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lukolabrainrot · 11 months ago

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That Damn Polaroid™ (and Some Thoughts on the Events in April/InStyle Stunt)

This polaroid... Nicola, Nicola, Nicola 😂

This polaroid still gets me today. Like, yes, this was for PR to some extent, BUT this was also SUCH a public statement. We know N has her phone ALL THE TIME. And (from what we know) the picture was on her phone for WEEKS (MONTHS technically). L appeared fine too with it being there (at least from what we know in the interviews where they talked about it). And that wasn't just like a cutesy little picture of two friends/coworkers. It was a 🔥/powerful pic. And as I mentioned here, N uses pictures as a way of communicating with others. And her excuse that she just "didn't have any pockets at the time", so she put the photo there (and proceeded to keep it there for MONTHS) 🙄 Sure Jan... So, with all of this context, I'm first going to talk about some of my thoughts on what was going on between L/A between the end of February to beginning of April, what was going on between L/N in April up until the Italy stops (including thoughts on the InStyle Stunt), and then at the end I will talk about my thoughts on WHY N had that photo on her phone for such a long time and the deeper meaning it might have had then just promoting the show.

Heads up, this is going to be a longg post...

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I think this post from @newghlan pretty much sums up what I think was going on between L/A during end of February to early April. There was MAJOR flirty energy between L/N during the VDay event and BAFTAs. I talked a little bit here about how there was a very brief clip from the BAFTAs where they look like they got caught when they were embracing each other. I highly recommend checking out the video if you haven't already, because the noverbal cues speak VOLUMES. And it's just interesting that they would look like they got caught at this public event? It read to me that for SOME reason, they did not want that small clip to be captured and put out to the public 🤔

My theories are that by the BAFTAs, A was NOT happy about L/N's chemistry and connection. Maybeee L promised to redirect his attention to A, which is why L wasn't seen at/didn't go to the Big Mood premiere, and why L took A to LA with him and agreed to the InStyle Stunt to appease her. I've never doubted that L has probably had feelings for A (although I still think it was/is fairly casual), but like tbh, I'm CERTAIN his feelings for N are SO MUCH DEEPER. So when those feelings came flooding back when they did reshoots in December 2023, and then had to proceed right into working on promotion in January (which I think just made all the feelings stronger), I feel like he probably had some guilt because he was TRYING to explore his relationship with A. BUT L was reconnecting with N, and I think emotionally, that's where his heart is at. And A noticed this, so she was upset (which honestly, is understandable imo- some of A's actions though because of these feelings she was having I definitely don't agree with). I think L was unsure though about going there again with N, and so he wanted to prove to A (and SPECIFICALLY to himself) that A was the one he wanted to be with. So he focuses his energies on A, agrees to the InStyle Stunt so she gets SOME kind of public acknowledgement (which was a BIG goal of hers in the relationship), and tries to distance some from N. That didn't reallyyyy work though, and then we got what we did for the rest of the tour between L/N.

Before I get to my thoughts on April between L/N, I want to list some specific timeline things around the InStyle Stunt:

L does the InStyle interview (in LA I believe?) near the end of March (so that's when L/A were in LA)

A posts the LA photos on her IG on April 7th and April 14th (and L likes these posts)- I believe she has since deleted another set of these LA photos, so idk what date she posted those photos (sometime in early April though I believe)

The InStyle article comes out on April 29th (with the accompanying Polaroid pics that prove A was in LA with him- this also confirmed that L had coordinated these photos with A to acknowledge (without publicly acknowledging) that he and A were an item)

L posts the non-polaroid photos from the InStyle article on his IG on April 29th (and N likes the post and comments (on April 29) "Yess dude!!")

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April/Early May Between L/N

L/N attend the Bridgerton Season 3 London Photocall on April 12 (which is where the photo above was taken AND where the infamous polaroid was taken). Earlier that day (I believe), L/N also did a series of interviews for the show, and those interviews had some SERIOUS flirty/sexual energy to them (including one of L's (not so subtle) butt pinches with N). I would highly recommend rewatching those interviews if you haven't. If anyone has the links to these particular interviews (N is wearing the same necklace, and L the same tank top and jacket that they are wearing in the picture above), please link them in the comments below.

L/N are at events in Bowral, Australia from April 21-23

L/N in Milan May 9 (with the interviews where they are disconnected and likely beefing)

L/N in Verona May 10 (and they are all cutesy with each other and seem back on the same page)

So here are my thoughts (and why the InStyle Stunt/article might have come into play as to why they had been beefing in Milan):

As I mentioned, I think L was TRYING to distance himself some from N in March and refocus his attention on A. However, I think that pull with N was still really strong, and BTS they were still having to see each other and communicate in order to prepare for their upcoming promotional events. My guess is that all this sexual/flirty tension was building up between them BTS in March, which is why they were soooo unhinged in those interviews before the London Photocall on April 12. I also think early April is when L was starting to realize that his feelings for N were coming back full force, and was maybeeee getting a little green light from N that the feelings were reciprocated (but they weren't actually addressing it because I think they were scared/nervous). However, I think they continue flirting with each other in April (maybe secretly through messaging, and also when they were in person).

Note: We also have to remember that L gave those polaroids to InStyle (most likely) at the end of March when he did the interview. Therefore, the InStyle Stunt was set in motion by that point. I've been wondering though recently, if he had known what was going to happen between him and N in April and early May, if he might not have gone along/set up the InStyle stunt 🤔 Just some thoughts I've been having...

Then we get to the Bowral events near the end of April (BEFORE the InStyle article comes out though, confirming L had coordinated this with A), and it seems pretty obvious to me that L is trying to test the water with N and see how she's feeling about them (they are both being a little publicly flirty, but L much more so imo (N still seems to have a lot of her walls up in public)). It makes sense L might be hesitant to open himself back up to N when, as I talked about here, I think he got his heart broken a little by N. However, I think N was starting to open herself up to the possibility of really trying with L (because I think she has ALSO loved him for a while, but just was never in the place to really commit to the relationship for various reasons). I think she was finally feeling though that she was ready to give this relationship a serious shot, but knew L was kind of in a relationship. I think N was under the impression though that it wasn't super serious, so I think she was hopeful she and L might be able to figure it out.

A lot of people have been commenting that the InStyle Stunt/article wouldn't have upset N because she would have already known about it because of the pictures A posted in early April. I disagree. Now, we obviously don't know 100% if N knew that L was going to add those polaroids to the article. Tbh, we also don't 100% know if she even knew about the pictures that A posted of the LA trip (because I don't get the sense N exerts a whole lot of energy and time following what A does). Yes, N commented and liked L's post on April 29 related to the InStyle article. However, that does not confirm that she had already read the article. And she wasn't going to unlike and remove her comment, because fans would have noticed and flipped out. I am more inclined to believe that she really wasn't aware that this was all going to go down, mainly because I think L didn't want N to know/was trying to be sneaky about it. I think once N figured it all out after the article came out, the thing she was most upset by was how this article proved L had coordinated with A to indirectly publicly announce that they were an item (while L was continually putting out to the press at that point that he was single). Therefore, I think N was pi**ed because she didn't want this to impact their tour/her (their) public image. And secondly, I think she was upset because of the feelings she was having for him, and how flirty he had been with her the last few months. I think it all caught N off gaurd, and her walls went WAY back up. And we have to remember that this all happened just a few days before the Milan event, so I think that energy between them just spilled over and resulted in their very disconnected nonverbal cues in Milan.

