Something that really pisses me off about the Amber Heard Johnny Depp situation that I never articulated is how it demonstrated people’s lack of shame in blatantly moving the goal post in believing women who are sexually/physically assaulted.

At first, when people wanted to defend the fact that they don’t believe victims, it was “well, *insert name of man accused* would never do that, it’s not in his character. He’s a good guy who hasn’t hurt anyone, so I find this unbelievable. He doesn’t even hang out in bad crowds either.”

Yet Depp was known to be an awful person by the people he worked around. He was known to be an alcoholic who struggled with drinking too much and getting really mean after drinking. He’s literally even friends with people of the likes of Marilyn Manson. Yet, people did not take this as a reason to consider not praising Depp and humiliating Heard during the trials.

Then people started turning to “well, I’m not gonna believe just one woman, because she could have any motive to want to do this to hurt someone, but if there are multiple women accusing the man then it’s believable.”

Yet, multiple people, including SOs & coworkers/past employees of Depp have described his yelling, physically harmful and intimidating behavior, and emotional abuse. However, this didn’t stop anyone from praising him and humiliating Heard.

Then it became “well, let me at least see some proof, like texts or pictures of injuries. Then I will believe you.” Both of these things came out proving Depp to be a terrible person - I mean what kind of person says over text that they desire to r*pe a woman’s [Heard’s] dead body if not the type of person to be abusive? Yet, no one took this as a clue that they might be wrong for riding for Depp and tearing down Heard.

[edit] I also want to add that it seems like our goal post has moved fully to “well if a woman has a shit ton of proof to demonstrate that she was abused by a man, I’m not going to believe her until she can somehow prove that she was never abusive to him” like?? That’s like telling someone to prove that there is no invisible flying pink elephant in the room. If no one has accused her of abuse, why would she need to, and how would she be able to, prove that she has never been abusive? And this will never get applied to male celebrities who accuse a woman of being abusive jsyk.

Here’s my hypothesis: two groups exist among these goal post movers, being 1) those who will decide to believe the man under any circumstance unless they are literally physically present to see the abuse happening, and 2) those who DO believe that the man is abusive [regardless of public ally pretending that they don’t] and just simply do not care that they are abusive.

Don’t worry darling was a good movie, was it great? No, but it wasn’t as bad as people make it out to be.

Spoilers***

The film itself was incredible, it had amazing cinematography. Every outfit was so unique and beautifully mirrored that Art Deco 50s type aesthetic, hope they win something for costume design. I felt very immersed in the world, as if I was actually there. The old music made the environment even more unsettling and really fit the vibe.

Now, the story. From what I gathered, Victory is a program, using advanced technology, that allows you to escape from the real world into an idyllic, nuclear family, white picket fence world. We know Jack put Alice in the simulation against her will, which I believe played on the continuous theme of male control, in a patriarchal society. None of the women were there on their own accord it seemed, besides Bunny, who had lost her children in the real world leading her to willingly go into it. Florence Pugh was phenomenal as always, the character of Alice was beautifully written as someone on the verge of insanity, yet completely sane in the sense that she was right, and she stuck to it. Harry Styles didn’t do terrible, was it an academy award winning performance, no not even close. But, he played his character well, he was emotional, and his purpose of thinking he though he could create a better life for Alice, all while forcing her and gaslighting her into a fake reality, thinking he was helping her, was extremely terrifying, as some people listen to things and follow blindly, Andrew Tate and Donald Trump both come to mind. Chris Pine was delightfully disturbing as we didn’t, and still don’t know much about his character. We know he was the one to program the simulation of Victory, and that he promoted through a podcast that Jack listened to, other than that though, he’s a complete mystery, making him all the more unnerving when it came to what he was doing and why. Olivia Wilde’s character surprised me, as I didn’t think she’d have such a major role in the plot. To be honest though, I loved her and Florence’s chemistry, I think they had the best out of all the relationships we see throughout the movie, as in the end, she realized what was happening was wrong, and even though she was happy in this false world, the other women there were being blindly controlled without their consent. I was left with a few questions though. What exactly was the Victory project, in the sense that, what did all the men do each day, what were the earthquakes that would periodically happened, where did that red plane go, what happened to Margret and her family, did Gemma Chan’s character, like Bunny, also know she was trapped? So many questions left unanswered, but I think that made it all the more disturbing.

Overall, I give it an 8/10, there were some plot holes, and I don’t necessarily like how we were left hanging at the end, but I think people have gotten so wrapped up in the real world drama that’s occurred because of this film, they’re completely disregarding it and choosing to see it in a negative light. That is not to say that whatever Olivia said to Flo is justifiable, or anything that happened on set was appropriate (team Flo here), but I urge you to look at it from a perspective opposite from what’s happened during the production of the film, and truly appreciate the story and film itself.

We need to stop victimizing the fans of Andrew Tate — he‘s a symptom, not the disease itself

We need to stop victimizing the fans of Andrew Tate; it‘s not just about him.

We need to raise more awareness to the question why Andrew Tate could even reach such a level of popularity and praise.

So many people willingly underestimate the harm he has caused and don’t even recognize the evilness that already existed previously.

Misogyny is deeply ingrained in our society and culture, and Andrew Tate didn’t magically make boys & men (and also some girls & women) believe and invest in his views.

At the end of the day, he‘s merely a figurehead they can look up to above all else. The problem won‘t be solved once he‘s defeated.

People who look up to him, sympathize with or make excuses for him or his fans, condone any of it or "just don‘t see it as such a big deal" share inherent core values with him, and he simply had to prey on them to become a successful and popular misogynist.

Misogyny is generally not taken seriously enough, especially since "a little bit of it" is tolerated everywhere and in everyone.

It seems like it‘s heavily brushed aside by men who are either enjoying the benefits or show solidarity or indifference to men like that and also by women who try to be granted a little window in their prison and hence "play along".

If someone makes excuses for misogyny, doesn’t bother to stand up against it or plays the popular "whataboutism reverse card" (as in the patriarchy also affects men, YES, if you say so, yet these men strive to blame women for it instead and think it‘s fine when women have to take the brunt of what a male-led system has done to the world), they are NOT a victim, they are a perpetrator and need to be held accountable at all costs.

These "phenomena" we see regarding misogyny happen to other marginalized folks as well, but somehow it‘s tolerated and even encouraged the most when it’s misogyny, probably because it‘s aimed at women only.

Misogyny isn‘t a "joke" or "not that much of an issue", it‘s a reality of widely normalized injustice and suffering. And it‘s increasing once again.

Andrew Tate isn‘t their "hero" or the "creator" of their misogyny, he‘s their enabler.

He‘s someone who promotes rape, forced pregnancy/childbirth, physical abuse, emotional abuse, toxic male socialization, female obedience and (sexual) objectification, categorizing women/homosexual men as subhumans etc..

And you don’t condone or support something like this — partly even some of the worst crimes against humanity — unless you‘re privileged enough to be and are, in fact, a perpetrator.

Only total absence of misogyny is "good enough", and whilst this probably won‘t happen due to human nature, it should always remain everyone‘s goal so we never forget to strive for the better.

Are you confident Bughead will be endgame on this show? That’s literally the last strand I’ve been holding onto, but the thread is weakening. I really can’t believe that they would take this ship, their absolute most popular and loved one, and just end it like this forever. I am so angry with the writing!!

Hey there, anon! It is unbelievable, isn’t it?

What a tricky question you ask! confidence + prediction + the Riverdale writers ... As Jughead would say: yikes!

The thing with these writers is that they use a lot of words without knowing their meaning. “Endgame” is one of them. “New” is another. “Exciting”. “Darkness”™. “Adult stories”. “The message”…

Dangling the bughead “endgame” carrot at the end of one or two seasons of no bughead or -worse- of b*rchie and j*bitha f.e. is not an endgame. The general definition of endgame -outside of chess- is: the last stage of a process. If the process (i.e. the season’s content) isn’t about bughead, then bughead coming together at the very end is not an endgame, it's a peripeteia i.e. a sudden or unexpected reversal of circumstances.

In shipping, endgame is a couple that will inevitably end together (for ever and ever and ever). In order for something to be inevitable, you have to create that sentiment, you have to build the couple up.

There’s an article about the misappropriation of the word “endagame” that I find particularly funny, as it starts by mentioning Riverdale!

