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moonlightlullaby · 3 years

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just like magic

summary: Reader has a card up their sleeve, leaving Spencer intrigued, flustered and impressed.

pairing: Spencer x gn! non-BAU! Rossi’s offspring!Reader

category: fluff

A/N: this is one of the first gn!reader pieces that I’ve written, so please let me know if I’ve slipped up somewhere!

word count: 2.5k

No sooner had I opened the glass door leading to my dad’s “humble” backyard than Henry’s and Jack’s fresh and joyous laughter filled my ears and warmed my heart. The sight that accompanied it only adding to my gleeful state, making my heart soar and melt instantly.

Spencer Walter Reid, the bright young Doc who I’ve known - and had a patent crush on - for nearly six years now, is entertaining the kids with a magic trick. I can’t help the smile that splatters on my face as I watch the scene unfold.

“Here, angelo mio.” my dad caresses my back as his other hand offers me a glass of wine. I take it and we clink our glasses together before making our way to the cozy wooden picnic table where his other colleagues are chatting. On our way, I go off-track and get closer to the sweet magician and adorable kids. “Hello, boys!” I extend my free hand, high-fiving both of them as they harmonize a “Hi” back to me. At Spencer, I flash a smile and wink and, without waiting for his reaction, I turn around and soothe Jack’s hair as I begin distancing myself.

“Oh what a sight for sore eyes! Y/N, you look fantastic! As always I mean…” in her very own manner that never gets old, Pen is the first to greet me, clapping in excitement and giving me a home-like hug. “Oh please! Have you looked at yourself in the mirror?” she waves her hand and rolls her eyes in a way that tells me both to stop tooting her horn and to keep the compliments going, making me giggle. “And I’ve said this before, but I’ll do it again. You need to show me where you’ve bought these rings, P.”

“Oh! I have an idea,” JJ chimes in. “we should go shopping tomorrow!” by the time she finishes her sentence, I - along with Penelope, Prentiss and Tara - am nodding my head fervorously. “I’ll take you up on that one.” Em voices what all of us are thinking.

“I mean, unless a case pops up…” JJ drags it out, contorting her lips. “We won’t,” Hotch reassures everyone. “these past two weeks have been hectic and we all have overworked ourselves. You deserve the weekend off.” to which Derek, Tara and my dad, in sync, raise their glasses.

“So, ladies,” Derek hugs me, grinning. “where are we going tomorrow?”

“We? Oh my chocolate thunder! Much as this pains me,” Pen places a hand over her chest to fuel the scene with more drama. “you’re not invited.”, which earns gasps and scoffs from him.

I lean my head on his shoulder, giving his hand two taps. “Yeah, Derek. Sorry,” I turn my face to him. “but, how are we supposed to have boy talk with you there?” the girls nod along in agreement and he smirks.

“Boy talk, hun?”

The thing is, Derek - much like every other person in the team... well, almost everyone - is well aware of my not-so-subtle crush on his oblivious friend and he never spares me some teasing. Thankfully, before he can take his teasing any further, I’m saved by the bell - and by the bell, I mean Henry and Jack.

“Y/N/N, Y/N/N!” knowing how much I love magic, Henry starts pulling me towards Spencer, giving me only a second to hand my glass to Derek. “Look at this! Spencer, do it again, do it again!”

“Yes, show Y/N the cool trick!” Jack says energetically after waving me over.

Spencer smiles at me, giving us a small nod, and turns his back to us to prepare himself for the show. I sit crisscross next to the giddy boys, feeling thrilled myself. “Alright,” Spencer turns around, observing his audience and clasping his hands together. “are you ready?”

“Yes!” we eagerly respond in unison.

“Y/N, I know you’re very fond of magic yourself.” I hum in agreement. “So, are you familiar with th- oh! Wait,” he furrows his brows and narrows his eyes, scanning my face for a millisecond. “what is this?” he steps closer to me, kneeling slightly and reaching for my face. The boys get more agitated and giggle. “This what?” I look back and forth between the magician and them, who immediately cover their mouths trying to conceil their giggles and to keep any secrets from escaping. “Excuse me.” Spencer mumbles before placing his hand on the side of my neck.

This simple gesture - a shy touch, a brief moment of intimacy - is enough to make my heart skip a bit, and I’m sure Spencer notices the sudden change in my pulse because his gaze momentarily leaves the side of my face to my eyes before travelling back to its original spot.

