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avinaccia · 3 years

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A Completely Objective and Logical Ranking of Every Hetalia Character Song

New character songs are dropping, I have too much time on my hands, let’s go.

Also here’s a Youtube playlist for the ~✨nostalgia✨~

Bring it on in the tags

71. Ah Legendary Class⭐The Awesome Me Highway [Prussia]: Absolutely tearing it up on the drums and on the vocal cords alike (I pray for Atsushi Kousaka). Great for the memes.

70. Happy Thoughts Museum [???]: This is listed as an official song but I had literally never heard of the title. Then I listened to it and BAM! Smack back to 2013 watching the teasers for the show on Funimation. Not sure I’d count it as a character song though...

69. (Nice) My Song that is written by me for me [Prussia]: Deafened me but I can appreciate the industrial grind.

68. My House is...Quiet. ~With the Trolls~ [Norway]: I have never heard this song, nor can I find any version of it online. By default it goes here and I am so sorry Norge.

67. Make a Wish to Santa♪ [Sealand]: The discordant notes and childish exuberance only serve to make this sound like a demonic plea to Santa to eliminate the singer’s enemies.

66. Heaven and Hell on Earth [Rome]: Rome sounds like he’s been in the corner of a restroom. Extra points for the metal version, minus points for the fact that the beach scene was replayed like 1764 times.

65. Canada Complete Introduction [Canada]: Quiet af until Kumacheerio shows up and blows out your speakers. they did you dirty my darling 😔

64. It’s Easy!!! [America]: I don't think any video of this has ever stayed up for more than 20 seconds. Sounds cool, but like I was listening to 20 different genres at once, someone make him calm down.

63. Bù Zàiyì the Small Stuff ☆ [China]: I cannot for the life of me find the complete song anywhere, clips have a cool beat though

62. Let's Boil Hot Water♪ [Italy]: Exactly what it says on the tin..though a bit too close to elevator music for my tastes.

61. The Fragrance of Early Summer [Japan]: Very ‘from the books’ Japan-esque song

60. Peace Sounds Nice…[Baltic Trio]: All well and good until the radio demon shows up

59. W●D●C ~World Dancing~ [America]: How a song can sound like it’s from 4 different decades at once is beyond me

58. Overflowing Passion [BFT]: This is just drunken karaoke and I have 0 clue what’s going on #iconicforallthewrongreasons

57. Ren●Ren●Renaissance♪ [Rome+Chibitalia]: Wholesome Grandpa with Grandson content - barring the fact that Italy sounds on the verge of a nervous breakdown and Rome has had too much wine.

56. Roma Antiqua [Rome]: Similar energy to any one of China’s songs - there’s a part of the song where it sounds like he’s singing in the shower, and I will never not laugh at [CENSORED]

55. Country From Where the Sun Rises, Zipangu [Japan]: Very chill, very Japan, but just meh for me.

54. Moon Over Emei Shan [China]: Good message, okay song.

53. My Friend [England]: What a mind palace you must have Mr. Kirkland

52. With Love, from Iceland [Iceland]: Three words: Heavy. Metal. Puffin.

51. Having Friends is Nice...♫ [Russia]: Russia is the cutest thing ever

50. Mm. [Sweden]: Smooth transition from WWE Smackdown to shopping at IKEA.

49. Why don’t you come over? ~Beyond the Northern Lights~ [Iceland]: I don’t want to be mean but...this does sound like the second closing theme to an anime whose first closing was much more popular (à la Soul Eater)

48. Gakuen☆Festa [Germany, Italy, Japan]: Sounds like a 60s song of the summer but oh dear their voices do not go together. Hella cute though.

47. Wa! Wa!! World Ondo [Main Cast]: One time I travelled 10 hours in a coach bus with a bunch of teenagers to a city of note in my country, and the only souvenir I bought was the fucking PAINT IT WHITE DVD. Perfectly chaotic, UN ĐĕùX~~

46. In the Bluebell Woods [England]: In the album cover for this song he’s holding a guitar but this is not a rock song. Still has ‘running through the hills’ levels of dramatism though.

45. Poi Poi Poi♪ [Taiwan]: You’re telling me that Taiwan, someone whose has *ONE LINE* in Beautiful World (which is criminal tbh what kind of representation-) managed to get an eNTIRE CHARACTER SONG???????

44. White Flame [Russia]: There’s something to be said for a song that is 3x the length of any Hetalia episode

43. Ich liebe… [Germany]: Baking cakes for your friends has never been so wholesome.

42. We Wish you a Merry Christmas [America, China, England, France, Russia]: Nice to see they’ve gotten their shit together since United Nations Sta-hmm.