Anyway, this is a long-winded way to say that, yes, I do believe that the show will end with bughead and varchie as their main canon couples. It’s just that, like you, I’m so very tired with these story lines. There is satisfaction to be had at the notion of endgame but a seasonful of investigative bughead would be infinitely preferable. For me (and I can only speak of myself) the journey is more important than the destination -even if for the simple reason that -in TV show time- it lasts longer!

Why do I think bughead is still … that word? Everything’s under the cut, so as not to clutter your dash!

1. A lot of people have been theorising that what happened in 5x18 was not the original plot. I agree.

Let’s start with 5x18 varchie.

Their break up came completely out of left field. Its unexpectedness is reminiscent of 4x17. I make fun of how s5 is a reboot of s1+s2’s leftover ideas, so another copy-paste shouldn’t feel out of place, and yet … really? Another repetition? To what end? If the season’s goal was not varchie, b*rchie was already there waiting at the beginning of the time jump! Why abandon that plot? In terms of romantic varchie time, that was extremely limited, since after their kiss in 5x7, Veronica’s divorce kept them apart until 5x17 … Why have Archie being extremely jealous of Chad, Veronica getting involved in all of Archie’s schemes (firefighters, bulldogs), Archie getting involved in Ronnie’s (rescuing daddykins) or Veronica telling her father she chooses Archie over him in 5x17? Also, for those who remember, there was this by the-writer-who-shall-not-be-named.

The reason of the break up is as ludicrous as Veronica moving into Archie’s childhood bedroom (with its effing slanted roof!) on the premise that long term the Andrews’ residence has more room! (By the way, I don’t know what surprised me more: that Veronica thought that Archie and uncle Frank would know who Ina Garten is or that Jughead didn’t.) Why is Veronica astounded by Archie’s involvement in the same activities he has been involved in all through the season?! For f***’s sake, she’s the one that gifted him the fire truck!

Ok. Now let’s give 5x18 j*bitha a try.

For me, 5x18 could either have gone bugheadwards or j*bithawards. J*bitha had some heartfelt talks, a hand touch, a hallucination and a kiss. Bughead had one unfinished heartfelt talk (the only one in the whole season for Betty), two shoulder touches, two hallucinations and Jughead attempting to reconnect with Betty (without specifying what his intent was, it's true).

While I do think that j*bitha is a ship that has been adequately teased, the way they were explored in 5x18 was … not underwhelming exactly (after all, they’re not my ship, so I didn’t have any expectations about them) but … maybe lukewarm is the word? They had but minimal dialogue, only enough to establish that Tabitha’s parents were in town. Then a song where Tabitha initially rejects Jughead, although she had been supportive before. Then another song, where the lyrics were heavily altered and didn’t make much sense anyway (we hadn’t been properly introduced to the Tates) but where the original lyrics were very compatible with Bughead’s history and state of being as of 5x17. The kisses were ok, I have no problem with the actors’ chemistry. But -and this is strictly a personal opinion- Jughead’s flirting scenes (not the make-out ones, you perverts!) with Cora were better and so was the j*bitha kiss in 5x10. For the 5x18 j*bitha to flow, more dialogue and more flirting was necessary (always a persona opinion). So, no, I don’t think j*bitha were supposed to sing what they sang in 5x18.

Production for s5 wrapped up one week after the official announcement of the 5 special episodes for Riverdale and The Flash: “we expect it will take us until Fall 2022 to get back to a regular schedule” was the official quote. Re-organising the cw’s overall schedule didn’t happen overnight. Yes, more likely than not, the writers knew about the specifics of s6a before shooting 5x18-5x19 and had time to re-write them.

2. The couples spoilers for s6 do not make sense plot-wise.

If the end-goal for 5x19-6x1 had been b*rchie, j*bitha and v*ggie all along, these were pairs already happening (except from v*ggie) at the beginning of the time-jump. As for v*ggie, last time we saw them, Veronica pulled a face when she heard that he had had (still has?) an affair with Hermosa. And what about Nana Rose?! (ok, that was a joke! ... or was it? 👀)

The majority of both the fans and the general audience are bugvarchie shippers. Teasing b*rchie and j*bitha as a means of maintaining the viewers’ interest in a will they/won’t they way, only works if the audience finally gets what they want. In this season. Not the next one! There is so much trolling one can take after all. In the space of 1.5 year (4x17-5x19) b*rchie will have been teased ... THREE times (and still lacking build-up)!

I cannot myself see b*rchie, j*bitha and v*ggie as endgame couples. For the audience to invest in them after 4 years of bugvarchie, the writers have to a) give j*bitha an absolutely incredible development that will surpass bughead and the cinematography to go with it (good luck with that) and b) undo Archie’s character (highly unlikely) and/or give Betty a lobotomy (at which point a lot of people will quit en masse, because Archie as The One All The Girls Want just doesn't resonate with the majority).

I have no idea if s6a is an AU or not. But if it’s not, no one will be left to watch 6b.

Can I guarantee a bughead endgame? Of course not. I have no idea how the minds of the Riverdale writers work. But I do think that Jughead and Betty getting back together is more than wishful thinking.

Fervently shipping Jughead/Betty, Jughead/his book and Betty/therapy, sincerely yours, @raymondebidochonlifechoices

I hope you have fun with the Riverdale universe regardless, dear anon. Riverdale has given us one of the most beautiful getting-together stories in s1 and lots and lots of beautiful canon bughead afterwards. Here's to many more! Much love to you!

wait id love to hear your rant about how fanon deals with the race in tfc fics/fanon's of everyone else’s race :0

I would like to start this response with the fact that I do not believe anyone is being intentionally harmful in their race head cannons, simply that people tend to follow Fanon blindly and I believe people should not do that, and remember Fanon is only Fanon and we should make our own ideas and stray from the pack more often.

Okay, my thoughts on common race headcanons for the foxes and how they are often accidentally racist:

I know @bloodydamnit has spoken up about this before, but people specifically portraying Seth as black falls into a lot of unhealthy anti-black stereotypes of black men, especially the lack of development people tend to give him. She has written him and deconstructed these issues from her perspective and me a non-black person don’t think I could ever achieve such a thing and therefore do not headcanon him or will write him as black.

I personally headcanon him as hard Vietnamese and half white and made a long post about him before, I love Seth.

Matt and Dan are also often written as black, this isn’t inherently problematic necessarily, but it does often overlook the issue that people see this likely because of Matt’s history with drugs and Dan’s sex work playing into anti-black stereotypes without a tally going into race theory or redlining or any of the following issues in a way that gives them any development.

I like to headcanon Matt as Filipino, his straight hair is perfect for spiking, and dan as 75% black and 25% Oceti Sakowin (commonly known as Sioux), I want to write about how her leaving the reservation was a big deal for her, especially at the 25% mark which means if she is with anyone who isn’t of the same tribe her kids would not be considered a part of the tribe since the US minimum to register is 25% and this was part of her hesitance to be with Matt as well as other pressures. I like to think the baby her aunt had in the EC she ends up adopting from the foster system and that baby is 75% Oceti Sakowin and Matt is super excited to learn about their traditions and bring in both indigenous Filipino culture that he got disconnected with as well as Oceti Sakowin culture that she got disconnected with into their lives with their unexpected kid.

Renee is often headcanoned as Asian, but typically just generally Asian without nuance or explanation and also this plays into the passivity stereotype of Asian women. I headcanon her has African American, with very dark skin and Stephanie Walker was the first black foster mom she had and they hit it off really well, also Renees hair is a wig, no one can bleach their hair to white that’s just… it melts before it does that usually.

Again I’m not saying Renee can’t be Asian, It can be done right and written well, but overall I think it’s important for people to remember why they headcanon things and not accept Fanon blindly. Fanon often plays into harmful ideas. While people of color don’t have to have a reason for being people of color, I think it’s important to notice why you think charters who aren’t described at all are whatever race you headcanon and think critically. Our cultures and races make us experience the world in a certain way that contributes to who we are outside of blanket diversity, and it is important to think about that.

I often see people saying they headcanon Womack as Native American to make him having the tribal tattoos “unracist”, and to make Nora not racist, but Nora wasn’t being racist by saying Womack has tribal tattoos, Womack having shitty Tates in tattoos, which faux tribal was a huge cultural staple despite how cringe it is from the 90’s to mid 2000’s in America. It’s important also to not just say Native American but to do research on specific groups because each culture is unique and different.

