#couples costumes with audrey could also be really cute
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guys if i'm dressed up as seymour for halloween does that mean seymour is dressed up as me in a parallel universe somewhere?
real talk though.....what would seymour dress up as for halloween?
#jess speaks#little shop of horrors#seymour krelborn#i think he'd either go for something really simple/basic or something super obscure and nerdy that no one but him understands#couples costumes with audrey could also be really cute#idk i'd like to hear suggestions! maybe i'll draw them sometime ooooo
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Marinette The Perfect Daughter In Law: A Prompt
[ I've seen a few ‘everyone loves Marinette AU’s’ and a couple Marvel DC ‘all the mentors want THEIR kid to end up with Marinette AU’s’ and well frankly! I felt inspired! So I present to you my new prompt / AU thing! In which all the most powerful / rich / popular people in Paris decide to play matchmaker… ]
It starts when Adrien and Kagami have a less than AMICABLE break up according to their parents and the media anyway in reality it was a really REALLY dull break up. The pair have been ‘dating’ (using each other as an excuse to go out and experience normal teenage stuff) since they were 15. Now at 17 soon to be 18 the pair decided to publicly break up in order to pursue other people and interests. The problem is they never told their parents the truth so both Gabriel and Kagami’s mother Tomeo feel protective and concerned about what must surely be an upsetting first heartbreak for their child. And okay maybe both parents take that out on each other and both get a bit defensive and protective. And MAYBE it ends with Tomeo vowing to get revenge for her daughter. Enter, Marinette. Up and coming fashion designer for the rich and famous! She’s single, talented, and as far as Tomeo knows Gabriel is interested in the girl for her talent. So what better revenge could exist but having Marinette take an interest in Kagami!
Kagami has no idea why her mother suddenly has an interest in Marinette but she wont complain about having more time with her very cute designer friend. And all the outfits Tomeo is paying Marinette to make for Kagami is giving the young fencer plenty of up-close and personal moments with Marinette. And okay Marinette is VERY cute and Kagami wont question why she suddenly has all this tine with Marinette, eating ice cream with the girl and having brunch. But she knows shes absolutely head over heels when Marinette shows up at her fencing tournament gives her a luck charm and cheers her on wearing HER colors. Obviously Kagami wiped the floor with all the competition she cant be seen hesitating in front of Marinette!
On Tomeo’s side of things she makes sure that the paparazzi still lurking around after Kagami and Adrien’s breakup catch photos of what could easily be interpreted as dates between the girls. After all this is a revenge ploy but also Marinette is fantastic so Tomeo is 300% down with Kagami ‘bringing her into the family’ something she tells Kagami after the first paparazzi ‘date photos’ leak into the news. Kagami still has no idea this was an orchestrated affair and just thinks her mothers caught on to her feelings and is overjoyed that Marinette is approved of because after the cheek kiss Marinette gave her for winning the fencing tournament Kagami was preparing to fight her mother for the right to pursue the young designer seriously. After all she never hesitates!
But Tomeo never realized Gabriel isnt the only one interested in Marinette. Audrey Bourgeouis has been keeping an eye on Marinette trying to find a way to get Marinette on to her side and away from Gabriel. So when she sees the photos of Kagami and Marinette she sees an opportunity. After all if Marinette isnt exclusively into men (and those photos of her flushed cheeks as Kagami cleans ice cream off her bottom lip are a clear indication shes not) then Audrey smells opportunity. After all Marinette was Chloe’s first crush! How cute would that be! The next day Marinette is being offered yet another opportunity to intern under Audrey this time with much looser restrictions. When Marinette accepts she suddenly finds herself working with Chloe… A LOT. The pair are modeling together, often paired together for shoots in perfect complementary clothes that screams ‘opposites attract’. Chloe is also helping manage Marinette’s brand and the two start to get along very well. The model photos and their business lunches are soon plastered alongside the Kagami and Marinette outings with parisian gossip blogs finding their interest picked by this potential love triangle.
Chloe for one, was confused at first. Sure she knew her mom was interested in Marinette but she never thought SHE would be working so closely with her first crush. And Chloe tries to ignore it, after all those are dead feelings! And Marinette woud never forgive her anyway so why even- Wait. Is that Marinette in a downright gorgeous golden dress? A-and she will be posing right next to Chloe for their shared shoot? Well… Chloe always thought herself deserving of royalty and damn if Marinette aint the princess of her dreams. Sorry Adriken’s you had your chance to get the girl, but now its winner keeps all and Marinette is the only prize shes interested in. For the record Alya is freaked out by Chloe being nice, but shes more weirded out by Chloe being protective and handsy and downright shamelessly flirty with Marinette. Audrey is pleased when she hears the news and is quick to give her daughter encouragement acting as if none of this was premeditated at ALL.
Oh but they have no idea that this is just the beginning. Because guess who's moved back into town. Adrien’s favorite cousin and aunty. And Felix’s mom is quite the busybody and dammit Felix needs friends! And maybe a cute girlfriend! And oh whos that pretty girl on the magazine cover? Marinette? The one her celebrity connections have nothing but praise for? Perfect! Shes invited to lunch with Felix and herself on friday to discuss movie costumes! And oh Audrey dear dont you think Marinette would look fabulous sandwiched between TWO blondes! Felix hasnt modeled in a while but come now. So suddenly Marinette is being spotted with Felix guiding him about paris and modeling with him AND Chloe under AUDREY’s brand NOT Gabriels.
Felix thought hed really hate Marinette; he tried to ignore her he really did. But shes funny, witty and sweet. Not to mention trustworthy, so a good candidate for a business partner. And thats it, but then he has to admit hes impressed when he rolls up to a photoshoot and Chloe! The definition of brat personified is acting… Bearable. Yes, somehow Marinette has done the impossible! She has tamed the beast known as Chloe. And yes fine he will admit shes drop dead gorgeous and how intelligent of her to learn all sides of the fashion industry and boost her rep with modelling! Soon hes spending more time with her, he tries to argue he needs a guide, that shes the most bearable person to be with! That she is just a friend- Oh god. No it cant be! He sounds like-! Like ADRIEN! And Chloe already told him about THAT mess! No! Absolutely not! He will not lead on Marinette like his idiot cousin! Marinette is a rare and beautiful woman! She could be his queen! And god he has to admit it much as he loathes too Marinette’s smile is enough to make him thank every non-existent god. He will win her heart, show her that she deserves better than his brain dead cousin! Felix is sure mother will approve of his decision to pursue the girl, now he just needs to do more shoots with Marinette...
And that's what finally gets Gabriel to snap. Because REALLY Felix!? Is there no loyalty to FAMILY. Not to mention he was totally drafting a potential contract for Marinette when Audrey snapped her up the witch! But its fine! Marinette has always been interested in Adrien! Surely she still is? Surely she's not been swayed by any of her new suitors! Right? Gabriel knows he can't mess with Audrey’s contract so he goes through Adrien, freeing up his sons schedule and telling him to spend time with Marinette to help her ‘adapt’ to the harsh world of fashion and modeling. He uses Adrien’s heroic nature to make it sound like hed be saving her from Chloe and Felix. And sure enough Adrien bites, using his friendship with Chloe to worm into fittings, meetings, and photo shoots. At first hes just there to make sure Chloe and Felix arent hurting sweet Marinette. But when he sees the blondes fighting for her attention, flirting with her, posing with her in some rather romantic settings. Suddenly hes less worried and more… Jealous? No! Not him! Hes concerned, confused, suspicious! Obviously he needs to spend more time with Mari- Wait! When did Kagami get here to take Marinette to lunch! And why are they all ignoring him!!!
Now Marinette is fully in the public's eye. Gossip blogs are being fed bits of info writing up each ‘candidates’ appeal as THE romantic partner to the Marinette Dupain-Cheng paris new darling, the girl with a heart of gold too oblivious to see the trail of hearts following her around! But there is still another contender yet to enter the game! Jaggeds been away on tour teaching Luka his up and coming protege all the tricks. And lets not lie Luka has his own fans now, enough to rival all the others. Jagged sees Luka as his own son, even calling him as much! Hell hes even adopted Luka and Juleka and when I say adopted I mean Jagged literally got shared custody of the kids when their real dad tried to start trouble once Luka started gaining fame. Luka and Juleka for one love their adopted father and his wonderful fiance Penny. But back to Jagged, being Jagged.
The moment Jagged is back in Paris he's checking up on his favorite designer and hopefully future daughter in law! When… WHAT'S THIS?! All the other ritchies in Paris are playing his game! Trying to get Marinette married into THEIR families! Not rock and roll at all! He was here first! And so being Jagged he decides to make Luka’s stake in the race for Marinette’s heart clear! By spamming social media with photos of Marinette being cute with Luka, taking his measurements, going out with him, the pair babying Fang, the two passed out against each other after a long concert. And he has photos going back at least a year or two! Soon Luka’s fans pick up the hype starting a trending hashtag finding the pair cute! Jagged feels confident that hes won! When Audrey retaliates, and from there its a complete train wreck. Before long each pair has a hashtag filled with cute moments and arguing over whos dating the model / fashion designer!
Meanwhile Adrien is drowning in denial as he goes through each hashtag seething about how many MORE photos everyone else has with Marinette, when HE is her very good friend and was here first! Felix, Chloe and Kagami on the other hand have declared open war after they tried to talk to each other about the hashtags reasonably only for it to devolve into “so you agree Marinette is best with me!” - “WHAT! No! Thats not what I said! Besides she clearly is best with me!” - “Ridiculous!” And so on. Poor Luka is having an entirely different reaction hiding in shame unsure how to face Marinette because he WAS going to ask her on a proper date now that she seems over Adrien, because even with everything she's the melody playing in his heart and he had a plan! But now his mom and sister are texting him and teasing him and apparently he has MORE competition! Who do these people think they are to deserve Marinette! No! Luka won't lose Jagged has been teaching him to be bold and confident! And Marinette is worth all of his efforts! Jagged REGRETS NOTHING even if Penny confiscated the tv remote!
Marinette meanwhile has no idea what's going on because the whole class made a dumb bet on when the designer would notice with one of the bet conditions being that no one could tip Marinette off and that they have to keep her away from Paparazzi so they dont spoil it either. And sense Alya is helping manage Marinette’s social media Marinette hasn't looked at it yet so she has NO idea what's happening. But her birthday is coming up next week and Chloe definitely didn't get dibs on planning a surprise party for her all so she could spoil the girl and RUB her GREAT relationship with Marinette into her competitions FACES! The competition however (and Adrien JustAfriend Agreste) have decided that they really aren't going down without a fight!
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#my fic#kagaminette#lukanette#adrienette#chlonette#chloenette#miraculous ladybug#marinette dupain cheng#everyone loves marinette#kagami tsurugi#adrien agreste#felinette#felix graham de vanily#chloe sugar#chloe bourgeois#ml prompt
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Halloween Headcanons (feat. Sarah Characters)
A/N: Hey guys! Figured I'd do a little Halloween themed thing for ya'll. Sorry it's a little short, I promise I tried! Happy Halloween/Samhain to you all and stay safe!
Billie Dean Howard
While this is usually one of the biggest nights of Billie's career, she knows that she doesn't want to leave you in the dust because she cares so deeply about you. Instead of leaving you at home by yourself, she invites you to come along with her camera crew to film her Halloween Special which includes a full paranormal ghost tour. Seeing her in action is even better in person and you realize that there isn't any TV magic involved with her work. Between takes, she makes sure to check on you to make sure you're safe and that you're not too frightened by anything. Once they wrap up filming, she'd take you on a more personal tour of wherever you had been exploring just so the two of you could get some spooky one on one time.
Lana Winters
Lana isn't a huge fan of big scares considering what she's been through. She's much more into the idea of having a cozy night in with you and sticking to reading books or finishing up work that she needs to get to. She also will absolutely ask you to help her hand out candy to children just to make sure she's apart of some of the Halloween fun. Lots of cuddling and chill vibes between the two of you, a really wholesome holiday.
Cordelia Goode
Being a witch makes Samhain one of the most important holidays for the Supreme. Not only is this the witches New Year, but it's also the night in which the veil between worlds is the thinnest. She'd invite you to participate in the annual ritual that the coven holds and would make you stay right by her side during circle. After the sacred traditions are taken care of, the students always hold an All Hallows Eve feast/celebration directly afterwards in which she would take you as her date. She'd know that it was so special to have you there with her to be apart of these practices and it would mean so much to her that you spent this holiday with her.
Bette and Dot Tattler
This is a very mixed opinion. On one hand, Bette would be ecstatic about this holiday in the most innocent, childlike way. On the other, Dot would absolutely detest celebrating though she realizes that it means so much to her sister that she caves. Bette comes up with a miraculous throuple costume for all of you to wear; This year, they'd dress up in an adorable angel costume while you'd be a cute devil. They would most definitely parade you around the camp grounds happily. Bette would be the most proud of the costume and would make the two of them twirl in their pretty white dress, and even though Dot was reluctant to admit it, she was definitely happy that you and her sister were happy. The three of you would go on to celebrate Halloween shenanigans with the rest of the residents of the Freak Show for the rest of the night together.
Sally McKenna
This is the one night out of the year that she can walk out of the hotel since the veil is thin. Sally is definitely taking you out on the town to the most hip club that has the best drinks and the loudest music and hopefully the best drugs. All she wants is to party all night long with you and live her quote on quote "life" to the fullest. By the end of the night, both of you are completely inebriated and you truly feel the rush that miss Hypodermic Sally was known for giving people. She definitely would wanna take risks with you, one of them being publicly making out or possibly even more. The possibilities are endless with this woman.
Audrey Tindall
Audrey is a very well known celebrity which means she absolutely has to make an appearance at a high end party. It would be a sin if she didn't! Of course she's going to take her as her plus one and she insists on you two having the best couples costume of the night. The press would take so many pictures that your relationship would be all over the papers and the trending feed on Twitter. She would introduce you to other celebrities she had worked with and show you off as if you're the most prized
possession she's ever owned.
Ally Mayfair-Richards
Oz is definitely excited for trick or treating with his mother every year, but he's even more ecstatic to know that you decided to come along with them. Ally helped him to make the best creepy clown costume in ode to his favorite comics, but she leaves all the dressing up to him. She would hold your hand while her son would run from house to house to politely ask for candy and make sure that you both kept an eye on him just in case. Once the little guy started getting tired, he'd ask for you to carry him back which would only warm Ally's heart even more as you all made your way back home. You two would put Oz to bed in his costume because he would be much too tired to change out of it. Afterwards, Ally would be so head over heels for you that she would whisk you away back up to her bedroom to shower you in affection in more ways than one.
Wilhemina Venable
If anyone is not a fan of holidays, it is Ms. Wilhemina Venable. She is a true believer in the fact that celebrating menial things like Christmas is pointless, but at least Halloween isn't as gaudy. Regardless, she's required to show up to a corporate holiday party at Kineros and decides to take you with her so that she doesn't have to suffer through it alone. She warns you about how awful it is and how terrible all of the people are, though once you get there, you realize that everyone's pretty laid back and just trying to enjoy themselves. You decided to dress up but Wilhemina is against a couples costume. She decided to wear all black to get in the spirit of things, that's the furthest she goes. She would reluctantly introduce you to her coworkers and to their surprise, you do your best to keep up with conversation and try to be polite whereas Wilhemina didn't speak to them at all. It's cute for you to see her so hardheaded, but she's secretly really glad that you made a good impression for her around the office. Bonus girlfriend points for you.
**BONUS**
Diane Sherman
Since she doesn't have anyone to take care of anymore, Diane doesn't see the point in trick or treating even though she loves the holiday. She'd insist that you two hand out Halloween candy because she loves to see how excited the children get when they come to your doorstep. Diane also intends to spend the entire night cuddling up to you on the couch while you both watch all Halloween themed movies, including the scary or campy ones. You two aren't leaving the house for the rest of the night whether you like it or not.
#ahs#ahs imagines#sarah paulson x reader#lana winters x reader#billie dean howard x reader#cordelia goode x reader#bette and dot tattler x reader#bette and dot x reader#sally mckenna x reader#audrey tindall x reader#ally mayfair richards x reader#wilhemina venable x reader#diane sherman x reader#headcanons
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Galactica, Chapter 40 (Group Fic) - TheDane/Veronica
A/N: Happy Halloween, and welcome to Chapter 40! Only 82802291 to go! (JK…kind of.) Click here if you’re looking for previous chapters (or here if you’d rather read on AO3). 💫
Last Chapter: Violet and Sutan made things official.
This Chapter: All of New York’s fashion elite shows up to Heidi’s Klum’s annual Halloween party. (Seriously. Everyone is in this chapter.)
***
“Go a little higher-” Katya was cut off as the door to Pearl’s room opened.
“Urgh!” Pearl looked up, a mess of grey spiderweb in her long blonde hair and on her hands where she had raised them to protect her face when she had left her room. “What the fuck!”
