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rivalsforlife · 3 years

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Phoenix Wright: The Truth Reborn: Oh No We’re Doing This Again

hi.

Nearly two months ago, I wrote an essay summarizing and making very wild conclusions about the second Takarazuka Musical. I did this about two and a half years after watching the first Takarazuka musical. As such I did not have the full context for many things from the musical and was relying mostly on my memory, which blocked many things from this musical for my own safety. However, just this week, I decided to rewatch it, because I enjoy tormenting myself. I said I wouldn’t write anything on it. Here I am writing something on it.

Here’s the youtube thumbnail so that you know what you’re getting yourself into. And here, of course, is the link. This is the HD version which may be slightly more pleasant to watch. Maybe.

It was not quite as cringe in a funny way as the second musical to me, and therefore this essay may be less funny, but I feel like I’m doing a disservice to people by providing a summary of the second musical while completely neglecting the first. Quite possibly doing this is even more of a disservice. I just eagerly await the day that the third musical is translated because *that* will be the day that I finally shuffle off this mortal coil. Either way, I want to write this stuff down so that I never have to watch the musical again out of curiosity.

The following essay will contain major spoilers for both the first and second Phoenix Wright Takarazuka musicals, as I will be using many points from this musical to argue my thesis of the second musical. ... like you were going to watch them anyways.

This one broke 8k. I’m dead inside.

Introducing The Director

Again another disclaimer that I don’t have anything against the actresses or the theatre troupe. I DO have something against Suzuki Kei, who I recently learned is the writer and director of all three of the Ace Attorney Takarazuka musicals, and is quite possibly my mortal nemesis.

This man is the one who brought this monstrosity into the world.

This man, allegedly, cleared the first four ace attorney games *seven times* before sitting down to write these musicals. He played these goddamn games seven times and did not take in a single word. The man clicked through them mindlessly while watching a badly written legal romance drama in the background and got them completely confused. I genuinely have no idea how this man could have played these games more times than even me and yet managed to get so many characters (MAYA!!!!) completely and utterly wrong. This haunts me every day, truly.

This man played Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations, and Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney seven times. SEVEN TIMES EACH!! and was told to create a musical based on the series. He played these games seven times each and you know what he said?? You know what he said?? “This sucks, I’m getting rid of all of Phoenix’s backstory, butchering half the characters, and writing Phoenix/Lana fanfiction, but also rewriting all of Lana’s backstory so that she was Phoenix’s childhood friend, and you know what, I’m changing her name for good measure.”

I think this man played the games seven times each and then hated it so much and was so sick of it he tried to write something that destroyed as much of the series as possible while still being vaguely recognizable. And then somehow it became a massive hit because people like me see this and go “what the actual hell” and watch it, or people who haven’t played the games see this and go “wow what a great musical!” and then he wrote TWO MORE, destroying EVEN MORE every time in his wake, until finally, finally, he stopped after making Edgeworth straight and time traveling into the past to face off against a corrupt Gregory. I guess that was the last straw.

I have to issue a disclaimer here that for legal reasons this is a joke. I don’t actually hate this man and would not punch him in the face if I met him because that would be rude, and he is entitled to his wrong interpretation of the games. I don’t know what his thought process was. But allegedly he did play the games seven times according to the wiki. This whole essay here is satire and not slander and I don’t want to offend this guy if he somehow stumbles across my nonsense tumblr post. At the same time: Suzuki Kei blink twice if you need help.

Anyways half the reason that I’m making this essay is because I want to share my fake ao3 page for this musical. The other half will become apparent later.

Sorry if that’s illegible because of tumblr quality it’s not really important. All you really need to know is that it’s a fake ao3 screenshot for the musical. Also in the author’s note I said he played the games four times but it was actually seven I just remembered wrong because I didn’t want to believe it.

at this point you may be like “Grace shut up and get to the actual musical” and okay, fine, let’s start this nonsense. Also note that I may be referencing things from my essay on the second musical very frequently; I’m not going to force you to go read that though because the fact that you’re reading this is enough of a torment already.

The Musical Begins

Unlike the second musical, this one opens with some narration from Phoenix.

Transcript:

Phoenix: I’m reviewing a particular case at the moment. To me, this case... is one I’ll never forget.

Immediately I think this is important because it establishes that this whole musical takes place in a flashback that Phoenix is reflecting on. Why is this important? Because we know, by the time of the second musical which takes place three years later, Leona is dead.

Knowing that Leona is inherently doomed to die of her Sad Woman Disease paints this whole musical in a different light. It’s not Phoenix reflecting on how he got back together with his lover; it’s Phoenix dwelling on their past together, and the opportunities they had, before her life was so cruelly and inexplicably taken away. We don’t know if Phoenix’s reminiscing takes place before or after Leona’s death... but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was after.

Phoenix, still in the present, starts to sing. “A wave appears on the horizon like a mirage, it trembles, then vanishes. Your voice, carried upon the waves, fades upon the shore, erasing the splendor of the past.”

This line actually shows up in the second musical, sung by Lucia about her imprisoned fiance quite possibly. It’s kind of hard to tell what the meaning of these songs even are. They’re too abstract for me I think. But this line appears very frequently in the first musical when Phoenix is thinking about Leona.

Then we enter the flashback time.

Phoenix inexplicably yells at a newspaper saleswoman. This is not relevant to anything whatsoever. Then Larry barges in to the office, looking for Maya. Phoenix describes him as “A real trouble maker, but you just can’t hate the guy”, the latter part of which I think many people would disagree with.

Well, afterwards, Maya comes in. Phoenix describes her like this while making exaggerated “can you believe this shit” gestures.

Transcript:

Phoenix: She’s as ditzy as they come. Oh, and about the outfit... Apparently she comes from a family of spirit mediums. Try not to make fun of her, okay?

Suzuki Kei personally has it out for Maya and I can never forgive him for it. Maya in these musicals is here for pure comedic relief but it’s not even comedic because I just get so angry. How can you play the trilogy seven times and think this about her?? The girl who figured out DL-6?? The girl who told Phoenix to sacrifice her life in order to find the truth?? The girl who put on a brave smile in order to try and cheer up her younger cousin even after she saw her own mother murdered right in front of her eyes?? That Maya Fey?? Ditzy as they come??????

Ugh. Moving on.

Maya and Larry run off, leaving Phoenix to watch the American Broadcast.

Important things to note here are the Godot mug, the little line up of what I think are the messed up little ace attorney figurines beneath the screen, and the fact that while this broadcast is supposedly from and to America the screen is actually not at all showing America. Like literally almost everywhere in the world except North and South America.

The broadcast says that Leona Clyde, age 24, was arrested for murdering the senator Robert Cole! Leona Clyde -- that’s Phoenix’s ex-girlfriend! He runs off to the detention center.

She is not happy to see him.

Leona: Mr. Wright... I’m not the woman you once knew.

Let’s Play A Matching Game

Sorry for the abundance of screenshots that are going to be throughout this section. Phoenix convinces Leona to let him defend her. Some of the conversation seems... familiar.

Leona: No one would defend someone who admits to killing a senator. I’m waiting for a court-appointed attorney.

Edgeworth: Every defense attorney I’ve talked to has turned me down.

Phoenix: In that case, let me defend you.

Game Phoenix: Let me defend you.

Leona: Don’t be ridiculous!

Edgeworth: Don’t be ridiculous.

Phoenix: I’ll never accept that you’re a murderer. Let me prove your innocence!

Game Phoenix: Huh? Isn’t it obvious? I’m going to prove that Miles Edgeworth is innocent.

Leona: I’ve already confessed my guilt.

Gumshoe: He confessed that he did it! In court!

Leona: It’s foolish to think you can win this case.

Edgeworth: My case is near hopeless, Wright.

Leona: (in response to phoenix offering to defend her) No you won’t! Don’t ever come here again.

Edgeworth: Look, just go away, and leave me alone!

Phoenix: You of all people should know. Once I decide to do something, I see it through to the end.

Edgeworth: Once you start on something, you always see it through, don’t you?

Leona: I never thought that you’d be representing me.

Phoenix: Ah, who could have guessed this day would come?

Edgeworth: Not me.

Phoenix: You believed in me. You saved me. And this time, I swear... I swear I’ll save you!

Game Phoenix: Edgeworth believed in me, and I believe in him. I’m the only one who knows the real Edgeworth. I’m the only one who can help him.

I could’ve done a few more, but tumblr is already threatening to murder my laptop.

So long story short, Phoenix manages to convince his lover to let him be the defense on the case. Then immediately after swearing to save Leona, he starts singing a song, which I’m not screencapping because this is enough:

“As long as there are people in this world, there’s only one path I will follow! As long as there is love in this world, there’s only one path I will believe in!”

Edgeworth sings this in the second musical after saying that he returned to California because of Phoenix. Phoenix sings it now after swearing to defend Leona. You draw your own conclusions.

And then we finally get the opening credits. Eleven minutes in.

Just Pretend This Is Narumitsu Fanfiction

Following the credits, we see a beautiful beach. Couples (exclusively heterosexual, of course,) dance and embrace in the background for some time, before revealing Phoenix and Leona, in the Even Further Past, before the LSATs or whatever the ace attorney universe’s excuse for law school exams are.

Phoenix establishes his absolute hatred of change, an important characterization moment.

Phoenix: The view here never changes, huh?

Phoenix reminisces on when they were kids. Leona’s parents were both lawyers (they’re both lawyers) and sometimes they would be like lawyers with her when she was a kid. This inspired her to also become a lawyer after their tragic death of Sickness. They never specify what the sickness is that caused two people who must be relatively young to die while Leona was in her early twenties at the latest. It may be whatever sickness claimed Leona’s life later. Sad Woman Disease. (Sad Man Disease for her father, I guess?)

Phoenix also talks about why he’s becoming a lawyer.

Phoenix: Watching you chase your dream inspired me to become a lawyer too.

So, it’s not “my childhood friend looked sad in a newspaper” because I guess that makes no sense or is too gay or something. But this is another important piece of Phoenix characterization. His entire life so far has been focused around Leona. They’ve been friends since they were kids, and then Phoenix decided to become a lawyer solely because Leona was becoming a lawyer. Not even to try and get back into contact with her after she moved away or anything; just because he’s so obsessed with her that he wants to have the same career as her, then they can run a Mom & Pop Law Firm or something, years in the future, after years of happy marriage and a few children or like whatever the hell.

Well, there’s a few steps they’ll need to get to that. At this point Phoenix still hasn’t confessed his feelings for Leona. He does so here, on this beach.

Leona tries to protest.

Leona: But I’m pushy, selfish, and only care about my goals... You’d get fed up with me.

Phoenix: That’s what I’ve always admired about you. That’s who I’ve been chasing all these years. That’s the only person... I love.

Sooo, Phoenix, your type is pushy selfish people who only care about their goals...? In the first, older lower-quality video translation it was “only care about my work”, too. Hm. Things to think about.

They sing a little duet together. Then we go back to present-day of what’s technically still a flashback. Whatever. Murder is happening.

Back To The Murder

So some plot things to establish: Leona is the legal counsel of Governor Miller, who is running for president in the AMERICAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. After the flashback so that Phoenix has some time to change clothes, they show an interview of him talking about the murder.

Governor Miller: I vow to forge a peaceful country with my own two hands, and to prepare myself for whatever may lie ahead.

Reporters: Through thick and thin, he’s a friend of the people!

The Takarazuka musicals are not very good at hiding their killers.

Phoenix: Oh yeah... It’s almost time for the presidential election, isn’t it?

NEVER FORGET, WRIGHT. THIS IS AMERICA. LAND OF THE FREE! god what even was that line.

Anyways, we meet Gumshoe, who is incompetent once again. Maya runs around the crime scene, picks up the murder weapon, puts her fingerprints all over everything, moves things around, all while Phoenix is like “lol get a load of the world’s stupidest girl” or whatever. But who cares about that.

It’s time to get to the only valid part of this musical.

Edgeworth’s Gay Little Villain Solo

You may have seen this one before.

Edgeworth arrives, but not really. It’s like Phoenix heard Edgeworth was prosecuting and immediately entered a dream-like state, where Edgeworth is heralded by the sound of trumpets in Great Revival. He’s played by a different actress than in the other two musicals, since I think she retired in between the six or so months from this musical to the second. She still plays the role well, though, or as well as can be when you’re written in an ace attorney Takarazuka musical.

Shrouded in scarlet solitude... it’s Edgeworth.

Yes, those are six Edgeworths. Yes, they pick Phoenix up and carry him around and dance with him. Yes, it was probably not meant to be at all homoerotic.

He sings a song that’s called “My rule”. I only figured this out later, but it’s loosely based on a “catchphrase” of his in the Japanese version - in game 1 he says something along the lines of “All I can do is get every defendant declared guilty! So I make that my policy.” In DD in his dramatic anime introduction before the trial, he says “I intend to question the defendant with all I have. For that is a part of my creed.” “So I make that my policy” and “For that is a part of my creed”, to my understanding, are both translated from the same line, which I think is like, “sore ga watashi no ruru”, “That is my rule.” (If I’m wrong, please correct me.) In this song he sings about how he’ll reduce all criminals to ash and such, basically talks about his game 1 prosecuting strategy as “my rule”.

It’s very fun and probably if you want to only watch one number of this musical, it can be this one. It starts about 26:10 in the video I linked.

Once the musical number is done, Phoenix and Edgeworth stare at each other, and the background fades into the courtroom, so court begins. I feel like I should note that Phoenix has not picked up any evidence or talked to any witnesses in this investigation except for Gumshoe, since Maya just moved some things around and then Phoenix had some weird fever dream about Edgeworth which presumably took up the rest of the day.

The Trial, Day 1

Edgeworth: Consider it a prelude to the poignant Greek tragedy that’s about to unfold.

Maya: The real tragedy’s your pompous attitude!

Those are the only screenshots I took of this trial day. Here’s a summary, though:

The trial starts off with Leona confessing, Phoenix says “no I think she’s innocent”, and since ace attorney doesn’t care about the defendant’s wishes he’s allowed to proceed. For some reason Leona lets him do this without complaint.

Gumshoe is the first witness, he claims to have caught Leona red-handed at the scene of the crime, standing over the corpse. Phoenix tries to claim that since Gumshoe didn’t see Leona committing the crime, he didn’t actually catch her red-handed, to which Edgeworth responds “What do you think being caught red-handed means?”

Once Gumshoe is dismissed, Lotta takes the stand. She has a photo of the actual moment of the crime, where Leona is holding a knife in the air in front of the victim.

The Takarazuka musicals like to do this thing where the image is blurry and zoomed out, but then Phoenix will go “I’VE NOTICED A CONTRADICTION” and it zooms in really far as the resolution increases drastically in order to show you the contradiction that is impossible to spot for yourself, because they don’t want people figuring out the mystery in this musical based off of a video game where you have to solve the mystery yourself. Anyways Phoenix zooms in on this photo and sees that there’s blood on Leona’s hand, presumably before she stabbed the victim. How did it get there?

Edgeworth suggests the victim was stabbed multiple times. Phoenix says the autopsy report contradicts that. Edgeworth, uncharacteristically, does not update it to suit his argument.

Phoenix concludes that this photo is not showing the moment Leona stabbed the victim, but the moment Leona removed the knife! ... Which somehow casts doubt on her having been the one to stab the victim. Because as everyone knows, anyone wanting to kill someone would never remove a knife, it’s not like they’d bleed out faster that way, or anything.

And this whole contradiction is confusing because presumably if the victim was stabbed and then the knife was removed, they’d know that happened, because then the knife would not be found stuck in the victim’s body, since the victim was only stabbed once. So this shouldn’t be news to the prosecution that someone removed the knife after stabbing. But the investigation was headed by the most incompetent version of Gumshoe ever, so. sure. I guess no one knew.

That at least manages to extend the trial another day.

This Totally Has To Be Illegal

After the trial, Phoenix goes to talk to Governor Miller, aka Mr. Totally The Real Killer. Phoenix asks him why he decided to hire Leona as his legal advisor.

Basically, it’s because her parents were both renowned lawyers. Her father was a Chief Prosecutor, and her mother was a defense attorney. ... a prosecutor and a defense attorney couple... who does that remind us of...

Phoenix points out that just because her parents were good lawyers, it doesn’t mean she’d necessarily be one. Miller says that, sure, but she is actually really talented, and her law school marks were spectacular. Phoenix says “WHY WERE YOU LOOKING AT HER LAW SCHOOL MARKS”, like it’s somehow? suspicious? for a government official hiring legal counsel to look at their law school marks?

Apparently it IS suspicious because Governor Miller freaks out and asks if this is an interrogation. Before Phoenix can press much further, he gets a phone call, and leaves Phoenix alone in a big room.

So naturally Phoenix behaves like a fully grown adult running a law firm.

If all he did was sit in the chair, lift up a desk lamp, and poke his finger on a pen, that’s one thing. But then he leans over, OPENS THE GOVERNOR’S DESK DRAWER, and finds a knife that’s just sitting there casually. It looks like a butter knife. It’s not anything major. Maybe the dude just wanted to butter his toast?

I mean I know Phoenix will dig around in stuff whenever in the games, but he has no reason to suspect Governor Miller at all, much less dig through his drawer probably full of confidential government documents to lift up a knife that he thinks is suspicious. It’s not even covered in blood or anything?

Naturally Governor Miller’s assistant comes in just then, and Phoenix puts the knife. in his breast pocket.

bud. It may look like a butter knife, but putting knives up against your chest is not a great idea. Much less stealing a knife from a governor?

Well, in his panic, he accidentally knocks over a bunch of books on the desk. The governor’s assistant helps him pick them up, and they find a photo. Look a little familiar?

The photo has the assistant, the victim Robert Cole, Governor Miller, and the victim’s brother who died in an incident two years ago. He’s the “Neil Marshall” of this musical, and he died in what was essentially the SL-9 incident. Same general premise, except it occurred in the courthouse, and the names are different.

