

“Good night Lan Zhan.”

He must have turned away, must be focusing on something else, because if he were still looking at the bed there is no way he could have possibly missed the way Lan Wangji’s hands spasmed reflexively at the sound of his name.

For several heartbeats it’s all he can do just to keep breathing through it, the terrible heaviness clamped hard around his chest in an agonizingly familiar way.

He breathes in deeply, twice, three times, long years of meditation serving him well in getting his breathing back under control.

Once he is certain his voice will remain steady, his heart will not shake apart under another onslaught of emotion, he forces his eyes open to try to say- something, no matter how breathlessly quiet his voice is-

“Wei Ying-!”

But the door has already shut softly behind the man, leaving the room aching and cavernous in the silence.

A/N: Yeah you know how there's a scene in the audio drama where Wei Wuxian just absent-minded started humming Wangxian.mp3 while he was cutting out a paperman?? Yeah my heart may never recover. ~Persephone

#Wangxian #Wangxian Week #Wei Wuxian #Lan Wangji #Lan Zhan #Wei Ying #Mo Dao Zu Shi #MDZS #MDZS fanfiction #my writing

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unproduciblesmackdown · 4 years

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Primez!

hell yeah thankyou!!! [2, 5, 17 been answered]

(3) maple - is there a hobby / skill that you’ve always wanted to try but never did?

i’m that theatre gay who’s never Really been in any theatre production. and there was an archery place like 10 min from where i grew up and i was like “ooh archery how cool” b/c i’m a gay but never tried it

(7) amber - share an unpopular opinion that you may have.

hardly unheard of but i Don’t Like the approach to astrology that ppl have been getting in the past few yrs like. the Joke someone on twitter had that we’re like, on the verge of some astrological discrimination lawsuit……..and idk ppl get like pseudo-christian-style Smug about it like, don’t apply this to everyone??? and it’s just strange to like. tell people what they’re like. or explain their characteristics via this really strange westernized vague concept of astrology rather than like, tell me about the life experiences that affect the way that you are. like it’s almost condescending and ppl are being way too serious about it sometimes in (see: the on the verge of the lawsuit thing lol)…..anyways and i guess some of my Killjoy tendencies make me like, haha i’m the Hater b/c idk i’m real opinionated. but a lot of the times it’s not Really b/c i hate other’s joy or some shit, it’s just crap along the lines of like, “these ideas abt love which are meant to be Very Romantic actually strike me as being the Less ideal interpretation of love between people and the potential therein? and colder? and unhealthier / more unpleasant / not as nice / etc etc etc as my ideas on romance which i guess seem like i’m wanting to just shoot down some Lovely Concepts but i’m like. that doesn’t seem lovely. i’m on the very of launching into another essay abt Isolation Isn’t Romantic and Romance As Very Human And Ordinary And Even Mundane Seems A Lot Better Than The More ~Magical~ Approach and did i mention romance should be the Opposite of isolating and yet it’s so taken for granted sometimes that you’ll know it’s True Love when you [bass boosted DIE FOR EACH OTHER] and stop giving a shit about anyone but this one other person and etccccccccc [me screaming for hours]”

and a lot of times things that i guess are would-be Cute / Charming / Wholesome / Positive / Etc start to grate on me if i have to see it too much and i’ll probably end up hating or resenting it but like, not because i hate happy stuff, but b/c it just like. is like, i like things to be Genuine, and it will just feel like this is Performing genuine…ness………..which i don’t like. b/c it’s being Not genuine to try to appeal on the grounds that it’s genuine? yknow. which also extends into the realm of “i hate this Cute music over this cute animal video. don’t tell me how to feel about it” and when something tries to be Surprising in the realm of like, pseudo-dissonant like. oh this is a cute harmless white girl on the ukulele but she just said “fuck” and “std’s” or some crap!!! whaaaaaat!!!!! like, i hate this actually? can i die

i could give a ted talk just showing vines that make it into plenty of people’s compilations and being like “this is why this vine is Not Funny (Enough)”

(also i do sometimes hate Having Fun. doge speak was so awful. of Course gop congress adopted it briefly in its original heyday. even now i hate the derivatives. i’m not about to rb something that contains the word birb. can i die)

also i think star wars is boring. i think cargo pants are fun and fine.

(11) orchard - share one thing that you’d like to happen this autumn.

we get confirmation that any Winston Footage is filmed for billions s5. soph i know that like, fitting in almost 3 hrs of subway travel / going into nj and back / probably having to do all this on a weekend / having like a 5 second window maybe makes it difficult but we all agree it’d make another epic gamer moment if you got to see lihn

(13) bonfire - describe your dream house.

lol being in my teenz in 2008 i haven’t thought about it much tbh. i think i’d like a pretty cozy (smallish) bedroom and just a lot of physical Niches yknow. i like to frequent very specific spots which are not too out in the open. and really everything would be kinda Cozy Smallish but not the kitchen. get some space there, and like, raised counters like for julia child being 6′2″ b/c Standard Height is not comfortable for me either at my tender 5′11″ or 6″ness. and i always think that those sitty spaces that are like, Depressed into the floor are fun. i know there’s a word for that, but whatever. there’s a bunch of very disparate color schemes i’d think i’d like, so like, idk if i’d just go for totally different Aesthetic Approaches from room to room to try to cover all of them lol

(19) pumpkin - do you think that humans are inherently good or bad?

i mean i think it’s more important to recognize that anyone is entirely capable of Doing good or bad, and arguing about what they Truly Are In Their Hearts is beside the point. but i also think the idea that like oooh if Polite Society crumbles enough we’ll all just be roving in bloodthirsty packs, looking to kill each other and loot / probably eat the corpses, etc etc ~dark gritty bold~ apocalyptic material that’s like wow yeah that’s really confronting the Uncomfortable True Nature of society. like, capitalism is already a brutal and inhumane situation to exist in, but it’s not some emergent expression of Human Nature like, oh, life is just like this, empty and alienating and unfulfilling unless you [physical violence b/c it is Genuine], or that people would turn on each other if we were in survival mode, like…..no. survival mode always entails helping others to survive like. yeah not for necessarily Every individual? but that’s just more of anyone’s capacity to Do good or bad. but humans as a species are not solitary, we’re social b/c that’s how we all exist in relation to each other, society is innate to us and not some Luxury that distances us from our True Natures. we communicate with each other and want to work together even beyond helping each other survive and want to connect to each other and total / imposed isolation is Bad for anyone. and i think that love and altruism are Human Nature too. like, it’s weird when it’s treated like some evolutionary mystery why humans (or individuals of other species) would exercise altruism and/or self-destruction (or the risk of it) for the sake of others? like “but it doesn’t make sense b/c for us survival means Passing On Genes, we protect ourselves and our ability to exist and procreate, and we protect those most genetically similar to us, down the line to favoring your most distant cousin over a random stranger,” etc etc What A Mystery Why We Are Altruistic!!! but it’s not?? like? we don’t just see ourselves as individuals and we recognize the self in the other, and that we are all just Arbitrarily the self that we happen to be, and are all The Other to everyone else’s Myself…..and why would humanity not Preserve itself beyond just individuals looking out for just their individual existence? we just like. don’t only prioritize the preservation of our own genetic code. why should it be a less Survivally Successful approach for any individual to look out for any other individual? of Course we give a shit about other randos who don’t have any familial or even any other personal connection to us at all b/c we just care about the survival of other humans.

anyways! no yeah so i think that Love and Altruism are intrinsic human nature. like creativity and communication. we aren’t like, always doomed to destroy each other b/c That’s Humans For You. denying the humanity in others inherently requires actually just reducing one’s own humanity, yknow??? re: human nature anyways. i know we’re all still technically human regardless of how we act. and that the self-destructive destruction of others is a feature of humanity, but i don’t think it’s one which is Inherent or Inevitable. i.e. the Self-Destruction thing. capitalism is out here threatening everyone’s existence and just so happens to require placing the Wealthy Few above the worth of the lives of all the rest, who are the cheap labor force rather than Just As Human as the richest. anyways. mostly Good! but the point is still that anyone can do Bad regardless so like, who cares if you have some good in your heart, bitch we all do.

(23) ghost - is there someone that you miss having in your life?

still a bit effed up on missing the theoretical concept of an in-person group of people who are consistent in genuinely enjoying / being enthusiastic about time spent with you. one reason it’s theoretical is that i’ve never Really had a whole in-person friend group exaactly. and it’s theoretical b/c idk, it’s not easy for me to feel comfortable Being Myself around others and like, i like being in groups as a rando amongst strangers really easily, but if it’s like, we’re all in a group and talking and stuff, i can just go into [stifled mode] real easily, idk, it’s hard to say whether the times i’ve been Uncomfortable in groups like that is just like, it not being the right people, or that i just will always like smaller groups or just one-on-one or smthing i dunnooooo. either way i get depressed about Wouldn’t It Be Nice though so idk? i guess i would still ideally seek it out. but i also can’t feel like i can actually expect this to happen. on a related note i forgot to mention Briony Atkins as this minor character who is very like me in being someone who is outwardly v withdrawn and quiet and comes across as not speaking b/c she has nothing to say but in reality she’s a passionate and boisterous person who just rarely shows / expresses it around others. i’m out here never talking (and getting the chance to talk aloud and it’s like a mile a minute all at once trying to compensate) and being pretty quiet and people get surprised when i have An Opinion even though i’m super opinionated lol and i just find it really hard to be myself around others unless i’m operating completely on my own and beholden to no one, but even then. anxious

#i'm Not being very cryptidly with all these............#Anonymous

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mannatea · 6 years

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would love to hear your full hot take on Voltron s7 if you’re inclined to share

there HAS been a lack of salt in general on this blog, huh??

all right, FULL hot take on voltron s7. spoilers ahead. salt. hate. don’t click the readmore if you don’t wanna read it. it’s a disorganized mess also. i’m tired still. s7 drained my ability to write well--sucked it right out of me.

god, where do i even start? the season started out all right. the gameshow episode was fun! but as soon as we returned to earth things went straight into snoozemode. i was itching to turn it off and go back to finish s3 of miss fisher’s murder mysteries, because i just wasn’t that invested in watching just a couple more hours of a new season of voltron. and this after i’d just recently marathoned s1-6 with my husband.

i spent half the time staring at my phone. my husband was on his tablet. we complained about how boring it was aloud. we paused to talk shit about it.

there were a few good things, but it seems to me most of them were at the very beginning of the season. liiiike romelle. my husband was ready to set sail on the s.s. hunk x romelle which was incredible. acxa? also good. KOSMO? the best character in this series now, hands down. notice how little of the good there was in this season? hm.

