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whereserpentswalk · 6 months

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Capitalism's narrative of eternal security

Sometimes I think about people who, in 2023, still make covid the main part of their politics. Like people who legitimately want full lockdowns to have been constant for the past three years. It feels like they're still stuck in 2020, like, looking at their posts, their weird shrinking subreddit, makes me feel strangely nostalgic. There's a point where it goes from a coherent ideology (because I think we understand by now that there's not going to be some magic event to make covid go away) to something closer to "the world is terrible and people suffer, so any happiness is morally wrong".

I feel like there's a deeply conservative trend to want to regulate the world into something completely safe. It goes back to 9/11, both in the very tangible things like the no-fly list, and the narrative people had around it. I don't know this for a fact because it predated my birth, but there were people who wanted to cancel Halloween that year, or asked if there would ever be comedy again, after the attack, which isn't logical, but is the type of thing that makes sense to a traumatized brain. This idea that society must be regulated by an overarching authority to keep everyone safe, the idea that everyone's ability to live their life is secondary to a vague idea of security.

Even the idea that a group is unsafe is the core emotion behind a lot of bigotry. It's a big reason why a lot of people want closed borders, it's why a lot of people want to regulate the rights of trans people, it's created a type of policing that disproportionately hurts poor people, poc, and the homeless, its why mentally ill people have basically no rights in this country. There's this idea that the freedom, and often even the life of marginalized people, is limited by standards of public safety. Even going back to covid, the idea that no harm done by covid was acceptable is based on the idea that harm and death from unemployment, abuse, and mental health issues are acceptable. So much of humanity is more confident that we can abolish nature then that we can abolish capitalism.

We always present safety like it's this trolly problem every society must grapple with, with no easy answer. But once you realize it's the freedom of the marginalized, and the safety (or often just the feeling of safety) of the privileged.

In a way the entire system of capitalism is just forcing people to give up their freedom for safety from things capitalism caused. And when people make fortunes off of making people sell their freedom for safety, they end up really hating when you want to abolish the danger they profit off of, rather than just passively "protecting people" from it.

I don't think I'm wording everything well. But I think it's something to think about. I feel like the prime emotion behind conservativism for the average person isn't hatred but fear. And fear isn't rational, it's why it's hard to use rational arguments for any of this. When someone says something like "we need to regulate trans healthcare to prevent any cis children from being harmed" it's hard to defeat that with pure numbers, statistics are only calming to people who want to be calmed by them, you could mention that it's harming trans people to regulate these, but that doesn't help because their fear narrative is about cishet children having their status as socially conforming taken from them, not about trans people being tangibly harmed. The only real way to refute this line of thinking (especially as it starts to infect our own communities on the left, and not just outside ones) is to break the narrative that there's some amount of nebulose harm that takes away our rights. There's a reason why deaths under capitalism aren't a concern for the type of people who say our society should prioritize safety, it's more about

An airport with strip searches would be safter from terrorism. A world where lockdown was a permanent policy for the rest of the foreseeable future would have less people harmed by illness. A world where people were chemically castrated until marriage would have almost no sexual assault. For the most part we reject these worlds, even if they're safer we've decided that there are reasons why we don't want this level of safety if it means being subject to certain conditions. And we can extend that to more radical things too, we can say that we don't care if the world is safter with cops, we still don't want cops to exist. We can say we don't care if the world is safter with borders, we still don't want borders to exist. We can reject more narratives of fear. And that includes ones we see popping up in our own communities.

God this post was long, and I didn't even mention ecofascists being a thing, or the leftist argument against gun control. Maybe next time.

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rachelbethhines · 7 months

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60 Years of Doctor Who Anniversary Marathon - McCoy 9th Review

Question Mark Pyjamas - Short Story

The Virgin Decalogs were kind of a precursor to the Short Trips of today. An anthology series that at first focused on Doctor Who, that then went on to feature the Expand Who Universe, and finally focusing on original works with no connection to the series.

This is because Vrigin lost the publishing license for Who after the TV movie. More on that later.

Question Mark Pyjamas is the final story in the second Decalog "Lost Property". The recurring theme of this anthology is all the random properties the Doctor acquires through out his travels... houses, land, condos, boats, hotels... ect.

It's an odd theme, but I haven't read the entire book yet so I can't tell you how well it works as a whole, but I can tell you that said theme is front and center within the short story I'm reviewing today.

A house the Doctor owns is stolen by a alien conman looking to set up a theme park on an asteroid. The Doctor and his companions are held hostage and forced to become a side show attraction for the park. They must quite literally 'play house' and pretend to be a 'normal' earth family for the constantly viewing audience.

I probably make the story sound way cooler than it actually is with that summary.

In reality the narrative has a very slow first half, an awkward middle, and doesn't really come together until the very end.

Part of the problem is that the Tardis crew just kind of stumbles onto the theme park and discovers the stolen house by shear coincidence. They then get captured by the villain when they try to confront him.

Rather than making the very comedic villain an unstoppable force to be reckoned with, it instead just makes our heroes look weak... especially Ace who is supposed to be combat hardened by this point.

Also they aren't forced to preform for a live audience, but are made to 'rehearse' for the villain who never shuts up.

The tension of the story is basically downgraded.

But that's alright, this is intended to be a lighthearted comedy piece.

Except it's not particularly funny.

A lot of the jokes fall flat for me. Mainly cause it only seems to have one joke.

Two foul mouthed, 'modern' women are forced to perform sanitized outdated stereotypes that they hate, and they won't shut up about how much they hate it, but quite literally won't do anything about it with out the Doctor's permission. Hardy, har, har...

Oh and the Doctor makes a weird, out of character, sex joke at some point.

Finally, I just hate how everyone is written through out most of it.

It's like I'm walking into middle of on going argument between a poly group that I have no context for.

Why is everyone in the tardis crew so rude and bitchy to each other at the beginning? What's up with all the awkward innuendoes between them? Why has Ace regressed as a character despite supposedly being older now?

Yeah that's the real disappointment here. I know the NAs had nothing to do with the Professor and Ace audios, but it's still disappointing to go from one story where she shows actual character development to another story where she's even more immature than she was on tv.

Like the character's main conflict in the story is that despite being in her 20s now, Ace is forced to play 'the child' for the attraction. Except she is childish.

She's rude, bratty, calls her own supposed friends names behind their backs, paranoid, self-centered and more concerned with 'having fun' then actually rescuing her friends.

The narrative makes a point to say that she's 'a woman now' and 'old before her time' but then has her behaving like a spoiled 13 year old.

But it's not all bad.

As I said, things pick up as we head towards then end. After Ace decides to remove the stick up her butt and help out, we get several cute scenes.

Ace escaping the house on a motorbike, driving through the amusement park with killer robots chasing after her, laughing all the way, is just unfiltered concentrated Who.

The Doctor and Benny cooking lunch together is adorable, and I love the pay off at the end regarding the roast.

And Benny's pure joy at getting to raid the Doctor's wine cellar full of antique alcohols from around the universe is perhaps the most realized the character has ever been to me.

Like counting this one, I've only read/heard three stories with Benny in total and the character never really clicked for me until this moment. Where she's cradling a wine bottle like a baby and cooing at it, going on and on about how much she's going to enjoy drinking it.

That's hilarious.

Hopefully that humor follows her into the Benny spin-off series which we'll be covering next.

#doctor who #classic who #seventh doctor #sylvester mccoy #ace #benny

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ash-and-books · 1 year

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Rating: 2/5

Book Blurb: From the award-winning author of It Sounded Better in My Head comes a deliciously entertaining enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy about two high school nemeses who end up sharing a house together their first year of college Eighteen-year-old Brooke is the kind of friend who not only remembers everyone’s birthdays, but also organizes the group present, pays for it, and politely chases others for their share. She’s the helper, the doer, the maker-of spreadsheets. She’s the responsible one who always follows the rules—and she plans to keep it that way during her first year of college. Her student housing only has one rule: "no unnecessary drama." Which means no fights, tension, or romance between roommates. When one of them turns out to be Jesse, her high-school nemesis, Brooke is determined she can handle it. They’ll simply silently endure living together and stay out of each other’s way. But it turns out Jesse isn’t so easy to ignore. With Unnecessary Drama, Nina Kenwood perfectly captures the experience of leaving home for the first time, dealing with the unexpected complications of life, and somehow finding exactly what you need.

Review:

When your best friend and the first boy who ever kisses you publicly humiliates and hurts you, that tends to stick with you for a long time... so now years later when you finally find a place to stay and one of your college roommates is said boy... things are about to get tricky. Brooke is a “always help” kind of girl, she’s the responsible friend, and when she discovers that the boy who broke her heart and destroyed her trust is now her college roommate she wants nothing more than to just avoid him as much as possible and endure it until school is over... except he is adamant about trying to explain why he did what he did and about trying to be friends with her. When an ex meets her again she pretends that they’re dating and what starts as one kiss soon spirals. But can Brooke trust Jesse again with her heart after what he did last time? Or would it be a mistake? Their student has one rule “ no unnecessary drama” but there’s going to be tons of drama wherever Jesse and Brooke are concerned. This was a friends to enemies to lovers story but honestly I just got so bored with Jesse and Brooke and wasn’t exactly that invested in them becoming a couple. I definitely think its a “me not you” kind of read where i just didn’t really like the main characters or the couple all that much and found their relationship to be boring. I think if you enjoy second chance romances then this would work for you and that you’ll have a better time with it than I did!

*Thanks Netgalley and Flatiron Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

#book review #bookish #book #unnecessary drama

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prvtbugsbuggins · 2 years

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I got several fics planned this year, including finishing Brand New Colony, SCP: Blood Gulch, and another Caboose anthology.

However I want to be completely self indulgent and write a little self insert fic with Bugs doing bug things cause goddamnit I want to. I want to have my little cretcher learn horrible swears. I want my little worm to get snuggled by everyone after casually killing someone so outright murder is accidentally conditioned in as a good thing. I want Wash and Carolina berating a scientist on why in the FUCK you would take your alien worm you jammed the concept of english lanquage into and then show them 4Chan. Now the alien is constantly typing 'I want to cum inside Rainbow Dash' on a Speak and Spell and the Sim Troopers keep encouraging it to say even worse things. I want people's reactions to the Iris crew letting a highly toxic and deadly alien with venom that can kill a human in mere seconds wander freely to each base for pets and treats. I want to see scientists screaming as the troopers throw the alien at a wall at high speed so it splats like those sticky hands and then watch the alien go back and beg to be thrown again. I want to see enemies be legit afraid to mess with them because one trooper has a literal bio-weopan in their pocket at all times and you cant tell who has them at what time. I want characters with chronic nightmares and sleep issues sleep better because the alien feels like a warm water bottle and sleeps with one pair of eyes open and will relentlessly kill any threats.

I want there to be sheer absolute horror when the alien bug proudly shows off a clutch of eggs and everyone realizes that the troopers are unstoppable with both the power of friendship and complex neurotoxins.

#red vs blue #rvb #bugs buggins #private bugs buggins #rvb oc #completely self indulgent #but boi do i want #this will be a different universe from the bootleg squad #bootleg squad #im usually shy about self inserts but im too old to feel cringe anymore and now it will be everyones problem #mostly i want wash to sleep #i live for comedy where everyone is concerned but the main group #'why would you do that' level science #this gives me serotonin #if people.can write themselves smooching a sim trooper and be proud i can write a horrible swearing alien worm and be proud to #the horror is that bugs' species reproduce via parthenogenesis #you will nevef be rid of them #none of this would have happened if that scientist showed them literally everything else but 4chan

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nugnthopkns · 3 years

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i’ll tell you i was wrong if you dance with me

word count: 3.3k

warnings: explicit fem!reader, slightly unhealthy relationship moment (lack of communication), mention of infidelity, cursing, alcohol consumption, a fair bit of angst

recommended listening: fred astaire | adam brock

a/n: communicate with your partners!!! also yeah this is the song from lady bird. it’s a banger

This seriously isn’t happening.

You never fight with Travis. Communication comes easy between the two of you, but you also make it a priority to talk about your feelings. It keeps things from boiling over; both of you are known to unleash wicked tempers on occasion and have found being direct stops issues from occuring. Arguments still occasionally happen, but they’re typically over trivial things like what movie to watch or where you’re spending the holidays. Travis apparently forgot about the fact you talk to each other about things.

He’d been upset when he came home from practice, but you were pretty sure he was fine after he woke up from his pre-game nap. Knowing he’s a superstitious person and has a lot of pressure on him to put up points, you had made the choice not to ask about what was bothering him. Throwing off his routine could have detrimental consequences. Tonight's game is tighter than it should have been, but the Flyers come out on top. Travis spends a bit more time in the penalty box than you would have liked, but everyone was getting chippy by the start of the third period. Claude tries to talk to him on the bench but he gets shut down. Whatever Travis was upset about before is still clearly bothering him, and it’s affecting his game.

You’re following Travis home from the game, and can tell he’s uptight from the way he’s gripping the steering wheel. As you wind through downtown Philadelphia you try and prepare yourself for any bomb that could drop. Chances are that when you reach your apartment things will explode. Maybe it’s nothing; Travis is fine and just wants to be a responsible driver for once. You pull into the free spot beside his car and see him walking towards the elevator, suit jacket balled up and tucked under his arm. This won’t be good. Trying to buy yourself some time, you take the stairs. Seven flights later you arrive outside your door; he left it unlocked, which gives you a sliver of hope things will be fine.

“Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you?” you call into the darkness of the apartment. Your sneakers are left at the door and to retreat towards the bedroom, looking for a sign of life. You find one in the bathroom: the light is on. A gentle push on the door reveals your boyfriend is in the shower and ignoring you.

“Trav?”

“Yeah,” he huffs, words muffled by him tossing his head back to rinse the shampoo of his hair. Apparently the shower isn’t as relaxing as he had hoped.

You don’t bother to tread lightly, upset that he’s acting like a child. “You’re being an asshole. I get that you had a bad day, but you can’t take it out on me. I just want to help.”

Travis turns the water off suddenly. “Can’t help if you’re the problem,” he scoffs.

His statement doesn’t make sense. You’ve done nothing out of the ordinary the past couple of days; nothing that would warrant the behaviour you’re receiving. “What do you mean?”

Shouldering passed you to exit the room, Travis doesn’t bother to respond. You’re beyond frustrated: partners in healthy relationships communicate, not show emotions like grade schoolers. “You’re not giving me the fucking silent treatment Travis. You gotta talk to me.” The bedroom is dark when you enter and you flick the overhead light on to see better.

“You really don’t know?”

“Of course I don’t know,” you seethe. “If I did know we wouldn’t be in this predicament because we’d be solving the issue.”

The glare you receive is sharp enough to cut stone. He pulls on a t-shirt, anger clear in the aggression he does it with. “Why did I have to find out from Carter that you’ve been getting coffee with your TA?”

You’re shocked. In no way is it what he thinks it is. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” you sigh, upset that Travis would take someone else’s words at face value and not talk to you about it.

“I’m dead fucking serious Y/N. You preach communication, but it looks as though you’re the one who hasn’t been doing enough talking.”

The room around you starts to spin. You can’t comprehend what he’s insinuating. “Wait, you think I’m cheating on you?” you ask. There has been a gross miscommunication error somewhere; never in a million years would you think of having an affair.

“I didn’t say that.”

“Well what the fuck did you say?”

Travis tugs at the roots of his hair in frustration. He doesn’t answer immediately, pacing the length of the bed a few times. “I just–” he struggles to articulate his words. “I just said that you’re being a bit hypocritical, don’t you think? You’re standing here yelling at me because I didn’t voice my concerns, but you haven’t been talking to me about what’s going on in your life.” Travis’ tone is sharp, and it stings.

It’s your turn to show how upset you are. Your hands curl into fists at your side, and you squeeze your nails into your palms before releasing them. “I do tell you what goes on in my life Travis,” your breathing ragged as you try to not lose your cool. “I ran into my TA at the coffee shop yesterday, and he paid for my drink because my card wouldn’t work. Didn’t think it was breaking news, sorry I don’t send you every single fucking life update that happens. What’s gotten into you?”

“You could have been cheating!”

“But I wasn’t!” you scream, no longing caring about keeping up appearances. You can’t believe Travis would think that. It hurts. “And I never would! You know this”

He turns his back to you, like it pains him to look at you, but you don’t understand why. You're not the one suggesting infidelity. “That’s it? That’s all you’ve got to say?�� he seethes.

“That’s all there is to say! There’s nothing to explain, no secret to uncover. I’m not in the wrong here.”

“And you think I am?”

You look at Travis like he has three heads. “Are you serious? You’re the one who’s so fucking upset over a situation that could have happened to literally anyone.” Your tone suggests that you’re exhausted with the conversation, and Travis gets the hint.

He slinks towards the door, still visibly angry. “I’ll take the couch tonight,” he grits out before tightly gripping the doorknob and shutting the door with more force than needed.

The bed doesn’t look appealing, full of much happier memories, but fighting with Travis has knocked any and all energy out of you. You gingerly pull back the covers and slip underneath. Tears trickle down your cheek as you toss and turn, trying to fall into some sort of slumber. However, your mind has other ideas, replaying the blowout. You can’t begin to understand why Travis is so bothered by the instance, and more importantly why it caused him to disregard a fundamental part of your relationship. There’s little movement from beyond the door, but you can hear the faint noise of a Johnny Cash record playing from the speakers in the living room. After hours of staring at the ceiling your eyes close and a fitful sleep follows.

You might have gotten nine hours of sleep, but you wake up feeling exhausted. Fighting with anyone drains you, but fighting with Travis is especially terrible because it rarely happens. There doesn’t seem to be any movement from the other side of the door; maybe he’s still asleep. You refrain from heading into the kitchen, unsure of what will happen if you see him. After nearly twenty minutes you can’t wait any longer to start your day and pad into the main living space. It’s empty: no sign that Travis has been there for many hours. Guess you don’t have to immediately deal with the fallout of last night.

A post-it note is tacked onto the fridge handle and your heart skips a beat. In Travis’ chicken scratch it reads I’ll see you at the gala tonight. We’ve got media all day and I won’t be back in time for us to go together. There’s no mention of the fight, and you can’t judge from a two sentence note whether or not he’s still pissed off.

“Fuck,” you groan. “The gala.” Tonight’s the annual Flyers Give Back gala, and you’re expected to be in attendance. It’s not even a charity event; the organization is offering a chance for business men to chat up the players in hopes they continue to donate. You find things like these unbearable and tedious, but Travis does his best to make them enjoyable. Not knowing what page you’re on with him is going to be terrible. There’s a pretty good chance he’ll ignore you if he’s still upset.

