#BUT i would like 2 see more films directed by women !!!!!!!!! so ! that all said and done <3 if u have recs pls send them my way :^)

[greenfiend]

The Significance of Lover’s Lake and Byler (Theory) Part 2

Sequel to this post

(Warning: mentions of sex and drugs)

Okay so first of all, if you haven’t seen my previous post on my theory involving Lovers Lake and Byler, please read it first. I go over my theory and predictions for Byler and the heart shaped lake. This is a secondary post to it, outlining some VERY interesting details involving the owner of the lakeside house, the lakeside house itself, and all the romantic and sexual elements present. I’m saving the best for last here.

Let’s start with the owner of the lakeside house.

Reefer Rick

So I recently made a silly post arguing that the most queer coded character in Stranger Things is not Mike nor Will (nor Robin, Henry, Eddie etc), and I stand by this statement. The most queer coded character is: Reefer Rick. Now, I know we never see the guy, but literally all the information we have on him is either queer coding or drug references.

Synonyms of his name are literally f*g Dick, with a shared last name with the famous tea company founder who so happens to have been a homosexual: Lipton.

We know he doesn’t have a family, thus he’s a single man who occasionally has his buddy/fellow dealer Eddie stay over. Hm, not very heterosexual of him.

Then we have his movie list.

Now, as many of us know, the movie “Fast Times” is used within Stranger Things as a way to gage if someone is attracted to women or not. We have Steve, Dustin, Lucas, and Vickie all confirmed to have enjoyed this movie… specifically for that shot at 53 minutes and 5 seconds. Sure, Reefer Rick rented the film, but why is it the only movie he rented that was returned on time? For context, he’s the only character who had films listed as “late” returns. So, he obviously enjoyed Cheech & Chong a lot more. Two guys doing drugs is more interesting to him than a sexy lady. Okay, noted.

Now, how is he perceived by the people of Hawkins?

Oooof. Okay. He’s not well liked it seems. He apparently is causing some fear and anger amongst the Hawkins residents. Kind of similar of a reaction these people would have towards an openly gay man during the 1980s.

Also I have to include @/conflictofthemind ‘s excellent point that injectable drug use and unprotected sex (specifically between two men) were both commonly associated with HIV/AIDS… a major epidemic during the 80s and a major subtextual theme within the show.

Now, where’s this guy live while outside of jail?

I don’t blame the guy for “hiding” when the town is not too fond of him. Of course he is a drug dealer so there’s that as well. But interesting they used the word “hide”, which has been associated with queerness within the show already (plus this line was said by Robin (featured in the middle of the shot!!!) who is queer herself).

(Both of these screenshots are from 1x02 interestingly enough.)

Wouldn’t it make sense for these two “hiders” to hide out in “a perfect place to hide” together? Seeking refuge in a fellow gay man’s secluded house?

I will say it’s also worth noting that he does not have any women featured on the walls within his house. Also, he has a phallic shaped bong (we’ll get back to that soon).

Phew okay so that’s Reefer Rick. Are you still with me? Hopefully I didn’t bore any of you with this. I promise you this all leads back to Byler.

So, moving on to his house.

So as @/therainscene kindly pointed out, this poster with the smiley face can be related to rave culture and ecstasy in the 1980s. So a drug reference, in a drug dealer’s house… shocker I know. But I gotta say, ecstasy is also a term often related to sex. I also have to add this little tidbit from one of our favourite directors of Stranger Things, Shawn Levy. Keep in mind, he knows what’ll happen in the next season… and he’s directing episodes after 3 and 4…

Interesting word choice, no?

So, back to the symbolism within (and near) the house.

Let’s talk about the phallic symbolism that appears in pairs in these shots. It’s a choice, isn’t it? With two males in each shot. We know the Duffers love details and foreshadowing… I doubt it’s a coincidence. Also, anyone else notice that phone in the background? Just had to mention it, since our boys are frequently associated with phones and calls.

Then, of course, I gotta bring back this shot.

The bed. Blue meets yellow. You know it! We all heard it a thousand times by now. Let’s look at what else is in the shot. A closed closet. Another reference to our boys. To the right, you’ll see a toilet paper roll. Now, if you have a brother, you might see the same thing in his room. Sure it can be used as a tissue for your nose but let’s just say there’s usually another use for it. I’ll call it “self love”. So, basically, another sexual reference.

To sum up this house: lake/water, drugs, and ecstasy/smiley face. Now, let’s go back to a scene featuring our boys with all these elements in the background.

Makes you wonder doesn’t it?

I must also point out the “Paris” poster in the background. City of love, anyone? Plus the fireworks. They’re really trying to tell us something here.

Also, @/foodiewithdahoodie pointed out how Paris specifically was one of the first places to decriminalize sodomy.

You know, I also wouldn’t rule out every aspect of Murray’s prediction here.

Shout out to the Hylers out there!

Perhaps after a lot of stressful days of fighting interdimentional demons, these boys want to wind down and de-stress in their hiding spot. I can see Reefer Rick as a fellow Nintendo player, leaving his console behind, as well as his weed, for our boys to use. I also wouldn't be surprised if Eddie left a few of his beers behind. I mean… Murray has a pretty good track record for predictions. This would also really double down on the message that Mike and Will “aren’t kids anymore.”

Also, wouldn’t it be fun to look back at Murray’s predictions and realize that they’ve all come to be?

Okay, now let’s finally get to the romance elements!

First thing I want to start with is this shot:

So… they had to show us a mailbox, didn’t they? With that name “Lipton” which as I mentioned in my previous post… is associated with Thomas Lipton who had a lover named William Love.

1 point for #lettergate

And…

“Hope Our Love Lives/Lasts And Never Dies”

WWII solders used the acronym H.O.L.L.A.N.D. to convey a love message in a letter. The whole love letters association with Mike and Will never end, do they?

2 points for #lettergate!

As for the “2121”, I think it’s possible that it’s referencing multiple things… number references are tricky like that in my opinion. But I will say that @/thestrangestthing89 brought up the fact that “2121” could be a reference to “Twin Flames” which is yet another reference to romance.

Continuing on with the romance…

Let’s return back to the scene where Reefer Rick is first mentioned. After Max mentioned him, we are cut to Steve talking about a movie.

A movie filled with action and romance, you say?

So… Doctor Zhivago.

Basically a tale of two people in love during a difficult time (Russian Revolution) being separated, with other people, then finally reunited. Not completely unlike our boys. Notice how the “adult” sign is noticeable in the background. Not kids anymore.

He mentions action, which I’m sure there will be some of as well at the famous lake.

Okay enough with the silly details, let’s stop and look at the bigger picture.

Our beloved lake. Look how gorgeous it truly is. Plus the fact that it’s a literal heart? You can’t get more “on the nose” than that.

Now, who else is known as a heart? (Tough question I know…)

This boy is, without a doubt, narratively tied to the lake. He is “the heart”… he is THE LAKE (symbolically).

Thank you to @/everaster for bringing attention to the fact that after Mike was pushed to deliver that monologue to El by Will, Max “died”, then the gates opened WIDE. One of those gates, as we know, is located within Lover’s Lake… known was “watergate” (term coined by Dustin).

So, as of now in this story… Lover’s Lake is literally broken in two. A broken heart in need of mending.

Who better to accomplish that task than the boy who has known him for a decade and loves him completely and selflessly?

💌📬❤️‍🩹

Hope you enjoyed these posts as much as I enjoyed making them! It’s honestly so much fun looking for evidence and finding such interesting stuff. Some of it may be reaching, and that’s okay because it’s all in good fun! That’s what fandoms are all about.

The level of attention to detail in this show never ceases to amaze me! There’s so much depth and clues to look for and play around with. I hope to have sparked some inspiration and creativity for some people! 💛💙💚

As always, would love to know your thoughts!

[1shirt2shirtredshirtdeadshirt]

Today on popping the corn and feeding the children, what do you folks think of this discussion? :)

I'm always curious to hear what other Trek fans, especially queer Trek fans, think about our place in Trek history and how we fare as the queer participants within our fandom. What have your experiences been like?

Overwhelmingly I've found a great reception and a welcoming attitude, but I admit that has increased considerably since the 90s. However, there are still some Trek fans who seem to be vehemently in denial about queer history in Star Trek, or the fact that anyone who has worked on Trek has pro-LGBT attitudes. This always surprises me considering some of the blatant queer content we have already seen in Star Trek such as the Jadzia Dax and Lenara Kahn kiss.

Anyway, I enjoyed the discussion that followed and seeing the overwhelming outpouring of support coming from Star Trek fans in response to this thread.

Here was my two cents contribution:

"No, what they said was factual.

Have you forgotten Nichelle Nichols was indeed an African American woman in the core seven bridge crew back in 1966?

Or the fact that Gene Roddenberry went out of his way to write The Motion Picture Novel, creating the term "T'hy'la: friend, brother, lover" so that fans could choose which interpretations of Kirk and Spock they saw fit? He also embraced K/S fans and hired a number of them to write the earliest Star Trek novels, including the very first official one (The New Voyages Vol. 1 & 2) which included slash fiction as well as Gene's approval/forward in the books.

In case anyone has forgotten, here's a little bit of background on Gene Roddenberry and his perspectives on queerness in Star Trek.

He admitted that in his early life he was very affected by how society and culture treated the LGBT community, and that he too found himself subjugating and judging others for that lifestyle because it was what people did at that time. As he got older and had more life experience, he began working with a number of queer artists in Hollywood -- and through TOS, a number of queer individuals began asking questions about Kirk and Spock.

Instead of vehemently shutting down this perspective, Roddenberry was intrigued, and saw potential to tap into a large audience (LGBT) that most others didn't want to go near or acknowledge publicity-wise. He saw it as an opportunity to expand the fanbase while also pushing yet another envelope.

But with the heat already on the show for what they'd already pushed, he found he was often stuck between what he'd like to do and what production would let him get away with. There are a number of Kirk and Spock scenes in scripts that got cut out for leaning a little too obviously romantic. Tiny trickles of that content still made it in were infamous moments like the backrub scene in Shore Leave. Even the 2009 movie had a K/S moment while Spock Prime and Kelvin Spock talked that was written and filmed that was cut out of the final product.

Queer subtext and coding has always been relentlessly weeded away at with an excuse ready to go for why they always try to cut us out, but we all know it's because they are scared of the homophobic backlash and ratings hits. Look how violently homophobes went after the gay romance episode of The Last of Us **just this year**. This has always been our reality, so for someone like Roddenberry to make efforts in the 70s? That was massive.

