#if you just add drama because it’s episode 11 and needed then i eat you
Text
I want Mhok to truly ghost. Disappear. I want Porjai to call Night looking for Day and for Day to tell her what happened. I want her to show up and yell at Day and let all of her worried about Mhok come to the surface. I want her to say “the last time I couldn’t find him, his sister died. What if it’s him this time?” I want Mhok to go to Hawaii and send Porjai a post card so she knows he’s alright. And I want Day to spend the time skip becoming independent and capable and worried. So, so worried because Mhok is gone and he has no way to know anything. Day’s gone to his house to find it vacant. Eventually Porjai tells him she got the post card so she knows Mhok is okay but that’s it. Day has to live with his regret. That *he* put his blindness over Mhok’s feelings and pain and hurt. And now Mhok is gone.
#last twilight#last twlight the series#last twilight series#last twilight bl#woke up and im still bitter about it#i was so angry last night i didnt even eat my cake#do you know how bad it has to be for me not to eat my cake????#to not have my little treat????#fuck episode 11 and the formulaic need for drama#episode 11 can only have drama if its not stupid and doesnt suck#if you just add drama because it’s episode 11 and needed then i eat you#sorry i dont make the rules
160 notes
·
View notes
Photo
Language Learning Log 2022
Week Forty-Nine (05/12 - 11/12)
Banner photo: I had to go back to the Japanese Embassy in London on Friday, and while there I had lunch in the park. Obviously the squirrels are very used to humans and very used to getting fed, because a pair of them started harassing me as I was eating a cookie. They were very cute though! But that cookie cost like £2 and tasted amazing, so I wasn’t gonna share it 😅
Norwegian
1x italki lesson (60m)
Read 1x article
Duolingo
Japanese
2x italki lessons (1h 30m)
Renshu
5x Fill In The Blanks Episodes
Japanese Tutor ch2 exercises E-H
Once again I'm feeling overwhelmed by Japanese vocabulary. I study daily, I add new words to my Anki decks, my deck grows, I can't remember the words I added yesterday. But I keep going, because even if I only remember 5 of the 50 words I added, that's still five words I've learned. And I find that if I only have a small amount of words to remember, I get kinda used to certain parts of the words (e.g. I know the word for 'customer' starts with 'o' and ends in 'san') and convince myself I know the word, even though I don't actually know what comes in the middle. More words does, ironically, encourage me to properly learn the full word.
I did, however, watch a J-drama (Fill In The Blanks) and was happy to recognise a few more words that I've recently learned. This is it, you see, I need to keep up my immersion and not just study flashcards all the time. (Also, it’s a bloody good show that I 100% recommend. But the trigger warnings they give at the start are real.)
This coming week I'm trying out a couple of new Japanese tutors on italki because my two normal tutors are both going away over Christmas and won't be back until I'm already on my way to Japan. I'm actually going to try a conversation class, which seems crazy given I absolutely cannot hold a conversation in Japanese. But I think it's what I need, actually. Learning grammar is great and all but I really need to try practising what I’ve learned.
I’ve really slacked on Norwegian recently. I tried watching a little Julekalendar today but it came up with an error message being all like “looks like you’re using a VPN! Turn it off then try again :)” like my dude if I turn my VPN off you’ll tell me off for being outside Norway -_- Any advice?
12 notes
·
View notes
Text
Zim’s Use of His Name as a Replacement for First-Person Pronouns
I recently did a small project and went through every single Invader Zim episode script to discover just how much Zim actually replaces first-person (I/me/my/myself) pronouns with his name, and whether he ever replaces first-person pronouns with third-person pronouns (he/him/his). The answers to these questions pretty much lined up with what I remembered about his canon use of his name as a pronoun-replacement, and I would now like to share my findings, and a list of every time Zim refers to himself in the third person, with all of you fine people here on the Tumblr dot coms.
Observations
1) Zim uses I/me/my pronouns the vast majority of the time he refers to himself. He uses his name in place of a pronoun to refer to himself in 18 out of 27 full episodes, or 21 out of 46 segments (but see #5 below). He says his name in a couple more instances than that but not in place of a pronoun. Technically, 'I am Zim!' is not an instance where he is replacing an I/me/my pronoun with his name, any more than me saying, 'Hi, I'm KidK' is such an instance. Really, when Zim says, 'I am Zim!' he is reinforcing the fact that he uses I/me/my pronouns regularly and the fact that he likes to say his own name, without suggesting he replaces pronouns with his name as often as, say, Elmo the Muppet. I therefore didn't count instances of 'I am Zim!' as pronoun replacements, but have made a separate list of them for the sake of interest.
2) Zim replaces 'me' with his name as the object of a sentence rather than replacing 'I' as the subject. The only exceptions to this in the entire run of the show are 'Zim needs no vacation!' from “The Frycook What Came From All That Space” and ‘Zim needs no meat!’ from “Tak: the Hideous New Girl.” A more typical usage is lines like 'There is none so worthy as Zim!' or 'Victory for Zim!' Also, Zim only uses the possessive 'Zim's' once--'No one takes Zim's mission!' in “Tak.” In all other lines when Zim wants to say something is his, he says 'the [thing] of Zim'--or, much more often, uses first-person pronouns 'my' and 'mine.'
3) Zim really really very does not speak like Elmo. He tends to replace one first-person pronoun in a sentence with his name and leave the rest intact, rather than substituting 'Zim' for every first-person pronoun in the line. For example, in “The Halloween Spectacular of Spooky Doom,” he says, 'I break free and now I have to go back to rescue that little rat that left Zim to rot?' Even this kind of sentence reinforces the fact that Zim uses I/me/my regularly and Zim-as-a-pronoun as a more infrequent thing to add emphasis or drama.
4) The other way in which Zim is not like Elmo is that he never, ever replaces a first-person pronoun with a third-person pronoun. Using the same example, notice he did not say, 'Zim breaks free and now he has to go back to rescue that little rat that left him to rot?' (Zim did use ‘he/him’ for himself when he pretended to be a future version of Dib and thus needed to speak in third person about himself to keep up the ruse; these instances are not included in my count/list because that was playacting and not pronoun-replacement. He also uses he/him and she/her to refer to other people, including other Irkens, but that’s a subject for a different kind of post.)
5) Several of the times Zim refers to himself by name that I’ve included on the list are edge cases and may not be true pronoun replacements. These are noted in the list.
6) Zim starts referring to himself in third person more about halfway through the show's run. He does it a few notable times in episodes 1-15 but all the episodes where he does it a lot are from “Hobo 13″ on. In fact, there are a few episodes where Zim does it a lot, and then in the others where he does it it's only once, maybe twice. The episode segments where Zim refers to himself by name in third person the most are “Hobo 13,” “The Voting of the Doomed,” and "The Frycook What Came From All That Space.”
7) The first few instances of 'I am Zim' aren't just random exclamations, but places where Zim telling someone his name is a natural part of a conversation. It's not until “Hobo 13″ and beyond that Zim starts yelling 'I am Zim!' for no apparent reason other than to assert that he is, in fact, Zim I guess.
And now without further ado, below the cut is a list of Every. Single. Time. Zim refers to himself in third person in the series, broken down by episode, with a bonus list of every 'I am Zim!' at the end. In every other instance besides these listed times, when Zim refers to himself, he does it with a first-person I/me/my/myself pronoun. Yep. He sure does know what those are, and uses them very frequently. Use this information however you like.
Episode 1--The Nightmare Begins
Invader Zim reporting, sirs. The mission goes well. (edge case/military speak)
Invader Zim, signing off! (edge case/military speak)
Episode 2--Bestest Friend/Nanozim
These human filthies should be honored to even be considered as possible friends of Zim! (Nanozim)
Episode 3--Parent-Teacher Night/Walk of Doom
None.
Episode 4--Germs/Dark Harvest
None.
Episode 5--Attack of the Saucer Morons/The Wettening
There is none so worthy as Zim! (Saucer Morons)
Episode 6--Career Day/Battle-Dib
None.
Episode 7--Planet Jackers/Rise of the Zitboy
Now, time for another amazing plan from me, Zim! (Planet Jackers, edge case/name used as clarification not really as a pronoun)
Episode 8--Invasion of the Idiot Dog Brain/Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy
Zim! Don't use the time machine! Love, Zim! (Piggy, edge case/used as saluation & closing in letter, not really as a pronoun)
Episode 9--A Room with a Moose/Hamstergeddon
Now, kneel before Zim! (Hamstergeddon)
Episode 10--Plague of Babies/Bloaty's Pizza Hog
None.
Episode 11--Door to Door/FBI Warning of Doom
Give to Zim! (Door to Door)
Nothing can stop Zim! (FBI Warning)
Episode 12--Bolognius Maximus/Game Slave 2
None.
Episode 13--Battle of the Planets
Invader Zim reporting in, sirs. (edge case/military speak)
Invader Zim, signing off! (edge case/military speak)
Well, Invader Zim, signing off. (edge case/military speak)
Episode 14--Halloween Spectacular of Spooky Doom
I break free and now I have to go back to rescue that little rat that left Zim to rot?
Episode 15--Mysterious Mysteries/Future Dib
None.
Episode 16--Hobo 13/Walk for Your Lives
Untrained? Invader Zim? (Hobo 13)
Zim, out! (Hobo 13)
Zim shall lead! (Hobo 13)
No one will say Zim never tried! (Hobo 13)
Victory for Zim! (Hobo 13)
Do not question Zim! (Walk for Your Lives)
Episode 17--Megadoomer/Lice
Vengeance for Zim! (Megadoomer)
Victory for Zim! (Megadoomer)
Episode 18--Abducted/The Sad, Sad Tale of Chickenfoot
Gir! Come to Zim! (Abducted)
Episode 19--Gir Goes Crazy and Stuff/Dib's Wonderful Life of Doom
Soon the name of Invader Zim will be synonymous with dookie! (Gir Goes Crazy)
Episode 20--Tak, the Hideous New Girl
Zim needs no meat!
And enjoy your shrill cry of having been rejected by Zim!
No one takes Zim's mission. No one!
Episode 21--Backseat Drivers from Beyond the Stars
None.
Episode 22--Mortos Der Soulstealer/Zim Eats Waffles
None.
Episode 23--The Girl Who Cried Gnome/Dibship Rising
Think, Zim. (Gnome)
Listen to Zim! (Dibship)
Episode 24--Vindicated!/The Voting of the Doomed
Pick Zim! Zim is me! Zim is me! Zim shall rule! Pick Zim! Zim! (Voting)
Vote for Zim or I'll destroy you. Vote for Zim or I'll destroy you. (Voting)
No! Treachery! Lies! Zim! (Voting)
Zim, lose? Impossible! (Voting)
Thank you, human, for helping Zim! (Voting)
Episode 25--Gaz, Taster of Pork
None.
Episode 26--The Frycook What Came From All That Space
Zim needs no vacation!
Laugh now, Sizz-Lorr! But you will know not to mess with Invader Zim!
Have fun, Sizz-Lorr! Enjoy your defeat at the Zim hands of Zim!
A sweet victory for Zim! It is good to be back, good to be Zim!
Get out of the house of Zim!
Episode 27--The Most Horrible X-Mas Ever
Why does no one give moneys to Zim?
Every 'I Am Zim!' in the Show
I am Zim! Take me to the meat! (Career Day, responding to MacMeaties worker asking where he can find Zim)
I am Zim, Irken Invader Zim. I am responsible for the safe obliteration of the human race, not you! (Planet Jackers, asserting his status as Irken to express that Irk will be mad at Jackers)
I am Zim! Run a scan to verify that I am Zim! (Bolognius Maximus, asserting to his computer that he is not an intruder)
I am Zim! Bring me the tanks! (Hobo 13, for big drama upon completing training but otherwise no reason)
I am Zim! (Walk for Your Lives, at the end for no apparent reason)
I am Zim! (Megadoomer, at the end for no apparent reason)
An assistant worthy of me. I am Zim! (Gir Goes Crazy and Stuff, for no apparent reason)
I am Zim! (Girl Who Cried Gnome, for no apparent reason)
Yes... I am Zim! Who are you? (Vindicated!, responding to Dib and Dwicky's fake alien call)
Me! I am Zim! (Voting of the Doomed, just yelling at the candidate picker)
I am Zim! (Voting of the Doomed, during the campaign for no apparent reason)
That’s all, folks!
1K notes
·
View notes
Note
meet cute number 47 is interesting!
send me a writting ask
47. Texting the incorrect number but continuing the conversation.
“You got all that, right?” Shinsou asks, readjusting his stance, so others can leave their classroom door easily.
Midoriya hums absentmindedly. He’s still quickly jotting down the last few digits onto his planner. “And, you said tomorrow morning, around 7? At the library?”
“Yeah,” Shinsou shrugs, “Or anytime really. The deadline isn’t until next month, you know.”
“I kinda just want to get it done, as soon as possible.”
Shinsou breathes out a snort. “Figured you’d say that much. Just make sure you got my number. Repeat it, if you need to.”
“No time.” Midoriya drops his bag to the side, shoving his now closed notebook inside. “Thank you! I’ll text you later tonight!” He offers hurriedly, before taking off down the campus halls.
Shinsou’s warning falls deaf to his rushed mind.
He has to run the entire way, in order to graciously catch the last bus for the hour. Sweaty and flushed, Midoriya slumps into his seat in relief. Fortunately, he was able to cop a seat for himself, settling by the window and his backpack right next to him.
Staring out, Midoriya tries to remind himself of the rest of his priorities he needed to do.
He still needed to start on Doctor Chiyo’s online Physiology exam, and gather his notes for the open book portion. It was a bit bothersome to handle tests online, but if the rest of class prefers it, there’s nothing Midoriya can do about it.
Speaking of which, Ochako had requested for copies of those exact same notes, since apparently she barely writes anything during lectures. He wants to suggest to her to just simply take better notes, but alas, he will gladly help her out.
And, finally, Midoriya has to collect reliable, approved research articles for his and Shinsou’s debate, in their argumentative project in Communications. Being assigned “PRO SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCE”, while being the most uninvolved people on the internet, Midoriya and Shinsou had a lot of work to do.
Not to mention it was already 18:00 by the time he reached the school’s dormitories. And yet, he needed to shower, make dinner, water his plants, and watch the newest episode of his favorite drama, airing tonight.
University was eating him alive.
Thankfully, he’s able to complete half of his list.
He finishes the exam with a 98%, and quickly snaps the pages of his notes over to Ochako and Iida, making sure to highlight the main topics questioned in the exam. Ochako sends a ‘thank you’ gif, and Iida texts a long, yet endearing message of gratitude.
Midoriya doesn’t have time to shower, instead blasting the TV volume loud, as he waters his indoor plants at the same time. He overwaters them a little bit, busy glancing back at the screen for too long. But, at least he’s able to watch the episode. He pouts when it ends on a cliffhanger, almost drowning his bonsai tree in frustration.
He’s only able to warm up a plate of leftovers, and read through only one research article, by the time it’s already blinking 21:30 on his phone. Sighing, Midoriya closes his laptop and grabs his cell phone instead.
An all nighter wasn’t preferable. But, if Shinsou is working overtime at his late night job, Midoriya supposes he can stay up and keep looking through more articles, until he has at least the required ten.
Flipping open his planner, Midoriya inputs Shinsou’s number into his phone. He adds his name, a contact photo of him sleeping, and finally taps a quick message.
(21:38) < You working?
When Shinsou doesn’t respond right away, Midoriya simply sets aside his phone on his desk. Stretching his arms, he sighs in defeat, now expecting Shinsou to be stuck at work.
He’s never worked at a restaurant, but he bets Friday nights can get pretty busy. And, Shinsou always complains that group outings and dates tend to stay over, even after the place is supposed to close. And, Midoriya trusts his word.
So, by the time his phone dings, Midoriya has been clicking through more articles on social media, bookmarking a few to go over later, as he went.
He lifts his phone, and with a bright screen, a message stares back at him.
shinsou hitoshi (21:58) > Who’s this
Oh, he did forget to specify. But, Midoriya smiles, having a small prank in mind. There was no harm in teasing his friends, let alone Shinsou, who definitely needed a good laugh, now and then.
(21:58) < It's the cutie from your communications class ;)
shinsou hitoshi (21:58) > So, no one
(21:59) < Haha! I guess you’re right about that
(21:59) < Anyways, it’s Izuku! You still working late, Hitoshi?
shinsou hitoshi (21:59) > This ain’t Hitoshi
Midoriya's face drops, blinking. Oh god, did he mistype the number?
(21:38) < Wait, you’re not???
Another text pops up, shortly after.
shinsou hitoshi (22:02) > You got the wrong number
Embarrassment burning his entire face red, Midoriya wishes he could delete himself from the world.
(22:03) < I’m so so so so sorry!
(22:03) < God, I thought I wrote down my friend’s number right
(22:03) < But, I was in this stupid rush to get on the bus that I didn’t make sure
(22:04) < And, listen, if I had missed that bus, I would’ve had to wait
(22:04) < Not like a few minutes wait
(22:04) < Like, a whole two hours wait!
shinsou hitoshi (22:05) > I didn’t ask
Deleting the conversation, Midoriya erases the new contact completely. And instead, he looks back to his planner, and retypes the numbers in his phone onto a new conversation.
Hopefully, he has typed the correct series of digits.
(22:07) < Hey, Hitoshi! It’s Izuku
unknown (22:08) > ...
unknown (22:08) > What the actual fuck
unknown (22:08) > You've still got the wrong number, you goddamn idiot
Slamming his phone onto his desk, Midoriya grabs a pillow off his bed and shoves it in his face. The temptation to scream sounds awfully pleasant, but it’s too late at night to do so. His dorm neighbors would definitely wonder what the hell is wrong with him.
What’s wrong? Oh, he has completely done one of the most dreaded imaginary scenarios in his head; text a complete stranger. Twice.
What was he supposed to do now? Never text back? Delete it? Block it?
How is he supposed to contact Shinsou now?
His phone dings again.
Lifting the pillow off his face slightly, Midoriya eyes his phone warily from his swivel chair.
That definitely wasn’t supposed to happen. Another text from the same stranger sounds a bit unheard of.
After a seconds-long hesitation, Midoriya lifts his phone and opens it once more.
unknown (22:13) > Double check next time
unknown (22:13) > You can fucking wait the two hours, dumbass
Midoriya grows a little irked. He has a bad feeling that his stranger isn’t too friendly, to say that least.
There was literally no reason to text back something so rude.
(22:14) < Well, that wasn’t nice
unknown (22:15) > Wasn’t trying to be
(22:15) < ..Are you always like this?
unknown (22:16) > Pretty much
(22:16) < That’s sad
unknown (22:17) > What’s fucking sad is that I was woken up from my sleep
unknown (22:17) > Because a damn moron didn’t write down the right number
Midoriya winces. He hadn’t even thought about the other person’s predicament, let alone if he had interrupted anything.
(22:20) > I really didn’t mean to do that, I’m sorry :(
unknown (22:22) > Yeah whatever
(22:24) > You should try to go back to sleep, then
unknown (22:25) > I was
unknown (22:25) > But the same moron from before keeps texting me
(22:27) > Who?
(22:33) > Oh.
(22:33) > It’s me, huh?
unknown (22:34) > No shit
(22:35) > Right, of course. My bad!
(22:35) > I’m going to just stop now
unknown (22:36) > Thanks
(22:36) > For the umpteenth time, sorry! ><
(22:37) > Okay, Okay! I’m stopping now, for real
Midoriya desperately needs to call it a night.
After going through his nightly routine, he slips under his bedsheets, exhausted. He sets an alarm for 5:00 on his phone, hoping Shinsou will show up at the library, regardless of the missing confirmation text on Midoriya’s end.
He keeps his phone on awhile longer, swiping through his professors’ emails, before a surprising text notification pops in front of him.
unknown (23:01) > FUCK YOU FUCK YOU
(23:02) > …
(23:02) > What was that for??
unknown (23:04) > I CAN’T SLEEP
unknown (23:04) > GOD, I CAN’T GO BACK TO FUCKING SLEEP
unknown (23:05) > AND IT’S YOUR FAULT
(23:06) > What do you expect me to do????
unknown (23:07) > HAHAHAHA OH DON’T WORRY
unknown (23:07) > IF I CAN’T SLEEP, NEITHER CAN YOU
unknown (23:08) > AND IF YOU TURN YOUR PHONE OFF I WILL SEND HELLFIRE
(23:09) > Wait
(23:09) > No, please
(23:09) > My alarm is on my phone, I need it on
(23:10) > I need to go to an important meeting for a group project at 7:00!
unknown (23:10) > Aw, really? :0?!
(23:11) > Yeah! I really do!
unknown (23:11) > Sike. I don’t fucking care
unknown (23:12) > Hope you eat shit tomorrow
(23:13) > ..Why are you like this?
(23:13) > I could literally be a twelve year old, for all you know
unknown (23:14) > I doubt fucking twelve years do group projects
unknown (23:15) > But whether you’re a damn infant, or grown adult, I hate you
(23:16) > I wouldn’t say I hate you. That’s too harsh
(23:16) > But, wow, you are very unlikable :/
unknown (23:17) > That’s the fucking nicest thing anyone has said about me
(23:18) > It wasn’t supposed
(23:19) > Nevermind.
(23:19) > Do you have any friends? Just might as well ask
unknown (23:21) > Surprisingly yeah
(23:22) > Oh, so you also agree. That it’s a surprise
(23:22) > At least you’re self aware :0
unknown (23:23) > Yeah, they are annoying as hell
unknown (23:24) > But, also pretty good people, I guess
(23:25) > Pretty good or pretty dumb?
unknown (23:26) > SHUT IT
unknown (23:27) > Only I can make fun of them
unknown (23:27) > You. Don’t.
(23:28) > You’re right, I shouldn’t have said that
(23:29) > I’m sorry :(
unknown (23:30) > You like apologizing, huh
(23:29) > There’s a lot to apologize for tonight
unknown (23:30) > Still, you don’t have to say it every damn minute
(23:32) > You probably don’t ever apologize
unknown (23:33) > Fuck no
(23:35) > Right, of course
(23:36) > Well, you know what I need to do tomorrow
unknown (23:37) > Unfortunately
(23:38) > What about you?
unknown (23:39) > I’m covering a shift at my shit job at the ass crack of dawn
(23:40) > Unnecessary visual, but I digress
(23:40) > Uh, where do you work?
unknown (23:42) > No. I don’t even know your damn name
(23:43) > I told you?? It was in my first text
unknown (23:44) > Yeah, I ain’t scrolling
(23:48) > Well, it’s Izuku. Midoriya Izuku :)
unknown (23:49) > Great. I still ain’t giving you mine
(23:50) > ?? Is there anything I can know about you??