AND FINALLY WE REACH THE END OF ACT 1. They do a musical number here which is a weird sort of mashup of the main opening credits song, Edgeworth’s Villain Solo, and the love duet between Phoenix and Leona. They are all such different songs that it sounds a little weird.

ACT 2, FINALLY

The act begins on a sour note with Maya playing with the knife and showing off her characterization, which is one of the most infuriating Maya characterizations you’ll sometimes see around the fandom by people who don’t like Maya.

Maya: Let me whip up my special spirit channeler hamburgers!

sigh.

But then we’re saved (?) by the arrival of EDGEWORTH, who is presumably just here to chat. He asks Phoenix if he’s defending Leona in hopes of winning her back, then says to keep out of it, since it’s a very important case and he can’t understand the gravity of it.

Then Phoenix says this.

Phoenix: Would you be saying that if you were the one on trial? The defendant is in a dark prison, reaching out for hope... Can you imagine the loneliness and sorrow of being ostracized?

CAN YOU IMAGINE IT, EDGEWORTH? CAN YOU IMAGINE IF YOU WERE ON TRIAL AND I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO WOULD DEFEND YOU AND BELIEVED IN YOUR INNOCENCE??

Edgeworth responds to this by essentially rehashing his speech in Turnabout Sisters about how he needs to find all defendants guilty because he can’t guarantee their innocence and all that. Maya gets upset and leaves so that Phoenix and Edgeworth can talk about their childhood in private.

Phoenix once again complains about how people change since nine years old.

Phoenix then says that he has something Edgeworth doesn’t: the POWER TO BELIEVE! Then Maya comes in and tries to spike Edgeworth’s coffee, so he leaves.

The Class Trial

Phoenix explains a bit about Edgeworth and his backstory to Maya. Namely, the class trial. Phoenix was accused of stealing lunch money, Edgeworth stood up for him, but instead of Larry, Leona stood up for him. I guess Suzuki Kei thought “oh the class trial, if Leona stood up for him, it would be so romantic, because she’s a woman, and he’s a man”, or something like that.

Edgeworth wanted to become a Great Lawyer Like His Father! But then he turned cold as ice.

Phoenix: His father got too deeply involved in a case... and paid for it with his life. Edgeworth saw him murdered. He was never the same again. I bet he couldn’t forgive the criminal.

Yeah I bet he couldn’t ever forgive the person he thought killed his father all these years, Phoenix. I bet he really hates that person, Phoenix. I bet he has nightmares about that person killing his father or something, Phoenix.

Phoenix: He vanished, then returned without his mercy or compassion. He had become a monster. When he lost his father, he also lost the ability to believe in others.

So like... one of the most chilling things about this musical is that they never actually solve DL-6. This probably roughly takes place 15 years after DL-6, since they were about the same age when the class trial started, and at least Leona is 24 now. The next musical takes place three years from now, and in it, Edgeworth refers to von Karma as his mentor, implying he’s still around and doing things.

So, in addition to everything else going wrong with this musical, DL-6 still happens, but von Karma never frames Edgeworth for it fifteen years later. The statute of limitations runs out, and von Karma forever gets away with his crime. And Edgeworth has no idea.

What changes did they make to DL-6, though, you may ask? I’m desperate to know as well. In the third musical, which I’ve watched because I hate myself but am unable to fully understand because I don’t know much Japanese, there is a scene where Miles flashbacks to DL-6. It’s abstract, but he makes gun-throwing motions at Gregory, followed by a gunshot sound.

Therefore, in this musical’s internal canon, either Miles Edgeworth shot his father, or he believes he did for the rest of his life.

... moving on.

Phoenix: But he still has his humanity. It’s still there, deep down inside!

At least, if nothing else, Phoenix still believes in him. Even this Takarazuka Musical couldn’t touch that.

The Feenie Sweater

Right after this, Larry barges in, and Phoenix leaves him alone with Maya. The musical tries teasing Larry/Maya, but fortunately, Maya’s having none of it.

Maya: You’re barking up the wrong tree.

Props to this musical for not being as bad as it could have been.

After this, the two sit down on the couch, and Maya asks for more gossip on Phoenix and Leona. Larry launches into a story, which turns into a flashback that ends up being narrated by Phoenix halfway through. This one’s about Phoenix and Leona’s relationship.

This is an interesting line in here, “I’ll guide you to the future”, for it loosely referencing the sort of love ballad Phoenix sings with Lucia in the second musical which is about “I’ll take you to that radiant future”, and he later sings to the memory of Leona right around the time of his big spiral into despair.

I’m sorry if you haven’t read my other essay and just said “wait what” to what I just typed.

Leona was getting ready to move to New York to defend the weak “in the big city”. This is rather strange wording because it implies that California does not in fact have a big city. She says some things in her conversation with Phoenix that probably plant some of his later issues.

Leona: This is the first time we’ll be apart since we were kids.

Leona: We promised we’d always be together.

Leona: I’ll be waiting. Waiting for you to come to me.

Haha. Sure would be a shame... if something were to happen... and they wouldn’t be able to be together anymore...

So some dancers wearing black come in and take off their outer jackets, to symbolize the passage of time. They circle around Phoenix and Leona. In this, you can just barely see, Phoenix is wearing a pink sweater beneath his jacket.

“Oh,” I think to myself, “Is that the Feenie sweater? Are they including it here as a reference to the games?”

Then the dancers keep moving.

THAT IS NOT THE FEENIE SWEATER. That is a pink sweater with a sexily drawn woman on it.

This is the other half of the reason why I decided to go through with making this essay.

This is so incredibly funny to me. Suzuki Kei Who Has Played The Games Seven Times has seen the hand-knit bright pink sweater with a giant red heart on it seven times. The sweater Iris, Phoenix’s girlfriend, lovingly knit for him that he wears all the time even though it is one of the tackiest, cheesiest items of clothing to ever exist. And so, when the costume designers were designing the clothes for College Phoenix Wright, they asked themselves: “Should we include the Feenie sweater?”

and “NO,” someone must have shouted, “NO, we can NOT include the Feenie sweater, it is PINK and it has a HEART on it and it’s TOO GIRLY. Phoenix Wright is a MANLY MAN. He would not EVER wear something PINK with a HEART on it.”

“BUT,” someone else said, “it’s a REFERENCE to the original games, where he DID wear a pink sweater with a heart on it! We MUST include it to pander to the fans!”

“WAIT,” a third person interjected. “I have a BRILLIANT IDEA. We can keep the pink... But to make it VERY CLEAR he is a heterosexual, masculine male... we put a sexy woman on it.”

And Person Three Got A Raise.

Thank god we’re finally halfway done this musical.

We Just Have To Go On With Our Lives Now

There’s plot or something happening. Leona breaks up with Phoenix inexplicably over the phone. Probably because of that freaking sweater. Imagine wearing that. God.

Eventually we go back to Phoenix talking to Leona, and he asks about the Jack Lyon case, which is the rip-off version of the Joe Darke case. Leona is pretty cagey about it, but Phoenix proves that she was there in the gallery that day. Leona refuses to answer, claims again that she killed the victim in her case, and leaves.

This makes Phoenix sad, so he starts singing.

Phoenix: I want to bring you back! I believe in you.

If this sounds familiar, it’s the part where I started absolutely losing my mind in the second musical because this line had never shown up before then, I’d forgotten it was in this musical, and Phoenix was screaming it alone in a red room, so I thought he was like desperately resorting to a necromancy ritual in hopes of bringing Leona back to life.

Instead, this line actually has CONTEXT, though it does just end up enforcing my theory. This is Phoenix mourning what he used to have with Leona, wanting to bring the “old her” back, because he’s devastated that people sometimes change. There are several flashbacks of their college days where he’s wearing his Sexy Woman Sweater. He does succeed in winning her back at the end of this musical. Before she dies, of course.

Phoenix in musical 2 still believes that he can bring back what he used to have with Leona... even beyond death. That’s something affirmed by this musical. I’m very grateful to it for somehow managing to enforce my nonsensical theory.

Doctor Ema

After this, Phoenix returns to his office, and meets with someone new.

That’s right! Only now, halfway through the musical, do we actually get to meet the Ema-equivalent to Leona’s Lana-equivalent. Her name is Monica Clyde. She has little rainbow heart stickers on her briefcase, which is the closest thing this musical has to acknowledging that gay people exist.

But what does this little briefcase contain, you may ask? Scientific investigation tools? No.

A full surgical toolset. Because you never know when someone’ll get sick, or when someone will need an entire operation in front of you. I guess.

So yes, Monica Clyde is not a forensic scientist in training, but a doctor! She decided to become a doctor because of her parents, who passed away of The Sickness, and so became a doctor in order to save lives like theirs.

Once more this has much darker and deeper implications than the musical is even aware of, because Monica is so anxious about treating sick people that she carries a full surgical toolset around with her at all times, scared to lose someone like she lost her parents... and then sometime in the next three years, Leona, her big sister, is going to die.

Of what? The strange Sickness that claimed her parents? A car accident? A botched spur-of-the-moment surgery? Whatever it is, Monica was unable to save her, even when she’d been training her entire life for it.

Monica is not mentioned at all throughout the second musical. It’s as if she does not exist.

Because unlike Ema of Rise From The Ashes, Monica is not at the heart of this story. She is, primarily, a plot device here to make Leona not trust Phoenix so that he can angst about their relationship.

What a mess this world is.

The Trial, Part 2

Rather than try to prove Leona’s innocence, Phoenix wants to link the current case to not-SL-9, the Jack Lyon case. He does this by showing this picture.

Senator Cole, the victim, is in this picture. His younger brother whose name I’ve forgotten, the victim of not-SL-9, is also in this picture. They are brothers. It is apparently novel that they are in the same picture, and somehow makes their cases linked.

As well, Governor Miller is in the picture. I guess you could say like... Governor Miller’s legal counsel is the defendant, so that’s another link? Even though the Governor would presumably know a Senator, so this isn’t an unusual group. Right now Phoenix has absolutely nothing to prove that these two cases are linked other than “hey, these two victims are brothers”, but apparently it works. So they spend a lot of time talking about not-SL-9, since Leona has confessed to the murder on day 1 and there is absolutely nothing indicating that she can’t be immediately declared guilty.

They hid the fact that Monica was a hostage in this not-SL-9, meaning that some of the case records were forged. Here’s Edgeworth’s reaction when this comes out.

Edgeworth: This is an outrage! I’m the most influential prosecutor in America! There’s nothing I don’t know!

In RFTA, when Edgeworth learns he’d been using forged evidence to give a man the death penalty, he is devastated, his entire worldview is shaken, he sees himself as a monster who could end up becoming horribly corrupt if he isn’t stopped.

Musical Edgeworth goes “I DIDN’T KNOW SOMETHING???”

It’s certainly strange characterization, but I guess Edgeworth is further behind in his character arc than in RFTA, so... ugh. Fine.

Phoenix calls Monica out as a witness to prove she was involved in the case. This causes Leona to panic, and try to dismiss Phoenix as her attorney, like Lana in RFTA, but Edgeworth interjects to call Monica in anyways. He and Phoenix have a little moment.

Edgeworth: You said to believe in others. I suppose I’ll try believing in you. Try to keep up.

Phoenix: Edgeworth!

So Monica comes to the stand to testify. We get to see this picture of Monica being held hostage, and not-Joe-Darke’s incredible eyeliner.

Lots of it is very similar to the actual RFTA, except instead of the victim being stabbed on the knight with the giant knife, he’s instead stabbed with a regular old knife. Leona still refuses to admit to what really happened, until Edgeworth convinces her to believe in Phoenix.

Edgeworth: Your attorney is a runaway train with a one-track mind. Yet he placed all of his faith in you. Believe in him. You owe him that much.

Leona testifies, and says that when she found the victim, he was stabbed with a scalpel.

Here is where things get weird.

Scalpels Can’t Kill People

So basically earlier in this trial, they talk about how Leona knew that the knife that stabbed the victim was double-edged despite being buried in his chest. The judge questions if this means Leona killed him, but Phoenix is quick to say no, she was searched when she entered the courthouse and couldn’t have concealed a knife.

Yet, Monica was able to bring in her surgical toolkit which contains several sharp knives, scalpels, scissors, etc.

This is the first major contradiction.

Leona continues to say that when she found Monica, and the scalpel stabbed in the victim, she also ran into Governor Miller, who if you haven’t been able to tell yet is the Gant-equivalent of this musical. He offered to help her with the cover-up, etc.

The next bit goes a lot like RFTA. Phoenix accuses Governor Miller, who barges in, says Phoenix has the decisive evidence in his pocket. This is the “butter knife” that Phoenix took from his office when he dug around in confidential documents and stole it for no particular reason. It has Monica’s fingerprints on it! ... And Phoenix’s and Maya’s too probably because they were handling it without gloves, but they don’t mention that part.

Leona cries about how she shouldn’t have trusted Phoenix because he was apparently now blaming Monica, Monica looks terrified, she and Leona have some good sister moments but it’s not as good as it could be if the story was actually about Leona and Monica like how RFTA was about Lana and Ema. But Phoenix has the decisive piece of evidence that can turn this around.

It is this:

Phoenix: Scalpels are made for medical incisions, not stabbings. So how did it stab the victim?

...

... What?

So like. Yes, scalpels are made for medical incisions. Medical incisions often involve cutting through flesh, very easily. As a result, they are sharp. Extremely sharp. As in: their purpose is literally to stab people, very specifically.

Yes, they’re easier to control, so that surgeons don’t regularly stab people how they’re not supposed to be stabbed, but it’s not like, impossible to stab someone in a killing way with a scalpel? Admittedly, I have never tried to kill someone using a scalpel. And I do not have experience using a scalpel for surgeries because I am not a surgeon. But I’m pretty sure, if you take a sharp scalpel, and you stab someone in the chest with it with a reasonable amount of force... they die.

Like, is this a particular kind of scalpel that is not very sharp? Is the problem that the blade doesn’t match up with the initial wound? But even then, we don’t have the original unforged autopsy report or even a picture, so how would Phoenix know what the original wound looked like to say it didn’t match up? And even then why wouldn’t Phoenix say that instead of SCALPELS CAN’T STAB PEOPLE???

This is his decisive contradiction and it makes ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE TO ME!!!

Well Darn I Guess Scalpels Can’t Kill People

This is such a decisive piece of evidence, that scalpels can’t kill people, coming from the man who thought “caught red-handed” does not involve being caught standing over a corpse with blood on your hands, that it causes Governor Miller to confess.

Unlike Gant, who created the murder with Neil Marshall both to ensure that there was decisive evidence to convict Joe Darke, a serial killer who had not left any decisive evidence behind, and gain control over the prosecutor’s office in order to pull similar stunts to get criminals convicted using false evidence, Governor Miller does not have that as his motive. After all, he’s not a police officer. Instead, he ended up accidentally killing not-Joe-Darke, and then set up the incident in order to get Leona on his side. As her parents were both influential lawyers and very respectable, having her and her parents’ reputation on his side could help him become President of America Where This Takes Place.

So, let’s just take a moment to run over some of the things that made the original Rise From The Ashes great, in my opinion. Just for fun.

1 - The heart of the story between the Skye sisters. Lana closing off to protect Ema, Ema wanting to get through to her sister and get back to the way things used to be. Phoenix, in this story, is more of a bystander to this plotline rather than in the heart of it himself.

2 - Edgeworth’s Character Development. Basically RFTA creates an interesting transition between Turnabout Goodbyes and JFA. It causes Edgeworth to re-evaluate everything he knows about being a prosecutor. So quickly on the heels of Turnabout Goodbyes, it crushes the last bit of hope in him. It compares him to Gant, who also hates criminals, and forces him to wonder if his hatred of crime will one day lead to him being a criminal himself. He’s already convicted one person on forged evidence; how many others could there be?

3 - The Ends Justify The Means. ... wait come back, don’t leave. What I found neat about this case was also Gant’s motive. At one point he was presumably an honest person who hated crime and wanted to stop criminals. But over time in the police force, he became corrupted. He wanted to have all criminals convicted. So what do you do when you don’t have the evidence to convict them? Joe Darke was a serial killer who has killed several people and may have killed more if he’d gone free. The only way to stop and convict him was by using forged evidence. Other criminals could hide evidence to get away with their crimes, so people like Gant would make it up to catch them; but then when do you stop? What happens if there’s no evidence because someone is truly innocent? When does the line between “this person is a criminal and I want to stop them” and “I just want to convict everyone I’m dealing with” become blurred? This is also something he shares with Edgeworth and helps to advance his character.

All three of these things are either lessened or outright ignored in this musical. Leona and Monica’s story takes a backseat to Phoenix and Leona’s Love Story, with Monica only showing up halfway through, and mainly as an excuse as to why Leona is withdrawn. Edgeworth doesn’t seem to blame himself for the forged evidence he used, and doesn’t have a crisis questioning his morality over it. And Governor Miller’s motive is purely power. Unlike Gant, who would have become Chief of Police whether he solved SL-9 or not, Miller needed Leona to win the presidency. And instead of asking her to help him with his campaign like a normal person, he just blackmailed her instead.

... How do you play the games seven times and miss this much?

The Case Finally Ends

god. we’re almost there.

The case ends, Leona is declared not guilty but will still face trial for covering up murders and such. Probably less of a sentence than Lana because she was not involved in ongoing police corruption? Either way she’s dead in three years, so she’s got something a bit more concerning coming up.

She’s led away. Phoenix sings a bit about Leona before being interrupted by Edgeworth... who has something important to tell him.

Edgeworth: You awakened within me those once-cherished emotions I had discarded. I see visions of a distant, nostalgic past.

So basically this is the unnecessary feelings of the musical. Something along the lines of “seeing you again and fighting for my former ideals is making me question many things about myself.”

