#Maybe I should just make a new Halloween icon? Is there just. Something cursed about the picture???? /hj

[generation-fucked-nostalgia]

This is the 2nd year in a row where I've tried to change my pfp to my ~Spoooky October icon~ and Tumblr has immediately and inexplicably marked me as mature for it. 🤦‍♀️ Why does this keep happening to me??? @support

[julie1706]

Julie’s incredibly aesthetic incredibly autumny list of movies that she maybe recommends:

Alright! Hi there! 

My name is Julie, and I really love fall. I love hot tea, warm blankets, candles, ghost stories, fog and I really, really love rain. I never get tired of any of the aspects of fall, but I think the easiest way to really soak up the atmosphere (aside from amazing books, which I don’t really have the time for), is movies! Here, “autumny” movies. 

But that’s a really vague term, and I think many people have a very individual idea of what a fall movie is, that don’t really line up with mine. So the most obvious thing seems to me, to make one myself. 

I’m guessing one, maybe two or three people will see this, and I count myself as one of them. The others (hej Sif og Malin!!) might not even get to read this, but if they do, I hope they like it. I hope you like it, Malin and Sif! Also, I love you! And miss you!

Right. I’ve seen a lot of examples of the “list of movies to watch in the fall/autumn”, and they’re all fine and great, but I guess I’ve never been completely satisfied with them, as I mentioned. 

So after like 10 minutes of research, I’ve made up my own list, of movies I thought seemed interesting or just plain cozy and nice. I admit, they aren’t ranked, sorry, and I haven’t watched all of them, so a good deal of these will really just be mentioned because of optimism. Also, I don’t think there’s a lot of scary ones, so don't worry. 

And I promise I will mention if they’re very spooky. I’ll put a warning like: “Warning! Spooky!”, at the top or something. That should do it. 

Lets get started! :-)

1. Practical Magic

This first one I actually saw some years ago, with my mom, when I was much younger. I liked it, but I have a feeling I will like it even more, if I watch it today. A really classic halloween, witchy movie, that was surprisingly touching in the family aspect!

Official synopsis: 

Two witch sisters, raised by their eccentric aunts in a small town, face closed-minded prejudice and a curse which threatens to prevent them ever finding lasting love.

//Not very spooky, as I remember it. But good! Lovely witchy aesthetics!

2. Silence of the Lamps

Ugh, I love this movie! That might be a not so good thing to say, it’s really twisted. But I like how creepy it always is, no matter how much i watch it, and how the twists and turns never fail to be interesting, even though I know the plot by heart now. I love Clarisse, I love the foggy, grim nature of the movie, and I don’t really love Hannibal, he’s creepy, but you can’t deny that Anthony Hopkins really carry this movie! Perfect serial killer acting. If that’s a thing.

Official Synopsis: 

A young F.B.I. cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.

//VERY spooky! Or just plain scary. Sif - do not watch!! Many people are killed in many, gross ways.

3. Witch

Haven’t seen this one! I really want to, and have since it came out, but there haven’t really been any (legal) places to see it. I love the tension that was present even in the trailer, and the whole aspect of an oppressed young girl evolving and breaking free in the scariest way possible is really interesting. Not all horror movies are my thing, but I really hope this one will be! And I love everything about witches, so.

Official synopsis:

A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic, and possession.

//Warning! Just from the trailer, I can conclude that this one is very scary.

4. Julie and Julia

This one I haven’t actually seen either! I think I’ve spotted among my mom’s dvds, but nope, haven’t seen it. I don’t really know a lot about Julia Child either, but it seems like a super-heartwarming film, so I hurried to include it!

Official Synopsis:

Julia Child's story of her start in the cooking profession is intertwined with blogger Julie Powell's 2002 challenge to cook all the recipes in Child's first book.

//This one seems safe.

5. The Addams Family (Both of them are good!)

This one, the “first” one, I saw last year. It’s actually a remake of an older movie, which is apparently based on an even older comic -who knew? And there’s a second one, following this one, I might add later. But tt was so good! Gah! I loved it, and I’m definitely rewatching this year. Wow the whole vibe of this family is fantastic, and I wish more families in movies were as dedicated to an aesthetic as the Addams! Watch it! It’s so nice!

Official Synopsis:

Con artists plan to fleece an eccentric family using an accomplice who claims to be their long-lost uncle.

//I know it seems scary, but trust me, it’s fine! It’s really more funny than spooky. You’ll enjoy it, trust me!

6. Hocus Pocus

Alright, never seen this one! But when I joined tumblr, the americans were always bringing this one up, and it’s always included in those lists I was talking about earlier, and again, witches, so a no-brainer for me, to include on this list. Man I can’t wait to see it, I hope I’ll like it.

Official Synopsis:

A curious youngster moves to Salem, where he struggles to fit in before awakening a trio of diabolical witches that were executed in the 17th century.

//I have no idea what the spooky-level is in this, but it doesn’t seem that bad.

7. Halloween (the original)

I have wanted to see this in FOREVER! It’s such a classic, and a really iconic, classic, older horror movie. I don’t actually know why I haven’t seen it yet, it might only be because there was no place to watch it, the last time I checked. I hope it has changed, I really want to see it. It has all the classic tropes, and a scary serial killer, it really is a peak-halloween movie. Spot-on name, huh!

Official Synopsis:

Fifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.

//Might be a bit too scary for some. 

8. The Princess Bride

This is so good!! All the characters are straight of a fairy tale (literally), but they’re neither flat or boring. And the love story! Ah! I loooove it! I really enjoyed it last year, when I watched it, so I understand why it’s become such a classic. And there’s so many iconic lines in this movie. The whole mood of it is such good, and the plot isn’t the craziest thing, so watch it to relax!

Official Synopsis:

While home sick in bed, a young boy's grandfather reads him the story of a farmboy-turned-pirate who encounters numerous obstacles, enemies and allies in his quest to be reunited with his true love.

//Not scary, fret not!