41. Ah, Worldwide à la mode [France]: Sounds like a Disney Princess song, hard not to picture France frolicking in a field of flowers.

40. Che Bello! ~My House is the Greatest!⭐~ [Italy]: Would not be out of place in an advertisement for Sea World.

39. May You Smile Today [Japan]: THE feel good song of the summer

38. Let’s Look Behind the Rainbow [Italy]: I will protect you.

37. I'm your HERO☆ [America]: “Anyone who’s sad or sullen will be arrested” did NOT age well.

36. Mein Gott! [Prussia]: Alternating headphone effect at the beginning is cool, so is the confidence...the actual singing on the other hand...

35. Nihao⭐China [China]: Listen, all of China’s character songs are great, I just can’t vibe with this one like some of the others.

34. Pechka ~Light My Heart~ [Russia]: I’m still having difficulty wrapping my head around the fact that this and Winter were released at the same time.

33. Pukapuka⭐Vacation [Germany, Italy, Japan]: Seems just a bit too much like they’re running on a treadmill that’s picking up speed and trying to sing at the same time. Peppy.

32. Santa Claus is Coming to Town [Germany, Italy, Japan]: This is unironically the best song sung by this trio; can only vibe with for two months out of the year though.

31. Excuse Me, I Am Sorry [Japan]: Japan’s character traits speedrun. Gives me barbershop quartet vibes for some reason but is catchy as hell.

30. The Story of Snow and Dreams [Russia]: A superhero anime opening in the making

29. England’s Evil Demon Summoning Song [England]: Sir that is not how you roast a marshmallow, don’t cut yourself on that edge.

28. Moi Moi Sauna♪ [Finland]: Exactly the type of song you’d expect and it’s wonderful

27. United Nations Star⭐ [America, China, England, France, Russia]: This isn’t as much of a song as it is a four minute struggle for everyone to sing without America yelling every 5 seconds...Like a particularly musical episode of Hetalia.

26. Paris is Indeed Splendid [France]: Paris-pa-pa-pa-paris

25. Absolutely Invincible British Gentleman [England]: Poppy, rocky, polka-dotty

24. Vorwärts Marsch! [Germany]: To quote the comment section: “This sounds like a German version of I’ll Make a Man out of you.” There’s some truth to that.

23. Hamburger Street [America]: The product of America’s rapper phase. 8/10 because he’s trying so hard and because I can unironically sing along to all of this.

22. Hoi Sam☆Nice Guy [Hong Kong]: A song that would absolutely destroy the ankles of anyone in DDR.

21. I Am German-Made [Germany]: There was once a version that had Germany and Prussia singing at the same time and it sounded positively demonic and Broadway could never

20. La pasión no se detiene ~Unstoppable Passion~ [Spain]: Talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show-stopping...

19. Fall in Love, Mademoiselle [France]: Sounds like it should be in Mozart Opera Rock, I have kiss kiss falled in love.

18. Embrace the Très Bien Moi [France]: This is the definition of SELF LOVE PEOPLE.

17. Carrot and Stick [Belarus&Ukraine]: Absolutely DRIPPING in 2000s power ballad energy. The type of song that plays on repeat in the mind of the widow whose millionaire husband ‘mysteriously disappeared’ (and the only legit character song ever acknowledged by the anime)

16. C.B.C (Cowboyz Boot Camp) Vol. 1 [America]: AH MAH GAWWDDD

15. Winter [Russia]: Heavy metal fever dream and the perfect song for an angst-ridden teenager

14. Seychelles Here ⭐ Vacation Island [Seychelles]: UN👏DER👏RA👏TED SONG👏OF 👏THE 👏SUM👏MER👏

13. Nah, it will settle itself somehow [Romano]: One day I aspire to reach this level of chill

12. Let’s Enjoy Today [England]: I will never not feel happy when listening to this.

11. Einsamkeit [Germany]: Ludwig manages to air every single one of his worries about not being good enough compared to his friends and always being perceived as mean or uptight when he’s actually just a softie and now my heart hurts. 💔

10. Aiyaa Four Thousand Years [China]: A very poignant and beautiful song about the passage of time and the inevitability of its passing; comparable to an ancient ballad complete with explosive crescendos and meaningful lyrics.

9. Bon Bon Bon❤️C’est Bon C’est Bon! [France]: Peppy, cheerful, adorable, groundbreaking; has been my alarm tone for six years and I’ve yet to tire of it. 9/10 The moaning interspersed throughout has been an interesting wake-up call.

8. Let’s Enjoy! Let’s Get Excited! Cheers! [Denmark]: This is on par with Everytime we Touch by Cascada in terms of rage potential unlocked (the good kind)

7. Dream Journey [Japan]: Whoever’s playing the shakuhachi is absolutely KILLING IT. Dramatic, wonderful, great metaphors.

