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tsukikoayanosuke · 2 years

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Captain Talks About Some Writing Things - (Reverse) Harem Protagonist

If you feel offended while reading this, I apologize. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings, but this is just something I notice and sometimes do. This is only my opinion in addition to looking at this through the lens of storytelling and writing.

Also, this is not a call-out post. However, since I'm in Twisted-Wonderland fandom, I'll be giving my example from there. There will be a premise for those who aren't from the fandom.

Now, I'm going to start with a disclaimer: Harem and reverse-harem is not my favorite genre. In fact, romance is my least favorite genre for a couple of reasons:

One, I've never fallen in love before. At least, not that deep. Yes, I did have a puppy love crush when I was in middle school, but after that, it disappeared because that boy I was pining over was in a different class in high school.

Two, I'm not ready for love or marriage just yet. I was taught that dating is the first step in preparing yourself for marriage. That's why I've never dated before. Call this a traditional mindset, but this is what I was taught and it's hard to just jump away from everything your family and community had taught you for your entire life.

With that, you can see why I have some problem connecting with romance and (reverse) harem. From all the anime I've watched, I only know a couple of harem anime and most of them are trashy adaptations. I watch Disney movies as fantasy escapism, not because I want to fall in love and marry a prince. I read more found family fanfic than even the slowest burn I can find.

With that background, you can see that I might be biased in my judgment, but I'll try my best not to in explaining this.

Let's actually start from the definition of 'harem (genre)' according to Wikipedia:

A genre where a protagonist is surrounded by three or more androphilic (male, masculinity)/gynephilic (female, femininity) love interests or sexual partners.

In harem, the main focus is the protagonist's romantic relationship with their potential partners, similar to a dating sim. I know some of us have watched or played a dating sim game.

Now there are three things were going to focus on in this discussion: protagonist, potential partners, and romantic relationships. As we go down, I'll give you an example with a self-made OC.

-Protagonist-

Let's not try to deny this, guys. Sometimes, (reverse) harem protagonists suck. They're might be the most milquetoast white boy/girl you could ever see. A boring (reverse) harem protagonist might make you wish the comedic best friend or even the villainess is the main character instead. And that's something you don't want to have in a protagonist. You might argue that it'll make it easier to project yourself into the main character position. But do you really want to bring yourself down to a character who doesn't have a backbone?

This is most prominent in 'x reader' and 'Y/N' fanfic. You know you can't make a specific reader, thus you have to make them as generic as possible.

How do we work this out? To start, don't start with a 'HAREM protagonist', but make a 'harem PROTAGONIST'. This is the same as making a 'strong female CHARACTER' instead of a 'strong FEMALE character' (which I hope we can tackle this one day).

We need to make a protagonist first, whether they're likable or not. Do you want your protagonist to be an 'all-loving hero/heroine' or a 'jerk with a heart of gold'? What is their personality? What is their backstory? Everything you have learned about making a character, pour them out in making your (reverse) harem protagonist with their strength, weakness, and flaws.

Another thing we need to remind ourselves is that our protagonist has a personality outside the harem. The point of having a harem is that there's something that makes the love interests fall in love with your protagonist. And I can't stress this enough: being pretty/handsome is not a personality. If the love interests fall in love with your protagonist just because of their looks, that's not love. That's lust. We'll talk more about this in the next sections.

Now, let's make a (reverse) harem protagonist:

Yume Sakaki is a 16 years old girl from Tokyo, Japan who got hit by a truck and isekai-ed to a magical all-boys academy called Night Raven College. Before her death, Yume is an avid visual novel gamer who has no interest in romance with real-life boys. She prefers to daydream about her 2D husbando. She sees everything like a game, thinking of many potential perks when deciding on something, and compares stuff in her mental tier list. However, because of her lack of socializing, most people will see her as weird. She herself doesn't really know anything outside her game.

When she got isekai-ed, her personality gets carried over to the new world. But because this is a magical world, it'll make it harder for her. For one, she sucks in school because, you know, a magical school. But, she gains a small group circle of friends when she joins the board game club and got introduced to new games.

-Potential Partners-

Now, I'll keep this brief because we're talking in the realm of fanfiction, thus we already have thousands of characters we can push our (reverse) harem protagonist onto.

However, this is where our problem starts: OOC characters.

The biggest sin in 'x reader' and/or (reverse) harem fanfictions is making the canon characters (aka the potential partners) so out of characters to fill your protagonist harem. How many times you've seen a cold character become so overprotective after seeing the protagonist? How many times a villain is willing to drop their well-crafted evil plans to mary the protagonist? If this becomes too much, it'll be very annoying instead of cute. It'll make the canon characters (aka the potential partners) look like a brainless simp and make the protagonist (aka the 'reader', aka 'Y/N') such a mary-sue for being the center of the universe.

How do we work this out? For one: research. If the canon characters are not lovey-dovey, maybe don't make them like that. Always remember that canon characters have lives outside of the (reverse) harem protagonist and they are allowed to not think about the protagonist 24/7. They need to be able to stand on their own without the protagonist.

Now, let's give some love interests for our (reverse) harem protagonist:

Ace Trappola, a first-year student and Yume's classmate who sat beside her. Ace has a cheerful and mischievous personality, and often enjoys teasing others too. He doesn't have a problem speaking out his thoughts and could even come as far as insulting others.

Riddle Rosehearts, the chairman of the public morals committee. Riddle has a strong commitment and dedication to implementing the rules. He has no problem punishing rule-breakers. He is quite irritable and becomes very angry if someone admits that they are against the rules that he has set in place.

Azul Ashengrotto, a second-year and member of the Board Game Club. Upon first seeing Azul, he came off as 'friendly' and willing to 'help' others. He is also intelligent in arranging words and is also known to be sly. He is also seen to be skilled in every aspect.

Idia Shroud, a third-year, and leader of the Board Game Club. He doesn't like being in places with many people around and so he doesn't go outside very often. He doesn't talk much with his classmates or people from school, but things change when he talks about his hobby or things he likes.

-Romantic Relationship-

Now, in dating sims and visual novels, there's a thing called 'heart event' or 'character route'. Essentially, these are events that can progress the (reverse) harem protagonist and a certain love interest's relationship. Usually, we also get more insight into the love interest's past. At this point, we know what is the love interest main problem and how the protagonist is going to 'fix' it with the power of love and friendship.

This is where we can give a little leeway in canon characters being ooc. It'll only be acceptable if we see the progress. I'm going to reiterate what I just said: being pretty/handsome is not a personality. If the love interests fall in love with your protagonist just because of their looks, that's not love. That's lust. Good looks are not a steady base for a relationship. It can be an introduction, like because your senior is so good looking you want to know more about them instead of just pining from afar. But, if your protagonist's relationship is based on looks, that's... not encouraging, isn't it? If the canon characters are willing to change their entire personality just from seeing how beautiful/handsome the (reverse) harem protagonist is, can you really call it genuine?

How do we work this out? Give us progress. Show us the love interests falling in love with the (reverse) harem protagonist. If the only way to show that the love interest is in love is by kissing the rotagonist, is it really love? Show the reader the cute moments, the fallouts, the bickerings. No relationship is without their struggle, and not just in trivial things. Show us the characters changing that we can pinpoint when the love interest really had truly fallen in love.

And another thing. Remember when I say harem is about relationships? Not only do you have to pay attention to the '(reverse) harem protagonist x main love interest', you have to pay attention to the '(reverse) harem protagonist & other love interests' and 'love interests & love interests'. Is it really a harem if every love interest wants to kill each other for the protagonist's attention? DO they ever talk about anything outside their crush on the protagonist? How is everyone's relationship outside the harem? Is there any platonic relationship at all between the characters within the same age range as the protagonist?

The biggest pitfall I've seen is when there are other characters with the same gender as the (reverse) harem protagonist, the writer might either write them out or turn them into an asshole/bitch. Unless this is the character's original personality, changing their personality in other to make the (reverse) harem protagonist looks better is such a dick move. Please, don't.

Now, let's make a Heart Event:

Zero Heart Event: Yume joins the Board Game Club because she sees the recruitment pamphlet on the announcement board. There, she meets with Azul Ashengrotto, Idia Shroud, and Ortho Shroud (Idia's little brother). The first session is a game of snake and ladder. Somehow, Yume is so lucky that day that she wins the first game, earning a spot in the club.

First Heart Event: One day after a few weeks in school, Yume realizes that Idia looks more gloomy than usual. When she asks, Idia said that Ortho is sick. So, Yume decides to make some soup for Ortho. From here, Yume gets more respect from Idia because he can see how she's good with children.

Second Heart Event: Thee's going to be a new farm-simulator game released and Idia wants to buy it. He asks Yume to join him so that he doesn't feel too nervous in the crowd. Yume agrees and both of them go together to the game store. On the way back, both of them chat about the new features and characters. Here Idia feels more comfortable with Yume because of their same interest.

Final Heart Event: There's a Board Game Tournament and the club is joining in. When it's Idia's turn to fight, Yume is cheering for him, which gives a boost of morale. The Board Game Club wins the tournament in the end. At the end of the day, Yume and Idia spend their time at the Board Game Club room to hang their trophy. That's when Idia confesses his love because Yume is such a fun girl to hang around with. They kiss.

Some Good Examples from My Favorite Characters:

As I've said earlier, (reverse) harem is not my favorite genre, thus the good example I have is very limited.

Tomoya Okazaki - Clannad

Clannad has the biggest advantages of this anime being about family, but Tomoya is still a harem protagonist. Before the series even started, he has three girls fall for him (Kotomi, Kyou, and Ryou). At the start of the series, he meets with Nagisa, the main girl. And throughout the series, he gets Tomoyo.

Tomoya is a 'bad boy' but only really limited to just going to class very late, but still a kind boy. He's blunt and sarcastic. His father is neglectful after his mother's death. He's the first one to declare his love to Nagisa because she's a hard-working individual for her love in theater. When they have a baby and Nagisa died, Tomoya did slip into becoming like his father, but snapped back and got a second chance for a better life.

Katarina Claes - My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!

The biggest selling point for this anime is the fact that this can be counted as a bisexual harem. All the male love interests (Geordo, Alan, Nicole, and Keith) and the supposed female rivals (Sophie, Mary, and Maria) are in love with the main character.

Katarina is very dense but lovable and has a big heart. She's actually a 17 years old otaku girl who died and got reincarnated as the main villainess in her favorite otome game who always ended up either dead or exiled. Katarina is too busy avoiding her doom flags that she doesn't even realize that her kind attitude makes all the characters in the game change for the better and even fall in love with her.

Now, to close this, this is not me saying that you shouldn't make a (reverse) harem fanfic or it's wrong to make one. I'm saying that there's a lot of potential of making (reverse) harem. (Reverse) harem, 'x reader', 'Y/N' fics have a reputation of being not well-written. But that doesn't mean it's always like that. Maybe, just start with making a likable protagonist and a believable romance, and then maybe the story can be a pleasant surprise.

