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flufffysocks · 3 years

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let's talk about andi mack's worldbuilding

sorry this took forever to make! i've been pretty busy with school stuff and i kind of lost my inspiration for a bit, but i ultimately really enjoyed writing it! i wish i could've included more pics (tumblr has a max of 10 per post), and it kinda turned from less of a mini analysis to more of an extremely long rant... but i hope it's still a fun read!

i've been rewatching the show over the past few weeks (thanks again to @disneymack for the link!), and i’ve been noticing a lot that i never did the first time around. this is really the first time i’ve watched the show from start to finish since it aired, and it honestly feels so different this time - probably a combination of the fact that i’m not as focused on plot and can appreciate the show as a whole, and also that the fandom is much, much smaller now, so there’s a lot less noise. so the way i’m consuming this show feels super different than it did the first time, but the show itself doesn’t - it’s just as warm and comforting to me as it was the first time around, if not more so.

i think a lot of that can be attributed to andi mack’s “worldbuilding”. i’m not quite sure that this is the right word in this context, to be honest, because i mostly see it used in reference to fantasy and sci-fi universes, but it just sort of feels right to me for andi mack, because you can really tell how much love and care went into constructing this universe. for clarity, worldbuilding is “the process of creating an imaginary world” in its simplest sense. there’s two main types: hard worldbuilding, which involves inventing entire universes, languages, people, cultures, places, foods, etc. from scratch (think “lord of the rings” or “dune”), and soft worldbuilding, in which the creators don’t explicitly state or explain much about the fictional universe, but rather let it’s nature reveal itself as the story progresses (think studio ghibli films). andi mack to me falls in the soft worldbuilding category. even though it takes place in a realistic fiction universe, there’s a lot of aspects to it that are inexplicably novel in really subtle ways.

so watching the show now, i’ve noticed that the worldbuilding comes primarily from two things - setting and props, and oftentimes the both of them in tandem (because a big part of setting in filmmaking does depend on the props placed in it!).

one of the most obvious examples is the spoon. it really is a sort of quintessential, tropic setting in that it's the main gang's "spot", which automatically gives it a warm and homey feel to it. and its set design only amplifies this:

the choice to make it a very traditional 50s-style diner creates a very nostalgic, retro feel to it, which is something that's really consistent throughout the show, as you'll see. from the round stools at the bar, to the booths, to the staff uniforms, this is very obvious. the thing that i found especially interesting about it though is the choice of color. the typical 50s diner is outfitted with metallic surfaces and red accented furnishings, but the spoon is very distinctly not this.

instead, it's dressed in vibrant teal and orange, giving it a very fresh and modern take on a classic look. so it still maintains that feeling of being funky and retro, but that doesn't retract from the fact that the show is set distinctly in modern times.

of course, this could just be a one-off quirky set piece, but this idea of modernizing and novelizing "retro" things is a really common motif throughout the show. take red rooster records. i mean, it's a record shop - need i say more? it's obviously a very prominent store in shadyside, at least for the main characters, but there's no apparent reason why it is (until season 2 when bowie starts working there, and jonah starts performing there). a lot of the time, though, it functions solely as a record shop. vinyl obviously isn't the most practical or convenient way of listening to music, but it's had its resurgence in pop culture even in the real world, mostly due to its aesthetic value, so it's safe to say that it serves the same purpose in the andi mack universe.

the fringe seems to be nostalgic of a different era, specifically the Y2K/early 2000s period (because it's meant to be bex's territory and symbolic of who she used to be, and its later transformation into cloud 10 is representative of her character arc, but that's beside the point). to be honest, exactly what this store was supposed to be always confused me. it was kind of a combination party store/clothing store/makeup store/beauty parlor? i think that's sort of the point of it though, it's supposed to feel very grunge-y and chaotic (within the confines of a relatively mellow-toned show, of course), and it's supposed to act as a sort of treasure chest of little curios that both make the place interesting and allow the characters to interact with it.

and, of course, there's andi shack. this is really the cherry on top of all of andi mack's sets, just because it's so distinctly andi. it serves such amazing narrative purpose for her (ex. the storyline where cece and ham were going to move - i really loved this because it highlights its place in the andi mack universe so well, and i'm a sucker for the paper cranes shot + i'm still salty that sadie's cranes didn't make it into the finale) and it's the perfect reflection of andi's character development because of how dynamic it is (the crafts and art supplies can get moved around or switched out, and there's always new creations visible).

going back to the nostalgia motif though, the "shack" aspect of it always struck me as very treehouse-like. personally, whenever i think of treehouses, there's this very golden sheen of childhood about it, if that makes sense. i've always seen treehouses in media as a sort of shelter for characters' youthful innocence and idealistic memories. for example, the episode "up a tree" from good luck charlie, the episode "treehouse" from modern family, and "to all the boys 2" all use a treehouse setting as a device to explore the character's desire to hold onto their perfect image of their childhood (side note: this exact theme is actually explored in andi mack in the episode "perfect day 2.0"!). andi shack is no exception to this, but it harnesses this childhood idealism in the same way that it captures the nostalgia of the 50s in the spoon, or the early 2000s in the fringe. it's not some image of a distant past being reflected through that setting; it's very present, and very alive, because it reflects andi as she is in the given moment.

some honorable mentions of more one-off settings include the ferris wheel (from "the snorpion"), the alley art gallery (from "a walker to remember"), SAVA, the color factory (from "it's a dilemna"), and my personal favorite, the cake shop (from "that syncing feeling").

[every time i watch this episode i want to eat those cakes so bad]

these settings have less of a distinctly nostalgic feel (especially the color factory, which is a very late 2010s, instagram era setting), but they all definitely have an aura of perfection about them. andi mack is all about bright, colorful visuals, and these settings really play to that, making the andi mack universe seem really fun and inviting, and frankly very instagrammable (literally so, when it comes to the color factory!).

props, on the other hand, are probably a much less obvious tool of worldbuilding. they definitely take up less space in the frame and are generally not as noticeable (i'm sure i'll have missed a bunch that will be great examples, but i'm kind of coming up with all of this off the top of my head), but they really tie everything together.

for example, bex's box, bex's polaroid, and the old tv at the mack apartment (the tv is usually only visible in the periphery of some shots, so you might not catch it at first glance) all complement that very retro aesthetic established through the settings (especially the polaroid and the tv, because there's really no good reason that the characters would otherwise be using these).

besides this, andi's artistic nature provides the perfect excuse for plenty of colorful, crafty props to amplify the visuals and the tone. obviously, as i discussed before, andi shack is the best example of this because it's filled with interesting props. but you also see bits of andi's (and other people's) crafts popping up throughout the show (ex. the tape on the fridge in the mack apartment, andi's and libby's headbands in "the new girls", walker's shoes, andi's phone case, and of course, the bracelet). not only does doing this really solidify this talent as an essential tenet of andi's character, but it also just makes the entirety of shadyside feel like an extension of andi shack. the whole town is a canvas for her crafts (or art, depending on how you want to look at it. i say it's both), and it immensely adds to shadyside's idealism. because who wouldn't want to live in a world made of andi mack's creations?

and, while it's not exactly a prop, the characters' wardrobe is undoubtedly a major influence on the show's worldbuilding. true to it's nature as a disney channel show, all of the characters are always dressed in exceptionally curated outfits of whatever the current trends are, making the show that much more visually appealing. i won't elaborate too much on this, because i could honestly write a whole other analysis on andi mack's fashion (my favorites are andi's and bex's outfits! and kudos to the costume designer(s) for creating such wonderful and in-character wardrobes!). but, i think it's a really really important aspect of how the show's universe is perceived, so it had to be touched upon.

[^ some of my favorite outfits from the show! i am so obsessed with andi's jacket in the finale, and i aspire to be at bex's level of being a leather jacket bisexual]

and lastly, phones. this is a bit of an interesting case (pun intended), because the way they're used fluctuates a bit throughout the show, but i definitely noticed that at least in the first season terri minsky tried to avoid using them altogether. these efforts at distancing from modern tech really grounds the show in it's idealist, nostalgia-heavy roots, so even when the characters start using their phones more later in the show, they don't alter the viewer's impression of the andi mack universe very much.

so, what does all of this have to do with worldbuilding? in andi mack's case, because it's set in a realistic universe and not a fantasy one, a lot of what sets it apart from the real world comes down to tone. because, as much as this world is based on our own, it really does feel separate from it, like an alternate reality that's just slightly more perfect than ours, which makes all the difference. it's the idealism in color and composition in andi mack's settings that makes it so unmistakably andi mack. even the weather is always sunny and perfect (which is incredibly ironic because the town is called shadyside - yes, i am very proud of that observation).

the andi mack universe resides somewhere in this perfect medium that makes it feel like a small town in the middle of nowhere (almost like hill valley in 1955 from "back to the future"), but at the same time like an enclave within a big city (because of its proximity to so many modern, unique, and honestly very classy looking establishments). it is, essentially, an unattainable dream land that tricks you into believing it is attainable because it's just real enough.

all this to say, andi mack does an amazing job of creating of polished, perfect world for its characters. this is pretty common among disney channel and nickelodeon shows, but because most other shows tend to be filmed in a studio with three-wall sets, andi mack is really set apart from them in that it automatically feels more real and tangible. it has its quintessential recurring locations, but it has far more of them (most disney/nick shows usually only have 3-4 recurring settings), and it has a lot more one-off locations. it's also a lot more considerate when it comes to its props, so rather than the show just looking garish and aggressively trendy, it has a distinctive style that's actually appropriate to the characters and the story. overall this creates the effect of expanding the universe, making shadyside feel like it really is a part of a wider world, rather than an artificial bubble. it's idealism is, first and foremost, grounded in reality, and that provides a basis for its brilliant, creative, and relatable storytelling.

tl;dr: andi mack's sets and props give it a very retro and nostalgic tone which makes its whole universe seem super perfect and i want to live there so bad!!

#andi mack #buffy driscoll #cyrus goodman #jonah beck #tj kippen #tyrus #ambi #bex mack #analysis #film analysis #disney channel

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kilesplaysthings · 4 years

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Halloween in Cradle!

Let’s imagine Halloween is a holiday that was introduced in Cradle by the first Alice and the people decide to let celebrations coincide with the harvest festivals like the “Land of Reason” does. How would "Alice” spend it with the boys?

(first time doing an IkeRev thing! some characters’ stuff will be shorter since I don’t know much about them yet! Put in a Read More since it’s LONG lol)

Lancelot:

It’s become a tradition that the rich and elite of Cradle attend an evening Halloween masquerade ball. The ball is only lit by candlelight and everyone dresses in black for an added spooky elegance. Red wine is served and haunting, but elegant music is played for dancing

Lancelot, of course, attends and invites you to be his partner. It’s the first and only time you’ll see him in black (you know, being that he’s the King of the Red Army) and he looks absolutely regal in his black suit, cloak and full mask with gold trim.

As the two of you dance and enjoy the evening, he explains the traditions of this party. It seems that the Central Quarter’s ballroom is, in fact, haunted by the ghost of a woman in white. She died a tragic death on Halloween night; people found her amidst the dancing, sprawled at the foot of the grand staircase, swathed in her pure white dress. As such, everyone who attends dresses in black to be sure that they can spot her before someone is “spirited away.” Red wine is served because it was her favorite drink and her favorite music is played to let her know she is welcome.

As he tells you this and the two of you continue to spin around, you think you catch a glimpse of white out of the corner of your eye. Lancelot squeezes your hand at the look of apprehension in your eyes and smiles at you, pulling you closer.

“Don’t worry,” he whispers. “I’ll make sure no ghost spirits you away tonight.”

Ray:

Halloween for Ray is busy just like any other day, but he’s always willing to help decorate the barracks to make them spooky!

Both armies like to have fun with the public and open parts of the barracks up for visitors for a fun spooky evening with games and fun haunts.

Insists on plenty of black cats everywhere.

