#different kate not brewster

[miss617]

officially just Michael Jackson leaning into John's mommy issues 🤷

[yelenasdiary]

About Yelenasdiary

Some of you lovely peaches asked me to do a little about me introduction, so, here it is!! Please don't be afraid to ask any questions if you'd like to know more ☺️

Let's start off with the basics, shall we?

Name: Rachel, but you can call me Rach, nox and/or Rachel.

Age: 25.

Birthday: Somewhere in April, I'll let you work it out 🤭.

Pronouns: She/Her.

From: Australia 🇦🇺.

Sexuality: Bisexual. Although, I am far more attracted to women than I am men and I don't actually think I could sleep with a man.

Favourite Colour: Blue, it's a very certain shade of blue.

Socials: floziki on Instagram & TikTok & Yelenasdiary on Wattpad.

Who do I stan? Just to name a few...

Angelina Jolie, Florence Pugh, Elizabeth Olsen, Emily Deschanel, Paget Brewster, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Justin Bieber, Doja Cat, Ice Cube, Eminem, 50 Cent, Bones, Jaden Smith, XXXTENTION, PNB Rock, Baeza, Rachel Weizs, Michael Ealy, Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Travis Scott, ABBA + more

My favourite Marvel characters in order;

Yelena, Wanda, Bucky, Nat, Kate, T'Challa, Tony, Killmonger, Falcon, Melina, Thena, Makkari & Groot!

My top 3 Marvel movies;

Age of Ultron, Black Widow, Winter Soldier!

Some facts...

I have 3 dogs & a cat. 2 dogs are mine, one is my mothers but we basically just share all the pets are they are family. Their names are; Duggie, Archie & Fat Tony. Our cat's name is Mazda, yes, after the car brand lmao!

I've met Toby Sebastian (Florence's brother) & TYGA.

I have a store on RedBubble where I sell designs on mostly my faves.

I rather TV Shows over Movies, my favourite show being Bones.

I'm currently studying Cert. 4 in Design to help enhance my skills within the digital design/art world.

My music taste is mostly Rap, Hip/hop, R&B, a little pop & plenty of 90s-2000s R&B and Hip/Hop.

I collect Funko Pops! Trading cards and comics. Mostly of my faves as I don't have enough room to collect everything lmao.

Apple over Android.

I have authentic autographs from; Elizabeth Olsen, Paget Brewster, Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johansson, Rachel Weisz, Florence Pugh, David Harbour & Toby Sebastian.

I own props from the TV Show, Bones. I have Booth's tie, Brennan's gold bracelet & a business card from both Booth and Sweets!

I love Whales, especially orcas and begluas.

My number 1 destination to travel to is Rio de Janeiro.

I am dyslexic, unfortunately this was something I only found out a few years ago (my mother always knew, she just didn't want to tell me for self esteem reasons). It's hard to say if I have moderate or severe dyslexia. Moderate or severe dyslexia just means the level of severity of the difficulties you may have. There is no hard and set rules as to cut off points because there are different issues that need to be taken into consideration.

I love gold and rose gold over silver. Goes better with my skin lmao.

I'm more than happy to add to this etc, but I hope you enjoyed this little getting to know me 💖

[themuseumwithoutwalls]

MWW Artwork of the Day (6/12/22) Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973) Woman with Helmet of Hair (1904) Gouache on wood pulp board, 42.7 x 31.3 cm. The Art Institute of Chicago (Kate L. Brewster Bequest)

The extraordinarily adaptive and creative Picasso explored and mastered many radically different stylistic modes in the 70 years between his first paintings of the early 1890s and his death in 1973. This work epitomizes the style and subject matter, as well as the palette and tonalities, of his "Blue Period" (1901-04).  The Blue Period is a term used to define to the works produced by Picasso between 1901 and 1904, when he painted essentially monochromatic paintings in shades of blue and blue-green, only occasionally warmed by other colors. These somber works, inspired by Spain but painted in Paris, are now some of his most popular works, although he had difficulty selling them at the time.

[gunterfan1992]

Episode Review: ‘Together Again’ (Distant Lands, Ep. 3)

Airdate: May 20, 2021

Story by: Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang, Hanna K. Nyström, Christina Catucci, Jesse Moynihan, Adam Muto

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Iggy Craig, Maya Petersen, Serena Wu

Directed by: Miki Brewster (supervising), Sandra Lee (art)

Across Adventure Time’s ten season run, the show explored a bevy of “mature” themes and story ideas—topics, like love, sexuality, depression, and grieving. The show also touched upon death, but the emphasis was usually placed on the emotional toll of a loved one dying, not really what happens when you die. We knew there were Dead Worlds and Death. We knew that there was reincarnation. But how does it all fit together? What does it mean? How does it work?

With “Together Again,” we finally have many of the answers.

This special opens with a marvelous fake-out episode simply called “Finn & Jake,” that sees the two steal a magical cartoon of 50-flavor ice cream before rescuing Turtle Princess and LSP from the clutches of the villainous Ice King. This is all deliberately anachronistic and over the top. Ice King is back to his season one ways, Finn has both arms, and he is still wielding his golden sword that he lost in season two’s “The Real You.” There’s lolrandom dialogue and silly monsters; it’s like a parody of seasons 1-2. But then, this adventure starts to get all wonky, and in time Finn realizes that he is in a some sort of trance or illusion: one that ends with Jake being buried in the ground. Suddenly, Finn awakens from his reverie. He’s an old man. And he’s dead. We’re then presented with a new title card that lets us know the episode is actually called “Finn & Jake Are Dead.”

Holy Glob! They actually went there.

Turns out Jake died years before Finn, so naturally Finn is super excited to see his best bud. But something’s wrong—he cannot find Jake!! They planned to spend eternity together. But all that Finn can find is his very own psychopomp, Mr. Fox (voiced by Tom Herpich, whose purposefully stilted line readings are the epitome of delightful). Finn rightfully assumes that Jake is in a different Dead World, and so, being the ball of spunk and energy that he is, he demands to meet with Death, only to discover that there’s a New Death in town (voiced by Chris Fleming). The episode eventually explains that New Death was the son of Death and Life, and after New Death killed his father, he became the sovereign of the afterlife. New Death hates his job and decides to just blow up all the Dead Worlds so he doesn’t have to deal with it all. (I won’t get too much into the details here, because there would be a lot of story to parse out.)

Finn soon learns that Jake has reached nirvana in the 50th Dead World, where there is nothing but peace and serenity. Finn nevertheless tracks down Jake, pulls him from paradise, but in doing so, accidentally lets New Death in, who promptly obliterates Elysium, sending all the enlightened souls—including those from different levels of the afterlife—to the 1st Dead World. This gronks up the afterlife, temporarily halting the reincarnation process.

Well, Finn and Jake are rightfully ticked, and so they haunt the material plane looking for Princess Bubblegum. She’s not home (more on that later), but Peppermint Butler is! After Ghost Finn and Ghost Jake explain the situation, Peppermint Butler tells them what to do: They need to find Life and explain the situation. The duo manage just that, and Life is rightfully angry that her kid has stopped the transmigration of souls. After Life gives Finn a McGuffin sword that can hurt Death, Finn and Jake return to his abode. A brawl ensues wherein we learn that New Death has been possessed… by none other than that spirit of the Lich.

