#VERSE. ( sequel trilogy. )

[vertigoartgore]

2023's Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse movie poster.

[interwebois]

5/07/2024 | #Bible - Verse of the Day | Ecclesiastes 4:12

Together We Are Strong 🍊 :)

[hinge]

Hinge presents an anthology of love stories almost never told. Read more on https://no-ordinary-love.co

[sailforvalinor]

Alas, they've found me (the Ahsoka haters found my posts)

[terriblygrimm]

so when is disney gonna make a luke, han and leia show with graham hamilton and alden ehrenreich. huh? when??? WHEN??????? it’s literally all people want. it’s a golden ticket. it’s a home run. guaranteed success. hole in one. like. why is disney so fucking stupid.

[girlrises]

i live. should i revamp rey? thinking heavilyyyyyy about it.

[cityandking]

oc asks: AU ABCs

Same characters, different worlds! Send a letter to learn about an alternate universe.

A. alternate universe. What kind of AU is your OC best suited to? Are there any AUs they're in already? What are they?

B. band au. What is your OC like in a band AU? Are they a performer or a groupie? What instrument would they play? What's their relationship with their bandmates and/or the group(s) they follow?

C. coffee shop au. What would your OC be like in a classic coffee shop AU? Are they at all suited for the barista lifestyle? What's their go-to coffee order?

D. duplicate. How would your OC react to meeting their clone or doppelganger? What if they were a clone or doppelganger? How would they feel about that?

E. education. What would your OC be like in a high school and/or college AU? What would their major be? What would they teach if they were an educator?

F. fey. What kind of fey or fairy creature would your OC be? Would they be in a spooky, intense fairy world or a playful, lighthearted fairy world?

G. gods. What would your OC be the god of? If they were a demi-god, who would their divine parent be?

H. horror. Would your OC survive in a horror situation? What would their role be? How would they deal with being tossed in a horror scenario?

I. intellectual property. Are there any popular series or franchises that your OC is well-suited for? Which 'verse(s) and what makes them so well-suited?

J. (J)RPG. What kind of hero would your OC be in a JRPG (or any other RPG). Would they have any special skills, weapons, or finishing moves? What tier character would they be?

K. kids. Does your OC have kids? What are their kids like? If they don't have kids, would they? What would they be like as a parent?

L. lovers. Does your OC have different partners in different AUs? What might their love life be like in an AU? How would they do in a romance genre, like romantasy or a romcom?

M. multiverse. Are there any points in your OC's life where things could have gone differently? Where else might they have ended up? How would your OC react to crossing the multiverse and meeting another version of themself?

N. normal. What's your OC's normal world like? Are they in a fantasy setting, a sci-fi setting, the modern world? Share a little about your character's normal life.

O. omegaverse. What’s their subgender? What's their scent? How do they feel about it?

P. pacific rim au. What is your OC doing in a Pacific Rim AU? Are they drift compatible with anyone? What would their jaeger be called?

Q. quiet. What would a quiet and peaceful life look like for your OC? Would they enjoy living a simple life or would they get bored?

R. royalty au. How would your OC handle being royalty? If they're already royalty, how would they deal with being a commoner? What kind of royal would your character be?

S. star wars au. What would your OC be like in a Star Wars AU? What era would they be in: sequel, prequel, original trilogy, old republic? Would they be Force sensitive?

T. (star) trek au. What would your OC's role be in a Star Trek AU? Are they part of Starfleet? Another organization?

U. underworld. How would your OC deal with being part of a criminal underworld? Would they be a thief, a spy, a conman? Something else?

V. vigilante au. What would your OC's superpower be? Would they be a hero or a villain? Do they believe that with great power comes great responsibility?

W. werewolves (& vampires). Is your OC more of a vampire or a werewolf? How would they feel about being turned into a creature of the night? Would they be part of a clan, a pack, a coven?

X. (e)xtra. Is there an AU missing from this list? Share something about it! What would your OC be like in that new world, story or scenario?

Y. YA. How would your OC fare in a popular YA franchise, like Hunger Games or Divergent? Would they buy into the system? Fight against it? What would their district/faction/house/etc. be?

Z. zootopia. What animal would your OC be if they were an anthropomorphic animal? Would your OC be a furry? What would their fursona be?

[hinge]

Hinge presents an anthology of love stories almost never told. Read more on https://no-ordinary-love.co

[catyuy]

With Lego Star Wars doing time travel and alternate universe travel, wouldn't it be funny if they somehow managed to change the prime canon movie verse into a mix of the book verse and the sequel trilogy.

(Put Star Wars book canon, movie canon into a mixer and add Legos, blend, and voila a new universe is born)

[manonamora-if-reviews]

Friday Fun-day Five-star day!

I kinda missed... 5/5-day organised by Jess Levine, where you rate 5 games on itch.io (because the algo sucks ass, and you should tell people that you liked their stuff). So I'm doing my part but a bit later. And maybe a bit more than once? like a Throwback-Thursday-When-I-Remember-It's-Thursday type of thing

friday fun-day 5-[star] day Sharing some of my favourite indie games

For this first FFF edition, here are 5 of my favourite IF games. Of varying sizes (5min-2h?), of varying themes, of varying mechanics, but all freaking great! 100% 5-star games in my book (and on itch)! It's hard to choose just five dams...

