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storiesbyrhi · 2 years

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I had an idea for a little blurb or one shot, what if there reader is always known for wearing long sleeves and like she’s never seen without them to the point where there’s crazy rumours and reasons people have come up with as to why.

And one day Eddie decides to ask her, and she just takes off her cardigan and she’s wearing a short sleeve underneath and she just has full on tattoo sleeves. So eddie literally just melts for her on the spot.

Hello, friend! Thank you for being my first anonymous requester/prompter. Appreciate it. I hope you like this. It got a little more angsty than I planned, but maybe it's a vibe? xo Rhi

Warnings: mention of self-harm cuts/scars - mind and not at all the focus of the fic; reference to bullying; drug use; no beta (and I'm shitty at proofreading)

Drabble 001 1566 words

“Maybe it's some sort of like, skin condition?” Dustin offered, still knowing the pain of appearing different.

“Where’s your imagination, Henderson?” Jeff asked. “Scars, all the way up her arms, like from doing witchcraft or whatever,”

“Witchcraft?”

“You mean like the cult stuff Hellfire does?” Gareth chimed in, causing most of the boys to laugh. Even Eddie snorted a little.

Yeah, it was a double standard alright. The boys at the table were the first to be picked on for standing out, or trying to fit in, or doing anything at all really. The irony of them watching as you sat by yourself in the far corner of the cafeteria, adding to the already wild echoes of gossip that sounded out wherever you went, was not lost on Eddie.

That’s not to say he didn’t glance over at you, wondering what had changed.

Last year he was meant to graduate and so were you. You’d shared classes, small talk, and a joint every now and then, but he fully expected to never see you again after graduation. Then, you disappeared before the final few weeks of the school year. You were M.I.A. during exams. People thought maybe you’d just skipped out on school and Hawkins entirely.

But, there you were, repeating your Senior year, keeping to yourself like your life depended on it, and the icing on this mystery cake – the length of your sleeves. Rain, hail, or blistering heat, your sleeves would be to your wrists.

Of all the things to think are weird about someone, this was incredibly low on Eddie’s list, if it made it at all. There were logical reasons anyway. When he traveled to the city to see a show, he'd met kids with cuts and scars hidden beneath bracelets and bandages. Maybe whatever caused you to miss the end of last year was fucked up. He couldn’t and wouldn’t judge you for that. Maybe you had converted to a religion that changed how you wanted to dress. Again, Eddie wouldn’t judge you for that.

Really, he wouldn’t have noticed or cared at all, if it wasn’t you.

You, who he remembered from Middle School. You said you thought his act in the talent show was cool, and he’d look even more like a rock star if he let his hair grow long and wild like the thrash metal bands he worshipped.

You, who refused to take discounts on weed just because Eddie offered them. “Call it: supporting local businesses,” you’d laugh, leaving him with his thoughts of you.

You, who would often sit in a way that meant Eddie could copy your answers on maths tests.

You, who he hadn’t spoken to in months, but still occupied a great deal of his mind’s time.

“You sound like a bunch of prissy school girls with all this gossip. What you really should be talkin’ about, is how you’re gonna survive the Cult of Vecna,” Eddie posed to the table, punctuating his statement by throwing peanuts at Jeff.

He dared another quick look over at you and froze when his gaze met yours. Before you could look away, he offered you a smile. Genuine. Warm. Hopefully – inviting. You blinked back at him, not scowling or rolling your eyes, just… confused, maybe.

Two days later, Eddie was spending his Saturday night alone in the trailer. Wayne was at work. Gareth’s house was plagued with interstate family, so band practice was canceled. He didn’t mind, though. It had been a while since he’d just done fuck all.

With rented videos stacked and ready, Eddie packed a bowl and started to watch Fright Night. He was only about ten minutes in before a loud knock on the trailer door made him jump.

“Jesus H. Christ,” he mumbled, glad nobody was there to see him almost piss himself.

He crossed the small space, poising to hear a neighbour talk shit about another neighbour and ‘tell ya uncle, would’ya’ and ‘get a haircut’ and endless trailer park bullshit he could not care less about. As he opened the door though, he stood up straight.

When he said your name, you looked up at him. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“Ah, yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. I just, ah. Do you… Are you still…”

Eddie knew this line of unfinished questioning. “Selling? Yeah. Sure. Come in.”

You stepped up into the trailer, let Eddie close the door behind you. He made no motion to move or say anything. He was just looking at you, a little disbelief in his eyes.

“What do you need? I’m not fully stocked, but if your tastes haven’t changed we should be good,” Eddie said, trying his best to be polite. No, not polite. Kind. Friendly. A friend.

“Yeah, man. You still do pre-rolls?”

“Let me look. Um, take a seat, if you want. Do you want a drink or anything?” he offered, walking backwards towards his room but listening carefully to your reply. You shook your head at him.

In his room, Eddie found no pre-rolls, but there were the means to make them. He came back out to the lounge, plonked himself down next to you on the couch.

“You got some time? I can roll them for you now,”

“You don’t-”

Eddie stopped you by speaking your name. You looked at him. “It’s fine. Let me.”

You nodded, sat back into the couch more.

Eddie started Fright Night again and you half watched it, half observed how skilled Eddie was. His fingers worked fast, neatly. Nothing went to waste.

“So, um, this is a bit out of the way?” Eddie asked. “I mean, if you weren’t sure I was holding,”

“Um. Yeah. Nah. I live here now,” you told him.

“Oh. Cool. That’s cool. So, we’re neighbours?”

“Looks that way,” you confirmed, just grateful he didn’t ask why you had moved from your uptown house to good old Forest Hills.

The conversation paused there, not resuming until Eddie asked if you wanted four, like you used to. He wrapped them in saran wrap and handed them over, swapping you for cash.

Eddie hoped you’d sit for a bit, but you immediately stood and walked to the door.

“Thanks,” you said, turning.

“Wait!” Eddie called, unable to stop himself. You looked at him, your bottom lip sucked in and nervous energy radiating off you. “I, ah… I don’t… know what happened. If something did happen. Or whatever. But if you need anything at all… I’m here, you know?”

You hesitated for a second, then nodded. It wasn’t enough for him. He continued, “Because I liked that we were friends. We were friends, right? And we should be. Now. We have a lot in common. Actually,”

“You mean we both live in a trailer park and are repeating our senior year?” you asked deadpan.

It threw Eddie. For a second, he thought he’d upset you, but then he noticed you weren’t moving to leave anymore. “Yeah… And, we both like… weed… and horror… and there’s gotta be other things, right?”

You studied his face. Eddie had grown up a lot in the years you’d been a nameless moon, orbiting his bright planet. He’d grown into a beautiful person. And it wasn’t just the big brown eyes. He was kind, sweet. You’d seen how he’d adopted all the freak freshmen, taking them under his wing and offering a level of notoriety that meant protection.

“You want to be my friend?” you asked him.

“Yeah. I do,” he answered confidently, puffing his chest out a little.

“You’re not just like, fishing for information? Wanna know where I went?”

Eddie was a little hurt you’d think that about him, but he could see you were more hurt. He shook his head, said as softly as he could, “I kinda just miss you.”

And there it was. It broke you just a bit. You’d missed him too. You missed any semblance of normality. You sighed and stepped close to him, wrapping your arms around his waist. Eddie made a surprised little ‘oh’ sound but quickly wrapped his arms around you, squeezing tight. He waited until you stepped away first, not wanting to spook you.

“So, Fright Night?” you asked, moving back to the couch, casually lifting the knitted jumper you were wearing over your head, throwing it aside.

Eddie’s jaw fell slack. Your back was to him, but you wore only a tank top, and the colours and patterns all up your arms were so vivid. Covered in bright illustrations, you were a walking piece of art. He’d managed to close his mouth and follow you to the couch by the time you sat down.

He sat next to you, turning his attention back to the film, scared to even look at you. There was a smirk on your face as you noticed how still Eddie had gone.

“If you let me share a bowl, I’ll let you ask about the tattoos,” you said.

“Oh, thank FUCK,” he breathed out. “You’ve always been cute, but, ah, Jesus…”

You laughed at him, a proper laugh, one that sounded unfamiliar to you. Eddie had grabbed your arms and was studying the tattoos so closely you thought maybe he was trying to commit them to memory. He looked at you, those goddamn big puppy dog eyes.

“I really fucking missed you,” he whispered. “And I’m glad you’re here.”

#Mine #Drabble #Eddie Munson #Eddie Munson x Reader #Eddie Munson/Reader #Eddie Munson Drabble #Rhi Drabble

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theboarsbride · 1 year

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"A Court of Thorns and Roses" Reading Update I

Page 101 - 24%

So, some major notes so far:

-I refuse to believe SJM knows how to write poor people. I refuse to believe that Feyre's family has been poor for a decade. How tf can the sisters be so dainty and act so oblivious and bitchy about work for survival after NEARLY 10 YEARS OF ECONOMIC DESTITUTION???????Just their mentalities, how they react to being poor, how they treat their belongings, how they treat their food, how they handle their money, etc. doesn't really line up.

-I can't stand SJM's writing style. SO MANY MF EM DASHES HOLY FUCK AND THEYRE IN PLACES WHERE THEY'RE UNNECESSARY. And also she reuses the same sentence structure, and it bothers meeeeee. (ex.- i was going to the bathroom, which was white and clean and shining. Then, I went to school, a place that was dull and bland and boring.) Like jfc. I wholeheartedly believe the conspiracy that no one actually edits SJM's book because good LORD.

- Feyre is dumb and deserves death. Like the instance with the Pooka. She suddenly sees her crippled father on Tamlin's land in Prythian in the middle of the night??? Given the wary hostility and aggression and distrust she's been displaying towards everyone and everything so far in Prythian, why isn't she doing the same in this instance???? She's said herself she is wary of faerie tricks, and acknowledged that not even whole, able-bodied humans are able to survive in Prythian without the help of a faerie, so why would she think her DISABLED FATHER, who is helpless in the mortal realm, be any different??? And why would she CARE that her father has come for her??? Did she not hope that her family starves without her, so that they realize she's important to them and she holds them in such an embittered contempt?????

- I LOVE Lucien <3 I like this fox-boy, he is funny and actually treats Feyre like the murderer she is (because yes, she's a murderer, and takes PRIDE in having killed a faerie. Which Feyre has some nerve being hostile to faeries who have been nothing but courteous and gracious with her, and thinking THEY are in the wrong when she was the one that MURDERED their friend).

- why couldn't Tamlin remain more like his beast form, making this more of a BATB retelling? I literally imagine him looking like Legolas but JACKED. This is where my ire of 'BATB but the beast is just a hot guy that growls or has behavioral problems' first began. It's such a shallow version of the story and completely misses the point. And the fact that this is also a retelling of The Ballad of Tam-Lin, a Scottish folktale, and does really nothing that's an homage to the story aside from Tamlin's name, the fact he shape-shifts (albeit BARELY), and there's (poorly written) fae really irks me.

-for once I want SJM to actually describe paintings rather than describing what the painting is of. I don't believe for one minute that SJM did more research into art, style, etc. because for the life of me I couldn't tell you what Feyre's art style is, nor do I really care because her having painting as a hobby is so pointless and has no effect on her character whatsoever.

- SJM is lazy as fuck with her world building. ex.- Lucien saying capital 'h' Hell, as in Christian Hell, when humans are agnostic/atheist with a sparse number of fae-worshiping cults (and were once implied to have had a polytheistic religion) and fae worship the Cauldron and other faerie deities so like.....why not use a few extra braincells to create her own version of Hell rather than using lazy cultural shorthand that, by the logic of this book's world, doesn't work????; underutilizing fae lore so now they're either underdeveloped spectral entities or LOTR elves... BORINGGGG!! GIVE US ACTUAL FAE IN LITERATURE AGAIN!!!! (*applauds Heather Fawcett's Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries and Krystal Sutherland's House of Hollow*)

These are my major thoughts for the first quarter of the book.... See y'all again at 50%!

#jojo reads #anti sjm #anti sarah j maas #anti acotar #anti feyre

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sketching-shark · 5 months

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decides to give names to the bone spirits because I have almost nothing content of these two

Their fanon names are Gǔtou and Gǔ

this little friend here Báigǔ

what do you think

Can you think of other types of names?

If you had to give them a personality what would it be?

Do you think Lady Bone Demon could have been affectionate towards them, you know, to give her other nuances of personality by showing that she really is affectionate towards her own people?

Oh that's actually a pretty neat idea to have an entire yaoguai species made of bone people! And thanks for letting me know of some of the fandom lore @maidenofthecloud :D. That said, I'm very ignorant about how precisely naming conventions work for Chinese names, so I'd likely make some major goofs if I tried to come up with something fitting for the bone spirits (X_X).

