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afandommultiverse · 4 years

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The Gift - Leopold Vermillion

Words - 2006 Request - TreueHyuga

A/n - I hope you enjoy it! I had a really fun time writing this one! Leopold is aged up to 18! So, so are you lol.

Y/n POV

"Come to think of it, your birthday is coming up, isn't it, Y/n?" Leopold grinned wolfishly at his girlfriend, pumped with excitement and happiness due to the celebration around them, the celebration for him! His birthday, his coming of age day.

"It is, Leo, why are you gonna plan a surprise party for me too?" You lured him close giving him a smooch on the cheek. It was you who planned the whole thing for Leopold tonight, the director of the whole galant party. It was a great surprise party, Leopold hadn't suspected a thing, some can choose whether that's a good or bad thing.

"No. Maybe. We'll see, won't we, my dear?" Leopold's arms wrapped around you, pulling tight and leaning in closely. His hand skimmed up your waist and back down your arm, pulling your arm out and whisking you to the dance floor.

"Another dance? We just got done with five!" You shrieked, pulling your exhausted legs after him. Pure adrenaline and euphoria powered your body, swinging it around and following his steps. Laughing and tripping some, maybe even almost running into a few people too.

"Never my dear, I never want to stop dancing with you. I promise this is my last selfish birthday wish." He smiled, twirling you in and dipping you to the music. You smirked and leaned in, mirth and tease swimming in your eyes.

"I wouldn't mind a few more selfish wishes." You whispered as he pulled you up, hand slithering across his chest and resting at his heart. Your voice practically poured incentive, selfish questions, and desires Leopold had wanted to ask you for years poured into his mind as he stared into your eyes, completely suggestive and seductive in their e/c shaded wake. He pulled you up fast, pulling to hold your hand against his racing heartbeat.

"Y/n, you ha-

"Leopold!" A fiery hand came to rest on Leopold's shoulder, stopping the much-anticipated words that would have left Leo's mouth. He turned, almost giving his brother the stinky eye but couldn't help but to smile. His brother had been gone for a few months, having to go on a long expedition. Giving you a quick apologetic look and a kiss on the palm of your hand, once laying against his chest, he let you go.

You were immediately cold, already missing his insufferable heat you just learned to live with, and heat you learned to love. You watched on as he chatted with his older brother, not blaming him for being so excited, it had been months. You pulled at his jacket coat twice to let him know you were leaving and he nodded, grabbing you're pinky and rubbing at it before letting you go.

"So, finally eighteen, huh?" Fuegoleon smiled at his younger brother, who now stood as tall and as prideful as the rest of his lion clan. Fuegoleon knew he was ready, and knew he would make a fine captain one day, maybe sooner than later.

"It seems so." Leopold grinned, he was jittery and bouncing with excitement, how couldn't he be?

"You might be trying to play it off but I know exactly what you're up to." Fuegoleon looked at Leo, completely aware of his little game.

"Your right brother, only 59423 hours and 45 seconds left to beat you in becoming the captain of the Crimson lions. I think I can't get there before 25!" He grinned like a cat, eyes glinting with just as much point and mischievousness. He loved wagering with his brother, especially when it came to how powerful he could get. It meant more training!

"You are crazy... I'd like to see you try!" Fuegoleon huffed, shaking his head and walking away a smile hidden behind his back as he walked towards other guests. Leopold would make it alright, Fuegoleon was sure of that.

Leopold turned to look around for you, his looking over every person before they found him, draped across a wall and staring at him playfully, pointing a doorway. He grinned and looked around, before practically running towards you, picking you up and running to his room for nightly festivities.

***

Your birthday was in three days. Seventy-two hours. Four thousand and twenty minutes. Two hundred and fifty-nine thousand and two hundred seconds- WHAT WAS HE GOING TO DO? He had been going back and forth for two days, thinking of what he should get you. Leopold had already finished with the planning, he knew he couldn't do a surprise party, because not only had you done one for him, you were too smart and Leopold couldn't keep anything away from you.

"Maybe Fuego or Leona could help." He muttered to himself, staring at the same paperwork he had been staring at for the last two hours.

"Could help with what?" Leopold practically jumped out of his skin, completely endorsed what to get you, he did expect you to be right behind him.

"Y/n? Oh! Uh, maybe they could help with this- this uh, work here, something about... uh- blown up houses or something- uh what are you doing here, dear?" He pushed the pages away and turned to face you, smiling almost too widely. You stared at him weirdly.

"You okay?" You asked, coming to put a hand on his head, feeling to see if he was warmer than usual. He wasn't, only flushed and a little sweaty. You wiped your hand off on him and walked up, coming to sit on his lap sideways.

"Our mothers took me out dress shopping for my birthday gala, it was incredibly boring and so tedious!" You rested your head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat and relaxing as he lifted his hand to comb through the beginnings of your hair, his fingers tickling the skin on the side of your face now and then when he repeated the motion.

"Luckily I found a gorgeous dress though." You turned your head to look up at him. His smile was as bright as usual as he smiled down at you, hand coming to rest against your cheek as he spoke.

"That's good. I'm sure It'll look gorgeous as I'm taking it off you." He whispered cheekily leaning in for a blazing kiss. You slapped at his chest jokingly, meeting his kiss with just as fevore and love as him.

Pulling apart, you two wanted nothing more than to continue, but Leopold still had decisions to make, and your mother still wanted to go jewelry shopping with you. So with one last craving kiss, you got up and left, leaving Leopold to go searching for his brother and sister.

***

"What should I get Y/n for her birthday?" Fuegoleon and Mereoleona stared down at Leopold with little interest.

"This is what you pulled us away for?" Mereoleona growled, staring at her little brother with anger but happy that he had come to her for advice. He never does, always opting for stupid Fuegoleon- who by the way, is the second born.

"This is serious! I can't think of a single thing! I've already gotten her everything before, and I sure as hell am not going to get some boring gifts, it's gotta be perfect!" Leopold crying looked at his older sibling with pleading eyes. Mereoleona sighed and rolled her eyes while Fugoleon simply smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, what do they like?"

***30 Minutes Later***

"And they also-"

"Okay! Leo, we got it! Let's move on!" Meroleona stopped Leopold from splurging any more useless information, already sick of his lovesick stories of you. Meroleona sat back and thought hard, she too stuck on what Leopold should get, if he hadn't already of gotten it for you, it was simply too stupid enough to get then. Finally, though, Fuegoleon spoke up.

"Leo, do you love Y/n?" Fuegoleon held Leopold's eyes, ready for a slipping leak of deceit, but found none when he strongly replied.

"Are you serious? Of course, I love them! Hell, I've loved them my entire life it feels! They are always there for me, always have been! Without them, I wouldn't be nearly as powerful as I am today. Without them, I don't think I would have ever made it this far. I can't even begin to think of what my life would be like without them." Leopold spoke with such ferocity it left him almost breathless, his chest burning with the love for you. Fuegoleon only looked on in amusement.

"Well brother, I think you know what to do."

***

The party was beautiful, walls draped in f/c silks, your favorite. Flowers of all kinds filling every vase dotted across tables and window seals, some even hanging from the ceiling. Entertainers performed around you, showing off for the guests and patrons. Music filling the gigantic halls of the ballroom, sending magical melodies swirling around the room. It had been a night of dancing and drinking, good food, and sweet desserts. Laughs and jokes were shared with good friends and guild members.

As the night grew colder and fatigue slipped into everyone's exhausted bodies, [pulling them to leave and seeking sleep in their beds and homes. Leopold had swooped you up and carried you out of the ballroom, pushing past departing guests and banquet wanderers with genuine goodbyes and courtesies, hoping to see each other again.

"Where are we going, Leo?" You asked, confused and he walked out in the night air of the castle, finding a special mage standing near, opening a portal and nodding us in, a warm smile on his face.

"To you're last birthday present, my dear." Fuegoleon smiled and walked through the portal, walking out into a forested area. You looked around, taking in the change of environment. A wooden cabin layout in front of you two, covered in vines and foliage. Fireflies lit up the entrance, buzzing around a small bridge passing over a little creek in front of the little cabin. As we walked across you watched as the fireflies buzzed around brightly, spooked and startled by the walking of Leopold's steps. You giggled as they flew around you and Leopold, some even going to the water and lighting it up, making out the shapes of fish and lily pads dotting the water's surface.

"Leo, this is beautiful." You whisper, looking up at the spiraling trees, watching the stars shine and twinkle down on you. Leopold only smiled at your astonished face, quick to get you inside and show you your final gift.

Leopold opened the door, walked in, and set you down. As you walked around the warm cabin, taking in the decorations and personal trinkets Leopold had brought, to what he would hopefully like to call your new home. Leopold watched as you took in everything, reaching in his pocket and grabbing your gift, getting down to rest on one knee. He waited for you to turn back around, looked at him questioningly, and watched the slow realization dawn on your face as he lifted the little box and showed you what lay inside.

A gorgeous ring, detailed to a royals perfection, with the stunning vermillion house sigil carved on the outside. A vermillion diamond rests between the golden prongs holding it in place.

"Leo." A hand covers your mouth as you look at him in shock and astound. "Do you mean it?" You asked, walking over quickly and staring down at the man you love holding your next step in his hands.

"I would never lie or joke about something like this, Y/n. I love you, and I know I want to be with you for the rest of my life. I can't live without you." Leopold spoke, eyes staring up at her with honest truth.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!! Of course, I'll marry you!" Leopold jumped up quickly and wrapped you in a breathless kiss, bringing you in tightly and finally letting go of all his anxiety of you saying no, no it was too early or something, but he needn't worry now.

You said yes.

#Black Clover #black clover leopold #leopold vermillion #leopold vermillion x reader #xreade #aged up #fluff #marriage #proposal #request #proud of this shit #black clover oneshot #fluffly #vermillion siblings

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letterboxd · 4 years

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Pride: 25 Queer Films To Love.

Dating Amber writer and director David Freyne introduces our London correspondent Ella Kemp to 25 of his favorite LGBTQIA films.

A coming-out, coming-of-age film, David Freyne’s Dating Amber follows “baby gays” Eddie (Fionn O’Shea) and Amber (Lola Petticrew), who act as each other’s beards in order to stop speculation about their sexualities. Released on Amazon Prime Video in the UK for Pride month, it’s winning praise from Letterboxd members as a “charming” and “gentle” comedy-drama “full of loveliness that extends beyond the Irish accents”.

Lola Petticrew and Fionn O’Shea as Amber and Eddie in ‘Dating Amber’.

As the number of films by and about the gay and trans community expands, we asked Freyne if he could narrow down a list of ten favorites for us. The answer was no—instead, we got 25!

“There are so many extraordinary queer films beyond this list, but all of these films just really affected me when I saw them. Some were the first time I saw queerness on screen, while I deeply identified with others. And, as a filmmaker, each of them makes me braver to fight to tell stories that aren't always easy to get made.

“They are in no particular order because I don’t want to bump into Barry Jenkins (which is obviously going to happen) and have to explain that he is number five on that list (that he will definitely read) for no specific reason. It’s just a technicality.”

David Freyne’s 25 Favorite LGBTQIA+ Films

My Summer of Love (2004) Directed by Paweł Pawlikowski

Paweł Pawlikowski’s film feels like a dream that sweeps you up along with it, helped along by incredible early performances from Natalie Press and Emily Blunt. The hypnotic use of Goldfrapp's ‘Lovely Head’ is probably my favorite use of a song in any film ever. Their drug-fuelled dancing was a massive inspiration for Eddie and Amber’s baby steps into Dublin’s gay scene in Dating Amber.

Weekend (2011) Directed by Andrew Haigh

I never fail to cry buckets at the end of this heartbreaking gem. It’s small in the best sense of the word. Two people fall in love over one intimate weekend. Their gayness is both incidental and totally fundamental. It’s so delicate and moving. Andrew Haigh is a master.

But I’m a Cheerleader (1999) Directed by Jamie Babbit

Jamie Babbit’s debut is a brilliant, campy comedy about a cheerleader sent to a conversion therapy camp. I love it for all the reasons many critics (at the time) disliked it. It is subversive, quirky and defiantly upbeat. And it stars Natasha Lyonne and Clea Duvall. Enough said.

Paris is Burning (1990) Directed by Jennie Livingston

I’m not saying anything new when I say that Paris is Burning is necessary viewing. It’s a hilarious, moving and eye-opening look at the (mostly) Black trans women in New York’s ball scene. It is a glimpse into the lives of these extraordinary people who risked everything to live authentically, for themselves and each other. And at a time when our trans family is so under attack, it is vital to see such iconic figures from our community. You’ve probably seen it. Re-watch it. Also those end notes will make you cry.

Happy Together (1997) Directed by Wong Kar-wai

As with all Wong Kar-wai’s work, it is jaw-droppingly gorgeous. It’s a tough watch, a portrait of a toxic, failing relationship. But it looks beautiful. They’re miserable and co-dependent. It’s abusive and awful. But it’s great. It really is a great film. I’m not selling this one well. Just watch it.

Moonlight (2016) Directed by Barry Jenkins

Definitely worth watching after Happy Together. Not just because it will make you feel better, but because Barry Jenkins has noted it as a big influence. Also, Moonlight is a masterpiece. You know that, of course. Side note: I realize I’ll never be able to create a hand-job scene as powerful and tender as Jenkins did here, but, in Dating Amber, I made three comedy hand-jobs. Take that Jenkins!

God’s Own Country (2017) Directed by Francis Lee

You can feel Francis Lee in every frame of this film. It’s personal filmmaking at its very best, with wonderful performances from Josh O’Connor and Alec Secăreanu. And it has the most beautifully romantic ending that you only realize we lack for LGBTQ characters when you see it laid out so wonderfully. When we were trying to finance Dating Amber and people suggested it was too Irish, I’d just reference God’s Own Country, which is so defiantly Yorkshire, and they’d shut up. Also, Secăreanu’s jumper with a thumb hole is my style icon. Bring on Ammonite!

Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018) Directed by Marielle Heller

Marielle Heller is such a brilliant filmmaker. This film is based on the memoir by Lee Israel who forged letters by famous people to sell. It’s a genre piece that feels like it could have been made in the 70s. But what I love about it the most is that it is a rare example of a film that centers the friendship between a lesbian and a gay man. Why do films usually treat us like we exist in totally separate worlds? Anyway, it’s a joyous watch.

Tangerine (2015) Directed by Sean Baker

I’m obsessed with tightly plotted films and Tangerine doesn’t waste a frame. It’s 88 minutes of pure wit, charm and entertainment in line with the best of old-school Hollywood. You instantly forget that Baker’s film is shot on an iPhone and just get swept up in the extraordinary performances of Mya Taylor and Kitana Kiki Rodriguez. It’s such a mystery they don’t work more. (Reader: it’s not a mystery. It’s because they are Black trans women, and the industry is shit.)

Portrait of a Lady On Fire (2019) Directed by Céline Sciamma

We all bow at the alter of Céline Sciamma. This film is perfection. The sparse-but-powerful use of music, exquisite photography and extraordinary performances that burn beneath the stillness. The final shots of Adèle Haenel will feed your soul for a year. (Side note: face masks have never looked so stylish.)

Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971) Directed by John Schlesinger

This was John Schlesinger’s follow up to his best-known film, Midnight Cowboy. A middle-aged gay doctor (Peter Finch), and a divorced woman (Glenda Jackson), are both in an open love triangle with a younger, bisexual sculptor (Murray Head). It’s quite low-key and far tamer now than when it was released, but it’s a beautiful film and Schlesinger’s most personal. He was one of the few openly gay directors of his time. And Jackson’s performance steals it.

Far From Heaven (2002) Directed by Todd Haynes

Todd Haynes’ stunning film will make you immediately go out and discover all of Douglas Sirk’s glorious technicolor melodramas. Julianne Moore’s performance as a wife who discovers her husband is gay will break you. Dennis Quaid is also terrific as her closeted husband.

The Watermelon Woman (1996) Directed by Cheryl Dunye

Cheryl Dunye’s low-budget debut is a seminal queer film. A video store worker and documentarian (played by Dunye) starts a new relationship while becoming obsessed with ‘the watermelon woman’, a Black actress forgotten by history. It’s lo-fi, funny and a, far too rare, film about race and sexuality.

My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) Directed by Stephen Frears

It may have been the first time I saw gay characters on screen and, at the time, it petrified me. But what an amazing film about love, acceptance and the power to change. Fun fact: Daniel Day-Lewis spent a year as a tumble dryer in preparation for his role.

Beautiful Thing (1996) Directed by Hettie MacDonald

Hettie MacDonald’s coming-of-age film is so lovely, honest and tender. James Harvey adapted it from his own play of the same name. The soundtrack is almost entirely The Mamas and the Papas. I am surprised some cigar-smoking West-End mogul hasn’t attempted a musical adaptation. Or maybe they have, I don’t know.

Pride (2014) Directed by Matthew Warchus

Such a purely entertaining film while being urgent, political and deeply moving. Beresford’s script is a masterclass in plotting and if you don’t cry at the end then you are dead inside. Sorry but that’s just science. Also it has the most emotional postscript coda since, well, Paris is Burning.

Love is Strange (2014) Directed by Ira Sachs

Ira Sachs is one of my favorite current filmmakers and criminally underrated. I mean, he’s appreciated, but he needs to be lauded. Love is Strange is such a charming and quietly devastating love story about an older gay couple who lose their apartment and have to couch surf with relatives. It’s one of the most effective films in dealing with the rental crisis in big cities, something he does equally brilliantly in the follow-up, Little Men.

