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venusorbits · 1 year

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DOUBLE TAKE | CHAPTER ONE

pairing ; cho gue sung ( 조규성 ) x female! supermodel! british-asian! reader

summary ; You have been invited once again to the Korean TV programme 'I Live Alone' alongside the World Cup Heartthrob, Cho Gue Sung ( 조규성 ). Simple guests, who had to take double takes from each other, who could have seen it coming? No one was. Certainly, neither were the both of you.

genre ; romance, fluff, established relationship ( by second chapter cause i hate writing slow burn, i like reading them though ), angst.

masterlist

❝if you've got a girlfriend, i'm jealous of her. but if you're single that's honestly worse 'cause you're gorgeous it actually hurts.❞

You began your stardom career at the mere age of 17 years after an agent saw your photos posted through social media. The said photo was the cause of the tumbling domino effect, igniting and bursting into bold bright orange flames, into dipping your toes into the window of opportunity and universe of high fashion, colourful red carpets and long hallways of runways.

You were on your own. You were no kid, anymore. You’re moving onto big girl things like moving to the big city; flashing lights, fast-paced times, overwhelming anxiety-filled environment, big mysteries and savouring new moments. Tom Ford, catapulted your career further way beyond the horizon.

Chest squeezing. Heart thumping. Bright lights. Everyone’s attention turned to you— the clicks of their cameras. Gaze is fixed on the end of the runway. Conscious of your steps. God, you felt awkward. With the slight rock and sway of your hips, this movement didn’t come naturally as the other models did. You felt tiny. How were you supposed to showcase the intricately designed clothing when they might be snickering about how you walk?

A fellow model reassured you, ‘There was no such thing as perfection when you’ve only begun..’

Fake it till you make it they say. Well, years have passed at the age of 22, and you are now one of the most recognisable faces in the industry. You’ve walked for many runways on endless fashion weeks, been on the cover of Vogue, Elle, Harpers Bazaar, the face of Versace, representative of Swarovski and many more. Some even dare say, up and coming It Girl. You’ve accomplished a lot, all on your own.

Though, one unexpected thing came into your life, living in Seoul, South Korea. The thought never crossed your mind once. But you came to South Korea for a photo shoot with Vogue Korea back in 2019. Needless to say, you fell in love with the culture, the country’s generous and kind residents, the language, the atmosphere and — Well, obviously, the city itself. You have dedicated learning the language and culture in order to live smoothly and in harmony.

It was difficult having to fly out to New York thousands of miles away, the epicentre of jobs and Fashion Week. But, what can you say? You were used to it. Hopping onto planes needing to be somewhere by Friday? Oh, London Fashion week ends on this day but, Paris starts that day. No worries. It was painfully exhausting but that’s the life of a Supermodel.

Your life in Seoul didn’t change much. Though this time you’re receiving twice the jobs than you did before, many Korean designers have reached out to you to model for the clothing they have designed such as Rok Hwang, Eudon Choi, the duo Byungmun Seo and Jina Um and finally, Youngae Lee and Happly for their project ‘Hanbok Wave’. Not only were you attracting attention in the fashion industry but it extended to the entertainment industry, you’ve been invited to many varieties of shows to be featured in.

As your schedule began to fizzle down, you found the time to film for the TV programme you were featured in ‘I live Alone’. Dressed all chic and feminine, opting for the chunky loafers with a pair of long white socks instead of your Versace heels. Your hair is all done so beautifully. Smiling so brightly at all the familiar faces and jogging up to them for a quick embrace. A light chatter followed along with it, ‘how are you?’, ‘I’ve been doing well’, ‘It’s nice to see you again’. Strings of compliments flowed through.

“안녕하세요. I’m (First name).” You greet the man. Undeniably gorgeous, you couldn’t even focus much on what he was saying as he reaches in for a handshake, he introduces himself as—

“안녕하세요, 조규성.” The beautiful angel marks dotted all over his face like starry stars across the wide peaceful sky. But, goddamn, he’s so bright like the sun and his beauty is also so blinding it hurts. His beautiful carved nose and the sharp angles of his jaw, high prominent cheekbones. Everything about him was a piece of art. He’s a delicate and classic painting deserving to be in a museum.

Heartbeat was skipping across the street.

Filming starts at any second now and you couldn’t tear your eyes away from him. The soft fluffy brush glides across your face for the final touch-ups. Unbeknownst to you, Gue Sung also had to take a double take also stealing sweet glimpses, you had an addicting kind of beauty. It was much more than a drug. The kind of one that makes Aphrodite green as envy and red as rage. Eyes trail to every detail of your face. The way your eyes brighten as you joke lightly with your makeup artist.

“Please everyone get ready! Filming will start in 10!”

That was months ago. Time flies quickly; your home became littered with traces of him. He was everywhere you looked, in every corner, you breathed him. Gue Sung has now integrated well and was a part of your being. You have made space in your extensive closet just for him, he has his very own mug for his coffee in the morning, framed photo of you together on your bedside table, his own toothbrush and his very own corner for all the things he leaves.

Those months spent together have nothing been but elated, fondness and love. You have never been this happy, your whole entire life, you have never expected for him to come into your life at such an unexpected time. But, you thank God every day.

The sound of the familiar beeps and the sound of the front door opening echoed in your small apartment.

“자기야, I’m home!”

Immediately, you tossed your phone aside, jumped off the sofa and came barreling. Gue Sung was kicking off his shoes as he slips his face mask off, he puts his bag down and his arm stretched out wide open. No hesitation, you crashed right into his warm loving embrace.

“Hi.” You mumbled nuzzling your face into the side of his neck and inhaling his scent. He awkwardly shuffles with you still practically glued onto him and clung onto him like a koala bear, Gue Sung peppers your temples and hairline with kisses. Running his hands up and down your back. You only snuggled further onto his neck tightening your grip around his large frame.

“Did you miss me?” He whispers softly voice dripping in honey, you pull away enough so, you could stare deeply into his eyes, and you rest your head on his shoulder. Gue Sung couldn’t resist but placed a quick kiss on your lips.

“Not even a little bit.” You tease, poking your tongue out at him playfully.

“Oh? I know you did. You can’t even think about not having me by your side that’s why you asked for my number when we first met.” Not exactly a lie but, not exactly the complete truth either. You gasped dramatically,

“I don’t appreciate you lying about my name like that.”

Gue Sung hums.

“Did you eat yet?” You asked.

“No. I knew you were waiting for me.” It tendered your heart.

“Let’s go eat then. I’m sure you’re starving.” However, Gue Sung didn’t want to let go, his grip on you only tightened squeezing you against his torso. No matter how many times, you brush his arms away it would always ends up back circling around your waist.

“What? I can’t set the table if we’re like this.” You laugh light-heartedly,

“Have you always been this pretty?” Gue Sung almost coos, “우리이쁜자기 ( My pretty baby ).”

“Go take a shower! You stink.” You ushered him away towards the bathroom. Your ear pick up the sound of water splashing, you move around the kitchen, hands everywhere all at once to get the food reheated, plated and on the table before Gue Sung gets out of the shower.

It has been a long day for him, you’re sure. You take upong yourself to sit while you await for your beloved, occupied by your mobile phone. Food all laid out on the table; all simple and quick whipped up meal, thankfully your boyfriend was no picky eater. He enjoyed a variety of dishes and scarfed everything down with gusto… Except meat. He’s particular about how it should be done. Not long after, he emerges from the shower.

You held out your hand for him to hand the towel. It’s a unspoken ritual at this point; he sits down and you dry off his hair. There was something weirdly intimate about it. Running the soft towel through his damp hair. Once his hair is relatively dry, you carded your fingers through his hair brushing it off his forehead, slicking it back. He lets out a sigh of relief and softens under your tender touch.

You were so deeply lost in your task, you fail to notice Gue Sung’s blatant fond, affectionate and loving stare. He admires everything that you are from your head and down to your toe. He likes everything that you do to him.

“What?” You ask with a stupid smile on your face leaning to his level.

“Nothing.” Gue Sung shook his head.

He cups your face peppered kisses. From your forehead. Eyes. Nose. Cheeks. Finally on your lips.

One love, one house.

#cho gue sung fluff #cho gue sung fanfic #cho gue sung imagines #cho gue sung x reader #south korea nt #cho gue sung #조규성 #cho gue sung ff #[ venusorbits 🪐 double take series ]

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beardedmrbean · 5 months

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Okay I probably going to bitch next year, but this how I feel about the society of magical negroes https://youtu.be/GvM4_U9MvPk?si=IcP7aWm2nAFA5G89

But no, we (though Obama did start it) have to burn down the bridges our forebears made towards race relations because you need to justify your racist hateboner towards white peoples even in a setting where black people have magic

Also…writers do know that there regional black cultures? Like southern blacks would probably be into the voodoo stuff, hmmm black urban magic user might blend eastern magic given our urban history with Asians….

I’m thinking more than the writers who made more money by writing this movie script alone than I do in a year am I?

youtube

Black content creators, we was doing so well, we help on the FUCKING APOLLO LUNAR MISSIONS, we created so many inventions during periods of oppression and discrimination, many civil rights activists survived to see a fucking black President into office. But no, we (though Obama did start it) have to burn down the bridges our forebears made towards race relations because you need to justify your racist hateboner towards white peoples even in a setting where black people have magic

This here is one of the big reasons why I continually say that we're going backwards from the peak of the late 90's in terms of racial issues/relations and a lot of that has to do with the media being produced and consumed.

Social media is another massive issue because honestly how fast can we see a lie that people want to believe spread once twitter gets its hands on it, and then you get the people that regardless of what the facts are refuse to shift because of a matter of pride.

Honestly though the different media that was on back there. Had stuff like Fresh Prince, Martin, In Living Colour (Waynes family owned comedy in the early/mid 90's) all kinds of non white led shows on the tv that didn't play hard into stereotypes but still managed to showcase what some of the different issues faced by the various other racial and ethnic groups without it feeling forced.

Carlton being the "wrong" kind of black man for the fraternity, that's not something a white writer could really do terribly well, but it's one of the things that seems to come up a lot irl and it's nice to put it out there for folks that may not be up on that being a thing.

Spike Lee, he ruled the 90's too, Do the Right Thing, X, even White Men Can't Jump great films showcasing the reality of life in those communities without resorting to tired stereotypes, even White Men Can't Jump since that's just kinda how the whole thing ended up till then it was solid drama even after it was still solid.

And if you wanted quality satire the previously mentioned Waynes's came in with "Don't be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood" can't recall who did CB4, but that was good too.

Now we get

Which is incredibly weird to me considering I know who Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Big Mama Thornton are.

youtube

We really erasing Black Women's accomplishments in an effort to stick it to Whitey? How about Black Men, Chuck Berry ring a bell to anyone?

How about Current year. Please I'm begging you

youtube

Tell the Death Metal Cowboys of Botswana that they're playing white people music.

No race owns any kind of music for starters, tack in suppressing loads of talent because folks just gotta keep holding their community back for some reason.

I run into the same issue with Chris Rock's whole 'he's a dentist' bit about his neighborhood, ya it's a joke but telling your predominantly black audience that you need to be Denzel Washington to be able to reach the same heights as a run of the mill white dentist, gotta be discouraging.

Then we get the "Magical Negro's" movie, which ya it's supposed to be comedy, could do without being so ham-fisted.

Sent the trailer you shot me a few days back to a friend of mine, his response was less wordy than mine but we both landed on the same conclusion.