“This.” suddenly, I feel a ghost-like touch on the back and side of my neck, and, ahead of me, all I see is Spencer pulling an endless thin colorful - scarf-looking - cloth. I can’t contain the laugh and loud snort that escape my lips, inciting the boys, Spencer and even the grown-ups over there to burst into laughter as well.

By the time the entire cloth is out, my belly and cheeks ache and a tear is found in the corner of my eye. “Impressive, Doc! Very impressive as always.” he grins in return.

“Your turn, Y/N! Do a trick too, please” Jack suggests - well, orders basically since he knows I wouldn’t ever turn it down - and is backed up by an eager “yes!” from Henry.

“Oh you also do tricks?” Spencer sounds less surprised that I do than that this fact was unknown to him.

During some of my nights as Henry and Michael’s and/or Jack’s last-minute babysitter, I had to, in spite of how sweet and obedient they are, resort to desperate measures, such as magic tricks - some of which I’ve learned with the sole purpose of entertaining them. To Spencer, however, I’ve never had such opportunity. Not until now.

“Well, not as entertaining as yours, I’m sure, but yes.” I stand up, wiping bits of grass from my bottom.

“Umm, ok, I have a new one to show you, guys. I just… You wouldn’t have a deck of cards and a pen to lend me for a minute, would you?”

“The pen, I don’t. The deck of cards, though,” he searches his pockets, pulling a standard - and well cared for - deck. “here.” he hands it to me.

“Thank you very much.” I cursty theatrically.

Jack runs back from God-knows-where with a black pen in hands. “Here, the pen. My dad said you could borrow it.”

“Oh great! Thank you, Jack, and thank you, Aaron!” I raise my voice slightly at the end, nodding my head at Aaron and giving him a tight-lipped smile, which he mirrors.

“Okie, okie! Let’s start, shall we?” the boys exchange expectant glances and Spencer tilts his head, studying me and probably trying to predict my next moves. Hopefully, this will work. It’d be a shame failing in front not only of the boys - who, I’m sure, would never let me hear the end of it -, but also of Pretty Boy himself.

I shuffle the cards a little bit and open it, making a sort of fan with it and letting the faces and numbers face the ground. “Alright, boys, pick one card but don’t show it to me.” they both put their index fingers on the same card. “You can take it and let Spencer see.” the man standing to my left follows along and takes a peep at it. “Now, I want both of to draw whatever you feel like on it, ok? On the front.”

As they take turns putting their art on the card, I turn to Spencer, who’s already got his curious eyes on me. “Be patient” mine tell him and he takes a sip of his wine.

“Done!” Henry looks up at me.

“Great, you can put it back on the stack then,” he does so. “Ok, now, to prove you I’m not cheating, Spencer’s going to shuffle the cards.” I hand them to him. “However you want and as many times as you wish.”

Once he’s done, I take them back. “So, now, I guarantee you the first card I show you is the exact one you’ve picked. Ready?” They nod along and I double-tap on the top of the stack. “Alright. This,” I lift the first card. “is your card.”

They immediately shake their heads negatively and my eyes go wide. “Wait, really?” Feeling Spencer smirking behind me, I turn the card to take a look at it. It really isn’t the one. “Shoot!” I exclaim disappointedly, sighing.

“No, no, it’s ok... It’s ok.” I quickly recompose myself. “The next will definitely be the right one.” with my eyes closed and my nose scrunched, I circle my free hand above the deck as if drawing in energy and conjuring magic. Double-tapping once more, I pull the card up, still not looking.

When I open my eyes, I’m met with the boys’ scrunched noses and mischievous eyes as they, yet again, shake their heads no. “Oh no…”

This time, Spencer doesn’t even try conceiling his chuckle and has the audacity to comment “Oh, Y/N, you were too harsh on yourself earlier. This is much more entertaining than that little trick of mine.”, eliciting giggles from the kids.

“No…” I pout. “Guys, have a little faith in me, please.”

I close my eyes and bring the cards, sandwiched between my palms, closer to my ear in an attempt to hear the magic somehow. “Oh!” I open my eyes. “Guys, come check this out!” with that, I pike their curiosity and they scoot closer to me. I turn the deck over, so all fronts are facing upwards, and open it completely. “The card is not here!” Henry gasps, noticing that their five of diamonds is missing. The boys take the cards from my hands and I fumble my fingers in the air as if trying to sense where their card is, humming in the process.

