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miraculouscontent · 3 years

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“Queen Banana” episode summary:

- The episode begins with the kwami watching Marinette finished a cape for the "superhero of creation," already done with one for the "superhero of destruction." Xuppu assumes she means Chat Noir and Ladybug, but Marinette explains that it's for a movie. Orikko asks if she'll become famous and Marinette replies that she's the costume designer and won't play along, though everyone will be on the news. She then panics that she's going to be late and hurries out while grabbing everything she needs.

- Later, Nadja is on the news, talking about the movie project, and Clara (a reporter, not Nightingale) is in the art club of the school, explaining that Thomas Astruc (an apparently "famous director" now) came thanks to the art teacher and he's supervising the students, who have made the script, storyboard, costumes, and chose to use their holiday time to make a movie. Marinette also comes into the art room in the background while the camera is rolling and trips. The reporter goes to give credit to the mayor's involvment, and he starts to talk about him directing a film, but she cuts him off to say that the film will release in the theater, thanking Bob Roth as he's the producer.

- Mylene is the villain of the story while Zoe is the hero. Chloe sees this over the news and throws a banana peel at the screen, angry that her half-sister is the star. Sabrina offers Chloe a bowl of bananas, asking if she wants another as "potassium lifts spirits." Chloe snatches one and rambles angrily about showing them how things are done in real life - her life - as she storms off. Sabrina follows.

- Cut back to the class, where Zoe (in character as her hero role) is talkng to Mylene (also in character as her villain role) and says that she (Zoe's character) loves her even if she (Mylene's character) hates her. Before she can finish, Chloe storms in and expresses how appaled she is that they gave the role to her half-sister "who came out of nowhere," and with her dad's money at that. Andre tries to say that it's the city's money, but Chloe insists that that's the same thing. She yells at Zoe and reminds her about the threats to send her back to New York if she got in her way, and now she's both in her way and on TV.

- Marinette encourages Zoe to stand up for herself because she deserves the role. Thomas says that it's too late to change things because they're meeting the translator tomorrow. The art teacher reminds Chloe that she turned down the chance to participate, including all the insults to people she threw, to which Chloe doesn't even remember. Still, she confirms that she still thinks that but won't let her sister have the role if the movie's going to the theaters and might make someone a star, as it should be her. She demands Zoe's role because everything Zoe has is hers. Chloe then leaves with Sabrina offering her another banana, and Andre insists he'll talk to her so everything will be fixed by tomorrow while nervously backing out of the room.

- Cut to later where Thomas is showing the students Bob Roth's office. However, the chair turns around to reveal a devious-looking Chloe. Marinette asks what Chloe is doing there and Bob Roth comes in with a nervous Andre, explaining that Andre said they wouldn't mind changing the script so Chloe could be in the movie as well. Marinette says that's impossible because everything's prepared already, and Bob talks about compromise and protecting one's interests, though corrects himself to say the movie's interest. Regardless, Chloe's going to be the lead now. Marinette talks about how perfect Zoe is for the creation superheroine and Chloe mentions that the next flight to New York is in 30 minutes. Marinette is seething with anger and Zoe grabs her shoulder, saying that she doesn't mind doing something different since there are other open positions in the crew. Chloe agrees to that so long as Zoe doesn't appear in the movie. Bob states that they've got a deal and they'll see Chloe tomorrow morning and Chloe tells the "losers" goodbye on the way out. Bob shoves them out the door, slamming it behind them. Marinette complains about the unfairness and Zoe sulks.

- Later in the park, things are set up and Andre is in the dressing room rambling about the movie he made (Solitude). Chloe complains that she's trying to concentrate, then yells at Marinette to stop with the "atrocious costume" Marinette's trying to put on her. Sabrina laughs at Marinette for Chloe's comment, then Marinette says that that's why it fits so well, which makes Sabrina laugh again until Chloe glares at her, at which point Sabrina awkwardly offers another banana.

- Nino is explaining that the whole population has been put into a deep slumber in the scene, hence all their extras. Marinette goes and lays down with the other students, but Chloe comes out and complains that they made her the supervillain while Mylene is the superheroine. Chloe insists she gets the main role - as she's "the good one" - but Nino argues that both roles are equally important. Chloe doesn't care and starts eating a banana. Marinette argues that they don't have time for changes, to which Chloe cries out for her father, who looks nervous. The scene quickly cuts to Nino revising the script and Thomas explains that it's not unusual to change the script last minute for production reasons. He goes to say what it's called when Marinette interrupts to say that it's nonsense, a waste of time, and giving up one's dreams. Thomas merely says that it's called "an update," while Nino tells Marinette that it's all in favor of the movie.

- They try to shoot the scene again, but Chloe throws the script away and starts talking about how they need a true superhero, baiting them with hints about a "black-and-yellow" superhero until Marinette interrupts to ask if she means Queen Bee, who she calls a "supercatastrophe" more than a "superhero." Chloe says that she wasn't talking about Queen Bee and rather a "more original character," then makes up the name "Queen Banana" by noticing the banana in her hand. Alix laughs and Chloe cries out for her father again, the scene quickly cutting to the script getting changed again.

- Chloe is now dressed in a yellow cowboy hat, boots, and a skirt, with her Queen Bee costume layered underneath (excluding the mask) and her hair down. Chloe talks about how her costume is way better than what Marinette had, but notes that something is missing: a vehicle. Marinette says that their superheroes fly, and Chloe asks what she even knows about superheroes. She cries out for her dad again, and then Chloe has a banana-themed car. However, she doesn't feel any desire to save any of the students, more a desire to throw them in the trash. Nino says they don't want to change everything again, but Chloe just says that she needs a bigger challenge. Andre sighs as Chloe cries out for him again.

- Brief moment of stuttering Marinette as Adrien (who hasn't shown up before now) is put into a cage for the part of the movie. Adrien assures her that his father said this was in the movie's favor, then is lifted up by a helicopter. Chloe is satisfied with this, as Adrien is worth rescuing, and Nino asks if they can film now. Chloe claims they need a new villain and Nino clams his head against the camera in exasperation. The students go back and forth on who the villain can be until Chloe cuts in to say that she wants a gigantic yellow gorilla who throws exploding bananas. Nino mumbles about the interest of the movie as he rewrites the script yet again.

- The villain is just a cardboard cutout with movable arms and legs. Chloe is insulted by the pathetic display, as she wants a real dynamite-throwing gorilla, but Marinette reminds her that those things don't exist. Chloe says that there's a gorilla who does something in all good movies and demands that they get some, then walks off after saying that she's had enough of them. She goes off to get beauty sleep (it's daytime), telling everyone to solve the monkey problem by tomorrow, and gets into her limo with Sabrina chasing after the retreating vehicle. Kim suggests that the zoo will lend them a monkey if they take good care of him, but Marinette rejecting the idea of actually looking for a gorilla. Max claims that it's in the interest of the movie, but Marinette snaps and yells that it's not; it's Chloe's fantasy. She says that they should get Adrien out of the cage, then she stands on the vehicle to say that they're going to film the actual story they made. Everyone cheers and there's a timelapse as the day passes by.

