#and told me its the best none dc / marvel comic

[oifaaa]

how i differentiate bot and follower is "do they have a human lady in a bikini? if yes then its a bot" lol thats the only bots i get recently lol

have a lovely rest of the day/week! :D

I dont think that's gonna work for my bots friend considering this is what my followers list currently looks like

[thebibliomancer]

Justice League Indispensable: JLA #222: Beasts II: Death Games

January, 1984

I’ve noticed over two-hundred and twenty plus posts that villains love being tall and dangling heroes from their fingers.

That tactile sensation... It must feel amazing. And a little squirmy.

Not much else to say about the cover. Except that Hawkman’s legs seem to not exist.

Anyway.

Last time on Justice League: the Justice League have been dealing with a lot of weird animal/people hybrids. Has Dr. Moreau finally been adapted into DC? Probably not. But Flash, Elongated Man, and Hawkman all get badly injured in separate locations by these Ani-Men. And Firestorm catches a catgirl named Reena robbing the Empire State Building. She asks him for sanctuary so he takes her to the JL Satellite to spill the beans on the Ani-Men.

This time: Superman is in the hilarious position of interrogating catgirl Reena who has forgotten how chairs work.

Just sitting on the table. Probably getting hair everywhere.

Firestorm tells Superman to chill out with the hardnosed animated Justice League approach (I mean, he doesn’t, but animated Superman also needed to chill out, amirite?) because Reena volunteered to help.

Reena says she has no choice but to trust the League and that she’s lived in DAILY TERROR for the past few months.

She asks if any of them have heard of Repli-Tech?

Dang, shame Batman is off having recently formed the Outsiders because I bet he knows all the companies. All of them.

Ooooorrrr Aquaman does?

Aquaman: “Repli-Tech Industries... They were one of the first of the genetics companies to go public on the stock exchange, weren’t they? I remember they made quite a splash a year ago... But I haven’t heard anything about them since.”

Oh, Aquaman, you punster, you.

So Reena lays down some exposition about how Repli-Tech was a hilariously mismanaged company, where the executives forced a rapid capital expansion beyond its market niche and how a recession just bankrupt the overextended company.

But despite the dismay and panic of the other execs, hilariously mustached CEO Rex Rogan had a daring plan to save the company!

Rex Rogan: “Dr. Lovecraft and his genetic discoveries were the basis for our initial success, developing new forms of medicine -- new fertilizers -- even new fuels! He’s come up with a way out for all of us, involving a new, experimental form of DNA manipulation. It could kill us -- but the alternative is disgrace, financial ruin, and imprisonment.”

Oh, sure. Of course. Why not trust a guy called DR. LOVECRAFT.

But due to faith in Rex Rogan, CEO, or just fear of prison, the whole board all agrees to this wild plan.

And the wild plan?

Dr. Lovecraft uses SCIENCE to put them all in cocoons where they are transformed into furries.

Rex Rogan Maximus Rex: “We are reborn -- we are above the beasts, and above mankind! We will do more than merely survive -- we will conquer -- we will rule!”

Then with company guards also enhanced by Dr. Lovecraft, Rex has them steal a whole bunch of shit which is used to protect Repli-Tech from bankruptcy.

Huh.

Uh. I don’t really get how becoming furries was an essential part of this plan.

If the plan was just to steal a bunch of shit to make up for poor financial management. But live your best lives, Repli-Tech board of directors.

Anyway, having super hunky animal powers is handy when the superheroes inevitably become involved which oops look its happening. It happened last issue and this issue so good thing they had turned themselves into furries.

(Do the Repli-Tech board of directors not have to make any public appearances? They’re a publicly traded company, apparently.)

Also, Maximus Rex buys a warehouse to turn into an arena for some death games where humans fight beast-men for the amusement of the rich and powerful like politicians and corporate executives.

Not really sure how this specifically saves the company but I think that’s more of a personal project for Maximus Rex, lion hunk.

The blood sport did make Reena start thinking that maybe Rex was the asshole.

‘Uh no shit’ chimes in Hawkgirl and Wonder Woman who determine now is a good time to interject that Reena is just as much of a monster for sitting idly by as people were killed in blood sport.

Firestorm, Superman, and Zatanna counter ‘hey lets hear the rest of the story, mkay?’

Reena grew unable to stomach all the death and as luck would have it Rowl, one of the Repli-Tech guards recently transformed into an animal hunk also found the whole situation gross.

He helped Reena escape but wound up captured himself.

He did manage to high kick a scorpion man though. So that’s something.

Anyway, Rowl getting caught is why Reena was breaking into the Repli-Tech office in the Empire State Building. She wanted to find evidence!

Hawkgirl: “I don’t believe it. Not a word. She’s obviously a plant -- she said herself, she was Rogan’s mistress, that she always did everything he told her. Why should we believe she’d turn against him?”

Firestorm: “Look at her, Hawkgirl -- me, I believe her.”

Aquaman: “We can’t ignore what she’s told us, Shayera.”

Even Superman goes yeah lets believe the catgirl. And I’m sorta wondering about all the male Justice League members believing the catgirl while two out of three of the woman leaguers are like uhn uh I don’t trust that darn cat.

But we shortly see that Reena was telling the truth about Rowl, if nothing else.

Guards at the Arena snooze gas Rowl to drag him from his cell into the Arena.

A Guard: “Y’know, I used to be friends with this guy, when he was still human. Rex gives him a chance to be something special, and he goes and blows it helping some damn cat.”

Rowl comes to in the center of the Arena with the crowd roaring for his blood.

He tries to talk to the crowd, win their sympathy by saying he used to be human like them but they’re rich dicks who want to see someone horribly murdered for their amusement.

Trying to talk to them was a non-starter. And Maximus Rex even mocks him for trying.

Maximus Rex: “Human you may have been -- but you were never like them. Smell the air: it’s so thick you can taste it -- the oily sweat of a blood-hungry mob! They want a death, Rowl... They want your death!”

Maximus Rex asks the crowd what Rowl deserves and they chant DEATH and KILL HIM so Maximus Rex jumps down to the Arena floor to see to it personally.

He’s kinda like Roman Emperor Commodus from the historically adjacent movie film Gladiator who liked to gladiate instead of just watching Gladiator gladiate.

And unlike movie Commodus, Maximus Rex is no slouch.

Right off the bat, he blocks Rowl’s ultimate technique, a jump kick.

Poor Rowl is doomed.

And he doesn’t even know it yet. He manages to hit Maximus Rex once and thinks he’s winning.

Rowl: “You’re just as you were in the boardroom -- you’ve no stomach for a real battle! We used to laugh about you, Rogan, down in the ranks! All of us -- we called you a gutless wonder!”

Maximus Rex retorts by disembowling Rowl.

Maximus Rex: “So, Rowl... Which of us has no stomach now?”

Savage af.

Then he knocks Rowl down and RIPS OFF HIS HEAD TO SHOW TO THE CROWD??

Geez! This is a gory story! I mean, we don’t see anything really except for some dark blue blood but geez!

A lion man just ripped off a jump-kicking wolfman’s head in a gladiatorial arena for the ultra rich!

You’re bonkers, superhero comic books!

RIP Rowl, Justice League #222 (1984) - Justice League #222 (1984).

Back at the Justicey part of the plot, 22,300 miles above the Earth, the League receives an emergency message from Dr. Hamid of Cairo Hospital.

Or he says he’s Dr. Hamid of Cairo Hospital.

He looks like Tony Stark, that Ironman guy from Marvel.

Anyway, he got the JL’s top secret broadcast code from a device on Hawkman’s uniform.

Yeah. Hawkman. Remember how he was attacked by a giant scorpion last issue? Well, he’s in the hospital with an acute case of too much scorpion venom in him. And Dr. Toby Stark fears he may not last the night.

Hawkgirl is understandably upset and wants to rush to his side as fast as possible. And since the League has cool teleport booths, that’s... still not that fast because the booths only go to other booths and Cairo Hospital doesn’t have a booth.

She also asks Wonder Woman to go with her.

Superman wonders if Hawkgirl is maybe too emotionally torn up to go see her scorpion’d hawkguy.

Zatanna: “I won’t stop her, Superman. Will you?”

WHILE GIVING AN EXPRESSION THATS LIKE ‘please do not drag me into drama.’

Reena tries to commiserate with Hawkgirl but Shayera is having none of that.

Hawkgirl: “Your people did this. If Katar dies -- you killed him!”

Oof.

Zatanna tries to contextualize Hawkgirl’s outburst by explaining that Hawkman and Hawkgirl are just super close but Reena says she understands because she and Rex were that close.

And that despite everything she still loves him and it makes her feel like shit.

Oof.

Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl arrive at Cairo Hospital and Dr. Hamid tells them that Hawkman isn’t the only one who got scorpion’d.

Dr. Hall and his students were attacked by giant scorpion man to rob some archaeological relics they found. Several of the students are in the hospital after being stung and two have already died.

As for Dr. Hall, why he’s just plum gone missing. (Because he’s Hawkman)

From his hospital bed, Hawkman weakly (because of getting scorpion’d) apologizes for the argument they had before he left for Cairo and Hawkgirl claims she doesn’t even remember the fight. Because nothing makes you put aside hurt feelings like possible death by scorpion.

Dr. Hamid tells Wonder Woman that Hawkman is very likely to die unless they can get some giant scorpion man venom to develop into an anti-toxin.

And while they walk by, a random janitor mopping the floor reports the presence of the Justice League members to his ring.

HMMM.

I think that I suspect that this humble janitor is in fact actually a plant for the Rex Squad.

Yup.

Yuuuup.

That janitor was up to no good.

With two Hawks down with sleep gas, its left to the Rex Squad unit leader to handle Wonder Woman.

ITS A HECKIN RHINO MAN!

Of course, a hero as strong as Wonder Woman isn’t going down to a single rhino punch.

It takes a second whole punch to knock her out.

Womp womp.

Rhino Man: “Gas her and shove her in the ‘copter with the others, Mac. The boss wants ‘em all for a little TV show he’s planning. Way I hear, it’s gonna be a ratings smash!”

Rhino puns.

About an hour later, the Justice League subteam nicknamed Sit On Their Thumbs is still in the satellite wondering why Wonder Woman hasn’t called to tell them how Hawkman is doing.

But gosh darn it, if they don’t hear from her in two more minutes in time for the regular hourly check-in, then they’ll just have to do something maybe!

But they get a signal from Hawkgirl’s code and Aquaman main screen turns on... to reveal a big sneering lion man who is not Hawkgirl at all.

Reena: “oh god... he’s found me.”

Maximus Rex, full incoming ham: “Yes, Reena, I’ve found you. When this is done, you’ll suffer the fate of all who betray me. But first, tell your new friends who they face! I am MAXIMUS REX, LEADER OF THE NEW ORDER!”

Firestorm: “Y’know... Somehow, I’d already guessed that.”

Snrrk.

But Maximus Rex warns them not to mock his lionness and has the camera swung over to reveal that he has Wonder Woman and the Hawks as his hostages.

Hawkman is definitely going to die (from being scorpion’d) but Maximus Rex is Magnanimous Rex and instead of immediately killing them, he’s going to turn them into furries too.

Maximus Rex: “I think the Amazon would make a very proper pig, don’t you?”

Man, this guy must have loved the “This Little Piggy” episode of Justice League Unlimited.

Buuuut he won’t turn them into furries and make them fight in his Arena if the Justice League do him some small favors.

First thing, turn Reena over to him.

Second thing, “I want your full cooperation with my plans.”

When Superman tells him ‘obviously no’ Maximus gets mad.

Oh, Maximus the Mad. That’s a catchy name for him.

Maximus Rex: “In the hours to come, you will regret this decision, Justice Leaguers. My new order is the future. You cannot turn the tide of destiny. It will sweep over you... Draw you under... Drown you in the sea of history! Ours will be a struggle to the death -- your death! HA HA HA HA”

He is.

Frothing a little.

And as the mad lion lad continues just belly laughing on this collect call, Superman shakes his fist determinedly.

Superman: “Enjoy it while you have it, Maximus. We’re bringing you down.”

I mean, sure, half of the League is captured or in the hospital already from tangling with these Ani-Men but the League is probably due for an upswing, right?

Or maybe they’ll all get captured and I’ll get to see what the Justice League’s fursonas are.

My guess for Superman is the noble capybara, friend to all.

Follow @justice-league-indispensible or @essential-avengers​ which is my real liveblog. I’m sorry, this has all been a lie. A jape. A delightful jest. An April Fool. Like and reblog maybe. The more notes this gets the more I go oh no look at what kind of response Justice League gets and I’ve backed the Avengers horse, the April Fool turns out to be me! That’ll show me.

[thewriting-corner]

‘Renegades’ trilogy by Marissa Meyer: review

Welcome today to a post I have been waiting to do for months. I never do entire posts for book reviews, but since this was a trilogy (and one of my favorites I read this year) I decided it would deserve a little more.

Note: I will be doing a spoiler-free review first and then I’ll put a warning before talking about each individual book :)

Synopsis: The Renegades are a syndicate of prodigies—humans with extraordinary abilities—who emerged from the ruins of a crumbled society and established peace and order where chaos reigned. As champions of justice, they remain a symbol of hope and courage to everyone... except the villains they once overthrew.

Trilogy Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I honestly think these are the best books I’ve ever read. The description was fascinating, easy to follow and gave amazing imagery without that heaviness that a lot of fantasy books have (this is more sci-fi/dystipia-ish but still).

The characters felt real and their individual voices were clear from start to finish. I loved every single character, even the ones I hated. 

However, there is one thing that bothered me BUT it does align with their world and that is the lack of accountability certain characters recieve (but I will be talking about that in my Supernova review).

Then the PLOT OH MY GOSH. I mean, it’s superheroes. It’s nearly impossible to be original with a plot that isn’t the same as any Marvel or DC comic/movie/show. And yet Marissa Meyer that such a beautiful job of taking a common conflict (heroes vs villains, villains wanting to take over the world) and turning it into a unique plot with amazing twists. 

I mentioned the world-building before, but I’ll do it again. Third person POV is not my favorite and neither is heavy world building like the one this book needed and had. Still, it was written in such a simple way that I didn’t feel like she was trying to confuse me, it was just a story.

Overall, this series was amazing and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fast paced, mind-blowing world building and compelling characters that will make you feel single to the core even in a relationship.

🚨Spoilers Ahead🚨

Renegades ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“We were all villains in the beginning.”

I went into this book with low expectations because I didn’t think I’d like Marissa Meyer’s style and boy was I wrong.

The first few chapters were a bit confusing but the moment Adrian fixed Nova’s bracelet I KNEW this would steer towards romance and it sold me. And then Nightmare making fun of the Sentinel for his comic book phrases and poses was my favorite thing ever. That would be me as a superhero, no doubt.

I really liked the way the plot progressed “slowly” without feeling dragged on. In fact, despite it’s slower pace of the story, the book still felt quick and that just won a million points with me.

Don’t even get me started on the Anarchists. I LOVED them. I like how they weren’t presented as villains from Nova’s POV, just enemies of a totalitarian state. Not even just in her point of view though. I genuinely didn’t think any of them were bad until Ingrid decided to show up at the library and almost killed Sketch’s crew.

And speaking of Sketch’s crew … the minor characters??? Hello??? Who writes side characters that are SO good?? Oscar is my favorite though. He wins. Danna being the only one to question Nova about Adrian’a feelings for her was hilarious, although it stressed me out that Nova put her to sleep. Counterpoint: it was very cute that the only way she could stop thinking of Adrian liking her was by putting Danna to sleep. Very on point teenage reaction. I would’ve done the same thing if only I wasn’t trying to remain anonymous in the organization that indirectly killed my parents. 