Black cats are not bad luck. They’re good luck and ensure that Halloween will be fun and safe! (that’s the legend he’s determined to spread). Is not ashamed to wear black cat ears for the night either lol

He’s the head of security for the autumn and Halloween festivals that happen in the neutral Central quarter’s town square and the two of you walk around together having fun as he oversees the safety of everyone.

After the fun is over and the night is winding down, he’s happy to cuddle with you by the fire with a cup of warm apple cider - most likely with a black cat or two snuggled on your laps.

Jonah:

Not much of a Halloween person, tbh thinks it’s too childish

thinks the sweets are too much of Edgar’s type, not his own

the morning of, however, he invites you to a nearby café for brunch to show what delicious autumn delicacies they have

is happy to tell you about the different things he and Luka would get up to on Halloween when they were kids.

the two of you laugh over the stories he tells when he “defended” little Luka from a person dressed up in a ghost costume when they went guising as kids. Won’t admit that he ever got scared, (though he did)

Sirius:

This time of year is one of his favorites, because it means lots of autumnal baked goods that he can make!

Pumpkin pies, pumpkin cake rolls, pumpkin doughnuts, apple pies, apple crisp, pumpkin apple crisp! You name it, he’ll bake it.

It’s his baked goods that are always around for any harvest or Halloween festival

While he’s cool with Halloween, he does prefer the harvest aspect of he month more, mainly because he likes autumn decorations

Will invite you to help carve pumpkins with him. Or rake leaves. He’s actually quite good at carving and makes some fantastic faces and designs! And expect some fun leaf shenanigans with Chutney involved too

the two of you like take a walk together on the nearby trails to admire the beautiful autumn colors before the harvest dinner.

Edgar:

To your surprise, he quite likes Halloween

Mainly because he gets to scare and prank people and no one can judge him for it this time. Also CANDY

You can bet this guy has TONS of candy everywhere

Is ready to go out guising like all the kids do for the candy, even though Jonah keeps berating him for being too old

“You don’t even have a costume!!!” “I do so have a costume. I’m going as a Red Army soldier.”

Can also carve pumpkins quite well. makes some scary faces on them

Since he’s forbidden to go guising, takes the next best thing, which is to take you around the Halloween festival in search of treats to buy and win

Is a pro at all the games. Takes GREAT pleasure in the dunking booth, and is a great shot at it

“Here, Alice. I won this special candy just for you. Don’t eat it just yet. Let’s wait till we’re alone. Then we can share them, together~”

Luka:

Like his brother, is just meh about Halloween

But he enjoys the harvest festivals

Invites Alice to join him in going to one that’s on a farm just outside of the city. Together the two of you have a blast! Going on hayrides, looking at the different pumpkins in the pumpkin patch - and picking some out for later Halloween decorations - as well as picking out the juiciest apples for later baking and sampling some delicious apple cider

You pick out matching scarves with him at the farm’s shop that sells hand-knitted clothing perfect for fall days like this one and wear them for the rest of the day

You can be sure that harvest time means some delicious food made by Luka, as he gets along with the farmers who offer him their best produce

The nights are colder, so he makes sure he warms up a cup of tea for you before you both snuggle down together for bed.

“Going to the farm with you was so much fun. Let’s make it a tradition to go together every year!”

Kyle:

This time of year, our boy is on the lookout for colds. He’s prepared for visitors coming far and wide seeking treatments for them and has his office well stocked with medicine and herbs to help treat coughs and sore throats

He can get into the Halloween spirit too and decorates his office with a sort of “mad doctor” vibe to it. hOw OrIginAL

You can be sure he offers every kid that comes to him a Halloween treat when they leave his office (he’s a doctor, not a dentist lol)

basically Halloween is a chill day for him with just a flavor of spookiness.

likes to chill at Dalim’s bar in the evening for a quieter Halloween night

Fenrir:

This boy does NOT do Halloween!!

He’ll do anything to avoid celebrating it. Too busy with work! Gotta train! Has guard duty at the barracks! He has DESK WORK to take care of!

The other officers admittedly like to prank him this time of year because of it and it never fails to work

He’s touched when your make him his favorite meal to comfort him after a prank got him good

he tells you that his dislike of the holiday and his fear of ghosts both started when he was kid. his family threw a big Halloween party one night and late in the evening, when everyone was sitting together telling ghost stories, there was a banging in one of the rooms upstairs and the fire went out suddenly, leaving them all in the dark. People said it was a ghost coming to visit them. for a boy of only six, he said that night stuck with him for years and he still remembers how scared he was.

you’re touched by this rare moment of vulnerability from him and promise that from now on, each year, you’ll have your own “un-Halloween” celebration together

Zero:

He likes the idea of guising but knows he’s too old for it

Instead, he enjoys participating in the Central Quarter’s Halloween festival

He helps the local candy maker in his booth and the two of them make candy for people to buy during the festival

is not above dressing to get in the spirit of the night

Makes you your own special candy when you visit him in the booth

you share a candy apple together when he gets time off and can walk around the festival with you

Seth:

Ultimate Halloween prankster of the Black Army.

Has been the chief scarer of Fenrir but never goes too overboard -just enough

Halloween is in part about dressing up in costume, so you can be sure he’ll want to dress Alice up in every princess, witch or vampiress costume he can get his hands on

matching costumes is a win-win situation for him. his favorite is vampire and vampire bride. will get into character for it too

“careful Alice, I just might bite that pretty neck of yours if you keep acting so adorably~”

Loki:

Will 100% want to go guising with you

dresses up in a black hoodie with cat ears. “Look! I’m a black cat!”

the two of you hop around the villages together, you in a white sheet as a ghost, and him as a black cat, carrying sacks to get candy

back at the house, the two of you will sort out your booty together and trade treats, offering some to Harr if he wants any.

the night will end with bobbing for apples, some spooky games and tales and Harr admonishing you both not to eat too much candy before bed

you both may or may not decide to play a fun, innocent prank on Harr later on in the night

Harr:

For Halloween, you and Harr decide to take it easy. Maybe eat a big dinner with some celebratory cake and play some games together at the house

but then Loki comes up with a daring idea: late night exploring in the Old Ruins that lie deep in the Forbidden Forest

the idea is kinda scary, but also thrilling! Plus, Loki reasons, they’ll be with Harr, so there won’t be any danger

Harr (secretly pleased that he’s trusted so much) finally agrees.

The Old Ruins are rumored to be haunted, Loki says, as the three of you creep in. The door makes a painfully loud creaking noise as he tugs it open

Armed with a lamp fueled by magic crystals, Harr leads the way in as the other two huddle around him. the building is dark, decrepit, and quite dangerous in some places as the walls and upper floors are caving in.

“We shouldn’t stay here too long,” Harr warns, worried about the instability of the place. A sound is heard in a nearby room adjacent to the foyer.

“Let’s check it out!” Loki suggests and he heads in the direction of the noise.

You don’t find anything but continue to hear noises, noises that seem to be coming from the upper floors...

After a while of exploring, Harr suddenly decides to put his foot down. “Let’s go. Now.” He tells you.

You both don’t argue against the tone in his voice and head back to the house, Loki excitedly talking about their adventure. As he does, Harr takes your hand and holds it tightly.

“I’m sorry we had to leave so suddenly, but while you both were looking around, I saw someone watching us from above on the third floor. The last thing I ever want is putting you in harm’s way. Stay with me tonight so I know you’re safe.”

Blanc:

He can remember when the first Alice introduced Halloween to Cradle. In fact, he helped in forming the traditions of the holiday to what they are today.

He organizes and is in charge of the Halloween festival alongside with Dean. He also likes to host a costume party in the Garden, free for anyone who wants to attend

He dresses up as a white rabbit knight hOW OrIginAL

Cliched costume aside, he looks cute so it’s all good

You are his special guest and he ensures that your first dance of the night is with him

Oliver:

His favorite part about this holiday is the costumes

He makes lots of costumes and items for kids who want a super cool look for Halloween

in his kid form, he reluctantly agrees to an early afternoon of guising with you, but insists on wearing a mask he made for himself so no one knows it’s him

don’t be surprised if he pulls some pranks on you throughout the day to get back at you for making him do that in his kid form

never goes to Blanc’s costume party. prefers to join Kyle at Dalim’s bar instead for a more laid back celebration

Dean:

Teams up with Blanc in organizing the Halloween festival

Is a huge folklorist and can tell you all sorts of weird and creepy stories about Cradle’s history

owns a whole library about it, actually

being a teacher, he does fun things throughout the day for his students to get them in the Halloween spirit

his students put on a play for the Halloween festival that is usually about some Cradle folklore

He’s a good storyteller, so be prepared with a blanket and some hot cocoa when you both sit by a fire and share ghost stories

Dalim/Dum:

Halloween or not, the bar’s gonna be running. Doesn’t mean he can’t get in the spirit of things, though

decorates the place with candles and fog and all

keeps things quiet for those who want a calmer holiday

concocts special drinks for the occasion. Kyle’s favorite is the White Lady, based on the ghost that haunts Central Quarter’s ballroom

Will keep visitors entertained with weird and creepy stories that he’s heard from customers over the years

Mousse:

Halloween is just another day for him

Candy is whatever. He’d rather be given cheese. Prefers harvest festivals since there is cheese in abundance.

has to attend the different public gatherings as a Cradle official

ghosts don’t scare him. doesn’t believe any of the legends to be true

likes to drink warm cider and will fall asleep in front of the fire if he’s at a party

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popculturebuffet · 3 years

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Goof Week: House of Mouse: Super Goof or Wish I Could Fly Like Super Goof (Patreon Review for WeirdKev27)

Hello all you happy gorshers and welcome back to Goof Week, my week long celebration of Goofy’s 89th Birthday. And today I take my once a month trip down to the house of mouse as part of my patron kev’s yearlong celebration of the show’s 20th anniversary. And since I had this theme week in mind I asked him if it’d be okay if he strictly randomized goofy episodes, he said yes and here we are.

Luck was on my side as I got what I remembered was one of my faviorite episodes of the show. But before I can get if it lived up to the hype or not a brief word on Super Goof.

Super Goof is actually from the comics, first debuting in a story where Goofy thought he had super powers and fought the Phantom Blot in a cowboy hat.

This concept was a hit so in 1965 Goofy was made a superhero for real with Super Goof #1. This dosen’t suprise me: this was the height of the silver age: The Lee and Kirby age of Marvel was in full swing and DC was still doing gangbusters. So there was market for a superhero spoof comic starring one of Disney’s best and brightest characters, who was given a bunch of super peanuts called super goobers to give him superman powers. What DOES surprise me is the series lasted 74 issues from 65-84. And what’s more insane and wonderful? It didn’t get canceled because of low sales or anything. That was simply when Gold Key shut down... and Gold Key was FOUNDED three years before it meaning this book lasted the company’s ENTIRE lifespan. I’ll say that again, a book about goofy eating peanuts that started because of a story where goofy thought he was a superhero and fought a cowboy phantom blot, lasted 74 issues and only ended because the publisher shut down. That... is one of the most amazing things I have ever heard in my life. I’m genuinely impressed... this isn’t even a bad concept, I likes it and wish Disney would give it a full series. Farmer could do wonders with it. I’m just amazed that this odball little comic took off like it did. And as one final fun fact much like Superman, Super Goof set off the trend of Disney’s classic characters becoming heroes, with Donald’s own Papernik/Duck Avenger following in his footsteps. I REALLY want a Disney Superhero Verse in animatoin now, I know there was a mini series like that. And I will have to visit these comics at some point I just simply didn’t have room in the week with a movie review tomorrow. .

So with all that out of the way how does Super Goof do on screen and does the episode hold up? Join me under the cut to find out.

As usual for HOM I’ll be doing the shorts and overarching story seperate soooo

How To To Take Care of Your Yard:

Look anyone whose read my stuff or even just my goofy shorts special will know how much I love the How To Shorts and how this series is responsible. This admittedly isn’t one of the BEST of them.. but it’s still fun to watch. Even a forgettable How To Short is still GOOD. It’s abotu Goofy taking care of his yard over the four seasons and has some decent gags but nothing really standout. I Honestly DO wish I had more to say but this one’s just okay and it woudln’t stick out as much if both the wraparound and the other short weren’t so spectacular. Speaking of which.

