#also off-season secret santa and big bang were on the list

[birdmenmanga]

excellent point!!

Prompt Week - 7 days, 14 simple prompts (2 per day). you know the drill. general is just going to be about the series at large, ship-focused is probably going to be takaeishi week electric boogaloo

Collaboration (Artswap) - Participants are paired up randomly in order to work on a single creation together. Traditionally it's a single illustration in which one person does the lines and the other does the colors, but you could also do other things like "one person scripts and colors a comic, and the other person does the linework" or "two writers pass a single google doc between them like a hot potato and they write alternating paragraphs" etc.

Podfic Challenge - A podfic is essentially an audiobook of a fanfiction. Either write and podfic a birdmen fanfiction, or ask for an author's permission to podfic (a portion of) a fic. You can get fancy, like adding sound effects or backing music, or just keep it simple and record something on your phone. Nice because it doesn't require you to create something in the traditional sense and is also a way to show appreciation to past fic writers. Not nice depending on how self-conscious you are about your voice.

Not My Medium Challenge - Create a fanwork in a medium you've never worked with extensively. For example, for myself, I'd consider illustrations, sequential art, meta essays, fanfiction, and music videos as mediums that I've worked in extensively, so I'd focus on other things such as meme compilations, music compositions, podfics, video essays, gifsets and edits, among infinite possibilities.

Draw A Comic Month - 4-week event with one week dedicated to scripting, storyboarding, linework, and colors/toning each. A comic can be as simple as a 2-panel comic to something as complex as a 30-page manga. This is one time where my comics advice is going to be ENTIRELY FREE OF CHARGE. I am going to sit in the birdmen discord at regular times throughout this event and do my best to make the comic of your dreams happen (guy who is obsessed with sequential art voice)

the collaboration is a COMMITMENT whereas the rest are things you can opt in and out at any moment. ok now go hog wild with the votes and let me know your bonus thoughts in the tags

#just thinking thoughts... #birdmen #polls #yeah I mean you could just skive out of the commitments like what am I going to do. ban you from future events. lol. #anyways be nice to me I spent some brain cells thinking of cool activities for enrichment in the enclosure #for the worried: yes I have hosted fandom events before. I did not enjoy it but I would do it for the birdmutuals #personally I like the bottom two as in I'd be most likely to participate in them #because like. lol. I know exactly what I want to make and these other things are just dreary obligations #but the bottom two are far enough from my home territory that I can like. get weird and have fun with it #also off-season secret santa and big bang were on the list #but then I wisely realized I was completely unwilling to moderate those activities so. lol. off the go #I don't think we have enough people who are willing to be bound by obligation anyways #the comics thing was originally going to be a hanzawa event #like all the detco folks have their pet peeve about canon #and the idea was that you drew a hanzawa-style comic about it #where it didn't have to look good or anything it just had to be silly #but. stealing that. we birding (we balling)

[unsettledink]

Back in the days of LJ, I used to try and do a post at the end of each year, looking back primarily at fandom and fic. I fell out of the habit when everything moved to tumblr, and then it seemed like I didn’t have anything to say since I wasn’t writing or really participating any. 

But I always liked the idea of it, because I love to be overly reflective on stuff. And talk about my fic. Any excuse! I shuffled around some of the topics I used back then and added a few I’ve seen around that I liked. It got… long, because I TALK, so I split into two sections. 

*

Your main fandom of the year? 

    Marvel (MCU) for sure. Primarily with characters from Spider-Man and Iron Man movies.

Your favorite film watched this year?

    The Old Guard - I saw a couple trailers and everything about it looked like catnip. ‘It’s probably going to be so dumb, but I don’t even care,’ I thought. And then it was so good. It was so much fun and so much smarter than I expected and I loved each and every character and it just made me happy in so many ways.

Your favorite book read this year?

    Red, White, and Royal Blue, Casey McQuiston - I read it twice this year actually. It’s so… cute isn’t the right world. Sweet and hopeful and soft and comforting and intense. I liked every single character which is pretty rare. I cried during the sad parts and then again at the happy ending, like straight up sobbed - both times. I already want to read it again.

Your favorite tv show watched this year?

    Schitt’s Creek - I started it on a whim and because a lot of people had said it was good. The episodes were short so it wasn’t a huge time investment. The first season was a little rough, but there were enough funny moments that I hung on, and then… I kept getting fonder and fonder of these idiots as they grew. And THEN… it kept not disappointing me? 

     You grow to expect certain scripts, twists, jokes, especially in queer story lines. To wait for the bad thing to happen, because it always does. Instead, Schitt’s Creek kept going, ‘hey, here’s the set up for that! Guess what? We’re not doing it. Here’s the happy version instead.’ The relief of having that happen again and again - the last season I’ve watched (I’m sort of saving 6) I cried a bunch but it was always because I was happy. 

Your favorite album or song to listen to this year?

    1896 - I’ve been waiting for the new Steam Powered Giraffe album so eagerly for aaaaaages. Finally getting recordings of Zero’s songs! Lying Awake remains my favorite off the album, with Eat Your Heart and Bad Days on the Horizon high up there as well. I’m loving what Zero brings to the band.

Your best new fandom discovery of the year?