I talked a little bit more about my thoughts on Italy here, but I think after L/N got back on the same page emotionally, it was pretty much game over emotionally with A for L. His heart wasn't really in it anymore (and tbh, I don't think it ever really was). Also, I've said this multiple times, but Italy is when N starts posting the "boyfriend pics" of L (which L obviously agreed to). Personally, I think N (and indirectly L) were sending a message to a certain someone 🤔 But just a theory... I have also already talked about it here and here on my theories on why L was never going to be able to publicly untangle himself from A for a while, regardless of what was going on BTS with L/N.

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What Could be the Deeper Meaning Behind the Polaroid?

So, my point with everything is this. I think early April was a MAJOR turning point for N in terms of her feelings/emotions for L. Here are my thoughts (outside of PR) on why N put THAT Polaroid on her phone from the London Photcall event on April 12 (and for MONTHS):

First, we need to acknowledge that L obviously approved of this photo being on her phone (or at least was complicit to it), which I think speaks VOLUMES about where L was at emotionally with N at the time (and where L WASN'T at emotionally with A). This confirms to me that things just weren't that serious with A, even if he was TRYING to refocus his attention on A. L's heart was still with N.

N wanted people to know that they were a unit through this experience, and that N truly loves him and their friendship/connection. She wanted to share to the world how special he AND their experience on Bridgerton is to her.

I think she put that SPECIFIC picture on her phone because her feelings were STARTING to change for L around this event/that general time period. I think N was starting to see L in a bit of a new light (in a positive way), and was seeing some real potential between them.

Lastly, I think one of the reasons she kept the photo on her phone for so long (outside of the PR), is because her walls were starting to come down, things were getting more serious between her and L, and she was happy (and she wanted the public to know 😉). And L/N could kind of hide behind this unspoken public narrative that it was just for "PR" (which I NEVER bought).

Now yes, she has since changed the polaroid. However, we have NO idea what the photo is of now (or if she is consistently changing it out/or completely changed her phone case). She knows our obsession with the Polaroid though, so I think she likes to tease us about it. She knows what she is doing 😉 That OG polaroid though during the PR tour had a MUCH deeper meaning than just promoting the show, and was a significant public statement about her relationship with L. Just my theory though...

#just my thoughts #lukola theories #timelines #InStyle Stunt #that damn polaroid 😂#a picture is worth a thousand words #April was a MAJOR turning point for N me thinks 🤔#What I wouldn't give to know EXACTLY WHY N had that polaroid on her phone for the whole world to see 😂😅

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notafraidofredyellowandblue · 2 months ago

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And that is why they were all (except for Till) bawling their eyes out during last show - they already decided the band was done. 2024 dates literally came out of nowhere and I'm pretty darn sure they decided to split during allegations, Till was done then and they did 2004 as a farewell.

I feel so bad for Richard, Paul, Oli, Flake and Schneider not because it ended but how it ended.

Maybe you're right, at the time i figured it was a bit sadness at the stadiumtour ending after the 5 year stint (when indeed they only had intended 3 or 4 years) and maybe also a bit of relief that the 2024 tour went so much better and relaxter than the 2023 one 🌺

I know many read finality in those quotes from Richard's recent interview, and who knows, it might be. Personally i got a vibe of keeping all options open from him, just like from the little chat Paul had with a few fans at one of the last shows in 2024. No touring this year, although we would have all loved that, it wasn't really a surprise, as the tour was already a bit longer than expexted, and Rammstein have always liked to alternate touring years with 'creating years', especially with our guys the six men marriage, there are some who like the creating more, some who like the touring more. And espexially 2023 must have been taxing for them all, and all in a different way, so it is a good idea to give eachother space and time to deal with it, each in their own way.

Personally i don't necessarily think it's the end of Rammstein. The band have always done things according to their own schedule. There were 10 years between album 6 and 7, and after dropping hints for years that maybe, possibly there would be a 7th album to come...i bet many fans at the time never thought it would happen (Zeit really is a gift i never expected to happen)

The guys have taken time off from eachother before, Richard even lived half a world away for years, and the Mutter years could have easily been the end right there and then. I think they mentioned in an old interview that they would always meet once a year, but there were years in the past when the one time really was the only in that year. The band might have called it quits in the early 2000's, around 2015, and maybe several times in between.

Even if they would call it quits now, i'm glad we got two albums (Untitled and Zeit) and a wonderful stadiumtour, with lots of fun on stage, and more interactions than ever in the 20 years before. A live DVD would be a great present, especially because the last live DVD (Paris) was (imo) not showing Rammstein at their live best, which is a real shame for the best live band in the world 🔥

But gotta say...i think there's more to come...Rammstein like to change things, to surprise us, to shake things up a bit before they get bored 🌺 Let's give them time to live their own lives for now... 🍀

That house that Richard mentioned, unlike the country they grew up in and that they have lost: that house will always be there when they are ready to come back to it and to eachother 🌺

#richard's interview #i bet he will be ready for them #with cups of coffee and blankets #rammstein #richard kruspe

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manicpixieforwonbin · 3 months ago

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I drew Elizabeth Yu being Azula in Avatar: the Last Airbender (Netflix) (Live Action). Words can’t describe how much I think she is absolutely beautiful, wonderful, and fabulous for Azula. She seems so cool too in interviews and she portrays Azula perfectly in my opinion. Everyone can yell at me all they want, but you can’t sway my opinion. I love her, and I don’t care what you think, if it’s negative. She rocks and I love her. I love the interview especially where they try not to laugh and she won, which is so Azula coded, she won because SHE IS AZULA! Azula would win and make the others laugh on purpose! She is like that. I love her take on Azula and live action’s take on ATLA. It is really good imo. Azula rocks, I love Natla Azula, and I give her endless love forever! She deserves nothing but the best, and great things ahead! Azula forever!!!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

#atla #avatar #avatar the last airbender #Azula #i love azula #natla #avatar netflix #avatar fan #avatar fan art #azula fanart #fire lord azula #princess azula #lizzy Yu #elizabeth yu #beautiful #absolutely fabulous #atla fan art

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youremyheaven · 2 years ago

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Beauty & the Beast: The Path of Venus (Vedic Astrology Analysis) 🌸🔥

Beauty & the Beast is essentially a "bad boy meets good girl" esque story, although that is oversimplifying things.