But Gene as well as the queer/slash Trek community managed to accomplish some things in the 70s which I'm surprised more folks don't talk about or give much credit.

In the same TMP novel which features "T'hy'la" and the famous footnote, Gene cleverly wrote Kirk with a bisexual/pansexual lens: Kirk describes himself as *preferring* women but being open to "physical love in **any** of its many Earthly, alien, and mixed forms." (Direct quote from Genes book). Basically, Captain Kirk was DTF with whoever if there was a connection, which was a very progressive take for a character in a novel written in 1979, but made sense for the future which would have a lot less hang ups about sex and love compared to our current rather puritan/conservative society.

I also prefer women, but I married a man. Shout out to Gene Roddenberry for giving us a seat at the table back in the 70's when folks *still* try to insist there is no place for K/S or queer concepts in Trek, because he made efforts -- however small -- to employ queer people and show queer perspectives. According to David Gerrold, LGBT+ representation was a big thing that Gene personally pushed for in TNG and wanted various depictions of love/couples in the Risa scenes, to name one example.

In the 70s, fanzines led to meetings and swapped fanmade magazines, which got so big that they needed hotel centers, then convention centers, then one day the TOS cast came to one and what we know as modern fan conventions were born -- inspiring even George Lucas who attended Trek conventions in the 70s and saw how popular Trek was in syndication; it was a great climate to launch his Space Opera. Star Wars then became so huge that we got TMP.

But none of that would have happened without the level of organization, passion, and creativity that those fans poured into Star Trek and their characters after it got cancelled and went into syndication.

Without queer folks we wouldn't have George Takei, Theodore Sturgeon who gave us Tribbles, Bill Theiss and his amazing TOS costumes, Mike Minor's art direction, Merritt Butrick, David Gerrold (writer for TOS, TAS, TNG) to name a few of many queer contributors to Trek that Roddenberry respected and tried to go to bat for wherever he could in a climate that was absolutely impossible to gain an inch in.

At a time during the 70s and 80s when so many people resented and feared the queer community and wanted us to disappear, especially in the 80s during the AIDS epidemic which many homophobes claimed was "God's punishment to the gay community" or "Gods's answer" to our "hedonism", thinking we'd gotten our just desserts and should just disappear . . .

During that time, Gene Roddenberry gave us queer folks a place to say: "You know what? Sure. Write your stories. TV says you guys shouldn't exist, they pull books with queer people off the shelves and burn them. Laws exist specifically to forbid you guys from loving each other, and call you mentally ill. You can't even hold hands in public. But I'm going to validate you guys and invite you to write novels or work for me, try to see what we can get by production, and allow you to see yourselves in my characters if you want to. There's a place for you in our fandom."

He gave us bi/pan Kirk, he gave us K/S is open to interpretation. In Phase 2 Kirk's surviving nephew Peter, son of his brother Sam from Operation: Annihilate!, was going to be written as gay and living on the Enterprise with his partner -- that also got chopped and reworked into a script that wouldn't get used until decades later. That was huge at a time that being queer was officially listed as a mental illness, and villainized due to the AIDS crisis.

So before you try to dismiss or tell K/S + queer Trek fans whether or not they deserve a seat at the table, remember that Gene Roddenberry was among the **first** to pull that seat out for us in a climate that was ruthlessly against LGBT+ folks." -- 1Shirt2ShirtRedShirtDeadShirt

P.S: Have some cute bisexual/pansexual K/S pride gifs. :) Pride month is a hop, skip and a jump away.

LLAP!🖖💚

[villainousshakespeare]

In Praise of Tom Hiddleston and Female Directors

As a female director (albeit of Theater and not Film) I have been feeling a little frustrated once again as awards season brings no nominations for women. This led me (as many things do, lol) to thinking about my favorite Muse, Tom Hiddleston.

One of the things that I love about TH is willingness and enthusiasm to work with female directors, and on thinking about it I realized that this allyship has also benefited him as well. Case in point:

1. His first movie, Unrelated, was directed by Joanna Hogg. Now, of course all of us see Hiddles as the perfect Beautiful Boy but imagine if this movie had been directed by a man. In that case, Oakley, the handsome younger man who charms and tempts the 40 something woman, would almost certainly be cast with some young beef cake actor, or at very least had them bulk up in order to play the role. This is who male directors seem to think we desire. Instead, Hogg casts TH and boy does she sell him. Oakley is a little shit, but the way he is lit, framed, directed makes him all but irresistible. The female gaze sees all of his ethereal beauty and shares it with us.

2. Next we have my personal favorite, Henry V in The Hollow Crown. In his big leading episode, Tom is once again directed by a woman, Thea Sharrock. Again, look at how his is shot. The female gaze follows him riding in like a hero from our collective imagination in his opening shot. He is strong and dangerous, savage even at times, without ever loosing that thread of empathy that Henry struggles to clamp down. And do I even have to mention the proposal scene? Watch that and tell me it isn’t pure wish fulfillment for the majority of people who fancy men. I liked him when I watched Loki, but Hollow Crown made me fall so deep down the rabbit hole that I may never climb out again (and honestly, I’m okay with this).

3. Lastly, we come to the role that pushed him over the edge into superstardom, The Night Manager. Can there be any doubt that this miniseries was directed by a woman? The entire show was an advertisement for how gorgeous he is. Yes, there are some lovely shots of Elizabeth Debicki in various states of undress, but Pine is the major eye candy here. See him in finely tailored suits, see him astride a motorcycle, see him bathing, both in a waterfall and in a shower covered in mud, see his much lauded English countryside looking all round and pert... it just goes on and on. It is not just the visual that Susana Biers gets either. Unlike other spies of film and television, Jonathan is emotional, chivalrous, and above all intelligent. Tom nails the role and the world loved him for it.

I am not saying that male directors do not make Tom look good (hello Conrad’s arms) or play to his strengths (see the psychological beauty of Adam). I just believe there is something to be said for the qualities that female directors can bring out. 

In short (ha, sorry, this ran on looooong, lol) Tom trusts women directors more than many of his fellow actors, and I think the results are that he shows a vulnerability in his work that helps make him more than just another action star. Women have helped make him the actor he is today, and I don’t believe the fact that his last two directors were women is an accident. He said in his interview for Leading Lady Parts that he needed to work with more directors (he had worked with five at that point I believe) and he has been as good as his word. Another reason to love this man.

* I also want to make a special shout out to stage director Josey Rourke, who has the career that I want and gave us this amazing contribution:

[frozen-snowflakesandsunflowers]

Frozen 3 and 4 details from Jennifer Lee | Latest updates

Jennifer Lee in an interview with Gamesradar gave a little bit more on the general story with Frozen 3 and 4. Gamesradar asked Lee if the announcement of Frozen 4 meant the threequel was being conceived as part of a larger whole.

Jennifer Lee said:

"We're really excited about where they're going, and we just have a lot of story to tell with that direction we're going in. So, I think, in my head, there may be enough for two in that story. But I'm really, really loving working with the team and where they're going."

Another interview, another sprinkle of hope as things sound positive and great. It's really good to hear that they have found more stories to tell and have decided to space it out into two films, and not rushing and cramming it all in one, because let's be honest there was still a lot left to tell after where Frozen 2 left us off at.

For Elsa I personally want to see her powers taken away and know what she really is and can be without them to show all that she's more than just her powers. Because most of her story arc is based on her powers and now that she's accepted them what would it be like if she didn't have them?

For Anna I'd like to see her be her own Queen, still keeping her goofy fun bubbly personality but as Queen.

For Kristoff, his past before the ice harvesters and Sven and his relationship growth with Anna with no longer having insecurities about Anna if Hans comes back (because Anna is way past Hans)

For Olaf maybe teenager Olaf or something along those lines of growth.

And yes for Hans. He needs to come back. I'd like to see redeemed and have a brother bond with Kristoff (maybe be adopted brothers) and yes, be with Elsa because those two have a lot more in common than one would think.

Lee also talks about Frozen approaching its milestone of 10 years.

"What I love about Frozen, I think it was unexpected for all of us. And we went into it the way we go into every story, which is really from character out. And the fact that it became something special, and that these sisters – really at the core is two sisters – I think for a lot of us was just very exciting, about, 'Who are those protagonists that we can tell these great stories of women, particularly women who are on each other's side, not against each other?' That was really exciting, that people responded to it. So I think in some ways, Frozen, to me, has encouraged us to keep telling different kinds of stories of different kinds of heroes."

From here we can rule out that the sisters will be against each other in the upcoming movies and to realise that Elsa and Anna, both and together are the core of Frozen. So there's a little hope for a permanent reunion between the two. I know she's talking about Frozen but I believe also about the franchise too. I also hope we get an emotional, beautiful duet between the two. "For the first time in forever - reprise" was quite it. It was a reprise too.

So let's see what else in the coming days gets revealed about Frozen 3 and 4. Jennifer is definitely giving subtle hints.

What do you lot make out of what Jennifer has said here?

[gmxrk]

the taste of salt [part 2 of 3]

Miguel x female reader

Summary: Miguel want's you to be part of the spicer society. He's even inviting you for dinner to convince you.

Tags: mutual pining, eventual romance, eventual smut

smut will follow in the last chapter.

Your feet carried you through the streets of New York. After university you’d took a shower, jumped into clean clothes and refreshed your make-up. You were walking slowly, not too rushed, even though it was already five minutes past six. But you wanted to appear calm and collected. There was no reason to be nervous, you only were going to have dinner with him. To talk about business.

Right?

Nothing more.

If he showed up in the first place. To be honest, you could hardly imagine him being serious about today. That he would actually spend some of his very limited free time with you. He wouldn’t actually do that.

Right?

Well, he proved you wrong. Even in the darkness you recognised him immediately by his ruffled hair and broad shoulders. He was leaning on a wall, his back turned to you. People glanced at him while they walked past, especially young women.

Did your stomach drop or your heart sink? You stopped walking, seriously considering chickening out, but he already turned around, looking right into your eyes. However he knew you where here, since you learned he didn’t have a spider sense.

After taking another deep breath, you covered the remaining distance beween you and him.

»Sorry for the delay, but here I am.« You had to tilt back your head to make eye contact with him.

He looked at you without saying anything, just as he did when you first met. As if he wasn’t sure what to make of you. But then the corner of his mouth tugged into the tiniest of smile. »I see you decided to join me.«

That made you laugh. »I see you actually showed up.«

His eyebrow raised. »Even on time.« He then pushed himself off the wall and started walking.

