#the idea of his character is interesting and the delivery is entertaining

[skayafair]

The fact that Kayne critically misjudged John's true feelings and how much their relationship with Arthur have progressed, brings me so much joy.

Not that all-knowing and all-powerful anymore, are we?

It'd do him good to be brought down a peg or two.

#malevolent podcast #malevolent spoilers #john malevolent #john doe malevolent #kayne malevolent #as you can probably notice I'm not a fan of Kayne #the idea of his character is interesting and the delivery is entertaining #but I have no interest in this kind of personality anymore #so his rizz doesn't work on me #to me he's just an annoying villain-y/trickster-y sort of character who pushes the plot forward #and is great in his own place in the narrative #plus all the 4th wall break jokes are really funny #so I like (or rather okay with) him narrative-wise #but personally he makes my teeth ache #figuratively speaking #all in all his appearances are perfectly timed I think 👌 #upd. OH WAIT #if Kayne keeps making mistakes like this #while still thinking he's the know-it-all #he'll actually be interesting for me??? #KEEP IT UP PLEASE

[mauesartetc]

Thoughts on Helluva Boss 201 (”The Circus”)

Pros:

- The child versions of Blitzo, Fizz, and Stolas were pretty cute, and their voice actors did a good job. Funny how these characters can actually be endearing when Viv’s forced to let their personalities shine through rather than fall back on sex scenes and excessive swearing.

- The animation was solid, as usual. Nothing fantastic compared to previous installments, but competent.

- More of the jokes landed than they normally do in Helluva episodes.

- I liked the exploration of Blitzo’s relationship with Fizz. They were friendly and playful with each other in this flashback, though we already see the friction growing between them via Blitzo’s envy of Fizz’s balloon animal skills, and Fizz’s aversion to the idea of blood while Blitzo revels in it.

- It was interesting to see Blitzo and Stolas’ respective fathers and how their treatment of their sons would affect their psychology later in life. While I still have issues with his name (we’ll get to that shortly), Paimon was entertaining to watch.

Cons:

- As I mentioned here, it makes no sense to name this shapeshifting owl after an Ars Goetia demon who resembles a human riding a camel and has no shapeshifting powers or relation to Stolas as far as I know. How hard would it have been to make up a new name for him? And y’all couldn’t even give him a camel to ride? Tsk.

- Bit of a nitpick, but when Stolas and the imp butler arrive at the circus with Paimon looking through a magic mirror, Paimon suggests they move to a spot where he can’t “smell the poor”. But... he’s not physically present. He shouldn’t be able to smell anything. That’s like me watching a football game on TV and holding my nose every time the camera moves to the bench. Don’t want those sweaty players bombarding our nostrils now, do we? Either Paimon has the best sense of smell ever, or this is a nonsensical line the writers didn’t think about. I’m guessing the latter.

- The ringmaster’s voice was a little grating for my taste, sorta like a gravelly-voiced parrot. Someone like Gilbert Gottfried could make this kind of delivery sound natural and add some charm to it, but here it comes off like the VA was just putting on one of those stereotypical voices you’d hear at a kids’ puppet show. He was pretty good as Paimon, though, so I’m sure the direction has something to do with this. (Also, this voice hilariously reminded me of Jaboody Dubs’s version of Cathy Mitchell. What has been heard cannot be unheard.)

- Edit 1: Something I forgot to mention in the initial post: Stolas’ hellhound security guards bring Blitzo to Stolas and ask what they should do with him, but isn’t it their job to know that already? Just throw him out, guys. It’s not that hard. Also, one of them calls him a “nasty imp”, his voice filled with disgust. But I thought imps and hellhounds were on the same social tier in this universe, so isn’t he basically calling himself nasty too? You could argue he’s just playing up his reaction in front of Stolas and doesn’t actually feel this way, but there’s no evidence to suggest that. This dialogue doesn’t make a lick of sense. 

- It’s exceedingly odd that Stolas is immediately horny for Blitzo after spending twenty-five years away from him. Like, I had childhood crushes from 20-ish years ago too. But typically, people’s tastes evolve as they age, they meet new people, and they get the fuck over it. I’m picturing meeting my second-grade crush now, when we’re both adults and haven’t interacted in ages, and trying to jump his bones on sight. Just... no. Gross. Pure cringe. What would we even talk about? What do we have in common anymore? This reunion isn’t romantic; it’s deeply concerning. Get some fucking therapy, Stolas.

- In Stolas’ bedroom, Blitzo tells him “I kill people now”, but how is he already doing that if he doesn’t have the grimoire to transport himself to the human world yet? Bit of a plot hole there.

- Also, there’s a tangible air of manipulation about this whole episode. What we’re being told and shown here isn’t consistent with what we’ve seen of these characters so far. For instance, young Stolas finds Blitzo’s jokes funny, indicating he likes his personality. Yet if we review their interactions in Season 1, Stolas constantly treats Blitzo like an object, sexually harassing and fetishizing him to no end. Personality has nothing to do with it.

Then, near the end of the episode, Stolas tells Stella, “I would feel bad if I hurt you, but we both know I didn’t do that”. Ya sure? Ya really sure about that? Because she threw a pretty massive fit about it in Loo Loo Land, was angry enough to hire a hit man to kill her husband, and even in this very scene, she admits to sticking around just to remind him of what he did. These aren’t the actions of someone who isn’t hurt. If she really didn’t care, she wouldn’t have done any of this. This is just an excuse for Stolas not to apologize. If he avoids any admission of wrongdoing, that makes him a more sympathetic character, right? Wrong. Apologizing would be the mature, emotionally-stable thing to do, and it’d make him more respectable despite how he’s acted in the past.

Edit 2: Something else I forgot to mention is that Stolas says “The only reason I endured your constant insults and cruelty was for that girl [Octavia] to have a normal life”. But back in Loo Loo Land, he repeatedly flirted with Blitzo despite knowing it made Octavia upset, and once again, never apologized or offered a proper explanation for it. And of course, three episodes later, he’s still sleeping with him, having learned absolutely nothing. Notice a pattern here? The writers want us to think Stolas suddenly cares about his daughter when his past actions have demonstrated he doesn’t give a shit. And I’m not sure if this was intentional (it probably isn’t if the writers want so badly to make Stolas sympathetic), but it’s telling that he says “that girl” instead of using her name, psychologically distancing himself from the guilt he associates with her rather than addressing it. He knows he did her dirty but prefers to cover his ass instead of making amends. Father of the year, folks.

- Speaking of audience manipulation, good god, STELLA. I thought she was flat and poorly-written before, but they seriously made her an over-the-top evil, moustache-twirling Saturday morning cartoon villain. There’s absolutely zero subtlety here. She even straight-up tells Stolas “I like tormenting you”, beating us over the head with her outlandish, unrealistic cruelty. I mean... This was the cartoon meant for adults, right?

Here’s a room-temperature take (that Stolitz stans will probably take as controversial anyway): Making one character completely unlikable won’t magically make another character sympathetic. If the stove in your kitchen is busted, you don’t take a baseball bat to the fridge to make it look worse by comparison. You fix the fucking stove.

- Stolas’ singing voice sounded a bit thin at times, almost mechanical, like there wasn’t much life or energy in the sustained notes. I don’t know if the VA had a cold while recording or they added some kind of weird autotune, but it sounded a bit off to me.

Those are my thoughts. Definitely not the worst episode, but holy fuck does it have problems. I’m tired. So damn tired. Brb, off to watch a  much better show.

#helluva boss #helluva critical #critique #criticism #helluva blitz #helluva stolas #helluva stella #writing #long post #sympathetic characters

[fish-bowl-2]

12, 18, 25?

12. The unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

I like Sarah! I think she is pretty dang entertaining and funny. Understandably she gets a lot of hate. Especially from people who grew up with the show, where her absolute irritation and bossiness towards Ed probably hit way too close to home. But I think it makes a lot of sense for the role she plays as the annoying younger sister. She definitely doesn't deserve to have death threats. I mean, she is like eight. God forbid a sibling is selfish and self-serving at eight years old. Janyse Jaud does a great job with her lines and delivery. Of course she is not for everyone, but I think she is fun.

18. It's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

UUUH maybe exploring ideas about how the Eds would interact immediately after the events of the movie. Or even further expansion upon events from the actual show, if that makes sense. I love seeing the fan work people make on interpreting how they would be in high school and older, but I also really dig seeing them being kids. I guess it is because stories that focus on the preteen age range really interest me.

Something I also just remembered was the Urban Rangers. I think that whole schtick was so fun. I wish that more content, particularly ones that surround Rolf, featured it more. He always seems super proud of his role as a leader.

25. Common fandom complaint that you're sick of hearing

Hmmmmmm uhhhhhh...Maybe that Edd became too obnoxious or "flanderized" in the later seasons. I can see where people are coming from when they say that, but I kind of like that development to his character. I can't help feeling I've talked about it a lot, but I really like the dry condescension and hypocrisy that started to define his personality. Of course, I also really like his soft-spoken and awkward shyness from the early seasons too. I like both.

There is also a similar criticism to Eddy and Ed in the later seasons, which I understand and sympathize with. I see what people mean about their personalities becoming way more "over-the-top", and I also personally have a preference for their characterization in the earlier seasons. BUT, it does not bother me that much, nor do I find it to be completely offensive to their characters. I think a part of this could be because of the otherwise short run of the show compared to other cartoon programs, where the risk of flanderization becomes a lot more of a problem the longer a show runs. Also, I think the movie was a "saving grace" in many ways of wrapping up the growing tension in their personalities in a way that felt somewhat satisfying.