That being said, I bounce back between Wymack just being some 70’s looking dad with cut off shorts to Maori where the swirl tattoos are very significant, and Kevin is white-passing but discovered he’s not white like he thought he was, and becomes an AOA history major (Africa, Oceana, Americas, aka indigenous history major).

Also considering Neil and Allison are supposed to be significantly attractive I don’t like them being white because of that, so I headcanon Allison as half middle eastern, (or maybe Indian I have more research to do before I decide), she was told she was adopted as a kid and often her mom would buy her whitening cremes like fair and lovely as a kid, but later found some papers when she was older finding out her dad actually got a woman pregnant and to keep her quiet took Allison and pretended he was such a good philanthropist and adopted a brown kid. She has a lot of problems with this, and bleaches her hair blond to try and fit in with her family without even realizing it. She never finds out who her birth mom is

I am a bit annoyed at white fans constantly calling Nora racist, while also using the lightest skinned headcanons every time for black characters playing into colorism and Spanish Nickys instead of darker toned people. Also, I think people should really try to critically think about their own ideas before calling out someone else. Do I think Nora is perfectly woke? No, no one is, but Fanon is just as bad but in a different way. There is a lot of colorism I see in both headcanon photos people use for the foxes as well as people tending to draw looser curls and thinner noses for characters they headcanon as black. Not every black person is half white and darker-skinned rep is very important. I’ve also seen people use Reece king as a Nicky face claim before and I wasn’t even surprised.

I've also seen people almost always have Erik be “Aryan” some even using the word to describe him unironically, and as a Jewish person this obviously doesn’t sit right with me. I would like to see less straight passing blond haired blue eyed taller than Nicky Erik sometimes.

Again I’m not calling anyone racist, I just think that people should go outside Fanon and think of their own ideas on who they want the characters to be in their headcanons and why. I'm tiers of the same 4 Instagram model photos being used for every Aftg edit, the same light-skinned Dan’s, Matt’s, and Nicky’s. Also while I’m at it, add some body diversity, they’re athletes all playing different positions, I think all the defense players are at least chubby if not plus size. Aaron, Andrew, and Renee are all fat and proud, Nicky and Matt are bulkier with their bodies good for blocking, while Seth is an awkward string bean, an offensive striker who can slip through people quickly despite his height.

Again I know discussions about race can be tense, I am not trying to sound like I am attacking anybody, and I'm not calling out anyone in particular, I didn't even touch on how nicky is written in fanon or canon and how it can often be both racist and homophobic coming from my prospective as a gay latino.

Okay I'm tired sorry this took me so long to respond lol

Protecting Their Own (Riverdale CrewxReader)

This fic deals with emotional and physical abuse, so if you're suffering from that, just know that you have the power to stop it. Make sure to tell someone so they can help. Ily guys💕

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Your heels clicked as you walked into Pop's Chock-Lit Shop, searching for your favorite mystery in all of Riverdale: Jughead Jones. You've been friends since birth, your father being best friends with his father. They were both Serpents, so you and Jughead saw each other often. He was more than just a regular friend, he was your brother. Until 2 years ago. After your father died, your Socialite mother decided that Riverdale wasn't a good environment for you. In her words, "A small town like that is an embarrassment for any daughter of mine." So, she made you pack up and move to England with her, attending a stuffy private school. To say you didn't like your mom was an understatement. She left your father after you were born and ran off with some rich old dude that already died, so she was left with all the money. And, to make matters worse, she ripped you from your home and made you move in with her, then verbally abused you ever since you got there. But now, you were back. Your mom decided you were a hopeless case and sent you packing, the best decision she's ever made. You practically bolted to the airport, crying tears of joy on the plane ride. When you got off, you took a good look in the mirror and smiled softly. In the past two years, you've gained a figure, changed your hairstyle, and adopted a British accent. You were no longer the girl with glasses and bad acne. After throwing your bags in your car, the one you left hidden before you left, you started to drive around in your search for Jughead, which is how you ended up in Pop's. You used to work here before you moved. Pop Tate's face lit up as soon as you walked through the door. "Is that who I think it is?" You giggled. "I'm back!" "Y/N!" Pop pulled you into a hug. When he pulled away, he spun you around. "Look at you! What happened to the Converse and the leather jacket?" "Ugh, believe me, I'm changing right back into that later. In England, my mother always made me wear heels until my feet gave out and dresses until I couldn't breathe anymore. I couldn't even eat what I wanted! I'd kill for a burger right now." "Anything for my Y/N. Thinkin' about workin' here again?" "Is my job still available?" "It always has been. I expect you here after school on Monday. But for now, settle down and I'll have a burger with fries and a milkshake ready in no time." You beamed. "Thanks, Pop!" "You got it. And love the accent, by the way." Laughing, you look around until you see a familiar beanie in one of the booths, the only person in the entire diner. Pulling down the sleeves of your long-sleeved dress, you walk over to where Jughead has his back to you and headphones in his ears, typing away on his laptop. You lightly tapped his shoulder. He took out his headphones and looked to you. "One newly British best friend for a Juggie Jones?" He had a shocked expression on his face. "Y/N?" "That's me." He got up from the booth and engulfed you in a hug, spinning you around. "Holy shit, Y/N! You're back!" You laughed out loud. "Just got back today!" He set you down and placed his hands on your shoulders. "What happened? Did you run away? Escape your mom? Why are you dressed like this? What's with the accent? Are you okay? Are you saf-"

"Juggie! Calm down! The Wicked Bitch sent me packing. Apparently, I wasn't meeting her standards for a perfect daughter, which is fine by me! I haven't changed yet, so I'm wearing what she usually made me wear in England. She always said, 'The tighter the better'. And as for the accent, it's just something I've picked up in boarding school." He pulled you into a hug. "The tighter the better? Y/N, you look like you haven't eaten in forever." "I feel like I haven't eaten in forever. Pop Tate is already getting me some food, which I've been dying for." Jughead let you go and you both slid into the booth, sitting across from each other. He took your hand in his. "I haven't heard from you in forever. I thought I'd lost you." "You never lost me, Juggie. She took away my phone and reprogrammed it so I could only call her or any person I met in boarding school that 'met her standards'. It was barbaric." Pop Tate brought over your burger, fries, and milkshake. "It's on the house, Y/N. And if you don't mind closing up as I leave-" You smiled. "I got it, Pop." When he walked out, Jughead took one of your fries as you started devouring your burger. "Y/N, what she did to you is actual torture. You need to tell someone." "I'm telling you?" "I mean, you need to get her arrested. Do you have any proof that she abused you?" You pulled out your phone, which you reprogrammed so you could now call anyone. "I have these messages she sent me. They were...verbally abusive. It won't be enough to prove anything, though. Honestly, Jug, I just want to forget England ever happened. It's fine, we don't need to fight my mothe-" "Y/N, what's that?" He pulled up your sleeve to reveal scars on your wrist. "Juggie-" "What. Is. That?" He pulled up the sleeve on your other arm to reveal more scars. You feel your face start to get hot. "Juggie, please-" "Did she do this?" He was trying unsuccessfully to stay calm. You feel tears forming in your eyes as you mutter out, "Yes." That one word set him off. He grabbed his jacket and he stormed out. "Jughead, wait!" You run out of the diner, anxiety kicking in. You catch up to Jughead opening the door to a truck and slam the door before he could climb in. You snatch the key out of his hand. "JUGHEAD JONES, PLEASE LISTEN TO ME!" "How'd she give you those scars, Y/N? HOW?" You felt tears falling on your face. "I tried to escape, okay?! I tried almost every trick in the book just to get back to you and Betty and Archie! But you know what she did? She found out every fucking time! Finally, she started chaining me to the bed! She would sedate me just to shut me up! That's why I have these scars! I also have scars on my stomach from when she hit me with a belt for getting second place in a goddamn beauty pageant! SECOND FUCKING PLACE! I don't want to face her again, Jughead! I WON'T!" At this point, you were sobbing into his arms. He wrapped his arms around you and wasn't about to let go. A few moments later, he pulled you away and took your face in his hands, wiping away your tears. "We're going to fix this. She's going to pay, because you didn't deserve anything she did to you. You're my best friend and I love you, and I'm going to protect you. She's not gonna hurt you anymore." Without hesitation, you threw your arms around him. In this moment, right now, you've never felt safer. After a few seconds, he pulls away. "Let me go grab my laptop and lock up and I'll drive you someplace." You nod, climbing into the car as he runs back into the diner. After a few minutes, he comes back with his laptop and your milkshake and locks up the place. He hands you the shake as he starts the car and takes off.