»… touché.« You followed him. »Where now?«

»You’ve got your watch, right?« Without answering your question he turned into an dark alley.

»Sure …« Standing with him in the darkness felt strange. But he grabbed you by the wrist, leaving you no time to think about it further.

All you managed was a brief glimpse of the portal, before you found yourself back in another city, in another dimension, just seconds later. »Ugh.« With your free hand, you braced yourself against the next wall, feeling dizzy. »I’ll never get used to this.«

He was still holding on to your other wrist. »Maybe you should practice more. It’ll fade after a few times.« His hand was warm. »Everything alright so far?«

Slowly, you moved away from him. »I’m good. Thanks …« You looked around to avoid looking in his direction and realised that he brought you to Nueva York. His home.

On your last visit you barely had any time to take a look at the city. The level of sophistication was a little … overwhelming. The architecture in particular, how the cars traveled upwards to the sky. Plenty of films had tried to depict the future with their own visions, but reality was … better. More beautiful. Cleaner. Captivating.

»Well, shall we?« His voice snapped you out of it. He stood there, hands in his pockets. His gaze was insrutable. But he looked at you.

»Right. Let’s go. Where … where are we going actually?« You asked again.

»You said you’re hungry. I know a place.«

He led the way and you followed him, still looking around eagerly. Miguel stopped at a parking space, right in front of one of the cars. It looked a lot like the most modern cars in your own world, only... yeah, even more advanced. You stared at it, as he kindly opened the door for you.

»Hop in.«

Kind of nice of him. Couteous.

»Wow.« You were amazed by how unrestricted you could stretch your legs. Even Miguel’s impressive stature was effortlessly accomodated here. Your eyes took in the modern interior, the many displays and buttons. Pressing some of them seemed so tempting, just to see what would happen, but you kept your fingers to yourself, looking at him instead.

»This car is as big as my bedroom. A size smaller would have done just fine.« You said jokingly.

He smirked. »It’s actually the smaller model. I wanted something inconspicious.« Now you snorted with laughter. That was too absurd to not be funny. »Why are we driving anyway? We could just swing our way to our destination.«

He started the car without turning any keys or pressig any buttons. He simply sat down and the vehicle seemed to identify him as the owner. »Thats right, but … I thought it would be a good opportunity to inaugurate it.«

»Wait, you never took it for a ride before?«

He looked at you sideways. »Well … actually not.«

That made you laugh even harder, and you were glad, because it took the awkwardness out of the situation, since he couldn’t help but to chuckle as well.

The car moved so smoothly, you didn’t hear a sound of the engine. There was silence for a moment. You watched colorful city lights passing by, but also took the chance to sneakily observe him.

He looked different today and it took you a hot minute to realise it was because of his clothes. Not his spider suit he used to wear when he visited you, trying to recruit you, sometimes hidden under a hoodie to avoid any attention. No, today he was wearing a white long sleeve shirt and slim-fit chinos. Casual clothing, but obvisouly high quality. He didn’t use cologne, but you sensed the odor of fresh laundry. Soap. Suddenly you understood why people were staring at him. He looked …

»Just say it.« His expression suggested that you hadn’t been so sneaky after all.

»Huh? What should I say?«

»Come on. You know what I’m talking about.«

Your face turned red, you felt it. »I have no idea.«

A sigh, while he was pinching his nose. »I look stupid in these pants, don’t I?«

»Uhm...« You shrugged your shoulders, a little surprised. Your cheeks were still burning. »No, you don’t look stupid. Rather unusual I guess. I mean, most of the time you’re in your combat suit, right?«

He looked down at himself. »Yes. To be honest, it feels strange not wearing it. Haven’t seen myself in casual clothing for a long time.«

»I think I know what you mean. But theoretically you could get into it at the push of a button, right?«

»If necessary, yes.«

Somehow you hoped it wouldn't be necessary today, but you kept it to yourself. Time to change the subject. »I'm really curious about that restaurant.«

»Still hungry?«

»I'm always hungry, actually.«

»Oh, you're one of those.« He smiled mischievously. »Just like me.«

He was a pretty good driver, easily weaving his way through the heavy traffic of Nueva York. It maybe took five minutes to reach your destination, but not without travelling on a road, that led vertically upwards. You couldn’t deny that you were enjoying yourself.

When you got out and looked around, your breath actually caught in your throat. What were you expecting, a burger joint? Well.

You could tell it was a high-end restaurant even from outside.

Suddenly you were nervous again.

»I’m afraid,« You began, scratching the back of your neck »I’m not properly dressed.«

»Dont worry, you look fine.«

He led you to the restaurant, his hand hovering at your back without touching you. Still, his gesture signaled that you belonged together. Your eyes were glued to the huge tree in the foyer, which stretched across the two floors of the restaurant.

Miguel didn’t even have to say his name at reception. The host took one look at him and immediately assigned you a table, apparently the last one that wasn’t occupied. You took a seat, still a little nervous.

»So ... how long is the waiting list for a table here?«

He also sat down. »Good question. I never make reservations.«

His answer made you smile. You weren’t surprised that Miguel O’Hara didn’t need a reservation. With his prestige and wealth he enjoyed the privilege to be admitted everywhere at any time. Good for him though. After all, he sacrificed a lot, not just for this city, but for ... the whole universe, as strange as that sounded.

While waiting for the menus, you looked around, taking in the interior of the restaurant. There was something exotic about the combination of clean design and natural elements, perfectly complemented by the warm lighting. It was a cozy place, yet ultra-modern and exquisite. Fascinating.

The menus arrived. You opened them and raised your brows. »Hm. Smart move to invite me to a restaurant where the menu is entirely in Spanish.«

He didn’t even look up from his own menu, but there was a hint of a smile on his face, ever so slightly. »Oh right, my apologies. Hadn’t thought of that. Would you like me to recommend something?«

You were convinced that he hadn't 'not thought of that'. It was all part of the game you played and he knew exactly what he was doing. Yet somehow you enjoyed it, so you went along. »Okay, be so kind.« Your voice was more playful than you intented. »Recommend something.«

Miguel replied without thinking twice. »They offer a lot of fancy dishes here, but personally I’d go for number 16.«

»Number 16...« You took another look at the menu. At least you could understand the numbers, although there was another word you recognized. »Oh, ist that... paella?«

»Exactly. A classic.«

An interesting suggestion. »I’ve never had paella before.«

Now he lifted his head and looked at you. »You’re in for a treat then. It may be a simple dish, but very exquisite.«

»Sounds good to me. I’m not in the mood for experiments anyway.« This whole situation was an experiment in itself and you didn’t want to make things even more difficult for you by ordering an exotic dish just to impress him.

The waiter arrived again, taking back the menus. Miguel placed the order in Spanish and you couldn’t help but listening to his voice. The warm timbre and the way the R rolled over his tongue.

What a sexy language.

You shook your head briefly to dispel the thought. He was really good at this game, you had to give him that.

»I ordered an 'Albariño' to match.«

You had to guess what it was. »...wine?«

He nodded, not taking his eyes off you. »Don’t you drink?«

»I do, but only on rare occasions.«

»I see. I bet you’ll like it. Albariño is light and fresh, so it does not mask the delicate flavour of the paella. Its high acidity also balances the oily texture of the dish.«

You stared at him, almost taken by surprise, before you started to laugh, a hand covering your mouth. »I’m totally sorry.« Far be it from you to be rude or even mock him, but you didn't expect him to give a lecture like that. He never had spoken so many words in one sentence before. »But you almost sound like an encyclopaedia. Did you memorise that to impress me?«

He tilted his head, blinking, before his eyes narrowed. »I just know about stuff I guess.« His voice had a defensive undertone, as if he felt like he’d been called out.

»I see.« You winked at him, clearly teasing him a little. »I’m still impressed though.«

Oops. Mentally, you slapped your forehead with the palm of your hand. How could you spill the beans like that? But it seemed to have an effect at least, because Miguel’s tensed shoulders relaxed again.

To your relief drinks arrived at that moment. Wine was poured with gusto and two extra glasses of warter were provided as well. You toasted in silence before you both took a sip. As he put the glass down, he continued to look at you intently.

»Verdict?«

The glass was still close to your lips as you let the taste sink in before nodding affirmatively. »A pretty good wine, as far as I can tell.«

He seemed satisfied. »Make sure to try it again with the paella.«

»I intend to. After all, I have to check what's behind your recommendation.«

Leaning back, you surveyed your surroundings once more. Too bad there was no place like this in your world. The way how design and ambience worked together, it was almost magical. And you still couldn't get over that huge, beautiful tree. Its lights reflected in Miguel's eyes. Only now did you notice that he was watching you as he continued to enjoy the wine. »Is there something on your mind?«

»Indeed. It’s amazing to still see human waiters and waitresses in future restaurants. I mean, even in my world, you can order food at McDonald's with the touch of a button by now.«

He laughed. »McDonalds...« The look on his face revealed that he was not a fan of this type of food. »You’re not wrong though. Most restaurants don’t have human servers anymore, only in selected establishments, usually for the upper class. Being served still feels ... romantic for many people.«

Again, he looked you in the eyes, his gaze almost playful now. »Sometimes it’s beneficial. If you know what I mean.«

Just as you wanted to answer, another waitress approached your table. Apparently out of the blue, according to Miguels puzzled face, as she served him a small plate with two empanadas on it. It wasn’t even the same waiter from before, but a lady with elegantly styled hair and high, clacking heels. That sort of shoes you could probably never walk in, superpowers or not.

»A little treat from the house.« Her voice was pure velvet.

Miguel just blinked. »Thanks?«

The lady disappeared again, her hips swinging. You giggled to yourself. »Everyone seems to know you are into empanadas.«

»Hm.« He just raised his shoulders, but couldn’t resist fishing an empanada of the plate. »Rumors are spreading. And they seem to hope for a good tip.« He pushed the plate towards you, wordlessly offering you the other one.

In your opinion, the lady was hoping for something entirely different. But Miguel didn’t even glanced at her, even though she was quite attractive. Heat crawled under your skin at that realisation.

You picked up the other empanada, too tempted - and hungry - to ignore it. As you took a bite you couldn’t suppress a silent sigh. The crust was incredibly buttery and flaky, the tender filling melting in your mouth. »Wow. Well, this definately beats McDonalds.«

He nodded affitmatively. »Yeah. Same with the ones from my cafeteria.«

»I never had those, so I don’t know.« You leaned back, wine glass on your lips again.