I don't see this mentioned that much, but I think the fact that the characters are 12-13 in the run of the show also adds to why their later season interpretations don't bother me. The pre-teen/middle school age is notorious for being a hectic time for kids. Your personality goes through more changes than any other time in your life arguably. So it all really makes sense to me that a character could change in the matter of a single summer.

#thank youuu!! #these were actually very interesting to think about #asks

[thealmightyemprex]

Ranking the Shrek/Puss In Boots movie villains

Those who know me know I love vilains ,and I was interested to see how the Shrek /Puss in Boots villains stack up .

Ones I am not including are Goldilocks and the Three Bear Crime Family cause in my mind they arent villains at all ,they are antagonists but they arent evil at all ,nor am I including the Poison Apple crew ,simply cause they are more henchmen then full on villains (If I do my favorite Shrek side characters ,Captain Hook will definately be on the list though )

First off I dont dislike any of these villains,they all have their moments ,but I am ranking these from least favorite to favorite

Also spoilers

8. Jack and Jill-Puss In Boots (2011)

I love the concept,I have a thing for outlaw couples,Billy Bob Thornton and Amy Sedaris give enjoyable performances (ESpecially Sedaris ) and they have a cute running joke with Jack wanting to settle down and have a baby while Jill is all for continuing in crime . However while they are set up as the main villains ,they kind of take a back seat to Humpty Dumpty ,and frankly they are a touch generic compared to other Shrek villains

7.Humpty Dumpty -Puss In Boots (2011)

OK Humpty very much conflicts me because on papaer he is one of the most interesting Shrek villain ,basically being not only Puss's best friend but his brother ,but went down a far darker path.He feels like an outcast ,and resents Puss for finding his place as well as ,for in his eyes abandoning him,when in actuailaity it was a situation he caused and the only main villain to realize his own mistakes.He should be high up right?.....WEll the problem is while he is well written,I think Zach Galifanakis is SO miscast and I dont care for his performance .Also frankly....I HATE his design ,I'm sorry he is really unpleasent to look at ,he is very unsettling,

6.Prince Charming from Shrek 2 (2004) and Shrek the Third (2007)

PRince Charming is the only villain to be in multiple films ,and he frustrates me .....BEcause I cant put him higher.I love his concept, he is a vain Prince who feels he is owed his happilly ever after ,and in the third film he leads an army of villains to get that.I love Rupert Everetts performance who balances the dashing prince and petulent villain sides well.....My problem is ....He doesnt feel like a threat .See in Shrek 2 ,he is the secondary villain ,as his mother the Fairy Godmother is the main villain ,and when he comes back in Shrek 3, he has been so humiliated and hit rock bottom ,I kind of feel too sorry for him and dont see him as an intimidating bad guy . I

5..Rumplestiltskin- Shrek Forever After (2010)

I debated putting him higher,cause he is effective .A wicked deal maker who resents Shrek for saving Fiona before he could trick her parents into signing a deal with him .He's kind of fun and sinister ,and I am kind of fond of Walt Fohrns very odd line delivery ,his high voice is kind of afun mix of silly and kind of creepy .He isnt higher cause well he feels too similar to both the Fairy Godmother and Lord Farquaad ,just a bit sleazier .I think he is fun but not top tier

4.Lord Farquaad from Shrek (2001)

Farquaad is the first villain of the Shrek series ,and probabbly the most passive villain,he isnt as active as the other villains,but he plays well for the themes of the film. He is a guy obsessed with perfection and looks down on those who he sees as not fitting his idea of perfection,namely Fairy tale creatures .....Basically this guy isnt far diffrent then real powerful bigots. He is also highly entertaining with some great lines and is played wonderfully to hammy perfection by John Lithgow and I do think he has a great design.My biggest issue with him is the short jokes at his expense are kind of terrible and I dont think he is as interesting as the top 3 villains

3.The Fairy Godmother from Shrek 2 (2004 )

The person who makes happily ever aters happen and decides who they happen too .Pissed off that her machinations to have Fiona marry her son, Charming ,went wrong ,she seeks to find a way to get rid of Shrek .She is so wonderfully manipulative,Jennifer Saunders gives such a marvelous performance,she hilarious while also being intimidating.....Plus she gets one hell of a villain song with her cover of Holding out for a Hero

2.Big Jack Horner -Puss In Boots The Last Wish (2022)

Big Jack Horner is a crime kingpin/Pie magnet who seeks to find the wishing star to gain access to all the magic in the world .....Jack Horner might be the most unappologetically evil person in the Shrek universe.Where other villains at least try to pretend to have redeeming qualities ,Jack Horner is a vile monster ,who doesnt care who he has to kill to get what he wants,and he knows,he re4vels in how vile he is ....And it makes him so funny .I adore John Mulaneys performance, for years I have thought he would play a really good villain,and I was proven right .His designb is great too cause he has this intimaidaing hulking body and stuture but topped with this baby face and pink hair , I adore it . I also like that while the film full of characters who grow and change ,Horner is the one character who refuses to ,he litterally rejects the idea of a concience in the form of the Ethical Bug .He is a hilarious cartoony villain who was close to getting the top spot

1.Death -Puss In Boots the Last Wish (2022)

I struggled for a while over who would be number one between Death and Big Jack....But DEath wins.....Because he is the most personal and frightening villain in the Shrek verse to one of the main characters , because he is the embodiment of Puss's fears.He is the opponent Puss cant beat ,and the oppoenent every one must meet .I have hears some say he isnt a villlain....No ,he is.He isnt doing his job ,he isnt trying to teach Puss.....He WANTS to kill him,and is enjoying the chase .Its personal with Death ,Puss has mocked him and not valued life and he wants to SAVOR killing Puss .This might be the best example I have seen of Death as an advesaroy .He is designed beautifully,a red eyed wolf ,with the forma of a raven on his face ,weilding sickle and wearing a black hood,with WAgnar Moura giving a chilling performance .I also love his whistle which creeped me out everytime he showed up. He stands out among the Shrek villains,cause he is the most serious and by far the scariest .I condsidered leaving him off....But the truth is he is my favorite villain in the Shrek/Puss In Boots series

Well thats my list ,who is your favorite

@autistic-prince-cinderella @ariel-seagull-wings @angelixgutz @amalthea9 @goodanswerfoxmonster @marquisedemasque @princesssarisa @filmcityworld1 @the-blue-fairie @themousefromfantasyland

#shrek franchise #puss in boots

[frostyreturns]

Frosty Ruins Glass Onion

It's a fairly recent movie so I avoided spoilers best I could but I recommend just not seeing this movie altogether because it was cancerously bad.

Now I'm not advocating we forget what happened in 2020 at all, I think we need to remember what they did to us,how retarded it was and how insane people behaved…however I don't want my entertainment to begin with reminders. This came out December of 2022 we've barely just gotten past this shit... I'm more sick of hearing about covid than I ever was from covid…so when something that's supposed to be entertainment begins with someone covering their face because a package is delivered to their door it fills me with rage and I already hate this movie. We went 2 years without a movie where everyone was wearing face masks why the fuck are we starting this horseshit now? Then for it to immediately cut to a CNN segment where the character is ranting about climate change I'd already be asking for my money back if I paid for this.

5 minutes in and we've already hit covid, climate change and feminism and I can already tell this is a Rian Johnson movie. I have no idea what's going on, who anyone is, why I'm supposed to care and the dialogue is weird and unnatural.

I get the sense the director is trying to be funny but I'm not sure because there's no actual jokes. Like there's a group of old people playing among us and the one guy is in a bath and someone asks him if he's in the bath again and he says no…get it because he is. It has the cadence and delivery of a joke but it's just nonsense.

I don't know if Batista is just the worlds shittiest actor or if Rian Johnson was just too much of a human vagina to ask him to redo a single line because there is better acting on a 90's cable access show. When he's playing a socially retarded alien its not as noticeable but when he's just playing a guy you notice how bad he sucks. Also his character is there to just be a caricature of what they call mens rights but based on how they portray him he's a caricature of just anyone who has a male audience because they don't actively shit on men and denounce masculinity. So from the acting to the heavy handed and out of place feminist strawmanning I hated this character. Makes me wonder if Rian Johnson has ever had a single miligram of testosterone in his body.

There was a moment that implies there was an easy covid cure that they only gave to a few small elites and friends. Now was this a moment of honesty masquerading as fiction from hollywood…or was it just a stupid plot device to reconcile that he decided to make the plot happen during covid without having the actors wearing masks the whole time. It really would have overshadowed everything else.Remember how insane people were about covid in 2020 and then imagine those people found out there wasa simple one dose cure...they thought thisshit was killing billions of people nobody would have given a shit about anything else. You're telling me the social media influence, the politician and the scientist just had no interest in a cure for covid in 2020. Either way Rian should have all his cameras and pens taken away from him forever.

Also what the hell happened to Edward Norton? Maybe it really is just Rian Johnson…because in this Norton sounds and looks like he's never been filmed before. I think of Edward Norton as making goofy movies he's in better and more professional, like he made the second iteration of Hulk watchable but here he looks like a lesbian they just pulled off the street, threw him into the movie and did all his lines in one take. He was terrible and when a good actor is terrible you have to look at the script and the director.

Nortons character goes on this rant about disrupting the system and calls everyone at this murder mystery thing a disrupter. A mainstream celebrity, a typical politician, a social media influencer, and a tech billionaire…these are all people he's saying disrupted the system? No these people are the system, these people are the system, getting fat on the system. He even says none of them want to disrupt the system…but then says right after that they are all disrupters of the system. It's the kind of pretentious, contradictory self congratulatory bloviating I'd expect from this douchebag directors dialogue.

