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justmefangirlingoverbuddie · 3 years

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TV Quiz Questions:

Choose 4 6 of your favourite TV Shows: You should try this out too...

1. Sherlock

2. Teen Wolf

3. Nancy Drew

4. Supernatural

5. Wizards of Waverley Place

6. The Originals

The first character I fell in love with:

Sherlock Holmes

Stiles Stilinski

Nancy Drew

Dean Winchester

Alex Russo

Klaus Mikaelsson

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now:

Mycroft Holmes

Derek Hale (I was really suspicious in the beginning but now he is one of my fave characters)

Ace

Castiel (I LOVE HIM SOO MUCH)

Justin Russo

Freya Mikaelson (I was worried she would be evil at first)

The character everyone else loves that I hate:

Mary Morsten (John deserved better from the beginning)

Cora was kind of annoying

I don't have one .. yet

I think some people agree with me - Mary Winchester

I don’t have one

I don’t hate him but Vincent could be so frustrating

The character everyone else hates that I love:

I don’t have one

Deucalion turned out to be pretty good character - even as a villain

I actually really like Amanda Bobbsey - she’s so sweet. (I just don’t want her as Ace’s girlfriend)

Lucifer - He’s just misunderstood (lots of people agree to with me to)

I don’t have one

I actually wanted Finn Mikaelson to come back

The character I would have sex with:

Sherlock is hot

All the guys on teen wolf- Stiles, Derek, Scott, Isaac, Theo, Liam …..

Ace - I know he would be so sweet

Dean Winchester and Castiel are at the top of my list but if I was being real … all of them

None but only cause I think of them as eternally young

All the Mikaelson men and Marcel and Jackson but first things first Klaus

Who are your five favourite characters (In order):

Sherlock, John, Mycroft, Mrs Hudson, Lestrade

Stiles, Scott, Derek, Coach, Lydia

The Drew Crew- Nancy , Ace, George, Bess, Nick (In order)

Dean, Castiel, Sam, Crowley, Bobby

Alex, Harper, Justin, Max, Jerry

Klaus, Rebekah, Elijah, Freya, Hayley, Kol

Favourite minor character:

Mycroft (does he count?)

Coach - THE FUNNIEST GUY EVER and all of the parents

Ryan Hudson- I want to see his relationship with Nancy grow

Charlie- I miss her so much

Mr Laritate

Hope Mikaelson

A pairing that you love (Romantic and Non- Romantic):

I love Sherlock and John but I really want more Sherlock and Mycroft (the brothers are so cute)

Stiles and Derek- They are hilarious!!!

Ace and Nancy - Nace supremacy

Sam and Dean are the centre of everything but I love Dean and Cas too

Alex and Harper- the besties

Klaus and Hope - he loves her unconditionally

Favourite season:

Sherlock- Season 3

Teen Wolf- Season 3

Nancy Drew- Season 2

Supernatural- Season 4 and 5

Wizards of Waverly Place- Season 4

The Originals - Season 1

Favourite episode:

Season 3 episode 1 - The Empty House

Season 3 episode 18 - Riddled

Season 1 episode 17 - The Girl in the Locket

Season 4 episode 18 - The Monster at the End of This Book

Season 4 episode 21 - Wizards of Apartment 13B

Season 1 episode 21 - From a Cradle to a Grave

Character you would kill off:

Molly - its not that I don’t love her but she’s not essential to the story

Baeden - Sterek needs to happen

Carson Drew - It would be interesting to see how Nancy would handle losing both of her parents

Sam and Dean should have been together in death and life

Professor Krumbs - It would parallel the Harry Potter series with Dumbledore

Marcel should have died for a short time and then resurrected - Klaus would realise how much he loved him

The character that I think the show ruined:

John Watson - He wasn’t ruined AT ALL but he was less impressed by Sherlock as the seasons went on

Kira Yukimura- She deserved better

Nick (Ned Nickerson) - only because he’s really different to his book counterpart but I don’t hate him

Crowley - He didn’t deserve to die at all

Mason - I don’t think it was in character for him to ‘cheat’ on Alex - he loved her

Hope Mikaelson - she contributed to the death of her mother

The most attractive male and female character:

Male: Shelock Female: None (I don’t remember)

Male: Derek Hale Female: Lydia Martin

Male: Ace Female: Bess Marvin

Male: Dean Winchester Female: Bella

Male: Mason Female: Alex Russo

Male: Klaus Mikaelson Female: Hayley Marshall

The character death that was the worst for me:

Sherlock’s fake death - John crying was heartbreaking

Allison Argent - she died in the arms of the man she loved and her dad was devastated

Lucy Sable - she killed herself because of extreme bullying and never got to meet her daughter

The first death of Sam - Dean’s speech made me cry soo much

No one died - that I remember

Klaus and Elijah- They died together

The character that is the most like me:

Molly - I am an awkward fangirl of Sherlock too

I don’t think I am similar to any but Id love to be as charming as Stiles and as brave as Scott and smart as Lydia

I’m not like any of the characters but I think I relate most to George- I too have many younger siblings.

Castiel and I are both awkward AF and I don’t understand enough pop culture references

Alex and I are both lazy AF

I have a temper that could rival that of Klaus

The characters that deserved better:

All of them deserve the world but I think Mycroft deserves better

Stiles and Derek deserve to be happy together

Nancy deserves better. She should be happy with Ace and not have to deal with her dad lying and the Hudsons

All of the characters deserve to be happy on Supernatural - They deserve the world, Dean , Sam and Castiel

Max should have got to keep his magic and be happy with his siblings

All of the Mikaelsons deserved to live happily - Klaus should have gotten to raise his daughter

My four least favorite characters, past or present:

Moriarty (I loved to hate him), Sargent Sally Donavan, Mary

Erica, Mr Lahey , Kali , Meredith Walker

Gil Bobbsey (he’s so manipulative), Everrett Hudosn, Ceila Hudson, Diana Marvin

Metatron, God, Samuel Campbell, Mary Winchester

Gigi, Stevie, Hugh Normous, Gorog

Esther, Mikael, Dhalia, Aurora de Martel

A character I’m indifferent about:

Anderson - he felt remorseful after thinking that Sherlock was dead

Kira - Her character was good but I dint love her

Bess - she can be a little shallow at times

Meg- her voice annoyed me sometimes but she loved Cas

Professor Krumbs could be little mean

Sometimes I loved her and other I hated her but in the end I think she is a strong female character

A ship I’ve never been able to get into/ shouldn’t have happened:

John and Mary - She wasn’t a great wife

Derek and Baeden- I didn’t see any chemistry at all

Nick and Nancy - Even they are endgame in the books, they didn’t have any chemistry on screen

Sam and Ruby - Mostly cause she was really sus from the beginning

Justin and Rosie - He was better with Juliet

Hope and Roman - He used her and that’s horrible on such a young girl

A ship I’ve never been able to get over:

Sherlock and John whether it be friends are lovers - they are supreme

Stiles and Derek- Even though its not canon its the best ship on the show

Nancy and Ace- They haven’t gotten together yet but I love the angst

Cas and Dean whether it be friends are lovers - they are supreme

Alex and Mason - those 2 were cute

Rebekah and Marcel- It took so long for them to be together but they finally got there

A cute, low-key ship:

Sherlock and Mycroft (not romantically- ew) as the best of brothers

Scott and Alison were so soft

Nick and George are cute- they are healthy and communicate really well

Sam and Elieen

Justin and Juliet - those nerdy cuties

Davina and Kol

My favourite storyline/moment:

Sherlock tells John he is alive - that was shocking

Dark Stiles - Nigutsune

Nancy finding about her true heritage and talking to Ryan and Nace

Cas saves Dean and becomes a part of the rest of the show

Alex erases herself and her brothers in the movie

All Klaus and Hope scenes

A storyline that never should have been written:

Sherlock’s long lost sister

The whole of season 6b

The death of Owen Marvin - he didn’t deserve to die.

Dean’s final death and Sam having to live without him

Alex and Justin accidentally turn Max int a girl

The death of Klaus, Elijah and Hayley in the final season just because of legacies

#supernatural #sherlock #the originals #nancy drew #wizards of waverly place #teen wolf

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rokutouxei · 3 years

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the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart

ikemen vampire: temptation through the dark theo van gogh / mc | T | [ ao3 link in bio ]

The challenge seemed pretty simple: to try to befriend the university bookshop’s most sour employee, Theo van Gogh. As a literature major with a boatload of book recommendations on her back, it ought to be a simple task indeed. But as she uncovers what lies between Theo’s pages, the more she finds it harder to become closer to him without having to put the feeling directly into words. What can she learn from Theo about what it means to stay—and how can she teach Theo about what it means to let go? | written for ikevamp big bang 2020!

[ masterpost for all chapters ]

CHAPTER 14 OF 22

... I choked on such longing I couldn’t spit out. Yes, desire is so different when God bore you hungry. I could have devoured anything and still have been starving. In one version of our story the fruit is in your chest. David, I eat it anyway. O, I know nothing but to take & keep taking.

- Belovéd, Yves Olade

Something in their world shifts.

She hadn’t exactly formally talked it out with Vincent, but it’s somehow settled that she would be there for him to talk to whenever he had something about his exhibit that he wanted to discuss. It was different to have someone on “neutral ground”—someone who wasn’t Theo, who wasn’t carrying the weight of having to bear everything else for the exhibit to happen. And Theo doesn’t mind sharing the space with Vincent with her, either. ‘

It starts simple. A little group chat with Theo (although he rarely responds to the messages) and Vincent to toss ideas, throw little inspirational things. On Friday afternoons, when her schedule is a little more open, she sometimes visits the van Gogh house to check on Vincent and what he’s done so far. She helps him with the expressions on his models, gives him insight into what a viewer would think of the painting. Having been born and raised in this place, she gives the best advice on what places would have the best views to paint, where it would be possible to go outside and sketch and draw.

The exhibit slowly comes into shape.

Theo helps Vincent with the technicals: looking for a place to set it up, preparing the documents for the panel, buying the art materials, providing some comments for half-finished works. She helps Vincent with the storyline: drawing out his story of the little boy with paint seeping out of her hands, leaving a trail of art wherever he goes. How the world changes with every bit of it he touches.

But most importantly, they make sure they are there for Vincent, constantly nudging him in the direction he wants to go but is sometimes too hesitant to.

The final exams roll in with the same kind of raucousness as the midterms did, but there is a quiet kind of understanding between her and Theo that is different from the last time. The gang—she, Theo, Arthur, and Dazai—gathers to study together that pre-finals week, but it’s as if it’s only her and Theo around.

She peers up from what she’s writing on her notebook and when she finds Theo staring, she smiles up at him and he turns away with a grumble at being caught even if he knew he would. When he has his glasses on and is busy reviewing something on his computer, his eyes running left and right over pages of notes, she observes the way the feeble sun shines weak gold over his deep honey-colored hair, soft and likely gentle to the touch—and he lets her.

Arthur, of course, has something he wants to say, but this time he’s smart enough to hold it in, Dazai nudging him gently with his elbow, knowing it would be the worst shame to interrupt the little world she and Theo are in.

It is only once final exams have finished that the preparation for the exhibit rolls into full force for the brothers. Both Theo’s hours at the bookshop and Vincent’s hours at the café lessens as the university rolls into holiday mode, and now more than ever is Vincent working non-stop at his paintings, like they’re burning to get out of him.

Vincent now has time to get out his art.

And Theo—Theo has time to dream about the future.

And dreaming about the future.

Just in time for Christmas.

“Hey Arthur, what should I get Theo?”

She and Arthur are sitting at the Little Owl, waiting for Dazai to arrive. The two lovebirds were having their Christmas date early, because this year, Arthur is coming home to his family, likely to mooch for money. She intended to say no at first—after all, this is their date, regardless of whatever label they had for whatever was going on between the two of them—but upon the realization that Dazai was not only picky with food (and also had great taste) but also footing the bill, ‘yes’ was the only possible option.

Besides, Arthur wasn’t taking no for an answer, and she had to wrestle herself out of his original condition that she could only come if she was bringing Theo along, like a double date.

Arthur looks up from the little crossword puzzle he was solving on the café’s shared newspaper. “A kiss,” he answers without missing a beat. “Twenty, maybe. That might soften him.”

“Arthur.”

“Oh, he uses that exact tone on me too, little miss. Very uncanny.”

“I’m not giving him a kiss,” she sighs, turning her head back to her notebook, with the scribbled list of people and items next to their names. “You’re the worst person to ask.”

Arthur puts on a faux-offended face. “I’m only telling you what he’d appreciate the most.”

“Okay, smarty,” she rolls her eyes. “I’m just trying to get everyone Christmas presents.”

“You’re getting him something for Christmas?” Arthur’s eyes are wide in genuine surprise.

“I’m getting you something too!”

He hums. “Is that so. Entirely normal, platonic gifts.”

“Arthur!” she pouts. “I swear, there’s no bigger meaning to it. I like giving gifts for Christmas. It’s kind of routine at this point.”

“So you’re getting Vincent a gift too.”

“Of course.”

“And I, Dazai, and Isaac.”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “What, I have to give you a full list of who I’m giving gifts to for Christmas?”

“Yes,” Arthur says, tapping her nose with a pen. She scrunches up her nose in response. “Checking for fairness.”

“Fairness?!” she looks at him pointedly. “Look, you’re just fishing for clues that I’ll get Theo something—” she raises her fingers to make air quotes, “—‘more meaningful’ and ‘more valuable’ than the rest of you guys as a clue to whatever the hell your theory is.”

“It’s not a theory, little bird, it’s an observation,” Arthur says, with a laugh. “The fact that you still refuse to say what my theory is out loud is really telling, you know?”

“No, it’s because it’s not true.”

“What is not true?”

“Your theory.”

“Which is?”

Which is that I’ve entirely fallen in love with Theo and I don’t want to admit it because I’m afraid of what happens after that and if I own up to it. It’s not true at all. Not even the littlest bit.

Why would she be afraid of something she loves?

Not her, no. She’s the kind of person who runs toward what she wants.

This doesn’t make any sense.

She sighs. “Why did I even ask you. This is pointless. I’ll ask Vincent instead.”

“Oh, but he wouldn’t know what our dearest Theo would want,” Arthur hums. “He’s hard to give gifts to.”

“Wait, ‘our’?” she begins to argue, but then shakes her head. “Never mind. How are you claiming more knowledge than Vincent? Theo hates your guts.”