anyway like i said, as soon as we had to see earth again i was bored. i don’t even know how to organize all my thoughts on this, but i’ll try.

flashback scenes for days. boring.

i’m not saying i could write it better but imo it would have been way more interesting to toss the characters into the situation without the audience having a clue what they were walking into. let them act and be overwhelmed with us?

i don’t care overmuch about sam holt let alone his wife. at first i was pretty okay with them because i’m all for fleshing out side characters, but in the end it was all pretty meh.

idk he was just right about literally everything and could do no wrong. boring.

admiral sanda is one of the worst-written cringey characters i’ve EVER had the displeasure of watching.

the only relief i felt in her character was that she wasn’t fulfilling the latino hotshot trope by being a young latino man instead of an older woman.

but making her an older woman didn’t actually make her interesting.

in fact, none of her motivations or actions made any sense.

you’re telling me this bitch is super by the books but she believes sam holt enough to spend billions on developing new tech on nothing more than his word? okay

if she’s so by the books she should have remained entirely by the books the entire time.

if she believes sam enough to spend billions in manpower and materials to build this shit she probably believes sam enough to trust in his judgment re: military tactics.

seriously i hated this character beyond hate. her little ‘redemption’ arc was poorly done. her getting a photograph at the memorial was annoying.

okay, i can take the latter as the military keeping up appearances. don’t want the population knowing you were betrayed by the, or one of the, highest ranking officers in the military. that’d be a very big yikes.

i find it eXTREMELY hard to believe this lady did all this and only realizes she was an idiot at the last second.

whaT do you meAN you aREn’T keePINg yOur eNd of thE bARgaIN?

I MEAN COME ON SHE’S NOT 23 AND BRIMMING WITH NEW POWER OR LACK OF EXPERIENCE!!!

in other words she can’t possibly be that stupid. nobody over the age of 25 is that stupid, especially someone versed in warfare, in a universe that supposedly had a WWIII.

SERIOUSLY I HATED THIS CHARACTER and for some reason it pissed me off more that she was a woman instead of a crusty old white dude. maybe because, aside from the MFE pilots, there weren’t really any other female officers named and important?

sendak was a disappointing anticlimactic bore.

seriously he was a case of the doldrums.

i don’t know what i expected out of him, but he wasn’t conniving or interesting at all. this is a guy who let his own ships blow up just to get at his foe. i find it incredibly difficult to believe he wouldn’t have just blown that defensive base to dust.

yes, even at the risk of losing a ship.

let’s talk about adam, another useless husk of a character.

kill the gays stereotype in full effect. usually it’s lesbians. i guess good job on it being a guy who dies?

i love how the whole fandom stanned adam and then not only was he dead as fuck but he was pointless as fuck.

voltron writers eagerly watching the audience, tails thumping in a poor attempt at suppressed excitement, bodies practically wriggling like a dog waiting for the command to eat the treat balanced on its nose: TELL US WE DID GOOD!! TELL US WE’re GOOD BOYS!! VALIDATE US!!! WE INCLUDED TEH GAY!!!!

like bitch...y’all gave this away in advance AND FOR WHAT?

you know why. YOU KNOW. i know. WE ALL KNOW. it was just to try and earn representation points with the audience.

i hate rep points more than i hate a lot of things right now. it’s just so cringey. it’s just showrunners trying to get points for being ~progressive~ while never having to actually stick to being progressive on a continual basis lmao.

don’t get me wrong, i don’t give a SINGLE fuck about adam. i’m just mad he was touted at a convention and then ended up meaning abSOLUTELY nothing. no, shiro looking at his memorial plaque doesn’t change anything lmao.

look i’m not saying it makes his relationship with adam ‘less’. but i AM saying that making him an ex and also a dead ex means the creators don’t have to commit to continuing to deal with shiro’s sexuality, whether it’s gay, bi, or pan. they can just avoid addressing it or writing it at all. because this isn’t a romance series. they just shove adam into a figurative and literal casket and want their pats on the back. which, uhhhhh they’re not gonna get from me. adam isn’t progressive. adam’s boring.

all the action in the last four or so episodes? dull. insipid. uninspired. i’m out of insults. i just don’t care about these mfe fighters. earth is almost wiped out. am i supposed to still be caring about it?

that yawn-worthy last stand speech had me wanting to take The Long Sleep like sendak cares if you put up a fight or not. you’re all weaklings. ‘we’ll go down swinging’ is as old as the hills. i don’t know what i needed instead of this, but this wasn’t.

there was a bRIEFLY good moment with hunk but like

how convenient that everyone’s families are alive lol

or at least hunk’s parents and lance’s entire extended family

that annoyed me idk. they’re going for this gritty shit where almost everyone is dead but then pull that?

ya lost me.

on the PLUS side the little scene with keith trying to be of comfort was nice. if anyone Gets It, keith does. and then he tries to help hunk too, which i liked a lot.

but it didn’t detract enough from the Boring of the episodes to really feel good to me. sorry.

hi i’m shiro and i’m sick. i’m so sick. the sickest. but i’m going into space anyway!!!

did i miss something or did shiro’s mysterious sickness just never mean anything?

did the galra cure it? that’d be interesting character stuff.

speaking of shiro, his hover arm is weird and i hate it.

what was with allura giving him her crystal thing? is that ever going to mean anything or was it useless too?

ATLAS is now a giant robot??? what

haha sam holt built this but didn’t know it could do this? don’t fucking??? pull that??? it makes me want to die. it’s so bad. it’s CRINGEY

he’s the enGINEER!! he’d know!! if it was capable of even 50% of that!!!

haha it’s magic

shut the fuuuck up magic needs to still be explained!!!!

where are the citizens and crew on this robot anyway like you do realize they’d be dead from the force of it moving around and probably getting rattled around inside the ship right?

they’ve got a massacre in the hold to clean up when this is over.

the super robot that was like massively strong and shit?

yeah let’s DBZ it up i guess and create antagonists that are exponentially stronger as if that’ll maintain the audience’s attention lmaooooo

it was boring and the reveal at the end with the altean was boring. who cares. i don’t.

i hated the attempt at a wholesome reunion looK IT’S TEAMWORK EVERYONE WORKING TO G E T HER!!!!

shay showing up to hug hunk WITH HER BROTHER was the only wholesome thing about it

i dunno it just seemed kind of forced to me. oh look how the paladins were lucky enough to keep their families!! what about the rest of earth. now none of the paladins can even really relate to it. it’s depressing. :/

i dunno. the beginning was promising! and interesting! and maybe even fun. but the earth’s last stand stuff was dull. i think because it was so rushed it lacked the balance of humor that has made the show worth watching. and there were cute fun MOMENTS in the later episodes of the season (re: kosmo, “i gotta get me one of these”), but it wasn’t enough to balance out how dull the rest of it was.

if there’s anything i missed talking about, let me know and i can add it/make another post. but right now this is my current salt.

i mean mostly my opinion is:

wow that was a waste of my time.

#i could have leveled in wow and gotten more out of my time #like it was seriously SO boring #my husband said it was almost painful to have to sit and keep watching #like...i know we didn't have to but #this is a new season of a show we watch together?#so... anyway yeah it was bad. BAD BAD. boring.#voltron #character hate #cute anons #answered mail

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game-reviews-by-cody-blog · 6 years

Text

Second Review: Spec Ops: The Line

Spec Ops: The Line released in 2012 is the tenth title as well as a reboot, of the Spec Ops series, and the first entry since Spec Ops: Airborne Commando in 2002. This game is a stand out amongst military shooter games. Unlike most shooters you are NOT a hero and the actions you do or don’t do as you take control of Delta Force Captain Martin Walker play deep into the stories intense narrative.

Plot: The campaign for Spec Ops is very long consisting of 15 chapters total. I will to the best of my abilities try to condense this into a relativity short but compressible section hitting key plot points as the arise.

You are Delta Force Captain Martin Walker, you and your team consisting of you 1st Lieutenant Alphanso Adams and Staff Sergeant John Lugo are sent to a devastated Dubai which as been ravaged by a massive sandstorm which has nearly swallowed the entire city. You and your team are tasked with making contact with the American 33rd Infantry Battalion which volunteered to help evacuate the city before the storm by their commanding officer Colonel John Konrad. The game starts with you as the door gunner of a UH-60 Black Hawk firing a General Dynamics GAU-17/A Minigun at modified MH-6 Little Bird helicopters.This section ends with a crash as one of the Little Birds you shot at loses control and crashes into your helicopter. For some this section might feel out of place in the opening of the game but it will come back into play as a very important factor later.

in the fallowing few chapters (1-7) it is revealed the 33rd’s attempt at evacuating the civilians failed horribly and the 33rd is now a hostile force. It is revealed the failure of the evacuation lead to the 33rd tearing itself apart from the inside. A civil war ensued between those loyal to Konrad who decided to enact marshal law on those still left in Dubai and those who wished to still try to extract the civilians lead by Konrad’s former command team. Konrad’s faction, known now as the Damned 33rd won leading the chaos that the player is now witnessing. The player also discovers a CIA team known as Grey Fox was sent to Dubai to look for survivors but is now trying to clean up the ”mess” the Damned 33rd has now caused, As well the player is introduced to the radio man who constantly plays classic music and taunts the player throughout the game.

Sgt. Lugo

Chapter seven also gives the player their first look at deadly White Phosphorus an incendiary and toxic chemical substance used as a filler in a number of different munitions that can be employed for a variety of military purposes.In chapter 8: The Gate after failing to save a CIA Agent Gould from death at the hands of the Damned 33rd you and your team must push past a large enemy force at the gate. Walker makes the decision to use a nearby mortar loaded with White Phosphorus shells.Sgt. Lugo protests knowing what they are capable of but, to no avail. As you work you way though destroying the camp with the deadly shells you eventually come to a Humvee that is parked near an access tunnel to a trench. Despite seeing the numerous heat signatures through the cameras heat vison the player must fire upon the Humvee to proceed. Doing so sees the Humvee destroyed and the trench be flooded with White Phosphorus smoke. After this the player/Cpt. Walker mus now walk though the destruction they caused by walking through the gate while listening to the screams of dying men begging for death. Upon reaching the trench's access tunnel entrance you find a soldier who is barely clinging to life. he asks Cpt, Walker “Why?’ Walker simply replies “your brought it on yourself.” The dying solider replies with his last breath and pointing to the trench “we were helping” before dying. As walker and his team look into the trench they discover the burned remains of dozens of civilians.

