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ouraboras · 1 month

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Ranking Alucard's Designs, Best to Worst

I've had a rough day and feel like being mean. These are just my opinions. Some rules:

I’m not counting each game a character appears in unless the design is noticeably different. I don’t count different art styles as a different design. I’m not counting the mobile game skins with two exceptions. For the most part it’s just him but purple. However, for your pleasure, joker Alucard:

Symphony of the Night

No surprise. It’s his most iconic design. He’s gorgeous. I enjoy how he wears a mixture of human clothes (the jacket) and more stereotypical vampire clothing like the cape. Same with warm colors with black and silver.

2. Grimoire of Souls

I love this design. I kiss it every night before I go to bed. I pray to it on Sundays. His waist makes me go feral. The only thing that bothers me is the brown lining. I wish they did something like the inside of his SotN jacket.

3. Moonlight Rhapsody – Outfit 3

I know absolutely nothing about this game. However, I love this skin. In my head when I imagine Alucard pre-Dracula betrayal this is it. The collar is a bit silly but I can look past it. I love the sleeves. The only critique I have is the brown and we’ll get to my feeling on Alucard wearing brown. But on this outfit, it’s not too bad.

4. Nocturne

They gave him his gay little neck ruffle back nature is healing. I wish they kept the details on the coat, but I’ll happily take the trade. I like his face.

5. The cancelled Dracula’s Curse movie concept art

I need to know what the context behind this would have been. The skirt, the pauldrons, his bloody hands, HIS HAIR PUSHED BACK. The only thing I dislike is his black nipple.

6. Aria and Dawn of Sorrow

I like the suit. The red pocket square is nice. I think it is a really interesting choice for it to be red rather than yellow as a callback. I love the choice to make him resemble Dracula pre-vampirism. All of his color has been drained and replaced with black and red. I go back and forth on if I hate or like (for symbolic reasons) his tie-neck ruffle thing. But none of that is my real problem with the design. His shoes are hideous. The heel is good. He deserves a little heel. But what is going on with the white. It's ugly and going to be a bitch to keep clean. His slacks are too long. He’s a government agent, he can afford to go to a tailor.

7. Season 1 & 2 of the show

I dislike the shirt. I’m not a big fan of how they drew his face either. But I like how they gave him Trevor’s chest scar.

8. Captain N

He’s so rad. But to be honest, Captain N Alucard has a special place in my heart. I remember when this was the closest thing to an animated series Castlevania had. It being this high is purely my nostalgia. I highly recommend watching the episode. It is pure 90s camp.

9. Season 4 of the show

Whore.

10. Grimoire of Souls – Blood and Loyalty

I can’t find a better look at this skin. He’s apparently dressed as a samurai. I like this purely because his hair is up. I don’t see enough of that. (artists pls you’d be doing the world a service)

11. Lords of Shadow 2

The only thing I like about this design is the coat. The dark blue with gold looks really good. I don’t like the belts, but I can ignore them. My issue is the armor. I hate the bronze so much. The armor on one hip is ugly. The ONLY thing that salvages this crime is the fact this Alucard is wearing the highest heels. This looks like an MMO armor set.

12. Judgement

I only unironically like 2 of Judgement’s designs. This is not one of them. I dislike it purely because of how boring it is. They put Simon in bondage gear, gave Trevor a boob window, and made Sypha a Catholic magical girl. But Alucard has to be more modest than the actual child. They could have fun with this but didn't. The most interesting thing about this design is they made a vintage couch into his cape.

13. Dracula’s Curse

This is Alucard’s original design. It’s just your standard pop culture vampire. I like his little owl hair tufts.

14. Legends

I’m fine with changing up Alucard’s design. Hell, we got SotN because of changing it. However, why is he blue? It’s not this illustration either he is just light blue for some reason. I like the short hair. I think it’s a cute way to show this game takes place in the past. But again, purple? Really? His necktie is not doing it for me either. It looks really bad.

15. And finally, last and certainly least: Pachinko and Moonlight Rhapsody

The faces? Good. Hair? Good. But for some reason they made his coat brown. At LEAST for pachinko they had some gold gauntlets and brown gloves instead of his sleeve cuffs. But whatever fucked up person at Konami did the design for MR kept the sleeve cuffs. It’s not like there is the excuse of ‘Oh the inside is black’ because it’s yellow. Now you might be asking: Why is this the worst? I have similar issues with other designs. But here is the thing, they all did something new. This is just your standard SotN Alucard with a color palette change. It looks like a recolor skin but it’s the main one. It's a bad change but not one bad enough to not be boring.

#castlevania #castlevania nocturne #alucard #alucard tepes #castlevania games

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monstersinthecosmos · 7 months

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I have no intention of watching the new IWTV show, but I was wondering why you think Armand's characterization was so bad. I kinda hated how Antonio Banderas played him in the 1994 movie (not on its own, just in comparison to the books - I feel like his personality/demeanor was totally different), so it's sad that they still haven't gotten him right... Judging from pictures alone, I did think the casting for him was more fitting this time. Anyway, just curious to hear your thoughts!

Oh man!!!!!!!!! I do wanna say up front, I think Antonio was NOT A GREAT ARMAND but I like those scenes in the movie so much because they feel SO RICEY to me. Like I LOVE Movie!Armand even though he isn't Book!Armand, and if you read IWTV in good faith it's the only book that doens't harp on Armand looking like a smol uwu cherub so like ! SURE. He definitely still brings the calm nurturing mentor vibe in a huge way and the scenes in his room feel the most like the books to me.

I also know from the director's commentary that they specifically wanted Armand to look like that so that the Europe vampires would feel like OLD WORLD SCARY vs like, another twink lol. So he's got a little more of a tropey Dracula vibe going on and I think like as a visual contrast it works really well.

As far as the show; I think Assad is EXCELLENT. And like the whole fandom was joking even when the credits hit IMDB that it was gonna be Armand because everyone was like "OHH ARRIGHT.. LOUIS'S """""ASSISTANT"""""" OKAY !" so like I was one of the conspiracy theorists looking for clues the whole time. And his MANNERISMS are dead on and gave him away before anything else did. I have zero issue with the actor, I think he's so spooky and a complete smokeshow which Armand DESERVES. And I wish I could like the show for him, I really do! But it's just NOT WORKING FOR ME.

I'll put the rest under a cut cause it got lengthy and I'm not trying to like be a downer on anyone's dashboard but TLDR the show is so completely unrecognizable to me and I think it would've been so much better as an original concept, and personally I'm not excited by randos who share names with the books I read. The show is a hit! People really like it! But idk like showing me these two random ass men and saying "Hey this is Daniel and Armand" doesn't excite me because the story they're showing me actually ISNT Daniel and Armand lol. I'm here for the story!!! I'm not here for Easter Eggs!

Here's my main few gripes with how they wrote Armand which I find mega disappointing:

He spends 6.9/7 episodes pretending to be Louis's assistant named Rashid. WHY! LOL. Why would he do that! DANIEL DOESN'T REMEMBER HIM ANYWAY SO WHY???????? I DONT UNDERSTAND. Like Armand is a weirdo but is he THIS WEIRD? idk. idk.