In terms of personality, given how angry and hollow they look I could imagine them and Monkie Kid's Lady Bone Demon actually fitting quite well as being something like pretas, or hungry ghosts. Pretas are present in a number of Eastern religions, Buddhism included, and while as always keeping in mind that I'm not an expert on this topic, from what I understand the basic idea behind them is that they are the remnants of dead humans who as a result of their bad deeds are now tormented by insatiable hunger, desire or thirst. They do seem to often act as malevolent entities--they possess people and bring bad luck--but there is something very sad about them too because even though they've already died they're doomed to endlessly suffer the torments of desire without even the potential recourse of reincarnation.

As such, I think it could act as a potentially interesting layer to Lady Bone Demon's whole "save the world by killing literally everything & starting over" plan if she was driven to such a twisted form of compassion by seeing, interacting with, and even experiencing herself the kind of unrelenting torment that pretas go through, especially after seeing the deities live it up even though a number of them are responsible for some pretty heinous things that they more or less never have to answer for (though gods from Li Nezha to the Jade Emperor himself all have their own painful pasts). Like if she had viscerally realized just how much unending suffering is in existence, and how even adulated religions seemed incapable of addressing it, you could more easily understand why she decided to just throw the whole reality away. If they had kept Sun Wukong's og backstory it could have made her whole deal an interesting comparison/contrast to the Monkey King himself too, as in the classic he commits all kinds of violence to help his beloved monkey family; she'd just be doing something similar for her beloved pretas, but on a universal scale. Hell, throw in a scene too where the Lady Bone Demon tries to convince SWK of the virtue of her omnicidal plan because of the way even his own lifetimes worth of efforts resulted in nothing but suffering for himself and everyone he ever loved too! It would be a perfect opportunity to FINALLY get some insight as to why that monkey exiled himself for centuries in the first place if nothing else. Not to mention antagonists who are convinced of the righteousness of their actions no matter what are wonderfully scary, and showing how the Lady Bone Demon arrived at her ideas in the first place could really up the sympathy/creep factor!

That said, I know that setting up and exploring that sort of dark situation would likely result in a MUCH higher rating, and probably isn't the kind of thing that could be addressed in a careful and nuanced manner in a silly lego show lol. It is still fun to think about!

#ask answered #monkie kid #lady bone demon #dang #lady really ended up saying 'i love everyone so much i'll kill them all' huh #that said while i do understand a refusal to do so #i do kind of wish flying bark would try to incorporate more buddhist themes & ideas into the lego show #its such a central part of jttw #and it could lend a lot to this unofficial sequel

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salamoonder · 4 years

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Alright, so here’s the thing. At this point, I actually don’t care what Artagan has or hasn’t done and, morally, what that means. It’s irrelevant. Interesting, but irrelevant. What I want to talk about is what the Nein, excluding Jester, know about him, and what they do with this information, and how they cast judgment.

Here are things that the nein have actually seen: fleeting glimpses of a figure in a green cloak. one conversation with a giant archfey who has recruited jester’s help in planning a convention. further, fleeting glimpses. very very brief phrases.

Here are things that the nein have heard about him from jester: he’s pretty cool, you guys :) . he’s got a chaotic streak, like her. he helps her pull off pranks. he’s always shown up for her. he’s handsome. he taught her magic. he kept her company when her mom was busy. he is her first friend. he is her best friend. he is her oldest friend. she really loves him.

and yes, they know he misrepresented himself to jester for years. they know he sent them to an island where you lose your memory every night. they know that he is sketchy as fuck and they do not know if he means what he says. and that is reasonable and understandable and fair.

here is something that i don’t know if you guys know about abusers, regardless of if artagan is one or not. (and he’s not. i’m not even going to say i don’t think he is, he literally is not abusive. words mean something; stop throwing them around because you personally don’t like someone.) you cannot tell their victims that they are abusive or awful or manipulative or horrible, and expect that to help. that makes it worse. the same is true of cults. you cannot, and i mean CANNOT, make yourself hostile, because then the outside world is hostile, and the abuser is safe. the outside world is hostile, and the cult is safe. furthermore you’re reinforcing what every abuser and what every cult plants in their victim’s heads--i’m the only one who would put up with you. i’m the only one who really loves you. everyone else will be cruel to me, but i’m the only thing you have. even if the nein had reason to suspect that the traveler was straight up abusing jester instead of just weird and shady, that is not a good response.

no matter how bad artagan is or isn’t, fjord, caduceus, and beau are still being condescending. they are still failing to trust that jester knows what she’s talking about. they are still trying to coddle her, they are still treating her like a child, and i want to talk about that. i want y’all to see that they’re still treating her like she’s emotionally fragile. like individually, i want to talk about that, and also the fact that everyone seems to want to lump caleb into this. (and yasha?? yasha has barely said anything about him, y’all.)

i’m going to skim over caduceus a bit because i don’t think his is a jester-centric problem. he tends to just trust that he either has the correct answers to a situation, or that even if he doesn’t know what’s correct, he knows what isn’t. this arc has been very interesting, because it’s been a lot of “i’ll play along with this because it sounds intriguing, but i’m going to be very self righteous about it the whole time.” like. the “we’re good” when jester brought up transferring followers to melora is haunting me. why “we’re good”? i get cad’s philosophy that not everyone is going to flock to one god--that’s fine, that makes sense. but the implication of “we’re good” really makes it sound like “mmm no thanks, none of these people would end up in my cool and correct religion anyway.” because he doesn’t know! he doesn’t know if any of these people would actually be happier and better off with melora. or. maybe he does know, or has decided, that they wouldn’t be, because these are not the kind of people that he could see himself falling under the same moral umbrella as. (lmao love how i said i was going to skim. anyway. again, less a jester thing, more a “cad is smug about everything” thing tbh.)

let’s move to fjord. he is quite honestly making me almost more uncomfortable than beau, because he’s making statements that i don’t really actually believe. “we just don’t want you to get hurt” is all very well and good. coupling that with agreeing with beau that they shouldn’t leave jester alone with artagan? without telling jester? does not jive. (i’m still not over the ridiculous of that, by the way. yeah this dude--no, this ARCHFEY, who could snap you in half in a moment--has been alone with her regularly for the first 20ish years of her life but now, now he’s going to try and kill her, and you’re going to be the one to stop that.) fjord keeps saying things like this--that he trusts her--but he doesn’t actually act like it. at one point he even says “if jester has faith in the traveler, that’s good enough for me, i suppose.” but it’s not, and he doesn’t act like it is. you know who actually acts like that? caleb. caleb’s getting his own paragraph though this is getting long as fuck. but if fjord actually meant that? he would’ve told beau “listen i know this situation is sketchy and i don’t like him anymore than you do but because i trust jester i also trust that she knows what she’s doing here, and i’ll be there to back her up with whatever she needs/wants me to do”. but he did not say that or anything like that. instead he agreed with beau to essentially be bodyguarding jester--without consulting jester about it at all. he wouldn’t have told jester “he’s generally full of shit, right?” about the traveler. jester is continually telling the group over and over again that she knows what he’s like. she knows Exactly how he can be. and the sad thing is, if fjord actually believed that she knew what she was talking about when she said that and if he believed that he could actually talk to her frankly and not that her feelings had to be protected at all costs (my skin is still crawling at “we don’t wanna ruin jester’s special day”. it’s not a five year old’s birthday party), then he would have straight up told her. he would have said “hey we’re concerned enough that he’s going to hurt you that we don’t think you should be alone with him. can we help guard against that?”

and i’ll be honest, i’ve kind of been squicked out by all the romantic posts about fjord and jester because he’s spent the last few episodes genuinely treating her like a wonderful but vulnerable child who needs to be protected from the world. when he told beau "I'm probably the least clued in as to how jester feels” i was like YEAH NO SHIT. and i know he meant it in a romantic sense but i feel that it’s true in general. like i get that he’s scared to talk to her. that’s fine. he doesn’t have to talk to her about her feelings, romantic or otherwise. but if he’s acknowledging that he does not at all know how she feels then he has no right to behave as if he does know. and again i don’t mean this in a romantic sense. i mean it in a, he is making the assumption that she can’t handle reasoned criticism of the traveler to her face, kind of sense. he and beau both are opting for “random insults, threats, and judgments they have decided apply” over “genuinely this is why we are concerned”. there has been a lot of “you don’t need him” and “you are better off without him” and “you’re better than him” and “you have us why do you need that” and those are judgement statements that are essentially meaningless. all they do is further demonstrate to jester that they don’t actually understand why she’s upset or what she actually wants.

i think caleb, mr i-eat-encyclopedias-for-breakfast, likely just has a better intellectual understanding of the fae and that may be why he’s not as outwardly concerned as the rest, but he’s also actually decided to trust jester that she knows what she’s dealing with. she has demonstrated both verbally and with her actions that even if she may not have known about artagan initially, She Knows How This Works. and he trusts that. caleb truly went “alright, i trust that you know what you’re doing, where do you need me” and that was IT. i’m not saying that he’s not allowed to be suspicious or concerned or wary of the traveler: i just don’t think he is. and i hate that people keep lumping him in with the rest of the nein “treating jester like a child” because they think he’s predatory or something--especially as caleb and fjord are pretty much the same age--when he is literally the only FUCKING person consistently asking jester how she feels and then actually acting accordingly.

and the thing is, you don’t have to be caleb and largely unconcerned, it is actually possible for you to show concern and alarm and wariness for your friend’s best friend without condescending to them and veth has been doing that this whole damn time. we know how she feels about him; she decidedly does not like him. but she set that aside to really fully listen to jester and then tried to be helpful to her in deciding what to do next, without inserting her own opinion. veth is the only one acknowledging that, sure, this looks really bad and i don’t like that guy, but you know him best, jester, and you know yourself best and so it should be your choice what to do in this situation. she reminds jester--if he is really a friend to you, and he is doing things you don’t like, then you can talk to him about that and he should listen. i want to talk about how when jester suggested that artagan join the mighty nein, there were exactly three reactions. extremely lame excuses from everyone but caleb and veth, “maybe, like, an annex--” from caleb, because he knows what everyone else is gonna say, and “we don’t like your friend” from veth, literally the only person who has apparently decided that jester can hear that without dissolving into a puddle or something.

and i want to make it clear--i don’t hate the actors. and stories are supposed to make you upset and uncomfortable, to an extent. they’re supposed to make you think. you’re not supposed to be happy when darth vader blows up alderaan. you’re not supposed to be happy when edmund betrays his siblings to the white witch. these are all excellent, excellent character choices and i applaud the cast for making them. and i don’t hate fjorester. and like yeah there have been a lot of cute moments in the last few eps. and they are cute and their story is compelling and it’s interesting. but i wish people would stop acting like fjord’s attitude towards her is perfect and lovely and that he trusts her sooo much when he is going behind her back like this. i am...the biggest widomauk shipper. and i have to admit my heart does the swoopy thing every time i rewatch the forehead kiss. but that wasn’t great. it was overall really not a good read or handle of the situation. it was, there was an attempt. and i do think fjord is trying. and i think beau is trying too. and i think all of their attitudes however terrible just come from a place of loving her and wanting to protect her. but--and here i must point frantically back at artagan--loving someone does not mean that you’re not hurting them.

#artagan #the traveler #jester lavorre #fjord #beauregard lionett #caleb widogast #veth brenatto #the mighty nein #critical role #critical role spoilers #cr spoilers #thane watches critical role #long post

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midnightsslut · 3 years

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Can you tell us more about your concept of the lover trilogy made up of false god/afterglow/me? Would love to read a proper analysis with all the connections, similar themes etc + obvs your thoughts x

Hey! First of all, thank you for being interested in my lyric analysis omg that’s very flattering!! This is actually my first ask lol.

This got super long, by the way, so I’m adding a cut.

Anyway, let’s get to it. First, let’s talk about the structure of Lover’s tracklist, because that’s part of the reason why I consider False God, Afterglow, and ME! to be a trilogy of sorts, all foreshadowed by The Archer. From the first time I heard the album, I’ve always thought that Lover can be divided into a few main parts. The first five tracks serve as a primer for what’s to come. Taylor is also careful not to have too many bops or too many emotional ballads together. We get the dark, desperate, escapism-themed Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince between happy love songs like I Think He Knows and Paper Rings. The emotional core, however, lies in the second half. Cornelia Street acts as a bridge between the carefree songs and the more vulnerable ones, since there is a mix of tenderness and a fear of losing what she has.