As if someone is reading your mind, the better halves group chat starts to explode. Everyone is chattering excitedly about tonight, and under normal circumstances you’d be excited to see them in such a relaxed setting. It’s been a while you’ve all hung out, but you can’t find yourself to contribute to the conversation. You mute the notifications and do your best to move on with your day. The rest of the morning is spent working on your thesis; mind numbing work that almost makes you forget about everything that happened in the past twenty-four hours. Once you’ve hit an acceptable word count for the day you shutdown your computer and make lunch.

The grilled cheese sandwich you eat while watching a John Mulaney comedy special fulfills your appetite but doesn’t curb your dread. You decide to call your sister, hoping she can be a welcome distraction. Dialling her number you sink further into the couch cushions, wrapping yourself tightly with a blanket so that only your head is poking out. “What’s up?” she asks, and you hear her shuffle in the background, presumably to move somewhere more private. It isn’t normal for you to call her unannounced.

You hold it together for approximately two seconds. The tears start and they don’t stop. Every emotion you’ve felt since getting home last night comes to the surface, and before you know it you’re sobbing into the receiver.

“Woah, slow down,” she says. “Y/N, take some deep breaths.” When your breathing returns to a somewhat regular level she continues speaking. “What happened?”

It takes you nearly twenty minutes to tell the whole story because you’re so distraught. No detail is spared, and you go back much farther than is probably needed. You recount what happened after yesterday’s practice, pretty much the entire game, and the fight that followed. “I just don’t know what brought this on,” you sniffle. “We don’t fight, we talk about things. I’m not sure if I’m more upset at what he insinuated or at the fact he broke a cardinal rule.”

Your sister sighs, and you hear her breath fan in slight annoyance. You’re worked up about something kinda stupid, you know, but you can’t let it slide. “It’s probably a bit of both. So, what are you going to do?”

“What can I do? I know that we need to talk about what happened, but a public event is not the best place to do that. I also can’t not show up or ask Trav to ditch in order to figure this out. We have to be there.”

“Sounds like you’ve got it figured out then.”

You really don’t. “What happens if he ignores me the entire night?”

She laughs and tells you to not to anything stupid, and to take your mind off of things tells you a story about your nephew eating dirt. It does the trick; you’re momentarily distracted and forget about Travis. You talk for a while longer before she has to go. “Miles is crying, will you be okay if I let you go?”

It’s your turn to laugh. “I’ll be fine,” you insist. A glance at the clock tells you it’s time to start getting ready. “I’ve gotta shower and start the process. Beauty is time consuming you know.”

Against your better judgement you open your text messages to see if there’s anything from Travis. His text thread is the same as it was yesterday and you’re disappointed. You had hoped that maybe he’d get bored between interviews and check in. With no new notifications you exit out of the application and pull up a playlist you hope will brighten your mood. The steam from the shower relaxes your tense muscles and warms you up. It’s comforting in the way a cocoon is; you practically have to drag yourself out of the bathtub.

Your bedroom is cold and doesn’t offer the same respite as the bathroom. The music continues to float in from the hallway, and you allow yourself to get lost in it. It’s been a while since you danced around your room; it worked to cure sadness when you were a teenager. Hopefully the magic hasn’t worn off. You flail your arms, not caring how silly you look since no one is here to see you anyways, and scream along at the top of your lungs. After a few songs you feel better and return to the task at hand. The dress code is labelled as ‘black tie’ on the invitation, but that isn’t what you’re worried about. You own a million dresses for situations like this after being with Travis for so long. You don’t know what he packed to wear, and there’s a decent chance you’ll be pushed together for photos. Clashing colours will look terrible.

A quick glance through his side of the closest leaves you no clues, so you decide to be as literal as possible. Black is a flattering colour and works well with every colour combination. There’s a jumpsuit hanging in the back that catches your eye and you think it’s the perfect choice. After pulling it on you move back into the bathroom to do your hair and makeup. Everything is natural and relaxed; once again for the sake of potential photos. The clock strikes on the hour and you realize it’s time to leave. A pair of heels are slipped on and you order an Uber before locking the apartment and heading to the lobby. You had thought about driving yourself, but on the occasion that things don’t end well with Travis you’ll probably have more than a couple of drinks.

The entire way to the venue your leg bounces up and down. It’s been years since you’ve been this nervous about being around the team. You’ve been with Travis for a few seasons now, and the organization has become a second family to you. No one is going to know about the fight and you worry they’re going to talk about your solo arrival. The outside of the convention centre is sharply decorated, and your driver lets out a low whistle at the extravagance of it all. “Thank you so much,” you gush, and exit the car. Thankfully no photographers are set up outside, and you dart inside without being seen.

Once in the main event space, you scan for the bar. There’s no sign of Travis, which should make you more relaxed but doesn’t. What if there was an accident on the way to the venue? You have no idea where he was all or who he came with. Overthinking distracts you from your original goal, leaving you standing aimlessly in the middle of the room.

“You look like you might need one of these,” Ryanne chuckles, handing you a champagne flute. You gladly accept and down it in two gulps. “Holy shit.”

“Yeah,” you sigh, eyes scanning to see if your boyfriend has made an appearance.

She sees right through your facade of calm and wraps you in a tight hug. “What’s going on?”

For a second time today you explain what happened last night. There’s no judgement from Ryanne as there might have been from your sister because she understands. Dating a professional athlete isn’t easy; things like this happen much more frequently than you’d expect. Perhaps it’s all the time spent apart that makes the occasional lapse in communication so apparent. She listens quietly, full attention on you. To your credit you don’t cry this time, slightly more numb to the situation to due more time passing. It still hurts a tremendous amount.

“He’ll come around,” Ryanne insists. “TK is a little moronic sometimes, but he’d never jeopardize his relationship with you. You’re quite literally the most important thing in his life.”

“I know. I’m just upset because the whole thing could have been avoided.”

She offers you a sympathetic smile. “I know.” Ryanne links her arm through yours. “Let’s go find something to snack on.”

You spend most of the night with Ryanne, and occasionally Claude when he can get away from the hot-shot businessmen. Travis eventually came in, flanked by Nolan, but was immediately pulled into the politics of the night. The two of you occasionally sneak glances at each other and you tell he’s uncomfortable. You can only hope it isn’t because of your presence. It’s nearing eleven; the party has become a much more relaxed affair, and the DJ is playing sappy love songs in an attempt to get the media team some good photo ops. An intern asks the Giroux’s if they’ll dance for an instagram story and they both look hesitant. “Go on guys, I’ll be fine,” you reassure. It’s the subtle push they need to enjoy a quiet moment together.

As if he can sense you’re lonely and feel out of place, Travis approaches you. It’s tentative, like he’s petrified you’ll turn him away, but he comes regardless. Drinks are in each of his hands and he extends one to you. When you don’t take it he sets it on the table behind you. “Hi,” he says sheepishly, fiddling with something in his pocket.

“Hi Travis.” You’re determined not to let his presence crack your resolve; last night illuminated a big issue and it needed to be dealt with. It’s proving to be difficult because he bumps a shoulder against yours and all you can think of is kissing him senseless.

The song changes to a Bruce Springsteen ballad, and you recognize it instantly. It played at the coffee shop on your first date with Travis all those years ago. One look at him tells you this isn’t an accident, that he had requested it specifically for the two of you. “Dance with me?”

You sigh deeply, looking him in the eyes. “Trav, this isn’t going to magically fix things.”

“I know, baby, I know,” he pleads. “I fucked up so bad last night because I was being an idiot. I wrote down everything I would do differently if I had a time machine, look.” A hand reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a piece of paper filled with his nearly illegible print. “Just one dance, and then we can go home and talk about it like I should have suggested in the first place. Let me know we’re still okay.”

If you hadn’t been in public you’re sure Travis would have been in tears. It’s not necessarily a good look to cry in front of hundreds of sponsors. He has a reputation as the goofy boy who takes no shit to uphold. “You have a lot of talking ahead of you,” you say, and let him drag you onto the dance floor. Swaying in his arms you realize things are going to be just fine. Travis loves you and you love him; there’s nothing the two of you can’t work through.

☼ ☼ ☼ ☼

taglist: @jamiedrysdales @kiedhara @tortito if you want to be added shoot me an ask :)

#travis konecny imagine #travis konecny x reader #travis konecny fic #philadelphia flyers imagine #hockey imagine #hockey fic #nhl imagine #nhl fic #cwrites

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julieandthefandoms · 3 years

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Housefull 2 MDZS/The Untamed AU

HELLO THERE MY LOVELIES! I’M MAKING A WILD TUMBLR REAPPEARANCE AND I BRING WITH ME SHINY NEW SHOWS I’VE WATCHED AND PERHAPS THE GREATEST AU I’VE EVER WRITTEN DOWN!

Okay, so, I’m going to preface this by saying that I finally watched the Untamed over the past summer and now am slightly obsessed. I am also in the middle of reading the novel and watching the animation, so... that’s something.

Anyway, today, I decided that it would be a good idea to rewatch my favorite childhood film, a little Bollywood comedy titled Housefull 2. Upon rewatching this, I realized that the MDZS characters would fit really well into the convoluted mess of this plot and so I wrote a little bullet pointed AU idea thing.

(I don’t think I’ll have the time to write this, so if anyone wants to use this concept, pleaseeee tag me/tell me about it. Also, if anything like this is already written, pleaseee tell me too, I need the crack content.) (I’m also desi, by the way, so I don’t know much about Chinese culture, so please tell me if anything is offensive or just plain inaccurate.)

So, without further ado, I’ll be presenting this Housefull 2 MDZS/The Untamed AU!

-As per canon, JZX is emotionally constipated and couldn’t communicate until after his engagement with JYL got split up. Having made their sister cry, JC, WWX, and NHS (who gets roped into it) plan to crush JZX for hurting JYL.

-They send WQ to crush JZX by breaking his heart but give her such vague instructions that she accidentally falls for Mianmain.

NHS: “So... who’re we supposed to use to crush this Peacock. I mean, it can’t be any of us.”

WWX: “I don’t know about y’all, but I’d be great at this mission.” *wiggles eyebrows*

JC *rolls eyebrows*: “I think you forgot that mom will have your head if you do something like this.”

JC: “Hey, you remember her from university?”

WWX: “Who?”

JC: “You know, *her*, the one with the needles who could murder anyone and get away with it”

WWX: *laughing* “Holy hell, the Peacock doesn’t know what’s coming for him!”

NHS: “And who might this mystery lady be?” He says, knowing exactly who this mystery lady is.

JC and WWX: “Wen Qing.”

-All the while, JGS thinks that WQ and JZX are engaged because the Idiot Trio sent an envoy ahead that claimed WQ was a head disciple of Jiang and is a replacement for JYL. JGS has now set the engagement of WQ and JZX in August.

-They find out about Mianmian/LQY and WQ too late, and now JC, WWX, and NHS send someone else, LWJ, to crush JZX’s heart.

JC: “You can’t continue to do this, what happened to our deal?!”

WQ: *death glares* “What our deal said was that I needed to woo someone vaguely in relation to the nickname “Peacock” and happened to be in Lanling as payback for JZX breaking your sister’s heart, I don’t think I’m the one who forgot our deal here.”

JC: “And your first thought was that Mianmian/LQY was Peacock?!”

WQ: “She’s pretty and a Jin, so…”

Before there would be a throw down in this place, WWX interrupted: “Okay, WQ it’s alright that you feel for Mianmian/LQY, but who is supposed to help us teach JZX a lesson now?”

NHS: “I don’t know, but it could maybe be someone who’s already close to JZX.”

JC: “That sounds like a horrible ide- Wait, that’s lowkey kinda genius. Do you remember him from university?”

WWX: “Him?”

JC: “Yeah, you know, him, the one who’s entire vocabulary was the syllable “Mn” and whom you pined after for years.”

WWX *blushing like there’s no tomorrow*: “We can’t send him, he’ll probably send me off to do 50 handstands”

JC: “Please, he’s do anything you ask him to”

NHS: *flutters his fan while knowing to an extreme degree what’s going to happen*

-They send WWX as LWJ’s ‘driver’ for him to make sure the plan is on track, but it just ends in LZ/WY pining. JC is also sent there as a businessman since he needs to make sure JGS doesn’t suspect anything too suspicious. At the same time though, because JGS thinks WQ and JZX are engaged and since LWJ spends most of his free time talking to Mianmian/LQY about his hopeless pining, JGS starts to think that Mianmian/LQY and LWJ are to be engaged and plans another engagement. JGS is quick to inform LQR about this and now LQR thinks that his nephew is married to Mianmian/LQY and that they’re getting married in August.

-At some point here, LXC is in Lanling to visit his bud Meng Yao and that’s when JC and LXC begin talking and stuff. (This can be platonic or romantic, I don’t have a personal preference).

-Additionally, this is also when WWX and LWJ begin investigating the happenings of Lanling and discover the extent of an asshole JGS is. They'd probably be reported sporadically and NHS definitely sent this evidence to detectives XXC and Song Lan.

-So far, no one has gotten to properly executing this plan, and JC & WWX are beginning to question things. Because things couldn’t possibly get worse, this is the moment when Madam Yu decides that it’d be a good idea to visit the Jins in order to remind them of their arranged marriage between JYL and JZX. So now, JC and WWX have to drag both LXC and JYL into this convoluted plot because otherwise everything would go horribly wrong. JC, WWX, NHS, JYL, LXC, WQ, LWJ, and Mianmian/LQY (WQ directly told the boys that if they don’t let Mianmian/LQY in on this, she’ll personally shove a needle where it hurts) are in this room together, attempting to processes the absolute mess that has occurred. (Poor JZX is still living obliviously, his father didn’t even tell him that he’s technically engaged to WQ now. JZX is just vibing in confusion and thinks he’s just being buds with LWJ because LWJ is horrible at flirting with anyone that’s not WWX so his job of breaking JZX is... not going well.) In the end, after being on the receiving end of many of JYL’s disappointed looks, JC and WWX convince her to help them with their plot just this once. (She wouldn’t tell anyone that she was secretly pleased, but hey, JYL kept her vengeance deep, deep down low and deserved to exercise it just this once.)

-(it is important to note here that in this AU, Madame Yu doesn’t know what JZX looks like)

-The plan would be that LXC would (reluctantly) pretend to be JZX in front of Madam Yu. Additionally, Madame Yu thinks the actual JZX is NHS (because JC panicked and that’s the first name he could come up with when Madam Yu asked who was that kid if LXC was JZX). This was to drive JGS off their tails as he still believed that WQ is engaged to JZX now. (He did email LQR about this as well who now thinks his nephews are now engaged to JYL and Mianmian/LQY, respectively, and are going to be married that August.) This is the part where WWX and LWJ finally start realizing that their feelings are mutual after a pep talk from Mianmian/LQY, LXC, and WQ (who’s pep talk sounded more like a shovel talk) for LWJ and from JC, NHS, and JYL for WWX. This is also when Mianmian/LQY and WQ grow closer and also decide that the rest of the group is useless and team up with NHS to knock some sense into JZX. Finally, JZX becomes less emotionally constipated and confesses to JYL, and because WWX, JYL, and JC think that an intervention from the scariest trio (WQ, Mianmian/LQY, NHS) is apt punishment, they call an end to their payback. (Also partially due to JZX having character growth as different characters grilled him throughout this AU). While this is great for our mains, it can only cause a bunch of shenanigans because of the way the parental figures interpret this situation.

-JGS and Madame Jin think the pairings are: WQ/JZX, LQY/LWJ, LXC/JYL, WWX/NHS

-Madame Yu thinks the pairings are: JZX (except it’s LXC’s version of JZX)/JYL, LWJ/WWX, LQY/WQ, and (maybe?) JC/NHS (except it’s JZX who got confused for NHS)

-LQR thinks the pairings are: WQ/JZX, LQY/LWJ, and LXC/JYL

-Meanwhile, the pairings actually are: JZX/JYL, LWJ/WWX, LQY/WQ, and (maybe?) JC/LXC

-In conclusion, they’re all utterly fucked. Therefore, they have to bring everyone into this convoluted plot now, and finally JZX’s experiences over the past months make a little more sense to him. While discussing this mess they’ve created, WWX has an idea.

WWX: “Okay, so, looking at the actual chart of who everyone thinks is who, the biggest disparity is between Madam Yu and JGS’s viewpoints, right? What if we just removed Madam Yu from the equation, make Madam Jin and Madam Yu have a falling out so that Madam Yu won’t be invited to the wedding so that we can focus on one of the false interpretations of all the relationships happening.”

JC: “Madam Jin and Madam Yu have been the best of friends, how are we supposed to make them hate each other?”

JYL: “I mean, we could stage something, a betrayal of some sort.”

NHS: “I’m liking the way you think.”

-So through this plot and NHS’s concerning amount of connections, our group succeeds in breaking apart Madam Yu and Madam Jin’s friendship. JC and WWX also manage to worm their way into convincing the Jins to let JYL marry LXC to “spite Madam Yu’s wish of combining the Jiang and Jin families.” Because of JGS arranging and emailing parents throughout this fic, JYL, JZX, LXC, Mianmian/LQY, WQ, NHS, WWX, and LWJ are basically set to be married in August, except it’s to the wrong person! Soon enough, the wedding day arrives and the gang has a plan: they’ll dress the exact same and have the most elaborate and disruptive headpieces so that their faces are covered.

(Note: Instead of NHS being part of the people getting married as it should be, JC is replaces him for the actual ceremony. Since the our marrige folks have their faces covered, nobody really notices that JC replaced NHS and is marrying LXC. This can be either because of a marriage of convenience to combine companies, or out of actual feelings. I’m cool with either interpretation in my head. Meanwhile, NHS is out in the crowd and People didn’t him because of his surprisingly useful camouflage fan.)

-And so, the group sets NHS as their distraction while JC pretends to be NHS for the wedding ceremony. NHS basically knocks into the most expensive vase he can find so that most of the parental figures turn around, giving the group getting married the opportunity to switch places with one another until they’re in the right spot. So, a bunch of stuff happens, Madam Yu barges in to yell about how disgraceful it is for the Jins to go on with this marriage even though they broke the engagement in the first place and betrayed the trust of the Jiang corporation. Madam Yu also just, airs out JGS’s dirty laundry in a real badass way.

-It’s all chaotic. Hell breaks loose. JGS goes batshit crazy and starts bringing our firearms. And so, basically, everyone ends up hiding behind pillars and stuff, though, eventually, after everyone has to run out of their hiding spot’s because Su She cannot shut the fuck up and keeps getting the other’s exposed, they all pile behind JGS in the world’s worst game combined game of Hide & Seek and Slither.io. It all finally ends when JGS gets arrested for a shit ton of crimes, and everything finally ends with a joint wedding between 8 people, except this time it’s with the right partners.