“Because he knows I know him.”

“That means he hates my guts too.”

“He does.”

She sighs. There’s not much point arguing with Arthur oftentimes—the best way is to surrender and then just try and figure out a way out of the mess one had walked into afterward. “Okay, fine. What is it that he’d appreciate getting for Christmas?”

Arthur grins. “You owe me one?”

She groans. She knows she will regret this deeply like she did the last time, but—“I do! Now ‘fess up!”

The holiday season in their university town is quiet. Much quieter, at least, than on regular school season. Most of the students go back to their hometowns after the exams, and the streets get quieter and quieter the closer it is to Christmas. Stores that used to be open most of the day open later and close earlier; cafés and libraries and emptier; the streets are less crowded. The hustle and bustle become muted and more peaceful.

Theo likes being on campus around this time of year because it’s different from the usual. Before Theo attended the university, when Vincent was the only one out here, his brother used to come home for the holidays. But ever since Theo came here, and the entire incident with Vincent’s graduation and his project came into light, they hadn’t gone home—mostly to save the money, but also because it doesn’t… feel right to go home back yet.

That’s alright. It’s not as if it’s lonely out here in late December.

Not all students go home. Arthur goes home—he says it’s for a sweetheart who has “long been missing him”, but they all know better. Dazai and Isaac stay a little longer than the other students do, but they go home as well. But Vincent and Theo stay.

And so does she.

It’s a beautiful city to spend the winter in, after all.

Like most places, there’s a little holiday culture of its own in the town as well. A student representative council gathers early in December to arrange a gigantic potluck-slash-party at around noon on the 24th, where students who have stayed get to hang out with everyone else who is still there to share some Christmas cheer. The event is usually held at the Grove, which means there’s also space to ice skate. Some vendors are invited to sell their wares of Christmas food as well—and of course, alcohol is included. Speakers are installed and Christmas music, both lively and more romantic, play throughout the course of the party. Those who sign in earlier get to join in an exchange gift affair at the latter part of it too. There’s also a raffle for little gifts and prizes. And of course, there’s the snowball fight. It’s a small, homey event, and many students actually decide to stay on campus for this particular party.

Every year, Theo is pretty neutral about the potluck.

Every year, Vincent wants to go. So Theo always comes with him.

And this year… Vincent is inviting her too.

He considers getting her a pack of highlighters.

He doesn’t know much about the world of stationery and fancy studying materials, but there’s a certain brand of fancy highlighters he sees a lot around campus. They’re not the easiest brand to get, according to his research, but if he orders it soon it might just make it on time.

Or maybe a fountain pen?

Fountain pens are classy. And thoughts have been given on them, so he knows it’s not a bad shot. He isn’t quite sure what kind, though, what brand, and maybe he could get one that’s the exact same model and brand as his, but isn’t that a little too obvious? He doesn’t want to be too obvious. He doesn’t want it to be obvious at all, or even known.

A book, perhaps, might be the best option, then.

Books have been an integral part of their… relationship, anyway. No other meaning to that. If there is anything to be read about that, then that’s not on him, is it? That makes this entire process simpler. He’ll just need to drop by the bookstore, check the stocks, pick up the most mundane and boring poetry book—the lamest, the worst, why would he give something meaningful—and then get a gift bag, maybe some wrapping paper—

Theo is so deep in his thoughts he doesn’t catch Vincent entering the room, even as the door behind his older brother closes with a click. The look on Theo’s face—furrowed brows, tense shoulders, the light in his eyes—makes Vincent smile just the tiniest bit.

The sound of his voice shakes Theo out of his reverie.

“Have you chosen what to get her?” Vincent asks, providing no context. He doesn’t need to. He knows his brother well, and he even turns away from Theo to lessen the blow, pretending to look for something in his bedside drawer.

“I’m not getting her anything,” Theo scoffs weakly, his frown deepening as the tips of his ears turn bright red.

Sometime around noon of the 24th, the three of them meet at the plaza to join the potluck. The brothers bring cupcakes—“I didn’t know you baked, Vincent!” “It wasn’t me, it was Theo.” “Oh?”—and she brings some spaghetti, and the rest of the table is overflowing with food to eat. Everyone is dressed in shades of gold, red, green, and white. Music plays through the speakers attached to the streetlights.

Her face kind of hurts with how big she’s smiling.

She doesn’t hate life on the campus, no, but it’s become monotone, a little too uninteresting that leaves her on edge. It’s exactly why she was so eager to get on with Arthur’s dare and get to know Theo in the first place—she had that sense that maybe it would bring her somewhere new, somewhere fascinating. The only exception to the otherwise boring campus life is on big events like this holiday party, and the feeling is something she can’t get enough of.

The party goes just about as one would expect—her, pulling Vincent around by the elbow getting him to try all the different kinds of food laid out (“No, no, I couldn’t possibly eat anymore—” “Just one more bite! Just one!”); her, pulling Theo by the wrist to join her and Vincent in ice-skating (“I’m not interested.” “You have no say in the matter!”); and then, of course, Theo, pelting her right in the face with a snowball (the most annoyed pout she can muster, together with “Oh you want war, then you’re getting it!”)

It is already four in the afternoon when the three of them make it out of the hubbub. Theo is walking with his hands in his pockets, humming along to one of the Christmas songs now aggressively stuck in his head after having heard it at least 60 times in the past four hours. She teases him about it and he frowns about it, but he’s still humming.

“I ate too much!” she whines, clutching her stomach pitifully as they walked. “Absolutely no regrets though. I love Christmas potluck, but this year was just crazy.”

Vincent laughs. “You really shouldn’t have gotten that last pretzel,” he chides.

“But it was so good! I don’t know where they sourced that cinnamon, but it made me cry.”

Theo snorts. “You cried?”

“I did, I don’t understand how one wouldn’t,” she sighs. “Theo, you were just too into your chocolate-topped-with-caramel-topped-with-strawberries-topped-with—” she takes a breath, “—diabetes cake thing. Why was that even allowed to exist.”

“You just have no taste,” Theo says, but it has no venom in it.

She grins. “Neither do you.”

“That makes us even.”

She should be going home by now—the sun will be setting soon, and she’d rather not be walking home in the dark in the snow—but her little apartment building is rather empty for the holidays, and it can get quite lonely when the rest of the campus is still celebrating. It’s a good thing she doesn’t need to tell the brothers for them to understand, and they let her walk with them all the way back to their little house, the one she’s been in so often in the past few months, it kind of feels like a second home too.

“Hot chocolates?” Vincent asks once they’ve made it through the threshold with matched sighs, hanging his coat by the rack. She whoops and cheers.

“Yes please!” she says, “I’ll choose a movie!”

Christmas has never really been a special holiday to her in the past. Sure, it’s enjoyable, and involves a lot of food and gifts, the questionable-if-enjoyable company of a lot of family members, sometimes even distantly extended ones, and most of the sense of the holiday is about its commercialized form instead of the actual religious holiday, giving it an alienating feeling, but—

This year it’s a little different.

Feels a little different.

Not quite like the usual.

Not when she’s snuggled under a blanket, Theo in between her and Vincent, a mug of hot chocolate in her hands, Klaus on the TV. Not when it’s been a long semester of burning the midnight oil studying and working so hard, and then suddenly it feels like it’s okay to rest.

Rest in this place that lets her curl up warmly in its softness.

And sure, maybe some things feel the same, familiar, like Theo’s nose, scrunched up because he’s taking the movie a little too seriously, or Vincent’s sunny smile, or Arthur’s text message in her phone of [ no mistletoe? 🎄 ]—but it’s different.

The longing tearing at her heart, she begins to be sure that she’ll miss this.

It’s not home but she’s sure if one day she will ever find it, it will probably feel like this.

They sit around the living room talking to each other even after the movie ends, and by the time it truly feels like the day has settled down around them, the sun is long out of the sky. Slowly, the sinking feeling that she had overstayed her welcome begins to crawl over her, once Vincent brings their now-empty mugs onto the kitchen sink. She straightens up at her seat, nervously fidgeting next to the mountain of blankets separating her and Theo on the couch.

And then suddenly, she remembers.

“Oh, but before the night ends—”

She digs into her bag and pulls out a small gift, wrapped with a yellow ribbon. Vincent returns to the living area just at the right moment, so she hands the present to Vincent. “Merry Christmas, Vincent! It’s not much, but I hope it proves helpful for your current project.”

He doesn’t know it yet, but it’s a box of fresh paints, the brand he uses. Not in as wide an array of colors of what he does have, but still a good number. She made sure to check which ones he used the most.

“You didn’t have to!” he says, summer sun in his smile. “Thank you so much!”

“You’re welcome, Vincent, of course,” she says. And then, she pulls out another thing—turning towards Theo as she hands him a box, neatly held together with starry wrapping paper and a sheer white ribbon. “Merry Christmas, Theo. Thanks for everything this year.”

Vincent chuckles at the look of surprise on Theo’s face. Theo looks back at his brother, betrayed.

But he doesn’t have much time for that, because the gift is hovering in between him and her awkwardly. He takes it and mumbles a soft, “Um, thanks.”

She blinks. “Do you not want it?”

“I just wasn’t expecting it.”

“Surprises are good this time of year,” she says. Grins when she catches the tips of Theo’s ears already pink. Vincent spots it too and laughs, as he reaches out from underneath their little Christmas tree to hand them some gifts as well.

By the heft of it, she guesses what’s inside her wrapped present is a small painting; she beams at Vincent and throws him an embrace in thanks. Vincent gifts Theo a gray sweater with a reindeer on it, the kind of gift one would receive from their grandmother instead of their brother, but Theo quickly puts it over his shirt excitedly anyway.

She wonders why Theo hasn’t opened her gift to him yet.

Vincent manages to say up to half of “And what about you, Theo?” when Theo quickly gets up on his feet, saying, “I should walk you home,” pointing at the clock on the wall. Solidly eight at night. Not that late, really, but—there’s no good overstaying. Her heart drops a little but she nods anyway.

“Yeah, I should,” she agrees. “Thank you for today, Vincent.”

He beams. “Of course. Come join us anytime.”

Theo holds the gift box she had given him under his arm and turns to her. “Ready in 5?”

“Yup, I just need to go to the restroom,” she says. “I’ll be back.”

She clears her head quickly in the bathroom. She doesn’t know when she started to get so riled up whenever Theo walked her home—late evenings at the van Goghs on Fridays spent talking about the exhibit has made it a common affair—but tonight, her heart is hammering in her chest somehow. It’s been a normal day. Nothing’s different, she convinces herself, so there’s no need for all these theatrics and heart acrobatics.

When she gets out to the foyer, she catches Theo leaning against the wall, his hands in the pockets of his coat, and—

The deep blue scarf around his neck.

The one she chose for him.

Arthur said the best gift to give Theo is one he will be able to use, but—

She hadn’t imagined seeing it in use would leave her dry of words, too.

“Let’s go?”

She pretends the flush in her face is due to the sudden cold. “Yeah, let’s go.”

The walk home isn’t entirely quiet. She checks her phone and shows him the photos of Christmas eve the rest of their friends have sent them, in the group chat Theo never checks because he’s just not that kind of guy. Then they talk about the party, her profusely accusing Theo of attempted murder for having hit her right on target at the face pretty hard with that snowball. And then, they turn toward talking about the exhibit, and Vincent, and the upcoming year and—

Talk like this, about the little things, like they usually do.

The comforting usuals of their friendship.

Nothing different. Nothing new.

Just the usual.

Finally, after 20 minutes she wanted to last forever, they make it to her apartment complex. They bid goodbye at the entrance. She’s just about turned around to leave when she feels the warmth of his fingers around her wrist, pulling her back.

“Theo?” “Hondje," they call to each other at the same time.

He hands a small, wrapped box he’s kept underneath his coat towards her.

“For you.”

She blinks. Oh, if Arthur could have seen their mirrored expressions from their exchange of gifts, he would have laughed so loudly. “What is this?”

He narrows her eyes at her, as if she said something stupid. “A gift.”

“I mean—” she begins, but then just chuckles. “I mean thanks. This means a lot.”

“Don’t think about it too hard. Rest well,” he says, the following syllables of her name just light on his lips. The sound of it makes her nerves flutter. She holds onto the gift box in her hand tightly instead, as if making sure it’s there. That this is real. Theo gives her a look like she’s transparent. “You’re always welcome at the house. No matter how long you stay. Merry Christmas.”

A smile creeps up on her face uncontrollably. “Merry Christmas too, Theo.”

She waves goodbye to him and watches him disappear off the corner before she runs upstairs to go to her room—to shut the door behind her and take a deep breath. She shrugs her coat off, tucks the mittens inside the pockets.

Puts the little box she’d been holding so carefully, still warm from Theo’s coat, along with her little wrapped painting from Vincent, underneath the small makeshift Christmas tree sitting on her kitchen counter.

Earlier that day, Theo had slipped a note in between the pages of a poetry book—on an old receipt he’d scribbled on at the back, which said: thanks for helping my brother out. thought our little miss ‘love is the answer to all of the world’s problems’ would enjoy a bit of e.e. cummings.

And tomorrow, first thing on Christmas morning, sipping on hot chocolate with sugar marshmallows on top, she will open the box and find the note and grin widely. And, in a reversal of her usual, she will make herself comfortable on the couch, overlooking the window, the falling snow, and read the book slowly, investing her heart in each syllable. Listening to every sound in her head. Carrying each word gently, taking her time.

Dipping her feet lightly into the book. Relishing in the curve of the words on her lips as she reads—words Theo chose and wrapped into a gift, then given to her.

#the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart #ikemen vampire #ikevamp theo

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dramaclover · 3 years

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Ending & Thoughts: Legal Mavericks 2020

Initial Thoughts

When the first drama came out, I was one of the few people that wasn’t obsessed with it. I mean it was good and I like the message but I wasn’t as into it as everyone else. The bromance between Vincent & Owen wasn’t that great of a watch. And the cases weren’t as interesting. So when I went into watching the sequel, I didn’t have much expectations. Also cause sequels tend to not be as good, example Line Walker 3 wasn’t the best sequel. But this sequel proved me wrong. It was waaay more enjoyable then the first one.