9. The Craft

Have never seen or heard about this movie, until the morning, when I compiled this list. I kind of want to though, now that I’m promised 90′s teenage witches. Hell yeah! The more witches the merrier!

Official Synopsis:

A newcomer to a Catholic prep high school falls in with a trio of outcast teenage girls who practice witchcraft, and they all soon conjure up various spells and curses against those who anger them.

//No idea how spooky. Might be a little scary.

10. Sleepy Hollow (the one with Johnny Depp)

The legend of the Headless Horseman is famous, so that one I know. But this movie, which is based on that story, I haven’t seen. I can guess, though, the vibe from it’s original source material, and Johnny Depp and the male lead, and that makes me want to watch it! Also, how can you not, when you see all that fog?? So spooky and mysterious! I love fog!

Official Synopsis:

Ichabod Crane is sent to Sleepy Hollow to investigate the decapitations of three people, with the culprit being the legendary apparition, The Headless Horseman.

//Might be, like, ghost story-spooky. Or Tim Burton-spooky. Either of those. Hm. I don’t think it’s that bad? 

11. Scream

I LOVE SCREAM. SUCH AN ICONIC HORROR MOVIE. THANK YOU FOR USING ALL THOSE CLASSIC TROPES!! I love everything about this movie, and I might actually put it on when I’m done with this post, and watch it with a cup of tea and some popcorn if I can find some. The characters are delightfully flat and simple, what you see is what you get, and that actually makes this movie even better! It really feels like you’re watching THE halloween movie, it’s delightfully creepy and spooky, and I love it all. So. Much. Also - the lovely 90′s aesthetic is very much present in this one!

Official Synopsis:

A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a new killer, who targets the girl and her friends by using horror films as part of a deadly game.

//Spooky! If serial killers are not you thing, don’t watch it. Not that it’s my thing either, but, uh, if watching characters be chased and killed off by a masked individual really freaks you out, stay clear of this one :-)

12. Dark Shadows

Love this movie. Watched it in the cinema, have it on DVD, have watched it numerous times since, and I always enjoy it. Another Depp-movie, and he really pulls it off in this one, as a creepy but also weirdly funny vampire, who has lost his one true love, and wakes up in the 70′s (i think), to help his relatives, now living in his ancestral home, with getting back on their feet. A lot of wild stuff happens in this movie, and I adore it.

Official Synopsis:

An imprisoned vampire, Barnabas Collins, is set free and returns to his ancestral home, where his dysfunctional descendants are in need of his protection.

//Actually not that spooky! It’s not that bad, I think. Some places are a little scary, but there’s enough of humor present, that it should be fine!

13. Eve’s Bayou

I had never heard of this movie until this morning! But wow! It looks so dramatic and promising, doesn’t it? We will just have to see, I guess!

Official Synopsis:

What did little Eve see--and how will it haunt her? Husband, father and womanizer Louis Batiste is the head of an affluent family, but it's the women who rule this gothic world of secrets, lies and mystic forces.

//I have no idea. Really. I hope it’s a little bit spooky!

14. Clue

I have just played the game, sorry. And I enjoyed that, so I hope I will enjoy this too! No, I know I will, I love these stories, with really defined characters, like when someone is named “the soldier”, or “the socialite”. I’m sold, when stories like that are introduced to me. I really want to watch this movie! Also - young Tim Curry! Cool!

Official Synopsis:

Six guests are anonymously invited to a strange mansion for dinner, but after their host is killed, they must cooperate with the staff to identify the murderer as the bodies pile up.

//Nah. You’re good, with this one. Don’t worry.

15. Every Agatha Christie Movie

Yeah, sorry I want to watch every single film adaptation of her stories, and love them dearly. None of them can be bad, to me. But the only one I have watched, is the “Murder of the Orient Express”, and if I have to describe how much i love this one, this list will go on for much too long. I just really love this movie. I love the characters, I love the scenography, I love the choreography, just - Everything! It’s so pretty, and you will NEVER figure out the ending! I didn’t, at least. Watch it! It’s so good!

Official Synopsis:

When a murder occurs on the train on which he's travelling, celebrated detective Hercule Poirot is recruited to solve the case.

//Don’t worry about spookyness - there’s none! But watch it! 

16. Twilight

Perfect Autumn vibes! There is darkness, fog, rain, coldness, weird pale vampires, a nice love story - and most of it is out in a forest! Amazing! This whole movie seems to consist of only blue and green tones, in varying degrees of darkness, and I always sit with the feeling, that i can almost smell the rain and damp earth in these scenes. Great movie! Even greater use of atmosphere!

Official Synopsis:

Bella Swan moves to Forks and encounters Edward Cullen, a gorgeous boy with a secret.

//Not spooky!

17. Knives Out

Saw this in the cinema with my brother! I really love the main characters, and the plot is great too - I couldn't figure it out at all! I think it is a very creative, “new! approach to a murder mystery, and I applaud! Very autumny, very great sweaters from the female lead! Actually most of them have nice clothes, for this crisp, cold mystery movie!

Official Synopsis:

A detective investigates the death of a patriarch of an eccentric, combative family.

//Not very spooky! Don’t worry!

18. 10 Things I Hate About You

I watched this when i was like, 12, and definitely didn’t appreciate it. I think it based on Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew”. It’s one the best Rom-Coms I’ve ever seen! The dialogue is funny, the acting is fine, and the love stories are very cute! Also, I just adore Kate, like, in general! She’s so sour and surly! Watch this one, when you want to unwind and relax! Maybe with your friends. Or alone, that’s cool too!

Official Synopsis:

A pretty, popular teenager can't go out on a date until her ill-tempered older sister does.

//Not spooky, lol.

19. Mona Lisa Smile

I haven’t seen this one, except for the very last few minutes, on evening when my mom and I was zapping channels. So I have very little, very confusing knowledge of this movie, based on an ending, with no context. But my friend told me about it once, and wow, it sounds heartwarming! And Julia Roberts is pretty great, normally!

Official Synopsis:

A free-thinking art professor teaches conservative 1950s Wellesley girls to question their traditional social roles.