Locksmiths: This is one of the few shorts I VIVIDLY remembered from childhood and for damn good reason. This is THE best short i’ve seen so far for House of Mouse this year and for good reason. The premise is simple enough: The Golden Trio are locksmiths.. who end up getting locked inside their own office just after Minnie calls with something urgent to tell them.

The results are comic gold, with the standout bits being Goofy’s keys which is just such a wonderful hurricane of puns with some great visual gags to start it off that I can’t help but love it

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There’s TONS of other good stuff too: The boys fishing for the key, Mickey opening a ton of doors in a sequence MST3K would be proud of and the finale with the boys falling out the office. This is a true , hilarious classic and my words can’t really do it justice. Seek this one out on it’s own or in the episode you will not regret it. A true classic for Disney Shorts period.

Super Goof:

So onto the main story. Goofy asks Clarabelle out and she’s not only incredibly receptive but simply asks to check her schedule.. which he interprets as no. I would make a joke here but i’ts clear from previous episodes HOM goofy has Low Self Esteem: he was utterly crushed not having a valentine and by his friends all wishing he could be less Goofy. So him overreacting like this is in character and comes off as endearing: it’s not that he thinks so low of her he’d think sh’ed pull something like this.. it’s that he’s so doubtful of someone liking him for who he is deep down he self sabotages something I can PAINFULLY relate to as that’s one of my biggest personal issues hands down.

So outside presumably on break...

Not THAT kind of break. Though since I bring it up: they both were wrong. They WERE on a break, and it was wrong of tweedle dee and tweedle dum there to keep needling it ESPECIALLY since their the ones who TOLD HIM to hide his sleeping with the waitress and took NO responsibility for that. Rachel treating it like an affair constantly when she’s the one who wanted space and didn’t give him any paramerters for said is fucking terrible. It’s telling that in the reunion trailer everyone but Matthew LeBlanc, who was clearly just having some fun agreed they were. That being said Ross still slept with someone five seconds after being on said break, still listneed to the two of them on hiding it when it was a bad idea, and STILL caused said break by being a clingy asshole to such a degree even his previous history of being cheated on does not justify or excuse how badly he treated Rachel. What i’m saying is they both sucked, and thus deserved each other, and by the end NEITHER was remotely likeable, with both having done terrible things both in said will they or won’t they hellscape and outside it, with Ross dating a student and Rachel dating her assistant.

Anyways after that thing I clearly needed to get off my chest, we get a narration informing us a METEOR IS COMING and it strikes the peanuts Goofy’s depression snacking on, as a result he becomes SUPER GOOF! And after a display of his powers with various disney characters (finding Gepetto and Pinocchio in a whale, saving the dalmations from cruella , lifting the giant from the littlest tailor) and finds he has a narrator. No really Goofy notices and is not happy about it despite all superheros having one. I mean he’s not wrong, look what the X-Men’s did to Cyclops:

But regardless he has him and Goofy flies through the air with the quickest of ease through the house of mouse impressing everyone who has no idea he’s goofy. This gag is a carry over from the comics and a transparent parody of the superman clark kent thing. But it works because Goofy still uses his name in costume, still has his hat and really changes nothing about his appearance. It’s simple but sometimes you just need a very simple gag to work and overxplaning it spoils the whole thing. Trust me I know as a certified experinced fuck up.

So after the first cartoon Super Goofy guest stars, and we get some neat gags with the disney movie characters, though my faviorite is Peter Pan’s reactoin of “He Can fly he can fly he can fly, big deal. Anyone can do that”. It’s both perfectly in character and utterly hilarious.

Goofy however starts to feel disheartneed as everyone compliments him.. and Minnie says he’s better than a regular goofy as do the others minus Mickey because he’s a good egg. And Clarabelle but he misinertperts her like of super goof as her liking him better as that.

So fed up with everyone liking him better, Goofy throws away the peanuts, which he kept in his hat.. though one did fall in his waiter’s uniform. Remember that. The narrator questions if this is really the end and what if there’s peril but Goofy’s stubbornly instiant he won’t do it no matter what.

Cue the what: another MUCH LARGER metor heading straight for Mainstreet

Goofy refuses to summon super goof despite the danger... Mickey has an apt response for him

This is the one scene I don’t really like: Goofy has a righ tto be upset they all prefer someone who just showed up hours ago over him, especially beceause it IS him, to the point Daisy was upset she got a picture of goofy instead of super goofy because J Jonah Jameson’s not going to pay for pictures of his next door neighbor. But Mickey has a right to not want to die horribly in a cataclysm of fire.

So Goofy mopes off like his son to go save the world, fine whatever. Only as is cartoon law, the trash has been picked up meaning he dosen’t have any goobers.. except the CHEKOVS GOOBER. With it he chews it, flies up and has a truly impressive display holding it back while it’s just over clarabelle before dispoising of it. he hits on her in super form but she says she already has date with regular goofy. Goofy’s confidence is restored, he’s probably getting laid tonight and we close on a Mike add for a school for Goofy’s. How much is tution.. asking for a me.

Final Thoughts: This wraparound was great, a few small flaws but it has a great, engaging charcter driven story with some delightfully silly jokes that are right up my ally. It’s easy to see besides my love of superheroes why this one stood out to me: It’s funny, heartwrenching and stars one of my faviorite character.

The shorts are also good, one that’s okay , a bit too long but not bad, and one that’s an utter masterpiece. In fact the only reason the first short feels so long is you really want to get back to the main plot fast, and that’s not a bad problem to have. This was an excellen tepisode and I recommend seeing it out.

Before I get to my whole patreon speil, i’d like to say that House of Mouse STILL is not avaliable on Disney+ for reasons that haven’t been made clear. As such it’s on my Not Streaming List, a list I keep and update reguarly of shows that SHOULD be streaming on a particular service and have no clear reason NOT to be such as musical rights issues like the ones likely keeping shows like Drew Carrey, Northern Exposure and Murphy Brown off streaming. So check that out if your curious, link is on my main page and hit me up if you have any suggestoins for it.

So thank you for reading and if you liked this review give it a like and consider joining my patreon at patreon.com/popculturebuffet. As a patron you’d get access to exclusive reviews, the patreon’s discord and to pick a short each time I do one of these shortstaculars. Donald’s comnig next month and the deadline is in only a few days to join up for said month so the clock is ticking. Even a dollar a month helps me reach my stretch goals so please i fyou can sign up today and if not, I understand and i’ll see you at the next rainbow

#goofy #goofy goof #clarabelle cow #house of mouse #mickey mouse #donald duck #minnie mouse #daisy duck #superheroes #super goof #goof week

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pianoperson · 4 years

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Ikerev Army Boys Playing Twisted Wonderland

After reading @valnyte’s HC with Ikevamp, I wanted to do one with Ikerev too.

Alice introduces the boys to Twisted Wonderland and is shocked to get them all hooked into the game. Let’s say they all understand the game.

*just want to say, the strategies I typed in these HCs are actually legitimate strategies I’ve heard from people, and if you have the cards for it, I suggest you try them out

Black Army

Ray Blackwell

He’s in mainly for the story.

F for him, his fav character is Che’nya.

He claims Heartslabyul is his favorite episode because it has the best story out of the currently released episodes so far, but the Black Army isn’t falling for that.

He’s not wrong though, in my opinion. Heartslabyul, along with Octavinelle, has the best story.

He had to make it a rule that no one should spend the Black Army funds for gacha after the one time Seth spent 10k lin for gacha.

He does assemble his team but only bases his assembling on favs and a bit from Sirius’ advice.

He can’t help but smile fondly at Ace and Deuce’s shenanigans and dumbassery; they remind him of him and Fenrir.

Sirius Oswald

Oh he’s gonna have fun with the strategizing part of the game.

He will write down in a notebook all the card information he has attained and would ask from other soldiers for their cards if he doesn’t have a certain card so he can note down their stats at max level groovied, their magic skills, their typings, their buddies, and even how they perform in battle.

He’s the first and only one in the Black Army who scored SSS on tests. Everyone was floored.

Listen, he probably discusses these strategies at dinner especially because some people ask him how he scores ridiculously high in tests.

“Fairy Leona may be a defense card, but if with Kalim and Rook, who are his attack buddies, his attack stat will increase to 5k+. If you have SSR Kalim, who boosts your ally, his attack stat will increase further, and it’s even better that Kalim’s attack boost is magic 1 and he is Leona’s duo partner, therefore strengthening Leona’s duo magic. If limit broken at a certain level, he can deal 10k damage per hit with duo magic. The only other SSR who can inflict the same amount of damage is Riddle dorm and even then, you need to have Cater on your team with max buddy to even experience such a boost.”

He may not have superb gacha luck and he is an f2p, but whatever cards he possesses, he can somehow make them work in his favor.

He has a spiritual connection to Trey Clover.

Luka Clemence

Hello, may I introduce you to Luka “I have 7 SSRs only, it’s not that much” Clemence?

No, I’m not kidding. This guy has insane luck as an f2p.

He snagged 7 SSRs in two weeks and when Seth was crying about his gacha luck, that was the only time Luka realized 7 SSRs was a lot?

“I JUST WANT AN SSR SO BAD, I ONLY HAVE MY TUTORIAL PULL ONE”

“Huh?¿ How can you only have one?”

“BECAUSE I’M THAT UNLUCKYYYYY WHY HOW MANY DO YOU HAVE”

“I only have 7...”

Seth’s screams could be heard from Red Territory.

Ok but Seth has every right to freak out. Luka has ALL dorm leader SSRs, biggest tank of the game SSR Trey, and tweels.

Luka dislikes Riddle and Vil for the fact they both bear similarities with his brother. He has mixed feelings with the former, though, due to his backstory.

When it comes to rhythmics, he laments about how he’s a musician yet he can’t get the timing right. Poor fingers are slow.

Rip him in hard mode, especially for Octavinelle’s and prologue 14. They’re h e l l.

Seth Hyde

Rip Seth, he just wants an SSR

His initial SSR was Ruggie and he was crying when he learned from Sirius that he could have rerolled.

His favorite character is Vil and he wants him to come home, but only his Rs arrived.

It’s a wonder how 10k lin wouldn’t bring robe Vil and lab Vil home.

And he still has less SSRs than Luka LMAO

He’s cried at almost every OB backstory except Leona’s.

His favorite rhythmic is the paint the roses one.

Fenrir Godspeed

Luck in battle? Yes. Luck in gacha? Who’s that?

Fenrir spends money on the game but he uses his family’s wealth. Don’t worry, he knows how to manage his savings, but that’s mainly because he accidentally inputted the wrong birth year when he first put it in, so it listed him as a minor.

He loves Ace because he felt like he could relate to him so much.

His first SSR was Riddle, so he really wanted Azul’s SSR when his banner first came out. He hit pity pull and got duped by Floyd.

It’s ok Fenrir, I feel your pain, except I never hit pity.

He loves the rhythmics. Often, he’ll be singing the tunes out loud.

He’s gonna sing the Magift rhythmic songs when he’s training with other soldiers.

Red Army

Lancelot Kingsley

It took him weeks to figure out where alchemy classes are.

He has 4 SSRs who duo with each other, so that’s lit af.

He doesn’t know why he keeps losing in certain battles, though.

He also spent money on gacha oof

Riddle makes him chuckle. He has such a huge resemblance to Jonah, after all.

Trey makes him think of Sirius too often.

He ends up laughing at the thought of Sirius being Jonah’s helper.

I mean hey, they could have at least been friends if things played out differently back in school.

His favorite is Malleus, though, for the fact that he is powerful and lonely.

Jonah Clemence

He didn’t touch on the game at first because he thought it was ‘a waste of time’. It didn’t help that Edgar teased him for having the same voice as Riddle. It was only when he found out Lancelot plays the game and looks so happy with it that he decided to give it a try.

He was surprised at how similar he and Riddle are, and he liked the little queen even more for his birthday, being the same as Luka’s.

