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onewomancitadel · 1 year

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is it just a coincidence that the madame and her two daughters who tormented cinder have blonde hair and blue eyes like jaune does

Character design is very deliberate. It's communicating a lot visually, making you draw subconscious connections. I initially predicted Blake/Yang on the basis that their eyes (the window to the soul)/Aura are matching, which in a setting where your soul ~has a special colour and everyone's named after a colour~ seems like a big deal. It's not lost on me that this is true for other pairings such as Ruby/Oscar (silver/gold, but also her red Aura/his green Aura) and Ren/Nora (pink/blue). I'm not sure if this holds true for Emerald/Mercury (red/grey) but they do have the matchy-matchy of black and white, so maybe it's not a hard-and-fast rule. Anyway, point being I'm looking for matchy-matchy.

Blake looks like Raven.

I'm not saying anything Oedipal is going on here, but I am saying that inherited conflicts are redeemed through the romances, and if Yang has problems with her mother, her love interest (who also runs away) kind of looking like her (and then later lopping off her hair so she doesn't) probably isn't an accident.

I'm aware that you have sent three different sets of anonymous asks to me disputing that Blake/Yang was never intended to be canon and 'reeks of direction change' (and similarly you dispute Ren/Nora), but there's no way I can answer this question without drawing reference from indisputable canon romances, irrespective of my personal feelings about them. If you can't accept the patterning of the given canon romances, there is absolutely no foundation to discuss Jaune/Cinder, and frankly I'd question why you think the ship has any basis in canon anyway if you don't have basic trust in the storytelling. But I'm still willing to answer this question because I think it's interesting and with drawing on the other canonical romances and Ozlem I think there is intentional patterning going on here.

It's no accident that Jaune doesn't just have the blond hair/blue eyes combo like Madame and the sisters but also like Salem's original human form, which your average literalist would erroneously take to mean he's related to her, but in my books I think it's more symbolically related to the fact that if this is the given conflict for Cinder (being tormented), drawing visual allegory to someone who's not going to give up on her and is not going to hurt her and is central to her redemption is pretty clever.

Personally I feel it goes back to that the cure is also sort of the poison, it's the thematic idea of the wound that can be healed only by the weapon that dealt it.

On the other hand, between Cinder and Ruby alone they basically have the same haircut and are going on the same emotional journey. So they're sort of the 'same' person symbolically (which Jungian-wise make sense, as Cinder is her Shadow). But they're also too alike in that in any given position in the story, neither one is really interested in knowing who the other truly is (because they refuse to interrogate themselves/understand themselves/accept pain/joy). So the question is how you make those two meet in the middle, and Cinder can't really do that until she confronts the reality of her own situation, and the same is true of Ruby (which is why this development with her across this volume is so calculated). Cue Jaune.

Anyway, my point is that if the character design is intentional, that Jaune is effectively a bright, pretty version does say some things to me. Some very specific things. This is why I can't really parse where Jaune/Weiss or any other Jaune pairing figures in, because it basically breaks a majority of the storytelling, but further to that kind of makes some of the character design nonsensical lol. It makes it feel a lot less intentional anyway. Cinder's orange eye is perfectly complementary to his blue; this is an early point you can find I made a few years ago on my blog and I have some old tags which discuss the subject further, but it's pretty straightforward. If we're going by their little paint-by-numbers romantic nonsense through the RYB and RGB models, right now we've got yellow/purple (Blake/Yang), red/green (silver/gold, Ruby/Oscar), pink/green (Ren/Nora), and you'll have to forgive me but I'm wondering where the blue/orange figures in because that's the third of the RYB model. It's probably likely that I'm missing a few here off the top of my head (and I'm still somewhat uncertain about Emerald/Mercury, but they parallel Ren/Nora too much to be ignored - and there's every possibility something develops with them more clearly romantically in the future, e.g. the slow incorporation of blue with him in opposite to Emerald's red, black/white thing going on with his Aura and her clothes...) but I think it's worth making note that Jaune/Cinder is the ship which fulfills blue/orange.

So that's why I think the character design is worth paying attention to. I wouldn't put all my eggs in one basket. But I think it's very intentional, especially as to how it relates to the already given narrative set-up. To my eyes, it augments it. It's not necessarily argumentation on its own - irrespective of character design these ideas can be communicated, especially the Reverse Ozlem elements (with simple, pure cinematic paralleling it's done) - but it is definitely something that makes me suspicious and feel less like I'm making shit up. That being said, I rarely introduce this as my first point with the ship.

The refutation is the null hypothesis, which is that it means nothing. Which is not all that fun to think about, and I can't really control it from happening. I'd rather try to reason now, because I think expecting better is not a regrettable practice; having actual substantial trust in a story is not embarrassing. That's the risk inherent to speculating about Jaune/Cinder, one supposes.

So it is a bit of a strange one, because I think it's sort of offputting to some to consider, but I think thematically it does make sense (the pain of being truly alive, the poison is the cure). At a minimum it makes you think about Jaune in the context of people who've really hurt Cinder, and then makes you wonder why he would have anything to do with that.

Thanks for your ask.

#seraphina's asks #user: megashadowdragon #knightfall #paint by numbers with RWBY #I have a tag for it somewhere I need to fix it all lol #seraphina ruminates over V9 #rwby9

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kusagrasskusa · 2 years

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Random rant

Idk does anyone else ever feel bad for crushing on a fictional character? My boyfriend irl isn’t a Shang Tsung, Kano, or Erron Black but he’s him. And he’s perfect and deserving of all my attention. All of it. He’s so sweet and whenever he gets mad, he’s the kind of guy to just hold my hand and talk softly other than yell. It’s hard to find people as special as that

I feel so bad because in order to write these in a timely manner, I gotta distance myself from him. Take a while to text him back or maybe wait until later to call him. Of course it’s okay if I have my personal time to indulge in my writing hobby, but I feel so bad because my writings are about other men. “I have a thing for Kano right now, so I’m gonna take 40 minutes to reply to my boyfriend so I can write about how much I love Kano” is what it feels like. Idk I should take a break from this but I feel so bad to all my readers if I do

I think most people who write want to get some sort of name out there for themselves, and get some people to view their works. I don’t expect myself to get big in any fandom I write for but I do want to get people a good time when they read my stories. I want people to be interested in my writings. I think every writer will have that aspect. But he doesn’t know about my Tumblr or that I write cringy fanfics. That anxiety and guilty feeling is what made me go on a long hiatus until like a month ago, and I don’t just want to disappear again whenever my passion is this.

I write romance. Fan fiction or not, romantic writings are my passions. I don’t want to give it up but I don’t want myself to think that I’m placing a fake man over how perfect my boyfriend really is. I love him.

#rant post #sorry for the rant #:(#i love my boyfriend #i love my bf so much #i dont ever want to hurt him

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middlechildwhoescapedthebasement · 3 years

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SHIPS THAT ARE 'CANON' IN MY AU INCLUDING EXES (WHY IM USING THEM)

Basically the ships that I use for this AU. If you don't like any of these ships, thats completely fine, but NO ship wars! You respect my ships, I'll respect yours! Now on with the list!

The only actual Canon ship

CageBlade: This is the only Canon ship that I like in the series. I love their dynamic and how they get back together at the end because they realized how much they love each other. Their story's the same as the game in this AU, with some of the Legands movies sprinkled in!

The ships that I use for my AU

FireDance: Ah, my OTP! This ship consists of my oc Varian and our lovable wraith, Hanzo! Funnily enough, Varian was originally going to be with Bi-Han before he died and then ultimately end up with Kotal. But after fully finishing her backstory, I decided that she was better suited for Hanzo. I feel like they balance each other out very well in every aspect. Sigh, they just make me so happy! I also just want Hanzo to be happy since NRS is apparently allergic to that.

LiuLao: OK BEFORE WE GO ANY FURTHER I WANT TO MAKE THIS CLEAR- Liu Kang and Kung Lao are NOT related! Tobias HIMSELF had to step in and make it clear that it was an error on the movie's part! They never have been and never will be blood related! OK, on with the ship: I FRICKIN LOVE THESE TWO! They were my first ever mk ship! I just love their dynamic and how their meant to be foils to each other! I'm so weak for the childhood friends trope. Everything about them is *chefs kiss*. Also in my AU, they don't die stupid deaths and become evil for the sake of shock value. They instead stay alive and raise Jin together so he can be happy, healthy, and ACCEPTED!

Jatana: Man, am I predictable or what? XD I ship these two for a lot of the same reasons I ship LiuLao. They have such amazing chemistry with each other, I love every scene the have together. THE WAY JADE IS SO PROTECTIVE OF KITANA IS JUST SO IMMACULATE! I'm weak for lesbian warriors protecting their lesbian princesses. It's the good food right there. They die but get resurrected and rule Outworld together as Queens.

ArticGem: So this ship is between Kuai Liang and an oc that I haven't introduced yet: Ruby. I came up with this ship because while I do ship SubScorp, I hc both Kuai and Hanzo as bi and I wanted to try shipping Kuai with a woman for once. Ruby was an already made oc (with full backstory and design) that I was gonna have be on her own, but I wanted her to be my guinea pig for my shipping experiment. It wasn't meant to be permanent but here we are. I'll explain their relationship more when I have Ruby's outline done.

StryBal: I absolutely love the idea of a New York City cop dating a Black Dragon member. Know what I love more? Stryker being a backstabbing bitch and being a secret BD member and selling all of the NYPD's secrets. Basically, these two are the bastard power couple that no one expects, and that no one can really trust (except for each other).

Exes!

RatTheif: That's right. In this AU, Erron and Kano dated. The relationship was mostly sexual, with Erron really only being interested because of the special treatment he got. Kano was only interested in the sex and adrenaline rushes. When Erron said he was done, Kano didn't believe him. While he was asleep, Erron took all of his shit and sold it before returning to Outworld. Kanos still pissed about it. I'm literally only using this ship for shits and giggles for the backstory.

Rain X Mileena: They both used each other with the plan of betraying the other. Both had the gall to be shocked when it eventually happened. I like the idea of two people using each other for the same reasons. It makes a fun read for me personally.

SubSmoke: They tried it because they thought that they loved each other romantically. While it was true on Kuai's end, Tomas was AroAce with both romance and sex repulsion. He apologized to Kuai, genuinely feeling horrible for starting something serious like this only to end it abruptly. Kuai held no grudge against him, supporting him fully and not tolerating any hate thrown Tomas' way. I like these two together as friends, I've always had the AroAce hc for Smoke, but I imagine him trying something out before ultimately realizing his Sexuality. And Kuai being nothing but supportive of his BFF! (P.S. I know that AroAce people can still find love/have sex, but I personally hc Smoke as being repulsed by those things for himself! I hope you understand!)

#oc x canon #mk au #what if au #mk oc #liulao #Jatana #cageblade #Strybal #Mk ships #I'm not gonna tag all these characters lol #i'm too tired for this

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chaosrealm-mk-imagines · 4 years

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MASTERLIST

First of all, I’m sorry for not making a Masterlist before, I’m a lazy person and have zero experience with being organized. But since an anon asked to do one I felt like it was a necessary thing. Not all characters are included yet and some content may be missing, I still need to add a lot of stuff to it.

