#absolute heartbreak @ that one verse my god

[arcticwolf144]

A list of some things I noticed during the last matinee of Next to Normal UK

Diana pointed and yelled something from upstairs just before Natalie started singing for the first time. Like “wahey” sort of energy

She also absolutely bellowed “dive in with both feet” an inch from Dan’s face 

Diana was very insistent that Dan not touch her sandwiches. Kept waving him off

While Natalie was singing Everything Else Diana was peeling the crust off bread slices in time with the beat. I’ve never noticed that before so idk if it was a last day thing or if I’ve just missed it until now but it was very funny. 

Natalie looked like she was tearing up in Perfect for You. She was so happy and it was so cute 

Dan juggled three pieces of garlic bread during It’s Gonna Be Good lmao 

Natalie was so distressed during It’s Gonna Be Good. Like going “please get down!” when Diana climbed on the chair and flinching away from the water. She also mouthed “I’m so sorry” to Henry while everyone else was setting the table

I could hear her sobbing as she ran upstairs

Diana was mouthing “fuck off” to herself a lot while Dan was singing I Am the One.

When Diana started yelling Natalie covered her ears and she was sobbing so hard like the hardest I’ve ever seen someone cry on stage oh my god 

Gabe laughed when Natalie came down the stairs in Superboy 

Diana kept mouthing “shut up, shut the fuck up” when Gabe and Natalie started singing together

A lot of tears during Catch Me I’m Falling

Gabe was so horrified when he saw the blood during I’ve Been. Like he came on, knelt down on the stage and was just staring at the floor, at one point with his nose like inches from the stage. I’ve seen various interpretations but to me it always seems like he can’t quite understand what’s happened or how it’s got there. He knows he told Diana to join him but didn’t realise how violent that would be? Idk. But anyway then he curled against the counter crying and combine that with Jamie’s unbelievable acting through song and it was a hard watch

During the first verse of Wish I Were Here Natalie kept reaching for Diana

I think there was a muck up matinee prank happening in the wings on (the audience’s) left. As the island was spinning Trevor, Jack and Jamie seemed to notice something and were trying not to laugh. Like they’d look into the wings, smile a bit, and then they’d look at each other and then really quickly look away. This happened for the whole song every time the stage rotated. Caissie also seemed to do the tiniest double take when she faced that side of the stage.

Jack didn’t leave the stage after Aftershocks he was standing in the farthest box. So you could see Gabe’s silhouette in the far corner while the next scenes were happening which was quite powerful. 

Diana literally went “what the fuck?” when Dr Madden sent her away after telling her about Gabe 

Diana fully gasped as she put the music box down and the intro to How Could I Ever Forget started. 

When Diana moved away from Gabe during I’m Alive (Reprise) she had her hands over her heart and she was crying and just kept mouthing “my baby”. It was heartbreaking. Then the realisation hit her of what it meant and she got scared and ran off.

Gabe started crying even before Diana looked at him during The Break. He went from exhilaration during the first verse to suddenly getting scared when Diana came in with “they tried a million meds…”. For the rest of the song he was trying to get her attention, crawling up and down the counter in tears. Then when she touched him he completely broke down and was clinging onto her and crying so hard. 

He was also crying when he came out from behind the counter

Natalie sobbed out “stop” when Diana kissed her head in Maybe 

I Am the One (Reprise) may deserve its own post but anyway: Gabe was crying from his first lines (Jack was subtly wiping their face on their sleeve between phrases). He absolutely latched onto Dan, and Dan was sob-shouting his lines while Gabe was absolutely screaming his. When Dan pulled away Gabe tried so hard to catch hold of him again so they had this little tussle mid song during the “yeah”s. Dan then backed away, Gabe leaned fully over the side of the counter reaching for him and tried to belt out “I am the one who loved you” with all his soul but his voice broke so badly basically no sound came out until “loved you”. The same happened with the “tried” on the next line. It was absolutely beautiful and so heartbreaking. He then managed to get out the “you’ve always known who I am”, did this massive sobbing gasp afterwards and was just staring at Dan with tears running down his face. “Hi Dad” was so small and cracky it shattered my heart. Dan then slowly walked towards Gabe with his hand outstretched but stopped just before he reached him, and Gabe raised his hand too so their fingers almost touched and that’s when Natalie came in. Gabe then broke down audibly sobbing

Dan started to break when Gabe touched Natalie’s hand but Gabe then stopped at the bottom of the stairs to cry and Dan started absolutely gasping and sobbing and it was so sad. Like he was watching Gabe leave him for a second time and it destroyed him.

Diana was watching Nat and Henry interact in Light which was a lovely moment. She did a kind of “well fair enough” smile when Henry asked if her parents were real 

[rwrbficrecs]

September Faves

Enjoy these September recs from the team 🥰

Best Bar in The World by @pridepages (book-verse)

@heybuddy-drabbles: Well, I can now confirm that I'm 100% cerified a pridepages fan. The way she picks the themes of the original source and uses them in a different setting is just absolutely flawless, the same happens in Little Pages. It's gives you the same feelings of reading rwrb but also reading something new and different all at the same time.

My Brother’s Keeper by @indomitable-love (book-verse)

@janetical: Written in Philip’s POV, it tackles all the canon events in a frustrating yet heart-wrenching way. I knew what I was getting myself into when I noticed the POV, but I really did hate Philip less at the end of this fic. Everything is entailed in this little story: unresolved daddy issues and grief, internalized homophobia and Philip acknowledging Henry’s first time. It will make you cry, and it will end on a somewhat happy note.

For all the world to see by @everwitch-magiks (book-verse)

@suseagull04: This is a fic I couldn't put down! I'm always a fan of Henry being a writer in fics (so the description alone caught my eye), and the mix of cute moments with firstprince (and David) and plot twists had me hooked! It's also such an interesting look at the life of a writer and how difficult it is for them to have anonymity, which was especially interesting to me because of the writers strike in Hollywood.

he looks up grinning like the devil by @coffeecatsme (book-verse)

@read-and-write-: Also known as the frat boy AU, if you want some hurt/comfort that really does what it says on the tin. Don't be afraid because it is completely worth it!

written in the stars by @indomitable-love (book-verse)

@heybuddy-drabbles: This is just so beautiful. It's basically about Henry mostly. I didn't expect the "past" part would hit so hard but it did. I had to put it down a few times because it was truly heartbreaking but it has a happy ending. Don't be fooled like I was about it being all fluff. It's not, it's very nostalgic and they are apart for a long time but I still recommend it because, like I said, it's really beautiful.

Deep Blue by @myheartalivewrites (book-verse)

@thesleepyskipper: This was just a stunning piece of writing that does such a wonderful job of evoking images of the seaside cliffs, swimming in the cove and spending lazy days in the cottage above. At the same time, we get all that delicious pining and FWB to lovers fun within that beautiful setting. The spicy bits are beautifully done too! Highly recommend!

Rae of Sunshine! (series) by @three-drink-amy @indomitable-love @clottedcreamfudge @everwitch-magiks @the-amber-fox @villiageidiot @athousandrooms @welcometololaland @dustratcentral

@rmd-writes: I couldn't choose just one fic from this series gifted to me so I'm recommending them all, but every fic very much deserves the recommendation! Nine food-themed fics featuring everything from an exploration of Henry's life through food to chef!Henry to craft services trailer!Alex to matchmaker!Pez to the world's most cursed coffee habits from some of my favourite authors (and people)

What Do I Know? by @three-drink-amy (book-verse)

@babiemonk: The angst is so good I cried

Screw Your Courage to the Sticking Place (and forget macbeth is a fucking tragedy) by @celaestis1 (book-verse)

@babiemonk: So amazing, I didn’t want it to ever end. The angst was so good. The kidfic element was perfect. Possibly the perfect fic.

@dot524: I absolutely loved this one. Such a ride and I enjoyed every bit of it. I also really enjoyed the character of Alex’s daughter. Lots of complexity, great story arc.