The movie is so hard to watch because all the drama is contrived and irritating because none of the people are interesting or likeable. Not to mention that its a murder mystery movie where it takes an hour into the fucking thing for somebody to die and there's already been an annoying Rian Johnson "subversion of expectations" which is ironic because at this point nobody is expecting there to not be some gay twists.

This movie combines everything I hate about the director with everything I don't like about murder mysteries. They make the plots convoluted and use misdirects to keep you from guessing the outcome to the point that the outcome loses believability and it's sense of a cohesive plot. Writers go out of their way to ensure everyone is in some way a suspect and then the premise is made ridiculous. If you host a party of all your closest friends and someone tries to kill you there's no world where every single one of your closest friends is a suspect with evidence and a motive against them. It ruins my suspension of disbelief and comes across as contrived sloppy writing. Rian Johnson takes this weakness in the genre and amplifies it by a hundred because even in other genres he likes to throw reason and comprehensive writing to the wind for the sake of tricking the audience. Ironically knowing this going in I knew who the killer was going to end up being the whole time, so congrats Rian you wanted to be so unpredictible that you're predictible.

He does things like has the investigator say "only you can give me the last piece of the puzzle" right before that character is shot…but the audience is not given any of the information the character is supposed to have. The entire story is one big web of deus ex machina And delivered with the ham fist of paroxysms like a character shouting "What is reality!" after a reveal that the audience was already privy to. More wooden half asses attempts at infusing this train wreck with the semblance of comedy.

And after the reveal they somehow let the killer get close enough to destroy the only evidence they had. There's no way... they had to use a camera trick to make it more believable that someone they thought was a killer could close the gap quick enough and destroy the evidence that quickly because its just another impossible thing done for story convenience.

Also the story resolution was so stupid… nobody will testify for the murders for plot convenience but at the end they all suddenly change their mind for absolutely no reason…except that now is the time the director wants story resolution. He comes up with this convoluted way to get the murderer their just desserts but nobody thinks that they're just now casually rubbing elbows with someone they just all watched proved to be a murderer, nobody grabs a weapon nobody thinks oh they might try to kill again now that they were found out…they just carry on like they're all about to move on since they can't prove anything to the law... even though every single one is an eyewitness. Then instead of the next rational step being a violent solution nobody even thinks of it. What they did do was a crime anyway choosing to assassinate a reputation…which only might happen theoretically, just like them being found innocent in court is theoretical. Nobody behaves rationally, everything is contrived everything is stupid… this movie was fucking terrible. Rian Johnson is the worse director in the world.

0 stars

#glass onion

[themovieblogonline]

They Cloned Tyrone - A Blaxploitation Delight with Stellar Chemistry

Juel Taylor's directorial debut in They Cloned Tyrone is an incredibly fun film. The movie highlights a perspective of America that is often either ignored or misunderstood. This genre-blending movie pays homage to the iconic Blaxploitation films of the 1970s while infusing a fresh and contemporary twist. With an all-star cast led by John Boyega, Teyonah Parris, and Jamie Foxx, the chemistry between these three is electrifying. As the intriguing plot reveals itself, we get pulled deeper into a world where identity, responsibility, and deception collide, leading to an unforgettable experience. The Good: In 'They Cloned Tyrone,' the acting chemistry between John Boyega, Teyonah Parris, and Jamie Foxx is tastier than macaroni and candy yams at Thanksgiving dinner - and believe me, I'm hungry for more! One of the film's undeniable highlights is the incredible acting chemistry between the stars of this movie. Boyega's portrayal of Fontaine is a little mind-blowing. The actor immerses himself in this role, disappearing into an abyss of talent and reemerges as the hypnotic character. Jamie Foxx delivers a character that's as funny and witty as any and gives us a hint of the kind of sketch comedy characters the actor was known for in the 90s with his character Slick Charles. Teyonah is sultry and witty making Yo-Yo not only hold her own but also a scene-stealing character. Kudos to first-time director Juel Taylor, who impressively serves up a delicious blend of blaxploitation elements with a fresh and easy-to-digest presentation. Walking away from the film, I found myself craving for more of its flavorful goodness, wishing it didn't end. The movie feels effortless and just seems very natural in its tone, structure, pacing, and delivery. I really can't say enough good things about how well this movie came together.   The story flows smoother than a fresh set of jheri curls, and that's a fact! What elevates the experience to another level is the seamless on-screen chemistry of our talented leads. It's remarkable how well they mesh together, especially considering they didn't even do rehearsals before filming. Their chemistry is a testament to their talent, making every scene crackle with energy and authenticity. This camaraderie adds an extra layer of enjoyment to this already delightful cinematic treat. As viewers, we get to witness the trio's journey uncovering a government conspiracy. This whole story is just s one big rollercoaster ride you're glad to be on. The Bad: While 'They Cloned Tyrone' nails many aspects, the film's ending leaves a bit to be desired. The last act of the film, while ultimately satisfying, isn't without issues. The idea of Isaac, Fontaine's drug dealing gang rival, suddenly switching sides to lend a helping hand feels somewhat forced. Like, what is the motivation for his sudden change of heart? A more natural transition would have given the story a stronger impact, but it doesn't ruin the film. There is a lot to enjoy for audiences who love to see an Avengers Endgame moment where the heroes all band together to take down the big bad of the movie. Kiefer Sutherland's character is both entertaining and perplexing. His mood swings between merciful and ruthless, all while desperately seeking power and attention. left me questioning his true intentions. It's like he's a rollercoaster of personality traits, which can be a bit disorienting for the audience. This erratic nature makes it challenging to fully grasp his motivations, and at times, it pulls me out of the experience. Regardless, Sutherland's performance is still enjoyable, adding an interesting layer to the narrative.   Overall: 'They Cloned Tyrone' stands as a delightful tribute to the blaxploitation genre while introducing a fresh perspective that leaves audiences eagerly anticipating what the future holds for this unique universe. Whether you're a fan of blaxploitation films or simply seeking an entertaining and immersive cinematic experience, this film delivers on all fronts. Get ready to be swept away by the charisma of John Boyega, Teyonah Parris, and Jamie Foxx as they navigate a world of cloning and government conspiracies. Despite the minor hiccups, 'They Cloned Tyrone' is a must-watch until the very end. Stick around to learn the meaning of the title and discover how the movie sets up potential sequels. Whether you're a fan of the genre or just looking for an entertaining time at home, 'They Cloned Tyrone' delivers a fun experience that's worth a full watch. Its innovative blend of blaxploitation charm, satirical humor, and outstanding chemistry among the leads is a recipe for success. The movie leaves you hungry for more adventures in this intriguing world, prompting you to stay until the credits roll to unveil the significance of the title and the potential for sequels. Read the full article

[tacigent]

A FNaF AU idea that I need to get off my chest + a "timeline" with ages and years

There's a lot of role-swapping going on. Michael swaps with Elizabeth, Norman swaps with Sammy who is Charlie's twin brother from the books. Then Michael swaps again, but with William which means that I have included Miketrap because I always found that theory very interesting and cool despite its flaws. Mrs. Afton swaps with Elizabeth in that she's the main antagonist in Sister Location.

Everyone will possess something, excluding William and Henry. Mrs. Afton is Ballora, Michael is Springtrap, Elizabeth is Foxy, Norman is Fredbear, and Charlie is the Puppet of course. Sammy could end up being Shadow Freddy. I promise, everything will make sense once I explain what happens.

Few things I feel like I should mention:

This AU only follows FNaF 1-6, meaning Special Delivery, Help Wanted, and Security Breach DON'T exist here. UCN might be included because I like the idea of a fabricated hell for William to continuously suffer in.

The Toys' facial recognition and criminal data-base aren't a thing at all here. I feel that goes too far, considering the technological limitations.

None of the Funtimes are programmed to kill at all. Like what I mentioned, it feels way too out of line given the era and the limitations they would have back then. Also, I just had this idea to have CBPW be William's attempt branching out using animatronics of his very own design without Henry in the picture.

The Nightmares aren't real in any way whatsoever, not even through illusion discs, hence why they are called Nightmares.

The Fredbear plush isn't a listening device or a walkie-talkie for William to spy on his son with, it's just a toy.

Golden Freddy isn't just a re-colored Freddy. He's a broken and abandoned Fredbear, the very same one that committed the Bite.

Circus Baby's Entertainment and Rental is NOT a bunker hidden underground. It's a fully-fledged, circus-themed attraction that opened after Circus Baby's Pizza World closed due to supposed gas leaks. To add onto that, it's also William's last ditch attempt to create a successful restaurant using his own animatronic designs and not Henry's.

Regarding the characters, William is a very mediocre dad here. He's certainly not the best, but he does try before it all goes downhill. Most of the MCI and DCI are teenagers aside from a select few. I'll try to give everybody a sort of importance to the story no matter how minor it might be. Admittedly, though, the Bite Victim here doesn't have much to do until the very end.

I know Fritz possesses Foxy in canon and, honestly, it doesn't feel right replacing him like this, so I have three ideas about what to do with him. He either dies in 1993 in the FNaF 1 location and possesses the Classic version of Foxy (but that seems lame and a bit convenient when I think about it), OR he inhabits Foxy alongside Elizabeth somehow. I guess he could also just not be a victim of William at all here, although that seems quite boring. I'm not sure how I'd be able to pull any of those ideas off. I don't know if I even want to, but I'll figure it out eventually.

Elizabeth is my favorite Afton and Foxy is my favorite animatronic, so I decided to combine them. If anyone sees this at all, I wouldn't mind criticism because I need this AU to make sense at least.

Now, we start in 1980.

Michael is 13. Elizabeth, Charlie, and Sammy are 11. Norman is 5.