The show also (in my opinion!) horrifically botched Lestat, but there's like this grain of doubt because the show has a theme of memory being unreliable, so the speculation is that maybe Armand planted a skewed version of events in Louis's head? Even the show runner sort of hinted at this? LIKE I HATE THIS?? Because if we get to S2 and it turns out that Lestat's been misrepresented, it then turns the tables and makes it that ARMAND is the one who's horrifically botched????? Like I'm all for silly Armand jokes and memes and whatever but like. sigh idk i just looked really forward to this show and hoped to see Armand on screen and I didn't really want a meme version of him. ((Also as an aside I really dislike the unreliable memory themes on the show the way they're presented because like the books frame unreliable narration as like interpretive and emotional but the vampire lore canonically is that they have like mega supernatural photographic memory? idk. If memory is faulty because they still have that human fallibility it's one thing unless they're saying Armand planted memories in Louis's head??? idk idk.))

And like speaking towards whether or not Armand is a person who would plant false memories in Louis's head; I concede that he psychically influenced Louis to join him in IWTV but like. ARMAND IS A NUANCED CHARACTER WHO ACTS FROM A PLACE OF NEED AND HURT. And idk it's just so fucking clunky I can't imagine the manipulation taking this type of shape. There's just, to me LOL, a huge difference between the mental nudge of "You are lonely and you need guidance please come with me" and "Lestat was a horrific domestic abuser." And like. idk. Just within the package of the whole rest of the season, this team has the subtlety of dropping a fucking piano so I just have no trust in them to write him with any sense of nuance.

AND THE BIGGEST OFFENSE THAT I'M JUST COMPLETELY DISGUSTED BY IS THAT HE'S A DAYWALKER?????????????????????????????????????????????????

I just hate the daywalking shit so fucking much I can't even start. Like the show changes a lot of the lore which is fine whatever it's their show change lore if you feel like it whatever but like. ARMAND'S ENTIRE LIFE IS THEMATICALLY BOOKENDED BY DARKNESS. He grows up in a CAVE. He lives in a CULT BENEATH A CEMETARY. He tries to KILL HIMSELF by GOING INTO THE SUN.

Like. And he's only 500? That's like adolescent for a vampire LOL.

There were a couple times in the season where they had some continuity errors on the show!lore so I got the vibe that the writers didn't really care about all the VAMPIRE STUFF which is kinda disappointing to me bc I'm a nerd lol but it felt like they used Armand in the sun to just give the audience a red herring and it came across as really cheap to me. So I wouldn't put it past this team to kinda be like DAYWALKING SURE LOL and not really take it seriously or think about the larger picture of how that unfolds for the character over more seasons.

IT'S WHATEVER, I JUST. I know it wouldn't make good television but I like VC because it's like existential dread and consuming darkness, I want it to hurt me, I want it to feel bleak, I want Armand's entire arc to be about how much he struggles with the idea that there's no God. It just feels like if you can make it a few centuries and be able to withstand the sun, what's the fucking point? What sacrifice did you make for being immortal? Especially for a character like Armand who so fully believes himself to be damned and would never want to make another vampire, would never subject even an enemy to it.

Especially bc like in the show the vampires can like ? Smoke? And have sex? And they can eat food (even though it tastes like paste but they can eat food). IF YOU CAN SMOKE AND FUCK AND GO IN THE SUN YOU'RE JUST A GUY. Where's the fucking DAMNATION OF IT ALL? Also what's the fucking point of Those Who Must Be Kept if you can go in the sun lol. I just . Ugh what a clusterfuck.

The show turns vampirism into more of a power fantasy than the way the books treat it as damnation or a symbol of being othered so it doesn't really mesh with like, my idea of VC and what I want out of it.

So Armand being a daywalker = Instant Nope From Me. I'm not interested in whatever they're trying to sell me lol.

A few other things that are NOT confirmed but generally just giving me the ick that I worry about:

I really, really, deeply, truly, hated how they wrote Claudia's character and how they wrote about rape, and that gives me a really bad feeling about how they'd potentially tackle Armand's canon background. The two options are: They don't, and he's a completely different character with a different background, with completely different context for his personality/motivations/etc (in which case who the fuck cares he's just some guy who shares a name with the book I like, and not really Armand), or: They GO THERE and it's just extremely heavy handed and insensitive and not fun to watch. I think show!Claudia maybe has more in common with Armand than book!Claudia because they aged her up to be a teenager so it's just, yikes. THEN AGAIN ARMAND IS NO LONGER A TEENAGER ON THE SHOW?

And to that point like. I don't need a bunch of fucking conservatives getting in my face about how I want to see a teenager sexualized because that's not the point; logistically for TV it makes sense that he's older, but again, it changes his backstory so much. imho, Armand being turned as a teenager and looking like a teenager is a huge element of his character! It's important! It just is! And I'm sorry that the show decided that the vampires could have sex, because they invented this problem for themselves! If they kept the canon lore you wouldn't have to see them have sex anyway LOL.

I also was not a fan of the truncated timeline of the show; season 1 takes place in like 30 years I think? And covers from the beginning of the story until Lestat's murder. And I believe Louis will meet Armand in the 1940s; they have the original interview in the 70s and they're together then, and they're together in the present in 2022. Idk I'm just not impressed; humans can get divorced after 30 years too, what's the point of having immortal characters if you're not gonna stretch out the timeline? And so much happens for Armand and Louis in canon and I have no idea what's happened or not happened on the show yet, no one's really sure which events have happened yet in the present day segments of the show. So like idk there's just a lot of Armand/Louis stuff to be smushing into 70 years lol and I'm bummed that they're rushing through the timeline so much.

So I just. Sigh. There's a lot of themes in VC that I really adore that the show doesn't care about, like being VERY OLD and NEVER SEEING THE SUN AGAIN but. I'm in the minority on this one because people love the show LOL. I'm happy for everyone who likes it, but it's not for me.

And like. Just! I knew going in that it would be the Loustat Show, I think everyone knew that, I didn't have huge expectations for Armand/Daniel content but it's such a small part of the books that like it would've been nice to get a couple scenes or some gifs out of it or whatever. It just sucks that like they SET UP the series in a way that the Devil's Minion won't happen on screen. And it sucks that like, depending how long the show runs for or how long AMC retains the rights, this might be the only chance in my lifetime that I had to see Devil's Minion on screen and it's not going to happen.

It's just a bummer man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

sorry to anyone who likes the show lol I just found it to be like mega disappointing and I don't think I'm going to watch S2, I'm too upset about Armand & Daniel LOL.

#vampire pajama party on amc #the rolin jonestown massacre #<- these are my AMC salt tags if you need to mute or peruse for other disgruntled takes LOL #sorry guys!#adding this tag later re antonio!armand bc i didnt think of it at the time #but i saw the 94 movie directly after reading the book but before reading the rest of the series #so i didnt really notice that he was very different bc i didnt have 17 year old auburn hair botticelli angel in my mind yet #so i always had a neutral/positive feeling about antonion bc my first impression didnt make it a big deal

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kattahj · 4 months

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Get to know me better

Tagged by @brifrischu thank you for thinking of me!

Last song?

Honestly, I don't tend to listen much to music. Most of the time when I have Spotify on, it's a podcast, or I just go to my liked songs and hit shuffle.

I did deliberately listen to Keops pyramid the other day, though. It's a Swedish political song from the 70s which uses the creation of the pyramids, as well as the Tower of Babel, to make a commentary about class warfare. It's not terribly accurate to how pyramids work – the rich people are described as being at the top of the pyramids, and the people below slaves – but it's still a good song!

