jess, she/her, writing drawing sewing and yelling. blog contains trigger-y themes, please proceed with caution.
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come aboard, sir! may i request i be added to the list?
Horatio Hornblower Fans: A Directory
Dear Horatians,
A bunch of new fans have shown up on Tumblr in the last few weeks, and I just realized that I never added their accounts to the master list.
To fix that, here is a new, revised list of 53 (!!!!!) Tumblr users who post about Hornblower stuff:
@di-daydreamer @amynion @beforethemastrp @donnaimmaculata @tatzelwyrm @chancellorfangirl @thepiperpan @stayoutofitnick @iolauss @fionatlux  @lessthansix @athenasdragon @sonsofmahal @pansytheleia @eglantinebr @polarcell @underhyll  @landofev  @reesmorn @uponthemidnight @goldenfirefly96 @yours-truly-knightindustries2000 @sherlivalva @ihadenoughofthis @nevils-crest @hornblows @sluttysuperheroes  @ave-puella @truthisademurelady @acespectrummagneto @archiekennedy @camille-deadmoulins @wifeofbath @rulemaker @maybe-queen-of-numenor @nettlestonenell @hollywell-lane @bbcphile @bifilthatonthatseson @panamanga @doctorwithafryingpan @girabbit @scorpioscribe @cslewiscarroll @mothandpidgeon @smiley-asylum @watsonianfangirl @iwillbeyourhands @soodalgwayeou @brad-the-broman @allfinehere @hms-guardy @elizabethmaturin
If you know of an account Iâve omitted (or if you want to be taken off the list), then reblog with a note to that effect or send me an ask or message, and Iâll happy oblige!
Hereâs some other fandom info for you all:
1. We tend to use the tag #HHornblower instead of just #Hornblower because the Niagara Hornblower cruise people have traditionally flooded that tag and itâs hard to find things.
2. A few months ago, a bunch of us filled out the âHornblower Challenge,â a bunch of questions about your thoughts/feelings on the show as a way of getting us to get to know each other better. If you havenât done it yet, feel free!Â
3. At some point in September, weâre hoping to start a monthly Hornblower viewing party: weâll find a time that works for as many people as possible and use the streaming service https://rabb.it/ to watch the movies in order! If youâre interested, let me know so I can start making a Doodle poll for it.
Itâs been so exciting to watch more and more people join the fandom and start making new content! Thank you all, and letâs keep it going!
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1. How did you hear about the Horatio Hornblower series? The box-set was lying about the house. First time dad tried to get us to watch it we whined the whole way through [I remember distinctly the waves of horror and disbelief that each subsequent plot twist WASNâT the big final moment]  but revisiting it years down the line I find my opinion much changed.
2. Whatâs your favorite ship (people)? Horatio/Archie. Theyâre just such good foils for each other <3 3. Whatâs your favorite ship (vessel)? The Bloody Indy! If only because I like to imagine that its habit of swooping in to save the day is so ingrained that years down the line whenever H makes a social faux-pas or nearly trips over something a scaled-down version of the thing sails into frame in the nearest puddle/bath/teacup to provide backup. 4. Whoâs your favorite character? Ooh, thatâs hard, itâs such a character-driven series. All of them? For my top three Iâd choose Horatio for being so intensely himself, Archie for being a ray of badass sunshine and then a tie between Matthews [who is just cool] and Kitty [who is like the awesome aunty I never had].
5. Whoâs your least favorite character? I feel that Bush never grew on me in the way the other characters did. I like him alright in the radio series so far, though.