That’s right, it’s the Lich! He’s back, and boy is he evil.

The Lich explains that by possessing Death, he can destroy the afterlife, thereby destroying a key aspect of reality. Naturally, Finn and Jake are not cool with this, and they engage in combat. After Mr. Fox grabs the McGuffin sword and uses it to annihilate the Lich and New Death, he is proclaimed the New New Death and sets everything right. Finn is slated to be reincarnated, and Jake is slated to return to the 50th Dead World where he and Finn will one day be reunited. As Finn is pulled into the wheel of souls, Jake suddenly decides to go back with Finn, too, “Just for fun.” The episode ends with a card letting us know that the episode is neither called “Finn & Jake” nor “Finn & Jake Are Dead.” Instead, it is “Finn and Jake Are Together Again.”

As they say, “And there wasn’t a dry eye in the place.”

If you were to tell me several years ago that the last episode to star Finn and Jake would revolve around them dying, I think I would’ve been upset. Not simply sad, but rather frustrated because “they all died” can feel like a cheap ending. But with “Together Again,” it all works. And a large reason that it works is because the show goes all in with their ideas. Finn and Jake don’t magically leap back into their old life (no, no, they very much do bite the dust). Instead, the special emphasizes the cyclical nature of life through the transmigration of souls. The episode ends with a beautiful scene of Finn and Jake, bound together as soul-brothers, being reborn into a new, mysterious (possibly Ooo 1000+?) world. It’s both aesthetically and emotionally pleasing; it doesn’t feel off the way over finales might. This is right. This is the way life works. “Round and round as nature goes,” and all that jazz.

I loved the series explanation of how death works. It seems that souls land in a specific Dead World, where they ‘marinate’ for a bit, presumably being rewarded or punished based on their life in our meat reality. After a time, they are then reborn. This process repeats, with each soul reaching higher and higher levels of enlightenment until they hit nirvana, which is the 50th Dead World. So in a sense, Adventure Time has a roughly Buddhist cosmology with a dash of Greco-Roman mythos thrown in for flavor. (As to what happens after a soul stays in the 50th Dead World for a long period is anyone’s guess, but I’d speculate that when all the souls in the multiverse have been purified and land in the 50th Dead World, they will all collapse into one another and form one perfect Monad. Perhaps this is the sphere of perfection that the beings who merged into Matthew thought they were connecting to? Who knows! It’s anyone’s guess!) I was a little disappointed that we didn’t get to see who Death, Prismo, Life, etc.’s boss was, but perhaps that’s a mystery better left up to the imagination!

One minor thing that I loved about this special was the number of characters who made cameos as well as all the callbacks that were made to previous episodes. Regarding the former: Finn and Jake’s canine family show up (including the oft-forgotten Jermaine!), as do Tree Trunks and her myriad husbands. Tiffany plays a major role in all these shenanigans as a “death cop” of all things. There is a delightful rogues gallery stuck in the 1st Dead World (including, among others, Maja, Sharon from “The Gut Grinder,” and Wyatt). In the 50th we find Ghost Princess and Clarence happily at peace next to Booshy, the weird spirit mentioned in the Pen Ward classic “High Strangeness.” As far as callbacks go, perhaps my favorite is the clap (from “James Baxter the Horse”) that Jake taught to Finn in case they ever do get separated in the afterlife. And of course, there are myriad references made to “Death in Bloom,” the episode that planted the seed for what this would grow into.

Going into the special suspecting that it would involve Death, I was curious how they were going to handle Miguel Ferrer’s character. (In case a reader is not aware, Ferrer played Death in episodes like “Death in Bloom” and “Betty,” but he sadly passed away a few years ago). The producers’ choice to feature him in a non-speaking cameo—despite playing a relatively significant role in the story—was wise; I’m not sure if I can articulate the exact reasons, but something about his role felt appropriate and not gross, as some post-mortem memorials can be. Speaking of which, the wonderful, lovely Polly Lou Livingston was featured for the last time in this episode as Tree Trunks, happily in heaven with her literal harem of husbands. It was funny, it really was, and I’m sure that Polly Lou would’ve gotten a kick out of seeing it on screen. (Also, this is a pro-Tree Trunks safe space. Any Tree Trunks haters will be chucked into the 1st Dead World with Wyatt.)

The biggest mystery in this whole thing, for me at least, is the question of Princess Bubblegum and Marceline. Several years ago, I wrote an essay about what could’ve happened to them in the Ooo 1000+ universe. I speculated that they peaced out and left Ooo behind. In this special, neither Bubblegum nor Marceline are to be found in the Candy Kingdom—Peppermint Butler seems to be the one in charge, given that he is now wearing Bubblegum’s crown. Likewise, the duo aren’t anywhere in the Dead Worlds either. Maybe the two of them skipped town and got a duplex in the Nightosphere? Who knows… I just want my favorite gals to be OK!

All things considered, “Together Again” was a marvel: An episode that managed to feel like a series finale even more than “Come Along with Me” already did without taking away from the series itself. An episode that managed to make the idea of dying funny. An episode that brought back the Lich in a way that wasn’t forced. An episode that made Mr. Fox the New New Death. An episode that gave us a beautiful ending to Finn and Jake’s story… as well as the beautiful beginning to a new one. I said it on Twitter, and I’ll say it again here: “Together Again” was the end of a sentence in a book with infinite pages. Truly, the fun will never end.

Mushroom War evidence: Everything takes place in the Dead Worlds, so not really. Perhaps a more eagle-eyed viewer can inform us...

Final Grade: That’s right, I’m gonna do it...

Post-script, I actually messaged Jesse Moynihan to ask about his writing credit. He told me that it was for an unused story idea that he had developed. I’m not certain, but I’ll bet it was a part of the cancelled TV movie they were trying to make during season 5, since that would’ve seen Finn and Orgalorg journey to the various Dead Worlds.

[aic-european]

The Plate of Apples, Paul Cézanne, 1872, Art Institute of Chicago: European Painting and Sculpture

This is one of several still lifes by Paul Cézanne showing the ocher wallpaper with blue lozenge-shaped motifs that was in his apartment on the rue de l’Ouest in Paris. The work’s early date is reinforced by the thickly applied paint, which is so different from the thin washes of pigments that the artist would use in his canvases in the 1880s and 1890s. The surface of the work was sculpted almost as much as painted. Around the apples, for instance, Cézanne used a palette knife or the end of his brush to incise contours. Gift of Kate L. Brewster Size: 18 1/8 × 21 1/2 in. (45.8 × 54.7 cm) Medium: Oil on canvas

https://www.artic.edu/artworks/65811/

[duhragonball]

So, Terminator 3.   T2 was such a huge hit that everyone just assumed a third movie was a given, but it took twelve years for it to finally happen.    The Wikipedia article has a section about the delay, but it’s really long and complicated, and I’m not that interested anymore.   The main takeaway is that James Cameron, who directed the first two movies, wasn’t involved in the making of T3.   Apparently, he really wanted to do it in 1995, but by the time the rights and everything got squared away, he got busy doing Titanic and Avatar or whatever else, and he decided that he’d already told the story he wanted to tell in the first two movies.   But he did tell Arnold Schwarzenegger to go for it if he got an offer.  