- Chloe arrives the next day and is confused why everyone's gone and her gorilla isn't there either. She approaches someone who's packing boxes to ask about it, but he explains that everything got filmed yesterday and the movie is probably playing in theaters now. The limo is shown hurrying to the theater and Chloe and Sabrina open the door just in time to see the ending of the movie, with Mylene as the villain and Zoe as the hero once again. The two are fighting onscreen while the class is in the theater seats (Kim in particular in awe) until Zoe manages to zap Mylene. The movie continues as on-screen Zoe then goes over to Adrien, who's unconscious, and she heals him (Marinette is briefly shown to be watching with extra excitement). Zoe's character then goes and heals everyone else in quick succession, using an imitation of Ladybug's line about freeing them from evil. Mylene's character is upset and talks about how people destroyed the earth and didn't deserve to be awakened, and Zoe argues that all of them have hope to make a better world. Mylene says that Zoe's just like them and that she hates her, while Zoe says that she loves her even if Mylene hates her, and she'll always loves her even if the whole world hates her. She also calls Mylene "sister" as the movie's plot twist and they hug as the civilians cheer.

- Everyone is clapping at the movie (barring Chloe and Sabrina), then Chloe storms down who demands to know what's going on and why none of what she wanted was in the movie. Adrien approaches with a tablet, where Gabriel explains that they convinced him to watch their first scene and he thought it was captiving; plus "Adrien was incredible," hence his supporting the movie's original script. Chloe cries out for her dad, who looks down awkwardly, and Bob Roth repeats what he said before about movies being about compromising. Marinette apologizes to Chloe, but says that it was for the benefit of the movie. Sabrina tries to offer a banana to Chloe, but Chloe shoves Sabrina away and leaves in a huff. Gabriel is then seen in his lair (the background was clearly his office earlier and there was no time transition so... ???), holding the tablet as he monologues about how this was part of his plan and Chloe is always an excellent source of "inspiration." He takes of his ascot (the disguised peacock is gold with orange accents) and unifies his two miraculous to turn him into Shadow Moth.

- Chloe is leaving the cinema when Adrien hurries after her, telling her to wait. Chloe says that it's nice of him to want to comfort her, but she's fine and she'll get her revenge in addition to sending Zoe back to New York. Adrien says that he actually was going to suggest that she apologize to everyone, which Chloe is apalled by as everyone "destroyed her movie." Adrien says that it was everyone's movie and reminds Chloe that she promised to stop being rude to everyone, adding that he told her they couldn't be friends otherwise. Chloe calls him "as ridiculous as the movie" and storms off, denying him of the title of her "Adrikins," then runs to her limo and gets inside to start crying. The amok and akuma enter the bedazzled banana clip on her hat and she gets akumatized. Shadow Moth does his usual speech about giving her what she wants and Chloe talks about wanting the gorilla she'd asked for. Shadow Moth insists that everything's prepared and goes to say what he wants in return, but Chloe handwaves it as she already knows. The limo transforms into a banana-themed vehicle, Chloe turns into Queen Banana, and her sentimonster is a giant yellow gorilla named Banana Boom Boom. Queen Banana pulls out a banana-shaped gun, shooting a civilian and turning them into a banana. The vehicle underneath Queen Banana then flies up and fits perfectly onto the sentimonster's head, and said sentimonster prepares to attach the cinema at Queen Banana's orders.

- Adrien is walking sadly through the threater when it shakes, knocking him down. The scene cuts to Adrien opening the door to the room where everyone was watching the movie, revealing that the sentimonster had broken through the roof. Queen Banana demands her half-sister, then commands her sentimonster to start attacking. Marinette and Adrien run off and Marinette grabs Zoe on the way. Adrien hurries into the boys' bathroom to transform.

- While Marinette is taking her upstairs, Zoe says that she might be able to reason with Chloe since Chloe is mostly angry with her (no, I don't get it either). Marinette points out that no one can reason with her, then tells Zoe to stay there while she looks for an exit. Marinette goes up to the roof and transforms from behind a wall.

- While the sentimonster is on a rampage, Queen Banana threatens to turn everyone in Paris into banana if she doesn't come out, adding that it'd be all Zoe's fault. Zoe looks guilty, repeating the line about it being her fault, and is shown starting at the door for the exit.

- Chat Noir shows up and mocks Queen Banana. She shoots at him, with her vehicle firing too, and Chat runs across the rooftops to avoid the beams, also twirling his baton as a defense. Ladybug then snags him with her yoyo, pulling him to her and briefly dipping him. She and Chat hide briefly as Ladybug explains that Shadow Moth was "very generous" with Chloe, Chat commenting that he's a little jealous of her armor. Ladybug talks about "nothing being better than Chat Noir and Ladybug" and Chat agrees by saying that they make a perfect duo. They go to face Queen Banana for a bit, then Ladybug decides to use Lucky Charm, transforming her into her Charm form and giving her a motorbike. She checks under the seat and finds helmets, glue, a cartridge, and an air bump. She peeks out to look at Queen Banana, her Lucky Vision spotting Queen Banana's weapon, then the glue, but nothing else. Something is missing.

- At that moment, Zoe shows up, and Ladybug has an epiphany; the missing piece is Zoe, of course. Zoe meanwhile, is giving herself up to Queen Banana, but only if she spares Paris. Queen Banana agrees, but then shoots someone immediately. Zoe accuses her that she won't keep the promise, which Queen Banana confirms and promptly commands the gorilla to grab Zoe. Ladybug saves Zoe just in time, both on her motorbike, and tells Chat Noir to protect them. Chat Noir goes for Cataclysm, but Zoe moves her vehicle out of the way and Chat Cataclysms the sentimonster, making it lose control. Ladybug facepalms and Chat Noir can only rub the back of his head sheepishly. The sentimonster pursues Chat Noir and Queen Banana is unphased, as he gorilla will just cause more destruction that way. She flies off in her vehicle after Ladybug, who rides off on her motorbike. They flee until Ladybug drives the motorbike into the subway area, where Queen Banana's vehicle doesn't fit. Queen Banana yells that she'll have to come out sooner or later, especially if she doesn't want a banana smoothie made out of "her kitten."