6. Gourmet’s Heart Beginner Level [China]: Absolute banger, I’m a vegetarian but this would inspire me to eat shumai.

5. Always with you...Nordic Five! [Nordic FIVVVVVEEEE]: Everyone harmonizes beautifully except for Denmark. Extremely catchy, number placement seemed appropriate.

4. Pub and GO! [England]: I love this trash man

3. Maji Kandou⭐Hong Kong Night [Hong Kong]: If you thought Denmark’s song was a banger JUST YOU WAIT. I WILL BLOW OUT MY SPEAKERS LISTENING TO LO-HA-SU.

2. Steady Rhythmus [Germany]: THIS SONG IS METAL AF. Seriously, if it can be classified as ‘hardcore’ by my father and his group of 50-somethings who have decided to single-handedly gatekeep the metal and hardrock genres, it can do anything.

1. The Delicious Tomato Song 🍅 [Romano]: Beautiful, absolutely awe-inspiring, poignant, catchy lyrics with an extremely deep meaning that only years of meticulous research and analysis can unlock, Romano I love you.

BONUS: Closing Songs

5. Hatafutte Parade (World Series)

4. Hetalian⭐Jet (The World Twinkle): The song is good, the dancing is cursed

3. Chikyuu Marugoto Hug Shitainda (World⭐Stars)

2. Marukaite Chikyuu (Hetalia: Axis Powers): nE NE PaPA

1. Mawaru Chikyuu Rondo (The Beautiful World)

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snowspryte15 · 3 years

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Thoughts on Cruella

Let me ask you a question:Have you noticed the increase in stories about making villains more relatable to us, and even giving them something that seemed to be lacking in all the fairytales we all know so well?

Something like humanity?

Here’s the thing: no one is truly born evil, and to quote a line from Once Upon A Time, “Evil isn’t born; it’s made.” Perhaps the baddies were actually good people who were capable of being happy, finding love, and living their best lives. But unfortunately, a chain of events or even people who wronged them would lead them down a dark path that is often very hard to come back from. In other words, the stories and characters we know isn’t always black and white. (See what I did there?) You can say whatever you want about making villains relatable or even showing sympathy to them, but I stand by my humble opinion that the updated version of the fairytales and stories we grew up not only gives us a glimpse into the heroes and making them more like us, but also the villains because their more than just the 2D stock characters we grew up with over the years. In other words, it gives everyone more DEPTH. The same is true for Cruella. I realize many of you are starting to (if you aren’t already) get tired of films making the villains more relatable or even giving us a villain to show sympathy for. And I get that. But let me ask you this: is the world we see today always black and white to you? Should it always has to be good vs. evil when there are layers underneath the goodness and the evil that’s in this world? Should we automatically assume that all of the bad things that happen on the news are caused by bad people? I think you know the answer to this: no. We’re all capable of being good people, no matter what society tells us. But the fact that we’re all born to be originals and not copies of another individual but being told that we have to be “perfect” or “thin” or “beautiful” or “handsome” or any of those labels is what draws people to the dark side, and that includes giving into power, greed, malice, and hatred. And here’s something else to think about - we’re always told by those around us, whether that’s our loved ones or complete strangers, to hide what makes us unique or even brilliant because it may not sit well with everyone. That’s another reason why some people go towards the dark side. And on another level, they use what makes them unique to stand out in not-so pleasant ways, instilling fear into others by what they say and do. Both cases aren’t right, not by a long shot. Now do you see why not everything is black and white? It’s hard to take the animated films we grew up and breathe new life into them while keeping these thoughts in mind. Especially if we were taught at an early age who’s good and who’s evil, and that the baddies aren’t deserving of our sympathy or even redemption. I don’t know who exactly started this tradition of taking the fairytales, animated classics, and other stories we all grew up with and add more dimension and humanity to each of the characters, including the villains. But I’m glad they did. It gives us something to think about and makes us see that we have a little bit of evil inside of us. I may be in the minority when I say this, but movies and shows like Once Upon A Time, Maleficent, Ever After High, Descendants, and Cruella fascinate me because it allows me the chance to see how capable the villains are to being good people and their external and internal struggles to keep the goodness in their lives while navigating through all of the bad things and people that come into their lives which sets a course towards their villainous nature.