God Save the Blessed American President Mom by @zipadeea (book-verse)

@babiemonk: This fucking broke me I cried for at least an entire day

@suseagull04: This is such an introspective look at Alex and Ellen's relationship (and Ellen as a character in general) and it's so good!

like father by rizcriz (movie-verse)

@indomitable-love: A really lovely and sensitively told conversation between Oscar & Henry, where Oscar catches Henry sneaking out of the lake house. This one got me right in my emotions. Very healing.

Bite Your Tongue On Purpose by Woodsarelovely (book-verse)

@darwinsfinchesx: Coffee Shop AU with a twist. This fic has some of the best dialogue I’ve ever read. It’s delightful, funny, and the characterization is on point. It leaves a big smile on my face every time I re-read it.

seldom what they seem by @jumpinginmuddypuddles (book-verse)

@gwiazdziarka: Sleeping beauty AU, where they don't need to fight with witches or dragons but there are... other problems. I love modern-day solutions to fairy-tale problems and here it actually just makes everything more complicated.

Mr. Bodypillow by @inexplicablymine (book-verse)

@gwiazdziarka: Yes, I recently recommended this one as wip, but now it's complete and I just need to bring it up again, because it deserves all the attention. Alex and Henry have the most amazing relationship here that goes outside of usual norms. It's also the warmest and the sweetest thing that I've read in a while. And it has great ace representation.

@read-and-write-: Is Ace!Alex very special to you? Do you want to feel like someone is wrapping you in a soft blanket? Then Mr. BodyPillow is for you! It's beautiful and will leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside

come pick me up by @smc-27 (book-verse)

@suseagull04: This fic will both make you laugh and give you all the feels. An awkward first interaction when Henry requests an Uber ride leads to an instant connection and sizzling chemistry, all leading to a conclusion that, although satisfying, will leave you wanting more of this verse!

the winner takes it all by @dumbpeachjuice (book-verse)

@myheartalivewrites: A Tour de France, rivals cyclists AU! Keeping a lot of the book dynamics, Alex and Henry find themselves competing against each other on the Tour — and then falling into bed. This has everything: thrilling sports passages (even though I haven’t ever watched the Tour in my life!), romantic tension, a great read.

Love-Love by @smc-27 (book-verse)

@myheartalivewrites: a tennis AU set at Wimbledon, which obviously holds a special place in RWRB hearts. Alex and Henry as rival tennis players who’ve hooked up once, and then end up as doubles partners. A quick read that left me all warmed up from the inside.

a flicker, a spark by acastle (book/movie-verse)

@daisymae-12: Wow I don’t have the words to truly convey how much I loved this fic. It diverges from canon at Kensington and the events that follow are so beautifully written. This fic made me cry over an OC, made me feel seen when I recognized parts of my own cultural background woven into a story, made my heart ache for everything Alex and Henry have been through and made me tear up some more. This is one of the most heart-wrenching canon-divergence fics I’ve ever read and I know I’m going to be thinking about it for a long time.

Baby, All At Once (This Is Enough) by @iboatedhere (book-verse)

@daisymae-12: This fic is such a lovely look into Alex & Henry’s life post-canon and had me absolutely melting from the softness of it all.

Will You Brie Mine? by @cha-melodius (book-verse)

@daisymae-12: A fic featuring cheese and Henry being the one to sell it, what’s not to love? This was such a sweet fic and I loved the interactions between them! @cha-melodius always writes such amazing fics, and this was no exception.

[rainbowdaisy13]

TTPD The Anthology Summary Part 1 *IMO*

This is viewed through a queer lens because I believe she is fucking done playing nice so now she’s throwing it in our faces—FUCKING SEE ME

1) Fortnight—

I was supposed to be sent away but they forgot to come and get me/I was a functioning alcoholic till nobody noticed my new aesthetic

*MIGHTY GOD we start right out the gate sad as hell—no one noticed her queer flagging both quiet and loud and that pushed her from being a functioning alcoholic to a not functioning one. She then says to the fans who refused to acknowledge her truth “I hope that you’re ok but you’re the reason” FOR ME BEING INSANE

*Mentioning wanting to kill people that’s a first and I love it

*I love you it’s ruining my life OUCH 🤕 yes that sounds like something straight people deal with 😑

2) TTPD-

*I’m sorry I can’t remember what mutual said this, but I love love this as coming from Karlie’s perspective. It absolutely fits. She ground Taylor in a way no one else can

*First mention of suicide—both can’t live without the other

*Were crazy—owning the demons together

*The wedding ring line—GOD

3) MBOBHFT—

*I see this one as Taylor viewing herself as a commodity, also as someone who is broken and needs to be fixed so that she remains lovable. It also gives me Cardigan vibes without the redemption arc

4) Down Bad—

*Love this Alien Abduction theme. Melody is even spacey sounding. The entire song uses alien motifs and I adore it. Fave line “they’ll say I’m nuts if I talk about the existence of you” Brilliant 👽 Also the concept of an Out of this World Love

5) So Long London—

*Cool opening—beautiful when they layer her own voice

How much sad did you think I had in me? 😫

*I see this song as a My Tears Ricochet 2. Taylor giving all her youth to someone for free. You say I abandon the ship but I was going down with it—I truly believe she tried and begged them to let her come out for years and she was always shot down—2 graves 1 gun, more murder imagery

*So Long London, so long Big Machine

6) BDILH—

Absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking song

These people only raise you to cage you 😫

*Sarahs and Hannahs/braided hair/church/Elders making decisions—giving cult/LDS vibes

Stay away from her -Elders are yelling this—to who? Taylor? So Taylor needs to stay away from HER interesting

*Shed rather burn it all down than listen to them complain about her sexuality and how it impacts them

My good name, it’s mine alone to disgrace —absolutely shots fired at Scott Swift

*Soliloquies line is incredible—“I’ll never see” is such a burn 😆

*This isn’t a phase, this is who she is!!

*YOU AINT GOTTA PRAY FOR ME!! GET THEM ALL BITCH—SHOW THEIR ASSES

*This is my choice!!

GET 👏🏼 THEM 👏🏼 ALL

NO YOU CANT COME TO THE WEDDING PERIOD

7) FOTS—

*Pretty Baby, much like Babydoll is reserved for women and gay men and theys and thems. We don’t call straight men this 😒

*Fresh out the slammer—realllly trying to get these idiots to understand that she’s felt jailed /caged/trapped

My friends…Watch me daily disappearing 😫 fuck

Wearing Imaginary rings 😫😫😫 Says hello to paper rings says hello to imaginary lockets

*It’s gonna be alright she did her time!! 🥹

8) FLORIDA!!!—

I adore this song—my second fave on the album and absolute fucking banger. So glad Florence agreed to this they makes an amazing duo vocally—main vibes—Florida is the place Taylor wants to go to fucking escape the mess she lives in day to day. Anything goes, everyone is there hiding from something—the law, family, winter—nothing is too weird or unaccepted—and a certain someone has a house there 😎

My friends all smell like weed or little babies 😆

Florence’s verse is chefs kiss—Earl had to die vibes, watching bodies sink into the swamp, just full on misandry I LOVE IT—is that a bad thing to say in a song?? 😆 GET THEM ALL

Also I bet this song made Swifties uncomfortable 😆

FUCK ME UP FLORIDA 🤘🏼🤘🏿🤘🏾

9) Guilty as sin?

The Gay Longing/Gay Sex Song

*Another* suicide reference—but she’s just joking right swifities?

👀

No no that’s fine she just described an orgasm and if she’s not touching the person, let’s assume the pic below ⬇️ is like HEY THIS IS THE SEX IM SPEAKING ABOUT—it’s very much giving The Man pose for getting dome👀

And then the Jesus reference is just chefs kiss—gay sex is seen as sin and unholy by idiots and she said ok then bitch, what if I tell you the sex is so good we ARE what’s holy??