    I don’t know if I really did discover that much? I stuck pretty closely to old fandoms and the ones I picked up in 2019. Maybe Zodiac? It was definitely inspiring, and I want to write and read more in it. 

    Maybe the couple discords I joined? I still really dislike discord and am not on there much, and mostly lurk when I am, but having somewhere vaguely like the comms I remember makes me feel a little less isolated. It’s the potential, that maybe if I said something I might make a friend, or someone might actually want to hear what I say. 

Your biggest fandom disappointment of the year?

    The Watch - I mean, I knew it was going to be a disaster with every word said during pre production. I wasn’t ever going to be happy with it. And then it came out and was even worse and uglier and … disrespectful not just of the source material but of actual people connected to Terry. I’m beyond disappointed that this is what we got, and it’s probably going to be a long time before we get anything else. 

    Devil All the Time was terrible, but I didn’t have especially high hopes. It still didn’t manage to meet them. Yikes.

The most missed of your old fandoms?

    Maybe MASH? Someone I follow started talking about it and I was reminded all over again of the wonderful fics in that fandom. I went looking and a lot are gone (still on my computer, lol, but not online), but rereading was such a trip. A slightly depressing trip, but still. 

The fandom you haven't tried yet, but want to?

    Hmm. I’ve kind of not had the energy to invest in other fandoms at the moment? When The Witcher was having it’s big moment back in January, I had a feeling I might enjoy it enough to fall headfirst into the fandom, so I avoided watching it. Ikr? I don’t have the time or the energy to actively seek anything out. 

Your biggest fan anticipations for the New Year?

    SO EXCITED about Winter’s Orbit. I mean, the third Spider-Man movie for sure, with worry. The second Venom movie, ugh yes. I have tentative hopes for Jungle Cruise? Jumanji was stellar and I always enjoy Dwayne. I have both hope and dread for the new Suicide Squad - I did love Birds of Prey, so if it’s along those lines, yay. The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard because it should be some fun garbage, my favorite kind. I don’t know how I feel about Dune, but, uh, I’m anticipating it. It seems highly unlikely it will actually happen, but The Wheel of Time TV series. 

I want to be excited about Black Widow but it’s hard. It’s not the story I’ve been wanting to see, and I’m angry about Natasha not getting a movie until she’s dead.

You know. If any of it is released for real.

The Good: 

I moved to a better place. I got a better paying, better benefits, better environment job that lets me work from home. The house acquired 3-7 more cats depending on the month. I was able to get some serious problems on my car fixed. I have insurance and was able to start on some health stuff. No one I know got sick or died. I wrote a LOT.

The Bad: 

Aside from the obvious? Depression hitting extra hard during the winter. Having to put two kittens to sleep. Have my car be hit three times in our parking lot. Being driven INSANE by one of the cats for months while the vets were all closed. Kidney stone. Dealing with several health problems. Stalling for months on Gotcha.

The Indifferent: 

Not leaving the house often or easily. Enjoying a new fandom but not doing great at making connections (still real awkward, bud). Raising kittens and saying goodbye. Need new tires. Reading a lot of fic but not a lot of books. Having more pay but more expenses as well (wth insurance??). 

*

2020 fic stats

Number of stories: 39

Number of fandoms: 6? Or 2, if you cluster the others under mcu

Total number of words: 152049

Average word count per story: 4kish

Longest fic: Causality (18k, P/Q)

Shortest fic: Can’t, Won’t (1k, P/Q)

Most comments received: Sieche (49, T/P)

Fandom you wrote the most of: MCU Spider-Man - I only wrote TWO fics that didn’t feature that fandom, wow. And one of those was still MCU.

Fandom you wrote the least of: Zodiac (1!)

Events you participated in: Marvel Trumps Hate, Kinktober, IornspidersGeorg Exchange, Starker Festivals Exchange, MCU Secret Santa, Spiderio Big Bang

*

Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you'd predicted?

    SO MUCH MORE OMG. I mean, even just counting posted stuff! (I probably wrote a solid 300k of Gotcha this year.) I did not expect or plan on doing Kinktober, so that’s a whole 31 fics right there. I also wasn’t planning on doing any exchanges - I have a History - but then I did three? And beyond that, I did not expect for everything to get so LONG.

Topic you wrote that you would never have predicted in January:

    Tony/Quentin. Goddammit @the-me09 They were like hey, they could be interesting! And while I agreed, I had no ideas for them. THEN they had to go and write Just Bodies That Collide and next thing I know, I’ve got ten fics featuring them and two-six series focused on them or Peter/Quentin/Tony. What the fuck. 

Leitmotif of the year:

    Vulnerability, I think. I had a bunch of things typed up and they all circle back to vulnerability in the end; sex, being seen, being wanted, sharing trauma, asking for help, trying something new. Offering a soft spot in the hopes it won’t be hurt. 

Favorite character to write about: 

    Tony Stark, for sure. There are just a bunch of slightly different takes, and a lot of canon to work with (kind of frustrating too though). And I’m a sucker for emotionally damaged snarky traumatized characters that are viewed poorly both in universe and out. 

