#but no actually there's so much of great russian music I just-

[eldrichfuck666]

I post about Electroforez just so much it seem like I need a tag for that 😭😭

[eeveearoace-creative]

a speech about goncharov i made for my public speaking class!

note: this is not exactly what will be spoken for my class, as i am not reading my speech word-for-word. however, this is an outline of the speech i will be presenting, and i thought y'all might be interested in seeing it.

Introduction:

The purpose of my speech is to inform my audience of the fake movie “Goncharov” and how it has impacted me. My goal is to inform my audience of how the fake movie “Goncharov” came to be and of the value it has. 

By a quick show of hands, how many of you have seen or heard of Goncharov before? [Quick pause as I wait for no hands – or almost no hands – to go up.] Alright. So, Goncharov was a 1973 mafia movie supported by Martin Scorsese, and has been widely regarded as the greatest mafia movie of all time. It’s about the Russian mafia in Naples, Italy, and follows a variety of characters such as Goncharov himself, Katya, who is Goncharov’s wife, Audrei “The Banker” Daddano, and my personal favorite, Joseph “Ice Pick Joe” Morelli, with actors such as Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, and Lynda Carter. So, why have you never heard of this movie before? Well, everything I just told you? It’s all a lie. It’s all made up. Goncharov? Yeah. It never actually existed. 

I remember being part of the Goncharov fandom as it first blew up on Tumblr in late 2022. It was a great source of joy for me and made a significant impact on Tumblr’s culture. I am going to show my audience how Goncharov came to be, the creativity is spawned, and briefly reflect on how the website it originated on was vital for its growth. 

So, what is Goncharov, and what is going on here?

Origins:

Goncharov was a fake movie created by Tumblr in late 2022. 

Sometime prior to August 22nd, 2020, Tumblr user ZootyCoon posted a photograph of knockoff boots they had bought that advertised a non-existent movie, Goncharov, on them, claiming that Goncharov was “the greatest mafia movie of all time.” In response, on August 22nd, 2020, another Tumblr user, AbandonedAmbition, commented “This idiot hasn’t seen Goncharov”, which was then added to the post itself by Tumblr user LoserMo. 

While ZootyCoon’s original post did receive some attention, it wasn’t until November 18th, 2022 that Goncharov truly hit it off as a cultural phenomenon, thanks to Tumblr user Beelzeebub, who posted a fan-made poster for Goncharov, receiving almost 20,000 likes and over 15,000 reblogs in three days. 

Fandom:

As it turns out, you don't actually need a piece of media to be real in order for a fandom to form around it.

Countless fanworks were created for Goncharov, including fanart, fanfiction, music, scene analysis and analysis of motifs, gif sets, memes, and so much more. As mentioned in a YouTube video by YouTuber ColeyDoesThings, there was even a time where Goncharov had more fanfiction on a popular fanfiction website than James Cameran’s Avatar, the highest grossing movie of all time. 

So much lore was being created for Goncharov in such a short amount of time that efforts had to be made to record it all. Multiple individuals attempted to create a “master copy” of Goncharov’s lore, including what is now a 48-page Google doc that includes a plot summary, brief descriptions of various scenes, and links and sources to various contributors. 

But Goncharov could not be contained just to Tumblr. Various media outlets, such as The New York Times, The Guardian, Forbes, and The Washington Post all posted articles about Goncharov, an internet phenomenon. 

Tumblr:

But, why? Why this fake movie, and why on Tumblr of all places? 

As a social media site, Tumblr has an incredibly weird culture. There are no public follower counts, no verification for users, and a whole array of weird social rules. But one thing that really makes Tumblr special is the interaction between large and small blogs alike. Because anyone can and is encouraged to create their own content and add to others’ content, something like Goncharov could very quickly become a “yes, and” game among Tumblr’s users. 

Tumblr is also very much a “fandom” site. Fanart, fanfiction, and other fanworks dominate the website, and Goncharov in its heyday was no exception. Interactions between fans and fan creators is what really causes fandoms to grow and survive, so it makes sense that Goncharov thrived the way it did considering how easy it was to find fellow fans. With no pressure to reveal your “true” self, there’s a lot less pressure when you share what you’ve created. 

Conclusion:

So, what can we learn here?

The fake movie “Goncharov” was unintentionally created by a tag on a pair of off-brand boots but didn’t truly become popular until Beelzebub’s poster. Fandom quickly grew around it, creating countless fanworks, but Tumblr’s unique culture as a social media site is what truly allowed it to thrive. 

There is joy and creativity in unusual places. Whether or not you believe Goncharov to be a waste of time, the popularity of a fake movie says something about the human fascination with stories. Thank you. 

[ghosttotheparty]

‘hey, how’d it go?’

‘uh. not great.’

‘shit. tell me.’

‘ well, it started kinda fine. she kept, like, looking at my neck, but she didn’t say anything. but we got along pretty well.’

‘ did you hook up?’

‘ well. we were going to. but it was… i don’t know. weird.’

‘weird awkward?’

‘yeah. like it just… jesus, i don’t know. it felt wrong? but not, like, wrong wrong, just. weird.’

‘sure.’

‘it was like we didn’t know what to do.’

‘how far’d you get?’

‘we made out. but when i went to take my shirt off, she said— i’m not exaggerating— oh my go-od.’

‘jesus, steve.’

‘yeah. honestly i don’t even know why i fucking bother.’

‘what do you mean?’

‘ i dunno. guess i knew i’m fucking ugly now, i guess i just kinda… i don’t know. hoped it wasn’t that bad. but i’m an idiot, so.’

‘jesus, steve, shut the fuck up.’

‘huh?’

‘you’re not— fuck, there was so much wrong with all of that, oh my god.’

‘eddie.’

‘no— okay, alright. steve. you’re not ugly.’

‘she recoiled, eddie.’

‘okay, well, cindy alden is a bitch. i remember her from school, she’s always been awful. don’t laugh, i’m serious, she’s terrible.’

‘okay, eddie.’

‘you’re not ugly.’

‘i’m…’

‘steve. you’re not ugly. your scars are cool.’

‘think you’re the only one that thinks that.’

‘well my opinion is the most important, so.’

‘okay, eddie.’

‘look. your scars are metal as fuck. even if you don’t think so.’

‘…’

‘when you see my scars, do you think they’re ugly?’

‘wha— no, of course not.’

‘so why do you think yours are ugly?’

‘…i dont know.’

‘have you actually looked at your scars? taken a really good look?’

‘i don’t really want to.’

‘look at them. now.’

‘eddie.’

‘come on, stevie, humour me.’

‘…okay. i’m looking.’

‘have you noticed how they, like, kinda swirl a little bit?’

‘…noticing that now.’

‘don’t they kinda look like storm clouds?’

‘…’

‘steve?’

‘yeah. a little bit. guess that’s… kinda cool.’

‘and the colours? aren’t they pretty?’

‘you’re trying to make me feel better about myself.’

‘yeah. i am. aren’t they pretty?’

‘…yeah. i guess.’

‘and our scars match. that’s pretty cool. they’re like friendship bracelets.’

‘some fucked up friendship bracelets. but yeah. it’s kinda nice that i’m not the only one.’

‘you’re not ugly, steve. even with your sick-ass scars, you’re ho— you’re so cool.’

‘yeah? you think i’m pretty, eddie?’

‘…anyway. don’t worry about what cindy alden has to say. you’re good. and you’re not an idiot.’

‘okay, eddie.’

‘don’t okay, eddie me, i’m serious. you’re pretty smart, steve.’

‘okay, maybe i’m not an idiot, but i wouldn’t go so far as to say i’m smart.’

‘well, it’s a good thing i’m not asking you, isn’t it? don’t sigh at me. you’re smart.”

‘eddie, i don’t mind being the dumb one of the group, it’s fine.’

‘no, it’s not, steve. you’re not the dumb one. just because you’re not a science nerd or something doesn’t mean you’re not smart.’

‘in what way am i smart?’

‘you’re observant as fuck, steve. i’m serious, you are. dustin and robin told me about how they only realised the russian code was coming from hawkins because you were the only one that recognized the music in it.’

‘…’

‘we only figured out we could communicate from the upside down because you heard dustin. no one else heard him.’

‘you guys thought i was crazy.’

‘yeah, until we heard him too, and then i thought holy shit, this guy’s got ears like a fuckin’ bat.’

‘…’

‘you knew how to drive that rv right away.’

‘didn’t have much of a choice.’

‘what i meant was that you’d never driven an rv before.’

‘…‘s true.’

‘you’re really smart, steve. you’re… resourceful. and intuitive, and observant, and it doesn’t matter if you don’t know science-y shit.’

‘…okay.’

‘and even if you weren’t smart, it wouldn’t matter. you’re more than your body and brains, stevie.’

‘what else am i, eddie?’

‘jesus, where should i start? …okay. you’re really sweet.’

‘sweet?’

‘so fucking sweet, steve, you’re one of the nicest people i know. even in high school, you were nicer than the other douche bags. and now you’re… you’re kind, steve. even if you’re being bitchy. you’re kind, and considerate, and patient when you need to be.’

‘…okay.’

‘and you’re… you’re funny. i know all the kids make fun of your jokes, but i laugh at all of them.’

‘thanks.’

‘you’re a good friend.’

‘am i?’

‘remember what i said about you being observant?’

‘yeah?’

‘i swear you can walk into a room and just… know. like, if anything is wrong, you pick up on it immediately, it’s insane. and you always know exactly what people need. you’re… safe.’

‘…safe?’

‘yeah. safe. everyone’s totally comfortable around you. the kids fucking adore you.’

‘really?’

‘yeah. the other day we were hanging out while you and robin were at work, and erica sighed very loudly and complained that she missed you.’

‘erica said that?’

‘erica fucking sinclair said, and i quote, i miss steve.’

‘…that’s really nice.’

‘you’re a good guy, steve, seriously. you’re selfless and brave and kind, and i love how you look after everyone, and how your eyes light up when talk about your sports, and how you get all mushy about the kids when they’re not around, and—’

‘…’

‘look. you’re, like, the best. and it— it breaks my fucking heart to hear you talk about yourself like you’re some piece of shit.’