This trilogy in particular is foreshadowed by The Archer, which discusses Taylor’s anxieties that stem from her past relationship (something she described as ‘phantom tragedy’ in her Live Lounge interview iirc). She has ‘a hundred thrown-out speeches’ ready for him, but she’s still ‘searching for a dark side’ on purpose, which runs the risk of ruining their honeymoon phase. Again, that risk is reflected on Cornelia Street, but that’s still a very romantic ballad about ‘sacred new beginnings.’

Taylor’s fears reach a new peak on Death By a Thousand Cuts. Once again, she’s ‘looking through the windows of this love,’ even though they ‘boarded them up’; in other words, they said they wouldn’t question the relationship in the same way you don’t question your god in the religion that her love has turned into (see: ‘sacred new beginnings that became my religion’ in Cornelia Street), yet here she is.

The False God trilogy is placed at the end of the album because it offers a resolution to this conflict. First, we get False God, where Taylor essentially announces that the honeymoon phase has come to a close. She has finally found the dark side she’s searching for (‘I can’t talk to you when you’re like this’). She’s no longer keeping her thrown-out speeches to herself; she’s daring him to leave her outright. Just three tracks earlier, she says she’s dying by a thousand cuts, but she flips that theme on its head and names the notion of dying for him as one of the things they were crazy for thinking. These doubts harken back to Cruel Summer. However, they also bring the story full circle; just as the then-friends with benefits stuck with each other through physical intimacy when they couldn’t confess their emotions, they are still hanging on, as if by a thread, because ‘they might just get away with it’ if they turn sex into their object of worship (‘the altar is my hips’). Cruel Summer’s theme of both angels and devils being involved makes a return as well, as the lovers end up in Heaven and Hell by turns. Whenever they do confess their sins, they use the sacramental wine to get drunk, have sex again… and refuse to actually address their issues, because neither of them can talk to the other ‘when [they’re] like this.’ When they have nothing left, their intimacy, the same thing that first brought them together, is ultimately what keeps them together. False God is ultimately more hopeful than Death By a Thousand Cuts, however, because Taylor is still adamant to hold onto her faith ‘even if it’s a false god.’ It doesn’t matter if their religion is a hoax. As long as they can stay together, she’ll keep worshiping. The title of the song is therefore a bait-and-switch à la peace and happiness.

After the bop buffer (lol) of You Need to Calm Down, we get back to this story with Afterglow as Track 15. The theme of sticking together through sex is affirmed by the title of the song, which basically refers to the period after an orgasm. That’s another, albeit partial bait-and-switch, however, because Afterglow involves Taylor finally admitting that she’s at fault. She did beg for forgiveness in False God, but she followed it up with daring him to leave her in the next pre-chorus (this cyclical nature of their fights resurfaces here, as she says she either ‘punished him with silence’ or ‘went off like sirens’). Here, all she does is ask him not to walk away (whereas she was literally threatening to do so herself two tracks earlier). The morning after a fight, Taylor suddenly realizes this relationship is worth it. This ‘ultraviolet morning light’ is the turning point in their relationship, for Taylor is now resolved to make things right with him again instead of patching things up temporarily. All she wants now is to share the light of her newfound insight with him… or, in other words, to meet him in the afterglow.

Despite its blissful title, Afterglow is still anxious, because she doesn’t yet know if he’s also decided to stay with her. Meanwhile, ME! is absolutely mutual (again, note the title vs the theme here lol), which is why it’s a duet. They now look at the flipside of all their troubles. She might have gone off like sirens/gone psycho on the phone, but that same fiery nature of hers causes her to be his summer. His nonchalant nature might have been the cause of her despair in Cruel Summer, but that same unpredictability is also the reason why he ‘will never bore her.’ ME! is all about them embracing all their flaws and declaring that their relationship is one of a kind and worthwhile because of them. This triumphant acceptance (as evidenced by the literal marching band she used for its debut performance) is a bookend to the self-loathing in The Archer and all the doubt scattered throughout the record.

The album ends with a short, calm summary of the whole story in It’s Nice to Have a Friend. On the album’s closer, Taylor finally puts all this turmoil, which stems from external (‘I trusted the wicked’)—something her relationship helped her through—and internal factors (‘I wounded the good’/‘maybe I’ve stormed out of every single room in this town’), behind her to step into the daylight. A frequently overlooked part of the song is the plural in ‘threw out our cloaks and our daggers because it’s morning now,’ which indicates that he is also stepping into the daylight with her. Without the aforementioned trilogy, including the blind faith in False God, the watershed moment of epiphany in Afterglow, and the declaration of self-acceptance in ME!, none of this would have been possible.

#lover #Taylor Swift #lyric analysis #false god #me #daylight #afterglow #dbatc #death by a thousand cuts #lyrics #analysis #cornelia street #miss Americana

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justfandomtings · 3 years

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Character study of William murderface

Cw: child abuse, ptsd, trauma, internalized homopobia,ect.

Throughout the show, murderface has been presented as a shitty person that is untalented, leeches off of his friends/ fame, and honestly just seem to have gotten lucky when getting into dethklok.

Which is true, but I want to look in a little deeper why he's like this. (Note:this might be kinda head cannonish. I have some examples from the actual show but since we never got a deep backstory for murderface or get many murderface centric episodes I'll be filling in some empty spaces.)

Murderface in the show

Murderface is extremely self loathing and has had moments where he just goes so hard in on himself.

Season 1 episode 1

We see this in the very beginning when he refers to himself as the 'fat one.'

It could've been played off as a simple joke, which it was in the show for the audience watching. But in the show's universe and for the character, this will be an occurring thing.

This continues in

Season 1 episode 3

It's murderface's birthday and the boys throw murderface a party. During his party murderface is shown complaining and being stand-offish. You would think the last thing he would want is a party, yet he still sends out invites to his bandmates. (Note: noticed how the invites were sent right after murderface left the room? Idk it just seemed like he was embarrassed or scared his bandmates would laugh at him for wanting a birthday party. He even tried to act non chalant when the invite said "come if you want, who gives a piss." when they did throw him a party he still came)

When the boys pulled a little, kinda mean but harmless prank on him, literally giving him the gift of nothing. Murderface was fucking hurt, like genuine tears almost left this man's eyes when he come into his room to get his thing's and 'run away'.

Of course the boys did give murderface an actual gift, which honestly had a lot of thought and effort put into it. This makes murderface cry a tear. (Of blood but you know still a tear)

This is the example of the boy's showing they care for murderface. But even after this big gesture murderface will continue to believe the opposite.

The show continues and we get the first and honestly only backstory for murderface.

Season 1 episode 6

When the boys get a band therapist, we find out the tragic murder/suicide of murderface's parents. His father killing his mother then himself with a chainsaw, this whole thing happens while murderface as a baby sits in his highchair unaware while eating his cereal. This flashback makes murderface kinda sit there in shock as he pisses his pants.

(Note: murderface has said in the show that his appearance was the reason his parents are dead. If that really was the case, why didn't his father kill him or at least killed him after he killed his mother? Why did his father just kill his wife and himself? Never laying a single hand on murderface? Will get back to that later.)

Season 1 episode 9

Bringing up this episode may be confusing to some for bringing this up since it doesn't focus solely on murderface. He doesn't even get that much screen time this episode. But I would like to point out his actions in that episode.

In this episode the boys adopt a young teen boy they name fatty ding dong and raise him as their son for probably couple of weeks. While the boys all had their...interesting way of raising him. Murderface had the most physical fights with fatty ding dong. Mostly when we misbehaved. Like hitting him, shocking him non stop with a tazer, beating him for eating his civil war boots ect.

I just like to point out that murderface was raised by his grandparents. We'll come back to more of that later in the post.

Season 1 episode 11

The band gets reunited with their families and what we see from murderface and his family is that they are very violent towards each other. Murderface tries to choke his grandmother when looking in at her mouth as she chewed. Pickles and Nathan had to snap himself out of it, murderface apologized saying it was his fault for looking to deeply.

Like that was some kind of trigger from his past that made him black out and get violent.

He was also highly against buying his grandfather a wheelchair, only doing so because the boys agreed to be nice towards their family to get them to leave.

Even when they were spending time with each other, they never touched each other William kept his distance. Only ever touching if it was fight related.

In the same episode we see why, Stella was so physically abusive towards murderface, spraying fucking pepper spray into his eyes when he did..nothing? He wasn't aggressive or was even part of the issue. She just attacks him because she had to change his diapers?

This belittlement and physical abuse continues everytime they are together on screen.

So to bring back up season 1 episode 9. With how murderface treated fatty ding dong we can assume that's how we was being treated while under the care of his grandparents. Children soak up things like a sponge. Whether you think they remember it or not. Many psychological reports has shown that children will mimick and repeat behaviors and actions their caretakers do. If it's right or not, children will do things because that's what this adult dose. That's what they see at home. It's normal to them if that is the environment they grow in. Even if the child feels like something is off or wrong. They won't know exactly what is wrong or why because it's all they know.

So if this is how murderface was raised, which highly may be the case since we see Stella physically abuse murderface even as an adult. He might have actually thought this is how you raise a child, this is what you do to a child when they misbehaved. Nobody in his life has corrected murderface or explain to him that this way of discipline isn't ok or even discipline to begin with, it is abuse.

So, we are to believe with the information we have now. Is that murderface was most likely abused as a child, probably all the way up till he was able to get away from them and join dethklok.

With this information we can apply this to his behavior in the show. A side effect from child abuse is suicidal behavior. Throughout the show Murderface would now and then casually commit about hurting or killing himself.

Season 1 episode 2

Murderface casually states if it'll be brutal enough for him to just take his life after Nathan deltes another record. Or when the boys kindly ask him to stop eating beans, he gets oddly emotional and says he'll just starve to death then.

Another effect from child abuse is eating disorders and obesity.

You already know this a big part of murderface's character. There are times where he's seen constantly eating junk food, to eating nothing and just drinking coffee, to the doctor pointing out the back of his teeth are decaying. And murderface informs him it's from throwing up his food.

He also gets teased for his weight being called chubby and fat, ect. Murderface has a hard time with his weight, his excessive eating may even be seen as an unhealthy coping mechanism.

Other effects such as aggressive behavior, low self esteem, dissociation, ect. Is also shown within the show.

Season 1 episode 15

Murderface gets into a motorcycle accident and is sent into the hospital. This near death experience gets him on a religious journey. Maybe to find answers to certain questions or possibly wondering where he was going to go if he did die? Is he a good person, why do certain things happen to people, what's the meaning of life?

He asked the guys if he really deserved to live. Does he really deserve to be brought onto this world, being a part of a pretty good and rare type of life.

The boys being emotionally closed off don't really answer his question. They honestly brush it off but they do go along with murderface on his spiritual journey.

He eventually chooses no religion, but I feel that near death experience stuck with him. He either decided that life was too short so might as well live it, or a more cynical view on life. That it's meaningless then who cares if he died?

Season 2 episode 11

This is probably an episode where murderface was the most sad and self loathing. (This and another episode I can't wait to get to) after his concert, he felt pretty shitty with the outcome and had lead him to feel that he does not deserve the life he has now and wonders why he even shows his face. Just wanting the spot light for one.

Which is really interesting. Because comparing season 1 with the other 3. Murderface in season one had...fans. There were people who genuinely liked him. The prime example is his birthday episode.

When he had a solo, just like in season 2 episode 11. People were cheering his name. Practically screaming at the rooftops for him. So what happened?

We already know that murderface is the least liked member of the band, but even then he still had fans. Hell people committed terrorists attacks just for him on his birthday.

Maybe it was just a loud minority? Who knows, but if in the show as time went on less and less people had him as his favorite or even just liked him would probably get him really insecure.

After the concert failure, Charles let's him host a Nas car event. Which I'd think would've gone actually well if you know, the dethklok curse wasn't a thing.

Also as murderface was planning the event people around him didn't really support him or help him out. Which is mostly murderface's fault, he has a lack of focus and doesn't really plan things through. This is a good reason for partners and others outside wanting to work with dethklok not want to work with murderface. It costs money and a lot of time to do all the things related to dethklok. And murderface's flakeyness is a valid reason for business and others to not have faith in him when related to these things.

BUT! (This is a little bit of projection here) as someone who also has a lack of focus and hard time to get things done. That doesn't mean I don't want to do said thing, that doesn't mean I want to waste others time. I simply have a hard time focusing, I need structure and that little reminder to get things done. But the difference between me and murderface is that I'm not a billionaire.

I am not apart of a popular metal band, with all the money in the world, with a manager that will clean up every little mess I make.