6. Whatâs your favorite moment/line? I love that bit in the beginning of The Frogs and the Lobsters where Oldroyd shouts âVive le Roi!â with the French soldiers and then ducks a Dope Slap from Styles. 7. Whatâs your favorite Hornblower movie or book? I havenât rewatched the full series in a while, but Iâm gonna go with Mutiny. I love all the little character-interaction moments, and the general atmosphere of fear and resentment. 8. Whatâs your unpopular opinion about the series? That Simpson should have been expanded on as a character. He was terrible, but I wanted to get inside his head, understand why he did the stuff he did. 9. Which character needs more love from the fans? Oldroyd, because he is adorable. And... well, with Simpson, I couldnât call it love, but âattentionâ or âanalysisâ would be cool. 10. Recommend a fanfic or a fanvid. When the Wind is Southerly by inlovewithnight [http://archiveofourown.org/works/185429/chapters/272865?show_comments=true&view_full_work=false#comment_100358082]. Itâs really gut-punchy H/C and I like that itâs Archie taking care of Horatio for a change. Gives me a weird twisty feeling in my chest just thinking about it. 12. âItâs not history that concerns me: Itâs the futureâ: describe a modern AU with our navy boys. I have a plot in the works for a boarding school AU that loosely parallels the events of the first four films. Horatio is the new kid at a school first principaled by Keane, later Pellew. The boysâ school is putting on a play with the aid of its sister school; Kitty is the leading lady, Archie is an enthusiastic but unsubtle supporting character. Thereâs a bunch of fistfights instead of pistol duels. 13. Describe a fanvid/fanfic you wish existed or that you want to write. I really want a gender-swapped or gender-role-swapped AU which strands our protagonists at home, looking after the house, fretting about the spouse away at sea. And possibly becoming highwaymen/women.
Horatio Hornblower Introductions
âWhatâs this? Another messmate!â
Now that weâve found a contingent of Horatio Hornblower fans on Tumblr, letâs get to know each other by answering Hornblower-specific questions (movie and book fans welcome)! Â Choose however many you want to answer, and pass it on!
1. How did you hear about the Horatio Hornblower series? 2. Whatâs your favorite ship (people)? 3. Whatâs your favorite ship (vessel)? 4. Whoâs your favorite character? 5. Whoâs your least favorite character? 6. Whatâs your favorite moment/line? 7. Whatâs your favorite Hornblower movie or book? 8. Whatâs your unpopular opinion about the series? 9. Which character needs more love from the fans? 10. Recommend a fanfic or a fanvid. 11. Choose a character and tell us your headcanon about that character. 12. âItâs not history that concerns me: Itâs the futureâ: describe a modern AU with our navy boys. 13. Describe a fanvid/fanfic you wish existed or that you want to write. 14. What Hogwarts houses would the characters be in and why? 15. Share an anecdote about your experiences with the Hornblower series.
Tagging everyone who has responded to my earlier Hornblower post about finding the fandom (and everyone who someone else said I should add): @di-daydreamer @amynion @beforethemastrp @donnaimmaculata @tatzelwyrm @chancellorfangirl @thepiperpan @stayoutofitnick @iolauss @fionatlux  @lessthansix @athenasdragon @sonsofmahal @pansytheleia @eglantinebr @polarcell  @underhyll  @landofev  @reesmorn @donnaimmaculata @uponthemidnight @goldenfirefly96 @yours-truly-knightindustries2000 @sherlivalva @ihadenoughofthis @nevils-crest @hornblows @sluttysuperheroes @ave-puella @truthisademureladyâ @acespectrummagneto @archiekennedy @heyangelaf @camille-deadmoulins @wifeofbath @rulemaker @maybe-queen-of-numenor @panamanga
Let me know if you want me to take your name off the list (or add new names to it)!
And donât forget about the new Horatio Hornblower chat community I set up:Â http://www.slashnet.org/webclient/horatiohornblower
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miscellaneous rhyming verse
just wanted to play about. spoilers for retribution, warning for mention of death and neglect of capital letters.
our mr hornblower, brave mr hornblower, no other captain could act in his stead, distinguished and handsome and clever hornblower, the stammering midshipman seasick in spithead.
[good mister captain horatio hornblower, awkwardest creature to cross land or sea. with all the fine grace of a ride-on lawnmower, whoâd have the ship painted if tâwerenât for the fee.]
confident, loyal, and brave to the end, archie, our dear captainâs late mourned boyfriend. survived wretched simpson and three years in lock-up, only to pay for old sawyerâs cock-up.
[a hot day in kingston, the âguiltyâ man lies attended by lover, and reaper, and flies; this last conversation, no chance of reprise, the dying man laughs - the audience cries.]
