#anyway thats javert

[secretmellowblog]

In the book Javert’s fursona is canonically a wolfdog, and I honestly think you can see that in the stage musical too. It’s just that every Javert actor is a different breed of dog. Like Phillip Quast is clearly some big posh German Shephard, Earl Carpenter is one of those spindly greyhounds, and Terrance Mann is a feral chihuahua

#les mis #javert #terrance mann has grown on me lately #because I was shared a bootleg recording of Colm/Terrance's original broadway performance together #also honestly. I really like Colm more on bootlegs of recordings than in the TAC #he always sounds less polished/saintly #at least thats what im feeling currently #anyway yeah Javert sucks bUT i still want to write a redemption arc for him where he quits his job and becomes a gardener #while begrudgingly learning about radical politics #teachin an old dog new tricks

[svankmajerbaby]

ok i just watched the mina le video on movie musicals, and im still thinking about how movie musicals are marketed but most importantly to me, how theyre made

so bc musicals are "cringe", three movie musicals have been hiding the fact theyre not musicals in their trailers, and focused on selling, what else, nostalgia and the association with a previous intellectual property. in the actual context, its not a surprise, though it does mean theres a void of actual interesting movie musical projects. i personally think that the fact that we havent had a movie musical of the best original one made in years, hadestown, is a real shame... but considering that, even though its not a particularly hard musical to convert to screen, it would be extremely easy to fuck up through movie star casting and a bad choice of director who doesnt know their way around a musical number... still, i would like to see someone try.

but anyways.

what i personally have an issue with is the decision between movie actors who cant sing and stage actors who cant act in the way movie directors supposedly want. the choice to go with big movie actors the audiences are familiar with, and that also act like the audiences expect actors to act, is understandable. producers suppose actors can do anything if they try hard enough and they can carry a tune and do some dancing with the proper coaches and a month or two of rehearsals. but i personally am of the mind that a theater actor, a stage actor, is a much more valuable performer in a movie musical because they already know how to inhabit a musical character, how to move and interpret the overwhelming emotions a musical character needs to embody. besides, at least to me, the beauty of a musical is to see an amazing musical performance, that matches accordingly with a compelling story and characters. i wouldnt want to watch a billy elliot movie musical if it didnt have great dancing, for example. i wouldnt want to watch a wicked movie if the actors couldnt perform the songs perfectly in character. musicals are at their best, of course, when the music drives the story forward, and i feel like thats a skill that most directors dont have. the reason les mis didnt fully work for me is less because of the "realistic, flawed singing" (which did bother me at times, especially with the more action involved characters like valjean and javert) and because the cast was so badly directed and unbalanced. thats why something like west side story 2021 is so important to me: a movie with 99% musical theater actors, which are all well directed by a movie director who knows how to move the camera around the performers to instill a sense of dynamism and excitement. i maintain that choreographers in general should try directing movies. the in the heights movie, even if i didnt personally care for the music, was excellently directed because it was obvious the director had a sense of the rhythm the movie needed, and that the best way to convey that was through the camera. this is why i thought guy ritchie, an action director, would have been great for the aladdin live action remake –and then i was proven wrong. i keep blaming disney, though: watch the man from uncle and tell me ritchie wouldnt have been a pretty good movie musical director in other universe.

apart from the mean girls musical remake, which didnt even have that good a score in the first place, i do have faith in the future of movie musicals. if we need to go to already preexisting intellectual properties, and have five remakes to be able to have one original movie musical (even if that movie musical is something like la la land), it would have been worth it. i still dont understand why the entire cast of the west side story remake arent established cinema stars, apart from rachel zegler and ariana debose. or why there arent more opportunities for stage actors like amber gray and mike faist to make the jump to screen, or why tried and tested screen actors like amy adams and evan rachel wood who have proven that, given a score that allows for their specific voice types to shine, they can be great at performing movie musical roles. there isnt a bigger focus on the creativity i havent watched the color purple movie musical yet, but the fact that the director has worked with beyonce for her music videos immediately gives me hope that this is someone with the creativity and talent to know how to move the camera with the performers and the music. the wicked movie has the in the heights director, so even if the cast is half movie actors (i have little faith in jeff goldblum and michelle yeohs singing abilities tbh), i trust that at least it will be an entertaining watch. similarly, i try to have faith that, if the hercules live action remake gets out of preproduction, theyll have a strong set of muses actresses coming from stage musicals to carry the best songs, and that guy ritchie will be able to be more creative and take bigger risks –that is, if the evil mouse allows him to.

wonka was a decent, middle of the road movie that just works. to me, it didnt become the great musical it could have been because it didnt fully get the need for a stronger underlying darkness that makes the spirit of roald dahl, and because it kept tying itself with the mediocre 1971 movie. but i think it was a step in the right direction, with the right director and the right music, even if it relied too much on stunt casting.