The climax, on the other hand, felt a teensy bit rushed but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy Nodrian in their not-date. It was adorable, especially when they stopped at the kid’s party and then Nova panicking over the mere thought of going on the ferris wheel with Adrian. All the carnival chapters where my favorite thing ever and I really wished they hadn’t ended with Nova killing the woman who raised her. But I did like the irony of it being Ingrid who told her she didn’t have the guts to press the trigger and then she died at the hands of Nova’s gun. 

AND THE ENDING WITH ACE BEING ALIVE. That shook me. I suspected it, of course, but it shook me to my core. 10/10 plot twist there.

Archenemies ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“I guess I figured you deserve to have good dreams every once in a while. Even if you never sleep.”

This one gets six stars because somehow I read it in 11 hours and I’ve never read such a large book in one day. The entire story was just fast-paced action, superhero world building and Nodrian flirting and eventually kissing. Best book ever.

I liked how in this book we got a closer look into other character relationships like Oscar and Ruby and then Danna’s suspicions over Nova. I would’ve liked to see more of Danna’s friendship with the team though, since at times it seemed she was only there to send passive aggressive comments at Nova. And the Sentinel’s “death” was amazing. Pure comic book material right there. 

There is this thing though that I mentioned in the general review that bothered me and it’s when they reveal Agent N. This weapon they created using Max’s blood is a great example of how the Renegades had obtained way too much power. It’s when we start to see that maybe Nova and the Anarchists are right. The Renegades are slowly becoming a dictatorship and it’s bothersome that nobody except Nova and Adrian notice. Especially when it was so obvious with things like them using Agent N “against every prodigy who didn’t follow the Renegades code”. Sure, they were criminals, but that wasn’t about arresting them. It was about changing the DNA of people who made one mistake and were immediately deemed enemies of the state.

Back to the good stuff, Nodrian flirting was the highlight of this book. They’re both so awkward and adorable, especially when Nova’s teaching Adrian how to shoot and then when they’re in his room later on. The whole “you want me to ignore everything?” and “you’re not allowed to have girls in your room?” quotes KILLED me. Those were peak flirting moments and I’m immensely surprised by the way that Marissa Meyer manages to write teenagers realistically as an adult and not even having teenage kids of her own. Also, Nova opening up to Adrian was just. No. It killed me. My ghost is writing this btw.

The ending, once again, amazing. I loved it. Not only did it once again show Frostbite’s true colors, show us how much hate Adrian actually held against Nightmare and the way Nova had softened by the Renegades’ influence. And Ace Anarchy’s capture goes into the good things pile.

Supernova ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“To be honest, I’m not sure there are such things as villains anymore. Maybe there never really were.”

Is it a bad review if I just insert the word “AH” for the next ten lines? Yes? Damn it. I admit that I was expecting something much different, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I have never cursed and squealed so much by reading and had I not bought the hardcover with my own money, I would’ve thrown that book against the wall. It stressed me out. First of all, getting Nova and Adrian kissing in the tunnels a few chapters before Adrian arrests her for being Nightmare was another level of messed up. Clearly, she did everything in her power to save him from her house’s explosion and he threw it out the window in blind anger. And then the whole execution thing??? That was horrifying and it’s when the Renegades’ incompetence really showed its true colors. They couldn’t bring the people back to their side - because they failed - so they sentenced a broken, dying man and an underage girl who acted under the manipulation of her entire family, to death. If Hugh had ever even attempted to find out what happened to both Artino girls, none of that mess would’ve happened, but instead Lady Indomitable died and he went “WELL, can’t do anything about her last task, can we?” I get he was preoccupied by her orphaned son and the Ace of Anarchy, but it was as simple as going back into the house and searching. In fact, this entire book was just showing how their society was crumbling and in the end they went “we were all heroes”. I’m surprised Nova forgave the entire Renegades organization for what they did because even if it was Ace who sent a hit after her and her family, the Renegades were still willing to overuse their power. 

And once again back to the good stuff before I end up bashing the Renegades even more, I never thought I would be on board with Adrian and Nova’s relationship at the end of the book. I try not to ship toxic relationships in YA because they happen a lot and I wouldn’t like younger readers to think that it’s okay, but I loved how both Nova and Adrian were willing to make a change for their relationship to work. They compromised because they loved each other so much it didn’t matter who had tried to kill the other person and their dad or who hadn’t advocated against the other’s execution, you know, the ups and downs of every relationship. While I do wish we had seen them talking about everything, I get a book can only have a certain amount of words and I was glad just the same with how it ended. Also, Leroy’s threat to Adrian is iconic, just like Oscar proclaiming his undying love for Ruby at the arena were they almost witnessed multiple murders.

The epilogue. Just. Wow. I knew it before because I’m smart and I spoiled it but I NEED another Renegades book. You can’t just end the series saying Evie Artino was Magpie and her being as angry as Nova once was. Like, no. You just can’t. That was a crime against humanity, tbh, but overall the series was amazing and I have never been more grateful to spend almost $80 in books. 

[oxtoxtoxto]

Supergirl and What it Means to be Marketed To

i think what bothers me the most about supergirl ending isn’t necessarily that it is, itself, ending. that’s a weird sentence, sure, but i’m not entirely attached to the show as other people in the fandom are. i might be 150 thousand words deep into a crossover with the show and being told “hey it’s not going to get another season after the next” was a pretty significant blow to my motivation (which i think i’ll get over) but overall i always found the show... mediocre? okay? perfectly adequate for what it was (with a few choice exceptions)? 

supergirl was never bad, but to a point the day-to-day episodic nature of it didn’t really catch me like it might’ve others. maybe i’m just full of myself but i felt like i could figure out what the moral quandry of each episode generally turned out to be, so long as it was one of those episodes in which a specific moral judgement was to be made. medusa focuses on how fucked up the luthor family is, and it wasn’t hard to predict that kara’s own family might be brought up as a contrast. episodes generally had a formula and that’s, fine? okay? sometimes it grated that i could understand what the plot was about fifteen minutes into an episode, but it was, like, fine. 

no, supergirl no longer having episodes isn’t what bothers me. the cast has their own reasons to call the curtains; melissa wants to raise her kid, which is a decision i think was made with a lot of thought and care, covid-19 has rendered shooting kinda risky in general, etc. 

it’s none of that, it’s the fact that supergirl felt like a show for me.

it’s hard to explain, i guess? but like, i go into comic book-related shows (and to an extent sci-fi in general) expecting myself, a trans woman, not to be even remotely the target audience. at all. like maybe they might make token efforts to be inclusive? but i realize from the very beginning that i’m not the people they really wrote the show for.

supergirl was different.

supergirl is probably the first and only comic book-focused series that i felt was made for me. it felt like a comic book show for women, and did its best to include different types of women from different walks of life. i might be leery about its weird fascination with rich women and stuff but... it felt like it was written for me.

which is a very alien experience as a trans woman. literally sweet fuck all is ever written for me. even shows which ostensibly include trans women generally include them for shock value, to be sexualized, or generally exploit their presence as not something that is normal, but something that is other, just to varying degrees of bigotry.

comic books especially are bad about this. they’re bad about marketing towards women in general (despite, you know, women being showed to buy comic books if they’re written by someone who has met a woman before) and as a result the setting of a comic book serial has always been vaguely out of reach for me. i could never fully get into them because, even before i figured out i was trans, it all felt very... male-focused. female characters were rarely the viewpoint of the story or the focus, and when they were it was a genuine dice-roll if you would get a realistic depiction out of it.

not only that, but female side characters always ran the risk of being bizarrely sexualized or twisted into knots over male characters, usually the main. 

point is, supergirl didn’t feel like that. supergirl felt like a show written by someone who was marketing it towards a female audience and not in the misogynistic way sitcoms and shit market towards women with shallow approximations of abusive relationships played off as ‘quirky’ or ‘broody’.

even throughout all of its incredibly... interesting choices it still never felt like the show had suddenly become a show for guys. it was always grounded in feeling like it was written for women, regardless of its ups or downs, and that was very, very nice.

and now it’s going to be gone. i’m not... really attached to supergirl as a construct, as mentioned before, it’s more that i’ve attached myself to the idea of supergirl. the idea of a mid-budget superhero show marketed for women and not being weirdly exclusive about it. not just that, but it wasn’t a show featuring teenagers--it wasn’t about young girls, or coming-of-age, it was about women who lived and existed in a world and who occasionally had to fight aliens. it was nice, it wasn’t perfect, sometimes i put the speed on 2x to skip through some of it, but... it was there. it was an option. i could, after slogging through another release of a comic i had high hopes for but had long since abandoned them, gone to it and went ‘yeah, sure, things might suck on that end, but at least i have this’.

which i don’t anymore. i get that batwoman and legends will still be around, i do, but... neither of them felt, like, as resonant with me as supergirl did. neither of them focused on marginalized groups of people like supergirl did (with it’s aliens -> immigrant allegory) and frankly none of them had a trans character.

as much as i might not be 100% in the brainia camp, i can at least appreciate that the one trans character wasn’t left out of the romantic weirdness of cw shows, the constant rotating door of interpersonal drama. it was nice to see a trans woman on screen and not feel like a shoe is going to drop and i’m going to have to endure The Transphobia Episode, where the main character - not the trans one - comes in and stops the bad things from happening so as to be elevated into being more morally good than anyone else.

i never had to worry about nia nal being written... well weirdly. you know what i mean, right? when a show gets an lgbt character or a poc and there’s just something very subtly wrong about how they’re written vs your experiences? i get that experiences aren’t universal and vary wildly depending on where you live (me being in canada has separated me from the severity of transphobia in places like the us and uk) but even then you can just kinda tell that whoever wrote the character doesn’t... really understand them, either.

i never had to worry about alex being turned into a predator, and however much i might fucking hate them reusing the old weird fixation with lesbians hating the idea of kids, it... still wasn’t that horrifying. people split up for reasons surrounding kids all the time, i did. i have experiences that mirror that, though we split up more amicably than others.

the point is, supergirl always felt very safe. it always felt marketed at me, it always felt like it was meant for me to watch, and that wasn’t something i’d ever experienced as someone who deeply loves comic books. it has always been out of the range of my expectations to find something that resonates with me despite its plot, despite everything.

and now it’s going to go away.

and i’m upset about that, i guess.

because i’m not... entirely sure there’ll be another. i desperately want there to be, but you have to understand my expectations are absolutely rock bottom. supergirl is not the change in a stale river to me, it’s not the turning tide, it’s the outlier. it came from cw for gods’ sake, noted bury-your-gays enthusiasts. i went into it expecting exactly the same thing i expect out of every superhero franchise, marvel, dc or otherwise.

and it completely blew my expectations away. it made me feel like it was for me in a way not even some of the better written-by-women comics have, despite everything, which is why i stuck around even through the weird shit around lena/kara, even through all the posturing and alex/maggie’s breakup and mon-el and season 5 as a concept and, and, and...

now it’s going to be going away, and i’m not entirely sure how to handle that.

i know i can rewatch it, i know it’ll always be there, even if netflix takes it off. i know.

but it means someone won’t be writing a woman-focused superhero show anymore, and i’ll really miss that.

[cassatine]

Nine films into its now 21 entries, the Marvel Cinematic Universe found its groove — albeit with caveats. The series’ long-running imbalance is owed to both occasionally muddled character arcs and often-incoherent worldviews. For the most part, the MCU captures the texture of America’s post-9/11 military politics, though it rarely has anything of significance to say about it. This superficiality has been a sticking point on the Road to Endgame, even for some of the series’ very best entries.

Marvel’s backdrops are politically charged, if not outright political, but the way they’re framed tends to act in contention with the stories being told. Captain America: The Winter Soldier falls unequivocally on the “incoherent worldview” side of things, however it succeeds more than its predecessors thanks to its clarity of character. It’s arguably the best Marvel movie till date, combining slick action, taut structure and sincere performances, though it’s hardly immune to the series’ political pitfalls. After all, it was the third Marvel film to be partially funded by the Pentagon.

A Shield From Criticism

Marvel’s incongruous political outlook is owed, in major part, to the series starting out as government propaganda. Like hundreds of Hollywood films, early Marvel movies like Iron Man and Iron Man 2 were produced with U.S. military assistance, which means they were also locked-in to scripts approved by the Department of Defense.

The Avengers was eventually turned down for this assistance, though it certainly attempted to appease the Pentagon at some point during its production (U.S. military equipment ended up in the film regardless). And while Iron Man 3 seemingly alluded to Marvel’s disagreement with the D.O.D — “There’s no politics here… There’s no Pentagon. It’s just you and me.” — the studio resumed its relationship with the U.S. government for its Captain America sequel, a partnership that continued until as recently as this year’s Captain Marvel.

Several scenes in Captain America: The Winter Soldier were filmed at an Army base near Cleveland, Ohio according to the Pentagon’s Hollywood database (obtained via SpyCulture). In return, the Army received “a significant portrayal in the film” at “no cost to the government.” A likely condition of this partnership, as with the Pentagon’s production agreements on Iron Man and Iron Man 2, was Marvel ensuring none of this portrayal was negative.

The result of this dynamic is a film, and a series, that only pays lip-service to questioning authority. The stories take aim at fictionalized structures, while real wings of U.S. government and their military policies remain unchallenged, despite them forming a major part of the fictional backdrop.

The real-world military presence in these films is treated as a desirable norm, while the real-world problems they cause or exacerbate are passed off to fictional villains. In the process, the heroes ultimately fight to maintain the status quo, wherein U.S. militarism is framed as the more peaceful alternative. The Avengers never truly rattle the cage, not in any way that would create long-lasting change.

The Winter Soldier’s critique of drone warfare and data mining is the closest Marvel has come to speaking truth to American power, though it stops short at every turn. In prior entries like the Iron Man films (not to mention Captain America’s own debut), the villains usually mirror some element of real-world authority, but they’re made palatable to all audiences once they’re stripped of real-world ideologies.

The film attempts to use specific U.S. military methods (and their justifications) to grounds its character-centric story. However, it also continues the series’ wishy-washy approach to power by letting real-world structures off the hook, shifting the blame for those methods to fictional entities (One has to imagine the film’s D.O.D. overseers preferred the responsibility for overtly American problems be directed elsewhere).

The result, while most certainly an exciting action-adventure, is a movie whose own story is frequently undercut. It teeters on the edge of substance, yet it feels constantly hesitant.

The Big Reveal

Understanding The Winter Soldier requires talking about its midpoint, a reveal that brings its themes into focus. Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) are fugitives from S.H.I.E.L.D., which has been recently compromised. This military outfit had a nebulous international allegiance in The Avengers, though its visual coding (and its Washington DC headquarters) make it closer to a defense branch of the U.S. government.

After tracking down a mysterious data point, Rogers and Romanoff discover, embedded within S.H.I.E.L.D.’s very origins, the digitized consciousness of Arnim Zola (Toby Jones), one of Rogers’ World War II adversaries. The real-life Operation Paperclip, which folded former Nazi scientists into American intelligence, resulted in Nazi science division H.Y.D.R.A spreading fascist ideology within American ranks. As it stands, H.Y.D.R.A. and S.H.I.E.L.D. are effectively one. They plan to kill anyone who might oppose them, though their impetus for doing so is un-specific; their ideology, once again, is “power” in the abstract.