"So basically it's Undercover Brother but not funny"

How about we bring Sinbad out of retirement and fix that whole "Shazam" issue once and for all he can do the race stuff without being a massive ass about it, and I'd love to see him working some more, maybe we get a "Good Burger" sequel.

Not that David Allen Grier isn't funny, but damn that movie just looks awful.

#anonymous

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edwinadaily · 1 year

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COSMOPOLITAN UK | A few weeks ago, Charithra Chandran was having a dinner party with some of her oldest friends. A few of them work in advertising and marketing, another is a doctor, one is a lawyer. None work in ‘the industry’. ‘Have I changed?’ Chandran asked them, as plates were cleared and wine glasses topped up. Their answer was unanimous. ‘No way.’ ‘In fact,’ one joked, ‘it’s actually sad how little character development there’s been.’ They all laughed. ‘Sometimes dickish things come out of your mouth like, “I’ve got a fitting with Dior next week!” Look, your life might have changed, but you certainly haven’t.’

Their words reassured Chandran of something she already knew. In just two life-changing years, she had gone from being a philosophy, politics and economics graduate preparing to start a job in management consultancy, to playing a lead in one of the biggest TV shows of the past decade. In the year since she appeared in Bridgerton’s second series, caught in a love triangle with Jonathan Bailey’s Anthony Bridgerton and Simone Ashley’s Kate Sharma, her trajectory has shown no signs of slowing down. This year, she stars in a handful of films including Good Intentions, a short with Micheal Ward (who you’ll know from the Oscar-nominated Empire Of Light), as well as playing the lead in teen rom-com How To Date Billy Walsh. And just a few weeks ago, she was in India with Ashley for the Dior pre-fall show (hence the fitting), which she describes as ‘special and incredible’. But while 26-year-old Chandran may be sitting front row, booking lead roles and appearing on magazine covers, she still feels like that same wide-eyed graduate, the one with no idea what would come next.

‘My life just feels so... normal?’ says Chandran, over a builder’s tea in one of her favourite central London cafes, her hair slicked back in a silk headscarf. 'That is the number one thing that has left me feeling sane. I worry that if my personal life was fully in this world, these crazy experiences would start to feel normal. I need to be surrounded by people not involved in the craziness.'

Most of her friends – like the ones at the dinner party – are from school and university, and the industry friendships she has tend to be with older women, including her Bridgerton cast mates Golda Rosheuvel (Queen Charlotte) and Shelley Conn, who played her mother in the series. ‘We hang out all the time. We go see shows; we grab tea or dinner. Golda’s so cool, sometimes I wonder why she wants to hang out with me. Shelley is literally like my older sister; I’m super close with her family. They both give me advice constantly about how to hold yourself in the industry. They provide perspective as well; they’ve been in it for so long, and they’re both women of colour; they remind me how far we’ve come and how far we have to go. Everything that I go through, they’ve been through it tenfold. I really rely on their counsel.’

The road to Bridgerton

Chandran auditioned for the show in 2020 before the first series had aired. At the time, her career as an actor was precarious. She’d loved performing for as long as she could remember (‘I was that annoying kid who always wanted to be the centre of attention’), acting throughout school and university, even performing in the West End with youth theatre companies, but she’d never really considered it as a viable career. ‘I never even talked about wanting to act because I felt embarrassed. Saying you wanted to be a professional actor felt like saying you wanted to be prime minister or an astronaut.’ Her reasons were twofold. The first was a lack of South Asian representation on screen and stage, – ‘For a long time I didn’t really have any inspiration to look towards,’ she says – and the second was familial expectation. ‘I’m the literal opposite of a nepo baby. My parents are doctors; we didn’t know any actors or journalists. Anyone who’s not a medic was foreign territory for us.’

Though her parents hoped Chandran would follow them into the profession, she credits their progressive attitudes with giving her the courage to follow her dreams. ‘They always expected academic excellence, but they gave me so much freedom and trust. I don’t know if that was an active choice or [if] it was because they were immigrants, junior doctors and single parents who didn’t have time to be focused on me 24/7. Either way, they really let me be me.’

Being herself meant giving acting a serious shot before starting the management consultancy job. She deferred the start date for a year and, in between working as a tutor and running a food bank, spent time crafting a CV and a showreel to try to get professional representation. Her graft paid off, and she signed to an agent who began to get her auditions for film and TV roles. Her first was a Bollywood dancer in the star-studded Marvel film Eternals, which Chandran landed after finding an advert on Instagram, helmed by the likes of Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden and Salma Hayek. On set, it was Kumail Nanjiani who really stood out for Chandran. ‘Being on a proper movie set with this fellow brown actor looking buff felt amazing. He treated us with so much kindness and grace.’

Shortly after, Chandran landed a role in Amazon Prime’s Alex Rider series, and then came her even bigger break: Bridgerton. The process was turbulent. The world had gone into lockdown and after a handful of virtual auditions for Ashley’s role (Kate), Chandran was told she looked too young for the part. Months later, out of the blue, she was approached again, and by that point, season one was already out and the show was a breakout hit that became the most-viewed English-language series onNetflix at the time. ‘While they continued looking for Kate, they had me on the back burner. I’d got a part in another show, so I was like, you know, okay, I love the sound of Bridgerton, butI have [other] work so, whatever. And then season one came out and I was like, “Oh, man! It’s such a good show. I would have loved to get that!”’ This time, the team wanted her to audition for the role of Kate’s younger sister, Edwina Sharma. ‘I desperately wanted to be in the show, but I didn’t want to do it solely for that – which is such an ego trip! I only had one credit at the time. But I was fully being like, “Okay, tell me more about the role...’ So I read for it, and then I didn’t hear about anything for months. I was like, “Okay, well, clearly it’s over!”’

Then, one afternoon, while helping out in her mum’s allotment, she received a call asking her to audition with Bailey and Ashley. ‘I didn’t even realise I was still in the running. But the chemistry read was so special. I remember they looked so beautiful on Zoom. The lighting was amazing, and I was in my dingy dining room in the dark. I thought, “Okay, I need to step up my game.”’ Clearly she was already bringing her A-game because she landed the part.

Surviving the spotlight

Bridgerton has a habit of launching the stellar careers of its leads. Almost overnight, season one’s Phoebe Dynevor and Regé-Jean Page went from emerging actors to household names. ‘So many of the cast members who’d been through it were like, Charithra, get a therapist because this is crazy,’ she remembers. She took their advice, and while therapy has been invaluable, nothing could truly prepare her for such a life-altering experience. She cites events in particular as ‘anxiety-inducing’, explaining, ‘There’s an impostor syndrome there. I leave and I want to cry every time!’ It sounds intense, and the internet’s opinions only exacerbated it. ‘I think when anyone is first exposed to this [fame] on the level that I was, they read the comments, they google themselves. And when you read the really aggressive ones – I know this sounds dramatic – but you feel really vulnerable. I’m a normal person – I’m taking the bus, I’m taking the Tube. You’re thinking all it takes is one person being slightly too deranged and trying to hunt you down... It took me like a solid four months to [get] through that.’

When it comes to social media generally, and whether she feels any pressure with what she posts and the persona she presents, Chandran is typically low-key. ‘I’m not famous enough for people to care about me enough to feel that now! I’m not thinking to myself at any point, “I wonder how the public will receive it.” Maybe I should! But even if – fingers crossed – I continue to do really cool things, and I do get more famous, I’m a very open person. I’m not trying to hide anything. I’m very active on social media and I share loads of parts of my life. But that’s what I’d be doing anyway, even if I wasn’t doing this. I don’t do things differently because I have a platform.’

One thing she is clear on: she doesn’t read negative comments any more and focuses her attention on what a powerful impact the series has had, particularly for young women of colour. ‘I get so much energy and enrichment when I meet someone who’s watched it and tells me how much seeing Simone and me on the show means to them.’ She adds, ‘She is so beautiful. We both went through a baptism of fire together, so we really bonded for life over this very seismic experience that we had. We’re connected by something so big.’

Chandran is clearly proud of the show, however not all responses to Bridgerton have been positive. While the Shonda Rhimes Regency-era romance has largely been praised for the diversity of its stars, some critics have questioned the casting, suggesting it’s tokenistic and that the characters of colour aren’t afforded sufficient context or cultural recognition and could just as easily have been played by a white actor. ‘It’s not a perfect show,’ says Chandran. ‘No one’s out here saying this is a perfect representation of anything. If we were to do it again, I’m sure we’d make certain different decisions, but it’s a damn good try. And it’s a really bold try. Let’s enjoy the fact that we have this and continue striving for more.’

Chandran says some of the commentary that bothered her the most were ‘the comments that said I only got to where I am because I’m Eurocentric or I’m white-passing. That really bugged me because all my life I’ve had to face prejudice for not being those things. I have a quintessentially Tamil face, not even Indian, people can place me as a Tamil. You open books, you go to a temple, you see the pictures and paintings; they look like this. So it’s like, bro, I didn’t go through prejudice and discrimination for you to now belittle my identity. When the show was coming out, that’s all I could focus on.’

From Regency to romance

As she gears up for the release of her next project, How To Date Billy Walsh, this time around, her feeling is one of excitement. She plays Amelia, a precocious teenager who, much like her Bridgerton character, finds herself caught up in an unlikely love triangle with her best friend Archie (played by Heartstopper’s Sebastian Croft) and an elusive new student (Cobra Kai’s Tanner Buchanan). The film brims with all the fun, campness and nostalgia of a classic romcom. ‘We wanted to make something that was really timeless,’ says Chandran. ‘My cousins who are 12 and 13 are still watching Clueless, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. We wanted to do something fun and heart-warming that harked back to the 90s.’

While classic teen romances are praised for their charm, they’re less celebrated for their diversity. As a woman of colour, did it feel like a big deal to be at the helm of a high school romcom? ‘I think it’s so interesting because what I really loved and appreciated was how not a big deal it felt, and I think that’s a real testament to all the people that have come before me, all the directors, producers, actors who have paved the way. I love representing my culture, and I love playing characters who are culturally specific to me,’ she says, ‘but on the flipside, I also enjoy playing a normal person where the story isn’t just about her being Indian. That is what I want for my career as well. I want to do things about race that start important conversations, and things about love and friendship. I don't want to be a one-trick pony.' When choosing roles, she says her approach is simply to find characters who feel truthful. 'The times I've said no are if it perpetuates bad or lazy stereotypes, if it's a character I've already seen before.'

As a romantic lead, her performance is effortless. Amelia is a plucky teenager who reels through the full spectrum of emotions when she develops a crush on the titular character, faces off against bullies and navigates some complicated feelings towards her best friend. Her portrayal of a girl caught in the full throes of an all-consuming crush is vibrant and hilarious, but she also imbues Amelia with a real sense of vulnerability.

Chandran shares some of Amelia's confidence and her thirst for new experiences, but her own memories of dating as a teenager were quite different. rowing up in Oxford, she went to an all-girls school. Most weekends involved house parties with boys from the neighbouring schools, where she would be the only one to get, ‘no attention from the guys,’ she remembers. ‘I thought, "Maybe they’re just not attracted to brown girls." I’m curvy; Indian women tend to have curves and fat in different places. All my friends were white and skinny. It was confusing, but I never took it personally. I used to wonder, is it because they see a brown girl and think, “Oh, she probably can't drink, she’s probably really prudish” – what assumptions were they making just from the colour of my skin?’