The final question: why does this matter? Isn't the point of making a (reverse) harem fanfic is for our self-indulgent? And you are right. In the end, we write fanfiction for fun. Don't stop writing just because I'm saying this. After all, I'm saying this as someone who doesn't enjoy (reverse) harem or romance fic, so my opinion is not the most valid.

All I can say is, good luck with your (reverse) harem protagonist and story~!

And if any of you want to listen to me ramble about any character archetype, you can send a request through my "Good Question" ask box~!

#the captain's rambling #characters trait #oc creating tips

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galaxina-the-pyro · 3 years

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A Cure That Ails You

"IT'S NOT FAIR!" "I'm sure it's not, hon..." "Like, he asks me to all these things NOW?! While I'm trying to get over him?! That oblivious, kerfluffin-!" Schnitzel sighed deeply, rolling her eyes towards a sobbing mess of a seventeen-year-old Isabella. In hindsight, this was all on the former Fireside Girl - Phineas had asked her out to some stupid festival that Danville was setting up. Isabella turned him down. Phineas was disappointed but never once felt upset over Isabella's answer, only telling her that he'll still meet up with her at the festival or whatever with whomever she was gonna go with. She told him that that one kid named...uh...what was it...Everett? No, wait, that was the bastard who broke her heart after her Bat Quincinera Mitzvah party thing. That other boy who started showing signs of having a thing for Isabella was that one kid with that completely fake British accent. Bland and forgettable to Schnitzel, though Isabella fawned over the kid's sense of humor at the very least. Humor was important in a relationship. But if Schnitzel remembered this particular kid, she remembered that he seemed much more...flamboyant for someone Isabella would be pursuing. Not that Phineas didn't have those moments, it was more like this particular kid- "CLINTON!" Schnitzel shouted, "That's his name! Clinton, right?" Isabella whined. "Yes, Clinton," she leaned her head back against her couch, covered in crumbs of cookie dough and chips, "He already asked me before...before he did. I told him I was gonna think about it..." She scooped another clump of cookie dough into her mouth and chewed. Schnitzel examined her jaw bobbing up and down like a well-oiled garbage disposal. "Don't you like that kid?" she asked, "You told your other friends you liked him, anyway. They won't shut up about how..." she trailed off and shook her head, "You flipping lied to them, didn't you?" Isabella threw her hands up into the air, nearly sending her spoon flying into the air in the process. "They wouldn't shut up about it!" she cried out, mouth still full of dough, "The girls kept pushing how I shouldn't give up on him just yet!" she had the sense to swallow before she could choke on a chocolate chip, "That we were meant to be! Love knows no limits! You have to wait for it-UGH! I just-I couldn't take it anymore!" "I get what you're saying, kid," Schnitzel frowned deeply, "But that's not a cool thing to do to a guy like Clinton. He's a cool...well...nice dude, at least. Leading him on is kind of a jerk move on your end." The fat woman could feel the sense of irritation drooling from Isabella's tone as she turned to face her. Isabella sighed. "You really can't tell?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, "Clinton's gay. Like, really, really gay." Schnitzel was taken aback, but not by much. "...then," she paused, "Then why is he-?" "He's not out of the closet yet," Isabella shrugged, "I and another one of his friends are the only ones who know. Though honestly, I'm surprised no one's figured it out by now. It's kinda obvious." Schnitzel blinked. "I mean, I figured," she admitted, "But, like...why would he be pretending to-," she facepalmed, "Oh, duh, this is a setup. You're trying to cover up your crush, he's trying to cover up his," she smirked, "Which one of your friends is he pining for?" "Buford," Isabella said, "Totally Buford. He hangs out with him the most. The two like to jerk around with each other." Schnitzel nodded, smiling for a moment before she noticed Isabella slumping back into a depressed pile. The former villainess scowled slightly at the sight, having hoped changing the conversation to that of Clinton's dilemma would snap Isabella away from what happened with her and Phineas. Schnitzel picked up one of the empty cookie dough canisters and lifted it up for examination. "You know," Schnitzel said slowly, "You really don't have to lie to your friends. Just talk to them. Explain that you don't appreciate-." "They wouldn't understand," Isabella insisted, "They only ever backed off when I was with...you know...and now they're kinda backing off now that I'm...interested in Clinton, you know? I...I wanna keep it that way." "It's a dumb move," Schnitzel stated bluntly, "But...I see why you're doing it...at least partly," she turned the cannister, looking for the ingredients - the odor of the dough making her lick her lips, "Your friends mean well. They do. They shouldn't push this stuff, but they definitely care," she looked over at Isabella with a frown, "But maybe you're backing the wrong horse here, too?" Isabella squinted her eyes at the greying woman in her early fifties at best. "What do you mean?" she practically scowled. "I mean that maybe," Schnitzel leaned back slightly, not looking at Isabella, "Maybe they have a point...I'm not saying you should go back to how things used to be," she briefly placed the plastic onto her lap, "It's good to take breaks. Learned that from experience," she turned to the teen carefully, "But...is giving up on the kid entirely really what you want? Or do you think it's what you have to do because you need to start 'growing up' and moving passed those supposedly childish endeavors?" "I can't revolve my entire being to him all the time," Isabella insisted, "I'm more than that!" "Yeah, well," Schnitzel drummed her fingers on the bottom of the plastic canister, "Who said you had to give up on being with Phineas in order to do that?" Schnitzel regretted her choice words, regretted the look of sheer agony that graced Isabella's face from hearing the name of her heart's desire ring in her ears. The floodgates reopened as the strong, fearless leader, Isabella, once again succumbed to a sniveling mess. Schnitzel let out another deep sigh as she returned to examining the cannister. "Why does the world hate me?!" "Heck if I know." "I don't understand why emotions work the way they do! Why can't I just MOVE THE HECK ON?!" "Feel ya, girl. I really do," Schnitzel lit up, "OH! Here it is! Ingredients!" Isabella wailed, "H-he's just so PERFECT, Alice," she insisted, "Why must he make it so hard for me to move on from?! Why does he feel the need to squeeze at my heart?!" The broken sobs that followed were bone-shattering, even for Schnitzel. A wave of guilt washed over onto her, even as her eyes refused to leave to words on the container. "Oh, Isa..." she paused upon looking at the part of the container that specifically said 'do not consumer before baking' in bold letters, wondering why she hadn't noticed that before; she glanced around the empty as well as the partly empty containers on the ground, and barely noticed the large black garbage bag beside Isabella, slowly putting two and two together, "...uh...Isabella, how much cookie dough have you been eating?" Isabella's response was a mere hiccup and a cough, having nearly choked on some more cookie dough. "Why won't Phineas love me?" she sobbed before hugging her current container close to her chest like it was her offspring. Schnitzel swallowed some air and slowly stood up, the container in hand. "Ooooookay, that's enough cookie dough, Is," she looked at the container once more and gaped, "Why...why would you buy cookie dough that uses unpasteurized eggs?" Isabella coughed again. "Why does THAT matter?" she groaned. "Well," Schnitzel walked towards the garbage bag, opened it, and saw a lot of containers and empty chip bags of varying flavors, "Raw cookie dough already gives you a strong likelihood of getting foodborne diseases," Schnitzel failed to notice Isabella's coughing suddenly turning into gagging, "But when you use unpasteurized products, it also gives you the high risk of getting-" Schnitzel cringed as she heard Isabella lurch forward and, for lack of a better word, tossed up her cookies all over her feet. The woman need not turn to look at the poor child, but did so anyway and sighed as Isabella trembled in a bent up position, whimpering. "...salmonella." (~) "Oh, Izzy...oh you poor baby..." Isabella moaned as she leaned against the toilet, feeling Phineas' hands gently rubbing her back. He sighed and shook his head, as if somewhat disappointed in her. It was both painful to see, yet far more comforting than any medicine would do for her right now. "You really should be more careful," he said sternly, "What compelled you to eat all of that anyway?" "I was," Isabella gagged again and clutched the seat, wincing, waiting...but nothing came; she slowly turned back to Phineas and swallowed dryly, "Clinton broke it off with me. I...I didn't take it well." The look on Phineas' face was as heartbroken as it made Isabella feel. She hated to see Phineas look so hurt, even when it was because she was the one in pain. She felt his arms gently wrap around her waist and his chin rest on her head ever slightly. "I'm so sorry," he said, "I know you liked him a lot." "I...yeah," Isabella laughed softly, "I did...I do...but..." her chuckles became shaken, "Phineas, I...I need to..." she fought the need to wretch as the words echoed in her mind like a broken record. "Who said you had to give up on being with Phineas...?" "Isabella?" Isabella could barely turn to look at Phineas like her neck was locked into place. But from the corner of her eyes, she could see the kindness and love that Phineas had on his face. Platonic or not, that love was real - that love was far more than worth fighting for. Worth pursuing even. He proved that by coming over today on such short notice. He proved that by dropping everything just to go see if she was doing okay. He loved her. He loved her so much... "I lied." Phineas blinked, tilting his head. "Lied?" he asked, "About what?" Isabella breathed slowly. "About me and Clinton," she explained, "I made it-made it all up," she sucked up on some air and choked in down, "I'm so, so sorry, I was," the tears poured, "I was just so tired of it all...they had so many expectations for me," she shook her head, "I just couldn't stand it. I wanted to prove I could really stand on my own." "What are you talking about?" Phineas seemed to pull in closer to Isabella, his voice filled with...hope, perhaps? Isabella wasn't entirely sure. But she desperately wanted that to be the case. That would make this so much easier to do. "From the day I met you," Isabella paused, "No, that's silly...for a long time, since we were little," she grimaced, "I felt strong feelings for you...I...loved you...and whether I wanted to or not, I," she almost broke out into a sob, the pain too much for her to handle as her stomach twisted, "I still love you. I still want you. I wish I was," she shook, "I wish I was strong enough to have told you this when-." "Izzy." Isabella flinched at her nickname, her body finally allowing her to turn and look at Phineas, who pulled his arms away from her. He cupped her face. A tender grin formed on the boy's face as he rubbed his thumb across her cheek to wipe away a stray tear. "Izzy," he repeated, "I always-." Before he could finish, Isabella gasped out in agony and turned back to the loo, chundering once more. Phineas immediately went into position, lifting up Isabella's hair, serenely humming as she finished, a worried frown still in place even as he continued to try and soothe her. Once Isabella had finished, she looked over at Phineas, a shaken up smile forming. He opened his mouth to finish his previous statement before the door opened. "I'm back with some water," Schnitzel stated walking in slowly, looking around, "Were you...talking to someone?" Isabella was afraid to look away from Schnitzel. She was afraid to look behind her. She really didn't have to. She already knew the truth, anyway. But that didn't mean it wouldn't hurt her to see the confirmation first hand. And yet her head turned. Like an idiot, she looked, a small, stupid bead of hope shining in her chest. The same one that refused to die like the rest of it. And the fruits of that hope was met with an empty spot where Phineas was once kneeling at. Some hair that he had been caressing slid onto her skin as she sniffed. Schnitzel took another step closer. "Isabella?" The automatic action of any human being with even the smallest shred of decency was to immediately reached down and clutch the poor, sobbing mess close to her. The once ugly tears of over-dramatics had turned into something far more self-destructive. Schnitzel felt this the moment she felt Isabella's tears on her shoulder as she hugged her close. Rather than disappear, the bead of hope in Isabella's chest proceeded to taunt her with small maybe's and what if's before it was briefly drowned away in fragmented sorrow. Who did Isabella think she was kidding? Phineas would never truly feel that way for her, no matter how many times she could've sworn he did.