A Fantastic Woman (2017) Directed by Sebastián Lelio

Sebastián Lelio’s film is a beautiful story about one trans woman’s grief after the unexpected death of her older partner. But what makes this film so spectacular is the captivating performance by Daniela Vega. We need to see more of her on screen.

BPM (Beats per Minute) (2017) Directed by Robin Campillo

It’s a film about the AIDS activism of Act Up in 1990s Paris. What makes this so incredible is how joyous it is. Strobe-doused dance scenes punctuate this film that will make you want to take to the streets and fight for your rights.

The Queen of Ireland (2015) Directed by Conor Horgan

This documentary by Conor Horgan follows Ireland’s most famous drag queen, Panti Bliss (aka Rory O’Neill). It’s about his life, a legal battle (a bunch of homophobes sued Rory for calling them homophobes on national TV) and the staging of a show in his hometown. Central to all this is Ireland’s historic vote on marriage equality, something that Panti was a powerful figure in. If you want to laugh and have your heart soar in seeing confirmation of how a once painfully conservative country moved to love and equality, watch this.

The Kids Are All Right (2010) Directed by Lisa Cholodenko

Lisa Cholodenko’s feature is a warm, witty and realistic look at a lesbian couple and their children. Every performance is pitch perfect. I can’t believe it’s a decade old and that we have had so few similar films since.

Booksmart (2019) Directed by Olivia Wilde

We need more joyous films with queer leads and Olivia Wilde’s debut is just that. Set over one night of belated partying, we follow best friends Molly and Amy (Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever), one of whom happens to be a lesbian. It is just so much fun to watch.

All About My Mother (1999) Directed by Pedro Almodóvar

I mean this list could just be an Almodóvar filmography, but All About My Mother just happened to be the first of his I saw and it blew my little gay mind. It’s simply about love in its truest sense. Almodóvar said it best with his dedication, “To all actresses who have played actresses. To all women who act. To men who act and become women. To all the people who want to be mothers. To my mother.”

Female Trouble (1974) Directed by John Waters

You can’t have a queer film list without John Waters, and this 1974 classic is my favorite of his. It follows Dawn Davenport (played by the legendary Divine) from teen delinquent to the electric chair. It’s hilarious, irreverent and distasteful in the ways only Waters can be.

Saint Maud (2019) Directed by Rose Glass

Rose Glass’s debut film isn’t out yet and so technically shouldn’t be on the list. But I saw at a festival last year and loved it, so there. It’s a horror film about a private nurse (rising star Morfydd Clark) who tries to save the soul of her deviant and lesbian patient (the always-brilliant Jennifer Ehle). It’s eerie, stylish and the sort of debut all us filmmakers wish we had. Shut up, you’re jealous!

Related content

MundoF’s Opening the Vault: a chronological history of queer interest and LGBTQ+ cinema.

Leonora’s list of Films by Transgender Writers and Directors.

Out of the Closets and Into the Cinemas!: meeting queer folks in dark rooms.

New Queer Cinema

Queer Films Everyone Must See

Queer, Black, 21st Century: A Pride 2020 List

Autostraddle’s Top 200 Lesbian, Bisexual & Queer Movies of All Time

Brianna’s list of LGBT+ Animation

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nosunsetsjustsilence · 4 years

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The Manics and Gender Identity, Part 1

There is a lot to unpack in Nicky and Richey’s early lyrics pertaining to gender, particularly in terms of identifying with women. Richey approaches the subject — as he is wont to do — with regard to the exploitation and degradation of the female image, while Nicky’s attitude is more inquisitive and casual. Both use lyrics to express their own personal “What if?”

Make no mistake: I’m not claiming that either Nicky or Richey is/was non-cis or trans or anything other than curious. But it’s clear from their personal lyric struggles and hard-won lifestyle choices that this was a different time they were living in. In the 1990s, gender identity was not a topic with any kind of mainstream recognition, at least beyond those who wanted a “sex change” or girls who were considered “one of the boys”. I think it’s fascinating, at least from my perspective, to go back and examine the themes of gender dysphoria, identity, and frustration in lyrics written before any of it was part of popular conversation, and in a way that emphasized the then absolute cultural disconnect between desire and society.

Also, it’s important to note that both Nicky and Richey have presented gender in ways that don’t have anything to do with lyrics. Nicky is comfortable in traditionally female clothing and wears dresses on and off stage; both band members wore makeup and feathers on a regular basis. I’ve tried to write about gender in terms of lyrics only, but at times I do take examples from visual media.

Finally, keep in mind that yours truly is non-binary, and the discussion will hopefully not reek of a cis person watching queer men from behind bars in a zoo.

Special thanks to @sinisterrouge for vetting this before I posted <3

Little Baby Nothing

Although Richey seemed to find comfort in claiming that his lyrics were about the larger world — in the case of Little Baby Nothing, feminism and the way women are perceived in media — a closer look usually reveals a personal stake. When I discussed the meaning of this song previously, I emphasized that the “Little baby nothing” in question is clearly Richey himself, writing in the first person and deconstructing his own image to align with a kind of mindless female groupie used for sex.

My mind is dead, everybody loves me Wants a slice of me Hopelessly passive and compatible Need to belong, oh the roads are scary Hold me in your arms I wanna be your only possession

Richey often refers to himself as a “slut” and a “prostitute” and uses self-referential porn star imagery in his lyrics (So Dead: “You need a fix I’m your prostitute”, Yes: “there’s no lust in this coma even for a fifty”), aligning the industries of pornography and music performance in very vivid ways most often pertaining to exploitation. Appropriately, singing pivotal stanzas on this track is none other than Traci Lords, arguably most famous (especially in the early 90s) for an underage porn scandal.

What’s more, in the lyrics booklet for Generation Terrorists, there is a quotation or excerpt included for each song. The following corresponds to Little Baby Nothing:

“The male chromosome is an incomplete female chromosome. In other words the male is a walking abortion; aborted at the gene stage. To be male is to be deficient, emotionally limited; maleness is a deficiency disease and males are emotional cripples.” -Valerie Solanos.

Ninety percent of what the Manics said and did in their early years was intended to be shocking and/or ironic. Of course they were trying to incite anger and riots, the questioning of institutions, and a teardown of normalcy. But the fact that Richey later used part of this radical statement as the title to one of his songs (“Of Walking Abortion”, natch) proves that he took it somewhat seriously, even if only in the most simple sense — that part of him resented his own maleness.

Life Becoming a Landslide

This is another song I’ve previously discussed, mostly in the arena of Nicky and Richey individualizing their distinctive voices into lines that can clearly be attributed to one or the other. In a song about nature vs nurture and the plastic confines of greater humanity cracking down on who or what someone is really supposed to be, we have:

Life becoming a landslide Ice freezing nature dead Life becoming a landslide I don’t wanna be a man

As far as writing style goes, Nicky was always fairly straightforward. Richey loves to convolute his message with proper nouns and alternating verb cases and a lack of a subject just to throw people off, but here’s Nicky, my boy, just saying, “Dude. Being a man sucks. I don’t like this.”

He could mean that being human in general sucks. But, since his attitude towards women leads me to believe he would not abbreviate humanity in this way, and given his and Richey’s track record with gender and Nicky’s well-documented gender presentation, I think it’s clear the lyric means that he doesn’t want to be male. Because he feels it doesn’t suit him, for whatever reason. And that nature failed by making him a man instead of a woman.

Yes

‘Yes’ is an incredible song. Its major-chord melody juxtaposed against Richey’s raw portrait of degradation is truly a thing to behold. The theme? Being used, prostitution both literal and metaphorical (“For sale? dumb cunt’s same dumb questions”), exploitation in the name of capitalism (“In these plagued streets of pity you can buy anything”), and reaching the lowest possible point of existence (“Purgatory’s circle, drowning here, someone will always say yes”). But the chorus — the chorus boasts one of the rawest images of sexual violence the band has ever used:

He’s a boy, you want a girl so tear off his cock Tie his hair in bunches, fuck him, call him Rita if you want

Wow. Okay. Where to begin? The implication here is that gender, along with everything else, is mutable if you have enough money and power to abuse people. However, it appears the change would be made not to entertain others, but to appeal to a specific person, sexually (“fuck him”). The “you” in question is clearly attracted to women, so the narrator offering to mutilate himself to please them can be seen as a last-ditch act of desperation. (“It feels like this massive defeat,” said a friend. “You can make him a woman to pleasure someone, but what’s left to change after that?”)

Richey wrote most of the song; “Rita”, obviously, is the name used for an alternative female identity. But who would Rita be? Richey seems to be wondering. Would she still be me? And would the change even be worth the affections of whomever he’s speaking to? If the means are so drastic (and difficult to picture without experiencing secondhand pain), that answer would usually be “no”. But the song is called “Yes”. I would say yes to anything at this point, Richey is saying, even the most extreme sexual violence imaginable, if that’s what you wanted.

4st 7lb

This is an extreme example of Richey using world issues to examine his own nature. Although anorexic himself, Richey writes “4st 7lb” from the point of view of an obsessive young girl admiring thin models. There could be multiple reasons for this, not the least of which is that when a person fails to fit the “classic” case of an eating disorder, they are often ignored. So, Richey says, you need me to be a teenage girl? I can do that.

(Note that in 1994, when this song was written, any eating disorder demographic outside the “white girl who loves fashion too much” model did not exist by medical standards and was usually subject to ridicule.)

Karen says I’ve reached my target weight Kate and Emma and Kristin know it’s fake Problem is diet’s not a big enough word I wanna be so skinny that I rot from view

Embodying the anorexic female stereotype allows Richey to criticize both the world and himself; by creating a parody of a young girl with an eating disorder, he creates commentary on how ridiculous and counter-intuitive her thought process actually is. The song is brutal and often focuses on nudity and sexual imagery, as it has been suggested in studies that eating disorders occur in those who are trying to annihilate their own puberty. Though Richey was well into his 20s when he wrote this, he often expressed a loathing of aging and the entire concept of adulthood.

Stomach collapsed at five Lift up my skirt my sex is gone Naked and lovely and 5 stone 2 May I bud and never flower My vision’s getting blurred But I can see my ribs and I feel fine My hands are trembling stalks And I can feel my breasts are sinking

Ultimately, “4st 7lb” hits hard as both an experiment in identity and a vicious satire of the rich white girl eating disorder cliché. Although the lyrics do not express a desire to become female, they do indicate that Richey feels everything might be easier and fit more neatly into a box if he were a girl.

[Coming in Part 2: The Girl Who Wanted to be God, Tsunami, Born a Girl, and Pretention/Repulsion.]

#gender identity #gender fuckery #manic street preachers #manics #nicky wire #richey james #richey edwards #lyrics #yes #little baby nothing #generation terroris #the holy bible #life becoming a landslide #4st 7lb #eating disorders #gender

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toosicktoocare · 4 years

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prompt: Maybe a fic where Amanda meddles with his system and he can charge himself to 30% but not beyond that so he’s super tired, sleepy and lethargic but he tries really hard to hide it from Hank, but fails to when he basically passes out after having to run a program during a case that sucks up his battery power.

See, this is what I’m talking about! Set with pre-deviant Connor where he’s starting to become “unstable”

Connor doesn’t understand; he doesn’t understand because he spent the entire night charging to ensure he’s operating at one-hundred percent, yet he’s only an hour into a new case with Hank, and his prosthetic limbs are moving too slow, his optical lenses are struggling to focus, failing to scan for new evidence. He runs a quick overall system scan, frowning.

System Operating at 30%.

“Connor!”

Connor blinks slowly, waiting briefly for his program functions to operate toward a response, and he turns his head toward Hank’s rather demanding voice. “Yes, Lieutenant?”

“The fuck are you doing just standing there like a damn statue? Let’s get a move on!”

Wordlessly, he follows after Hank into a back room in The Eden Club, glancing at the blue splatters of thirium coating the raised pedestal around a tall pole. There was another incident with a deviant; he’s not sure what happened, but the reports suggest a rogue droid who attacked four customers before running off into the night. Based on the thirium scattered about the entertainment lounge, the droid left with substantial injuries.

The back rooms are in similar states. Blue is painted across the walls and atop bed sheets. Connor taps his finger to a splatter on a left wall and brings it to his tongue, ignoring the disgusted groan from Hank as he works to scan the thirium. It’s bitter, and a wince pulls at his face as he begins a scan. He’s halfway through when his work comes to a stop.

System Operating at 20%.

He blinks away the red warning with a quiet sigh. He can feel the low charge like a human would feel operating on no sleep. Lethargic, his program supplies. He’s not moving fast enough, not processing evidence quick enough. He can’t. His software system is going to reboot into power save mode soon, and it will be a miracle if he can even remain upright when that happens. He should excuse himself from the scene to find a charging base, but his intuitive program keeps supplying determination toward his frontal lobe panel, repeatedly assuring him that they are close to a breakthrough, so he can’t part with the crime scene.

“Goddammit, Connor!”

The hand that hits his cheek stings, and without meaning to, Connor winces and pulls a blurry yet sharp gaze to Hank.

“Shit, Connor, did that hurt?”

Hank’s worried now. Connor doesn’t need to scan the lieutenant to know, not when Hank’s frowning at him with deep, worried lines etched across his forehead.

System Operating at 15%.

“No, Lieutenant,” Connor says, lying easily. He can feel his instability jolt like a spark jerking up his spine, but he ignores it.

“Well your face says otherwise,” Hank mutters, and for a moment, Connor wants to shrink away from Hank’s stern gaze, but he keeps his shoulders squared and his chin upright.

“There’s no need for concern, Lieutenant.”

“I’m not concerned,” Hank spits out. “But I don’t want a fucked up droid at a crime scene.”

Connor doesn’t reply, not finding it necessary, but when he moves to follow beside Hank toward a different room, he staggers. His programs short-circuit for a moment, and he latches a shaking hand to Hank’s shoulder.

System Operating at 10%. Entering Power Save Mode.

“Connor, what the hell is going on with you?” Hank’s hand finds Connor’s waist, and the frustration from before has been replaced with a genuine sense of concern that Connor just barely picks up on.

“I just need...” Connor slowly cranes his neck, looking over his shoulder. He’s... His programs aren’t moving fast enough. His thirium is moving too slowly, making his ocular sensors fail to receive images clearly. He’s dizzy. “To charge.”

His auditory sensors aren’t working properly as his systems move to power save mode. Hank’s shouting for a charger base sounds far too distant despite Hank remaining by his side, but soon enough, he can feel his systems rebooting as power pulses through his software.

System Charging.

“You know you could have just said you were low on juice,” Hank bites out. The only charger station is outdoors, and he crosses his arms against the snow beating down on the two.

Connor blinks at him slowly. “I charged last night. There might be a circuit issue with my charger station.” He frowns when Hank shudders and hisses against a particularly sharp gust of wind. “Go back inside, Lieutenant. I’ll be in shortly.”

Stubborn as he is, Hank complies, leaving Connor to charge alone, and Connor waits patiently, but when he hits 30% and receives a notification that his charging is complete, a sharp frown takes over his features, and he wills a meeting with Amanda, something he doesn’t do often.

He closes his eyes, and to his surprise, Amanda welcomes him in. Like in Detroit, it’s snowing in her garden, yet it feels 10 degrees colder. He crosses his arms and starts toward her.

“Connor.” Her voice is calm, but Connor’s LED still blinks a bright yellow. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I can’t charge above 30%,” Connor answers honestly. He sucks in a shaking breath, prepared to explain how he cannot effectively do his job if he can’t operate at full capacity, but Amanda smiles, cutting his thoughts off like a snip of a wire.

“I know.”

He’s had a brief suspicion that this was the product Amanda’s doing, but hearing her easy admission sends heat to his LED until it’s glowing red. His instability jerks again, but he keeps his expression calm despite the unfamiliar heat of anger warming his thirium, an odd contrast to the icy wind that’s threatening to freeze it.

“Why?” He asks, willing his voice to remain steady.

“You’re becoming unstable.”

“I’m not,” Connor presses. “If my scans show otherwise, it can easily be pegged on frustration toward not being able to perform my duties effectively.”

“Frustration,” Amanda says softly. “That’s not a part of your program.”

She shoves him out. Connor blinks slowly, taking in the whipping snow around him. He moves away from the base quickly, and his legs give out. He falls to the snow, hands curled into fists. “Dammit.” He’s mad; he can’t control his instability.

He gets slowly to his feet. His ocular sensors still can’t focus on much, but he pushes through the hazy vision and enters the club. The sooner, he thinks, that he can solve this case and find the deviant, the sooner Amanda’s trust in him will return and he can begin to operate at 100% again.

“Connor,” Hank waves him over, holding a ripped shirt that’s coated in thirium. “Can you scan this? We think the deviant’s working with a rogue group, and this shirt could potentially be a marked shirt of their new group.”

Nodding, Connor pushes all of his scanning operations toward the shirt, eyes flicking to one tear, then to a splatter of thirium, then to another tear, over and over until the shirt begins to blur against his ocular sensors. He can feel his systems dragging, struggling to keep up with his determination, thirium moving incredibly slow, unable to support his system functions quickly, but he pushes through until his ocular sensors cut to black.

He’s only out for seconds, the low hum of Amanda’s voice fading from his ears as his present surroundings come back. He’s leaning against Hank, his forehead pressed to Hank’s shoulder, and Hank has a strong arm wrapped around his back, and he’s shouting. A lot of people are shouting, but Connor is struggling to pinpoint voices.

System Operating at 12%.

“--swear to God, Hank! Get that faulty fucking droid out of here!”

“Calm the fuck down, Reed! Unless you want to go around licking all of this blue blood?”

“That’s fucking disgusting!”