(23:50) > You know more about me, than I do about you
unknown (23:51) > You know I hate you
unknown (23:51) > That’s plenty
(23:52) > But, I have been staying up for you :(
unknown (23:53) > Because it’s your fault I can’t sleep
(23:54) > You aren’t feeling sleepy yet?
unknown (23:56) > ..Are you
(23:57) > I asked you first
unknown (23:58) > I asked you second
(23:59) > That
(23:59) > Look, it’s almost midnight
(24:00) > Oh, now, it’s actually midnight
unknown (00:01) > I have fucking eyes. I can see the time
(00:02) > And we BOTH have places to be tomorrow
(00:02) > So, let’s just sleep. Call a truce, please
unknown (00:03) > What about my petty retribution
(00:04) > PLEASE LET ME SLEEP
unknown (00:10) > FUCK
unknown (00:10) > FINE
unknown (00:11) > I STILL CAN’T SLEEP BUT WHATEVER
unknown (00:12) > HOPE YOU FUCKING OVERSLEEP TOMORROW
The rest of the night, Midoriya hears his phone go off, but he doesn’t bother to open the messages. Fortunately for him, the time staying awake quickly catches up to his body, the moment he shuts his eyes. And, in an instant, he falls asleep, heavy.
However, he’s jolted awake by the ringing of his phone, the tone alerting him of an incoming phone call. Banging his head on the headboard, Midoriya blindly grabs and answers his phone. “Uh, H-Hello?” He blurts quickly.
“Tch.” A low voice emits, “You owe me, Deku.”
Click. The phone call ends.
Confused, Midoriya hurriedly rubs his eyes open. Running his messy curls through his fingers, he lifts his bangs up, in order to correctly look at the time.
The time was 5:10. And, his 5:00 alarm had been off the entire time.
And, instead, that same unknown number from last night was his saving grace.
#star responds#MY FIRST TEXT FIC??? WOW#i kinda struggled with how i wanted to format the texts#but alas here it is#poor midoriya smh next time repeat the numbers back#never wake bakugou up from his 8PM to 6AM sleeps LMAO#i hope this was okay !!#bakudeku#tigridiae#my beloved#FICLET
53 notes
·
View notes
Text
I haven’t talked about Lovely Writer on here at all I think, but I really am loving it so much. It took a while to grow on me, especially given how attached I have been this year to A Tale of Thousand Stars (it was hard to open my heart to another show lol), but I really do look forward to each episode, and I’ll be genuinely so sad when it ends next week.
I’m incredibly critical of the media I consume, and I think my standards are quite high when it comes to specific aspects of that media. I think the BL industry romanticizes a ton of toxic bullshit in their series, and fans eat it all up without ever recognizing the problems at play. I can’t 100% blame fans for enjoying the media that is blatantly presented to them as positive and not automatically finding the faults, but it’s a really toxic relationship between BL creators and BL fans. The supply and demand for really problematic content is so high.
A Tale of Thousand Stars and Lovely Writer, in my opinion, have been so refreshing as someone who was getting honestly really tired of BL series recycling the same toxic tropes over and over again. Neither of these series are perfect (that should never be the expectation), and they both have elements I’d still deem controversial or troublesome. But in comparison? Absolute standouts.
A Tale of Thousand Stars was able to tell a beautiful queer romance without the coming out drama, without the homophobia, without the oversexualization, and without the bland, two-dimensional characterization you too often see with queer characters. The only coming out scene was tastefully done and perfectly fitting with the story, and the rest of the series could play out as a mlw romance, if you were to replace one of the characters with a woman. Queer people deserve those romances, the ones that center around two people simply falling in love regardless of gender. Queer people have been asking for those stories for ages. There’s nothing wrong with the cliches, but the creativity shouldn’t stop there every time. A Tale of Thousand Stars was, at base level, just two people finding love in the mountains, and I’m so grateful for that. On top of that, the show also avoided so many toxic tropes (i.e., power differences, violent jealousy, romanticized SA). Add phenomenal acting, ridiculous chemistry, beautiful scenery, an interesting plot, and P’Aof to all of that and you have my favorite BL drama and one of my favorite general series to ever exist. Yes, I said it. (I add P’Aof because he’s an actual queer man who cares so much about portraying realistic and beautiful queer relationships, and I am so grateful to him for taking his talents and efforts into the BL industry. I think he is and will continue to be such a force for needed change. I appreciate that man so much and will be watching every series he creates.)
But then we have Lovely Writer, which I appreciate for somewhat similar but relatively different reasons. Sometimes I’m not even sure to what degree it’s all intentional, but the COMMENTARY on the BL industry is *chefs kiss.* I mean, the stark contrast between the gentleness of Nubsib and Gene’s real relationship versus the romanticized aggression of the fictional relationship within Gene’s novel is so important to me. I get so uncomfortable watching the scenes where they are filming the series because the comparison is so obvious and it’s mind boggling that so many people find the abusiveness so attractive and romantic. That’s such a huge issue in the BL industry, and I love how blatantly obvious they make it in the show. In addition, the series has highlighted the facade that is fan service, the fetishization and oversexualization of mlm relationships, and the issue of BL stories never being written by queer men. And most recently in episode 11, I think they really showed how the BL industry loves making money off of the queer community but doesn’t give a shit about queer people in real life. What I mean by that is, Gene is forced to write BL novels despite his own wishes, no matter how inauthentic they are to him as a writer, because the company believes they are marketable and profitable. But when Gene and Nubsib’s real life relationship comes to the surface, they are treated like dirt for the sake of the company and the show… for the money. There were other solutions to that issue, but the easiest in the company’s eyes was throwing them, actual queer people, to the side and telling them to essentially get over it. Sure, that’s just capitalism, but it really is a massive issue in the BL industry that needs changing. So to see that portrayed within the show is incredibly satisfying. They’re really bringing to light so many problematic aspects of the industry that have been hidden or downplayed for too long.
And then both of them are telling stories about actual queer people, which I love more than I can explain. And by that I mean characters who actually use words to say they are not straight. I’m so freaking tired of the blatant avoidance of the word “gay” or even the words “I like men” (plural men) in BL. And I’m especially tired of the “I don’t like men. I just like x” trope. I really, really appreciate both A Tale of Thousand Stars and Lovely Writer telling queer stories by making their characters actually queer. (And this isn’t at all about those who choose to not label their sexualities. That is absolutely valid, but unfortunately in the BL industry, the avoidance of any words indicating sexuality is generally done to separate the show from the actual community being profited off of, not to avoid labels for empowerment.)
I’ll stop rambling, but I just finished ep 11 of Lovely Writer and I had so many thoughts. 2021 has started off really well with both of these shows airing, but it also means my expectations are so high now… welp! Looking forward to the Lovely Writer finale next week. I’m really glad a show like this exists, and I hope it makes even just a few fans realize how they may be participating in toxicity or just a few creators realize they can have a successful series without romanticizing problematic behaviors.
Thank you to A Tale of Thousand Stars and Lovely Writer for restoring some of my faith. I’m grateful to you both.
#olivia rambles#a tale of thousand stars#atots#1000 stars#lovely writer spoilers#lovely writer#I know there are a couple other shows I need to check out that people have said are pretty good in these regards as well#looking forward to those too#I’m tired of shows like [redacted] getting all of the spotlight when they’re toxic af#I feel kind of funny invading the lovely writer tag lol I was active in the atots tags but I’m a nobody in the lovely writer fandom 👀
40 notes
·
View notes
Text
A Jikook Guide to RunBTS: 66-80
Things in this batch start out a little slow, KM-wise, but seriously pick up around the Toronto episodes. It features the episodes where both RM and Jin ask if JK and JM are a couple, so it includes the giggly hand-push game that helped make me a jikook believer!
As usual, let me know if I’ve missed anything or should take another look at something. :)
Ep 66 "BTS in a Comic Book Cafe Part 1" (Ep: 2 / KM: 1)
The one that I can’t help but feel would be more fun if I was more familiar with the comics involved, but the guys make it cute anyway
3:08 - This is a little hard to see because they use weird angles and cuts, but JK sings a piece of a theme song and JM catches his eye and sings with him.
9:23 - JK leans in over JM's shoulder to see how many people are on the comic book page
10:18 - JM does the same when it's JK's turn
BEHIND
10:29 - JM jokes around with JK and does the playful chest tap thing
Ep 67 "BTS in a Comic Book Cafe Part 2" (Ep: 3 / KM: 1)
None
BEHIND
7:28 - JM asks JK if there's a comic book he wants and says he'll buy it for him if so
Ep 68 "Heart Pang" (Ep: 1 / KM: 0)
The one where I can't for the life of me understand the board game they are playing
None.
Ep 69 "BTS in Toronto Part 1" (Ep: 4 / KM: 5)
The Toronto one where Jikook wear matching denim shirts while going to Niagara Falls, getting lunch, and playing games
2:36 - RM says there are certain people who will struggle with the wake up challenge. JK and JM readily seem to admit it's them.
6:29 - JM hangs back (to walk with JK?) when the rest of the group starts heading for the Falls.
8:06 - There's a "teleporting" moment where Jin is in between JM and JK, then the camera cuts away, then it comes back and jikook are next to each other. They stay next to each other as they walk on.
9:52 - You can see jikook interacting in the background.
12:25 - JM takes a photo of JK and gets him to giggle, then they huddle to look at the pic.
13:56 - JM puts his arm around JK and takes a selca in the background, causing RM to ask "what, are you a couple or something? Both wearing denim shirts?" He says it fairly seriously for a line that seems like it's supposed to be a joke and they don't laugh or say anything in response - it looks like JM looks away and flips his hair while JK shifts and awkwardly rubs his forehead.
You can also see a quiet exchange after between RM and JM where RM says no to something, then nods at JK. Unclear if it's related, but including it just in case.
15:25 - JK doesnn't try to distract JM while he did the staring contest like he did with Hobi. When Jimin passes, JK is the only one to clap.
18:04 - Quick moment where you can see JK start to rub the arm of JM's shirt before the camera cuts away.
18:50 - JM laughs and touches JK's chest after JK loses the rocks paper scissor game, too.
19:53 - When the other five walk away and JK is doing something with his mic, we don't see where JM is.
22:02 - JK appears to help JM with something with his camera in the foreground.
BEHIND
4:12 - After JHope scolds JK for letting Suga pour everyone's water, JK goes to pour JM some water, then puts the pitcher down. JM seemingly tries to help him out by saying it's a new trend for the oldest to pour water.
Ep 70 "BTS in Toronto Part 2" (Ep: 3 / KM: 5)
The Toronto one where the guys go shopping, pick beds, and play games
1:15 - JK slows down to walk side by side with JM.
2:00 - When JK messes up the game he was confident he'd win, JK laughs and playfully shoves at his chest.
7:23 - When JK loses a game and has to buy the others hoodies, JM sneaks a hat into the pile while JK has his back turned. RM rats him out.
8:01 - JM quietly puts the hat back in the pile, then walks over and hugs JK.
8:40 - JK walks over to Jimin to show him something (sunglasses he wanted?).
20:30 - When they're all joking around about whether they can fit four people on a bed, JK moves JM into an L-shape and then lays down nested with him.
BEHIND
0:09 - JK calls out "Jimin-ssi!" and tosses JM that hat he bought him.
4:49 - When the guys are all stretching and JM is in an inconvenient place, JK calls him "Jimin-ssi" again, essentially feels up his calf, and then pushes his upper thigh, all purportedly to get him to move over.
5:28 - JK kneels down behind JM, who's on all fours, and holds his hips to correct his position (I am literally just describing what happens in the clip, but I kind of feel like I'm writing porn, here...). JK then picks Jimin up to move him over a bit. Both giggle as JK starts to stand up and then the camera cuts away.
I can't even begin to think what exercising looks like for these two when there aren't cameras on them...
6:55 - JK reads out the words on the Jimin shirt they're all wearing, which happen to be, "BTS Park Jimin, I love you! I root for you! I'm ARMY!" with a huge grin on his face. Jimin laughs - no one else does - and then jokes that they should wear the shirts back to Korea, prompting JK to tell him "bye!" and wave while giggling.
7:37 - Jimin shows the parts of the shirt design he would change by poking JK's chest, and then JK and JM share a fairly steamy look until RM interrupts.
7:52 - JK folds up the shirt so JM's face looks weird and Jimin points to him doing it and laughs. No one else does.
Man, these two were really in their own world this whole Toronto trip, weren't they?
8:02 - JM tries to give JK some advice on the game he's about to play. Before starting, JK starts what seems like it's going to be a silly pose, but ends up being him dragging his fingers down his face, neck, and chest. Sadly for JK, JM wasn't looking. Happily for us, we can look as much as we want.
8:18 - When JM wins a game, JK claps for him. You can probably guess by now that he's the only one who does.
10:09 - JM steals a piece of steak, then JK does some cross-cut teleporting to come over and sink down into a chair next to him. JM overdoes making his eyes look big and innocent (perhaps hoping to get caught and scolded?).
10:35 - JM makes Jin move when he takes JM's seat next to JK
I feel like just the Behind for this episode needs it's own jikook rating! And most of it is watching JK lead the guys in a workout. If you're going to watch just one Run Behind, consider making it this one!
Ep 71 "BTS in Toronto Part 3" (Ep: 3 / KM: 3)
The Toronto one where the guys have dinner, have breakfast, and play games
14:28 - Maybe nothing, but just to note it - in this and the next shot, you can see JM heading towards where JK is lying back on the couch after losing a game, then there's an abrupt cut and everyone is in a totally different position.
29:20 - JK tells JM the "super-pancake" he made is for him since he has to do the penalties.
BEHIND
6:59 - JM says that he thinks JK will want to eat and calls out for him.
Ep 72 "BTS and Mafia" (Ep: 3 / KM: 2)
The one in which we learn that BTS is so terrible at the Mafia game that it almost comes back around to being impressive
3:10 - When Jin says JK is suspicious because he isn't talking, JM defends him, saying "you know he doesn't talk much."
8:34 - JM seems to direct his appeal to be spared to JK.
18:16 - JK compliments how well Jimin is doing at the game.
20:13 - After Jimin says he's ARMY, JK asks, "do you like me that much?" Then there's a quick cut and Jin is doing a Jim Halpert face at the camera.
28:03 - Confusing maybe-moment - let me know if it's clearer to anyone else! - but after JH is sending finger heart guns, JM points gun fingers directly at JK for no apparent reason.
BEHIND
2:39 - Before they start playing, JK predicts that JM and Jin will be good at the game.
Eps 73-76 “Run BTS Drama Parts 1-4″ (n/a)
The ones where BTS spend four episodes making a “comedic” skit
01:09 - After JK explains that he had a wisdom tooth taken out, Jimin adds the info that they had to take out the whole root.
09:10 - Even though V is the "director" of Jimin's scene, JK speaks up and takes over the role, saying that directors use informal language and repeating twice in informal language "Jimin, let's go!" He continues speaking informally when Jimin messes up and JK scolds him.
11:40 - When it's JK's turn to deliver a line and he gets nervous about remembering it, JM reads it out loud for him. He also says as soon as JK delivers the line that he did the best job and adds to Hobi, "he doesn't get embarassed, I told you."
16:26 - It's a little hard to see for sure, but it looks like Jimin votes for JK when it's time to choose who should be the skit's director.
I'm going to be totally honest with you guys - I didn't rewatch these episodes past this. I first saw it months ago and remember being disappointed and fairly bored through most of it past the first half of the first episode - I don't find the skit funny and the behind-the-scenes stuff isn't amusing enough to make a four-part episode about. I’m sure there are others who completely disagree with me and no judgment if you don't share my opinion! But I'm doing this guide for fun and I don't want to spend two hours rewatching them.
I don't recall a ton of jikook beyond the above - I think there's a moment in part 3 where JK is getting tired and Jimin offers to take over slating for him. So, anyone who is a fan and knows / finds more jikook moments, please let me know and I will update this guide to reflect that. Otherwise, let's happily move along. :)
Ep 77 “Food Guest Part 1″ (Ep: 4 / KM: 5)
The weirdly-named ones that are prob better translated as "food connoisseurs" but the specifics of the foods theme don't really matter because JIKOOK
07:41 - When Jin says JK and JM will be competing in a palm-push game, JM says he's already lost (because JK is strong).
07:55 - I'm fairly certain that, if you're a jikook-er, you've seen this moment. It's so unabashedly flirty a description can't really do it justice.
JK and JM are supposed to be playing a game where they put their palms together and shove to see who can make the other lose their balance. JM shoves lightly at JK's chest before they even start the game, then both start giggling. Still giggly, JM asks if JK's ready and JK says he is. JM pushes at JK's palms and JK just swings his arms back as they look at each other and smile. Jin interrupts to ask, "are you a dating couple?" (that's the most direct translation - V app translation is "are you two together?"). JK and JM both laugh, the latter so hard that he spins around, thus losing the game.
17:08 - JK is staring so intently at Jimin on his knees with a blow-pen in his mouth that he completely misses RM trying to give him a high five. Jin has to call for JK to please respond to RM before JK looks away and returns the high five, laughing and apologizing. He looks back immediately after.
BEHIND
0:58 - JK gives JM a shoulder massage while holding his chest as JM makes satisfied noises. I've seen this clip in compilations before, but hadn't realized it was also from this episode. It's really the gift that keeps on giving!
4:29 - Just prior to the above palm-push game, JM reaches out to do something to JK's sleeve (I think?). The camera cuts before we see clearly.
4:31 - Slightly different angle of JM and JK giggling at the start of the palm-push game.
7:11 - Reveals that RM actually tried to high five JK and was ignored TWICE before Jin called JK's attention away from JM on his knees with a blow-pen in his mouth.
Ep 78 “Food Guest Part 2″ (Ep: 3 / KM: 3)
15:00 - JK jokingly asks what the answer is and Jimin giggles at him as the on-screen text says, "how adorable." Unsurprisingly, the others are less enamored. (JK's biggest fans = 1. Jimin 2. Run BTS on-screen text writers)
BEHIND
9:56 - JK watches JM dance playfully, then wiggles his own hips, seeming to want JM's attention. Jimin smiles and starts to say something that gets cut off.
10:03 - JK films JM as JM dances and smiles while looking into the camera. Jimin is doing silly dance, but JK zooms in on his joyful face. He quickly licks his lips as he watches.
146 notes
·
View notes
Text
Kisekae Insights #24: GJ Club - how a spinon became a spinoff featuring Kyōya and Kasumi Shinomiya
(Art by 結城辰也)
The Kisekae Insights series has allowed me to bring the spotlight back on Waifu Network animes that I haven’t posted much about in the past due to lack of fanart or lack of interest. Like Hidamari Sketch in the last instalment, GJ Club will be no exception until I continue posting the usual content in my anime posts. Honestly, it was good while it lasted.
While Hidamari Sketch is a fairly popular and notable anime, GJ Club, sadly, isn’t. The anime was adapted from the light novel series written by Shin Araki and it only received one 12-episode season in 2013 and an OVA in 2014. Since it is a slice-of-life series, not much is known about the characters’ histories, which made it very easy to adapt into my personal project. All these factors coinciding with it being the 50th anniversary year of Doctor Who made GJ Club the perfect anime to adapt and expand on.
Background information
For some reason, the light novel has been a bit hard to find. In short, while you are able to read it online, the sources are unfortunately scarce.
From 2013 to 2015, NanoDesu Translations posted translations of the light novel. They published a PDF and EPUB of the first volume (which is available on archive.org) and translated up to Chapter 17 of the second volume. It was then abandoned for two years before Haraguro Scanlations picked it up. As of September 2018, they only finished up to Chapter 3 of the third volume (with the first chapter being translated by Shadowys on Baka-Tsuki) and there are no further updates after that, with the exception of a one-off chapter released in November 2020.
As of August 2021, however, all the original translations by NanoDesu seem to have been deleted from their site. All the translations are available on AsiaNovel, but there are no illustrations because the reader doesn’t seem to support images. If the images weren’t discarded in the code of the novels, then all they would need to do is add support for them and then they would appear.
There are 9 volumes and two special volumes for GJ Club along with 8 volumes and a special volume for its middle school spinoff. It’s honestly telling how popular the series was when the translators have all but abandoned it.
Shin Araki also wrote an additional spinoff to GJ Club, namely GE: Good Eater, and a sequel, namely KB Club. GE is set in a fantasy world with the characters being based off the characters of GJ Club, while KB Club turns everything meta by having both series be the creations of a high school light novel club, with the characters of GJ Club being based off the members of said club, right down to their names. Honestly, I’m not a big fan of that approach given how I’ve adapted GJ Club into my personal project. In the end, I guess we’ll never really know what happens in the novels, but at least we have this.
Watching the anime and listening to the character music was how I first realised that anime was sexist to males because of the female-centric focus in most animes. Kyōya only gets one character song in the series, and even then it’s a duet with Megumi. If that isn’t sexist to you, then I don’t know how I can convince you that a lot of animes are sexist.
In January 2015, I published two posts outlining my idea for an English dub of the series that also fits with GJ Club’s depiction in my personal project. The setting would be changed to London, England, specifically the areas of Chiswick, Ealing and Acton (where their school is located) and the characters would speak with British accents. The images in the original post are dead because I idiotically copied the images from the site instead of saving and reuploading them to the post, but since I’m grubbing for content anyway, I’m going to repost my character details as follows:
Kyōya: The protagonist of the series. When he started Year 10, he was kidnapped by the girls when he walked into an old school building, hoping to find the Culture Club. He moved to London from Manchester just before he started Year 7. His best friend outside the club is someone named Tesshin Yokomizo (横溝徹心) who is a local and not seen in the anime. In the GJ Club, he is nicknamed “Kyoro” and despite his spinelessness, he seems to have talent in dealing with the girls around him. His birthday is December 18.
Due to a crisis involving his family during his childhood, he and his sister Kasumi were left in the care of a family guardian just before they moved to London, but she left when Kyōya started Year 10. It might have been that childhood incident that emotionally scarred him and left him spineless…
Mao: The Year 11 president of the GJ Club. Her family is rich and they live in a mansion in Ealing. She has a habit of biting and picking on Kyōya when she is bored or angry. She always reads books and watches shows without kissing scenes.
Shion: The only daughter in her family, Shion is an expert chess player with many brothers, all experts in some kind of activity. She speaks in a Birmingham (Brummie) accent because her mother and a few of her brothers were born in Birmingham. It is unknown if Shion was born in Birmingham herself.
Megumi: The calm and nice middle sister of the Amatsuka family. She likes knitting and she is always seen making tea and cakes in the club room. In the same year level as Kyōya.
Kirara: Born in Swansea, Wales, Kirara is the tallest and strongest member of the club. She speaks English in simple, monotone sentences. Welsh is her first language. Kirara can be seen eating meat, sometimes sharing it with Kyōya, but not with anyone else. She is afraid of spiders and has little tolerance to alcohol.
Tamaki: (voiced by Karen Gillan!) The newest member of the GJ Club when Kyōya becomes a Year 11 student. Like Kyōya, she is kidnapped and forced to join the club. Her nickname is “Tama”.
Her family is from Glasgow and they run a Shinto shrine in Acton. She has several younger siblings.
Kasumi: Kyōya’s younger sister, who was born in Manchester. After a visit to the GJ Club, she becomes inspired to start a middle school division when she starts Year 7. She has a brother complex and she mistook Mao for being a primary school student when she met her. Her proficiency in Welsh is better than her brother’s, who can probably speak at a beginner level.