"Let it out, Izzy," Schnitzel cooed, brushing the girl's black locks between her fingers, "Let it out..."

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cherryblossomshadow · 3 years

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Wonder Woman 1984 review

Long, rambly, and spoilery. You’ve been warned.

I saw WW84. I had thoughts. Let's talk about it.

I want to preface with the fact that it's amazing that we have another female-led superhero film! I loved Patti Jenkins' work with the first Wonder Woman (and this one too) and I'm so glad she's back for this one. There's obviously a lot to pick through, but first, a couple reminders.

No film will ever be "perfect."

Not every film is made specifically for you.

It is okay to vibe or disvibe with something. But that does not make it trash.

Also, please, keep in mind, what I'm expressing are my opinions. I'm entitled to mine as you are entitled to yours. I hope you have a lovely time on the internet, and I hope you wish the same for everyone you interact with.

Oh, and spoilers obviously.

Okay, with all that out of the way, let's dig in.

My overall experience with the film is positive! I had a great time watching it, it got me emotional, and I definitely want to watch it again. That said, I don't think it's better than the first one (although that would have been quite a feat), and that's ok. It's a continuation of a story we've already started, and it doesn't need to outshine the first.

Okay, after all the hyping up and disclaiming I've done, let's dig into what I didn't like about the film.

Number one is pacing. The storyline felt very erratic to me? Part of that, I feel, is because we have three (four?) main characters, and we jump between them pretty abruptly.

Number two is the themes. Now I do like the themes of WW84 (truth and sacrifice), I just don't think they were worked into the film as cohesively as I would have liked?

Number three is perceived character changes to Diana. And really, some of this is kinda circumstantial, I just thought it deserved its own bullet point. You'll see what I mean.

So, on Pacing.

We jump between Diana (and Steve), Barbara, and Maxwell pretty frequently. And before I talk about that, I have to talk about my view on the characters.

a. Now, I love the Mandalorian, but I was not personally invested in Maxwell's arc at all. Again, this is my take, and I know people disagree. Many people feel like Pedro Pascal carried the film on his shoulders. That's cool. He's a great actor. I'm glad he was in it. I just kinda checked out of every scene he was in (when he wasn't with his kid) because I wasn't invested in him. He played a sleazeball on purpose, and it worked. I was sleazed. So the movie kinda dragged for me whenever the camera panned to him.

b. I loved the focus on Barbara. I don't know Cheetah from the comics, so this is from a movie-only perspective. But I know one of the criticisms of the first film was that Diana didn't really talk to women after she left Themyscira (even though there was a perfectly good villainess sitting right there for her to converse with and have morality debates/fights with! Even Steve Trevor got to talk to Dr Poison!), so I thought it was great that 1) they set up a villainess for her to fight and 2) it was a villainess that she knew, she had talked to, she had formed a relationship with. It honestly surprised me that Barbara was helpful for so long (bc I had seen the trailer and got spoiled that she would become a villain), but I love that she genuinely did want to help Diana, up until she hit her hard limit (giving up her powers). Now, that being said, the Nerd Girl Makeover has been done a thousand times. I knew what her vague trajectory would be from the second she appeared on screen with frizzy hair. I did like that her motivation was not solely "pretty people are mean to me, and I want revenge and/or for this hot guy to like me," but specifically, "I want to be like this really cool girl" and then "I don’t want to be like anyone else; I want to be the best/number one" for myself." But I felt like the absolute inattention that she was shown at the beginning and the absolute worship Diana and later Barbara would get was ... highly exaggerated? And I know this was another criticism of the first film, that yeah "Diana did so well in the real world because SHE'S HOT and that's actually not empowering to women" or something. But like. Watching that part made me uncomfortable instead of seen. Pandered to, instead of impacted. Showing how looks change how society treats you is important, but not to this caricaturized degree.

c. (and d?) And lastly, Diana and Steve. Or more accurately, Diana and Steve's soul or memories or ??? that has been transplanted into some random man's body with absolutely no one's consent (I don't believe that Diana "consented" when making the wish, because she didn't know 1. That it would even work or 2. HOW it would work.). So ... Yeah. The first problem with this (chronologically, not by importance) is that it's really unclear what's going on? Some rando is reciting Steve's lines from the first film, then all of a sudden he turns into Chris Pine? (Fun fact: my aunt actually recognized the actor from Hallmark 😂 Could you imagine being the guy who gets replaced by Chris Pine for half the movie? Like "yeah, I played Steve Trevor, but they had Chris Pine do all the important parts" 😂😂😂). So, Diana and Steve finally figure out that he's inhabiting some engineer's body because of the wish she made. And then they bang. Or do they bang before they figure it out? Either way, yikes 😬. Not a good look.

To be clear, the yikes part is that Steve is inhabiting Engineer Dude's body without their consent (without his own either tho so that part's not really his fault), but then he chooses to do things sexually with that body that Engineer Dude didn't consent to (because he's like, literally not home. Whether he's been subsumed into Chris Pine or taken out or dormant or whatever). Oh, and then like, probably doing death-defying stunts with his body is also yikes. I'm not really sure what the rules around body possession are. Cuz you know.

Anyway, that is a huge issue that is literally not addressed. At all.

Again, I think they may have been trying to address some criticisms from the first film about Diana "getting rid of the dreaded V-card so quickly in Wonder Woman and then pining after Chris Pine (lol) for the rest of her long life" and how that sets back female sexuality and stuff. Which I get. They actually lampshaded it in WW84, how Chris Pine wants her to move on because "the world deserves her." Which I know what they were going for in the scene, but I feel like they didn't flesh out the journey from Hippolyta's "the world doesn't deserve you Diana" to Steve's "the world deserves you (to date them)" enough. But I digress.

I'm gonna talk a little bit more about the possession and that "the world deserves/doesn't deserve you" line in my Themes section, but honestly? From the previews, I assumed that Chris Pine was revived from the dead via time travel or something. Body possession was NOT in the the trailers. I think the Dreamstone could have created a body for him out of nothing. Or like "time-traveled" him into the future. So like. Why didn't they? Why introduce body possession at all? So they could make fun of the dude's clothes?

Okay, back to the pacing part of the pacing section. These three (four?) characters have completely different things going on in their lives (I actually forgot to talk about Maxwell, but he wants to "be the best," and he's gonna do it by giving people what they think they want (maybe) and then taking from them whatever he wants. Yeah idk). And all three do interact at the beginning (brownie points) even if the attempted seduction of Barbara by Maxwell makes me want to throw up. But the themes aren't worked in as cohesively as I would have liked, and the tone changes were jarring, as the film switched between them all.

Another facet of the movie is that the Dreamstone is kind of a mystery. And that was a deliberate Choice™, not a mistake. We're guessing at what the rock is doing and how and why and by who and all that stuff, and that's on purpose, but that makes for a confusing experience. Their approach is to throw something confusing at you and then explain it later. Which is great for worldbuilding. But not always for the Movie-Watching Experience™. So to recap, we're switching tracks and characters with their own separate stories while also setting up several confusing plot points that take a while to unravel. This all contributes to the Experience™, good or bad.

Honestly, I wonder how much Covid affected this movie? My dad felt like a lot of scenes probably got cut for various reasons, and it probably affected the flow of the movie. If so, it could have affected thematic coherence, too. Speaking of...

So, Themes.

The themes that I got out of this film were Truth and Sacrifice. Maybe I missed some; I'm not an experienced Media Critic™. But these are the ones I noticed.

And actually, these themes are really strong. Universally applicable, and used in all three character arcs. It's just tied in a bit ... erratically?

So working backward, knowing that the Dreamstone is giving you a lie, you need to renounce your wish and accept the Truth™. This is echoed in Diana's flashback, where she needed to accept that she didn't win.

Working backward again, Sacrifice was a big part of the story for all three characters because Diana was willing to sacrifice her power to keep Steve, but he wanted her to sacrifice him so she could save the world. Barbara was willing to sacrifice her "humanity" or "empathy" or whatever she lost for the power and influence she got by emulating Diana, and she was unwilling to sacrifice that to save the world. Maxwell was willing to sacrifice time with his son to "become the best," but he did sacrifice that to save his son's life.

And then, full circle, he confessed to his son that he wasn't the best, he's actually a filthy liar. Which, yes, kudos for the themes, be honest with your children, but you can still sanitize it a bit. That speech alone would have traumatized the kid.

Speaking of speeches, Antiope's speech confused me in a similar way? Like, she stops Diana from "winning" the tournament after cheating, and goes on this weird rambly rant which goes from "accept that you're not a winner" to "cheating is bad and so is lying." Which yes, cheating is bad, but it's weird that she wouldn't have been disqualified at this point for not shooting that last target? Like, did she need to be tackled? Idk, I felt like they came up with the line they wanted Antiope to say first, and then just made her say it. (And also, in other stories, Diana would have been praised for being "clever" and "never giving up without a fight." So like, I needed a bit more preparation for which take they were going for, because the anti-cheating spiel felt jarring to me.)

And again, I wonder if this is a response to a criticism of this first film. (Warning: WW17 rant gearing up)

When Diana has her big motivational flashback during her fight with Ares, she thinks about Steve, this dude she just met a week ago, saying he loved her. When she could have been thinking about literally any of the women who had raised her. I personally think it would have been cool to hear some of Antiope's words at that point. Since they set up Hippolyta and Antiope to have conflicting ideas over whether Diana should fulfill her humanity-saving destiny, it might have been cool to see her saying something about humans and how they need her or how she should help them or something. They could even have done the whole thing with not being able to hear Steve's last words, but with Antiope since she dies earlier in the film and doesn't finish speaking. I also think it would have been cool for them to expand Hippolyta's earlier line about "They don't deserve you, Diana," here to like "They need you, Diana," or something. And then Steve's line in WW84 could have been something like "They're with you, Diana," or "They could get to know you, Diana," and her character arc could have been about actually living among society and maybe getting to know these humans that she's saved so many times (which they kind of alluded to when she and Barbara had their little date at the beginning of the film). But I digress.

So, yeah, I found both of these speeches to be ... Not great? Like I can tell what they're going for and how they tie into the themes, but they're so heavy-handed and they don't actually fit in too well to the moment they happen in. Like as soon as the speech starts, you realize that they started going meta on you. The character isn't really speaking to the other character, they're speaking to us, and they're telling us how this scene ties into the greater themes of the film.

Oh and they have this great quote from Antiope "greatness is not what you think" and then Maxwell's son wishes for him to be "great." And they do nothing with it :(

As promised, I want to talk about the body possession a little bit more. So again, one of the recurring themes is Truth™. Which is a great choice for Wonder Woman, what with her Lasso of Truth.