"Juggie, where are we going?" "There are a few people you have to see." He parks in front of the Andrews' house and opens the car door for you. You leave the empty milkshake glass in the car and step out, holding onto him as he leads you to the front door. Without even having to knock, the door flings open, Archie on the other side. "Y/N!" "Archie!" He engulfs you in a hug, bringing you close to his chest. You immediately notice how buff he's gotten, and how grown up he looks. He pulls away and leads you both inside. "Jughead told us everything, and we're all here to help." "All?" The boys lead you into the living room and you audibly gasp. In the short time it took to drive over here, Jughead and Archie had managed to gather their dads, Betty, Polly (who was now pregnant?), her parents, Kevin, Sheriff Keller, Josie, Valerie, Melody, Mayor McCoy, Cheryl, a raven-haired girl you've never met before, and a woman who you guessed was her mom. "Y/N!" Everyone who was there gave you a hug. You put your hand on Polly's stomach to feel the baby-or babies-kick and you congratulated her. You found out about Jason and told Cheryl how sorry you were. After greeting FP, you feel a tap on your shoulder. You whipped around to see the raven-haired girl behind you. "Hi, I'm Veronica Lodge," she said, shaking your hand. "My mom and I moved here not too long ago." Her mom stood next to her and shook your hand as well. "Hermione Lodge. It's nice to meet you, Y/N. Everyone doesn't stop talking about you."

You smiled. "It's nice to meet you both." Archie walked up to Veronica and put an arm around her. "Ronnie, Y/N is the girl I was telling you about. My friend since we were in diapers." "Hopefully you have plenty of embarrassing stories about him." You laughed. "Believe me, I do." "Okay, everyone," Mayor McCoy announces. "Let's all settle down now." Everyone took a seat, you sitting between Cheryl and Josie. You notice Betty cuddling up to Jughead and you smile. You've been wanting those two to get together for the longest! Sheriff Keller and Mayor McCoy stood up in front of everyone. Mayor McCoy clears her throat. "Y/N L/N has been the heart and soul of Riverdale for as long as I can remember. She's managed to charm everyone she meets, she's contributed to this town in a way no one else has, and she has been a top student throughout her life." You smile as she says this, resting your head on Cheryl's shoulder. "But she is the daughter of a Southside Serpent and the women who attempted to ruin Riverdale's reputation. That could cause people to gravitate away from her, but it never does. Why? Because she has a kind heart. And while we've learned that the Serpents are not to be judged, especially not her father, may he rest in peace, her mother is still a problem. Sheriff Keller?" He steps forward. "Amelia L/N has been an enemy of Riverdale for a long time, but none of us had ever thought she was capable of this type of abuse. She took away one of our best and hurt her in ways that are unthinkable." Josie grabs your hand as he says this, while Cheryl wipes away a few stray tears from your face. "Amelia used to be one of us before she turned against us. And while I'm only in charge of crimes within the town, I will be the first to fight for justice. Y/N, we are all gathered here today for you. Kevin and I will personally go to England, if we have to. Your mom won't be a problem anymore." The rest of the parents-Fred Andrews, Hermione Lodge, Alice Cooper, Hal Cooper, and FP Jones- all got up and stood next to Mayor McCoy and Sheriff Keller. "We are all here to protect you kids," Fred says. "And Y/N, Y/N is one of ours." "Y/N, I've known your dad for a very long time," FP says. "I've watched you grow up. And I'll fight for justice however long it takes." Hal held Alice's hand as she spoke. "Y/N, you've been so good to Betty and Polly. The past two years have felt so empty without you in our home. I've despised Amelia for years now, and I'll stop at nothing to see her in a jail cell." Hermione spoke last. "Y/N, I've been talking to everyone, and we've come to the decision that, instead of going back to your father's trailer, you come stay with me and Veronica. We have plenty of room." "I can lend you my clothes and help you catch up with current events," Veronica adds. "What do you say?" You stood up, looking around the room. Finally, you spoke, switching back to your American accent. "I'm in." Everyone cheered and you hugged Veronica. "I have a feeling we're going to be good friends."

She beamed. "Me too." That night, you walked out of Archie's house with Veronica, Betty, Jughead, Archie, Kevin, Cheryl, Josie, Valerie, and Melody. "I've missed you guys," you say to them. "We've missed you too." And with that, you all parted with your parents to your houses, yours now being the Pembrooke. When you finally got there, their butler, Smithers, took your bags and went inside with Veronica and Hermione. "Coming, Miss L/N?" "In a minute." When you were finally alone, you held up the leather jacket FP handed you before you left. "Serpents protect their own." Smiling, you pulled it on and looked at the stars. "Goodbye, daddy," you mutter. "I'll tell your story." You finally walked into the Pembrooke, ready to start your new life.

Jughead Jones Chapter 1: Before the riverbed

Riverdale. A small, quiet town that was once safe was now tainted with the drowning of Jason Blossom. Jason Blossom, the star of the football team, a musician, and most importantly the twin of Cheryl Blossom. Together they ruled Riverdale High school and their family ruled Riverdale in return. 

         It was the day of July 4th when the Blossom twins decided to go for a morning boat ride across Sweet Water River, little did we know that soon enough it would leave only half of the story behind. 

        Cheryl was found by a cardinal scout troop by the river, alone, soaked, and whispering her brother’s name whilst staring out into the water that had taken her brother victim. After hours of searching they didn’t recover the boy’s water logged body, so the Blossoms had to bury an empty casket.

       Everyone was devastated and afraid of what happened to him, most don’t set foot near the riverbed of the death trap just outside our little town. No one is willing to tell the story of what happened to the 16 year old boy, not even the one who witnessed it.

        But something strange happened just before this tragedy. Some one moved into town. Now now don’t be so perplexed as to why this is strange, see in a town like this not many people moved here for the scenery or anything like that. Usually it is to get away from something.

        Anyway, this person was different from every other new kid here. They weren’t rich and snobby, they were mid-class and sarcastic. That is why we got along when they say at my booth in Pop’s one faithful afternoon on July 1st.

————————————————————————————————————————

-Jughead’s POV-

       It was just another day like any other. I was walking alone to Pop’s Chock'lit Shoppe as usual after my only friend, Archie Andrews, ditched me. I wasn’t mad they he basically left me, I’m mad that he hasn’t even tried to communicate with me since the end of the school year.

       I made it to the retro neon diner and entered the door that stood before me as I reached the curb that separated the parking lot and the sidewalk. I pushed it open just enough to be able to squeeze through it with my laptop at my side. As I stepped into the diner a smell of burgers and fries hit me, it was almost blissful. Pop Tate looked at me smiling as he said “The usual?” In which I nodded along to.

       I made my way over to my usual table, but instead of seeing nothing but the menus displayed where each person would sit I saw a mop of Y/H/C sitting with their back to me. “Um, excuse me sir/miss, I believe you are sitting in my seat.” I said loud enough for this person to hear me over the speech from the other occupants and the soft music emitting from the speakers displayed through out the dining establishment.

       The mysterious figure turned their head to face me, an unamused look was spread across their face as the hand stopped moving across the sketch book that was spread out in front of them. “I don’t see your name written here.” They said turning their attention back to the their work in front of them.

      I rolled my eyes at them and sat opposite of them before saying, “Well neither is yours.

     They looked back up at me smirking a little as they uttered "I was here first so you can leave.”

     I scoffed at their childish ways, allowing my thoughts to control my speech. “You are acting like a 5 year old, and I am sitting here. So deal with it.” They chuckled at my retaliation.

    “Okay, but I want food because I am counting this as a date, Alright?” They said more as a question than a statement. I sighed before reluctantly nodding my head muttering a quiet okay before taking out my laptop and starting to write observations I have gathered through out the day, adding it to a document that I didn’t know I would be turning into a novel in less than a week.

    Pop Tate walked over to our table placing my food down before turning to the other occupant of the table to take their order. They smiled and ordered a F/F (favorite flavor) milkshake and a burger before turning back to the freshly started drawing. I noticed how they kept staring up at me then quickly looking back down and continuing the lines being translated from the pencil to the paper below it. “What is your name? I haven’t seen you around here, like ever.”