How does Phoenix respond?

Phoenix: Edgeworth... Try talking normally for a chance.

Sure, we were all thinking it, but that’s a little cold, Phoenix.

Edgeworth tries a smooth recovery.

Edgeworth: I don’t do... idle chit-chat.

This doesn’t accomplish much. So he leaves to allow Leona to visit with Phoenix alone. He’s got to go change for something more important coming up.

Leona and Phoenix decide that they’re going to get back together once Leona is done her sentence! They make a promise that is very funny if you know she’ll be dead in three years.

Phoenix: I’ll be waiting. For you.

There are a lot of hugs here, I’m not screencapping them all. There are also several moments where their faces get very close together and like, their nose brushes the other’s cheek or something, but they never actually kiss. Is it because the actresses weren’t comfortable with it (valid), or they thought kissing would be too much for the musical (sure, whatever), or since both characters are played by women the show staff did not want two women kissing on stage (probably the real answer)? I don’t like watching kisses, but I kept bracing myself for one and then it never happened, so.

Phoenix ends the main part of the musical with one last musical number starring my personal favourite piece:

Phoenix: I want to bring you back! I believe in you.

I like to think that at this point, this is present-day Phoenix, after finishing his reminiscing, still desperately wishing he could bring Leona back from death.

But alas, he cannot. And so, after one last daydream of them dancing together on the beaches of California, singing about their love, the musical ends.

Dance Time!

This starts at exactly the two hour mark, if you’re interested in watching what is, once again, one of the only fun parts of this musical.

Seriously, Edgeworth’s actress kills it here, when I first saw this I went “oh, this is why I saw so many people being gay for her on twitter.”

Edgeworth’s song is an encore of “My Rule”, so it’s lots of fun. Afterwards Phoenix gets another fun piece.

Then we get to the love ballad part, which I can probably overanalyze, I feel like I haven’t done enough ridiculous over-analyzing in this essay in comparison to the other.

Uhhh so the fog represents how Phoenix feels lost in this world without Leona. You can see it in the second screenshot separating the two of them, representing the barrier of death between the two of them. Idk it’s midnight I’m getting worn out from having to think about this musical for so long.

But his mourning over Leona’s death becomes even more apparent in the credits, where Phoenix sings that one line again:

Phoenix: I want to bring you back! I believe in you.

I’m not fixing that screenshot, I think it’s oddly fitting, in a way. That’s me right now.

Then at the very end, he sings this song.

Phoenix: I’ll spend... this eternal life... soaring through... the heavens!

Technically, this refers to his name Phoenix, but let’s dig a little deeper. He spends the rest of his life soaring through the heavens... the heavens that Leona went to after her untimely death, perhaps?

Overall, the musical becomes much more interesting when you just see it as a prequel to the second musical. This musical establishes many core concepts of Phoenix’s character: his refusal to believe in the concept of things changing, for one, and also his extreme dependency on Leona who he was never separated from since they were kids and where he based his entire life around her dreams and ideals. All he can think about is her. And in the end, he promises to wait for her in California.

Yet, to paraphrase Miles Edgeworth, all that is waiting for him is her death. Their dream of opening up a Mom & Pop Law Firm will never come true.

Thanks again for bearing with me even though this wasn’t as funny!

#ace attorney #phoenix wright the truth reborn #idk maybe someone wanted to know what the first musical was like without actually watching it?#my essays #my posts #i'm TIRED i'm going to BED goodNIGHT #this is less funny jokes and more actually criticizing the musical #because so much of this is like. wow. you really thought that was a good idea huh #just skip to the feenie sweater part honestly that's the funniest part of this musical

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hype-city-soundtrack · 2 years

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the matrix resurrections

mad spoilers below the jump here

probably the film i was most excited about all year and it did not disappoint at all. as someone who’s currently working on a thesis about allegorical trans representation with the matrix as one of the films i will be covering, seeing this in imax in a theatre was absolutely awe-inspiring, and i could not stop myself from crying almost the entire runtime.

to get some formal stuff out of the way before i talk about the thematic ideas that really interest me, i’m happy to say that lana has not lost her mastery of directing action. the whole film is an unbelievable spectacle, the opening sequence with its echoes of the original is amazing, as is the fight scene with smith and the exiles, and the final swarm sequence, all absolutely stunning. all the new faces they’ve added to the film are also great, yahya abdul-mateen does an admirable job living up to fishburn’s classic portrayal of morpheus, and johnathan groff has an excellent new take on smith. jessica henwick as bugs may be my favourite character in the film outside of neo and trinity, and neil patrick harris is great as the analyst as well. obviously reeves is fucking amazing as neo again, inhabiting a role he hasn’t played in over fifteen years and imbuing him with more vulnerability than he’s ever had. the first 45 minutes of the film when he’s slowly finding out that he’s still in the matrix is just so heartbreaking to see him trapped in the box he tried so desperately to escape in the original trilogy, and carrie anne moss does the same for trinity. every scene with neo and trinity together is just absolutely heart wrenching.

to move on to some more thematic elements. i think there’s a risk to lean to much on the auteur here, and just look at lana’s life and connect it to the film, but it’s also something that lana is very specifically inviting with it. the entire game development office sequences seems to parallel the ordeal she must have went through in returning to this world. specifically calling out the suits for wanting to push forward with this project whether she was involved or not. though it’s obviously a hard project for her to return to, having truly revolutionized cinema with the original film it will be difficult to do the same with a sequel so many years after she last inhabited this world, and also through the simple fact that her and her sister obviously put so much of themselves within the film so to try to return to this younger, closeted version of themselves is going to inherently be a challenge. there’s a scene early on where the different game designers are throwing out buzzwords on what the matrix should be, and what the original trilogy was, each one trying to define the films within their own specific frameworks. i realize that in me writing this i’m kind of just doing the same thing, but it definitely speaks to how all of the matrix films are these shifting amorphous pieces of art with hundreds of different interpretations, that to try to pin them down as being about just one thing is completely wrongheaded. it speaks to the wider franchise culture infecting cinema as of late. films are no longer made by artists, but made by committees reanimating the corpses of dead franchises in order to try recapture what made originals great, and instead either dumbing them down to base elements, or trying to please all of the fans at once and ending up pleasing no one. it’s a film that is haunted by its past and by its previous installments, but still manages to make something wholly unique and unlike any other film that’s come out within the last five years at least.

esther rosenfield joked on twitter about prepping a detransition to retransition take about this film but i don’t think it’s wrong at all. i think there is an element here of that detransition to retransition within the characters of neo and trinity. if the red pill can be analogous to transgender realization (which i would argue it is), then neo and trinity stepping back into the matrix, back into living normal lives, is equivalent to detransitioning. it’s no wonder that the person who is creating their “normal” lives is a therapist. for trans people for almost the entirety of our existence (especially when transgender identity was confined to the dsm) the therapist was there to get us to avoid our decision to transition. both a gatekeeper to the medicine we desperately needed, and the one trying to push us away from that medicine. most people who have detransitioned do so because of the societal pressures involved with transitioning, unfortunately thinking that it is an easier choice to just go back to pretending to be cisgender. what this film argues is that while yes it is harder to transition, to take the red pill is true freedom, it is the only way to become who you truly are and the only way to truly be whole. when trinity finally escapes from her own mind prison, she finds the ability to fly, the ability to remake the world as she so chooses. this remaking of the world is similar to what is argued through the tenets of xenofeminism: “if nature is unjust, then change nature”

anyway, this is a total ramble, i need to watch the film again but i just needed to expel these thoughts somewhere. that white rabbit sequence is definitely the best scene in any film all year.

#the matrix #the matrix resurrections #trans #film critic #film theory #text #hope this made some sense #just super stoked on the film #transgender film #lana wachowski #film #transgender

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cherry-interlude · 3 years

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Lana Del Rey Unreleased Ranked (2)

This is a re-ranking of Lana's unreleased songs, after making a first a few years ago. This is all my opinion, which I don't mind anyone disagreeing with but don't come for me for it - honestly, I like every song, despite any criticism, and this ranking is very vague. It's based on objective and subjective opinion.

This is the second of five posts, going past my least favourites.

Money Hunny

Lana details the downside of money, detailing the ways it ruins lives and causes more problems that good for some. However, it’s simplicity isn’t what makes Money Hunny fall short – it doesn’t resonate at all compared to Lana’s countless songs where she is either rich and famous or she is desperate for money (or men with money). As thought-provoking as Money Hunny is, it feels too twee and out of place in her money-adoring music to really hit hard. If Lana has spoken on the topic of how money can literally damage lives more, it would perhaps gel better with me, but with songs like Money Power Glory, National Anthem and Off To The Races (among many, many others), it doesn’t hit the mark as a Lana Del Rey (alternate names included) song.

Strangelove

Strangelove is hypnotising, from Lana’s mesmerising voice that gives her the impression of a Las Vegas desert temptress, seducing strangers and wishing for the simple pleasures of Christmas lights and mint juleps. It hits best for the first opening chorus.

Stoplight Delite

Opening with a tuneful mechanical whir, Lana’s song wouldn’t be amiss in a teen romance film. I’m not convinced by the mishmash of music – the more classical band instruments with unrelenting whirring begins to overwhelm the song. Lana’s at her sweetest in this however.

Daddy Issues

The music is a bit too harsh but it’s a nice enough song, referencing Baby Blue Love among others. It isn’t Lana’s best by far, messy with lyrics that go all over the place, but (yet again), it would be more promising if it was completely remade and produced properly. The demo, I Was In A Bad Way, is a lot more maudlin and less enthusiastic, so it does fall behind Daddy Issues.

Catch and Release

It’s another song that’s kind of creepy, with an eerie vibe thanks to the relentless, whining music and Lana’s razor-edged warnings in her lyrics. Lana is practically a megalomaniac in this song, completely selfish and unafraid to ask for – and get – what she wants. Yet it’s quite a hypnotising track that, with further production, could be more cohesive and dramatic.

Marilyn

One of her old live performances, Marilyn is too simple in its lyrics but is a strangely erotic tribute to Lana’s icon. Lana owns the stage in this performance, a more carnal honouring than some of her other outputs.

Noir

Lana really goes for it in this furious song of crushed self-esteem and badly treated lover. Lana lets her vocals rip and tear as she growls about her “papi”, her being merely his dolly to do as he pleases. It's not her most perfect song but she doesn’t hold back from letting her hurt and frustration spill over.

Bellevue

Lana utilises haunting harmonising in Bellevue and though she seems hung up on her lover not wanting her around (she repeats it, as if she can’t let go, throughout the song) she still convinces herself she could go back to the old days of drinking and not being hurt. It helps – her chanting – to bring out the emotion of the lyrics, and maintain that broken feeling she is so good at conveying whilst saying how happy she is.

Put Your Lips Together

Taking on the character of a femme fatale who can hold her own, Lana seduces the listener on top of a chilled instrumental. Her lyrics are little bit dirtier as much as her vocals aren’t their best in the choruses (of course, it being a rough demo might have something to do with that). It’s definitely a song that, if completed, could rank alongside Beautiful Player and Ooh Baby in her seduction library.

Starry Eyed

Starry Eyed is a romantic enough song, with a gentle plinking intro that leads to a rumbling, Born To Die-esque track – complete with Lana’s pretty vocals. However, it does tend to drag, a slow song that I find majorly skippable. The dragged-out choruses get tiring after a while of listening so I don’t frequently listen to this song.

Breaking My Heart

Lana is fully materialistic in this song, referencing multiple designer companies as well as her desire to be loved and party. It’s not too imaginative in its lyrics, instead pure pop with a mixture of lyrics that never quite come through with a particular meaning, but it’s a good enough bop.

Butterflies Part 1

A little love song about a tumultuous teen romance, Lana plays off the lovestruck teen ultimately in love with a guy not good for her perfectly. It’s heady and full of the rushes of love, emotive enough to get the feeling of a girl going mad from her relationship.

Ben

Lana, using the rain to her advantages, moodily comforts her executive love in the full femme fatale façade, quietly passionate. Lana, as much as she loves him, is still her own woman, insisting she will smoke if she wants and playing with her voice to showcase such control.

All Smiles

Lana puts on a happy smile as she mopes over Jimmy in this small-town, fifties-painted tale of a girl who wants a man she can’t have. She mostly hits the mark in this acoustic track and has the right foundations for a decent country ballad.

My Best Days

My Best Days is a short song of cleverly utilised trap beats, autotune and slowly layering instrumental in which Lana isn’t happy without her lover. The organ outro is gorgeous, and it’s a track that can perk you up or calm you down.

Get Drunk

Restless pace, whispered mocking and an overall darkly seductive tone – it’s unembellished and, in some ways, could play as Lana dealing with her past alcoholism (demanding whomever the song is directed to should get drunk). It’s a vibe Lana should explore more over a decade since Get Drunk and the like were made.

Let My Hair Down

A simple and spooky track, Lana has an acoustic jam session consisting of unsettled guitar, bongos and her voice. It’s rather repetitive but it’s something different that works well. It shows Lana doesn’t need too many fusses and frills on her tracks to make something captivating, much like her Sirens album.

Every Man Gets His Wish

The intro of upbeat whistling climbs into a lowkey track that goes from sensual stuttering and a sad chorus that still sounds like Lana has a smile on her face. The mood shifts along with the tune but it is altogether cohesive.

Dance For Money

As stripped as the pole dancer Lana plays, Lana gently teases and cajoles in her ode to older men, lemonade and motorcycles with little else.

Back To Tha Basics

Much like the title, this track is a little bit basic but it’s still zesty with a wonderful instrumental and some pop-inspired vocals.

Butterflies Part 2

Production isn’t perfect on this track but Lana has such promise in this song in which she compares to lured in girls to butterflies pinned to a wall, all at once melancholy, knowing and cheeky. It’s unfortunate that the lyrics are so hidden beneath the dominating instrumental, but with tweaking this stormer could be even better.

Children of the Bad Revolution

The kind of song that would be found on one of her albums, Children of the Bad Revolution is a pacy dedication to Lana’s life as a delinquent a la the 1950s starlets. It’s good but it’s not anything too impressive, instead a chilled track that is simply about being free.

Beautiful Player

Lana mopes in the track about a somewhat disliked girl (perhaps they’re all jealous of her) who is in love with one of her players, giving the feel of a villain club performer smiling with red lipstick on and black mascara staining her cheeks.

Lift Your Eyes

Lana takes control in this song, instructing her lover to lift his eyes, rise above his demons and join her in self-respect. It’s a fine alternative to her gushing and moping characters, and with machine-like music running under the song, Lana sounds stronger than ever.

Valley of the Dolls

In this compact track Lana is once again frustrated by her lover. It’s pained but pretty with her vocals once again taking the forefront.

C U L8r Alligator

Just an acapella demo, C U L8r Alligator is simply Lana’s voice with her beating a rhythm in time. However, I really do like this song. I think it would sound even better polished and complete, but for a rough demo it’s promising. The Kristijan Majic remix is the version I most listen to, which makes it sound even more eerie (and if anyone remembers the D1ETPUSSY video that went with it, you’ll get why this song doubly haunts me). It’s not Lana’s finest but it’s a song I would have loved to see developed.

In The Sun

In The Sun is so hot it burns, more heatwave than refreshing sunshine, as she scorns her ex-lover. It’s not the finest instrumental but Lana sticks her fingers up with incredulous shock that someone could betray her so. She keeps the vibe great paired with blue skies and swimming pools with the upbeat music.

Hot Hot Hot

Big Bad Wolf, a slightly different demo track, is what I favour – stripped back, sexily uneasy, the lyrics letting the vivid imagery of red skirts, red cars and devilish men shine. Yet Hot Hot Hot is a decent, if not cheesier, song too, the chanting great for singing along.

Trees

Lana and The Rich Whores strike out with this kickass band-driven track that showcases Lana’s feistier vocals strongly. The lyrics are sparse but the overall feel of Lana going nineties-rock-chick keeps me wanting more of her in this style.

Push Me Down

Rather than being like the controversial Ultraviolence, Lana keeps the ‘violence’ fun in this pacy song, demanding her bad boy treats her badly in the best way possible. With a mildly rock edge, it’s still distinctively party-Lana, reminding of a pop-ier True Love On The Side.

She’s Not Me

It isn’t particularly imaginative pop but Lana lets the guitars do the talking as she whispers her warnings to her ex-lover. Lana owns this track, and though it feels a bit amateur in comparison to her discography and some of her stronger unreleased music, it shows she would have been great even if she went for the noughties chart pop scene. Fun and punchy, it’s a song to play on repeat.

I Don’t Wanna Go

The tentative and tight intro gives me the vibe that Lana wants to avoid going home rather than simply wanting to hang out with her lover, and her pain-tinted vocals in the chorus only add to the theory. She compliments her fascinating guy throughout the verses, a little more restrained but ultimately tense in delivery, before confessing how much she wants to stay out.

St Tropez

This is a great track for dancing and a celebration of being a party girl with plenty of attention. Best played when you want to imagine yourself as the main character.

Summer of Sam

Lana has yet another song of being a cutesy bad girl, comparable to the likes of Dangerous Girl and Playground, but it’s still fairly generic, standard pop fare. Summer of Sam is still quite fun however, drenched in pop and even with a hint of rap-talking keeping the song lively.

I Talk To Jesus

Lana returns to her religious roots in a less blasphemous way (Body Electric, for example) and instead sings a sad ditty about wishing she could have her old life. Solemnly it remembers her past (as seen in her older music) where she had the trailer parks, Christmas lights and her equally holy boyfriend.

Axl Rose Husband

The imagery is rich and gorgeous, not to mention the reference to one of Lana’s idols, but Axl Rose Husband doesn’t always do it for me – despite her strained, desperate vocals that perfectly exemplify her emotion.