But it's tied in a bit haphazardly. They force it into a conversation about cheating in a flashback at the beginning of the film. And then they talk about how you need to accept the Truth™ in order to defeat the Dreamstone. I already talked about the cheating, and how the "accept that you're not a winner" was kind of a weird path to take to get your point across to a ten year old girl.

But the Dreamstone. Oh, the Dreamstone. I said before that the movie is a mystery. It shows you things but doesn't explain them. Well, this is a bit of a problem. Because they never actually explain that the Dreamstone is giving you lies. To my eyes, the Dreamstone is changing reality. Steve is back, Barbara is powerful, and Maxwell is doing whatever he wants with the powers of the Dreamstone. THIS DOES NOT LOOK LIKE A LIE TO ME. THERE IS NO "TRUTH" TO ACCEPT, JUST YOUR NEW REALITY. And that made the film less thematically strong (to my eyes, anyway. Other people probably picked up on stuff I didn't). But I feel like this might have been an easy fix? Like you already have Chris Pine in someone else's body (oh! So that's why they chose body possession! Because he's a Lie™! ... Still don't like it) I still think he should have manifested his own body or something but whatever. Barbara's appearance hardly changed at first. If they had people reacting to her as if she was hot when she really looked the same as she always does, then I would have bought your "but the Dreamstone only gives you lies." Instead, Barbara gained the power to walk in heels and then hotness and then the literal power of a God™ (a la Diana) which makes me think the Dreamstone is changing reality. Not bringing lies.

Oh, also, they could have had Diana's Lasso of Truth stop working for her. I thought that's what they were going for at first, but it turns out that Diana is just losing her powers. They also started with "the Dreamstone will give you what you want most," but then Maxwell started using it to clear traffic? Which by the way, is NOT an illusion. That is reality-bending.

There were just so many ways to make it obvious that "the Dreamstone is giving you lies," but they didn't use them. Or at the very least, they didn't commit. I felt like they used a little bit of "be careful what you wish for" (mostly on randos that Maxwell is duping), a little bit of "what are you willing to sacrifice," and a little of "you can have what you want, but it won't be real." All of which are valid ways to take a Dreamstone kind of story, but if they wanted to rely so heavily on Truth™ as the main theme, then I feel like more of the wishes should have been showcasing that. Instead, it felt like a jumble of all the kinds of messages we're used to seeing with Wish-Granting Objects, with no emphasis on specifically the "it's all a lie" part.

Ugh, I'm actually mad now, because I'm trying to think of a story I've heard where this magical thing is granting wishes but they're Explicitly Not Real. Like all the money gets turned back to leaves or whatever (kinda like Cinderella's pumpkin lol). Oh, Aladdin does this, too, because yeah Genie is granting wishes and changing reality, but not permanently? Like, almost all of the stuff he uses magic to do dissolves as soon as we're looking away from it or gets fixed by the end of the movie? And the film is very very clear on the fact that Aladdin is not factually a Prince.

But this film doesn't do that. They make it seem like the Dreamstone can change reality, then berate the characters for not Accepting the Truth™ about themselves. Maybe if they had made a bigger deal out of Steve coming back in someone else's body, it would have been 1) less confusing, 2) less icky (provided they don't do the sex in Engineer Dude's body), and 3) more thematically coherent.

Lastly, Diana's perceived character changes.

This one is probably the most subjective. Diana, as a character, in the first film was very morally grounded and motivated. The Diana in this film felt ... different. Again. Subjective. And also circumstantial.

Diana is still morally grounded in this film. But she's also willing to sacrifice the world to keep Steve Trevor around. Which feels like a jarring change from her characterization in the first film. She was so idealistic and optimistic in that first film, I couldn't imagine her making that choice. It just felt like such a tone change for her character. How did we go from "Who will I be if I stay?" to "Why, for once, can't I just have this one thing, Steve? ... I can't give you up. I can't. So I won't."

Also, her motivation in this film seemed to center around her loss of Steve Trevor and wanting him, and less around "save the world." Which, to be fair, I'm all for women being selfish in film. Give me women of all motivations and desires. I don't want Diana to be Perfect™. I just want her to be consistent. And I didn't think this characterization was as consistent as I expected. Was her life so terrible without Steve (even though they only knew each other for a short time)? Not to say this couldn't be a valid take on Diana (reminder: I haven't read any comics, so maybe it's not in character at all 🤷‍♀️), but if that's what they were going for, they should have developed the journey from naive idealist to jaded romantic more in order to justify this character change.

Also, the body possession thing. She's really okay with her boyfriend possessing somebody else's body. I did like the "All I See Is You" line, since it's romantic, but up until that point, we as viewers aren't really sure why Chris Pine and Hallmark Dude are both playing this guy. Then we find out in a romantic line that Chris Pine is just Wonder Woman's view of him. He still looks like Engineer Dude because he is Engineer Dude. At first, I thought that they used a different guy for the first meeting because Diana didn't recognize him. That this was her perception of him until she realized who it was. (I thought this was supported by Chris Pine's more rugged look in this film. But actually they were probably matching him to the body he was inhabiting, since the character really didn't look like himself). Leverage does a similar thing in the Rashomon Job. All the characters saw each other at the same event, but they didn't know each other back then, so they had different actors play their parts until it's slowly revealed that actually the random people at the event were the characters we know and love. It's great. Anyway, that's not what they're going for here, and the ambiguous framing along with Diana and Steve's chemistry is supposed to make you forget that he is possessing someone else’s body! Against their will! (Again, Steve and Diana didn't consent to the initial possession either, but they absolutely consented to what they did together. Engineer Dude did not.)

Yikes 😬

I will say, she didn't kill innocents this time. One of my critiques of the first movie was that she was so willing to kill Germans. And I get it, Nazis are usually an "acceptable" target in American media. But as a character, she believed that they were innocents who had been manipulated by Ares. And yet, she was slaughtering them en masse. But, in this movie, they're really careful to make sure that she's nonlethal.

And yeah, that's it.

Asteria was of course awesome. That bonus credit scene was 👌

I'm glad they got Linda Hemming back for costuming after the disaster of Justice League. Unfortunately, being set in the 80's, the outfits are not quite so modest as the first movie. But the important thing was the lack of male gaze in those shots.

The movie definitely hit me in my emotions. I cried three times: first during the tournament, watching the Amazon's being awesome. Then during Diana and Steve's fight, and when Steve convinced Diana to let him go. 😭

As I said, I definitely plan on rewatching. It makes me sad to see how much negative press that the movie is getting when it's one of so few female-led blockbusters. A lot of people are comparing it to the original or to the comics or TV show, when those are just not valuable comparisons. Comic books and TV shows are completely different mediums. And a successful sequel CONTINUES a story, instead of rehashing it. And also, not all films are created specifically for YOU. A lot of the 80's references went over my head, but that's ok. They weren't for me. I don't begrudge their existence just because I don't vibe with them.

Again, no film is perfect! I think I talked through a lot of its weaknesses pretty thoroughly, but I still think it's a strong film, and I want it to succeed.

Anyhoo, I hope you had fun watching the movie (even though it's not perfect) and I hope you had fun reading my commentary.

(Fun fact: I actually ran out of space in my notes app and had to stretch it across two notes)

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thewickedmerman · 4 years

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My Fan-Cast for the Movie Adaptation of Wicked

As many of you are aware, I absolutely ADORE Wicked and I'm so excited about the movie adaptation that is just taking FOREVER to be made, even before the pandemic came along. So, like many people, I just keep wanting them to make some casting announcements for the movie already and have been making my own fan-cast for the movie, even making a video of my fan-cast. However, I felt like taking the time to explain my casting choices so everyone knows why I made my choices. I will provide my fan-cast video at the end, so you can hear the vocal capabilities. Please keep in mind that this is just my personal opinion, so there's no need to be rude. Let me know what you think of my casting choices because I LOVE reading comments/retweets, especially long and detailed ones. Enjoy!

Emma Thompson as The Midwife

This is a minor role and I know that it is a waste of Emma Thompson's talents to put in a minor role but I just keep imagining her in the role. I mean, her voice just suits the character. She has a beautiful voice, even if it's not really among the great singers. Plus, the character would require a good actress because of how there isn't much required of the singing. Besides, there are major stars who have been in minor roles, despite that they were already major stars at the time of the release. I don't have much to say with this as I do with the others.

Rebecca Mader as Melena Thropp

Everyone probably knowns her for her role on Once Upon a Time as the Wicked Witch of the West, Zelena, which would make her playing the role of Elphaba and Nessa's mother all the more perfect. It may be a minor role, but she has proven she can make an impact even in a minor role like she did in the third Iron Man movie. She clearly has the acting chops for the role and the musical episode of Once Upon a Time has shown that she has the singing chops because she had the best voice out of the entire cast. I mean, Melena Thropp only sings one line, but the original Melena and Rebecca sound a lot alike. She's proven in Once Upon a Time that she can be very convincing as a woman in labor, which is a major thing for Melena because the biggest thing she does in her screentime is that she gave birth to Elphaba. She also looks like she could be the mother of my choices for Elphaba and even like she could be related to my choices for Nessarose.

Alan Cumming as Frexspar Thropp

This is the last of the minor roles, but this character does have more going on than the other two. This character would require a strong actor who can be emotionally distant and cold without coming off as robotic or stale. He needs to be able to show how doting he is with Nessa, though still reserved and composed, while also being able to show his disdain for Elphaba. Alan Cumming is a brilliant actor that can play a variety of roles, so he would be able to capture the character. He even has experience with musicals, most notably being his role in the 1999 film version of Annie where he played one of the main antagonists, Rooster. He has a great voice so he would be great for the role both in terms of acting and musicality.

Chris Colfer as Boq (Act 1)

Yeah, for the characters I'm doing double-casting because of how Act 1 takes place when they are in school and Act 2 takes place many years later. Starting off with this double-casting is my choice for Boq in Act 1, Chris Colfer. Boq in Act 1 is a very awkward character that is in love with Glinda but she doesn't give him the time of day, which is a character that Chris Colfer plays very well. He'd be able to capture the awkwardness, the sweetness, the hidden frustration, and the overall dorkiness of the character in Act 1. His face practically screams all of that. He not only can act but is has an incredible singing voice that can handle the moments when Boq belts out. Plus, his very feminine sounding voice would just add to the character being seen as a dork that Glinda just doesn't have any interest in but he keeps pining for. Plus, he has such a youthful look to him that he can pass as someone who is still in school.

Daniel Radcliffe as Boq (Act 2)

I feel like Daniel Radcliffe has the right look for Boq in Act 2 because he can be more serious and intense, which is required for the character when he becomes heartless and the Tinman, but can still look awkward and dorky. His performance as Harry Potter shows he can look emotionless while also not coming off as a bad actor, which is important for when he's Nessa's butler, as an attempt to force him to remain by her side along with taking away the rights of the munchkins. He needs to be able to show how he resents Nessa while appearing emotionlessly professional, despite her pining for him. Not only can he act, but he even has musical experience by playing the protagonist of the show How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. I had no idea that he could sing so well. His voice is powerful enough to handle Boq's singing during the song "March of the Witch Hunters."