I guess the reason I’m explaining all of this was because I always thought Cameron did make T3, and the reason Linda Hamilton wasn’t in it was because of hard feelings over their divorce in 1999.  Which sounds kind of dumb now that I type it out.    A fan would think that, because they see actors appearing or not appearing in movies as the ultimate sanction, but for them it’s strictly business.   Arnold was in T3 because they paid him $30 million, not because he desperately wanted to play the character again.   According to the Wikipedia article, Hamilton wasn’t in the movie because there just wasn’t much they could do with Sarah Connor in the story.    Her role was to prepare John Connor for his own role.   This movie features him as an adult, so there’s nothing more for her to do.    Hamilton recognized this, and declined to participate.

I think T3 had a lot going against it, because it had so much to live up to, and fans of T2 had been waiting so long.   I think everyone wanted the T3 movie James Cameron might have made in 1995, but what they got in 2003 was this movie, which didn’t quite live up to the hype.   I’m not sure anything else could have lived up to the hype, though.    T2 had some mighty big shoes to fill.  

The big problem is that it’s basically the same plot structure as T2.  Two more Terminators come from the future and they fight over the life of John Connor.   After escaping the bad Terminator, John tries to stop Skynet from taking over and nuking humanity, and they end up having a final showdown with the bad Terminator along the way.  It really is the same movie in a lot of ways, so it just begs to be compared to T2, which only magnifies its flaws.  

The main difference is that John thought he already stopped Skynet years ago, so he’s horrified to learn that he only postponed the inevitable.    He goes to a lot of trouble to try again, but the audience probably already anticipates that this won’t work.  T2 was ambiguous about this, but T3 actually shows the nuclear missiles launching and destroying their targets.   So it’s kind of a downer to watch.   We even learn that Future John will die in 2032, because the good Terminator in this movie was the one who kills him, before he got reprogrammed to protect Present John.

The other difference is the addition of Kate Brewster, who’s fated to become John’s second-in-command and wife.   The bad Terminator was actually sent to kill her and other would-be Resistance leaders, until it discovers John and changes priorities.    Future Kate is also the one who sends the good Terminator back in time.   I never fully understood Kate’s purpose in the movie, since she’s basically a spare John, but I think they needed a viewpoint character.    In T1, Sarah was the viewpoint character, then it was John in T2.   But in T3, Sarah’s dead and John already knows all about this stuff, so there needed to be a new character with a special destiny.   The trouble is that I don’t think Kate gets a chance to digest this very well, probably because we’ve already covered this twice before already.  

I think this is the movie where the time travel stuff really went off the rails.  T1 was very consistent about establishing a predestination paradox.   T2 hinted that the future could be changed, but never made it clear whether it actually changed or not.   The value was in the attempt, not the result.   But the T-850 tells John that “Judgement Day is inevitable”, and that he only postponed it from its original date in 1997.  So they managed to change the future, just not enough.   Fair, but how does the T-850 know this?   Shouldn’t he be from the same altered future, where Judgement Day happened in 2003?  

Also, this movie introduces more Terminator varieties.   In the first movie, the T-800 is stated to be new in the future.   Then in the second movie, the T-800 admits that the T-1000 is much more sophisticated, because it’s an “advanced prototype.”   In this movie, the T-850 claims to be obsolete, and says the T-X is much more advanced.   So it sounds like Skynet was busily inventing better Terminators for these missions, except it shouldn’t have had time for that.   It lost the war and had to use the time machine as a last-ditch effort.  It’s weird enough that it used the time machine three times, but it shouldn’t have had years to do this.   The Human Resistance captured the time machine shortly after winning the war, right?   I really hope T4 explains some of this.

Roger Ebert called this movie “Essentially one long chase and fight, punctuated by comic, campy or simplistic dialogue."   The first 24 minutes are fairly dull, but once it gets rolling, it’s pretty fun to watch.    But he’s right.   When I watched all the DBZ movies in 2019, I realized that Movie 7 is just one big fight scene, with some slice of life stuff at the beginning to set things up.    T3′s basically the same, with very little else to occupy its time.   T1 had the relationship between Sarah and Kyle, and T2 had Sarah’s hangups and John’s bonding with “Uncle Bob”.   T3 really only has Kate and John hanging on for dear life as their protector drags them through the story.    It’s a fun chase, with lots of guns and explosions and breaking stuff, but there’s not much more to it.  

So what’s good about this movie?  What makes it really stand out?   Well, for openers, the T-X is pretty cool.  The T-1000 was going to be difficult to top, and I don’t think the T-X ever succeeded, but it wasn’t for lack of trying.   She has liquid metal on top of an endoskeleton, so she can disguise herself, but she can’t seep under doors and stuff like that.   Also, she has weapons built into her body, so she’s the only time traveler who could actually bring future weapons with her into the past.   Also, she can control machines, like when she hijacks a bunch of police cars and fire trucks to help her chase down John.   She’s ridiculously overpowered, and she does not give a fuck who knows it.  The previous Terminators at least attempted to keep a low profile, revealing themselves only when ready to attack, but the T-X just wreaks havoc all over the place.    She’s not worried about the authorities or a lack of firepower, or anything at all, so she’s free to execute her mission with reckless abandon. 

Second, I take some solace in John Connors personal crisis in this movie.  He was kind of chill about the whole thing in T2, because he got his mom back and he had a cool robot pal, and they seemed to have the whole Skynet problem figured out.     In this movie, Sarah’s dead, and he doesn’t know what to do with himself.  He can’t quite believe that Judgement Day won’t come, so he lives off the grid and tries to avoid everyone.   He doesn’t want the Future War to happen, but at the same time, his life has no purpose without it.   Later, he becomes despondent and says that he must not be the chosen one after all, because he’s no leader and he never was.  

Except, he is, and he has to be, and he becomes one at the end of the movie, when he finally accepts his fate.   There’s something very powerful about the shot of Kate holding his hand as he prepares to give orders to the other survivors on the radio.  They’re stuck in this dark future now, and they have to see it through together.  

I think, whenever I watched these movies before, that I never really “got” John Connor as a character.  In T2 he was a kid, so I just wrote him off.   He wasn’t John Connor yet, so it didn’t matter much.    In T3, he seemed extremely pathetic, and I took his lack of confidence at face value.   I thought he really wasn’t ready to lead, and he only ended up in that role by default.    But this time around, I see how in T2 he was the moral center of the good guy team.   Sarah was lashing out at everyone and the Terminator only cared about mission objectives, but John kept reminding everyone of the value of human life, and what they were all fighting for.   Even as a kid, he got “it” in a way that others didn’t.   In T3, he’s demoralized, but he still knows how to do this stuff, and how to lead.  He just doesn’t feel motivated until the final act of the movie.  