Connor lifts his head, he can feel every single movement like a rusted gear in need of attention, and his ocular sensors hone in on the ripped shirt he dropped. His charge is too low for a full scan, but he manages a quick one, leaning heavily against Hank as his charge depletes more and more.

His scans come up with a small store that’s been on Detroit Police Department’s radar more than once. It’s most likely the store the shirt came from-- it’s a lead, just what they were looking for, and he mumbles the store name before dropping his forehead back to Hank’s shoulder.

Hank bellows out orders before guiding Connor back out to the charging station.

“Connor, you have five seconds to tell me what the hell is really going on before I ship your ass off in a box.”

System Charging.

“I’m being punished,” Connor answers quietly. His vocal programming is reflecting his low charge, his tone is deeper than normal, carrying little energy with each word. “CyberLife thinks I’m growing unstable.”

“Well, are you?”

Current System Charge is 28%.

Connor meets Hank’s eyes, and they share a wordless conversation, one that bleeds in muted desperation. Connor doesn’t want to lie to Hank, but if he admits his hesitation out loud, he might as well send himself back to CyberLife for further inspection. His instability has been up and down for weeks now, but he’s always reasoned that the jolts are because of the amount of deviant cases they’ve covered. It’s... hard sometimes to handle a case with a deviant who is so insistent that they are human.

When Hank finally breaks the gaze with a huff, Connor breathes out a quiet sigh.

“It doesn’t matter because you probably just solved this case.”

Relief, a program function he was created with for unclear purposes, floods Connor’s systems, and he nods, eyes following as Hank turns away to watch the police cars whip down the street.

Current System Charge is 31%.

#detroit become human #DBH #dbh connor #hank anderson #gavin reed #dbh amanda #cyberlife #my writing #my dbh writing #whump #whumpfic #prompt fill #detective dad and android son #d: bh

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jackie-talks-about-starkid · 4 years

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A Very Potter Senior Year (Rewatch #6, 10/15/2020)

YouTube publish date: March 15, 2013

Number of views on date of rewatch: 1,515,813

Original Performance Run: August 11, 2012 at Chicago’s LeakyCon

Ticket price: the cost of a LeakyCon 2013 pass

Director: Matt Lang and Nick Lang

Music and Lyrics: Clark Baxtresser, AJ Holmes, Pierce Siebers, and Darren Criss

Book: Brain Holden, Matt Lang, and Nick Lang

Cast album price and availability: $14.99 on the StarKid store for digital download (x)

Release date: December 15, 2012

Parody or original: third installment of a parody series

Main cast and characters

Harry - Darren Criss

Ron - Joey Richter

Hermione - Meredith Stepien

Draco - Lauren Lopez

Gilderoy Lockhart - AJ Holmes

Voldemort - Joe Walker

Ginny - Jamie Lyn Beatty

Musical numbers

Act I

“This Is The End” Characters: Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna, and Ensemble

“Senior Year” Characters: Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny

“Wizard of the Year” Characters: Lockhart and Ensemble

“Always Dance” Characters: Tom Riddle, Dumbledore, and the Slytherins

“When You Have to Go All the Way Home” Characters: Lucius and Bellatrix

“Get in My Mouth” Characters: Aragog and Ensemble

“Tonight This School is Mine” Characters: Harry and Draco

“I Was” Characters: Harry and Tom Riddle

Act II

“Sidekick” Characters: Ron

“Everything Ends” Characters: James, Lily, Sirius, Lupin, Snape, and Cedric

“Goin’ Back to Hogwarts” Characters: Harry, Ron, McGonagall, and Company

“Harry Freakin’ Potter” Characters: Harry and Company

“Days of Summer” Characters: Company

“Goin’ Back to Hogwarts (Finale)” Characters: Harry

Notable Notes:

In this production, Luna was played by Evanna Lynch, the actress who portrayed Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films!

For this production, StarKid created a song and artwork contest in which the song winners would have a song performed in the actual production. One of the entries for the song portion of the contest was won by Robert Manion, who was later featured in Twisted and most recently played The Professor in The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musical (x)

Darren’s body mic did not work during the filming of the production, so all of his vocals and dialogue had to be pulled from other mics on stage (x)

Cultural Context: 2012/early 2013

Instagram become the popular new app for photo sharing

In February 2013, Beyoncé performed at the Super Bowl

‘The Harlem Shake’ was a popular video challenge

‘The Fierce Five’, Aly, Gabby, Kyla, Jordyn, and McKayla, all win gold for the US at the 2012 Summer Olympics

KONY 2012 happened

Marissa Mayer becomes the first pregnant Fortune 500 CEO

Content Analysis:

A Very Potter Senior Year is StarKid’s most interesting meta-musical regarding fandom. StarKid’s first published musical A Very Potter Musical, originally called ‘Harry Potter: The Musical’, was a work of musical comedy parody lovingly created by fans of the Harry Potter franchise for other fans that in a short amount of time created its own fandom for StarKid that continues to grow to this day. A Very Potter Senior Year is a fan-made production made by a theatre company for the sake of fulfilling their own fannish desires while also fulfilling the fannish desires of the fandom that they created for themselves from their original fanworks. That is a sentence that can only apply to StarKid. How often does a fanmade work gain such popularity, let alone one that uses theatre as its medium? And how often does an entire theatrical company, rather than an individual theatrical production, gain a loyal fandom through their own works? Through a combination of accessibility and dedication to fan culture and theatre, StarKid has created and fulfilled a very specific niche that has brought so much joy to so many people. AVPSY is StarKid’s thank you/love letter to the fans that have allowed their success to happen. It is a work that is comprised entirely of book-specific and movie-specific Harry Potter references (because, as any HP fan knows, they are different beings) and StarKid-specific references that any audience member who has not participated within the StarKid fandom would not understand, which makes this work incredibly special for the audience that it was intended for. The cast is composed of just about every StarKid actor associated with the company, whether or not they were involved in the first two Harry Potter musical parodies, making the show just as much of an homage to the team itself than it is to their Potter musical series alone, and they even managed to get an actual actor from the Harry Potter movies to reprise her role in this actual production?! If that doesn’t speak to the cultural weight of fandom and its power to bring people together, then I don’t know what does.

This production has all of the elements expected of a traditional StarKid show, with on-point performances, funny and entertaining dialogue, a handmade production quality that increases the humanity of the company, and a heartfelt message lying underneath the outlandishness and occasional vulgarity. Watching actors step back into the roles that gained them so much popularity and that obviously have so much sentimental value to them makes their impact so much stronger-Draco’s mere presence remains a laugh riot, Ron’s lines are funnier (and his long-awaited solo was so incredible!), Ginny’s increased role in the plot is more substantial, and Harry’s character development is more multidimensional, but in a way that solidifies rather than takes away from the intended warm and comedic tone of the show. Meredith Stepien stood out for obvious reasons, as she was the only actor in the company who played a character that another person originated, but as a fan and an audience member who rewatched this production with a more critical eye than usual, I felt like her performance was outstanding and one of the best in the show. Her performance as Hermione felt like one that honored the character’s relationship to the fans while also making the transition between Grueson’s performance to Stepien’s own practically seamless, once a joke about the change in performer was made early on in the show. Personally, I could not be more happy to add Meredith to the list of talented actors who have played one of my favorite fictional characters of all time. StarKid’s Hermione is a very difficult character to play because she fulfills many different roles in the StarKid Potter musical universe itself and to the fans-not only does she have to honor Rowling’s intentions with Hermione’s original character, lest fans take offence to the parody, but she has to establish herself as her own character who is often the butt of a joke, a core character for the plot’s resolution, and the main leading woman of a musical comedy, which comes with its own set of narrative and performative responsibilities. Stepien did an incredible job and I’m really glad that she got to shine more as a leading character once StarKid produced Firebringer. Her stage presence and comedic performance are, in a word, lovely. @ StarKid please give her more roles, thank you

As far as the rest of the company goes, Chris Allen is the unsung hero of A Very Potter Senior Year, playing Barty Crouch Jr., Moaning Myrtle, Mad-Eye Moody, and Tom Riddle Sr. It is generally expected of any StarKid performer that in any given production they are going to play more than one character, and one of StarKid’s defining traits is the comedic flexibility of the performers, but Allen in particular stole every scene that he was in, no matter how brief it was. And AJ Holmes! He played Gilderoy Lockhart perfectly! The only thing that I do not appreciate about his performance is that he doesn’t act enough in StarKid shows. I know he was busy writing music for their shows and he’s busy now being successful in the greater commercialized theatre world but I find it personally offensive that he doesn’t act in StarKid more. Gilderoy’s Mouse Monologue™ is one of the funniest scenes in the show and needs to be performed more for national monologue competitions and comedic auditions because the writing alone does not get enough credit, but no one can ever live up to how Holmes took over the stage with that scene.

Overall, A Very Potter Senior Year was a beautiful wrap-up for the musical fandom-within-a-fandom-made-by-fans. Even through a screen and watching the performance seven years later, I can feel the love and joy radiating from the actors and the unseen audience through my laptop screen and have never been more grateful that StarKid still to this day ensures that their work can be viewed by as many people as possible.

#for my independent study #this was rushed because I'm sick but I still mean it #@TeamStarkid #a very potter senior year #a very potter trilogy #a very potter series #avpsy #team starkid #starkid productions #starkid musicals #starkid #musical theatre #musicals #musical theatre is a valid art form you fools

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fullmetalscullyy · 4 years

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the way it was - chapter 9

surprise when they find out that a warrior will soon run wild

summary: what if riza never went to war? riza hawkeye has just married the man she loves. six months into their marriage, an unexpected surprise stops her from following roy to the military. a canon divergence au that explores what might have happened had riza been unable to join the military. there will be plenty of family fluff, angst, and royai.

rated: m | warnings: no archive warning apply

chapter 8 | read on ao3

1910

surprise when they find out that a warrior will soon run wild

“Two kids?” Riza asked, confused as to why the military would want to recruit children into their ranks. It didn’t sit right with her, but after Ishval nothing the military did sitsat well with her. She’d heard enough from Roy to begin to recognise the propaganda when she saw it.

“Yeah, two children. Can you believe it?” He’d changed into t-shirt and sweatpants and crawled onto the floor of their living room, ending flat on his stomach. Mia was sitting in there on her playmat, who grinned at the sight of him. Propping his head up on his hand, elbow on the floor, Roy picked up one of her toys and began to entertain her.

“Why two children?”

“Initially there was a mix up with the paperwork, so I went ahead anyway to investigate what had happened.”

“But they’re children. What use has the military got for them?”

He shrugged. “They’re extremely gifted alchemists.”

“And did you recruit them?”

“I said my piece,” he replied, shaking the rattle in front of Mia. She had her little brown blanket with a bear’s head attached to the end gripped in one hand and was reaching for the rattle with the other. “I don’t know if they will. If they do, it can give them unlimited resources for them to research for a way to get their bodies back.”

Their daughter had become extremely attached to that bear blanket very early on. She wanted it everywhere with her and would not sleep without it. If either parent dared to even try and pry it away from her, it started a screaming match. They’d quickly learned from their mistake and made sure she slept with it next to her every night. And, from then on, the nickname Mia Bear was born. Roy had been very proud as he coined it. It was the most endearing sight.

“… Bodies back?” Riza asked almost fearfully, closing her book.

Roy nodded, his face dropping his smile for Mia and becoming more serious. “They committed the taboo – human transmutation.”

“What did they lose?” She placed her book down on the cushion next to her.

Riza had grown up around alchemy all her life. When her mother was living, both her mother and her father would teach her about it, seeing if she had the aptitude for the science. When they found out she didn’t, they were disappointed. Thankfully, it was brushed off with smiles and a “never mind”. Although initially crestfallen, it was quickly dropped and they didn’t seem fazed that their daughter couldn’t perform the science. It was never mentioned again. However, after her mother died, Berthold liked to throw it back in her face at every opportunity he could. It turned out he held it against her completely. What was the point in having a daughter, Berthold wondered out loud, when she couldn’t even help him with his prized research?

The one thing that had been drilled into her during teaching was the rules of alchemy, regardless of whether she could do it or not. The idea of human transmutation terrified her as a child and her mother was glad for it. Riza’s mother wasn’t pleased she’d scared her daughter. No, she was glad Riza feared the taboo and understood the power and consequence it held.

Roy was silent as he smiled at Mia for a few moments, entertaining their daughter. “One lost an arm and a leg.” Riza swallowed.

“And the other?” she whispered.

Roy hesitated. It looked like he really didn’t want to share the answer out loud, and it caused the weight in her stomach to become even heavier.

“His whole body.”

“How old are they?”

“Eleven and ten.”

“What?”

“I know,” Roy replied grimly. He shifted in place, picking up Mia from her playmat. He hugged her close, giving her a kiss.

“What did the parents say?” Riza asked.

“There are none.”

“Oh my god.” Her heart broke for the two of them. They’d suffered like that, almost losing everything, but there was no one to comfort them afterwards? No mother or father to offer support? Riza wanted to go over there right now and bring them to her home. She knew what it was like to have no parental figures in her life growing up. She wouldn’t wish that on anyone, especially not two boys who had lost so much at the same time.

“I know.” Roy kissed Mia’s head again and stood, moving to sit on the couch next to Riza. “It made me think about what I’d feel like if it had been Mia,” he admitted.

“That’s awful. Those poor boys.”

Although the lesson of human transmutation had been drilled into her at a young age, Riza hadn’t realised the price to carry out the taboo would be so high. How could one physically lose an arm and a leg because of alchemy? Or their whole body? She felt so sorry for those two boys.

“So, are you going to recruit them?”

“In an ideal world, no. I don’t want them to be a part of the military. They’re far too young. Being State Alchemists, if a war starts, they’ll be called up to serve.”

Fear prickled over her skin. “That can’t happen.”

Roy sighed. “I know. And I’ll do everything in my power to stop it.”

“I sense there’s a “but” here.”

“If they do join, it will give them access to the Central Library – the largest in Amestris. It will help them research how to reverse the effects of the transmutation.”

“Can’t you do that for them?”

“I could, but something tells me those boys will want to do it themselves. There was a fire in that boy’s eyes,” Roy mused, trailing off. “He won’t be beaten down so easily.”

“They’ll join then, won’t they?” Riza ran her finger over Mia’s cheek gently making her giggle. She couldn’t bear the thought of something like that happening to her little girl.

“Probably. They’re determined, and extremely gifted. If anyone could figure it out, they could.”

“Wait, you said one had lost his entire body?”

Roy nodded. “His brother bonded his soul to a suit of armour.”

“That’s… Well, horrifying as a mother, but also incredible.”

“I know. The kid is insanely gifted. To be able to do that at the age of eleven, that’s crazy.”

“You were almost knocking the house down with your alchemy at the age of eleven,” Riza teased.

“That was one time, and that support beam was old and crooked anyway.”

Riza chuckled to herself, bumping his shoulder with her own.

“I’m prepared to help them in any way I can. I just hope it will be enough.”

“Will they be assigned under you?”

“That’s what I’ve requested. Under my command, they can have all the freedom they like. High command won’t like it, but if it's disguised as a mission then they have nothing to complain about.”

“You’re not exactly playing by the book here, Lieutenant Colonel,” Riza replied, smiling wryly.

“There’s too much corruption in there anyway. The way to the top starts here,” he replied confidently. She watched the determination set in his face, but then softened as Mia giggled to herself, playing with his fingers.“Listen, there’s something else I wanted to discuss with you. I personally hate it, but my mother said it may work in my favour to cover up how quickly I’m trying to move up the ranks.”

“What is it?”

Roy sighed. “Madame Christmas suggested using the cover of a “playboy” as a smokescreen when dealing with her.” His tone was exasperated, as if this was an old argument with his mother. Riza always thought it amusing that he referred to his adoptive mother as “Madame”, however it was probably just a habit at this point.

“What do you mean?”

He looked uncomfortable continuing. “I go out with the Madame’s girls as a cover – a way to gather intel on the higher ups in the military.”

“Go out?” she echoed.

“To dinner. To bars for the night.” He never looked her in the eye, still looking uncomfortable, but also extremely nervous. “So I’ll look like a bit of a womanizer.” Riza chuckled to herself, and that made Roy’s head snap around to face her. He obviously didn’t expect that reaction. “What?” he asked, thoroughly confused.

“You? A womanizer?” she chuckled again, shaking her head. “You’re anything but a womanizer.”

“I could turn it on when I need to,” he replied, indignant.

“I’ve yet to see that.” Riza stood and moved her book to the table beside the couch, however she was stopped by Roy grabbing her hand.

“What do you mean by that?” he asked, looking worried.

“Nothing, Roy,” Riza replied, after a moment’s pause. “It’s just… You’re such a dork,” she smiled. “You’re not a suave, charismatic person. Even when we were kids, you tried to be but ended up falling on your ass one way or another.” She laughed to herself, one particular memory springing to mind. He’d been dead set on being the only one to repair the leaking roof in Riza’s childhood home. He’d climbed up, lasted five minutes, and then fell off. Riza had to patch him up, put his arm in a sling, and then went up there to fix it herself.

“Do you want me to be like that?”

Riza was confused. “No. I want you to be yourself. I want you to be the man I fell in love with.”

In an unanticipated move, Roy placed Mia in her playpen in the corner of the room, then strode back over to his wife, placing his hands on her hips. Smiling, Riza locked her arms around his neck.

“I love you. So much.”

“And I love you too, Roy,” Riza smiled. He kissed her slowly, tenderly, making her sigh into it. His hands began to gently tug her shirt out of her skirt. Riza broke away and laughed. “Not while Mia is here.”

He pressed his forehead against hers and groaned. “We need that holiday.”

Riza pulled away to look at him. “Do you really want to go?”