   They looked up at me once again before continuing to draw as they spoke. “So many questions. Do have a crush on me already? Anyway my name is Y/N Y/L/N, and you haven’t seen me around before because I moved here from Y/H/T (your hometown).” I nodded taking in the information before typing it out on the document.

   They cleared their throat giving me an expecting look as they grabbed a few of my fries and eating them. “Oh uh my name is Jughead Jones the third and I have lived here my entire life.” They nodded smiling as Pop Tate walks back over to our table placing down Y/N’s order before turning his toward me wiggling his eyebrows in a suggestive manner as I shook my head as if to say that this was not the interaction he thought it was.

   You chuckled at the unspoken conversation between the two and started to eat as Pop walked away to take another’s order. You continued on the mystery that was being printed onto the paper displayed in front of you as you continued to eat. I found myself staring at the person sitting in front of me as I continued to eat my food as well.

    Usually when I eat with others it is awkward, but you were different. Your phone went off about 45 minutes into this “date” and your face fell after reading the text that had found its way to your screen. You looked up and smiled as you found me staring, you then quickly wrote something on a napkin placing it on my keyboard. “That is my number so don’t leak it or anything.” I chuckled at this statement and looked back at the Y/E/C eyes in front of me.

   "Yeah you don’t have to worry about that. I don’t have any friends.“ I said chuckling a little. Instead of a sympathetic look I usually get, their eyes were filled with happiness. To be honest I’m a little confused my by this.

   They must have sensed this as you immediately said "We have something in common. Maybe we can be each others first friends.” They sounded so hopeful. I nodded to the statement as they stood from their seat. They gathered their material and waved to me before walking away, but not before turning to me and saying, “It was nice to meet you Jughead Jones the third.”

   I smiled slightly as they left. Which left me alone. I sighed as put the money down for the check and packing everything, leaving as well. Little did I know that this mystery new kid was in the same boat as me. And little did I know this was going to start our trek through all the shit everyone was afraid of.

Classic Rock Magazine Interview With Sebastian Bach

SEBASTIAN BACH          © Dave Ling - December 2002       

  It wasn’t the greeting that worried me. During the 13 years that I’ve been interviewing Sebastian Bach, there have been a variety of headlocks and bear hugs. Fortunately, today it’s just a super-firm handshake. Although in the past he’s spat huge globules of phlegm across the room to express disgust at certain subjects, and once even called to talk on a mobile phone whilst taking a piss, neither was I overly concerned about the former Skid Row frontman’s behavior during our encounter.

My biggest reservation was how this particular conversation might conclude. Last time we spoke face-to-face, during a press tour for Skid Row’s 1995 album ‘Subhuman Race’, matters concluded prematurely after I stated the journalistic consensus that the album was considerably below par. “We’ll see who’s still doing this in ten years time,” raged Seb with a face like thunder, before booting the back of my chair, storming from the room and cancelling the rest of his interviews for the day.

That decade he referred to isn’t yet up, but thankfully we’re both still here. “What you said back then hurt so much because I considered a writer like you, who’d written a lot of our early press, to represent the British media,” confides Bach while preparing for Classic Rock’s photo session. “It was hard to take, dude.”

The Canadian had joined Skid Row after being spotted jamming at the wedding of photographer Mark Weiss, and a support spot on Bon Jovi’s ‘New Jersey’ tour gave the fledgling quintet their breakthrough.

Unfortunately, Bach’s dark side was soon revealed and he claimed to have “punched the shit out of Jon, decked him on his fat little ass” when a dispute about a contract Skid Row had signed with Bon Jovi’s Underground publishing company was leaked to the press.

Seb’s wild man credentials were further emphasized by a string of antics, some amusing and some irresponsible. He wiped his derriere on a copy of the Daily Star at Docklands Arena (his tackle flying free in the process) and incurred a lifetime ban at Wembley through playing the song ‘Get The Fuck Out’ when warned not to. Even more regrettably, however, he also wore a T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan ‘Aids Kills Faggots’, and in front of MTV’s cameras threw a glass bottle back into a Massachusetts crowd after it had hit him on the head. A female 14-year-old required 125 stitches.

Finally, Skid Row’s patience snapped, and the relative failure of ‘Subhuman Race’ enabled them to dismiss Bach at the end of 1996. The last time he spoke to Classic Rock, in Issue 13, Sebastian claimed to have no idea why he’d been ‘let go’, adding ruefully: “I’ll never understand why we dropped the ball.” Now a solo artist, his 1999 album ‘Bring ‘Em Bach Alive’ has just been reissued, and Bach has a variety of projects on the go.

DL. You’re here for an appearance on the Never Mind The Buzzcocks, the BBC1 game show. Do you know much about British pop music?            SB. Ha ha… no. Well, Iron Maiden had a No 1 record, so that’s pop music, right?

DL. So how will you act when they inevitably take the piss, as they did to Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine and Bruce Dickinson from Iron Maiden?            SB. I’ve been on that show twice in America, but the American version flopped - hopefully that wasn’t my fault. I don’t know how a host on British game show could go after me… they’re the retarded ones for paying me $1,800 to come over for 45 minutes work. Dude, everyone says he’s gonna be horrible, but I’ll show him fuckin’ horrible! I can rewrite the fuckin’ level of horrible. I’ll give him a taste of horror.

DL. You recently posted an extremely touching tribute to your father, David Bierk, at your website. Which characteristics good or bad did you inherit from your parents?            SB. My dad was a painter who had shows all over the biggest galleries in New York. Elton John, Bon Jovi, Axl Rose and Gene Simmons all bought his paintings. He just let me know that nothing was impossible. My intensity, the way I talk, he made me realize that singing wasn’t a vocational choice, it was a life choice.            My only regret is that I’ve been on the road from the age of 13 to now, aged 34, and I missed out on so much family life. I never just got a bowl of popcorn, sat down with my dad and watched the TV. He told me on his deathbed, ‘Everybody in this world is too busy’. I’d say to readers of this magazine, if you’ve got somebody - whether it’s your brother, your mom or sister - just enjoy life with them for just a fuckin’ second, because I look back and God… [trails off].

DL. Since being kicked out of Skid Row in 1996 you’ve spread your wings into TV presenting and appearing in the Broadway versions of Jekyll & Hyde and The Rocky Horror Show.            SB. One of my idols, Geoff Tate [of Queensrÿche], keeps calling and asking how I got onto Broadway. The honest truth is that Broadway came to me. I never in a million years thought I’d have the braincells left to memorise the Jekyll & Hyde script. I shit you not, it’s like War And Peace. How it happened was that Jason Flom at Atlantic signed Skid Row in 1987, and Atlantic also has a theatre division. Jason called and said I had the meanest voice and the personality to do it, and believe me when I was Edward Hyde I became Edward Hyde. It was cool music, I swear, some of it’s like ‘Sad Wings Of Destiny’ [the 1976 Judas Priest album].

DL. When a woman in the first row handed you a rose, you bit the head off. Why did you do that?            SB. It was my way of saying, ‘I’m on Broadway, but I’m still Sebastian Bach’.

DL. By the time this article is printed, you will be on a year-long US tour playing the lead character in Jesus Christ Superstar.            SB. Andrew Lloyd Webber requested a stack of Skid Row CDs, and all my pictures, I swear to God. And he came back and said, ‘Hello, is Jesus Christ there?’, so he made the decision.

DL. Some might say that this is a role you’ve spent your life rehearsing for.            SB. [Sounding slightly hurt]: I must be a fucking moron. I never thought you would’ve said that, dude. Sometimes I’m so confused by other people’s perception of me.

DL. Well, they say that you’re an egomaniac.            SB. Dude, you have to be on of those to go on stage. What do you want to see, some fucking guy singing [in nerdy, apologetic voice]: ‘We are the youth gone wild’? If I didn’t have my ego I wouldn’t be doing it. I don’t think it’s misplaced though, I hope not. I wake up every day and hope I’m gonna have a great day, be the nicest guy ever. But if someone’s a dick to me, I’m gonna be a fuckin’ dick back to them.

DL. You’re an ass-kicking rock dude from the 80s that’s now playing Jesus. Could you imagine Axl or Vince Neil doing the same thing?            SB. Absolutely not, and that’s not a slight against them, Axl has already proved he can’t be on time. I love Axl Rose, but let me get this through everybody’s head: we’re talking eight shows a week for 42 weeks. That’s tough work.

