#actual barbie girl tm

[allmygirls]

wonyoung — amuse behind

[ghouljams]

I, personally, feel like a greedy little gremlin whenever you post Roach content. I’m not sure what kind of drugs you put in how you write him, but I just devour it the moment you do

What's that meme that's like "Oh look a silly little guy, oh no wait, he's a little fucked up actually" that's how I write Roach. The man is a cold blooded killer, but he's also a Barbie Girl(TM) I don't know how to explain this.

Roach will carve his name into your skin, but he's also gonna go home and be in his Diary like "I hope (reader) likes me, I like them so so much" kicking his feet like a middle school girl writing "Mr Gary (last name)" all over the page. He takes selfies in front of a corpse with a thumbs up to send Price whenever he's sent to collect a debt. He's got a years long snap streak with Gaz. He's been to Chernobyl. He's got a collection of pinned insects. He's serving cunt. He's doing the damn thing and he WILL be in bed by nine.

[vmures]

Saw the Barbie movie and loved it. Sadly I can already imagine the studio execs hashing out why it's doing so well and inevitably coming to entirely the wrong conclusions. Because they always try to break popular media down into little boxes that they can try to replicate. They will look at it and go "Oh, people really love Barbie, pink, and Girl Power(tm)" and completely miss the actual points of connection that people had with the film. Yes, it had some fun Barbie easter eggs that were hilarious and awesome if you'd ever played with Barbies. But more importantly, it had a story that made so many people feel seen.

Hollywood execs forget that it's the stories we connect with, not the IP trappings. Those are just the story vessels. They're fun, and I love fandom and various franchises, but because of the stories they allow me to tell and the stories that I connect with that are told within them. Sometimes those stories are brain candy, and sometimes they are a full-on meal. And because I love transformative works, sometimes those brain candy pieces get transmuted into feasts for the mind, heart, and soul, and sometimes the feasts get transmuted into a light fully cotton-candy snack or a nice cup of soothing hot chocolate.

But the thing that brings me back to certain pieces of media (pro work or fan work) more than anything is that the stories are genuine. You can often feel the creator's passion for the topic. The Lord of the Rings movies were so amazing to me because they were a love letter to a beloved franchise. I started falling out of love with the MCU the moment it became clear that the creators didn't love comics and superhero tropes as much as I did and often seemed to actively dislike the characters they were portraying.

So Hollywood execs and marketing gurus are going to analyze the Barbie phenomenon and will almost certainly miss that the reason it's resonating isn't that it's Barbie, but that it's a complex love letter to humanity neatly disguised as a love letter to Barbie. The part that should be replicated is not the framework of the story itself, but encouraging and supporting media that tells heartfelt and genuine stories. They don't have to be happy, they just have to be sincere.

[darkandstormydolls]

I’m so mad at American Girl right now.

So we just got the notes from the Mattel investor’s meeting. And the conclusions? Well…

More additions to the princess line. This is one of the things I’m most angry about. So this isn’t going to be a cute little limited edition release like we thought, but a whole permanent line. Of course. Let’s get rid of World By Us, the under appreciated line meant to reach kids about social justice, with glittery little Disney princesses in cheap poly satin. I’m so angry.

Kids can get Disney princess dolls anywhere! There’s like seven million different lines of them! You know what there aren’t seven million lines of? Well thought out educational historical characters.

And yes, I know I said I was thinking about (and have since rejected the idea of) getting that one Tiana dress for Claudie, but I think that speaks more to the lack of decent clothes in Claudie’s sad little collection than anything else. (Re: under appreciated historical characters)

Yeah, yeah, I know little girls like princesses and AG is a company trying to make money. But still! The company was founded with a goal: help kids learn history in a fun way. The dang princess dolls are not doing that.

Goshdangit, Pleasant. Why did you have to sell to Mattel, of all people?

And the Girl of the Year release date. It’s not the 2025 GOTY if she’s released halfway through 2024! This is even worse than the Lila-Kavi thing. They keep talking about “taking advantage of the holiday shopping season” but do you know what holiday shopping season you could take advantage of with the GOTY? Maybe the one in her actual year!

And they promise more Barbie colabs. AG was created to be the antithesis of Barbie! Why are you doing this!

And this is on top of the truly me revamp and the insistence on adding the eyelash paint on every cursed doll. Sure, it was cute on Nanea and Claudie and the few dolls with face molds that suited it. But Isabel? Maritza? The MG and Jess mold Truly Mes?

American girl is turning into Barbie and I hate it. All the new girls (Nicki and Isabel, Kavi, and Lila) coming with journals instead of books, the moving away from characters with actual stories, all the collector dolls of characters from other places… I just hate it. What happened to old AG? Why are the Historical and even TM dolls being pushed to the back, and the GOTYs seemingly become irrelevant after it’s actually their year?

I’m losing a lot of my love for AG. I mean, I still love my dolls, of course, and the community can be wonderful most of the time. But the company itself is making so many awful decisions and I hate them all. What’s the point in all of these? This isn’t what American Girl should be, and it’s not what the Pleasant Company wanted.