After an argument between Adams and Lugo about the White Phosphorus being necessary Walker’s team comes across the burned remains of Konrad’s command team killed with White Phosphorus. Konrad contacts Walker from a nearby radio revealing that he had his men who “mutinied” against him killed as an example of what happens when his order of the city is disrupted. In the next chapter upon stepping outside Walker sees to men tied up on a highway overpass. One a soldier and one a civilian. Konrad contacts Walker again telling him to choose which one lives and which one dies. The player can chose one of four options, option one do nothing and walk away where Walker will be killed by snipers. Option two stall and the snipers will shoot and kill Adams. Option three kill the soldier and Konrad as well as you team members will admonish you for killing you a fellow soldier but you can still proceed through the level. Option four you kill the civilian Konrad congratulates you for keeping order and you team wants to hurry away from the place.

Chapter 10 consists of Walker and his team regrouping with the last living CIA Grey Fox member Agent Riggs. Walker and his team help Riggs steal the remaining water left in Dubai that is held in several water trucks. Unbeknownst to walker on his team Riggs’ end game was to crash the trucks killing every one left via dehydration thereby “cleaning up” the “mess” the Damned 33rd has made. After this mission Walker decides they have to try and evac the civilians before they all die of thirst. He decides to pay the Radioman a visit as he seems to be able to reach Walker and his team everywhere in the city.

Journalist Robert Darden AKA the Radfioman

Chapter 12 consists of Walker and his team working their way to the Radioman and eventually confronting him. After Walker and his team finally meet the Radioman who is revealed to be a journalist who was embedded with the 33rd, he is killed by Lugo after he sets him up to broadcast to the whole city.The team then boards a UH-60 Black Hawk and destroys the radio tower. The fallowing chapter is the same helicopter sequence as the beginning of the game. According to game developers at Yager Development the people who made Spec Ops: The Line, Walker died in the helicopter crash that occurs at the end. The rest of the game is said to be Walkers dying thoughts as he tries to cope with what he has seen and done in Dubai up to that point. There is also evidence sprinkled all though out the game that strengthens this point. One key piece being at the star of the helicopter portion of chapter 12 Walker says “Wait..wait.. this isn't right” Lugo responding “well it’s to late now” Walker says, “Nah...I mean...we did this already!” This hinting that the helicopter sequence in the opening was the true helicopter sequence.

The fallowing chapters contain the deaths of both Lugo and Adams on Walkers hell bent quest to find and confront Konrad. In chapter 15 Walker finally makes it to Konrad only to find that Konrad had killed himself some time ago and Walker’s tortured mind merely dreamed up Konrad as someone to blame to justify what he had seen in Dubai and what he had done there. When “confronting Konrad” there are one of two outcomes. Outcome one walker commits suicide and the game ends. Outcome two Walker “shoots Konrad” and he calls for extraction.

In the epilogue an extraction team arrives for Walker. One of three outcomes can happen depending on the players choice. Choice one the player does not comply with the order to disarm and instead fires on his would be rescuers and dies. Choice two the player once again does not comply with the order to disarm and instead fires on his would be rescuers, this time killing them all and picking up a radio before speaking into it and saying “gentleman, welcome to Dubai.” Choice three the player complies with with the order to disarm and is evacuated with the soldiers sent to get him.

Overall this story dose a fantastic job! The setting is believable as are the actions that the player can take. The are a lot more story elements in this game which could warrant a whole review on their own but i can’t really do that or this review would be more like a book (haha). But, this game tells a nicely done dark narrative with good characterisation of it’s limited cast and is very engaging despit its length. Score 10/10

Conrols: The controls for this game take a que from 2006′s Gears of War and is a cover based third-person shooter. Some people my gripe about how cover based systems cheapen the shooter experience however I am not one of those people and i feel this system really suits the style of game Spec Ops is. I am unaware at this time if there are any other games that share the same button layout as Spec Ops.

Overall the controls are pretty solid but sometimes feel kinda clunky. The addition of second ways firing most weapons is also pretty unique. However, it can be somewhat jarring when switching from a scoped view back to a first person view. On the whole though pretty good. Score 7/10

Graphics: This game came out in 2012 for the Xbox 360 (the version I played), Playstaytion 3, and various PC platforms. The game’s age shows a little but is overall still pretty pleasing to the eye. It has a bit of a gritty and stylized look to it that emphasises the horrors that you see.

Overall for a six year old game it still looks pretty nice. The attention to detail and the art that was made for this game in the form of graffiti looks great and is a big bonus to it’s overall look. Score 8/10

Multiplayer/Extra modes: There is a multiplayer mode in this game however it is a buggy mess with servers about as lively as a graveyard and has many balancing issues. Yager Development the studio who developed the game said they did not want to have a multiplayer in their game. However, their publisher 2K Games wanted to capitalize on the shooter multiplayer market that games like CoD had forged, this did not work however as the games multiplayer never took off.

Overall the game’s multiplayer is trash and really isn’t worth playing. The draw for the game is it’s stellar story mode. Score 2/10

Thank you for reading my review of Spec Ops: The Line, and if you have any comments or questions feel free to share them with me. I want to be able to have a dialog with people so that I can be better at doing reviews as well as making others feel like that have some input as well.

#spec ops the line #video game reviews #game reviews #video games #gaming #intense visuals

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austennerdita2533 · 6 years

Text

Day 6: Canon-ish

A/N: This is the first part of an intended 4-shot. Basically, my idea is to craft some kind of Klaroline kiss/moment for each season of the year while also showing the two of them at various points (and emotional states) in their relationship. I started thinking about how Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall all have a different look or feel about them, and I thought it would be fun to play with that thematically/symbolically. Plus, it’d give me an excuse to play with seasonal imagery.

Anyway, this part is Winter. It’s canon until Liz’s death and Caroline’s grappling with the loss. I’ve also ignored all things Stefan and Caroline. (Loss. Angst. Hurt and Comfort.)

This gave me loads of trouble, so if it’s terrible I apologize but I couldn’t bear to edit it any longer haha. Enjoy. :)

(FF.net)

xx Ashlee Bree

A Kiss For All Seasons

Part 1: Fold Into Me, Shivering

Winter’s kiss wisps across her forehead at a time of shivering delirium and despair.

She’s gone.

It’s not a dream because each breath in tastes metallic and rough, because each breath out rattles and hisses like a dented whiffle ball which has sunk beneath sediment and drowned in the shallowest of streams. It’s real life. It’s real loss, too. And real loss throbs.

It breaks—tearing, cracking, pulling, shattering, rupturing, wrenching a person into angles so painful or contradictory, that life itself feels distorted. It plunges emotions into a vise that’s so unbearable and inescapable at times, it almost feels impossible to still be alive let alone be expected to stand.

Or talk.

Or move.

Or think.

Or cry without wiping at eyes and waiting to find blood puddled on fingertips instead of tears.

At times, grief even makes it difficult to exist.

After someone dies, especially if you loved that person, the world begins to clutter in a way it never did before: it pinches in at the sides so all the noise can spill in unheard, unseen, clouding your mind and chest with smog that refuses to lift so you can breathe easy again. Everything becomes drenched in the blacks and purples and blues of a bruise, too, until there’s nothing left for us to do but crash to our knees. Until all we can do is shrink inside our gloomy new reality and burn our lung’s raw with missing.

In Caroline’s case, icicles splinter across her chest whenever she blinks against the harsh whites of morning to relive the tragedy all over again.

Mommy.

Instead of Liz’s death providing her with comfort or relief now that she’s no longer suffering, the unfair and untimely permanence of loss hollows her out until she’s raw—numb—freezing. The air around her tastes as toxic and as gritty lead. The din of life, which was once so variable and mellifluous and exhilarating to her ears, rings like television static in her head now. Blurring one minute of monotonous agony into the next without end. More than that, the rising sun in the distance (the same one that used to stream vivid, happy yellows through her window every morning), is far too weak or indirect to do anything besides snake across her moistened cheeks with it pale rays before it leaves her cold and dejected again.

Caroline’s parentless now. Alone. She’s still loved by a few friends, of course, but she feels so incredibly, unbelievably, disconnected from them all.

She’s more or less invisible. A ghost.

None of them see me. None of them know what I need.

She’s a ghost girl stuck in this endless life on her own: more hollow than haunted, more sorry and solitary than surviving. She’s an undead warrior on the outside, perhaps, but she’s all but a living, feeling woman shriveling into pieces of nothing within.

“Please don’t leave me,” her body trembles, the words scraping and shrieking inside her own mind as pain paralyzes them in place so they can’t slip down, so they can’t vault out from her throat. “I need you, Mommy, I still need you…”

But Liz is no longer there to answer. She has taken her last breath, has spoken her last goodbye.

There’s no one here who cares for Caroline unconditionally now…no one else who listens. There’s no one around to hold her hand, to kiss away her nightmares, to kill her insecurities so she can fulfill her dreams. There’s no one left who loves her in ‘alls’ instead of ‘somes’—no one.

How could leave me like this, Mommy? How?

Eyes dark-circled with sorrow and exhaustion, Caroline lies curled on one side of her mother’s bed with her knees hugged to her middle. She never stirs; she never sleeps. She stares out the paned window at a February sunrise obscured by indigo snowflakes that drip from the clouds like sleeted tears that the winter needs to cry. Fresh powder bleaches the ground and builds mounds so high they touch the trees, bending branches until they snap like broken rubber bands, burying all sounds of life beneath it except for the squawk of a nearby crow.

In places where the sky meets the horizon, bleak plums, grays, navies, and ivories scratch the edges of Caroline’s vision and almost make her long for blindness. The world outside as stark and as bone-chilling as the nightmare gnawing her apart on the inside:

Mom died, Mom’s DEAD.

But she can’t be gone, she…no! Mom? Mommy, where are you?

Mommy I—please stay. I need you to stay, okay? I’m not ready to live in a world without you. I—not yet.

It’s too soon, it’s too soon!

Mom?

MOMMY!!!?

Shadows scuttle along the walls. The floors. The furniture. Speckling her room like pox of rotting melancholy, they seem to grow larger and more formidable with each tick of the clock on the wall, their black edges curving into sharp spindly fingers that slice at entering streaks of light like a sword; their trunks expanding to root into corners as if they refuse to timber away.

Caroline, however, makes neither a move to halt their proliferation in her room nor to purge them from the space. Instead, she watches with blinking apathy as one detaches from the doorjamb at the far end of the room like a silky talon and crawls closer. It almost glides across the floor.