Geraldine: Shortened to “Jill”. She moved to Chiswick from Swansea to be with her sister, Kirara. She first met Kyōya at Ealing Broadway Station when she had difficulty buying a Tube ticket. She didn’t really understand how to use the ticket machine, so Kyōya went to help her. After this, Jill considered Kyōya her “samurai master”.
Jill doesn’t speak English fluently, so she relies on her whiteboard to communicate with the others. She is as strong as her sister and she joins Kasumi’s GJ Club when she starts Year 7 in Chiswick.
Seira: The youngest sister of the Amatsuka family. Though she speaks in a typical London accent, she sometimes talks through her cat clip in Received Pronunciation (the Queen’s English/RP) using ventriloquism to state her true feelings to Kyōya, who she has a grudge against.
Mori: The maid of the Amatsuka family. She likes to ride a motorcycle. A running gag is her twirling before Kyōya much to his pleasure and annoyance to the rest of the club members. Sometimes, her mother takes her place without the family even noticing due to their identical appearance.
Kyōya, Kasumi and Momoka: The Brother, the Child and the Yandere
Normally in previous instalments, I would have described each character separately, but because their backstories are heavily intertwined, I will introduce them all at once in this section. Most of the backstory takes place around the Battle of Koshi Castle in December 2013 and during the Manchester Campaign of 2005-2013, which I have already covered in #15.
When Hiroki Ichigo’s twelfth incarnation was killed at Koshi Castle, he managed to escape in his TARDIS, where he regenerated into his new prototype, namely a four-year-old Kyōya. The TARDIS crashes outside North Manchester General Hospital on 11 December 2005.
Earlier, Hiroki and Akari’s gametes (along with those of Hiroki’s brothers and their families) were taken by Reona Yukawa and placed in the Progenitor so that they could breed super-soldiers out of them. When Takumi Kamijō and Kyōko Sakura manage to escape from their cells (saving Nodoka Manabe and Azusa Nakano in the process), he changes the destination of the baby about to be released into the Progenitor’s time portal. That baby was Kasumi, one of the super-soldiers grown from Hiroki and Akari’s DNA. She ended up at the same hospital as well and was about to be taken home by a couple when Girl Power killed them, resulting in Kasumi being taken by Akari and Shaun.
What remained of Hiroki was contacted by the spirit of Walpurgisnacht. Making a deal with her, Hiroki regenerated into his thirteenth incarnation, the female Momoka Mizutani. No, Momoka is not an OC for GJ Club, but she is based on the character of Apple Lam Chung-yan from the TVB drama A Great Way to Care II, played by Tavia Yeung. Momoka takes Hiroki’s TARDIS and heads to Salford, where with the help of Walpurgisnacht, she establishes a cha chaan teng café in the middle of a trading estate and hires a group of red drone Daleks as her workers, hiding their identities by having them disguise themselves as humans.
Over the next eight years, Momoka gets close to the new Shinomiya family by influencing them through Kyōya’s dreams to come to her café. Eight years later, on 11 December 2013, the Fourth and Fifth Doctors come in with their companions. When the Shinomiya family come in, a confrontation with Ayaka Kikuchi and her army ensues before Momoka transmats the Shinomiya family to a Dalek spaceship, where she prepares to execute them using the Yashio’ori. However, the Yashio’ori is sabotaged by the enemy army so that the laser beam would not charge.
As Ayaka and her army attack the Dalek ship, Momoka uses the Dalek-enhanced machine guns to fend them off. While two Doctors confront the Master, Momoka is killed by Girl Power officers, resulting in Walpurgisnacht taking over her body as she regenerates, maintaining her current appearance. Read #15 to find out what happens after this.
Once the Battle of Koshi Castle and the Manchester Campaign conclude, the Fourth Doctor helps Kyōya and Kasumi move to Chiswick in 2008. Five years later, the events of the GJ Club anime take place. During his time in Chiswick, Kyōya gets a job at the post office there and later, studies a double degree in Japanese Studies and Politics at SOAS in the University of London while also learning Cantonese, Mandarin and Welsh in weekend and evening courses (apparently he also wanted to learn Taiwanese but they weren’t running any courses, but that’s alright, he can always learn it somewhere else, which he presumably did).
On a side note, I volunteered myself to be Kyōya’s English voice actor, so I’ve practiced my Mancunian accent by watching actors like Christopher Eccleston, Stephen Tompkinson, Karl Pilkington and maybe a bit of Peter Kay as well. The only problem was that I’m not even sure that my accent is even Manc because I can’t tell if I’m getting it wrong and sounding like someone from Liverpool, Yorkshire, Newcastle or even Scotland. Oh well, that’s what happens when you really get into things.
I don’t buy expansion packs, I make my own (budget allowing)
So as I said, GJ Club only got one season and an OVA to go with it. Do Kyōya and the GJ Club make further appearances in the series? You bet your ass they do.
After being absent for much of the Next Gen Series in 2014, Kyōya and Kasumi receive a letter from their aunt, Narutaki, asking to meet in Hong Kong after their mother, Akari, went missing following the Siege of Ōsaka, only to be followed by Mao and the rest of the GJ Club, who learnt where he was going and managed to get on the same flight as them.
Narutaki, who had taken her Girl Power friends and established a rogue faction separate from the main group, takes the GJ Club to Nijō Castle, where she explains the background behind the Manchester Campaign and the events of Series 8 and 9. Soon after, Girl Power’s commander, Daniel, sends his brother, Nathan, out to find Narutaki. Kyōya tries to contact Hiroki, but he is unable to get through to him. Luckily, the TARDIS arrives and the Doctor and Hiroki help Angela and the others repel the attacking Girl Power forces. Some more things happen and by the end of the story, we learn that Kyōya and Mao are dating.
That Christmas, Kyōya and Kasumi head up to Manchester, but the Doctor briefly takes them and their friends back to Hong Kong for a picnic with Hiroki and the rest of the Zhuge family.
A few years later in 2018, the GJ Club and Momoka get a cameo at the start and end of the Gokaiger TV movie special. By this point in time, Momoka’s café in Manchester has expanded to many other branches around the UK and in Hong Kong.
The next year in 2019, Kyōya, Kasumi, Mao and Megumi are featured in a four-part adventure in Soulbound Series 3, helping the cast solve the mystery of Parker’s past and Shinbu’s origins. Two years after in 2021, Kyōya and Kasumi move to Hong Kong (along with the GJ Club) and join the Superhero Project as the new ShinkenRed and ZyuohTiger. You’d think Kyōya would be against violence given his harmless tendencies, but I suppose his character has developed over the years despite having abandonment issues.
So this has been the involvement of GJ Club in my personal project. It’s a shame the series wasn’t more popular or it could have gotten a second season, a manga, more (and frequent) translations of the light novel or hell, even a licenced release. This series is just like Sea Princesses in how popular it was, but despite the number of episodes the anime got, at least Shin Araki hasn’t abandoned the series (by putting it in a spinoff no less) unlike Fabio Yabu, who hasn’t made anything new for Sea Princesses since 2010 after getting more animated episodes than GJ Club did. On the other hand though, neglected series with little material has been good development fodder for my personal project as it allowed me to bring awareness to the existence of those series while also developing backstories and afterstories for them.
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
TUA Season 2 is finally here! I think it was a really cool season with some really awesome potential, but there are some parts that I think really didn’t work and this is how i think they should have been fixed
(Spoilers for Season 2 of the Umbrella Academy. Obviously)
i think landing the siblings in different years was amazing, they got time to explore themselves and we could see their personalities through what they did
On the other hand, they didnt devote enough time to those storylines so it never felt like they had a solid purpose (for most of the siblings), it was more to show “time has passed”
How did Luther end up boxing under a gangster? How is he adjusting to no dad, no academy?? He was alone on the moon, He was left behind by his siblings in the academy, now he is alone and in a whole other *time* like i wanna hear about that!
Klaus has mansion and a cult and had a girlfriend benefactor lady?? Like: lets get into that! if the show wants humor that can be amazing
but it can also be really interesting and deep for exploring klaus’s need for both personal space (physically and somewhat emotionally) yet also his need for positive attention from whoever will give it to him!
More on that alone now track: the opening scene with their fighting was built to get us hyped
it fucking worked, that shit was amazing
but along with wishing that we saw more of their individual stories, i wish some of their growth had been gradual
like Klaus should have been showing off ghost stuff with his cult which is part of why they follow him which would set up his new ability to summon and conjure multiple ghosts at a time
instead of it being a throw away scene at the end where he gets caught
or Diego could have been shown in his ‘alone in dallas’ storyline to be trying to escape multiple times from the asylum and in that, figuring out his ability to start affecting other peoples shots at him, etc
Stuff like that would have been a great way to both dive into the characters *and* ramp up their abilities
Moving onto The Commission who i absolutely love so so much
Hell yeah u funky lil time-space assassins
I think that the Handler should have stayed dead
her return to the show while awesome (because she is played so well by her actress) continues this problem for the show of seemingly running in place where things dont have consequences like they should
I also think her return made a very campy feel to certain parts which is fine, the story should have fun! but it doesnt fit with the vibe very well with the other more serious plots
Imagine a storyline where the Handler is replaced by Carmichael, a competent replacement with no close personal relationship to Five
A head to head show down throughout the season of Five trying to outthink and outwit Carmichael and Commission Agents to get a briefcase
The misdirects!
The drama!
The action sequences and reveals!
More Screen Time for the Cool Ass Talking Fish 2k20!
All of which culminates in the board of directors scene but now with real weight behind it for the audience because we have been watching these two face off with one another for a season of build up
LET FIVE EAT THE FISH!
Giving that scene to the handler was the worst part of the whole season, u cant change my mind bros
This would also open up Lila to be more of her own person
Her storyline would change without the Handler there so that instead of being actively manipulated by the Handler, she has gone rogue from the commission to kill Five for her parents deaths due to previous planning and programming from her mother
(its only been 14 days for Five, a very normal turn around for him to desert, have the Handler tell Lila her version of the story, get killed, and have Lila get ready to take him down)
its generally the same plot, but Lila is more in the drivers seat
Going from tagging along with Diego in the hopes that Five returns for him to questioning some of her commitment to her mission as she spending time with them, etc
it could culminate in a reveal of her mother to Five and Diego and then a redemption where she helps them get a case from Carmichael in someway, looping her into the main plot in an important way with generally the same story
but skipping the pretty basic “obviously evil character is obviously evil but hero doesn't see it” trope that they fell into
I think that Luther’s arc in this season was awesome 10/10 gold standard
he was still him, but this storyline showcases the softer side of his loyalty and lets him grow from season 1 mistakes which is everything I hoped for
Comforting Vanya? Check
Being there for Five? Check
Being a voice of reason but still being a dumbass? Cheeeeeck
Diegos arc this season fell flat for me which was hard because he was such a main part of the plot
This whole season had a build-up trying to break down Diego’s need to be a hero (which they turned to a fucking 11 from last season?? he was not *this* intense last season, im not quite sure why they made the switch), telling him that he isnt / cant be the hero
I assumed this was leading to Diego having a big moment or sacrifice that proved that hero or not, he cares and the effort that he puts into all of these different things matters
But it just didnt??
He didnt stop the president from being assassinated, he didnt save vanya, at the farm he got trapped under a tractor
it just felt like the point was “haha see he isnt a hero”
which,,,,,,okay? What the point of that??
His involvement with the Commision was weird too, i didnt care for him being a part of that storyline very much, it just didnt add anything
Allison’s arc was just on the edge of greatness for me
it was an awesome choice to put in her in a position where she wasnt treated equally and show exactly what kind of person she is by how she fights back
her not using her rumors also seems very genuine and character based here like: 10/10 character motivations and work
My one complaint, like with just about all the partners in this season, is that she fell in love with a man and just had to leave him
which makes sense and they talk about it but like: she loves him, its hard to picture someone as loving and loyal as Allison just leaving her husband behind forever
Klaus’s arc just needed more *time*
He is a hella deep character but all of his story lines needed more time to be able to address that complexity
Show us more of the cult and his ghost powers being used there to trick and amaze and how he has been handling being cut off from the family again
I,,,,,,I understand,,,dave’s storyline
I get the time period
but fuck
that just hurts
I think Klaus not trying to rekindle his relationship with a younger Dave, but trying to protect him from the war was an amazing angle and it needed more time to get the full punch of klaus pulling out all the stops to save him but failing to really land it
Five
My Son
My Trash Boy
I feel like his job as ‘leader of the stop the apocalypse’ movement is good but that was his whole story this time around
He should have gotten more to play off of with the Commission (*cough cough* Carmichael) in his fight to get a briefcase instead of what felt like 10 hours of Five trying to herd his siblings and them just fucking up in someway or another
Five and Older Five was a cool dynamic and im glad they brought him in but again, it just felt like another long storyline attempt that didnt have a purpose as they ended the scene without the case or anything new
Ben’s arc was,,,,,strange
I love Ben and i think his interplay with Klaus is really cool!
But the writers made him fall in love which someone so they could give him a reason to want to possess Klaus which i feel like didnt need to happen
The possession was a good part of the season and could have been taken to some awesome places
It was rough and the ‘consent’ wasnt run entirely well but i think the possession is supposed to be on the line and not quite black and white
its Ben asking to take control of Klaus! That can be conflict! Thats good stuff right there! Ben is selfish! so is Klaus! thats a cool story to get into between them and see how they try to work it out
Ben wanting to connect with his other siblings after the small taste of being corporeal that he got and pushing Klaus for more and more of that freedom into possession territory would be A+ shit
and Finally: Vanya!
I think most amnesia plots are lazy and just a way to stall progress and reset a character so you can run a very similar plot again but this one seemed to genuinely grow Vanya’s character, even when she remembered
She definitely has more personality in this season
And while shes quiet, thats just who she is, she isnt as afraid to take space and speak up which is awesome!
And this stays when she gets her memory back which is very good, i dont want to see backsliding for no reason! Give me growth!
I have two complaints about her storyline though
First Sissy and Harlan
I love both of them and I think they are really cool characters!
Theyre pretty similar to vanya season 1, taking whatever is thrown at them which places Vanya in a more assertive position where she wants to protect them which i loved!
but their ending doesn't sit entirely right with me, just like Raymonds
These characters are in love and they all just leave each other so that the siblings can have a clean, no characters permanently added slate for the next season
it just makes me tired and i really want season 3 to have little to no romance if the only way the show can go about it is to do a love interest per season
My second problem gets its own section because it is the culmination of everything else i have said
episode ten
Vanya is strong af so any writer that wants big final fight needs to very carefully weigh out how to give each sibling their appropriately sized struggle so they get equal ability to contribute
Instead of doing that though, they did my least favorite trope: Evil Character secretly can do everything the heros can but better and without a problem or ***training***
It meant that they could do whatever they wanted with throwing commission agents at them because Luther, Allison, and Klaus were completely added on just to react to things
Five sort of got to do some fighting (<3 thats my lil geriatric 13 year old) but it was minor, he was mainly there to very obviously turn back time when the big bad shoot out happened
Diego got the most to do out of the siblings and it was suddenly knowing a new ability and doing it a little bit
I dont want a final fight to be trying to woo a bad guy to the good side because theyre too strong to fight
I want there to be stakes and drama as the siblings show off exactly what the season was all about, what they learned, how they grew together and apart, etc and to take down the big bad which could have very easily been the united front of the Commission instead of 18% Vanya, 15% Harlan, 30% Lila and the Handler, 20% the Swede(s), etc
Lila’s turn to good could have been to help them sneak attack the commission, maybe in their base so as to shrink the fighting to manageable bites for each character?
That would have allowed five’s killing of the board to draw the fighting to a close, a hard decision for him as he is trying to move away from killing but does so to save his family, always to save his family :’(
Luther could protect his siblings from hits like they showed at the beginning in a way that mirrors how he has been doing that emotionally all season
etc etc etc for all of the siblings so that they each get to show off and have their moment in the spotlight as heros
I loved the season even though i just ranted for like 3 pages, and it has some of the best one liners and line readings ever (”Thats where you come in Five” “Nope. No it isnt”) I just wish that some parts of it had been given some more thought / care so they could really show of the amazing cast, effects, sets, etc without writing in the way
#tua#tua season 2#tua2#spoilers#five hargreeves#klaus hargreeves#diego hargreeves#allison hargreeves#luther hargreeves#vanya hargreeves#ben hargreeves#tua lila#the handler#carmichael#rant#rewrite#i just love them#i want them all to be happy#and if they cant be happy#i at least want the angst to be well written
73 notes
·
View notes
Text
Wellness Segments from The Friend Zone Podcast
This is where I’ll be listing Fran’s Wellness Segments. It will be updated regularly. Any specific products/stores mentioned will be linked :)
Ep. 1: It’s Ok to Log Off
Being the first episode, Fran starts us off easy with a loving suggestion to take a social media break. At the time of this recording, “Twitterless Assante” was reaping the benefits of taking mindless twitter scrolling out of his life for some time.
Ep. 2: Family Matters
This is where we start digging in and doing the work. Here, Fran asks us to look within to resolve family disputes that have gone unchecked. Have the talks that you have been avoiding, even if it feels uncomfortable. Remember to come from a place of compassion when approaching loved ones, and to not take anything personally. Which is a theme throughout many of the early episodes, as it’s the 2nd agreement in The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, one of the many books Fran has suggested.
Ep. 3: Take 5
Work on building and maintaining a healthy morning routine. This helps set the tone of the day. By leaving our phone out of this part of the day, we can avoid things like waking up to a long, angry text or some other drama and letting that guide how the rest of day goes. Basically, set the tone of your day before taking in information from anyone else.
Ep. 4: Surrender
Meditate, meditate, meditate.
Osho books are great for learning more about quieting the mind, as recommended by Fran. Sadhguru is another great teacher who I look to for insight on meditation, mindfulness, parenting, and just life in general. He has a channel on YouTube with tons of videos. Fran also recommends trying Mala beads to assist with meditation, or maybe journaling afterwards. She really just stresses the importance of beginning a meditation practice, without fear of doing it “right” or “wrong”.
Ep. 5: Even Martha Went to Jail
No clear-cut Wellness Segment for this week, but the main gist of things was: create what you want, what feels good for you. Critics will appear for everyone, no matter how great they are, so do you. Don’t keep yourself from creating things because of fear of how others will receive it.
Ep. 6: Tacos & Quickweave
In your journal, dissect the relationship you are in. Asking questions like, “Why are you with this person? Who are you *really* doing this relationship for?” For singles, ask questions like, “What am I *really* looking for, in a person? How do I want to feel when I’m with them? How do I want to show up in their lives? How do I want them to show up in my life?” For those resistant to relationships, ask yourself why and really work through it to get those answers that you seek. ~meditate, meditate, meditate ~
Ep. 7: The Choir & The Competition Are Out
Parents: Sit with our children and start asking them questions about their interests. Fran shares how she was impacted by her mom not being more encouraging about her becoming a singer, so she wants us to know how important it is to truly listen when our kids ask to pursue new things, even if it isn’t exactly what we pictured for them.
For everyone, even those who don’t have children or maybe they aren’t quite at the age to start discussing these things: we were all a child at some point. Many people can benefit from asking ourselves if the profession we are in is for you, or if you were just trying to please our own parents. It’s never too late to begin learning more about anything that excites you.
Ep. 8: Fitness Regine Hunter
(I’m pretty sure they purposely didn’t spell it “regime” because of the difficulty for many in pronouncing the word. lmao)
In this episode, Fran speaks on the importance of holistic health and wellbeing, sharing how much it has shaped who she is and improved her life. She wants us to really sit with ourselves and think about the things we want to work on. Ask, “What can I do to ensure that I’m being the most beautiful *me* possible?” From skin and hair care, to diet, to fitness, to the way we talk to ourselves or others. All the little things that make up holistic living. No quick fixes! We’re here to werrrrrrk, hunty.
“Forget the internet for a second. Forget what the Instagram models look like, we’re talking about YOU...” - Fran the MF Goat.
Implement a fitness regime that works for you. Maybe it’s part of your morning routine, maybe it’s an after dinner thing; everyone gets to choose what is best for them and that’s part of the beauty of this life. :) Try a few things and see what works. There is an emphasis on the importance of starting slow, allowing your mind and body to get used to new activity. Fran started off with walking, increasing her distance over time, and then turned that into jogging when it felt right for her. Blogilates and Yoga With Adriene are YouTube channels she mentions here. I have been hooked to yoga ever since trying a few videos from Adriene. Yoga by Biola is another great channel to check out. Biola has this video, “Restorative Yoga for Collective Trauma”, which I love. I learned of her from The Friend Zone earlier in 2020.
Skin and Hair: Check out Frans YouTube channel to see all the informative videos she has on all-natural beauty and health tips. Personally, I really like Naptural85 for hair videos as my curl pattern is very similar to hers. Click around on suggested videos to find the ones that speak to you.
Ep. 9: Don’t Forget the Feet
OIL UP! From head-to-toe. Get that moisture. Especially in these colder months. Hands, feet, nails, toenails...literally everywhere. Dustin cannot get over the importance of the feet. Fran says this aztec healing clay is great for dry, cracked feet, and she hinted at its ability to fix some facial skin woes as well. Extra Fran tip: put a small amount of oil on your nail beds before painting them. This protects the skin and promotes nail growth. I tried this myself and it’s a game changer in my nail health! They used to get cracks in them once they start getting to a certain length, but if i keep them oiled up, they are smooth as precious little stones. :)
Ep. 10: A$AP Shirley Caesar
This episode reminds us that finances, too, can impact our total feeling of well-being. The Friends all want us to get our finances in order, taking the tiniest of baby steps, if needed. Fran’s 3 things to cut back on:
Eating Out
Online Shopping
Places like Target, where you go for 1 thing and leave with a full cart.
Making these sacrifices adds up. The goal is that eventually, any big things that are weighing on our mental due to finances can more easily be dealt with.
Ep. 11: And I’m Telling You, I’m NOT Going!
It’s all about skin-care in this wellness segment! Starting with what goes into your body, and ending with what goes on your body. First off: DRINK LOTS OF WATER! This not only promotes healthy skin but as we all know, it’s just good for the body in general. The body runs nice and smoothly when it’s hydrated from the inside-out.
If you need to cut down on your caffeine intake (I’m right there with ya), Fran suggested Yerba Mate. It’s a natural source of caffeine and much cleaner than what comes in other energy drinks. I must say, I feel like the naturally occurring caffeine just hits different. I was hyyype the first few times I got a Yerba Mate instead of my usual orange Red Bull! Energy drink isn’t the only form to get your Yerba fix, thankfully. It’s sold as a loose leaf tea, or in bagged tea as well. I LOVE coffee though, and I am not giving that up so easy. I find that bringing mindfulness to my habits with it, helps me to not consume too much.