Computerfriend by Kit Riemer (@adz)

Vanitas by Sweetfish/Ayu (@sweetfishes)

SPILL YOUR GUT by Coral Nulla (@nullamirrors)

InGirum by BenyDanette

The Dying of the Light, by Amanda Walker

If you want some words about them, check below (+ links to reviews):

Computerfriend by Kit Riemer

I wrote a whole review about this game two years ago, but I still think about it often. It's so weird and nihilistic that it becomes strangely comforting. I've been coming back to it a couple of times this past year, especially when things gotten tough - I don't know if the bleakness that become so familiar I needed more of it? I keep finding new neat stuff every time somehow (that or I keep forgetting what I'd already seen).

It even has a mini-sequel! And I highly recommend Verses too (I didn't get it, but it's really good.

Vanitas by Sweetfish

It feels like since I reviewed it, this tiny game became even more relevant. Cohost is gone, Twitter is... something I guess, Reddit is even more a cesspool, and people keep moving around. What will the new flavour of the month be, before it gets enshittified too. I've also returned to it recently, when reading more about the Web Revival and working on my website. It's that comforting feeling that wherever we end up on the internet, we'll find each other.

SPILL YOUR GUT by Coral Nulla

This was part of the reviews that never made it to Tumblr (but you can read it here!), which is a shame, because more people should know about this game. Actually, they should know about the GUT trilogy (since, this is the third opus): GUT THE MOVIE (EctoComp/BareBones 2023), and the Sequel (Really Bad IF). And play it in order. They all hold a dear place in my hear, but I think the third one takes the cake. It's both the WTF-ness of it all, layered and layered and layered. You get lost so easily, within the mazes, and the prose, and the story. But it's worth it. Play each section of this game order though (or the final one won't hit as hard).

InGirum by BenyDanette

It's honestly a crime this game has like 3 ratings on itch (and I contributed to the 3rd this week, because I'd forgotten to do the English version when I reviewed it - and it's the only review on IFDB), or isn't streamed by people. It's so so SO good! You've got a pseudo-documentary style look over an anthology, with a calm but kind of creepy voice-over, bits of puzzle-like anxiety-riddling mini-games, and an interface that really blew me away. It truly brought the best of the bisty/binksi engine. Everything was so well planned, so well executed - it all makes sense in the context of the game.

And for the last one, I'll go with a parser.

The Dying of the Light by Amanda Walker

This was one of my truly favourite game published in 2023. It's difficult to play through it, but that makes the game even more compelling. I talked about it in my review of the game, that even its obvious mechanical flaws push the message further. Having passed some death anniversaries (relevant here) recently, I was reminded how true this game was, how raw it was, how devastating it was. And how understanding it was.

I hope yall check them out, maybe leave a rating or comment.

[lightsiided]

     She bumps her shoulder into Finn's one last time before rolling to her feet, stretching and twisting to pull some tension from her shoulders. It will do them both GOOD, she thinks, to get off planet for a bit. Flying always seems to help clear her mind, and she and Finn understand each other in a way the others haven't yet managed. They don't always need to talk. Sometimes they look at one another and just know.

Extending a hand to help Finn to his feet, too, she glances across the field at the Falcon, waiting for them to embark. "Do you need to go inside first? I can meet you on the ship." The mission should be SIMPLE enough: if everything goes according to plan, they'll be back by this time tomorrow. Though it almost never works out that way, Rey's hopeful that for once, it will. When Finn comes along things ALWAYS seem to feel like that.

Finn finds comfort in the tightness of their pinkies and the warmth of her shoulder nudging against his. Simple things he could appreciate. Soft moments and glances that only proved that they cared about each other. Even if it wasn't in the same way. He'd seen Rey for the first time and knew she was special and every day she proved it more and more.

He's pulled away from those thoughts when she brings up their task at hand. He tries to release some tension in his body and sighs. Dawn was soon approaching and the threat of a stern look from General Leia was enough to get him to want to get off planet as anticipated. He'd never had a mother figure until now, but just the thought of disappointing the older woman was enough to make his skin crawl.

"You're right." He said softly. "Let's get going."

[interwebois]

6/12/2024 | #Bible - Verse of the Day | Matthew 5:6-12

Just Rewatched The Rise of Skywalker🧡💫 for the 6th time and when Rey is confronting Palpatine it reminded us of Matthew 5:

[hinge]

Hinge presents an anthology of love stories almost never told. Read more on https://no-ordinary-love.co

[borrowedtimeandspace]

A Reader's Guide to the Multiverse

Hello! Welcome to my sandbox!

Artwork by the lovely @abookishweasel

Though I still write long-form stories collaboratively with friends, my own writing has become more short-form and sporadic. This can make things a bit confusing for the blog, since there isn't an easy way to organize everything. That's what I use Ao3 for (user The_Raconteur_24601). And even there, it can be a bit complicated.