How will the shadow consume her, she wonders? With a bite? With a few nibbles? Or will it gulp her down whole and damn her to its full belly of despair, plummeting her into a pit of darkness with no end?

She watches as the shadow drifts forward with a slow yet assured grace. Its movements are cautious. Soundless except for the stray floorboard which creaks when it edges along the foot of the bed and crosses into streaks of daylight, exchanging shadow for skin, swapping an ‘it’ for a ‘him,’ as a man stoops to kneel beside her head.

This isn’t just any man, though.

Oh, no.

But one with eyes that are rimmed in lightning yellow. One who smells of cedar and cognac and cologne. Tastes of oranges dipped in rust. Touches with hands made of calloused buttercups. And snaps necks for sport.

He’s someone who charms a crowd with dimples and drawled threats before he strikes swiftly, and completely. He’s a wolf who’s determined to paint away his personal miseries with other’s blood. This is a man who often stars in Caroline’s dreams, and his face is one she not only recognizes, but knows—

Intimately.

“Kl-Klaus? Is that…is that really you?” she croaks uncertainly.

“It is.”

Dizzy, disbelieving, greens and blonds and brown leathers all swirl together in front of her, so she rubs at her puffy eyes then squints harder at the blurred shape of him. Her next words come out more froggy and weak than questioning.

“You came back. You’re—here,” Caroline says with a puff of breath. “You’re back in…back in Mystic Falls?”

“I am.”

“But I didn’t call or—no…no texts were sent?” He nods in confirmation of this, which puzzles her further. “You couldn’t have known that she—and the funeral? No way could you have been there because I, because I never…”

“Wait a minute,” her brows pinch, heavy lids lifting slowly to his face, “did you…did you break into the house?”

Klaus compresses his lips together, shrugs at her sheepishly. Caroline responds to this by smashing her face into her pillow with a groan and an agitated ‘un-freaking-believable.’ Then, in one swift movement, she throws the blankets over top of her and rolls over flat. Onto her back.

“Don’t be angry with me, love.”

She snorts. Pulls the covers higher.

“I realize my relationship with my family is dysfunctional at best,” he tries cautiously, his voice dipping low, “but I do have experience in parental loss. I know what it’s like. How it feels. The way it cuts you and—” she crosses her arms, holds her breath “—burns.”

Caroline cringes and squeezes her arms tight like she’s holding herself together.

“I only worried on your behalf because I know how deeply you cared for the sheriff, so I trailed you home…lingering outside in case you bolted with no reference to your humanity because I didn’t want you to do anything rash you’d regret later. I just, I wanted to keep you safe and protected. To…help you avoid any extra pain.”

"It wasn’t until you screamed that I couldn’t—it didn’t seem right to—not when you sounded so—how could I not look in?”

He pauses for a moment. Clears his throat, cracks his knuckles.

“Anyway, I thought you might be in want a friend,” he offers placatingly, pressing his palms flat against the sheets so he can lean forward a bit and hover above her. “Someone to be a shoulder. A punching bag. A hand for you to squeeze. Whatever…” his voice wobbles uncomfortably, “whatever it is you need.”

“And what if what I need is for you to, you know,” she swallows hard, “get the hell out?”

“Then I’ll go, Caroline.”

She tuts but it lacks bite. “Go where? Back outside to hide behind more snow until I snap?”

Resigned, almost as if he’d expected this kind of reaction, he draws back with a small hiss like he’s been stung, “No,” he answers cooly, his words heavy and flat, “I’ll do as you bid and head home. To Louisiana.”

The air between them becomes stagnant. Oppressive all of a sudden.

“You mean you’ll leave me here?”

“Yes.”

“Alone?” she asks.

“If that’s what you wish,” he sighs, “then yes.”

“Oh.”

Time seems to slow here, silence stretching and growing like a beanstalk weed between their two bodies. Klaus plucks at a mattress spring with his thumb, its notes sharp and discordant underneath her back as he stands to pivot on his heels, readying himself to glide back into the shadows from whence he came. Leaving her alone in Mystic Falls again, setting her free like he promised two years ago.

Caroline hears him shrug his arms into his jacket with a grunt. Or maybe it’s a growl? A humph? Regardless of the noise he makes, there seems to be a sluggish dereliction to his movements. A hesitancy to proceed. And it’s probably because he’s preparing himself for the long trek through miles upon miles of snow that’ll weigh him down like ice before he reaches New Orleans. All of that slush waiting to seep in, hoping to blacken his toes…

He’s more than likely dreading the sound of orange embers crunching into snowy ashes beneath his feet as he retreats from her warm hearth and stomps out through the door again. He probably loathes the idea of submerging himself into a frigid morning all because she’s almost commanded him to go. Leave.

To go off on his own and freeze like me.

At the thought, a fresh chill kisses the back of Caroline’s neck. It momentarily anesthetizes her lungs and she cannot breathe; she cannot think. She cannot feel anything except the frostbite which pricks down low, too low, and buries itself somewhere below skin deep.

The whole world shifts inside her own head again as arctic wind gusts across a few remaining fragments of coziness: of old memories tinged pink with brandy smiles or marshmallow’d cheeks, of scarved hopes for the future knitted in bright, pretty patterns, of rich caroled dreams hummed sweetly into ears with full-bodied meaning, of soft painter’s hands which curled over top of stupid fears or desires like mittens to ease her shuddering, warming her to the bone. All of them slipping away on a sled she’s about to let crash straight through the North Pole so they may never resurface again.

Except how could she bear it? How could she survive the barrenness without them, all the cruelty? How could she find the strength to keep breathing after she lets one final sliver of warmth slip away because she’s bitter and hurting and broken? Where would her optimistic flames entomb themselves? In permafrost? In tundra? In icebergs crowding the sea?

Deep-down, Caroline knows that one biting word from her would silence Klaus for good. One more dismissive statement is all it would take to send him back to New Orleans where he belongs, thereby freeing her up to mope in this room forever. There’d be no more judgment to combat from him, no more concern. But to what end?

So her mouth can match the blue which has settled in around her heart since her mom passed away? So she can shudder harder at the falling flakes of grey and white which accumulate outside her window and aim to bury her beneath centuries of unrelenting snow? So life’s color can leak and harshen until it’s nothing more than a dead block of ice for her to kick?

As if winter isn’t teeth-chattering enough already!

Licking her lips, Caroline exhales before she slides the blanket down the bridge of nose enough to peek up at him. She rakes over his consternated expression. She watches when his body stiffens and squares in preparation of her next words. It’s as if he’s waiting for a dismissal to scythe through the air and lash him up.

“Okay, and what if—” she gulps, her voice dry and a little muffled. “What if I say I don’t want to be alone in this room right now? What then?”

Klaus’ eyes widen, hope spilling into their depths. But only for a second. A scratch of his chin followed by one, two, blinks and it sinks back into his pupils like an illusion. Like it was never there.

“I’ll make sure you aren’t. You won’t be, if that’s what you desire,” he says simply.

“And if I cry?”

He shrugs. “Then you cry.”

“I think I’m out of tissues.”

“You can use my clean sleeve then. I’m sure it’ll do just fine,” he offers drily.

She quirks an eyebrow. Shoots him a dubious look.

“What? I’m not allergic to tears, Caroline, for Christ’s sake.” He rolls his eyes. Wanders closer again. “Not immune to them either, unfortunately, if that’s what troubles you,” he adds under his breath.

Dragging a desk chair behind him, he erects it near her bedside table with a flick of his wrist. And sits.

“But you’re allergic to me, is that it?”

When he opens his mouth to respond only to slam it shut, puzzled, she gestures nonchalantly and says, “You can sit next to me on the bed, Klaus. There’s more than enough room for two, you know. It’s not like I think you have cooties or anything.”

Scooting over and up, she pats the open area with her hand. He doesn’t move.

“Well, come on then!” she tries again, less sarcastically this time. “Take off your shoes so you can climb in here. It’s drafty.”

After a few more seconds of gawking silence, Caroline, feeling both tired and fed up, rolls her eyes before she launches herself onto her knees to grab him by the hand, forcibly tugging him down onto the sheets beside her—shoes be damned!

They crash back against the pillows intertwined: Klaus’ arm braced ‘round her shoulders to cushion the fall; her nose scraping the lapels of his jacket. Her chin bangs against his clavicle and they tumble into the headboard cuddling. It’s an accident, of course, but one that feels comfortable. Oddly natural, too. And instead of shrugging him off or pushing him back so she can erect an elaborate pillow fort between them like she ordinarily would, she veers from expectation and tradition by throwing the blanket over his legs.

Next, she curls into the crook of his neck. Rests a hand in the center of his chest. Exhales. And thaws against his side as she listens to the rush of his ancient heartbeat, feeling it thrum through her own bones like this lullaby:

‘Hold me close; hold me tight; and everything else will be alright,’

Klaus initially tenses at the intimate contact. Afraid to move a muscle in case she changes her mind or wants to pull away, probably.

When she doesn’t, he relaxes. One hand drops atop the one of hers already on his chest while the other fingers silky tresses near her ear, plucking them strand by strand so they fall back against her sweatshirt with a sweet tap tap. His mouth also teases the crown of her head. It hovers close enough for her to feel each tickle of his breath against her skin, but remains far enough away that she misses the softness of his lips.

Sliding down lower onto the mattress, he kicks his shoes off onto the floor, lets a foot hook around her ankle, then folds her tighter into the furnace of his arms.

“I must say,” he murmurs against her hair, “a literal pillow is the last thing I expected to be for you today.”

“It’s only because I’m cold. February sucks and I miss my mom, okay? Don’t read too much into it.”

“Whatever you say, love.”

“Oh, shut up, will you? I can hear your smirk from here,” Caroline huffs into his shirt.

“Ah, sweet, sweet proximity.” Klaus sighs contentedly. “It’s half the battle, truth be told.”

“Ugh! You’re so exhausting.”

“I don’t see why,” he answers wryly, “it’s not as if I’m complaining.”

“No, but I know what you’re thinking.”

“Perhaps you do,” he hums in that assured, taunting way of his, “but you can’t fault me for being more than willing to comfort you given the chance.” His fingers draw soothing circles on her back. “So, if body heat is what you need from me right now, then fine—take every last ounce of mine and zip yourself up in it. Wrap it around you like a duvet, because it’s all yours.”

“Suuure,” Caroline drawls sleepily. She yawns. “Until I accidentally elbow you in the nose once I fall asleep, you mean.”