‘…’

‘steve?’

‘…’

‘fuck, are you crying?’

‘…no?’

‘fuck, steve, i’m—’

‘eddie?’

‘yeah?’

‘i… i have to tell you something.’

‘what is it? are you okay?’

‘…i’m falling in love with you.’

‘…what?’

‘i’m sorry, eddie.’

‘no, don’t hang up, stevie— you’re— are you sure?’

‘yeah. i’m sure.’

‘but you… what about the girls?’

‘i was… i was trying not to— to fall for you, but you… fucking christ, eddie, you’re so…’

‘so?’

‘so good. you’re so perfect.’

‘fuck.’

‘im sorry, eddie.’

‘don’t apologise, stevie, i’m— i’m in love with you too.’

‘…say it again.’

‘i’m in love with you, too.’

‘holy shit.’

‘are you okay?’

‘i’m okay. i’m… can you come over?’

‘…to yours?’

‘or— or i can go to yours, i just— i wanna see you.’

‘you do?’

‘i wanna… i wanna kiss you.’

‘fuck. fuck, fuck, ow, okay, i’m—‘

‘what just happened?’

‘i fell off my bed, i’m fine, i can be there in a few minutes.’

‘are you sure?’

‘holy shit, steve, yes, i’ll be right over.’

‘okay.’

‘okay.’

‘wait, eddie—’

‘yeah?’

‘…i love you.’

‘fuck. i love you too. i’ll be right there, stevie.’

‘okay.’

[forthegothicheroine]

Please correct me if I am wrong but I am not sure if there is any way to depict Fagin or Shylock in a modern retelling in a way that is not antisemitic? Is that even possible? Does that make sense?

Fagin: Yes, absolutely. You can either do what the musical did and make him more of an antihero- he does want the best for the kids, but to him "the best" means "raising them to be criminals like he is"- or make him not Jewish. (My father tells me "Fagin teaches Oliver how to sell drugs" happens in The Wire.) You could put the whole thing in the Jewish part of London, meaning that most of the characters save maybe the Bumbles are Jewish, but for a modern story, I don't think London has much of a Jewish mob anymore. (Though there are Jews in the Russian mob in New York.) Will Eisner's graphic novel Fagin the Jew did a great job of making him not a very good person but a lot more human than in Dickens.

Shylock: Eh...

If you're actually putting on the Shakespeare play, then you'd be actively at war with the text, and at that point you should probably just write an entirely new play about the character (see: Will Eisner's Fagin the Jew.) I honestly don't think The Merchant of Venice should be put on anymore, though many Jewish actors who want to do those fun speeches disagree with me, and I wouldn't picket it or anything. If writing a new thing in modern times, there are certainly still loan sharks who will break your knees if you don't pay them back, so hypothetically you could have one as a tragic villain who is whatever ethnicity all the other characters are. The thing is, the most interesting thing about Shylock, and the source of all the great speeches, is the fact that society has been bad to him because he's Jewish. It's not intended to generate lots of sympathy for him, it's more like the Joker's "You let me fall in a vat of acid!" but it is what everyone remembers about the play. I've heard people talk about Portia as a crossdressing lawyer, and I've heard people talk about Antonio maybe being gay, but I've never heard people actually care about the romantic comedy part of Merchant.

So, if being persecuted (for being Jewish or whatever makes sense for your setting) is what makes him interesting, you have to deal with the fact that the story still not only fucks him over, but emphasizes that he's a murdering bastard. You could give him a happy ending, where he and Jessica are reconciled and Antonio apologizes to him, but I suspect that's not what you're trying to do. You could do an Everybody Sucks Here version (which is what the Pacino movie did) and have it be a Peaky Blinders/The Sopranos type mob drama where you're rooting for whoever your preferred gangster is to come out on top. If what you want to adapt is the romantic comedy part, then just drop Shylock entirely. It all depends on what you're going for.

That said, the best Shylock is still Redneck Shylock:

[leresq]

Recently rewatched GOTG Vol. 2 and took some notes

Rocket has no real reason for stealing the batteries other than he wanted to

Rocket can't read sarcasm unless it's explicitly shown to him. He also doesn't understand insults unless he knows what they mean. Autism coded...

Drax has to be more than strong, he's got to be superhuman at this point. He was flung around by the monster that would have killed a human instantly, survived the pressure changes of going through a jump point without exploding, and was hit around by trees like a pinball. Gamora and maybe Nebula are the only ones I can see surviving that. Speaking of which how does Quill survive being thrown around by the monster without breaking any bones?

When Gamora says "If you'd flown with what's in between your ears instead of what's in between your legs" she points to Rocket for the latter half of that statement implying he wasn't castrated by the High Evolutionary. 👀

It's implied Rocket doesn't completely understand depth and 3D space when saying Ego was a tiny man which makes sense for a raccoon but also not for the best pilot in the galaxy.

"You didn't know cuz you didn't wanna know cuz it made you rich." Is a hard ass line

I don't know much about Kurt Russell's history in acting but him as a villain is fantastic

Rocket grooms himself with his tongue!!! So kitty!!!!!!

The fact that Drax connects being an old woman to being wise means his not understanding metaphor isn't an inherent trait and it also means nobody before this point has been able to indirectly teach him what things mean.

Rocket's singing voice hunghhhh... He also runs quadrupedal by instinct

Despite having such tiny and probably fragile hands Rocket can still punch hard. The way he grabs things meant for normal hands with his little grippy paws is so adorable!!!

Drax wasn't lying when he said he was humble. Despite being a bit reckless he rarely brags about himself at all.

Even though family story time about impregnation probably is not a good idea Drax is probably the most sex positive member of the group.

Ego says he made pain receptors yet he doesn't react to anything as if it hurts at all.

Nebula never was a sadist. Thanos made her become violent because he hurt her every time she lost, so she got more and more angry. If she successfully enacted her plan of torturing Thanos I don't think she would have enjoyed it, she would be delivering a sense of justice in her eyes. She doesn't talk about that plan with fondness, she talks about it like it's a hard job that'll take a lot of willpower to complete. Who knows how many years of Thanos' abuse were quickly replaced by love and she barely resisted being healed.

When Peter successfully forms the celestial energy Ego doesn't look into his son's eyes with pride, he looks at the energy with greed. Great subtle acting.

I don't think Drax meant to insult Mantis by calling her ugly, that was just an unfortunate moment of unfiltered honesty. The fact that he quickly changes the meaning so it's some kind of compliment is impressive and adorable.

When Peter says he sees Eternity I think he sees the thing from Thor 4. Ego's plan is to reach Eternity and wish for the universe to be completely and totally his.

The contrast of the majesty Ego supposedly shows Peter and the horror of Ego's genocidal design found by Gamora and Nebula with music is perfect

The crabby puppy so cute he makes me wanna die 😍

Kraglin is so cute he's had such a hard life he just needs a warm shower and a talking Russian dog for a best friend.

The reason Mantis could put Ego to sleep when he didn't want to isn't because she's super powerful (even though she is) it's because she's part celestial and maybe Ego happened to miss a little bit of the connection to the light she has.

Life isn't about trying to make everything perfect or exactly the way you want it to, it's about diversity. That's what Ego doesn't understand.

My headcanon is that Yondu is the only one of his crew that actually cared about hygiene. He looks relatively clean compared to everybody else.

The last real goodbye Gamora and Nebula had was in Vol. 2

Baby Groot finally being nice to Drax is cute.

[cult1970]

What languages do I think the Diaboys speak ;)

Shu.

I think that he would speak Italian (?) for some reason I just feel that he would speak in such a attractive way.

Plus he likes classical music and Italy is known for great classical musicians and violinist like Paganini ( love him ).

Reiji.

He can speak in German we all know that ( from the games) but specially German from Germany, I think it fits him because German is such a strict language and difficult ( I know that because I studied German and after 3 years I still didn’t know shit :/ ).

Ayato.

Now, I feel that the triplets know French, but I think that Ayato knows French in a very basic way because he doesn’t care.

He would say: “why do I have to remember a language that I don’t even use in my daily life”, yeah …

Raito.

Raito is the one that actually uses his ability just to feel more sexy, in japan a lot of people like how French sounds so I think that he will use it a lot for stupid stuff like seducing someone, I mean what to we expect from him 💀

Kanato.

Now Kanato I feel he’s the only one who is actually fluent in French.

I think he started to learn English but like old English because he was interested in English folk music, but as time passed he forgot some.

His French tho is on point because he use it with his dolls and for reading dessert books in French.

Subaru.

Subaru feels like he knows Russian, I just don’t know why but he looks Russian to me, I feel that he lost it over the time because his mother used to speak with him in Russian but after she died he stopped using it because he remembered her.

Here is the Mukami version 😊

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 Ep1 Musings - Cezare Romulo: History through Visual Context in Ploiești, Romania (Pt2)

I am on the hunt for any and all information on AMC's OCs, The Vampire Daciana, and the Vampire Cezare Romulo.

In Part 1, I pointed out that Daciana was likely AMC's nod paying homage to the Dacians (aka Geto-Dacians or Daci, as the Greco-Romans knew them), the ancient Romanians of c. 10th century BC - 7th century AD, in the Transylvanian/Wallachian regions of the Carpathian Mountains.

In AR's TVC, vampires tend to reflect the era they lived/died in, preferring to wear their traditional clothes & surround themselves with antiques from their time period--like grave goods for the dead. However, from what I've found, there was nothing about Daciana's clothes/home indicating that she was an ancient Dacian (X).

(Granted, if she IS that old, then that definitely increases her odds of being an "Old God" that got caught in the Great Burning.... 👀)

Regardless, I wanna turn my attention to Cezare Romulo, cuz while I'm tentatively ruling out Daciana as being Dacian, I haven't dug into The Vampire Cezare yet. So here goes nothing!

Nomenclature

First thing that stood out to me is his name. Cezare's obvs Caesar, but I wonder if that's his name, or his title (like how the Latin caesar became kaiser in German & tsar in Russian).