“Whoops.” Trixie grinned, the cobweb shooter he had been using to decorate in hand.
“Hi Pearl.” Max smiled, waving his hand from where he was standing next to Katya, holding up the string of lights they were attempting to mount on the wall.
“Sorry!” Katya laughed. “I didn’t know you were in there.”
“How does that make this better?” Pearl groaned, peeling the sticky web off of her hands. “I was just taking a nap.”
“We’re very sorry Pearlie girl.” Trixie smiled, reaching out to gently get the web in her hair.
“What are you even doing?”
“It’s a haunted house!” Katya gestured, Halloween decorations covering almost every visible surface. Katya loved Halloween, being allowed to scare her first graders something she looked forward to every year. Over the weekend, Trixie had been working on his own costume when they had started talking about making a miniature haunted house, and it had quickly snowballed into a giant craft project taking over the entire apartment.
There weren’t a lot of kids around them, but the few that had all figured out that Katya and Trixie gave out full sized candy bars for Halloween. And while Katya loved seeing all the little faces light up in delight as she dumped candy into their buckets, the idea of scaring the bejesus out of them first was extremely exciting.
“You’re not planning to use my bedroom for this extravaganza, are you?” Pearl asked skeptically.
“No, don’t worry! We were thinking that we’d cover your doorway in spiders and spiderwebs and have freaky lights and spooky sounds coming from inside.”
“It felt fitting,” Trixie added with a laugh.
“Do you want to help?” Max smiled. He had originally only come over to borrow a bowler hat for his Charlie Chaplin costume, Katya telling him with a grin that he had to remember to keep the hat on unless he wanted to end up looking like Hitler.
“No thanks.”
“Really?” Trixie looked confused for a moment, picking the last piece of web out of her hair. “But you love Halloween!”
“I have to go meet up with Adore.” Pearl shrugged, reaching behind Max to grab her jacket. “She wanted to look at costumes together so we can coordinate.”
“Awh,” Katya grinned, Pearl shooting her a sharp look. “That’s adorable.”
“Okay mom.” Pearl almost seemed like she was annoyed, but Katya could see in her eyes that she took the tease for what it was.
“I think it’s nice.” Trixie loaded the cobweb shooter. “It’s cute that you like someone.”
“Yeah, well…” Pearl mumbled something unintelligible as she slung a bag over her shoulder.
“What was that?”
“I said she’s the cute one!” Pearl exclaimed, and when all three of them began ‘aww’ing again, she immediately left, giving them exaggerated eye rolls.
“A couple’s costume?” Trixie said, pressing a hand to his heart as he sank down onto the sofa, eyes shining. “You think it’s getting serious?”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. It’s still Pearl,” Katya told him, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.
***
“Fame?” Patrick called out, closing the door behind him. He wasn’t sure if his wife was home yet, but the light was on, a Birkin on their entrance table.
“Up here!”
Patrick smiled to himself, Fame’s voice traveling down from upstairs. If he knew her right, she was probably sitting at her desk, going through whatever creative she hadn’t had time to look at at the office.
“I’ll be right down! Our costumes finally came!”
Patrick grinned, the sound of a computer closing and Charles perking up coming from upstairs. In reality, Patrick would have been fine with something from a boutique, or even no costume at all, but Fame had never been able to resist going all out, least of all for Halloween, and he found it charming enough to play along happily. Patrick loved his wife, had since he saw her for the first time, but she was also wonderfully, insanely extra.
Patrick watched as his wife came down the stairs in a flurry of white, a cape draped over her shoulders, her hair still in the delicate updo she had twisted it into that morning, their dog right behind her.
“I’m so glad they arrived in time!” Fame smiled as she opened the hallway closet, pulling out two garment bags.
“Hey boy.” Patrick smiled, scratching Charles' head, the dog nudging against his hand once before walking away when he realized that Patrick didn’t have any treats and that there was no promise of a walk on the horisont.
“You’re going to love them this year.” Fame grinned, unzipping one of the bags.
“Let me guess,” Patrick took a step forward, the dress a stunning golden piece with feathers. “Are you-”
“It’s Cleopatra!” Fame pulled the dress out. “1963.” Fame smiled brightly, the detail of the gown beyond decadent for a Halloween party, even if it was Heidi Klum’s.
“Ah.” Patrick smiled. “Of course, and who will I be then?”
It wasn’t that Patrick didn’t care, but he hadn’t actually been aware that he was going to that specific party until he had checked his shared calendar, Fame more often than not completely in charge of their social life.
It was how Patrick liked it, and since all of their friends would be there, he had found no reason to complain.
“How can you even ask?” Fame chuckled, opening the second bag. “You’ll be my adored consort, Mark Antony.”
“Of course,” Patrick chuckled, pressing a kiss to her temple.
***
“I’m so so sorry-”
“There’s no need to be embarrassed. I’m only your boss when we’re at work, cutie.” Raven grinned as she heard Raja’s silky smooth voice, a clear hint of delight in the deep tone, Sutan chiming in from the front seat.
“Don’t call her that.”
They had just picked up Violet on their way to Heidi Klum’s Halloween party, Raja and herself in the back, while Sutan had taken a seat in the front with their driver, which was why they were even in this situation.
Violet had opened the door to the car, saying hi as she slipped in and placed a quick kiss on the cheek of the tall, mustached, suit-clad person in the middle seat. What Violet hadn’t noticed, until her lips had been pressed against skin, was the fact that it was not actually Sutan, but instead Raja, dressed up as Groucho Max.
“I swear I didn’t mean-” There was a hint of panic in Violet’s voice, the woman dressed up as Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany’s, the jewels on her neck clearly fake, but Raven guessed that it was only Halloween once a year, and Violet didn’t seem like the diamond type.
“Don’t worry,” Raja grinned, leaning back in her seat. “I rather liked it.”
“Raj-” Sutan turned his head, looking back at them. “Please.”
Raven had to bite her lip not to snicker, her corset digging into her hips. She knew Raja was only doing this to mess with Sutan, and it worked perfectly, the normally so cool, calm and collected man looking genuinely distressed.
“Scared I’ll steal your girlfriend?” Raja wiggled her brows, her fake mustache moving as she put an arm around the back of Violet’s seat, the other woman sitting completely straight, her hands in her lap.
“Hey!” Raven turned her head, a flash of jealousy washing over her, causing Sutan to laugh. “Don’t even think about it.”
“Awh,” Raja smiled, letting go of Violet. It was one of the weirdest things about Raja. Somehow, she seemed to genuinely like whenever Raven acted possessive, and if Raven had decked a girl here and there, or torn out an earring or two, that was no one's business but theirs.
“Princess.” Raja put a hand on her dress, the red sequined fabric probably scratchy to the touch. “You know,” Raja leaned in, “You’re the only one for me.”
“Oh god.” Sutan groaned. “Here we go again.”
The mustache felt weird as Raja kissed her, but Raven still put an arm around her neck, holding her close.
“Please tell me we’re almost there.”
Raven flipped Sutan off, making him laugh, her engagement ring almost getting tangled up in Raja’s wig.
***
“Ugh, I feel like such a basic bitch,” Courtney whined.
“That’s cause you are!” Morgan said, making Tyra laugh.
Courtney whimpered, looking around at the crowd outside Heidi Klum’s party. They were waiting for Adore to let them in, and she was rapidly losing confidence. She’d gone all-out on a Marilyn Monroe costume to fit the party’s “Old Hollywood Glamor” theme, even getting advice from her drag queen brother in Sydney (who did Marilyn regularly as part of his act), and of course, she’d already seen about 4 other girls with the same idea.
“Okay, but come on, you’re definitely gonna be the best Marilyn here,” Tati assured her.
“Easy for you to say,” Courtney said. “You actually had an original idea.”
Tati was dressed as Jeannie from the classic TV show, in a costume that showed off her gorgeous body to perfection. Courtney couldn’t help but feel a bit jealous, wishing that her own costume was more creative. If there was one thing she couldn’t stand, it was being just another generic blonde--especially at a chic event like this. She also probably needed to admit to herself that a big part of her nerves came from being in this kind of crowd again, possibly running into her boss.
“Happy Halloween, bitches!” came Adore’s voice, and they all turned around to see her sauntering down the sidewalk in a tailored pinstripe suit, Pearl on her arm in a pencil skirt and beret.
They were the hottest Bonnie and Clyde that Courtney had ever seen. Ugh, everyone was killing it and it made her feel even less worthy of being at the party in the first place.
“You guys look amazing!” Tyra exclaimed, and Adore grinned.
“Thanks, we know.” Adore gave them a sassy wink, a hand on Pearl’s lower back guiding her forward to the bouncer, where she waved her invite and then grandly beckoned the whole group inside.
***
“Ivy!” Jinkx’ face lit up with delight. She wasn’t expecting to see her beautiful crush tonight, but it was a wonderful surprise. Her costume was as adorable as she was, a cute and fashionable nod to Judy Garland in The Pirate when she sang “Be a Clown,” something that Jinkx knew very well that not many people would appreciate. “Hi! You look absolutely incredible!”
“Hi Ms. Mon-sorry, Jinkx,” Ivy giggled, tucking a lock of red hair behind her ear. “You don’t look so bad yourself. I guess you’re my daughter tonight, eh?”
Jinkx laughed as Ivy gestured to her Liza costume, shrugging and saying, “I guess so, Mama...wait no, that’s weird. You must be at least 5 years younger than me. Forget I said that. Please.”
“Consider it forgotten,” Ivy grinned again, asking, “So how have you been?”
“I’m good, I’m good. I’m so glad to see you, I didn’t know you’d be here,” Jinkx took Ivy’s offered hug, squeezing her tightly but being sure to release her quickly, lest it get awkward.
“Oh yeah, well, my boyfriend works at Vogue and his boss couldn’t make it, so he gave us the tickets.”
Jinkx felt her world shatter at the words that had just left Ivy’s mouth. Boyfriend? What was going on?
“Boyfriend? You have a boyfriend?”
“Yes, his name is Keith. We’ve been together for years, he’s over there by the bar.” Ivy waved happily to what Jinkx was sure was a lovely man in a coordinating costume.
“Right,” Jinkx nodded, because what else was she supposed to do? She only hoped that her face didn’t show how absolutely crestfallen she was.
“Actually, I was trying to remember that book you recommended because he’s super into local food too, but I couldn’t remember the title.”
“Oh, um…” Jinkx swallowed, suddenly wishing she was anywhere but here. “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.”
“Right! Thank you. Sorry, I’m such an airhead when I don’t write things down.”
Jinkx could see Keith approaching them now, two glasses of beer in his hands.
“It was so great to see you, but I really have to run. I was on my way to the bathroom, so-”
“Oh gosh, sorry!” Ivy smiled again, that beautiful smile, and gave her one more quick hug. “Find us later and we can talk some more!”
“Of course, sure! Bye, Ivy!” Jinkx turned towards the restrooms, hoping she could make it into a stall before her stupid tears started to fall.
***
Courtney peeked around a column, the butterflies her stomach going crazy when she spotted Bianca walking away from the bar with a couple of drinks, looking exactly as glamorous as expected in a deep blue silk wrap dress. She bit her lip, trying to gather the nerve to go say hello, when she realized that Bianca wasn’t alone, handing one of the drinks to a tall, absolutely stunning young woman--obviously a model.
To add insult to injury, the girl was also dressed as Marilyn, but her costume was a perfectly tailored version of the low-cut, high-slitted red sequined dress from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. It fit her lithe, willowy frame like a glove, and made Courtney all too aware of how out of place she was, in a cheap polyester version of Marilyn’s infamous white dress, the fake tits and hip pads that her brother had insisted she wear now feeling totally ridiculous and clownish.
As Bianca and her lady friend strolled forward, laughing and chatting, Courtney made sure to stay out of sight behind the column, heart sinking, squeezing her eyes shut, feeling like a creepy little stalker.
“There you are.”
The voice behind her nearly made her jump out of her skin, and she whirled around to face Tyra with a guilty flush rising to her cheeks.
“What are you doing skulking over here all by yourself?” asked Tyra, a hand on her hip, lips pursed in judgment.
“Nothing. Why?”
“I need another drink,” Tyra said. “Come on.”
She grabbed Courtney’s hand and pulled her towards the bar. Courtney followed, sighing, wishing she wasn’t such a chicken-shit baby.
***
“Hey.” Alaska nudged Jinkx with her shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
They were perched on a couple of bar stools, Alaska looking cute as anything in classic Katharine Hepburn menswear, a look of concern on her face. Jinkx shook her head, feeling like an idiot for going so far down the hopeless crush rabbit hole with Ivy without even knowing whether she was single.
“Nothing, I’m just stupid.”
“Well, you’re definitely not that.” Alaska took a sip of her sparkling water.
“You give me too much credit,” Jinkx said with a sigh. “I’m sorry. I’m being so lame. Let’s go dance.”
She began to slide off the stool, but Alaska stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
“We can dance, but first tell me what’s going on. Please,” Alaska smiled. “Maybe I can help.”
“I don’t deserve a friend like you, Lasky,” Jinkx said, lowering her head pitifully to the table. She had spent so much time going on and on about Ivy for over a month. It was shocking, actually, that Alaska still wanted to spend time with her at all. She must have been insufferable.
“Jinkx.”
Her voice was so soft and warm, it almost made Jinkx feel like crying again. She thought she’d gotten it all out in the bathroom earlier, but apparently not.
“I saw Ivy tonight,” Jinkx admitted, blinking fast to try and get rid of her tears. “Did you know she has a boyfriend? A serious boyfriend? I feel so fucking dumb for never-”
Alaska’s eyes had widened in surprise. This was clearly news to her too, which made Jinkx feel a tiny bit better.
“Jinkx, I’m so-” Alaska took her hand, grasping it tightly. “I’m so sorry. I know I was supposed to ask around about her, and things have been busy and I just-”
“It’s not your fault! Omigod, please don’t apologize.” Jinkx squeezed Alaska’s hand.
“But I promised you, and I never-”
“I’m glad you didn’t!” Jinkx shook her head. “Look, it’s a bummer, I guess, and I’ll probably be a mopey asshole for awhile, but I’m glad I found out before I totally embarrassed myself.”
“Anything I can do?” Alaska asked, eyes still soft and sympathetic.
“You can dance with me,” Jinkx said.
“You got it.”
Jinkx giggled, a mischievous smile spreading across her face as Alaska offered her arm and led her towards the dance floor.
***
“Come on!” Juju pulled on her husband's hand, trying to get him to walk faster through the crowd. It had taken forever to get the twins to bed after they had gone trick or treating, Julia and Owen beyond high on the sugar rush after Detox had allowed them to go ham in their Halloween buckets.
“But I want a drink-” Detox whined, and Juju almost rolled her eyes.
“You promised.” Juju looked over her shoulder, “Remember?”
“Right.” Detox smiled, pulling her in to press a kiss against her cheek.
“Ew!” Juju laughed, pushing him away, not willing to risk his orange makeup rubbing off on her face.
At first, when Detox had presented the ideas for their Halloween costumes, Juju had refused to dye his hair Oompa Loompa green, but once her husband made up his mind, it was nearly impossible to change it.
“Ah! Fame!” Juju waved as she spotted her friend, Fame’s hair covered by a stunning golden headdress.
“Juju!” Fame smiled, holding her arms out. “You made it!”
“Sorry we’re late.” Juju grinned. She had given her oldest a wad of cash before they left, Juju making sure that Kelly put it in her bra as a just in case, before she left for whatever high school students did these days.
As always, Juju’s friends had gathered in a corner, Fame almost allergic to open areas at parties. She spotted someone had to be Raja on the couch, making out with Raven, Detox already off to talk with Patrick.
“Juju!” Sutan smiled brightly, his new girlfriend sitting besides him. Juju had almost not believed it when she had read Raven’s text, her best friend swearing up and down that they were officially official. “It’s so good to see you.”
“Same,” Juju grinned, leaning into his hug Sutan got up to give her. “And who are you supposed to be?” Juju looked up and down, Sutan wearing a gray suit with a gray tie and a white shirt. “You decided to come as yourself? That’s real creative.”
“No!” Sutan huffed, sounding almost offended. “Look!” He reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a pair of sunglasses and putting them on before he threw his arms out. “See!”
“Oh wow.” Juju drawled. “You’re yourself on a sunny day?”
“Please,” Sutan tipped the glasses down, “I’m Cary Grant. From North by Northwest.”
“Sure.” Juju smiled. She still didn’t believe that Sutan was actually dressed up, but it wasn’t his fault that Raja had gotten all the creativity. “Whatever you say, peaches.”
Sutan laughed, taking the sunglasses off again. “At least I’m not dressed as whatever the fuck-” Sutan pointed with the glasses, before putting them back in his pocket. “Your husband is supposed to be.”
“He’s an Oompah Loompah.” It sounded stupid even now, but it was what Juju had promised him when they’d gotten married, support in both good times and bad. “Duh.”