At least take into consideration the hard work the authors, screenwriters, and creators put into formulating the question “what if...” and how much fun they have breathing new life into these characters we grew up with and how much of ourselves we can see in the villains, no matter how much we try to deny it. There, I said it. I may once again be in the minority when I say this (it seems to be a theme lately on Tumbr, which is quite sad), but I enjoyed Cruella immensely. The acting, the costume designs, the hair and makeup, the songs... It was just bloody brilliant. Both Emmas - Emma Stone and Emma Thompson - played their parts extremely well. Ms. Stone navigating through her internal battle to be a good person while facing a conflict with the bad side was a wonderful site to see. And Ms. Thompson, I mean, come on. She’s just fantastic all the way around. To play a narcissist isn’t easy, but she makes it look so simple and enjoyable. I commend both of their performances in this film. And let’s not forget the rest of the cast - Joel Fry, Paul Walter Hauser, Emily Beechan, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mark Strong, Kayvan Novak, Jamie Demetriou, Andrew Leung, and John McCrea - such an outstanding ensemble! In the theatre, you know a show is fantastic because of its ensemble. The same applies in the movies as well. They may not get recognized as much as Emma Stone or Emma Thompson, but it was such a joy seeing these talented performers play their parts well, and the depth they played at was a joy to watch. Let’s talk about the costumes, hair, and makeup. This film better get awards for all of those areas (or at least nominations) because the designs and styles were truly epic. It’s hard to get the fashion of the times right without extensive research and a little bit of creativity and imagination thrown in for good measure. But Jenny Beavan and Nadia Stacey deserve all of the praise and accolades for rocking out the 1970s with boldness and some pretty wicked designs. I’ve noticed skimming on here the discontent many of you have for portraying Cruella as being a villain we should have sympathy for, especially since she wanted to skin Dalmatians for a coat. That alone should be cause for her to not be worth an ounce of sympathy, and I understand that. As an animal lover myself, I’m inclined to agree with you. But I’m going to let you in on one spoiler that I ask you take into consideration: no Dalmatian dogs were killed or skinned in this movie. I repeat: no Dalmatian dogs were killed or skinned in this movie. And here’s something else I want you to be on the lookout for should you decide to watch this film. During the end credits, there is a special message out there for those of you who are thinking about owning a dog: “Every dog deserves a loving home. If you’re ready for the commitment of pet ownership, please consider visiting your local animal rescue to find the right pet for you.” That message alone speaks as to how far we’ve come in society, and here’s why. Whenever we see movies or TV shows that feature dogs and cats, particularly puppies and kittens, we tend to rush out right away and getting them because they’re so adorable. But when they grow up, we tend to let them go and leave them in some unpleasant places. And organizations like PETA beseeched the film and the company to take a stand and use their voice to encourage adoption of pets in shelters and rescue centers and not pet stores. Apparently, the film and the company listened because they put this message during the end credits. Well done. I may not be able to convince you to go see this movie or give it another chance if you already saw it, nor should I try. But I do want you to take into consideration the amount of updated versions of the stories we all know and love, and how much the authors, screenwriters, and other creative types are bringing in humanity and depth to these characters. We’re not 2D characters like the heroes, heroines, and villains are often seen as in the original stories, so why should they be treated and seen as such for generations to come? We’re more complex and layered than seen in fairytales and animated movies. Also, I don’t think these stories where the authors give villains a chance to experience goodness before they became bad or even blurring the lines between good and evil are going away. It allows us as human beings to see and try understand that we’re all capable of being good, but it’s the events and people who come into our lives that shake things up and even brings questions of whether we’re truly good or evil that sets us down a path we alone can walk. And more importantly, it gives us as the audience a chance to see a little bit of ourselves in these characters, even if you don’t relate to the villains at all. I suggest you stop griping about the rise in updated versions of the films, TV series, and book series of the original classics and accept that they are here to stay. I’m not saying you should read or watch them if they’re not your cup of tea, but at least try to understand that things were NEVER always black and white, especially where fairytales, animated films, and even more stories are concerned. At least try to understand that part, okay? Is that too much to ask? I’m not here to change your mind. I realize I can’t do that. So many of you are so set in your ways and opinions, and all I can do is pray for you. But I am here to share with you my thoughts on Cruella and how the updated versions of these stories are here to stay, whether you like it or not. And I’m also here to try to help you see that these stories allow us to see a little bit of ourselves in these characters we grew up with, even if it’s through a new set of eyes. You are welcome to disagree with me, or even not say anything at all. But all I ask is that you be respectful of my opinions and what I have to say. I will not tolerate any hate speech or disrespectful language. You do that, and I will block you. If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything. It’s that simple, and yet it’s so hard, especially on Tumblr. I hope I didn’t take up too much of your time.

