#Formal School Franchise

[academicheight]

The Ultimate Guide to Navigating the K-School Admission Process

K-12 school admission refers to the process of enrolling students in schools from kindergarten to 12th grade. This process involves submitting applications, completing admission tests, and fulfilling specific requirements set by the school. Schools often consider various factors, including academic performance, extracurricular activities, and sometimes interviews, to determine the eligibility of prospective students.

K-12 school admission procedures vary across educational institutions, but they generally aim to select students who align with the school's values and educational philosophy. The admission criteria vary across schools, with some emphasizing standardized test scores, while others prioritize holistic development. Parents and students navigate this process with careful consideration, seeking educational environments that align with their values and aspirations.

K-12 school admission is a pivotal step in a student's educational journey, spanning from early childhood to high school graduation. It involves a meticulous evaluation of a student's academic aptitude, personal qualities, and extracurricular achievements. Schools employ diverse admission criteria, such as standardized testing, interviews, and assessment of a student's character and potential. K-12 school admission is a reflection of the school's ethos, emphasizing not only academic excellence but also holistic development, character building, and the cultivation of well-rounded individuals who can thrive in a rapidly changing world.

[pandagirl45]

Tony and Bucky are the couple that would binge watch television shows and movie franchises. Tony would work during that but he would cackle at some of the movies.

Bucky and Tony would visit the cat shelter as Bucky cries happily with all the cats on him. Tony has a photo collection of Bucky covered in cats.

Tony and Bucky ends up going to nature reserves, Tony would document the plants and flora trying to help with planet saving projects. Bucky likes getting flower crowns.

Bucky and Tony take turns picking up their kids from school. Bucky is the scary parent. Tony is the parent the school doesn't want to come down (ultron, Morgan, and Anna Marie getting bullied, Tony is tiger parent).

Tony and Bucky rides together. Either Bucky gets lifted via Ironman suit or Tony rides with Bucky on the bike. (Tony likes riding with Bucky because he can tease him)

Bucky and Tony dance together whenever they can. They are gross like that. Tony also likes seeing Bucky in suits or semi formal. Bucky like Tony in clothes.

Tony and Bucky pet names (nicknames), for Tony he calls Bucky, frosty, silver laelaps, snow, buck-a-boo, winter wonderland, snow wolf, winter, nivi lupu (literally snow wolf, but tony is a sap). Bucky calls Tony, kitten, fe, kitt, doll, sunshine, (he won't say out loud because he'd blush) priceless, jewel, starlight.

Bucky and Tony will in fact have date nights at home because people are just to much.

[boabelboo]

autism and neurodivergence in panem - an analysis

as an autistic person, i've always been intrigued by the experiences of people who are autistic or neurodivergent in other universes. after all, most "good" autistic representation in media comes from worlds that aren't our own (think the doctor from doctor who or luna lovegood from the harry potter franchise, although they aren't written as autistic, alot of autistic people see themselves in the characters through their traits and therefore take that as representation.)

in particular, the world of panem interests me because of its strict measures on people in the districts compared to the seemingly lavish lifestyle for those in the capitol. *by this im referring to katniss' time, not the ballad of songbirds and snakes, though that will be mentioned below.

in the entirety of the hunger games franchise, there is never a direct mention of autism or any other neurodivergences. this would be expected, since the world of panem is set three-hundred years into the future. there aren't any states anymore, just districts and the capitol. most if not all modern cultures have been eradicated. the conditions in the districts have worsened and with that, went decent healthcare.

we can assume from this that there is no knowledge of autism as a genuine disability and no proper means to diagnose it in the districts.

whereas, in the capitol, the healthcare is much better. in the ballad of songbirds and snakes, it's mentioned in passing that the academy has a school councillor, hippocrata lunt. so, no matter how small the hint is, it's implied that not only does the capitol have better physical healthcare than the districts, but mental healthcare too. it isn't a stretch to say it could be possible for autistic/neurodivergent people in the capitol to get a formal diagnosis.

so, how are autistic people treated in the districts? how does that compare to the capitol?

well, although there isn't an explicit reference to neurodivergence in thg, there is an implied one.

in the first hunger games book, when rue and katniss are talking about the night vision glasses, and how they're given to the children at night whilst they're working in district eleven, the topic of a boy called martin comes up.

"one time, this boy martin, he tried to keep his pair. hid it in his pants. they killed him on the spot."

"they killed a boy for taking these?" i say.

"yes, and everyone knew he was no danger. martin wasn't right in the head. i mean, he still acted like a three-year-old. he just wanted the glasses to play with," says rue.

although it's not explicitly stated, martin is clearly a neurodivergent child. with the "not right in the head" remark being used alot to refer to nd people in a derogatory manner, autistic people especially. it seems in the districts they know what autism presents as, and that people have it. they just don't really know what it actually is or how to diagnose/help accomodate it. on the next page, katniss also refers to a child who can be seen as neurodivergent.

-but i can't imagine peacekeepers murdering a simpleminded child. there's this girl, one of greasy sae's grandkids, who wanders around the hob. she's not quite right, but she's treated as a sort of pet. people toss her scraps and things.

again, the language used is indicative that the girl is perceived to be neurodivergent. the district people most likely pity neurodivergent children by calling them "simpleminded" or "not alright in the head", but simultaneously view them as waste because, in the districts mind, they become useless to their industry as they grow up. they could also be more susceptible to rigged reapings than their neurotypical/allistic counterparts, because the districts don't need extra mouths to feed that are "inefficient" in the working industry.

whereas peacekeepers would take the perceived inability in the work industry (which the district doesn't have the money to accommodate) as an excuse to give out more unnecessary beatings and/or killings like what they did with martin.

so what about the capitol?

assuming that there is an option for diagnosis, would there be any changes at all?

well, personally, i think there would be. the reason i believe this has to do with the way the capitol views the districts, particularly in the ballad of songbirds and snakes relating to reaper from district eleven.

reaper is described to be mentally unstable many times within the duration of the games. he is perceived to be childish and has a difficult time processing death (tbosas, 280) which are both indications that reaper could be autistic.

the capitol looks down on reaper for his mentality and paints him as mad, violent and dangerous, though he is evidently nothing of the sort. these are harmful stereotypes that can be projected onto disabled/neurodivergent people today, which have clearly been carried onto the capitol.

so, people in the capitol who are autistic could be looked down upon, like how poor people are, too. although they are capitol, they have an element of "otherness" which is associated with the districts (i.e neurodivergence which the capitol paints as madness) so they could be outcasted.

the capitol seems the type to pretend to care about the way their children feel, but don't. like coriolanus said, people's love of children is fickle (tbosas, 40). if a child in the capitol turned out to be autistic/neurodivergent, that inherent support could fizzle out, because of stereotypes and ingrained systemic hatred toward nd people, which is irrevocably linked to the hate of the districts.

tl;dr: the capitol views themselves as perfect, and any "imperfections" (ie a brain that doesn't function within the realms of societal expectations) are seen as lesser. this is associated with the districts because they are also seen as lesser, and any neurodivergent children in the districts are viewed as mad or violent by the capitol, whilst they are pitied and silently hated in the districts for not being able to contribute to the industry, as there aren't any accommodations to help them cope with the conditions (many elements of district industries would cause meltdowns/sensory overload).

obviously not every neurodivergent person is the same, so some would be able to cope with the working conditions, but live their whole life without knowing that they are autistic, which can lead to isolation and depression.

god this was a long post, please don't hesitate to give me ur opinions on this if you have any!!

[katsona-the-katsequel]

Background Events: Persona Experimentation

Unethical experimentation on Persona Users has been happening since the beginning. But how has it evolved until now?

Warning: Some speculation will be involved.

TW: Human Experimentation

The Beginning

We don't have an exact date for when experiments related to Personas and the Collective Unconscious began. Phil and Nyarly's bet had been going for some time by the time IF took place. However, if we had to place a true beginning to the experiments, we would have to go with Stephen and the Demon Summoning Program. Along with Kyouji Kuzunoha, he's the only SMT character who's also canon to Persona. Makes sense, considering his weird transcendent nature. The tale may vary between franchises, but the Persona version goes like this:

By unknown means, Stephen managed to create the Terminal System to travel through computer networks. Since he's in a wheelchair in IF, then this Stephen also managed to connect to the Expanse (located in the Collective Unconscious) with the Terminal System. Since he didn't have a way to communicate with the demon who crossed and no Persona to defend himself, Stephen was was attacked and subsequentaly crippled. All of this had to have happened before 1996 for the timeline to make sense (Side Note: This also tells a lot about Stephen, since the incident had the perfect conditions for an Awakening).

The incident led Stephen to create the Demon Summoning Program, probably for personal use, since there was no upcoming war to prepare to (that Stephen could have known of). For some unknown reason, Stephen chose to upload the only copies of the program in the computers of Karukozaka High School. Was he an alumni? Did Stephen realize teens had more probability of connecting with the Expanse? Were Karu High's computers just that good? Who knows. Only Hazama and Tamaki took the program serious enough to use it, even if it was against each other. But that's a story for another time.

Like St. Hermelin would in a few months, Karu High briefly made the news before the entire incident was forgotten. That is highly suspicious on itself. My assumption is that there truly were some experimentation going on before this, amd they made sure to silence the press and make sure the students didn't snitch. Since Tamaki managed to hide among the student population as another victim (probably with Stephen's help), they never questioned her on her abilities nor disappeared her.

But who are they? Well...

SEBEC

The first formal organization seeking to gain a foothold in the Collective Unconscious was the Japanese branch of SEBEC, leadered by Takahisa Kandori. Their story goes like this:

When Kandori took over as head branch of SEBEC, they began to undertake the creation of a device capable of transporting matter from one place to another. Kind of like a portal. This had the main objective of helping to lower freight costs of imports and exports. Maybe even erasing them entirely. Key contributors were Setsuko Sonomura (an engineering specialist) and Dr. Nicholai (a scientist). Kandori kept the project so under wraps that those involved basically lived in the installations. Together they created the Dimension Variable Accelerator System, or DEVA System. However, they also pulled a Backrooms and accidentally connected to the Collective Unconscious.

It is probably at this point that Kandori awoke to his Persona, which was hijacked by the real Nyarlathotep. And thus, Kandori became a puppet in The Great Bet while believing he was achieving world domination or something like that. "But, Kati," I can hear you saying, "all of that was about the Collective Unconscious. Aside from Kandori, there were no Persona Users working with SEBEC".

Oh? OH? So quickly you forget about him?

Takeda. The man, the myth, the barely remembered NPC. All we know about him is that he is Kandori's right-hand man, the head of security at SEBEC and a Persona User. We don't even know what his Persona is, only that its couldn't handle the combined forces of the St. Hermelin students. His existence does imply something deeper: SEBEC is already employing Persona Users to their cause. They probably didn't know much about the phenomena (understandable, since they had just finished the DEVA System) and didn't have a definitive way of figuring out who could be a User and who couldn't. For all they knew this could be random. And so, a not-so-stellar security guard rose to become the second-hand man of the main antagonist. Just because he had the same power as him.

As we know, Kandori and SEBEC failed. But what was the fate of the staff that worked on the DEVA System? What about the little knowledge of the Collective Unconscious they had?