Ooh Baby

Sampling Sexual Healing, Lana ramps up the sex appeal as she lets the listener know how much they want her, all while keeping it a little but more upbeat than the original song.

Other Woman

Lana’s tired of being the other woman in this track, and I like the way the lyrics flesh out the story a bit more rather. However, the chorus does get a bit tiresome sometimes.

Girl That Got Away

Lana shows you exactly what you’re missing as she mopes for her ex-lover with a smile on her face, taking the reins and knowing she has something he misses in a bubble-gum pop song about being the it girl you’ll regret letting go of.

#lana del rey #lana del rey songs #lana del rey unreleased #cherry-interlude

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blacksunscorpio · 4 years

Note

Sick page Leo Midheaven. You gained a follower. What placements do you like in others?

P.S. I Love You to the Signs/Placements

Scorpio Mercury’s

..Have silky, haunting voices. I will not know who is speaking or singing but my ears will pulsate and then I’m stuck in a trance. For example, Snoop Dogg has a silvery sounding voice. Could be all the cannabis but I’m gonna chalk it up to his Mercury sitting in all that Plutonic energy. Sza sings in a cursive-esque manner. Like some powerful serpent through water, It’s enticing. The lead singer of the band ‘Chevelle’ has his Mercury in Scorpio and I could listen to him croon forever.

Cancer Mercury’s

...Have ethereal sounding pipes. I think it’s all that moon energy. It’s melancholic but in a lullaby way. Just read me the yellow pages in that voice. Lana Del Rey sings like she’s howling at the moon. Long and mournful and drawn out, like it echoes.

Capricorn Moons/Placements

...I like how disciplined you are. How hardworking you are. Your regimented approach and your ruthless ambition to excel. I could do without some of your cruelty at times and though people can take you for cold, I feel your practical approach to things is something everyone can learn from.

Capricorn Mercury’s

After the first two, your Mercury placement is everything. It is structured. Haunting. Hypnotic. Anthony Hopkins and James Earl Jones both have this placement. Deep and earthy. Penetrating.

Libra Placements/ Risings

You are beautiful. Period. I love how you try to be diplomatic. How you see the good in people. You have to work on your ability to stand up for yourself a bit more but us cynics need you around to remind us a life of war isn’t the only way.

Arians/Martians

Especially in the 1st house: I love how authentic you are at the ascendant. I love that you don’t take any shit from anyone. You’re not afraid to call out a fake or a phony. When it’s time to go to war, you [all] have been my most loyal allies. You never compromise your ideals or morals for anyone. Your thick skin. Your energy and resilience, It’s admirable.

Taurus Risings/Taurean/Venusian Placements.

I admire your grit and tenacity. Believe it or not, I admire how stubborn you can be. How you love facts and figures. How you speak fluent sarcasm. I admire your elegance and your appreciation for the finer things in life. I love that you are not afraid to indulge in them either. That you realize there is no shame in a life of prosperity. You are what best friends are made of.

Most Elevated Planet as Uranus

I am in awe of your rebellious energy. Your “fuck the world” approach to life. Uranians in general, I admire that you move to the beat of your own drum and find ways to capitalize on it. That Alien energy is so ‘fetch’ ;). This is a placement of the outlaw that still makes a name for themselves. Mafia Boss Carlo Gambino and The Late Great Nipsey Hussle have their Most elevated Planet as Uranus.

Virgo Placements

I love how detail-oriented you are. Virgo Mars’ I love how you care for your health and physique. Though your nitpicking can be annoying, sometimes love comes in the form of correction and you capitalize on this. The rest of the Zodiac need people like you to fact check and clock all the things the rest of us miss. I love how facts figures just come to you out of nowhere. How you, as an Earth sign mesh well with me, Water. How you stay out of Scorpio’s way. Virgo’s are the placement I have had the least issues with.

Capricorn Mars’

I would make love to you forever if I could. Your Stamina is unmatched.

Cancer Placements [Even the men]

I appreciate your nurturing nature. How you’re always trying to make sure everyone is Ok. How your devotion is unmatched when someone is finally able to get you out of your shell. How protective you get. How your anger is biblical if you or a loved one is crossed.

Leo Placements

You fight for the people you love. How you will start a melee just to protect your friends. How you’re like gravity, and people are simply drawn to you. Your regal presence. I could do without your drama sometimes but even that can be a sight in itself. Your warmth and joviality. Your natural leadership capabilities.

Gemini Placements

I hate you and can’t stay away from you at the same time. You’re fascinating. Your intelligence, how you can piece together an idea with ease. How you can bullshit like no other. The gift of gab, your charm, your cleverness, your ability to debate anything and make fair points at the same time. How you are the social butterfly of the zodiac. Will I ever trust you? Absolutely not. If you fuck with me, will I destroy you? Probably. But I’ve had some of the best experiences conversationally and socially with you around. You light up the room.

Jupiter/Sag Placements

You make me so happy. You make everyone happy. Your jolly nature. Your penchant for exploration. How you love to learn from others. How you’re not afraid to shout and be joyful [even if your other placements are more introverted]. Your ability to connect with people from all walks of life due to your ability to expand, not just your mind but your heart. I appreciate your ability to never stay in the same place for long. This world is meant to be explored and you are the authority on this.

Neptunian/Piscean Placements

You are unrivaled when it comes to intuition. I love your ability to dream, to think up all kinds of fantastic things. How you pick up on the subtleties and nuances that many others miss. How you’re not afraid to be vulnerable. That in itself is a gift. Your talent with music and art. How your serenades could make Orpheus jealous.

Lilith Dominants

Kings and Queens, Your ‘Devil May Care” attitude is savage and I am here for it. You are unapologetic with the way you live your life. You do what you want, eat what you want, fuck who you want, and never mind the consequences. You do what we all wish we had the balls to. Hedonism is not a sin to you but a perfectly acceptable way to live. We should all be brave enough to do as we wish and not care what others think.

Plutonians

I will ride forever for you. This includes Moon/Pluto folk, Venus/Pluto folk, Mars/Pluto folk Sun/Pluto folks, etc. This is why I scream “GANG!” when one of you messages me and anyone who has an issue with it can have a seat in the back with the rest of the bitches waiting for me to give AF. I admire your intensity. I admire how deeply you feel everything. How you own being misunderstood. Your commitment to finding out the truth no matter what. Your unapologetic mission to seek vengeance justice when you’re wronged. How you can cook up a hex/curse like no other. Your devotion is only rivaled/matched to Leo’s. How you can seduce almost anyone with just a glance. How you accept and embrace sexuality and don’t apologize for it. How you’re able to read minds. Your tactician-like approach to everything. How you don’t fear the dark, but rather embrace it.

Chiron Dominants

...Or those with strong Chiron aspects, thank you for trying to heal everyone even when you’re hurting. Your ability to teach and know just where someone needs a pick me up is everything. There is a special place saved in Elysium for you.

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your-lips-are-very-red · 3 years

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St. Vincent x Emma Madden Interview

This is the text from the St. Vincent interview that Emma Madden was asked to not use. Since Miss Madden has decided to take it down, I wanted it to be available somewhere online - in case she manages to get all the cached versions taken down, too.

SOURCE: https://archive.is/wFkLN

About a fortnight ago I was commissioned to interview St. Vincent, an artist I have been inspired by, impressed by, turned on by, compelled by, curious of, in awe of, occasionally suspicious of—for the better half of a decade. I try not to think about other journalists too much, but St. Vincent has developed a reputation for intimidating us. For her last press cycle, she made her interviewers crawl into a pink box; she would play a pre-recorded message on a tape recorder if a question bored or irked her. I found that quite funny—irresistibly imperious—but I considered it an act of degradation rather than an interesting switch of power. I love famous people but I also find them quite silly, like a Schnauzer wearing a bowtie.

I didn’t know why, but for around two hours after our call ended, I was reeling with nervous energy. I was vocalising it and trying to get to the other side of it, the way I sing songs when I’m walking through a haunted house. I woke up the next morning with a voice message from the editor who assigned this piece. I am fond of this person and I will not name them. MBC, the team in charge of St. Vincent’s publicity (which is helmed by Barbara Charone, who also works for Madonna, and is considered one of the more powerful and intimidating publicists in the industry) had been on the phone to this editor, demanding the piece be pulled. My editor’s words: “They said she’s terrified of this interview coming out.” The publication didn’t have a leg to stand on.

"Terrified"? That word didn't seem to square. I thought I had done a not-so-good job the night before. I ended the call thinking I hadn’t asked the right questions. St. Vincent and I didn’t feel like a good match in conversation (or at least not in this conversational setup set-up, for which I was given thirty minutes, and continual reminders from the person on St. Vincent’s team, who remained on the call with us, that we’d need to wrap up well in time for St. Vincent’s Instagram Live session with Paul McCartney, which directly followed our interview.) St. Vincent tended to interpret my questions in bad faith. I assumed she believed me to be a Bad Reader; presumptuous, judgemental, simple, anti-curious—all qualities that her latest album ‘Daddy’s Home’, which I’ve interpreted as a counter to the folly, inadequacy and meretriciousness of moral purity—counters. Anyway, she read me wrong. I love Lana Del Rey.

I got a call from MBC later that morning by a man who sounded quite nervous. I told him I was confused, I asked him what the matter seemed to be. He wasn't totally sure, he said, "she found the interview aggressive." Aggressive? I complimented her and cowed to her and laughed at her jokes. "Well, the message has been passed down a line of many messengers, she might not have actually said that." The man on the phone said that this—one of his artists demanding an interview to be pulled—had never happened to him before. It hadn't happened to me either. I felt annoyed by how easy it was for St. Vincent to kill something I had researched and expected money for. But the interview started to seem valuable to me after I was told that she didn't want it out in the world. "Can we draw a line under this and just kill the piece here?" said the man on the phone.

Below is the full transcript of my interview with St. Vincent (save for a short and-forth about Tool which didn’t make sense when turned into text). My questions are in bold, her responses are in italics.

**for the sake of this post, Madden’s questions are bold and Annie’s answers are not** Hi, how are you? Good how’s it going?

Not too bad. What’s your mood for today? My mood for today, well it’s good, I’m getting on an Instagram Live chat with Paul McCartney in a couple minutes so my mood is a little bit nervous but good.

I’m excited to talk about this album, I think it has a sick sense of humor that I appreciate a lot. I’ve had a really fun time listening to it.

Oh I’m glad, thank you.

I’m sensing there’s kind of a 70s trend at the moment in terms of fashion and the ways some other bands are presenting themselves. Is that something you were anticipating, is that something you feel you belong to, or was it just kind of accidental?

Accidental.

Do you feel bummed about that? No I don’t, I always just kind of do my own thing.

Do you think there’s a reason why people might be inspired by the 70s today? Do you see an analog with our world today and with the 70s? I guess this album is based in 1973, right?

Between ‘71 and ‘76, so post flower children idealism, post the Summer of Love hangover, but pre escapism of gay disco and pre nihilism of punk. Life was bad but music was good, kind of vibe.

Kind of when the trash aesthetic was taking hold, especially by Andy Warhol. Does trash inspire you? Um like literal rubbish?

No like the trash aesthetic, I guess in the PR you call it sleazy, grimy. Yeah but the difference with sleazy is that sleazy tries to present as glamorous but there’s something off, trash is just trash. I don’t know if trash pretends to be anything other.

Can you have glamour without sleaze? Sure, absolutely. I mean, like the 20s Greta Garbo way, I would say Golden Era Hollywood, I mean behind the scenes it was probably a nightmare but you look at it and it is very genuinely shiny and beautiful.

I love the sitar on this album especially on ‘Down’, the riff is so sick. How did you get to the sitar? Well it’s not a sitar per se, it’s a choral electric sitar guitar and so it was I think George Harrison made them kind of popular in the ‘60s, I think the one I have is from ’67 and it plays like a guitar but it has a resonating body on it so it sounds sitar-esque. It was made very famous in the Steely Dan Do it Again solo.

I guess the main PR bulletin point of this album is about your dad coming out of jail. Why did you want that to be the main way that people might read this album? More like an entry point, the title Daddy’s Home to me I mean one, it is literal but also it’s funny and cringy and pervy and also I think more than anything kind of refers to my own transformation into Daddy as it were. Yeah it’s probably not anything I would’ve really thrown out there except that it was made public without my consent but I didn’t really get to tell that side of the story and I don’t bring it up for sympathy. It simply is my story, it’s not intended to be indicative of necessarily anything, it’s just my story and I was gonna tell it with humor and compassion, all of that.

Did you anticipate a lack of sympathy for your dad’s crimes and the subject matter of this album and did that factor into how you shaped this record? That’s the tail wagging the dog my dear. No, no. A lack of sympathy, well, which crime would be the most sympathetic? I didn’t do anything, I’m simply writing about something that I think on some level everyone who’s ever had a parent can understand in the sense of you’re often going “How much of you am I?” and we kind of do identity projection through all these things so no, it’s again, it’s not really there for anything other than my own anecdotal story.

At what point did you transform into this daddy character? For how much of your adult life have you been the daddy? Oh I would just say over the past few years, I’ve just been quite a bit more leaned back and shoulder shrug and say let’s just sit down in the old beat up leather armchair and have a tequila and chat it out you know. Life is complicated, human beings are complicated and I wanted to just write stories about flawed people. There’s a whole lot of judgement going around and not a whole lot of understanding. And judgement is anti-curious. There are some people, perhaps the more sanctimonious and morally pure, who might not be interested in an artist’s reflection on their father’s white collar crimes. Do you have much sympathy for those kinds of people? I mean I think I can get sympathy for all people. If that is the reason why they decide not to spend 46 minutes with my work then I’m sure there’s plenty of other work out there for them that they can enjoy that is morally pure. They should find pure work from pure people and enjoy it.

I guess last year’s riots brought abolition towards the mainstream, during the time you were making this record, which is partially about your father’s time in prison. How did that square with your thoughts on prison and the US carceral system? Well I have plenty of thoughts on it, I’m not totally sure how it’s relevant to this.

Well I was wondering if you have a standpoint on it or if you’d rather just be ambiguous? I have so many thoughts and opinions, I don’t presume that my thoughts and opinions are relevant on every subject though. I don’t have that much hubris.

I understand. I was wondering about the Candy Darling inspiration, how does she come into the fold? Oh I just, Candy Darling to me is such a beautiful heroine in that she came from Queens and went not geographically far but worlds away to Manhattan and became her true self and in that particular kind of combination of glamour and toughness, where you feel like her name should be on the marquee and yet she could stick you with a shiv if you said the wrong thing. And I just find her inspiring and really beautiful, and I didn’t know but I found out a friend of mine was close with her and was at her bedside when she died so I was just picturing Candy Darling’s ascent to heaven as taking the final uptown train.

Wow. Did you feel like you were embodying her on this album or presenting as her? No not as such, but definitely taking inspiration from some of her energy for sure. I do hear a bit of her voice on the title track, I was wondering if you were kind of modeling your voice after her? On Daddy’s Home? Oh, no.

I love the sultriness of that song, even though it’s just about signing autographs in prison. I found it really funny. Yeah it’s definitely again, I’m writing about my own story with humor and compassion and self-effacement, all that.

Do you see this album as a movement, does it have a narrative? Yeah. It’s a full story, it’s a full collection of short stories. It has a shape and everything.

That’s just how I listened to this album, as a series of short stories. I was wondering how they interlink in your mind? I guess you have the person on Broadway, you have your dad, you have the person who’s maybe thinking of having a baby or not having a baby. I just could write stories of flawed people doing their best to get by because I’ve been most of the people on this album at one point of my life or another. And again I could write about them without condemnation and judgement just, here we are.

Are you a nostalgic person? No not generally.

Not even during the creation of this album? I’m thinking of the humming tracks, your mum cooking in the kitchen. Not exactly, I think that this particular kind of music with its sophistication and some of the jazz language in the harmony and its sense of time, it was a kind of music that I’d loved for so long but never really dipped into myself, and I think we kind of learn things a lot of times when we’re ready to, and I think I was kind of ready to learn some of the lessons that this kind of music had to teach me.

Do you think about shame a lot? Um, I think that shame is the reason why most people do the violence that they do. I think violence is an expression of impotence.

What was it about the post-idealist era in particular that you were drawn to, why not go through the flower power utopia sort of 60s route? I think that there’s an intellectual orthodoxy that is involved in utopian thinking and a lot of times it doesn’t allow for either a complex set of incentives or it doesn’t allow for the totality of human nature in its equation, and then it fails and because the structure of any kind of power is really complicated so I think in general the desire… and I understand that we’re living in, in some ways, I think just with the internet part of it, in some ways unprecedented times. And I understand people’s desire for certainty in times economic strife, cultural upheaval, all this stuff. I completely understand the desire for certainty. But I don’t think it’s as simple as demanding moral purity and punishing anyone who doesn’t fix the orthodox criteria. I understand the desire but I’m not sure it’s gonna get to where I think we want to be, which is just general more equality, whether it’s wealth equality, wealth disparity, all that kind of stuff I just think the matrices of power are really complicated.

You were saying earlier about Daddy and how you were thinking about your dad and the overlap between you two and how we all possibly become our parents. I was wondering how you consolidate the influences of your parents? I don’t know anything about them obviously but I know that your mum was a social worker, your dad was an entrepreneur, and those seem like two totally opposing worlds. Yes, my mother is a social worker and she instilled in all of us I think the idea that the work we do should be meaningful and she’s definitely really humanistic and that kind of thinking I think, that had an impression on me. My dad wasn’t an entrepreneur, my dad was a stock broker I think? But I grew up with my mom and my stepdad and my stepdad was a very different kind of guy, just was an army brat and grew up really poor, and was just coming from a different mindset and they’re just very different kinds of people. Not a judgement thing, just very different. Yeah my mom definitely errs on the very humble side. And yeah, my dad is a complicated, charismatic person who’s also very intelligent, and who went down a path that was full of consequence. Yeah they’re really, really different people so it’s funny to kind of square who was who.