- Ladybug stops the motobike and tells Zoe that she needs her help. Zoe is surprised and Ladybug pulls out the bee miraculous from her yoyo. She gives the usual speech and Zoe grabs the miraculous, Pollen emerging and greets her with a bow. Zoe protests because Chloe will be mad since she was Queen Bee, and Ladybug points out that Chloe will never know since Zoe will keep her identity a secret. Zoe insists that she's not strong enough, but Ladybug grabs her shoulder and says that she knows Zoe can do it. Pollen tells Zoe the transformation phrase and Zoe pulls herself together enough to snmile and put on the miraculous. Zoe then transforms.

- Queen Banana, meanwhile, is waiting outside the subway, extremely bored. Ladybug then comes up suddenly and Queen Banana pursues. Zoe, as the bee, leaves outside another exit and runs across rooftops. Chat Noir is still facing the sentimonster, who manages to grab him when Zoe shows up just in time, making a quip about picking on someone his own size (missed opportunity to say "pick on someone of your own color" instead but I digress). She uses Venom and the sentimonster throws Chat off into the distant, causing him to splat ungracefully against a nearby surface. The gorilla throws large bananas at Zoe that poof into purple dust upon impacting with anything, but she dodges every one of them. It tries to punch Zoe in rage, but she runs up its arm and stabs it in its head, freezing it in place. Zoe lands next to Chat Noir, who calls her "Queen Bee" in a confused tone, but Zoe introduces herself as Vesperia. Chat Noir is in awe, but hears his ring beeping at him. Vesperia tells him that Ladybug needs them, and Chat Noir grabs her hand, telling her that it's nice to meet her, then kisses the back of her hand. He asks her to wait, then they both run off to recharge.

- Adrien gives cheese to Plagg, who compares Vesperia to Queen Bee using cheese metaphors, basically saying that Vesperia is sweeter, more refined, and nicer. Adrien then transforms again and meets back up with Vesperia so they can run out after Queen Banana.

- Ladybug is still fleeing Queen Banana, dodging all attacks. Queen Banana then fires at her heel, which somehow causes Ladybug to trip. Queen Banana monologues a bit, but Chat Noir shows up with his Cataclysm, hitting Queen Banana's car just as Queen Banana jumps away. Queen Banana lands next to Ladybug, grabbing her and pointing her banana weapon at Ladybug's neck, demanding that Chat give her his miraculous or else she'll fire. Vesperia then lands, asking about a fair fight versus the new bee miraculous holder, which enrages Queen Banana, who says that she's the only real Queen Bee. Vesperia smugly states that she was, but now Vesperia herself is the right Queen Bee, while Queen Banana is just the queen of bananas. While Queen Banana is watching Vesperia smacktalk her, Ladybug pulls out the glue her lucky charm had given her, pouring it into the slot where Queen Banana kept her weapon.

- Vesperia continues to taunt Queen Banana, saying that Ladybug chose her to defend Paris because Queen Bee couldn't. Infuriated, Queen Banana throws Ladybug aside and fires, Vesperia letting herself get hit and thus turned into a banana. Queen Banana steps on the banana (not squishing it or anything somehow) and taunts her, then slips her weapon back into the slot and turns to Ladybug and Chat Noir to say that that's what happens to people who have a different opinion to her. She demands their miraculouses and goes to pull out her weapon again, but it's stuck due to the glue. Ladybug talks about her glue being good - as good as Vesperia - and teasingly asks Chat Noir if he agrees. Chat Noir taunts Queen Banana and Queen Banana attempts to flee ("not again!"). Ladybug snags her leg with her yoyo ala "Miracle Queen" and trips her up, and Chat hits the banana clip off with his baton into Ladybug's waiting hand. The object is smashed, the akuma and amok are purfied, and Miraculous Ladybug brings everyone back.

- Ladybug and Chat Noir fist bump, then Chloe cuts in to say that she hates Ladybug and Vesperia, calling the latter a fake version of Queen Bee. Ladybug tells Chloe that she has to learn about controlling her anger, offering help with the amulet, but Chloe smacks it away before she sees it, not wanting anything from Ladybug and saying she doesn't exist for her (she earlier called Adrien "Adri-no one" and now calls Ladybug "Lady-nonexistent"). Chloe then runs off and Shadow Moth monologues in his lair about how "the script will be rewritten soon," sending another akuma.

- Ladybug suggests that they recharge before Shadow Moth akumatizes Chloe again. Chat Noir bows to the two of them and batons himself away, then Ladybug explains to Vesperia that the magical charm would've protected Chloe but she has to want it. Vesperia assures Ladybug that she knows what to do.

- Back at the cinema, Chloe storms in and demands her movie be made. However, Zoe shows up and tells Chloe that that's enough, and she won't play the supporting role in the family anymore even if Chloe sends her back to New York. Chloe cries out for her father, but Andre puts his foot down, saying that Zoe is right. He adds that Chloe can ask for a new phone or painting the limousine pink, but not hurting her sister. Chloe tells him not to call Zoe her sister, as she's less than a half-sister to her; she's nothing to her. She turns to Zoe and yells in Zoe's face that she hates her, but Zoe responds calmly, reciting the line from the moving about loving Chloe even if Chloe hates her and even if the whole world hates Chloe. She hugs Chloe, who looks confused, and Zoe tells her not to forget that they have the same mother. Marinette is shown watching from a hidden spot in front of the cinema as Zoe tells Chloe that their mother gave her a present, which she claims is the magical charm. Chloe demands it since she believes it's from Audrey and Zoe hands it over, saying that what's her is Chloe's since they're family. Chloe pulls away smugly and puts on the magical charm, which puts a shield around her that repels the akuma. Shadow Moth is confused, claiming that this is impossible.

- Chloe tells Zoe that she'll see that the real world is different from the movie, insisting she'll get revenge, then stomps off. Adrien passes by on Chloe's way out and he asks if she's okay, but she yells at him to leave her alone. Marinette, watching Chloe leave, talks to Tikki about how Zoe did it, and Tikki suggests that the charm may help Chloe be a better person. Marinette says "let’s hope so," and the episode ends.

#category: episode summary #episode: Queen Banana #other: ml spoilers #((Tried to slim it down by eliminating unnecessary information. Let me know if you guys like it or not!))#((I'll always make sure I don't leave out stuff I plan on complaining about.))

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wordlessbabbling · 4 years

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Gun Metal and Daisies (Thomas Shelby)- Chapter 13

What a plot twist she was.

Masterlist

I wonder how biology can explain the physical pain you feel in your chest when all you want to do is be with someone.

“Ah, shit.” Thomas sighed. He was digging around in the drawers, only finding his slightly older penny collar shirts and three piece suits. After a bit more digging, he found some braces and loose trousers.

Thomas let out an undignified snort at the realisation and of what she had to wear.

He turned to her, holding the braces, loose trousers and dress shirt; a shit-eating grin on his face.

“No!” Dorothy could only gasp, “I can’t wear those, Bubs!”

“I’m sorry, Bonny, it’s all I’ve got for you.” His grin only getting wider.