»As I said, you should visit more often.« He winked at you. Little wrinkles formed in the corners of his eyes as he smiled.

The heat kept crawling into your cheeks. You shifted your position on the chair, before taking another sip of wine. »Maybe I’ll do.«

At that moment the food arrived. They really didn’t want to keep anyone waiting here and you appreciated that.

The waiter proudly presented a huge pan, which contained their meal. Miguel nodded approvingly.

»Parece delicioso.«

With a bow of his head the waiter started to place the dish on two plates. A delicious aroma wafted over to you as you watched the procedere with fascination. When you were alone again, you looked at Miguel, kind of confused.

»Is this form of serving normal?«

He on the other hand didn’t seem the least bit surprised about it all. »Yes. An old tradition. You compliment the dish to show appreciation.«

Your upper lip curled. He really didn’t leave abything to chance today and that felt good, because it made you feel special. That he did that maybe to make a real impression on you. »Thats ... wholesome, actually.«

He poured you more wine before making an inviting gesture towards your plate. »Dig in. Before it get’s cold.«

You started to eat, hesistantly at fist but your shyness vanished in an instant. »Oh my gosh ...!« Your eyes closed and you paused for a moment to savour the taste. With each bite, the rich and savoury flavour of the rice filled your mouth, the vegetables provided a crisp contrast and together they created an almost sinfully decadent symphony. It was so good, you couldn't help but sigh as you licked your thumb clean without even realising it.

He really hadn’t promised too much and you could almost feel his smug grin, but when you raised your head you were proven wrong. He was sitting there, fork in hand, not moving at all. There was no smile on his face.

He was staring at you.

At your lips.

»Oh, I-,« you cleared your throat. How rude of you. »I couldn’t keep it together for a moment, I’m sor-«

He interrupted you by raising his hand and pointing to your glass. »Don’t apologize.« His voice was ten shades darker all of a sudden. »Taste the wine with it.« Oh yes, he seemed eager for you to try it together.

So you did and ... »Wow, I didn’t think it could get any better.«

Now he started to finally eat as well, after seemilngly waiting for your reaction. You wondered if you had reacted the way he intented. He seemed pleased, as far as you could tell. »I’m glad you like it. Told you you’d be thrilled.«

»I don't think I've ever been as satisfied as I am right now.«

»Oh, is that so?« It was only when he asked that you realised how indecent your words could be interpreted.

»Gosh.« You desperately tried to hide your red face behind your hand.

He just chuckled, a hum from the depths of his chest. He managed to tease you without saying a word, his eyes shimmering with intelligence and amusement. You couldn't even be angry with him as you took another sip of wine.

It was pretty warm in here.

For a moment, you devoted your full attention to the food in front of you, which got better with every bite. Every now and then you closed your eyes in pleasure, but Miguel would not hear another sigh like the one before. You denied him that victory.

He was silent too, but not in an awkward way. For the first time you didn’t feel the urge to bridge unpleasant silence with stupid phrases. It was pretty relaxed. How refreshing.

If only your spider sense didn't keep activating. Eventually, you could no longer ignore it. Lifting your head, you quickly recognised the cause, as some faces quickly turned away from you.

You lowered your fork, searching for Miguel’s gaze. »Have you noticed?« you asked, lowering your voice.

»What do you mean?« Unconsciously, he leaned forward so he could hear you properly. You caught his scent again.

»People are watching us. Is that normal? You are quite the famous person here, aren’t you?«

He smiled with composure, as if none of this was news to him and it probably wasn’t. You could hardly imagine his actions going unnoticed in this city.

His eyes wandered briefly around the vast space of the restaurant before they came back to rest on you. »They do. But to me it seems they’re mostly looking at you.«

You tilted your head in confusion. »Why would they do that?« »Well«, this time it was his turn to lower his voice and for you to lean closer. His smile turned gentle. »they’re wondering who you are. And why you’re here. With me.«

You blinked, in fact wondering about that as well. After all, he had brought you here to talk about work. But not a single word has been said about it until now, rather the contrary. You had mainly talked about personal things that had nothing to do with business and completely ignored the fact that he was actually trying to convince you to become a member of the Spider Society. Your mouth went dry.

What did that mean?

Did it mean anything at all?

»Uh, is that so unusual?« You tried not to let your racing thoughts show.

His brow raised, as if it was obvious to him. »People love gossip. And they wonder, ...« His voice dropped even lower. »... if we are on a date. Wouldn’t that be interesting?«

With a jerk you went back into a straight position, your eyes wide open. When you reached for your glass of wine, your hands were sweaty. »Absurd thought, isn’t it.«

»No.« was his simple reply and never before had a single word such an effect on you.

You quickly took a deep sip of wine and washed the whole glass of water down with it. Had they turned up the heating or why were you so unbelievably warm?

»Hey. Don’t let it stress you out.«

Wow, great. You couldn't hide how nervous you suddenly were. But he wasn't teasing you. He had leaned back too, his hand still resting on the centre of the table where it had almost touched yours.

You poured yourself more wine, far more than was polite, but you needed that now.

Did you want this to be a date?

As if someone had heard your silent cries for help, the waiter arrived just at the right moment.

»I hope you are satisfied with everything. May I offer something else? Dessert maybe?«

The waiter looked at you, but it was Miguel who answered. »San Sebastians Cheesecake.«

»An excellent choice. I’d recommend you to enjoy it at our outdoor area. The view is outstanding.«

You said nothing, but Miguel nodded. »Thank you, we will do. Please send the bill as well.«

Fresh air seemed to be a very good idea actually. But first you had to pay for your meal. Als the waiter disappeared you dug your wallet out of your bag. Just as you were about to pull out some money, Miguel grabbed your wrist again.

»Please.« You looked at his hands, then into his eyes. There was no trace of arrogance in them. His gaze was ... gentle. As warm as his touch. »Let me handle this. It was an invitation, after all.«

Was it? It was you who had suggested it in the first place. Still, you nodded. He seemed eager and you didn’t want to spoil the mood any further.

He let go of you, still smiling. »What if you go ahead upstairs? I’ll be right up.«

You returned his smile. »Alright.«

You would have preferred to just swing your way up by using your webs, but people were still watching you and you didn’t want to make things worse. So you took the staircase while Miguel took care of the bill.

The restaurant was one of the highest points in the city and the view was breathtaking indeed. Nueva York was beautiful, in a scientific way. But in the darkness of the night, it’s lights shone in the brightest colors. They danced through the sky, a sea of gentle waves. Nobody was up here, you were alone. You put the empty wine glass down on one of the tables.

A warm summer breeze fluffed up your hair als you leaned against the balustrate, taking a deep breath.

Was this what a business dinner looked like?

Probably not.

You no longer knew whether this was really just a game.

»Hey.«

You turned around, hearing his voice. He was standing there, holding a plate with an elaborately arranged piece of cheesecake. »You good?«

»Yes.« You turned around again, letting your eyes wander over the panorama of the city. You heard him put the plate on the table where you had put your glass before.

Nobody was up here.

Just you, him and the nervous tingling in your stomach.

He didn’t move, maybe sensing you being on edge for whatever reason. You didn't want to let him win.

Even though he had already won.

»It’s ... really nice here.« At least your voice didn’t tremble. Good. »Do you come here often?«

You couldn’t avoid his gaze forever, so you turned back to him.

He shook his head, before he approached you and leaned against the balustrate next to you. The moment was silent while he also took in the view. »No. I’m usually too busy.«

»Yeah. Saving the multiverse and what not, right?« You watched him carefully. Although he still had circles under his eyes, he seemed pretty relaxed today. No grinding jaws, no furrow between his brows. As if he did not have this heavy responsibility weighing on his shoulders.

»It’s exhausting, isn’t it?« You asked.

He was silent again, seemingly brooding. »Yeah. But I know I have to do it. I’ve given up too much to stop now.« You shivered while hearing his words. He turned his head back to you and again you could see the tiny wrinkles around his eyes as he smiled. »The break is welcome, however.«

Just now you noticed that Lyla hadn’t checked with him once this evening. Usually she appeared above his shoulder every now and then, to keep him updated and informed about new anomalies.

Was this what a business dinner looked like?

You had so many questions, but only one made its way over your lips. »But I thought thats why we’re here. To talk about work.«

He chuckled again. »The gawkers down there already talked enough about us. The fact that I’ve been seen with somebody will spread like wildfire.«

Apparently he really never went out, espacially not with a woman. Your heart was pounding in your throat, but you kept your cool. »Aren’t you worried that this will ... I don’t know, damage your reputation or something?«

Now the furrow did appear between his brows. »Why should I be afraid of anything like that?«

»I don’t know.«

»Listen.« Now he turned his full body towards you. »You sound surprised, even though you shouldn’t. You seem to underrestimate your abilities. And yourself.«

»How would you know that?«

He pinched his nose, but he didn’t seem annoyed. Rather ... unsure of himself. »Okay, this is going to sound weird, but I’ve been watching you.«

»Huh?« »I know! Listen, please. I have insight to all universes and I’ve been following your activities ever since I found out about Spider-Woman’s existence on your world. Your skills and your commitment to protecting others are very impressive.«

You couldn’t stop a deep blush creeping into your cheeks again. Of all the things you have expected, this wasn’t one of them. After all you were just doing your job. »I, uhm ... thank you. But I just do what needs to be done.«

»Perhaps. But your ability to strike fear into the hearts of your enemies and at the same time give hope to those you protect is remarkable.«

»I-« you didn’t have the words. You’d never thought of it like that before. »That’s the reason you want me to be part of the Spider Society, isn’t it?«

»I’m not just interested in your powers, I’m interested in you as a person.« His eyes widened as he finished his sentence, apparently this thought was not meant for your ears. He rubbed the bridge of his nose again, looking kind of defeated. »Okay, I said it. And I can’t take it back.«

You just stared at him. »Why...? I don’t understand.«

What a surprising turn of events.

He inhaled and exhaled quickly. »Because ... Because it wasn't just during the rescue missions that I was watching you.«

The realisation struck you like a truck. Suddenly everything made sense. How he always seemed to know when you took your lunch break. Or why he texed as soon as you picked up your smartphone. He had actually been watching you, not just in your imagination.

Cold sweat broke out of your forehead as soon as you realized the whole meaning behind that knowledge. What else he might have seen. Your little secrets, that no one else knew about.

Days you spent alone in your flat, crying. Days passing without you speaking to anyone. No one who came visiting you. No phone calls. Just messages. Messages from him.

And the smile in your face when he got in touch.