He will never admit he likes the game, though, but the soldiers catch him humming some of the songs sometimes.

Another thing he will never admit: he felt a lump in his throat when he read Riddle’s backstory, but when he got to Azul’s, he cried for an hour. He found himself most impressed with Azul’s voice acting prior to the overblot, but the story about Azul’s past had hit him hard. They experienced the exact same thing after all (being bullied) but it was interesting how differently they both turned out afterwards.

Jonah isn’t too big on the meta gameplay. Sure, he strategizes, but he mostly takes into consideration the stats of a card, not so much with the performance of it in battle. He won’t ever say it to Edgar, but he does take Edgar’s advice into consideration, even applying it if he has the cards for it.

Jonah scoffs at spending on gacha. Ultimately, they’re just JPEGs. Why spend on something that can’t be touched? Anyway, he has 5 SSRs and several good SRs such as robe Jade, robe Vil, and lab Trey. He can manage.

He loves the rhythmic section of the game. He may not be the best in the battles, but he’s talented in the rhythmics. Sure, some rhythmics were difficult, but he always scores SS on one or two tries regardless of difficulty. His favorite songs are the fairy gala songs and he’s caught humming them.

Edgar Bright

Just like Sirius, he has fun strategizing in battle. He will blab to Lancelot, Jonah, and Zero about the different strategies he’s come up with.

“Did you know you can make SSR Jade an attack SSR? His magic 1 raises his attack stat, and if you max it, hm will it exceed 5,000? I forget. And if you put Trey in the same team as Jade, he will further boost his attack, and if their buddy level has been maxed, hm perhaps you might reach 6k+ for Jade’s attack stat?”

“Did you know Azul’s attack stat can surpass even Floyd’s attack stat? If you max his buddy with Jade, he can be as strong as Riddle dorm at lvl80.”

“I’m sorry, but after testing out fairy Kalim, his SR cards are still better performance-wise.”

He’s the first and only one to have SSS and just like Jonah, he aces the rhythmic section.

He finds himself most amused with Jade for his shadiness and is probably the one who goes, “Jade, don’t you just want to go apeshit?”

Kyle Ash

He tends to miss lessons often either because he has a lot of patients or because he’s hungover, so he tends to complain about how weak his cards are.

He doesn’t care much about the meta gameplay and plays by favorites. Somehow, he manages to use the good cards and hits rank S.

He doesn’t join the events and doesn’t understand the woes of gacha since he always manages to get the cards he wants.

Luckiest guy honestly, and some of the soldiers jokingly beg for his luck.

Zero

He also strategizes but he mostly follows Edgar’s advice since he tends to get to it first before Zero.

Zero doesn’t play too often because of work, but the game is addicting enough to make him catch the restored AP every 2.5 hours. Anyway, even if he didn’t want to, Alice would have tried to get his workaholic butt off of work.

Poor baby has given up on prologue 14 hard mode rhythmic.

His favorite character is Jack for his good boy nature and he found himself liking the Octavinelle chapter for his presence and rationality. Beans Day event was also fun for him because of Jack.

#ikerev #ikemen revolution #jonah clemence #luka clemence #fenrir godspeed #ray blackwell #edgar bright #lancelot kingsley #sirius oswald #ikerev zero #kyle ash #seth hyde #twisted wonderland #twst #god you have no idea how much fun I had when writing the strategies #I need to NERD with someone about the meta gameplay #:’)))

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mst3kproject · 4 years

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1113: The Christmas that Almost Wasn’t

I’ve been saving this one, too – not because I particularly dislike the movie but because I wanted to do it close to Christmas, and here we are! In fact, I kind of like The Christmas that Almost Wasn’t, to the point where I’m going to enjoy watching it again.

For years now, Santa Claus has been living rent-free at the North Pole with the permission of the Inuit, but now that land has been bought out from under him by the Scroogish Phineas Prune! Prune wants rent money or he will seize the toys instead, and so to save Christmas, Santa has to get a job. He lands a gig as a department store mascot, but then Prune buys the store, too. Looks like there won’t be a very merry Christmas this year, unless some kind of last-minute miracle can happen. Fortunately, last-minute miracles are what Christmas movies are all about!

So… why do I like this movie? It’s not exactly festive – as Max points out, there’s nothing very jolly about Santa hiring a lawyer to deal with his landlord. The animated title sequence is kind of charming, but the actual opening scene in Mr. Whipple’s office is claustrophobic and dark, and both it and the scene where they confront Prune at the North Pole drag a bit. The songs aren’t catchy (although the nonsense one the elves sing about Prune is fun), and the dealings with rent, lawyers, and evictions are probably way over the heads of the target audience of children. The depiction of Santa’s workshop as one little hut in the middle of the snow, where about nine elves must make all the millions of presents, is pretty depressing. And of course there’s the downright nightmarish plush animals in the department store. The screaming giraffe is my favourite.

In general, though, I like the movie’s aesthetic. It’s set in a nonspecific but vaguely Victorian past with just a hint of fantasy on top, and a lot of the sets have something to say about the people who spend time in those spaces. Santa and his wife in their north pole hovel are simple people who care far more about others than about themselves. Whipple’s office is comfortable but not large or fancy, and shows us a man who is reasonably successful but not pretentious. Prune’s cobwebby house tells us, even before Mrs. Claus brings it up, that he is a man who doesn’t look after himself. The characters' names speak to similar ideas, such as Mr. Prim the very proper department store owner. It’s true that this is all quite simplistic, but in a fable for children that’s okay.

The costumes do a similar job, equally well. It’s not that hard to get Santa Claus or a Dastardly villain right, of course, but enough movies manage to fail at it regardless that I feel The Christmas that Almost Wasn’t has earned a kudo or two. Like the sets, the costumes tell us about the characters. Mr. Whipple the lawyer, in his tidy but plain suit and festive mittens, is a professional but doesn’t like sticking out in a crowd. Mr. Prim’s mustache-hair tells us he’s very fussy. Mrs. Claus, always apparently dressed in her pajamas, is a homebody. Somebody took the trouble to dress all the elves slightly different, so that even though we never really meet them we can tell they’re individuals.

The main characters, furthermore, all have more than one layer! Santa Claus loves children but is worried what they’ll think of him, and his isolated life at the north pole has given him a measure of social anxiety. Actor Alberto Rabagliati manages to embody both ‘right jolly old elf’ and ‘old man down on his luck’, and sometimes both at the same time. It’s hard to judge anybody’s performance because of the dubbing (although even there I’ve heard much, much worse), but physically he’s perfect. Mrs. Claus is a ‘kill them with kindness’ type, and you can see she takes just a bit of spiteful joy in Prune’s response to the word ‘children’. Whipple can be shy but once he gets into his Lawyer Groove he has no problem getting in Prune’s face. Blossom the butler is a jerk but has a soft spot for the dog, and so on. The only character moment I really don’t like is Prune’s redemption at the end.

This bit is simply, as Jonah and the bots observed, too easy – one gift and suddenly years of mental torment and toxic behaviour are gone, poof! It does give a good ending to the bit where Prune insists he was never a child and the elves can’t find anything about him, but doesn’t the fact that Jonathan lost his letter just give him that much more reason to be angry? Furthermore, there’s the fact that gifts from Santa and gifts from family coexist in this world, as illustrated by the department store and the Christmas shopping. Even if he didn’t get a sailboat from Santa, shouldn’t little Phineas have gotten one from his parents? There are clearly more issues going on here than a simple lost letter.

That brings us to the real meat of this movie. Last year, at the beginning of my review of Elves, I noted that the Christmas season is a contradictory one – what we actually feel is often violently at odds with what’s supposed to be the ‘Spirit of Christmas’, and the most obvious facet of this dichotomy is the whole ‘Season of Generosity’ thing. Generosity is great and the world needs more of it, but at Christmas the recipients of this generosity are most often children, who respond by learning greed. This interplay goes on throughout The Christmas that Almost Wasn’t.

We start with the kangaroo court in which Whipple accuses Prune of being a tightwad. Prune insists that his motives have nothing to do with greed – he just hates children! In fact, one of the reasons he gives for hating them is because they’re greedy. All they want is toys and candy, and every year Santa indulges the little brats! Santa, on the other hand, insists that being generous to children will teach them to be generous to others.

At the last moment, when all hope seems lost, we find that Santa was right – the kids are more than happy to donate their piggy banks to pay Santa’s rent! This not only makes Christmas possible, but also allows Santa and his wife to passive-aggressively pay almost entirely in pennies – I once did this to a high school math teacher who made us all buy a five dollar study guide and let me tell you, there are few things more satisfying. Even so, there’s a weird extra layer to this action. The kids are being generous, but they must all know that if they aren’t, it’s them who will suffer the consequences. Who wouldn’t donate a dollar or two when their Christmas presents are at stake? Are the children being generous? Or are they being greedy?

Isn’t that what we all do at Christmas? When the ancient Romans sacrificed to their gods, they said do ut das, which means something like I am giving so that you might give. We give gifts to friends and family at Christmas in the expectation that they will give us something we wanted. My eight-year-old niece really wanted Wings of Fire III for Christmas this year, and pouted all day because nobody could find it for her, despite the fact that she got a load of other presents. When you give with no expectation of return, that’s charity, which we also do at Christmas – but in our minds, our reward for charity is feeling like a good person, while our reward for giving presents is getting presents back.

Another facet of this in the movie is that Santa actually has an arc of his own, in learning to accept generosity. Generosity is Santa Claus’ defining trait, but in The Christmas that Almost Wasn’t we see him try to refuse offers of kindness from others. First there’s when Whipple offers to give him the money – Santa tries to refuse, and looks relieved when Whipple finds he doesn’t actually have that much money to give. Too, Santa has not chosen his lawyer at random. He knows he can’t afford to hire a lawyer so he goes to somebody who has already offered him a favour, rather than pleading for charity from a complete stranger. Santa does not expect people to be generous to him.

At the end, when the boy named Charlie suggest that the children could donate the money, Santa once again tries to refuse. The kids’ show of support, however, is so overwhelming that Santa can’t say no. He realizes that he doesn’t always have to be the generous one – he can be the recipient. I suppose this is reflected in Prune’s arc, as he, too, finds he can accept generosity. If this were intentional, it wasn’t done very well, but as I already observed Prune’s entire arc wasn’t done very well. The film spends far more time on Santa and Whipple than it does on Prune, and we would have needed to know far more about the role of generosity in Prune’s life to get anything out of it.

Happy new year, everybody! We get a new Mars rover in 2020, which is a great note to start on. I’ve only got a couple more MST3K movies to go, so I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do with this blog once I’ve covered those. I’ve had a lot of fun writing this and judging by the likes and reblogs, you guys are having fun reading it. There’s also the hope that somehow, someday, we’ll get more new episodes. I think I’ll try doing regular Episodes that Never Were for a while and see how that goes over. It’s not as if the world has any lack of bad movies, and they keep making new ones all the time.

No, I haven’t seen Cats yet.

#mst3k #reviews #the christmas that almost wasn't #holiday reviews #60s

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thirteen-beaxhes · 5 years

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Bumper Cars (Tyrus One Shot)

Summary: Cyrus reflects on his friendship with TJ.