DL. Would you someday like to follow your old rival Jon Bon Jovi into the movies?            SB. I don’t differentiate ‘movies’ or ‘Broadway’, what I care about is presenting my fans with something that entertains. And if I’m entertained by it my fans will be, too. So if I got a great film role, yeah, cool.

DL. What do you think of Jon’s acting abilities? And would he work you him in an acting role if the part demanded it?            SB. I’ve never seen him really act. There was one movie where he was a pot dealer, and I saw a little bit of that, but he’s a very good actor because he doesn’t smoke pot! I did have acrimony towards Jon for years, but on my Forever Wild TV show I interviewed Tico Torres [Bon Jovi drummer], we played ‘Lay Your Hands On Me’, had a brew at the bar and talked about the old days. All I was ever mad at Jon for was to let me have my own life. That was it. Please, I don’t need someone to hold my fucking hand.

DL. We didn’t get to see your VH1 rock show Forever Wild before it was cancelled back in April. Care to tell us about it?            SB. It was kinda obscure, I got to go through the VH1 vaults and pick the videos. We had ‘You Really Got Me’ by Van Halen on the first show, and W.A.S.P.’s ‘I Wanna Be Somebody’… but it was my show!

DL. That explains why it ran for just five months.            SB. Yeah, but it was fun. I got to go to Ted Nugent’s 200-acre farm and shoot wild boar, and eat it, of course. I went car racing with Vince Neil and golfing with Tommy Lee. I was in the studio with Rob Halford while he was recording the song ‘Crucible’… waaaaaah! It was 16 episodes, which was twice as long as the [first series of] The Osbournes. Maybe a fifth of the people watched it, but it was a midnight rock show.            They offered me another show, at four in the afternoon, but they would be picking the videos and it was cheesy things like Quiet Riot, stuff to laugh at. I will not make fun of heavy metal, or patronize people.

DL. You then resurfaced on - of all things - the Learning Channel’s The New Sideshow, which was described as “a not-for-the-weak-of-heart documentary on today’s more outrageous carnival acts” that included human pincushion The Impaler. Do you do these unusual things to keep you in the public eye, or because you enjoy them?            Of course because I enjoy them… doh! Let me offer this piece of advice, I’ve not changed my home phone number since 1989. Never make yourself too inaccessible, it’s good for business when people know where you are. I wake up, press play and it’s, ‘Hey Sebastian, do you want to do this?”… next message, ‘Hey Sebastian, how about this?’            You just have to play the cards that are dealt you, it’s a very different world than it was. I’m in this to sing, so if I can get my voice heard in whatever fashion then that’s what I’ll do. Ozzy is the most famous he’s ever been, not because of his music but because of a fucking TV show. I’m not being flown over to England to sing, I’m being flown over to go on a gameshow. That is fucked. What you also have to consider is that the venues I’ll be playing Jesus Christ in are the same ones that Skid Row headlined for ‘Slave To The Grind’ tour… the Paramount in Seattle, the Fox in Atlanta. But instead of doing one show, I’m now doing eight shows in the same venue. So I’ve finally topped what I did in the past.

DL. C’mon, you must admit you’d rather be coming here to play rock music?            SB. I’ve just saw in your magazine that Alex Lifeson says no British promoter wants Rush. Hey, I’ve been asking British promoters since 1996 to come over and they just laugh! I’ve done two full American tours, 104 shows on the first tour, 90 shows on the second, a sold-out tour of Japan. I’m dying to play here, man, but the offers they give me are like… restaurants! Don’t you have to suck first? I’ve never played England and flopped - not fucking once! Thank God for the USA.

DL. You just mentioned The Osbournes. Can you imagine the footage MTV would have got if they’d followed you around in 1992?            SB. Ha ha ha, there wouldn’t have been a TV show made out of it. You couldn’t air it. But there seems to be a perception that as soon as we woke up and did drugs and drank, and that’s not true. I never did a show drunk - ever.

DL. Am I right in thinking you’ve cut out most of those antics?            SB. I hate that shit, I’ve not done a line [of coke] since 1993. I have no desire to. A part of me still has that personality when I get too sad, when my dad died I was drinking way too much, but just beer. Back in those days everybody was fucking doing it, you were the weirdo if you weren’t.

DL. You were recently involved in what was dramatically reported as “making terroristic threats” to a New Jersey bartender who refused to let you take your drink outside his club, then for having marijuana and rolling papers on you when you were arrested.            SB. I’d been shooting an episode of Forever Wild with Vince Neil, who’s always a bad influence on me; they talk about the bad boys of rock, I’m like Queen Elizabeth compared to Vince. But there’s a side of me that can get down and dirty. I was with Vince for a week down on south beach in Miami, waking up each morning and just getting ripped. When I got back to New Jersey, my chick was giving me shit on the phone because she wanted to party with Mötley Crüe. And I was like, ‘Babe, it’s my job, I get paid to party with the Crüe. This is how I feed our kids, so let me party with the Crüe, you stay home and everything’ll be fine’. And she was like, ‘Grrrrrrrrr’. So I go, ‘Fuck you, I’m not coming home’ and tell the limo driver to turn around because we’re going to Broadway.            I get a hotel suite and get VH1 to pay for it, order up fucking booze and some other things, and all my friends come over to party. I stayed there for like two days, until she called and was nice to me. It’s a two hour limo drive home and by then I’m so fuckin’ drunk, my chick gives me a little bit of shit. So I take a bunch of Molsons [beers] and walk to this bar, I never drive while drunk. I’ve been going to this bar for 12 years and all these chicks, dudes and businessmen are excited to see me, so then I’m holding court. This guy suggests we go outside and bust a joint, but the bartender says he’s gonna call the police if I take my beer - I told him to go ahead. He fucking rails me, punches me right in the fucking head and I freaked out, so I tackled him around the waist brought him into the one wall, stood on his neck and said, ‘I’ll fucking kill you, mutherfucker’. The whole bar was freaked out, but he threw the first punch. I had a couple of joints in my pocket, so I got busted for marijuana. And the next day’s headline was, ‘Sebastian Bach Busted For Drugs And Terroristic Threats’. Dionne Warwick was arrested for having seven marijuana cigarettes, and I had a joint… someday maybe I can be as wild as Dionne fuckin’ Warwick. What fuckin’ bullshit.

DL. If Skid Row came back to you - and I stress those four words - would you someday agree to rejoin them?            SB. It’d all depend on the music, that’s the only reason I joined them in the first place. But Rachel [Bolan, bass] and Snake [guitar] were the best fucking songwriters I ever fuckin’ met, and they just don’t do it anymore. Anyone can go on the internet and find out what happened between me and the guys, just download the Ozone Monday record [make with singer Sawn McCabe]. That was supposed to be the fourth Skid Row record. The reason I’m not singing on it is that it fucking sucks! I mean, Andrew Lloyd Webber or Ozone Monday? Well [chuckles maliciously]…

“Kids think that music is free. My 14-year-old son downloads Arch Enemy and Cradle of Filth songs and I’m the asshole dad who says, ‘Bands worked really hard on those’”

DL. Do you even have any interest in hearing ‘Thick Is The Skin’, the album they’ve made with your replacement, Johnny Sollinger?            SB. No. But what fucking year will it come out. Those guys have been saying, ‘We got a whole album done’. Well, let’s fuckin’ hear it. I’m giving you two fucking albums, I’m giving you three fucking musicals, five tours. I’ve got nothing to hide, dude. You may not even like ‘…Bach Alive’, but at least I’m delivering product.

DL. Why do you feel that the band made such a phenomenal early impact, from the Marquee to Hammersmith Odeon in a matter of months?  SB. Just the songs and the way we attacked our music. Revolver magazine recently said Skid Row was one of the best metal albums of all time because they played a song like ‘Youth Gone Wild’ like they were playing ‘Angel Of Death’ by Slayer.            Would they be so successful now? In the year 2002 kids think that music is free. My 14-year-old son spends all day downloading Arch Enemy and Cradle of Filth and I’m the asshole dad who has to say, ‘You shouldn’t be making those CDs, those bands worked really hard on those’. He looks at me like, ‘What the fuck is your problem?’            I get like emails that say, ‘Sebastian, I went to five shops looking for ‘Bring ‘Em Bach Alive’ and couldn’t find it, but I downloaded it and it fucking rocks, dude’. One the one hand I wanna go, ‘Thanks man’, and on the other hand I wanna hold my head in my hands, but everybody’s in that same situation.