Dorothy huffed and snatched the clothes, trudging to the bathroom.

She scrunched her nose up at the smell that still lingered in the room.

She mumbled curses she’d heard her father say in Romani whenever she got in trouble, the words slightly escalating when she laid them down in front of her. She stopped short when she heard Bubs laughing down the corridor when she snapped a bit louder.

“Don’t laugh at me! This is going to look stupid enough, as is. I don’t need you laughing your arse off at my expense!” She huffed indignantly.

She only heard him sober up a bit after she had attempted to tighten the braces around her shoulders a bit more. The shirt was gargantuas on her and she felt like a pansy trying to tuck it all the way in, only giving up halfway. The trousers pooled around her ankles so she had to role them up, hoping Bubs wouldn’t mind. Then the braces to help keep the trousers up, didn’t even shrink enough to sit comfortably on her shoulders, so she had to hold them up as she was walking around, feeling like a mayor of an old western city in one of those cowboy movies who snapped their braces back on their chest. She felt utterly stupid.

It didn’t get any better when she walked back into the bedroom and Thomas didn’t react, his eyes only widening. For what? She did not know.

——

When Bonny stepped out of the the bathroom, Thomas felt his heart stop. He took in her small frame. The sight was almost comical as she desperately tried to keep the trousers up and the sleeves falling over her hands making them look like small paws.

Even though she was drowning in the fabric, he thought she looked... cute? He couldn’t describe what it was. It was the equivalent to what Thomas imagined was the feeling of meeting an energetic puppy or the excitement of a child when they get handed some liquorice.

Thomas smiled, a small smile. She was cute.

It was another thing to add to the list of things she was and he wasn’t.

The silence ebbed on. Thomas could only stare. She could only stare back.

Thomas’ mouth twitched a bit. He broke out into boyish sniggers as she stared back unimpressed.

She put her hands on her hips, “oh yeah, laugh it up, I’m sure it’s s- Oh!” Her hands flashed like a light to the trousers that were so close to falling down again, now that she’d let go of the braces.

The action only made Thomas laugh harder.

“Are you done?” She raised an eyebrow as he wiped his eyes and sobered up a but. Nodding his head as he recovered.

“Here, let me help you.” He made his way towards her, Dorothy only pushed his hands away: “I’ve already tried that! They don’t tighten anymore!”

Thomas didn’t say anything as he grabbed the strap of the braces and wove the strap in on itself to make a knot on her shoulder, then doing the same with the other. Dorothy’s mouth formed an ‘O’ shape and tapped her head.

“There we go. Much better.” He patted her shoulders and stepped back, seemingly proud with his work. “Now, back to bed. I have some questions and you need to answer them.”

Dorothy’s stomach dropped. She knew this was coming. She’d have to talk about it eventually.

Sighing, she sat on the bed, Thomas sat in the chair next to the bed. Dorothy half missed him sitting closer, but she didn’t say anything.

——

“So what’s all this then? Why am I finding you in the middle of the streets, face first in the cobbles? Eh” Thomas leaned back expectantly, making sure he had full control of the situation.

Dorothy knew that keeping secrets from friends was the best way of losing a friend. But she was equally terrified that by telling Bubs the truth, that he’d bugger off and not want anything to do with her.

The guilt would have been immense, though.

“I have low blood pressure... something like that, I think.” Dorothy stared down at the quilted blanket, doing the tapping thing with her hands again.

“Ok. And why couldn’t you get food on the table since the last time I saw you?” He leaned forward, his eyebrows furrowed a bit.

Dorothy cringed at the bluntness of his questions, “couldn’t afford it.”

“But you work at the bakery, does that not source an income?” His gaze pierced into the side of her head, she refused to look at him.

“Mama needed it...” he voice even quieter now.

“Is she sick?”

Dorothy nodded her head, she pulled her lips into a tight line and squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to think about her home life.

Thomas knew this was a sensitive subject for her - hell, this whole conversation was -, he understood the feeling of watching family members fall apart and whither away right before your eyes.

“Where ‘bouts do you live?”

The pause lasted longer than Thomas liked, he feared the worse, “she has a home, right?”

“Hampton Lane.” Her answer was honestly worse than being homeless, in Thomas’ opinion.

Hampton Lane has a wide expanse of whore houses, anyone who lived on that street were whores themselves or drunks.

Thomas’ chest tightened. Before he could ask the dreaded question, she answered it quickly, “I’m not a whore though! I promise! Never done anything of the sort!” She shook her hands in front of his face, desperately pleading that he didn’t think her to be like that.

“So your poor blood pressure, what does that do?” She thanked him for changing the subject.

“Makes me light headed easily n’ other stuff like tha’” her voice croaked as the inner turmoil seeped out of her.

“What other stuff?”

“Tinnitus, n’ that.”

Thomas had heard of tinnitus. Men in the war quite often got diagnosed with it after hearing the shells go off so many times, it became white noise.

Thomas connected the dots, “s’that why you’re always humming, and put records on?”

She smiled a bit at the fact he’d noticed. It was weird, but it showed that he cared.

Thomas patted his knees and stood up, checking his pocket watch, noticing how much time had passed.

“You look exhausted out of your wits, I’ll leave you to sleep and then tomorrow, we can see how you look.” Dorothy smiled, as he left and closed the door behind him.

As she heard him walking down the stairs, she thought of the way the warmth left the room as he trotted further away from her.

She settled down under the covers and closed her eyes, welcoming sleep as it wrapped itself around her eyes.

——

ANOTHER ONE DONE!!!

Thanks for the love.

All feedback is welcome.

See ya next time!

#peaky blinders story #peakyblinders #thomas #thomas shelby fluff #thomas shelby x oc #tommy shelby #tommy shelby x oc #tommyshelby #peaky blinder fanfic #peakyblinderstv #thomas shelby fic #thomasshelbyfluff #thomas shelby x reader #thomas shelby fanfic #tommy #peaky fookin blinders

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missholson · 4 years

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SHIP HISTORY MEME

Embrace your past and get to know your friends’ fandom origins!

Rules: Post gifs of your fandoms / ships starting with your most current hyperfixation and work backwards. (Bonus points if you share any stories about how or when you got into that ship! But not necessary!!) Then tag anyone whose fandom history you’d like to learn about!