In Oltenia (Wallachia) there are archaeological remains of a Roman-Dacian fort called Romula, dated to the 2nd century AD. I couldn't find much about it, so we'll just put a pin in that. Something way cooler is that according to Google Translate, Romulo means Romulus, in both Romanian & Italian. That's hella interesting, cuz Romulus was the founder of Rome (8th century BC), twin brother of Remus, whom he killed Cain vs Abel style to be the ruler. In some versions, Romulus "died" under VERY mysterious circumstances:

So for AMC's OC vampire to be named after two Romans (Caesar & Romulus) who were both incredibly violent & bloodthirsty rulers says a lot. Especially considering with how Daciana described him:

The Castle: Bears & Wolves (Totems & Crests)

Cezare killed a whole circus troupe traveling through Transylvania (Sibiu), and only spared their bear. I wondered why this was so noteworthy--vampires will kill anyone for food (or sport), esp. if they don't follow the creed about only killing Evil Doers (as Cezare obvs. didn't--unless he knew something about that troupe we don't...! 👀 Clowns ARE evil, after all 💀). Vamps don't tend to kill animals, unless they need to defend themselves--but aren't circus bears kept in cages or something? So why would it matter?

So I reckon that Daciana's point was actually that Cezare LIKED the bear, and probably KEPT it, as his pet.

Cuz look at his castle: the joint's filled with taxidermy.

I think some of these animals are bears and/or wolves (Romulus & Remus were raised by wolves in the woods....). And that tracks with what is known about the main Dacian animal, the wolf (or "Draco"/dragon), (X X X).

Sava, Cipriana. "Cultural heritage tourism--Dacian fortresses in the Orăştie area, Romania." MEFkon 2020 INNOVATION AS AN INITIATOR OF THE DEVELOPMENT. (2020): 290-311.

Strechie, Mădălina. "The Dacians, the Wolf Warriors." In International Conference Knowledge-Based Organization, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 367-373. 2017.

(ISTG when is AMC bringing AR's Wolf Gift books into the Immortals Universe--I need my werewolves already, gosh darnit!)

Cezare clearly felt a strong affinity for animals, especially bears.

Which isn't surprising, considering the life-death-rebirth symbolism of the bear in Romanian traditions like the Ursului (bear dances).

Trandafoiu, Ruxandra. "A Tale of Two (or# EverMore) Festivals: Electronic Music in a Transylvanian Town." Eastern European Popular Music in a Transnational Context: Beyond the Borders (2019): 213-237.

The Castle: Architecture

As for Cezare's castle ruins, I have no idea what's going on.

The most interesting thing was Cezare's final resting place in this catacomb-like structure, lying in a stone sarcophagus.

Like, there are Roman-era burials found across Romania, but Cezare having a STONE sarcophagus is interesting, cuz apparently Transylvania's Daco-Roman inhumations are more often brick:

As stone sarcophagi only became more popular around the 3rd-4th century AD

Cocis, Horatiu. "Some remarks on the Roman necropolises of Potaissa." Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology 2, no. 2 (2015).

Before largely falling out of favor/use by the 5th-6th century AD, except for clergy & royalty:

Maggio, Ariane. "Burial Practices in Europe." Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology (2018): 1-6.

So, does this possibly give us a date for him, approx 2nd-6th century AD? But how long was it until he died? (HOW did he even die?)

What about the rest of his castle? Like, the place is an utter ruin, and there's barely anything left of that dark AF exterior that I can use.

Is this a studio set, or was it filmed on location somewhere? IDFK. There's hundreds of Romanian archaeological sites--let alone Daco-Roman ones--it kinda reminds me of davas (fortresses/strongholds), (X X), if not for the masonry being different.

So yeah, I have no frikkin clue, y'all; this is all I've got, LOL. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Results? Inconclusive! Again! 😂😭

I don't know if AMC was deliberately implying that Cezare Romulo (or Daciana) had anything to do with the ancient Daco-Romans...but it's interesting to think about!

[merrymorningofmay]

if anybody abroad is reluctant to reexamine their relationship to russian culture/literature/etc they should consider that here in ukraine/eastern europe many more people were raised surrounded by much more russian art (in the og language at that). if a dostoyevsky novel has some emotional significance to you that renders it above the current political agenda imagine how much closer the same novel has been, used to be, to many of us

because you know, the saddest thing about russification is that it works. like, all the "they made me read it in high school and i hated it" talk aside, we didn't actually jump out of our mothers' respective wombs with an inherent dislike for russian things. even in the post-independence generation, many (including me) were very late to radicalize, many (including me) used to appreciate the great russian novel, the great russian cinema, the great russian music etc – let alone the generations of our parents and grandparents, who grew up before the iron curtain collapse and had barely anything BUT russian media to bond with.

and hey, nostalgia is a bitch. it gets especially bitchy in a traumatic situation that makes you yearn for the comfort of a "simpler" past. my father still listens to the russian 80s music. sometimes he turns to me randomly and sighs, "that one singer/actor/tv celebrity really turned out to be an asshole, huh."

(fascist. by "asshole" he means fascist)

i used to love bulgakov! because my parents love bulgakov and i love my parents, because i vibed with his style, because i thought "surely his imperialist mindset is obsolete by now, surely whoever likes bulgakov in russia likes him for everything but the imperialism". i used to love "the idiot" because i was a sad christian queer teen and for an ardent nationalist/racist/antisemite/etc, dostoyevsky actually had much compassion for the victim, which appealed to me – i didn't really think that i would be the sort of victim he had no regard for. the indie folk songs that used to be the jam of my soul were written by people who either supported the war or didn't really care, and my first ocs that i still cling to were (originally) heavily inspired by that one godawful copaganda wagner yaoi comic series (which has since been made into a movie, which is now on netflix, yay). russian culture past and modern has left a trace in me that will not go anywhere no matter my current worldview (which is far from sympathetic to russia, i promise) and my future choices.

but there is no floating island in the sky where art is divorced from physical reality. there is no magical place where there is no red string going from dostoyevsky all the way to putin. there is no just space where ukrainian voices are on equal footing with russian voices – precisely because the russian state has been so carefully nurturing the brand of Russian Art (even though some of the artists were killed by the previous incarnations of that same state, even though some artists never identified as russian but had that label forced onto them because an empire will take whatever it can from a colony).

the things that i used to love turned out to be cogs in the weapon meant to kill me. those cogs are still spinning, and i still miss that love sometimes, and there's no going back. it's an uneasy predicament that i had to learn to live with. i didn't die from that. the cogs didn't die from that. you won't, either.

[destructivisms]

Thank you for letting me submit a ship request!!!! 🩷💗💕

My name is Enna and I'm a bi girl with blue/pink/purple hair, blue eyes, freckles, and im covered in tattoos!!! I love reading and writing (like so much lol), I bake, swim and listen to all genres of music (and sing along horribly!). I'm in school studying to be an English teacher and I'd love to be a writer on the side. I'm really shy and quiet, I try to be as kind as possible, though I come off sarcastic/use sarcasm as flirting. I try to be as optimistic as possible too. I adore horror movies and carry at least two books with me wherever I go. I love horror and dystopians the most, but any genre can catch my eye! My three favorite books are The Handmaid's Tale, A Little Life, and The Book Thief, but I could name every book on my shelf lol!!! I could go on forever about my favorites. The beach is my happy place and I hope to move closer to the ocean after I graduate!! I love studying languages and am trying to learn as many as possible (I speak three and im studying two more). I live for poetry tho I am awful as writing it. I love Russian poetry especially and try to read it in it's original language, but my Russian still needs work. I'm a Ravenclaw and my intelligence is really important to me :) I love learning so much, I have such a great passion for it!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! 🩷💗💕

thank you so much for sending this!! fellow language enthusiast here, you seem super cool and i hope you enjoy the ship :)

I ship you with...

HUGHIE CAMPBELL!

ok incredibly biased because of the url but. hear me out. you guys are the cutest

You meet in the subway, as cliché as it sounds — you're taking the train to spend a sunny day in Rockaway Beach, and it's a long ride, so of course you're immersed in a good old book. You don't even notice the guy sitting across from you... Or how he's been throwing glances at you since he got in and saw you there.

As people come and go — and both of you are still there, it's a fairly long ride —, he's debating whether or not he should say something. Would he be intruding? Would it be friendly? Would it be weird? You seem so chill and unbothered, and he'd hate to piss you off by interrupting your reading, but he's just entranced by your entire vibe. You're so cool. You're sooo cool. Incredibly cute. The sun coming through the window shines a beam of light on your hair and he thinks he's gonna die. There's an energy, a lot of life to you, and that really draws him in.

As the train gets emptier, he ultimately decides on saying something — who knows when you're getting off the train and he loses his chance forever? And as much as he kept running lines in his head thinking what he'd ask, his brain just short-circuits and in classic Hughie fashion he goes with the first thought in his head: "Hey, that's a really good book."

Important: he had never heard of that book in his entire life

Still, it's enough to get your attention and a smile — what's the harm in earnest conversation? Of course, it's the New York subway, but he seems like a nice guy, you're not in a rush nor feeling uncomfortable, and you like to talk about your interests (it really is a really good book). He does confess he hadn't read it before the lie goes too far (knowing his habitual cover-ups, it could have gotten disastrous), but you two are so deep in such a good conversation you actually find it funny and sweet.

He gets off the train before you and thus the conversation is cut short, but you give him your number. It's a meet cute straight out of a movie and you make his day — I imagine you meet around early season 2, when they're in the hideout, and daily life is rough for The Boys. That conversation with you was a beam of light.

He texts you the day after, polite and casual with a joke in there — something along the lines of "Hey, I'm Hughie, the guy in the subway — if you didn't think I'm a lying idiot, would you be interested in grabbing coffee?"

He absolutely read this one text out loud and rewrote it several times to find the optimal way to not sound weird while asking you out

And that's the start of a series of texts and dates between you two

You two have so many deep conversations over text, stay up chatting about yourselves and your interests, send cute pictures of things that remind you of each other.

Hughie is the type of guy to wait for a message and either reply to it almost immediately or mentally put it off to not seem like he replied immediately. That, of course, when he sees the message, and is preferably not too busy with not dying.