Love is a transformative tool and it is true love that lets both individuals transform. the Beast turns into a prince and Beauty understands the true nature of beauty, which is not shallow or superficial.

the reason, beauty is said to be in the eye of the beholder is that, when you look at someone or something with love, it becomes beautiful to you. Their character and essence transcend their physical form; beauty becomes a sentiment that is deeply felt; its profound and moving, like the beauty of nature or of ancient monuments; its beauty that is beyond the mundane; such as perfectly symmetrical features or adhering to every "trend".

Yun Hyongkeun, the esteemed artist once said, "True sorrow is connected to true beauty"

He had Purvashada Moon and Venus in UBP (Venus exalts in the sign of Pisces)

Here's an excerpt from an interview:

“What is a beautiful thing? It’s associated with the humanity’s inner world. To live most beautifully means to survive after experiencing extreme suffering and hardship,” Yun said.

imo, this is a very Venusian sentiment; Claire Nakti in her video had mentioned how Venusians are "externally splendorous but internally corrosive"

this is to say that these natives create beauty, are drawn to beauty and perhaps are physically beautiful but more often than not, it does not come from a place of ease or comfort. just like how the beautiful lotus blooms in the mud, Venusians create beauty in the midst of chaos and ugliness.

Fun fact: Namjoon has a song called Yun dedicated to the artist which paraphrases this sentiment as "true beauty is true sadness". Namjoon himself has Purvaphalguni sun so it makes sense why he feels connected to this sentiment.

something that is truly beautiful affects us deeply. be it certain people or certain places, it almost makes us melancholy. now why does beauty make us sad?

innately, we understand that beauty, like life, is ephemeral and being in the presence of it, triggers our own sense of life/time passing and mortality. everything and everyone one must die; including the beautiful things and its almost painful to accept that.

now we must first understand that there is nothing shallow or superficial about beauty. Belle does not love the Beast DESPITE his ugliness but perhaps because of it. she finds him intriguing, his character, and his essence all appeal to her. if she were repulsed by him truly, she would not have wanted to marry him. although she was put off by him initially, she warmed to him after that, if that weren't the case, this story wouldn't progress the way it does.

in Claire Nakti's video about Venusian men, she mentioned how Venus's influence gives these men "true masculinity" but they're also often not considered conventionally physically attractive. She cited Pete Davidson & Travis Scott as examples and how what's appealing/sexy/magnetic about them has to do with how they carry themselves, their personality, their vibe, etc

so, we understand that Beauty & the Beast is not about a young woman who in her kindness and generosity, agrees to marry a Beast; she is attracted to him; but what makes him attractive to her is his essence, his nature etc

Now that we've established that, let's look at the story of Psyche & Eros; there are many parallels between this tale from Greek mythology and Beauty & the Beast

like all tales, this too, is a spiritual and philosophical allegory

i will quickly sum it up:

Psyche was a princess famed for her beauty, so much so that it made Aphrodite (Goddess of love & beauty, equivalent to Venus) jealous. She decided to send her own son, Eros (aka Cupid) to shoot Psyche with his arrows of love, to force her to fall in love with a hideous Beast. Much to her dismay, Eros himself fell in love with Psyche and decided to marry her.

now remember that Psyche is a mortal and Eros is a God. This union is not easy. back in her kingdom, people are in mourning because according to them, she's marrying a winged beast. after a while, she's with Eros at their abode, living a life of marital bliss, however, Eros can only visit her at night and she is commanded to never set her eyes on him. so she literally has no idea who or what he is.

one night after her sisters convince her that her new husband is a ghastly and terrifying beast, she decides to take a look at him. however Eros wakes up and realizes that she betrayed him and loses his trust in her and subsequently abandons her.

Psyche has to face several trials and tribulations before she can redeem herself and unite with Eros again; this time in the presence of all Gods, including Aphrodite, they get married, she ascends to the status of a Goddess and later on they have a child, Hedone, Goddess of Pleasure.

Psyche is the Greek word for "soul" or "mind", curiously, its also Greek for "butterfly" or "moth"

Eros means "love" and "desire"

Hedone means "pleasure"

Aphrodite is associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, procreation and prosperity.

This is essentially a love story. Psyche is the personification of the soul, which innately longs to unite with the object of its desire. Like all mortals, Psyche despite finding it, does not trust it or understand it. It is only when she loses what she had, that she realizes how precious it was. Psyche must undergo a painful process of self-realization and undertake several trials in order to redeem herself and prove worthy of Eros.

Desire is the source of everything and Eros is the first god to have come into existence; he is self-formed. it is desire that got Psyche into this mess but its love that will get her out of it.

Thus, the quest for love finds its end in the union between soul/mind and love/desire; together they create pleasure (literally)

looking at it as an allegory, the trials that Psyche undertook were necessary because they led to her growth and development as a person. if you're familiar with Carl Jung, you will recognise this as the process of individuation.

Jung saw it as the process of self-realization, the discovery, and experience of meaning and purpose in life; the means by which one finds oneself and becomes who one really is. It depends upon the interplay and synthesis of opposites e.g. conscious and unconscious, personal and collective, psyche and soma, divine and human, life and death. (link to the article)

the story is one of Psyche's transformation; she leaves behind her kingdom to marry a complete stranger she has never seen and is later abandoned by him, then must strive to redeem herself and win him back. metamorphosis is synonymous with butterflies and Psyche is symbolised by butterfly wings.

so what does this story tell us? Psyche was a renowned beauty who harbored doubts that her new husband was a ghastly beast. but it is she who goes on an arduous and challenging journey to win back the man she feared was a beast, not the other way around.

the soul evolves, matures, and develops, and comes to unite with their love/desire and that creates pleasure. this is essentially a Venusian story.

Venus concerns itself with love & beauty and the story of Psyche & Eros, or its fairy-tale rendition, Beauty & the Beast both explore these themes.

in the same video, Claire also mentioned how Venusian influence often manifests as ugliness in men, but they are also said to possess "true masculinity" the kind that women deeply desire.

Venus creates elitism; Venusians attract each other but Venus being a corrosive planet means they have to prove worthy of each other's company.

the Venusian nakshatras are : Bharani, Purvaphalguni & Purvashada

also, keep in mind that Venus exalts in the sign of Pisces

its interesting that all 3 Venusian nakshatras are Ugra nakshatras that are "cruel" in nature, assigning the native qualities like fierceness, a tendency to be torturous and cruel. the gem associated with Venus is the diamond; they are beautiful stones that come into being after being subject to immensely straining conditions of heat & pressure. this is imo, very telling of the nature of Venusian natives. they endure so much suffering in order to create the beauty that others know them for.

one of the earliest screen adaptations of Beauty & the Beast is Cocteau's 1943 adaptation, in which Josette Day plays Belle.

