#(But Khan is the main name anyways :) ) | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bell-of-indecision · 9 months

Text

✨I ranked all the indian stuff I watched in 2023✨

For context, this July I finally gave in to my decade-old urge and dove head first into indian culture. It's been nothing short of phenomenal. The more people I meet, the more foods I try, the more music I listen to, the more Hindi I learn, the more I fall in love with India.

Although I became more of a TV serial person, eventually, I gave in to the movies as well.

So here's everything I watched, ranked from worst to best.

(I'm sorry in advance)

10. Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani

This movie is useless, I'm so sorry. Somehow, it fooled me into thinking Naina was the main character, then the whole thing became about Bunny and I was so confused, who was I supposed to care about anyway? Can't complain though, Naina is a boring and uncharismatic cliché, I couldn't care less about her, had she disappeared midway into the story, I would've been thankful. Avi, Bunny, and Aditi, on the other hand, are loveable characters that deserved to be in a better movie — especially Aditi, I liked her so much. Too bad the movie seems to be about absolutely nothing. There was a message, I think, but it felt so shallow it didn't even matter to me, there was no actual relevance, no lesson, no impact, nothing. Maybe I'm stupid, but this movie is a drag. And the soundtrack SUCKS, Ilahi is the only good song in it.

2.8/10

9. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2

The very first Bollywood movie I've ever watched. I wanted to like it so bad, it makes me sad that I didn't. Is it a comedy? A horror story? A dramatic murder mystery? Somehow, it's all of these and none at the same time, it can't decide on a tone to save its life, not even the humor can decide on what exactly it wants to be (most of it is just bad). The main couple has negative chemistry, their romance is so bland it's almost funny. Ruhan carries the whole movie on his back and is the only character with enough charisma to make me care, I honestly love this guy. His scene where he pretends to be possessed is incredible, and Tabu as Anjulika was great too. The plot twist was really nice, possibly the only good thing about the whole story, but then the movie ends so abruptly and on such a heavy note that it almost made me sick when the upbeat theme song started playing immediately after. This movie could not read the room, everything about it throws me off.

4/10

8. Jab We Met

Aditya is a dream, Geet is kind of a nightmare. I have nothing against characters that are lively, optimistic, and cheery, but they have to be bearable, she was just way too much for me. I loved Aditya's character development, it was fun and endearing to watch. The movie itself is not bad, just overrated. Nagada Nagada slaps though.

6/10

7. War

I wanted to love this movie just as much as it wanted to have a good twist. We both failed. Underestimating the audience's intelligence is one thing, but toying with us and making us feel like fools for the sake of a “big reveal” is something else. And no, it wasn't worth it. It wanted to be surprising, but it was just frustrating, shocking for all the wrong reasons. The action was fire though, no complaints there, and I loved the relationship dynamic between Kabir and Khalid, I would watch 11 seasons of those two going on missions with their team and fighting together, their chemistry is so good, I enjoyed every second of their scenes.

6.4/10

6. Arjun: The Warrior Prince

As a Mahabharat fan, I had hopes, but that's on me. Loved the way the story was presented to the audience, simple but brilliant. Shaheer Sheikh's Brihannala altered my brain chemistry, and I was elated to see her again. The animation was gorgeous, that goes without saying. I just hated how it ended right before the war, right where Arjun has some of his best moments, and hated even more how they practically erased Krishna from the story. At least they made him dark skinned this time.

6.7/10

5. My Name is Khan

Had this been based on a true story, I would've been the biggest fan of this movie to ever exist, I am a sucker for movies based on real life stories. Still, despite the disappointment of finding out this whole thing — as good as it was — was fictional, I see it as a touching, lovely, honest, and relevant story that kept me interested and broadened my horizons. Say whatever you want about allistic actors playing autistic characters, Shah Rukh Khan sold the heck out of this character and I bought it like the big neurodivergent fool that I am. I see a neurodivergent character onscreen, I am immediately on-board and loving them despite all their scripted flaws because “they're just like me fr”. "Marry me", indeed.

7/10

4. Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani

Is it innovative and groundbreaking? No, but it is so much fun. It's deep and honest enough, charismatic and funny enough, it's just good entertainment with a good message. I expected nothing to be honest, either way, the story just kept getting better? The dynamics kept getting deeper and more complex? Wait a minute, this was actually good! I went in for the soundtrack — I'm obssessed with Dhindhora Baje Re — but I stayed for everything else. I laughed out loud many times, I shed some tears, I rooted, man, this movie made me feel actual things! What a lovely surprise.

7.9/10

3. The Railway Men

I went into it with such high hopes. Some of them were met, but part of me was left unsatisfied. As I said before, real stories are my favorite, but the way this show was presented feels too much like fiction. Good fiction, but still. And I know it’s not fiction. I am aware that many creative liberties were taken, and I'm not against them, at all, but the thing is: I could see them, I knew they were there. When I watched HBO’s Chernobyl, I was fully convinced that everything that was presented in the show was reality, exactly how it had happened, and I doubted nothing. I was shocked when they revealed that Ulana Khomyuk was a character created to represent many scientists that were involved in the incident. I had eaten her up, and I still can't believe she wasn't a real person. The Railway Men feels like the opposite of this, most of it feels like a creative liberty, very little reads as a real event, a real interaction, or a real person. I doubted a lot of what I saw, and had to do some research to fully understand what exactly had been real. But like I said, it was still good. I found myself caring deeply for each and every character, no matter how minor, I deeply empathized with their pain, rooted for them, cried with them, cried for them. It's heartbreaking, gut wrenching, revolting, yet it still manages to be inspiring. Why I never learned about Bhopal before watching this show is beyond me, but at any rate, I will be recommending this show to everyone I know.

8.1/10

2. Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva

I will defend this movie's honor, I don't even care. I loved it so much that I made my mom watch it with me the next day, and she loved it. The dialogue is cringy, yes, unbearably so, some lines make my skin crawl. But COME ON, the plot is great, the concept is creative, the visual effects are wonderful, the soundtrack is divine —Mohan is dreamy— hear me out, I was hooked, on board, immersed, you name it. This movie made me feel so excited, I felt like a 7-year-old watching a super hero movie and wanting to have cool powers just like those, I honestly can't remember the last time a movie made me feel this energetic. Do I understand why Shiva and Isha were so deeply in love despite having met each other a week ago? No, but I was still rooting for them. Do I understand why sometimes people yell out the Astra’s powers in order to activate them like the Power Rangers? No, neither do I vibe with it, but do you think it mattered? The next moments were so freaking cool that I completely forgot what I wanted to complain about. (Oh, and Saurav Gurjar was in it! I gasped so loud when I saw him on screen, and playing a villain no less!) I was genuinely sad when it ended, I would've watched three more hours of that, despite the terribly written lines. I will fight for this movie and forgive every bad line of dialogue if it kills me.

8.7/10

1. Mahabharat (2013)

In case you haven't noticed, I am absolutely obssessed with Mahabharat. Initially, I’d decided to face the 267 episodes of this show because watching stuff in your target language is a good way to learn (also, that Krishna guy was very easy on the eyes, looking at him a bit more surely wouldn't hurt). It took me a few episodes to really get into the story, but once I did, oh boy, I was so hooked on the plot I even forgot about the language (although I did learn some words from it). The thing about this show, other than the freaking superb plot and phenomenal cast, are the characters. They all made me feel something. And that's the thing with characters, I believe, they don't necessarily have to be good or bad, morally speaking, they have to be well-written and entertaining, they have to make you feel things, positive or negative. Shakuni, a villain, was freaking great because of how good he was at being bad. And the good guys, like the Pandavas, weren't just good, that'd be boring, they were also charismatic, unique, funny, inspiring, and sometimes morally grey, which made them even more interesting, even more human. Watching them get in conflict with their morals when things got dark was insane. Even when they messed up —I'm looking at you Dharmraj— I still wanted to see them win. They felt like family, I watched them grow, I felt so close to them that their struggles and victories felt like my own. “My boys”, I call them. Mahabharat is my Roman Empire, man, I could talk about this show for HOURS. Anyway, this became my favorite show of all time and I'm so glad I didn't let the number of episodes scare me away. (And yes, I am still very much in love with Saurabh Raaj’s Krishna, he is probably one of my favorite characters ever, my heart raced when I first saw him and it still does to this day, BYE)

9/10

Oh, this ended up being a Top 10. Nice.

I both thank you and applaud you for reaching the end of this ramble that is ultimately just a result of my obsession with making lists and ranking literally everything. And also my admiration for indian culture.

I would've included Porus and Chandragupta Maurya but I'm not yet finished watching them, but I thought I should say: I am liking them a lot.

What do you people think I should watch next year? Recommendations are welcome!

✨🇮🇳 ✨

19 notes · View notes

roseofhybrids · 1 year

Note

Here's my idea for Uzi's human family for your human Uzi AU

I have 3 ideas

1. Khan finds Uzi inside the factory from episode 6.

He was in a factory because he wanted to take some stuff that could be useful and maybe to impress Nori. While looking for some stuff he finds her human parents dead. Her human parents were living in the factory after core collapsed and they survided. But after a while they were killed by sentinels. Khan was about leave after he sees her dead human parents until he heard Uzi cooing and laughing. When he hears her, he finds her hidden under the desk in the box. He also finds out that Uzi's original name was Susie by her name bracelet but was scratched a bit. As he was about to leave with her the sentinels attack which leads to wild goose chase but they manage to get out alive.

