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veronicamarsconfessions · 3 years

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Editor’s Note: TV moves on, but we haven’t. In our feature series It Still Stings, we relive emotional TV moments that we just can’t get over. You know the ones, where months, years, or even decades later, it still provokes a reaction? We’re here for you. We rant because we love. Or, once loved. And obviously, when discussing finales in particular, there will be spoilers:

There was a time when Veronica Mars’ legacy was that of a beloved cult show that was canceled too soon by network executives who didn’t understand it. With the arrival of a crowd-funded feature film in 2014, its legacy evolved as one of the first shows to see the benefits of a revival. Now, it simply brings thoughts of sadness, rage, and betrayal.

When Hulu first announced it was reviving the series for an eight-episode fourth season, the news was met with resounding joy from a vocal and passionate fanbase that had never given up hope it would return after the crowd-funded feature film reunited Kristen Bell’s Veronica, a pint-sized private eye with a sharp mind and even sharper wit, with her one true love, the reformed bad boy Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring). But the fire that had burned for more than a decade and twice-revived the show was suddenly extinguished in a single, heartbreaking, and wholly unnecessary moment when Logan was killed by a bomb left in Veronica’s car shortly after the couple exchanged wedding vows.

I can still remember the shock I felt when I reached the end of the screeners Hulu sent. The whole thing felt kind of surreal, like if I didn’t acknowledge what had happened out loud maybe it didn’t actually happen. But it did happen. And I’m still filled with a fiery rage and a deep sadness when I think about it now, nearly two years removed from the episode in question, because needlessly killing Logan was a betrayal of the worst kind. The character’s untimely demise felt engineered for nothing more than shock value, like it existed only to leave Veronica even more isolated and cynical. But the interviews that series creator Rob Thomas gave in the aftermath, in which he tried to defend the decision, revealed something much worse while only driving the knife he’d stuck in fans’ backs deeper.

“In order for us to keep doing these, I think it needs to become a detective show—a noir, mystery, detective show—and those elements of teenage soap need to be behind us,” Thomas told TV Guide of the decision to kill Logan, noting that he also hoped to take Veronica out of Neptune and on the road in potential future seasons. “I sort of viewed these eight episodes as a bridge to what Veronica Mars might be moving forward.”

Instead of being a bridge to the future, it was a bridge to a grave of Thomas’ own making. Not since How I Met Your Mother ignored literal years of character development to deliver a half-cooked series finale the creators had come up with several years prior has a show felt so out of touch with its characters, the story it was telling, and its fans. Thomas’ decision to kill Logan is the perfect example of a creator being unable to recognize their own biases to the detriment of their creation.

He wrongly believed that Veronica needed to be hardened by years of nonstop torment and trauma in order to prove she was a great detective whose story was worth continuing. In putting her through the emotional wringer (again) after spending the entire season attempting to dig into her flaws and determine the root of her problems, Thomas swiftly undermined his heroine and her trauma with one misguided act of devastating violence. The fact that Thomas then chose to also skip over Veronica’s grieving process entirely reveals how little he ultimately thought of Logan or Veronica’s relationship with him, which had pushed her to be better and work through her longtime trust issues.

It is common knowledge by now that Logan was not intended to be Veronica’s love interest when the show debuted, but the fans took to the character more than they took to Teddy Dunn’s Duncan “He Used to Be My Boyfriend” Kane, so the latter was jettisoned from the show after Season 2. And in the end, Logan turned out to be a much better partner and match for Veronica’s personality. So what’s truly unfortunate about Thomas killing Logan, and killing him so violently, is that his thought process during Season 4 has the potential to color everything that happened in the show up until the moment the bomb went off. There is also the issue that Thomas apparently believed that Veronica achieving some level of romantic happiness was a one-way ticket to the grave, as if shows like Friday Night Lights hadn’t already soundly debunked the myth that happy couples did not make great TV.

Obviously an emotional family drama does not play by the same rules as noir, but Veronica Mars had already proven that you don’t need to play firmly within the sandbox of the genre to excel creatively. So why should the more adult version of the show attempt to put itself back in the box to be confined to something more traditional or stereotypical? Furthermore, love and contentment are not character flaws or weaknesses. They are not an element of “teenage soap,” as Thomas put it. In fact, one could argue that by allowing herself to believe that she and Logan could have a happy future together regardless of everything she’d witnessed in her line of work, Veronica had shown more personal and emotional growth in the show’s fourth season than she had in the entire run of the series.

At the heart of the matter, though, is one simple, glaring truth: Logan’s death was a fundamental misreading of the entire Veronica Mars fandom and what they liked about the show. Storytelling should never be dictated by the fans and their desires—one of the loudest and most common complaints critics had about the movie was that it felt too much like Thomas was just giving the fans what they wanted rather than attempting to tell a good story—but when your fandom has dug their hands into the cold soil of the TV graveyard to raise your show from the dead, you should probably have a grasp on what exactly the fans like about it in the first place. After all, they’re the reason you still exist and will be one of the final arbiters of whether or not you get to continue to exist in the future. And the idea that fans would somehow be interested in watching a version of Veronica Mars in which Veronica was on the road, completely alone, and Logan was blown to bits is just a wild miscalculation.

This isn’t to suggest Veronica Mars could not ever survive without Logan. That would be to undercut the rest of the show and the woman Veronica has become since we first saw her cutting Wallace (Percy Daggs III) off the flagpole in the series’ pilot. But there is a difference in writing Logan out of the show’s ongoing story arc—his secretive Naval career offered the perfect out—and violently killing him in an attempt to shock viewers and show just how resilient your heroine is in the face of trauma. A survivor of rape who had to solve the murder of her best friend (Amanda Seyfried) while still in high school because the sheriff’s department was too inept to do it (or simply did not care to do it), Veronica had already been through more in her young life than anyone should ever have to live through.

Although Logan’s death led to her finally seeing a therapist, it seemed to be a one-time thing, so nothing has really changed. Veronica is still the same person she was before the show returned, except now she’s also a widow and Thomas has alienated an entire fanbase to the point that many fans, though likely not all, have no interest in revisiting her story. And they’re not likely to either, since Hulu chose not to move forward with another season.

So much for that bridge to the future.

#Veronica Mars #Rob Thomas #Jason Dohring #Logan Echolls #VMars #season four #news #roast that bitch motherfuckers

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neo-shitty · 3 years

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toffee!

hehe glad i could make you laugh, oooh that sounds awesome! yeah id love to be tagged it sounds great :)

YES the differences are so fucking weird. like, they do know they're the same age right? i feel like its just an exagguration of how much the persons role in the group matters, like we see chan being held up as such a mature, old leader while jungkook who is literally the same age, is still babied etc. like enha hyung line is basically the same age (if a bit younger) as chenle and jisung but somehow the rules are different?? as you point out, still legal but still bizarre. hehe yeah, i mean where else are we going to rant? quora lol. mmm, hopefully more people can just write less smut abt people who are barely adults

ah, no prob it didnt take long. yeah i think thats right (i keep forgetting you know my url lol) mmhmm :( i think if that happened irl there would be some major trauma going on. knock wood it never happens to you or me lol (/hj)

hehe same! oooh glad Redemption For Cheese was realised! yess we cant rllycomplain that theyve written/produced too much good music lol. yeah, ive dragged him into being a stay so *dusts hands off* mission accomplished. mmm yeah, they tend to have a certain vibe but tbh it couldve worked if they were any other group but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ahh ur one step ahead of me on the stages of listening to ssick i think, still not convinced but thats okay! hehe, it had to be said. yesss the itch in the back of my brain is very satisfied by sorry i love you, felixs vocals deserve to be appreciated! (side note i feel like hes trying to sing more like his speaking voice, sorta husky, but tbh i wouldnt be mad if he sang like in glow, his sweet honey vocals made my life lol. but i think ive heard him say he doesnt like singing like that cos it makes his normal voice less husky, so what can you do)

> YES SOMEONE SAID IT. seungmin rap KING, he sped thru that rap like it was nothing, he deserves more rap lines. i do like how they gave minho some melodic rap lines this comeback, my guy deserved to show off those skills that made him not be eliminated (flashbacks to stay collectively wanting to murder jyp) and we already know changbin can sing, my man murdered masked singer. hyunjin can obviously sing as can jisung and felix, and i want to hear chan rap more! i feel like he started as part of 3racha (as a rap unit not producing) and then just became a vocalist (which im fine with, but it could be nice to hear him flex his rapping skills) and was partially replaced by hyunjin. anywayyy

back to album talk. lmaooo sad music to twerk to PERFECTLY describes silent cry. yes secret secret is and will always be, a masterpiece. hehe glad i could make you laugh :) i just felt like they have similar vibes. putting off skz stuff bc of not having time to cry IS the kpop stan life summarised. oh my beloved track, red lights. ahh thats okay, we can have different opinions, but by god the lyrics are *chefs kiss*. *banging on table* TWISTED AU TWISTED AU TWISTED AU. yess id love to see ur take on it! sdfghjkl it would have been glorious

no no! not stupid, just able to predict my brainwaves. ooooh thats so cool! makes me want to go there (wherever there is lol) yeah the waves are pretty good here, but none of my familys a surfer, so we dont rlly enjoy the full potential lol. YES moving on to gone away, it is indeed a heartwrenching track, but the vocals and the bloody key change? makes me want to brave being sad just to listen to it. mmm yeah, good point :( i feel like ive just gotten used to overthinking so much so that it doesnt matter what mood im in, ill do it anyway, so might as well just do what i feel like doing anyway.

yeah i think ur right! it is quite comforting knowing that all the tracks will get the love they deserve. i feel like also people assume kpop is just one genre which is utter bs. there are so many different vibes and feels and songs, i couldnt get into kpop (of which i thought only the bright cheerful present day bts stuff existed smh) until i heard gods menu so... idk where i was going with this but yeah. :)

YES FUCK YG, theyre literally on the brink of being kicked out of the big three and they are holding their salvation hostage without letting them do ANYTHING. idek what thought process goes thru their minds but arghhh its so infuriating. yess lisa's cb will be awesome but ot4 is the gold standard here.

hehe, glad u could get to this point. no no! u dont sound like a cult member at all lol yeah, i loooove some of their songs but the whole 23 members thing is getting to me. thats prob a common problem with nctzens but what can i say? im a simple girl with a limit to how many korean boys i can give my money to. atm im just trying to get into ateez and finish memorising enhypen's faces. also kard is kinda sucking me into their fandom atm, as well as eric name lol. ah what can you do? ooh thats good!

hehe i love it too! its exactly like online penpals, that was rlly well put. aww ty! hmm im okay, recovering from a bad case of rsv so thats fun. im doing okay mentally, starting therapy soon (after having to convince my mother that its not just smth i can brush off). physically i wont go into, basically i should be doing stretches to help but they dont completely fix it so my lazy ass doesnt do them, plus i got told recently im going to be stuck with this condition for the rest of my life so thats fun! ah, before you type smth dw abt me ill be fine. the weather atm is cloudy but warm, its been raining on and off today which is good for the garden. uhh i just finished reading sunburnt veils and im in the middle of prom theory which is rlly good. ummm ive got a concert tonight? that i may or may not be able to sing in (bc of the whole rsv thingo) and uhhhh idk. my dog is cute? im drinking tea rn? ive got a school dance coming up?

wbu? hows ur day going, how are you? whats the weather like on ur end? done anything interesting lately? found smth that makes you rlly happy? just any random thing youve been dying to tell someone?

no no! dont apologise, i love these exchanges. i think im happy to continue them for a long time :) on the other hand, if you get tired of them, feel free to just not answer at any time. goodness gracious this was a long ask haha hope it isnt too annoying

<3 w.a. 🐺

sorry it took me a bit to reply, i was fixing my theme ;n;

yeah, i figured it was because of the roles too. my friends and i still get taken aback when 3rd gen idols are the same age as 4th gen ones. in my head it doesn't add up sometimes. PLS THE RANT AT QUORA SKJDK tbh tho it's just going to be normalized as the years pass? esp that the boys are growing older and the amount of explicit fics will just increase. i might have to start blocking tags.

i had to look up the previous ask to remember what we were talking about xd i hope the events in champagne problems never happens to anyone. realistically, it probably happens a lot. damn i really won't wish that pain on anyone. dragging your brother into being a stay i whEEZED JFKSA additional noeasy music enthusiast o.o and ALL I CAN SAY WITH YOU GUSHING ABT FELIX IS AHA WHIPPEEEED OML can't blame you tho, i also want to hear felix sing more in other shades (if that makes sense HAHA) i really hope they'll do the role exchange in the next comeback :( or like in the near future bc i know they can do it :( the day i hear seungmin rapping it i will respectfully pass away. minho was given more lines this comeback thank fUCK i could rmb my irl being vocal abt her frustration. i don't get why minho barely has center time/lines in title tracks??? like the line distribution in the past eras just made me ???? if seventeen can balance lines with 13 members why cant a group of 8 do the same? moving on. i haven't watched the stray kids show simply bc i don't want to cry HAJS but i've seen clips. imagine if skz debuted without minho and felix?!?!? i rmb another irl catching bias feels towards changbin bc of the masked singer only to find out that the man's a rapper. i love how skz's vocals were highlighted this comeback :c there were a lot of mellow tracks! i find it cute when chan sings/raps bc it gets kinda obvious that he's a foreigner? the accent (im not even sure if it's the accent) it just shows. "putting off skz stuff bc of not having time to cry IS the kpop stan life summarised." CORRECT.

abt the twisted au o.O i'll inquire my irl if she wants to write it or not. if she doesn't want to, i'll do it. i miss writing twisted aus <3___<3 and i also miss going to the beach with my friends :' ) but it's starting to get cold here and i don't think i'll be able to enjoy the beach as much as i would if i went beaching in the summer. so maybe next summer? gone away really has an sm-ballad vibe. the thing about skz being a self-producing group, their songs don't sound like typical jype songs? and i just appreciate that bc in all honesty im not a fan of jyp groups at all. PLS the overthinking. i wish i could mute overthinking.

anyone who assumes kpop is just one genre obv hasn't listened to a single track. if kpop was just one genre why do i like some tracks more than the others??? oh you've only recently become a kpop stan? tbh im not a fan of the bright songs of bts either. i liked their older ones *chefs kiss* really matched high school vibes. yg has good artists and they're just wasting the talent ~.~ that strategy they have will get tiring eventually. people will stop waiting on blackpink and move on to newer more active groups ://

HAHAHAH yeah the 23 members is pretty overwhelming! it was the reason i didn't bother stanning before quarantine started. i don't regret stanning tho, met my ult bias in that group <3___<3 i don't really purchase albums unless i like the tracks xd ohhh getting into ateez just in time for the comeback! let me know what you think about them! i was fond of them at some point but grew out of it. good luck with memorizing enhypen! it took me a while to distinguish to people there XD i haven't checked out kard yet but chan plays their songs during lives and they're sexc hype music me likey *u*

i had to look up rsv im sorry. i'm glad you're recovering! please rest more and don't stress yourself out. bro i wish i could go to therapy too bc i have weird issues i can't justify and i need a professional to tell me what's the reason behind it. stuck with what condition btw? what happened? i'm sorry in case i just forgot. yesterday was a bit rainy for me too :(( it's not the type of rainy that makes me anxious so B) oh concert! good luck and i hope you'll be able to sing but i also don't think it's best for you rn :c what's your dog's breed? and yes i just finished drinking tea too. AAAAA i miss school dances :(( the last one i was supposed to have was cancelled bc of covid.

i was less productive today and i'm teetering between being mentally stable and becoming a hermit again. i'm anxious with a lot of things atm so like : D not the best state. today it was a bit sunny but not hot hot which was nice. i changed my theme today bc i couldn't wait for sept. 1st. and no i haven't found anything that makes me happy HAHAHA shit like that's hard to identify. don't have anything to say too, i'm just thinking about why i'm procrastinating too much atm T_T and i'm listening to this rap song atm and one of the rappers sounded like han.

it isn't annoying! i enjoy the long exchanges but i do admit it takes me awhile to type down a reply. so if i get more busy, it'll prolly take a bit longer for me to reply.

#toff.asks #wild anon 🐺

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theliterateape · 3 years

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The Artistic Subtlety of “Pig” and Nicolas Cage

By Brett Dworski

I knew what I was getting into after seeing the trailer for Pig. The plot seemed pretty straightforward: A guy living alone in the wilderness loses his beloved truffle pig and will slaughter everyone and everything that stands in his way in getting her back. That guy was Nicholas Cage, and this was going to be a classic bloodbath peppered with Cage’s standard erraticism and hysteria. I knew it. I felt it. This was going to be National Treasure all over again (ew), but with a John Wick type of feel.

I texted my friend, Adam, who appreciates the Cagester more than me. “We’ve got to see this,” I said, basically wanting to see it to mock Cage. We did. And when it ended, I was stunned. It was nothing like I expected. No hazardous car chases. No deathly shootouts. No exaggerations. Just a lonely man looking for his pig. It was, simply put, sensational.

