#I love this song and it's also very Fraser...

[hanhwrites]

🇫🇷 BARRICADE DAY 🇫🇷

(yes those are pages from the brick, no I did not do that on purpose, I just loved Grantaire a little too much)

in this picture: five copies of Les mis, a Les mis lyrics books, a Les mis playbill, my Les mis and Iliad paper (with all the important things blocked off yay ✨✨), and a Paris necklace

long post sorry

ummmm so I got to meet Ramin Karimloo the other day at Pirates! the Penzance Musical and it was an incredible experience, that's his signature on the Les mis playbill (from a few years ago) (idk if you can even see the signature at that angle)

so three or four years ago I watched the Les Mis 2012 movie cuz I thought oh why not. as I watched the barricade scene I felt like this was going to be something I remembered for a while and I didn't know why. I then proceeded to watch way too many videos of actors (hi Aaron tveit lol) singing these songs. when I discovered Ramin Karimloo and Hadley Fraser singing at the 25th anniversary concert I fell in love with Enjolras and Grantaire.

since this, I have read the book 3 times, memorized every lyric Les amis sing, collected five copies of the brick, and recently just wrote a big academic paper about the sacrificial love between Enjolras/Grantaire and Achilles/Patroclus which won an award.

I love these characters.

I don't just love Les mis, I love Enjolras and Grantaire

They are incredibly personal characters to me. Grantaire is something I'm almost afraid of, he brings me to tears with every sentence written and with every word he says. he is so cynical, I fear becoming him and losing faith in the world. I see him struggle to find meaning to the world and to humanity and I can't even blame him for it. yet, despite that all, he finds something, or someone to believe in. his sacrificial love for Enjolras is something so beautiful that I find it difficult to describe why its beautiful. he goes against every belief he's ever held for him. grantaire gives me hope because despite his cynicism, he is able to hope.

Enjolras, I'm also afraid of. I too find myself becoming passionate about causes, yet I always find myself doubting. enjolras doesn't doubt, he accepts his fate and he continues on, he lives the life of a martyr and that is terrifying. I give up a lot even though I care a lot. why? why am I unable to die on these hills? enjolras is a tragedy. he knows what fate holds and yet there is no avoiding it. enjolras gives something to aspire to when I find myself ridden with doubt.

I think about these characters way too much but never like I've thought of other characters. they are human. they believe and they don't. they hope and they accept death. they live and they die. I want to love someone like grantaire loves enjolras. and in any other universe, he would die for enjolras over and over again despite what his beliefs dictate, because it is fate. but even more than fate, it is who he is. to live a cynical life and yet to hope. and enjolras, to devote himself to his worldviews, yet to die with a non-believer with a smile on his face.

this book, this musical, these actors and characters, they mean so much to me

so happy barricade day

and I'm very happy I could express this to one of the actors that started it all for me: Ramin Karimloo

[gentlebeardsbarngrill]

12/05-06/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR; Rhys Darby; Taika Waititi; Con O'Neill; Vico Ortiz; Nathan Foad; Kristian Nairn; Samba Schutte; David Fane; Nat Faxon; Alex Sherman; Guz Khan; Minnie Driver; Netflix on Bsky; Fan Spotlight: Ruby Deluxe Raleigh; Love Notes

= Rhys Darby =

As usual, lots going on with our Pirate Captain! He was out in Portland for two days and had a blast!

It looks like Sketch Fest has added a second show at the Gateway Theatre on January 22nd!

Rhys also ran into a fan who's been coming to shows for years!

Source: SF Sketch Fest / Instagram

= Darby Daily Doodle =

The epic continues!

Source: Rhys Darby's Free substack

= Taika Waititi =

Taika's been very busy too, as per usual! More pictures from his Koko Foundation appearance!

Source: My Beautiful City

This is just a quick picture of Taika from one of the recent Letters Live performances! Not sure if it's new or not but it's new to me so I wanted to share!

Source: Letters Live Instagram

Next up, Belvedere Vodka did some BTS with Taika! You can watch the video here.

Source: Belvedere Vodka Instagram

Taika and Jemaine's show, What We Do In the Shadows is up for 4 Critics Choice Awards! Best comedy series, best actress, actor, and supporting actor in a comedy series! Check out the Article here.

Source: Choice Awards

= Con O'Neill =

Con sent a shot of himself after he made it to Columbus!

Did you know he's got even more swag up on Stands? Now there are Hand signed autographs of THAT scene in s2! Check it out! Hand Signed Autograph on Stands.com

Source: Con O'Neill's Instagram

= Joel Fry =

Joel is going to be joining Ncuti Gatwe, and Nicola Coughlan for this years Doctor Who Christmas Special! check out the trailer below!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Doctor Who (@bbcdoctorwho)

Source: BBCWho on Instagram

= Vico Ortiz =

Some New S2 BTS from Vico! Buttons Character vs Buttons the Stuntman, Nathan and Ewen and Con giggling? Vico spoils us! Check them out on Vico's Patreon.

Source: Vico's Patreon

= Nathan Foad =

Nathan also sent out an arrival photo once he got into Columbus!

Souce: Nathan's Instagram Stories

= Kristian Nairn =

Same with Kristian! they love letting us know when they arrive places!

Source: Kristian's Instagram

= Samba Schutte =

More BTS from Samba's Advanced Chemistry Movie! Thank you as always to the writer, Alec Moore for sharing them! I realize they don't have Samba in them persay, but I thought they were pretty cool-- and Alec is a huge fan and support of OFMD! If you have seen the film and haven't reviewed it yet on amazon, please do! I know they are still looking for reviews here!

"When I saw the @advancedchemmov.bsky.social art department's collection of props that they brought to life from my crazy imagination, I literally teared up. And then Samba-- literally teared up for a scene. The difference is he was acting. "

Source: Alec Moore's Bsky

= David Fane =

Awhimai Fraser, David Fane, and Temuera Morrison were very busy interviewing at several AUS & Aotearoa NZ press junkets!

Source: awhimai_fraser instagram

An interview with ScreenRealm with about their favorite songs in Moana 2!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Screen Realm (@screen_realm)

They were also interviewed by Draw Your Box about Moana 2 and they got to discuss some Cricket for a bit!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Alicia Vrajlal (@leeshiev)

and just for fun, I couldn't resist sharing David Fane laughing so giddly, you can really hear Fang in there.

Source: awhimai_fraser's Instagram

= Nat Faxon =

Our fantastic Swede, Nat Faxon is joining the cast of the (US version of) Ghosts Season 4 as Alexander Hamilton!

Source: Variety

= Alex Sherman =

Our sweetheart writer, Alex Sherman, is campaigning for a really amazing cause. He's created a fundraiser to help sponsor a free 1 week camp for kids who've lost a parent, sibling or caregiver. They've reached their goal, but it can't hurt to help kids in need if you're interested. Alex was a counselor there in the past and he continues to support these kids <3

https://give.experiencecamps.org/fundraiser/5933654

Source: Alex Sherman's twitter

= Guz Khan =

Guz just taking silly pictures with friend Haroon Mota!

Source: Guz's Instagram

= Minnie Driver =

Minnie was out slaying after her bout of Pneumonia!

Source: Minnie's Instagram

= Netflix on Bluesky =

Netflix officially joined bluesky back on the 3rd, and our resident Skyrates-- or whatever it is we're calling them these days-- started in the adoption requests again! If you have a Bluesky and you'd like to join the fun, remember to add the hashtag #OurFlagMeansDeath, #SaveOFMD, #AdoptOurCrew!

== Fan Spotlight ==

= Ruby Deluxe Raleigh =

There's been a request by several of our crew members to help out this wonderful gay bar in Raleigh. If you have some time this Saturday December 14th, at 9 PM and you're in the area, would you be kind enough to help out? "Hey friends! Ruby Deluxe, the gay bar that hosted our Calypso's birthday meetup at Galaxycon Raleigh, is asking for some help to stay running. If you can, consider making a donation or spread the word (or come through if you're local!)" Links to Socials

Source: Kate on Bsky

== Love Notes ==

Hey there lovelies. I really am so late on this one, I'm sorry. It's been a lot lately. I know it has been for a lot of you too. I don't wanna hold this recap up any longer, so here's some love notes from SelfLoveRainbow <3

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dominee Calderon (@selfloverainbow)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dominee Calderon (@selfloverainbow)

Source: SelfLoveRainbow Instagram

[crepesuzette2023]

so i am terminally obsessed with all of your paul-related magritteposting recently and was wondering if you would be so kind as to lay out why magritte screams paul to you (beyond the obvious robert fraser connection, ofc)

Thanks for asking!

[I'll put my own thoughts and mutterings first, and then link to some great posts that further show & elaborate on the Paul McCartney - René Magritte connection...because where would we all be without the great web-weavers that came before us?]

So, first of all, I'm fascinated by their connection because Paul himself talked about it—and, by doing so, he mirrors Magritte's art. Or what would you call it if someone says, what speaks to my innermost heart as an artist is his refusal to pinpoint the nature and mechanisms of said heart? Ceci n'est pas une pipe!