That didn’t stick with me when I first saw this movie in ‘03, but I’m older now, and less sure of myself than I used to be, and all the validation I get feels hollow and unconvincing.  Like John, I may be aware that I have the capacity to do things, but it doesn’t always feel like it’s enough.  That’s what T3 has that T2 doesn’t.   It’s that crisis of confidence that separates the two films, although it’s subtle enough that it’s easy to overlook. 

[snowbellewells]

LIST YOUR 10 FAVORITE FEMALE CHARACTERS FROM 10 DIFFERENT FANDOMS THEN TAG 10 PEOPLE

@searchingwardrobes I had been seeing these all day and they looked like fun, so thanks for the tag inviting me to try for myself!! 😊😊😊

**I seriously thought about beginning my list with Punky Brewster - who I adored when I was a kid! - but apparently there are no gifs for her?!? And also I am not sure there is a fandom for her anyway?

So, anyhow, I guess we’ll start with:

1. Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman

2. Belle, Beauty and the Beast

3. Luna Lovegood, Harry Potter

4. Penelope Garcia, Criminal Minds

5. Kate Beckett, Castle

6. Ruby Lucas/Red, Once Upon a Time

7. Lucy Preston, Timeless

8. Constance Bonaceux, BBC Musketeers

9. Kaylee Frye, Firefly

10. Lucy Pevensie, Chronicles of Narnia

Tagging (and apologies if you have already done this, no pressure!): @whimsicallyenchantedrose @jennjenn615 @laschatzi @elizabeethan @winterbaby89 @scientificapricot @tomeandflickcorner @stahlop @teamhook @revanmeetra87

[drummergirl231-2]

So, which scene would you say the main cast individually (David (Scrooge), Danny (Huey), Ben (Dewey), Bobby (Louie), Kate (Webby), Beck (Launchpad), Toks (Beakley), Tony (Donald), and Paget (Della)) show off their best performances as their characters? Keep in mind I mean having these nine actors individually, not in the same scene necessarily.

Holy molars, where to start? XD

My first thought is to go straight to the scenes where they’re the most emotional or the most crazy, and that works for some of the characters, but not all. 

For Scrooge, I definitely think some of David Tennant’s best work is in those emotional scenes. He did the entire Spear of Selene monologue from “The Last Crash of the Sunchaser!” in one take. He also did a lot of great work in “The Shadow War! Part 1.” I’m always moved by his reunion scene with Della, as well. 

Then there are some scenes where his comedic acting is just... I can’t stop smiling and giggling during these scenes and it’s all to do with his line delivery. Some examples that come to mind are when he’s going over Glomgold’s plan in “Moonvasion,” when he’s faking embracing the hippie lifestyle of the Mervanans, and then... this.

Going in the order you provided, I’m gonna move on to Huey next. 

My guess is, with this being Huey’s season, some of Danny Pudi’s best work is yet to come, but he’s had a lot of great moments already. His meltdowns are well done, and his singing voice is lovely. 

I think a really great scene for Huey is in “Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks!” when he and Violet are on top of the volcano, from when he first starts trying to cross on the rope to when he and Violet are sinking down into the crater. He has a lot of range in that scene (anxiety, mild-moderate insanity, regret, acceptance, more anxiety) and Danny nails all of it.

For Dewey, I think Ben Schwartz really shines in scenes involving Della, whether Dewey’s thinking about her or interacting with her. His sweet little “Merry Christmas, Mom,” in “Last Christmas!” brings the feels every time, and he displayed amazing range all throughout “Raiders of the Doomsday Vault!” One scene that gives a good example of his range though is from “Nothing Can Stop Della Duck!” when he first meets his mom. He went from joyfully declaring he knew he was part robot, to making those soft little hugging-someone-tight noises in his mommy’s arms, to yelling:

Ben really doesn’t hold back. Also, I flipping love every one of his line deliveries in the scene with tall Huey.

Louie’s another character where it’s hard to narrow it down to one scene. Bobby Moynihan is great at the scenes in which Louie is emotional, like when he was cradling his mom’s jacket in “The Secret(s) of Castle McDuck!” and when he met his mom in “Nothing Can Stop Della Duck!” 

I also love Louie’s little businessman/commercial voice he does, and I was crazy impressed with how he was able to hit the notes in the lullaby in “Moonvasion! Part 2.” I’ve heard Bobby complain of having to redo lines to sound more like a kid more than Danny and Ben complain about it, so I can imagine it must’ve been annoying to be told, “Now sound like a kid, and sing in falsetto as that kid.” BUGH. And while Louie doesn’t exactly have Huey’s pipes, I have mad respect for him hitting those high notes.

I think Louie’s best overall episode so far has definitely been “Timephoon!” though. I think that one showed his range the way “Raiders of the Doomsday Vault!” did for Dewey.

I think Webby’s best moments are when she’s disillusioned. She had a great moment after reading Lena’s journal in “The Shadow War! Part 2,” but I really love Kate Micucci’s work in “The Lost Harp of Mervanna!”

Webby sinking into cynicism gave Kate a little more room to explore Webby’s emotional depth, and it made me really excited to see what’s coming in Webby’s arc this season.

I also love all of Webby’s moments when she’s super excited and she makes those cute li’l *squeee* sounds, or when her heart’s “too full.” 

Maybe it’s the nostalgia talking, but I think one of Beck Bennett’s best moments as Launchpad was when LP had his Darkwing Duck monologue. I’m a little bummed that other characters talked over some of it, but getting to hear LP speak so eloquently, and even quote some of the DWD theme song lyrics, was definitely a treat.

But like, also though, “Double-O-Duck in You Only Crash Twice!” 

Hearing Beck keep his Launchpad voice while sounding so much more intelligent (partially because of the words he used, and partially because of his new accent) was unexpected and delightful. It was great to hear him playing the same character but playing him so differently. 

For Mrs. Beakley, I think this is another instance where the best is yet to come, even though we’ve already seen/heard a lot of great moments with her already. Toks Olagundoye is insanely talented (like did you guys see that live reading of “McMystery at McDuck McManor!” where she filled in for Margo Martindale as Ma Beagle???), and she’s able to convey Beakley’s toughness and gentleness with equal ease.

So far I think “The Lost Harp of Mervana!” is probably Toks’ best work, as well.

I’m really excited to hear Toks’ vocal work as Beakley comes to terms with not being able to run from her past. 

As for Tony Anselmo, the guy’s a Disney legend. He’s Donald Duck. He’s been Donald my whole life and longer. Donald doesn’t get a ton of lines in most episodes due to being hard to understand (and Donald, as a character, probably doesn’t like trying to talk much because it’s such a struggle to be understood anyway), but there’s one scene in particular that blows me away every time I see it, and that’s his scene with Dewey in the first half of “Last Christmas!” 

You’d think having to do Donald’s quacky voice would really limit Tony’s range when it comes to conveying emotion, but somehow, it doesn’t. That “Oh...” Donald gives as he leaves the room gets me every time. He still carries so much grief. He missed his sister so much. And knowing Dewey was grieving her that Christmas, too just added to that sense of loss for Donald. Like, how did Tony pack so much emotion into one syllable? Just... GAHHHH my heart!