Last update: 30/11/2020

Mortal Kombat

Fanfiction

- Aftermath but Sindel is herself, Skarlet is not a slave, Mileena is back and Shao Kahn got what he deserved

- It’s Just a Prank (Bi-Han x Sareena)

Headcanons & Imagines

Cetrion

- How she reacts to a mortal who claims to be in love with her

- How she reacts to her S/O doing horrible things for protecting her

- How she reacts to receiving nudes

- How she reacts to her S/O being terrible injured

- Cetrion comes to earth to spend time with her beloved

- Crying & Religion

- Family

Cassie Cage

- How she tries to cheer her S/O up

- General romantic headcanons

- Laughter & Sex

- Frost x Cassie Cage

Erron Black

- How he reacts when someone makes his S/O cry

Ermac

- How they react to their S/O being terrible injured

- How they react to their S/O trying to cheer them up

Frost

- How she falls in love for a S/O that is a ray of sunshine

- How she reacts to her kid getting a pet without her permission

- How she reacts to her S/O being terrible injured

- How she reacts to her S/O trying to cheer her up

- General romantic headcanons

- Fluffy headcanons

- How is it like to fall asleep with her

- How she tries to cheer her S/O up

- How she reacts to someone trying to get close to her

- Frost x Cassie Cage

- Frost meeting Viktor from League of Legends

Fujin

- Windwolf headcanons

- Fujin and Raiden relationship headcanons

- Fluffy headcanons

- How he reacts to a mortal who claims to be in love with him

- How he reacts to his S/O putting flowers at his hair while he sleeps

- How he reacts to his S/O appearing with a shaved head

- How he reacts to his S/O previous abusive relationships

- How is it like to fall asleep with him

- Fujin helping Raiden to confess to his S/O

- Fujin and Raiden after being saved by their S/O

- Music, family and fears

- Hair, affection and crying

- How he’s like when he has a crush

- How he proposes to his S/O

- How he reacts to his S/O sacrificing themselves for him

- Fujin as a secret admirer

- Fujin with an insecure, introvert and chubby female reader

- How he reacts when someone makes his S/O cry

- First kiss with him

Jade

- Jade x Li Mei headcanons

- Random headcanons

- Relationship headcanon

Johnny Cage

- Random headcanons

- How he tries to make up after a break up

- Appears at “It’s Just a Prank” a Sareena x Bi-Han oneshot

- Hair, affection and crying

- Reacting to a sleepwalking S/O

Kabal

- How he reacts to his S/O trying to cheer him up

- Fears & Home

- He thinks his S/O is dead but they are not

- Laughter & Sex

- Kabal x Reader angst

- How he reacts when someone makes his S/O cry

Kenshi

- Random headcanons

- Mentioned at Takeda x Jacqui headcanons

- Fluffy headcanons

- How is it like to fall asleep with him

- How he reacts to his S/O trying to cheer him up

Khameleon

- Headcanons

Kitana

- Headcanons

Kronika

- How she reacts to her S/O trying to cheer her up

- Family

- How she reacts to her S/O terribly injured

Kung Lao

- How is it like to fall asleep with him

- Kung Lao x Li Mei headcanons

- How he reacts to his S/O doing terrible things to protect him

- How he tries to make up after a break up

- Random headcanons

- How he proposes to his S/O

- Reacting to a sleepwalking S/O

- How he reacts to his S/O sacrificing themselves for him

- How he reacts when someone makes his S/O cry

- First kiss with him

- How he reacts to a S/O who praises him a lot

Liu Kang

How he tries to make up after a break up

- First kiss with him

Mileena

- How she reacts to her S/O doing terrible things to protect her

- Mileena being redeemed and spending quality time with her nephews

- General romantic headcanons

- How she reacts to her S/O previous abusive relationships

- Fluffy headcanons

- How is it like to fall asleep with her

- Mileena, Skarlet and Tanya being outworld mean girls

- How she tries to cheer her S/O up

- Mileena as a secret admirer

- Giving a massage to her S/O

Nightwolf

- Windwolf headcanons

- How he reacts to his S/O trying to cheer him up

- How is it like to fall asleep with him

- He thinks his S/O is dead but they are not

- Music, family and fears

- How he’s like when he has a crush

- Reacting to a sleepwalking S/O

- How he reacts to his S/O sacrificing themselves for him

- S/O helping him to apply warpaint

Noob Saibot

- Sareena x Bi-Han headcanons

- Flirting headcanons

- Sareena x Bi-Han dating headcanons

- How he reacts to his kid getting a pet without his permission

- How he reacts to his girlfriend wearing a fancy gown

- Bi-Han x Sareena at a double date with Skarlet x Sub Zero

- Memory

- How he reacts to his S/O sacrificing themselves for him

Quan Chi

- How he falls in love for a S/O that is a ray of sunshine

- Fluffy headcanons

- How he reacts to his S/O being terribly injured

- Romance, hands and crying

- How he reacts to his S/O trying to cheer him up

- Random headcanons

- He thinks his S/O is dead but they are not

- How he’s like when he has a crush

- How he proposes to his S/O

- How he reacts to his S/O sacrificing themselves for him

- Quan Chi as a secret admirer

Raiden

- Raiden and Fujin relationship headcanons

- How he reacts to a mortal who claims to be in love with him

- How he reacts to his S/O doing terrible things to protect him

- How he reacts to his S/O putting flowers at his hair while he sleeps

- How he reacts to his S/O appearing with their head shaved

- How he reacts to his S/O previous abusive relationships

- Fluffy headcanons

- How is it like to fall asleep with him

- Raiden confessing to his crush

- Fujin and Raiden after being saved by their S/O

- Hair, affection and crying

- How he’s like when he has a crush

- First kiss with him

Rain

- Giving a massage to his S/O

- Rain with an affectionate S/O

Scorpion

- How he tries to make up after a break up

- Revived Satoshi headcanons

- Hanzo x Harumi headcanons

- Harumi as a revenant

- SubScorp headcanons

- How he reacts to his S/O appearing with a shaved head

- How he reacts to his girlfriend in a fancy gown

- SubScorp and revived Satoshi

Shang Tsung

- Random headcanons

- How he falls in love for a S/O that is a ray of sunshine

- Fears

- How he reacts to his S/O trying to cheer him up

- He thinks his S/O is dead but they are not

- How he proposes to his S/O

- Reacting to a sleepwalking S/O

Shinnok

- How he falls in love for a S/O that is a ray of sunshine

- How he reacts to a mortal who claims to be in love with him

- Fluffy headcanons

- How he reacts to his S/O being terribly injured

- Family

Skarlet

- Kuai Liang and Skarlet going to a costume ball

- Skarlet x Sub Zero headcanons

- Skarlet x Sub Zero double date with Bi-Han x Sareena

- Skarlet embarassing Sub Zero

- Skarlet using a sexy dress for Sub Zero

- Skarlet makes it up for embarassing Sub Zero

- Crying

Sub-Zero

- Memory

- Crying

- Random headcanons

- How he flirts

- How he tries to make up after a break up

- How he reacts to receiving nudes

- How he reacts to his kid getting a pet without his permission

- How he reacts to his S/O appearing with a shaved head

- How he reacts to his girlfriend in a fancy gown

- Music, family and fears

- How he’s like when he has a crush

- How he proposes to his S/O

Sonya Blade

- Sonya as a secret admirer

Sindel

- Relationship headcanon

Dark Souls

Headcanons

- Dark Souls characters random headcanons

Metal Gear

Meryl Silverburgh

- Meryl x Photographer reader

Devil May Cry

Dante

- Reacting to a sleepwalking S/O

Lady

- Reacting to a sleepwalking S/O

League of Legends

- Karthus at Mortal Kombat banter

- Viktor meeting Frost from Mortal Kombat

(Still empty)

Dragon Age

American Horror Story

#masterlist #mortal kombat #headcanons #imagines #fanfiction #mine

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chiseler · 3 years

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Great Zilches of History

Film is light. There are times, though, when that light may take on a Stygian cast, burning with a flamme noire severity, a weird and otherworldly keenness. Or it may burn lurid and loud — especially if it’s a very old film, acting like a séance that summons the unruly dead. The darkness in cinema best typified by that form we call film noir is in its essence an extension of the peculiarly American darkness of Edgar Allan Poe.

Early, nitrate-based film stock, with its twinkling mineral core, gives Poe's crepuscular light its time to shine and thereby illuminate the world. No longer held in the solitary confinement of a page of reproduced text or an image, frozen, rendered in paint or ink. Poe's singularly tormented vision is finally written alchemically, in cinematographic rays beamed through silver salts; into moving images of such aggressive vitality as to blast every rational thing from one's mind. A Black & White image flipped into negative makes black fire, or black sunlight such as illumines Nosferatu’s Transylvanian forests, through which a box-like carriage rattles at Mack Sennett speed. But with the slightest underexposure, a little dupey degradation of the print, or even a little imagination (such collaboration is not discouraged), this liquid blackness will spread everywhere and anywhere, the most luminous pestilence known to creation. Be it in the laughing nightmare of Fleischer cartoons of old (Out of the Inkwell, indeed) or John Alton’s vision of the night, we are left to wonder: is daylight burning out the corner of a building, or is it the blackness of the building which is eating into the sky?

As with many such questions, film permits us no easy answer. We are simply to watch as the characters smudge. As their shadows pulsate and flicker, emanate out beyond themselves. But if Poe represents the loss of control over one’s existence and the ensuing panic, then cinema, consciously or not, takes existential dread as a given.

God, a vague and unseen deity, died at the moment cinema was born, replaced by a new celestial order. Saints and prophets made poor film characters, giving off the feeling of having stepped out of a stained glass window, flat, Day-Glo icons moving uncomfortably through three-dimensional space. Movies rather rejoiced in dirt and rags, texture and imperfection, so that the most lacklustre clown easily outperformed all the icon messiahs. At 45 minutes, Fernand Zecca’s The Life and Passion of Christ (1903) is one of the earliest feature films, but compared to the same filmmaker’s less ambitious, more playful shorts, it’s a beautiful snooze. A different execution climaxes his Story of a Crime (1901), in which we get to see, by brutal jump cut, a guillotine decapitation before our very eyes. This, as Maxim Gorky prophesied, is what the public wants. Or maybe the events of 1901, cinematic and otherwise, allow “the public” to define itself in ways heretofore unthinkable. The year brings Victoria Regina’s propitious death. And with her passing, Edgar Allan Poe’s pronunciamento on celebrity, “the ludicrous heightened into the grotesque," comes to new and anarchic fruition as an incendiary schnook, one of history’s finest.

When he shot President William McKinley at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo on September 6th, 1901, the currents of fear and vengeance unleashed by Leon Czolgosz would carry him on a journey from reflexive beatings at the hands of police and a post-Victorian mob – ladies in bustles shedding all restraint, transformed from well-honed symbols of middle-class decorum into yowling banshees, screaming “GIVE HIM TO US!” – straight to the electric chair, from whence his corpse would be taken for additional punishment, a process where ghoulish prison authorities at Auburn separated the head from the body, and then poured sulfuric acid on what remained, before secreting the sorry residue of America’s anarchist son into an unmarked grave.

Despite attempts to erase Czoglosz from history, a visual document survives, oozing with pathos and bitter recrimination. It is impossible, looking into those eyes, not to feel unnerved and, yes, sympathetic with him – his desperate act, after all, was as critical a part of America’s greed-engorged industrial fantasia as the near daily spectacle of peaceful strikers, his friends among them, being slaughtered in the name of profit.

Cinema’s misspent childhood years in late-Victorian fairgrounds are followed by a grimy adolescence in Edwardian nickelodeon parlours. The medium, which finally comes of age amid gaudy palaces built in its honor, morphs many times. However, All Talking Pictures are the final death knell for the Victorian standard, belching from the screen a thousand inbred tongues that invade the ear willy-nilly. They remind us that when Queen Victoria breaths her last Naturalism sheds decorum, taste, breeding, good table manners.

Edgar Allan Poe essentially owns motion pictures via ongoing necrophilic obsession, since celluloid preserves the dead better than any embalming fluid. Like amber preserved holograms, they flit in and out of its parameters, reciting their own epitaphs in pantomime; revenant moths trapped in perpetual motion. Film is bona fide illumination — as opposed to religion’s metaphorical kind – representing the supremacy of alchemy and necromancy over sackcloth and ashes. The inmates, emboldened under the spell of Klieg lights, were not only running the asylum, but re-shaping the world in their own image. Both Church and State with their blunt instruments of repression proved impotent against the anarchy of this freshly liberated ghetto.

Holy men were unceremoniously defrocked, their doctrine of abject compliance to class-based norms re-written into storylines enriched by grease-painted floozies, costumed villains, and snooty dowagers brought down a notch by the drunk hobo in her drawing room. Amidst widespread labour unrest and mass poverty, followed soon by the Great Depression, filmgoers of the silent era had a front row view of the plutocracy’s helplessness against a swelling tide of restless humanity. Charlie Chaplin’s itinerant laborer may have accidentally thwarted a plutocrat’s plan for world domination and/or a house renovation, just as Groucho Marx seemed to have spontaneously derailed a social climbing matron’s equally fierce ambitions.

All hail the magic mirrors! Celestial mandalas! Giant eggs and butterfly women! Segundo de Chomón’s The Red Spectre (1907) ruthlessly assaults our eyes with a wraith-magician dissolving through his coffin lid in a red, hand-tinted, flame-flickering hell. His presence, caped, skull-masked, was to herald a new thespic truth, that from this moment forward the art of acting would be reduced to how you respond to light, and how light responds to you. The Specter of Chomon’s dark bauble is in every element Poe’s Red Death — japing and performing tricks for us, his adoring fans and welcome guests, before announcing our doom — literary metaphor slammed against a literal backdrop of amber stalactites, pellucid as an ossuary.

That was a long time ago, in the first decades of the 20th century, before artifice and studios and the commercial paradigm of stardom finally swallowed cinema in one ravenous bite. It was a period when one could see, if one paid close attention, the dreariness of ordinary life at the centre and around the edges of every motion picture brought forth. It lived onscreen in film’s early days, exposing the pretense, however fitful, of opulence or period as simply that: pretense, a fundamental desire to escape reality. But this “escapism” had always been erroneously attributed to the audience’s needs, when in fact it was rather those bankrolling the nascent medium not yet sufficiently in control of itself to impose any order.