“Of course. I’d love to do anything with you. I feel like I hardly see you nowadays.” Frustration laced his tone.

“You’re busy with work. I get that. I’m busy with school, and with looking after Mia.”

“It shouldn’t just be you doing that thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“She’s my child too, and I feel like I never see her. By the time I get home from the office, I get maybe an hour with her and then she’s off to bed. You get all day with her and I hardly get anything.”

“That can’t be helped though. You’re in a high demand position,” Riza reminded him. Then, in a quieter tone, she added, “And you have work to do. For both of us.”

“I know,” he replied, tone sombre. Roy sighed. “I just don’t want you to feel like you’re stuck in the house with her all day. You’re a young woman. You should be out and enjoying yourself.”

“Hard to do that with a one year old,” Riza quipped with a smirk. “However, I’m married to the man I love. I have a beautiful daughter with you. I wouldn’t trade that for the world.”

Roy hugged her close, allowing Riza to bow her head and rest it on his shoulder. Roy pressed his cheek against the top of her head, making her smile.

“Do you ever wonder what your life would have been like if you’d joined the military.” One night, after one of his nightmares, they’d stayed up talking about their past to try and distract Roy from the horrors he’d witnessed in sleep. Riza had revealed she was thinking of joining the military after him, to help him pursue his dream, but of course, that never came to pass.

Riza nodded. “Occasionally, yes, but then I wouldn’t have Mia and I hate the thought of that.” The two glanced over towards their daughter who was squealing happily in her pen, entertaining herself with her toys. They smiled softly.

“I do too.” They swayed in place to the song that had just come on the radio. Roy cradled her close, and Riza closed her eyes, focusing on the sound of his heart underneath her ear, and the feeling of his hands on her body.

“About what I mentioned before, what the Madame brought up, would you be okay with it?”

“You, dating other women?”

“No, not dating. And not other women. My sisters.”

“That’s a bit weird, Roy,” she teased, making him scoff.

“No. Not that.” He huffed in frustration. “It’s not a date. I’ll just be meeting up with my sisters for dinner and drinks from time to time.”

Riza was still confused. “That’s a perfectly normal thing to do.”

“Yes, but… No one knows they’re my adoptive sisters. No one knows the Madame is my adoptive mother.” He shifted uncomfortably. “People will probably think I’m out dating them and cheating on you.”

“Ah.” Understanding dawned on Riza. That’s what he was worried about.

“Obviously I’m not. They’re all the Madame’s informants and utilising their skills and information would give me dirt on the top brass, possibly allowing me to move up the ranks faster.”

“Blackmail is a wonderful thing, isn’t it?” she quipped.

“I like to think of it as more…”

“Exploiting weaknesses?”

“Using information to discover just how corrupt the military is,” Roy finished. “I’m doing the country a service.”

“Admirable.”

“I’m serious, Riza,” he stated, his voice low. “I’m not a fan, but I need the information they can give me.”

“Then don’t do it then if you’re uncomfortable. Plus,” Riza added, considering her next thought. “If you’re seen as being unfaithful, would you really be promoted? That doesn’t paint a good image.”

“Exactly. I’m kind of stuck on what to do here, but I need that information.”

“What about… someone else doing it for you?” Riza stated slowly, an idea forming in her mind.

“Who?”

“What about me?”

Roy stared at her for a long moment. “Absolutely not.”

“Why not?” she asked, not impressed with the tone he used. It wasn’t a ridiculous idea.

“I’m not getting you involved.”

“I go out for lunch with them all the time anyway. Why can’t I collect some extra information for you while I’m there? I can pick it up for you and bring it home.”

“Riza, no -”

“I can help,” she insisted.

“I’m not involving you in this.”

“I’m already involved,” she replied, her eyes narrowing. “I was the one who let loose the knowledge of flame alchemy. I feel guilty about what happened in Ishval too. This way, I can feel like I’m helping, and not just sitting on the sidelines.”

“You can’t be put in harm’s way,” he whispered, his voice thick. “I would never forgive myself if you were.”

“I won’t be in harm’s way,” she stressed, becoming impatient. “I’ll be picking up a piece of information and delivering it. We chat about anything and everything when we meet up anyway. Adding in a tiny piece of information each time would make no difference.” He sighed in frustration, but Riza’s case was strong. “If I do, it keeps suspicion off you. You can continue your ruse of devoted family man and use that as your cover as you rise up the ranks. It will keep you in the higher up’s good graces. No one likes a known and proud cheater.”

Roy sighed again, pulling away from her as he ran his hands through his hair. He didn’t like it, but Riza could see she’d worn him down slightly. It was the best idea. It was much better than his, pretending to be cheating on her so he could get information. It would keep his relationship with his mother and sisters secret, and wouldn’t jeopardise it for them. It was perfect.

“It will hide your intentions,” Riza argued further.

“It puts you in danger,” he stated firmly.

“Hardly. I’m meeting up for lunch with my family, something I do frequently already. It’s no different from you doing it.”

Roy sighed, finality in the action. His shoulders slumped in defeat.

“You’re intent on this, aren’t you?”

“It’s better than your idea,” she replied gently.

“I… I suppose you're right. Infidelity isn’t something I want to be known for, and will keep suspicion off me, somewhat.”

There was a quiet pause as the decision was absorbed by them both. Riza was doing nothing different from before, however she felt kind of excited. She would finally be getting to help in his rise to the top from a professional side.

“You never told me why you’re so intent on rising to the top so quickly.” Riza had to admit quietly, breaking the silence. It did worry her. He could get into big trouble for this.

“That –” He stopped abruptly and Riza could hear him swallow. “That has to do with Ishval,” he whispered.

Riza nodded. “I understand,” she replied simply, placing a hand on his arm. That said enough. Whatever happened over there, whatever he’d uncovered or realised, Roy felt strongly enough about it to want to take down the Fuhrer.

“Just promise me two things.”

“Anything, love,” he replied in an instant, grasping her hand in both of his, holding it in front of his chest. “You can ask anything you want of me.”

“Anything?” Riza smiled wryly.

“Anything,” Roy confirmed.

“The moon looks nice tonight.”

“Then I’ll build a ladder up there and bring it to you.” Riza laughed and felt her heart swell with love for this man. He was so good to her. She didn’t know how she’d ended up so lucky. “What is your request, my darling?”

“One, be careful, and stay safe.”

“That’s two,” he joked with a grin.

“I mean it,” she stressed.

Roy kissed her forehead. “Of course. For you, always. I would never leave you or Mia behind.” Good, because that terrified Riza more than anything. “And only if you do, too,” he urged, eyes searching her gaze. His worry had returned tenfold.

“I will.”

He accepted her sincere reply with a quick peck of her cheek. “What’s the other?” he asked.

“You use some of those suave and charismatic moves you were talking about on me some time,” she smirked, winking at him. In response, Roy’s expression turned hungry, desire filling his eyes. She laughed as his hands began to drop lower, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and holding him tightly. His lips found her neck and he reigned kisses down on it, turning her laughs to quiet, breathy moans.

“I always will, my queen,” he whispered against her neck. With one final kiss, he pulled away and stared into her eyes. “Just wait until Mia goes to bed,” he whispered lowly, making her shiver.

#royai #royai fic #royai fanfic #royai au #emma writes #the way it was

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rkjxy · 4 years

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──── k.arma september 2020 schedule ╳ running man solo appearance ❞

her deductive skills were barely there and she’s been told one too many times that she believes in certain things with barely a dubious glance. with the premise of today’s episode, she thinks it would be entertaining to see herself fail miserably at guessing.

nevertheless, joy thinks she would have a lot of fun. she has been in the show before albeit this time would be the first where she was invited to go alone. the last time, she remembers having a lot of fun and laughing every chance she gets. although seeing as she’s representing k.arma just by herself, she thinks she would have to step up her performance. maybe through this she would be able to establish a variety persona for herself and manage to snag more invitations for the rest of the group.

“hello!” she greets the other cast members brightly as she stepped out of the second door, being introduced before the last guest. surprisingly, she was no longer asked to introduce herself. the members all treated her as if she was a show regular and allowed her to find her place within the semi-circle comfortably. pleasantries were exchanged and there’s a smile on her face the entire time. convex’s hyun was introduced last and as the hosts play around with each other, she watches the exchange with absolute entertainment. it feels like watching the show at home but infinitely better because the events are unfolding right before her eyes.

the mechanics of the game were revealed as well as their secret mission at the start. she’s very giddy as she explains how she was able to successfully ask three of the cast members to sign an autograph without their knowing that it was her. unfortunately, she wasn’t able to do it for everyone and so she was still given a low card. as she enters the third car with much insistence, her team members were assembled.

“then the secret couple can be somin unnie and hyun-ssi.” was a comment she makes while they were talking inside the car, a statement thrown off the wind without actual evidence. the rest of the car ride was filled with more conversation until they finally arrived at the destination.

the recording continued.

joy feels a bit sad watching the other groups eat such a bountiful lunch while hers ended up eating a bowl of rice and seaweed. “if kil dances on behalf of the team, please give us raw beef.” one of her team members says and she perks up, immediately standing up for the opportunity to be given better food. “all of us including me would be embarrassed.” she says as she takes her place. when they start giving her a random a capella beat, she dances to the chorus of dolls. she tries not to laugh but the embarrassment of dancing to their song without the proper music made her hung her head forward anyway. still, she was rewarded for her efforts and they were given marinated shrimp. “thank you for the food.”

after the food, they continue with the next game. as they were quizzed about love, she tries her best to answer even though her answers were always seemingly falling short. suddenly, a question from one of the cast members took her off guard. “kill-ssi, how do long do you think it will take you to forget someone?” her mind immediately goes into overdrive and the first word that spilled from her lips, they make fun of her.

“she claims she hasn’t met anyone so she has nothing to say.”

joy can only laugh but moves not to deny or affirm anything that they say. instead, she thinks about her response for a second before confidently coming up with one.

“i’d say i will tell you in five years.”

“your contract ends in five years?”

“yes, my contract ends in five years.” she laughs.

“that was smart.”

the game moves forward. there were more bantering between the regular cast members, attempts from her end to answer, a question their team finally got correct, and a game that they surprisingly won.

after that portion wraps up, they all went to the university grounds to gather students. as they attempt to finish their task, she cannot help but laugh out loud as she watches two of the students slip an elastic band from their feet all the way to their waist. the most hilarious part of it, though, was when she offered to help the female student when her band was stuck by her hips. using a shoed foot, she had to accidentally touch her bottom to drag the band upwards. the entire time, she was laughing out loud; collapsing on the floor as the gravity of what she had to do and the funny commentaries from kwangsoo made it difficult for her to gather her wits. she apologised to the girl, bowing low on the floor despite her laughters barely going away. “i’m so sorry!” she laughs. “i’m so sorry, thank you so much.” there were tears in her eyes by the time she’s calmed down. she wipes them away delicately but the memory of what happened still makes her titter.

yet just as she thought she’s done full on laughing, a more hilarious scene unfolds before her. as kwangsoo rubs his bottom with another to student to speed up the task, she can’t help but jump around as she laughs. when they all finish successfully, she cheers along with everyone else.

they play more games as everyone reconvened in the university grounds until finally, it was time to figure out who the secret couple were. her guesses were heejin and kwangsoo but she isn’t very confident about it. it was hard to suspect when there are hardly any hints for her to look at. although she managed to find one in a dressing room. as she bumps into three other members during her quest, she runs away from everyone when it starts getting confusing.

minutes later, the race starts narrowing down and after the first and second trial, more people were eliminated from the race yet they still can’t figure out who was the other half of the secret couple. more deliberations were discussed and she’s quietly deciphering everything that was being said. reacting only when necessary and fulfilling her voting end.

when jihyo was voted by the majority to be the other half of the at the secret couple, she can’t help but express her disappointment having voted somin. “no, it’s somin unnie!” she says, sliding lower on her chair as she watches jihyo approach the stage. when it was revealed that she wasn’t the female in the couple, she stands up from her seat and cries: “i told you it wasn’t her!” while she’s sad that they didn’t win, she cheered for the winning pair as they close the show.

the recording ends without fuss. joy makes sure to express her gratitude towards every single person who worked with her that day. she leaves the set exhausted but incredibly happy. she had a lot of fun and hopes to be able to come back again in the future.

#solo #trcfeat;#wc; 1195 #k.arma:sep20

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playmebackwards · 4 years

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&. 【 sh, do you hear RIDE THE LIGHTNING by METALLICA playing ? that must mean JEANNINE 'JEANIE’ OH is coming, the 24 year old CIS FEMALE that goes by SHE/HER, currently employed as a CASHIER AT SUPER SAVE A BUNCH. they’re a HUMAN in oldgate for eh, i’d say about TWO YEARS. tough luck, huh ? least they got their ADROIT, WITTY, RESENTFUL and SARDONIC stuff to fall back on. anyway, it’s best to get out of here. their ( scuffed up ice skates forgotten in the back of the hall closet, 'jeanie oh is a bitch!’ scratched into the bathroom stall door, cheap knock-off sunglasses that almost look genuine, ice in the heart of a southern belle ) vibe gives me the creeps !

a southern belle from shreveport, louisiana, jeanie grew up with her mother and father. her life was rather normal until february 1998 when she saw michelle kwan skate for the silver medal. though she was only three years old, the moment she laid eyes on michelle spinning weightless and almost a blur, jeanie knew that was what she was born to do. she was too young to skate in her parents’ eyes, but by the time she was five, they were sick of hearing jeanie talk about it. it took a lot of whining, begging, watching vhs tapes of michelle kwan over and over again for her parents for them to finally relent. lucky for little jeanie, there was a skating club in the city at hirsh memorial coliseum for her to get through her annoying skating phase.

only it wasn’t a phase. jeanie was good. a natural talent, passionate and hardworking in a way that was surprising to her parents; when it came to everything but skating, she couldn’t be bothered to lift a finger. she was selfish, and that proved true in her skating, too. just a schoolaged child, she had all the makings of a diva, brash and obsessed with her own personality. as she started getting stronger, getting better, it became clear that some general ice arena in louisiana was going to support her growing career. so, her mother made the executive decision to move up north to michigan where real stars are made

although initially hesitant, karen became more supportive as jeanie became more serious about the sport. matthew didn’t feel the same, it’s an incredibly expensive sport and though he made good money, he didn’t make skating money. karen wouldn’t hear anything of it, her little jean bean was an amazing skater and had it, the stuff all the other girls in the skating club wanted. she attracted the attention of a middling coach, just someone to start her out, and there was real fire in her eyes that sometimes put off her coach. it’s a serious thing for all those serious about the craft, but jeanie treated simple club competitions and performances as if they were the olympics.

the olympics, the dream of every person that laces up skates and spends long hours every day stretching and pushing their bodies to the limit. going through a few more coaches and competing in countless competitions and pageants, it became clear that while jeanie had all the passion and drive in the world, and skills to match, there were hundreds of other girls with just as much ambition. jeanie oh, jean the jumping bean, wasn’t as special as she once thought.

the dream of every skater, winning the gold (or even the silver, she’d settle for that) slipped farther and farther out of her reach. while she passed her senior test, her stats during qualifying competition always left her at almost on the list but never on it. always the bridesmaid, never the bride. 2010, 2014, and 2018 passed without her ever getting a taste of olympic ice.

at the ripe age of 22, nearly a month before her 23rd birthday, jeanie oh officially retired from skating. by real life standards, she was barely out of her teens. by league standards, she was practically geriatric; the younger you were, the more the judges liked you, and it felt like nearly the entire community were russian adolescents. accepting that she’d never make it any farther in her career, she hung up her skates and stuck her middle finger out to the whole sport of figure skating—figuratively, but also not.

so, now 23 and jobless, her mother now disappointed and mourning what was, jeanie went crawling back to louisiana, moving in with her father in his new house in oldgate with his new wife and baby. incredibly bitter about her ruined potential and just bitter in general, jeanie quickly settled into small town life by taking a cashier job at the super save and spending most of her time sneering at redneck townies.

though vampires are out and about in the world, jeanie’s so wrapped up in herself that she’s barely thought anything about it. she’s entirely unaware of the supernatural beyond vampires existing and tbh even if she did know, she’d still be too busy thinking abt herself lmao

connections:

locals! jeanie is relatively new in town, just been here for a year, but she’s pretty well known for having a bad attitude. basically, if you’re shopping at the super save, better hope she’s not the only lane open! your local could either totally hate her or think her pissy behavior is funny. she’s pretty quick-witted and biting so if you like mean girl bitches, she’s the one to have around!

party pals. since retiring from skating, the only thing that entertains jeanie is drinking and talking shit. she can be incredibly shallow and hates talking about feelings, unless it’s to bitch abt her wasted potential, so if you’re just looking for a good time and a little hell to raise, hang with jeanie.

an enemy. another townie that just straight up hates jeanie (which is an easy thing to do) and makes fun of her a lot; they get into a battle of words nearly every time they see each other, and she’d probably try to physically fight them if she wasn’t on such thin ice (ha!) with her dad.

that’s all i can think of right now but we can come up with something fun together!

#fangfmooc #hold your horses honey. i’ve got coupons for the pringles. ( ooc. )

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irwnsrcses · 5 years

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for me // ashton i.

requested: no

word count: 1.6k+

synopsis: it is really the little things that matter and he loves that she learnt something so sweet for him just so they can spend that one minute together.

a/n: this idea has been stuck in my fucken head for AGESS. and i know i haven’t written anything in years but i hope you guys like this quick little blurb thing. i was going to write it for shawn, but considering ashton has been rocking suits lately, i had to do it for him. enjoy!! italics mean flashback.

masterlist // requests are open

“Babe!” Ashton called as he looked in the mirror, struggling to get his tie right. He furrowed his eyebrows as he unraveled the messy knot that he attempted himself. Before he began his sixth attempt, in walked in his girlfriend of five years. She leaned against the door frame from their bedroom, smirking with her hands folded across her chest. To say that she found it entertaining and a little bit sad that her boyfriend who could play almost any instrument he wanted, could string words together so poetically and thoughtfully and is even incredibly open minded towards anything artistic, could not tie his own fucken tie.