#disney cruella #emma stone #emma thompson #jenny beavan #nadia stacey #what if #villains #brilliant #bad #a little bit mad #opinion #bekind #be respectful #costumes #hairandmakeup #101 dalmatians #dalmatian #something to think about

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requiem626k · 3 years

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Hello my dear Req, I'm here again to ask for some classical music you could recommend me🤭 Usually I would ask for piano music, but I've been in the mood for one with a harp in it lately! And I know you're busy with school and all that so please take your time hehe. And take care🥰

Hello there, my dearest Kat ❤️! I’d be so delighted to recommend you more pieces, it makes my little heart so happy that you’re interested in them 🥺💕

I hope you’ll like my selection! I tried to include variety in terms of vibes, nationalities and eras this time (Austrian-Classical, Russian-Romantic and French-19th century), instead of sticking to a single man 🤭 I’ll try to keep it short and simple (no that’s a lie, I won’t be able to 😶)

And thank you so much for your consideration, things have been pretty busy for me indeed so I’m sorry for the extremely late post 😖 And I know that uni is soon starting for you, so likewise, please take your time to listen to the pieces <3

That being said, let’s start~

Mozart - Als Luise die Briefe ihres ungetreuen Liebhabers verbrannte

Of course, it wouldn’t be Req’s post if it didn’t start off with Mozart. This is a short lied like Das Veilchen (the one that I previously shared), the title is long haha and it means “As Luise Was Burning the Letters of Her Unfaithful Lover”. As you can guess from its name, this is really, REALLY dramatic. It’s in c minor, a tonality that Mozart doesn’t use so often (but when he does, oh boy, see his Great Mass in c minor 🤤) but which is perfect for its fierce mood. Also it’s fairly special for me because we used to sing this in our music theory classes haha, I would play the piano accompaniment while practicing with the classmates before every oral exam.

I truly adore this lied. The lyrics are once again taken from a poem, a poem of Gabriele von Baumberg, she apparently wrote it at a very young age (18 or so).

My heart melts at 00.34 omg, that soft “melancholie” and the silence that comes after 🥺… It’s truly one of those silences that make you agree with Mozart’s quote:

The music is not in the notes, but in the silence between.

Then, it takes a cheerful turn (he just can’t refrain from putting happy sprinkles 🤭) until the strong chord at 00.49.

I think the section that starts at 01.00 is so worthy of being noted, I love love LOVE the suspense and tension that the piano accompaniment creates and that finishes with a strong build-up.

And the chord at 01.32… I leave my heart there. It just has me so soft. It’s so bittersweet, Mozart for some reason repeats the phrase “May smoulder long yet in my heart.” twice at the end and it’s just- 🥺

As always, he knows so well what word must be cited with what emotion, and chooses carefully his chords and functions. I just love it, and wanted to share since you had liked the previous lied 🤭

Rachmaninoff - Piano Concerto No. 2

*inhale* This one’s gonna be long, I can feel it.

I have literally SO MANY things to say about this one.

Rachmaninoff is a famous Russian composer that you might have heard of. He’s part of the Romantic Era which is, to simplify, about pouring your emotions and the turmoils in your life into your art and depicting feelings instead of trying to stick to certain rules and ‘holy’ virtues, of which we had already talked about a bit hehe.

And this piece… Oh my. You’ll see how different this concerto is compared to the Mozart ones we listened to previously. His second piano concerto corresponds to a depressive episode of his, due to his works not having a big success and being criticised so harshly. This beautiful piece is his comeback work, and you can just feel the inner conflicts, the emotional tornado he had at that period. With Mozart’s concertos, your soul is purified, they softly caress your insides and comfort you. But here, Rachmaninoff takes your emotions, and he proceeds to crush it. He plays with it, throws it, abuses it, you sob and sob and sob. At least I do 😭.

First movement

One can perfectly sense the dark pessimism in the first, silent, dangerous chord. As the 8 chords come one after another, every single one stronger than the previous, you’re on your toes and the tension increases until finally hearing the main theme through violins at 00.43. Listen to that theme very well. It’s so beautiful, so so moving, the piano section creates a fierce, dangerous background and I always get goosebumps when the violins come in.

Then, at 02.30, the second main theme is heard through the piano, pay attention to that! You will encounter it under various forms through the movement 🤭 It’s much softer compared to the first, ominous theme, it creates a beautiful contrast.

I want to note down the beautiful oboe-piano duet in 04.14 🥺. I adore oboes, it has a really beautiful and soft vibe, and here its melody is just so bittersweet when combined with the piano’s accompaniment. Then at 04.35, the piano starts playing a really soft phrase, the soft touch at that high note at 04.46, oh my God my heart. I have a feeling that you’ll adore that part 🥺 I want to note down literally every second omg

At 05.22, it turns once again really quiet and ominous, foreshadowing a big outburst through a build-up. The flutes play a big role in that aura through their short but dangerous phrases.