He finds the many heart emojis incredibly endearing 💜 Not a big emoji guy, but adds smiley faces to the end of sentences :) and if you use WhatsApp he'd use A LOT of stickers. Corny hearts, cute animals, funny expressions, typical millennial memes, he saves them all.

Your contact goes from "Enna :)" to "Enna ❤️" as the relationship progresses

You talk mostly over text, because of your studies and his weird schedule with the coup's plans — and you don't really know what he does at that point —, so all of your dates are planned meets. You plan to meet at a coffee shop, you plan to spend the day at the beach, you plan to go to a record store. Everything scheduled (even though he's not the most on-time person, your dates are the very opposite of spontaneous). Hughie's very much a "by the book" type of guy when it comes to dating, he wants to do everything right and neat.

And so, after a month or two of going out, he officially asks you to be his girlfriend by giving you a copy of your favorite book with his annotations (he read it!).

See, Hughie is the typical guy who lost the reading habit because life happens, but meeting you motivated him to get back to reading. In the first dates he'd casually get a recommendation like it was small talk, until he mentioned a couple days later he was actually reading it. Never failed to make you melt.

He did not finish A Little Life though, didn't get through the first chapters without bawling his eyes out and feeling like shit and realized maybe he should skip that one.

You two share so much media — movies, books, music! He absolutely doesn't mind your singing, in fact he loves singing along to stuff with you. Expect so many car sing-alongs and playing music in the kitchen while you're cooking.

And I hope you like Billy Joel, because he will play it so much you'll inevitably know the lyrics. He'll warm up to your music too, but he's usually quicker than you to put on his playlist and you're not really complaining.

You try to show him horror movies but he bails after the first scare. He's already too horrified by the stuff happening in his life, he doesn't want to be horrified by the screen too. If you really, really insist, just this once, as a gift, for you, come on, he'll watch it on edge and stressed for the entire thing. Will hold onto you for dear life and scream out loud. "We had fun, right?" gf X "I've never been more stressed my entire life" bf.

He loves your hair so much — if you change it often, it becomes a thing for him to guess the next color before you go and dye it. He always comments on it, and has a personal ranking of his favorite Enna hair eras (like, seriously elaborated, which he could make a slide presentation on if prompted).

I do remember you mentioning you're very short so that's a funny add-on — this man is a giraffe, and now your personal crane. Will grab things on the top shelf for you all the time, especially books you want.

He's definitely the big spoon, and loves cuddling and hugging. Only in private though, like at home, he's kind of awkward with PDA. But he will hug you from behind when you're baking, wrap his arms over your shoulders, and oh I'm sorry I guess you have to stop whatever you're doing to give attention to your Big Friendly Giant of a boyfriend. No the brownies aren't burning.

The breakfast table is yap central. He grew up silently eating with his dad, not much happening there, but now he actively makes the choice to always ask you about random topics over breakfast or lunch. You're creating new traditions — the table around a meal is lively and a place for conversation, in which you feel safe to ramble about whatever topics you're interested in to each other.

You do explain to him about all the languages you're learning — Hughie's not particularly a language guy, but he's a passion guy and a you guy, so he becomes fascinated by your studies. You start sporadically bringing a book in another language to breakfast to read something aloud. He loves to hear the sound of your voice in any language.

It's interesting how much of a rambler he is, while at the same time keeping his life really private. Like, you know everything about every movie he's ever seen; he explains every record he likes that you might come across in a store; he'll talk about his passions and dreams and insecurities, talk about his dad and his problems with his mom... But you still don't know what the hell he does for work. Or any of his friends.

He does try to keep The Boys' work a secret for as long as possible; he feels awful for lying to you sometimes, being evasive, or giving vague answers, but he wants to protect you. So much. He wouldn't want to risk losing someone else he cared about; losing you. Your passion, kindness, optimism have saved him in so many bad days, in so many ways you didn't even know, and are so rare to maintain in the world he's in.

This light and energy that drew him to you is, in some way, the same thing that drew him to Robin (and, in the canon, Annie).

Secrets aren't kept forever, eventually he does tell you about the real nature of his work and the crew he surrounds himself with.

You don't really get involved in the work, you're not a part of THE BOYS, but you're Hughie's girl and they all know you. They have heard oh so much about you. Let's be honest they're nosy bitches — they'd be dying to know anything and everything about you from the moment Hughie offhandedly mentioned he had a date.

You guys were barely official and Frenchie said he wanted to be invited to the wedding

Hughie is the No. 1 supporter of your baked goods, and he starts bringing them to the office. They're all immediately hooked.

They tease him pretty much all the time — it's awww when you have a cute couple moment, crude jokes from Butcher (in good spirit, you respond with sarcasm and he respects you that way), a cacophony of noises and some "TELL HER I SAID HI" in the background of most phone calls —, but at the end of the day they're incredibly happy for you two. It's a breath of fresh air in their chaotic lifestyle that someone has something sweet in their life and a sense of normality. You're a beam of light. :)

[corrodedcoughin]

Thoughts on Teacher Steve in future fics

Then in conjunction with that Steve as a history teacher and Robin as a language teacher

Couple other ideas

-Robin yelling at Steve in another language and him going " I know I know" and when his students act suprised he knows another language he responds that he doesnt but he knows both this is your fault and your an idiot in all the languages she knows

-steve drives her to school everyday and makes lunch for them

- Robin is the only reason Steve doesn't show up to school when he's sick

-most of the school is convinced that they're dating until the day that gay marriage is legalized when Robin burst into his class about how they can get married now

- this confuses so many students until they see their history teacher on the cover of a metal magazine with a rockstar

- if they teach in Hawkins steve does a project about local historical events and has trouble keeping a straight face when one of them does tthhe creel murders and finds out they have a first person source teaching the class and just down the hall

- student getting confused by Robin's jokes about Steve 'always being the babysitter' and his kids because they know he's not married (at that point)

-when asked why she learned the languages she learned she always get laughs about breaking a Russian code as her reason for learning Russian

- Robin will play music for events if asked

-Robin will wake Steve up with trumpet music if she wakes up before him which doesn't usually happen

- Steve always gives Robin yellow roses on valentines day and receives black and red roses from Eddie that he puts on his desk

Sorry to send so much I have many thoughts on this feel free to ignore if it's not your cup of tea

Especially steddie teacher Steve Rockstar Eddie where Steve is just some teacher and eddie is a well know Rockstar and then Steve's student find out and just cannot compute the guy who taught them about the dustbowl being the guy that a Rockstar was singing about being badass

Don’t you DARE apologise for sending me stuff!!! Ever!!! This is the kind of thing that keeps me going so THANK YOU!!!

Honestly I love the idea of teacher Steve and him just being ‘some guy’ but whenever it’s a dress casual day he turns up with a corroded coffin shirt under his jacket that also has some cc pins on it. The student just think he’s a fan which, not going to lie, they are seriously surprised at because he’s ‘normie harrington’. But one day the school holds a talent show and Steve lets slip that his partner is actually going to be one of the judges so everyone just expects some ‘normie harrington gf’ to give everyone a ‘that’s was great sweetheart, you really should be proud of yourself’.

So when the talent show arrives and the judges file in and one of them is The Eddie Munson? The school goes into shocked awe. And when The Eddie Munson runs up to normie harrington and jumps into his arms? The shocked awe is stunned silence for all of two seconds before absolute chaos let’s loose.

[olderthannetfic]

Escapade Dance Party 2023 Writeup 3/3

Second Half

Jaskier has no more fucks to give by Gondolin AMV

Obviously, having just shown the other Witcher, I had to open with the more familiar one.

Vids under 2 minutes also aren't actually danceable no matter the tempo, so this makes a good upbeat intro to a section.

Grandmaster of Troublemaking (The Untamed) by NKZephyr Edits

I love the enthusiasm and goofiness of this vid.

Goncharov (1973) | Read the description! by Etoile

Come on, we had to have Goncharov!

TBH, there were other vids, but basically none of them were danceable.

【HIStory3-圈套】On a daily by Nerjaveika

Trapped's moment seems to have passed, but the combination of great use of text and this fun song made this one a perfect fit.

Ego | AMV | Mo dao zu shi & Heaven Official's Blessing (CC Lyrics) by Nitisha Donghua Productions

I was more looking for Heaven Official's Blessing alone, but most of the options I was finding weren't really danceable. I love this song and was looking for a vid to it anyway.

trouble in my head | lan jue & zhang ping | a league of nobleman by Victoria

I have no clue what this is. I probably found it in the sidebar while searching something else, but it's such a pretty vid.

История Бай Ци (AU, Bai Qi/Shen Zui) by Kemriko

What is this? Who knows. I liked it, and it was m/m, so people got to watch it.

BTS Jhope • Gasolina• |FMV|• by kookie taex

In a concession to how many people the previous song would inevitably chase from the dance floor, I wanted to follow it with something much more booty-shaking. I fucking love Gasolina and am always looking for more vids to it. Tragically, a lot of English-speaking vidding fandom has No Taste and does not vid this kind of music.

Yes, this is a vertical vid of J-Hope dancing to Daddy Yankee. No regrets!

Мания Хирото by Fausthaus

Ah, my favorite source of vids: Russian fandom combats. Are they on AO3? Yes. Have English speakers gone anywhere near their vast stores of battshit content? No, absolutely not.

No one at the con, including me, knows anything about this fandom. Too bad. The music is great, and I wanted to dance to it.

Отступники by fandom Vampires of Central Russia 2021

This is another fandom I spotted in the fandom combats. The vid is shorter than I'd normally show, but I wanted to showcase this interesting vampire fandom that I didn't think most people at Escapade had heard of yet.

Sex and Violence by bironic

Another one breaking my rules. Nandermo was a must-have for a vampire-themed year, but mockumentaries are shot like ass on purpose, and that makes them hard to vid, so my options were limited. Bironic's always a sure thing, if not exactly obscure to an Escapade audience.

Sadly, the embed seems to be dead at the moment.

Sex Drive by Franzeska

Yes, I will always play my own vids when I need to fill a hole in a playlist.

Night Watch was such a passion of mine for a while and the source of my ill-fated attempt to learn Russian. I always meant to go back and add text to this vid to echo the weird subtitles they did for the movie, but I never got around to it. Oh well.