“No. I’m here and I won’t leave you. Not even if you make me bleed,” Klaus says, all pretense gone.

“Oh, you and your ridiculous promises. I swear!”

He responds to this with a low chuckle. It soon flattens into something more weighted and measured when he draws her in to deposit a sweet, earnest kiss across her forehead.

“Ridiculous or not, sweetheart, the promises I make to you I do and will keep. You can count on that,” he adds in a whisper. “You can count on me.”

Emotion clogs her throat at this; stings the corners of her eyes.

It’s right at that moment, with Klaus’ firm and unshakable finality, and his body spooned around her, that Caroline feels a ring of fire spring to life around her heart, thawing her all the way through with hope and waking her up to one devastatingly beautiful enormity: he’s the one person left who’s always wanted to be there for her. And he isn’t going anywhere. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not in a hundred more lifetimes.

“I guess we’ll have to wait and see about that, won’t we?” she shivers, cuddling closer and melding into his warmth.

“Don’t worry, love. Time is on our side.” She feels Klaus’ lips tug upward in smile. They sweep across her forehead again in kiss, but this time, they deliver promise as well as comfort, “We will.”

Thanks for reading. xx

#klaroline #klarolineauweek #klaroline drabbles #klaroline fanfiction #half agony half hope #ashlee bree's writing endeavors

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beatsfortheillperth · 4 years

Text

Words with Sadiva

Photography by Kim Summer

SADIVA is the premise of our following words, a female beatsmith hailing from Melbourne, Australia, the soul of female comradeship, and the essence of Australian Boom Bap - SADIVA, is inspiring fellow female creatives and is not only sewing but intertwining creative relationships between both male and female.

This only seems to inspire beat-makers to continue to arise in confidence and support all over the globe and SADIVA is continually pushing this atmosphere, something we here at beatsfortheill completely embrace.

Curating over the years, some of the best musical treats with the release of her Compilations "Women of the World" Volumes 1 and 2. With appreciation, these releases mean,

SADIVA allows anyone to have a master's ear.

It also must be said that this Melbourne local can have all heads bopping to samples that linger for days, with soothed souls and a conscious understanding - SADIVAS' WoW compilations have helped a lot of women in need, which brings with it, a certain sense of honesty, something SADIVA'S personal catalog, in all its calming abilities captures minute by minute.

Developing her craft at home and beyond, whilst establishing a name for herself through her time stilling numbers on Lethal Chops back in 2017. This girl shares, with her music, art nothing short of a beachside sunset or a wine on the riverside.

SADIVA is a chillers delight, and with that, I am glad to announce words with the beat-making wonder and "When U Cared" creative brainchild.

Much Love.

Hey, SADIVA thanks for taking the time to share words.

Let's start with some quick general questions to get things flowing.

Last song you listened to:

10% - Kaytranada

Favourite Beverage:

Beer haha (Brooklyn or Moon Dog)

Favourite Food:

TACOS

Views on Time Travel:

I wish I could travel at the speed of sound.

Futurama makes me believe.

A childhood memory in regards to music:

Buying my first CD “Around the world” by Draft Punk and singing it to the store clerk so I got the right CD,

Also, my dad used to take me to all the free concerts at highpoint and I got to meet Blue, who was my favourite when I was younger, they sang into my yakti yak and it made my childhood lifetime haha.

Favourite Place to chill:

Dandenong Ranges with my dog

A track to chill to:

Fall in love – J Dilla

A track to break it down to:

Galvanize – Chemical Brothers

Just - Bicep

A childhood role model and why you looked up to said person:

My Dad has always been my role model cause he just taught me to be myself no matter what.

Favourite Location/ Why:

New York, it's my home away from home and has always inspired me throughout my journey

Any Hobbies away from music:

Hanging with my boy and my Lil floof - Toast

Putting on local events/workshops.

I love cooking.

Going out in nature and to art galleries (when not on lockdown)

Favourite thing to do when you have down-time:

Go for a walk with the pup, watch trash tv, have a bath with a glass of wine

All Time Favourite Album:

Bicep - Bicep

J Dilla – Donuts

Gangstarr – Moments of truth

Underoath – They’re only chasing safety

Artwork work by Jasmine Ioppolo @iops on Instagram

Thanks for that, so I'd like to start by asking, what got you into producing music in the first place? Was it a solo finding or were you encouraged by others to give it a go?

I feel deeply in love with classic Hip-Hop when I started working at a shoe store and, this was where I discovered J Dilla and his story which blew my mind and inspired the shit out of me.

I was also hanging out with some friends who had tried the art of beat-making so I got intrigued, to say the least.

Why the name SADIVA? And what does it mean to you?

SADIVA just clicked for me. I was smoking weed in my room whilst making beats and, I was like,

“okay, I have to come up with some sort of name for this project”

and I love the strain SATIVA so I thought I’d just wordplay it with diva.

How long have you been producing? Also, what is some of the attributes you find producing helps you strengthen within yourself that you find other avenues don't cover?

I have been producing for about 5 years now, I have been very unmotivated lately just due to my own reason.

I always like to have a smoke and a session to find my samples and then I like to sit and get down to the nitty-gritty.

Lately, I’ve been experimenting with a lot of different samplers and sythn’s just to get an idea of expanding my sound, it’s so interesting.

There’s so much I really don’t cover but DJing is helping me to understand a lot of genres of music that I thought I hated but I love them, which is making me expand more.

What inspires you to continue making beats?

I just love making music, its therapy for me.

Being able to go around the world and meet the scene too has been a

truly special molding for my 20’s and I’m blessed I’ve had these experiences,

I’d be silly to stop cause I’m really living my dream and that’s what keeps me going.

Let us go back to 2017 and discuss what's responsible for the creation of Lethal Chops? What pictures were you trying to paint with the tracklist? And also what was it like putting Lethal Chops together?

At this point I had been writing solidly for 2 years with only a few beats on compilations and SoundCloud, I had always wanted to put an album out cause I was proud of my work and after my trip to NYC in 2015/16

I met Soul Journal (one of my best friends) and he pushed for me to release something and did the masters and truly helped me with the whole process of the tracklist so he deserves a huge shout out cause without him who knows if I would have released anything.

Lethal Chops by Sadiva, Artwork by - Kitchen Wizards

Not much over a year later you released "Minutes" on Vinyl, through Inner Ocean Records.

A masterpiece of works that let everyone know you are here to stay. Somewhat like another Melbourne producer - Amin Payne, who nearly went on hiatus, but I believe he was someone like yourself who was drawn in by a mutual love to create, perpetuating goodness and works of art.

Thanks for this, Minutes is something you want to listen to for prolonged hours so again thank you.

What were the major differences between putting together Lethal Chops and Minutes? Also, how do you feel you had grown as an artist when releasing Minutes? Finally, what atmosphere were you trying to put together for your listeners with this second album release?

Thank you so much for saying that, I couldn’t be happier knowing that’s how you feel about a piece of my work. The major difference I guess was I had a bit of an idea of how I pictured Minutes and it had a bit more time and meaning go into the project.

With lethal chops, I just wanted to release something as I had been making so many beats at that point in time.

Minutes was very break up heavy also, I was heartbroken when finishing minutes, and a lot of last-minute tracks got added cause they just felt so much for me.

Plus, I just wanted to put something together that I was proud of and that people would find interesting, I wanted to make it like watching a film with your ears if that makes sense?

"Minutes" as said before, was made available on vinyl as previously Lethal Chops on Cassette. What is it about putting together and releasing physicals that you love most? Also, did Inner Ocean Record impact your appreciation for physical releases?

Physicals have always been really important to me, I’ve always collected cassettes, CDs, vinyl since I was young so to have something that was my own on vinyl was insane for me, I cried the day it arrived cause it was such a great achievement for me.

Do you have a close relationship with the artists that create your cover art and videos?

If so what allows that relationship to stay solid?

Ps, blessed stuff by the way.

Zomkashwak, STLNDRMS, and Lily.ingram (EN:recent name change) know what is up!

I have definitely got some amazing connections with the artists I work with, Lily was my housemate for a few years and we became close friends through that and I couldn’t have been anymore over the moon than to have her amazing work featured as apart of the WOW series, plus she’s an incredible woman I look up to.

As for Zomkashwak and STLMDRMS we became friends through artist nature and sharing the same love and passion’s, Zom did that album cover for Minutes and it was like he saw what was going on in my brain.

When I met STLNDRMS in Atlanta he hosted me for Controllerise and just showed me the most wholesome hospitality, I was stoked to be able to work with him on the video for “WIT U” and also do a live set on his channel beats and chill, he’s a huge inspiration not only to me but everyone in this community and to give back as he does is incredible, STLNDRMS is gonna be huge and he deserves it more than anyone in the scene.

I also have many close connections with a lot of the people I work with and I’m blessed to have that network of people.

You work closely with the collective and platform Inner Ocean Records based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada a fair distance from Melbourne, Australia.

What inspired this long-distance relationship between yourself and Inner Ocean and how do you guys keep present?

When I started making beats they were one of the first labels I looked up to, it was a goal of mine to release something with them, I just loved what they were doing for the culture.

I got my first self-released tape manufactured through them and after that, we worked on WOW and Minutes together and Cory and I just had a great bond, I feel honoured to have worked with them so closely for a few years.

Inner Ocean Records, being inspired by their surroundings, (In their own words Calgary "is a city surrounded by hundreds of kilometers of prairies, mountains, and forest") did that connect with you when you decided to link up for projects like "Minutes"?

Also, how do you feel your surroundings in Melbourne impact and inspire the beats you create?

I’d say Minutes was most inspired in New York and Melbourne.

Melbourne and New York both have a gritty feeling with all the graffiti and live music going on everywhere and every time I go to NYC I start writing so much.

I was also going through some heartbreak at the time and a lot of what I was listening to was sampled in the album, a lot of the lyrics just spoke to me and It was curing me.

Minutes by Sadiva, Artwork by Zom Kashwak

What environmental factors in your home life bring out the best in your music?

When I’m at home I sit down with a joint, put some nice lighting on and I have a lot of plants in my studio, I need to have a chill environment to start writing and since minutes I’ve moved to a new room in the house, I have been writing so many different genres and it's crazy how a new environment can start sparking something different.

I also wanted to bring up something new to myself [lofi.family] a collective via Facebook and Soundcloud that is dedicated to positive interaction between artists and listeners within the lofi community.

You released two tracks for [lofi.family] "When U Cared" and "Substance" both truly well received. How did this interaction come about and what was it like for you making both these tracks?