New World Order

Due to Nyarly's meddling, the NWO was founded in 1979 after they found Kiyotada Sumaru's head. They might have had supernatural advice from an ancient head and the backup of one of the most powerful beings in the Persona Universe, but no real Persona Users. Not one of those people had their shit together. The closest thing they had was Chizuru Ishigami, who was a sorcerer (most probable given true power by the Rumor Curse). When the time was right, we can assume Nyarly guided them to the remnants of Kandori's fuck up. The NWO revived Kandori and began their recruitment of the now-lost scientists and inventors. The NWO gave more freedom to their researchers than SEBEC did, which eventually led to the beginning of true human experimentation.

We don't see the worst of it unless you play Tatsuya's Scenario, where the hints they leave us are enough to call for a second Doctors' Trial.

Yikes. And this was only one known experiment.

Like SEBEC before them, the NWO also fell. But they weren't the only ones running supernatural and unethical experiments in 1999.

Kirijo Group

With the creation of the Dark Hour, demons shadows weren't only a danger of the Collective Unconscious anymore, at least, as far as the Kirijo Group knew. Now those in the know had to watch themselves every night to avoid being attacked by them. They couldn't always rely on the perfected version of the Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapons. That must have been the moment when they began to hear rumors of supernatural events in Sumaru City, which led them to the crumbling NWO.

As it turns out, the entire Death Incident a couple of months ago left a huge vacancy for their supernatural research division. And these guys seem like they have fresh ideas that might just solve their self-created problem! A secret scramble must have taken place where the Nanjo and Kirijo Groups tried to covet all the info and personnel that had anything to do with the NWO. Those who weren't important enough to know the truth behind Kiyotada Sumaru's head and their self-proclaimed high-class greatness could have become the precursors of the Conspiracy.

And so, the Kirijo Group now had better scientists, inventors and researchers than before, and more willing to dab on unethical territory. With the need for defense, the former NWO scientists must have suggested they try to create their own Persona Users, like the ones who kept barging into their labs back in Sumaru. Thing is, no one there knew how a Persona User came to be. They did seem to have the power to control a shadow to do their bidding... maybe all they had to do was link (whatever that meant) a human with a shadow. The survivors of these experiments would become bodyguards for the Kirijo Group's excursions to Tartarus. No one would last long, though.

Skip a couple of years and the unexpected happened:

A natural Persona Awakening.

Note was taken of the factors that had to do with the event: the User was a child and she had been in a highly stressful situation. This is how the Kirijo Group rounded up the 100 children they would experiment on to create Artificial Persona Users. All of them dying except for three: Takaya Sakaki, Jin Shirato and Chidori Yoshino (and Sho Minazuki). This violation to the Nuremberg Code probably fell to the side when Mitsuru found and recruited two natural Persona Users on her own. Nothing like flushing dozens of children's lives down the toilet.

We must remember that the Kirijo Group didn't know everything about Personas, and so believed that the stressful situation with a dash of fear of death was necessary every time the User wanted fo summon their Persona. And so Evokers were created. Better not think of the trial and error that led to those inventions. Nor the one that helped create Persona Suppressants.

Who cares if three failed lab rats ran away? Now the Kirijo Group had true Persona Users with them.

A lot happened after that, but that is a story for another day. What about the hypothetical precursors to the Conspiracy formed from the high-profile members of the NWO? The ones that fell through the cracks during the power vacuum?

The Antisocial Force

For once, this wasn't Nyarly's fault. The basic rich bitches would have remained basic rich bitches if it wasn't for Yaldabaoth. The creation of the Shadow Operatives and the less restrictive hold on Kirijo Group employees probably made all that Persona and Collective Unconscious experimentation more of an open secret in the science community. And like hypnosis, this is one secret that most didn't believe until they witnessed it themselves. Not all were skepticals, and those interested were recruited by Masayoshi Shido for the creation of the Antisocial Force.

They would be the new oppressive entity in this area, suppressing information and giving stitches to snitches. This wouldn't stop "Cognitice Psience" from becoming an increasingly popular field. Who knows what kind of experiments happened in and out of the Antisocial Force. They couldn't have been the only ones.

If there is one thing the new Kirijo Group managed to contain, was the knowledge of the creation of Persona Users. The Antisocial Force didn't even have the research from the original NWO scientists that would help them create Artificial Users. Yaldy had to put an already-Awakened Goro Akechi in Shido's path for them to have a User. And even with an actual User, they couldn't replicate the circumstances that could have helped create more. I doubt Akechi was very helpful with that, though. Can't have any potential substitutes for his job.

Nah, the Antisocial Force's forte would never be Persona Users, but rather humanity's cognition.

So, what was the order of events?

Stephen created the Terminal System and began working on the Demon Summoning Program.

SEBEC began working on the DEVA System.

Stephen completed the Demon Summoning Program.

SEBEC finished the DEVA System and, after Kandori's Awakening, began to recruit Persona Users (at least one other than Kandori).

After SEBEC's fall, the New World Order recruited the staff that worked in the DEVA System.

The NWO began to experiment with demons and humans.

The Kirijo Group hired all the scientists and inventors from the NWO.

The Kirijo Group began to create Artificial Persona Users.

After Mitsuru's Awakening, the Kirijo Group focused on children experimentation.

The Antisocial Force began to recruit experts in cognitive psience for personal experiments.

[hoperays-song]

Named Businesses/Brands in the Sing Franchise: Sing 1

In a recent rewatch of the movies, I tried to find all the named businesses and brands that are in the movies for world building sake (minus bands and entertainment acts cause thats a different list). So here is, in semi chronological order, all the ones that appear in the first movie!

-------

The Moon Theatre - The primary location of the first movie and starting location of the second.

State of Calatonia Theatre School - An institute of higher education that appeared on a certificate on Buster's office wall.

State of Calatonia University - An institute of higher education that appeared on a diploma on Buster's office wall.

The Modern Drama Institute - An institute of higher education that appeared on a diploma on Buster's office wall.

Bacapti Transport - A store we see Buster bike past.

Grand Store - A store we see Buster bike past, as well as the gang drive past in the city.

Harry's Bar - Harry's restaurant where Ash and Lance performed.

Franklin School of Music - An institute of higher education that Mike claims to have previously studied at.

Les Calmars - A very formal restaurant that we see numerous times through out the first movie, supposedly French cuisine by Buster speaking French to a waiter as well as the name of the restaurant being in French.

SN Eyewear - A brand advertising on the metro line station Ash and Lance were at.

Repair Services Garage/Garage - It is not clear whether or not the garage run by Johnny's family even uses either name, however, that is the wording printed on the building were a name would be.

Gas Station - It is not clear whether or not the gas station has a different name, however, there isn't one on the building's sign so I'm running with this.

Big Kitchen - The brand name of the stove hood in Meena's kitchen.

Rumble Bag - The brand name on the speed bag we see both Marcus and Johnny using in the first movie.

Laundromat - A business to the left of Ash's first apartment, appears to only use the first floor.

Paradise Hotel - A business to the right of Ash's first apartment.

Moon Car Wash - The car wash that Buster's father owned.

Gummlies - A 24 hour store that Ash's first apartment is over. This name does not match the name on the store's shade covering but the first word of that is illegible, and only "Grocery Store" can be read.

Pop Soda - The brand of soda we see in Ash's first apartment, in the flavour orange. We also see it in the pool house in the same flavour.

SCRUN-EEZ - The type of cereal we see Rosita's kids eating and again at the store.

City Store - The store to the left of Moon Theatre. It appears to sell jewelry.

Wholesale Supply - One of the neighboring warehouses to the garage. There is another one on a different street as well as well as where the gang got arrested.

Linais & Badoil - The brand of piano that Johnny and Mrs. Crawly play in the Moon Theatre.

Dodgson - The brand of speakers in Ash's first apartment.

Roc's - The grocery store that Rosita went to during the movie.

Sliced Potatoes - A brand of chips seen in the grocery store that appears to have around six flavours.

Fruity Light - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Flaky Wheat - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Bran Cereals - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Muesli - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Colorful Crisp! - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Corn Flakes - A cereal we see at the grocery store with a fox mascot.

Choco Chuncs - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Honey Sirop - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Mixed Cereals - A cereal we see at the grocery store.

Fiber Breakfast - A cereal we see at the grocery store in Rosita's cart.

Cookies Mint - A type of a brand of cookies we see at the grocery store.

Cookies Choco - A type of a brand of cookies we see at the grocery store.

Cookies Strawberry - A type of a brand of cookies we see in Rosita's cart.

Spring Water Sourceful - A brand of spring water at the grocery store in Rosita's cart.

Animal Gazette - The newspaper we see Johnny reading.

Dusty's - An establishment across from the Moon Theatre.

SFJ Bank - The bank Judith works for and owned the theatre for awhile.

Eyewitness News - A news channel we see in both movies.

Calatonia University - An institute of higher education that appeared on the shirt of Eddie's that Buster wears in the pool house.

Parrot Herald - A news paper Buster reads in the pool house and is likely affiliated with the other news channel in the movie due to their paper being used in the ending broadcast.

Blip's Bowling Lounge and Bar - An establishment we see behind the new Moon Car Wash.

The Diga Doo - A restaurant we see behind the new Moon Car Wash.

Tabatha's Market - A market we see behind the new Moon Car Wash that advertises fresh foods.

[might-as-well-make-nonsense]

Sometimes the Best Medicine is Love

A Sokeefe sickfic (Mostly fluff, tiny bit angst) Please repost w/credit.

Disclaimer: I own neither the franchise nor any of these characters.

Sophie was concerned.

If there ever was a sign that something was wrong, it was a silent Keefe. With everything that had been going on lately, she wasn't surprised, but still, it was worrying. Was he ok? Was his father being a jerk, as usual? Was he upset with her? She reached over to where he was sitting at the lunch table and gently flicked his arm.

"You ok?" She mouthed when he glanced up.

He nodded, then plopped his head back down to his folded arms on the table, his blond hair gently flopping to the side of his forehead.

She frowned. Something must really be the matter for him to not even bother with a quip of some kind. Oh well. Better to give him some space and just keep an eye out - she knew well how stubborn he could be.

She rubbed his arm in a (hopefully) comforting gesture, whispered a quiet "see you," and moved on to her next class, glancing back and biting her lip. He'll talk to me when he feels ready, she thought. Hopefully that's sooner than later.

As Sophie left, Keefe completely slumped onto the table, all pretense gone.

He felt awful.

Really awful.

Not only had he barely said a word to his girlfriend - is that what they were? - all day, his head also wouldn't stop pounding, his nose was running, and his throat felt like he was swallowing rocks. He wanted to sleep so badly. It was better this way, though; his father would have confined him to his bed and insisted on "taking care of him" in that stuffy, formal way of his that only included bringing him a glass of water every so often and pretending to care about how he felt. 

Best to just suck it up, get through the day, and maybe find someplace to camp out until he felt a little better.

Although, the way he was feeling, who knew how long that would be.

He jerked forward with a sudden sneeze, banging his head on the table. Hard. Ugh. 