And then there’s Della... she talks a heck of a lot more than Donald, ya know? XD Paget Brewster is up for an Emmy for her performance as Della, and she couldn’t deserve it more. It’s hard to narrow it down to a few scenes or an episode because Paget handles Della’s funny moments and vulnerable moments so well. If I’m gonna narrow it down to one episode... nope, forget that. I’m doing two episodes. “Timephoon!” and “What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!” 

“Timephoon!” reeeeally captures her range of funny to angsty (please everyone no fighting about this episode on this post, okay? Go make your own), and “What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!” is such a solid debut episode with a solid performance. 

[dakt37]

So here's a non spoiler question for Kingdom Ducks, would Danny Pudi, Ben Schwartz, and Bobby Moynihan replace Russi Taylor as Huey, Dewey, and Louie? Would Kate Micucci, Kimiko Glenn, Beck Bennett, and Paget Brewster return as Webby, Lena, Launchpad, and Della? Is Donald a little inspired from his Ducktales characterization? Why haven't you seen season 3 (not a spoiler BTW)?

I don’t have cable or anything, plus I have an odd aversion to being in “active” fandoms, so I was just planning to wait for the season to drop on Disney+. Also I’ve been pretty distracted by other fandoms this year, so mostly it just didn’t occur to me to try to keep up.

I guess yeah, I’ve been imagining everyone with their DT17 voices. A couple KH characters have changed VAs over time so I don’t imagine anyone in-universe would really comment on it, except maybe as a meta joke. As for Donald, I’m not deep enough into Donald Lore to really analyze the differences in his characterization between DT and KH so...? Idk, sorry. He’s whatever mashup will work best for whatever future scenarios I decide to put him in, lol.

[papermoonloveslucy]

JOY OF LIVING

May 6, 1938

Directed by Tay Garnet

Produced by Felix Young for RKO Radio Pictures

Written by Gene Towne, Graham Baker, Allan Scott, based on an original story by Dorothy and Herbert Fields

Synopsis ~ Broadway star Margaret Garrett (Irene Dunne) has spent her whole life working to support her sponging relatives. When she meets carefree Dan Webster (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.), she learns how to have fun for the first time.

The film was in production at RKO Studios from December 6, 1937 until February 8, 1938.

PRINCIPAL CAST

Lucille Ball (Salina Pine) makes her 36th film since coming to Hollywood in 1933. 

“Do you expect me to support this family of leeches?” ~ Salina Pine 

Irene Dunne (Margaret "Maggie" Garret) had appeared with Lucille Ball in 1935′s Roberta. Between 1931 and 1949 she was nominated for five Oscars. 

Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. (Dan Brewster) also appeared with Lucille Ball in Having Wonderful Time (1938). 

Alice Brady (Minerva) won an Oscar in 1938 for In Old Chicago. This is her only film with Lucille Ball. 

Guy Kibbee (Dennis) also appeared with Lucille Ball in Don’t Tell The Wife (1937). 

Jean Dixon (Harrison) also appeared with Lucille Ball in I’ll Love You Always (1935). 

Eric Blore (Potter) appeared with Lucille Ball in Old Man Rhythm, I Dream Too Much, and Top Hat, all in 1935. He also appeared with Ball in Fancy Pants (1950). 

Warren Hymer (Mike) also appeared with Lucille Ball in Kid Millions (1934). 

Billy Gilbert (Café Owner) appeared with Lucille Ball in His Old Flame (1935), I Dream Too Much (1935), So and Sew (1936), and Valley of the Sun (1942). 

Frank Milan (Bert Pine) makes his only appearance with Lucille Ball. 

Dorothy & Estelle Steiner (Dotsy & Betsy Pine) were real-life sisters making their first and only appearance with Lucille Ball. 

Phyllis Kennedy (Marie) appeared with Lucille Ball in 1937′s Stage Door. She was also Tallulah Bankhead’s maid in “The Celebrity Next Door”, a 1957 episode of the “Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour.” 

Franklin Pangborn (Band Leader) appeared with Lucille Ball in Stage Door (1937), A Girl, A Guy, and a Gob (1941), and Lover Come Back (1946). 

James Burke (Mac) appeared with Lucille Ball in Blood Money (1933), The Bowery (1933), and The Affairs of Annabel (1938). He was also seen on “I Love Lucy” as the owner of “The Diner” (ILL S3;E27) in 1954, and would go on to make an appearance on “The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour” (1958) as the man who deliver Whirling Jet the racehorse to the Ricardos. 

John Qualen (Oswego) appeared with Lucille Ball in The Three Musketeers (1938). 

Spencer Charters (Magistrate) appeared with Lucille Ball in The Farmer and the Dell (1936) and Look Who’s Laughing (1941). 

UNCREDITED CAST

Richard Alexander (Angry Man in Revolving Door)

Stanley Blystone (Cop at Dock)

Bill Cartledge (Boy at Skating Rink)

George Chandler (Taxi Driver)

Joe De Stefani (Waiter)

Bill Dooley (Courtroom Janitor)

Pat Flaherty (Autograph Hound)

Tay Garnett (Man on Phone in Newspaper Office)

Chuck Hamilton (Court Bailiff) 

Al Hill (Look Photographer)

Kenner G. Kemp (Roller Skater)

Fuzzy Knight (Sideshow Piano Player)

Mike Lally (Backstage Photographer) was a background performer who did ten films with Lucille Ball as well as two episodes of “I Love Lucy,” and at least one of “The Lucy Show”.  

Charles Lane (Fan in Margaret’s Dressing Room) was a ubiquitous character actor appeared in 7 films with Lucille Ball between 1933 and 1949; four episodes of “I Love Lucy” from 1953 to 1956, all as different characters; two episodes of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour”; and four episodes of “The Lucy Show” as Banker Barnsdahl.

Frank Moran (Cop with Gravel Voice)

Clarence Nash (Donald Duck Voice)

Dennis O'Keefe (Man in Building Lobby)

Franklin Parker (Third Producer)

Bob Perry (Seaman)

Russ Powelll (Man Leaving Elevator)

Cyril Ring (Man in Margaret’s Dressing Room)

Bert Roach (German Waiter)

Grady Sutton (Florist)

Frank M. Thomas (Arthur)

Charles Williams (Pitchman at Recording Studio)

Harry Woods (Cop)

JOY OF TRIVIA

“Why do you always smile when I talk to you?” Miss Ball queries Doug [Fairbanks] between takes. "Because I’m a polite little boy,“ he replies. "You Rat” says Lucille coldly.

The film features the hit song "You Couldn't Be Cuter," written by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields.

The working title of this film was Joy of Loving.

According to an October 1937 news item, John Barrymore was set for the lead in the production.

It seems that the entire town of Tulare, California go on board to promote Joy of Living, with a give-away contests and all the local merchants participating. 

On April 16, 1942, a tragic car accident happened outside the Tudor Theatre in New York City where the film was playing. A car plowed into a pole by a drunken driver, killing his passenger. The press flashcubes also captured the ironic marquee in the background as the police attempted to cover the body.  