Under the cut is a guide to the stories you'll find featured on this blog; my attempt at organizing them here, and links to their counterparts on Ao3. My asks are always open for any questions this post doesn't answer! [EDIT: anon has been turned off for now]

Borrowed Time (and Space)

A Doctor Who/The Borrowers Crossover

Ao3 Series | Meet the OCs

Doctor Who belongs to the BBC, The Borrowers belongs to Mary Norton, and Zepheera and other borrower OCs belong to me.

It's the name of the blog, the OG, the one that started it all. The primary premise for this series is: The Doctor (usually Ten) takes on a four and a half inch tall borrower named Zepheera as a companion. It's all a bit wibbly-wobbly, but let me set things straight.

Common tags for the stories (and various posts) are #doctor who gt or #doctor who g/t (which stands for giant/tiny and indicates the involvement of drastic size difference, for the uninitiated) and #BTaS AU

Episode 1 | Minisode | Episode 2 | Episode 3

Originally there were ambitions to try and make the series episodic, like your typical season of Doctor Who but with a borrower tossed in. As such, the first three stories in the series are titled as 'Episodes'. These were among the first long-form stories I'd ever written and posted, so they predate the blog. That, and my writing style and ideas for the canon of the series have changed drastically since then. See this post for more details on that, and this one if you're not worried about spoilers.

The tl;dr of it is: These Episodes are the basis for the AU, but I don't consider them canon enough to impact any other stories in a meaningful way unless I say so.

Zepheera's Origins - In which I started cracking down on my borrower companion's characterization and backstory, compiling a number of prompts set during the time before she met the Doctor.

Zepheera-Visions - These were a fun writing exercise for me during this blog's early years! I would come up with shorts based on Doctor Who gifs that feature some low or high angle shot, imagining Zepheera as the point of perspective in them. If I were at all good at making gifs myself, I might have kept it up. A lot of the AU that ultimately came about branched off from these gimmicks, and still feature them in their stories. Here, they can be viewed under the #Zepheera-Vision tag.

Tales from the Vortex - A compilation of various prompts and shorts that take places in the BTaS-Verse, but don't have any major stories attached to them. These span different Doctors other than Ten, and feature a few other companions in some of them. Sometimes, enough stories accumulate with a similar theme to expand into their own AU, which leads me to...

Borrowed Time and Space AU

The Donna Trilogy - This was originally called the Donna AU, and the original shorts were tagged with #DonnaAU or #Donna AU. Nowadays, I've started to give AU their own titles and tagging them on blog posts. And recent events in Doctor Who have inspired this to span more than one story, making this the first multipart BTaS AU!

Part 1 - A Patient, and Time. [tag] [Ao3] Part 2 - If I Could Turn Back Time [tag] [Ao3] Part 3 - TBD...

To The Nines - One of the first AU created in which Zepheera is companion to a Doctor other than Ten! Despite titling the story later on, I must have had the idea for it earlier because a lot of the early shorts are tagged #To the Nines AU. Other tags include #nine AU and #To the Nines.

Time After Time - This AU, while it is NOT a sequel to any existing story, assumes that Zepheera and the Tenth Doctor went on their adventures in the past, and got separated at some point. Then Zepheera manages to find the Twelfth Doctor while he's at St. Luke's and meets Bill Potts. This was one AU that developed slowly over time once I realized I could get a story arc out of it, so a good chunk of the shorts are in the tag #Time After Time.

Borrowed Magic - co-written with @neonthewrite Ao3 | DA

The first BTaS crossover ever posted! The wonderful neon lent me her boi Bowman from her story "Bowman of Wellwood" ( Paperback EBook Amazon ) to join my little TARDIS crew.

Lost in Flight - The inaugural story to introduce a tiny winged guy raised in the woods to all of time and space. It's so far the only complete story we've written, but we're absolutely open to prompts and suggestions for shenanigans for the crew to get into!

Through the Cracks of Time and Space - co-written with @t3a-tan Ao3

Ao3 | Tumblr Masterlist - The Doctor and Zepheera take a dip into tea's rich world, meeting goodest boi Oliver and roping him into their odd investigation. Will they all make new friends? An enemy or two?

Brothers Apart AU - co-written with @nightmares06 Ao3 | DA

A SuperLock/Borrowers Crossover

Brothers Apart Ao3 | Meet the OCs

Supernatural belongs to the CW, Sherlock to the BBC, Brothers Apart to nighmares06, and listed OCs to me.

Brothers Apart is a borrower AU of Supernatural written by the inimitable nightmares06. We have collaborated on a few of the various AU based on that story, in which I bring the BBC Sherlock angle.

I don't post nearly as much here about BAU (Brothers Apart AU) since most questions about it are fielded at the dedicated blog @brothersapart; most of what can be found here are miscellaneous prompts and character tidbits. Brothers Apart AU posts made here get filed under #BAU.