👀

She literally said messy top lip kiss and got away with it like 😆😆😆😆😆😆😆

10) WAOLOM—

I just……this may be my favorite song of hers ever. It’s absolutely incredible in its intensity, rawness, and truth as well as being a banger

Every lyric screams her pain

My bare hands paved their path/you don’t get to tell me about sad/ If you wanted me dead you should’ve just said

I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street —Witch Imagery again!!

WHOSE AFRAID OF LITTLE OLD ME

👹YOU SHOULD BE 👹

Shots fired again at Scott Swift!! Let’s hear one more joke—they mocked her pain because they truly thought they could convince her she wasn’t gay 🫥

GODDDD 😫

Put narcotics into all of my songs—“a drug or other substance that affects mood or behavior and is consumed for nonmedical purposes, especially one sold illegally—a drug that relieves pain and induces drowsiness, stupor, or insensibility”

SHE SAID I HAVE TO USE MALE PRONOUNS AND FAKE REFERENCES TO MEN IN MY LYRICS SO YOU IDIOTS STAY STUPID AND HAPPY

and that’s why you’re still singing along 😎

Just WOW

Brilliant and Heartbreaking and RAW

🤍🤍🤍 We love you Girl 🤍🤍🤍

[mastermindmp3]

I feel its no secret that I try to analyze the songs within the context of the album and that alone. I think there's so much artistry that is often ignored when trying to focus so solely on passing paternity tests about parables told by the potential paramour's songs. ( ok, I really reached for that alliteration, sorry. )

But like, I've been a Swiftie since 06. I do know that these songs are about Taylor Swift's life, and frankly, I wouldn't have it any other way. Empathy and connection are what, I think, her music is about. How deeply personal is absolutely part of the appeal.

I feel like this acknowledgement will definitely be more prescient in analyses to come, but... god, god, this song is heartbreaking, and it feels so personal. Some songs are vertical slices of the author's life, and dear god, does this feel like one.

Suppose the only thing left to do is place the slide under the microscope, yeah?

There's so much to go into here. The song is so mired in death. There's loss and grief, but this one feels more potent. The speaker isn't trying to justify her grief to other people this time, isn't trying to preempt it (see: Down Bad, saying she was heaven struck, even if for such a short time.)

We open on the title, framed in the same interval as church bells ( and Big Ben ) and throughout the song, we realize that the bells are for a funeral. Cause of death: disaffection and depression.

Can I say? I really love the delivery on the very first verse. I saw in my mind fairy lights through the mist. She delivers it so softly, so warmly, with the last bit of hope the song holds. Fairy lights could be so many things - it could be literal, the fairy lights on someone's porch. It can also be literal for the homophonic meaning: ferry lights, seeing the boat leave as she says goodbye to London. It could be the mythic suggestion of the will o' the wisp, which exist to mislead the traveler who sees them. Perhaps our speaker's later actions are all in vain, because she was following ghostlights.

She tells the audience all she did to try and save her love. Kept calm and carried the weight of the rift. Keep Calm and Carry On being, memeticly, a piece of propaganda distributed in Great Britain during the lead up to WWII. This tells us that perhaps she tried to ignore the ways her relationship was failing, and then, when that didn't work, pulled him in tighter each time he was drifting away.

Then, she tells us how her clinging hurt her. To hold so tightly to someone causes muscles to ache, and even the speaker says, [Her] spine split from carrying [them] up the hill. The speaker is starting to lose hope, here, I think. As she sees how much she's putting in, and how little her lover is giving back.

I left all I knew, you left me at the house by the heath. / I stopped CPR / I was going down with [the ship.]

It is so clear, through vocal desperation and how deep Taylor's notes get, that the speaker gave everything she had to try and save this romance. But she was only given "quiet resentment" in return.

I try to only pull from TTPD for these posts, but the talk of going down with the ship, the imagery of rain ( wet through my clothes ) it all brings to mind just... One thing. Well, actually, two things:

Rain as a symbol of depression is very classic shorthand. We call rainy days "gloomy." I feel like, very obviously, the Speaker's lover is depressed, but I think, less obviously: the speaker is too.

How much sad did you think I had in me?

For me, it calls to mind an old friend, who was going through a dark spot at the same time as me. They... refused to work on getting better, and I hate to say it, but yes, getting better is such nasty work. In a way, the Speaker is expressing that too. She was putting in the nasty work of keeping their relationship together, but also, of putting herself back together.

And her lover didn't. He swore he loved her, but the speaker died on the altar waiting for the proof. You sacrificed us to the gods of your bluest days. Refusing to care, allowing yourself to wallow in depression when someone else is doing the work for you, will be the final straw in many relationships.

I think, by tying the two together, over this running beat, the speaker is explaining why she has to go. Why, for her own mental health, the relationship must end, before she, too, is sacrificed.

I founded the club she's heard great things about.

The speaker put so much work into the relationship (and by proxy, her lover's mental health) that she feels she reinvented her lover. And as he finds new loves, ones who've heard 'great things' about him, she feels resentment... And yet, she also doesn't. After all, she still says that they:

Had a good run / a moment of warm sun / but I'm not the one

In the end, though worsening mental health played a role, the death knell was the all too real: changing hearts and minds. Life went on, and the speaker and her lover fell out of love with each other. The Speaker could no longer choose to stay, not when their love was so obviously corpse cold. I stopped CPR, after all, it's no use.

She knows she'll take blame (You say I abandoned the ship,) for being the one to officially pull the plug. In the context of this song, though, the blame lays with everyone and no one. Some romance can't be resuscitated, and to continue to try well beyond expiration only creates dull, dying pangs.

Taylor creates such a living picture, for such a dying love, and it's genuinely such good songwriting.

[thecranewivesrpf]

okay I don't think this song has NEARLY the amount of attention it deserves and I'm just here to spread my propaganda. It's so criminally, disgustingly underrated I physically cannot.

Desert Sand by Frankie!!

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/track/5rbTRvjgEh15O5AO7f5EBq?si=cDoiMrSPT92_1nFo_5CHpA&dd=1

YouTube - https://youtu.be/NZEzxoasa4M

Is absolutely one of the most beautiful masterpieces I have ever had bless my ears. I found this song in around December, and it's been on every single one of my playlists ever since no matter if that's lighthearted mcyt songs mostly by Gideon or my angsty desertduo playlists or general trafficship playlist, this thing has wormed it's way on there because it's so genuinely heart shattering and yet so beautiful that it makes me sick

Not to mention!! It's written in Scar's POV which is so rare he's my favorite and Grian gets so much fancontent, why not Scar's turn?

The entire song is so...bittersweet, like we all know what's coming but are treasuring what little time we have with them despite the inevitable end. It's so inexplicably 3rd life, and has some GORGEOUS lyrics.

Some of my favorites:

"Can your friendship be bought with flowers? They won't last long out here but neither will I" GOD this is so,, the way it quiets down when Scar is asking, and picks back up at "They won't last long out here but neither will I"

"When the clock strikes red, no friendship is strong enough" THIS LIKE MANAGES TO HIT A SOLID 3 BIRDS WITH ONE STONE. The clock strikes red, like the clock that Scar gave Bdubs and the constant symbolism of a "ticking clock" in the life series games, and that everyone has hit their red life and the watchers want them to kill.

The entire final verses. Are so heartbreaking, you're expecting it but oh my it's so painful.

Please,, if you take nothing else away from this post,, just listen to it ONCE. it may be almost 6 minutes long but it's such a masterpiece I need to spread my propaganda

[vestaclinicpod]

Audio Drama Sunday - 1st October 🎃

Happy Sunday! I’ve had such a busy week this week that I’ve barely had time to listen to so many of my favourite new releases! Here’s what I did catch!  

🌲@hellofromthehallowoods (135) GOD I feel like one could right an entire essay on this episode alone! Firstly, we need to start with the artwork - it’s the same as last week’s but with a particularly important and heartbreaking addition! Oh, and the punches are not pulled right from the start. I can’t believe I had to listen to Al saying: ‘I always knew you’d come back for me’ only for Indrid to leave him to burn. It puts this absolute zinger from LEM into a painful new light: ‘I fed a machine, and the machine never cared about me, only what I could do for it. And it ate me in time.’ Indrid… your son was there for the taking and you chose the institution which killed him!!! No!!! That LEM line hit me so hard that I stopped the ep to tell my wife lol. 