(Title and fic inspired by song “Bumper Cars” by Alex & Sierra)

Words: 4532

Read on AO3

~~~~~~

In. Don’t think about it.

Out. It’s not worth crying over.

In. You’ll be okay.

Out. It isn’t that big a deal.

Cyrus has spent the last hour, head buried in his pillow, repeating this to himself as he tried to quell the storm in his mind, all set into motion that morning.

Stupid TJ. Stupid Kira. Stupid Costume Day. Stupid emotions.

He was very aware of the fact that his thoughts and thinking were reduced to a childish vocabulary, but he couldn’t care less. His heart was now a shell of its former self, its contents spilt out on the school courtyard, from when he felt it get ripped out of his chest.

He knew he was being dramatic. And frankly, he didn’t give a damn.

As the music went on in his headphones, he shut his eyes, memories playing movies in his mind.

You and me, we’re bumper cars

At that point, Cyrus had all but given up trying to get a chocolate chocolate chip muffin. It just wasn’t in his destiny! And the previous day, when he was so close to getting it, of course, the universe decided to plonk mean basketball captain TJ Kippen and his friends right there to cut the line and take all the muffins. (He even stomped on one but Cyrus didn’t like to spend too long thinking about it, the pain was too much to handle.)

Today was another hopeless and fruitless day in the now thrilling reality TV show: “Cyrus tries to get the Goddamn Muffin for once in his life”.

He sighed to Buffy, “Another day, another soul-crushing disappointment.” The defeat was finally getting to him.

He heard Buffy give a short breathy laugh, but soon after he heard her angrily mutter, “Incoming.”

He turned around to see none other than mean basketball captain TJ Kippen heading their way. He knew the basic story. TJ was mean to Buffy right from tryouts, and he never passed her the ball during games either. It was almost as if he pretended she wasn’t part of the team, and Buffy was up to her wit's end as to how to deal with him. The other day, Mr Coleman asked Buffy to tutor someone and lo and behold, the person was TJ. Buffy had said she refused to ever help him, swearing this to Andi and Cyrus over baby taters. But here was TJ. Oh, this wasn’t going to end well.

Cyrus tuned out of the conversation, distracted by the crushing defeat of the great muffin conquest. He just about caught the tail end when TJ finally said in an exasperated tone, “Fine! I’ll pass you the ball.”

Cyrus looked at Buffy in surprised happiness at this new development as TJ asked her if they had a deal.

Then, Buffy did something he really didn’t expect her to do.

She turned around and said, “No.”

What? Why would Buffy do that? He was literally giving her what she…

On no. Oh no no no. He knew what she was going to do, and he was not at all in compliance.

Buffy pulled Cyrus to her by the shoulders, saying, “You get my buddy Cyrus here a chocolate chocolate chip muffin.”

Well good luck now that there is only one left.

Why would Buffy do that to him? Now he looked like a weak dork in front of the captain of the basketball team, literally the most jock person there was. Well, that was exactly who he was, but still!

“You can’t get your own muffin?” TJ asked, his voice incredulous.

As if his self-esteem couldn’t get any lower. Oh well, what did he have to lose?

“I didn’t need this extra level of embarrassment!” Cyrus said to Buffy, trying to keep his voice low. He then turned to TJ, incredibly aware of how he looked to him. “But no.”

“Well I could do it, but. Teach your man how to fish?”

Wait. TJ was actually willing to help him? Huh. Maybe he would be okay after all.

TJ grabbed him by the shoulder saying, “Walk to the muffin like you already own it.”

He heard Buffy start to argue from behind. “He can’t do that.” Actually, hearing her say it, he would have to-

“Hey. Don’t tell him what he can’t do.”

Oh. That’s something he hasn’t really heard.

He could just imagine the shocked and confused look on Buffy’s face, it would be mirroring his own. In order to alleviate the tension a bit, Cyrus quipped, “Dancing with danger is on my bucket list.” Then, looking ahead he asked TJ, “Then?”

TJ shrugged. “Take the muffin.”

“That’s it?!”

“Just don’t let anyone stand in your way.”

Okay, it couldn’t be that easy but oh well, he might as well try it at this point.

Summoning all the confidence in his body, Cyrus started to make his way to the front, after a slight push by TJ. However, as soon as he reached out to take a muffin, all the kids in line started shouting at him. Oh, this was a bad, bad idea. His eyes started tunnelling in until he heard a loud “Hey!”

Suddenly, TJ Kippen was standing next to him, shouting to the other kids, “He’s with me.” He was willing to be associated with a dork like Cyrus for even just a moment? That was truly unexpected, Cyrus thought, as he reached out for the muffin.

“You’re gonna taste so sweet,” he said to the muffin, finally having it sit in his hand was truly a transcendental experience. And he also thought of how he and TJ seemed to get along decently well, and who knows, maybe they could even be friends? He could probably like that, Cyrus thought happily.

Until he heard TJ walk up to Buffy saying, “I’ll need at least a C+.”

Right. They didn’t really know each other. He was just doing it so Buffy would tutor him. Anyway, what did it matter? He had a chocolate chocolate chip muffin in hand for the first time in a while. Life would be okay.

The more I try to get to you

Cyrus was not having a good day.

Metcalf had asked him to shoot the video for the school website, and of course, he asked Jonah to help him. Cyrus would take any excuse to hang out with him, but now he wished he hadn’t. Trying to impress Jonah somehow, coupled with the stress of trying to remember his lines and to act naturally for the video, it was making Cyrus fumble, mess up and pour sweat like a fountain. For some reason, his chest felt tight, and the sweat just kept coming, no matter how much he tried to keep cool. Ultimately, he just had to take a breather. He needed a break and a place to calm down.

That’s how he had landed up at the swings. Whenever he needed to think, or to just wallow in self-pity, he would go there and sing his song.

He was busy singing his swing song until he heard a voice behind him say, “Nice song.”

As he came to a stop, he looked up to see TJ. Well, that is unexpected.

“What do you sing when you’re on the slide?”

Funnily enough, Cyrus did happen to have a song for the slide that he sang, as he felt more and more nervous and apprehensive. The song seemed to surprise TJ, letting a small smile come up on Cyrus’ face.

“Chocolate chocolate chip muffin, right?”

TJ remembered who he was?

“Scary basketball guy.”

Cyrus didn’t know where that name came from, but it seemed appropriate to TJ. But he couldn’t help but see the way TJ’s face dropped as he said that.

“Actually, TJ.”

“I know. Cyrus.”

TJ walked around to the other swing while asking, “So, you hang out here a lot?” How was this conversation still going on?

“Only when I’m feeling bad about myself. So, fairly often.” Good, good. Self-deprecation is a good strategy.

TJ gave a small laugh at that.

“Does it help?”

“Helps me.”

Seeing TJ’s hesitation to get on, Cyrus encouraged him, noticing how he too seemed upset and troubled by something. Besides, he wasn’t minding the company.

When TJ got on and started swinging, he could almost see the worries leave him, as he laughed and cheered just as freely as would a little kid.

“I don’t remember why I ever stopped swinging! Come on, get up here.”

“This is as up as I go,” Cyrus said, acutely aware of his fears.

Just then, TJ jumped off his swing and ran up behind Cyrus, pushing him higher and higher.

It was terrifying and exciting at the same time, He had never gone this high before. And when TJ pushed him and ran under the swing yelling, “Underdog!”, the exhilaration was undeniable. Why was TJ being so nice?

This was nice. This was unexpectedly fun, Cyrus thought. Just then, however, Buffy came and began running up to them and TJ’s whole demeanour changed. He tried to run away, and when Buffy caught up to him, he went back to his whole ‘mean’ front. But now Cyrus had seen that there was more to the not-so-scary basketball guy in front of him. Maybe Cyrus liked hanging out with him and wanted to do it again.

And maybe, just maybe. TJ wished the same.

The more we crash apart

“There is nothing wrong with you. And your teacher can’t fail you for having it.”

Cyrus’ words hung in the air for a while, as TJ processed what he had just said. The muffled sounds of the basketball game echoed through the room. Cyrus had noticed TJ standing on the sidelines and had gone up to him, wanting to check up on him. Understandably, TJ snapped at him, walking away into the break room. But that didn’t push Cyrus away in the slightest.

TJ eventually told him that since he was failing math, he was kicked off the team. He also opened up about the possibility of him having dyscalculia, something Cyrus felt glad that TJ felt safe enough to tell him about.

TJ sat straight. “Coleman can’t fail me?”

“You could be playing basketball, right now.”

“And Buffy has been right all along. At least I’ll mean it this time when I tell her. Those really are her two favourite words,” TJ said, laughing slightly.

Maybe that wasn’t the best decision you have ever made, Cyrus thought.

What could you do? He’s a cool guy who also happens to be attractive? You stood no chance, a small part of his brain tells him.

“I shouldn’t have told you that. She’d kill me if she ever found out,” he said, his worry increasing.

“Ah, don’t worry. She won’t find out.”

Cyrus took a deep breath, trying to believe him.

TJ’s voice softened and he said, “You know, she may have been right, but you’re the one who really helped me.”

Hearing him say that sent a warm feeling coursing through Cyrus’ body, as he looked at this unlikely friend of his.

They stayed in that room for the rest of the game, eating cheese puffs and talking about nothing, TJ’s mood significantly lighter. He almost forgot about the game happening outside.

Buffy was mad at him for spending time with TJ over watching her play, but Cyrus tried his best to reason with her. And in the end, some baby taters and public humiliation managed to win her over.

The same could not be said for the next day.

Somehow, Buffy had found out. Somehow, she knew that Cyrus had told TJ about her two favourite words. And now, there was the fallout.

“I can’t be friends with you, Cyrus. Not while you’re friends with TJ.”

“You’re giving me an ultimatum?” She had to be joking, right?

“Him or me. Decide.” Clearly not.

As she walked away from him, Cyrus screamed out to her that he chose her, of course, he chose her, she was his best friend. And it was true, he would choose Buffy.

But that didn’t stop his heart breaking at the thought of no longer being friends with the not-so-scary basketball guy he had come to bond with. Why couldn’t they just have a normal friendship?

Round and round, we chase the sparks

After a meltdown over some pancakes and a heart-to-heart in the kitchen, Cyrus and Buffy were talking again, and Cyrus was also still friends with TJ. She still didn’t completely understand it, but she trusted Cyrus to know who he was friends with. Everything was perfect. Until Buffy moved away without a goodbye. And with no reply.

It had been 2 months of radio silence, and Time Capsule Buffy was serving as a great substitute (not). One day, as they sat in the Spoon, TJ came up to them. At first, Andi was not willing to let TJ sit with them. But after he delivered a sincere heartfelt apology to the time capsule, he joined them. Maybe, if Buffy came back, this time things would be different.

They began talking about how Cyrus couldn’t do a somersault, a topic which Cyrus was not willing to discuss but he had just accepted his non-somersaulting fate. But clearly, TJ hadn’t, offering to help Cyrus learn to do one. At that, Andi looked at Cyrus with obvious hints of Oh my god you have a real life Prince Charming here to help you Cy. He really didn’t appreciate it and was thankful that Jonah chose that moment to walk into the Spoon.

When Jonah entered with Natalie, in a clear effort to make Andi jealous, Andi had left Cyrus and TJ alone to deal with the awkwardness of sitting with the 2. So it was a more than welcome relief when TJ asked Cyrus to come to work with him, as more of an escape plan from their current situation.

What Cyrus expected was to have a lot of fun with his friend as he tried and failed to do a somersault. What Cyrus did not expect was to actually do one, and to have his heart race when h hugged said friend after his shift had ended.

Did he…?

No, he wasn’t going through that again.

That was the start of what were easily the best months of his life. Not only did Buffy return, but his crush on Jonah was definitively transformed into a close friendship. Buffy and TJ put apart their differences after TJ delivered the best apology in the world (not debatable).

And if his rap made Cyrus’ heart melt, the confusion was of the good kind.

Even the start of 8th Grade was calm, with them having muffin bets and regular hangouts.

But of course, the good times can’t last with them.

But all that seems to lead to

It started out amazing.

Hearing TJ say that he talked about him to his arguably cooler friends, Cyrus was flattered and overjoyed. He never imagined that someone as incredible as TJ Kippen would so proudly talk of him as his friend. He didn’t know what he had done to deserve that.

Turns out, dirt biking has its own appeal. He never thought he would ever go near one in his life, and here he was successfully riding one for a prolonged period of time. Plus, there was the added bonus of TJ teaching him the various parts, his hand brushing over Cyrus’ at regular intervals.

What? He’s gonna take what he gets.

Of course, they can never have a full good day. Of course, TJ’s friend Reed would pull out a gun that he took from his father. Of course, when Cyrus asked TJ to leave with him, he couldn’t, paralysed by the fear of what his friends would say. Of course, just as things were good between them, something would send them hurtling away from each other.

Is a pile of broken parts

Funny, how just a week of being made to ignore and block TJ affected Cyrus. He didn’t show it to Andi or Buffy, but he really missed him. He hadn’t realised what an integral part of his life TJ held.

He went to the one place he knew he could try and calm his racing mind: the swings. But even that wasn’t working, because all he could think about was the first time he and TJ connected, right there, all those months ago.

Almost as if summoned from his thoughts, he heard the voice of the one person he wanted to see, but also the person he didn’t want to face.

“Is that swing taken?”

Why was he there? Did he know he would be here? Then, Cyrus remembers the first time at the swings when he told TJ that he knew where to find him. He actually remembered.

“How’d you know I’d be here?”

“I’ve been stopping by, seeing if I could catch you without your bodyguards.”

Well, he was right on the bodyguard part.

He has actually been coming here, waiting for him?

But he remembered Buffy and Andi’s faces looking at him, telling him to not talk to TJ. So even though it killed him, he said, “I’m not supposed to hang out with you. I should go.”

“No, stay,” TJ cut him off, sounding tired and defeated. “Can I at least say I’m sorry first?”

Cyrus simply shrugged, unsure of the direction this would go.

“I didn’t know Reed was going to bring the gun. I, I wouldn’t have gone, and I definitely wouldn’t have brought you.”

Cyrus couldn’t help the soft smile that came on his face. TJ looked genuinely upset, and he believed what he said.

“Now you hate me,” TJ continued, scoffing. “Classic TJ. Anything good I gotta ruin it.”

His heart broke a little more at what TJ said. TJ thought Cyrus was a good thing in his life?

While he was still processing what was said, TJ began to walk away, his head hung low. And in that moment, Cyrus knew that if he let TJ walk away, things wouldn’t go back to how they were. So he latched on to the one thing he realised while TJ had been talking. “TJ.”

TJ turned around, hesitant. He looked so scared, wow.

“You said you were going to apologise.”

“I just did!”

“Actually, you didn’t.”

“Yes, I did. I said I’m,” TJ started, trailing off as the realisation set in. “Huh. You’re right. Well, sorry for not saying sorry.”

Cyrus could very well have let him go right then, but then again, he didn’t. He wanted to keep talking to TJ and this was seeming to keep him there. Plus, TJ really had to learn to actually say sorry. “So,” Cyrus said, causing TJ to once again turn around and come back. “You’ve apologised for not apologising. But you still haven’t apologised.”

“You can be a little annoying, you know that?” Well, okay then. Two can play this game.

Cyrus got off the swing and took a step towards TJ. “Well, you can be oblivious.” Couldn’t he see what was right there? What he was trying to say, what he was sure he wasn’t good at hiding? (It wasn’t him wanting an apology.)

TJ took another step forward. “Well, you can be very judgy.”

“Well, you can be intimidating.”

They were really close now. He could just…

No, do not think that.

“You know what else you are?” Did he want to hear this?

“What?”

“The only person I can talk to like this.”

Who knew one simple statement could make Cyrus feel so elated and just loved?

Maybe this time, their good times will last.

We’re bumper cars, bumper cars

Cyrus really believed that the good times were here to stay.

Things had been good, great. Maybe even perfect. TJ had message him asking to come to the park where he was playing basketball. Cyrus smiled at the memory of the time TJ had tried to teach him some basketball shots there, which of course ended with them on the ground as Cyrus had tripped on his own feet and had grabbed onto TJ but instead ended up dragging him down too.

As he walked up, he saw TJ was talking to a girl. She seemed vaguely familiar.

“Yooooooo!”

TJ turned around, and instantly his face broke into the biggest smile ever. “Cyrus, my man!”

If only.

“Teej, lookin’ good!” Only facts in this house. Or park.

TJ bumped his shoulder into Cyrus’ as he said, “Cyrus, this is Kira. Kira, Cyrus.”

Kira. Now he knew why she looked familiar. She was that girl Buffy had to kick off the team because her attitude was very unsportsmanlike. As soon as she identified him as Buffy’s friend, Cyrus really did not trust her. He was more than happy to leave there as soon as he could.

After they were out of earshot, Cyrus spoke up. “She seemed nice. If the word nice had a different meaning.” TJ gave a quiet laugh at that, his face scrunching in the adorable way that always sent Cyrus’ heart racing.

“So, you’re hanging out now?” he asked, trying as hard as he could to keep any twinge of jealousy away from his voice.

TJ simply shrugged. “Basketball, you know.”

They were silent for a moment when suddenly, TJ turned to him in excitement and a bright smile. “Oh, I gotta ask. What you got going on for Costume Day?”

“Costume Day? You don’t strike me as Costume Day guy,” Cyrus replied, his voice taking on a teasing tone. He was acutely aware of how flirty that sounded too. Hey, they’re friends. This is normal. Normal. Absolutely nothing new.

“I have layers.” If TJ made another Shrek reference, just gotta throw the whole crush away, wait friend what.

TJ shook his head slightly and continued. “Anyway, so I had this idea.”

“Listening.”

“Okay, so one person dresses up in board shorts, sunglasses and flip-flops. And the other dresses up as a salt-shaker!”

“Oh, I get it. Sea Salt!” It was a peculiar costume choice, but as long as it was with TJ, Cyrus was willing to go along with it.

“That would’ve been cool, but no.”

“Oh.” Well, he was stumped. “Hold on, hold on.” Suddenly, it hit him. And along with it, a surge of warmth, what he could only describe as affection. “Summer-salt!”

He wanted to do a costume that was a call back to one of their moments? It’s a surprise Cyrus hadn’t already arranged for their wedding with how he was feeling at that moment.

They both laughed, and continued walking, going back and forth about who was doing what part. Cyrus could hear his brain vaguely reminding him that he had promised to do Mount Rushmore with Andi and his friends, but he pushed it aside. He’d figure it out. He’d do anything if it meant doing this costume with TJ.

Luckily, Buffy said she would figure out the replacement head, leaving Cyrus free to spend the entire night before Costume Day figuring out his Salt costume. He hardly slept, waking up extremely early in the morning to get dressed. He was bursting with happiness as he made his way to school, impatient to see what TJ had put together.

But he felt a pit in his stomach when he saw TJ in black jeans, wearing a camo hoodie. Why wasn’t he in costume?

“Where’s your costume? Without you, this is embarrassingly straightforward.”

TJ’s face looked worn, and his eyes. His eyes were just distraught, as if he couldn’t even bear to look at Cyrus squarely. He said in a shaky voice, “I know, I was gonna…”

Just then, Kira came up to them, cutting him off. “Come on, Kippen. Let’s see it.”

They both unzipped their hoodies to reveal plain white t-shirts with the word ‘Dribble’ scrawled on them. “Double Dribble. You get it?” Kira asked, looking expectantly at Cyrus.

At that moment, the world might as well have removed the ground from under Cyrus’ feet. He found it hard to even respond, all their words were muffled as he tried to wrap his head around what had just happened. All he saw was TJ walking away with Kira, probably off to show the rest of the team his costume.

Why did it feel like the world had just come crashing down around his ears?

Luckily, there was still a spot for him on Mount Rushmore, but right then, Cyrus wanted nothing more than for Costume Day to end.

He thought he would be upset, angry, even his friends thought so.

All he felt was numb.

The more I try to get to you

That’s how he was here, in his room, head buried in his pillow, having cried all the tears his body could produce. His eyelids felt heavy and dry, it was an effort to even keep them open. His mom had been calling him for dinner, but at that moment, he couldn’t even think of eating. He couldn’t think of doing anything else.

This was supposed to be the best day. Costume Day always is. This was supposed to be fun.

Cyrus turned over in his bed, facing the ceiling. A stray thought came to him, what was TJ thinking at the time? Did he feel sorry? Was he in the same position as Cyrus?

No, of course, he wasn’t. He is out there, probably talking to Kira. It was his fault, for ever even considering that TJ may feel the same way Cyrus did. That TJ may like him back. Because he didn’t. He wouldn’t.

Those thoughts cut into his heart, sending another sob to rack his body. Why did he have to go and fall for another boy? All it did was send him crashing into the ground.

But it was more than that this time. TJ was Cyrus’ friend. Friend was also inadequate. They just, got each other. They could be completely themselves with one another, without ever having to worry about judgement. TJ had told Cyrus that he was the only person he could ever talk to, and while Cyrus had never said it back, he felt the same with TJ.

So more than having his crush be torn apart, Cyrus had seen his friendship with TJ get damaged, maybe irreparably.

Cyrus laughed slightly. How could he have not seen it coming?

Their friendship had always had more downs than ups. Just as things were fine, things were good, something would come along to cause a bigger problem. Every time they seemed to get closer, to get nearer to each other, they would crash apart. Like bumper cars.

Huh. Bumper cars. That’s what he and TJ were. The ride seems fun, exhilarating, fun. A way to get closer. In reality, it just sends you further and further away with every impact.

And Cyrus just knew, that this time, the impact was too strong for them to ever come back from.

The more we crash apart.