More AU exist than listed below, and will be added as they're posted.

Brothers Consulted - Cursed Winchesters end up in London and join forces with the Baker Street crew to solve mysteries, as they do. #Brothers Consulted

Brothers Chosen - Canon Winchesters find a borrower during a hunt and have to figure out what to do with him.

A Tale of Two Sizes - Part of an unannounced BAU, featuring Stan and his family in a universe where Stan is a size-shifter. Finally compiled these into one collection. #size shifter Stan

Tales from the Multiverse - A recently renamed compilation of prompts that don't (or don't yet) have their own story, that have nothing to do with BTaS and/or have to do with my cowritten works.

Miscellaneous

The Brave Little Baker - In which I toss Stan and Nate into a fantasy world of giants and giant slayers! Also based on a series of prompts, revised and compiled into their own story once I had enough of them.

GT July

These prompt challenges have done wonders to keep me writing and inspired!

2022 Masterpost | 2023 Masterpost

[rose-of-pollux]

Back to the Future fic masterlist

The way my main BTTF fic timeline works, I operate on a fusion of the musical, movie trilogy, and Telltale game timelines; I take elements from each, and while my written version of Doc started out sounding like Christopher Lloyd, he's very much now heavily based on Roger Bart--I write out of timeline order, so just keep that in mind if Doc's voice isn't quite consistent from fic to fic.

I write Doc as very asexual, which was definitely the vibe that I felt from the musical; subsequently, my backstory for Doc and his relationship with Clara differs greatly from the actual Part III, and I haven't quite figured out how Jules and Verne fit in--only that they just exist for now, and I'll figure their origins out later.

Lastly, I operate on the headcanon that, in the Lone Pine timeline, George and Lorraine remain good friends with Doc after 1955, initially because they think he's their link to "Calvin Klein," but eventually as true friends. This ultimately led to them asking Doc to be Marty's godfather--a role Doc takes very seriously and makes him even more protective of Marty than he was in Twin Pines.

And now, the fics themselves--I'm going to try to keep these in chronological order from Marty's POV (as best as possible, since, in a few of them, he isn't born yet); distinctions between Twin and Lone Pine timelines will be noted as such, and AUs will be listed separately-- (Updated 2/9/25: added a oneshot)

Main Timeline-- Misunderstood (1931 Twin Pines) Miles to Go Before I Sleep (1945 Lone Pine) Stumbling Block (1949 Lone Pine) The Fork in the Road (1963 Lone Pine) Faded Ink (1968 Lone Pine) A Dark and Stormy Night (1973 Lone Pine) Is Anybody Home? (Twin Pines) Seeing Red (Twin Pines) True Blue (Twin Pines) Running Late (Twin Pines) Once in a Red Moon (Twin Pines) Lost and Found (Twin Pines) Reckless (Twin Pines) April, 1984, pt I (Twin Pines) April, 1984, pt II (Lone Pine) With Friends Like These (Twin Pines) Summertime Blues (Twin Pines) Back Down to Earth (Twin Pines) No Turning Back (Lone Pine) As I Lay Dying (Twin Pines) Morale Boost (1955) No Rest for the Weary (1955) At the Heart of the Paradox (Twin Pines becoming Lone Pine) Out of the Blue (Pt II, retconned since I'm doing something different) Cadence of Hill Valley: The Song of Time (musical-verse pt II; multichapter WIP) Cadence of Hill Valley: A Link to the Past (not written yet, musical-verse pt III) Sixty Seconds (pt III, may be retconned by the time I finish the Cadence series) All You Do Is Think (pt III, retconned due to the Cadence series) A Fragile Thing (Telltale game) Start From the Happy Ending (post-Telltale game) Unexpected Arrival (possible Telltale sequel, standalone for now) Haven't Heard that Before (post-canon) Faces of Family (post-canon) They Say that Time is a Healer (post-canon) Battle Scars (post-canon) Keep the Faith (post-canon, multichapter, complete) 'Cause I Might Not Make It Back (post-canon, multichapter, complete) Time Is Not Eternal (post-canon, multichapter, complete) Nothing's the Same (post-canon, multichapter, complete) Beat the Odds (post-canon, multichapter, complete) Close to Home (post-canon) You Can't Fight Fate (Or Can You?) (post-canon, multichapter, complete) The Impossible and the Improbable (post-canon) Seelie Wight (post-canon, multichapter, complete) The Ancient Relic (post-canon, 2015)

Ashen Pines AU Timeline (the Cold War goes hot in 1971, and when Hill Valley is incinerated by people looking for Doc and his knowledge of nuclear weapons, Doc goes on the run with the three-year-old orphan he just adopted--Marty McFly)-- Up In Smoke (oneshot) To Be Told You're No Good (oneshot) Nowhere to Turn (oneshot) A Moment of Peace (oneshot) Lessons Learned (oneshot) Teach Him a Lesson (oneshot) Injustice (oneshot) Don't Look Back (oneshot) I Can See the Fires Still Alight (oneshot) Fatherhood (oneshot) Vertigo (oneshot) Emergency Exit (oneshot)

Other AU fics-- Audivi Famam Ilius (Fantasy AU) Shattered Dream (Turn Left AU) Life, Life (Frankenstein AU) Discord and Rhyme (Werewolf!Doc AU) Where the Sea Meets the Sky (Merboy!Marty AU) The Project Chronos Affair (Doc and Marty join U.N.C.L.E. AU)

[lightsiided]

     Of course he's no different, even after she's saved his life, but she'd expected that. It's almost COMFORTING, actually -- the familiarity of his bluntness. Despite the dire situation they're in, Rey feels the corner of her mouth twitch.

