#Jekyll and Hyde 2.0

[teamfortresstwo]

Did you send me a knife emoji or is something going on

No I didn’t .

[alvinmichaelmurphyseville]

“It’s time I face the music. I cannot maintain the Computer Science class while still completing my other classes. I wish I could.”

“When this semester ends, I’m going to switch back to taking an easier class. I have no idea when the semester ends though. It feels like ages away.”

“I just wanna go Classic mode, but I am stuck taking my ADHD meds again and being in full 2.0 mode. Granted, these short duration ones preserve my creativity, but they DO turn the nerdiness meter up to 11 and it’s hard to slip back to chilling out.”

“Feelin’ like Jekyll and Hyde again. I should probably read that book. No, no. Distraction. I need to stay on the ball no matter what.”

“I feel bad shoving Classic Alvin to the side and only letting him out when my work is finished, but I kind of have to. If I don’t, I just get in trouble for disrupting class…even if I am actively engaged in the lesson.”

“I just wish I was faster at doing work CONSISTENTLY instead of whenever my brain feels like it…which is twice a month, IF I’m lucky.”

“But, there is no point in complaining. I will suck it up until the semester ends. I made my mess and now I must endure it.”

[chipmunkweirdo]

Miss. Smith: Today we’ll be learning about the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

(Theodore raises his hand)

Miss. Smith: Yes, Theodore?

Theodore: Can we learn about something else? I live with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, so I’m kinda already an expert.

(Alvin sinks down in his seat, embarrassed.)

(Simon bursts out laughing.)

[inkinary]

Drinking the serum.

Straight up... chugging it.

I have a distinct need to understand what is going on from a first-person experience and this is the best way.

Alternate plan would be to become Jekyll's lab assistant... and study Hyde like a favorite bug species.

But there would be potion chugging at some point. I'm almost positive.

If y'all were teleported to the universe of Jekyll and Hyde (the book) and what would you guys do?

You can be as chaotic and crazy as you want, because I'm curious.

[an-theduckin]

I hate HATE jekyll&Hyde adaptations that turn hyde into Jack The Ripper 2.0 even tho he has nothing to do w prostitutes in the novel!! I get that they want hyde to be the worst scumbag n all and yes that's right, but he only killed 1 person (2 if you count lanyon but that was manslaughter) and dropkicked a child in the novel!! He's not some murderer that goes around killing everyone on sight- much less prostitutes. Where do ppl even get that idea from :////

[littletownman]

I HAVE ONE MORE TRICK UP MY SLEEVE:

TGS MONSTER HIGH AU

(CLICK FOR BETTER QUALITY) (ALSO PLEASE ZOOM IN ON HYDE'S SHIRT IM REALLY PROUD OF IT)

IGNORE HOW INCONSITENT MY ART STYLE IS THATS NOT THE POINT

this has been simmering in my head for a good two hours, so i thought id get it out there before the anniversary ends. i love monster high, but the design for jackson jekyll and holt hyde is um, something else.

this is Henry Jekyll Jr: the grandson of Henry Jekyll Sr (book jekyll), aspiring alchemist, lived next to and studied humans, created a formula called HJ7 to get rid of his "monstrous" traits. Instead of turning him into a human like he planned, he managed to split his soul in two (this is before he goes to monster high) he's always had this strange fascination with humans that none of the other monsters really understand, but he is still passionate about science. i thought itd be cool to have a reversed concept where monsters and mad scientists is the norm and being a normie is abnormal. this leads to jekyll struggling to connect to either side since he feels he can't be either or

then you have Edward Hyde 2.0 (THE ORIGINAL HYDE JEKYLLED HIMSELF): idk man he just wants to party he doesn't really hang around the school too much (he thinks its boring) but he's still pretty passionate about science. He looks like a normie and though monsters "tolerate" him, like Jekyll, he's kind of alienated and bad tempered. most students dont really like him too much actually (he's prbably gotten into fights) he'll spend his time partying with normies, going into town, causing trouble. Occasionally, he'll hang out with Rachel or go back to his dorm to work on a passion project.

i havent thought too much abt the other characters besides lanyon = vampire, frankenstein = exactly the same. idk i thought itd be cool if henry looked like the monster instead and was trying to fit in with humans while hyde looked like a human who wanted to fit in with the monsters

if you have any questions, ill try my best to answer. or if you have ideas (i have like nothing for this au bro)

[starheirxero]

So it was Ruin all along! To be honest, I am rather surprised, as it just seemed a little too obvious. However, like many others, I think it's a Jekyll and Hyde situation, and there's a specific reason!

This might be incoherent at best, but I will try my best to explain my thought process!

So, my reason for thinking of it as a Jekyll and Hyde situation is, rather simply, because he is an Eclipse. It is his canonical name, after all! However, unlike the Eclipse we know, and unlike Solar, he is not a part of Moon's code inside Sun's body, and rather is both Sun and Moon at the same time.

An interesting thing to note is, that it's never told to us what kind of eclipse he is. Is he a solar, or a lunar eclipse?

I think it's both.

I think there are two Ruins in one body. One is a Solar eclipse, and one is a Lunar eclipse. Both of them having different personality traits from Sun and Moon respectively.

The solar eclipse is likely the infected one. He has the theatrical and over the top nature Sun used to play up in the first videos, and the games. Meanwhile, he has Moon's intelligence. Able to rebuilt people, always planning ahead, etc.

The lunar eclipse is likely the one we've been spending our time with. He has Sun's anxiety and insecurities. Suprisingly, we don't see as many traits of Moon in him, but they are definitely here.

One thing to point out is, that one side of his face is white with a blue eye, and the other black with a red eye, which feels kind of symbolic, though it's most likely just a design choice.

The biggest question would be their existence. Why would there be two?

I am really not sure, but there are a few speculations!

One could be, that the two split due to the virus. That perhaps the virus created another personality, caused by the fact, that they are not meant to be one.

Another idea could be, that the solar side created the lunar side, as a parallel to the show's dimension. Perhaps the solar one pulled out certain personality traits that they weren't fond of, and gave them to the lunar one. Or perhaps they just split themself. Maybe this way, the virus was able to protect itself!