Fredbear's Family Diner and Circus Baby's Pizza World exist simultaneously. Funtime Chica is also here as a part of Baby's band.

The same thing happens where Elizabeth goes to see Circus Baby, but instead of getting snatched, Michael comes to be an ass and tries to steal her ice cream. They have a back-and-forth fight until Baby starts acting out due to being so new. Michael is accidentally pulled into her stomach hatch with the ice cream, then ends up with severe head trauma. This leaves him a coma (for, specifically, 5 years). However, Elizabeth at her young age thinks Michael is dead.

After that incident, William closes the restaurant and takes his son to the hospital. At the level of decent father, he does care about his kids here, except he will forever be reminded that one of his own robots nearly killed Michael. This further drives home the fact that Henry's work will always be better than his. Meanwhile, Elizabeth feels endlessly guilty for the situation her big bro is in now. She blames herself for Michael's comatose state, and it all spirals from there.

Moving onto 1983 (Specifically, May 13).

Michael is 16. Elizabeth, Charlie, and Sammy are 14. Norman is 8.

Although Circus Baby's is closed, Fredbear's continues on for 3 years up until the day of the Bite. The very first Freddy Fazbear's Pizza has also been opened some time after Circus Baby's closing.

Michael's absence has a great effect on Elizabeth. He might have been a bully to Norman, but he's still her brother and she loves him. His absence leaves a giant hole in her life where he used to be, since he's so much easier to relate to than Norman is. She kind of tries to emulate him in her own way. She uses the same Foxy mask and becomes a bit of a delinquent like he was.

Here's the thing, she doesn't target Norman (not a lot of the time, anyway). She targets the Emily twins, Charlie and Sammy. Mostly Sammy, though.

It kind of follows the mini games of FNaF 4. Counting down the days until their birthday party.

Elizabeth uses the mask to scare Sammy, either at his house when she comes over or at the restaurant while their fathers are at work. She locks him in the parts & service room. Headless Foxy is replaced by a stuffed bunny named Theodore, who is Charlie's toy from the books. Charlie is Sammy's version of 'Psychic Friend Fredbear' in that she guides and comforts him throughout the week.

Charlie stands up for herself and her brother whenever Elizabeth tries something, yet she doesn't go as far as telling Henry about the bullying because they were best friends. She's sympathetic, almost to a fault.

Sammy is the opposite. He can't help but hate Elizabeth, even when he knows why she's the way she is. He feels betrayed since they all used to be close, but he's also sensitive and a bit of a pushover, so he receives the brunt of the bullying.

The birthday comes around and Sammy gets chomped by Fredbear, thanks to Elizabeth. Charlie is rightfully mad, but she has very conflicting feelings about their friendship now. Henry is distraught, but I feel like he'd be a little more willing to understand. Elizabeth has to live with Michael's condition and Sammy's death on her shoulders.

Fast forward to 1985.

Michael is 18. Elizabeth and Charlie are 16. Norman is 10.

After the Bite, Fredbear's closes. William and Henry now have to manage the newest location they have opened, which is Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. This restaurant houses the unwithered animatronics.

This is also the year that Michael wakes up from his coma. Only problem is, neither Elizabeth nor Norman will be there to witness it.

Elizabeth and Charlie's relationship has deteriorated a lot. Charlie struggles to forgive Elizabeth for what happened to Sammy because while she still believes there's good in her, she also thinks she probably shouldn't. Meanwhile, Elizabeth is too emotionally constipated to properly approach Charlie.

Elizabeth watches the three kids lock her out in the rain. A drunken William pulls up, kills her in the alleyway, then leaves her there. The Puppet comes out looking for her and breaks down, Charlie possesses it.

One of the reasons William kills Charlie in the first place is to basically get back at Henry.

Since Mrs. Afton exists here as an actual character, I have this idea where Henry and Mrs. Afton have this plan to get the kids away from William because they know something is wrong with him; they just aren't sure what it is. William hears of this eventually. An argument breaks out between them. It's emotional and tense and volatile, so much so that an overly rash shove from William cracks her skull against the furniture.

After the fight, William buries Mrs. Afton's body in the woods. Just a strange mound of dirt to those who don't know who's in it. Ballora starts acting a little too alive later on. Ballora, the one animatronic who had been in the room with them when his wife died.

However, Charlie's death is one that William sort of regrets in a way. He had gotten drunk after finding out about Henry and Mrs. Afton, but Charlie was in the wrong place at the wrong time. William acts on his anger towards the conspiracy against him and his long festering jealousy of Henry, taking Charlie's life in the process. A 'spur of the moment' kind of thing.

That marks the start of William's downfall and descent into these destructive habits that tear the whole family apart as time goes by. William begins lashing out, and it doesn't matter who's around to see it because he will go after them. His children suffer under his watch. At worst, he's violent. At best, he's neglectful.

Elizabeth and Henry don't find out that Charlie's dead until the next day.

Some time after Charlie, William targets other children to get rid of. The murders of the MCI take place over a span of weeks or months. First is Susie, followed by Gabriel, then Jeremy, and ending with Cassidy.

During Jeremy's turn, William invites Elizabeth along for the process in hopes that she will help him with it. Elizabeth disagrees and tries to stop him from harming Jeremy. In the end, William goes too far out of control. He ends up killing both Jeremy and Elizabeth. In a bit of a panic, William hides them in Bonnie and Foxy respectively.

Next up is Norman.

William becomes more unstable, drunk, and shaken up after Elizabeth's death. He's basically a ticking time bomb. Nobody is safe, everyone is at risk around him.

He's working late one night at the restaurant with Norman since he can't leave him home alone. He continues drinking there too when he's supposed to work. Norman keeps bothering him because literally both of his siblings are gone and he doesn't know what's happening. Norman continuously asks him these questions, but William reacts too explosively and kills Norman in a drunken rage.

I don't know yet whether Norman should possess the Fredbear plush or the animatronic, so that will be undecided until I figure it out.

In my mind, William's relationship with his kids is quite complicated. Michael's near death experience caused by one of his own machines makes William real possessive/protective of them. But even if he cares for his children, he doesn't exactly understand them. They clash until William kills them, too. However, I'm not sure how to make that last point exist in a way that's sensible and believable.

After the kids are reported missing and an investigation starts, Henry closes the restaurant.

By the year of 1987.

Both families are in shambles. Henry lost both of his children, and his wife divorced him after Charlie's death. William has to deal with a confused but awake Michael, and his wife died by his own hand.

To account for Henry's absence throughout the games, I'd say he was either convicted for the MCI wherein William would frame him for it, or he simply went off the radar until Pizza Sim. William also becomes quite recluse, only active for work because he's managing both CBEAR and FFP #2 all on his own now while he plans his next move.

This basically follows the same format as the game.

Like the mini-game suggests, William returns to murder another set of 5 victims. I myself believe that the Toy animatronics could probably be possessed one way or another, so these 5 victims will be Charlie's friends from the novels. John, Carlton, Lamar, Jessica, and Marla.

Like the book, this set of victims are just a bunch of teenagers who snuck into the pizzeria to explore and William happened to be there.

The night guard, Jeremy Fitzgerald, is on shift when the teens break in. They're caught by him and Jeremy calls William to inform him of the intrusion. Oddly enough, instead of getting the police, William says he will handle the situation himself. He sends Jeremy off, disables the cameras, puts on the yellow suit, and murders the group of teens.

Jeremy comes back on Night 6 after the murders and as Phone Guy says, none of them are acting right. He's moved to the day shift, but he's bitten during a birthday party by a possessed Mangle.

Alongside more disappearing kids in another Freddy's establishment, Mangle causing the Bite is the final cherry on top. The place closes for good.

The Toys and the Withereds are kept in a storage place or a warehouse in case Fazbear Ent. would want to reuse parts from them. However, William is still the owner of FE. He decides to have the Withereds remade into the FNaF 1 gang and the Toys fully scrapped. The Puppet is moved to the FNaF 1 location later on, but Elizabeth (and maybe Fritz, too) escapes to find her father.

Further on into 1993.

This is the FNaF 1 gang and the night guard is Mike Schmidt. Mike is his own character. Just a normal guy who unknowingly signed up for this nightmare of a job.

The "Follow Me" mini-game still takes place, but there is a different purple guy this time.

After 5 full years of comatose, Michael is finally awake.

The guy is lost and has a lot of catching-up to do, even more so when it hits him that his siblings and his mother both aren't around at all anymore. Whenever, he tries asking William about it, all he gets is a vague, half-hearted dismissal. He gets more and more suspicious until William asks him to go destroy a couple of animatronics at a abandoned restaurant that closed down just recently.

It's similar to SL wherein William tells him to go somewhere to do something. While Michael is alone in the back room, the souls come after him. He puts on the Spring Bonnie suit in a panic and the springlocks go off. It's the same situation as SL where they thought Michael was William and he suffered for it.

Due to the springlock incident, William doesn't hear from Michael, but he does discover that the animatronics have been dismantled either way. Given that he's still the main guy in charge of FE, he eventually finds out about a springlock suit locked in the backroom. He doesn't really know it's Michael until it's relocated to Fazbear's Fright.

Michael goes through what William did in canon. Being locked in the back room for years until he's found and placed in Fazbear's Fright as an attraction.

Later on in 1998.

This year is when SL would take place in my AU since I don't think there's a set year in the canon timeline.

A random night guard will take Michael's place here, although I'm tempted to have them be Vanessa. They will be the one the Funtimes use to escape the place.

It follows the flow of the game. They go to this place, perform their tasks, get scared by the robots sometimes while weird things happen, then they leave. However, there are some specific parts of the game that I would change because of the fact that it's not Elizabeth who is orchestrating the whole thing. It's her mother, Mrs. Afton.