Now, for the outside of the body: washing and moisturizing daily is imperative. This may be obvious to some, but it can also feel difficult for those with a really busy schedule. I know for me, as a mom, there has been many times when I only had one chance to take a shower on a given day, and if I didn’t take it, I was always sorry. Or I would take a rushed, half-effort shower and get dressed immediately after without oil, lotion, anything. Having a routine in place for daily washing and moisturizing (that works with my sporadic life) helps me make sure it won’t get missed. Again, as with episode 9, OIL UP! Coconut oil is a great choice, but my skin just drinks it up like water. Sesame oil is a nice alternative because it’s a bit thicker. It was hard for me to get used to smelling like a huge sesame seed though, not gonna lie. But there are so many different oils and butters out there to love our bodies with, just use some trial and error to find which one(s) work best for you.
Last thing: Bedding. Change it at least once a week. Get on the silk pillowcase train! Or if you real fancy, like Fran, get you a full-on silk sheet set. Cotton sheets soak up all the moisture from our skin that we work so hard and lovingly on.
Ep. 12: The Shut Down Mixtape
House cleaning time! Clean your fridge, clean your closets, clean your desk drawers. Clean everything! Trying to especially bring focus to areas that are often overlooked in your regular daily cleaning. By doing this, we clear out old energy, removing heaviness from our homes that we may not even realize is there. I personally can vouch that this helps with anxiety and even lifts my depression symptoms as well. It feels good when the space I live in looks and smells nice, so taking the effort is more than worthwhile.
Ep. 13: Oh God…
Get in touch with what religion/spirituality mean to YOU. This one was hard for me because I wasn’t raised with much knowledge of (or respect for, sadly) religion. As I grew, I became super interested in the various religions and how they affect the lives of others - good or bad. I’ve now learned to adapt my own spiritual practices that support me and help me get by. And this is life changing.
Ep. 14: Say It Like You Mean It
Here, we are instructed to find out what our individual love language is. This comes from the book The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman. The 5 Love Languages are:
Quality Time
Acts of Service
Receiving Gifts
Words of Affirmation
Physical Touch
You may already have an idea of what your primary love language is, but you can get some more information on that by reading the book or by taking quizzes on the book’s website. Knowing your love language, as a single, can help you define what you need from a partner. As someone in a relationship, it can help both partners learn how to best make sure everyone knows they are loved and valued.
Ep. 15: Yo Mama
Scalp Care for Winter Weather!
½ Cup Olive Oil ~ Seals in moisture
2 Tbsp. Honey (Fran uses Raw honey) ~ Creates pretty shine
½ Cup Coconut Milk ~ Adds protein
½ an Avocado ~ Healthy fat
½ a Banana ~ Softens hair
Blend all ingredients into a creamy conditioner, which should come out a nice light greenish color.
I keep forgetting coconut milk at the store or else I’d have been tried this one, smh *face palm* But I will edit to add my review after I finally do this. :)
Ep. 16: Non Profit & Chill
This episode had no segments, but we can still gain a wellness tip from it. Recorded right after Fran returned from a trip to Africa, she had a ton of insight to share on why it’s so important to be an ethical consumer. This episode was a great one to re-listen to as it reminded me that I am reading labels and the “about” pages on brand’s websites for a valid reason that is important to me, not just following trends. Dang imposter syndrome, always trying to step in and ruin everything (shoutout to the Friend Zone for teaching me about that as well, in a later episode.)
Fair Trade Errything !!!
Ep. 17: There’s A Song For That
No wellness segment this week, per say, but again I’ll summarize the episode to make it wellness for us all. The friends basically dode over their favorite break-up songs, from the deepest of soul, to the pettiest of rap songs. Many genres listed, and many bangers. This episode is a great listen for those going through a breakup, or even if you’re a big fan of the episodes where the Friends just let loose and have fun.
Ep. 18: Don’t You Go To Work?
Inspired by Assante and his newly purchased stones, which he is carrying safely in his pocket, Fran suggested that us listeners get in on the magic as well by getting our own stones. Starting with Citrine. This stone is a light orange color, and can be found online or in local crystal stores in most cities. Often referred to as “the merchants stone”, Citrine is believed to attract success. Fran offered the idea of laying it on some money, because she did it and got a random check in the mail soon after...And I kid you not - I did it, and the saaame thing happened to me. I was shook and beyond grateful!
Other stones mentioned here are Lapis Lazuli and Black Tourmaline. Lapis is a pretty, royal blue shade, usually with gold flakes in it. Lapis is known as the “communication stone”. Black Tourmaline is, you guessed it, black, and often found in shiny pieces. Fran says she keeps one of these by her bedside to absorb negative thoughts; letting it cleanse her energy before bed.
Stores mentioned on this episode: Rock Star, and Namaste shop. Both New York based but have online shopping available. Personally, and this is gonna sound real woo-woo, but I prefer picking out stones in person because then I can actually feed off of their energy to pick the right one for me. Those living in a small town, there is probably a crystal shop not too far away.
Ep. 19: The Friend Zone & The Read Mash Up Pt. 1
Wellness this week: be messy and silly with your friends. For me, I don’t currently have any real life friends to hang out with, plus COVID, so my family gets to enjoy all my silly mess. Life just cannot be lived being serious 100% of the time!
Ep. 20: 2015, I’ma Let You Finish, But 2016…
I loved this episode because it brings us back to our journals. Fran asks the guys and us listeners to reflect on two simple, but powerful questions to answer at the end of each year:
What are 3 things you discovered about yourself this year that you love? Things that you feel will propel you into the next year, as a person, career-wise, and as a whole. Write freely about how you plan on maintaining and evolving.
What are 3 things you discovered about yourself this year that you did not like? Maybe some of these things are hard to face. Reflect on how you’ve allowed them to hold you back and what you are doing to adjust them.
19 notes
·
View notes
Text
Farmer Lan’s Rewatch Guide to The Untamed - Episode 14
*Jiang Cheng’s expression is literally me staring quietly at my initial assumption that I can do an episode recap a day*
episode masterlist here
obligatory spoiler warrrrning and also, quickly:
Format update: I think it probably makes a bit more sense for me to just list out the differences from the novel and do a brief recap of the main events of the drama upfront instead of recapping the entire episode scene by scene. This is partly laziness (honestly tho), but also otherwise I feel like these posts are kind of ridiculously long and I’d actually rather focus more on analyzing the novel instead of typing out recaps? I’ll love to get feedback if anyone is reading. If not, I’m just going to go ahead and do what I want…
Quick recap on the drama:
- Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji fight the tortoise and win, Wei Wuxian passes out. They are rescued and they return to their respective sects.
- A lot of talking ensues between the Jiang family members and Wei Wuxian, including a special guest appearance by the ever-bitter Madam Yu.
- Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian establish their bromance, only to set the stage for what we know will be inevitable heartbreak later.
Differences from the novel:
In the drama it seems like they’ve spent only one night in the cave because we start Episode 14 with Lan Wangji waking up, but in the novel they’ve actually waited four days by the time they fight the tortoise. Although the events unfold over seven days in both the drama and the novel, it’s laid out a bit more clearly in the novel - four days, the attack, and then 2-3 days waiting for rescue.
Lan Wangji actually goes with Wei Wuxian to investigate the cave exit in the novel (he’s passed out and Wei Wuxian goes alone in the drama), but even after several attempts, they still can’t find anything. Wei Wuxian suspects that it is blocked by the tortoise’s body, but they have no way of drawing it out.
Knowing that if they keep waiting for rescue, their bodies will start to weaken from not having anything to eat or drink, they decide to attack. The plan is basically similar to what happens in the drama. Wei Wuxian sneaks into the shell to lure the tortoise out, finds a rusty sword that is imbued with some ~sick demonic vibes~ and disturbs the tortoise, which begins to attack.
The fight actually goes on for a full six hours in the novel, during which Wei Wuxian is literally in the tortoise’s mouth, hanging on to the sword that is wedged between its roof and tongue like a toothpick in order to prevent himself from being swallowed whole. When Lan Wangji is finally able to strangle the tortoise to death, he then has to force the dead tortoise’s mouth open to retrieve Wei Wuxian - now passed out in a fetal position, still clinging on for dear life - from the throat of the monster. I feel like in the drama this comes across as a little less dramatic because Wei Wuxian is hanging on from the outside and Lan Wangji can clearly see him (although extra drama points for the blood so I guess it evens out), but I can’t imagine the torture of trying to kill a monster for 6 hours while having NO idea whether your friend soulmate is still alive or not.
Also, this is the end of the sword’s appearance in the novel. Although Wei Wuxian was really fascinated and wanted to retrieve it for further research in the novel, it was unfortunately lost in the water.
The episode then cuts out the rest of Chapter 55 with a flashback to skirt around censorship. Some scenes that were missed in the drama:
Wei Wuxian requests to lie on Lan Wangji’s legs (let’s be real - lap) because why not? He has a fever and you know he is gonna milk that for all its worth. Wei Wuxian is all “But why don’t you like meeeee?” and Lan Wangji staunchly refuses, but secretly moves him onto his lap while he’s asleep. Can this man be any more tsundere?!
The only thing keeping Wei Wuxian’s condition from worsening is Lan Wangji channeling his energy into him. Lan Wangji is insistent on not talking to Wei Wuxian because he needs rest, and Wei Wuxian clearly wants to do anything BUT rest. So after some attempts at conversation, that’s when Wei Wuxian asks Lan Wangji to sing to him while he falls asleep. Like in the drama, he never catches the name of the song.
It’s only Jiang Cheng who rescues them in the novel, Jin Zixuan doesn’t appear (honestly, the drama is SO much more sympathetic to him). Wei Wuxian wakes up back at Yunmeng so we don’t see that dramatic reunion-fainting scene in the drama.
Pretty much the rest of the conversation between the Jiang family and Wei Wuxian, as well as the showdown of Madam Yu vs. everyone else (again) happens as it does in the novel.
Also, know this - Wei Wuxian doesn’t praise Jiang Cheng for his rescue efforts during his conversation with Jiang Fengmian in the novel. It’s a really small thing, but it kind of pains me that they don’t really discuss Jiang Cheng at all in their conversation except for the ‘wish you were there!’ part even though he’s right there, after slogging 7 days without rest to bring Wei Wuxian back.
The Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian scene literally happens basically word for word as it does in the novel so I really have nothing to add, but they cut out the ending of Chapter 57, which, to me, was actually the best part of the chapter, so here’s what is missing:
Wei Wuxian notices he is missing Mianmian’s perfume satchel in the novel, and asks Jiang Cheng if he’s seen it. This gets cut in the drama since the medicinal herbs came from Wen Ning, but in the novel we later learn that a certain sly tsundere Lan someone stole it off his body while he was asleep in the cave...and kept it as a coin purse. ;)
There is a conversation that goes:
江澄皱眉道：“你又来了。你不会真的喜欢她吧？那丫头长的是还可以，但是一看出身就不怎么样。恐怕连门生都不是，像是个家奴之女。”
Jiang Cheng *frowning*: There you go again with Mianmian - don’t tell me you really like her? She‘s got good looks but you can tell that’s she not from a distinguished background - I’m afraid she’s not even a disciple of the Jin sect, more likely the daughter of a house servant.
魏无羡道：“家奴怎么了，我不也是家仆之子吗。”
Wei Wuxian: “So what if she is? Am I not the son of a servant too?”
江澄道：“你跟她能比吗？谁家的家仆像你这样，主人还给你剥莲子、熬汤喝，我都没喝到
Jiang Cheng: “Are you really comparing yourself to her? Which sect’s servant is like you? The mistress* peels your lotus seeds for you and makes soup for you that even I didn’t get to drink.”
*Mistress here being in reference to Jiang Yanli, since technically Wei Wuxian would be a servant to the Jiang household by birth, making all of them his masters/mistresses.
I love this scene. In fact, I just love the interactions in this entire chapter, but particularly the complex dynamics between Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian. In the drama, by cutting out this scene (and I think several others that reference Wei Wuxian’s background), they almost feel like siblings, but I think it undercuts the real dynamic between Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian, because it’s a huge deal that he’s not family. It means Jiang Cheng’s allegiance should and will always lie with the sect first, even if Wei Wuxian didn’t do all the things he did. I already talked about this in Episode 11 so I’ll save the ranting here.
Also, in the novel, Wei Wuxian turns the topic back to Lan Wangji at this point and learns that Lan Wangji’s father has passed away due to wounds inflicted during the burning of the Cloud Recesses. BIG OOF.
#how did this end up being this long#mo dao zu shi#魔道祖师#mdzs#the untamed#cql#lan wangji#lan zhan#wei ying#wangxian#recap
25 notes
·
View notes
Text
Maou-jou 9 - 12 (FINAL) | Idolish7 s2 10 - 15 (FINAL) | SLS 2
I’ve been holding off new seasonals because of other things, but after I post this I’ll have enough time to get around to them. That’s why I can’t guarantee winter 2021 seasonal tags on this post...maybe the next one will have them...
Maou-jou 9
…it seems shopping channels even are the same in the demon world.
Now even the demons have quests! (The frame is different to the princess’s, though.)
Oh! The quest failed.
Neo Alraune: in flower language, “the 2nd coming of happiness”. The worry from a little while ago was, “I’m worried about my brother.” The worry from recently: “I didn’t think about being happy that the princess didn’t kill my brother.”
The penguin demons are pretty cute!
Don’t you know how parents forbid children from sleeping until they finish all their homework? Must be something like that.
Yoku ganbarimashita! – Syalis worked hard!
LOL, mental age: 3. Poseidon likes cute things…I can’t read a lot of this…the hardsubs cover the JPN text.
They…both succeeded! (…LOL?)
Maou-jou 10
Owarinocity = Endopolis. It’s a good equivalent, if I do say so myself.
…oh yeah. What happened to Alraune? Update: There she is!
Also, that blonde guy in the infomercials doesn’t look too bad…*makes chef’s kiss gesture with one hand* Nice.
I wonder, was Twilight once human…?
LOL, there’s a goat symbol on the cleric’s pyjamas. Also “first time”, LOL.
I think they were playing shiritori at one point.
Hanamaru saikou yoku dekimashita!
Maou-jou 11
…How does one “sleep cheerfully”, anyway?
I think I saw Twilight drop something…some kind of paper…
Aw, Twilight blushing is kinda cute!
LOL, 70s shoujo style. Also, “It cannot be!”
Whoa, she cancelled it?!
I read up on this series on TV Tropes…and apparently the Demon King captured the Princess in her sleep.
Kagemusha? Like a ninja or something?
Apparently the Demon Cleric is much older than he looks.
Ooh! Hypnos is back!
A-whatsit really is abysmal levels of stupid!!! (LOL)
Maou-jou 12 (FINAL)
Who’s that one tiny guy occupying one of the Ten Kings’ seats?
*watching after Christmas, about a week after the anime finished* This is not seasonally appropriate!
…*thinks for a second, then spits* That’s the 2nd Nemu in the fall 2020 season!!!
Ooh, the head paladin doesn’t look that bad, either.
“…is it good to be…”
“…has seized the princess!”
“…that demon king is rather cute.” – See? Someone agrees with me.
Anyways, that was a fun series. See you soon!
Idolish7 s2 10
…Back at it after so long…(I can’t help it though – Crunchyroll, per month, is about double the local Funimation sublicensor’s fees, and for much less content that’s worth my money to boot!)
I’ve always thought Momo was like Sasara (HypMic), so seeing him anguished hurts me in the kokoro too…
I know Banri was involved with Re:vale somehow…this must be it.
…Male idols are also popular among men? Is this why there are 8 (!!!) idol anime in winter 2021 alone…? (Also, that’s why HypMic became popular? Multidemographic appeal crossed over with obvious merchandising opportunities?)
It’s kind of scary how Momo stepped the formality towards Yuki like that (to -san).
I guess in his heart Momo still reveres Yuki, some way or another.
The rakugo curtain really sold the moment that they (current Re:vale) were acting like an old married couple.
Yay! Silver Sky is such a cool song! Of course I recognised the intro when it came on.
…I see. The elder Kujo is entrusting his dream to Tenn, so that’s why he banned Aya from seeing Tamaki. However, it’s hard to know what to feel when Aya speaks in the vaguest terms possible.
I think that was a special ending for only this episode. I don’t know what its name is, but I guess I might recognise it on Spotify one day.
Idolish7 s2 11
LOL, Nagi’s reaction.
Considering the ‘rona is getting worse outside our very windows as we speak (type?), I think it’s correct to be concerned about your future right now.
Looking at these narrow streets reminds me of going to eat hotpot at the end of my Japan trip…only Japanese streets look like that, I think. Hong Kong’s streets are more crowded than that and America likes their suburbia.
Of course, when you say hajimemashite (nice to meet you), someone’s gotta say it back, hence the reply.
Considering there are people all over the world watching the Idolish7 anime, I would say you are telling the world about I7, Riku.
Oh! Restart Pointer! There was an MV for that one…I think it was around the time Idolish7’s MVs started getting better.
So this is the context around the new outfits! Cool!
There have been way too many puns about “idol” being…y’know, “ai (love) doll” and stuff like that…
I have one Twitter person who I follow (DejiNyucu, part of the creative team for Autumn’s Journey) because I don’t get much I7 content and they keep mentioning this “Haruki” person…and suddenly a “Haruki the Betrayer” showed up in the graffiti…they might be the same person, I think. Not Deji, but Haruki. Update: Sakura Haruki, perhaps…?
Sougo’s such a bad liar…
Sometimes, the best way to deal with things is to be direct…(I’m not very good at that, I naturally talk in a very roundabout sort of way.)
Sougo with long hair like Yuki would be really pretty… (<- has an obvious thing for guys with long hair)
Idolish7 s2 12
Nagi’s stupid accent is generally what he’s best remembered for (for me), so seeing him speak normally, and do a press conference on top of that, is…impressive.
A kabedon on top of all this! Whoa!
Shibuya 109 parody…? (I’ve seen that once or twice – parodying that means people know their stuff about Shibuya.)
I think the “it’s overflowing!” is referring to the hype in the “room”.
…this dejected Momo is worrying…(well, he is worrying and I am worrying about him.)
Oh, I see. The person responsible typed the letter so that they couldn’t be traced back. Kind of like those old movies where the culprit would cut letters out of newspapers to make threat mail, but…with even less traces than that, because cutting letters out leaves evidence.
…wow, it took a while for this ep. to have an intro…
…LOL, I just spotted Kenjiro Tsuda cited as the “fake Zero”, meaning the real one might never show up this season.
There’s something really stupid and infectious about these managers’ enthusiasm for drinking energy drinks. It puts a goofy smile on my face.
Is Musubi Tsumugi’s mother…? Update: Yes, she is.
…Wait, so the Chiba Shizuo guy is actually important?!
Idolish7 s2 13
Whenever someone says “by the way”, it means they’re changing the subject. I hate to state to obvious, but Sougo is clearly deflecting the topic of conversation from being about him.
I wonder if this guy (Haw9) is the actual Zero graffiti vandal…?
Hmph, I didn’t realise Tenn doesn’t refer to Kujo-san as his father, but…like that (“Kujo-san”) instead.
Oh hey! These are shots from Vibrato!
Most dramas can be solved with the power of Good Communication. That includes this one.
I feel like “he has a dark side” describes both Tenn and Kujo-san.
“Everyone, remember to wash your hands and gargle thoroughly.” – This is always a good thing to remember in the time of ‘rona. Reminds me of Jakurai’s line in ARB (<- this game started just after the ‘rona came down).
What did Sougo go to uni for (what specialisation)?
Idolish7 s2 14
I just realised Banri calls Momo -kun. Hmm…
Denki = electricity, LOL.
I feel like Tenn is basically Ramuda, give or take actual pink hair…guys in musical groups with pre-existing angst that they become the “centre” of. The fact Fling Posse have Saito Soma and so do Trigger strengthens the connection.
I would watch the heck out of a musical like that! Make it come true, Idolish7! (Also, today is I7 day! I’m not much of an I7 fan outside the anime, but…that’s cool!)
That shot of them jumping! I remember seeing it on the official site before!
Idolish7 s2 15 (FINAL)
There you go! I was wondering where Banri’s injury was – that was the only bit that didn’t add up for him to be Yuki’s old partner.
Hmm…Momo is 4 years younger than Yuki but 2 years younger than Banri…
This episode has a real concert vibe to it, to the point where I got startled by how loud the yell was at one point. (Even if it is mostly stills.)
LOL, lookit Okazaki!
Apparently, if you’re a hako oshi, you like all the members of a group. Someone with a green light and a pink light likes both members of Re:vale.
LOL, Usagi for Asahi beer.
…I forgot Nagi is 19.
…Ooh, I think that’s the kid from ZOOL. No wonder they needed a season 3!
That’s all. See you next time!
SLS 2
“fine and upstanding person” – That’s…hard to believe, Hayato.
I wonder how many bois Toboso designed for SLS…?
…The episode title is actually “Blank”. Not “Break”.
One of the guys’ shirts says moteki on it. That’s a period in one’s life where one enjoys more romantic attention than usual, literally “popularity season”.
The subs missed an I, so initially I knew Kiriyama’s name as “Kiryama”.
There are meant to be 2 wings, right…?
“He who controls information controls everything, right?” – For once, I’m surprised Hayato is right (and not just in that smug way of his).
“…I’m being treated like a manager.” – But Hayato is a manager! (In a sense.)
The plait guy jumps to nicknames really fast…also, why do I get the feeling Maeshima will lose the key?
I hate to say this Maeshima, but I side with your childhood friend (Kiriyama) here. As much as the anime wants me to back you, I’m watching for everyone else at this point.
That blocky building looks pretty cool. I think Zel (Archi-Anime) would like it.
Sasugai’s setup looks pretty cool, including his chair.
…hmm, Maeshima’s like me in a sense. I learn best by copying others, but memory is my best asset. If I don’t regularly train the fundamentals, I suck at everything. That said, I don’t have an eidetic memory. Also, I didn’t quite figure out Ken = Ken(sei Maeshima) until I watched long enough to connect the dots.
LOL, Derry’s. (<- reminded of a word for “butt” <- derriere)
Well, the guy’s (Souta…?) shirt does say moteki…
Kiriyama kinda looks like Jyuto (HypMic), come to think of it…Right down to his angry streak (although Jyuto has a reputation to keep as a “cool dude”, while Kiriyama is more of a Manza (Boueibu HK) and he’s more angry than he looks).
…This ED is nothing special.
…Hmm? Is that a small Terauchi and Maeshima…?
I think I’m sold for now, but I’m rooting for the other team, not Maeshima’s…not yet, anyways.
#simulcast commentary#skate-leading☆stars#idolish7#Idolish7 Second Beat!#Maou-jou de Oyasumi#sleepy princess in the demon castle#Chesarka watches I7#Chesarka watches Maou-jou
4 notes
·
View notes
Text
For once, I’m actually going to liveblog my reactions for Episode 10.
The bubbles just...ruin the mood. Those are like “I made eye contact with my soulmate and we’re so in love” bubbles, not “I’m running away because someone I trusted and held close to me actually is part of the organization that has made my life hell and I need to stop their evil plot” bubbles. Plus mixed in with Lucien’s betrayal and the music? I cannot take this seriously.