“Ummm Jack, is there anything behind Henry’s ear?” The boy looks at me inquisitively and reaches for said spot.

“Oh here!” he nearly shouts, pulling the missing five of diamonds and showing everyone. However, before anyone has the chance to celebrate my small victory, the absence of drawings on the card is brought up, shocking our spectators. “Where are our dinosaurs?”

“Hey, Y/N, I hate being the party pooper,” ‘party pooper’? Coming from Dr. Spencer Walter Reid? Oh, this is news! “but it seems like you’ve just mixed two tricks and neither of them has worked.” Again, both boys laugh at it - at me -, siding with him.

“No, no, no! See, the thing about magic,” I narrow my eyes and tilt my head, gesticulating like the good Italian descendant my dad’s brought me up to be. “is that it requires a lot of concentration to work, and when you don’t focus enough on it, like I might have, it gets lost… Not completely lost, though! Uh, if we put our hearts to it, we can still find your dinosaurs, ok?” I crouch. “Can you help me out on this one?” I plead and extend my hands to them. They nod their heads and take my hands, we form something close to a circle, closing our eyes and letting magic speak.

“Uh-oh! Oh, guys, I feel something!”

“What is it?” and “Where are the dinosaurs?” are immediate and simultaneous reactions.

“Ummm, Spencer.” I turn to the man trying to contain his laughter at the scene that unfolds before his eyes. “Hm?” he tilts his head and raises his brows slightly, still smirking.

“Is there anything in your pockets right now?”

“Aside from the silks, no.”

“Are you sure?” I tilt my head, contorting my lips a bit and squinting my eyes with curiosity, which he mirrors. He’s intrigued. Mission accomplished - I mean, not completely accomplished yet, but a success nonetheless.

“Well, you can check for yourself.” he opens his arms a little so I can inspect the inner pockets of his blazer. The right one is empty as expected. In the left one, my fingertips meet the colorful cloth and nothing else.

“You’re right, Spencer.” I sigh “Only,” I start pulling the cloth out “the,” it’s now in the kids’ view “silks.” gasps and wows come from our audience. I turn to the two wide-eyed boys who are now rushing over to grab it from my hands.

“How did you-?”

“It worked, Y/N! It worked!”

“This is so cool!”

I giggle, feeling Spencer’s baffled gaze switch between me and the dinousaur-printed cloth. I also hear applause coming from the rest of the team and a “they’ve beat Spencie at his own game! You go, love!” from the one and only Penelope Garcia. Glacing at the man in question, I catch him mouth agape, dazed eyes, and a smile threatening to take over his lips.

“Y/N/N, Y/N/N, can I keep it? It looks so pretty.” at this, I smile softly, shrugging a bit as I respond. “Well, it’s Spencer’s…” the three of us turn to the Good Doctor, who, pulled from his trance, nods vigorously and wets his bottom lip in the typical Spencer Reid style. “Yes. Definitely, Henry.”

As the boys cheer, my dad, from the doorstep, catches everyone’s attention. “Dinner is ready, family.”

Strolling back to the house and quickly side-hugging JJ on the way, I sense a quite desperate, puzzled tall individual hot on my trail. In a breath, he catches up and starts walking side by side with me, causing me to smirk.

“How did you-”

I don’t let him finish the much predictable question. “Oh, you don’t actually want to know the answer, Spencer.” while we cross the doorstep, I look at him from the corner of my eye, catching - once again - him already eyeing me. He opens his mouth before closing it and raises his hand before dropping it. In sympathy, I continue. “But, in case you do find yourself desperate for it, there’s something in your right pocket that might be helpful.” I can’t help smiling as the last words come out. And, without giving him the chance to question or ramble like he always does, I walk over to the dinner table, settling myself between Hotch and Tara.

As I sit down, I catch Spencer on the same spot I’ve left him, blushing as his brain processes - or at least tries to - what’s written on the little note. He quickly - yet carefully - folds it, puts it back in its original place, licks his lips once more - I wonder if he’s aware of how often he does that - and walks to the table. Our eyes lock and he smiles, in a slightly nervous - or is it excited? - way, taking his seat right across from mine.

Truth be told, Spencer’s known my number by heart for years now for I am my dad’s emergency contact. However, I was never the one to give it to him, just like he’s never been the one to call me. Hopefully, now that I’ve changed the former, the latter will also change.