I especially adore the part at 06.17 in this pre-outburst section, it’s reminds me of a wave of emotions that keep hitting you and stepping back, only to strike even harder afterwards. The flutes in the background reinforce this vibe. The tension gets higher and higher at 06.36 (omg I’ll faint I love this part, I’m trembling while listening to it and trying to write this at the same time, I can’t keep up with my thoughts aaa) through the constant mutual escalation of both the piano and the orchestra. THE BEAUTY OF THE BUILD-UP PLEASE I WILL LOSE MY MIND.

And all this preparation was for the beautifully passionate part at 07.02. Rachmaninoff notes down “Alla Marcia”, meaning it should be played like a march, and its rhythmic features most certainly have that vibe. It’s just so majestic, so pompous, so raw, I love love LOVE it. It’s almost like you’re swooning in euphoria after having an emotional build-up and breakdown, it’s just- it’s something else that I can’t even describe. I just don’t have the right words for it.

I know that the piano’s melody is so alluring and enchanting there, but maybe in a second listen, I’ll want you to pay attention to the violin part during the march section 👀 Can you hear the very first theme that was introduced at the very beginning of the movement? Rachmaninoff was a total genius to put it in the background and make it fit so well. I always hesitate between paying attention to violins or piano, I end up rewinding it every single time 😖 It’s soo good.

After the euphoric section, the second theme comes again. A thing that’s worth noting down is the flute’s beautiful addition at 07.53, it’s in the background but it just makes my heart melt. I also always get goosebumps at the few ominous, sinister seconds that starts at 09.17 😳

Then it goes pretty quietly until the ending hehe, like a calmness after storm 😌 This piece is a total emotional rollercoaster, I swear. At 11.01, I love the playfulness of the piano section, it’s just so mischievous like a little naughty kitten. Then it picks up the pace, and ends with three strong beats.

Ugh. 🦋🦋🦋

Second movement

(meme credit goes to @/pianoomemes on Instagram)

This meme says it all. I don’t even need to add anything else. As you know by now, the second movements are meant to create a sharp contrast with the first one’s mood, and 🥺😭.

The main melody… It has my heart. The movement starts with a soft piano-flute introduction, and the ethereal main theme is heard at 12.56 through an oboe.

I don’t really any other commentary to do on this heavenly movement. Just let yourself in its embrace without any technical/guiding worries <3

(Though I feel obliged to add that the part that truly has me in this movement is 22.17 🥺. It’s just so moving and sweet ahh, it just takes you away, it almost has a sentiment of longing I feel, I always have a drop of tear forming in my eyes at that part.)

Third movement

The third movement is a usual, playful, jokester movement hehe. It’s a general pattern for final movements as you might have noticed, even though this one’s not written under a Rondo form. It’s rare that I say this, but I feel like this final movement is as charming as the second one for me 🤭 (No movement surpasses the first movement though, personally of course~)

The theme that starts at 25.51 through violins is so so charismatic, it almost always flusters me 😳✨.

Then he naughtily plays around with themes, modulations and instruments haha, I’ll leave the commentary at that and leave you once again alone with the movement itself 😌

(The majestic comeback of the charismatic theme at 34.09 though 😳! I’m *this* close to thirsting over a theme omg it’s MESMERISING I want to cry.)

Fauré - Cantique de Jean Racine, Op. 11

And finally, to fulfil your wish 💕, here’s a piece from Fauré where you can hear one of the most beautiful usages of harp in a work, in my opinion.

Even though it’s a religious work, its lyrics are in French. Fauré is a French composer from late 19th century, and even though he’s not that well-known among the media he’s a really unique composer that we can’t even classify in a certain movement. He’s from the same era as the French Impressionists such as Debussy or Ravel, but his style is much more different than theirs. He even has his own unique chord chain etc. that we use the term “fauréen” in harmony classes. But anyways, onto the piece 🤭

I really have no proper words to describe how heavenly, ethereal, poetic, incredible, awe-inspiring and soft this piece is. Like oh my God. I feel my heart melting into a puddle and tear up every time I listen to it. I just can’t bring myself to believe that he was only 19 when he composed this for a competition, if my memory doesn’t deceive me.

The beginning with the orchestra and harp is making a truly beautiful beginning, and the first moment that I want to talk about is 01.09, it always gives me goosebumps when the sopranos come in on the background that the basses and tenors had created.

At 02.00, there’s a soft oboe that comes in for a few seconds and only plays four notes, do you hear it? Those four notes can have my heart 🥺. It’s so beautiful omg. It’s crazy how the littlest touch could make such big of a difference. He could’ve easily not put it there, but he did and that’s what makes a good composer.