#i like mina le though usually shes more of an opinion channel than actual hard information i think. but this one was interesting #les miserables 2012 #west side story 2021 #wonka 2023 #la la land 2016 #the color purple 2023 #in the heights 2021 #wicked 2024

[carphoegras]

I don’t ship most of these myself , but your rant/ramble posts on Les Mis ships are funny so I genuinely wanted your opinion on these 👁

1. Enjoltaire

2. Valvert

3. Enjonine

4. Marisette (or whatever Marius x Cosette was called)

5. Javonine (Javert and…Eponine 😭)

6. Marionine (A name a just guessed for Marius x Eponine because I wasn’t bothered to look it up)

7. and uhhh.. Granjonine (I think that was the name)

well hello darling! i live to entertain lol lets get into it i might have to put this under a cut because i think its obvious i have a rambling issue

Enjoltaire : a classic for good reason. they seemed really base level to me at first because i watched the movie first, but once i read the brick and really saw their dynamic i fell for them HARD. for me the beauty of this pairing is really rooted in the substance of their individual characters as opposed to like a romantic relationship. idk its so difficult for me to verbalize why i love them so much i think i just love the idea of finding common ground despite difficulties. enjolras and grantaire mirror each other in such a beautiful way that i feel the musical/movie couldn't really capture without demoting it to a puppy love grantaire/mean enjolras dynamic idk i have such an issue with some portrayals of them because i feel like they create a victim/abuser situation where there wasn't one but that's like a whole post within itself anyway i feel like im getting incoherent i love exr with every fiber of my fucking being just read the brick if you don't get it ok the movie and musical just dont do it justice and for the love of god avoid the fics written in 2012/2013 after the movie hype its all wRONGGGG (i love you george blagden but you created a twink grantaire movement) (they pull each others pigtails okay its a mutual obsession) (enjolras why don't you just ignore him baby? glutton for punishment my dear we all know if you hated him you wouldn't let him hang around) (anyway) i should make a seperate post about my exr feelings bc i could talk ab them for hours

2. Valvert: okay this is where i feel like i can be unpopular with the fandom. i fucking hate this ship. like physically, spiritually, all that. its one of those that i kinda lose respect for the person bc its literally a cop/prisoner thing. its not enemies to lovers. its not a hate love thing. javert's a fucking cop. valjean is his victim. the whole idea of people romanticizing this makes me feel so insanely icky and i think the point of the story has just gone RIGHT over some folks' heads please take a step back and think about it. neolib behavior sorry not sorry

3. Enjonine: enjolras is gay. just like, straight up in the brick enjolras is a gay man. this ship is spawned from straight girls who saw aaron tveit and use eponine as their not like other girls posterchild. just a whole bunch of hetero nonsense. same behavior as the joseph quinn enj x reader bs. honey thats a homosexual man and can we please stop reducing eponine to needing a boyfriend she needs a stable home and a goddamn therapist fucking hell

4. Marisette: okay. i LOVE THEM. i'm a cosette stan myself, and i'm a huge fan of a gooey love at first sight situation. they contrast my love for exr in the sense that they're a very easy love. their parts in the book literally make me SWOOOOOON i can put aside my beef with marius as a combeferre kin to appreciate how sweet they are

5. Javonine??: im sorry wh aht. did the snape x hermione shippers leak into the lm fandom or am i being fucking punked im not discussing this its obvious why this is wrong please tell me its obvious y'all are NASTY

6. Marionine: eh. eh. i mean, like i said with enjonine eponine's problems are not gonna be solved with a dude. i'm really not opposed to them, persay, its just that eponine's love for marius is so incredibly dependent and rooted more in her personal trauma than actual love, so i feel a little weird with them sometimes. sometimes it just gives anti cosette vibes (cough cough bc of the bullshit love triangle angle that the musical markets cough cough) so i tread very carefully with them

7. Granjonine: again what in the damn hell. i'm not dignifying this shit they could be besties but for the love of god george blagden did a number on the straight girls. STOP PROJECTING ONTO EPONINE IM GONNA LOSE MY FUCKING MIND LEAVE HER ALONE

thanks for the ask lovely, i do love rambling even though these ships are baffling lmaoooo

#les miserables #les mis

[obstinaterixatrix]