//Not spooky!

Well then! That was all the movies I had the time to compile this morning! I might add more, I’m sure there’s a few classics, I have forgotten!

I hope you have a great fall, with many chances to be with your family and friends, and experience all the amazing things this read, yellow, brown and orange season has to offer! Have a great day - and thank you for reading!

- Julie :-)

[ryqoshay]

Happy Life: Angelic Doujin

Primary Pairing: YohaRiko Words: ~1.2k Rating: K AU: Angelic? Time Frame: I’m going to say post college for now Story Arc: Stand Alone

Author’s Note: Reading the first chapter of my new fic, Heavenly Life: Cursed Blood is recommended prior to reading this. Yes, that is a shameless shill, but I hope with good reason.

“Riri, this… is really good.” Yoshiko set down the last page.

“You really like it?” Riko asked.

“Like it?” Yoshiko grinned. “I love it! Fighting with daggers and a scythe and dark magic sounds fun. And Riri is right there to heal and help and stuff when things get tough. And Phobetor can talk, and he’s a bratty little familiar, but loyal. And Mari… well Mari is being Mari. Gods, I don’t think I could serve under a captain like that…” A thought occurred to her. “You’re not going to make me do that in a later chapter, are you?”

Riko smiled at her girlfriend’s reaction. “We’ll see.”

“Riri…” Yoshiko whined, earning a laugh. “Anyway,” she regained her composure, but didn’t lose her excitement “I think you nailed us all pretty good here.”

“Thank you, Yocchan.” Riko replied with a smile before reaching to collect her work. “I’m glad you like it.”

“Just a moment.” Yoshiko blocked her. “I want to look at a few things again. Your drawing has really improved.” She shuffled through the pages to find what she sought, chuckling as she passed the images where her in-story self was oblivious to having been run through with a spear. But she had to pause on the depiction of Riko’s character. By the gods did she love that outfit.

“Are you sure you don’t want to post this?” The younger girl asked after a while of admiring the art. “I could guarantee some readers right off the bat if I were to announce this on my stream and put a link in the description. My little demons would love it. You know they would.”

“Hmm…” Riko pulled into herself a bit.

Yoshiko recognized this behavior and immediately stood to make her way around the table. Upon reaching her girlfriend, she leaned down and draped herself over her shoulders and hugged her gently.

“You know I’d never force you to do something you’re not comfortable with, Riri.” The blue-haired girl assured. “I just think your art is amazing and is worth sharing with others. I know how much joy you get from sharing your music, and this manga of yours is just another expression of your artistry.”

“I know.” Riko replied, pushing into the embrace a bit. “It’s just… It’s a bit embarrassing…”

“Embarrassing? Why? Because you used our real names?”

“Yeah…”

Yoshiko pursed her lips. “I was kinda wondering about that, to be honest. I mean, I don’t really mind, and I’m sure my little demons online would love it, but… Why not just change the names? You know, like that old show, <The story you are about to hear is true.>” She dropped her tone to mimic the iconic introduction in English. “<Only the names have been changed to protect the angels.>”

“<Innocent.>” Riko corrected.

“I know.” Yoshiko giggled. “<Only the needle should be changed to protect the record.>”

Riko sighed and shook her head as the other girl stretched the joke farther than was necessary. “I tried changing the names.” She admitted. “Came up with several for each of us, but as soon as I got caught up in the story or the drawing or whatever, I would forget and go back to using our real names. Eventually, I just gave up.”

“Hrm… Well, you could always change it digitally once you scan it in? Maybe I can help with the typesetting?”

“It also just doesn’t feel right.”

“Huh?”

“My dreams have become so vivid as of late, and it is very clearly us. It’s hard to imagine us as anyone else.”

“But we’re angels.”

“Yeah.”

“Doing cool angel stuff like flying and fighting demons and stuff.”

“Yeah.”

“Well again, it doesn’t bother me. And I doubt Mari would mind.” Yoshiko chuckled at a thought. “Heck, I could see her trying to figure out how to use it as advertising for her hotels.”

Riko laughed lightly as well. “That does sound like something she might try.”

“Although… Don’t normal fic and doujin readers often frown on self-insert stories?”

“Normal?”

“Well my little demons are far from normal, and I really don’t think they’d mind.”

“I hadn’t honestly thought about the self-insert thing, but now…”

“Sorry… I didn’t mean to make you more hesitant to publish…” Yoshiko thought for a moment about where to steer the subject next. “Will you include any of the others?”

“I don’t know.” Riko replied. “I’ve only ever dreamt of you, me and Mari for some reason.”

“Maybe because we spent so much time together as Guilty Kiss?”

“Maybe.”

“Or maybe because you and Mari were the focus pair of that angelic themed photoshoot?”

“I still think they should have chosen you instead of me.”

“Yohane is a fallen angel.” Yoshiko reminded. “My ‘Cursed Blood’ wouldn’t have done well there. Riri on the other hand is a perfect fit for an angel theme.”

“Mmm…”

“Oh c’mon.” Yoshiko rocked side to side a bit, pulling Riko along. “One of these days you’ll have to accept it.”

“I know…” Riko said with a small smile that her girlfriend couldn’t see. “But I suppose I could add the others. I’d just have to figure out how to fit them in, since I don’t remember dreaming about them.”

Yoshiko laughed. “Well now that you’ve said it, you know fate is going to figure out a way to make you remember. I believe certain individuals wouldn’t take too lightly to being forgotten.”

“True.”

“You know, Riri, if you publish this online now, you’ll have enough time to build up a bit of a fanbase before the next Comiket.”

Riko chuckled. “You’re obsessed with that event.”

“Because it’s awesome.” Yoshiko stated definitively. “Anyway, once you get some dedicated readers, you can print some paper copies and sell them at Comiket. I’d even help you get and run your vendor stand.”

“You want me to sell this?”

“I think it would sell just fine.”

“You may be biased.”

“Of course I am, but that’s not the point. You might be able to work out some trades with the other vendors, which means you could get some of your favorite romance stuff at cost.”