"So it seems that in every era and among all people there are those who want to create pyramids. Where they themselves are at the top and have the power in their hands, while those who live below obey them. But if those up at the top no longer want to understand, but despise all the people who give them food, the pyramids will end up being their graves."

youtube

Favorite color?

Purple and black. Used to be more black when I was younger, now more purple.

Currently watching?

The Eighth Sense, Teenage Bounty Hunters, and the Swedish version of Antiques Roadshow. I've also been watching Last Twilight and Percy Jackson, but I've fallen behind.

Also, the film festival I volunteer with has opened for submissions, so I watch a lot of short films, trying to decide which ones we should show.

Last movie?

I'm halfway through Clue. (*whispers* I don't like it much.) Latest one seen in the theaters was Monster. That, on the other hand, was amazing.

Sweet/Spicy/Savory?

Can I say salty? Otherwise sweet, I guess.

Relationship status?

Extremely single and loving it!

Current obsessions?

I'm kind of between obsessions at the moment. Although, if someone wants to come talk to me about Vanity Fair (the Thackeray novel), please do! I read it over the holidays, and while I haven't had the energy to write a full meta about it, I have So Many Thoughts. I wish we could do it as a Tumblr book club, like Dracula Daily (but preferably not in real time, since the story takes about 15 years to play out).

Last thing you googled?

I use duckduckgo for the most part, but the last thing I searched there was what kind of charger cable I need for my cellphone. (I keep forgetting and need a spare.)

Selfie or another pic you took?

My cat is so much cuter than I am!

Tagging @pocket-elf @the-bookwyrm @lena221bee @stardustviolet @thedooristhebluecushion and whoever else wants to do it!

#Youtube

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rinbowaman · 11 months

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Heethans reaction to y/n calling her favorite male actor “hot” all day and screaming when he followed her back on insta??

I made this purely out of dialogue bc I thought it was fitting to show Heethan’s inner thoughts and his reaction. Enjoy!

You and Heeseung went to the movies. One of your favorite actors played the lead role, and he did so well, yet it was his looks and body that made you internally scream.

“oh my gosh! Doesn’t he look so handsome? They made him so badass in this film.”

………..

HIS Perspective :

‘……Im going to burn down every theater…I fucking swear….’

“Heeseung look! Oh my gosh I love it when he wears all black.”

‘really??….you beautiful dummy….I’m wearing all black….why the fuck is he so special? And knock off the swooning….’

…………

“My gosh wasn’t the movie good Heeseung? Did you like it?”

“….uh huh….”

“what scene was your favorite?”

“the part where the lead character died..”

………

“Really??? I hated that part….”

“I thought it was nice.”

‘I wish they would have made ghat part longer…’

“oh…gosh wasn’t he so handsome though?”

“Never crossed my mind…”

“why? How can you not find him so sexy?”

“Im a man who only finds one thing sexy in this entire universe, it ain’t some dude I just saw in a vampire flick…..”

“oh come on….you can still at least acknowledge he is good looking.”

“……doesn’t impress me.”

“okay we’ll then which man, by your standards, do you consider to be good looking? “

“I don’t know…probably Jake.”

“oh yeah…I agree. Jake is very handsome.”

‘WHAT THE FUCKING SHIT FUCKFUCK!!! What the fuck is wrong with her???!’

“on second thought…I think Ethan is actually better looking…”

“….what?”

“yeah don’t you like the way his eyes are dark and narrow and his smile is so nice?”

“Heeseung stop it hahahahaha. Ethan’s smile is far from nice…it can be a little scary..”

“I think that’s what makes him so handsome…YOU DO….THINK HE IS HANDSOME……RIGHT?…..”

“Uh….of course….you and Ethan are the most handsome.”

‘that’s what I fucking thought y/n….that’s what i fucking thought.’

……….

“What are you doing?”

“I want to see if the actor will accept my request on IG, I heard sometimes celebrities will add their fans back.

‘yeah right….those types of accounts are always managed by their staff and crew members of their agencies…what does she expect-“

“oh! He added me! And he responded to my message.”

‘KILL EVERYTHING!!!!!!! BRING ME HIS FACE RIGHT NOW ILL PUT IT THROUGH THE SHREDDER!!!’

“…………huh….that right?”

“yeah, see?”

“Hmm…let me take a closer look, can I see your phone?”

“here.”

“thanks pretty baby…” *throws phone into lake*

“Heeseung my phone!!! Why did-“

“COME HERE!”

*grabs you by the waist, swings you around and pins you against the wall.*

“what are you doing? What about my phone? I can’t believe you-“

“shuuuuuuuut….UP!”

“……….”

*he chuckles* “that’s better……”

*slowly unbuttons your shirt while his other hand pulls you in by the waist.*

“now…tell me how much you love it when I wear all black…..”

“I….love it when you wear all black.”

“don’t I look so handsome when I wear it? Hmm?”

“y…yes….”

“yes what?”

“Yes…..Ethan.”

“good girl. Also, what was your favorite part of the movie again? Didn’t you say it was when he bit on that girl? Didn’t you say it was…sexy?”

“I ….I mean that-“

“no-no…..I specifically recall you mentioning how much you LOVED that part….how hot it looked….didnt you?”

“…..y-yeah…”

“well tonight’s your lucky night. I’m here…all in black…I have a pretty girl in front of me…and for some odd reason….I just have this urge to bite down on something….. How fitting.”

*bites your neck. You squirm and help, you try to push him off but he nibbles your jawline and ears.*

“Ethan stop! Not in public.”

“Call me Dracula baby….you fucking like it. Did you say it was sexy? Hmm? What about here? And here? Oh let’s not forget here? Oh! There’s a spot. Now the other side.”

*bites, licks, nibbles.*

“you know what else was my favorite part babydoll?”

“……uh….ugh…..w-what?”

*grins sadistically and looks over to the side where a secluded, and dark area inside the park is located at*

“n-no….Ethan no….no!”

*pulls and drags you away*

Next Day

“oh y/n! There you are I’ve been-…….y/n….what the Hell happened to you?”

“N-nothing…..”

“but you’re covered in…are those bite marks?….”

“……...yeah.”

“from Ethan?” *h/n smirks*

………

“…….Dracula….”

authors note: oh poor you…..lol.

#heeseung x reader #heeseung scenarios #heeseung smut #enha x reader #heeseung fanfic #enhypen smut

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xxgothchatonxx · 1 year

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Nicholas Hoult’s Renfield did remind me a lot of Harley Quinn. Obviously there are differences (and I am just talking about the film, not Stoker’s novel) but the basics are comparable. An assistant/sidekick devoted to their boss/lover who treats them pretty poorly, so finally they’d had enough and fight for their independence and reclaiming their own self-worth.

There were also some line deliveries from Cagula that made me go “huh.. Nic Cage would make a great Joker”. (No, Joker wasn’t one of his inspirations - apparently it was his father, and Anne Bancroft from The Graduate... Count Dracula, you’re trying to seduce me-)

That final confrontation with Renfield reclaiming his power, saying the affirmations, and defeating Drac was the icing on the comparison cake, to me. It reminded me a lot of Harley’s recent animated series. There was set-up, build up, then a cathartic conclusion. Also like Harley, Renfield isn’t exactly the most moral person and definitely did fucked up shit but I did still root for him. That’s a testament to the writing and Hoult’s performance. (Which can be a problem for me with Harley.. if the writing/acting isn’t that good, I don’t really root for her as much as I should..)