This was inspired by one scene in Tarzan movie how Kala found baby Tarzan

2. Her human parents accidentally left her behind.

Her human parents and other human survives had escaped through escape pods before core collapsed. They were about to leave but they couldn't get their daughter on time. As they flew and watched the core collapse they were devastated thinking that tgeir daughter was dead. But she wasn't and was eventually found by Khan, Nori or both

I think about how you can make the squad go to the planet where the rest of the humans are alive or make humans come to copper 9 to help the squad. And maybe maybe her humans parents see their daughter after so long or her relatives find her

You can make her human good or bad or make her parents good and her relatives bad guys or reversed

3. Her human parents are dead but have relatives

The same thing as the second one. You can make Uzi ask tons of questions about how were her parents like or something. I also think that humans would tell her about human stuff and how they work since she barely knows anything about her kind. You can make her relatives good guys or bad guys.

I'm quite curious how would her human family react to her being raised by drones

Anyway that's all. I really hope to see a fanfic about this au or a fanart. I really love this au. I had the same idea.

Also please tell me what do you think please

The first one could fit pretty well with the cyropod situation we talked about earlier. With Nori and Khan finding her down, there be it in a cyropod or with the deceased parents like you say. If the discovery location was moved from the bunker pods to the labs. It could give Uzi another reason to eventually go there, and make for an interesting scene as she sees where her parents found her.

As for having her humans parents still alive/having living blood relatives. I think it depends on how one chooses to weave them into the story. Because if they don't tie into the main plot enough, then you risk bogging things down with the side plot.

That being said, with how she views the human race, it's hard to say whether she'd want anything to do with any human kin she may have.

@the-lost-lights

#murder drones #au #murder drones au #human uzi

19 notes · View notes

lexo-is-pesto · 3 months

Text

Somebody should make a Midsommar au of Murder Drones...

Hear me out!

(Spoilers for midsommar)

Dani would obviously be Uzi. Isolated, alone, insecure, and suseptible to a cult >:]

I know we all love our boy but let's face it, there's no "good" characters in this movie so N's Gonna be Pelle I'm so sorry. He's seemingly kind, cares about uzis problems really makes her feel like hes listening and there to comfort her. He also just so happens to be in love with uzi and accidentally leads her boyfriend and his friends to an insane cult where everyone except uzi dies and she becomes part of the cult... whoopsies ^^,(Maybe n would think he's doing the right thing for uzi idk)

Thad is gonna be Christian. Again I'm so sorry to Thad fans and especially to anyone who ships him with uzi but I can't really see Thad as being what uzi would need in a partner. In this au, thads a bit of an airhead and genuienly forgets things which frustrates Uzi, especially when they become big things like birthdays and anniversaries. He also thinks shes overreacting to most of the time, shes kinda clingy, and really they just want to break up with eachother :T

Josh is Doll. She's very focused on the cult itself to the point where she gives up her morals and humanity in the quest for knowledge. She's also very aware of the issues between Thad and uzi but quite frankly doesn't care enough to do or say anything. She's just her for her thesis man =\

Lizzy is Mark. I don't have much of a reason for this one. She wants Thad to break up with uzi because she doesn't like her? Idk she doesn't do much in the story besides disrespect the cult which I feel fits her character. the misogyny not so much so uh yeah that would get cut I think

That's it for the main group!

Next, V is Ingimar. HA HA that's right the cultists are gonna be the disassemblers and absolute solver users >:D Anyway she's aggressive towards N because he brought a lot more and "better" people for the cult than she did. Aka he had a better hunt and V WILL be holding a grudge till she dies

Connie and Simon are Rebecca and Darren because I said so. Moving on

J is ulf. Just like in the show, J is entirely loyal to the leader and beliefs that the cult holds. This causes her to act out when anyone (especially disrespectful ones like lizzy) oversteps their boundaries. Think of the ancestral tree scene. That's her.

And that's about it for the major characters.

Some more minor ones;

Cyn would probably be Maja as much as her whole plot makes me uncomfortable, the idea is she's young and foolish wich fits cyns whole little sister vibe (omg I'm gonna BARF)

Since uzis parents don't play a huge roll in the story besides to be um dead I guess. I'd say nori and khan should be the elders in the Ättestupa scene

The friends uzi makes in the cult could be literally anyone. maybe alice and beu Tessa as a drone? Other background workers we know the names of?

Not sure who I'd pick to be Terri...

That's about all the ideas I had for this au, I rewatched the movie recently so kinda just mooshed my 2 brainworms together. I thought it was pretty interesting tho so I'm throwing this out in case anyone wants to use it. Feel free to!

Peace and love md community ✌️

#lexo rambles

2 notes · View notes

stereogeekspodcast · 11 months

Text

[Transcript] Season 3, Episode 2. The Marvels Review

The Stereo Geeks review The Marvels, and they really enjoyed it!

Listen to the episode on Spotify.

We are The Stereo Geeks Podcast, and we're back.

Well, hopefully for a longer time than last time.

It was a sort of impromptu goodbye last time, because life got in the way.

You know, we are doing this podcast for fun.

I'm Mon, I'm a pop culture writer.

I write for Women Write About Comics.

You can also find me on HuffPost and tor.com.

Hello, I'm Ron.

I'm a marketer by day, pop culture writer by night.

I am an editor and writer for Women Write About Comics.

We got to see The Marvels at a press screening, and I have to say, we enjoyed it.

We were looking forward to it, and we had a good time.

Exactly, exactly.

For all the people worrying about the Marvel phase five properties, well, this was a good one.

It hasn't really been a very good year for Marvel.

For Marvel, let's just say that.

Yeah.

But this last bit with Loki season two and with The Marvels, it's given me some hope.

So let's just get into it.

So The Marvels, it takes off from the end of Miss Marvel, the TV show that came out last year.

The main character is Captain Marvel, Carol Danvers.

We last saw her properly in action in Avengers Endgame.

She's been name dropped ever since as well, and we did see her in What If, but that's a different version.

We find out what she's been up to when we're back in this film.

We also have Kamala Khan, Miss Marvel, whose escapades were seen during her TV show.

Her story takes place in New Jersey.

And then rounding it up is Captain Monica Rambeau, who we saw as a little girl in the first Captain Marvel movie.

And then we saw her as an adult in WandaVision.

So she has lived a life, an interesting life, especially post blip.

She's been really coming to terms with what happened to her, what happened to her life and her family.

So we do get all those touch points as well.

If you haven't seen all of these movies and properties and TV shows, everything is explained in this movie.

It's like they kinda assumed that a lot of people wouldn't have watched these TV shows and films, which is really sad, but in a way at least you have the context so you don't have to go through, I don't know, 15 years of Marvel stuff and even more reading up and research.

So I really like that about this film.

So the story kind of has three different settings.

We've got Jersey City with Ms. Marvel in it.

We've got Intergalactic Space with Captain Marvel, and we've got the SABER space station where Nick Fury is basically running the show and Captain Monica Rambeau is the person who takes care of everything.

And then we meet our antagonist, Durban, who is basically the leader of the Kree now.

Lots of things have happened since Captain Marvel took their evil AI down.

Darben has a score to settle.

Darben is played by Zawe Ashton.

This is her debut in the MCU.

And while she's on her mission, she doesn't realize that Captain Marvel, Captain Monica Rambeau and Kamala Khan all get sucked into her mission because of quantum entanglement.

I don't know what the actual term is.

I'm sure they mentioned it a few times, but quantum is the favorite word in the MCU.

So we're just going to use that anyway.

So suddenly these three find themselves in each other's lives.

Well, it's great for Ms.

Marvel, but for Monica and Carol, well, there's some history there.

So it's very interesting.

There's an emotional angle in there as well.

Not only do they have to deal with each other, they now have to deal with a new antagonist, the end of the world, the end of the galaxy, typical Marvel stuff.

Right, so what did we really like about this film?

It is really funny.

Exactly.

I did not expect to laugh that hard.

And like every scene, there is something really hilarious happening.

I love how whenever there is a comedic moment to take, this film just goes for it.

And they're like, you know what?

The actors have great chemistry.

They're really funny.

They're just riffing off each other.

Let's just let them do it.

I really quite enjoyed that.

I think Marvel has this habit of bringing in humor just to undercut really tense moments.

This film doesn't do that.

Yeah, I really like that because it just is funny.

For being funny's sake, it leans into that.

It leans into the weirder parts of it as well.

It's very sci-fi.

It's funny because like with Loki and The Marvels, I feel like they've really leaned into the sci-fi aspect of the storytelling and that's really worked for it.

We were just chatting one of the other day that almost all the properties this year for Marvel have really had very sci-fi heavy elements.

Marvel in general does have that aspect, but it's been more about action and adventure rather than sci-fi, but now it's really leaned into that, which is good.

But then with Ant-Man and The Wasp, Quantumania, as well as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3, I feel like they leaned into the wrong aspects of sci-fi.