In previous Marvel efforts, the villains’ plans often had a political façade, with something cartoonishly sinister beneath the surface. Obadiah Stane sought power in the form of Iron Men, the Abomination sought it in the form of big, green muscles, and Red Skull wanted power in the form of, well, magical powers. The Winter Soldier however, flips the script in that regard, retrofitting ridiculous-sounding comic elements like secret super-Nazis, a man in a computer, and even Batroc The Leaper in order to make them part of a larger political fabric. Here, the villains are driven by both in-universe history as well as political ideology, or at least something resembling the latter.

Rather than infiltrating America from the outside, H.Y.D.R.A. has grown to become part of American governance over the decades. It is made up of American Senators and military personnel, from fighter pilots all the way to a member of the World Council. The Winter Soldier comic’s Aleksander Lukin, a former K.G.B.-operative and modern-day avatar for the Red Skull’s consciousness, shows up here as Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford), a stripped-down American vessel for H.Y.D.R.A.’s ideas. In the film, Pierce has always been an American, and his methods are drawn from America’s real-world foreign and domestic policies. “Zola’s Algorithm,” the computer program that tells Pierce whom to target, is threat analysis through data-mining, not unlike the N.S.A. secrets exposed by Edward Snowden.

“Project Insight,” the algorithm’s next phase, involves drone ships picking off targets who pose a threat to H.Y.D.R.A.’s global security — or as Steve Rogers describes it, “Holding a gun at everyone on Earth and calling it protection.” Functionally, these crimes are a carried out by members of the American military, working in the shadows, killing and spying with impunity, causing Rogers and Romanoff to realize they might not work for the good guys after all.

On the other hand, revealing that covert Nazi infiltrators have been pulling the strings all along also waters down the narrative. The dilemma our heroes face is one of misguided allegiance, but this reveal makes it far too easy for them to come to terms with their mistakes. Rather than having to confront their place in a corrupt power structure, that structure is revealed to have secretly been another organization altogether, one that Rogers and Romanoff have never perceived as being the good guys. In effect, there’s little need for them to introspect since it turns out they were duped. The film thus avoids all questions of America’s role in these distinctly American methodologies.

H.Y.D.R.A., while descended from Nazis, have little connection to Nazi ideology. Instead, the organization seeks to bring the world under singular rule, without any further framing as to what they stand for — or against. For a second time in the series, a Captain America film responds to the question of who would be most vulnerable to the villains’ ideology with the same disappointing answer: America, and America only.

In Captain America: The First Avenger, H.Y.D.R.A.’s immediate target was America, the military superpower, rather than any specific group persecuted by the Nazis. In The Winter Soldier, the result is similar; the immediate targets of “Project Insight” are mostly Americans on domestic soil. It’s a horrifying image from an American standpoint, though as a metaphor, it’s largely disconnected from its real-world equivalent. In either case, scrubbing the villains of specific outlooks means the characters opposing them needn’t have specific allegiances. This Captain America neither fought for persecuted peoples during World War II, nor does he fight for victims of America’s preemptive drone strikes in the Middle East. He only seems to fight for Americans.

While Rogers battles a military apparatus meant to mirror that of America, the fight ultimately comes down to a simplistically framed binary (despite the film’s musings about the world being more complicated than it once was). Captain America, draped once more in his red, white and blue, attempts to stop the Nazis — one of the unambiguous villains of World War II — from carrying out mass murder. It doesn’t hold much weight as a metaphor, even in the context of post-2016 America, whose own Nazi resurgence is tied to unconfronted elements of white supremacy in American life and government.

In The Winter Soldier, American governance is implicitly framed as the peaceful aspiration. Its disruptors — both now and throughout history — are fictitious foreign infiltrators, who secretly perpetrate America’s real-world crimes. “Coups, assassinations and proxy wars? Couldn’t be me.”

What else is one to expect from a film, even a great one, made in part to promote the U.S. military machine?

[natsubeatsrock]

10 Things I Enjoyed in 2020 that Aren’t Fairy Tail

Well... it’s almost over? With all the crazy stuff that’s happened this year, it’s hard to remember that there were some good things to come from this year. So instead of 7, here’s 10 things I enjoyed throughout this year.

#10. Sonic the Hedgehog

Not unlike many people, this would be the last film that came out this year I would see in theaters before everything shut down earlier this year. While I have gone out to watch movies throughout this year since, this happens to be the only movie I’ve been looking forward to that came out this year. Since the release of Detective Pikachu last year, the fraught history of video game movies has started to look a lot better. For all intents and purposes, I think this film is better than that one, and I’m a much bigger fan of Pokemon than Sonic. If certain spoilers are a sign of anything, a future sequel will be interesting to see and greatly anticipated.

#9. Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia

One of the blessings-in-disguise of being locked down with extra money is the ability to get and enjoy things you haven’t gotten the opportunity to before. In my case, I was able to play through some of the Pokemon games I’ve been waiting to play through. My favorite of the bunch has been the second installment of the Pokemon Ranger series. The Ranger games have been greatly underrated and overlooked by fans. I was reintroduced to the original last Christmas and believe it to be a solid game, but this easily blows it out of the water. While this year also marked the sad end of the 3DS cycle, I’m glad that this game came my way.

#8. 42

With the unfortunate passing of its lead actor, Chadwick Boseman, and the racial tensions which came to a head after the death of George Floyd, it makes sense theaters would reopen with this movie. Jackie Robinson’s story is one that’s interested me as the talks of integration and racism have gone on this year. He became the first African American MLB player because of both his talent on the field and his character off it. He wasn’t just skilled in stealing bases. He didn’t allow the anger he rightly felt towards racism control him.

#7. Bakuman

The famed writer and artist duo behind Death Note teamed up to deliver another smash hit manga for Weekly Shonen Jump. This time, about... a writer and artist duo who team up to make a name for themselves by delivering a smash hit manga to Weekly Shonen Jump. As I read Bakuman, I was struck with the genius of its construction. It’s one thing to read the information about Shueisha and WSJ this series shares in a book. It’s another for that information to be shared within the confines that the series itself describes. Special shout-outs go to Ayakashi Triangle and Phantom Seer which started in WSJ this year.

#6. Power Girl: Power Trip

Oh? Were you perhaps expecting to see some other female character owned by Detective Comics Comics who graced the silver screen take this spot? Well, maybe next year, depending on how things go. I love my comic book heroes with healthy doses of snark and existential crisis. While I might have gone in expecting the former, I wasn’t expecting the latter as much. If you know about Power Girl, you may know about her famous “boob window“, which is in lieu of a real symbol. It turns out that she was originally thought to be Superman’s cousin, but has recently been proven to be otherwise. I’m not so against DC that I’m unwilling to admit when they make books that I like.

#5. Carole and Tuesday

Carole and Tuesday holds a special spot as becoming the latest 10/10 anime I’ve seen. This is easily one of the most diverse anime that I’ve ever seen. It’s not just a matter of showing people of different walks of life, ethnicities, and sexual orientations. It’s also showing artists different music styles from folk to jazz to rap to electronic to new age to operatic rap. And none of it feels forced or unnatural, though some of it might come off as offensive. If you’re on as big a planet as Mars, you’ll expect to see all kinds of people and hear all kinds of music as long as you’re willing to listen. Shinichiro Wantanabe is one of anime’s best directors and this might be his best work yet.

#4. Lupin III: The First

If you told me a few years ago that one of the best anime movies would be a fully CGI film, I would have looked at you like you were insane. Nevertheless, this movie exists. I was skeptical about the idea of a fully CGI movie for a character like this. But when I saw a clip from the movie, I could tell they knew what they were doing. This movie is by no means anywhere as good looking as Spiderverse, but it looks amazing in its own right. Content wise, this serves as a great heist film for anyone regardless of proximity to the series. Arsene Lupin III makes  It makes a fine introduction to the world of one of anime’s most longstanding series, and a good launching point for his earlier antics. Props to Weathering to You for keeping this slot warm. (Ironic considering things...)

#3. John Byrne’s run on Sensational She-Hulk

So I wasn’t going to say this talking about Power Trip, but I need to say this here. American comics are at a weird spot. In attempts to reach a wider audience, they’re not doing a great job of keeping the fans they have. Or make actually new ones. The current run of Savage She-Hulk has been no exception to this. Though it wasn’t always like this and John Byrne’s runs on Sensational She-Hulk is proof positive. Byrne took Jennifer Walters with more fun than I’ve seen any author write any comic book with. This especially shows in one of the more notable abilities of She-Hulk, breaking the fourth wall. I was very worried when I heard Marvel Studios was going to do a series with Shulkie. But with this as inspiration, maybe there’s hope for this project after all. (Please be good!)

#2. Burn the Witch

Tite Kubo is back, baby! This spot doesn’t go to any of the sets of chapters to be published in Shonen Jump. Rather, his collaboration with Studio Colorido is my choice for anime of the year. Burn the Witch tells the story of a different Soul Society than Bleach fans may be familiar with. It’s almost cheating to compare this mid-length film to the other shows to come out this year, even if it was broken up into three episodes for streaming sites. However, film or otherwise, no other anime grabbed my attention as much as this did. This also marks the best anime from WSJ I’ve seen this year. Surely I’m not forgetting anything big to come out recently in saying this, especially from this year with everything that got delayed. Honorable mentions go to TONIKAWA: Under the Moon, Bofuri, BNA, Keep Your Hands off Eizouken!, and Misfit of Demon King Academy for nearly taking my spot.

#1. Skullgirls

This year has been a tough year for a lot of people, companies, and fandoms. Though, I’d be hard pressed to think of a fandom that has had a worse year than this indie fighter. One of its founders was revealed to be terrible, one of its parent companies went under, and a prime opportunity for the spotlight in EVO Online being cancelled, it wouldn’t be a mistake to say things aren’t going well. Thankfully, the fans and dev team have done everything they can to keep this game alive before and that didn’t stop this year. It feels somewhat on-brand for this series to have survived the kinds of situations that would normally kill a game off. This game would have made the top spot by virtue of being the most fun game I played this year. I’m proud to put it at this spot knowing everything that’s surrounded it this year.

For extra honorable mentions, Pokemon’s seventh generation of games, especially the Ultra versions, were fun to finally experience and they have the best stories of the 3DS era of Pokemon. Cobra Kai was a fun series and almost definitely would be here if I were more emotionally attached to the Karate Kid series. I rewatched Neon Genesis Evangelion and it’s better than I remembered originally. Finally, I’d move heaven and earth to add Oregairu or Hilda on this list, considering new seasons came out this year, but I know better.

As usual, check my list for EZ, which also has 10 things, and be glad we’re almost done with this year. See you!

[arkus-rhapsode]

What do you consider the IDEAL comic crossover for My Hero, DC or Marvel?

Oh boy, an excuse to talk about comics! Strap in this answer may surprise you.

Since superheroes in the traditional sense are more of a western creation and the comic industry is dominated by Marvel and DC, its only natural when a manga series all about superheroes that resemble that traditional western idea you’d think about them crossing over.

However, there’s a lot of distinct differences between MHA’s universe and the big 2 mainstream comic universes. These differences make it harder for me to see them actually being able to mesh.

Obvious ones being space aliens and magic exist. Heroes with just gadgets are more common. And very key to the marvel universe, you can be a mutant and discriminated against even though there’s a bunch of other heroes with freaky powers that just weren’t born with them and somehow they get a pass (That’s a discussion for another day).

But what I always go to as what makes MHA extremely different and not at all compatible with comics like Superman or Wonder Woman or Wolverine is very simple, weakness.

Quirks in MHA suffer a variety of weaknesses. A big point in the story is growing your skill to work around that weakness. Now that’s not to say heroes in Western Comics don’t have weaknesses. Superman can be stopped by Kryptonite, Green Lantern can be stopped by the color yellow, ans Martian Manhunter can be stopped by fire. All well and good, but most of those limits are super specific malefactors that aren’t products of limitation the way quirks are.

The pinnacle of MHA’s hero society at this moment is Endeavor, a guy who can make a bunch of flames, but use too many and he burns himself out. That’s their PEAK. Now hop over to Marvel and Human Torch can literally go on forever.

This is due to both industries taking a different approach to action. In MHA you can make chapters on just the fight. The back and forth and struggle. And a battle of skill is really engaging.

But in comics, fights aren’t really about the battles. Its more, strike a dynamic pose while caption boxes use that to tell a story. The action can look cool and have stakes, but its more a story than it is a battle of skill. Now there are times this isn’t always the case.

The Dan Jurgens’s Teen Titans and Kyle/Yost New X-Men both used an emphasis on skill in battle as a way to show these young heroes were up and coming and had to grow into protectors and fighters. And long comic books like Superman vs The Amazing Spider-man used it’s extra page space to infuse it with more intricate action. However, these are exceptions, and not the rule. This is likely due to Manga be produced in a week and comics being produced in a month yet having roughly the same amount of pages.

Another thing is role. MHA is one story told by one guy and will have its definitive end. When they beat a villain, that’s a big moment because its likely the end of that villain. But in western comics, they have no true end. You beat that villain, they can come back, maybe acting differently depending on the writer.

It’s due to their limitations, the characters of MHA just wouldn’t work in the worlds of Marvel or DC, they are too fragile. Too different. The characters of MHA would be upstaged in terms of feats. It’s such a difference in base function that it really removes the interest in seeing them crossover. Thus making it not IDEAL for me.

I actually think characters from the Justice League or Avengers would cross over better with heroes from One Punch Man. There, S-Class heroes are ridiculously strong. The roof on their power limit is almost unachievable to any of heroes in MHA and people like the fast as super tech of Child Emperor, Super Martial Artist Bang, Tornado of Terror Tatsumaki would actually integrate into the same weight class as God of Thunder Thor, Super Science Iron Man, and super regenerative Wolverine.

But this isn’t OPM, it’s about MHA, and after I gave that big dressing down of how they just wouldn’t really fit in the over powered worlds of Marvel/DC. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a universe I think MHA would fit in with.

The universe is Marvel’s New Universe.

For those who don’t know what the New Universe, the basic gist of it is this. In honor of Marvel’s 25th Anniversary, a distinctively separate universe from the main Marvel continuity, was launched with a unique mission statement and goal. This would be a superhero world grounded in realism.There would be no hidden races, gods, mythological beings, magic, or supertechnology (in fairness, this rule was broken by one Character called Justice, who was an exiled Alien Warrior, but 7 out of the 8 titles sticking to the rules isn’t too bad).

Superhuman characters and powers would be limited and thus more subdued in their activities, yet their actions would have more realistic consequences. Superhumans began to appear thanks to a phenomenon called the White Light Event, which gave 2 out of ever 1 million humans super powers. Those who gained powers were referenced to as Paranormals.

Now this project was certainly ambitious for Marvel, and as you can guess from how little relevance it has nowadays, it didn’t do so hot. Unfortunately, New Universe just couldn’t afford the A-list Talent it wanted and the line crashed and burned. Becoming more of a foot note in Marvel Comics history and sometimes explored or had elements taken from it by the mainstream marvel.

A shame as, New Universe would actually mesh with MHA, unlike mainstream marvel, super humans are just starting out, there is none of that baggage of “mutants bad, but people who got their powers from radiation good.” No, if you had powers, you were a target by a glowingly concerned public.

There is no magic or magic metal like vibranium that can be relied on by normal humans to gain powers.

As stated previously, it was almost all earth bound. Heroes in this world had to have powers all from the same place. This white light that made genetic anomalies that gave people powers.