So basically, it was the “Harley leaving Joker” flick I wish I had seen before... yeah, I wasn’t a big fan of Birds of Prey and thought Renfield (2023) was a much better version of that flick. If you loved BOP and found it empowering etc., that’s great. It just didn’t work for me (actually i hate it but I’ll stay on-topic here). But Renfield worked very well for me.

I’ll end with this - I find it ironic that Universal Studios tried the comic book movie approach twice with their Dark Universe attempt and it failed (quite spectacularly the second time) but their “what if Renfield was like Harley Quinn?” (doubt that was intentional but a lot of us are seeing that comparison) flick was a pretty good success *shoos Rotten Tomatoes and the box office away*

#renfield

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whatyourusherthinks · 17 days

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Abigail Review

I was actually excited for this movie. The trailer was pretty cool. My work friends and I actually made plans to watch Abigail as soon as we could because of that fact. And the movie has aspects that I'm not usually big on, so that's pretty impressive.

What's The Movie About?

...I'm not going to tell you. If you can, you should go into this movie blind. Honestly, showing you the poster is already too much information. Just know it's a horror/thriller movie where the main characters are kidnappers, and watch it. That's my review in a nutshell.

I'm being serious. Stop reading this review and go see the movie if you think you might be interested. I'm going to spoil parts of the movie in the review because I have points I want to make.

What I Like.

Abigail is a gore-y good time. The first two-thirds are an intriguing mystery, and when everything is revealed, the finale is extreme and ridiculous. It's great. The acting is very good, I was especially impressed by Alisha Weir as the titular character. She had to do a lot and it was all very good. The effects as well were very good, especially the gore effects. Honestly, the only thing that would make it better if it was bright red like a Hammer Horror. (We had the Christopher Lee Dracula movie's trailer playing before the movie, so I have Hammer Horror on my mind.) The story itself, is pretty good as well. Mostly.

What I Didn't Like.

The movie is a great slow burn mystery, until it all get's revealed and then goes nuts. Fun time.

...

It's just a shame that the trailer SPOILS THE WHOLE MYSTERY. If you've seen the trailer, you know Abigail is a vampire. They don't reveal that in the movie until it's over halfway over. Really, you don't know anything supernatural is happening until the first third, maybe half of the movie has run. It would be a really fun mystery until that point as well. But if you've seen the promotion for the movie, you'll know exactly what's going on as soon as the first character dies. Hell, probably before that to be honest.

My only other complaint is almost the exact opposite of the first one honestly. If feels like the filmmakers tried to jam as many twists as they can in the final 20 minutes. Characters betray each other, motivations are revealed to be lies, and new characters suddenly show up for not really any reason. It's not as bad as something like Argylle, which just seems to flip-flop it's premise like 8 times. But it was bizarre and hard to follow at times.

Final Summation.

Honestly, Abigail is fun. Even if you are spoiled going in. I just wish I wasn't, I think I would have been super upped on the movie had it been a mystery to me. As it stands, I had a good time and I think most people will as well.

#Abigail #Recommended Movie

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strideofpride · 8 months

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anything you’ve been watching/reading lately that you’d recommend? i think you have stellar taste in media (aka it often matches mine lol) so am curious! hope you feel better soon 💖

Ummmm yes, love this ask!!! (Also I’m so flattered 🥰 you have great taste as well btw)

Books:

Mo Ryan’s Burn It Down! If you’re at all interested in the entertainment industry and how it all gets made, this is basically required reading

the Succession script books (pricey but personally worth it)

I just finished Jill Gutowitz’s Girls Can Kiss Now and felt very seen, a wee bit too relatable

And I’m currently also reading Ann Patchett’s This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, which is a great book for my fellow writers to read

Substack:

I’m a paid subscriber to Hunter Harris’ Hung Up newsletter and I’ve never once regretted it lol

Gotta shout out Dracula Daily as well as the one podcast I listen to rn, re: Dracula (I listen and read at the same time which is perfect for me lol)

Gilmore Women - a Gilmore Girls recap newsletter that talks about everything wrong with each episode lol. I sped through the first six seasons and now I’m depressed that I’m caught up lol

TV:

Minx s2 - it is on Starz which I know most people don’t have but this season has been EXCELLENT

Only Murders in the Building s3 - it’s like a comfort show for me at this point, despite being about murder it makes me feel so cozy. Nora Ephron vibes

The Bear s2 - everyone’s been talking about it already but I just finished and god it was GOOD

The Sopranos - everyone should be doing # Sopranos Sunday with me!!! It’s so fun!! This show is soooo good, really living up to the hype for me

Acapulco - really cute show, makes me wish I was still on vacation in Mexico

Poker Face - bring back standalone episodes like this!!! Bring back character actors doing incredible guest star roles!!!

The Other Two - just. It was the funniest show on TV. It really was. 30 Rock’s spiritual successor which is pretty much the highest praise I can give it

Movies:

Red Eye - I rewatched it after Oppenheimer and it really holds up. Fun, tight thriller that is only like an hour 20 lol. Also Brian Cox aka Logan Roy is in it (and Jayma Mays my beloved)

Theater Camp - as a Jewish theater kid who went to and/or worked at a summer camp every year of her life from ages 4-20, there was no way I wasn’t gonna like this

Mamma Mia series - obviously everyone on tumblr knows about these already but I made my family watch them with me for the Fourth of July and god if I could live in the world of any movie it’d be this one ❤️

Man Up - very cute & fun British rom com I first discovered in college and rewatched this summer. Everyone has incredible comedic chemistry in this, and Lake Bell & Simon Pegg have great sexual chemistry as well (quite a lot of British faces who were nobodies when this was made who’ve gone on to bigger things - most notably Phoebe Waller-Bridge who’s only in a single scene)

X-Men: First Class - my favorite superhero movie ❤️

Indiana Jones series - I rewatched the whole series and saw the new one in theaters this summer. The first and third are literal masterpieces. Second one is mean spirited and racist. Fourth actually has quite a bit of charm, but then it fell apart in the back half. The new one…woof. Nobody but Steven Spielberg should be allowed to direct Indy movies.

Asteroid City - the longer it’s been since I saw it, the more and more I think it might be Wes’ masterpiece

Past Lives - incredible. But I know you already know that one lol

Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret - perfect, perfect film.

The Other Guys - we need Adam McKay and Will Ferrell to get back together, the fate of studio comedies hangs on this (anyway this movie is hilarious - but also if hell is real Marky Mark is obviously gonna burn for all eternity)

Comedy:

John Mulaney: Baby J - I saw him do this special live when he was touring it and I’m mad he cut the FBI bit but he’s still got it

#thank you!#areseebee #strideofprideanswers

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dra-dra-dracula · 9 months

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I saw The Last Voyage of the Demeter with a friend and by god did I kinda hate it. This is the first ever Dracula esque movie I've ever seen and it just did not deliver. And I know I KNOW we've never had a faithful adaptation of Dracula. But I feel with this bit we could've had something GOOD. This was not good.

But the effects were fucking AMAZING.

Spoilers below.

Random woman there to only explain what/who Dracula is, but does it badly? Eh.

Little boy for shock value? Eh.

Dracula looking like a shriveled scrotum creature instead of a man that isn't quite human enough?