Tagged by the sweet @unwillingadventurer, thank you girls! <3

Hoffmann & Tennstedt (Das Boot) The baby face & the stone face. :) The biggest reason for this series is my sister, who tried to lure me into the fandom already last summer by showing the first episode. Sadly it was a far too distressing experience. The story is about a WW2 German warfare, so it isn’t very light entertainment for Saturday night. The show seemed like a worth watching production, though, but I doubted if I could ever watch it completely. After visiting Berlin now in February 2020 there was no hesitation anymore. The story focuses on the Nazi German submarine, U-612, and the occupied city of La Rochelle in France. However, not everything is as black and white as one might expect. One of the biggest messages of the show is that war is always brutal, no matter which side you fight. The innocent are always suffering. It also shows how the ideal thoughts of warfare crumble, if it comes at the cost of greed, deception, health or life. There is disagreement among the leaders on boat, too. The new commander, kaleun Klaus Hoffmann, is young and inexperienced but kind-hearted and wise. Next on the scale, IWO Karl Tennstedt, is an experienced sailor and an glory-seeking soldier, who envies Hoffamann's position. He regards Hoffmann as incompetent and a disgrace to Germany. So, there is plenty of tension between these two!

Louis & Philippe (Versailles) I started watching the show sometime in 2015, but found it quite distasteful. It was more brutal than expected, and I was overwhelmed by people's greed and dirty behavior, so I stopped watching after a few episodes. Every now and then I saw pics/gifs on Tumblr, especially of Monsieur and Chevalier, that I finally wanted to give another chance in January 2020. This time the experience was the opposite, and I got a better grip on the story. I was surprised how little I liked the popular Monchevy pair and, instead, so much the quarreling brothers. I was very moved when they joked with each other and showed brotherly love. In the scenes of conflict, I missed their compassion. I haven't watched the rest of seasons 2-3 yet, so I don't know if they get better. I hope so because together they would be a powerful duo.

Matt & Cherry (Red River) I had recorded Red River (1948) on my set-top box, and the closing date was expiring in December 2018. It was Montgomery Clift’s breakthrough movie, so it was a must see. The movie was a refreshingly different western, where the hero is not a macho cowboy and John Wayne a bad guy for a change. But most of all, I was amazed how Cherry Valance's behavior towards Matt Garth was so heavily double entendre. At first they are presented as challengers and opponents of each other. Slowly Cherry starts to show admiration for Matt, and increasingly talks about his gun. In return, Matt needs Cherry's shooting skills to herd cattle. Eventually they become each other's trusted ones. I always find it fascinating, if tension begins to develop between the opposing characters. If the story has a couple that doesn't change, develope or lacks dynamics, it probably won't arouse interest.

Fritz & Dr. Frankenstein (Frankenstein) I had seen a Tumblr gif of Renfield crawling in Dracula (1931) in August 2018. It was Dwight Frye’s breakthrough role. The movie inspired me to watch other Universal monster movies, of which Frankenstein (1931) became my favorite. The work pair of the story, these two outcasts of society, melted my heart. For unexplained reason they have joined their forces and seem to be working well together. They have a mutual partnership, where they can act naturally without fear. Their work is unique, e.g. digging the graves or snatching hanged bodies, but they treat it like any other dayily job. Somehow, I like this way of approach. Actually I have written about Fritz already earlier, where I take a closer look at their relationship. The text can be read here.

Adrian & Antony (Sebastiane) Well, this couple is a specialty of its own. They are another ones found through Tumblr. I saw a picture of them in June 2018 which led me to watch the film. In terms of story or acting, it's not a very special movie but technically professional level. First of all, it was shot under the blazing Sicilian sun on 35 mm film. The light is a vital factor when using a film camera, so the pictures look very rich. The scenes, where these two are having fun together in slow motion, are breathtaking. I had never seen anything like it before and, in my opinion, stole all the attention of the story since they were just characters in supporting roles. It was like a gay paradise on earth. Here I realize the importance in the way how the characters are presented. The technical presentation can play a surprisingly huge role when we try to read and understand the characters. It can influence us either to share their thoughts or to move even further away from them. Bonus points I give for Latin, which the entire cast is speaking in the film. I would also like to clarify that this is not a p**n movie or a family movie either. It’s a gay erotic story with some full frontal nudity.

Reinhold & Conrad I’m not sure if this is a ship or fandom, but I feel extreme warmth and joy for this pair (the Berlin trip may have something to do with this). They are also the only people from real life instead of characters. I’d like to share my story about them, unfortunately it's very long (I've never been a fluent writer) but explains my interest in more detail. I got to know Conrad Veidt already in high school at the turn of the millennium, the time before DVDs. Near the school there was a buy-sell-exchange movie shop, where my sister and I visited regularly. Somehow we ended up with the idea that we wanted to see The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), so we went to the store again. There was no copy, as expected, but the seller said he would keep in mind if one came up. Months passed and after a long break we visited our regular place again. This time, the man had news for us: he had received a copy and kept it in safe for us. We couldn’t believe our eyes and ears. First of all, the kindness of the man made us speechless, and secondly, we never thought we would get our own copy of such popular rarity. At that time movies were not re-released as often as they are today. It was a VHS cassette, bw, not tinted like the original version, and its quality was far from the 4K richness and sharpness. My sister still has the tape and is one of the treasures she will never give away. For years the film was the only Conrad movie we saw, along with Casablanca - until the digital age and the social media arrived. Again I have to thank Tumblr, where I found the actor Anton Walbrook. One of his most famous films, Viktor und Viktoria (1933), is directed by Reinhold Schünzel, whom I knew from Conrad's film Different from the Others (1919). I began to study Reinhold's background more closely in December 2017, and it turned out that he is a forgotten multi-talent in the film industry: He was a versatile performer in comedies and dramas, a prolific director and an idea-rich screenwriter. He had an eye for creating stories that were told in the minds of people in addition to acting and lines. He questioned gender roles and built juicy plot twists around them. He loved theater and was a popular celebrity in 1920’s Germany. He was also a colleague and friend of Conrad. They began their film careers at the same time in Richard Oswald's films, shared the ups and downs, even their wardrobe, and reached fame. Eventually they both had to emigrate from the national socialist Germany, so their paths parted. The following reunions were always a joy, “like the meeting of comrades who fought in many wars together”. Reinhold was supposed to direct Conrad’s first film at MGM in Hollywood, but the plans were changed. They never got to work together since the German years, when Conrad died suddenly. “Part of my life is gone forever”, as Reinhold wrote in his tribute to Connie's death in 1943. He returned to Germany in the end of 1940s and died in Munich in 1954. This is why they are so precious to me and why I find it important to share the memory of these two lifelong friends. The picture is from Eerie Tales (1919), one of their earliest movies together with the director: Reinhold, Richard and Conrad. Reinhold’s full tribute can be read here.

I’m tagging: @wohlbruecks, @perfides-subjekt, @kennyboybarrett, @chapinfan69, @electricnormanbates, @ars-historia-est, @suchamiracle-does-exist and anyone who likes to do it. Would you like to share your stories behind your otps? :)

#tag post #ship history meme #ships & fandoms #personal #many thanks for posting this #unwillingadventurer #this was so much fun to do #it gave a much needed break to the situation we are living atm #i guess that’s why the text became so long sorry for that #i had to write it in finnish first #in order to get a proper structure #these are my current ships/fandoms #bbc sherlock & johnlock was the reason i ever started on here #own post

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freddiesaysalright · 5 years

Text

Catching Up Part II

A Joe Mazzello x Reader Story

Summary: Reader is a writer for an entertainment news network and after Joe comes in to do an interview, they reconnect.