She nods. It doesn't help that he's right. She's not safe here, and if he's discovered with her, he won't be, either. The uncertainty that has surrounded them for so long seems to BEND beneath his words. We need to go. We have to decide. Are they a 'we,' now, after all?

"I know somewhere we can go." Her voice is gentler than his, but that's not saying MUCH. There's still a firmness behind the offer, a confidence. There's hardly been a moment today for her to catch her breath or think about what they should do next, but Rey has clarity, now. She knows this is the right suggestion. "I'll fly, and you can rest."

Her eyes follow his to the viewport. Though the worrying flow of blood has stopped, he looks both better and worse at the same time when she glances back towards him, caught in the darkness of his eyes. Teeth bite briefly at her bottom lip before she says what he surely already knows: "I can't leave you here." More than that... she won't. So -- she supposes he'll finally have to TRUST HER.

Ren doesn't know where he goes while she tends to him. He's gripped by a mixture of fatigue-pain that steadily pulls him on and off life's strata. Light is with him. Then it isn't. He feels the gravity of his body, and then he doesn't. Rey's hands stinging his skin, the coolness of the bacta, and then nothing, hardly the heat of his breath.

It takes a minute or so. For his eyes to adjust to the light, to remember where he is, what a fuss he made earlier. Ren takes the canteen and drinks compliantly, his throat rippling. The ship is flushed with the animal bite of their blood and sweat. Drenched, the both of them.

He sets the canteen on the bunk beside him when he's done, studies Rey. In the shade of shelter, his eyes look far darker than they are, but they land softly on Rey's unwrapped torso.

"We need to get off this planet," he sneers. Somewhat more gingerly, he adds, "We have to decide what to do. Rest has to wait. You aren't safe here."

His gaze strolls up to hers before it tracks away to the viewport and the storming sands behind it.

[queen-erika-the-songful]

My personal ranking on the Barbie mermaid movies

(These are only a few thoughts I have about each of these so feel free to ask questions if you want)

6. Barbie: Mermaid Power - I mean come on I'm sure even the ones that love the DA-verse can agree with me that this one absolutely sucks. Terrible worldbuilding and lore that contradicts the movie it's supposed to be a sequel to. Songs that are super hollow and generic. Garish animation. The story had WAY too much going on to fit into the runtime. The only thing positive I have to say is that I liked the little girl mermaid being disabled and having a prosthetic fin. Too bad she's wasted in this!!! Awful awful awful no contest the worst one. Literally don't bother watching.

5. Barbie Fairytopia: Mermaidia - Sorry but I find this so weak as a mermaid movie. For starters, we only see 3 mermaid characters (Nori, Nalu, and the fake Delphine) and then a bunch of random sea creatures. Then there's Elina, who becomes a mermaid, but it's out of desperation and she's miserable literally the whole time until she gets her wings back. Then Delphine.....god just read this post to see why I hate her as a character and as a plot point. She brings down everything. Also if you think about it too hard (like I do) this is really only "half" a mermaid movie since Elina is still a FAIRY and still spends about half the runtime as such. The most this one has going for it is the VERY pretty animation and Eric Colvin's irresistible music. I'm honestly thinking about just making one of those "ambience" videos for myself where I just have the prettiest scenes and music all montaged together. Definitely not my favorite of the Fairytopia trilogy, nor my favorite of the mermaid films.

4. Barbie: Dolphin Magic - Even though I'm sick of the DA universe, this is a fun short romp. The whole "befriending a magic friend" thing reminds me a little of Aquamarine, just not as good. I think the runtime really harms this one, especially with pacing, but I guess this isn't really a "movie" so much as a 1-hour special, which is what all the DA movies really are. Anyway, I like Isla but I wish we got to know her more. She has a cute design. I also like the scenes where she teaches Barbie how to swim like a mermaid. It makes me want to hop in the pool and do the same. A cute but just "okay" mermaid film.

3. Barbie: The Pearl Princess - I think this one has the prettiest and most "underwater" animation of them all. I adore the soft colors and the lighting and all the little bubbles and things floating around. I wasn't too keen on Lumina at first, but then thanks to this confession from back in 2018 I've headcanoned her as autistic for several years now so that's neat. The other characters are also quite charming, especially the friends she makes in the salon. They all make up for the somewhat "meh/average" story. It's very enjoyable!