And then, as if it didn’t already hurt enough, we have Zelda saying goodbye to her Friends and protectors 😭 and telling the grackle to shoo 😭 what a wonderfully characterised moment. I hope Al manages to hold on to her until the time is right to say goodbye for good.

But the Friends of Zelda did go find people who need it more! I hope everyone in that scene has a gentle but timely recovery but this is hfth so we’ll see… 

Let’s not forget, as well, that Nikignik turned his eyes to the library because he couldn’t bear to look North… It’s going to get so much worse before it gets better.  🥶

📻 We love a @monstrousagonies Q+A. I can barely believe that this is the last one. It’s fascinating to hear the behind the scenes musings that went into such an amazing season. 

🧛‍♂️ @re-dracula Mina met VH!! I loved this scene in the book. She’s SO fantastic and really brings the light to make the rest of the book even darker by contrast. 

🧬 Regina Prime (9) This show is so good!!! It's the mushrooms!! Maybe?! Probably! I can't believe there's one episode left!

 💫 Wolf 359 (53) SUCH a good episode. I listened while cycling in to work and had to deal with the fact that I didn’t know what was going to happen throughout my whole shift. I can’t believe how close I am to the end!! 

This week was so busy that I haven’t had time to listen to my most beloved Silt Verses, Do You Copy or the epilogue of Moonbase Theta Out!! 

[stuckasmain]

I absolutely adore Christian and Toulouse’s friendship and it really is a shame that it’s not talked about enough among fans. The pair take to each other almost instantly and it’s quite sweet.

Friends and all he wanted to be

Christian blends in with Toulouse and Santiago almost automatically, they are just as excited about him as he is about them. It gets me just how ecstatic Christian is throughout Truth, beauty , freedom and love— Toulouse is exactly it. He is “everything I wanted to be” everything he came to this part of the city for! Even if it’s a romanized view of things , this should not be pushed aside.

Toulouse also likes Christian as he’s a fresh young face, not yet beaten down by poverty (which he sought out mind you) or the realities of life. He’s sort of a muse within himself despite being a creative. He’s entertaining, cute and plucky. Who wouldn’t keep him around?

My favorite part is during the beginning of the show after the bohemians introduction as they wander the moulin rouge Toulouse takes Christian by the hand and drags him about like a star struck toddler. There’s a trust there, he’s just as excited to show him things as the other is to experience them.

Its a friendship on equal grounds, a mutual admiration but at times we do see Toulouse becoming a tad parental (not on the same level as Zidler-satine but close) despite only being a few years older. He’s a deeply caring and protective individual- he tries to steer him clear of satine and save everyone from the heartbreak, though what can he do to undone what’s already begun? In the film we see him also be a bit of a provider, I presume he’s the only one in the shared flat/ few rooms that can cook decently well- and he insists upon it. Very acts of service/gift giving

It’s two passionate individuals who meet on the same wavelength- so much so they fell for the same woman but don’t let it get between them. The understanding of the values in life (truth, beauty, freedom and love) and the strength that bonds friends. It’s rare to see a relationship that’s a immediate bond that does not feel forced, there’s love permitting every aspect of this story that goes beyond Romantic. How excited Christian is to share new verses? How Toulouse shares notes? A particular line strikes me every time.

“Uncle Toulouse comes over to play with the kids.”

In Christian’s fantasy of a comfortable and safe life with Satine, Toulouse is a part of that vision. So much so he’s called uncle! This moment is played for laughs with Satines reaction to ‘kids’ but I find it incredibly touching? It shows just how much Christians love extends- to her, to his friends, to this place. Not to mention he never once “I’ll get you out of here” until shit hits the fan. It’s a lifestyle he loves and , they call him crazy for it but god! It makes it hurt all the more knowing things could never be and Toulouse knew this just as much as Satine but cared for Christian too much to really tell him off about happy endings

[platoniccereal]

Firstly if you find that Adoribull fic I hope you share and second if you have any fic recs for Bull in general I want to know 👀

Also autocorrect nearly made his name Bill. The Iron Bill, a legal juggernaut. Don't call him William.

...he's pretty well versed in fiscal affairs.

i'm going to rummage through ao3 as a treat so maybe i'll be lucky haha i'll send it to you if that's ok and if i find anything.👀

i started reading fics on ao3 not so long ago, so my collection is humble and classic, still...

these are purely gen/plot and character focused with rare nsfw scenes:

small secret spaces – i adore this absolute gut punch of a fic, it's about 2k words and is written from bull's tama perspective. absolutely heartbreaking as anything regarding bull's time on seheron.

there's also i can see us gather at the gates from the same author, a 36k words work in progress, bull x f!trevelyan. it studies them both in opposition to each other, this one got me thinking and feeling for days.

there's also a very short the sea is unchanged in the same series, i recommend lilith_morgana's works in general, because just as this one, they're always written with such love for the characters, as well as with wise, mature understanding of them.

ebasit – a different author, another character study, 12k. so far the only inquisitor!bull fic i've seen, not even on ao3, and by god it's tasty. it's adoribull and bull x josephine, but still mostly a character study. bull seems to be more serious and tough here than as a companion. there is also one thing about adoribull that'll absolutely break your heart in the best way possible.

but there's a twist is an almost 60k words modern au adoribull fic that's definitely worth checking out because i'm not overestimating when i'm saying that it's got everything. this will be painful, this will be sweet and rewarding. and the title does not lie. again, this fic seems to be just one of a kind, very glad a thing like this just exists. also, lilacsolanum is overall an amazing writer,

and vasaad proves it. i respect any fic that touches on vasaad's character because there's just so much angst potential in just a few words cole says in canon, and this one? nailed it. it's also 6k words adoribull. bull's got some baggage, bull's gotta understand that dorian's not afraid of it.

(there's also my father and his father before him from the same author, but even though it's an adoribull fic, it's more of a study of dorian. also highly recommend, gets you very invested in dorian's depressed shenanigans. also the best portrayal of halward i've seen.)

continuing with the vasaad theme, triptych is probably one of the most well-known works on this list. adoribull 41k words soulmate au. it's got such a good grasp on bull's grief. the soulmate au reality only enhances it. i was fascinated at how the system of qunari names was intertwined with the significance of names for the soulmate au. and vasaad? oh. he haunts the entire work, and frankly, it feels right.

cassandra and the chrysanthemum caper is going to be right up your alley if you enjoy older characters exploring pining and slow burning in 16k words while being rather oblivious about it. cassandra x bull, the divine and her bodyguard, and everything you can expect from these two. bonus points for bull with a disability.

stuck on the puzzle – ok, actually this one is the most well-known on this list. i don't really interact with content about cullen, and it's his pov in this cullen x bull 200k beast. but this is a very well-crafted and thoughtful work. plus, there is also an interesting exploration of characters and non-sexual bdsm. just very solid writing.

darkened room – sigh, who doesn't like good ol' ptsd-flavoured nightmares? especially when it's adoribull.

maraas kata – somehow whenever there's qunlat in the title you know it's gonna be good. i consider this to be a bull's trauma exploration. dorian and bull are visiting seheron, very bittersweet. bitter because of course, it's seheron, sweet because bull's got support, and he's not alone.

another country – and another fic from venndaai whose works are absolutely beautiful. not very long. it's adoribull, and i'm weak for time traveling. especially for meeting your loved one in the past. especially when it's this sweet and touching.

so shall it be – rather short bull x adaar, consists of a very technical approach to bondage while also being non-sexual. and it's just sweet!

also, there is some stuff i'm in the process of reading, but still enjoy and find interesting:

run home – i'm only starting reading that one, but i already know it's a high quality work that studies characters in-depth, bull x f!lavellan, bull is an adoptive father of a kid!krem, plus, it's little league au.