I agree.

Quantumania was not good and Guardians of the Galaxy, I think tonally, it was so off for Marvel, it did not work.

I also think it didn't do the characters justice.

Obviously, there's a lot of concern going into the Marvels.

We have a new director and writing team, and I thought, oh no, maybe they won't understand these characters either.

Thankfully, they didn't do that.

And one of the things is that, yes, these characters can be funny, but they're not jokes.

And I really liked that they went with that.

What I really appreciated about this film, and I think you get a feeling of that from the very first scene, is that it leans into the vibe of what these characters have already been.

When Ms. Marvel is on screen, we get the essence of her show, which was very comic book-y and light and fun.

When Captain Marvel is on screen, then you have the very sci-fi elements.

And for Monica Rambeau, you get the more grounded, this is a person from Earth who is now in space kind of thing.

So it gets a lot of those aspects right, because it knows that the characters are the most important part of this film.

Yes, the story is interesting and it's fun.

And there are a couple of very fascinating sci-fi things that they do, which I was like, oh, okay, that was unexpected and also hilarious.

But the characters are why we came here.

We've seen these three women across the franchise.

Now we get to see them together.

It's the ultimate Marvel team up that fans have been waiting for, especially, let's just put it out there, female fans.

We haven't had very many female characters who get to lead the franchise, especially in Marvel, which has, what, 20 plus properties now.

It's taken a really long time.

The whole brouhaha around Captain Marvel's movie coming out was like they were doing something so out there.

I'm like, really?

A lady is leading a superhero film and that is a huge thing.

Exactly.

Now we have The Marvels, which has basically built on everything that Captain Marvel and WandaVision and Ms. Marvel has done before.

And Wakanda Forever.

Would have been fun if there was a Wakanda connection, but sadly, no.

But this film doesn't have all the burdens that comes with being the first woman led superhero movie in the Marvel franchise.

Just not like that.

It's just a movie with superheroes having fun.

Exactly.

I really like that it's not trying to break the mold because in a way, having so many female characters at the center is breaking the mold, which is ridiculous to say, but unfortunately we still live in that world.

It's just trying to have fun.

And I think I really like that.

This is escapist cinema.

And I think oftentimes superhero cinema forgets that.

So I like that about this film.

It doesn't have to be perfect.

And I think that it's really quite close to being perfect as a very simple Marvel story.

I don't know what people will be expecting from it.

I think it's just have fun.

That's it.

That is a good goal to have for a film.

Even the emotional beats, they work within the setting of the film itself and they don't like drag them on.

It has to be there because otherwise, why would we be invested in these characters?

It also doesn't tank the vibes.

Exactly.

When it's funny, it's funny. When it's emotional, it's emotional.

Got that balance right, which made it a lot more fun to watch.

And I think the other thing that I have mentioned in my review for WWAC is the editing was really crisp.

The pandemic has impacted the way people edit films.

There have been so many movies I've seen over the last couple of years that just feel like the scene dragged on too long or the cut was just too abrupt.

And I was just like, oh, we had this moment and you moved away.

I don't feel like the Marvels made those mistakes at all.

Yeah, I mean, there were probably three points which I think could have been re-edited a little bit tighter or a little bit more emphasis on the right places.

But again, those are tiny nitpicks for a film that is really tight, really crisp, really a brisk 105 minutes.

I feel like it's exactly the amount of time you need for the story, especially in a time when every movie has to be two hours long.

I honestly feel they could have added a few more minutes.

There is a significant incident in the past, which I really feel like they needed to flesh out a little bit more.

It doesn't mean that you don't actually understand what's happening in the film.

It just gets it across really quick.

I feel like this movie knows what's come before and that there's an audience who knows this universe quite well and understands the formula.

So when they do give us something that we may know what the outcome will be, maybe slightly predictable, they're like, there's no point belaboring that point.

We know what's gonna happen, but we want you to live with the characters in this moment.

Let's just let it play out.

And if it takes a long time, fine.

If it takes a shorter time, fine.

I honestly could have done with certain scenes being dragged out a little bit more.

The three actors have so much chemistry, like they could have ripped off each other for maybe five, 10 minutes more.

But the director, Nia DeCosta, was very clear about wanting this film to be under two hours. And that's what she made.

So fine.

Even if I wanted the moments to drag on, she did it.

That's the way we've got it.

That's fine with me.

Yeah, I'll also mention that we have read that Nia DeCosta may not have got her final vision in the end product.

I don't know what her vision would have been.

That being said, despite studio interference, this is a good film.

It does what it says on the tin, which is that it brings these amazing superhero characters to the fore.

It gives us a lot of story, gives us a lot of plot, action scenes.

The effects are much better than in quantumania, if you're worrying about that.

That's a low bar.

I thought the space scenes were really captivating.

I love space anyway, and on a big screen, it's gorgeous to look at, but there were a couple of shots where I was like, hmm, that looks very different from what we've seen before.

And that's saying something, considering the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and Infinity War and Endgame have a lot of scenes in space.

I feel like the Marvels really enjoyed the setting of space and putting these characters in space.

Of course, Captain Marvel is used to it.

Monica is an astronaut, but Ms.

Marvel's journeys in space are particularly fun to watch in this film.

Yeah, and let's not forget the supporting characters.

There's Nick Fury.

He's carrying the franchise at this moment.

Exactly, exactly.

That being said, I think he would be one of the aberrations with the characters.

Not to say Samuel L.

Jackson isn't brilliant.

He's so good.

I think this is one of his most fun, exciting performances in the MCU, simply because he seems to be enjoying himself.

He seems to be enjoying riffing off these different actors.

But where does this version of Nick Fury fit within the story of Nick Fury?

I have no idea.

We've just seen Secret Invasion.

The man we see in The Marvels is nothing like the man we see in Secret Invasion.

When did the story happen?

I have no idea.

It just doesn't make sense.

That was a very confusing part of the film for me.

So I felt when I was watching The Marvels that the Nick Fury we see in this film is supposed to be for audiences who haven't watched Secret Invasion.

I don't know if Marvel realized that Secret Invasion wasn't going to do as well as they hoped because people did not take to it at all.

There were a lot of things I really enjoyed about Secret Invasion.

I mean, Samuel L.

Jackson's acting is great, but Nick Fury, the character was all over the place.

There were so many dropped story beats.

There were things that were happening that just didn't make any sense.

It didn't flow from anything.

And what we kept hearing was, this is gonna lead directly into the Marvels, so you need to watch Secret Invasion.

But there is no connection at all.

This Nick Fury is super chill.

He has not gone through the events of Secret Invasion.

That's what I'm thinking.

Yeah, that's exactly how you feel.

And it's come to a point where maybe they've realized you don't have to watch and consume all of Marvel to enjoy any of the Marvels.

That being said, what's the point of having an expansive universe if they don't sort of tie into each other?

Well, that's the thing, because the Marvels does have a few cameos that directly link to other franchises within the MCU.

And that's great.

But at the same time, it does feel like it's aimed at audiences that don't want to watch the previous Marvel movies.

And I'm very confused about that particular aspect of it, because with Loki, with Ant-Man, with the Guardians of the Galaxy, there's a heavy emphasis on, you have to have seen everything that came before.

Is there a reason why the Marvels is not getting the same treatment?

It's an interesting point, and I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

In one way, that means a lot of people can go into the Marvels gold.

That means new audiences, audiences who've been kind of afraid of the vastness of the MCU, they can actually be introduced to these characters, enjoy these characters, which is especially important for a film that has, you know, a white female lead, a black female lead, a South Asian female lead.

You're getting those audiences, those communities in there.

That's great.

But very interestingly, The Marvels, which has these female leads, is the one film where Marvel goes in thinking, yeah, nobody's ever watched any of this other stuff before, so we might as well put in the context or just keep it completely separate, standalone from all the other properties.

I don't know the thinking behind that.

Is it good?

Is it bad?

We can only tell if this movie is a success, box office success, and also has a legacy.

That's the important part.

But we're already seeing people complain about some aspects of it, which again, you can enjoy this film, you can nitpick, you can have critiques about the story, the directing, the editing, et cetera.

So far, I haven't seen that much of the misogyny that came across with Captain Marvel, which is good.

Maybe they've learnt their lesson, but I do feel like there is still a kind of thinking for a lot of folks where it's like, if it's not perfect, it's bad, we should never do it again.

I agree.

I'm hoping that things get better.

Mostly I've seen very positive reviews.

I feel like Marvel and Disney are relying heavily on word of mouth from press screenings and things because there hasn't been as much marketing for The Marvels.

It's been the usual, oh, we've got trailer, we've got a new trailer, we've got a new trailer.

Okay, what about other stuff?

It doesn't help that the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes had to be on all this while.

They fortunately have finally been resolved, yay.

That's happened just as we were recording, but here's hoping it stays that way and the strikes are resolved.

Right, the Saga After deal is tentative still, so I'm hoping that everything will be finalized soon.

But yes, maybe it would have made a huge difference if the actors were there to promote the film, but I don't see why that should be a problem.

I don't think so either.

I'm really excited that this film came out.

I'm really excited that it came out good and fun and enjoyable.