Pig, the directorial debut from newcomer Michael Sarnoski, is elegant, riveting and poignant. While thrilling like many Cage movies, this indie flick veers from the actor’s usual blockbusters and finds the fifty-seven-year-old star in an unfamiliar state: subtlety. Despite my adoration of early-Cage hits Moonstruck and Raising Arizona, I’ve never loved the guy; his branded excessiveness just isn’t for me. But Cage’s performance as former chef Rob Feld in Pig blew me away. He ditched his obnoxious schtick for an elusive and quiet, yet extremely physical performance. Cage was spectacular, and I don’t think it’s a stretch to say it’s the best performance I’ve ever seen from him.

Sarnoski depicts Feld as a man of calm intensity. He doesn’t speak often, but when he does, people listen. Feld is a purist; he knows what he likes, and especially knows what he doesn’t. He lives in isolation, as we discover early on that he’s been alone in the woods of Portland for fifteen years. We also learn that he’s a widower, and while we never discover how his wife passed, it doesn’t matter.

What does matter is Feld’s pig, with whom he has a beautiful connection. We see this from the get-go, specifically in a heartwarming moment when the pig comforts a sad Feld while he reminisces about his wife. Although Feld says it near the film’s end, we know right away: He doesn’t need the pig to find the truffles—he’s already got that covered. He keeps the pig around because he loves her. It’s a touching bond that churns our intestines once broken.

In addition to Feld’s relationship with the pig, we’re immediately drawn to his connection with Amir, the douchey twenty-something who buys Feld’s truffles and sells them to fancy restaurants. Alex Wolff is splendid as the dick you can’t seem to hate no matter how much he flaunts his European sports car and his expensive suits. As the film progresses, we see a warmer side to Amir, who becomes just as driven to find the pig as Feld is, resulting in the two becoming more than just truffle acquaintances. Their bickering and earned respect is kind of like a buddy-cop relationship, but not really.

Panning outside the plot, Pig captures the pretentious hunt for rave reviews and fame within fine dining. After Feld and Amir learn that one of Feld’s former prep cooks, Derek—who was fired after two months for overcooking pasta—may know the pig’s whereabouts, they visit his new upscale restaurant. Upon realizing who the battered and grizzly Feld is, Derek is anxious and uncomfortable when asked about the pig. After Derek plays dumb, Feld sits back and, instead of pressing about the pig, asks about the English pub Derek wanted to open years back. “People have expectations. Critics, investors, and so forth,” Derek says with red cheeks and buggy eyes. “Everyone loves it here—it’s cutting edge!” Derek lays justification after justification for sacrificing his dream for Michelin stars, yet when Feld asks him to recall his intended signature dish for the pub, Derek remorsefully and robotically recites the liver scotch eggs with a honey curry mustard.

“They’re not real—you get that, right? None of it is real,” Feld says. “The critics aren’t real. The customers aren’t real. Because this isn’t real. You aren’t real. Everyday you’ll wake up and there’ll be less of you. You live your life for them, and you don’t even see them. You don’t even see yourself.”

Derek, on the verge of a panic attack, folds. He tells Feld who has the pig. Amir’s jaw hilariously drops to the floor, mesmerized by Feld’s philosophical rant. It’s a powerful and funny ending to the best scene in the film.

Beyond its writing and acting achievements, Pig is a technical success as well. When the intruders burst into Feld’s wilderness home and steal the pig late at night, we’re stuck in the dark, only seeing Feld’s head smashed in as we follow him to the floor. We lay there with him and hear chaos in the background, including the thieves’ fuzzy chatter and the pig’s piercing squeal. Our eyes are only on Feld, yet we know exactly what’s happening around him. This strategy is also used in the film’s final minutes and climax, except this time the sound is removed and our eyes relay the story to our brains. It’s here that Cage’s textbook physically takes over: We know exactly what has happened despite not hearing a single peep. Although removing the audiences’ senses can be risky, Sarnoski’s meticulous approach pays dividends in these moments.

At the heart of Pig is the story of a man who, despite losing everything he loves, comes to terms with himself and the world. It’s a powerful debut from Sarnoski, who’s become a must-watch filmmaker moving forward. It’s another hit performance from Wolff, who’s continued a ridiculous run of starring in basically every indie thriller since Ari Aster’s 2018 hit, Hereditary. Finally, it’s a divergent and excellent showcase from Cage, who seems to be remodeling his game as his career moves into the twilight phase. It’s far from the Cage of National Treasure, and I’m all for it.

#Pig #Michael Sarnoski #Nic Cage #Nicolas Cage #Pig film review

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icharchivist · 3 years

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I have finished winter troupe debut episode! It was very dramatic lmao. Was enjoyable though. Winter troupe all had very interesting characters and It's nice to see a troupe that is all adults.

Since I complained about spring troupe issues being solved by not talking about it. I have to talk about how winter troupes issues were solved by literal outside forces trapping them or letting them read peoples minds.

I'm guessing they did this because unlike the teens who are more willing to be open about themselves and pester others,,,, adults are a lot less likely. (Before winter the adults were, sakyo, and itaru? cause the uni students aren't really adults yet. sakyo opens up to Izumi because he knows and trusts her. Itaru. Hasn't really opened up yet but he's getting there.) Whereas winter troupe is a group of strangers and the two who know each other literally are in the middle of massive misunderstanding/fight?/idk mutual disappointment.

(Also misumi just getting trapped in random time loops???? Holy shit is he ok???? Like he was able to figure it was tsumugi and tasuku this time but what if he doesn't know the people? I have so many questions)

Ok rant over. I have accepted that magic exists in a3 and all it wants is for people to get along and understand each other. But yeah once I crawl through the events and next act I have to rewatch spring hahaha. I definitely wasn't fair to them.

Homare oh my god. Just. Holds gently. I want to protect him. No one deserves to be called a broken cyborg :(

Gahhh all of winter troupe I just want to protect.

Also I saw fuyupoly is a thing? Because I'm excited to see the troupe develop more.

(you said you had a Google drive of the inbetween acts events :eyes: should I message you or something?)

tHEY’RE SO DRAMATIC I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.....

And yeah tbh when you talked about Spring having communication problems my first thought was “oh BOY you haven’t seen Winter yet” DLKFJDLFKJDFLKJDFLK

I. think about Winter much more than i should but yeah, pretty much it’s the fact they’re adults and strangers and just. are extremely conflict avoidant, all of them, for various reasons. Tsumugi because of his crushed confidence, Tasuku because he struggles to convey his feelings and he lost Tsumugi in the past, Hisoka because he litterally has no past and it freaks him out (Homare was spot on when he said Hisoka knew he couldn’t defend himself), Homare because he’s scared he’ll mess up again, and Azuma because he spent his life keeping people at armlength. They’re all adult and agreeable people, and they are also all pretty understanding in some way, so they let some conflict pass by hoping it will be over soon. Some of them like Tsumugi, Azuma and Homare are also pretty analytic of people on a psychological way so they can try to navigate with what they know.

But in the end without communication it’s not going very far, but they don’t really know how to do it when all of them are adults who have got used to it.

so yeah, like you said it’s really that they’re adults and that unlike the youngest ones i think it’s just. they’re all used to compromise and compromise a part of themselves as well.

but yeah the magic being the thing solving it cracks me up all the time i’m just. Like. okay. Okay cool okay. Normal. Like. Thematically wise i think it’s because Winter is a season that’s so cold and sad but there’s a bit of magic in it (like the magic of christmas) and i think that’s what it is meant to echo but that’s. so out of the blue DLKFJDKLFJDLKFJLDF that said once that just accepted i really love the way the three magical events reflects the characters (Tasuku and Tsumugi needed to reconnect and find back the comfort they had with one another and plushies are considered comfort items that helps transition into a safer place, it’s also linked to childhood and those two are childhood friends. Homare and the loupe are pretty straight forward, he needed to see closer, deeper. Azuma and Hisoka both were locked into a room, isolated, just like their past (or in Hisoka’s case what his flashbacks implies) make them feel isolated, having experienced loss).). I am FASCINATED with Winter. i just. akjhfkdhfkdjfmldjfmd?? sljhfjldk.

but aah i’m glad you enjoyed the ride so much i’m so happy!!

and god yeah please someone check on Misumi i worry for him wtf

and Homare’s arc yeah!! yeah!!! his arc is one of my fav arc i just. really love how it all plays out. It’s really rare to see a story goes “here’s a character with low empathy: and he’s the most loving and kind character you can imagine”. The way he struggles from it, how sad it makes him, this way to see himself, everything makes me want to cry for hours. I want to hold him so bad.

Fuyupoly is definitly a thing yeah. Fuyupoly my beloved. I adore Fuyupoly so much 😭 but Winter is honestly a slow burn, especially in comparaison to the rest of the teams.

I actually didn’t think much of them at first read (Azuma and Hisoka were already my favs though, i’m so soft for them)(also i say that but i know i found back screenshot of me crying about fuyu on first read so i did feel a lot but it didn’t hit me until late, how much i actually cared), and now i legit can’t stop thinking about all of them. I don’t know how much it says about their slowburn or what it says about me but; Winter.

ANYWAY congratz on finishing the main story of act 1 :3c and yeah, i’d prefer if i could share it in private (bc it’s, a lot of content and if i provide it in public this is clearly piracy and DLKFJDF i know a3 tends to take down some of this content and i’m trying to be stealthy).

Though if you don’t want to come off anon, you can tell me in another anon’s ask, i’ll link you my drive, then you’ll need to send me an ask to tell me you got it so i can delete the post, if you prefer?

anyway the drive is up and ready anytime. i just didn’t update some of the latest act 2′s events but act 1 is filled and that’s the priority. so you know also this drive includes 1) Story events, 2) the songs linked to each plays (which tells the story of the plays, def recommand it), 3) All the backstages from limited time cards i could get. Backstages linked to specific events are inside their specific event files, else the cards which didn’t come in an event are in the “Scouting file”. What’s important to read plotwise is the Event stories. The backstages are very good and i def recommand it but it may be overwhelming so you can skip them and come back later for them DLKJFLDKFJFD it’s really just the main plot of each event that you should watch.

(also i should mention only the first two events are fully voiced, the rest are just with some voicelines here and there, but i still recommand watching it bc of the mood with the music and the sprites and all)

so yeah ready to send it anytime you want !! :3c

#ichafantalks a3 #Anonymous #ichareply

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ficsandcatsandficsandcats · 4 years

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*tosses all my coins to my writer* Okay I've got another platonic idea! Imagine Jaskier is in a tavern waiting for Geralt and meets another bard who is waiting for his companion as well. Both start talking and ranting about their companions and that they don't know what it means to be a bard and sing about others who get all the fame and no one remembers the bard. Maybe they start writing a duet about this legendary evening.

Fandom: The WitcherPairing: Platonic!Jaskier and ReaderWord Count: 978Rating: GTaglist: @heroics-and-heartbreak a/n: Ooh I like this! Justice for Bards!!!

“Another,” you said, raising your hand to wave the bartender down.

“I’ll have the same,” a voice said and you turned to see a man pulling up to the seat next to you. He placed his lute on the bar, echoing your own setup, though his lute was much more ornate. You caught his eye and he gestured to the lute.

“Ah, a fellow member of the guild,” he said.

“I was about to say the same,” you replied. Two ales were placed in front of you, the bartender grumpily trying to find a way to hand them to you without endangering your instruments.

“Does this mean we’ll have to arm wrestle to decide who goes first?” he asks jokingly.

“Ah, no, I performed earlier. I’m just… waiting,” you say, unable to hide the bitterness in your voice.

“It seems our list of similarities only grows. I am also waiting for my companion. Geralt of Rivia. The Witcher. You may have heard of him,” the man says casually.

“Oh of course, you must be the famous Jaskier,” you say, to which he nods his head with faux humility.

“Who do you wait for?” he asks, taking a drink from his cup.

“No one so renowned but another hunter. Tell me something,” you say, turning to face him, “How do you get Geralt to take you seriously?”

Jaskier’s face breaks into incredulous laughter.

“Oh I only wish I had an answer for you but I’m afraid Geralt very much does not take anything I do seriously. Then again, gods knows he’s serious enough for the both of us,” he mumbles into his drink.

“Alright see this is interesting because it’s very much the same for myself and my companion. I accompany him and I’ve always viewed our relationship as very recriprocal, I taking the adventures me go on and spinning them into songs beloved by all, him receiving free performances and no small amount of fame and respect thanks to the aforementioned songs. But he treats me like a parasite more often than not,” you exclaim, relieved to find someone to vent to who understands what you’re going through. Jaskier’s already nodding before you finish your rant.

“Yes, exactly so! He couldn’t walk down a street without being pelted with harsh words or literally pelted with things. I come around, write one song and turn the whole thing around. What do I hear from him? ‘That’s not how it happened.’ Like anyone wants to listen to a bloody song about just walking away from a fight. Bollocks,” Jaskier says, your anger fueling his own frustrations.

“Y’know what I think the problem is? I think they truly believe what we do is easy,” you say. Jaskier scoffs and slaps his hand on the bar.

“That’s exactly it,” he replies, gesturing for emphasis, “They think it’s all fun and games, as if making it look easy and fun isn’t a part of the work!”

“He has no idea how many nights I want nothing more than to slide off to bed but I have a reputation to uphold and frankly money does not grow on trees and more than once my earnings have gotten us a warm meal, or my performance has been trade for a bed to sleep in,” you complain.

“We’re supposed to uplift them and make everyone see how hard they work and how grand they are but what of us? Who sings of the bard? We go on the same adventures. What, if you don’t have a sword or magic you’re somehow not as brave? Gotta slay a dragon for respect these days?” Jaskier’s voice gets louder and to anyone looking in from far away it looks as though you’re having a heated debate, your faces flushing warm and facing each other.

“I bet they’d change their tune pretty fast if we started singing about someone else,” you suggested, the spark of rebellion glinting in your eyes.

“Yeah but the bastards do go on some cracking adventures,” Jaskier sighs, “Why? Who were you thinking?”

You lean in close, conspiratorially, looking like spies preparing to exchange secret information.

“Us,” you say. The word hangs in the air and your eyes stay locked, considering the idea with uncertainty that bleeds into giddiness.

“Yes,” Jaskier says decisively and fumbles around in his bag as you do the same, both producing notebooks and quills in tandem, further crowding the bar space. You spend the next hour collaborating, peppering in ideas with praise for each other’s turn of phrase and deft rhymes. At one point you both have your lutes in hand, trying out different melodies to suit the words you’d begun drafting, altering the prose as you go to fit the tune, crafting a song for the bards. You’re just harmonizing on the final melody when Geralt walks into the tavern, seeking out Jaskier. You see the witcher and internally you’re excited to see this mythical figure but you carefully school your features to remain casual.

“Ah, Geralt, this is my friend… oh dear I never asked your name,” Jaskier says as he turns to you.

“Y/N,” you answer. He turns his eyes over Geralt briefly and then goes, “And you are?”

Jaskier laughs gleefully and Geralt just looks at you impassively, not offering so much as a grunt of response before turning back to Jaskier.

“If you’re ready?” he asks.

“You know what, I’m not just yet. Do take a seat and wait for me. The ale is great,” Jaskier says and then swivels back towards you to continue to work on the song. Geralt blinks for a moment and then lumbers over to a table towards the back and nurses an ale as the two of you continue to work on your song, making plans to meet up at the next available occasion to debut it for the world.

#mynamesoundslikesherlock #jaskier x reader #jaskier imagines #drabble #platonic!jaskier x reader #reader request

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caitsbooks · 5 years

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Caitsbooks’s Top 10 Most Anticipated April 2019 Releases

This year is absolutely flying by. I can't believe it's April already! This month has some of my most anticipated releases of the year, with a good mix of debut novels, series starters, and continuations! My wallet may hate me this month, but I'll be very happy once all these books come out.

Blog || Goodreads || Bookstagram || Twitter || Reviews

April Releases

Note: These are in order of release date

April 2nd

10. Wicked Saints (Something Dark and Holy #1) by Emily A. Duncan This book is probably my most anticipated debut novel, if not one of my most anticipated books overall for 2019. Wicked Saints has gotten a lot of hype, and after reading the ARC, I can say it deserves all of it. This book broke me, in the best possible way, and I don't think I'll ever be over it. Read my review here for more of my ranting.

"A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself. A prince in danger must decide who to trust. A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings. Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war. In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light."

9. Defy Me (Shatter Me #5) by Tahereh Mafi The Shatter Me series has been one of my favorites since I first read it as a trilogy back in 2015. While I was nervous at first about the series being continued, I am now 100% on board and so excited for the next installment! The Kenji novella, Shadow Me, really got my hyped for this book!