It's just a silly little theory though! I just thought, it's interesting, that the kind of Eclipse he is is never specified, given that we have a Sun, a Moon, two Solar Eclipses, a Lunar eclipse, and a Bloodmoon, y'know?

-Stardust

OH!!! OUHHHHH!!!!!! OUHG OKAY FIRST OF ALL THATS A SUPER FUN WAY TO VIEW RUIN OMG??? AND SECOND OF ALL I THINK I GET EXACTLY WHAT U MEAN AND HONESTLY I SUPER SUPER LOVE THAT!!!!!!

If it did turn out to be like that too, then it could sort of feel like a subtle nod to how people usually portray canon Sun and Moon, even the show itself!!! And stars honestly imo it would just make Ruin more interesting too!!

And any of ideas on how they could have split could be super fun to explore.... Specifically the one where the virus made them split gives the mental image of how water melting and freezing over and over in a crack can cause it to get bigger and bigger until it breaks apart, yk??? The virus just wiggling in deeper and deeper until the last bit of communication just snaps.

MAN I am like super vouching on some of these tbh HEHAHAJD I JUST BLORBO'D RUIN TODAY I'M NOT READY FOR HIM TO ENTER HIS VILLAIN ERA 2.0 /silly

[mysticstarlightduck]

Roast Your OCs Tag!

I was tagged by @willtheweaver (here) and @tabswrites (here)! Thank you both so much for the tag, this is gonna be a fun one!

I'll do my OCs from both Supernova Initiative and Of Starlight and Beasts for this one! Let's go:

Rules: Reduce my OCs to the most basic, mundane, stereotypical/archetypical tendentious of themselves and make it Fit into a Title!

(Supernova Initiative) - my sci-fi heist story!

Jack Tithus - An older brother who absolutely did not sign up for the utter mess that his life has become and is about to lose what patience he still has left. Also is an intergalactic thief.

Cassiopeia Tithus - Someone shouldn't have left this absolute menace of a teen unsupervised, and now she (and her robots) will make it everyone else's problem.

Vesper Foxx - Unstoppable and slightly unhinged Cyborg, with a truckload's worth of The Trauma Lore, on the Path to Revenge, will stab people unprovoked if she gets pissed off.

Aleks Keldora - Top 1 worst pilot anyone could ever meet, thinks he's great. Commits identity theft as a weekly pastime as a bonus, and is also the most clueless smuggler/mercenary alive.

Artemis Zreeth - Edgy Emo Boy 2.0 with the power of Anger and Teen Angst, who takes everything way too seriously, almost always makes things weird, and thinks sarcasm is a personality. It isn't but he has yet to realize it.

Noctus - Tired and slightly depressed secret agent gets assigned to supervise this bunch during a mission and Regrets His Life Choices while also having an Existential Crisis Moment.

Pax Stellaryn - Adopted Kid with Daddy Issues thinks he can fix his life with the Power of Friendship and Rulebreaking. Fails successfully (his life is in shambles but he did make new friends.)

Ethean Mirannir - Has spent his entire life being A Perfect Soldier and has a lot of reservations about breaking laws, but not about bending the rules. Doesn't know if he should be scared or impressed with the speed his adoptive brother messed up their lives.

Meridian Shardd - Basically a Newborn Robot in a Grownup's artificial body. Has literally no idea what is going on but is down for the ride. Is having the time of his life.

(Of Starlight and Beasts) - my high fantasy adventure story!

Corah Stormryder - Knight protagonist trying to fix everyone's problems but her own inadvertently gets into even more trouble when her Mommy Issues come back to haunt her along with a little something otherwise known as The Consequences of her choices.

Arammys Lochllain - Amnesiac star boy trying to figure out what The Fuck Is going on unlocks new traumas every week. Also, cue the occasional Jekyll and Hyde personality split/existential crisis.

Eidan Delythen - Depressed Lone Wolf attempts to run from his past by doing the exact opposite of what he'd planned to do while also being Ruthlessly Sassy about it.

Nimwen Raynsel - Traumatized embodiment of a dear in headlights tries to get the world to fuck off from her doorstep while struggling with making things worse.

Tomasa Emberi - Dragon Girl has the time of her life pranking her friends through shapeshifting while facing past issues she really didn't want to face.

Masen Mavven - This absolute idiot who thinks stealing/lying amounts to any kind of therapy or emotional fulfillment. Drowns his angst with wine and Bardic Angst.

Kyran Mavven - Another absolute idiot, who thinks lying to everyone about his true identity and past is a sustainable approach to academic life.

Maryon Haell - Incredibly bored spy girl in training absolutely lunges at the prospect of adventure but finds out halfway through that maybe she should've read the fine print.

Florynce Everfall - Unhinged undead teenager who is simultaneously incredibly eerie and adorable at the same time, puts an unhealthy amount of trust in talking trees.

Rin - An absolute asshole/bastard of a man who begrudgingly and incredibly slowly learns to "be nice" and not use manipulation and stabbing as a coping strategy for childhood traumas, while also being an absolute gremlin teen who should not be unsupervised for more than 5 minutes.

Leora Tallin - Child Soldier grows into a military commander who has no sense of humor and is trying to save her people from the mistakes of a bunch of rich idiots from another realm.

Scarlet - Young man forced to grow up too fast tries to change his identity while absolutely not addressing any of his own past traumas. Also has a neat pet hawk.

Elias Mavven - Pirate King on a Revenge Quest against the people who ordered his execution, tries to not have a breakdown at the family gathering. Is 100% over the twins' bullshit.

Lord Bastien Ilythos - Perfect prince of darkness trying to uphold legacy learns that, huh, 🌟his entire life might be a lie🌟and Is Not Having It.