While she was at university, one of the boys who had been on the same teen house-party circuit messaged her on Facebook. 'This is a guy I’d seen every weekend for almost two years. He said I was cute and asked me how we knew each other. What’s mad is that I didn’t go to uni and have some glow-up. I looked exactly the same at 19 as I had at 15.’ She believes his sudden interest reflected a broader cultural shift towards diversity. ‘By that time, there were more Black and brown women in magazines and in lead roles on TV. I realised, "Oh, I'm trendy. So now you see there’s an attractiveness there. Because I objectively know I don't look different." That kind of shit happened quite a few times.’

Needless to say, Chandan ghosted the message. ‘I’m not a trend,' she says with a playful eye-roll. In life after Bridgerton, she admits dating can be difficult to navigate. She doesn’t use apps because ‘even before the show, people would see me on Instagram or google me. Which we all do, it's fine... but it started to get weird. So it is harder to meet people, but I don't think I'm famous or successful enough to ever have to worry that someone’s dating me for clout’. Plus, she knows what's important in a potential partner. ‘If I think about what kind of person I want to date, the number one thing I'll say is that they need to be a feminist. I'm a feminist, I'm an advocate for women. I went to a girls school, my family is a matriarchy.’

Dating aside, the fact that Chandran’s life hasn’t changed all that much is a testament to her ability to keep both feet on the ground. There’s also perhaps the knowledge that, should she ever find herself changed by fame, her best friends will absolutely be there to bring her back to reality at the next dinner party. ‘They're the most important people to me’ she says. ‘I love to be surrounded by women. I love the men in my life, but I just prefer women. Women made me feel safe, they make me feel heard.'

#charithra chandran #charithrachandranedit #cchandranedit #bridgerton cast #bridgertoncastedit #interview

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quitesins · 2 years

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Watching Bollywood Films with Katsuki

Masterlist

Tags: Sfw, fem!reader, implied South Asian reader but no physical attributes stated, drabble moment again

You’re sitting there flicking mindlessly through the channels, when a specific flash of colours catches your interest. It’s an old Bollywood film, something you’re surprised they’re even showing anymore, so you let it play in the background as you lounge around lazily.

“What you watching.” Katsuki comes in, hair damp and shirtless, straight from the shower. His sweats hang low on his sides, and he rolls his eyes as you blatantly ogle him.

“Just an old film.” You let him take seat beside you, nodding towards the screen. He slots comfortably into your space and you both watch the movie together.

You’re not even sure if he’s following, the movie being an hour in already and the subtitles being a few seconds late, but when you look back, he seems invested.

Throughout the movie, you can feel him reacting. He’s always been a sucker for drama, no matter how much he pretends to not be. Nosy even without trying. So the movie and it’s almost laughable family dynamic has his entire focus. He’s gasping, scoffing, scowling and laughing. You also feel how he stiffens slightly during specific dance scenes. Where the women move prettily in their brightly coloured dresses and jingling gold jewellery.

You turn, giving him an playful but accusatory glare, taking the role of jealous girlfriend. He looks back at you and then his eyes drop down to your body, making a quick look over before returning. His face flushes instantly and your stare turns confused.

“What is it?” You question.

“You’d…” He’s starts, figuring out how to word himself. “You’d look good in that shit or whatever.” He waves a hand in the direction of the screen. “Like them dress things.”

“Have you been imagining me in such?” Katsuki has seen you in your most bare form, yet this is what had him flustered.

“Shut up.” He nudges you to look back at the screen, resting his head where your neck and shoulder meet. “So what if I have.”

“Is this a horny thing or?” You hum, teasingly.

“What- no it’s a fucking pretty thing. You’d look pretty.” He mumbles and you can feel how his heart beats.

Normally a statement like that would have you coy, but having Katsuki already in that position, you can’t help but tease a little more. “Ooh, do you have a crush on me or something?”

Sensing his mistake in letting you take the upper hand, he groans and gives you a light shove while you laugh.

“At least give me the name of them.” He finally huffs. You give him a quick rundown of the dresses, him listening intently, unsure of why the sudden interest, but happy with talking anyways.

It’s only a week later when you get a strangely large package from Katsuki’s parents do you realise- he’s gone and custom bought you the dresses himself!

A bit abrupt end since this was a quick thought I had while Bole Chudiyan came up on my Spotify shuffle randomly, originally was gonna talk about how he’d love action scenes and you should put him on tollywood too but it went down a different route, so cute bakugou moment yeahh!!!

#fanfic #x reader #fanfiction #mha x reader #bakugou x reader #bakugou x you #drabble #south asian reader #bakugo x reader #bakugou imagine #katsuki x reader #katsuki bakugo x reader #katsuki bakugou x reader #quite shorts #quitesins bkg

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ivettel · 1 year

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RARELY DOES WANDERING ON TWITTER send me into a more reflective mood. but, you know, with all the people saying one needs to be part of a certain country to be angry about racism against the people of that country (and wow, that's a mouthful), together with some thoughts already swirling in my head from reading r.f. kuang's yellowface, i'm thinking: in such a globalized world where asian people can lead completely different cultural lives, who gets to be the representative voices to other people?

gets to, mind--not has the right, or deserves. i think there's a very important distinction between all the terms you could possibly use. some of them imply an inherent possession, like a kind of exclusive club that one can be a member of just by being born the right (or wrong) way. some imply a forceful taking of power, a (re)claiming of sorts, with almost a tyrannical nature to the words.

MY CANADIAN-ASIAN FRIENDS AND I are a mix of first and second gen immigrants from east asia, south-east asia, india, etc. we frequently find ourselves talking about diversity and the like, real nerd ass shit (quote unquote) you get from mashing people in the media literacy publication together to talk about media literacy and publications. think socratic seminar, except peppered in with gen-z cringe and (un?)ironic r/im14andthisisdeep.

but for the last four or so years, a more serious thread of convo has always been picked up, that being: are we even allowed to position ourselves as voices of authority on racial matters? are we allowed to, when our particular lived experiences in this country of privilege mean we've lost touch with part of the homeland? after all, points out a vietnamese friend, i never had to live in fear for my life on a boat. then, being a conversation we've rehashed time and time again, we talk in circles.

of course you have a right to speak on the lived vietnamese experience. sure you do, you just don't have an all-encompassing viewpoint. don't act like you know everything, which you're already doing.

and it's so easy among immigrants like us to say shit like that. to say, yeah, i'm from here, but my family's from there. to say, no, i don't speak my people's tongue and be met with understanding. it's like asian-canadianness is its own culture, further alienating us from the cultures back overseas. and that's not necessarily a bad thing: it means it's okay to leave a conversation among us at that intersection of nuance, where yeah, you have an experience, and it might not be The Experience, but it's still something valuable.

when it comes to other people, however, things get messy. they always want to box you in beyond the boxes you sit yourself in.

"I'M SO SORRY FOR EVERYTHING my country has done to yours," says a son of parents from mainland china who didn't immigrate over, but instead sent their child to canada in the hopes that he could obtain a special-looking, foreign degree, and come back home.

he's a doe-eyed, earnest looking guy, well-meaning in his tone and the way he wrings his hands, like he's really very sorry. he's all but accosted me at a film event i'm hosting for the union. i'm decked out in CUPE colours, trying to handle talking to two other people at once, feeling frazzled and more machine than human, the way i'm running this event tightly, no wiggle room for big errors.

he's happened to overhear me offhandedly telling someone that my mom is from hong kong, and he looks like he's two seconds away from crying unless i tell him on the spot that i forgive him.

i don't forgive him. i don't know how. i don't know if i'm allowed to.

it's an incredibly strange feeling, to be looked at like you could be somebody's salvation. not even anyone in my string of exes ever looked at me like that, like if i said, don't worry about it, he could go home to china and say, the hongkongers understand. like anybody outside could understand the magnitude of violence that shook hong kong in 2019 and 2020.

i tell him, "i don't blame the people, i blame the government and greed." because it's true, i don't think the everyday working man in shanghai wanted to bring hong kong to its knees. i don't think the high schooler in beijing trying to make it past their big national exams wanted to make it rain blood over tsim sha tsui. i tell him, "besides, my dad is from taiwan, so i'm not even fully hongkonger."

which is the wrong move, because he goes ashen, and shoves his stupid doe-eyes in my face again, and insists: i'm so, so sorry.

i can't forgive him. i can't not.

what has he ever done except understand that the mainland holds my two home countries at bombpoint?

what have i ever done except grow up white?

MAYBE IT'S ONLY SPRING, BUT it feels like summer, and a family friend from hong kong is sitting across from me in a restaurant with her eyes downcast while she picks at the hem of her thick hoodie.

i haven't seen her in ages. i've only barely kept up with her through social media. her mom and my mom were in nursing school together, roommates and best friends. her mom was the kind of girl to get all the guys, to date all the time and fool around and be the top of the class, while my mom studied her ass off and stayed average. (and mom always says that she never resented her best friend, but i know. oh, i know.)

it's her first time out of hong kong for the last six or seven years. she's changed so drastically, i think i only recognize her face.

put yourself in my sixteen year-old shoes for a second. when i was in high school, she was one of the coolest people i knew: a female percussionist fresh out of some prestigious music conservatory in england, a basketball lover, a confident and self-assured kind of woman, worlds away from the people in my little home city of halifax.

now, when i look at her, her body language is distinctly withdrawn and uncomfortable, and her eyes keep flicking over at the myriad of pretty white people around us, who unnerve the rest of our table as well. i want to say, girl, you chose this restaurant. we could be eating good food right now. i keep my mouth shut. the only thing she does with determination is order a steak and some trendy cocktail. she doesn't ask me about my life. she doesn't open up about anything. it feels like an interview more than a conversation.

we're not even fifteen minutes into seeing each other when the revolution is brought up, and her whole demeanour changes. her mom's whole demeanour changes too. i know secondhand that they've lost almost everything in the ensuing fallout, that they've had to scrape by to find menial work they're far too outqualified for. the country should still be fine for tourists if you ever want to visit, she offers. lots of sightseeing.

i pretend not to read into it too much, but i know exactly what she's saying, and so does my mom, if the look i get is any indication.

you're not really one of us.

"CAN I ASK YOUR OPINION," says my mom, interrupting me while i'm slurping away at my udon like a fucking pro. this is possibly the cleanest i've ever consumed the noodles, barely spilling a drop of broth. (probably because i'm not blogging with one hand while i blindly grab at everything with my chopsticks in the other, but whatever.) beside me, my sister is scrolling through some webtoon, her bowl empty.

i bear the interruption and make a sound, something like an inelegant, "ah?"

mom has her eyes closed, her head bowed like she's seriously thinking. at this point, i'm pretty sure she's going to ask me about some social etiquette faux pas she thinks she's in the right about, again, and god, sometimes, she's so pretentious, it makes me want to give her attitude like i'm the teenager in the room.

but she surprises me and asks: "do you look down on mainland china?"

i'm half joking when i say, "fobs or real mainlanders?"

fresh off the boat, if you're not aware of the slang. refers to new immigrants from the mainland. usually sweating money, can be found noisily revving their custom sports cars, or walking around in groups like some pantomime of an italian mafia, outwardly radiating regina george mean girls vibes like they're paid to do it.

at least, that's how they're usually thought of. i've always seen them more as schools of fish trying to navigate together, almost as though they're establishing a bit of connection in a place that seems to abhor it.

i don't begrudge them for the things they do. white people are fucking terrifying, especially when you don't speak english very well, and they treat you like you're subhuman. the way they're visibly stifling an eye-roll, the way their voices get that particular edge to it, like you're testing their patience, like you're wasting their time. like they're thinking, just learn the goddamn language we use, it's not that hard. like people learning english aren't already trying.

luckily, mom is still deep in contemplation. her best friend, she explains, looks down on the mainlanders. thinks they're filthy pigs for being china chinese, thinks that knowing mandarin means you're not sticking it to the man, that everybody there is a mindless drone, and it's just not true.