Plot & Characters

Hope Man (Vincent Wong) is a blind barrister that works together with Gogo Kuk (Owen Cheung) a former police turned private detective & Deen Jie (Sisley Choi) who is Hopes legal executive. Together they solve various cases and uncover the justice behind it. New cast members included Eva Shaw (Kelly Cheung) a rival barrister, Kan Siu Wang (Pail Chun) Hopes former Master that mentored him. Kwok Lam (Jessica Kan) Hopes new apprentice & Kong Bo Chai (Lesley Chiang) an inspector police were both fun new additions to the cast.

For most direct sequels there are very rare instances where I would like the new cast additions. For example The Exorcists Meter 2.0 I hated all the new additions to the cast. But for this sequel, I like all of them - well most. For some people they believe Bo Chai & Kwok Lam were unnecessary but I find that they were a nice comic relief (with the bickering) and Bo Chai was needed since she was a police they were able to solve more cases with her help. Kwok Lam though she was born rich, she has a strong sense of justice & she would even go against her Father to pursue it. Kan Siu Wang shocked me with how he’s not as evil as you’d think. You would think he would be the ultimate boss that Hope needs to defeat but that’s not it. He likes power and money but he also knows there’s fine line between black & white.

Now, here comes my least favourite character which is Eva Shaw. And I’m sure anyone can guess why. Cause she is a Never Wong (Ali Lee) replacement. When I say replacement, I don’t mean she just takes over the empty spot & becomes the mandatory new love interest. No I mean. She is the new Never Wong. She dresses sexily, basically the same attitude & personality, strong sense of justice, falls deeply in love with Hope only to end up with Gogo. Like really? She’s literally a carbon copy. And I’m so disappointed that they decided to go down this route. They even had her dance in the rain with Hope too. Like can’t you be anymore original? Only difference is she doesn’t die. She’s also more annoying cause she’s always changing her mind. One moment she’s on her masters side but then the next moment she’s on Hopes side. Like can you just give a stable standing and stay loyal? Cause I’m exhausted with you going back & forth. She becomes more likeable as the series goes on but it was hard for me to warm up as she was just too similar to Never.

The Cases

The cases were very fun & interesting to watch. The director also has said that these cases are based on real circumstances and brings in the human side. Which rings true. The case of the “Heart Stealer” & “Fast Food Restaurant Refugee Murder” were both cases that brought a tear to my eye. For the former, it was touching to see how a mother would give up her heart just to ensure her son could live the rest of his life with no worries. The helplessness she felt and also knowing how in real life, cases like that could happen. At times like this the rich would win as they have the time & money. A lot of people think that those that always hang around 24 hours food places are gross & homeless. This case shows to not judge someone by their cover. Everyone has a backstory. The bond these group of people had for each other was eye opening. I was so sad when it showed the flashback of them singing & just enjoying each other’s company. You just feel so bad for them. I don’t want to say too much cause I don’t want to spoil to much of this case. The case of the “Silent Witness” & “Beyond Man and Woman” had good plot twists that I did not see coming. On the cover it sounded like boring cases but the background story to it ended up being surprising to watch.

The Romance

A lot of people didn’t like how in the sequel Hope & Yanice Tai (Tracy Chu) relationship became a central storyline despite Yanice passing away in the first. I personally actually liked it & didn’t find it draggy. It could be because I love Tracy as an actress. It could be because I find Hope & Yanice to be an amazing couple with a tragic love story. In this case I just find their story unfinished. As in, I never truly understood why Hope would give up Yanice. He could’ve went with Yanice instead of staying behind in Hong Kong. They’ve been through so much only for him to give it up, it always left a sour taste in my mouth. In this sequel we see him deal with the guilt & anguish to finally letting go and moving on. It also intercepted with another case so it was not random. I thought it was a nice touch for the writers to write in about her developing a tumour in her brain. Because from that she decided to pre- record a message to Hope. So we get to hear her last words & get a final wrap up in the story.

Hope & Deen Jie is odd to me. Like I’m aware that Deen Jie has a crush on him. But in this sequel she was possessive that it was uncomfortable in some parts. Hope has shown over & over again that he has no interest. Yet she’s still stuck on him. Towards the end they have a fall out because she thought Hope had heartlessly kicked her out of his firm & withheld her Fathers illness from her. She finds out later on it was cause of her Fathers order that he did that but she was still bitter. In the end she admits she was angry not cause of her Father but because she had believed he had fallen for Eva. So she was bitter out of jealousy. This part bothered me to no end. They are not dating. She knows he doesn’t like her. He never led her on, from day one he has said he only has Yanice & that he couldn’t move on. So I guess the idea that he has fallen in love again but not with her triggered her pettiness. It got to the point where she battled him in court with her helping a scumbag rapist just to spite him. Like girl, what happened to helping the helpless & doing what’s right? You threw that away for a guy? Like in the end she does the right thing but that was annoying. I would’ve enjoyed the development of Hope & Deen Jie’s love story if they hadn’t made her so petty and possessive. So for me, no I don’t like them together as a couple but enjoyed them more as friends. If anything I thought if Hope couldn’t end up with Yanice, Eva would’ve been nice. But they did a bait & switch. In the beginning they heavily made it seem that Hope would end up with Eva while Deen Jie would end up with Gogo. That was a weird but interesting twist though. I haven’t seen another drama where they would change up the love interest like that.

Gogo has always been a very casual guy so for him to end up with Eva was also odd to me. Eva has a glamorous, mature feel so I don’t find them a matching couple. But opposites attract in this case. I also thought they had no chemistry whatsoever. Eva was never interested in Gogo dispite him always flirting. She only liked Hope, it just looks like she settled for him out of the blue. I actually prefer Gogo with Bo Chai instead. They had better chemistry and he abruptly ended the relationship with Bo Chai that made her never get over him. I hated how he used her love for him to do things as a cop she shouldn’t be doing. They were engaged and he dumped her over the phone while she was trying on wedding dresses. He never ever sincerely apologized for that & he got over her so quickly. So I guess it’s good they didn’t end up together, he doesn’t deserve a good person like her. Bo Chai also never got real closure from it & her character sorta disappears towards the last episode. Gogo was also in a relationship with Never until it ended with her dying. So for him to end up with Eva whose a replica of Never just irks me.

The Good

I throughly loved Paul’s betrayal. And I also liked how instead of making him a full out villain they made him a man that knows a line that should not be crossed. He has helped bad people but in the end he was able to see the difference between good & bad. He sent one of the innocent accused to jail but he was also the one that ultimately set him free. He stole Deen Jie away from Hope but only cause he saw potential in her & knew she had way it takes to be a good barrister. He set up Deen Jie to battle with Hope not to spite him but because he knew doing this would help Deen Jie. So it’s like ultimately he’s not as bad as they portrayed him. In the end Hope even calls him Master again. I thought in the end there would be a huge showdown between Hope and him with the latter ending up in jail or something. So it was great spin to have him coming out as a semi- hero (for helping them patch things up between Hope & Deen Jie). It was unpredictable and enjoyable to see this instead.

The sequel is more case driven and I’m glad cause that’s what it made it more interesting. The first one focused more on Hopes journey to finding himself & rebuilding his relationship with his Father that left him when he turned blind (which I understand). Also talked more about friendship and focused solely on one evil villain. So the first one fell flat for me.

The Bad

I didn’t like how Hope was always in court battling the same people it’s either Eva, his Master and then Walter Wah (Hugo Wong) who is the same character from the first drama. I guess that’s TVBs way of staying in a budget instead of hiring new people to play different barristers.

It was disappointing to see Deen Jie fix her buck tooth & change her appearance so drastically. What I liked about her is how she didn’t care about the way she looked and that the heart is what matters. In the first drama Never had asked her why she doesn’t fix her teeth since she has the money. And she said she didn’t find it necessary & the inside is more important than her appearance. So for her to change the way she looked for Hope was just sighhh. But I guess the writers want the main couple to “look good”. I wonder if they always had Deen Jie become the main love interest in mind when they wrote the first one.

I also did not like how they had a cliffhanger ending. It ends with Deen Jie getting stabbed in the neck & in a coma. And of course Hope slowly coming into terms that he has fallen for Deen Jie. They did it cause they are potentially writing another sequel in collaboration with China. But with Vincent leaving TVB & the lacklustre ratings, I don’t know if it’s gonna happen anymore. But seeing how things turn out Deen Jie will probably end up with amnesia or something cause their love line will not run so smoothly. But if a sequel doesn’t happen, I can just pretend that ending did not happen and that Deen Jie is back working at his firm together solving crimes.

Final Thoughts

Everyone was great but I didn’t find any standouts. Vincent reprisal as a blind barrister is still amazing but I don’t see TVB awarding him Best Actor for the same role twice. Also he didn’t show up to the TVB Anniversary Gala which sorta shows his standing with TVB. Sisley improved for sure but I wouldn’t say she’s Best Actress material yet, it was nice to see her become the antagonist though. Kelly was nice & stable as usual. And Owen Cheung just stayed the same, nothing new was brought to the table at all. And weird enough the bromance between Hope & Gogo wasn’t as fun to watch compared to Al Cappucinos Cheung Sai Lung & Ko Ban. Here they just seemed like good friends instead of “brothers”.

I see a lot of comments about Sisley being a huge standout. And I agree with how much she has improved but I still think she still has a lot to learn. I admit her turn as the antagonist was interesting to watch but it wasn’t as great as they say. She isn’t loud acting anymore that’s for sure. But at the same time TVB is running out of actresses so I wouldn’t mind her winning so quickly.

It was lovely to see Tracy come back in a voice role. The directors had invited her back to film but she rejected the role. I wished she had accepted as it could’ve been her goodbye role since it seems she has no interest in continuing acting. She’s only doing ads & photo shoots as she slowly transitions to becoming a full time lawyer. I wouldn’t say a pity as though she’s a talented actress, becoming a lawyer is more stable. And she got married with her childhood sweetheart. I’m so happy for her but also sad as I will miss her acting. But I can always re-watch Over Run Over.

This was a better sequel then I have seen in years. Line Walker 3: Bull Fight just wasn’t as great compared to this. The Exorcists Meter 2.0 was also a downer. The plot twists in the cases and heartfelt stories made the drama all the more memorable. It’s turning out to be a great year for TVB drama watchers like me. Death by Zero, Brutally Young, Al Cappucino were standouts this year. While this drama, Line Walker 3 & The Witness do not fall far behind.

Side note: but what’s with the characters name? They’re all so strange. Man San Hap full English name Hope Man. I know it’s a play on for justice hero but dang it’s cringy. Then theres Santiago Kuk nicknamed Gogo. Like for real whyyyy. I hate that so much. “Hey Gogo hows it going”. “Gogo, I love you” blergh. Then Never Wong. Are you kidding me? She’s a court judge who chose Never as her nickname? Cherry was fine!! I guess it’s play on for “never wrong” well in this case you were wrong for thinking Never was a good name choice! And they don’t even pronounce the “r” in Never. They say it like “Neva” and it bothers me for no reason. TVB English names tend to always be questionable and I don’t care if they try to play it off as a nickname (Flashbacks to Laughing Gor, Muse, Bingo, Saving, Cash, Fever that’s only to name a few) but this is the first drama where it has this many.

#tvb #tvb drama

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thenightling · 5 years

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My top 15 love interests for romantic incarnations of Dracula (No, they’re not all Mina)

If I was to do a list of favorite love interests for Dracula it would be...

Keep reading for a full list...

16. Bonus: Lydia from Dark Prince: the true Story of Dracula.

I list this one here because she’s technically an historic figure and the rest are fictional so I am not sure if she should count or not. The historic Dracula’s first wife’s name has been lost to history even though the river tributary under Poenari Castle was named for her. The film Dark Prince: The true Story of Dracula starring Ruldolf Martin names her Lydia.

Though this film is mostly historic the ending implies that the two are both vampires and walking together through eternity.

Vladislaus Drakuyla AKA Vlad III of Wallachia, AKA Vlad Tepes (The Impaler)’s first wife died by suicide and the film hinted that this might have been enough to enable her to come back as a vampire.

Right before Vlad’s assassination in 1776 or early 1777 (at age forty-five or forty six) in the movie we hear her voice, which suggests she’s either waiting for him or has set into motion turning him into a vampire to be with her.

15. Sir Integra Hellsing from the Hellsing.

In the manga and anime Hellsing (and Hellsing Ultimate OVA), instead of having been destroyed by Doctor Abraham Van Helsing after the events of the Dracula novel, Dracula was instead captured and through arcane means bound to serve the Van Helsing bloodline for eternity. The family founded the Hellsing organization for fighting monstrous threats. Dracula took on the name Alucard (his own name spelt backward) and may have gone slightly crazy...

He became fiercely loyal to Integra Hellsing, the most recent descendant of Abraham van Helsing to become his Master. It is a very strange relationship to say the least...

14. Xander Harris from Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

In Buffy The Vampire Slayer season 5 we have Buffy encounter Dracula for the very first time. Here he is played by Rudolf Martin, the same actor who played Dracula in Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula. In the episode Dracula takes Xander to be his Renfield-like henchman. At the end of the story Xander is free from Dracula’s spell however the story of their relationship is not over yet.

According to the Buffy: The Vampire Slayer season 8 comics Xander and Dracula have formed an unusual relationship. Xander taught Dracula about modern fun and pleasures and Dracula became more and more protective of Xander. When Buffy came and retrieved Xander (again) from Dracula, this time Dracula fell into a deep depression. Refusing to feed or take care of himself Dracula’s hair and claws grew and he deteriorated into his elderly form. When he found out that Xander was coming to pay him a visit, he hastily made himself presentable and de-aged to a more attractive / youthful appearance.

Now the two bicker like long time lovers. I ship it.

Oh, and Xander still calls him master, despite himself.

Further note on this one: Dracula is actually smart for NOT getting a smartphone. All cellphones can be traced via GPS. Do you really want a tracking device in your pocket while hunting human prey? You just made Blade and Buffy’s jobs a little too easy there. A practical vampire would not carry such a device while hunting.

Unfortunately this comic retconned a few important aspects of the TV show version of Dracula and even claimed he doesn’t actually conjure storms, but senses them coming (contradicting the beach scene from the Buffy vs. Dracula episode.) I wish people would stop de-powering Dracula.

13. Jonathan Harker (Multiple versions):

Dario Argento said that his version of Dracula was attracted to Jonathan Harker. And in Frank Wildhorn’s Dracula The Musical (Particularly the German production called Dracula das Musical) the scene “Fresh Blood” (Blut) is very errotic.