“Cheers bro!” Detox grinned, raising a glass. Juju had no idea where he had gotten it, the brown liquid unmistakably alcohol. That damn liar.
“Listen, does it surprise you that these two have the weirdest costumes?” Bianca slid up next to them, putting her arm around Juju’s shoulders. “It’s very on brand for them,” Bianca smiled, taking a sip of her drink. “Don’t you think?”
“Thanks, Daddy,” Juju chuckled, tugging on the white Peter Pan collar of her Veruca Salt costume and fluffing her pigtails.
“Hey,” Detox appeared at her side, Juju’s annoyance dying down immediately when she saw the glass of ginger ale that Detox was holding for her. “We just like to have fun.”
Juju took the drink, taking a sip of it, nose wrinkling. She was nearly halfway through this latest surprise pregnancy, and she was already sick of it. Her only consolation was the fact that Detox had finally agreed to a vasectomy, so there would be no more precious little accidents in the Sanderson household. Juju absolutely adored her children, but with a full-time job, a precocious teenager and 3 year old twins, she had her hands full and then some.
On the other hand...she was looking forward to that new baby smell. She rubbed her slightly swollen bump thoughtfully, and considered the fact that since this would be her last pregnancy, she may as well enjoy it. Even if a shot of tequila would be amazing on a night like tonight.
“Juju!”
Juju turned her head to see that Raven had finally pulled herself away from her makeout session with Raja, her still red lipstick annoyingly pristine.
“Look at you!” Juju threw out her arms. Raven was dressed like the only Jessica Rabbit, waist cinched tighter than Juju had ever seen, and of course her tits looking beyond amazing.
“Holy shit!” Juju reached out, grabbing the left tit. “How did you do this?”
“Custom made breastplate.” Raven grinned, pushing her red wig over her shoulder. “Doesn’t it look fan-fucking-tastic? I almost want to get a boob job.”
“As long as they look like this!” Juju laughed.
“Did you hear that Raj?” Raven yelled over her shoulder. “Juju thinks I should get a boob job!”
“Not the one against it!” Raja raised her drink, a smile on her face. “Ask the warden.”
Raven turned quickly to Sutan with a pointed look.
“How am I the villain here?” Sutan looked around.
“The people want boobs.” Juju snickered, leaning her face against Raven’s fake breasts. “You should give us the boobs.”
“I’ll make sure to inform the houses that porn star tits are in high fashion style.” Sutan rolled his eyes, but he was still smiling.
***
Kissing Pearl made Adore feel high.
Well, she was high, but kissing Pearl made it even better. Especially tonight, her girlfriend looking all luscious and feminine with her demure little skirt and glossy, cherry-red lips. All Adore wanted was to eat her up. They danced close together, and Adore couldn’t help hold her close, couldn’t stop her hands from roaming all over her.
She knew that people were watching them, could feel their eyes, and it made things even better. She moved her mouth to Pearl’s neck, letting her perfume wash over her as she sucked at her pulse point, hands squeezing her ass roughly.
Why not give ‘em a show?
***
“Raven!” Violet bit back a giggle as she made sure Raven didn’t fall, their fingers tightly clasped together. “Watch out!” They had gone to the bathroom together, Raven whining that she needed someone to help her with her dress. “You’re like a baby giraffe.”
“As if,” Raven snorted, her cheeks pink, a light in her eyes. “I’m a model.”
“Okay.” Violet smiled, shaking her head as they made their way across the floor. Violet was pleasantly tipsy, her body light and tingly with the alcohol in her blood. The party was a lot more fun than she had ever expected it would be, all the different costumes a joy to look at.
Violet was just looking around, taking in a man who had chosen to arrive on stilts for some reason, when she spotted an incredibly familiar face, the green eyes ones she had sat across from for months.
“Courtney!” Violet exclaimed, suddenly realizing that she actually almost missed the blonde.
“Violet! Hi!” Courtney smiled brightly, her entire energy like an overexcited puppy. Violet felt Raven let go of her hand, the other woman throwing herself at Adore who caught her with a laugh.
“You look-” Violet glanced down at Courtney’s costume. “... Did you get a boob job?”
“What?” Courtney looked down at herself. “No!” Courtney laughed, grabbing her own chest. “No, no these are fake.”
“Huh.” Violet bit her lip, the padded bra looking almost disturbingly real to her tipsy mind. “Good. You’re pretty with your own breasts.”
Courtney grinned, lashes fluttering as she said, “Well, thanks for noticing, Violet.”
Violet smiled back, shaking her head. It was like she had never found Courtney annoying at all, the blonde just a beacon of good vibes. She tried to remember the last time she’d even seen her at work, when something popped into her head.
“Wait. Wait wait wait.” Violet reached out, grabbing Courtney’s wrist. “What happened with that dress?”
Courtney looked puzzled, her head tilted in confusion. “What dress?”
“The dress for Fame?” Violet still remembered vividly how stressed Courtney had looked. “With the golden pockets?”
“Ohh, that.” Courtney waved her hand. “She looked at it for a few seconds and then demanded eight more unrelated things. The usual.”
A giggle bubbled up from Violet’s chest. Now that she wasn’t working in Miss Fame’s office anymore, she was allowed to find Courtney’s irreverence a little bit amusing.
“Courtneyyyyy come get shots with us!”
The most beautiful girl Violet had ever seen in her life suddenly appeared, tugging on Courtney’s arm. Violet’s eyes barely knew where to land, taking in her wide brown eyes and full lips, the pink and gold of her costume making her tan skin glow.
“Violet, have you ever met my friend Tati?” Courtney asked, and Violet blinked, reaching out her hand.
“Wow. You’re…” Violet swallowed. “Beautiful.” She instantly felt her cheeks heat up, a terrible blush no doubt blooming on her cheeks. Violet wanted to throw herself out the window, the whole thing terribly embarrassing, but thankfully, the angel just laughed.
“Hi,” Tati smiled. “You should come get shots with us!”
“Um. I have to…” Violet tried to force her brain, tried to remember how to be a human being. “I have to…” Violet turned around, leaving without another word in a desperate attempt not to make more of a fool of herself.
This.
This was exactly why she didn’t have friends.
#rpdr fanfiction#thedane#veronica#galactica#trixya#vitan#raja x raven#adore x pearl#jivy#bitney#jalaska#jujutox#katya zamolodchikova#pearl liaison#trixie mattel#max malanaphy#miss fame#violet chachki#raja gemini#raven#courtney act#tatianna#adore delano#jinkx monsoon#ivy winters#bianca del rio#alaska thunderfuck#jujubee#detox icunt#lesbian au
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OK WAIT VAMPIRE AU AND IM LIVING FOR IT i have a shit ton of headcanons so,,,
here’s a quick summary
Humans hunt vampires and they’re often outcased/killed, although there’s been more recently since they’re learning from a young age to disguise themselves and can now hide their teeth.
also there's a couple types of vampires: some who melt in sun but have wings and can eat normal diets and those who don’t melt in sun, don’t have wings and need a little bit of blood in their diets (but it can be from like,, animals. It doesn’t have to be humans)
the vampires who melt in the sun (ILL CALL EM MELTY BOYS) are super rare so unless stated otherwise, whenever i say “X is a vampire” i'm referring to the not melty ones with no wings
setting/time/almost everything is the same. They are just. Vampires. (THEY LOOK DIFFERENTS TOO SFBDJHG)
also ships include: adrinette/ladynoir, djwifi, julerose, kimax, myvan, nathaniel/marc (I FORGOT THEIR SHIP NAME) and chlolix (chloe/alix)
You can send me ask if you want more details on certain things but yeah
if that interest you there’s more stuff under the cut
here’s what everyone is because its easier
Marinette: vampire *MELTY BOY
Adrien: vampire *MELTY BOY
Nino: human
Alya: half vampire thing?? Idk it just feels right *the sun hurts her skin a little, and she has little wings*
Chloe: vampire
Sabrina: human
Alix: vampire
Kim: human
Max: human
Rose: human
Juleka: vampire *MELTY BOY
Nathaniel: human
Lila: human
Mylene: human
Ivan: vampire
Everyone else is a human except for marc, nathalie and adrien’s mom *MELTY BOY
- marinette feels rlly bad about being a vampire (ALSO she a melty one)
- “TIKKI IM A VAMPIRE BRO I CANT BE LADYBUG”
- can go in the sun for about a minutes before it begins to really hurt so being ladybug isn’t awful cause she can hide in the shade most of the time
- ALWAYS HAS A SUN CAP ON (when she’s marinette) she just wants to be in the sun bro
- some guys start a theory that ladybug’s a vampire and she’s SCREAMING LIKE BRO HOW DO THEY KNOW but it was a joke
- alya is like,, super weird about vampires cause she was taught her whole life to hate vampires by nora because she thinks they’re super dangerous
- at first alya’s like “yeah suck it vampires” and then she learns she’s actually half vampire and she’s kinda like
- “fuck”
- almost rejects the miraculous lb gave her cause she was like “no im kinda vampire”
- but lb just goes “yeah me too so what”
- ALYA FREAKS SHE’S LIKE FUCK YEAH VAMP GANG
- nino’s super chill with her being a vampire!! he finds it rlly cool lol
i feel like i could go into more detail about their relationship but That’s Another Story For Another Day
- adrien kinda hates being a vampire (esp a melty one) and hides it from everyone but plagg
- his dad would kill him for being a vampire because then his son wouldn’t be perfect and that’s not good enough
- felix figures out he’s a vampire but doesn’t tell anyone
- felix isn’t a fan of vampires but respects his cousin and keeps his secret
- hiding his wings is so annoying like??? He wraps them around his body and wears a cap all the time is the WORST
- also same thing as lb he can go in the sun for about a minute as chat noir before he begins to melt
- again i can go into more detail about chat noir/ladybug and marinette/adrien but im trying to keep this kinda short
- CHLOE OH GOD chloe is so scared
- don’t get me wrong she still is mean and petty but she’s really scared someone will find out shes a vampire
- and someone does
- BUT ITS ALIX AND SHES ALSO A VAMPIRE LMAO
- alix is super chill with chloe and is like ���hey man i know ur a vampire but i am too”
- after this they both end up getting feeling for each other lol
- THEY BE DATING but that’s a secret
- chloe’s mom knows she’s a vampire because she saw her fangs when she was born which is part of the reason she doesn’t like chloe
- in this au audrey never warms up to chloe instead chloe learns to not give a shit about what her mom thinks (with the help of marinette and ladybug) and tells her off before her mom leaves for new york
- her mom still keeps the fact that chloe’s a vampire a secret from everyone tho
- cause outing someone as a vampire is actually so low that even thought like yeah,, not everyone likes vampires but like no one’s gonna like u either bc you outed them on something so personal and something they trusted you with
- sabrina doesn’t care if chloe’s a vampire she still really cares about her
- but sabrina wouldn’t like it if anyone else was a vampire
- also another thing about chloe she tends to act like she hates vampires to avoid detecting from the Vamp Police
- ig the vamp police is like sabrina’s dad who really hates vampires and actively looks for them (which is part of the reason sabrina isn’t a big fan of vampires either.)
- they’re not called the vamp police it’s just the police but i like saying that
- like i said before alix is Vampire and basically learns who’s a vampire in the class super quickly
- she knows what to look for when someone’s hiding their identity and knows she’s not the only vampire in the class
- she also figures out everyone’s super hero identities (which is why she gets the rabbit miraculous)
- max knows from stats that it’s likely that there's a couple people in the class who are vampires
- KIM DIDN’T ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT A VAMPIRE WAS BECAUSE HIS FAMILY THOUGHT IT WOULD SCARE HIM SO THEY NEVER TOLD HIM LMAO
- max had to teach him (with the help of alix) what a vampire was but it took like an hour
- the only reason kim actually learned something is because his boyfriend told him that if he paid super close attention (after running through the whole presentation like 3 times) he would give him a smooch
- after that kim grew a big brain and learned everything
- both of their parents and ondine would be super accepting if they were vampires tho
- but they’re both human
- also a little more lore its not biological if you’re a vampire or not it’s purely chance
- Its kinda like being born lgbt ig
- ALSO EVERYONE IS SOME FORM OF LGBT but i have my own hc for that
- lgbt vampires are incredibly oppressed like they can’t go out into the street *pensive*
- ANYWAYS juleka is a melty vampire and rose is a human
- rose’s family is super into hunting vampires
- rose invited her gf over for a family dinner and the whole time they talked about killing vampires
- juleka doesn’t hate being a vampire and thinks it’s really cool
- SO SHE DRESSES LIKE A VAMPIRE???
- rose had marinette design juleka a sun hat similar to hers because juleka kept forgetting she melts in the sun and went out in it more times then she should’ve
- juleka’s a little bit more outgoing in this au and drops hints that she’s a vampire because she thinks it’s Epic
- rose has to remind her that not everyone thinks it’s epic
- nathaniel is really passionate about vampires and wants to learn more about them
- HE POPPED OFF HARD WHEN HE LEARNED HIS BOYFRIEND’S A VAMPIRE
- nathaniel is so supportive of marc it’s rlly cute
- he has to stop himself from mentioning his bf’s a vampire bc he remembers not everyone thinks it’s as cool as he does
- marc loves that nathaniel is so supportive
- when he first saw nathaniel drawing the class of vampires he just went “fuck he’s the one”
- 100% nathaniel draws marc looking super vampire during class
- i’m just now thinking of akuma’s but like here’s kinda how it would work
- They’re basically the same as they were before (being all evil and shit,, basically the same powers) but i think there would be some story changes??
- lady wifi would be less concerned with lb’s identity and more with if she’s a vampire or not because the cause of her akuma would be her theorizing if lb’s a vamp or not
- causing chloe to make fun of her and say stuff like “cool people can’t be vampires they’re stupid and serve no purpose in life”
- lady wifi doesn’t manage to rip of either lb’s mask for her fake teeth because the costume change also adds fake human teeth to replace the real ones (and you can’t take them off like the mask)
- but lady wifi doesn’t know this so she assumes lb’s not a vampire which she’s disappointed with but alya doesn’t remember this
- BUT the media and chat noir think that she’s not a vampire
- reflekta’s design is a little different but that’s about it
- The change with lady wifi is the only akuma i can think about rn but if i do more headcanons about this i might go more into detail on stuff like that
- CHAT BLANC IS ALSO DIFFERENT
- the build up to the akumatisation is basically the same but adrien realises that lb is marinette and also a melty vampire cause he she’s her melt a little when she leaves the room
- after marinette breaks up with adrien he runs in and transforms
- after the reveal of adrien’s mom and stuff adrien reveals his wings and tries to kill is dad
- gabriel is disgusted by his son and tells him how disappointed his mother would be
- then chat gets akumatized and stuff
- instead of hitting the moon he’d hit the sun so that he didn’t need to struggle with being a vampire anymore
- he sucks the life out of hawkmoth and claims that he and lb can be together now that there’s no daylight but she says she can live like this which is when he kills her and goes on a murder spree
- then he just sits atop the eiffel tower in complete darkness until past lb shows up with bunnyx and she fixes everything
- his motives are more about disappointing his mother this time and being ashamed about being a vampire
- and also that his wish would be to make it so nobody is a vampire so people wouldn't have to feel ashamed about their identity and hide it all the time
- lb teaches him to love himself and his identity as a vampire and how proud his mother would’ve been of him
- ok enough about chat blanc
- lila is a human and she acts like she loves vampires
- but she actually hates them
- she’s super touchy with adrien and he’s even more uncomfortable now cause he knows she’s lying and would hate him when she found his wings
- all the vampires have seen this act before and tell their s/o’s so basically everyone’s against lila except for like maybe sabrina
- no one thinks she’s cool because i hate her
- she still lies about going on rides with prince ali and other stuff
- WOULD TOTALLY OUT SOMEONE AS A VAMPIRE
- absolute jerk
- her family is known for hunting vampires but she claims she’s different
- ok but ivan is just a sweet vampire trying to keep his identity a secret and mylene is just his support human gf who loves him just the way he is
- ivan doesn’t hate being a vampire but also doesn’t like it cause he’s worried that everyone will say stuff like “i bet you’re a vampire” “you’re a villain and you’re cruel, just like vampires” and other stupid stuff
- he is just a soft man
- MYLENE DEFENDS HIM WITH HER LIFE
- mylene thinks him being a vampire is super cool!!