She has Venus & Ketu in Purvaphalguni

Penelope (2006) is a gender reversed retelling of Beauty & the Beast and it stars Christina Ricci who is Purvashada moon

James McAvoy has an exalted Venus in Pisces (UBP) which is a placement signifying ultimate devotion to the lover, its interesting how in this story he's the one who must help Penelope ("the Beast") break the spell she's under. the whole thing is sooo Pisces coded ngl

Emilie de Ravin plays Belle in Once Upon A Time, she has Moon and mercury in Purvashada

Kristin Kreuk, Purvashada sun played the Belle based character in the tv series, Beauty & the Beast

in 1997's Beautician & the Beast, Fran Drescher plays a Belle inspired character. She has Ketu in Bharani

Jane Eyre is considered by many to be loosely based on Beauty & the Beast.

To begin with, Charlotte Bronte who authored Jane Eyre, was Purvaphalguni rising with an exalted Venus in Pisces (UBP)

As such we'll look at the actors who have played Lady Jane in its film & TV adaptations.

Zelah Clarke played Lady Jane in the 1983 miniseries Jane Eyre. She is Bharani moon

Ruth Wilson who played Jane Eyre in the 2006 tv series, has Purvaphalguni moon

Sussanah York who played Jane Eyre in the 1970 adaptation has Purvashada sun, Purvaphalguni moon with Ketu in Bharani

A Court of Thorns & Roses, is a highly popular fantasy novel that is a retelling of Beauty & the Beast. its author, Sarah J Maas has an exalted Venus in Revati as her amatyakaraka

Anthony Trollope’s Ayala’s Angel features a heroine who rejects the honourable Colonel Stubbs because of his appearance and ugly surname, until she is persuaded by events that he is “the real Angel of Light” she has been seeking all along.

Trollope has Ketu in Purvashada

The Tiger's Bride is a post-modern retelling of the Beauty & the Beast. its written by Angela Carter who has Sun & Moon in Bharani.

The Beast must learn to express his heart and mind to become worth loving. He has his own journey of growth, acceptance and forgiveness.

It’s a pattern echoed in many Jane Austen novels, including Pride & Prejudice in which the proud, rich Mr Darcy must reveal his true goodness to win the witty and sharp Elizabeth Bennet.

in its perhaps most famous adaptation, Liz is played by Keira Knightley who has an exalted Venus in Revati, with Mars & Rahu in Bharani

in another adaptation of the same, the Liz character is played by Aishwarya Rai who is Purvashada moon.

to an extent, Marianne's character arc in Sense & Sensibility, also by Jane Austen is very similar. she initially falls for the handsome, young and ultimately found to be shitty John Willoughby and later realises her love for & marries Colonel Brandon, who is much older and an amputee but who truly cares for & loves her.

the 2011 movie From Prada to Nada is a retelling of Sense & Sensibility. it stars Alexa PenVega as Marianne. She has Ketu in Purvaphalguni

the 2000 Indian adaptation, titled Kandukondein Kandukondein stars Aishwarya Rai in the Marianne equivalent character. She has Purvashada Moon

Conclusion:

Beauty & the Beast focuses on Belle’s awakening to the Beast’s virtue rather than the Beast experiencing a change. it is a story about the path of a Venusian woman.

it is a quintessential Venusian tale about the union of two equals. true to Venusian nature, they have to undergo several trials and tribulations before this becomes possible.

Thus when the body (the beast) unites with the soul (beauty) it creates pleasure and harmony, thereby fulfilling all the promises of Venus.

#venus #venusian #venusian nakshatras #bharani #purvashada #purvaphalguni #feminine journey #beauty and the beast #vedic astrology #vedic astro notes #sidereal astrology #astro observations #nakshatras

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districtunrest · 4 months ago

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Countdown to Sunrise on the Reaping (SotR) book release 🔥

What's the burning questions about Haymitch you hope is answered in this book?

What are your predictions about Katniss' family or ancestry in SotR?

Were you shocked about Haymitch's life story in the chapter preview that's been released?

Any other thought about SotR?

Thank you 😊

@curiousnonny

ahhh it's so crazy, only 8 days to go!!

I plan to stay off tumblr until I finish it and let it marinate a bit to avoid spoilers & all the initial reactionary posting. I actually held off on starting Ballad for a couple months until I saw the overall reception even out and tell me it was worth a read 🫣 but ofc I'll be reading this one right away, haha

my burning questions:

what's Haymitch like as a teenager? bc tbh I don't get the sense he's a smart-ass punk from the excerpts we have so far... he seems funny but otherwise pretty easygoing and normal tempered? Idk, I'll be curious to see how snarky & arrogant he is once the story gets going. I'd hate for that to be only an act for the Games and not what he's like beforehand, too.

what's Maysilee like?!?????? I'm most excited to meet her 👀 and, if the mockingjay pin was her token, why wasn't it there/mentioned by Katniss??

who's this 'like a little sister to him' tribute and why didn't Haymitch ally with her? my guess is either there was some implicit agreement between them or she was killed (by the butterflies) before they could meet up...

who, if anyone, was his mentor? is Plutarch actually going to show up or have we all been clowning?

was the Victory Tour forcibly normal or altered in light of everything? like, are they still going to interview him about his talent(?!), home life, etc? or cut all that 'for his sake' and get him out of 12 to 'celebrate?'

what were those 2 weeks like between his crowning and his loved ones' deaths? and how exactly did the latter happen? was it as soon as the cameras left? was it all of them at once? was it public? was everyone gaslit about it afterward? (and so on and so forth)

I think Katniss' dad will be Covey adjacent somehow. I like @thesweetnessofspring 's idea that he was an orphan they took in (I do want to meet a Community Home kid, if possible). I left Ballad assuming Maude Ivory was his mom but it's notable he didn't pass on the naming tradition to his daughters, unless he and Mrs E had a reason for that... we shall see! maybe 🙃

I mean, I was shocked Haymitch's mom has a similar backstory to my Hazelle! 😅 (which, I think all we're meant to glean from that is he had a soft spot in hiring her as his housekeeper in CF. hopefully that's where any allusion/mention of Hazelle ends, unless she's his mousy next door neighbor lmao) other than that and his birthday being July 4th, I haven't been too surprised 🤷🏻‍♀️ as I predicted here and confirmed in my initial thoughts here, so far it's read how I figured it would bc pretty much every Haymitch's Games fic opens that way, lol. what's surprised me the most is that it's a first person Haymitch pov, when the previous prequel had been a third person outsider-to-the-D12-victor pov, and I felt we already had enough of Haymitch's backstory - more so than say, Katniss' parents.

my only other thoughts are that I hope I love it and that it doesn't retcon things Katniss saw & Haymitch told her himself, that we've had for well over a decade, in the name of pushing the propaganda angle (like I kind of don't want everything explained away as, oh it was edited!! bc that gets lazy fast imo). but yeah, I really do hope it's good. who knows, it might become my favorite of the series!