He dragged himself out of his seat, rubbing his forehead, and started the long trudge to his class - way too late. Now, he'd probably have detention to deal with. It's going to be a very long day, Keefe thought.

Sophie lept home after school, her mind still fixated on Keefe. She was a habitual worrier, after all they had been through - and were going through - ever since she had arrived in the Lost Cities. As she walked into the dining room, she made up her mind. She would pay Keefe a visit, just to make sure. He'd understand. 

She zipped into her bedroom to change out of her school clothes, throwing on a new tunic and leggings in record time, then dashed out to the backyard.

"Edaline, I'm going to Candleshade to check on Keefe," she called as she ran past the pastures. "I'll be back soon!"

She opened a rift, closed her eyes, and ran into the void.

Meanwhile, Keefe flopped on his bed, just praying his father would leave him alone. Hopefully, he could remain uninterrupted long enough to sleep off whatever this was. Then someone knocked on the door. He groaned, sniffling, and draped an arm over his eyes. Never a moment of peace when I need one, Keefe thought, letting out a little whine.

"Keefe," came his father's incredibly annoying, posh voice. "Sophie Foster is here to see you."

His head jerked up. Sophie? Why on earth would she be visiting him after the way he'd practically ignored her earlier? He lept off the bed, blinking hard, straightening his wrinkled tunic and running his hand through his sweaty curls. Oh, god. She can't see me like this, Keefe panicked.

He opened his door, trying to feign alertness.

"Hey, Foster," he muttered. "What's up?"

She didn't say anything, just walked inside and closed the door.

"Keefe, what's going on? You've been acting strange all day, and I want to make sure you're ok. Really ok," she amended before he could interject.

He took a second, seemingly trying to decide what to tell her, before apparently giving in. "Don't feel good," he croaked, sitting back on his bed and directing a pathetic sneeze into his wrist.

She watched the facade drop before her eyes, and the confident "Hunkyhair" she was so accustomed to dissolved into a lanky, pale, shivering boy. Poor Keefe.

She noticed, now, his bright, glassy blue eyes, and the sweat beading on his forehead - he must have a pretty high fever. She reached out and gently brushed his damp curls away, laying a hand on the blond boy's forehead and quickly withdrawing it at the heat.

"Keefe! I'm bringing you to Elwin right now. You can't stay here like this," Sophie decided. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Just didn't," he mumbled, coughing. "I was tired, and my throat hurt, and I didn't want word getting back to my dad. He's even more annoying when I'm sick." He mustered a weak grin at that, showing his exhaustion. Even sick, though, he could never pass up an opportunity to bash his lousy excuse for a father, Lord Cassius.

Sophie hummed in agreement. She knew Keefe didn't have a good relationship with his father, which made all the more excuse to take him to Elwin. Elwin had a certain way with Keefe, a gentleness and concern that his father lacked. And he really could use some gentle concern right about now.

She opened the window in Keefe's bedroom, crawling out first and dropping to the ground, then gently helping the sick boy out of the window. He was shivering too hard to stand, so she managed to hoist him onto her back and, once more, ran into the void as Keefe passed out, lulled to sleep by the combination of exhaustion, fever, and Sophie's warmth seeping into his own tired, freezing body.

He awoke in the Healing Center, with Elwin standing over him and flashing various glowing lights around his body and frowning.

"Hi," Keefe croaked, sitting up slowly and blinking hard. He suddenly snapped forward with a harsh sneeze, managing to catch it in his hands. "...Ugh." He groaned, sniffling and rubbing his hands on his tunic. "Gross." 

Sophie winced but said nothing, sitting on the edge of the bed. 

“How are you feeling?” Sophie asked gently, brushing his curls away from his face. 

“Eh. Could be better,” he mumbled, giving her a wry grin. It was the truth, after all. He still felt pretty awful, but both getting out of Candleshade and whatever Elwin had been doing seemed to have helped some. 

He coughed, then looked at Elwin. “What are you thinking?”

Elwin pushed his goggles onto his head and sighed. “Keefe, you have quite the knack for getting yourself into trouble, one way or another.” He chuckled. “This time, however, it’s thankfully not too serious. Some kind of flu, but I’d like to keep you here for a few days, if you don’t mind?” Elwin met Keefe’s eyes, waiting for his answer.

Keefe knew that, like it or not, he’d end up staying anyway - Sophie would make sure of that. However, he actually found himself wanting to stay. Anything was better than Candleshade, especially feeling like this. He nodded, then sneezed again. Ow.

“Wonderful! Stay here, and I’ll go get some elixirs for you to take. I’ll be back in a moment.” Elwin dashed back to his office, leaving the two alone.

Sophie watched Elwin leave, then looked back at Keefe. He had sunk back into the pillows, apparently relaxing now that his fate for the next few days was decided.

“Promise you’ll tell me next time?” Sophie asked, meeting Keefe’s tired blue eyes. “You had me worried for a bit there. You were out for a while.” She smiled softly.

Keefe grinned. “Best sleep I’ve had in a while.”

Sophie laughed, then raised an eyebrow. “But do you promise?”

Keefe sighed, which quickly turned into a short coughing fit. When he could breathe again, he smiled weakly and shrugged. “Yeah, I promise.”

“Good.” Sophie kissed his forehead. 

“Stay with me?” Keefe whined.

Sophie glanced over at Elwin’s office door, but saw no sign of him coming back soon.

“Of course,” she agreed, snuggling in next to him on the bed and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. 

Keefe melted into her warmth, and his eyes turned heavy as he burrowed into her touch, sleep quickly claiming his exhausted body. Sophie smiled, laying her head on top of his and stroking his damp curls. She, too, closed her eyes, and all the stress of the day melted, pulling her, too, down into sleep. 

Elwin walked back into the room just then with the elixirs, but stopped quickly when he saw the sleeping pair. He smiled and grabbed an extra blanket, draping it over Keefe and Sophie. 

Sometimes the best medicine is love, isn’t it?

[justforbooks]

The word “great” is somewhat promiscuously applied to actors. But it was undoubtedly deserved by Sir Michael Gambon, who has died aged 82 after suffering from pneumonia.

He had weight, presence, authority, vocal power and a chameleon-like ability to reinvent himself from one role to another. He was a natural for heavyweight classic roles such as Lear and Othello. But what was truly remarkable was Gambon’s interpretative skill in the work of the best contemporary dramatists, including Harold Pinter, Alan Ayckbourn, David Hare, Caryl Churchill and Simon Gray.

Although he was a fine TV and film actor – and forever identified in the popular imagination with Professor Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter franchise – the stage was his natural territory. It is also no accident that, in his private life, Gambon was an expert on, and assiduous collector of, machine tools and firearms for, as Peter Hall once said: “Fate gave him genius but he uses it as a craftsman.”

Off-stage, he was also a larger-than-life figure and a superb raconteur: a kind of green-room Falstaff. I have fond memories of an evening in a Turin restaurant in March 2006 on the eve of Pinter’s acceptance of the European Theatre prize. Gambon kept the table in a constant roar, not least with his oft-told tale of auditioning for Laurence Olivier as a young actor in 1963 and cheekily choosing to do a speech from Richard III; but the next night Gambon gave an explosive rendering of Pinter’s poem American Football that threatened to blow the roof off the Turin theatre.

However, Gambon’s bravura was also mixed with a certain modesty. In the summer of 2008 I met him for tea in London and found him eagerly studying the script of Pinter’s No Man’s Land, in which he was scheduled, several months later, to play Hirst. He told me that he had started work on it so soon because he found it difficult to learn lines at his age.

“Sometimes,” he said, “I sleep with a script under my pillow, or just carry it around in my raincoat pocket, in the hope the lines will rub off on me.” I think he was genuine; but with Gambon, one of life’s great leg-pullers, you were never entirely sure.

Gambon achieved greatness without either the formal training or genetic inheritance that are often considered indispensable.

He was born into a working-class Dublin family that had no artistic background; his mother, Mary (nee Hoare), was a seamstress, and his father, Edward, an engineer. When the family settled in Britain after the second world war, the young Gambon went to St Aloysius school for boys, in Somers Town, central London. On leaving at the age of 15 he signed a five-year apprenticeship with Vickers-Armstrongs, leading to a job as a tool-and-die maker. With his mechanical aptitude, he loved the work. But he also discovered a passion for amateur theatre and, having started by building sets, eventually moved into performing. “I want varoom!” he once said. “I thought, Jesus, this is for me.”

With typical chutzpah, he wrote to the Gate theatre in Dublin, creating a fantasy list of roles that he had played in London, including Marchbanks in Shaw’s Candida; in the end, he made his professional debut there in 1962 as the Second Gentleman in Othello. His best decision, however, on returning to London, was to sign up for an improvisational acting class run by William Gaskill at the Royal Court.

Gaskill was about to join the newly formed National Theatre company at the Old Vic and recommended Gambon for an audition: hence the celebrated story of Gambon’s first encounter with Olivier, which ended with the young actor, in his excess of zeal, banging his hand on a nail in an upstage column and bleeding profusely. Far from being the nail in Gambon’s coffin, this led to a productive four years with the National in which he progressed from walk-ons to substantial roles such as that of Swiss Cheese in Gaskill’s revival of Mother Courage.

On Olivier’s advice, however, Gambon left the National in 1967 to hone and pursue his craft at Birmingham rep – a shrewd move that saw him, at the astonishingly early age of 27, playing his first Othello. He moved on later to the Royal Shakespeare Company, and in 1968 made his first foray into television with the leading role in a BBC adventure series called The Borderers.

However, it was through working on another TV series, The Challengers, that he made a contact that was to transform his career. His fellow actor Eric Thompson was moving into directing, and in 1975 was set to do an Ayckbourn trilogy, The Norman Conquests, at the Greenwich theatre. He cast Gambon, against type, as a dithering vet.

He revealed, for the first time, his shape-shifting gifts; and the sight of him, seated at a dinner table on a preposterously low stool with his head barely visible above the table’s edge, remains one of the great comic images of modern theatre.

This led to a highly productive working relationship with Ayckbourn including key roles in Just Between Ourselves (Queen’s theatre, London, 1977) and Sisterly Feelings (National, 1980).

At the same time, Gambon began an association with Gray by taking over, from Alan Bates, the role of the emotionally detached hero in Otherwise Engaged (Queen’s theatre, 1976).

That was directed by Pinter, for whom in 1978 Gambon created the part of Jerry in Betrayal at the National. It was a production beset by problems, including a strike that threatened to kibosh the first night, but Gambon’s mixture of physical power and emotional delicacy marked him out as a natural Pinter actor. That power, however, manifested itself in the 1980s in a series of performances that staked out Gambon’s claim to greatness.

First, in 1980, came Brecht’s Galileo at the National: a superbly triumphant performance that brought out the toughness, obduracy and ravening intellectual curiosity of Brecht’s hero. It was a measure of his breakthrough that, as Gambon returned to his dressing room after the first night, he found the other actors in the National’s internal courtyard were shouting and roaring their approval. Two years later, Gambon returned to the RSC to play both a monumental King Lear and a ravaged Antony opposite Helen Mirren’s Cleopatra.