[karlie-what-you-want]

I'm going to try to word this correctly, because I'd like your take and I don't want my point to be misconstrued. The tldr is: I'm kinda bummed 1989 TV is such a commercial success. Here's the long of it. 1989 was my favorite album for a long long time and I was of course, excited to check out the vault. But I feel like these numbers are based on hype, not on product. Which is... fine, commercially speaking. Go girl, make those dollars. But... the result is a receipe. What perfomed the best for a long time is a record that was heavily branded by a stunt with a boy(band). What has now performed the best was a re record dropped in the middle of a tour that was completely overshadowed by the boybranding again. I feel like the rush was a mix of weird Haylor gossip thirst, football dude easter egg hunt, return of girlsquad branding... I admit, it stings that 1989 TV didn't even get a promo interview, a music video, or anything. (No, but we didn't forget the merch drops, tho!!) And it makes me sad, because... folklore, man. That had ZERO hype. Bam. There. And we ate that shit up. We loved THE MUSIC. I want the wild ride to be the music. And 2023 feels like Taylor has fully retreated inside the Taylor Swift TM persona and we're buying the TS Brand, not Taylor's music. What I was hoping for was: more 1989 vibes on vault songs, more "directed by Taylor Swift" creative expressions. What I got was: Ken and Barbie on tour. I'm sorry this is kinda rambly. I know anon asks don't take into account line breaks so this will be even more confusing. But. Yeah. I'm just a bit bummed out and I was wondering if anyone else was a bit disapointed, too? I mean. I genuinely don't know. Do people enjoy the soap opera and I'm the only one who's only turning up to check out the shoes Taylor wore in candids and for her artistic expression? Maybe I'm the weirdo. The market certainly seems to say I'm not in the majority.

Hi Anon 💕

I’m so sorry you’re feeling this way, and I can absolutely relate! It can be really difficult to separate the stunts from the music on a mental and emotional level. It’s something I still struggle with occasionally, and when the music is something so personal to you, of course you can feel protective or even disappointed when the PR goes off the rails. That is completely valid!

It saddens me that any fan would feel the shine of Taylor’s actual work has been dulled by the PR schemes.

I, too, am surprised that we haven’t seen any music video for 1989 TV yet, but I’m also not completely convinced that the book has been closed on that front. Let’s wait together in hopeful anticipation 🤞

I don’t blame you at all for how you are feeling, but I think in times like these, the most helpful thing for me is to draw that mental boundary—whether it’s a boundary between the music and the PR, or myself and the PR. Sometimes, I just don’t check the news, or I scroll away quickly if I happen to see something. These stunts are a lot, so when I feel myself becoming overwhelmed, I really try to shut down my mournful thoughts with a “NOPE! That’s not good for me right now” and then scroll away, or shut my phone off, or turn on Taylor’s actual music instead.

I am in love with 1989 TV. I’ve had it on repeat since it dropped, and hearing the vault tracks especially makes me so happy. I feel like there’s a real story there—things we didn’t get to see when the album originally came out. I have to imagine that even now, there’s so much happening behind the scenes that we can’t know. I’m just grateful for the chance to peek a little farther behind the curtain for a period of time that was very special for the T Swift community.

Lastly, regardless of the PR stunts, this drop has been huge for Taylor. Perhaps we’ll never know for sure whether that’s because people have come flocking for her music itself or they’ve grown curious due to the over the top PR, but I have a feeling that Taylor doesn’t care much either way. I think she’s at peace with the way she gets her attention, because at the end of the day, people ARE listening to her music. If they saw her at a football game cheering on some meathead and got curious enough to check out 1989 TV, what they will discover is a woman with great intelligence, a depth of emotion, and an insane amount of talent. That is just to say, it will always be her music and talent that shines in the end.

I’m reminded of YOYOK, where Taylor sings I looked around in a blood-soaked gown and I saw something they can’t take away.

No amount of stunts or bad PR (or good PR!) will change her undeniable talent. Even better that 1989 is truly Taylor’s now. I just find it comforting that regardless of how people find Taylor or why they first buy her music, they will get to enjoy it for the beautiful work of art that it always is.

Sending love, anon! You are not alone in your feelings, I promise 💚💛💜❤️🩵🖤🩷🩶🤎💙

[corneliushickey]

so I am going through your HOTD tag because you have the best Hot Takes Tm and I am Rhaenyra/Alicent trash and this is fucking transcendent: "alicent holds duty above all out of a resigned sense of obligation. for her, seeing rhaenyra free herself from a duty she has always seen as obligate to the both of them is an unforgivable betrayal. she has given up the whole of her life to her obligations and to see rhaenyra refuse to do so is a knife in her back. she has always thought that rhaenyra would come to accept her duty but now she feels that she is alone in it. and she is furious." Like.

Also. Rhaenyra is probably the only person who's wanted things for Alicent that she believes Alicent would also love and enjoy that's not related to duty or being a woman.

"I want to fly with you on dragon back see the great wonders across the Narrow Sea And eat only cake." Like, how pure is that. That's what Young Rhaenyra's ideal future is. Being with Alicent, adventure, and indulgence. Meanwhile Alicent has a more realistic idea of what their future will be and perhaps its only bearable because they'll be suffering together. Alicent's perhaps ideal future is them with Good Husbands, having babies, and their primary emotional bond still being each other. A future in which Alicent gets everything she "wants" and sacrifices nothing, especially not the idea of her own moral purity. And then Rhaenyra goes off and forms other emotional bonds and doesn't do her duty and it's like, double betrayal. One of their great tragedies in my reading of this is that they cannot conceive of a future without each other but have such radically different ideas of what their future looks like.

hey! thank you for enjoying my posts :)

i interpreted that specific exchange very differently, though. i think baby rhaenyra was deflecting and being facetious. i think she's far too old at that point to be naive enough to have this as an actual fantasy (in episode 1 the girls are 14, so they are children but they are not playing pretend with barbies dolls and believing in santa claus children)

i think alicent was trying to ask her a serious and difficult question and rhaenyra didn't want to get into it. alicent has been stuffy and formal since birth and rhaenyra doesn't want to put serious thought into what she's asking her. the full exchange is:

Alicent: You're worried your father is about to overshadow you with a son.