tbh, as interesting as Ballad was, I could've done without it and so now I am nervous bc it's my favorite character's turn, who I've thought & read & written a lot about... but SC is the one that gave us this character in the first place, so I am going in trusting it won't be awful or a disservice to him. it's just, you know, a little nerve-wracking 🫠

#thanks for the ask!! ♥️#sunrise on the reaping

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theophagie · 2 years ago

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you ever think about how katsuki's feelings of constantly *losing to izuku* have been addressed plenty times and yet - with izuku's feelings on constantly *failing to save katsuki* there's been barely anything. i know he blocks out those specific traumatic moments but like. do you ever just think about it 🧍

Kacchan is much more upfront and vocal about his feelings than many people give him credit for T-T especially since he hasn't just expressed the fear of losing to Deku, but also the fear of losing him. He hasn't directly told him about it, but it is there!! outwardly!!!! He's admitted it to himself, their future best man All Might knows all about it from their talk, as do their classmates from his behavior at the hospital, as does AFO thanks to Ragdoll's Search? (つ﹏<。)

Deku is a little repressed blockhead (and a shitty nerd who's oblivious about these things, lest we forget), but personally even if he hasn't addressed his feelings yet, to me the content that we do have is 💯🔥

I don't have them at hand atm, but pretend that the panels building up to Kacchan's rescue are here too + also insert Horikoshi's interview where he said that it was painful for Deku to give up on being the one to reach out to him (AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-). Everything is much more intriguing exactly because he refuses to face all of this head on imo _(:3 」∠)_

In general I wouldn't say that there isn't much on Deku's part, just that it's harder to have the broader fanbase acknowledge it because many people refuse to accept anything that isn't 100% made clear (and oftentimes not even then, seeing how split the reaction to the whole Closest Person™ thing was, to remain on the topic of their relationship), so it's harder to get everyone to pay attention to these details

#sorry for the awful collages xd #bnha #bakudeku #animanga #myasks #bakugou katsuki #midoriya izuku

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destinyc1020 · 11 months ago

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Long story short (I didn't follow everything so anons correct me if I miss something) :

People started noticing all the cast was ignoring Justin Baldoni existence : not taking any pics with him at photo call and premieres, not praising him, not speaking about working with him (even when directly asked), not even one joint interviews, and they ALL unfollowed him

Justin said that he didn't want to direct to sequel if it had to happens. But unlike the rest of the cast, he actually praised Blake in interviews.

The public opinion started to take sides. On one hand you have Blake, who has been criticized for the way she promoted the film, never mentioning the serious subject matter (DV), acting like it's a fun girly movie, telling girls to go with their friends wearing "florals" (kinda mimicking the Barbie theme dressing, but it sounds out of touch for a movie like this). At the same time she is promoting her hair care line and all the promo around her and her image. People also started calling her out for other stuff she did (got married on a plantation, being rude in interviews, not knowing how to answer questions about DV even though she should be prepared for that). On the other hand, Justin has been more vocal about DV and more mindful with his words, giving more heartfelt answers and not shying away from the seriousness of the topic. He apparently has a podcast where he showed in the past that he seemed (I haven't listen to it myself) to fight toxic masculinity narratives, so people usually applaud him for that

"Insiders" started to got to the press. Apparently it started to go downhill in post production, they disagreed on the editing and Blake asked (forced?) the editing team of Deadpool to edit this film, which ended up being a version that was less liked than the og according to test audiences. Justin was visibly mad about Blake(+Ryan) heavy involvement

TMZ just released an article saying that Blake was also upset because Justin asked her weight and she took it as "fat shaming", but he only did that because he had severe back issues that he was recovering from during filming, and there was a scene where he's supposed to lift her in the air so he wanted to know to physically prepare himself. According to the source, he kissed her for too long during one scene, making her uncomfortable

Justin is keeping to himself and didn't comment on anything, BUT he hired a PR crisis publicist, the one who was hired by Jonny Depp during the trial (which is not a good look when you know Jonny was trying to soften his image after being seeing as an abuser).

I had NO idea all of this was going on! 🤣😆 I just don't follow Blake like that. I like her as an actress though. No comment on her and Ryan's plantain wedding.... 😑 (I STILL to this day don't know what possessed them to do that. She's not even from the South, and he's not even American!!! 🥴)

Oooo giiiiirrrrrl you're bringing in the TEA!!! 😲🫢

Anyway....

This is some crazy tea girl.

Re: Justin....

He's hot as idk what chiiiiilllle.... 🔥 🥵 All throughout the movie I kept thinking to myself: "Good lawwwd.... call the DOCTOR!" 🤣 He is handsome.... and his body was body-iiiing in that movie chiiiiilllle lol!!! Rofl 🤣

*Ahem* With that said, I don't ever think it's right for anyone (especially a MAN) to ask a woman how much she weighs. I don't care if he just had back surgery lol 😆 It's just tacky, and comes off as kinda rude and personal imo. Women are judged by their weight (and age) so much, especially in this country, and it's kind of a turn off when a man asks this imo.

That's almost tantamount to a woman asking a man his dick size. How would a man feel if a woman asked him on a date... "Sooo... how big is your package? I just wanna know, just in case one day we ever....ya know... 😏...I just want to make sure it would be comfortable for me..."

Like, what on earth? 🥴That's so out of pocket lol. 😅

Anyway, if I were him, I would just refrain from asking women those questions from here on out. If he wanted to know if he could pick her up, all he had to do was just try? 🤷🏾‍♀️

Plus, Blake is not a "big woman" at all, and the guy is like 6'2, so he's no small man at all. I do believe, even with back issues, he could have been just fine with picking her up. Or, how about, just write that pick up out of the script? Geez lol 😅

Anyway... with that said...I don't usually see Blake in interviews, so I'm not sure how she usually comes across? 🤷🏾‍♀️ I can't speak to that.

I did see one clip of Justin talking about the DV side of things briefly, and I did appreciate that. 😊

Re: Blake

With Blake, maybe she was told to tone down the DV aspect of the film somewhat so that ppl wouldn't be turned off from seeing it? 🤷🏾‍♀️

Or, maybe she was afraid of saying smthg offensive and in turn, making ppl not want to see it?

This is all about money and having your film sell after all. Let's not forget! 😅

Even though the film is so much more than just about DV, I do think that she should have said smthg about women (and men!) who find themselves in these types of toxic relationships.

Anyway, thnx for the tea Anon...I had no clue this was all going on.

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murfpersonalblog · 1 year ago

Text

"Regarding the bits of Claudia's diary that have been torn out, in reply to Louis' "It's clear what happened," Daniel says, "And she wrote about it, and I'd like to read it." Why do you think Daniel insist that he wants to read about Claudia's assault and why does Louis refuse him that information?"