[gave up his good name for life of another, should have been hidden away to recover, should have eloped and married his lover. should have known days untarnished by fear, and one thing pray tell me: explain why the dear didnât die as he lived; paraphrasing Shakespeare?]
poor mister wellard not once caught a break, beaten insensate for each small mistake. shot dead when he seemed much too young yet to shave; the poor kidâs last words: âhe said i was brave.â
he does follow orders, does lieutenant will; off cliffs, through the fog, into death, to the kill; but if thereâs one truth in life, friends, this is it; Will Bush is too fucking old for this shit.
#i needed to prove to my brother i rhymed hornblower with hornblower for ART and not because i couldn't come up with another rhyme#and so: lawnmower#hornblower
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The funny thing about Archie is that Iâm not sure if the people making the series realised how interesting or compelling he was as a character, or if they ever really intended for that to happen. It feels like they didnât really know what they were doing but accidentally managed to transform a cute side character in to a complex and distinctly human counterpart for Horatio. For example, Archieâs love for theatre probably stems from the fact that someone had to recognise Kitty for the plot to work, but as it is, it is an unconventional interest for a character like him to have in a series like this and it ended up making him just that much more interesting. Most characters in the series, while good characters, follow clear character tropes and donât really surprise that much., And then there is Archie who is this strong, skilled and respected young officer (this is esp in mutiny and retribution when he has fully healed and the âtrue version himselfâ, a storyline worthy of another rant all together), who can a shoot a man with a fintlock pistol like 100 yards away (ridiculous) and command the attention of his men is also the kind big brother type, occasionally anxious and prone to quote shakespeare. The series shows him as both capable and strong & soft spoken and gentle without ever treating either of these traits as abnormal or contradictory. Not to mention he is like the only character in a period war drama Iâve ever seen to not only have a a mental illness, but not have it define him as a character or be treated as either pathetic or crazy because of it. But I donât think this was very intentional. Idk where I was going with this I just really needed to vent about how much I love his character.
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[TW for suicide and ideation, death, food and drink mention]
About Horatio and Archieâs last conversation...
I need to talk about Horatio and Archieâs last conversation. Like, I think about it a lot. A lot a lot. Even in my âverses where Archie lives, itâs so key to understanding who he is and how he feels about Horatio I just need to ramble it all out.
Also, I wrote it with those who havenât seen the series in mind. Sooo, if you havenât seen Hornblower and are interested in knowing more about Archie for RP purposes, thisâd be a good thing to look at.
Keep reading
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not a rp-er but this analysis is solid gold
[TW for rape and anxiety]
Okay, I give up, I need to talk about Archieâs sexuality. Iâve been putting it off because itâs complicated and awkward, but hey. In case anyoneâs interested in knowing. FYI ahead of time for those unfamiliar with the series, there are some potential triggers in here. (Also, some info about shipping with Archie in the last paragraph.)
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Hunter: What I heard was he had a fitâMr. Kennedyâduring a night attack, and you had to knock him down in order to stop him getting the rest of you killed. What sort of a midship-man is that? Horatio: You were not there. You do not comprehend the circumstances. We do not leave without him. Matthews: (with force) Aye-aye, sir. Styles: Aye.
So, a few quick things about this exchangeâŚ
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[TW for rape, abuse, depression]
Archie, before (left) and after (right) Simpson returns to the HMS Justinian.
A few character notes below the cutâŚ
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Can we talk about how, in Frogs & Lobsters, itâs all about how Archie is terrified of dying and doesnât feel like heâs brave enough to handle being under fire?
Then as soon as Horatioâs in danger, he outpaces a lit fuse to a bomb, running straight into enemy fire to get him to safety?
And not only does he not seem to consider the danger in that moment, but he doesnât seem to think about it later either?Â
Itâs not like, hey, I was worried I wasnât brave enough but I did this crazy brave thing. Instead, he still seems to think heâs not brave enough through to his death.
Like it honestly breaks my heart.
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Bushâs mum, many years in the past: and if all your friends jumped off cliffs, would you do it too?
Bush, mid-way through Retribution: forgive me mother
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The plan is, Iâll keep all my emotions right here, and then one day Iâll die.