I have more risk, whatever I fuck up will effect me. I will suffer the consequences. Murderface won't. (Also he's a fictional character..so reality won't have any affect on him lol)

But yea, I believe if murderface would suffer from his consequences then he'd be a bit more on things. Also I feel murderface's mental health issues play a huge role in things.

His fear that he's not good enough, eating disorders, ect. Can really mess up your focus.

So, now to the infamous episode. Dethvanity.

Season 4 episode 8

In this episode Murderface in nominated for the most brutal looking award and this. Fucks. Him. Up.

So much so that he actually hallucinates his bandmates and Charles calling him ugly and other things that they never even said.

When he goes to the plastic surgeon, he tells him. A complete stranger, that he hates himself. For murderface to actually admit this deep issue that he's been keeping deep down. For him to show vulnerability to a stranger is pretty sad.

When he goes to Nathan to borrow money, he tells a story of a 'boy' that was so ugly that he's driven his parents to murder suicide. Again he's calling himself ugly and blaming himself for his parents death. (Were going to get back to that too.)

After murderface gets the surgery he days dream about what would happen if he was beautiful. Finally being accepted and able to say fuck you to all those that were shit to him.

Of course, it doesn't end like that. He's face gets infected and is even more ugly than before.

This episode was pretty messed up. Murderface didn't get what he thought would give him validation, he looks down on himself more, and he is humiliated front of 100s of people.

This whole shit show probably validated all the negative thoughts he had for himself.

Next we'll talk about his internalized homopobia. Murderface...is definitely..not straight. He's not gay either he does have sexual attraction to women but his uncomfortably and very interesting moments and visions say he might like more than just that.

Season 2 episode 5

Murderface has a weird thing with eating 'penis' shaped objects or watching other eating said shaped objects.

He has a lot of weird moments where he gets really close to one of his bandmates and just whispers something in their ear. Specifically Pickles and Skwisgaar.

He just said fuck it and tried to bang toki while they were in the submarine.

Had hallucinations of cutting between women, men, animals, even his own grandmother and was distraught when he had a small moment of admitting he way gay.

There's no real specific reason why or how murderface is this scared of being gay. But I feel it may also be with how he grew up. He was probably been told it was wrong to be gay and how immoral it was to like men and you'll burn in hell if you do. Also being gay wouldn't be 'brutal' or 'manly'.

And not to shit on metal heads but you know. They're not the...most..exclusive group of people.

I think murderface is scared to accept he's gay because his grandparents made him feel he would be a bad person if he was or get kicked out of the band if he was.

So, after all I laid on the table, let's wrap this up. Back to the blaming himself of his parents deth. I believe, Williams parents didn't kill/murder themselves because he has ugly. I like to think the opposite, I believe his parents actually dearly cared for him. I think his father had some serious mental issues or something else pushed him over the edge.

It could be anything really, maybe his dad was crazy, maybe it had something to do with the curse. I like to think they both cared for him his dad just..idk snapped.

I'm assuming murderface's grandparents are his dads parents. And seeing how they treated murderface they most definitely treated his dad the same.

Or, it wasn't murder/suicide at all. Buckle in because it's all tv theory over here. I have a hard time to believe that murderface remembered, in such detail in fact. How his parents died, in the flashback he looks to be 7 to 8 months? Traumatic event yes, but there's no way a baby can remember such a thing.

I think, Stella lied to murderface about how his parents died. I think it was just some evil twisted thing she said to make murderface feel terrible about himself. His parents probably unfortunately died in say a car accident or health related issues. But the main thing is how guilty murderface feels, how terrible he feels that he thinks he was the reason he killed his parents when that's far from the truth.

It was either an unfortunate accident or his father killing themselves. But it is not murderface's fault.

The physical abuse from his grandparents, the guilt of believing he's the reason for his parents death, his aggressive internalized homopobia, lack of support, the bullying from his bandmates, body issues/eating disorder, and it just keeps going.

It's no fucking wonder why the man is like this. Don't get me wrong, murderface is an asshole and is responsible for most of his actions.

But that's still a lot of shit for someone to go through.

That's all I have, this is really long. But I hoped you like this little thread. There's still more to his character but this is long enough.

#metalocalypse #william murderface #dethklok

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beneaththetangles · 3 years

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Of Tybalts, Composers, and Prodigals

Kageki Shoujo, the excellent anime about young women attending school to become part of a famed all-female acting troupe, spread the love around during its airing, giving significant screen time for each of its supporting girls in addition to the leading ones, Sarasa and Ai, and right through the final episode which aired this past weekend (spoilers ahead). In it, the results of the auditions for a short Romeo and Juliet scene were revealed, and class president Sawa discovered that she lost out on the role of Tybalt to Sarasa.

When conferring with her teacher, Andou, about the audition, Sawa mentions the famous play (and later Oscar-winning film), Amadeus, comparing herself unfavorably to its lead character, Salieri.

For those who haven’t seen the movie—and it’s worth the watch as a study of what ungrace can do to a man—Salieri is both the lead and antagonist. A semi-biographical film, it follows the court composer as he becomes maddened with jealousy at the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, an improper and immature genius whose talent naturally and far exceeds his own. Sawa sees herself as the diligent Salieri who nonetheless comes up short, while Sarasa is the talented Mozart who replaces her with ease.

Although Sawa emphasizes her own shortcomings while making the comparison, something unkind is still inferred, which is that she believes Sarasa doesn’t deserve the role, laid out especially as Sawa explains that Amadeus is about talent versus hard work. In her mind, Sarasa is all or mostly talent, lacking the work ethic and other attributes that Sawa has. Unfortunately, for a young woman with a good and noble heart, this interpretation demonstrates that she’s headed in the wrong direction, more closely toward Salieri’s heart than she realizes, for a more accurate take on Amadeus is that it’s about what happens when one lives by legalism and pride, leaving no room for grace.

Much the same occurs in the parable of “The Prodigal Son.” This beautiful passage is always worth rereading, but I’ll summarize to get near its end, where Sawa’s story begins to align with it.

A son asks his father for his share of the family estate, takes the money, and wastes it on “wild living.” Now destitute and living without even his culture and religion, he decides to return home to beg to become his father’s servant. However, his father surprises him by running to his son, embracing and kissing him, and throwing a feast. The son’s elder sibling, though, is not amused by the forgiveness and festivities:

The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, “Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!”

It’s interesting to note that Sawa isn’t so upset as the older brother in this tale, but she, too, is stubborn and unforgiving. She knows that while on the surface, she’s proclaiming that Sarasa deserved to win the audition, inside she doesn’t feel that’s so. It’s she who deserves the acclaim.

Likewise, the brother lays out his qualifications: “All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders.” Sawa is just as obedient, guiding her class throughout an eventful first year at Kouka. She studied hard, rehearsed frequently, and delivered a glittering performance—for all this, both the excellent audition and her character, she deserved to be cast as Tybalt.

There’s much more to be said here that your pastor likely already has, and which I can do no better expressing. Instead, I want to focus on one line that I haven’t heard preached much on before, and which applies more directly to Sawa. While the father says two things in response to his elder son, the latter is much more famous, ending in “… this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” But he precedes those words with these:

“My son,” the father said, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”

When I read the parable, I usually get the feeling that the elder brother kind of gets it, but remains upset after the discussion with his father. Forgiveness probably took a long time, and resentment may have existed throughout the rest of his life toward his sibling. But then again, maybe it wasn’t so. Maybe that one line meant everything to him: “You are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”

What a beautiful thing to hear. There’s intimacy there. There’s true fatherhood there. There’s such love and generosity, a “Remember, you are everything to me,” as well as, perhaps, an understanding that the father and son are much the same in character and integrity.

In Kageki Shoujo, as Sawa struggles with her feelings about herself and toward Sarasa, she’s met by someone similar, too, her senpai, Tomomi, one who has guided her through the year. The conversation they have is significant.

Tomomi gives an example to explain to Sawa that she, too, is more the diligent type. And perhaps more importantly, she demonstrates that she sees Sawa. She sees all the hard work, all the effort. Much like the father sees the elder son, the senpai sees her kohai, and it brings Sawa to tears.

Sawa has been understood, and in that moment, it doesn’t matter whether she lost the role or won it. In that sense she’s given grace: Sawa is not an utter failure because she didn’t win the role over the more talented Sarasa. The end product doesn’t matter. Her heart does.

That’s where the focus must be, at least if Sawa is to do what’s right. Her tendency toward justification by the pride she has in her hard work has started to turn her into something she doesn’t want to be. She likes Sarasa, and doesn’t want to feel toward her as Salieri felt toward Mozart. Thankfully, the words from her senpai, along with those from her teachers, helps push her toward toward forgiveness and humility.

Salieri doesn’t choose such a path. He has his moments in Amadeus where the power of Mozart’s music seems to be transforming him, but his poisoned heart, built on decades of a legalistic and proud foundation, is ultimately unable to erase the bitterness and envy; in the end, he literally goes mad. He tries to commit suicide. And he curses all those around him. Salieri’s pride and ungrace is his undoing.

Sawa could go down that path, too. In a school as competitive as Kouka, it wouldn’t be surprising for a student of her intensity and caliber to be changed by the lack of results, the lack of celebration for who she’s determined to be. If not for a sensitive teacher like Andou and a caring senpai like Tomomi, she could have turned the other way and become full of rage, like the Salieri she has always feared she is.

Of all the character stories in Kageki Shoujo, I related most to Sawa’s. I, too, see Salieri within me. I’ve been that someone who “does things right,” who may not have talent but makes up for it in other ways. Can you relate to that? Have you ever felt like Sawa, Salieri, and myself, that you’re “deserving,” especially compared to others who gain recognition and reward but whom you feel aren’t worthy of such glory?

Thankfully, we don’t have to find an end like Salieri’s. Like Sawa and the brothers, we have a senpai, a teacher, a father who shows us that everyone is worthy of love, even the Mozarts, prodigals, and Sarasas. And just as profoundly, that we—the Sawas, Salieris, and elder brothers—are worthy of that love, too, not because of what we do, measured in success of failure, but because of who we are to him:

“You are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”

We are forgiven. We are loved. We are seen.

And because of that, we can be transformed into an image of love more like the father, away from resentment, pride, and our own strength of will, and toward grace and rest—toward becoming the artist, the masterpiece, which we were always meant to be.

=====

Kageki Shoujo can be streamed on Funimation.

#Anime #Christianity #Kageki Shoujo!!#Kageki Shojo!!#The Prodigal Son #Envy #Grace #Jealousy #Articles #Author: TWWK

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warrioreowynofrohan · 3 years

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Okay, I have now read Well of Ascension, Hero of Ages, and Mistborn: Secret History. Main thoughts:

Undead Huan was the unexpected highlight of Well of Ascension. The relationships between Vin and TenSoon was wonderful! The gradual growth from mutual loathing; to Vin realising she was treating him cruelly and high-handedly in the same manner her crewleaders had treated her, and learning to empathize with him; TenSoon gradually shifting from finding the dog body degrading to finding freedom in it, an opportunity to express his own identity for once rather than mimicking someone else’s; Vin finding out he was an infiltrator and caring out him anyway; TenSoon risking the freedom of his entire people for her be ause he trusted her....this is one of Brandon’s masterpieces of empathic writing, and managed with a species that in the first book I hadn’t thought about beyond ugh, that’s incredibly creepy. TenSoon may be my second-favourite Mistborn character after Sazed.

The koloss are still super disturbing. Starting in Well of Ascension with “oh, they’re basically orcs” (or more like ogres? I think some settings have blue ogres?) moving to the revelation of “oh, no, they’re literally orcs” (i.e., Tolkien-style: corrupted and mutilated transformation of other sapient beings) was a major horror moment. Everything about Hemalurgy is horror-movie-level, really.

I honestly felt sorry for Elend’s friend in Well of Ascension, because trying to act rightly out of genuine idealism and seeing your whole family slaughtered because of it is one of the worst things I can imagine. (No, Elend, being voted out of office is not remotely comparable. C-minus diplomacy, there.) Elend’s execution of him was justifiable, since he did loose an army of koloss on a civilian population and then failed to take respinsibility for his actions. And it illustrates to me - as with Moash in the Stormlight Archive - that in Sanderson’s books the one unforgivable action is to stop trying. You can fail, you can do terrible things, you can attempt to make things better and instead make them worse (almost all the Mistborn protagonists do that!), but you have to respond by taking responsibility, continuing to try, and not giving up. Always the next step. The ones who refuse to take that next step die as villains.