What does your dad think of this album? Oh he loves it!

Yay, that’s good to know. Did you ever rebel against your dad’s lifestyle growing up as a teenager? I didn’t grow up with him, and he was in Tulsa Oklahoma. I don’t know what lifestyle you’re necessarily presuming but..

No I’m not presuming, just wanted a little background on your relationship with him I guess. So he wasn’t in your life that much where you were younger? I would go and we would spend summers there and Christmas, but I grew up in Dallas for the most part with my mom and my stepdad.

Was this album in any way an opportunity to get closer to your dad? Not in any way consciously, no.

But are you finding with age and with time you’re getting closer to him? Well him being out of prison helps in terms of just proximity. Yeah, here’s what I’m finding. I’m finding that we live by the stories that we tell ourselves and that sometimes we realize that the story we’ve been telling ourselves for a long time was either wrong or lacked a certain amount of information, and then we have the choice of whether to reject the new information because it’s too painful to rethink the story that we’ve been telling ourselves, or assimilate the new information and go, wow life is complicated, this is an interesting wrinkle. I choose to do the latter.

Yeah, it’s very easy to bullshit yourself, right? Yeah, it's true in all kind of ways you know?

This story, the story of your dad, it almost seems redemptive. I mean I would say so, and that’s not in any way what I intended and you know, a lot of times when you’re making something, I mean you’re a writer you know, you have the compulsion to make it but you’re not necessarily sure where it’s coming from or why or any of those kind of questions, but I think there is the possibility of redemption, I do, I think there is the possibility of people to change and I think there is a possibility of things like forgiveness and growth. And if I didn’t think that there was a possibility for human beings to change, to grow, to take in new information and then continue to write their story, then I don’t know what we’d really be doing, you know? And that’s not really the world I want to live in, we’re a moving picture we’re not a still photograph.

Do you want to try and change the world, do you feel like you have that power, do you feel hopeful that there can be a better future? Sorry for the cheesy language. No, I mean I don’t think that many people would accuse me of being an optimist in a lot of ways, and I don’t think in terms of my “power to change the world” I mean I think all I can do is try to study the human condition and write about the human condition in some way that resonates and then maybe people will hear that and that will resonate with them and I think that ultimately the best case scenario for music is empathy because it’s like psychologically this is why we like to listen to stories or this is why we like to watch movies is so we can go down the empathy exercise and you can see yourself as that person in the film, see someone who isn’t like you in any way, shape or form from a just box ticking kind of way, but then realize oh, we’re very similar in some ways or what would I do if I was in that situation, we do all these things and we live by these stories and I think those stories well-told can encourage empathy and empathy can go out into the world and have a kind of transformative experience. I don’t really think about, I mean I think once I make a thing and then it’s out in the world and it’s for other people to assimilate or enjoy or not, whatever, however they take it, is absolutely fine by me. But it’s for them, it’s not my place in any way to say how people should or should not enjoy it or assimilate it.

Yeah the reason I brought up prison abolition earlier is because that might be how some people contextualize this album. I would say that that’s one lens. That to me would not be the main lens.

[I’m told to wrap it up]

Yeah let’s wrap up. So Tool cover album next? No, I wish.

Someday I’m hoping. I love Tool.

I feel your Paul McCartney nerves Yeah, I’m gonna go shower.

That’s always a good idea. Okay take care, thank you again for you time Thanks, bye.

#st vincent #emma madden #interview #daddys home

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batsandbugs · 4 years

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Damian Wayne x Marinette Dupain-Cheng Playlist - Part 1

(As always the pictures aren’t mine!)

So I love music playlists, I have one for almost every OTP, holiday, or mood. When I found out we didn’t have a Daminette playlist post, I had to put one together. Starting out at pre established playlists for the two did little to help, because their universes are very different and they’re personalities do not lend to overlap within a song only about one or the other. But after some searching I found several that I thought fit well. These are only my opinions though. 😊

I would love if you left recommendations for a Part 2!

Can You Feel the Love Tonight - Pentatonix

I utterly fell in love with this song the second I heard it. I love most of their songs and covers because they’re such a creative group. I got into Daminette and this song just clicked for those two. This was actually the first song for the playlist!

Drama Club - Melanie Martinez

Okay so this is less a Daminette song and more of a salt song against The Class from Marinette’s perspective. But like since half of the Daminette stuff is salt in one form or another I feel justified putting it on here. Recommended to me by @tiny-goddess-of-chaos

Angel - Jack Johnson

I love Jack Johnson and could listen to his stuff for hours. This song is sweet, short, and I figure is a sappy inner monologue of Damian’s in the morning or something. It mentions angels, heroes, and soulmates - literally the perfect Daminette song.

Falling - Trevor Daniel

Another recommendation by @tiny-goddess-of-chaos this could be perfect from either Damian or Marinette’s perspective if either of them had been in a relationship before.

How Do You Talk To An Angel - The Heights

I think any song with angel in the lyrics or title is self explanatory for this pairing 😅 But I love the mood of this song; it fits Damian’s cluelessness at how to deal with a girl who’s not quite intimidated by him and at the same time totally able to keep up with him - how to talk to a angel indeed.

Taking Chances - Celine Dione (Glee Cover)

Okay so I found this song and I didn’t like the Céline Dion version, but I loved the Glee version. I know, Glee? Really? But hear me out, the song is perfect for Damian and Marinette; “don’t know much about your life, don’t know much about your world” and “what do you say to jumping off the edge, never knowing if there’s solid ground below, a hand to hold, or he’ll to pay” trust me it’s perfect! And Lea Michele does a great job singing and the chorus towards the end is too pretty for words! 🥰

I Choose - Alessia Cara

Okay this is another one from @tiny-goddess-of-chaos and oh my gosh it’s soooo PERFECT! You could just imagine Marinette singing it to Damian. It fits them so well!

Love Me Like You Do - Ellie Goulding

This is just a good song from Marinette’s perspective and it’s a little darker than your average love song which just fits better.

Lucky Ones - Lana Del Rey

Oh my gosh this song is too perfect for these two. I saw the lyrics and was immediately sold and then I saw it was by Lana Del Rey which means that it had that beautiful haunting sound her songs have which is the perfect aesthetic for these two. The best line is “every now and then the stars align, boy and girl meet by the great design” and it just sends shivers down my spine.

Superheroes - The Script

I mean, pretty self explanatory, but still such a good song and the imagery really fits with Damian and Marinette. They really have to be stronger in order to be heroes and I feel like this song synthesizes that for these two.

When the Day Met the Night - Panic at the Disco

Everything about this song is perfect for Damian and Marinette; the lyrics, the imagery, the tune, the mood - just perfect. “Just hanging around and he fell in love, and he didn’t know how to get out.” Uh, if that’s not our poor assassin boy right there I don’t know what is. 😁

Angels or Devils - Dishwalla

Such a great song from Damian’s perspective. Perfect for imagining both of them going through a hard time and supporting each other through it. Plus the language is perfect imagery for them.

Lucky - Jason Mraz

One of the few duet songs I found for this pairing (I’ll need some more part two) Two lovers pining for each other across the sea? Daminette for sure 😊

Luck Be a Lady Tonight - Frank Sinatra

Classy and fancy, with such a perfect Marinette vibe. It makes me think of all the galas/balls/fundraisers in all the fics that I had to include it.

Can’t Help Falling In Love - Pentatonix Version

Have I mentioned that I love Pentatonix, because I really do. Their version of this song is so epic, and it just really fits these two.

Heroes (we could be) - Alesso

I think this song rally hits the superhero/vigilante side of their personalities even better than Superheroes by the Script. It really hits on the difficulties of being a hero and the call to be a hero - which is so big for both of them.

Lucky Strike - Maroon 5

Such a fun song to listen to and absolutely perfect for Marinette!

Angel - Aerosmith

Any good playlist should have some old fashioned rock and roll! 🎸 This song is beyond perfect lyrics wise for these two! I’m imagining all the Damian perspective songs are being passionately sung in his head while he only scoffs aloud. Any telepath in the room is going to hear a never ending stream of gush! 🥰

As Long As Your Mine - Wicked

The one other duet song on here, and the only one from musical theatre which is insane, so I’ll be combing for more for part two. This one was recommended to me by @salty-fang so thanks for that! It’s Wicked, so what more than I could say than its perfect!

Lovebug - Jonas Brothers

Oh my gosh I’m jumping all over the past several decades for material 😅 I actually really like some of the old Jonas brothers stuff and this song was too perfect not too add. It’s so sweet.

Safe and Sound - Capital Cities

Another recommendation from @tiny-goddess-of-chaos a really fun sing with a total Daminette vibe.

Stand by You - Rachel Platten

I love this song and as soon as I was putting together a playlist for these two it was inevitable that it ended up on there. It’s such a great song about standing together and get through hard times and the imagery is perfect for this couple.

Fools - Lauren Aquilina

I have the animatic in my head for this song because it’s just that perfect for Daminette. It’s haunting in that same way Lana Del Rey’s stuff is. Absolutely stunning!

Angel in Blue Jeans - Train

Okay, I love the beat and rythm in this song. And the lyrics are so perfect! I could also see this as a Jasonette song, but either way great fit for this fandom!

Alright I’d love to hear what y’all think! Please leave any recommendations you think would fit for these two!!

😇♥️😈

#damian x marinette #maribat #maridami #ml x dc #mlb crossover #moodboard #playlist #damimari #marinnette dupain cheng x damian wayne #daminette

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rainofaugustsith · 3 years

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On Vette vs. Torian

So there's another discussion about that awful Torian vs. Vette choice on Reddit. Since I don't post there, I thought I'd gather my observations here. CW: discussion of character death

IMHO saying that Vette is a 'damsel in distress' is not giving her credit where credit is due. If you are a Sith Warrior, you know she was part of Nok Drayen's crew as a kid, and that's nothing to sneeze at. You know she's been an assassin. You know she's been strong enough to get onto Korriban, which is supposed to be a restricted world. You know she can get through numerous Sith tombs and solve puzzles on Korriban that the Sith couldn't solve themselves. And as a wonderful post on Tumblr pointed out, in the Dark Temple where everyone is going mad, Vette's calm comment is to ask if she can lift a few bits and pieces.

If you are from the other classes you may not have that backstory for Vette, but you do know she was clever enough to rewire a warhead for her own amusement. She was able to break her way out of impossible confines on Iokath. She's obviously verrrryyy good with computers. And she does not back down. Vette isn't a weak damsel in distress; she's got a kill count.

Having said that, it's also obvious that between Torian and Vette, Vette is terrified of dying. That's another piece of backstory that Sith Warriors have: on almost every planet in the class story, in the background chatter Vette has a line like "have I ever told you, I'm afraid of dying of (whatever is on that planet)." She tells the Sith Warrior, "If I die, I'm going to haunt you.," It's all delivered as quips, but they are 'jokes' that Vette keeps repeating without laughing.

Without that background knowledge, it's still obvious that Vette is more afraid. She does not want to die.

Torian is a Mandalorian. He's as fierce as they come. If you are a Bounty Hunter you know his backstory; how locating and defeating his father on Taris was important enough that he was willing to cover himself in rakghoul entrails and sacrifice himself to accomplish it. You know he's a young man with a very large legacy on his shoulders, a lot of responsibility, and no clan to back him up. It's all a tall order, even for a Mandalorian.

But I don't think anyone ever denies that Torian is tough. In the other classes you meet him as you are planning for battle. You watch him sacrifice other Mandalorians to the fight. You share a Death Ceremony with him. Despite the Mandalorians' talk of dying in a blaze of glory, though, Torian still wants to be saved on Odessen.

Now, between the two of them, who should be saved? Either. IMHO there is no positive or negative choice.

I always save Vette. My canon Outlander/Commander is my Sith Warrior Viri, who considers Vette to be her sister. There's no way she would sacrifice Vette.

But even my bounty hunters save Vette over Torian. I'll be honest: it's because I personally like Vette more. I also want everyone who goes through KOTET - which is an AU for everyone but Viri - to be able to fit into Viri's world with certain characters always available for screenshots.

I object to the auto-complete choices for KOTET, which say that every Republic class - plus the Sith Warrior - saves Vette, while the remaining three Imperial classes save Torian. It's not a LS or DS choice, it's about which character has connected with the player more.

I object to the choice in general, as well. It's a Virmire choice. It's the same sort of choice one has in the Trooper story, where one has to decide to let someone die as they are literally begging for their life or to kill off a lot of unknowing prisoners. It's meant to evoke strong emotion and conflict in the player.

In KOTET's case, I feel strongly that it's also specifically engineered to eliminate any sympathy one might have toward Vaylin after learning about her horrific imprisonment on Nathema. Vaylin killed your pal; you have to retaliate. To make it worse, they picked two very popular, beloved companions for this choice. That's how it is set up with no way to veer from the narrative.

I've seen suggestions that if one has Senya/Arcann alive, they should be able to rescue whoever is left from Torian or Vette. I don't agree with that. I personally feel that whether the player has Lana/Theron or Senya/Arcann, they should have had an option to save both. Maybe that could have hinged on your actions earlier in KOTFE and KOTET, or a combination of actions.

- If you'd raised the Specialists' influence levels, for example, maybe your Specialists developed enough expertise and weapons to save both Torian and Vette.

- If you saved the refugees and civilians on Zakuul, perhaps they showed up to help.

- Maybe the Scions decided to help out if you were nice(r) to them and didn't kill Hesker.

- If you finished, say, four of the Star Fortresses, maybe those companions showed up as your rescue team.

- Did you give the Mandalorians the plans while you were on Darvannis? Since you didn't kill them off, they are alive to help!

- Did you put money back into the Alliance after the Vette and Gault mission? You have shiny new weapons to save both companions!

The point was, there were ways they could have rewarded the player for engaging more in KOTFE/KOTET that would have led to a more positive outcome.

In my own headcanoned universe, Torian is dead. That's because the game narrative is set up that way, and while I do diverge from canon when I can, I feel that removing pivotal moments in the game is perhaps taking it too far. I have Viri send Pierce and his group to try to save Torian, but they are cut off at the pass and can’t get there. But I also respect the headcanon that sees both companions survive.

As I mentioned, I really don't like these choices. They usually feel like a cheap way to raise the stakes in a story, and I feel there are other ways to get there.

#swtor #vette #torian #kotet #kotet spoilers #character death #cw: character death #tw: character death

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surveys-at-your-service · 3 years

Text

Survey #423

“i won’t think about you when i’m older / ‘cuz we never really had our closure”