Tagging (gently)! @kaylinalexanderbooks @littleladymab @cabbojage @lassiesandiego @little-peril-stories @oh-no-another-idea @thepeculiarbird @rickie-the-storyteller @crowandmoonwriting @steh-lar-uh-nuhs @gummybugg @forthesanityofstorytellers @doublegoblin @aalinaaaaaa @starlit-hopes-and-dreams @elshells @illarian-rambling @clairelsonao3 @conkers-thecosy @anyablackwood @diabolical-blue @cowboybrunch and OPEN TAG

[alexesguerra]

Elon Musk Elon Musk Contributor(s): Isaacson, Walter (Author) Publisher: Simon & Schuster Physical Info: 2.0" H x 9.4" L x 6.1" W (2.25 lbs) 688 pages When Elon Musk was a kid in South Africa, he was regularly beaten by bullies ... But the physical scars were minor compared to the emotional ones inflicted by his father, an engineer, rogue, and charismatic fantasist. His father's impact on his psyche would linger. He developed into a tough yet vulnerable man-child, prone to abrupt Jekyll-and-Hyde mood swings, with an exceedingly high tolerance for risk, a craving for drama, an epic sense of mission, and a maniacal intensity that was callous and at times destructive. ... For two years, Isaacson shadowed Musk, attended his meetings, walked his factories with him, and spent hours interviewing him, his family, friends, coworkers, and adversaries. The result is the revealing inside story, filled with ... tales of triumphs and turmoil, that addresses the question: are the demons that drive Musk also what it takes to drive innovation and progress Walter Isaacson is the bestselling author of biographies of Jennifer Doudna, Leonardo da Vinci, Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin, and Albert Einstein. He is a professor of history at Tulane and was CEO of the Aspen Institute, chair of CNN, and editor of Time. He was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2023. Visit him at Isaacson.Tulane.edu. Review Quotes: Shortlisted for the Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year "Whatever you think of Mr. Musk, he is a man worth understanding-- which makes this a book worth reading." -- The Economist "With Elon Musk, Walter Isaacson offers both an engaging chronicle of his subject's busy life so far and some compelling answers..." -- Wall Street Journal "Walter Isaacson's new biography of Elon Musk, published Monday, delivers as promised -- a comprehensive, deeply reported chronicle of the world-shaping tech mogul's life, a twin to the author's similarly thick 2011 biography of Steve Jobs. Details ranging from the personally salacious to the geopolitically volatile have already made the rounds -- the rare example of a major book publication causing a news cycle in its own right...What Isaacson's biography reveals through its personalized lens on Musk's work with Tesla, SpaceX, OpenAI, and more is not only what Musk wants, but how and why he plans to do it. The portrait that emerges is one that resembles a hard-charging, frequently alienating Gilded Age-style captain of industry, with a particular fixation on AI that ties everything together....Isaacson's book is like a decoder ring, tying the mercurial Musk's various obsessions into a coherent worldview with a startlingly concrete goal at its center." -- Politico "[The book] has everything you'd expect from a book on Musk--stories of tragedy, triumph, and turmoil.... While the stories are fascinating and guaranteed to spark a mountain of coverage, founders and entrepreneurs will also unearth valuable lessons." -- Inc. "Isaacson has gathered information from the man's admirers and critics. He lays all of it out.... The book is bursting with stories....A deeply engrossing tale of a spectacular American innovator. " -- New York Journal of Books "One of the greatest biographers in America has written a massive book about the richest man in the world. This fast-paced biography, based on more than a hundred interviews...[is] a head-spinning tale about a vain, brilliant, sometimes cruel figure whose ambitions are actively shaping the future of human life." --Ron Charles on CBS Sunday Morning "A painstakingly excavation of the tortured unquiet mind of the world's richest man... Isaacson's book is not a soaring portrait of a captain of industry, but rather an exhausting ride through the life of a man who seems incapable of happiness." -- The Sunday Times "An experienced biographer's comprehensive study." --The Observer "Walter Isaacson's all-access biography... Its portrait of the tech maverick is fascinating." --The Telegraph "Isaacson boils Musk down to two men... the result is a beat-by-beat book that follows him insider important rooms and explores obscure regions of his mind." --The Times Publisher Marketing: The #1 New York Times bestseller from the author of Steve Jobs--this is the astonishingly intimate story of the most fascinating and controversial innovator of our era--a rule-breaking visionary who helped to lead the world into the era of electric vehicles, private space exploration, and artificial intelligence. Oh, and took over Twitter. When Elon Musk was a kid in South Africa, he was regularly beaten by bullies. One day a group pushed him down some concrete steps and kicked him until his face was a swollen ball of flesh. He was in the hospital for a week. But the physical scars were minor compared to the emotional ones inflicted by his father, an engineer, rogue, and charismatic fantasist. His father's impact on his psyche would linger. He developed into a tough yet vulnerable man-child, prone to abrupt Jekyll-and-Hyde mood swings, with an exceedingly high tolerance for risk, a craving for drama, an epic sense of mission, and a maniacal intensity that was callous and at times destructive. At the beginning of 2022--after a year marked by SpaceX launching thirty-one rockets into orbit, Tesla selling a million cars, and him becoming the richest man on earth--Musk spoke ruefully about his compulsion to stir up dramas. "I need to shift my mindset away from being in crisis mode, which it has been for about fourteen years now, or arguably most of my life," he said. It was a wistful comment, not a New Year's resolution. Even as he said it, he was secretly buying up shares of Twitter, the world's ultimate playground. Over the years, whenever he was in a dark place, his mind went back to being bullied on the playground. Now he had the chance to own the playground. For two years, Isaacson shadowed Musk, attended his meetings, walked his factories with him, and spent hours interviewing him, his family, friends, coworkers, and adversaries. The result is the revealing inside story, filled with amazing tales of triumphs and turmoil, that addresses the question: are the demons that drive Musk also what it takes to drive innovation and progress?

[strangestcase]

so wack when people are like "jekyll and hyde is about intrusive thoughts" "Hyde is Jekyll's intrusive thoughts" like no lmao if Jekyll's thoughts of violence were actually intrusive he wouldn't get off of hurting people lmao.

besties... the fucked up impure evil not safe for victorian era thoughts... he enjoys them. that's the whole point of Hyde. what he doesn't like is the guilt that comes with, you know, the whole hurting people thing, particularly after the No Guilt drug's effects are no longer active.

this shit is literally just "uwu jekyll has fantasy DID even though he shows obvious symptoms of Not Fucking Having It all the time" 2.0 huh.

[bansheeoftheforest]

For the catshifter au, would Hyde become that one irresponsible (but favourited) uncle? Teaching the five to sneak out, how to steal things, or how to climb up places they Absolutely Should Not Be giving both Emma and Jekyll near heart attacks on the regular? The kids are bound to have a little chaos in their hearts since they are, sort of in a strange way, related to him too.