Rhaenyra: I only worry for my mother. I hope for my father that he gets a son. As long as I can recall, it's all he's wanted.

Alicent: You want him to have a son?

Rhaenyra: I want to fly with you on dragonback, see the great wonders across the Narrow Sea, and eat only cake.

Alicent: I'm being serious.

Rhaenyra: I never jest about cake.

Alicent: You aren't worried about your position?

Rhaenyra: I like this position. It's quite comfortable.

i also disagree that rhaenyra wants good things for alicent. i think rhaenyra wants good things for herself and she wants alicent to be there. i think rhaenyra wants alicent to want the same things she does. and it disappoints her that alicent doesn't.

the very first scene we see with them, she coyly suggests that alicent come dragon riding with her, and alicent stamps her pretty foot and refuses. dragon riding is unbecoming of a young lady. plus it's scary. syrax listens to you i don't want to put myself in danger on her back, i'm not a dragonrider.

and rhaenyra is disappointed because her cute cheerleader crush doesn't want to come on her motorcycle with her and weave through traffic. because that would be fun! don't you want to have fun? i want us to do this fun thing together. uncle daemon would love to get on a motorcycle and weave through traffic together. he gets me.

and in a way, alicent feels the same way about rhaenyra. she wants them both locked wrist and neck in the same stocks. but i think it's actually more complicated because alicent doesn't really want that. no one could possibly want the kind of life that alicent is living. she just can't conceive of another option. there is no other life. there are no choices besides this one. why can't rhaenyra see that?

i also disagree that rhaenyra cannot conceive of a future without alicent because she actually drops her quite easily when alicent turns on her? like i do think that it breaks rhaenyra's heart the way that alicent starts acting like her queen, and how she finds her tryst with daemon unacceptable, and how she doesn't indulge her anymore because now she's married to her father and she has the power to stop her. i think this is heart breaking to rhaenyra.

but i also think that she is the specialist bestest punk princess in all of westeros and i don't think she mourns it too deeply because she does, in fact, go on to do what she wants with who she wants and birth three obvious bastards with her clearly gay husband supporting her all the way

i do agree with you about alicent's conceived ideal future because it is extremely realistic repressed gay catholic energy to think "my best friend and i will be married and have husbands and we will have babies but our husbands need to be okay with us being special girl best friends who care more about one another than they do about them" and i say this from personal and anecdotal experience. like that is just something that closeted and/or repressed gay women think to themselves. so i think that's right on the money.

rhaenyra is very self actualized in her own sexuality though so i think when she thinks "i'm going to marry daemon and we can still do whatever we want with our boy/girl best friends" that's just like. a reasonable plan for the future for her.

anyway my point i think was that rhaenyra wants to be happy and carefree and she wants alicent to be there with her, and alicent wants them both to be hopelessly miserable but together

[aclosetfan]

Heyyyyy, how are you doing? I hope you are doing well and life gets better and better with each day for you. just saw your post with your H/Cs about the girls. I was wondering if you have some of the boys too?? Maybe something you haven't mentioned before, and/or would be unexpected to some fans.

Btw, you are probably my favourite writer in the fandom. I usually don't re-read fics but Until Do Us Apart has my heart, ksjdhhdgghj. You can't imagine how much I cried when I first read it 😭 When I find it, I will definitely read it again (when I have free time).

Bro ngl, forgot i wrote that (AGAIN), re-read it, and after i got past all the typos i missed and fell into the story, i was like WHAT!? I couldn't have written that! Like who?? Me?? That was too sad. too heartbreaking. I hate it. I want five more stories just like it. thnxs!!

here's the link so everyone can be sad too :) just ignore all the fucking typos

lmao anywayyy! Three h/cs for our fave boys. I've forgotten what i have and have not mentioned, so if these are just repeats, sorry in advance. Like with the girls, my headcanons don't vary often! Once I've characterized them, they're pretty much characterized lolol

Brick:

On paper, he's not a good leader. He's condescending, bossy, lazy, and the biggest asshole, but where Blossom needs a plan for everything, Brick is quick on his feet and doesn't mind Boomer and Butch straying from the plan. He doesn't direct every action, and because he's better at taking shit in stride, his brothers are also better at acting independently. By contrast, Bubbles and Buttercup are well-trained and don't act until directed, which drives Brick up a wall. He's definitely an "I told you what needs to be done, so figure it out already" macro-manager.

Boy band/girly pop junkie, but he'll go to the grave before anyone finds out, except everyone knows. He's bad at hiding it. He claims all the k-pop shirts he owns were bought as a joke, but his spotify is linked to Butch and Boomer's, and they know how big of a swiftie he is. (or like in-universe equivalent lol)

He's depression barbie all the way, which isn't a new h/c I just want to reiterate that mentally he's not doing well and is a gremlin about it. His brothers routinely remind him that he does, in fact, have to drink water.

Butch:

If not for him, his brothers would have killed each other by now. He's not any more responsible than the other two, but he is a grounding figure. He has, overall, earth-sign-middle-sibling energy. He's the one who remembers to take out the trash, not because he wants to take out the trash, but because the trash just needs to be taken out, and he's standing there anyway. This headcanon is actually hard for me to convey with words. Basically, he's the one keeping the trio together. Good second-in-command guy.