The "sentience" of the animatronics already comes from the victims of '87. When William injects them with this other batch of Remnant he got from the Classics, it combines the MCI with the DCI. It gives them these personalities made up of two sets of teens/kids. Also, Funtime Freddy and Bon-Bon are supposed to be separate entities also possessed by two different people.

Mrs. Afton communicates with the other souls in the Funtimes and forms a plan to escape the facility. That means Circus Baby isn't exactly the big mastermind behind the whole plan to get out, she only plays a part in it as they all do.

In Night 4, Ballora still gets the scooper and Circus Baby talks to the guard. However, Baby will have a different personality, given that she's possessed by two victims now instead of Elizabeth. As in, two distinct individuals are speaking just with the same voice.

In Night 5, it's mostly the same. However, after the guard 'fixes' Circus Baby and sends her to the scooping room, their shift ends right there.

The ending will be a little different here. So far, I have two ideas as to what I'd like it to be. Instead of getting scooped, it has the night guard, whoever they might be, being threatened by the Funtimes into letting them leave the facility as Ennard. Or, the Funtimes just follow them out all sneaky and leave the guard alone. Either way, they get out and go find William.

Some time in 2023.

Michael has been transferred to Fazbear's Fright as an attraction after he was found. With him, is yet another random night guard. This one might be Tape Girl.

The fact that Michael is Springtrap here changes a few things. Michael is more confused in the way he will act as Springtrap. Most of his life has been loneliness aside from the company of William. He was isolated from his siblings, friends, basically everybody for years. When he's finally let out, he dies in a springlock suit and is left for dead.

In a gameplay setting, Springtrap appears uncertain and scared when he shows up in the cameras. I'd say he's a little harder to lure with the Balloon Boy voice lines. He's more obvious in the cameras, in contrast to William's hiding and sneaking.

He's desperate to find help, and the only way he thinks he can get it is through the guard. He doesn't know what happened to his family, where they are, or if they're even alive. He's worried since he's missed out on so much.

Outside of the gameplay perspective, Michael looks for information behind the scenes. There would most likely be some references throughout the attraction to past events that he wasn't present for. Maybe some of the employees talk about rumors regarding Freddy's bad history. Perhaps there is news about the Bites or records of the missing kids, so he eventually gets his hands on those.

William finds the location and comes in to burn the place down. His reasoning for doing so is to sort of erase the history of the past Freddy's locations. Everything in the attraction is directly related to his wrongdoings, so he needs to destroy it immediately. Michael confronts him about everything he knows, but William starts the fire before he can do anything. Michael escapes with half an arm, and he roams wherever to find his father.

As for what occurs in FNaF 6,

Henry takes the brave volunteer's place in the fake restaurant. He manages the pizzera, does the salvaging, and then burns the place down when everything comes together.

As shown in the game, Henry will have to slowly build this pizzeria from the ground up until he finally has everybody right where he needs them to be.

When it comes to the salvaging, there will be obvious changes. Like instead of Scrap Baby, he's faced with a very old and very withered Foxy from way back when the first ever Freddy Fazbear's opened. Scraptrap is basically Springtrap but doubly worse for wear and missing half an arm. Molten Freddy is now just Ennard with Mrs. Afton in the driver's seat. Lefty is more or less the same since I like his design.

The completion of tasks later in the night is also going to be altered a little. With Henry as the protagonist here, no one really has the motive to attack him unless they don't know that it's him.

Until William comes along.

The news of an unauthorized Freddy's establishment drags him out of the hermit life he's been living for the past few decades. He goes to check out the place and falls right into Henry's trap. Now, everyone from the victims to the murderer himself is in position for Henry to end it all, setting the restaurant ablaze and burning it to the ground. The souls are set free and William is sent to hell.

Anyways.

That concludes my AU for now. I think this was just excessive info-dumping, but I was way too eager to get this idea out of my head. If anyone sees this, let me know your thoughts because I'd really like criticism and more ideas.

#fnaf #five nights at freddy's #fnaf au #fnaf alternate universe #william afton #michael afton #elizabeth afton #the crying child #henry emily #charlie emily #charlotte emily #sammy emily

[ffxivtribehydrae]

#7 Pawn

For FFxIvWrite2022 Characters: Dubus, Severin ( @neoma-eltanin​ ) Warnings: None

”Pardon me taking this seat, Tsasan,” Dubus spoke in the most charming tone he could, slipping in a nickname as well as he slid into the seat beside the pure white furred Miqo’te lady. “I happen to have a delivery for you.”

She blinked, surprised at his sudden approach, but he politely kept the comfortable distance the bar stools already prepared so she felt no need to be alarmed. “Tsasan..?” she echoed briefly before he slowly scooted over a tall glass with a lagoon blue drink, “Is this the delivery?”

Dubus chuckled, “Just my little choice of a nickname. If you don’t like it, I’d love to know what you’d prefer to be called,” he hummed following his words and leaned on the counter. Nodding once to the drink and once behind him, making his jeweled horns chime, he aimed to leading her eyes to follow the glance he cast back, “It’s a gift from the gentle noble over there.”

When she turned to look back, there was an Elezen man discreetly watching them from another table, same drink in his hand. Indeed he was elegantly clad, with enchanting golden eyes to match. It was enough to cause a small blush on her cheeks at the idea someone of that kind of status would find her to be of interest.

“You see, my friend found you rather attractive, like a sparkling patch of fresh snow, a rare gem in this desert that is Thanalan.” He grinned as the colour on her cheeks only darkened further and leaned a little closer and lowered his tone to a whisper, as if sharing a secret, “But you see, he was feeling a bit shy about approaching you. So here I am to introduce you, if you wish?”

It took her a moment to let his words to sink in, considering the options she had suddenly, “I… This is rather unexpected. I had heard much about this place… But…” she trailed off in thought and Dubus straightened back into his seat.

“No need to fret, dear Tsasan. May we chat for a little about my dear friend Severin and if you feel ready for a proper greeting, just try his drink and he will know, hm?” With a tilt of his head he waited patiently for her response; a small nod.

And so they spoke of the admirer one table over. Dubus boasted about the nobleman in amusing ways, enjoying playing wingman once more. He didn’t mind if he didn’t gain anything in the end charming the lady, just the flirting alone on another’s behalf was entertainment enough.

In the end she took a sip of her drink, the Xaela’s cue to take his leave and be replaced by the nobleman. Leaving her to fate.

#Story Time! #FFxIvWrite2022 #Dubus Hydrae #Severin d'Aumont #neoma-eltanin #right as I finished writing this #I had another idea that would have been really fun #with my bun boy #missed opportunity dammit #oh well there are a lot of prompts left

[brightbeautifulthings]

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7

Week 8 (§46)

"...and nobody else was for sure going to see me or treat me the way I wanted to be seen, so it was my job to make sure to see myself and treat myself like I was really worthwhile" (p. 508).

This is probably the most invested I've been since Chris Fogle's section (not quite levitating off my chair riveted, but, you know, who is besides Drinion). Wallace is really good at crafting beautiful sentences, capturing something real and human about contemporary life, and belaboring a philosophical point to absolute death, but when he's not preoccupied with these things, he's also a good character writer, capable of designing characters who are unique, sympathetic, and memorable. The way he captures conversational nuances is on full display here, and it's basically a long, extended example of one of the novel's major themes that things become interesting by virtue of our full attention to them.

He's really only got one tool in his arsenal when it comes to writing women though, and that's to write a girl who's pretty beyond all reason and make that her entire personality + the only thing other people ever know or notice about her. Meredith Rand is Joelle Van Dyne without the facial deformity, the narrator from Invisible Monsters who got shot in the face, and dozens of other archetypal beautiful females that make me wish “literary” men would stop trying to write women (or perhaps try a little harder).

I don't really remember how I felt about Rand's whole prettiness neurosis the first time I read it, but this time I came away feeling like Wallace doesn't have the slightest idea what it's like to be a teenage girl, gorgeous or otherwise. The underlying point is relevant and interesting though, which is that we have to choose to make ourselves human in a world that will constantly objectify or dehumanize us. No one else can do it for us. Like many of Wallace's points, it does feel undermined slightly by its delivery--not only is Rand still somewhat caught up in this problem, the section ends rather abruptly without any sort of attempt at a conclusion.

"...there's this feeling like no more smiley masks, no more pretending, which feels good, except it gets kind of seductive and dangerous..." (p. 479)

Given the presence of sinister smiley faces in Infinite Jest, I'm going to assume that's a nod. It's interesting to see it here as a kind of inhibitor to real human connection, which was what J.O.I. was trying to resolve with his entertainment and instead ended up creating a kind of involuntary solipsism. As always, it seems to imply there is no one simple solution to the problem, or that any solution taken too far can itself become part of the problem.

The DFW Discord server is hosting this readalong. Join us for discussions! 💀

#the pale king #the pale king readalong #david foster wallace #discord book club #yrstruly

[nevis-the-skeleton]

Hi :) I'm glad I discovered you had a blog. So I wanted to tell you first that I love your story, and the drama you wrote for it is really entertaining. You know me as "Wondering" in the comments. Reading the description of your blog, I see that you accept requests for one-shots, but if not, at least it's an idea that I wanted to share with you. Situation: The kids want to "expand" the culture of Earth, and they are going to choose a movie to watch, but it must be to Starscream's liking to win another interested. And the film, strategically thought out, is Titanic. It's a classic, but the reason they chose that one is because of the drama of the two main characters. Two social classes, the rich one meets the simpler world, an abusive relationship… a forbidden relationship… her love freezes to death… everything was planned :) SS: frag. It would be interesting to read a one-shot with that theme, but if not, then is just an idea

Me gustan tus ideas:)

Hello, Wondering, it's nice to see you on Tumblr ^^! it makes me so happy that you love my story! really X3! Thank you for your support (^3^)!