He DEFINITELY would. He would probably deny ever liking the kids in the beginning, probably hounding Henry that "it's a bad idea to get kids" and that neither of them will have the freedom they want if he and Emma get some kiddos (but he said the same thing about Henry getting married, so he didn't listen to him), and he probably would think the kids are absolutely adorable but would constantly call them gross or weird to Jekyll, or just refuse to go anywhere near them. It's not until Henry lets him out one evening (with permission from Emma, of course) and the first thing he does (when he thinks Henry isn't looking) is to sneak into their nursery and just coo over them. Absolutely adorable lil bastards. Going directly against Emma's and Henry's advice and just starts cuddling with them in the middle of the night. The five of them would absolutely adore him too but Hyde would still deny ever liking them no matter what evidence that Henry gives him.

The moment the kids were old enough, Hyde would encourage them to steal cookies from the kitchen or mess with their father's alchemical supplies on the regular. I like the thought that, while neither kid has their own Hyde, they can still somewhat see Henry's Hyde in his reflection or shadow at times bc they have that "gene" from the fact that Henry uses the HJ7 on the regular, so not even when Henry is in control can he stop Hyde from encouraging the kids to be lil tricksters. I'd like to think that Allium and Chrysanthemum would be the most mischievous ones, they would be like Hyde 2.0 and Hyde would absolutely love that, Henry would constantly (and exhaustively) joke that the two of them were fathered by Edward and not him. Hydrangea is a mix of Henry and Hyde when it comes to trouble, Rose and Marigold take after Henry the most so while they are all mischievous, Henry and Emma doesn't have to constantly worry about all their kids. Just... Lil bastards my beloved <3

[lilac-gold]

hmmmm, let's see

what baking can do from waitress

confrontation from jekyll & hyde

breathe from in the heights

barbara 2.0 from beetlejuice

and sserious from legally blonde :)

sorry guys i'm a theatre kid through and through. i don't listen to normal songs <3

@charismabee @goldmoth82 @canadianketchup @inprisonforsparkling @weedkilleroffical

Hey eyeone! I want to know what your favorite songs are, if you see this post you are CONTRACTUALLY OBLIGATED to reblog with at least 1 song you have listened to and enjoyed but if you have more you'd like to share then go ahead! Also tag your friends!

I'll start, I'm going to list 5 of my favorite songs

Dr Sunshine Is Dead by Will Wood

134340 Pluto by Cojum Dip

Vulture by Bear ghost

Dear John by I monster

And finally: playing places: Oceans by Cosmo Sheldrake

Here's the people I want to tag

@f4y3w00d5 @ashen-the-tiefling @terrencetheshark14 @underpaid-guard @blacktipreefsharkwizard @the-gnomish-bastard @thatgayforkcrow @lixorloveslicorice @yourlocalbreadenthusiast @agentldiddy @aileaxthevoidien @slutty-wizard-council @monsterfucker-research-wizard and anyone else who wants to play!!!

[dystopianam]

My Not So Berry is normal!

My Not So Berry:

Gen. 1 - Mint = A strange and eccentric toothpaste boy with a high-pitched voice (which you have never heard but Basil has this voice, if you download him you can hear it) who spends his life rummaging through garbage because he doesn't even have the money to eat, he's obsessed with vegetarian burritos and married the first chick he found and he dated twice (she was in a hurry, she didn't want to die a virgin) and that despite having the "lucky" trait he had every misfortune on him like objects that broke and thefts in the house every day.

When he felt alone he talked to the coffee beans but this is the most normal thing he have ever done.

Gen.2 - Rose = Literally...BEGONE T#TH. Dina Caliente 2.0 but without Sugar Daddy. All Lucky Palms knew her private parts, once she gets screwed and gets pregnant with triplets. The father has the face of a idiot. She was the only generation that was to have only one child.

Gen.3 - Yellow = Inheriting bad luck from his grandfather, he dies electrocuted by a killer dishwasher as a teenager (later the dishwasher also kills his stepfather, from since the dishwasher entered the list of the worst serial killers in history). His twin sisters spend their entire life looking for ingredients for Ambrosia to bring him back to life and when they do they regret it because he is a piece of sh#t like their mother. After, he marries a french girl with a nose as long as the Eiffel Tower (which will be inherited forever as a curse by future generations) and the sisters will die virgins and furious because to look after their nephew (the son of their brother) they will not have time for men. (Except when one of the sisters tried to woohoo with her brother's wife...)

Gen.4 - Gray = Gray Gothic Daddy Boy with weird artistic taste and with an abusive family (half-crazy father and alcoholic mother) he is raised by his aunts, then finds happiness in art and sport by becoming an internationally famous athlete star in Midnight Hollow, a quiet city made up of serial killers, stalkers and kidnappers. Here he finds his soul mate who gets pregnant every 2 days to alternate.

He also have some fetish for grannies.

Btw, at least he's a good dad and a good husband.

Gen.5 - Plum = Literally Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

[margridarnauds]

XCalibur: My Review

So, it’s been a couple of weeks since XCalibur came out and, while I’m trying to sort out my own thoughts about this, I decided to do what I do best: Force everyone to read an overly long, barely coherent post.

First off: Let’s get this off the ground. The fact that we got to see this at ALL was phenomenal. This is really, really fantastic, as a step for KMusicals getting a wider western audience, and it’s something that I DESPERATELY hope that they will continue to repeat in the future. I’d have supported it if it was anything, simply because that would give a clear message that there IS an audience for this.

However...

[warning for spoilers, brief discussions of rape]

Overall Impressions: Look....it’s WILDHORN. Wildhorn and me....we go way, way back. Like, to 12 Year Old Rachel listening to Jekyll and Hyde. And the Scarlet Pimpernel. And....quite a few musicals after that. I CAN’T hate it. It’s WILDHORN + ARTHURIANA. Two of my favorite things in the world. But, that being said....this might very well be my fault, but I did find myself a little disappointed, in the sense that, listening to the cast album, I was expecting a much, much better musical than what I really got. Which was a huge order to fill, given that I’ve always considered Artus: Excalibur to be one of Wildhorn’s more problematic musicals. But, in all fairness, they DID kind of promise me more, given that they retitled the musical and said that this was the “World Premiere”™. The set is fantastic, the music is stunning, but it just felt a little hollow to me.