Are you better at cooking dinners or making cakes/biscuits/sweets? Neither. Have you ever cut someone else’s hair? No. Who was the last guest in your house and what were they staying for? My late grandmother's husband stayed overnight when he was driving from New York to Florida or the other way around, idr. How many long term relationships have you been in? Two. Do you sleep with all the lights out, or do you leave a lamp or even the television on? My snake's heat lamp stays on. Who is one person you have forgiven, but still have not “forgotten” what they have done? My dad. Are you a fan of Lana Del Rey? I don't think I've even heard one of her songs. Do you know your blood type? A-. Do you know your mother’s birthday? Yes. Have you got your period at the moment? I haven't had my period since I started TMS. It's honestly so fucking frustrating that it obviously had an effect on my body, but not my depression. I've officially finished TMS as of a few days ago and now I just feel so void of hope. Have you ever been pregnant? No. How old were you when you first went on a plane? Idr, I was a little kid. Have you ever had to take out a loan for anything? Not me personally, but my parents have for my education that I threw away. Are both of your blood parents still in your life? Yes. I don't see my dad a lot, but he's still in my life regardless. When was the last time you went apple picking? I’ve never been. Someone asked you what you wanted, what would you say? Happiness. Have you ever been drunk at school or work? I have not. How many bedrooms are in your house? Three. Are you smart about computers? Not really, no. Have you ever played Just Dance for Wii? Yes. My sister loved them, so we have a few. Do you own a Xbox 360? No. I'm a PlayStation girl. Would you ever do a sex tape for a million dollars? No. I'd be mortified. So, do you need a nap? I really should take one. I slept like... maybe three hours last night. I was up most of the night having a fucking life crisis. What would you rather be doing? Something fun. What sport are you the best at? I haven't touched any sort of sport since I was a teenager. Do you have a little sister? What’s her name? Yeah, Nicole. Do you complain a lot? Kind of, but I generally try to keep it in surveys nowadays. I'm just tired of shit. Would you rather go to an authentic haunted house or an ancient temple? Ohhh, tough pick, but I've gotta say the ancient temple. Do you like fruity or minty gum? Both, really. Are you looking forward to any day of this month? Well July is practically over, so I'll answer for August. I'm looking forward to my nephew's birthday. Have you ever gotten detention? A few times for getting too many morning tardies in high school. Is there a traumatic event that you’ve experienced that’s changed your life? Definitely. Do you buy a majority of your clothes from a certain store, or do you just pick out items of clothing you could see yourself wearing, not caring about the store it came from? The latter. Have any of the artists you’re fond of released new albums recently? Powerwolf did recently. Would you ever keep your favorite animal as a pet? I could write a college-length essay on why meerkats do not make good pets whatsoever. Do fucking not get one. I can barely fathom how it's legal in some countries. Ever cried so much you threw up? No, but I've gagged. Who is your best guy friend? Girt. What do you two do when you hang out? Mostly just watch TV and play board games. What is a movie that you thought you would hate but you ended up loving? I dunno, really. Do you even like horror movies? I love horror movies. Do you live in the country? I wish I still did. :/ Me and Mom hate hate hate living in these suburbs. What is your favorite accent? British. Have you ever had a boyfriend your parents didn’t like? No. Do you drink Pepsi or Coke? Coke. Pepsi is gross. What do you plan to do on your 21st birthday? I was literally in the psych hospital for my 21st birthday lmao. It's kind of a painful memory, but I also won't forget the love and kindness people showed me. I especially remember the friend I made there getting the lunch lady to literally go and buy me a slice of cake. Everyone also sang happy birthday to me and gaaaah I'm getting emotional. Do you have any person in your family with an addiction to beer? That was my dad's drink of choice when he drank. Do you take a lot of pictures? Unless I have my camera and am somewhere pretty, no. What kind of face wash do you use? Water, lol. Does drama always seem to follow you? Nah. Does anybody in your family race? No. Are you closer to your mom or dad? My mom. How much money did you used to get from the ”tooth fairy?” Uhhh... I want to say $2 or something? I might be way off, idr. How long do you want to live with your parents? I WISH I could have moved out with an s/o already, but that's just not how life's worked out. Do you have a laptop or desktop? I have a laptop. Do you like your parents? I love them. Do you secretly like someone? It's not a secret, no. Would you ever date your best male friend? Tried that once and it didn't work out. I liked him more as like a brother. What are you currently listening to? "Better Than Me" by Hinder. I really need to turn it off, but I can't make myself. Do you want to be single? I really wish I had a partner to love and motivate me to strive to do better, but I know it's better I'm single right now. I'd just relive the Jason situation, I'm sure. I'd just drag the person down and lose them. Did you go out or stay in last night? I'm almost always at my fucking house not doing shit, so. Have you pretended to like someone? No, that sounds pretty stupid... How is your heart lately? Hurting. A lot. Are you wearing socks? I hate wearing socks and I'm in bed anyway, so no. What do people call you? Britt, mostly. Do you get stressed out easily? VERY. Have you ever been taken to the emergency room in an ambulance? No. What is wrong with you right now? Where the hell to begin. Do you own something from Hot Topic? A lot. Would you rather sleep with someone else or alone? With someone, so long as the bed is big enough to comfortably fit two of us. Do you still talk to the person you last made out with? No. I'm certain he wants nothing to do with me. Have you ever seen your best friend cry? Sadly. Did you get any compliments today? Definitely not. I look and feel like a wreck right about now. There's nothing to praise me about. Have you ever gone to a beach? Many times. What would you say if someone asked you to get high right now? Unless it was an edible, no. I'd do almost anything to try and make me feel better right now, even if just for a little while, but I'm unwilling to smoke anything. Do you believe that everything happens for a reason? HELL no. Have you ever done volunteer work just because you wanted to? Honestly, no. Do you have long nails? No; I never do because I have an awful habit of picking at them. Do you like the gender you are? I don't like or dislike it, honestly. I'm just neutral. Do you generally look nice in photos? HA. Have you ever had a stick insect as a pet? No. What colour are your father’s eyes? They're dark brown. If I handed you a concert ticket right now, who would you want to be the performer? Ozzy, duh. Name three facts about your family? We're very, very spread out geographically, some of us (in other words, me) are emotionally distant, and uh... idk. Would you ever get into a long distance relationship? Only if it was a certain person, our lives were more on track, and we were making plans for either of us to move soon. What’s the most thoughtful present you’ve ever received? Probably this really long letter my mom wrote for me on my bday a couple years ago. What’s your favorite hot beverage? Hot chocolate. Did you ever play an instrument? If so what? I played the flute for many years, all through middle school and through much of high school. Would you rather carve pumpkins or wrap presents? Carve pumpkins, for sure. Do you think you’re important? I don't fucking know. Probably not. What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received? Idk. Have you been diagnosed with any mental disorders? *hands over thick book* Have you ever moved to another state or country? If so, how did it feel to be new? No. Do you know how to properly eat food with chopsticks? No. My hands are way, way too shaky to ever accomplish that. Are you more of a leader or a follower? Definitely a follower, but I can step up in certain situations. What was the first thing you ate today? Well, I was seriously depression-eating last night, way past midnight, and had a peanut butter sandwich. If you could spend the day, doing absolutely anything, with anyone, anywhere, what would it be like? LET'S NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT RIGHT NOW. If I were to ask you how you are doing, and you were only able to answer completely honestly, what would come out? "Falling apart." I've lost direction, motivation, strength, hope, just everything. What is the one thing that you have been avoiding that you should do? I need a fucking shower so bad that it's embarrassing. I just can't move. I have no energy, emotionally or physically. I just can't make myself do it. Is there anything that you wish you could take back? So, so badly. What, in your mind, could make you truly happy? Actually reaching goals. Losing weight. Healing my legs. Knowing with certainty that I wasn't emotionally abusive to Jason. Moving out of this town and back into the country. Financial stability. A job I thoroughly enjoy. I could go on, but let's not. If you could change one conversation in your life, what would you say differently? Would it have REALLY made any difference? God, let me take back shit I said in that fucking letter to you-know-who. It's so hard to believe I once thought it perfectly justified and realistic. When is the next time you’ll change your hairstyle? Will you color it? I don't have any plans of changing the style in the foreseeable future. I want to color it BADLY. To just SOMETHING. Do people normally say you’re a fast typist, or are you rather slow? I'm like, a lightning-fast typist. Have you ever been considered the ‘smartest person in school?’ No; my best friend in HS was, though. Her GPA was fucking insane. I was in the top percentile, though, so I was up there. What the hell happened to that girl. How many drugs are in your system? If we're including prescriptions, a whole hell of a lot. What’s on your schedule for tomorrow? Jack shit. Like usual. Do you currently have any bite marks/hickeys on your body? No. Do you call anyone baby? Excluding my pets, no. What’s your current mood? lol if you've gotten this far reading, you can make an educated guess. Do you think you are a good person? Bro I just don't know. What were you doing before filling out this survey? I was playing WoW. How late did you stay up last night? Like, 4:30 or so. When was the last time you cried really hard? I wanna say like a week ago? Is your hair longer than your shoulders? No. It still badly needs a trim, though.

#survey #surveys #random questions #lyrics: ''better than me'' by hinder

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writtenjewels · 3 years

Video

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Young and Beautiful by Lana Del Ray

Maxwell stared down at Jacob, eyes eagerly taking in every inch of the man. The fine sheen of sweat on his brow, his flushed face, the slight parting of his lips as he gasped for air, the two scars cutting across his eyebrow and jaw. That was just his face. His broad shoulders, strong body, powerful legs, killer hands, every part of him was so achingly beautiful. And Maxwell's.

It was still hard for him to believe that Jacob was his. The two of them fit so perfectly together despite all the reasons they should have been at odds. The spark of attraction was instant on both ends but for Jacob to look at Maxwell's body with such hunger shook the older man to his core. Maxwell was fit for his age but still so much older than Jacob. Yet the way Jacob touched and kissed him made him feel the gap of years shrink.

“I love you,” Jacob declared, rolling them over to make the sentiment more clear. And Maxwell certainly felt loved, every flaw and wrinkle. They could break apart tomorrow-- there were more than enough things to destroy this-- but Maxwell was going to treasure every moment until then.

–

Jacob watched Maxwell with an almost painful longing in his eyes. It had been twenty years since the older man was in his life. By Jacob's request after what Maxwell did. But in those years Jacob couldn't stop thinking of the man. He found his bed so empty he tried to fill it with someone else. And though he would never regret his night with Hattie, as it gave him Emmett, it proved to him his heart was still longing for Maxwell.

Of all the ways he thought they might reunite, being found drunk in an alley was not one of them. It was easy to find comfort in Maxwell's presence. He trusted the man more than just about anyone in the world. The more time they spent together, the more Jacob felt the pain from twenty years ago fade away. But the closer he tried to get to Maxwell the more he noticed the other man keeping them separate.

Did Maxwell not want him anymore? Why would he? Jacob was older now, haunted, broken, scarred inside and out. Just as Jacob had Hattie for a night, Maxwell might have found someone to warm his bed.

“You have a lover,” Jacob guessed, unable to contain it any longer.

Maxwell was too startled to answer right away. When he did, he moved in close to cup Jacob's face in his hands. “Darling, it's only ever been you.” Jacob recognized that look in Maxwell's eyes; it was the same look he gave Jacob many years ago.

“I love you,” Maxwell declared, and then proceeded to show Jacob the truth of his words. It was like Maxwell didn't see the years. And when he was with Maxwell, it was easy for Jacob not to see them, either.

#jacob frye #maxwell roth #rothfrye #song inspiration

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woods2006gal · 3 years

Text

Zoey York Series Chapter 01 - Overprotected

Zoey Stella York glances up at the top of the school bus when a thud echoes throughout. She brushes a strand of bright blonde hair behind her ear and turns her emerald green eyes, hidden behind a pair of thick black rimmed glasses, back to the book in her lap. The chatter of the students around her doesn’t stop. Sitting in front of her were Pete Ross and Chloe Sullivan. Pete was an African-American boy with a bright smile and Chloe was a blonde haired reporter in charge of the school newspaper. While they were friends, Zoey didn’t consider them close friends. They were friends more with the son of her godparents, Jonathan and Martha Kent. As the bus nears Smallville High School, Zoey shoves the book she had been reading into her backpack. The bus comes to a stop and the students start to climb off of it. “So, anyone ask either of you to the dance,” Pete asks, walking down the bus stairs.

“Not yet,” Chloe replies. They glance at Zoey.

“No,” Zoey tells them. “And if they did, I would say no because I’m not interested in going. I’ll see you guys later.” She walks over to where her best friend, Mike Andrews, was sitting. He had jet black hair and olive skin with hazel eyes. “So, what are we doing instead of engaging of the tedious ritual of the homecoming dance?”

Mike winces. “The homecoming dance.” Zoey shoots him a disbelieving look. “My mom brought me a tux. She thinks we’re dating.” He grabs her hands and dramatically kneels on the ground. “Zoey, will you do me the honor of attending the homecoming dance with me?”

Zoey laughs. “Sure.”

Mike jumps up and tightly hugs her. “I so owe you for being my beard,” he quietly says.

Zoey shoots her best friend a soft smile. “One day, you’ll find a Prince Charming.” Mike glances over to where Clark was picking up his books. Lana Lang was helping him. Zoey rolls her eyes. “Dude, you can do so much better.”

Mike smirks. “What can I say? Tall, goofy, and plaid gets me all hard.” They laugh as they make their way into the school. He motions to where some of the football players were hanging out with their girlfriends. One of the football players, Shane Burke, eyes Zoey as they walk past. “I heard that Shane broke up with Barbie number three.”

“Let me guess: Barbie number three finally put out and then she got dumped.”

“You know it.”

Zoey loops her arm through Mike’s. “Maybe this will be the week when Shane finally leaves me alone,” she whispers.

“York!”

Mike winces. “Spoke too soon, Zoey.”

They turn to see Shane running towards them. “York,” Shane greets. He eyes Mike. “Get out of here.”

Mike rolls his eyes. “I’ll see you in class.”

Zoey shoots Mike a smile before turning to Shane. “What did you want?”

“You got my chem homework done,” Shane asks, pushing her against a locker. Zoey pulls out a chemistry textbook from her backpack. He grabs it from her grip. “Thanks. I’ll see you around, York.”

~*~

Zoey raises an eyebrow when the familiar red pick up truck pulls to a stop in front of the Smallville High that afternoon. She waves to Mike as he gets on his bus before heading over to the truck. “Is everything okay,” she asks.

Jonathan Kent motions for her to get in. “Clark was involved in an accident at Loeb Bridge,” he explains as she climbs in. Jonathan was a man in his mid forties with sandy blonde hair and tanned skin. Zoey remains quiet as he speeds over to where Loeb Bridge is. Police cars and ambulances surrounded the area. He jumps out of the truck and runs down to where Clark was sitting with a red blanket wrapped around his shoulders. Zoey stands next to the truck. “Clark! Son, you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m okay,” Clark replies.

“Who’s the manic who was driving that car,” Jonathan demands, looking at the sheriff.

“That would be me.” They turn to see a young bald headed man. He too had a red blanket wrapped around his shoulders with a cut on his face. He holds out a hand. “Lex Luthor.”

Jonathan stares at him for a moment, then yanks off his jacket and drapes it around Clark’s shoulders. “I’m Jonathan Kent. This is my son.”

“Thanks for saving my life,” Lex tells Clark.

“I’m sure you would have done the same thing,” Clark replies.

“You have quite an extraordinary boy there, Mr. Kent. If there is any way I can repay you?”

“Drive slower,” Jonathan retorts, then walks off with Clark.

“Are you okay,” Zoey asks, once they make it up to the truck.

“I’m fine,” Clark answers, opening the passenger door. Zoey looks between the two Kent men and silently climbs into the truck.

~*~

Zoey walks up to the barn’s loft. Jonathan had turned the area into a hangout space for Clark and Zoey, that way they could have friends over without parents hovering over them. Except Zoey never really hung out in the loft. She would mostly hang out with Mike at his house as his mom was never home. She rolls her eyes, finding that Clark was watching Lana through his telescope. Lana lived across the road from the Kent farm with her Aunt Nell. Her parents had passed away in the meteor shower.

At first, the Kents had tried to keep Clark’s secret from Zoey. But that only lasted a couple months. Clark and Zoey had been playing in a field when she had been stung by a bee. Normally, it wouldn’t have matter. Except Zoey was allergic to bees. Seeing that her face had started to turn blue and she started to have trouble breathing, Clark had grabbed Zoey and raced her back to the house for help. Even when she had been focusing on trying to breathe, a seven year old Zoey had noticed what had happened and once she was better, she had told the Kents what Clark had done.

“You know that’s really creepy, right,” Zoey says, sitting down on the old couch. A desk was in the corner with an old trunk as a coffee table. Clark scowls, but doesn’t respond. She constantly teased him about his massive crush on Lana. “You should just ask her out.”

“She has a boyfriend,” Clark argues.

“Then when they eventually break up, you should ask her out.”

“What makes you think that they’ll break up?”

“Because Whitney is a senior and Lana is freshman. He’ll go off to college and she’ll be here. They’ll end up breaking up.” Zoey stands up. “Anyway, Uncle Jonathan wanted me to ask you if you had gotten all your chores done?”

“Seeing as I’m not you, yes.”

“Whatever,” Zoey replies, then walks out of the loft. Ever since the two teenagers had hit puberty, they had become more agonistic towards each other. And nothing that the Kents did, was making the two teens as close as they had been as children.

~*~

Zoey silently follows Clark down the dirt driveway that led to the Kent farm. As they reach the house, they notice a shiny new red pickup truck with a giant blue bow parked in front of the barn. “Hey, Mom,” Clark shouts, running over to the truck. “Whose truck?”

“Yours,” Martha answers, climbing down from the tractor. “Its a gift from Lex Luthor.” She pulls out a card from within her jacket and hands it to Clark.

“‘Dear Clark. Drive safely. Always in your debt. A maniac in a Porsche,’” Clark reads. “I don’t believe it. Where are the keys?”

“Your father has them.” A worried look appears on Clark’s face as he goes in search of Jonathan. Martha turns to Zoey. “I ran into Mike’s mother at the store. She told me that you guys were going to the homecoming dance together.”

Zoey shrugs. “We’re just going as friends. His mom thinks that we’re dating.” She sees the questioning look on Martha’s face. “We’re not. We’re just friends.”

Martha rubs Zoey’s arm. “Mike is lucky to have a friend like you, Zoey. I was thinking, we could go dress shopping tomorrow after school. For the homecoming dance. We’ll have a girls’ day.”

Zoey smiles. “I’d like that.”

Martha smiles back at her goddaughter. “I’ll pick you up from school tomorrow.”

A strange crunching noise comes from within the barn and the two women make their way inside. “I didn’t dive in after Lex’s car,” Clark shouts, pulling his arm out the wood chipper. “It hit me at sixty miles an hour! Does that sound normal to you? I’d give anything to be normal!” Clark walks past them, up into the loft. Martha shoots her husband a look and Zoey shakes her head, heading in the direction of the house.

~*~

“Did you know that I’m an alien,” Clark asks as he and Zoey head towards the Luthor Manor to return the truck that Lex had given Clark. Zoey shoots him a confused look. “My space ship is in the storm cellar. Dad says I came down during the meteor shower. He and Mom found my crashed ship on the side of the road.”

“So, you’re an alien,” Zoey replies, nodding. She smirks. “Have you phoned home yet?”

Clark shoots her an annoyed look as they up to the gate outside of the Luthor Manor. After getting no reply from the intercom, Clark parks the truck and they climb out. Clark pulls open the gate wide enough for them slip through. He quickly closes the gate back and they make their way inside. It was made out of stone and had many details that reminded Zoey of the old European castles she had seen in pictures. They walk around the mansion, searching for the new owner. They finally come across a couple of people in a large room with a fireplace, fencing. A fencing sword is thrown into the wall, inches away from Clark’s head.

One of the fencers pulls off their mask. “Clark,” Lex asks. “I didn’t see you.”

“Uh, we buzzed but no one answered,” Clark replies.

Lex grabs the sword out of the wall. “How’d you get through the gate?”

“We squeezed through the bars,” Zoey quickly says. She eyes the other fencer, a blonde woman. “We can come back if this is a bad time.”

“Oh, no, no. I think Hykia has sufficiently kicked my ass for the day,” Lex replies, tossing his mask on the couch. The woman nods and walks out of the room. He shoots Zoey a questioning look.

“This is Zoey,” Clark says. “She’s...my sister.” He looks around the room. “This is a great place.”

“Yeah? If you’re dead and in the market for something to haunt.”

“I mean, it’s roomy.”

Lex walks out of the room. Clark and Zoey exchange a look, then follow him down the hallway. “It’s the Luthor ancestral home or so my father claims. He had it shipped over from Scotland stone by stone.”

“Yeah, we remember trucks rolled through town for weeks but no one ever moved in.”

“My father had no intention of living here. He’s never even stepped through the front door.”

“They why’d he ship it over?”

“Because he could.”

They enter another room. This was one filled with various types of workout equipment. Lex pulls off his fencing jacket. “How’s the new ride?”