Kevin Kline as Doctor Dillamond

Kevin Kline was just the first and only actor that came to mind when I was thinking of who to cast for Doctor Dillamond, especially after watching his performance in the live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast. First of all, I know that Kevin Kline's true vocal abilities weren't displayed in that movie because he actually has a great voice and a lot of Broadway experience. However, Doctor Dillamond is not a character that really shows a lot of impressive vocal ability. His voice is a lot more limited and I felt like Kevin Kline captured the qualities of Doctor Dillamond's singing perfectly when he sang "How Does a Moment Last Forever" in Beauty and the Beast. That role also showed he could pull off the tender, loving, and quirkiness of Doctor Dillamond. He's just perfect for the role.

Sofia Carson as Nessarose (Act 1)

She has the perfect look for Nessarose, at least the type of Nessarose that I imagine. I always imagined her as someone with light skin (With Sofia it depends on the lighting), long and silky black hair, and of course so damn gorgeous. Nessa is described as being a radiant beauty, which Sofia Carson clearly is. Not only that, but she has played characters that are a little spoiled and selfish like Nessa, who never appreciates all that Elphaba does for her. She also has a beautiful voice. I mean, her voice is very breathy and nasally, as well as kind of frail and fragile, but I feel like that would suit Nessa. First of all, in Act 1, there isn't really much required of Nessa in terms of vocal ability, though she still has to be able to sound good. Secondly, her voice being kind of frail and fragile, though her voice isn't weak by any means, would really suit Nessa because of how she is treated as frail and fragile, due to not being able to walk or take care of herself. It suits her and the sheltered life she's lived that matches her falling instantly in love with the first guy who asks her out on a date.

Lucy Hale as Nessarose (Act 2)

First of all, don't Sofia and Lucy look like they could be related? Secondly, Lucy Hale really suits Nessarose in Act 2 where she is now the Governor of Munchkin Land (A position that is apparently isn't done through election but rather through a family bloodline) and known as The Wicked Witch of the East, despite her not having any magical powers like her sister. Lucy Hale is absolutely GORGEOUS! Just like Sofia Carson, she is what I imagine when I picture what Nessarose should look like. Light skin, dark hair, and red lips. Not to mention her sharp eyes would be able to show the cruel nature of Nessarose in Act 2. Do I even need to mention her acting chops? She is a brilliant actress who is best known for her hit show Pretty Little Liars. She also has an amazing voice that is very different from Sofia Carson's but would still suit Nessa in Act 2. Unlike in Act 1, Nessa isn't really treated as frail and fragile but rather seen as a cold-hearted dictator. Lucy's voice is much deeper and more powerful, which shows Nessa's maturity from a delicate girl. Plus, during the song "Wicked Witch of the East" (Which was never included in the soundtrack for some dumb reason), she has a moment where she actually does belt, which shows her desperation of wanting Boq to be alright. She's more demanding than she was in Act 1, which I think Lucy Hale can display with her incredible acting and singing abilities. She's proven time and time again what a strong actress she is.

Glenn Close as Madame Morrible

I don't even think I need to list Glenn Close's acting credits! She is right up there with Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore, only that Glenn is LONG overdue for an Oscar win. She is a brilliant actress! One of THE best actresses that ever existed! My favorite role she's been in is as Cruella De Vil in the live-action remake of 101 Dalmatians and its sequel, 102 Dalmatians. So she has experience playing villainesses. That is important because of how Madame Morrible doesn't really sing much and requires more of a strong actress than a singer. However, Glenn Close has a great voice and has a lot of Broadway experience, particularly the lead role of Sunset Boulevard. She has the right look for Madame Morrible. Like, she has a face you'd expect her to have when you think of Madame Morrible.

Kelsey Grammer as The Wizard

First of all, I know Kelsey's voice is a lot deeper than people are used to for The Wizard, but I feel like that doesn't make much of a difference. An important aspect to capture for The Wizard is that he is a total ham that loves to get a bunch of attention. If you have seen Kelsey Grammer's performance as Frasier in Cheers and more specifically Frasier (The FAR superior show), you'd know that Kelsey can definitely ham it up while still not having it come off as bad acting. When it comes to hammy acting for a hammy character, you need to be able to find the right balance, which is hard to do. Kelsey is an expert at this and would just love eating up the role. He can also capture the sentimental and tender side that tries to convince Elphaba to join him, twice. His deep and dulcet sounding voice would be able to capture that better than the typical high pitched and nasally voice The Wizard usually has. Not to mention he has a great voice that can handle the energetic nature of The Wizard while still maintaining the vocal quality. He has a lot of Broadway experience and a lot of you who aren't familiar with his work have actually already heard him sing if you've seen the animated movie, Anastasia, where he provided both the speaking and singing voice for Vlad. He's absolutely PERFECT for The Wizard.

Jordan Fisher as Fiyero (Act 1)

First of all, I have to point out something and that is that in the book that the musical is based on, Fiyero was brown. They were never specific on what race he is and it's kept ambiguous but he and the people of his kingdom are described as having brown skin. This is something rarely ever seen in the stage show, though you could argue that it was among a long list of things that were changed from that terrible book. Anyway, I feel like this is something that should be taken into account when casting for the movie because representation is important. Now, with that out of the way, Jordan Fisher would be absolutely amazing as the cocky and fun-loving Prince Fiyero in Act 1. He has the right look, can seriously dance, is a great actor, and has a PHENOMENAL voice. He has proven he can play cocky characters in Rent: Live and Grease: Live. Those helped display his Broadway experience and that's not even the tip of the iceberg of his Broadway experience. His voice is so incredible that he is basically the male equivalent of Mariah Carey with those impressive high notes. He can play a cocky character and still show tenderness and charm, which is important for Fiyero.

Corbin Bleu as Fiyero (Act 2)

First of all, don't Corbin and Jordan look a lot alike? But that's not the only reason why I cast him as Fiyero in Act 2. I discovered that he has done a lot of Broadway work and really showed what an amazing voice he has. I mean, when he was on Disney, I thought his voice was great but in a kind of pop singer way that felt like he was holding back. Broadway-style music really showed what he was capable of with his powerful and strong voice that is full of energy and tenderness. Not to mention he's an incredible dancer. He's a great actor that would be able to capture Fiyero's more mature nature he has in Act 2 and how protective he is over Elphaba. He'd capture the charm of the character perfectly!

Dove Cameron as Glinda (Act 1)

First of all, the original actress for Glinda, Kristin Chenoweth, is campaigning for Dove Cameron to play Glinda in the movie. That shows that Dove is an amazing choice! I trust Kristin Chenoweth's judgment, apart from when she thought it was a good idea to play Maleficent in that AWFUL Descendants movie. Anyway, Dove has proven in her performance as Amber in Hairspray: Live that she can play the part of an egocentric, girly, primadonna VERY well. Glinda definitely needs a strong actress to capture the negative and basically white privilege that is Glinda while still being charming and engaging, which Dove is more than capable of doing. She definitely has the vocal chops to pull it off with her powerful voice that can even do operatic singing and hit really high notes, which is required for the role of Glinda. She may be a Disney Channel star, but she is also classically trained. She'd be perfect for Glinda in Act 1!

Megan Hilty as Glinda (Act 2)

As you can see, I've included an actress who has actually played one of the characters on the stage. I didn't do that with other characters because screen acting and stage acting are two COMPLETELY DIFFERENT skillsets. What works for one doesn't work for the other. Stage acting is a lot more exaggerated and broad because they have to make sure their performance can be seen by everyone in the audience. Screen acting can be a lot more subtle and intimate. That's not to say that there aren't actors that can do both stage and screen acting, almost all of the actors here have. Megan Hilty has played Glinda many times before and is the second-best Glinda after Kristin Chenoweth. She has the bubbly personality, the comedic timing, and the maturity (That comes later in the show) that is required for the role of Glinda in Act 2. She has a brilliant voice that has sung these songs MANY times, so it's obvious that she can hit the high notes and sing in an operatic voice. She's proven she can play Glinda on stage and I think she has the acting talent to be able to play her on-screen.

Ariana Grande as Elphaba (Act 1)

I know that this is the most controversial choice on this list because people either love or hate the idea of Ariana Grande as Elphaba. First of all, guess what two people want her to be Elphaba. Kristin Chenoweth and the original Elphaba, Idina Menzel! Those two are among the QUEENS of Broadway and know these characters VERY well since they played them MANY times. I trust their judgment. Now with that out of the way, she may be known as a pop singer but she got her start being on Broadway LONG before her pop music career took off. When she sings Broadway music, that is when her voice manages to really shine through because of her background with Broadway. You can actually understand what she is saying because she has proper enunciation when she sings that style of music. She even sang "The Wizard and I" at Wicked's anniversary special. Her vocal ability is undeniable with her powerful and strong voice that can seriously belt and has such a beauty to it. Now, I know what people are gonna say, that she isn't a good actress. First of all, it's not fair to only judge her based off the roles she's been given where she's being typecast as the dumb chick thanks to her iconic role as Cat Valentine. However, she still plays that role well, but there is so much more to her than just that. In her performance on Saturday Night Live, where she got to show more of her acting range, she caught the attention of the legendary director, Steven Spielberg, who personally contacted her because he wanted her to be in one of his movies. However, she turned him down because she wanted to focus on her music career. The point is that if she managed to get the attention of one of the most successful and critically acclaimed directors of all time, you know that she truly does have acting chops that have just never been given a chance. Playing Elphaba would give her that chance!

Anneliese van der Pol as Elphaba (Act 2)

Finally, we have my choice for Elphaba in Act 2, the brilliant and wickedly talented, Anneliese van der Pol. You all know her as Chelsea from That's So Raven and Raven's Home but there is SO MUCH MORE to her than just that. She has mainly thrived off of being on Broadway, with her most iconic role being the last actress to play Belle from Beauty and the Beast on Broadway and was the BEST out of all of the women who have played her. She has such a powerful and incredible voice! Her voice can actually give Idina Menzel a run for her money! It's a shame that she's not more famous because she has the phenomenal talent to be an A-list celebrity. Not only that, but she's a great actress too and can do so much more than just comedy, which she's proven with her performance as Belle. She also just has a face that is perfect for Elphaba, especially her nose. Another fun fact is that she is actually Jewish, just like Idina Menzel, which would make it even better if she was cast as Elphaba. She is the PERFECT choice for Elphaba and is not likely to get the role because she's not considered famous enough and that's considered more important than actual talent. But this is my fan-cast and I can cast whoever I want and she is just pure perfection for the part of Elphaba.