I do think it's a family film that everyone can enjoy.

Yes, you can enjoy it if you've never seen a Marvel film before, which is great, which is really important.

One of the most fun parts of this film, and I think which will appeal to a wider audience, an audience that has been left out a lot in superhero and genre fare, are the Khan family.

So Kamala Khan, she has her mom, her dad and her brother.

And surprisingly, they have a much larger role in this film than I expected.

I really thought they'd be like in one scene in the beginning and we'd never see them again.

But no, they are recurring throughout the story.

I really appreciated this film, just wanting the Khan family to experience all this absolute insanity.

And you know what?

At the end of the day, yes, Kamala has powers and Ms. Marvel is Jersey City's new hero, but her family are just like regular people who are just trying to live their lives.

And I like the comedy that comes from being the family of a superhero who is very young, very impressionable and a huge fan of somebody that she's actually meeting.

And the film just riffs on that.

It just has so much fun with their scenes.

And I was just very delighted to see them appear again and again in the movie.

And there was some really fun, relatable South Asian moments that happened in this film and I was just like, yes, this is exactly how South Asian family would act.

It was very, very amusing.

There was a South Asian person at the screening with us and she was really feeling it.

There were a few moments that, honestly, that's like pointing at the screen, hooting with laughter, slapping your knee kind of funny, because we've seen it happen before.

It's relatable.

It resonates.

It's good.

But also it doesn't demonize the family, even when they're being like overbearing and overconcerned.

It's okay.

That's understandable.

Kamala's a teen, you know?

Obviously her family is gonna worry about her.

It doesn't demonize them.

It doesn't make them a joke.

They're not just comic relief.

The thing is everybody is comic relief in this film.

So that's the good thing.

Everyone's funny.

Everybody has these moments.

So I really appreciated that, that they're a normal family.

They just do things which, when you're not Kamala Khan having to deal with it, is very funny.

Exactly, and what I really liked about the Khan family's involvement in the Marvels was that it harkens back to the comics.

After a while, Kamala's family does get involved in her adventures and not always because they want to, but some of their adventures, even the ones out in space, they do get involved in those and they're always very supportive and they understand why she has to do what she has to do.

That doesn't change the fact that they're very worried about their daughter or sister and this one really enjoyed that aspect of it.

There was a comic book that I had read, which was not written by a South Asian person and in that comic, not gonna name who it was.

This doesn't sound good.

It wasn't because I was reading it and this person had just completely misunderstood the relationship that Kamala has with her parents.

And yes, there's teenage angst and everything. Everybody goes through that, that's fine.

But there was such a very obviously racist element to, oh, her Muslim parents are being like this because they are Muslim.

And this film does not do that.

It doesn't do that.

It's just like, this is a family who loves their child and they're worried about her, but they also know why she has to go fight the universe.

So yeah, I mean, it's a small thing, but it's actually kind of big considering what's happening in the world right now.

And we need that kind of positivity.

If it's not obvious yet, we highly recommend this film.

You have to go watch it, enjoy it.

I'm not gonna say, go watch it on the biggest screen.

Honestly, it's up to you, but I would highly recommend watching it.

We want more films like this.

We want more films with inclusive, diverse representative cast.

We want the Marvel Cinematic Universe to be fun and good quality.

Exactly, like it used to be.

Phase five has been not great.

And there is hope now.

I'm really excited for what The Marvels is saying about what's gonna happen in the future of the MCU, what's gonna happen with these characters.

And you know what?

If you just want an hour and 45 minutes of laughter and joy, this is it.

This is your movie for the fall.

Go ahead and see it.

Thanks, and that's all from us for this episode.

And hopefully you will hear from us again very soon, unless life gets in the way.

Don't quote me on it.

The Stereo Geeks logo was created using Canva.

The music for our podcast comes courtesy Audio-Nautix.

#the marvels #stereo geeks #podcast #marvel #monica rambeau #carol danvers #ms marvel #captain marvel #kamala khan #nia dacosta #disney

2 notes · View notes

sshbpodcast · 1 year

Text

Character Spotlight: James Kirk

By Ames

We’re starting a new blog collection here on A Star the Steer Her By in which we’re shining the spotlight on each main character, series by series. It’s mostly so I don’t have to think of new topics every week, but it will also be a fun time to consider our favorite moments from all our Starfleet friends, and also some moments in which they don’t come out so shining.

Of course, we’re kicking it off with the man himself, Captain James Tiberius Kirk! He’s the model captain in a lot of ways, helped by the fact that he’s the first one we really get to meet and see as a fully realized character. He swashbuckles. He kisses SO many women. He juliennes fries. He does it all! Join us below and in this week's podcast discussion (Shat Chat starts at 1:08:30) as we boldly go with the biggest name in Trek.

[Images © CBS/Paramount]

Best Moments

Leave any bigotry in your quarters In the season 1 episode “Balance of Terror,” Kirk shows us the kind of forward-thinking, inclusive captain he is, telling Stiles, “Leave any bigotry in your quarters. There's no room for it on the bridge.” It’s good to see our heroes making anti-racist statements like this, whether that be back in the 60s or today.

The advanced trait of mercy By refusing to kill the Gorn in “Arena,” Kirk impressed both the Metron and the viewers by showing that compassion and belief in the right to coexist can trump hate and war. These lizard-faced bullies may be our enemy, but Kirk reveals that deep down under that rubber suit and disco-ball eyes, we’re all just people.

No Kill I Similarly, not long after that episode, we see Kirk again protect a species being treated as the villain, this time the Horta in “Devil in the Dark.” And it’s a good thing too, because the Horta made it onto lists of both our favorite characters from TOS and our favorite races from TOS!

A dazzling display of logic We could have listed each time Kirk talks a computer to death, but our favorite was when he outsmarts Nomad in “The Changeling.” It was an impressive showing of quick thinking and cunning to make the robot admit he was in error and thus require sterilization. Unlike Kirk in this moment, this unit was not perfect.

My dear Captain Koloth The way Kirk wraps up the mystery at the end of “The Trouble with Tribbles” is spellbinding, like a good Agatha Christie story. He sees through disguises, he finds the culprit, he saves the grain! But all that is slight in comparison to how he gets one over on the smarmy Koloth, and it just feels so good to rub it in his goateed face.

A royal fizzbin An honorable mention on our list but worth including comes in one of the best comedy episodes of the franchise: “A Piece of the Action.” While many of the moments were clever and amusing indeed, it was Kirk’s spontaneous invention of fizzbin as a way to distract the gang members that we’d wager on any day.

Competition on the bridge This one is a more subtle moment, but worth a little bit of accolade. Kirk is fully ready to browbeat Decker for contradicting him on the bridge during the incident with the space potato in The Motion Picture, but when Kirk understands that Decker had more information on the subject than him, it makes for a humanizing and humbling scene.

Hours will seem like days Sure, this one might be a little bit more of a Spock moment, but we’ll count it for Kirk anyway. The Wrath of Khan is just full of tactical moves, strategy, and outwitting your opponent. And kudos to Kirk because his opponent is a superhuman genius. And whether it be 3D thinking, hacking into computer defenses, or using coded messages, he got it done!

His was the most… Human One of Kirk’s most praise-worthy moments (or maybe just one of Shatner’s) is the whole ending of The Wrath of Khan. His scene with the dying Spock is stunning. McCoy and Scotty having to hold him back from the contaminated chamber is some nice work. But the cherry on top of this tragic sundae is that lip quiver during a perfectly delivered eulogy.

I have had enough of you! On the flip side of that, there’s just something about Shatner’s delivery in dispatching Kruge in The Search for Spock that transcends campiness and ends up great. Is it the punctuating kicks? Is it the Shatnerian pauses? Is it Christopher Lloyd spinning off like a CGI paper doll into some flames? It’s all of it.

Row, row, row your boat Say what you will about Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, but it’s actually got some good moments scattered throughout a lot of weirdness. And one of those highlights is the whole camping scene. I’d put it almost entirely on the charm of McCoy or the delightful strangeness of the marshmellon dispenser, but Kirk’s little speech about death and being alone is up there too.

Excuse me. What does God need with a starship? Okay, I just couldn’t help myself with this one. Again, there’s a whole lot of The Final Frontier that doesn’t work, and having some kind of god entity running amok is weird no matter how you slice it, but Kirk deciding not to put up with his nonsense is just classic Kirk. If only he’d tried to talk it to death...

—

Worst Moments

I’m Captain Kirk!!!! Some people could dismiss Evil Kirk’s behavior in the deeply problematic “The Enemy Within” because it’s just his villainous half conducting it. But we are not those people. Listen, if any half of your personality is a rapist, that is just not okay, and the fact that Kirk and crew just barely support Yeoman Rand during this ordeal before sending her away is disgraceful.

Untended space seedlings While it does lead to one of the best Star Trek movies (to some, the best overall), Kirk’s decision to strand Khan and his followers (and a Starfeet officer as well!) on some planet in “Space Seed” strikes us as just plain unfounded when you actually think about it. Is this how Starfleet sentences people? And then to never go back and check on him just adds neglect to insult.