And what about those powers? Well lets take a look at one the super hero “teams” of the New Universe DP7. A title all about a group of 7 paranormals.

Well their powers included members like:

Friction- acquired the power to make herself, anything she touched, and any other object she thought about within a limited range friction-free enough to make the object or person slide effortlessly. Over time, Beck learned to make her power object-specific or to increase friction to stick things together.

Scuzz- who produces a corrosive substance from his skin, which he himself is immune to. He can increase his skin's production of the chemical, to the point of burning through a steel plate in 10 seconds, but cannot stop it, turning anything he wears into a tattered ruin within days and affecting objects such as bedsheets and furniture that he comes into regular contact with.  He learns to form his chemical-laden saliva with his skin secretion into "gobs" or "spitballs" that he can throw.

Twilight- whose body produces "fatigue-poison inducing bioluminescence" that can paralyze and render unconscious individuals that are exposed to it. Twilight's power requires her to remain covered over her entire body at all times

Blur- whose body vibrates so fast that he cannot stand still. He requires vast amounts of food for his accelerated metabolism and can move at superhuman speed.

As you can see, these superhumans are more in line in terms of power with how Horikoshi writes powers. And I think that means you’d be able to crossover without one of the heroes being upstaged.

However, why I think this is ideal is just the fact that the New Universe is a world at the cusp of super humans appearing. We know in MHA that when that happened with quirks, it didn’t go smoothly. So I think it be amazing to see the characters of MHA who’s society reflects a possible conclusion for the society of the new universe.

Look, I know there’s tons of fanfiction and fan works that pair MHA with Marvel or DC and there’s nothing wrong with that. That is your creativity, and you are free to explore it in anyway you want. Never has this post been my intent to tell you that you can’t have an MHA/DC crossover or what have you. This is simply what I’d consider the most ideal crossover.

And I think that with these factors of realistic world, powers with limitations, and the blossoming of a super human society. That’s why I’d say the New Universe is the best one MHA could have a western comic crossover with.

[imperiuswrecked]

Fanfic Authors Tag Game

Tagged by: @marblesarelost Tagging: @veliseraptor @traincat 

AO3 Name: ImperiusRex

Fandoms:  Marvel & DC (comics mostly but I enjoy other stuff too like cartoons and movies), Mercy Thompson book series, Dresden Files book series, Black Sails, Star Trek, early seasons of Vikings.

Number of fics: 66 trying to get to 100 before the end of the year hopefully!

1. Fic you spent the most time on: I really can’t say, because a lot of my fics are ones that I start and then put on pause for a time until I find the muse to start/finish them again, which takes anywhere from one day to years. However the longest ongoing wip I have is: To Find my Soul a Home; very long fic about Namor’s life and has slow burn Jim/Namor as the endgame. I have been working on it on and off for about 3 years. Still working on it.

2. Fic you spent the least time on:  Strange Customs; short Jim/Namor fluff fic set during the Oracle Inc holiday party.

3. Longest fic: Catching Quicksilver; 61,858 word fic (26 chapters)  featuring Remy/Pietro. It’s my first published fic too.

4. Shortest fic: Mister Dibbles; 556 word fic about Pietro learning more about his new pet.

5. Most hits:  Catching Quicksilver ; currently at 4,422 hits

6. Most kudos: The Thief's Heart (Remy/Pietro fic) ; currently at 214 kudos

7. Most comment thread:  Strength & Weakness (Namor/Pietro fic) ; currently at 46 comments

8. Fave fic you wrote: My favorite fic is always changing and it’s usually the fic I have not finished yet. I like all of my fics but I think the ones I will love most when it’s done is either To find my Soul a Home, or Lighthouse which are both Jim/Namor wips.

9. Fic you want to rewrite/expand on: Currently none, I really don’t like to go back to fics after I post them because I take so long to even finish one and if I don’t know when to say stop, then it never gets finished. So I try to just be ok with whatever I wrote.

10. Share a bit of your WIP or share a story idea that you’re planning:

From: To Find my Soul a Home: Jim/Namor fic: This scene takes place in middle of the story, long after Jim and Namor had parted ways. Jim has been buried in the desert by his enemies, which was the explanation of why the OG Human Torch was not around for decades. warnings for angst, mentions of war, and burial:

He is crushing darkness around him. There is something wrong with his body, he is unable to move, unable to cry out, Jim is trapped inside his mind as the sounds of dirt hitting dirt slowly fades away until they stop. They have buried him in some place he does not know, deep under the ground. What did they do to him? He strains to try and move but nothing happens, he can’t even wiggle his fingers. Lips closed so that any words he would have spoken were sealed forever. This can’t be happening, not again, not again! He remembers the last time he was trapped in such a way, when his father- when Horton sealed him in the concrete under the ground because they were all afraid of him.

“I’m sorry my boy… I have to do this for your own good. I f I leave you out here they will destroy you. I will come back soon and set you free, and teach you more about this world. When it’s ready for you. Be good my boy.”

Anger burns in his chest and he can’t feel his body heating but it’s a weak fire smothered by dirt and lack of air. Horton never came back for him, he never returned and Jim had to free himself. Horton would not free him now either. The world had never been ready for the Human Torch, but Jim had demanded they try, he did everything he could to be human and now he can’t even die like one. Trapped in this suspended animation as he hears the men’s boots stamp over the dirt of his grave before muffled sounds of their voices fades away. Was it night now? Did it matter? He was never leaving here, Toro hadn’t even known what happened to him, what would happen to the boy? Would he search for Jim? He couldn’t let himself hope for that. He hopes Toro will move on with his life, he was old enough now that he could make it on his own. Still Jim feels a tear slip down the side of his face, he would never see his son again, never hug him and ruffle his hair and tell him how proud he was, how much he loved him. Toro could be an old man before Jim ever escaped from here.

Time has passed, how much? Jim doesn’t know, he could have been here a few days but it feels longer than that, weeks, months maybe. His body’s functions had been shutting down slowly, he feels his artificial heart slow to just a few beats per minute. His mind is clouded by the memories of the past, like a bad tape it skips around and some scenes run on repeat. If he was human it would be called hallucinating.

“Look at me Pappy!” Toro flames on by himself for the first time without burning any of the surrounding furniture in their tiny home, his fire spark smile is wide as he lifts his arms up in success. Jim folds the newspaper down enough to watch him. “Good job son. I’m proud of you.” Toro grins as he slowly flames down.

Jim wants to smile at the memory but his face is frozen.

“Come on now Jim, you can’t tell me you still hate him? Even after everything you two have been through?”

“Why are you pushing this Betty? I thought you would be happy that whatever Namor and I had was over.”

“I never saw you as my rival Jim, we both love him, but you know what he’s like.”

“I know. I know, but dammit Betty he gets me so mad…”

His partner in the police force, Betty’s face fades away, the tape skipping again as he tries again to move. He panics again, the cycle of screaming in his head, hoping someone will come, despairing when he comes down from this latest panic attack because nothing changes except his heart is a beat slower than before. Knowing that with every moment that passes his body is shutting down and soon he will be for all intents and proposes, dead. Jim had never died before, he knew what it was like to be shut off, a dark sudden black before the light came on again. Is this how humans feel knowing they have an expiration date? Knowing that one day they too will cease to exist?

“You’re too quiet firebug.”

No. No. No. NO. Jim panics again, tries to get his mind to turn over this tape, switch it to a different record, anything. He doesn’t want to see him.

His face is turned away from Jim in the memory, they were somewhere in France on the shore of a beach. It was the war.

“I don’t have anything to say.”

“I find that hard to believe, you’re always quick to voice your mind when it comes to me, how many times have you insulted me in the past?”

“So you came to find me because you missed my insults?”

“Missed you.”

Jim doesn’t reply to that.

“Say something Firebug, it’s too quiet here.”

Jim follows Namor’s gaze and looks out at the sea of dead soldiers that littered the beach. Their eyes blank as the gulls pick at the corpses. He looks down at his feet as the blood soaked wave washes over his boots.

Jim wants to claw out his brain, he wants it to STOP. He hated the war, he wasn’t like Namor, something happened to the Prince during the war. Jim could compartmentalize the trauma, he locked it away and did his best to be a support system for Toro, but Namor felt everything more deeply. He doesn’t want to see anymore, and for the first time Jim begs Horton’s god to let it end. More time passes.

The edges of his vision are blurry now, and each memory that comes is slower than before. He sees Toro again, in the circus doing his act. He sees Steve sitting in a chair in the clock tower, his face in his hands, the tired slump of his shoulders tells Jim that Steve has not slept again. Papers scribbled with art is strewn everywhere. He sees Namor in the rain.

He knows this.

Jim’s mind is finally on its last legs as it begins to shut down the last of his conscious mind. He is in a house and every room has a light on but the lights are being turned off one by one. He doesn’t want to be alone in the dark again.

The rain soaks Namor, plastering his dark hair and making his pointed ears stick out even more, it’s cute. Jim never told him that.

He knows this night.

Jim follows him out into the rain, away from everyone else.

Another light is turned off and Jim doesn’t try to waste the little energy he has left trying to move his body again. He wants to relive this one more time, he wants to hold on for just one moment more-

He and Namor are pressed against each other in their little alcove, the dirt of the trench wall behind him turns to mud. Piercing green eyes, and warm breath fills his senses as Jim clutches the Prince’s wet dark hair and pulls him closer. The war is worlds away as he feels Namor’s lips connect with his in a kiss. Soft and sensual, it is a sharp contrast to the harshness of the world they live in.

He knows this… the last light turns off and Jim is in the dark, the grainy picture in his mind fades and the record skips for the last time.

“Say something Firebug. It’s too quiet here.”

“I love you.”

Jim sleeps. A man forgotten by time and those who loved him.

[that-curly-haired-lesbian]

Birthday Prompt - The Perfect Present

Today is a very special day, Taylor Swift turns 30!! To celebrate I decided to take some tumblr prompts and write some gay short stories with a birthday theme!

Happy birthday, Taylor (hope you never read these!)

Prompt: Taylor mentions offhand during the first week or so after VSFS 2013 how much she loves her birthday and the Christmas season, Karlie is immediately hit with pressure and tries her very best to find the perfect gift for someone who can already buy herself whatever she wants. Taylor is impressed!

A/N:  I got three different versions of this same prompt so I just mashed them together into this, hope everyone enjoys!

Read it on ao3 or on Wattpad

The snow is falling outside the window and on the couch in her cozy West village apartment we find Karlie Kloss, but she's not alone. International super star Taylor Swift is lying on said couch, her feet casually resting on Karlie's lap in a way that feels oddly familiar already.

Karlie can't quite believe that this is her life now, a mere week ago the older woman was someone Karlie was constantly told by everyone from makeup artists to supposed mutual friends that she'd get along with; and she had to admit that they all had been right. In the week or so since Taylor's appearance at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show the two had been almost inseparable and Karlie wouldn't have it any other way.

"Hey," Taylor suddenly says and despite her soft tone she almost manages to make Karlie jump. They have been sitting in comfortable silence for a while and from what Karlie has been able to tell Taylor has been completely engrossed in whatever is on her phone.

"Yes?" Karlie asks, almost teasingly, curious about what Taylor might be about to say, but also aware that the last time she spoke it was to announce that she needed to go pee.

"I just read that Downton Abbey season...I mean series four is premiering on Us TV on January 14th, that the best late birthday present ever!"

Karlie stifles an urge to laugh, "Downton Abbey, really? You're such a nerd!"

"Whatever, Miss DC Comics!" Taylor fires back with no hesitation and Karlie actually laughs now, "Whatever," She copies, "you read Marvel!"

"The far superior publishing house!"

"I'm not actually entering this discussion with you, Swift!"

"Too chicken, Kloss?"

Karlie laughs again and shakes her head, "Not doing it...You said birthday present? It's your birthday soon, December 13th, right?"

"That's creepy, Karlie." Taylor says and her expression is so deadpan that for half a second Karlie considers apologizing until Taylor bursts out laughing, "Someone did their homework on me!"

Blushing a tiny bit now the model smiles, "what can I say, the material is readily available and I'm a curious person!"

"That's sweet," Taylor says and retracts her legs only to properly sit up to press a small kiss to Karlie's still heating cheek.

"Oh look!" Taylor exclaims suddenly, as Karlie has learnt over the past week the blonde's attention span is occasionally akin to that of a Golden Retriever puppy, "it's snowing!" She jumps up and rushes to the window, practically pressing her nose to the glass. She turns back to the woman on the couch, her white, broad smile splitting her face in two, "I can't wait for Christmas!"

Karlie's only thought?

What the actual fresh hell am I supposed to get her for her birthday AND Christmas?

--

It's about two days later when Karlie has practically rushed around every store in Manhattan, still none the wiser as to what to get her new...friend. When her phone rings she's relived, an excuse to take a break from the stress that she usually only feels around four days before Christmas Day.

"Hey Kimby!" She breathes into the phone a lot more breathlessly than she'd planned. Turns out running around stores, not her thing. She already knew that, but turns out it's really not her thing when there's the added pressure of trying to impress someone with the perfect gift.

"What the heck, Mouse, you running a marathon or something?"

Karlie giggles despite herself, "not this time," she admits, "I'm trying to find someone a birthday and/or Christmas present and I have absolutely no-"

"It's Taylor Swift, isn't it?" The model's little sister interrupts and Karlie rolls her eyes.

"It's for Taylor, yes...I wish you guys would stop calling her-"

"It's her name!" The high schooler counters.

"Yes, Kimberly!"

"That's not the same..." The girl grumbles, making her sister laugh a little too hard.

"Do you like, realize how cool it is that you're dating Taylor Sw-"

"We're not dating," Karlie interrupts a little too quickly, "We're just...hanging out and I don't-"

"Karlie and Taylor sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-" Kimby singsongs, laughing hysterically all the while.

"Okay, dude, unless there's something you actually wanted I'm going to hang up now, you're incredibly unhelpful and I have to find something!"

--

It's two days until Taylor's birthday and once again the two are sat on Karlie's couch when the model finds herself taking a deep breath.

"So Taylor," she starts and the singer grins.

"Yes, Karlie?"

"I know I'm not going to be able to see you on your birthday, but I-I got you a little something and-and it's really no big deal if you hate it you can totally...I mean I don't want to-"

"Karlie," Taylor interrupts and there's something soft and fond and somehow incredibly calming in her gaze suddenly, "just go get the thing if you want, I already love it because it's from you and I...Well..." There's a few seconds of agonizing silence, "I really, really like spending time with you!"

Karlie beams as she gets up from the couch and walks over to the TV stand to reveal a package wrapped up in ribbon and soft sparkly paper, just the sight makes Taylor smile she notes and she's very proud of herself for a second.

"Is it fragile?" Taylor asks immediately as Karlie hands her the gift and the taller girl shakes her head, "not really." Taylor proceeds to shake the present at once and even puts her ear up to it. "It's heavier than I thought!" She notes and Karlie smiles in amusement, "just open it!"

"This is a process, Karlie!" Taylor exclaims, raising her eyebrows in horror at the callousness with which the younger girl is seemingly treating this moment. Truth is though that Karlie is too nervous to watch Taylor go about this any longer, but she's not about to tell her that.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt the delicate process-" She starts, but Taylor is already ripping the wrapping off like a kid on Christmas morning by that point.

A few seconds of silence pass between them as Taylor gets the gift unwrapped and then she gaps and it is as if the world stands still until she speaks.