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side4-s4 · 3 years

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Thursday, January 7, 2021

RETRO REVIEWS

Wonder Woman 1984 [2020]

“Life is good! But it can be better…”

As all of you know, 2020 was a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad year. So many lives have been impacted by the ongoing global health crisis and life may never be the same again. The film industry is only one of the social and economic entities that was negatively affected by the effects of COVID-19: some studios closed, some theater chains shut down, many movies were postponed or disappeared altogether, and many people had tough situations and decisions ahead of them. Despite all of these universal setbacks, a lot of great movies were released in 2020, one of which being the latest chapter in the DC Extended Universe. Wonder Woman 1984 was a wonderfully entertaining flick and a worthy sequel to the preceding film. It had an intriguing story with plenty of laughs, emotional moments, and action scenes that are to be expected from a superheroine epic. The excellent cast was probably the film’s strongest element, which also included a few great cameos (most notably one from a very “wonderful” woman). It’s always an immense pleasure to see Gal Gadot as the titular Wonder Woman, especially since she embodies the essence of Diana Prince both on and off screen. She kicked so much ass and also made emotional connections to the other characters and to the audience as well. It was also great to have Chris Pine back as Steve Trevor, for (maybe) the last time. Visiting from a galaxy far, far away is Pedro Pascal, who did an excellent job portraying the power-hungry Maxwell Lord. My favorite character this time around was definitely Barbara Minerva, played by one of my favorite comedic actresses Kristen Wiig. Not only did she bring her quirky charm to her role, but she also gave Cheetah strength and determination that fit the villainess so well; at times, the audience may even feel a bit of pity for her. Another thing that I loved about the movie was Hans Zimmer’s fantastic musical score; he’s one of my favorite film composers and this soundtrack was another great addition to his already legendary discography. Overall, Wonder Woman 1984 was an excellent movie, worthy of the titular heroine and an outstanding addition to the DCEU. With a third film in the series already in the works, I honestly cannot wait to see what’s in store for Diana Prince as she continues her trek across generations and across the earth, helping the helpless, bringing justice to the corrupt, and inspiring everyone with both hope and wonder… 8/10

#RetroReviews #Side4 #S4 #WonderWoman1984 #WW84 #DCEU

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arkechosfandomsofficial · 3 years

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LGBTQ People described the series as focusing around Catarina Claes who amasses a polyamorous bisexual harem pining for her as she tries to avoid being a villain and becomes very thoughtful. Reviewers pointed out three lesbian characters: Mary Hunt, Sophia Ascart, and Maria Campbell, all of whom have crushes on Catarina, as reviewer James Beckett of Anime News Network pointed out. In May 2020, seven of the 10 spots of a "weekly favourite couple poll" by Anime Trending featured Catarina paired with most of the characters. After the first season ended, with a "friendship ending," one reviewer calling it a "very definitive ending for Catarina and Her Polyamorous Bisexual Harem of Doom," and the series was later praised by Rebecca Silverman and Theron Martin of the Anime News Network for being well-done, and offers "a rewarding bisexual power fantasy" which Caterina is unaware of due to her dense nature. Anime - My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! #animeedits #animefan #yuriromance #animesliceoflife #animelovers #animefantasy #animeschool #manga #mangas #mangayuri #yuriart #mynextlifeasavillainessallroutesleadtodoom #animegirl #animegirlcute #animegirls #animelover #animelove #animeseries #katarinaxmaria #animeromances #anime #animes #animefans #yurianime #yuri #yuricouple #yurigirls #animeart #animeillustration #otomegamenohametsuflagshikanaiakuyakureijounitenseishiteshimatta https://www.instagram.com/p/CILcu1mh01O/?igshid=12bbkuxh8cjb

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neshabeingchildish · 5 years

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08. Am I Dreaming?

Detemined: A Chasper Fic

Charlotte could hardly believe that, "Of all the people in this world, my Uncle Roscoe is actually getting married. I honestly can't even imagine it."

"Uncle Rox is getting married??" Jasper asked.

"To whom?" Henry followed up with.

"They met at the Couch Potatoes Cafe," she told them. They went in to sit and order and both selected the same couch at the same time and decided to share it.

"Awwww," Jasper cooed.

Meanwhile, Henry joked, "And now they'll live forever and ever on somebody's couch together."

"I think she's got a place of her own. I haven't met her, but the wedding is this weekend, so I've got to get out of work to go."

"I wanna come! I love weddings. I love Uncle Rox. This is like a perfect event." Jasper said.

"Yeah, sure. You want in, Hen? If for nothing else just to see who is marrying my uncle?"

"I actually am morbidly curious."

"There should still be those tuxedo gumballs in the Man Cave."

"Naw. Those taste like butt," Henry said.

"Right. Schwoz did put some butt in there," she told him.

"Ewww. Gross!" Henry declared.

Jasper submitted, "Who's butt did he put in? Butt tastes good if done right."

"Done right?" Henry asked. Charlotte was simply equal parts horrified and mortified.

"You know, hygienically and genetically. Like…" he glanced at Charlotte, then at the ground and said, "If they're well put together and take care of themselves, it's a treat for all."

"That's quite enough on that subject," Charlotte said.

"I have additional questions later," Henry told him.

Whenever the guys met at Charlotte's house, Jasper said, "I made you a corsage."

And Henry chimed in, "I picked out the flowers."

She gave them both looks, withheld calling them idiots and instead informed them, "You guys know that we're guests at a wedding, not the prom, right?"

Henry rolled his eyes and said "Jasper will do the honors…"

But, she snatched it, set it down and said, "I'm not wearing that. Let's go."

Henry gave Jasper a pat on the back as he grabbed the corsage. "I'LL wear it, Dude." And he did.

When they were seated in their seats and everybody stood up for the bride, Charlotte gasped and Henry stared, speechlessly as Nurse Cohort came walking in, wearing a bridal gown. "HEY! Look who it is!" Jasper said. "Uncle Rox has great taste."

Henry whispered to him, "She's a villain and an enemy and she's about to be married into Char's family."

"A hot villain," Jasper corrected.

"Obviously," Henry agreed. Charlotte was still just staring, glad that the woman didn't remember or recognize her as she met with Uncle Roscoe at the altar.

Whenever the officiator asked if anyone had any objections, Charlotte's nervous foot syndrome was in overdrive. She should definitely say something, right? Point out to everyone that the woman is a known villainess and enemy of Swellview, yeah? She didn't have to.

Dr. Minyak came bursting through both double doors with the loud announcement, "I have an objection!"

Now… Charlotte had no idea if this was better. Henry, on the other hand commented, "Well, this just got interesting."

"Interesting is definitely a word," Charlotte said.

Minyak went on to ask, "Who is this man and for what reason are you marrying him?"

"Newsflash, Horatio. That will they/won't they you made up in your head? A resounding they won't! Now, leave. Before my husband to be takes you outside."

"But I ask, again, who he is!"

"He's Roscoe. A simple man who doesn't ask for much and lets me run the show. Roscoe, Dear?"

Uncle Roscoe nodded and picked Dr. Minyak up. He used to be a bouncer and he bounced him right out of the building before the ceremony proceeded. "Well… maybe she's not going to be doing evil anymore now that Dr. Minyak is clearly out of her life," Charlotte said, hopefully.

"WOOOWOOOO! GREAT JOB, UNCLE ROX!" Jasper called out.

Charlotte had no clue why Jasper was such a huge fan of her uncle, but simply asked him, "Can you calm down over there?"

"I told you, I love weddings and this one had an action/adventure element to it!" She rolled her eyes.

Henry said, "Hey. It'll be okay. If she's up to no good, we'll stop her before she can harm or taint him." She nodded and he beckoned her closer, "But what's the deal with you and," he gestured his head towards Jasper, who was pointing his phone to record and said as he did, "Uncle Rox, you're doing great, Sweetie."

"What do you mean, what's the deal? You told me to back off and I backed off," she said.

"I mean… I told you to back off if you didn't really want him, but things seem different for you these days. Like, you like him."

"Well, if I do, it doesn't matter if I can't treat him how he deserves. You pretty much made the decision for me. Are you backpedaling, now?"

"No! Not backpedaling. Just… seeing if YOU'VE changed since our last chat. You like him?" She folded her arms. "He likes you. Like, he loves you."

"Hen… Has Jasper said something about me?"

"Kinda got mad whenever I inserted myself last time. But, last report I have him was that you're definitely on the same page. Should I recant?"

"I’ll talk to him later."

"Good, I don’t know WHAT to say. But, if you're still… Just… Let him down easy, though.

"I said I’LL talk to him."

"LET HIM DOWN EASY THOUGH!"

Jasper and a few guests looked at the two of them and Charlotte panicked and said, "He has tourettes."

"Insensitive and ableist," Henry commented.

She told him, through her teeth, "This is no longer your business. Thanks though." The last time she listened to him, he made her rethink every emotion and observation that she had about Jasper. Now, he was essentially saying that she should have just followed her first mind anyway! Which.. now she wasn't sure was correct. If she had let the advice of Henry move her, maybe it was because deep down, some part of her agreed with his doubts.

At the reception, she asked him to dance, "But, you hate dancing." She furrowed her eyebrows and he quickly hopped to it, "And yet, you're gonna bless me with a dance!"

She took him to the floor and started to sway in his arms as the Ol School ft XScape & Keith Sweat Am I Dreaming remake came on. Her uncle and new aunt were singing to each other nearby and she laughed a little bit, but got right to business, "You know… I'm not interested in romance and coupling. That stuff is like one of those things that I think I might one day get bored after doing everything I needed and wanted to do and reluctantly give it a try. What about you?"

Jasper shrugged his shoulders and admitted, "I love love. I want a soul mate, wife, kids, pets, all in one house, no custody disputes or visitation rejections. No divorce. No different last names. Just a family that I built with my bare hands alongside a life partner."

"Cool. So, you know what you want and that means that you'll be more likely to go after that and only that with someone who also wants that." He knew what this was. She was finally addressing his interest in her and she was declining, as he could have guessed she might.

"Yeah. It's gonna be quite a find, if I ever find anybody that would even consider me that way."

"You will. I have faith in you."

"I do too. I believe in my dreams. But, maybe instead of having faith in me, have a little in yourself. How do you know that you won't want anyone until your life is over? Maybe you just haven't paid attention to the right person."

"Maybe. But, I'm not ready to start doing that for anybody. I've got goals and plans and I never factored in even the possibility of connecting before any of them are met. Plus… I don't even get… well… you know. I've been openly ace for like 3 years. Guys don't even want to be my friend when they find that out."

"Guys like that never wanted to be your friend in the first place then. If they truly did, they would be willing to try anything for you."

"What's there to try? I'm not quite as adventurous as you, what with your butt taste buds and all…"

He blushed. "I only meant that I'm not against trying it, with the right person."

"Here's the thing, Jasper. For you, the right person is kinda whoever you're into at the moment. We've spoken about this before. You get into somebody, and you're in love, hard and heavy until you're not. Then, you just move on. Any girl who knows you probably would never date you. What happens when you get bored with her? You just bounce."

"I… didn't realize that my actions could be read like that." He sighed, "Okay. It's not hard for me to fall in love and I put a lot into things, whenever I do. But, if it isn't working out, I might move on, but I'm also latched on a lot of the time. I don't get over it as easy as it looks. You have to remember who you're talking to. Just because I'm not whining doesn't mean I'm not pining." She stared at him and the song was ending. They pulled apart and he said, "But, I get what you mean. Somebody who's slow to jump and neutral with her response might need a little more evidence as to how badly I want her."

"Or. She might not be interested in any of that and just likes having her friend."