The censors were on to something, even if they could never fully articulate what precise blasphemies were being committed.

Take Hitchcock’s Vertigo, for instance, which isn’t pure noir but is pure Poe: what would the surgical excision of an influence look like? Granted, the noir genre seems an unlikely Poe derivative, but what of Laura — fatalism, romance and necro-fantasy (with Lydecker as Usher)? DOA is the kind of concept Poe might have dreamed up; one of the great noir scribes, Cornell Woolrich is channeling Poe through an all-thumbs pulp sensibility. And how hard would it be to cast Val Lewton as the horror noir hybrid, with premature burials, ancestral disease, lunatics taking over bedlam? Jean Epstein, who adapted The Fall of the House of Usher in 1928, complained that Baudelaire’s translations fundamentally mistook Poe’s innocence for ghastliness.

The dead in Poe, writes Epstein, are “only slightly dead.”

To the extent that Epstein was correct, the whimsy that Poe bequeaths to cinema finds itself absorbed in almost material terms — not as sensibility but as a texture whose particular nap or weave is never granted names. In Mesmeric Revelations a voluntary subject is quite near physical death and under the ministrations of his mesmerist, answering precise questions about the nature of God. Before dying, he says God is “ultimate or unparticled” matter: “What men attempt to embody in the word ‘thought,’ is this matter in motion”. The same unnamable textures apparently survive on television, a case of Poe resonating inside our minds, a collective consciousness replaced by cathode rays.

Deep within the 18 hours of David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: The Return, there is a moment that, on its incandescent surface, could have been lifted weightless from the great post-war dream of material deliverance; as if the zeitgeist of the mid 20th century had somehow got lost and ended up in this one: Daytime, the top on the convertible is down, the radio tuned, The Paris Sisters singing I Love How You Love Me as a reincarnated Laura Palmer lifts her face to a cloudless sky. Within this tapestry of an early Phil Spector production — his trademark reverb eternally evocative of Romance and Death (two conditions Spector knows well) — the voice of Priscilla Paris could be a siren sound from the American Beyond, or a dream goddess lullaby from the whispering gallery, or sweet nothings from the crypt. We don’t know. We’ll never know.

In this oneiric echo chamber, Poe smiles down upon American blondness, muscle cars soaked in sunlight, candy for eye and ear; the terrible ecstasy of unending motion and immortality.

If Lynch’s Return means going back home, then home is that Lemon Popsicle/Strawberry Milkshake species of innocence proffered by America's music industry between 1957 and 1964. The horror genre always has to have some component of innocence to devastate, be it the existential kind which inspires the malevolence everyone paid the price of a ticket to have vicarious transit with; or the mere victimisation of the unsuspecting. Either way, there was no other period in American popular culture when innocence, of any variety, was so lavishly examined, toyed with, killed. The free floating chord that opens The Everly Brothers song, All I Have To Do is Dream, remains a lamentation in sound: the sudden recrudescence of Poe’s beating, tell-tale heart. Adoring such guilt-free teenage odes to sleep, death and sexual desire, David Lynch finds a muse in Amanda Seyfried. Specifically her visionary eyes melting Phil Spector’s dark edifice of sugar in a deathless, Sternbergian close-up — iridescent search lights, ever more urgently scanning the sky above, waiting for the sun to swallow her whole. We can only bear witness, and internalize this shimmering ingenue, this angel in a red convertible, trading places with Old Sol; as if whatever she just snorted has entered our system through hers. But in that ephemeral instant she achieves oneness with all things; the transcendence of stardom — true, temporal stardom — shorn of fame and the imperatives of show-business.

To this day David Lynch’s favorite film remains Otto e Mezzo, directed by Federico Fellini: Western Europe’s sorcerer of confectionary delights and unending motion; the man who put the “dolce” in La Dolce Vita. Fellini, he states, "manages to accomplish with film what mostly abstract painters do; namely, to communicate an emotion without ever saying or showing anything in a direct manner." Even if one were to take him at his word — and we must, of course, for no filmmaker has ever been known to misrepresent themselves to us — this seems a strange instance of gravitational pull, particularly in the light of the formal strategies of both men as they developed through time. Lynch has always favored a blunt pictorialism that, in its bluntness, borders on the language of Imagism: the studied simplicity of the language used to complex, powerful effect. Fellini, in 8 1/2 and throughout much of his career, by contrast, unleashes upon the viewer an insanely fluid, brutally precise camera ballet. Any good cinephile might be tempted to resolve the disparities and move toward a brighter, less subterranean comprehension. But, ultimately, such understanding would be a didactic burden no moviegoer needs. For here, in these conflicting dialects, you have a fleeting taste of ideologies swirled together like ribbon candy: a blur of four-wheeled luxury from the New World zooming past regional splendor into that fraternity of man: the socio-economic nirvana imagined by Karl Marx in the Old.

Careening from one via to another at harrowing, white-knuckle speed, Fellini was once heard to lament that “Some of the neo-realists seem to think that they cannot make a film unless they have a man in old clothes in front of the camera.” George Bluestone, recording these words for the pages of Film Culture in 1957, was sitting in the literal passenger seat of that ideal metaphor for post-war ebullience in action: expert, 20th century precision hurtling them through Roman streets with graffiti-scrawled churches proudly bearing the hammer and sickle; that famous Black Chevy skirting the Italian Scylla (the Vatican) and its equally dogmatic Charybdis (the Party). At that velocity, anything could make sense.

“Appearances aside" Bluestone wrote, "the Chevrolet is at every moment under Fellini’s control. He weaves in and out of traffic, misses pedestrians by inches, swerves away from Nomentana’s interminable monuments, dodging yellow traffic blinkers as if he were trying out a darkened slalom.” It is every bit a performance. Rome, after all, is the land of Bernini’s The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, Apollo and Daphne — marble-cum-flesh, even as flesh itself gives way to forms that leave the viewer in terrified awe. While reliving his own mythic, carbureted experience, Bluestone does some weaving of his own, quoting Genevieve Agel’s one-line pronunciamento (and, in the process, defining what would soon be labelled 'Felliniesque'), “Fellini is a visionary of the real”, as the passenger positions his driver somewhere between corporeal reality and ecstatic truth while the big man (no old clothes for this maestro) drives and drives. “As one hand lightly guides the wheel, the other gestures — it acts.”

Spirits of the Dead is one of those compendium films, with voguish directors (Malle, Vadim, Fellini) entrusted with bringing to the screen a Poe story each. Only the Fellini episode, Toby Dammit, is notable, but it's very notable, a hallucinatory yarn owing as much to Mario Bava's Kill, Baby, Kill! as to Poe's Never Bet the Devil Your Head, its ostensible source. The title character, played by Terence Stamp with white-blond hair and dark roots and constant beads of witch hazel perspiration, is in Rome to attend an awards ceremony and to play Christ in a western, but he's fatally distracted by his new sports car and a vision of the devil in the form of a little girl. Toby's ride through a hellscape of nocturnal Rome seems lifted from Jules Dassin’s 10.30 p.m. Summer (1966), but works even better for Fellini than it did in the Duras adaptation. An oppressively subjective film, Toby Dammit narrows down to the view in the Ferrari's headlights, a ghastly floodlit interzone where human forms are gradually replaced with mannequins and cut-outs, as the city becomes unreal, an elaborate movie set, an uncanny valley laid out for the staging of an epic stunt/snuff film.

Fellini and Lynch celebrate bodily extremes in intriguing if differing ways, which should, in our time, naturally gallop beyond the pale, but nevertheless become wholly, weirdly digestible. It is perhaps the innocent glee of these artists, their wonderment at the vast variety of shapes the human body can assume; an innocence which suspends toward erasure our awareness the way physical representation functions in the 21st century. Lynch presents the disabled as childlike, mysterious, magical beings without ever worrying about lending them agency (The Elephant Man’s John Merrick functions both as passive whipping boy and chic spectacle for the whole of Victorian London), or the mendacity of adult sophistication (the latest Twin Peaks iteration includes a pint-sized hitman who whines like a puppy when his icepick is broken). Is it any wonder Lynch evolved a style which placed them front and center in unmoving shots, without irony or pity?

Poe, while certainly a pioneer of fake news, also had a way of vindicating the lumpen masses of humanity (to the middle-brow’s abiding chagrin).

The Mystery of Marie Roget, a Parisian murder mystery, presented as a fictional sequel to The Murders in the Rue Morgue, was simultaneously trumpeted as a correct solution to the real-life murder of Mary Cecilia Rogers in New York. When a news article presented fresh evidence while the story was still being serialised, Poe made minor changes to the final instalment to keep his fiction in line with the facts.

He later published a story about an Atlantic crossing by balloon, accomplished in three days, in The New York Sun in 1844. "Signal Triumph of Mr. Monck Mason's Flying Machine!!!" The piece was presented as truth, and only revealed as "The Great Balloon Hoax" a couple of days later. “The more intelligent believed," wrote Poe, "while the rabble, for the most part, rejected the whole with disdain.” He saw this as a new development: “20 years ago credulity was the characteristic trait of the mob, incredulity the distinctive feature of the philosophic.”

What had changed? Perhaps the acceleration of scientific and social progress meant that the more literate and scientifically-minded had become inured to startling new developments, so the most surprising events now seemed credible. And since these same technological leaps were always presented as social benefits, the working class was growing skeptical, since they rarely saw any improvement in their condition.

by Daniel Riccuito, R.J. Lambert and David Cairns

Special thanks to Richard Chetwynd

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claudia1829things · 4 years

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"LITTLE WOMEN" (2017) Review

"LITTLE WOMEN" (2017) Review There have been a good number of adaptations of Louisa May Alcott's 1868-69 novel, "Little Women". Although it was not the first adaptation ever made, the first one I had ever seen was the two-part 1978 miniseries that aired on NBC. But the most recent adaptation I have seen also aired on television. It was Heidi Thomas' three-part miniseries that aired on the BBC in 2017.