Daniel's a journalist, and the one thing the media thrives on is spectacle. Nothing gets them going quite like being able to dip their microphones & cameras in a wound and getting the gory details in 4k. "Pictures, or it didn't happen. Proof, or it didn't happen." They will risk life & limb to get the deets, and bless them, truly! Cuz Daniel's right: some ish really DOES NEED to be exposed & talked about!

But Daniel's handling of Claudia really crossed the line, IMO.

Daniel has zero respect or regard for Louis (& Claudia), and it shows.

Louis told Daniel something deeply traumatic & personal, but insensitive AF Daniel just makes it all about himself, what HE wanted, rather than respecting people's privacy & right to say NO.

This HUMAN BOY consistently acts WAY too out of pocket with his macro-aggressions against a literal creature of the night, cuz Louis NEEDS him too much to kill him--LOL, or so he thought! XD

Daniel "was disrespectful" to Louis all the way back in 1973, BEFORE he even got bit, so IDGAF how "nervous" he claims to be, post-bite.

YES, Louis "editorializes"--and YES, he's an unreliable narrator; but Daniel should be a good enough investigative Pulitzer winning PROFESSIONAL to read between the lines to sus out the details; regardless of Louis not giving him access to the missing pages. Eff journalistic integrity I guess. Even IRL news reports leave out the names, photos, & identities of underage victims, as a sign of respect. But Daniel wants to splash Claudia's rape all over the place, salivating over the chance to read about her being raped, and snarking to her father's face about people wearing "SEXY Claudia costumes," wtF?!

Like, what TF does having Claudia's verbatim description of being raped ADD to LOUIS' story about HIS life? He's not the one who raped her! And what right does Daniel (i.e.: the audience surrogate) have to read her words & see the pages? CLAUDIA's not the one who asked to be interviewed, LOUIS is.

TBH, I doubt those missing pages still exist for Daniel to even read. I wouldn't be surprised if Louis torched those pages, even if the words are burned into his skull, just like he'd memorized Claudia's words when Charlie burned. And we know Louis & Merrick used the torn out pages as a sacrifice to summon Claudia's ghost.

In Merrick, Claudia's words really were NEEDED, to summon her ghost (as the voodoo spell specifically required things that had belonged to her: her doll, diary, mom's name, etc). Her ghost was the main goal; everything else was sacrificed in a fire--inc. Louis. 🔥💀 But in AMC's IWTV it's a bit different. Louis gave Daniel the diaries as another reference, a 3rd party view; but the primary source is LOUIS. LOUIS' voice/words are the most important; everything else is supplementary. This isn't magic with rules requiring Claudia's rape-pages. It is not a CRIME to withhold information in a biographical work--Louis is not ON TRIAL in Dubai, he cannot be perjured by Daniel (who himself admitted that Lou has enough PTSD to be treated like war veterans on EMDR; Louis would NEVER be allowed to testify on the stand in a court of law IRL, he's so mentally unstable). IWTV is LOUIS' story--Claudia's Story is a spinoff. Claudia wrote those diaries for her own private eyes, never expecting some old fart would be poring over them 80 years later.

If one of DANIEL'S daughters were raped, and it was caught on camera, would HE want the paps in THEIR faces, spreading the video on TMZ or Twitter or wherever? "Watching the whole thing, like some CREEPER?" HAYUL NO!

The audacity of this self-entitled mofo to DEMAND Louis give him the pages--I'd've done WAY more than make his hand shake, istg.

OP, why are your questions always tryna put me in the hospital? 😅

The way Daniel & Merrick treated Louis is telling, too--Merrick wanted Louis to make her a vampire too, and she forced/bewitched him into doing it when he would've said no, too. Used & abused at every turn, ISTG.

Once Claudia returns to New Orleans after her travels, how long do you think she spent watching Louis and Lestat before she came home, and do you think it would have taken her longer if she had not seen Grace’s final rejection of Louis in the cemetery, deciding there that her purpose was to be Louis' sister?

Yes, I think it would've taken Claudia longer--maybe not by much, cuz she came back for a reason, even knowing Louis had been looking for her. But she'd've waited for real proof, to see something that convinced her that she was missed, cuz Claudia thought she was unwanted & unloved. She thought Lou was happier just being with Les; that she was in the way; that Lou was just giving her empty platitudes. She was scared to go back home, scared she'd be resented & rejected (thanks, Lestat 😒); visibly shaking even more than Louis was when he cried & held her.

So seeing Louis lose Grace was kinda like Lestat seeing Louis lose Paul. They each thought they were replacing/substituting Louis' family ("I'm your family, Louis" / "We're a family?"); neither one of them understanding that Louis' heart was HUGE--he had more than enough space for ALL of them together. But Les & Claudia were too similar, each thinking Louis was something to be claimed & monopolized--"Come to me, Louis" / "Come with me, Louis"--that they couldn't coexist if they were competing for all of Louis' love & attention (especially Lestat, jfc).

So Claudia mistakenly thought she was filling a Grace-shaped hole in Louis' heart, "It's never been about ME!"; and to her dying day she didn't realize that there was a Claudia-shaped hole that bled every time he said "Sister/Brother." In Dubai, Louis explicitly says she's his daughter. 😭💔

Rewind the tape —an AMC IWTV group rewatch

Episode 5: A Vile Hunger for Your Hammering Heart

IWTVfanevents is hosting a rewatch of the first season in the lead up to the Season 2 premiere on May 12th! Today, Sunday, April 7th, we’re starting with Episode 5: A Vile Hunger for Your Hammering Heart

All throughout the week, we will be talking about our favorite scenes, quotes, looks, behind the scenes and trivia facts; and discussing the episode using the tag #vampterview. And we want to hear from you!

We want to know your favorite quote, your most beloved scene, your choice for look of the night, any backstage or trivia facts that stuck with you... or anything else! We're offering a couple prompts, but we'd love to see your fanart, headcanons, burning questions, or liveblogs.

Watch with your friends or in your own time, and come talk about the show we love and countdown the weeks to season two with us, here or on Twitter, using the tag #vampterview.

Click here to learn more about this dedicated tag ►

We’re kicking off discussion of Episode 5 with two questions:

Regarding the bits of Claudia's diary that have been torn out, in reply to Louis' "It's clear what happened," Daniel says, "And she wrote about it, and I'd like to read it." Why do you think Daniel insist that he wants to read about Claudia's assault and why does Louis refuse him that information? Once Claudia returns to New Orleans after her travels, how long do you think she spent watching Louis and Lestat before she came home, and do you think it would have taken her longer if she had not seen Grace’s final rejection of Louis in the cemetery, deciding there that her purpose was to be Louis' sister?