Paul's willingness, à la Magritte, to accept inspiration from his dreams (or the universe) without questioning it can be misconstrued as shallow (or a lie: is he really not choosing the words deliberately? I'd say: even if he does, I get his desire to plunge them into the pool of not going to question or explain it anymore, 'cause it's art now. Doesn't he have rights?!). His emulation of Magritte as a straight artist showing up for work at set hours wearing a slightly eccentric uniform, e.g., bowler hats, likewise can be seen as cowardly, or too cute. But isn't it also generous to allow others (us) to keep our distance from the artist-as-person? To allow for the possibility that we have our own interpretations, too?

Cue the similarity to your very good friend David Lynch, and his Refusal to Elaborate! (See for instance this post by @funeral.)

But I have to stop rambling about character and meta—what about the art?

To me, Magritte's paintings, with their mixture of accessible beauty and opaque strangeness, are really artistic twins of McCartney's songs. Composed of clear lines and strong colors, recognizable figures and spaces, they contain nothing overtly threatening, and yet— and there's the way the figures famously turn away, like Paul's purely fictional protagonists. Their everyman quality that makes you curious. The sweet, harmless signature. The unexpected juxtapositions.

There's a sense of the unflappable to Magritte's paintings, of being undisturbed, the calm of accepting the images as they come. A lack of self-censorship. Let 'Em In.

Even the pipe, like Jim McCartney's...

I remember one time I saw a Magritte painting: The Voice of Space. It's so simple and beautiful, but also outrageous. I remember just staring at it, ignoring everything else—not because it was interesting and upsetting, but because it was also nice to look at...

Very Mr. Musical Blendini.

And maybe that is the reason Paul loves Magritte: Because identifying with him allows him to cast his reluctance to "go too far" in his behavior as an act of subversion—or perhaps meeting Magritte helped him realize that his, Paul's, way of being an artist had been subversive all alone. A "secret raver" like his father (and unlike his more openly weird brother, Mike).

And you know how it is: Once you decide two things belong together, you see the connections everywhere.

For more on Paul and Magritte (and a bit of John and Yoko!), there's this fabulous long post: The Surrealist by @thecoleopterawithana.

Two examples for the affinity between Magritte's paintings and Paul's music/art: The Fool, also by @thecoleopterawithana, and this post by @eppysboys.

Here is a beautiful illustration of the sky-blue and bowler hats connection, by @tavolgisvist — who also found the Magritte-inspiration for the cover of Red Rose Speedway.

René Magritte: The Voice of Space

[novemberhush]

Tag game for people I’d like to get to know better/catch up with.

Thanks for tagging me, @littleblackraincloudofcourse !❤️

Five ships I love - Ooh, let me see…

1) Leo Hölzer x Adam Schürk from Tatort Saarbrücken (because it’s nearly that time of year again! 🎉🎉🎉)

2) Benton Fraser x Ray Vecchio from Due South

3) Sherlock Holmes x John Watson (be it in the original ACD stories, the Granada television version, the BBC version, etc.)

4) Mike Ross x Harvey Specter from Suits

5) Thomas Barrow x Andy Parker from Downton Abbey (you give them the same surnames as Bonnie and Clyde, arguably the most famous criminal couple in history, and then you don’t put them together?? WTF, Julian Fellowes??)

First ship ever - Showing my age here, but I think it’s between David Addison x Maddie Hayes from Moonlighting, Anne Shirley x Gilbert Blythe from the series of Anne of Green Gables television adaptations that were out in the 1980s, and James Dempsey x Harriet ‘Harry’ Makepeace from Dempsey and Makepeace. The shows were all out around roughly the same time so I don’t remember which was first, but there’s not much between any of them, I’d say.

Last song you heard - Sandpaper by Zach Bryan (feat. Bruce Springsteen)

Favourite childhood book - I don’t have any one particular favourite that stands heads and shoulders above the rest, but Red Sky in the Morning by Elizabeth Laird and Children on the Oregon Trail by A. Rutgers Van Der Loeff are two that I remember having an effect on me. I was also a big fan of all the Enid Blyton mystery books, such as the Famous Five and the Secret Seven and the Five Find-Outers and Dog, as well as other children’s mysteries like Alfred Hitchcock and The Three Investigators, The Hardy Boys and, of course, Nancy Drew. I also had a Rupert the Bear annual and a Winnie the Pooh book I enjoyed a great deal, as well a big book of fairytales, complete with illustrations, that I loved.

Currently reading - I’m (slowly!) reading a physical copy of All the Colours of the Dark by Chris Whitaker, which is very good so far (but also very long!), and on the kindle app I’ve finally got around to reading The Charioteer by Mary Renault, which I’m absolutely flying through.

Currently watching - Mainly Grantchester and reruns of Wire in the Blood (no, I don’t have a thing for Robson Green!) and Law and Order: SVU (although I’m pretty much always watching reruns of SVU.).

Currently consuming - I’m making my way through a packet of Fruit Salad Chewits (chewy sweets, for anyone who doesn’t know what Chewits are).

Currently craving - Some more of the absolutely delicious potato gratin I had for dinner on Friday night. It was sooooooooooo good. My mouth’s watering just thinking about it.

I tag @tkandbuck @smowkie @katries @oneawkwardcookie @dontcallpanic @sofancydancy @chaoticfandomgirly @backgroundnoisewithaview @kinkykinard and anyone else who wants to share. No pressure on anyone who doesn’t!😘

[gotham-ruaidh]

Little Bit Better Than I Used To Be

Catch up: Chapter 1 (Starry Eyes) || Chapter 2 (Save Our Souls) || Chapter 3 (Dancing On Glass)|| Chapter 4 (Merry-Go-Round)|| Backstage (1) || Backstage (2) || Chapter 5 (Danger)|| Backstage (3) || Chapter 6A (Love Walked In) || Chapter 6B (Without You) || Backstage (4) || Chapter 7 (Stick To Your Guns) || Chapter 8 (Time For Change) || Backstage (5) || Chapter 9 (Take Me To The Top) || Backstage (6) || Chapter 10 (Home Sweet Home) || Backstage (7) || Chapter 11a (Nightrain) || Chapter 11b (Nothing Else Matters) || Chapter 12a (Handle With Care) || Chapter 12b (I’m So Tired of Being Lonely) || Chapter 13a (Angel) || Chapter 13b (She’s My Addiction) || Chapter 13c (Patience) Chapter 14a (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 14b (Where Do We Go Now?) ||| Also posted at AO3

Chapter 14C: Where Do We Go Now?

Soundtrack: “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” Guns N’ Roses, 1987 [click here to listen]

Where do we go now?

Where do we go now?

Where do we go?

- Guns N’ Roses, “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (1987)

Tucson || July 1988

AA met every Thursday in a church hall not far from the studio. She’d borrowed Bobby’s Trans Am to drive Jamie, holding his hand the whole way, hearing about his chat with Alec – who had graciously agreed during their January trip to New York to be Jamie’s sponsor.

She kissed him when he went inside. Needing some peace and quiet of her own, in the car, as she waited.

She had tried NA off and on, but it hadn’t really clicked. She was so very happy that AA really worked for Jamie – it was always much easier for him to open up to perfect strangers – and she was grateful that he could get the support he needed, at a moment’s notice, in any city.

Not to mention that the Friends of Bill took the “anonymous” in Alcoholics Anonymous quite seriously – meaning, in those meetings Jamie was just Jamie the alcoholic, not Jamie Fraser the frontman of Print, not the rock star. Just a man who fought daily battles with addiction, who was trying to be better, who just so happened to have the number six record in the country today.

It was hard. It was always going to be hard. But he was worth it. The life they had together was worth it.

She pulled out the folded envelope. Smoothed the creases against the steering wheel. Reading and reading and re-reading the return address.

Listening to Guns N’ Roses and Def Leppard and Poison and Cheap Trick on the radio.

She didn’t see Jamie cross the parking lot. Jumped when he slid into the passenger seat, smiling, with a kiss.

“Hey.”

She offered a tight smile. “Hey. How are you?”

“Much better.”

His gaze found the envelope.

He didn’t need to say anything.

She couldn’t say anything.

But now that he was here, she opened it.

Held out the single sheet of paper.

They read.

Dr. Claire Beauchamp

via Colum Laird, Broch Productions

Dear Dr. Beauchamp,

Thank you for your letter and providing a forwarding address. Three months ago, the BMC board unanimously voted to terminate your employment. For legal reasons we will not provide further details, and the board’s decision is final.

However, we have communicated to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that your medical license should be restored, with the provision that you no longer practice medicine in any kind of high-stress environment. You may contact the medical board at the below address to request a copy of…

Jamie watched Claire read and re-read and re-read.

“Sweet Child O’ Mine” played softly on the radio.

A long, long moment.

The song shifted to the bridge.

Where do we go now, sweet child? Axl Rose murmured.

Jamie took a breath. “Where do we go now, Claire?” he whispered.

She folded the paper and put it back in the envelope. Laid it on the dash. Reached beneath her shirt to pull the long chain up over her neck. Settled her left hand on Jamie’s thigh, skin hot through his jeans.

Jamie unclasped the chain, letting his grandmother’s engagement ring slide free. He slipped the ring onto her finger. Brought her hand to his lips, kissing so softly.