Sure, Brick broods and Boomer whines, but Butch is the brother staying up at night yearning for something a little bit more than the life they've got. I think he'd be the brother most easily persuaded to "go good," not Boomer like I've seen. He likes his reputation as the big tough monster of the trio, but a small part of him knows it's all just a front and that he'd like to be respected as a person. With that in mind, it's easy to see how he could be angry angry angry. He's stuck, he wants more, he's doing what he's made to do, he loves his brothers, he wants to leave them, he feels directionless, lost - - - might as well workout to distract himself, maybe start a fight.

planes, trains, and automobiles bbbyyyyyyyyy. Autism be damned, my boy can work an engine (both real and of the model variety)

Boomer:

i feel like i've already said everything I've got on this kid haha, but I don't think I've mentioned that, like Bubbles, he's good with small creatures, but where she focuses on the cute ones, he's obsessed with rabid raccoons and fucked up looking opossums. He has an opossum hidden in his bedroom named Trashcan. Also very interested in Bugs(tm).

Went through an "emo" phase, except he was a total poser about it, which caused considerable tension between him and Brick (goth boy extraordinaire), and wore bad eyeliner. Then, immediately after, went through a surfer boy phase, then a cowboy phase, and then a, well . . . basically, Boomer's always trying to find himself because he doesn't think Himself is good enough (he hasn't had his Kenough moment yet), and is desperately seeking other peoples approval.

Boomer may not know who he is quite yet, but to his brothers, he is crinkly-eyed smiles, breezy laughs, warm hugs, and cold hands with an innate ability to make them feel like they're people worth loving. He may not like it, but he's the baby brother through and through.

[abookisafriend]

the woman behind me said, "I can't believe they were allowed to make this movie."

ok, i know i said i would do non-book reviews on fridays but i want to put this one up fresh.

i decided to go see the barbie movie. it's going to be hard to review because there is a LOT going on.

this is not really a movie for kids. the humor in the opening sequence depends on your having seen a movie from the 1970s, for crying out loud. (it was when i saw that scene previewed in the trailers that i knew i wanted to see the movie. for me, the humor REALLY lands.) that didn't stop the theater from running all ads for kids during the trailers.

this is the first movie i can recall seeing in a long time that explicitly addresses the social problem of patriarchy and sets out to examine, dismantle, and critique it. it's a comedy, but it doesn't hold back on the work. they also have Cock Ring Magic Ken (TM) ("he could plausibly be fisted in the corner of a sex club").

barbie is a movie that does the work. it's playful (and edging toward the outright psychedelic), but it starts on the note of what barbie was meant to be -- a doll that offered girls a toy representing the Adult world in a time of omnipresent baby toys: a toy that offered girls (starting in an era where women couldn't own their own credit cards) visions of the independent, competent, self-possessed women they could become. the tension between that vision and the world as it is -- including the downsides of barbie, the criticisms of her unrealistic physical appearance and the disparity between barbie's "accomplishments" and the struggle of actual women -- becomes the main theme of the movie.

i did wonder whether the plot veered too hard into telling the story of ken. he's a major part of the movie -- less so at the beginning, but centrally toward the end. i felt that the story at one point became too much ken's story when the movie should really be about barbie -- should be about women and womens' stories. but the woman with whom i saw the movie disagreed, so -- your mileage may vary.

america ferrera plays a major role in the part of a human in the real world whose story connects with barbie's, and she does fantastic work. her character is pivotal in the crisis that disrupts barbieland after they make contact with the real world, and her character adds a much-needed dose of realness to the story. speaking of realness, i can't write this review without plugging the final scene. it's almost worth watching the movie just for that.

i know it's a two-hour toy advertisement, but there's a lot going on in the barbie movie. i think it's worth seeing. enjoy.

[thespoonisvictory]

Happy New Year! Here's everything I watched and read in 2023

And also some misc. thoughts on the things that made an especially good, bad, or striking impression. If the thing is in purple, it was a rewatch! books are all rated out of five because there was a reasonable number of them. top five from each category are in the bottom for funsies.

*not including podcasts/dropout content. I'm up to date on make some noise, gamechanger, wbn, and d20 (mostly). I also watched the emily axford guest episodes and chapter 2 of candela obscura on CR

Movies

The Menu

Glass Onion

Romeo and Juliet (1996) (this is one of my fav movies of all time, I'll never get sick of it. just gorgeous top to bottom)

Rosaline (I went into this knowing I wouldn't like it and came out thinking it was just alright. lead actress is good, but I hate derivative Shakespeare works that don't understand the original story)

Hamilton

Tangled

Secret World of Arrietty

Honor Among Thieves (just a damn good movie, love the practical effects)

Mamma Mia!

Barbie and the Three Musketeers

The Three Musketeers (1993)

Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse

The Last Unicorn (rewatched this for the first time in at least a decade, what a gorgeous vibey fantasy film. something about the dark scenery and tone really sticks with me)

Nimona (thought Ballister was a great character and enjoyed the design choices for the world, a good piece of Knight (tm) media. however, I thought the animation was lacking and didn't think it deserved a best picture nom like a lot of people did. it was cute, not lifechanging)

The Green Knight (watch it)

80 for Brady (a request from my mom, surprisingly funny)

The Visit

Sweet Home Alabama (bad)

Barbie!