Yoshiko grinned as she heard her girlfriend’s sharp intake of breath that indicated she understood what was being suggested.

“A~nd, I’d be willing to make us outfits so we could cosplay as our characters.”

“You want us to cosplay… as ourselves?” Riko asked incredulously.

“Well, fictional angelic versions of ourselves, but yeah.”

“Hmm…”

“Unless of course you wanna swap like that one Halloween.”

“Alright, fine, I’ll post it.”

“You will?” Yoshiko blinked. “Wait, the cosplay thing is what did it for you?”

“Only because I want to see my Yocchan in this outfit.” Riko started to stand up.

“Well you kinda already did.” Yoshiko pointed out as her girlfriend turned toward her. “Didn’t you say it was based on that one photoshoot? I mean don’t get me wrong, it was a good set and I’d be happy to try to recreate it…”

“Or out of it.” Riko closed the distance between them and pulled the younger girl into a hug.

“Huh? Out of… Oh…” Yoshiko managed to get out before Riko leaned down and pressed her lips against hers. “You know,” She pulled away after a moment “I have plenty of other angel outfits that we could wear right n…” She was cut off again by Riko. This time, she got the hint and reciprocated immediately.

Author’s Note Continued in Followup Post

[ariesmode]

Zoyalai!!!! For the ship headcanons thing

who hogs the duvet: zoya, which annoys nikolai to no end in the winter because it’s cold smh 

who texts/rings to check how their day is going: nikolai likes texting zoya about things/people that remind him of her (“hey nazyalensky, i just saw someone wearing an outfit even you wouldn’t be able to pull off” “is that a challenge, lantsov?”) 

who’s the most creative when it comes to gifts: lbr what’s the use of nikolai’s skills if he can’t make gifts for his wife

who gets up first in the morning: zoya used to get up at like the crack of dawn everyday and she’s a light sleeper so its her most of the time. nikolai does get up earlier some days though (still, nightmares are more bearable now that she’s with him)

who suggests new things in bed: ... nikolai has a List™

who cries at movies: both; they just have an unspoken agreement to never, ever bring it up, though zoya does get tempted to say something to him sometimes when she thinks the film isn’t even worth crying over 

who gives unprompted massages: nikolai, but he has to be absolutely sure that zoya is fine with it – so when she’s too tired to say no – or else he risks getting a small electric shock 

who fusses over the other when they’re sick: they’re both guilty of doing this even though they’re very much aware that they both really hate it. zoya just does it with about 200% more cursing and threatening

who gets jealous easiest: nikolai is always, always suffering

who has the most embarrassing taste in music: nikolai has picked up so many songs from all over the world during his sturmhond days and some of his favorites are... questionable???

who collects something unusual: nikolai likes to collect random things that inspire him to invent, or improve on something he’s already made before 

who takes the longest to get ready: since zoya usually just goes for her kefta nikolai takes longer bc he takes a while to pick out his outfit for the day (as Style Icons do) though there are times he goes for the standard first army uniform instead. even then they don’t spend a lot of time getting ready anyway unless there’s a state event – when you’re ravka’s power couple couple the job scope includes looking effortlessly good and meaning it

who is the most tidy and organised: zoya’s workspace is super neat and organized bc she likes being able to reach for letters and folders easily. nikolais is a total Mess but somehow he still manages to find everything; it’s annoying and fascinating at the same time

who gets most excited about the holidays: honestly nikolai loves any excuse to celebrate anything (budget concerns aside lol). modern au!nikolai is the nerd who counts down to christmas once the 1st of november hits; he also loves dressing up for halloween ( “zoya, this year we should go as–” “no.” he always gets his way in the end though.) 

who is the big spoon/little spoon: zoya was never into it before – the great zoya nazyalensky does not cuddle – but she absolutely loves being the little spoon now. don’t tell anyone 

who gets most competitive when playing games and/or sports: they’re already extremely competitive individually (okay, maybe zoya just a tiny bit more) but it’s even worse when they’re against each other so watching them play chess is an Event, but the best part is how they both act casual as if winning isn’t a big deal to them. spoiler alert: it actually is

who starts the most arguments: Zoya Nazyalensky’s Legendary Temper™

who suggests that they buy a pet: there was no actual discussion – nikolai just impulsively brought back a puppy one day and zoya was just like wtf where did that even come from (zoya gets a cat in retaliation. also bc she’s just a huge cat person) 

what couple traditions they have: WALTZING AT BALLS!!! nikolai likes taking his wife out for ~*romantic*~ walks in the palace gardens at night just to take a break from working. when they’re apart, like when zoya has to travel and leave nikolai in os alta or vice versa, they write letters to each other everyday. oh and they send passive-aggressive missives to each other when they’re fighting even when they’re in the same room bc they’re THAT petty. peak romance

what tv shows they watch together: nikolai would absolutely, definitely be a HUGE star trek fan so there are days where all they do is marathon a season (zoya also got invested as time passed by, though not as much). he also loves how it’s made! + they like hate-watching reality tv sometimes too. it’s zoya’s guilty pleasure tbh

what other couple they hang out with: tamar/nadia, david/genya

how they spend time together as a couple: running a country together! mornings are their alone time though. they involve lots of snuggling and the sweet kisses nikolai’s been asking for (meanwhile, it took a while for everyone else to get used to the fact that meetings start later)

who made the first move: nikolai was the one who put an end to the years-long romantic tension and misery everyone had to endure though it wasn’t that obvious bc they’ve been acting like a couple for so long anyway until they see the ring on zoya’s finger and promptly freak out (he didn’t want to make a big formal announcement at the beginning bc he wanted some drama) 

who brings flowers home: NIKOLAI, OF COURSE

who is the best cook: look... let’s just say that it’s a good thing they don’t really have to cook 

[tomeandflickcorner]

OUAT Episode Analysis- Beauty

I’m gonna shake things up a bit this time around and focus on the present day stuff in Hyperion Heights first. The reason for that is because once I start talking about the flashback portion of the episode, I probably won’t be able to switch gears again very easily.  In a related story, consider this my disclaimer for this episode analysis: If you were among those who liked this episode and would rather not read something that could dampen your enjoyment of what befell the characters, then it’s okay if you skip over this one.  You won’t hurt my feelings if you decide not to read any further than this.  The last thing I want to do is to ruin things for the fans of the show who found this episode to be moving.