“I’d like us to have an extra day in Boston when we’re there next week. So that we can pack up my apartment.”

She was looking through the windshield, face turned to him in profile.

“Yes. What else?”

“I’d like a little house in the mountains of North Carolina. Not too far from The Ridge. It’s so beautiful and peaceful there. I’m sure Dougal and Gillian can help us find something.”

Gently he bit her knuckles. “Something small. Kitchen and living room. Bedroom for us. A room I can use for music. And a room for your medicine.”

She nodded. “I’ll transfer my license – I’ve already looked into how to do that. I can file the paperwork when we get to Boston. I don’t know if I want to be in a private practice, or just volunteer in a clinic, or maybe something else. We’ll get settled, and then we’ll decide.”

“We will. I – are you happy, Claire?”

She smiled tightly. “More…relieved. And yes, I’m happy, Jamie. Happy to be free. Happy to be marrying you.”

They sat in silence for a long while. Listening to the final notes of Slash’s guitar. And then the first two minutes of INXS and “New Sensation”.

Memory flared – the last time she heard this song was the one time she’d seen Jamie nude, changing into his leather pants backstage in Orlando, when she’d entered his dressing room without knocking.

She swallowed. “I want the house to have at least one spare bedroom.”

He laced their fingers. “Of course – for guests.”

She flushed. Finally met his eyes.

“Yes. And for children.”

He released a suddenly shaky breath. “Oh, my love. Yes.”

She squeezed his hand. “I’m never taking this ring off again.”

He leaned across the console and kissed her. Kissed her. Kissed her.

[flownwrong]

one more writing tag game!

thank you @zmediaoutlet, really appreciate the tag! <333 i haven't written in a while due to questionable irl circumstances so it's nice to talk about it a bit, maybe claw my way back to the wips :)

1. How many works on AO3?

15! not great, not terrible

2. Total AO3 Word Count?

34,796 (a bit embarrassing for four years of intermittent writing, lol)

3. Top 5 fics by Kudos?

double exposure (no wonder, an event fic with marvellous @tgtbata's art!)

any weight beyond your own (i think it was also some kind of event? but i'm too scared to open it and check haha; first real attempt at a fic after some teenage dabbling, really)

never really opting in (huh! how did it end up so high?)

perpetuum mobile (which i'm quite proud of, so yays!)

and you shall receive (which i'm just as proud of, double yays!)

4. What fandoms do you write for?

mmm, due south and spn are the top two by count, but i dunno when any spn stuff i have is getting finished! (hopefully when and not if is applicable here haha)

i also have one fic for MASH, True Detective and Star Trek Discovery (oh god lol) each. if i'm brave enough, one day my other TD wip is getting finished, but after that I'm done with it — i feel too reverent of the canon, lol.

5. Do you respond to comments?

always! how could i not <3 appreciate every one!

6. Angstiest Ending?

mmm. I don't really have any of those, although I do have an almost finished resdogs fic up next that would have one, necessitated by canon. out of those I have, it's probably hold till better times, per the unrequited premise. tallahassee, cynosure and over / for technically fit the definition, but they're all too short to have endings per se, and all of them are inevitably hopeful, again, per the following canon, so.

7. Fic with the Happiest Ending?

perpetuum mobile probably has the most syrupy sweet one, as do all of my other due south non-ficlets, but i'd argue negating, repeating is the happiest of them all in spirit — newsom's namesake song didn't lie about that joy of life!

8. Do you get hate?

i'm not known enough for it, which is a situation i'm very content with!

9. Do you write smut?

i try my best!

10. Do you write crossovers?

i have one in the works i'm pretty excited about, but usually they're very hard to justify for me :)

11. Ever had a fic stolen?

as with hate — not known enough for it, and pleased with that :)

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

nope, but i hope it's yet :) i'd be delirious with excitement if that ever happened!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic?

nope, and it's hard to imagine how that would work... but i would love to try, if there was a writer in the circle i trust who's not my superior by a million points :')

14. All time favourite ship?

um, Fraser/Kowalski, i think! can't help thinking I'm still too young to know, lol. but fairly sure these two will haunt me the longest.

15. WIPs you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

all of them, lol most of my unfinished wips are this way bc i realised i lack skill to finish them, not because i lost interest, even if i stepped away from a fandom. i look at them longingly often enough and try to practice so i can come back :) but no, that one red meat coda i started early into my spn obsession is likely staying that way or at least becoming a ship of theseus bc the idea was shit.

16. Writing Strengths?

uh. voices, probably? i'm not too satisfied with them, but it's what i feel most confident about, anyway. kind @petymology told me my romance and sex dynamics never feel like they're retreading same old steps and feel complex, and many other kind people told me my prose is very sharp at times, so i choose to believe that as well :)

17. Writing Weaknesses?

plot, but also many many other things i lack practice for. i struggle with scene/summary balance, rhythm, flow and pacing, dialogue, fleshing out images... but i think i am getting better at most of these with every work :)

18. Thoughts on mixed language dialogue?

love when it comes up meaningfully! if i ever have a reason to use german in fic, i could probably do it believably. i think.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

jesus... sailor moon? i think? i lost my old hard drive and can't check if there was something else i forgot!

20. Favourite fic you’ve ever written?

as z said before me, usually the most recent one. otherwise, it's a draw between negating, repeating and and you shall receive — both i stumbled into by pure inspiration which held back my insecurities and allowed me to give them my all.

i'd love to hear more from @gueule, @petymology, @rightspocko (or did you do this one already? idr!), @feroxargentea and @redmyeyes!

[themousefromfantasyland]

The unproduced Into the Woods Adaptation with Jim Henson Company Animatronics

By Erin McCarthy | Dec 24, 2014

[...]

The show won three Tonys, but Hollywood didn’t come knocking until a few years later. In the early ‘90s, the Jim Henson Company and Storyline approached Sondheim and Lapine with a movie adaptation of the musical that would mix live actors with Henson creatures as the show's animals. The duo signed on, and Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel—who wrote City Slickers and A League of Their Own—penned the script.

Sondheim also wrote two new songs for the project, which he included in Look, I Made a Hat, the second volume in his books of collected lyrics. The first was a new opening number, “I Wish.” While the Broadway show’s first song featured the main characters singing about their wishes, the film version expanded the song to include villagers who sang of their wishes (“I wish my well was filled with beer,” “I wish my son-in-law would disappear,” “I wish my cow could go with me to school”) as they went about their business, and featured a narrator doing a voiceover.

The second new song, "Rainbows," was for the Baker and his Wife and “occurs a bit later,” Sondheim writes in Hat, “when the Baker is despairing about his inability to have children and the wife is trying to conceal her impatience with his pessimism.”

[...]

Sondheim.com, a fansite dedicated to the lyricist/composer, got a peek at a version of the script in 1994, and wrote that “The story basically follows that of the show's first act, although the story unfolds in a different manner, without a narrator or a Mysterious Man”:

Several confusions of the play have been fixed. For example, Rapunzel is no longer related to the Baker, nor does she give birth to twins, so the question of why the family curse didn't affect her has been erased. At the end of the first “act,” the Giant rises from his fall and goes on a rampage, allowing the rest of the story to unfold more-or-less as it did in Act II of the play. The intricate back stories of the Baker's father and the witch's mother have been deleted, eliminating "No More" and changing a bit of "Last Midnight." There is no "second bean," so the Baker's wife's scenes with Cinderella are fairly different. Finally, at the very end of the movie the wife reappears, having tricked the Giant into thinking she was dead. Strangely, there has been no effort to integrate “Children Will Listen” into the action. Rather, the camera just switches to a shot of the witch singing the song against a backdrop of Rapunzel's tower, followed by a montage of the survivors going about their lives after the giant.

“Although there will certainly be more work done on the script before it becomes a film,” the site concluded, “what we've seen is certainly promising, and will definitely be entertaining, even if it's not the Into the Woods we all know and love.”

Two readings of the script were held in Los Angeles: The first included Martin Short as the Baker, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the Baker's Wife, Neil Patrick Harris as Jack, Mary Steenburgen as his mother, Kathy Najimy and Janeane Garofalo as Cinderella’s stepsisters, Cynthia Gibb as Cinderella, Rob Lowe as her prince, Christine Lahti as the Witch, Daryl Hannah as Rapunzel, and Michael Jeter as the Giant. At the second, Robin Williams played the Baker and Goldie Hawn was the Wife; Cher played the Witch, and Steve Martin played the Wolf. Carrie Fisher and Bebe Neuwirth were the stepsisters, Moira Kelly played Cinderella, and Kyle MacLachlan was her prince. Brendan Fraser played Rapunzel’s prince. Elijah Wood was Jack and Roseanne Barr was his mother. The cast was rounded out by Danny DeVito playing the Giant. In 1995, Rob Minkoff, co-director of The Lion King, signed on to direct.