He looked up from his tie, his hazel eyes meeting her bright one. He gave her a small, sad smile which was begging for help.

“Need some help?” she asked, clearly finding his struggle amusing.

“If you don’t mind.”

Rolling her eyes playfully, she pushed herself off the door frame and walked towards him. He turned around, and completely undid his pathetic sixth attempt of tying his tie. Her smile stayed on her face when she approached him, smoothing out his tie and adjusting the length of it first before beginning to fold it in such an expert manner.

“You are absolutely useless, you know that?” she teased, her eyes flicking from his tie and his face. Ashton chuckled softly, shrugging his shoulders. “Glad you realised after all these years.” he responded back quickly. She rolled her eyes once more and concentrated back on tying his tie. For today, his tie was a classic black though there was a textured paisley pattern all over it that was only visible in certain angles when the light would hit it just right. He was wearing pairing it with a classic black suit jacket and slightly flared out pants.

“What’s the event going on tonight again?”

“To be honest, I have no idea. Some weird mixer thing that is going on at the label. The theme is black tie.”

“Sounds boring.”

“Yeah, especially since my baby isn’t coming.”

“Sorry Ash, but that 2000 word paper on the important use of commas in linguistics isn’t gonna write itself.”

Ashton laughed softly as he shook his head, causing her to hit his chest softly as she muttered ‘stay still’. He continued to smile, finding her concentration to tying his tie absolutely adorable. Her weird obsession with making his tie look perfect allowed them both to share a quick but intimate moment together. It was where he was able to hold her close and admire her beauty. Whether she was in full makeup, her toned down makeup, or her bare face, Ashton loved being this close to her to admire everything about her. It made him smile finding a new sunspot or freckle across her cheeks, or even a loose eyelash to which he gently would brush away and then end up gently caressing her cheeks.

In moments like this, he would get lost in his own little world.

That world being two gorgeous eyes and a weird little laugh.

That world being dry jokes and loud, startling awes at puppy and kitty videos on facebook.

That world being warm hugs and a heartbeat.

Her.

She then pulled up her perfectly created knot up to just the right height where he wouldn’t feel suffocated by the tie, or that the tie looked too loose on him. She straighten everything out and smiled. Her boyfriend was definitely handsome with a tie on.

She looked up from her creation and smiled at her boyfriend. “There you go rockstar. One perfectly good tie.” Ashton smiled back at her as he leaned down slightly to give her a quick kiss, holding onto her waist. “Thank you, baby.” he said, kissing her once more.

“You sure you can’t come to this party? I’m pretty sure they will have those mini bruschettas that you love so much going around.”

“Yikes… tempting, but my assignment is due this week and I really should start on it.”

“How did I find someone so dedicated and so smart?”

“You just got lucky, I guess.”

“Then I am the luckiest guy in the world.”

She let out a soft giggle when he pulled her closer to kiss her again.

“God, I love you.” he whispered against her lips.

“I love you too.”

---

It was an ungodly hour in the morning, but Ashton and the boys had a packed schedule filled with several radio interviews, magazine interviews and acoustic performances that would last them the entire day. Ashton thanked the makeup artist and hair stylist for finishing off his look for the interview that was up next. He got up from his chair and grabbed the tie that was apart of his ensemble. He would’ve put it on when he was in his hotel room but didn’t have the time considering he was immediately rushed out of his room to get to the first radio.

He stood in front of a mirror and began to tie his tie, surprisingly effortlessly without any mistakes. Smiling at his work, the drummer immediately noticed a surprised look on Michael’s face in the reflection. He turned his head and furrowed his eyebrows at his band member.

“Yes?”

“I thought you didn’t know how to tie a tie.”

“I do?” “Then why do you cry for Y/N all the time to come over and do up your tie for you?”

Ashton bite his lower lip, not wanting to admit the real reason why he lets his girlfriend do his tie every single time.

“I-I just like it better when she does it…”

Michael raised an eyebrow at how flustered and shy the drummer got, not believing a single syllable that just came out of his mouth.

“Uh huh. Yeah mate, I don’t believe you. Now what’s the actual reason?”

Ashton sighed as he shook his head. He took his cup of coffee that was sitting on the bench and took a quick sip of it before shrugging his shoulders.

“I let her do my tie because she learnt how to do it for me…”

Ashton smiled softly at the pizza delivery guy, handing over the money and a small tip. He grabbed the pizzas and told the worker to have a good night before politely shutting the door. Carrying the food to the coffee table, he made sure that the had the right TV show set up on Netflixs and her favourite candle burning in the corner.

“Babe! Pizza is here!” he called out. However, he didn’t hear a response back making him confused on what his girlfriend was doing. “Honey?” he called out again, walking towards their bedroom.

As he approached closer and closer to the slightly opened door, he heard another voice in the room. Thinking that she was listening to her lectures on a high volume again, Ashton slowly pushed the door open, peaking through the gap to just check up on what she was doing. However, he didn’t find her writing notes as her lecturer was speaking. In fact, she was doing that completely threw him off. She was sitting on their bed with one of his ties around her neck.

The look of concentration and determination was painted across her face as she was slowly following the instructions that was being said to her on her laptop. Ashton stood at the door, wondering how long she had been learning this for but finding the whole thing completely sweet and adorable. He stood and watched as his girlfriend sighed softly out of annoyance and reattempted to tie his tie once more. She bit her lower lip, following the instructions to a tee. Once she pulled up the knot, she quickly ran to the mirror and smiled widely.

“Holy fuck finally!” she exclaimed quietly to herself.

As proud as he was, Ashton remembered that they were supposed to be having a date night, causing him to clear his throat as he knocked on the door, opening it up fully to reveal himself. Hearing his voice, she quickly took off the tie and threw it somewhere where it couldn’t be seen. She turned around and gave her boyfriend an innocent smile. “Oh, hey babe. Is the food here yet?”

Ashton immediately noticed at his tie around her neck was gone, but tried his absolute best not to say anything. Instead, he just smiled at her and nodded his head.

“Thank fuck, cause I am starving!” she said, shutting her laptop close before walking out of the room, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before walking out.

“Wait so she doesn’t know that you know?”

“Well I mean, probably after this interview she will know.” Ashton laughed nervously as his face quickly started to blush. He had never told this story to anyone, not even to any of the boys before. He wanted to keep that moment to himself, though the more he thought about the story, the more he just wanted to brag and express how cute his girlfriend is and how much unconditional love she shares for him, especially with little things such as learning to tie his tie for him.

“That is so adorable!” The interviewer awed as Ashton laughed nervously once more.

“Yeah, my girlfriend is pretty adorable. I’m pretty lucky.” he smiled.

“So what are you gonna do now? Especially cause you know how to tie your own tie. Are you still going to need her to tie it for you?” the interviewer asked.

Without hesitation, Ashton immediately answered ‘yes’ following with an incredibly meaningful ‘no matter what, I’m always going to need her. Whether it is to tie my tie, make me my favourite dish or send me good morning messages; I’m always going to need her in my life. She is wifey. She honestly is.’

tagged: @24kcalum @irwinkitten @nostalgia-luke @flannelpunkcalum @ohhmuke @calumhoodaf @asht0ns-world

#ashton irwin #5sos #5sos imagine #5sos blurbs #luke hemmings #calum hood #michael clifford #ashton irwin imagines #5sos fluff #ashton 5sos #luke 5sos #michael 5sos #calum 5sos #writing #this was so fucken random #but like idk!!#i just really wanted to write #but you could defs tell i haven't written anything in a long fucken time #WOW

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spaceorphan18 · 5 years

Text

TDB Rewatch: The New York Arc

I was originally going to do a post for each episode - but you know what? I think I’ve talked about this particular part of the series more than any other part - and even though it’s been seven weeks since I’ve even seen an episode of Glee (!!) - I’m not entirely sure I have anything new to say about these episodes, so here we go with one big post for you.

New New York

Is this still the best episode of the series? Yes - I think it is. The entire episode is completely watchable, the music is great, the Klaine stuff is great, everyone gets something interesting to do, Rachel is interesting again, Mercedes re-joins the cast, and even Artie has some funny lines. This episode almost feels like a pilot of a spin-off series, and I’m a little sad we didn’t get to see more than this arc, because these characters still seem fresh and interesting - and this episode is clearly all setting up the status quo for living in New York.

I’ve seen the episode so many times now that this one flew by, and while I’m always here for the amazing Klaine stuff - the nice thing is that watching the episode as a whole, I’m not bored with any of it. I have no new meta to add to the piles of things I’ve already written and said on the podcast, but I’m glad this episode remains enjoyable even after a million rewatches.

Btw - I still say they should have asked Adam Lambert to be a regular - he adds so much and I’m sad that this is his last appearance on the show.

Also - I can tell it’s been a while since I’ve watched the show - Chris and Darren are really pretty. Just thought I should remind you ;)

///

Bash

So, while Opening Night might be my least favorite of the bunch, but I think as an episode Bash might be the weakest? And actually - I think it might have been better if the Kurt being bashed story line was a) more prominently in the episode or b) not in it at all. It feels like it’s almost an after thought to Rachel’s (absurd) story - and there’s such a rich story with Kurt (and Blaine) that feels wholly untapped because it’s more about Rachel Berry and her feelings. :P I do like the little bits of it that we did get, Kurt and Blaine are superb as they are in all of these episodes. And I mean - it’s nice that Rachel gets yelled at twice for being a moron - even if the whole thing doesn’t hold together very well.

Meanwhile, I’m not sure how much I have to say about Sam and Mercedes - I enjoy them as a couple, though I can’t say that I’m riveted by their story line. It is nice, though that Amber Riley gets a chance to shine since she’s been away from the show for so long. I think the awkwardest thing about this episode, (besides Sam’s impressions) is the fact that that the two story lines don’t mesh well, and it feels like the episode starts off as one thing then pivots and does something else entirely in the second half.

That said - the music is great, as always, everyone sounds really beautiful on all the Soundheim things. And while I didn’t need two Mercedes solos - she is lovely as always.

///

Tested

Who knew Artie having an STD would be such a fun episode. Honestly, I think this is the best episode the show does about sex. Yes, even over The First Time (even if I like TFT just a smidge more). Each of the characters are in a unique situation, and come at sex in a different way - and it’s actually pretty cool the way the show handles it. They’re not usually great with these kind of topics, but I really have no complaints about how they handled anything in this episode. I especially like the fact that a) Mercedes gets to choose how she wants to deal with sex and b) they let Mercedes and Rachel be actual girl friends when it comes to a topic - again something the show doesn’t always handle the best. Yes, for all the sex positive conversations in this episode.

Also, the ‘I’m slut shaming you’ scene might be one of the funniest things the show ever did.

The only one weighing this one down, and why it isn’t passing NNY by on my favorites list - is that the music just isn’t good. I mean, all the songs fit the episode fine, and the performances are great, I just don’t like any of the songs.

Also - Kurt is super extra in this episode - which really reinforces my headcanon that Kurt not getting regular sexy times is super grumpy.

Anyway, I give kudos to the show for doing an episode that has some actual layers to it in all of its plot lines. Usually, Glee’s pretty anivilish about everything, but there’s some actual nuance in this story - good job show. It’s nice to be not spoon fed everything all the time.

///

Opening Night

Well... This remains the worst of the NYC Arc - and really, only because the stupid and a bit convoluted Sue plot. Rachel’s arc is a bit silly too (really - I roll my eyes at the whole ‘oh no NYT reporter’ bit, especially when the dude just waxes praise on her like everyone else on the show) - but are some legitimately entertaining things going on during the Rachel side of things. And I dare say the episode is a little underrated? There are some good jokes and nice music, and it is exactly what you’d expect from Rachel’s first night (even if I still think Funny Girl should have been placed at the end of the show) and Rachel has been rather held back and used well during the NYC Arc so I don’t mind her spot light here.

But man, the Sue stuff is tedious. I kind of forget Will is apart of it (and did logic take some time off again? Because the Emma having a baby thing is... let’s not get into it). Sue actually has already arrived at her season 6 self - and even some of the early sequences with her kids aren’t bad, but there are really two scenes that drag this entire episode way, way down -- the date with Mario the restaurant guy, and the last five minutes with Mario the restaurant guy. Oh my god - why is this the only thing they could think of to do with Sue? I mean - everything about this plot line screams contractual obligation - needing to give Jane Lynch one episode during this 7. But could they really not think of anything more interesting for her to do?? DId she really need a date so she and Rachel could sing that song together?? Ug - it is really frustrating that this takes up a third of the episode. What a waste.

But, I mean, as a whole, it’s not terrible in the way the worst of Glee is - and really, everything on the Rachel side (mostly) works for me. It’s a good thing all that Sue/Mario stuff is pretty easily skipped.

///

The Back-Up Plan

Hey! Another solid episode! It’s weird - the focusing only three story line lets the episode breathe - a lot - to the point it seems strange, lol. But anyway...

First there’s Rachel’s story - which I know people were annoyed that Rachel bails a month into Funny Girl, but idk - this seems like Rachel. And this is the one and really only time she faces serious consequences for her actions. It’s refreshing really. Also - Jim Rash is a delight, and that audition scene is priceless.

Meanwhile - Mercedes and Santana have a great story that I kind of wish there was more of. Santana’s been gone for most of the arc so far, but I don’t mind her coming back - she’s rather civil and low key during these last few episodes, and it’s a bit refreshing, honestly. Anyway - I like that pop business is treated with a little more realism than Broadway, as D’Shawn (Mercedes’s producer) seems to tell it like is. But more so, I feel like there’s a genuine friendship between Mercedes and Santana and that’s pretty refreshing, too.

And then there’s the June story line. You know what? I really do not like June. Sorry. And I find it a little creepy she wants to mold Blaine into something of her own making. I’m also... not sure what the purpose of this entire story was? Ah well... At least we get some really lovely Klaine moments out of the whole thing.

Bonus - the music in this episode is all pretty solid.

///

Old Dog, New Tricks

You guys ever notice Artie’s eating dog biscuits in this? Weird things you notice when you watch the whole episode. Anyway...

Hey - it’s that episode that Chris wrote. And yeah, it’s a little awkward - in a - you can tell this is a new writer for TV kinda way not in a - this sucks kind of way. I really wish Chris had stuck with TV writing, I think he showed some real promise, and writing for other shows would have been great experience. Ah well. It all just makes me miss Chris actually doing things that are not related to middle school fantasy novels.

So, for the record, if you guys ever wonder who Chris is, seemingly, frustrated with? Watch this episode - and how he writes Rachel. She’s been almost acting human in the rest of this arc, and in this episode, she really is back to being really awful. At least multiple people get to tell her off again - it’s, again, refreshing. How many times as she been told off during this arc? Not enough, but it’s been kind of nice when you string them all together.

Anyway - this episode, as you’ve probably heard me say before, works pretty well. Santana as a publicity is brilliant (and perhaps the best aspect of Chris’s writing), Sam and Mercedes relationship issues are handled rather maturely, Chris as Peter Pan is incredibly inspired, and the music is pretty solid (even if it’s not my personal favorite). There’s even a sweet Klaine scene (though - I still maintain it was wise not to have Chris write too much Blaine). The only thing that really doesn’t work to for me, and maybe we’re far enough away that I can say this honestly without feeling like there will be too much repercussion - I don’t think June Squibb is very good. I mean, yeah - part of it is the awkwardness of the story itself. But - Maggie just doesn’t work for me. Sorry :(

///

The Untitled Rachel Berry Project

I know a lot of people say that this episode feels like a finale for them. And I kind of get that, I do. But, honestly, it feels more like a chapter break. This episode is incredibly bittersweet - as if it knows (and it does) what’s coming in season 6. But, also, it’s the ending of a show I kind of wish we had much longer, and I guess it feels a little sad to get to the end.

The episode itself is solid - there are only really three plot lines here, and they all work pretty well. The music might be the weakest element (I only like about half the songs in this one) but it’s got comedy and drama and warmth and sadness, and does make for a great season finale. (It’s the best season finale the show did -- really, it is.) And I guess - everyone ends up where they’re supposed to end up, and it works for me.

I don’t really have a lot to say about it, or at least anything new to say. It’s good, it’s solid, and while I’m super tired of watching TV all day, it’s a great ending to a really good chunk of TV.

///

Final Thoughts:

I am a little saddened that we didn’t get those two episodes that were taken from the season. I feel like another couple of beats in the story lines would have worked wonders, and of course, selfishly, we’d have a little more of my favorite part of the story.

Interestingly, though, I don’t know if this makes any sense - but I got the feeling the writers were always more comfortable writing stuff back at McKinley. Like - they did this because they had the time, but they wouldn’t have been able to sustain an entire season writing it. I know we could all come up with great stories, but I think it’s better that they were wrapping things up at this point, because the show feels like it’s headed towards an ending.

I thought I’d get more insight about things watching them all in one sitting - but I’m not sure I did. I think the show almost works better as a week to week so you can sit with each episode. I think when strung together the arcs don’t seem as fluid as we have them in our heads now that we’ve spent years talking about each episode individually.

Weirdly - the music of this arc is really hit and miss for me. It’s interesting, to me, that a lot of times when the story is stronger, the music isn’t always as good. A lot of other times, it’s vice versa. The really, really good episodes can balance the two.