"Karlie, I like, I genuinely want you to know that this is the best gift I've gotten in...Years!" At first Karlie thinks she's kidding, that this is some expression of dry humor again, but then she actually looks at Taylor who's borderline tearing up and looking at the necklace with the widest of smiles.

Delicately she lifts it from its box and hands it to Karlie, "Will you help put it on?"

"Of course!" Karlie says and gently moves Taylor's long hair out of the way to fasten the necklace properly. When Taylor turns around still beaming Karlie can't help but kiss her, Taylor might be thankful for the present, but Karlie is just as thankful that it appears she may have nailed this.

The necklace is a perfect replica of a small cat complete with fur details, it's real silver and it's cute but silly, or at least Karlie had thought so until she saw Taylor's face.

"How did you know I've been looking at this online for a while?"

"I don't know, lucky guess?"

[headcans-oneshots-and-stuff]

Those Comics | Chapter three

Marvel/Dc crossover x reader Warnings: None, I think I’m safe for this one Word count: 2342 Summary: Now that the seriousness of the situation is clear, you’ll have to face some rather inconvenient truths  Series: Chapter One |  Chapter Two | You’re here |

The mood in the Watchtower-meeting-room was pretty down. The universe-native heroes were standing around a holographic-table (the bat-boys who you liked much more than the big heroes stayed in Gotham after they told Bruce to take you with them to the Watchtower) looking at some scientific-graphs and occasionally looked over to you. You had serious flashbacks to the time you first became an Avenger. At the start, before you earned their trusted, they also excluded you and looked at you like you could jump up and scream "Hail, Hydra" at any given moment. The only difference was, that you didn't really care back then as much as you do now, since, y'know, YOU WERE STILL IN YOUR OWN UNIVERSE. A long Sigh escaped you and you slid down the wall of the room, where you were standing at. And so, sitting on the floor with your knees under your shin, the reality of the situation dawned on you. You were trapped in a different Universe, with people who don't trust you as far as they could throw you, which could seemingly soon collapse into nothingness, with no idea how to go back or how to at least say good-bye to your family. You felt the tears dwell up, but fought them to the best of your Abilities. You were the one who held the others when they cried or needed stability. You were the stable part, you couldn't break down. Not now, not ever. A deep breath later, you shook your head and jumped up again. "Sooo? You wanna include the scientist from another Universe who may or may not know more than you about the situation?" you asked cheekily, winking at Batman. "No," he grunted and turned the Holographic-desk off. A huff left you, you rolled your eyes and glitched over to the window, enjoying the great sight of Earth in front of you. "I understand that you don't trust me," you said, your voice deeper and not as happy as usual. "To be honest, I wouldn't trust me too. Hell," you chuckled, "I worked with Loki oft enough to have doubts on everyone." You looked at your own reflection, tracing your features and wondering just how much you've changed since you started this superhero-life. "I understand that your priority lies on your earth and your people, but you have to understand that I have my priorities too," now you looked behind over your shoulder, "And if we can't find a way to fulfill both of them, I'll have to work alone." "We can't let you stroll around on our earth, you do not belong here," Diana said, her voice was like honey and you enjoyed hearing it more than you would have expected, but you couldn't help but notice the undertone, slightly threatening. You nodded slowly and hummed. "You're right. I don't belong here. That's why I want to get back to my Earth." "We understand that, believe us, and we assure you that we'll help you to get back to your Universe, but before, we'll have to take care of ours, okay?" Superman said and, even though you didn't really believe him completely, you were still a hero and decided that you'd gladly help them to fix their universe.   "Fine," you sighed and nodded to the Holo-desk. "Can I have a look?" Batman was already trying to say no, but Green Arrow ignored him and activated it. It took you a few seconds to understand how that desk worked, since Tony's were almost completely automatic, but when you did, you were quick to look through all the pieces of information given (which were not many). After five minutes, you noticed something. "Here," you said pointing to the data of the energy that was all too familiar for you, it was the same energy measured back when Loki tried to take over New York. "This Data is basically the manifestation of a type of Gamma-radiation-energy that is pretty similar to one I already know. Back in my universe, it was first seen through two of the infinity stones, some of the most powerful items we know off when said stones were used to create a portal through space to start an Alien Invasion." You looked around to check if everyone was on track, but since no one looked too confused you just continued: "Well, to make a long story short, I think that's basically what's happening, just with this universe something from out of this universe..." you trailed off when you realized what that meant. "What?" Flash asked and you groaned. "Something from out of this universe opened a portal into this one. And with something...I mean me. I did that." Bruce pointed his finger at you angrily, "Does that mean you're destroying the shell?" "NO NO NO NO NO!" you exclaimed and glitched backwards. "Well, I'm afraid I'm the cause, but I'm not really the one doing it." "I'm not really getting it. I feel like I'm only hearing half a conversation," Green Lantern sight and leant back onto the wall. "Okay, okay, okay...gimme a Second," you said, teleported away and through the whole watchtower, searching for a Window that would not destroy the whole tower when it was gone. When you finally found it you teleported it out of its frame and both of you back into the meeting room. You placed the pane onto the table and held your hand out to Batman. "What?" he gruffed. "I need something sharp and pointy and what would be better for that then a Batarang?" "No," he said, but one look from wonder woman had him rolling his eyes under his cowl and give you one. "So," you said, gesturing to the pane, "imagine this is your universe and this," you gestured to the other side, "Is mine. The glass is the barrier." "Okay, I think I can follow until now," Flash nodded, giving you enough reason to continue. "Good. Well, I am the Batarang, and when I accidentally teleported here, that happened." You took the Batarang and rammed it cautiously into the glass, enough to make it crack but not enough to make it shatter. "So the outer shell is already broken?" Diana asked concerned. "Yes," you sighed, "but I can't tell you what will happen. Maybe it stays like that, but that would mean..." you directed your gaze back to the sight of the planet that looked so much like yours, "that I can't go back. Every nudge onto the shell would immediately destroy it." Batman sighed but did something that surprised you. He asked: "What would happen if you went back none the less? What would happen to our universe?" You bit you under-lip before, nudging the glass, causing it to break into pieces. "This. The barrier would be gone. Best case, The universes convergence and we'll have two versions of every planet that exists in both of our universes, but in the worst case, they merge and...uhm...it won't be pretty. The survival rate would be in the single digits." "That means we're safe as long as you don't go back to your universe?" Superman asked with pity in his voice. "Oh...no, sorry. You just have more time. I'm not the only one who can teleport through universes as far as I know and even if no one can or would, I can't tell how stable the shell is." "That means we have to find a way to fix it, right?" Green Arrow asked. You nodded, even though you had no idea how exactly you were going to find this way.

(A bit later, in the manor)

After an hour of searching for ways to fix the shell, Bruce exclaimed that it wouldn't help to exhaust all off you and decided that you would stay in the manor with him and the bat-kids, who all decided to stay for a while in order to help with the problem. Alfred (the saint) showed you the room you'd stay in and you realized just how tired you were, 'causing you to fall into bed and immediately fall asleep.

When you opened your eyes again, you noticed that you weren't in your room, nor in the room, Bruce gave you in the manor. In fact, when you looked around you, you found yourself flowing in a space that reminded you of a van Gogh painting. Surrounding you were different shades of blue yellow and black that merged into each other and made you feel dizzy. The next thing you noticed was, that you weren't wearing your clothes anymore. Now you were wearing a long green dress, it's fabric flowing down your body like a silent river, with golden ornaments on it. The realization of what this meant was hitting you like the pleasant warmth of cocoa on a cold winter day. A small smile formed on your lips and you turned around,  searching your surrounding area for the man who you'd usually curse out for intruding your dream, even though you currently just wanted to hug him. "I see you missed me," his smooth, honey-like voice reached your ears and turned around yet again to see him smirking at you. "I wouldn't say it's missing you specifically," you said sarcastically but smiled widely nonetheless, "but that doesn't mean I'm less happy to see you Loki." Said god float nearer and took one of your hands in his, swirling you around him as if you were dancing. You knew not to fall for his gentle behaviour and his attempt to seduce you into trusting him. It wasn't the first time he did something like that, but you knew that fighting against it would only make him even more mischief-y than before, so you played along to get what you wanted. "Tell me, how exactly did you manage to hide your location from even my magic? No one has managed to find you yet. Are you going rough, darling?" You jerked back slightly, still getting swirled around by Loki's arm around the small of your back and his other hand in yours, your second arm resting around his neck, or rather shoulder since you tried to keep at least some modest rate of distance. "What? Of course not," you huffed, slightly worried that Loki could even consider that you could betray your family like that, but a few seconds later your face changed into one of confusion, "does that mean that you have no idea where I am right now?" It looked like it was causing him physical pain to admit that he had, indeed, no idea, but Loki still nodded slightly, before he even went so far to say it out loud, something you wouldn't have expected. "No one does. Your little hero friends and my brother are all throwing a fit because of you, they even went so far to invite me to their home, a horrible decision really, with the hope I could find you. This is my last attempted and if I don't wake up with some results, Captain I-don't-need-anyone is going to throw me right back to Jotunheim." Realizing just how worried Carol and the others would have to be, you leant your head against Lokis chest, missing the smirk that filled his expression. "I hoped they knew..That would've made this so much easier," you mumbled, staring in the distance lost. Now it was the mischiefs turn to bring some space between the both of you, by backing away enough to look down at you with raised eyebrows. "What would've made that easier, (Y/N)?"  he asked with a tone that reminded you slightly of worry. "I'm not in this universe anymore," you said, looking down at the hem of your dress. "I know I'm great, but even I can't communicate with the dead through a normal dream spell," he huffed, clearly thinking you tried to make a foul out of him. "That's...That's not what I meant," you sighed, rolling your eyes at him, "I mean I'm quite literally not in your universe anymore, I'm in a different one and..." you freed yourself from Loki's grip and let your eyes wander through your dream-landscape, "I can't come back anymore."

(Somewhere else, around the same time)

It was dark outside and the only light source illuminating the spacious, modern office was the monitor of the top-of-the-line computer, the only sound was the clicking if the keyboard and the only smell the strong coffee standing on the desk. If you'd be standing outside of the office, looking in through the glass walls and door, you'd be able to make out the wide-build shoulders peer out behind the back of the chair, since the man they belonged to was so well-built. His muscular body and visible wealth would make most women (and not few men) swoon for him, but his aura and something in his eyes made you fear him and his simple presence. He was truly the personification of intimidating. The sound of heels hitting the shiny-flawless-floor announced the arrival of another person and the man didn't need to see her, to recognize his trusted assistant simply by the sound of her shoes. The keypad at the door beeped when the woman entered her passcode and the door automatically opened for her, so smooth that no sound was made. "We've located the source," the woman's voice broke the silence and her words, even though he expected them, filled the man with satisfaction, only for his smirk to be wiped from his face by her next ones. "The Justice league has arrived there before we were able to find out anything else and when our employees arrived, there was only a crater left and they couldn't further investigate since the property it landed on belongs to Bruce Wayne." The only sign that showed that the man was angered was his clenched fist, which almost immediately relaxed again. "Find a way to get more information on it. It's priority number one. All other projects that do not need any constant surveillance will be paused until I say so."

Taglist: @panda-duuu @empirialwolf @reallysparklychaos@scarecrowsragdoll @zofty15 @jason-todd-deserved-better@vanessafabricius @probsjosh @silentwhispofhope@rockyrocket15 @uguid @sirkekselord

[supersoldiersruined-me]

And the Winner Is...

A/N: This is my entry for @mss4msu 500 celebration challenge! I’m super late on this one too, thank you for being patient! 💕It’s my second work with Zac so it’s still quite plain and simple, although I’ll be posting a smuttier part later on (following this storyline.) I just thought I’d make this a fluffy oneshot and then whoever wants to read the smut will have it in a seperate text. 🤷‍♀️ Warnings: none really, I don’t even think there’s a swear word... Word count: 2.5k Summary: After several calls to your local radio station and five good answers, you find yourself owner of a VIP pass for the New York comic con. There’s that one man in particular you wish to see, and little did you know he had planned this all along.

Main Masterlist

You’re holding the ticket in your hands, your thumb runs over the large textured letters. You’re still unable to process the euphoria surrounding the events that lead to this day. Your name is written under the New York Comic Con logo, its beautiful lanyard dangles from your hands as you twirl it around to look at the pattern. The softness of the couch has never been so welcoming as it envelopes you in your downfall from the heavens. The laminated ticket comes to your chest, followed by you giggling in excitement and tapping your feet to the ground. The phone in your pocket rings, and you hurry to pick it up.

“Hello?” You answer without reading the ID.

“Hi Y/N! How are you?” Your friend chimes from the other side.

“Oh, hey! I’m…” You ponder whether to tell or not. “I’m doing great,” you finish quickly as not to leave any suspicion.

“Riiight. Expected someone else?” You bite your lip to keep from laughing some more. She knows where you’re headed to, but not what’s actually hidden behind all this. “Well anyway, if you want me to help you pack for your trip I’m free all night.” She giggles when you stay silent. You end up accepting her offer, unsure if you could go the entire evening without combusting of joy. You figure that having her around would help you stay down to earth - but most importantly, it would keep the scenarios from playing in your mind.

You’re happy to realise that both seats next to you remain empty as the plane shakes off the ground. Once the flight is steady and you’ve lost sight of the city lights, you fold your knees over the arm rest as you get comfortable for the short flight. A variety of films is available from the on-board entertainment, including very recent titles, and some of your favourite series. So much for the book you had packed, you think. The soft vibrations help numb your mind and soon you’re well into a proper nap; an earphone securely playing the soundtrack to a Disney movie, the other hanging over your shoulder as it got pulled out not too long after.

Someone’s backpack strap is what has you jolting up at your arrival. You stretch as best you can in the confined space, reaching over to your left for the cubicle window. The rainy weather is not enough to dispirit you as you close it back and pick up your stuff, ready to have a great weekend at the convention. You’re in the last bunch out of the plane and through customs.

You set your bag onto the plushy bench at the foot of the bed - which is way too big for one person, you think - and let yourself fall on your back; the supple material has you bouncing a couple times. As you take a few deep breaths, you let your hands roam the space next to you, the silky fabric of the duvet-cover allows your fingers to glide easily, and it soon feels like you’re swimming in your own little world. The room is dark; the only thing coming in is the filtered light of the blinking advertisement panels outside. The dim ambiance of Time Square that’s just a few blocks down helps your mind drift off, and as if someone had dropped their knocked-out, fully-clothed kid on their sister’s spare bed, you lay there, content, before finally falling asleep.

A knock at the door pulls you out of your beauty sleep, and you thank the night’s unexpected crash for the fully functional outfit.

“Hi, can I-” You stop yourself when the door won’t go wider than a couple inches, the chain lock still well in place. “I’m sorry. Hi!” A familiar face waits with a white box in hand, and the same sweet smile. It’s his assistant. She had skyped you to explain what the pass included and later to explain the schedule of your plane.

“I hope I’m not too early for you. I’m just dropping this off. The convention starts at ten,” she begins, and then waits for your reaction. She smiles at your confusion. “Feel free to call me if you need a ride. I think you’ll like it. Congratulations again!” She winks as she taps on the box before walking away into the long hall. Suddenly, the furthest door down the hall opens slightly and your heart skips a beat on the spot. His tall silhouette barely makes it under the door frame as he steps out to get his special delivery of newspapers. Dark jeans held around his waist by a black leather belt. No shirt. Before he can stretch back up and see you, you squeal your way back into the room, then slam the door before leaning against it. Giggles escape your lips and you can’t help but dance around a little. Pictures surely didn’t do him justice.