- they kiss a lot and ivan is worried he’ll bite her but she’s ok with it
- sometimes ivan wishes he was a melty vampire so he could wrap his wings around mylene to cuddle her and stuff
- they are v cute valid couple
- gabriel knows nathalie is a vampire and she knows he knows but neither of them make comments on it
- nathalie does really like vampires and doesnt mind being one herself
- she knows adrien’s a vampire and helps him hide it
- his father likes to know everything about adrien so he tried leaving cups with blood in them in his room to see if he would drink them
- and if he did cause he didn’t know his father was testing him nathalie would just refill them
- she starts keeping blood around the house and gabriel assumes it’s just for her cause he isn’t educated and doesn’t know the difference between rare vamps and the common vamps
- but it’s for adrien
- ALSO LIKE LAST ONE BUT one time lb and chat went out at night to hunt for blood cause they were thirsty but they ran into each other and it was rlly awkward
- but they’re both rlly oblivious and convince each other that they were out for a nightly stroll cause they couldnt sleep
#miraculous ladybug#marinette cheng#marinette dupain cheng#adrien agreste#ladybug#chatnoir#miraculous ladybug au#i just really love them all#adrinette
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We Are Off to See the Wizard Part 3
Summary: Audrey’s Annual Halloween Bash is coming up, and Evie has thought of a rather interesting costume idea for the Core Four. Several of their friends get pulled into the epiphany, too. It’s super fluffy with Huma, Jaudrey, Bal, Jarlos, Core Four fluff, and Mal and Hades father/daughter feels.
Jay sighed as he closed his eyes. This was as boring as could be.
Jay liked to think of himself as a good boyfriend, and he did lots of things for his girlfriend just because she asked him to. But this had to be the worst thing ever, he couldn’t help but note as he wriggled uncomfortably in his place on the floor.
It seemed that Audrey had dragged him here for what he perceived as simply a reason for her to prattle on about her party and whatever else came to her mind.
“Hey, are you even listening?” a voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts. Speak of the Queen of Mean.
Jay looked up at his girlfriend from his significantly lower vantage point. Her eyebrow was raised in an expression of her unimpressed sentiments.
“Yeah, I’m talking to you,” she told him after he gazed back at her with a questioning look.
“What do you need, hot lips?” Jay asked her, unashamedly admiring her form as he spoke. As he expected, her face turned somewhat red in response to his flirting, but she forced herself to quickly recover.
“I want to know what you think of the decorations,” Audrey informed as she stepped aside so he could look behind her at the boxes upon boxes of sparkly garland and whatnot that she had ordered to be brought in for her party.
“It looks like a lot of them?” Jay tried, unsure of what exactly she wanted from him as he sat up to get a better look at what she had.
“I know that, you dummy,” she told him with exasperation, but he could easily detect the fondness in her voice. “I’m talking about how pretty they are.”
“Oh, that. Well, they’re beautiful, but not as gorgeous as you,” Jay cheekily remarked. Audrey grinned at him, bending down and taking his chin in her hand as she gave him his reward for doing what she wanted.
“Good answer,” Audrey complimented as she pulled away from his lips with an audible smack.
“Wow, I’m going to have to give you some more good answers, foxy,” Jay winked at her and she found herself somewhat flustered as she arose quickly.
“These last-minute decorations are just the thing we need to really spice up my big Halloween bash. Ooh! And just wait until you see the costumes I have for us!” Audrey exclaimed with the greatest of eagerness. Jay raised an eyebrow as he stood up.
“Okay… I’ll bite. What are they?” Jay asked.
“Only the most wonderful costumes that will completely outdo anything that anyone else could think of,” Audrey excitedly answered.
“But that doesn’t tell me anything about what we’re actually wearing,” Jay chuckled as he grabbed her waist in his hands, drawing her closer to him to lean his forehead against her own. She made some noise between a contented hum and a giggle as she gripped his forearms in her much smaller hands.
“If I told you, would it be a surprise anymore?” Audrey questioned sweetly, looking into his eyes with mischievous adoration.
“No, but I can still act surprised,” Jay replied with a rascally look that was just as wicked as her own.
“You’re terrible!” Audrey giggled and he just moved forward a bit, kissing her nose.
“Well, I do have certain ways to persuade it out of you,” Jay told her as he moved over to slowly and deliberately plant kisses on her right cheek and jawbone. She sucked in a breath, allowing him to continue for a moment, but quickly pulled back a bit, his mouth following her like a moth to a flame.
“Come on, we have work to do. I need your help putting these up,” Audrey tried to distract him from his mission. He didn’t heed her instructions in the least and remained focused on his work. The torturous satisfaction went on for several more minutes before she finally brought an end to it by conceding to his wishes.
“Fine, fine. You’re going to be a prince and I’m going to be a princess,” she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. Jay immediately paused in his affection, pulling back to look at her.
“Really?”
“Yeah! Why not?”
“Well, you’re kind of already a princess,” Jay pointed out, very confused by her costume choice.
“I mean one of those from way back that wore those really big puffy dresses,” Audrey told him as if it were the most obvious thing in the world and that he was a total moron for missing it. He furrowed his brow as he considered the idea and then it truly dawned upon him exactly was she was wanting him to be.
“A prince?” Jay asked, somewhat dumbfounded. Audrey grinned in her ultimate excitement, hopping up and down in his embrace in the midst of her enthrallment.
“Yes! So we match! It’s what all the super cute couples do!” Audrey grinned widely. Jay cleared his throat, swallowing hard at the prospect of the idea. He really didn’t want to be a stuffy prince for Halloween. He honestly wasn’t sure what he wanted to be or even if he was going to dress up, but that certainly wasn’t what he had in mind.
But before he had to formulate a response, Carlos came bounding in at a high speed with that ever-present energy that always seemed to radiate off of him wherever he went. He couldn’t help but internally sigh with relief. Saved by the bell.
“Yo, Evie called and she wants us to come to Mal’s castle. You know, where she stays with Mal a lot,” Carlos told Jay as he came in before getting a huge grin on his face as he suddenly took on a posture that purely reeked of sneakiness.
“And also…” Carlos turned around to face the opposite direction as he fiddled with something that was out of Jay’s eyesight. Jay could feel Audrey’s increasingly heated glare penetrating the side of his face, so he kept his stare focused on the back of Carlos’ head.
Just when he was least expecting it, the de Vil spun around to face Jay with a fearsome expression, his teeth bared ferociously as he growled. Jay raised an eyebrow, unable to hold back the laugh at the very obviously fake vampire fangs hanging from the other guy’s mouth. Carlos stuck his tongue out, one eye squinted as he tried to conjure fear in the two of them.
“Bleh, bleh, bleh!”
However, as soon as he started to talk, the vampire teeth fell out of his mouth and onto the floor. Carlos looked down at them with a bumfuzzled expression as he sobered.
“Well, those suck,” Jay deadpanned after a moment, and he smiled victoriously at the small huff that was earned from Audrey.
“Aren’t they supposed to?” Carlos asked, his eyes wide as he picked them up off the floor. Jay rolled his eyes before turning back to his girlfriend that, judging by her grip on his arms, was about to start demanding that he give her the attention she was owed.
“Gotta go. See you later?” he bade her farewell, kissing her lips swiftly before she could properly respond and he started off with Carlos.
“Jay?! How am I going to finish this without you?” Audrey questioned desperately, taking his hand in her own and gesturing at the mess on the floor with her free hand. Jay thought for a moment before offering her that cocky smirk that conveyed just how arrogant he could be.
“Call Mal. I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” he drew her hand up to his lips, kissing her knuckles gently before taking off out the door.
Audrey stood there for a moment in complete, unadulterated frustration before finally trying his idea and dialing Mal’s number on her phone. Honestly, that boy was the singular most frustrating and infuriating thing that she had ever had in her life.
After a few rings, Mal finally picked up.
“Hello?” Mal’s voice sounded oddly strained as she answered the phone. Audrey raised an eyebrow.
“Hello, are you okay?” Audrey immediately asked her, and she could suddenly hear Evie chuckling under her breath somewhere nearby the phone. Mal groaned in exasperation.
“I could be better,” Mal replied.
“Evie’s torturing me, but I guess I’ll live if a miracle comes flying in the window and knocks her out,” Mal continued with a bit of venom in her voice, and Audrey smiled absently as she looked down at the floor.
“Sounds… interesting.”
“Yes, it certainly is. HEY! Watch where you’re poking that thing!” Mal cried out defensively and Mal could almost picture that defensive cut of Mal’s eyes that was so characteristic of the faerie.
“Seriously? M, I haven’t even touched you yet. You big baby, quit getting so dramatic every time we call people while I’m working on you,” Evie giggled, and Audrey snorted quietly.
“You think you got it bad? You ain’t the one that’s sitting here waiting for the verdigris to get plastered on,” Uma’s voice suddenly sounded off. Audrey couldn’t help but find her curiosity piqued by Uma’s comment.
“What do you mean ‘verdigris?’” Audrey questioned.
“Like I mean I’m about to turn green,” Uma explained. Audrey furrowed her brow but before she could speak, Evie interrupted quickly.
“Audrey, I have a costume for you, so come to my- well, Mal’s place that I happen to have a home away from home at- as soon as you can,” Evie instructed Audrey. The pink princess sighed quietly, assuming that was probably why Evie had called Jay and Carlos. Oh, well. She guessed she should at least give Evie’s outfit idea a chance before insisting that she stick with her princess costume.
“I’ll come over later. What time is it now?” Audrey questioned.
“It’s about noon,” Uma answered, and Audrey nodded before glancing at the boxes, accidentally reminding herself of why she called in the first place.
“Oh, I almost forgot. Do you guys know of anyone that can come and help me put up these last-minute decorations? I’ve asked Celia to help me with the cupcakes and a few actual full-sized cakes, and Jay’s headed over to you guys,” Audrey explained. Uma cleared her throat and Audrey knew it was an attempt to keep from laughing.
“What is so funny, Uma?” Audrey demanded.
“Nothing. It’s just… do you know for sure whether Celia can cook or not?” Uma asked Audrey and Audrey frowned upon the realization that it was actually a pretty good inquiry to make.
“She told me she did,” the pink princess replied, somewhat unsure of herself as she spoke.
“Oh, I’m sure she told you. The question is if she’s full of it or not,” the pirate chuckled. Audrey suddenly felt a panic gripping her as she squeezed the phone a little tighter.
“Thorn, it seems like you need to go check on our favorite mischief-maker. I’ll ask my dad if he’ll come help you.” It was almost as if Mal could sense the immediate apprehension pouring off of Audrey at that moment, and the green-eyed girl continued quickly.
“All the other options I know of are about to be called and shortly thereafter made over by Evie. OW! Get the tweezers away from the eyebrows!” Mal nearly shouted and Evie snorted loudly in response.
“Thank you, Mal. And I wish you luck with your makeover,” Audrey half-heartedly smiled before the two exchanged their goodbyes and she hung up. The pink princess quickly hurried off to the kitchen as soon as her phone was in the pocket of her skirt.
She hoped that Celia hadn’t gotten into too much trouble.
#audrey#jaudrey#audreyrose#audrey rose#descendants#mal#evie#uma#jay#carlos#fanfiction#fanfic#fiction#descendantsmal#descendants mal#evie grimhilde#eviegrimhilde#grimhilde#bertha#malbertha#mal bertha#descendantsmalbertha#descendants mal bertha#descendants evie#descendantsevie#descendants evie grimhilde#descendantseviegrimhilde#descendants uma#descendantsuma#descendantsaudrey
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Thoughts of the Droid: Miraculous Ladybug Season 3: Miraculer
Hello, people of Tumblr! How has life treated them? As always, I hope very well. Last Thursday the chapter "Miraculer", belonging to the third current season of the Miraculous Ladybug series, was released. If you read a previous post that I shared with you, you will know that it is one of the two episodes that most interested me, when the synopsis of all the chapters was leaked. And also, if you read that post, you will also know that this chapter, along with that of "Miracle Queen" are the ones that I feared most since it gave the possibility that they were the most horrible episodes to be centered on the character of Chloé Bourgeois. (And if you did not read my previous post, I leave you again the link ... come on, give me the pleasure and get up to date XD).
Finally came the release day of Miraculer, and a couple of days later you have me here; I have already seen the chapter in question and I share my impressions and opinions of it, summarized briefly on these points.
WARNING: NOT SPOILER-FREE. Read at your own risk
What I liked:
* There is a consequence for an act: We can see that Ladybug no longer considers Chloé for her role as Queen Bee, obviously because the blonde was foolish to reveal her heroic alter ego. Here the interesting thing is that Ladybug knows that Chloé really has potential for such work, only that she has opted to officially withdraw her to protect Chloé and her family, her teammates and all of Paris. For those who were looking for a consequence of Chloé having revealed her heroic alter ego so sloppily, this chapter can certainly leave them satisfied. It may not be a crude or dramatic consequence, but it is a consequence after all.
* Sabrina / Miraculer: Undoubtedly the most outstanding quality of the redhead is her undying loyalty. And in this chapter that quality is shown again. We have Sabrina, supporting her friend as best she can. We also see how to some extent she understands and shares Chloé's frustration. And the cause of its akumatization is quite understandable. It is not the worst or best reason, but it is an acceptable one.
As for its appearance, I'm going to say it from the beginning. Her design, in fact, is not the worst of all, but I also feel that they could try a little harder. We have a simple Akuma design, but it is within the acceptable. The simple design was able to compensate with powers that in my opinion are quite creative and ingenious, since we see that Miraculer can use them as many times as she wants and also showed how she knew how to use them, putting the group of heroes in constant danger. Something striking in this chapter, in which we witnessed a few flashbacks that show that, despite everything, Sabrina and Chloé can truly have moments of real friendship, where I can even appreciate that the blonde sometimes treats Sabrina as her equal and not as a servant. If only we had more moments like that ... To finish this point, I ask all of you, does Sabrina not look cute and tender in that Chat Noir costume? Am I the only one who thinks like that? (XD)
* Mayura and Hawk Moth: We see a very manipulative facet in these villains. They know with absolute precision what to say and what buttons to press to convince a person or to question what they believe in. It is a little disturbing to see Gabriel and Nathalie smile in that sinister way (Ah, you evil-doers! XD). Of course, I do not leave aside that apparently their alliance with Lila Rossi seems to work wonders.
* Funny moments: There is not much to comment, except that the comedy moments work quite well, at least they did make me laugh at ease or get me a big smile.
* Chloé: Maybe this is the most controversial point of my review. While we did not see any good or significant development, at least we could see some interesting points in her character. For example, the one who she resisted the influence of Hawk Moth, convincing herself to be a superheroine, very much in spite of not yet understanding what the concept represents in its entirety. Basically, we saw a Chloé with enormous willpower not to be corrupted by the promises of Hawk Moth ... for now. Another interesting point was how she finally breaks a photograph of her and Ladybug and how she also declares that she no longer wants to be like Ladybug.
Something this simple would not attract attention ... would it? In my opinion, if it catches my attention and is that we see an angry Chloé because Ladybug denies her to be a hero definitely; and more, here we see that she has stopped idolizing Ladybug and no longer has her as an example to follow. She has begun to lower Ladybug from the pedestal so high that she had the spotted heroin. I also highlight the small conservation that she and Ladybug had, where the heroine directly explains her reasons for why Chloé cannot continue to be Queen Bee. It is there where you can see that Chloé did not make her tantrums so characteristic of her, but you know and feel that she is really furious, only that this time she has managed to hide it very well.
What I dislike:
*Chloé returning to be the cause of an akumatization: Frustrating. And the worst of all was her friend Sabrina again. Although we are sincere, that was already seen coming since they revealed the synopsis of the chapter.
* "I don’t want to be like Ladybug": It is this part of the chapter that, being honest with you, does not leave me a very good feeling for the future of Chloé, my favorite character. Hawk Moth says the phrase: "Queen Bee will change her mind" and hence leaves me with little expectation for what is coming in the future of the series. In this chapter we see how Ladybug denies Chloé being Queen Bee, we see how Hawk Moth and Mayura try to convince her to move by their side and how Chloé finally stops idolizing Ladybug. All this is combined to form a perfect recipe: to turn Chloé into a villain. And I will be honest again with you. I do not like that possibility at all ...
* Chloé being deceived by Lila's lies: When I saw those scenes, in particular, I exclaimed and said: "Come on girl, how did you fool yourself with such nonsense?!" Although I recognize something: the writers made the coincidences happen in a natural way for Chloé to believe Lila's lies.
Some questions to ask
I insist again (like the parrot that I am XD), that I totally dislike the idea of Chloé becoming a villain. But if the situation occurs, (most likely in the chapter "Miracle Queen"), I raised these doubts that could well give for a whole debate or brainstorming.
If Chloé becomes a villain, would she be like Queen Bee or like some Akuma? If the second option is given, who will occupy the Miraculous of the bee? Would it be the case that being a villain, she will see the light again and reform her way or she would be a definitive villain for the rest of the series? How would Audrey and André, their parents, react to such a change? And Adrien and Sabrina? Would Adrien as Chat Noir try again and again to make her see reason, or would she take sides with his other companions to stop her?
As you can see, many questions and all of them will be answered as time passes, which is less what I like.