But yeah, with like significant changes to shows I think it needs to make a significant statement. Like one super obvious one is the production of carmen that ends with her living instead of dying which is really interesting because it’s a dramatic reversal of a well-established tragedy with a metanarrative that’s kind of. well I’m not super familiar with it myself but with the original trajectory of ‘a woman who seduces men and ends up getting murdered’ carries a lot of implications yknow. and having carmen not only survive but also kill her would-be murderer makes a statement that directly confronts the original narrative. oh I found an article about it, here’s what I’m talking about. but anyway, significant change. and then there’s the production of oklahoma that swaps some genders of characters so the main romances are same gender romances, which is pretty interesting because the text doesn’t actually really change but the context and the audience’s engagement does. actually I’m pretty sure this was the same article I read on it when it was playing lol. and then there’s the production of les mis we were all just talking about where the setting is essentially localized for american audiences which contextualizes the role of these characters. american cop javert becomes a lot more concrete as A Guy That Exists when compared to seeing a character in fashion from around the french revolution.

alright. all that said. WHY DOES EVERYONE LOVE MESSING WITH THE NARRATOR OF INTO THE WOODS SO MUCH. NONE OF YOU HAVE MADE ANY MEANINGFUL STATEMENT OR CONFRONTATION OF THE NARRATIVE BY CHANGING THE ROLE OF THE NARRATOR. like the production that has each of the characters speak the narrator’s lines? it’s an interesting mechanic, it’s great for a narrative of character’s telling their own story… BUT THAT’S WHAT THE SECOND ACT IS ABOUT??? YOU HAVE NOW GUTTED THE METATEXT. there’s no concrete textual DIAGETIC shift from a story dictated by the narrator to a story dictated by the characters. the production that has the narrator being a child telling the story to himself? well as an aside I hated the director’s take on jack and red, but anyway, into the woods can be interpreted as a coming of age story; the narrative world of fairy tales is structured and safe, the post-narrative world is ambiguous and difficult and full of grief but in spite of all that it can be navigated with guidance and the willingness to engage. having a child as a narrator locks it into the world of a child (unless, I guess, you start with a child narrator and end with an adult narrator to follow through with themes of maturity) (BUT THATS NKT WHAT THEY DID). and from what I remember the one with the kid narrator (2014?) has the kid show up with his dad at the end, so again, it’s like… STATUS QUO. Which directly contradicts the original narrative of into the woods without meaningful engagement with its themes. it’s a change without any substance. And like, this isn’t about the junior one act version, that’s fine, it makes sense and honestly I think it’s very metanarratively fitting and pretty funny in a dramatic irony sort of way, it’s just… people love messing with the narrator so much and they’re so bad at it!!! THAT’S THE KEYSTONE OF THE MUSICAL!! THE NARRATOR DIES!!! THE CHARACTERS ARE FORCED TO NAVIGATE A POST-NARRATIVE WORLD!!! I’M SHAKING THESE DIRECTORS BY THE SHOULDERS!!! I WANT A 3 PAGE ESSAY THAT PROVIDES THEMATIC JUSTIFICATION FOR THE CHANGES YOU ARE MAKING!!!!

#talking abt musicals

[nopeemi]

hi hello so basically i've been following you for a while, mainly because of your dsmp fanart (i love your art style so much btw like its so so cool) but also you're clearly into les mis, and i happen to be getting to go see that very soon & haven't listened to it yet (did study the book so i know the basic story though), so i was wondering if you had any like. i dont know animatic recommendations, tips, recs of any kind? this is /notforced at all its totally fine if you dont have an answer but i just thought i'd ask :) thank you !!

hi there!! ohoho cool ask thank you, yes im very much into les mis. sadly animatics are not too popular medium in the fandom me think probs bc we have footage from the movie(2012) and also the anime and a bunch of recordings so there wasnt a big need? (me think)

anyways i have some cool animatics :)

also uh if you also decide to watch the 2012 movie i can recommend for plus watch this video essay i like very much and did not watch it 20+ times

// also like sidenote the fandom is very much exclusive to the Les Amis de l'ABC and thats on the gay found family trope (tho there are still the dilf respecters so good amount of valjean/javert content floats on the web, god bless the dilf enjoyers)