Fresh Blood (Blut) now featured Jonathan Harker being tied to a bed and his shirt removed as he’s fed upon by Dracula. But first by Dracula’s brides and grooms of the castle.

Also one of the lyrics in the English language version of the song indicates he wants Jonathan AND Mina as his and plans to make them both vampires. Thus reaffirming the polyamorous version of Dracula.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slZps47LgKQ

Dracula gets particularly “grabby” with him during his de-aging sequence.

The relationship is pretty one sided...

12. Renfield (multiple versions).

The German production of Frank Wildhorn’s Dracula the musical (Dracula das Musical) has Dracula with brides and grooms as opposed to just brides. Despite this change toward bi or panasexuality, this particular relationship is very one sided.

Renfield is very much in love with Dracula in many depictions of the character. This mad man is obsessed with “The Master” and in the Frank Wildhorn Dracula musical he sings a song about how much he loves The Master and how wonderful he is. The reprise version looks as if Dracula is about to kiss him as they sing a slowed duet version of the refrain but this is where Dracula, instead, snaps his neck.

Here is the English language version of The Master’s song (Not the slowed reprise duet.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-v1O-asrHg

There is a deleted scene from Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) where Renfield laments that he has lost Dracula “to the pretty woman.”

In Love at First bite, and some other films Dracula actually does give Renfield immortality however. I suspect the Love at First Bite version is a half-vampire since he can go in the sun (this version of Dracula burns in daylight) and he still needs glasses for his nearsightedness but he has apparently worked for Dracula for at least a century so he was clearly granted immortality even if he can’t turn into a bat or hypnotize.

11. Carmilla Karnstein from The Batman vs. Dracula.

Carmilla is an odd one because in her original novel she’s portrayed as a lesbian. She is a vampire whose novel predates Dracula’s own novel. Her prey of choice are young virginal women. And she can turn into a large grey or black cat. She is powerful and independant and in The Batman vs. Dracula she somehow ended up Dracula’s wife. So I will assume this version is bisexual and they’re probably polyamorous and not at all monogamous.

The version of Dracula in Fred Saberhagen’s Dracula books, and the 1979 Dracula movie starring Frank Langella are also polyamorous though he claims Mina (Lucy in the 1979 film) is above the others. Poly-Romantic / Pan-Romantic / and Demi seem to be recurring traits for romantic versions of Dracula.

Dracula spends part of The Batman vs. Dracula trying to bring Carmilla back from the dead, using the very life essence and soul of VickI Vale to fuel the spell. Unfortunately things don’t quite go as planned.

10. Dracula’s mysterious male lover from Marvel comics, Avengers issue 016 (2019).

Marvel’s Dracula has been confirmed as having had male and female lovers. This is not the only bisexual or panasexual Dracula in pop culture. The German production of the Frank Wildhorn Dracula the Musical (Dracula das Musical) gives him brides and grooms in his castle, Dario Argento has said his version of Dracula is bisexual, and Marvel has now confirmed that their version of Dracula has had male and female lovers.

I don’t know much about this pretty elfish, semi-androgynous character. Identified as a male vampire lover of Dracula’s from Marvel’s War of the Vampires storyline, Dracula wept blood tears when this unnamed character was killed. And he (the lover) was clearly willing to die for Dracula. So this spot is for you, you poor, unnamed elfish male vampire lover!

I don’t know his name so I am going to call him Samuel. And in my mind he was the pretty castle librarian whom Dracula became infatuated with. There. Headcanon achieved.

Further note: Usually if you make Dracula cry, it means he’ll take brutal and violent revenge. This is a universal truth with all versions of Dacula. Never make him cry.

I would put him at a MUCH better spot on this list but he doesn’t get a lot of time in the comic and we don’t know much about him. If we only knew more about him he would have a far better spot on this list. Look how adorable and tragic he is! He could easily be one of my favorites but all we know is that his death brought Dracula to tears and that yes, they were lovers. I seriously considered moving this one up the list but I’m bias for this sweet, androgynous, vampire-boy.

Seriously, I want to know this guy’s story. Dracula cries for him! In front of his enemies, he weeps for him! Give us this story, Marvel! Who is he???

9. Amy Peterson from Fright Night (original 1985 version).

This one is a bit dubious because the vampire is Jerry Dandridge but the 1985 novelization of the film suggested that Jerry is actually count Dracula. Fright Night played with popular vampire tropes and a few were homages to the 1960s soap opera, Dark Shadows. In Dark Shadows the vampire, Barnabas Collins, discovered that the young waitress (and later governess) Maggie Evans, was the uncanny look-a-like of his lost love, Josette. Because of the physical similarity he was convinced she was the reincarnation of his lost love even though with reincarnations you could literally end up looking like anyone or even being another gender after reincarnation. Barnabas had a painting of Josette that showed the physical similarity.

In Fright Night Jerry Dandridge meets Amy and becomes obsessed when he realizes how much she resembles a woman he, too, has lost and is pining for. When Jerry is finally destroyed by the has-been horror actor turned real vampire hunter, Peter Vincent, and also by Amy’s boyfriend, Charley Brewster, his last words are crying out for Amy.

Though this relationship is very one sided and Amy is clearly under age, when you’re a teenager (as I was) we can’t help but find ourselves fantasizing about being Amy in Jerry’s arms during the nightclub dance scene or the “Come to Me” scene. Because of problematic aspects of this relationship and because Jerry was never officially revealed as being Dracula in the film, that’s why this is at spot number 8.

The Jerry Dandridge / Dracula character is apparently in a polyamorous relationship as he has a live-in (apparent boyfriend) Billy Cole. Billy does not exist in the 2011. Fright Night remake, which removed all romantic aspects of the character.

8. Evan Barrington-Cabot from the Graphic novel Series Dracula: The Company of Monsters.

In Dracula: The Company of Monsters graphic novel (published in 2011) an evil corporate executive known as Conrad orchestrates raising Dracula from the dead in the hope of using and exploiting him. Conrad’s nephew, Evan comes to understand and respect Dracula and Dracula’s code of honor. The two respect each other. And like with most stories where Dracula falls in love with the protagonist he decides to stalk him and declare him his.

When Dracula takes his revenge on his captors, Evan is the only one that he spares.

He even watches the young man sleep, the way Dracula is often depicted doing to female love interests. And he makes it very clear he plans on making him a vampire down the line.

This relationship is kept somewhat ambiguous otherwise I might consider putting it at a better spot on the list.

7. Ericka Van Helsing from Hotel Transylvania 3.

A direct descendant of Abraham Van Helsing (the famous monster hunter) Ericka has a cruise ship for monsters with the sole purpose of luring Count Dracula, whom falls in love with her. He “Zings.” Monsters supposedly can only zing once so there is a fan theory that she is the reincarnation of Mavis’ mother. This is likely true since reincarnation or look-a-like of a first love (or both) is a popular trope in vampire fiction started by Dan Curtis for his TV show Dark Shadows and later carried over into his Dracula movie starring Jack Palance.

Ericka ultimately realizes she loves Dracula too and the cruise ship captain and hotel owner end up together. Dracula proposes to her at the end of the film and she says yes.

Also though Dracula is several hundred years old in Hotel Transylvania he is physically in his forties, I suspect Ericka (as a mortal) is biologically older than him, which is a clever touch since Dracula is usually going after young girls in pop culture. It’s good to see him with an older (well, in appearance) woman. (”When you’re six hundred years old there’s no such thing as a cougar.” - The Emo Vampire Song.) Hotel Transylvania 3 is actually my favorite of the franchise and is a sweet film.

6. Cindy from Love at First bite.

Love at First Bite is a comedy from 1979. Think of Coming to America meets Splash in that a supernatural character, a proverbial fish-out-of-water comes to New York looking for love.

Dracula believes Cindy to be the reincarnation Mina (“But I lost her in that damn London Fog!”). He knows her from magazine pictures and interviews and after communists drive him out of his castle he moves to New York where he plans to seduce her. This consists of licking her ankles while in dog-form, telling her that she is more than merely her appearance, that he understands her and her anxieties. And dancing to “I love the Night Life”. The two ultimately fall in love and knowing the truth about Dracula, Cindy opts to spend eternity with him as his vampire queen. The ending has them fly off together, in bat form, to Jamaica.

5. Lucy from Dracula (1979).

In the 1979 version of Dracula, Frank Langella plays Count Dracula. Though technically a remake and based on the same play the Bela Lugosi Dracula was based on, there are some distinct changes. For starters in this version the character we mostly know as Mina in most adaptations is named Lucy and the Lucy character is named Mina. The names are swapped.

Not only that but in this version it’s Dracula who is initially seduced. Though engaged to Jonathan Harker in Edwardian England (set roughly twenty years after most versions of Dracula, which are usually set in 1891) Dracula arrives for dinner at the home of his new neighbors. Here he offers to hypnotize the sickly Mina to relieve her of a headache (that he very likely induced). Lucy protests, showing her dislike and distrust of such methods and the manipulation of the will of others. This bold reaction delights Dracula as he is not used to conflict from women.

The next step in the possibly-accidental seduction of Dracula comes when Lucy turns on a phonograph record player and asks him to dance with her, improperly, right in front of her fiance.

And later after some tragedies, when the rest of the household is unable to uphold an invitation to Dracula’s house for supper, Lucy goes alone.

I like this one because in this one it’s mostly Dacula who gets seduced. Lucy wants him and she gets him. She knows what she’s doing. Also Dracula isn’t a whining, brooding, emo vampire. He is lonely but he LIKES what he is. He’s proud of what he is. He’s fierce and predatory and has all of his traditional powers, including being able to turn into a bat, and wolf, and conjure storms. So few adaptations remember the wolf form these days.

This was the first truly empowered version of the Mina character (though named Lucy). And she is not some look-a-like or reincarnation of a previous love. No. He simply falls in love with her for who she is.

It is very likely this version of Dracula is demi (falling in love with personality before any physical attraction) which is also true of the Castlevania version of Dracula and the version in Fred Saberhagen’s Dracula books.

Also based on the last dialogue from Dracula to Lucy (that he would return to her once they stopped hunting him) I choose to believe he faked his death in this version, especially by the wolf howl at the very end and the cryptic smile on Lucy’s face before the end credits. Long live The Count and Lucy!

4. Mina from Fred Saberhagen’s Dracula books.

Very similar to Lucy in the 1979 Dracula starring Frank Langella, this is a romantic interest where Dracula sees the person as his equal.

This Mina is not the reincarnation of a lost love, nor does she resemble a lost love. When we first see this version of Mina it’s in the novel The Dracula Tape (retelling of Dracula from Dracula’s point of view.) Dracula shows up at her door to deceive her and try to manipulate her into getting the heroes to leave him be but she doesn’t fall for it. And she wrings the truth out of him. She’s clever and also manipulative and the two become lovers.

And in the contemporary world of the later books, though Dracula is having affairs with Mina’s own descendants (It’s a bit weird, I know but at least he’s honest about it.) he still seeks her for comfort and guidance. And constantly refers to her as his greatest love. It’s creepy yet sweet.

In this continuity he fakes his death at the end of the Dracula Tape. And when Mina finally dies of apparent old age she comes back as a vampire because his blood is in her system. As his kind of vampire can change their age based on how heavily they feed, she (like Dracula) can look any age she chooses. (Dracula usually looks roughly forty-five-years-old since that’s about the age he was when he died in his mortal life but sometimes he deliberately abstains from feeding to look older or even elderly.)

And with Mina to guide him, Dracula becomes the protector (and casual seducer...) of her mortal descendants.

Mostly the relationship and personality (as well as powers) are very similar to that of the 1979 Dracula film starring Frank Langella.

Another reason I like this version of Dracula is the cause of how he became a vampire is sort of ambiguous. He dies as the historic figure dies but in the Fred Saberhagen novel “A Matter of taste” (Book six of his Dracula novels) it’s revealed that loyalists stole his body and severed head and left a look-a-like in his place.

They prepared him for burial where candles kept going out and the wounds started to heal (including his head apparently re-attaching itself) so they hastily buried him. He rose as a vampire and insisted that it was a “transition of will” that he refused to die. In other words he has no idea how or why he came back as a vampire.

Considering most vampires in the Fred Saberhagen Dracula novels are created by a mortal drinking the blood of a vampire, after having been fed on, this made Dracula very unique and mysterious. I really like this origin. It’s my favorite origin for Dracula since it explains nothing while explaining everything.

It’s a lot better than someone renouncing God and drinking blood from a stone cross...

This one could easily be my favorite female love interest for Dracula, tied with the one I have listed for number 1 but I put two others between this and the number one spot because of their significance to pop culture and my love of some musicals.

3. Mina from Frank Wildhorn’s Dracula the Musical.

This is essentially the musical adaptation of the 1992 Bram Stoker’s Dracula movie. The biggest difference is there is no mention of Dracula’s mortal life’s wife and no suggestion that Mina resembles (or is the reincarnation of) an old love. The only problem is there is little explanation given as to why he falls in love with her other than that he seemed to have a mysterious psychic link with her all along.

Still, the songs are beautiful and the relationship is sweet and this version of Mina is very likable.

2. Mina from Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992 film):

Before I proceed with this one, yes. Yes, I know Dracula and Mina are not actually lovers in the original Dracula novel. I know that when he makes her drink his blood in the novel that it’s more of a rape. But this version plays with the love story Dan Curtis created for his Barnabas Collins and later carried over into Dracula.

Dracula is seeking the reincarnation of his deceased mortal-life wife. And not only was he lucky enough to find her in a look-a-like body but she’s also the age the first wife was when she died (by total coincidence!). At first it seems like he just thinks she looks like his dead wife and he can seduce her but he seems shocked when she starts to actually remember details of his home. (watch his expression as she starts to talk about his homeland. He’s genuinely surprised).

The two begin a consensual love affair that sadly ends with Mina putting him out of his misery.

A least it’s implied he was forgiven and got to go to Heaven despite the things he had done (Much like in Stoker’s original novel. No, really, that’s in there.)

I like the Frank Wildhorn musical adaptation of this version of Dracula slightly better than the original non-musical movie because in the musical you don’t get the weird bleeding cross / renouncing God origin for Dracula’s vampirism. and 2. Mina doesn’t seem to be anyone’s reincarnation or look-a-like. They’re just in love (Even though yes, I know that is not in Bram Stoker’s novel.) But I do have a soft spot for this one because most of it does follow the novel and the musical probably would not exist if not for this movie.