So, yeah, that’s the AU that I wrote in a dazed craze in the past 2 hours. I hope it was at least partially understandable. I hope y’all have fun with it! Again, if you know of a fanfic that’s got a similar energy or want to write something similar, please tell me, I need more fanfiction. Also, that last scene is basically a direct copy of this scene from the movie Housefull 2. (I’m sorry though, I can’t find an english subbed version of the scene. :(

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sandwichrin · 3 years

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A Little Into You (Junkyu x Reader Fic) (ch. 5)

Word Count: 3.1k words

Pairing: Kim Junkyu x Fem. Reader (Treasure members are all included as well)

Genre: PG-13, Comedy, Romance

A/N: Hello! Finally, the fifth chapter is up! Hope you guys enjoy this one, and Happy New Year in advance 🥰🧡

You keyed in the combination numbers of the lock on your door and slammed the door shut behind you once you entered your home. Your heart was racing, you could hear your own breath shaking from the sprint you just did after leaving the elevator.

It was another member of the group, wasn’t it? Why are they all hanging around here?? And most importantly, why am I meeting them all now? Like, you’ve been staying here for more than a year now and yet you never seem to run into any of them before.

You rest your head against the door behind you. Still trying to catch your breath, you thought to yourself- maybe Jeongwoo was telling the truth about him visiting his friend. Maybe they all like to hang over at their friend’s house here?

You shook your head. Enough is enough. You didn’t want to think about them for now. It was nerve-wrecking enough that you almost got sued on the spot by Treasure, and if you hadn’t made a run for it when Jeongwoo was making that phone call, who knew if the lawyers really did send you a lawsuit for messing with their company’s boys?

You stood up straight and headed for your room. You wanted to take a warm shower and just relax for the whole night.

“Ah Junkyu-ah! Come in, come in!” Jihoon exclaimed when he saw his best friend at his dorm’s front door. (Note: The boys are living in 3 separate dorms in this fic as updated in their KProfiles’ site)

Junkyu entered the house and took off his shoes at the front entrance.

Jihoon walked away from the spot and headed towards the kitchen. “The rest of us are in the kitchen, come join us,” he said.

Junkyu nodded and tagged along behind his friend, seeing his other friends seemingly busy doing something in the kitchen.

Mashiho was busy whipping the eggs in a medium-sized bowl with all his might—in which Junkyu was concerned that if he whipped it any harder it would turn into a dessert instead of fried eggs. Not far from Mashiho was Doyoung, slightly in a bowing posture, deeply focused on watching a kimchi pancake recipe from his phone’s Youtube.

Junkyu felt warm being close to his friends. He had always appreciated their existence in his life, even before they debuted together, he had always felt a special bond with them. Junkyu pulled out a chair out of the dining table which was opposite the kitchen island where Mashiho and Doyoung stood.

A hand placed a glass of water in front of Junkyu, and he raised his head to see Jihoon nodding slightly at him.

“Thanks,” he said to his best friend.

“You know you can take off that face mask now right?” Jihoon asked obviously. “No fans can follow you around in here you know that,” he added, chuckling.

Junkyu snickered as he pulled the face mask off. He reached for the glass of water in front of him and took a big sip from it before placing it back down onto the table. Both him and Jihoon kept quiet whilst watching their dongsaengs both being busy in the kitchen.

“Mashi-hyung, can you pass me the salt behind you?”

Mashiho stopped beating his eggs. “Oh? Sure, here,” he passed the bottle of salt to Doyoung.

“Thanks—WAIT what is that??”

Mashiho blinked his eyes innocently at his dongsaeng’s question. “Huh? What is what?”

“THAT,” Doyoung pointed out at the foamy bubbles formed in the bowl Mashiho was holding.

Mashiho’s eyes looked down into the bowl in his hands. He smiled brightly as he said, “Eggs! I’m making omelette today!”

“I—” Doyoung was speechless at what he saw. He wasn’t sure if he should tell his hyung that he might have overbeat his eggs at this point since he looked so proud with what he did.

“Don’t worry, I’ll add in some leeks too! It’ll taste really good,” Mashiho added, his smile still beaming on his face.

Jihoon got up from his seat to peek at Mashi’s bowl. Jihoon snorted out loud, in which he quickly covered his mouth with his hand.

Mashiho turned to look at his hyung who was standing behind him by now, “What? What’s so funny, hyung?”

“Nothing, nothing. I just…you better cook those eggs now Mashi. There’s no need to beat them anymore,”

“But, I want to add in leeks—” Mashiho said but was cut off by Jihoon tugging him and directing him towards their kitchen stove.

“Sure, sure. Just add in everything you want. There you go, no more beatings. Just add in them leeks and cook okay?”

Mashiho looked at him, puzzled by Jihoon’s behaviour. He shrugged and followed his hyung’s instructions without further questions.

Doyoung who was a few feet away from both of them, raised a thumbs up at Jihoon for acting quickly before their omelette turns into something else.

Jihoon nodded briefly at Doyoung before returning to his seat beside Junkyu again.

“What happened there?” Junkyu asked as soon as his best friend was beside him again.

“Nah, nothing big. Just some issues with eggs.”

“Oh.”

Suddenly, they heard the front door being closed. Everyone turned to see Jeongwoo walking into the kitchen with a solemn look on his face. Jeongwoo headed towards the kitchen sink and washes his hands thoroughly, since he had just taken out their trash earlier. After making sure his hands are clean, Jeongwoo wiped them with a kitchen cloth and proceeded to take a seat with his hyungs at the table.

“Wow someone looks down in the dumps,” Jihoon said as he saw the look on Jeongwoo’s face.

Jeongwoo ignored him and continued staring down at the table.

“Oh come on. Don’t you get it? Down in the dumps? You went to throw the trash out in the dumps earlier? No?” Jihoon said, trying to explain the pun he made.

Junkyu rolled his eyes slightly at his hyung’s lame pun.

“Oh come on, Junkyu! You don’t think it’s funny either??” Junkyu shook his head at Jihoon who asked him in disbelief. “Man, I must be really losing it,” Jihoon said to himself, noting that he was getting less funny now.

Junkyu eyed Jeongwoo who was sitting opposite him. “Hey Jeongwoo. Hyunsuk said that you called him and sounded like you were in trouble earlier. Are you okay?”

Jeongwoo raised his head to meet Junkyu’s eyes. He looked like he wanted to say something but then he shook his head and looked away again.

Jihoon furrowed his eyebrows, feeling confused at what was going on with his dongsaeng. “Wait, Jeongwoo called Hyunsuk? When?” he asked Junkyu.

“Yeah, I was talking to Hyunsuk on my way back here on the phone and Hyunsuk suddenly told me to check up on Jeongwoo because he was worried about him after receiving a call from Jeongwoo,”

“Huh…Hey kid, speak up. Something happened while you were taking out the trash, right? Now that I think about it, you were gone for quite some time too. Usually when we take out the trash, it takes us less than 10 minutes to come back here,” Jihoon said, his voice now filled with concern for his dongsaeng.

Jeongwoo blinked a couple times before looking up at both his hyungs. “The trash shoot on our floor was under maintenance so I went to the main trash container outside the building.”

“Aahh, so you had to go all the way down there huh, just now?”

Jeongwoo nodded at Jihoon.

“And? What happened down there? Did a sasaeng stalked you?”

Jeongwoo shook his head at this. However, his face was still written with disappointment. Jihoon and Junkyu exchanged looks, concern starting to form on their faces as well.

Jeongwoo lets out a loud sigh. He rests his head against the table, which made it more difficult for his hyungs to read his expression now.

Jihoon decided to shake Jeongwoo’s shoulder, “Hey, you better tell us what happened. We’re genuinely worried about you.”

Another sigh escaped Jeongwoo’s lips. He raised his head, and this time, his face showed double the frustration compared to when he first entered. To be honest, he actually looked like he almost cried.

“Yah…what really happened?”

“I…I just can’t! I feel like I’ve disappointed everyone!” Jeongwoo exclaimed loudly.

Both Jihoon and Junkyu was surprised by this. Even Doyoung and Mashiho whom were busy cooking stopped to look at what was going on.

Jeongwoo got up from his seat and paced around the kitchen. He was contemplating to tell what happened, but at the same time he felt like it was no use because in the end, you had already escaped from him.

“Jeongwoo-aa, just tell us. It’s okay, who knows we can help you. We’ve been together for so long, you don’t have to be scared to tell us anything,” Doyoung chimed in, trying to calm Jeongwoo down. He already stopped mixing his pancake batter by now.

Jeongwoo stopped pacing around the room. Taking a deep breath, he nodded at his hyung. Doyoung was right, he shouldn’t feel scared to tell them this. He walked back to the chair near Junkyu and Jihoon and joined them again. He took in another deep breath before opening his mouth, “Okay…I’ll tell you guys what happened earlier…”

It had been a week since the incident of you meeting the treasure members at the convenience store. It had also been a week since you met Jeongwoo for the second time that day at your apartment’s trash container. There had been no more encounters with these people so far, and you were grateful for it.

You were already prepared to be ambushed and to be filed a lawsuit by last weekend but since nothing happened, you took it as a sign that maybe—just maybe, Jeongwoo was kind enough to look the other way and not file a lawsuit against you. Maybe.

And because there was no proper closure on what was going to happen to you after the encounters you had, you started being extra careful whenever you leave for work or even when you head home after work. Like, literally, this whole current week, you had been walking very fast to work and every time you’re about to pass by the YG Building, it makes your anxiety level rise up, making you hustle like as if you’re running a marathon every single time you pass by the building.

Of course, the only pro to this is that, you’ve been arriving to work earlier than usual and you were able to get more of your work done before it was due.

Since it’s been a week, which means it’s already Friday again today, you were already packing up your belongings from your desk at work before noon time.

“y/n-ssi? Are you done with the brochure I asked you to design?” Sangyeol, another colleague you often work with, asked you.

“Oh yeah. I emailed it to your second email address. The one for department purposes?”

Sangyeol was quiet for a while, staring at his monitor on his desk. Probably checking his email. “Oh right. I’ve got it. Thank you! I’ll let you know if it needs any improvement, yeah?”

You smiled at him, nodding. “Sure, just let me know.”

Your eyes landed on the small table clock on your desk that marked 12.05pm. Bingo. Time to clock out!

Stepping out of your office building, you felt the warm sun seeping through your skin. It felt good. You love the warmth more than anything. If anything, you hated cold weather more than you hate finding beansprouts in your noodles when you ordered them at a shop. Sure, a little breeze is nice but heck no if it’s the bone-biting cold weather.

After a couple good minutes of soaking in the Sun’s warmth, you proceeded to walk down the block, straight towards the convenience store to commence your usual “Ramen Fridays” ritual.

“Welcome!” you heard the young cashier greet you as you entered the shop.

Your eyes met him from afar and you flashed him a friendly smile, considering you were comfortable with his presence by now since you see him every Friday.

“Ramyeon?” he asked out loud as he saw you heading towards the instant noodle’s aisle.

You looked at him and nodded briefly. He smiled at you, a soft and cute one too. You chuckled to yourself thinking that you literally find this cashier cute today when usually you wouldn’t even glance at any guys around you.

Shaking your head to yourself, you focused on scanning the row of instant noodles on the shelves.

You leaned down to take a closer look at the ones at the bottom shelf, when you heard the cashier greeting some other customers into the shop.

“Welcome!” the friendly cashier greeted Jaehyuk as he entered the store. He bowed slightly and headed straight towards the chiller. His eyes scanned for that small yellow bottle of his favourite drink, in hopes that it hasn’t sold out yet.

He was busy zoning in on the chiller, he didn’t realise Jeongwoo grabbing his shoulder, making him almost jump out of surprise.

“Hyung! I told you to wait for me, didn’t I? Why did you leave me?” Jeongwoo whined at him.

Jaehyuk chuckled at his dongsaeng’s behaviour. Jeongwoo is indeed the baby brother in the group. Jaehyuk’s eyes narrowed as he smiled behind his half-covered face at Jeongwoo, thinking that this dongsaeng is acting all cute and clingy.

“Eyy you know I want to make sure that I get this drink, right? I need to get a good amount of supply before it runs out,”

“But hyung, what happened to the supply you bought last Tuesday?” Jeongwoo asked him.

“Aish, those are all finished already,” Jaehyuk answered him, his hands already grabbing two bottles of the banana milk in front of him.

“Wait—but you bought 6 bottles the other day,”

Jaehyuk stopped in his action and turned to look at his dongsaeng. “Jeongwoo-aa…”

“Yes, hyung?”

“What happened to those 11 cups of ramen you bought last week?”

Jeongwoo fell silent. “Okay fair point. You can take as many banana uyu as you want hyung,” he said in defeat.

Jaehyuk grinned and proceeded to grab onto more of the banana milk since there seems to be plenty of them today. “Hey Jeongwoo, grab that basket over there. I might take half of these,” he urged his dongsaeng to grab the basket near the front door.

As Jeongwoo was grabbing the basket, a familiar figure tapped his shoulder.

“Oh! Hyung! Gosh, you startled me!” he said, his hand clenched at his chest.

Hyunsuk’s eye smile formed above his face mask. Fixing his cap on his head, he nodded at his dongsaeng, “Where’s Jaehyuk?”

Jeongwoo gestured towards the drink’s chiller, and there was Jaehyuk, arms holding onto 5-6 bottles of banana uyu.

The both of them made their way towards the struggling man and helped him put his drinks into the basket.

“Hyung! What are you doing here?” Jaehyuk asked as soon as he saw Hyunsuk.

Hyunsuk leaned against one of the glass doors of the chiller and smirked as he said, “Jihoon sent me out here to check up on you just in case you buy too much uyu,”

Jeongwoo’s eyes glanced at the basket he was holding, which already had 7 bottles of banana uyu in it, and Jaehyuk’s hand was still reaching into the chiller to grab some more.

Hyunsuk’s eyes darted into the basket as well. “Okay Jaehyuk, that’s enough. This is enough to cover a whole week for you. Put that one back into the chiller,” he points at the bottle in Jaehyuk’s hand.

“But hyung…” at this point, both Hyunsuk and Jeongwoo could hear Jaehyuk pouting as he says this. It was easy to tell that Hyunsuk and Jeongwoo was smiling underneath their masks.

Hyunsuk shook his head and said, “Seven is enough Hyuk-aa. Put the rest back,” his tone sounded like he was still smiling though.

“Aww but hyunggg,” Jaehyuk dragged his words, all in a whining tone now. Jeongwoo was already giggling at him now.

Hyunsuk too, started snickering when his eyes landed on the girl at the payment counter. He stopped what he was doing as he tilt his head slightly. The small orange-coloured heart keychain hanging out of the totebag seemed familiar.

He turned around to look at both his dongsaengs arguing about the banana uyu.

“No, hyung! You heard Hyunsuk-hyung right? Seven is enoughhh,”

“Just one more, please just one more Jeongwoo-aa,”

“Hey Jeongwoo, you settle things up with Jaehyuk first okay? I’ll be right back,” Hyunsuk told his dongsaeng beside him. Jeongwoo nodded at his hyung before proceeding to nag at his hyung about self-control.

“No spicy kimchi stew flavoured ramyeon for you today, miss?” the cashier asked as he beeped your bowl of instant sweet curry flavoured ramyeon you had placed on the counter.

“Ooh no thanks. I’m feeling for something sweet today,” you smiled at him.

The cashier nodded at this and smiled as well. “Alright, that’ll be $8.”

You took out your wallet from your tote bag and opened it to pay when suddenly the cashier spoke up again, “Wait—”

Your eyes looked up from your wallet and into his. A questioning look formed on your face, “Y-yes?”

“You didn’t buy any drinks yet,”

You blinked a couple times. “Oh? Oh! Oh no no, I got myself a bottled water today,” you grinned at him. You pulled out the water bottle from your bag to show him as well.

“Oh, alright then,” he giggled. “Okay that’ll only be $8 then.”

You nodded and pulled out a $10 note from your wallet and paid it up to him. You were waiting for your change when suddenly you heard someone’s voice beside you.

“Excuse me,”

You turned around to see a man wearing a cap and face mask on. Only his eyes are visible for you to look at. “…yes? Can I help you?” you asked this man.

“Oh? It’s really you!” the man sounded happy saying this to you.

“Erm, miss, your change?” the cashier interrupted you and the stranger as he handed you your change back. You smiled and took it from him, shoving it into your tote bag. You grabbed the ramyeon bowl from the counter and looked back at the guy in front of you.

“I’m sorry…? I…don’t recall…You are?”

You heard him chuckle. “Oh right, how would you tell? Silly me.” He removed his face mask and lifted his cap slightly to show you his face. His grin was fully visible to you now.

Your eyes widened. “H-Hyunsuk-ssi,” you said softly.

Hyunsuk nodded and smiled brightly at you. “Yes! It’s me! Oh my god it’s been a while!”

You blinked a few times, in hopes that this was just a dream but the more you blink, he’s still there right in front of you. You swallowed the lump in your throat. How…Just how…did I end up meeting him again?

To be continued...

#treasure #ygtreasure #treasure scenario #kim junkyu #junkyu scenarios #kimjunkyu #junkyu x reader #junkyufanfic #treasurefic

40 notes · View notes

teamrawr · 3 years

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Reflection of the Neglected Reality

MacArthur is a novel with a combination of comedy and neglected reality here in the Philippines. A group of friends named Cyrus, Voltron, Jim, and Noel. All of them are deprived and not wealthy. Cyrus is the youngest member in the group, and he is good at stealing, doing strategies and has a lot of criminal records. Amadeus Denver Kantuyan, better known as Voltron is the skinny robot-looking person in the story and has suffered a lot compared to the other members. Jim is the oldest member in the group at the age of 23 years old. He has a family to feed. Noel is a college student that came from a middle-class family and stopped studying due to financial problems. The struggles of Filipino youth in dealing with the issues of today such as drugs and vices, unemployment, education, and family expectations. The novel is notable for applying a bold and realistic look at life in a Philippine community. Roberto “Bob” Ong, is a contemporary Filipino author born in February 1975 in Quezon City. He was known for his pseudonym “Bob Ong ” that came from a follower of his satire website from the ’90s called ‘Bobong Pinoy’ that mistook him for a certain ‘BobOng.’ Bob Ong. BobOng Pinoy, it was uncanny, he stated. He was also known for his conversational writing technique, creating humorous and reflective depictions of Philippine life. In 2001, Bob Ong published his first book entitled “ABNKKBSNPLAKO,” it is said to be the book that closely states his life story as he frankly retells his student days in a way that could make any person laugh while reading. After 16 years, he has published nine outstanding and insightful books entitled – “Bakit Baliktad Magbasa ng Libro ang mga Pilipino?”, “Ang Paboritong Libro ni Hudas”, “Alamat ng Gubat”, “Stainless Longganisa”, “Macarthur”, “Kapitan Sino”, “Ang mga Kaibigan ni Mama Susan”, “Lumayo Ka Nga Sa Akin”, and “Si”. There is no such thing as right or wrong decision, it already depends on how other people perceive it, is the main concern of MacArthur. This can be observed throughout the novel with how the main characters made their decisions in every struggle they encounter.