The “que tout l’enfer” at 02.24 is so fierce, so mad, “enfer” means “hell” and Fauré really accentuated its meaning, I love it.

And when the piece comes to the ending, at 04.14, a soft flute plays the beginning of the main theme for the first time I believe, which is a really enchanting change for the ear.

And the ending is just so, so soft like the whole piece, I truly can’t. The main melody is just so beautiful, and he truly did an impeccable job with mixing all the voices, the orchestra and the beautiful harp together. I just turn into a soft, soft bubble made out of cotton every time I listen to this.

Ahh this was a long ride, I truly hope you enjoyed the pieces, my beloved! I wasn’t sure which style or composers you would like the most, I guess we’ll try and see 😳❤️

Just for the sake of archiving them, I’ll also add the links of the beautiful pieces we discussed on Discord.

Fauré - Barcarolle no. 1 (Fauré brainrot is strong with me nowadays haha)

Mendelssohn - Etude no. 1 op. 104b (I feel like you’d love his A Midsummer Night’s Dream overture ngl, because Shakespeare 😳 I didn’t add it here though since it doesn’t contain piano or harp)

#Kat🦋#my beloved Kat💐#i hope you’re doing fine Kat <3 mwah #i wrote so much aaa i hope you don’t mind 😳 it’s only 3 pieces i swear i did my best not to overwhelm you haha #req’s classical music brainrot

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foreficfandom · 4 years

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Mystic Messenger - Their Favorite Gift From MC

-- Zen: Customized Bracelet --

Zen’s sort of an excessive person so he’s almost always the one giving you gifts. He doesn’t want for much and the stuff he does - like skincare products - you used to buy for him but he eventually convinced you to buy it also for yourself so you could do sheet masks together.

When you do buy gifts for him, it can be a bit difficult. His fans send him a bunch of stuff all the time, like baked goods, or fanart, or neckties. He, of course, is a lot happier when you decide to hand him something, but it’s almost never something he’s ever gotten before.

You have to outsource. So you order a custom-stamped leather bracelet from an indie crafter, something he can wear while rehearsing without worrying about it falling off. On the outside, you have ‘I love you’, and on the inside ‘Zen x MC’.

You give it to him for Valentine’s, his favorite holiday. Zen dedicates the entire day to you and him, and pushes aside the many packages from his fans for later.

You hand him a little box, and he opens it to gasp dramatically at the bracelet, immediately putting it on and exploring the texture of the leather. The lightly-colored tan matches his complexion perfectly.

First, a kiss for you, then its 904709 selfies with him proudly modeling his gift. It goes on his social media to a slight ruckus, because Zen’s never shown off any gifts he’s gotten before.

“My love is so thoughtful!!! Such a beautiful bracelet <3333″

Your name isn’t on the outside to maintain privacy, which proves to be a good idea since that picture is circulated like crazy to mixed reactions.

Zen doesn’t care, this is by far the best gift he’s ever gotten. He hugs you tightly and promises to wear it always.

-- Yoosung: Vinyl Laptop Stickers --

You like to buy knick-knacks for each other on occasion. Yoosung’s wallet isn’t packing so he can only get you stuff once and a while, and you return the favor with other little things.

And Yoosung is also kinda already surrounded by little trinkets and other stuff he’s collected on his own. Little figurines and toys from vending machines, plastic reward favors from convenience stores, character-themed pens and mugs and phone charms.

It can get a little cluttered. His backpack alone is heavily decorated with pinback buttons and enamel pins, and you know he’s home just by the jingling of the many charms hanging off the zippers.

He’s also of a romantic and ‘cute’ mind, so when you give him practical gifts of a headset holder for his gaming desktop, he’s pleased but ... he prefers it when your gifts aren’t quite so banal.

You eventually do some deep surfing for his upcoming birthday, and find this adorable pack of laptop stickers based off of LOLOL characters. These wouldn’t take up anymore of his space, and he could still carry them with him. So during his birthday dinner, you give it to him over cake and he opens it with a gasp.

“It’s ... oh, it’s so cute! It’s perfect, MC!” He hugs you tightly and immediately has you help him stick them on.

He uses this laptop for school, bringing it with him on most days, so it was the perfect gift to remember you by. Whenever he opens his laptop in the student lounge, or in class, he sees all those bright colors reminding him of his favorite pastime, but also he thinks of you and how much you love each other.

-- Jaehee: Promise Ring --

You’ve gotten her spice giftboxes for her cooking, a set of cozy loungewear for the both of you, and other cute things she absolutely adores.

But her true favorite? Her engagement ring. A dainty little band that matches yours perfectly. You had proposed to her during a beautiful evening in the park, making her tear up.