Sharkboy and Lavagirl

Pride and Prejudice 2005 (another one of my all time favs)

Sleeping Beauty

The Aristocats

La La Land

Red White and Royal Blue

The Princess and the Pauper

Barbie and the Three Musketeers (again)

Howl's Moving Castle

Girl Vs. Monster

10 Things I Hate About You

500 Days of Summer (made me cry, which I didn't expect. can you tell I had a joseph gordon levitt moment lol)

Get Out

Twilight

The Conjuring (I watch this every year, one of my fav horror movies)

Scooby Doo: The Witches Ghost

Kiki's Delivery Service

Barbie and the Twelve Dancing Princesses

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Love, Actually

Honor Among Thieves (again, but with my DnD party)

The Holiday (I mean. it's Jude Law)

The Boy and the Heron (holy fucking shit this was so good)

Asteroid City

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

In The Tall Grass

Books

Harrow the Ninth by Tamryn Muir: good! I fucking struggled at the beginning getting through but it paid off. (3.5/5)

The Falls by Joyce Carol Oates: a fun gothic romance/tragedy set in Niagra Falls which took an environmentalist angle I was not expecting at all. Picked it up at a Goodwill and enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. (4/5)

A Game of Thrones by GRRM: I mean, it's a classic. The way the plot unfolds at the end really is incredible, but from the first chapter it grips you. (4/5)

The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas: HOLY SHIT if you read one book because of me let it be this one, it is criminally underrated for how well known it is. It is thee action-adventure novel of all time, hysterically funny and easy to read. (5/5)

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: I took a little dip into YA to bring some autumn vibes to my summer internship. Plot was bad, vibes came through. (2.5/5)

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte: fucking slaps!! anyone who thinks it isn't romantic is dead wrong, I found it much more engaging than Jane Eyre, the other Bronte novel I've read. (4.5/5)

Just Above My Head by James Baldwin: a gripping account of two black families before and during the civil rights movement, of which one son becomes a famous gospel singer. Julia, one of the daughters and a child evangelist, stuck with me long after I finished it (5/5)

Nona the Ninth by Tamryn Muir: enjoyed it more than HTN, Nona asking about her birthday present made me cry, as did Campal :( (4.5/5)

That Summer In Paris by Morley Callaghan: put me in a massive reading slump over a silly little Goodwill read, never have I been less entertained by what was essentially a book of entirely gossip about 1920s writers. (2/5)

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: read it immediately after ABOSAS, holds up in its entirety, particularly in the environmental descriptions (4/5)

A Clash of Kings by GRRM: I've already posted about this a ton but holy shit, it's slow getting there but the payoff is incredible. really excited to keep reading bc George absolutely sold me on this web of political and personal relationships. (4.5/5)

A Place Bewitched and Other Stories by Nikolai Gogol: the cap for the year, bleak Russian short stories about weird little tales. would hit harder during fall. (3/5)

Shows

The Last of Us (as good as people said it was. sold me on zombie media as someone who does not like zombie media)

TLOVM S2

You S4 (a decent ending, parts with Love Quinn were the best lolol)

Succession S4

Shadow and Bone S2

Partner Track (CUTE. wish netflix didn't cancel it)

Marvelous Mrs Maisel S5 (a letdown tbh)

Game of Thrones S1

BBC Musketeers (I had a big three musketeers phase this year; this was my fav adaptation I watched. a lot of heart and a lot of silly, I am very biased about it)

BC Strike

Bridgerton - Queen Charlotte (I watched this in French, had a miserable time)

The Terror

The Bear (twice)

The Summer I Turned Pretty S2 (steven and taylor!!!!!)

Legends of Tomorrow S1-5 (rewatching with Roommate)

Yellowjackets S1

Over The Garden Wall (I watch this every autumn)

Gilmore Girls, Seinfeld (continuously)

The X Files S1-2

Blue Eye Samurai (shockingly blunt and visceral in everything from it's depiction of racism to fully committing to animating a boner).

Unfinished: Fionna and Cake, the Fall of the House of Usher. we're working on it.

Top Five Movies (no rewatches):

5. 500 Days of Summer

4. Get Out

3. The Green Knight

2. La La Land

The Boy and The Heron

Top Five Books:

5. Wuthering Heights

4. Nona the Ninth

3. A Clash of Kings

2. Just Above My Head

The Three Musketeers

Top Five Shows:

5. The Last of Us

4. Yellowjackets

3. BBC's The Musketeers

2. Blue Eye Samurai

The X Files

If you made it this far send me an ask telling me what ur favs were this year or thoughts you have on mine :)

[july-19th-club]

THESE BITCHES

i actually thought they were all knockoffs but while looking them up on google with nothing but vague descriptors of their clothes i had a brilliant flash to where i got the third one . she was a secret santa gift exchange for christmas in second or third grade. or maybe earlier. had to have been earlier because she's 1999 hollywood nails bitch. the first one is a '97 lavender princess and a) she had a crown and a necklace that this pic does not have b) i assumed she was sleeping beauty disney version for some reason c) that bitch got strangulated by shoelaces in the course of her adventures far more than anyone else and she was often lost in the depths of a deep and cavernous cave (The Old Closet tm tm tm). the middle chick i think was a knockoff but the ebay i got the pic off of claims the dress is custom which can NOT be true because the one i had did wear that exact dress. and i loved it she was easily the best-dressed barbie bc i liked giant gowns but disliked purple. so maybe she's a specific one that i just haven't been able to research as easily. anyway we had some good times hi girls you are surely gathering dust and mildew somewhere in my mother's attic as we speak

[leafmealoooone]

imo the way we talk about internalized sexism and nlogs is not for the best

(and like internalized prejudice in general but these are my case studies)

don't quote me on this, but i suspect the 'internalized -ism' terminology arose to facilitate conversations we were struggling to have. which makes it all the more frustrating that it seems we frequently now use the term 'internalized sexism' to dismiss people and the things they express. I just feel like it's more productive/just to actually investigate these things than to dismiss them. To try to understand why people feel the way they do and respect them in doing so.