Favorite kind of fic to write:

    This year? Fluff and smut combined. Maybe that’s not the right term really. I keep looking for and writing, even in the angstiest fics, for those soft moments. Sure, maybe it’s a super smutty kink scene, but I want the affection to be obvious. Maybe everyone is consumed by guilt, but I want it to be based in caring too much. Maybe there’s no real love, just sex and even that’s messed up, but I want to find that tiny bit of fondness. 

    And I want happy endings. Or endings that look like they’re going to be happy, at least, even if there’s all the angst first. I don’t think I’ve killed anyone this year? Who AM I? 

Biggest disappointment:

    Not finishing the rough draft of Gotcha. I was making such good progress in 2019, from August to December. Even after the move, I basically finished part 6 in January. I fumbled around and fussed with 1 a lot, but that had already been given one draft, really, and I got through half of 4 before I slowed to a stop. I’ve barely gotten anything accomplished on it since June. Bits and pieces here and there, but nothing significant, not like I was doing. I can excuse October, due to 80k invested in Kinktober (yikes!), but aside from that… I’m sad. I’ll finish it eventually, but I really thought I could have the first draft done in a year. I’m sitting at about 480k out of what I’m almost certain will be 700k. 

Biggest surprise:

    Kinktober! It was kind of spur of the moment, decided just a week in advance. I’ve tried month long or even like, 20-25 day long challenges and I don’t think I’ve ever completed one. I thought there was a good chance I’d do so again, so I gave myself a little help and made my own list of prompts, things I knew I liked and hadn’t done much of yet. And it worked? I actually completed it, what the hell? Despite spending five days travelling near the end! Despite falling behind in getting ahead and writing a bunch of stories the day they were to be posted! Despite apparently forgetting how to do short form! 

    I, uh, could have done without the spawning of eleven series or sequels or continuations jfc WHY SELF.

Something you learned this year:

    Ideas breed ideas. I swear to god, the second I sit down to think through a current idea, I wake up the next morning with three more. 

    Words need to be restocked. I need to consume new - not rereads, not fic - content every so often to refresh my word bank. It is astonishing how quickly writing goes again after I’ve done so.

    I can write so much more than I thought I could. I can do so much more than I thought I could. Yes, I can complete challenges without dropping out early. Yes, I can do exchanges and not regret it. Yes, I can write more than 100k, more than 200k, more and more - and I can write 10k+ easily too. Though I wouldn’t mind if I could once again write less than 10k without feeling like I’ve cut off in the middle. 

    My time is shrinking, and if I want to write as much, I’m going to have to make the time. I can’t rely on three days off a week, on seven hours of uninterrupted overnight shifts, on hyper focused writing binges that leave everything else around me on fire. 

Most memorable comment: 

    So, so many! I can’t pick one. I’ve been really lucky to get a bunch of really detailed, enthusiastic, analyzing comments across all different fics. One of the types that always sticks with me are the ones like ‘I didn’t think/know I liked this ship/kink/twist, but fuck, apparently I do? You made me, what the hell?’. 

What, if anything, are you going to try to do differently in your writing in the new year?

So with writing Gotcha but not posting until it’s done, my view of what I’ve written vs anyone else’s is extremely skewed. I’m sitting here thinking, hey I’m 400k in and got another 10k done today, so much writing! While anyone looking at my AO3 account (for most of the year) is like, you’re averaging three months between fics :(

    All that to say I want to try and get something posted more frequently while I’m working on Gotcha.

    Also, writing for kinktober was really interesting - pushing myself to write every single day, often for that day’s post, forced me to get back into shorter form fic. Which used to be all I did? But it was surprisingly hard to just stop and not write more. So I’d like to challenge myself to write more fics under 10k at least. Maybe even under 5k though that might be asking a lot lol. I might get there with the many continuations of those fics I’d like to do. Does that count?

Goals:

   I want to hit 365 fics. :) I’m only 32 away!

    Aside from writing - 

    I’ve really enjoyed the reading record sideblog I started this year. I’ve let it lapse a little the past month or so, but I’d like to keep it going strong. 

    I’d like to leave a lot more comments. I want to get better about allowing imperfection - I want to write The Best Comment, but in the end? Probably 90% of fic writers are going to be happier with a comment expressing enjoyment in any way over no comment at all. 

And not just on fics, but on general posts as well. It’s hard not to feel… weird and stupid and invasive and rude leaving any sort of comment on someone’s post if I don’t know them at least a little. I have godawful rejection sensitive dysphoria and a lot of interactions that ended poorly; I’m really not good at people. But as dumb as it feels to say those things, I know I am thrilled and warmed and happier when there’s a reblog with tags or a note or a comment or an ask or just, any small interaction that shows someone out there notices and cares, at least a little. There’s no reason I can’t at least try to offer that to other people. 

    I’d like to make/run a couple challenges of my own, later in the year. I’m still figuring out what I want to do and what I could do. I’m really interested in doing something that’s not focused on creators, but the readers; some sort of comment or rec challenge maybe.

    I want to find a cheerleader for Gotcha. I’m struggling to keep up my motivation to write it when it’s already in my head, where I can ‘read’ it any time. There’s a line between depending too much on external validation and trying to generate all your validation yourself, and I’m getting to a point where I think I need to ask for help (gasp! The hardest thing EVER). 