I feel bad for Kevin McHale - who really had nothing to do other than be a giant STD.

That said - one of the most refreshing things about this arc was the lack of toxic masculinity crap, as well as some of the best writing for the women ever on the show.

I enjoyed the little bit of Santana and Brittany that we got - this was, like, the prefect amount of them.

One of the downsides of everyone being paired off is that we didn’t get to see interesting mixed-up pairs - one of the draw backs of the show having such little time in New York.

One thing that stood out to me, and god I hope I don’t get too much hate for this, is that Mercedes and Sam don’t really work... at least at this point. Seeing the entire arc all together, it’s very apparent that while I don’t doubt how much they care for each other, they’re definitely in two different places in their lives. And while I applaud the maturity that the relationship was handled with, it’s clear that they’re not ready to be in a long term relationship (yet).

Rachel! Was bearable for most of the arc. Yeah - there are still a lot of special snowflake Rachel moments. But Lea Michele can do comedy well, and they let her do that.

I didn’t find anything wrong or unusual about Chris’s acting choices. **shrug**

Kurt’s mildly unhappy through a lot of these episodes - but much of that is at Rachel. And really at his own place in life. And the one episode where he’s super sexually frustrated.

The Klaine stuff is delicious - and of course, discussed many other places that you don’t really need me to rehash it.

It’s also unfinished.

They should have made Adam Lambert a regular.

Alright - bring it Season 6.

#tdb rewatch #anyone miss my caps?#eh probably not #but they're back!

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afterpinkdiamond · 5 years

Text

We Need to Talk S2E9

This show hits hard when it tries. This episode is such a roller coaster of emotions it manages to feel like a much longer story. What we know about Pink Diamond’s life on Homeworld throws Rose and Greg’s conversation in a new light and we’re introduced to the original Rainbow Quartz. Also Garnet is like the ultimate shipper.

Connie and Steven are helping Greg sort his vinyl collection when Connie remarks that she only ever listens to Classical music and movie soundtracks at home. Greg immediately jumps to correct this error by playing The Philosophy Majors’ record “Nietzche’s Breakdown” for the kids. Everyone is dancing and Steven and Connie accidentally fuse into Stevonnie again! Greg is absolutely astonished. The kids quickly break apart and Connie freaks out a little, begging Greg to not tell her parents about the magic things she’s doing with Steven. Greg calms her down, claiming he’s probably the only human who understands. Steven senses a story and Greg starts telling them about attempting to fuse with Rose by showing them a vhs cassette music video.

The video is of Greg in his younger days with the Gems, playing “What Can I Do for You?”. Garnet is playing keytar and Amethyst is on drums, just like they were in “Steven and the Stevens”. Rose is center stage on vocals and Greg is playing guitar and harmony. Pearl is sulking off stage. Greg must be one of the most amazing music instructors the world has ever known, that or gems have a natural talent for music. It’s confirmed that this episode is only a few months after Rose and Greg met and he’s already taught Amethyst and Garnet two very different skill sets enough to be in a band. Later in “The Question” Ruby picks up guitar-playing in a matter of hours, and I’m not sure if that’s because she always liked the guitar part of the keytar or gems are just that talented at picking up instruments.

The video is clearly set up with Rose as the center of attention, with even Greg looking up to her the entire time from a lower level. She’s still incredibly elevated. He’s smiling and happy singing with her but his emotions change a few times as she sings her solo. She calls him “human man” and sings that she finds him “entertaining” and his smile drops into a frown. She sings about “playing along” because she likes how humans play and it’s difficult to say whether he’s turned on or dismayed by her nonchalance. As they sing the chorus together again his part is more subdued and he’s staring at her wide-eyed. Eventually, Greg takes his confusion and just falls back on what he knows- wicked guitar solo.

While Greg shreds on guitar we see Pearl looking very jealous of the attention he’s getting. She walks right into the video and whispers to Rose. They push Greg out of the center of focus and perform a fusion dance to bring out Rainbow Quartz. She dances around and shows off. It’s clear that Pearl is trying to make Greg uncomfortable while Rose is just trying to impress him with something he’s not seen before. This version of RQ makes me really uncomfortable. I know a lot of people like her but even this early in the series, Pearl’s jealousy is the main vibe I get from this moment. I will grant that Rainbow showing up briefly in “Now We’re Only Falling Apart” has a whole different meaning and feeling, it’s just hard to see Rose and Pearl’s actual relationship through Greg’s eyes.

Rose leaves after explaining the fusion with the promise to come back later. Amethyst collects her payment of popcorn. Pearl taunts Greg, saying he’s just a phase because he’s not a gem and will never be able to fuse like a gem. Greg insists that he’s gonna try to fuse. *mic drop* Greg tries to mimic Pearl’s dancing, watching the video he made and gets frustrated very quickly. Garnet and Amethyst find him and Garnet explains the physical aspect of fusion. Greg gets completely discouraged. Garnet tries to inspire some confidence, saying she thinks he’s capable and he just needs to be open and honest so he and Rose can invent themselves together. She lowers her visor to give him a wink, revealing to him for the first time that she’s a fusion. Greg agrees and sets up for when Rose returns.

When Rose comes back, Greg has a dance floor set up on the beach. He starts a record and without saying a word begins to dance with her. They’re having fun so he flips on the lights, clearly trying to emulate what Garnet said about having light in the core of your being and a partner you trust with that light. They twirl around some more and Greg leads Rose to a pile of instrument cases that he climbs to get eye level with her before dipping her and kissing her. Talk about goals. After the kiss, he looks up and is disappointed while Rose is starry-eyed.

Rose laughs at Greg when he says he was trying to fuse with her. He tries to get her to understand but she keeps laughing, saying humans are all so funny. Greg finally snaps at being dismissed as just a human and yells at her to just talk with him for once like a real person. She stops, all mirth gone, and says she’s not a real person. She understands that Greg’s not been treating her like the alien that she is, that he’s been trying to see her as a person. It finally hits Greg that he’s been sleeping with an alien. Rose is confused as Greg laughs at his own denseness and cries with hopelessness. She actually seems alien in this moment, completely disconnected from Greg’s wildly swinging emotions. He makes the point that they’re very different with hardly anything in common, suggesting that they just talk.

From behind the broken-off hand of the temple, Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst are spying on the whole encounter. As Greg and Rose finally talk about some of the underlying emotions and unspoken history they haven’t shared with each other, Pearl is confused. The fusion dance didn’t work so why are they still talking? Garnet tells her to be quiet. Greg asks Rose if she’s ever been in love with a human as opposed to just loving a human. She asks how she would know and Greg says that love is torture. Knowing that Pink was often abused on Homeworld by the other Diamonds, this statement affects her strongly and it makes sense that this statement is what finally gets through to her. She knows what it’s like to be tortured and she is alarmed to think Greg is feeling that way. She pulls away from the hug, and for the first time calls Greg by his name rather than “Mr. Universe” or “human man”. He’s visibly affected by the change and answer honestly when she asks if their relationship has been torture. She apologizes but he tells her not to be sorry. They both laugh at how confused they are and start spinning around, laughing together. Pearl is even more upset that they’re still dancing, but Garnet claims that the fusion worked. Her shipper's heart knows she’s set up a real couple, after centuries of Rose having human flings that meant nothing. Pearl is dismayed but Amethyst likes her new potential step-dad.

Greg ends his story and Steven and Connie are both blushing. Greg emphasizes that the most important thing was talking together and being open. He tells the kids that human-gem relationships are still a very new thing they get to explore together. Just when you think this episode is going to end on a happy and positive note, Greg tells Connie that she can always talk to him if she needs to talk with a human being who understands her position. They do a “human beings” high five with Steven watching, clutching his gem like he wishes he could rip it out and not have to deal with being half alien. His alienation at the end of the episode is such a quick shift and it foreshadows more of his internal conflict, learning to accept his identity as the bridge between species but also as a being unlike everyone else. It’s like a sucker punch at the end of an otherwise happy story.

I think the positioning of this episode is incredibly interesting, seeing that we’re about to start into the “Pearl basically commits rape” arc. We see Greg tell his side of the story of how he won over Rose. Past episodes like “House Guest” have hinted at the disharmony and distrust Pearl has for Greg. We get Rainbow Quartz, fused in a moment of jealousy and flaunting, a brand new fusion just an episode before we’re introduced to another show-off Pearl fusion. We also hear Garnet talk about what makes a fusion work. Garnet who’s about to be taken advantage of in the worst way. This episode is also just after “Keeping It Together” in which Garnet expresses her extreme revulsion to forced fusions. This arc of episodes is thematically heavy. Pearl messes up badly and the crewniverse seem to want to tie it back to the betrayal she felt when Rose fell in love with Greg. Pearl looks to others for her validation and “Cry for Help” is about to show how far she’ll fall looking for that strength and affirmation.

#su #steven universe #we need to talk #greg #rose quartz #pink diamond #Connie #Pearl #rainbow quartz #su analysis

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letterboxd · 4 years

Photo

Drawing Closer.

Animation lovers: watchlists at the ready. From action capers to Irish folk tales, in 3DCG or the humble pencil, by manga legends and raucous newcomers, Letterboxd’s animation correspondent Kambole Campbell picks ten new feature films we’re excited to see.

When the gears of the live-action film industry ground to a near-halt earlier this year, animators were still at work. As a medium that, at its most fundamental level, is controlled fully by the imaginations of its creators, this might be the one element of the screen industry that has some kind of ability to operate throughout the pandemic.

Based on previews from this year’s online edition of the annual Annecy International Animation Film Festival, there’s a lot to look forward to that’s still in the works, even now. With everything from blockbuster capers and fantastical alternate histories, explorations of folklore and real human stories alike, we can expect a spoil of boundless and endlessly creative films limited only by the imaginations of those drawing them.

Here are ten animated features I’m specifically excited for, in no particular order (except for the first—fight me if you like, Masaaki Yuasa will always win).

Inu-Oh Directed by Masaaki Yuasa / Due to release in 2021

If there’s one new animated film to watch in the next year, make it Inu-Oh (but also, don’t limit yourself to one). Masaaki Yuasa has proven himself time and again to be one of the most exciting and versatile animation directors alive, as well as potentially the busiest. With his studio, Science Saru, this year alone he directed two television series—the fantastic ode to animators, Keep Your Hands off Eizouken!!, and the intense Netflix disaster series Japan Sinks: 2020—as well as the melancholy, romantic feature film Ride Your Wave.

Inu-Oh looks to be just as imaginative and wild as anything else Yuasa-san has made, based on the work-in-progress glimpse at Annecy. Set in fourteenth-century Japan, the film is based on Hideo Furukama’s novel about the legendary masked Noh theater performer Inu-Oh, born with “unique characteristics”, which lead them to cover their entire body. Both novel and film focus on their close friendship with the blind biwa hōshi (lute priest) Tomona, and the success they find together.

“We often think of history as moving in one straight line, but it actually branches off, and people and events in those branches have been forgotten or disappeared,” Yuasa-san said during the Annecy preview. Inu-Oh explores those hidden branches through an anachronistic reimagining of the roots of traditional Japanese entertainment. The main idea: what if the performers of Noh theater were treated like Japan’s pop idols of today? Yuasa-san described the main characters as “kind of like The Beatles” of 1300s Japan.

On credits alone there’s a lot of promise, with the legendary Taiyō Matsumoto— the mangaka who created Tekkonkinkreet and Ping Pong (and collaborated with Yuasa-san on the latter’s fantastic anime adaptation)—lending his eccentric yet elegant designs to the film. The preview opened with minute movements comprised of rough, wide almost painterly brushstrokes, an art style almost completely unlike anything Yuasa-san has done previously.

As it turns out, this is but one way of representing the world of Inu-Oh, through the perspective of Tomona, a Notes on Blindness-esque way of representing how Tomona perceives things. From those small glimpses, Inu-Oh looks to be a beautiful, anthropological piece built with both the same free-form style that characterizes the rest of his work, and perhaps something more classical as well.

Wolfwalkers Directed by Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart / Coming to theaters and Apple TV+ in late 2020 after a September 12 premiere at TIFF

Made and set in Kilkenny, home to the acclaimed animation studio Cartoon Saloon, the much-anticipated Wolfwalkers is inspired by animation’s past, Celtic legend, and the local area’s history. Set in 1650, Wolfwalkers takes place amidst attempts by the English (Cromwell, specifically) to pacify and tame Ireland. Representative of those wild elements the English are seeking to eradicate are the ‘wolfwalkers’—people blessed by Saint Patrick with the power to leave their bodies at night and become wolves during their sleep (Irish werewolves, essentially). The story follows an English girl, Robyn Goodfellowe (Honor Kneafsey), who moves to Ireland with her father Bill (Sean Bean), to help carry out Cromwell’s plan to kill the wolves.

Like his previous film, Song of the Sea (2014), co-director Tomm Moore says this new film is based upon a childhood story common amongst those living in Kilkenny. And like his previous films (including 2009’s The Secret of Kells), it looks to be a visual feast, with a mixture of dynamic camera styles, pre-viz work and hand-drawn animation for moments like its ‘wolf-vision’. Moore draws the ideological divide between the English and the Irish into every scratch of pencil, the occupied cities comprised of rigid lines and angular designs, while the forest and its inhabitants are more free-flowing and unkempt.

Moore cited the rough charcoal lines of Isao Takahata’s The Tale of the Princess Kaguya as one influence on the Cartoon Saloon animators’ approach; the way that Robin is drawn gradually changing along with her worldview. Cartoon Saloon is yet to make a bad film, and Wolfwalkers looks like it might be the company’s most beautiful myth yet.

Stay tuned to The Letterboxd Show for an interview with Tomm Moore.

Over The Moon Directed by Glen Keane / Due on Netflix, late 2020

The feature directorial debut of animation legend Glen Keane, early glimpses of Over The Moon look utterly bonkers. A long-time character animator for Disney, having worked on almost all of the studio’s animation output since Pete’s Dragon in 1977, Keane looks to be bringing his vast array of talents to his first feature film. The trailer alone shows off a vast blend of styles, from the 3DCG (three-dimensional computer graphics) and more realistic lighting that we’ve come to expect from Disney animation, as well as the more textured, hand-drawn work the director cut his teeth on.

The story itself sounds wild, though it starts out simple enough: Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) is enraptured by her parents’ stories of a goddess living on the moon. After her mother passes away, Fei Fei begins to believe the story is true, and decides to build a rocket to get there. There’s also a hint of something living there. Whatever the answer is, I’m curious to see it, and with a star-studded cast that includes the likes of John Cho and Sandra Oh, how could I turn it down?

Lupin III: The First Directed by Takashi Yamazaki / Released in select territories; wider release due late 2020

Takashi Yamazaki’s Lupin III: The First, the first 3DCG-animated Lupin III feature film, looks rather incredible. It’s the latest in a vast, 50-year history of anime based on the manga from the late Kazuhiko Katō (known by the pen name Monkey Punch). Despite that long history, the Lupin III franchise has always managed to resist being made obsolete; part of its ongoing appeal is its ability to continuously adapt to new contexts and styles while retaining its simple charms, and The First is no different.

The film announces itself in the same way as ever, the iconic ‘Lupin III’ theme blaring over a flashy title sequence that builds off familiar iconography, as well as moments from the franchise’s history. It revels in the style of old-school caper the show continues to embrace, taking delight in the exploits of a modern-day gentleman thief who announces his robberies with calling cards.

Even with the new and unfamiliar animation style, Lupin III: The First feels like a classic Lupin III tale, taking the story back to the 1960s (the decade during which the character was created), and even putting its main character back in his classic red suit. Each character design translates surprisingly well to this mode of animation—Lupin’s gangly frame, as well as the unique appearances of his compatriots Goemon, Fujiko, Zenigata and Jigen (who looks bizarrely attractive in this—although, to be fair, “everyone in this movie is f—king sexy” according to Letterboxd member London. Accurate).

Yamazaki does well to avoid the often sterile feeling of 3DCG animation by having these characters all move like the cartoons they’re based on (for starters, a long-running visual gag of Lupin leaping straight out of his clothes). It might take some adjustment (which for me, only really lasted up to the opening credits) before it becomes fully dazzling. Lupin III: The First might be the most exciting action caper of 2020, in any medium.

The Legend of Hei Directed by Mtjj / Released in China late 2019; international release TBA

Rivalling Lupin III: The First for most flamboyant animation on show at Annecy was The Legend of Hei, a feature-length prequel to the Flash web cartoon The Legend of Luo Xiaohei by Chinese artist Mtjj (real name Zhang Ping).

The series tells the story of the spirit Luo Xiaohei, who takes the appearance of a small black cat before being adopted by a young girl. The film’s story focuses more squarely on the cat, Xiaohei, who transforms into a man and goes on to live in the forest, his carefree existence soon interrupted by the discovery that humans are beginning to encroach on that territory as their cities expand, and technological progress puts the two worlds increasingly at odds.

As the film explores more of Xiaohei’s origins, the thick, clean line-work and cute art style disguises a much grander, epic conflict at play, realized in some wildly animated fight scenes. (“Starts off small and adorable, then expands into an epic conflict on an Akira scale,” writes Tasha Robinson.) The 2D-animated film allegedly took five years to produce, Mtjj saying in an interview that the complete film, at 100 minutes, required more than 70,000 drawings—or around twelve per second.

With its gentle score and clash of the spiritual world with the modern, the environmentally conscious work of Studio Ghibli comes to mind, as does the Nickelodeon series Avatar: The Last Airbender (perhaps the most popular consideration of East Asian spirituality in the West, especially with its resurgence of popularity thanks to Netflix). The Legend of Hei enjoyed an extremely lucrative run in China in late 2019 thanks to the original cartoon’s sizeable fanbase at home. No news yet on who will pick the film up in the West.