(and never mind that taiwanese people speak mandarin. it's really frustrating that taiwan is always just another pawn in a larger chess game, a convenient argument to use or put away as necessary, by china or by the usa or by our own allies in hong kong.)

"it's not true," my mom repeats. "a new immigrant works in my lab, and she's very open-minded."

i don't bother pointing out that there's probably some sampling bias going on.

the real truth is, i get it: when your identity has been taken away from you, when there's a conflict between who you are and what people assign to you, you'll do anything to establish some sort of authority, change the story for yourself.

china used to be a partner. now it's an oppressor. (it's always been an oppressor for people like my dad, my grandparents, my uncle and aunt and extended family who fled with the gmd and never turned back.) chinese used to be an ethnicity thing. now it's a dirty word.

I'M GETTING ON THE PLANE back to nova scotia, and the white, middle-aged lady in the middle seat of my row looks nervously at me.

"will you be sitting here?" she gestures timidly at the window seat. i don't think i'm particularly scary, but maybe the mercedes jacket adds a bit of drama to my otherwise basic outfit.

everybody around me is white too, as per. c'mon, it's nova fucking scotia. they're also looking at me, because i'm holding up the last bit of the line, and what else is there to do while you wait for people to get settled.

i pitch my voice up, lean into my inner white girl private school character real fucking good as i move and smile and explain that no, sorry! i'm in the aisle seat, so i s'pose we'll just plant ourselves here until whoever sitting there comes along.

and it's like there's a collective, invisible release of tension from the people around me, but especially from my seatmate, who immediately brightens. i strike up some bullshit convo about the weather, typical complaints about the airport, y'know. window seat arrives and gets settled. we don't speak for the rest of the flight. thankfully, in front of me is a karen kind of woman with a kid around my sister's age. she's a talkative one, and it's her voice and gerard way's that keep me from being bored for the next couple hours.

when we land, it's immediate emergency alerts, and the entire plane blares to life with shocking, disjointed alarm sounds. chatter erupts after, people discussing their ties to the place in the alert with their neighbourly strangers. i've always kind of loved how wholesome nova scotians can be, or the energy they can bring to non nova scotians--everybody knows everybody by a maximum of 4 degrees of separation around these parts.

middle seat is here for a business conference, so she doesn't actually know anything about the province when we all turn to talk. window seat and karen and i make suggestions on places to visit. karen teasingly calls me a haligonian.

i walk around the city i grew up in and make note of all the changes. i break my own heart, when i can't remember what buildings stood in the place of new condos, or pits of construction. i take photos of places i used to frequent and pray that they'll still be standing when i come back again. i'm starting to think i'm not haligonian anymore, either.

MARTIN BESTIE BRUNDLE SAYS AN ethnic slur on live television for one of the most popular sports in the world, in front of millions and millions of viewers.

i am not one of those millions, but it doesn't matter, because the news reaches me anyway. and i scroll and i scroll and by god, i've gotta go soon, but all i can think about is hong kong, and taiwan, and china, and of course, old white people have to step in and further complicate things.

it's not that i'm not chinese. i'm chinese like i was born with a cunt like i came into this world screaming despair in the early hours of veterans day, because the universe has a twisted sense of humour and said to me, just as i left the womb: baby, war is going to define the rest of your life.

but i'm not china chinese, and honestly, i don't know what i am. my experiences are enough to give me permission to be hurt. i don't know if they're enough to give me a voice.

despite this, i have a soapbox, and i use it anyway, and i use it liberally. i get to be mad on here. whether i'm deserving of this self-righteousness, whether i'm deserving of this voice that i've borrowed, is a different matter altogether.

#long post

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nerozane · 6 months

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i didn't know isobel's VA was asian! what's weird is that it isn't like the game is afraid to show off representation of non eurocentric features. p sure even karlach is meant to have asian features 🤔

Yeah Isobel's VA is Mia Foo! According to her IMDb, she's only done short films and one episode television appearances until Baldurs Gate 3!

Also sadly, I disagree with Larian not being afraid of showing off representation. They are great with queer rep! But for stuff like character creator in baldurs gate 3, it's very limiting, esp for shorter races and masculine body types (male gnomes, dwarves, tieflings and half-orc do not have Asian or Black facial options). Even with the asian faces on offer for the other races, they are distinctly east asian faces, when asia is diverse! (sadly a lot of people forget south east asians, indians/south asians, turkish asians up north.)

With Karlach, I have mixed feelings about her Asian features. Initially, I didn't notice Karlachs Asian features until I saw the no makeup mod for her and I'm like "bby they were hiding her monolids!!!!?! 🥺" And even then, Karlach in early access and in concept art (as appeared in the head concepts part) she had black features which while I love release Karlachs looks and I'm glad for her to be Asian. But at the same time, they took away black rep, especially with the EA placeholder and concept art, which sucks (esp since karlach's VA is black herself). However, this is a very simplified set of feelings to a complex issue. It's actually been discussed by Alissa Stockwell who is black about the changes with EA/concept art karlach to full release Karlach.

Still, at the end of the day, there's still an issue of lack of bipoc in baldur's gate 3, either as character creator options, to prominent npcs and companions. The only prominent players/characters in the game who aren't white are Karlach, Wyll, Duke Ulder Ravengard and Cazador (ew no). And your tav/durge, if you make them a person of colour. There are tons of minor npcs who are people of colour as questgivers, people who live across faerun but idk, with the host of tons of white people in the cast and played a huge part of the story, you'll think they would be able to add more prominent bipoc to the story.

And it's not like in the early 90s of racism and lack of representation, it's 2023... :/

#bg3 critical #nerozane answers #i wish i can talk about my observation on how british drama don't have a lot of opportunities for people of colour #but i'm 1) not living in the UK 2) not working in those industries and 3) not my right to speak about as an observer #me as an asian i don't want to see us just being background characters

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kutputli · 1 year

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This show, man. It is out to personally get me.

So Roy Kent's sister, who is also the doctor who treated Dr. Sharon back in season 2, is played by Sofia Barclay (Yes, of the tax evading super rich Barclays). Sophia's mother is Farzana Aziz, who is supposedly the daughter of one of the richest men in India but I cannot find out who (alas for the time when google actually gave useful results).

This makes her half South Asian.

Which is what got her cast in We Are Lady Parts as Zarina, and now in the film Love Again as a sister to Priyanka Chopra.

So does that make Roy Kent half South Asian? We know that his dad is in his 60s and from south London and is (of course) a little bit racist, so would it be their mother who is South Asian?

Or, she's supposed to be white. In that ambiguous way that lets Priyanka Chopra also play ambiguously white roles while she hypocritically sucks up to fascists in India and talks about being a minority abroad.

I swear, this is what it would be like being a person of colour in a Bridgerton world. You never know what is real and what is supposed to be ignored. A multiculti ode to colourblind kyriarchy.

#ted lasso #roy kent #roy kent's sister #sofia barclay #colourblind casting #my meta

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queermtl · 6 months

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QUEER MTL THINGS TO DO: December 2023

As the year comes to an end, Montréal’s LGBTQ+ community gathers together. This month, Montréal is stuffed to the brim with events, parties and unique experiences painted in all the colours of the LGBTQ+ rainbow. From drag to community, circuit to underground, here’s some of our picks for the best LGBTQ+ things to do in the city. For further announcements, including those not announced at time of publication, follow QueerMTL on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr! Got an event coming up? DM it our way!

En français : https://www.mtl.org/fr/experience/queer-mtl-quoi-faire

LEGEND

🎥 Cinema 👑 Drag 🥳 Parties 🎶 Concert ✊ Activism 🏳️‍⚧️ Trans 🏳️‍🌈 Community 😆 Comedy 🎭 Performance 💪 Sports and Dance 👯‍♀️ Dance 🎤 Karaoke 🎨 Arts 📚 Literary / Educational 👠 Ballroom / Vogue

Vendredi 1 décembre / Friday, December 1

🎥 VisualAIDS and Concordia Queer Film Club presents Day With(out) Art: Everyone I Know is Sick film screening with Carlos Soriano, Concordia University

🏳️‍🌈 Ellelui presents Holiday Night Market, La Sala Rossa

🥳 Butt Buddies Montréal, Cabaret Berlin

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Vendredi Fou with Michel Dorion, Bar Le Cocktail

🎶 Jonas Brothers with Lawrence, Centre Bell

🥳 Bisous’ 1 Year Anniversary with Afem Syko, Bittercaress, K657, Esme, Lapa XII, Casa Kobrae, Meen Moreen and Mic Rob, Venue TBA

🥳 The Item Number, A Queer South Asian and Diaspora Dance Party with DJ Deep, Notre Dame des Quilles

💪 From the Ground Up: Strength Training for Newbs, Punks and Weirdos with Nadine Forde runs November 18-December 2, 2023, StudioEd

🤠 Club Bolo—Danse Country Montréal meet on Fridays at the Association sportive et communautaire du Centre-Sud

Samedi 2 décembre / Saturday, December 2

🥳 Love Dumpster with Vicki Powell, Taylor & Twan, Cabaret Berlin

🥳 Queer Cuffing SZN with DJ Simulat3human, Notre Dame des Quilles

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Jimmy Moore does Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas & All the Hits, Cabaret Mado

👑 Drôles de Drags with Miss Butterfly, Ciathanight, Crystal Starz or Emma Déjàvu in rotation, Bar Le Cocktail

🥳 HOMOHOP and Super Taste presents West End Gays [Vol. 5], Riverside St-Henri

🎤 Bareoke: Strip Karaoke, Café Cléopatra

😆 Roast France vs Québec with Beurguy and Kathy-Ann Giguère, Café Tuyo

🥳 Homegrown Harvest with Noncompliant, anabasine, Hellgrammite, Jade and Fantasy, Venue TBA

🥳 Céline est very amazing with DJ Phillippe, Ausgang Plaza

📚 Expozine 2023, 1025 rue Bélanger

🥳 Comité Queer Pointe-Saint-Charles hosts Queer Party sur Glace, 1050 rue d’Hibernia

👑 Jackbox Games with Uma Gahd and Selma Gahd, Bar Le Cocktail

💪 Rollerville MTL hosts the Rollerville's Roll Out—Roller Disco, Arena St-Louis

💪 From the Ground Up: Strength Training for Newbs, Punks and Weirdos with Nadine Forde runs November 18-December 2, 2023, StudioEd

👯 Tango/Salsa Queer holds lessons every Saturday, visit queertangomtl.com for information or contact [email protected] or call +1 (438) 930-8529 for prices and signup information.