#criminal minds imagine #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x y/n

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tirorah · 3 years

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Road to Berlin’s ‘Road to Berlin’ Sure Was a Road to Berlin Episode

Hiya, everyone! It’s that time of the week, but don’t worry, your assigned reading is pretty light this time. Because, honestly? I don’t have much to say about this episode in terms of character arcs or themes or the like. Instead, you’ll find my brief thoughts under the cut, as well as my favorite stuff from Episode 11.

In the end, this episode was a follow-up to the ending of Episode 10, and also the start of the final offensive, which makes Episode 11 the middle chapter of a three-parter. This is always difficult to make satisfying--look at any pre-planned trilogy and you can see the struggle with ramping up the tension while also not blowing the series’ full load, as it needs to set up the final, climactic piece.

Consequently, Road to Berlin (the episode) didn’t do a lot of exciting things; it simply moved the story along. And that’s 100% fine. It’s just not as richly packed with content as most of the season has been. There was also some blatant reuse of old footage again (they really love that shot of Trude brandishing her guns, don’t they?) but again, I felt it was within acceptable parameters. I did feel like the episode was holding back a bit with the aerial combat, though. Seems the Ratte was the biggest star of the show for this week.

Without further ado and in no particular order, here are my favorite things from this episode!

Patton’s Redemption

Sort of. He was still a gloating idiot, but he actually valued Yoshika’s power enough to argue the 501st’s case to his fellow generals, and he showed admirable tenacity when the Neuroi’s full power gradually revealed itself. He didn’t shout nearly as often either, and was much more reasonable. Overall, he was far less cartoony and made a decent start at showing us why he attained his current rank.

Although I’ll never forgive him for this. That, and calling Yoshika a ‘little missy.’

This Line from Minna

It’s delivered calmly, but I like to think this is Diplomatic Minna Speak for ‘Fuck off and up yours, she saved your damn butts!’

And another thing: the doctor said it’d take Yoshika a week to be able to fly again, but Minna wants a delay of ten days, not seven. It seems she wants half a week extra so that Yoshika can recover more, which is both prudent and kind of her.

The Generals Being Children

Both amusement and disbelief filled me as I watched the generals of different nations bicker like bloody schoolyard kids. It’s true what they say: War. War never changes. (And especially not the ego of man.) The fact a bunch of grown men devolved into chest-thumping and throwing crap at one another is hilarious. Even Lucchini’s been more mature than that this season, and that says something!

Shizuka’s Turbulent Emotions

Again, Shizuka shows off her similarities to Trude; I feel like she’s definitely the type to hold this in until it comes spilling out in one ugly cry like it did here. She just wasn’t able to hold it in as long, likely due to her relative youth.

We also finally got to see the one character arc thing in this episode I was hoping for: Shizuka and her relationship with orders. For the entire season, we’ve constantly seen Shizuka’s rigid obedience to orders reinforced. But when Mio tells her to keep the Shinden’s presence a secret, we see the first time an order brings her true, internal conflict. Although it culminated in a good cry and not her disobeying said order, I have a feeling she’ll buck the trend and either tell Yoshika about the Shinden, or fly it herself.

Finally, it’s nice to see that she doesn’t let her injury scare her, and channels her guilt into some awesome attack runs. Much credit to her; she’s grown quite a bit, and not because she’s emulating the others, but by growing into her new responsibilities as a combatant.

Yoshika Doing What She Can

Respect was earned by Yoshika this episode. Although she was obviously disappointed she wouldn’t be able to fly with the others into the final battle, she didn’t let it get her down and decided to do whatever she could to help. That meant we finally got to see her newly attained medical skills again! All those books she checked out in Episode 1 sure came in handy now.

If you will, think back all the way to Season 1, Episode 2 for a moment. A Neuroi attacked the ship bringing Yoshika and Mio to Europe, and a sailor was injured by shrapnel. Back then, Yoshika was severely shaken by the combat, and when she tried to help the sailor with her healing magic, she was promptly rebuked by someone else, as healing him with the shards still inside would only hurt him further.

But here, people rely on Yoshika’s medical knowledge and even Patton greatly respects her for it. Her suggestion to hole up in the Flak Tower is also a huge success, likely saving all of their lives.

Shirley's Amusement at the Ratte

Why, Shirley, what are you insinuating here? Surely Karlsland isn’t compensating for something! They just like their prototypes huge.