The soft cardboard of the box tears slightly under your tight grip. A small cut gives you a peek at what’s hiding inside. With a slight spark of excitement you rush towards the table in the small living space and lay it on the marble. The small ribbon is easily torn away and you pull out a Nerd HQ t-shirt; the fabric is soft in your hands, the colours remind you of an 80s arcade room. The symbol is spelled out in a neon-like font, and stripes run down the side seems. You pick up the small note at the bottom of the box and gasp as you read it:

“Dear nerd,

Thank you for participating in our contest! I hope you enjoy your stay and that you have fun at the convention. But then again, you’ll get to meet me so that’s pretty rad!

I’ll see you later Y/N,

Zac ❤”

The last few words are hard to read as your eyes slowly fill with tears of joy. He’s taken the time to write a little message for you and it honestly beats getting a like from him on one of your tweets. You had been able to talk to him over the phone for a couple minutes when him and his assistant called to give you the result of the draw. He later texted you a simple hello, which stretched into a pretty deep conversation about mental health and upcoming movies. About a week later he warned you that his phone might have been hacked, and that for your privacy - and his - you had accepted to stop talking until you could meet. Knowing that you’ll be able to see him in person definitely has you nervous and shaking.

Getting back onto your feet, you trot towards the bathroom and hold the shirt up in front of your body, imagining how it would look on you. Then you go back to finish your outfit and get your small bag ready with everything you want signed.

You walk out of the elevator to the basement, where a black Mercedes awaits. A small hand waves you in through the open passenger window, and you settle next to his assistant.

“Told you you’d like it!” Her tone is friendly and she winks at you before pulling onto the street.

Small talk makes the ride down the jammed streets of Hell’s Kitchen a breeze, and with the lanyard around your neck, you walk into the busy halls of the Javits Center. The main area is packed; you wonder if everything is up to fire regulations as you strut around, being careful not to walk on anyone’s heels or break any cosplays. Marvel pretty much owns the place - or rather Disney - as Star Wars ships and maquettes are displayed here and there, comic artists and autograph booths fill the back walls. You walk down the aisles as if you were on a cloud. This is certainly the best initiation you could have gotten. Then, with an extra heartbeat per minute, you come to realise that you’re just a few feet away from the DC gate, which is ironically adorned with Shazam posters, along with Superman gear. An attroupement of people surrounds the Batmobile that roars in a corner. You sigh as the whole event becomes a bit overwhelming, and you can’t help but feel yourself go a bit weak.

You step into the little archway, and a well deserved breath escapes your lungs. You waste some time looking around at the frames and pieces of craft that creators expose proudly. And then your eyes come up to the posters hung along the black curtains behind the autograph tables, a sweet red shade tints your cheeks at the sight of Zac’s picture in the Shazam suit. A small kid bumps into you when your feet give up on their simple task; the flashes of his near-naked body resurfacing from the morning has your mind going foggy. He steps out a few minutes later, along with Asher and Jack, and they are greeted by a roar of cheers which knocks you out of a day dream. Your shoulder finds refuge on a nearby column, and you decide to wait until he has talked to a few people before you can come up with the courage to walk to his booth. He’s a little faster though and spots you from his seat, earning yourself a wink and a bright smile.

“Here comes the smolder!” Someone calls from the line in front of you, making you laugh a little. A strong hand comes to your shoulder from behind, startling you.

“Y/N?” His voice is a bit higher than you expected for someone his size. His square shoulders jump up a little when he sees your frightened face. The company shirt he has on is clearly a size too small; the sleeve bands around his biceps are screaming for their life.

“Yes. Do you need an ID?” You already have a hand in your bag as you ask the question, but he grabs your arm and politely shakes his head.

“It’s alright, love. Follow me,” he adds.

You struggle to keep up with him as he guides you through a crowded area, even though his body creates a rather smooth passage. About a minute later you find yourself alone with him in a small hallway; pipes fill the ceiling and everything is made out of concrete. Had it not been for the bright neon lights, this would certainly feel like a horror movie. You keep walking in silence, hearing the crowd cheer through the small doors you keep passing by. Then he opens a door to your right and motions you inside while holding it for you.

“If you please,” he says cordially.

You enter the room and scan your surroundings. A couch covered in dark green velvet sits by the opposing wall. There’s a barber chair sitting in front of a big mirror, where bottles of makeup and what-not fill a thin shelf. You step a little further inside and then see the fruits on the coffee table along with various snacks and bottles of Gatorade. When the bodyguard closes the door behind you and moves out of the way you see the small post on the door.

‘Zachary Levi’ written in black sharpie on the back of a random list, taped unevenly.

Your jaw slackens a little, your gaze goes back to the treats on the table and you smile at how personal this feels. The man invites you to get comfortable and take whatever you’d like, and you think he said he’d be back shortly with a warm lunch but your mind is already wandering around the subtle items and decor. You run your hands on the soft material of the couch as you let your body relax into it. It has a natural wood frame and feels very vintage. Very Zac. A small TV hangs on the wall in front of it and is already turned on and logged onto someone’s Netflix account. You grab the remote and proceed to ‘get comfortable’ as the man had said. The choice is easy when one of your favourite series is in his list as well.

The first episode is nearly done when faint voices are getting closer in the hallway, and out of panic you turn it off and sit back into the couch. The handle moves but it takes a few seconds before the door is finally pushed open. He’s standing there in the frame, still talking to someone you can’t see from your position. Although you doubt you’d be able to see anything else with Zac just shining in the room. You stand up and he sees it in his sight. He turns his head just a little and sends you another wink along with a little wave, politely asking you to wait another minute. You stand there in the middle of the room, swaying from a foot to another as you try and compose yourself. Then he turns around completely and steps inside.

“Hi Y/N!” His voice is high and bashful. You move your hand up in hopes of reaching for his, but he jerks it away gently and opens his arms instead. “Come on! Bring it in.”

You obey and move closer to him. Your arms hook behind his body but you’re too afraid to touch him. You linger there, your head against his chest that slowly rises with each breath, trying to slow your heartbeat to match his. His actions make it hard for you to actually focus. One of his hands reaches the back of your head and he runs his fingers through your hair before settling lower on your neck.

“You’re so damn beautiful,” he whispers in the crook of your neck. He only lets go when he feels you shiver and your arms fall to your side. He grabs your shoulders, pushing you back a little and looks at you, his face wincing at his clumsiness. “Did I overstep? Gosh. I’m so, so sorry!” He seems  genuinely concerned and bothered with himself until he sees you smile finally, making him shiver in return.

“You shouldn’t...I’m...I can’t lie and say I’m not enjoying this.” He breathes out when you’re done and his shoulders relax. “I guess I’m just startled. You really are so handsome and...” And I saw you half naked this morning and wanted to have my hands on you all day but… You shake your head at the thought with a laugh which seems to amuse him as well.

“What?” He grins and takes a step closer. So close your neck is about to snap from looking up at him.

“I, um…” Your hands come to your face and you lean against his chest again. His hands run down your arms and onto the small of your back, before slowly making their way back up and locking behind your neck. He pulls slightly on your hair, making you face him again. A whimper threatens to leave your throat but his lips are quick to block any sound from coming out of your mouth.

[timeisacephalopod]

The criticisms I’ve seen for Captain Marvel are fucking stupid. I’m so sorry for the long rant!

Number One: ‘But the skrulls are antagonists in the comics, its insulting to comic fans that they changed it!’ Yes, skrulls are comic villains. But I read I run of Guardians of the Galaxy that had this EXACT storyline. Cosmo (the dog in a space suit we see in GoTG) was hiding skrull refugees who didn’t agree with the skrulls overall goals and Drax deadass killed everyone on the ship for 30 seconds to determine who was and wasn't a skrull, resulting in Cosmo having to defend them to the Guardians because these particular skrulls didn’t agree with their people’s ways and were looking for safety. The refugee storyline is literally CANON. Just because its not a popular storyline doesn’t mean they didn’t pull it from the comics. And we’ve never particularly cared how faithful something is to comic canon before either.

Number Two: she’s over powered. So was Thor when he took the full force of a dying star in Infinity War, so was Tony Stark when he fell out of the sky and smashed into the sand going more than fast enough to break every bone in his body in Iron Man, so was Bucky when he didn't die falling off that train in Captain America, Bruce Banner- no further argument needed. And its worthy to note Peter Quill, who never used his powers before meeting Ego, was able to conjure them almost immediately and use them with a small level of control. Arguably, Loki is overpowered too. Carol Danvers had extensive combat training on TWO planets and already had a decent control on her energy blasting powers, PLUS she was shown to mess up a few times in her final battle but her powers made up for that. Not unlike Captain America in all HIS movies, or Tony Stark for that matter.

Number Three: bUt I dOnT lIkE tHaT iT gOt pOliTiCaL. Oh, you mean like Iron Man talked about US sponsored terrorism and criticized the military and weapons use? Or like Infinity War had Thanos go on and on about over population and resource scarcity? Or IM2 talking about green energy and referencing climate change? Or how about the explicitly political entire third Captain America movie or you know, C A P T A I N  A M E R I C A as an entire character. The guy is literally walking American propaganda in the movies and in real life, plus his first movie criticized war propaganda. Thor 3 touched on historical revisionism and imperialism, it also criticized prison slavery. Political commentary is integral to both the comics and the MCU- the political backdrop of the times shaped how the fucking stories got told. Comic villains are literally whoever America doesn’t like at the time of writing- we know this.

Number Four: ‘but I don’t like that Brie Larson talked about feminism and critics being diverse, this is a bad thing for some reason!!!’ Oh, but we’re going to ignore Chris Evan’s left wing politics and how he’s pretty open about it too, often criticizing Trump and making other left wing criticisms of America? I’ve never seen anyone say they don’t want to see Captain America or that they don’t like Chris Evans so much that they try and bomb a Cap movie before it even comes out due to his politics. And Evans’ political stances are more radical than her critic comment, and even if it wasn’t they have similar politics. Given that no one is trying to boycott Chris Evans I’ll assume that’s total bullshit, otherwise there’d be no difference in Larson’s backlash and his crickets.

Number Five: ‘it wasn’t that good, its only mediocre’ or alternatively ‘the trailer/movie didn’t convince me’ argument. Sure, because Ant Man was mind blowing and not at all a Filler Movie, and Doctor Strange totally doesn’t feel like Magical Iron Man, and Peter Quill totally isn’t Space Iron Man, and Thor’s first movie was totally new and original and memorable. Shit, even First Avenger was mediocre. Now, none of these movies are bad- I liked them all fine but lets be real. Ant Man was a money making venture with no value to the MCU and Scott Lang felt like the sidekick in his own story. The first two Thor movies were DC level Dark and Edgy for no reason and, unpopular opinion, I hated the third. The first two Thor’s were dry and lacking in characterization, and the fact that the third was hilarious and made Thor relatable is the reason for its success and the redemption of Thor as an MCU character in fandom eyes regardless of my personal opinion of it. Doctor Strange was a filler movie too, and while it wasn’t nearly as obvious as Ant Man that it was, it sure shit didn’t add anything amazing to the mix either. The time stone was more important than Stephen Strange to MCU canon. It was a Standard Hero Arc with lackluster villains that Strange deadass annoyed into fucking off. That’s how he won the fight in his movie. He was very annoying. Again, I liked this movie fine but the magic was the only new thing. So where’s the ‘well it wasn’t THAT great, it didn’t blow my mind because I guess that’s what we expect out of a fucking superhero film now’ for these movies? Did we expect any of these movies to have off the wall super amazing the best ever never seen before and will never be done like it again storylines that we... honestly don’t see in most any movie? No. And we know why. But given its genre CM was good, exceptionally within its franchise. Is it the most amazing movie ever? No, but not a single MCU film could qualify for that spot either so why do we expect movies led by minorities like CM and Black Panther to?

These are the things I see brought up the most and not one of them even holds. The movie was good and yet critics are like ‘we don’t wanna seem not progressive because we ranked it bad :(((((( But sometimes its not a good movie :((((((( I know I liked Doctor Stange even though its not nearly as good :((((( And CM is one of the best origin stories in the franchise :((((( and we didn’t scrutinize Ant Man, Doctor Strange, and Thor like this even though they were blatantly filler movies :(((((( But sometimes its not good :(((((( I’m a feminist I swear!’ How about admit that you had STUPID high expectations for no reason at all and were looking for a reason to hate the movie. We’ve been handed much worse than this, and the story was just fine. Carol was compelling and interesting as a character, her hero journey is just different enough to make her stand out, I loved what they did with the kree, and the skrull storyline was unexpected, but interesting. We’ve never expected total faithful adaptation to comics before, people didn’t scream that Civil War deviated pretty hard from the comic counterpart, but I guess the fucking skrulls were too much. Not to mention this movie is one of the very few MCU films that doesn’t have a boring villain. All around it was a solid movie, why are people bitching?

[pass-the-bechdel]

Marvel Cinematic Universe: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

Does it pass the Bechdel Test?

Yes, once.

How many female characters (with names and lines) are there?

Five (29.41% of cast).

How many male characters (with names and lines) are there?

Twelve.

Positive Content Rating:

Three.

General Film Quality:

No matter how many times I watch this, I’m always surprised by how excellent it is. If any other future Marvel film wants to be ‘the best’, this is the movie it has to beat for the title. 

MORE INFO (and potential spoilers) UNDER THE CUT:

Passing the Bechdel:

Natasha asks about the ballistics on the weapon used against Fury, and Maria responds. I’ve heard people argue that Natasha was not asking Maria specifically and therefore this does not count, but since Natasha clarifies a detail of Maria’s response (to which Maria responds again in order to confirm), I definitely think it qualifies. I have allowed a pass for far, far less in the past. 

Female characters:

Natasha Romanov.

Peggy Carter.

Maria Hill.

Sharon Carter.

Renata.

Male characters:

Steven Rogers.

Sam Wilson.

Brock Rumlow.

Georges Batroc.

Jerome.

Jasper Sitwell.

Nick Fury.

Alexander Pierce.

Aaron.

Arnim Zola.

Senator Stern.

Bucky Barnes.

OTHER NOTES:

They start this movie by having Steve go for a jog and make a new friend, with a conversation ensuing that is by touches casual, light, humorous, insightful, serious, and sobering. It’s a pretty weird way to launch a much-anticipated superhero comic-adaptation action movie sequel, to be honest, but it’s also rock-solid character establishment - for the never-before-seen Sam Wilson, and for Steve Rogers whose mental state and coping skills in the modern era are kinda an open question at this point - and by getting us on level with Steve’s day-to-day (rather than Captain America’s, which comes after) they’ve immediately prepped us for a story in which this character confronts and reassesses who he is and what he stands for at a core level, and not just in a symbolic/legacy kind of fashion (a la Tony Stark). It may say ‘Captain America’ on the tin, but this is Steven Rogers’ story. This is a fantastic and well-condensed first three minutes of this film, before they fly off to deliver the action sequence we may well have expected to have received up-front. 

Oh yeah, also this opening scene involves jogging around the Washington Monument, which is not a subtle detail, but I can dig it. If they’d had Steve draw attention to some Major American Landmark at some point in the movie and make a patriotic declaration of some kind, then I’d cry foul, but as-is the use of Washington DC as a setting is the hardest they bother to hammer the AMERICA button. The absence of self-fellating patriotism which I appreciated so much in the first film continues to be a virtue in this one. I do dig.