The way your hands wandered over your sensitive spots when you thought of him in the darkness of your bedroom.

The idea of clinging to his strong arms, while he thrusted into you relentlessly.

Did he hear you moan his name?

Oh god.

You tried to pull yourself together, but the thought of him watching you inevitably made your core clenching around nothing.

But he continued to speak, seemingly oblivious to your racing thoughts. »I know I sound like a total creep, but I never violated your privacy. Once you stepped into your appartment, I left you alone.« There was vindication in his voice.

He didn’t want you to think badly of him.

You didn’t. Most of all you were curious now. »But why did you watch me all the time?«

He ran his hand through his hair, ruffling it even more. »Because I wanted to know why you wouldn’t join my cause. It was the first time someone declined and ... I’m not used to it. Neither to beg.«

»But you did beg me.« Your eyes caught each other and you could see his tiredness in them. The same tiredness you saw every time you looked in the mirror. »Why?«

»Because I enjoy our little game. And I know you do as well.«

You felt like missing a step. Your stomach jumped. You turned away so he couldn’t see the expression on your face. »I don’t know what to say.«

A few seconds passed. Silence reigned, only interrupted by the hustle and bustle of the city below you. Finally, you felt him approach you, placing one hand on your shoulder. Oh, how warm it was. »You don’t have to say anything. I just want you to know that I see you. The real you. Because I know what it’s like to be alone.«

Lost in your own thoughts, you didn’t answer. Tears were dwelling up your eyes. He was right. You were lonely. Turning a blind eye to this did not change anything.

What would happen if you decided to join the Spider Society?

Sure, you’d meet new people. You would probably make friends.

But your little game would inevitably end and so would his messages and spontaneous visits.

»I know what you’re thinking.« He was close enough for his chest to touch your back, sending shivers down your spine. »You think if you join the Spider Society, I'll lose interest in you.«

You exhaled, breath trembling. Were you an open book, easy for him to read? Or was there much more empathy lurking beneath his stoic façade than he was allowing anyone to see?

»I won’t. Unless you want me to stop.« He whispered in your ear, his voice low and husky, as if he was fighting himself. Now both hands were on your shoulders, moving slowly up and down your arms. »I’m just too drawn to you.«

With a jerk, you turned around and raised your head to look at him. You wanted to cry, but also not. Your chest was burning from the inside. »Maybe the gawkers are right.«

He tilted his head, a little taken aback at the sudden change of your bahavior. »Right about what?«

You made a leap to sit on the balustrate, now almost at eye level with him and a hundred yards of nothingness behind and underneath you. »Maybe it was a date after all.«

His eyes softened, as he came even closer, supporting himself with both arms left and right of you. His forehead made contact with yours and his warm breath met your lips. You could feel his heart beating wildly. Or was it your own?

His hand found its way to your cheek and you nuzzled into it, finally giving in to your desire to be touched by him. His lips brushed against yours.

When you opened your eyes again, your gaze was playful. A silent challenge spoke out of them. »I’m not going to let you win that easily.«

He just looked at you, his eyes clouded with desire, but also a little confused.

»Is that so?« He asked, in the same teasing way as before.

Without warning you pushed him away with the help of your spider powers. Not much force, just enough to break the contact between you two.

»Catch me.«

»Hey!« His eyes widened and he called out your name as you let yourself fall into the dancing city lights. You eyes lit with teasing mirth.

Without thinking twice, he followed in your wake.

[parkminijiminie]

Jk has been pushing the heterosexual fuck boy narrative since chapter 2 started. He's been seen out with women or possibly just 1 particular woman in his personal time since last year. People tried to write it off as a staff member but he wouldn't be with staff in his personal time when he's not working which he obviously wasn't. Jk didn't start working until bh sent him to the states after Like Crazy charted #1 on hot100 bc they wanted that for him and not jm. I wonder will jk use this video to his advantage to further push the heterosexual fuck boy narrative or will he do some grand gesture towards jm to try to soothe things over. If they were broken up at the time it wouldn't be cheating but it's only natural for jm to get upset about the situation if he is. Jm had to deal with the exact situation with jk and the tattoo artist back in 2019 and I would assume he's not happy about dealing with it yet again.

Let's not assume too much, dear. Neither of us are Jimin nor JK. We don't know if they ever were together, let alone at the time of 2019 issue, moreover right now. Jimin is a strong, smart individual and I trust he knows what he's doing. If he supports JK going forward , just as he's always done, and assume always will, then your theory goes to to the bin.

I don't think JK being possibly filmed in his home is a PR move and I seriously doubt it will be used as one if it wasn't, because JK really hates his privacy being invaded. I don't know who he's been seen with in his private time, since, well it's his private time and I don't follow sasaengs, and I suggest you stop doing too. Other than the main reason that stalking someone is illegal and immoral, they are also very often very unreliable and complete liars, sometimes craving attention and other times wanting to "punish" the people they stalk. Even if JK was filmed with girls, it isn't a crime to have people from the opposite genger in your life. For sure, JM has women in his life too , we just don't know it. Context matters. And if JK had girlfriends in the least year, so be it. He said he's a grown man and he is. Even if some people don't like it, he doesn't care.

Lastly, yeah he did start working after JM's promotion ended. Both of his singles were offered to him and he took them, that's no secret. I do believe the company wanted him to the most successful member of BTS , hence why they maybe rushed his release and the extensive promotions, but I think he also wants to be super famous and as big as possible, as well, so their goals align.

As I said, I have some mixed feelings about JK right now, mainly the direction he's taking his career in and the means he uses. It seems to me his main focus right now is to be "a global pop star" (which he already is being a part of BTS, but I guess he wants his OWN name to be as known as possible). More than global, it looks like the company and Scooter are focused on making him the next "American pop star" which JK seems to want as well. He's always admired JB and the likes, so it's no surprise if you've been paying attention to what JK's been saying all those years.

Another aspect in JK's career so far is his desire to be more "mature". The whole fuckboy thing is partly him trying to break the mold of the Maknae, the company using the oldest trick for creating pop stars (using sex) and maybe his own life experiences, who knows. I'm not sure why he automatically equates maturity to just having lots of sex, when maturity is so much more, but let's just wait for his album and see. As of right now, he isn't trying to make meaningful art , he's just doing songs that he feels like in the moment and trying to become as famous as possible. That's all there really all is to his solo music so far, but there's still time for me to be wrong.

His whole approach to the solo career is definitely different than what I thought, but who am I to judge. He doesn't really care for people disliking his music, so clearly there's no point in mulling over it. Strangely, I thought Chapter 2 will be about getting to know the members better and becoming closer to them, yet for me it's been the opposite when it comes to him.

[silvyysthings]

In one of the podcasts, James mentioned a well known Hollywood actor privately reached out in support of his article. There's some speculation going on on who may that actor be: Robert Downey Jr or Johny Depp or Leo DiCaprio. But I think this guy is our Timmy boy

Think about it: he told the TIME magazine that all surrounding this scandal deserved a "longer, thought out conversation" (which got him targeted by the psycho) being the only Armie neutral statement that let out that there was more in this that just bogus accusations. Then we also have that he lived with Armie and Lizardbeth for 5/6 months while working on Beautiful Boy, and lbr lizard cannot keep her "extraordinary mom and amazing wife" façade for long if we go by testimonies of those living in the Caymans, he probably saw what was truly going on between the two and it wouldn't surprise me if he got called to testify on lizard's or Armie's behalf during the psycho-legal eval.

And the last one (and it is one that pains me bc it makes it impossible for him to publicly support Armie) is that even though he's an A lister, he still Isn't that estsblished yet, and his fanbase in composed in a 97% of "progressive/feminist" women (like that Zoë chick that made fun of Armie's csa and attempted su1cide, ClubChalamet and Monika "I got cut out of the docu" Krasnorada amongst others) that would destroy his career completely if he were to say something slightly Armie positive. All his career would go down the drain, and he can't have that. So it's silent support and communicating this support through 3rd parties (such as Jamie) in a way that doesn't 100% point at his direction.

Unless Timmy and Armie work together on another film again (cmbyn 2 or whatever) we are not going to see public support from Timmy, bc his career is more important to him right now that defending a friend/brother-in-arms/soulmate. Is sad and dissapointing, but is what it is for now.

Anon you can't know how much I ' m loving you in this moment....fucking yes to all you said.

So tired for all the people and the anons writing to me that Timmy has to spoke for Armie. HE CAN'T! SIMPLY AND EASY , not that he doesn't want it but he can't!!! and Armie sure doesn't want that for him .

It' s not that difficult to comprehend this....

" all his career would go down the drain and he can't have that"

I' m virtually kissing you anon 😘

[theselightsareblinding]

My GMMTV 2023 predictions

First I'm going to list the things I would like to happen, and then the ones I think are likely to happen.

This is for fun, to have a bingo card on the 22nd and see how many predictions I got right (probably not many). Speculating is entertaining, at least until the day comes and I realize none of the things I want will be happening.

My wishes

MilkLove gl

Gls in general. GMM needs to get on with it and quickly. The bare minimum would be two gls and more gl side couples.

TayNew series. My head knows it's a bad idea, but my heart wants it. For whatever reason I just like them, individually and together

More adult series. I still really like university settings and they are much better than high school ones, but I crave characters in their late 20s/30s trying to get their shit together and navigate falling in love. I would also love stories about people in their 40s, 50s, etc, especially queer ones, but I know GMM it's not going to do it.

Gun as a lead. I really hope we get another Gun series, he's probably my favourite actor from the company. I would also like to see him with another partner, man or woman, it could be interesting. But I wouldn't mind if it is with Off either. Also more diverse roles for him, like Black in Not me, I feel like he has a wide acting range that he rarely gets to show.

Same with Nanon. One of my favourite actors too.

JoongDunk series. As I said in my favourite bls list they have a lot of chemistry and it would be great to see them in a 12 episodes series.