It’s Halloween in Hyperion Heights. But because Victoria/Parallel Evil Stepmother is a petty b-word and a sore loser after Jacinda/Parallel Cinder managed to save the Community Gardens, she has forbidden her from taking Lucy trick-or-treating.  Instead, the stepsister Ivy/Drizella is charged with taking Lucy around on her candy-gathering outing.  Of course, Ivy is not the least bit happy about this and is only consenting because she isn’t willing to stand up to her mother and just does whatever she’s told. So when they’re out trick-or-treating, Ivy doesn’t pay much attention to Lucy, or her desire to visit this haunted house in the area. Instead, she spends the time complaining that she’s stuck watching Lucy when she could have been at some Halloween party.  Lucy eventually gets sick of this and gives Ivy the slip, bribing a girl dressed like Elsa to masquerade as her for a bit. And because Ivy is focused on her phone, she doesn’t notice the switch until the Elsa girl speaks.

Ivy, desperate to find Lucy to avoid getting in trouble with her mother, is forced to head to the fried chicken restaurant where Jacinda works.  Unfortunately, she arrives just as Henry was working up the courage to ask Jacinda out on a date.   There was a scene earlier when he was at Roni/Regina’s bar, in which Henry was telling Roni/Regina about finding what he believes to be the graves of his wife and daughter and Roni/Regina gave him a pep-talk about putting old ghosts to rest and taking a chance at finding love again.  When Jacinda hears that Lucy ran off on Ivy, she’s fully prepared to just up and leave work.  But Henry, knowing that Jacinda would lose her job if she did so, offers to go and look for Lucy for her.  He even gives her his phone number so she could text him ideas of where Lucy might go. And again, while this was probably the best option as Jacinda really couldn’t afford to be fired from her job, I still feel she should quit that job and go work at Roni/Regina’s bar.  I just really want that jerk of a boss to get knocked down a few pegs.

Eventually, night falls, but Lucy still hasn’t been found.  That’s when Henry and Ivy have a heart-to-heart about not being afraid to take a chance and just live your life to the best of your ability or something like that.  Anyway, it does the trick and Ivy relents, accepting Henry’s help by checking Jacinda’s list of places where Lucy might have gone.  This leads them to determining that Lucy is at the Haunted House. Though why Ivy didn’t think of trying the Haunted House earlier is beyond me, as it was clear she’d heard the girl talking about it.  So Lucy is returned to Jacinda safely, and Ivy, possibly taking the first step towards redemption, allows Jacinda to be with Lucy for the remaining hour of trick-or-treating, announcing that she’ll deal with Victoria’s wrath.   Henry is even invited to accompany the pair, though he chickens out when it comes to actually asking Jacinda out.  Which is a bit of a shame, but at least there are steps being made.

Meanwhile, in Suplot B, New Alice/Tilly is seemingly going off the rails and ends up harassing Victoria in her car.  This results in her getting maced, which was not undeserved.  Unfortunately, New Alice/Tilly leaves behind her backpack, which Victoria proceeds to check.  Inside, she finds an untouched bottle of prescription medication, along with Detective Weaver’s business card.  Concluding that New Alice/Tilly has some connection to Weaver, she calls him in and pretty much instructs him to control the girl or she will make sure some tapes will be leaked to the public.  From what I can gather, Victoria has dirt on Weaver that will expose him as a dirty, corrupt cop.  As horrible as it may sound, I get a fiendish delight at seeing Rumpelstiltskin get a taste of his own medicine and being on the receiving end of blackmail and manipulation.

Either way, Weaver tracks New Alice/Tilly down and tries to convince her to take her pills, as the story is that she’s mentally unstable and the pills keep her focused.  But it’s heavily implied that what the pills actually do is keep New Alice/Tilly from remembering who she is.  And when she stops taking them, her true memories start to resurface.  New Alice/Tilly becomes adamant about proving to Weaver that what she’s saying is true and insists that he go with her to some warehouse.  Though she really could have been more convincing if she refrained from talking nonsensically and using what I guess were supposed to be Wonderland metaphors.  Weaver seems to humor her at first, but he ends up tricking her into eating a sandwich laced with her pills.  Upon discovering the deception, New Alice/Tilly goes ballistic, knowing that she’s now going to fall back asleep again.  In desperation, she jumps out of the moving vehicle and runs toward the warehouse, forcing Weaver to follow her.  Inside the warehouse is the iconic chipped teacup, which was also brought over by the new curse.  New Alice/Tilly shows him the teacup in an effort to make him remember who he really is. Because apparently, my earlier prediction is once again wrong and Weaver really wasn’t awake.  Which seems really lame now, as we all SAW the expression he got on his face when he first saw Detective Rogers.  Why have him display that expression if he didn’t recognize Rogers?

Anyway, Weaver doesn’t recognize the chipped teacup, which leads to New Alice/Tilly shooting him in desperation. Because apparently, this is what Rumpelstiltskin instructed her to do before this new curse took them to Hyperion Heights.  Of course, Weaver/Rumpelstiltskin is still the Dark One and therefore immortal.  So even though the bullet goes right through him, he survives.  And when he wakes up later in the hospital, it’s strongly implied that he’s finally woken up.  Especially when he characteristically calls Victoria ‘dearie.’  As such, he informs Detective Rogers that he has no intention of pressing charges on Tilly, since he now remembers that she was following his orders.  So now, Rumpelstiltskin is fully awake.  Which makes me very nervous about what he’s going to get up to.