#justice for claudia #louis de pointe du lac #vampterview

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myysaints · 2 years ago

Text

°˖ ⊹ ꒰ YT22 ꒱ HAPPY ACCIDENTS ─ YUKI TSUNODA

YUKI TSUNODA x f!gf!reader

⌗︙・ summary — yuki tries to soft-launch your relationship at the miami GP, but things don't exactly go according to plan...

genre — social media au

notes — apologies for the delayed upload, school has been a bitch to deal with 😭 i basically only had time to work on this in between exams and projects, hence why it's set around the miami gp (because that's when i started working on it fghafhsd). also i'm STILL MAD that yuki was out of points solely because of that (imo) undeserved penalty in barcelona... but... sigh. anyways here's the awaited yuki fic, hope u enjoy!

www.youtube.com/Formula1

PRE-RACE INTERVIEW WITH: YUKI TSUNODA | MIAMI GRAND PRIX 2023

alphataurif1

Liked by yukitsunoda0511, yourusername, pierregasly, and 2,213,914 others

🏷 yukitsunoda0511

alphataurif1 Miami dump with Yuki and a certain someone special 😉🤫

view all 824,001 comments

yourusername the third pic my gosh 😭 your hair!!!

yukitsunoda0511 😅❤️ alphataurif1 Windswept Yuki is the best Yuki!

tripodgasly when we said feed us crumbs we didn’t mean literally 😭😭😭 GIVE US MOREEEEE!!!!!

chuckeleclerc that height difference omlllllll cant believe yuki actually found someone shorter than him LOL

alexalbono HELP THAT WAS SO UNCALLED FOR 💀💀 chuckeleclerc NO IT WAS A COMPLIMENT 😭 theyre super cute 🫶🫶

yourusername wow this guy’s gorgeous, is he single by any chance?

yukitsunoda0511 Nope 😂😂 I love my girlfriend ☺️ yourusername blushing screaming throwing up rn yukiiifan22 omg??

yourusername

Liked by yukitsunoda0511, danielricciardo, pierregasly, and 832 others

yourusername in miamiiiiii with my boyyyyyy 🫶 honestly it was a miracle that i got yuki in the water after daniel’s little stunt…

view all 52 comments

yourbestfriend looking HAWTTT 🔥 my favourite f1 wag confirmed #teamyukiy/n

yourusername thank god my account is still private because you’re embarrassing asf 🙄 yourbestfriend you know you love me

danielricciardo Should’ve been there to see his face when I pushed him in!

yourusername he was grumbling the whole way home, trust me, i know yukitsunoda0511 I was not grumbling… danielricciardo All in good fun mate 😂 Get revenge on the track next year, how’s that sound? yukitsunoda0511 Looking forward 👍

pierregasly stay away from my boyfriend >:(

yourusername homie hopper… go chat up estie bestie u traitor estebanocon Hey, I don’t want him either! 😂😂 pierregasly Rude 😒

f1wagupdates

Liked by pierregasly and 218,334 others

f1wagupdates Submitted by anon ❤️ It appears that Yuki Tsunoda has been having a fruitful break in between the Miami and Imola Grand Prix! The Japanese driver was spotted walking hand in hand with what appears to be his girlfriend, two days after his 23rd birthday and five days after revealing his relationship on the official Formula 1 YouTube channel. Little is known about the Alpha Tauri driver’s lover, but we do know that their height difference is adorable 🥰

view all 58,219 comments

tifosi5516 liked by pierre gasly LOL

pierregasly 💔

carlo55ainzfan LMFAOOOO ariana what are you doing here???

estiebestieee STOPPPP their height difference is actually everything… short and shorter my HEARTTTT

mickyschumacher yuki actually looks tall for once HAHAHA

formulaonefanatic and NO ONE has her @ ??? seriously????

landonando yuki talking about going public then literally no one knows who she is FGHFDSHGF sirhamilgoat leave them alone smh, yuki has talked about how he likes to keep his personal life private formulafire if he talked about going public in his post race interview… what else do they expect ??? sirhamilgoat yall could just treat them like human beings?? we aren’t entitled to anything from them...

pierregasly uploaded to their story. 12s

[caption: Double dinner date 🍝🥂 with francisca.cgomes yukitsunoda0511 yourusername]

www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/formulaone/article-220511

NO SOFT LAUNCH: FORMULA ONE DRIVER YUKI TSUNODA GETS SUDDEN SHOCK AS GIRLFRIEND’S INSTAGRAM HACKED – WHO IS Y/N L/N?

Twitter was sent into a frenzy on Sunday, as AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda sneakily revealed during his post-race interview that his previously-unknown beau was in attendance at the Miami GP!

Tsunoda has been notoriously quiet about his private life, leaving fans stunned at the seemingly out-of-nowhere revelation. The Internet quickly began to scour for the unknown woman online, however with what little information they had, quickly turned up empty. Though, the commotion evidently attracted the attention of the team at AlphaTauri themselves. On Monday, their official Instagram account uploaded a post commemorating the weekend, in which Tsunoda’s girlfriend was also featured.

(Credits: yourusername on Instagram)

Eagle-eyed fans may have noted that both Yuki Tsunoda and the AlphaTauri Instagram account were both cheekily interacting with a private account. Soon, rumours were flying that this account was indeed run by Tsunoda’s girlfriend. As seen above, a quick look reveals that numerous Formula 1 drivers including Pierre Gasly, Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo, and Tsunoda himself, are following the account.

Some were not so convinced, however. Fans were also quick to question the account’s authenticity, with some expressing doubts on whether the account owner was even the alleged girlfriend herself. However, these rumours were soon revealed to be true. On Tuesday, the account – which had previously been private with little over 300 followers – mysteriously became public. Fans immediately flocked to the account, taking to Twitter and Instagram to report their findings. With her most recent post being a dedication to her boyfriend and her time “in miamiiiiii with my boyyyyyy”, there is little doubt that the account’s owner – whom we can now confirm is Y/N L/N – is in fact the Japanese driver’s girlfriend!

(Credits: yourusername on Instagram)

The reason for the account’s sudden change in privacy is unknown, though some theorise that the account was hacked, perhaps by an extremely dedicated fan. Daily Mail has reached out to Tsunoda, AlphaTauri, and Y/N L/N herself for comment.

yourusername

Liked by yukitsunoda0511, pierregasly, alphataurif1, and 1,202,901 others

yourusername all the rumours are true 🤫

view all 500,401 comments

lolasformula THE HEIGHT DIFFERENCEEEEEE

muppetlando mother and father. PARENTS!

francisca.cgomes can’t wait for another double date with you two!

yourusername same!!! but we’ll have to confiscate pierre’s phone first 🤭🤭 pierregasly 😳😂

yukitsunoda0511 My girl 🫶

yukitsunoda0511 The prettiest always 😊

yukitsunoda0511 素敵 (Lovely)

yukitsunoda0511 Can’t take my eyes off you

pierregasly I think we get the point mate lewishamilton Lay off the guy, he’s in love! Liked by yukitsunoda0511, yourusername

yukitsunda0511 愛してる ❤️ (I love you)

yourusername forever & always ❤️

#yuki tsunoda x reader #f1 x reader #f1 social media au #yuki tsunoda #f1 instagram au #formula 1 #formula 1 x reader #yuki tsunoda insta au #yuki tsunoda imagine #˖⁺‧₊˚ 📂 ── my writing #꒰ ⁺‧₊˚ [🏁] formula 1

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a-kind-of-merry-war · 2 years ago

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Hello Merry!