Check [lofi.family] out here -

Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/lofifamily

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/lofi.family/

I have been friends with Griff since he started lofi.fam, I was one of the first members in the group and Griff has always just greeted me with open arms,

He asked me for a couple of beats and of course, I had to support what he was doing because he supports everyone, I cant wait to meet that man.

Does either of them hold any personal meaning? As sound-wise, I feel the tracks seem to pull you in opposite directions if you get what I mean? Mellow chords opposed to boom-bap head nods.

Was this intentional?

When I made “When you cared” it was actually a flip I originally did for a 21 savage song, just a bit of fun and then the lofi.fam wanted a track so I sent that over

And with substance, I said to myself ill make a really lofi sounding song instead of boom-bap and I thought that suited the vibe for Lofi fam ps: LOVE YOU GRRIFF!

I guess it was intentional for lofi.fam but when I made them I didn’t really have a concept.

Photography by Kim Summer

We have to discuss WoW Volumes 1 and 2 your "Women Of The World" compilations released on cassette followed by vinyl that ever so sweetly showcases over 30 Female Beat-Smiths world-wide, much love.

This creative pursuit was put together to also raise awareness and funds for organizations dedicated to helping re-home and comfort homeless women (due to various circumstances) in America and Australia.

So much respect for your innovation on this continuing project.

With these releases, you have raised over $8000 for charity and with that, have inspired so many to stay true to the gift of giving, thank you.

What inspired you to branch out and curate WoW? How did you go about making this idea a reality? And what is the overall message you are trying to get across with "Women Of The World" an all-female Tracklist?

I was sick of seeing shady comments about the rise of women in the community, I’m thankful our Lofi community is so open to everyone but not all beat communities are and it was bothering me.

I see women as very powerful people and I love all women pursuing their craft for them and no one else.

I wanted to share these incredible women’s tracks with the world and our beautiful community and give something back through that.

It’s important to make everyone in community shine and I wanted something for the ladies as it was around International Women’s Day and that inspired me to just push forward, and I thought this is something I really want to push and I could not have expected to go as well as it did, it has been incredible.

Finally on the subject, what do you feel WoW's creation tries to inspire most in both males and females creating and listening within the beat scene?

I just hope WOW inspired women to put their stuff out there and for men to be accepting and support that,

I feel like that was successful, I saw so many people just bigging up each other when wow was released and creating that sense of community and safety is so important to me.

Volumes 1 and 2 featured artists like handycat, Yourself, Eevee, India On Da Track, and Seneca B, all artists that show lofi and production, in general, allow so many opportunities to be diverse.

I saw recently that you are taking in submissions for Volume 3 which I am sure will encourage head bops world-wide.

Can you give us a sneak-peek into the curator's mind as to what we can expect with Volume 3? What feels and approaches will you be going for with this release?

I’m not going to lie, This year has fucked me uup with WOW,

I just couldn’t focus on it, I have a lot going on with my own career, and its really taking away from my time with WOW which I’m really upset about but I need to take one thing at a time.

I have to give a huge shout out to Emy Zulazna for helping me with everything this year.

I am feeling way more motivated now I’m getting used to the lockdowns but I’m not even sure I’ll get VOL.3 out this year, but I hope I get to.

Just remember that when you're focusing on a project you can get caught up so hard in other people, you need to remember to take some time out for yourself when focusing on these projects cause it can get quite overwhelming.

Going back to 2016 I have to mention your [Episode 2] Ride With It Set. Along with Amin Payne and ohwell's sets, yours is often bouncing through my speakers so thank you for doing Australia justice with your sensei ways <3

How did that opportunity come about and what was it like performing for an online audience, in a moving car opposed to a live set on stage?

Thank you so much, ride with it was so much fun, but it was the day after I had been to a grand final that Western Bulldogs won so I was very dusty in the car that day.

The opportunity arose as I knew the guys who started it prior to them doing it and they approached me and asked if I’d be keen and I was already there haha.

It was super strange being in a car doing beats, people in other cars wondering what you're doing and not being able to see the SP buttons cause of the light was a little struggle to, I wish ride with it was still around! RIP RIDE WITH IT!

Ride with it Episode 2 - SADIVA -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cC1cICa4cUc&t=2s

You've performed in venues all over the world now, and with each performance, I am sure you learn something new about not only yourself but also your environments.

Can you share what it is like being on stage and also how you keep your nerves in check when you're tweaking those buttons?

Being on stage for me is like another persona, I go to another planet, it’s like when Usagi/Serena turns into sailor moon.

When I'm Djing or playing beats live I become one with the music and its more than a show to me, this is me representing my feelings on stage.

Each city I play also is like learning something new about the culture,

I am so lucky with the opportunities I have.

What environments do you like to create through your live shows?

And also what has been your favourite show to date and why?

I like to create a safe environment where anyone can feel like we can chat after the show, when people come out to see me I am so grateful and it always turns into a bit of a party towards the end of the shows.

I’ve had so many amazing shows but up to date, I’d say when I played in Turin, Italy with my good friend Siccarone beats, that was life-changing.

It was an illegal warehouse party and it was packed, I couldn’t believe the show and it was just so much fun I can’t wait to go back after all of this is over

Musical Recommendations?

At the moment I’m really just feeling a lot of different stuff, I have a few playlists made on Spotify which is probably best to see what I’m really into cause holy dang it’s a big ol mix bag.

Recommendations Away From Music?

Look after your loved ones, your animals, and please look after each other.

The world is in a crazy place so let’s make everyone feel safe in these crazy times.

Any New Releases or Shows coming up that we should keep an ear and eye out for?

Look, since corona, all my big announcements have kind of been put on pause which is a real shame because I was really looking forward to this year.

However, I do have some really big news coming and I am not allowed to say much more than that. I hope this new thing I’m working on really helps our community shine, even more, I wanna talk so much more about it but I can’t, so stay tuned!!!

If so can you share a few details?

My lips are sealed but I’ll be able to announce soon.

Any Last Words?

Chicken butt..

youtube

Music Video for WIT U from “Minutes” by - STLNDRMS

Support SADIVA here:

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/4N5uaLp0vHh7627UsS9GoG

Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/sadiva

Bandcamp - https://sadiva.bandcamp.com/

Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYamcq0cmp62-pxY2XHmnkg

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sadivaa/?hl=en

#beatsfortheill #Sadiva #interview #onlinemagazine #soundcloud #spotify #bandcamp

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hubskitchen · 6 years

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Hub’s Kitchen Episode 4: Why the DC Extended Universe Failed (DCEU Retrospective)

DISCLAIMER: This is a continuation of the previous installment of Hub’s Kitchen. Please read that episode before reading this one. Or not, it’s your choice. Also, spoilers for: Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Wonder Woman, and Justice League.

What’s up guys, my name’s Hub, and welcome to another installment of Hub’s Kitchen. Episode, installment, same difference, this isn’t an academic essay now. In the last episode, I talked about some cinematic universes and what problems they faced or are going to face. At the end, I said I was saving one particular cinematic universe for this episode, and that it needed its own episode dedicated to it. Well, I’m gonna talk about that universe today. Prepare yourselves, as I dive into the horror that is known as: The DC Extended Universe.

If there’s one cinematic universe that can rival the Marvel Cinematic Universe in terms of popularity and success besides Star Wars, it’d be DC’s cinematic universe. The Marvel/DC rivalry has been going on since the 1960’s, when a good chunk of Marvel’s heroes were introduced during the Silver Age of comic books. Throughout the past 5+ decades, both have had their major successes and major blunders. DC has always had the advantage in the animation side of things compared to Marvel, but that doesn’t mean Marvel hasn’t had good shows. The Spectacular Spider-Man and Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes series are some of my favorite animated shows of all time. I prefer Marvel because of the heroes and how more human they are compared to DC’s catalog, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like DC. My first exposure to superheroes was the Justice League animated series from the widely beloved DC Animated Universe, and I’ve been a superhero fan since. In a perfect world, the Marvel/DC rivalry on film would be a monumental and huge war, both sides unleashing their various heroes onto the screen for audiences to love, and giving more fans more room for debate in the long-fabled who’s better debate: Marvel or DC? Instead, it’s more like Marvel is curb stomping DC into the fucking dirt. I feel a brief history lesson is necessary to really bring this whole thing into context.

HOW THIS ALL FELL INTO PLACE

Several years ago, from the 70’s to the 90’s, DC had the upper hand on film, especially with classics like Superman: The Movie, and Tim Burton’s Batman ‘89. Meanwhile, Marvel struggled to get anything onto the screen, with failures like the 1989 Punisher, the 1990 Captain America, and the cancelled, but only viewable through bootleg 1994 Fantastic Four movie. Then, Marvel went bankrupt in 1996, and to keep them afloat, they sold all the movie rights to all their characters to various movie studios. Sony got Spider-Man, FOX got the X-Men and Fantastic Four, etc. During this period, Superman already fell from grace with the 1987 bomb Superman 4: The Quest for Peace, and Batman would soon follow with 1997’s Batman and Robin, one of the most infamous comic book movies of all time. The genre would see a new beginning with 1998’s Blade. In 2000, FOX launched their first X-Men movie, and in 2002, Spider-Man came out, which is the movie that I believe is what started the comic book movie boom that’s still going on, and would be the template that the Marvel Cinematic Universe would follow. DC, meanwhile, rebooted Batman with 2005’s Batman Begins, which would later follow up with 2008’s The Dark Knight, which is often considered to be the greatest comic book movie of all time. Unfortunately, not everything was working out for both Marvel and DC. Superman Returns, the first Superman movie since Quest For Peace, while a modest hit, wasn’t the hit Warner Bros were expecting it to be, and today, Superman Returns isn’t looked at very fondly. While FOX successfully launched the X-Men onto the world of film, the Fantastic Four wouldn’t get the same level of success with both the 2005 film and it’s 2007 sequel, Rise of the Silver Surfer. Sony was also in a pickle with 2007’s Spider-Man 3, which disappointed audiences. Pile that on with Hulk, Daredevil, and Ghost Rider, and Marvel was having some pretty notable failures in their catalog. However, while Universal, FOX, and Sony failed with the aforementioned films, something huge was coming from Marvel Studios when Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk released in 2008. The first Iron Man had the famous end credits sequence with Nick Fury telling Tony Stark that he was a “part of a bigger universe,” and in The Incredible Hulk, we see Tony Stark in a scene of the movie, leading fans to believe that something was coming. 2010 and 2011 marked the releases of Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger, and in 2012, the culmination of all 5 movies released: The Avengers. The Avengers was a massive success, being that it was the first movie to make over $200 million in its opening weekend in the United States. The movies from Iron Man to The Avengers would later be known as Phase 1 of the MCU. Knowing where Marvel Studios is today, it’s amazing how huge they’ve become, making Marvel into a global phenomenon, at least in the realm of movies. This left Warner Bros pressured to make a cinematic universe of their own DC superheroes and get a Justice League movie out as soon as possible. However, this wasn’t actually the first time WB tried to set up a DC cinematic universe.