In conclusion, Miraculer ended up being for me a bittersweet, but enjoyable chapter. A quite acceptable chapter, but it is advisable not to get lost to see how the future events of the series will develop. If you ask me, I thought that this chapter would be a disappointment and ended up being a bit better than I expected. Now there is only the second chapter that I hope and fear the most: "Miracle Queen". And rest assured that I will also give you your respective review. Without further ado, I hope you enjoyed this little post and my opinions. We read later and until next time.
Greetings
Rankakiu
#miraculous ladybug#tales of ladybug and cat noir#ladybug and chat noir#season 3#miraculer#sabrina raincomprix#chloe bourgeois#chloé bourgeois#ladybug#chat noir#rena rouge#carapace#queen bee#hawkmoth#mayura#ml spoilers#spoilers#review#opinions#thoughts#thoughts of the droid#rankakiu
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some of your OCs halloween costumes ?
oooo okay so I love the dress my ocs in costumes, I definitely need to do that this year !!
I’ll go ahead and share some of my old drawings of them and sorta elaborate on their choices on costumes.
this was drawn in 2017. I think the costumes here are pretty accurate to what they’d dress as.
Katsumi DEFINITELY goes the most and all out on her costume. She makes her own costumes in advance and will likely have body paint and a wig incorporated.
Advik does go too over the top with his costume. He’ll definitely have fun with it and do his makeup if the costume calls for it, but he won’t think too hard on what he dresses as. Many instances he’ll ask his friends for advice.
Audrey buys her costume at a halloween store, which is why they’re usually pretty basic like a witch or vampire. she puts most of the effort into the makeup. That’s where all the fun is, after all !
Avery HAS to be cute. That’s the only requirement. She buys her costumes at the halloween store too, usually shopping with audrey to make sure whatever she ends up buying is cuter.
On the other end of the spectrum, Zack does attempt to be scary every year, investing in the best quality of fake blood and creepy eye contacts. Audrey stopped him from bringing a scythe to a party before.
this picture was 2016 and included more characters (Sean, Morgan, Ian, and Cora, to be specific.) I like the costumes here too, however it’s worth noting that my characters don’t exist in our setting so pop culture characters like mad max and harley quinn wouldn’t be canon. sorry folks !
This is the one I drew last year !! (2018) I drew this VERY last minute, I originally didn’t plan on drawing my guys in costumes until it was like.. maybe 11:15 pm ? Despite the crunched time frame, I think this came out pretty well. Obviously I didn’t think too hard on the costumes.
I THINK this was last year ? Looks like it ! Anyway, still goes with the fact that Avery likes being cute, but I’ll also mention that Morgan was never really into dressing up for halloween (as a kid she didn’t dress up and her childhood friend Cora had to make something up for her so that they could go trick or treating together. She was a “woodsy” or “skater” girl most years)
However, Morgan will most certainly dress up if someone’s got a costume for her, and if Avery wants to be the cute devil to Morgan’s sexy angel, then abso-fucking-lutely she will.
this one was from last year (2018) despite my previous statement of pop culture not being applicable costume choices, this one is my favorite. Zack and Avery are well past couple costumes, but “Zack Skellington” and “Savory” (I guess that her nickname for this is now ??) is incredibly cute to me and weirdly fitting.
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Its Halloween, normal costumes are sorta boring. So Mal decides to stir up a potion to let the kids turn into their inner monsters for a day. (maybe resulting in some horny jaylos at the end? ;3)
Sorry this is late!
Last year, I did Jay as the wolf and Carlos as little red and it’s so cute that I gotta do it again. Enjoy!
The tingle under her skin isn’t bad, not really, but it makes Evie...uneasy. Anxious. There is clearly magic involved and there’s only one person who would be willing to pull a joke like this.
Jane panics as her butterfly wings, once fake and made of wire and cloth, flap frantically, levitating her off the ground. Lonnie, with her painted scales gone and actual dragon skin in it’s place, attempts to help, but fire bursts forward every time she opens her mouth.
Evie passes a group of boys whose mummy bandages are unraveling and a girl whose skeleton costume has left her without skin. It doesn’t appear as if anyone is hurt, even by the painted on wounds that have become real, thankfully, but the confusion and horror is no less traumatizing.
And, against the wall, with genuine sharp teeth and ever glowing eyes, stands the cause of it all.
“Mal Bertha, this is not funny. Undo this.”
“Sorry, E. Spell won’t wear off until midnight.” Mal shrugs and flicks the horns on her head. “But you gotta admit that’s pretty funny.”
Across the room, through the new monsters and beasts and horror figures, Chad and Audrey groan, shuffling their feet and walking into walls. Their skin is a faded green and their clothing is ripped.
“Mindless idiots every other day, why not let them be mindless zombies too?” Mal bats her demonic eyes innocently.
“Mal!” An unfamiliar voice whine. The girls turn to see Carlos scampering over to them, clearly unsettled. He keeps his red cloak wrapped tightly around his shoulders. “Did you do this?”
“What are you so panicked about?” Mal looks him up and down. “Little Red Riding Hood was at least human. You shouldn’t have changed.”
“Little Red Riding Hood was...” he squirms and looks around, “also a girl!”
Evie’s eyes widen and Mal throws her head back in laughter.
“Not funny!”
“Are you okay?” Evie reaches for his shoulder, but as soon as she lays a comforting hand on him, Carlos flinches.
“Not so hard!”
Mal grimaces and steps forward. She gently brushes Evie’s arm, touching the golden wrist guards. “Wonder Woman has super strength, E. You gotta remember how hard you grab.”
Her face falls and she narrows her eyes at Mal, noticing for the first time, the pointed tail behind Mal’s back. “I wouldn’t have to if you didn’t do this stupid spell!”
“It all reverses at midnight.” Mal waves her hand, black cloak fluttering behind her.
“Reverse it now!” Carlos squeaks, still hiding under his hood. “You-. Oh no.” He breathes. “Where’s Jay?”
As if he were a dog coming on command, Jay bounds over on all fours and skids to a stop. His faux fur had become real, covering his arms and the sides of his face. The shredded remains of a shirt still hang to his chest. Although he had run over on four legs, Jay stands on two before them.
“You could have warned me,” he growls at Mal, voice rumbling from deep in his chest.
“What would have been the fun in that?” Mal’s demon tail swishes behind her and she peers around Jay’s shoulder at his own furry tail. “We’re practically twins.”
Carlos glares at Mal, but shakily reaches out to Jay. “Are you alright?”
Jay blinks and turns to Carlos, as if finally recognizing his boyfriend is right there. Immediately, his tail wags. Jay presses his nose into Carlos’ neck and nuzzles, drawing them close together. “I missed you!”
“That’s disgustingly cute.” Mal gags, but smiles at Carlos. “I guess it’s a good thing you got over your fear of dogs?”
Carlos glares at her again, but reaches out to scratch Jay behind the ear. “He is kind of cute like this.”
“I’m always cute,” Jay growls, still sniffing Carlos intensely. “Why do you smell so different?”
Carlos flushes and shrugs.
“Look, we have a couple of hours like this. What good is a boring Halloween party anyway?” Mal scoffs and looks at her friends. “Let’s go out and cause some havoc.”
#jaylos#carlos de vil#jay descendants#mal descendants#evie descendants#my writing#filled request#descendants fanfiction
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Episode 23: My Fair Lady & Singin’ in the Rain
Please consult these links for accompanying images:
My Fair Lady: Instagram, Pinterest
Singin’ in the Rain: Instagram part 1, part 2; Pinterest
Both
Welcome to The Costume Plot.
Jojo
I'm Jojo Siu.
Sarah
And I’m Sarah Timm. We're professional designers with a passion for costume design and the performing arts. Our podcast does contain spoilers. Accompanying slideshows for each movie are linked in the episode description.
Jojo
We hope you'll join us every other week as we delve into the wonderful world of costume design in The Costume Plot. [music]
Sarah
All right, hello.
Jojo
Welcome!
Sarah
Welcome back.
Jojo
We're back! So exciting.
Sarah
I'm excited too. I feel like we don't have much to chat about at the top, so...
Jojo
Nope, not today, which is nice. [both laugh]
Sarah
No apologies. No corrections. So that's good.
Jojo
Our life details.
Sarah
Yeah, no life updates, really. Okay. Let's dive in. I'm ready.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
What are we calling this theme? Are we calling it old movie musicals?
Jojo
I think we said movie musicals.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
I don't even know if we specified "old," but they just happen to both be on the older side.
Sarah
Yeah, both of them are older. I'm really excited about that. Because that's one of my favorite things ever. I grew up watching old movie musicals like Rodgers and Hammerstein and stuff, so yay.
Jojo
Yeah, I know.
Sarah
Today I am covering "My Fair Lady," which is not Rodgers and Hammerstein. I know. It's one of my faves.
Jojo
It's one of my faves too. That's what I grew up on.
Sarah
Yes, me too. Me too. So let's see. Okay, so this movie is from 1964. It was directed by George Cukor, who also did "A Star is Born"--the original, obviously--"Gaslight," which is a good one, and "Adam's Rib." He won the Oscar for directing for this movie. And this movie won, in total, eight Oscars. So...
Jojo
Oh my gosh, so many.
Sarah
It was quite popular at the time. The costumes are co-designed, allegedly. So this is a weird thing. There are two designers credited on IMDB, but one of them... his profile is empty except for this movie. And on the credit, it says that he is uncredited originally in the movie.
Jojo
Oh!
Sarah
So like, his name is not in the credits, but it's a co-design. So I tried googling it, and I could not find any information on why that is.
Jojo
Oh, interesting.
Sarah
Yeah. So the main guy who was credited is Cecil Beaton, who was a very prolific designer, through... from the 30s to like... yeah, he had a really long career. He designed "Gigi," "Anna Karenina" in 1948, "An Ideal Husband"; he won two different Oscars for art direction and set decoration.
Jojo
Ooh.
Sarah
And then one for costume design. So he also did set decoration on this movie. So he won two Oscars for just this movie. [laughs]
Jojo
That's crazy. So much.
Sarah
And then... oh, no, I was mistaken. I'm sorry. He has two costume design Oscars and one art direction/set design. Sorry about that. And the uncredited guy is named Michael Neuwirth, and that's all I have about him, is that his name is Michael Neuwirth. [both laugh] There's a possibility, I thought, that maybe he was just... he was a tailor, or dressmaker or something, that had a big hand in the designs, but they didn't think he deserved the credit of it? But now we know his name.
Jojo
Or maybe at the time Hollywood hadn't acknowledged that yet.
Sarah
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. So this is a Lerner and Loewe musical, and it is based on George Bernard Shaw's play "Pygmalion." And it's the classic story of the Eliza, who is a poor flower seller from London, who meets this linguist/language professor named Henry Higgins. And he's really arrogant, and he brags to people about how he could make her into a lady, basically, by giving her an accent makeover, essentially, and teaching her manners.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And so she's like, "yeah, I'll take that bet." And so he basically... he gives her a makeover and turns her into a lady. Julie Andrews originated this role on Broadway. And... to great acclaim. She was wonderful in it. And then when they were casting the movie, the casting of Audrey Hepburn instead of Julie was controversial, especially because Audrey doesn't do her own singing.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
But apparently the studio just wanted a more bankable name. And Julie Andrews at the time--even though now she's one of the biggest stars--she didn't have any movie experience. I think she only had stage experience.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
So they were like, "sorry!" And then that same year, she got "Mary Poppins," and then she won both the Oscar and Golden Globe for "Mary Poppins." So she was like, "suck it, you guys.} [both laugh] So she ended up doing pretty good. I have a couple of tidbits from a little behind the scenes thing that was on my DVD. It was cute. It was like a little featurette that had been made at the time in the 60s. It was really cute.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
So Cecil, he designed the New York Broadway and the London productions of the play. So it was kind of like a given that he would design them movie as well.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
It said that they built over 1000 costumes. And I don't know if that's pieces or entire looks. Not sure.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And they dedicated an entire stage of--I think it was Warner Brothers studio--to a makeup and wardrobe staging area for extras.
Jojo
Wow.
Sarah
So it had these really interesting shots of this huge studio space that is basically just like makeup tables, and wig heads, and racks and racks of clothing. And so-- because there were so many extras in the Ascot scenes and the embassy ball.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And then... this is funny, there was one set costumer whose whole job... they called her the "glove girl," because all she did was make sure that everybody's gloves were spotless. [laughs]
Jojo
That was such an important detail in that scene, though!
Sarah
I know.
Jojo
Or, I mean, in many scenes.
Sarah
It showed her, and literally like she has just pairs of pairs of gloves draped over her shoulders and her arms. And she was just like, going around giving everybody gloves. [laughs]
Jojo
Hilarious. That would be the best and easiest job.
Sarah
I know, right?
Jojo
I mean, I don't know about easy, but like...
Sarah
She's like, "you need gloves?" Okay, I give you gloves. You need gloves? Okay."
Jojo
So funny.
Sarah
All right. So, the setting.... Oh, I have a few more little tidbits. Hopefully I don't go too long. I just found so many interesting details about this. The setting is Edwardian London, so that's 1901-1910ish. And this movie is... you can see very clearly that it was made in the 60s. So I love a period movie that was also made in what is now a period to us. So like...
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
...it's double period.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
It's so interesting to see how they interpreted the 1900s through a 1960s eye. And then just a couple of non-costume tidbits. Rex Harrison, who plays Henry Higgins, he declined to prerecord his musical numbers. Because he was like, "I do it differently every single time and I refuse to lip sync to myself." And he doesn't really sing. He's more of like a talk-singer.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
So that kind of made sense to me, that his vocal performance would change every time he performed it. And so he was like, "I'm not gonna lip sync, so figure it out."
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And so they they fitted him with a wireless microphone, which was the first time one had been used in movies.
Jojo
Interesting!
Sarah
Isn't that cool?
Jojo
That's so fascinating.
Sarah
And he did it live every time.
Jojo
That's great.
Sarah
So good for him for standing his ground.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
Oh, and then the sound department got an Oscar because of all of the good sound that they did.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And then another... the other thing I got from Wikipedia is that the hats in the movie were created by Parisian milliner Paulette. Just one name. [laughs] Like Cher.
Jojo
Yeah, exactly.
Sarah
Okay,
Jojo
That's probably why she just kept the one name.
Sarah
I'm gonna share my screen now. And let's talk costumes.
Jojo
Yay, our favorite part.
Sarah
Ahh, pictures.
Jojo
Oh, boy.
Sarah
Oh, and JoJo and I were saying that we both have a lot of photos this week. So we're gonna see.
Jojo
[laughs] I was just looking at all of yours.
Sarah
I know!
Jojo
I had the same thing. I was like, "1A, 1B, 1C..." [both laugh]
Sarah
Okay, so this is Eliza in her first look as her flower seller. And I don't have a ton to say about this. I like the color play between the burgundy scarf and sort of the greenish coat.
Jojo
Mmhmm. Very complimentary colors.
Sarah
Yeah. And I think the silhouette is good period wise, it's pretty much... Yeah, a fitted waist, kind of a full skirt. You know. I don't think at any point she is corseted in this movie, which I think if the movie was made now that people would care about that kind of thing. But I think that they just didn't really care in the 60s.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
They're like, "why would we make ourselves uncomfortable?"
Jojo
Fair, that's a fair point. [laughs]
Sarah
Okay. And then what's next here? Oh, yeah. Here's Henry, and this is the first time we meet him. And I like that he is always in browns, because everyone around him is not, and I think that they did it on purpose, but it's like he has like a uniform. And I have hardly any pictures of him, because his outfits-- he does change, but they all kind of look the same.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And I like, in this scene... this is like, out in front of the Opera House when he's telling everybody he could make her over. To the right of him are some sort of working class guys, and then to the left is Colonel Pickering in his white tie and tails.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And so he doesn't look like the rich guys or the poor guys in this scene, he just looks like himself. So I like that he's standing apart. And he's in a trilby, which... I looked up the history of trilbies. Because I was like, "were they around at this time?" Unclear. I think they were. [both laugh] Wikipedia said it was possibly invented around the turn of the century, 1900s, but reached the height of its popularity in the 60s. So that makes sense why it's in this movie.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
Yeah. So if anybody has more information than that, please tell me. Okay, this is Alfred, a.k.a. Alfie, Eliza's dad.
Jojo
I forgot about him. I mean, I didn't, but I forgot how he was dressed. [laughs]
Sarah
His songs are my least favorite. So actually, yesterday, as I was watching I got to the end and I was like, skipping through a couple songs because I've seen it so many times. I was like, "I don't need to watch this whole song."
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And his songs, I don't love. They're just like, not my fave. So he is a dustman by trade, which I learned is just a garbage collector. I didn't know that that's what that was.
Jojo
That's such an interesting title.
Sarah
Yeah! Dustman. And when I was young, when I was little... I watched this movie when I was little. And I remember being fascinated by this hat.
Jojo
Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing. [laughs]
Sarah
And I used to think that it was rubber, but it's not. I think this is some sort of felted wool, and then this part that goes over his neck and shoulders is leather.