Ty Garnett's production budget quickly ballooned out of control, topping out at over a million dollars, an astronomical sum for films at that time. Despite the priceless talent, Joy of Living didn't have a chance at recouping its costs and was a financial failure for the studio.

A publicity photo of Lucille Ball taken for Joy of Living. 

Lucille Ball remembered watching the stars and comparing their styles; "Hepburn 'telegraphed,' she said - 'Well, I'm going to be funny' - whereas [Irene] Dunne always surprised, even in repeated takes of the same scene. But I watched her do takes-literally, one day there were thirty-two takes-and twenty-five must have been different. She really worked on how to do that scene. Where Kate would do it the same way every time and telegraph it every time.'"

The film enjoyed a worldwide release.  Here are film posters for France (left) and Belgium, which include both the Flemish (”Levens Vreugd”) and French titles. 

The film was released on DVD (Warners Archive Collection) on April 20, 2009. 

[tabloidtoc]

Star, January 18

You can now buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Duchess Kate and Duchess Camilla holiday from hell

Page 1: Teresa Giudice goes Insta-official with her new businessman beau while her ex Joe Giudice posts a pic of his own -- Luis “Louie” Ruelas lavished Teresa with gifts and he doesn’t let her pay for anything while Joe posted a photo of his supposed love writing Happiness doesn’t depend on wealth 

Page 2: Contents, Bachelorette Tayshia Adams slipped on a bauble from Zac Clark 

Page 3: Jennifer Garner pulled on a Santa-approved sweater and a striped mask before heading out in L.A., Sophia Bush wore a mask saying I’m Smiling as she stopped by Greenblatt’s Deli in Hollywood, newlyweds Niecy Nash and Jessica Betts piled into their car to see Regina King’s directorial debut One Night in Miami in Malibu 

Page 4: Bilingual mom of five Hilaria Baldwin gets flamed for faking her European identity -- the yogi is upset that so many people were bashing her and she felt compelled to defend herself -- her husband Alec Baldwin went on the attack in a rant because he won’t tolerate anyone trolling Hilaria 

Page 5: It’s the role of a lifetime and actresses are lining up to play Madonna in her biopic and current frontrunners are Florence Pugh and Julia Garner -- the bosses at CAA which is the agency helping put the movie together want Florence and promised to take her to the next level but on the other hand fans and press want Julia because she’s such a dead-ringer for early-career Madonna

* Days after Dakota Johnson flashed a giant emerald ring from boyfriend Chris Martin the singer’s ex Gwyneth Paltrow is calling dibs on their wedding -- Chris and Dakota are looking to get married next summer and Gwyneth has already talked to them about playing a big part in their big day -- Gwyneth feels very close to Dakota which puts the bride-to-be in an awkward position because Dakota wants to make her mom Melanie Griffith her bridesmaid and Melanie is warning Dakota that Gwyneth will end up upstaging the whole day if she’s in the wedding party 

* Soleil Moon Frye and Jason Goldberg have parted ways after a 22-year marriage -- the parents of daughters Poet and Jagger and sons Lyric and Story will move forward with love and compassion and they have a good chance of keeping their split amicable -- they’ve been drifting apart for years and eventually it dawned on them that they’re on different paths 

Page 6: Six months after splitting from wife Megan Fox, Brian Austin Green was spotted boarding a flight at LAX with Dancing With the Stars pro Sharna Burgess -- their relationship is new but it’s moving fast and they’ve become inseparable over the last few weeks -- the timing has some friends of the dancer concerned because no one wants to see Sharna get hurt or caught up in a toxic rebound relationship as Brian’s still clashing with Megan over their divorce 

* Emmy Rossum looks unrecognizable playing Angelyne but that’s not what caught her coworkers’ eyes on set: she looks pregnant -- Emmy wed Sam Esmail in 2017 and they’ve talked about starting a family forever so it’s a very special time 

* Star Spots the Stars -- Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner and Hailey Bieber, Angela Bassett, Chrishell Stause and Keo Motsepe and Gleb Savchenko and Cassie Scerbo, Irina Shayk, Ramona Singer and Colin Cowie 

Page 8: Star Shots -- Mark Ballas and his dog Hendrix both donned holiday sweaters, Reese Witherspoon and her dog Minnie

Page 9: Martha Stewart on her snow plow, Emma Slater who hails from the U.K. and Russia-born Sasha Farber passed their U.S. citizenship test

Page 10: Director Regina King suited up for the drive-in premiere of her film One Night in Miami at Calamigos Ranch in Malibu, Donnie Wahlberg and Marisa Ramirez headed to the wintry beach to shoot scenes for Blue Bloods in Queens

Page 11: Tessa Thompson brought along her father Marc Anthony Thompson to a film premiere, Bindi Irwin at 26 weeks pregnant 

Page 12: The Bachelor Matt James hit the links in Jupiter, Marlon Wayans on a pre-holiday getaway in Tulum, a masked Katie Holmes toted some last-minute Christmas shopping 

Page 13: Eva Longoria working out, John Legend and Chrissy Teigen enjoyed a hike together during a getaway to St-Barth 

Page 14: Days after saying goodbye to her beloved New York state home Sandra Lee was on garbage duty at her $3.4 million west coast digs in Malibu, Jordana Brewster with boyfriend Mason Morfit enjoy a stroll in Los Angeles 

Page 15: Elle Macpherson during a day of shopping in Miami, Candice Swanepoel with her youngest son Ariel at the beach in Miami 

Page 18: Normal or Not? Renee Zellweger did some heavy lifting while out in L.A. -- not normal, Bella Hadid made a snow angel in NYC -- normal, Bai Ling stepped out in Hollywood dressed in a currency-inspired ensemble -- not normal 

Page 19: Madonna with pink hair -- normal, Justin Bieber appeared to be deep in thought leaving the studio in Burbank -- normal 

Page 20: Fashion -- stars look marvelous in metallics -- Kerry Washington, Tracee Ellis Ross, Jessica Alba 

Page 21: Kate Beckinsale, Camila Morrone, Zoe Kravitz 

Page 24: Khloe Kardashian and Tristan Thompson engaged -- despite their rocky history the couple are happily tying the knot -- Khloe is convinced Tristan has changed and won’t dare deceive her a third time 

Page 25: After a year of dating Liam Hemsworth and Gabriella Brooks are playing house -- Liam recently purchased a $4.9 million five-bedroom estate in the posh seaside town of Byron Bay and the model has moved in -- they get along great and have a nice easygoing vibe between them and Liam loves that there’s no drama with Gabriella and he says she is the one; they both feel that they are soulmates 

* Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli marriage on the brink -- things were fraying between them well before they went off to prison and there’s been a lot of finger-pointing and blame and they both acknowledge their foundation has crumbled 

* The release of Justin Timberlake’s latest film is bringing back a bad time in his eight-year marriage to Jessica Biel -- as he gears up to promote the premiere of Palmer the couple are bracing for a new round of headlines about Justin’s bad-boy behavior in which he was spotted getting handsy with costar Alisha Wainwright -- Justin’s expected to do promo interviews alongside Alisha albeit via Zoom and that’s not cool with Jessica at all and the bickering between Justin and Jessica is setting in again big time 

Page 26: Cover Story -- Christmas From Hell -- with Duchess Kate and Duchess Camilla at war over who should fill Queen Elizabeth’s shoes the holidays were anything but merry for the royals

Page 29: It’s been a year since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shocked the world by stepping back from their royal duties last January and now it seems they’re rethinking severing all ties with the monarchy because the couple are seeking a 12-month extension of their so-called Megxit deal which expires at the end of March in the hope of keeping their royal patronages and reinstating the military titles that Harry was devastated to lose when the pair left the U.K. for the U.S. 