....What’s with the collars?
I also cannot get over the “Potato Chip Princess”. We’re 10 episodes in, and I’m pissed that they didn’t translate it as Miss Chips, seeing as they translated the names to fit the English Server.
I can’t wait for a revamped Blu-Ray edition where Kiro’s smile actually melts into a serious face, not something...whatever that was that he did.
WHOMST’VE?!
I like the foreshadowing with the coin.
“It’s too bright!” Sir, are those sunglasses for show?
Oh my God.
NO! NOT THE ROBOTS!
Excuse the fuck outta me?
Cut to the cheery middle theme music for commercial break!
Okay, okay, so the scene with Kiro’s childhood? This was from a Rumors and Secrets that hasn’t been released in the English server. I think it was that Rumors and Secrets, at least, since it explained that Kiro gave MC a bear. But, the biggest thing, was that he was non-verbal and basically ended up replacing some kid that died, and since he didn’t speak, there was no way he’d tell.
At least one robot survived
She looks so disgusted.
The amount of times Kiro has fallen, this episode should be called “The Two Times Kiro Almost Fell to His Death and the One Time He Symbolically Did.”
This is SO MEAN. LIKE. HE KEEPS FALLING AND I’M LIKE “DID THEY FUCK IT UP? NO?!”
The candyyyyyyyyyyy
“Kiro, you’re a fatass, but so am I, so I’ll go eat a bunch of sweets with you.” ALL LIES.
Ooooh, that deep voice. Hello there.
The use of the bell sound is interesting.
The don’t explicitly state that there was the sound of the stairwell falling, it’s just implied. The first gunshot, and then the fucking chaos after it adds so much more drama.
MC dragging the pipe on the ground with determination, not crying, and ready to save everyone is fucking sexy, okay?
Okay, she was crying. BUT STILL. The way she beats the shit outta the panel, and letting out her frustration? Good. The music? SO FUCKING GOOD.
She thinks of the boys as she falls. Even Lucien. Which - even though her hurt her - she still cares about him.
I love Gavin showing up but it feels kinda...awkward with the animation? Just them falling down slowly. He’s all scratched up and dirty. A pretty good detail, imo.
I don’t know how to feel about the lack of music.
I still cannot get over the cheeryness of the fucking ending.
In a lab, with some ominous music and then -
EVIL PIANO INTESIFIES
So, My thoughts here.
I really like most of the changes they did. There’s more emotional payoff for Kiro’s sacrifice here, in my opinion, they way they foreshadowed him pretty much dying. The thing that’s mean is that I really doubt that we’ll get Helios here. Which means that people only watching the anime will think Kiro fucking died. And that’s so mean to do in an Otome anime.
I am kinda bummed with Artemis not being there, though.
Also, I really, really don’t like that Episode 11 is Victor centric. I get that it’s for equality among the boys, but the biggest thing is that Victor’s chapter in this arc ends with him killing MC. I have no idea how they’re going to put Victor’s chapter here, in episode 11, still have Lucien kill of Hades, and have Gavin join the military before MC sacrifices herself.
This is also the second time where it would make most sense to have the next episode be Gavin, and it switches to another character. Fuck the balance of the bois, I want my logical storytelling dammit!
I also am hoping they won’t cram 3 chapters worth of content into 1 episode, and have 12 be the beach event. 4 dates crammed into the last episode would sooooo ruin the atmosphere of the what’s happening here.
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
last dance (elu ballet au) chapter quinze
Lucas is in his final year at the Paris Opera Ballet School and he’ll be damned if he lets his former friend-turned-rival Eliott steal the lead role in their production of Swan Lake.
aka- lucas and eliott are rivals who are forced to room together for their final year of ballet school before they try to enter the company. we can all see where this is going.
i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix. x. xi. xii. xiii. xiv. xv.
ao3
**tw: brief mentions of eating disorder, ocd, ptsd, anxiety, references to past sexual abuse, brief allusion to past suicidal ideation**
Samedi 11:24
“You’re cute.”
Lucas scrunched his nose up, shaking his head from where he was laying in bed, facing Eliott. When Eliott lifted his head to readjust the way he was lying down Lucas saw pillow creases on the side of his cheek, and it was adorable.
“You are. You’re so cute,” Eliott repeated, tapping Lucas on the nose. In all honesty, Lucas knew he was cute, objectively, but he’d keep refusing if it meant Eliott kept telling him so.
He grabbed one of Eliott’s hands and stretched their joined palms up to the ceiling before flopping them back down between the two of them, tracing small circles on the palm of Eliott’s hand. “I’m not,” he lied.
“You are.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Well, you should.”
“Hmmm…”
“Hmmm…” Eliott mimicked, screwing his face up in a way Lucas figured was supposed to match what Lucas had done prior.
Lucas laughed, ducking his head down. “Stop. Now you’re cute.”
“I wasn’t before?” Eliott gasped in faux offense. Lucas merely raised one eyebrow, looking away pointedly. Eliott gasped again, this time in indignation. “Rude!”
Before Lucas could do or say anything else, Eliott unwrapped his hand from Lucas’ and used it to pull him closer. It was nice until Eliott started to tickle him. Lucas cursed his past self for admitting how ticklish he was, because now Eliott could use that to his advantage.
“Eli! Eli! Stop ah—” Lucas laughed, breaths coming in short gasps as he tried and failed to squirm away. The light in Eliott’s eyes was almost blinding it burned so bright. Lucas knew it was a foolish wish, but he wished it could stay like that forever. Anytime Eliott had a smile on his face, Lucas felt like all was right in the world.
Eliott stopped tickling him abruptly and it was only then that Lucas realized they’d rolled so Eliott was hovering over him, pillow creases still apparent on his face and the sun streaming through the window framing him in a golden halo. Lucas’ heart stopped briefly when he realized that this was possibly the most beautiful Eliott had ever looked.
He lifted a hand and placed it on Eliott’s chest, fingers tracing idly over the ink tattooed there. “I’ve never asked, when did you get this?”
Eliott looked down at his own chest, as if he’d forgotten there was anything there. He paused before speaking. “Over the summer,” he said at last.
“Why?” Lucas asked, curious. He’d never really taken Eliott for a tattoo person, but he had to admit it did turn him on a little bit.
Eliott dropped his eyes, biting his lip nervously. “Um, I’d just gotten out of a really bad depression. An episode, I guess, is what it was. It was one I didn’t think I’d get out of…” he trailed off, and Lucas understood what he was saying without saying. The pain that exploded from his heart was unmatched, but he said nothing, waiting for Eliott to continue.
“But I did get out of it, mainly thanks to Idriss and Sofiane, and I got this as a reminder that life was worth it, I guess,” he finished, shrugging to the best of his ability, given his position propped up over Lucas.
“I think it’s beautiful,” Lucas said earnestly, “I think you’re beautiful.”
He was, he was so beautiful. And instead of denying it, Eliott simply closed the space between them, pressing a gentle but deeply intentioned kiss to Lucas’ lips. It wasn’t like they hadn’t kissed in a long time or anything, but the kiss sent every ounce of dopamine in Lucas’ brain rushing into his body.
“I’m so in love with you, you have no idea,” Lucas said breathlessly as they broke apart, running his fingers through Eliott’s hair. He felt such a love for Eliott that he couldn’t even put it into words. “You’ve ruined me, you know. You’ve made all my expectations for love way too high. You can never leave me, I don’t know how I’d manage.”
He said it like he was joking, but it was the truth. He’d found so much in Eliott that he didn’t even know existed, so much of himself and so much of the world. It was unthinkable that he’d ever lose it, but there was always that fear.
“I could never,” Eliott said seriously, brushing their noses together, “The person I am when I’m not with you is someone I never want to be again. I told you once but I’ll continue to tell you a million times: you’re it for me Lucas Lallemant. In this universe and in all the others you’ve dreamed up in your mind. They haven’t created a word big enough to express how much I love you.”
Lucas stroked down Eliott’s cheekbone, willing himself to not go all in so fast. Somehow the words Eliott had spoken were real, and Lucas could tell how much he meant them. It seemed crazy that he could be so happy when just a few days ago his world had tipped entirely on its axis, but somehow, he could be. And he wasn’t going to waste a moment of that happiness.
It was unclear which one of them dove back in for a kiss, or maybe they met halfway, but the only important thing was that they were kissing again. They were kissing, they were kissing, and Lucas was floating, was floating, and the light making its way through the window was working its way into Lucas’ heart and soul, heart and soul.
Lucas gripped Eliott tighter by the back of his neck, and Eliott pressed down further, connecting their bodies deeper and closer. Each kiss was like a song, one Lucas didn’t know the lyrics to yet, but he knew it would be one of his favorites once he did.
“Hey, Luc— WHAT THE FUCK—”
Eliott and Lucas broke apart in the blink of an eye, Lucas shoving Eliott off of him and almost off the bed so fast neither of them were really able to register it. Lucas blinked at the door, doing his best to look innocent, and probably doing a terrible job.
Yann stood in the doorway, mouth agape, eyebrows creased like he was trying to solve some sort of math equation that just didn’t add up. Lucas had sworn they’d locked the door to their suite… but no, he remembered, Eliott had gone out early in the morning to get them croissants from the bakery down the street to celebrate not getting kicked out. He probably hadn’t thought to lock the door when he got back, and Lucas had no reason to lock the door to his bedroom, or even close it for that matter.
“I can explain,” Lucas said, filling the tense, silent space in the air.
“You’d better,” Yann agreed incredulously, finally looking Lucas in the eye.
Eliott looked a bit like he was trying to shrink himself in size or hide under the covers, maybe both, and it was so cute it took all of Lucas’ restraint to not reach over and kiss him.
“Sooo…” he began, “I’m dating Eliott.”
Yann looked at him like yeah, no shit, which, fair. “How long has this been a thing?”
“Um… since that one party,” Lucas responded vaguely, not exactly wanting to reveal how long it had actually been. Unluckily for him, Yann knew exactly when he was talking about, given that it was the last party all of them had been at together.
“The one Alexia invited us to.” It wasn’t a question, but Lucas nodded anyway. Yann closed his eyes, rubbing the bridge of his nose between his eyes with his thumb and index finger. “What the fuck,” he repeated, which was appropriate.
“We just wanted to keep it a secret until the show was over, we didn’t want to cause any drama,” Lucas explained. He didn’t want Yann to feel bad or feel like Lucas thought he couldn’t trust him. He hadn’t even told Manon. Yes, Imane knew, but that was mostly because she happened to be there when he was having a mental breakdown.
Yann opened his eyes, dropping his hand. “Yet you did anyway,” he said with a frown.
That was also, unfortunately, true. When he really thought about it, it was a wonder no one else had put the pieces together, given what he and Eliott had both gone through over the past couple of weeks. Lucas shrugged, looking down to realize that from Yann’s perspective it probably looked like he was naked. He cringed slightly to himself, then looked over at Eliott.
“Can you, um, give us a minute?” Lucas asked softly, urgency in his eyes. Eliott thankfully understood right away and he nodded, plucking one of Lucas’ hoodies from the floor and throwing it on, even though it was a bit small. Thank god he was already wearing sweatpants.
The terse silence stayed latent in the air as Eliott, head down, skirted his way around Yann and closed the door behind him. Lucas almost laughed to himself as he heard Eliott’s footsteps break into a soft jog when he left the room.
“Can you—” Lucas began to ask, and Yann caught his drift, grabbing another discarded hoodie and tossing it to where Lucas was still partially hidden under the covers. He just had his boxers on, and he definitely did not need Yann to know that.
Yann sat on the edge of the bed, weariness in his eyes. “He’s not… making you do anything, right?”
“Oh, god, Yann, no! Of course not!” Lucas exclaimed immediately, not even knowing why Yann’s mind went there in the first place.
Yann raised his hands in surrender, widening his eyes. “I just had to make sure dude, I don’t know! You’re the one who’s been talking about how Eliott is the spawn of satan for like five years!”
“I don’t think I ever called him the spawn of satan,” Lucas argued back, which was probably the most unnecessary addition to the conversation.
“You know what I mean.” Lucas did know what he meant. It just made him feel so guilty to think about these days, even when Eliott had reassured him time and time again that there was no hard feelings. They’d both gone through a lot over the years they’d been apart emotionally, and they couldn’t blame each other for the things that had been said and done when it mostly just led to blaming themselves.
“We’ve… worked through it,” Lucas explained, figuring that was the best way to put it.
“All of it?” Yann asked, and Lucas nodded. He knew why Yann was so concerned, and he really did appreciate it. Not many people cared for him like that.
He couldn’t really look at Yann at the moment, so he laid back on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. “He makes me feel so whole, Yann. I didn’t know I could ever feel like this.”
Yann settled down beside him in the spot Eliott just vacated, joining him in gazing at the ceiling. “I believe that’s what our ancestors called ‘love’.”
Lucas nudged him gently, laughing to himself. “I’m aware of that, idiot. I’m so fucking in love.”
“Don’t punch me, but I honestly never thought I’d hear you say that,” Yann said, and Lucas finally turned to look at him.
“Really?”
Yann nodded. “I guess I just didn’t know if you’d ever love yourself enough to let someone else love you, or to realize you deserve that love. I hoped, sure, but I knew that could only do so much. Then, with what you told us about your eating disorder… I’m so sorry, Lucas. I’ve seen you in pain for so long that I let myself get desensitized to it. I shouldn’t have, and I’m going to have to carry that for the rest of my life, but I still did it, and I’m so glad you found someone who saw every part of you and loved and cared for you in the way you deserve.”
An errant tear slipped down Lucas’ cheek as he turned to face Yann fully. Yann was still looking at the ceiling, but Lucas spoke anyway. “Don’t blame yourself for anything Yann. I didn’t want anyone to see that I was struggling, or to call me out on any of my bullshit. Eliott didn’t listen to my silent pleas for normalcy because he’s as stubborn as I am, but you can’t let yourself regret what happened in the past or blame yourself for it, trust me. It doesn’t do anyone any good, least of all yourself.”
“I’m still sorry,” Yann said, finally turning his head, “Please just let me be sorry.”
“I forgive you,” Lucas said, because it was what Yann needed to hear. Lucas didn’t think Yann needed to be forgiven for anything, but he offered up his forgiveness as a stepping stone to not send either of them too far into a regretful spiral.
“He loves you too?” Yann asked seriously.
Lucas smiled, thinking about the way Eliott looked at him like he was more beautiful than any star in the sky. “He does.”
“Jesus, you sappy little shit,” Yann groaned shaking his head. “‘He does’, with that fucking smile? Who are you and what have you done with Lucas Lallemant?”
He knew Yann was joking, but he thought about it. He was different, but it was a good different, a kind of different that made him want to soar, not sink. “I’m Lucas Lallemant 2.0, I think. The new and improved version. I like me better now, although I guess I didn’t really like myself at all before.”
“Well Lucas Lallemant 2.0, I’m your best friend Yann Cazas. Don’t go forgetting that again, ok? I’m with you no matter what. I’m the person you call when you need to hide a body, and you’re the same to me,” Yann said, raising his eyebrows.
“As if I could ever forget you,” Lucas said, half joking half serious. “And thanks, really.”
“Another no homo bro hug?” Yann offered, and Lucas didn’t even have time to respond verbally before Yann sat up and pulled him close, wrapping his arms around him. Lucas returned the gesture, resting his head on Yann’s shoulder.
When they pulled away Yann twitched his lips, looking to the side. “Speaking of no homo bro hugs—”
“Yann are you coming out to me?” Lucas interrupted, pretending to be scandalized.
Yann rolled his eyes, shoving Lucas’ shoulder. “Shut up. What I was going to say was, you need to talk to Arthur.”
“Why? What’s wrong?” Lucas asked immediately, heart speeding up. Arthur had been acting a bit oddly… Lucas really hoped nothing was wrong.
“Calm down, nothing’s wrong,” Yann continued, reading his mind, “I just think you guys should have an actual heart to heart.”
“You’re scaring me a bit Yann…”
“I swear!” Yann raised his arms again. “He just filled me in on the things going on in his life, and I figured you’d want to know too, but not from me.”
“Ok…” Lucas was still wary, he could sense Yann wasn’t telling him something, but he’d just have to accept it for now. He really should have a talk with Arthur anyway, even just to fill him in on everything going on in his life as well. “Ok,” he repeated, “I’ll talk to him this week.”
Yann nodded, then scooted off the bed. “Tell your lover he can stop hiding in his room now, but if he ever hurts you I will break his spine.”
“Noted,” Lucas said, smiling. Then, “By the way, how’s it going with Chloé?”
Yann laughed as if he couldn’t help himself. “Ha. That. Yeah, um, it’s not really ‘going’ so to speak anymore.”
Lucas lifted the water from his bedside table in mock salute. “I expected nothing less.”
“Shut up, Lallemant, you’re still on thin ice for not telling me you’ve been a part of some enemies to lovers fanfiction for weeks now.” Yann pointed at him, narrowing his eyes.
“Enemies to lovers fan— Are you serious right now?” Lucas laughed, doubling over.
Yann simply turned towards the door, calling over his shoulder. “You don’t know what I do in my free time. Although, come to think of it, which one of you would be Harry and which one would be Draco?”
“Yann!”
“Ok, ok, leaving for real now. Let me know when you decide, though, this is important data,” Yann yelled, making his way through their living room and out the door. Lucas flopped back down shaking his head fondly. Harry and Draco… Yann was something else, he really was.
Lucas was so out of it he didn’t even register when Eliott walked back into the room until he said, “Well, obviously, I’m Harry.”
“What? Are you kidding?” Lucas scoffed as Eliott settled back down beside him. “How am I Draco?”
Eliott shrugged. “You were the mean one.”
Lucas rolled his eyes. Fine, if that was how they were going to play it. “You were the one who pined from afar for years.”
“They both did that,” Eliott argued.
“Well you— and Draco— were the ones aware that they were pining.”
And so they went on like this, debating back and forth, hands twisting together idly, legs brushing not so accidentally, hearts filled to the brim with adoration, as was normal these days. It was a peaceful morning that led into a peaceful afternoon that led into a peaceful night and it was wonderful. Every minute of it.
Dimanche 19:07
Lucas was fully drained, mentally and emotionally. He’d spent the last seven hours with a clinical psychologist, working through what was going on and getting properly diagnosed, and now he was even more exhausted than after a full day of rehearsals. It had taken a while for him to feel comfortable, but once he began to open up, the words wouldn’t stop flowing and flowing until he’d practically told his entire life story. It was a lot, and all he wanted right now were cuddles from Eliott.
The moment he opened the door, he was greeted by Eliott’s grinning face standing behind the counter chopping something up. “Hey, Lu. I’m making dinner.”
Lucas appreciated that he didn’t ask how the session had gone. Lucas would tell him, but he needed a moment to process things on his own first. He made his way over to the counter, sitting at one of the stools and peeking at what Eliott was doing. “What are you making?”
Eliott’s face flushed bright red. “It’s a surprise?”
“A surprise?”
Eliott beckoned Lucas closer with his hand, waiting to speak until they were inches apart. “I have no idea what I’m doing,” Eliott whispered.
“Do you want help?” Lucas whispered back, stifling a giggle.
“No,” Eliott scoffed in mock indignation, pulling away. “Who knows, maybe this will be the best meal we’ve ever eaten. Maybe I’ll become a world famous chef, the new Remy.”
“Remy?” Lucas clarified.
“Yeah, the rat from Ratatouille.”
Lucas laughed. “Oh, I just thought his name was Ratatouille.”
This apparently, was the wrong thing to say, because Eliott dropped everything he was doing and stared at Lucas, mouth agape. Once he regained his composure, he sighed. “We have to break up.”
Lucas choked on a laugh, taken aback. “Excuse me?”
“You don’t respect the cinematic excellence that is Ratatouille enough to even remember the main character’s name. I don’t need that kind of negativity in my life.” He shooed Lucas with his hands, turning away dramatically. “Begone, thot!”
And, well, Lucas had never expected to hear those words from Eliott, so he did what any sensible person would do. He laughed so hard he quite literally fell from his chair.
“Shit!” he exclaimed, catching himself before he could really embarrass himself. Eliott ran to the opposite side of the counter, alarm in his eyes.
“Oh my god are you ok? I’m so so sorry, Lu, I’m so— are you laughing?” Eliott rambled upon seeing Lucas shaking on the ground. Lucas lifted his head and revealed not tears of pain, but tears of laughter. Eliott sank down onto the floor beside him, dropping his face into his hands, but his smile was unmistakable.
“Begone— thot—” Lucas gasped between laughs, wiping his eyes.
Eliott finally surrendered to his own laughter, shaking his head. “I don’t even know where that came from.”
It took a few more minutes for Lucas to finally catch his breath, but once he did, he clasped one of Eliott’s hands between both of his. “Thank you,” he said, radiating with warmth.
“I called you a thot,” Eliott reiterated.
Lucas nudged him with his shoulder. “That’s not what I’m talking about, dummy. Thank you for being you, for making me laugh after the day I just had.”
“Are we talking about it?” Eliott asked, and Lucas wondered the same thing himself. He kind of just wanted to get it all off his chest, even if a small part of him was screaming to hold it all in until he exploded.
Lucas settled on a nod, leaning back against the counter and pulling his knees up to his chest. Eliott did the same, the two of them sitting side by side and not looking at each other. It was easier saying these things when he didn’t have to look for every single reaction in Eliott’s expressive eyes.
“So, I guess I officially have an eating disorder,” Lucas began. He felt his heart start to beat a tad more rapidly and took a few deep breaths to steady himself. Eliott didn’t say anything, just listened, still holding his hand.
“Anorexia nervosa, technically,” he continued, biting his lip. “I, um, also apparently have generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and deeply rooted emotional and physical trauma which manifests itself as PTSD. And abandonment issues. I’m quite the catch, I know.”
Eliott squeezed his hand. “Hey. None of that makes you less of a person, ok? Now that you know what to call it, you’ll have a better time learning how to push through it in a healthy way, right?”
“Yeah,” Lucas said in a small voice, focusing on a loose thread on his pants.
“Do you have to take any medications?” Eliott asked conversationally, as if they were talking about the weather.
Lucas nodded again. “They think that would be best, particularly for the OCD, mostly because I can’t go to therapy as often as they’d like given rehearsal schedules.”
“Hey that’s great!” Eliott exclaimed, and Lucas finally looked at him, confusion creasing his brows. “I have to take medication too, for, you know… now we can take them together or something. Help each other out. Obviously it won’t be easy for either of us, but I’m willing to try if you are.”
“That would be nice,” Lucas said, resting his head on Eliott’s shoulder. It most definitely would not be all rainbows and butterflies, and may be a source of argument from time to time, but Lucas thought it was what both of them needed at the moment to help them adjust to the changes in their lives.
“Minute by minute, baby,” Eliott said, leaning his head on top of Lucas’.
“Please don’t call me baby,” Lucas said, scrunching up his face even though he knew Eliott couldn’t see it. Had he told Eliott about his dislike of pet names yet or was this going to have to be a new conversation?
“Whatever you say, baby.”