A SURVIVOR?????

They tried too hard to make Anna helpless and then suddenly badass. I did not care that she died or that she died like that. Honestly there were very few I cared about that died at all because we didn't get a good enough reason to care.

They did the Captain and the First Mate dirty. Especially with that ICONIC moment we should've had with the Captain but it wasn't like.. it was ruined when they untied him. That someone else gave him the crucifix, that it wasn't his own belief. The First Mate so fucking bound to the ship, despite that we know in the book he'd rather die to nature than to what is in the ship.

Like theres so much I kinda hated about this movie, and I was very excited to see it. I did appreciate them Going There with Clemens and his struggles. But I wish we got that kind of characterization with the rest of the crew as well. Instead of just 'horny' 'religious' 'angy' 'stupid russian'.

Especially as Clemens talks so much of learning the stars, they don't even fucking USE THAT. Or have him realize he can't use it with all the fog like MAN WHAT WAS THAT LINE FOR??

Honestly I was hoping they were going to throw Toby overboard when it was down to the last few. Rather him a 'swift' death in the tides than to be livestock for a monster. But.. no.

The music was okay but there was too much focus on sting notes and jump scares to really build up the tension of this movie.

And then ending with Clemens surviving and like 'i'mma find him and kill him'? I dunno I think a better ending would've been a somber moment of the funeral. Or of Mina and Lucy watching it.

Maybe it's on me, my expectations were too high.

The actor playing the first mate was hot tho. David Dastmalchian did a great job.

#the last voyage of the demeter #spoilers #demeter spoilers #love that everyone's split on this movie #everyone loves it or hates it lol

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angelfruittree · 10 months

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Tag people you’d like to know better

Thank you so much for the tag @babblingflowers 💞

Three ships: Darksun / Jegulus/ wolfstar ( but also drarry )

First ship: I didn’t really have internet access till I was like 13 bc I was a boarder~ we were allowed 5 penny sweets ( 5 singular haribo and a chocolate bar every Sunday so lmao) Taxxie (MAXY/ TONY from skins ) but also but bedward bc in new moon when he goes “when I said i didn’t want you , it was the very blackest form of blasphemy” he ate Im afraid to this day I’ll never forget but it was

Last song:

Last movie: TMI: City of Bones

Currently Reading: Marginalia by @spindrifters ( but it’s also reading me) YSUFT by @solmussa, back when we were dinosaurs by @kaaaaaaarf, Sexy baby by @sequinhaze & @invisiblemuseum , wildflowers by @babblingflowers ( and I read your padfoots story and was really not okayyy (whyyy it was so gorgeous) for 2/3 business days ) & non fic is Love murder basketball by Kurruta Hito

Currently watching: rewatching "Myths and Monsters” doc

Last thing I wrote: ( can it be an attempt- but also if anyone wants to write this?? sjdo jd/ or maybe that is my plan ) an aborted dowry of blood AU ( where I actually just said I wish there was a dowry of blood AU then wrote the scene with Dracula and Constanta with Regulus & Lucius Malfoy) bc this is so Reggie “There is no horror left in this world that can surprise me./ I wonder if you would have wanted me if you found me like that: vibrant and loved and alive/ such spite and fury you said.. 'good. when life fails you, spite will not” Magdalena would probably be Barty and Alexi absolutely James

Currently writing:

But I am making A Marginalia Podfic

Tagging : @spindrifters @sequinhaze @crushofdoves @mystiriuminc @titstraction @kaaaaaaarf @soliloquy-dawn @1013free

And anyone who’d like to play and sorry If you’ve already done this or simply refuse 💞💞💞

#tag game #SoundCloud

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poppetsisters · 9 months

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I'm gonna talk about the new Marvel CMF series.

These are some great figures, but with the new box designs they're going for, bag feeling is officially dead. Don't get me wrong, I understand and appreciate that it's for recycling and sustainability purposes, but this does make it so hardcore collectors have to go back to the dark ages and bring a scale into Walmart. That, or just break into the box and steal what they please. Me personally, I'm gonna check to see whether Bricklink starts price gouging because of this since the prices for CMFs on that site are reasonable so far.

Anyway here's what I think about the figs.

Goliath. Something I should make clear is that I'm not a fan of the MCU. However, since Marvel sets are 90% based on MCU titles, that means the only versions of characters I can get come from those movies. Case in point: Bill Foster. Though the suit looks nice and maintains a stylistic similarity to the MCU Antman costume, as a comics fan, it bears no resemblance to the comic costume and hence I won't be picking it up.

Storm. Oh she's perfect! We already got a decent Storm fig based on the Giant Sized suit, but without the crown thing sadly. But THIS! When people think of Storm, they think of this design, and it looks great! I'm for sure picking this one up!

Beast. Another great fig. I love that the alternate face includes glasses. Such a nerd! Interesting that they chose to make a new hair mold when the good ol' dracula hair would've been just fine. Not complaining of course, it's just interesting to me.

Kate Bishop. I'm not a Hawkeye enjoyer, which means I don't have much stake in Kate Bishop either. It's lucky (heh) that we have a figure of her, so I'm happy for the Kate Bishop fans, it's just not something I'm excited about.

Moon Knight. This was always gonna be a guaranteed buy from me. Of course I wish it was the comics design, but at this point I've grown used to settling for MCUification. Nah but this figure still rocks. Lots of detailed printing, a cool new moon piece, and a brand new hood mold that I hope LEGO makes in more colours soon.

Wolverine. This figure makes me upset that I bought that Wolverine mech only for them to improve on the design in every way. The boots, the arm hair, the everything is just the most perfect you could make a Wolverine figure, and the added sentinel head is a nice touch!

She-Hulk. As someone who bought that one Hulk set with Hulk, Red Hulk, She-Hulk, and She-Red Hulk all in their classic comic colours, this figure has no use to me. It's a faithful design that includes dual molding and nice prints nontheless. One way they could've outdone the original figure was perhaps use the Avatar arms and legs... actually nevermind, that would look kinda awkward.

Hawkeye. I can already hear the AFOLs complaining about the lack of leg printing. Shout out to LEGO finally getting Jeremy Renner's hair right! Otherwise it's fine to me. I can get a better Hawkeye fig from that one avengers video game set.

Mr. Knight. This represents one of those magical MCU moments where the costume of the movies matches close enough to the comics to pass. Hence, I may have to get this one. The figure itself is very basic, but that's all I need sometimes. The fish bowl is a nice touch too.

Echo: I never heard of this character, but I know she's indigenous and is famously depicted with a white handprint on her face. For comics accuracy, this is unfortunate that the minifig leaves this out. For cultural sensitivity, it's complicated. Based on my 10 seconds of googling, a handprint is generally associated with success in hand to hand combat, which seems fine enough, but I also know a red handprint over the mouth has emerged as a symbolic representation for violence against indigenous women. I think this too fits Echo's backstory, but you have to remember this is Disney we're talking about, the same company that made Pocahontas. As a white woman, I'm not at all an authority when it comes to indigenous representation in media. I recommend you do your own research and listen to what indigenous voices have to say on the matter. For now though, the figure looks cool I guess.

Agatha Harkness. The figure looks good, but not gonna lie, I'm here for that Darkhold. It feels weird to buy a minifig SPECIFICALLY for a prop, but it's an important Marvel artifact so I don't want to miss it. Besides, I should probably get Agatha anyway. Who else is gonna babysit Franklin Richards?