But arguably the finest of all of Gambon’s 80s performances was his Eddie Carbone in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge, directed by Ayckbourn at the National (1987). It helped that Gambon actually looked like Miller’s longshoreman-hero: big and barrel-chested with muscular forearms, he was plausibly a man who could work the Brooklyn docks.

Gambon also charted Eddie’s complex inner life through precise physical actions. He stabbed a table angrily with a fork on learning that his niece had got a job, let his eyes roam restlessly over a paper as the niece and the immigrant Rodolpho quietly spooned, and buckled visibly at the knees on realising that a fatal phone-call to the authorities had ensnared two other immigrants. In its power and melancholy, this towering performance justified the sobriquet once applied by Ralph Richardson of “the great Gambon”.

When you consider that the decade also saw Gambon playing the psoriasis-ravaged hero of Dennis Potter’s TV series The Singing Detective (1986), you realise his virtuosity and range.

And that became even clearer in 1990 when he played the mild-mannered hero of Ayckbourn’s Man of the Moment (Globe theatre, now Gielgud, London), had another crack at Othello for Ayckbourn in Scarborough and appeared, in 1989, as a romantically fixated espionage agent in Pinter’s TV adaptation of Elizabeth Bowen’s The Heat of the Day: that last performance, alternately sinister and shy, was one of Gambon’s finest for television and deserved a far wider showing.

In later years Gambon successfully balanced his stage career with an amazingly prolific one in film and television. In Hare’s Skylight at the National in 1995 he combined the bulk and weight of a prosperous restaurateur with a feathery lightness – a skipping post-coital dance across the stage with the balletic grace often possessed by heavily built men.

Gambon was equally brilliant as a disgusting, Dickensian, accent-shifting Davies in a revival of Pinter’s The Caretaker (Comedy theatre, 2000), as a perplexed bull of a father in Churchill’s A Number (Royal Court, 2002), as a Lear-like Hamm in Beckett’s Endgame (Albery, 2004) and as a brooding, alcoholic Hirst in Pinter’s No Man’s Land (Duke of York’s, 2008). Even if Gambon’s Falstaff in a 2005 National Theatre production of Henry IV Parts One and Two did not quite match expectations, his work for the theatre revealed an ability to combine volcanic power with psychological depth and physical delicacy.

Ill health and increasing memory problems forced him to retire from stage acting in 2015, but not before he had given memorable performances in two Beckett plays: Krapp’s Last Tape (Duchess, 2010) and All That Fall (Jermyn Street theatre, 2012), where he played, opposite Eileen Atkins, the sightless but stentorian Mr Rooney.

He also continued to work in television and film for as long as possible. He belied the whole notion of the small screen by giving large-scale performances as the black sheep of a big family in Stephen Poliakoff’s Perfect Strangers (2001) and as a reclusive plutocrat in the same writer’s Joe’s Palace (2007).

He was nominated for awards for his performances as Lyndon Johnson in an American TV movie, Path to War (2002), and as Mr Woodhouse in a BBC version of Jane Austen’s Emma (2009). Later TV series included The Casual Vacancy (2015), Fearless (2017) and Little Women (2017).

In film, he had a rich and varied career that ranged from the violent hero of Peter Greenaway’s The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1989), to a heavyweight mafia boss in Mobsters (1991), the aged Lord Marchmain in Brideshead Revisited (2008), a cantankerous old director in Dustin Hoffman’s Quartet (2012) and the bearded Hogwarts headteacher (whom he privately referred to as “Dumblebore”) in six of the eight Harry Potter films, taking over the role for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) following the death of Richard Harris.

He also provided the narration for the Coen brothers’ Hail, Caesar! (2016) and voiceovers for the two Paddington films (2014 and 2017).

But Gambon brought to everything he did, in life as well as art, enormous gusto, a sense of mischief and a concern with precision: he was almost as happy restoring old firearms as he was working on a new role.

In 1992 he was appointed CBE, and six years later was knighted.

He married Anne Miller in 1962, and they had a son, Fergus. From a subsequent relationship with Philippa Hart, whom he met on the set of Gosford Park, he had two sons, Michael and William.

He is survived by Anne and his three sons.

🔔 Michael Gambon, actor, born 19 October 1940; died 27 September 2023

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[123pixieaod]

pilot!Max x backpacker!Daniel 👨‍✈️✈️💼

Part One; Part Two; Part Three; Part Four; Part Five;

"What do you mean the bus is full?" Lando barks, arms crossed.

The driver doesn't reply. He just stares Lando down, no doubt taking in their fifty pound differences.

"I don't think you understand", Sebastian wades in, clamping a hand on Lando's shoulder as if to hold him back. "We're the crew."

"The crew", the man repeats, the same way Max might repeat Lando's declaration that he should fly the plane today, or Sebastian's musings that he might retire next year. Yeah, right. The crew.

"I'm the captain", Sebastian begins in his soft, soothing tone. "This is -"

"The captain?" The driver sneers, looking at Sebastian's dirty sneakers and lanky blonde hair swept out of his face by a faded hairband. He looks more in place in a 1980's Wimbeldon final then 2am in the airport carpark, desperately trying to charm his way onto the last bus which would get them to Dublin on time.

"Max is my Second Officer," Sebastian continues on, German accent rising and falling like the rolling hills Max loves to look down on. "And Lando here is our flight engineer".

Max catches Lando eye, who clearly is trying not to look chuffed with himself. He hasn't formally been told he's passed his exam to graduate from cadet to flight engineer. Well, there goes that surprise.

The driver's lip sneers, beady eyes regarding the three of them. To be honest, Max can't exactly fault his suspicions. None of them look like high-flighing pilots at Formula One Wings airline. Sebastian, as Max has already gone over, looks like somewhere between a 1980s Wimbledon champion or 1980s pornstar, but either way, not this side of the 21st century. Lando, in his designer joggers and baggy Tee, looks like some frat guy who got lost in a game of beer pong and somehow ended up in the back-arse of Europe. And Max just looks... boring, he supposes. More suited behind a computer, sat at a desk for the rest of his life. Earth-child, not sky-bound.

"If we miss the flight we're meant to be captaining because the plane got diverted to another airport but some driver doesn't believe our story, I doubt F1 wings will be pleased," Lando says, wielding his 'a year at my private school costs the same as your house' tone. Thank fuck he's picked up enough self-preservation to resist doing it around Max.

The driver's lips thin. Lando smirks and even Sabatian looks pleased. After a beat, they go onto the bus.

-

Sebastian and Lando, the bastards, grab the two free seats beside each other. They manage to give Max a sympathetic look as he rolls his eyes, stumbling done the thin bus aisle to find one final seat free. He's lugging his backpack, packed neatly the night before with his uniform and the still untouched "Flying High: Top 100 Lifelessons From Pilots!" book his dad got him for Christmas.

The bus driver jolts the bus forward, clearly intend on at least giving Max mild concussion for all the hassle he's caused him. Max staggers, grabbing blindly at the chair rests and corner of suitcases precariously balanced down the aisle.

He can only just make out the vaguest sizes and shapes in the darkness, and it takes him far longer than he would like to admit to finally find the free chair. A guy is slumped at the window seat, his legs stretched over the seat beside him, feet dangling of the edge. Max tries to gently wake him, but when the bus driver takes a roundabout with aggression that seems a tad overzealous and Max only just keeps his balance, he roughly shakes the guys' shoulders.

"Hey", he hisses. "Move."

The guy makes a wonderfully undignified "whhugh?" sound before hastily sitting upright, swinging his legs back. Max quickly slides into the free seat just as the driver takes a gentle curve in the road like he's in the Mad Max franchise.

"Fucking hell this driver " the man whispers as Max tries to clip in his seat belt in the dark.

"Sorry", the man tries again. "Didn't mean to conk out on you. Just the fucking change of departure is really the last thing I need," he laughs, a soft, musical sound. Max turns his head, but can only just make out the darkness of his body, the vaguest shape of him. No distinguishable features, no personable details. Just a shadow and the faintest hint of sandlewood and a soft, accented voice.

"Tell me about it," Max says, looking down at his lap. He pressed his fingertips to his sleeve, grounding the lack of visibility in touch.

"What do you think happened?"

"Air traffick control in France unexpectedly hindered the current schedule of the Irish long-haul flights, thus forcing all previous departures around the country to be moved to Dublin." He recites it perfectly, the impersonal email they were all sent one hour ago still fresh in his mind. Fucking French traffick control, fucking up Max’s sleep schedule, like he has fuck all to do with their pay.

The guy exhales. "Well, a little warning would've been nice. I had to sell an arm and a leg to try and get a ticket which would get me to Dublin airport in time. Do you think F1 wings will compensate us?"

Max shrugs, even though the guy can't see him. "Probably not. But who knows, maybe the cabin crew will be late too, and there'll be no pilots around to fly anyway.'

The guy snorts. "Yeah right, as if F1 Wings doesn't send like private drivers or jets or something for their pilots when shit like this happens."

Max smiles in the darkness. F1 Wings couldn't really give a shit about their pilots. They only care if something goes wrong or something goes right - complaints of misconduct, a heroic save, anything beyond the usual and then F1 Wings care. They'll care if him, Sebastian and Lando don't get to Dublin in time for the scheduled departure of their flight. Even though the airline barely lifted a finger to help them, if something goes wrong, then Max knows for sure who'll get the blame.

"So where are you flying to?" The man asks after a beat. Max is surprised, the guy sounds tired, and Max had just assumed he'd go straight back to sleep.

"Qatar," he answers honestly, and then man huffs a soft laugh.

"No way! Me too, at 7, right?" Even though its a question, he doesn't leave time for Max to answer. "What are the chances! What are you going for Qatar for?"

"Work", Max states. He's learned it's just easier not to tell people he's a pilot in scenarios like these. They ask questions he probably shouldn't answer (like why he wanted to become a pilot), request for better meals (as if he has an iota of influence on the catering of the flight), or simply just talking his ear off about their flight simulator game they play at home. It's easier to just be a nobody.

"Sick", the man says, enthuasm undeterred by Max's sparse responses. "I have a layover there for 5 hours, and then flying on to Vietnam."

Max nods. He's flown that run a few times, but mainly under Sebastian's mentorship when he was still a cadet.

"You going home from there?" He asks, and the man makes a questioning noise.

"To Australia?" Max amends.

"Oh, yeah no. Maybe after Asia, but probs not," for the first time, his tone is more somber. He doesn't offer any explanation, and Max knows better then to ask.

"I mean, I know my accent is pretty clear cut," he laughs, momentary beat of quietness quickly shunned. "But your accent is less so. German?"

"Dutch."

"Ah, my second guess!" The man says, and Max can hear his smile.

"I'm Max", Max blurts out before he can doubt himself.

"Daniel," the stranger-no-more says. Something moves against Max's knee, and the man - Daniel - huffs another soft laugh.

"Sorry, I'm looking for your hand to shake."

Part Two!

[mjohnso]

The Work of Auditions

S.E.S Bada’s recruitment story is the stuff of SM legend. Personally scouted in 1996 by Lee Soo-man after he saw her perform at her school’s annual festival, she did not then dream of debuting as a pop singer, let alone being in a girl group. By most accounts, she wanted to be a musical theater actor. But she agreed to Lee’s offer because it literally paid the bills. In exchange for joining the company, Lee paid her full university tuition and expenses, where she studied theater.