DL. So you were in agreement with Lars Ulrich on the Napster issue?            SB. Oh, definitely. I even did this CD called ‘Bach To Basics’ because somebody told me to go onto Napster and when I saw what Sebastian Bach stuff was available I almost fuckin’ committed suicide. The whole The Last Hard Men CD was there, before I even fuckin’ played it for my friends. So I ripped my own CD off Napster and now I sell it on the web.

DL. The last time we were in a room together you lost your temper in a row over ‘Subhuman Race’. Can you now stand back a bit and understand why fans felt it wasn’t as good as the first two?            SB. Yeah, but how can a writer say what a record should sound like when they’re not even in the band? What I find humorous is that nobody liked that record, but 12 years later we’re still talking about that fucking record. When I hear ‘Subhuman Race’ now I hear more Bob Rock [producer], because he did the same thing as he did on Metallica’s ‘Load’. He changed things. I remember him saying, ‘Everybody knows you can scream, Sebastian’, and suggesting I sing like Scott Weiland [of Stone Temple Pilots]. Why don’t you just take a thoroughbred racehorse and hit him on the fuckin’ kneecap with a baseball bat? I do like that album, but it’s not a fun record. ‘Youth Gone Wild’ was fun.

DL. Let’s imagine you can go back in time and change three events in your life. If you don’t mind, I’d like to guess that they would be: a) signing away such a large percentage of your royalties to Jon Bon Jovi, b) the bottle-throwing incident and c), not having hit Jon harder. Am I right?            SB. Awww, I have more good memories of Bon Jovi than bad ones now. I’ve bashed Jon relentlessly in the past, but I don’t feel that way any more. When I think of those times when I was touring with Bon Jovi and living at his house for two weeks… okay, maybe the deal we signed wasn’t the most equitable of all time, but it’s possible that if we hadn’t, you might never have heard of me. And I respect his tenacity in an industry that devours its young and old alike.            So to answer your question… I did wear a really ridiculous T-shirt, and I can’t believe I’m bringing it up again, but it was really rotten, really stupid. And the bottle throwing thing, yeah, I’d change that. Then again, if somebody cracks you in the head with a bottle, what do you do? You ain’t thinking rationally. If somebody hit me with a bottle in the head again I’d probably knock the fuck right out of them.

DL. You even turned down Playgirl?            SB. Twice. I already get known for things other than my voice, like my hair or going to jail or whatever, and I want to be known as a singer. That means more to me than anything.

Apart from your Broadway activities, what’s the delay in following up ‘Bring ‘Em Bach Alive’?            Atlantic Records signed me in 1987 and they still have first right of refusal [on my work]. ‘Bring ‘Em Bach Alive’ has the Atlantic logo and the Spitfire logo because Atlantic technically owns Sebastian Bach, and they license to certain territories where Atlantic didn’t put it out - including Britain, because Mary Hooton, my great friend, fucking rejected the fucking record.The next record will be done when it’s done. I want to deliver a product that’ll get the proper exposure; I don’t want it coming out three years later in one country than another. I’m doing it, but the fans have to realise how the internet has taken the wind out of the sails of the music industry. There’s always trepidation and anticipation about delivering a CD in this climate.

DL. How do you think you’ll feel aged 65 with 'Youth Gone Wild' tattooed on your arm? SB. I’ll just get “I was the” tattooed on my bicep. Right up here, dude. I got that space reserved.

 P.S. Dave says...          

Larger than life and twice as unpredictable, Sebastian Bach has now been out of Skid Row since 23rd December, 1996, the day that co-founding guitarist Dave ‘Snake’ Sabo sacked him after receiving a torrent of hate in answerphone form. The parting of ways between singer and the New Jersey band had been a long time coming. Notorious for short-fuse temper as for chiseled cheekbones and multi-octave voice, Bach drove the group’s instrumentalists mental but was accommodated by the rest of Skid Row for as long as their patience would stand. Post-Skids, Bach hasn’t exactly stuck to the traditional route. He acted in the musical versions of Jekyll & Hyde and Jesus Christ Superstar and went on to appear in various TV shows, though age and luvviedom have failed to mellow him. Sebastian recently completed a whirlwind tour of the UK and a new album – his first set of all-new solo material – is due next year. (17th December, 2004)

a complete analysis of the dad and mom energy of riverdale

So me and my sister continued our discussion of who on Riverdale has the most dad/mom energy and these are our conclusions. Note, a lack of mom or dad energy is not always a bad thing. Chaotic mom and dad energy can be more dangerous.

THE COOPERS:

Hal Cooper: No energy.

Alice Cooper: High chaotic mom energy. Consistently tries to be a good mother but sometimes as a result is a bad mother (e.g. sending Polly to the Sisters or trying to stop Betty from dating Jughead).

Betty Cooper: High mom energy but occasionally chaotic, much like her mother. She can be seen as motherly towards most of her friends and certainly towards Jughead BUT she is not driven by her mom energy in all things. For example, when she’s investigating cases she is not mostly driven by protectiveness but by the desire for truth. Also, she is shown to be threatened by people around her having mom energy (e.g. Toni and Chic) on occasion, which is a sign of lack of stability in your mom energy.

Polly Cooper: Surprisingly low mom energy considering she’s an actual mother.

Chic (we’re just ignoring that he’s not really a Cooper and probably murdered Charles): Thought he had no energy but actually has low mom energy, as seen by his holding Polly’s babies and taking them for a walk (yes, I know Betty said he looked at them weirdly but did we ever actually see that?). Currently needs parental energy in his life in order to nurture this.

THE ANDREWS:

Fred Andrews: HIGH DAD ENERGY. Some of the highest dad energy on the show. Will dad anyone in need of a dad. Also, stable dad energy, which is equally important.

Archie Andrews: People think he has high dad energy. Even he himself thinks he has high dad energy. In fact, his dad energy is kind of low and chaotic, but he tries very hard, so points for that I guess.

Mary Andrews: High, stable mom energy. We wish we had more of this kind of mom energy consistently around.

THE LODGES:

Hiram Lodge: Very chaotic dad energy. We stand by the theory that he instinctively attacks people he perceives to have high dad energy out of jealousy. Chaotic dad energy manifests with stealing someone else’s child (Archie), manipulating his daughter and taking her money, and not scrupling to have Jughead murdered, but still trying as evidenced by his vindictiveness towards Nick, the picture of Veronica in his office, and his consistent interest in Veronica’s life.

Hermione Lodge: Surprisingly low mom energy.

Veronica Lodge: Believes herself to have high mom energy, but her only model of momming is Hermione so many of her mom attempts come out weird (e.g. taking pity on Ethel Muggs). May someday grow into more mom energy.

THE SERPENTS:

FP Jones: Medium, chaotic dad energy. Shown to be a better dad toward the Serpents than his actual son. Tries to dad his son in Season Two but still does things like guilt trip the hell out of Jughead and shove him around. Probably his most stable dad moment was the end of Season One when his number one priority was protecting Jughead and the Serpents even while imprisoned. The good thing is he is aware of his chaotic dad energy and is trying to become more stable.

Jughead Jones: High, stable dad energy rivalling Fred’s though manifesting differently. In Season One he dads his own dad, in Season Two he so masterfully dads a gang that he’s barely joined up and they’re accepting him as a leader. A mark of his stable dad energy is that he is able to get along with Fred, both respecting a fellow stable dad. Note-Hiram finding Jughead’s dad energy threatening is why Jughead is targeted.

Sweet Pea: We’re debating whether he has dad energy or mom energy. Either way it’s very chaotic! Jughead is trying to mentor him and we believe he will eventually grow into stable mom energy.

Toni: High mom energy, what more can we say? Betty’s brief jealousy of her is due to her perceiving this mom energy which is highly compatible with Jughead’s dad energy and more stable than her own. However, she does not need to be with someone with dad energy, as evidenced by her relationship with Cheryl.

Fangs: We don’t know much about him but we instinctively feel he has low mom energy.

Joaquin: We know very little about him but we think he actually has medium dad energy.

Tall Boy: Wanted to believe he had dad energy, does not at all.

Penny Peabody: Never deceived herself about her utter lack of energy.