A rice-picking accident There’s a ton in The Original Series that doesn’t age well, and it’s kind of a shame that an episode as good as “The City on the Edge of Forever” has such a cringe-worthy moment. But when Kirk proclaims to the police officer that his friend here is obviously Chinese and the ears are like that because of a rice-picking accident, it’s tough to set our jaws straight again.

Clouded judgment Throughout the season 2 episode “Obsession,” we see Kirk at probably his least professional. He puts the whole crew in danger because of some old grudge (and who can even say this is the same cloud as the one he encountered before? It’s a CLOUD!). For a captain as competent and cool-headed as he’s been portrayed to be, this is not a good day for Jim.

Brothels are the best medicine Kirk just plain wears his incompetence on his sleeve when he keeps leaving Scotty alone with women in “Wolf in the Fold.” Just, over and over again! Perhaps this episode’s main problem is that the writer decided that having one bad experience with women will turn you into a sexist asshole, but frankly, Kirk should have known better anyway.

Serpents for the Garden of Eden This infamous action made it deep into the “Don’t do this!” corner of our Prime Direction chart a while back, and for good reason! Kirk deciding to supply the Hill People with guns in “A Private Little War” is unconscionable. I know we break the Prime Directive all the time, but it’s usually for a better reason than “the Klingons started it”!

Keep it in your toga, Kirk While we usually just roll our eyes and go with it when Kirk smooches all the women (so many women!) throughout The Original Series, it is just uncomfortable to watch his scene with Drusilla in “Bread and Circuses.” She has no ability to consent because she is Claudius’s slave. And when he lends her to Kirk for the night and Kirk goes to town, I vomit in my mouth. Bad, Kirk! Bad!

Any excuse to play dress up While “The Enterprise Incident” ended up on a couple of our Tops lists from TOS, you do have to admit that Kirk’s plan to get himself captured by Romulans, convince them he was acting alone by being a jerk to his crew for days (if not weeks?), fake his own death via the Vulcan death grip, and then return dressed only slightly in Romulan makeup is absolutely convoluted.

One big happy fleet While we described above some of the mastermind planning that Kirk exhibits in The Wrath of Khan, it was just a fool’s move to refuse to raise shields against the looming Reliant. Saavik outright quotes General Order 12 and how you are required to raise shields when communication cannot be made, but Kirk has the wool thoroughly over his eyes at that point.

I need my pain “I don’t want my pain taken away; I need my pain,” says Kirk in The Final Frontier. While the sentiment is there and the message sounds a little like what Kirk had once said in “This Side of Paradise,” there’s just something about this scene that Chris wanted to make sure landed on our list. It’s somewhere between the Shatner acting and the Shatner writing that it falls flat.

They’re animals Ya know how we were just commending the captain for speaking up when Stiles was being a racist twat? Well, when suddenly Kirk is calling all Klingons “animals” in The Undiscovered Country and stating that we should “let them die” (even Koloth?!), it’s kind of a bad look, and frankly a little bit rushed as a character element. This is not the Kirk we know and love.

A bridge too far In Generations, Kirk gets dealt a death scene so milquetoast and unsatisfying that it sours our final impressions of the character. Not only does the movie end up barely using him, as does the fist fight with Malcolm McDowall look like two old men puttering around, but to get crushed by a bridge just seems like an insult to a character we loved for so many years. Oh my.

— Surely, that’s all skipping over a lot of other great or lamentable Kirk moments from across the series. What did we miss? What were your favorite moments from the command gold of yore? We’ll have more character scutiny next week, as Spock is up on the chopping block, so definitely keep your eyes on this space, follow along as we start a full watchalong of Enterprise over on SoundCloud or wherever you podcast, transport over to Facebook and Twitter, and watch out for that Finney-eject button! It’s so perilously close to the coffee button!

9 notes · View notes

respondedinkind · 7 months

Text

what does your muse's name mean?

Khan: Thanks to this ancient name, baby is sure to be a force to be reckoned with. Khan, which is more popular as a surname, is a Turkish boy's name meaning "prince," so get ready to give your son the royal treatment. Khan is a shorter form of Khagan, and was originally a historic title given to military chiefs and rulers. It's perfect if you see baby being a natural-born leader. This name's popularity is due in no small part to Genghis Khan's conquests across Asia, but other famous bearers include The Jungle Book's Shere Khan, as well as funk and disco icon Chaka Khan.

stolen from: @nightmdic

tagging: @ssolessurvivor @bloodstainedstar @wtsns @sxbaist and you! ♥ Tag me so I can read!

#Dash Games #( ♥ )#(Noonien couldn't be found lol it's too exotic and nonexistent)#(But Khan is the main name anyways :) )#headcanons

4 notes · View notes

evilwickedme · 2 years

Note

Hi so. As someone who is vaguely into comic book adapted media, but hasn’t read any superhero comics ever, what sort of like. Super basic suggestions would you have for some favorite characters/runs/series you’ve read? Sorry for the SUPER broad question

So I'm waiting for my doctor's appointment and it's taking forever and my earphones are out of battery so sure why not let's give some recommendations. As usual keep in mind I'm literally just a guy and plenty of people will disagree with me or have read comics I've never touched. Also I've read a very random collection of stories like I've never sat and read any specific spider man run but I've read random specific spider man stories you know? Anyway

Marvel

I've been reading Marvel comics for a long time now, so I'm most solid about these recs.

Deadpool

This is obviously the subject I know the most about and I've been very clear about this in the past but my favorite Deadpool run/story is the 2012 run by Posehn and Duggan, and it was one of the first comics I ever read so obviously I think it's pretty good for beginners. It's got some solid humor, a healthy balance of violence vs story for a Deadpool comic, and it's got some serious heart too. It's also a soft reboot of the Deadpool canon, only has a few references to previous events, so it's really readable for newcomers. If you like Deadpool and are willing to pick up an ongoing I also warmly recommend the new ongoing by Alyssa Wong. We're only three issues in right now but it's delightful and we've officially got our first non-woman love interest for Wade, Valentine Vuong, who's non binary!!!! Super recommend.

Kamala Khan

The original Ms. Marvel run for Kamala from 2014 by G. Willow Wilson is both delightful and incredibly beginner friendly. I haven't kept up with her but she's got a relatively easy catalogue to follow and she interacts with a lot of other heroes which means she's also a good way to get to know the marvel universe at large.

Jessica Jones

Alias is a bit of a darker, more adult series, but it's also entirely a standalone story that requires, in my humble opinion, no knowledge of the marvel universe at large to read, and is ridiculously well done. If you've seen the show, season one is a relatively faithful adaptation in that it covers the spirit of the comic and includes most of the main characters but does not adapt the story beat for beat. Definitely look up the trigger warnings if you're going to pick it up but it's a truly excellent story.

Hawkeye

I'm not as much of an expert in Hawkeye comics as @not-the-blue is (who's currently attempting the truly Herculean task of reading every important Hawkeye issue ever for her lecture, wish her luck) but Hawkeye (2012) by Matt Fraction is a really well done self contained story that includes both Kate Bishop and Clint Barton, and has an issue from the POV of a dog named Lucky the Pizza Dog who is so good! The Hawkeye tv show was based on this run but the comic is considerably better. My one problem with it as a beginner's comic is it does assume familiarity with Clint's personal history, so if you don't know that Clint used to be married to Bobbi Morse, now you know have fun.

I'm much much newer to DC as y'all know but here's how I got into it at least!

Superman

All Star Superman is the easy answer and therefore the answer I'm going to give! It was conceived specifically as a story that could be read outside of main continuity, a sort of definitive story that includes all of our main Superman cast and deals with a lot of Superman's mythology without being bogged down by needing to fit in with the mainline DC universe. It's not my favorite Superman story I've read but it's really beginner friendly. My one gripe with it, and I'm not the only one by any means who feel this way, is that I think the art is butt ugly. A lot of people think it's gorgeous and I just cannot see it. I follow ppl on TikTok who refuse to read it bc of the art like. Idk. Story's great but I wish literally anybody else had drawn it

Batfam

Honestly I'm not sure there's an easy way to get into batman. Most of the elseworlds stories* I've come across for batman are either completely disconnected from the main universe in a way that makes them unrecognizable or not very good for beginners. One thing I'd do is check out the webtoon Wayne Family Adventures; it's free, and it'll get you familiar with the names of pretty much every batfamily member. The problem with WFA is that it's based on fanon interpretation of the characters and character dynamics, so even though it'll loosely reference the occasional canon event, for the most part you can't really trust it for anything more than civilian names, vigilante/superhero names, and basic appearances of, well, honestly pretty much everyone, including people I haven't even begun getting into for real. From there it's pretty much just diving into it. For Red Hood, I recommend reading A Death In The Family (the print edition I own also has A Lonely Place of Dying, which introduced Tim and is honestly a better story) as a prelude for Under the Red Hood, which, you know, reintroduced Jason as Red Hood. The first Batman story I read was Batman: Black Mirror, which features Dick as Batman and focuses on the Gordons a lot, it's a really good story, my only gripe with the story is the changing art style, the two artists do NOT mesh well. Batwoman: Elegy is a really, REALLY good standalone story, might actually be beginner friendly now that I think about it, cause it's basically her introduction (not literally but very close to it) and it doubles as her origin story; also it's written by Greg Rucka, and I'd trust him with writing my life story, fr.