Source:

@ariel-seagull-wings @thealmightyemprex @the-blue-fairie @piterelizabethdevries @theancientvaleofsoulmaking @mask131 @princesssarisa

[coreypalmersbike]

I went to see From The Rehearsal Room at the Savoy and I compiled notes. Keep in mind I wrote this on the tube on the way back from it so it might be a bit crazy but yk…

- Before the show we went on stage to look round and Hadley and Ramin were there to tune their guitars so they performed Hushabye mountain for us and then the group was taking a picture and Hadley snuck in and photobombed

⁃ They wore matching sockssss and it wasn’t even deliberate

⁃ I cant even remember why he brought it up but once Hadley had a bear on the roof of his apartment and they had to tranquillise it

⁃ He also performed once with a racoon staring at him

⁃ Ramin was singing this really beautiful song and Hadley was in the back with his legs crossed and one elbow resting on the piano and he was chugging water as everyone was crying

⁃ They bashed on people who watched I’m A Celebrity which was kind of funny tbh

⁃ Hadley is a Lord Of The Rings girlie which we love. He’s got that deluxe Lord Of The Rings trilogy swag

⁃ RAMIN SANG TIL I HEAR YOU SING AND THE AUDIENCE SCREAMED THE MINUTE THE CHORDS STARTED

⁃ THEY SANG LILY‘S EYES

⁃ HADLEY FORGOT HIS CHARACTER’S NAME (NEVILLE) AND THEY WENT ON FOR AGES TRYING TO NAME THIS CHARACTER AND THEN HADLEY JUST REFERRED TO THE CHARACTER AS NIGEL

⁃ Hearing Hadley talk about the Pirate Queen was very lovely

⁃ They were talking about the Secret Garden and they asked if it was ‘the’ Secret Garden or just ‘Secret Garden’ then they started using different words instead of ‘the’ and then Hadley started speaking in a northern accent and it was oddly good. I know he’s an actor but have you heard him in the Pirate Queen lmao

⁃ I don’t condone shipping irl people but once you see it live you can’t deny it. My mum literally thought they were husbands

⁃ Ramin sang a song and then afterwards Hadley said how the love just CAME OUT of him for Ramin

⁃ They held handsssss

⁃ After the interval Hadley sang Funny from City Of Angels and oh my golly goodness gracious it was absolutely brilliant. It’s one of my favourite songs ever and aaaaaaaaaa it was so good

⁃ Also Hadley got us to do three part harmony and he started speaking French??? It sounded angelic tho it was so beautiful. I love Just Let Go so so much it was so good with 1000 people singing it in beautiful harmony

⁃ Also the way he taught it: my choir teacher could never

⁃ He’s so patient and dad-like

⁃ Well he is a dad

⁃ A dad I’d like to-

⁃ He didn’t win the dilf awards I can’t finish that sentence

⁃ Just a reminder that I was there for the dilf awards 2022

⁃ Also it’s confirmed that Hadley’s mum calls him Robert which I always wondered about bc his name isn’t actually Hadley

⁃ Also right right right

⁃ Sheytoons turned into Gaytoons bc during the line “this time there’s no way of hiding the way you feel” Ramin got really tense and then he was properly reacting to the song but subtly and I don’t think it was deliberate

⁃ Babygirl this time there’s no way of hiding the way you feel for Hadley Fraser

⁃ RAMIN SINGING WHO ID BE

⁃ AND IT WAS SO GOOD

⁃ AND HADLEY SAID “PETITION FOR RAMIN TO BE THE NEXT SHREK” AND BABYGIRL YOURE SO RIGHT

⁃ Empty chairs at empty tables

⁃ Empty chairs at empty tables

⁃ I am not okie dokie

⁃ It was beautiful

⁃ So so beautiful

⁃ And then when they did the iconic harmonies I started sobbing

⁃ It was too much for my brain to handle

⁃ Then they said they couldn’t leave us on a sad note so they did YOULL BE BACK

⁃ I CANNOT EXPRESS HOW FUCKING BRILLIANT YOULL BE BACK WAS

⁃ So it started with Ramin, all bouncy and funky and stuff

⁃ But then oh my golly goodness gracious Hadley

⁃ He OWNED King George III so so hard

⁃ He did a very posh British accent and acted the living hell out of it

⁃ It was the best thing I’ve ever seen

⁃ And then he stuck one of his legs out in sort of a tango way and was very flamboyant and I’ve seen silly Hadley but I’ve never seen truly campy, flamboyant Hadley and it’s the best kind of Hadley

⁃ Then the whole audience did the da da da da das and it was so neat singing with Ramin and Hadley live

⁃ And they were doing a dancey dance and HADLEY AS KING GEORGE III I BEG, THATS ALL I ASK OF YOU, PLEASE ILL ACTUALLY ENJOY HAMILTON IF HADLEY IS KING GEORGE PLEASEEEEEE

⁃ Then it ended and we did a meet and greet and Hadley asked my name and I said it and Ramin and Hadley both shook my hand and then Hadley recognised me (it’s complicated to explain but basically he once saw a picture of me) and went “oh Maddie!!! It’s so good to see you!” Then he hugged me. Robert Hugh ‘Hadley’ Fraser hugged me. He didn’t do that for anyone else. He opened his arms and said “come here” in a nice way not a creepy way den

⁃ Overall such an insane experience, if you thought either of them were good in recording it’s just even better live. I’ve never heard them sing so well.

If any of you were there watching it please add anything I missed on

[sixohsixoheightfourtwo]

13 19 27 for the music asks please 💚

13. a reboot of a song/songs you already loved (remix, mashup, acoustic, etc.)

oh i Lovvvveeeee reboots of many and sundry kinds... can i do covers do covers count. i'm gonna do covers.

Elizabeth Fraser / This Mortal Coil'ss version of Tim Buckley's Song to the Siren -

Elizabeth Fraser -

Tim Buckley (on of all things the Monkees show) -

I was also really pumped to hear Pick Poor Robin Clean in SINNERS!!! i have been into the OG version of that by Geeshie Wiley & Elvie Thomas for a long time (content warning period typical language...)

I also love their Last Kind Words Blues one of THEE great blues songs -

which had an INSANE cover by Dex Romweber duo with Jack White -

MAJOR moment for me when this came out . ...

There isn't a lot known about Geeshie & Elvie but this NYT piece on them does probably as much as is possible: "There are musicians as obscure as Wiley and Thomas, and musicians as great, but in none does the Venn diagram of greatness and lostness reveal such vast and bewildering co-extent." here's Chris Thomas King (important blues artist) on the lengths he went to to get an original copy of Last Kind Words. There's fewer than 10 original copies of their records - three discs, six songs - left in existence.

i've also been obsessed for some years with the Wailers version of Like A Rolling Stone which takes elements of Bob Dylan but adds some verses and is WILDLY different

19. a song from an artist whose old music you enjoy more than their new music

HMMMM!!!! I'm not very up to date on new music. I willlll say that . I truly love the band Young Fathers. my favourite boyband <3. have seen them live several times (they are Very compelling live .. the first time i saw them they had such a quality of strangeness and newness to their movements and their presence it was immediately clear I was seeing something important) although not for a couple of years... they remain interesting to me. But i do prefer their first couple of albums (tape one, tape two, dead) over the next couple of albums.

27. an instrumental song

hhhhh what shall i give you. well I listen to a certain amount of non western music. Once at a festival I saw the Ethiopian saxophonist Getatchew Mekuria perform with the Dutch punk band The Ex and at the time i was like. this is the greatest thing ive ever seen and heard in my LIFE. They did two collab albums BUT the track i keep coming back to is not really a collab - it's a pure solo by Getatchew in the Tizita / Tezeta (nostalgia, longing) genre, which starts around 39.19 in the video below (could only find it in a full album upload on youtube). I think he was about 70 when they made this album.

music asks

[dieasthedevilwp]

What David Bowie song would your OC's love or relate to in their very soul? Ya books are amazing and deserve to win awards, especially Future Ghosts!!!

this might be my favorite question i've ever gotten about my ocs so congratulations, you win!!!! at everything!!!! bonus points for having the coolest profile picture!!!

also thank you x10000. your compliment makes me want to fly to the moon!!! out of joy!!!!!

rosie - i think it is very easy to say that rosie is obsessed with rock 'n' roll suicide for obvious reasons, but also just because it's absolutely amazing. i also think she loves hallo spaceboy just for the pure chaos of it. she loves cat people (putting out fire) and rebel rebel, too.

fraser - fraser loves it ain't easy, cygnet committee, changes, blackout, and the secret life of arabia. and if he hadn't died 10 years and a month before the release of blackstar, he would love lazarus and dollar days.

warren - something in me tells me that warren absolutely loves every single song on station to station. especially tvc15. i don't know why. he just does. i can feel it in my bones. and i also think he loves life on mars? and space oddity because they make him imagine movies in his head, and he loves doing that. he also likes i'm afraid of americans because he is afraid of americans. as well as all other people too, but especially americans. and of course starman because sometimes he feels like a starman.

juni - june absolutely loves lady grinning soul, time, and the prettiest star. i also think birdie played lady stardust and rebel rebel so many times that juni was bound to love them since she was a baby. she's obsessed with the lyrics of bowie's parts in under pressure. and i don't say that solely because i am, i swear. "love's such an old-fashioned word, and love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night" destroys her. especially older juni.

mazzy - mazzy loves let's dance, cracked actor, and dancing in the street. she dances around to them over and over in her room. she sometimes lays in her bed, staring at her ceiling, thinking about how badly she wants to be an avenger while listening to heroes on repeat. also, beauty and the beast. "there's slaughter in the air / protest on the wind / someone else inside me / someone could get skinned" and "someone fetch a priest / you can't say no to the beauty and the beast". the beauty and the beast??? the crying girl and the winter soldier??

ruth - i was only gonna do my published ocs but i am doing ruth anyway because she was a bowie girl when bowie was alive!!! im so jealous of her... (no i'm not; lots of people in the 80s would want to skin me alive i bet) but anyway, ruth loves changes, speed of life, teenage wildlife, and ashes to ashes. she doesn't know it yet, but she'll spend a lot of time listening to five years pretty soon. thinking lots about the end of the world and all.

that's obviously not all my ocs but i have like 100000 of them, so i'm not gonna do all of them, but if you have a specific one you're curious about that i didn't answer for, lmk and i'll answer for them!!