I just listened your book and I love it so much! The readers were amazing. Their voices fit the characters so well (and I have to say listening to one sex scene I almost expired on the spot). And I got to hear your voice! I was so excited about the interview, I can't wait to listen to more of your books.

I'm saying this as an avid fanfic reader, your book reads like fic. And I can't say how refreshing that is in the romance genre which is filled with terrible, abusive tropes and your book was so wholesome in the middle of it (I almost want to immediately listen it again). Your book went to my very used 'listen something familiar but wholesome when feeling sick' list that so far has only had Pride and Prejudice and LotR.

I also wanted to share these tags Storytel (a Swedish audiobook service) has of your book. The non English ones are Historical Novels, Mystery, Historical Novels, Relationships and Historical Romance, nothing weird there. But I found your book by going through the Lesbian Romance tag lmao. I saw the cover and was like that looks like the book Merry wrote I didn't remember it being wlw story, but I think I got something so much better than what I was searching for.

💜💜

Ahhhh gosh!!! Thank you so much, I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I love the narrators for the audiobook, they're SO good (and YEAH the sex scenes are 🔥🔥🔥 when read out loud gosh)

I am honoured to be on your relisten list!! I'm really glad you liked it (and "reads like fic" is a compliment imo aha)

Also that is weird!! It might have been placed in the lesbian category because of the lesbian side characters??

#one night in hartswood

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the-gc-record-club-blog · 3 years ago

Text

MONTERO (LIL NAS X)

Selected by Taco

OCHIENG’S TAKE

Favorite Song: Scoop

Spit Yo' Game/Talk Yo' Shit: I recently watched a clip of Vince Staples where he talked about superstars in rap, and a lot of what he said boiled to the fact that artists nowadays more often than not are selling moments and moving product more than they are actually moving music. If you look at the newest generation of musical entertainers, there’s arguably no one better than this Lil Nas X. Now I say all this to say that I didn’t really vibe with this album unfortunately, I obviously don’t know his creative process and I’d hate to try and pigeonhole anybody especially since his claim to fame was a genre bending smash hit. But a lot of the songs in this album to me felt they were engineered to try and cover as many bases instead of catering to Nas’ strengths. The standout tracks to me felt like the tracks where Nas had the most fun, “DOLLA SIGN SLIME,” “SCOOP,” and “INDUSTRY BABY” fall into this category. But nonetheless I still respect Nas as an artist, provocateur, and entertainer immensely and can’t wait for his next moves.

Lit-mus Test: 🔥(and a half for good measure)

VANESSA’S TAKE

Favorite Song: Industry Baby (ft. Jack Harlow)

Spit Yo' Game/Talk Yo' Shit: The context for my review is that after the roaring success of Old Town Road, most of my engagement with Lil Nas X's stardom was via his star presence, rather than his music — he's cute, seems very interesting and approachable in interviews, he's hilarious on social media, and by the by he releases a lot of bops that I like. Despite this, I wasn't able to really get excited about a full album; those biases are mine to grapple with. In the spirit of record club, of course I listened to MONTERO in full many times over, but I couldn't get into it and had forgotten most of the songs when the time came to write this review. Undeniably Lil Nas X is a good singer and rapper; he hits some powerful notes on both MONTERO and SCOOP - which, of the songs I didn't know before spinning the full album, is my favourite and nearly took the crown as my favourite song. Yet, I do think this time around the best songs were in fact the singles and the rest left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. If HOLIDAY was on this album I would've added a full flame to my rating because I absolutely love that song. Also, give me a Deluxe Edition without Jack Harlow on INDUSTRY BABY!!!

Lit-mus Test: 🔥🔥(and a half for good measure)

OBELLA’S TAKE

Favorite Song: Scoop

Spit Yo' Game/Talk Yo' Shit: So I just gave this album a re-listen in the gym today before writing this here review. And there is actually something to the whole "voice of a generation" thing when you consider that this album is definitely made by a queer Black kid who was a teen in the 2010s and played Rock Band while keeping up with undergound rappers on Soundcloud. Yfm? And for that alone it cements Lil Nas X as a pop star and in fact, yes, an Industry Baby (zing!). It grabs from a lot of different genres and makes enjoyable bops in each space. It grounds Old Town Road as less of a genre-bender and more of a genre-lender, but still I feel it is representative of how young montero is taking on the music industry and pop culture scene as a talented and versatile artist. It speaks to my overall feelings on the album that even though I really enjoyed my re-listen it didn't result in any of the songs going back into the rinse & repeat playlist (though I considered Scoop again, alas I beat that song into the ground the first go around). It gets a solid rating but it's def not 5 stars imo. However I look forward to how Lil Nas X is gonna grow with time. An Industry Toddler might make something CRAZY who can say?

Lit-mus Test: 🔥🔥🔥

CALVIN’S TAKE

Favorite Song: Dolla $ign Slime

Spit Yo' Game/Talk Yo' Shit: Lil Nas X might be one of the best people alive at generating a "let me stop and see what's going on over there" moment that I actually want to hear about -- at a popstar level (insane degree of difficulty IMO). Usually, they're media / pop-cultural, the type of things that make people say "they should teach this in schools!!!" lmao. But I think this "moment" approach applies to his music too, and that happens to be the subject of today's class. I enjoy X's music the most when he squeezes out those little moments of life on record. "I'm just trying to be the dailyyyy....SCOOP!" has me doing air basketball finger rolls at random. "He don't run from nothing dawgg, get your soldiers, tell em that the breaks is ovvvvveerrr" makes me feel like I'm trying to wrap my arms around a rocket that just launched from wherever the NASA folks go when they're not WFH. As much as I rooted for it, those bursts of energy are few and far between on this album, for me. I genuinely feel guilty about pigeonholeing a person and artist who is so full of creativity, fluidity, and the future -- but I want way more Nas X where he's rapping. GIVE ME A SONG WITH NICKI NOW, though I'm sure he could never have predicted how Onika would be moving in Big 2022. Because rap can be too confining, maybe just more instances where he's on a song that has the same kind of bite as the Daytrip produced records. One thing that unites the two songs I referenced (and my favorite, "Dolla Sign Slime") in my mind is that they KNOCK, and I personally feel that is a better representation of the urgency of the message that Nas has within him. Even if I never get what I want though, I'll still always have my ears open for whatever moment is next from him.

Lit-mus Test: 🔥🔥

#lil nas x #montero #scoop #industry baby #dolla sign slime

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