“Eliott I swear—”
But he didn’t finish, and Eliott didn’t have time to answer, because a loud beeping noise interrupted both of their trains of thought. Their heads shot up, then their bodies when they realized the beeping was the smoke detector.
“You were making food,” Lucas remembered and Eliott nodded solemnly.
“I was making food.”
“Shit.”
They both went to work, waving away the smoke and turning off the stove, putting whatever Eliott’s concoction had been into the sink. Eliott was jumping up and down waving a dish towel to dissipate the smoke, and the sight was enough for Lucas’ panic to leave him and for laughter to take over once again. Eliott glared at him like Is now really the time?, but the corner of his mouth twitched nonetheless.
Lucas heard voices outside their door and looked through the peephole to see people walking past, muttering in confusion. “Shit,” he repeated, “I think we’re supposed to evacuate.”
“Even if we’re the source of the problem?” Eliott asked, still waving his dish towel.
“Especially if we’re the source of the problem, I think,” Lucas replied, reaching for the hoodie he’d strewn across the couch earlier. Actually, it was Eliott’s hoodie, but Lucas claimed it, so now it was his (at least until it stopped smelling like Eliott).
Eliott reluctantly put down the towel and followed Lucas out of the room, leaving the door ajar so the smoke had more room to escape. They found themselves caught in the throng of ballet students and grabbed each other’s hands instinctively, not remembering that what they had was supposed to be a secret. It didn’t matter anyway, no one was paying attention to them.
At least, they weren’t until Lucas and Eliott caught each other’s eyes over some of the younger student’s heads. Their lips wobbled, and Lucas bit the inside of his cheek, but it was useless. They broke back down into laughter, because of course they’d almost started a fire while they were having a deep and important conversation. And of course they’d had a deep and important conversation right after Eliott had called him a thot.
Once outside, Eliott and Lucas were still nearly pissing themselves laughing, not paying the slightest bit of attention to anyone or anything around them. They couldn’t stop, and everyone was looking at them like they were insane, though that could have partly been because it was Eliott and Lucas laughing together. No one had seen that since they were ten years old.
“What the fuck is going on here?” Emma asked, catching their attention. Right, other people existed.
“We may have set off the fire alarm,” Eliott explained biting his lip to try to stop his laughter. Lucas wasn’t quite there yet.
“We?” Daphné cut in, looking between the two of them utterly confused. Lucas caught Imane’s eye as he regained his composure, the knowing look, and he tried not to draw attention to it.
Sofiane caught the look though, probably because he was always looking at Imane, and his jaw dropped. “Wait a minute.”
Eliott looked at Sofiane in confusion, not having caught the exchange that had just gone down. Sofiane closed his mouth, then opened it, then closed it again. “Am I dreaming?” he asked finally.
“No,” Imane said, and Lucas glared at her.
He nearly groaned aloud when Manon came over to join all of them, along with Arthur, Ingrid, and Chloé. “What’s going on?” she asked warily, looking at Daphné for some sort of explanation. Daphné merely shrugged, eyes wide as she tried to figure out what was going on.
Ingrid looked at Manon and Daphné, then up at Lucas and Eliott. “They’re fucking,” she said simply, and practically every single person within earshot went wild.
“Funny joke—”
“Woah…”
“I knew it.”
“Lucas and Eliott? Never.”
“Finally.”
Lucas looked from person to person, mouth agape. Eliott looked a bit uncomfortable, kind of like he wanted to disappear, and Lucas went into defense mode. He glared at Ingrid, folding his arms across one another. “Really?”
She shrugged. “What? I share a wall with one of you, and you’re loud as fuck.”
Lucas didn’t think they were that loud, and besides, they’d only ‘fucked’ the way she was insinuating for the first time after their dance in the theatre. Sure, they’d probably done a few other… loud… activities, but it wasn’t like it was every night.
“That doesn’t mean it was Lucas and Eliott, though,” Daphné said, “It could have been one of them with someone else.”
“Well that would be super awkward, considering the two people in question were moaning the names ‘Eliott’ and ‘Lucas’,” Ingrid said matter of factly, and Lucas decided right then that he was going to kill her.
“But they hate each other,” Daphné said, looking to Manon for assistance. She wasn’t paying attention though, too focused on Lucas, on trying to read his face. He saw the moment she read all she needed to and was forced to accept the reality that Ingrid was telling the truth. Her jaw didn’t drop quite as Sofiane’s had, but it was enough that Daphné and Emma both gasped.
Yann winked at Lucas across the group of people, which was entirely unhelpful, but he supposed he had gotten himself into this situation in the first place. “We’re not fucking,” Lucas said adamantly.
Eliott met his eyes, raising his eyebrows in an equally unhelpful fashion, and Lucas sighed. “We’re not just fucking,” he amended, covering his face with his hands to avoid eye contact with anyone and everyone. He felt an arm slip around his shoulders and knew it was Eliott’s without having to look.
“We’re dating,” Eliott said simply, and if everyone’s reactions had been wild before, they were nothing compared to what they were now.
Manon’s face told him that she was going to chew him out for not telling her later, but also that she was happy for him if he was happy, and he appreciated it. He did feel bad for not telling her for so long.
Just as their friends began to ask questions, the director emerged, yelling to all the students. “This was a false fire alarm, you can all go back inside and about your business, we’ll have someone come in tomorrow morning to look into any faulty wires that could have tripped the alarm accidentally. I apologize for the inconvenience.”
His face said otherwise, but then again, he always looked like he’d just stepped in shit. At least no one had found out that Lucas and Eliott were the source of this trouble, especially given all the other trouble they’d caused recently.
Before their friends could even think to ask more questions or even focus their attention back on Eliott and Lucas, Eliott grabbed Lucas’ hand and took off with him back into the building, laughing all the while.
The charred remains of their dinner still sat in the sink, so they grabbed leftovers from the fridge before locking their door— and triple checking that it was actually locked— and resuming their positions leaned up against the counter on the floor.
They could explain everything in the morning.
Lundi 12:12
Surprisingly, most people had come to terms with Eliott and Lucas being a thing by the time classes started that morning. Maybe more of them had seen it coming than they were willing to admit, or maybe they were just waiting to ambush them until after class. Whatever the case, it gave Lucas opportunity to pull Arthur aside at the beginning of class to ask if he wanted to have lunch, just the two of them. He’d agreed, and now Lucas sat waiting at the cafe down the street, frowning at the time. Arthur wasn’t going to bail on him, was he?
But no, almost fifteen minutes past noon, Arthur strolled in, casual smile on his face. Lucas could tell it was forced, but he didn’t comment on it. He knew Arthur had been going through a lot lately.
“Hey Lulu,” Arthur said as he sat down, and Lucas found himself grinning at the nickname. Arthur was really the only person he ever let get away with calling him that. “What did you, um, want to talk about?” Arthur added, almost nervously.
Lucas didn’t really have an answer, because technically Yann was the one who told him to talk to Arthur. “I just wanted to check in, I guess. Make sure everything’s alright with you.”
“Oh.” The tension in Arthur’s shoulders deflated. “This is about what I told you and Yann last week?”
Lucas shrugged. “Kind of, I guess. We don’t have to talk about it, but I’m here if you want to.”
Arthur seemed to weigh this, folding his hands and unfolding them so many times it almost made Lucas dizzy. It was odd, Arthur was never usually nervous like this, especially not around Lucas. “Well. I’m getting emancipated, obviously. I don’t think you’ve ever met my mom but she’s— she’s something. It was never really about her, but she never did anything, either, so I guess it was about her, in a way.”
“I’m sorry, I just don’t understand,” Lucas said apologetically. He knew Arthur liked to speak vaguely, didn’t like to get too personal, but if they were having this conversation, Lucas needed to be able to follow it.
“Right. Sorry. Um, you know my mom was a ballerina, famous and whatever, that’s why I started ballet. When I was five she hired this special instructor, apparently she was really well known in the ballet world, I don’t know, I was five, but she also… got a little too involved in our rehearsals. I didn’t really even know what was happening, I was too young, so I didn’t say anything. I thought that’s what ballet teachers did. But then I got older, and she stayed under my mother’s employ, and I started to realize the things we did, that she was doing with me, they weren’t, like, normal, or right. That’s when I told my mom about it, but she didn’t believe me. She said I just wanted an excuse to slack off rehearsing. That was when I was twelve, and she was my mom, so I accepted her word and continued doing what I’d been doing my whole life.
“Then when I was fourteen it got… different. My instructor, she— let’s just say some things changed for the worse. At that point I couldn’t blow it off or pretend it wasn’t happening anymore. I hated her, I hated my mom, I hated myself most of all, so I stopped giving a shit. I blew off rehearsals all the time, a habit that I kept up here at school, even though this place was heaven compared to being at home, I started smoking weed a lot, I hooked up with a lot of people I probably shouldn’t have. People who thought I was older than I was, who were much older themselves, because I guess a masochistic part of me was used to it. Eliott, actually, was the only one who noticed. It’s no one’s fault for not noticing what I didn’t want them to notice, but when Eliott did notice, I finally let myself break.”
Arthur shut his eyes and clenched his fists on the table. Lucas realized he’d simply been staring open mouthed and schooled his expression into something more neutral. He and Arthur were more alike than they’d realized, apparently, and Eliott continued to be one of the greatest humans to ever grace the earth.
When Arthur opened his eyes, Lucas pretended not to notice the tears he was blinking away. “Obviously,” he continued, “Some old habits die hard. I still do things I shouldn't. I go out until dawn when I know I have rehearsals at eight, I don’t apply myself in class like I know I can because I don’t want personalized attention, I have unhealthy habits when it comes to relationships, but I tried to start over in little ways. I filed for emancipation at the beginning of last school year with Elliot’s help and I stayed with Alexia last summer, so that’s why we’re closer than we used to be. She was another lifesaver. No one of any importance believed me when I told them about what my instructor did, but at least they believed me when I told them that my mother was emotionally abusive and incredibly manipulative, and she put me into dangerous situations without care or conscience. She still tries to contact me sometimes, and I really don’t want to have to get a restraining order, but I found out that she and my old instructor apparently have been in a relationship for quite a few years and they never told me about it. I don’t even have the words to say how fucked up that is.”
“Fuck, Arthur, I’m so sorry,” Lucas said, unable to keep it in any longer. He wasn’t sure if Arthur was done or not, but he’d paused, and Lucas had used that as an opening.
Arthur just shrugged noncommittally. “You have nothing to be sorry for. That's life.”
“No one deserves that kind of a life,” Lucas said, because that was what he’d learned recently himself.
“I could say the same to you,” Arthur responded, and Lucas smiled sadly.
“I know, that’s why I’m telling you.” Arthur said nothing to that, just continued to look down at his hands. “Um, would it be ok if I gave you a hug?” Lucas asked, because in his opinion hugs made everything better.
Arthur’s head shot up and he shook his head fervently. “No, I don’t think that would be a good idea.”
Ouch, but ok. Maybe this was about Eliott? They hadn’t talked about that yet, just the two of them, maybe Arthur thought Eliott was the super jealous type or something. “Eliott won’t mind if I give one of my best friends a hug,” Lucas said slowly, and Arthur flushed bright red.
“That’s not what I meant, um, I just actually have something else I need to talk about with you.” Arthur’s hands were fidgeting again. “I… um, simply put, I think I’m in love with you?”
Lucas blinked, certain he’d misheard. There was no way… he and Arthur had always had this intimate dynamic together, but it was always platonic. That was his understanding of it at least.
“What?” he asked intelligently.
Arthur rubbed his eyes under his glasses, sighing deeply. “I’m kind of in love with you which is why I’ve kind of been avoiding you lately.”
“How long?” What the fuck else was he supposed to ask? To say? It was strange to think that if he and Eliott hadn’t gotten over their shit he might be with Arthur right now.
Arthur shrugged. “Around the time we went to that party Alexia invited us to. We were talking about getting married, and I was drunk, and I just had a fleeting feeling of wanting to kiss you. Then I realized the feeling wasn’t fleeting, and then I panicked.”
“Did you know I was with Eliott?”
“No.” Arthur shook his head. “I was as surprised as everyone else last night.”
“Then why didn’t you ever say anything? Why say something now?” Lucas asked, genuinely.
Arthur smirked, but there was no humor to it. “Because I can handle you rejecting me if you’re in love with someone else, but I don’t think I could have handled you rejecting me because you simply didn’t feel the same way.”
“I’m sorry,” Lucas said, because he didn’t want Arthur to feel like shit because Lucas didn’t love him like that.
Arthur looked away. “Don’t be. It’s not your fault, we don’t choose who we fall in love with. I’ll get over it, trust me. In the meantime I understand if you don’t want to be around me or whatever.”
Lucas scoffed, bringing Arthur’s gaze back to his. “Are you serious? Do you really think I would ever not want to be around you? Sure, I’m not in love with you, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love you with all my heart. You’re one of my favorite people in the entire world.”
“Lucas you don’t have to say that—”
“I know,” Lucas cut him off, “I want to. Because I mean it.”
Arthur began to grin, then. It was small, it was slow, but it was there. “We should probably get out of here, classes start up soon.”
Lucas checked his phone for the time and realized Arthur was right. It felt like no time had passed at all, he’d been too wrapped up in their conversation. Lucas looked at Arthur as they made their way to the door, mulling over a question.
“So what about me, specifically, turns you on?” Lucas asked jokingly as the two of them walked out of the cafe together.
“Shut the fuck up Lallemant, I swear,” Arthur warned, but he was finally laughing.
“My striking looks? My dazzling personality?”
Arthur rolled his eyes, walking a few steps ahead of Lucas. “Your ass,” he said, breaking into a jog before Lucas could register his words. Lucas stood dumbstruck for a moment, then came back into himself.
“Wait a minute, my— Arthur get back here! Were you serious? Arthur!”
Mardi 20:43
For the first time in a long time, Eliott and Lucas were working on Polaris together. Well, more accurately, Eliott was working on Polaris and Lucas was trying to distract him by playing rap songs on the piano.
“Duuude,” Eliott whined, “I can’t focus!”
“Did you just call me dude?” Lucas clarified with a laugh. “Dude-zoned by my own boyfriend. I can’t believe it.”
“Oh, shut up.”
“Make me.”
That was all it took for Eliott to drop his focus completely, on top of Lucas so quickly they nearly both fell off the piano bench for what wouldn’t be the first time. Eliott’s lips seared onto his, and Lucas tried and failed to hold back a moan as Eliott teased him, pulling away just enough that Lucas was struck by his absence. Eliott smiled at him, pulling him closer by the waist and sliding him across the bench so he ended up nearly on top of Eliott.
Lucas’ hands snaked around Eliott’s shoulders, a safe space (though Lucas would argue that everything about Eliott made him feel safe), a place for him to lose himself completely. Maybe it would have been frustrating that Eliott smiled into every kiss they shared causing their teeth to clang together if it wasn’t so endearing.
Eliott almost always had his hands on Lucas’ face when they kissed, like holding Lucas was the most important thing in the world. Lucas liked it, he liked it a lot. The security it brought and the way the heat of Eliott’s hands matched the heat on his face were a deadly combination, and Lucas reveled in it.
Nothing compared to the taste of Eliott, though. Granted, Lucas hadn’t kissed many people in his life, but Eliott’s taste was better than all of them combined, and then some. Sometimes Lucas wondered how he compared to Lucille, in Eliott’s eyes, but he would never ask. It didn’t matter if Eliott had loved Lucille’s taste as much as he loved Eliott’s, it was the two of them until the end of time now and no one would ever get in the way of it.
Through a series of events Lucas had little to no recollection of, too caught up in the heat of the moment, of Eliott, they ended up on the floor, heads aligned and their bodies pointing in opposite directions, gazing up at the fluorescent studio lights. Lucas was still breathing a bit heavily, unable to wipe the soft smile from his face. It was a comfortable silence, the kind that you can only share with a person you love deeply.
“You know, we never had our Elu Two-Man Swan Lake World Tour,” Eliott said, breaking that silence and turning his head to face Lucas.
“Shit, that’s right,” Lucas said, as if he’d ever forgotten about it. A stupid part of him had always hoped they’d be able to get over themselves by the time they were seventeen and make good on their childhood plans. Another thought occurred to him. “Oh, fuck you, you get to be Siegfried again.”
“You wanted to do the fouettes!” Eliott reminded him, and Lucas turned his head to face him as well.
“I’ve always wanted to dance with a Prince,” he conceded with a small shrug. In truth, he thought it might be a bit entertaining to play Odette in their mini reproduction of the show, mostly because he and Eliott would have to do a series of lifts and partnering that would probably have been impossible, roles reversed. Not that Lucas would ever admit that to Eliott.
“Saturday?” Eliott suggested. “We could invite our friends, now that none of this is a secret. Are they our friends now, or do your friends still have to pretend to hate me?”
Lucas cracked a smile, leaning over to shut Eliott up with a small peck on the lips. “Shut up.”
“Make me.”
Well, Lucas thought, challenge accepted.
Jeudi 18:45
Lucas and Eliott had just finished dinner when Manon texted and left Lucas in a state of utter confusion.
Manon: Lucas Lallemant if you don’t get your ass over to room 412 in two minutes I’ll never speak to you again
Lucas: ??? what the fuck ???
Manon: 120, 119, 118, 117, 116, 115…
Lucas: Yeesh I’m coming chill out bro
Manon: 114, 113, 112, 111, 110…
He shut his phone off before her countdown could fall any lower and begrudgingly removed himself from where he’d been tucked into Eliott’s side. Eliott whined and reached for him as he stood up, but Lucas just sighed and shook his head.
“I have to go to Manon’s room, for some reason,” he said, pouting.
“Do you want me to come with?” Eliott asked, but Lucas shook his head.
“No, she’s probably asking me to come because she’s mad I didn’t tell her about us,” he reasoned, leaning back over to run a hand through Eliott’s hair. Why was it always so soft, who allowed that?
Eliott hummed, leaning into his touch. “Don’t be gone too long, I miss you already.”
“Yeah, yeah, you big old sap,” Lucas teased, but his parting kiss said, I miss you too.
When Lucas knocked on Manon’s door she opened it with a stern expression. “You’re seventeen seconds late,” she said without preamble.
“Sorry?”
“Just come in,” she said, pulling him by the hand and shutting the door behind her.
Lucas shrank at the look in her eyes, wondering how much shit he’d have to hear about keeping his relationship a secret. She smacked him lightly on the shoulder, which was expected, and frowned. “You already know what I’m going to say.”
“I do,” he agreed, sitting on the couch. He didn’t know where Imane and Daphné were, maybe they were just hiding away in their rooms.
She sat beside him, raising her eyebrows for him to continue. “I’m sorry?” he tried, and she rolled her eyes.
He threw his hands up in exasperation. “I don’t know what to say! I am sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, we just didn’t want anyone to know.”
“Well, why not?” she asked, and he scoffed, because he was pretty sure she’d been doing the same thing.
“For the same reason I’m the only one who knows about you and Daphné,” he countered.
She furrowed her brows. “Everyone knows about Daphné and me.”
“What? Since when?”
“Well,” she thought about it, “Imane knows because she lives with us, I told Emma the day after I told you because I didn’t want her to feel like I didn’t trust her enough to tell her.” She paused to give him a pointed look. “Then we told everyone else two Saturdays ago, at the terminale brunch.”
The terminale brunch? Oh. Oh. That had been when he and Eliott had been at Eliott’s house. Now it made more sense as to why there was so much drama surrounding the absence. If they hadn’t had an event that morning, no one would have even known Lucas was gone, probably.
“I wasn’t at the terminale brunch,” he reminded her and she blinked, as if just realizing this.
“Oh, yeah.”
“Oh, yeah,” he repeated, and she shoved him.
Her face grew suspicious. “Where were you? You haven’t really told me anything in a long time, Lu.”
He felt guilty as he realized she was right. They hadn’t talked about anything serious since she’d told him about her and Daphné, and he certainly hadn’t volunteered up any information about his own struggle. Everyone knew that he and Eliott were splitting shows, but no one other than them knew why. Manon probably didn’t even know he’d almost been kicked out, he realized with a jolt.
So, he started talking, spilling everything that had happened since the beginning of the year that he’d kept her in the dark about. He tried not to look at her face while he spoke, not wanting to see any of the disappointment or pity that was surely etched there. After a while, she took his hand, but he didn’t stop talking, even when his voice wobbled and he tried to blink tears from his eyes.
It wasn’t all bad, though. Lucas heard her laugh when he told her about his first kiss with Eliott, and he couldn’t help but smile as well. He’d almost slipped up and revealed that he and Eliott had been hiding in a closet when she and Daphné had their first kiss, but he figured he could save that story for years down the road.
“That’s all, I suppose,” he finished, just after he told her about the Elu Two-Man Swan Lake World Tour. He was still too nervous to look her in the eyes, but it turned out he didn’t have to. She simply grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into her, engulfing him in what might have been the world's tightest hug.
“Don’t ever go through something like that again without telling me,” she whispered, pressing her cheek to his shoulder.
He squeezed her even more tightly in response. “Yann said practically the same thing.”
“Good.” She pulled away, looking him in the eyes. “We’ll form a Lucas Lallemant defense brigade.”
“That’s entirely unnecessary.”
“You don’t get a say in this.”
“Mmmm… pretty sure I do—”
He was cut off by the door opening, and he and Manon both turned to see who it was. Lucas smiled as Imane walked in, eyes narrowed. “What’s going on here?” she asked, setting down her dance bag.
“We’re starting a Lucas Lallemant defense brigade,” Manon explained, and Lucas glared at her.
“We are not doing that,” he attempted to interject, but Imane wasn’t listening.
She sat down on the couch on the other side of Lucas. “Oh, thank god we’re making it official. I was all alone before.”
Manon raised her eyebrows. “Excuse me, but I’ve been manning the helm of the S.S. Lallemant longer than you.”
“Ladies, ladies, no need to fight over me,” Lucas said, mostly to get them off the topic of a Lucas Lallemant defense brigade. “Besides,” he continued, “Yann has both of you beat.”
Manon and Imane exchanged a glance, shrugging. “That’s fair,” Manon conceded, leaning her head back on his shoulder. Lucas and Manon both looked at Imane, beckoning her to join their cuddle.
“You know you want to,” Lucas said, wiggling his eyebrows.
“Whatever would Eliott say?” Imane asked with a fake gasp.
Lucas grinned. “He’d just be jealous we had a group hug without him.”
Imane rolled her eyes, but she put her head on Lucas’ other shoulder. “I don’t think I’ll ever be used to you talking about him like you don’t want to set him on fire.”
“I never wanted to set Eliott on fire.” First Yann, now Imane. When had he ever said anything like that? He was fairly confident his hatred had remained subtle. Even if perhaps he did say anything of the sort, it’s not like he ever actually would have set Eliott on fire for christ’s sake. Eliott was a bit like fire himself, could a bit intimidating from afar but gets warmer and warmer the closer you get to him. He was also a radiant light shining in any kind of darkness.
“You should be used to it by now,” Lucas continued, drawing back from his own thoughts.