Dimanche 3 décembre / Sunday, December 3

👑 Bingo du Temps des Fêtes, Cabaret Mado

🎭 La gailaxie ligue d’improvisation, Cabaret Mado

👑 Le Tracy Show with Tracy Trash, Kiara, Bobépine, Pétula Claque and Kitana, Cabaret Mado

📚 Expozine 2023, 1025 rue Bélanger

Lundi 4 décembre / Monday, December 4

🏳️‍🌈 Queer Slow Dating, Bar MINĒRAL

🎥 Cinema Politica Concordia presents Queer Cinema for Palestine, Cinema Politics Concordia

📚 Trivia Mondays hosted by Bambi Dextrous, Diving Bell Social Club

Mardi 5 décembre / Tuesday, December 5

🎥 REEL GAY screens The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, Diving Bell Social Club

👑 Full Gisèle : Full Céline with Gisèle Lullaby, Nana, Bobépine, Crystal Stars and Crystal Slippers, Cabaret Mado

😆 Stand Up St. Henri Open Mic focusing on women, non-binary, queer and allied comedians, Impro Montréal

Mercredi 6 décembre / Wednesday, December 6

👑 Lé-gen-daires with Nicky Doll, Keoina and Sara Forever, Cabaret Mado

💪 Soirée Queer, Horizon Roc

🎨 HommeHomo presents Drink & Draw, Bar Le Cocktail

🎨 Queer Sip & Draw, Blue Dog Motel

Jeudi 7 décembre / Thursday, December 7

👑 Armado with Pétula Claque, Laura Zepam, Vera Satile, Daya Rita, Paulette Pantoute, Bixi Bareback and Twinkerbell, Cabaret Mado

👑 Butterfly de nuit with Miss Butterfly, Bar Le Cocktail

👑 Canada’s Drag Race Season 4 Viewing Party with Uma Gahd, Bar Le Cocktail

🎶 Pierre Lapointe, Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Place des Arts

📚 Violet Hour presents Celebrating RM Vaughan and the launch of his final novel Purvatory, Stock Bar

👑 BMP DRAG Workshop and Show, BMP Co-op

Vendredi 8 décembre / Friday, December 8

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Vendredi Fou with Michel Dorion, Bar Le Cocktail

🏳️‍🌈 Puces POP—Édition hivernale 2023, Église Saint-Denis

🥳 Cerise Noire goth night with DJ Elizabeth Leslie and UN, Notre Dame des Quilles

🤠 Club Bolo—Danse Country Montréal meet on Fridays at the Association sportive et communautaire du Centre-Sud

Samedi 9 décembre / Saturday, December 9

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Jimmy Moore does Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas & All the Hits, Cabaret Mado

👑 Drôles de Drags with Miss Butterfly, Ciathanight, Crystal Starz or Emma Déjàvu in rotation, Bar Le Cocktail

👑 Lady Gaga—Art Pop with Démone and Esirenna, Bar Le Cocktail

🥳 Queen & Queer—Édition Nuit Afro 2 with Ms. Baby, San Farafina and DJ Sam, La Sala Rossa

📚 The Violet Hour Book Club reads Armistead Maupin’s Michael Tolliver Lives, Archives gaies du Québec

🏳️‍🌈 Puces POP—Édition hivernale 2023, Église Saint-Denis

👯 Tango/Salsa Queer holds lessons every Saturday, visit queertangomtl.com for information or contact [email protected] or call +1 (438) 930-8529 for prices and signup information.

👠 Bring It! and Ballroom4Community present The Naughty List Kiki Ball, Ausgang Plaza

Dimanche 10 décembre / Sunday, December 10

🎭 La gailaxie ligue d’improvisation, Cabaret Mado

👑 Le Tracy Show with Tracy Trash, Lady Boom Boom, Sasha Baga, Krystella Fame and Marla Deer, Cabaret Mado

🏳️‍🌈 Puces POP—Édition hivernale 2023, Église Saint-Denis

😆 A Very Pretentious Comedy Show—One year anniversary with Eve Parker Finley, Maxime Ève Gagnon, Dan Carin, Yumi Blake, Trevor Thompson, Elie Gill, Molly Brisebois, Steve Patrick Adams, Elspeth Wright, Lauren Mallory, Florence Trépanier and Raquel Maestre, Diving Bell Social Club

Lundi 11 décembre / Monday, December 11

👑 Daisy Wood presents Le Noël de Dolly Parton with Lady Boom Boom, Prudence, Clay Thorris, Mister Daniels and Mimi Mosa, Cabaret Mado

📚 Trivia Mondays hosted by Bambi Dextrous, Diving Bell Social Club

Mardi 12 décembre / Tuesday, December 12

👑 Full Gisèle : Party de bureau with Gisèle Lullaby, Pétula Claque, Jessie Precieuse, Lady Boom Boom and Victoire de Rockwell, Cabaret Mado

👑 Garden of Shade: Christmas with Lily Shade, Sarah Winters, Prudence, Spiked Corona, Soleil Levant and Enigma, Bar Le Cocktail

😆 Stand Up St. Henri Open Mic focusing on women, non-binary, queer and allied comedians, Impro Montréal

👠 Twice a month on every second Tuesday, Bring It! hosts an OTA night of ballroom and vogue with commentator and DJ. Follow their Instagram for dates and details.

Mercredi 13 décembre / Wednesday, December 13

👑 Le coeur a ses raisons … en chanson, Cabaret Mado

🎨 Queer Sip & Draw, Blue Dog Motel

Jeudi 14 décembre / Thursday, December 14

👑 Sashalicious : Spécial Noël with Sasha Baga, RV Métal, Esirena and Augusta Wind, Cabaret Mado

👑 Butterfly de nuit with Miss Butterfly, Bar Le Cocktail

👑 Canada’s Drag Race Season 4 Viewing Party with Uma Gahd, Bar Le Cocktail

🎶 Debby Friday with Backxwash, Bar Le Ritz PDB

😆 Sleazy Christmas with Abby Stonehouse, Naghmeh, Mina Minou, Tara McGowan-Ross, Morgan O’Shea, Alo Azimov, Avery Jane and Andrew Jamieson, Bar Biftek

😆 Le Show Queer—Spécial des Fêtes with Joëlle Prudhomme, Anne-Sarah Charbonneau, Andy St-Louis and Marla Deer, Place des Arts

Vendredi 15 décembre / Friday, December 15

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Vendredi Fou with Michel Dorion, Bar Le Cocktail

🏳️‍🌈 Puces POP—Édition hivernale 2023, Église Saint-Denis

👑 COVEN Drag Show—Last Breath Edition with Selma Gahd, Uma Gahd, Seyoncé, Infernal Desires, Charli DeVille, Korra Anarchy, La Freak du Show, Esirena, BiG SiSSY, Anaconda LaSabrosa, Niko Lubie, Demone LaStrange and Moxxi Hollow, Diving Bell Social Club

🏳️‍🌈 Souper des fêtes du Centre de solidarité lesbienne, Centre St-Pierre

🏳️‍🌈 (P)réparer le solstice // (P)reparing the solstice, feminist open mic and poetry night, URSA

🤠 Club Bolo—Danse Country Montréal meet on Fridays at the Association sportive et communautaire du Centre-Sud

Samedi 16 décembre / Saturday, December 16

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Jimmy Moore personnifie Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, Cabaret Mado

👑 Jimmy Moore does Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas & All the Hits Souper/Spectacle, Complexe Sky

👑 Drôles de Drags with Miss Butterfly, Ciathanight, Crystal Starz or Emma Déjàvu in rotation, Bar Le Cocktail

🎤 Bareoke: Strip Karaoke, Café Cléopatra

🏳️‍🌈 Puces POP—Édition hivernale 2023, Église Saint-Denis

👑 Miss Butterfly! Il était une fois with Miss Butterfly, Bar Le Cocktail

👯 Tango/Salsa Queer holds lessons every Saturday, visit queertangomtl.com for information or contact [email protected] or call +1 (438) 930-8529 for prices and signup information.

🤠 Club Bolo—Danse Country Montréal's Christmas Party, Association sportive et communautaire du Centre-Sud

Dimanche 17 décembre / Sunday, December 17

👑 La Revue Drag 2023 with Rock Bière, RV Métal, Crystal Starz, EmmÖtional Damage, Érica, Eva Moist, Lisa Santana, Tracy Trash and surprise guests, Cabaret Mado

👑 Le Tracy Show with Tracy Trash, Pétula Claque, Kelly Torrieli, Jessie Précieuse and Victoire de Rockwell, Cabaret Mado

👑 Les succès oubliés de Noël 2023, Bar Le Cocktail

🏳️‍🌈 Puces POP—Édition hivernale 2023, Église Saint-Denis

Mardi 19 décembre / Tuesday, December 19

👑 Full Gisèle : Joyeux Noël with Gisèle Lullaby, Sasha Baga, Ruby Doll, Serge Ladrag and RV Métal, Cabaret Mado

🥳 Staff party de Noël du Cocktail with Michel Dorion, Bar Le Cocktail

📚 Club de lecture queer discuss Lou Lubie and Manon Desveaux’s La fille dans l’écran and Obom’s J’aime les filles, Bibliothèque Saint-Charles

😆 Stand Up St. Henri Open Mic focusing on women, non-binary, queer and allied comedians, Impro Montréal

Mercredi 20 décembre / Wednesday, December 20

🎶 Fleece, La Sala Rossa

🥳 L Nights / Holiday Bash with DJ Marina Gallant, Le Saint Édouard Bar de quartier

🎨 Queer Sip & Draw, Blue Dog Motel

Jeudi 21 décembre / Thursday, December 21

🎭 Les Folies Draglesques with Miami Minx, Uma Gahd, Banana Splitz, Roxy Torpedo, Scarlett Fever, Yikes Macaroni, Zero Lee Vanity, Cabaret Mado

👑 Butterfly de nuit with Miss Butterfly, Bar Le Cocktail

👑 Canada’s Drag Race Season 4 Viewing Party with Uma Gahd, Bar Le Cocktail

Vendredi 22 décembre / Friday, December 22

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Vendredi Fou with Michel Dorion, Bar Le Cocktail

Samedi 23 décembre / Saturday, December 23

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Drôles de Drags with Miss Butterfly, Ciathanight, Crystal Starz or Emma Déjàvu in rotation, Bar Le Cocktail

👯 Tango/Salsa Queer holds lessons every Saturday, visit queertangomtl.com for information or contact [email protected] or call +1 (438) 930-8529 for prices and signup information. 💃

Mardi 26 décembre / Tuesday, December 26

👑 Full Gisèle : Jour de l'an with Gisèle Lullaby, Marla Deer, Tracy Trash, Lady Guidoune and Lana Dalida, Cabaret Mado

😆 Stand Up St. Henri Open Mic focusing on women, non-binary, queer and allied comedians, Impro Montréal

👠 Twice a month on every second Tuesday, Bring It! hosts an OTA night of ballroom and vogue with commentator and DJ. Follow their Instagram for dates and details.

Mercredi 27 décembre / Wednesday, December 27

👑 Jimmy Moore personnifie Lady Gaga, Cabaret Mado

🎨 Queer Sip & Draw, Blue Dog Motel

Jeudi 28 décembre / Thursday, December 28

👑 Bingo Disco with Rainbow, Cabaret Mado

👑 Butterfly de nuit with Miss Butterfly, Bar Le Cocktail

👑 Canada’s Drag Race Season 4 Viewing Party with Uma Gahd, Bar Le Cocktail

Vendredi 29 décembre / Friday, December 29

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Vendredi Fou with Michel Dorion, Bar Le Cocktail

🥳 District presents Frosty: New Year Party with Las Bibas and Ben Bakson, Bain Matthieu

Samedi 30 décembre / Saturday, December 30

👑 Mado Reçoit with Mado Lamotte, Cabaret Mado

👑 Jimmy Moore personnifie Britney Spears, Cabaret Mado

👑 Drôles de Drags with Miss Butterfly, Ciathanight, Crystal Starz or Emma Déjàvu in rotation, Bar Le Cocktail

👯‍♀️ Tango/Salsa Queer holds lessons every Saturday, visit queertangomtl.com for information or contact [email protected] or call +1 (438) 930-8529 for prices and signup information.