For some reason "LITTLE WOMEN" - or at least this adaptation - has failed to win any acclaim in compare to the 1994 and 2019 movies. At least with the American press. The British press, on the other hand, seemed very impressed by Heidi Thomas' adaptation. Frankly, this situation seems like a case of national pride - a British television producer adapting a famous American novel. As for the American press - what can I say? Was this version of "LITTLE WOMEN" really that mediocre? Or was this a case of American journalists resenting the very British Heidi Thomas adapting Alcott's novel? I certainly had some quibbles regarding "LITTLE WOMEN". In an effort to be more politically correct, the miniseries featured two minor African-American characters - a badly wounded Union soldier and a wig maker in Concord, Massachusetts. I had no problems with the wig maker's presence. But I definitely had a problem with the presence of the wounded black soldier being nursed by Mr. March, the four protagonists' father, during the miniseries' first half hour. "LITTLE WOMEN" began right before Christmas 1861. The Union Army did not begin recruiting black soldiers until the mid-July 1862. The 2017 miniseries also featured another historical blooper. Sometime during the second episode, one of the characters mentioned the Battle of Ball's Bluff being recently fought. This is impossible, considering the battle was actually fought at least two months before the story began. I had a few other quibbles regarding "LITTLE WOMEN". As much as I had enjoyed his performances as the March family's neighbor, Mr. March, I must admit that I found Michael Gambon's American accent rather sketchy. Thomas made a mistake that many other adaptations made - she allowed one actress, namely Kathryn Newton, to portray the youngest March sibling, Amy. Newton is an excellent actress, but there were times when she seemed a bit too old to be portraying a pre-teen and later early teens Amy. The 1949 MGM movie allowed Amy, as portrayed by the 16-17 year-old Elizabeth Taylor, to be older than Beth. The production barely got away with this. But only the 1994 movie had cast two actresses to portray Amy - Kirsten Dunst (who was roughly 11 to 12 years old when that movie was shot) and later, Samantha Mathis. One last problem - or should I say quibble - bothered me about "LITTLE WOMEN". Hairstyles. Especially the hairstyles worn by one Josephine "Jo" March. I understand that Jo is considered the "tomboy" of the March family. And I could understand the casual or loose style in which she wore her hair during the first half of the story . . . and inside the family home. But there were times when she wore her hair in a similar manner when she was outside. And "tomboy" or not, I just cannot see Jo being so relaxed with her hair - at least not in public and not during the 1860s. Sometimes, I feel that this effort to portray Jo as a "free spirit" went a little too far. The American press had more problems with "LITTLE WOMEN". The main theme behind their dissatisfaction seemed to be criticisms of the production's "faithful" adaptation of Alcott's novel. In other words, the miniseries is a stridently conservative adaptation. It lacked - at least according to Sonia Sariya of "Vanity Fair" magazine - progress. Critics accused the miniseries of following Alcott's novel by allowing all of the sisters to adhere to the social dictates of mid-century United States. As I write this, I am trying to so hard not to punch my fist through my computer screen or scream in frustration. "LITTLE WOMEN" is an adaptation of a novel that was published in 1868, not 1968 or 2018. Or perhaps they were pissed that Jo ended up married to Professor Bhaer, which did not happen in Alcott's original ending (before it was changed). I keep forgetting that many of today's feminists believe that the only way a woman can achieve her dream or be "fulfilled" is by avoiding matrimony altogether. I also find it odd that none of these critics have demanded the same fate for the protagonists featured in any of the Jane Austen adaptations, including the recent movie, "EMMA". So, why dump this nonsense on this particular production? Because it was a British adaptation . . . of an American novel? I came away with the feeling that the overreaching theme for "LITTLE WOMEN" seemed to be personal self-satisfaction for its four major protagonists. This adaptation featured the first time Elizabeth "Beth" March, third and most reserved sister, being portrayed as someone who suffered from social anxiety disorder, instead of mere shyness. I had once come across an article on the Internet that claimed the recent 2019 movie adaptation had finally done justice to the youngest March sister and not portray her as a villain. I could only shake my head in confusion. I have never regarded Amy as a villain. Certainly not in this or any of the other adaptation of "Little Women". Yes, Amy could be vain, coddled and a bit spiteful. But she had to struggle to overcome some of her negative traits and at the same time, develop into a strong-minded woman who knew what she wanted in life - to become an artist and live a life beyond genteel poverty. The same could be said for the oldest March sister, Margaret "Meg". She starts out as a young woman, who is already regarded as ideal in the story. Some have criticized Meg for her desire for domestic bliss. Superficially, I believe there is nothing wrong with this. After all, it is a woman's right to choose what she wants in life. However, like Amy, Meg also harbored a desire to be both socially acceptable and wealthy. I never had a problem with Amy attaining this position, because I have always suspected she was emotionally suited to such a lifestyle. I believe Meg was a different story. I believe Meg had to learn to attain her desire for domestic bliss in a way that suited her, instead of Amy. And she had to realize that kowtowing to her great-Aunt March's demands for all of the March sisters to marry the "right men" (namely wealthy) and take their places within the upper-classes was not the way. At least for her. Meg's encounter with Laurie's British upper-class friends, the Vaughns, may have finally allowed her to question her previous desire to be socially acceptable. While viewing this miniseries, it had occurred to me that Josephine "Jo" March might the most complicated of the four sisters. Many admire Jo for her artistic ambitions to be a writer and her independent spirit. But I thought Heidi Thomas did an excellent job in conveying how Jo can sometimes be her own worst enemy. Despite her ambition to be a novelist, she was willing to waste her literary talents to create cheap melodramas to help support the family. Initially, I saw nothing wrong with this. However, Jo seemed doomed to continue wasting her talent with writing cheap melodramas. She probably would have continued this path if her parents and Professor Bhaer had not encouraged to take a chance and embrace her true artistic potential. Another aspect of this production that really impressed me was how Heidi Thomas made Jo's rejection of Laurie's marriage proposal more plausible. Clearer. This was especially apparent in scenes that featured Jo's quiet rejections of Laurie's romantic overtures, her final rejection of his marriage proposal and her conversation with her mother on why Laurie could never be the right husband for her. But it is obvious that Jo's biggest problem was her fear of losing her family - not only to death, but also to love and marriage. This explained her hostile attitude toward Meg's romance with John Brooke. Jo seemed to be afraid of growing up. And she seemed to dread that growing up would eventually mean losing her sisters. "LITTLE WOMEN" features some differences from Alcott's novel. Did these changes hurt the miniseries' narrative? Well, I some issues with Thomas' erroneous mentions of historical events of the Civil War. On the hand, I thought her portrayal of Beth suffering from social anxiety disorder was something of a masterstroke. The miniseries did not feature a great deal of Alcott's religious additions to the story . . . something I did not miss. There were other aspects from Alcott's story that was also missing - the family newspaper, the Pickwick Club, and the sisters' amateur dramatics. But honestly? I did not miss them. Earlier, I had criticized some of the hairstyles worn by actress Maya Hawke, during her portrayal of Jo March. However, I certainly cannot criticize Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh's costume designs. I do not regard them as among the best 1860s costumes I have seen on television or in the movies. But I thought they were pretty solid, as shown in the image below:

Knowing that this adaptation of Alcott's novel was a British production, I thought Susie Cullen's production designs did a first-rate job in converting the Ireland locations into mid-19th century Massachusetts, New York City and Great Britain. Considering the miniseries was shot in Ireland, perhaps Ms. Cullen's job proved to be easier than I had originally assumed. I certainly enjoyed Piers McGrail's photography for the miniseries. I found it beautiful, thanks to the colorful and sharp images. One of the best aspects of "LITTLE WOMEN" - at least for me - proved to be its cast. The 2017 miniseries featured solid performances from supporting players that include Julian Morris as John Brooke, Meg March's future husband; Helen Methven as the March family's housekeeper Hannah; Adrian Scarborough as Amy’s teacher, Mr. Davis; Kathleen Warner Yeates as Aunt Carroll; Richard Pepple as a local Concord wigmaker; along with Felix Mackenzie-Barrow and Mei Bignall as the visiting Vaughn siblings. But there were supporting performances that impressed me. Dylan Baker gave the most memorable portrayal of Mr. March, the sisters' father, I have seen on-screen. It helped that his character was never in danger of being pushed to the background, unlike other adaptations I have seen. Mark Stanley gave a very charming and intelligent performance as Professor Bhaer, the German scholar whom Jo befriended while working as a governess in New York City. Stanley made it very easy for me to see how Jo would find Professor Bhaer so attractive. I really enjoyed Angela Landsbury's portrayal of Mr. March's aunt, Aunt March. The actress did such a marvelous job in conveying the character's forthright and controlling nature. Michael Gambon's portrayal of the Marches' neighbor, the elderly Mr. Laurence. Gambon did an excellent job of developing the character from a reserved and forbidding man grieving over a recently deceased child to a wise and compassionate friend and grandparent. If I had to choose my favorite on-screen Mrs. March aka "Marmee" I have seen, the honor would go to Emily Watson. I really enjoyed how Watson portrayed Marmee as this wise, yet pragmatic woman struggling to keep her family together. Another excellent performance came from Jonah Hauer-King, the story's "boy-next-door" who became a close friend of the March sisters. I cannot deny that Hauer-King gave one of the most complex performances in the miniseries. He did an excellent job in conveying the positive aspects of Laurie's personality - including his charm and loyalty to the March famiy; and the character's more negative aspects - namely his impatience, his inability to understand Jo's intellectual pursuits and his own quick temper. Naturally, I had to turn my attention to the four actresses who portrayed the March sisters. Thanks to Thomas, actress Annes Elwy was given the opportunity to portray the reserved Beth March from the prospective of one suffering from social anxiety disorder. And Elway did an excellent job of conveying Beth's emotional disorder and the struggles she endured to overcome it. Earlier, I had complained that Kathryn Newton was too old to portray Amy March during the first two years of the war. And I stand by this complaint. But I cannot deny that I ended up enjoying Newton's performance of the ambiguous Amy anyway. And I am thankful she did not make the mistake of exaggerating her performance to portray a character seven to eight years younger - something that many actors and actresses tend to do. Someone had once complained that Willa Fitzgerald's portrayal of the oldest March sister, seemed "too mature". And I do not understand this complaint. Meg was not only the oldest sibling, but possessed a personality that led her to occasionally behave like a "quasi parent" to her younger sisters. And Fitzgerald did a first-rate job in portraying his aspect of Meg's personality and her role within the March family hierarchy. As for Maya Hawke - questionable hairstyle aside - I truly enjoyed her performance as the story's main protagonist, the artistic and tomboyish Josephine "Jo" March. She did a superb job in capturing the many complex textures of Jo's personality. More importantly, Hawke also did an excellent job of developing Jo from this gawky and outgoing personality to someone forced to grow into adulthood - even if a little reluctantly. It is a pity that Hawke's performance was never acknowledge with an acting nomination of any kind. In fact, it is a pity that very few have been able to truly appreciate this adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's novel. The three-part miniseries seemed to be overshadowed by two recent adaptations - Gillian Armstrong's 1994 film and Greta Gerwig's 2019 production. I am not putting these two films down. But as far as I am concerned, Heidi Thomas' miniseries strikes me as worthy as those two films. In fact, I feel it is just as worthy as other adaptations of the novel - including the 1933 film and the adaptation released in 1949. I honestly did not believe I would enjoy this adaptation as much I did. And I have to give kudos to Heidi Thomas for creating a superb adaptation. She was aptly supported by excellent direction from Vanessa Caswill and a first-rate cast led by Maya Hawke. I look forward to viewing this adaptation in years to come.

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yeoldontknow · 5 years

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Totem

Author’s Note: this story is entirely an act of fiction. it contains strong, mature themes and features subjects which may be triggering or uncomfortable to read. these themes include, but not limited to: themes of abduction, references to ptsd, extreme trauma, and paranormal activity. please take these warnings seriously and do not read if any make you uncomfortable. | this story is written as a script, rather than a traditional prose fanfiction. even though its unusual, i still hope you enjoy it <3 happy spooptober! Pairing: Hoseok x Reader (oc; female) Genre: horror; suspense; thriller; haunted house au; light romance; au Summary: What follows is an account of YouTube vloggers Euripet3s1 and theJungProject. This is a report of the last known whereabouts of Jung Hoseok. Rating: M Warning: themes of abduction/ghostly possession; references to ptsd; extreme trauma; paranormal activity; explicit language; non-explicit nudity; graphic situations Word Count: 5.5K

Towards the end of my research for my Ph.D, I became fascinated by what has recently been cited as the "second wave" of realism films in production, thanks, in part, to the advent of creative social websites like YouTube and Vimeo. The introduction of reality and scripted reality television, alongside its relatively unilateral conjunction with the internet, sparked a new direction in filmmaking that prided itself on low budgets and the autonomy of immediate authorship.

Where Vimeo encouraged, and favoured, well produced filmmaking and art house developments from a range of semi-professionals to professionals, YouTube saw a strong dynamic shift in what eventually was defined as vlogging. Video series like Marble Hornets, Fewdio, and curiously chilling uploads by users such as EverymanHYBRID became cult canon amongst internet users. Instead of humour posts, video game plays, and make-up tutorials, users sought creative expression in 'noise aesthetics' and the horror genre.

On April 30, 2010, YouTube user Euripet3s1 (full name: Y/F/N Y/L/N) uploaded a video entitled #184-190 to her channel of 12,413 subscribers. It would be the final upload she would make before deactivating the account three weeks later, eventually removing herself from social media altogether. The video itself is an account of her trip to England to visit fellow YouTube vlogger and boyfriend theJungProject (full name: Jung Hoseok), who was residing in the country while finishing his degree, depicted through seven pieces of footage taken from video cameras and mobile phones.

Euripet3s1's channel was a comedy and lifestyle channel, in which she would present everyday information in a humorous way. Therefore, the unsettling events in the final video left both fans and casual viewers stunned. Avid fans of the Marble Hornets series were the first to draw attention to the video, before it went viral on hundreds of forums, including Reddit and BuzzFeed. When the users’ account was deactivated, the video was removed from the website only to resurface two months later by user TwerK (full name: Kim Taehyung). There are only two videos on TwerK's channel: #184-190 and Help Explain This.

Help Explain This was filmed in August 2011 and is the last surviving footage of Jung Hoseok.

Numerous attempts at paranormal investigations have occurred in the last two years with no results. Psychics have been brought to every location depicted, though their efforts have been futile. The pocket watch in the film has been defined, by paranormal researcher David Kelwayne, as a totem. To quote David:

"A totem is an item left behind by the dead which they had ascribed deep personal meaning or symbolism during their life. To come into contact with a totem is to contact the spirit attached to it, even if said contact is relatively erroneous; to become connected to the totem is to become connected with the spirit, often permanently" (Seeking Answers: Beginner's Guide To The Paranormal, 54)

This report exists only to present the video as it was found, in its untouched manner, for archival and historical purposes. The research to be found on the events, people, and locations involved has lead many in vast circles and down endless rabbit holes. It is my hope that the academic world will provide its resources for the many seeking answers about what truly happened to Jung Hoseok during that week in April.

Editor’s note: Heretofore, the speakers will be quoted using their first initials rather than their usernames.