GREEN LANTERN

In 2011, Green Lantern was released in theaters. On the surface level, Green Lantern was following the footsteps of the first Iron Man: Taking a B-list character and making a movie that would set up the foundation of what would later be a cinematic universe. However, that didn’t work out for Warner Bros. Green Lantern was released to mediocre to terrible reviews, and was a flop at the box office, grossing $219 million on a $200 million dollar budget. Thus, all plans for sequels to Green Lantern were cancelled. The movie is often considered to be one of the worst comic book movies of all time, and was subject of a joke in Deadpool, with “Please don’t make the super suit green, or animated!” Good thing Ryan Reynolds got his big break with that movie. In 2013, WB released Man of Steel in theaters. Man of Steel was directed by Zack Snyder, who directed 300 and the live action adaptation of Watchmen in 2009. The head writer was David Goyer, who wrote for the Dark Knight trilogy, and one of the producers was Christopher Nolan, the director of the Dark Knight trilogy. *In Bubsy voice* How could any of this possibly go wrong?

MAN OF STEEL

It could go wrong, but not horribly wrong. Instead of releasing to rave reviews, and making over a billion dollars at the box office, Man of Steel released to mixed reviews, and in WB’s eyes, underperformed at $668 million dollars. To this day, Man of Steel is one of the most divisive comic book movies of all time, with some seeing it as a great reinvention of Superman, and others seeing it as a betrayal at who Superman is. Not exactly the foundation you want to build your cinematic universe on, huh? As for me, I side with the more negative reactions to Man of Steel, but not as much as I did back in 2013. With the benefit of hindsight, I see Man of Steel as a movie that could have been great, but it wasn't. The issue with Man of Steel, and the thing that kills the movie for me, is that they changed Superman to accommodate the world the DC Extended Universe built up, rather than have Superman be the character he’s always been. I’d be fine with a less experienced, more doubtful Superman, if after this movie, he slowly, but gradually becomes the Superman people expect. We’ll talk about that in a bit, but it didn’t help that the movie spent so much time telling us that Superman will be great, instead of just showing us. Given what we see, Supes destroying shit in Smallville and Metropolis, I don’t think he’s going to be great at all. It also didn’t help that the movie was slow as shit. I can take slow-paced stuff, but you need to really have me engrossed in order to deal with it, ‘cause a slow-pace can kill something for me. I could go on further, but we need to move this along. Overall, I think Man of Steel is mediocre, but not terrible. So, given how this movie underperformed, what do you think Warner Bros’ would do for the future? Hit the Batman Emergency button, of course! Because Batman did wonders for Warner Bros with the Dark Knight trilogy, they decided to put Batman in the follow-up to Man of Steel. But they couldn’t stop at just putting a Batman and Superman conflict into this movie. They also needed to add Wonder Woman, ‘cause the DC Trinity needs to be on screen now that The Avengers got their movie. That still wasn’t enough, however. Let’s take elements of The Dark Knight Returns and Death of Superman storylines and adapt them. Okay, this could still work. Hold on! We need to let the audience know that Justice League is coming, so let’s put in Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg into a scene that literally advertises their films and the Justice League movie. Now we need to double down on the dark and gritty tone people were divided with on Man of Steel, and let’s try to be even more profound and deep, unlike that stupid kiddy Marvel crap that’s successful for some reason. This is for the intellectually elite, motherfuckers! This movie will be a masterpiece! It’ll mop the floor with that stupid Marvel movie, Captain America: Civil War! People will love our movie, right?!

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE

Haha, ha, WB executives are fucking hilarious. Batman v Superman, which I’m just going to refer to as BvS from now on for simplicity’s sake, released to negative reviews and was even more divisive than Man of Steel with audiences and fans. WB wanted this movie to make $1.1 billion, which is what Captain America: Civil War would end up making. Instead, despite a strong opening weekend, BvS had the second largest opening weekend drop off, with 2003’s Hulk still retaining that record. BvS would only end up making $872 million at the box office, which WB labeled as another underperformer. In my humble opinion, BvS is the worst comic book movie I’ve ever seen, and is a good contender for the worst of its genre. “But Hub,” I hear some of you say, “Wasn’t Age of Ultron accused of the same issues BvS had? Why did that film still end up being successful?” A few reasons. Age of Ultron, despite it not receiving rave reviews like the first Avengers movie did, still received fairly positive reviews and word of mouth, and still made $1.4 billion at the box office, which is less than the $1.5 billion the first Avengers made. That’s diminishing returns, but not by a lot. Second, while I’ll agree that AoU isn’t one of Marvel Studios’ best films, as it suffered from studio interference, I can at least say that the movie wasn’t broken at the seams. It got derailed a few times (Hi, Thor pond scene and Hulk X Black Widow relationship), but it the characters still felt like themselves, there were some legitimately great moments (Vision and Ultron in the woods is a good example), and wasn’t trying to be profound and deep. It tried to tell a more grand story than the first Avengers, but it was never pretentious, even if the movie bit off more than it could chew. AoU had to do a lot, too much in fact, and the movie came out as a mess, but not a terrible mess, or even irredeemable one. It’s honestly a miracle that AoU ended up as good as it was, given the circumstances. Heavily flawed, but I can admire what it set out to do. Had to get that unnecessary, but also necessary “Marvel isn’t perfect” thing so I don’t get accused of being a Marvel or Disney shill. Christ.

Back onto the actual subject, BvS is a fucking trainwreck on every possible level if you ask me. Okay, maybe not so much the music, but even then, Wonder Woman’s theme is the only song that I can remember. Then again, I don’t pay attention to music when I watch movies, as I listen to those on my own time. The story was so badly told, and the stand out moments were so horrible, I’m shocked that this movie was approved with the script that it was given. This is one of the few times I think of my theater experience when watching a movie. Man of Steel’s theater experience made me sick with the shitty shaky-cam, but this movie made me angry while watching it, and I never get angry when watching movies, so you have to be really bad in order to make me angry when watching. Two moments in particular, the infamous Martha scene and Superman’s death made me want to walk out on the movie. I’ve never wanted to walk out of a movie before, so that was a first for me. I think the biggest sin BvS makes that isn’t destroying famous comic book stories and having some of the worst versions of Batman AND Superman, is that not only is BvS slow to the point of boring, with very little of actual importance happening, but the movie tries to be so profound in its messages and imagery, like this is some fucking college arthouse film. A lot of people say the worst thing a movie can be is be boring. I respectfully disagree. For me, the worst thing a movie can be is be boring and trying to act like it’s so smart with its themes. The whole god amongst humans thing has been done to death, quite literally in the case of this movie, and the way it’s presented and written, comes off as overly pretentious. I can’t wait for someone to tell me that this movie is for the intellectually elite, while also saying that I need a high IQ in order to understand this movie. It’s why I prefer a movie to be rushed and have little actual meaning, than a movie that’s slow paced and try to be profound. This applies to bad movies only, of course.

There’s two cuts that exist for BvS: The one that was released in theaters, and the 3 hour, rated R extended cut, dubbed the “Ultimate Cut.” Yes, because the first movie about Batman and FUCKING Superman TOTALLY needed a rated R cut. I’ve watched the Ultimate cut, or more like I was forced to watch it because my brother made me sit with him and watch it. There’s a reason why I never trust the man with movies. But, how is the Ultimate cut? Well… it’s better… *sigh* Okay, it’s more complete this time around. It doesn’t feel like a huge chunk was cut out for no reason, and there’s more context surrounding the events of the movie, but does that actually fix the movie? Judging by my statement, no, no it doesn’t. Many of the problems that were in the theatrical cut are still present in this version: Batman and Superman hate each other for their own reasons but do the things they say they hate about the other, making them hypocrites, Lex Luthor’s plan makes no sense and is overly convoluted, Lois Lane is still useless, the action is still poor overall, Wonder Woman is still an afterthought, the title fight that the movie has its entire purpose riding on is still lackluster at best, the Martha scene is still stupid, and the movie essentially destroyed all hopes of a great Superman story by wasting the Death of Superman storyline. What else can I say? I fucking hate this movie, the end. Holy shit, that was a long section. How’s about something shorter?

SUICIDE SQUAD

This is gonna be a very short segment compared to the BvS one, but that’s because in a shocking twist, I haven’t actually sat down and watched Suicide Squad. I’ll still talk about how the movie ended up the way it did and how it was received, but I can’t actually comment on the movie itself. I’m also putting Suicide Squad’s history here because the BvS segment is long enough. Anyway, after BvS underperformed, Warner Bros panicked and decided to make a course correction with Suicide Squad. People liked the trailers, which made the movie appear to be DC’s answer to Guardians of the Galaxy. In fact, the people who made the trailers ended up editing the movie. Yes, really. The concept of the movie sounded awesome. A ragtag group of villains forced to do good things or they die is a really interesting concept and if executed well, could be seen as a new form of comic book movie. The anti-Avengers, you could say. However, that wasn’t meant to be. Suicide Squad was received about as well as BvS was, with some saying it was even worse than BvS. Seeing as how I haven’t seen the movie, I can’t comment on it, but given what I’ve heard, it sounds like a shitty version of Guardians of the Galaxy, both of them, and the sequel wasn’t out when Suicide Squad came out. At the very least, the movie was said to have been more profitable than BvS, even though it made $746 million at the box office on a $175 million budget. So, 3 misfires so far, and the best received one divided audiences and critics. The DCEU was in serious trouble, and there needed to be a miracle in order to save this franchise. Well, unbeknownst to Warner Bros, their savior, to a degree anyway, would come from an underestimated superhero, or should I say, superheroine!