(Spoilers below for the Shatter Me series, books 1 - 4) "Juliette’s short tenure as the supreme commander of North America has been an utter disaster. When the children of the other world leaders show up on her doorstep, she wants nothing more than to turn to Warner for support and guidance. But he shatters her heart when he reveals that he’s been keeping secrets about her family and her identity from her—secrets that change everything. Juliette is devastated, and the darkness that’s always dwelled within her threatens to consume her. An explosive encounter with unexpected visitors might be enough to push her over the edge."

8. Defy the Fates (Constellation #3) by Claudia Gray

I cannot express how excited I am for this book. I loved the first two novels, and I've been dying to find out how it all ends! If you're looking for a new sci-fi series, definitely pick this one up!!

(spoilers below for Defy the Stars and Defy the Worlds)

“Hunted and desperate. Abel only has one mission left that matters: save the life of Noemi Vidal. To do that, he not only has to escape the Genesis authorities, he also must face the one person in the galaxy who still has the means to destroy him. Burton Mansfield's consciousness lives on, desperate for a home, and Abel's own body is his last bargaining chip. Alone in the universe. Brought back from the brink of death, Noemi Vidal finds Abel has not only saved her life, but he's made her into something else, something more. Not quite mech, yet not quite human any longer, Noemi must find her place in a universe where she is utterly unique, all while trying to create a world where anyone--even a mech--can be free. The final battle between Earth and the colony planets is here, and there's no lengths to which Earth won't go to preserve its domination over all humanity. But together, the universe's most advanced mech and its first human-mech hybrid might have the power to change the galaxy for good.”

7. The Princess and the Fangirl (Once Upon a Con #2) by Ashley Poston

This is the new companion novel to Geekerella. The first book was absolutely amazing, and I can't wait to see where Ashley Poston goes with this one!

"Imogen Lovelace is an ordinary fangirl on an impossible mission: save her favorite character, Princess Amara, from being killed off from her favorite franchise, Starfield. The problem is, Jessica Stone—the actress who plays Princess Amara—wants nothing more than to leave the intense scrutiny of the fandom behind. If this year's ExcelsiCon isn't her last, she'll consider her career derailed. When a case of mistaken identity throws look-a-likes Imogen and Jess together, they quickly become enemies. But when the script for the Starfield sequel leaks, and all signs point to Jess, she and Imogen must trade places to find the person responsible. That's easier said than done when the girls step into each other's shoes and discover new romantic possibilities, as well as the other side of intense fandom. As these "princesses" race to find the script-leaker, they must rescue themselves from their own expectations, and redefine what it means to live happily ever after. "

6. The Devouring Gray (The Devouring Gray #1) by Christine Lynn Herman

This book is one of my most anticipated debut novels of the year. People have been comparing it to The Raven Cycle, one of my all-time favorite series, so obviously I need to devour it. (Yes, I know that was a bad pun)

"On the edge of town a beast haunts the woods, trapped in the Gray, its bonds loosening… Uprooted from the city, Violet Saunders doesn’t have much hope of fitting in at her new school in Four Paths, a town almost buried in the woodlands of rural New York. The fact that she’s descended from one of the town’s founders doesn’t help much, either—her new neighbors treat her with distant respect, and something very like fear. When she meets Justin, May, Isaac, and Harper, all children of founder families, and sees the otherworldly destruction they can wreak, she starts to wonder if the townsfolk are right to be afraid. When bodies start to appear in the woods, the locals become downright hostile. Can the teenagers solve the mystery of Four Paths, and their own part in it, before another calamity strikes?"

5. You'd Be Mine by Erin Hahn

I was lucky enough to read an ARC of this back in January, and it blew me away. It was so much more than I expected. This is definitely not a book to miss!

"Annie Mathers is America’s sweetheart and heir to a country music legacy full of all the things her Gran warned her about. Superstar Clay Coolidge is most definitely going to end up one of those things. But unfortunately for Clay, if he can’t convince Annie to join his summer tour, his music label is going to drop him. That’s what happens when your bad boy image turns into bad boy reality. Annie has been avoiding the spotlight after her parents’ tragic death, except on her skyrocketing YouTube channel. Clay’s label wants to land Annie, and Clay has to make it happen. Swayed by Clay’s undeniable charm and good looks, Annie and her band agree to join the tour. From the start fans want them to be more than just tour mates, and Annie and Clay can’t help but wonder if the fans are right. But if there’s one part of fame Annie wants nothing to do with, it’s a high-profile relationship. She had a front row seat to her parents’ volatile marriage and isn’t interested in repeating history. If only she could convince her heart that Clay, with his painful past and head over heels inducing tenor, isn’t worth the risk. "

April 9th

4. Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

This book has been called a YA Game of Thrones, filled with political intrigue and mystery. This is another book that has gotten a bit of hype, and I'm looking forward to seeing if it lives up to it.

"Princess Hesina of Yan has always been eager to shirk the responsibilities of the crown, dreaming of an unremarkable life. But when her beloved father is found dead, she’s thrust into power, suddenly the queen of a surprisingly unstable kingdom. What’s more, Hesina believes that her father was murdered—and that the killer is someone close to her. Hesina’s court is packed full of dissemblers and deceivers eager to use the king’s death for political gain, each as plausibly guilty as the next. Her advisers would like her to blame the neighboring kingdom of Kendi’a, whose ruler has been mustering for war. Determined to find her father’s actual killer, Hesina does something desperate: she enlists the aid of a soothsayer—a treasonous act, punishable by death, since magic was outlawed centuries ago. Using the information provided by the sooth, and uncertain if she can trust her family, Hesina turns to Akira—a brilliant investigator who’s also a convicted criminal with secrets of his own. With the future of Yan at stake, can Hesina find justice for her father? Or will the cost be too high?"

3. The Red Scrolls of Magic (The Eldest Curses #1) by Cassandra Clare and Wesley Chu

I think everyone can agree that Magnus and Alec are some of the best characters in The Shadowhunter Chronicles. Needless to say, I'm so excited that they're getting their own series!!! I've been waiting for this for too long.

"All Magnus Bane wanted was a vacation—a lavish trip across Europe with Alec Lightwood, the Shadowhunter who against all odds is finally his boyfriend. But as soon as the pair settles in Paris, an old friend arrives with news about a demon-worshipping cult called the Crimson Hand that is bent on causing chaos around the world. A cult that was apparently founded by Magnus himself. Years ago. As a joke. Now Magnus and Alec must race across Europe to track down the Crimson Hand and its elusive new leader before the cult can cause any more damage. As if it wasn’t bad enough that their romantic getaway has been sidetracked, demons are now dogging their every step, and it is becoming harder to tell friend from foe. As their quest for answers becomes increasingly dire, Magnus and Alec will have to trust each other more than ever—even if it means revealing the secrets they’ve both been keeping."

April 16th

2. Serious Moonlight by Jenn Bennett

Last year, I finally started reading Jenn Bennett's books, and fell in love with them. I went on a binge of all of her YA contemporaries, and I'm dying for more. At this point, it doesn't even matter to me what it's actually about. If it's written by Jenn Bennett, I'll read it.

"Mystery-book aficionado Birdie Lindberg has an overactive imagination. Raised in isolation and homeschooled by strict grandparents, she’s cultivated a whimsical fantasy life in which she plays the heroic detective and every stranger is a suspect. But her solitary world expands when she takes a job the summer before college, working the graveyard shift at a historic Seattle hotel. In her new job, Birdie hopes to blossom from introverted dreamer to brave pioneer, and gregarious Daniel Aoki volunteers to be her guide. The hotel’s charismatic young van driver shares the same nocturnal shift and patronizes the waterfront Moonlight Diner where she waits for the early morning ferry after work. Daniel also shares her appetite for intrigue, and he’s stumbled upon a real-life mystery: a famous reclusive writer—never before seen in public—might be secretly meeting someone at the hotel. To uncover the writer’s puzzling identity, Birdie must come out of her shell…discovering that most confounding mystery of all may be her growing feelings for the elusive riddle that is Daniel."

April 23rd

1. The Tiger at Midnight (The Tiger at Midnight Trilogy #1) by Swati Teerdhala

I am living for all the new fantasy novels coming out, and especially #ownvoices ones! This synopsis has me so intrigued and I can't wait to dive in.

"Esha is a legend, but no one knows. It’s only in the shadows that she moonlights as the Viper, the rebels’ highly skilled assassin. She’s devoted her life to avenging what she lost in the royal coup, and now she’s been tasked with her most important mission to date: taking down the ruthless General Hotha. Kunal has been a soldier since childhood, training morning and night to uphold the power of King Vardaan. His uncle, the general, has ensured that Kunal never strays from the path—even as a part of Kunal longs to join the outside world, which has been growing only more volatile. Then Esha’s and Kunal’s paths cross—and an unimaginable chain of events unfolds. Both the Viper and the soldier think they’re calling the shots, but they’re not the only players moving the pieces. As the bonds that hold their land in order break down and the sins of the past meet the promise of a new future, both rebel and soldier must make unforgivable choices."

What is your most anticipated release this April?

Related: - My March Favorites + April TBR - My Top 10 March Releases + TBR

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soliduslion · 5 years

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Ok @paxonia @whatimpunsexual time for fite

1:A song you like with a color in the title

Mr. Blue Sky -Electric Light Orchestra

(I enjoy this and always have a good time listening to it)

2:A song you like with a number in the title

19-2000 -Gorillaz

(Some good beats from this song tbh)

3:A song that reminds you of summertime

My Generation -The Who

(The vibe from this just feels summery to me tbh)

4:A song that reminds you of someone you would rather forget about

We Own The Night -Dance Gavin Dance

(Their favorite band)

5:A song that needs to be played LOUD

Ready To Die -Andrew W.K.

(No contest on this one for me tbh)

6:A song that makes you want to dance

Walk Like An Egyptian -The Bangles

(This song always gets me bopping my head)

7:A song to drive to

Long Road To Ruin -Foo Fighters

(Dont drive but this would probably apply if i did)

8:A song about drugs or alcohol

When I'm Drinkin' Whiskey -Rusty Cage

(The name sorta implies it)

9:A song that makes you happy

Cool Patrol -Ninja Sex Party

(I just love it)

10:A song that makes you sad

How To Save A Life -The Fray

(i relate to it)

11:A song that you never get tired of

This Is A Call -Foo Fighters

(Foo Fighters' debut song that just feels great to listen to)

12:A song from your preteen years

*Didnt really listen to much when in my preteen years, oof*

13:One of your favorite 80’s songs

Satisfaction -The Rolling Stones

(Sometimes ill skip an 80s song due to liatening to em a lot, but this is one of em i dont skip)

14:A song that you would love played at your wedding

Dearly Beloved -Yoko Shimomura

(Just. Such a nice peaceful instrumental song)

15:A song that is a cover by another artist

Wish You Were Here -Ninja Sex Party

(A great song made better by the cover)

16:One of your favorite classical songs

*dunno tbh*

17:A song that would sing a duet with on karaoke

*dunno this either oof*

18:A song from the year that you were born

Californiacation -Red Hot Chili Peppers

(A god tier song tbh)

19:A song that makes you think about life

Requiem Of The Crazies -Rusty Cage

(A song made from the perspective of a homeless man whos trying desperately to get his life back on track. Rusty is honestly pretty underrated tbh)

20:A song that has many meanings to you

The Man Who Sold The World -David Bowie

(I did a big rant on this to Pax)

21:A favorite song with a person’s name in the title

Hey There Delilah -Plain White T's

(Love this song and always listen to it when it comes on)

22:A song that moves you forward

Walk -Foo Foghters

(A song about moving forward from past failing and whathaveyous)

23:A song that you think everybody should listen to

I Keep On Walking -Rust Cage

(Its message feels important. How the narrator of the song may face hardships and sometimes see his past as better but he keeps moving. Plus it has a good beat and sound.)

24:A song by a band you wish were still together

Lithium -Nirvana

(Kurt Cobain was great and his unfortunate early end is sad)

25:A song by an artist no longer living

Heroes -David Bowie

(This song always gets me)

26:A song that makes you want to fall in love

*Cant really think of a specefic song for this*

27:A song that breaks your heart

Hurt -Johnny Cash

(You can physically feel the pain coming from the man)

28:A song by an artist with a voice that you love

Danny Dont You Know -Ninja Sex Party

29:A song that you remember from your childhood

Basket Case -Green Day

(My brother always loved Green Day)

30:A song that reminds you of yourself

Creep -Radiohead

(Not trying to be emo here or anything. But i really relate to this one. That feeling of not feeling good enough. For really anyone. And wanting to be loved)

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weekendwarriorblog · 3 years

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The Weekend Warrior 12/11/20 - MINARI, THE MIDNIGHT SKY, LET THEM ALL TALK, WILD MOUNTAIN THYME, PARALLEL, WANDER DARKLY and More!

Honestly, I almost didn’t write a column this week for reasons I’ll probably be ranting about for a few more months, but the long and short of it is that I’ve now been writing movie reviews for 19 years, as well as writing a weekly column through most of that time, and I’m kind of sick of working my ass off, usually for very little money, and just not getting anything out of it.

This mainly came as I crossed 200 reviews for the year a few weeks back. As I was preparing to write this week’s column, Rotten Tomatoes, where most of my reviews have been available as FREE content for the past 17 years, decided to upgrade a number of critics to be “Top Critics”… but not yours truly. I have a lot more to say about this but don’t want to waste any more of my time or anger right now. I will be wrapping this column up and taking some time off for a month in January and deciding whether I want to keep wasting my time every week for no money and little feedback. It really just isn’t worth it anymore.

Fortunately, I saw a few good movies this week, and more than a few bad, so let’s start with one of the good ones, shall we?

This week’s “Featured Flick” is Lee Isaac Chung’s MINARI (A24), which like Nomadland last week will get some sort of virtual cinema release in New York and L.A., presumably that can be seen across the country. It will then get its official release on February 12, 2021.

The movie stars Steven Yeun from The Walking Dead as Jacob, a Korean father who brings his family to an Arkansas house in the middle of nowhere in the ‘80s, hoping to start a farm. His wife Monica (Yeri Han) is not happy with this decision but their kids Anne (Noel Cho) and David (Alan S. Kim) try to adjust to the new life. Things aren’t going well but then Monica’s mother Soonja (Yuh-jung Youn) shows up, that just adds more pressure on Jacob, and the kids, especially David, who hates the quirky older woman who acts nothing like a grandmother.

I’d been hearing about Minari going all the way back to its debut at Sundance, and though I remained skeptical, I finally saw it a few months ago an again over the weekend, and it’s one of my favorite films of the year, probably Top 5. To me, it’s somewhat in the vein of The Farewell, my number 1 movie of 2019, vs. the Oscar Best Picture winner, Parasite. It’s a very personal story for Chung who based some of the experiences on his own childhood, which once again proves the adage that if you’re going to write a movie, make it personal since that’s the most likely to connect with others. (Not always true, but it was great advice when I was given it.)

It takes a little time to understand why Minari is so beloved, since Chung takes an interesting approach where we see various scenes that don’t necessarily seem to tie into some sort of plot. Characters like Will Patton’s ultra-religious zealot who seems to be a bit lost when Jacob takes him on to help with his farm. Otherwise, we see various character interactions as things get tenser and tenser between Jacob and Monica, who are fighting all the time. Although the drama does get intense at times, there’s a lot of joyful and fun moments, particularly those involving the wacky grandmother and her dysfunctional relationship with her grandson. I also enjoyed the relationship between the two kids where Anne is always protective of her younger brother, who has some sort of heart illness.

It's a beautiful movie with an equally gorgeous score, but it’s really in the last 20 minutes or so when we start to see where Chung has been going with all these seemingly disparate elements, which builds up to a wonderful ending. Yeun is terrific, and the fact he reminded me of my own father -- we’re neither Korean nor have I ever been to Arkansas -- shows why his subdued performance is so effective. Overall, the film proves that however many awful things life might throw at you, your family can always fix things. I love that message, and I hope others will find and love this as well.

After its one week in virtual cinema, Minari will get an expanded theatrical release starting February 12… hopefully, New York City theaters will be open by then and I can see it in a theater.

Film at Lincoln Center in New York also is starting its 49th annual “New Directors/New Films” series, which was delayed from March, although being virtual, the movies in it can also be viewed nationwide for the first time. I feel like a lot of movies that were scheduled to play ND/NF ended up being released already but there should be some interesting things in there.

George Clooney’s latest film THE MIDNIGHT SKY is based on Lily Brooks-Dalton’s novel Good Morning, Midnight, in which he plays Augustine, a scientist dying on his own at the Barbeau Observatory in the Arctic, who has to warn a group of astronauts returning to earth that it’s no longer safe for them to return.

Clooney has made a lot of good and great movies over the years, so that I’m one of those people anxiously ≠waiting for him to make something great again after the disappointment of Suburbicon. Midnight Sky is definitely one step forward and a few steps back, as it’s impossible not to think of previous Clooney movies like Solaris and Gravity, as well as The Martian and Passengers and Ad Astra. Yes, we somehow have gotten to the point where every year there’s some sort of space movie, and while Midnight Sky at its best is better than Solaris or Ad Astra (sorry, but I was not a fan), there’s enough that’s so quizzical and confounding I’m not sure people will be able to follow what’s going on.