The Stormlight Archive has had some dark moments, but Well of Ascension and Hero of Ages on a whole different level in terms of how bleak they get. Virtually everything the protagonists do - Vin giving up the power of the Well; the recruitment and use of the koloss; the wars; Spook’s revolution - are directly orchestrated by Ruin and play into his hands. In many cases, Ruin is playing both sides against each other! (And I’ve never seen the Orphan’s Plot Trinket trope used in precisely that way before!) This is a case where I’m very glad to have been spoiled on the ending (Sazed Ascending) beforehand, because I don’t think I could have kept reading without the knowledge that it turned out all right.

The Lord Ruler becomes a much more tragic figure - granted, he did screw everything up with moving the planet to the wrong place, and he was tyrannical and self-interested even without Ruin’s influence (e.g. subjugating the Terris people to prevent others from finding out what he did), but he also genuinely did try to prevent the world from being destroyed, and it seems like things like the random mass executions were attributable to Ruin’s influence.

The ending of Hero of Ages, with Sazed using the knowledge in his copperminds to restore the world, and understanding the value of all the religions he’d learned after spending the rest of the book doubting them, was one of the most beautifully-written eucatastrophes I have read. His storyline was emotionally wrenching to read (I love him! he’s such a kind and hopeful person! and seeing him lost in despair was so sad! every chapter with him was just no, please stop being sad D: I will give you all the hugs), but the payoff of it was wonderful - that going through what he did and still coming out the other side willing to believe was what made him able to hold Ruin as well as Preservation.

I had regarded Sazed’s storyline in Hero of Ages as an entirely normal crisis of faith after losing a loved one and was surprised when Secret History said it was the consequence of Ruin continually trying to break him down. That really stands out - all the other main characters, Ruin could manipulate to serve his ends, but he’d never have been able to do that with Sazed so he sought to drive him to despair instead.

Kelsier punching not one but both gods of Scadrial is so on-brand for him.

Kelsier and Wit hating each other is hilarious because they have pretty much the exact same personality. Deilberately taunting and abrasive? Yep. Entirely irreverent? Yep. Complete smartmouths? Yep. Meeting Wit is exactly what Kelsier deserves - now he gets the experience of dealing with himself!

#brandon sanderson #mistborn #vin #kelsier #hoid #sazed #kandra #tensoon #the stormlight archive

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pengu-hours · 2 years

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I swear to god you don't deserve anything good in life you say to respect first nations people but you don't wanna respect anyone else you are so fucking weird get it together or get lost bitch. We all know you are more than mentally ill. I pray god takes you to the highest level of hell. If you don't wanna respect dead people go die and see if anyone cares, I hope you die in the most painful way.

yeah because this ask makes you so mentally stable. i can only assume you're christian based off of your details about sending me to the depths of hell and mentions of god, to which i say: i don't give a fuck. christians piss me off so much. there's more than just your religion in the world and if nothing was said about religion at all, keep your mouth shut. not everyone has to believe what you believe. i don't even believe in hell. also i never said not to respect the dead. i'm indigenous, respecting the dead and doing rites and things is part of our culture. i said i wasn't gonna just leave it alone because that person is obviously not dead if you look at everything objectively. the person that sent the ask said i should be glad she's not dead, to which i think is also bullshit. i don't wish death on that person by saying this, i just wish they didn't fucking fake it. it's horrible and disgusting to fake suicide for attention, and if you do that, you need serious help. i have nothing but respect for the dead, and i have several friends that are among the dead now, i'm no stranger to it. but i'm also no stranger to lunatics faking their deaths. i'm not gonna grieve for someone i don't know, people die every 11 seconds across the world but you feel no pain every 11 seconds, do you? a child is kidnapped every minute. bad shit happens in this world all the time. do you constantly live in grief because of it? no. i'm not affected heavily if this person is gone. of course i have normal decency and respect for life and it saddens me if they truly are gone, but the whole situation is uncomfortable. it's sketchy as fuck and filled with lies, nobody knows the truth anymore. with nini, we knew she had actually died. she didn't fucking fake it. but nobody fucking knew this girl, she just popped up out of nowhere and while she was here she made me feel weird because she was pushy and sent a bunch of asks acting as if we were friends when i didn't even know her. i hope karma comes back for you, oginalii. also idk what you mean by im not more than mentally ill, because literally that's what's wrong with my brain? my brain doesn't produce chemicals or regulate things properly. i'm not a psychopath or anything like that and i actually do therapy and have for years. i'm one of the kindest people you'll ever meet and i've literally given up my own belongings and money (of which i have very little) to make sure my friends were okay. i brought one of my bullies snacks during snack time in 5th grade because i felt bad that his mom was going through a hard time and had no money to buy him snacks. the other funny thing is that i know many of my friends would care if i died. many MANY people would care if i died. staff from my school that i bonded with, old friends, relatives, current friends. probably even some people i don't know. people in my band at college and in my major. it's what we do when we lose someone. you think you're so high and mighty but your god doesn't even care about you, much less exist. why would he allow anyone to suffer if he knew what would happen to them. you're his plaything. a toy. a pawn. you mean nothing more than that to your god. have a nice life though, and thanks for trying to misconstrue things i said just so you could be a vindictive bitch, it was very entertaining.

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missbrunettebarbie · 3 years

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Killjoys sorting

With the help of @starry-sky-stuff here are the sortings of most of the characters of the TV show Killjoys. Warning: SPOILERS ahead

Yalena "Dutch" Yardeen is probably the most Snake Lion protagonsit I've seen in a while now. She only really cares about her people who at the begining of the show are Johnny, then D'avin and despite what Dutch would like, Khlyen. Over the next five seasons, Dutch's circle grows as she adds new people, but she's still very much a Snake. The best example of Dutch's Snake primary is the season 1 episode where everyone is hunting for her mentor, Big Joe, and despite the fact that he's guilty Dutch tries to do anything to save him.

As a result of Khlyen's harsh upbringing, Dutch has almost all the secondary models drilled into her. But she's a Lion through and through: her first instinct is always to tackle the problem head on. She and D'avin bond over training and shooting things. Not to mention, when Johnny leaves the team, we have a hilarious moment when Dutch and D'avin have to deal with a teoublesome computer. Their solution: shoot it and fry it xDD

D'avin Jaqobis is definitely a Lion secondary. He's a soldier who like Dutch always goes for the direct approach. Like I previously said, he and Dutch bond because they share a secondary. His primary was harder, but I think he is a Badger. This is a very Loyalist verse and D'avin is no exception. Out of the entire trio, D'avin is the one most excited by the idea of Team Awesome Force. He is also the one put in charge of the war against the Hullen at the end of season 3 because of his leadership qualities. I would also add that his way of parenting Jaq (letting him choose his own name, always making sure he knows he is loved) seems very Badger-ish.

Johnny Jaqobis is probably the nicest Snake primary out there. This guy bonds with literally everyone that he spends more than five minutes with. But he's not a Badger, as he has very clear priorities ie. in season 1 when he thinks he'd have to choose between Dutch and D'avin, he knows he would choose Dutch even if it makes him a bad brother. Or at the end of season 3 when Dutch thinks she would die, she didn't tell Johnny because she thought he won't be able to handle it. He also bonds with individuals, not groups.

Johnny is a Bird secondary with a Snake model for fun undercover stuff and a Badger model he developed after his brother left home and he isn't not particulary fond of ("I am tired of being the one who always fixing things"). But the Bird is genuine: he is the nerd, the computer guy, the one with a plan.

Khlyen Kin Rit is Johnny's mirror in every way, the devil on Dutch's shoulder while Johnny is the angel. And it shows even in their sortings as both are Snake Birds. Khlyen's People are Aneela and then Dutch, nobody else. Everything he does, he does for them. The show doesn't excuse his abuse of Dutch at all, but it's clear Khlyen's acted that way because he thought training Dutch as brutally as he did would be the only way to ensure her survival. As a Bird secondsry, Khlyen is always the guy who has a plan, knowledge that others desperately want. As the other Yalena tells hin: "Even on a bad day, you are ten steps ahead of everyone else".

Pawter Simms who is "Qreshy born, but Westerly made" is a Badger primary whose community is Westerly and she gives up her life for it. Despite her own confession that she is no do gooder, but an exiled addict, Pawter bonds so much with the people of Old Town that she stays behind to help them after a bombing. And when she becomes one of The Nine, her first priority is still Westerly. I would say she is a Lion secondary with a Bird model for her job as a doctor. Just like Dutch and D'avin, Pawter keeps going even when she hits walls everwhere in her path and rarely tries to reconsider her methods.

Aneela Kin Rit is literally another version of Dutch, one who grew up differently, so it shouldn't be surprising that they houseshare. The way Aneela Darth Vaders her ship in season 3 screams of a burned Snake primary who weaponized her burning. During the last seasons she unburns for Kendry and Jaq. As most of the cast Aneela runs straight into obstacles and as a Hullen, she has no problem obliterating everyone that stands in her way. Classic Lion secondary.

Delle Seyah Kendry is a Snake secondary who really has fun manipulating people and playing with them when she has the upper end. In s3, when she is at Aneela's mercy the playfulness is replaced by the more pragmatic need to stay alive and she proves she is just as capable at holding soft power as she is with hard power. I initially had her pegged as a Snake primary who had no people before Aneela and Jaq. Keeley however conviced me she's probably a Bird primary that gets the Eleanor Shellstrop arc of having a very nihilistic system replaced by one with more Snake values (this is a veery Snake verse). She is the character that most cares about politics and the bigger picture. Not to mention, there is an inherit disdain in the first 2 seasons towards loyalists like Pawter and Dutch.

Jaq Kin Rit is for sure a Snake primary who puts his family first. His secondary is harder to point, considering he is still a kid who is still new to the world, but going purely on instinct I would say Badger secondary.

The Lady is probably another Snake primary considering her entire season 5 quest is to be loved by someone; be it either her future hatchlings or, in a cruel twist of faith, Khlyen. Maybe a Bird secondary? She is good at planning.

Lucy - the ship's AI- is an Exploded Snake with Johnny as her person. You only need to watch the first couple of episodes to realize Johnny is Lucy's #1 priority and will always be. Probably Bird secondary as is typical of AIs.

Zephyr Vos gave Keely Hermione Granger vibes and no wonder: the woman is a brilliant scientist, always needs to be right, is at her best when she trusts her instincts (see s5 where she was the first one to realize something was wrong in their idyllic world) and left her family because they forbade her to practice science. I think it's fair to say she is a Lion Bird.

Alvis Akary is a Bird Badger whose truth is his religion and who manages to get out of trouble with the help of friends like Dutch or his Scarback community.

Primma Dezz left his life as a warlord and framed his death because he realized his boyfriend would be a better leader than him. I think it's safe to say he is not a Snake. But considering the way he cares about the people of Old Town, he is a Loyalist. Most likely a Double Badger as his bar is a way to connect people and he is often the one to raise the spirits or the patriotic feelings in the people of Westerly. It's very sweet to see a Double Badger who uses patriotism for good.

Turin is probably a Badger whose community is the RAC. Lion secondsry as these are the kind of people mostly drawn to the Killjoys business.

Gared's a Snake Lion with Pree as his person and more courage than wits.

Fancy Lee "cleans, cooks, builds stuff", making him a Bird secondary. Considering his arc to help the cleansed Hullens, I could easily see him as a Badger primary who had no community before.

TL;DR

Yalena "Dutch" Yardeen - Snake Lion aka The Rebel, Snake secondary model, Bird secondary model

D'avin Jaqobis - Badger Lion aka The Protagonist

Johnny Jaqobis - Snake Bird aka The Mastermind, Snake secondary model, Badger secondary model

Khlyen Kin Rit -Snake Bird aka The Mastermind, Snake secondary model

Pawter Simms - Badger Lion aka The Protagonist, Bird secondary model

Aneela Kin Rit - Snake Lion aka The Rebel, her primary unburns during the story

Delle Seyah Kendry -Bird Snake aka The Artist

Jaq Kin Rit - Snake Badger aka The Lover

The Lady - Snake Bird aka The Mastermind

Lucy - Snake Bird aka The Mastermind, exploded primary

Zephyr Vos- Lion Bird aka The Vigilante

Alvis Akary - Bird Badger aka The Survivor

Primma "Pree" Dezz -Double Badger aka The Peacemaker

Fancy Lee - Badger Bird aka The Arhitecht

Turin - Badger Lion aka The Protagonist

Gared - Snake Lion aka The Rebel

#killjoys #sortinghatchats #killjoys thoughts

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my-writings-and-musings · 3 years

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Hey, I hope you are 100% ok with found family theme? Because found family theme in Transformers are my favourite trope. For the request, would you do the headcanons for Ratchet, Drift and Windblade with the reader who is a techno-organic?