#184

Duration: 1:46

[Exterior. Night-vision mid-close up of dirt path. Leaves cover the ground and crunch audibly. Feet remain in view as two persons walk the path in brisk, even steps. A low male voice is heard, his accent distinctly Korean. ]

H: Are you filming, Y/N?

[A second voice speaks, female. She is American]

Y/N: I have no idea. Your camera is weird.

H: It's no different from any American camera. It's a SONY. Has the green dot gone on?

Y/N: Well, it's different in the dark. Yeah, it has.

H: Then it's filming. Point it at your face, dummy.

[Camera is lifted and spun towards the holder's face, the night vision on the camera giving her a blue glow. She is young, no more than 24. The fringe of her hair gets caught in her eyes, trapped there by the hood of her sweater. She smiles brightly, waving at the camera momentarily.]

Y/N: And so we meet again! Today I am joined by theJungProject -

[camera pans left. A young man, also no more than 24, is walking briskly with his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. He squints at the light of the camera and pulls a face by sticking out his tongue]

- say hi, Hobi.

H: [nods once] Hello, Tiddy Harem.

Y/N [sighing]: Must you call them that?

H: [shaking black hair out of his eyes; he sniffs, not looking at the camera] You have thirteen thousand subscribers and 12,950 of them are men. Yeah, I'd say it's a harem.

Y/N: [snorting] I do not have thirteen thousand. And that's an insult to my fifty female subscribers.

H: You know I’m playing. [sniffs] You have fantastic tits, though.

Y/N: You’re literally disgusting. [turns camera back to her face] So, as you all remember I landed last night in Heathrow, after which I got embarrassingly drunk on incredible beer. We spent most of the day being hungover before getting on a train from - what station was it?

H: [in background] Liverpool Street.

Y/N: Right, yeah. We got a train from there to here, [pulls camera back to wave hand, denoting surrounding location] which is apparently Suffolk…specifically Sudbury. We had a grand idea to go to the Borley Rectory because I'm in England and apparently that means it's okay for Hobi to go on a midnight ghost hunt.

H: I'm not ghost hunting, I'm just…exploring.

Y/N: [faces camera; raises one eyebrow]

[Camera turns off]

~~~

#185

Duration: 7:08

[Interior; night. Camera pans from left to right as Y/N breathes heavily. The windows of the rectory are shattered. Leaves scatter the concrete floor. What little furniture existing within the house has been tattered and worn over time, the sheen of its once extraordinary grandeur decayed with dust and time. Y/N walks to her right, into a small dining area. The camera pans over a wooden table that is badly scratched, three long distinct marks marring the mahogany. A hand comes into view, Y/N’s, as she runs her fingers over the marks. The camera pans up and to the left, showing cabinets that are missing their drawers. She leaves the room, slowly walking towards the foyer. A mirror hangs on the wall, the light reflecting off the glass into the lens. She waves.]

H: [distantly; calling] Baby, come up here.

[Y/N head turns right, facing the direction of Hoseok’s voice. The camera turns right as she walks straight back toward a carpeted staircase. Slowly, she ascends it, her footsteps quiet and muffled by both the camera and the foliage. She sniffles. As she approaches the landing, a painting of a pasture comes into view. It is crooked. When she reaches the landing, the camera moves from right to left. There are three bedrooms]

Y/N: [loud whisper] Where are you?

H: [voice from left] In here.

[Camera passes through a doorway. Long shot of Hoseok at chest of drawers to the left. There is an empty bed on the right side of the room, the mattress bare and torn. The video pixelates for approximately two seconds, correcting itself. The windows of the bedroom are in tact, though the carpet has been ripped up from the floor in a seemingly random pattern. Y/N walks to where Hoseok is standing. Atop the chest are several items: a broken hairbrush, a small empty picture frame, an empty ring box and a pocket watch. Y/N zooms in on the pocket watch. Hoseok picks it up, his grip indelicate. Y/N turns the camera, and zooms out to a medium close up of Hoseok’s face as he inspects it]

H: [whispers] This rectory had hundreds of residents before it was condemned. I wonder whose this was.

Y/N: [also in a whisper] Hobi, this place was destroyed by a fire in 1939. Isn't it weird to you that there's still…..things, objects…belongings in here? Nothing seems terribly ruined.

[Pause. Hoseok does not reply. Y/N returns the subject to the pocket watch, appeasing him by maintaining focus on the object though her discomfort is evident.] It looks really old. Can't be from any time after 1920, look at the design. Early surrealist or something.

H: [humming in interest] How do you know that?

Y/N: I’m taking art history for my electives. I’m just saying it looks like something I’ve seen.

[The camera zooms back on to the pocket watch in Hoseok’s hand. There is a patch of dirt along the rim of the cover, but an intricate design of intertwined clock hands and numbers is distinct.]

H: This is mental. You know the more you look at it, the more it resembles a kind of face. Like from a masquerade.

[Long pause]

Y/N: I don't see it. Where are you looking?

[Hoseok’s thumb comes into view. It presses the button on the side to open the watch. The cover pops open with a soft click, revealing an elegant Victorian clock face.]

H: Too much to ask for it to be working, isn't it. [laughs]

Y/N: Probably needs to be wound.

[Hoseok closes the pocket watch.]

[Cut. Interior. Y/N thuds down the stairs after Hoseok, hands clasped and both laughing They come to a stop in the parlor. Hoseok inspects bookshelves, looking for something or nothing, running his fingers over the dusted wood. Y/N turns the camera away and zooms in on a picture frame. It is badly singed. The image of a woman, who looks almost sad, is barely discernible.]

Y/N: [muttering] Something about this……isn't……

[The sound of piano notes echo loudly through the room. Y/N screams loudly, swears, and is visibly shaken as she turns toward the noise. Hoseok sits at a piano by the back of the room, playing Erik Satie's "Gnossienne No. 1." He is chuckling. Y/N approaches him.]

Y/N: There's a fucking piano?

H: [plays uninterrupted] Scare you, did I?

Y/N: Hobi, is there anything about this that's ok? You said this place was destroyed by a fire and has been abandoned. Logic this out for me: why would there be a piano in a burned down house? Wouldn't the city have this cleared out?

[Hoseok shrugs]

Y/N: I think we should go.

H: Don't want to spend the night here? We haven't seen anything yet.

Y/N: I paid £35 for a train ticket to this hell. I'll cut my losses and say we’ve seen plenty enough, okay?

H: [expression softening, he stops playing. The silence is deafening.] Okay, baby, we can go.

[Cut. Exterior. Y/N and Hoseok walking along a residential sidewalk. Hoseok is holding the camera this time, pointed at Y/N in a long shot. Night vision is switched off, faces now illuminated by street lamps they pass. He whistles seductively.]

H: [whispering] Don’t tell anyone until she watches this guys...but I think I’m in love with her. [He turns the camera to face him. The camera zooms out to fit his face.] I mean it. [He looks over the camera to her.] I love her.

Y/N: [distant, off camera] What are you whining about back there?

H: [laughing, he catches up with Y/N and aims the camera at her profile] Say what you said again.

Y/N: [biting her cheek, but smiling nonetheless] I said you're a twunt.

H: Look at that! Y/N has spent 30 hours in this country and is already adopting its language.

Y/N: Yeah, well you are. Tell the audience what you did.

H: [turns the camera to his face and holds it out. His leather jacket is unzipped, revealing A Horrors band-tee shirt] I've been a naughty boy. [His other hand reaches into his pocket. He pulls out the pocket watch] Y/N’s upset with me because I wanted a souvenir.

Y/N: It's not yours, Hoseok.

H: [turns his face to Y/N, camera still aimed at himself. He puts the watch back in his pocket] It's technically not anyone's. Besides, this is one thing we could at least fix.

[Camera turns off]

#186

Duration: 2:01

[Interior. Hotel bedroom. Y/N sits at the desk provided, laptop open as she uploads footage from the video camera onto her computer. Her back is to the camera. The pocket watch twirls in front of the screen. Hoseok hums. The camera flips, revealing his face. It is clear he is filming on his iPhone. He starts to mouth lyrics to "Don't Stop Me Now," which is playing in the background. He flips the camera back to the watch.]

Y/N: [turns her head quickly over shoulder] Holy shit, come look at this.

[Hoseok drops the pocket watch and hoists himself off the sofa. He is wearing plaid flannel pants. He approaches the desk, leaning against the back of Y/N’s chair and extending his arm as he films.]

H: [kissing Y/N’s head off camera, voice muffled] What is it?

Y/N: You tell me. [looks back at Hoseok, anxious]

[Y/N has Final Cut open. She presses play on footage taken earlier in the evening. She has selected footage from when he ascended the stairs and entered the master bedroom. It plays without sound.]

H: What am I looking for….I don't…

Y/N: [quietly] Just wait.

[The footage shows the camera panning through the room. As it comes to the bed, the footage warps, revealing a figure wearing black sitting on the mattress. It turns to look at the camera. It is wearing a white mask. The footage warps again. The figure is gone]

H: [reels back] What the fuck is that?! Did you put that in there?

Y/N: [turns to look at Hoseok] No. How would I do that?

H: [words unsteady] I don't know, you're the film wizard. I still use iMovie. Maybe you have clever special effects or something.

Y/N: I can assure you that I have no idea how to superimpose an image that clear onto digital footage. I took one semester of New Media, I'm hardly advanced.

H: How did you not see it when you were filming?

Y/N: I don't know, the camera went all pixelated when I was filming but I just thought the battery was running low or something.

H: You better not be having me off.

Y/N: [brow furrowed, disbelieving] What does that sentence even mean?

H: Is this punishment for taking the pocket watch?

Y/N: [pursing her lips briefly before she speaks] I'm really not that upset about the pocket watch. Why would I do that?

H: Whatever. Let's just go to bed and forget about it. I don’t want this to turn into a fight.

Y/N: Fine by me.

[Video ends]

~~~

#187

Duration: 0:53

[Interior. Mid-Day. Close up of Y/N’s face. She stares at something out of view. Behind her, the scenery has changed. Band posters line the green wall, gig tickets and setlists framed next to them. This is what many assume is Hoseok’s bedroom.]

Y/N: [whispers] He's been like this all morning. I have no idea what the hell is going on. He was fine yesterday when we got back from Borley. Fine when we went to lunch, fine when we went to The Borderline for the Lescop gig. Now, he won't stop staring at that goddamn pocket watch. Look.

[The camera is flipped, again the film is from an iPhone. Hoseok sits shirtless on the bed, hickeys dotting his neck and collarbone, the pocket watch in his left hand. He stares almost impassively at it.]

Y/N: [loudly] Hobi.

[Hoseok does not respond]

Y/N: [louder] Hoseok, what the fuck are you doing?

[Hoseok does not respond]

Y/N: [mutters quietly] Jesus Christ.

[The camera tilts and wobbles, tipping down for a moment as Y/N bends to pick something up. A shoe is thrown in frame and lands on the bed right next to Hoseok. Hoseok lifts his head, dropping the watch. He smiles]

H: Want breakfast, baby?

Y/N: [long pause; quiet breathing] Uh huh.

[video ends]

~~~~

#188

Duration: 3:21

[Exterior. Mid-Day. Extreme long shot of Hoseok as he stands in front of a wooden sign that says Boxer's Lake. From the pockets of his leather jacket he pulls the pocket watch]

H: [looking over his shoulder; calls] You sure this is a good idea.

Y/N: [loudly; voice garbled by wind into microphone] You should have seen yourself, Hobi. It's gotta be the watch and I don’t want to go back there to return it.

[Hoseok reels back and throws the watch into the lake. He stares after it, shoulders drooped and jaw tense]

[Cut. Interior of a car. Hoseok is driving. Y/N points the camera at his face.]

Y/N: How do you feel?

H: Like my soul has been ripped from my chest.

[Pauses. Looks at Y/N]

H: [bursts into laughter] Chill out, baby. I feel fine.

Y/N: [laughs weakly]

[Cut. Interior. Hoseok’s kitchen. Y/N films as Hoseok brews tea.]

H: You want any, love?

Y/N: Nah, water is fine.

H: [looks up at camera] Are you going to film everything?

Y/N: We have an interested audience. Need to keep them satisfied. And besides, I’m only here for a week. I want to remember everything with you.

H: [begins to pull off shirt, suggestively wiggling his eyebrows.]

Y/N: [laughter] Don’t start with that!

H: [straightens and flattens shirt] You said satisfied! Y/N: [still laughing] Yeah, well, that’s just for me and I’d like to keep it that way.

[Hoseok bites his lip, happy, and walks to a cabinet to the left. He makes to open it, but his attention is brought to something on the counter beneath it. He pauses. His hand slowly drops from the knob of the cabinet. The colour drains from his face]

Y/N: What?

[Hoseok brings his eyes to the camera, lips parted. He is visibly disturbed. He lifts his right hand. He holds up the pocket watch. Y/N’s breath becomes heavy and labored]

H: [voice small] What the fuck.

[Camera shuts off]

~~~

#189

Duration: 8:32

[Interior. Mid-Day. Hoseok’s car, again. Y/N holds the camera as Hoseok drives, lens pointed out the windshield]

Y/N: Slow down, Hobi.