Much of the first half of the movie involves Clooney’s Augustine alone at the Artic base interacting with a little girl (Caoillin Springall) who is completely silent. If it’s ever explained what the girl represents, I must have missed it. There are also flashbacks to Augustine’s earlier career as a scientist and explorer played by a somewhat only semi-impressive Clooney kinda look-alike in Ethan Peck.

The best moments of the movie involve the crew of astronauts on the spaceship Ether, including Felicity Jones and David Oyelowo, who are in a relationship, Demián Bichir, Kyle Chandler and Tiffany Boone, as they deal with various issues. This is really where comparisons to Gravity and The Martian are earned, but that’s such a mighty quintet of actors that these sections are far more interesting than sullen bearded Clooney with his young ward. The production design and visual FX in these portions of the film are also quite impressive.

The Midnight Sky throws a lot at the viewer but then tries too hard to be quizzical and enigmatic about how all of it ties together until the very end. I feel that some of Clooney’s more mainstream fans will be quite confounded and possibly even disappointed. The Midnight Sky is Clooney taking a swing and only partially connecting, and it might require multiple viewings to feel like it’s a worthy addition to his filmography.

Either way, The Midnight Sky will open theatrically in select cities this week and then be on Netflix on December 23, just in time for depressing everyone on Christmas!

Also hitting Netflix streaming this week is Ryan Murphy’s musical THE PROM, which I reviewed last week. It’s great, I loved it, and can’t wait to watch it again!

Next up is Clooney’s pal Steven Soderbergh, whose new movie LET THEM ALL TALK, will premiere on HBO Max this Thursday, December 10. It stars Meryl Streep as renowned writer Alice who is called to England to receive a prestigious literary award. Since she doesn’t fly, she’s booked on a cross-Atlantic trip on the Queen Mary II ship. Alice decides to bring her old friend Roberta (Candice Bergen)—whom hasn’t spoken to her in three decades--and Susan (Dianne Wiest) as well as her nephew Tyler (Lucas Hedges) to serve as her assistant so she can focus on her writing. Little does she know that her young agent Karen (Gemma Chan) is also on the ship hoping to find out what Alice is writing about with the help of Tyler, who is quite smitten with her.

I’m not sure where to begin with one of week’s films that I probably had the highest expectations and ended up leaving me with the most utter disappointment. I wasn’t really that crazy about last year’s The Laundromat, and I’ve generally found Soderbergh’s work to be hit or miss over the last few years. I loved his thriller Unsanefor instance, and the Magic Mike movies were fun. This one, written by author Deborah Eisenberg, is just plain boring for most of it, offering nothing particularly interesting or insightful, as it’s basically another movie where Streep is playing a character who moans about how difficult her life is and how much better everyone else has it. I mean, if I wanted that shit, I’d spend more time on Twitter than I already do. And then there’s Hedges, one of my favorite young actors over the past few years, who seems to have fallen into a niche playing

In fact, my favorite aspect of the film was Gemma Chan, who plays a character with far more depth and dimension than normal, although much of her role is just to spy on Alice and fend of the subtle advances by the much younger Tyler. The two actors have some fun scenes together, far more lively than anything involving the older actresses, but you always know where it’s going. It’s kind of awkward and painful to watch Hedges bomb so hard. (At least he fared better playing a similar role in French Exit, but in that one, his love interest was Danielle Macdonald.)

The movie looks good with Soderbergh handling his own camera duties and cinematography as usual, and it’s scored with the same hipster jazz he might have used in one of his Ocean movies, but the movie just goes on and on and on, and it hs one of the most “what the fuck?” moments you’ll see this year.

If you can imagine one of The Trip movies without any of the laughs or the delicious food porn…but on a ship, that’s basically what you end up with. More than once while watching Soderbergh’s movie, I was ready to abandon ship.

And from pretty bad, we go to much, MUCH worse. Do you know what thyme it is? It’s WILD MOUNTAIN THYME!!!

John Patrick Shanley adapts his own play Outside Mullingar into a film that will be released in theaters and On Demand by Bleeker Street this Friday, and believe me, its biggest problems isn’t some of the awful Irish accents on display, but they certainly don’t help. Emily Blunt plays Rosemary and Jamie Dornan is Anthony, childhood friends who live down the street from each other in their Irish farming community. When they grow up, Rosemary’s father dies leaving her with a plot of land that forces Anthony and his father Tony (Christopher Walken) to have to use a gate to get to their home. Remember this gate, because it’s going to be mentioned so much over the course of the movie, you’ll wonder why the movie wasn’t called “Wild Mountain Gate.” (It’s actually named after a song that Blunt’s character sings for no apparent reason.)

First, you’ll have to get past the odd choice of the very non-Irish Walken in a key role as the dead narrator of the story with that aforementioned horrid accent. It won’t take long for you to start scratching your head how a noted playwright like Shanley could write such a horrible screenplay. Soon after, you’ll wonder how he convinced someone to finance making it into a movie. I’m normally a pretty big fan of Blunt, but this movie and role might be one of her biggest missteps as an actor to date. As a child, Rosemary was told by her father that she was the White Swan in Swan Lake, so of course that will lead to

It’s not long before Jon Hamm shows up as one of Anthony’s distant relatives who also has interest in Rosemary’s plot of land – nudge, nudge, wink, wink. Pretty soon we’re thrust into awkward love triangle rom-com that falls somewhere between Leap Year and The Holiday. Not exactly something you’d expect from the filmmaker behind the drama Doubt that produced multiple Oscar nominations for the cast, eh?

Instead, Shanley ends up trying to foist the… I don’t want to call it chemistry. What is the exact opposite of chemistry? Between Blunt and Dorman with one long boring conversation after another. At one point, they’re having a romantic chat about suicide, the next Anthony is telling Rosemary that he thinks he’s a honeybee. I mean, what the holy fuck?

Honestly, the whole thing is just grueling to watch, because you wonder how so much talent could falter so badly, particularly Shanley? Even the recent Shane MacGowan doc was a far more romantic take on Irish farming than this could ever possibly be.

One of the nicer surprises of the week is the sci-fi thriller PARALLEL (Vertical), which will be in theaters and On Demand this Friday, and it’s likely to be missed by a lot of people who would enjoy it. Directed by Isaac Ezban from a screenplay by Scott Blaszak, it follows four young people working in the tech sector of Seattle who discover a mirror in a hidden section of the house they’re renting that apparently allows them to experience other dimensions and other versions of their lives. Soon, they’re experimenting with different ways they can make money and achieve fame, although not all of them are cool about how they’re doing it.

Although Parallel opens like a home invasion thriller featuring the great Kathleen Quinlan, we soon learn that it’s a red herring before we meet the quartet of young entepreneurs working on a parking app with an almost impossible deadline. When they find the mirror that leads into an alternative dimension, they immediately start to experiment with figuring out what is happening exactly, and once they do, they realize they can make money by stealing from “alts” i.e. other versions of themselves. Soon, their success starts driving them insane with a desire for even more money and power.

Ezban’s movie benefits from a talented mostly unknown cast, including Martin Wallstrom and Mark O’Brien as boisterous alpha males. Georgia King’s artist Leena is far more than a love interest, although she does become an obsession for one of them eventually – and man, does she remind me of a young Reese Witherspoon. British actor Aml Ameen plays Devin, whose father committed suicide after being accused of corruption, and he’s also wary of some of the activities his friends get up to. There’s also the quartet’s main competitor Seth who gets suspicious of their success as they start producing all sorts of incredible technical inventions.

Parallel is a pretty twisted sci-fi movie that in some way reminded me of the ‘90s thriller Flatliners and even Primer a little bit, but the mirror aspect to it also will draw comparisons to Oculus, one of Mike Flanagan’s cool earlier movies. It doesn’t take long for the twists to start flying at the viewer, and once they do, your mind will be boggled and not necessarily in a bad way. I wouldn’t want to even begin sharing some of the crazy places where the film goes, but even gore fans won’t be disappointed by some of it.

It’s a real shame this terrific movie has floundered without distribution or deserved attention for so long, because there’s absolutely no question in my mind that Jason Blum should be talking to Ezban and Blaszk about doing something together. Parallel is the type of quality high-concept thriller Blumhouse thrives upon.

Another nice surprise this week was Ekwa Msangi’s FAREWELL AMOR (IFC Films), which debuted at Sundance earlier this year and barely got any attention, which is a real shame. It’s expanded from her earlier short, and it’s about an Angolan immigrant named Walter (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine), who is reunited with his wife Esther (Zainab Jah) and daughter Sylvia (Jayme Lawson) after 17 years. As they share a small New York apartment, Walter and Esther try to rekindle their romance while Sylvia tries to adjust to an American school.

Msangi’s film opens at Newark airport where the small family is reunited, Walter not having seen either wife or daughter in a decade and a half. He’s working as a cab driver, and he’s ready to rekindle the old flame and meet his daughter who was only a baby when he moved to the States. (Little does Esther know that Walter was in a relationship with another woman, a nurse who isn’t too happy about having to leave Walter’s life.)

One of the things Msangi does to keep things interesting is that she splits the film into three sections, one for each character that focuses specifically on them, and the story gets infinitely interesting as we learn more about each of them. Walter is somewhat at odds with doing the right thing by his wife and daughter, who is wanting to explore her love of dance that her ultra-religious mother forebids. For some reason, I thought Sylvia’s section would be the most interesting as she deals with the trials of being a teenager, but then Esther’s section shows her to be a far more layered character we might have assumed earlier. She also befriends a neighbor woman played by Joie Lee that helps her expand. The thing is that all three are clearly good people, and you never feel as if one is doing something bad in relation to the others.

Farewell Amor is a quiet but beautiful film that explores an immigrant story in a far different way than we’ve seen before. It’s a discovery film, and I hope people will not just presume it won’t hold their interest. It’s a wonderfully relatable human story, similar to Tom McCarthy’s The Visitor.

Sienna Miller and Diego Luna star in Tara Miele’s psychological drama WANDER DARKLY (Lionsgate), playing Adrienne and Matteo, a couple who recently had a baby. After they get into a horrible car accident while arguing, they end up revisiting the highs and lows of their relationship as Adrienne believes either she or Matteo or both are dead.

This is a surprisingly stranger film than I expected, delving into the supernatural not quite in the way as something like Wes Craven’s Serpent and the Rainbow or Jacob’s Ladder, but having a few elements in common. Although I haven’t seen Miele’s other films, this one feels very much like something Drake Doremus might have made to the point where I’m not sure I could say I fully understood what was happening from one moment to the next. The film seems to be exploring a couple’s relationship through a horrible tragedy but does in a strange way.

With the emotional performances by the two leads being enhanced by an amazing score by Alex Weston (who also scored The Farewell last year), Wander Darkly is more than anything, a performance piece with a decent script and further proof Miller continues to be one of the most underrated actresses working today. Despite those great performances, the movie’s strange premise might be too metaphysical and intense in execution for everyone to be along for the entire ride. In that sense, I probably liked last week’s Black Bear just slightly more.

I reviewed Steve McQueen’s ALEX WHEATLE (Amazon Prime Video) in last week’s column, and that will hit Amazon Prime this Friday, but I think I’m going to save Education, the last film in his “Small Axe Anthology” for next week’s column. I was also hoping to review Tom Moore and Ross Stewart’s WOLFWALKERS (Apple+) this week, since it premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday, but I just couldn’t get to it. Story of my life.

I’m not sure if I could tell you how many of the Ip Man movies I’ve seen over the past 12 or so years, many of which I saw at the New York Asian Film Festival, but Ip Man is indeed back after last year’s Ip Man: The Finale, but that’s because IP MAN: KUNG FU MASTER (Magnet/Magnolia Pictures) is part of the spin-off prologue series starring Dennis (Yu-Hang) To, who looked enough like a younger Donnie Yen to start a whole sub-franchise. This one is directed by Liming Li, who is also directing a Young Ip Man: Crisis Time prequel movie that presumably stars someone younger than both Yen and To. Got it?

Okay, maybe this needs a little more explaining, although the nice thing about Kung Fu Master is that it works perfectly fine as a stand-alone in case you’ve never seen any of the other movies. This one takes place in the ‘40s as Man is a police captain in Foshan, dealing with the ever-present gang known as The Axes. He’s framed for murder when the leader of the gang dies in prison, and his daughter, Miss Qingchuan (Wanliruo Xin), wanting revenge as she takes over the gang. Ip Man has other issues like being disgraced as a police officer and then the arrival of the Japanese army who have their own agenda. Ip Man ends up donning a mask to become the Black Knight to fight crime in another way.

I make no bones about my love of martial arts films when they’re not stupid or hoaky and sadly, the Donnie Yen franchise was getting by last year’s so-called “finale.” Kung Fu Master starts out with an amazing action scene of To fighting off what seems like hundred of axe-wielding gangsters, and it barely lets up, constantly throwing interesting and thoroughly entertaining fights at the viewer. Eventually, there’s a bounty on Ip Man’s head with whoever kills becoming leader of the Axes, but he has other issues, like his wife giving birth to their baby boy, just as the police chief and force shows up to arrest him. Cutting quickly between childbirth and kung fu action is just one of the interesting things Director Li does to make his Ip Man debut.

The resemblance between Dennis To and Donnie Yen is more than just facial as his wushu techniques are equally impressive, and sure, there’s a few more dramatic moments between Ip Man and his wife, but it’s Xin’s Miss Qingchuan who ends up being more of a formidable counter to To in just about every way, including a few fight scenes where axes are flying through the air.

Ip Man Kung Fu Master is fairly short, less than 90 minutes, but it still feels long because it feels like it finds a good ending, and then tacks on an epilogue and then another one. There were times I thought it might end on a cliffhanger to set up Ip Man’s inevitable next movie. The abundance of evil antagonists Ip Man must fight in this one tends to become a bit much, but it’s hard not to be thrilled by the martial arts on display and Li’s terrifically stylish visuals that keeps the movie interesting.

Ip Man Kung Fu Master will be available digitally Friday through a variety of platforms.

Filmmaker Adam Egypt Mortimer, who released Daniel Isn’t Real last year, returns with ARCHENEMY (RLJEfilms), starring Joe Manganiello as Max Fist, who claims to be a hero from another dimension that fell to earth. He ends up spending time with a teen brother and sister, Hamster (Skylan Brooks) and Indigo (Zelee Griggs) who want to clean the streets of the local drug syndicate, led by The Manager (Glenn Howerton from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia). It’s a strange and quirky dark superhero movie that includes appearances by the likes of Paul Scheer and Amy Seimetz, and though I ran out of time to review, I do have an interview with Mortimer at Below the Line.

Time to get to some docs, and there are definitely some you’ll want to check out, although I don’t have as much time to write that much about them, and some of them I wasn’t able to watch yet.

Another great doc out of the September festival circuit is Ryan White’s ASSASSINS (Greenwich Entertainment), which follows the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, half-brother to North Korean leader Kim Jon-un in 2017 at a busy airport in Malaysia by two young women. Although the two women had never met before, they were jointly charged with attacking the North Korean ex-pat with a lethal nerve gas called VX but White’s investigation takes him all over South-East Asia trying to get answers to how the two women were tricked into committing the assassination. This is a pretty masterful display of doc filmmaking by White, not just in the sense of the way the story is paced and edited like a good political thriller, but it’s one that keeps the viewer invested even as the last act deals with the trial of the two young women and the bond that forms between them.

I’ll have more about this film over on Below the Line sometime very soon, but it hits theaters and virtual cinema this Friday and then it will be on PVOD on January 15

I saw Seamus Murphy’s doc PJ HARVEY: A DOG CALLED MONEY way back in March when it was supposed to open at New York’s Film Forum, but it’s finally getting a virtual cinema release there. Murphy travelled across Afghanistan, Kosovo and Washington DC with singer/songwriter PJ Harvey as she prepared material for her 2015 album, The Hope Six Million Project, which she produced with Flood and John Parish as an installation at Somerset House where people can walk by and view the recording process. This is an amazing doc that allows you into the process of writing for an amazing recording artist who has given Murphy and the viewer unprecedented access into her creativity. I had fully lost track of Harvey over the years, even though I was a huge fan of hers when she first hit these shores – in fact, I saw her play a concert where Radiohead opened for her… and there as another band (Gallon Drunk) after them! Because of that, I wasn’t familiar with the album, but I just love good music docs, especially ones that take us behind the scenes of a talented artist, and Murphy has created quite a fascinating film even outside the recording studio, whether it’s following Harvey around (narrated by her own poetic observations) but also with commentary by others they encounter. I found the Washington DC segments particularly interesting, since that’s the one place where I’ve spent the most time. An absolutely fantastic doc whether you’re a fan of Harvey’s or not.