【盾冬衍生】no body no crime 黑暗爽文利刃出鞘兰森/我们一直住在城堡里表哥 by 蜜桃奶霉包

Batshit AUs are my favorite. When I found this, I knew I had to inflict it on everyone.

The Hunger - Say Yes To Heaven by themaybatatter

I had a long list of vampire fandoms, most of which I never did find a vid for, but The Hunger was at the absolute top of my list. After scouring the internet, this was the only arguably danceable vid I could come up with and one of the few in general. What the hell, internet? What the hell?!

“你不了解你的妻子，我吻过她” by 没饭呲了

This would be a lot more danceable if it weren't quite so plastered with show audio… but too bad. As usual, sufficiently horny femslash gets an automatic pass. Everyone swayed vaguely on the edges of the dance floor staring, so I still consider it a success.

【巍澜】这可是极限拉扯的鼻祖！！！ by 甜飞惹

Guardian is another fandom where I'm spoiled for choice, but the Chinese vidders do like to include an awful lot of dialogue. This vid stood out for great dance party music and no audio clips.

Morpheus & Hob | The Night We Met by WolfPhoenixWriter

A lot of people were into Sandman this year. I liked this vid for making me feel a lot of feelings despite never having seen the show and barely remembering the comic.

It's a bit slow dance for Escapade, but I loved the emotion in the song too much to not include it.

Boyfriend | FMV | Yan Wei X Xu YouYi by Nitisha Donghua Productions

I guess this was my horny femslash year.

Lee Soo Hyuk - Gwi (Scholar Who Walks the Night) Savage by Serendipity

What's this? Dunno, but it's got a vampire and this great song.

The Monster by frayadjacent

This one was pure self-indulgence on my part. It was made for a con by a vidder everybody knows, but the vidder felt it required too many content warnings and didn't send it in the end. I, however, reserve the end of the dance party to show more content warnings-heavy things if I feel like it. I despise how fandom has turned into a "compromise" where anything that reaches into my soul is never on the table while pabulum always is. Fuck that. I am the arbiter of what's normal.

This vid lit me up in places I'd forgotten.

Ahs Hotel :| Tear you Apart by xxxxxx

This song was used in the show and there are a billion vids to it, but this one is far better than the others aside from how it just cuts off.

AHS isn't a fandom most at the con are in, but I just had to include its vampire season.

A Shot for the Pain by Franzeska

I honestly did go looking for other Penny Dreadful vids. Sadly, the selection was not impressive, and most of it was not to anything danceable, let alone goth club-appropriate music.

【拔杯|暗黑慎入】你是我奇怪的瘾症 by 两只阿夏跑不快

I've seen a lot of Hannibal vids. Almost all of them are gross. Few are as interestingly edited as this one.

Twilight Zone by hmmyeahokay

Okay, this one is a massive blast from the past. Do people outside of Highlander fandom even remember this bad 2001 movie?

I loved the song, and I appreciated that there was a black lead. That and vampires trump the fact that it's a het vid (ish).

Supernatural ►Cry Little Sister by Gwen

I scoured Youtube for vids to this song. I thought this was a particularly interesting take out of the extensive genre of horror set to Cry Little Sister. (No, seriously, it's a genre.)

【���耀向我俯首｜kinnporsche】没长出恋爱脑前的少爷们怎么能错过这首BGM by 旧城与笙Zz

Kinnporsche hit big this year. I wanted a really fantastic vid that people hadn't seen. I love that this one is by a Chinese vidder (probably) to a French song.

Sadly no longer online, probably for being of a horny BL series and posted on a Chinese site

Kingdom come by fandom ATEEZ 2022

Okay, ATEEZ isn't a big fandom at the con, but this vid is some sort of kink AU, and I'm always weak for that. It's also to a Taylor song everybody loves.

Last of the Real Ones by colls

I cheated again and included a well-known vidder, but do you know how hard it is to find stormpilot vids? Kylux has like eight billion genius animatics and fan art vids. Finnpoe? Bupkis!

I don't know if people still care about this part of Star Wars, but all of the Bandom trash immediately rushed the dance floor when the song started playing.

louis & lestat | take my breath away (interview with the vampire) by ScribbledDreaming

I have ended with this song before, with finnpoe in fact, so that's a little in-joke for myself.

What better way to end the vampire party than the new IWTV and the most over-the-top vid I could find?

[sweepseven]

So I was looking through your blog and notice your personal favorite final act is Quidam's Banquine. Are there any ones you love beside it? Mine is Luzia's Swing to Swing or La Nouba's Powertrack/Trampoline

YES, oh I have so many beloved finale acts. Here are some more:

Luzia Russian Swing - You are so real for loving this one. I remember being distinctly skeptical when this was announced as the finale act for a Mexican show but it is so effective in its simplicity. The bare stage with the sun disk glowing in the background, the communal feel, the steady build of the music and energy, and the costumes!! I wanna own one of those dresses BAD. Wonderful act.

Totem's finale dance - No one talks about Totem and this isn't really an act, but I think it's just adorable. It's such a fun goodbye and thank you to the cast at the end of the show. Totem was always kind of a weird ride but by the end of it you want to hop onstage and join them.

Volta BMX - RIP to unique Cirque acts because Volta seems to have taken all of 'em to its grave. It's incredibly well designed. Sight lines were taken into very obvious consideration (Echo consider taking fucking note), you get to see the stage put through her paces, energy is fantastic, and it's an excellent physical match for the emotional climax of the show.

O cerceaux - Perfect song, perfect set, perfect showcase of the cast, perfect character work - and because it's O it's all exceptionally grand. When the brides come out on their own hoops, god help me. Would could I be the zebra Le Vieux pecks on the cheek. This is absolutely everything a finale act should be... as long as Cirque lets it. Lately some of the complexity has been dialed back, and I don't yet understand why.

Zed flying trapeze - I really struggled to limit myself to just one flying act, but this is kinda like picking Mystere too because Fiesta got its second life once Zed closed. 🥹 This song gets me fucking going. The rig and net deployment are works of rigging art. I'm psyched up just thinking about it. I could run a marathon rn. I love this act so fucking much. Actually changed my life.

La Nouba powertrack - The only one on this list that can truly touch Quidam banquine. It's not just a great finale act, it's one of the greatest acts of all time. Cirque is packed with thrills no matter what you're seeing, but only a tiny handful of moments make you feel in awe of life itself. This is one of them. La Nouba sometimes feels so strange that it almost seems a wonder the audience can relate to it at all, but this show has a soul, and it is on full and shining display in this finale. The simple set does so much for it - this feels like a real city, filled with real people with real lives. The 90s nostalgia factor feels artistic and honest, not dated or cheesy or pointless. The music is exceptional in every way. Without fail I get goosebumps at the transition into Prince as they come walking out at the very end. On a list of "most important Cirque moments in company history," the bow at 1:23:05 is in the top five.

Now I'm gonna have to think about the Titan for the next 72 hours straight.

[theverumproject]

Get To Know Me Tag!

Thank you for the tag @rivenantiqnerd!

I rambled a little too much in this one, woops.

Rules: Answer the questions because I want to get to know you better :D 

Do you have a pet?

No, but I frequently get visited by a cat that is older than I am (She's like 22 or something lol). But my mom, my sister and I have been wanting to get chickens!

Comfort food?

I don't really have one? A steak, maybe?

How many languages do you speak?

My native language is Swissgerman, so naturally I also speak High German and obviously I speak English. So let's say 2.5 languages, because the two Germans are similar, but not the same.

I wanna learn many more languages though, that includes; Romansh, Italian (we had it in school for six fucking years but I can barely speak it), French (these three are the other national languages of Switzerland), Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Greek, Russian, Japanese, Welsh, Old Germanic, Latin, Old English and perhaps spanish. There are just sooo many beautiful languages in the world, though I know I will probably never get past the 2.5. 

Random fact about yourself

As a kid I got so sick of radio music that I didn't listen to any songs with lyrics in them for about 2-3 years. I only listened to Dubstep, which eventually turned into only listening to Deathstep (and some robo and metalstep) for about 2 years.

One day I found a remix of the songs Psychosocial and The Devil in I by Slipknot. Slipknot was my gateway band to metal. I practically only listened to them for probably more than half a year.

And then I discovered aliencore. Aliencore is a subgenre of death metal in which, you guessed it, everything is about aliens. So I got obsessed with Rings of Saturn at first (I still mourn them deeply) and later on with Aversions Crown. So I pretty much only listened to them for probably more than half a year too.

Then I got obsessed with Behemoth and Gorogoroth for a while, that's how I began listening to black metal too. About one or two years ago I got obsessed with Ghost and only listened to them for more than half a year, AGAIN!

That was the last time I obsessed over a band. Now I just listen to a bunch of different bands and artists. I don't have a favorite band at the moment, but my favorite song is Sommer by Nargaroth. I also love Starchild by Wintersun, Fading Memories by Thy Pallor, Wieczernia by Batushka, The Sun, The Moon, The Star by Aether Realm, Million Year Summer by The Angelic Process, The Satanist by Behemoth and a bunch of Slipknot songs like Gently, Iowa, Scissors and The Virus of Life.

I really just rambled about my entire musical journey, fucking hell.

Something you’re proud of?

In my last year of school, we had to do a final project. I chose to write about how I imagined the future to look like. I researched everything to be as scientifically accurate as possible. I had a bunch of ideas for topics, and in the end I ended up with six. They were: “Can you bring artificial intelligence to life?”, “What could the future of space travel possibly look like?”, “How could the cities of the future look like?”, “Will humanity go extinct?” “What is the technological and human singularity?” and “What is my idea of transhumanism?”. (The original titles are in German).

I had a blast during the presentation, I even made somebody cry actually. I showed them a video of ChaosGPT and it actually frightened some. One girl was wiping her tears away. To me this was really funny, because I put the video on 2x speed which made the Mozart music in the background sound really funny. Imagine some evil AI planning to destroy the world, while a girl is crying as Mozart is playing at 2x speed in the background and I just stand in front of the whole class and two teachers, trying to hold my shit together.