Given the scenario when Noel stole Lyla’s stethoscope. Lyla was wearing her uniform, then she couldn’t find her stethoscope. Lyla knew that Noel had stolen it. Noel stole the stethoscope because he wanted to sell it to buy drugs for his vices while Lyla needs it for her nursing course. In the following few parts, it is shown that both Noel and Lyla are arguing and choosing their decision because of their situation. Before she said the quote, Noel’s mom kept calling him to eat because it was almost time for lunch, but he still hadn’t eaten breakfast. In front of Noel’s room was Lyla’s. She was already wearing her uniform and getting ready for school. Lyla then noticed that her stethoscope was missing and immediately knew that Noel had stolen it from her. Lyla started banging and shouting at Noel’s door, forcing him to return it back to her, but he denied stealing the stethoscope. Lyla went through Noel’s bag, and it turns out Noel had already sold it. “Kinuha nyan ang stethoscope ko.” (argument between Noel and Lyla). The reason why Noel took the stethoscope and sold it was because of his situation, Lyla on the other hand, needs it too for her studies. In their eyes, it is the right decision to argue so they will be able to get what they need. Everyone has priorities and things that are important to them which cause them to make decisions that seem to be the right choices, even if a part of their decision would not result in any good outcome. These choices satisfy them and let people live their lives the way they desire it to be.

“If I had only been given the chance to change my life.“ The group of four friends wanted to change their life, but they lacked hope. Their habits cannot be changed since they have chosen their path. Education is not the answer to a successful life. There are many educated people, but not everyone was given a chance to live a good life. Cyrus mentioned having a new life with his friends, but one of his friends disagreed since he had already tried and failed to change his bad habits. Cyrus wondered whether his life would have been different if he had only been given a chance to study. Would he and his grandfather live a happier and better life? Then Noel answered that not everyone who has studied has a successful life. Jim had thought of selling movie discs as their business after their conversation. To improve their situation, they all agreed that selling movie discs was a good idea. The friends celebrated their success in selling their movie discs. They were at the same place where Voltron’s mom was drinking alcoholic beverages. Aling Seding was the one who was talking about the child that she had sent to study. Her dialogue "Etong si Denver , tong batang to pinag- aral ko dati, sa sabungan naman pala tumutuloy, sabi ko huminto ka na lang wala ka namang pakinabang! hahahahaha!” is an evidence in which the thesis statement that was formulated by the students were connected. Denver was given the chance to go to school but he still chose to go to the cockpit. This proves the thesis statement itself that the choices people make will affect the situation they are in. The future of oneself depends on the person. If the person does not want their life to succeed, their choice will lead them to their end. No matter how hard the person forces themselves to study hard, if the person is not determined enough, they will not be able to achieve success. Being successful is not based on education. It is the person’s will and devotion that will lead them to victory. It is always the person’s choice that will lead them to the path that they have decided.

Voltron was last seen having a conversation with Edwin and his colleagues. Voltron died due to being beheaded, and Edwin might be the one behind this. Edwin is a popular hoodlum known for offering illegal tasks that were so cruel that no one can imagine. The jobs he offers are for those who want to earn large amounts of money quickly but darkly. During that time, Voltron needed cash to survive his daily life. So to obtain what he needed, he sought Edwin for help. This suggests why Edwin was behind all of his death. Knowing Edwin’s capabilities, Voltron primarily did not want to seek help. However, his problems seem to lead him back to Edwin. “O,” kumuha ng higit limang libong piso si Jules sa mga perang pinapatungan ng telephone directory sa mesa. “Pamasahe!” “Hehe!” abot tenga ang ngiti ni Voltron. “Pasko na!” “(a conversation between Jules and Voltron) In connection to the statement, Voltron sees Edwin as his only opportunity to escape from his complications.

Noel’s decision was the best initial step to start a new life. In his situation at that moment, it was the most applicable decision he could make. It can be noticed that he chose to go home, did not feel bothered with how the community would perceive his decision and the way his father forgave him. Due to being accused as a thief, Noel reacted violently. As a result, Mang Fred or Noel’s father drove him out of their house, so he had to stay in his friend’s house for a short period of time. Noel was the only one left out of the four friends, so he felt urged to go back home. He doubted in the beginning. However, once he stepped home, Mang Fred whispered and invited him to eat breakfast. Which meant at the end of the day, his father decided to forgive him. “Kumain ka na.” By the time he goes out, the individuals around him could criticize how Noel was driven out of the house. It proves the thesis statement in a way where Noel made a decision to go home and did not feel troubled with how the society would perceive his decision. Since Noel was the only one left after Voltron was executed, Cyrus was imprisoned for unintentionally shooting his grandfather, and Jim went home to Bicol with his wife, so that is why Noel chose to go home, wherein his father accepted him again. And that is how the author concluded the novel.

The novel MacArthur educates the readers that there is no right or wrong choices. It depends on how or what one’s perspectives, thoughts, or opinions are. These choices that have been made, the people could not tell if that is a good or wrong decision. All decisions that an individual makes are what he/she is surrounded or influenced by. The environment with a different set of people, set of friends, and the changes in the society could affect one’s decisions. Having more options could lead them to much better choices and realize more about the mistakes that they have made before. Sometimes, they will be making bad decisions, but they will learn from the mistakes they have made. The author shows how poverty truly affects people’s lives and also wakes individuals from the reality of life that he/she must be ready for the ups and downs that will happen. In life, there will come a time that they will encounter unexpected situations. Situations can lead to challenges and may mislead their plans, but the author does not mean that it will fail the individual as a person. It tells the readers that they always have the choice to renew their life or start over again, thinking about the wrong decisions they have made before. Being prepared in life, being prepared for what people are going to conquer could make one’s life better and make his/her plans happen. Plans that a person wanted to happen for their life to make it better. Every decision a person makes could be right. But always remember to consider the decisions he/she has been making. Consider it for about ten times and make sure the choice that one makes is what he/she wants and is fully sure about it. The author wants his readers to reflect that everything happens and comes for a reason. One will always realize and learn from every path they take. This story could also tell the readers that an individual can be successful with his/her own will and determination. How will one be successful without doing anything? It is not that a person should always be on top. It is the way he/she sacrifices to achieve one’s goals. All things should be done with perseverance and not taken for granted. An individual must have patience and determination to make one’s goal happen. Having an educational background is not what a person can call living a successful life. Defining one’s purpose in life is the true meaning of success and it is a realization that the reader should make. A successful life does not mean he/she needs to graduate college and have honors or be on top. Sometimes people become successful in the way they perceive it, other people only graduated high school but those people still believe in themselves. Having determination, motivation and sacrifices could lead a person to what he/she defines success as. Try to push oneself to his/her limits and accept things that happen in one’s life. Always remember that there are no wrong choices, choices would only be wrong if an individual cannot stand them. References: https://soberandtipsy.wordpress.com/2017/09/24/bob-ong-the-phantom-of-filipino-literature/ https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/2016/01/10/1541198/how-mysterious-bob-ong-got-his-penname https://bongbongbooks.wordpress.com/2015/09/28/my-thoughts-about-macarthur-by-bob-ong-book-review-53/

#bob ong #literature #21st century literature #philippine literature #novel #novels #literary analysis #quotes #author #writerscommunity

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alice-m00n · 4 years

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AN: Thank you for your request! Don’t worry anon, I completely got what you were asking for. That being said, I did take some creative liberties with the prompt, so I hope that it’s still enjoyable for you. Please enjoy~

Ever since they’ve retreated to the underground bunker, Nishiki noticed something odd going on. Specifically something odd going on between Touka and Kaneki. He couldn’t quite place his finger on it at first, because there’s some more important things going on, like having a huge group of ghouls safely go into the sewers without the CCG knowing, rounding up materials and beds, not to mention, he’s going through some shit, because he just found out Kimi was involved with that shitty doctor because of him-

But he’s decided to just go through all these issues one at a time.

So when he saw the intense bags underneath Kaneki’s eyes, he said, “You look exhausted.”

“I was just looking over some plans,” Kaneki mumbled while scratching his head, “Did you need something?”

“Yeah, why the fuck are you avoiding Touka?”

“I-It’s nothing,” Kaneki answered as he placed his hand on his chin, “And I don’t think that it really affects you, Nishiki-senpai.”

“You’re so awkward around each other, it makes me fucking cringe, it’s affecting me.”

“It’s really nothing…” he insisted, not meeting the other man’s eyes. What the fuck did Touka say to him? “More importantly, have you figured out a route that we can safely procure food for everyone?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Once he was done telling Kaneki about the new information they acquired, Touka came into the room with two mugs, “I brought some coffee.”

“Thanks.”

Kaneki didn’t utter a single syllable, he didn’t even look at her.

But instead of saying anything to him, she just mumbled, “Later.”

What the hell was that! It felt like he was a side character in some obscure romantic comedy with Touka and Kaneki as the idiot protagonists!

How long have they been acting like this? They were normal enough back at the cafe.

“Nishiki-san.”

“Hm? What is it, Hinami?”

“Are you also worried about Onee-chan and Onii-chan?”

“ ‘Also’?”

“Please follow me.”

Where the hell was she taking him?

He followed her towards the hall where the rooms were in a less than ideal living condition, but Hinami didn’t seem too concerned with that. Finally, towards the end of the hall, she opened the door. Inside was literally everyone from the cafe and Banjou-san’s group, sitting around a table with a haphazardly made sign on the wall that said ‘PLAN KANETOU: SUGGESTIONS NEEDED’.

Well this is… Weird. It felt like he really was in some alternate world, where the main goal of the story is to get these two idiots, who are obviously in love with each other, together.

“Should we lock them in a room until they talk to each other?” Banjou suggested.

Tsukiyama tutted, “Non, non, that’s too juvenile!”

“They’d probably break it open anyways,” Yomo pointed out logically.

“What we need is a grand plan for them to end up in each other’s arms again!” Tsukiyama shouted, “That’s right! What if someone confesses to Touka-san? That way, Kaneki-kun will be forced to act otherwise he’ll lose her forever!”

“Who’s gonna do that without getting killed?”

“By who?”

“Either of them! Do you really think that Touka would just willingly accept someone else if they confessed to her?”

Yomo quietly answered, “She’d obliterate them.”

“We don’t have time for that, anyone got a more effective plan?”

“What if we do a duel to the death?”

“Between who?!”

The younger Kirishima sighed loudly and got out of his chair, “This is stupid.”

“Ayato-kun? Where are you going?”

“I’m gonna deal with this directly.”

“Oi, Kaneki.”

Kaneki looked up, “What is it Ayato-kun?”

“Man, you really do look like shit.”

“Ah… I was thinking about taking a break soon.” He already finished the cup of coffee that Touka gave him. He wished he had more coffee, but it wouldn’t feel right to ask Touka for any, especially with their current awkwardness. “So what exactly did you need from me Ayato-kun?”

“I need you and Aneki to just fucking talk to each other.”

Kaneki’s eye twitched. Was it getting that noticeable? “I don’t think what happens between me and Touka-chan concerns you,” he calmly stated while turning towards his work again, acting like Ayato’s words didn’t affect him that much. Even though it might’ve. A bit.

“Damn right it does, that’s my sister, I care about her, so it involves me,” he snarled out, “Why are you two avoiding each other?”

This isn’t the conversation that he wanted to have today. Especially with Ayato of all people. How could Kaneki just straight out tell him that Touka was offering herself to him? It’s not like he’s completely oblivious to Touka’s implications, what he doesn’t understand is why would she just offer it so, so casually to him?

What has he done to earn that privilege? Touka had been patiently waiting for him to return even when he didn’t have his memories, even when she wasn’t sure that he’d be alive, even before the Anteiku Raid. Meanwhile, what has he done for her? Nothing. He’s given her nothing but worries.

So why would she offer something that should be cherished to someone like him?

“Do I deserve to be with her?”

The younger man sighed heavily, “Man, I didn’t think you’d be this much of an idiot. If you’re not gonna be with her, then who else do you expect to make her happy?”

“I’m sure that anyone else would make her happier than me.”

“Are you stupid? Aneki chose you. If she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have waited for you for so fucking long. Doesn’t that mean anything to you? It can’t be anyone besides you at this point.” Kaneki’s eyes widened at Ayato’s declaration. “Instead of moping around, why don’t you think about how you can make her happy, shitty Kaneki?”

Making her happy… He wonders if it’s really alright if he’s the person who can make her the happiest.

Kaneki chuckled.

It’s a little strange hearing this from Ayato of all people, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t appreciate it.

“Thank you Ayato-kun.”