Also playing in the Film Forum’s Virtual Cinema this week is Thomas Balmés’ SING ME A SONG, the filmmaker’s second doc set in the Himalayan village of Bhutan that’s been isolated for centuries. He returns to update on Peyangki, the 8-year-old Buddhist monk from his 2014 film Happiness, now a teenager who has fallen under the sway of technology including pop music and smartphone games, as he begins a WeChat romance with a young singer, which makes him consider leaving the monastery.

Also premiering on Netflix this Friday is Jim Stern and Fernando Villena’s doc GIVING VOICE, tying into the streaming premiere of August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom next week. It follows six student actors auditioning for the August Wilson Monologue Competition, which brings thousands of students from twelve U.S. cities together to perform the Pulitzer Prize winner’s work.

Joshua Faudem’s doc THE LAST SERMON (Gravitas Ventures/Will Kennan) follows the director and Jack Baxter as they follow 14 years after making their 2004 documentary Blues by the Beach, in which the two ended up in a terrorist attack by British Nationals on Mike’s Place, a bar next door to the National Embassy on Tel Aviv. This event sends Baxter and Faudem across Europe to refugee camps and mosques in order to understand the essence of Islam and the truth about the international terrorists that almost killed them.

Drew Barrymore plays a dual role in THE STAND-IN (Saban Films), directed by Jamie Babbitt (But I’m a Cheerleader). While under normal circumstances, Wild Mountain Thyme would have been the dog of the week, then this movie came along. Yikes. Barrymore plays Candy Black, a comedy star best known for her pratfalls in bad movies (ala Melissa McCarthy). She also plays Paula, Candy’s much sweeter and almost identical stand-in. Candy is a nightmare to work with and after a fall from grace, she holes herself up in her Long Island Estate for five years, while Paula’s own fortunes falter without having that work. I’m sure you can figure out where it goes from there.

Yes, folks, we have what is now one of the worst iterations of a Tale of Two Cities not made by Barrymore’s frequent co-star Adam Sandler, although there are times where you wonder if she is actually playing a version of Sandler with Candy. Eventually, either Candy or Paula or both decide that Paula can take Candy’s place in her attempt to return to work, but the results are just far worse than The Hottie or the Nottie, as Paula also stands in for Candy on dates with the man she’s fallen in love with online through their love of woodworking. (I didn’t make that up.) You almost always know where it’s going and can’t help but groan when you’re right.

Basically, there’s one Drew that’s glammed-down and the other talking in an annoying wispy voice, so there really isn’t getting away from the awfulness even for a second.The thing is that, like the worst comedies, The Stand In is not funny, and it’s sad to see a decent director like Babbitt being dragged into this one. It’s just a terrible overused premise that’s executed quite poorly. Not only that, but the movie also co-stars TJ Miller, who has fallen so far from grace himself, that it’s shocking to see him in another movie.

Besides guaranteeing Barrymore a double-dose Razzie nomination, The Stand In also leaves her with cow shit on her face, much like her character.

Movies I just didn’t have time to get to this week:

Funny Boy (Array/Netflix) Gunda (NEON) Safety (Disney+) Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (HBO Max) 40 Years a Prisoner (HBO Docs) Through the Night (Longshot Factory) To the Ends of the Earth (KimStim) Rompan Todo: The History of Rock in Latin America (Netflix) The Wilds (Prime Video) Nasrin (Virgil Films) Finding Ying Yin

By the way, if you read this week’s column and have bothered to read this far down, feel free to drop me some thoughts at Edward dot Douglas at Gmail dot Com or drop me a note or tweet on Twitter. I love hearing from readers … honest!

#TheWeekendWarrior #Movies #Reviews #Minari #TheMidnightSky #LetThemAllTalk #VOD #Streaming #WildMountainThyme #Parallel #TheStandIn #IpManKungFuMaster

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chimerojeon · 6 years

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CAN I RANT ABOUT MNET ?

You can either read it or leave it hanging, I just need to rant lol.

Okay first of all, back then I adore Mnet very much because they always pay EXTRA attention to BTS (I mean they send BTS to America, er is that on Mnet, oh well it is because they were one time BTS lowkey diss Mnet tho) They somehow help BTS to climb up and cherish them. BTS love Mnet and even the ball head PD (I forgot his name because I have amnesia suddenly if its about MNet nowadays). But after the Billboard Music Award, hm... I know Mnet made the whole episode of BTS countdown and BTS comeback show but thats it I think. K-Armys, our beloved K-Diamonds, werent given any proper rest the whole recording and BTS were the one who feed them (Poor bbies) just to support the boys.

I have been with BTS eversince debut (cant you believe I grew up with BTS together for about 5 years? trust me, I was shocked to know that Kook is only a year older and I still cant believe until now lol) and its actually an emotional roller coaster ride.

I am a huge and loyal since 2009 YGstan and also a cute loyal ARMY since 2013. Why do I relate this two? Because Mnet have issues with my favs. First with the YGFams and now BTS ?

YG and Mnet problems are in another level, okay lemme ignore that but Mnet and BTS? I mean you took away our votes like by millions, blocking the hastags, the sudden voting apps without captcha (how do u spell it im dumb) and not telling us properly about the missing votes when suddenly now, nearing MAMA2017 you use BTS to promote MAMA ? I see BTS everywhere at your channel Mnet. You know you are about to go down didnt you Mnet? You messed up with ARMYs with their votes, messed up saying E/XO name during AMAs (cough*by accident*cough) and when you're about to go down, you use BTS again to gain attention ergh.

Dont you learn anything from GD diss in 2014? GD clearly said Mnet and MAMA in his diss rap you dummies. Dont you stupid Mnet know why he diss you? Rumors said the diss was made because of the voting in MAMA. Back in 2013, GD win the Best Solo Dance for the song Crooked and he didnt expect it at all. GD knew that song doesnt have any proper choreography thats why. He feel he should stand up and correct this unfairness. He want Mnet or MAMA whatever to be fair in the way they give out the awards so no fights will occur. (This is my opinion and based on rumors, dont hate me okie) Next year in 2015, Taeyang manage to win Song Of the Year (which I think kinda fair because everyone seems to he singing thay song) and BigBang won Artist of the Year (when E/XO had always snatch that award so yeah, maybe its fair too because E/XO is quite popular?)

I am not hating on that particular group, I was a huge fan back then before the group lost its members making me lost interest. The thing is I hate it when people say Mnet is giving Big3 some gold tickets or passes to snatch the awards easily (You get me?) but its not. I mean YG have issues with Mnet sheesh.

Why suddenly we're here? Oh yes, because I just wanna rant about it. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I am stressing out on my finals before I graduate college next week and I am tired to see our votes always missing or suddenly dropped too much. BTS should receive proper recognization (?) in their own country and K-Diamonds should really be loved by us i-Lovely and BTS for their massive support. And love yourself dear ARMYs because we made it together this far no matter when you joined the fandom and reached 11th 100M views MV yey!

If you read it this far, spend another 10mins to vote okay! Oh and I know I keep annoying you ARMYs with this but please vote for Suran. Shes such a lovely woman, have eargasm kind of voice and basically our Yoongs close friend. Oh and if anyone out there is an ArmLink or anyhow support BlackBangtan (BTS and Blackpink) either ship them or just support those two as idols, please vote for Blackpink too okay! I knew many of ARMYs are Blinks too (no dont get offended please, I just state what I see on media social but I do know not all ARMYs like both group)

Thats all from me, your lovely chimerojeon ♡

#bts #ygfamily #mnet #mama2017

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youngandhungryent · 5 years

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Here Comes The Pain: Hip-Hop’s Biggest Wrestling Fans

When you think about it, it’s really no surprise that many rappers are avid fans of professional wrestling. Predicated on clashing egos, pageantry and more than a hint of bravado, there’s plenty of shared attributes between the rap game and what transpires within the famed squared circle. As such, transposing the sights and sounds of the mid 2000’s hip-hop landscape into audacious hand-to-hand combat for Def Jam: Vendetta and its superior sequel Fight For New York was an almost seamless process. Larger than life characters in their own right, it’s only natural that many rappers would gravitate towards the bombastic heels and triumphant babyfaces of the time-honoured profession.

From artists that have subsisted below the mainstream’s glare to some of the biggest MCs to ever step in the arena, it’s time to separate the casual viewers from hip-hop’s resident grappling fanatics. To clarify, this isn’t going to be an exhaustible overview of every rapper that’s thrown in a token reference to a wrestler or devastating finishing move here or there. Instead, we’ll be charting those MCs whose careers are inextricably linked to sports entertainment in one way or another, either from drawing a heft of inspiration from its tropes or actively participating in its culture.

Mark Dadswell/Getty Images

It should come as no surprise that Ric Flair has morphed into one of hip-hop’s informal patron saints. Nowadays, nods to the rolex-wearing, jet-flying, wheelin-dealin’ son-of-a-Gun are commonplace, with the Naitch even showing up in a plethora of music videos and rhyming couplets respectively. But long before Offset expounded on the virtues of having the “Ric Flair Drip,” it was a man that’s no stranger to upsetting the status quo that opted to bring him into hip-hop lore in earnest.

The centrepiece of 2011’s PL3DGE, Dungeon Family veteran Killer Mike ushered in a career rebirth with “Ric Flair.” Formed of his obligatorily punchy verses and some of the iconic wrestler’s greatest promos from Crockett-era WCW, the Georgia native would go on to expand on his love for “The Man” during Run The Jewels’ edition of Pitchfork’s Over/Under. Amid a typically fiery rant that saw him run down the soon-to-be disgraced Hulk Hogan, Mike explained that it was the ideology of the Ric Flair character that drew him to old Space Mountain himself.

“He endorsed women, drugs, Mercedes Benz, fur coats in the summer… That is the true heavyweight champion of the world, that is the only heavyweight champion of the world. He wore big gold and Hulk Hogan is nothing but an oversized model.”

Remaining on the southern side of the Mason-Dixon line, another beloved icon that’s long maintained a penchant for the squared circle is Lil Wayne. When he wasn’t dabbling with skateboarding or experimenting with electric guitar, Weezy— who has referenced a cadre of the profession’s all time greats including Andre The Giant, the N.W.O and Sid Vicious— spoke to Bleacher Report about his love for the medium and his aspirations of testing his mettle in wrestling’s leading organization:

“Vince, Vince McMahon. Well first I want to say why the hell does he walk like that? Has he been to prison before? That strut kills me but I respect him for what he does, he basically built an empire. I do need to talk to Vince though, as you know I try to be the best at whatever I do, so I am planning my pro wrestling debut.”

When pressed to expand on his blueprint for a career between the ropes, Wayne produced a moniker and finisher that’d lead you to believe that he’d contemplated it before.

“Well I would be BWA, which stands for Best Wrestler Alive [laughs] and my special move would be call the toilet because I am the ish and I just be doodooing all over the other wrestler’s, ya dig?”

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Shifting generations, there are no shortage of modern-day stars that are beholden to wrestling for inspiration. Among the colourful and charismatic MCs this side of ODB and Biz Markie, Flatbush Zombies have an unrequited love for all things WWE. From the outset of their career, Meechy Darko was eager to refer to himself as “Randy Savage On Acid,” even declaring the late Macho Man to be the “greatest wrestler that ever lived” during an interview with Nardwuar. Alongside staging a “Zeltron Vs Zombies” soundclash against Denzel Curry, Meech, Zombie Juice and Erick also engaged in a spot of ill-fated CZW-style backyard wrestling for their “New World Order” video with Durt Cobain sporting a vintage Dennis “Rodzilla” Rodman NWO shirt for good measure.

Remaining in the Empire state, Smoke DZA has made his fondness for sports entertainment pronounced since the outset of his career. Although he’d been prone to a lyrical nod here and there, his fandom became undeniable with the first edition of his Ringside EP series. Launched on the night of Wrestlemania XXX in 2013, he has since turned in another seven instalments of the grappling-oriented project that repurposes themes and contorts them into his normal brand of kush-sprinkled rhyming. If that isn’t enough to satiate any cravings for wrestling-themed hip-hop, be sure to check out the work of Pennsylvania’s Mega-Ran. Longtime friends with The New Day’s own Xavier Woods, 2016’s Mat Maniais a masterclass in fusing the two mutually appreciative subcultures.

After performing “Invincible” at Wrestlemania 28, the ever divisive MGK spoke to Wrestling Inc about how he’d extracted strength from the artform in his youth. Or at least he did prior to Kevin Owens fulfilling the dreams of Eminem stans all over the world by hitting Colson with a powerbomb through a table.

“Wrestling in the 90s was a huge part of mainstream culture and definitely in the area where I’ve grown up, the Midwest,” he declared. “That was our Monday Night Football, you know what I mean? That was the people that we were looking up to because wrestlers give off that underdog vibe, like the John Cena’s and the Rocks… they overcome all this adversity, and it’s inspiring.” Although he’s expressed a desire to do further work with the company, his rep as a wrestling fan is certainly dwarfed by another MC that’s sporadically appeared on WWE fans’ screens.

Wale is the embodiment of a grappling aficionado that uses his platform to meld his two passions in any way he can. On top of hosting a controversy-garnering rap-battle between The New Day and The Uso’s on Smackdown! Live and staging an annual Walemania convention during Wrestlemania Weekend, the Gifted MC also summarized the plight of the beleaguered long-time viewer like few else could during an interview with The Undefeated, saying, “When wrestling is good, it’s amazing. When it’s not good, you hoping nobody’s seeing you watch the shit.”

Having shared a panel on wrestling with Wale at Complexcon, the only artist that could possibly rival Wale’s encyclopaedic knowledge of wrestling’s golden age is Mr. Baklava himself, Action Bronson.

Speaking to HNHH in February 2015, Bronsolino— whose debut album’s title Mr. Wonderful was an ode to WWE Hall of Famer Paul Orndorff in itself—outlined his favourite in-ring performers of all time and cited some names that go way beyond the average casual viewer. “I used to love watching all types of wrestling, man. Tito Santana and Rick Martell when they were the tag team (Strike Force) and split up. The Hart Foundation, Kamala, Bruno Sammortino… Papa Shango, Koko B Ware, Arn Anderson, Dean Malenko, Psychosis,” he relayed.

But where “Bam Bam” has penned odes to infamous jobber Barry Horowitz and dubbed himself to be the “Intercontinental Champion,” he’s abstained from using a wrestling reference for a side project in the vein of Westside Gunn and Conway. A homage to “The Outsiders” from WCW, their deep-rooted respect for the lineage is so strong that Westside Gunn took to Instagram to voice his umbrage with what he saw as Drake’s aesthetical foray into the subculture:

“Drake is probably a Kool dude who knows, but my company logo is the scorpion and coincidentally he names his album Scorpion. I was at Coachella wearing the hat and somebody says, ‘Is that Drake’s hat?’ I almost smacked him, now he’s rocking Scott Hall sh*t when I’ve never seen this ni**a anywhere at any wrestling event and I go by Hall…”

George Napolitano/FilmMagic/Getty Images

No matter how infatuated they may be with the realm of scripted combat, there is one wizened rapper that’s more synonymous with the industry than any other. Snoop Dogg breached the walls of sports entertainment’s most hallowed club when he was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame.

A harmonious and reciprocal relationship that has withstood the test of time, hip-hop artists and wrestlers are bonded by a shared desire to not only be the best in their field but to get their due respect for their unmatched prowess. As a parting gift, enjoy the incredible “Pay-Per-View,” a vastly underrated gem which features Ruff Ryders’ Drag-On, Eve, Jadakiss and Styles P rhyming almost entirely in mid-90’s wrestling references.

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ramajmedia · 5 years

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Best Movies On HBO Right Now (September 2019) | Screen Rant

What are the best movies to watch on HBO? Subscription streaming services are the fastest growing sector of the entertainment landscape, but before Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu came to dominate that arena, premium cable companies like HBO were offering consumers a way to watch movies and TV shows without commercials for a set monthly fee. Not content to let streaming run away with their market share, HBO also now allows people to subscribe to an entirely online version of their service called HBO Now, after fans begged for such an option for years.

Nowadays, cutting the cable cord is the preferred way to go for many, especially younger pop culture devotees. Cable packages are bloated, full of content very few people want, and contain multiple additional fees. Still, whether one subscribes to HBO through cable or via streaming, the service offers a great selection of movies with which to pass the time, even if the line-up isn't quite as robust as those of the subscription streaming big three.

Related: Ranked: Most Anticipated HBO Shows In 2019

Before the list of the best movies on HBO begins proper, there are some important notes to be made. First, the movies below are available to watch on HBO and stream on HBO Now at the time of this writing. As movies expire, the list will be updated, and new great options will be added. Also, the 15 films below, while numbered for convenience, are not ranked.

Last updated: September 6, 2019

In 1978, director John Carpenter created one of the most iconic horror villains of all time with Halloween's Michael Myers. Unfortunately, the franchise that followed wasn't exactly great, with few of the sequels doing any type of justice to the original. Thankfully, that trend changed with 2018's Halloween, directed by David Gordon Green, and now available on HBO. A direct sequel to only Carpenter's original - and with Carpenter himself onboard as producer and composer - Halloween (2018) does its best to recapture Michael's glory days, even bringing back Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode. The result isn't as good as the original, but it's pretty easily the best follow-up.