#ask #good ask #enjoyed rambling thank you #les miserables #les mis

[crabcrabcrabmeat]

ten films i love, tagged by @javert

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack (1988) Utterly obvious to die girlies auf tumblr but don’t worry, it’s the only franchise gatekeepy one. God tier animation, OST that gives me heart palpitations, plot symbolically rich in a way that draws me back. Absurdly ambitious and largely pulls it off. Insane. Phantom of the Paradise (1974) I’m a sucker for leitmotifs being re-contextualized and this movie is exactly that. I think a lotta people are put off by musicals because they expect Glee shit, so a horror rock opera that plays w genres is a style that slaps. In fact, it’s style over substance to the point that while the character Beef was made with homophobic intent(?), he makes for killer camp. So influential it buried its own grave deeper, but when my drag career continues proper I WILL have it step out of RHPS’s shadow. Magnetic Rose (1995) This one’s arguably cheating, it’s a short film within a theatrical omnibus and the only one of the trio I rewatch, lol. Better experienced than described, but iirc it’s the first screenplay credit of Satoshi Kon and his style benefits the conceit greatly. The space physics are top tier too. Bound (1996) Genre fiction that fucks. Akira (1988) After watching this for the first time, I wore a rip of it on a USB necklace for like a good month, lol. If you’ve seen so many homages and #aesthetic gifs that its memetically weakened, the manga will be a better vehicle for experiencing the actual plot and themes. (Kaneda isn’t a cool protag! He’s not even in it for a full volume!) But I fortunately got to go into it w next to no preconceptions. Tampopo (1985) One of those art-house pics that’s fun to general audiences. I wouldn’t watch it with young kids or new friends tho given the prawn scene, lmao. The Terminal (2004) Not a masterpiece by anyone’s standards, but it was my fav for years as a child and I’ve been told “thats so you” or “that explains so much” lmao. I still do love seeing how peoples values and coping mechanisms materially shape their world, so, fair! As an adult, i think Tucci’s character holds up the best, his tone is comedically sound while being realistically mundane for an american authoritarian, lol. Funeral Parade of Roses (1969) A breath of fresh air in style and substance. It’s like a vaccine against MCU sludge. God I need to watch more new wave. The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) Again, former obsessions here, not necessarily top quality. The first vignette is the only one that sticks with me, but boy does it! Gold standard for any fanfiction or diagetic media criticism. Mikey and Nicky (1976) Ough. Love me a good tragedy. This one manages to hit so hard it even overcomes Peter Falk being styled (‘styled’) like Columbo—italian accent and all— while playing a jewish gangster lol.) You know that post about how the more serious and well made a story is, the more likely its fandom makes unhinged memes? That’s me every time I make a “full of milk” joke abt this movie or realize it’s fundamentally changed my experience of taking antacids.

Anyways please note that i’ve structured this list so that the first and last entries form a niche parallel. That is to say, a personal fav scene in both Mikey & Nicky and CCA is where the lead guys fistfight and tumble onto the ground in a blur of violence-as-latent-homoeroticism. (George lucas voice): it’s like poetry, it rhymes.

I'm too shy to tag others but mutuals I Am Pressuring U lovingly. U don’t have to write as much as i did tho lol.

#abs blabs #made this more reviewy in the name of being interesting #i think the better question is 'worst movies you've seen' but ig that could have less variety person to person #also i specify lead guys because quess IS a cca protag

[jules-of-the-sea]

I would love to see a Blorbo ranking for your blorbos from Les Mis, if you are willing to share :)

so i made a character tierlist, i dont actually hate thenardier but its funny to hate him. for side characters: m mabeuf would be guy!!!, fauchlevent would be eh (although the graveyard scene was funny), and marius's relations would all be in eh/mildly annoying because i have no strong feelings about them.

you did say blorbo ranking though and i have no idea what exactly that entails so im just going to do everything i can think of. so heres a list of everyone on the tierlist and a few thoughts on each of them

enjolras 12/10 love of my life, top kin, red <3, hes literally just a guy god i wish i was him its all i ever want hes so !!!!!

grantaire 10/10 love him, probably more like me than enj lmao, jaded, alcoholic, cynic, ao3 always makes him an artist but i dont remember them saying that in the book??? maybe i missed it though, it did say that he knows all the best spots in paris though so thats pretty cool

feuilly 10/10 self taught king, he makes fans, he wants to deliver the world and i support him. we all need a feuilly in our lives

combeferre 10/10 (these ratings are a little redundant at this point) fan interpretation always makes him a bookworm nerdy guy (which i have also done) which i understand bc in the book hugo talks abt how he wants to learn everything and he loves progress and education, but honestly i feel like hes a lot warmer and more social than people characterize him. like they talk about how compassionate he is and how he focuses on the actual people in the revolution more than the movement as a whole

gavroche literally just a little guy, hes got his two children in his wooden elephant what more could a street urchin want

courfeyrac party guy, literally tholomyes but if he wasnt a dick, love him for it. actually thinking abt it, tholomyes was a poet right?? and hugo compares him w courf so,,, poet courf???

bossuet unlucky, actually named lesgle, bald, in a poly relationship w joly and musichetta

eponine bro she was not that close with marius in the book, and i dont think she even knew the amis. its fun to pretend she did though. also the musical makes marius actually care that she dies which is sweet i guess. also i love every queer eponine interpretation.