Anyway, I got a 6 (best possible grade) for the written work, a 6 for the journal and a 5.8 for the presentation (I talked for over an hour, which was a little too long, but the rest of it was fucking great!!!), so I received a -6 for the whole project. My other teacher also gave me a 6 (It's an unofficial grade though) and the whole class had to give me a grade too, which were all 6s too!

So yeah, I did a fucking amazing job!

Tags: @teamarine777 @creative-author + open tag!

[buckychristwrites]

The Night We Met | b.b.| os

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x F!Reader

Summary: Undercover, it's just a normal mission for the Winter Soldier. That is, until he hears a familiar voice from an unfamiliar informant.

Word Count: 4.9k

Warnings: It's angst. There is fluff in there. But it's angst

A/N: This lore comes from the book The Winter Soldier: Cold Front, which is based on the comics, but I based it on the MCU Bucky mostly. :)

Masterlist | Bucky Masterlist | Main Blog

Forbidden to remember, terrified to forget; it was a hard line to walk.

The clock struck 11, but the night was filled with life.

Piano music filled the tiny bar. A small area was dedicated to dancing, with girls laughing as they were dipped and swung by their male counterparts. The lighting was dim, even more so towards the red mahogany bar. The bartender was busy clearing the tables, occasionally looking up and smiling at the crowded dance floor. A glass was lifted off the wood, leaving a ring of condensation in its place. The sip was a light one, for the drinker wasn’t intending on finishing it. He had a purpose in the bar that very much had nothing to do with the alcohol, drinks or even the beautiful women. 

He lowered the glass back to the bar and scanned the room once more. It had only been a half hour since his arrival, but he felt he was wasting time. Undercover work was not his forte, as he was fond of a, one could say, more direct approach. But orders were orders. And while he was very good at a great deal of things, he had one that he was particularly best at. The single word that constantly ran through his head.

Comply.

“They’re late,” He growled in a low voice. A laugh came through the intercom in his ear.

“You have such high expectations,” The familiar Russian accent replied. He rolled his eyes as he took another swig of his drink.

Experiencing the nightlife of London was not how he imagined his evening would go. In fact, he didn’t prefer the loudness or the crowds. It was ideal for his usual kind of missions, sure. Approach from behind. Stab, or maybe shoot with the silencer on. Disappear. Piece of cake. But for undercover work, he would rather be anywhere else. The noise made it hard to focus. And there were so many people, it was hard to pinpoint the target. 

But maybe that was the point. 

He leaned back in his chair, his right arm draped over the back of the empty one next to him while he looked at the crowd. The music was loud and upbeat. He watched a girl with red curls squeal as her dancing partner swung her through the air, his face matching her euphoria. 

He found himself wondering what that was like; the ability to take a cute girl out for a night on the town. Bring flowers to her door. take her to dinner, dance until the lights turned out, get her home at a reasonable hour. Maybe even stay until an unreasonable hour. There must’ve been a time where he had done that, not that he was able to remember. All he remembered was mission after mission after mission. Even when his break from field work came up, he wouldn’t be allowed out to experience any of it for himself. It would be the usual. Stay in his tiny compartment until he gets sent out again. 

Focus, he told himself. 

Glancing at the clock on the wall, he found himself grinding his teeth. 11:17 it read. Where could this person be?

“So impatient are we? Do you have plans to get to?” The voice in his ear quipped. He said nothing, instead rolling his head onto his left shoulder so he could send a glare through the window. He couldn’t pinpoint her exact location, but he knew he could see it through the scope of her sniper rifle. 

He was undercover as an M16 agent, waiting for an info drop from an actual M16 agent. There was no way to know what the other person who would like, sound like, be dressed as. All he could hope was that the mission wasn’t compromised so he could expect a good breakfast in the morning. 

The bell over the door could just be heard over the music when it swung open. He turned back to face the bar, his body now on high alert. One, two, three footsteps could be made out as they made their way across the wooden floor, and then a figure appeared in his peripheral, sitting two seats away from him. Without moving his head, he glanced over at the company, shocked at what he found. 

A woman. 

Of course, he had dealt with people of all genders when doing this work, but it was few and far between when he met with anyone but another white man. It still surprised him when he dealt with anything else. 

He said nothing while she skimmed the menu, humming a song that he could recall from his distant memory, but could not, for the life of him, place the name. 

“Just a water, please,” She said to the barkeep before setting the menu back down. He frowned. She wore an oversized hat, so he could not see her face, but the sound of her voice seemed to awaken something deep in the catacombs of his mind. There was something so deeply familiar about that voice. His eyes furrowed together as it chewed up his insides, stalling out his brain. She spoke in perfect Russian, but her accent did not match the language. She is not from here, he thought to himself. How can he know her? 

She sat silently, drinking her water and looking around at the bottles of alcohol on the wall. After a moment, she turned in her seat to watch the crowd of dancers. Her water was still in her hands, the condensation running down her fingers and into her palms, though she didn’t seem concerned about it. 

“Beautiful evening for a dance, isn’t it?” She asked, seemingly to no one, but he knew it was towards him. He felt his eye twitch. 

Where had he heard that voice?

She took another sip of water before letting out a wistful sigh. Bucky watched her out of the corner of his eye. The elbow of her right arm was on the back of the chair, supporting her head which was resting in her palm. In her left was her water which she swirled around slowly. He had a moment of deja vu.

What the hell is wrong with you? He asked himself.

He wondered if this was part of the façade, her lingering. It was expected that she would drop the information and go, but her loitering made him nervous. Suddenly feeling hot, he tugged at the tie around his neck. She drained her water before turning back to the bar and lightly setting the glass down. In a flash, she was up and walking towards the door. When he turned back to the bar, he found a slip of paper next to him, and a few coins left beside it. 

Instinct had him turn back towards the door. The bell rang as it swung shut behind her receding back. A force he couldn’t explain pulled him to his feet, his hand quickly grasping the paper before he began to follow her. 

At some point between his arrival and his departure, it had begun to heavily rain outside. Every step on the concrete seemed to be greeted with a loud splash. The rain soaked his hair but he wasn’t concerned. What he was concerned with, though, was the napkin in his hand, which he haphazardly shoved into his pocket.

“Where are you going?” The voice in his ear hissed. “You have the drop. Get to our meeting point.”

“In a minute,” He said through clenched teeth as he continued to pursue the contact. Her trench coat and hat were the only things he could see in the dark city. The voice rang through his comm again, but he didn’t hear a word of it, instead pulling the piece from his ear and smashing it between his metal fingers before letting it drop to the sidewalk. 

What is wrong with you? His inner voice asked again. You’re taking this big of a risk over what? A hunch?

But it wasn’t just a hunch. That was the only thing he could say for certain. He knew that voice, though he couldn’t explain how. The social circle he had was pathetically small these days. 

Was it from a past life? The one before all of… this?

She rounded a corner, and he mirrored her. Did she know he was following her? For the first time in his career, he seemed to forget all things stealth, for he was awfully close to her, and not making any attempt to be quiet. Maybe the downpour was enough to cover the sound of his footsteps. 

She crossed the median and ran across the road through the middle. It caught him off guard. Once he crossed himself, he found her disappearing down an alleyway. He found himself wondering if this was her own meeting point with her superiors. The idea made him slow down, but only for a moment.

I just need to see her, he told himself. I just need to know who she is.

With a sharp inhale and a puff of his chest, he made his way down the alley.

Water dripped from the fire escape to his right. A scraping noise came from the dumpster adjacent to him, and he wondered if it were rats. But the woman he was pursuing was nowhere to be seen. He found his hand hovering over the gun in his waistband, which was hidden by his jacket. 

It was the click of a gun behind him that made him freeze.

“Okay, friend,” The voice said behind him, the familiarity of it sending a chill up his spine. “Just turn around slowly. And explain why exactly you’re following me.” 

Though he’d had a gun trained on him more often than he could count, he couldn’t quite place why exactly this time made him so anxious. He tried to keep his breathing under control as he turned around, and his eyes fell on the informant’s face for the first time.

Roses.

His mind was instantly filled with visions of roses.

His eyebrows instantly furrowed together.

What?

The barrel of the gun faltered, though it was still raised. 

“Bucky?” She whispered.

“What are you doing here?” 

The sentence was said in her voice, though her mouth did not move, and it took him a moment to realize that it came from inside his head. 

With the gun still up, she approached him. His eyes were locked on her own, while she looked him up and down. 

“Oh, Bucky,” She said softly. “What did they do to you?” He shook his head.

“I’m not,” He said, though sounding unsure. “I’m not this- this Bucky.” He realized then that he was speaking English, and that you had been as well. He frowned even more. English was not a language he ever recalled learning. She shook her head, a sad smile on her face.

“You are. I’d know you anywhere.” 

“I’m here to take you out,” Bucky told you, a bouquet of a dozen roses in his hands and a lopsided grin on his face. “You did promise me a dance, just this morning.” You crossed your arms over your chest. 

“I don’t recall promising that for tonight,” You told him, though it was no secret that you were trying and failing to bite back a smile. He took a confident step forward.

“You got other plans?” 

He squeezed his eyes shut.

“What are you doing to me?” He demanded through gritted teeth as he took two steps backwards. When he opened his eyes again, you were looking at him sadly, gun finally lowered. He realized now that the girl in the flashback was a younger version of the woman in front of him now. You shook your head.

“Nothing, my love. You’re remembering.” 

You squealed as the two of you spun across the dance floor, the hall loud and lively. It was like the smile was permanently etched onto Bucky’s face. He quickly dipped you, your leg flying upward with your skirt going with it. In a daring move, he stole a chaste kiss before bringing you back up. 

“Bucky!” You shouted with a bright smile. He didn’t answer, instead continuing the dance while laughing. Not a second did he take his eyes off of you. And he found that, for the most part, you didn’t stop looking at him, either.

His hands flew to his temples, palms squeezing his head. This wasn’t him. This was never him. None of it was real. How could it be real? He had never left Russia in his life.

You held a glass of water in your hand, slowly swirling it around the glass as you stared into Bucky’s eyes. The dance hall was still loud, but it was just you and him in the corner, you leaning into the wall while his palm was pressed against it just next to your head, holding him up. 