Dimanche 31 décembre / Sunday, December 31

👑 Bonne Année 2024! with Mado Lamotte, Nana, Marla Deer, Tracy Trash, Rainbow, Peggy Sue, Manny, Ruby Doll, Bobépine, Kitana and Johnny Jones, Cabaret Mado

🥳 The Dark Eighties NYE Party, Church of St. John the Evangelist

OTHERS / LES AUTRES

🏐 Les Ratons-Chasseurs (Montréal’s LGBTA dodgeball group) holds regular events. Keep an eye on their Facebook for upcoming opportunities to join in and play.

🕹Montréal Gaymers hosts regular gatherings including board game nights and gaming gatherings. Check their Facebook for what’s next!

🏃🏾Join the Out-Run run and workout club for people relating to the queer / sapphic experience. Details on their Instagram!

🐦 Bird lovers should keep their eye on Queer Birders' regularly scheduled birdwatching events and excursions. Join the Facebook group and get those binoculars at the ready.

#mtlmoments #lgbttravel #2slgbtq #drag #montreal #queermtl #lgbtq #nightlife #thingstodo #events

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alicejeangreenlane · 1 month

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Rapunzel redesign for a hypothetical live action movie.

heavily inspired by concept art of the animated movie.

I've seen the redesigns people have been doing on twitter and Instagram were they make Rapunzel South Asian. and it got me thinking I love their designs but their is one major problem with their design which is that they gave Rapunzel black hair. In the movie when Rapunzel's hair is cut it changes colour. by giving Rapunzel dark hair they kind of ruin this as her hair can get any darker if it's already black.

my solution to this. purple hair. why is it purple because the magic flower was purple. When it get cut it turns black.

personally I'm not a fan of the more recent live action movies the first lot were good but they fail as remakes I think reimagines of the story is a better word for them. the remakes were good as their own movies because they did their own thing. which modern remakes haven't been doing. so they been sticking more closely to the originals but the people they put in charge of the movies don't understand the original films.

if Disney did a live action remake of tangled all it need to be a cute romance film. with a few new scenes that add stuff to the movie and characters.

maybe bring in character from the series for fanservice.

but as long as the relationship between Rapunzel and Flynn is good the movie should be good

but lets face it if Disney did a remake of tangled it would probably suck.

I'm going to post this to twitter wish me luck

if you have any thought or threats or ideas for the design(like a better solution to the hair colour problem) leave a comment or leave a message in my ask box.

#artists on tumblr #character design #rapunzel #rapunzles tangled adventure #disney movies #disney #my art #disney princess #tangeld the series #disney tangled #disney rapunzel #rapunzel live action #character redesign

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akajustmerry · 3 months

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What's your opinion on Wes Anderson's movies and how he uses orientialism?

there are people far more more knowledgeable on this topic than me (here and here are articles on this written by Asian critics) so take anything i say about it with a grain of salt! I do love Moonrise Kingdom, Fantastic Mr Fox and the Life Aquatic because they inspired me loads as a writer growing up. I think that Wes Anderson has somewhat acknowledged the influence of South Asian cinema on his work, like when he dedicated Darjeeling Limited to Bengali director Satyajit Ray, BUT it doesn't really excuse his orientalism, racism and appropriation of various Asian aesthetics in films like Isle of Dogs, grand Budapest hotel, and The Life of Henry Sugar. It's clear he views non white cultures as merely another ingredient he can add to his films to make them more quirky. I haven't seen all his films, but I was uncomfortable at the way he framed characters of colour in gbh and the french dispatch. There's rarely, if ever, any real thought to the roles he casts people of colour in and they're mostly treated as accessories to white characters. That being said, I still admire his craft and think his films are strongest when he remembers how his stylising enhances story, rather than aestheticising for its own sake. I've even written an article about how much I hate people bastardising his style on TikTok because it's such a vain treatment of his work. But ultimately I do take issue with the racism and orientalism in his filmography, and think he serves as a reminder that being influenced by filmmakers of colour isn't a get out of racism free card and I think his films are strongest when they're just about sad sily white people.

#anon #wes anderson #/

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moonymanoush · 1 year

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Bridgerton: Thoughts on Seasons 1 & 2

Hello all! I finished season 2 of Bridgerton and had to take a minute to truly digest everything, and these are my thoughts! I want to go into each Bridgerton individually and explore the character themselves and any romantic interests/conflicts with other characters before getting to the subplots.

Daphne, Francesca, Gregory and Hyacinth will not be mentioned individually because they did not play a large role this season. Daphne was off in the country with her husband and baby and tried supporting Anthony, but other than that does nothing. I didn't really mind her absence because I dislike her, I simply can’t get over the scene in season one. Simon also annoyed me and while he was an idiot for basing his entire life on a promise made to an abusive megalomaniac, he didn’t deserve to be sexually assaulted. The TV show tried downplaying what Daphne did in comparison to the books, but rape is rape and I just don’t like Daphne as much after. Francesca's absence was due to the actress's inability to be on set as I heard she had another show to film so nothing to say about that. Gregory and Hyacinth both had minimal scenes but I absolutely adore these characters!!! Gregory’s scene with Anthony just went to show how much they both view him as a father figure as Edmund died before either one of them really even knew him. Anthony's love for his younger siblings, especially in the dance scene (Love, love, loved that!! One of my favourite scenes in the entire show to date), was especially endearing. Now onto the main events.

Anthony’s character development this season was really amazing. In season 1 he was just so insufferable to me, especially after getting Daphne engaged to Lord Berbrooke and being overly misogynistic and sexist. Seeing how his trauma and the responsibility he shouldered at a young age affected him was refreshing. The scene where he had a panic attack after seeing a bee sting Kate because of his own father’s passing: amazing acting, cinematography and overall chemistry. Speaking of acting: I love Anthony’s actor because he’s just so charismatic and talented, especially with Kate on screen. The book season 2 is based on, The Viscount Who Loved Me, was different from the show and unlike most people, I genuinely liked the changes they made. I actually hated the bridgerton books because they were so redundant and every man had some kind of trauma that made him a misogynistic piece of shit. First and foremost, changing the Sheffields into the Sharma’s for some South Asian representation was amazing. I’ve never seen a dark-skinned Indian woman cast into a leading role, even in Bollywood films. However, she is not treated any differently from any of the other women and her skin and race are seen as completely normal. The show puts in things from her culture such as chai, turmeric masks, hair oil massages, bangles, having Edwina call Kate Didi and other little things that I can’t think of right now. It was just so refreshing to have such amazing representation on screen that didn't take away from the plot. Anthony’s attraction to her isn't seen as strange or bizarre, she isn't an outsider by any means (Other than being a spinster, but that is because of society and not her culture) and her character would be the same (other than the small cultural changes) if someone else was cast. Also, I love Anthony’s obsession with the way she smells. It’s no secret that there are certain stereotypes about how ‘bad’ desi or south Asian food smells and how that extends to the people as well. I really appreciate how Anthony was sniffing Kate at every single turn. Overall I really enjoyed the casting and representation of Indian women (in particular dark-skinned ones) in such a well-known show.

However, speaking of representation and casting decisions. I really liked the idea of this whole “colour-blind” cast they got going on. People of Colour don't get any representation whatsoever in period pieces and I really appreciated that a diverse audience got to see themselves in media. However, my problem is a conversation between Simon and Lady Danbury in Season 1 where Lady Danbury states that if the Queen did not marry the King (out of love) they would not have gotten all these lands and titles. I find that acknowledging race in a single sentence reduces that struggle. They should've simply stuck with the colourblind casting decision and left it unacknowledged or dove into issues regarding race and prejudice if they were going to ‘explain’ their decision. Furthermore, the cast, while being diverse, is still primarily white. Due in large part to the Bridgertons being cast as white. Since they are the focus of each season, one person in each relationship will always be white. Overall, I’m just happy with the representation given and these are just small details I wanted to bring up.

Moving onto Anthony’s romance this season. As we know, this is a romantic show, so we obviously know each couple is going to end up together. That’s why the whole “will they, won't they” thing the show has going on in season 2 is so annoying. It goes on for far too long and without probable cause. I enjoyed some of the changes the writers made like the bee scene between Anthony and Kate. In the book, The Viscount Who Loved Me, Kate is stung and Anthony sucks the venom out of her wound. They are discovered, she is compromised, and a marriage of convenience ensues. I appreciate that the writers deviated from this plot because this is exactly what happened in season 1. Daphne and Simon are caught in a compromising situation (By Anthony no less) and are forced to marry. I like the change and I didn't mind it as much as other fans. However, I despised the whole love triangle between Anthony, Edwina and Kate. In the book, after the bee incident, Edwina is completely fine with their marriage because she was not committed to Anthony at all. She ends up with a scholar I believe and is completely supportive of her sister. The problem with this love triangle and how long it went on, made Edwina seem completely insufferable. I seriously began to despise her as a character. All this talk of “how could you do this to me, Kate, you know I loved him, blah blah blah” was so infuriating. Especially when Kate discouraged Edwina from going after Anthony and told her he would never love her. I genuinely don't know what she expected from a man who kept going on about duty and the importance of roles and explicitly said he was against any romantic notions. Edwina was selfish and naive and placed the blame on anybody but herself. Maybe because I am (technically) the eldest sister in a Middle Eastern household I relate too much to Kate, but I don’t care. Edwina was so annoying (in the show, not the books). I hated that the whole Edwina and Anthony farce went on as long as it did: they were literally down the aisle saying their vows! And then suddenly in the last 10 minutes of the last episode, Kate and Anthony are married and happy as newlyweds. This season needed more episodes or better pacing or less pushing aside the main characters. It was just frustrating that 90% of their relationship was longing glances and partial banter while trying to remain inconspicuous in front of her sister.

I just wanted some actual scenes of their engagement or their wedding or anything that solidified their feelings based on their interactions as a couple. The whole thing was drawn out over 8 hours when we, the audience, knew they would end up together. It was unnecessarily prolonged and I don’t like how they fit their entire relationship into the last 2 seconds of the season: especially when they are the main couple of the book this is based on (The Viscount Who Loved Me). Speaking of those 2 seconds: Why were Kate’s breasts shown? What was the purpose? I feel like they just included that clip because people expected some nudity so they just added it in. But to me, it felt completely out of place and kind of awkward. I wanted to see fluff and wedding bliss and I got a minute of cuteness and tits.

Overall, I loved Kate and how she was portrayed. She gave up everything for her family and to ensure they had a good future. This is why it hurt so bad when Edwina called Kate her “Half-Sister” after jilting Anthony at the alter. Another thing against show Edwina. I wish they dove into Kate’s trauma regarding her birth mother and the death of her father. I felt like it was pushed aside for Anthony’s trauma (which is no less important!) despite it being something they bonded over. How they both were forced into a position of authority where they had to take care of their mothers and siblings after the death of their fathers. I love Kate with all my heart and she deserved better than being Anthony’s second choice (another reason I believe their relationship should’ve been delved into more after breaking things off with Edwina) and the shunning she got from her sister despite only ever having her best interests at heart.