Jojo
Oh! That makes sense, though.
Sarah
I looked it up, and according to an article on spectator.co.uk, "a dustman's hat had flaps over the neck so that a full wicker basket or dustbin could be shouldered without stuff going down his neck." So like, he could hold it on his shoulder, basically, without garbage going into his clothes. I think.
Jojo
I feel like "dustman" sounds so much more refined than "garbage collector." [both laugh]
Sarah
I kind of think it does too, actually.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
Yeah. And then I just kind of like the play of color and texture that he has, and pattern... he has a striped shirt, and then different shades of brown. I think his pants might be corduroy? I don't know. I think he looks good.
Jojo
Mmhmm. It almost even looks suede.
Sarah
Yeah, could be. Could be suede.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And it's funny to me that he wears a dustman's hat, because he says multiple times in the movie that he doesn't like to work and he intentionally stays away from working. So I'm like, "Does he still have a job?" I don't know. [both laugh]
Jojo
Somehow.
Sarah
He doesn't seem to ever go to work.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
Okay. Oh, and then later-- I cut this picture, but later he comes back and he's had a full makeover just like Eliza. Because Henry Higgins writes this American millionaire and tells him that Alfie is a great moral philosopher, and then that guy dies and leaves him a bunch of money. So he gets rich. [both laugh]
Jojo
I forgot about that, too.
Sarah
Very silly. Okay.
Jojo
So funny.
Sarah
Okay, so this is Eliza going to meet Henry at his house to say, "yes, I would like a makeover, please." And I really love both of their outfits. Eliza's is her... clearly like her fanciest clothes.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And I think probably, in all likelihood, she probably borrowed some of it.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
She has this brown velvet jacket on with frog closures. And it looks very moth-eaten, like... worn down. And then this absolutely garish hat. [both laugh] With really... like, hot pink ostrich feathers on it. Very funny. And then I love Henry's Mr. Rogers-type outfit. Is this tie knitted...?
Jojo
So Mr. Rogers. It looks like it might be. It's kind of hard to tell.
Sarah
I can't tell. Yeah, that feels like a 60s touch, if it is.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
I don't think knitted ties were a thing in Edwardian London. But he's got a cute little cardi on... looking good. Okay, so let's talk about Eliza post makeover. Here's this dress. This is her... it's kind of purple, kind of gray. I really like the scallop shape that it has in the hem and in this sort of neckline/bib thing. It looks very schoolgirl, girlish, young. And she also has a giant bow in the back of her hair too, which just makes her look even younger. So I find that very interesting, that like... I guess it's like, at this point--well, at all the points we see--these are outfits that probably Henry has picked out for her. Because I don't think that she...
Jojo
Knows how to dress yet. [laughs]
Sarah
...is in charge of what she's wearing. Yeah, maybe his housekeeper Mrs. Pierce helped him pick some stuff out. I don't know.
Jojo
Mmhmm. It also feels like a reversion to her being very young, because she is learning from scratch, almost.
Sarah
Right.
Jojo
You know, like a school girl. So I think there's an interesting play on what the costume designer is trying to say about that.
Sarah
Yeah. And she is... as a character, she is quite immature at this point in the movie. I mean, she's also being mistreated. I should say that this movie is-- he is not nice to her at all.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
For like, the first 80% of the movie. He's arrogant, and he basically-- I forgot that he basically is starving her. They're like, "Oh, he makes her work through meals. Oh my gosh." And she's like, so hungry the whole time. And that bums me out. Just give her some food! Okay.
Jojo
Please feed her.
Sarah
Oh, and I love this dress.
Jojo
Mmm, one of my favorites.
Sarah
This is the green one she wears for the "Rain in Spain" scene and in the "I Could Have Danced All Night." And this is a much less girlish look. And that makes sense because "The Rain in Spain" is the scene where she finally clicks, and the accent finally goes away, and she sounds like a lady now.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
It has these pretty flowers on the side of this belt. And then it's just like, clearly yards and yards of whatever this fabric is.
Jojo
It's beautiful.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
It's got a nice reflection too.
Sarah
Yeah. And I like the high collar on the blouse. Oh, it's just so lovely. All of it's lovely. All right. Now the main event. Ascot, here we are. [both laugh]
Jojo
Ugh, my favorite.
Sarah
I love this scene. So I have some notes. So this is... like, this scene is a very intentional mix of Edwardian fashion and 60s haute couture. So they took a lot of inspiration from like, high-high fashion in the 60s. And I looked it up, and Cecil was inspired by the "Black Ascot," which happened in 1910 after the death of Edward VII, when everybody who attended was wearing black.
Jojo
Ahh.
Sarah
Because Ascot didn't actually have a color dress code. It definitely has a dress code even now, today.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
Like, if you sit in the Royal box, you have to wear a top hat if you're a guy and you have to wear some sort of headpiece, hat, or fascinator if you're a woman. So that's interesting.
Jojo
I did not know that.
Sarah
Yeah! I have a picture of real people at Ascot. I love this picture.
Jojo
Oh, yeah. Oh, it's so pretty. I know.
Sarah
So that's... I mean, obviously, it's black and white. So we don't know what color they're wearing. But yeah, so that's some real ladies who are at Ascot in the time period. So you can kind of see what the period silhouette is meant to be.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
It was definitely a full bosom. I don't know if this is S-curve, I forgot to look up the actual silhouette of the 1910s.
Jojo
1910s... itt would have been the Gibson girl and S-curve.
Sarah
That's what I was thinking.
Jojo
Or like, just riding out of it.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
So yeah. So back to the film. Here we are. Love it. Everybody is in black, white, and gray, which makes for a very striking visual on the screen. This one-- this hat right here, on this lady, I always think looks like a mascara wand. [laughs]
Jojo
You're totally right. I think that's what I thought when I watched it the first time too.
Sarah
Yeah. [laughs] Oh, gosh.
Jojo
So funny.
Sarah
And then here's a picture of Henry talking to his mother. And then he obviously is still wearing his same sort of tweed brown suit.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And it makes-- obviously, he stands out immediately on screen because he refuses to dress in the, you know, in the dress code. And his mom's like, "couldn't you have dressed up?" and he's like, "I changed my shirt." So he doesn't care. He does not care. Here's a sketch of the scene by Cecil... I think by Cecil?
Jojo
Ugh, so beautiful.
Sarah
I know, right?
Jojo
So much detail.
Sarah
I know. It's gorgeous. And then here's Eliza, in the classic... her classic gown that we all know.
Jojo
It's so beautiful.
Sarah
So according to an auction website when this dress was auctioned off, it is constructed of a silk linen undergarment, overlaid with a fine lace which is hand embroidered in a delicate flower motif.
Jojo
Oh my goodness.
Sarah
Trimmed in black velvet striped ribbon. And the large picture hat is constructed of a lightweight cotton burlap. I think that must be the fabric covering it, because burlap is not...
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
...the structure part of hats.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
That's fabric. Trimmed in black velvet with white and black ostrich feathers as well as a small sprig of faux lavender pansies. And it sold in 2011 for $4.4 million. [laughs]
Jojo
Oh gosh. I mean, I'm not at all surprised. But that's crazy.
Sarah
If I had that much money, that's the kind of stuff I'd be buying. [both laugh] Audrey Hepburn stuff.
Jojo
You wouldn't even be wearing it, it would just go into a museum case in your house.
Sarah
It would fit me on like, one of my thighs. This would not go on my body. [both laugh]
Jojo
Oh man, what a beautiful dress though.
Sarah
I know, it's stunning. And it's... so it's not Edwardian, it's... you can see sort of the period inspiration.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
But it's very form fitting and sexy, even though she's completely covered. She's not showing any skin. It's really hugging her curves in a way that period clothing just didn't do. But that doesn't mean that it's not successful or good design because it's freakin' amazing.
Jojo
Yeah. It reminds me of a lot of modern day wedding dresses, actually.
Sarah
Oh, yeah. I mean, people are doing long sleeves right now.
Jojo
Yeah, yeah. Or even just that lace, kind of fitted with the mermaid trumpet.
Sarah
Mermaid. Yeah.
Jojo
So it definitely looks very much like that.
Sarah
Here's a sketch of it.
Jojo
So beautiful.
Sarah
Love.
Jojo
It's very charming. I like his illustrations.
Sarah
Me too. I had more and I had to get rid of them. Maybe I'll put them up on Pinterest.
Jojo
It's hard to filter.
Sarah
Here's a close up so we can see her little hat... like, the little bonnet on one side that kind of holds it on, and then the flowers and stuff. Love, love this scene.
Jojo
So beautiful.
Sarah
Okay, and so I have some bonus pictures here...
Jojo
Okay.
Sarah
...that will go up on Pinterest, or people can also just Google it. It's easy to find. But let's see. According to frockflicks.com, which was a helpful website, when Audrey Hepburn arrived at the studio for her first meeting with Cecil Beaton, she was so impressed with his costumes she insisted on trying on many of the extras' gowns, complaining that Eliza didn't get enough pretty clothes. Which is funny, because she gets a lot of pretty clothes. [laughs]
Jojo
Yeah, she does.
Sarah
And as a result, Beaton arranged with Warner to spend two days photographing her in many of the women's costumes. And these pictures ended up in the book "Cecil Beaton's Fair Lady," which was sort of like his backstage diaries and photos. So I have pictures of Audrey in these Ascot gowns.
Jojo
Ahh, I love it! Oh, my goodness.
Sarah
And they're so beautiful.
Jojo
Yeah, she just look stunning in all of them.
Sarah
I know. This one is like, vinyl or something on the bottom.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
So cool. Oh, and the sleeves too.
Jojo
Ooh, and with that backdrop.
Sarah
Gorgeous.
Jojo
Love it.
Sarah
Amazing. Oh, that's it. I only kept three. There's more.
Jojo
Still, though, I mean, just so elegant.
Sarah
Yeah. And you can see, this one-- I kept this one because I kept... let's see. This is the gown. Yup.
Jojo
I was gonna say, I remember the girl that was wearing it. Yeah.
Sarah
So I just think that's so... she's like, she's Audrey Hepburn.
Jojo
It's kinda sad 'cuz it's like, who wore it better? And like, obviously, Audrey did. [both laugh]
Sarah
I mean, yeah, you can't really compete with Audrey Hepburn, no matter who you are.
Jojo
It's true.
Sarah
She's... yeah, I'm glad these photos exist, and when I was googling-- you know, Google imaging "My Fair Lady," these were coming up and I was like, "she doesn't wear those outfits. What are those from?" So I'm glad that we now know what those are from.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
All right. Okay, here is the embassy ball outfit. Which is another classic.
Jojo
One of my favorites. So beautiful.
Sarah
Frock Flicks... I learned a lot about this scene from the Frock Flicks website. It was just like a blog.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And this person was like, "this is the kind of the scene where the 1960s of it goes a little bit off the rails." Because like, there's a lot of lurex and lamé. And sort of like, very classic 60s fabrics and colors...
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
...that don't look at all Edwardian. But I think it's kind of like, he was just having a lot of fun. And he was like, "it's a crowd scene. I can put whatever I want in it."
Jojo
Well, and this is her shining moment.
Sarah
Yeah, and she definitely stands out because she's wearing all white, and pretty much nobody else is doing that.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
This is another outfit where you can see the period inspiration, but it's just a little bit off from it. So like, she has a sheath dress that is very form fitting once again, and kind of just skims her body. And then over it is a very loose, sort of chiffon with lots of beading and all sorts of stuff, rhinestones probably.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
So you can see that it's supposed to be period, but it's just not quite the right period for this.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
And then the hair is so 60s, but it's also so beautiful. I think it works. Edwardian hair was definitely-- this is very shiny and sort of hairsprayed, and the volume goes almost vertical on her head.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
In like, a bouffant. And then, so Edwardian updos were a lot softer and more romantic, and the volume would be on the back of your head and not necessarily standing straight up.
Jojo
Right, right.
Sarah
I did look at some examples so that I could sound like I knew what I was talking about. [both laugh] And then... oh, this is her and Henry coming home. And I got this because I love this sort of...
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
...it's like a red velvet robe that she wears over it.
Jojo
So beautiful.
Sarah
Gorgeous. Oh, and then this necklace, I mean, come on. Look at that.
Jojo
It looks like it's just floating on her.
Sarah
I know, it's...
Jojo
How is that held up?
Sarah
I mean, she has a gorgeous neck and clavicle. So like, I can see why they emphasized it with a necklace like this. And I have a couple of shots of other people from the embassy, so we can talk about what I'm-- see what I'm talking about, with the colors and the 60s-ness. This is... I think she's the... is she the Queen of Transylvania? I can't remember. She's from Transylvania. [laughs] But her dress is basically like, tiered fringe, which is like... okay, that's a choice.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
And then I have a shot of a lady in the crowd. Like, look at this fabric. It's so 60s.
Jojo
Definitely.
Sarah
And then this lady to her right in the background is wearing a full lamé robe. So...
Jojo
Yep. Definitely not 1910s fabric.
Sarah
No, not at all. [both laugh] And then lastly... I have two more outfits. I mostly focused on Eliza just because she wears the best clothes.
Jojo
Because her stuff is stunning.
Sarah
Yeah. This is arguably her most period accurate outfit, according to Frock Flicks, and I would agree.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
Because there are a lot of examples of illustrations--fashion plates--of the time that have jackets like this. It's the peach outfit that she wears to try to run away.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
Oh, she does run away. She runs to Professor Higgins's mom's house, but it's this cute little jacket that has these points.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
And then it's like a walking skirt. It's really cute. This is her with Freddie.
Jojo
Ahh, Freddie. [laughs]
Sarah
I know, poor Freddie. [laughs] He's very handsome. Very dashing.
Jojo
Mmhmm.
Sarah
Do I have anything else to say about it? I kind of stopped taking notes at some point. Yeah, I don't have any notes on it.
Jojo
[laughs] I kinda did the same thing. Like, "alright, I think I'm done now."
Sarah
And then last is her pink outfit. And I also made sure to include Henry's mom in the shot because I love this outfit on Henry's mom.
Jojo
Yes, I love that too, it looks so good. Those are two of my favorite colors too.
Sarah
Yes.
Jojo
It's like that really muted teal. But then also the really pale kind of lavender-gray. I think it's a beautiful combination together.
Sarah
Uh huh. And just like a bright yellow huge necklace.
Jojo
Yep.
Sarah
And this over-- this is like a cocoon coat, almost, it's very drapey. I love.
Jojo
It's almost 1920s.
Sarah
Yeah, and she is-- well, that doesn't make any sense. [laughs] I was like, "she's older, so--" no, that's still doesn't... 'cuz 20s would still be the future.
Jojo
Right.
Sarah
Yeah, I don't know.
Jojo
She's a very fashion forward older person. [both laugh]
Sarah
Yes. I don't know what that inspiration was.
Jojo
Well before her time, I guess.
Sarah
Yeah, she's ahead of the curve. She knows what's up. And then this is Eliza's pink dress. Very cute. Very pretty. And then I have a picture of a promo shot of her in it.
Jojo
Oh, so beautiful.
Sarah
I know. I love how romantic this one is.
Jojo
Mmhmm. You're right. They really do emphasize her neck and her decolletage quite a bit. I mean, with all of her outfits.
Sarah
Yeah, I mean, as we discussed in the "Roman Holiday" episode, she was a dancer so she has this very elegant way of carrying herself and it definitely-- she has a very long, elegant neck.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
So... I mean, yeah.
Jojo
So beautiful.
Sarah
I think this must be silk organza.
Jojo
Yeah, looks like it.
Sarah
Because of the way that it... organza has a lovely bounciness to it when you gather it and stuff.
Jojo
A flounce.
Sarah
Yeah. Oh my gosh. 3, 2, 1... timer goes off! [short alarm sound] Dang! Great job, me. Okay. That's it.
Jojo
Right on time, Sarah!
Sarah
That's "My Fair Lady."
Both
Yay!
Jojo
That's not even covering half of the beautiful costumes in there. It's so crazy how much we have to filter.
Sarah
I know. Well, I mean, I think back to like, our first episode when I did "Moulin Rouge" and I was like, "okay," like, I think I picked five costumes to talk about or something. It's just like, I don't have that kind of self control anymore.
Jojo
[laughs] It's too hard. Yeah, I'm not gonna lie cut out entire scenes for "Singin' in the Rain." Cuz I was like, these are beautiful costumes, but I can't talk about them.
Sarah
Yeah, if this was an exhaustive coverage, we would do one episode per movie, but we like it to be light and conversational.
Jojo
Yeah. Definitely. All right. Well, thanks, Sarah. That was fun.
Sarah
You're welcome.
Jojo
It's nice to go back in time to a movie I haven't seen in a while.
Sarah
Oh, and they just added that to Netflix. So...
Jojo
Yes, I did see that.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
Exciting.
Sarah
I love it when they add my favorites.