*elseworlds stories are DC's term for any story that does not take place in the main multiverse and is entirely non canonical. Marvel doesn't really have this concept except I guess what if? stories, most of the non-canonical stories marvel chooses to tell simply take place in another universe within the main multiverse. All Star Superman is an elseworlds story

Watchmen

Is Watchmen beginner friendly? I genuinely have no idea, I'm incredibly biased bc it's literally the first comic I read, before I even had my webcomic phase. It's a DC comic in the sense that it was published by their imprint, but I don't even know if it counts as an elseworlds story, it's just... Completely unconnected to anything. It tells the story of the second generation of heroes in a world that is closer to ours than Marvel or DC's. There's only one truly super person in this world. Because vigilantes really did appear and rise to some kind of prominence in this world, comics look very different than what we know, and the main story is interspersed with an in universe comic about a pirate. There's a lot of political commentary in this and some of it arguably didn't age well, but it's a really interesting deconstruction of the superhero genre and one of the most notable of its kind. For better or for worse, modern comics are what they are at least partially because of this comic, and I think it's worth a read

Indie comics

I know you said you wanted beginner's recs for superhero comics, but I want to give a couple of recs for indie comics because they're worth checking out as well

Lumberjanes

Y'all know their work from She-Ra, but before they were the creative mind behind one of the most successful queer cartoons ever ND Stevenson was a well known indie comic artist and writer. They've created a number of comics I love, including the Graphic novel Nimona which I also warmly recommend, and they're also the reason I picked up lumberjanes, which is a story of a girl scount-like summer camp which is deeply weird. It's queer and a lot of fun, sort of Night Vale vibes at times. If you're looking to get into indie comics this is definitely one of the best

Giant Days

This one is a lot lighter than Lumberjanes since it's a slice of life comic about three college girls, not that Lumberjanes is exactly heavy duty. Honestly don't have much else to say about it I think it's really good!

And that's it for now! By no means a comprehensive list of... Anything, and not even a list of my personal favorite comics (although I did only include comics I genuinely enjoyed). Good luck!

(mutuals feel free to add on to this!)

#comics #superheroes #marvel #dc #marvel comics #indie comics #gail speaks #ask #page-vacat

22 notes · View notes

aurorawest · 1 year

Text

Reading update, part 2

The Perplexing Theft of the Jewel in the Crown by Vaseem Khan - 4/5 stars

All the Way Happy by Kit Coltrane - DNF

Couldn't get past the fact that it was blatantly Drarry fanfiction that had had the serial numbers filed off. It was seriously distracting. I don't have an issue with fic authors doing that (I'M ONE OF THEM), but this read like a find and replace had been done on the names, and nothing else had been changed. If the prose hadn't been so overwrought I might have enjoyed it, but the combination of Drarry AU + purple prose was just too cringey for me.

Total Creative Control by Joanna Chambers and Sally Malcolm - 5/5 stars

Ahhhhh I loved this book. I've only read Chambers's historical fiction so I was curious what this would be like, and it was so good. So so good.

Also, sometimes my wife says stuff and I'm like 'that's not a real thing that English people say, that's probably some weird thing her family says.' But then I'll read it in a book by an English person and I am schooled. Anyway that happened several times in this book.

The Name Bearer by Natalia Hernandez - DNF

I don't mind a slow-paced book but there was just so much info dumping in the first chapter, when chapter 2 started with more info dumping, I gave up.

Crossroads by Riley Hart - DNF

This book started with a description of the main character's apartment. There wasn't anything special about it, nor was it described in a unique way. I DNFed halfway through page 2. I know I have another Riley Hart book sitting in my TBR, which I will be digging out bringing to my local bookstore's used book buyback.

Godkiller by Hannah Kaner - 4.5/5 stars

Did Not Expect to enjoy this one. I got this in an IllumiCrate and I just remember the little blurby thing you get where the author talks about the book saying something about how she loves angry women. I'm over it. Angry is not a personality! Stop writing women who are angry and thinking you've written a well-rounded character!

But actually this book was really good! Predictable, but a good read. Unusually, my favorite character was the child. It helped that she had an adorable hare/bird/deer god of white lies following her around.

Tommy Cabot Was Here by Cat Sebastian - 5/5 stars

I love Sebastian's regency romances but I might love this series more. This is a very, very quick read (right around 100 pages) but she's just so good at creating these wonderful, fully-realized characters that you love from the first sentence.

As You Walk on By by Julian Winters - 2/5 stars

So at this point I think I have to concede that Julian Winters is not the author for me. He's constantly lauded as this wonderful writer whose books will make you smile for days. This is the third one I've read and I nearly DNFed it. The only thing that kept me going, ironically, was that I really liked the love interest and was rooting for them to get together. Typically I find the romances in Julian Winters books to be very flat and un-swoony. This one was actually quite nice though.

But the main character. Jesus Christ. He's SO annoying. Him and his shitty BFF who he falls out with deserve each other, honestly. There's only so many times I can sympathize with you because you have a comfortable, middle-class life and you go to a fancy pants private school, but waaaaah sometimes your friends don't say exactly the right thing about you being queer. Also having your MC tell the teenage girl who gets slut-shamed, gossiped about, and sexually harassed everywhere she goes that actually she doesn't have it as bad because she's white was...an interesting touch.

And idk if the Youth actually act and talk the way the teenagers do in this book, but if they do, I'm very glad I don't know any teenagers.

Why did I rate this book 2 stars instead of 1? Oh! I really liked Luca. He deserved a better book. And I liked River a lot, too. And the fact that this was clearly a take on The Breakfast Club was fun, just...not executed as well as I would have liked.

Part 1

#total creative control #joanna chambers #sally malcolm #godkiller #hannah kaner #tommy cabot was here #cat sebastian #reading tag

7 notes · View notes

ninjago-forever · 6 months

Text

Ninternia: The Ultimate Elemental

Labyrinth Under Lyra

"What I don't get is how an ancient artifact is hiding in the most high-tech city in Ninternia. I mean, just look at the place!" Ren said, gesturing at the floating planters, flying cars, and drones.

"I'm hoping that's what this man will tell us," Atalie replied, studying a holo map. "Ju told me he'd know where it is, though we may have to pay for the information."

"This the place?" Churro asked, hooking a finger at a small pawn shop. Its sign read "Incognito" on it in a fancy golden script. The windows were full of shiny objects, each clamouring for attention. A sound like a cash register announced them opening the door.

"Welcome to Incognito, where the prices are so low, it's a steal. I'm Inieto the thief, I mean, chief of the store. How can I help you?" The lively voice belonged to a middle aged man with rust colored hair hiding under under a wide brimmed hay. He had a brown, darting eye, and a unique looking eye patch. His orange, brown, and grey-green clothes were a strange combination that somehow worked. He looked a bit like a futuristic pirate.

"Hi, we're looking for-" started Katara.

"Say no more! You're looking for a pair of die that roll themselves."

"No." she said.

"A mouth brow?"

"No, and what is that anyways?"

"I've got it! A glow-in-the-dark lamp!"

"No! And isn't that what lamps do?" Katara said exasperatedly.

"Well, if you're not buying, are you selling?" Inieto gave her a once over. "Thirty bucks for the armbands. What are they called?"

Katara looked like she was about to punch him. Clay looked like he was worried she was going to punch him. Ren was trying not to laugh. Khan had given up and was full blown cracking up. Jaya, Churro, Atalie, and Cyrus just looked out of place.

Clay stepped forward before Katara could do anything. "Actually, we're looking for a place. Ancient, booby trapped, probably in the sewer system, sound familiar?"

"And as far as I know, she just calls them her armbands," Ren added, only to get stared at. "What?" He asked a question. "It'd be rude to leave him hanging."

"An important question too," Inieto said. "A flashy name is half the reason people buy stuff. I'm going to call them technobands."

"They're. Not. For Sale." Katara growled.

Atalie jumped in this time. "Inieto, a man named Ju sent us here, do you have what we need?"

"Oh Ju, Why didn't you say so?" He asked. "Pay up." Atalie sighed, but slid a stack of bills across the counter. Inieto picked them up, and set them in the cash register.

"I have a couple assistants who can take you," he said, slipping into the back. Ren looked around the cluttered shop while they waited. The windows had most of the interesting stuff. Small trinkets like keychains and magnets lined the first few isles, and decorated the counter. There was also some jewelry inside the glass case. Shelves towards the back were stacked with plain cardboard boxes, some open, other's taped closed. Ren was just about to take one down when Inieto returned with a pair of ragged looking kids.

The first was a boy of average height, and dark hair and eyes. He wore mismatched sneakers, torn jeans, and a beat up hoodie. He studied them with a sharp intelligence, and carried a book about religion, covered in doodles of a kid with an arrow on his head, and a man with a weird hat and potted plant.

The second was a shorter girl with messy brown hair with red and blond highlights. She had bright hazel eyes and those kind of cheeks you just wanted to squeeze. Despite the fact that she probably had as much money as her friend, her clothes were somewhat nicer. At the very least, her shoes matched, and her short dress wasn't torn, though her leggings were.