[1-420-666-6969]

@hunnybeemp3 posted a 9 albums that got you through 2024 and I thought it would be fun to do. Warning, I used to review music and I can yap, so sorry in advance. Used Topsters because my last fm is just going to say I listened to Gorguts and Queens of the Stone Age which was true, but there's nothing to talk about there.

Heaven or Las Vegas by Cocteau Twins - I first listened to this album in 2022 and it really wowed me. But as I listened to more of this album here in 2024, I started to obsess over the album - what meanings the songs mean, what emotion was Elizabeth Fraser trying to convey. I can't say for certain anything, but listening to this album really makes me feel emotional every time. Favorite song: "Frou Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires

The Downward Spiral by Nine Inch Nails - Since 2023, I wasn't doing great mentally. I started making more money than I ever did before, but also entered a new era of debt that felt crippling. In 2023, I was working 40 hours at my main job and 10 hours at a side job. Downward Spiral just clicked for a feeling of going to hell and back and trying to find positivity out of that negativity. And let me tell you, Trent Reznor got that feeling. When you're at your lowest and all you can think about is ending it all, but the primal need to exist, to thrive, to lash out, to love, to lust, to fuck. That's what Downward Spiral is about - loathing, but yearning; loving while losing; existing despite it all. Favorite song: "I Do Not Want This"

Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale by Tyler the Creator - A Tyler album that was just trying to be fun for most of the album with the message of just because you can buy everything doesn't mean you have everything, especially love. The Estate Sale included a bunch of B-Side tracks and throwaway tracks, but it also includes the most important song he's ever made, "Sorry not Sorry". I get why it didn't make the album. The rest of the joyous parts of the album are very joyous and feel good and even the deeper emotional songs don't lose that vibe. Favorite song: "Sorry Not Sorry"

Chromokopia by Tyler the Creator - This album felt like the exact opposite of Call Me if You Get Lost. This album is a personal song after personal song. It really just expresses emotion, and the time it came out was just right for that kind of album. Favorite song: "Judge Judy"

Sins of the Flesh by Sister Machine Gun - Religious trauma and sex. That's it that's the album. I love it. Nothing else to say. 7/10 I can listen to it on repeat. Favorite song: "Not My God"

Grace by Jeff Buckley - The fact that I didn't listen to Jeff Buckley before this year is insanity. I listened to this album randomly on a cold morning in February and cried on the shuttle to my job site. Something so raw about the simple lyricism. It's just emotion on display. I knew Buckley died before this and that death only started affecting me after hearing this and realizing what a talented musician he was. Favorite song: "Grace"

Merriweather Post Pavilion by Animal Collective - From the time I first heard this album in 2010, it's become a feel-good crutch of sorts. Whenever I feel bad or moody, I listen to it. Songs about growing up, about love, about endless joy - it really is just that kind of feel good album. It's considered by some to be the beginning of the end for Animal Collective because it's so much more pop than psych. Yet I don't care. It's seen playtime for 14 years and it will probably continue forever. Favorite song: "Guys Eyes"

GOLD by Age Factory - I don't have much to say about this album. I found out about Age Factory in 2020 with the promotion of their album EVERYNIGHT and the numeral track on that album, "Close Eye". I thought that was what I would be getting into, but no they're a punk band agnostic to any subgenre. GOLD, their previous album, is the culmination of that. A song about yearning for love, "See you in my dream" to the very next song being a lash out against the world "World is Mine" which affirms everyone deserves to live and everyone has value. I don't speak Japanese, but I can feel their emotion, song by song. Favorite song: "See you in my dream"

everything is alive by Slowdive - I love this album. I was supposed to see Slowdive in November but my family got me sick when I was supposed to go. I don't think there was a moment I listened to this album without my mind drifting somewhere else. There's just so much here. Shanty, Kisses, Skin in the Game. Every song gives a different feeling and vibe. Maximalist in sound, minimalist in lyrics - it all just works for it. Favorite song: "Kisses"

I'm not tagging anyone. Hell I don't think anyone is gonna read this since I don't have the audience for music anymore, but I wanted to do it to just talk about some of what I liked. If you want to share your musical interests, please do. Even if it's not in my wheelhouse, I love hearing what people think about art

[green-planets]

StEx Appreciation Month Day 23: The Nationals!

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Favourite Song/Scenes: This answer is going to be the same for all of them so the races, Rolling Stock, and Coda of Freight! They all have super fun background interactions too!

In addition, I also believe Bochum could probably get away with gender blind casting for all of the national engines

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Ruhrgold!

Face Claim: Josh Crowther, George Olney, or Will Luckett

Favourite Costumes: ICE RUHR SUPREMACY FOREVER AND ALWAYS

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Ruhrgold x Carrie, Ruhrgold x Joule (as exes). He's friends with all of the nationals but closest with Coco and Espresso, after he and Carrie start dating I could see him hanging out with some of the coaches, and he becomes friends with Rusty post-canon

Headcanons: He's extremely charming. Whenever he's late, all he has to do is smile and apologize and most people forget why they were upset at him in the first place

Unpopular Opinion: I don't have any!

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Bobo!

Face Claim: Fraser Fraser or Darren John

Favourite Costumes: Orange Bobo!!!

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Bobo x Espresso.

Headcanons: Bobo started flirting with Espresso as a power move (trying to psyche out his rival with mind games). Over time, his flirting became more and more genuine until he finally confessed his feelings

Unpopular Opinion: I like Coco way more than Bobo (but I don't think that's unpopular lol)

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Coco!

Face Claim: Molly McGuire!!! or Clare Maynard

Favourite Costumes: I love her costume! I know girl=skirt is a bad design philosophy but unfortunately Coco slays. I wouldn't be sad if they swapped the skirt for a pair of shorts or something though

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Coco x Pearl, Coco x Brandi, Coco x Volta. She and Zero are bitch buddies, of the nationals she's closest with Ruhrgold and Brexit (he may be a twerp but he's HER twerp), she has no problem hanging out with Bobo or Espresso separately but thinks they're absolutely insufferable when they're together, she's also friends with Greaseball and Brandi

Headcanons: She's the same Coco from the Japan/Aus tour! Trans Coco real!!

Unpopular Opinion: Not unpopular, but the Chanel references need to go

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Espresso!

Face Claim: Noah Jordan or Darius James

Favourite Costumes: Current Bochum! I really like the red and green split!

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Espresso x Bobo!!, Espresso x Zero (more of a one-sided crush on Zero's end), Espresso x Bidecker (as exes)

Headcanons: He finally realized that he was gay while dating Bidecker. She was planning on breaking up with him anyway because their personalities were too incompatible as romantic partners, so their split was fairly amicable and they stayed friends afterwards

Unpopular Opinion: I don't have any!

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Brexit!

Face Claim: Kevin Köhler!!! (Born to play silly little guys!!) or Anthony Cragg

Favourite Costumes: I really like his costume (minus the tie)! The flat cap is so cute

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Brexit x Rocky 1!! The other nationals like to pick on him the most but they are friends! He also befriended Memphis Belle and I could see him getting along with Rusty

Headcanons: Brexit was going to apologize to Rocky 1 for dropping out of the race but when he saw how upset he was, he chickened out and hid. He ended up meeting Memphis Belle in the freight yard. She made them some tea and they had a very pleasant chat (she also gave him advice on how to approach Rocky 1)

Unpopular Opinion: Also not unpopular, it would be so sooo easy to change his name to something silly like Biscuit and give him a different tie. And they should totally let him race with Rocky 1 at least once

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Turnov!

Face Claim: Chris Southgate or Joseph Connor (but Jayred Lempriere Turnov slayed)

Favourite Costumes: Current Bochum costume, I like the red padding he has under his chest and shoulder boxes more than the dark gray

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Turnov x Hashimoto (platonic or romantic, I just think they're close). Hashimoto is his closest friend out of the nationals, he also hangs out quite a bit with Brexit and Brandi

Headcanons: Turnov and Hashimoto were perfectly content to sit in silence with each other and do their own things, but after the race they spend a lot more of their time together bitching about a certain caboose

Unpopular Opinion: He could be cut and I wouldn't really care. He's the national I think about the least :/

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Hashimoto!