Jojo
Okay. So I'm going to be covering "Singin' in the Rain." It was premiered in 1952. So a little earlier than "My Fair Lady." And it was actually co directed--so this was two directors now, instead of two costume designers--by Stanley Donen, who also did quite a lot of work with... ironically with Audrey Hepburn.
Sarah
Oh!
Jojo
He did "Charade," "Funny Face," which are two of her bigger known films. And he also did "Two for the Road," "Damn Yankees," and also "The Pajama Game." So he's done some other big musical movies. So I think that definitely helped him in this case.
Sarah
I love "The Pajama Game."
Jojo
And then Gene Kelly was actually the other director, who I didn't really write any things down, because we know him mostly as a dancer, singer, actor.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
And it was actually interesting, because there were a couple... I went kind of down a deep rabbit hole through some of the other actors and their comments on like, working with Gene Kelly.
Sarah
Ooh.
Jojo
And I think one of the other-- the guy who played Cosmo, I did not write down his name for some silly reason. But he ended up actually mentioning that it was really hard to work under Gene Kelly as a director, because he was kind of a tyrant on set. [laughs] I was like, "I can kind of see that."
Sarah
I've heard that. Yeah.
Jojo
You know, he's got such a big personality already, even as an actor, so I'm sure as a directing role, I'm sure it would have been 10 times more. So...
Sarah
Yeah, I also think-- I mean, I know that there are a lot of famous people who are jerks nowadays, too. But I do think that back then, it was even more common and accepted for them to just be... because they're artistic geniuses, you know, so they can behave however they want, and people let them get away with it.
Jojo
Yeah, so I thought that was interesting. So I didn't really have too many of his credits down just because... we'll be talking about his role in the movie as an actor, because he also acted in this movie. So.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
The costume designer, of course, for this was Walter Plunkett, who most of his work-- well, he was alive from 1902-1982. But his work has also been very well renowned... whatever the right pronunciation of that word is.
Sarah
Renowned, you got it.
Jojo
He also did "An American in Paris," which was the other movie I was going to cover, but did not. He did "Stagecoach," "Forbidden Planet," "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," which was also done...
Sarah
Oh my god, I love that movie.
Jojo
I actually haven't seen it before. But I've kept hearing about it.
Sarah
It's wild. [laughs]
Jojo
I think he also did that with either Gene Kelly or Stanley. I can't remember which one. I think Stanley Donen also directed for that one. He also did "Kiss Me, Kate," the original. And then he also was well known for "Gone with the Wind."
Sarah
Oh, yeah.
Jojo
So his costumes are really incredible. So interestingly enough, just some fun facts about his background as a costume designer, he actually launched RKO Wardrobe Department, which I guess was... I didn't do enough research on what RKO actually was. But I'm assuming it was very similar to kind of like a Western, where it kind of was a costume department as well as a place where they could tailor and build.
Sarah
Maybe... I thought RKO was a studio.
Jojo
Might have been a studio. I don't know, that was my fault for not researching that more. But that was formed in 1927. And his aunt was actually the head cutter/fitter at that time.
Sarah
Oh, yeah, it was a studio.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
So he probably just founded their... in addition to having a studio, they now have a costume house.
Jojo
Yeah. Which I think is so cool.
Sarah
It is cool.
Jojo
But interestingly enough, in relation to this movie, in particular, the costumes were actually a redesign of looks that he had come up with 25 years prior to this movie. So it would have been around like the 1930s, around the time that he had just recently launched RKO.
Sarah
Wow.
Jojo
So the movie itself is actually set in the 1920s. So you'll see a lot of the 1920s silhouette. But one of the things that I thought was so interesting is that the fashion in this movie--just because of Walter Plunkett and what he designed--actually became kind of the Hollywood extreme of what was worn at that time, and kind of what we today associate with the 1920s.
Sarah
Right.
Jojo
It's that very glitz-and-glam, and kind of over-the-top, over exaggerated, over decorated surfaces. But that was something that I think Walter Plunkett had a lot of influence on at this time, because of what he designed in American-- I mean, sorry, in "Singin' in the Rain." And also a lot of these looks have become so iconic because of our association with "Singin' in the Rain." So I just thought that was really cool.
Sarah
Absolutely.
Jojo
Where you do start seeing a little bit of a period--where we were talking about like, a double period--in this movie, which I thought was so funny that you also mentioned that. You definitely see much more 1950s hairstyles, I think, in this movie.
Sarah
Mmm.
Jojo
So even though they're wearing 1920s, I think that was where I was a little confused at first. Because I was like, "Oh, this is totally set in the 1950s." And then I was like, "wait, no, it's not." [both laugh] So yeah, I just-- a lot of the pictures I don't have a ton of notes on, but I did want to just kind of look at just the beauty of what he designed, and sort of the sensitivities that he had to all the different body types too. And I think he did that really well. And I kind of went in order, but also did a little bit by character, so just depending.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
Okay, so I'll start off with the opening scene, and kind of to give you a little bit of a summary... I mean, there's a lot happening in this movie. So it's kind of all over the place. But the main premise of the story is that Don Lockwood is basically this kind of down and out actor who ends up making it big somehow. He starts off as a stuntman and then ends up in the movies. So he's become this big name for silent films. So because we're in the 1920s, this is sort of the era of we're still exiting the silent films, and we're just entering the first what they call "talkies," where their far... where they're first... Wow, I almost said "farting." [both laugh] Where they're first finally starting to introduce talking on the camera, and recording, and this is where sound is starting to come in. They're actually building music in. And so you know, it's that transition of Hollywood trying to figure out how to move from silent films, where you don't need to worry so much about your talking and singing ability, versus actually being able to sing and dance and do all of those other things. And of course, he ends up meeting this big movie star celebrity, Lina Lamont, who's played by Jean Hagen, and she's this horribly stuck up celebrity actress who has a horrible, horrible nasal voice. And has been his sort of love interest on screen for all this time, but is not actually his love interest in real life. But she's got this idea in her head that they're secretly fiances, even though he's openly told her multiple times that he does not have any kind of relationship like that with her. [both laugh]
Sarah
Oh boy.
Jojo
So it starts off with them entering on the red carpet, introducing one of their newest silent films. And so they're about to go watch their premiere. And of course, it kind of shows all these different scenes of different celebrities showing up to see the premiere. And then of course, Don Lockwood goes into his flashback of how he started. And then the premise of the movie follows actually his sort of boy-meets-girl story, where he ends up meeting this small dancer who ends up being one of the first to kind of criticize his acting career sort of in a very blunt but playful way. So he ends up obviously falling in love with her, and they start a relationship, and she ends up having this beautiful voice. So of course when they move to talkies-- speaking of people who sing for other actors, like an Audrey situation, this became one of those situations where she ends up being the voice--and the singing voice--of Lina Lamont, because they can't stand to hear her voice on the screen.
Sarah
Right.
Jojo
So, of course, the first scene that I-- or the first couple of looks that I wanted to focus on was actually the red carpet. Again, totally random celebrities that don't really appear later. But I just thought their outfits were incredible. We have Rita Moreno who actually played the original "West Side Story"'s Anita, she played Zelda Zanders.
Sarah
Ahh.
Jojo
Again, not important, you don't really need to know that name. But I just love this dress. And she's actually got-- it's a jacket with a giant silver bow on it with all these layers of like, ruffled fur/feathers? And then this is the front of her dress.
Sarah
Oh my gosh.
Jojo
So like, it's just so over the top. And again, another reason why this movie talked a lot about how most of these costumes are not what they were wearing on a daily basis in the 20s. It was the extreme Hollywood over the top version.
Sarah
Right. Yeah.
Jojo
So yes, I just thought that was beautiful.
Sarah
It's beautiful.
Jojo
And then we have our Olga Mara. Again, she's not an important character to the script, but played by Judy Langdon... Sorry, Landon. And I just love this kind of spider web motif that she's got going on here in the middle.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
And she actually comes out covered and then she just like, opens this cape, and then you just see the beautiful dress underneath. And I love that there's this green lining in there. Because I think there was... because of Technicolor being so big in the 1950s, I thought that's where you can see a lot of the small details that I think Walter Plunkett threw in, even though it's the 1920s. This was Don and Lina's first appearance, and they're in all white. So it really makes them stand out when they approach the red carpet.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
And then just to get a little closer image of Lina's dress, just, you know... again, it's all those stereotype tropes of the 1920s. We've got the fringe. We've got the kind of shapeless sort of square rectangular body. Even, like... it's kind of weird to me because it's not quite a straight band, but they would wear in the 1920s. It's like, mixed in on the side with...
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
...with a very 1950s curl.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So yeah, I just thought that was interesting. But I thought this was a good kind of combination of how he was able to really match the period. And still give it beauty, I guess. I think he mentioned-- there was a quote that I wrote from him, was that "Singin' in the Rain"--even though he had just done "Gone with the Wind," which is a humongous feat--he said, "'Singin' in the Rain' was the most work I've ever done." Because he had to design-- and again, this is something that we talk a lot about with theatre, whenever you're having to design for musicals, you have to think more about not just the wearability and how beautiful it looks. But also, can they dance in it? Can they move in it? Can they do all their stretches, and splits and all those other things. And so him trying to design for a lot of these rigorous dance numbers, which was a huge part of this film, in addition to a whole scene that was just done in the rain.
Sarah
Oh my gosh, yeah.
Jojo
He was like-- that was a huge feat. And then I also wrote down that he had almost 500 costumes total for this movie, which... 500 seems like still so little, based on all of the costumes that I saw in this movie. I was like, "I still feel like there's more." But you know, who knows?
Sarah
[laughs]
Jojo
Anyways, so that's the red carpet. Then I wanted to do a quick shot of the outfits for Roscoe Dexter, who is the director that kind of first makes Don big. He ends up taking the place of an old stuntman who basically passes out during a stunt. And so he offers to step in as the new stuntman and basically ends up being abused. And, you know, the new director loves him for everything that he does, because he's just willing to do whatever it takes.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So I just wanted to focus in on this look, because I just... I don't really have notes. I just love it. I think it's, you know, it showcases-- I mean, obviously a very over exaggerated 1920s news cap. But even the jodhpurs that were kind of on the tail end of the early 1900s and into the 1920s. I think of ...what's the movie? The movie's called "W.E.," but it focuses on one of the Dukes of Windsor, I think.
Sarah
Uh huh.
Jojo
And this was such a big look for him in that time... era. So I just thought it was a kind of nice-- I don't know if that was intentional or not. But yeah, it's just so ridiculous that this is what the director at this time would wear. And a lot of his looks are very similar to this with the kind of jodhpur pant. And then the longer blazer,
Sarah
It is funny when like, equestrian wear becomes fashion. Yeah, I don't exactly know when that was either. But I do know that it was definitely a thing.
Jojo
Yeah. And it's kind of this combination between what they call plus-fours, which was almost like...
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
...a longer version of this, where the drop would have been closer to the mid calf.
Sarah
Sure, yeah.
Jojo
And you do see that in some of the later looks. But I just thought this was an interesting characterization to set apart the director, because he's in a lot of this particular silhouette. So again, I just I think this was a really good way to kind of meet the period. I think one thing they mentioned was that he really had to design for a period that a lot of audience members remembered because they had lived through it.
Sarah
Mmm, right.
Jojo
And so he was saying that was one of the hardest things, is that he had to try and make it look realistic but also still be heightened and beautiful enough to kind of match the pace of of a musical. Okay, so first appearance of Lina. This is his flashback still, where he first meets Lina. And I just-- I don't know, again, I don't have a lot of notes on a lot of these looks. I just think this look is so great. It's like this beautiful kind of lavender, bubblegum pink. But then she's got this lace thing on top. And it's also got an Elizabethan sort of stand up collar.
Sarah
Uh huh.
Jojo
And it was interesting because they were talking about the lounge chair that she's on. And this was because at this time, they didn't necessarily have access to steamers and irons. So this was their way of preserving the costume from getting super wrinkled on set. And I was like, "that's genius!"
Sarah
I think they call them leaning boards.
Jojo
Oh yeah, Yeah, probably.
Sarah
I think. And those those kinds of things are still used in, like... if you're really heavily corseted, and in something that's not easy to sit in. Yeah.
Jojo
Yeah, that's so fascinating to me. I just thought it was funny that they showcased this and she's just sitting there.
Sarah
Yeah. Looks comfy.
Jojo
And of course she doesn't want to have anything to do with Don when he first approaches her, because he's still a stuntman. But then once he meets one of the producers of the movie, and they realize that he's got a lot of potential and got a lot of talent. So they reach out to him and basically try to offer him a bigger part. And then all of a sudden, she starts changing her tune and starts trying to like, suck up to him.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
Which, you know, that says a lot about her personality throughout this entire movie.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
Okay, so then, his first meeting with Kathy Selden, who's played by Debbie Reynolds. And she's our leading lady, of course. I couldn't get really a full shot of this. But I thought this was, again, a very good combination of kind of the 1950s as well as the 1920s. Because I think the suit itself looks much more 1920s to me. I think the hat is still kind of like a weird combination of... almost like it was trying to be a cloche, but it's a little bit more 1950s styling.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So I just thought that was interesting. She's very cute. And again, I love that they kind of put her in this mousy brown when he first meets her, because she seems like a very shy, kind of naive... doesn't really speak up at first. And he ends up jumping into her car 'cuz he gets approached by all these fans. And so that's why his tux is all ripped, because they're all trying to grab on him.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
So he ends up jumping into her car seat while she's driving. So of course, she's terrified. But again, this kind of contrast between the two of them, like how... even though he's got a ripped suit on, how nicely dressed and elegant he is. And then kind of her being in this very plain, and sort of plain Jane, color.
Sarah
Yeah. Dirty dishwater kind of color.
Jojo
Exactly. And then that, of course, contrasts to when she appears at the party that he's at later, where she is one of a group of dancers. And this is right after she's kind of insulted him about acting and how she thinks that, you know, he doesn't really need to do much work. Like, an actual actor has proper lines and has to learn how to dance and do all these other things. And then she lies about basically her having only seen one of his movies, because she realizes he's trying to hit on her.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So she very bluntly kind of kicks him out of her car. But then she reappears at the party that he's at later, showing up in this beautiful little bubblegum pink kind of romper/jumpsuit. And I just wanted to show this drawing that Walter Plunkett made of her.
Sarah
That's great.
Jojo
And it's interesting because they carried these baskets on the side, but it almost looks like it's part of the costume.
Sarah
That's what I was thinking.
Jojo
But she actually keeps grabbing stuff out of it and throwing stuff. So here's the picture of the actual thing. But like, look, it almost looks like it's connected to her pants/skirt.
Sarah
It is. Yeah.
Jojo
But then there's an actual basket portion of it. That looks like she's throwing stuff out of it as she's walking around.
Sarah
It looks like it's almost like a an exaggerated pocket. That looks like a basket.
Jojo
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Sarah
That's so cool.
Jojo
But it also has like a strap across the front. So it's like, also a purse?
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
I don't know. It's a very-- I just thought it was really creative. And like, all the girls have this. So I just thought it was interesting that he almost combined... like, it's almost like a swimming suit kind of look with this basket. Functional basket.
Sarah
That's awesome.
Jojo
So yes, anyways, I just thought it was beautiful. I don't know. No other notes. [laughs]
Sarah
It is.
Jojo
And then this is just like a group shot of all of them.
Sarah
Oh, yeah, it's totally part of it. Because the strap is like... it looks like it's just made of bias tape or something attached to the...
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
That's so cool!
Jojo
And it's like, built into the actual costume. So I just thought that was really cool.
Sarah
That's adorable.
Jojo
They also have this weird muff on one arm that they eventually throw off into the audience. But I just thought that was a cute little feature as well. So then these are the plus-fours that I was talking about earlier, that kind of over exaggerated... Like, it's a very young collegiate look, I think, from the time. And he wears a lot of this, where it's like the kind of matching two piece suit with the matching news cap. And then he's always got some sort of a really nice sweater vest underneath. Which, you know, again, he's a very important actor at this point. He's risen up in the ranks. And so like, I just love that that's the way he still chooses to dress. It's not like, over the top or stuffy, it's him being comfortable for this time period. I also just thought this was interesting, and I wanted to include this random costume here because like... I mean, this is one of the extra things that Walter Plunkett probably had to think about. But again, yet another costume that is just so far fetched and out there.
Sarah
Yeah, that's funny.
Jojo
Okay, and then I wanted to really quickly touch on his friend Cosmo Brown. His father was actually a vaudeville actor. And so he kind of grew up in that vaudeville tradition, and a lot of his numbers are very much sort of the second-tier funnyman. He's kind of the comic relief. And you can definitely see that reflected in the outfit. I love that they-- in this particular scene, he's dressed in such plain and kind of drab colors. And it's in such contrast to what he does in his scene, because he does a whole dance where he's like, down on his knees, and he's sliding across the floor. And like, tripping all over himself. It's very-- he has a lot of Fosse movements, but it's not quite Fosse. It's also him-- just a lot of kind of slapstick humor, where he's just sort of tripping over himself. Even the way that he kind of bends the hat brim, just sort of tells us a lot about his character.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
And then I also love that he's almost got-- it's not quite a Members Only jacket...