Sets/Costuming: I LOVED the Dark Ages aesthetic to it. The costumes really were great, Morgana’s in particular stole the show, but Guinevere, Merlin, Arthur, and Lancelot gets some nice looks as well, and it all serves to give this idea of the Middle Ages (albeit HEAVILY preying on the old stereotype that it was The Dark Ages, with a very dark color palette generally being observable throughout). This also serves to make it visually very distinct from the Korean production of La Legende du Roi Arthur, given the two of them showed VERY close to one another. (2019 was just the year of the Arthurian musical.) As a Celticist....it isn’t REALLY historically accurate, it’s still fantasy, albeit more Guy Ritchie’s Arthur VS The Crystal Cave Trilogy in terms of how MUCH fantasy it utilizes. LRA (and Artus: Excalibur) took the approach of it being PURELY fantasy, there is....nothing. Historical. In there. One thing that irked me about Artus was that it, in particular, had a CHEAP feeling, like it had roughly as much thought put into it as a 80s comic book idea of Camelot that they were going to slap on the back of a cereal box or something. (LRA, to its credit, was GLORIOUSLY anachronistic, but it was high budget and sleek. I loved it for that.) XCalibur is TRYING for a more historical feel, and, for the most part, it does succeed. Whether the set is a forest, a deserted hall, or Camelot in its prime, they SELL the medievalism. It’s a bit of a pity there’s no WELSHNESS to it, but that is me being nitpicky about my field not being in there. For an Arthurian adaptation, I’m not really going to ask for anything more; it gives what it promises and it does it well. (Though I will say that, every once in a while, one of those costumes would flash in the stage lighting and I would question whether I’d seen that gold fabric at a Ren Faire etsy. BUT in all fairness, those costumes weren’t designed to be viewed in close up like that, and this is probably me being needlessly mean. OVERALL, the effect was good.)

Music: It’s a Frank Wildhorn musical, so of COURSE I’m going to like the music. This is DEFINITELY a stronger musical than Artus, with several new songs (including “The Tempest”, “Let the Sword Make the Man”, and “If he were standing here”, both of which are highlights to me) that really stand out. Since settling himself firmly in the Asian market, Wildhorn’s stuff has developed a polish that wasn’t really there in his Broadway stuff. It sounds much more modern, much more streamlined, with Death Note, the Man Who Laughs, Robespierre, and Mata Hari all having a distinct SOUND that I’ve started to call Wildhorn 2.0. There’s this distinct energy that runs through this production that wasn’t really there in Artus, and I found that it makes the cast album REALLY a treat to listen to. As with Artus, “Celtic” (which, in this case, of course, means “Riverdance”) musical motifs are present in the instrumentals, but I found it MUCH less heavy handed than before, and it’s evenly balanced out by more traditional tunes. I didn’t feel like it was AS overloaded as before, where I routinely found myself napping in between swelling instrumentals.

As with all of Wildhorn’s stuff, there are certain songs that sound very similar to other musicals of his, if you know what to look for. “Why am I here?” for example is nearly a carbon copy of “Who do you Trust?” from Tears of Heaven and “Wenn das Shicksal dich ereilt” from Rudolf, which themselves form part of a distinct genre of his songs that can be traced back to “The Riddle” from The Scarlet Pimpernel and “You and I” from Svengali. “The Mark of the Wolf”, a new song, sounds very similar at points to “How Many devils?” from The Civil War. Etc. etc. I don't really consider this a BAD part, at least in the case of the former, since the songs in that genre, to me, represent the best of Wildhorn’s music. And, after all, with over 30 years on stage....the man can only come up with new music for so long until he starts producing SOMETHING that sounds similar.

Overall verdict? Strong music. Not my FAVORITE of Wildhorn’s stuff,  but I’ve definitely spent a few hours listening to the cast album on its own merits, and definitely more energetic and polished than the German run to my ear.

Plot: So, a big draw for me was “Has the plot been fixed from the days of Artus: Excalibur?” and.....I have many mixed feelings. I DO feel like we got more of a solid musical, but I also feel like it had some really, really sour notes and, in some ways, the transition to a new musical feels only half-way done. Like, they HAD a new musical in mind, they went halfway through the process, and then they shrugged their shoulders, said “That’s good enough”, and left us with a Frankenstein’s Monster. (Oh, wait, wrong KMusical.)

One of the biggest casualties was Morgana. Morgan le Fay has been one of my favorite characters in anything, ever since I was 7 years old and developing one of my first crushes via The Magic Treehouse. Morgana is always the FIRST one I look to in an adaptation to see how they handle her, and her plotline in Artus always felt weak for me, ESPECIALLY her relationship with Merlin, which Wildhorn once described as something along the lines of a “bit of a romance” but that was painfully underdeveloped, especially on her end. We knew that he was weak for her, to his detriment, we knew that she wanted what he had, and that they do.....the do together, but there’s very little REAL development in there, and no sign, on my end, of that “little bit of romance” as opposed to just. Using one another. When I heard that that plotline had been revised, I was THRILLED. Now, I feel like it was a monkey’s paw situation.

(1) Morgana goes from more or less apathetic to Merlin’s situation to.......being totally obsessed with him, to the point where she says he’s the only man she ever loved? Like, she goes from someone HIGHLY motivated by what she believes is her rightful inheritance to being motivated by Merlin’s dick.

(2) The timeline. My God, the timeline. Making Morgana a child when she’s shipped off AND then doing the “Only man I ever loved” thing (and SEEMING to imply that Merlin did love her as well, but refused to say it) is.....it’s bad. No other way around it. They did NOT think that timeline through.

(3) I HATED Guinevere getting Morgana in the back with an arrow, but you know? That was yet another monkey’s paw situation, given that at least it wasn’t “Morgana falling for a very obvious ploy that she SHOULD have seen coming from a mile away if she wasn’t, as has been established, obsessed with Merlin’s dick.”