"You know where to go." Inieto the kids. "Good luck tourists. It's a strange place you're looking for."

"This is it," the girl said, stopping at a huge arched entrance branching the main sewer. The kids, had taken them to the back of the store, then down a manhole cover. Ren had lost all sense of direction as they'd wandered through the twisting pipes, but he did know he wished he was back up a the surface with Atalie and Churro. It stank down here.

"Careful, the walls are hard to see in there," her companion said vaugely.

"What was that supposed to mean?" Khan asked as they watched the couple walk away.

"Like the mind, the labyrinth has many obstacles obscuring the center, both physical and not. The truth can lead there," Cyrus stated.

"Sorry, huh?" Ren asked. Apparently the nindroid had been reading an inscription above the entrance.

"What is that supposed to mean? Why can't people just give us straight forward warnings!?" Khan complained.

"To keep out people who don't think, like you," Katara replied. The others laughed at that. Well, except for Cyrus. He didn't have much of a sense of humor.

"Well, come on. We'll figure out the warning as we go," Clay said.

"Left or right?" Jaya asked.

"Left, I'm a maze champion, so know what I'm doing" Ren bragged.

"Lead the way then," Jaya told him. He went straight in, choosing each turn without much thought. The others followed, no questions asked, trusting him to lead them to the center.

I knew I could impress her! Fake it till you make it right? Even though I have no clue where we're going... Maybe I should-

"Ow!" Ren shouted, jumping back and causing a bit of a pile up.

"What happened?" Clay asked, hauling Katara up.

"There's some sort of block up ahead." Ren rubbed his forehead. It'd felt weird, like someone had stabbed his mind, but the wasn't possible, right?

"What are you talking about?" said Khan, walking forward. "There's nothi- AH!" He suddenly clutched his head, and scrambled backwards.

"You were saying?" Katara smirked.

"This is most likely what the inscription was referring to when it said 'both physical and not.' Not all the walls we can see," Cyrus observed.

"So that's what the boy meant!" Clay exclaimed.

"I'll take the front," Jaya said, "No reason for you to get zapped twice."

"No! I, uh, I'm fine!" Ren responded in a rush. "Didn't even feel it!"

"Are you sure?" she asked, concerned.

"Of course!" he answered.

Even though I now have pounding headache, but the look she gave me was all worth it...

After another ten or so run ins with invisible walls, Ren was beginning to think otherwise. The maze had already spun him around so many times, he couldn't lead them out if he tried. As for the see through barriers... well, whoever had come up with them certainly had an imagination. Some of them attacked his mind like the first, but others were just impassable. A couple of them even managed to shock him.

"I'm the Guardian of Lightning," he moaned the second time this happened. "How come I can be electrocuted?"

"Most likely because you have yet to unlock your powers," Cyrus stated.

"I knew that," Ren grumbled, taking a left at random.

"You sure you're okay?" Clay asked worriedly.

"Of course!" Ren replied faking a smile. "I've fought against gangs, and a bunch of other stuff. No pain, no gain, right?"

"When did you do that?" Khan raised a brow.

"Oh I've been protecting the innocent my whole life," he bragged. "Even before Sensei finished my formal training, he been sending me out on missions and whatnot."

"Huh, he never did that with me," said Katara skeptically.

"Maybe you weren't good enough, no offense" he added in a rush. He got the distinct impression she could beat him.

"Maybe you could give me some pointers, Jaya suggested.

"I'd love too!" Ren exclaimed, grinning.

"How about after we get the hilt?" Clay interrupted." You're a maze champion too. Are we almost to the center?"

Oh yeah, I forget I said that. Uh... This way feels right-

"I believe we came from there," said Cyrus.

"I was, um, just, uh, testing. You. Yeah." Ren lied haltingly, only to receive some strange looks. He gave them an awkward smile, but winced as he turned away.

Maybe I should just come clean...

No, they believe me, and they like me.

Jaya likes me.

They think I'm a hero, not some nerdy junkyard boy who's only good at video games.

It's what I always wanted, why ruin it?

"Dead end," Khan noted as they reached a wall of solid stone. They began retracing their steps, Ren now in the back, only to find an extremely confused Katara, who had been in the back now turned front.

"This wasn't here before, right?" she asked, gesturing to a wall blocking their path.

"Correct, I do not recall a wall at this location." Cyrus set his hands on the barrier. "I may be missing many of my functions, but my memory is perfectly intact."

"Hm... I wonder if..." Clay trailed off as he kneeled down, and set his bare hand against the floor. Since unlocking, he'd stopped wearing gloves. "I... wow..."

"What?" Jaya wondered.

He got back to his feet, running a hand through his hair as he looked around. "I'm not sure how, but the maze is changing. I can't sense it clearly, but I can definitely feel movement."

"Excuse me, but I thought you said you could feel movement." Khan interrupted.

"I did," Clay replied." The walls are changing spots as we're standing here. Whatever path we took to get here is gone now."

"Okay, I need a break." Ren sat down putting his head between his knees. "HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO GET OUT OF HERE!?!"

"You okay?" Jaya asked him.

Calm down Ren.

Don't undo the progress you've made.

"I'm good, just doing, uh, vocal exercises!" he improvised. "Studies show they help the, um, thinking process!"

"Huh, I didn't know that," she said.

"Well, questionable science studies aside, does anyone remember what the inscription said?" Katara said.

"Like the mind, the labyrinth has many obstacles obscuring the center, both physical and not. The truth can lead you there," Cyrus recited.

"I thought we already figured that out." Khan complained " It was talking about the invisible walls."

"There could be a deeper meaning," Jaya commented.

Katara, who had scratched the riddle out on the floor with a blade hidden in her arm-er technoband, said, "I want to know what the first part means. Why compare a labyrinth to a mind?"

"Maybe because they're both... Uh, confusing?" Ren guessed.

"Very helpful" Khan said, voice dripping in sarcasm.

"Well, I don't see you coming up with anything" Ren countered.

"Guys..." Jaya warned, and with that, they both shut up.

"Perhaps he's on to something," Cyrus mused. "It can take awhile for people to trust others and admit the truth." Ren coughed, averting his face.

"So what you're saying is, to get through the maze, we have to be our true selves, " Khan said incredoulusly. "What does that even mean?"

"Maybe we just have to admit something we usually wouldn't." his sister said, standing up. "My name is Jaya Lenori, and... I'm tired of living in my brother's shadow." She gave Khan an apologetic look. His lips twisted in a strange way, and he avoided her gaze. Before any of them could say anything a turquoise light flashed, leaving a force field hovering an inch or so off Jaya's skin

"Huh," she said, tapping the sheilding. "I guess it worked."

Clay straightened, "I'm Clay Brooks, and... I'm sort of addicted to cake. To the point where I refused to eat anything else for six months when I was a kid." Orange light the same color as his powers flashed. The others stared at him as he rubbed his neck sheepishly.

"Okay then," Khan blinked. "The name's Khan Lenori, and I'll admit I should.... er, think more?" His shielding was red.

"You think?" Katara teased, only for him to swat her with a laugh.

Cyrus looked thoughtful for a moment before he said, "I am called Cyrus Julian, and... Rali makes me feel... strange." A white light enveloped the nindroid.

"We're going to talk about that later" Khan grinned. "Your turn Kat."

Katara bit her lip. "My name is Katara Anakari, and... fire is my greatest weakness?" She looked relieved when a silver light poured over her.

"Too bad you're hanging around the Master of Fire then," Khan smirked.

"You mean Guardian," Jaya corrected.

"But master sounds cooler!" he complained. As the sibilings argued Clay turned to Ren, who had been staying quiet for a change, and was huddled on the floor in the slim hope he wouldn't have to do this.

"Your turn," the older boy told him.

Just great The ONE time I want to be ignored, I'm not. How ironic.

"I, uh, can't think of anything," he muttered, hugging his legs to his chest.

"Just say your greatest fear or something," Katara advised.

"I'm afraid of... dying?" he tried, but it sounded like a question.

"I do not believe that counts," Cyrus observed.

"Come on, there has to be something," Khan said. "Embarressing school story? A really weird dream?"

"We won't judge you if that's what you're worried about," Jaya added.

"I- I don't know..." Ren averted his eyes.

Katara raised a brow, then shot a look at Clay. He nodded and grabbed Cyrus while she got Khan, and they dragged them several turns away.

"Hey! What are you-" Khan started.

"Oh, shut up," Katara told him.

Great, we're alone. Thanks Katara.

About five minutes ago, this would've thrilled him, but now? He couldn't think of anything he wanted less.

"Um... I just, uh, wanted to apologize if Khan, er intimidates you or anything." Jaya mumbled. "But you've fought gangs and whatnot, so I guess that wouldn't bother you..."

"Yeah," Ren winced.

"What I'm trying to say is that I think you're pretty cool, and having a weakness or something won't make me think any less of you," she finished.

This is what I wanted.

I did all this so she'd like me.

So why aren't I happy?

Because you didn't do it right.

She likes the guy you pretended to be not who you are.

Why did I do this?

Now I'm holding the whole team back.