Found Family is the golden trope above all tropes and 1000% supported on this blog anon don't worry about it. Time for some fluff.

Windblade

·Though she's somewhat new to exploring the galaxy, she knows the value of close friends, and how they can become your greatest support when times are tough. She forges bonds that are deep with those she trusts, and she intends to keep those for the rest of her life. To a certain extent one might say she has a family that's always growing. Granted she doesn't just let anyone in, but her kind nature means she's always seeking out those who need companionship. For you, this worked out rather beautifully from the outset. Unlike so many others your nature didn't perturb her in the slightest. She was merely curious, but upon discovering you were being ostracized she took you under her wing and never looked back.

·Like any found family, she introduces you to the other members and explains to each one in private what you'd endured. The bots she'd never known a day without, Chromia and Nautica, stepped up immediately to help. This family is built on mutual support and protecting one another, so think of yourself as having just gained some very large and powerful but loving bodyguards. Chromia in particular has no patience for bullies. Neither does Windblade, but she prefers to sort things out peacefully if you ever find yourself the target of more bullying. That likely comes from her role as a Cityspeaker, given that communication is her greatest skill, and she extends that to you as well. You'll never find her anything but enthusiastic to listen to what you have to say, and she loves to talk and share her opinions right back.

·Speaking of Cityspeaker duties, however, there's someone else in her circle that you'll get to meet. Titan's aren't just her coworkers, she bonds quite closely with them too, and she likes to help others understand that these gigantic beings can actually be quite lonely. Thus, your newfound family turns out to be much larger than you could have ever anticipated. That's to say nothing of how boundless the love and acceptance proves to be, as for the first time you find yourself surrounded by a judgement free environment, and it's like a breath of fresh air. Anything on your mind can be spoken without fear of rejection! Windblade takes listening incredibly seriously, after all, and so for the first time in your life you speak and are heard. The lack of genetic relations does nothing to stifle the wonder of it all.

·Yet, for her incredibly soft spark, Windblade quickly proves she has no patience for the bias you've become accustomed to as a techno-organic. Comments you were once forced to just endure are now met with fiery resistance from your adopted family. Should anyone ever get the idea they can threaten you, that assumption is very quickly corrected. The Stormfall Sword rarely even needs to be unsheathed for them to learn you're under considerable protection, and even if it does Windblade won't hesitate if she fears you're in any kind of danger, and neither will anyone else on your side. When you ask why they reply as if it's obvious; family looks out for family. They're with you through thick and thin, and you don't have to endure any cross words so long as they're around. Each one promises that much.

·Having endured what you have, it takes some time for you to understand that they mean it, and that they'll never abandon you. Windblade has truly taken you under her wing, as she so often likes to joke.

Ratchet

·Being a medic for a species desperately understaffed with doctors can be exceptionally difficult, especially with such high mortality rates, but that's never stopped Ratchet from caring. He knows every life is precious, and he forms friendships with the intent of them lasting a lifetime. No one is ever going to be uncared for if he has something to say about it. Thus, you more or less find yourself "adopted" by the gruff medic before you can even blink. Though techno-organics often face exclusion from bots, Ratchet has spent enough time performing surgery to know that what's on the inside physically hardly matters in terms of character. He's held the sparks of Autobots and Decepticons alike, and at the end of the day they all look the same.

·That being said, he makes it very clear to you that if anyone gives you a hard time, he wants to know straight away. His famously gruff demeanor isn't all an act, and he can absolutely make a bot regret every single mean word they said to you. Not only that, but he knows how emotional health is just as important as physical, so he makes sure to check in on you quite frequently. It's not our of character for him to sit you down if he sees something is bothering you, at which point he'll gently ask if you'd like to talk and he'll listen. Being busy doesn't mean he won't do everything in his power to make time for you.

·Something people often forget though, and you'll probably be quite surprised to see, is how much he likes to celebrate positive achievements and praise your hard work. Like a proud papa, he'll absolutely gush when he hears you've succeeded at something you've been working on. Not just to you either, if you're okay with it, he'll brag about it to anyone that listens. Confidence is important, so he does everything in his power to make sure you know your worth. The other medics all freely join in as well. Everyone who works in the medical bay gets close to one another, so they become your extended family of sorts, like a gathering of aunts and uncles who all do surgery together. It makes for a surprisingly cheerful crew.

·Upon getting closer to him, you eventually see that Ratchet isn't just acting gruff to cover a soft spark, he's arguably the softest bot on the entire ship. On more than one occasion you've drifted off somewhere only to wake up mysteriously tucked in to your own bed, and when asked he'll simply get flustere and say the mattress is better for your back. Trust him; he's fallen asleep at his desk often enough to know. Should you ever come down with any kind of illness, however, all pretenses of gruffness will dissapear very quickly. You'll find yourself doted on by a very caring docbot, one who encourages you to relax and not strain yourself while he brings you anything you need.

·Being a techno-organic often means enduring so much isolation that receiving any kind of medical care is hard, as neither organics nor bots typically want to treat you. However, as you spend more time with the medic who's adopted you, something begins to become clear. Not only do you receive all the medical attention you need without hesitation, but all the care one requires to truly be healthy. As a family should, he and the others medics look out for your emotional wellbeing too. Your sense of self finally begins to heal as you never knew it needed to.

Drift

·When it comes to being alone, few bots have a greater understanding than a former Decepticon. Even on the Lost Light he's pushed to the outskirts, and thus his precious few friends become lifelong companions that are naturally his family. Having explored far and wide and knowing that the prejudice against techno-organics like yourself is awful, his first action when he saw you was to offer his protection. He'll never let anyone endure loneliness if he can help it. You're surprised by how incredibly warm and affectionate he is right from the start, as his reputation would hardly suggest a bot who welcomes you like a literal ray of sunshine.

·Yet in surprisingly short order you find yourself under the protection of a bot who's simultaneously the friendliest and deadliest being on the ship. Drift checks in with you regularly to ensure you're not being made fun of or even made to feel the slightest bit uncomfortable. He doesn't want to kick anyone's butt, but he makes it clear he absolutely will if you're at risk, and he has the go ahead from Rodimus on that front. Speaking of which, the captain of the ship immediately grants you his own protection as well, stating that anyone who befriends his bestie is good by him. You're happy but incredibly surprised to find two individuals with such different personalities acting like they've grown up together, and the two don't even care about all the ways their perspectives differ!

·Growing closer to Drift only makes you more amazed at how impossibly mellow and relaxed he is. Though the bot could easily best almost any bot on the ship in combat, he's only interested in being friends with his fellow Autobots, hoping to extend the tenets of his religion into all aspects of his life. Though he wants you to convert, there's absolutely no pressure to do so, and he happily accepts your refusal if you decline. The laid back mech shows you the kind of nonjudgemental support system you never knew was possible. When asked about it, he says that he wants you to have a place where you'll always feel accepted, and he hopes to provide that.

·Even more than acceptance, you find him to be incredibly encouraging of all your goals, no matter how small some of them may be. Every time you achieve something he's effusive in his praise. Though he doesn't say why, eventually you put together that he sorely lacked the same in his youth. No doubt, he wants to provide you with everything he was missing. Whether he's more akin to a dad, uncle or cool brother becomes irrelevant over time. In time you come to realize what matters is you have someone who will always be in your corner. Should you ever need positive reinforcement of any kind, it's merely a request away.

·It takes time for it all to really sink in that you've been adopted more or less, all without your new family ever mentioning as much. In fact, Drift so naturally welcomed you into his life you're not sure he realized it either. The ninja bot is simply so loving and accepting you could forget there's a harsh universe out there every time he pulls you in for some comfort after a hard day. The peace of having such a system of support is indescribable.

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eddiiediaz · 4 years

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Born this way with Alex

I’m sorry this took me a few days but thank you so much for the prompt! Also, this did not mean to be so long. Oops. Anyways. Hope you enjoy :)

Warning: Mentions of past homophobia.

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Born This Way

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Alex was wandering in the hallways of Los Feliz HIgh School after supporting Julie on her first performance in her music class without them. The rest of the band had performed with her at her school a couple of more times after their first time for pep rallies and dances. The principal tried to book them as much as she could to show that the new breakout band, Julie and The Phantoms, who were now starting to perform at big venues, like the Orpheum, were discovered at her school. He always couldn’t help but be amused by that.

For a big part of her final grade for her semester, Julie had to perform by herself. Reggie had been confused as to why she was nervous of singing solo in her high school class when she had already sung solo in the Orpheum of all places. But Alex understood. Not only did he have anxiety about practically everything, but doing things that had a lot of emotional weight to them even when you seemed to be getting passed them could be very nerve-wracking. And even though all three of them had the urge to perform with her, they knew that they couldn’t and that she’d completely kill it anyways. Which she did, of course.

After the class was over, Julie had her free period. But, instead of spending it with the boys and Flynn, she and Luke wanted some ‘alone’ time together. Meanwhile, Flynn had a marketing team meeting for the band, which now had at least eight members from the school and a lot more clamoring for the chance to be a part of it. And Reggie was so excited and happy for Julie that he couldn't help but want to tell Ray right away. And unlike before, Julie’s dad could now see them and respond back to him.

Whatever Julie did to save their souls from being obliterated into existence, not only made her be able to touch them all, but made them able to show themselves to lifers without just performing with her. Usually they had to be with Julie in order for lifers to see them, but if they had a bond with a lifer, like the guys did with Flynn and Julie’s family, then they could see them without Julie. But they still didn’t show themselves to lifers very much.

Alex especially didn’t.

He wanted to focus more on trying to figure just how this was all possible. He and Willie came up with different theories, but nothing too concrete yet.

Besides, he kinda liked being invisible. He could be his full self and still be in front of lifers without worrying about what they were thinking about him. Like Willie had mentioned that day at the museum, being a drummer had not only helped him with his anxieties and frustrations, but helped him feel confident and be his full self in front of an entire crowd of people. And being a ghost gave him that same freedom, they just couldn’t see him. And he was okay with that, for the most part.

It actually sorta liberated him in a way.

Alex could do whatever he wanted in front of someone and he didn’t have to worry about their responses. Like that time when he danced on stage with Carrie. He had felt so free, like he could do whatever he wanted and just be. Of course his band could see him when he did it. And even though he just knew Julie for a short time, he knew he didn’t have to worry about her and the guys judging him or seeing him differently.

Like his family had.

Even after apparently 25 years of being dead, it still was only less than a year for Alex when he came out to his family. And they never treated him the same since. He used to remind himself that he was lucky. They didn’t say anything demeaning to him and kicked him out or anything like that. Heck, they even still let Sunset Curve have their studio in the back of the house.

But they still acted differently toward him after that fateful night.

In retrospect, he supposed that having the guys there as support for him might’ve not been the best approach, especially the way his parents had looked at him and Luke sitting next to each other. But Alex didn’t care, because he knew that he wouldn’t have done it without the band. Maybe he would have later on, but given the fact that just six months later he would die of an oldsmobile street dog, who knows if he would’ve gotten another chance.

And Alex was glad that he did it when he did.

Of course it stung when his parents would treat him so...differently. It was sometimes hard to even explain it. Sometimes they’d give him these strange looks whenever they didn’t think that he was looking. Like he was this weird alien living in their house, and not the son that they had raised and loved for seventeen years. And they also stopped inviting him to places and family outings, even assuming that he wouldn’t want to go to church anymore. And even when he wanted to, they heavily implied that they didn’t want him to go, always using the excuse, “Don’t you want to practice more with your band?”

However, as he and the guys would always say, it was on them and not him for thinking anything of him any less than the same boy they knew who was anxious about everything and allergic to nuts. It wasn’t his fault that they had seen him differently just because they found out that he liked boys instead of girls.

Besides, he had his real family now.

And even though he was...you know...dead, after everything he and the band went through, Alex was happy.

And as far as ghosts went, he had a pretty sweet deal. Unlike most ghosts, he could still connect with lifers, and in the best way too. That connection he’d feel with the audience while he’d rock out on his drums as he and the band would play the best musical experiences? Priceless. But he also just liked being a ghost in general. He could be in a crowd of lifers and do what he wanted, not having to worry about their judgments or what they’d think of him. He also liked to watch people and make faces or do silly dances in front of them because he could. As he said earlier, there was a sort of freedom in all of it.

However, there was that part deep down inside of him that felt like part of the reason why he liked being invisible was because that way lifers couldn’t disappoint him by not appreciating who he was whenever he wasn’t rocking out.