Werewolf by Night. With Moon Knight and now Wolfy, I can combine them with Doctor Strange, Ghost Rider, Morbius, and Blade to make my own Midnight Sons roster. The bloodstone is a nice addition too, just makes me wish we also got Elsa. Ah well.

#lego #lego marvel #lego minifigures #marvel comics

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arttrampbelle · 5 months

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Gonna post MY OFFICIAL SHANG TSUNG BIO. because nrs is wrong and i said so. So suck it boon,suck it fans,this is how shang tsung is supposed to be. Die mad. 💅🏻💋☕💖

Anywho enough of venting. Here's his bio.

❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤

Name: Shang Tsung

Full name: Tsung Shang (i hc his last name is tsung because it sounds better and most of mk names are both given and surnames. I looked this shit up and listen,this game was made by two American nerdy guys. What are you really expecting? A masterpiece? No)

Age: physically: in his 40s. (If we go by cary hiroyuki tagawa's performance in the 95 movie. He was around 40 when he starred in that film. Ik,he dont look it but it's true. And it makes way more sense than how some people and canon depicts his youthful rejuvenated form.) Technically he is over 500yrs (and i collectively ignore any new retcons or canon saying otherwise). He is mortal in technicality. But he is immortal by proxy. Due to his curse of to wither and age less he takes the souls and vitality of others. (Like an energy vampire in a weird way. Guy is basically Chinese Dracula)

Gender/prns: amab, he/they. (He is masc but people are so damn xenophobic and amercian centric on what masc is. But ya know we aint here for that politics. I hc he uses they or gn prns on occasion. If it calls for it. But most of the time is masc coded prns because he's 1. Lazy. 2. It's just a force of habit. And 3. It feels more comfortable for him. Otherwise he's gonna use gn. As he defults everyone to. Because thats how he works,as for himself. Well he just doesn't really give a damn much. He is who he is. Period)

Height: 5'11" (tho in his old man form. I hc he shrinks a bit to a 5'6"/5'7" lol)

Weight: approx maybe 175? I dunno im not good with measurements. So plz dont hate :')

Hair: black,long,and up to his lower back/buttocks. (In his old man form the same but white/silver. Still thick and luxurious. Despite being an old man he takes good care of himself. I can't ever see shang ever living in squander or despair. Even when shit is rough for him. He ooozes confidence even when he struggles. He's mastered self mastery. (God i wish that were me) )

Eye color: dark brown. (Goldens,glosses and turns to a pale gold as his curse affects his aging.)

Origins: Earthrealm (EARTHREALM. NOT OUTWORLD YOU DUMBA$$ES. fucking nrs othering shang tsung and getting rid of what made his betrayal interesting. Fucking morons buy into it too. But whatever.)

Resident realm: earthrealm,on his island. (Which i have hcs about but that is for a separate post because it would be too long to add here.)

Species: Human

Alignment: Neutral. Maybe a bit chaotic. The yin axis. (All in all he's for bis own morality. Never anyone else's)

Weapons: chinese saber or straight sword.

Abilities/powers/etc: Soul magic,fire magic,the dark arts. (He's a mofo sorcerer bih! I have hcs more about soul magic and how his damn magic works. Because people dont really care to write this)

Allies: anyone who he deems trustworthy enough.

Nemesis: any who dares cross him. Liu kang. (He fucking hates liu kang. No it's not secretly likes him. NO HE FUCKING HATES THIS GUYS GUTS AND WANTS HIM DEAD FOR THE SHEET FUCKING PLEASURE OF IT! SHANG,HE'S A PETTY LIL SHIT. OK?!)

Current whereabouts: on his island. Doing who knows what. Mostly tending Mortal kombat tournaments. And any who wishes to learn under him. As he is a master after all.

🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉❤🐉

Blank below cut (in case you wanna use it for ocs):

Name:

Real name:

Age:

Gender/prns:

Height:

Weight:

Hair:

Eye color:

Origins:

Resident realm:

Species:

Alignment:

Weapons:

Abilities/powers/etc:

Allies:

Nemesis:

Current whereabouts:

Dominion: (used for god characters only. Titans dont exist and i completely erase them from narrative. So dont even fucking add this. Dont even try. It's either gods ocs,immortal ocs(i.e. like bo-rai cho) or mortals (like kung lao,etc). Pick one)

#mortal kombat #shang tsung #shang tsung bio #mortal kombat bio #my shang tsung bio #my hcs #my hot takes

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mh-midnight-wanderer · 2 years

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I'm compel to tell things that I like, dislike and mixed about Monster High live action movie *also spoilers ahead*

Things that I like:

Frankie being non-binary and played by actor Ceci Balagot

Monster High setting looks kinda nice

Friendship between Frankie and Clawdeen. Its makes sense both being new students. Clawdeen never been in monster world before and Frankie being literally 15 days old. Everything is new for them.

Draculaura practices witchcraft (odd decision but its kinda cool)

Its small insignificant detail but I like that Dracula's painted nails. We need more boys with painted nails

Oh They did great job in the music and songs.

Things that I dislike:

Aside Clawdeen new look. I didn't like the whole half-human half-werewolf plot. I get it that in previous MH generations were creatures doesn't have fully human or beast mode (except MH G2). Even Garret thinks they took Cerise (from EAH) and Jackson (MH) backstory and put it on Clawdeen

They never properly explain what exactly Clawdeen's mother deal is. Is fearleader captain?, top A student? Prom Queen? What?

I don't like Deuce clothing. Everytime that I seen him its reminders me Jughead (Riverdale) with glasses

The fact that Cleo doesn't have her mummy bandages. Is so easy to mistake her for human

Lagoona, Abbey, Heath and Ghoulia didn't contribute too much in the movie.

Scenes with Deuce and Clawdeen alone

Even Mr. Komos doesn't get much screentime. Despite he's main villain. What exactly is his plan anyway: Wait until Clawdeen and her friends figure out how to open his dad's lair. He thought Clawdeen is the choosen one considering she going to make report of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde

Guess its budget thing that we don't get to see Lagoona (waterbending) , Abbey (ice bending) and Heath (fire bending) fight against Komos.

Speaking budget: Komos final form is ridiculous. I guess animate bull head is expensive

I wish Clawdeen used Cleo's mirror pocket instead cellphone

I'm little annoyed how quickly that Dracula's accepting that his daughter is practicing witchcraft. What the whole vampires vs witches thing (Well you have to watch MH sequel to answer your questions)

Things that I mixed:

Deuce telling Clawdeen about Cleo's mummy issues. Its BIG oof for G1 fans knows Cleo's backstory

Cleo and Deuce breakup. I didn't understand why they break up? Its because Deuce wants to be different? I don't get it

Its just me but is weird that Dracula, Mr Hyde and Clawdeen's mom went High School together.

Either Monster World has different passage of time from Human World or Probably Dracula and Hyde are descendants from real Dracula and Mr Hyde

And that's pretty much it. Overall in my opinion the movie is not bad but could be 10x better with right cast, good writing, special effects and costumes

#monster high #monster high live action #monster high spoilers #g3 clawdeen #g3 frankie stein #g3 draculaura #g3 lagoona #g3 cleo de nile #g3 deuce gorgon #g3 ghoulia #jackson jekyll #mr komos #dracula #mr hyde #I hope in future MH G4 for fix mistakes of G3 #I feel bad all actors and voice actors who received racists and homophonic from haters #midnight random ramblings

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brokenmusicboxwolfe · 8 months

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I am deeply saddened to see that actor David McCallum has died. While 90 hardly a short life, when someone has mattered to you, even in the distant way of an actor playing make believe for a living, you always wish the life were longer.