Word Count: 2.2K

Tag List: @crazylittlethingcalledobsession @jennyggggrrr (I think y’all were the ones who said you wanted to be tagged? if you don’t let me know!) If you’d like to be added, let me know!

Part I

Here’s the second part! Enjoy :)

Joe picked you up from the newsroom that night. He still looked as amazing as he had earlier. After saying hello, he offered you his arm. You slid your hand around it, feeling like such a lady, and he walked you out of the building. He took you to a restaurant that was just around the block and was nice and quiet so you could talk. You were seated right away and he ordered some wine.

“So, you got into journalism,” he began, pouring you a glass. “That’s cool.”

“That’s nice of you to say considering you’ve been in movies,” you returned. “Way cooler.”

He shrugged. “Meh, it is what it is.”

You just raised an eyebrow at him.

“Okay, it’s pretty fucking cool,” he conceded with a smile. “Have you seen my stuff?”

“Are you kidding?” you gasped. “Who hasn’t at least seen Jurassic Park?”

“You’d be surprised!”

You chuckled. “Actually, so far, my favorite role of yours was in The Pacific.”

“Really?” he wondered, and it was his turn to raise eyebrows. “I don’t often get that compliment from women.”

“Most of the fans of the show that I know are women,” you said. “Of course, I haven’t seen Bohemian Rhapsody yet, so maybe my opinion will change.”

“Okay, contractually, I can’t tell you much, but probably not,” he said. “But really, I want to know more about you. Like - and please say no because if you don’t this is really weird - are you married or anything?”

You shook your head. “Nope. I’m single. You?”

“Same,” he told you.

You smiled at each other before he continued. “So, you’re usually a writer for Everything Entertainment?”

“Yeah,” you said, clearing your throat. “I write about women’s issues within the entertainment industry. I also help write the scripts for the anchors.”

“You were a good writer when we were kids,” he said. “I mean, for a fourth grader. I loved your stories about the alien and the cowboy who were best friends.”

You hid your face behind your hands so he wouldn’t see you go pink. “You remember those?! That’s so embarrassing!”

He laughed. “No, they were great!”

You peeked from behind your fingers. “You’re just being nice.”

“I’m not,” he insisted. “I loved when you read them to the class and did the little voices.”

You groaned and leaned back in your chair, your whole body hot with embarrassment.

“I think you’re just trying to get me all worked up,” you said.

“I might be,” he returned with a wink and you giggled.

Your food arrived, and you dug in to that. It was great, so you were surprised you’d never been there before. You made a mental note to come back here sometime. Hopefully, it would be in the same company. You watched Joe take a sip of wine, his adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed. It already felt so easy around him.

He looked back at you, a questioning expression on his face. “What?”

You shrugged. “Mm. Nothing.”

“Oh, right, I’m not hard to look at,” he remembered.

A beat passed as you grinned at each other again.

“How’d you know what to do earlier today?” you asked suddenly. “You recognized my anxiety attack and just...took care of me.”

“I know a lot of people who deal with that,” he explained. “It’s not my first time.”

“Well, I don’t think I ever properly thanked you,” you said. “Really, I appreciate it. More than you know.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, waving it off.

“Hey, it takes someone pretty brave to stand up to someone like Don,” you said. “And for me, a person you hardly know. And all of you called him out for swearing at me.”

“We just did the decent thing,” he argued. “It wasn’t fair of your producer to ask you to do something that makes you that uncomfortable. And then to yell at you when it did.”

You blushed again. It made you admire him even more that he thought of his action as “the decent thing.” As if inaction was not even an option.

“So, did you get the interview rescheduled?” you asked.

“Yeah, apparently Don talked to Emily and she’ll be back in three days,” he said. “And so will we.”

“Awesome,” you said. “Come say hi when you do.”

“We will,” he promised.

You continued this way, talking and laughing together for well over an hour. Joe generously paid the tab, and you offered to tip, but he wouldn’t have it. He then offered to walk you home, and you agreed.

As you walked around the corner, you came upon a small handbag on the sidewalk. You picked it up, and looked around before you noticed a group of three people walking a few yards ahead - two men and a woman. You guessed it was hers, and it couldn’t hurt to ask.

“I’m just gonna check if this belongs to her,” you said to Joe, and you jogged to catch up to the group. Joe followed.

“Hey!” you called.

They turned to face you, and you knew immediately that something was wrong. The woman was sagging across the shoulders of the two men, clearly drunk or worse. You recoiled a little, holding the purse close to your chest.

“Did...she drop this?” you asked.

They glanced at her arms and seemed to suddenly realize that she had.

“Yeah,” one man said. “It’s hers. She’s my girlfriend, so I can carry it for her.”

You frowned. Your gut told you this man was lying and had something sinister in mind for this poor woman. He reached out to take the bag from you but you snatched it away.

“Just a second,” you said.

You opened it and searched around. There was some cash, a lipstick the same shade the woman had on, a credit card, a phone, keys, and then what you were looking for: a driver's license. You retrieved the license and looked at the photo which was clearly the woman they held. You read her name: Chloe Sophia Martin. She was only nineteen years old. You heard Joe catch up to you and he put an arm protectively around your shoulders.

“If she’s your girlfriend,” you said to the man. “What’s her name? First, middle, and last.”

They exchanged a horrified look before giving up. Shoving her at you, they took off into the darkness. She was completely unconscious, so you struggled to hold up her limp body. Joe helped you. Finally, you got her on her feet.

“What do we do now?” Joe wondered.

“Hold her, I’m gonna check her license again for her address,” you said. “Then maybe we can call her a cab or an Uber. I dunno, though, I don’t want to leave her alone again…”

You trailed off as you scanned her license. Her place was pretty close to where you were, but it was too far to walk. You looked around, wondering what else you could do.

“You hold her for a second,” Joe said. “I’m gonna run across the street and get her some water.”

You carefully took the girl in your arms, but she was taller than you, so it was awkward to try to keep her up. You gave it up, and decided instead to place her gently on the ground, sitting up, but leaning against the building you were standing outside of. You sat beside her and held her hand. Her head sagged to the side.

“Chloe,” you said, but she didn’t stir. “Chloe, can you hear me?”

Nothing. You sighed. Just then, it was like someone was echoing your words back to you. Several, high-pitched calls for Chloe came from the distance.

“Chloe!” came one voice. “Chloe, oh my God!”