2. Barbie in A Mermaid Tale 2 - This was such a great sequel to an already great movie. it expanded the lore of the original in a way that raises the stakes and makes sense (well, mostly, but that's a post for another day). Merliah and Kylie's development both as a team and as individuals are done very well. Same goes for Merliah and Calissa learning to see each other's point of view. The ending and lesson are good too. Merliah giving up her shot because she's already fulfilled by doing her duty was a great choice. Awesome movie!

1.Barbie in A Mermaid Tale - How could it not be this one?! The lesson is amazing, the blending of classic fairytale tropes with a modern setting work excellently, the animation and colors absolutely pop, and the main character's journey is awesome. I love that Merliah initially wants nothing to do with all the magic mermaid stuff and goes on her journey out of selfishness but develops a sense of responsibility and justice, helping her blossom into a princess. And no character is wasted here - everyone does their part to do something. That's not always the case in a Barbie movie (like the random Kelly girls in Princess and the Pauper) so it's good to see here. The soundtrack is full of fun songs as well! I like putting them on when I'm in a summer mood. This one is just a delight to put on each and every time. My pick for the best of them all!!

[dalekofchaos]

Why I've fallen out of love with Reylo and yet another Sequel Trilogy rewrite

So. I think I lost complete interest in Reylo. I look at fanart and I feel nothing.

Mostly because I feel like the trilogy was wasted on this dynamic instead of focusing on Rey's character beyond an origin and Finn's character.(they really fucked over Finn and John Boyega) Poe(god did they fuck up by choosing that stupid fucking spice runner twist) and Rose(they really did her dirty) They sacrificed the integrity of these characters, in favor of what was supposed to be the villain's development or lack there of. Originally they were leaning towards Kylo Ren's struggle in between the light and the dark would move him to be confident and fully embrace the dark side in the end, so the opposite of Vader.....BUT OF FUCKINGCOURSE THEY WENT BACK TO FUCKING PALPATINE

Also now a days, I find it REALLY tone deaf that a group that JJ Abrams was inspired to make it "What if the Nazis in Argentina all linked up and started again" and decided to redeem the head Nazi "because Han's memory and love" only it really ISN'T redemption because he never faced any punishment or go on any meaningful atonement and fucking no dying all of a sudden is not punishment or fucking redemption.

Also, WHAT IS THE POINT of redeeming the guy if Anakin's force ghost never appeared? Also any meaningful redemption was rendered useless given how little footage of Leia they could've used

P.S. Stormpilot and Reyrose should've been the romances of the Sequel Trilogy. I said what I said

No offense to the fans that still like it, but I just feel nothing for it anymore, other than overall disappointment in the Sequel Trilogy's potential. I don't have an intense hatred for it like I did inbetween 2018-2020, but I just don't feel anything for it.

If you want in depth look into how I'd change the Sequel Trilogy, see these posts

1

2

But some changes I've been thinking recently

Din and Grogu find Rey on Jakku. This in turn leads to Din helping Rey find her parents and this leads them down the journey to discovering Rey is the daughter of Korkie Kryze and the granddaughter of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Satine Kryze aka the heir to Mandalore and the Darksaber. Inspired by this fanart of Din and little Rey. Also Rey and Grogu having the most intense sibling rivalry the verse has seen.

Finn would have his journey of being a Stormtrooper, rebel to Jedi journey that HE SHOULD HAVE FUCKING HAD! But with a twist. He finds out that his were royalty. Maz Kanata would be human and she would be the Queen Of Artorias and mother of Finn and Jannah. Inspired by this theory. The Imperium first attacked and raided Artorias. Their father, the king tried to defend his kingdom, but he was killed by Captain Phasma and took the prince and princess as leverage. Over the years The FIrst Order has plundered the planet for resources and since then have laid siege over the planet. Finn and Jannah promises their mother that they will reclaim their home

Poe is the Black Ace of the New Republic and son of Rebel heroes. He is the spark that will help burn the Imperium down. Being saved by Finn and seeing first hand how The Imperium abducts and conscripts children into the Stormtrooper program changed his world view.

Paige is New Republic Y-Wing Pilot and Rose is the NR's Engineer Officer and Hacker. Over the course of the trilogy Rose falls for Rey and they help liberate slaves and bust up war mongers like Canto Bight.

Like in my if the Sequels didn't ignore the politics of it's time rewrite. The First Order is the Imperium and Snoke is like Trump. Base Snoke around the mango Mussolini and his lunatic fringe followers. An Alt-Right cult leader who cultivates the worst people imaginable. All The First Order needed to be was pointing out The New Republic brought the galaxy to an age of scum and villainy. A lawless state that usurped the rightful rulers that brought law and order. Basically "Make the Galaxy great again with Imperial Greatness" Lucas originally based Palpatine around Nixon, So I don't see why they couldn't do something similar with the CLEAR FUCKING EVIL going on in the world at the time this trilogy was being made. No Sith master was needed.