I begin with Bada’s origin story, not only because it is unique among SM audition stories but because of what it says about SM. Specifically, it demonstrates the company’s recognition early on that acquiring the best performers, regardless of cost, was integral to their survival and success. They would need talent to grow their stable of new acts and replace any new acts that disbanded. Furthermore, maintaining a pool of potential replacement talent was an insurance policy. Their mere existence would apply downward pressure on their already debuted idols, discouraging them from agitating for more (or any) money or better contract terms or material conditions lest they be replaced.

But first, SM had to find trainees, which they did so using a multi-pronged strategy. Street-casting, like the kind that found Bada, was part of their approach, as was their affiliation with the for-profit training academy Starlight Academy beginning in 2003. There was also their more formalized Audition process, which they started advertising on their official website in 2000. In the early aughts, versions of this Audition section of their website listed three language options (“Korean” “English” and “Chinese”), with different options for each. In particular, the Korean version listed six options:

Mail: An applicant could send via snail mail a letter or postcard listing their name, school grade, and contact information, along with two photos, to the attention of the Entertainment Audition Manager at a Gangnam PO Box.

Email: An applicant could send an email to the casting director with all the information they would include in a letter to the casting director if they were mailing their application and two scanned photos.

Franchise Store: Instead of mailing or emailing their information and photos, an applicant could drop off a letter with their information and two photos at one of the various music or record stores around Korea that SM listed on their site. If an applicant who utilized this method was selected for an in-person audition but lived outside of Seoul, SM would pay 100% of their transportation costs.

Recommend a friend: A person could send all of the same information of a friend or family member they believe is talented in a letter or email. If that friend or family member signed a contract with SM, the person who referred them would receive a scholarship of 1 million won.

Live Auditions: Every Saturday at 3pm, SM Entertainment held in-person auditions at their headquarters.

Live Auditions: Applicants could apply for an audition via directions obtained by calling a phone number. If an applicant passed the first round of screening, they would be invited to attend the in-person auditions held on Sunday at 3pm.

Today, SM has not radically changed these options other than revamping them to reflect technological changes and expanding their in-person auditions. They eliminated the snail mail and franchise store options in favor of digital options, including applying via the SM website or direct message. In-person auditions are still held weekly at the SM Entertainment building but are supplemented by audition tours. Earlier this year, they announced their 2024 Global Audition, which consists of stops in Daegu, Busan, Daejeon, Wonju, Gwangju, and Jeju, as well as Thailand, Japan, the United States, and Canada.

Much as their audition methods have not drastically changed, only expanded, the same could be said for the motivation behind their auditions. The need for new trainees, especially as the industry has become increasingly competitive, and the necessity of maintaining that power dynamic that I discussed above all still applies, but I would also add a third reason. That is much as trainees function as a way to apply pressure to acts on an agency’s roster, so does the audition, with all its spectacle, do for trainees. Between the multiple dates and increasing amount of locations, often announced with much fanfare, there is a dual impression. The auditions are extremely competitive, with participants going up against not only those at that audition but also highly desirable and affirming, as evidenced by the turnout.

Yet even though a trainee may have made it through the gauntlet of auditions and been selected as a member of an elite club, they cannot rest. On the contrary, as a trainee, they will have to work harder than other trainees whom they are competing with to maintain their spot and for one of the scant opportunities to debut. Moreover, they cannot complain about their training or the conditions of it or even negotiate for better contract terms, lest they get replaced by any one of those other people auditioning and vying for their spot.

It is no wonder SM Entertainment has not developed a more efficient way to audition potential new trainees. The current system is the perfect tool, conveniently downplaying their role outside the selection process. If a group of trainees encourages existing acts to stay silent even in the face of poor working conditions, that is not because SM has explicitly pushed them to but as a consequence of the system. Similarly, if trainees who acutely feel the precariousness of their situation overwork themselves, that is their decision. No matter that these are the results of a system created by SM's choices, and thus are not immutable. As far as the industry cares it works, so why would they fix it?

[rubberduckyrye]

im an ouma kinnie who cant even be open about it because ill get dogpiled to hell and back for being a n*zi when. he isnt one at all and its such a reach but i digress

Oh my god I am SO sorry for you, anon. Well, this is a safe space for kins of any kind, so I hope you can find some comfort in that. ;w;

Anyway major salt incoming.

As for the whole "Kokichi is a Nazi" thing--like. My god. This old debate. I hate it with a burning passion. It's just--it's just wrong.

Look. Japan uses a lot of similar imagery in their culture to Nazi Germany. The red arm bands used for club leaders in high school. School uniforms resemble what I think is formal Japanese military uniforms (like, non-war uniforms?) They use the same kinds of hats too.

Also. Fandom wake-up call time.

I'm sorry but if Kokichi is a Nazi then wtf is Kiyotaka to them?

Or Korekiyo???

These two have the red armbands and illusion to military attire--something FAR CLOSER to Nazi imagery than a stupid hat with a skull on it that doesn't even have a canon sprite to its name. Why do these guys get a free pass? Is it because Kokichi had the bad luck of being the Ultimate Leader and there was a piss poor fantranslation calling him a Dictator? Because literally the only elements to Kokichi design that you can say are Maybe Inspired by Nazi Germany attire is his hat. Which only just kind of looks like one of the hats worn by Nazi Germany. I never found an exact match for it myself, so idk. Regardless, Kiyotaka and Korekiyo both had WAY more ties to that attire than Kokichi does.

Or if we're going to talk about problematicly-designed characters in general, why is Fuyuhiko getting no hate? He's literally a crimelord--a mafia boss. Why are mob bosses okay? Are you saying that mob bosses don't maim, murder, exploit, or abuse people? Did you know that certain factions of the Yakuza are known for human trafficking? That includes sex slavery. You do know that, right?

Not only is Fuyuhiko properly translated to be a Yakuza/mob boss, but his design has FAR more ties to the Yakuza/mafia than Kokichi has to nazi germany. And the game he's in makes him a sympathetic character to top it off!

And let's not even get into the anatomical horror that is Hifumi. Like if you want to talk about offensive design choices, Hifumi is by far the worst contender as the most offensively designed character. Fucking egg with twig legs, as if that's how fat people work at all!

Anyway what I'm getting at is that the people who don't like Kokichi look for any reason to hate on him, even if the reasons to hate on him would apply to other characters in the franchise. They just want to have a "legitimate" reason to hate him so they can legitimize their rage and validate themselves for attacking his fans. It's disgusting behavior tbh.

NOTE: The only design I think that's actually offensive out of the ones I've listed is Hifumi, solely for his piss poor fat anatomy. Even then, you don't see me going around and harassing people who actually like Hifumi for the fatphobia in his design.

.... I just noticed that Hifumi isn't even wearing SOCKS. nkdjegnjkngkfr

Anyway salt time over.

[babypeachx]

Gen 5

I think it's about time for a formal introduction to Gen 5! Both Anahi and Brennen are joint heirs for this generation, and I'm really looking forward to exploring everything the packs for this generation have to offer!

Anahi and Brennen's story:

You have many treasured childhood memories of running through the sweet-smelling family bakery after school. When they weren't busy baking, your parents were usually spending time gathering with friends, or just stopping to watch the world go by.

You admired how your parens had been able to find the balance between making a living and living their life, but you didn't want their bakery legacy to end with them. Conversations of franchising the bakery were met with a straight up 'no', but you knew the family name could become bigger.

You wanted to make something of yourself, just as your parents could have easily done if they had just pushed themselves that little bit further. You wanted to 'go-big-or-go-home', and decided that there was no better place to achieve this than the big city of San Myshuno.

Packs for this Gen:

City Living

Dine Out

Romantic Garden

Goals:

Live in San Myshuno, and work your way through each neighbourhood until you can afford a Penthouse! (with a talking toilet!)

Attend all the festivals at least once, and buy all the festival t-shirts

Learn all the Food Stall recipes

Complete the City Native Aspiration

Complete one of the City Living careers (one each for Anahi and Brennen)

Summon a Tragic Clown

Complete the Snow Globe and Poster collections

Master the Singing Skill

Dine at all the restaurants at least once (I'll be placing a few throughout the Worlds)

Complete the Experimental Food Photo collection

Own at least one restaurant

Make a wish at the Wishing Well

Share a romantic moment with another Sim at the fountain from the Romantic Garden pack

[bomikalover]

Since it’s a new year and I am now officially a multi account, I’d thought I should formally introduce myself to all my new besties 🫶🏾

Name: Shyanne/Shy/whatever you wanna call me 😂

Age: 22

Pronouns: She/They

Hobbies: Editing, Talking, Writing, and More Talking 😁

Shows I adore: Danger Force, Outer Banks, American Housewife, Wednesday, That 90’s Show, Austin &Ally, Julie and the Phantoms, No Good Nick, Kickin It, Big Brother, Percy Jackson, Big Time Rush, Hannah Montana, The Last of Us, Abbott Elementary, Itaewon Class, Business Proposal, Squid Game, Crash Landing on you, It’s okay not to be okay, The Glory, Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Doogie Kameāloha, Lab Rats, I Didn’t Do It, and many, MANY, more!!!

Movies and Musicals I loovvveee: The Hunger Games Franchise, The Zombies Franchise, Nerdy Prudes Must Die, All the High School Musicals, All the Descendants, Into & Across the Spiderverse, Frozen, Tangled, Moana, Encanto, Elemental, In the Heights, Pitch Perfect, Barbie, Five Nights at Freddy’s, Bridge to Terabithia, and a TON more!!!

Other Things I love: BTS, Smosh, OfflineTV, Reaction Vids, Talking with my online besties, over analyzing kids tv and film, watch parties, and shipping characters 🫶🏾🫶🏾

[georgefairbrother]

British actor Larry Dann became a household name in the 1980s through his wholly believable performance as the likeable and dependable sergeant, Alec Peters, in 229 episodes of ITV's long-running police drama, The Bill (2500 episodes 1983-2010). His autobiography has just been published by specialists in British television tie-ins, Oliver Crocker's Devonfire Books.

In the days before internet and social media, it was too easy to assume that mature actors in high profile roles appeared out of nowhere, fully formed, but of course that wasn't the case at all. Actors of Larry Dann's generation learned their craft over many years, through determination, no shortage of courage, and sheer, unrelenting hard graft. Born in 1941, he worked as a child actor in movies, which included a brush with Spencer Tracy, Deborah Kerr and George Cukor, and studied at the Corona Academy stage school from where he built an enduring career on stage and screen.

One of many highlights in Larry Dann's memoir is the fascinating window he affords us into the iconic Theatre Workshop, run by Joan Littlewood, and the production of their huge international hit, Oh What a Lovely War which, according to Michael Billington in The Guardian, not only changed attitudes toward the Great War, it also 'remade British theatre'.