I expect I am about to ramble, and not very coherently (sleep deprivation), so all of it will go under the cut.

Actually, he was about the first actor I ever remember recognizing. When I was 3 I adored an obscure tv series called The Invisible Man, where he played the title character. It bares little resemblance to the original story, instead following the adventure show of the 1970s-1980s formula. I think the fact he played a scientist, married to a scientist, and that the couple happily worked together had a lot to do with it. Reminding me of my parents was a natural thing to appeal to a preschooler.

To be honest, I only remembered fragments of the show, but I remembered him vividly. Even as a little kid if I saw him anywhere my first thought was “lt’s the invisible man!!” and a wave of affection would wash over me.

Affection is something you wouldn’t find with my favorite of his tv shows. Steel, in my beloved Sapphire and Steel, is hardly a warm character. How can I describe the show…Well, the title characters aren’t human, but beings that are sent out to deal with problems in time, or maybe you can say caused by time. Nursery rhymes, photographs, and gas stations take on a menacing quality. If these two show up you better be afraid because while they will go to extreme lengths to stop the threat, those lengths might involve sacrificing you.

Steel the cool, sharp edged, and anything but the lovable nice guy I’d adored as a tot….and I adored him here too.

I was late seeing Sapphire and Steel, but I was even later seeing The Outer Limits (original version) where he starred in two of my favorite episodes.

In one, The Sixth Finger, he played a coal miner experimented on by a scientist until he evolved far beyond a connection to his humanity. I have an action figure of that one!

The other, Forms of Things Unknown, has an obvious inspiration in a certain famous French thriller, but then in comes McCallum, a man experimenting with time. While in the other episode he played a man shedding his humanity with every mutation, here he actually is unearthly from the start, a peculiar characterization that reminds me of the madness of characters that have seen to far into the void, but also of a child lost to forces far beyond them….

TBH, I went through a period where this episode was comfort viewing. I would day dream up back story details for McCallum’s character, and even ways to connect it to Sapphire and Steel.

What? just because I was going full geeky fangirl on a single episode of a tv show made well before I was born isn’t THAT weird on here!

And here is another obscure one I’m fond of, a movie called The Ravine. It’s a movie set during WWII where he’s a German soldier sent to capture a woman that’s been acting as a sniper picking of his side like crazy. The concept, that they end up trapped together and do the enemies to lovers thing, seemed like the usual contrived thing. Still, out of mild curiosity I watched a horrible print on Youtube and I was surprised how effective it was. I was actually sold on the tragic relationship, and I’d gone into it expecting to be rolling me eyes. In fact , since it isn’t (or at least wasn’t) available on DVD in the US I got one from Europe. Good thing the acting and setting are more important than dialog, cause I don’t speak Italian!

Frankenstein: The True Story has about as much relationship to the original novel as Bram Stoker’s Dracula has to the book, but it’s actually a rather fascinating take on subject. Tumblr would approve of the gay subtext (more like text, cause how could even folks in the ‘70s miss it) McCallum’s part is supporting, but crucial being both Frankenstein’s mentor and brain donor. I’ll be honest with you, my weakness for mad scientists is showing because I swooned over even has he enthusiastically collects raw materials (ahem) for their work.

Is it weird that this is the roll he played that had me properly, classic fan girl swooning?

There are couple of adaptations that are notable for me. There is that adaptation of Kidnapped he was in. I got it on DVD for my father because the sequel to Kidnapped was a childhood favorite of his, and this was the rare version to use that book (TBH, Pop had a fanboy crush on the girl in that book, from the way he talk! LOL) Unfortunately Pop died before seeing it, so it colors my thoughts on it. And there was an adaptation of Our Mutual Friend, one of my favorite Dickens novels, but I watched it in a “see all the adaptations” kick so it’s a blur of compare and contrast.

I will end this with the most peculiar way a part he played connected with me.

It started unexpectedly, with me watching The Man from UNCLE on a DVD set my father had gotten for Christmas. My parents had liked the show, but like a lot of shows from before I was born I’d heard a lot about it before I’d seen it.

To be honest I wasn’t particularly impressed. Oh, it was fine, and I did like the warm dynamic of the main two characters. **It’s just sort plain potato chip tv, tasty but forgettable. Plus it was sooo of it’s time that the sexism irritated me no end. I have watched, and loved, a lot of 1960s tv, so maybe I just expected more. I enjoyed it, but if you asked me to rank my faves of the “ Sixties lets do the Spy Thing” tv shows I would pick Wild, Wild, West or The Avengers or Danger Man or Get Smart*** even before it.

So it was fine, I enjoyed it while we watched, and then didn’t really think about it anymore.

And then my father got sick.

My father’s illness, and eventual death, hit me hard. Very hard. I was alone dealing with it. I had no friends, and wasn’t even on Tumblr yet. I couldn’t weigh my parents down with my emotions when they had so much of their own. And with my father’s chemo and such I was often actually alone. Obviously not as much as now, but so many days completely alone was new to me then.

So there I was, on the verge of being an emotional but holding it together, desperately aching for someone, anyone, I could turn to….

And then I started dreaming.

Of course I always had dreamed, but this was different. This was nightly dreaming. Serial dreaming. Stories that continued on for days or weeks. And fictional characters started creeping in. Up until then the characters in dreams had always been my OCs, but now suddenly tv shows, books, movies, comics…they were all fodder for the stories helping me escape.

The part may be one of his most famous roles, but it still came as a huge surprise when I found myself dreaming about Illya.

Actually, the first dream was a general Man from UNCLE dream. It was fun, even if it seemed weird to be dreaming about the show. But then the next one had Illya only.

And so it started, an epic series of dreams, chapter after chapter, night after night. Adventures with Illya.

Well, and aliens and time travel and so on. It was, after all, my subconscious spinning the story, not screenwriters. Gotta get time travel and/or alternate universes in there somewhere if it comes out of mushed up brain.

After a while the dreams had bigger gaps between them, but the dreams with Illya still came. In fact over months they dominated my dreaming. Illya was there all the time.

It got so I spent time when I was awake, thinking about the dreams and the character. What would Illya think of this? What would Illya listen to? What would Illya say? What if Illya were in that situation? What if…

Now, I admit, the Illya I was imagining is only inspired by the one David McCallum played. It looked like him. It sounded like him. I even found myself replaying select episodes to remind myself of his “voice” so my brain could make him seem more authentic. But the truth was he was my interpretation of Illya, my head-cannon, my quirks, my obsessions..

Actually I guess it was my need. I needed someone. My dreams even created characters to be my avatars for interacting with him. I those dreams I could talk to him, laugh with him, cry in front of him, save him or be saved by him, and be his friend.

And in a weird way, that is what my brain was doing. It was giving me an imaginary friend while I slept. Someone smart and kind and brave, to save the world…just like the imaginary friend I’d had when I was little.****

I’d given myself an imaginary friend that looked and sounded like Illya!

Well, in dreams. I wasn’t so far gone I talked to him when I was awake!