Horatio Hornblower, probably
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This might be an unsustainable level of detail, but I wanted to take note of events in the HB films in order to get a better grip on the source material in preparation for writing serious adaption fic. So here's my notes for the first bit of The Even Chance. Warnings for mention of food and my inability to shut up about Archie Kennedyâs voice.
Starts in a storm, grey-blue, beautiful score. Grey skies. âJanuary 1793. The British fleet lies at anchor in Spithead. Ships and men rot in idleness. Across the channel, revolution in France is sweeping away the old order.â
-have France be represented by a nearby school with some kind of french ties. french patron and heritage, maybe.
on teal seas, two ladies row HB through the rain from the dock to the ship. Theyâre wrapped up in dark grey cloaks. They are strong. H looks faintly ridiculous in the uniform, expression grim. Squints up against the rain [putting up a hand to shield his eyes - delicate lil hands he has], looking over the ship. Hâs sea-chest, which looks nice [well-made, elegant gold letters - idk if this is standard] has âH.Hornblowerâ inscribed on it. H braces himself against it as the boat rocks. Hesitates.
The man on the ship [clinging with one hand and one leg to the ladder, like he knows this position well and knows he shanât fall] shouts down âJump! Youâll be alright!â He can yell well, clear voice, even over the storm. H does not jump gracefully, foot catching in the boat; he jostles his hat out of place as he climbs. The deck is empty, coils of rope scattered on it. It looks abandoned.
The man from the ship [it is archie i realise now] has a broad face. Strong, dependable. Neutral-to-good cheer. Smiling, he says warmly: âWelcome to purgatory.â Hornblower is still wide-eyed and looking like a stunned mullet. Opens his mouth to respond, closes it again; follows Archie.
Under the little balcony a man [Mr Eccleston, first lieutenant] in pearl-grey coat stands conversing with two officers, all of them turned away. Mr Ecclestonâs face is striking, though softened as if by erosion. âMr Eccleston, sir.â âCome aboard, sir.â âYour name?â Horatio seems to be stammering, or trying not to gag, and keeps this up through this conversation. Itâs possible heâs trying to keep his teeth from chattering. Closes his eyes against anxious nerves or weak stomach. âHoratio Hornblower, sir. Midshipman.â Mr Chad, lieutenant of the watch, has a pointed chin and pointed nose. A comedianâs kind of face; the thin chap from Laurel and Hardy, maybe.
âIâll see it sent below. You should too; get out of those wet clothes.â âYes sir!â H gives a relieved smile. Remembers himself and adopts military seriousness. His voice is soft, a little nervous. âI mean. Aye aye sir.â Presses his lips together, nods, salutes; poor thing, doesnât know what to do with himself, does he? Mr Chad seems amused; gives a sidelong glance to Mr Eccleston, but says nothing.
âMr Kennedy. Take Mr Hornblower down to the midshipmanâs berth.â âAye-aye, sir.â He does have a nice voice. Lighter than Horatioâs. Heâs more sure of himself. Down below decks thereâs a violin playing, squawks of women laughing or scolding, men laughing along, the general clamour of a lot of people going about their business.
âMind your step!â A leads the way around swinging hammocks and swaying people; H self-consciously ducks his head and glances about, bewildered or perhaps wary. Redcoats pass by. âDifficult to say who smells worse, the men - or the beasts in the manger forâard! One gets used to it.â Around them people are laughing raucously; Horatio looks âround at them, face mostly blank, guarded. Down another flight of steps.
A pig is squealing, bring coaxed along by a man addressing it as âpiggy-wiggyâ. Horatio does look like a drowned rat, doesnât he? Set rosebud lips, those pretty under-shadowed eyes. Attractive face. Still looking guarded, surveying, not sure if thereâs a threat afoot. Thump. Oldroyd, pink-faced and curly-haired [ginger, maybe blonde], in loose [pale blue and white] checkered shirt, is laughing. Archie smilingly chides H: âWatch your head.â
Styles: âThere goes his Majestyâs latest bargain!â A drawl. Brown curly hair, idk what the accent is but it seems broad, truly incredible acne scars. [Pizzaface.] Archie and Hrrrratio both stop and turn; âBelay that, Styles!â Severity. Composed, voice still light, a voice like heâs shoving the man briskly. God horatio looks cute with like a little curl slicked down on his forehead. âUnless you want to find yourself at the gratings.â Says it so pleasantly. [also: Styles and Oldroyd have a lady with them. Maybe 18th century chicks dig baggy check shirts.]