Face Claim: Mayo Kawasaki

Favourite Costumes: I prefer the blue costume but I don't mind the current Bochum one

Favourite Ships/Friendships: Hashimoto x Turnov. He's closest with Turnov, but friends with the rest of the nationals

Headcanons: He's usually pretty reserved, but really cuts loose during the races and after-parties. He likes to spend some one-on-one time with each of the other nationals before they all have to part ways again

Unpopular Opinion: Also not unpopular but holy shit stop casting white people to play him </3 And stop giving him stupid names!!

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[gotham-ruaidh]

Little Bit Better Than I Used To Be

Catch up: Chapter 1 (Starry Eyes) || Chapter 2 (Save Our Souls) || Chapter 3 (Dancing On Glass)|| Chapter 4 (Merry-Go-Round)|| Backstage (1) || Backstage (2) || Chapter 5 (Danger)|| Backstage (3) || Chapter 6A (Love Walked In) || Chapter 6B (Without You) || Backstage (4) || Chapter 7 (Stick To Your Guns) || Chapter 8 (Time For Change) || Backstage (5) || Chapter 9 (Take Me To The Top) || Backstage (6) || Chapter 10 (Home Sweet Home) || Backstage (7) || Chapter 11a (Nightrain) || Chapter 11b (Nothing Else Matters) || Chapter 12a (Handle With Care) || Chapter 12b (I’m So Tired of Being Lonely) || Chapter 13a (Angel) || Chapter 13b (She’s My Addiction) || Chapter 13c (Patience) || Chapter 14a (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 14b (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 14c (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 15a (Dreams) || Chapter 15b (I Sing A Song of Love) || Chapter 15c (You Can Do This If You Try) || Chapter 16 (Let That Feeling Grab You Deep Inside || Chapter 17A: Never Tear Us Apart ||| Also posted at AO3

Chapter 17B: It's Tough To Be Somebody, And It's Hard Not To Fall Apart

New York City || September 1988

It's tough to be somebody And it's hard not to fall apart Here on Rehab Mountain We gonna learn these things by heart

 - “Detox Mansion”, Warren Zevon (1987) [click here to listen]

Raymond crossed the threshold, and Claire closed the door. “We just had breakfast delivered, if you’d like something to eat or drink.”

“Tea or coffee, perhaps, if you have it?”

Claire slid her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket, bare feet soundless on the marble floor of the suite’s hallway. “Of course. You must excuse us, we didn’t get back until very late last night, and it’s so hard to go out for breakfast so we tend to just order room service for everything.”

“No need to apologize. I’m grateful for whatever you may have.”

The hallway turned into a sitting room, complete with a stunning view of Central Park.

“Hello, Dr. Germain.” A tall man stood at a long white couch, wearing black jeans and a black tank top, the tattoos on his arms vivid against the sky through the floor-to-ceiling windows. “I’m Jamie Fraser.”

“Raymond. And it’s a pleasure, Mr. Fraser. Dougal speaks very highly of you.”

Raymond shook Jamie’s hand, and watched Claire busy herself at a large rolling table covered in food.

“Jamie, please. Just Jamie. Make yourself at home.” Jamie gestured to another couch, and Raymond settled against the cushions.

“It’s quite something, isn’t it? This room, I mean.” Jamie grabbed a coffee mug, wedding ring clinking softly against the china. “I grew up on a farm in upstate New York. So this is the kind of thing you can’t get used to. Or should never get used to, anyway.”

“It is incredible,” Raymond agreed. “Definitely a lot better than the view from my apartment. I’d find it hard to leave here.”

“I do,” Jamie sighed. “But playing shows at the Garden…well. That’s pretty awesome, too.”

“Here you go.” Both men looked up to see Claire, holding out a steaming mug and plate of cut fruit. “Black coffee, but there’s cream and sugar if you like.”

Raymond gratefully took the plate and mug. “Thank you, Claire. You don’t need to be so generous.”

She smiled kindly, and settled on the couch next to Jamie with a bowl of cereal. Raymond sipped his coffee, watching Jamie rest a gentle hand on her thigh.

“Tell me about yourself,” Jamie said softly. “How do you know Dougal?”

Raymond spoke at length, in between bites of banana. “We met at a conference about ten years ago. I’ve been in private practice for many years, and I’m always eager to learn new techniques, to keep on top of the latest research and thinking. Conferences are good for that kind of thing. It was one of those three day affairs in a big hotel ballroom, and there was a rather boring dinner the first night. I ended up sitting next to Dougal and Gillian. We got to talking, and that was it.”

“If you’ve known each other for so long, I’m surprised you’ve never worked at The Ridge.” Claire crunched the last of her cereal, and Jamie smiled slightly.

Raymond shrugged. “You know this better than anyone – there is one requirement to work at The Ridge, and that is that you must be an addict in recovery. I’m not that.”

Jamie’s brows rose in surprise. “And yet, you’re one of the top therapists in the country for addicts in recovery. Or so Dougal led us to understand.”

Raymond set down his plate. “I started my career focusing on patients who had experienced extreme trauma. I’m a bit older than the two of you – this would have been in the ‘50s. I had volunteered at a VA hospital during medical school, and I got to know a lot of veterans who…well, let’s just say that they had seen and done things in Germany and the Pacific that no man ever should. I resolved then and there to dedicate my life to help people like that.”

He paused, and closed his eyes.

“Many of the men I worked with turned to drink and drugs to numb their pain. To escape their reality. I learned a lot about addiction that way. Why it starts, why it persists, how much damage it inflicts on the addict and the people who love them. I’ve never had a drink or taken a drug in my life, and I hope to stay that way until the day I die.” He took a breath. “But that doesn’t mean that I don’t understand why someone would reach that point.”

It wasn’t often that Raymond opened up – even in this muted way – about his own life. But with Jamie and Claire – who would be some of the most unique clients he’d ever work with – he knew they would give him space, and respect. And more importantly, that they would understand.

He finished his coffee, gently setting the mug on the table. Eyes open but focused downward on his hands.

“Put simply, I did not have the happiest of childhoods. I have no memory of my parents, and was in an orphanage run by nuns from the age of two. Things were not easy in Montreal during the Depression.”

“So that’s where your accent comes from,” Claire smiled.

Raymond glanced up at her, and smiled back. Tightly. “Indeed. Well, as a child I was bullied quite relentlessly. I’ve always been quite small, and you know how boys can be. So my friends were my books. Had it not been for my high school English teacher, I never would have found the courage to apply to university, or to come to New York. To fulfil my dream of helping people, and giving them the kindness and support that I never had. And somehow, by the grace of God, here I am, sitting with you today in this beautiful room. I will never be ungrateful for my improbable life.”

He glanced up at Jamie and Claire. Saw their hands entwined, gripping tightly, Claire’s face buried in Jamie’s shoulder.

Raymond flushed. “Oh my. I do apologize. I didn’t – ”

Jamie smiled sadly. “It’s fine. Claire’s fine, she’s just…did Dougal tell you anything about us?”

“Only the broad strokes.” Raymond uncomfortably scratched the back of his neck. “How you met, that you were both at The Ridge for treatment. He had to tell me about your career, regretfully I had never heard of you or your music. But I did buy your most recent CD earlier this week to prepare.”

Jamie nodded. “Interesting. I’m asking because we all seem to have something quite important in common. Claire was five when she lost her parents in a car crash. And I was eight when I lost my mother, though thankfully I had my father until just a few years ago.”

Now it was Raymond’s turn to smile sadly. “It colors your life, does it not?”

Claire straightened, and Jamie wiped away her tears with his free hand. Raymond noticed the flash of a tattoo at the base of Jamie’s thumb.

“It does.” She smiled sadly at Raymond. “It’s a hole that is never filled. Jamie and I have talked about it many times – whether we would have ended up as addicts, had we not lost our parents.” She sighed. “Thankfully I was raised by my mother’s brother – and I’m so grateful he is still in our lives. He married us. But it’s not the same.”

Raymond’s smile brightened considerably. “My heartiest congratulations on your recent wedding. It’s quite evident how deeply you love each other.”

Claire flushed happily, and Jamie kissed her cheek. “Thank you. We still can’t believe it ourselves. It’s been quite the year.”

“I can imagine. This tour must be something, if you’re selling out the Garden.”

“Well – the tour of course has been big,” Jamie remarked. “But it’s been a lot more than that, for us. A year ago now, we were at The Ridge, in treatment. I ended up being there for 17 weeks. Claire was there for, eight weeks?”

“Nine.”

“And when did the two of you get together?”

Claire glanced at her husband. “Officially, right before Jamie left. Then after that, we had some time together in January and February, but soon after that the decision was made to go on tour. Jamie had written a lot of new material at The Ridge, and he – we – thought that touring would be a good way to get back into real life. Buy us some time as I figured out what was happening with my medical license. And then…we decided to get married.”

“A three week tour,” Jamie snorted. “That was the original plan. We’re now on our fourth month, and we’ve sold out Madison Square fucking Garden for three nights.”

“How much longer will you be on the road?”

Jamie glanced briefly at Claire. “Just a few more shows and then we’ll wrap up. But then we’ll be back at it next year – the label has booked over one hundred dates, all across North America and then legs in Europe and Australia as well.”