"…So what effect did Oh What a Lovely War have? It helped change attitudes to the first world war. Although we may have read the poetry of Sassoon and Wilfred Owen, we had never before seen popular entertainment express the disenchantment felt at the time by the average soldier. Looking back at the 1963 programme, it is also clear that the production was intended as a political provocation…On a purely theatrical level, the show also did a lot to loosen up the formal rigidity of the British theatre. It was active in demolishing the gap between stage and auditorium, promoted the growth of the musical documentary and encouraged actors to take responsibility for research and development…"

In Joan Littlewood's Oh What a Lovely War, which also featured his friend Brian Murphy, who later starred as George Roper in George and Mildred, and who wrote the foreword to Oh, What a Lovely Memoir

Larry Dann's diverse film career included some major Hollywood productions and a joyous experience working with David Niven, who we learn was just as charming, generous and friendly as his image portrayed, and neatly bookended the Carry On franchise, appearing in one of the earliest offerings, Teacher (1959), and in the final three of the original run; Behind (1976), England (1977), and the widely maligned, notorious Emmannuelle (1978).

With Carol Hawkins, Sherrie Hewson and Brian Osborne in Carry On Behind

He also carved out a lucrative sideline in television commercials, working with some of the pioneering directors in that field, including Alan Parker, and Ridley and Tony Scott.

Larry Dann writes with pragmatic honesty about family troubles growing up, and the rollercoaster working life of an actor even with major roles in their CV. Oh, What a Lovely Memoir is a recommended read with some wonderful insights into the evolution of entertainment in post-war Britain.

Larry Dann was one of the first stars of The Bill to be interviewed by Oliver Crocker for The Bill Podcast.

[dominickeating-source]

Dominic Keating Interview (2002)

British actor Dominic Keating hails from a mid-sized city in the middle of England called Leicester (pronounced "Lester"). Although now on a hit U.S. TV show, he hasn't forgotten his roots and the city of his birth. "Well, you can take the boy out of Leicester ?! I go to Leicester quite a lot. My mum still lives there. She's actually coming out this Christmas for the first time. She's going to visit me in LA. I love living in Los Angeles, but I'll never say never anymore."

With ten weeks off during the show's hiatus, did he have a chance to visit his homeland? "I did, yes. I also went to Germany to do a convention. It was my first Star Trek convention abroad — huge amount of fans. There were around 6,000 people there. And, officially, they haven't seen the show there. I told them I was the captain!"

Premature captaincy aside, he's not doing too badly for a boy from the midlands with no formal acting training. Instead, his education was on the job. "Pretty much, yes. I didn't go to an 'official' drama school. I didn't get in, actually," he confesses.

But persistence pays off and, like most actors, he started out small and worked his way up. "I got my first job at the Man in the Moon pub theatre at the bottom of King's Road in Chelsea. I did a play there called 'The Best Years of Your Life,' which got quite a bit of notice. It's a very moving play about an apprentice soccer player for Chelsea who was struck down with spinal cancer. I played his brother, and got a bit of notice from that. I then got my first proper agent and kicked off from there. Went off to [the] Edinburgh [Festival] with Timothy Spall and did a play up there that got a lot of notice in the summer of the following year. From that I met the writer of a sitcom called Desmond's (Trix Worrell), who cast me in the show, which ran six years. Meteoric rise!"

Citing influences such as James Bond or the "Carry On?" movies — a franchise of innuendo-laced British comedies — Dominic also points to an actor whose legendary career spanned several decades: Rod Steiger. "I was in my sitting room watching him in one of those movies, I think it was 'No Way to Treat a Lady,' where he played something like eight characters and I definitely remember a moment, as a ten or eleven-year old, thinking 'I wonder if I could do that?'" Ironically, this particular influence later became a professional contact. "I got to work with Rod a few years ago on a film called 'The Hollywood Sign,'" Keating says. "It was a great honor to meet him. He wasn't that pleased, though, when I reminded him how long ago it was that he made that movie."

His one other big influence dovetails nicely into what he does now. "I did watch the first Star Trek series pretty religiously."

Entertainment wasn't all TV and movies for Keating. "My mum took me to the theatre at an early age. I think the first play I ever saw was an Alan Ayckbourn play, 'How the Other Half Loves.' I remember a man in the audience in front of us turned around and told me to be quiet because I was laughing so hard! Typical, eh?"

Without the conventional drama school life, Dominic faced something many actors fear: a regular job. His r?sum? is nothing if not a bit unconventional. There were the typical bartending and waiting jobs, most of which he claims to be fired from, but there were also other odd jobs that seem miles away from an actor's calling. "I've done a plethora of things. I worked in a knitting factory in Nottinghamshire; I've worked in a rubber molding factory in Colville, making rubber moldings for car doors. I did a lot of work for the Manpower Services. One of my favorite tasks was going along to the schools where the coal cog had been blocked up by some part of a metal chair that some kids had stuck down the coal chute. My mate and I used to show up in my first VW Bug and then bury ourselves down in this coal chute and unclog the offending article and get that cog working again! I also did a bit of painting and decorating, the usual thing."

When stateside success finally landed, in the form of his Enterprise role, what did Dominic do with his first paycheck? "Good question! I did take a photograph of the first check, actually. Because it was a double episode for the pilot, it was the largest check I'd ever been paid in one lump sum."

Showing good monetary sense, he claims to be fiscally responsible. "I'm pretty good with money. I don't know that I went out and bought anything, because I knew what I was going to do," he pauses. "I'm sitting in it now, my beautiful Hollywood home out here in the canyon looking out on a beautiful summer's day. I knew I wanted to buy this house, or a house like it. The first season I literally just socked it away and I didn't buy a new car. I drove my old '87 Bronco, and I only just got rid of that about a month ago. I put money away for a down payment on the house. Six months ago, my girlfriend and I moved in and we love it!"

Surely he celebrated when he got the part on Enterprise? "You know what I did? I was with John Billingsley (Phlox) — we were the first two cast — and we went out and had a coffee together and called a bunch of our friends on our cell phones while we were supping on our double-latte mochas, or whatever. I came home to the two rooms that I was renting in Beachwood Canyon and I put on a CD on my portable player and went out for a walk up around the canyon. I went to look at some of the houses that I could now afford to buy and noticed the nice cars that were driving past me, thinking, 'Ah, I could probably get one of those as well,'" he says. "I went for a long walk and let it all soak in. Then on the way back down the hill, I popped in at my friend's house — his mother was over from England — and he could tell by the cheesy grin on my face. He knew I had been in the auditioning process for this job and he went, 'You got it didn't you? You bloody got it!'

"I've taken a few people to dinner since then."

One of the great luxuries about being cast in a Star Trek show is there is a good chance you won't be cancelled after 13 episodes. But even so, the threat will always be there. "Well, one hopes not. As long as you keep your nose clean and don't piss anyone off too much!"

Even with a job like this, an actor's dream, there is still a certain amount of anxiety in taking the part. "I had a brief moment on the Bridge in the first couple of days when I was pressing button 502 over and over again. The thought crossed my mind, 'I'll never do Ibsen.' Then the first check arrived and I thought, 'Ibsen, Shmibsen!' There was some trepidation. You are signing yourself up for a long haul playing one character. But I was at a time in my life where I wanted the security that a job of this nature was going to offer me. I was very excited about the prospect of being able to afford actually having a family, an educated child."

Keating's character, Malcolm Reed, is also someone he is grateful for. "They've given me so much to do on this show — like "Shuttlepod One." To be honest, it's the best work I've ever done in front of a camera," he says proudly. "They've given me another episode like that in the second season, episode three — "Minefield" — myself and Scott [Bakula] in a two hander on the exterior of the ship and floating in space. It's a fantastic piece of writing that Brannon [Braga] came up with."

But there may be more in store for the Starfleet officer. "I talked briefly with Brannon about this, and I know that the one thing he appreciates about the way Malcolm Reed's developed is that he is truly at odds with his character and he is quite enigmatic. You cannot pigeonhole this character. You can, but he does have the ability to play at odds with himself and not have the audience say, 'That's not in character.' I think the one thing Brannon appreciates, and I certainly do, is that Malcolm Reed is very human. 'Shuttlepod One' allowed the audience to see that. I think he can take this character any which way. I would love to see them explore a very dark side to Reed, something in the way of a Laurence-Harvey-tortured-man. And if anyone can write that for this character, it's Brannon Braga."

Working on a show like Star Trek can be taxing if you are in every scene in every episode, but for most, that isn't really a problem. "It's such a great job and because it's an ensemble piece, we don't work every day. The days I have off, I so appreciate now. I've got a bit of money now so I can go for sushi or take my girlfriend someplace nice. I also love body boarding and I've just started taking up surfing. I just graduated to standing up on the wave. And I adore golf. And there it is — I get back and I've got four wonderful scenes with great actors and such camaraderie. It truly is a dream, dream job. I'll sorely miss it when it's over. And it'll come about too soon. Seven years seems quite a long time, but you know what, it'll fly by and it will be sad when it's over."

In the meantime, occasional brushes with celebrity are bound to happen. "It happened the other night for the first time. Two weekends ago, my neighbors took me and my girlfriend out with some friends of theirs. They rented a limo and we went to the opening of this rather swanky, new, swish restaurant here in LA, opened by this trendy chef called Fred. The limo pulled up and I didn't realize what a circus it was going to be when we got there. We took our steps on to the red carpet and as we were walking down the red carpet — and I've been to Star Trek events and UPN events before, where I understood there would be people there who would want to take pictures of me but I didn't expect this for a second — all these photographers started shouting out my name. I was absolutely bowled over! I've got Beck in front of me, Gwen Stefani two back from me and they're shouting, 'Over here, Dominic, over here!' It really took me by surprise. I can't say that I didn't like it, but it really did take me by surprise. I had a bit of the recognition thing back in England after doing [the sitcom] Desmond's for a few years. I don't want to say I'm used to being recognized, but I'm certainly not phased by it. I was prepared. That moment coming out of the limo was definitely like, 'Oh, I've arrived.'"

His future bright, Dominic Keating can wonder comfortably what it holds. "Who knows? Certainly for the foreseeable future, I can't see why I would want to move back to England full-time. I still have a flat there. Nothing would thrill me more than to come back to London during the hiatus and do a really good play. Or maybe live in London for a couple of years after the show finishes ? do some guest roles on other shows, maybe.

"I'm really happy with the way things have panned out. I'm still a young man, [I'll] still be fairly fresh when I come out the other end. I think I'm pretty versatile."

Source: startrek.com

[odetoviscera]

Liveblogging Mission: Impossible, I Guess

alright let’s start with FOR THE RECORD this is ENTIRELY the fault of @leupagus, who always does this to me, i swear to god i have been onboarded to more media by this villain (affectionate)’s posts than any other, so goddamnit it here we go MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE I GUESS

I GOT A PARAMOUNT+ SUBSCRIPTION FOR THIS AND BY GOD I’M GONNA BLOG ABOUT IT

warning: liveblogging below.

FIRST MOVIE. 1996. I AM SIX YEARS OLD. I DO NOT WATCH THIS FILM CONTEMPORANEOUSLY FOR OBVIOUS REASONS. i have a vague memory of watching it at some point in my teens, but remember almost nothing except a vague impression of like. A Claustrophobic Hallway. might not be from this movie. i’ll call it out if it’s real!

OH my god the paramount military drum roll is alternating left and right channel in my headphones. brain is flustered. inauspicious beginning.

(dead prostitute even less auspicious beginning.)