because i remember being, like eight years old and seeing the prescribed version of what it meant to be a girl and thinking 'i'm not that, i don't want to be that, i cant even begin to pretend to be that' but guess what normative gender roles didn't care what i thought and tried to force themselves down my throat so i came to resent what they seemed to want to make me be. that's why little-girl me sneered at barbies. yes, we can understand this through the language 'internalized sexism', but you need to go deeper than that, you need to understand that it's not that i learned to hate who and what i was it was that i learned to hate what i felt i was being forced into, that this internalized sexism was a response to a rigid/sexist prescribed/compulsory definition of 'girl'. we learn more when we actually engage with little-kid me's experience than just saying i had the Bad Thoughts (tm).

and then there was the thing were i was autistic and no matter how hard i tried i could never manage to navigate the unwritten social rules of the adolescent world. i tried my best to fit in so i could, you know, have friends, not stand out, <insert whatever it is that motivates 14 year olds to homogeny>. but i couldn't be like them. and you know what, it was easier to turn that back into something i could hold on to. my nlog years were moreso motivated by a misguided attempt to reclaim my auistic-in-an-unwelcoming-world loneliness than any resentment i learned about my own gender from the patriarchy.

last story: i took a high-level queer studies class once in college - much rigor and free thought, yummy. except when we covered this empress (i forget her name, sorry) and read about some of her policies that looked pretty sexist we pretty much just said 'she has a case of internalized sexism'. like, she was the most powerful woman of her era and was enforcing things that were sexist/oppressive to women. imo, that deserved a bit more discussion and investigation. but instead we just said 'internalized sexism' and moved on.

[infinitelytheheartexpands]

Saul (Glyndebourne, 2015): Reactions, Part I

everyone keeps talking about how awesome this production apparently was and i still have never seen it (or the oratorio in general) so here we go i guess

no pic but: that overture was baller (especially the organ solo moments)

okay this is kind of a vibe tbh

oh that was much smaller than i thought it would be

oh dear

creepy figure twelve o’clock

COOL

also this SLAPS

that must be a very big table

also: COLORS

oh so that is just a head

preminger (barbie as princess and the pauper, 2004), c. 1738

actual footage of my 7th grade life science class after dissecting frogs

iestyn (my beloved) what are you doing

preminger has anger issues

tfw you suddenly get a rabid new fanbase

dance party!!!

yeah i mean this hardcore slaps

she does not look very enthusiastic lol

girl in blue has a lovely voice and is giving manic pixie dream girl

“yes i wanna clean his chest :)”

hmm

girl in yellow is not very enthusiastic at the prospect of marrying david 

“but i wanted to marry him why are you marrying him off to my sister who doesn’t even want him”

david and jonathan 😉

preminger thinks it’s sus

also: preminger is apparently saul but i do not care and i will be calling him preminger until i get tired of it or until he no longer looks like preminger, whichever comes first

iestyn is slaying

everyone stop mistreating yellow girl challenge

“great i have to be the emotional support for everyone around here”

classism

“it’s okay i still wuv you”

i support female rage

damage control

aww

i mean those sound kinda marriage-esque 👀

of COURSE she’s an oldest daughter she has oldest daughter energy

okay but vocally she slays

“i mean, i am also an option”

child abuse

“idk man i just yeeted a stone at a really tall dude and now i’m here watching family feuds play out in real time”

where did y’all come from

“too much drama fam”

michal is vibing

kickline time also this slaps

“but I want all the rabid fangirls uwu”

preminger rage time again 

“y’all done fucked up”

this is handel that should not be a problem

preminger is not in his right mind

this guy is supposed to be a high priest apparently but better yet, he’s giving off ✨vibes✨

sir if you look down you will see that preminger is having a seizure, which is a bigger problem than you having a Moment TM

slap

this is pretty

pure caring 🥺 (also this harp solo is GORG)

well that didn’t work

spittake gone wrong

fun activities: slamming rocks on tables

DUDE NO DON’T ASK HIM TO KILL HIS BOYFRIEND

“dad no it is time for MY aria listen to MY aria”

i believe that is called bipolar disorder

that is your DAUGHTER get your MOUTH off of her

“surprise! these are my backup dancers 😊”

“idk man there’s not an instruction manual for this”

schiller and verdi taking notes for rodrigo, marquis di posa, like ⬆️

choir practice vibes

one thing is for sure: this is a VIBE

[queermarzipan]

So my gender's gone weird. I never used to think about it. I did some research (my first) when my friend asserted frustratingly confidently that nonbinary people don't exist in response to a side tangent about how my sister and I had heard that a former acquaintance was now using they/them. Which my mother had a Chat with me about concerning "trends" and the avoidance thereof, a few months after which she had the temerity to be offended when I told my sister in front of her that "she doesn't think trans people exist." I have absolutely NO idea what her actual thoughts and opinions are about the whole thing, because she contradicts herself constantly, but anyway.

That's not the point.

The point is that that "trends" talk prompted my first description of my own gender, which, as it was simultaneously an attempt to reassure and educate my mother, boiled down to, "girl, but not because I have boobs".

I think, now, that it actually was because I had boobs.

Anyway.

I went to the Barbie movie. And, naturally, I went all-in with the pink. I bought a new belt... and I accepted a new-old jacket from my mother.

When I looked in the mirror with this jacket on, or otherwise was aware of what I looked like while wearing it, I felt Boy(TM). I want to stress that this feeling was SPECIFICALLY linked to what I looked like. Nothing else. It felt like Gender(TM), and it felt like a whole one for the first time. I'd previously felt Feminine(TM) when wearing form-hugging clothes, but that's not Girl(TM), that's just Feminine(TM).