“Shit, guys, what if they took her?” came another. “Should we just call the cops?”

“I don’t know,” another said.

You saw three girls come around the corner, all dressed similar to Chloe and probably close to her age, looking absolutely frantic. Then you saw Joe coming back with a bottle of water. He knelt down in front of her and you met his eyes.

“I think those are her friends,” you said, nodding toward the trio. “Will you get them? I’ll try and get some water in her.”

“Yeah, sure,” he agreed, and he hurried over to them.

You couldn’t hear his exact words as he explained, but you heard loud and clear their cries of relief and delight when he told them Chloe was safe. He led them over to where you were struggling to get her mouth open.

“Is she okay?!” a blonde girl asked as she knelt beside Chloe.

“I’m not sure,” you answered.

“Are all of you sober?” Joe asked.

“Well, we drank a little before we went to the club, since we’re not legal yet,” said another girl with bright red hair. “But we weren’t drunk. And we didn’t have anything there. Chloe went to the bathroom and these two guys followed her and then she was gone.”

“Yeah, we ran into them,” he said. He explained to them what you had done when you found the purse and how the guys were gone.

“Thank you so much,” the redhead said to you. “Seriously.”

“No need to thank me,” you returned. “Just get her home, okay?”

They all nodded and Joe ordered an Uber for them. You waited with them until it got there. Chloe did finally wake up enough to sip some water. When the Uber pulled up, Joe helped them get her in the car, and the friends thanked you profusely again. You watched them pull away, thankful they had arrived to take her home.

“You know what amazes me about you?” Joe said when they were out of sight.

“I amaze you?”

“Yeah. You know why?”

“Tell me.”

“You said we were brave for telling your boss to back off,” he said. “But that’s not shit compared to what you just did.”

“Oh, stop it,” you returned.

“I’m serious, Y/N,” he said. “You just confronted two men and saved that young woman from something awful. I mean, how did you even think to check her ID for her name?”

“I dunno,” you said. “I just went with my gut. I didn’t think too much about it.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty fucking amazing,” he said simply.

You rolled your eyes. “It’s late. Take me home, will you?”

“Sure,” he said.

This time, he offered you his hand. You smiled as you took it and he interlocked your fingers together. You walked with him to your building. You didn’t live far from work since you hated public transportation. He escorted you all the way to your door.

“Thanks for a great night,” you said. “I had so much fun catching up with you.”

“Me too,” he agreed. “I’d like to see you again.”

“Yeah?”

“Hell yeah.”

“Alright,” you said. “When?”

He beamed. “Tomorrow. I’ll pick you up from work again.”

“You’ve got a date.”

“Wonderful!”

You held each other's’ gaze for a long moment, and you saw in his eyes that he wanted to kiss you. They flickered between your lips and your eyes. You let him consider it, not wanting to push one way or the other. Finally, he leaned forward. He pressed his lips to your cheek and you closed your eyes at the contact. He was so warm. He followed it by pulling you into a tight hug. You started to pull away, but he held you there. You felt safe. Comfortable.

When he broke away at last, you were still smiling at one another. He gave your hand a final squeeze and then left, wishing you a soft, “good night.” You sighed, feeling like a giggly schoolgirl, and entered your apartment.

“Where the FUCK have you been?!” demanded your roommate, Christy as soon as you crossed the threshold.

It startled you. “I - I was out!”

“You don’t know how to use a phone?”

You scrambled for your phone, which was in your purse, and looked at it for the first time all evening. You had eight texts and five missed calls from her.

“I’m sorry,” you said, calmly. “I was on a date.”

She instantly changed tones. “You were?!” she gasped, thrilled. “Oh my God, who are you?”

“It was with an old friend,” you explained. “I ran into him at work.”

“Was it Joe?” she wondered.

You nodded. “Yeah, actually.”

Christy was your best friend, so you had told her about knowing Joe back when you were kids. She also knew you were nervous about him coming to the newsroom.

“How’d it go? What did he say?” she pressed.

“Well, it started with Don,” you began, and you explained to her the whole fiasco of you ruining the interview before Joe helped you and asked you out. You also told her about the date and how great you felt at being able to talk to him again.

“God, you two need a movie,” she said when you’d finished. “That’s some Nicholas Sparks shit.”

“Shut up,” you laughed. “I’m going to bed.”

“Okay, Y/N,” she said. “Good night. But next time, don’t forget to text me that you won’t be home, okay? I thought you’d been murdered or something.”

You laughed. “Sure thing.”

You couldn’t stop smiling as you washed your face and changed into pajamas. Your heart leapt each time you thought of Joe. It felt like a dream. And he said you amazed him. How could this even be real? Or happening to you? How on Earth did you get so lucky to find him again and reconnect?

#joe mazzello #bohemian rhapsody #joe mazzello x reader #joe mazzello x you #joe mazzello imagine #borhap #borhap imagine #borhap boys #gwilym lee #ben hardy #rami malek #queen #freddie mercury #brian may #roger taylor #john deacon #john deacon x reader #john deacon imagine #john deacon x you

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bbclesmis · 5 years

Audio

Exclusive Track & Interview: 28 Days Later composer John Murphy’s “Les Misérables”

Check out this exclusive premiere of John Murphy's "Les Misérables" from the BBC/PBS's Masterpiece Les Misérables now. This version is very close to Victor Hugo's original novel, and hence is not a musical. The soundtrack will be available May 3.' Murphy also dishes on the challenges of scoring such a huge, epic, and sweeping story (and a lot more) in the interview below.

Exclusive premiere: John Murphy's "Les Misérables" from Masterpiece's Les Misérables Lakeshore Records is set to release the original soundtrack to the critically-acclaimed BBC/PBS Masterpiece mini-series Les Misérables, written by composer John Murphy (28 Days Later, Sunshine, Kick-Ass). Check out our interview with Murphy and the exclusive song directly below this article. Les Mis the album will be released digitally on May 3 with CD and vinyl versions forthcoming.

This Les Mis is NOT a musical; in fact, it is relatively faithful to the source novel. It premiered April 14 on PBS, but all episodes can be watched with PBS Passport.

Les Misérables is a six-part drama adaptation starring Dominic West (The Affair) as Jean Valjean, and David Oyelowo (Selma) as Javert in this landmark take on a classic, timeless, and sweeping story. They are joined by Lily Collins (Rules Don’t Apply), in the role of Fantine.

With a striking intensity and relevance to us today, Victor Hugo's novel is a testimony to the struggles of France’s underclass and how far they must go to survive. The six-part television adaptation of the renowned book vividly and faithfully brings to life the vibrant and engaging characters, the spectacular and authentic imagery and, above all, the incredible yet accessible story that was Hugo’s lifework.