~~~~~

I’m sorry for this. But i heard the song and i just had to

You can read my chapter fic here (still in progress!)

#andi mack #tyrus #tyrus fanfic #tyrus one shot #my fic #cyrus goodman #tj kippen #tyrus fanfiction #angst #bumper cars #songfic

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thisguyatthemovies · 5 years

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Two very different films

“The Peanut Butter Falcon” (in theaters Aug. 23, 2019; rated PG-13; directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz; run time 1 hours, 33 minutes) is a modern-day Huck Finn adventure story that is tender and heartwarming without being squeaky clean or oversentimental. It is the story of Zak (newcomer Zack Gottsagen), a young man who has Down syndrome and lives in a nursing home because he has no family and no way to support himself. He spends his days watching an old video tape about a professional wrestling school with elderly roommate Carl (Bruce Dern). But he longs to escape and travel to the school to become a pro wrestler. With Carl’s help, he squeezes through some bars on his nursing home window (having been deemed a flight risk) and sets off on his adventure, but with no plan and while wearing only his underwear. He hides in a boat owned by down-on-his-luck crab fisherman Tyler (an outstanding Shia LaBeouf), and when Tyler flees after setting fire to a rival’s gear, Zak and Tyler are fugitives. Tyler at first is reluctant to have a tagalong, but he and Zak bond, and both, despite being on the run through coastal North Carolina, determine they are the good guys. Tyler decides to help Zak get to the wrestling school. But both have people looking for them – the bad guys (John Hawkes as Tyler’s rival and rapper Yelawolf as his muscle) want what Tyler owes them; and Eleanor (Dakota Johnson), who was responsible for Zak at the nursing home and is charged with bringing him back. The pursuers catch up with Tyler and Zak, but that doesn’t mean their adventure is over. LaBeouf and Gottsagen (who has Down syndrome in real life) have great chemistry, and it is a joy to watch them bond. Tyler has myriad problems and is haunted by the death of his brother (a death he was responsible for), but he has a big heart, even when his methods are questionable. Gottsagen is fun to watch and root for. “The Peanut Butter Falcon” is not perfect or even great. The plot, by first-time feature filmmakers Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, is a bit contrived and predictable, and even a touch manipulative with its ending. Johnson’s character is mostly here as Tyler’s love interest (she is a widow, but unlike with Tyler, her sad story is never explained) and to serve as a yin to Tyler’s yang. The third act gets a bit messy but does include nice performances by Thomas Haden Church (as wrestler the Salt Water Redneck) and real-life wrestler Jake “The Snake” Roberts as Zak’s unsympathetic opponent in the ring. “The Peanut Butter Falcon” is a fun ride that is a touching reminder of what can happen when people, despite obstacles, pursue the life they dream of. Rating: 89 out of 100.