“Yeah, yeah, just hurry up and fucking talk to her won’t you?”

~~~

So he goes to find Touka. But he doesn’t really have a plan as to how to find her, so he just starts going down the halls and asking around. He’s bound to run into her somewhere right?

And he does find her, but she just mutters, ”Sorry.”

She turned, intending to walk away from him, but he shouted, “Wait!” She stopped. That’s a good sign, right? “C-Can we talk?”

She turned her body, but she wasn’t facing him.“What do you want to talk about?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?”

There’s a lot that he feels like he should apologize for. Like how he’s been awkward with her lately. And how he avoids her whenever they’re in the same room. And how they haven’t even talked to each other directly, especially about…

“I’m sorry for avoiding you, I didn’t mean it to, it’s just that… After our last conversation, I didn’t know how to look you in the eye. It’s not the kind of conversation that I expected from you either, so I was shocked, you know.” Is he rambling? He feels like he’s rambling. “I’m really sorry about how I reacted before.”

Touka sighed heavily, “Kaneki, I get it, you’re not interested in me like that. It’s fine-”

“It’s not like that!” he quickly insisted.

“Then what is it?”

He immediately felt his face go red, so he tried covering his face as he said, “You shouldn’t have just offered it so casually to me.”

But she couldn’t hear him, “Huh?”

So he sighed and removed his hand from his face, hoping that his face wasn’t red. “That’s something that you should treasure more, so you shouldn’t have just said it so bluntly.”

He thought she was going to hit him, but instead she just pulled on his cheeks. “Idiot.”

“T-Touka-”

“You’re seriously an idiot sometimes, you know that?” It was the first time that they were looking straight at each other since their talk in the cafe. He could see himself reflected in Touka’s eyes. He wondered if she was seeing herself reflected in his eyes? “I offered only because it’s you.”

Ah… He really does love her.

But still, a fragment of fear forced him to ask, “Are you sure you want me?”

She chuckled. “I’ve wanted to be with you for a long time Kaneki.” She stepped closer to him, looking straight into his eyes, “Do you want to be with me?”

Without hesitation, he answers, “Yes.”

Touka smiled, “Then, it’s settled. You’re mine and I’m yours.”

He returned her smile. “Thank you Touka-chan.”

#writing requests #My writing #if tg:re 125 didn't happen #touken #kanetou #kaneki x touka #long drabble #tg

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firebird963 · 3 years

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Stuff I’d Change about Class of the Titans pt 1/?

Introduction:

So it’s 5am, I can’t sleep, I’m 4 episodes deep in this show thanks to a mix of a Greek Mythology phase I’m going through and nostalgia. The show is, rough, and yet there is obvious good here that’s keeping me around.

I think a lot like Chaotic, another early 2000s show that lives in my head rent free, a reboot wouldn’t be the worse thing in the world.

So here are just a handful of ideas of changes I’d make if I were to reboot the show.

Think of this as more of a thought exercise, I’d love to hear y’alls thoughts on these changes, if you have any ideas of your own.

Now without further adieu,

Art Style

The art style is... Fine... It works, it’s just, something about it feels almost painfully generic, it’s not very memorable and I feel that some stylization would do the show some good.

That said I have seen worse in a show and still enjoyed it, transformers Beast Wars is an excellent example of this. So at this point I’d say just, I wouldn’t be mad if they went a new artistic direction in a reboot.

Character Design

Throw the whole thing out! I’m serious just start from scratch, some of these designs range from, bad, to painfully generic, not helped by the for mentioned art style.

We live in a world where Percy Jackson and Hades 2018 exist and have really cool and interesting interpretations of the Greek myths. I’d also recommend the book Gods Behaving Badly if you can get a hold of it, it’s definitely for adults and has some rather graphic (sexual) moments but it is a fun comedy.

Hell even Disney’s Hercules did some really cool things with the Gods designs, it’s so easy with that movie to tell who is who from just a glance.

The only characters I find acceptable are the seven children, even then they’d need updating. I’ll go into more detail about them later on.

Plot Stuff

Ya, the first three episodes are paced like a humming bird on meth, not gonna lie.

There are some really good ideas for character growth and it’s all just, fucking wasted almost as soon as it’s introduced. I’ll go into more detail on the character pages.

So what to do about it? For starters slow, the fuck, down.

The show also seems confused about its identity, it wants to be a monster of the week type show while also being about a cool secret high school of Greek myth stuff.

The stakes are also, ironically, way too high. It’s hard to be worried about any of the children's safety since we know if any one of them is taken out the world is doomed. So I find myself not concerned whenever there is an encounter. I do appreciate how willing they are to run away from conflicts though.

A lot of these problems have really simple solutions.

For one, their secret school, Olympus High, make is an actual secret school. Place it on the outskirts of a city rather then slab dab in the middle or even in the middle of the woods or something.

Then have this school just filled with demigods and other various monster children. Have other would be hero’s training with and around our main seven protagonists. You could have a lot of more personal rivalrys/antagonists, along with friends outside the main group that can provide other prospectives on problems.

They already live on campus on the show so it’s not that much of a stretch plus you could do something more akin to My Hero Achedemia where the characters are introduced to elements of Greek Mythology and their own abilities over time.

You can even still do a monster of the week style thing with having part of their training take place off school grounds and go on monster hunts like in the show.

What matters most is things slow down and the characters are aloud to just, breath, and exist in their world rather then be carried by the momentum of the plot.

Villains

Kronos is actually a really good idea for a main antagonist. I can appreciate they didn’t just go with, idk, Ares (who actually isn’t that popular on Olympus), Hades or Thanatos (who frankly gets more then enough shit while just trying to do his job, love you boo).

However, having Kronos show up right away like that is just, no, he’s not some mustache twirling schemer, if he somehow got out it would be all hands on deck. Every God, every hero, everyone who knew what was going on would be stopping at nothing to get him back. And he would know this.

So he has to be more, final boss, what the show is building up to. Rather then just, around, causing problems. But it’s cool. I’m not mad (she said, mad)

Here are some ideas for villains I have off the top of my head:

1. Some outside religious group, Christian cults are a thing, especially in the USA. Have them be systematically hunting down demigods/bloodlines/monster children

2. Agamemnon, if you’ve read/know the plot of the Iliad you know what this bastard did. Child murdering fuck

3. Follow up for 2 but have a bunch of classic Greek villains and other historical baddies escape from Tartarus and need to be rounded up again

4. Don’t have a villain, just do a monster of the week style show with the character drama be the driving force. Greek mythology is filled with stories about shit just happening and hero’s having to deal with it.

To quote Lindsey Ellis, Odysseus didn’t go Odyssying for the greater good (he wanted to go home.)

Tune in Next time when I rant about the children and how much I love them and am frustrated by them!

#Class of the titans #Greek Mythology #Throwing ideas into the void #Firebird Text #feel free to discuss!#I'd love to hear your guys thoughts if there is anyone in this fandom

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lhs3020b · 3 years

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The Wooden Spaceships, by Bob Shaw

The Wooden Spaceships is the sequel to the first Land/Overland novel, The Ragged Astronauts. It's set about a generation after the ptertha-driven migration from Land; civilisation on Overland is at least stable now, if not entirely-comfortable. Unfortunately "comfortable" isn't what Toller Maraquine is looking for in his older years. Apaprently he hasn't learned any lessons about getting what you wished for, because bad news arrives on Overland in the form of an airship from Land! That's right, apparently there are survivors on Land, and they're not very happy with their neighbours.

My thoughts are under the cut...

TWS is a bit of an odd book. It's really two main stories, somewhat awkwardly joined together. There's the plot with the attempted invasion by the New Men - briefly, the children of people who proved to be unusually-resistant to pterthacosis, who apparently are either immune or are tolerant enough to the disease that they've managed to live to adulthood. The New Men, sadly, have learnt nothing from their parents' folly and may actually be worse people; their survival seems to have convinced them that they represent a sort of superman who are destined to rule the universe. I suppose a more-sympathetic interpretation might be that they're the products of a collectively-traumatised society, and are dealing with said trauma by projecting all their negative feelings onto imagined enemies on Overland. That said, regardless of interpretation, their actions are not sympathetic and King Rassamarden is clearly a psychotic nutjob.

Also, it's worth noting that they are the New _Men_. While presumably New Women must exist, we never see any. This was an interesting ellision given that TWS is generally a step up relative to TRA for gender stuff. TWS is still quite bad, don't get me wrong, but there has been some improvement. Berise is a plot-relevant female character who actually gets to do stuff, the Kolcorronian king's key adviser is actually his wife Queen Dasseene and there has been some progress on the social front. The Air Corps has been opened to female applicants and it's implied that society as a whole has got a bit more equal. (That said, let's not go too far with this - this is still a society where an aristocrat can have innocent people executed on a whim, as we see with the Sergeant Gnapperl subplot, so Overland has a long way to go before it could be described as a genuinely-civilised society. It may have got a bit more egalitarian one way, but it's still a monarchical despotism ruled by the threat and fear of absolute force.)

Toller, of course, ends up involving himself neck-deep in the war with the New Men. This has the effect of cratering his marriage to Gessalla. In what is genuinely a moment of awesome from her, she tells him that while she's glad he's still alive, she's had quite enough of spending every day wondering whether today is the day she's going to have to bury her idiot husband's corpse. It's stressful and unpleasant, she's lost quite enough in her life already (literally including her homeworld!) and if he can't settle down and sort himself out, then they're through.

Toller, of course, can't deal with this. His marriage thus collapses, and that leads us onto the second part of the novel.

Incidentally, before we get to that, allow me one small tangent. We're halfway through the trilogy, and Toller has entirely forgotten his previous wife. After she disappears halfway through TRA he just - forgets? un-persons? has selective amnesia? goes into denial? refuses to take any responsibility for his own actions? - her entire existence. Toller, you were MARRIED to this woman! Seriously, what a cad! We never find out anything about what happened to Fera at any point in the series. Even in the third novel when a return to Land happens and Shaw could have tied the plot-thread off, but we get nothing.

(Since we never find a body, I've decided to invoke headcanon. Like Toller's father, Fera was one of the rare people who are entirely-immune to pterthacosis. As such she actually survived the implosion of Ro-Atabri and the end of civilisation on Land. After some confusion she eventually moved into an abandoned princeling's palace and has been living out her days in comfortable luxury; she spends her time either walking by the river or reading books - a hobby she recently developed - and occasionally she has been known to take lunch with some of the more pro-social New Men, so she's not entirely without society either. She mostly keeps away from them, having made a reasonable judgement of their character, but that said the odd social do can be refreshing. All considered it's not the worst situation she could have ended up in, and she's certainly managed better than virtually everyone else in Kolcorron. When the Overland exiles' return to the planet happens in "The Fugitive Worlds", Fera - still alive, though an old woman by then - sees the balloons and discovers that she simply has nothing to say to the people who abandoned her to her fate 50 years earlier. As such she decides to avoid them during their visit. In the abstract she supposes that it's nice that society has survived over on Overland, but really, neo-Kolcorron's antics are just Not Her Problem Anymore, so why even bother?)

The second part of the novel concerns a group of Overlander colonists who have recently arrived in a remote area of the planet, newly-opened to settlement. (One oddity of the novel is that for a planet whose population still must be less than a quarter of a million, nonetheless people are spread quite widely across Overland.) The area they've arrived in is fertile, has a pleasant climate and even pre-existing houses, built then abandoned by the last group of prospective colonists. You see, unfortunately, it appears to be haunted.

Bartan Drumme, the semi-leader of the group, is mainly there because he's trying to court his would-be bride Sondeweere. Amusingly, Sondeweere has his number and is quite-blatantly stringing him along, mainly to annoy her domineering uncle. Bartan is of course entirely-blind to this - honestly, Land and Overlander men all seem to run at a permanent +10 to Oblivious - and the "romance" proceeds in exactly the dysfunctional manner that you might imagine. Unfortunately, what would have been an amusingly-cringy romantic dark comedy gets interrupted when the new arrivals in the Egg Basket region start falling ill. Bad dreams, disturbed moods, sleepwalking, full-on psychotic breakdowns - all is not well in the Egg Basket. It quickly becomes apparent that the region is being influenced by some sort of external force. The sensible people leave; the less sensible people cling on and meet with various misfortunes.

(If there is one moral to the Land/Overland trilogy, it seems to be "if you see any hints of trouble, pack your bags and leave NOW, because things will only get worse, and don't expect the government to do anything even minimally-useful".)

Anyway things go from bad to worse, the Egg Basket's mini-society essentially collapses, and then Sondeweere gets abducted by aliens.

Yes, you did read that right. A spaceship turns up and hoovers her up. In context it's not quite as random as it sounds, but it is still quite random.

Anyway this leads Bartan to a decision that he wants to retrieve her from Farland, the third planet in the Land/Overland system. He teams up with Toller, who is now deep into the rebound stage following the implosion of his marriage. Along with Berise and some other acquaintances of Toller's, they construct a spacecraft capable of travelling outside of Land/Overland's mutual atmosphere and set off for Farland. Technically they're under commission from the King; honestly, I got the sense that the King and Queen have simply had enough of Toller's antics, and see this as a convenient way of getting rid of him.

Then reality ensues and they almost die, because nobody on the ship knows anything like as much about either outer space or basic Newtonian physics as they think they do. In fact it turns out no-one has any grasp about continuous acceleration, and they've been running a continuous halvell/pikon thruster-burn for entire days (somehow without running out of fuel, either - apparently the specific impulse on the pikon/halvell reaction is something insanely high?). By the time Sondeweere becomes aware of the ship's situation, it's running at over 100,000 miles per hour and is barely days away from reenacting the Chixculuub meteor on Farland.

Oh yes, I almost forgot to mention - Sondeweere was abducted because her nervous system had become host to an alien parasite (the same one that was causing mass psychosis in the Egg Basket) and she now has superhuman intelligence and telepathic powers. And also, a far better grasp of modern physics than anyone aboard the titular wooden spaceship from Overland. Fortunately, Sondeweere is able to take charge of the situation and arranges something close-ish to a soft landing on Farland - the crew don't enjoy the experience, but they get to walk away from it, and that's about as good as it gets in aerospace incidents!

Anyway my review here is a bit forced, but that's because the last 40% of the novel also feels a bit forced. The pacing is off and the narrative makes some rapid jumps. Honestly TWS's problem is that it's actually not one novel but rather two separate novellas that have been welded together in a particularly-awkward manner. A lot of things aren't really followed up or tied off properly. The fact that Farland is inhabitable and also inhabited turns up quite late in the book and is dealt with in what I felt to be a bit of an unsatisfactory manner. I was also intrigued to find out that all three planets orbit within 42 million miles of their sun. Apparently the star must be some sort of K dwarf, I guess - no, in fact it may well even be a brighter M dwarf, because this is roughly the orbital radius of Mercury! This is odd because the sunlight is never described as being pink-ish. The only thing I can think of is that maybe nuclear fusion also behaves differently in Land/Overland-verse? Perhaps not only is Pi equal to 3 but perhaps smaller stars are hotter and brighter than they would be here? Or maybe everyone's so used to the pink sunlight that no-one thinks to remark on it at any point?

(Canonically they do fuse - in fact Sondeweere actually has a go at explaining nuclear fusion to Bartan and the others at one point, which was thoughtful of her, though sadly the Overlander males remain as obtuse as ever so the effort may have been wasted.)

Anyway overall, I think this book suffers from a bad case of "mid-trilogy syndrome". I'm glad that female characters are handled better here, and I was cheering for Gessalla when she told Toller to fuck off. The extra expansions to the universe were interesting, and it was also interesting to see the gradual consolidation of colonial life on Overland. Madcap as it was, the interplanetary voyage to Farland did have some "big-picture" excitement too. That said, however, the books minuses were continued dropped plot-threads from the previous novel, unevenness in pacing and perhaps also just having too many ideas in a small package.

#Bob Shaw #The Wooden Spaceships #Books 2021 #LHS reads

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colombiapola · 3 years

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Cartagena, Colombia - At Peace By The Beach

I slipped on a set of loose-fitting cotton shorts, and stepped out of my coastline front hotel area for the night. Within a few steps, I remained in the middle of a folkloric dance group Pola Colombia

Women in white embroidered gowns were swirling around their male companions, at the very same time, generating a mild wind in the damp, seaside air.

This is regular of Colombia, a nation that takes the art of dance and also charm contests seriously. Integrate this with the all-natural, eruptive rhythms of Afro-Colombians who heavily populate the seaside locations, and you have actually obtained one continual road event.

Although their Spanish conquerors have long left, Colombians continue to discharge a flamenco-like atmosphere.

Founded in 1533 by Pedro de Heredia, Cartagena worked as a delivery course and storage space for emeralds and also gold that was later delivered to Spain.

This picturesque city on the Caribbean coastline was once the main access port of African servants to the Americas; currently it's a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as Colombia's favored vacationer location.

Cartagena was attacked sometimes throughout history. The British and also French stormed the city looking for cached prizes. Pirates additionally navigated its waters trying to find other hidden riches.

Among the most significant attacks came from Sir Francis Drake, that in 1586, shown up under the cover of darkness with a large team of men. By daylight, they required a lot of the city to run away. Prior to leaving eight months later on, they torched residences, services, and extorted local government authorities out of substantial amounts of cash, as well as swiped useful jewels.

The last major assault happened in 1741, when British Leader, Edward Vernon, as well as George Washington's half bro, showed up with over 25,000 soldiers and a fight group of 186 ships. Although the Spaniards and African servants were exceeded 7 to one, they withheld the assault and placed a counterattack which compelled Commander Vernon to withdraw his troops. Sadly for him, not before he lost virtually fifty percent of his men, and a lot of his battleships.

Today, Cartagena is a city which continues to hold much of its old Spanish splendor. Spread throughout the older barrios are balconied colonial buildings, repainted in a wide variety of shades.

The old, main component of Cartagena is reinforced by 14 miles of stone walls, and various other fortifications. Numerous locals still believe the material used to hold with each other these stones, was combined with the blood of African servants. Whether that holds true or otherwise, lots of servants died below while assisting to fortify the city against pirates.

The Castle of San Felipe de Barajas was built in between 1536 as well as 1657. The very same citadel that endured the attack of Commander Vernon as well as his soldiers still overlook Cartagena. One glimpse and it's noticeable why it could not be penetrated.

Contemporary Cartagena is overcome consistently by a stable circulation of Colombian, as well as international visitors. The majority of their emphasis is on the old city, where they extend down slim rock streets in search of historic sites.

As you enter Plaza de los Coches (Train Square), directly underneath the city's famous clock, you encounter a huge sculpture of Pedro de Heredia, that established the city in 1533. Simply to the left of the statue, pastel colored early american buildings load the Plaza's landscape.

In the daytime, ladies line the sidewalk with their sweet stands, marketing standard desserts. Individuals relax on the benches and delight in traditional music and also dancing, road comedy efficiencies and even an occasional lecture from a curbside preacher.

At sundown, horse-drawn carriages line up right here, all set to take vacationers on a lantern lit tour with the heart of midtown. It's possible to shut your eyes and go back in time as the equine's hooves resonate off the tight patched streets.

At the end of the plaza (concerning 100 feet), is an open square with a Christopher Columbus monument. This is Plaza de la Aduana (Traditions Plaza), and stands for a dark side of Cartagena's past.

In 1564, Cartagena came to be the portal to the Americas for lots of African servants. Those that survived the treacherous passage got off the ships, and were then aligned in Customs Plaza, displayed around, and also auctioned like animals to the highest possible bidders.

Straight behind Plaza de la Aduana, is the Plaza San Pedro Claver. Named after Saint Peter Claver, that was warmly nicknamed "servant to the servants," this tiny square houses a sanctuary that births his name.

Daddy Claver revealed empathy for the servants who got here. He welcomed a lot of them when they were off loaded, and promptly honored the dying children and the unwell. He spent several years providing treatment for hurt and ill servants, and baptized hundreds of thousands throughout his life time.

5 mins stroll outside the walled city, as well as you're standing in front of Castle San Felipe. It's worth the brief climb up the high hill to reach its doors. You can explore the castle's enormous premises, touch the original cannons, and also peer via the portals. You can likewise stare over the wall surfaces, as well as see the view of the city.