Eloise Bridgerton is next on my list because I have so many thoughts about her this season.

I absolutely despised Sir Phillip in the book and if they make him her loved interest in the show: I will riot!!! In the book, Eloise meets him and he is a very sexually frustrated man: his wife is dead and they hadn't done anything since the twins (Marina having twins in the show confirms that shes the dead wife and I want to die) This is now a Sir Phillip hate page and I will not take any criticisms. Eloise is an amazing, dynamic character throughout the show (and books) and is very outspoken about her independence and belief in feminism and the like. Sir Phillip wants a babysitter he can sleep with more than a wife and I can't believe Eloise would ever be with such a man and have it written as a happy ending for her. Throughout the book, Eloise’s entire character is smothered and its just horrifying. Sir Phillip talks about how he doesn't want to be like his own abusive father but also says he wants to beat his children within an inch of their life. “When the children entered the room, half dragged and half pushed by their nursemaid, Phillip forced himself to remain rigidly in his position against the wall, afraid that if he went to them he'd beat them both within an inch of their lives. And even more afraid that when he was through, he wouldn't regret his actions.” (To Sir Phillip, With Love) I don't usually go about finding quotations because this is me ranting and I don't care about evidence in the midst of my ramblings, but I just wanted to show how awful this man is. I could provide a hundred more examples of how awful this man is and how entirely unsuitable he is for Eloise.

Moving on to better prospects: Theo Sharpe and the footman. I know I wasn’t the only one seeing the glances between Eloise and her footman, and season 2 played into her relationship with Theo. Seeing as the show tends to part from the books on certain occasons, I sincerely hope they make the same decision now. And before people are like “But we all like Sienna in season but prefer kate now! We must trust the writers to fix Eloise and Phillip!” No. Never. Absolutely not. Kate and Anthony were already a good couple in the books, in comparison to Eloise turning down 6 previous offers of marriage because she wanted true love and ended up with someone who wanted a glorified babysitter with the added bonus of sex. He literally brings up how his last wife didn’t do it with him and how he thinks Eloise is withholding a right from him. Eloise deserves someone who loves her and loves the world as passionately as she does. She deserves a partner, not an overlord. Theo brought her books and discussed feminism with her, he challeneged her and made her into a better person that was able to acknowledge her privilege despite being a woman. I hope Eloise get’s a story liek Benedict’s where she marries someone below her station because I genuinely can’t ever see her marrying Sir Phillip.

I didn't mind the Featherington plot line as much as other people did. Simply put, the side plots had the same plot time as they did in Season 1, the only reason why people were annoyed is that Kate and Anthony were not involved in them as Simon and Daphne were. Overall I liked this season and the only thing I can say is I hope to see what the producers do with Colin and Penelope in Season 3 (RIP my boy Benedict for having his turn taken). I don’t necessarily like their dynamic right now (Colin is insufferable and Penelope is too self-righteous: going as far as to start blaming Eloise for all the damage Lady Whistledown has done… yeah no. I respect the hustle but at least own up to it) but I like the idea of having a plus-sized character being a romantic lead seeing as she lost weight in the books before being seen as desirable, but there is no indication that the show will do the same.

Benedict is the epitome of privilege. Every privilege that exists, he has it. He’s a straight, white, wealthy, landowning, able-bodied, cis-gendered aristocrat. He’s a member of a powerful and well-connected family. Now, that pretty much applies to all the men in the series. But Simon, Philip and Gareth all have abusive parents and traumatic childhoods and Michael is an orphan. It doesn’t excuse their dickishness but it does make them more sympathetic. Anthony carries the trauma of his father’s death and the massive responsibility of being made head of a large family at 18. Benedict doesn’t have any kind of struggle to offset his privilege. He has no responsibility, never had to work for anything. Colin’s in the same position, but he does something with his privilege - he travels and writes and doesn’t act like an asshole. Benedict just mopes around for years. He’s apparently a really talented artists but he never works at it or trains for it. But then when decides he wants to be an artist, he takes up watercolours and becomes a celebrated painter within a few years. I really, really liked how the show deviated from that and made him pursue Art school and made him a more empathetic character. Book Benedict was an ass. Show Benedict is relatable and so funny!

He’s literally had everything handed to him on a silver platter. Then, the one time he doesn’t get his way, when Sophie says no to him, he is furious, he calls her stupid, blackmails her into doing what he wants, puts her in a position where she can’t get away from him and harasses her until she gives in. He doesn’t listen to her when she gives her reasons for saying no.

There’s a power imbalance with all the couples because of the way society treated women in the 19th century. But the imbalance is the worst between Benedict and Sophie. Sophie is the least privileged person we meet in the series. Not only is she not a member of the aristocracy, but she is completely alone. She has no money, no power, no family, no friends, so support. She is abused by her stepmother until she escapes. She gets a job working for a nice elderly couple in the country, it’s the best job she can hope for in her circumstances, Then their awful son arrives and tries to rape her. Benedict tells her she’s stupid for putting herself in that position. He doesn’t listen to her. He doesn’t respect her wishes or her decisions. He uses his power over her to force her to come to London with him and work for his mother. Sophie is completely vulnerable and Benedict uses that to get his own way. At least when Anthony is being a dick, he’s aware he’s being a dick. During the scene in the study with Kate, when he’s at his most dickiest, he knows and feels shame for it. Benedict thinks he’s entirely in the right the whole time. He does eventually see the error of his ways and apologises but I felt it was too little, too late.

It’s not just that Benedict keeps pressuring Sophie after she’s said no, it’s what he’s asking her to do. I don’t even judge him that much for asking him to be his mistress, Sophie is a servant and he can’t marry her, but having a mistress was somewhat acceptable for a man in his position. (Although just because it’s acceptable at the time, doesn’t mean I have to like it.) Yes, Anthony pretty much intends to do the same thing, and he’s an asshole for it. But once he falls in love with Kate there’s no question of him having a mistress, he’s a one woman man. When Benedict asks Sophie to be his mistress, he still intends to get married and he’s hoping it will be the mystery lady. He intends to have his cake and eat it too. He loves Sophie and wants to marry this other lady he has feelings for. He wants to marry this lady he claims to have feelings for, while keeping a mistress on the side. He really only gives up on the idea of finding his mystery lady when he realises that she’s Sophie. I think that’s another reason I can forgive Anthony more easily than Benedict. That scene in the study is Anthony’s worst moment and he improves from there, while Benedict doubles down on his worst moment for several chapters afterwards and his redemption comes very late in the novel.

The third reason is not really anything Benedict does, but it’s how he’s written. Because he doesn’t really feature in any of the other books, we don’t get to know him as well as the other characters. Anthony and Colin feature heavily in The Duke and I, and I liked both of them by the end of that book, but didn’t have any thoughts on Benedict. The scene with Anthony and Eloise in Philip’s study during To Sir Philip With Love is one of my favourite moments in the whole series. Colin pops up in other books being charming, funny and sweet. We don’t get that with Benedict. So when I say he has no personality, I’m not really being fair to Benedict as he doesn’t get the same chance as other characters do to show different sides of his personality, and that’s a fault with the writing not the character. But it means the only impression we have of him is from An Offer From a Gentleman and sadly, I think he was too much of an asshole for a large part of that book and wasn’t properly redeemed.

The sad thing is that it could have been very easy to write him not being an asshole. Instead of being angry and throwing a tantrum when Sophie says no, imagine that while Benedict is upset, he accepts her decision and then brings her to London and gets her a job working for his mother to help her without ulterior motive as he did when he rescued her the first time. They encounter each other at number 5 and fall more in love but they can’t be together (the pining!) until he decides he doesn’t care about bowing to social expectations anymore and asks her to marry him before finding out who she is, and before his mother finds a way to make it acceptable. Add in a few scenes in the other books that show him paying attention to Penelope and the wallflowers and that’s a Benedict I would have loved.

Therefore, I think picking Eloise to play the whole rich x poor storyline would be far better. The tension she has with Theo is *chef's kiss* while I think Benedict might be better suited for a potential gay romance at his fancy art school (I'm not the only one who noticed the tension between him and the painter in season 1 right??) I don't know honestly but I really don't want Benedict's character to be ruined when it comes time for his season.

Finally, I love Penelope (Claire from Derry Girls!! <3) but she was seriously out of order. If you're going to be a villain, at least own it. But the entire rant to Eloise was self-absorbed and somewhat narcissistic, claiming that she's done something and Eloise can't stand it. Lest we not forget that she outed her unmarried, pregnant cousin to the entire ton in season one because she was jealous. Especially in that time when women were already looked down upon, Marina comes from a poor background and doesn't have the protection that a reputation can afford her. The family she's with is poor enough as is and cannot afford to help her in any meaningful way. If Phillip hadn't shown up, her entire life would be ruined. Penelope should have spoken to Collin or even Eloise in private but she did it via Lady Whistledown to absolve herself of guilt. She didn't even do it out of the goodness of her heart and believing the Bridgertons shouldn't be manipulated --- she was jealous! Plain and simple. Plus, she went on to call Eloise a political radical, as if that wouldn't have had her persecuted. Like yes, Penelope is girl-bossing with her business but she can't go around saying she hasn't used people's secrets against them with negative repercussions.

That's all for now. I'm so excited for season 3 and I am absolutely looking forward to when Netflix finally releases the trailer. Yay!!

#bridgerton #kate sharma #anthony bridgerton #daphne bridgerton #netflix #netflix shows #netflix series #regency #renaissance #penelope featherington #lady whistledown

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iforimaginary · 9 months

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Hello there!

☆ I go by Imaginary on most social media platforms- so I guess that’s what you’re stuck calling me… ☆

↓↓↓

Basics:

• I’m something roughly dude adjacent and use he/they pronouns. I wouldn’t be too opposed to any neo-pronouns you may choose to use.

• I was born in Russia however I have a hefty mix of Russian, Ukrainian and Mongolian blood. Essentially it all boils down to me being white + asian.

• I’ve moved since and am now based in the UK. However, I do tend to travel a-lot so there is no telling where on the globe I might be at any given moment.

• I fluently speak Russian, English and French (though I am terribly out of practice and might be rusty). I know a good bit of Latin and am currently learning Japanese!

DNI:

• I’ve been active online for the better part of my tween and teenage years so I am well aware that not everyone will be everybody’s cup of tea. If the type of content I put out doesn’t particularly resonate with you, please be reasonable and simply scroll by :)

• I am part of the LGBTQ+ community and it goes without saying that anyone residing with homophobic or transphobic views will not be tolerated on this blog.

• The same sentiment is also applied to any kind of anti-asian or anti-black dispositions.

Content:

• I like to keep myself busy so I engage in everything from writing fan-fiction to drawing fan-art and even cosplaying!

• As far as writing goes; I will mainly post drabbles and short one-shots on this blog. Any of my longer works that may be advertised here will be posted on my Ao3 profile (can be found in ‘Links’).

• As far as art goes; Anything from rough sketches to fully rendered pieces will be posted on this blog. Feel free to repost or repurpose my art but please be sure to give credit to this specific blog regardless of the social media you choose to repost or repurpose it on!