A beat; âAye-aye, sir,â intonation like he doesnât take him quite seriously. Not actually afraid. Matthews gives Styles a reproachful look, then looks away. M in thin-striped shirt [teracotta-white]. Closer fitting. Brown neckerchief. Teeny little ponytail. white curly hair. A goes on, resigned i suppose [what-can-you-do and a shrug], as they walk: âTheyâre not bad men for the most part, provided theyâre kept busy.â His voice goes up and down as he speaks, itâs nice. Flows easily. Well-spoken. Gentle voice, oh my god, can I get over his voice. I think I canât.
âBut this endless waiting-â edging past people moving. The violin still singing. âMost of us have been here six months already! Discipline you see. Things will be different once we transfer to a fighting vessel, I donât doubt; but who knows when that may be?â I canât tell if heâs phrasing things more ornamentally than one normally would during these olde times. He does have something of the entertaining monologue about him. Giving an easily-spoken speech. Opens his mouth, enunciates, leaves those pauses; not quite realistic, but good for presentating.
âOur only -â someone clips him as they pass. âOur only hope at present is that the unpleasantness in France might come to something. Youâve heard the latest rumours of course! That Louis was captured just before Christmas!â Horatioâs just following silently, looking dubious, oh my god the cheekbones. âWhat do you think theyâll do with him? You canât kill a king.â Oh-ho, a little faith in the monarchy, then? Respect for the power structures. Speaks with the ease of someone who knows it wonât hurt him. Conversational. Horatio bounces on his toes, hesitating. People around them are canoodling rather vigorously.
âBut as my father explained to his [gillet?] Alright, pâhaps some of these people have missed the odd meal oâtwo, but lopping the heads off the nobilityâs not gonna fill their bellies, is it? Still, thatâs Johnny [cradburg? crappo?] for you.â Not a lot of sympathy for the working classes, Iâll wager, [is there anything in canon that prompted us all to agree A comes from a well-off/slightly noble family or is it just headcanon and hearsay?]Â Quiet as they get to the midshipmanâs berth; a small room lit by lanterns and the odd candle, where men sit at a largish table in white shirts, waistcoats and neckerchiefs. Horatio really does look like death walking.
âOh. Allow me to introduce, the midshipmen of His Majestyâs ship-of-the-line Justinian.â ruddy-faced now, taking off his brown coat. Sweat or rain shining on his face. It feels cosy in this room. âKnown elsewise to her intimates as the good ship [i donât even fucking know. sounded like âslau of des-pot.â slough of despair? might have been said with an appalling accent.]
Someone else speaks; a man with a round face, voluminous [80âs] hair, mutton-chops. âWhâsis, Archie?â âAnother mess-mate, gentlemen.â Someone with a meaty face high forehead prominent nose and slightly posher accent asks âAnd whose pretty arse did you neglect kissing to find yourself among the fleetâs forgotten, eh?â
Good God, A looks lovely. His pretty face. Cheekbones. A mild face. The beefcake side of mild though, mind. Especially next to HB, who looks about halfway dead, hollow cheeks, curls ragged on his forehead, face sweaty, puffiness about the full lips, under-shadowed eyes, Kubrick stare. Is silent [swaying somewhat, trying to gather himself]. Meat-man again: âwell, speak, apparition!â âMy name is Hornblower.â A rich voice.
Mutton-chops: âWhat an infernal piece of bad luck for ya.â His accent is clipped only on certain sounds, makes me think heâs from somewhere in the country. Or maybe Northern? [Those two will be Hether and Cleveland.] Clayton looks across, with a hand gesture like heâs holding a cigarette to his lips. His face is mild in a different way, sleepy, the shape of his eyes, his resting expression. Milk-sop is putting it a bit strongly. More like the drunk and dishevelled Sad Case, the man stretched out and smiling languidly, who dreams instead of eating. I know Iâve seen him before, he looks older than he must be, his hair is lank brown and stringy-straight on his forehead. Beaky nose.