"Or that. Thanks, Char. You're always good with advice." Even about yourself, he guessed. He found Henry and wondered, "Ready to go?" Henry took one look at Jasper and knew which direction Charlotte had gone.

"Yeah. Did she at least let you down gently?"

Jasper bit his lip and nodded, "Like it hurt her to do it, but like it had to be done."

Henry sighed and wrapped an arm around him, sending Charlotte a text that they were going to head out. Outside, there was a girl waiting at the corner and she said, “Hey! Excuse me! Dr. Minyak stole my Uber and I’d just put my purse down in it. Can I catch a ride and pay you guys back? I promise, I’m good for it.”

Even though they weren’t about to order a car, Henry said, “Sure thing!” Jasper tried to decline and walk instead, but Henry practically forced him into the agreement. He didn’t feel like being a wingman, but Henry did leave the party early for him, and the reception was always one of the best parts, because hot girls with marriage on the mind… So, he agreed and they waited with her for the car, sprinkled with small talk and heavy flirting.

After work, Charlotte and Henry met Jasper upstairs, in the store. He was on the phone, but still locked up with them. Whenever they got outside, Charlotte wondered, “Who in the world is he talking to?”

“I think her name is Emily or Honalee? We met her outside of the wedding.”

“Amelie?”

“Yeah! That’s it! I guess you know her?”

“Yeah. Uncle Roscoe dated her mom years ago and she still sorta sees him as a father figure.”

“Which is ridiculous, because he is literally an oversized child,” Henry said. They heard Jasper giggle on the phone and Charlotte shook her head. Unbelievable. Just because I’m not whining doesn’t mean I’m not pining. Yeah right. Pining for Amelie, who apparently was literally the first girl you saw after we parted ways!

“You okay, Char?” Henry asked, sure that he knew exactly what her suddenly sour mood was about.

“Yeah. But, we’ve gotta vet her. I know that she’s like family to Uncle Roscoe, but Uncle Roscoe isn’t a great judge of character, and Jasper doesn’t have a very good track record with selecting girls!”

“She seemed alright to me,” Henry said.

“From the one car ride that you shared with her, when she was most likely being polite in order to appease the guys that just helped her get home?”

Henry rolled his eyes and wondered, “How do we figure out if this girl is good for him, or not?”

“Simple…” Charlotte invited Amelie over to hang out at her house with the three of them. Jasper thought it was weird, but didn’t make a big deal of it. But, whenever they were all there, Char was acting weird. First, she kept asking Amelie pretty intense questions like, “What is it that you think that you might see in Jasper? Because, I’ve known him nearly half my life and only saw any appeal a very short time ago.” Then, there were comments, “Well, I guess it’s a good thing that you ran into Jasper and Henry, real regular heroes. Especially Jasper. Great guy, but don’t let the dimples fool you. He’s quite the heartbreaker.”

“Nothing could be further from the truth,” Jasper said, laughing, uncomfortably. “What is with you?”

Amelie said, “I’m sorry, Charlotte. I didn’t realize that you and Jasper had history. I wouldn’t date my cousin’s ex!”

“I am not your cousin,” Charlotte said at the same time that Jasper said “I’m not her ex.” But, she heard it and tilted her head at him, “Maybe not, but let’s be really honest about the circumstances in which you met this girl…” She didn’t say anything else. She didn’t have to. He met Amelie when he was leaving from being rejected by Charlotte and of course, if this DID go anywhere, it would definitely simply be some type of rebound.

“But, that doesn’t mean that you should get to be rude to your guest,” he told her. “Or, to me, for that matter. Why do you feel like you have the right to say anything about who I may or may not date?”

“Whoa oh,” Henry said.

“I think I should go,” Amelie said.

“No. I’LL go, since I’m the one making everybody uncomfortable,” Charlotte said.

“YOU LIVE HERE!” Jasper snapped.

Charlotte got up and retired to her room. It was quiet for a while before Henry said, “Well, the chicken was just lovely.” Jasper got up and stormed after Charlotte and Henry got up and tried to stop him. “Hey, Jasper, Buddy. Where ya goin’?” “She can’t brush me off, then get mad whenever I’m trying to move on!”

“Okay. BUT, can she feel insecure about trusting you after you indirectly professed love, then started talking to another girl mere hours later?”

“NO! She didn’t even want to give me a chance. She has no right.”

“Can she actually be concerned that maybe, just maybe you’re making a bad decision, since you do kinda have a track record for going all in after girls who turn out to be disasters.” Jasper stopped. “I just don’t think you getting mad is the best way to deal with whatever Char has going on in her head.”

Jasper folded his arms and said, “I just want her to be real with me and say whatever she actually means. I want her to explain it to me like I’m stupid, because getting me to take a hint is clearly not working. The hint I took was that she wanted me to leave the thought of us behind completely. I even said that I was willing to work harder to prove myself and she told me not to!”

Charlotte appeared at the end of the hallway and said, “I can hear you, Jasper!”

“Good! Because we need to talk!” He complained.

She leaned against the wall and said, “Henry, can you go check on Amelie and maybe apologize to her? I’ll call her to speak for myself in a little while.” He nodded and reluctantly left them alone. Charlotte sighed and said, “You’re right. It would be unfair of me to turn you down and get mad at you for moving on, but that’s not what this is. I’m upset because, like Henry said, you seemed all about me, then suddenly, you were back into the same old habits. Amelie is cool, or whatever, but you know absolutely nothing about her! She could be a criminal. She could be a… Republican!” He leaned against the wall next to her. “Everybody gets concerned when you like a girl, because you’ve had not only bad luck, but bad judgment in that department. I’m the only one who will tell you, while Henry and the guys at work are content to let you look a fool, so long as you possibly get some action. I’m the person that usually has your best interest at heart.”

“You're the person who makes me feel the worst about everything that's wrong with me!”

Now, she was really sad and slid down the wall to sit down on the floor, “I see. Sorry. You will not have to deal with it again. You can leave whenever you want.”

He sat next to her. “It’s not completely like that. I mean, you can be pretty harsh and don’t really compliment me very much, but… I feel like I have to always be trying to be a better person with you and that gets to be heavy.”

“I’ve never placed that responsibility on you, so how is this my fault?”

“It’s not about fault, it’s about… You like me right?”

She couldn’t bare to look at him right now, because her emotions were all over the place and she didn’t even like when her emotions were present, much less active, “You're one of my best friends. Of course I like you.”

“That's not what I mean.”

“Well I mean it.”

“And you don't think we could ever be more than that, right? I mean… we like each other more than that. I don't understand why we can't act on it. You’re the one who basically told me to get over it and move on. I didn’t understand, but I tried to respect it, and now HERE we are.”

“I think that if we did that, we'd be taking on a huge risk. Do you want to possibly ruin what we already have?” Her hands were so interesting, right now. She traced them with her fingertips, stretched and wiggled those digits, meanwhile studying them.

“No… but if we make it, the risk will have been worth it.”

Finally, she looked at him. His optimism and dreamlike wonder was becoming such a problem and worst, she felt like he had a point. Jasper. He couldn’t have a point. She had thought about this. She thought about everything. “Knowing yourself and knowing me… do you think that we'd make it? Honestly. One or both of us would have to go through a lot of changes, and even then, that would be two people we've created to make it work making it work, not necessarily who we are..”

“You're so smart.”

She nodded her head and pointed to him, because finally, he got it. “And that's never going to change.”

“Unfortunately for you, I'm not nearly as smart,” Jasper said and moved in to kiss her. Now, she saw it coming and she knew that she strongly believed everything that she had just said, so the smart thing, the responsible thing would be to dodge his lips and get up and go. The thing that she did was lean forward to meet him in the middle, and wrapped her arms around him as she kissed him back.

#A Chasper Fic #chasper #henry danger #hd fanfic #Nesha HD Fics

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violetwolfraven · 5 years

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Distracted

((There is so not enough Joss/Nora stuff out there so I decided to help start to fill the void...))

.............................................................................

“Nora!” Caitlyn exclaimed.

Nora startled, “What?”

“Are you even pretending you’re paying attention?” this time, it was Killer Frost chiding her.

Nora shook her head, “Sorry. Just.. a lot on my mind. This is a pretty standard meta situation, so... call me if and when you need me?”

Nora’s dad looked a little worried, “Yeah, of course.”

Killer Frost followed her into the hallway, “I know that look.”

“What look?” Nora asked.

The ex-villainess smirked, “What’s his name?”

“Oh, it’s not that.”

Caitlyn’s eyes shifted back to brown, “Trust me, both KF and I have been around enough of the others to recognize a pining lover when we see one. So... what’s his name?”

Nora blushed and looked down, “Um... it’s a her, actually.”

“Oh, okay,” Caitlyn said (Nora was a little relieved by her lack of reaction, knowing there was homophobia in this time) “What’s her name, then? Do I know her?”

“Maybe it’s kind of wrong,” Nora admitted, “And maybe I don’t even know why, but... you know what? Maybe I shouldn’t tell you.”

“Relax, Nora,” Caitlyn said, “I’m not going to tell your parents if you don’t want me to.”

Nora groaned, “I just can’t get Joss Jackam out of my head!”

Caitlyn looked surprised, but not as much as Nora was expecting, “Oh. Wow. That is not what I was expecting.”

“To be honest, I was expecting you to freak out more.”

“Hey, you’re hardly the first one to have a thing for a villain, here. You ever hear about Cisco and Lisa Snart?”

“Um... no?”

“You don’t want to,” Caitlyn assured her, “Look, it’s not that bad. It’s not like Joss is exactly even really a bad person, herself.”

“But she’s still almost hurt people!” Nora protested, “I shouldn’t be having feelings for someone like that!”

“We can’t always control our feelings,” Caitlyn said, “But you could definitely do worse than Weather Witch, and... who knows? Killer Frost and I came back to the light because we had people to come back for, and we were way farther gone than Joss is. Maybe you can be her reason to come back.”

“Besides,” Killer Frost put in, “Have you seen those rainbow streaks dyed into her hair? There is no way that girl is straight.”

Nora giggled, “Thanks, Caitlyn. Thanks, Killer Frost.”

“You’re welcome,” Killer Frost said, “From both of us.”

As they walked away, Nora smiled to herself. Maybe Caitlyn and Killer Frost were right. Maybe Nora could bring Joss back to the light.

And even if she couldn’t... what was the harm in trying?

#the flash #arrowverse shows #cw #nora west allen #joss jackam #xs #weather witch #weatherwest #xwitch #jora #xs x weather witch #nora x joss #killer frost #caitlyn snow

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dappercritter · 5 years

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You have been granted the oppurtunity to recast your favorite animated movie! The only catch is that each of the characters in said movie are animated characters from different shows/movies (X from show/movie is Bob, X from show/movie is Larry, ect.)

Hoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo boi. You have no idea what you’ve just unleashed, my friend!

Once long ago, before the Cringe Ages, I loved recasting my favourite and sometimes least favourite movies with characters from my favourite shows. But then I started taking storytelling more seriously and sentimentally and… art-y, and I started acting as if I was above the stuff somehow. To this day, I still don’t know whether to blame the masses or my own hubris.