We also get this small moment when Detective Rogers talks with Tilly (who has once again forgotten that she’s New Alice due to the pills fully taking hold) in the waiting room.  He assures her that she’s not in trouble for shooting Weaver/Rumpelstiltskin, as she clearly wasn’t in her right mind at the time.  They then proceed to play a game of chess together.  Obviously, this could be a hint that New Alice is Wish Killian’s long-lost daughter, but I’m not 100% sure on that.  I think this might be a red herring.  If New Alice WAS Wish Killian’s daughter, wouldn’t she be more concerned with finding her father than trying to get Rumpelstiltskin to wake up?  And why would she knowingly align herself with her father’s arch enemy?  But who knows?  Maybe the writers aren’t trying to trick us.  I guess we’ll see what happens.

However, I am confused about one thing.  So these pills keep New Alice from remembering who she is.  But why is she the only one who seems to be issued these pills?  No one else seems to be on this medication.  The curse itself is what keeps them from remembering.  But with New Alice, they need the addition of these pills to keep her from remembering.  What makes Alice so different from the others?

All right.  I’ve put it off long enough.  Time to talk about the main focus of the episode- the Rumbelle flashback. It begins back in Storybrooke, where they’re setting up for Gideon’s first birthday.  And it appears they’ve invited all the Nevengers.  Though I am a bit surprised Rumpelstiltskin allowed Belle to invite Killian.  Or that Killian didn’t sneak a crocodile onto the cake that he and Emma brought to the party. I refuse to believe they ever completely let go of their blood feud.  Also, it’s kinda weird they still call Snow and Charming’s kid ‘Baby Neal.’  If Gideon is turning one, Neal should be around two by now.  I don’t know many people who call a toddler ‘baby.’

Regardless, before the party begins, Rumpelstiltskin announces his intention to grant Belle’s wish to travel the world.  So they end up leaving Storybrooke with Gideon and, I guess, travel to other realms.   After some time has passed, as evidenced by a brief glimpse of Gideon as a young boy, Rumpelstiltskin announces his intention of giving up the dagger for good.  Because he wants to live a natural life with Belle.  Which would be a nice gesture if not for one little detail. Rumpelstiltskin already HAD the chance to live a natural lifespan.  Back in the Dark Swan arc when he was given a magical reset complete with a bleached out heart.  But he took back the Dark One mantle the moment the opportunity presented itself. He even planned to take advantage of someone’s life sacrifice in order to do so.  So hearing him talk about giving up the dagger like this is really bizarre.  Of course, getting rid of the dagger is obviously easier said than done.  And this is made clear when it magically returns to his pocket after he tries dropping into a magical river.  So he and Belle start researching ways for him to be free from the dagger.  (Again, it’s a shame they didn’t think of this when Excalibur was still around.)

Their research apparently continues for a few years, as Gideon reaches the point when he’s accepted at what I gather is the Enchanted Forest equivalent of an Ivy League school.  And I admit, it’s cute to think that Gideon ended up to be as much as a bookworm as his mother.  (Let’s hope he didn’t inherent any choice traits from his father.)  Eventually, they find this weird prophecy.  “When the dark one finds eternal love at the sun’s brightest set where time stops, the path will appear to where the darkness will rest.“  Thinking this might be the key to how to give up the dagger for good, Rumpelstiltskin takes Belle to this pocket dimension that I guess runs on Narnia time.  You know, one of those realms that you could spend half a century in while only a second passes in your native world.  His reasoning is that the prophecy was referring to the setting of the sun in this dimension.

We then get this whole montage of Rumpelstiltskin and Belle building a life together in this new realm, even building a house from the ground up.  Which is a bit surprising.  I mean, this is Rumpelstiltskin we’re talking about.  He really helped build a house without using magic?  And this is the same guy who they implied never helped out around the house when he and Milah were still married.  Yeah, this is weird.  And a bit depressing when you remember he never made this kind of effort with poor Milah. Anyway, throughout this montage, which many people have compared to the famous UP montage, we see Belle slowly but surely growing older.   Until she reaches the point when she’s actually dying from old age.   It’s then that it’s revealed that she purposely misinterpret the prophecy, and had known all along that the ‘setting sun’ was referring to her death.  She goes on to explain how she knew that Rumpelstiltskin would have tried to find a way to defy the prophecy if he’d known, or would focus on the destination instead of the journey.  Something like that.  Of course, Rumpelstiltskin is upset, as he’s not ready to have Belle die and leave him. But Belle responds by reminding him of how he once let her go, back in the ‘Skin Deep’ flashback, and how she found a way back to him.  So she’s sure they’ll find each other again on the other side.  They even have the Beauty and the Beast theme playing during this part.  Now I appreciate the effort they made at trying to make this seem like a happy little love story.  I really do. The problem is that, in doing so, they completely gloss over everything Rumpelstiltskin did in Seasons 4 through 6.  The writers may have thought they were writing a rendition of Beauty and the Beast when they created this pairing.  But what they ultimately gave us was a corrupted version of the fairy tale, in which the Beast really was a horrible person whose redemption arc was virtually non-existent but still got the hero treatment in the end. Not to mention how he treated Belle Post S3.

Regardless, Belle ends up dying, with Rumpelstiltskin and Gideon burying her on the top of a hill in this Pocket Dimension.  It’s then that Rumpelstiltskin announces his knowledge about the existence of this random bloke called the Guardian.  And apparently, if Rumpelstiltskin gives the dagger to the Guardian, he’ll be automatically stripped of the Dark One mantle for good, which would allow him to die a natural death and reunite with Belle in the afterlife.

Okay, are you KIDDING ME? Where was this information about the Guardian during the Dark Swan arc?  Don’t you think we could have benefited from this back then?  Especially considering how desperate Emma was to be free of the Darkness, which she only took in in order to save everyone’s lives and souls. So let me get this straight. Emma, who only gave into the Darkness out of love, never actually did anything all that terrible, and didn’t kill a single person during her time as the Dark One had to kill her True Love and best friend to be free of the Darkness.  But for Rumpelstiltskin, a man who embraced the Darkness and tortured, killed and terrorized hundreds of people, sometimes just for fun?  All he has to do is hand the dagger over to some Joe Schmo and he’s automatically free?  Ugh, thank you show, for once again making the heroes bend over backwards while presenting happy endings to the villains on a silver platter.