More main roles for women, gl or not. GMM has some amazing actresses and they deserve big roles too, P.S. I Hate You style

Some actresses that are great and I would like to see are Jennie, Mook, Jan, Tu, Film

Not me season 2 (yes I know it's not going to happen)

Series directed by Aof, Golf and Nuchy, even though I don't know if I entirely trust Golf after what they let them do to the last episodes of The eclipse

My predictions

First, the actual 2023 series to not start airing for a while because I counted and we have at least 10 series from this year which haven't started to air yet

Main roles for the usual 'big' actors, Bright, Win, Nanon, Ohm, Luke, Joss, Krist

A Gun series, he was being cryptic earlier on Instagram, practically confirming he has a series with someone, we don't know if it's Off yet. I don't feel like GMM is brave enough to give Gun a different couple but we'll see

TayNew series: if I'm correctly informed this is the most probable one. Safe house together, a lot of events and fan meets and a couple of slip ups from them. I never thought this would happen again but here we are, all the evidence points to it. It's possible it's not even a bl but a series where they are main protagonists but not a couple, like BrightWin on Boys over flowers

I was going to write about Dew and Tu as a pair but I just read she's going on a break in 2023 so that's dismissed. I still think he's going to have a series though, he became very popular this year and has had a lot of events

PerthChimon series, they were together in Safe house

MilkLove gl series, also many events together and still branded as a pair a year after Bad buddy. They have to be a side couple on a series at least

No EarthMix series, they had so many series in so little time, and one of them hasn't even aired yet

OhmNanon, JimmySea, FirstKhao and JoongDunk: possibly one or two of these pairs are going to have a series but I have no idea who. The four of them are branded as a pair and still do events together but all of them had recent series

Bl series with rookies no one knows yet. I feel like every year they tried to replicate the 2gether formula, and will do the same next year

[lesboymetaknight]

Was just randomly thinking about it, how would you rank all the Disney Princess movies? Like from favorite to least favorite, numbered list, or like letter (A, B, C) tiers?

I hope it’s okay to talk about some of the placement reasons, we feel pretty passionate about this. Especially ones that are absolute favorites or might surprise others.

There is too much that has already been said about Beauty and the Beast. All I am going to say is that it’s one of my favorite movies, that I could watch over and over again. It’s also my favorite romance story in the franchise 👉👈

Little Mermaid also has been praised a lot too, so we will keep it brief. Ariel is my favorite Disney princess, because I love how flawed she is, and as a queer person I can relate to her relationship with her father with my own parents. This movie and Beauty and the Beast feel so queer to me, and we are glad that Howard Ashman’s influence and involvement were strong in them both.

Yes I put Cinderella 3 at Godtier I love this movie sm, and we know it didn’t need to exist, but we are glad someone made their Cinderella fanfic a reality. It breathes more characters into the prince (he’s the best Disney prince I will die on that hill), her step sister Anastasia, and even the king. Her step mom is even more of a threat in this movie too. Also this movie looks really good for just being direct to DVD. This movie also pokes fun of its classic fairytale ways, but in a more charming way like Enchanted does.

Sleeping Beauty is very high because this movie is fucking gorgeous, *eats all the bg art up* I also love how petty and bitchy Maleficent is. Also love that the movies real heroines are the three fairies, and you don’t get much movies were three older women get to be the protagonists.

In our opinion we like Frozen 2 better than one. We just like the settings and atmosphere more. We like some songs more too, like Into the Unknown and Show Yourself. I’m a simple queer person with the mental illness, so we really relate to Elsa, so we like that she has more focus in this film. Still this movie is kinda of double edged sword because some side characters like Kristoff and Olaf are actually so annoying in this movie, I never thought much of these characters before, but now I despise them. Also they took out some things that would have made this movie so much better, like a romantic song between Kristoff and Anna that honestly makes their relationship more endearing. Also the fucking castle would have been destroyed in the end, making this tale of colonialism much more symbolic. They weren’t brave enough to do that tho, or who knows higher ups probably didn’t like the idea.

Speaking of what might have been, I wish men didn’t meddle and take over a woman’s vision when it comes to Brave. It’s another movie were we feel in our opinion it could have been better than what we got.

I’m not gonna say much about Pocahontas, because it’s not really our place. We will just say as a child it never was a favorite of ours. I don’t like how the human characters look, a lot of the characters are weak too, the villian is so lame. The only positives I can say some of the music can be amazing, some of the visuals are gorgeous, and I like the animal companions. However both films especially the 2nd make me like 😬

Oh I almost forget Aladdin is not here, because I feel like I need to rewatch it again to see where we would place it. To be fair it doesn’t feel like a Disney Princess movie anyways, since Aladdin gets more focus than Jasmine. There are also some Disney sequels we have not seen that are not here.

[signalwatch]

Tarzan Watch: Greystoke - the Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984)

this is the most pretentious possible Tarzan poster

Watched:  04/10/2023

Format:  HBOmax

Viewing:  First

Director:  Hugh Hudson

I can only imagine what the pitch meeting was for this movie, and I can totally see how it happened.  

In 1981, Hugh Hudson had directed Chariots of Fire, a movie that was a smash hit about pasty British guys running foot races and worrying about religion.  Like, you couldn't escape the movie, which I watched on TV once when I was sick as a kid and immediately erased from my memory.  But it was a big @#$%ing deal when adults went to the cinema.  

I'm sure it's great.  But it was an unlikely hit, and won Best Picture.  Career made for somebody.

So when the director of the footrace movie comes to you and says "we're gonna do Tarzan.  But now it's a prestige costume drama about how Tarzan is, in fact, a very sad ape man.  He is not a super-human living among men, continually pursued by hot women and fighting weird alien threats and large animals.  Instead, he's a kind of skinny French guy who does stuff you've seen apes do at the zoo.  But, you know, it's quite sad" I guess you trust and give that guy a sack of cash to give it a go.

A bunch of other people had seen this movie, and had more or less ape-blocked me from seeing it over the years as every time I said "I've not seen this, but I'd like to" I'd be told "No.  It is not good."  And I was like "okay, fair enough."  But tonight that didn't work, and I settled in for 2 hours and 15 minutes of sad Tarzan.

Look, at the end of the day, someone needed to realize a grown man imitating an ape is not what Tarzan is, exactly.  Or that this would be a good thing to see on screen when it did happen.  I don't know if they thought they were getting the magic on camera by having Christopher Lambert oop every time he felt an emotion, or basically having him play an ape who occasionally mutters short sentences.  Frankly, this Tarzan seems positively ready for an institution, and so it makes for an utterly unbuyable love story between John Greystoke and Jane Porter, but it's the sexy 80's, so you know they're gonna bang.  And, indeed, they do.

I've read the first Tarzan book, seen a few other Tarzan movies and read (and re-read) a Marvel comics adaptation of the first part of the first novel a fair bit, and you kind of realize the quick pitch version of the Greystokes winding up in Africa and their time there before things go sideways is more crucial than this movie thought.  Add in that this movie really, really struggles with whether Tarzan is a feral person or has the astonishing intellect of the Tarzan of the novel in order to hew closer to a very 1980's story about man and nature, man's nature and nurture, and lacking basic reasoning skills in early 20th Century Scotland.

I can maybe get with a "but what if Tarzan really happened?" angle, but you're in a constant state of "yes, but..." regression that more or less flatlines at baby John Clayton dead in the jungle two days after his discovery by Kala.  So you have to maybe accept even more, but more nuanced, absurdities than even the original novel doles out in order to buy the film.  The casting of Lambert is odd, in part because he's not exactly Johnny Weismuller, and it's difficult to believe this guy survived in the jungle against apes and leopards. But it's the fact that when Tarzan is home, he's both utterly alien to himself and the world around him, but no one seems to notice?  As he's all but flinging poo, people are just jabbering away at him.  

What's oddest is that because Lambert is fairly successful at becoming an ape(mentally), it feels as if there's no inner world to Tarzan in some ways.  We have no idea if he understands anything said to him, or the complexity of his predicament.  He self soothes by ooping and rolling around.  It's incredibly weird that the movie doesn't seem to think this is a problem.  Or maybe it's an unsolvable problem?  There's just a peculiar distance between the characters and the viewer, all of them - not just Clayton, that it's a bit odd.  

All of that is, in it's way... kind of passable.  But the movie is also morbidly predictable.  Maybe it's the era, or maybe it's that they treat Tarzan more like a cub in Born Free than a human character, but you know this shit ends with Tarzan seeing his kindly grandfather/ benefactor croaking and the demands of the world becoming too much so he wanders back into the jungle to sweeping orchestral music before our ape man ever leaves the jungle.  You know Jane will stand there impassiveley while Tarzan chooses a swift death in the jungle over endless food, luxury and sex with an actual human.  You know the noble Belgian will try to get him back to the jungle when, frankly, he's probably gonna get killed after living soft for a year.

I am sure this felt mind-blowingly clever as they were making it, but the end result is a sad man making monkey noises for 90 minutes, and then running away.  And that's maybe not what people were thinking of when they showed up to see a Tarzan flick with a budget.   

Jamie mentioned the movie felt weirdly disjointed, and upon review...  yeah.  It kinda was.  The movie can feel like it's borrowing from movies you already know, but doesn't do much with those storylines, so it's like these barely realized vignettes.  Like - the entire storyline of Jane having a suitor goes nowhere and doesn't really do what it's intended to do - ie: show Jane how Tarzan is more noble than the nobleman.  She doesn't see him beat the young helper guy.  She doesn't see Tarzan save the day.  She just dumps the guy for reasons that are vague (I mean, except wanting to live in a sweet mansion).  That's just an example.  The movie kind of does a lot of this.

It's a shame, because there's maybe a path for a Tarzan movie that tries to ground itself a bit more.  But the 1980's was probably the last decade to tell a story about Tarzan without culture's need to navigate and acknowledge Europe's fuckery in colonial Africa.  I think now you'd need to set the story post WWII or something and be careful.  ERB's original prose isn't quite as racist as you'd expect, but it's certainly a product of its time (ie: it's still racist, just not as nut punchingly straightforwardly racist as other things you'll stumble over).  

I kinda liked the 2016 Tarzan, because (a) the casting was rock solid (b) 3rd reel animal rampage and (c) making Lord Greystoke here anti-Colonial and giving a convincing argument for his desire to return home.  It's got issues, and I wanted more monkey-business, but it was all right.  That said - it was still mostly a reminder:  oh my god.  This is really hard now.

Anyway, I'm glad I finally watched it.  It made excellent use of Andie McDowall's frankly stunning hair.  Rick Baker's ape suits were everything I'd read about.  The set and locations look phenomenal.  There were genuine moments of hope for me that this might be better than expected.    

https://ift.tt/m9dawB2

from The Signal Watch https://ift.tt/2mAZjzG

[glassprism]

Question about Takarazuka productions: is this reason they've only put on Phantom and not POTO related to a) licensing costs for POTO and b) Shiki Theatre having that established history of POTO production and Takarazuka doing POTO would be a competitive/marketing issue? Would Shiki putting on their final POTO show in 2023 make the odds of a Takarazuka POTO more likely?