1. Lisa Țepeș from Castlevania.

Lisa fast became one of my favorite love interests for Dracula. She went to Dracula’s castle seeking knowledge and bravely stood up to the antisocial vampire.

Much like Lucy from the 1979 Dracula film she talked back to him. She was bold and brave. She wanted to learn and she wanted the ability to save lives and damn it, she would risk her own life to do it. Dracula fell in love with this personality almost instantly. It was her personality, not her physical beauty that he became infatuated with.

And they were both happily nerdy together. She humanized Dracula and reminded him that there is good in the world. Dracula married her and the two had a son together.

For her sake he learned to trust and love. But it was for that love that he was driven to madness by her death...

Lisa was only forty-five-years-old when she was burned at the stake as a witch while simply trying to help people as a medical doctor.

This version of Dracula was a good man deep inside but pushed to madness and governed by his vampiric instincts he couldn’t bear to be without her. And when she was murdered he blamed almost all of humanity (save for a select few) for it.

And so Dracula began a subconscious quest to be destroyed by going through the motions of wanting to destroy the world. This is not the only plot where Dracula plans to destroy the world and the protagonist catches on that it’s an elaborate and “world’s longest suicide note”. This was also done in the Hammer horror film The Satanic Rites of Dracula. But here it was for heartbreak of a deeply lonely man.

#Count Dracula #Lisa Tepes #Castlevania #Hotel Transylvania #Love at first Bite #Mina Harker #Bram Stoker's Dracula #Carmilla #Renfield #Ericka Van Helsing

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addictedforbooksquad · 5 years

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P I C K (S) O F T H E M O N T H: M A R C H

Shades of Magic series by V. E. Schwab

Make Me Bad by R. S. Grey

Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas

The Winner’s Trilogy by Marie Rutkoski

Text series by Teagan Hunter

Shades of Magic series by V.E. Schwab

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Magic

Synopsis:

Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black. Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see. Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand. After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure. Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.

Why we love it:

thief turned pirate badass heroine

great premise with a storyline that felt very different

fabulous world-building with an interesting magic system

if you love London like us, there are four of them instead of one xD

full of morally gray characters!!!!!

don’t get attached to anyone

Trigger warnings: mind control, (mentions of) homophobia, character death

Make Me Bad by R.S. Grey

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, New Adult

Synopsis:

I was issued a warning: stay away from Ben Rosenberg. As Clifton Cove’s resident “king”, he thinks he’s entitled to anyone and anything. The trouble is, I’ve spent my whole life following the rules and playing it safe. I know what it feels like to be the good girl. I’m the police chief’s daughter and a librarian—for adorable children, no less. An all-nighter with a fictional hunk is about as exciting as my life gets until one day, fate decides to take pity on me and shove me straight into the path of Mr. Off-Limits himself. Just as I suspected, every inch of him promises to be my demise. Up close, he’s tall, menacing—a lawyer who looks like he’ll bite. A well-behaved girl would do as she’s told and avoid him at all costs, but I’m overdue for a little rebellion. So, I ignore the warning and throw caution to the wind. But Ben doesn’t just nudge me out of my comfort zone—he thrusts me into a dark corner and presses his hard body against mine, covering my mouth with his hand to ensure we don’t get caught sneaking around. In that moment, I finally understand why everyone thinks he’s going to ruin me. To him, this is all a game. He wants to tempt me with his dares and taunt me with his words. I should play along. After all, I asked him to make me bad. I just never thought he’d take his job quite so seriously...

Why we love it:

honestly the cutest thing ever

entertaining characters

friends to lovers done well

pretty angst-free (in a good way)

reading this book just makes you feel good

Trigger warnings: assault (one scene)

Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

Genres: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Adult

Synopsis:

In a world where ash falls from the sky, and mist dominates the night, an evil cloaks the land and stifles all life. The future of the empire rests on the shoulders of a troublemaker and his young apprentice. Together, can they fill the world with color once more? In Brandon Sanderson's intriguing tale of love, loss, despair and hope, a new kind of magic enters the stage — Allomancy, a magic of the metals.

Why we love it:

amazing world-building

unique and interesting magic system

lots of unexpected twists

the story follows different characters and their POVs

amazing, quality writing

Trigger warnings: violence, sexual assault (mentioned/suggested)

Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Regency

Synopsis:

A Devil's Bargain Easily the shyest Wallflower, Evangeline Jenner stands to become the wealthiest, once her inheritance comes due. Because she must first escape the clutches of her unscrupulous relatives, Evie has approached the rake Viscount St. Vincent with a most outrageous proposition: marriage! Sebastian's reputation is so dangerous that thirty seconds alone with him will ruin any maiden's good name. Still, this bewitching chit appeared, unchaperoned, on his doorstep to offer her hand. Certainly an aristocrat with a fine eye for beauty could do far worse. But Evie's proposal comes with a condition: no lovemaking after their wedding night. She will never become just another of the dashing libertine's callously discarded broken hearts—which means Sebastian will simply have to work harder at his seductions... or perhaps surrender his own heart for the very first time in the name of true love.

Why we love it:

our favourite book from the Wallflower series

Sebastian with his fallen angel looks has amazing growth in this book and he isn’t quite the villain he led us to believe

Evie, our shy timid Wallflower really comes into her own in this book when she decides to take her future into her own hands with an offer that Sebastian can’t refuse

wickedly sexy dialogues

their chemistry is off the charts !!!

LK is the reigning Queen of historical romance

Trigger warnings: (mentions of) domestic violence

The Winner’s Trilogy by Marie Rutkoski

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance

Synopsis:

Winning what you want may cost you everything you love... As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined. Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

Why we love it:

angsty AF

awesome world-building

best character development

enemies to lovers trope YASSS

one of the best but underrated YA series

heroine who is written as both badass and feminine

Trigger warnings: slavery, violence, racism, attempted sexual assault

Text series by Teagan Hunter

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, New Adult

Synopsis:

A wrong number is supposed to be just that—a wrong number. Delete. Done. Do not continue to text. Do not flirt. A wrong number shouldn’t be the first person on your mind in the morning, or the last at night…and you’re definitely not supposed to talk them into buying a baby goat. Because that would be weird. When Zach Hastings and I get into a wrong-number mix-up, we don’t follow the rules. We keep texting and flirting, because he’s wicked funny and perfectly nerdy and a wonderful distraction. I’m not looking for love, and Zach definitely had the wrong number. But maybe… Maybe he’s the right guy.

Why we love it:

a series of four books but can be read as standalones

cute, funny and sexy aka the best romance combo

original formatting - lots of dialogue in text messages (which can be annoying to some but we found it refreshing)

roommates, second chance romance, forbidden romance - a mix of our fave tropes all in one series

Trigger warnings: n/a

#book recs #dailylit #bookworm #bibliophile #nadaily #historical romance #adsom #somedit #Wallflowers Series #devil in winter #make ma bad #the winner's trilogy #text series #pick of the month

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ramajmedia · 5 years

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IT Chapter Two: Every Returning Character From The First Movie

Which IT Chapter One characters are returning for IT Chapter Two? Both films from New Line Cinema are based on Stephen King’s 1986 novel IT - though the book has been split into two installments - and directed by filmmaker Andy Muschietti.

Released in September 2017, IT Chapter One follows the experiences of several kids in Derry, Maine. The storyline begins in 1988, as the self-proclaimed Losers' Club cope with personal issues while investigating a mysterious being they label as It. The kids ultimately discover that It returns every 27 years to feed on the fears of Derry locals. Incidentally, IT Chapter Two picks up the storyline in 2016, as the Losers' Club reunites and decides to face their childhood trauma one last time.

More: IT and Joker Can Save Warner Bros' Disappointing 2019

IT Chapter Two features many returning characters for two separate timelines - both the children from the first movie and their new adult counterparts are starring in the film. Here’s a complete list of every major IT Chapter One character returning for IT Chapter Two.

It Aka Pennywise The Dancing Clown

Portrayed by Bill Skarsgård, this character is the central villain of the IT story. Pennywise embodies all the fear that children grapple with during their formative years, which means that It can take on various forms, depending on the situation. Pennywise speaks like a normal clown at times but transforms his appearance to shock and terrify his victims. IT Chapter One begins with Pennywise luring and killing a young Derry resident, Georgie Denbrough.

Skarsgård has previously appeared in feature films like Atomic Blonde, Assassination Nation, and Deadpool 2. He also portrayed Henry Deaver aka The Kid in Hulu’s Castle Rock season 1.

Bill Denbrough

Jaeden Martell reprises his role as Bill Denbrough from IT Chapter One. James McAvoy will portray the 2016 version in IT Chapter Two. In the ‘80s narrative, Bill stutters and struggles with his brother Georgie’s disappearance. Like other Losers' Club members, Bill clashes with his father, and vows to keep the gang together. As an adult, he’s become a successful mystery novelist.

Martell previously starred in the Showtime series Masters of Sex. On the big screen, he landed his first big role in the 2014 dramedy St. Vincent starring Bill Murray. McAvoy, an acclaimed Scottish actor, is best known for his performances in Atonement, Split, and the X-Men franchise as Charles Xavier aka Professor X.

Beverly Marsh

Jessica Chastain joins the IT Chapter Two cast as the 2016 version of the Losers' Club lone female member, Beverly Marsh. Sophia Lillis reprises her role from the original film as the young Beverly. During the ‘80s story, Beverly is the focus of both Derry rumors and her own father’s sexual advances. In Pennywise, she sees the physical embodiment of her emotional turmoil. The Losers' Club treats Beverly with respect and helps her confront her worst fears. In IT Chapter Two, Beverly is a Chicago fashion designer with a turbulent personal life.

Since appearing in IT Chapter One, Lillis portrayed a younger version of Amy Adams’ Camille Preaker in the HBO limited series Sharp Objects. She also starred as the title character in the feature film Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase, and will headline the 2020 film Gretel and Hansel. Chastain is a two-time Academy Award nominee for her performances in The Help and Zero Dark Thirty. She recently starred in Dark Phoenix, and reunited with director Simon Kinberg for the upcoming spy film 355.

Ben Hanscom

In IT Chapter Two, Ben Hancsom develops a crush on Beverly and stands up to his school bullies. In the '80s, Ben helps the Losers' Club come to terms with and understand the historical context for Pennywise’s return to Derry. As a kid, Ben is known to be a New Kids on the Block fan and a generally shy person - that is, until he joins the Losers' Club. Ben is portrayed by Jeremy Ray Taylor (Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween) in IT Chapter One, and Jay Ryan (Top of the Lake) in IT Chapter Two.

Richie Tozier

Once again being played by Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard, Richie Tozier is the most out-spoken member of the Losers' Club. For IT Chapter Two, Saturday Night Live alum Bill Hader stars as Richie in the 2016 timeline. The character provides comic relief in the original film and was extremely reluctant to face Pennywise, though he ultimately sides with his friends for the final fight. IT Chapter Two, meanwhile, reveals that Richie grew up to be a DJ in Los Angeles.

Wolfhard is primarily known for his role as Mike on Stranger Things, though he's also nabbed roles in The Goldfinch and Ghostbusters 2020. Hader is the creator and star of the HBO series Barry and has been both a prominent actor and voice actor on the big and small screens, appearing in productions from Knocked Up to The Venture Bros to Toy Story 4.

Mike Hanlon

Chosen Jacobs reprises his role as Mike Hanlon from IT Chapter One in IT Chapter Two, with Isaiah Mustafa playing the older version in the sequel film. Mike views himself as an outsider, but he’s welcomed into the Losers' Club by Richie early on. Like his peers, Mike has a difficult relationship with his father. In the 2016 narrative, Mike works as a Derry librarian and warns the Losers' Club members about It’s return.

Jacobs has a recurring role as Will Grover on the CBS series Hawaii Five-0. Mustafa, on the other hand, is best known for starring in a series of Old Spice commercials, and he also starred in the Freeform series Shadowhunters.

Eddie Kaspbrak

In both films, Jack Dylan Grazer stars as the Losers' Club member Eddie Kaspbrak. Like Bill, he sees visions of Georgie, and struggles with his over-protective mother. James Ransone joins the IT Chapter Two cast as the 2016 version of Kaspbrak, a married New York City entrepreneur.

Grazer portrayed a younger version of Timothée Chalamet’s character in the 2018 movie Beautiful Boy and starred in the DC blockbuster Shazam!. Ransone previously starred in HBO's The Wire, and portrays The Deputy in the Sinister movie franchise, so it's clear he has some horror experience.

Stanley Uris

Portrayed by Wyatt Oleff in IT Chapter One, Stanley Uris refuses to believe that Pennywise is real. He’s arguably the most nervous member of the Losers' Club, and tries to maintain control over situations. For IT Chapter Two, Andy Bean stars as the older version of Stanley, an Atlanta accounting professional.

Oleff plays young Peter Quill in both Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Bean starred as Greg Knox in the Starz series Power, and also portrayed Alec Holland in the short-lived DC Universe series Swamp Thing.

Henry Bowers

Nicholas Hamilton returns as the malicious town bully, Henry Bowers, with Teach Grant portraying the older version in IT Chapter Two. Henry actively challenges the Losers' Club members, only to be referred to as a “paper man” by his father, whom he ultimately murders in the first film. During the sequel, Henry escapes from an asylum and chases after the Losers' Club.

Hamilton previously had roles in Captain Fantastic and The Dark Tower, another Stephen King adaptation. Grant has appeared in the series Altered Carbon and Van Helsing.

The Leper

In both films, this homeless character is a warped version of Pennywise. Javier Botet reprises his role as the Leper for IT Chapter Two. The Spanish actor previously starred as Tristana Medeiros in the found-footage movie franchise REC, and recently portrayed The Toe Monster in Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

Georgie Denbrough

Jackson Robert Scott reprises his role as Bill’s brother, Georgie, who is killed at the beginning of IT Chapter One, and haunts the Losers' Club throughout the rest of the film, namely his brother. Scott's other big role, besides Georgie, is Bode Locke in the series Locke & Key.

Alvin Marsh

Beverly’s abusive father, Alvin Marsh, is portrayed by Stephen Bogaert in both IT Chapter One and IT Chapter Two. In the sequel, Beverly’s emotional issues as an adult are connected to her experiences with Alvin. Bogaert is known for roles in American Psycho and X-Men: Apocalypse, and he's been the narrator on the TV documentary Air Emergency for several years.