• As far as cosplay goes; I will not be posting any of my cosplays on here as Tumblr tends to associate cosplaying with NSFW content and SW (which there is absolutely nothing wrong with, I simply don’t engage with producing such content). However, if you wish to see my work it’s predominantly posted on my TikTok page (can be found in ‘Links’).

Fandoms:

• Getting some self promotion out of the way: If you’re feeling so inclined, consider joining a new fandom… check out my concept for a WIP Will Wood Jukebox Musical titled Welcome To Suburbia

• Where do I even start… I’ve been a massive part of fandom culture since I was in my early tweens and there is absolutely no way of encompassing every single fandom I have ever been in, but I can surely try:

Film & TV:

Sherlock BBC; Hannibal NBC; The Umbrella Academy; IT; Marvel; DC; Harry Potter; Fight Club; Back To The Future; American Horror Story; Dr Who; Good Omens; The Sandman.

Anime & Animation:

Gravity Falls; Inside Job; South Park; TAWoG; Adventure Time; MLP; Sailor Moon; WINX Club; Monster High; Kakegurui; Moriarty The Patriot; Neon-Genesis Evangelion; Black Butler.

Games:

FNaF; Cup Head; Cult Of The Lamb; Sally Face; DDLC; Animal Crossing; Splatoon; Legend Of Zelda; Mario Brothers; Project Sekai (Colourful Stage); The Last Of Us; Detroit Become Human.

Books & Literature:

Frankenstein; Jekyll & Hyde; Dracula; Steven King’s Collection; Neil Gaiman’s Collection; Лето В Пионерском Галстуке (Summer In A Scout’s Tie).

Links:

• Role Play Blog

• Ao3

• Pinterest

• Spotify

• TikTok

• Instagram

Afterword…

Any and all engagement with this blog is appreciated. I love receiving comments and questions- anything that let’s me meaningfully interact with other users is always welcome.

☆ Stay safe and have a great day!! ☆

#get to know me #introduction #introductory post #intro post #my dni #my content #my fandoms #my links #lgbtqia #lgbtqia creator #multilingual #multilingual creator #any and all engagement is very much loved and appreciated #Spotify

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desbianherstory · 2 years

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Sharan Dhaliwal is an openly bisexual British-Indian writer, journalist and activist. Dhaliwal is the founder and editor of Burnt Roti, a South Asian magazine. She also created Oh Queer Cupid, a queer speed dating and comedy night, in addition to founding and directing Middlesex Pride. Dhaliwal’s memoir Burning My Roti: Breaking Barriers as a Queer Indian Woman was published this year.

Since Burnt Roti’s inception, I came out as bisexual and realised that a lot of the reason that I had held back from living my true life was because of the way I grew up. I wanted to make sure that it wasn’t a continued pained experience for others, so I started to focus on LGBTQ+ stories, and out of that have created Middlesex Pride. It’s the first Pride event for Middlesex – I want to focus on discussions and education. I grew up in Southall and Hounslow and, along with many other South Asian people, was immersed in a very traditional life. When I came out, I noticed messages from people thanking me for doing it, but also telling me that they can not – I learnt that a lot of these people lived in the Middlesex area. There’s a severe lack of LGBTQ+ visibility in communities there and that creates two things – a lot of people don’t understand what sexuality means for the LGBTQ+ community and tend to focus on sexual acts or HIV. It means that the stigma attached to it causes young people to stifle themselves, sometimes exacerbating mental health issues. Another thing it does it creates a doubt in the minds of those who are discovering their sexuality. If it isn’t discussed or taken seriously, it must not be real. People could live a long time (like myself), keeping any feelings or desires to themselves. My mental health suffered, I was in various relationships I didn’t actually want to be in and I was stuck in a destructive pattern of getting with someone, disliking the situation and leaving it soon after.

So attitudes towards sex and sexuality where you grew up were a little guarded?

There’s a stigma around sex and sexual acts (like with much of society), and it’s considered ‘dirty’. Talking about our bodies is seen as ‘disgusting’ – including puberty and menstruation. A lot of South Asian womxn learn to keep to themselves – never asking questions and never really learning more than they’re told. It’s changing a little, but there are still remnants of it there, which I want to break down. Older generations would, for example, say that they never heard of the word ‘lesbian’ before. There’s not really a word that translates in the Punjabi language now (I’m not sure if that’s changed over time) but there is a language barrier. Teaching certain words, what they mean and what effect they would (and wouldn’t) have on them is important. There’s still stigmas and negative connotations, but it needs to be broken down and explained.

So, being bi! What are your experiences like as a bi woman of colour in 2019?

Ok so let’s talk about fetishisation. The first woman I went on a proper date with was a white American, who seemed to have an obsession with Indians. I’m not gonna lie, I ignored the red flag from her text which popped up on my phone in all caps “I REALLY WANT AN INDIAN”. At first I wondered if she was Indian, and then she spent the rest of the day texting me about Bollywood films, as if I knew nothing about them. It felt strange. But I was incredibly attracted to her and just wanted to go on a date, so I did. She didn’t speak too much about Indian stuff then, but the texts continued – she wanted me to teach her Hindi. I suddenly felt like I was working as an unpaid language tutor. For some reason, I expected to experience fetishisation from cis men, not from the LGBTQ+ community – it was that naivety that was the biggest blow. I’ve had struggles being specifically bi on dating apps – lesbians haven’t taken me seriously. I’ve had some unmatch me because they assumed I was just “messing around” on the app. I’m now in a relationship with a woman and it feels amazing – she doesn’t question my bisexuality, she knows I want to be with her. It’s not just the lesbian community – there are bad eggs everywhere. But bisexuality is definitely considered a ‘half assed attempt at being gay’.

How did your family react when you came out?

My dad had a pure and wholesome reaction, where he quoted me verbatim “Sharan, sexuality is fluid” and I lost it. Firstly, credit me when you quote me, secondly I don’t even know if he knows what he’s saying. But bless him, he doesn’t care about my sexual preference, he just wants me to be happy. My mother had a strange reaction – she jumped between disliking it and not caring. I think she thinks there’s fifty per cent chance I will marry a man, so she’s just relying on that. I don’t want to get into maths with her, so I just let her be for now. But a big part of Middlesex Pride is to allow her and others like her to find out more about what it means to want to be with someone who isn’t the ‘expected gender’. I want her to know it’s okay if I don’t marry a cis man. In fact, I’m going to marry my girlfriend, so she has to be on board or she won’t get to hang out with her grandkids lol.

#Sharan Dhaliwal #people #indian bisexual women #indian queer women

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zeus-japonicus · 2 years

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Nemo you are the coolest please tell me more about trice forgotten linguistics

i've never felt more like 3 penguins stacked on top of one another and wearing a trenchcoat until right now - you're very sweet for indulging me, anon, here is a linguistics essay just for you.

For context, I approach linguistics from the perspective of someone who is, and has always been, tragically in love with languages and yet incapable of understanding grammar. As an example, I consider myself bilingual English with Japanese, and yet I still struggle with particles (I had to google the term for them to write this post). I know innately and strongly how to use most of them, but sometimes I'm left floundering. If I'm speaking Japanese, I think in Japanese, until I don't know the word for 'racism' and then I'm reduced to explaining what I mean like a 5 year old. Hell, I barely understand English grammar, and that's the language I have (nearly) 3 degrees in.

I was born and raised in London. I lived with my very white, very middle-class-aspiring grandma for many years. Her friends used to say to me, "your English is so good!" As an attention-seeking child, I very much took that to mean they understood I was a gifted and intelligent human - looking back, I know it's because they saw an Asian, and they were surprised I didn't speak like the Asians they'd seen parodied by white actors in film or on the radio.

Alestes desperately hunts for people who will understand her broken, child's Hokkien while, at the same time, existing as someone both Black and Asian. Fluent English is not expected of her by the society she lives in. Neither is fluent Hokkien.

I don't speak Hokkien at all, and I realise that maybe a few of you probably don't know what it is - so let's start there. I'll say here that all translation was done by my dear friend Yen Ooi, whose English-language Sci-Fi are poetic and beautiful and radical.

"Hokkien originated in the southern area of Fujian province, an important center for trade and migration, and has since become one of the most common Chinese varieties overseas. [...] Hokkien historically served as the lingua franca amongst overseas Chinese communities of all dialects and subgroups, and it remains today as the most spoken variety of Chinese [in Southeast Asia]."

I will admit, when I first started writing Trice, I defaulted to assuming Alestes and her family would speak Mandarin or Cantonese, the two more well-known Chinese languages - Cantonese especially because it's a trade-language used in many interactions with the British.

Tangentially, I was reading about the indentured Chinese people brought from Batavia (Indonesia) to Cape Colony in South Africa because I was doing research on Cape Coloured people. I'd just interviewed someone for my PhD who talked to me about their family history, which made me really think about ancestries I'd never considered before - and about trade routes beyond the Atlantic.

Then I thought about who had been ejected from China. I remembered an article written about Sek Yeong / Ching Shih - about how she lived through a combined population boom & lack of food & space and so she and people like her took to piracy on the sea. I essentially did a combo of google maps & wikipedia to look around the coast of China for places and languages that might fit who Zhu Anran was in my head.

I settled on Fujian and Hokkien because they're big - and yet absolutely obliterated in the western brain. I don't personally know of any Western media where a character speaks Hokkien - any dialect of it - it's the official language of Taiwan (side note: i did just have to google "was Taiwan ever a British colony" and was genuinely surprised it wasn't - Dutch, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese) - and as mentioned, is still a lingua franca in SEAsia - my friends who speak it are mostly Malaysian and Singaporean British people.

I think many people might assume (given our abhorrent history lessons) that a character being Fujian and Xhosa is... a rare or strange mix - but people like Alestes did exist - must have - even if there are no real records - because of how linked Cape Town and Southeast Asia were - even before British/Dutch colonisation.

I first attemped to use online Hokkien dictionaries to translate the work but kept coming across the issue of not knowing what meaning words really had - especially swears - so when I asked Yen for translation help I had a caveat: I didn't want the swears to have ableist or racist meaning. Yen told me she and her dad had an excellent conversation when they were discussing swears - [content note for the list below, there is ableist and graphic language] - from Yen:

'bo jeng sin' or 'tao hong' - these are ableists... they refer to people who are crazy or have mental conditions, so probably not.

'iau siu' - this refers to a baby that'll be born dead - so very extremely aggressive cuss word.

'han ji' - potato. My preference because I grew with this phrase around me - means a useless person.

'jiak liau bi' - a waste of rice. I love the phrase... haha. It means someone who's not worth the rice they're given - useless person.

han ji and jiak liau bi are the ones that made it into the show. As I mentioned in my previous post, Alestes swears in Hokkien because Baker didn't know what they meant when she was a kid and so couldn't tell her off for it...

And to close us out, here's a nice translation note from Yen about Alestes' attempt to speak Hokkien to the pottery seller: "carp is one of those words that isn't commonly known. It's 'le hu' in Hokkien, but if Alestes's Hokkien isn't fluent, she probably won't know the word. She could say... 'ha mi hu', which translates to 'what fish'. When we can't remember the word for something... like a type of fish/animal, we tend to just add 'ha mi' to the front... like what cat is this? what bag is this?"

The carp story is the one thing that connects Alestes to her past - her last memory of her father - and she can't even remember the word for it in Hokkien.

(Please do go an check out Yen's novels, she also writes games, and is on twitter @ yenooi)

#ask nemo #trice forgotten

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