I love your idea of ​​the Titanic movie ^^! This will be my next one-shot :D! I'll post it tomorrow X)!

The only difference is that the children will not think of all the points you pointed out, which are indeed very close to the life of Starscream XD. They'll choose this movie because they want to show him a classic, and just going make a mistake just similar to when they decided to show him "Kiki's Delivery Service", in my main story of "The Polar Star" X).

#tfp #transformers prime #starscream #polar star #au #étoile polaire #tfp starscream #miko nakadai #jack darby #raf esquivel #idea of one-shot #i love this idea #it's going to be fun X) #the life of starscream is a drama XD

[kenttheatreblog]

A REVIEW: The 39 Steps at The Hazlitt Theatre

My very first review and what a way to start with this clever comedy.

With tongue in cheek, Patrick Barlow has created a very up to date hilarious modern play extremely loosely based on the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock classic movie. Bored bachelor, Richard Hannay’s life becomes rather more eventful when he meets stunning Annabella Schmidt, a counter espionage agent. After taking her home to his flat, she is murdered in front of his very eyes. Accused of her demise, he flees to Scotland in an attempt to expose the spy ring, closely tailed by a mysterious organisation in a nationwide man hunt with twists and turns that climaxes in a death defying finale.

In the programme, the Director (Ian Craddock) tells of his struggle to choose a cast of only four as it was originally intended and I can fully understand his dilemma because the talent on that stage was immense.

As the hero, Hannay, Michael Kurtay, with his suave manner and his tweed suit, not to forget his pencil moustached stiff upper lip, created the perfect pivot point for the mayhem and disorder that circled him and I loved his opening monologue and of course his spontaneous political speech later in the play. Very ably partnered by Clare Corrigan as Annabella Schmidt whose comic timing was impeccable and who played the temptress femme fatale very convincingly. I applaud Clare for lying still for so long across the armchair with a knife in her back whilst Hannay hilariously made his escape.

At Hannay’s side, the prim and proper Pamela, played by Emma Edwards, a very accomplished actress who injected humour and seduction as Hannay’s love interest. Emma never falls out of character and she has such stage presence.

Margaret (Charlie Hilton) played her cameo beautifully with sincerity towards Hannay and Sheila Veitch added a bit of a Hilda Ogden moment whilst waving her feather dusteraround, which made the audience smile.

All the clowns deserve a massive mention (Matt Dallas, Russell Hambelton, David Ruler, Richard Pilborough, and Scott Raffle) with their array of costume changes,characterisations, hats, accents, comedic facial hair and wigs. They were witty and high on energy, nailing the characters at a pace and showcasing their versatility.

What a brilliantly assembled company which includes the crew, lights, sound, scenery, costumes and those holding up prickly bush and muddy puddle signs, not to forget the sheep. The scenery appeared to be simple but incredibly effective. I am a huge fan of less is more when it comes to stage sets and being able to change a car into a train into a bed meets with my approval. Also what a genius idea to dress the scene shifters in coats and flat caps.

Memorable moments for me are of course the biplane scene, which was ingenious and I am still chuckling at the Radio Presenter‘s very funny delivery of his lines.

Mix Hitchcock and a spy story with a pinch of Monty Python and you have an incredible unmissable chaotic comedy which will have you laughing out loud.

I consider myself to be an active theatre goer and I wanted to give a fair and honest opinion, so tonight, without a doubt, I was hugely entertained. I have absolutely no negative comments at all. Well done The Willington Players – A remarkable terrific triumph of theatre.

Julie Argent

The 39 Steps as presented by The Willington Players runs at The Hazlitt Theatre in Maidstone from 25th-29th April 2023. Get your tickets at parkwoodtheatres.co.uk

[emonthlynews]

Liam Neeson’s Confession: Why He Thought a “Taken” Scene is Cheesy

In his lengthy and illustrious acting career, Liam Neeson has portrayed a number of iconic roles, but Bryan Mills, the former CIA agent with a unique set of skills in the 2008 action thriller Taken, may be his most well-known performance.

Even Neeson, who played the lead role in the movie, admits that he was taken aback by the movie’s enormous success and the character’s immortal phone call speech.

“I certainly did sound scary, but I thought it was corny,” Neeson recently said in an interview with Vanity Fair. “It was a cornball. I really did feel that. It’s nice to be proven wrong.”

For those who may not be aware, the speech in question occurs toward the end of the movie, when Mills is on the phone with the kidnappers who have taken his daughter. In a now-famous monologue, he threatens the kidnappers and vows to track them down and kill them if they do not immediately release his daughter. He does this in a cool, collected manner.

Despite the speech being a fan favorite, Neeson has frequently stated over the years that he never expected it to be taken seriously, much less turn into a memorable movie moment.

He acknowledged in a 2012 interview with Empire Magazine that he had to be persuaded to give the speech with conviction by director Pierre Morel because he initially thought it was “just plain old-fashioned cheese.”

Read also: Elizabeth Banks Confirms Interest in Directing “Cocaine Shark” with Two Key Conditions

Successful Corniness

Even though Taken inspired two sequels in 2012 and 2014, Neeson admitted to Entertainment Weekly in 2020 that he had no confidence in the film’s box office success.

“I thought, ‘Well, this is going to go straight-to-video. A short little European thriller, it might play okay for a couple weeks in France and then it will go straight-to-video,'” he recounted at the time. 

“But Fox took it and they very cleverly did a good trailer and put it during various sporting events around the country and they made it a real success. I remember the first weekend it came in at No. 3, and then it came up to No. 2 and then No. 1, and then it went down to No. 4, and it came up to No. 3 again. It just had this extraordinary cycle.” 

But as it turns out, Neeson’s initial misgivings about the speech were unfounded. Audiences were immediately drawn to his tough yet vulnerable portrayal of Mills, and the phone call speech quickly became a cultural touchstone, inspiring countless parodies and homages in the years since the film’s release.

Although Neeson found some parts of Taken a bit cheesy, he had a great time filming the movie and appreciated the opportunities it brought to his career.

“I had no idea that it would lead onto other films and other action scripts,” Neeson said in an interview with EW in 2019. “They started sending me action scripts and you’d see ‘Leading man, age 37’ crossed out and ‘late 40s, early 50s’ written in instead. I feel very privileged, and a little bit guilty. I’m having fight scenes with guys half my age and I just can’t stop laughing.”

Taken: A Legend

Part of the speech’s appeal lies in its simplicity and straightforwardness. Mills doesn’t waste time with flowery language or grandstanding; he simply tells the kidnappers what they need to hear in order to get his daughter back. 

And Neeson’s understated delivery only adds to the power of the moment, as he conveys a quiet intensity that makes it clear he is not to be trifled with.

In the years since Taken became a surprise hit, Neeson has reprised his role as Bryan Mills in two sequels and continued to play tough-as-nails characters in films like The Grey and Non-Stop. But for many fans, it is his turn as Mills in the original Taken that remains his most iconic performance, thanks in no small part to that unforgettable phone call speech.

In 2008, a little action movie called Taken hit theaters, starring veteran actor Liam Neeson as a retired CIA agent on a mission to rescue his daughter who was kidnapped by human traffickers. Little did Neeson know that the film, which he initially thought would tank at the box office, would go on to become a fan favorite and a cultural phenomenon.

With Pierre Morel as director and Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen as writers, Taken follows the story of Bryan Mills (Neeson), a former government operative who is forced to use his “particular set of skills” to save his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) from being sold into sexual slavery while on a trip to Paris...Read More

Read also: Unpacking the ‘Love Actually’ Storyline That Still Leaves Viewers Wondering: Sarah and Karl

Source: Entertainment Monthly News

#Liam Neeson #Bryan Mills #CIA agent

[carolinemillerbooks]

New Post has been published on Books by Caroline Miller

New Post has been published on https://www.booksbycarolinemiller.com/musings/warning-to-a-future-tenant/