Next: IT Chapter Two: Cast & Character Guide

source https://screenrant.com/it-chapter-two-returning-characters-first-movie/

#screenrant

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twilight-sparx · 6 years

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So here is the truth. I have no problem with Càroline and Klàroline. I'm a firm believer of Ship and Let Ship (which is why I say I have no problem). However I do believe that this episode did not need to be so full of both.

I watched TVD S1 and the series finale, it never interested me because of all the high school and love triangle drama. My sister watched it which is why I knew a little bit about the characters. I remember watching a scene where Elijah broke huge glass windows with coins and telling my sister that was so cool, but if he isn't a main character I'm not watching it.

I got interested in The Originals after I watched a scene on YouTube between Marcel and Klaus from 1x01, where Marcel says "I'm not the Prince, Friend, I am the King! Show me some respect." And at this Klaus bites a vampire and says "He'll die with in a fortnight which means I've broken one of your rules Yet I cannot be killed. Whose the King now, Friend." After this I watched the first 4 episodes and I was hooked.

Hayley being pregnant didn't bother me, I mean which vampire franchise didn't have a miracle baby. I watched Hayley's scenes on TVD, and I asked my sis to give me a bit of info about the original family(they had too much scenes for me to watch all of them) on TVD.

So HERE is my problem. I've been watching The Originals because of the characters that originated and developed in this show. Yes Hayley came from TVD but she was given an introduction and storyline in TO and got a lot of character development. The Original family that had extensive background exposition on TVD were also introduced in a way that satisfied me. I watched these characters for their TO storylines not their past TVD stories.

This is why I'm finding Càroline and Klàroline a bit frustrating. The writers didn't introduce her at all how she deserved. They just expect the viewers to know the TVD storyline and everything that happened between Klaus and Càroline. This wrongful assumption is what makes me feel that I'm being force fed Klàroline.

I also find it disrespectful to the Originals And Hayley fandom that a Hayley-centric episode was used to further Klàroline especially after how little screen time Hayley got so far in S5. The writer's could've started the Klàroline road trip in the previous episode.

Not only that in this episode every other TO character was given some task that made watching the episode so frustrating. The whole Elijah scenario. The Freya and Vincent conflict, which resolved beautifully at the end. But seriously! Was the cloaking spell really so powerful that they couldn't do anything for days and only located her after she lost her werewolf side. Marcel's absence is the most profound flaw, he has been Klaus's true partner in trying to find Hayley for the past 4 episodes and NOW he is suddenly not around. And not a single mention of Rebekah and Kol since 5x01 not even a phone call of them asking how Hope was coping or about Hayley's whereabouts. Seriously the lack of communication between all these people in this season, especially This episode was just appalling. Elijah isn't there but the rest are and they all have cell phones.

I'm tagging this Anti Klàroline and Anti Càroline because even though I'm not saying its wrong and it shouldn't happen etc, I believe both needed to be introduced to The Originals in a better manner. And to be perfectly honest I may have liked those scenes if they had happened in another episode where I wasn't concerned about Hayley, Hope and Elijah. There is a time and place for every thing and THIS episode was not it.

There are a lot of things the writers could've done to make this better, to make this death easy for the fandom to swallow. But it seems that They went out of their way to make it as painful and as bad as they possibly could, destroying and disrespecting TO characters and their fandoms. (Hayley, Elijah, Halijah, Klayley, Klaus, Hope, haylope, klaylope, Marcel, Kol, Rebekah, Freya)

#anti caroline #anti klaroline #hayley marshall #klaus mikaelson #elijah mikaelson #hope mikaelson #the originals spoilers #the originals #halijah #klayley #kol mikaelson #rebekah mikaelson #freya mikaelson #marcel gerard #klaylope #haylope #what I think

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peter-and-neal · 6 years

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Discussion Two Results

All long answers are direct quotes by the person who submitted them. My answers are included in these stats as well and they’re mixed in with the rest of the answers. Bet you can’t guess which ones are mine lol (they’re obvious to me but idk)

Question One: How did you feel about baby Neal? (14 answers)

- I love cute babies, but I also loved childfree El/Peter. Take him or leave him

- Precious and rather untainted, but with many same characteristics as our adult Neal

- It’s so cute to think they named him after our Neal

- The storyline seemed forced

- Very neutral

- He’s alright, I mean he’s just kinda...there? Good reason for theM TO BRING IT BACK?

- Ew no

- I love baby Neal, he’s so cute

- Kinda iffy about it

- Adorable

- I would like him better if he was a puppy

- I love baby Neal

- *HEART EYES* aawwww... WAIT, you mean Peter and El’s boyo? *Walks away shaking head* no. M

- ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Question Two: Do you think Neal would go back? Or stay in Paris? Travel? (16 responses)

7 people said he’d travel

5 said he’d go home

1 said he’d stay in Paris

3 people wrote their own answers:

1. He’d probably manage to find his way back to the US for many reasons, but I doubt he’d have the guts to face Mozzie or Peter after all he’s done. He probably has quite a bit of shame from betraying everyone’s trust, not that it’s undeserved. He’d probably travel but he’ll likely never see anyone from his past life again—barring outstanding circumstances.

2. He would want to come home so bad but feel like he can’t, so he’d travel around, never feeling like he belongs.

3. I want him to come to MY house

Question Three: If Peter and Elizabeth weren’t together, and Peter and Neal started dating, how do you think they’d get to that point? (16 responses)

12 people voted for an accidental or spur of the moment kiss

1 vote for a one night stand

1 vote for mutual crushes turned to dating

1 vote for a mix of accidental or spur of the moment kiss and mutual crushes

1 for a convoluted case that shoved their feelings at them

1 for they wouldn’t (to the person who said this: buddy you’re on the wrong blog lmao)

Question Four: What ships do you hate the most? (13 responses)

1 - Neal/Sara

3 - Neal/Mozzie

1 - Neal/Keller

1 - Peter/Mozzie

1 - Neal/June

1 - Neal/Mozzie/Elizabeth

1 - Neal/Peter (again you’re on the wrong blog bud lol)

2 - none/unsure

1 - titanic

1 - pirate ships

1 - Almost every one except Peter/Neal

Question Five: Least favourite character(s) (16 responses)

10 - Rebecca Lowe

5 - Matthew Keller

4 - Sara Ellis

2 - Elizabeth Burke

2 - Garrett Fowler

1 - Lauren Cruz

1 - Vincent Adler

1 - Neal’s father

1 - Kate Moreau

Question Six: Which story arc did you hate the most? (15 responses)

- The season 5 arc, especially at the beginning. I hate it when Peter and Neal are on the outs. The show is the best when they’re working together to solve crimes, or dealing with outside interference rather than the two of them dealing with their issues with each other.

- Neal’s island escape mid-series

- The one where Peter wants to go to D.C. and Neal gets a new handler

- The one with Neal’s dad was kind of long stretched

- The pregnancy; Rebecca; Neal’s dad; Neal and Mozzie’s island escape

- The one with Kate

- FREAKIN Kate, man. Just Kate. In general.

- Season 4

- Rebecca

- The Kate Fowler one (almost stopped watching the show because of it)

- Neal’s dad

- Season 6

- Probably what happened with El and Neal after Peter got hurt

- The one where I don’t end up with my crush

- When Neal and Mozzie ran away to the island

#white collar #neal caffrey #peter burke #mozzie #elizabeth burke #diana berrigan #clinton jones #sara ellis #rebecca lowe #matthew keller #june ellington #lauren cruz #vincent adler #garrett fowler #kate moreau #discussions with kat

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mellomedia · 3 years

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MOVIE REVIEW: Irréversible

Movie review time! Aside from my career goal of one day becoming an animator and film director, I would love to be a movie critic or food critic. Both would be icing on the cake! Did you catch that joke? I love watching movies and animations for inspiration or to learn what not to do. After watching Irréversible, directed by Gaspar Noé, I learned what effects not to use in filming. Or should I say, effects I personally didn’t find appealing. While the story itself was tragic, it gave a glimpse of how someone reacts within moments of seeing a loved one hurt. But Noé told the story in reverse. If there’s one thing I do like about the film, it’s the name. While the story is filmed in reverse of when it occurred, the title summarizes how things in life can not be turned back in time. This had more meaning to me than anything else. So at this point I haven’t mentioned any spoilers, but they’ll be coming up throughout the rest of this review. You’ve been warned. [Poster image: (Irreversible 2002)]

First off, the actors in Irréversible were outstanding. Alex (Monica Bellucci) is the beautiful girlfriend of Marcus (Vincent Cassel). The third wheel is Pierre (Albert Dupontel) who is Alex’s ex-boyfriend. That whole triangle was already a turn off. Why is the ex-boyfriend hanging out with Alex and Marcus? In what world does this happen? The movie was filmed in France in 2002, so there are subtitles. I’m only mentioning the subtitles because this is where excellent acting and directing come into play. This film didn’t need subtitles because visually you could, for the most part, figure out what was going on. The body language and actions formed a clear storyline. Vincent Cassel is an excellent actor. His anger, emotion, and shock were all very well played after seeing his girlfriend Alex battered and bloody after being tragically raped. From that point he was on a mission to find the coward that did this to her.

Left to right: Monica Bellucci (Alex), Albert Dupontel (Pierre), and Vincent Cassel (Marcus). (Anonymous, 2019)

But I have mixed feelings about the effects used in this movie. From 11m:34s-15m:00s I literally had to fast forward the film because it was giving me a headache. The filming was dizzying, dark, and starting to get confusing. I’m assuming it was more of a visual metaphor of how Marcus was feeling after getting the crap beat out of him by Alex’s rapist. Or maybe it was Pierre’s emotions as he was walking out of the club while Marcus was being carried out on a stretcher. Obviously, I found it all confusing since I’m not sure what was going on during those four minutes. I had to keep reminding myself that the movie was filmed in reverse. So what we watched first was the end. But then towards the end of the movie, the confusion piled on. At 1h:28m:31s Alex does a pregnancy test and it’s positive. From 1h:29m:45s the camera pans to a

pregnant Alex sitting in the same exact spot on the couch where she discovered she was pregnant. Then from 1h:30m:30s-1h:32m:00s she is laying on a blanket in a park

watching kids run through a sprinkler. And I need to mention that when we first see Alex laying on the blanket, our view of this scene is upside down. At 1h:32m:20s the audio transitions from classical to haunting with a seizure-like, flickering background.

Irréversible, 2002, Gaspar Noé (1h:30m:30s) (Dawar, 2018)

The movie ends with what should be a title screen but says, “Time Destroys All Things.” Or maybe that is the title. Was the park scene reality? Was that a flash of the end at the beginning of this backwards movie? Was a glimpse of what life would've been like if the three of them never went out dancing? See, now I’m confusing myself. Or maybe that’s why Marcus is so angry and out on a manhunt for Alex’s rapist - she was pregnant with his child. There’s a good chance the baby didn’t make it. It’s good that a movie makes you think, but not to the point where there are so many unanswered questions. I would be curious to know if other students who watched this felt the same way. Maybe I’m one of the few who is confused. Or here’s my other take on the ending of the film: maybe it purposely contradicts the story of the film itself. If it’s truly in reverse in its entirety, then Alex had a “normal” life but then met Marcus and fell into a partying lifestyle. I mean yes, it could happen, but for some reason I don’t think the end of the movie is the beginning. Or maybe I just don’t want it to be. Because if the end truly is the beginning, it’s much more tragic than rape - it’s the loss of an unborn child. The title at the end “Time Destroys All Things,” seems very dark and negative. So did time destroy their relationship and their unborn child? Does time destroy good and bad memories?

My movie review is turning into an analysis of what the heck happened in this movie. It begins and ends with the dizzying, flickering effects as though we are looking down a toilet bowl while flashing the lights on/off in the bathroom. As I mentioned in the beginning of this blog (the real beginning), I’m not a fan of the dizzying visual effects. Whatever intentions Noé had in mind by using this effect, I fast forwarded it because I was 5 seconds away from turning off the film. But since it was one of the films required to watch for class, I kept watching it.

Here’s my attempt at a movie review. I did some reading up on how to give movie reviews and found some helpful tips. Number 7 on the list, “Don’t forget that it’s all subjective” is important to keep in mind (Oxford Royale Academy, 2021). On a scale of 1-5 stars, I would give this film 5 stars for acting, but only 2 stars for cinematography. Back to #7 about being subjective with my review. There is no right or wrong review and mind doesn’t mean that you’ll feel the same way. Just how we each look at art differently, we look at films differently. But, I have a feeling that I am going to fall into the minority with my vote of 2 stars for the cinematography. There’s too many unanswered questions, the storyline is backwards, and the film effects throughout were nauseating. I love a movie with meaning and purpose, but all I’m walking away with is what the heck did I just watch. It was disturbing, dark, depressing, and confusing. Too many negative reactions for me to give this film any more than 2 stars. Sorry Gaspar Noé. Maybe I’m just stuck with traditional filmmaking where the story plot falls in order and I don’t have so many questions by the end of the movie. And it’s not that I’m not a fan of foreign films. A few of my favorite foreign films are Oldboy (directed by Chan-wook Park) Parasite (directed by Bong Joon-ho), and Life is Beautiful (directed by Roberto Benigni). I love the cinematography and storyline in each of them. They each had deep meaning and made me think. But the big difference is those films didn’t leave me confused and needing an Alleve like after watching Irréversible.

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aion-rsa · 5 years

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Rick And Morty Comics Are Worth Your Time Too

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The Rick And Morty comics are a consistently solid fix of the adventures TV show fans know and love...

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Once they managed to get McDonald’s to reproduce the Szechuan sauce first produced in 1998 for the release of Mulan, Rick and Morty established itself as part of the television furniture. As every struggling creative knows, however, success like this doesn’t come overnight. In the beginning (during the Earth year 2006), Justin Roiland created a short called The Real Animated Adventures of Doc and Mharti for Channel 101. If you haven’t seen it, then it doesn’t really have much in common with the end product so I wouldn’t worry about it. But when Dan Harmon came calling after his work on Community, Roiland suggested developing something based on the short.

From there, the program went through a series of retools until they ended up with a half-hour comedy about a mad scientist type (Rick Sanchez, genius, a barely-functional alcoholic) and his grandson (Morty, 14, slightly more level-headed, masturbates) going on dimension-hopping adventures. It’s a smart, high concept show that is incredibly clever; it looks at the family dynamic in a refreshing way and doesn’t shy away from the family’s flaws. The series is responsible for a lot of quotes that have entered everyday conversation and you’ll find that you quickly pick up a lot of favorites.