“What do you say, doll?” He asked, loud enough for you to hear but quiet enough so no one else could. “Another dance? Or are you ready to go?” You shook your head before downing the water in one swig.

“I could do this all night, Barnes.”

“Make it stop.” A hand pressed against his back. You were knelt down next to him. When did he drop to his knees?

“It’s okay.” Your voice was like honey in his ear, the only thing keeping him from going completely off the rails. “You’re just coming back to me.”

“Bucky… I have to… go…” You were laughing as you spoke between kisses, for Bucky couldn’t for the life of him, stop kissing you. To him, this was a dream come true. He had seen you around, the two of you both living on Camp Lehigh and you working at the local movie theater. He’d fallen for you months ago, yet was never able to muster up the courage to talk to you.

That is, until today.

And now, here he was, making out with you in the front seat of his car, after a long night of dancing and laughter. Your face was cradled between his hands as he pressed his lips to your own.

“Just a few more minutes,” He said into your mouth, making you laugh against his lips.

Your hands were on his cheeks. It was the first tender touch he’d experienced in a long time. As if subconsciously, he covered them with his own. His eyes were wild as he stared into yours. 

“Your name is James Buchanan Barnes,” You said slowly, firmly. “The people you love call you Bucky.” He shook his head, fighting against your grip, but it never faltered. “Your parents were George and Winifred Barnes. You had a sister named Rebecca. We met on a military base that we lived on with our families when we were 16, and were together until-” You paused, the words catching in your throat. “Until I was informed of your death. After you enlisted.” He shook his head harder now, forcing you to release him.

“I’m not,” He hissed. “I’m NOT!” You didn’t seem bothered by his yelling. 

“Will you still love me when I’m an important military man?” His voice was a whisper in the dark as he laid in your bed, you tucked into his side. He had snuck in through your window after your parents were long asleep.

You contemplated this for a long time before finally saying, “Only if you come back home to me.” He brought his chin down to his chest so he could look at you, and even in the dark, he could still see your bright eyes on him.

“I’ll always come back to you.” 

“Your name is James Buchanan Barnes,” You repeated to him, before reminding him of your own name. That piece of information seemed to make it all click for him. It was as if he always knew it, even though he had never once heard it before. Maybe he was born knowing it. He grabbed your shoulders, gripping you tightly in fear. 

He looked in the mirror, adjusting his tie. The recruitment uniform fit him perfectly, and he couldn’t stop looking at himself in it. This was it. He, James Barnes, was officially a member of the US Army, shipping out just the following day. His heart swelled with a bittersweet feeling. Sweet, as this was his dream his entire life. Ever since he and his family moved to Camp Lehigh when his father enlisted, he dreamed of following in his footsteps. The bitterness, however, was all he could taste in his mouth, because…

You appeared behind him, wrapping your arms around his torso and resting your chin on his shoulder. 

“I’m so proud of you,” You mumbled, but he could still feel the words left unsaid, for he felt them too. 

“What is wrong with me?” He whispered. “What is happening?” Your eyes were brimming with tears as you stared at him tenderly. 

“I can’t explain it,” You told him. “I think they did something to your memories.”

“Please fix it.” Tears fell down his cheeks. “Fix me.” 

“I love you,” He said outside of the train station. It was loud due to the other hundreds of men who were setting off along with him, but to him, it was just him and you. 

“I love you too,” You said back. He raised his hands and brushed away the tears that streamed down your face, though more replaced them. It was almost two years of you by his side at this point, and he couldn’t imagine going a single day without you. With his hands lingering on your face, you placed one of your own on his left bicep. “Please come back to me.” Instead of letting his own tears fall, he yanked you forward, kissing you with a deep intensity. He had to make it count, for it had to last him for however long he was gone. When he eventually pulled away, he planted another kiss on your forehead.

“Don’t you remember what I said?” He asked as he brought you back into his sight, attempting to sound playful. “I’ll always come back to you. And I mean it.”

A shot rang out, and when he looked over, you were laying on your back, groaning in agony. Before he had a chance to consider what was happening, he heard a whizz passed his ear, and something hit his neck. Slowly, he brought a hand up and yanked it out. A blow dart. Almost immediately, he began to feel very heavy. He collapsed next to you, rolling onto his side so he could face you. 

In the moments before his eyes forced themselves shut, he muttered your name over and over. As if he was trying to make sure he did not forget it again.

~

“Today’s the day, Steve,” Bucky announced as the two of them walked down the sidewalk. Well, Bucky walked, and Steve basically jogged to keep up with him. “I’m going to get her name and ask her out.” 

“What makes today different from any other day?” Steve asked. The movie theater was in sight now, making Bucky walk even faster. “You wimped out any other time. It’s been months since we’ve gone to the movies.” Bucky shook his head at his friend’s cynicism.

“Well, be ready to see many a-movie, Steve,” He told him. “In fact, maybe even for free.” Steve rolled his eyes behind Bucky’s back. 

“What if she says no?” Steve asked. Bucky, however, didn’t answer, because he didn’t even consider that possibility. After all, he was one of the most sought out sixteen year olds in the town, and it wasn’t hard for him to get any of the other girls he had wanted over the years (which, rest assured, he did not let it get to his head). So why would this one be any different?

In the distance, the ticket booth became clearer and clearer, and inside, he could see those eyes looking at the line of people and moving them along. His heart fluttered as he joined the line, Steve behind him.

“So what, am I just emotional support then?” Steve mumbled to him. Bucky shot him a glare.

“Stuff a sock in it, Rogers.”

The line was moving faster than anticipated, which was increasing Bucky’s nerves. Was this a good idea? Asking a girl out while she was working? Now that he had the time to consider it, he was starting to feel quite pompous. His time to reconsider was cut short when the man in front of him made his way into the theater, and he was left face to face with you. He took a nervous step forward, and when you smiled brightly at him, he pretended like he wasn’t melting in his chest.

“How can I help you?” Your voice was what he imagined a sunset to sound like, and it made him imagine all the ways he could make you laugh, just so he could hear it. He leaned against the counter, using every ounce of energy he had to feign confidence. 

“Two tickets to Citizen Kane, and one date with one pretty lady.”

You froze, your eyes jumping back to him. It was obvious your demeanor shifted, and he couldn’t quite place what your face was conveying. He felt the perspiration start to build on his forehead, and he told himself that it was from the summer heat and definitely not from anxiety. 

“Does that line work often for you?” At this, he laughed slightly. Your tone was playful, which calmed him.

“You tell me,” He said in earnest. “I’ve never used it before.”

He realized then, when you looked away with a bashful smile on your face, that you were flattered.

“So what do you say?” He asked, his eyes deep in your own. “You wanna go dancing sometime?” You shrugged, trying to play coy.

“I guess one dance couldn’t hurt,” You said playfully. “Especially if a promise of one will get you to let me go back to work.” You nodded behind him, and when he turned, he was greeted by a line of people glaring at him. He turned back and nodded quickly. 

“Right, I’ll hold you to that!” He shouted, grabbing Steve’s arm and yanking him out of line before running down the sidewalk.

“Wait!” You called, making him turn. “What’s your name?” He laughed, looking at the sky above before glancing back at you.

“It’s James,” He said. “But everyone calls me Bucky.” 

“Well, Bucky, can you piss off!” A lady in line shouted, clearly not impressed with the love story that was unfolding right before her eyes. Bucky ignored her as he continued to look at you. 

“What’s yours?” He asked, and when you gave it to him, it was like the skies had opened up and descended upon him. He repeated it back to you before turning and fleeing down the sidewalk.

“What, we’re not even going to see the movie?” Steve shouted angrily at him. 

“Nope,” Bucky replied. “I have too much to do! A date to get ready for!” And before Steve could say anything else, he picked up speed and left him behind. 

As he made his way to the floral shop near his house, he muttered your name over and over under his breath, as if trying to permanently etch it into his brain. 

This time was different, he told himself. He could feel it.

~

He woke, immediately sitting up and looking around. He was in his compartment, where he stayed when he was off field duty. His books were aligned on the shelf as normal. The fridge in the corner was humming like it always did. Something was off, however, and he couldn’t quite place what.

Your name was still fresh on his lips, the dream he had vivid in his mind, though he knew it wasn’t a dream at all. It was a memory. 

Standing hesitantly, he slowly made his way to the door. Before he could put his hand on the knob, he heard a throat being cleared from the other side. He froze.

Guards were at the door. 

He felt his entire body run cold as he grabbed for the knob, but it was locked. When he went to grab the knob with his left arm, knowing he could overpower it, nothing happened.

His left arm didn’t move at all.

Fear overcame him, a feeling he was not familiar with. 

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your name is-

The door opened and there was Karpov, followed by Rostova, the voice in his ear from the night before. She refused to make eye contact with him, staring at the floor as she leaned against the wall. A nurse walked up to him without a word, ushering him to sit down on the bed while she took his vitals, but he never took his eyes off Karpov.

“What did you do to me?”

Karpov began to pace, lifting his shoulders up in a casual shrug.

“I needed a weapon,” He said simply, his Russian accent thick. “You survived falling off a  mountain. A man with that strength was someone I can use.” 

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes.

“I was someone before all this,” He muttered, his voice just a hair above a whisper. “You took everything from me.”

“I gave you a second chance,” Karpov barked in sudden anger. “Do you think you would’ve made it without me? No, you would’ve died in that snow.”

The nurse ripped the blood pressure cuff off him, then trying to place an IV into him, but he ripped his arm away from her.

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes.

“Dying in the snow would’ve been better than this.” Karpov laughed, shaking his head before turning his gaze into his eyes.

“Then you should’ve fucking died before I got to you.”

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes.

He fought the nurse again as she tried to hold down his arm, and within a moment, his arm was being held down by two guards whom he didn’t even know had entered the room. Fighting with all of his strength, it was no use. The nurse inserted the IV into his arm, and it was then that he noticed the scars all over his arm. IV insertion scars that he had no memory of receiving.

He thought of you, of the dream, of your lips pressed against his. Alarm bells rang in his head.

“Where is she?”

“Ahhhh,” Karpov said, his eyes dropping to the floor. “Your little friend is safe. For now.” As if like clockwork, a scream echoed down the hallway, the sound entering the room. This was the push he needed to break free from the guards' hold. Lunging across the room, he grabbed Karpov and slammed him into the wall, leaving a dent in the drywall. 