better angels – i'm still in the process of reading it, but so far i find it lighthearted and like writer's inquisitor and sense of humor. the plot of m!lavellan x bull losing their memory and trying to piece everything together seems interesting!

aneth ara – as it's easy to realize, i'm in the process of reading many fics. but whenever i see f!lavellan x bull exploration that's over 100k words, i just can't help myself. :) plus, i really like how it's written, it seems very well-built to me.

since it's bull, there's also a good chunk of pretty hot purely pwp stuff:

kindle and char and enflame and ignite – adoribull playing pirates. :) it's pretty lighthearted and sweet, very nice experience!

the summit shrouded in fog – this cullen x bull and x dorian will be your jam if you like more intense scenes. it explores how violent bull is and how it interacts with him being a dom among other things. that's actually not the thing i've seen discussed much before in various texts, so that's cool.

got 180 degrees (and i'm caught in between) – this is a pretty recent work on dorian x krem x bull, made me go !!! i just love krem very much.

come on, get higher – just wanted good ol' bottom!bull and i got it. this is adoribull. also, i know that justjasper created a big amount of works for adoribull in general, and afaik they all are worth checking out,

such as katoh, for example. a very touching compilation of moments between dorian and bull that are sharing the common theme of communication. i like when authors work with the watch word use, it's as important as a good scene.

rivers in the sand – i dunno how explicit it might be considered, so it goes here. adoribull, bull sees similarities between the seheron and the hissing wastes, definitely has a ptsd episode running as an app in the background. bonus points for dorian finding bull being a nerd hot because same.

anyways, thank you sooo much for asking and giving me a chance to rumble about fics i love about a character i love! sorry if i took the task way too seriously, haha. surely there can be much more even with my little experience of ao3, but i'll stop here.

[wagingmywarsbehindmyface]

hi 🥰 what are your favourite and least favourite songs from each Taylor’s album and why? ✨ <- i need you to do this too!

I haven’t seen that one coming, for real! 😂 Thank you, Poppy ❤️😌

so, i’m a terribly awful Swiftie for saying this but I despise DEBUT 💚 I really am. I couldn’t decide which song is my least favourite in reverse of situation when trying to choose fave one, so i figured the track I tolerate is A Place in This World. And the rest of the album is on the other side, I’m sorry 😅

Fearless 💛 This album is much more likeable! I like: Fearless, Love Story, You Belong with Me, The Way I Love You, Untouchable, Don’t You, Mr. Perfectly Fine! Those are bops, sometimes sad nevertheless I like them a lot! See? I redeemed myself 😂 Now to the next part! I’m not the biggest fan of Superstar and White Horse 🫢 These are not clicking with me 🙁

Speak Now 💜 I must say this album grew on me a loooot, A LOT! I look at it in a different way than I used to be, and now it’s one of my faves 😄 Speak Now the song defender ok? I like all of the songs beside… Last Kiss… I know, ok, I KNOW. May I choose the date of crucification? And Ours and Superman, I feel those two were fillers of the album Taylor needed at the time 😕

RED ❤️ Alright, this one will be super tough, because it is a really, really good album and it deserves the Grammy of course! 🥹❤️ State of Grace, Red, Treacherous, ATW (10min version), The Last Time, Holy Ground, Lucky One, Sad Beautiful Tragic, IBYTAM, Nothing New and Forever Winter are the most magical part of this album for me 🤧 The least… well, I’m not that much of a supporter of Ed Sheeran’s feat. on this album, so Everything Has Changed and Run duo is a no. Also that remix of Girl At Home, no, thank you. Stay Stay Stay it’s just meh I guess? 😅😅

1989 🩵 IT’S "MY” ALBUM! and I absolutely love eeeverything about it! It’s a no skip one, I can’t choose the song I dislike. I love all of them! 🥹🩵

REPUTATION 🖤 Aaaaahh! This one, I love memories occurring when I think of days when this one was released 🥹 I definitely like Ready For It, Delicate, Don’t Blame Me, LWYMMD, IDSB, Getaway Car, I would like KoMH more if it was more rock-ish? And CIWYWI 🖤 The least: So It Goes, DWOHT, End Game, TIWWCHNT 🤓 This album is legendary, right, but now I see some cringe about it?

Lover 🩷 My fave is definitely the title track, Lover! It’s such a sweet pop ballad ✨ Next ones are: The Archer, Cruel Summer, DBTC, Paper Rings - silly cute song 😌 Cornelia Street, London Boy (shut up, Pops 😂❤️), False God, the saxophone okaaay? And Daylight! The least fave are Afterglow 🫢, Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince 😅 It’s a solid album, fun, important album in Taylor’s career and I will defend it forever ✨

FOLKLORE 🩶 I CAN’T! I DENY! I LOVE THIS ALBUM!

EVERMORE 🤎 SAME! NO SKIP! Closure defender!

Midnights 💙 Well, there are songs I adore and adore a little bit less for sure. Let’s start with first ones: Lavender Haze (I remember listening to first beats for the first time ✨🥹) Anti-Hero, YOYOK (although it took time!), Midnight Rain (same…), Maroon, SOTB but with Lana’s verse 🥴, Vigilante Shit, Karma, Labyrinth, Sweet Nothing, Mastermind, GREAT WAR!! Paris is such a fun track! High Infidelity and Dear Reader ✨ When it comes to least: BTTWS 🥹 I don’t listen to this that much. The rest of songs are great but not my favourites.

[heleneplays]

shaking sobbing crying over SOOOO many good demos ive just had the pleasure of reading and like. AUTHORS PLS KNOW IM GOING STUPID FERAL OVER YOUR WORKS AAAAAAAA

the wars we wage by mah_sanogo (cog forum) - when I was browsing the dashingdon page I got intrigued by the summary (lmao i am currently looking for more isekai IFs >< if yall have a rec aside kingdoms & empires my inbox is OPEN <3) and while technical wise there's still a lot to correct (esp typos), the idea is VERY solid + as a fellow fan of Youjo Senki, i am SO thrilled to play, getting into a very oblivious MC and hopefully reach my goals. ALSO GOD????? CAN I FIGHT & ROMANCE GOD???? i wish 2 know bc i KNOW we can fight (technically) and im 👉🏻👈🏻

Before we are Ghosts by @anjiefiction - HELP HELP HELPPPPPPPPPPP FROM CRACK I IMMEDIATE GO TO SHAKING SOBBING THROWING UP— author i am. *clenches my fist* SO in love with this heartbreaking concept and i'm literally honest to God sobbing into my teddy bear wishing I could hug MC rn. and everyone else honestly, they need all the hugs SO bad 😭😭😭 Anyways to anyone who wants to plays this game, fucking get your tissues ready bc you'll sob with the pain and angst and. the tenderness that's still abt to come 🥺🥺🥺

Vendetta by @vendetta-if - IT'S BEEN SOOOOO LONG since i actually played through the demo, and replaying it now......... GETTING BACK INTO MY VILLAIN ERA HEE HEE HEE <3

Sinners by @sinners-if - if villain bad why hot??? <- literally the only thought in my mind EVER!!! anyway, reading the update to ch 2 on itch.io was SO unexpected, i remember only reading it on dashingdon and then. yeah. twine has never looked so good. ANYWAYS WE'RE COMING ALONG SOOOO NICELY <3 and i cannot WAIT to see what happens next!!!!!!! (also sidenote i am reading allnthe drabbles available and im. 🤡🚩over here.)