Around 20 maritime miles off Cartagena are the Rosario Islands. This island chain contains 27 environmentally varied islands which have actually been picked as a National forest by the Colombian federal government. If you are trying to find the best area to unwind, it's here. Good snorkeling, diving, windsurfing, kayaking as well as walking are readily available. The outside fish tank and also dolphin programs are constantly a hit with taking a trip households.

Several boats leave early in the early morning from the downtown pier, and also slide over the calm waters to the islands in regarding 45 minutes. The last watercrafts of the day return to Cartagena around 4 p.m. So, you can load a lunch and also make it a day outing, or invest a few peaceful evenings on the islands.

Throughout the majority of the barrios in the city, you frequently pick up that you remain in a smaller town. Throughout the day, vendors stroll the neighborhoods hawking everything from ripe papayas and also fresh fish, to pots and frying pans, and also lotto tickets.

Throughout the city, you can locate makeshift football fields where lots of young children play, football in the blazing sunlight (and occasionally in gale rainfall) kicking goals like specialists, wanting to be the following Carlos Valderrama, or Ronaldinho.

After watching the dancing efficiency, I strayed down some backstreets and also located some pairs nursing cool beverages near an open pit grill. The waft of barbecued hen filled up the muggy night air. The food selection looked tasty, too.

Cartagena cuisine is a variant of authentic Caribbean as well as Creole, although you can discover a vast array of food as well as drinks. Outdoor dishes generally feature the sounds of Vallenato, Reggaeton, Champeta, or Salsa music, typically thumping from tall speakers, however sometimes live.

Generally, Colombia is a suitable gateway to South America for new vacationers; whether they're backpackers, cruise liner guests, or even those on a family journey.

From the majesty of the walled city, to scenic beaches, to casual street events, Cartagena is a location you will always bear in mind.

Where to remain:

If you get on a shoestring spending plan, hotel lodging in Cartagena can cost as little as $5-10 a night in the Getsemaní location. However, for that price, expect a basic bed, follower, with a shared washroom and also shower. Include one more $15 and you can find comfy spaces in this historical area of community, which occurs to be the oldest area in Cartagena.

The Bocagrande area has one of the most hotels in Cartagena. Right here, you'll locate many resorts on the beach. From tiny family members hotels to 5-Star, there is a rate variety for everyone.

If you intend to be pampered, attempt the Charleston Hotel. Not just does it supply 5-Star solutions, it's skillfully concealed between the city's old wall surfaces, and it sits near many tourist destinations in the old city.

The Charleston includes an impressive roof pool and also restaurant location. Right here, you get a bird's- eye sight of the Caribbean, Cartagena Bay as well as the wonderful old city.

Arriving:

Copa Airlines has direct trips from Miami and Panama City, Panama.

AirMadrid has straight flights from Madrid and also Barcelona, Spain.

Visa:

American visitors traveling to Colombia need to have a legitimate U.S. passport, however not a visa. This allows you to stay up to 90 days. This can be expanded for an additional 90 days at the Migration office (DAS).

#Pola Colombia

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sometimesrosy · 4 years

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i know what kind of the show the 100 is, but i really expect at least a good ending for bellarke and i hope your spec is right and we get some kind of that with them, in the past years shows did end in dissapointment, so i hope jason is in the group of 12 monkeys, bones, castle, shadowhunters, OUAT....

okay. but are you SURE you know what kind of show The 100 is?

What kind is it?

Yes, it’s the post apocalyptic sci fi action tragedy, but there are actually two kinds of post apocalyptic stories, the kind where there’s no hope and humanity is doomed and the kind where there IS hope and humanity can be saved.

This one is DEFINITELY the later. Hope is important in this show. THIS kind of pos apocalyptic story CAN have a happy ending, or at least a happy ending that costs a price, a bittersweet happy ending. JR has told us that there would be a “The 100 style” happy ending, and the last time he said that would happen was with one couple in s5, which we now know was Marper, who got to live their lives on their own terms, alone and without people, but in love and happiness and peace while guiding their people towards a new future. I suspect the ending of the series will *match* that description of a happy ending, but with Bellarke, who was HIGHLY mirrored with Marper in the finale of s5.

And seeing as our heroes have had a happy ending with a cost every single season, what we’re watching is a story where there is hope. And *probably* hope for Bellarke.

But. I see that you aren’t really concerned with the story, you’re concerned with if Clarke and Bellamy get together, and this, to you is what’s in doubt, because you’re looking for a romance novel, or bellarke fic or something.

For you, the story ending in disappointment is the story not ending with Bellarke romantically together with a kiss/confession/sex. Or at least that’s what is seems to me, because as I’m watching, I have not felt denied bellarke since season 2. S1 I didn’t ship them yet, not really. S2 gutted me when she left because of bellarke. S3 they were together and closer than ever, S4 okay i was gutted when she was left behind, but had hope for bellarke with the 2199 radio calls. S5 I was not disappointed with bellarke because of that last part of the finale. S6 was so freaking romantic and ended, for all intents and purposes, with that romantic, intimate bellarke hug in the sunrise, so to me, it was clearly romantic bellarke, even without an official kiss(apparently kiss of life doesn’t count)/confess (apparently all the conversation of love and care and pledges not to leave or let each other die, or the confession that he needs her don’t count)/sex.

This is why I ask if you do know what kind of story this is. Because you are acting like my spec about bellarke is based in my personal feelings and not the development of the narrative that I’ve been following, but I don’t know if you have, or you’d see that bellarke is already a romantic story, and has been since AT LEAST season 5, when bellarke shippers abandoned the show because b/e existed, instead of recognizing a canon love triangle when they see one. (I will admit that this has been what has made me most frustrated with the Bellarke fandom. They’re giving us what we want and we’re acting like it’s not happening in canon on screen.)

Like my “spec” is pretending there’s a love triangle, or the love triangle is just an interpretation rather than written in the script, the direction, the cinematography and the acting.

I cannot tell you if JR will back out of the bellarke love story or not, because I am not in control of what another person creates, but I can tell you that the story of The 100 has been an epic love story, truly from season 1, because it has been about GROWTH, but as a main plot line from season 5, or the end of s4 when he left her behind.

If you say you know what kind of story The 100 is and you don’t recognize the actual romantic story of Bellarke, then you don’t know what the story is.

This is not fanon. This is canon. It’s not my speculation. It’s the narrative. JR has called it an epic love story. He has told us it would happen eventually. He has said they were soul mates. He has said they love each other. And the story he is telling has them revolving around each other closer and closer until they connect.

When I speculate that the story might be following the structure of The Divine Comedy, with the Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise, giving us the darkest moments in the beginning and ending up NOT a tragedy, that’s a speculation that is based on a remarkable similarity to the narrative and also literal allusions to the text and a painting we stared at in TWO seasons to point out the connection and character names like Dante and Blake to make the connections. So yeah. I’m speculating on the theme of the story that won’t, perhaps, be clear until the end, but it’s less a speculation and more a theory-- a theory has evidence to support it while a speculation doesn’t necessarily.

There IS a point to the story, though. He’s told us there is. And it will be clear at the end. What I’m saying is that in order to tell a good story, he needs to incorporate that point into the whole story so we can follow along and it will all add up at the end. So I’ve been looking for those breadcrumbs that tell us where it’s going. This is what I do, and I’m pretty good at it. Finding those clues. I know not everyone knows how to do that, and I know a lot of people have been gaslighted by those who have been telling us Bellarke is not romantic or not the central relationship, or not the heroes, or are actually the bad guys, or are unimportant etc.

Back in season 3 after Hakeldama, I wrote a meta theorizing that this whole story was about Clarke and Bellamy coming together. That in order to succeed, they must be together. It was based on some significant evidence from the first 2.5 seasons, but it has been proven correct in the following 3.5 seasons. This show is DEFINITELY about bellarke, the head and the heart, being TOGETHER and saving the world. There were points where it could have been a sun/moon story, never getting together. There were points where it could have remained platonic with no romantic connection. Those points have all been passed now, and they MUST be together and it is ALREADY romantic, so the eventual COMPLETE union of Bellarke is going to be romantic. They are already married, imo, committed, pledged, intimate, loving, devoted, respecting, trusting, and the ONLY thing separating them from what fandom wants is the physical. Because it has already moved into the romantic (EVERY love triangle is a romantic story, even for the losing couple, it’s still a romantic story, therefore, in the IMPOSSIBLE event that bellamy choses Echo over Clarke, it’s still romantic, just a broken hearted romance without the necessary genre happy ending,) it is no longer a platonic relationship.

What I CAN’T do is tell you how it’s going to end. If Bellarke will live or die. They might die and that’s always been a possibility that I’ve said for the end of the series. Here are the possibilities i can see for a Bellarke ending. In all but one (very unlikely possibility) Bellarke are kiss/confess/sex canon romantic, even if they don’t get a happy ever after.

Bellarke alive, together, romantically, married, raise a family and a peaceful society with their friends. (Happy Ever After ending common in the romance genre.)

Bellarke alive, together, romantically, married, have a family and life with their friends but there are more struggles coming, like maybe another apocalypse or political upheaval or violence. (Happy For Now ending also common in the more ‘realistic’ romance genre or romantic stories.)

Bellarke alive, together, romantically, married, have a family.... but not with their friends who are left behind to create the peaceful society. (Marper ending, The 100 Style Happy Ending, as described by JR. Bittersweet. This is the one I think is most likely in some ways.)

Bellarke dead, together romantically before they die, their family and friends go on without them to create a peaceful society. (Happy Ever After for humanity, but not for Bellarke. Bittersweet. A Romeo and Juliet ending, and though Bellarke has never been framed as R&J it’s possible. This could happen. The sooner they get together romantically in season 7 the more likely they won’t get a happy ending.)

Bellarke together romantically, but Clarke dies saving them, and Bellamy carries on in her absence, broken, perhaps eventually settling for Echo, or perhaps not. He creates a peaceful society for their friends in her name. (this is Happy Ever After for humanity, but a tragedy for Bellarke. I believe this was the ending of s4, and I think it’s developed past that so I don’t think it will happen.)

Bellarke together romantically, but Bellamy dies saving them, and Clarke carries on in his absence. The only way I think this could happen is if she has his baby, so carries him with her. She creates a peaceful society for their friends and her children in his name. (Happy Ever After for humanity, but a tragedy for Bellarke. This was the ending of s4 for Clarke with Madi as the substitute child. I believe we’ve developed past that so I don’t think it will happen.)

Bellarke together platonically... i do not think this can happen, it would have to RETURN to platonic partnership, because we’ve left platonic, but let me explore it. Clarke would need to give up Bellamy to Echo because it was “the right thing to do” and Bellamy would need to stay with Echo because it was “the right thing to do,” and neither of them would make the claim on the other. But I believe part of the journey of s6 was about Bellamy CHOOSING Clarke because he loves her. It’s part of the narrative. So he’s already chosen her, so something would have to happen to reverse that decision and I don’t know what it could be. Clarke looks like she’s ready to wait for him. I don’t think this story would have them together platonically with Bellamy sacrificing his happiness being with Echo, who is Ash and doesn’t want to be king/spy anymore, and leaving Clarke pining for her soulmate. That’s a bad story because there’s no reason for them to not admit they love each other. Staying with Echo because he promised is a bad reason and disrespectful to all involved. But okay. Bellamy chooses Echo and Clarke eventually finds someone else and they lead a peaceful society without fully engaging the heart. Oh that doesn’t make sense. They’re the head and the heart. That would not be living up to what Monty asked of them. No it doesn’t work. This ending is already off the table, sorry. Unless JR really is the asshole that you all think he is. If it happens, I’ll admit that you were right and he’s a dick as bad as D&D. But if it doesn’t happen, then y’all need to go apologize to JR for doubting him and hating him and calling him evil and a bad writer.

Where I am now, I think the most likely is a mix of the above. I think the bittersweet ending will include a happy ever after for Bellarke, like Marper, as they are separated from their friends and family and assumed dead. So Bellarke will die together saving their people, but they won’t die, rather they will be separated from them so they can have their happy ending although it is alone and they’ve lost everyone they love, except each other. It fits the narrative, the circular storytelling, the bellarke mythos, the breaking of the cycle, clarke and bellamy’s characters, the sacrifice theme, the head and the heart, the marper foreshadowing, “together,” wanheda, the survival plot twists where we think they’re dead but they’re not, soulmates, the bittersweet endings, the victory but with a price, etc.

#the 100 #the 100 style happy ending #bittersweet #series finale spec #bellarke #together

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venus-says · 4 years

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Healin' Good Precure Episodes 21-30

Hope you're comfortable and have your reading glasses on because I'm about to rant.

It has been a long time since I came here and bashed my thoughts on this show for young kids, but you know? It feels like just a couple of weeks have passed.

And I say this because to my surprise, and maybe disappointment, not a lot happened in these 10 episodes. Does it mean it was bad? Not necessarily. Excluding maybe 2 or 3 episodes, I had a great time binge-watching these last episodes in the past three days.

Usually, in a Precure season, the episodes that follow the debut of the mid-season Cure are used to insert the new character in the team, create connections with each member, make us feel like the newcomer belongs here. In Asumi's case, these episodes also had the function of building her as a character since she's someone who literally just appeared out of thin air. And these episodes haven't done either of those things, in my opinion. I came out of these 10 episodes with the same basic information I had from last time, she's clueless, she's obsessed with Rate, as a Cure she is gorgeous and cool as heck, but maybe a little too overpowered. I know nothing about Fuurin Asumi.

One can argue "well, she was just brought to existence, it's obvious you know nothing about her because there's nothing learn", but that doesn't mean that they couldn't build her character. They decided that her whole thing would be learning about human emotions(?) and they could've chosen some specific points that would help her to build her personality and her character, give her goals and ideals, a reason for her to be a main character in this story. And while we see evidence that she has learned the meaning of those words and she can recognize them on herself and in other people, this is not a personality is just a computer recognizing patterns.

The feeling I had while watching these episodes was that she was a blank canvas just so that the writers could use her as a jack-of-all-trades for whatever situation they were trying to build in the episode. And this inconsistency with her is pretty evident, I mean in one episode she exhibits a lack of knowledge about basic human feelings, but then she suddenly knows what rap is even though we haven't seen a single instance of her having contact with it, and then later we see she giving Grace life advice.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed and had fun with Asumi in those isolated instances, it's because of them that even with all the problems I have I still like Asumi VERY MUCH, the thing is that this isn't an episodic show where each story is centered on itself and there's not a bigger picture to be seen, this is a continuous narrative so just isolated moments aren't enough. Imagine how much more meaningful it would have been if the words they decided to explain to Asumi were things that deeply connected with her, imagine how much more fun the rap gag would've been if we had seen before she going out on her own and meeting with random people on the street and we had a precedent of her knowing something that was weirdly very specific and seeing that being brought up in the future as her unique comedy gag, imagine how much more meaningful her words to grace in episode 29 would've been if we had seen her gain that level of understanding of human emotion in a way that wasn't by just explaining the definition of that word in a dictionary.

The reason why this "arc" feels so frustrating is that the basis for something great is all there, they just don't use it at it's fullest which makes her, who could've been the most interesting character the Precure franchise has ever seen, just another one, and that hurts. Because I freaking love this spirit lady and I wanted her to be more.

Overall rant is done, let's talk about each individual episode, shall we?

I know it doesn't seem like it, because I've written around 600 words of how disappointed I was, but I had a great time doing this mini-marathon to catch up with the show. I don't know if it was because it had been so long since I watched something Precure related, or if it was because my expectations were low since even though I try to avoid seeing other opinions before I write my own reviews since it has been so long I couldn't really avoid that and those comments weren't really that positive, or if it was because I was live-tweeting my impressions instead of taking my usual notes. but overall my experience was great. Even in the episodes I didn't like or had major issues with, it wasn't to a point where it made me regret the decision of getting back to this show so most of these are going to be very positive.

Except for the final three episodes, I'm not doing these in the correct order so I decided to leave the episodes I disliked for last. I'm probably going to go overboard with the negativity in those ones so if you don't wanna any of that you can leave before me going in the mean territory.

Anyway, Episode 21. That was a very fun one, it had a good combination of comedy with endearing moments and even bigger picture stuff. It was still early on Asumi's journey so her cluelessness was very fun and endearing and I had some great laughs with that one (that moment where she struggles with the chopsticks was my favorite bit. I also liked seeing Nodoka work her way around to let Asumi stay at her house, I like how straight-forward it was and how the lie developed after it, I don't know how Nodoka's parents bought the story but I loved it. The theme for Asumi this time was learning about empathy (I think?) and she and Nodoka had some great exchanges in the episode. Getting more development with the Mega Parts was also good, there were interesting bits of information like how to harvest them and that they can be injected in the Mega Byougens by anyone, it doesn't need to be the one who began the infection. Also, the group roll call was very cute, I love Rate touching paws with each of the healing animals, and the new eyecatches are cute as hell!!!! I also liked the special intro bit with Nodoka and Asumi, I wish they did things like that more.

Episode 22 was a bit weird. The lesson of the episode was about the word "like", but it was a bit confusing. It seemed that the point they were trying to make is that liking sometimes it's hard because is something you can't control, but it didn't connect very much with the conflict between Rate and Asumi? I think very valid and important points were raised throughout the entire episode, but in the end, to me, it felt more like a plot about empathy, because Asumi wasn't being considered of Rate's feelings and the resolution for the main conflict in the episode was about that, but I can also see the logic behind what they were doing it's just that they could've been more clear in that aspect. Regardless, this episode gave us the starting point for one of the relationships I enjoyed the most in this run that was Chiyuu and Asumi getting along so well, I honestly thought Asumi would be more connected to Nodoka and the animals, but she has a lot of chemistry with Chiyuu and it was a delightful surprise discovering this friendship.

Of the initial episodes to connect with each Cure, Episode 23 was probably the weakest. I think Hinata and Asumi didn't really click for me when they were together, and teaching her the concept of "cute" didn't seem all that useful to me, the impression it gave me was that they couldn't think of anything else meaningful Hinata could bestow on Asumi and they went with the easy route instead of putting in the work to make something bigger. With that being said, I really appreciate that in no moment of the episode the show tried to tailor Asumi for her to think that only one thing that follows a certain aesthetic pattern can be considered cute, I was very afraid of that happening and it was a huge relief to see that it hasn't happened. One curious thing about this episode was the Cures directly interacting with civilians, has that already happened and I just forgot about it? Or was this the first time? That got me really curious.

Episode 24 was a mixed bag, it introduced elements that I liked but it overall gets ruined by what I've mentioned at the start and also because it can be summed down to Spirit Lady Too OP. The thing I liked the most in this episode was seeing Asumi connect with another adult human, it was a nice interaction that I was really into it and that I hope keeps happening in Asumi episodes, to me it was an example of interesting interaction outside the Cures' circle that could be meaningful for building Asumi's character (if they were really concerned in building her one). I was also pretty excited for a new general and Nebusokku seemed to have enough to be a fun character, sadly he was defeated in the same episode which was kinda disappointing and it left me with the Batetemoda blues. There was also the portal stuff that was random and it never happened again and, I don't know, it just felt way too convenient. Spirit Lady is too OP and, sadly, that's a problem.