So full disclosure, I really don't know a lot about Takarazuka beyond a quick Google search and what people on the Internet have told me. However, while competition and licensing costs might be part of the answer, I don't think it's the whole answer. On the competition end, while there is the possibility they don't want to complete with Shiki, that hasn't stopped them with shows like Elisabeth, where they've had the Toho and Takarazuka productions both around for years, even sharing actors. And it didn't stop another company from putting on their own production of Yeston and Kopit's Phantom (the version directed by Yu Shirota). Now these might be different cases, this might be because Takarazuka has different relationships with these other companies, but still, they are counterpoints to the argument that fear of competition is the reason.

I also don't think licensing costs would be a problem, given Takarazuka's history (its over 100 years old), its prestige (it has a seriously competitive membership) and its tendency to put on very lavish shows, which they almost always professionally film and release, that often outdo the original production its adapting from. I suppose that doesn't mean that they can afford it, but again, it doesn't seem like money is the key reason here, either.

Without knowing more about Takarazuka, I can't say for certain, but at least part of me thinks that licensing is a reason, but not because of cost; it's because Takarazuka is an all-female troupe that will make changes (sometimes very heavy changes) to their shows, often to more heavily feature the otokoyaku (women who play male roles) or to make the tone more appropriate for the kinds of shows Takarazuka is known for ("pure, proper, beautiful"), and the higher-ups in charge of ALW's Phantom are very averse to that. Changes to the blocking and design, sure, but the music, lyrics, and story are basically set.

So you know, I can see how shows like Yeston and Kopit's Phantom, which is much lesser known and gives the Phantom a lot of stage time, or Elisabeth, which changes its own productions every few years, can do well with Takarazuka, but not ALW's Phantom. Imagine Takarazuka rewriting ALW's Phantom (who has maybe 40 minutes of stage time in a 2 hour show) so he gets a bunch more solos and probably also steals 50% of Christine's lines. Imagine ALW's Phantom ending with an out-of-context chorus line of all the major numbers (actually that would be pretty entertaining, even if it wildly breaks the mood of the final scene). Imagine the Phantom and Christine, or Raoul and Christine, not actually kissing! (In the Takarazuka Revue, the actresses will sort of turn their faces away during kisses because, well, they're not touching each other's lips.) Though on the other hand, imagine how pimped out they'd make the costumes, not to mention all the proshots...

Well, anyway, like I said, I know little about Takarazuka, so this is just my wild guess. I'm sure others know far more and will add their commentary here.

[marvel-ousmondays]

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

So, it's no secret that Edward Norton got dropped and swapped for Mark Ruffalo in the MCU. That said, there is a small scene at the end of the movie that does connect, as well as some more recent references back to both the Abomination and Samuel Sterns, making it still a necessary part of this insane quest.

Plus, Edward Norton is a good actor and I enjoyed the movie the first time, so might as well.

I'm not going to be able to stop myself from comparing Norton's Hulk to Ruffalo's, so I'm just going to be direct about it. Both have a sadness but Norton's is more desperate and striving, where Ruffalo's is more depressed and resigned. While I like Norton's acting, I actually am glad in this case they switched to Ruffalo (all the drama notwithstanding- I'll actually say it sounds like Norton may have gotten a raw deal from the studios) because I think Mark fits better with the team. Mark Ruffalo's strength is he CAN blend into the background and NOT be forgotten. He can be part of a team, not the star, and yet you still care about him, still WANT to know what happens to him.

Norton can't. His acting demands attention from the audience and I mean that in an absolutely positive way. When Edward Norton is on screen, you CANNOT pay attention to anything or anyone not directly interacting with him. For someone normally so softspoken, his presence is commanding and I cannot see how that would have jived with the rest of the Avengers' cast.

All right, on to the movie.

I've got to start off discussing the grittiness again. That's the word that just stands out to me on these re-watches: the first movies are gritty. They're dark. The banter is there but there is an undercurrent of living in a rotten world . I'm watching for when this changes and shifts, because I know it does. I didn't have that feeling when I went to The Marvels or when I've been watching Loki- Season 2. (Yes, I am also watching new stuff because I live in the real world and want to discuss that stuff with friends and could never complete my ENTIRE MCU GOD DANG IT challenge in a timely fashion.)

Thinking about it, these first two movies feel like they fit in the Venom universe more than the actual MCU. Hmm.

On a more comic note, I joked with a friend that the title of this film should be changed to "The Incredible Running Man." The amount of shots just of people running, especially at the beginning, is crazy.

Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky/the Abomination is really compelling. I found this doubly interesting as I noted how much smaller (stature wise) he is than many of the other soldier actors. His fire as a fighter stands out even though he's NOT the epitome of brawn.

The writers depictions of women in this movie frustrated me this round. First of all, I count 3 females TOTAL. We have Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, we have the 1 female soldier (that's it- we get one people) and she's outright called a bitch by Blonsky's character, and we get Marianna, the ONE (again- really- there were no other female actors?) female at the factory. I'm sure there will be some excuse about this making Betty stand out or whatever (never mind that that doesn't stop them from having plenty of male actors in movies where the female hero is the focus). But what doubly frustrates me is that Betty is supposed to be this super scientist and yet she does really dumb stuff. The big one for me on this was when they pawned the necklace to be able to travel to Sterns (because they only had $40) and she BUYS A DIGITAL CAMERA. Guys, this was 2008- digital cameras weren't cheap. Phone cameras SUCKED at that time, if you even had one. Why would she EVER have spent that money? Because the director wanted to have her look at a photo later, that's why. (I want just 1 single mom on a budget in every writer's room to say things like "They wouldn't do that, you morons.")

I liked the use of the smartwatch with the pulse tracker both when I first watched it and now. That is a factor I kind of wish they would have kept in some way- though I know they went more with the "I'm always angry" method.

Time for a sidebar- there's a LOT of internet discussion about what it means to be worthy in terms of wielding Thor's hammer. I haven't stumbled as much into discussions about anger and Hulk's "powers." The closest was the discussions about the scene in She-Hulk (which I haven't seen at all, except for that clip where he's trying to teach her how to control it and is frustrated at how easily she manages). I think anger is an emotion that doesn't get dissected enough. It's usually labeled as bad and thrown in the bin. But anger can be good- it can propel someone to make changes or stand up for what's right. This movie does a great job of showing that a LOT of Hulk's anger only really rears up when Betty is in danger. It's a protective impulse, not a destructive one. Obviously, unchecked, it's terrible and terrifying but within proper contexts, anger can be its own superpower.

This one overall did feel a bit slower on the re-watch, but I do think the fact that I now know it doesn't connect as much to the others made me impatient. It's still a solid film and worthy to see if you haven't.

Note for me:

Directed by: Louis Leterrier

[shelvingcart]

S01 E02 - Episode 2: The Princess Bride by William Goldman - Show Notes

On July 5th, 2023 we discussed The Princess Bride. Here are our shownotes. After the line break we discuss:

William Goldman background information

Good Reads reviews for the book

The narrative frame of the book

Plot Summary

Book recommendations

ALSO, there are tons of spoilers.

Teddy's Notes on William Goldman:

Who the Fuck is William Goldman?

Born to a Jewish family (heyo!) in Chicago in 1931, and graduated from Oberlin College in 1952. He took a creative writing course there, but he says his grades were horrible. Despite the fact that he was an editor of the college’s literary magazine, he says that other editors read his anonymous submissions and said, “we can’t possibly publish this shit.”

He was drafted for the Korean War and, due to his typing skills, was assigned as a clerk in the Pentagon.

Thanks GI Bill! Goldman got his master of arts from Columbia, studying the comedy of manners in America.

Goldman’s older brother, James Goldman, was a playwright and screenwriter. William Goldman lived with him and a friend, John Kander, who also went to Oberlin. You might know John Kander as the composer for Cabaret, and Chicago. Eventually all three of them, William, James, and John, would win Academy Awards for their work.

Last week we talked about how PROLIFIC Suzanne Collins was. Now it’s time to talk about William Goldman:

He wrote 17 novels, one children’s book, 5 short stories, and 8 works of non-fiction (if you don’t count the books that assemble his screenplays). 

He is a credited producer on 24 films, including the Princess Bride, of course, but also Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the Stepford Wives, among others.

The Dish from Tisch: William Goldman was the script doctor for Good Will Hunting... which won Matt Damon and Ben Affleck the Oscar for best screenplay.

The Princess Bride was originally published in 1973, but we should honor it with its full title:

“The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure, The ‘Good Parts’ Version, Abridged by William Goldman.” More on this later.

The book’s actual beginnings were in stories that William Goldman told to his daughters (he thankfully does not have a son). 

The book was adapted into a movie, and William Goldman did write the screenplay (which makes sense given his background). The film was directed by Rob Reiner, and starred Robin Wright and Cary Elwes.

There was going to be a musical, but Goldman had a falling out over royalties with his partner, Adam Guettell, over royalties (Goldman wanted 75%, despite not touching the score). An orchestral suite from the score was performed at the Hollywood Bowl in 2006, but then the project went under.

Selected silly GoodReads reviews:

Ganesh - 2007 - 5 star review 

“Funnier and more sexist than the movie.”

Andrea in 2007 added this to her “Want to read”

“Can't wait to read the book! I loved the movie, and not just because we got to see Cary Elwes without his shirt on…”

Patricia in 2007 gave it 4 stars and said

“The story is beautiful and the writing is humorous. My only problem is that it follows the traditional "damsel in distress" plot that has gotten so old. Princess Buttercup is a very weak female character, but I don't know yet whether the author is using her to make a statement about the roles of women in fairytales.”

Teddy's Notes on the Narrative Frame:

And THEN there’s the mock introduction to book itself. I am NOT ashamed to admit that I took a break and googled if S. Morgenstern was real or not. He is not.

Despite pulling directly from Goldman’s real life, including details like the book’s publisher (Harcourt), Goldman’s film career (like working on The Stepford Wives), and the name of his wife (Helen), the actual introduction to the book is a fictional frame story that sets up the “original” Princess Bride as a rare novel by Florinian author S. Morganstern. Florin is a fictional country, which is your tip-off, pretty much. Narrator/Adapter William Goldman is different than author William Goldman, despite the fact that real-Goldman DID adapt the Princess Bride, presumably “The Good Parts,” into a movie. Um, this is actually a cataloger’s worst nightmare.

Goldman was a fucking prankster and I am feeling tricked!!!