Director Paul Verhoeven has always been known for peppering his films with subversive messages, and making films that were uniquely his. That very much extended to his more commercially successful fare, such as 1987's Robocop, which proved popular enough to spawn a franchise that's still ongoing (and almost entirely available on HBO), but also overflowed with satirical attacks on consumerism and capitalism as a whole. For Omni Consumer Products, nothing comes before profit, and not even murder is too far to go to make another buck. Thankfully, Robocop ends up disagreeing with his makers.

Few monsters even approach the level of movies made about the vampire. It's not hard to see why, as vampires' ageless nature and wide-ranging powers often lead to them being seen as both cool and seductive. One of the best depictions of the sheer potential coolness involved with being a member of the undead is 1987's cult classic The Lost Boys, directed by Joel Schumacher. The film's tagline says it all: "Sleep all day. Party all night. It's fun to be a vampire." A cast full of 1980s favorites doesn't hurt things, including Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, Jami Gertz, Keifer Sutherland, and Alex Winter. The Lost Boys is definitely worth biting into on HBO.

Related: 20 Crazy Details Behind The Making Of The Lost Boys

One of the most acclaimed films of 2018, BlacKkKlansman earned six Oscar nominations, including the first ever Best Director nomination for Spike Lee. While Lee didn't win, he did share in the film's Best Adapted Screenplay victory. Based on a true story, BlacKkKlansman stars John David Washington as Ron Stallworth, the first black cop in the history of Colorado Springs. Stallworth struggles to fit in at first, but quickly finds his niche investigating infamous hate group the Ku Klux Klan. Stallworth gains their trust by pretending to be white over the phone, with fellow officer Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) posing as Stallworth for in person meetings. For those who missed it in theaters last year, BlacKkKlansman is a must-watch HBO selection.

While not quite the exalted classic its 1962 inspiration is, director Jonathan Demme's 2004 remake of political thriller The Manchurian Candidate is still an enjoyable piece of work. Denzel Washington stars as a war veteran named Ben Marco, who begins to suspect his experiences overseas might not have been what they seemed. Before long, his investigation leads to the revelation that vice presidential candidate Raymond Shaw (Liev Schreiber) might be an unwitting puppet of a dark conspiracy. Meryl Streep, Vera Farmiga, and Jon Voight also star in this prime HBO pick.

The directorial debut of acclaimed filmmaker Jason Reitman, 2005's Thank You for Smoking is a pitch black satire of just how unethical the world of high-powered corporate lobbying can really be. Aaron Eckhart as Nick Naylor, a good-looking, fast-talking, alpha male-type lobbyist for the tobacco industry. Cigarettes are of course a product that slowly kills its users, making lobbying it for a job best done without moral hangups. Katie Holmes, Maria Bello, David Koechner, William H. Macy, and more fill out the star-studded cast of this top HBO pick.

Related: Everything We Know About Ghostbusters 2020

Based on a novel by best-selling author John Grisham, 1996's A Time to Kill takes a harsh look at the often racially-biased justice system in the American south, and also asks the question of whether murder can ever be justified. Set in Mississippi, A Time to Kill's plot is put in motion by the brutal rape of a young black girl. Afraid the rapists will go free, the girl's father, powerfully played by Samuel L. Jackson, gets revenge by shooting and killing them on their way to trial. This earns him a murder trial of his own, and it's up to white lawyer Jake Brigance (Matthew McConaughey) and his defense team to try and avoid the death penalty. Sandra Bullock, Ashley Judd, Kevin Spacey, and Donald and Keifer Sutherland also star in this prime HBO pick.

One of the most beloved documentaries in recent memory, many moviegoers were outraged when director Morgan Neville's Won't You Be My Neighbor? was snubbed in the Oscars best documentary category. Despite that sad turn, the film's exploration of the life and career of Fred Rogers - host of legendary kids show Mister Rogers Neighborhood, and lifelong advocate for children - remains utterly compelling, and enough to pierce just about anyone's cynical exterior. HBO subscribers should get acquainted with it as soon as possible.

Page 2 of 2: More Great Movies On HBO Now

While Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson might be one of the biggest stars in the world today, his early acting career wasn't without its growing pains. One of Johnson's first starring roles following his departure as an active wrestler for WWE was in 2003's The Rundown, a jungle-set action film that tends to get unfairly overlooked as an early sign of just how charismatic an action lead he would become. The Rock plays a bounty hunter named Beck, tasked with retrieving Travis Walker (Seann William Scott) from Brazil. Complicating things is evil mining boss Cornelius Hatcher, played with gusto by Christopher Walken. Arnold Schwarzenegger even pops up in this thrilling action/adventure, now on HBO.

Related: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's 10 Best Movies, According To Rotten Tomatoes

While not quite as overwhelmingly appreciated as its 2016 predecessor, 2018's Deadpool 2 is a very fun sequel in its own right, and features great supporting turns from Josh Brolin as Cable and Zazie Beetz as Domino. Of course, the true star of the show continues to be Deadpool himself, as played by Ryan Reynolds. While the decision to kill off Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) was definitely questionable, it still led to some great gags, exciting action, and even a Juggernaut appearance. Fans now wait impatiently for news on exactly what Disney plans to do with Wade Wilson, but for the time being, they could do worse than stream Deadpool 2 on HBO.

While 1994's The Ref is far from a feel-good tale, those looking for a Christmas-themed film with a satirical edge would be wise to give it a look, as it's become a bit forgotten over the years. Denis Leary stars as Gus, a jewel thief who ends up taking a suburban couple (Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis) hostage after being left behind by his getaway driver. Gus makes his captives take him back home, and soon enough, their highly dysfunctional family begins to show up to celebrate the holidays. Also known as Hostile Hostages, The Ref is a great choice to stream on HBO.

Asian actors still really don't get that many leading roles in Hollywood films, but with director Jon M. Chu's 2018 hit Crazy Rich Asians, an entire cast of them got a chance to prove how outdated that practice is. Constance Wu stars as Rachel Chu, a Chinese-American professor who heads to Singapore in order to meet her boyfriend Nick Young's (Henry Golding) family. As the title suggests though, Nick neglected to inform Rachel that said family is shockingly rich and powerful. Unfortunately for Rachel, Nick's controlling mom (Michelle Yeoh) isn't a fan of their union. It's a fairly standard romantic comedy setup, but brought to life by a talented cast, and told from a relatively unseen point of view. A massive financial success, Crazy Rich Asians is a terrific addition to the HBO line-up.

Related: Crazy Rich Asians 2: Everything We Know About The Sequel's Story

A critically acclaimed adaptation of the popular novel by Angie Thomas, 2018's The Hate U Give makes no bones about the fact that it's politically motivated, with a story that could be easily ripped from far too many headlines. Starr (Amandla Stenberg) does her best to balance her daily life at a mostly white private school with her home and weekend existence in a predominantly black neighborhood. Starr does her best not to rock the boat, that is until her close friend Khalil (Algee Smith) is gunned down by a white cop while unarmed. This leaves Starr with the choice to maintain her anonymity, or stand up for her fallen friend. The Hate U Give is an essential HBO watch.

An award season darling, Bradley Cooper's 2018 remake of A Star is Born may have ended up mostly shut out at the Oscars - winning only for Best Original Song - but that doesn't make it any less of a terrific addition to the HBO line-up. Cooper directs and stars as Jackson Maine, a successful singer-songwriter who struggles with alcoholism and the prospect that he's losing his hearing. Lady Gaga plays Ally, an unknown singer that gets discovered by Jackson one night at a club, beginning both a whirlwind romance and Ally's rise to musical stardom. Cooper and Gaga's lead song, "Shallow" deservedly won the Oscar, and the chemistry between the two is electric.

Every generation latches on to its own favorite teen movies, and for those coming of age in the 2000s, few are as beloved as 2004's Mean Girls, now on HBO. Directed by Mark Waters, Mean Girls takes a look at the clique-heavy high school ecosystem, all while being hilarious and quotable. Lindsay Lohan stars as Cady Heron, freshly placed in a new school after spending over a decade in Africa. Cady has a hard time adjusting, that is until she's taken in by The Plastics, a group of the school's most popular girls. Leading the group is the often cruel Regina George (Rachel McAdams). Before long, Cady and Regina butt heads, and the battle for teenage supremacy is on. Lacey Chabert, Amanda Seyfried, and Tina Fey also star, with Fey herself having written the script.

More: The 25 Best Films on Netflix Right Now

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writesaboutbangtan17 · 7 years

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say you’ll remember me

mingyu x reader fluff, angst, implied smut

6,445 words

a/n: i know some parts of this are so *stares right into the camera* obnoxiously cheesy but guess what? i like this and i just don’t care. i’m currently writing a horribly stupidly long hoseok fic, but i realized the writing had gotten a little stale n asked my bff for a prompt to write a “ficlet” (this was supposed to be 2k or less) and she gave me: mingyu, fluff and angst, wildest dreams by taylor swift (because my mingyu tag is “he’s so tall and handsome as hell”). so ta da, this is what u get

~ in which your young, dumb love will hurt you, will ruin you, has an expiration date…but is so, so worth it

You never forgot to visit your hometown in the summertime. Of course, it was nice to see your family, but you could see them any time of the year, and saw them often in the fall and the winter. What made the long drive from the city worth it in the hundred degree weather, sun glaring down on the hood of your car and baking you inside of it, was the chance to see the seaside in all its glory. You’d been raised in a humble beach town and you’d seen it a thousand times, but you’d be happy to see it a thousand more. As a kid, you couldn’t say you’d appreciated it much. The town itself and the beach were a little dumpy, nothing to write home about.

It was the memories you’d created there once upon a time that made it special. As you pulled into a spot in the tiny parking lot and cut the ignition, you could remember late nights in the backseat of a car a lot older and rustier than this one, making your own heat as you pressed your sweat-slicked body to another. You trudged out onto the sand and as it flattened beneath your sneakers, you remembered squishing it between your toes as you watched a certain young man wading in the shallow ocean waters. He’d splashed some little kids nearby, pretending to fall beneath the surface with the weight of their own splashes back at him, and you’d imagined how this scene would look many years from now with children who were the perfect mix of you and him. You’d been 17 then.

The same old snack bar stood beneath a few palm trees, and you could never forget him buying you ice cream every afternoon, no matter how much you insisted eating one ice cream cone every day would put a thousand pounds on you. He’d wrap an arm around your waist to pull you close, and “I’d still love you,” he’d hum against the side of your head. Every day without fail he’d bump his chocolate ice cream against the tip of your nose, and you’d crinkle it in fake disgust as he insisted on licking it off.

Not far away was the playground where he’d push you on the swing, the bathrooms where you’d lock yourself in a stall and make out every day, the fancy restaurant he’d saved up for a month to take you to once (and even then, he couldn’t afford for you to get anything to drink besides a water—not that you minded). You passed by them all on your way to the watchtower. No matter how many times you visited the beach, you hadn’t gone up to the top of it since that summer five years ago. But you’d just gotten a great job, made some great new friends, and you were even starting to date someone new—your life was nothing like you’d imagined it’d be back then, but it was still good. You’d told your new partner about your trip, and although it was a particularly teary conversation, you explained why it was such an important one to make. They were the one who gave you the strength to take each step up the concrete staircase, to keep your head up instead of turning and running back to your car.

The top level of the watchtower overlooked the entire beach. From one side you could see all the way into town, all the way towards your parents’ house where your old teenage bedroom was waiting for you. On the other side, the ocean went on forever. Facing the water, you wrapped both hands around the old splintered railing and looked down between them. Mingyu & Y/N 4E. It was so childish, you’d known even then that it was childish, but it still brought a smile to your face.

You refused to let the tears at the corners of your eyes fall, and reminded yourself not for the first time that none of this should make you sad anymore. It had been so long, and you’d moved on…but that couldn’t stop the longing in your heart. You wished the waves carrying away the sand and pebbles could wash away the memory of that wolfish grin, the warmth of his calloused hands on your skin, the feeling of loving him so much that you’d give up the stars and the clouds and this whole universe if it meant you’d never have to live a day without him at your side.

You wished that he had kept his promise.

“Oh my god, Mingyu,” you groaned as he shoved the small pocketknife back into his jeans, “we’re almost adults, that’s kids stuff. Some kid wanted to do that with me when I was like eleven.” Mingyu rolled his eyes and grabbed your hand, yanking you over to his side as he blew away the wood shavings to admire his masterpiece. You turned your head towards the water, letting your hair fall over your face so that he couldn’t see the lightest of pinks dusting your cheeks at how nice your names looked together—he’d never shut up about it.

“Who was it? Was it Joonki? Hyunwoo? Hyunwoo has always had a little crush on you. If it’s him, I’m gonna beat him up the next time I see him,” Mingyu ranted, and you knew he was only half-joking. You leaned into his side and reminded him,

“We were literally eleven, and Hyunwoo hasn’t even looked at me in like three years. When will you ever see him again, anyways?” The tall boy beside you said nothing, knowing you were right. He’d probably never see any of the kids he’d gone to school with here ever again.

“It’s not like I’m never coming back,” he tried, his voice small, “and I could drive over to his house right now if I wanted to. He lives like three blocks away.” You should have laughed, should have let him believe that his smallest of attempts to lighten the mood worked, but there was so much unsaid that was smothering you. A part of you wanted to beg him not to go, wanted to ask him if he really couldn’t be happy living a simple seaside life here with you. You wanted to tell him how unhappy you’d be without him, how every day the sun would be a little less bright.

Instead you asked him, “Wanna push me on the swings?” You moved to skip towards the stairs, but Mingyu’s arm around you was tight, and you just fell back into place. He was stiff, silent, and you could feel the melancholy in his bones, underneath his skin. You worked up the nerve to look at his face and wished you hadn’t—you could count on one hand the amount of times you’d seen him look so serious, let alone without a wide smile, and still have fingers left to spare. His eyes were stuck on the horizon, and you ignored the dread building in the pit of your stomach.

“C’mooon, I wanna swing,” you whined, instead of asking him what was so much better about Seoul than this town, what was so much better about being an idol than inheriting his parents’ business, what was so much better about a life without you.

Why didn’t the idea of being apart hurt him as much? Why would he carve these stupid words into this building when he knew they were a lie?

“It’s late,” was all he said, “we should go home,” and you scoffed. Mingyu hadn’t gotten you home before 2 A.M. in months, and that would be considered an early night for you two. Then again, his train did leave at nine o’clock the next morning. He wouldn’t want to be walking dead when he arrived at his new home. You wrenched yourself out of his hold, turned your back on him, took one step away.

“Wait,” he stopped you, “there’s…there’s something we have to talk about first.” You didn’t want to hear what he had to say. It could only be one thing, and maybe you could survive the heartbreak if you didn’t have to hear the actual words out loud. “We don’t, though,” you wanted your voice to be strong, but you were practically whimpering, already felt the tears threatening to fall. “We do. I don’t want to leave you hanging, wondering if you should move on or not,” he mumbled the last part, knowing as soon as the words came out of his mouth that they were the wrong thing to say. A choked sob tore from your throat, and you would have crumpled to the ground if he didn’t catch you. God, at the beginning of the summer, you had really thought that the two of you could make it. You had really thought he’d want to make it work.

You knew that it wouldn’t, though. His life would be a constant cycle of dance, sing, put on a smile for the fans, eat, sleep, repeat. There would be no time for late night Skype dates or calls during breaks, no time for days back home, no time to love you. Even if there was, you would have to be the most tightly kept secret. Once his group debuted, you knew there would be rabid fangirls constantly ready to riot if their beloved idols were seen with another woman. You could never go out with him, especially not during the day, and not without him in a hat and a mask, unable to show off that grin that was just for you. That was if the company even let him keep dating. Mingyu would try to fight it, try to do it without them knowing, but it’d only make the impossible even more difficult. There was just no fitting you into the life that he wanted, and you had to come to terms with that.

“Don’t worry, Mingyu, I know exactly what this means,” you snapped. You knew that you shouldn’t be mad at him, but you’d never felt a pain like this before. You never would again. The anger that had come on so strong, so quickly, melted away as you saw those dark brown eyes of his that had never looked at you with anything but love. He looked so beat down, so sad, and he didn’t deserve to feel that way when he was just trying to follow his dreams. You were being selfish—you weren’t worth giving those up for, and he wasn’t worth giving up yours, either. He was just a person. But he became my dream, you thought.

“I’m sorry, Y/N,” he said, and you reached up to brush away the few tears that dripped down his cheek, “I love you. You know that I love you, right?” You nodded. How couldn’t you know that he loved you? You’d only been together for a few months, but you’d never felt safer, happier, or more cherished than you did with him.

“I love you, too,” you promised him, “I’ll never love anybody the way that I love you.” It was the truth. Young love was reckless, stupid, painful, but there was no love more sincere. You hadn’t let go of his face, and you traced your thumb longingly over his bottom lip. Longing for a kiss, longing for a lifetime with him that you’d never get.