Kylo Ren is a representation of the whole "make so and so great again" someone who longs for the "good ole days" of Imperial Fascism, the good days that were never there. He was nationalized and radicalized. He found out Vader was his grandfather, he was even further radicalized and promised to bring back the greatness of Vader, something that was never great yet he's so blinded and so far gone that he just can't see it. So how would Ben turn in this scenario? He's radicalized by Snoke. Ben starts hearing passionate speeches in the senate and Ben is moved. "I know he opposes my mother, but he's making a lot of sense" "He's right, we need to bring order to the galaxy" and Ben is radicalized by this Imperium movement and what he believes is Snoke's righteous cause. To Snoke, Ben represents everything great about the Empire. Snoke collects Sith Holocrons and uses the holocrons to turn Ben Solo into Kylo Ren. During his time as a Jedi, Ben uses what Snoke has said and used them to radicalize his fellow Jedi and turn them against Luke. Those who would stand with Ben, would become the Knights of Ren. In this scenario, I wouldn't redeem Ben. He is far too gone. He's committed atrocities in Snoke's name, for The Imperium and to bring order to the galaxy. While Finn represents those who could break away from Right Wing movements and Cults. Kylo Ren is far too gone, he's radicalized to the point where he's a die hard believer like Hux and Phasma and he's willing to fight and die for this cause.

Hux. Much like his main timeline counterpart, he is the son of Brendal Hux, only this time around, HE'S NOT A FUCKING SPY YOU FUCKING IDIOTS! He is a ruthless unhinged Nazi, everything we saw in the Starkiller Base speech is exactly what we get. Bloodthirsty, intelligent and remorseless. No slapstick comedy and no spy.

Phasma. Now this is where the real big change occurs. Instead of the head of the Stormtrooper corps, Phasma is a Mandalorian. Phasma is the daughter of Imperial Super Commandos loyal to Gar Saxon. She has been trained as a Mandalorian since birth and promised her family she would win back Mandalore, With The Imperium's help she has done that and more. For one final time, Mandalore has fallen. Phasma kills Bo-Katan Kryze and wins the Darksaber. Phasma is now Mandalore. Din eventually will fall and this unites Rey and Finn against Phasma. Near the final phase of the trilogy. Phasma unites Mandalore against The Imperium and the New Republic. After Snoke's death and the infighting between Kylo and Hux, Phasma picks the perfect time to destroy them. the remnants of their armies that chose to stay loyal after Finn's Rebellion are conscripted into the New Mandalorian army. We get the Liberated Stormtroopers and people of Artorias vs the Phasma loyalists and Rey and Finn vs Phasma as the climax of the trilogy. Phasma being the main villain of this trilogy is exactly what she deserved compared to how she was fucking wasted. What Phasma as a Mandalorian could look like Art source

After the war is over. Finn becomes the new king of Artorias and marries Poe. Rey and Rose marries as well. Rey becomes Mand'alor and leads her people and inducts Rose into Clan Mudhorn and they go on throughout the galaxy to liberate worlds ravaged by war, arms smugglers and slavery. Throughout their journey, Rose awakens to the force and Rey trains her and together they rebuild the Jedi Order. A order not held back by the Republic or the order's rigid code, one that lets the living force guides them to fight for what's right and liberate everyone they can.

[zel-shadedreviews]

Well, this movie made quite the impact across the studio, receiving favourable reviews and earning an upcoming sequel after two mediocre holiday specials. Based on the book series by Aaron Blabey, the film managed to return the studio to its former glory, especially when they’re allowed to throw in their own spins across the adaptations.

Mr. Wolf and his team, the Bad Guys, are a well-known band of thieves, planning heists across events, where they plan to steal an award at the ceremony. However, Wolf saves an old lady from falling and is praised by his actions, where he begins to feel that what if a criminal like him could do good. The team end up captured, but Wolf convinces the guinea pig, Professor Marmalade, to help them reform. From there, the team attempt to start over a new leaf, while coming to grips with their statuses.

This went for a different approach towards the book series it was based on by allowing these characters to seek redemption rather than choose from the very start. The style that the makers aim for was a romp and that’s all I can describe it, really. From the trailer alone, I could tell that we’re headed for a fun time and that’s exactly what I had. After watching it twice, I am glad with the route that the makers went, where I wasn’t expecting a complex storyline. This rides the coattails of their previous movies like Shrek and Megamind, where the “villains” become so out of the general public, only to gain a newer outlook to life. In some cases, it attempted a balance between a villain redemption story and a family comedy, but it fell rather hard into the levels of predictability.

Its story alone followed a path of predictability, focusing more so on the thieves undergoing a programme, where after years of performing heists, one little good deed alters their images, before falling into the same mess all over again. To top it all up, there’s a twist villain that got in the way, framing the bad guys into their namesakes by the third act. While it’s another story similar to what we’ve had, I was fond of the ending, where it made some choices that you wouldn’t see. I can see the appeal of the band of thieves pretending to be nice only to feel kindness the more they proceed, but I was expecting more from the directions they went.