And Perrine’s Dismay

Harrumph! Size doesn’t matter, obviously! Just look at Perrine’s chest.

But honestly, someone else pointed this out too: the fact they’re relying so much on experimental and/or new things shows how desperate they are, and how fragile their gains are.

Speaking of The Ratte

The Ratte is awesome. The way its rounds punched through the Neuroi walls... *chef’s kiss* It’s obvious where the love and attention went this episode: all the carnage! We also got to see a lot of Berlin’s ruins, which is a nice change from fighting over ocean and rural landscapes. In my opinion, this was the way to go with the budget.

Also, Dem Walls!

They were so cool! I was amazed by the way they could reform to cover the gap where they were under attack! They even showed the little drones coming in to stack on top of one another. And later on, how the main body used the walls to shield itself from the Ratte’s full power was also very impressive! I love how powerful the walls were, but that the Neuroi’s resources weren’t infinite. That’s how you write your antagonist.

Not to Mention the Dome of Death!

Let’s be honest: we all knew a snag was coming. But not only was this a clever trap by the Neuroi, it also showcased the Neuroi using the debris to build more of themselves!

Miscellaneous Things

Something I didn’t mention in my Episode 10 post was Lynne’s support. She’s been really good at looking out for Shizuka! And she also scored a huge hit on the drone horde, which was great. And this time, Perrine also took the time to reassure Shizuka; as the one who was originally assigned to train Shizuka, it’s good she’s showing her gentler side now.

The 502nd made a brief cameo! I haven’t watched Brave Witches yet, which I’ll have to get on after this season finishes. It was also really cool to see how the other Joint Fighter Wings were pitching in for the war effort. The 501st are definitely the stars of the operation (as they should be), but there’s a multi-prong attack going on off-screen. Exciting stuff!

I also really like the little touches that RtB’s been so good at this entire season. For this episode, it’s the blue tulip on Yoshika’s bedstand. Seeing as the episode starts on the day after the ending of Episode 10, this means someone (maybe Perrine?) had a Queen of Nederland shipped out to Kiel really quickly, just for Yoshika. It’s sweet!

Finally, while Minna and Trude clashed during the previous episode, here they work together to support one another during combat. Trude comes to Minna’s aid the moment she’s attacked.

The Stuff I Thought I’d Get, But Didn’t

I’d speculated on this episode and came up with things I thought I’d get to see. But nope!

First of all, what’s RtB’s deal with Mio? I can’t believe Minna’s had more subtext with Trude than with Mio this season! Even when the two of them finally spoke with one another for the first time since Episode 2, there was no blushing or anything like that! Are the days of Minna and Perrine fawning over Mio over? Is there someone on the writing team who loves Trude like I do, and has the same problems with Mio that I do? This is really...well, weird. I can’t describe it in any other way.

Anyway, she’s now bringing the B-17 to Berlin, meaning she might get involved somehow (and is also bringing the Shinden, possibly so Shizuka can fly it.) But here I was, thinking, ‘Oh, that plane they showed Mio with in the opening, she’ll fly that, and it’s going to have anti-Neuroi armor!’ and yet I’m not seeing any indication of that happening at all. Mio isn’t even in that plane right now. It’s the Ratte who got the anti-Neuroi treatment, and again, Mio’s presence felt...functional, I guess.

There’s something about her screen presence that bothers me, actually. I didn’t think about it before, because she was absent so much it just didn’t cross my mind, but...what happened to good ol’ jolly Mio? I don’t mind her being a bit more serious--RtB’s been a more serious season, after all--but we haven’t had a patented Mio Laugh since the first episode, and I miss it. Let’s hope the final episode gives her a nice sendoff.

Secondly, for all the fuss they made about Yoshika and Shizuka’s conditions with that downright tragic ending in Episode 10, the two of them bounced back pretty fast. It’s literally been a day and Shizuka’s already running around fine? And Yoshika doesn’t seem to be experiencing any lingering negative effects of her overexertion? (Aside from the obvious.) For a season that’s so focused on consequences and a consistency in tone, I feel like the two of them got off a bit light.

I was also expecting Trude and possibly Minna and Lynne having sad moments because ‘oh no, people we care about are hurt!’ but because Yoshika and Shizuka seem mostly fine, that didn’t happen at all.