I will say that, reworking the plot so that Morgana’s obsessed with Merlin’s dick DID work out better in the sense that at least the Madonna/Whore complex with her and Guinevere isn’t really there: We no longer see Evil, Sexy Morgana VS Sweet Forest Maiden Guinevere, and Guinevere in this version of the musical is allowed to be much gutsier than her German counterpart. They did give her quite a bit of character as opposed to “Naive Girl who believes Arthur is The Best but finds out Wrong”. Now, that gutsiness flies out the window once she marries Arthur and is mainly confined to singing sad songs and stepping in between Arthur and Lancelot, but see above for Frankenstein’s Monster.

I will say that I did appreciate that this adaptation was willing to really give us a DEEPLY flawed Arthur; it’s something I’ve seen relatively little of post-White in terms of Arthurian adaptations, and it’s something I’ve missed. (Once Upon A Time’s Evil Arthur notwithstanding.) Arthur is really rarely allowed to BE a character in his own right, he has to be an Ideal™ or, if he’s a flawed character, flawed in an acceptable, palatable way; here, he’s an angry young man who’s shoved into a position that he’s not really qualified for and has to grow into it. He shoves people away, he shouts, he trusts Morgana too blindly, and he basically causes the Guinevere/Lancelot situation on his lonesome. It’s actually a little great to see.

BUT. But. Monkey’s paw. I LIKED seeing Arthur being a little bitch on occasion, but, for better or worse, he is our main character. And, outside of his bonding scenes with Guinevere and Lancelot early on, we really....don’t get to see that many scenes where he’s LIKABLE. There are a few moments (the scene where he tries to get Morgana to dance at his coronation is ADORABLE), but the first time we’re really introduced to him, he’s in a fight, he (understandably) snaps at Merlin, decides that, hey, being king might not be so bad, is fun for a little while, and then he spends a solid chunk of the second act being a dick because his father died. I don’t really know. I feel like this is going to be one of those things that I keep rolling over in my mind, as far as whether I REALLY like HIM as a main character, or whether I like those individual moments where he’s likable.

A part of me liked that we had, instead of the two siblings fighting during “Was Will Ich Hier”, we have Morgana and Arthur bonding. That sibling bond was, in my opinion, one of the more interesting possible dynamics in the show. But, unfortunately, the resulting conflict with Merlin felt very “been there, done that.” It’s more PLAUSIBLE than in cases where, say, the Enemy of the Week poses as a little girl and suddenly the main cast, who have known one another for twenty years, are suddenly slinging accusations against one another, but it STILL felt rather forced and predictable.

I was actually really grateful that we didn’t have the Morgana/Lot relationship in this particular production--Making Morgana an actual domestic abuse victim and then killing her off NEVER sat well with me, but as a result of that, now we have this situation where we have two more or less unconnected villains: Morgana and Wulfstan, and the plot only really needed one. Wulfstan, as a character, just....isn’t interesting. He’s a more or less generic “Barbarian Warlord” type who’s pissed Arthur killed his son and creeps on Morgana. I can’t REALLY say anything more there. Their plotlines intersect in the very beginning, when they capture Morgana and she guides them to Uther’s old castle, but other than that, there’s a general disconnect between them, and there’s no real PAYOFF to that. Instead, it just feels like it makes the plot needlessly busy.

One thing I’ve noticed, with both La Legende du Roi Arthur and XCalibur, is this pressure to fit as MUCH Arthurian in as possible, and as a result, the final musicals become rather crowded, so there’s no real time for DEVELOPMENT or substance.

“Okay, we have to have the pulling from the sword here!” “Right!” “Hm, Morgana le Fay is one of the most iconic antagonists, we probably need her there.” “Saxons?” “Sure!” “Everyone’s expecting Lancelot and Guinevere, we can’t not have them in there.”

I FEEL like XCalibur is LESS bogged down than LRA with regards to that factor, since the latter also threw in Maleagant as a secondary antagonist to Morgana and the Grail quest, but I still feel like XCalibur bit off more than it could really chew. Which is a pity, because there are Arthurian plot lines that have gotten comparatively little attention in recent days that you could include instead of going the “Paint By Numbers” route.

This also really shows in how it deals with certain plot lines, which are either dropped (Wulfstan V. Morgana), or come out of nowhere. This is REALLY obvious with Lancelot/Guinevere, which is a pity because I found myself, against my own will, rooting for them more than any other pairing in the show. Lancelot goes from a cocky lady’s man to...suddenly being smitten with Guinevere.....and then suddenly, after Guinevere is sad about Arthur being a dick, the two of them are fucking. Now, it would be NATURAL, as far as “Guinevere goes to Lancelot when she feels like Arthur’s being cold to her”, but we don’t SEE that. We literally cut from her in the forest, singing a sad song, and the next time we see them, they’re postcoital. It feels like it comes out of NOWHERE. My investment in them, as a couple, is more due to the strength of the two actors involved than the actual WRITING, which thinks that because the BEDROCK for something is there (”Oh, Guinevere beat Lancelot in combat! Oh, she feels neglected!”) that that means the house is there as well (”Oh, Guinevere beat Lancelot in common....so NOW he’s totally in love with her and is never going to flirt with another woman again. Oh, Guinevere is feeling abandoned by Arthur.......so we don’t NEED to see her going to Lancelot.”) They jump from Point A to point D and the audience is left with a sense of whiplash.

Some things, like Merlin’s actions re: Igraine and Uther, as well as Morgana, are just not explored to a depth that I would really find is satisfactory. “Oh, I did all these terrible things....because of Fate!” is something that we’re REALLY supposed to pull behind, but, given the pain to everyone involved, ESPECIALLY the women (Igraine, Morgana, and Guinevere ALL suffer from Destiny™), you have to REALLY wonder if there was literally anyone else who could have done it.

...so, really. BBC Merlin. BBC Merlin.

MOVING ON FROM MY SALT...as a medievalist, I was actually relatively happy that for ONCE in an Arthurian adaptation, the conflict between Christianity and paganism (WHICH HONESTLY WASN’T EVEN THAT MUCH OF A CONFLICT IN TERMS OF THE CELTIC WORLD, BUT MOVING ON) was presented as being pro-Christian. I’ve dealt with WAY too much media, in my time, that treats, say, 8th century Catholicism in Ireland the same as 16th century Catholicism in Spain, and NO. They were VERY distinct. I am saying this as a confirmed, happy atheist. They were distinct. I do not need or want The Mists of Avalon 10.0 on my screen, no thank you.