*

(Part Two: Pick Some Fics)

#end of year #unsettled rambles

[sandpapersnowman]

@podcastenthusiast tagged me for a writer meme!!! any specific fic mentioned will be bolded, italicized, and linked!

Author name: sandpapersnowman on Ao3

Fandoms You Write For: mostly Magnus Archives right now, but i’m also getting into borderlands a little again. that being said, i have 49 fandoms on my list on ao3 because i also like writing small oneshots for random movies and stuff

Where You Post: 99.9% on ao3, and then 0.1% on specific sideblogs! those fics usually end up on ao3 eventually too though

Most Popular One-Shot: woof. unfortunately it’d be one of the r/h*ck fic i wrote a few years ago (though it was a secret santa for a buddy, so no MAJOR regrets) but other than that it’s a nasty jesse/cassidy for preacher, featuring praise kink and jesse being kind of a powerbottom oop

Most Popular Multi-Chapter Story: ooo Little Happy Ending by far...... i really do intend to finish it and do actually have most of it almost good to go, i just havent found the right time to get into it like it deserves umu 

Favourite Story You Wrote: oh absolutely my hemlock grove rumancek fic about them sharing dreams again, and neither wanting to admit the particular brand of intense theyre getting into. i also picked flowers and scenery at random that turned out to be Perfectly symbolic on top of how fun it was to write in the first place

Story You Were Nervous to Post: every single one! always! i have extreme anxiety and every fic posted is me actively fighting myself for about an hour to get it tagged, described, formatted, and named, and then hitting the ‘post’ button and closing the tab before i overthink it too much longer. but more specifically any time i post something with a non/dubcon tag; it doesnt happen super often but i do like exploring different dynamics, and every time i worry about getting hate messages even if its relatively lowkey :’)

How Do You Pick Your Titles: i throw a dart at azlyrics dot com. the majority of my titles are from the wombats, followed by phoenix, then the faint, and then studio killers. very very few of my titles are original because naming things is my greatest weakness

Do You Outline: o o f almost never. i’ve done outlining for the zine i’m participating in at the moment, and used outlining to turn conversations about concepts into real fics, but i really start fics by slamming out whatever image has popped up mentally that’s making me wanna write stuff down and then building around that core

How Many of Your Stories are complete: if i post a fic with chapter 1/1, it’s finished. if it’s 1/? then it will never be finished bc i’ve never finished a longform fic i dont think (longform to me meaning like.... 10k+). i’ve joked before that i have a ratio of about 5 fics started to every 1 finished, and that has always been true for any fandom of mine

In-Progress: a secret martin/elias thing, my 154 magnus fic, the third chunk of the charley/jerry(/ed) fright night thing, i am Truly working on little happy ending i promise, and a martin/peter au that’ll be less of a single story and more of a series with random fics taking place in it (like the walter stays series if you read that)

Coming Soon: probably spn fic just to get it out of my system bc i Did write a couple ficlets while depression-watching season 9 lmao. i may or may not do a fic for episode 153 of mag bc 154 hit me Real Hard and i might have to skip it to go off for the 154 thing i’m writing. then also, the 154 fic! about, to be vague, if martin Did go along with the thing jon brought up

Do You Accept Prompts: yeah!! no guarantees bc i’m a mess person but if its something interesting i’ll write out a couple paragraphs for funsies even if it doesnt become a full fic

Upcoming Story You’re the Most Excited For: sweats........ i have some peter/martin stuff that involves peter making excuses for why they should get totally-platonic-ly married and then them going on a ‘honeymoon’ in italy. it features a private villa, martin having a small crisis, and me getting to indulge in my rarely-mentioned big gay feelings about characters getting married. that series or the one where martin accidentally bangs elias without realizing it But

Tag Five Fanfic Authors to Answer These Questions

!!! if yall wanna do it i’m gonna tag @cuttoothed @canaliculi @fataldrum @letaizawarest @jimhalsey and if anyone else wants to do it (especially any magnus fic writers,,,) Blease do and tag me in it, i love author memes like this and its so cool learning about yall!!!

thanks again for tagging me, this was fun!! <33

#writing tag #ask meme #bolded text / #podcastenthusiast #i might put this under a cut if its too long on the dashboard but it looks fine to me rn

[thatswhenyourefrom]

Sunday’s Best - “Poised to Break” & The “Californian”

I wanted to give insight into the checkpoints of the external forces that make me who I am today. I won’t deny that most of these pieces will mostly stem from my adolescence (and also mostly be music), but I still act as clay in the presences of art around me. The selected pieces (or collections of pieces) may be precise or vast, so expect varying lenses. Most of what I wanted to bring to this conversation were my hidden gems; pieces I hold so true to me and me only. I came to a realization recently that some of my favorite albums and some of my favorite movies do not stick to some of my peers. I don’t expect them too. I also don’t expect to sway any opinions or justify any of my opinions. The expectation is to usher you in to the closest parts of me.

I first heard Sunday’s Best in 2002 on a Canadian tv show called Undergrads before I was in the double-digits. It was a background song (reused again in the end credits), but the chorus stuck in my head. Whether it be hummed, sang, or just spinning around in my head, the song and the sound was stuck (and remains to be to this day). This song has built a house on top of my brain.