I have felt Girl(TM), or something like it, though, in the past month. I was wearing a short (too-small, but whatever, it's still comfortable) red dress with a black rose pattern, and the Gender(TM) (almost-Gender(TM)??) happened when I was floatingly happy and playing with my skirt. So. Idk.

(The playing consisted variously of twirling in, shaking my butt in, hopping about in, and fidgeting fluidly with it. The fluid fidgeting was the big one, though.)

At some point in the last month, I browsed a charity shop for new clothes. I kept coming back to a purple pinstriped shirt, and then going away, and then coming back, because I felt more attracted to it when I imagined myself wearing it As A Boy versus As A Girl. It may be worth noting that the Boy(TM) imaginings included no boobs.

(I was still, at this point, only wavering slightly on the "cis?" question.)

I'm currently wearing said shirt, with form-fitting clothes that would have woken up the Feminine(TM) experience previously. After looking at my reflection last night (wearing the same outfit), I was taken aback by a sense of, well, BothNeither(TM). I tried taking off my pinstripes to see what that'd do, because taking off the pink jacket had sort of made the Boy(TM) disappear, and it didn't go away. Like it had clicked into place by the looking and it wasn't leaving now. I put the pinstripes back on. No change, no shift. I kept looking at it for maybe another eight seconds before I made myself move away; I was meant to be doing chores.

This morning, I'm wearing the same outfit again. It felt the same when I looked in the mirror, but now, as I'm typing, it doesn't Feel like anything. When I'm not looking in the mirror, it seems, or making myself externally aware of the picture I make (the exact one, such as I have imprinted in my brain for a couple of seconds after looking in the mirror), I'm just in my body. ....which is a girl. That feels.... not correct, not right, but as though it's just the truth? And then when I look in the mirror while wearing certain clothes, I become A Gender. But the rest of the time I'm just... in my body, which happens to be a girl. Seperate from me, my person, which usually doesn't have one at all and so connects to my body's gender for convenience's sake. I'm working all this out as I type, in case you couldn't tell. Maybe that's why the Girl(TM) gender doesn't seem to really... happen?? the way the others do. Because I'm already in a girl, and the feelings that would have translated to Girl(TM) instead become... displaying the gender I already have, as in, possess, like a posession, that I own apart from my self. God, this feels confused. But not confus-ing, as I think it through. It all seems to follow some logical path, if it's a bit windy.

Soooooo hope you enjoyed the ramble!! If you read this far thank you!! I'm probably gonna just make a new tag for this, since it seems like the kind of thing that might get updates. Not thinking about changing the pronouns in my bio, because that whole mess just swirls confusingly (yeah, confus-ing-ly) around like a whirlpool whenever I try to think about it. So I'm not, cause I've done enough self-examination/introspection for one day.

Toodles!

-Marzipan

P.S. If any of you gendered or non-gendered people feel like responding to this PLEASE DO. I would LOVE THAT.

[madhogthymaster]

A Non-Committal, Short Review of the "Barbie" Film

After many tribulations, I finally managed to watch the Barbie film, in an arena with annexed bar, atop a small hill, above the bustling of a small lake town. It's probably the second best environment for the showing right after a loudly coloured vacation villa. Life in Plastic is Fantastic and all that.

Since this is technically a film review in the loosest possible term, have a disclaimer! Just replace the word "video" and "filmed" with "random blog" and "typed."

Now, I shall begin this non-committal thought bubble on the Barbie experience by saying that I had an absolute blast, all throughout it: the impeccable set designs, casting choices, rapid-fire jokes that never miss ensured my time with it would be nothing short of delightful. Margot Robbie was the ideal choice both in breathing life into the "stereotypical doll" as well as humanizing her whilst Ryan Gosling redefined the very concept of "Simping" with his tragicomic Ken. That said, it has a few issues.

Director Greta Gerwig's vision is ambitiously incongruous in the sense that it attempts to capture on film the complete ethos of Barbie (TM), the very idea, its complicated status symbol within pop culture, its controversial yet ubiquitous role in Society, its meaning and iconography in relation to how the perceptions of Womanhood and Femininity have evolved since its creation, etcetera.

In doing so, too much meat is placed on the proverbial grill. Barbie tries to say something meaningful about the objectification of the female body perpetrated by Capitalism as well as the commodification of Feminism as another form of profit. It tries to be a satire of toxic masculinity, entitlement and The Patriarchy, the disillusionment of it all which then moves on to a semi-radical Feminist power fantasy, ultimately landing on the Existential question of what it means to be a "real" woman and the pressure to be "perfect" according to an ever changing and completely arbitrary ideal imposed by a male dominated world.

There is so much it wants to cover that it couldn't quite firmly land on most of its topics, resulting in a film that seems somewhat unfocused. So, we have an undeniably creative project, with a vision behind it, that crashes against its own weight. That's especially frustrating when it reaches the inevitable moment where the corporate interests behind it align with the theming of "relatability" - because it sells, you see, and that's the actual punchline. Make no mistake, though, it's still a great watch.

The points that actually do manage to resonate hit hard and the emotional throughline of "Stereotypical Barbie" as she gains self-awareness, and self-acceptance, is definitely there but, above all else, this is a legitimately funny film.

It would be easy to dismiss Barbie as a cynical PR campaign for a "Woke" brand who has embraced "Social Progress" and "Relatability" because there's money to be made by exploiting the very criticisms that were levied against its decisively checkered history - and yes, that's exactly what this film is, even as it acknowledges said history.