To mingle with their plot, they flurried the running time with plenty of jokes. Not all of them are bangers, where some had to elaborate on excited flatulence involving one character; most of their winners are delivered by the fast levels of talking from these characters and their banter or highly energetic tones when faced with problem after problem.

To really fill up the storyline, the animators went with a cell-shaded style, topped up with a highly-energised tone. This greatly assisted the moments when the titular team were readying themselves for a heist, each capturing their scenes with different frames, before upgrading the tone with a fantastic chase sequence. While folllwing the footsteps of animation-changing Spider-Verse, their main inspirations came from the Ocean’s trilogy and Lupin III, especially when the Wolf made those daring manoeuvres behind the wheel. You could tell that the animators were attempting to reference the hand-drawn techniques, mainly anime, which they succeeded; while there are some movies that replicated the cell-shaded style for the sake of it, this matched the romping atmosphere they were aiming for.

I was more than impressed by this display they went with, particularly when the characters could overly express themselves; the shark and the police officer especially were great examples of how unlimited they could be in terms of excelling their reactions. While the characters were moving around the same style, I was fond of the snake’s ability to utilise his tail for arm movements, while mounting a pair of fake limbs to pose as a human.

As for the characters, most of them fitted the storyline, starting with the Bad Guys themselves, a team of untrustworthy carnivores, who love nothing more than stealing anything worth a lot and engage in rollercoasters with the police. With Mr. Wolf as the leader, he acts as the straight-forward Everyman with a knack for pickpocketing and allowing a sharp-toothed grin to really get past the spectators. After referring to his species as the main villain across fairy tales, he lives up to the trope, scaring anybody with his appearance alone. It’s only until their latest heist where his eyes open to a fresh perspective of feeling nice after helping an elderly lady; upon meeting the key to help themselves for the sake of avoiding prison, Wolf begins his road to redemption. While putting on a friendlier face was for a show, Wolf soon develops feelings for the mayor, deciding to turn his whole life around. Sam Rockwell was the right choice to give this sly character a voice matching his mannerisms, while toning it down to his newly-discovered ethical perspectives.

To counteract Wolf’s development was his best friend, Snake, the pessimistic serpent with a knack for safe-cracking; he stands as the complete opposite of Wolf’s arc, choosing the life of crime from his past, while feeling the life of being the Bad Guy is more befitting. They share the typical dynamic of the polar opposites with differing demeanours, but you can tell that they share a rather healthy relationship as partners-in-crime. Their relationship alone is one of the greatest aspects throughout where I actually felt that they overshadow the rest of the characters. With the talents of Marc Maron, he was able to capture the down-to-earth cynicism, which rubs off on the conflict by the ending point.

As for the other Bad Guys, they’re sufficient enough and keep the gang running with their individual talents, along with solid voice performances: you have Shark, an overly emotional and ecstatic master of disguise, high-pitched tone captured by Craig Robinson; the unpredictable Piranha by Anthony Ramos; then, there’s Webs Tarantula, the sassy hacker, vocals by Awkwafina, which I wondered if she was the first choice due to little to no connection besides the demeanour. All of them progressed the style this movie went for, but weren’t to the point where they were as developed as Wolf and Snake. While Shark was a blast to watch, I felt that Piranha could have been rewritten and Tarantula didn’t exactly contain any depth, mainly involved by the end by becoming the mayor’s new tagalong.

I was more hoping that they could have replicated a scene from the books where Shark was scared of Tarantula, only to hear from the other’s perspective on fear.

To authorise his ticket to redemption was Diane Foxington, the city’s mayor, who begins to see his need to change his ways due to a personal secret involving her past life. In a way, I felt what they were going to do with her by starting a predictable yet decent chemistry between the two, only to discover that she had a life similar to Wolf’s, only revealing by the third act’s climax. You do have Zazie Beetz delivering a professional and yet heartfelt performance, but nothing really stood out to me.

The real bad guy within this turns out to be Professor Marmalade, the diabolical hamster who wishes to frame the crime animals while stealing back his own charity donations. In no other way, Marmalade does plummet rather hard into the twist villain category, though it’s his influence that managed to decipher Wolf into the person he attempted to become. His goal wasn’t particularly interesting, standing in as the little girl coming off as the antagonistic greed behind closed doors, but what saved this was the voice by Richard Ayoade; his talents managed to foreshadow the villain’s plans with suppressed rage filled within desperate determination.

Since this world bares humans and animals co-existing, similar to the veins as Cats Don’t Dance, it features two occurring human beings making their mark in the conflicts. You have Misty Luggins the police chief, baring an urge to capture the Bad Guys that’s as large as her prone to anger, while the news reporter, Tiffany Fluffit, overstates the delivery of the story’s news.

So, all-in-all, this was a fairly good movie by DreamWorks and that’s all I can label it as such; I’m happy that the studio decided to lean back and deliver us a good romp for us to enjoy, even if it’s not perfect all the way through. There’s a sequel due to be released next year and I wonder if it’ll take them half the movie until they fall into the same category.

After all, they’re not the Bad Guys for nothing.

Final Rating: C

7/10