Sarah
[laughs] Yeah.
Jojo
...which is very 1950s. But like, I think I was also thrown off because it's a little too long for the 1920s. But you can see where the influence of the Members Only jacket comes in from the 1950s.
Sarah
Were Members Only jackets from the 50s?
Jojo
I think they were more worn in the 50s.
Sarah
I didn't know that.
Jojo
At least that's when I kind of was seeing a lot of them. I mean, they probably existed a little bit before that, but I think that was when they were kind of at the height of when they were worn.
Sarah
I associate them with like, the 80s.
Jojo
Oh, yeah, they definitely came back in the 80s, too. But you see a lot of them...
Sarah
I do think the 80s... yeah, the 80s and the 50s have a lot in common.
Jojo
Mmhmm. Yeah. I mean, they say you recycle everything about every 30 years. So it makes sense.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
That tracks. Okay...
Sarah
Let's see. I just googled it. The brand Members Only was created in 1975.
Jojo
Oh, really?
Sarah
But I feel like it definitely was echoing a...
Jojo
Maybe that shape.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
Maybe I'm thinking of that shape. Yeah.
Sarah
Yeah, style of jacket. That was common in the 50s. For sure. Okay, now we know. Interesting.
Jojo
Thanks, Sarah. Always learning new things, even on our own podcast. [laughs]
Sarah
Exactly. That's, I mean... why else are we here?
Jojo
That's true.
Sarah
You know, to have fun and to learn. [both laugh]
Jojo
So just a couple other shots. I mean, you can see he's on the floor quite a bit. And ...
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
...this is just one of.. I think this... I also pulled this just because Walter Plunkett talks so much about how rigorous it was to create costumes that needed to hold up to all the wear and tear. And I thought this was a perfect example of that, because he really does slide across the floor on these pants and like, does all kinds of stuff. And I'm like, man, I don't know what those pants are made out of. But they made it, they survived somehow. [laughs]
Sarah
It's always our worst nightmare when someone's like, "so he has to crawl across the floor. And then he has to slide on his knees." We're like, "Oh, crap!" [laughs]
Jojo
Yeah. Or he's like, walking over some really untouched surface-- like, wood surface, where there's just gonna be things ripping it up.
Sarah
Oh, god.
Jojo
That's always the worst. So then, there... I wanted to try and grab a group shot of this. And you know, this is probably about a month or so later. So after the whole moment where he sees... sorry, where Don sees Kathy dancing in the bubblegum outfit, he loses contact with her for three weeks. And then he finds out that Lina actually has banned this girl from the studio, because she does not like the competition, has realized that Don has kind of a thing for her. And so has become very jealous and basically has a little too much power in the studio, in other words. Somehow she ends up coming back to the studio by word of someone else. And so the producer ends up seeing her as one of the dancers. And you can see her right here, second to the right. And she becomes part of this big number where they end up... Oh, it becomes a "fashion montage," is what I wrote, called "Beautiful Girls."
Sarah
Ahhh.
Jojo
And so the main singer at the front is basically talking about all these beautiful women in his life. And then of course, there's a whole little moment where there's these individual shots of these women in different fashionable trends of the time. So I wanted to pull this just to sort of showcase some of the different fashions that Walter Plunkett designed for this, which I just love. Again, it shows kind of the height of extreme in the 1920s. But I just love how beautiful they've he's made all of these dresses, look at how flattering it still is on all of these actresses. I particularly like this dress in the back.
Sarah
Ooh!
Jojo
'Cuz it's just like, it's so shiny, but also it just flows really well on her and it just sits really nice on her. And then he also had a couple wedding dress options. I think there's also one that appears later in another montage... ensemble montage.
Sarah
Cute.
Jojo
So yes, so it just kind of shows you, again, the vast number of costumes that he had to make for this this movie, but also just the variety of different styles in the 1920s, of what was considered Hollywood trends. Then this is when Don finally sees Kathy again. He sees her as one of the dancers, and of course he tries to sneak in and basically say, "we need to keep hiring her." And this is their little special moment where he ends up kind of reuniting with her and apologizing to her. So I just thought this was a really beautiful scene, he actually brings her into the studio and turns on the lights and the fog machine and creates this beautiful backdrop. And then they have this really lovely kind of duet dance together. So I wanted to focus on a couple of these scenes, because, to me, this was also a perfect way to describe the relationship between sound and costumes.
Sarah
[laughs]
Jojo
And again, because this is the first time they're doing a talkie, they suddenly have to incorporate, you know, the microphone into the scene, because they need to be able to hear her speak and catch the audio.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
And of course, Lina being the stubborn person she is does not understand what that means. And so this is the director being super frustrated with her, trying to tell her where the mic is. And it's not working because she keeps swinging her head back and forth while she's talking to the microphone, and not talking into the microphone. And I wanted to pull this, and the next shot as well, because you just see a quick shot of the costumer literally running to set attaching-- like, literally sewing on set this gigantic flower to hide the gigantic microphone that they now have to hide in her dress. And it starts off at her heart because they want to put it, obviously, in a place where she'll talk into, but then they realize they keep hearing her heartbeat. So then they have to move it to her shoulder. [both laugh]
Sarah
Oh my gosh.
Jojo
And you just see the same costumer run back and reattach the big flower piece onto the side of the shoulder so that they can hide. And you can see the giant microphone here...
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
...that the director has pulled out. I just thought that was a hilarious moment. And I wanted to capture that because that is...
Sarah
It's a very funny scene.
Jojo
...very apropos of sometimes how I feel when we're dealing with microphones and costumes. Even in a theatre show.
Sarah
The struggle of the mic pack... they are the bane of my existence. I'm just like, "Ugh!"
Jojo
It's so true. Like, where to put it? Where is it not going to show up? Where is it not going to have a giant square on the outside of the costume? [laughs]
Sarah
"Oh, I roll on my back in this scene."
Jojo
Yeah, exactly.
Sarah
"I have to strap it to my thigh," oh my god.
Jojo
Right. Or is it like, under the arm so that it doesn't hit anywhere else?
Sarah
Oh my god.
Jojo
Yeah, but anyways, I just thought this was such a good moment for them to capture because it really is something that still haunts us today. [both laugh]
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So then there's a little moment where... after their first premiere to the public of their first talkie goes horribly wrong. So they come up with this idea for him to pitch a musical for the talkie, instead of trying to do a straight talking show. Then of course, there's the iconic scene, which is what this movie is called: "Singin' in the Rain."
Sarah
[laughs] Yes.
Jojo
And this is that moment where Walter Plunkett talked a lot about how much he had to make this costume for movement, as well as holding up to the rain. Because...
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
...literally, Gene Kelly just sings this entire song just in pouring rain, and he gets soaking wet.
Sarah
Yep.
Jojo
But again, I wanted to focus on the fact that again, it's a Norfolk jacket, which is very of the time period, obviously. They kind of paired it with a very 1950s hat. And again, I feel like everything from the head up was very 1950s.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
And everything from kind of the neck down was very 1920s. But I think it works pretty well. And with this suit, I think he looks very snazzy either way.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
For a modern eye who's just blending all the periods together nowadays, I think this was a really successful way to kind of tie all of that in and still make him look, you know, dashing and charming.
Sarah
Right. Iconic.
Jojo
Just another pretty dress, I don't really have any notes on this, I do love the way that this is cut, that is a very 1920s cut, and even just the pleated skirt. Obviously a much brighter and much more vibrant pattern for that time period. But I do also really love this green. It's like a-- it's a beautiful emerald green that I think was very associated with this time... or I should say, we now associate with this time.
Sarah
Right.
Jojo
And that's where she's also starting to sing for Lina. So they're doing kind of their first recording of her singing in the background. So again, I tried to pull a big group shot of this. And he's envisioning this humongous musical number... modern portion of the movie, because now that he's pitched this idea and the producer likes it, he's kind of edging himself into that role of, "I can also be a producer." And so he's starting to think a little bit more like, "well, this is what I'm envisioning. This is what I'm seeing." And so this is all kind of in his head, and it's just these vibrant colors, vibrant patterns. Like, you can see how much more saturated the colors are here, and I think this has a lot to do with the Technicolor of the 1950s, while still kind of being the 1920s silhouette. So I just wanted to pull this because I liked this idea of how much there's already so much color in the movie. And then he kind of just like... Walter Plunkett just brought it to a whole new level and just pumped up all the colors. So I thought that was very successful.
Sarah
So vibrant.
Jojo
So vibrant, and probably so much work. Like, this only shows a corner of the room. I tried to get a bigger picture and there just wasn't a good, clear enough shot that could get everybody. And you can see how much fringe he used, which again, has become the very stereotype-1920s that we're used to seeing. You know, that kind of headband that a lot of them are wearing.
Sarah
Uh huh.
Jojo
This is almost like-- it's like a combination of 1920s and 1950s. This definitely looks more 1950s and not quite the finger wave...
Sarah
The hair. Yeah.
Jojo
...of the 1920s. But yeah, so I-- again, I just thought that was a really interesting juxtaposition that I still think works really well for this kind of this movie in particular.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
And then just to focus in, there's a scene where he finally meets this beautiful woman who... I don't even remember the name of this actress. I should. I looked it up briefly and then forgot to write it down. So that was my fault.
Sarah
Cyd Charisse, right?
Jojo
Yes, I believe so.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
But yeah, so she was actually a well known dancer, I believe, at the time.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
And so she was featured in this, and in his other montage where it's just him and this girl. And I didn't even pull that scene, because it's so iconic that you can easily find it online.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
But yeah, so I didn't have much to say about this. I just I really love the dress. I just thought it was very apropos of the 1920s as well, again, kind of indicating that sort of flapper-like fringe that we're used to, but almost like a wider fringe this time.
Sarah
Yeah, like a carwash.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
That's what I think of, is carwash skirt.
Jojo
So funny. It is a carwash skirt. And then again, the color I just really liked. I thought that was a nice juxtaposition, the all the colors that he has in this scene, even against the backdrop. Again, it's just sort of one of those things where it shows how important it is to talk to your production designer, or your art director, about what's being seen on stage.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So I just thought this was really successful. And then just some quick, quick, quick things about his ensemble numbers, I just wanted to kind of zip through them really quickly. This is when he's-- I believe this is when he's singing "Gotta Dance." And again, it's still part of his kind of mental vision, and not necessarily what's happening in real life. But these are all the big numbers that he's envisioning. And this was sort of a Ziegfield Follies throwback.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
And then there's a big number at the very end, which is when he sees the girl from the end, the girl in the green. But she's in her white dress at this point. So you see her in the distance with everyone else in color. And I just wanted to show this scene to just show the sheer mass of people that he had a costume. But also just how much he was able to pay attention to all the details of what everyone looked like, and the color palette, and how tight it was, again, in relation to the art direction. And then the final look, this is Lina at the very end. So once they've had Kathy singing for her, then of course the film becomes much more successful, it's much more well received by the audience. And they finally, you know, they're in the process of trying to... like, she's basically blackmailing the studio saying that, "if you reveal that it's not my voice, then I will come and sue the company."
Sarah
Right.
Jojo
And so they end up finally letting her make her speech so that the audience can see and hear her voice for what it really is. And then they come up with this whole ruse/plan to have Kathy singing in the background, and they open the curtain and obviously the audience sees Kathy singing instead of her.
Sarah
Right.
Jojo
But I do want to say, I love this dress at the very end. It's not really 1920s at all.
Sarah
No.
Jojo
It's probably one of the ones that strayed the most from the silhouette of the time period. But I love the overuse of ostrich feathers and just... I'm trying to see if I have a... yes, there's the closeup of her dress. So it's just this beautiful kind of curtain fringe. And then even just her head piece, like... it just looks kind of ridiculous but also so beautiful at the same time. [laughs]
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
So yes, I just love that even though she stands out in the room, this is sort of her most ridiculous moment. And she of course runs off stage when they hear her real voice. So anyways, all of that to be said, that is my final look for "Singin' in the Rain." I skipped so many really beautiful costumes that I wish I could've covered.
Sarah
I mean... like I said, this is... we have to skip a lot. Like, we can't cover all of them, it's virtually impossible.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
So, you did great. You picked the good ones, you picked the hits.
Jojo
Thanks! Yeah, so I thought those were some fun ones that we talked about. You can see how much, like... Walter Plunkett's range of just the sheer amount of costumes, and also the variety of types of costumes, as well as the color palette, that he had to work with. Like, he really knew how to kind of fit it in with which scene, and which part of the movie, which I thought was really successful.
Sarah
Totally.
Jojo
And again, doing something this big, where it's such a huge undertaking, you know... I mean, he mentioned 500 costumes, but we look at that today and I'm like, "that doesn't seem like enough for the amount of costumes that was in this movie."
Sarah
Maybe they made 500. And then the rest were pulled, rented?
Jojo
Yeah, that's what I was wondering as well. Just because, you know, the extra scenes alone for the ensemble numbers at the end. It's just a sheer amount of people.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
There's-- I know there's at least more than 500 people in that room.
Sarah
Totally.
Jojo
It's crazy. But yeah, so...
Sarah
So much work.
Jojo
SO much work. And like, you know, his studio was doing a lot of it, I think. So... Pretty amazing. But yes, that's my coverage of "Singin' in the Rain." Hopefully you enjoyed it.
Sarah
Great job.
Jojo
Thanks! This was a fun episode to watch.
Sarah
Yes.
Jojo
Or, to cover.
Sarah
I love... I need to watch "Singin' in the Rain" again. I live to watch an old movie musical. I just love them.
Jojo
Yeah.
Sarah
The classics.
Jojo
That one is not available for free anywhere. But I mean, it's easy to rent on...
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
...I think I ended up just renting it on Amazon Prime.
Sarah
Nice.
Jojo
So yeah!
Sarah
Awesome.
Jojo
Well, thanks so much for joining us, guys. We do have quite a few guest episodes this month. So I'm really excited for all the people we're going to be bringing in.
Sarah
Yeah, we got some cool interviews coming up.
Jojo
Yeah, super excited. And we actually have been approached by several of these people this month.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
So it's great. Thanks so much for those of you who have been spreading the word. And for those of you who have been listening. It's definitely gotten our feet off the ground. And like I said, we're so excited to bring in all these guests artists. There's going to be a lot this month.
Sarah
Yeah.
Jojo
But we're excited to share with you guys what they have to say to you about, you know, just covering different movies that they're covering, and just talking about what they do as well.
Sarah
Yeah, we're going to end up having three episodes this month, one of them will be a little bonus. So it might be shorter than the others. But we haven't-- we haven't recorded them yet. So we don't know. [both laugh]
Jojo
But they're coming!
Sarah
Yeah. And both of them are sort of like... we were like, "well, we want to get this done now." So it's gonna end up just being a bonus, which is good. We need more bonus content. So...
Jojo
Yeah, for sure.
Sarah
...that'll be exciting.
Jojo
Yeah. And that way you guys can hear from other people besides us, too.
Sarah
Yeah. [laughs] It's always good to hear... that's part of our goal, is to give voices to people in the industry.
Jojo
Yeah. Definitely.
Sarah
So I'm excited that they've started coming to us.
Jojo
Yeah!
Sarah
Like, that's really exciting.
Jojo
It is really exciting. Cool! Well, thanks so much, everyone. Again, please rate and review us.
Sarah
Yes.
Jojo
And if you do have any comments or questions, or even concerns about things we're saying, we do ask that you guys, you know, talk to us on Instagram. Like, we're really good about responding.
Sarah
Mmhmm.
Jojo
And we love to be able to have direct communication with you guys. So yeah, we'd love to hear from you. Thanks so much for those of you who have been rating and reviewing us, and leaving us comments.
Sarah
Yes, we appreciate it so much.
Jojo
We do. All right!
Sarah
Okay.
Jojo
Well, we'll see you on our next episode.
Sarah
See ya then.
Jojo
Looking forward to our guest artists.
Sarah
Yeah, look forward to that.
Jojo
All right. Bye!
Sarah
All right. Bye bye.
Jojo
Thank you for listening to the costume plot. You can follow us on Twitter and Instagram at the costume plot. If you have a question, comment or movie suggestion, you can email us at the costume [email protected]
Sarah
our theme music is by Jessie timp and our artwork is by Jojo see you please rate and review us wherever you listen to your podcasts.
[OUTRO]
Jojo
Thank you for listening to The Costume Plot! You can follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @thecostumeplot. If you have a question, comment, or movie suggestion you can email us at [email protected].
Sarah
Our theme music is by Jesse Timm, and our artwork is by Jojo Siu. Please rate and review us wherever you listen to your podcasts.
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