Page 30: Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez: the wedding is off -- postponing her Italian nuptials with Alex gave Jennifer time to think and now she’s rethinking getting married at all 

Page 32: Teen Heartthrobs: Where Are They Now? Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Donny Osmond 

Page 33: Leif Garrett, Andrew Keegan 

Page 38: Entertainment 

Page 48: Parting Shot -- Paris Hilton and little sister Nicky Hilton Rothschild showed off their good sides in pastel Alessandra Rich frocks during a recent photoshoot 

[miss617]

guys help me my ai bots are writing a better terminator 3 than any of the terminator 3s

[lizzybgood]

The Greatest American Hero, Voyagers, The A-Team, Knight Rider, Simon and Simon, Magnum P.I., Quincy, AirWolf, Small Wonder, Three's Company, Benson, Sanford and Son, Alice, Kate and Ally, Dallas, Falcon's Crest, Dynasty, Moonlighting, Beauty and the Beast, The Jeffersons, Full House, Growing Pains, Family Ties, Cheers, Night Court, Mork and Mindy, Punky Brewster, Different Strokes, M*A*S*H, Murder, She Wrote, Miami Vice, L.A Law, The Equalizer, CHIPS, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Fat Albert, Thundar the Barbarian, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Smurfs, Fraggle Rock, G.I. Joe, Trsnsformers, Go Bots, Dungeons and Dragons, She -Ra, Rainbow Brite, Kids Inc,Jem, Care Bears, Beverly Hills Teens,Heathcliff, Alvin and the Chipmunks,M*A*S*K, Battleship Yamoto, Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors, Thundercats. The 80's were the bomb, man.

[dicloniusgames]

The Legacy Of Criminal Minds

In it’s 15th and final season, Criminal Minds has been one hell of a show with roller coaster moments any and every fan has felt and experienced themselves or placed themselves in. 

For me, while I didn’t start watching until three years ago, thanks to a grateful friend, she had said to give it a shot and here I am 14 seasons deep and three years later experiencing everything fans experienced, every moment and every emotion fans felt. 

What caught and kept my attention was the character Dr. Spencer Reid. Contrasting to the rest of the team members, Reid has his own style and own way he goes by. From his Chuck Taylor Converse shoes and going up, he sports different kinds of shirts, ties, cardigans and most importantly, hair styles. You can tell you’re a true fan when you can tell which season you’re watching by looking at Reid’s hair. So with some help and attention to detail, I was assisted in becoming my own version of Dr. Reid, minus the eidetic memory, 187 IQ and the ability to read 20,000 words a minute. Matthew Gray Gubler made Dr. Reid his own and I couldn’t imagine anyone but him as the brainy agent. 

The casting choices were excellent ranging from Mandy Patinkin as experienced SSA agent Jason Gideon and quasi-leader of the team, Thomas Gibson as SSA Aaron Hotchner, Shemar Moore as SSA Derek Morgan,Kirsten Vangsness as Tech Analyst Penelope Garcia,  A.J. Cook as SSA Agent/Communications Liaison Jennifer “J.J.” Jareau among other cast inclusions and replacements such as Joe Mantegna as Gideon’s best friend and SSA David Rossi, Paget Brewster as SSA Emily Prentiss and Adam Rodriguez as SSA Luke Alvez. Even Jennifer Love Hewitt stays around for a season as SSA Kate Callahan (P.S. This wasn’t my favorite casting choice as she really didn’t add a whole lot to the rest of the team). 

Not only being able to find my favorite character, even though they’re all spectacular in their own way, the show has impacted me with its’ many infamous moments and “unsubs” AKA Unknown Subjects such as Peter Lewis AKA “Mr. Scratch,” George Foyet AKA “The Reaper” and assassin Cat Adams. The shows many moments such has Haley Hotchner’s death, Garcia being shot, J.J. leaving for classified assignment and kidnapping/torture in “200,” Reid’s girlfriend Maeve Donovan being shot in front of him in “Zugzwang” and his subsequent stay in prison and framing by Lindsey Vaughn and Cat Adams and especially Morgan’s departure in “A Beautiful Disaster,” I can’t really pinpoint who I’d say my favorite unsub or my favorite moment of the show is because on one spectrum or another, they changed the characters in one way or another, especially J.J. and Reid. 

On the whole, the show gives me a sense of peace and hearing the phrase “Wheels up” every episode means stuff’s going down and the BAU’s out to stop evil and save lives. While Criminal Minds is ending after season 15, the memories of the series will stay with me. 

[gunterfan1992]

Episode Review: ‘Wizard City’ (Distant Lands, Ep. 4)

Airdate: September 2, 2021

Story by: Adam Muto, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang, Hanna K. Nyström, & Charley Feldman

Storyboarded by: Maya Petersen, Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, & Aleks Sennwald, & Haewon Lee

Directed by: Miki Brewster & Jeff Liu (supervising), Sandra Lee (art)

An episode focusing on Peppermint Butler’s dark side is something that the fandom has craved ever since the little guy demanded Finn and Jake’s flesh in season two’s “Death in Bloom.” While installments like season five’s “The Suitor” and season six’s “Nemesis” did much to scratch that itch, the story of the Dark One remained mostly unknown…

And after “Wizard City,” it still remains largely unknown. But that’s OK, because instead of focusing on the character’s history, this special focuses on Peps’ quest to relearn magic at a magic school. Put most simply, this special is largely a fun excuse for the show to riff on Harry Potter and The Owl House-style “magic school hijinks,” and it mostly all works.

The special follows Peps quest to go to WizArts (a definite play on CalArts, the school that Pen Ward and Adam Muto, among many others, went to) so that he can relearn magic and once again become one of the greatest dark wizards of his time. Initially, Peps tries to make friends with cool kid Spader and his posse, but once they learn that Peps is not as talented at magic as they had initially thought, they kick him to the curb. It is at this point that Cadebra, Abracadaniel’s adorkable niece who is fascinated with stage magic, enters the picture. Cadebra tries everything in her power to befriend Peps, but Peps pushes back, since she’s not “cool.” It does not matter, though, because both Peps and Cadebra are sorted into the same “house”—the “Skink House—and are forced to work together.

While Peps and his cohort begin learning more and more complex magic, a secret cult of school professors, led by the otherwise caring Dr. Caledonius, are scheming to resurrect Coconteppi, a powerful dark wizard whose putrid heart has been discovered underneath the school excreting a very powerful ichor. The school cult kidnaps Spader and gives him some of the ichor to drink; they hope that because of his talent, he will be able to house the spirit of Coconteppi. This does not go as planned, and Spader is graphically killed (albeit off screen). (In a more humorous moment, Bufo, the scam wizard from season one’s “Wizard,” also ingests some of the ichor, believing himself powerful enough to handle it, but it kills him.)