H: [voice hollow] No. The fucking watch is ticking…and existing. How is any of what just happened possible?

Y/N: I don't know, I don't know.

H: This is fucking twisted.

Y/N: What are you going to do?

H: Leave it in a field? Pawn it off? Whatever, as long as it's far away from me.

Y/N: Why not burn it?

H: Any fire I make wouldn't get the metal hot enough.

Y/N: Just don't get reckless. [Pleading] Please, baby?

[Cut. Interior. A Pawnshop. The camera pans along a shelf. Various objects come into focus. A door opens and an older man comes into view from the back of the store. To the left of the frame, Hoseok walks over and introduces himself]

H: Hi. Uhm, I'm Hoseok. I need to sell a pocket watch?

[The store clerk looks from Hoseok to Y/N]

Clerk: Get your mate to turn the camera off and then we can do business.

[Cut. Interior. Hoseok’s car. Y/N has rested the camera on the dashboard, pointed at the passing scenery]

H: WOOOO! £650 for a shitty old watch!!

Y/N: I think the fact that it was still working was what sold him.

H: Who knows how long it will work for. We practically robbed him.

Y/N: You practically robbed him. I almost got thrown out for having a camera.

H: Eh. He was probably drunk from boredom. I would be, too, if I had to sit in silence eight hours a day.

[Cut. Interior. Night. Hoseok’s kitchen. Hoseok presses play on his answering machine as he takes off his coat. Y/N sits at a chair at the kitchen table and zooms in on a Sainsbury's frozen dinner.]

Y/N: Mmmmmm.

[In the background, a voice is heard on the answering machine.]

Recorded Voice: Mr. Jung. It's Geoff. You sold me a watch not two hours ago. I’d like to make it clear I don't appreciate being fucked with. [Y/N brings the camera around, landing on Hoseok who is paused at his refrigerator staring at the machine, frowning.] I get enough shit in my town, and I certainly don't need non-locals breezing through and pulling pranks. I'm giving you twenty-four hours to return the watch or my money to the store. If you don't, I'm calling the cops and we can settle this with legal action. [Machine beeps]

[Hoseok remains paused at the refrigerator - frozen. He begins to visibly tense and Y/N gets up from the kitchen table. She approaches him slowly, before Hoseok slams the refrigerator door shut and rushes into the living room]

Y/N: [shouts] Hoseok!

H: [yells] Where the fuck is it? WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT WITH ME?

[Y/N enters the living room and turns right. Hoseok is standing in front of his mantle, hitting his chest with the flat of his palms. He stares at the ceiling and screams]

H: [still yelling] YOU CAN HAVE YOUR FUCKING WATCH BACK, I DON'T WANT IT.

Y/N: [yelling over Hoseok] HOSEOK, THERE IS NO ONE ELSE HERE.

H: [looks at Y/N] Of course there is! How else would any of this be happening? [Turns abruptly and heads down the hallway. He disappears into his room.

Y/N: Fuck’s sake.

[Y/N follows and enters Hoseok’s room. Hoseok is pulling books out of shelves. He abandons that project and quickly goes to his bed, where he up-turns his mattress]

H: [yelling again] WHERE IS IT, HUH?

Y/N: Hoseok, calm the hell down!

[Hoseok turns and rushes past Y/N. Y/N follows]

Y/N: Hoseok, ripping up the house isn't going to solve anything!

H: It's not in my room, it's not in the kitchen. It makes itself known, right? It wants to fucking be seen. The goddamn ATTENTION WHORE.

Y/N: It's an inanimate object, Hoseok, stop!

[Hoseok stomps into the kitchen and picks up his jacket. He pauses for a moment, softening, and reaches into a pocket. He pulls out the watch]

H: [staring at the watch] Something…someone…whatever…wants me to have this. I don't. Fucking. Want it.

[**In the recorded footage, a voice is heard. It clearly says “But you took it.” Neither Y/N nor Hoseok reacts to it and neither has spoken. This voice was pointed out by YouTube user Sarkozam12**]

[camera turns off]

~~~

#190

Duration: 8:00

[Interior. Night. The couches and chairs have been removed from Hoseok’s living room. Two pillows are placed on the ground, side by side, beneath the coffee table where a ouija board as been set up. The scene is lit by numerous candles along the floor and mantle. Fingers over the microphone cause muffled noises and garbled sounds. Hoseok enters from frame right. He sits, in jeans a tee shirt, on one of the pillows. He takes a swig of cider before setting it next to him. He looks slightly above the camera.]

Y/N: [off camera] This is a terrible idea, Hobi.

H: [solemn] Is the camera set up?

Y/N: [pauses, sighs] Yeah, it's just about.done tightening the tripod.

H: Good.

[Y/N enters from the bottom of frame left. It's a long shot of the living room. Y/N sits next to Hoseok. They look at each other briefly. Hoseok draws his eyes away and onto the Oujia board. Y/N’s brow furrows, and she reaches to twine her fingers with Hoseok’s. The contact has him return his gaze to hers, smiling before he leans in and kisses her deeply. Pulling back, he kisses her knuckles three times. Hoseok’s expression hardens]

H: [quietly] I love you.

Y/N: [smiling; quietly] I’m still not used to you saying that. [pauses] I love you, too.

H: [inhaling deeply] Let's do this.

[Y/N pauses. Hoseok looks at her, concerned.]

H: Don't tell me you're quitting on this.

Y/N: [looks at the ground] Ouija boards are scary, serious shit, Hoseok. I don't think we should fuck around with this. We’ve already fucked up so much shit.

H: [shaking his head] I fucked up. And I just don’t know what other choice I have.

[Y/N pauses briefly, hesitating before leaning in to kiss him once more. They whisper to one another as they break apart, kissing for a few more seconds before separating fully. Pulling her hand from his, she sighs and places both hands on the planchette. Hoseok follows suit and does the same]

H: [uncomfortable] What do I say?

Y/N: [loudly] Is there anyone here with us?

[They remain quiet and wait. The planchette does not move.]

H: What if we contact Zozo? That's the opposite of what I want.

Y/N: [giggling, though her sense of amusement is unconvicing] Don't be stupid.

[Both are silenced by the planchette which has started to move in swirls across the board.]

H: Is that you?

Y/N: No, I'm barely touching this.

H: [shaking his head] It's not me.

[The planchette stops on the word 'Bye']

H: [pauses] Well, that's sinister.

[The video warps into pixels and corrects itself. Three candles have been blown out. Y/N is panicked]

Y/N: What the fuck did that?

H: [loudly] What is your name?

[The planchette moves, quickly. Y/N says the letters it stops on.]

Y/N: L…A…I…R…R…E. D…D…D…E…A…T…H.

H: Lairreedddeath? The hell?

Y/N: I'm busy focusing on the part that - [The video warps. the masked figure from #186 appears behind Hoseok, getting closer after each pixel correction. A white hand with sharp nails reaches for his neck. It disappears] in the fire?

[The Marimba ringtone of an iPhone goes off]

H: Shit. That's mine.

Y/N: Leave it.

[The planchette spins out of control and falls from the table onto the floor. All the candles are blown out at the same time, though there is no wind to disrupt the atmosphere. The camera shifts to night vision. Both draw their attention to the bright light from the camera]

Y/N: Does your camera shift modes automatically?

H: No, what -

[A loud thud is heard, the sound of a door slamming open to the left, its metal knob hitting the wall. The door to what is considered a broom closet has flung open, but its interior is black and occasionally blurred by pixelated static. Y/N turns to look at the noise, but Hoseok disappears from view. We hear him scream]

Y/N: Hoseok?!? [Y/N searches frantically for where the sound is coming from. She turns her attention back to the door, eyes wide in alarm.] Hoseok?

[Y/N gets up and approaches the closet but the door slams shut. The lights of the house come on. Y/N opens the door to the closet. It is just a closet. The tripod falls over. The screen goes blue and flashes NO BATTERY]

~~~

Given the found footage nature of the editing and the allusion by Hoseok that Y/N was proficient in film editing, at least once mentioning the capability of using special effects in post production, many of the initial viewers of #186-190 believed the story of Hoseok’s disappearance was a clever hoax. While this report remains unbiased, it is important to point out several facts.

Firstly, it is true that Jung Hoseok went missing from his shared home April 25, 2010. The phone call received on his mobile during #190 was from his mother, mentioned in Y/F/N Y/L/N’s police report, who had not seen her son since April 11, 2010. Secondly, the pocket watch, and the clothing in which Hoseok disappeared in, have never been found. Until August 2011, the footage captured during #190 depicted the last known whereabouts of Jung Hoseok.

When Y/N deactivated her account, #184-190 was removed from YouTube in accordance with YouTube’s privacy policies, however not before user TwerK had downloaded the video to a flash drive. In June of 2010, the video was uploaded to Kim Taehyung’s channel, with reasons citing the urgency for fans and interested parties to continue to study the video - i.e in search of clues or proof of a hoax. It is worth noting that while there is a well documented friendship and romantic relationship between Euripet3s1 and theJungProject (ie: both were subscribers to each other's channels, the earliest comments on each party's videos date back to 2008, Euripet3s1 tagged theJungProject in a video called Top 10 Films of 2009, etc) TwerK did not subscribe to either channel, nor has he confessed to knowing either personally.

It is because of these reasons that the footage in Help Explain This is, in a word, astounding. The film itself was uploaded with a description consisting of a personal plea from Taehyung to help explain what he had caught. Once the video was live, Taehyung experienced a brief period of notoriety on the internet, while simultaneously going under fire by those close to Hoseok who called his video 'tactless and offensive.'

It is also worth noting that Y/N has become reclusive since these events and has not been available for comment since late 2010, on advice from her therapist.

Help Explain This

Duration: 4:03

[Interior. Mid-Day. Footsteps thud up the stairs of Borley Rectory. The camera is pointed at the landing, but the painting is gone. The person arrives at the landing and he speaks. He is Korean.]

T: Okay. So. Kim Taehyung here. I’m sorry in advance for any English mistakes, but a few subscribers wanted me to visit the rectory while I am here on vacation. Yes, yes, I know it's weird that my YouTube channel only has one video on it, but some of you on Reddit convinced me to make this. Here we are [Camera pans right to left, light pours in from holes in the ceiling. The home appears to be empty.]. Exact same spot where Euripet3s1 stood. As you can see there is no painting on the wall. Ehm.

[He turns to his left and enters the bedroom, panning the camera right to left as Y/N had done. A naked figure stands in the back right corner of the bedroom, his back to the camera, facing the wall]

T: Again, the room is completely empty. The walls are badly burned. I know you all want to believe this was a hoax, but there's no way these two had the budget. You can't even get up the stairs easily without worrying about falling through.

[He turns left, zooming to an extreme long shot. The right side of the room out of frame.]

T: This is where theJungProject found the pocket watch. No chest of drawers here. [Camera pans down, showing his feet] You can see the boards of the floor are burned. I'm too afraid to even put weight there. [He presses his foot to the floor, retracting it immediately.]

[Raising the camera, he turns the camera back to right, slightly, showing the whole of the room. The figure from the corner has turned around and is standing naked in a full body shot. The camera pixelates. The figure is now close to the lens, able to be viewed from the middle of the waist up. His mouth and eyes are wide open, but blackened as though holes. The figure is clearly Jung Hoseok.]

T: That's it, then. Sorry the video was so lame.

[He turns and leaves the room. The camera does one last pan from the landing back to the room. The foyer below is empty. The room he had just exited is empty]

Fin.

Author’s Note #2: The locations in this story - Borley Rectory, Boxer's Lake, Liverpool Street Station, Suffolk, and Sudbury - are all real places. Borley Rectory was known as 'the most haunted house in England' and it did get severely burned in 1939. There is actually a woman who haunted the building named Marie Lairre.