Jaya caught the look on his face "Did I say something wrong? I'm sorry if-" "

"Stop, just... stop," Ren interrupted, "I'm the one who needs to apologize."

"For what?" she frowned.

He took a deep breath. "When I saw you in the courtyard that night, I was convinced you were the prettiest girl I'd ever seen. The more I've gotten to know you though, I've realized you're a lot more than pretty. You're smart, strong, thoughtful, and so many other amazing things that... that I'm not. I didn't think you'd ever like me so... I made up a bunch of stuff to impress you." He dropped his eyes, unable to look at her out of shame. "The truth is... I'm just a boy from a poor family, that grew up on a junkyard. Sensei never gave me missions or anything. The only thing I'm really good at is playing video games." He shut his eyes, waiting for how she'd take his confession.

"So... Almost everything you've told me was a lie?" she asked.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done this to you. It wasn't fair or right," he answered, glancing up at her.

She shook her head. "Ren... I don't even know what to think right now, let alone say. I never... I can't believe... Even if..." She looked at him helplessly.

".... it's... it's okay," he replied and as he said it, he realized he meant it. "This, none of this, is your fault. It's mine, and I'll have to live with it, try to make up for it. And, for what it's worth, I still really like you, and... I hope that, maybe someday you might feel the same way about me." As the last word left his lips, Ren threw his head back, a wave of perfect clarity crashing over him. He could sense the electrical impulses in his body, in Jaya's, even the others who weren't anywhere nearby. He could feel the electrical walls, and all the power running the city above them.

"Whoa, wh-what's going on?" Jaya stammered." Your eyes are... Glowing. Are you okay?"

Khan chose that exact moment to storm in, followed closely by the others. "Okay, that's long enough, What's-" He noticed Ren's glowing eyes. "Oh, come on! I can't believe you of all people, unlocked before I did."

Clay cracked a grin. "Welcome to the club buddy."

Ren smiled, but still felt overwhelmed by all he could see energy surging around him. He his friends, still covered by various colored shields (his was yellow), but he also saw lines of white light zipping day their bodies. It was like...

Oh duh, it's electricity. I'm such an idiot

He quickly glanced around. Then he saw it. A symbol floating several feet off the floor set in a glowing wall that hadn't been there before. He reached out to touch it.

"What are you doing?" Cyrus asked unable to see the wall.

"You can't see the symbol? It looks like a circle of lightning bolts," Ren said. As soon as his fingers brushed it, he felt as if he had to do something. He visualized a surge of power, and felt the energy gather at his finger tips, then it burst into the wall.

"What symbol are you- "Khan started, but then was cut off as the formerly invisible wall flared with blue light. "Oh. That one."

"Look, there are lines leading this way," Katara noticed, heading down the passage way. Ren shook his head as the light faded from his eyes, and the world returned to normal. He couldn't sense or see the electricity anymore, but he did feel it pulsing within him, especially in his hands. He touched his thumb and index finger together, and flinched at the resulting jolt of power.

I'm going to have to be careful with this, he grinned. He noticed Jaya giving him a strange look.

"What?" he asked, feeling uncertain.

"I still don't know what to think about you, but..." she tilted her head. "Want to race?"

"You're on!" He grinned, breaking into a run the same time she did.

"Hey, wait for me!" Clay laughed, chasing after them. Soon enough they were all racing through the maze, teasing and taunting each other even Cyrus and Khan.

"I win," Katara gasped, skidding to a stop in the center of labyrinth.

"Not... Fair," Khan panted.

"How?" his sister asked, running in.

"I'll... figure it... out... later" he muttered between gulps of air. Ren laughed as he looked around. They were standing in a room similar to the one the scabbard had been in, except it was circular. The walls were once again carved and decorated with various symbols, and the hilt was on a dias in the center of the room. It was silver with alternating strips of black and blue leather padding the handle. The pommel looked like a leaf or claw grasping the bottom of the sword, and the crossguard was slanted, encircling two, small, sapphires on either end. Where a blade would usually be, there was a slot, waiting for the next piece.

"So... do we just grab it and run again, hoping it doesn't collapse, or does someone have a plan?" Clay asked,

Cyrus walked over to it."I am not sure if- oh, that works." Ren had pried a gemstone the same size out of the wall, and switched it with the hilt in one quick move.

"I figured if there was a trap, it'd be triggered by a pressure plate, so I just did the same thing we did to get pass the last vault." He muttered. "It's no biggie."

"It was smart," Katara complimented. "Now let's head back to the Temple. We got two of the pieces this time, we'll get the rest soon."

It was well past midnight when the exhausted Guardians, and their guides, stumbled into the Temple. Only five days had passed since they'd left for Diamond Canyon, but it felt like so much longer.

The drive back had been sort of uncomfortable since Ren has taken the opportunity to confess. Clay, Katara, and Cyrus had all forgiven him, but Khan wasn't happy, and Jaya... Well, she wasn't talking to him, which hurt, but he knew he deserved it. At the end of the day though it was good to be back. The Temple wasn't home exactly, yet it was a place they could relax, regroup, recharge, and plan their next journey.

"You made it!" R.A.L.I. welcomed them, having stayed at the Temple of Elements to watch over it while Ju was gone. "Did you retrieve the scabbard and hilt?"

"We did," Atalie said, pulling the scabbard off her back while Churro pulled the hilt out of his pack. As the three of them studied them, the teenagers stumbled in, the boys falling asleep on the first available surface they found, except for Cyrus, who joined the blade study group, while the girls brought the bags to their respective rooms.

I should help her but... would she want me to?

After a moment's indecision, Ren dragged himself off the couch and grabbed a backpack, and duffel bag out of Jaya's hands.

"Let me help you." He said, but when she frowned, he barreled on. "Look, I get that you're mad at me, and you have every right to be, but you have to be as tired as I am, and I can't let you carry our stuff inside by yourself."

A corner of her mouth twitched. "Both of those bags are mine. I just wanted to unpack before going to sleep, like Katara is. Your stuff is over there with the rest of the guys' things."

"Oh! l, uh..." Ren blushed, handing her the bags. "Sorry, I just..."

"It's fine," Jaya told him. "If you want to help, you could grab Khan's pack." He nodded, and grabbed her brother's stuff, following her to the room she and Khan shared.

"Why's this so heavy?" He groaned.

"Hair products."

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope."

He shook his head in amazement as he set it all down on bedroom floor, looking around in curiosity. He noticed that most of the room seemed to be done in Khan's taste. There was a bunk bed, just like his and Clay's room, with red sheets on the bottom and blue on the top. One of the walls were painted a bright crimson, with mirrors, posters, and shelves filled with random knickknacks. There was a guitar with an amp sitting in corner, and video recording equipment in another. The only thing that was out of place was a worktable by the door in several books about mechanics, and some new looking parts and tools.

"Is this... yours?" Ren asked, picking up a screwdriver and messing with some of the stuff.

"Yeah, inventing's always interested me. We used to run a blacksmith stop, but I've been trying to learn the more technical stuff," she said. "I'm sort of stuck though."

Ren showed her a spinning propeller he'd hooked up to an engine. "I could teach you, if you want. I picked up some stuff from my dad."

"I'd... like that," she said, reaching for the little fan, but their fingers caught. Ren froze, not sure what to do. To his surprise she set his invention down, and shifted her fingers so that they twined with his. He looked at her a question he was too shy to ask shining in his baby blue eyes.

"I... I've thought about... everything, and I want you to know... I feel the same way," she said slowly, "but... with everything that's happening, I don't know if I'm ready for a serious relationship, y'know?"

Ren paused, taking in her words, hardly daring to believe what she was saying. "What if... what if we just try it? We can take it slow if you want."

Jaya smiled, the moonlight from the window making her hair shine with silvery light. "I was hoping you'd say that." She closed her ocean blue eyes, and leaned forward.

OH.

MY.

ELEMENTS.

IS SHE ABOUT TO-

Shut up, he told himself, closing his eyes.

BOOM

At the loud noise, they jumped apart a second before their lips touched. Exchanging a glance, they both slipped out of the bedroom, heading to the living room, where they were met with a bizarre sight. Atalie was in a fighting stance, holding the hilt like she'd forgotten it was missing a blade, while Cyrus had his hands raised, and Churro had fallen off his chair then rolled the table with R.A.L.I. Khan, who had been sleeping on a stood at the counter jolted awake only to trip on Clay's suitcase at his feet. Speaking of the Earth Guardian, he was holding the coffee table above his head, facing the recently, slammed open front door along with everyone else.

Standing on the threshold was a little girl dressed in a black gi, and cape embroidered with a twisting emerald dragon the the same verdant hue of her eyes, the only color she had. Her skin was ghostly pale, and her braided hair was as dark as night. She was ragged, her clothes torn and unkept, her face dirty, her hair a mess, and her expression was hard, cold, unreadable. Ren decided she looked like a cross between a vampire princess, and a zombie ninja, or, in other words, scary, unnatural, and dangerous.

"Soran's been captured," she said in a voice that sounded far too adult-like for a kid.

"Who?" Ren asked, completely confused.

#ninternia #shadow kaida #clay brooks #ren walker #jaya lenori #khan lenori #cyrus julian #ninjago fanfic

5 notes · View notes