That being said...Monkey’s Paw. Monkey’s Paw. I was NOT happy to see the conflict presented as “Christianity taking over is Destined and Good, the Old Ways™ have had their time.” There’s this rather ugly fatalism that runs through it, along with the idea that followers of the pagan tradition HAD to die for Christianity to take its place. It’s...not my favorite thing in the world. Perhaps I’m simply unpleasable in this aspect, but there has GOT to be some medium between the two. Maybe this is my Medieval Irish Bias seeping through here, given that, with what I’m used to, the druids were mentioned in law books through the 8th century. I own this. (”But Rachel,” you might say, reasonably, “This isn’t 8th century Ireland”, to which I would of course say, “BUT IT SURE AS HELL ISN’T 6TH CENTURY WALES OR CORNWALL EITHER.”) Medieval people, historically, while they didn’t REALLY have religious tolerance as we know it, didn’t always see it in stark terms of “PAGANISM IN ONE CORNER, CHRISTIANITY IN ANOTHER”: They were, as a whole, FAIRLY good at integrating aspects of both in, even when they didn’t really mean to. The entire thing is just mangled horribly.

Anyway. Celtic Studies Salt Over.

Actors/Actresses: I’ll be honest, I was expecting, primarily, Morgana, Arthur, and Lancelot to pull the plot along, mainly because they get, together, most of the primary numbers, and because, in the German, Sabrina Weckerlin essentially carried the show on her back. As it was, Kim So Hyang’s Guinevere was the one who REALLY, in my opinion, ended up carrying the show. She had a wonderful voice, strong voice, and her Guinevere was able to make a full, smooth journey between a young, bold girl to the troubled wife of a troubled king to a woman wracked with regret. I’ve seen her in a lot of things, but I don’t think I really NOTICED her until now. She did some truly phenomenal work here, I was really glad, actually, that I got to see and appreciate her Guinevere. (Though, as a Min Kyung Ah fan....I would have LOVED to have seen her Guinevere.) She had great chemistry with both of her leads, lending credibility to both relationships, more than the script itself might really give.

Kai isn’t really an actor I ever really LOOK for in a musical, I wouldn’t say that I’m a MASSIVE fan, but that’s only because I don’t actively search for his stuff. Every time I’ve seen him in something, he’s been solid, and I did very much like him in the press calls. It does seem a little unfair that he got both the press calls AND the pro-shot, but c’est la vie. I did like his Arthur, he had a steady voice to back up the role, his acting was solid. Arthur, as a character, doesn’t REALLY stick out for me, but that isn’t HIS fault so much as the script’s, really, and my pre-built in bias towards Morgana. I didn’t find him to be REALLY likable in the role, very angry and sullen, but.....well. See above for my take on Arthur’s general likability here. I do think the man did the best with what he had, though I also feel like he’s more natural in Arthur’s dorkier, more relatable moments, especially with, say, Guinevere, Morgana, and Lancelot. (Though I’m not sure if that’s because I like Arthur as a CHARACTER more there or if I’m reacting to his ACTING in the role. This is one of those times where I’d have really liked to see Do Kyum or Junsu’s take on the role, since that would help me iron out what parts are the WRITING and what are the actor, but, lacking that, I’m going to err on the side of generosity.)  

Shin Young Sook....I WANTED to like her Morgana. I did. But, I’ll be blunt, even as far back as the press call, I was feeling Jang Eun Ah’s Morgana more, I was, definitely, feeling a little disappointed when the proshot cast list was announced. So, in some ways, the poor woman would have had to have done miracles to get me to REALLY warm up to her. And I didn’t really see miracles on the stage. Her voice remains reliable, she is a belter like few others on the Korean stage. I give her that. But her acting basically totally ruined the character for me. My issues with the role, as detailed in the “Plot” section, aside, I believe that the overall character COULD be salvaged, from an audience perspective, with a nuanced enough portrayal. But, when I saw this particular take on Morgana...I didn’t see MORGANA. I saw Shin Young Sook, Having Fun, instead of Morgana, as portrayed by Shin Young Sook. An actress having fun in a role can definitely be GREAT (Park Hye Na as Eva in Frankenstein is one role of hers I will cherish forever), but in this case, which required a lot of nuance to pull it off and make the villain sympathetic....it does clash when you can tell that she’s one step away from evilly cackling and releasing a final belt before running off the stage. There is a time to ham and there is a time to not, and this was one of the “not” roles. There came some point, perhaps during the song “Desire”, perhaps before it, that I actively started DREADING Morgana appearing on stage. I don’t KNOW that Jang Eun Ah would have done it better. She could have done it worse. But it is a tragedy of only having a single cast available that I will always wonder. I was disappointed here. I was really, really disappointed.

Kim Jun Hyun as Merlin was solid. It’s well known at this point that I have a soft spot for him, but for what it’s worth, on a comparative level, I feel like this role suited him much better than, say, Orléans in Marie Antoinette (where, personally, though still liking him, I found him a little too cold for my taste). He is appropriately distant and otherworldly, showing a human side and conflict as the musical continues. Is he enough to make me LIKE Merlin, as a character? Not really, given how many people suffer because of him and how little the narrative actually QUESTIONS it, but damned if he doesn’t try, and he does lend a subdued charisma to the character, to the point where I know that at least some people noticed him more than they did Arthur or Lancelot. I did think he had -40 chemistry with Shin Young Sook, but that could be because I was ALREADY attached to him and Jang Eun Ah’s chemistry in the press call, and that is not so much a failing on one actor’s side or the other’s (I want to emphasize this, because I do NOT have anything against Shin Young Sook SPECIFICALLY on this point), rather it’s something that can’t really be qualified. (And is entirely subjective, I’m sure that plenty of viewers saw NOTHING wrong.) For me, it did cause me to actively cringe at certain scenes, such as the “This is where your Arthur came from”......”seduction”.....scene.

“Lord....I actually have fewer problems saying no to this than you might think, nvmind.”