(undead prostitute/agent?)

ah I see they are spying on Russian Rocky Balboa and the (un)dead prostitute is a plant.

OH Tom Cruise is the cleaner, I was wondering why he wasn’t in the room with all the surveillance equipment. hang on, did MI INVENT the Suspiciously Lifelike Plastic Mask Gag? also yes that was the least horrific screengrab i could manage.

so undead prostitute and Mr. Cruise clearly have Chemistry. I do sort of wish undead prostitute’s first lines had not been in a ridiculous baby voice lol.

OPENING CREDITS. god, that was the logo? very b-average middle school powerpoint presentation. wait, tom cruise was a producer on this? on the FIRST one? damn, this really is the man’s anchor franchise.

these opening credits have TV Show vibes-- you know, “here’s a bunch of split-second clips of future episodes” except all for one movie. which is... oh right, movies used to be under 2 hours.

is this how we did movies on flights back in the day? a stewardess walks around with a tray of cassettes like she’s shilling the in-flight snacks??? nowadays to pull this stunt you’d have to have a coded conversation with a chatbot and convince it you know which squares contain stop signs before it would deliver your self-destructing message.

also the contrasting formality of codewords and passphrases and top-secret clearances and shit (displayed where any passing passenger could see it walking to the bathroom MY GUY WHERE IS YOUR OPSEC)-- paired with the Voice On The Radio calling mr. phelps JIM several times is kind of wild. everything is simultaneously deadly serious national security threat and “two dads discussing their respective divorces at a barbeque”. also i can’t tell them apart yet and their hair is too similar, which of these lady agents is undead prostitute and is it claire, jim’s wife (which, btw, seems like a conflict of interest) bc if so the divorce thing may be more literal, tom “ethan hunt” cruise was getting pretty soft-boy handsy with her face

mid-briefing YEP UNDEAD PROSTITUTE IS THE WIFE, also in person it’s very clear how much younger she is than jim, wonder how that relationship came about. also also SEEDS OF SUSPICION sown about why jim is always swanning off on “recruiting assignments” and the team doesn’t know where he is during these times. also maybe i’m paranoid I DID READ THE POSTS @leupagus

"if they're exposed, they'll be executed." bit of a buzzkill there jim

so much intra-team flirting! you’d think that would be counter-regulations but i guess jim is married to one of his operatives so the rules must be pretty lax lol

okay no mr. hacker/the team q making ethan a stick of EXPLOSIVE GUM when ethan has been chewing gum this ENTIRE set of scenes during the planning of the op-- that is a piss-take, lol. that is a loving piss-take. this is “here you dumb bastard i made something in your colour” energy. JUST DON’T CHEW IT. i’m love them. i know they die and i will be upset about it.

the first-person perspective is fascinating film-making. (obviously i, obsessive video game nerd, am making immediate parallels to video games that won’t come out for another half decade or so, lol.) this feels so disjointed and claustrophobic, though-- it’s a narrower FOV than you usually see in a first-person perspective, and we don’t have any of his peripheral vision. being trapped in ethan’s head (or more correctly, i suppose, in the camera on his glasses) seeing only what’s in his field of vision for these scenes is making me overanalyze everything lol. i feel like half the guests are staring at him.

oop, meanwhile jack is fighting elevators. i worry for my boy. i have known him five minutes. i should not have learned he had a name other than “mr. hacker” now i’m invested.

dslkfhas;ldkfhas;lkh stop roasting him ethan he’s in an elevator shaft! on a 1996 laptop!

elevator/spy tetris

oh my god this mark had a FLOPPY DISK on his person. the 90s were insane.

The Flirting Continues

ah, the classic Lover’s Embrace Distraction. kind of interesting to see this done with sarah, who is NOT ethan's flirtatious love interest (that's claire; sarah has something maybe going somewhere someday with jack, hypothetically) honestly it kind of reinforces that this is very much just an "it's part of my day job" move for them, i like it. and they both move into it very fluidly, without discussion or hesitation-- it's a standard play.

oh noooo jack. “i don’t have control” says jim, man who just had control. HMM I HAVE DOUBTS YOU ASSHOLE. :(((

…hang on, is the drunk laughing couple the pair i clocked staring at ethan earlier in the night or am i hallucinating bc i can’t tell actors apart

ooooh, ethan’s going off book. admittedly the book is bad but still, bad form.

“they’re covering this frequency, cut all radio communication” mmkay except what’s your evidence of that, bc we’ve seen nothing to indicate that’s the case-- jack was killed where he was supposed to be during the whole op, and you could have been spotted and shadowed from the safehouse. none of that had to be gleaned from radio communications

Convenient Les Miz River Death. also the angle on that gun ethan saw in his little camera watch was pretty sus, but he's under a lot of stress, so i won't hold it against him for not noticing.

ethan, babe, how you gonna call an abort right after ignoring an abort, of course she’s not listening to you. (however, heartbreaking: the tiny little “god!” when he takes off running back to sarah. guy is having the worst night of his life and it’s just getting started.)

WELL THERE GOES CLAIRE AND HANNAH

sarah's still following the mark so i assume she was too far away to hear that. and i KNEW there was something shifty with the drunk couple

damn the mark is getting got too. aaaand finally sarah. full house.

EVERYBODY got fucked on this op

kdfjal;skdhf;lakh god idk if i’m even supposed to trust the nice calm voice on the phone (Kittridge) like my dude ethan is focused on relaying the vital intel (little bit of shouting but the circumstances are, admittedly, DIRE AS FUCK) and you’re using your soothing kindergarten voice.

“one hour, i’ll be there myself” BITCH? HOW? YES ETHAN EXACTLY THE FUCK, WHY IS THIS GUY IN PRAGUE??? SUSPICIONS RAISED AGAIN

aquarium diner is kind of out of place/distinctive here. like, cool location, but damn, not what i’d call inconspicuous. 

i think the shock is setting in, ethan’s walking like he’s half-dead already and so far the worst that’s happened to him physically is Running A Lot.

oooh, ethan spotted something. OH OKAY the drunk pair and the embassy pair were two differently suspicious pairs lol.

extreme dutch angle on kittridge. spooky boy. not the first dutch angle we've seen so far, even in this scene, but definitely the one i've noticed the most.

oof. whole team died for Nothing. ethan’s resistance to aborting the mission was AT LEAST partly predicated on the threat that had been presented-- literally dozens, if not hundreds, of lives directly in the crosshairs if that list got out. and it’s fucking. Nothing. and as far as ethan can possibly know at this point, the only reason the WHOLE team got wiped out is that he ignored the abort. sarah, at least, he could have hypothetically saved by keeping her with him instead of sending her after the mark.

“dying slowly in america, after all, can be a very expensive proposition.” BITCH. MURDER HIM ETHAN. SET THIS WHOLE PLACE ON FIRE. anyway, this was in 1996, nice to see capitalism hasn’t improved at all in nearly thirty years. doing great. oh the explosive gum, YES BABE, jack’s last gift to you! blow a bitch up!

“kittridge, you’ve never seen me very upset” ooooh the VENOM. ethan has been kind of a kitten so far-- soft boy, very few stunts actually! kind of a jokes boy! he’s a PERFORMANCE ARTIST, his role has been Wear The Mask and play a specific part. he is, in leverage terms, the SOPHIE, not the eliot. we have not actually seen a SINGLE instance of real violence from him yet-- even taking out Russian Rocky Balboa was with a drugged drink that sarah delivered.

alright admittedly blowing up the aquarium was probably the better move but i would have liked to see kittridge get it in the face

also holy FUCK ethan can run

now here's a logistical question: does this count as an Ethan Stunt? bc so far he hasn't done any of the characteristic No One Else Would Do This shit that is famously his hallmark. i don't think this does count, honestly-- it's fairly low stakes by the standards of an Ethan Stunt, and although obviously the fish are gonna be upset about it, the overall risk to ethan himself is not high. worst case scenario if he couldn't outrun the flood was getting arrested. i'm gonna call this Typical Spy Nonsense unless someone can convince me otherwise.

listen i know all this counter-espionage shit like crunching the lightbulb to make a broken glass noise trap and unscrewing the hall light is shit he was taught in Spy School however i would like to forward that my IMMEDIATE thought whenever he does something clever is just OH MY BOY IS SO SMART

i have trauma-bonded with ethan hunt. it took exactly half an hour. goddamn it, i get it now @leupagus

And Now He Has A Gun, let’s see if he uses it.

okay the emergency money not being in the safehouse is another dick move by jim.

job 314… job 3:14?

OH MY GOD IT IS

seriously is this what the internet was like in 1996. i was an aol kid, i missed the usenet era, but i also don’t trust hollywood to know what the internet was like lol

MY BOY IS SO SMART

although doing all this in what must be the compromised safe house maybe is less so

here begin the PTSD Nightmares

oh shit! claire’s not dead! alright maybe the gun wasn’t such a great addition to the inventory lol although i’ll given ethan points for what looks, to my very untrained eyes, like a pretty solid firing posture. maybe got his elbows locked a little but he’s Stressed.

the Aggressively Sexual Frisking i could do without. very 90s though lol, and i will forgive ethan’s behaviour bc he’s having a Very bad night and claire’s shock isn’t helping with his justifiable paranoia. STILL. BE BETTER.

claire still using that baby voice. ma’am please speak with your whole chest, you sound like a toddler, i can’t take you seriously.

Spy Shenanigans ahead. back in ethan’s limited POV for a bit! i like the framing on the pickup car responding to the match.

ooh, max is a maxine.

dutch angle on max. they like that technique a lot. and a very tight framing. 

fkjha;djfh;lksh MA’AM. you haven’t even CLEANED THE BLOOD OFF, you’re gonna gunk up your disk reader

imf sure is efficient-- okay no i love the cleaning lady just “fuck it, i keep vacuuming”

Fucking Kittridge. this man has the most smarmy affect upon this earth outside of an actual british butler in a murder mystery. also what looks like an extremely fake tan. hate his guts. wish him death.

ethan has been 100% Manic Grin at max since the mask came off and i am not sure how much of that is a front and how much is ethan running at 100% capacity on 10% fuel. let this man have a nap.

lol max likes him. he’s Charmed her. “aggressive, but playful” is her type lol.

god are claire and ethan STILL staying in the safehouse? i mean I GUESS at this point imf must not know the location but this still seems dicey.

i get the impression claire actually loved jim, which makes this whole setup Wild. The Chemistry is there with her and ethan, but clearly nothing has actually come of it at this point, and if/when it does, it will be totally justifiable bc she is, to her knowledge, A WIDOW. really played yourself there, jimbo.

oooh, they’re gonna hook up with other disavowed ex-spies. …however, i will observe that it seems ULTRA FUCKING STUPID to keep a list of the people you’ve explicitly decided to cut ties with??? isn’t the point of disavowing/burning an agent that they can’t be legally tied to your organization? imf competency varying wildly lol

damn, they’re getting fucking leon on the team lol. hang on i have to google something-- yes, leon: the professional came out two years before mission impossible, this joke works.