“It’s going to be intense,” Claire added quietly. “I’ll be there with him, of course. My medical license has been reinstated, but I’m taking an informal break.” She darted a quick glance at her husband, squeezing his hand. “You should know this, Raymond – we quite desperately want to start a family. We’ve given ourselves this year to just…be. But that means there’s a good chance that while we’re touring next year I’ll be pregnant.”

Raymond folded his arms across his chest. “Which would be yet another source of stress in the situation. And another strain on your sobriety. Not to mention, your relationship. For both of you.”

Jamie gripped Claire’s hand. “And that’s where you come in, Raymond. I’ve been stone cold sober since I arrived at The Ridge. Claire, too. We’ve had each other this tour to keep each other honest, and I know I can say categorically that I wouldn’t be sober without her.”

He kissed her temple.

“But it’s not been without tremendous difficulty and so much strain,” Claire said softly. “He’s been having panic attacks.”

Raymond nodded. “Dougal did tell me that. And naturally, you’re worried that they will continue as the touring continues.”

Claire glanced at Jamie. “He – we – have learned enough about them now for him to recognize when one is coming. We can’t stop it from happening, but we can step away and ride through it together. Every time that happens, I’m grateful for the psych rotation I did in medical school.” She sighed. “But I’m not an expert, Raymond. I can’t help him the way he needs.”

“Said differently,” Jamie interjected, “it’s not fair for me to expect her to provide that kind of support. I don’t want to add to her stress. And I don’t want something to happen that could threaten her own sobriety.”

“Is that a realistic fear for Jamie to have, Claire?”

to be continued…

[redgoldblue]

Fic Writing Review 2023 🌈

tagged by @itwoodbeprefect - i have also been thinking about this so thank you for taking the initiative!

tagging @faorism @gallantrejoinder if you'd care to do this in any form (including as writing/art review)!

Words and Fics (on ao3) 📚

words posted: 52,220, apparently. Which is actually... basically last year's but minus 10k because I didn't do H50 Big Bang this year, because med school. most things in my life now can be stated as 'because med school'. (actually I just realised I didn't do it last year either, but that was because I was already finishing a 10k H50 fic. so my point stands)

fics posted: either 6 or 29, depending on whether one counts the advent calendar as one fic or 24. plus 3 posted only on Tumblr.

first fic: love don't treat you like that (babe, I'm letting you know) (H50). on the NINTH of january, apparently. i've already lost my first-fic-of-the-year contest to last year, unless i unexpectedly finish something today.

last fic: Advent Calendar 2023 / ...Zaph Kilkane, the pre-eminent climate scientist of the 22nd century...

-

Ships and Fandoms ⚓

would you believe I literally did not repeat a fandom this year, outside of the advent calendar. and this year's AC had the most fandoms since 2019.

Hawaii Five-0 (McDanno)

NCIS: LA (Sallen)

Starsky & Hutch (S/H)

House MD (Hilson)

MASH (Punnihawk)

and then AC-only ones:

Star Trek (Spirk)

The Man From UNCLE (Napollya)

911 (Buddie)

Due South (i don't know ship names. are there ship names? Fraser/RayK)

Good Omens (Azcrow)

Leverage (thiefsome)

Almost Paradise (Ernesto/Alex. alesto. i'm coining it)

-

Top 5 Fics by Kudos 🏆

I mean, I have 6 posted fics that can be kudosed separately.

love don't treat you like that (babe, I'm letting you know) (H50)

When You're Loving Me (That's When I'm Loving You) (NCIS: LA)

Advent Calendar 2023 (see above. nine fandoms)

my powers of expression and thoughts so sublime / could never do you justice in reason or rhyme (House MD)

Finding A Cure In You (S&H)

-

Top 5 Favorite Fics 💖

okay, I'm going to count distinct chapters of the advent calendar for this. in no particular order and subject to mood change:

When You're Loving Me (That's When I'm Loving You) (NCIS: LA) - I cited this as a contender for my favourite fic I've written a couple months ago, so obviously it has to go in the year's. what can i say, fake dating is an immaculate trope, and this also all came onto the page very easily which is always vaguely miraculous.

there you go pulling me right back in (H50) - sometimes vague prompts i've had down for ages write up as something that's. fine, but a bit clunky, and I just have to move on bc it's the advent calendar and a new fic each day. sometimes I start writing them and they spring into life with joyous delight. or in this case, uninhibited grumpiness and love.

singing yesterday's songs wishing i could be with you tonight (MASH) - the one that didn't make it into the top 5 kudosed, I assume partially due to being locked and partially due to being a serious tone, not terribly shippy, and Peg POV. But I've had some version or other of it for a long time, it's one of those stories I'm genuinely proud of, and I was glad to finally post it.

Totally Normal (Due South) - it's fun. it was fun. I was slightly nervous about it, because the only prior Due South thing I'd written was Dief POV and this was Fraser and RayK POV and the first time writing either of those, but it turns out watching + liveblogging four and two seasons, respectively, of a character in four months is. enough to cement their voices in my head. it was unexpectedly easy and also. fun.

Festive Spice (MUNCLE) - i just think it epitomises the advent calendar. in the words of coolbreezemage, 'yesssss bake cakes and kiss your partner'.

HMs:

Finding A Cure In You (S&H) - this doesn't make it to the above list due to the fact that I haven't actually managed to reread it since I posted it. but just for the amount of time I spent with it, how different it is to my usual M.O. of writing, and the weird way I wrote it (entirely in the notes app, with almost zero rereading while writing), I have to somehow mention it.

A Thousand Words / To Be Spared (Good Omens) - I don't know if they're favourite but I do think they're good. and the format of to be spared was pleasingly experimental and i think it worked.

-

Fandom Fic Events 🤝

also the Starsky & Hutch SHarecon zine! which the zine still holds copyright on, but will be posted in April.

-

Projects for 2024 👀

mmm gonna sort this differently and also ramble

Ones that will definitely be finished in 2024 and if they aren't you have free rein to come to my house and tie me to a chair come November: MUNCLE wip, The Unwitting Truth Affair/The Honesty Affair, I haven't actually decided which title yet;

Starsky & Hutch, the still-unnamed Huggy & Pete wip.

Ones I have both hope and some amount of faith will be finished in 2024 and if they aren't you have free rein to come into my inbox and harass me about them: Hawaii Five-0 wip, Much Ado About Something (*salutes squares*);

other Hawaii Five-0 wip, state of disrepair. yes, I'm manifesting state of disrepair 2024. probably november/december 2024, but i'm manifesting it anyway;

Leverage wip, all that I want is a kind heart to haunt

Ones I would like to be finished in 2024, and if my brain decides it likes them might be, but all you have free rein for is to politely ask me about them once per business month: Hawaii Five-0 cath/steve/danny pwp, Wait A Minute Let Me Take You There;

horny S&H wip, Previews Of Your Body Driving Me Insane;

S&H Vanessa coda, so cordial / so rotten (don't ask me);

Good Omens wip, love won't you be as you've always been

Ones I don't expect to finish in 2024 but would like to get some words down in: angsty S&H wip, Relentless As The Rain;

ridiculous undercover H50 wip, Four Seasons of Love;

other ridiculous H50 wip, The Irritating, Annoying, Infuriating, (Effective) Seduction Techniques of One Steven J. McGarrett;

SPN ..wip? depending on the time limit on 'progress'?, Smells Like Turpentine.

vague thoughts: i'd like to write a full-length (for whatever value of that. the AC ones actually were full-length, especially the second one, but what I really mean is AC-independent) due south fic. they're very weird and i enjoyed writing them, and I'd also like to write something with RayV in it. maybe if I successfully inspired @itwoodbeprefect to write new ds, when she does that it will inspire me to write something, and we can set up a ping-pong game. no, wait, that's mixing fandoms.

I expect more MUNCLE fic. this one's already 3.5k and rocketing along, and i'm only two-thirds of the way through season 1. what form that will take i don't know at this stage but we'll see.

....i was discussing the vague concept of house/h50 crossover fic with squares literally yesterday and on the one hand I haven't written a crossover since 2014 and also don't want that to be my legacy, but on the other hand i think there is at least a 50% chance it's going to stick in the back of my brain and keep niggling.

[cleoselene]

nine favorite albums in no particular order,

tagged by @an-ivy-covered-summer (thank you I love to ramble about music)

Portishead - Dummy - This is probably my favorite album of all time? It's perfect to me. It makes me feel so good, physically and mentally. It's the quintessential 90s album, the definitive trip-hop album, and always makes the list of "25 Albums You Should Own On Vinyl" for a reason. It's immaculate and it spawned a slew of imitators who never ever got close to this kind of quality. I think people also don't appreciate hop much trip-hop/downtempo has influenced today's pop music. SZA's latest album especially felt super trip-hoppy, so did elements of Midnights.

Massive Attack - Mezzanine - if there's one other trip-hop album you should pick up, it's this one. This album benefits greatly from Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins' ethereal vocals. Every song on this is amazing. When I was playing this album for a friend about a decade younger, he said "oh this is the album with the music from all the movies." lol. Indeed It's been licensed to hell for a reason!