In the early 2000’s, the internet was picking up a lot of steam, and even though I was a young little guy, i started to learn my way around it at a young age. Yet still, there was difficulty in finding what I was looking for. I needed to find the artist of this song and the name of the song and download it on Napster or Ares or Kazaa or Limewire (or……). When a certain mood would strike, I would feel almost nostalgic and go on journeys to find a soundtrack list of the songs involved with this show. The hunt for the past is what I craved, and still do. One day I found the Undergrads website, put up by MTV when they used to make websites for each individual show on their rotation. It was a flash site and you could navigate around a little picture and highlight items for more information. One setting to navigate was a bar. In that bar was a jukebox. In that jukebox was the soundtrack list.

I began downloading every song I could. To be entirely honest, I think that these two Sundays Best songs were relatively easy to find, since the rest of the soundtrack was made up by obscure Canadian power pop bands. After listening to the first song I downloaded I knew I had found it; the song was called “Saccharine”.

I mark this song as my touch point for what I would later call emo music. The cul de sac that now exists with the houses of The Promise Ring and Texas is the Reason would most likely not exist is I didn’t hear “Saccharine” when i was nine years old. It fit right in with the other music I liked at the time like Jimmy Eat World who had just brought the light of Bleed American to the world. I get amped in the same way when I hear “Saccharine” as I do “Sweetness” by Jimmy Eat World; youthful, energetic, a little pain, and most of all nostalgia.

[If you would like to split hairs for a minute, I really love the poppy sound of this song and it‘s a much more of a power pop/college rock sound that I was attracted to than something classically emo, but it paved the way, so i digress.]

The hooks still get me. The riffs enliven me. At the very least, you can walk away from this song thinking it it is a catchy bastard. If anyone in the world can take a step back, look in on this song, and for even a second understand that this is the foundation for some person’s entire musical world, you have found me out. I am an open book at that point.

This is one song.

There is another Sunday’s Best song in the soundtrack for Undergrads and it also rang in my head, but to a much lesser extent. “White Picket Fences” is a much more reserved song by comparison to “Saccharine.” Quieter, yet way more dynamic. It grows so much. From what I remember from Undergrads, the audience only hears the last section, a theme that is bigger and hookier than the mood the rest of the song lays.

These two songs remained on my iPod for years.

When I was around the ages of fifteen and sixteen, I decided that i really needed to figure out all of this mumbo jumbo and really hammer down the music that has plagued me for years. What is that sound I am looking for? I want more Sunday’s Best. Can’t just search indie rock. Can’t search punk. Can’t search anything. The keyword “emo” was found and i had suddenly discovered a bible.

I spent a ton of time getting to know a ton of new bands which continue to dominate the music I like today. In this discovery of bands, I also learned much about record labels, including Polyvinyl records. Guess who put out Sunday’s Best’s music.

I decided that I would make the gamble and buy the CD “Poised to Break” by Sunday’s Best from the Polyvinyl store. I call it a gamble, because I have been severely bitten by looking in deeper to a bands output only to find out that the single I love is by far the only thing I could find likeable. This is not the case. This album is ten songs of exactly what I love.

“The Hardest Part” is a strange opener, because it’s kind of big and heavy. The chorus is yelled for Christ sake. It’s easily the angriest sounding song for an otherwise mellow band that I would call energetic at most. Partially uncharacteristic, but still a damn fine song. Track 2, “Bruise Blue” would fit right in with the soundtrack of Undergrads (and parallely my life). It’s calm, full of hooks, emotional. Great. Followed by “Bruise Blue” is “White Picket Fences” and “Saccharine”. At this point, my thought it “well I have all of the best songs out of the way.” “Indian Summer” blows that away with a track that I am so surprised isn’t heralded as an indie rock classic. This song wants be on every mixtape and MTV show until the end of time. “When is Pearl Harbour Day” is an awesome song about nostalgia, including the following line which rings in my head all of the time: “I hate nostalgia, it tries to hard to remember only the easy parts.” Track 7 and 9 are both energetic ones. Track 8, “Looks Like a Mess” is a broody, melodramatic song that I am undeniably in love with. “Winter Owned” rounds out the album and brings it back to the energy of track 1 and employs the same mixed singer chorus. The final track (and bonus track) is called “Congratulations”. Full of hooks, personal experience of naivety and confusion. The secret track is an instrumental song I am sure they used to open sets with. I am glad they included it because it’s loud, slow and cool. To me, each track is unskippable.

The whole album sounds like a soundtrack to a teen drama show that were hugely popular in the late 90’s going into the early 2000’s. Shows like Buffy, Dawson's Creek, 90210, and so many others were drenched in naive and intense emotions, stories of love and personal growth, and youth culture which made them a perfect place for this type of music. I am lucky i got to grow up in the times when I did where I can look up to those people on the screen, then be them, then look back on them with a familiar nostalgia.

Years later I would find that Polyvinyl holds a “Garage Sale” where they sell their surplus records and cd’s for next to nothing. While flipping through the garage sale, I had discovered Sunday’s Best had a second full length. I must have unconsciously ignored this release due to my fear of ruining the sanctity of my entire musical foundation. Do I risk it? What if it sucks and it’s ten boring songs? Or what if they sound like other more popular bands of now? It did come out in 2002 when this type of music was the mainstream. This is more than just a $3 gamble.