ethan as mission planner is Much ballsier than he was as a point man/Face lol

oh my god luther’s Hacker Names lol

luther the fact that you know this much about the system already suggests you’ve thought about it lol

ethan: i’m hiring you for an impossible job the team: no such thing ethan:  Let Me Explain

luther looks like his hopes and dreams are crashing down around his ears during this security breakdown lol

Theme Music!

we love an Emergency Services Scam. big bulky costume and everybody’s in too much of a panic to think too clearly.

oop, krieger’s a loose cannon, lol. (leon!) guess ethan is still hoping to get his job back, doesn’t want to Kill Coworkers. understandable. holding out hope for an exception being made for kittridge.

i wondered if this vent crawl might count as the first proper Ethan Stunt, but krieger’s doing it with him, so i think it’s still on the side of “a comparatively sane operative would do this”.

sidebar, tom cruise in this glasses headset getup is giving me farscape john crichton vibes, which is baffling given john crichton does not wear glasses.

oh we TRAP the laser instead of turning it off. Clever.

krieger sneeze into your ELBOW my guy.

and this is the iconic Hanging From The Ceiling Scene! oh holy shit i didn’t realize krieger was there to HOLD ETHAN’S BODY WEIGHT, damn.

excellent treatment of the tension with the silent shot and only luther’s whispered warnings. ethan is remaining REMARKABLY phlegmatic.

holy shit this guy would be the most annoying officemate. i mean i know he’s been poisoned but still. get thee to a cubicle nowhere near me.

that flip! my boy is BALLETIC

OOOOH NO WHY ARE THERE MICE IN THE VENTS OF THIS SUPER SECURE AGENCY. MOUSE THEY GOT LASERS HERE WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING

df;lakddf;laklsh;lk aaaand the slip

excellent handling of the tension again

legit how did ethan get his hand into position for this catch with so little space

KRIEGER YOU DUMB BITCH SECURE YOUR KNIFE

and now there actually is an evacuation! lol. back to the safehouse.

krieger is gonna be a problem if you don’t communicate, ethan. ah, yes, and here we see him proving me right. we know a bastard when we see one.

MY BOY. IS SO. SMART.

i’ll be surprised if we keep working with krieger lol he doesn’t seem like he takes an insult well

OH HO. DRAKE HOTEL IN THE GIDEON BIBLE. the penny drops.

oh, i think ethan’s suspicious of claire again. jim’s wife, after all.

oop! kiss! but is it legit or is it to throw him off his game?

man, no one play poker with ethan hunt.

“i’m not gonna let this get out in the open.” luther for best boy

oh my god kittridge you fuckwit

seriously ethan do a murder you’ve earned it

holy shit is that jim in the phone booth next to ethan???

IT IS

blaming kittridge. couldn’t throw a nicer asshole under the bus, lol

oh excellent touch with ethan envisioning it with the knowledge that it’s actually jim. doesn’t fall for it for a second, but plays along, and lets the audience in on it. we get to see exactly how smart ethan is, without a doubt, but jim doesn’t get clued in. smart, smart movie.

oh shit! krieger was the assassin on the op! i missed that completely

and now ethan's debating claire’s involvement with himself.

my poor boy looks like he’s gonna have a breakdown right here at the table

“you got a lousy marriage and 62 grand a year” first of all, bitch, your wife is extravagantly attractive and doesn’t seem to be an idiot or an asshole, your marriage is probably fine; second of all, in the year of any lord 2023, NEVERMIND in 1996 money, i would kill for 62 grand a year. shut the fuck up.

okay, jim keeping the secret from claire PROBABLY clears her

love ethan continuing to write to max with bible verses bc she thought it was fun the first time lol

tasteful fade to black lol

honestly why are they bothering with having the shade pulled down to hide jim’s face lol

dlfkahsd;lkfhas;lk max enjoys ethan SO MUCH lol. i am undecided on whether she wants him carnally but i suspect she wouldn’t complain if he suggested it

oh no! overly helpful train attendant gave the game away!

oooh, max is playing both sides. unsurprising lol

i’m here for claire’s Itty Bitty Skirt.

oh shit! she DOES know about jim! damn it claire, i believed in you! fortunately ethan is more suspicious than me lol

“having tasted the goods” fucking classy, jim

eyyyy! foiled by the camera glasses! can’t believe i have to be team kittridge. offensive.

well, there goes claire. and ethan still isn’t quite at full Action Man, so he gets the shit knocked out of him.

okay i think ethan climbing the back of a bullet train with no assistive devices is his actual first Ethan Stunt. this is where this shit starts to get beyond “spy shenanigans” and into “i have no time to plan and no one else to rely on, so my improvisation is the WILDEST SHIT YOU’VE EVER IMAGINED”

fkha;ldkfha;lskhdl;kh he never did actually use that gun outside of pointing it at claire Once or perform any other acts of violence, so ethan’s first confirmed attempted murder is tying a helicopter to a train to fuck kreiger. of course.

the gum again! ethan did jack give you a whole PACK of that. also i’d like to point out that, while the circumstances are certainly warranting it-- he hasn’t got his hands free, he’s holding on to a helicopter-- when jack first presents ethan with the explosive gum, ethan handles it like it is a Very Delicate Grenade, and now he’s pulling it out of the packaging with his teeth. we are definitely past ethan caring much about his personal safety.

ethan legit came like. two inches from death.

wonder if luther’s gonna get reinstated for his part in this stunt

sounds like yes!

aaaand the chatbot stewardess is back and not taking no for an answer. guess ethan doesn't get to retire after all.

-----

ALRIGHT. LIVEBLOG COMPLETE. Claustrophobic Hallway never appeared, although there was a generally claustrophobic feeling to the whole film due to the very tight shots sometimes. i was haunted by the vague sense that i should know more about this movie than i did, lol.

in summary: ethan hunt is such a good boy and he is having SUCH A BAD TIME. literally at the end of his harrowing revenge/name-clearing adventure he just gets on a plane to england-- maybe back to those london apartments he liked? seems like it would have bad memories now, which has some interesting implications for how ethan deals with his traumas, namely “go roll around in them for a while and see if they start to feel comfortable instead of horrifying”. he’s so disillusioned with the whole pack of them that the tells luther he can’t imagine why he’d be doing it if he went back, and promises to remember luther as “disreputable”.

something i noticed while going back to get some screengrabs to illustrate a few of these points-- in the team briefing, the whole team is never framed together around the table. in fact, i believe this is the only time we’ll even see them all in the same frame. in the opening shots, sarah is on the other side of the room, pulling the shade down. claire is sitting next to ethan, and ALWAYS finds a way to be very close to ethan outside of the actual operations, which leads me to wonder how much of the Chemistry™ was being manufactured even this early on (and, by extension, earlier than the film shows us.) also poor hannah gets almost no job on this op and almost no characterization in this movie. they could have cut her out entirely and nothing would have been lost.

also in retrospect there were more clues about claire’s culpability-- she tells ethan later (during the Aggressively Sexual Frisking) that she walked away when the abort was called, but we SAW HER sitting in the car, watching ethan speedwalk past her with a frown, after she said she had already complied with that order. ethan says this when he's holding her at gunpoint, and she never actually produces a compelling explanation, she just kind of hustles us all past that by getting teary-eyed! excellent manipulation! she already knew the plan at that point, and presumably if ethan had complied with the command to abort the mission, he would have been somewhere else that claire and jim had predicted he’d be for their frame job to work. possibly claire’s Wiles would have come into things at some point there, instead of the 4am Frisk that ended up happening.

also also not to be "ethan hunt is feminine-coded" on main, but ethan hunt has quite a few Cinematically Feminine traits, especially in this action spy genre. he is the subject of violence, not the performer of it. he runs AWAY from confrontations instead of engaging them. his most successful grifts are Conversations and Disguises, and he mostly uses those tools to de-escalate. claire tells him how many bullets he has for his TWO GUNS at one point, and he never fires a single one. he is blind-folded, taken to the villain's lair, charms the villain with his good looks and witty banter. his one moment of really Macho Aggression is in a panic after a PTSD nightmare, is ultimately defused, and never recurs. will be interested to see how this develops in further films.

10/10, if ethan hunt was a dog he would be a border collie.

[bookish-bi-mormon]

Source

I hate suburbs I hate isolationism I hate it here

(ID under cut)

[ ID: Screenshots from an academic essay in plain text reading:

"Oldenburg discusses the dramatic decrease in public space as the plight of America. “In their kind and number, there has been a marked decline in gathering places near enough to people’s homes to afford the easy access and familiar faces to a vital informal public life. The course of urban development in America is pushing the individual toward that line separating proud independence from pitiable isolation (Oldenburg 1989, xvi). Oldenburg’s sociological theory of third place preceded the takeover of social media and smartphones, but even in the 1980s, he observes “America does not rank well on the dimension of her informal public life … her citizens are encouraged to find their relaxation, entertainment, companionship, even safety, almost entirely within the privacy of homes” (Oldenburg 1989, xvi – xvii). His desperation over Americans retreating to their first places and reducing social interaction is in keeping with our current retailer exodus where chain stores and malls, the quintessential gathering place of the latter part of the 20th century, are shuttering daily.

Oldenburg attributes the increased isolation of Americans, in part, to a desire for convenience, a deemphasized informal public life, and reliance on self-help (Oldenburg 1989, 285–292). Busy, working Americans view third places as inconvenient because it takes effort and time to visit them, and their presence in society has lessened (Oldenburg 1989, 286–287). The health and fulfillment benefits of third place have been abandoned, and Americans seek to solve their own emotional and mental troubles or turn to professionals in a formal setting. This decline in third places increases the urgency for libraries to accept the social responsibility of providing space in the public sphere. Libraries are still vulnerable to the isolation habits of the general public just like any third place, but the principles that libraries represent and the values they are capable of preserving, suspend the hasty fate to which franchise stores have fallen victim. The synergy for preserving libraries comes from history, core values, and a future sanctity of public.

We may not need third place association to build a town hall anymore, but we sorely need it to construct the infrastructures of human relationships. Ever since the solidifying effect of World War II passed into history, Americans have been growing further apart from one another. Lifestyles are increasingly devoid of gathering places. To the extent of our affluence, we avoid public parks, public playgrounds, public schools, and public transportation (Oldenburg 1989, 2).

Following World War II, veterans returning home were able to obtain singlefamily dwellings in the suburbs with the privacy they desired at low cost (Oldenburg 2002, 4). There was a deemphasis on local pubs, and the suburban housing development represented retreating from public life rather than nurturing its shared spaces. In his book, Individualism and Public Life, Ralph Ketchum discusses the postwar trend of individualism and says “the suburb put people on their own in a way that contrasted sharply with traditional understandings of community” (Ketcham 1987, 9). The American flightpath was headed for private ownership and a concealed existence as opposed to the more collective focus of its predecessors. The bearings of a private life became associated with prosperity and well-being. Simultaneously, corporations flourished in America post war (Oldenburg 2002, 4). Relative to this corporate occupation are Frank Webster’s words regarding the capitalist encouragement and subsequent deterrent of the public sphere: “the capitalist state came into being: as such its adherents increasingly turned their backs on an agitational and argumentative role and used the state – now dominated by capital – to further their own ends” (Webster 2014, 165). The American business model turned to privatization just as individuals retreated to a more private life"

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