Eventually Peps and Cadebra learn what is going on. Dr. Caledonius welcomes Peps, believing that he is strong enough to handle the ichor. When Cadebra’s life is put in danger, Peps reluctantly gives the putrid fluid a swig, which infuses him with the power of Coconteppi. Coconteppi-Peps then kills all the cult members before Cadebra manages to remove the ichor from Peps body. For uncovering a heinous plot, Peps is promoted to the highest house, “Salamander,” but he decides to remain a Skink and learn magic “the hard way” with Cadebra as his friend.

As I mentioned near the start of this review, “Wizard City” spends most of its time riffing on the “magic boarding school” trope, with much of the episode feeling like a light-hearted parody of Harry Potter: The characters, after all, are “sorted” into “houses,” they learn various types of magic from skilled “professors,” and they bunk in different parts of a large castle-like campus. Of course, Harry Potter didn’t invent the idea of a boarding school, but when setting your story in a school for magic, it is very hard not to lean at least somewhat into the Hogwarts relation. And this really is a double-edged sword, for while Harry Potter references can be fun here and there, they can also make the overall story feel like a fanfic parody. This special does a good job focusing more so on the characters rather than the setting, but I won’t lie, at times it did feel as if they show was really trying to make you realize it was making a Harry Potter joke.

Of all the characters introduced in the special, the breakout star is easily Cadebra, voiced by Chloe Coleman. Radiating a sort of Mabel Pines energy, Cadebra is the beam of optimism who shines brightly in an otherwise macabre special. There is something about her plucky personality and sense of wacky individualism that charms the viewer. I appreciate how the show compared and contrasted her with her uncle, the one and only Abracadaniel: like her uncle, Cadebra is a good person who wants to help others, but unlike Abracadaniel, she has a sense of courage and fortitude that results in her taking on a Coconteppi-possessed Peps at the episode’s climax. (Say what you will, Abracadaniel stans, but our favorite custodian would never have done that!) Thanks to her bravery and dedication to Peps, Cadebra is easily the heart of the special.

The episode throws an interesting little curveball into the mix by having the ‘ghost’ of Past Peppermint Butler constantly haunt Peps in the here-and-now. Past Peppermint, it seems, was so determined to become a great wizard, he cursed himself, so that if anything were to go awry, his Past self could materialize and set him straight. It’s confusing, but I do think that mixing the “overbearing parent” trope with a curse is a clever idea; it gives the whole special some dramatic heft. The whole setup is made even funnier by the special’s conclusion: After Future Peppermint Butler is ‘defeated’ and the day is saved, Peps reveals to Cadebra that he still wants to be a great and powerful dark wizard… but he wants to earn that power through hard work and determination. (Peppermint Butler might commune with demons, but he would never sell his soul to one for power; Glob helps those who help themselves, ya know?)

One of the special’s strongest points is its background art. Adventure Time always had some beautiful set pieces, and this special goes above and beyond to give WizArts an ancient sense of grandeur and mystery. Ghostshrimp, a freelance artist who was the show’s lead background designer during seasons 1-4, return for this special as a “visual developer”—basically, he mocked up a bunch of rough designs for the locales, and then the episode’s background artists worked up the final pieces in his style. On his podcast, Ghostshrimp mentioned how hectic he found Adventure Time to be, because he was used to taking his time on pieces. As such, the decision to bring him on for just development was smart, as it allowed him to still come up with iconic background designs while also playing fast and loose with everything. Hopefully the show will continue this approach with the Fionna and Cake miniseries that is coming up. After all, Ghosthsrimp’s style is the look of Adventure Time.

Another strong point for the episode is its voice acting. For one thing, you have your regulars like Tom Kenny and Dana Snyder, and Duncan Trussell, who all give a solid performance. But to voice many of the special’s new characters, the show brought on a bevy of fun actors: Saturday Night Live’s Bill Hader, for instance, is now voicing Bufo, and he does a solid job hamming up his role as the old fogey. And then there’s Toks Olagundoye, whose British accent gives Dr. Caledonius a sense of knowledge and expertise. To my delight and surprise, SungWon Cho, an internet personality and voice actor perhaps better known as ProZD, was tapped to voice Brain Wizard, and he does an excellent job. And finally, Anthony Stewart Head, a very talented actor who I know best as Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, voices Con Wizard, and is even given a fun little ditty to sing. I can safely say that the voice acting in this special is likely the best of the bunch, and it’s obvious that the actors were all having a great time playing their parts.

What drags the whole thing down, in my opinion is the excessive murder. (I joked on Twitter that during the climax of “Wizard City,” it felt like I was watching an Adventure Time-ified version of Invincible!) Infused with the power of Coconteppi, Peps goes on a brutal killing spree, boiling Potable Wizard into steam, zapping Dimension Wizard into another plane of existence, smashing Berdzerd, and—perhaps most graphically—excerebrates (had to look that word up!) Brain Wiz. On Twitter, @sometipsygnostalgic​ argued that while, yes, the scene is startling, it does wonders to transmute “a poor Summer Camp Island knockoff [into] Adventure Time chaos.” The more I think about it, the more I think that’s a fair point; after all, this is hardly the first dark thing that has happened in Adventure Time. But the part that I cannot really stomach is the fact that Spader was murdered for no real reason, and the special ends without anyone really expressing their horror at the situation. Sure, Spader was a schoolyard bully, but he was also a child. And killing a child—either for the drama or the lulz—feels decidedly out of place in an Adventure Time episode. It’s hard to express, but it just felt unnecessarily nihilistic and mean-spirited.

All things considered, I think this was a fun episode, but it was somewhat underwhelming for a ‘finale.’ Much of this is because it had to air after the perfection that was the back-to-back “Obsidian”/”Together Again” wombo combo. But I can’t help but feel like this special just felt a little... off. A little too meanspirited, and it leaned a bit too much on standard tropes. Still, it was a fun spin, and I know that I’ll rewatch it.

Mushroom War Evidence: As Peps rides the bus to school, he passes a bunch of abandoned houses, some of which are buried in the ground. There is an unexploded bomb above the fossilized elephant in the school. Cadebra has a dream that takes place in the ruins of a city.

Final Grade: B+

[aic-european]

The Plate of Apples, Paul Cézanne, 1872, Art Institute of Chicago: European Painting and Sculpture

This is one of several still lifes by Paul Cézanne showing the ocher wallpaper with blue lozenge-shaped motifs that was in his apartment on the rue de l’Ouest in Paris. The work’s early date is reinforced by the thickly applied paint, which is so different from the thin washes of pigments that the artist would use in his canvases in the 1880s and 1890s. The surface of the work was sculpted almost as much as painted. Around the apples, for instance, Cézanne used a palette knife or the end of his brush to incise contours. Gift of Kate L. Brewster Size: 18 1/8 × 21 1/2 in. (45.8 × 54.7 cm) Medium: Oil on canvas

https://www.artic.edu/artworks/65811/