“Booksmart” (on disc/streaming Aug. 20, 2019; rated R; directed by Olivia Wilde; run time 1 hours, 45 minutes) is a movie I hoped to approach objectively but just couldn’t pull it off. And apparently a lot of people couldn’t pull that off. “Booksmart” is one of those polarizing films that seems to have been designed to be polarizing, and as such, opinions on it vary wildly (from Oscar contender to total waste of time), generally depending on your age, politics, sex (or gender identification), maybe even race. “Booksmart” is a raunchy comedy about graduating high school seniors Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein). Both decided to focus on their studies and bypass partying throughout their teen years. But then, with graduation a day away, Molly, the class valedictorian, realizes that nearly every student in her school (which apparently serves children of the privileged) is going to Stanford or an Ivy League school. Molly decides that she and Amy need to go out with a bang, so they spend the evening trying to find the biggest graduation bash. If this sounds familiar, it is, and “Booksmart” has most often been compared to “Superbad,” the twist being, of course, that it is about teen girls instead of teen boys and, of particular importance these days, one of the girls (Amy) is a lesbian. The comparisons – not exactly embraced by director Olivia Wilde -- also are fueled by the fact that Feldstein is the sister of “Superbad” star Jonah Hill, and her performance here at times seems like an imitation of her brother. “Booksmart” doesn’t hit its stride until Amy and Molly reach the party (the first part of the movie seems like a test to see how much the audience can tolerate annoying high school students), which also happens to be the time the movie turns more dramatic and even tender. Both girls pursue their crushes at the party, with unexpected results that jeopardizes their friendship. The best scene in the film is when a heartbroken Amy hooks up with the school’s bad girl, Hope (Diana Silvers), in a bathroom at the party. This beautiful but realistically awkward moment is reminiscent (in more ways than one) of when a drunken Evan (Michael Cera) and Becca (Martha MacIsaac) try to get it on at their party in “Superbad.” “Booksmart” did well for an R-rated comedy (about $24 million at the box office), but that’s about 20 percent of what “Superbad” made, and the difference has been blamed on everything from the films’ comparisons to sexism in Hollywood. “Booksmart” bends over backward to be inclusive in a 2019 sort of way, but that inclusiveness does not include men (which are portrayed as mostly clueless here). When the start of Molly’s graduation speech is read by one of her male classmates (Molly and Amy are late to the ceremony), he reads, “Straight white males, your time is over.” It nicely sums up the movie’s attitude, which is cause for celebration for feminist SJWs (how did they forget the biggest insult of all, “old?”) but doesn’t necessarily make for a good movie. Not that this straight (old) white male is being objective. And my opinion apparently might not be relevant. Rating: 48 out of 100.

#movies #movie reviews #movie recommendation #the peanut butter falcon #booksmart #down syndrome #shia labeouf

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justanotherdumpingground · 5 years

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Chapter Reviews: May 28-June 1, 2019

Wishful Thinking Chapter 8:

Emus! I'm so glad they finally appear! And the entire scene with them is simply funny and worth it. Pete's an uttee nutcase, though an entertaining one as well. The premium scene with Emi is so adorable that I want to see the emus again in future chapters.

Glad I get to show Alec who's boss. This guy should just stop treating his employees like crap. If only I could have him replaced by someone better (not Ellen, though), that would be better.

I'm glad I finally get to hang out with Anna outside of work. Most of her appearances have her and the MC doing their jobs, so a casual chat about the emu incident feels refreshing. And Charlie's office getting trashed means something fishy is going on, probably someone opposed to him like Ellen, though I could be wrong. Since the summary for Chapter 10 sounds like Anna has some secrets to share, it seems that something is up with Charlie. He's really fishy.

A Courtesan of Rome Chapter 19:

Another exciting chapter that kept me hooked like the previous one. I was worried what Cingerix might do to the MC, so I picked the premium option to talk him out of serving Caesar. I think doing so results in the MC and Victus having a positive opinion on Cingerix, who helped his sister escape as a result.

It was fun to watch MC train under her dad and Euthymios in preparation for the gladiator match, and Cingerix developing feelings for Euthymios. If only I can get my hands on Flavius for killing Locusta and poisoning the MC, my life would've been complete. At least there was Delphinia to pray for her daughter's safety, though the MC should really be more defiant towards Flavius.

Anyway, with my anger gone from me, it was satisfying to watch my MC deliver a speech gearing public opinion against Caesar. Even more so with Sabina chanting with the crows.

Man, I can't wait for the final chapters. Especially now that the MC has told the news about Cingerix's change of heart to Delphinia.

Passport to Romance Chapter 12:

I'm just sick of Elliot and William bickering that I want to shove them inside a room to sort out their own messes. On to the regatta.

As expected, the folks there are so snotty that I can just roll my eyes. I get that Sumire has to develop as an artist, and taking criticism is an important part of it (hence me telling her that it's a learning experience), but the impression Bronwyn gave did nothing to endear me to her. Same goes to Carlisle, whom I dislike more for talking like money's the only thing that matters. Either way, who cares about these two? I didn't spend diamonds to steal Carlisle's champagne, though. :P

So Elliot just got his entire friends in trouble by placing a huge bet on a losing boat? Well, thanks a lot, loser! I swear, Elliot keeps blowing his chances to make meaningful contributions to the group that it pisses me off to no end. The only times he did that were to provide the group a place to stay in Lucerne and a private plane to fly them to Monaco. However, their stay in Lucerne doesn't make sense when they could directly go to Germany from France, and Elliot just waited until they missed the second flight to reveal that his family owns the airline of the missed flights. I seriously question his usefulness. As for Marisa, she better not lose all that money from betting Carlisle.

Nightbound Chapter 7:

Why are there options to be mean to Vera for no reason while ignoring the fact that she saved MC from a zombie? I get that her power is deadly, but she used it for good, and had no intention to harm others. Let's hope others will warm up to her.

Heh, no surprise Lady Smoke is Vera's mom. I stumbled upon a theory @a-whore-of-rome came up with, though much of the information involves Vera's first premium scene, followed by the mention of Lady Smoke as a mobster. And wow! Vera and her mom are complete opposites. I think Lady Smoke kinda has a point that they shouldn't live in fear because of their powers. After all, their power to kill others with their bare hands isn't necessarily a curse, but can come in handy depending on the user and their intents. I think Lady Smoke lets this power get in her head that she largely uses it for her benefit. A pity I didn't get her monster tear, but I certainly have plans to get it.

A premium scene to talk to Priya Lacroix. Pass, at least for now. I make no secret why I hate Priya, even though spending time with a love interest sounds like something I'd do once I know who my LI will be. For the time being, none of the love interests capture my attention.

Platinum Chapters 1-2:

First impressions-wise, the story seems OK. I don't like the clichéd bits (small town girl gets picked up by a star), but there's still hope for something else. Super glad that my MC gets to wear glasses as a regular accessory, rather than as part of another outfit. After all, I also wear glasses. And not to mention that the fanbase meter and that certain actions can cause the MC to lose fans looks like a good mechanism that prevents an immediate rise to fame cliché.

Interesting that both Avery and Raleigh can be either male or female, depending on player choices. For Avery, I picked the female one because she's so pretty. The male one's eyes look dopey, but that's just personal impression. Raleigh's harder because both choices look good, though I ended up picking the female one. It's probably not final, though.

Heh, I know Ryder from AME would make a cameo appearance in this story, and it seems that he's in his element. Also, Shane is a good friend to have so far. It's a blessing.

What is it with PB and its affinity with the rival girl cliché? I get that Jaylen isn't a saint, but this cliché discourages players to view characters with proper nuance and understand their roles in the story. After all, an important part of evaluating characters is to not let biases on certain "types" hinder one's thinking.

Anyway, let's see how this story developes.

Open Heart Chapter 16:

Honestly, I really don't like the fact that the MC acts friendly towards Landry even though the way he sabotaged the MC involved disrupting patient care. Because of this, I continued picking options that don't give him credit. Not once did he feel remorse over sabotaging the MC and putting patients at risk. It's like the situation with Sebastian in The Sophomore all over again. Forced to forgive someone who not only expressed no remorse for their wrongdoing but also forgetting that what he did are illegal, dangerous, and degrading. It doesn't help that his sabotage of the boiler is enough to erase sympathy for him.

That aside, I finally get to work with Ethan on Naveen, and it seems that Ethan is more open on his respect for MC. That seems reassuring, especially since I giggled at him saying that his middle name's Jonah after the MC saying Ethan "Freaking" Ramsey.

Seeing Aurora wish the MC luck was nice and calming. I'm proud of her taking the initiative of being nice towards the person who consoled her. It doesn't erase her flaws, such as her overconfidence when she downplayed a case as "not interesting", but I'm ready to see her slowly warming up to others and learn that all patients are interesting in their own way.

Man, I can't believe the next chapter is the finale. I won't be surprised the MC will win and keep their medical license, followed by a little celebration that involves premium options to spend time with a love interest.

Bloodbound Chapter 3:

Too bad that it costs diamonds to actually have fun in Vegas in order to blow off some steam in preparation for meeting with Landgon. Well, I'm not super tempted to buy them because my LI is neither Adrian nor Lily, though I like them both.

Anyway, on to meeting Langdon. I knew this guy's shady, but to see him keeping various supernatural beings alive sickens me. Even more so when he planned to keep MC and co. as part of his collection.

So the cameo comes from Cal. Well, not surprising, and I'm just scared at what might happen to him.

And Lily saying "to defeat the Huns" is what I need to cheer me up and lighten my mood. Despite being a vampire, she always stays true to herself and helps in any way she can. I have great confidence she'll be a great assistant to Jax.

Regarding the second flashback, I feel bad at Adrian killing the Confederate soldiers, though I wonder if that scene has changes depending on his appearance. And Gaius just reminds me how ruthless and creepy he is despite having another side to him in the previous chapter. He's shaping up to be a villain I like.

#choices stories you play #chapter reviews

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Deadpool 3: The MCU Questions and Connections

https://ift.tt/2UAxmZ8

Deadpool is coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the X-Men Cinematic Universe fizzled out as Disney bought out Fox, it doesn’t take a marketing genius to remember that Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson is a license to print money. Much like JK Simmons reprised his role as J. Jonah Jameson in Spider-Man: Far From Home, we’re once again going to see Reynolds as Deadpool because if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! And even if he was broken, Deadpool has the innate ability to fix hims—

Sorry, got lost there.

They aren’t just going to reintroduce the character like Jameson, though. We’re getting Deadpool 3 and it’s going to be rated R. This will be a sequel…but in a different continuity than its first two films. Interesting novelty.

Deadpool 3 is the ultimate wild card because we don’t really know how it’s going to really work. Just the idea of Deadpool 3 being part of MCU canon fills the room with elephants. So while we have a long time to wait on this, here are some questions that arise about Deadpool 3.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR CABLE?

We got one Thanos joke in Deadpool 2, but if Cable’s coming back, then expect even more references to Josh Brolin’s other big Marvel role.

Cable’s a tough nut to crack here. On one hand, he was such a major fixture in Deadpool 2 and it felt like a given that he’d be sticking around as Deadpool’s long-suffering gun buddy. He even chooses to stay in the present and save Deadpool because he feels he can fix the future by making a better world.

Watch everything Marvel and more on Disney+, right here!

But…what future? Cable’s future is null and void at this point. While Deadpool 2 didn’t go into canon connections, Cable’s father hasn’t even been established in the MCU. Not to mention the headaches that come from mixing and matching X-Men-style time travel and how it works in the MCU.

He’s too big a name to just ignore, but he’s also going to be a square peg in a round hole.

WILL X-FORCE BE CONSIDERED THE FIRST MUTANTS OF THE MCU?

Deadpool 3 doesn’t have a release date, but realistically, it can’t be showing up any earlier than 2023. We’re going to have two-to-three years of a stacked Marvel movie release calendar going on before we get to see Colossus and the others again.

Now, they haven’t announced any X-Men movies during that time (yet), but that doesn’t mean that mutants won’t be popping up. We all know that making mutants work as a concept in a superhero universe that’s been around for nearly a decade and a half is something that’s going to need some thought, but if they do figure it out, they could always sprinkle characters into different movies and shows. For instance, it would absolutely make sense for Mystique and/or Rogue to show up in Captain Marvel 2.