I bought it. It’s called “The Californian”. It’s better than the first LP.

Again hitting a ten song track count, “The Californian” is a succinct mood of an album. Much more consistent in tone, the songs are a lot more mellow than the ones on the first LP. This doesn’t mean that it lacks dynamics or moments of intensity. But it does mean there’s less yelling, head banging, and anthemic lyrics. What arises is my own personal therapy. Whether it be because I found a lot of this music (emo) in the autumn seasons, or if my mood just drew my to these sounds during fall, I always return to my classics around this time. Monday was a brisk day and I put in “The Californian” and it immediately hooked a line to the center of my heart. The air reminded me to being a young person and being in high school and college and time passing and old friends and how I used to feel so big, and the songs from “The Californian” were not there to yell at me; they were there to hold me like mother to her child. Therapeutic.

Quick track by track: The album launches into “The Try”. Coming off of the first album, you immediately know this album has more pieces to each song (production wise) creating a huge sound. But it’s not wasted. Every melody is catchy as all hell. “The Try” reigns that in. Track two, the title track, continues this pace. The chorus bops around a bit. “Don’t Let It Fade” is the single. Very quiet. Very somber. The bridge is my favorite part. “The Salt Mines of Santa Monica” has more energy than the last two so it sounds like a bigger “Poised to Break” song. The second singer has great contributions in the pre-chorus. He is really being used in a more calculated way. “If We Had It Made” comes in with massive church bells sound. One of my favorite songs. I love the bells. I don’t entirely know what the song is about, but the chorus moves me. Track 6 is a rocker. Even so, it’s consistent. “Without Meaning” was used in a Gilmore Girls and it’s directed melodrama fits that vibe really well. “Beethoven St.” is pure Sunday’s Best. If you wanted to write a song like them, copy this song. “Brave But Brittle” has a lot of the classic emo riffs. The way the intro falls over itself and then morphs into have arpeggios. Another favorite of mine. The last track is easily my least listened to song, but that’s because I usually reach my destination listing to this album in the care. It’s great though and I kick myself for missing it.

(I could give more in depth track-by-track if requested, but that isn’t necessarily the point of the writing.)

This band and these two lengths are an emblem of my growth. They are a tree that has stood my whole life and I am still sustained by its fruit. The sound that is contained in these albums is contains a definition of who I am and what I love. When you cannot articulate a feeling with direct words, you use art. That’s what artists do. Though I could never imagine conjuring this feeling inside of anyone else with my own art, I am glad I can direct others to this album and this feeling. It it’s hooks can get in and you let yourself get pulled, you can be me.

-luke

#r #by luke

[furederiko]

Countdown Counter: 6. Miracles and sacrifice. The spirit of Christmas brings the Kyuranger together in its 43rd episode. The very last episode for the year...