But it was comforting. I found myself thinking about those dreams, almost cuddling up to them in those painful dark days. I confess I worried that if I ever were in a delirium or under anesthetic or something might call out to him and have some very embarressing questions asked.

Eventually the dreams stopped. Time moves on. Maybe I didn’t need them anymore, or maybe my subconscious got bored.

TBH I kinda wish I still had dreams about him, or some other characters. Any dreams with a repeated cast or continuing story would be beyond welcome. I could REALLY use their company now.

And now, writing this, I realize just why I actually gasped when I saw David McCallum had died. Yes, as an actor he had played many parts I enjoyed, but other actors have done that without the shock of their death knocking the breath from me. But the fact is no other actor has had their performance gift me with something that felt like a friend when I needed one most.

So that’s why I am sad. It isn’t just a list of parts he played that I loved or that he had been a familiar face as long as I can remember. He got stored in a special part of my mind, the strange area of the imagination where strangers and friends get blurred and fiction protect a fracturing heart.

I am eternally grateful he lived. Even if I didn’t have a list of credits I enjoyed ******, as long as I had those dreams he helped inspire when I needed them most I’d mourn his passing.

Condolences to all that loved him, be they friends, family, or fans.

**Though I would end up in fandom exile for seeing them as like brothers or little boy best friends instead of shipping them. Good on you if you do. I think it’s beautiful every character everywhere gets shipped with someone, but dang, what is with the hate for the non-shipping fans?)

*** The Prisoner, possibly my fave tv show ever, isn’t really in this category to my mind, but a lots of folks would disagree.

****My childhood imaginary friend was the ghost of a little boy murdered by his uncle during the American Revolution. Still, the smart, kind, brave, save the world stuff was there too.

*****I didn’t mention something he did that I enjoyed. For instance, Mother Love, a wonderful bit of tv that criminally isn’t on DVD, because it’s Diana Riggs’ showcase. But then I’ve also never seen any of the six billion years of NCIS (I think those are the letters). Who knows how many other of his work I never saw.

#rambles #david mccallum

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inklessletter · 10 months

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Let's do this. From questions listing. txmblr co/ post/108795761380/ random-questions (had to alter the url to send) 1,6,9,11,13,14,19,22,24,34,39,44,45,46,47,48,67,71,74,75,76,84,91,99,102,104,105,106,108,109,123,132,133,134,138,145,148,149. Or all of them if you feel adventurous! 🧠🤭

Holy COW NONNIE, you're putting me to work here (my entire fault). Let's go!

1. Do you bite or lick ice cream? Wanna lick it, but I end up biting it. Everytime.

6. Describe a moment in which you did something unacceptable in a bad situation. I didn't want to be social during my grandfather's waking, so I dove in the book I was currently reading. It was Bram Stoker's Dracula.

9. How many all nighters have you pulled? I don't know. A lot. (and only one of them was partying, I am not a party person)

11. How many romantic "things" or "flings" have you had? Four. (I am not counting my current relationship, eleven years it's far too long to be considered a fling).

13. What is your favorite background noise? Music.

14. How many hearts do you think you have broken? Only one. I hope. I don't wanna hurt people.

19. Have you played any instruments before? Which instruments? I wish. Well, no, wait. Not professionally I have done my things with ukulele and kalimba. And a little bit of piano when I was a child.

22. What is the best advice someone has ever given you? Trust the process.

24. How do you cheer yourself up after a bad day? Music, singing my heart out and drawing. Simultaneously. Or a good cry (often simultaneously, too).

34. Which fantasy world would you like to visit the most? Either Kingdom Hearts or The Last Airbender's world. I would go to Hawkins to give Steve a high five, but I wouldn't stay (maybe I would try to bring him back to the future with me).

39. Name the last book you read. 'A court of thorns and roses'.

44. Do you like and appreciate your life? Yes, and every step I took to get here, even the mistakes.

45. Do you like and appreciate yourself? Not everytime, but I try to keep that positivity frequent.

46. When was the last time you cried? Last Tuesday night, when my dog got sick and I didn't know what to do to make him feel better. It broke my heart.

47. What are you scared of? Butteflies, depth of the sea (thalassofobia), and on a more trascendental side, I'm terrified of not being enough for the people I love.

48. What is the most embarrassing, cringe-worthy thing you have ever done? Oh holy shit. I kind of sang in my highschool graduation a very inappropriate song that was a hit back a the time. To the date, my fiancé just doesn't know which song it was. Top secret thing. God, the embarrassment.

67. Do you have a favorite Disney movie? Character? The Little Mermaid, and it would be Ariel.

71. What scares you most about the future? In a personal level, pregnancy and losing people.

74. What are some of your New Year's resolutions? Getting back to drawing (yay me!). (I'm already telling you that next year's is going to be making a living out of it.)

75. What is your life story in 6 words? So she decided to trust herself.

76. Describe yourself in one word. Summer.

84. List the 3 most important people in your life right now. My fiancé and my parents.

91. What is your worst memory or creepiest experience? My worst memory is from last year, when someone who I cared about deeply and thought they were a friend publicly humilliated me using every bit of knowledge they had about me against me, to break me in purpose. They succeeded.

99. What languages can you speak? Spanish and English.

102. What ended your last relationship? I wasn't enough.

104. What is the most terrifying dream you've ever had? I want to shout to warn someone and no one listens to me, because I can't speak, or I'm invisible. It's a recurrent nightmare but I haven't had those in a while.

105. When was the last time you got seriously angry? Last year, when I started to heal from what I explained in 91. I got furious when I understood that I didn't deserve that shit (because, oh, they made me believe for a second that I did.)

106. What was the last friendship you broke? See 91.

108. Who was the last person you gave a hug to? My fiancé, before he left for work.

109. When was the last time you got seriously stressed? I haven't been unstressed since 2020. But I guess the last time that it got really bad was last February when I had a panic attack at work in front of my boss (was embarrassing, really).

123. What is your morning routine? Breakfast with my dog (coffee, a toast with butter, a piece of fruit, and a carrot for him). Then brush my teeth, make up, off to work.

132. What is your opinion on "going with the flow? Go with the flow unless something inside you tells you to turn away or it feels dangerous. If going with the flow means leaving your comfort zone and you're not ready for it, then don't do it. But if it feels like it's time, or might be fun, give it a shot. (PLEASE READ THIS ALWAYS IN A SAFE ENVIRONMENT)

133. Do you enjoy talking or listening? I like listening more than talking (which might sound silly and dishonest since I'm talking A LOT in this post).

134. When is it time to end a friendship? When you can't trust that person anymore, or it is harming you to keep that friendship alive. Distancing is normal, people change, goes different ways. But keeping someone in your life when you know that they're bad for you is a mistake, in my experience, at least.

138. When was the last time you had a deep conversation with someone? Last Friday, with my mom.

145. What is your opinion on second chances? I believe in second chances, but in certain situations and environments. I believe in second chances when they've learned their lesson and changed, and worked for it. I don't believe in second chances when the differences between both parties are irredeemable. Second chances are asking for flexibility, and that should come both ways.

148. What advice would you give to yourself 5 years ago? Buy that tablet. Now.

149. How organized are you? I am a mess of a person (but I try not to).

-- If you want to play this little game, go ahead and send an ask!

#inklessletter #asks #ask game #that was A LOT OH MY GOD

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