It COULD be that that’s the look of conflicting desire, but to me, personally, watching it, it rather looks like Merlin just realized that he forgot to turn the stove off at home. Which is a pity, because I was REALLY going in here expecting to like Merlin/Morgana more than the love triangle and instead found it to be very awkwardly handled. I haven’t ENTIRELY given up on it as a ship, in some abstract way that would involve another rewrite of the entire musical, but I can’t REALLY say that there’s. Anything I like about it either. And I think that if I was less stubbornly determined to find SOMETHING in it to like, I’m fairly certain I would be even more uncomfortable with it.

My final verdict: Watching this, despite some impressive visuals (though not QUITE to the same level as fellow Wildhorn musicals The Man Who Laughs, Dracula, and Mata Hari) and performances, I found myself continually wanting to go back to the cast album rather than actually WATCH the musical. Changes have been made since the German production, but I found that, while some of the changes definitely served to make a stronger musical, some of them actively weakened the show, and it's still a little too busy for its own good. I’m also not REALLY sure that the changes made really justified it being given the label World Premiere™, given the hype around it. If it was available for streaming again, would I do it? Yes, because it IS worth at least one watch and the industry NEEDS to do this more. If it was available to buy, even, for $20 or so, I would probably get it. But I’m not sure that, if it was for the~ $100 price that Toho musicals tend to sell for, I would seriously be able to say “Yes, get this”, and I’m not sure that, if an American/European tour of it was miraculously announced, I would REALLY bend over backwards to get tickets.

6/10

Tl;dr: “WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY SISTER?”

[thedarkone121]

Times where I wish I was able to button mash cause THESE ARE SO FLIPPING ADORABLE! AHHH! 😱🥰 SO MUCH TO COMMENT, NOT ENOUGH WORDS!

Oh man, poor Edward not understanding what having a kid entails 🤣 I now imagine the Hyde-Hunting 2.0. Now has its own motif when he hears it, Edward knows he’s in danger! And Hyde, the resident expert of Hyde-Hunting, just leading her away from the traumatized Edward! 🤣

And awww… I love how you put in the little moments of how Jekyll and Edward treat Anne-Marie when she’s around. Like, Edward trying to prove how much of a jerk he is but he refuses to a spoil a book for her! And the fact he teaches her about the Street Smarts of the Music world? Just AHHH! And no, it’s not cliche, it was the literal baseline I had for TGS Hyde’s interactions with her

I like to think the only time Edward and Hyde are in agreement is when they both threaten the Murderer to stay away from her 🤣

And Jekyll? Jekyll being like the rich uncle (sorry, not sorry Lanyon) who wants to take her out to see big shows and get her the dresses? Him locking the cabinets when he heard about the accident? HIM GETTING A BOW IN HIS HAIR?! I’m going to die from all this sweetness, dude! 🤣

I am curious to how the first meeting interactions went 🤣 Poor Henry stuck in a new world with his daughter, going up to his seemingly counterpart for a meeting 🤣 Oh man, CURSE YOU ART FIGHT CAUSE NOW I WANNA DRAW THIS AU! 🤣

WTIHT DOODLES PART I DONT REMEMBER AND DIDNT WANT TO CHECK

A bunch of them featuring Anne-Marie by @thedarkone121 because of the artfight attack that started it all and made me think about what would happen if Anne-Marie were in WTIHT

Alsoalso if anybody wants their tgs OCs and/or au’s in a doodle feel free to ask I need more things to draw with WTIHT right now lmao :))

THE ANNE-MARIE ONES FIRST WAHOO

I apologize sincerely for my mildly unreadable handwriting.

Anyways, the misc ones that I have yet to post!!!

These are all from the HJ7 book by the way - I can’t really marker the paper all to well so it’s all gonna be sketches and occasionally inking

[darkpoisonouslove]

So I finally finished season 6 of Once upon a time and what did I watch? The whole heckle and hyde story wasn't that good especially when they both die in just a few episodes. And regina splitting her soul was all kinds of yikes and a terrible message. Let's put every ounce of darkness I've ever felt into essentially a clone of me and hope this doesn't go south???? Especially because it kinda makes redemption seem effortless. Regina put in work sure but this felt like a shortcut to finishing it.

Season 6 is one of the worst TV seasons I have ever seen (season 7 is much better even if it is far from perfect; at least it’s interesting). The structure is just nowhere to be found, the whole shtick with the Land of Untold Stories was abandoned back in the first half of the season to never be resolved despite Operation Cobra 2.0 being an actual thing that they made a point of starting. The Savior storyline derailed into oblivion which was especially annoying because they already fucked up all their Savior lore just to stuff it in there when it was absolutely unnecessary (not to mention the disservice it did Rumple’s character). The only ones that get actual fucking arcs are Emma, Regina and Killian and even those are an actual joke. The whole thing is a fucking train wreck and it hurts to see beloved characters butchered like that. It’s bad. It is so completely and utterly bad. The plot lines that were left unfinished aside, the ones that they actually finished were absolute disaster. I have no idea what the fuck they were thinking with that season. Honestly, all it did was make everyone unlikable or at least less likable than they used to be.

Regina’s arc in season 6 is one of my biggest gripes with the show because it is so goddamn awful on a fundamental level, except I think it is in the opposite direction of what you’re saying. To me having her split into a “good half” and a “bad half” meant that parts of her have always been good and other parts have always been evil and that was how it would be into eternity. It really undermined the whole idea of “evil isn’t born, it’s made” (which is one of the pillars on which this show is built) and redemption when it basically said that the evil part of her couldn’t be redeemed and needed to be erased out of existence which - guess what! - doesn’t work in the real world so what kind of message is that? Now the fact that Jekyl and Hyde both turned out to be evil could have been used to overturn this divide of good part and bad part but instead they made it clear that with Regina the split was clean and the Queen was the bad part since all of the darkness was in her heart. And Regina sharing the dark with her was some kind of closure but to me it didn’t scream self-acceptance and awareness in the way the writers probably intended it because there are still two HALVES of her. They were never supposed to exist as two separate people since their case was much different from that of Jekyl and Hyde (who looked like different people and didn’t have each other’s memories to differ from Regina and the Queen that were basically clones sharing the same mind). The fact that they remained split was despicable to me and I just don’t know what the hell they were thinking with that.