So there’s the lack of a big reunion scene between Buttercup and Westley, and Goldman claims in one of his little asides that he wrote one himself, but his editor wouldn’t let him put it in. Instead, readers can write to Harcourt publishers and request a copy of the fake-Goldman’s added reunion scene.

Many readers wrote in to the publisher and did receive a letter, but instead of an extra scene, the letter detailed the (obviously fictitious) legal problems that Goldman and his publishers encountered with the Morgenstern estate and its lawyer, Kermit Shog. 

This letter was revised and updated periodically; the 1987 revision mentioned the movie, while the 25th Anniversary Edition published the letter with an addendum about Kermit's lawyer granddaughter Carly.

 The 30th Anniversary Edition has a footnote that the three pages of the reunion scene were now available online. This is my edition! However, the website itself contained nothing but the text of the original three letters. 

This website has since been taken down and superseded by the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt product page for the book, which provides the 2003 version of the Reunion Scene letter as a digital download.[14]”

The 25th anniversary edition’s epilogue mentions a sequel, Buttercup’s Baby, which the epilogue says was “having trouble getting published because of Legal difficulties with S. Morgenstern’s estate.” Later editions (MINE!) include a fake sample chapter, about rescuing Buttercup’s baby but that also includes flashbacks to Inigo’s past and training as a swordsman. 

The chapter contains footnotes in which fake-Goldman is OUTRAGED to learn that the rights for the abridgement of Buttercup’s Baby were given to Stephen King.

Goldman was actually trying to write this sequel, as he admitted in a 2007 interview, but he died in 2018 without doing so.

Sarah's plot summary:

Our (actual) story opens on Buttercup, who is in the top 20th most beautiful women alive, and is a milkmaid in the country of Florin. On her farm she has parents who argue and a farm hand named Westley who answers all her requests with “As you wish”. She realizes she’s in love with him when she gets jealous, because she is a woman and jealousy is a main trait of women. 

Westley leaves to go to America to make money so he can marry Buttercup. Later, Buttercup’s parents tell her Westley has been killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts.

Prince Humperdinck, the prince of Florin needs a wife and he cannot marry a bald woman (because women are only valued for their looks), so his creepy bff the Count Rugen helps him by bringing him to Buttercup where they agree to a loveless marriage.

Before the wedding, Buttercup is out riding when she gets (inconceivably) kidnapped by a trio of outlaws, Vizzini (the Scillian), Inigo Montoya (a Spanish Fencing master/wizard), and a Turkish Wrestler Fezzik. But (inconceivably), they are followed by a masked man in black. He follows them up the Cliffs of Insanity and battles Inigo and wins. Then he battles Fezzik and wins. And then he successfully defeats Vizzini which is inconceivable, but yet still happens via iocane powder. 

Buttercup and the man in black continue running while they argue, the man in black slaps her, and she pushes him down a hill where he yells “As you wish” and we realize it’s actually Westley. Buttercup descends the very steep hill. They reunite! Turns out Westley didn’t die he BECAME the dread pirate roberts

But they are being hotly pursued by Prince Humperdink. So they rush into the Fireswamp, Buttercup falls into snow sand, they deal with ROUS-es and come out alive on the other end only to be met by the Prince. Buttercup swaps herself for Westley’s safety but Humperdinck and Rugen are lying to her about it. They are going to take Westley to the Zoo of Death and torture him. 

Anyway, Buttercup has nightmares and realizes she can’t marry the prince, so she tells the Dink himself and he promises to send his 4 fastest ships to get Westley. But remember, westley is being tortured. Humperdinck is planning to kill Buttercup cause he wants to start a war with Guilder. 

It’s the day of the wedding, and cut to our friends Inigo and Fezzik, who were separated after their defeats. Fezzik finds Inigo, sobers him up, and they quest to find the Man in Black aka Westley, because Fezzik has found the six fingered man (Count Rugen), who killed Inigo’s dad and who he has sworn revenge upon. They want the man in black help them plan because Vizzini is an asshole who told them they were stupid. So they hear Westley screaming from torture and find him after traveling through all the levels of the Zoo of Death. They bring him to Miracle Max and Valerie, and Max and Valerie help bring him back from being “mostly dead”. 

Westley devises a plan to invade the castle during the wedding, and the commotion caused by this prompts Humperdinck to cut the wedding short. Buttercup decides to commit suicide when she reaches the honeymoon suite. Inigo pursues Rugen through the castle and kills him in a sword fight. Westley reaches Buttercup before she commits suicide and drops the most baller line of all time“There's a shortage of perfect breasts in this world. It would be a pity to damage yours.” 

 Still partially paralyzed, Westley bluffs his way out of a sword fight with Humperdinck, who shows himself as a coward. Instead of killing his rival, Westley decides to leave him alive. The party then rides off into the sunset on four of the prince's purebred white horses. The story ends with a series of mishaps and the prince's men closing in, but the author indicates that he believes that the group got away.

Book Recommendations:

If you love the Princess Bride we recommend reading Howl's Moving Castle by Diane Wynne Jones

[brittlebonesguy]

season 6 thank god. whole season is going in this bitch

oh god okay. men v women. yup and there it is the immediate sexism . women can’t survivor in the wild thats ridiculous!! god am i gonna have two dud seasons in a row? kill me. the woman better thrive and stick together. because so far i hate the first two men that have spoken. “physically we’re the best” they say as that man cannot pull a nail out of a crate. the sexism in this season is crazy. feels cartoonish. this was such an involved challenge wtf. also the men were so pathetic. only a LITTLE cocky? jeff behaves in some really gross behavior. its the sexualizing the women on the show. no wonder he dated a past player. like why the hell are we going around rating the women on this season and saying whos hot and whos not

fully wrote no notes on the second episode and i stand by it because i don’t care. 

hate the sexualization of the women tribe truly. okay the mandarin really caught me off guard. no i hate the way they talk about the women. they’re obsessed its gross. the camera work is,,,,awful 

everyone is annoying, heidi will not stop bringing up that shes cute and small. please stop. also shes dense. see they don’t hate you because youre skinny they hate you because you’re lazy and you thunk you can get by with only youre looks. 

unfortunately i do think this season is more interesting than last season despite the entire tribe of gross men. jenna are you stupid. why are you telling him all this. wow a woman goes home the moment the tribes are mixed? i’m shocked. 

the different strengths in question are “you’re both young and jeanne was old and unattractive” yes heidi you did make the wrong decision, dummy. that challenge was, in fact, disgusting. wow...another woman despite a women’s alliance in this tribe. ....im shocked

heidi is making a very good point. if rodger is on the jury he will NOT vote for a woman. why did they take their clothes off. yeah sure you didn’t get outplayed rodger sure buddy

heidi to whatever the blonde man’s name is about either him going or the creepy man being voted out “well from how i see it, it’s a 50/50 shot” .......yeah heidi no duh. 

what is this 007 shit. ......deena is only 3 years older than matt? then why the hell does deena get called old but matt doesn’t. oh yeah, sexism.....

okay jeanne i feel like feeding people mold without them knowing is illegal but go off. 

honestly......rob and christy final 2....i would quite like that. despite the sexism rob so far is the best rob in survivor. he’s so pathetic which outweighs the sexism (for being entertaining on tv that is). and i like that he’s REALLY putting his all into playing the game. god i love that twist. bye bye alex. 

rob really is a snake lol. christy really should have kept her mouth shut about all that “i am in the drivers seat for this vote”.....girl.

okay so....matt isn’t winning the game after getting that car. not the camera man just filming the forest fire and doing nothing about it. jenna why the hell would you bring something that’s literally irreplaceable to survivor. okay so heidi is a hypocrite. she said she would never cross the lines rob has crossed but shes campaigning to get rid of jenna? ah yes heidi is falling into the same problem as christy. being way over confident. i do not like butch. yes jenna throw a wrench in their plans!

not the fucking speed boat this time lol. its so long winded every season. love to see women win <3. 

okay so this season was not as bad as i expected it to be. the game play was actually pretty good and it was fun to watch. the direct sexism really is what’s bogging down this season’s score. overall i will rate it 5/10. 

[jasonstuart]

I'm heartbroken. Today we lost a comedy icon, a ground breaker for women in comedy, a great LGBTQ ally...Comedian Judy Tenuta. She was also my friend, mentor and pier. We met in the late 80s when I was in closet performing with her at a comedy club in Georgia, of all places. She TOLD me we are gonna be friends! Then took me shopping to get her a leopard scarf. We kept in touch and then I was lucky enough to be there when she won the 1st George Schaltter's Comedy Award for Best Female Comedian, Jerry Seinfeld won for male comedian. She was nominated for 2 #Grammys for her Comedy Albums. Not an easy feet in the straight boy world of comedy. She sold out comedy clubs and theatres all over the country. And who can forget her Pepsi Cola spot. Hilarious! She also had a wonderful role as the "Cat Lady" in the film Material Girls (directed by Martha Coolidge) and played a shrink for me in a film I made called "10 Attitudes" BUT only if we filmed at her house, so she did not have to drive over the hill from the valley! Plus she made her own film "Desperation Blvd" playing a child star! She was always creating content before it was in vogue. Judy created a persona that was unique and so very original and the talk shows could not get enough of her! The View, David Letterman, Joan Rivers, HowardStern.com to name a few. I know, because I helped her get them all on IMDb! She loved the movies and we went a lot over the years and folks would offen recognize her and say how much she made them laugh and oh, yes... I was not bad either! And then we would both laugh. "It Could Happen!" She was a diva but also a sweet shop girl from #chicago from a middle class family who became one the most popular comedians in showbiz. We had a lot in common. Judy loved her mom like me and visited her a lot over the years. What I really loved about her the best... she would always answer the phone where ever she was! So old school like me. Always had a story tell or a new idea she working on... We supported each other and I always had great pride that such a gifted comedian was my friend. And lets not forget, she had 4 of her own stand up comedy specials on HBO, Showtime Networks, Lifetime or more, at a time when getting an hour stand up special was so rare. ...I will miss our phone chats dishing about who's doing what and what movies are coming out that we wanna see.... I'm glad she is out of her pain and my hope is she is watching over all of us and playing her accordion for all the greats while getting them to join her religion "JUDYISUM". With that said, good friends with history are rare. I will miss you so much... Love you, Judy. #RIP Your friend Jason

[allthepresidentsmen1976]

if anyone has any favourite films directed by women i'd really appreciate it if you sent them to me !!! was looking through my letterboxd and realised i've seen like 13 films directed by women this year, a bit pitiful given how many i've watched . so ! fixing that :^)