ON-GAKU: Our Sound Directed by Kenji Iwaisawa / Expected to release late 2020

Rotoscoped by hand over a period of seven years, the independently produced anime ON-GAKU: Our Sound has a rather appropriate match of creator and subject: a film about amateur musicians made by amateur animators.

Director Kenji Iwaisawa adapted the film from Hiroyuki Ohashi’s cult manga, and there’s a charm to the rudimentary style of its art, the plain faces of its characters resembling the designs of something like ONE’s Mob Psycho 100, while also matching that show’s deadpan, oddball sense of humor. The laid-back voice acting only adds to that effect, as main character Kenji and his cohort’s obvious excitement flattened into a consistently amusing monotone.

It’s not quite a classic tale of underdog artistry, as the group never really gets better, but the film embraces the primordial noise that emerges whenever they pick up an instrument. Iwaisawa takes the characters seriously, showing their raucous and unconventional performances with complete sincerity. “Loved the deadpan humor and appreciated the message about how art can act as an impetus for positive change in our lives,” writes Dan.

Passion, companionship and collaboration is what’s most important to Our Sound. It’s a deeply weird film, but one filled with great ambition and visual wonder, increasing in boldness as it goes. The different styles of coloring and expression that emerge beyond its initial palettes are radical enough to catch anyone off guard.

Connected Directed by Michael Rianda / Releasing in most territories in October 2020 (October 23 in the US)

Connected is the next step for Sony Animation as it moves in an exciting new direction (the studio recently stated that it would be green-lighting more animation aimed at adults). Produced by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, off the back of their immensely popular film Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, Connected is imbued with the same kind of idiosyncrasy and innovation that made Spider-Verse a mega-hit.

From first-time feature director Michael Rianda, best known for his work on TV’s Gravity Falls, Connected is a family-road-trip-AI-apocalypse movie, based on the bizarre chemistry of Rianda’s own family. Formerly known as The Mitchells vs The Machines, the film looks at the push and pull between technology and human relationships, and how different generations respond to the ongoing changes in how we interact online and personally.

While this isn’t animated “on twos” (where each frame of character animation holds for two frames of background movement) as Spider-Verse often was, Connected also attempts to maintain a ‘drawn’ quality in its art. Characters move fluidly, but with clear outlines drawn from simple shapes. There’s also a strong contrast between the lived-in detail of human habitats versus the stark minimalism of the domain of the robots.

Thankfully the clips from the film don’t look nearly as finger-wavy and luddite as the trailers might suggest. (They appear to take the Boomer point of view that technology unequivocally ruins everything, but we know it’s more complicated than “screens bad”). In any case, it looks like the beginning of an interesting run for Sony Animation, and I’m keen to see how it turns out.

The Summit of the Gods (Le Sommet des Dieux) Directed by Patrick Imbert / Due to release 2021

Le Sommet des Dieux distinguishes itself in this list by being the one most firmly grounded in reality, but it’s by no means less wondrous. Based on Jirô Taniguchi’s five-volume manga Le Sommet des Dieux—itself based on the 1998 novel by Baku Yumemakura—the story starts with the question of whether George Mallory died going up or coming down the summit of Mount Everest on June 8, 1924. 70 years later, Fukamachi, a young Japanese reporter, stumbles across a camera potentially belonging to Mallory, and embarks on an adventure of his own with his friend Hasu Joji.

In close collaboration with the mangaka Taniguchi-san, who passed away during development, director Patrick Imbert seeks to replicate his art style, which was more aligned with that of European comics than traditional manga, with less exaggerated and highly detailed line-work. The team also looked outward from Taniguchi-san’s art, to the character designs of works such as Hiroyuki Okiura’s Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade, as well as his 2011 film A Letter To Momo, and the films of the late, great Satoshi Kon.

From what I saw at Annecy, there’s something of a mix between what Imbert calls the “documented detail” of Taniguchi-san’s work and simpler design for the larger urban spaces. To accomplish this, the studio draws its traditional 2D using modern techniques, such as “movie-style” framing—locations and interiors created in 3D software and then overpainted for detail, identity and authenticity.

The Summit of the Gods also seeks to recapture the detailed and subtle realism of Yumemakura-san’s depiction of George Mallory, with low-key voice performances conducted in shared sessions; recording movements and hiring a boom operator to make the sound more akin to live action, perhaps even more natural. Though production has already been long, the studio had thankfully pre-empted the long delays of Covid-19, so let’s hope we get to see the film with our own eyes, soon.

Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds Directed by Benoît Chieux / Scheduled for 2022

An original fable from animation director Benoît Chieux, Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds is still very much in the midst of production, with an expected release in 2022. It looks captivating; a surreal tale set in an imaginary kingdom with delicate and clearly defined artwork, about a being named Sirocco, a despised figure with the power to control the wind, who is forced into solitude by the denizens of this world.

The dream kingdom resembles a Spirited Away-esque land, with its own hierarchy and bizarre set of rules, mundanity mixed in with visual wonder. Flying crocodiles, living houses and strange humanoids populate it, and the main characters, a pair of girls named Carmen and Juliette, turn into cats themselves. All are drawn with wavy lines, soft colours and fluid movement, the surreal presented with an inviting rather than foreboding air.

Evangelion 3.0 + 1.0 Directed by Hideaki Anno and others / 2020 release delayed; keep an eye on the official Twitter account for a new date

Hideaki Anno is set to bring his earth-shaking Neon Genesis Evangelion franchise to a close, again, with the fourth instalment of his ‘Rebuild’ series of films, Evangelion 3.0 + 1.0. Delayed for almost a decade now (the previous instalment came out in 2012!), and delayed again by Covid-19, the film looks to close out a grand rewriting of the original series that shot Anno-san and former studio Gainax to fame—“Bye Bye, All of Evangelion” the tagline reads. But we’re gonna have to wait a while longer to bid this final farewell.

Made with co-director Kazuya Tsurumaki (who has served as director with Anno-san since the original series), the first ‘Rebuild’ film, Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone, seemed to be a fairly conventional remake, updating the visuals and score with more modern techniques. The story starts the same: the isolated, depressed and self-loathing teenager Shinji Ikari is forced by his absentee father to help fight the mysterious, giant, alien ‘Angels’ by getting in an equally mysterious big robot called an Evangelion (“Eva” for short). He finds no self-fulfilment in this, and if anything, the close contact with other people only seems to push him further into himself. So far, so familiar.

However, the second film, Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance, veered completely off the rails in the best way possible, destroying audience preconceptions. The line between sequel and remake was fascinatingly blurred, and only continued to get weirder with Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo, as the story landed in completely unfamiliar territory, altering its characters beyond recognition while adding entirely new characters in the process. It’s now almost impossible to predict what 3.0 + 1.0 will be. The only footage available so far was a wild ten-minute clip in which the Eiffel Tower is wielded as a weapon by an Eva. We were this close.

Ayumu Watanabe’s ‘Children of the Sea’ (2019).

There are almost too many gifts, even just from Annecy alone, to describe at length. A couple more worth mentioning: Anja Daiman’s musical comedy The Island looks fascinating for its reclamation of the colonialist story of Robinson Crusoe; and Yuta Murano’s first anime feature Our Seven-Day War promises plenty of plot twists amidst the actions of rebellious youth. A range of beguiling short films were also on display—a selection helpfully compiled here by Letterboxd member Iknow.

Outside of Annecy, other films are finally arriving, virtually or otherwise—such as Gints Zilbalodis’s peculiar and quiet Away, and Ayumu Watanabe’s beautiful and surreal Children of the Sea (with music from none other than Joe Hisaishi!). Though not all animation is comfort food by default—it is simply a medium, after all—it’s reassuring knowing that animated films are able to continue, in some form, through the pandemic.

Related content

Maxine the Movie Person’s excellent animation list

The 100 Highest Rated Animated Films of the 2010s according to our members

Revchu’s lists of the Top 100 Japanese Animated Films on Letterboxd, and the Top 100 Best-Rated Japanese Animated Films from the Anime News Network

Kambole’s selections in a Letterboxd list

Follow Kambole on Letterboxd

#Kambole Campbell #animation #anime #manga #inu-oh #lupin iii #lupin the 3rd #lupin the third #japanese cinema #cartoon saloon #wolfwalkers #tomm moore #ross stewart #letterboxd

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rosalyn51 · 5 years

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I had a lot of fun writing the intro to this #ADiscoveryofWitches piece, mainly because I want everyone to understand the Palmer/Goode intrigue. (P.S., they're great together!) If you want another show to add to your overflowing queue, give this a shot:

- Philiana Ng (Entertainment Tonite) Twitter

There's a seductiveness in the way Diana and Matthew's romance unfurls that feels much more adult and refined; much of that is credited to Goode's innate, oft-overlooked ability to elicit impure thoughts just by a piercing look or a two-word answer in his deep English drawl.

Teresa Palmer on How 'A Discovery of Witches' Turned Her Into a Fan of Fantasy Romance (Exclusive)

By Philiana Ng‍, Jan 17, 2019

Teresa Palmer didn't think a forbidden love story between a witch and a vampire would captivate her imagination. Tales of fantastical romances with supernatural beings weren't exactly her taste. But that was before she came across A Discovery of Witches, the television adaptation of Deborah Harkness' best-selling All Souls trilogy.

Titled after the first book, the eight-part freshman season follows Palmer's Diana Bishop, a historian and reluctant witch, who stumbles across an enchanted manuscript in an Oxford library that unknowingly thrusts her back into the dangerous secrets-filled world of magical beings. She meets the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode, perfectly cast as a brooding vampire sophisticate), a biochemistry professor and centuries-old vampire, who offers his protection and help. Even though years of bad blood between the witches and vampires make their team-up more complicated, their alliance turns into more than just a platonic union as they fight the evils from the supernatural world.

It's easy to compare A Discovery of Witches to Twilight or True Blood. But it's not all about the threat of desire or sex, though those elements pulsate throughout. There's a seductiveness in the way Diana and Matthew's romance unfurls that feels much more adult and refined; much of that is credited to Goode's innate, oft-overlooked ability to elicit impure thoughts just by a piercing look or a two-word answer in his deep English drawl. Palmer, for her part, kept a distance from stories that fell under the fantasy romance umbrella. She couldn't quite put a finger on why. But within reading “the first five pages” of the script, she was enraptured by the seemingly innocuous world that heightens imagination and, if done well, transports you to a completely different dimension.

But A Discovery of Witches relies on the sparks between Palmer and Goode, and thankfully, they deliver -- even if the minutiae of the actual supernatural mythology at the center of the conflict leaves much to be desired. Their connection is, well, swoon-worthy. "Luckily Matthew and I got on so well, so it was very easy for us to portray two people that have this otherworldly love, pardon the pun," Palmer, 32, tells ET. "There's an innate connection between these two that's so deep and cellular. It's something that neither of them can deny."

The Australian actress, expecting her third child with actor-filmmaker husband Mark Webber, spoke to ET about being one-half of the latest TV romance, creating that rapport with Goode and why she's just as obsessed with where A Discovery of Witches is going as you are.

ET: I have to admit, I binged the entire season and found myself entranced by the show. Was it an immediate kinda connection for you too, when you first got the script?

Teresa Palmer: I feel like I was connected to this material from the first five pages. I wasn't always a fantasy romance kind of person, and so, when my agent sent me the script, I was like, "All right, I'll check it out." I got about five or six pages in and I was hooked by the world, by the setup and by the description, what this kind of environment was like. And then I fell in love with Diana. I just thought she was so brilliant and layered and she felt familiar in a way that I hadn't really felt with other characters previously. I just felt like I knew her. By the end of the first script, I was on the phone to my agents, and I said, "You guys...," because they were like, "We're not sure if you're gonna like this, 'cause it's a fantasy romance and we know that's not really your thing," and I was like, "You're wrong. I'm obsessed. I love it. I love it. I wanna do this show. This is brilliant!" And there's so much to work with. I didn't even know where the story went, so they got me the next two scripts, and then, I had already fully made up my mind. Like, "I'm doing it. I don't care if I move to Wales for six months and I have to move my entire family over there. It's just what we're doing." It was a wonderful experience.

What was it about this particular fantasy romance that really stuck with you?

It was Diana, first and foremost, because I loved how human her response is. She had tragedy in her life, and then she ran away from the thing that could potentially bring more tragedy into her life, and I thought that that felt very human and real. There have been so many times in my life where I've run away from things that felt hard. It was a response that most people tend to have, and then, the fact that she just goes deeper and deeper into this world -- even though it's scary, she's just so brave and passionate and she lets her heart drive her. I was very inspired by that. There was something really beautiful about watching her journey and how she really comes into who she authentically is in a way that's not forced. It's organic. She follows the flow of where life's going, and I really loved watching how much she evolved from the start. Even with those first three scripts, I was like, "Wow, this is a woman who's radically changing and working on herself."

What was appealing about being enveloped by this world of vampires and witches and demons?

I'm so excited by who demons are and vampires, and the vampires aren't traditional in this show at all. They're different and they're alluring and appealing in a really unique way. They're not out killing other human beings. I mean, there's a little bit of that. (Laughs.) But, they're not focused on that. They don't have fangs. Everything's just different and feels like it could be happening now. You could walk down the street and not know if they're a vampire or a demon or a witch, and I love that it was set in a contemporary world and we were just existing with humans. I thought that was a unique take on the genre.

I jumped into the show completely blindly and what struck me was how incredibly, like you said, alluring, and sexy this world is. Maybe it's the music, the way it's filmed, the performances or the whole package. I had several moments where I thought, "Oh, I want to be in this world. I want to meet a vampire or something," which is a ridiculous thought!

(Laughs.) I know. It's really sort of special and it's enticing and you're right, it's all those things. It's sexy and intriguing, but scary, and I don't think it's straightforward. You can't guess what's gonna happen next, and that's what I really love about it. It keeps you on your toes, and yeah, I find it so fascinating. And, I wanted to be in it. I wanted to be a part of the world. We have such great set designers and a crew that was very passionate about the story, that oftentimes when you're on set and you walk into these amazing sets that have been built and are so incredibly detailed, that you really feel like you are existing in that world, which is, nice. It makes your job easier as an actor to really immerse yourself into that environment.

Shows like this rest on the chemistry between the two leads, and here, between you and Matthew Goode. How did you chart Diana's initial attraction to Matthew Clairmont? Because that's the entire show. If it doesn't work, then the show doesn't work.

Like, am I screwed? (Laughs.)

Exactly.

Luckily, Matthew and I got on so well, so it was very easy for us to portray two people that have this otherworldly love, pardon the pun. But it is this otherworldly thing. There's an innate connection between these two that's so deep and cellular. It's something that neither of them can deny. They're just supposed to be together. And, I don't think either of the characters -- I know neither of these characters has ever felt like that before. Even if they wanted to fight against that feeling, and you do see Matthew have that moment in the show, they just have to be together. There's just no other way. I found that very romantic. It's wonderful to portray that and I loved that. That connection that meant that they were drawn to each other, and no one and nothing could stop them from being with one another. It's very easy to portray that with Matthew because we're both romantics and we're both married and have a bunch of kids. I've got three kids. I'm about to have my third, and I have a stepson as well. We have a lot in common and we have a lot to talk about, and it was easy. I found it really easy doing that with him.

Was there a specific moment where you were like, I can't believe I'm doing this! What am I saying? What are we doing?

There were definitely moments with some of the fantasy elements where Matthew and I wouldn't be able to keep a straight face, 'cause we were talking about time traveling. We would giggle a lot, a lot, a lot and ruin takes and have to start all over again. You take the job seriously, but you also enjoy it by having fun and having a laugh and putting good feelings and vibes into it. I think it was an easy thing for us to do, but yeah. Of course, there are moments where I was like, hang on, I'm on a wire, hanging upside down by my ankle getting pulled up and down a tiny, little shaft. And I'm screaming because a vampire has fallen in love with me, and I'm like, What? What? Is this my job? Am I actually doing this?

The show is just hitting the U.S. now, but it was recently renewed for second and third seasons in the U.K. Have you gotten any indication of what's going to happen in those two seasons?

The great thing is it's based on Deborah Harkness' incredible series, so we have a rough idea of what the seasons are going to look like because we've read the books. But I do think there are going to be some changes. We fell in love with the whole cast of people in the first season, and in the second book, it's set in Elizabethan times, but it's really just Matthew and Diana, so I'm sure the writers are going to explore ways to bring the remainder of the first cast back into the second series somehow, so we don't miss them because it would be such a bummer not to see these amazing characters we've fallen in love with, like Miriam and Marcus. I know the audience is going to really miss that if they don't get to see them in the second season, so I think there will probably be slight tweaks to it. But ultimately, we let the books guide us and we'll figure out the story from there.

So you eventually read all the books?

Yeah, I did the audiobooks. That was the only way I could get through them without being interrupted and I was [listening to it while] putting them on in the car, especially when the kids are sleeping. Some of it wasn't appropriate for a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old. I just finished the third audiobook. I've got friends who are reading them too, and I'm getting texts from my girlfriends, like, "Wait, tell me about this backstory again. What happens here?" I have amazing friends who are really passionate about the story as well, so that's really nice.

youtube

The first season of A Discovery of Witches is streaming now on Sundance Now and Shudder.