âHow old are you, mister Hornblower?â âSeventeen sir,â [while blurry Archie grins in the foreground]. Looks about. âSeventeen, sir!â parrots meat-man. âYâhear that, Cleveland?â âIf you wanted to be a seaman, boy, you shouldâve started at twelve.â âI doubt he even knows the difference between a head and a halliard.â
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Burning Bright
This is another Hornblower fic set in the boarding school AU. Experimentation with character contrast and more flowery language than I think I can get away wth in the story proper. Horatio POV. Warnings: drowning, suicide ideation.
and you meet a boy who is light and life for every inch that you are gaunt and cold. who speaks so freely, so beautifully, while you stumble around words no matter what language theyâre in. who is able to be swept up in the fire that races around the sportsfield, not hanging back and over-thinking about jarred fingers like the milk-sop you are. and you meet a beast, and fire runs through your veins as he makes your boy gutter.
you meet a boy who is light and life and sunlight and fire and he says if you care youâll let me do this and god help you you care, you care so hard it hurts. you carry this thing inside you, inside your ugly hairless chest, while sunlight dances in his eyes and he acts like there is nothing wrong.
you meet a boy who keeps the sea in his eyes, you dream of drowning. just once. someoneâs in the water and the sun is beaming down at you. hands splash helplessly. youâre standing in the sand and theyâre not a meter away from you, the water canât be as deep as it is, and you reach down on this perfect sunny day and they grip tight. and then thereâs a scar on that hand and youâre being pulled under. you wake so afraid, and feel selfish. lie quiet and check that heâs still breathing.
it takes you a long time to realise you love this boy. love had been a foreign concept you never truly understood. first it was the thing that would happen to you when you grew up and met your person; then it was putting your mouth on some poor girl you didnât really like, but whom they assured you was a âfindâ; you never stopped to consider maybe it was the feeling you get when you think about him smiling and you want to hold him with both hands and keep him there, keep him smiling like that, forever. that feeling you get when you get to fourth period and the desk beside you is empty and itâs like a current dragged you under and every time you try to take a breath it knocks you back down into the soundless bawling rush of water. you think maybe youâll be crushed. that this is all your fault. that the crushing will be more than you deserve.
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Reprieve
Boarding school drabble. The boys go sailing.
this is the story of an afternoon when for reasons that arenât particularly important a boat is procured, and for reasons that neither can agree on they find themselves in the middle of the water long past their evening curfew; this is the story of impassioned, rousing pleas for the wind to pick up, and Horatioâs attempts to row them along with the bailing-bucket, and how two capable young sailors spend the better part of an hour swimming around their boat, in turn pulling it along and scrambling back aboard at the merest hint of a breeze. this is the story of an interminably long battle with the elements themselves; of a truly monstrous argument which resolved itself when the boom dealt swift capital punishment and all was forgotten in a panic over what was and was not symptomatic of a concussion; this is the story of hauling up the cold sand a boat they had both come to hate dearly and hosing it down, and stowing its sails, and generally demonstrating that they were the bigger people. this is a trudge home in sodden, salty clothing, the prospect of punishment ahead, and yet somewhere inside them the knowledge that it was all worth it to leave the school behind for a few hours.
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Sounds like a blast!
I just realised next year will be the 20th anniversary of Hornblower: The Even Chance. Whatâs the (even) chances that we could get some kind of celebration? Like a reunion interview with Ioan, Jamie, Paul McG, Robert, Paul C, Sean⌠all the squad!
I realise probably quite low, but I would love that. The show is still so popular, I feel like we need to have some kind of big shindig for it. Let the boys know that weâre still here, still devoted, and still making the trashiest crack videos on YouTube.
Whoâs with me?
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totally necessary what are you talking about
okay, but was it REALLY necessary to show rainwater splattering sensually all over Ioan Gruffuddâs open-mouthed face?
#adds so much to the#uh#to the meaning of the scene#see the rain represents the uh#the arrows of Fate or something#hornblower
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theyâre just SUCH GOOD PARALLELS
#mad devotee to The Cause in love with a more pragmatic foil#during an age of stupid collars and REVOLUTION#in a relationship which involves tragic sacrifice and makes me cry#les mis#hornblower
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