- From the get go, signs that this is going to be a special episode are already there. How? There's no opening sequence, which means longer runtime for the actual story. And instead of a Kyuranger, VA Subaru Kimura returns as the narrator recapping the previous episode. Also, the story picks up directly at the gate of Jark Matter's base, with 9 Kyurangers forcing their way inside. That exciting top-notch hand to hand action promises something bigger later on! Gotta love that brief black silhouette splash screen... - Elsewhere, Tsurugi gets the answers he is seeking as Don Armage activates the Planetium Bomb. The Jark Matter Supreme Leader is the pure definition of a complete nutjob. Trying to conquer the entire universe, just to blow and erase it up all at once? Psycho antagonist alert!!! His trump card is the assumption that his immortality will be his advantage to survive it. But isn't that illogical? I mean what happens when everything become void? He is aiming to become a God and recreate his own universe, which sounds genuinely preposterous. - Turns out, there's a bigger upper hand to that goal as he reveals his 'true' self to Tsurugi. Okay, it's being kept as a secret for now, but BLACK CROW-like wings? Are you thinking what I am thinking? This backs up the theory that the real Don Armage is none other than Kuervo. That would explain why Tsurugi becomes so dumbfounded after seeing it, right? But Kuervo should have been dead, so how or when did he obtain immortality? As I said on the recap-view for episode 42, he must have stolen it from someone who seemingly had sacrificed his. Yep, from Tsurugi himself! If this theory is correct, then it lines up to why Tsurugi keeps getting visions of his former comrade, as well as that strange chest pain to which I assume related to his immortality. But enough speculation for now, let's continue with the episode... - If you think Raptor and Commander Xiao are being sidelined, then you are a bit mistaken. They do get some time to shine! They are busy holding out the fort, preventing reinforcements from messing around with the plan. Raptor is the 'getaway guy', so she monitors the entire operation from Battle Orion Ship. That's how she's able to alert everyone that the Planetium Bomb is set to explode in just 15 minutes. There's no time to waste. - Masked-Aslan shows up as predicted. Since his sole mission is to eliminate Leo Red, he couldn't care less as Scorpius Orange leads a team to head off and plant the Black Hole Generator. It's up to the RGBs (Red-Green-Blues LOL) team to try and get Aslan back to his good side. Lupus Blue (who almost gets a second fatal hit) uses the Gemini power to increase man-power, UrsaMinor SkyBlue grows giant with the Ursa Major power, while Leo Red uses his Shining power up. But none of it is able to make a dent on Masked-Aslan. - The only way to save Aslan is through miracle now. And daang... seeing the Leo Kyu Globe rescues Lucky from the brink of death gives me the chills. It's the energy that represents the entire Leo System, meaning both Lucky and Aslan. So it makes sense that it wants what's best for the father and son. Thanks to this miracle, Aslan is freed from the Mask and regains his good conscience. A sweet reunion! Aaaawww... I'm getting misty eyed. - Of course, clueless Mecha-Madako (poor thing doesn't aware of her boss' real goal) just has to enter and ruins the moment. Aslan's mask returns to its true form, which is Don Armage himself! Oh wow, first Hoshi Minato's puppet, now this? Is he a leech or parasyte or something? Then again, that WOULD explain him leeching Tsurugi's power. - Time for a 10-members transformation scene. With a gorgeous constellation-themed roll call too! This is the part that is too bad for Raptor and Xiao, because they don't get one (the sole minor quip I had for this episode *sigh*). Still, the action sequence that follows makes up for that. For a bad guy that refuses to die, Mecha-Madako gets to go down in a special way. She gets to participate in probably the coolest and most thrilling fight choreography the show has done so far. And be the first one to be eliminated by Kyutamajin's glorious Orion Big Bang Cannon attack. Indeed, we've seen the other mechas perform the ultimate finisher before, so this is the first time Kyutamajin takes over their places. - Then this is where things take an unexpected melancholic turn. Before fleeing the scene, Don Armage damages the Black Hole Generator, forcing the device to be activated manually. That means someone has to stay behind and sacrifice themself to save the universe. Lucky offers himself to do the job, but Aslan refuses and takes that duty away from him. "Saving his son... is a father's duty.", he states. Aslan couldn't do anything for Lucky when he was a child, so this is his chance to make up for that. Aaaawwww... T_T. To which pretty much many audience begin to break down and cry... - Aslan's sacrifice saves the universe, and more importantly carves a path for his son's future. A surprisingly fitting metaphor for the month's holiday season, don't you think? It's a heartbreaking but powerful moment. A poignant victory for the team marked by a solemn goodbye. Hold on, is this the first time an actual Kyu Globe is lost in the battle too? - What comes next is an epilogue or some sort. Xiao and Hammy deliver some words of encouragement for grieving Lucky, while the others (thanks to Kotarou's idea) whip up a wonderful surprise. A CHRISTMAS PARTY!!! Doesn't quite make sense in timeline, but this episode DID air on Christmas Eve so there's your festive reason. LOL. Goodness grace, a Christmas tree decorated with all those colorful Kyu Globes looks amazing! And those hand-made (courtesy of Stinger) plushies? Santa-Caesar!! Aaaawww... XD. Santa-Xiao then shows up with a special little present, the Red-Green colored Christmas Kyu Globe. Don't ask how he's able to even have one, or how Tsurugi ends up dressed as a fowl (the only one who is out of place! Holy moly... LOL). All that matters is that it's a celebration, and it warrants the appropriate holiday cheer! NOTE: ...plus a special one-time only Xmas ending sequence! Everyone is in their Xmas costumes, with Caesar tagging along with his cute growls. "Uchu Sentai Kyuranger" truly knows how to throw a pleasant surprise. Am I right? What a fantastic way to end the year... :D

Overall: Goodness grace! The show delivered its best offering on its final episode of 2017. Seriously! I don't know if I'm being swayed by the holiday festive and all, but for me personally this was definitely the best episode so far. An exhilirating wrap up episode for 2017 that simply hit all the right spots. It had exciting action sequences that were on par with "Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger"'s memorable Christmas episode. Great emotional moments that pulled off the "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" finale (as well as "Star Wars: Return of the Jedi" explosive climax), with both Lucky and Aslan's actors helping sell a truly poignant fleeting reunion between father and son. Unsurprisingly a general theme in Hollywood this year, in case you're wondering. This episode made me laugh, cry, and put me on the edge on my seat. A thrilling roller-coaster ride. It's also a tight and complete episode per se, in a big screen production style. A strong kick-ass opening, great moments every now and then both big and personal, and delightful heartfelt closing. An all around satisfying episode, and undoubtedly a high point for the series that will be hard to beat. Calling this as a series finale would be fitting (previous seasons would have treated it as such), but we know that it's not. There are still a few episodes left for us to explore. Will they deliver the same height? Here's hoping... Next week (year LOL): Power ups abound... Mr. Pega returns... The true face of Don Armage! This does NOT really feel like our annual New Year's Clip Show, eh? PS: Once again, this was the final episode of the year. The show will be having its customary New Year break on Sunday, December 31st. Thus episode 44 will air on January 7th. That's next year, of course! LOL.

Episode 43 Score: 9,3 out of 10

Visit THIS LINK to view a continuously updated listing of the Kyutama / Kyu Globes. Last Updated: December 29th, 2017 - Version 3.10. (WARNING: It might contain spoilers for future episodes)

All images are screencaptured from the series, provided by the FanSubber Over-Time. "Uchu Sentai Kyuranger" is produced by TOEI, and airs every Sunday on TV-Asahi. Credits and copyrights belong to their respective owners.