jehan jean provaire, medieval enthusiast, just a little guy i guess. trans/nb jehan is one of my favorite things actually

joly happy guy, apparently nicknamed jolly because of that, doctor(?), likes self diagnosing, must suck being a germaphobe in 1832

bahorel tbh i forgot like everything the book said abt him. im pretty sure he was the guy who saved marius from being kicked out of law school though?? and also visibly expresses disgust when he passes by law school??? king.

javert single-minded policeman, love the themes and internal struggle, javerts soliloquy and stars are some of my favorite songs in the musical

jean valjean all around a good guy, white bread personality but like,, nice. so i guess hes more like the pre-made pound cake you can get at the store. certified girlboss tho

cosette pretty? i like the cottagecore interpretations but also shes literally just a lonely child from 1832 so i guess its just by default. she seems like the type of girl who would be a pleasure to have in class

fantine sad lady, cosettes mom, i wish she had just gotten cosette back from the thenardiers when she had her job but oh well.

marius annoying little bitch boy mf i swear to god he deserves very little of what he gets. also isnt he like 10 years older than both cosette and eponine??? 1832 moment i guess. anyways hes not that bad but its funny to hate on him.

madame thenardier me when child abuse, kinda a girlboss in the musical but in the book shes just kinda there

monsieur thenardier little rat bitch man, fuck that guy, but also hes literally a cartoon villain and its funny

also the tierlist is made in mspaint, i would have found pictures for everyone but a lot of them arent in the 2012 movie long enough for anyone (me) to know whos who so. crunchy mspaint version

#les miserables #les amis de l'abc #the brick #victor hugo #blorbos #all of them #all the blorbos

[davidtennantpussytulpa]

i was tagged by @eraserheadbabygirl tyyyyyyyy aoife <33333333

favourite time of the year: fall!!! since ive always lived in the desert theres pretty much two weeks during the fall that are actually pleasant weather to be outside in and thats it

comfort foods: dark chocolate or lemon desserts!! i love baking and like to try making a lot of different things but chocolate and citrus are always my faves. i also love sweet potatoes and homemade chicken soup :)

do you collect something: LOTS OF THINGS LOL…. i like to get fun calendars so i keep my past ones, my eyes are sensitive so i always wear sunglasses and ive been expanding my collection, i like to collect pins and buttons, i collect pinapple and lemon print things, since i started wearing earrings regularly again ive really gotten a good collection of fun ones, and most importantly i have a HUGEEEE stuffed animal collection. at my old house my parents had a bunk bed in my room for no reason so i stored them all up there and they were overflowing. now idk where im going to put them when i move out but i just cant bring myself to get rid of any theyre all my babies <3333

favorite drink: ROOT BEER!!!!!!!!!!!! ROOT BEER HATERS DNI!!!!!!!

current favourite songs: walking on broken glass by annie lennox, running up that hill by kate bush, thank you for by hall and oates, ring telephone ring by the ink spots, and of course you knew these were coming but confrontation, master of the house, and javerts suicide from les mis

favourite song: i think of all time it has to be jesus he knows me by genesis. theyre one of my favorite (if not all time favorite) artists of all time and that song is just…. MWAH mwah so good. its so catchy the video is colorful and its such a fun and interesting parody of televangelism anyways phil collins if u out there call me 🤙

hiiiiii i wanna hear from @man-facing-southeast @davidfarrars @idnobf @batemangf @chimpanzeedotcom @bennynewvegas @sluttynurse and anyone else who wants to :))

#also lol i guess my bug collection that i started in my lab would count too :)) #realllyy wanna hear your fave songs esp considering some of the ones here were recommended by you guys lol #the rest its bc i love u very much :))

[fulane-de-tal]

[ID: a digital drawing of Javert from Les Miserables. He is looking intently into the flame of a lit candle, his left hand at his chin. He has a tormented expression. His left hand is holding a burnt match that is emitting smoke. Handwritten text in the bottom left reads, “it mentions light for a reason.” end ID.]