“It’s been less than a week, I’m nowhere near used to it yet either,” Manon laughed, and Lucas turned sharply, meeting Imane’s eyes.
She frowned, not seeing what he was trying to communicate. “Maybe for you…”
“Wait a minute.” Manon sat up. “Did you tell her before you told me?”
Lucas glared at Imane as she finally realized what he’d been trying to convey with his eyes. “In my defense I was having a panic attack,” he added, hoping Manon wouldn’t be too mad.
“Shush,” she cut him off, narrowing her eyes at Imane. Imane just stared back, which was one of the many things he loved about her. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Manon burst out laughing.
“What the fuck!” she gasped through her laughter.
“What the fuck?” Lucas mouthed to Imane, who just shrugged.
“I told Imane before you too,” Manon said at last, her giggles subsiding. “I just didn’t tell you that because I felt bad.”
Lucas gasped. “Et tu brute?”
“That doesn’t work in this context, no one else betrayed you,” Manon pointed out, “Not that either of us betrayed each other, I guess.” She sighed, resigned. “Looks like Imane is the leader of the LLDB then.”
“LLDB?”
“Lucas Lallemant Defense Brigade,” Imane filled in and Lucas groaned, leaning back onto the couch further.
“Forget I said anything!”
The two of them fell back with him, attacking him with more hugs. He felt so light, and he honestly hadn’t known it was possible to feel this light. As good as he felt with Eliott, there had been something missing, and it was honest and open communication with his best friends. Now that he and Yann, Arthur, Manon, and Imane were on the same page about everything, the colors in the world seemed much more saturated.
As the three of them sat there in one big pile Manon brushed a hand through his hair smiling up at him. “I know you’ve been through a lot, but you really look happy now, Lu, the kind of happy that comes from so deep inside that you can’t stop it.”
It was true. Eliott was the poetic one, he could have spun the feeling into a beautiful metaphor or a life changing quote, but Lucas preferred to keep it simple. He wasn’t healed, but he was healing, and he was happy.
Samedi 18:58
Their friends were absolutely ridiculous. Lucas had accidentally slipped and revealed his childhood plans turned reality to Manon the night before and she had, in turn, spilled them to everyone in their year. So now, their two man show was an actual show, and not an excuse for them to escape and make out for inordinate amounts of time. And now their whole year was in the audience with signs and cheers and cake for some reason.
“I don’t know all of Odette’s parts, what was I thinking?” Lucas was not so silently freaking out in the wings of their in house auditorium while Eliott watched him with amusement. Lucas stuck his tongue out at Eliott. “You’re not helping!”
“Did you just stick your tongue out at me?” Eliott asked, failing to conceal a laugh.
Lucas simply made a noise that resembled that of a dying cat. Eliott’s smile grew smaller as he walked over to Lucas, cupping his face in his hands. Lucas sank into the embrace immediately, placing his own hands over Eliott’s wrists.
“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Eliott said softly, melodically. “I’m perfectly fine with hiding in our room for the rest of the night. I would offer to make food, but we can just order something, I don’t want to burn the building down.”
Lucas took a deep breath and shook his head. “No. I want to do this, I just… it’s hard to let go of being perfect, even if we’re literally just making a mockery of Swan Lake.”
“Who said anything about making a mockery of it? I intend to be the most dazzling Prince you’ve ever seen!” Eliott said, grin encompassing his whole face.
“Eli, I’m serious. I know you’ll be amazing at whatever you do, but it’s hard for me to just… let go. This isn’t a role I’ve trained for, we’ve never actually partnered seriously together, and even though it’s just our friends out there, what if they don’t like it?” Voicing his insecurities was a new thing for him, but he was trying.
“Lu.” Lucas closed his eyes as Eliott leaned all the way in, connecting them further, everywhere but their lips. “You trust me, right?”
Lucas nodded, eyes still shut. He could hear Eliott’s comforting smile. “Good, because I promise you, we’ll both be so perfectly imperfect that it won’t even matter if we get any moves wrong. It’s you and me, now and forever. We may look like idiots, but who cares? What’s love without being idiots together? Besides, when else are we going to get to do this? This might be the last time we get to dance for fun, no expectations attached. Do you really want to miss out on that?”
Lucas didn’t. He wanted, more than anything, to dance for himself. He opened his eyes. “Ok. I’m ready.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Then let’s do this.”
Eliott separated them from one another, but not before stealing a kiss. Lucas’ face flushed with the feeling it brought as Eliott grabbed his hand and led him onto the stage.
The stage lights were so bright he could barely see his friends out in the crowd, but he could hear them, whooping and yelling and whistling. Against his wishes, it brought a smile to his face, and when the music started, he just let go.
***
Was he supposed to laugh through the entire performance of Swan Lake? Probably not, but he also wasn’t supposed to play the role of Odette, if that’s even what he was doing. And he also most definitely wasn’t supposed to pause after every partnering interaction to give his boyfriend a kiss, but he preferred this version of the show to the original.
Eliott had shouted out from the wings as Lucas did his thirty-two fouettes, executed to near perfection. He almost wished the director was in there just so he could rub his talent in his face. The finale came too soon, but with it came cheers from everyone in their year, and laughs as Eliott invited them all on stage and played a trap remix of the Swan Lake melody.
Yann came over and spun Lucas with one hand, Arthur with the other, Lucas and Arthur catching each other’s eyes with a knowing glint. Lucas winked, and Arthur rolled his eyes, but he smiled, and they embraced one another, laughing hard enough they couldn’t feel anything but joy.
“No homo,” Arthur whispered into his ear, and Lucas hugged him tighter, loving Arthur more than he could put into words.
Sofiane and Eliott were laughing with one another, Imane standing just out of the way, smiling as she gazed at them. Well, Sofiane, mostly. Lucas would be sure to give her shit for it later.
Daphné snaked behind him, pressing something into his hand and before disappearing with the raise of one eyebrow. He looked down and saw a can of blue silly string, something that immediately transported him back to being seven years old, running around Eliott’s backyard and spraying each other with wild glee.
Eliott’s eyes found him through the throng of people and they smiled, sharing this memory from across the room. Eliott shook his own can in challenge, and Lucas grinned wider, shaking his own can before releasing a long stream in Eliott’s direction.
Shrieks sounded from all over as everyone began spraying each other, using each other as shields, dancing as the silly string fell down onto them. So many colors mixed in the air and on the stage and everyone kept adding more and more until there was an entire rainbow surrounding everyone from all sides.
Lucas lost sight of Eliott and was about to go looking for him when yellow shot through his vision. He scoffed in outrage and turned to see Eliott grinning mischievously and holding his can in triumph. Well, that just wouldn’t do.
Lucas sprayed him back, running and following him around the stage, each of them nearly slipping and falling on the string spread about the stage. Eliott turned around at the last second, probably hoping for a surprise attack, and they both sprayed each other at the same time, yellow and blue meeting in the middle like either end of an eternal flame.
He probably looked like a disaster, he could feel all the silly string coating his body, his face, his hair, but Eliott didn’t seem to care. Eliott looked at him like Lucas was all he’d ever wanted. It was still surreal, to be looked at that way, but it was a look he loved, one that he hoped he reciprocated every time he looked Eliott’s way.
Lucas stepped closer to him slowly, and placed a hand on his cheek, silly string falling from his hair as Eliott leaned into his hand.
“I like yellow on you,” Eliott said, gesturing to where he’d sprayed his string all over Lucas.
“Thanks,” Lucas said, “But I think it suits you better than me.”
Eliott pulled back from Lucas’ hand, cocking his head. “Oh yeah? Why’s that?”
“Because, Eliott Demaury,” Lucas said, pulling Eliott’s face to his, lifting up on relevé to make their heights more level. “You are the sun in its purest form.”
Eliott’s answering smile just before he pulled Lucas into the world’s most colorful kiss proved just that. Eliott was a light that would never go out. They both were.
And they were happy.
45 notes
·
View notes
Text
the arcana characters as youtubers
nadia
always has her hair and makeup impeccably done for her videos and when she meets fans,,,no one has ever seen her look like less than an 11/10
makes videos on fashion trends and fashion history (think a less experimental safiya nygaard), ones where she gives advice to viewers who send in questions, and unboxing/review videos for beauty items and clothes
people always comment calling her “queen” which she thinks is sort of cute and “mom” which just confuses her (“for the last time--i appreciate all the kind words but i DO NOT HAVE ANY CHILDREN”)
has never been demonetized once and doesn’t plan on it
whenever her videos are sponsored, she manages to sneak the sponsorship in smoothly, in a clever way
goes to vidcon but typically is too busy to stay the whole weekend
wrote a book on self care and how to be independent and successful that became one of the best-selling youtuber books ever
isn’t a huge fan of collabs on her own channel, but appears occasionally on portia’s or asra’s
does a yearly giveaway of high end jewelry and makeup for her subscribers, and holds a charity donation event for her birthday (like colleen ballinger’s childhood cancer one)
seems to avoid scandals effortlessly, but actually works hard to stay out of drama
asra
has absolutely no theme to his channel and just rolls with whatever video idea he can think of at the time
some examples include an instructional tarot reading video, a docuseries on the stigma against reptiles (featuring faust in every episode), a collab with nadia where they just drink tea and talk about current events, and him playing the weirdest children’s games he can find online
LOVES meeting fans and spends the whole weekend at vidcon, has like 7 meet and greets, and appears in every panel that will let him participate
his videos are low on editing and mostly just edited for length, but any special effects he does add in are not subtle at all (aka random sparkles and dramatic jump cuts)
has been dubbed a “cinnamon roll” by his fans but he isn’t afraid to call out other creators if they say something problematic
is very expressive and there are many reaction images and videos of him all over instagram and twitter
doesn’t usually make travel blogs but he does travel a lot, so most of his videos don’t have the same background
all his merch is tye-dye and the best seller is a mug with a faust-shaped handle
follows a bunch of fan accounts for him on instagram
tons of fans ship him with julian and while he’s not super into it, he finds the shitty instagram edits hilarious
julian
the KING of clickbait titles but his fans don’t mind that much because it just parallels his dramatic personality
“Staying in a Haunted Hotel???” (it’s not haunted, he just heard the people in the room beside him talking at midnight and thought it was ghosts), “I Solved the Jon-Benet Ramsey Case” (he didn’t, it’s just him discussing theories on it), “Proof the Government is Plotting Against Us” (no solid proof, just off the wall conspiracies that he explains confidently)
makes videos of him exploring supposedly haunted places, ones where he discusses unsolved crime cases and what he thinks really happened, and conspiracy theory videos
very active in the comments section; likes every nice comment he sees and replies to them with a winky face
also very active on twitter and instagram, especially past midnight, and replies to tweets and dms from fans
sometimes collabs with asra for conspiracy videos which immediately leads to 20 fanmade compilations titled “julian annoying asra for 5 minutes straight”
is always sponsored by the weirdest, most random companies that have no relation to the kind of videos he makes at all
does 6 hour live streams where all he does is look at cursed images on reddit
is determined to not let any of his subscriber’s discover that his birth name is ilya
random haters have tried to cancel him multiple times but it Never Works he is literally immune to being cancelled
portia
vlog QUEEN !!! her videos are mostly vlogs of her daily life, with a few scripted videos scattered here and there, usually involving pepi
contrary to her brother, her titles are very blunt and true to the content and are in all lowercase (“a day in my life”, “getting frustrated in my garden”, “buying my cat clothes online”)
she tries to make her videos appeal to everyone, but 90% of her demographic is still teenage wannabe aesthetic vsco girls
has never done a proper collab, but her vlogs always end up featuring nadia, julian, and some of the palace guards
has a popular merch line that sells unique items like flower seeds, pet food bowls, and baking tools
her favorite thing is seeing her fans’ reactions when she picks up one much taller and heavier than her for a picture at vidcon
fans all agree that she has bde
sometimes makes so-called “family vlogs” where she hangs out with julian and mazelinka and calls them “the maz squad”
for april fool’s day, she posted a fake giveaway announcement video where she claimed she was giving pepi away to a fan
her twitter is mostly retweets of fanart and sweet messages from fans (and pictures of pepi, obviously)
muriel
has the smallest subscriber count of the group but it's surprisingly high for someone who never wanted to be popular in the first place
his videos are very niche and are usually on topics like how to survive in the wilderness and how to raise chickens
many of his subscribers think his quiet personality and unique videos are all an act or persona and muriel does not understand why
he's only ever been to one (1) fan event/meet and greet and it was when he tagged along with asra to vidcon
despite his protests, asra always plugs muriel’s videos on his twitter, so they share many subscribers
he doesn't really have any haters because those who actually watch his videos think he's super sweet and those who don't are too scared of his huge stature
didn't want to include inanna in his videos initially, but caved after fans saw her in the background of one and demanded she make an appearance more often
fans (and asra) keep insisting he change his username to “the mountain man” but he heartily refuses
does his own editing but also isn't great with technology so sometimes his videos are strangely edited and include parts he meant to edit out (but it's kinda endearing)
has never sold merch, never plans to, and ignores any requests to do so
lucio
listen i'm not comparing him to the paul brothers but you know …..
makes prank videos, makeup tutorials (but it's the same look just varied SLIGHTLY every time), and vlogs where he not so subtly flexes how rich he is
his merch is supposedly “the highest quality and extremely stylish” but that just means the prices are sky high and the quality is not that great
goes to every convention he can and holds random meet ups because he craves attention
isn't mean to his fans because he couldn't bear seeing his sub count go down, but will absolutely TEAR his haters to shreds and get their channel taken down somehow
gets demonetized all the time and complains about it (as if he needs more money)
people are either a huge fan or they HATE him there is no in between
uses clickbait just as much as julian but people are less forgiving about it
none of the other people in the gang really want to collab with him but julian did once, got tricked into eating a beetle, and refused to do it ever again
king of scandals, tweets random controversial stuff and then deletes it
#the arcana#arcana#the arcana game#nadia satrinava#muriel#asra#asra alnazar#julian devorak#ilya devorak#portia devorak#count lucio#lucio#youtube#youtubers#the arcana imagines#the arcana imagine#imagines
2 notes
·
View notes
Note
so, overall, what did you think of season 3 of stranger things?
It took me a while to answer this question because I had to sort out how I felt about this season! I guess if I had to narrow it down to an overall opinion: enjoyable, but very messy. Had some of the series’ best moments but also, while I was watching, I had far more grumbles and gripes than the previous two seasons.
I’ve never really been hung up on whether this show is derivative or plays too into nostalgia or w/e. Plenty of media does that. And despite all the time I’ve spent dissecting micro-expressions and weighty silences in European teen dramas that are filmed for the cost of a candy bar … I am way into genre films and TV shows. I love monsters and superheroes and spectacle! I watched Stranger Things the weekend it premiered because I love ‘80s movies about kids on bikes having adventures, I eat that shit up. So I don’t expect this show to be a hardcore deconstruction and re-imagining of those tropes (though that sounds like a pretty great show), I’m fine with it being what it is: a solid, spooky sci-fi/horror throwback series. What matters most is whether the story and characters work. Personally, I would say whatever criticisms you can make of S1 and S2, they had heart, and unfortunately I think some of that heart was missing from S3. Much of that, IMO, comes from sidelining some of the familial relationships that were at the center of the narrative in S1 and S2, like the Byers family and Hopper & Eleven, and to some degree the important friendships like the party, although there were other friendships introduced in this season so that wasn’t as glaring. It’s not a surprise that one of the best-received parts about this season, Steve and Robin’s friendship, is also responsible for one of the most heartfelt scenes Stranger Things has ever done.
There was also a way larger emphasis on comedy in S3. Comedy is probably my favorite genre, and I did laugh at a lot of humorous moments in this season. But I also felt like there was more comedy for comedy’s sake, like long sequences created intentionally to make the audience laugh. Whereas in S1 and S2, I can’t remember any scenes like that? The comedy was more understated and came from character personalities and relationship moments rather than joke set pieces. That’s perhaps another reason why S3 felt like it had less heart.
My hope for season 4 - and I am assuming there is a season 4, because apparently this show did mega ratings for S3 - is that they don’t add more major new characters (except love interests for the gay characters, go ahead with those, lol) and instead focus on the existing cast, which is already a very strong ensemble, yet many of the characters have gotten pushed to the sides. I would love if they added to the episode count: a lot of Netflix series drag out their seasons, like they have enough story for 10 episodes but have to stretch it out to 13, but Stranger Things has the opposite problem. I feel like if they had 10 (or 11, ha) episodes they could have more time for breather moments and more space for character arcs. This season was really fast-paced in my opinion, and although that’s a positive in many respects, I missed a lot of the down time.
Also, I think every season has taken place over like a week maximum, not including the epilogues, and like … you can make the story last longer than a week! Not everything has to go to hell in like a day or two.
Some more specific opinions underneath, obviously lots of spoilers.
First of all, I gotta say, I feel like a weirdo, because so many of the reviews for this season are like A RETURN TO FORM AFTER A DISAPPOINTING SECOND SEASON and UP THERE WITH SEASON 1 NOT THAT CRAPPY SEASON 2 THAT NO ONE LIKED and uhhhh … I liked season 2 just fine? It’s probably my favorite. There are things I don’t like about it, but the stuff I love is stuff I really, really love. Hopper and Eleven’s relationship, for instance. Steve and Dustin teaming up and Steve Harrington becoming a guardian to four children. Those are not just great elements to the series, but directions that I think only a second season could have taken - Hopper and Eleven’s bond wouldn’t have had half the weight if they weren’t established as traumatized, broken people in S1. Steve Harrington becoming a babysitter would not be nearly so delightful if we had not known him as the popular douchebag stereotype from S1 - if he were just a cool dude hanging out with kids from the get-go, the impact wouldn’t be as great. After S1 used Will Byers as a MacGuffin in S1, S2 gave Will a much larger role and that little actor acted his ass off. His performance generated a lot of genuine suspense and chills. There was Sean Astin being lovable! Paul Reiser’s character being a surprisingly good guy! Yeah, there are big flaws in the season, and you can argue it’s too much of a repeat of S1, but to me it was a version of S1 that made the characters more specific and interesting. I’m just … genuinely baffled by how it’s supposed to be demonstrably worse than the others. Because of the Kali episode? I didn’t think that one was terrible, either. I think it broke up the momentum of the chaos at Hawkins Lab, and Kali’s friends were obnoxious, it’s certainly not the greatest writing of the series, but as a whole the episode is like. Fine. It’s fine. It’s mediocre, not atrocious. It’s not the worst thing ever. It doesn’t ruin anything about the story or direction or the series. Most importantly it’s easy to ignore or skip on a rewatch if you don’t like it. The backlash was way overblown.
My biggest disappointment with season 3 was Hopper. Whaaaaaaat. Whaaaat did they dooooo.
Hopper in previous seasons is a flawed, messed-up human being, but I always knew where he was coming from. When he yelled at Eleven in S2, I still got why he did it. In this season he felt cartoonish. The overprotective paternalistic dad trope is annoying BUT I might have been less bothered had they connected it more to Eleven’s lack of experience with the world, less RAWRRRR KEEP BOYS AWAY FROM MY GIRL. Or if Hopper had not demonstrated like, actual rage toward Mike and we just saw him fuming about it to himself or venting to Joyce, if he was trying to keep that shit under control. (I did laugh at him singing “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” in the car, I gotta admit.)
But his attitude toward Joyce was what really bummed me out. I’m not into this show for shipping reasons, but I low-key enjoyed the possibility of Joyce and Hopper hooking up based on previous seasons. This season felt like they were writing a completely different dynamic for them, one that was much more aggressively obnoxious. I think their intentions were clear - they were going for a Sam-and-Diane relationship, something that was referenced early on in the Bob flashback - but the problem is that their relationship was not like that at all in S1 and S2. When I think of Joyce and Hopper from those seasons, I think about him supporting her after Bob died, or listening to her concerns about her son, or working together to find Will. They didn’t have this combative dynamic! Frankly watching giant-ass Hopper yell at tiny Joyce was viscerally unpleasant. (Side note but in the first trailer there was a shot of Hopper running at the Fun Fair with someone else who I assumed was Eleven, but no, turned out to be Joyce, Winona Ryder is just that tiny next to David Harbour.)
Also, considering this season ended with his death (and we all know he’s not really dead but OK) it’s such a waste that there were few Hopper&Eleven moments! Only the finale brought some quality content on that front. But otherwise their relationship was out of sight, out of mind for almost the whole season, which wasn’t a great choice, both to maximize the emotional impact of the ending, and to expand upon their situation post-S2. I mean, it’s been months since then, how has their relationship changed now? Hopper’s letter talked about the stuff he enjoyed doing with his daughter - why didn’t we see any of that on screen this season? It could’ve helped with the Mike angle, too, like show Hopper and Eleven watching TV together and laughing and having a good time, and then the phone rings and it’s Mike and suddenly Hopper’s watching TV alone as Eleven’s now focused on her boyfriend, we see his disappointment, etc.
Scoops Troop - Now they were a delight. They had such a ludicrous story but for the most part it worked due to the characters playing off each other and because the writing/acting/directing embraced the silliness.
Steve Harrington is easily one of the best characters on this show. I fucking love that guy. He’s consistently entertaining, he’s had possibly the best character growth out of anyone in the series, he’s evolved from a stock ‘80s asshole stereotype into someone who’s funny and sympathetic and likable. He’s this amazing blend of the ridiculous with the heroic. Steve and Dustin were great together, as they were last season, and I’m cackling that Steve acquired YET ANOTHER CHILD under his supervision without even trying. But the MVP of the season was the Steve & Robin friendship. Holy shit do I love that relationship. Holy SHIT.
Robin herself is a terrific new character, smart and funny and once you know she’s half-Uma, you can’t unsee it. I was loving her already and then the bathroom scene happened and I YELLED. I was so utterly overjoyed. If they had made Steve and Robin hook up, honestly … I would’ve been fine with it, like this show doesn’t need more heterosexual romance but at least they had a fun dynamic, but man, the friendship angle was so so superior. It’s a type of relationship that media is lacking, and the specific circumstances of this friendship made it genuinely moving to me. I keep wanting to write like a meta post devoted to just this relationship because I just have so many emotions about it! But they play well off each other as a comedic duo and as an odd couple friendship, and they’re really what each other needs, IMO. Steve needed this close friendship more than he needed a girlfriend; in this season he’s clearly adrift and we’ve seen the kind of shitty friends he had in like season one, is Dustin the best pal he had at this point? And I love Steve & Dustin but Steve needed a good friend his own age. Robin is a lesbian in small-town Indiana in the ‘80s, and she was clearly full of fear that Steve would hate her if he knew, and for him to accept her so easily, not even making a big deal about it? That’s kind of life-saving, really. I can’t wait to see more of them, if Netflix wants to make the half-hour Clerks-esque spinoff about them working in a video store and shooting the shit, I would be 100% down for that.