WONDER WOMAN

Remember when I said that Wonder Woman was an afterthought in BvS? Well, she was, but she had a movie coming out. I find it funny that we live in a world where the Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant-Man, Deadpool, the Suicide Squad, and Doctor Strange got their own movies before Wonder Woman, the third member of the DC Trinity. The world is weird. Diana’s movie came out, and it blew away expectations. Not that they were high to begin with, but let’s not be so cynical here. Wonder Woman released to great reviews and audiences loved it. The movie made over $412 million dollars at the U.S. box office, more than any of the Marvel Studios films at the same box office, and outperformed Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man for the highest grossing superhero origin movie, and Spidey held the record for 15 years. The movie would end up making $821 million dollars at the global box office, making it the second highest grossing movie in the DCEU, with BvS being the highest grossing, but unlike BvS, Wonder Woman didn’t underperform and was a huge hit. So, what did I think of Wonder Woman? Well, gotta give credit where credit is due, but the DCEU has an installment where I can confidently call good. Diana herself was better characterized than she was in BvS. My favorite scene in the movie is when she and Steve Trevor are about to go to No Man’s Land, but before they embark on the train ride there, Diana gets ice cream from an ice cream vendor, and tells the ice cream man that he’s wonderful. This is something that this franchise has been sorely lacking: Little touches. The movie also used the dark and gritty motif of the DCEU correctly. This is because the movie was set during World War 1, which was a shitty time, and we had Themyscira, a bright and colorful place to contrast with the shitty London and battlefields. The first two acts, minus the underwhelming action that relied too much on slow motion for my tastes, were well handled and even great. Despite what I said about the action, that No Man’s Land sequence was awesome. However, and this hurts me to say this, the third act happens. Ooooh, the third act. If there was one movie that was so close to greatness, only to have the ending nearly ruin it, it’s this movie. I know I’m going to be labeled sexist for not saying Wonder Woman is a great movie, but please, bare with me. So, throughout the movie, Diana wants to kill Ares, the god of war. The legend of Ares states that he’s the reason why mankind goes to war with each other. However, Diana kills General Stryker (I’m calling him that because it’s the same actor from X-Men 2), and she believed him to be Ares. I mean, to be fair, he was huffing up some magic powder or something, so I can believe that. After killing General Stryker, Diana sees that the humans are still preparing their assault. Diana is horrified to see this, and she asks Steve Trevor why the humans are still at war now that she killed Ares. Shortly after this, the real Ares comes and then the movie goes into the usual third act climax. Now, I don’t have a problem with third act climaxes. So, why do I have an issue with it here? Ares was mentioned being alive early in the movie, so what’s the big deal? I think it has to do with how the movie was written. The way the movie played out, it seemed like Diana realizing that humans are, in her words, “so much more,” than what they seem. This could have explained why she gave up the Wonder Woman mantle and stayed in the human world for a century. Not having a third act climax in order to develop a character, with the message that humans are much more, even at their worst, would have been amazing. Instead, the movie throws all of that away for a final fight with Ares and Steve Trevor sacrificing himself. It felt tacked on and cheapened the movie. It came off as rewarding Diana for being naive, which is something I hated about the movie. Her entire character arc was rendered meaningless because of that last act. There’s also some questions after the fight that are never answered. Now that Ares is dead, does that mean World War 2 and the Cold War never happened in this universe? If killing Ares ended all conflict in humanity, why is the world so grim when Man of Steel begins? This act single handedly derailed the movie. What could have been a potential masterpiece only ends up being decent in my opinion. I won’t go as far as to say the third act ruined the movie, but it does end up hurting the movie by quite a bit if you ask me. I should reiterate that Wonder Woman is overall, a solid movie, but the third act really holds it back. Now, let’s get to the fifth and final movie in this, I guess you could call it, DCEU Retrospective, the big JL.

JUSTICE LEAGUE

Fun fact: Did you know that there was going to be a Justice League movie long before The Avengers? The movie was called Justice League: Mortal, and was going to release sometime around 2007/2008, if not later than that. However, I guess WB decided “Naaah, we got our golden boyo Christopher Nolan here doing Batman movies for us. The audience will be confused if two live action Batmen were on screen.” Not giving the audience enough credit, I see? I mean, I’m not sure what happened, but I’m pretty sure you can look up a video Justice League: Mortal.

Justice League faced tons of behind the scenes problems. There were talks of Ben Affleck (aka, DCEU Bats) directing which never went through, the movie being completely reworked just mere weeks before shooting began because of BvS’s terrible reception, Joss Whedon (the guy who wrote and directed the first two Avengers movies) taking over as director and reworking the movie after Zack Snyder tragically lost his daughter from suicide, etc, etc, etc. Now, I’m not saying a movie that has behind the scenes problems is doomed to failure. After all, A New Hope had several behind the scenes problems, with George Lucas even writing the film off before it premiered, and look at how well that movie ended up turning out. Although I was livid after BvS and missed Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman gave me some hope that Justice League wouldn’t be that bad. Well… I was sort of right on that.

Let me get one thing straight: Justice League is a terrible movie. The story reeks of “Been there, done that, seen it before, seen it better, and will see it better in the future.” The characters were flat at best, and irritating at worst (looking at you, second-rate MCU Spider-Man aka Flash), and the villain is one of the worst I’ve ever seen (seriously, Steppenwolf is a fucking mid-boss, so why is he the big bad of 4 years?). To top it off, the film is a tonal and visual mess, and what I mean by the latter is that Joss Whedon’s Avengers-esc style clashes heavily with Zack Snyder’s supposed deep and dark vision. Justice League comes off as, to quote one of my favorite YouTube channels, Midnight’s Edge “A Frankensteinian abomination.” That being said, at least the film didn’t try to shove philosophical messages down my throat or try so fucking hard to be deep and meaningful, so JL’s already better than Man of Steel and BvS in that regard. I also liked that we finally got a Superman that actually felt like Superman should instead of what MoS and BvS tried to make him be. I left Justice League feeling… indifferent, I guess? I didn’t like it, but I didn’t hate it either. All I know is that I should have been feeling a lot more positive about this movie than I actually did. The Justice League animated series from the DC Animated Universe was my introduction to superheroes, and I still think holds up wonderfully today. I may have not been a fan of how Season 1 handled Superman in regards to the villains of that show, but I still think it’s a fantastic show. It’s a fucking shame that Warner Bros essentially failed to make a movie worthy of the name: Justice League. To make Justice League look even of a failure, we’re gonna have to talk about box office again.

Wanna know how much Justice League costed to make, including reshoots? $300 million. Justice League is the second most expensive movie ever made, with Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides being the most expensive. Want to know how much money it made, or has made so far? $655 million. Yes, only that much. On its opening weekend in America, it made $93 million. It couldn’t even make $100 million! It took the movie a fucking month to make the same amount The Avengers made in its opening weekend. If that’s not a “Get fucked, DC,” I don’t know what is. So, now that I spent this entire time going over each DCEU movie in detail (sorry that this has been so long to begin with), it’s now time to answer the question: Why did the DC Extended Universe fail?

WHY THE DCEU FAILED

If you ask me, the main reason the DC Extended Universe failed was because Warner Bros didn’t have a set plan or a person with a vision to keep the universe in tact. The reason Marvel Studios and the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been consistently successful is because of one man, and that man is Kevin Feige. Originally being a producer for the early X-Men and Spider-Man movies, along with other Marvel films, he was the brainchild behind the MCU, and has been an executive producer for each movie in the MCU so far. When a movie doesn’t measure up to the rest, which was the case with Thor: The Dark World, the MCU didn’t go into a panic and have the next few movies affected by Thor 2’s failings. Instead, the franchise carried on, and all the problems of The Dark World were addressed and mostly solved with Thor: Ragnorok. DC, meanwhile, doesn’t have a Kevin Feige. Warner Bros made the choice to make the DCEU director-driven, rather than producer-driven. The problem with making a mega-franchise with multiple franchises inside is that you need to have them be producer-driven to have a consistent vision. I know that a common complaint with the MCU is that it tends to revolve around a single formula, often referred to as the “Marvel Formula,” but a consistent vision needs to be in check to keep things in line. Having director-driven movies is good, but can lead to a clash of visions. Maybe I should do a Hub’s Kitchen episode on that. Hmm… Because of BvS’s failings, Suicide Squad and Justice League had to be radically altered during shooting and post-production, rather than before shooting and during pre-production, which was the case of Thor: Ragnorok going in a different direction than the previous Thor films.

I also feel that not sticking to what made the characters so beloved is another reason the DCEU failed. I’ve always been one to say that accuracy doesn’t make a movie good, but even so, I still believe that the main point of the character should be completely in tact. Marvel Studios has done a great job at this, even when they had to slightly rework characters like Spider-Man for example. Despite him having a tech suit made by Tony Stark, Peter still made his original suit, his web shooters, webbing, is still a smart kid, and relatable. Meanwhile, the DCEU decided “Hey, you know Superman? Yeah, let’s make him a complete brooding asshole and have him kill people for no reason other than its cool.” Or “Hey, you know Batman? Yeah, he’s a killer now and then suddenly he’s a third-rate Tony Stark wannabe.” Even better “Hey, you know Flash? Barry Allen Flash? We’re gonna make him Wally West and make him incredibly annoying, because COMEDY!” Thankfully, Wonder Woman got off pretty well. I know nerds like me are the only people who read comic books, but as far as an adaptation is concerned, we want the core basics of the characters to be intact. The DCEU didn’t do that, and a lot of fans jumped ship. Audiences were also alienated, mainly because for Man of Steel and BvS, the heroes weren’t acting like heroes, or people for that matter. I think that covers that whole dilemma, and now, it’s time to wrap everything up.

CONCLUSION

I’m sorry that this episode was as long as it was. I just feel that I needed to go in-depth as to why I felt the way I did and why the DCEU failed. I love superheroes. I’d go as far as to say superhero stories are my favorite kind of stories. I grew up with superheroes, okay, mostly Spider-Man, but still. So I hope you all can understand why I hated the DCEU as much as I did, and why it ultimately failed. I feel like whenever people generalize others who love the MCU and hate the DCEU as them saying “Marvel can do no wrong,” are missing the point. It’s not that we believe Marvel can do no wrong. It’s that we want good representations of the heroes we read and love, so maybe the average Joe can understand why we love these funny books so much. Whatever issues the MCU has can (mostly) be forgiven because the good stuff outweighs the bad. The DCEU, however, has only one good movie to its name and a few droppings of brilliance in an otherwise mediocre DC universe.

Wow, I got really emotional there. I’m sorry for that. It just annoys me when people generalize stuff. I don’t know what the next topic of Hub’s Kitchen will be on, but I can tell you all this: It’s gonna be a hell of a lot shorter than this, that’s for sure. My name’s Hub, and thank you for reading. *Checks Google Drive word count* Over 5,000 words. What the fu-

#hubskitchen

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