Tori Amos - Scarlet's Walk - Okay I set a rule for myself that each artist would only get one album in this list to avoid putting up nine Tori Amos albums, but Scarlet is my favorite. This road trip across America immediately after 9/11 is one of the first albums to... if not criticize the US response to 9/11, because it was really too early for that, but to be very, very wary of what the response would be. It's an album that expresses sympathy for a wounded nation, while also acknowledging the nation's sins. I think this is one of a few Tori albums that was too high concept for the mainstream audience, but Tori has never been for the mainstream audience, anyway.

Taylor Swift - evermore - Of all the Taylor Swift albums, it was reputation that brought me to the dance and Red that made me fall madly in love. But evermore is her best work. It's perfecting upon the formula she came up with in folklore. Which, don't get me wrong, I love folklore, but with Taylor's obsession with being "sonically cohesive" it's kind of a bummer of an album? I appreciate how the vibes of evermore are more varied. Also, "ivy" is the most beautiful song she's ever written.

Green Day - American Idiot - This album doesn't need much description, it's so well-known, but nothing really compares to how hard this album hit during the height of Bush Era Hell. As a 26 year old when this came out, it felt like my generation was getting our mainstream protest music, finally.

Paul Simon - Graceland - This album won the Grammy for Album of the Year for a reason: it's soooo good. I know there's a lot of drama/controversy surrounding it, but I always felt Paul approached his love of African music from a genuine place. It's such a good midlife crisis album, I understand it now more that I am in midlife than I did when I discovered it at age 12. And the bass line for "You Can Call Me Al" is fucking legendary, isn't it? PS - Paul Simon is the greatest songwriter of all time.

VNV Nation - Automatic - Why was it so hard to pick a VNV Nation album? I really kind of wanted to put last year's Electric Sun in the mix, but I need to let that sit with me before I add it to a list like this. This is the album that brought me to the dance: "Gratitude" is an all-time fave VNV song of hopefulness. "Control" is the dance club banger to end all dance club bangers. I loooooooove this band. I wish there were more futurepop bands out there, tbh, it's SUCH an excellent genre.

Lana del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell! - This is Lana's best. It's not really even close. This is one of the best albums of the 21st century. The way "The greatest" so perfectly encapsulates the Trump-era nihilism... I DO want shit to feel the way just like it used to. Kanye West IS blond and gone. We DIDN'T know that we had it all. :( The ache of nostalgia in our current very painful times hits perfectly on this record (WHYYYY don't I own it on vinyl yet??)

Puscifer - Existential Reckoning - So hard for me to pick a Maynard project and not pick TOOL, but Puscifer has become my favorite of his three bands. Existential Reckoning is similar to NFR! in that it captures the political moment. Maynard has never seemed particularly political in his music until this record, which is pretty interesting. ER seems to be advocating for a return to rationality over ideology, of moderation over extremism, of science over faith. It takes a very humanist approach to looking at life in 2020. "Apocalyptica" is probably the craziest song because it sounds like it was written about COVID, but it was not, in fact was written just a few months earlier. "Bedlamite" is the coda to the album that promises hope: It's gonna be all right. When they did this album Live at Arcosanti and sang this song while the sun rose behind them, four days before the 2020 election and Maynard crooned that it would be all right, I looked at my roommate, and I said, "it really is, isn't it?" And we both got kind of overwhelmed. And then a few days later, it was. Trump lost.

I went into way detail >_> told you I like rambling about music

tagging: @swiftzeldas @emmaswanned @brightnshinythings @mariacallous @ouijawaydidhego

[thehopelessauthor]

Men who are/were victimised (because yes it can happen to men too)

Husk:

Abuser: Alastor

Status: Ongoing

Abuse:

• Modern slavery

• Emotional

• Financial (possibly)

• Being owned

• Physical

• Humiliation

Triggers:

• Intimidated

• Condescension

• Hypervigilance

• Volatile (particularly towards Alastor, than anyone else in the hotel; depending what the situation is)

• Witnessing another abusive relationship — ie Angel being struck by Valentino (bro nearly lost it)

• Alcoholism - not sure if this stems from his background or if it’s amplified by Alastor’s abuse

• Isolation

<> This is a little hard for Alastor to do within the hotel so I think he would let that slide — however, I suspect, he’d at least ensure that Husk doesn’t have any distractions that could cause him to leave his side— for example: let’s say entering a relationship with Angel Dust etc 🤭

Jamie Fraser:

Abuser: Randall

Status: Formerly (☠️)

Abuse:

• Physically

• Sexually

• Mentally

Triggers:

• Severe PTSD

• Repulsed by sexual activity (particularly with his wife - formerly)

• Smell of lavender

• Guilt-ridden (formerly)

• Dissociation

• Hallucinatory visions

• Closed off

Stolas of the Ars Goetia

Abuser(s):

• Stella

• Paimon

• Striker

• Blitz (verbally)

• Andrealpus

Status: Ongoing, slowly healing

Abuse:

• Physical

• Sexually - forced, by Paimon, to have sex with Stella to procreate an heir for the Goetia family (didn’t matter what his 🏳️‍🌈 sexuality 🏳️‍🌈 was)

• Emotional

• Neglect (as a child)

• Mentally

• Psychologically

Triggers:

• Closeted

• Hypersexuality

• Stockholm Syndrome (via Blitz)

• Socially awkward (via different variations of abuse)

• Flinch at the slightest

• Clingy

• Helicopter parent (to Octavia)

• Love-bombing

• Financially (via Andrealpus)

• Institutional

<> Not offering choice or promoting independence

Gale Dekarios:

Abuser: Mystra

Status: Determinant

Abuse:

• Emotionally

• Sexually (Groomed)

• Religious

• Stockholm Syndrome

Triggers:

• Manipulative (subconscious)

• Love bombing

• One-sidedness (on Mystra’s part)

• Clingy

• Lack of affection (romantically)

Angel Dust:

Abuser: Valentino (mainly)

Status: Ongoing

However, I do theorise that the other two Vees are involved as well, but more indirectly, like you have Velvet’s “love potion” specifically for date-rape for victims and then you have Vox with his cameras in Angel’s dressing room; so basically a key witness to the ongoing assault or even just watching (?) him get undressed which is also another violation — since he’s visually participating — of his privacy.

Abuse:

• Sexual assault

• Physical

• Modern slavery (via pornography & sex worker)

• Mentally

• Emotionally

Triggers:

• Hypersexuality

• Depersonalisation

• Masking

• Reliant on drug substances

• Unpredictability

• Stockholm Syndrome (severe)

Lucifer Morningstar:

Abuser: God (his father)

Status: Formerly

Abuse:

• Self-neglect (to himself— if in a really bad way)

• Emotional

• Neglect

• Domestic violence (psychological)

Triggers:

• Lack of affection

• Commitment issues

• Incapable of love

• Masking

• Abandonment issues

• Favouritism

• Broken family (via parents splitting up)

• Hypersensexulity

• Reliant on drugs and alcohol; to numb any sort of positive feelings

• Daddy/mommy issues

• Helicopter parent (when it comes to Rory 😂 )

<> Because of the lack of affection his father never gave him; spin cycle repeat

(Okay let me just acknowledge that despite that these no longer exist anymore, because of some very tense therapy thanks to Linda Martin — but it still doesn’t change the fact that he WAS abused at that point)

Astarion Ancunín

Skip to 1:30

Abuser: Cazador Szarr

Status: Formerly (💀), semi-healed

Abuse:

• Physically

• Modern slavery (formerly)

• Mentally

• Emotionally

• Neglect

• Psychological (Act 1)

• Sexually

(Not directly to him but he was forced to do sexual acts against his will, which is a type of rape)

• Domestic violence (psychological)

<> It was stated that Cazador thought of his (s)pawns as “family” so I guess this goes under this category

• Institutional

<> Cazador no doubt had planned Astarion’s death (by charming a group to attack him) so he can use him as a pawn after turning him into a vampire

<> Discouraging visits or the involvement of relatives or friends — so basically not allowing Astarion to socialise with anyone except for the ones he was forced to sleep with

<> Not offering choice or promoting independence

• Financial

(Not confirmed but implied — perhaps that’s why Astarion chose the rogue class or maybe he was already one by the time Cazador came to him)

<> Someone moving into a person’s home and living rent free without agreement or under duress

Triggers:

• Physical contact — very selective about who touches him, unless it’s those who are in his inner circle; like his friends, family or partner (determined by if he stays as a spawn at the end of the game)

<> Scar tissue — speaking from someone who actually has scars on my body I can assure that he most definitely has what I call ‘tingles’ and it’s both annoying and a little painful on certain days (particularly in colder weather)

• Moral standards (Act 1)

• Masking

• Hypersexuality

<> Although it’s a little different to Angel Dust’s; Astarion is actually hyper aware of what he’s doing but suppresses his loathing and disgust to force himself through it due to two centuries of habit

• Repulsed by sexual acts

• Eating drinking disorder (HC)

<> I’d think if I was starved of my food sources I’d develop some “eating” — or drinking habits — if I was a vampire habits. Or maybe he personally chose to do intermittent fasting (which can be mistaken for eating disorder but they do two different things)

• Claustrophobia (implied)

<> Due to a traumatic experience of being entombed for an entire year for disobeying orders