Alex immediately pushed those thoughts away and continued to People Watch as he wandered the hallways some more. It really was a cool thing to be a ghost and see people during moments where they normally weren’t seen.

Suddenly, he heard music with a great pop beat start to play from one of the rooms ahead. Curiosity taking over, he poofed in front of the door, and saw that it was the dance room that Julie and Flynn had talked about before. It was empty except for one person in the middle of the giant space seeming to be dancing in freestyle.

It didn’t take long for Alex to realize that the person was Carrie, Julie’s ex-best friend turned enemy turned back to sorta friend now? He was a little confused and fuzzy on the details. All he knew was that her and Julie and Flynn seemed to be, or at least on their way of becoming, good with each other again. She also found out about the Phantoms being...well actual phantoms, but to everyone’s surprise, she promised not to say anything.

Especially considering who her dad was.

Carrie couldn’t see them without Julie being in the same room, so she didn’t notice Alex’s arrival. Instead she danced to the infectious beat that he couldn’t help but move his feet a bit to.

She then started to sing along to the voice of the song coming from her phone.

My mama told me when I was young

"We are all born superstars"

She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on

In the glass of her boudoir

From his spot near the door, his legs and arms started to move with the music as well.

"There's nothing wrong with loving who you are"

She said, "'Cause he made you perfect, babe"

He stopped for a moment, struck by the lyrics.

"So hold your head up, girl, and you'll go far

Listen to me when I say"

The beat then started to get a little faster, making him start to move his body again, this time faster and more of actual dancing. Carrie then began to sing louder.

I'm beautiful in my way

'Cause God makes no mistakes

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way

Don't hide yourself in regret

Just love yourself, and you're set

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way (Born this way)

A strange sensation formed within him as he danced to the rhythm and listened to the lyrics. It was mostly like the feelings he’d get when he found a new favorite song or jammed to an old favorite. But this. This felt slightly...different in a way. But a great different. One that made his feet and entire body move with the music, as he danced further into the room.

Don't be a drag, just be a queen, Carrie sang putting one hand on her hip and the other in the air, similar to how she did in her previous performances.

Don't be a drag, just be a queen

Alex mimed her movement, feeling completely consumed by the song.

Don't be a drag, just be a queen

Don't be (Don't be, don't be)

The tempo then slowed just a bit, probably going to the next verse, he figured.

Give yourself prudence and love your friends

Subway kid, rejoice your truth

In the religion of the insecure

I must be myself, respect my youth

A different lover is not a sin

Believe capital H-I-M, hey, hey, hey

I love my life, I love this record and

Mi amore vole fe yah (Same DNA)

Tears formed in his eyes at the words, feeling like the song was talking directly to him, considering what he was just thinking about with his parents. Alex then lifted his hands up in the air, completely feeling the moment. He continued to dance like no one was watching - and literally no one was.

I'm beautiful in my way

'Cause God makes no mistakes

Alex had started to sing along with Carrie and the beautiful voice on her phone, closing his eyes and completely letting the magic of the music consume him.

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way

Don't hide yourself in regret

Just love yourself, and you're set

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way (Born this way)

Suddenly a loud shriek made Alex quickly open his eyes. Carrie was looking him straight in the eye through the mirror, one hand on her heart and one on her hip, anger seeming to simmer out of her.

“Hey, Casper, you can’t just sneak up on a girl like that!” She exclaimed with a hiss before rushing to get her phone that was in front of the mirror along with her bag. She then turned the music off, making Alex instantly miss it.

He put his hands up in surrender. “Sorry! I didn’t think you could see me!”

Carrie looked at him again and placed both of her hands on her hips this time, sending a deathly glare at him. “Oh. So you were just being a creeper who didn’t think you would get caught, is that?”

“No, no no!” Alex quickly replied, shaking his head and hands frantically. “It wasn’t anything like that, I swear! Trust me.”

She seemed to study him for a moment before giving him an expectant look. “Then what was it like?”

Alex shoved his hands in his pockets and then shyly told her, “I watched Julie’s performance during music class and was just wandering the halls when I heard the song you were playing.”

Her eyes immediately perked at that as a smile spread her face. “You like Gaga?”

He gave her a confused look, though the name sounded vaguely familiar. “What’s a ‘Gaga’?” He asked, using air quotes for the last word.

Carrie stared at him in disbelief. “You don’t know who Lady Gaga is? She’s an icon!”

“Is she some kind of royal who sings killer pop songs?”

She seemed to think about it for a moment before nodding. “Well basically yes. Just not in the kind of royal you’re thinking of. A much more important one.”

“So she’s like pop royalty?” He asked.

“Absolutely.” She then pursed her lips. “I’m actually kinda surprised that Julie or Flynn hasn’t introduced you to her yet. They both love her almost as much as I do.”

Alex thought about it for a moment. “Actually, come to think of it, I think they mentioned her before but I was too afraid to ask what in the world a gaga was.”

Carrie shrugged. “Well now you know.”

An awkward silence passed between them.

“So…” she began to say, breaking the silence first, “that was your first time hearing Born This Way or Gaga in general, right?”

He nodded.

“Did you like it?”

“It was amazing! I haven’t felt so connected to a song that wasn’t our band’s in quite a while.” He felt himself start to get a little emotional thinking about the lyrics and just the song in general, and how it made him feel. It was always an amazing thing when a song could touch your soul like that. Especially when it played right when you needed it.

Carrie smiled, seeming to have a knowing glint in her eye. “Yeah. Gaga can do that to you.”

“Yeah.” He smiled back. “I guess I was feeling it so much while singing and dancing to it along with you that it made you able to see me.”

“Damn.” She began to say in awe. “I knew Lady Gaga was powerful, but wow.”

Her saying that reminded him of the first song he heard her sing. “Hey, that reminds me. I like that song that you sang at that pep rally before our band sang for the first time. The one where you said ‘Wow’ a lot.”

Her eyes lit up again at that. “You mean “Wow”?”

“Yeah! And I like all of the other ones Dirty Candy sang too.” He then placed his hand around his cheek like he was telling her a secret. “But All Eyes On Me is my personal favorite.”

“You like my music?” She asked, pleasantly surprised.

“Absolutely! They always bring my inner ‘Dancing Queen’ out, as what my friends like to call it.”

She let out a small laugh. “Thank you.” Carrie smiled brightly at him. “You know, Gaga is one of my many influences. I listen to her as a warm up every time to help get me inspiration for my new song or choreo.”

“That’s so cool.”

“Wanna dance to her some more?”

He gave her a bright smile and nodded so vehemently that he thought his head was going to pop up. “Yes please!”

She clasped her hands together. “Great! Then I can give you a list of her songs that you have to check out first. Got it?”

“Got it.”

Carrie then went back to her phone and played where the song left off.

Ooh, there ain't no other way

Baby, I was born this way

Baby, I was born this way (Born this way)

They sang and danced with all the energy they had.

Ooh, there ain't no other way

Baby, I was born this way

Right track, baby

They both then sang at the top of their lungs, “I was born this way!”

***

A couple hours later, Alex met up with Willie, having a giant pep in his step and gave his boyfriend a giant smile that was even wider than usual.

“Hey, Hotdog! Someone seems more chipper than usual.”

Alex waved a casually dismissive hand, “Oh it’s nothing.”

He felt a little insecure about telling Willie about his latest music discovery and how much it helped him. Even though he knew that his boyfriend not only knew how much music meant to him, but would never demean things that made him happy.

“It doesn’t seem like nothing. What is it?’ Willie asked, giving him a soft and encouraging smile.

“Oh, it’s just that I found this new song and artist.” Alex shyly began to say.

His boyfriend’s smile grew. “Yeah?”

Alex shoved his hands in his pockets and began to kick the air in front of him. “Have you heard of Lady Gaga?”

Willie laughed, “Yeah I’ve heard of Gaga.” Instant fear shot up within Alex. “She’s great, right?”

The fear dissipated and turned into a sense of relief. He didn’t know why it mattered to him so much if Willie liked this Lady Gaga person. Hell, there were artists and songs that Willie liked that Alex didn’t and vice versa. And it was the same with his band, although they’d often end up having good-natured arguments about it. So why was this any different?

Alex nodded. “Yeah. I really like her songs I’ve heard so far.”

He gave him another encouraging smile. “Yeah, which ones?”

“Well, I like all of them. But Born This Way was the first one I heard and it’s my favorite.”

Willie’s smile brightened. “Yeah, mine too.” He then placed his hand on top of Alex’s. “Here follow me.”

Confused as to what was happening, Alex followed Willie, hands firmly intact, as they headed further down the boardwalk. They then stopped at more of a private part of the beach that seemed to be having some sort of event.

“I heard that someone was having a wedding tonight and I wanted to take you.”

“A-a wedding? Why-why would you want to-to take m-me to a wed-wedding?” Alex stammered and mentally scolded himself for acting like such an idiot.

Willie chuckled. “Relax, Hotdog. I love going to weddings as a ghost.”

“To skate?”

“I do skate, yeah. But I go because I love to see all of the different kinds of people that attend and the drama that no one sees. But mostly I like to see what kind of music they have.” He waggled his brow mischievously. “And if it’s a DJ or DJ system I like to mess with the lifers and put on random songs to see everyone’s reactions.”

It was Alex’s turn to chuckle. “That actually sounds really fun.”

Willy’s smile brightened even more. “I thought you would think so. That’s why I brought you here.” He squeezed his hand three times, making Alex’s ghost heart skip a beat. “Let’s go!” He then pulled Alex with him further into the wedding reception.

They stopped in the middle of the dancefloor, where there were a few lifers slow dancing. Alex gulped, waiting for them to slow dance as well. Willie then pointed to the DJ setup and snapped his hand. Suddenly the beat of a song that Alex may or may not have listened to at least three times that day, started to fill the speakers.

Alex felt his lips spread into a giant smile once more and laughed when he noticed the shocked reactions on the wedding’s patrons' faces from the sudden song change.

“Thought you might like that.” Willy announced proudly, giving him a soft look.

They then noticed how the patrons were now starting to dance to the song, making even more people coming up to the dance floor.

Alex was the first to start dancing, WIlly immediately following right after.

There were some moments where they danced next to each other, and other where their hands would collide and they’d do different moves like swinging each other around. Sometimes they would go through the lifers or dance around them. But all the while they were singing at the top of their lungs as well.

Don't be a drag, just be a queen

Whether you're broke or evergreen

You're black, white, beige, cholo descent

You're Lebanese, you're orient

Whether life's disabilities

Left you outcast, bullied, or teased

Rejoice and love yourself today

Dancing next to each other again, they both then turned to one another, grabbed the other’s hands, and softly sang, “'Cause baby, you were born this way”

They then went back to belting it out at the top of their lungs.

No matter gay, straight, or bi

Lesbian, transgender life

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born to survive

No matter black, white, or beige

Chola or orient made

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born to be brave!

Alex shouted the last part as loud as he could, throwing an arm in the air.

I'm beautiful in my way

'Cause God makes no mistakes

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way

Don't hide yourself in regret

Just love yourself, and you're set

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way, yeah

They continued to dance and sing, having the time of their ghost lives.

Once the song was getting to the end, the two boys latched their hands together and started to sing the rest to each other.

Ooh, there ain't no other way

Baby, I was born this way

Baby, I was born this way (Born this way)

Ooh, there ain't no other way

Baby, I was born this way

Right track, baby

I was born this way

I was born this way, hey

I'm on the right track, baby

I was born this way

They then leaned closer to each other for the last part.

I was born this way, hey

I'm on the right track, baby

They sang softly to each other, their lips only a few inches apart.

“I was born this way, hey!”

And then their lips collided, their giant smiles remaining.

#julie and the phantoms #alex #alex molina #willex #carrie wilson #willie #jatp fic #kj gets a prompt #my writing #kj's writing #again thank you so much #i'm not sure about

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irathegoddessworld · 3 years

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Oppression of women in India: I know we women have always ranted about the way we are oppressed but I kinda wanted to make a list of the reasons why this actually happens:

Until Twentieth century, women in India weren't exposed to education at any level compared to men. All of the system was filled with men at the top, working while women at home, doing household chores.

It was not even evident that women were being neglected to all the basic rights that they should have from birth that a man is allowed easily but it was a fact that society had fit into their minds from so many centuries (which increased in nintinth and twentieth century, women before that even knew how to weild swords) that they weren't even noticing that they're being oppressed.

A man does the outside work and woman stays at home, it had become so common- like a lifestyle, like the food we eat, the breath we take and water we drink - it was like a ritual- people (men) feared that if it changed somehow, women might be better at this, they will start going out, they will have education, opinions- then they will start opposing us for the wrongs that we do them in basic everyday living and that scared the shit out of them.