Remember how I really love it when people get hit and fly off the screen? Steve just kicked a dude off a boat and I made the dorkiest ‘hee hee!’ noise ever. Sure am glad the only reason anyone knows about that is that I just told y’all, and not because anyone actually heard me.

One day, we’ll stop getting these kinds of gratuitous butt shots of female characters in tight clothes. But it sure ain’t this day.

In a world of equal-opportunity sexualisation, this Cap-butt would be forgiveness enough for the aforementioned offense. But it still sure ain’t that day, friends.

Other reasons to love that opening scene: they low-balled Sam’s counseling skills to us by having him quickly identify the best way to speak to Steve and to engage with him (as Steve, again, not as Captain America; that’s the key), and that’s what allows Steve to bond with him enough that, put in a tight spot and not sure who to trust, he shows up on Sam’s doorstep later in the film. Really tight characterisation and dynamic-building.

ALSO, Steve’s adventure to the Captain America museum exhibit reminds us all of what he’s lost - specifically, Bucky Barnes - and contextualises his encounters with Sam Wilson within the emotional landscape of Steve’s desire for close male companionship, highlighting the need which compels the formation of that bond while also accentuating the sense of Steve’s present isolation and uncertainty, robbed of any understanding confidante (the bittersweet reality of having Peggy Carter still alive, but losing herself to Alzheimer's, really hits that one home). Again, Steve’s emotional landscape is actually a vital part of the story of the film on both character and plot levels, so there’s a LOT of great show-don’t-tell demonstration in the interconnections of all these scenes, PLUS they’re doing the good work for all the other characters involved AND reminding the audience of the score so that the film can continue to draw from the past as the movie continues, without losing any viewers for whom this might be the first foray into the Captain America story. This movie is just...really well put together, guys. It’s a little shocking, how good it is.

Winter Soldier intro is too cool. Not a pun.

Steve takes a chance and asks his neighbour out for coffee; she declines with a soft no; he accepts even-tempered and assures her he won’t trouble her any further, and she lets him know that he’s no trouble and there’s no hard feelings. It’s all a very painless and respectful navigation of boundaries, and taken on face value (ignoring the part where she turns out to be an undercover SHIELD agent, and everything which unfolds from there), it’s a welcome example of how easy it is to take rejection graciously. Guys, be the Steve Rogers that women want to see in the world.

I want a metal arm. I don’t want to not have my current arms, they’re fine, but in an abstract version of the world where you have things purely for cool points, I want a metal arm.

The fight choreography in this film is great. It’s good watchin’. 

Also the soundtrack is top-end. 

“...Specimen.”

The movie didn’t need a hetero kiss thrown in there, though. I sure wish there wasn’t a random kiss in there.

“The answer to your question is fascinating. Unfortunately, you shall be too dead to hear it.” 

Urgh, why Senator Stern gotta show up, be a pig about women, make his little Nazi declaration, and leave? The answer is, he really doesn’t gotta. You know what’s good shit? Not using misogyny and objectification of women to demonstrate that a bad guy is a bad guy, unless it’s actually a relevant part of the story. One day...

I can’t deal with how cool the Winter Soldier is. I’m almost embarrassed by how much the whole Silent Sauntering Assassin thing works for me.

Sam Wilson brings a tiny knife to a gunfight and still gets the upper hand because he’s perfect.

THE FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHYYYYY

The Winter Soldier is barely in the film in the first hour, and Bucky is referenced in the museum but not discussed by any of the characters, so there’s no lantern hanging on either the mystery of the Winter Soldier’s identity or the conspicuous reminder of a supposedly dead character (another reason why tying the memory of Bucky in so tightly with Steve’s present state of comfortless seclusion is important and clever). If you somehow managed not to be spoiled for it already, the Bucky reveal is a real kicker of a twist.

The degree to which I adore Sebastian Stan’s attention to detail in his performance has increased tenfold since The First Avenger. Dude has got nuances on his nuances.

The part of me that is emotionally susceptible to heroism is very moved by all the nameless SHIELD agents who stand up to HYDRA and die for it. 

I join the rest of the world in being really disappointed that what appeared to be Jenny Agutter’s councilwoman kicking Strike Team ass was actually just Black Widow. Sorry Natasha.

The Winter Soldier shows up and murderises a heap of pilots, and the part of me that is susceptible to heroism finds itself in conflict with the part that is susceptible to the Winter Soldier’s ineffable coolness (which is itself at odds with the part of me that wants Bucky Barnes to be safe and happy). This movie got me good.

Rumlow talkin’ some shit about pain and Sam’s just like “Man, shut the Hell up,” and it’s perfect. I love him.

I love this film. I mean I really, really love it. Like, I mean this is one of my favourite movies in the world. Like, if we were playing that ol’ game of ‘if you had to pick ten movies, and those were the only movies you were allowed to watch for the rest of your life’, this would be one of my ten movies. That’s how much I love this film. There’s so much to get into here, so much to enjoy: it’s light and easily-digestible enough for when you just want to be entertained by something that doesn’t demand too much from you, but it also has serious depths for when you’re in the mood to dig in. It has well-crafted action scenes, but also a strong plot with powerful emotional currents. It has wonderful, charismatic actors playing intriguing characters, and most of them are good eye candy, but none of them are just eye candy - there’s a lot of complexity to unravel in the motivations and personal narratives of the leads. It’s a superhero movie, sure, but it’s also a political spy thriller. And, to top it off, it’s not only an excellent stand-alone film, it’s also a fantastic example of how to do a sequel right.

Sequel-making can be a fraught business; you’ve got sequels that are basically just pointless retreads of the original, sequels that are so different they hardly count as sequels at all, sequels that are so busy trying to be ‘bigger and better’ than the original they become ridiculous, sequels so busy attempting to capitalise on the spectacle of the original that they forget to have any of the same heart that gave the original meaningful impact, sequels that ignore that the original had a plot and themes and that maybe that stuff was relevant to its success, etc, etc...there are lots of great sequels in the world, certainly, but as Iron Man 2 and Thor: The Dark World already attested for the MCU, it is very, very easy for sequels to go wrong. For this film, I think it goes without saying that I feel they passed all of the above sequel-killing quality tests with flying (low-key red-white-and-blue) colours, hence my adoration. But, just for kicks, lets talk about how they did it.

For starters, you can pretty much guarantee that this isn’t gonna be a pointless retread of Captain America: The First Avenger, since this movie takes place seventy years later and there are certain essential world elements that have fundamentally changed, such as technology, characters, and the fact that WWII ended a good while previous. But, that’s exactly how they make this story work as a sequel: they use the nature of change to give the film its shape, thematically, politically, emotionally, and in doing so they assure that everything which is different in the present builds directly from the past. Steve Rogers has not fundamentally changed, and that’s a critical anchor, considering he’s the titular character and all, but he is in a state of flux due to everything else that has changed, and his doubts inform the narrative landscape. This is not the world he remembers, and yet, as the plot unfolds and he digs into the conspiracy at his feet, there’s plenty there that is hauntingly familiar, because this is a story about how the past is still alive and kicking in the present, it has just updated to keep with the times.

It’s worth noting that despite Captain America making the jump from the forties to the modern age without any stop-offs in between, the film doesn’t linger on or wallow in the differences in his world in any strict sense - even Steve himself (in that EXTREMELY well-crafted opening scene with Sam) is somewhat dismissive of the specifics, because he’s not dwelling on the oh-woe-things-have-changed, he’s just trying to get his head around it, adapt, and move forward (and the practical realities are easy enough, but the emotional facets? Yeah). The thing is of course, no one else shares this problem with Steve; they’ve all been around, variously, for the parts in between, and the story is still concerned with the context of the world which made all of its characters what they are, and particularly with the war that came after WWII, the war within which HYDRA reseeded and began to grow anew: the Cold War. In particular, it’s the ‘70s/’80s era Cold War, built into the political-thriller superstructure of the film itself and driven home most overtly by the Winter Soldier, heavily Russian-coded and steeped in the potent psychological horror of brainwashing, but there are other signifiers littered across the story as well. There’s former-KGB agent Black Widow, and the reference she makes to WarGames, and there’s Arnim Zola frozen in time by the ancient computer system which now acts as his ‘brain’, and then there’s the stroke of subversive genius in the casting of Robert Redford - the positively Captain America-esque blue-eyed-blond hero of many a seventies Cold War political thriller - as our primary villain, working within the United States government for the benefit of his secret European-originating agenda in true foreign-infiltration style. Of course, we can adapt all of this to fit the radicalised terrorism and technological paranoia of modern times (and those elements are alive and well in the text with the surveillance-state fears represented by the helicarriers), but the historical timestamping is important to the trajectory of the film; times change and things grow increasingly subtle and complicated, but the core dilemmas that call people out to fight are instantly familiar. In that sense, Steve Rogers hasn’t missed much at all.

The war that calls Cap to arms this time around may be more subtle than the openly-fought battlefields of WWII, but it is no less global or insidious; the new ‘improved’ HYDRA may not be led by a literal Nazi who peels off his own face, but the cold political calculations of Alexander Pierce are much more frightening for their realism (an aspect of the film which has become increasingly prescient for the modern era since the movie was released), and the fascist supremacist dogma that compels these villains to attempt to reshape the world with the blood of millions is drawn from the same poisoned well; this is an escalation of the same enemy that Captain America faced before, only much closer to home. And while the passage of time has benefited the old evils in allowing them to entrench and fester and craft re-branded, more socially-accepted versions of themselves, it has not been so favourable to the positive familiar things from Steve’s past: it has claimed Peggy’s memory, and rotted SHIELD beyond recovery. And then, there’s what it’s done to Bucky Barnes.

Fake-out character deaths are a major staple of the superhero/comic genre, and not one I love, since it tends to take the power out of apparent-death scenes and leaves the drama feeling contrived, and while the Bucky reveal is not entirely free from that cynicism, it sells itself well on delivery. For starters, it packs a wallop in additional drama instead of just neatly undoing that which already existed (Nick Fury’s ‘death’ and reveal, on the other hand, is more in the classic line of cheap and inconsequential), and it ups the personal stakes for Steve in exactly the same way as Bucky’s ‘death’ did in The First Avenger. Crucially, the fact that Bucky is the Winter Soldier doesn’t alter the wider narrative in any convenient way, such as providing Captain America with the key to stopping him or resolving the other conflicts of the plot through his connection; the Bucky reveal reconnects the story to Steve’s emotional journey, which is exactly where it started before Shit Got Crazy - there’s a good reason they spent the first half hour of the movie on charting Steve’s mental state. There’s a sharp division between Bucky Barnes and the Winter Soldier, despite them both inhabiting the same form, and it’s a mirror of the division between Steve Rogers and Captain America: regardless of all assumptions to the contrary, the two are mutually exclusive entities. ‘Captain America’ is not a person, he’s a symbol, and he’s manipulable in that way, he can be propagandised, his image and actions are a tool turned to the purposes of others at the expense of the human underneath; Steve recognises this (and has since the first film), and he holds this secondary persona at a remove and does not define himself through it. This is what Sam’s keen social instincts pick up so quickly in the beginning: treating Steve as Captain America is the wrong approach, it fails to connect, because Steve is not the uniform, Steve has doubts, Steve could give up the shield; Steve is a person. Bucky doesn’t have the same luxuries, in opportunities, in company, or in the cognizant ability to define his own identity, but even without the personal attachment of their history, Steve is uniquely positioned to understand the difference between the Winter Soldier and the person buried beneath the title. If it was not Bucky, specifically, the visceral emotion of the mirrored experience wouldn’t land quite as strong, but either way the Winter Soldier is the realisation of Steve’s deep-seated fear of being made a puppet, an unthinking enforcer too heavily indoctrinated into patriotic subservience to recognise the despotism that has replaced his idealism. 

I said at the top that this is, ultimately, a Steven Rogers story to which ‘Captain America’ is an accessory, and not the other way around, and that’s a fact at the heart of what makes this film work - on its own, and as a sequel. The fore-fronting of Steve as a character in his own right and not just ‘Captain America’s real name’ was key to avoiding any cloying patriotism overriding the narrative of the first film, and it’s doubly important now as both Steve and the Captain America brand re-situate outside of their original context. It’s easy to strip back the specific trappings of Captain America and still have this movie function just right, because for all the action and intrigue, it is essentially a character piece about Steve Rogers figuring out his place in the world and reclaiming the moral compunctions which have been presumptuously attributed to the lofty symbol of his alter ego, and not the struggling reality of everyday life. Captain America is what he is and how he is not because it sounds good or because it makes for positive PR or because it’s nice to have legends from the good ol’ days; Captain America is the embodiment of scrappy little Steve Rogers’ grit and determination to live up to what he believes in, come Hell or high water or the gravest of consequences. Steve begins the film at odds with himself, unsure if there’s a place for his shameless idealism within the mess of modern life; he’s going through the motions of being Captain America, but he’s uncertain of what it means to him at this point, or where it’s headed. He finishes the film having gained something vital: a mission, but it’s not a professional job for Captain America, it’s a personal mission for Steve Rogers, and that’s much more important. Captain America is just an idea; Steve Rogers is the reason it matters, no matter what war, what time, what place, or what flag.

[beyondthetemples-ooc]

1 3 and 10 c:

Ahh, thank you for the ask! c:

1. What is your favorite DC movie and why? And least favorite?

Justice League vs. Teen Titans! Because I’m simply biased as hell.

To ALL of its elements! Azarath! In a MOVIE! Arella’s story got RECOGNIZEd– even ANIMATED! It gave Raven’s gem a BACKSTORY! It’s everything I’ve ever wanted out of a Teen Titans animation.

(Azarath being animated in a movie fulfilled my SOUL, you have NO fucking idea. It was AMAZING. And so well animated too? So pretty? So peaceful? So nice to look at? Holy god, I want ten thousand hours of documentaries on that place??? legitimate tears in my eyes when we saw it. honestly, it was just… it was so good.)

Not to mention, while the production value was Kinda Eh, the writing was really clever and the Moments (silly, fun, heartfelt, freaky, dramatic) were all really well done. It captured the “Heart” of those feelings, emotive and raw and honest. I actually enjoyed the fun moments. Myself. And wasn’t just “distantly admiring people being happy”. Do you know how much of an ACCOMPLISHMENT that is?

The music was really cool. Not to reveal my Immortal Inner Emo Kid. But “Down to Nothing” is a really good song. (One of my only problems with this movie is that it was shoddily edited in the scene, and it’s a shame, because it really is a good song… {lD it was kinda my anthem for a long, long time after this movie. “Help me: believe in something, cuz I am: broken, I’m down to nothing. And it’s just so hard to be this way, but it’s just as hard to change. So: help me, believe in sooomethiiing….”)

(Because it’s in this movie, I grin a bit whenever Ciaran randomly shuffles it up. But also because I just really like the song itself.)

Also really cool: Trigon was an abusive asshole. Ultra mega props for that element; not just making him a Bad Guy because he’s Powerful and Wants to Rule the World, but legitimately showing that he was a BAD “GUY” *and* a Bad Parent.

Also nice, Damian felt less shoehorned in than Certain Other Really Recent Robins were in the comics…. (The reason for that may have been glossed over and a touch cliche, but it worked for the movie. It did what it needed to, nothing more and nothing less.)

Good thing too, because Damian being A Kid was really nice to see. (Raven too, let’s be real. Those kids need more “fun” in their lives.) Bond the children! BOND THEM, GODDAMN IT. That’s what any good Teen Titans story really needs; friends who are a FAMILY. They love each other, even if it’s hard-earned and hard-kept.