Another thing that annoys me about the direction this episode went in?  What about Belle’s father?  And the people she developed friendships with?  People like Killian, Ruby, Anna, Ariel, Merida, Mulan, Leroy and Shady Blue?  Do they know Belle is dead?  Does ANYONE other than Rumpelstiltskin and Gideon know?  I seriously doubt it, because Belle apparently just decided to settle down with Rumpelstiltskin in some Pocket Dimension where she’d never see her father or friends ever again.  And she was apparently okay with that.  So in other words, the narrative is portraying Belle as someone whose happy ending involves having a life that revolves solely around a man, and never giving another thought to her family and friends again.  The thing that makes this even more aggravating is that this is exactly what the anti-CSers accuse OUR OTP of being. They constantly try to insist that CS ruined the show and how Emma had turned into a weak character who only cared about Killian and neglected her parents and son.  Even though the narrative showed Killian actively encouraging Emma to maintain a connection with Snowing and supported her relationship with Henry. While I make an effort to avoid the anti-CS blogs for obvious reasons, I’m willing to wager that they’re not waving their ‘anti-feminist’ flags after this episode.

I know I should talk about the scene when Rumpelstiltskin began his quest to locate the Guardian, which led to him running into New Alice and them joining forces, but considering I’m a bit enraged right now, I’m afraid you’re just going to have to settle for me mentioning it.  Although there was also a brief glimpse of Adult Henry riding by on his motorcycle, which I’m guessing is the show’s attempt at placing the time of Rumpelstiltskin and New Alice’s first meeting around the time when Henry first met Parallel Cinder.  Which I admit was a nice touch.  Though I do wonder why Henry didn’t stop and say hello.  Granted he was passing by rather quickly.  But you would think he would have done a double-take upon seeing Rumpelstiltskin standing there at the side of the road.  Especially since Henry always seemed to continue to acknowledge the man as his grandfather, despite having more than enough reasons to simply disown him.

(Click here to read more Episode Analyses)

[nightmareonfilmstreet]

Five Must-Read Horror Fiction Releases From September

New Post has been published on https://nofspodcast.com/horror-books-september/

Five Must-Read Horror Fiction Releases From September

Major book publishers release a wide assortment of horror titles every month, both in physical copies and digital editions. No matter what kind of horror story you prefer, I think we can all rest assured that there is a book to fit every horror lover’s interests, from haunted houses to serial killers and everything in between. With Halloween only a month away, now is the perfect time to settle in for a scary read. Whether you’re just getting started on building your fall reading list or if you’re looking to add a few additional titles, this last month had it’s fair share of horror fiction.

After perusing through all of the September new releases I selected five titles that you might have missed, including: A non-fiction title that takes a look back at all of the awesome horror paperbacks of the 70s and 80s, a novel that takes a road trip chase through time, a story of an awakened creature that is out for blood, a dark and thought provoking character study, and the latest release from the king of horror himself.

All of the titles listed here are available now.

Grady Hendrix – Paperbacks From Hell

Take a tour through the horror paperback novels of the 1970s and ’80s . . . if you dare. Page through dozens and dozens of amazing book covers featuring well-dressed skeletons, evil dolls, and knife-wielding killer crabs! Read shocking plot summaries that invoke devil worship, satanic children, and haunted real estate! Horror author and vintage paperback book collector Grady Hendrix offers killer commentary and witty insight on these trashy thrillers that tried so hard to be the next Exorcist or Rosemary’s Baby. It’s an affectionate, nostalgic, and unflinchingly funny celebration of the horror fiction boom of two iconic decades, complete with story summaries and artist and author profiles. You’ll find familiar authors, like V. C. Andrews and R. L. Stine, and many more who’ve faded into obscurity. Plus recommendations for which of these forgotten treasures are well worth your reading time and which should stay buried.

Peter Clines – Paradox Bound

Nothing ever changes in Sanders. The town’s still got a video store, for god’s sake. So why doesn’t Eli Teague want to leave? Not that he’d ever admit it, but maybe he’s been waiting—waiting for the traveler to come back. The one who’s roared into his life twice before, pausing just long enough to drop tantalizing clues before disappearing in a cloud of gunfire and a squeal of tires. The one who’s a walking anachronism, with her tricorne hat, flintlock rifle, and steampunked Model-A Ford. The one who’s being pursued by…something. So when the mysterious traveler finally reappears, Eli’s determined that this time, he’s going to get some answers. But his hunt soon yields far more than he bargained for, plunging him headlong into a dizzying world full of competing factions and figures straight out of legend. To make sense of the mystery at its heart, he must embark on a breakneck chase across the country and through two centuries of history­—with nothing less than America’s past, present, and future at stake.

Jeffrey Ford – The Twilight Pariah

All Maggie, Russell, and Henry wanted out of their last college vacation was to get drunk and play archaeologist in an old house in the woods outside of town. When they excavate the mansion’s outhouse they find way more than they bargained for: a sealed bottle filled with a red liquid, along with the bizarre skeleton of a horned child. Disturbing the skeleton throws each of their lives into a living hell. They feel followed wherever they go, their homes are ransacked by unknown intruders, and people they care about are brutally, horribly dismembered. The three friends awakened something, a creature that will stop at nothing to retrieve its child.

Catherine Burns – The Visitors

Marion Zetland lives with her domineering older brother John in a crumbling mansion on the edge of a northern seaside resort. A timid spinster in her fifties who still sleeps with teddy bears, Marion does her best to live by John’s rules, even if it means turning a blind eye to the noises she hears coming from behind the cellar door…and turning a blind eye to the women’s laundry in the hamper that isn’t hers. For years, she’s buried the signs of John’s devastating secret into the deep recesses of her mind—until the day John is crippled by a heart attack, and Marion becomes the only one whose shoulders are fit to bear his secret. Forced to go down to the cellar and face what her brother has kept hidden, Marion discovers more about herself than she ever thought possible. As the truth is slowly unraveled, we finally begin to understand: maybe John isn’t the only one with a dark side….