Clark exchanges a look with Zoey. He sighs. “That’s why I’m here.”

“What’s the matter,” Lex asks. He hands Clark and Zoey each a bottle of water before opening up one for himself. “You don’t like it?”

“No, it’s not that. I can’t keep it.”

Lex sets his water down and turns to them. “Clark, you saved my life. I think it’s the least I can do.” Clark awkwardly looks away. “Your father doesn’t like me, does he? It’s okay.” Lex rubs his bald head. “I’ve been bald since I was nine. I’m used to people judging me before they get to know me.”

“It’s nothing personal,” Clark weakly defends. “He’s just not crazy about your dad.”

“Figures the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Understandable. What about you, Clark? Did you guys fall far from the tree?”

Clark remains silent. “We better go,” he says, breaking the silence. “Thanks for the truck.”

Clark and Zoey start to walk out of the library. “Clark,” Lex calls out. They turn to the young billionaire. “Do you believe a man can fly?”

Clark chuckles. “Sure. In a plane.”

“No, I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about soaring through the clouds with nothing but air beneath you.”

Zoey stares at him. “Lex, people can’t fly.”

“I did,” Lex tells them. “After the accident, when my heart stopped. It was the most exhilarating two minutes of my life. I flew over Smallville, and for the first time, I didn’t see a dead end. I saw a new beginning. Thanks to you, Clark, I have a second chance. We have a future, Clark. And I don’t want anything to stand in the way of our friendship.”

Zoey and Clark make their way out of the mansion. “He’s a very intense guy.”

~*~

Zoey smooths down her pale blue dress. She hadn’t see Clark since earlier that morning when they had arrived at school. She looks around the gym. It had been no surprised that Lana and her boyfriend, Whitney Foreman, had been crowned homecoming queen and king. Chloe was dancing with Pete. Mike was no where in sight. They had agreed to meet at the school. “York?” Zoey lets out a groan and turns around to find Shane. He was wearing a suit with a lavender tie. He looks her up and down. “You clean up nicely.”

“Can I help you,” Zoey asks, forcing a smile.

Zoey sits down on the couch next to her uncle. Max Carmichael’s house was the opposite of the Kents. Yet at the same time it was very similar to her godparents’ house. The living room was filled with items from his travels around the world. Family photos were hung around the room. The walls were white, along with the furniture. “Can I ask you something,” she softly says.

Max sets the file down on the couch next to him. “You can ask me anything, Zoey.”

“I...I have a bully. And I don’t know what to do.”

“Have you talked to Martha and Jonathan?” Zoey shakes her head. “You don’t want them to know.”

“I don’t want to add to their plate. They have enough to worry about.”

Max nods. “Well, you can either fight back. Which is what I did. My bullies would call me names and I called them names back.”

“Mine doesn’t do that. He...forces me to do his homework. And when I don’t, he calls me names.”

“What kind of names?”

“Poor.”

Max snorts. “You’re bully isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed.”

Zoey smiles. “No. He’s not. One too many concussions on the football field.” She shifts. “He...he also calls me orphan. And he says that no one wants me.”

“So, you do what your bully says to avoid being called names?” She nods. “What do you think the Kents would say?”

“To just ignore him. Kill ‘em with kindness.”

Max nods. “Well, the Carmichael way is to fight back. But you have to do it in a more subtle way, Zoey. Gather intel on him. Then use it against him. In fact, if he’s having you do his homework, then make it to where he has all F’s.”

“Where’s Andrews,” Shane asks, looking around the gym.

“Bathroom,” Zoey replies.

Shane nods, looking around the gym. Britney Spears was playing from the speakers that had been set up around the gym. “Do you want to dance?”

Zoey stares at him disbelief. “No. You’re an asshole. And you know what, I’m not doing your homework anymore.” She spots Mike across the gym and walks over to him. “I just told Shane he was an asshole.”

Mike tightly embraces her. “And you did it while the perfect song was playing!” She shoots him a quizzical look. “Stronger by Britney!” Zoey laughs and shakes her head at her friend’s antics.

Life for Zoey York is relatively normal. Well, as much as one can have living in Smallville. She keeps to herself while Clark has adventures. It's how she liked her life. She liked being in the background, being invisible. Shane even forgot about her, which she was grateful for.

But that all changed one late winter evening. Zoey was in her bedroom, working on the financial books for the school. She was class treasurer. School politics was the only area that she stood out in. It was also something that her Uncle Max actively encouraged her to pursue. Zoey was active in Smallville High’s future business leaders club. She knew exactly where her future lead. And as much as she might have wanted to pursue other options, she knew it wasn’t in the cards.

A knock on the doorframe of her bedroom causes Zoey to look up. She stares at Lana Lang, wondering why she was there. Lana had olive colored skin and jet black straight hair. She was also one of the most popular girls in their grade, a former cheerleader, and dating Whitney Forman, who was the star quarterback of the football team. “Hi,” Zoey awkwardly greets.

Lana smiles. “Hi, Zoey. I was wondering if you could help me.”

Zoey raises an eyebrow. Lana and her barely spoke to each other. And when they did it was mostly a polite greeting. “Uh, sure.”

“Great,” Lana says, sitting on Zoey’s bed. “Lex is buying the Talon."

“The old theatre downtown?”

“Yeah. He wants to tear it down and make it a parking garage.”

“That makes sense. There’s a lot of business downtown and no where near enough parking. If he makes it paid parking, then he’ll make a killing.”

“I want to convince Lex to renovate the Talon. It’s a special place to me. My parents met there.”

Zoey nods. “Lex wasn’t convinced, was he?”

“No.”

“And you want me to help you come up with a proposal that will convince Lex to renovate the Talon.”

“Yes.”

“Why? You don’t actually need my help. You're smart enough to do this on your own, Lana."

Lana sighs. “Zoey, you’re the smartest person I know. And you’re the reason why the business club has the most successful fundraisers in school. If there’s anyone I trust to help me with a business proposal, it’s you.”

Zoey examines the former cheerleader. She knew that Lana was being honest. “I’ll help, but I want to be a partner.”

Lana frowns. It was clear she wasn’t expecting Zoey to want something. “You want to be a partner.”

“First rule in business, never do anything for free.”

Lana softly laughs. She holds out a hand. “Deal."

Zoey turns to a blank page in her notebook. “Let's get to work.”

~*~

Zoey walks down Main Street. She was meeting Lana and Lex at the Talon. She was confident that their proposal would be successful. She spots Lana outside the Talon with Clark and Chloe. “Hey,” she greets, walking up to the group. “How are you, Chloe?”

“Enjoying the sweet smell of freedom,” Chloe replies.

Clark rolls his eyes. “Chloe, you were in the hospital, not Alcatraz.”

“You spend a week in there and you’d feel like a prisoner too. I mean, come on. Eating bad food, lights out by nine and no cable? I’m think about doing an expose,” Chloe argues. She turns to Lana. “How’s Whitney, by the way?”

“He’s taking it one day at a time.”

“Good. All right, well, bye.” Chloe turns to leave, but bumps into a stranger. “Oh, sorry.”

“Chloe, where are you going,” Clark asks.

“I’m just gonna go do a little checking with the police. Apparently none of the tattoo ink was found at the loft and Scott and Derek aren’t saying anything to anyone, so I smell a cover up."

Clark smiles. “Chloe, it’s good to have you back.”

Chloe smiles. “Thanks.”

Chloe runs across the sheet. Lana motions to the Porsche parked outside the Talon. “He’s early,” she says. She turns to Zoey. “Okay, here goes nothing.”

Zoey smiles. “We have a good plan. Lex’d be stupid to turn us down.”

Clark smiles as Lana and Zoey walk into the Talon. “Thanks for coming,” Lana tells Lex.

“I was surprised by your call,” Lex confesses. “After our last meeting, I didn’t think I’d hear from you again.”

“This time, I came prepared.”

Zoey digs into her messenger bag and pulls out a folder. “This is our business proposal,” she says, handing the folder to Lex. “All across the country, small towns are revitalizing their downtowns and returning them to social centers.”

“They did it by restoring the great old buildings that were already there, turning them into cafes, bookstores, restaurants,” Lana continues.

Lex raises an eyebrow. “You want to turn the Talon into a cafe bookstore?”

“It could also be a venue for local bands and art house movies.”

“On page twelve, it describes the tax benefits that comes with registering the building as a historic landmark,” Zoey explains.

“Who’s gonna mange it,” Lex asks, looking between the two young women.

“Nell said she’d be interested. Zoey and I can train with her after school. I’ll try running it myself in the summers,” Lana answers.

Lex glances at Zoey. “I spend summers with my uncle in Star City,” Zoey explains. “Lana and Nell will be the primary managers. I’ll mostly be a waitress and possibly assistant manager during the school year.”

Lex nods, flipping through the proposal. “How’d you come up with this,” he asks, looking at Lana.

“It was something Clark said,” Lana confesses. “He told me you like to challenge people.”

“Well, you’ve definitely risen to the challenge.”

“So, it’s a deal,” Lana asks, exchanging a hopeful look with Zoey.

“I need to look over everything, but yeah. It’s a deal,” Lex replies.

“Really?”

“Really.” Lex closes the folder. “I think this could be the start of a very interesting partnership.”

~*~

“How did yours and Lana’s meeting go,” Martha asks, setting a bowl of mashed potatoes in the center of the dining room table. The family dinners were something that Zoey enjoyed about living with the Kents. When she visited Max in Star City, they would have homemade family dinners once a week. The rest of the time it was whatever Max had delivered or where they went out for dinner.

“It went great,” Zoey replies, smiling. “Lex is going to renovate the Talon. It's going to be turned into a coffee shop."

Jonathan shakes his head. “I hope Lana knows what she’s getting into by getting into business with Lex. You can’t trust the Luthors.”

Clark sighs. He was used to his father being against Lex. Zoey bites her lip. “I’m going to be a partner,” she softly says.

Jonathan and Martha exchange a look. This was news to them. Jonathan sets his fork down. “Zoey, we can’t afford for you to be a partner,” he tells her. “Besides, it’s not your place.”

“Lana came to me for help,” Zoey argues. “Uncle Max always says that the first rule in business is to never do anything for free. I told her I’d help if I was made a partner.”

“We didn’t raise you to be like that, Zoey. You help your friends—”

“Lana’s not my friend,” Zoey interrupts. “The only friend I have in this town is Mike.” She shakes her head and stands up. “For the record, Austin is taking care of the paperwork. I’m not stupid.” She head upstairs to her bedroom. While there were many things, Zoey enjoyed about living in Smallville and with the Kents, there were many things she hated about living in Smallville and with the Kents.

What am I to do with my life (You will find it out don’t worry) How am I supposed to know what’s right? (You just got to do it your way) I can’t help the way I feel But my life has been so overprotected

#smallville #series rewrite #original female character #original character

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industrious-sloth · 3 years

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9. FOLKORE by Taylor Swift

Oh boy. Let me preface this by saying I am a late convert to Taylor Swift. I didn’t like he country albums, I really did not appreciate being bombarded by news of what she was up to despite not having asked; and didn’t think she could sing. Once I blacklisted the #taylor swift tag, though, I found that I could enjoy some of her pop stuff isolated from all the discourse around it. Blank Space still is my favourite song of hers, something a righteous and true swiftie might sneer at (there’s a great episode of the Switched on Pop podcast explaining why Blank Space works so well, back from when it first came out).

There’s this strange thing about Taylor Swift’s albums, though. I never like them the first time I listen to them. It’s not that I blatantly dislike them, but they take some getting used to. Take hoax, for instance, which at first ranked between blah and meh, yet now is one of my favourites. In no way is this odd effect exclusive to Folklore, either – last year’s Lover, which remains her best in my opinion, also needed to grow on the listener, as did Reputation. Evermore is yet to grow on me, but at this point I doubt it will – she would have done better by launching it as a B-side to Folklore as opposed to as its own album, because it really just sounds like the Folklore Rejects Compilation (apart from Long Story Short and Champagne Problems).

All of this got me thinking about the number of chances we give albums before we make up our minds about them. Would I have enjoyed Folklore as much as I did, in the end, had it not been in everyone’s mind? Had it not been trending for the entire week it came out, would I have given it another shot? Some albums do take longer to reveal themselves, so how do you know when they simply won’t? Am I going to stand corrected in two months saying that actually, Evermore is a fine album? And if I do, wouldn’t it be a little messed up that it is only due to how unescapable Taylor Swift is? Furthermore, how can I even tell whether Folklore is a good record or if I have simply been overexposed to it, having come to find comfort in songs to which I know the lyrics and notes? How can one even attempt to find common ground in criticism when one is forced into “Distant Listening”?

Perhaps we would do best to start at the more basic level, no discourse: just the good, the bad, and the weird. Actually, let’s start with the bad, as that is always more fun for evil-spirited people such as myself: I hate the grammar in this album – and by that, I don’t mean the pretentious interactions some critics refer to as grammar, but the actual grammar. I am an English teacher, and pop singers really complicate my life when they take a perfectly usable song to teach students English, and ruin it with bad grammar. It happened last year with The Man – why couldn’t she have said If I were a man? Why, god, why? I could have been able to teach them second conditionals and feminism– and again in songs here.

Take The 1, for instance, where she says “if you wanted me, you really should have showed”, instead of the correct participle form shown. It wouldn’t have made any difference whatsoever, rhyme or song wise, the one thing it would have done is save the life of ESL teachers everywhere. In this same song, she constantly uses “would’ve been” when she should be using “had”. Listen, I would not be pointing this out were it not extremely bothersome to me as a Brazilian English major. I start getting like Henry Higgins, about to burst into Why Can’t the English Teach Their Children How to Speak? If I ever made such mistakes, people would think I didn’t speak proper English.

Honestly, the 1 isn’t even the worst song grammar-wise – I can still listen to it and enjoy it, unlike mad woman, which is every ESL teacher’s nightmare. I can just imagine a snarky pre-teen going “But Taylor Swift says more crazy instead of crazier and more angry instead of angrier, and she’s American, so she’s right!” and closing the book on comparatives. Why must Taylor make my life so hard? Also, what’s up with the lower-case titles? That’s just pretentious. And yes, it’s annoying when Ariana does it as well.

Anyhow, this is a great album despite my pet-peeves. The storytelling is fun, the lyrics brilliant as usual, and Taylor’s realisation that she doesn’t always have to write about herself even better. I also love the unrequited rhymes in this, You heard the rumours from Inez/ You can’t believe a word she says is such a kooky combination, it’s practically insane. Those, nevertheless, make startling appearances all over the record, here’s another one, from last great american dynasty, which could have been written for Lana Del Rey: The wedding was charming, but a little gauche/ There’s only so far new money goes.

Taylor really rhymed Inez with says, and gauche with goes. And it worked. Also, when she sings “I’ve been meaning to tell you your house was haunted”… What do you mean, you’ve been meaning to tell them? Is it not pressing enough?

“Oh, by the way, I’ve been meaning to tell you, I saw a poltergeist at your house.”

“What, like, now?”

“No, I saw it a couple of months ago. Forgot to mention it.”

Incredible. I love lyrics that make you think – not in a philosophical or existential way, just, you know, about the situation their acceptance of their premise actually requires. Even the metaphors: my only one, my smoking gun. What does that mean? I don’t know, but I want to think about it until it makes sense!

Obviously, betty is everyone’s darling, but this is me trying is the real lyrical masterpiece of this album, at least for all clinical depressives out there, including yours truly. Is it extremely bold of Taylor Swift to write a Former Gifted Kid anthem, considering she has not ceased to put out hit after hit since she was in her teens? As an ex-gifted kid myself, I am okay with it as long as it’s good and accurate.

Folklore has so many secrets, so many auburn leaves paving its way, we could not possibly talk about every one of them. It has certainly felt like a quarantine album in that it’s been a fine quarantine companion, always whispering something new.

Best song: Spotify Wrapped doesn’t lie, and it’s my tears ricochet even though some of the lyrics in it are sort of over-the-top (I’m seriously talking about every time the word ricochet shows up, and nothing else).

Skip: mad woman. I cannot listen to it. Infuriating.

Best lyrics: You told me all of my cages were mental/ So I got wasted like all my potential (this is me trying)

I mean, how can you beat that? I’m seriously asking. For a friend

#top ten #nonfiction #criticism #folklore #taylor swift

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ghstandpucks · 4 years

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Misguided Ghost Ch.5

A.N.: Thanks for the support everyone! Let me know if you are enjoying the story :)

Doin’ Time

The whole table was laughing at a story Billy was telling. We had been at the bar for about 4 hours now, just sharing stories and hanging out. It was nice to feel like I had made some friends. I was nursing my third beer, trying not to show how much I was actually feeling it. “So Y/N, how are you feeling about being apart of the crew?” Billy asked.

“Good!” I said a little too quickly, causing the table to snicker. Zak reached over and grabbed my beer. I looked at him shocked and took it back. “Excuse you, I am fine!” Zak chuckled as I turned back to Billy and the group. “I mean, I’ve only been around for like two days, but beside this one,” I motioned to Zak with my thumb, “the guys have been nice and welcoming and I’m loving looking at all the history of the places you guys are considering investigating,” I finished with a smile. They were all either nodding or laughing at what I said, even Zak.

“We are happy to have you Y/N. And with that being said, I think it’s time to head home,” Nick said while Veronique grabbed her purse. Everyone decided it was time to head out and home, considering it was almost midnight. I walked with Aaron and Zak toward the front.

“You didn’t drive, did you Y/N?” Aaron asked. I shook my head no.

“I can take you home. I’m already driving Aaron,” Zak offered.

“It’s ok. I can call an uber. I don’t want to make you go out of your way,” I replied, taking my phone out of my purse and opening the uber app.

“No, seriously it’s fine. I don’t mind,” Zak insisted. I looked up at him and he gave me a soft smile. I nodded my head and smiled back, thanking him.