Surprisingly enough, Episode 26 was one of my favorites. I know it's just a clip show, but you can see that they cared enough to make this feel like a genuine episode and not just something that you can skip if you want. Maybe they could've put a little more of care into it since they made the big mistake of saying Asumi wanted to do a Rate Diary but all the questions and recollections Asumi got were from everyone BUT Rate, but I still really enjoyed the episode. I really like the journey of Asumi not being scared in the cold opening, to the group deciding to make something that is nice to her but that will also surprise her, and the cute moment at the end was a really nice payoff. I also like how Asumi stumbled upon the information about the festival and seeing her actively wanting to be part of the team and her being sad for feeling like she was being left behind without making a big mess about it, like she was sad but she also (miss)understands what's going on and that just makes her even sadder. This recap episode gave up more characterization about Asumi than the episodes that were meant to do that and this is both impressive and sad.

Speaking of episodes that characterize Asumi, Episode 27 was another great one at it. Again, Asumi connecting with another adult being determined to help, feeling frustrated for the Hot-Air-Balloon Team loss and wanting to actively do something about it. It was really great seeing her so assertive, and seeing her feel so strong about something, and even better, something that wasn't related at all to Rate. She felt like a real character, a real human, and I really liked that. This was a very straight-forward episode but I think it works completely in favor of the episode, I like the plot, I like the characters of the day, I like that even Nodoka's father got some characterization since now we know he was a Hot-Air-Balloon nerd, we even got a new element bottle. It was simple and it was great.

From this point on we're on Salty territory so read at your own discretion.

Going from the one I have the least to talk about, Episode 29 was boring I thought they were going to do something bigger, considering what episode 28 was, and if you disregard Cure Earth giving really mature advice about something she shouldn't have the know-how to talk about they had a nice bit of Nodoka going reckless and she realizing she shouldn't be so hard on herself, but that was pretty much the only thing this episode had going for it. I really couldn't care for anything else, the comedy felt very odd, and getting the final bottle for the shelf was very underwhelming.

Then we have episode 25, that feels disconnected from the rest of the storyline, and that is just here in the bottom list because of two factors. The first is the fact that is a very cliche plot and the show didn't bring in enough new elements to make it interesting, instead, they wanted to make it WAY TOO SAD for that little girl and it was just cruel to watch it because I knew all the time Pegitan would eventually leave her and I wanted that little kid to be happy because she seems like a good kid. My other problem, and my biggest one, is what started this whole plot. I hate the "I'm a boy, I'm not cute, I'm cool" line of thought, and while it makes sense that Pegitan, being as insecure as he is, would have a concern like that, I hate that the show makes Chiyuu feel guilty and blame herself for doing it, and I hate it even more that at the end the major message was "Yes, Pegitan, you're cool" instead of "It's okay for you, as a male, to be cute". From a franchise that two years ago was saying boys can be princesses, this feels like a step back and I hate it.

Episode 30 was one of the most boring things I've watched in this season. To begin, what the hell were they thinking of making Hinata, of all girls, to be the one to not know tigers and cats are related? She lives in a veterinary clinic, both her dad and her brother should've mentioned that at some point, and I'm being gentle here and not considering this as common knowledge for 14-years-old kids. Then there's the thing that completely ruined the episode to me that was that little boy and his friend. I really didn't care for this random character with the most white straight male thought ever wanting all of their friends to be the same as him because he doesn't like to have their world views being challenged. If it wasn't for the eventual cute interactions between the girls this episode would've been the worst.

And there's an element in this episode that ties in with Episode 28 which is, without a doubt, my biggest problem with this series: the villains.

I hate the Healin' Good villains, all of them. Except for Batetemoda, but he's dead so he doesn't count. This is probably the most uninteresting set of generals of the entire franchise, and we live in a world where the Trio the Minor and the Mahou Tsukai villains exists. Guwaiaru is way too dumb, his dumbness is supposed to be played for laughs, but when you repeat the same joke of him adding more stuff to a bigger thing to make it stronger, or dirtier, or spicier, in the span of 10 episodes it doesn't become funny, it's just tiresome. Then there's Shindoine, who's flat-lined as hell. Her whole thing, her only thing, is her unhealthy obsession with King Byougen. She doesn't have anything else besides that, she doesn't do anything interesting, every time she's on-screen she's talking about King Byougen, and it's not fun, it's not interesting, it is a big pile of nothing. And you would think that after Anacondy, Papple, and Gelos, the creators of this show would know better and wouldn't make another general that is so in love with the leader of their organization to the point of doing dumb shit that could get them killed, but no. We gotta raise the stakes. And as cool as powered-up Shindoine looks, I can't get excited. Because she, just as her companions, doesn't change as characters. They are the regular "pick a stereotype and make a character out of it" gone to an extreme and in the most boring way possible.

Thanks, I hate it.

And then, there's the biggest offender of them all. Daruizen. He is the "bored one" and that's enough to make him boring because he doesn't have anything to pique my curiosity to learn about him or see what he's capable of. In other circumstances, this would be fine, but her companions are just as boring, and the thing that maximizes this as a problem is that for some reason the creators of this show thought it was a great idea to pair him up with the main Cure. And when you do something like, to make sure your audience will be completely on board with you, you gotta make sure both characters are interesting enough to carry this on.

The catch is that Daruizen isn't interesting at all, the thing that makes Daruizen interesting is the thing that makes Nodoka/Grace less interesting, and that's not a good balance.

When Episode 28 decided to make canon that Daruizen is the result of a parasite that took residence in Nodoka's body they elevated his level of in the scale, now we have a very close connection that raises the bar for the rivalry these two have and it also drops answers for questions we didn't even know we had. But they couldn't leave it at that, they had to undermine their main character and probably the whole, show while at it too.

The thing that made Nodoka such a unique lead for this show was the fact that she is a sick kid, we never know what her disease is, and I understand the reasons why the show wouldn't want to pin-point and existence disease neither create a fake one, but we know her health isn't one of the best, we've seen her suffer because of it and the show wasn't shy of putting images of the main character in a hospital bed. And this is very important because, while the majority of the target audience most likely has never been in those conditions, I'm sure a lot of kids, and even adults, who unfortunately have been in hospitals for most of their lives watches this show for hope, for strength, for comfort, and having a main character similar to them is strong as fuck. But when you make Nodoka's disease to be something magical you devalue a lot of that. Yes, magical or not, Nodoka did experience her disease, that affected her, that changed her. But just how it magically came to her, it also magically left her body, and sadly that's not a luxury that we in the real world have... and that affects people. Of course, I'm working here just based on assumptions, thankfully I never had to be hospitalized and the closest my family got to that was when my aunt got her tubes tied and the period right before my father's death, so I may not be in my place to say, and I really hope I'm wrong in this, but I do believe this was a bad move for the representation.

Even if I'm wrong (and I really do hope I am), this still isn't a good narrative move because it just turns this show into something very focused on the lead cure when this is supposed to be a show about a team. It makes it feel like this world spins around Nodoka, and not that Nodoka spins WITH the world she's in. This deep connection with one general, that isn't emulated with the other generals in parallel to the other Cures, makes it feel like she's the only one important and that nothing else matters, and this saddens me because makes it look like I hate Nodoka when I deeply care for her and this is the reason why I'm so mad about this mess. Now that I think about it, it's very similar to Kamen Rider EX:AID to a certain extent, and from all the aspects I could draw a parallel this is definitely the worst one to intersect. Well, at least they haven't made her be the be-all-end-all of the show (yet).

But just to not end this on a negative note, Episode 28 did gave us one of the most emotional scenes ever between Rabirin and Nodoka, and that crushed my heart, I had no emotional structure to sit through that without shading tears. It was an amazing scene. And Episode 30 did end on a good cliffhanger, it feels like we're entering the final arc that will lead us to the Christmas special and then the finale, and I'm very curious to see the path this show will take.

And that does it for me. I feel like I've written way much more than I should, and maybe I'll have to write more because I'm not necessarily sure if I should post this right now considering the US Elections, but regardless, whenever you get to read this share your thoughts with me, I feel like for this block of episodes more than any other else I'm really curious to see what people have to say about it. And considering the sheer length of this post, if you're someone who's reading this on tumblr, consider going over to the blog (the link should be in the sidebar if you're accessing it via pc) the comment section should allow for a better discussion that doesn't need to be broken down in several replies like here on tumblr. Without anything else to add, I think it's time to sign off. Stay healthy, stay safe, never stop resisting, thank you so so so much for reading this insanely huge post, and until the next time. Healin’ Goodbye~

#Healin' Good Precure #precure

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introvertguide · 3 years

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Do The Right Thing (1989), AFI #96

Our next film on the list that we reviewed was a more recent drama/comedy called Do The Right Thing (1989), directed by Spike Lee. Well, on a list with movies over 100 years old, a little over 30 is pretty new. It is the story of a single day in 80s Brooklyn and the drama that comes from frayed nerves under the boiling summer heat. The movie received a couple of Oscar nominations and Spike Lee received recognition for his directing and screenwriting. Danny Aiello also was recognized on the awards circuit for best supporting actor. There are some extraordinary aspects to this film that makes it stand out, but I also feel that it is lacking in many ways. The good strongly outweighs the bad, but I will discuss that more after the movie summary:

SPOILER WARNING!!! IT IS LESS SPOILERY THAN NORMAL DUE TO ALL THE CHARACTERS, BUT THE MAJOR POINTS ARE STILL GIVEN AWAY!!! WATCH FIRST AND COME BACK FOR THE ARTICLE TO GET THE BEST EXPERIENCE!!!

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Mookie (Spike Lee) is a 25-year-old pizza delivery man living in Bedford–Stuyvesant, with his sister Jade. He and his girlfriend Tina (Rosie Perez) have a toddler son named Hector. Mookie works at a local pizzeria owned by Sal (Danny Aiello), an Italian-American who has been in the neighborhood for 25 years. Sal's eldest son Pino (Jon Turturro) is racist, and does not get along with Mookie. Because of this, Pino is at odds with both his father, who refuses to leave the majority African-American neighborhood, and his younger brother Vito (Richard Edson), who is friendly with Mookie.

Many distinctive residents are introduced, including Da Mayor (Ossie Davis), a friendly drunk; Mother Sister (Ruby Dee), who watches the neighborhood from her brownstone; Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn), who blasts Public Enemy on his boombox wherever he goes; and Smiley (Roger Smith), a mentally disabled man who meanders around the neighborhood trying to sell hand-colored pictures of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.

While at Sal's, Mookie's friend Buggin' Out (Giancarlo Esposito) questions Sal about his "Wall of Fame", a wall decorated with photos of famous Italian-Americans. Buggin' Out demands that Sal put up pictures of black celebrities since Sal's pizzeria is in a black neighborhood. Sal replies that it is his business, and that he can have whoever he wants on the wall. Buggin' Out attempts to start a boycott over the Wall of Fame.

During the day, local teenagers open a fire hydrant and douse the other neighbors to beat the heat wave before officers intervene. After a phone call, Mookie and Pino begin arguing over race. Mookie confronts Pino about his negative attitudes towards African Americans, although the latter's favorite celebrities are black. Various characters express racial insults: Mookie against Italians, Pino against African Americans, Latino Stevie against Koreans, white officer Gary Long against Puerto Ricans, and Korean owner Sonny against Jews. Pino expresses his contempt for African Americans to Sal, but Sal insists that he will not leave the neighborhood.

That night, Buggin' Out, Radio Raheem, and Smiley march into Sal's and demand that Sal change the Wall of Fame. Raheem's boombox is blaring and Sal demands that he turn it off, but he refuses. Buggin' Out calls Sal and sons "Guinea bastards" and threatens to close down the pizzeria until they change the Wall of Fame. Frustrated and angry, Sal calls Buggin' Out a "n****r" and destroys Raheem's boombox with a bat. Raheem attacks Sal, leading to a fight that spills out into the Street and attracts a crowd. While Raheem is choking Sal, the police arrive. They break up the fight, and apprehend Raheem and Buggin' Out. Despite the pleas of onlookers, one officer refuses to release his chokehold on Raheem, killing him. Realizing that Raheem has been killed in front of witnesses, the officers place his body in the back of a police car and drive off.

The onlookers, devastated and enraged about Radio Raheem's death, blame Sal and his sons. Da Mayor tries to convince the crowd that Sal was not responsible for his death but the crowd remain where they are. Mookie grabs a trash can and throws it through the window of Sal's pizzeria, sparking the crowd to rush into the pizzeria and destroy it. Smiley sets the building on fire, and Da Mayor pulls Sal, Pino, and Vito out of the mob's way. The police return to the sight, along with firemen and riot patrols arrive to put out the fire and disperse the crowd. After they issue a warning, the firefighters turn their hoses on the rioters, leading to more fighting and arrests. Mookie and Jade sit on the curb, watching in disbelief. Smiley wanders back into the smoldering building and hangs one of his pictures on what is left of Sal's Wall of Fame.

The next day, after an argument with Tina, Mookie returns to Sal. He feels that Mookie had betrayed him, but Mookie demands his weekly pay. The two men argue and cautiously reconcile, and Sal finally pays Mookie.

The film ends with two quotations that express different views about violence, one by Martin Luther King and one by Malcolm X. It fades to a photograph of the two leaders shaking hands. Prior to the credits, Lee dedicates the film to the families of six victims of brutality or racial violence: Eleanor Bumpurs, Michael Griffith, Arthur Miller Jr., Edmund Perry, Yvonne Smallwood, and Michael Stewart.

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I want to break this into the good and the bad (at least in my humble opinion). I want to start with the great cinematography and the director of photography Ernest Dickerson. He really brought the city to life and made the overheated neighborhood into a character. He used reds and oranges and avoided greens and blues. All of the clothes were sweaty and stained. There were also some beautiful walking shots that followed Mookie as he moved through the neighborhood. Some of the best camera work was the close-ups of Radio Raheem because the shot would tilt to a Dutch angle every time he got mad. It gave the feeling like things were going askew.

Because it was shot on location in Brooklyn, one could use Google maps and see the actual neighborhood. It was mapped out so well, however, that I didn’t need the map and could draw out the locations of the homes and businesses from a single watch. Dickerson did a phenomenal job of setting the stage for Spike Lee’s story and has done great work on many of Lee’s other films including She’s Gotta’ Have It (1986), School Daze (1988), Do The Right Thing (1989), Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Jungle Fever (1991), and Malcolm X (1992). Great team and a great bunch of movies. Dickerson has since moved to directing and well worth following.

I thought the short comic stories that came together were pretty great. Somebody accidently stepped on Buggin’ Out’s shoes and scuffed them. He threatened the guy who did it and got a whole group of people to help and try to coerce money out of the offender. It eventually turned out that he was all talk. But the shoes kept popping up over and over. The three men sitting and complaining while not actually doing anything was pretty funny. The hatred that Sister/Mother had for Da Mayor was pretty good as well. There were a couple pretty good laughs.

I love the character of Radio Raheem played by Bill Nunn and how he represented the underlying anger of the neighborhood. He just walked around trying to do his thing and listened to his super loud music. The black residents recognized him and knew he had become part of the landscape while other residents tried to get him to be quiet and suppress him. When he was killed, the anger that he represented was released and the group went into a frenzy of destruction. Raheem’s interaction with each of the other characters truly defined how director Spiker Lee wanted the audience to see that person. The movie really shines with any scenes involving Radio Raheem.

As far as the acting is concerned, I really liked the work of Danny Aiello, John Turturro, and Richard Edson. I don’t want to be accused of anything because I liked the work of the three main white actors, however I feel that the three characters trying to fit into a place where many felt they did not belong was the most intriguing. Sal seemed like such a good guy, but he still had some underlying hatred and fear of black community and it became apparent when he was faced with Radio Raheem, the representation of the suppressed black anger of the neighborhood.

The six people to whom the movie was dedicated were all black Americans in the New York area who had died in suspicious and racially charged violence. I normally don’t recommend this site, but Wikipedia provides links to learn more about all of the people mentioned. It seems that a lot of Spike Lee’s characters were based on the different people mentioned. I had never realized how closely tied this film was to the history of violence in 80s New York, and it does make me like the film a lot more.

Now for a couple of things that I really did not enjoy. The main character Mookie was not that interesting beyond just being a vehicle that walks through the day. When it got to the point where he couldn’t take any more and he smashed the window (whether it was to protect Sal by directing the anger towards the store instead of Sal and his sons is up to interpretation) seemed so out of character. Like everyone stopped and stared as he did something that his character had no motivation to do. This could just be a personal critique because I found Spike Lee’s acting so unconvincing (the guy can’t emote, he is a director not an actor) and I think giving his boring character control of the turning point at the climax of the movie was a little bit of director ego.

I also didn’t like the random white guys that were with the cops that killed Radio Raheem. Where did they come from and where did they go? The cops show up to break up the fight between Sal and Raheem and suddenly there are some plain clothed white guys that I didn’t remember being in the rest of the movie. It seemed like they came from the surrounding streets and there was one guy in particular who was in a blank tank top that helped subdue Radio Raheem that just disappeared. Wouldn’t the police want to take him into custody as well or at least not leave him on the street with a large angry mob? The sudden appearance of all these extras for the one scene has always thrown me. It feels like they took stock footage from a different movie and plugged it in, or maybe it was shot long before or after the rest of the scenes in the film.

I did not like Rosie Perez’s character of Tina. Perez had been a professional dancer and this was her big break. I really didn’t think the opening with her dancing was noteworthy in any way, her famous ice cube scene was completely unnecessary, and the ending with her complaining was horrific. Honestly, the ice cube scene shows Spike Lee rubbing a piece of ice on Rosie Perez’s naked body and it felt pervy and inappropriate. I do not correlate all nudity in a movie with automatically meaning it is not for kids (depends on the movie and depends on the kid), but this was just dumb. This was a point of contention with the group that watched with me, some saying she was the best part of the film. I could not disagree more and I rated it 3/5 on Netflix noting that it would be 4/5 if Perez had not been in it. She really rubbed me the wrong way in the film. I liked her in White Men Can’t Jump playing a similar character, but in this movie she was not needed.

In fact, there seemed like there were many extra things that didn’t need to be there. There is about 2 minutes in which five characters make racist rants about other ethnic groups with the camera right in their face. This seems like art for art’s sake and not really needed. The character of Smiley seemed very out of place and it turns out that he was not in the original screenplay but written in so that the actor could have a part. The DJ just said the same things over and over with no real insight. He was played by Samuel L. Jackson, which is cool, but he also didn’t need to be there. I guess my biggest gripe is that Spike Lee had a great film idea with strong characters and then decided he needed to keep layering in more characters and subplots until it was superfluous. But again, just an opinion.

I saw that Siskel & Ebert both rated the movie as one of the top 10 of the 80s. Both of them had opinions about whether or not Mookie did the right thing, which is not a question that Spike Lee intended to ask (as he stated in many interviews). I think it was (and is) refreshing to have a strong black voice in the director’s chair and this might have affected their rating. Maybe, since I was 9 when this film came out, I am not affected enough by how new and innovative this film must have seemed when it came out. I started to become aware of the world shortly after this movie was released and I was inundated with Spike Lee in films and advertisements. His work didn’t seem so fresh when I also saw him in commercials for Nike and McDonald’s. I shouldn’t allow that to take away from the importance of his voice as part of the history of American cinema. He is the only black director of any movie on the AFI top 100 films and only one of two directors of color (M. Night being the other).

So does this film belong on the AFI top 100? Yes. It is a good story of American life in an area that was often ignored. The streets of Brooklyn are just as American as the farms in Iowa, the plains of Cheyenne, or the suburbs of California. It is great to have those stories told by a man who grew up there and knew the different life styles and the different problems. It is an important movie and I am glad it was included. Would I recommend it? Yeah, it is pretty good. I would say focus on the interactions between Raheem and the other characters and it makes for a great story. Definitely worth checking out.

#spike lee #80s films #do the right thing #brooklyn #black voices #introvert #introverts #afi films #american movies

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silent-era-of-cinema · 4 years

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Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s.