Usually, Episode 11 is the one that ends on a somber note, but here it seems they moved that to Episode 10, and instead had Episode 11 strike a more optimistic tone. No one really showed off their flaws, either; maybe Episode 10 was the bookend to that theme after all?

Into the End

The episode ends on a very interesting note. Everyone finds out Yoshika is also trapped inside the Neuroi dome--and why, exactly, was no one informed of her presence on the Ratte?!--and they’re ordered to mount a rescue operation for their besieged comrades.

And then Trude comes with this absolutely surprising revelation:

I imagine at least one staff member had a chuckle at the fact the cast is now embarking on another Road (in)to Berlin.

The what, now? This wasn’t built up or alluded to at all; I have questions, show! Not to mention, how does Trude even know about this? And why is she the one announcing it, and not Minna, the world’s best mom and team captain?

Anyway, the preview seems to indicate some sort of tunnel run--I briefly wondered if they’d have to venture in on foot, but it seems to be big enough for them to fly.

This shot is ominous.

I’m highly intrigued by this decision. Obviously, the final confrontation will play out outside, but to yank the Witches from the air and into a much more claustrophobic space is a confident move. I can only imagine the surprises the final episode has up its sleeve.

Anyway, all in all, this was a decent episode, and while it did have lots of neat little character moments, it’s obviously setup for what I hope to be a spectacular ending.

Even if it doesn’t quite deliver next week, though, RtB’s been so consistently great that it’s already cemented itself as my favorite show ever.

#strike witches #road to berlin

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sambart93 · 6 years

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2018.01.01 Kuroshitsuji Musical: Tango on the Campania [Review!]

Official Site here Official Twitter here Press Coverage 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 Video Coverage 1, 2

CAST and CHARACTERS

Furukawa Yuta as Sebastian Uchikawa Reo as Ciel Uehara Takuya as Grelle Mikata Ryousuke as Ronald Harashima Motohisa as Snake Okazaki Momoko as Elizabeth Takagi Shun as Fred Abberline Terayama Takeshi as Sharpe Hanks Utsumi Akiyoshi as Edward Akisono Mio as Francis Nasu Kozo as Alexis Kawai Ryunosuke as Ryan Stoker Izumi Shuhei as Undertaker Sasaki Yoshihide as Druitt

Non-Spoiler Review

This is a very HIGH production with very HIGH production quality. It's also very faithful to the original story. The dancing and ensemble are super professional, the singing and song have some amazing moments, the setting and the apparatus' and how they've moved around the scenes and used in different scenes are great. The projection mapping was great also. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, the characters, the costumes, the funny moments. It was a very, very enjoyable stage. This stage is loved by so many people for many different reasons; the production value, the fans of the actors (especially HideSama and Uehara, they both got woo'd at the end when I went), fans of the anime and manga like myself. This series has been in the works for almost ten years (apparently ten years this year) so of course you're not going to be disappointed by what they produce. I am thoroughly pleased with the performances and characters of Ciel, Snake and of course, the ridiculous Druitt! Also the dancing ensemble are absolutely phenomenal in this; I could not stop watching them; their dances were either very very fluid like a dead corpse would be (because that's what they were playing) or very robotic (just like a zombie would be) and it all fit perfectly. While I was originally upset that Tamaki wouldn't be coming back at Snake, I immediately fell for Harachan's Snake; he did perfect! And damn Ciel's Reo is just a phenomenal actor and he will go far; some of the notes he him in the songs actually gave me goosebumps and impressed me a thousand times over. I could go on, but I don't want to spoil anymore for you. If you're already a fan then you're gunna watch it regardless of my review right? xD And if you're not a fan yet, seriously, just give the manga a shot and if you sort like that, then watch the first season of the anime and then if you're sure you like the world and characters enough, (while I do love the absolutely mess and ridiculousness of the first few stages) start from the 2015 stage! You won't be disappointed. Rating: 8/10

SPOILER REVIEW!

As I mentioned in my 2018 Resolutions, I realised how shitty, critical, and negative I was getting in my reviews, so this year I'm being more objective and writing more about the positives; also, every　time I see a play I'm going to ask on twitter what things YOU want me to focus on and write about too so it's more balance and not only pleasing me, but then you're also getting stuff you want to know about the stage out of me, so follow @sambart93 for those! Now to the review!