“You take me to her,” He growled. “NOW!”

A needle plunged into his neck, him yelling out as he released Karpov and stumbled backwards. The effects of the drug started almost immediately. The nurse, with the help from the guards, slowly lowered him to the ground as he hyperventilated. 

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes.

“No,” He begged, trying to fight them off with haphazard swipes of his hand. “Please.”

“It must be this way, Soldat,” Karpov said, a twinge of pain in his voice. 

Your father’s name is George. Your mother’s name is Winifred. You have a sister named Rebecca.

The nurse hung a bag of medication, the white liquid rushing down into his veins. He began to feel tired, more so than before.  

He thought of you again, trying to memorize your features, and tried not to wonder if they were going to kill you. You were strong, that he knew for sure, and he had to believe that you were going to make it out of this alive. There was no other option. 

“All will be back to normal in a few minutes,” Karpov said, in a voice that was supposed to reassure him. “Just let yourself go to sleep.” The nurse pushed another syringe into the tubing, another drug added to the mix.

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your name is James Buchanan Barnes.

He fought against the drug, fighting to keep his eyes open for what felt like the second time in one day. His right arm was limp at his side now, just as useless as the left one. Tears fell from the corner of his eyes and into his long hair. His eyes fell forward, looking up at the white ceiling. Little black dots danced their way across his vision. 

Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your name is James Buchanan. Your name is…

As he succumbed to the medication, his eyes forcing their way closed, he forced his mind to focus on your face until the last possible second, when it evaporated from his memory, his name and your own vanishing along with it, and he went into a dreamless sleep

[justa-sadjellyfish]

Also I’d love to hear your thoughts on which songs you prefer from each version!!! I can share my own opinions if you’d like too!!

YEYSYSYEYEYSYSYES THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME YAP ABOUT THIS!!! 

Just a heads up, this is going to be a VERY long post. VERY VERY long. Hopefully anyone reading has enough patience 💗

Btw I am not going to be comparing the songs visuals, because if we were to do that the WE would very easily win every single one. I will also not be mentioning Candyman, as it is placed pretty weirdly. This is simply a comparison of the two cast recordings, West End, and Broadway. There are some other songs you won’t see mentioned, like A Little Me, Charlie, you & I, and The Amazing Fantastical History of Mr. Willy Wonka, either because it’s pretty self explanatory, or because there’s nothing to really compare it too. The random is so small so this very long ramble is prob gona go nowhere lmfao 

First off; 

Almost Nearly Perfect/Willy Wonka! Willy Wonka! 

Yeah this one goes to ANP. WWWW is good for telling the story, and showing the dynamic between Wonka (in disguise at this point) and Charlie, but takes away from the bonding time of Charlie and his family. ANP is also far better at introducing the character of Charlie, and showing that no matter how poor he is, he finds enjoyment in all the little things, while also showing his infatuation with Wonka. 

A Letter from Charlie bucket 

I’m bouta be rlly honest, I dont know for this one. They’re both very similar, besides the fact that Charlie’s father is dead in the Broadway, so I’m gona call this one a tie. 

More of him to Love

Again, more or less the same. This one’s probably a tie too. Although I will mention I actually do prefer the dynamic between Augustus and his mother in the Broadway, even with WE being arguably the superior version. 

When Veruca Says 

Ah yes, one of the most iconic original songs of this musical. Personally I find the Broadway more enjoyable to listen to (specifically because of the Russian accents lmfao) but honestly, the girl as Veruca in the WE recording did arguably better at showing Veruca’s extreme personality. Gotta love Emma Pfaeffle tho. 

Queen of Pop/ The Double Bubble Duchess

Oh my god this is a hard one. They’re both SO CATCHY OH MY GOD. And the actresses are so fucking talented it’s crazy. Although I listen to Queen of Pop more frequently, TDBD is arguably more impressive specifically since Violet is played by a child in this version. So yeah there’s things like that to consider. I enjoy listening to both though.

What could possibly go wrong?/ It’s Teavee Time! 

Yeah this one obviously goes to WE. Mike is easily my favorite character in all adaptations of Catcf, which is why I personally prefer Teavee Time, because it does a great job at introducing Mikes character. WCPGW is funny and all, but it barely tells us anything about Mike. A very common problem with the musical (in both versions) is that they focus more on Mikes mother (this was mainly a problem in the broadway bc she was played by Jackie Hoffman who’s a legend). That’s js my opinion tho.

If your Mother/Father were here 

This one’s actually a lot different from each other, hence Charlie’s father being dead in the Broadway version, so the meaning of the song is sort of shifted. As much as I adore the dead dad ballet sequence in the Broadway, I think the message of If your Mother were here is a little more intriguing, because while IYFWH is reminiscing of a dead husband/father, IYMWH features both the parents and seems to be saying that because of the Buckets family/social situation, it’s very easy for Mr and Mrs Bucket to feel incredibly distant from each other. That’s all I will say about that 

I’ve got a Golden Ticket/ Doncha Pinch me Charlie

I’m going to be so honest I’m not really a fan of either songs, but if I had to choose it would be Doncha Pinch Me Charlie, because it gives Charlie the same spotlight that the other golden ticket winners did in my opinion.

It must be believed to be seen 

Friendly reminder this is NOT about visuals. I actually prefer the Broadway version of the this number. Maybe it’s because of my love for Christian Borle, but for some reason the way he sings it just feels more smooth to me. Also, in the West End, there was like… no backing from the ensemble which I personally enjoyed that aspect of the Broadway a lot, especially the harmonies. I also find the timing of some of the things in the WE (reminder I’m referring to the cast albums) version of this song to be a little bit weirder? If anyone wants further evaluation I can give it, but for now I don’t think I need to. In the end it’s js a certain something about the Broadway that makes it sound better to me ears if yk what I mean. 

Strike that, reverse it 

I think this song does a great job in both musicals!!!! I don’t really have a preference for this one honestly, I feel like both do a very good job at expressing the dynamics between the characters, and Christian Borle and Douglas Hodge both do a great job with this song. Although I’m not a fan of listening to songs with dialogue constantly being interchanged with the music, I think these shows did a very good job with it, and I do actually enjoy this song a lot!!

I do not wanna express my opinion on the placement of Pure Imagination in both versions rn bc I don’t want this post to end up being WAY too long (it alr is but I’m doing what I can, okay? Also yes this means I wont be discussing any of the ending songs bc uhhhh I js don’t rlly feel like it rn. I’ve alr expressed my opinions on a lot of the ending songs before as well) 

Auf Wiedersehen Augustus Gloop

I mean… I’m not really a fan of the way this is done in either version, so I don’t rlly know what to put here, but something I will say that doesn’t rlly have anything to do with my preference is that the little lines Augustus has in this song in the WE has me even more convinced that Augustus barley did anything wrong. 

Juicy/ When Willy met Oompa

Juicy is better I don’t even feel like this needs discussion at all. 

Verucas Nutcracker Sweet 

Okay. Attack me all you want but…. I actually prefer the Broadway. Like storytelling and visually wise I prefer West End, but idk there’s js something about the Broadways more menacing tone that I actually sorta like. I do think tearing Veruca apart was a weird addition, but i don’t really hate it. I mean, Violet  supposedly gets her limbs sold to her fans in the WE version and I don’t ever hear ppl talk abt how dark that is. 

Vidiots

The catchiest song in both versions. One of the best songs in the show. It’s literally so funky I love this song so much you don’t even know. The Broadway actually did pretty great with this one visually in comparison to their other sets. I do prefer the lyrics of this song in the WE, bc it sorta has more of a point, but I like the key Broadway did it in a lot, I think I prefer it higher. Ik it doesn’t change much but there’s smth about it. 

[pianocat939]

Hey there, I hope I won't bother you with mu ramble too much, it's just I recently listened to a song and I just can’t get it out of my head that some lines from it are very suitable for a yandere Mikey vibe. Like, here:

" I dream of becoming you Complexity in the simplest request My soul sucks yours is much better No problem - Your only value is the price-a-a Ah-ah-ah You are a dream come true And you are the center of the universe Colors from a painting by Dali Envy no doubt You are one shot A mixture of blood and milk Somewhere between heaven and earth

Rumors said - I'm mediocrity My weakness Your success is a danger to me aa-aaaaaaah Envy

Your face is my temple Eye color of the wildest lilies join us Become an adherent of religion No problem, your soul is the price-ah-ah Ah-ah-ah You are my lifeline And you are the reason to drown The pride of the family, somehow suddenly become suicidal Unable to bear this burden Everyone will be better all the time (All the time, time...)

Rumors said - I'm mediocrity My weakness Your success is a danger to me aa-aaaaaaah Envy "

For some reason, the idea immediately came to my mind as Mikey notices on the Internet or at some exhibition the work of some artist (y/n in our case) and studying their work, his slight envy gradually develops into an obsession for the arts and their craft and it’s like such a mix of opposite and strong emotions that I think fits perfectly into his yandere aesthetic.

Anyway thanks for listening to me rambling about this stuff, hope you're having a great day/evening/night!

song by the way: Envy - Grad!ent Listen sometime you might like it

❄ -anon

I'm listening to it rn and I rate it 8/10- it's been a while since I've listened to any Russian music (by the way I picked up 5 words- that's pretty good since I can only speak like idk basic phrases)

Hi ❄ Anon- you'll be added to the list

Tw: obsession, Mikey literally develops almost an addiction to someone's art help-,

So I actually find this fabulous considering how originally the development of Yan Mikey is more admiration and not out of- more or less negative emotions.

I can totally picture him scrolling through the internet and discovering their art only to be filled with sudden envy and jealousy over their talents. He has the urge to conquer and become the better artist of the two. So he immediately tries to improve his skills, and he does in fact get better, but...he also can't help but go back to their posts and memorize every detail of their art style/artworks. And slowly but surely, he lays awake at night, wondering if they'll post new content soon: he's hungry for even a small sketch.

Hell, he'll probably try to learn the art style and copy it to perfection so he can live in their hands and eyes.