He could at least grant your first wish, leaning forward and pressing his lips to yours fiercely. There was no brush of tongue, no lip biting, but it felt more intimate than those kisses.

It felt like a goodbye.

You were drowning in Mingyu’s shirt, one he’d just pulled out of his trunk and thrown at you before he sprinted into the water. It was barely noon, but the day had already been ruined, as far as you were concerned. You’d been awake for barely an hour and only just stepped out onto the sand for the day when a pelican dropped a huge load off on your shoulder, splattering all over your pretty new slip.

Mingyu, ever the gentleman, had fallen over from laughing so hard as you struggled to pull it off without getting any of the bird poop on yourself. It took him five minutes to compose himself well enough to walk back to his car and get this shirt for you. It was white, with an obnoxious beer logo on the front of it, as if Mingyu had ever had more than one nasty wine cooler at a party he wasn’t even supposed to be at. If you didn’t know better, you’d think he’d given you the white shirt on purpose, waiting for the perfect moment to run up and bear hug you with his big wet body so that the shirt would stick to your skin and show him the tiny little yellow bikini you had on underneath it. Pervert.

You tried not to, but with him splashing around in the water and not sitting beside you, rambling and distracting you from your thoughts, they drifted away to those that you’d been avoiding for awhile now. It was the last week of summer vacation. In six days, Mingyu would be leaving to train in Seoul, and it was yet to be determined what would happen to your relationship with him after that. Ideally, you’d try the long distance thing…but that was for normal people, people like you. Not idols. It wouldn’t be long until Mingyu debuted and the most you ever saw or heard of him would be on TV or the radio. You still had a year of high school left, and your own dreams would keep you in school for a long time, far away from him.

“Whatcha thinkin’ about?” Mingyu popped up beside you, jolting you out of your anxious mind. You smiled and shrugged, “Not much,” deciding to put that off. Today you would be happy. If Mingyu thought you were lying, he didn’t push it. He just grabbed your hand and pulled you to your feet, fixing you with a pout.

“Come swim with me?” He asked, and you just couldn’t say no to him. You pulled off his shirt and dropped it onto the towel you’d been sitting on, glowering at him when he folded the towel over to cover it.

“I don’t wanna get bird poop on it,” he giggled, and ducked away from your swat at him. You chased him into the water, and as soon as you were waist deep, he picked you up to spin you around before dropping the both of you down beneath the surface. Holding your breath, you opened your eyes and looked at Mingyu. His were squeezed shut, but he had that signature grin on his face, canines showing and all. You drifted forward to plant a kiss on his mouth, then sprung back up to take a gulp of fresh air. Your boyfriend followed after you slowly, and stayed crouched down so his body stayed underwater while you stood. You looked down at him and if he asked, you’d swear the red on your cheeks was from the sun and not from the way he looked at you like you made the earth go around.

“Hey, do you wanna eat at at Seaside’s tonight?” He randomly asked, making you sputter through a laugh as you wringed out your hair. The cheapest entree at Seaside’s was forty bucks, you knew Mingyu didn’t have the money to drop on something like that. “But how could we skip out on ramen at Sunwoo’s,” you joked. Most nights you either bummed food off of your friends or picked up something cheap, and on Mondays, you always found your way to your friend Sunwoo’s for dinner. His parents just couldn’t turn the lovebirds away.

“I’m serious,” Mingyu said, and there was no laughter in his voice, “let me treat you. A queen deserves a feast.” There was no way you could lie your way out of this blush now. Mingyu finally got on his feet, standing at his full height and putting him a good half a foot over you. He shaded your face from the sun, and smirked at the shining scarlet staining your face.

“I don’t have anything to wear to Seaside’s,” you said meekly, and Mingyu shook his head, “I got something for you.”

He had the decency to tear the price tag off of the dress he’d picked up God-knows-where, and to admit that his sister helped him pick it out. You’d have to thank her the next time you saw her, knowing Mingyu would most likely have picked out something that just barely covered your ass and held in your boobs. The white babydoll dress stopped a few inches shy of your knees, and had a pretty lace trim on the hem and the scooped neckline. It was simple, but certainly looked and felt expensive. It amazed you that he’d go to such lengths for one fancy night with a girl he’d never see again come a week from now.

He’d sent you outside ahead of him when it came time to pay the bill, and you told him you’d wait at the top of the watchtower. The steps were a little scary in heels you’d only bought to wear to a wedding once, and then never again, but you managed. You figured Mingyu didn’t want you around to see how many bills he had to drop on the counter, for which you were thankful. It was nerve-wracking enough just knowing he’d spent so much money, without knowing exactly how much. He had calmly told you when you sat down at the table that you could order whatever you liked, and had even suggested the most expensive item on the menu. After you insisted that you could never finished a twenty ounce, sixty dollar steak, you told him that one of the $20 salads looked good—but when the waiter came, Mingyu ordered a steak for himself and one of the fancy seafood dishes for you, over forty bucks.

It was something he knew you well enough to be sure you’d love, and you couldn’t be annoyed with him for it, just genuinely curious about what you’d ever done to deserve it or him. This was what you were pondering on when you heard footsteps coming up behind you, and turned to see Mingyu. The sun was just starting to set, and in that light, he took your breath away. He was so tall and broad, filling out his white button-up and dark jeans nicely, with gorgeous bronze skin that he was somehow self-conscious of stretched over his frame, and jet black hair flopping over his eyes. As soon as he reached your side, you pushed his bangs back off his forehead and took another moment to admire him up close.

“You look prettier than me, babe,” Mingyu said quietly, knowing exactly what you were thinking, as always. You shrugged, “True,” and when he looked offended for half a second, you added, “But you do give me a run for my money.”

The two of you watched the sunset in silence after that. When there was only a sliver of the sun left over the horizon, and the deep orange had almost entirely melted away to a darker blue, you finally peeked over at Mingyu to see that he had his head resting on his hand, turned entirely away from the water, with his eyes locked on you.

You sighed and told him, “You don’t have many sunsets left here to watch, you know.” He seemed to concentrate even harder on you at that. “I don’t ever want to forget what you look like right now,” he whispered, “the sunset doesn’t compare.”

You had been seeing Kim Mingyu for exactly a month when he showed up outside your house that morning. The looks your parents gave you as you skipped down the stairs and ran out the front door were of exceptional displeasure, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to care when the most handsome boy was waiting for you.

You fixed the slip over your bathing suit before slipping into the passenger’s seat, and were happy to note that you didn’t even flinch when he wrapped his big hand around your thigh, anymore. Normally, he wouldn’t hesitate to start the car and head towards the beach as quickly as possible, but this morning was different from others. He cocked his head and bit his lip, contemplative, then finally asked,

“Do you have a change of clothes in your bag?” The tote that you’d put down on your feet was heavy, and that weight did include a t-shirt and a pair of shorts, but instead of telling him that, you had to ask why. Mingyu’s other hand was rubbing the back of his neck as he answered, “I want to take you into the city today.” You didn’t have it in you to be annoyed with him for not telling you beforehand, or for sneaking peeks at you as you changed from your bikini top into your bra and slipped into your other clothes while he drove on the empty country roads leading away from town.

“There’s a bunch of different street foods in the city, and weird shops that they’d never have back home, and karaoke bars and stuff like that,” he raved, “and there’s so many more people, lots of foreigners.” You remembered him telling you that he’d gone to the city to visit family a few months ago, but you’d never known exactly how enamored with it he was. It sounded fun, but the slower, simpler life in town appealed to you much more.

He hadn’t been lying about the crowds. It took twenty minutes to get egg bread by the river, and even longer to find a nice quiet spot to sit and eat. Mingyu listed off all the different shops he wanted to take you to, dozens of them that sold things from clothes to stationary to cooking supplies, but you weren’t listening much, more focused on watching him speak. The way his eyes lit up and he stumbled on his words because he was talking so fast made you suspicious. You’d never seen him so excited about anything before

“Do you want to go up to Seoul Tower?” Mingyu asked as he dragged you out of one shop and right into another. The last had been a cosmetics store that spilled products out into the street, this one was a fancy boutique with cute summer dresses and skirts. You pretended you couldn’t hear him as you flipped through some clothes on the rack beside you, pausing for a moment on a pretty white dress you couldn’t afford. If this were any other trip into the city, you’d jump at a chance to go and see the view from the top of the tower, but you weren’t dumb enough to believe this was any other trip. Eventually, Mingyu would admit the real reason he brought you here, but no matter how many times you asked him what that was, he insisted he just wanted you to get out of town and see some place new.

He took you up to the tower, anyways, and you wanted to admire the cityscape, but couldn’t take your eyes off of Mingyu. It was as you saw him devour the sight, jaw dropped and eyes wide like he’d never seen it before, that you realized this was where he wanted to be. Ice spread through your veins at the thought. Maybe you’d gotten too close to this boy too fast, diving into him headfirst before you even thought about what his life looked like, what he wanted it to look like in the future. Maybe your parents weren’t wrong for thinking you were in too deep with him.

“It’s amazing, right?” You just nodded at him. You didn’t know what else you could say. On the ride down the mountain, Mingyu held your hand tight and gushed about some of the people he’d met when he’d been visiting, guys named Seungcheol and Jihoon who took him to the village the cable car would drop you off near. He didn’t tell you how he met them, just how nice and funny they were. You could barely appreciate the scenery there as he kept talking about them, jokes they’d made and funny things they’d done. He mentioned some guys named Soonyoung and Wonwoo, as well.

“Where did you meet all these guys?” You finally asked him, and he told you, “Oh, they’re friends with my cousin,” and that was the last of that. He got you jajangmyeon for dinner, and as you slurped your noodles in silence, he talked about how many more opportunities there were in Seoul than in your hometown. When he mentioned how much easier it was to get into music and acting and whatever other forms of entertainment, you laughed for the first time all day.

“I don’t think it’s easy to do it just because you can,” you informed him, and for the first time all day, the smile slipped off of his face. The knot of anxiety in your chest wound tighter at this as your mind went into overdrive trying to pull together all the pieces of this puzzle, knowing Mingyu didn’t have much longer to stave off telling you the truth, hoping you could figure it out before then. He suggested walking the food off when you finished eating, and led you through the city streets. It seemed he had finally run out of praise to heap upon the place, and you made the mistake of relaxing in the silence, thinking he was taking you back in the direction of wherever he’d left his car so you could finally go home. You shut your eyes and leaned your head on his shoulder, trusting him not to walk you into oncoming traffic. You didn’t even realize it when he’d stopped walking.

“Y/N, babe,” he sighed into your hair, “open your eyes.” You weren’t sure what you expected when you did, but a wide plain building with the words ‘PLEDIS Entertainment’ hung up on the side of it were not high on the list. “What, is this the company one of those idols you like works for?” You asked, and felt Mingyu shift from one foot to the other, moving his weight away from you. He pulled his arm out of your hands and turned to fully face you, with his lip tucked tight between his teeth and his eyes on the ground.

“Well, yes, but,” he took a deep breath, “this is the company that I auditioned for a few months ago. And I got in.” Just yesterday, you’d been imagining what your kids would like, all tan-skinned and sharp canines and thick black hair, splashing in the waves at home every day. I’m so stupid, you realized, why did I think I’d be enough for him? You refused to cry, refused to let this boy who you barely knew break your heart like this, refused to acknowledge the part of your brain screaming at you that the two of you knew each other better than anyone else ever had. You’d never survive this if you didn’t start insisting to yourself that Kim Mingyu meant nothing.

You blinked at him and said, “Oh, that’s cool.” Then you stepped around him and kept walking forward. Shoulders back, chest out, chin up, you told yourself, do not fucking cry. “Don’t be like that, Y/N,” you heard him saying from behind you, “please, I need you to be happy for me.” You spun on your heel with a sharp smile painted on to your face, “It’s great news, Mingyu. You’ll do well.” Then kept walking.

It could have all ended right there. You could have insisted Mingyu drive you home, locked yourself in your room for the rest of the summer, never fallen in love with him. But when you heard a tiny, broken “thank you,” from the boy who you couldn’t stand to see without a smile on his face, you couldn’t help it. “How can I be happy about this?” You asked, stopping at the curb. Mingyu hurried to your side, taking your hand back into his and holding on so tight, so that you couldn’t let go. His other hand locked around your jaw, forcing your head to turn so you could look into his eyes.

“I know it’s hard, babe,” he said, “but this is my dream. I want to be a rapper!” You almost laughed. Kim Mingyu, the sweetest boy you’d ever met—a rapper. But you could tell he was serious, and you’d never laugh at his dream, just like you hoped he’d never laugh at or dismiss any of yours. Seeing the sincerity in his eyes, the desperation for you to be on board, you knew you couldn’t disappoint him, and under no circumstances could you be the reason he didn’t do any and everything he wanted to and was capable of.

“It’s really great, Mingyu,” you assured him, and you meant it this time, “I’ll support you the whole way.” The relief that flooded his face was worth it.

It turned out he did have a cousin in town, albeit a much older cousin with their own apartment that they said you could stay over in. You called your parents to tell them that you were staying over at your friend Soojung’s, and they believed you because you’d never been one to lie before getting mixed up with Mingyu. You remembered that you’d never even told them you were going into the city. They’d kill you if they found out.

“Sejun’s working the night shift,” Mingyu informed you as he came back into the guest bedroom, “he just left.” You were wearing a shirt of Sejun’s and your bikini bottoms and nothing else, and Mingyu was only wearing a pair of loose sweatpants low on his hips, and you really thought he would have slept on the couch, but he was sliding underneath the comforter beside you before you could say as much. The furthest you’d gone with him so far was just barely making out in his car a few nights ago, but the electricity charging in the small space between your bodies really wanted you to move closer and attach your body to his.

“Mingyu,” you whispered into the dark, and he hummed back at you. That was all you could take, rolling over to swing one leg over his thighs, effectively straddling him. Mingyu oomfed with the sudden weight on top of him, but his big hands immediately came up to circle your waist.

“You’re moving to Seoul in a couple of months,” you said, as if he needed reminding, and you could just barely make out his nodding before you dipped down to press your lips to his and swallow his moan when you slowly swirled your hips to grind against his bulge. If anybody back home knew you were so ready to go so far with him so soon, they would think so lowly of you, but you’d never cared less what people back home thought. Now you knew your love story had a deadline, a timer ticking down, and not to a happily ever after. There was no time to waste.

You tossed your sunglasses into the sand, rolling from your back to your stomach and laying your head on your folded arms beneath you. It was a thousand degrees outside and you weren’t really looking to work on your tan, but what else was there to do? Soojung was supposed to meet you, and at least then you could go swimming with her, but she was already a half hour late.

It was the first Monday after school got out for the summer, and the beach was packed. You ignored everybody you recognized from school, not seeing anyone you particularly liked, anyways. Kim Mingyu and Shin Sunwoo were splashing around in the water, and they were cute but they were also obnoxious, and you weren’t friends with them, barely even knew them. Mingyu and you had a class or two together every year, but had barely ever spoken.

You had just started to drift off into a very warm nap when you felt tiny drops of water hitting your back, and in your head, you cursed the weatherman for predicting clear skies all day. “They never get that shit right,” you grumbled, shifting your weight onto your palms to lift your upper body, and heard a familiar voice ask you, “What’d you say?”

You looked over your shoulder at Mingyu leaned over you, drops of ocean water dripping from the ends of his hair onto your skin. Groaning, you reached up to push his legs, and watched him fall onto his ass with a satisfied smile before dropping down to get back to sleep.

“Hey, stop,” he said, “you can’t fall asleep out here, I didn’t see you put sunscreen on or anything.”

You snorted at that, “What, like you were watching me?”

“Well. Uh. Yes?” That was not what you expected to hear, and you felt wide awake now. Daring to look at Mingyu again, you were greeted by a shy grin. You’d never noticed before how his pointed canines peeked out like fangs, and you found it oddly endearing.

“Do you even know my name?”

“Of course I know your name, Y/N,” He said, with the most incredulous tone, but you wouldn’t have blamed him if he didn’t. You finally sat up to face him, and somehow kept your eyes from wandering to his chest and abs, soaked with water, shining in the sunlight. It was truly a feat to admire. “Ok, then why were you watching me?”

“Because you were laying here alone, and we’ve never really talked before, and I’ll be honest, your butt looks really cute in those bikini bottoms.” You fought a blush, and the words didn’t sound as gross in his sweet voice, didn’t make you want to punch his teeth out, either.

“Well, your butt looks pretty cute in your trunks,” you told him, and God only knows where the bravery came from to even throw in a wink. You and Mingyu talked for hours, and when Sunwoo came over to ask if Mingyu was coming over to eat, he was waved off without so much as a glance. You didn’t even notice when Soojung arrived and saw you with him, and headed over to somebody else she knew instead of interrupting the two of you.