I have some mixed feelings about Erica because I think she could have benefited from getting the same humanization as the other kids (and I’m going to leave the discussion of racial tropes gently by the side at the moment but … yeah). The other child characters are played more like actual people with vulnerabilities, which has been part of the show’s appeal since the first season, and Erica was more like the sitcom kid who always has a snarky quip ready; however, she did make me laugh and I like that they tapped into her being a nerd, I wish they’d explore that in future seasons with the character. “I’m ten, you bald bastard” was one of my favorite lines of the season, I lost my goddamn mind.
Billy - Lmao, so Billy in S2 was the woooorst. This dude had ZERO redeeming qualities. His abusive dad creates a smidgen of sympathy, I guess, but Billy goes so far beyond normal teenage assholery that it didn’t make a dent in my opinion of him. You can redeem someone like Steve Harrington, first of all because Steve actually feels regret and works to correct his mistakes, but Steve also didn’t go to a point of no return in the first place. Billy did, for me. Physically and verbally abusing his younger sister? Attacking a black middle-schooler for the crime of being in the same room as his white sister? What a piece of shit.
With that in mind - I have no problem focusing on him as a villain this season, I really don’t. It justifies his inclusion in S2 other than as a human antagonist who’s ultimately not really connected to the main plot, as it retrospectively establishes him as an even greater threat in this season. I also think the actor did a good job with the material he was given. However, ultimately this dude’s arc was underwhelming. The thing is … I can tell they were trying to show Billy struggling with the Mind Flayer, but Billy is so lacking in any positive qualities that it’s kind of like, where does that struggle even come from? Yeah, even the worst people aren’t going to be wild about having a monster from another dimension hijack your body and use it to collect people for spare parts, but this is the same dude who was about to run over Mike, Lucas, and Dustin on their bikes last season for absolutely no reason. He beat Steve to point of unconsciousness and could’ve put him in the hospital. He assaulted Lucas. So I really need some evidence of Billy’s moral compass because it is not inherent and there’s in fact plenty of evidence that it doesn’t exist. I’m not very enthusiastic about redeeming a racist, abusive creep, but I also think if you’re going to go for him helping Eleven at the end … you have to show some current potential for goodness, not just “used to be a nice kid.”
A really glaring omission: the lack of any family/home scenes with him, Max, and their parents this season. We left off last season with Max telling him to leave her and her friends alone. How is their relationship since then? Is there still a lot of friction? Is there a tense peace? Has their relationship improved in any way? We really needed to see that follow-up. I get that Max crying over Billy this season makes sense in that he’s still her family and we can still have love for those who hurt us … but I also feel that we needed something between them to justify her pain, like even just the potential of their relationship being a fraction better, or the suggestion that Billy used to be OK to Max before he went full asshole. And I think we really needed to see Billy’s dad being currently abusive in this season - tbh, missed opportunity that the dad didn’t get flayed like, out of revenge (which would have been both satisfying and horrifying), missed opportunities for suspense when we think Billy might serve up Max and her mom to the Mind Flayer, etc.
Another missed opportunity: drawing parallels between Billy and Will. Both are possessed by the Mind Flayer. Both had shitty dads calling them homophobic slurs. Both could be read as gay (I’m not hungry to claim Billy as LGBT representation or invested in this interpretation but his scenes with Steve in S2 admittedly have that sweaty homoerotic dick-measuring vibe, if you want to take it there). Their names are both William, FFS. The difference is that Will is a sweet and gentle kid surrounded by loving family and friends who fought to save him, and Billy is a violent, cruel dude who probably doesn’t have any real friends, just shallow connections. You could show how the Mind Flayer could more easily possess and manipulate someone like Billy, but that wasn’t really explored.
Also, is anyone going to dwell on the fact that like … Max is living with an abusive man as her stepfather? He’s shown hurting Billy’s mom. Does that not concern anyone that he is very likely to attack either Max or her mom?
Oh, and thank God they didn’t take the Billy/Karen thing all the way. In retrospect, even weirder considering Billy’s mommy issues.
Joyce - I get that it’s a big leap downward in emotional investment to go from “must save my son” to “fucking magnets, how do they work” but I liked that she had her own investigation that wasn’t full of emotional turmoil. Winona forever.
Mike - Everyone is ragging on him but I think he was less terrible than people are making him out to be. He was bratty in a teenage way, but he wasn’t the worst kid ever. I didn’t take his now notorious line to Will (“It’s not my fault you don’t like girls”) as something intentionally cruel or homophobic, just something that came out wrong and that he instantly regretted, and he and Lucas did seem genuinely apologetic over the D&D game and went over to Will’s in the rain out of concern. And the reason he lied to Eleven was because SCARY ASS HOPPER threatened him??? Also, his concern over Eleven overexerting herself was not misplaced, lmao! It really took that long for anyone to go, “Hey, should we be worried about the amount of blood coming out of her nose? Should we be concerned about the effects on her brain?” Sure, Eleven has the final say in whether or not she uses her powers, but tbh… she didn’t have a normal upbringing and her view of her powers is probably skewed. Like, would Eleven have enough basic medical knowledge to be worried about brain damage or nosebleeds, or would that just be the norm to her? Is she making these decisions with a full grasp of the potential consequences? Anyway, I don’t have a more negative opinion of Mike after this season.
Eleven - I loved Eleven a lot in this season. I don’t know if it did a ton for her character arc, but it’s nice to see her slowly develop into more of a normal girl. And the season was rough for her in terms of getting her ass kicked, she goes through so much mental and physical pain! In the end she loses her dad and her powers!
Of course one of the bright spots was her and Max becoming friends! Not gonna lie, there was something a little … simplistic about some of that depiction of friendship for me - just that so much of it was SHOPPING and GIGGLING and BOY TALK, girls being GIRLS, when Max has been portrayed as a tomboy and Eleven is a telekinetic kid raised in a lab, that maybe their interactions shouldn’t have fit the mold quite so much - but it doesn’t truly bother me because they were so sweet and fun. I loved them tracking down Billy together and I appreciate that their friendship carried throughout the season, that Max was the person shown carrying an injured Eleven along with Mike, Eleven comforted Max after Billy died, etc. That was a definite sore spot of S2, the girl-on-girl jealousy and Eleven flat-out rejecting Max’s friendly introduction, and I do think they took that feedback into account for the better here. I also like that Eleven was clearly taking cues from Max, the more “worldly” of the two about boys and clothes and teenage attitudes in general - it gave their friendship a more specific shape.
I cannot WAIT to see her living with the Byers family next season. Like if they don’t spend significant time on that dynamic, it will be the biggest disappointment. There could be 8 episodes of just boring mundane Byers domestic scenes and I would love it, please inject it into my eyeballs, Duffer bros. I want to see her bonding with all of them, trying to fit in at school, attempting the most normal life she’s ever had. Also lmao, she and Will can finally have a goddamn conversation??? I hope they’ve been withholding that relationship because they were planning to go all out with those new sibling vibes in S4. They are the two characters who have been most traumatized by the Upside Down, we deserve to see them connect.
On that note, I have a lot of thoughts about Will in this season! Mainly - underused as FUCK. After all that trauma of being possessed by the Mind Flayer last season, they barely utilize this connection in the second half of S3. Even his Spidey sense hardly came in handy??? Now that was really weird, IMO, because the least they could do was have that feeling alert the others or be useful, but lmao it was practically pointless.
It’s weird because I’m not sure if they just don’t know what to do with Will if he’s not being a victim (which is stupid because there’s plenty you could do with him), but at the same time, he has one of the most poignant subplots of the season. From the reactions I’ve seen, Will feeling rejected and left out as his friends move on really resonated with a lot of viewers. But then this thread is abandoned after episode 3, for the most part. Will cries and destroys the place that represents his childhood, a place that was created specifically in response to trauma (mentioned in S2 that he and Jonathan built it after their dad left), this is very rich emotional territory … and then the show’s just like ehhhhhh moving on. He’s just hanging out in the background and touching his neck for the rest of the season.
And now I gotta talk about that other thing with Will.
I am so confused by what the Duffer brothers are trying to accomplish with Will’s sexuality, because on the one hand it seems like they have a really clear idea about it and on the other hand they’re just like¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The thing is … it seems very obvious they have always thought of Will as gay. This is blatant from the original pitch from the show as well as one of the S2 scripts (the only one that’s available publicly, so who knows what else they’ve written). I accept that people have different interpretations, but The Line this season is far from the only textual support for Will being gay, and I think it makes for a much, much stronger narrative if you read Will as gay in addition to not wanting to grow up as fast as his friends and being stunted from trauma - that is an entire meta post in itself, though.
What gets me about the ~ambiguity is that the Duffer brothers planted the gay hints in the first place! They are absolutely not there by accident! Like I’m not speaking for the teenage actors but lmao, the adults involved in the writing and directing of this series absolutely fucking knew how that “not my fault you don’t like girls” scene would be interpreted, especially considering fans were debating Will’s sexuality from the beginning, based off the many homophobic comments leveled at him in S1. There have been TV shows where fans latched onto gay “subtext” that was likely unintentional, but this isn’t one of them.
IDK, man, it’d just be nice to have some confidence in where this is going. I loved Robin and the bathroom scene made me think that yeah, they might do a decent job with Will’s sexuality, something I might have doubted before. Under no circumstances do I expect a Skam S3-style coming out arc for Will, but I’m also uncertain if I should expect anything from the show on this front at all or if they’ll play it coy to the bitter end. Though I guess I’d still take the ambiguity over giving him a female love interest after everything. Lol, that would be a giant oh-fuck-no.
Real talk, though, let’s discuss what an utter waste it would be to not write a scene where Joyce tenderly accepts her son when he comes out to her. You really aren’t going to bring that instantly iconic moment to life, assholes? You’re not going to provide that for Winona Ryder’s and Noah Schnapp’s Emmy reels? MAKE IT HAPPEN, BASTARDS.
Nancy and Jonathan have a reputation for the most boring plots but they’re fine, w/e. I’m not deeply invested in their romance but I don’t want to fast forward their scenes or anything. Nancy is an underrated character; she’s extremely proactive and always has been, and I enjoy watching her shoot things. I think the best thing they could do for both characters, though, is to separate them next season, not just physically but storyline-wise. Jonathan would be best in a subplot involving his family, because he’s at his most likable as a son and brother, and Nancy should either go off with Mike (a sibling relationship that is VASTLY undeveloped), or she should team up with Robin. I mean it, Nancy and Robin would be a power pairing, let me show you my manifesto. Both are smart young women who are good at solving mysteries. Would Robin think Nancy is a priss after Nancy unloads several rounds into the latest demogorgon chasing them? Would Nancy find Robin a refreshing alternative to the crushing suburban conformity that she claims to want to avoid? Oh, the possibilities. Meanwhile, Steve tags along in the background, all like OH SHIT, my lesbian BFF and my ex-girlfriend are in cahoots!
Lucas and Max were playing relationship counselors to Mike and Eleven through much of the season. Max still had a fair amount to do, but Lucas needs a meatier subplot next time. I feel like they’re not sure what to do with him? I would like to see him and Erica interact more since their dynamic so far is one-note.
There is one hell of a conversation to be had about the Evil Russians of this season, but I’m really not the person to do it.
Also about the depiction of capitalism this season. That’s more thinkpiece-y than I am equipped to do right now.
The product placement is something that should bother me more but I’m just like … shrug. Except that New Coke bit because that was an actual mood-breaker.
Could have done without Russian Terminator guy. That was a blatant ‘80s homage so I get why he was there, he just wasn’t all that interesting. And was that guy supposed to be superpowered or something? Was he getting jacked on Upside Down steroids??? What was his deal???
Alexei/Murray was the true OTP of the season, let’s be real.
The trend of lovable, doomed minor characters continued with Alexei. Props to that actor for making you root for the guy. He even made me kind of love Murray? I was very WTF over that guy encouraging two teenagers to fuck in S2, and I’m still not into his habit of telling people to bang even when they’re adults, but I guess he just needed a sympathetic Russian buddy to win me over.
There were a ton of moments where I felt like the characters made stupid choices as opposed to earlier seasons. Will getting dragged into the Upside Down in the first 10 minutes of the series is an impressive example of a horror movie character doing everything right and making good decisions - a 12-year-old, no less. And he was still overpowered by the demogorgon so it’s not like making good decisions will always save you! Whereas this season I was like LORD some of these characters are drinking dumbass juice.
There was also so much silly stuff happening, like things that are even more far-fetched than previous seasons, but I just kind of went with it. Yeah, of course there’s a secret Russian base under a shopping mall. Sure.
This season is objectively disgusting in terms of gore and yet I was fine with it? And I’m someone who was repulsed by Barb’s corpse in S1. The Mind Flayer being made of people was some nasty shit but effective horror. I felt bad for the poor little rats :( Oh, and the flayed humans, too. Some of them. Was sad to see Mrs. Driscoll bite it but FUCK those cartoon misogynists from the newspaper.
Visually beautiful! Starcourt Mall is an amazing set and I’m rather sad that the mall was destroyed, although that was basically a foregone conclusion. Some great cinematography, too. On a purely aesthetic level I had a great time just blasting this season into my retinas.
I have had the motherfucking NeverEnding Story theme song in my head for almost two weeks and I’m suffering.
#lillypedalsxx#replies#stranger things#also they referenced my university this season so i dug that thx 4 the shoutout
27 notes
·
View notes
Text
Press: Aldis Hodge Is A Real-Life Superhero, So Give This Man What He Wants
After years of dramatic roles, the “What Men Want” star wants to make you laugh and fulfill his dreams of being a super-powered badass
BET – Legend has it that Aldis Hodge worked cheap early in his career. Really cheap. Like, McDonald’s Happy Meal cheap. The pre-schooler was tagging along on a photo shoot for Ebony Magazine, where his older brother, Edwin, was working. The producers had a last-minute need for another cute kid and Aldis’ mother convinced him to take the gig in exchange for a coveted Batman toy. Thanks to mom’s quick thinking, Hollywood has been gifted one of its most intense and versatile acting talents.
Hodge has amassed a colorful acting resume that includes stints on shows like A.T.O.M.: Alpha Teens on Machines, Friday Night Lights, Supernatural and Leverage. But it was his moving portrayal of a restless slave named Noah on WGN’s Underground that made viewers sit up at attention and cheer with their fingers across social media. In the same year his appearance in Black Mirror as a somewhat single father named Jack living with his girlfriend’s voice literally in his head, allowed him to blend his piercing stares with subdued comedic timing. But now Hodge gets to go for the full belly laughs in the R-rated comedy What Men Want as the bartending, romantic, very single father named Will, who gets caught up in Taraji P. Henson’s mind-reading male-strom.
During a stop at BET, Hodge is adorned in gold, beads and denim fabrics that accent flawless skin that has benefited from the sun’s full attention. He walks with squared shoulders inherited from his retired Marine parents. His cape is invisible. If not for the disarming laughs cracking his intense looks, you might think he’s one cartoonish horn blare away from taking off through the ceiling to catch a meteor hurtling toward earth. Between bites of his lunch we talk about the comedy of sex, his fascination with controlling time, engineering the perfect date and being a champion for the people.
I didn’t cross reference it until just today. I just recently did an interview where I was like, “Dang, she was inside my head, too! What’s going on?” But it was pretty cool. The synergy was awesome. But with each role, I come at it with a clean slate and figure out where the tones are. I had been out of comedy for a long time, not my choice, but for the past five to seven years my career has been swinging up into the drama area. But most people don’t realize comedy is a big part of my life. I started stand-up when I was 11. When I was 13 I used to host a room at the L.A. Improv and I did that ‘til I was 17 or 18 years old. Then on Leverage we did five seasons of that. It was an action caper show but I still got to flex my comedic muscles. We killed that in 2012, so it’s been a minute. I was happy to reintroduce people to my idea of humor. Will is not inherently the braggadocios funny one. He’s not the big personality in the room. He’s reactionary. He’s gonna have a sense of realism, so his comedic timing is subtle. The tones and notes are a little more subdued, and that’s a different tone to play. But our director, Adam [Shankman], took so many different types of comedians with very different timing and put as all together and kept us on the same note. We were always on the same page. You had Josh Brenner, who most people know from Silicon Valley, Pete Davidson from SNL, Wendi McLendon-Covey from Bridesmaids, Tracy Morgan, obviously. Everybody has a different style that they’ve been hitting for a minute, and he just figured out how to weave together. And there are some people you’re not gonna expect to be funny but are hilarious, i.e. Erykah Badu. She’s hysterical. And then I’m there in the mix. As an actor, I’m always hungry for fresh challenges. I don’t like to feel like I’m sitting in a box, and when this opportunity came up, naturally I was nervous at whether or not I could still be funny, and I was hoping. But I just let Adam take care of me on that one.
Speaking of your comedic side, you pranked Taraji with honey buns on the set of Hidden Figures. Did anything else like that go down on set for What Men Want?
Nah. The prank for us was getting through the sex scenes. We wanted to get through those as fast as possible. It’s tough. It’s always a nervous environment when you’re doing scenes like that. But the biggest thing is, because it’s physical comedy, how do you do that without looking stupid? You want people to laugh with you and not at you. But thank God for Adam and Taraji. It’s easy to keep a straight face when you have nerves. We had fun with it. You let yourself fall into it. And Taraji’s a pro. If you see the movie, I took a couple of those hits for real. Some of them reactions are real!
Is it worse to know she knows your thoughts, or is ignorance bliss?
Better not to know, of course. I would not want to know who knows my thoughts. I wouldn’t want anyone to be in my head like that, but if you did know, imagine how anxious you’d be all day. You’d be like Brandon, Josh Brenner’s character, all day. Just rambling to keep people out of your head.
If you had to disguise your thoughts, what would you think about?
Man, most of my thoughts on a regular basis go to design. As soon as I step into a room I’m taking in the square footage, I’m measuring in distances, everything is art to me. Or I’m putting my engineering cap on to see how it’s built. So I don’t think anyone would want to be in my head, because it’s pretty boring. I’m a nerd, bruh.
Speaking of engineering, horology sounds like something men do after a breakup. How did you get into watch making?
I’ve been doing that since I was 19. I just love building things. I’ve always had a natural inclination to create and build, and it satisfies a necessary art. It got to a point in my career, I think I was 13 or 14, where I didn’t have enough life experience to add gravitas to some of these characters I’m trying to play. I started drafting blueprints for my dream house when I was 12. I always loved designing and building, because that’s where my imagination lives. Art is my language, and acting is just an emotional exposition of my art. So, it’s the same thing to me, just a different conduit. But the other side of me is like building, I love crafting things. Horology satisfies a lot of different things. I wanted to be an architect in school but that would mean I’d have to quit acting, and I’m not gonna do that. I’m gonna die in a director’s chair when I’m 110 years old. But what I found about the intricacy of horology and watch design is that it was architecture and painting and mechanical engineering. It satisfied so many points for me, and I could do it at my own pace.
You rarely hear of men discussing their dream house. What did yours look like?
I like space, I like nature. I like to bring the outside inside. There’s a couple of architects that I really love. I grew up on the work of John Lautner, Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry. But one of the firms I love now is Olson Kundig, particularly Thomas Kundig’s work. His houses are machines. He’ll cantilever a side or a roof and all you gotta do is crank it and you’re lifting the side of your house off. I can’t afford that in New York, but one of these days I’ll have to partner with him for a house.
Your son, Ben, in the film is adorable. What was it like working with him?
Auston Jon Moore. He’s a fun kid. I’m excited to see what happens with his career. He was five years old when we were doing it. Really spunky, good instincts. We had a good time. I was actor-parent-child wrangler. When we were shooting the rooftop scene, we had all this food out, and he kept eating the food. “We need continuity, baby. You gotta put the food back.” He’d say OK, and then we’d come back and he’d have a mouth full of chips. He was awesome.
He had one of my favorite scenes with the panties. Was your “don’t breathe” line ad-libbed?
Yes, that was ad-libbed. I was like, “The baby! What do you do?’ What would I say?” We had fun with that scene because Adam just let us be free and add as much color to the characters as possible. That was a fun day, trying to get him to put on the underwear. When he realized what it was he was like, “Hold up, fam.” So, I had to put the underwear on my head to show him it was cool.
You pulled a Mars Blackmon?
Yeah, yeah. I sacrificed [laughs].
There are two scenes in What Men Want that you’re not in, the card scene and the wedding. Which would you be in if you could?
I definitely would have loved to have worked with Erykah and have a little Taro reading. She was just pouring herself into that character. That’s her imagination splayed out on camera. But I would have loved to see Will have a session with Sistah.
What about the poker game with the athletes?
I think Will might be a card shark, but I don’t know if he got the chips to sit at that table. That was a very high-stakes game, and he’s too smart to bet his rent money. But if he had the chips, I think because of his bartending skills he could read people really well and take home a nice healthy pot.
You’ve been the subject of a lot of wish-casting, particularly to be Green Lantern. Have you ever thought of playing a superhero?
I’d love to be a superhero. I’ve been trying to be a superhero for 12 years. If that opportunity came that way, I’d eat it up immediately. I got into this business as a kid because I loved Batman. I was trying to get my Batman toys. I grew up on Marvel and DC.
Noah from Underground definitely was a superhero. How do you feel about that role years later and the impact he had?
I took it as a grand opportunity just because of the fact, when the initial idea of the show came to me, I was like, “If this is a series about enslavement, how does it work for five or six seasons? Do we want to see our people in persecution for that long? Where is the gratitude that comes out of this for the audience?” But when I read the pilot I was like, “Oh, it shows us in the situation, but not made of the situation.” It showed people in bondage, not slaves. It gave us dignity. It gave the people who went through that an actual identity. They didn’t bring slaves to America, they brought engineers and doctors, brilliant people. So, for me to be able to expose that they had hopes and dreams and still had the strength to find love in those times was immensely powerful, because we’d never see it in our history books. Our schools failed us in that. So the opportunity to add to the dignity of our people was a high honor. I look at all of those characters as superheroes. They actually added the show to curriculum in schools. This is the effect that you can have as an artist. That’s what I love.
With Valentine’s Day is coming up, how would you engineer the perfect date?
That’s tough, man, because you gotta work off the person. It depends on who she is and what she wants. Some ladies want dinner and flowers and some ladies just want to kick back and watch a movie. My ideal date would start with a little dinner, some champagne, maybe some chocolates. Then we’re gonna go to the movie theater, we’re gonna see What Men Want, I’m not even lying. Get her laughing, feeling good, then probably go dancing. Then if I really feel like I’m on my mack-ness, I’mma be like, “Hey, boo. Real quick though, I just wanted you to know that I got your mom a ticket to the movie, too. I wanna let her know it’s her Valentine’s Day, too.” And that’s my ideal date: Dinner, What Men Want and a little dancing.
What Men Want starring Taraji P. Henson and Aldis Hodge is in theaters now!
Press: Aldis Hodge Is A Real-Life Superhero, So Give This Man What He Wants was originally published on Aldis Hodge Online | Est 2010
#aldis hodge#leverage#underground#WGNUnderground#Underground WGN#WGN Underground#straight outta compton#supernatural#turn
8 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
okoromi
revamping.
stichtingspots
SPOTS
iwritenarrativesandstuff
I Like to Write Things
yuraliang
Sunny Girl~