380 notes · View notes

skonnaris · 5 years

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O’Dell, Scott - Island of the Blue Dolphins

Offerman, Nick - Gumption

O’Neill, Eugene - Long Day’s Journey Into Night

A Touch of the Poet

Orwell, George - Animal Farm

Owens, Delia - Where the Crawdads Sing

Paulus, Trina - Hope for the Flowers

Pausch, Randy - The Last Lecture

Patchett, Ann - The Dutch House

Peck, Scott M. - The Road Less Traveled

- The Road Less Traveled and Beyond

Paterson, Katherine - Bridge to Teribithia

Picoult, Jodi - My Sister’s Keeper

Pirsig, Robert - Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Puzo, Mario - The Godfather

Quindlen, Anna - Black and Blue

Radish, Kris - Annie Freeman’s Fabulous Traveling Funeral

Redfield, James - The Celestine Prophecy

Rickert, Mary - The Memory Garden

Rogers, Carl - On Becoming a Person

Ruiz, Miguel - The Fifth Agreement

- The Four Agreements

- The Mastery of Love

Rum, Etaf - A Woman is No Man

Saint-Exupery, Antoine de - The Little Prince

Salinger, J.D. - Catcher in the Rye

Schumacher, E.F. - Small is Beautiful

Sebold, Alice - The Almost Moon

- The Lovely Bones

Shaffer, Mary Ann and Anne Barrows - The Gurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Shakespeare, William - Alls Well That Ends Well

- Much Ado About Nothing

- Romeo and Juliet

- The Sonnets

- The Taming of the Shrew

- Twelfth Night

- Two Gentlemen of Verona

Sides, Hampton - Hellhound on his Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the International Hunt for His Assassin

Silverstein, Shel - The Giving Tree

Skinner, B.F. - About Behaviorism

Smith, Betty - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Snyder, Zilpha Keatley - The Velvet Room

Spinelli, Jerry - Loser

Spolin, Viola - Improvisation for the Theater

Stanislavski, Constantin - An Actor Prepares

Stedman, M.L. - The Light Between Oceans

Steinbeck, John - Travels with Charley

Steiner, Peter - The Terrorist

Stockett, Kathryn - The Help

Strayer, Cheryl - Wild

Streatfeild, Dominic - Brainwash

Strout, Elizabeth - My Name is Lucy Barton

Tartt, Donna - The Goldfinch

Taylor, Kathleen - Brainwashing: The Science of Thought Control

Thomas, Matthew - We Are Not Ourselves

Thoreau, Henry David - Walden

Tolle, Eckhart - A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose

- The Power of Now

Towles, Amor - A Gentleman in Moscow

- Rules of Civility

Tracey, Diane and Lesley Morrow - Lenses on Reading

Traub, Nina - Recipe for Reading

Tzu, Lao - Tao Te Ching

United States Congress - Project MKULTRA, the CIA's program of research in behavioral modification: Joint hearing before the Select Committee on Intelligence and the ... Congress, first session, August 3, 1977

Van Allsburg, Chris - Just a Dream

- Polar Express

- Sweet Dreams

- Stranger

- Two Bad Ants

Walker, Alice - The Color Purple

Waller, Robert James - Bridges of Madison County

Warren, Elizabeth - A Fighting Chance

Waugh, Evelyn - Brideshead Revisited

Weir, Andy - The Martian

Weinstein, Harvey M. - Father, Son and CIA

Welles, Rebecca - The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood

Westover, Tara - Educated

White, E.B. - Charlotte’s Web

Wilde, Oscar - The Picture of Dorien Gray

Wolfe, Tom - I Am Charlotte Simmons

Wolitzer, Meg - The Female Persuasion

Woolf, Virginia - Mrs. Dalloway

Zevin, Gabrielle - The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

Zusak, Marcus - The Book Thief

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shockapella-sweet · 5 years

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Mortal Kombat Fanfic Ideas

‘Cause after watching the Story Mode for Mortal Kombat 11, I’ve been hit by a ton of feels and needed to let them out before my candyfloss brain melted:

A series of ficlets where, just before Liu Kang and Kitana create a new timeline from scratch, various characters/OTPs (eg. Hanzo and Kuai, Ermac and Kenshi, Cassie and her parents, etc) are temporarily stuck in a purgatory-like void where they reminisce over everything that’s happened to them from MK9′s events onward, question what will become of them, and finally say their last farewells - or, possibly, “Until meet again” - in case they do/don’t ever see each other again in the new timeline.

Past!Jax and Jacqui Briggs talking about Takeda on the boat en-route to Shang Tsung’s Island, with Jax hearing about how they got engaged and how they want to plan their wedding, to how Present!Jax is still wary of Takeda marrying his baby girl and the possibility of being left alone on the farm. It can sort of end with past!Jax promising Jacqui to support her marriage to Takeda, and that when the time comes, he wants to walk her down the aisle.

A look at how Johnny Cage and Sony Blade reconciled between the events of MKX and MK11 (’cause God alone knows I wanna know how that happened).

A slashfic that also explains why Kung Jin isn’t in MK11: perhaps some time after the events of MKX, he pursues a romantic/sexual relationship with Erron Black, something which Dark Raiden and the Shaolin monastery don’t approve of (not so much because of his orientation, but more so because he’s seeing a member of Kotal Kahn’s court, making Black an enemy of Earthrealm). So Dark Raiden has Jin return to the White Lotus as punishment, and he can’t even help out in MK11. Then, in Liu Kang and Kitana’s new timeline, evil characters like Shang Tsung don’t exist, meaning Erron isn’t and can’t become immortal; he’s still born in the American Frontier years, and goes on to become one of the most famous outlaws in history, but eventually dies due to his normal human lifespan. Hundreds of years later, Jin - also alive in this new timeline - is a Law student/Shaolin monk-in-training. However, when he finds out about Erron Black in his research about past crimes and Earthrealm laws at a library (or in the Shaolin archives), he suddenly remembers that he knows this outlaw from somewhere, and the only possible person who can explain everything is Raiden. Cue all the angst, finger-pointing and even more angst.

Past!Kabal is apprehended by Special Forces after Sonya Blade’s chapter in MK11 (and directly after Kano’s death). He’s taken to an interrogation room of sorts, where Present!Johnny Cage is there to meet him. Kabal expects Johnny to torture and burn him alive, as Kano claimed would happen at the fight club. Instead, Johnny shows Kabal a picture of Stryker, explaining that the police officer was his partner (professionally and possibly romantically). Johnny tells him the truth about his burns and his becoming a revenant, and that if Kabal had continued his police training instead of joining the Black Dragon, perhaps he would have had a shot at true happiness, no matter how brief it lasted.

A slashfic about Kenshi and Ermac, and their last moments dying together in the Krypt, based on @paleicelight‘s stunning artwork.

Hanzo Hasashi recounts his entire life-story spanning from MK9 to MK11 ... in the style of Bridget Jones’ Diary.

Kitana reuniting with Sindel and King Jerrod in a peaceful Edenia.

A Hangover-type fic where, after Shinnok’s defeat in MKX, S-F, the Lin Kuei and the Shirai Ryu clans have a raucous celebration ... come the next morning, Johnny and Sonya are suddenly married again after flying out to Vegas, Hanzo ends up with a mysterious love-bite on his neck, Jacqui thinks Takeda and Cassie hooked up after finding them in bed together, Raiden goes missing, Shinnok’s decapitated head is found lying in a puddle of beer (and may or may not be slightly tipsy), and Erron Black comes all the way from Outworld claiming that everyone at the palace has been frozen in ice and that someone stole his hat in the middle of the night. The only one who knows what’s going on is Kung Jin, who doesn’t drink. Of course, he’s not gonna explain what happened that easily.

Kuai Liang breaks down some time after fighting Noob Saibot, and Hanzo tries to comfort him, because he knows the pain of losing loved ones. Could be slash or not.

Smoke is alone and afraid in the Netherrealm, feeling like he’s been abandoned by Kuai Liang after all these years of suffering. Suddenly, Geras appears out of nowhere and tries to persuade him to join Kronika’s cause. In the process, Smoke either makes a genuine friend or “disappears” if he refuses.

Liu Kang and Kitana start out crafting the new timeline with good intentions. However, after a long while, they start manipulating time to suit their own needs, and repeatedly reboot the timeline when they see fit, even going as far as to erase their friends and allies from history altogether. In other words, they become the very thing Liu-liu defeated: Kronika ..

After passing on his protector duties to Liu Kang, Raiden feels at peace for the first time in years. After advising Liu Kang and Kitana in shaping the new timeline, he enjoys his mortal state and its little pleasures. From seeing the Kombat Kids moving onto new ventures in their lives, to seeing Earthrealm, Outworld, Edenia and all the other realms working together, Raiden can’t be any more happier. By the time he dies - in a warm bed at the Sky Temple, perhaps surrounded by his friends and loved ones - he is truly at peace, and is ready for the joys of the afterlife.

A complete retelling of MK11′s Story Mode ... BUT with some of the missing characters from MKX. Picture it: Kronika brings back Mileena to help Shao Kahn (also by bringing her back, it appeases Shao Kahn and makes him trust Kronika more). However, Mileena is conflicted between helping Daddy Dearest when he’s indirectly working with D’Vorah, her executioner, or working with Kitana to take back Outworld’s throne - although that means working with Kotal Kahn, who also had a hand in her death. Meawhile, Reptile and Ferra/Torr are convinced by Kronika to join her in her cause, as they see the potential of their races coming back to life in the timeline reboot (seeing her bring back past kombatants solidifies their trust in her - if she’s got that kind of power, then surely she can restore their races without question). Kuai Liang and Hanzo bump into Noob Saibot and Revenant!Smoke at the factory: not only does it pain Kuai to see his brother still alive and quite evil, but to see his best friend - his brother in arms - working alongside Noob for Kronika’s cause just about breaks him. For the Jax and Jacqui story arc, instead of a crown of souls they have to fetch, it’s actually Ermac that Kronika’s really after (being a huge soul collective and all); given he’s still part of Kotal Kahn’s remaining court, the emperor has the construct protected; in steps Kenshi, who has an inkling that he and Ermac were close friends in a past timeline, so he picks himself to guard Ermac. This causes conflict with both past!Jax (who’s miffed about losing his arms) and present!Jax (who’s equally miffed PLUS needs to take Ermac - alive - to Kronika). Cue a conflict of interest also erupting between Kenshi and Jax, and how this may affect Takeda and Jacqui’s relationship. Meanwhile, Kung Jin is back with the White Lotus (possibly for the reasons above or not), and is able to help out after Dark Raiden’s demise: he fights alongside Kung Lao and Liu Kang (which has so much potential for family fluff, introspection on their past lives, discussion of cultural values, Jin’s homosexuality, etc), as well as assist S-F (maybe during the Black Dragons’ assault on S-F, or when they raid the fight club). With his knowledge, maybe Raiden and everyone could potentially find Kronika’s Keep a lot sooner than later. Also, “By the Elder Gods, Black, walking around in the Outworld sun did you no f****** favours in the future.”

Kabal settling down with Sareena, based on his Tower Ending ... ha ha, just kidding! As if I’d do something like that. XP

That’s it. I think that’s all I’ve got so far. I think it’s a decent-ish mix of drama, romance and humour.

Whether or not I will actually write these fics some day, I don’t know. But it’s fun thinking about the possibilities, especially after how MK11′s Story Mode broke me. ^3^

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wordsparks · 4 years

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“I have spent a good many years since -- too many, I think -- being ashamed about what I write. I think I was forty before I realized that almost every writer of fiction and poetry who has ever published a line has been accused by someone of wasting his or her God-given talent. If you write (or paint or dance or sculpt or sing, I suppose), someone will try to make you feel lousy about it, that’s all. I’m not editorializing, just trying to give you the facts as I see them.”

“But none of them taught me the things I learned from Carrie White. The most important is that the writer’s original perception of a character or characters may be as erroneous as the reader’s. Running a close second was the realization that stopping a piece of work just because it’s hard, either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea. Sometimes you just have to go on when you don’t feel like it, and sometimes you’re doing good work when it feels like all you’re managing is to shovel s*** from a sitting position.”

“In terms of genre, it’s probably fair to assume that you will begin by writing what you love to read....If you happen to be a science fiction fan, it’s natural that you should want to write science fiction (and the more of it you’ve read, the less likely it is that you’ll simply revisit the field’s well-mined conventions, such as space opera and dystopian satire). If you’re a mystery fan, you’ll want to write mysteries, and if you enjoy romances, it’s natural for you to want to write romances of your own. There’s nothing wrong with writing any of these things. What would be very wrong, I think, is to turn away from what you know and like (or love, the way I loved those old ECs and black-and-white horror flicks) in favor of things you believe will impress your friends, relatives, and writing-circle colleagues. What’s equally wrong is the deliberate turning toward some genre or type of fiction in order to make money. It’s morally wonky, for one thing -- the job of fiction is to find the truth inside the story’s web of lies, not to commit intellectual dishonesty in the hunt for the buck. Also, brothers and sisters, it doesn’t work.”