Stephen King & Owen King – Sleeping Beauties

In a future so real and near it might be now, something happens when women go to sleep: they become shrouded in a cocoon-like gauze. If they are awakened, if the gauze wrapping their bodies is disturbed or violated, the women become feral and spectacularly violent. And while they sleep they go to another place, a better place, where harmony prevails and conflict is rare. One woman, the mysterious “Eve Black,” is immune to the blessing or curse of the sleeping disease. Is Eve a medical anomaly to be studied? Or is she a demon who must be slain? Abandoned, left to their increasingly primal urges, the men divide into warring factions, some wanting to kill Eve, some to save her. Others exploit the chaos to wreak their own vengeance on new enemies. All turn to violence in a suddenly all-male world. Set in a small Appalachian town whose primary employer is a women’s prison, Sleeping Beauties is a wildly provocative, gloriously dramatic father-son collaboration that feels particularly urgent and relevant today.

I’ve already added all five of the above to my To-Be-Read list. Have you read any of the mentioned titles yet? And, if so, what did you think? What are you reading now? Let us know in the comments below!

[mattandsaraproductions]

For the HP asks: 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 26, 27, 30

5. Which scene was left out of the films that you think should have been included? 

Aside from all of them? :) Maybe it’s less of a left out scene, as an entirely different take on the material, but I never liked the blockbuster final battle, with Voldemort turning into dust. The entire point of it is that Harry has no need to fight, because he knows the Elder Wand is his. What he needs to do (because it’s right, and because he’s Harry) is to offer Voldemort one last chance at redemption. Equally, it’s just as thematically important that Voldemort simply fall over dead, because at the end of the day he’s just a man, and his death is the same as anyone else’s. But I think it’s generally true of the films, that they fail to be anything more than visually stunning mistakes (cos I’m a book snob).

7. In your opinion, what was an Iconic Moment™?

Less of a moment, since it’s a whole chapter, but “Flesh, Blood, and Bone.” It’s iconic to me in major part because I read the books as they were coming out, and remember GoF as the time when the Harry Potter phenomenon really took off (in the summer before the book’s release, it was a cover story on practically every news magazine). But the series was still seen, I think, as children’s lit, as something good because it got kids reading, but not Serious Literature for serious-minded adults. And then Harry and Cedric are transported away from Hogwarts, and Cedric is killed as easily as swatting a fly, and Voldemort is back for real. So the end of GoF marks a major turning point in both the characters lives and in the lives of the readers. Parents and grown ups didn’t notice the change from adventures at wizarding school to a story about war and death and growing up, because they never cared about Harry Potter anyway. For the rest of us, though, nothing would ever be the same.

8. What is your favourite quote/passage?

Because I can’t pick just one:

“Luna had decorated her bedroom ceiling with five beautifully painted faces: Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Neville. They were not moving as the portraits at Hogwarts moved, but there was a certain magic about them all the same: Harry thought they breathed. What appeared to be fine golden chains wove around the pictures, linking them together, but after examining them for a minute or so, Harry realised that the chains were actually one word, repeated a thousand times in golden ink: friends … friends … friends …”

“You are the true master of death, because the true master does not seek to run away from Death. He accepts that he must die, and understands that there are far, far worse things in the living world than dying.”

“Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and, above all, those who live without love”

12. Which character deserved better and why?

Filch. He’s not very nice to the students (and he doesn’t get that much sympathy from me, with his wanting to reinstate corporal punishment), but squibs shouldn’t be having to do upkeep on a castle full of magical students.

13. If you could swap one dead character for one character that survived, would would you revive and who would you kill?

Vernon comes to mind as someone to kill, as do any of the remaining Death Eaters (one or both of the Lestranges are unaccounted for, I think). As to who to swap for, that’s more difficult. Tonks, maybe, so Teddy has a living parent. Could be Remus or Sirius, but then we wouldn’t have the Marauders together in “The Forest Again.” Fred would be the obvious choice. Yeah, probably Fred.

26. What is your opinion of Dumbledore and his actions throughout the series

Generally positive, I suppose. He took the least-worst course of action open to him (I could also write an essay on why this doesn’t make him a utilitarian, but I’ll leave this for now). Failing to tell Harry earlier about the prophecy was wrong, but that’s not so much a moral failing as it is a logistical error. Setting up Harry to die (which would have happened had Voldemort not used Harry’s blood in coming back) is bad, but Harry would have to die one way or the other. AUs where Sirius or Remus raise Harry have never really worked for me, because in-universe that would be incredibly risky (though he could have sent more howlers to Petunia to make Harry’s life easier). On the non-war side of things, I think pretty much everything about the way Hogwarts is run is terrible. Probably it’s a much better school under McGonagall (though a much less pointed satire of education).

27. What is your opinion of Snape and his actions throughout the series?

I think Snape is a very interesting character, but he’s a good character for the same reasons he’s a terrible person. It’s odd, because I think most fans do recognize that, and yet “Always” has become this meaningful thing in fandom. And I’m sure it’s meaningful to Snape, but his love for Lily is so blatantly him being a “Nice Guy” that I think it’s true to say he never actually loved her (not in a way that treated her feelings for James as valid, not in a way that made him want the best for Harry). Snape would have been perfectly happy had James and Harry died on Halloween, if Lily survived. And that’s not even mentioning his body-shaming Hermione or being so cruel that Neville is as scared of him as Harry is of dementors. So while he’s a tragic figure, to be sure, his tragedy is that of someone unwilling to confront his own failings. He’s a fantastic character, but a horrible person.

30. If you could ask JKR one question, what would it be?

Is the Cursed Child spoiler ban in effect here? I’d ask why a certain character remains evil, because it seems to go against the theme of children learning from, being forced to confront and correct, their parents failings (Harry and James, Albus and Harry, Scorpius and Draco, Draco and Lucius).