Then started the war: as women started getting educated bit by bit, it started a revolution. In 1916, first women's university at Pune was opened with five students under the guidance and hard-work of Shri. Maharshi karve.

This was a modern history part but what about our actual history? (I am going talk about Hindu religion here, because I am a proud follower of it.) If you have read Mahabharata, you would find that queen Draupadi was insulted, duryodhana had tried to strip her, in front of room full of men who sat on their thrones while doing nothing to stop the horrifying act. Now many people from the community will argue upon the fact that it was her fault, she laughed at him when he fell in the pool at indraprstha, that's why it is right that she's getting the fruit of her acts. Is this what you take from that part? If Krishna wanted to give that message he wouldn't have caused the whole Mahabharata- the lesson is that- if you insult a woman- you'll never found peace-millions will die- you'll be roaming the earth until it gets destroyed. Stop using Hindu history to give excuses for behaviour of men- it was totally wrong what happened and he got the punishment of it. You just have to read it right!

Around the end of twentieth century, if a woman was learning, working it was because she was allowed to, she had no one to stop her. But it was extremely rare. Most of the women are still home, caring for their husbands, his parents, kids. My mother once told me that she had an offer to teach at electronic section of a college, but my paternal grandfather proudfuly said, "women in our house don't work!". She was twenty two. She sat home. She is still at home. Checking out her friends on Facebook who celebrate women's Day at their workplace.

I'm a second girl child in my family: literally except my father, everyone was sad when i was born.

In twentieth century, a lot of women were learning, my grandma did (but never was allowed to work), my mother did (was not allowed to work), I am learning. And I'll never give anyone else the right to decide whether I'll work or not.

It's 2021, most of the society is changing, fast. We say this because we see women in India working. But what happens in the house I'll tell you. My brother in law just joined a new company. His WFH timing is from 11.30 am to 7pm, let's say with lunch breaks and other included. My sister works in a bank, goes to work at 9.30 am. They have a one year old kid. As soon as my sis wakes up, the kid wakes up too. She gives her a bath makes herself and the kid ready, feeds the kid and herself. Makes the food for in laws and husband (breakfast and rotis for lunch) and then leaves. She wakes up at 6.30 am. While that man lays in bed till 8. And we say we have empowered women.

The problem lies at the basic nurturing difference between a boy and a girl. If that is changed from the start, then the society would actually change. If both are working, the household chores SHOULD BE DIVIDED EQUALLY. If it's not divided, then we women need to understand the fact that we're doing more damage to our mental, physical, emotional self by doing more work than the women did in recent centuries.

We women do not support eachother like we should. Our grandma's, ma's have always told us to stay quiet, sit like this, talk like that, get married at 25, what not. As the new generation is coming up, I hope we do not make our girl child to save herself in a cucoon until the prince charming comes and saves her, again.Let her, save, free herself. Let her be the butterfly, give her a chance to survive the rain. Let her do mistakes, let her go out, let her have boyfriends, let her decide her sexuality, let her decide her career path, let her live on her own. Just let her! DO NOT TRY TO SAVE HER, SHE WILL LEARN NOTHING FROM THAT! (Keeping in mind that you want her to learn anything in the first place).

There are a lot of facts that can be added into this post but I'm tired. Also, it's embarrassing that so many of the facts are still remaining to be added. Everyday sexism, taunts, smirks I don't know how much.

One thing I'll definitely need to add is- if you're learning and will be independent in the future, keep your finances separate. Have your own money to fall back on. You should never be broke in this new India. If you're a working woman, you have the respect, you don't need to borrow from anyone- you should never be dependent. Please, please earn.

That's my rant. If you've made it till here, thank you so much.

#sexism #india #womensupportingwomen #writing #my writing #bookworm #bibliophile #history #indian #books #aesthetic #personal rant #random rant #sorry for the rant #poetry #indianhistory #womeninspiringwomen #chaotic academia #natural history

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introvertguide · 3 years

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Saving Private Ryan (1998); AFI #71

The next film on the list is one of the best films of any genre, Saving Private Ryan (1998). This is what I consider the best war film of all time despite how overwhelming it is to watch. Maybe it is because it is so difficult to watch, since the movie was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and received five trophies. Because of the ensemble cast and almost complete lack of women, the film was never going to garner much in the way of acting awards. Like the soldiers who they hoped to portray, these actors shouldn’t have expected much individual recognition. This movie affected me greatly, and I would like to delve into that after going through the story line.

MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!!! BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THE FILM, EVERYTHING THAT COULD POSSIBLY BE REVEALED AS FAR AS PLOT IS GIVEN AWAY BELOW!!!

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In the present day, an elderly man visits the Normandy Cemetery with his family. At a tombstone, he falls to his knees in anguish. The establishing shots showing the mass of grave stones is overwhelming from the get-go. The movie transitions from the graveyard to a landing boat at the battle of Normandy. Be prepared because it is about to get rough.

On the morning of June 6, 1944, American soldiers land at Omaha Beach as part of the Normandy invasion. Everything goes bad immediately as machine guns and mortars literally tear the landing soldiers to shreds. Soldiers are screaming for their mothers as they die on the beach. There is no going back into the ocean so the soldiers have run into the machine gun fire. Captain John H. Miller (Tom Hanks) of the 2nd Ranger Battalion leads a breakout from the beach that makes it through to the German encampment. It is about 15 minutes of carnage and nobody will blame you if you want to forward through this until the action cools down. Elsewhere on the beach, a dead soldier lies face-down in the bloody surf; his pack is stenciled Ryan, S. It is at this point I would recommend taking a breather if you need one.

Continuing on, we are shifted to Washington, D.C., at the War Department (keep an eye out for Bryan Cranston with one arm), where General George C. Marshall learns that three of the four sons of the Ryan family were killed in action within a short time of one another. Daniel Ryan in New Guinea shortly before D-Day, Sean Ryan at Omaha Beach, and Peter Ryan at Utah Beach: all dead with letters arriving the same day for their mother. The fourth son, James Francis Ryan, is with the 101st Airborne Division somewhere in Normandy. After reading Abraham Lincoln's Bixby letter, which is meant to comfort grieving parents, aloud, Marshall orders Ryan found and brought home.

Three days after D-Day, Miller receives orders to find Ryan and bring him back. He chooses seven men from his company for the job—T/Sgt. Mike Horvath (Tom Sizemore), Privates First Class Richard Reiben (Edward Burns) and Adrian Caparzo (Vin Diesel), Privates Stanley Mellish (Adam Goldberg) and Daniel Jackson (Barry Pepper), T/4 medic Irwin Wade (Giovanni Ribisi) and T/5 Timothy Upham (Jeremy Davies), an interpreter from the 29th Infantry Division. The group moves out to Neuville where they meet a squad of the 101st engaged against the enemy and both Ted Danson and Paul Giamatti show up. THe group searching for Ryan bump into a stranded French family who try to give over their children but a German sniper breaks up the party. Caparzo is killed by a German sniper, who is then killed by Jackson (who makes the most amazing shot that legends are made of). They locate a Private James Ryan (Nathan Fillion), only to learn that he is James Frederick Ryan. On the point of giving up, the Captain starts asking random passing soldiers and learns that Ryan is defending an important bridge in Ramelle.

Near Ramelle, Miller decides to neutralize a German machine gun position at a derelict radar station, despite his men's misgivings. It does not go well and the medic, Wade, is killed in the process. They take a German soldier that they name Steamboat Willie (Joerg Stadler) who gives up willingly and pleads for his life. The men are angry and want to kill the soldier since they can’t take any extras, so, at Upham's urging, Miller frees the surviving German soldier. Losing confidence in Miller's leadership, Reiben declares his intention to desert, prompting a confrontation with Horvath, who threatens to shoot him. Miller defuses the standoff by disclosing his civilian career as a high school English teacher in a small Pennsylvania town.

At Ramelle, they find Ryan (Matt Damon) among a small group of paratroopers preparing to defend the key bridge against an imminent German attack. Miller tells Ryan that his brothers are dead, and that he was ordered to bring him home. Ryan is distressed about his brothers, but is unwilling to leave his post. Miller combines his unit with the paratroopers in defense of the bridge. He devises a plan to ambush the enemy with two .30-caliber machine guns, Molotov cocktails, anti-tank mines, and improvised satchel charges made from socks. It is basically suicide so the bridge is wired to explode in case it can’t be held.

Now is a time to take a breather if you need one because it is about to get bad again. Elements of the 2nd SS Panzer Division arrive with two Tiger tanks and two Marder tank destroyers, all protected by infantry. The small American group holds off the force the best they can, Although they inflict heavy damage on the Germans, nearly all of the paratroopers, along with Jackson, Mellish and Horvath, are killed. It turns out that Steamboat Willie joined the group and he personally kills Mellish with a Nazi youth knife (it is horrible) and shoots Miller Captain Miller as he attempts to blow up the bridge. Miller crawls to retrieve the bridge detonator, and fires ineffectually but defiantly with his pistol at an oncoming tank. As the tank reaches the bridge, an American P-51 Mustang flies overhead and destroys the tank, after which American armored units arrive to rout the remaining Germans. With the Germans in full retreat, Upham emerges from hiding and shoots Steamboat Willie dead, having witnessed him shooting Miller, but allows his fellow soldiers to flee.

Miller tells Ryan to “earn this” before dying from his injuries. As the scene transitions to the present, Ryan is revealed to be the veteran from the beginning of the film, and is standing in front of Miller's grave expressing his gratitude for the sacrifices Miller and his unit made in the past. Ryan asks his wife if he was worthy of such sacrifice, to which she replies that he is. The final scene shows Ryan saluting Miller's grave and fades to the American flag gently waving in the breeze.

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I really have a hard time getting through this film without pausing and taking a breather. I saw the film in the theater when I was 18, so my friends and I were all around the age that these soldiers would have been that rushed that beach and retook France. It was truly terrifying. Now I am old and have back issues, so I wouldn’t be put on a front line, but the kids that I work with and care for would be the exact age to be caught in a draft and that scares me even more. The creative ways in which man finds to kill one another is the greatest threat to humanity.

The first two times I saw the film, I did not realize that it was the same German soldier that the group had captured who eventually killed many of the group we were following. It really changes the message in the end. I had thought that Captain Miller had showed his humanity showing mercy, but it turns out that this mercy is misplaced. Now it seems like Spielberg is saying that neither humanity, nor religion, nor innocence, nor skill, nor even intelligence can save a man in the heat of battle. The only way to live is to watch the back of your group and protect each other like family.

There was a little bit of a travesty that occurred at the Academy in early 1999, because this film lost out in the Best Picture category to Shakespeare in Love. This is the same year that also saw Saving Private Ryan, The Truman Show, Life is Beautiful, Elizabeth, and The Thin Red Line. There had to be something behind that because I wouldn’t consider the winner even in the top 5. Shakespeare in Love is considered one of the worst Best Picture winners along with Crash and The Artist. Oscars are not everything and this movie is one of the best examples of this.

When I say that some of the scenes from this movie are difficult, I really do mean it. There was a hotline set up for people who have PTSD that was triggered by the film. One of the actual members of the 101st Airborne, Major Richard Winters, was consulted about the occurrences surrounding the attack. He said that it brought up many memories that he had worked hard to suppress because he had been taught that war veterans couldn’t express the psychological pain of battle. He also said that it was an important film that revealed what war was really like.

On Veteran’s Day in 2001 and 2004, ABC aired the film uncut with limited commercial interruptions. Living in California, I was able to watch the film on both of those occasions and remember getting my girlfriend at the time to watch in 2004. The film has become like a memorial to Americans lost in the European Campaign during WW2, so I treat viewing as a badge of honor and understanding, no matter how difficult it is to watch.

This film is a pretty easy answer when it comes to the standard questions for the most part. Does this film belong on the AFI top 100? Of course. It is the new benchmark for which all American war films will be judged. It is historically accurate, it is beautifully shot and directed, and it leaves a lasting impression far longer than just about any movie I have seen. Would I recommend it? This one has an age warning. It is not appropriate for young children because the first and last battle scenes are nightmare fuel. Even worse, they are apparently very realistic. It is hard to recommend something that is so scarring, but it will keep people for glorifying battle. It is horrific and should be avoided as much as possible. And that is a lesson that I believe this movie teaches better than any other. So please give this movie a watch and feel free to take a break if you need it.

#tom hanks #saving private ryan #d-day #veterans #best director #1998 #war films #steven spielberg #normandy #introvert #introverts #matt damon #vin diesel #bryan cranston

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