There are even rumors out there that a certain tentacled, Soviet mutant will be making his debut in Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Man, did they really go thirteen X-Men movies without giving us Omega Red and his MUTANT DEATH FACTOR?

Then again, there’s also the possibility that X-Force and the like won’t get any real screentime, focusing just on Deadpool, Vanessa, and maybe Dopinder.

WILL THE CONNECTION BE PART OF THE NARRATIVE?

Even from the original screenplay, Deadpool and its sequel were really loose about its connections to the other X-Men movies. Deadpool mentions he doesn’t know which Xavier actor he’d be meeting, established characters are extremely different from their previous appearances (Deadpool included), and even the X-Men’s public status as superheroes isn’t really something you see in the main movies outside of the first act of Dark Phoenix. Good luck figuring out how Wade’s movies tie into X-Men movie canon.

It would be absolutely forgivable if they kept that loose approach with the MCU. The difference is that the MCU is actually coherent. The X-Men movies are a gigantic pile of contradictions and retcons that leave you with a bunch of jigsaw pieces that just don’t fit well. Even when they tried to fix it all with time travel, they still screwed it up immediately after.

Also, why the hell did nobody age between First Class and Dark Phoenix?

Movies

Is New Mutants an Ending for the Fox X-Men Universe?

By Gavin Jasper

Movies

The Many Loves of Deadpool: 14 Ladies Who Loved the Merc with a Mouth

By Gavin Jasper

Ahem. So anyway, the MCU has its cracks, but its pride comes from the fact that the movies and some of the higher-profile spinoffs tie together and do it well. You’re more likely to see Deadpool 3 play ball a little more specifically with the world around him.

But how important is this change of scenery? Is it an unexplained alteration that we aren’t meant to question and barely notice or is it going to be part of the storyline? This is a time when we’re already getting WandaVision, Spider-Man 3, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness so close together and they’re all about exploring and mixing realities. For all we know, Deadpool might even show up in the Doctor Strange 2 post-credits. It would make as much sense as anything.

WHAT BIG NAMES ARE GOING TO GET ROASTED?

Deadpool’s already made references to the MCU here and there, like doing the Hulk lullaby to Juggernaut, fighting on a Helicarrier, being old friends with a guy whose very identity is tied to being from HYDRA, and whatnot. What happens when he goes full ham? Are we going to see Weasel recast with Ed Norton or Terrance Howard?

But really, we have dozens of movies to go on. Lots of stuff to poke fun at. Did he lose Vanessa again due to the Snap and then get her back? Is he unsure whether or not he’s allowed to talk about Venom? Is he going to be meta about the fact that it’s probably for the best that a Ryan Reynolds character didn’t show up until after the Scarlett Johansson character was killed off?

WHAT SMALL NAMES ARE GOING TO GET ROASTED?

Making jokes about Thanos and the Infinity Stones is one thing, but I’m into the obscure jabs. There are rumors going around about certain Netflix Defenders characters popping up in MCU projects, such as Daredevil being in Spider-Man 3. That means I only want Deadpool to dig deeper.

While I wouldn’t be against seeing knocks on Runaways or Cloak and Dagger, the real target I’m interested in is Inhumans. Inhumans, the property that Marvel spent years and so much effort trying to overshadow mutants with only to absolutely fall on their face when the movie was changed to a TV series and then flopped in its first season. The kind of project that is supposedly one of those “never bring it up or you will be fired” blunders.

Hey, they put that series on Disney+. Might as well give everyone a reason to check it out.

WHO WILL BE THE VILLAIN?

Deadpool’s rogues gallery hasn’t always been too impressive. During his defining Joe Kelly run, his big bad was T-Ray, but following writers proceeded to phase him out of importance. Even though Ajax was from the Deadpool comics, he was mainly there for one story arc before getting killed off (he did get briefly resurrected after the first movie came out, but even then only had one appearance). Deadpool 2 had Juggernaut and Black Tom, who were more plug-and-play X-Men villains in general who only had a limited connection to Deadpool himself.

Really, if anyone’s going to be the villain in Deadpool 3, it’s Mr. Sinister. Deadpool has dealt with him a few times in the comics and he was, for whatever reason, the main villain in the aggressively mediocre Deadpool video game. Thing is, if Deadpool 3 is the last true gasp of the X-Men Cinematic Universe as it transfers into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, then it’s probably going to be the big villain that they spent several movies building up (X-Men: Apocalypse, Deadpool 2, New Mutants, and technically Logan) only to never have him appear.

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Besides, it’s not like Sinister is above fourth-wall breaking humor. You could loosely base the story on What If #100, a story where Sinister became aware of his fictional nature and tried to break free from its imprisonment.

Why should Deadpool have all the self-aware fun?

The post Deadpool 3: The MCU Questions and Connections appeared first on Den of Geek.

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#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

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youngerdrgrey · 7 years

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BOGOFree (happiness guarantee not included) // a superstore fic

written for day 11 of 30 x 31, prompt: accidental marriage.

or, the time Amy and Jonah got married at work [also on ao3]

Someone (Glenn) gets it in their (his) head that a great way to take over new markets would be to offer training classes at Cloud 9. Not normal classes, like cooking, or sewing, because people could go to Michael's for that. No, Cloud 9 would offer cool training classes, like jingle making, or how to become an ordained minister. And when that someone (Glenn) first suggests the idea, another someone (Amy) insists that she doesn't want to work the stupid training that will only give more people the power to lock people into relationships forever. So of course, Amy winds up being one of the volunteers for the class.

She and Garrett get stuck with Glenn, who happily explains the steps and procedures of the actual ceremonies to the four people dumb enough to spend their whole day in a supermarket. Then there's some practice sessions, the actual exam set up on the computers in the electronics section, and a final that Glenn insists will be the best Not Wedding in Cloud 9 history.

Only, the Not Wedding turns into a much bigger deal than it needs to. Because someone (in this case, Cheyenne) wants the wedding to have a theme, so the new ministers can really get into it, and then Garrett decides that he wants to be the one to officiate the wedding rather than be in it, so he rushes off to get himself a nice suit to match the classy, all eyes on me wedding that's happening.

Long story even longer, Jonah fills in. Cheyenne turns all the video cameras on to stream the wedding throughout the store. Amy wears her own name tag for the first time in six months. And Glenn -- hopeful, oblivious, romantic Glenn -- tells them to write their vows and get ready in the break room.

"And don't look at each other," Glenn tells them, backing out of the room. "It's bad luck."

Amy whips around to glare at him. "We're not actually getting married!" But Glenn leaves without another word. So, then it's just Amy and Jonah, alone, in the dimly lit room, on their wedding day. "You don't have to wear a tie."

Jonah shrugs on his side of the room. "Glenn said I could keep whatever I wore today so... new blue tie." It has stripes on it, but diagonal stripes, so it's blue and silver. Honestly, it makes Amy think of a Ravenclaw tie, so it's just the right level of nerdy for him. Though, she's not sure if Jonah's exactly a Ravenclaw. He talks a lot, sure, but his knowledge doesn't really seem based in anything but a never ending curiosity. Then again, a never ending curiosity sounds pretty Ravenclaw-esque.

She's nerding out. It's dumb. He can have his nerd tie, and she can keep the nice sweater she chose for the event.

Jonah clears his throat. "So, uh, what do you want to do for the honeymoon?" He laughs his awkward joke laugh, but Amy can't really find it in herself to laugh with him.

"I don't know, go home, be with my actual husband." If he comes out of the basement, or talks to her long enough, if maybe Adam acts like a real person instead of moping around and continuing to be a constant drain on the energy in the house. And, she probably shouldn't put it all on Adam. She's the one who first said she was unhappy and opened this whole Pandora's box of awfulness, but he can't even handle this like an adult. He can't just be a full person long enough to figure out what comes next.

"Right." Jonah shifts in his chair. The whole thing squeaks along the floor. "Sorry."

She waves him off. "It's fine." She should turn and actually look at him. No use in not looking since they're not getting real married, right? But, it feels nice to play into it a bit. To pretend that maybe this could be what her wedding was like. Nothing forced or wrapped around the kid growing inside of her. Just something fun, light, like a game between friends that never really has to end if they won't want it to.

Being married to Jonah would probably be awful though. He'd wake you up with random facts and tidbits of information that nobody actually needs to know. She'd probably have to start actually listening to them too. Hard to be dismissive to a spouse without turning abusive so, Amy'd have to care about some of what he's saying. And she'd probably have to look into his eyes when they get all bright instead of looking away, and she'd have to kiss him. Which would be the best way to shut him up. Kiss him until all the facts blur together and he can't remember anything but what it's like to feel her around him.

She shifts in her chair. Blinks a few times. "You know, if they care so much about this fake wedding, we should've gotten rings."

Jonah laughs. "Okay, wait, I want to tell you something, but you can't laugh."

She winces, gaze still straight out at the microwave. "The second you say that I prep myself to laugh. You get that, right?"

"Don't laugh. Seriously, Amy. I've had this dream, since I was a kid, to find a ring like the one in My Date With the President's Daughter--"

"The Disney movie?" She only sounds mildly judgy, by the way, so she should get props.

"Yup, that one."

"With Eric from Boy Meets World?" Just to clarify.

She can legit hear him nodding. "Yup."

"The creepy holographic eye ring?" Which, seriously, was a cheap ring from, like, a gumball machine that blinked when it was moved, so it winked at you.

Jonah keeps on nodding though. "Yeah, that's the one. It's the epitome of romance."

If she stares hard enough into the microwave, she can almost see him. See his reflection grinning to himself while his voice gets that sort of air behind it that mans he actually genuinely cares about something. "I always thought you were single because you just annoyed everyone, but I mean, this makes sense too. You have no idea what romance is."

He scoffs. "What--you're telling me that that ring wouldn't make you swoon."

"No, of course not." It's cheap and tacky and it's not like it's the one thing he won and the only way to show his true appreciation. It has no weight in their actual lives beyond being some nerdy gift from a bad Disney movie.

He clicks his tongue. "Okay."

She has half a mind that says he owns the dumb ring somewhere. "I'm serious." It wouldn't even be that cute. And they can't wear rings at work.

He says, "That's fine. Didn't say I was giving one to you."

She sputters. Not a lot just, you know, enough. "Dude." He starts to turn towards her, she can see it in the reflection, so she turns further away from him. "Dude! I'm your wife." Hypothetically. "If anyone's getting a creepy ring, it should be me."

"Hm, okay. It's settled then."

"Wait, what?" She doesn't want the ring. She's just saying if anyone gets a ring, she should get one, even if it's cheesy and dumb and shows that he's still a kid while also maybe showing that he understands the importance of actually making gestures instead of just assuming the other person knows that you care about them. But she doesn't want the ring! "What just happened?"

His chair squeaks again as he gets up. His footsteps scuff against the floor. His hands come to rest on her shoulders, and he turns her around in her chair. He's got a dumb grin on his face, and that stupid Ravenclaw tie swings somewhere between them when he bends over to be at her level.

"You just chose your engagement ring. Thanks, babe." He wiggles his eyebrows in punctuation. She'd be offended if it wasn't vaguely, well, hot.

"You don't get to call me 'babe,'" she tells him, "I'd call you 'babe.'" And because she has to prove herself, "Got it, babe?"

"Got it. Totally. Understood."

She nods. God, his face is too close to hers, and this stupid wedding should just happen already. "We should see what's taking them so long." She gets up, and he steps back to let her get up, but not as far as he should. They wind up practically chest to chest. "Jonah."

He stares down his impossibly long eyelashes to her. "Hm?"

"Babe?" She flutters her normal person eyelashes at him.

"Yeah?"

She forces up a glare, the strongest one she can, all the tension and fire in her body gets redirected straight into her eyes. "Take a step back!" He jumps back, stumbles over his own feet. "God, it's a fake marriage, dude. Don't get caught up." She stalks out of the break room as quick as her legs will take her.

She still hears him, though, when he mumbles, "Says the woman thinking about rings. Whatever. Babe."

#amy dubanowski #amy x jonah #jonah simms #superstore #superstore fic #mine #30 x 31 #fm

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