Warning To A Future Tenant

My Salinger Year is an entertaining film. In this coming-of-age story, a young poet is hired at a literary agency that represents J. D. Salinger.  Her job is to shred unread letters from the author’s fans, but after scanning a heartfelt few, she decides to answer them. The plot unravels from there. I read The Catcher in the Rye in my late twenties when I was obliged to teach the novel in high school.  By then, I was past being rebellious but still uncertain about my future.  Like Holden Caulfield, I was a drifter.  Otherwise, the pair of us had little in common. Salinger’s life interested me more than his book. After his literary success, he chose to escape the hurly-burly of New York to live in a rural hamlet, enjoying his morning coffee in a cottage protected by high walls. What bliss, I thought, l when I’d learned of his decision. He’d freed himself from the distractions of praise or criticism to concentrate on his writing. True, he created Caulfield while living a few miles northeast of New York City, hardly an Elysian field. And it is also true the books he wrote after his urban escape are those only a librarian knows. Nonetheless, I’ve long dreamed of a quiet setting to write, unimpeded.  Too old for a nunnery, at 76 I took refuge in a retirement center, there to be free of unwanted chores. No more trimming my neighbor’s creeping ivy. Or, clearing dog poop from my steps. No more waiting at the window for the plumber to arrive. And the bliss of bliss, I’d never shovel another snowy sidewalk. Once ensconced in my new apartment at Shady Pines, I imagined I’d be supported by a host of invisible cooks, housecleaners, and maintenance staff who would be dedicated to my comfort while I endeavored to write. As the move-in date approached, I became giddy with anticipation.  Beyond my imaginings, I had no idea what would follow.  The staff soon put me right as I settled in. From the outset, I faced continuous interruptions. Air filters had to be changed; the fire alarm needed testing.  Even the window cleaner dropped by via a rope. Between these visitations, I found memos stuffed into my mailbox. Or surveys. Or the minutes of committee meetings. As the years have passed, I’ve tried to adjust to these missives–despite the confusion they cause or the contradictory information they contain. The tone, at least, is courteous.  “Thank you for your patience.” Even so, these communications remind me of Harold Pinter’s play, The Dumb Waiter.  Like his characters, I continue to feel besieged by messages that make demands yet fail to respond to questions. All I’m told is that at 9 a.m. on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, but never a Friday, someone will arrive at my door to install or fix or destroy….  (Fill in the blank.)  In response, I’m obliged to postpone my shower and wait.  Should no one rap on my door, a second and a third memo will follow to set a new time for the disruption.    I might be dead when the appointed hour arrives, but the consequences will be minimal.  What matters is that the space will be maintained and ready for the next tenant.  I confess I’ve been driven to extremes to protect my privacy. No longer do I accept cleaning services.  The dates, times, and manner of delivery are too frequently altered.  Likewise, the dinner hour is quixotic.  I prefer to thaw a frozen meal rather than confront the labyrinth of what passes for efficient meal service. Nonetheless, people with wrenches arrive at my door, and I am obliged to throw it open to them–being mindful that my premises must always be ready for the next tenant. Recently, the institution upgraded to a 5G network service.  Like flies attracted to an open window in summer, technicians have drifted in and out of my lodgings at will.  Even the mechanics hired to reinforce the elevator’s ancient pullies have had to give them preference. So who am I, a novice grappling with a short story, to  ask, “Could you come another time?” A few days ago, I received a memo that said the 5G work was completed and the new system would go online the following Wednesday.  Flushed with that assurance, my thoughts drifted back to the mystery I was writing.  I’d gotten as far as murder in a locked room when a fresh memo appeared. The 5G system had failed, making it necessary for the technicians to return.  When? The notice didn’t say. It concluded with its usual courtesy, though.  “Thank you for your patience.”

#5G upgrades #fantasies about retirement #Harold Pinter #Holden Caufield #J. D. Salinger #life in a retirement center #My Salinger Year #retirement #rural life #The Catcher in the Rye #The Dumb Waiter #urban life

[devildom-drabbles]

Request are open correct? If not ignore this! How would the brothers and side characters react to this: A random demon insults Simeon or Solomon or both and Mammon defends them and says, "Ya know, you're talking a lot of shit for someone with two perfectly good eyeballs, each price at about $762 on the black market. 'insert pop sound'" (Also I just love the hc that Mammon and the side characters are close and consider each other friends) :D And Also I love your writing!🤗

Oh my goodness, that’s hilarious! And I totally agree with you; I think Mammon is closer with the side characters than he lets on. He would definitely defend them if someone seriously insulted them. Thank you for your kind words and the fun prompt! Enjoy! =)

How would everyone react to Mammon defending Simeon/Solomon by using a threat?

Lucifer simply pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. Of course Mammon would know that kind of information, he thinks to himself. Regardless, the situation isn’t his problem unless the insulting demons have any connection to Diavolo, in which case, he’d step in just to ensure Mammon doesn’t actually try to pluck out their eyeballs. Otherwise, he’d let his brother take whatever action he wants to. He isn’t pleased with what the demons said either, but he’d rather Mammon handle it than do something himself that could reveal how he cares for Simeon/Solomon.

Leviathan snorts at the comment, even surprising himself at how funny he found it to be--considering it came from Mammon of all people. He won’t try to stop his older brother from going after the demons who insulted Simeon/Solomon, as he thinks they deserve it anyway. He’s not one for confrontation if he can avoid it, so he won’t join the argument unless it’s Simeon in particular who is ridiculed or if Solomon is insulted for his interest in TSL. If that happens, then he’s on a full-blown rant about how great TSL is and how dare these demons go after the author (Simeon)/a fellow fan (Solomon) and they’re clearly the biggest normies in existence for even saying such things and-- The demons might have trouble getting away from Levi more than Mammon at this point...

Satan knows that many times Mammon gives empty threats, but he’s hoping this particular threat will be followed through on. Sounds like a good source of entertainment an educational experience to him, both in how Mammon goes about removing their eyeballs and then selling them. He’ll even encourage Mammon or taunt the other demons if it means getting to see how this plays out. Depending on the severity of the insults toward Simeon/Solomon, he may consider joining Mammon in whatever he chooses to do to the demons (but then he expects half the profit of whatever is sold at the black market).

Asmodeus finds Mammon’s remark (and the delivery of it) a bit gross. However, the idea of those demons getting their just deserts for ridiculing Simeon/Solomon excites him, bringing a playful smile to his lips coupled with a dangerous look in his eyes as he stares down the demons opposing them. He’ll deliver a few venomous insults and threats of his own toward the demons in retaliation (ex. “Your eyes aren’t that pretty anyway, so why not let Mammon do you a favor in getting rid of them, hm?”). He’ll find himself prompting Mammon to not hold back, but he’d rather not join in physically--he just got a manicure earlier, and he also doesn’t want to dirty his brand new outfit. Instead, he’ll try to usher Simeon/Solomon away so that do something more pleasant while Mammon handles the demons.

Beelzebub doesn’t have much of an opinion on what Mammon said, but he’s glad that his older brother stepped in to defend Simeon/Solomon. He had planned to say something, too, but his mouth and hands were full of food, allowing Mammon to interrupt the demons before he could. In fact, Beel’s presence unintentionally makes Mammon’s remark more intimidating to the demons; the Avatar of Greed threatens to pluck out their eyeballs while the sound of grapes popping under the pressure of the Avatar of Gluttony’s teeth echo behind him, making the demons picture the grapes as their eyes. Yeah, those demons are shrieking apologies to Simeon/Solomon before running away as fast as Mammon when he’s chased by Lucifer.

Belphegor just shakes his head, not at all surprised that Mammon has made such a comment. Still, he doesn’t blame Mammon for threatening the demons after all the nasty remarks they made toward Simeon/Solomon--he’d do the same if they didn’t let up and if he wasn’t so tired. Aside from telling the angel/human not to bother with trying to stop Mammon, he won’t say anything during the situation. Later on, though, he’ll definitely tease Mammon about how much he truly cares about Simeon/Solomon, possibly even exaggerating the story a little to anyone who asks about it just to tease him further.

Diavolo is shocked when he stumbles upon the scene, only catching Mammon’s remark when he arrives. He’ll ask what’s going on, his powerful gaze freezing everyone in their spot, which becomes seemingly stronger after Mammon explains that the demons had been insulting Simeon/Solomon first. He’ll remind those demons about how they are expected to treat the exchange students and force them to apologize to Simeon/Solomon. It appears that he’s let them off with a warning, but he tells Mammon that he can take whatever action he pleases--yes, even plucking out their eyeballs for profit--if they do this again. Only afterward does he chuckle while reflecting on Mammon’s earlier threat to the demons.

Barbatos actually is just about to warn the demons about the consequences for harassing the exchange students when Mammon cuts in with this comment. His polite smile never falters as Mammon speaks, though it does become more genuine. He’s happy to see that the demon brother has grown fond of the exchange students, thus making a significant step toward Lord Diavolo’s goal of bringing the three realms together in harmony, but he’s also amused by the Avatar of Greed’s particular comment. After adding in his original warning, Barbatos will let the demons know that Mammon’s threat will not be the only thing they’ll have to worry about if they decide to continue insulting Simeon/Solomon. Needless to say, those demons never bothered the exchange students again.

Simeon is startled by Mammon’s declaration to the demons who insulted him, quickly covering Luke’s ears in case the comments get worse. He tells Mammon that such an action wouldn’t be necessary--or right (morally)--and manages to talk everyone down to prevent a fight. Afterwards though, he thanks Mammon for trying to stick up for him, which the tsundere vehemently denies doing. The incident actually reminds Simeon of how the former angel used to defend him and others who he felt weren’t being treated fairly back in the Celestial Realm. The memory brings a smile to his face as Mammon walks away, only to disappear when he hears Luke demanding him to take his hands off his ears already and tell him what just happened. (+ Although Luke doesn’t like what Mammon had said, he’s grateful that this demon brother still stood up against the demons who ridiculed Simeon, especially since they took Mammon more seriously than when he was trying to defend Simeon.)

Solomon is taken aback to see Mammon stepping in to make such a remark to the demons who were bothering him. He certainly hadn’t expected Mammon to defend him, but hearing how the comment involved adding money in the Avatar of Greed’s pocket helps him realize why it occurred. He can’t wipe the grin off his face as he watches the demons retreat in fear and turns to thank Mammon, even letting out a chuckle when this demon brother claims to not have been trying to help him. Solomon is happy to learn that he’d become an important friend to Mammon without intentionally getting on his good side for the sake of making a pact, which is usually the case when he befriends demons.