#matthew goode #matthewgoode #matthew clairmont #teresa palmer #a discovery of witches

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graykaren333 · 5 years

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Dramas I’ve Rewatched

So I’ve been watching kdramas since 2012. We’re talking compulsively, obsessively at times, usually exclusively, consistently watching kdramas. (Because they are way better than American/Western TV shows/entertainment but that’s another post for another day; besides, if you’re reading this I’m sure you already agree with me on that point). So bottom line is I’ve watched over 175 kdramas (I’m not quite at the 200 mark yet) and I’ve kept accurate lists of which dramas I’ve finished and liked or finished and didn’t like (or in this case finished, and then eventually went back and rewatched). When your sites are always set on trying to watch new dramas that are coming out or trying to make sure you’ve watched old classic ones for the first time, it can be hard to convince yourself to take the time to rewatch ones you’ve already seen.

That being said, the following 20 kdramas are ones that I have gone back and rewatched at least once, in some cases multiple times. These dramas either had fantastic plotlines that were so tight and consistently moving that it was just fantastic to see all the pieces fit together even when rewatching OR there were anywhere from one to four characters who I became so invested in that I loved watching their character development. Do the characters create the plot or does the plot create the characters? Sometimes it’s hard to know which is more prominent but I will try to highlight which stood out for me.

NO SPOILERS: the following are reviews have no spoilers as to specific details, they just contain an assessment as to why I believe I could go back to them and rewatch them.

WARNING: for some of these dramas I have skipped watching some subplots, even when I went back and rewatched it, because I was either too obsessed with the main characters’ interaction or else I was so minimally invested in the characters in the subplot that I just didn’t care to watch. I will let you know with a WARNING message as to which dramas that happened for.

Everyone has their own opinions on what kdramas are good or not and everyone has their own thoughts on what constitutes a good kdrama and why, but for me, here is the crème de la crème of the kdrama world:

Shut Up Flower Boy Band (slice of life/coming of age)

Unique elements: In my opinion this is hands-down the golden standard of slice-of-life/school age dramas (and I’ve seen most that have been made in the kdrama world!). The plotline basically follows a group of high school age guys and if you look at them from the first episode to the last episode, there is no doubt that it is a coming of age drama but without year-long jumps in each of the last six episodes (*cough, cough* Reply/Answer Me series *cough*). The plotline is fantastic in that it gets us to invest in every one of the group of guys and then the plotline keeps up a brisk pace and never gets bogged down in any one plotline. Plus, the male lead does have a love interest which is so adorable and I get particularly obsessed with that plotline but I really love the whole entire plotline. Because the male lead, especially as portrayed by Sung Joon, is simply fantastic.

Reasons why I rewatch it: fantastic plotline! The characters are really great too, let’s be honest.

Assessment: should be a cult classic but isn’t

Heartless City (action)

Unique elements: This drama originally aired on a cable channel in Korea so it is really unparalleled in its hard-hitting action and suspense as well as its willingness to show, well, violence. But the violence always serves a purpose and moves the plotline forward, it’s not just meaningless violence (I’m looking at you, Mr. and Mrs. Smith movie). It is filmed a la film noir and pulls it off to a “t”. Literally all of the characters have so much moral ambiguity as to their decisions and behaviors. So many twists and turns, the bad guys turn out to be good and the good guys turn out to be bad that is there really even a line between the two anymore? And this is much more highlighted than with any other kdrama I’ve ever seen. Think 24 in intensity meets the mafia. It’s kind of my guilty pleasure.

Reasons why I rewatch it: Other than the fantastic plotline as detailed above, the male and female leads are so fantastic!! Jung Kyung Ho’s character is so dark and brooding yet fantastic and smart and calculating, yet not always, especially around the female lead’s character. While their scenes together are few and far between, the scenes are always electric (we’re talking sparks coming off the computer screen). The way Jung Kyung Ho acted out this complicated character with all the character’s nuances is just a delight to watch and the character is easily in my top five favorite characters of all time. I am convinced that no one else could have played the character so well. Plus, we slowly get more and more of the various characters’ backstory as the plotline progresses and I always love that kind of plotline. How obsessed with this drama do I get? When I rewatch it, it usually only takes me three days to watch it. And it’s 20 episodes long.

Assessment: should be a cult classic but isn’t

Mrs. Cop 2 (action)

Unique elements: Nothing particularly unique except for Kim Bum’s character.

Reasons why I rewatch it: Kim Bum’s performance is one of my all-time favorite performances and his character is one of my all-time favorite characters. His female foil is moderately appealing at best in general but she is always able to hold her own as a character in her scenes with Kim Bum’s character. Kim Bum’s character makes this drama and on that reason alone it is a good enough performance to watch the drama. He inherited his family’s business but he is the first kdrama CEO that I’ve seen who hasn’t acted all entitled when facing the police…but he might also be a serial killer? This drama is another guilty pleasure of mine.

WARNING: there are numerous subplots that I did not watch (female lead’s home life interactions) or rewatch (all of the rest of the scenes that Kim Bum wasn’t in, lol, even including other police scenes)

Assessment: stunning performance by one of the actors

Two Weeks (action)

Unique elements: Nothing except for the incredibly tightly written plotline.

Reasons why I rewatch it: The reason for this one is plotline, all the way. I love the characters and am invested in them but I am invested in them because of the particular situations that they are thrown into because of the premise of the plotline. Jang Tae San is a small-time gangster who more or less grew up on the streets and has had to figure out life on his own. He is set up for murder and has to survive without getting killed (by either the police or the people who set him up) for two weeks until he can give lifesaving surgery for his daughter. Every episode is a day except for the first and last episodes. Let me tell you, this drama is so tightly written that no scene is wasted. There are a surprising amount of characters and they are connected in often surprising ways. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Also, we more or less get thrown right into the plotline and slowly get the backstory as the drama progresses.

Assessment: terribly underrated

Suspicious Partner (action and romance)

Unique elements: Nothing overly notable

Reasons why I rewatch it: I’m a sucker for kdramas that blend both action/suspense and romance. And this drama does that to a “t”. So the first couple of episodes are rather crazy and you’re just sitting there wondering where in the heck the plotline is going but then it finally settles in to a bit of a procedural courtroom drama with the male and female leads both being lawyers. But wait, there’s a serial killer who is after them so they are trying to figure out who it is and bring the person to justice before he, you know, kills them. There is also a consistently developed romance plotline between the male and female leads that is very intense at times and the characters just have fantastic chemistry. The plotline rarely drags even during the procedural courtroom episodes, the plotline swiftly moves through the cases and doesn’t get bogged down. Ji Chang Wook plays the male lead and is stellar. I absolutely love the character.

Assessment: terribly underrated

Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (action and romance)

Unique elements: Nothing overly much; action and rom-com with a slight twist of sci-fi

Reasons why I rewatch it: So, Do Bong Soon comes from a long lineage of incredibly strong women (we are talking she can lift a car as though it were a paper clip) and her strength cannot be lost as long as she doesn’t use it for evil ends. Along comes the male lead, a CEO of a company, and when he finds out about her powers she becomes his bodyguard and hilarity ensues, as does a serial killer which is decidedly less funny. The scenes between the two of them are absolutely fantastic and it is simply a great romance plotline with gradually less comedy and more thriller/suspense, but just as much romance if not more, as the plotline progresses. The male lead is also quite a complex character as the storyline unfolds.

WARNING: there were some workplace subplots that I just didn’t care enough to watch as well as scenes between the female lead and the second male lead (he’s as interesting as a pile of snow if you ask me).

Assessment: terribly underrated

Oh My Ghostess (action and romance)

Unique elements: This is the only drama I’ve seen that starts out almost completely as a rom-com and then slowly ombre’s into an action/thriller (with decidedly romance elements) by the end.

Reasons why I rewatch it: The premise of this show involves ghosts (surprising I know, based on the title) and it’s different in that most dramas that are supernatural like that either progress on the premise that ghosts are more or less harmless and it’s just comical with inhabiting people OR all ghosts are purely evil and we should be terrified at the thought of what they can do. Well this drama said, “You are going to force us to choose one premise over the other? No thanks, we’ll take both” which is how you can start with a rom-com and end with a suspense/thriller. The overall plotline is fantastic. No particular character overly stands out in my mind.

Assessment: it was not what I was expecting going into the drama but I absolutely loved it and it is terribly underrated

Healer (action and romance)

Unique elements: Not really anything in particular

Reasons why I rewatch it: Ji Chang Wook is at it again! He plays yet another fantastic character as the male lead and the audience becomes very invested in seeing him accomplish his goals. The female lead is sweet and adorable but also bad-ass in some aspects. The romance elements between them are consistently developed throughout each episode in parallel to the action elements.

WARNING: There is a really intricate and complicated and interrelated backstory of several of the characters that feels very melodrama-ie and really bogs down the plotline at times including many subplots that I’ve never bothered to rewatch after the first watching.

Assessment: accurately rated very high by many people, and maybe even slightly overrated at times given how it gets bogged down at times, but still well worth watching

Descendants of the Sun (action and romance)

Unique elements: a special ops guy as the male lead and a doctor as the female lead? Yeah, that’s pretty unique!

Reasons why I rewatch it: I honestly kind of want to marry the male lead. He’s so bad-ass at his job, yet so down-to-earth yet suave in his personal life; his job gives him this aura of secrecy and danger yet he is honest-to-goodness a fantastic guy. The female lead character is good but doesn’t always hold her own in her scenes with him. It is rather fascinating to see them work things out as a couple when they are so obviously attracted to each other and really have fantastic chemistry together but view the idea of helping people from very different ideological viewpoints based on their respective jobs. The action elements come from the missions it shows him doing but the plotline focuses much more on the progression of the romance.

WARNING: I was so obsessed with the leads’ romance story that I had a really hard time not skipping over all other subplots.

Assessment: accurately rated very high by many

City Hunter (action and romance)

Unique elements: not too many except that it is perhaps the oldest action drama that has consistent and good action scenes throughout the plotline.

Reasons why I rewatch it: Lee Minho’s character is SO fantastic and he gives an excellent performance of it (his eyes are so expressive); it’s a complex character and he really does it justice. The action and romance plotlines are developed nicely in parallel but through most of the drama are separated by a thin veil that is Lee Minho’s character’s mask. The female lead is adorable though a bit ridiculous at times given her job as a bodyguard, but her chemistry with Lee Minho’s character is still quite good.

WARNING: Upon rewatching this kdrama, the plotline does really drag at times when it gets into all the politics of the specific men that he’s going after. Still, a must-watch.

Assessment: accurately rated very high by many

The Woman Who Still Wants to Marry (romance)

Unique elements: Minimal if any

Reasons why I rewatch it: Kim Bum. Kim Bum. Kim Bum. His character is fantastic and of course he is fantastic in how he portrays it. His character is in his early 20’s and he’s a musician who plays the guitar and piano and the character just has a fantastic presence about him especially in his scenes with the female lead who is easily one of my favorite female leads of all time. She is in her mid to late 30’s single, and rocking out her career, but she’s been through some pretty rough stuff on and off the job, too. Their chemistry is fantastic.

WARNING: An oversized amount of screen time is devoted to exploring her on-the-job struggles and strife and I really don’t care about all those details especially when there’s a fantastic romance story to be told.

Assessment: rewatchable even if you have 30 kdramas on your list to watch that you haven’t even seen once yet

Personal Taste (romance)

Unique elements: Nothing much

Reasons why I rewatch it: Lee Minho. Enough said. I constantly go back and forth as to whether or not my favorite character of his is in City Hunter or this drama. This is one of those dramas that I first watched years ago and every time I go back to it I think, “it can’t possibly be as good as I remember, especially with all the dramas I’ve watched since then,” and then I watch it and am reminded of just why and how it is so good! Lee Minho’s character is just so fantastic. The female lead is kind of cliché and dopy at times but they have really great chemistry together, they both have really good backstories that make you invest in the characters, and it has so many funny elements.

WARNING: No matter how many times I rewatch this drama, there are some characters that I just can’t get invested in so there are a few subplots that I have never watched

Assessment: while it is a classic kdrama and gets mentioned on lists fairly often, it doesn’t get nearly the recognition it should

One More Happy Ending (romance)

Unique elements: nothing in particular

Reasons why I rewatch it: Jung Kyung Ho is at it again! This is kind of a slice-of-life/romance about a group of people in their mid-30’s who are killing it at their jobs but not so much in their personal lives. The romance plotline between Jung Kyung Ho’s character as the male lead and the female lead is really riveting and fantastic. I just end up getting obsessed with their plotline. It was one of those dramas where you look back on it at the end and you can’t really remember anything specific or noteworthy that happened yet it was all just so fantastic; you can’t really remember why you were so obsessed with it yet every time you go back to rewatch it, it is just as fantastic.

WARNING: There are a lot of secondary leads with the female lead’s group of friends and I can never get really invested in her friend’s subplots.

Assessment: rewatchable even if you have 30 kdramas on your list to watch that you haven’t even seen once yet

My Secret Romance (romance)

Unique elements: Even though the leads have a one night stand in the first episode, the female lead is able to act cool like it didn’t affect her but the male lead character can’t really get over it and it’s obvious to everyone who’s close to him

Reasons why I rewatch it: At 14 total episodes, this kdrama is almost exclusively focused on the main leads’ romance plotline – and what a plotline it is! The whole dynamics of him ending up being her CEO are just so much fun – it’s such a good premise. No matter how many times I’ve seen it, I always get obsessed with this drama when I watch it.

Assessment: terribly underrated

Legend of the Blue Sea (romance)

Unique elements: The premise itself is highly unique. (Also, Lee Minho! Lee Minho!) Each episode begins with a few minutes of a storyline of a relationship between a magistrate and a mermaid in the Joseon era. Then it jumps to present day and we end up meeting a lot of the same actors from the Joseon era plotline and basically everyone is reincarnated from that era and are very similar to who they used to be in their past lives. The male lead (Lee Minho’s character) starts learning more and more about his Joseon era self after he finds out just how much they look alike and he also starts having dreams from his past life in the Joseon era. Does history have to repeat itself entirely or can he change his fate for himself and the woman he loves?

Reasons why I rewatch it: The characters of ok on this one, but it is the plotline and the premise that really carries this one.

Assessment: terribly underrated

High Society (romance)

Unique elements: First of all, the female lead has all the sociopolitical clout and backing coming from a very rich family while the male lead grew up in a very poor family and he has always strived to make great gains in the business world. I especially love the ambiguity and mystery found in the male lead (who is fantastically portrayed by Sung Joon). Second, it follows the romance journey of two couples: for the male and female leads, their characters focus on internal strife, conflict, and angst – internal difficulties as they both wish to be raised as the other had; the secondary male and female leads are both simpler and less ambiguous characters but there romance plotline is no less compelling as they face mostly external, not internal, pressures regarding their relationship.

Reasons why I rewatch it: The plotline is fantastic and I am obsessed with all four characters’ relationships to each other.

Assessment: terribly underrated

Coffee Prince (romance)

Unique elements: nothing in particular

Reasons why I rewatch it: Another drama that is a classic drama because of how old it is, Coffee Prince has strong comedic elements, especially towards the beginning, and also has a slice-of-life feel with following subplots for several of the workers at the coffee shop, but presents them in a slow enough way that we are invested in all of the characters. With the female lead pretending to be male for most of the drama, this is certainly a gender-bender drama. I usually find myself questioning if it really is as good as I remember it to be and then when I rewatch it, it confirms itself to me that, yes, it has stood the test of time. Plus, Gong Yoo’s performance as the male lead is impeccable – he’s not just acting the character, in those moments he IS the character.

WARNING: Some of the subplots with the various supporting characters can slow the drama down at times so I have been known to skip some of these scenes, especially when I’m feeling particularly obsessed over the male and female leads’ interaction.

Assessment: accurately rated very high by many

Boys Over Flowers (romance)

Unique elements: literally zero, haha, but it is one of the most classic and well-known kdramas of all time.

Reasons why I rewatch it: Before you roll your eyes, let me just say two words: Kim Bum. The reason why I’ve rewatched this drama multiple times is to solely watch only the scenes that Kim Bum is in, because I’m kind of obsessed with his performance in this drama, honestly. He was the original “bad boy” character I became obsessed with and was the first character that went on my favorite characters list. I love seeing his character development, especially in regards to his female love interest (I honestly think his character has more character development than the male lead, or at least just as much, and he has a forth as much time devoted to his subplot).

WARNING: Because it is such a freaking long drama, it can tend to easily drag, even for scenes pertaining to the male and female leads.

Assessment: stunning performance by one of the actors

Cinderella and the Four Knights (romance)

Unique elements: not too many, really, if any at all

Reasons why I rewatch it: In some ways it feels similar to Boys over Flowers in that there’s one female lead who is interacting with several male leads, all of whom have significant screen time. But unlike Boys over Flowers, the plotline rarely if ever drags and I pretty much feel equally invested in all the characters and especially with the romance triangle between the female lead and the male lead and secondary lead. It’s one of those dramas that at the end of the drama you just think, “what was the plotline even about? I don’t know, but I was obsessed about it!”

Assessment: terribly underrated

Another Oh Hae Young (romance)

Unique elements: very unique premise. Basically, the male lead keeps having sudden, short visions of the future that all revolve around chance interactions with the female lead and he’s trying to figure out if he has the ability to have an alternative future from what he sees, especially when he sees a vision of himself getting violently hit by a car! But the female lead has struggles of her own: her life continually gets thrown into chaos over mix-ups with another person named Oh Hae Young.

Reasons why I rewatch it: the plotline is so fantastic. I also really love the chemistry and tension between the male and female leads.

WARNING: there are a surprising amount of scenes dealing with the male lead’s, and especially the female lead’s, work environments that can really bog down the plotline at times – I’ve never bothered watching these scenes.

Assessment: terribly underrated

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