OTHERS:

Sheriff Keller: Medium, stable dad energy.

Kevin Keller: Parental energy of some type, would be high if the show ever gave him a chance to show it.

Josie McCoy: Not really the parental type but still fab.

Cheryl Blossom: My sister claims she has some dad energy. I’m not so sure. But maybe.

Valerie Brown: High parental energy of indeterminate type. Thought Archie had high dad energy but realized he didn’t.

Dilton Doiley: High and highly chaotic dad energy. (”You’re suffering from PTSD, Archie? Here, have a gun.”)

Penelope Blossom: No energy.

Reggie Mantle: No specifically parental energy but still a very energetic character, may someday evolve dad or mom energy.

Pop Tate: High and stable dad energy rivalling that of Fred Andrews. Wish we could see more of this amazing father figure.

Street artist, muralist, graphic artist David Andrews (AKA At What Cost) has had an amazing year.

About how he got into art  ‘Honestly I don’t know! I was always shit at art in school, and as a result I hated it. My dad was into photography, so when I had the option to take it at GCSE I thought it would be something we could do together. I always considered myself quite good at it, but it ended up being the only subject I failed. I went on to study Media & Moving Image at college and took a module on Photoshop which started my interest in graphic design. From there it was a series of lucky breaks and chance meetings which gave me quite a varied career.’

About his street art work he continued ‘I stumbled across a live painting event in Manchester and I really enjoyed it but didn’t ever think I’d be the one painting on the walls. It lived in the back of my mind until I got involved with an arts organisation in Chester where I got along particularly well with a guy called Jay Raven who was just starting out doing stencils and we did a couple of things together.’

A real turning point came for him a year later ‘I had a stall at a fair just outside Blackpool with some, looking back, very amateur pieces, but I’d taken some prints along as well. There was a couple there who were interested in my prints, asking if I’d heard of particular artists. At that point I hadn’t, but it kind of opened my eyes to the fact that these artists weren’t on a pedestal and there was a proper street art community out there.’

Strongly influenced by nature he says he is  ‘constantly painting birds, butterflies and octopuses. I think it’s also quite accessible to people who aren’t necessarily into street art, which is why I’ve done a couple of nature murals in hospitals. The nature infographic mural I did in Alder Hey Children’s Hospital is maybe my favourite piece of work, it’s in the cardiac & ophthalmology clinic, so I had the chance to do a load of research and come up with some facts about animal hearts and eyes along with some supporting images. Because some of their patients are visually impaired, I also included some textured medium on some of the pieces so the children could feel the work.’

His screen printing is heavily influenced by Andy Warhol  ‘I love how he combines photography with big blocks of bright colour, and how that a lot of street artists are now selling limited edition screen prints.’   Last year he curated a co-headline exhibition titled AEROSOL where he wanted to produce a series of screen prints but hit a real creative block.  About that he says ‘Within the space of a week I went to see a Warhol exhibition at Tate Liverpool, met up with Robin Ross in Blackpool who got me inspired to draw and paint directly onto tracing paper to make my own screen printing positives, and had a suggestion from a friend to do an Amy Winehouse print. I decided to make a series of ’27 Club’ portraits in a street art style with spray painted details all in a bright CMYK colour scheme.’

It has been a hectic year for him with some pretty sizeable commissions.  He painted two corridors in Oriel Chambers (the first prefabricated building in the world) based on its iconic windows, the infographic nature mural in Alder Hey, his first geometric abstraction mural painted on wooden boards in an office block with some really interesting architecture, and a temporary Beatles mural in the centre of Liverpool celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sgt Pepper’s – hectic indeed!

As well as the AEROSOL exhibition, he has also done some abstract pieces for Liverpool Art Fair where his work was also used for some of the promotional materials.  He is  currently working on ‘some Japanese inspired stuff for an exhibition later in the summer where I’ll be experimenting with laser cutting and Electroluminescent Wire.‘

About his street art he says ‘At the end of last year I got to paint some birds on a big doorway of the derelict Kidderminster Courts at a paint jam, and I pushed myself out of my usual style to paint Vanellope Von Schweetz for the ‘Battle of the Arcades’ theme at Tamworth Urban Arts festival.  I also took part in Leicester’s Bring The Paint festival where I painted portraits of Axel and Murray, a couple of therapy owls doing some amazing work around mental health in my local area, creating some marketing material for them and raise awareness of their worthwhile cause.’

About what is important to him about his art he says ‘I might not be able to make the world a better place, but it’s important to me that I can make the world a prettier place! Fame is at the other end of that scale. I really like seeing and hearing other people’s reactions to my work because all the non-commissioned stuff such as what I paint at festivals is the kind of thing which is mainly for me, if other people like what I do then that’s awesome. I’ll be honest that I’m a bit of a sell-out painting murals for commercial and corporate clients, but I still manage to include a lot of my own ideas in that work and there are worse ways to keep a roof over our heads.’

I was curious about his creative processes and whether it the same or different across the different platforms he works in.   ‘None of my work is art, it’s just design with some very good marketing! And that’s not self-deprecating to say… A majority of my stuff is based on photographs, but there’s a lot of method to the madness as opposed to just selecting a filter on the computer, printing the layers and cutting them out.

‘If I’m doing some birds, I’ll do a simple background shape, working out where I’ll include some in-stencil fades and shades to make them a bit more realistic, then I’ll do another 1 or 2 layers where I include all the details and scribble notes regarding what colours are on there. Sometimes I can have up to 12 different colours in one layer, so little annotations and a good reference image are vital.’

‘If I’m doing some of my abstract work I go out exploring with my camera taking pictures of buildings and interesting bits of architecture. I’ll come back and review the images, seeing if they work in a square frame etc. then split the photograph into the basic shapes and elements using a set of 30 predetermined colour schemes which are based on Wes Anderson films.’

Along with painting at Upfest he has a busy schedule for the rest of the year with teaching film-making to groups of teenagers on the National Citizen Service over the summer and painting a mural up two flights of a staircase before setting off to Amsterdam for a well deserved short break but also preparing a presentation which he is taking into schools about fitting graffiti and hip hop culture into different areas of the curriculum.

You can also see some of his work at Liverpool Art Fair which runs from 5th July – 10th September at Pier Head Village in Liverpool, and his lasercut neon works will be part of another exhibition running from 11th August – 23rd September at the dot-art gallery in Queen’s Avenue, Liverpool.

And so we get to Upfest.  I asked him what he was looking forward to.   He said ‘I still can’t believe I’m at the same event as Buff Monster so I’m going to take his artist edition of Montana Black to sign and TapeOver do some awesome work!  I’ve only ever seen Fanakapan’s stuff on Instagram so I really want to see how he works his chrome balloon magic and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a MyDogSighs piece on a wall so that will be cool.  I also want to have a beer with Goopmassta!‘  He adds ‘I’m really looking forward to meeting the other artists; whether that’s catching up with ones I already know, or meeting others for the first time. Hearing some nice comments about my work from the public would be lovely, but there’s going to be so much amazing work from everyone else.’

Though at the time of writing this he hadn’t fully decided what he will be doing but he said that it will definitely include some birds and probably some flowers. ‘I’ve done 2 brand new screen prints exclusively for Upfest which I sent down to the gallery yesterday! They’re pretty unique where I’ve spray painted the bird’s colouring using stencils, then screen printed a black halftone layer over the top to give the paint some depth and shape. There are two designs; one of a kingfisher, one of a bluejay which will be available from the art sales areas throughout the festival and on the website afterwards. I’m really pleased how they turned out.’

As such a busy artist I asked him what the best piece of advice he was given when starting out.  ‘The best piece of advice I was given was to get commercial representation, which means I don’t have to do a lot of the business side of things and allows me to concentrate on producing work. That being said, I couldn’t have done it without the support of my girlfriend and my family who probably believe in me more than I believe in myself.’

Upfest Saturday 29, Sunday 30 Monday 31 July 2017

Upfest Festival Map

During the day you can see him painting at North Street Green.  He did ask me to say  ‘If you’re reading this, please bring me some suncream because I’m a bit ginger and very forgetful!’

You can also see some of his screenprints at the REX pop-up shop in Cabot Circus.

At What Cost Website         Instagram      Facebook       Twitter

Upfest – Interview with ‘And at What Cost’ – does this man ever sleep Street artist, muralist, graphic artist David Andrews (AKA At What Cost) has had an amazing year.