The Price of Emeralds by @thournewrites - currently scream laughing @ my MC in this one bc WOW bestie your shit out of luck!!!!!! and KDHDJDKDK HELP HELPPPPP not me getting clowned on by the og ro :((( welp! wishing them a very yess get u in that funky crew and get that money bby girl <3

Replica: between universes by @replicabetweenblogs - i see multiverse and i immediately think abt helene-verse and DEAR GOD this wip!!!!! im biting myself soooo bad rn im being absolutely INSANE abt the whole thing!!!!!!!!!! im 7 ways enamored with everyone but most especially to the bestest little sister i am going to love and cherish now and forever 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

The Eye of Eikshal by atlas7 (CoG forum) - :3c :3c :3c intrigue??? WITH A BUNCH OF FOUND FAMILY BESTIES??????? oh boy, not to mention a benefactor turned adoptive father who's wish is for the kids to actually be happy???? man. investing rn on it <3

Through Broken Lenses by Interestedparty (CoG forum) - ok on a more serious note, this story was actually one of the first ever wips i've read in dashingdon and rereading it today had me. well. feeling a lot of 😔😔😔 anyways Vi, you're so fucking mecore and much as MC is traumatized in this one, all I can say is that I she can't help but watch you :)

I actually have several more tabs left to go through but it's literally 2 am and I have been writing this on my phone since 5 pm yesterday so. yeet!!!

[klaineccfanficlibrary]

Not an ask but I literally just finished reading Crowded House and OH MY GOD! It's so good!! I feel like I can rave about it forever. Definitely recommend as a read. The way the story falls together, the character development, the friendship between couples...absolutely beautiful. It has the right amount of angst, fluff, and smut. It's pretty long (117 chapters) but I honestly could've kept on reading it. It keeps you interested the whole way through and you grow really attached to all the characters. Need more fics like this.

Crowded House is really a unique and epic fic! I’m suggestion other ones which are long and they are surrounded by friends. - HKVoyage

Ride by nellie12

COMPLETE. Blaine is pretty popular in his city of Long Beach, CA. Summer is here and he's ready to spend it with friends- BMX bike riding in the skate park and surfing when the waves are perfect. Flirting with girls is a definite. But when a new kid from Ohio shows up, Blaine finds himself wanting to share all these things with him, too. But Kurt's just his friend, right?

~~~~~

The Symphony Verse by shandyall

Blaine has spent most of his life feeling like the only thing people notice about him is that he stutters. He’s working hard to overcome his (mostly self created) roadblocks when he meets Kurt in an online class the summer after his freshman year of college.

~~~~~

Dalton by CPCoulter (WIP)

Post-Furt: Spinning off from Glee, Kurt begins an entirely new chapter in his life at Dalton Academy for Boys. Blaine, Wes, David and the boys of Windsor House make his life, for better or worse, far more eventful than he imagined.