Arthur had feature roles in three Frank Capra films: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), You Can't Take It with You (1938), and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), films that championed the "everyday heroine". Arthur was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1944 for her performance in The More the Merrier (1943).

James Harvey wrote in his history of the romantic comedy: "No one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur. So much was she part of it, so much was her star personality defined by it, that the screwball style itself seems almost unimaginable without her." She has been called "the quintessential comedic leading lady". Her last film performance was non-comedic, playing the homesteader's wife in George Stevens's Shane in 1953.

Arthur was known as a reclusive woman. News magazine Life observed in a 1940 article: "Next to Garbo, Jean Arthur is Hollywood's reigning mystery woman." As well as recoiling from interviews, she avoided photographers and refused to become a part of any kind of publicity.

Arthur was born Gladys Georgianna Greene in Plattsburgh, New York, to Protestant parents, Johanna Augusta Nelson (1871–1959) and Hubert Sidney Greene (1863–1944).[7] Gladys' Lutheran maternal grandparents immigrated from Norway to the American West after the Civil War. Her Congregationalist paternal ancestors immigrated from England to Rhode Island in the second half of the 1600s. During the 1790s, Nathaniel Greene helped found the town of St. Albans, Vermont, where his great-grandson, Hubert Greene, was born on September 1, 1863.

Johanna and Hubert were married in Billings, Montana, on July 7, 1890. Gladys's three older brothers—Donald Hubert Greene (1890–1967), Robert Brazier Greene (1892–1955) and Albert Sidney Greene (1894–1926)[8]—were born in the West. Around 1897, Hubert moved his wife and three sons from Billings to Plattsburgh, so he could work as a photographer at the Woodward Studios on Clinton Street. Johanna gave birth to stillborn twins on April 1, 1898.

Two and a half years later, Johanna gave birth to Gladys Georgianna. The product of a nomadic childhood, the future Jean Arthur lived at times in Saranac Lake, New York; Jacksonville, Florida, where George Woodward, Hubert's Plattsburgh employer, opened a second studio; and Schenectady, New York, where Hubert had grown up and where several members of his family still lived. The Greenes lived on and off in Westbrook, Maine, from 1908 to 1915 while Gladys's father worked at Lamson Studios in Portland, Maine. Relocating in 1915 to New York City, the family settled in the Washington Heights neighborhood – at 573 West 159th Street – of upper Manhattan, and Hubert worked at Ira L. Hill's photographic studio on Fifth Avenue.

Gladys dropped out of high school in her junior year due to a "change in family circumstances". Presaging many of her later film roles, she worked as a stenographer on Bond Street in lower Manhattan during and after World War I. Both her father (at age 55, claiming to be 45) and siblings registered for the draft. Her brother Albert died in 1926 as a result of respiratory injuries suffered during a mustard gas attack during World War I.

Discovered by Fox Film Studios while she was doing commercial modeling in New York City in the early 1920s, the newly named Jean Arthur landed a one-year contract and debuted in the silent film Cameo Kirby (1923), directed by John Ford. She reputedly took her stage name from two of her greatest heroes, Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc) and King Arthur.[citation needed] The studio was at the time looking for new American sweethearts with sufficient sex appeal to interest the Jazz Age audiences. Arthur was remodeled as such a personality, a flapper. Following the small role in Cameo Kirby, she received her first female lead role in The Temple of Venus (1923), a plotless tale about a group of dancing nymphs. Dissatisfied with her lack of acting talent, the film's director Henry Otto replaced Arthur with actress Mary Philbin during the third day of shooting. Arthur agreed with the director: "There wasn't a spark from within. I was acting like a mechanical doll personality. I thought I was disgraced for life." She was planning on leaving the California film industry for good, but reluctantly stayed due to her contract, and appeared in comedy shorts instead. Despite lacking the required talent, Arthur liked acting, which she perceived as an "outlet". To acquire some fame, she registered herself in the Los Angeles city directory as a photo player operator, as well as appearing in a promotional film for a new Encino nightclub, but to no avail.

Change came when one day she showed up at the lot of Action Pictures, which produced B westerns, and impressed its owner Lester F. Scott Jr., with her presence. He decided to take a chance on a complete unknown, and she was cast in over twenty westerns in a two-year period. Only receiving $25 a picture, Arthur suffered from difficult working conditions: "The films were generally shot on location, often in the desert near Los Angeles, under a scorching sun that caused throats to parch and make-up to run. Running water was nowhere to be found, and even outhouses were a luxury not always present. The extras on these films were often real cowboys, tough men who were used to roughing it and who had little use for those who were not." The films were moderately successful in second-rate Midwestern theaters, though Arthur received no official attention. Aside from appearing in films for Action Pictures between 1924 and 1926, she worked in some independent westerns, including The Drug Store Cowboy (1925), and westerns for Poverty Row, as well as having an uncredited bit part in Buster Keaton's Seven Chances (1925).

In 1927, Arthur attracted more attention when she appeared opposite Mae Busch and Charles Delaney as a gold digging chorus girl in Husband Hunters. Subsequently, she was romanced by actor Monty Banks in Horse Shoes (1927), both a commercial and critical success. She was cast on Banks's insistence, and received a salary of $700. Next, director Richard Wallace ignored Fox's wishes to cast a more experienced actress by assigning Arthur to the female lead in The Poor Nut (1927), a college comedy which gave her wide exposure to audiences. A reviewer for Variety did not spare the actress in his review: "With everyone in Hollywood bragging about the tremendous overflow of charming young women all battering upon the directorial doors leading to an appearance in pictures, it seems strange that from all these should have been selected two flat specimens such as Jean Arthur and Jane Winton. Neither of the girls has screen presence. Even under the kindliest treatment from the camera they are far from attractive and in one or two side shots almost impossible." Fed up with the direction that her career was taking, Arthur expressed her desire for a big break in an interview at the time. She was skeptical when signed to a small role in Warming Up (1928), a film produced for a big studio, Famous Players-Lasky, and featuring major star Richard Dix. Promoted as the studio's first sound film, it received wide media attention, and Arthur earned praise for her portrayal of a club owner's daughter. Variety opined, "Dix and Arthur are splendid in spite of the wretched material", while Screenland wrote that Arthur "is one of the most charming young kissees who ever officiated in a Dix film. Jean is winsome; she neither looks nor acts like the regular movie heroine. She's a nice girl – but she has her moments." The success of Warming Up resulted in Arthur being signed to a three-year contract with the studio, soon to be known as Paramount Pictures, at $150 a week.

With the rise of the talkies in the late 1920s, Arthur was among the many silent screen actors of Paramount Pictures initially unwilling to adapt to sound films. Upon realizing that the craze for sound films was not a phase, she met with sound coach Roy Pomeroy. It was her distinctive, throaty voice – in addition to some stage training on Broadway in the early 1930s – that eventually helped make her a star in the talkies. However, it initially prevented directors from casting her in films.[19] In her early talkies, this "throaty" voice is still missing, and it remains unclear whether it has not yet emerged or whether she hid it. Her all-talking film debut was The Canary Murder Case (1929), in which she co-starred opposite William Powell and Louise Brooks. Arthur impressed only a few with the film and later claimed that at the time she was a "very poor actress ... awfully anxious to improve, but ... inexperienced so far as genuine training was concerned."

In the early years of talking pictures, Paramount was known for contracting Broadway actors with experienced vocals and impressive background references. Arthur was not among these actors, and she struggled for recognition in the film industry. Her personal involvement with rising Paramount executive David O. Selznick – despite his relationship with Irene Mayer Selznick – proved substantial; she was put on the map and became selected as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1929. Following a silent B-western called Stairs of Sand (1929), she received some positive notices when she played the female lead in the lavish production of The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu (1929). Arthur was given more publicity assignments, which she carried out, even though she immensely disliked posing for photographers and giving interviews.

Through Selznick, Arthur received her "best role to date" opposite famous sex symbol Clara Bow in the early sound film The Saturday Night Kid (1929). Of the two female leads, Arthur was thought to have "the better part," and director Edward Sutherland claimed that "Arthur was so good that we had to cut and cut to keep her from stealing the picture" from Bow. While some argued that Bow resented Arthur for having the "better part," Bow encouraged Arthur to make the most of the production. Arthur later praised her working experience with Bow: "[Bow] was so generous, no snootiness or anything. She was wonderful to me." The film was a moderate success, and The New York Times wrote that the film would have been "merely commonplace, were it not for Jean Arthur, who plays the catty sister with a great deal of skill."

Following a role in Halfway to Heaven (1929) opposite popular actor Charles "Buddy" Rogers (of which Variety opined that her career could be heading somewhere if she acquired more sex appeal), Selznick assigned her to play William Powell's wife in Street of Chance (1930). She did not impress the film's director John Cromwell, who advised the actress to move back to New York because she would not make it in Hollywood. By 1930, her relationship with Selznick had ended, causing her career at Paramount to slip. Following a string of "lifeless ingenue roles" in mediocre films, she debuted on stage in December 1930 with a supporting role in Pasadena Playhouse's ten-day run production of Spring Song. Back in Hollywood, Arthur saw her career deteriorating, and she dyed her hair blonde in an attempt to boost her image and avoid comparison with more successful actress Mary Brian. Her effort did not pay off: when her three-year contract at Paramount expired in mid-1931, she was given her release with an announcement from Paramount that the decision was due to financial setbacks caused by the Great Depression.

In late 1931, Arthur returned to New York City, where a Broadway agent cast Arthur in an adaptation of Lysistrata, which opened at the Riviera Theater on January 24, 1932. A few months later, she made her Broadway debut in Foreign Affairs opposite Dorothy Gish and Osgood Perkins. Even though the play did not fare well and closed after twenty-three performances, critics were impressed by her work on stage. She next won the female lead in The Man Who Reclaimed His Head, which opened on September 8, 1932, at the Broadhurst Theatre to mostly mixed notices for Arthur, and negative reviews for the play caused the production to be halted quickly. Arthur returned to California for the holidays, and appeared in the RKO film The Past of Mary Holmes (1933), her first film in two years.

Back on Broadway, Arthur continued to appear in small plays that received little attention. Critics, however, continued to praise her in their reviews. It has been argued that in this period, Arthur developed confidence in her acting craft for the first time. On the contrast between films in Hollywood and plays in New York, Arthur commented:

I don't think Hollywood is the place to be yourself. The individual ought to find herself before coming to Hollywood. On the stage I found myself to be in a different world. The individual counted. The director encouraged me and I learned how to be myself.... I learned to face audiences and to forget them. To see the footlights and not to see them; to gauge the reactions of hundreds of people, and yet to throw myself so completely into a role that I was oblivious to their reaction.

The Curtain Rises, which ran from October to December 1933, was Arthur's first Broadway play in which she was the center of attention. With an improved résumé, she returned to Hollywood in late 1933, and turned down several contract offers until she was asked to meet with an executive from Columbia Pictures. Arthur agreed to star in a film, Whirlpool (1934), and during production she was offered a long-term contract that promised financial stability for both her and her parents. Even though hesitant to give up her stage career, Arthur signed the five-year contract on February 14, 1934.

In 1935, at age 34, Arthur starred opposite Edward G. Robinson in the gangster farce The Whole Town's Talking, also directed by Ford, and her popularity began to rise. It was the first time Arthur portrayed a hard-boiled working girl with a heart of gold, the type of role she would be associated with for the rest of her career. She enjoyed the acting experience and working opposite Robinson, who remarked in his biography that it was a "delight to work with and know" Arthur. By the time of the film's release, her hair, naturally brunette throughout the silent film portion of her career, was bleached blonde and would mostly stay that way. She was known for maneuvering to be photographed and filmed almost exclusively from the left; Arthur felt that her left was her best side, and worked hard to keep it in the fore. Director Frank Capra recalled producer Harry Cohn's description of Jean Arthur's imbalanced profile: "half of it's angel, and the other half horse." Her next few films, Party Wire (1935), Public Hero No. 1 (1935) and If You Could Only Cook (1935), did not match the success of The Whole Town's Talking, but they all brought the actress positive reviews. In his review for The New York Times, critic Andre Sennwald praised Arthur's performance in Public Hero No. 1, writing that she "is as refreshing a change from the routine it-girl as Joseph Calleia is in his own department." Another critic wrote of her performance in If You Could Only Cook that "[she is] outstanding as she effortlessly slips from charming comedienne to beautiful romantic." With her now apparent rise to fame, Arthur was able to extract several contractual concessions from Harry Cohn, such as script and director approval and the right to make films for other studios.

The turning point in Arthur's career came when she was chosen by Frank Capra to star in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town. Capra had spotted her in a daily rush from the film Whirlpool in 1934 and convinced Cohn to have Columbia Studios sign her for his next film as a tough newspaperwoman who falls in love with a country bumpkin millionaire. Even though several colleagues later recalled that Arthur was troubled by extreme stage fright during production, Mr. Deeds was critically acclaimed and propelled her to international stardom. In 1936 alone, she earned $119,000, more than the President of the United States and baseball player Lou Gehrig. With fame also came media attention, something Arthur greatly disliked. She did not attend any social gatherings, such as formal parties in Hollywood, and acted difficult when having to work with an interviewer. She was named the American Greta Garbo – who was also known for her reclusive life – and magazine Movie Classic wrote of her in 1937: "With Garbo talking right out loud in interviews, receiving the press and even welcoming an occasional chance to say her say in the public prints, the palm for elusiveness among screen stars now goes to Jean Arthur."

Arthur's next film was The Ex-Mrs. Bradford (1936), on loan to RKO Pictures, in which she starred opposite William Powell on his insistence, and hoped to take a long vacation afterwards. Cohn, however, rushed her into two more productions, Adventure in Manhattan (1936) and More Than a Secretary (1936). Neither film attracted much attention.[44] Next, again without pause, she was re-teamed with Cooper, playing Calamity Jane in Cecil B. DeMille's The Plainsman (1936) on another loan, this time for Paramount Pictures. Arthur, who was De Mille's second choice after Mae West, described Calamity Jane as her favorite role thus far. Afterwards, she appeared as a working girl, her typical role, in Mitchell Leisen's screwball comedy, Easy Living (1937), with Ray Milland. She followed this with another screwball comedy, Capra's You Can't Take It with You, which teamed her with James Stewart. The film won an Academy Award for Best Picture with Arthur getting top billing.

So strong was her box office appeal by now that she was one of four finalists for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind (1939). The film's producer, David O. Selznick, had briefly romanced Arthur in the late 1920s when they both were with Paramount Pictures. Arthur re-united with director Frank Capra and Stewart for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), with Arthur cast once again as a working woman, this time one who teaches the naive Mr. Smith the ways of Washington, D.C.

Arthur continued to star in films such as Howard Hawks's Only Angels Have Wings (also 1939), with love interest Cary Grant, The Talk of the Town (1942), directed by George Stevens (with Cary Grant and Ronald Colman, working together for the only time, as Arthur's two leading men), and again for Stevens as a government clerk in The More the Merrier (1943), for which Arthur was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress (losing to Jennifer Jones for The Song of Bernadette). As a result of being in dispute with studio boss Harry Cohn, her fee for The Talk of the Town (1942) was only $50,000, while her male co-stars Grant and Colman received upwards of $100,000 each. Arthur remained Columbia's top star until the mid-1940s, when she left the studio, and Rita Hayworth took over as the studio's biggest name. Stevens famously called her "one of the greatest comediennes the screen has ever seen," while Capra credited her as "my favorite actress."

Arthur retired when her contract with Columbia Pictures expired in 1944. She reportedly ran through the studio's streets, shouting "I'm free, I'm free!"[46] For the next several years, she turned down virtually all film offers, the two exceptions being Billy Wilder's A Foreign Affair (1948), in which she played a congresswoman and rival of Marlene Dietrich, and as a homesteader's wife in the classic Western Shane (1953), which turned out to be the biggest box-office hit of her career. The latter was her final film, and the only color film in which she appeared.

Arthur's post-retirement work in theater was intermittent, somewhat curtailed by her unease and discomfort about working in public. Capra claimed she vomited in her dressing room between scenes, yet emerged each time to perform a flawless take. According to John Oller's biography, Jean Arthur: The Actress Nobody Knew (1997), Arthur developed a kind of stage fright punctuated with bouts of psychosomatic illnesses. A prime example was in 1945, when she was cast in the lead of the Garson Kanin play, Born Yesterday. Her nerves and insecurity got the better of her and she left the production before it reached Broadway, opening the door for a then-unknown Judy Holliday to take the part.

She did score a major triumph on Broadway in 1950, starring in Leonard Bernstein's adaptation of Peter Pan, playing the title character, when she was almost 50. She tackled the role of her eponym, Joan of Arc, in a 1954 stage production of George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan, but she left the play after a nervous breakdown and battles with director Harold Clurman.

After Shane and the Broadway play Joan of Arc, Arthur went into retirement for 12 years. In 1965, she returned to show business in an episode of Gunsmoke. In 1966, the extremely reclusive Arthur took on the role of Patricia Marshall, an attorney, on her own television sitcom, The Jean Arthur Show, which was canceled mid-season by CBS after only 12 episodes. Ron Harper played her son, attorney Paul Marshall.

In 1967, Arthur was coaxed back to Broadway to appear as a midwestern spinster who falls in with a group of hippies in the play The Freaking Out of Stephanie Blake. In his book The Season, William Goldman reconstructed the disastrous production, which eventually closed during previews when Arthur refused to go on.

Arthur next decided to teach drama, first at Vassar College and then the North Carolina School of the Arts. While teaching at Vassar, she stopped a rather stridently overacted scene performance and directed the students' attention to a large tree growing outside the window of the performance space, advising the students on the art of naturalistic acting: "I wish people knew how to be people as well as that tree knows how to be a tree."

Her students at Vassar included the young Meryl Streep. Arthur recognized Streep's talent and potential very early on and after watching her performance in a Vassar play, Arthur said it was "like watching a movie star."

While living in North Carolina, in 1973, Arthur made front-page news by being arrested and jailed for trespassing on a neighbor's property to console a dog she felt was being mistreated. An animal lover her entire life, Arthur said she trusted them more than people. She was convicted, fined $75 and given three years' probation.

Arthur turned down the role of the female missionary in Lost Horizon (1973), the unsuccessful musical remake of the 1937 Frank Capra film of the same name. Then, in 1975, the Broadway play First Monday in October, about the first woman to be a Supreme Court justice, was written especially with Arthur in mind, but once again she succumbed to extreme stage fright, and quit the production shortly into its out-of-town run after leaving the Cleveland Play House. The play went on with Jane Alexander playing the role intended for Arthur.

After the First Monday in October incident, Arthur then retired for good, retreating to her oceanside home in Carmel, California, steadfastly refusing interviews until her resistance was broken down by the author of a book about Capra. Arthur once famously said that she would rather have her throat slit than do an interview.

Arthur was a Democrat and supported the campaign of Adlai Stevenson during the 1952 presidential election.

Arthur died from heart failure June 19, 1991, at the age of 90. No funeral service was held. She was cremated, and her remains were scattered off the coast of Point Lobos, California.

Upon her death, film reviewer Charles Champlin wrote the following in the Los Angeles Times:

To at least one teenager in a small town (though I'm sure we were a multitude), Jean Arthur suggested strongly that the ideal woman could be – ought to be – judged by her spirit as well as her beauty … The notion of the woman as a friend and confidante, as well as someone you courted and were nuts about, someone whose true beauty was internal rather than external, became a full-blown possibility as we watched Jean Arthur.

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Jean Arthur has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6333 Hollywood Blvd. The Jean Arthur Atrium was her gift to the Monterey Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California.

On May 2, 2015, the city of Plattsburgh, New York, honored her with a plaque in front of the house where she was born (94 Oak Street).

On October 9, 2019, Plattsburgh unveiled a large commissioned mural of the actress by artist Brendon Palmer-Angell on a wall behind the bank building at 30 Brinkerhoff Street.

As of 2019, the Adirondacks Welcome Center near Exit 18 on the northbound lanes of the Northway (I-87) in Queensbury, New York, featured a ground plaque of Jean Arthur, among other famous persons connected to the Adirondacks region, as part of the Adirondacks Walk of Fame, similar in style to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.

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