Rick And Morty has become the kind of success that creatives can only hope for when they’re putting a show together. The first season aired in December 2013 and the third is currently airing. But then you already knew that, it’s hard to get away from whatever’s going on in that week’s episode. For better or worse, it’s everywhere. It’s on shirts. There are action figures, video games, and all sorts of weird and wonderful stuff. But most pertinently to our feature, there’s a series of comics published by Oni Press.

read more: Rick and Morty Characters We Want To See Again

For a show whose new episodes are so eagerly anticipated, the fact that Oni has been bringing us new adventures since 2015 is oddly little-known. But of course, given how many millions of viewers the show has and that a much smaller percentage of that would have bought the books, there’s going to be a large disparity there. So I thought I would do a public service and tell you why you should be reading the Rick And Morty comics.

Overall, the range is one of the better pieces of tie-in fiction that you will ever read. In terms of how much it gets right, it’s a shining example to the rest of the comic world.

For one thing, the artwork is consistently good and the range of artists allows for differences in the art style. Maybe it’s because the characters were animated to begin with, but most of the time the artwork is pretty spot on (although there was one howler where Jerry’s anguished face looked more like his orgasm face).

read more: What Rick and Morty's 70 Episode Order Means For The Future of The Show

But maybe you haven’t come to this incredibly visual medium for the art style. That’s fine, they’ve got you covered. The writing is top-notch and is full of the same kind of one-liners and superb storylines that you’d find in the show. In each issue, you’ll find a good few laughs to keep you going. For those of you afraid that the strip would just be a rehash of old plotlines and beloved character comebacks, well, there is a tiny bit of that but not much and it’s usually fun. The Ball Fondlers special issue was worth every penny. Tiny Rick did make a return in a recent issue, but it was part of an inventive issue with lots of laughs. But the series is full of new situations and characters such as Peacock Jones, a pimp version of the Doctor who encourages his female companions to dress in sexy outfits.

Where the comic format really shines is the ability to write for the trade, as opposed to the TV show which tends to have a looser overall story. Here the story arcs are tightly plotted and fit into a single trade paperback with room to spare.

The extra room in each book (five at present) is given over to the bonus short stories featured in each issue. These can range from what Beth does when she gets her hands on a portal gun to a day in the boring life of Jerry Smith. This is reflected in my recommendations further down the page, but the bonus shorts that feature in each issue are, in a lot of cases, well worth reading in their own right.

read more: Revisiting Rick and Morty Episode 1

Frankly, the main thing that makes it a must-have is that it’s a consistently solid fix of the adventures we know and love. Rick and Morty has a nasty habit of disappearing off our screens for far too long, and this series provides a monthly allowance of the good stuff (having said that, they still haven’t done an adaptation of Jan Quadrant Vincent 16. Get it sorted, guys). I’ve blabbered on for far too long. Go to your nearest bookshop and acquire the collections. I can’t imagine anyone coming to the TV series via the comics - though if you did, then I almost envy you - but those who are already fans of the show will find a lot to love in this series.

7 great issues to start with:

Issue #27. The draw here isn’t so much the main story (though it’s also great), but the absolute gem of a bonus which follows it, Look Cthulhu Talking Now, in which Cthulhu is not only real but knows Rick Sanchez and joins him in treating Jerry Smith like an idiot. Cthulhu’s line “That crib was not dope enough for my needs” is worth the price of admission.

Issue #1. The first issue of the series is fantastic throughout. This is the lead-in to a three-part story in which Morty and Rick get arrested and have to escape from a prison that Rick built. The very first page looks like a transcript from the show, with a typical Rick and Jerry face-off (which Jerry loses, of course). The standout character has to be Professor Tock, a guy with a time gimmick who delights in making watch puns.

Issue #29. At time of writing, the latest issue. In this one-shot, Morty becomes obsessed with putting a stop to Fascism and Hitlers wherever he finds them. His fanatical devotion to this cause causes him to act almost in a fascistic way, you might say.

Issue #25. Tiny Rick returns! I loved this one. Rick activates a device which shows in numbers how cool a person is. Rick is, naturally, the highest that a person can be (his score is in the thousands while Morty doesn’t even have a solid number to his name). The art style is also really unusual, thanks to the more stylised art of Kyle Starks (who also wrote the story).

Issue #17. In this fun little story, the duo explore the fun in taking infectious diseases to other planets that aren’t ready for them. But the B-plot, in which Rick gives intelligence to Summer’s phone and other electronics, is more enjoyable. The phone very quickly makes it creepy.

Issue #11: Both plots are great in this issue. In the first, Morty is put into a high-school simulator in an effort to give him his essential life experience in one day. Summer and Jerry end up switching bodies.

Issue #2: In the bonus story, Summer is interviewing for a job in a fast food restaurant and recalls her previous experience of ‘food management’. Glorious stuff.

Editor's note: This article comes from Den of Geek UK and originally ran in September 2017. It's been repromoted in advance of Rick and Morty Season 4.

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Feature

Scott Varnham

Nov 8, 2019

Rick and Morty

Comedy

Animation

from Books https://ift.tt/33s7S2M

#aion-rsa #Books

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scarybasementmedia · 5 years

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I am huge fan of Childs Play, ever since I was younger and I saw the movie I found him hilarious yet scary. As I am sure many of us in our generation did. To us Chucky was a icon, a doll that came to live to kill and threaten, destroy possess and maim. All of it was great, following its release in 1988 I am sure many people felt the same as me. Horrified yet they loved it, which I do believe is how horror is supposed to make you feel. The original Childs Play starred Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Brad Dourif and Alex Vincent. Everyone felt bad for poor little Andy Barclay and we somehow eerily enough LOVED Brad Dourif as Chucky. I questioned my sanity as to why I loved him that role so many times. I couldn’t ever come up with a answer it was always just BECAUSE HES AWESOME! And that laugh….oh that laugh!!! So that being said I am not going to do a review but rather a slight comparison on the good and bad of both the original and the remakes and the newest rendition. Its going to be a long ride so sit back and enjoy and maybe we can be “friends to the end”.

Childs Play- 1988

Starring Brad Dourif as Chucky, Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon and Alex Vincent

In 1988 Childs Play was released and honestly I must say to this day it holds up. The original is a classic, filled with classic kills. Brad Dourif does a marvelous job as the voice of Charles Lee Ray, the former murderer trapped in a dolls body by some strange voodoo spell. Next we meet Karen Barclay single mom to a child named Andy who is celebrating his birthday. Through a string of strange events she ends up with the Good Guy Doll and gives it to her son.

Not to long after, at all a string of murders happen leading them straight to Andy. How sad! No one believes him and the usual story unfolds, mom founds out the truth, the doll tries to murder her they take him out with a bang, literally. Brad Dourif is pretty much epic in the role of chucky and I was beyond upset when I heard that they are making a new one BUT Brad Dourif would not be reprising his role as Charles Lee Ray aka Chucky.

I mean come on! There is no Chucky without Brad Dourif. So needless to say initially I boycotted this film heavily. I was setting myself up for disappointment, etc. You know the usual shpeel about no one can replace Brad Dourif. Then news hit the dramatic air waves about the one who would voicing the new Chucky and I was instantly thrilled to my core. I thought, “maybe now this movie may have a chance with me”. To avoid spoilers I wont say till we get to the end of the article. I digress, all acting was amazing and the roles were acted to full potential and it was a great horror film although for someone like me it makes me laugh especially when he swears so often its worse than Negan from walking dead.

Childs Play 2-1990

So low and behold as hollywood does with popular movies or characters, they made a second one. Now, this one wasn’t bad either, this one again focuses on Andy who is now in foster care because his mom is institutionalized. Chucky proceeds to again destroy his life and pass his soul into this living boy at all costs. Ruining Andy’s chance at any happy childhood. Still claiming hes your friend to the end etc. Now this is when the movie to me started taking a little more comical turn. Some of the lines that spew out of chucky’s mouth are beyond hilarious and I always laugh a couple times throughout the show. Its worth the watch I think. Especially if you LOVE Dourif as Charles Lee Ray. I always wondered what he would do once he took over this child, destroy everything? Kill people? I want to know!

Childs Play 3

This movie came out in 1991 and now shows a more mature Andy going to military school, or a school for troubled youth I cant remember all that great. Either way, he is there and chucky comes back. How surprising, not really. Its a little more action packed with more kills from Chucky and for some reason I find them highly amusing.

This time Chucky finds a new victim. A young boy named Tyler, who chucky proceeds to manipulate to crap and transfer his soul into instead of Andy. Once again Andy and his girlfriend…friend. Decide to destroy that killer doll once and for all. We all took a huge sigh of relief knowing that Chucky is destroyed for good. Yeah, NO! Eight years later we were then introduced to honestly one of my favorite installments,

Bride of Chucky

Bride of Chucky is so full of dark humor that it is hard to take it as a scary film. Starring Jennifer Tilly as Tiffany Valentine and Brad Dourif as Chucky once again, it centers around Tiffany. Bride of Chucky also stars, Katherine Heigle and some other well known actors and actresses. Basically Heigle is in love with a bad boy and her uncle doesn’t want her too be with so they take the two dolls thanks to a scheme set up by Tiffany and high tail it out of the town leaving a wake of murders behind them and getting blamed.

Tiffany we find out is Chucky’s murder obsessed, kick ass girlfriend/ fiance. Which doesn’t last long. Through another unfortunate event completed by a toaster in a bathtub Chucky sends her soul into the doll of a good guy female doll adorned in a wedding dress and veil. Tiffany wakes up pretty damn peeved at him and literally cuffs him in the face screaming and throwing a fit because I mean hey she turned into a doll!

kinopoisk.ru

The rest ensues quite hilariously with over the top lines about knives going out of style and how Chucky looks like Martha Stuart. It also shows the twisted relationship between Chucky and Tiffany. It was enjoyable and downright dark and funny. Not the best but not the worst…in the series. Up until this point they are enjoyable and have some direct appeal for some odd reason right? I thought so too. Then this happened…

Seed of Chucky-

Seed of chucky came out and it was one of those moments where after I viewed it I simply said “I cant even….” So it turns out the kid that Tiffany popped out at the end of the Bride of Chucky ends up getting found by some cop who then makes a puppet show out of the kid…puppet …whatever it is. He ends up being named Glen/ Glenda because of his …no gender issue by being a doll. So yeah a literal gender confused puppet basically. So its never clear if he is a boy or girl. Im just going by boy because in the end that is what he ends up choosing.

Eventually he escapes desperate to find chucky and tiffany. Meanwhile two recreation dolls used in a movie of chucky and Tiffany end up with the souls of chucky and Tiffany again because their son uses voodoo to bring them back…again. So now their main focus is to get Jennifer Tilly knocked up so that they can all pass their souls into Jennifer, her chauffeur and… ummm they want to impregnate her with chuckys baby …by a voodoo pregnancy. Basically a turkey baster….and you get the idea. So that succeeds and she has twins…. in the end one twin has glen and the other one i think is just normal. But Jennifer Tilly has Tiffanys soul and is just a murderous b****. Beats her maid to death and yeah…. thats that. Its just so full of ridiculousness that I actually enjoyed it.

So next we will take a look into the Chucky ….sequels that are more modern. The ones that came after. They aren’t bad movies they tried to fix a movie series that went from serious to comedic and even though the storylines were dark people didn’t approve of the new Childs Play movies. Such as Curse of Chucky and Cult of Chucky, that tried to make sense of a whole bunch of plot holes that just added way more questions than filled them in. The coolest part about the films was that Nica Peirce is played by Brad Dourifs daughter Fiona Dourif. And of course he reprises the Chucky role which was the best part. Chucky had a new updated look which…honestly didn’t do much. They just should have used the sewn up doll. The storylines are kind of simple but for these two films you just need to watch, they aren’t terrible at all. They are amusing and Chucky is creepy but for some reason they just didn’t seem to hold up as well as the others did. Oh and a surprise by the one and only Alex Vincent. That was a huge yay from me.

My favorite out of the two would probably be Cult of Chucky. It kind of brings it all together in the end and without ending it shows a somewhat conclusion to the utter chaos that these movie franchise seemed to raise. So they aren’t bad movies they just aren’t the best of all of them and still leaves major plot holes.

Childs Play-2019

Lets talk about Chucky himself, although I do admit he looks slightly….strange and different I do have to say that for what the movie is about it does work. I wanted Brad Dourif to be Chucky so bad but when I heard that it is going to be Mark Hamill my hopes sky rocketed. Mark Hamill is amazing in everything he is and never fails to make a impression on whoever plays. So Chucky himself was saved for now. At least there was that much. Mark Hamill was a definite great choice for the voice seeing as how Dourif wasn’t a option.

So now storyline? What was the storyline going to be? Voodoo and mysticism, dead serial killer possessing a doll. I was praying they would stick to the script of the original. Then i saw the preview and all I said was nope nope nope STUPID! So I sat myself down and decide to power through it and I came out pleasantly surprised. The Storyline itself is plausible in the world we live in. Less fake and more believable, technology becoming almost sentient and wanting to make you happy at all costs because that is what it is supposed to do. Its a recipe for disaster and I mean remember Furby’s? So there is no denying that this could be plausible for us in the future right? The acting from the young boy playing Andy was so well done, honestly the only complaint I have is Aubrey Plaza. Shes not a bad actress she just wasn’t right for the part I think.

As for kill count, I wasn’t keeping track I didn’t care because honestly the new unique ways of death were so awesome. I mean…come on you have to admit the saw part is quite ….. painful looking. I wont give away to much of the storyline because I know some still are waiting for the release. I was surprised by it and I was surprised that I did thoroughly enjoy it. It didn’t drag on and on, it jumped right in from the beginning with a huge WTF! A doll with a computer chip that has the limits erased so there is basically nothing he can and can’t do. So his mission to keep Andy happy means killing his cat and mutilating his mothers boyfriend (that one I didn’t blame him for). And honestly in some parts I felt sorry for Chucky. Weirdly…. Childs Play 2019 was win, because it wasn’t ridiculous trying to feed off old scripts that are way to overdone to the point where plot holes arent just holes they are now canals. This was something completely new and more reasonable and plausible because its something I could see happening. I think it is worth the watch and I will be watching it again when it comes to DVD.