Note: Even though it’s not completed, it’s still a satisfying read. Also check out the other fics written by other authors in this verse in the CP Coulter's Dalton - Fandom. 

~~~~~

Crowded House by kellyb321

All of your favorite Warblers and a few new faces, too. Follow our boys as they start their lives in NYC, each couple facing their own challenges, heartbreak, self-discovery and redemption. Stick around as they realize support, acceptance and most importantly, true love can all be found in one big Crowded House. Heavy on the Klaine and Niff.

[jiminsproof]

the most difficult tag game to ever attack me in my hour of need (what she means is a saturday) ✨️

I was tagged by @kimchokejin to post my top 5 of bangtan songs!!!!! haha THIS IS FINE!!! very happy to have an opportunity to talk about my favourite songs but VERY SAD I HAVE TO CHOOSE. 😭 thank you Ashley, reading your post was an amazing experience and I recommend it to all. 😩👌 you're lucky you're not only smart, but also funny and pretty, otherwise you'd catch these hands in the metaphorical parking lot of life

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO and no specific order:

🍷dionysus🍷

I wanted to start with a song that actually got me into bangtan!! JUNG HOSEOK YOUR MIND. I think I've told this to some of my lovely mutuals here before, but to me this song is really built like a rock song if that makes sense?? the build up and structure is so similar!! but it is also so HIP HOP and CATCHY and lyrics are ABSOLUTE ART. as a greek mythology hoe i had no choice but to stan bangtan sonyeondan. it is also widely known as natalia's wine song among my friends so you can say i like it a little.

🥲outro: tear🥲

I love this masterpiece beyond words. If I had to pick just one bangtan song to listen to forever, I'd possibly pick this one though PLEASE DON'T TELL MOM* (*my other bias). This song got me through a lot!! The lyrics are so beautiful and heartbreaking, and it hits even more after you know the context in which they were written. YOONGI MARRY ME as usual he is a genius he said so himself but also Hobi kills me every single time with his performance of the last verse. I have NEVER not cried watching a live performance of him rapping it. The emotions he gets across are... pardon my French but holy fuckity fuck.

😩lie😩

speaking of my other bias... LISTEN. I love Filter as any other folk BUT if I have to pick just one out of Jimin's solo songs, it has to be this one. It has it all, beautiful performance, identity crisis vibes, stunning vocals of the baby himself, AND THOSE LYRICS TOO. It hits so much especially if you've had to hide yourself in one way or another, and it can be applied to so many situations - power of art and Park Jimin. also, in my mind, this one and bs&t are connected...? idk if by the vibes or the era, but I love both of them almost equally, though this one still hits harder. also, although the performance completes it very well and Jimin can express the emotions so well through movement (one of my very favourite things about him as a performer), it can easily stand on its own and it's still so captivating!!

🦋butterfly🦋

This song is so beautiful in EVERY SINGLE WAY. The soft vocals, the longing, the lyrics!! It's such a good depiction of young love (or just very soft love, sort of 'too-good-to-be-true' love), NOT TO MENTION THE HARUKI MURAKAMI REFERENCE I SEE YOU KIM NAMJOON (and I love you). It might be my favourite track from the whole HYYH era actually though please don't ask me 'and what about [insert track] cause I WILL change my mind. The vocal line shines in this one, not only for their skill but PRIMARILY their emotional expression. I'm a big fan in case you haven't noticed??

🦢 black swan 🦢

I honestly love this song so much!! Not only is the concept beautiful and the performance is ABSOLUTELY STUNNING HAVE NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE (bangtan sonyeondan trendsetters), and even the mv is something you can watch multiple times in one go because it's so aesthetically pleasing, but also there is the song IN ITSELF. It's so raw and honest, and let me preach about the lyrics once again (KIM NAMJOON!!! CATCH THESE HANDS!!!) - it's such an amazing depiction of an artistic burnout, oh my god. the idea in itself that the first time an artist (or here more so a dancer) dies is when they no longer have energy to continue with their craft... IT'S SO POWERFUL.

🤧epilogue: young forever🤧 no this is not 6 you just can't count sorry you had to find out this way

this one is just always going to hit different, and even more so the live version. the lyrics are... I can't even stress it enough, but they might have altered something in my brain chemistry. The idealisation of youth, never wanting your best moments to end, but also knowing that there is no way to stop the time from passing - WOW. WOW. Also I especially love the lines about running endlessly towards your dream even if it hurts you - it just HITS SO HARD. Even though in terms of the way it's built, it's quite a simple song, it really gets the message across perfectly and I love it for its straightforwardness!!

honorable mentions: whole bts discography actually but especially autumn leaves, mic drop (my most streamed bangtan song), boy meets evil, epiphany (I WISH IT MADE TO THIS LIST TF it's so important to me), paradise, outro: her (BIPHOBIC THAT I CAN'T PUT IT ON THIS LIST), magic shop, intro: persona, first love, make it right, home, intro: singularity (AND SAME WITH THISONEHSIFKDK) .. ok I should stop???

hello to my fellow sufferers 🫂💗 I'm doing this out of love I swear, and also NO PRESSURE AT ALL this shit hurts: @pjm-1 , @wistfulocean, @shrimpmsg, @aprylynn, @hopeonthestreets, @hopeinthebox, @cordiallyfuturedwight, @ki-limepie. 💗

[suuho]

Top 3 kpop mvs from the 2000s

hey!! thank you so much [: this got long, so without further ado...

1. bigbang, haru haru.

it's literally this and then [BRICK WALL] like, this music video literally changed the trajectory of kpop, it became a viral moment that lasted until, like, 2010. it catapulted bigbang to international stardom. i desperately cannot stress enough how this music video and song is a moment, and a high, that kpop is still chasing to this day and that they might never reach again. absolutely, purely organic genius. the brilliance of haru haru is how absolutely earnest it is with its very own melodrama. the acting. the conflict. oh my god, that story line. this is maybe the greatest kpop music video ever, just because it is impossible to replicate now. this changed lives. it did a lot to put kpop on the map. and it is just perfect as it is, and as a time capsule. i watched this approximately 3655467287 times in 2010 alone. i think people who know how iconic and influential bigbang are only ever choose fantastic baby or bang bang bang as examples, but haru haru is what turned them into yg's biggest superstars before inflated numbers, streams, etc. it's hard to explain if you weren't there, to be honest. on another note, i am pretty sure that gtop fight was my gay awakening, lol. another bigbang entry that just missed the mark because it was released in 2010: tell me goodbye. literally a masterpiece. narrative! CINEMATOGRAPHY! that top verse i can still recite word for word! a perfect marriage of everything that makes japanese kpop offerings impeccable. i carried a picture of that gdragon in my school diary until i graduated high school, lol. (choices, i know)

2. 2pm, heartbeat

i wanted to go with mirotic first, but i think heartbeat did the same things done in mirotic, just better. first of all, this music video does not rely on any narrative or any gimmicks, and it is still so well done. the angles and camera pans here, the obstructed shots, the lens flares. the contrast between the industrial gray and the eery, hollow white set. that choreography. this is so purely, undistilled 2nd gen kpop but in, like, a gothic fantasia. the atmosphere of this video is almost creepy which serves the song perfectly, and it is carried by performance, lights, and camera alone. i would have almost chosen again&again, because it does have a story line, but i actually think heartbeat's directive choices are so much better, and far superior. it is such an interesting music video just because how it is shot in a way that makes it visually appealing while simultaneously a little off-kilter. amazing. no notes. 100000/10 beast is not here, by the way, because if i would have chosen anything, it would have been shock, but heartbeat is once again the better offering of a similar style.

3. g-dragon, heartbreaker

one more masterclass. i am sorry, but this is another one of those insane offerings. the production design here is off the charts, the checkerboard heart eye-make up and bleached hair immediately became a signature hallmark look, the choreography is so memorable yet perfectly in sync with g-dragon's artistic persona. this music video felt insanely expensive back in 2009, and deviated from the nitty-gritty of that era. it was colorful, catchy, and immediately, insanely recognizable. replay factor? through the roof, especially with that breathe teaser making it a two-piece. also, the apple imagery was just another stroke of genius. like, this felt like watching a superstar emerge into the scene with that intro. "I'm all by myself, but it's all good," like yeah, sure, is this cringy as hell? absolutely. could anyone else pull this off in the year of our lord 2024? never, but it works perfectly here. the sci-fi influences. the masked dancers. oh my god. we will never have something this earnest, unironic, serious and yet glossy and campy.

3. shinee, ring ding dong

did you really think you would not find shinee here? c'mon now. what is there to say about this music video that hasn't been said yet. the wings. the choreography that the entirety of korea knows by heart. this made shinee my instant ults, my instant biases. dancing in the water!!! the concise color palette, the grays and reds, the hairstyles getting progressively more disheveled. watching jonghyun in this music video for the first time (and to this day) was like watching a miracle appear right in front of your eyes, that sort of gravitas and charisma is rare to come by and i am afraid there will never be anyone else quite like that. truly, one of a kind and just an insane moment in time to live through. how, in a way, unpolished this music video and their performance is is precisely why it is one of the greatest things ever. you can literally see them launching straight into their stage and performance genius from this. it's so crazy. this is like watching history being written, which is why it is one of the best kpop mvs of that decade.

honorable mention: sorry sorry by super junior. a perfectly slick, chrome fever dream that could be a commercial for all i know. i am sorry (hah) but when this song comes on, every ounce of, like, common sense leaves my body and i am stuck in this 4:17 true kpop marvel. it is just perfect. the production of this music video and this song. the aspect ratio (slay). the black and white. that tastefully measured autotune because suju has like maybe 3 decent vocalists. the group choreography shots look tight as hell, especially at the end. the last 15 seconds of this music video look just. fucking amazing. sorry, yeah, it had to be here.

ask me my top 3 anything, kpop edition 💌

[hedgehog-cynder]

flower boy review : fucking beautiful no complaints beyond rating on any scale. ill note some things about every song cause :3

foreword: holy shit what an opener. nothing lasts forever, nothing sticks together????? absolutely heart wrenching. amazing lyrics amazing everything THE ENDING SYNTHS?,$,%?"? breathtaking i swear to god

where this flower blooms: i would just like to say AGSGDGSUSHDHSGSHDJSHAHDGSJAGSGSJSGDD. instrumentals are beautiful tyler sounds beautiful frank sounds beautiful lyrics are chefs kiss what else is there left