#my art described #je dessine #javert #finally i post and ID something my g-d it's been a while #did yall miss me /j #no but actually its nice to finally have the energy and time to draw for a day and its EXTRA nice to have the energy to ID properly hehe #anyway here just take this lil dude #les miserables #should i tag this as chanukkah #or januka if you will #janice lmao #no but this was directly inspired by actual chanukkah things such as. the maccabees #and thinking about all the weird little guilt javert must have post-seine #that one venn diagram thats jewish people irish people italians a #and then it goes potatoes catholicism new york babey #and then in the middle it just says GUILT #my apologies its not new york babey #its new fucking york babey !!! #anyway thats javert #also my fucking lighter ran out yesterday and i was like damn whatever will i do. #but guess what bitches i tried it today and it still works HAH #the miracle of chanukkah is alive and well or im just lucky OR i misunderstand how lighters work. either one

[jaysworlds]

haha. anyway

#vent incoming in the tags #u know. the part where youre singing valjean's soliloquy/javerts suicide #where the lyrics are the same and you've gotta decide which way youre going #thats me irl #either i am going to do something drastic or i am going to jump off a bridge #except honestly i dont have the guts to do either so im just like. on tumblr.com #thats a lie im on tumblr mobile actually #anyway something happened tonight which was. honestly sort of minor but unfortunately it hit me #right in the insecurities #and now i have been spiralling for about three hours and im just not doing great!!!!! #i want to die!!!! or bleach my hair!!! or both!!!! #uhhhh #suicidal ideation #for peoples blacklist #if youve for some reason read this far and ur wondering if im okay #im not #thanks for asking #but i will probably get over it

[secretmellowblog]

So anOTHER thing about Javert: I remember once seeing an odd tumblr post (months ago?) that said something like “I can’t believe you guys hate Javert when if Javert existed now, you would say he was the best kind of cop. He’s a POC and comes from a marginalized background and has to struggle hard against bigotry. He’s also perfectly honest and incorruptible— and so nonviolent that he never physically attacks anyone or even pulls out a gun. He’s the perfect police officer”

And while that post was wrong...it was also right!!!!!

The point of Javert is not “the cop you already think is bad, is bad.”

The point of Javert is “the kind of cop you think is GOOD, the PERFECT cop, the hero of a detective novel, the cop you’re told is an example of how the system can sometimes work—- is bad.”

Javert is essentially a Perfect Cop Role Model(tm) character like Captain Holt from Brooklyn 99, but as a villain. 

The message of Javert is that “An honest non-brutal incorruptible cop who adheres perfectly to the rules, from a marginalized background who knows what it’s like to be on the receiving end of police violence and is policing people from the same background as himself...................................would still suck!!!!!!!!!!! acab”

I know I’ve talked about this before, but I do want to go into a little more detail on the way Javert coming from a marginalized background/Javert not being physically violent* is a part of this under the cuT:

I’ve seen people say that the “only” way to modernize Javert is by making him rich and white, but I disagree...or at least, why my opinion is that it really depends on how it’s written? Idk it’s complicated!  I just think that even putting aside the fact that an argument can be made that Javert is ambiguously implied to be Romani*** in the Brick, Javert only “needs” to be white if you think that only white cops can be bad. And I feel like that’s a relevant topic lately-- the idea that people often undercut the “all cops are bastards” message by amending it to “all cops are bastards uNLESS they’re ‘diverse’ cops, unless they’re marginalized in some way.” And I think Javert could be an interesting criticism of that idea-- he spent most of his early life as a victim of police violence, and then became a ‘perfect’ cop. But that didn’t make the police force better or more progressive, it just meant that Javert ended up hurting people who came from the same background as him. Being marginalized yourself doesn’t mean you can’t hurt other people like you.

(Edit: although I am not Romani and shouldn’t be treated as an authority on this. A lot of the coding on Javert is both very ambiguous and if it is intentional it’s just racist, because Hugo himself was racist didn’t really think through the implication of the coding he was using.)

I also wish Les Mis adaptations in general were more thoughtful about how they used brutality. Les Mis adaptations often make Javert far more physically violent** than he was in the Brick, but don’t put thought into WHY they’re adding that violence.

The point of Brick!Javert is that he is an unusually good/perfect cop. Part of Javert’s perfection that is that he isn’t really physically violent** (there’s an important caveat to that though, I’ll talk about it in a second.) Le Cabuc is perfectly willing to whip out a gun and shoot random unarmed people, but Javert doesn’t do that, because he’s unusually perfect. Javert isn’t even physically violent to defend himself-- Thenardier points a gun at his head, and Javert calmly talks him down. The students catch Javert at the barricade, and Javert (despite having a musket) peacefully surrenders.

But the point isn’t that “Javert is therefore a perfect person you should admire.” The point is that even though Javert is the rare police officer who isn’t excessively brutal, he is still a violent person-- because the laws he’s enforcing are inherently violent. Separating families is violence, bigotry is violence, imprisoning people is violence. The absolute worst example of this is the way he kills Fantine. Javert didn’t need a gun to kill Fantine; the violence of bigotry and the law was enough.