STORY

Also mentioned above, the stage is very faithful to the original material, so if you want to know the plot to this one either read the Luxury Liner Arc or just go to the synopsis here. This is probably my SECOND favourite Arc that I've read (to be honest I haven't kept up with any of my manga series these past 13 months or just including Kuroshitsu... I'm sorry!) in the Kuroshitsuji series and for the stage to be so faithful to the original material made me so happy!

THE POSITIVES

PART ONE [About 1 hour]

My seat was Row V, which actually ended up not being bad at all! It was a lot closer than I thought.

There's a scene where the doctor shows an audience of him bringing a corpse back to life, and the dancing by the ensemble girl in that scene is absolutely amazing! I can't describe it but it was so fluid and matches the music perfectly, I was so impressed!

There's a titanic pose with Ronald and Grelle was great! Ronald really didn't want to do it but was forced to. And then soon after (or during this scene) Grelle is singing, and Ronald is just clapping behind Grelle so unimpressed - I was dying with laughter.

Most of the songs this time around are very good too! Some of my favourites from the first part is the main Campania song, Druitt's solo and I quite liked Ronald's solo too! Sebastian’s solo song is amazing too! He has a LOT of high notes to his in it. He sings the song about 3 or 4 times throughout the stage, or at least it feels like that.

I really like how this stage is gruesome too and not holding back on the projection mapping blood spurts and lots of red colour and use of red fabric to show that it's just pure blood shed going down on this boat - maybe I enjoyed it a bit too much? xD

Even when I first read the manga, I've always loved Lizzie’s badass moment and it did not disappoint on stage ever - it was great seeing her kick ass.

I really really do like this Ciel. I felt this way the first time I saw him last year but this time around really solidified it for me! He has a lot of potential and I think he will go very far if he continues to pursue acting. A part of me really hopes his voice doesn’t break and that he doesn’t grow for like another ten years so he can constantly be our Stage Ciel xD

A small thing, which is also in the main story (to my memory), I love how Ciel is in pretty-decent-sized heels throughout this, whereas Lizzie is just in flats xD I found it totally adorable!

For those who were worried about Hidesama - because I personally haven't seen him since he was on crutches for K-Stage - HideSama is walking, kneeling, and such smoothly and fine so I guess he's pretty much okay now. Although I do feel like he was limited in the types and amount of dance moves he got so I guess he's still not 100% and/or he's just be cautious for a decent amount of time, which is a good idea! And of course he was absolutely ridiculous as Druitt! I was most impressed with his voice! I knew he was good at voice acting since I've seen how different his voice is in real life compared to in TouStage compared to in HakuMyu, but he ONCE again changed his voice for THIS stage and I was so surprised and impressed! He's really talented with his voice! No wonder he also gets voice work too! But yes, his character was ridiculous as ever and had my cracking up with the things he did even when he wasn't the center of the stage or story at the time.

Oh and I really, really like the new Snake too! I didn't realise when it was first announced who the hell it was. But about 10 minutes into the stage I realised who the damn actor was and I got super excited straight away! I should never have doubted or been pissed at him! He's such a great actor and he did not disappoint at all as Snake! I ended up super super liking him like straight away! AND it was his birthday today! So HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY!!

The stage and the apparatus’ are flawless as usual. I was fascinated at watching the ensemble pull the apparatus' around and seeing how they had used every inch of the parts to make something relateable and useful for the actors. The staging and parts of the set were amazingly well done - which is expected I know...

Also, the outfits are great!! I think that's just me really like the Victorian Era and clothing but I love the clothing from this series and seeing it in the flesh is always so great to see!

The way Mikata, Uehara and Izumi swung their weapons around with so much control but also with such smooth motions was so amazing!

PART TWO [About 1 hour]

Druitt had two solo songs; one in each part. but his solo in part two had me cracked up! Especially the opening of it which his hip thrust and the echoing of his high voice and the colourful, flashing lights. It was so funny and ridiculous. It was also the only song which had audience participation and it got all of the audience clapping which I enjoyed and was fun. He danced and moved more in this solo compared to his Part One solo which made me even less worried about his leg ^_^

Grelle forced Ronald to do the titanic pose at the end again and he was so reluctant, it was so funny! I also think this is how they END the play which is just the best way to end it >.<

The Undertaker Scythe's is SO badass and looks so good in real life! I was so fangirly inside when I finally saw his Scythe IN THE FLESH! I've been waiting for this Undertaker reveal in the stage series for a while! Also I LOVED how he swapped out a normal blade for his Scythe behind his back, it was so smoothly done!