sometimes...: i dont care if its one minute long I dont care its so fucking pretty and soft and sobbing material. on my first listen it jumpscared me because i thought it was BOYFRIEND. also the voice of the radio host is very comforting and helps me not dissociate

see you again: 20-20 20-20 vision cupid hit me cupid hit me with precision i wonder if u look both ways when u cross my mind i said i said im sick of sick of sick of sick of chasing ure the one thats always running through my daydreams i i can only see ur face when i close my eyes its so fucking beautiful kalis voice is heavenly this song makes me want to die

who dat boy: god everything about this one is just fucking beautiful the synths the lyrics the delivery asap sounds just so fucking good. everythings just. AGHDGDHSG and the ending feels like getting run over /pos

pothole: this is probably a song ill use to demonstrate tyler as an artist to whoevers interested in my autistic rambling cause. its one of the longer songs in the album its got stops n twists n turns the instrumental is to die for jadens voice is just so pretty. its one of The tyler songs to me. but dont take that last part seriously cause i say it about every song

garden shed: this one is the first song off flower boy ive ever listened to. it is just So. ITS JUST SO!!!!! estelles voice the slow pacing its such a good waltz. i would have to write out the whole lyrics because theres no one part of them i love more. its just so beautiful

boredom: everything about this song makes me feel like im going to die if i dont hold head in hands dramatically. its so vulnerable and heart breaking annas voice the harmonies the orchestrals everything just makes me want to sob. the end is especially devastating. another one im gonna use to explain tyler

i aint got time: god where to begin. whatever sample he used in there is fucking perfect for the job everythings so good and stimulating his delivery is flawless everything makes me wanna jump and kick and dance its all just beautiful. the ending is very silly i love it and also WOAHHHHHH. FUCK YEA GOOD FOR HIM

911 / mr lonely: just thinking about it is devastating. every time i listen to it i am mentally on the floor in fetal position. its so sorrowful and emotional while having the best motherfucking instrumentals and delivery like GOD i never doubted him but this man really does it all

droppin seeds: ok this is where my notes will fall a little flat. i cant take mentions of sex in any capacity seriously i am sorry. its a beautiful song though and i love it

november: oh god this one BREAKS me. its so emotional and open and i cant fucking get enough of it. and yet again it does so while being a FUCKING BANGER. the last verse always hits like a sack of wet mice and oh is it really bitch u know the dealy really hilly willy tilly silly hold that billy how i milly rock is soon going to become my newest vocal stim and i have no choice but to accept it

glitter: god what a devastating sad song. it really captures what its talking about. how joyful and cute and loving it is AND THEN the lowered pitch & tempo please dont save me the repetition of how ya feel? the kinda second half is all so much like being stuck in heartbreak i love it. it makes me feel like im falling from heaven. plausibly crowley style

enjoy right now, today: honestly with the sad note glitter ends on this one sounds so bright in comparison its fucking hilarious. i honestly didnt expect it to be almost fully instrumental but holy shit if anything it just shows how good he is even without lyrics. i have also never heard a more work at a pizza place song in my LIFE and its honestly making me wanna redownload roblox just cause i feel nostalgic. FUCK what a good closer

yeah thats it im done <3

[skellizo]

So Much (For) Stardust my (incoherent) thoughts during the first listen:

1.) Love From The Other Side

THE APOCALYPSE! GOD WHAT A BEGINNING! This was the single that reactivated my Fall Out Boy Phase :))

2.) Heartbreak Feels So Good

I just really love the lalalalal oooh s throughout the entire song. Very hypnotic :) It’s a bit of a scream along with the chorus isn’t it like I feel like when I am listening in my car I have to yell “Heartbreak feels so good” idk why

3) Hold Me Like a Grudge

FIRST NEW SONG AND WHAT A START. HELLO? HOLY SHIT?? THE FAST BIT BEFORE THE CHORUS?? “PART-TIME SOULMATE, FULL-TIME PROBLEM”. Ok but I just absolutely love the verses like don’t get me wrong I also love the chrosu but the Verses?? What did they fucking put in them. THE BRIDGE? Slay

4) Fake Out

Oh no…am I gonna cry. OH NO I AM GONNA CRY. [insert meme of dad checking up on his kid lying on the floor asking u ok? - No]. I feel too many emotions rn. I also have goosebumps everywhere.

5) Heaven, Iowa

God? Is that you? STAR-CROSSED LOVERS? GET IT PATRICK! HELLO GUITAR?

6) So good right now

Oh yay a song I don’t feel existential dread :) I know that as soon as I take a closer look at the lyrics it will become back but now I’m just bopping along like “yeah feeling so good right now. So true”

7) The Pink Seashell

Wow an interlude that starts with being of divorced parents. I am doing so good after this, being a child of divorce myself :D

8) I am my own muse

It gives of final boss in a video game music like the beginning melody. OH? GET IT I GUESS?! The lyrics feel like quite personal… WHAT HAPPEND LAST SUMMER. SMASH ALL MY GUITARS TILL WE SEE ALL THE STARS!!

9) Flu Game

But it’s empty without you :( I can’t be who you need me to be :( the little nananananana are really nice. One Day no one will remember me when they look back….thanks for the existential dread at 10 am in the morning guys

10) Baby Anhilation

HELLO PETE. Self-Sabotage at best: Same bestie.

11) The Kintsugi Kid (Ten Years)

OK IS THIS ALBUM JUST ONE EXISTENTIAL CRISIS FOR ME AFTER THE OTHER??

12) What a Time to be Alive

YOO? WHAT IS THIS? I AM GROOVING. 2019?! oh is this the song that was written before Covid and then yeah. DUDE WHAT A BANGER. 2nd mention of seratonin.

13) So Much (For) Stardust

Ohhhhh goosebumps. Holy shit. Like I have no fukcing words just woah. OH FULL CIRCLE MOMENT.

Final Thoughts:

I will now lay down and stare at the ceiling while asking what my purpose is but it’s a good album! Can only recommend. I feel like you need to listen to it loud or at least on the loud side for it to fully fucking hit you where it hurts but yeah. Almost cried multiple times as well so yaaaay.

[soundsfaebutokay]

I posted 11,338 times in 2022

That's 4,355 more posts than 2021!

340 posts created (3%)

10,998 posts reblogged (97%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@hockles

@wren-of-the-woods

@felicity-smoak-is-my-goddess

@spoonietimelordy

@theamazingrin

I tagged 11,336 of my posts in 2022

#my faves - 7,483 posts

#resqueue - 5,631 posts

#the witcher - 2,353 posts

#the amazing devil - 1,997 posts

#music - 1,858 posts

#our flag means death - 1,053 posts

#joey batey - 780 posts

#leverage - 677 posts

#madeleine hyland - 634 posts

#the sandman - 551 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#this episode satisfied something in me that kept getting disappointed by recent shows and certain movie franchises *ahem* that never took th

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

The thing I go back to again and again when thinking of Hob Gadling is the word devotion. This man really just…with no hope of reciprocity, not a single bloody hint that the Stranger would ever return to him…he waited. He built an entire pub, made sure the Stranger could find the pub, and made going to that pub a part of his routine so that just in case—just in case!—the Stranger decided to ever show up, out of schedule, he would be there. He'd be waiting. For thirty-three goddamn years! Or, if you're counting how long he's held on to his stubborn loyalty after a pretty devastating rejection, add a century to that number. All this, without any assurance that the friendship he's offering would ever be accepted. All this, for a being who hasn't even told him his name. I've seen gods worshipped with less conviction. It just, it makes me insane.

1,253 notes - Posted September 17, 2022

#4

I get it now. Yennefer and Jaskier are "worst enemies" not in the sense that they hate each other more than anyone else, but in the sense that they are the worst at being enemies because you don't smile like that upon hearing your enemy's voice, you don't tell them "good riddance" with a world of tenderness in your eyes, and you certainly DO NOT RISK YOUR LIFE FOR THEM YOU RIDICULOUS FUCKING BISEXUALS THAT'S NOT HOW ENEMIES WORK

1,359 notes - Posted February 10, 2022

#3

One of the many delights of The Amazing Devil's love songs is that we feel like we're somehow getting a glimpse into real people's lives. There are such beautifully specific details. The guy from Pruning Shears wears secondhand shoes to fancy parties, the couple from Not Yet builds pillow dens. The lady in Marbles works with assholes who make annoying comments, and the guy in Fair likes to eat yoghurt while watching The Office. The couple in Ruin plays the piano together, and so on. These songs are as far away from the generic, manufactured-for-maximum-marketability hits churned out by big music studios as you can get.

The magic of it is that the specificity doesn't stop TAD's songs from being relatable. Far from it. Because even though some of the scenarios are foreign to my own life ("Everyone knows sex is better when you're unemployed." News to me, Joey.), the emotions are always deeply, unflinchingly honest. They feel authentic. These songs aren't telling you to insert yourself into a readymade fill-in-the-blanks love story. They're saying, "Hey you, sitting over there grappling with all the twists and turns of being a human who needs other humans? You are not alone."

1,361 notes - Posted March 5, 2022

#2

The absolute audacity of Mr. Joey Fucking Batey and Ms. Madeleine Probably Fae Hyland to be like, "oh, we're so surprised people responded like that to Farewell Wanderlust, we didn't expect it to be such a hit" like ???? Hello???

You beautiful bastards, did you really give us the line "I'm the hardest goodbye that you'll ever have to say" with Madeleine's voice sliding like that right in the first stanza and expect us not to go feral over it?

Also:

Madeleine listing one heartbreaking thing after another with emotion swelling in her voice

Joey and Madeleine crooning to each other in soft, seductive tones followed by a verse of insanely fire lines like "our gods have abandoned us" and "let us waltz for the dead"

Joey unraveling his own string of sorrows in a voice made of anguish and rage

Were we supposed to be normal about any of those things? When they themselves were far from normal and actually completely savage by the time they really get going in the most furious musical "fuck you" to all the unjust, spirit-crushing bullshit in the world?

I mean—

I promise you I’m not broken I promise you there’s more More to come, more to reach for, more to hurl at the door Goodbye to all my darkness, there’s nothing here but light Adieu to all the faceless things that sleep with me at night This here is not make up, it’s a porcelain tomb This here is not singing, I’m just screaming in tune

Nobody was calm at that point. And by the last no-holds-barred chorus, we were all either crying or roaring or crying and roaring. (Internally, if we had to think of the neighbors or others on the train.) It was an emotional catharsis free for all. Who could be unmoved? Not me, Mr. Joey Fucking Batey and Ms. Madeleine Probably Fae Hyland. Not me.

1,434 notes - Posted January 31, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

It's utterly magnetic when a character's rage is quiet and precise. When they don't scream and throw things but they just b r e a t h e and very very calmly aim their fury like an arrow shooting inexorably towards the target of their wrath. It captures my attention, I lean in close, I wait for the hit. It never disappoints.

37,790 notes - Posted August 28, 2022

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