My problem with adaptations of Les Mis is that they make Javert more brutal/violent in order to portray him as an unusually bad and violent cop, unlike the other Peaceful Good Cops. If only Javert enforced the laws more peacefully, he would be good, the way most police officers are! (Les Mis 1998, BBC Les Mis). Other adaptaions add Javert whipping out a gun and threatening to murder unarmed people without seeming to understand that they’re changing his characterization (Les Mis 2012/some performances of the stage musical.)

So instead of Javert’s problem being that “Javert enforces laws that are inherently violent,’ his problem in adaptations is that “Javert is too violent and emotional and over-obsessive while enforcing laws that are ultimately Good.”

Idk like........everything about Javert is Complicated and a mess and open to a bunch of interpretations, and I don’t know how to end this Post(tm). But just feel like there’s so much nuance to Javert’s character that gets overlooked by adaptations in favor of portraying his pursuit of Valjean as Personal Vendetta, which is sad because he could be so relevant and compelling if written well

#anyway idk if this is coherent bc im very tired #my complicated emotional relationship with javert #inspector javert #javert isn't even like......my favorite character in les mis........ #i just have a lot of thoughts about him #because he gets interpreted so Strangely by so many adaptations??? #anyway #I think Dallas Les Mis is one of the few adaptations thats like #really thoughtful about how they handle race/brutality #and is having a Conversation with the original story #but even then I still think Javert's moral crisis kinda doesn't work in dallas les mis #the way it did in the brick #because such a big part of his crisis to me #is that he wasn't anyone high-ranking or important #and making javert so much more powerful makes his crisis harder for me to believe #but that's another post! #also I'm not attacking people for liking B99 or whatever bc I love a lot of fun cartoony cops too #(which I recently did a post on) #anyway!

[charlies-current-obsession]

I am a simple man, I see any Javert and I cry

#this is about that movie I watched with David Oyelowo in #it #and I haven’t even seen that adaptation of Les Mis!! #I am just so in love with him!! #stupid Charles #anyways #javert #les mis #les miserables #hahah it was more like David OyelOwO #OwO #thats probably an old joke huh

[pomegranatebitch]

The Witcher Les Mis!AU where Ciri is Cosette and Geralt is Jean Valjean.

That’s it. That’s all I’ve got. But now I’m thinking about it so you’ve got to think about it to

#the angst potential is astronomical #but who are the other characters #is javert eredin? #who is jaskier? #thats up to your imagination #anyway thanks for coming to my 6 second ted talk #the witcher #witcher #pb rambles

[sneez]

you come from god

#les mis #jean valjean #javert #uhhhhhh #les miserables #think thats all the tags #suicide mention #theres the last one #sorry this ones so messy chaps this is what my sketches usually look like and then i clean them up afterwards #but i.....sort of like this one as is.....feels Gritty #artwork #anyway this is the first art ive done for myself & not for college or commissions in about a week! & wow what a surprise #i drew the old french men #of course i did. i love them so much

[prisoner11111]

scene from @autumngracy ’s wonderful fic “a reflection of starlight”

#nb i have no fucking idea what i'm doing with the uniforms so uh. forgive me if thats off #i m actually nervous about posting this. anyway i'm sorry for thr shit quality photos this is the struggle with traditional art #valvert #jean valjean #javert #a reflection of starlight #scribbles #also too fuckin lazy to do backgrounds this was a pretty quick drawing anyway #t

[lawisnotmocked]

Hello sir. You will probably either find this deeply offensive or hilarious but lately I have an obsession with the character of Javert as I recently watched the 2012 Les Mis because “oh the memes about it back in the day were classic.” Yes I am serious sometimes I watch movies just because I liked a YTP of it. Then I find out that in addition to being perfect meme fodder, Javert has a weird one-sided (??) pseudo enemies to loves dynamic with the loaf of bread guy (I did not know his name until like three days ago to me he was always just the guy who sang “I stole a loaf of bread.”)These types of characters who give vibes like they’re lgbt, have dog or cat-like qualities, and are overly dramatic typically become my Blorbos (a similar example would be majima from RGG who’s also a crazy dog-like man who attacks his crush.) SO what I am requesting is could you please give me your crack headcanons about Javert? Like funny shit about Javert. If you have recommends for crack fics about Javert I’d appreciate it, bonus points if any of the headcanons/fics are Valvert cuz idk I just find them really funny together. Prob mostly because of the memes not gonna lie. If you could also educate me on Valjean and Javert’s mannerisms in the Brick I would be most appreciative because to be totally real with u… I’m so sorry but I don’t wanna read or watch parts that are not about him or loaf guy 😬 (ya I kno shame on me and all that…) but I need to know more about how they act so I can make hideous crack fics of my own. Thank u 🙏🐶