Did you enjoy the Childs Play movies? Which ones are your favorites? Have you seen the new one ? Let us know! Like Share and spread the love of all things dark and horrific.

A Friend to the End- Childs Play vs Childs Play I am huge fan of Childs Play, ever since I was younger and I saw the movie I found him hilarious yet scary.

#Brad Dourif #Bride of Chucky #Child’s Play #Childs Play 2 #Childs Play 3 #horror #Jennifer Tilly #movie #Movies #Reviews #Seed of Chucky

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tellmevarric · 7 years

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Am I the only one who’s just meh about Jodie Whittaker being the new Doctor? I mean, I don’t hate the decision they made. I just... don’t care, I guess. I’m just... meh. Mind you, I’ve been meh about nu!Who since part way through the Tenth Doctor’s run so I guess it’s not that much of a surprise. I did watch a few of the Eleventh Doctor’s episodes (I loved Vincent and the Doctor and I loved The Time of Angels and Flesh and Stone) but I was mostly meh about him. I’ve seen some of Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor once Clara was gone and I liked his take on the Doctor (bit like a mix of the Second, Third and Fourth Doctors) but it’s only been here and there when I happen to be home and there’s nothing else on.

I’ve actually gone back to watching the original Who episodes. Maybe this is just me being old and having watched Doctor Who since I was a kid but I feel like the new series is all flash and not much substance. (Too big a budget and too much CGI!) I was watching The Ribos Operation this morning and it occurred to me that what I saw would never happen today. The emphasis in the current episodes is so focused on the Doctor and the companion that we don’t get the side stories for the episode characters unless it’s relevant to the story line and even then it’s abbreviated to the minimum possible and generally involves them telling the Doctor and/or companion about it.

Now, The Ribos Operation has a side character called Binro. Binro lives in a medieval style society that hasn’t discovered space flight, in fact, they still believe that the world is flat and that their world is the centre of the universe. Binro is the... I suppose, the Copernicus of that world. He comes up with the theory that the world is round, that they orbit the sun and that all those stars in the sky are other suns with other worlds and other people. He is, of course, scorned for that theory and when we meet him, he’s been reduced to a filthy beggar. Throughout the episode, he helps some of the characters and furthers the plot line of course but we get entire scenes just devoted to Binro and his life. And he gets told by one of the other side characters (not the Doctor or Romana, in fact, he rarely appears in any scenes with them) that he was right. Binro was right!

That would never happen in nu!Who. Not only would they never devote so much time to a side character (think of the girl in one of the early Ninth Doctor episodes, the one in Churchill’s bunker, who’s fiance was a pilot. It gets introduced and then... never goes anywhere. It’s just a random thing that never gets developed. That would never have happened in classic Who. That storyline would have been developed and run with. It’d be a minor side story but it would still have been developed.) but they would never have allowed another side character to give that kind of validation to Binro. It would have been the Doctor or whoever the companion was. Instead, these two side characters got their own little story arcs and fleshed out character backstories and they actually felt three-dimensional, like real people. Too many nu!Who side characters just feel like two-dimensional cardboard cutouts, just there to be props for the Doctor and the companion.

Eh, I don’t know. I’m just meh about it all. I wish Jodie Whittaker all the best and hope she does well. I’m just going to go and watch the rest of the Key to Time arc. (Hey, one episode was written by Douglas Adams!)

#doctor who #just my random thoughts #ignore this

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toyfrog · 7 years

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Yes I watched The Kaplan Episode.

Daniel Cerone in my opinion is one of the best character writers in the biz…. I loved Kate Kaplan as a character. But I don’t feel she should’ve been the baddie. And I resent Red shooting her because in my opinion he never would have. He abhorred violence. In Marvin Gerard, spousal abuse crossed the line. So now Kate is a survivor but she’s a bad person?

It does not compute. It’s a heartbreaking twist that will lead Kaplan to join Annie at last. And for what?

To give Tom a story. It is unforgivable to lie to your audience. It’s worse to have others do damage control inyour place because you can’t admit you lied to your viewers.

So, be that as it may..,I’m being asked about Red/Katarina Is he The Dad?

“The Appearance of Truth” is the theme and it’s a cop out. When it comes down to canon these writers are stingy. (Basically because they cannot agree on soul creative rights and Sony wants money off it.) Do they make it up as they go along? Yes. A lot of us do, but most show runners have the arc completed before, even next season halfway complete. This season they had no arc, and it shows through execution, lack of continuity, imbalance to character screen time, overabundance of cheap marketing, it goes on and on.

What you watched last night was a culmination of season 3’s Knauf arc infused into season 4.

If you recall in the Vehm by Vincent Angelli:

“I’m a bad man. I kill people. And every time I do, a piece of me dies with them.”

“I always wanted to be a boyscout.”

Recall those hints? Dembe saying, “that’s enough”

Ok.

Well that’s what you’re seeing now. Everyone question Raymond, even the task force.“

"Don’t fret Harold. I’ll be the declarer you be the dummy and together we’ll win the hand.”

Well last season Cooper, Aram, Ressler, and Samar were tired of being the “dummy.”

“Just because you’ve been bumped up to first chair in an orchestra doesn’t mean you can compose a symphony.”

Last season Ressler *was* the mastermind of who betrayed Red and why. Red knew in Dawn Denoon he could not search and do a moral inventory of himself without Donald.

This Season? Oh it was “Tom”

I loathe agenda driven behind the scenes back stabbing garbage. Professional sets do not engage in such foolery but this circus really…

A mess.

This is no different they just changed Kaplan to the bad blacklister because they did not have one. I think it’s a mistake personally, because the hype on turning victim Kaplan into the baddest of the bad scorned means last season when they had her betray Red, according to Ryan Eggold who said Bokenkamp boasted, “it was Tom’s plan., is just deceptive.

No it was originally Ressler’s plan with a happy ending at S3 with Red leaving the task force and Liz life to let her have that normal life. Then all hell breaks loose. Instead, they fractured an intelligent plot, dumbed down every character and then in Season 4 never gave them a voice to express their betrayal. Its why Diego has had no storyline for 15 months, and probably, is on his last five weeks unless viewers don’t speak up. This show will change things on a dime. They did last season. They did in Season 2. They did in Season 1.

The only character that deserves to die after this fallout are Tom, Kaplan, and Hitchin.

The rest is about cutting the budget and supplying serious shockudrama to get the ratings up, go into a new direction…. and add two new Sony actors to the show…

And purge the rest.

But I digress.

Anyhoo….

Last season.

"Why because I didn’t get Daddy’s permission?”

Yes, Tom knows.

“Preparing for war.”

“What War?”

“Ours.”

All that is from S3.

Now this season:

“Yes, Elizabeth is my daughter.”

She’s his daughter, but he’s not her father.

Do we get this play on words?

When Katarina gave birth, she never got a paternity test. She only knew one thing she loved Masha so “the truth doesn’t matter. It is the appearance of truth” that does.

Bokenkamp said last season “is it safe to assume Tom is the father of Liz baby?”

“I don’t think it’s safe to assume that I think it’s good to anticipate that.”

Yes so what is it that Liz said in the Vehm?

“I assume Tom is the father.”

“I haven’t told him.”

Liz has never said if Tom *is* and with Megan’s hint about Liz being unfaithful, that connects to Eli Matchett in S3 and it’s not Nick. So, now we see her mother fogging up the windows in the back of a car with….Raymond.

In Philomena you will see two forbidden lovers fogging up the windows kissing inna parked car.

In the Apothecary, the theme (don’t you guys read the transcripts?) is Marriage, betrayal, the appearance of truth and infidelity.

Escaping to motels, and celebrating anniversaries and birthdays. Raising a family from prison.

In Natalie Luca you had forbidden love-the most romantic scene Samar ever seen. Watching the person you love die in your arms. They fell for each other at work, talk about forbidden love. It even explains how they could love each other without touching….

Significant to Liz life and her parents.👇🏻

Kirk was her husband. He was out of town a lot. On business. While he was away, Katarina wasn’t faithful. She was having sex with other men.

Mainly, “the American.” He was her mark, but their affair did not stop afterward it kept going.

But the paternity is down to three men. Two Americans, and Kirk. Both Red and Kat knew Sam. He was a grifter, a criminal trying to get his life straight.

What was Liz father?

“My real father was a criminal.” Her mother died from weakness and shame.

In S1.

“Everything about me is a lie.”

“Criminals are notorious liars.”

“You will always be her father Sam.”

“Are you my father?”

“No your father is dead.”

“And I know what happened that night to my father. I shot him.”

“Yea.”

“That’s why you erased my memory. You’re my sin eater.”

Right here the story should’ve shifted. Liz trust for Red should’ve grown not regressed.

“I never wanted you [Beat] to grow up like me.”

“Is he her father?”

“I don’t know Kate I never found out.”

“It’s Raymond. He took Masha because he thinks she’s his.”

Lady Ambrosia:

“Your mother was ever the same after that. The man she loved killed by the child she adored it was too much.”

“So I killed both of my parents.”

“You were a child. None of this was you fault. There never should’ve been a gun around for you to grab.”

“I ran out of gas.”-Madeline Pratt

Katarina and Kaplan left the Summer Palace for America after Masha. Because Red took her.

But Liz lives in Summer Palace again because she’s young in the yard with her mother in Mato.

Ressler and Red are the only men that have been to Summer Palace.

Liz will go back in these final episodes.

Lady Ambrosia:

“Your parents loved each other very much. The Cold War was hard– too hard for your father. When the Soviet Union was collapsing, he took you from her. She gave up everything to follow him, to follow you.”

“The night of the fire– that’s what they were arguing about?”

Nope it was the fulcrum. Liz lived in Summer Palace when she wasn’t a baby because the night of the fire is five years into the future.

Red was married, had Carla and Jennifer. And Liz. Red took Liz as an infant.

Katarina gets Masha to Kaplan night of the fire because of “the dead man on the floor.” She’s looking for a new place for them to live.

A week later she can’t go home she calls from a payphone. She wants Kaplan to give Masha up to Sam.

Go back to Cape May: the arson Katarina had. The dead man on the floor.

“He’s coming.” “Who’s coming.”?

US intelligence and KGB. They know about her affair with Raymond.

“Your mother, despite what he’d done, she wanted him back. She wanted them to be a family. As much as it pains me to say it, he was probably… the only man she ever really loved.”

And I shot him.

“It was an accident.”

Liz accidentally shot “the bad man.”

Stewmaker

“You’re a monster.”

“Yes.”

“How can you live with yourself?”

“By saving your life.”

Katarina and Red at that point were enemies. He wanted the fulcrum he needed it to blackmail US intelligence so to leave them alone otherwise they’d kill him and her. It’s why he sold secrets to North Korea and Soviet Union:

Katarina set the fire. But it was Red who pulled Liz from the flames.

“Tell me. I need to know. Your mother was never the same after that. The man she loved killed by the child she adored– it was… just too much. Two months later, she went to Cape May and left her clothes on the beach, walked into the ocean, and was never seen again.”

“So, that night, I killed both my parents.”

“You were a child. There should never have been a gun for you to grab. Looking back, I’m not sure I shouldn’t have raised you myself. I don’t want you looking back with that kind of regret.”

All that played out.

Now liz’ regret is coming.

Agnes.

But focus on the man Liz shot. The scars on Red’s back. He and his family were to die in that fire.

“There was so much blood.”

But he survived.

His family. Carla and Jennifer are in WITSEC

Red was gone all this time recuperating. Where he was is the next leg of the mystery. He knew after stealing secrets, he was safer dead than alive. So you have him blackmailing, building an organized criminal empire for 25 years through Russian Oligarchs, collapse of Soviet Union, the cartels-burning down the earth in order to one day walk back into her life but this time with ammunition to protect her.

In the farmer parable Red explains when he comes home from work one day…crops are burned, his children gone, “it is now he who burns, he who slaughters, and in the end he knows that he must pay.”

He also mentions children. Two.

Red wasn’t a good man. He had affairs on Carla, abandoned his other daughter to appease Liz, and keep her safe. He wanted to raise her but if it got out about who she is, who her “father is,” the danger was too immense. To protect Jennifer and Carla he abandons them and turns the other way.

In Mako Tanida, Red warns Ressler to stay in the light, “go home!” Red didn’t after the fire. He wanted revenge and Justice. He became a criminal. Stole secrets betrayed his country.

What is Ressler about to do?

Hitchin cannot be arrested, she runs the courts. She will pay off judges. So now Ressler like Red knows, once he crosses over, there’s no turning back.

Back to Liz and why the mystery s being revealed aside from the fact that they dismantled a fine piece of television just to do a spin off nobody wanted for a character audience feels is worse than Mr. Kaplan because he hurt Liz the most.

That logic right there doesn’t make any sense.

Liz is the target because of who and what she saw happen in that house. The Fulcrum was only part of the story. Who wanted it besides Red and Katarina *Is* the story. Red wanted to know what happened the night of the fire. Diane Fowler knew. Fitch knew. The Director knew.

“I know who you really are, Raymond. Who you are to her. And I know why you did this. Does she?”

“I know what happened, that night, Red. To your family.” Mr. Kaplan cleaned up Diane Fowler. Her body is about to be revealed…the task force has no idea about this.

Cooper suspects.

Kaplan does.

So is he her father?

Legally, no. Her father is dead. “You will always be her father Sam.”

But yes, Elizabeth is his daughter.

He had no legal claim to her when she was a child. She was Kirk’s.

Now: liz and Katarina are similar.

Both are known to be unfaithful. Liz was seeing someone when she first met Tom. Liz was also seeing someone after Tom re entered her life in S2.

“He worked, I didn’t.”

“How did that work out for ya?”

“Not so great.”

Liz too, is keeping a secret. Like her mother.

And Kaplan knows. It’s why she can gain access to Liz apartment. She knows everything.

Hold on to this because I’m not doing another.

The point is.

Red believed Liz was his child. Red wanted Liz to be his child. Red loves Liz like a father. Red fell in love with her mother a Russian sleeper agent. Red had a longtime affair with Katarina.

You cannot do Red/Liz in the romantic sense after that. Period.

So….

Even if he turns out Red to *not* be her bio dad-It never mattered to Raymond. He loved Liz that much. In his mind, “you will always be her father Sam.”

But Yes, Elizabeth is his daughter.

Okay done.

#TheBlacklist #DaddyGate #BreakingItdown #Reddington #Liz #katarina

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