-Stephen King, On Writing

#not a reblog #quotes #writing

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bthump · 6 years

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when did you first get into berserk? what made you fall in love with griffith, guts and their relationship/dynamic? (btw i love this blog. it's a gem admist the rubble that is the berserk fandom. keep up the good work ❤)

Thank you, that’s awesome to hear!

Well I watched the anime with a friend and then read a scanlation several years ago, and I enjoyed it and casually shipped griffguts but I didn’t really get super into it back then, probably because the scanlation was hard to follow and often confusing, and I never ended up rewatching the anime despite being tempted bc the rape and attempted rape scenes put me off too much to dive back into it.

Then a couple years ago I got into a conversation about Berserk w/ someone and found out Guts and co finally got off the boat so I was like, hey maybe I should re-read it and catch up. So I found the dark horse translation and just fell completely head over heels for it lol.

And I think I got so into it bc of the double whammy of how well Guts, Griffith, and griffguts hits so many of my favourite ship and character tropes, and how thoroughly the story is about their relationship, and how it’s actively enriched by reading their relationship as mutual pining and repressed attraction lol. Like, it legit fits everything perfectly and makes the story more coherent and thematically rich.

So like, on a personal level, everything griffguts is just enjoyable to me. I love how Guts reads like Miura’s attempt to take an over the top action antihero archetype and actually delve into what would make a dude that fucked up. I love the way the Black Swordsman arc subverts expectations that way - you expect a big action climax when Guts encounters the dude he wants revenge on, and instead he’s physically helpless at the time and can’t do much of anything except lie on the ground listening to a story that parallels his own backstory lol, the climax is actually fueled by emotional revelations about his former relationship with the dude he wants revenge on, and then we segue into the Golden Age and learn all about Guts’ traumatic childhood and why he has giant issues around being traded away by someone he loves, as well as why he’s irrationally driven to fight strong opponents.

Like I’m admittedly just a sucker for big tough scary badass is still basically a scared abused attention starved kid deep down.

And Griffith is just my ideal character. Like start off with one of my favourite character types of calm, collected, competent dude who is a huge mess of issues behind that veneer, and then add about 50 more things I adore, like his narrative of being torn between his love for another dude and the thing he built his entire life around; the way he lies to himself (”I don’t feel guilty” while he’s self-harming, eg); the way his feminine beauty is emphasized both as an asset and a source of trauma; his hardcore repression; his pursuit of a utopia; the way his dream of a utopia is ultimately framed as stemming from a desire to escape from a harsh reality; his guilt and self-loathing; the emotional vulnerability that occasionally seeps through the cracks in his mask; self-destructiveness; the irony of becoming a monster because he already erroneously sees himself as one; trying to escape his feelings of love because they’re devastating and life-ruining… ok I need to stop at some point here.

And god griffguts like. The aformentioned dude being torn between the thing he values most in life and his love for another dude - fucking love that. Destroying his life because of that love. “How long ago did someone I was supposed to have in hand… instead gain such a strong hold on me” is like a summarization of my absolute favourite romance dynamic where feelings + emotional vulnerability reverses the expected power dynamic. Epic misunderstandings stemming from strong characterization - like I understand why Guts left, why he didn’t explain himself to Griffith, why Griffith threw his life away after that, why Griffith chose to sacrifice him, and it’s so satisfying because it makes perfect sense from a character standpoint. I love that kind of romantic tragedy, 2 people fucking up due to their own tragic flaws. And the potential they had - like the reason it’s a tragedy is because they could’ve been so perfect together. Guts wanted someone to look at him, someone who loved him and admired him and needed him, and that was Griffith. And Griffith wanted someone to know him, even the parts he himself hates, and love him anyway, and that was Guts.

Like they’re positioned as each others’ positive alternatives to their destructive dreams, but due to their respective issues and insecurities they end up losing that relationship in favour of pursuing those dreams. It’s perfect.

And like I mentioned, reading it as romantic pining just makes the story better. It fits into the theme of trauma getting between them and ruining their potential, it fits into the sense of lost potential for a mutually fulfilling relationship, it fits into the way the tragedy comes not from their intense feelings for each other but from their failure to define and act on them, it fits into the way the misunderstanding that separates them is literally just both dudes failing to realize their feelings for the other are mutual and returned:

Guts:

Griffith:

Guts (literally remembering the exact same scene Griffith is remembering):

It’s Just. So. Good. I can’t get enough of this. I’ve never read a tragic romance more satisfying than the first 2 arcs of Berserk.

Anyway thank you for giving me the opportunity to ramble at length about this lol.

#ask #griffguts #a #b #i couldn't answer this with just a specific scene or moment that hit me and got me interested anyway #bc i don't remember the first time i saw berserk well enough to recall what made me love the characters and start shipping them lol #so instead here have a giant post about everything i love about them #Anonymous #long post

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dungeonecologist · 5 years

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WILD ARMS 2 - Golgotha Prison

The name is not subtle, but the reference itself is actually oddly superficial. At the end of the dungeon, Ashley is separated briefly from the party and Lilka and Brad are captured and tied to crosses, evoking the characters Dismus and Gestas, the thieves crucified during the same execution as the biblical christ. There is little reference to that actual narrative however, instead seeming to draw from the fact that the name Golgotha is taken to be an epithet to mean literally “A Place of Skulls,” which seems rather appropriate and obvious for an execution field.

Bookending the start and end of this dungeon, we fight the boss monster, Trask. First in a scripted “loss” and then in a solo match with Ashley’s new dark henshin hero form, the “Grotesque Black Knight,” Knightblazer.

“Trask” is yet another transliteration* issue that comes from the juggling between languages. It actually comes from the Tarrasque, another monster most readily identified from its appearance in the original Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual, itself originally taken from semi-obscure French myth of Saint Martha of Bethany and the Tarasque of Tarascon.

*(I realize I use this word a lot and it might not be as common use to others. A “translation” lifts meaning between languages; a “transliteration” is to lift written characters between them. Example: “Left” in English translates to 左[the direction] or 残[what remains] but transliterates to レフト. Inversely 左 and 残 both translate back to English as “Left” but transliterate as “hidari” and “zan” respectively; and レフト transliterates back into English as “refuto.”)

Surprisingly, the Wild Arms 2 design (which would also go on to persist as the core design throughout the rest of the Wild Arms series) is based more on the original myth than the D&D representations tend to be: While the end product looks nothing like the depictions of the Tarasque of myth, it retains the spiked turtle shell, the prominent dual horns, poisonous quality, and fins on its head here account for being “half fish.”

Also of note is that the title card identifies it as a “Dragonoid” and it has various metallic and machine-like features. These details are neat because it positions it as being not-quite a dragon, to work around a fact that will pop up much later: That dragons in Filgaia are extinct. And also to play into the fact that Dragons in Wild Arms are semi-mechanical lifeforms.

In any case, our scripted loss to Trask the first time around ends with the team knocked out and imprisoned in what appears to be a disused execution ground and associated holding cells. In our escape we run into monsters fitting the theme, who appear to be natural inhabitants, rather than guards put in place by the Odessa terrorist soldiers who are actually holding us here.

First up is the Wight, a classic undead warrior monster generally taken from D&D, but with a little more behind it than you might expect. The term Wight in English lore actually traces back quite far as an archaic term with little to no real association with monsters. The real intersection with name and subject comes from an early English translation of the Nordic Grettis Saga; In it the zombie-like creatures now better known as Draugr were referred to as apturgangr (lit.”againwalker”) but were translated as Barrow-wight. (lit.”[burial-]mound person”)

This may seem an odd choice, but the translation came at the hands of the eminent bookman William Morris. I say “bookman” because he was not just a prolific author of prose and poetry, but a pioneer of the revival of the British textile and printing industry. He and his wife, Jane Burden, did extensive arts, craft and design work in book and print design, book binding, and wall paper all stemming from the intricate design of modular and tiled printing blocks and stamps. Oh and he translated various works of epic poetry and myth into English, including old Roman epics, French knightly romances, and of course Norse sagas. (all of which he wrote and published what was basically fanfiction of, btw)

His seemingly erroneous “translation” of the Barrow-wight came as an attempt to reflect a comparable agedness to the name: Rather than translating from old Norse into modern English, he chose what he thought a suitable old English equivalent; “Barrow” referring to pre-christian Anglo-Saxon burial mounds, and “Wight” meaning “thing” or “creature” but often used disparagingly to refer to a person. The nuance there is actually quite clever, as the old Wight referred pretty exclusively to those living, even if it didn’t specify by definition, and that uncertainty or contradictory kind of implication uniquely fits a description of the undead.

This term would be picked up by J.R.R. Tolkein for use in Middle-Earth, retaining their lore and function from Norse legend to describe undead warriors. And from there you can follow the usual chain of influence to D&D, where the shortened term Wight really solidified itself as synonymous with the undead, and eventually down to Game of Thrones, where George R.R. Martin cleverly brings the whole thing back around to old risen bodies of northern warriors, not unlike the Draugr of Norse myth.

Anyway in Wild Arms 2 we get some sorta death yeti ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Next up is the Ghoul, which I think we all know is a pretty generic term in modern parlance, but it’s specific origins date back to pre-Islamic Arabia. It entered into English via translations of the original French translation of 1001 Arabian Nights, where it appears in one story as a monster lurking about the cemetery devouring corpses.

The Ghoul identity as a corpse eater quickly broadened into flesh eaters, and the association with lurking about graves in turn marked them as undead themselves until eventually the term became loosely applied to any variety of undead, including the thrall of vampires, supplanting the flesh of the dead with blood of the living and achieving a truly far removed meaning. Even in modern Arabic the term now broadly applies to any number of fantasy monsters.

And so long as we’re dabbling in pop culture transplants; the Arabaian word Ghul is in fact the same used in the name of the Batman villain, R’as al-Ghul, whose name/title has always been erroneously translated as “Head of The Demon.“

I have no idea why it’s a chicken with a mohawk but i love it

And finally the Bone Drake. I don’t know that this one actually has any real specific lineage...

“Drake” is generally a synonym for dragon, although there is some case of fantasy semantics where different settings will try to define distinct body types of dragons each with their own name, in which case Drakes are often either dragons which simply don’t exceed a certain size (generally no bigger than a non-magical animal such as a dog or a horse) or a wingless variation of whatever the setting’s prototypical dragon might be. I don’t know for certain, but I think this distinction in modern fantasy started with Tolkien’s wingless fire breathing dragon, Glaurung, and its offspring who were referred to as fire-drakes.

In any case, the specific term “Bone Drake” Doesn’t seem to appear with any visibility prior to Wild Arms 2, which leads me to believe it was just their name for a generic bone dragon-like creature. It does make for an interesting companion, aesthetically, to Trask being here, although there don’t seem to be any implications that Trask lives in this dungeon at all. Other than just being an obvious combination of cool fantasy things, it may also be pulled from Dungeon & Dragons’ Dracolich/Night Dragon; an undead (often skeletal) dragon raised from the dead, often by their own necromantic spells, hence the term “Lich.” For whatever reason they are oddly reminiscent of shield crested dinosaurs like the Triceratops or Styracosaurus.

The attack Rhodon Breath doesn’t tell me anything either. I think it’s just meant as “Rose Breath,” translating the “Rhodon” bit pretty literally, and references the smell of roses being present as a funeral, or else the palor of the faded pink color also called “Rose Breath.” There is some apocryphal reference to a Rhodon but of no significance that I can tell.

Clearly the theme here is death and the undead, and with some small stretch on part of the Wight, we could even say skulls all befitting Golgotha’s “Place of Skulls” epithet. It’s a really neat way to build this dungeon, albeit a little on the nose. But I really like the idea that the dungeon appears to be abandoned and now haunted by all these reanimated corpses and bones before the villains arrive to use it for their plans. Oddly there isn’t much of a martyrdom theme here, although we’ll get plenty of that a little later once we recruit our second magic user, summoner, christ figure, and perfect beautiful boy, Tim Rhymless to the team...

Anyway we get out, we fight Trask for real. Ashley turns into a saturday morning superhero. Trask gets solo’d. And we all just kinda move along without asking too many questions... Although the game dialogue describes this new form as a “grotesque black knight” the sprite work, 3D model, and even original character art don’t really convey much in the way of “grotesque” but in the context of the tokusatsu, henshin hero elements it’s not too hard to imagine that the design was meant to evoke a similar aesthetic to gruesome suit heroes like Guyver, Kamen Rider Shin, and Devilman. I do love the gill/tendon-like organic vent structure in the pauldrons that stay. And although it’s not visible in any of these images, but the D-Arts model has an exposed segment of vertebrae between the shoulders; that along with the teeth(?)/ribs on the open chest panels really helps bring out more of the “grotesque” quality of the design.

#Wild arms 2 #jrpg #psx #ghoul #wight #dungeons and dragons

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