#tokusatsu #SuperSentai #kyuranger #uchu sentai kyuranger #uchuu sentai kyuranger #review #melancholymoments #awesome

[sleepykittypaws]

Top 25 Stealth Christmas Movies

A “stealth” Christmas movie is one that takes place at the holiday season, or contains key holiday scenes, but isn't specifically thought of as a Christmas film. There are literally hundreds of movies that fit this description (see our 2018 Stealth Christmas Movie Showdown and a more extensive Stealth Christmas Movie compliation for more), but here are my personal favorites, ranked by both by enjoyment and how worthy of holiday-time viewing I feel they actually are. And, as with all of my holiday lists, re-watchability is also a big factor in rank … 

Updated: December 1, 2023

Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001) - One of my all-time favorite films any time of year, this classic rom-com begins, and ends, at the holidays.

Die Hard (1988) - John McClain spends a grim Christmas Eve at Nakatomi Plaza. Plus, this one won our “stealth” Christmas movie showdown back in 2018. Yippie-ki-yay! 

Holidate (2020) - R-rated rom-com big on laughs, but still full of heart. A romp through all the holidays, bookended by a pair of Christmas celebrations. Lighthearted, and lots of fun.

Sleepless in Seattle (1993) - This star-crossed love story starts on Christmas Eve, when Meg Ryan hears Tom Hanks on a call-in radio show during a holiday drive home.

Rise of the Guardians (2012) - Spanning a variety of holidays, Rise features a wintery Jack Frost and an all-business Santa Claus, making it not specifically Christmas, but certainly holiday appropriate viewing.

Love, Simon (2018) - The plot pivotal social media post in this super sweet teen rom-com, which precipitates Simon’s coming out to his family, occurs over Christmas break.

Better Off Dead… (1985) - The French foreign exchange student grows close to Lane, and finally reveals she speaks English (quelle surprise!), over the holidays, in this silly ski comedy that, somewhat surprisingly, still really holds up. And who could forget the holiday aardvark costume Lane’s dad dons?

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) - Before RDJ and Shane Black teamed up for the holiday-set Iron Man 3, they did a bit of a dry run with this much darker, and far more R-rated, noir comedy-thriller. Definitely not what I was expecting from a Shane Black joint—in the best possible way.

Love at First Sight (2023) - While the holiday content here is mostly decor and the name-checked December 20-21 travel dates, this super-charming, British rom-com from Netflix is worth a watch any time of year.

Millions (2004) - Set between Christmas and New Year’s, this under-seen gem about a fictional currency switchover is a delight anytime, but particularly at the holidays.

Gremlins (1984) - Steven Spielberg comedy-horror classic takes place fully at the holidays and is an (almost) all-ages delight. Just don’t feed it after midnight.

While You Were Sleeping (1995) - Sandra Bullock spends the holidays with her comatose fake fiancé’s family, while (oops) falling in love with his brother.

The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996) - The second-best action movie set at Christmas, Geena Davis is a suburban mom who learns she used to be a secret agent thanks to Samuel L. Jackson.

Bros (2022) - Billy Eichner’s very fun R-rated rom-com not only co-stars Hallmark holiday hunk Luke Macfarlane, it has a running gag about “Hallheart Christmas movies” that existed, according to Eichner, long before Macfarlane was attached to the project.

Iron Man 3 (2013) - Shane Black really loves making stealth Christmas flicks and this superhero movie where Downey eschews the suit for most of the film is one of his best. (He also wrote, but did not direct, The Long Kiss Goodnight.)

Funny Farm (1988) - This Chevy Chase comedy about an idyllic small town that turns out not to be, ends with the truculent townsfolk doing their best Norman Rockwell holiday impressions for cold, hard cash.

I Give it A Year (2013) - This after-I-do rom-com’s pivotal turn takes place at a Christmas party. While it’s mostly not holiday-set, so somewhat low on Christmas cheer, it is a bit of an under-seen gem.

Clueless (1995) - Did you forget the whole middle of the movie is Christmas-set, including the “tragic Val party” that’s decorated to the hilt? Me too, but it’s a comedy classic worth watching anytime.

Mean Girls (2004) - This high school comedy’s unforgettable holiday talent show features an iconic, and plot pivotal, performance of “Jingle Bell Rock.”

Wonder (2017) - Only a bit of this Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson-led family film is set at Christmas, but the heart-tugging story of Auggie definitely resonates for the season.

Baby Mama (2008) - Most don’t remember, but this Amy Poehler-Tina Fey comedy begins, and ends, at the holidays. There’s even a Christmas song!

The King’s Speech (2010) - The impetus for the King seeking help with his stammer is his desire to address his subjects at Christmas. Not especially festive, but a great movie.

RED (2010) - Bruce Willis’ retired hitman is happily decorating for Christmas before he’s pulled back into the assassin life in this super-fun, action-comedy that also stars Helen Mirren.

Fighting with My Family (2019) - This based-on-a-true-story tale hinges on a holiday trip home for its wanna-be WWE star, and is much better than any movie about professional wrestling, produced by The Rock no less, has a right to be.

Baggage Claim (2013) - Slight but charming rom-com where flight attendant Paula Patton flies all over the world to find “Mr. Right” before her sister’s New Year's Eve wedding, only to discover he might have been next door all along.