“That’s hilarious that you think so, Y/N, but I know that I can eat more tteokbokki than you can,” Mingyu insisted, and if he listened hard enough he would have heard the gears in your head turning, churning up the best bet you could think of, knowing he was wrong. Maybe you’d have him streak across the beach tomorrow, or climb onto the roof of the watchtower.

“Then you’ll have to prove it,” you challenged him, “tomorrow. We’ll meet here and get some from the snack bar and see who is the Tteokbokki Eating Champion.” Mingyu immediately accepted, smile wide, and you thought to yourself that that was a smile you could get used to seeing.

He offered to drive you home when it started getting dark, but you wound up in another long conversation as you were walking towards the car, and ended up lapping the entire length of the beach a few times before you felt too tired to go on anymore. When you passed the playground for the fourth time, you beelined towards its gate, and Mingyu followed.

You ignored the jungle gym, the monkey bars, and the slide, and found yourself perched on a swing, as any normal person would choose. Instead of sitting on the swing beside you like you expected him too, Mingyu walked behind to start pushing you. You ignored the goosebumps that rose as you felt his hands on your skin for the first time.

“Y/N, what do you wanna do after high school?” You couldn’t say that you’d thought much about it. A lot of kids were desperate to leave town, but you loved it here, and had just expected to work at your parents’ restaurant instead of thinking of what you would actually like to do.

“I’m not sure,” you admitted, “I just…want to be happy.” Mingyu gave an affirmative hum. You talked to him about anything either of you could think to ask the other, getting to know him like you’d never expected to, telling him things you’d never told anybody, not even your closest friends. Something about Mingyu made you feel so at ease. It was when he grabbed the chains and abruptly stopped your swing, leaning over to grin down at you over the stupidest pun you’d just told, that it occurred to you for the first time: you could fall in love with this guy.

You could be happy with him.

Mingyu & Y/N 4E. You brushed your thumb lovingly over the words, and even though you tried not to, thought of that morning that he left. You’d fallen asleep in the watchtower, and when you woke up, he was long gone. The sounds of the first beachgoers cars pulling into the parking lot and excited kids yelling as they ran towards the water twinkled into your ear, and you couldn’t even feel angry that he’d left you here. He had a train to catch, after all, and you only lived a few blocks away. Your tote bag had been sitting on one of the steps, and as you grabbed it to sling over your shoulder, you noticed a little note placed delicately on top of it.

I’ll never forget falling in love with you this summer.

You’d kept that note for a long time—it was folded up in your wallet right now. You plucked it from it’s pocket and held it out over the railing, then watched it slowly drift down to the waters surface. It floated there for a minute, before a gentle wave came to carry it away.

It had taken a long time to accept Mingyu’s decision, but you’d always known that you’d never ask him to give up on his dreams for you, that life would go on after he left. You had to believe that one day you’d have a happy life, even without him in it, and you had to believe that he’d be happy, too. Seventeen had been doing well, winning award after award, every comeback seeming to top the last. You liked them, and it wasn’t just because of the voice that you missed, that you could only hear in song or during interviews now.

You made the trek back to your car, and decided that you wouldn’t come back to this beach for awhile. One day you’d bring your kids here and they wouldn’t look like him, at all, and you’d buy them ice cream and tap their noses with it, and you’d give them kisses underwater, and you’d push them on the swings and maybe even show them your name carved into the railing on the watchtower.

You’d tell them that it was worth it to fall into a love that will never last.

And you’d remember the boy with bronze skin and the wolfish grin, and hope one day somebody could make them as happy as he made you, even if it was just for one summer.

#mingyu fluff #mingyu angst #mingyu scenarios #seventeen fluff #seventeen angst #seventeen scenarios #kpop fluff #kpop angst #kpop scenarios #i wrote this #once again i hope someone likes this #and please validate me :)#i wrote this in only a few hours so!!! idk bye

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lbat1901 · 4 years

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Yeah, I’ve done the unspeakable and made one of these. However instead of an art summary, it’s a complication of things things that happened hence the title “Lbat1901’s Best of 2019”.

January 2019 - (I know that the pic for the January slot is to its side, but I couldn’t fit the full image without cutting most of it out) This was the month where I posted the prologue marking the first release of my Eddsworld based story, At World’s End. It was very successful and it is available on Tumblr, Quotev, Wattpad, Fanfiction.Net, and Ao3.

Also it is worth nothing that January saw the the prologue to Dropshot, an AU that is takes the elements to the High School AU but uses basketball elements in the universe that is Eddsworld.

February 2019 - This was the month where I launched my series Channel 7 Lucky Hour along with the first chapter to Dropshot. Plus this was the month were the first ever piece of UTFTF content was released

March 2019 - This was the month where I got bored one day and decided to open up Photoshop to make a silly edit of Patryck dancing to Never Gonna Give You Up. I regret nothing and Dropshot’s progress was a little lanky in terms of new chapters being released when the fourth chapter was released.

April 2019 - This was the month where the five and sixth chapters to Dropshot were released and was the month were the last chapter to At World’s End was published. Plus this is the same month where I gave everyone the first taste to Eddbusters which was a Ghostbusters AU for Eddsworld. Another thing that had happened in this month was I posted a rant about TBATF which blew up and has everyone on the Eddsworld Animo talk about the situation. I was the third person to make a TBATF rant and I am proud of it.

May 2019 - This was the month were seven chapters to Dropshot were released after getting my crap together.

June 2019 - This was the month were Dropshot gotten serious in terms of new chapter releases. It was crazy. I also posted the prologue to UTFTF on accident, but despite of it, it was successful.

July 2019 - July was the month where the plot to Dropshot was nearing to its end in an epic basketball match between Edd’s team and a team lead by the story’s true villain and his team that was considered to be very ruthless in order to save the world.

August 2019 - I know what you’re thinking, the Eddbusters cover art was revealed in September. Why is it in the slot for August? That’s because Eddbusters was fully completed and was in its editing state. The cover art was also made during the editing process and there were many concepts for it. I ended up basing it on the official DVD cover for the first Ghostbusters film since the story was entirely based on the movie.

September 2019 - Speaking of Eddbusters being based entirely on the first Ghostbusters film, even though it had the same plot, some things were left out to make sure that Eddbusters sticked to Eddsworld along the its charm and jokes. However nothing was changed from the main source material, so there’s that.

October 2019 - October was really a busy month in terms of new content being shared. First off was Inktober which I did some drawings for it last year and second, Eddbusters made its debut on October 12th which ended up receiving huge loads of feedback. Who knows, maybe it would get a direct sequel in 2020. A man can dream.

November 2019 - Nothing interesting really happened in November expect for Eddbusters still going strong and of course the release of Pokemon Sword and Shield. I even drew Inteleon for it.

December 2019 - The last and final month of 2019 and the ending cap for the 2010s. Main, where did time even go? Pokemon Sword and Shield had some controversy and I made an entire about the situation along with explaining the flaws of my beloved Pokemon Charizard, but despite that, I had a great time playing through Pokemon Sword. No matter what people say about a Pokemon game, I am still going to enjoy it. Oh and uh, December saw the last chapter release to Eddbusters and saw the few special looks into UTFTF which I’ve almost neglected.

Oh and here’s the entire chapter list for Dropshot which are in chronological order in terms of release. Just take it:

Prologue - January 6th 2019 (92 views) Chapter 1 - February 4th 2019 (80 views) Chapter 2 - February 13th 2019 (90 views) Chapter 3 - February 26th 2019 (87 views) Chapter 4 - March 12th 2019 (88 views) Chapter 5 - April 2nd 2019 (122 views) Chapter 6 - April 16th 2019 (61 views) Chapter 7 - May 1st 2019 (80 views) Chapter 8 - May 6th 2019 (77 views) Chapter 9 - May 10th 2019 (59 views) Chapter 10 - May 14th 2019 (48 views) Chapter 11 - May 16th 2019 (63 views) Chapter 12 - May 24th 2019 (71 views) Chapter 13 - May 29th 2019 (52 views) Chapter 14 - June 3rd 2019 (49 views) Chapter 15 - June 6th 2019 (54 views) Chapter 16 - June 10th 2019 (68 views) Chapter 17 - June 13th 2019 (61 views) Chapter 18 - June 16th 2019 (45 views) Chapter 19 - June 19th 2019 (56 views) Chapter 20 - June 25th 2019 (63 views) Chapter 21 - June 27th 2019 (41 views) Chapter 22 - July 5th 2019 (54 views) Chapter 23 - July 10th 2019 (42 views) Chapter 24 - July 17th 2019 (61 views) Chapter 25 - July 25th 2019 (37 views) Chapter 26 - July 29th 2019 (64 views) Chapter 27 - July 31st 2019 (69 views)

#best of 2019 #year end review #lbat's best of 2019 #lbat1901's best of 2019 #2019 review #art summary parody #parody #lbat1901's shitpost #lbat rambles #channel 7 lucky hour #lbat1901's channel seven lucky hour #lbat1901's channel 7 lucky hour

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newyorktheater · 4 years

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“Fairview,” winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, began Off-Off Broadway.

“Small theaters” play a large role in making New York City the world’s cultural capital, according to “All New York’s a Stage,” a report issued this week by the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment that looks at the cultural and economic impact of Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway, a “sector” (in policy-speak) that is made up of “748 small venue theater organizations” that generate “$1.3 billion in total economic output” annually. They also generate much of the theater world’s cultural heat these days. One example: Some dozen Pulitzer Prize winning plays originating in NYC’s small theaters, including this year’s winner “Fairview” above (Soho Rep), 2016’s “Hamilton” (New York Public Theater), 2015’s “Between Riverside and Crazy” (Atlantic) and 2014’s “The Flick” (Playwrights Horizons.) One arresting fact: The majority of staff of these theaters are volunteers. Here are some charts from the report:

Thanksgiving Week Broadway Schedule

including 15 shows adding performances today!

The Week in New York Theater Reviews

Ronete Levenson (Sue), Lindsay Rico (Paula), Helen Cespedes (Emma), Jennifer Lim (Cindy)

Fefu and Her Friends

Fefu picks up a double-barrel shotgun and shoots at her husband near the beginning of “Fefu and Her Friends,” billed as a modern classic and written by the beloved avant-garde playwright Maria Irene Fornés, who died in October 2018 at the age of 88. “It’s a game we play,” Fefu explains matter-of-factly to her friends, putting the gun back against the drawing room chair. “I shoot and he falls. Whenever he hears the blast he falls.”

For the first time in 40 years, Off-Broadway theatergoers can actually hear that gunshot blast too, thanks to a Theater for a New Audience production, directed by Liliana Blain-Cruz, that is itself a blast….for much of the time. For the rest of the time, it’s…..well, to quote the director herself on her reaction when discovering the work of Maria Irene Fornés: “Oh my god. I don’t understand anything that’s going on, but I love it.”

The Half-Life of Marie Curie

Marie Curie won the Nobel Prize twice, but she was also a woman; so the Nobel committee asked her not to show up at the ceremony. We learn the specific reason why early on in this well-intentioned, workmanlike play by Lauren Gunderson about the friendship between two world-class women scientists who lived a century ago.

Samuel H. Levine as Adam, Kyle Soller as Eric, Kyle Harris as Jasper, Arturo Luís-Soria as Jasper2, Jordan Barbour as Tristan, and Darryl Gene Daughtry Jr. as Jason1

The Inheritance

“The Inheritance,” a long, ambitious play about three generations of gay men in New York, pays homage to two masterpieces, without being one itself. Yet the play by Matthew Lopez, making his Broadway debut, is both sweeping and intimate, sophisticated and raw, a weepy that is often funny. Several performances are transporting, including two actors making their Broadway debuts, and an actress who made hers 67 years ago. There are swoops into intellectual brilliance, such as when one of the characters elaborately compares America to a body, its democracy to a body’s immune system, and the current president to the HIV virus. There are dips into nudity and raunch. There is insight and debate and uplift. Does “The Inheritance” need to be nearly seven hours long and in two parts to achieve all that? The short answer is no. But there’s so much here that’s so wonderful that it’s worth it to those with the stamina.

A Christmas Carol

Who knew that “A Christmas Carol” could be so dangerous!

The assaults begin even before the first line of dialogue in the new, charming if overlong, and extraordinarily well-designed Broadway production of Charles Dickens’ 1843 classic, starring Campbell Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge and Andrea Martin and LaChanze as Ghosts of Christmas Past and Present. Cast members on the stage dressed as 19th century English blokes and birds throw clementines and cookies to (at?) the audience…vigorously.

“I’m suing,” said somebody sitting behind me, in a straight-faced impersonation of Scrooge, after he was hit by one of the packages of chocolate chips. “Are you an attorney?”

Evita

It’s surely pointless, four decades and two billion dollars after its debut, to rant about Evita, and silly to blame Andrew Lloyd Webber’s theatrical canonization of the amoral historical figure Eva Perón as paving the way for the elevation of another media personality remade into a dictator-loving populist. Still, this core problem I have with the musical stops me from fully embracing its revival at New York City Center, even as I acknowledge that the singing in this production is gorgeous, the orchestra lush, the choreography fun, and the story reinterpreted in some bold and intriguing if not always effective ways.

Two adaptations of novels by Édouard Louis:

James Russell Morley and Oseloka Obi on the video

The End of Eddy

Parts resemble a book report for school, but won’t be mistaken for a story hour because of the inventive stagecraft and the rawness of the stories — relentless bullying, deadened people in a dying factory town, his sad and funny efforts to ‘be a man,’ his sexual experimenting.

History of Violence

An examination of trauma; that in any case is the most consistently insightful aspect of the adaptation…. committed performances by the four-member cast…but the production ultimately felt more like an exercise in stagecraft rather than a pointed exploration of history or violence.

The Week in New York Theater News

Grammy Award nominees for best musical theater albums: Ain’t Too Proud, Hadestown, Moulin Rouge, plus the incidental music from the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The 62nd annual Grammy Awards will be held on January 20, 2020.

Ephraim Sykes in Newsies

Motown’s Ephraim Sykes as member of The Temptations, Berry Gordy Jr.’s brother, member of the Jackson 5

Ephraim Skyes as Seaweed J. Stubbs —

Ephraim Sykes as David Ruffin

Ephraim Sykes will star as Michael Jackson in “MJ,” the musical slated to open on Broadway beginning the summer 2020. A thrilling performer, he’s had an increasingly high-profile career: Memphis,Newsies,Motown,Hamilton, Hairspray Live, and Tony-nominated for his role as avid Ruffin in Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations.

He is now both performing in Ain’t Too Proud and rehearsing for MJ. How can he do this? “I always say just a bunch of prayers, and drink as much coconut water as I can find,” he told Essence.

Lynn Nottage, the Pulitzer Prize winning playwright of “Ruined” and “Sweat,” is the book writer for MJ the Musical. In a mutual interview in Vogue magazine between Nottage and Slave Play playwright Jeremy O. Harris, he brings up MJ:

Can I ask you a question about Michael Jackson? How do you contend with the weight of that history?

We all, on some level, recognize the complexity of Michael Jackson. For many years, he has occupied a very specific space.

Going into this moment, when there’s such a spotlight on him, and such decided opinion on it now around what we should do with that history…

Cancel culture is the dominant culture in this moment. But my guiding principle is that you have to sustain the complexity. I really feel as an artist that writing this piece is me trying to process my complicated feelings about someone who I idolized from the time I was five years old. To reconcile that with that person who, in the media, was quite complicated. I can’t simply cancel that person. I have to, as an artist, lean into that complication—that is what I’m investigating by doing this. And I think that the easy thing would be to say no and run away. But for me the more interesting thing is to lean into it and try to figure out personally how I feel.

Separately, John Logan (Moulin Rouge the Musical, Red, The Aviator) has been hired to writea movie script about Michael Jackson.

Patrick Stewart’s one-man version of “A Christmas Carol” will be presented for two nights only, Dec 11 & 13 at Theater 511 to benefit City Harvest and Ars Nova

“Soft Power” will release a cast recording in Spring 2020.

They grew up at Boston Children’s Theater. Now They Look Back with Alarm

“a group of 17 former students who sent a letter to the theater’s board late last month, detailing a range of negative experiences with [Burgess Clark, the director of Boston’s Children’s Theater]; three alleged that Clark had kissed or touched them inappropriately. Beverly police are investigating; no charges have been filed. A group of older alums sent a second letter describing their own disturbing encounters. Burgess has resigned.”

Rest in Peace

Michael J. Pollard in Bye, Bye Birdie

Michael J. Pollard in “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis”

Michael J. Pollard in “Bonnie and Clyde”

Michael J. Pollard, 80, best known for TV roles (“The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis”) and his Oscar-nominated part in the movie “Bonnie and Clyde”, was also a 5-time veteran of Broadway, such as the original Hugo Peabody in “Bye, Bye Birdie.”

Small Theater is BIG in NYC. Ephraim Sykes is Michael Jackson, Lynn Nottage answers why she’s taking on MJ. #Stageworthy News of the Week "Small theaters" play a large role in making New York City the world's cultural capital, according to

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