But now! Now, the floodgates of my childish, innocent mind are open once more! And I have just the idea: The Nightmare Before Christmas but with Villainous and Batman* characters! (With a few CN villains on the side.) So, I guess you could call it…

The Villainous Nightmare Before Batman!

(No, wait. Uhhhhh…)

The Dark Knight Before Villainous!

Ok, yeah, that should do.

Now you’re probably asking yourself, “Dapper Critter, what are you doing this? Sure, Batman meets Villainous could work, but why are you bringing The Nightmare Before Christmas into this? It’s not even Halloween or Christmas! What are you thinking?!” Well, first of all, Christmas and Halloween aren’t just holidays, they’re states-of-mind. Second, I think it’s time you guys learned something important: I’m a big ol’ lowkey goth baby, baby! If it’s spooky or gothic, I’ll soak it up like a sponge in sink full of soapy water. And nothing says gothic like the hero of a city literally called “Gotham,” a show with a grotesque monster hiding behind the guise of a well-dressed man, and the classic story of Jack Skellington himself! What’s more, all three of these hold a special place in my heart, as they all played a huge part in helping me develop and realize my interest in gothic culture. Lastly, I can see the worlds of these three stories coming together quite easily. Behold, this plot pitch I just made!

“Another Halloween has come and gone in CN City, and another cheerful Christmas is on its way. Black Hat, unofficial master of all that is dark and evil, is thoroughly disgusted that the multiverse will soon be returning to it’s obnoxiously cheerful and wholesome state. He morosely tears a hole through time and space to talk a walk through reality, miserable that he’s stuck living in such a wonderful place. That is until he stumbles upon the city of Gotham, where no matter what time of year it is, the streets are filled with misery and malicious mayhem. Delighted, he sets out to celebrate Christmas his own way: by taking a certain caped-crusader out of the picture and making Gotham his very own holiday vacation home! Little does he know, there’s one special girl who thinks he can celebrate right where he is, as well as a certain clown who’s got his own sinister Christmas party in mind…”

So now that I’ve convinced you, I think it’s time we got down to the actual recasting! Let’s begin, my darling children of the Hot Topic night…

Black Hat as Jack Skellington: This couldn’t have been easier—they’re both creepy gentlemen with excellent taste in fashion. Yes, I know Black Hat is a lot less nice than our dear Pumpkin King, but let’s just say this story takes the odd liberty here and there. Not to mention, Black Hat could easily match Jack’s enthusiasm, intelligence, style, and obsessive inquisitions. Plus, he could totally pull off an evil Santa suit. (Though to be honest, I’m not sure if his snarling, slimy, cockney-accented voice could match Danny Elfman’s melodious singing.)

Demencia as Sally: A devoted, mildly ghoulish, and totally cute fangirl who’s always pining after their darling idol, and who may or may not have been made in a lab? It’s like this fancast is writing itself! Demencia might be a bit more proactive—and scary—in the plot, but I can see her a lot Sally’s dilemma in her as she tries to get Black Hat to notice her and not to abandon them in pursuit of a crazy dream. (Well, that I’m filthy Lizardhat trash.)

Dr. Flug as Dr. Finklestein: Flug, being the only mad scientist who’s employed by Black Hat, as well as the only to survive this, seems like a good pick. Sure, he’s not in a wheelchair and, no, he’s not as creepy as the bugger, but he could still work as our horrid hero’s right-hand man. Plus, since a big part of his canon character is putting up with Demencia’s BS (tell my family that means “baloney-sandwich”), he’d also do great as the one trying to keep the free-spirited love interest under control. Only here, it would be because he’s trying to keep Dem out of trouble so she doesn’t make his boss mad and try to kill him, as opposed to… whatever Finklestein’s problem is. And of course, he can still be menacing if need be. (Just watch the Lost Cases of Townsville and The Tree House…)

5.0.5. as Zero: A cute animal sidekick is a cute animal sidekick, I always say! And 5.0.5. was basically designed to be the ultimate cutesy animal sidekick. Therefore, he can be basically do anything Zero did. Try to cheer up Black Hat? Check. Pull Black Hate’s sleigh? Why couldn’t he? Yeah, he can’t be a flying ghost dog with a glowing nose, but I could just throw bedsheet on him (it was just after Halloween after all) and maybe say he swallowed that anti-gravity device.

Batman as Santa Claus: For Santa Clause, I needed someone who could be the absolute good guy in a world filled with bad guys and weirdos, much like Santa was in the movie. Likewise, since Jack kidnapped Santa to take over Christmas, Black Hat would need to kidnap the guy in charge of Gotham in order to take it for himself. So, of course he’s going to go after it’s #1 protector. I can also see Batman being the voice of reason in this madcap story. Not to mention that he could pull off a Santa suit even better than Black Hat! (In fact…)

The Joker as Oogie Boogie: This one I had some trouble with. I kept asking myself stuff like, “who would be brave enough to usurp Black Hat?,” “who could match Oogie’s siz—er, presence?” or “who would want to kidnap Santa Claus?,” and “Who would be into gambling and crazy funhouse stuff?” And then it came to me: The Joker. I mean, he’s got charisma, a sense of menace, he’s a cutthroat who loves to play with his enemies, and almost always has a big ol’ amusement park deathtrap on hand. Sure, he wouldn’t have the creepy demise like Oogie, but he could get a good beating and traumatizing from Black Hat and/or Demencia (who’d really hate being a damsel in distress, I imagine).

The Delightful Children from Down the Lane as Lock, Shock, and Barrel: At first, I thought of using other Batman villains or Shannon, Darrell, and Ernesto from OK K.O.!, but then I thought it would make more sense to have child villains from a CN show who could do bad things for slime-balls like Black Hat and Joker with pleasure. I instantly thought of these scheming, little monsters from Codename: Kids Next Door (an old favourite of mine). Although they’re usually talk and act in unison, they could have some comical bickering now and then. (After all, “Lenny is an idiot.”) Likewise, I can see Black Hat using Batman’s affinity for young people to get him while his guard’s down. They could make for great trick r’ treaters as well!

Lord Boxman as The Mayor: The mayor wasn’t a very important character, but he was definitely a memorable one, and the first character I thought of who could match his dual personality was Lord Boxman from OK K.O.! They both act like leaders but are really terrible at their jobs, suck up to better villains, and throw a whimpering tantrum like nobody else. (Also, I get to imagine Jim Cummings singing lines from The Nightmare Before Christmas songs, so that’s nice.)

Various CN Villains as The Citizens of Halloween Town: Like with The Mayor and the Trick R’ Treaters, I like to think that the various CN villains who cameoed in the Villainous Orientation series would show up as the denizens of the seedier side of CN City which—as you probably guessed—would be standing in for Halloween Town. Unfortunately, I do not have an encylcopediac knowledge of either Halloween Town residents, nor CN villains, so I’ll just list the ones I can remember and am the most proud of without offering any real justification.

Nohyas as Mr. Hyde: I couldn’t think of anyone besides Black Hat with a fancy hat or smaller versions of himself. Nohyas just so happens to have a suitable villain’s hat, and Handre (his hand puppet) could work in place of tiny clones living under his hats. (And yes, I like Mighty Magiswords. Deal with it.)

Zombozo as Clown with the Tear-Away Face: I don’t believe all creepy clowns look the same, but a ghoulish clown could easily stand in for another. Plus, I used to be a big Ben 10 fan, so I thought I ought to work something in.

Donny as Behemoth: This grass ogre from Adventure Time was more of an outright jerk than Behemoth, but he has a softer side so that would make him a great candidate for a resident gentle giant.

Loony Toons’ Dracula, Billy and Mandy’s Dracula, and Count Spankula as The Vampire Brothers: Do I really need to explain this one?

The Red Guy as Devil: I sure don’t need to elaborate on this one.

The Gangreen Gang as the Zombie Band: The Gangreens were basically based off edgy bands of the late 90’s, and thanks to Gorillaz, we know Ace can play the bass like a boss. Also, I can totally hear Ace saying, “Nice work, bone-daddy.”

Earl (AKA Dopey Black Hat) as Igor: Earl doesn’t get enough to do, inside or outside of Villainous canon.

The Beast as The Hanging Tree: Yeah, I know, I’m messed-up.

HIM as Harlequin Demon: Seriously, this one cast itself!

The Queen of the Black Puddle as Undersea Gal: I don’t watch Courage the Cowardly Dog much, but I remember seeing this villainess once before and I instantly thought she’d be a dead-ringer!

Morbidia and Gateaux as The Witches: Another natural casting derived from my soft spot for Mighty Magiswords. Although Gateaux is a male and a tall one at that, he’s perfect for being a huge suck-up. (I originally considered Miss Endive from Chowder and Duchess from Fosters’ Home for Imaginary Friends, but then I remembered that no matter what they dressed-up as, they’d be unlikeable.)

Monstrous Black Hat as The Monster Under the Bed: Like Earl and the other Black Hat clones, he doesn’t get enough love. (Though this may be a good thing, since he seems too nasty to receive or return it…)

Rob as The Melting Man: There aren’t a lot of CN villains who are melting, per se, but I figured this poor bad guy from Amazing World of Gumball and his unique media-mixed malformity could work.

Biowolf as The Wolfman: Because they’re both well designed wolfmen and I refuse to forget Generator Rex.

The Robins, Batgirl, and Alfred as the Elves: If Batman’s going to be Santa, then his support staff/family might as well be his helpers. Not to mention, they’d look great in cute little elf outfits happily working on Batman’s gadgets in preparation for the big Christmas crime wave.

The Justice League as The Army: Someone needs to show up to shoot-down Black Hat and his idea of Christmas at the end, and since he’s kidnapped Batman, I think it only makes sense that the Justice League would retaliate and come to clean up Black Hat’s mess. He’d also get a reminder that he isn’t just in Gotham City, he’s in the DC universe.

Unikitty as The Easter Bunny: I have my reasons. Them being, Unikitty is good at being sweet and innocent, the episode “Batkitty,” and her world is one of the few Black Hat has interacted with so far. I like to think that’s because he’s too repulsed by her cuteness to touch it. So imagine his reaction when the Delightful Children bring him to her by accident while she’s cosplaying as LEGO Batman or something.

And there you have it! I had a lot of fun making this recast. It was a great way to step out of my comfort zone and to have some fun. Not to mention, I had an excuse to listen to the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack early. I sincerely hope you like it as much as I do, @good-guy-is-alive!

Now I just need to make sure Black Hat himself doesn’t see this, or else he might find me and—

Oh no.

No, please, Mister Black Hat, sir, you don’t understand. I just was doing this for fun. I wasn’t trying to make you look—

OH NO.

NO!

NOOOOOOOOOOjglkajgflkjdshGH;LJF’W abfklghlfuGFARGTADS!!!#%RQ#@!

…

*Since DC changes their Batman shows like people change their socks, we’ll just say that this is your standard DCAU/Bruce Timmverse Batman.

#goodguy #goodguyisalive #critter asks #critter answers #the nightmare before christmas #villainous #batman #dc comics #cartoon network #self-indulgence #recast #fancast

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