The distinguished British cast includes Adeel Akhtar (The Night Manager) and Academy Award winner Olivia Colman (The Favourite) as Monsieur and Madame Thénardier, Ellie Bamber (Nocturnal Animals) as Cosette, Josh O'Connor (The Durrells in Corfu) as Marius and Erin Kellyman (Raised By Wolves) as Éponine.

Liverpool born John Murphy began scoring movies at the age of 25. In 2001, following the success of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, he moved to Los Angeles.

Since then he has worked with some of the industry's most respected and luminary filmmakers, including Danny Boyle, Guy Ritchie, Stephen Frears, Matthew Vaughn and Michael Mann, producing film scores as prominent and diverse as Sunshine, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Miami Vice, Snatch, Kick-Ass, and the seminal 28 Days Later.

Murphy's movie trailers include: Captain America: Winter Soldier, Gravity, X-Men: Origins, Cloverfield, War of the Worlds, Cowboys and Aliens, Blindness, Ex Machina, Southpaw, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and Avatar. His music has been featured in advertising campaigns for Nike, Audi, Microsoft, Louis Vuitton, Samsung, Google, and Apple.

After Kick-Ass, Murphy set up the record label Taped Noise and began work on several non-movie projects. BBC/PBS Masterpiece Theatre's Les Misérables is his latest project.

Les Misérables director Tom Shankland wanted John to tell a fresh musical story and to ultimately create a raw and uncompromising score to reflect the trials and misery of "Les Misérables." John describes the scoring process as an "experimental journey."

Initially, Tom wanted a gritty, folk-oriented score, but as they began the process, he and John quickly realized that the story would need a broader musical palette. John ended up incorporating less obvious elements such as bowed electric guitar, analog synths, experimental viola, and backwards loops, with a nod to the classic French romantic scoring of the '60s. Despite mixing instrumentation, the elements fused and the sensibility stayed true throughout.

John described the scoring process further:

"My original idea for the score to Les Mis was '1816 Velvet Underground meets '60s French film music.' While director Tom [Shankland] was thinking 'gnarly, down in the dirt, French folk music.' Producer Chris Carey suggested, 'let's do both, but throw in some vintage analog synths.' I then gleefully tried all of these elements, often at the same time. And we discovered that you can actually mix a hurdy gurdy with a Moog Sub Phatty, and we loved it. And what started out as a musical standoff, became our score for Les Misérables."

Interview: John Murphy

Hello John and welcome!

Hey Wess. Good to talk with you!

Likewise. To start things off, what attracted you to this telling of Les Mis as a project? I really appreciated how it was based on Hugo's novel, and not a musical. The novel, in my opinion, does not get enough praise.

Yeah, sadly the musical has pretty much hijacked this great novel. I read it in my early twenties. I was a session player back then and I spent a lot of time on tour buses, so I got through a lot of reading. Aside from all the ideas and themes, it's a great story – hope, despair, sacrifice, redemption, all the good stuff. I loved it.

I read it when I was in my twenties as well. Such a great novel.

So when the call came in, I did some Skype meetings with the director Tom Shankland and producer Chris Carey, and they were so passionate about it, and so hell-bent on going back to the source, the book I loved. I knew I had to do it.

That's fantastic. I was hoping we could get an idea of your overall creative process on the project. It really is very sweeping in the emotions of the story and the history it covers.

Well I've really only ever done movies so I knew the production process would be different. For example, before they started shooting I had to write a lot of the in-camera music they needed to shoot to; the scene with the band in the pimp's den, Cosette's piano pieces, Gavroche's song when he runs out to collect the bullets, that kind of thing.

Oh wow.

Which was cool because I'd never done that before. And then there was a big break while they filmed and put together the episodes. So rather than sit around and wait, I started sketching out themes and ideas from the script, which is actually way more creative than writing to picture. But having this pot of ideas was a life saver because, when the episodes finally did come, they came thick and fast.

But the actual creative process wasn't too different from scoring a film. I always write the themes first, and I try to write them away from picture. And then I'll work to picture and write the featured cues, the montages, the chases, that kind of thing. And then you're down to the underscore cues and you're just connecting the dots really.

Interesting process John. What were the challenges like?

I think the biggest challenge was time. Even though I had ideas sketched out for most of the themes, there's only so much you can do until they give you locked picture. And when the final locked cuts started coming, I had about 20 days per episode from start to delivery. And this is when I would score everything in, write the underscore, record the soloists, and mix the tracks ready for the dub. There was usually about forty cues and forty minutes of music per episode. So there were a few long nights!

Were there huge differences between Les Mis as a project and working on your more conventional titles like 28 Days Later? You've scored quite a bit in the horror realm.

I've actually only scored a few horror films. They just tend to be the ones people remember!

[Laughs] good point. I was thinking just relative to other composers I've talked to…

Because of the musical, there's kind of a skewed perception of Les Miserables. But a lot of the book is actually very dark. And, for whatever reason, I find it much easier to work with darker material.

I find myself attracted to darker art as well; not just film.

For me, it's just a deeper well to draw from. So even though it's based upon an historic work I never felt like I was writing outside of my own instincts. At the end of the day, whatever the scale, it all comes down to ideas, story and characters.

Absolutely. Any memorable or funny moments that stick out from that behind the scenes process of scoring the series?

There were, but none I could mention! [Laughs]

[Laughs] fair enough. A question I ask most everybody: what scores and films have molded you most as an artist?

I think the first time I became aware that movies used music was in A Fistful of Dollars. I must have been six or seven and it was on TV one night. I remember thinking why is there music playing? Where is it coming from? After that I started listening for it when I watched movies. So, I think my love for [Ennio] Morricone started there. And after that it was the James Bond movies, and the great John Barry themes. Another film composer I love to this day. I was just a kid, but I remember getting hyped up whenever I heard that guitar riff. A few years later, when I started to play a few things, I discovered Bernard Herrmann.

Psycho always stands out for me when I think of a great score. It may be cliché to say but it is true.

I couldn't fathom how he could make music that was so dark and so beautiful at the same time. I'd never heard anything like it and it blew me away. It was like magic.

So, those three made more of an impression on me than any specific movies. Thinking about it now it's probably why I'm so theme-heavy today. Because those guys definitely knew how to write a theme.

That they did. One other big question which is sort of related, what makes a great score?

That's such a difficult question and I don't think there's a definitive answer. But if it truly moves you and takes you somewhere else, then it's doing something right.

Well said. Last, what's next for you?

Well, Les Mis was like doing six movies back to back, so I won't be jumping into another big project just yet! I'm going to mess around with one of my own projects for a few months and then see what's around. Maybe a cool little indie where I get to play everything myself!

https://www.thefourohfive.com/film/article/exclusive-track-interview-28-days-later-composer-john-murphy-s-les-miserables-155

#les mis bbc #bbc les mis #soundtrack #audio #Interviews #john murphy

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