#ask response #obey me #obey me shall we date #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me levi #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me asmo #obey me beelzebub #obey me beel #obey me belphegor #obey me belphie #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me simeon #obey me luke #obey me solomon #snippet

[incorrect-koh-posts]

I don't even know where to begin with.i knew that i was diving into a very long dead fandom but stumbling on your blog was like finding an oasis in desert.i watched KOH few days ago and oh MY GOD.. THE OBSESSION I have developed for king baldwin is UNEXPLAINABLE. I don't even like edward Norton but wtf I can't get that voice out of my head .the way those keen eyes peer from behind that beautiful silver mask,the grace and authority which he possess in his subtle posture is so mesmerizing to watch.and don't let me even start on that inciting head tilt.Dammm i would keep the whole world at his feet if he looks at me like that. I was not even remotely disturbed by seeing his actual disfigured face .in fact there was something hypnotic, a complete magic, about that portrayal which left me so enraptured that I felt as if I was watching the actual king not an actor.never have I ever even thought that one day i shall wish to travel back in time to meet a twelfth century king.i would just go back to give him a big warm hug(only if I don't get executed)and will try to heal him with the help of modern medicines.after all my boy deserves it.till the day he had stayed alive everyone treated him as untouchable due to his disease .our poor baby boy must have certainly thought himself as an ugly monstrous thing .i wish that if only someone had ever told him he was the sexiest man in the entire Jerusalem.if only king Baldwin had known that how much love and adoration he will receive from future generations.i would have fainted for sure only if he ever saw at me like that behind the mask. I don't even know why the fuck I am ranting these childish thing but fuck it , I just wanted to let it out from my mind.all these thoughts were cluttering inside my head.I wanted to talk about it to someone since the time I saw it and then I found your blog . god... I lost interest entirely in the story after he died.. and oh god that scene of his funeral had overwhelmed me so much. truth to be told, I know there are many historical inaccuracies in this movie and I personally watch historical movies just for sake of entertainment . I know that they always twist history in such movies.i don't mind it as long as I find it Enjoyable. but holy God, balian is the most bland and unexciting protagonist I have ever seen in a movie.wtf was that face.he had the same expression in every scene.literally every character's arc was better than him whether they were good or bad.their character seemed natural in that setting but his arc felt so forced like everyone was trying to make him a Mary sue and the idea of him being an atheist at those time was just absurd .his father trained him for 30 seconds and waoo he became a knight.and everytime he holds his sword in both hand above his head, it looks so ridiculous.his dialogue delivery was so cringy.i don't generally see much personality in female characters in such war movies but at least eva green's character was not one dimensional and I liked it.and that saladin's actor really stole the screen presence in the second half of the movie.his presence kept me watching the movie till the end. you can disagree with any of above points I won't mind.afterall It's me who had wanted a discussion about this movie in 2022 .and yes don't let this blog die.. let keep our king alive here... ❤

Hi there :) There's a lot to disentangle here, but since you took the time to tell me all this, I'll try my best to answer at least somewhat coherently.

So, first of all (and this goes to all of you): Please don't feel ashamed / bad / any other negative emotion for ranting at me about KoH! That's why this blog exists, after all - to give all the lone souls with an interest in melancholy leper kings and other assorted sad idiots in chainmail a space to conglomerate and commiserate with each other about the deadness of this obscure, tiny fandom. (Or something like that.) 😂 I'm very happy to engage with people, have discussions, exchange ideas / headcanons / whatever your heart desires, and I'm not going to attack anyone for their expressing their opinions (unless they're harmful, politically insensitive, racist, ableist, religiously fundamentalist, etc. you name it. I don't want any of that rubbish here or anywhere else, and I assume neither do any of you.). 

And no, I don’t think it’s childish that you have a soft spot for Baldwin IV. Many people do - especially the ones you’ll find here - and I mean, why on earth would we not have a thing for him? He’s cool, he’s wise, he’s kind, he’s a fierce warrior, good at chess, has a tragic personal history, and he looks handsome as all f*ck in his silver mask. Who wouldn’t want to go back in time and save him from his fate? 😂 That’s an A+ fantasy for rainy days.  

[On that note: If you haven’t already, go have a look at either the KoH fanfiction sections on AO3 or FF.net (or if you want to have a laugh, search for the old KoH fanfics on livejournal - lots of those are a hoot, too), or try some of the traditionally published novels taking place in that time period (I’m probably going to make a list of those at some point if anyone’s interested). There’s plenty of good Baldwin stuff to be had if you know where to look.]

And as for the Balian-is-a-Mary-Sue-thing: Though I know that there are some people here who love Balian, I have to agree with you on this point (at least mostly). When I first watched the film, I didn’t much enjoy Bloom’s performance - it is rather wooden and one-note. But a lot of this is probably the script’s fault: It doesn’t give him much to work with - Balian actually has fewer lines of dialogue than many of the other characters - and I think it also has to do with the fact that in the 2000s there was a certain fashion for movies and movie protagonists of that kind. You know, the sort of narrative that would have some kind of outsider or underdog as a protagonist for the audience to relate to while being introduced to a different sort of world than the one they and the protagonist know. (For another example, think the hobbits in LotR, or, well ... any other generic fantasy protagonist.) Nowadays, we often get more complex narratives in current films / TV series / literature because the industry seems to have realised that mass audiences can actually handle that sort of thing. But back in 2005, starting the story in medias res with Balian already in Outremer - as history would have dictated: he was born in Ibelin, after all, and actually had several brothers - would have been a no-go. If they had made KoH ten years later, chances are we would have seen a Game-of-Thrones style epic with a number of narrative strands following different characters over a few seasons, which would likely have worked better for the complicated historical politics KoH more or less butchered to present a somewhat coherent story. Balian, in my opinion, looks out of place in it because the movie makes him the sole protagonist when other historical figures were actually more or at least equally important. He is made to carry a weight he isn’t meant to carry, and the odd plot contrivances the writers concocted to make him seem like the only hero are not really helping with that. 

But yeah, Balian seems to be the go-to protagonist for anything set in the time period between 1172-1190. Helena Schrader has a whole trilogy of books centred around him, and even Sharon K. Penman in The Land Beyond The Sea (a novel that I quite enjoyed research-wise) makes him seem like such an angelic and singularly kind and heroic guy that I just wanted to curl up like a hedgehog and cry. Can nobody ever write me something about the Count of Tripoli, goddamnit? Do I have to do everything myself?   

So, as you see, I’m a pretty cringe person myself. And I totally did not take your ask as an excuse to rant about Balian AT ALL. No, I am not abandoning or deleting this blog. I enjoy creating content for this microscopically small fandom, since this is apparently what my idiotic heart has settled on. Sometimes I do get disheartened by how little activity there is, but whenever I hear from people like you who have just come across KoH and this blog, I’m happy that I kept going and I’ll try to do so in the future, come what may. 😊

And if the action pictured below is what you’d like to do to Baldwin, go ahead. We’ve all been there - trust me. I’m sure he appreciates your hugs ❤

#asks #thank you for reaching out #i really do appreciate it #baldwin iv #balian of ibelin #kingdom of heaven 2005 #and some discourse! #as you can see i'm always happy to rant 😂 #and whoever wants to participate in the discussion please feel free to

[eternalstargazer]

Credit to @larluvr1d for giving me the idea for this post! 😄

What are the odds Sarah Natochenny (Ash's VA) and Zeno Robinson (Goh's VA) are aware that people ship the characters that they voice? I personally think it's more likely than not they at least know about the shipping side of the fandom (... and I can't help but wonder what their initial reaction was... 🤣).

I recall back when 4Kids Entertainment had the rights to the English dub, some of the VAs had accounts and posted on a few of the larger Pokémon forums. I think after the VA change over, some of the then-new VAs at the time also posted on the same forums to get feedback from fans, but this is going back to 2006 and yeah... I don't exactly remember. 😅

Two clips come to mind that make me think they're aware of the popularity of the Ash and Goh pairing and lead me to believe they're either cool with it (secretly support it? I can dream, can't I? 😂) or at the very least willing to throw us shippers a bone now and then:

In clip one, Ash really seems to like how that school boy uniform looks on Goh (how come he never complimented Chloe on how she looks in her uniform?? That's a joke by the way. 😜). We all had fun with this scene back when the episode aired, and Sarah probably did too when delivering it. I would think though she (and the person that handled the script translation) had to know what they were doing here.

It's more of a meme nowadays, but being attracted to/loving a man in uniform (military/firefighters/police officers, etc...) is a well known thing that happens both in real life and in media such as movies (especially common in the older, black and white WW2 movies) and TV. Then, of course, there is the popularity (and the memes) of anime girls in school uniforms and how they are viewed.

The uniform = attraction connection is common enough in both Japan and western cultures so when we get a scene in the anime where Ash pays special attention to how good Goh looks in his school uniform (and then the way the camera pans from Goh's feet up to his face, giving the impression Ash is checking him out; a known filming technique that is sometimes used specifically to convey a character is interested in another), I can't help but wonder if there's some subtext going on here.

The script could've just left it at "Goh it looks great on you!" or Sarah/the voice director could've chosen not to have the "what a uniform" line be delivered in a tone that makes Ash sound like he's fallen head over heels for how attractive Goh looks in his uniform. Seriously, if a girl said this to a guy in uniform, what would the takeaway be? It wouldn't be a stretch to think that she's attracted to the guy.

Oh and of course Goh blushes. Maybe neither the original nor the dub is trying to be subtle here. 😆😊

This is already longer than I planned, so I won't spend too much time on the second clip and how Zeno delivers his line about holding hands with Ash (you can read another one of my posts where I go on for far too long about a scene that is only seconds long here if you want) so I'll just repost the relevant part here:

... credit once again to Zeno Robinson's portrayal of Goh! His line delivery here, especially that pause before the "holding hands" part is so perfect. Honestly, the dub's choice of BGM works pretty well as there was no BGM in the Japanese version, and between that and Robinson's tone and delivery, the potential undertones of this scene come across stronger in the dub.

I'm sure too it's just a pure and total coincidence that the first episode to debut the new OP "Journey to Your Heart" happens to be the one where Ash seems smitten with Goh and Goh blushes at the compliment. 😉

#journeyshipping #firstfriendshipping #fatedencountershipping #gouacheshipping #satogou #satogoh #ash x goh #ash x gou #pokemon journeys