“Let’s go little one,” Aaron wrapped his arm around my shoulder as we followed Zak to his Jeep. I giggled and wrapped my arm around his waist. I insisted that I sat in the back since I was smaller, although Aaron offered the front to me. Once we were in and settled, I gave Zak my address and he started to drive. As we were driving, Lana Del Rey’s remake of Doin’ Time came on the radio, and being that I was in a tipsy state of mind, I decided to sing out loud. Now I am in no way a singer, but I didn’t think I sounded that bad, until Zak turned the radio station.

“Hey, turn it back!” I yelled from the back seat as Aaron was getting his phone out and laughing. Zak chuckled and turned the station back on. I realized at this point Aaron was recording and sang louder, looking directly at his phone. “Evil, I've come to tell you that she's evil, most definitely. Evil, ornery, scandalous and evil, most definitely.” I was dancing in my seat. Aaron turned his phone back to himself.

“I’m pretty sure she is the farthest thing from evil,” he chuckled, making Zak laugh too. I was having too much fun with the song that once it was over, I saw a notification from Instagram on my phone. Aaron had tagged me in his story.

“Wait Aaron you didn’t!” I screeched, opening it and watching myself sing off key and wiggle around in the seat.

“Oh I did!” He replied proudly. Zak laughed and I made a mental note to actually watch how much I drank next time. I wasn’t drunk, but definitely had the liquid courage to make an idiot out of myself. I hid my face in my hands, laughing and muttering ‘oh my God, what have I done!’

“Don’t worry Y/N, it was cute,” Zak winked through the mirror at me. I saw Aaron raise an eyebrow at him, and then turn back to me.

“We’ll do an Aaron’s vlog soon and I’ll introduce you as a team member,” he said, as I noticed we turned into my complex.

“Ok, sounds good,” I was still blushing at Zak’s comment. We pulled up to my apartment and I hopped out of the car. “Thank you Zak, I appreciate the ride! Have a good night you guys!” I shut the door as they said good night as well, Zak waiting for me to actually get into my place before taking off. I thought it was sweet that he wanted to make sure I was safe. I jumped in the shower and drank a glass of water, feeling the buzz slowly leave me. I crawled under my covers in bed and fell asleep, looking forward to seeing the guys on Monday and hoping that Zak meant what he said about calling it truce.

~ ~ ~

Monday morning came quicker than expected. I spent the rest of my weekend putting the final touches on my apartment and going grocery shopping. I even went to a yoga class on Sunday, signing up for a membership at the studio. Aaron had sent me a text with screen shots of messages from the insta-story post. A lot of speculation on who I was and if I was dating either of them. That made me laugh.

Today was a little chilly in Vegas, so I opted for wearing a purple dress with grey tights and a cream cardigan. Threw on my brown boots and took off to work. I went to my office and started up my laptop when Aaron burst in. “Aaron’s vlog! To answer all your questions about who that girl was in my insta-story on Friday, it was our new GAC historian, Y/N!” he said then turned his phone toward me. I sat there shocked for a second, then giggled and waved. ‘Say something’ Aaron mouthed.

“Sorry for my terrible singing guys! Hopefully my research makes up for it!” I gave a thumbs up and Aaron stopped recording.

“Your singing wasn’t terrible,” he stated. I rolled my eyes.

“You don’t have to be nice,” I smiled at him.

“Well someone enjoyed it,” he wiggled his eyebrows. I immediately looked at Zak’s office. Thankfully he was on the phone and not paying attention. Looking back at Aaron I blushed at his grin.

“Go away,” I shooed him out of my office as he let out a chuckle. The rest of the day was pretty uneventful for the most part. I was working on a site with a particularly gruesome past when Zak walked into my office, face in his phone. He sat down in the chair in front of my desk as I stared at him expectantly. “Can I help you?” I asked.

“No,” he muttered, still texting. I decided to ignore him and go back to my work. A few seconds later he spoke up. “This office feels calmer than it did before you got here.” I looked up at him to find him staring at me, brows scrunched up.

“Spearmint and eucalyptus air freshener,” I pointed toward the wall outlet where my diffuser was. I love Aromatherapy from Bath and Body Works. Zak nodded and started looking around my space from his chair. “Is everything alight?” I asked him after about five more minutes of us sitting in silence. Zak smiled softly at me.

“Sorry, am I bothering you?”

“No. I just don’t know why you’re in here,” I smiled back.

“I was coming to tell you about our travel arrangements for our investigation this week. I was just getting the last details when I came in,” he said. I nodded, urging him to continue. “Your office just has a calming vibe. Sorry I spaced out.”

“It’s fine. So what’s up with the travel plans?” I asked. Zak let me know that we would be driving to Utah, where we were going was only about 4 hours away. They would pick me up from my house at 9am on Wednesday, Thursday we would have our walk through and conduct interviews, and then the lockdown was set for Friday. We would come back Sunday seeing as they would probably be drained to drive back Saturday.

“Sounds great! I’m excited!” I clapped my hands together, making Zak grin at me.

“Hopefully you’re still saying that when you’re being locked in with us.” I rolled my eyes.

“As I said during my interview, I won’t promise that I won’t scream if something happens, but I should be just fine,” I laughed his comment off. To be honest, I was a bit nervous. Excited because I loved to travel, but nervous about the hauntings.

Zak stayed in my office for a while, working off of his phone. I would tell him something about what I was looking up every so often and he always looked intrigued. By the end of the day he had his laptop sitting on my desk, sending emails. He claimed the smell of my room was keeping him. I told him he could take it to his office if he liked it that much, but he shook his head and made himself comfortable on the other side of my desk. I looked over my laptop at him before I closed it, and noticed his shoulders seemed more relaxed and he didn’t seem as tense. He had also been nice to me all day. I know we made a truce, but I wasn’t really expecting this much progress all at one time. I made a quick order of another air diffuser to put in his office, and packed up my stuff. I walked out with the guys as we left to go home for the evening, noticing that Zak stayed right by me. I shrugged it off, maybe he was just getting used to me. When I said goodbye to Aaron though, he raised his eyebrow, then sent me a wink. I shook my head and shrugged. Maybe Zak and I could be the best of friends after all. I mean, he was just being nice. Right?

#Ghost Adventures #ghost adventures imagine #zak bagans #zak bagans imagine #gac #ghost adventures x reader #zak bagans x reader

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cristalconnors · 4 years

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BEST SONGS of 2019

20. “MOTIVATION”- Normani

“Why would we ever do something instead of falling into the bed right now?”

Watching the 2019 VMAs, it was easy to feel despondent about the current state of mainstream pop. And then Normani descended from a basketball hoop, breaking up a string of lifeless performances of cookie-cutter top 40 with a preposterously physical tour de force that harkened back to an era when pop fame felt like something closer to a meritocracy, when talent mattered more than spectacle. It felt like a major arrival: at last another pop goddess that truly had all the goods. The public may not have caught up to her quite yet, but “Motivation” is a statement of purpose for Normani: I’m here, I’m very fucking talented, and I’m not going anywhere.

19. “SO HOT YOU’RE HURTING MY FEELINGS”- Caroline Polachek

“I cry on the dancefloor, it’s so embarrassing”

The charms of “So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings” are seemingly endless. First, there’s that title that makes you chuckle the first few times you hear it. Then, there’s the pre-chorus that title is effortlessly plugged into: a crystal clear image of lovelorn insecurity placed atop a sublimely simple melody that builds into a harmonious, show-stopping chorus. But the song’s zenith has got to be that bridge, marrying a mind-bending, distorted vocal solo that more closely resembles electric guitar with the singsongy refrain “show me your banana,” effortlessly striking a balance between the highbrow and the silly, casting Polachek as the carefree pop diva she perhaps always should have been.

18.“WAY TO THE SHOW”- Solange

“Candy paint down to the floor”

“I want it to bang and make your trunk rattle.” I think about that quote a lot when listening to “Way to the Show,” the grooviest track on When I Get Home- the one whose meandering funk bass line and countless key changes build to an explosion of synth runs and gun cocking, showcasing Knowles’s growth as both a songwriter and curator of mood as she crafts a singularly hallucinatory, heavenly vision of Houston and the sounds that raised her.

17. “WONDER BOY”- ARTHUR RUSSELL

“I’m a wonder boy. I can do nothing”

The back catalogue of notorious perfectionist and genreless chameleon Arthur Russell is so vast, so varied that even 27 years after he was taken from us, we’re still being treated to new material. Every single song of his that’s been released posthumously, including all 19 tracks of Iowa Dream, feel like their own revelation, each of them a uniquely dazzling bucking of all your expectations of what a song of his should sound like. “Wonder Boy” is unique in how tidily its melancholy, frosty images of impermanence sum up the tragic story of Arthur Russell the man- the brilliant artist who never found success and only ever managed to put out a single album while he was alive- the wonder boy who could do nothing.

16. “I THINK OF SATURDAY”- Moodymann

“I called you on Thursday... I called you on Friday...”

“I Think of Saturday” starts simply enough, listing the days of the week almost as a gimmick, evoking soul and early rock filtered through a house lens, until halfway through the song when the beat drops away, introducing a brief sample of Joe Simon’s “With You in Mind” that’s followed by the reintroduction of the beat, but now accompanied by a recurring distorted, dissonant chord that reframes the song as a sinisterly rousing account of unrequited desire and delusion that refracts itself over and over again.

15. “SOFIA”- Clairo

“I think we could do it if we tried”

The opening bars of Clairo’s “Sofia” sound like a really good Strokes knock off, but the song quickly reveals itself to be something vastly more interesting, unfolding itself steadily over the course of three minutes as she and producer Rostam Batmanglij subvert well worn pop tropes to craft an exquisitely textured, soul-baring, and ultimately hopeful anthem for young wlw everywhere.

14. “LARK”- Angel Olsen

“What about my dreams?”

Olsen’s widescreen, abstract vision of a break-up song is thrillingly unbound from the constrictions of song structure and narrative, favoring instead the visceral power of strings and drastic dynamic contrast to craft a symphony in miniature, a “journey through grief” as Olsen herself describes it, that announces the bold, panoramic vision of her fourth album.

13. “WALK AWAY”- (Sandy) Alex G

“Someday I’m gonna walk away from you. Not today...”

“Walk Away” evokes the sense of being trapped, stuck in a cycle of recognizing unhealthy relationships or habits and being unable or unwilling to do anything about them, looping the simple two line refrain over and over and over again to weave a hopeless, woozy tapestry of crunching beats, acoustic and electric guitar, mournful piano and harpsichord, and distorted vocals.

12. “THIS COUNTRY MAKES IT HARD TO FUCK” (BJÖRK REMIX)- Fever Ray

“That’s not how to love me!”

Björk isolates the most memorable line from Fever Ray’s “This Country”- “this country makes it hard to fuck!”-and explodes it, distorting it and stretching it across a fearsome sample of the droning, discordant flutes from “Song of the Alféreces and Dances of the Chinos,” evoking a kind of tortured funhouse mirror image of the current state of reproductive rights that rightly recasts Fever Ray’s song as a horror film.

11. “ABOUT WORK THE DANCEFLOOR”- Georgia

“I was just thinking about work the danefloor...”

“About Work the Dancefloor” is Georgia’s ode to the cathartic, restorative powers of the dancefloor, where your worries fall away as you melt into the crowd and language abstracts itself, as evidenced by that perplexing chorus that doesn’t seem to mean anything- and why should it? When you’re lost in her pounding bass and gurgling synths, that incoherence is strangely comforting. You can cast whatever meaning you want onto it and work through it physically, together.

10. “GONE”- Charli XCX & Christine and the Queens

“I try real hard, but I’m caught up by my insecurities”

The jelly squiggles that criss-cross Charli XCX and her collaborator’s faces on the artwork released for the singles from her latest album Charli suggest a kind of symbiosis, a cosmic intertwining of sorts. But only “Gone” achieves a true melding of the minds, where Charli and Chris’s best and boldest instincts collide, complimenting one another seamlessly in this dizzying vision of insecurity and isolation that unravels into a stunning pop abstraction.

09. “CELLOPHANE”- FKA twigs

“Why don’t I do it for you?”

Usually for FKA twigs, more is more. Her songs are busy, even the slower ones, packed to the brim with glitches, unusual rhythms, and a million little details that pull attention, giving them texture and making them extremely immersive listening experiences. “Cellophane” pares those idiosyncrasies back. They’re still there, but the focus is twigs’s voice, which bends and cracks and really emotes in a way we’ve never heard. Her voice is naked and unvarnished, allowing her to be truly vulnerable in a way we’ve never heard either, and it’s heartbreaking.

08. “CINNAMON GIRL”- Lana Del Rey

“If you hold me without hurting me, you’ll be the first who ever did.”

“Cinnamon Girl” is the culmination of every other ballad she’s ever written. They were practice and this is the real deal- a painterly missive on tumultuous love that reads like a pained confession whispered in confidence, something Lana’s always done well, but her composition has never been so exquisite or immersive, so beautifully in concert with her poetry or her velvet voice, or so flawlessly constructed, effortlessly building toward a show-stopping finale that asserts Lana as the postmodern princess of Americana.

07. “COOKIE BUTTER”- Kim Gordon

“Industrial...metal...supplies...”

“Cookie Butter” has got to be the most stunning showcase of the power of Kim Gordon’s voice, as she drags out some vowels, muffles others, attacks consonants and bends words until they don’t sound like words anymore, all atop a trance inducing beat drives towards the song’s unlikely climax- Kim Gordon saying “cookie butter” in the most impossibly distinct way you could imagine that carries the weight of an EDM drop, leading the track into it’s disorienting second half that both clarifies and obscures the half that came before it. Haunting and addictive.

06. “CATTAILS”- Big Thief

“You don’t need to know why when you cry.”

To hear Big Thief talk about the process of writing and recording “Cattails” on their episode of the Song Exploder podcast, one is struck by how organic it was. Adrianne Lenker describes it as a “magic wind” that swept through the studio, the song kind of falling out of them in one take. That sense of life comes through in the song, the simple, sublime repetition, bounce, and build of it sounding like a transmission from deep within the soul, a cosmic image of nostalgia and grief that is as cathartic as it is heavenly.

05. “GOD CONTROL”- Madonna

“I think I understand why people get a gun.”

“God Control” is ostensibly about gun control, though you’d be forgiven if you had a hard time discerning what exactly she’s trying to say. Like some of her best work, it’s provocative and maybe a little empty, but damn if it isn’t supremely interesting and compelling as hell. Madonna taps into a sense of apocalyptic malaise and skepticism of authority that feels at times remarkably in tune with the public consciousness, at others a grotesque caricature of it, to uniformly fascinating results as she spins a deranged disco yarn that, once those swirling strings hit, is downright euphoric.

04. “GOLD TEETH”- Blood Orange, ft. Gangsta Boo, Project Pat, & Tinashe

“We gon’ rumble in this ho!”

Blood Orange takes Project Pat’s “Rinky Dink II/We’re Gonna Rumble” and explodes it, gifting it both playful levity and added depth with a rollicking beat minor chord synths respectively, effortlessly criss crossing Hynes’s many disparate strengths and interests in the most effortlessly rousing and joyful track in his entire ouevre, elevated by the powerhouse Three 6 Mafia reunion verses of Gangsta Boo and Project Pat himself.

03. “INCAPABLE”- Róisín Murphy

“I don’t know if I can love, in all honesty.”

“Incapable,” Róisín Murphy’s virtuosic disco epic, stops time. That indelibly simple bass line loops over and over and over again until you’re lost in it, the song slowly building itself on top of it, adding claps here, hi hat there, rising towards a stunning sequence backed by whooshing synths where the song really comes alive, where an almost boastful breakup anthem morphs into a glamorously melancholy self-indictment in which she ponders that maybe it’s her there’s something wrong with, creating a dazzling dichotomy between the pitfalls of introspection and the bliss of the dancefloor.

02. “MOVIES”- Weyes Blood

“The meaning of life doesn’t seem to shine like that screen.”

“Movies,” appropriately, plays out with a big screen gloss. Those arpeggiated synths feel like they’re slowly expanding as Natalie Mering coos atop them, wondering how if movies are fake, how come they’re more real than anything in real life? As the synths suddenly give way to frenzied strings, the song splits itself open, giving itself over wholly to the melodrama, the sweeping enormity of feeling that Mering so masterfully conjures as she longs for the vitality, the simple answers, and the meaningfulness of movies.

01. “DO YOU LOVE HER NOW”- Jai Paul

“There’s a time for everything.”

On June 1, 2019, when I first read the news that Jai Paul had released new music, news so momentous it was accompanied by a red “breaking news” banner on Pitchfork’s home page, I immediately found my headphones and sequestered myself. I knew whatever I was about to listen to would require my undivided attention. Quite frankly, I was shocked it existed at all. After the notorious, devastating leak of his music in 2013, he’d exiled himself so thoroughly that it was easy to believe he was just gone forever. But here it was, the second coming- two (2!) new songs, effectively doubling the amount of (completed) material he’s released in an official capacity.

Pressing play, I was a little nervous that it wouldn’t live up to my expectations, that it might somehow diminish the work of his that I’d loved so much, that changed the way I think about pop and R&B. That didn’t end up being a problem. While “He” is excellent, “Do You Love Her Now” is maybe the most stunning piece of music he’s ever written. Billowing, moseying guitars provide the heartbeat for what starts as a straightforward, sublimely simple send up of 60′s and 70′s R&B. But this Jai Paul we’re talking about, and nothing he does is simple. Nuances and complexities creep out organically from the fabric of the song- synths whiz in and out, harmonies soar to the forefront of the soundscape seemingly out of nowhere and fall away just as suddenly, crafting an immersive, richly textured listening experience that is unpredictable, washing over you like a wave, building, cresting, and crashing over and over again.

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