In truth, there's an actual heart to Barbie, a weird sincerity that comes out in spite (or because) of itself, of its mere existence. It's made with Love, with Passion and with Intent. It's imperfect and that's OK because being perfect is just a toxic projection. At the end of the day, it made me laugh and it made me pay attention when it mattered the most and those are the unmistakable signs of an enjoyable work of fiction. This one goes on the fridge, right next to The LEGO Movie - and not just because they share a Will Farrell between them.

Then again, they didn't play the original Barbie Girl song in the end credits, so it's a 0/10.

[heyitsperfect]

My man - Herman Kozik

Warnings: violence, bad language, mention of sex, kissing and a charming Kozik

You trust your old men with your life and you also trust him not to go behind your back. That “what happens on a run stays on a run shit” doesn’t work out for you and Kozik was okay with that. Whom you don’t trust is that bitch Ima. The blonde barbie bitch who fucks everything that isn’t up a tree at three and after what she did to Tara and Lyla...well let’s just say you don’t want her near your man. 

It’s Saturday night at the clubhouse. The men were standing around the boxing ring watching two prospects fight, Tig and Happy cheering them on. Tara, Lyla, Gemma and you were sitting at one of the tables a few feet away from the bunch of shouting and yelling men minding your own business until that one specific silver car rolled onto the parking lot at TM. Although you hate her and nobody wants her here, except a few horny men, you can’t do anything against her presence. You looked around to see Kozik standing with Bobby and Opie in some conversation about the fight.

Kozik was standing with his back towards you, but out of the corner of your eye you can see a certain familiar blonde bitch making her way towards your men. Okay you thought to yourself, maybe she just wants to see the fight...bullshit. She wants your man as her next trophy. 

“You gonna do something about it?” Tara asked.

“Somebody needs to put that whore back in her place.” Gemma said more determined.

“Oh trust me… I will put her back in her place if she puts a finger…” you couldn’t finish the sentence, because she already put her hand on his biceps. You got up from your seat and made your way through the crowd. Halfway there you called out for her. 

“Babe, it’s not what…” Kozik tried to explain

“Don’t worry babe.” you shot him a smile and turned to Ima.

“What are you doing here Ima?” you asked her, clearly annoyed.

“I just wanna have fun.” she said in that sultry high pitched voice smirking at Kozik. “Are you gonna do something about it?” she continued. 

“Hell yes!” and with that you punched her straight on the nose, breaking it, earning applause and cheers from the members and the girls who watched the whole scene from afar. Ima was holding her nose, trying to stop the bleeding. You grabbed a fistful of her hair and got close to her face. 

“Now listen closely, bitch, if you ever come near me, my old men or any of the other taken members, I’m gonna hurt you a lot more and a broken nose will be your last problem. You understand me?” it was dead silent around you, nobody dared to say a word. Ima just nodded. You shoved her away as you released her hair. She was quick to disappear. 

The crowd erupted in cheers again. Kozik was snaking his arms around you from behind pulling you close. You intertwined your hands with his.

“I think you’re hot when you go all protective and badass, but I’m only yours babe.” he told you and placed kisses up and down your neck. 

“I know” you turned around and placed one arm around his neck while the other hand made its way over his chest and stomach down to the bulge in his jeans, stroking it, “but I just wanna have fun.” you repeated Imas words. 

Kozik hands were nailed on your hips as he pulled you into a breathtaking kiss, whistles and hollers around you. In one swift motion he grabs your thighs and lifts you up, wrapping your legs around him, as he makes his way into the clubhouse to the dorms to have some actual fun. 

[marzipanandminutiae]

Hey as an NZ kid who nwver saw, or even heard of, American Girl growing up, I’ve gotta say: I LOVE the concept and designs for them, at least from the original runs. Like they are a fantastic method to get kids interested in american history!

They really were!

And one thing that I think contributed to their success was that, unlike other Wholesome Dolls For Young Girls(TM), they never came off as preachy. So many similar toy lines made it transparently obvious that they were just trying to be Not Barbie, and as a result seemed about as interesting to little!Marzi as the high-fiber no-taste cereal grown-ups ate. No makeup, no boobs, no glitter, and no interest whatsoever. 

Oh look- you can change her from plain jeans and a plain t-shirt into a soccer uniform. And nothing else. Great. Hours of engaging play, here I come.

(Lammily and Tree Change Dolls weren’t around at the time, but some other brands had similar ideas. Also, my parents never tried to institute a Barbie ban like some did. But I was still aware of this particular adult attitude.)

American Girl, though, managed to pull me away from Barbie because it had more going for it. It was history. Here was a doll shaped like a chubby nine-year-old, but still with pretty dresses. Still with more to offer than an exact replica of the everyday life I wanted to diverge from in my play. And accessories and outfits that satisfied my every Little Princess-driven dream of a doll with more than lumps of plastic to her name.

Plus, they didn’t teach that there was just one right way to be a girl. It was neither a cavalcade of perfect pink prettiness nor a barrage of Thou Shalt Play Sports, Be Androgynous (But Not Too Much), and Like STEM. Felicity tamed traumatized horses and went to a ball in a beautiful gown. Samantha became a junior labor activist and coveted expensive porcelain dolls. And if you wanted a character who was completely uninterested in anything conventionally feminine, Kit was right there waiting.

There was a lot to praise about the Good Years of American Girl, which to my mind ended after Kit’s release. Not in terms of the characters necessarily, but quality-wise. One part of it, I feel, was their ability to actually take their audience into consideration where similar lines of “realistic child dolls for real children” didn’t- and continue not to even today.