Going back to how much I love this Ciel; Reo hit some seriously BIG notes towards the end! I was so freaking impressed!!! If he keeps up with all this training and such, his voice is going to be amazing! It's already amazing because I didn't think 12 year olds could hit such high notes but he did, and he blew me away when he did it!

I really, really, really loved the dance ensemble in this one! I was so fascinated and enticed by them and their fluid and robotic movements really matched the whole dead bodies and zombie theme very well! They totally added to the whole thing and made the stage so much more entertaining and fun to watch thanks to their talents! There was one particular female dancer (she got a lot of the main dance parts) which was so damn good, I couldn't take my eyes off her. I need to find out which one it is. But the dancers all have blindfolds on for most of the stage - being dead bodies and all - so it'll be difficult to find out WHO.

Ciel always has the best outfits! I've always wanted to cosplay him. I've always wanted to own his clothing. This stage didn't change my feelings about his outfits at all; only increased them xD

The scene/moment just before Ciel and Seb's back story was so great! The ensemble were holding Reo and Yuta mid air and it was like a slow motion of them trying to grab each other's hands before Ciel gets consumed by the zombies and just as Seb gets stabbed in the back with the scythe. It was an amazing moment! I loved it!

CURTAIN CALL

Three rounds of applause, speeches after the second round, and standing ovation at the third round.

It was Harachan’s birthday so we sang Happy Birthday to him, and he was yelling thank you at the Undertaker who was right next to him (xD) and deep bowing on the floor to the audience in thanks. He was so sweet! He was like 'I've never had so many people wish me happy birthday! I think this will be a great year!'

HideSama spoke at the curtain call and a bunch of the crowd wooooo’d when it was announced he'd be the one speaking. He spoke about how he saw the circus one last year and felt, at the time, that he wanted to return to the world, and said he's glad he’s back after two years. And at the end he put on his Druitt voice and yelled 'TADAIMA/I'm home'.

Yuta also mentioned that apparently it’s their 10th anniversary for KuroMyu this year!

THE NEGATIVES

I try and keep a positive spin on the points somewhat:

While I did love the Elizabeth badassery scene, I couldn't help but notice that it was lacking in TouStage/HakuMyu/KStage-level-like sword fighting choreography. To a normal viewer, they probably wouldn't notice but in my eyes, the choreography was simplier and slower and looked a lot more like acting-fighting (like the ensemble obviously running into her swords to land the hit rather than it feeling like a flawless move from the character) to what my eyes are used to seeing. It doesn't take away from the fact that Elizabeth is really a sword fighting badass and that's the moment in the manga I really started like Elizabeth.

Unfortunately, the only ones I couldn't warm up to is Lizzie’s family. For some reason I just didn't take any liking to Francis or Alexis. I think I least liked their song too - oopsies. Her brother was okay though, and I liked how protective he was of Lizzie because it got really funny, like when Ciel safely brings her to her family and he's like 'take her and make sure she gets off safely' and he's like 'of course I will! I'm her brother! But I won't mind if you don't make it out alive okay? *bye*' it cracked me up!

Final note; I felt the first part was a lot stronger than the second half. Especially because a large chunk of the second half was dedicated to Ciel and Seb's back story and once again we got that contract scene at the start of the back story. Personally, I wish they wouldn't redo this scene every stage. Also I felt the crowd getting restless around me when the backstory starting going for like 20 or so minutes. I think a large majority of us wanted to get back to the main, present story. It wasn't a bad backstory at all; the song Ciel and Seb did during it, with the use of the projection mapping, was really good and creative, and Seb's 'kuso gaki / this little shit/brat' bitching was amusing, but it was a little too long.

GOODS

I only bought the pamphlet and the photobook and I've already put a lot of the photos throughout the review, but I'll put the rest of the others that I liked here:

And that's all! Did I do well keeping positive and objective?! Now the real challenge is, can I hold this up?! We're only one day into 2018!

Anyway, hope you enjoyed it!

#furukawa yuta #uchikawa reo #uehara takuya #mikata ryosuke #harashima motohisa #utsumi akiyoshi #kawai ryunosuke #izumi shuhei #sasaki yoshihide #kuroshitsuji #kuromyu #namashitsuji #黒執事 #生執事 #review

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