Focused on the PEOPLE, and their WELL-BEING, just as much as (if not MORESO!) than “ohshit, Big Bad Guy to deal with here”.

(the rest is under a cut, because godDAMN. I got rambly once I started talking about Raven.)

And perhaps most important of all to me: Raven’s characterization was amazing. Truly a masterpiece. Any time you’ve got a comic character with 7 different tones and 3-4 Literal Deaths and like 28 different writers having handled her: It takes a LOT of work to pick and choose what you want to do with them. It takes a lot of WISDOM and even prowess to triangulate your Own Characterization between such dramatic differences. Raven has been cold and distant; warm and soft; sharp and bitter; lost and clueless; wise and knowledgeable; she’s a very LAYERED and COMPLEX character even in each individual VERSION.

And the movie portrayed so many of her key characteristics so wonderfully. It’s a very “complete” picture of my absolutely Iconic Favorite Character, it encompasses so much of my Favorite Parts of her throughout her entire history, and it was just such a delight to experience. I, in my unpopular opinion (at least among my contemporary Cartoon-First Generation of Teen Titans Fans), actually really liked her voice actress, too? So subtle. So snarky. So soft, even with its edge of attitude. It was such a good fit for such a good incarnation!

And then there’s the fact that they included Jaime (who does well on his own, but honestly always seemed like a natural fit to the team), Kori (a Key Titan, let’s be honest), and even Gar (because his playfulness is a key part of Whole-Team Characterization too honestly; it wouldn’t be the same without him). It was a good setup, even with the comics this continuity’s based on being totally cracked.

And Cyborg showed up. Despite working “in the big Leagues” now. Thanks for throwing us that bone, at least. lD

And Damian? They did a great job of giving him character developement. Much needed. Good shit. If he can’t be with Dick!Bats in this verse (and I deeply prefer Dick as Nightwing anyways), that’s a really good fit for him. Learning to be human. Getting comfortable with Some Normalcy. Good and relateable.

That movie was just. Ahhh. SO Good. X3 As a Teen Titans fan especially, but also just as a person who likes a good Team Becoming Family story.

I love it. It has its caveats, but none of them dampen my obnoxiously heartfelt love for this thing.

*

(…yikes .after THAT essay, the rest of my answers are going to feel so shallow.)

All that bias aside though, my other favorite DC movie is definitely Wonder Woman. Hands down. Undoubtedly, no contest, no holds bar. It was a phenomenally well-told story with a lot of wit and compelling characters that used absolutely MASTERFUL rising action, and felt GENUINE. It was told from the heart as well as the camera, and it was told beautifully. Smoothly. It felt godly and human all at once. I can’t explain it very well, but it was genuinely one of the best movies I have ever seen.

I never got very into Wonder Woman, but from what I know of the 80’s and the Really Recent comics: It also captured her backstory, her personality, and her Style of Heroism really well. But even without being very familiar with her as a character? It’s a gorgeously well-done movie.

( Note: I still haven’t seen Justice League yet, but from what I’ve heard, I’ll probably end up liking that one too.)

*

Least favorite? I don’t know, honestly.

(My least favorite superhero movie is that one Marvel one with Vision, because I literally fell asleep while watching it. That’s the first time in my entire life I’ve fallen asleep while watching ANYTHING.)

But for DC, even the silly obnoxiously-radioactive-colored Batman and Robin has its place in history.

Can I just say, maybe… “the Injustice: Gods Among Us cutscenes”?- raven’s voice really grates my nerves, and not even in a Fun Creepy Way.- Whose idea was it to have SUPERMAN go evil? Like? ?? Who thought that was in any way a reasonable idea. - the story in that game felt really cobbled together. The comics are a lot more interesting, fun, and though there’s a lot of, like, Random Occurrences that seem to happen Exclusively For The Drama, in the game there are a lot of ill-explained things and general Random Chaos. Not my kinda story.

*

3. Which DC character should be introduced in movies/shows? Or have a movie/show of their own?

I mean. My automatic response is “Raven”, but I only ever want to see that if it’s being done right. The way CW wanted to do it kinda ripped the heart of everything I know/love about her to shreds. (”Relateable normal teen girl sudden has powers”? What? What??? That’s literally NONE of Raven’s backstory, shoo. Begone. Good riddance.)

That aside, I’d honestly probably watch the HELL out of a Nightwing show. Or movie. Just LET DICK BE HIMSELF. Without being attached at the history AND HIP to Bruce!

Or Death? or Sandman? I don’t know how well they’d translate to TV; Nightwing would certainly be the safer bet. Neil Gaiman’s writing is half as great as it is because of the WRITING. The style. The narrations… But, I mean: Coraline was just wonderful~ So why not a Sandman movie, too? Given the right director, and the right special effects team…?

(Constantine would’ve been next on my list, for a better movie anyway. but he’s already getting some decent recognition. So whoop whoop. Good shit. Nice Decision, DC. I Approve.)

10. Which DC character portrayal do you think is better in the comics than in the movies?

Batman. By far.

I’m just sick of all this manpain and gritty, utterly-unyielding violence, and… politics? Where’s the humanity?

Aren’t these writers forgetting that he’s someone who has suffered, and is doing all this, not just to beat up bad guys and look cool, but to save others from what theyd do? To HELP PEOPLE, not to growl like a man-tiger and punch things?

You can be badass and still have a heart, you know. Comics!Bruce does. (Most of the time.) And that’s a big part of why I like reading Batman comics so much.

And on that note, the conspicuous lack of Robins in (most) movies is an insult to comic history. Batman’s family-seeking and protect-the-children tendancies make for a much more interesting franchise, honestly. Give us a colorful cast! (Literally!) Give us diversity! Give us more stories with more characters so it has more facets than just “some guy wants to kill people; can’t have that”!)

As a sidenote: what I’ve seen of Gotham, it’s doing a really good job of encapsulating his Heroic Tendencies as well as his “sense of Duty” to Gotham and its people, while keeping him human AND super cool. That’s an important balance.

[oscar-isaacs-number-one-bitch]

“Justice League” Movie Review

Justice League is the 5th film in the current DC Extended Universe, and the direct sequel to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. It is first time we get to see all our favorite DC superheroes on screen together. Batman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Cyborg – they’re all here, and things are not looking up for the world at large. With Superman gone, hope is far from prevalent, and fear and acts of terror are on the rise. But when Steppenwolf, a doom-bringer from another world, begins to exact his devastating plan on earth, bringing a race of parademons to attack those on whom they can smell fear, the world will need a team of warriors to band together and put aside their differences in order to stop him, and bring justice for all.

This movie had a lot riding on its shoulders. For starters, it’s the story sequel to Batman v Superman, which was not only one of the worst films of last year, but one of probably the top 10 worst superhero films ever made. But it also directly follows Wonder Woman, one of the best, and easily the biggest, films of this year so far. To top all of that off, production on the film was an absolute nightmare scene, not in the sense that it was always going to be a bad movie or not, but there was just so much that happened to it between the pre and post-production process, it was hard to imagine what kind of film it would end up being at all. After director Zack Snyder tragically lost his daughter to suicide and had to step away from the project in early March, Joss Whedon (director of the first two Avengers flicks) stepped in to help finish the project, and based on the two artists’ wildly differing styles, people wondered if the film would feel too jumbled, as if torn between two visions. How is the movie? Well, to put it plainly, it’s just fun.

Let’s begin with the positives, as I always do: this is a fun ride to take with this team. After the dreariness of Batman v Superman soured most people to the idea of the DCEU, Justice League would have to give them a sense that the idea could still work, provided some things were shifted around and they like the chemistry of the league itself. And for my money, the chemistry is absolutely there. Sure, it could use a little more work, and truth be told Cyborg is the only one who really gets any true, at-length character development, but when these characters are all on screen together, their individual personalities jive well off of each other without having to compromise the distinct uniqueness of any one member. Each individual member gets a chance to shine, and none overpower the others in terms of screen presence enough to make the audience feel as if this film is owned by any one character. 

Bruce and Diana make a great duo with solid chemistry, both on the recruiting path, and both aware of the horrors to come if they don’t succeed in bringing these people together, with Ben Affleck and Gal Gadot still inhabiting these characters better than most others before them have. Ezra Miller’s Flash is actually quite a fun character to interact with, providing most of the quips and the comic relief, but not in a way that feels too childish or annoying enough to beg for DC to just bring Grant Gustin into the mix. Going into it, I thought Cyborg might be the weak link since we never got to see any promotion for his character really outside of this film, but truth be told, although it wasn’t a particularly “stand out” performance, Victor’s development ends up being one of the more memorable and well-handled plot points throughout the film overall. And this brings us, of course, to Superman (honestly if you really thought they would have a Justice League film without Superman, I don’t know what to tell you). How does the movie handle the man of steel this time around? Well, that S on his chest may actually yield some hope for the horizon yet.

Anyone who’s known me for any meaningful length of time knows that I am a humungous Superman fan. If anyone ever asks who my favorite superhero is, he is always the answer. Superman: The Movie was the first superhero film I ever saw and I’ve loved this character and everything about him ever since. Anyone who’s known me for any length of time knows I also have very strong feelings about how the character should be handled, and that I believe the DCEU thus far has done that fairly poorly. However, in this incarnation, we finally get to see Henry Cavill show us a little bit of that brilliant, classical charisma he brought to Man from U.N.C.L.E., and give us easily the best Superman of the DCEU thus far. He cracks jokes, he smiles (imagine that), and once he actually gets to work with the team, one feels as if everything has finally come together the way it should for these heroes…for the most part.

And this brings us into the negatives of the film (and, as a preface: although there are plenty of them, they don’t hold enough combined weight, at least not to me, to bring the movie down from being enjoyable). Ironically, the guy they spent most of the marketing money on, Aquaman, actually ends up with the least compelling character and story arc in the whole movie. Don’t get me wrong, Jason Momoa fits the reincarnation of the character like a glove, and he’s entertaining to watch, but they just never give him anything to do besides shout one-liners, throw a spear, and stand there looking like Mr. Macho Cool Man. His solo movie is just a little over a year away, so I expect we’ll definitely get a good bit more development there (it is James Wan behind the camera after all), but still one can’t help but feel that the foundation laid here is lacking the necessary gravity to care what happens to him beyond there being a missing team member if he gets taken out.

The film also suffers by way of its villain, but not in the way that most Marvel films or even Wonder Woman did. Steppenwolf isn’t just an underdeveloped villain; he’s not compelling in really any way at all. While it’s fun to see the heroes take him down, he provides no real threat that one is ever unsure the heroes will defeat. His plan, his backstory, and his development is all generic, C-level stuff, and that’s not to mention he sounds like the guy who voices Optimus Prime in the Transformers films. Every time he was on screen, all I was interested in was getting back to the heroes and what they were doing. I only ever cared about his character insofar as he moved the plot forward, but given the weakness of the plot itself, I found myself unable to truly invest in whatever he was doing. There’s nothing to his character beyond wanting to destroy the world, and as reliable of a thing that may be for heroes to fight against, the lack of a memorable why behind that destruction gives the film no real stakes to overcome.

Warner Bros. had a mandate for the production team behind this picture that it could not exceed a 2 hour run-time, and while I understand the need not to make films overlong for the sake of not winding out an audience, I believe it ultimately hurts the film’s narrative flow. The first act has to cover a lot of ground very quickly with establishing each of these characters individually, and so the film does feel rushed in a number of spots. There are also some visual effects and editing mistakes that I thought could have been cleaned up, and a couple of scenes where the green screen and CG from re-shoots is simply way too obvious to ignore (although the CG of Cyborg and Henry Cavill’s mustache didn’t bother me as much as it might some people). At times the film does feel as if it’s torn between two different visions, and while that can be a tad jarring, it ultimately doesn’t deter from the narrative enough to make it incohesive.

Overall, Justice League is a good time – to a fault, but still a good time. It doesn’t carry any real weight and doesn’t have much gravity in terms of its far-reaching implications for the rest of the DCEU, but that’s okay for now. It’s average, but it’s a fun average, and that’s what really needed to work to give this universe the push and the hope it needs to continue. While the villain is incredibly generic, and the plot is noticeably weak, with a few plot holes popping up here and there, the chemistry between these heroes is undeniably there, and I look forward to seeing them again. Oh, and there are two credits sequences (mid and post), so be sure to stick around for both of those too. My overall verdict: see it, but at a discounted price, like a matinee or early bird showtime.

I’m giving “Justice League” a 7.2/10.

[shanedakotamuir]

Joker director Todd Phillips wants to do a sequel — and more DC origin stories

Joaquin Phoenix in Joker. | Niko Tavernise / Courtesy of TIFF

DC is probably getting more “edgy” origin stories from Phillips.

The waves of controversy and debate surrounding Todd Phillips’s Joker may not die any time soon. The supervillain origin movie thumbed its nose at critics when it scored a record-breaking opening weekend at the box office in October and became the highest-grossing R-rated movie to date. Is it any wonder director Phillips is now eyeing a sequel?

Phillips deliberately eschewed the best-known versions of the Joker’s nebulous backstory and stripped his movie of as many traditional comic book-y elements as he could. But now, according to the Hollywood Reporter, he not only plans to make a Joker follow-up movie, he also intends to oversee multiple films in the same vein — to usher in a giant origin story overhaul for the DC cinematic universe.

Phillips reportedly is in talks to helm the sequel, with Joaquin Phoenix returning to play the title character and Scott Silver returning to co-write the screenplay with Phillips. But he also apparently wants to apply the same “what if Gotham, but grittier” galaxy brain take to the backstories of multiple other DC characters. None have been named, although Batman won’t be on his to-do list. Matthew Reeves already has a Dark Knight origin movie in the works for 2021, starring Robert Pattinson as the Batman himself.

Joker’s success at the box office illustrates an interesting paradox for the DC Comics fan. Many of them have been pointing out for years that “gritty” can get pretty boring pretty fast, and that a bleak tone doesn’t have to be the thing that defines the DC comic book universe against its often-sunnier Marvel counterpart. Yet even after DC’s then-Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns admitted in 2016 that the company had been leaning too heavily on gritty and dark as its brand, the company seemed to double down on pushing that brand as edgy and subversive with films like Suicide Squad and Justice League. And that’s not even touching the pervasive belief that somehow dark/edgy/subversive makes a storyline more serious and respectable than a hopeful or joyous one. (Martin Scorsese inadvertently dredged up that old genre-shaming trope again recently, but trust me, that trope is never buried very deep.)

Despite their complaints about DC’s grimdark brand, fans overwhelmingly voted for that brand with their massive Joker turnout. And that means the “what if dark thing, but darker” approach to the DC ’verse isn’t going to be going away any time soon. And if Phillips does get the ability to oversee brand-new origin stories for a wide swath of comic book characters — although, again, he seems to be so unfamiliar with comic books that he actually seems to think redoing a character’s backstory to make it less reliant on superhero tropes is new and interesting — then the controversy provoked by Joker’s polarizing approach to its titular villain may find its way into numerous DC films to come.

Still, even before Joker’s release, plenty of fans were speculating about what origin stories Phillips should direct next. So if you’re excited rather than preemptively exhausted by the impending Todd Phillips-DC Comics Cinematic Universe in our future, congratulations! You will literally never run out of characters who can have their backstories told as ever bleaker, ever more downtrodden tales full of ironic takes on man’s inhumanity to man.

As for me, well, I’ll be waiting for the Bong Joon-ho “Boxy Superhero” cinematic universe to bring us a happy end to this sordid cycle of grimdark beer-holding.

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