First of all anon how does it feel to be the funniest person on the internet this is the best ask I’ve ever received :’3

Even without crack headcanons brick Javert is just absolutely hilarious as a character?? I feel like a lot of adaptations try to take him too seriously and like yeah he does have a serious and tragic aspect to his character but he’s also a very fruity drama queen who has like 0 awareness of his surroundings, acts like a feral dog on crack and has this weird magic power that allows him to know people’s real identity no matter how well disguised they are. (I maintain that les mis does have a form of magic system in the brick but it’s more like mundane mostly useless superpowers?? Like super strength that just makes you a little bit more strong that an average person, or really good instincts or something. Anyway lol)

Some Actual Canon Facts about Javert from the brick are:

- Is implied to have the soul of a dog

- Bares all of his teeth when he smiles

- Fucking hates reading but does it anyway

- Keeps a snuffbox on him at all times and snorts snuff after he feels like an arrest has gone well

- Dissociates for a solid 5 minutes and misses the entirety of a conversation bc someone said something he didn’t agree with

- I know the ‘you need to punish me Mr Mayor’ scene is in the movie but it’s so much funnier in the brick :’3

- Accidentally sets his coat on fire by standing too close to the stove

- Announces himself to Thenardier’s criminal gang who he’s about to arrest by making a stupid joke

- Tells Thenardier that he can shoot him if he wants because the gun will just misfire. Thenardier shoots him and the gun misfires.

- Doesn’t really have any friends and his coworkers don’t like him either because he doesn’t take bribes and refuses to work with criminals to catch other criminals

- There’s an entire Code Of Symbolism in the brick thats purpose is to represent how horny Javert is, which I wrote about here along with some other Javert related stuff

This man is just a fucking disaster honestly :’3 I headcanon that’s he’s ADHD, autistic, severely depressed and probably has some form of childhood PTSD?? But I’ve also seen other people headcanon that he has BPD or OCD and honestly all of them are good hcs because he’s absolutely neurodivergent.

I absolutely understand not wanting to read the whole brick if you only care about two of the characters lol, but the Hapgood English translation of the brick is public domain so I’ve linked a couple of Javert chapters you might find funny!

Javert’s introduction | punish me mr mayor | Javert lends Marius two pistols he never gets back and burns his coat on the stove | Javert arrests Thenardier and tells him to shoot him

Brick Valjean is also a chaotic bitch but he’s less camp and more like a cryptid with PTSD. Off the top of my head he:

- Sews money into the inside of his coat when Cosette is young

- Keeps the rest of his money buried in the woods

- Accidentally convinces some townspeople that he’s the devil by sneaking around said woods

- Stuffs his pockets with wigs and disguises in case he ever needs to make a quick getaway

- Someone tries to rob him and he tackles them to the ground then lectures them on how they should let god into their heart and stop stealing

- Holds a hot poker against his arm when Thenardier tries to extort him for money to intimidate him

- He just really loves Cosette this isn’t a funny or anything he just really loves his daughter and wants the best for her

In the brick Javert also doesn’t even actively seek out Valjean?? They go years without thinking about each other then they run into each other again in the weirdest circumstances and go ‘omg not this weirdo again 🙄’

As for my own favourite crack headcanons :3c

- Modern au Javert is a furry. His fursona is a wolfdog called Orion :-)

- [NSFW] He’s unironically into vore

- He wants a fursuit very badly but he can’t afford it until he’s dating Valjean and Valjean buys him one

- Valjean doesn’t get it but he’s glad his partner is happy :-)

- [NSFW] In my ideal Javert lives modern au he quits the police, goes to therapy and joins a kink group because I think he’d thrive in that environment 😌

- Valjean has like 5 fake driver’s licenses

- Javert will literally comment on how hot he finds a man and still doesn’t realise he’s gay until he makes out with Valjean. Thinks he’s straight even though he’s never been attracted to a woman before. Is literally that unaware of his own feelings.

- Valjean has no fashion sense. He dresses so bad that it comes full circle and it looks like his outfit clashes intentionally. Cosette is horrified.

- Javert is awful to watch movies with, especially detective movies, because he talks the whole time and points out all the inaccuracies

- Valjean never makes eye contact. Javert makes too much very intense eye contact.

- No one invites them to events because they’re awful together. Javert shit talks people’s outfits or decor very loudly to Valjean and Valjean hates socialising and doesn’t want to be there

I don’t think I know any good crack fic bc I mostly just read angst lol uwu’’ but if anyone has any suggestions pls feel free to add them!! I’ll add links if I think of anything though 😌

#javert #jean valjean #valvert