“We’re partners, now,” you said. She gave a watery smile and put her ring on proudly.

South Korea wouldn’t allow marriage between you two, so these rings promised more than a union. It promised a brighter future in the face of adversity. It promised progress in the name of love and equality.

Jaehee struggles with societal expectations for a woman like her. This ring was like a shield against the worse thoughts, or an anchor during the more tremulous times. She had chosen to pursue you against the world’s wishes, and it was the best decision she’s ever made.

You and her wear the rings 24/7. To an onlooker, it just seemed like the two of you were separately engaged people. But she knows differently. A proud little secret.

Customers sometimes make comments about them. She’d be ringing them up, and they’ll notice the brilliant white sapphire. “When’s the date?” some have asked. She stammered, “It’s in the making.” The customer nodded, and wished her a happy union.

She twists the ring around her finger, looking at you wistfully. It will be a happy union. One day!

-- Jumin: Custom-Made Cologne --

What the heck do you gift the man who could have anything he wanted? Material possessions are never a strain for him. He grew up knowing that any toy, any trinket, any new technology or experience he desired, he would get. He’d ask for ice cream and his father’d purchase an entire chain.

His current self rarely buys indulgences. He’s had years of being fulfilled already. But he definitely buys gifts for you, almost to ridiculous levels. You can see from the diversity of gifts that he has a reach for any product or merchandise, anywhere at any time.

When it came time to get him a gift, you had asked the RFA for advice. And everyone was as clueless as you were. Even Jihyun wasn’t sure; the two of them have almost never exchanged gifts throughout the long years of their friendship, since they knew the other was showered in generosity already.

“You’re gonna have to go custom. Something that can’t be bought,” Zen suggested. So when Jumin announced that he had to go to Birmingham for a business meeting, you came along with him. Which you seldom do, since it’s two days of Jumin being stuck at meetings leaving you to your own devices. But you had a plan.

You looked up a luxury custom perfumery, and with the help of an expert nez you crafted a bottle that would complement him perfectly. On the bottle was a label that said “Love Forever by MC”.

So for his birthday, he accepted his gift with grace and asked where you bought it. “This bottle doesn’t look like its from Clive Christian, is it? Maybe it’s Dior ...”

You explained where you got it, and giggled when his mouth dropped open in surprise. He opened it, sniffed, and his smile grew bigger ‘cause it was so much more special now. It was made under your hand, something that will never be replicated. His and his only.

He loves wearing it to work. It’s so wonderful to be surrounded by a smell that reminds him of you.

-- Saeyoung: Fingerprint Charm --

He’s a surprisingly complicated man to gift. Like Jumin, he neither lacks nor wants for material needs. Sometimes you’ve given him cute candies or hand-knitted mittens for winter, and meanwhile he’ll give you ridiculously advanced robot cats or he’ll bust out his packing wallet and boom, you’ve got a new Gucci clutch bag.

He kinda knows that he’s hard to gift. So whenever you shyly hand over a six-pack of gag-flavored soda for Christmas or something, he makes a big show of loving it and thanking you with kisses and nuzzles. And he does love it! He’s never had gifts before, not from V or Rika or his co-workers, and definitely not from his mother. Just the thought that someone cared enough to surprise him with trinkets is so heartwarming.

But your anniversary was coming up. It marked the day that Saeyoung’s life turned around a complete 180 for the better. A very important day, one that you couldn’t mark with an exotic beef jerky bouquet or whatever.

One day, while touring a small art fair, you found an indie jeweler who offered custom fingerprint charms. You set up a date to come in and make a mold by pressing your thumb into a block of sand, which was cast into a mold and into which steel was poured.

You gave it to him over a late-night car ride date. He took the charm out of the little bag and stared at it, you explained what it was. “That’s my very own fingerprint right there. I hope it’s something you can carry with you, and remember me by.”

He was silent for a few long seconds. You saw that his hand was shaking. So you reached over and kissed him, he embraced you tightly and said with a wavering voice, “Thank you.” A sniffle, and he was back to his cheery self. You helped him put it on his keychain, next to his car keys.

He loves it dearly. Especially when he fingers the print and feels the groves, imagining your hand.

-- Saeran: Sweater --

For a long while, Saeran couldn’t live a proper civilian life and spent many days holed up at home, stuck in an anxious and depressive slump. Any venture outside was an ordeal for him. Bit by bit, through therapy and medication, he regained his confidence.

You found this sweater online, and you knew how much he liked wearing sweaters at home. It had this quote on it that the both of you were familiar with. It had been one of the repeated self-forgiving phrases his therapist suggested. Saeran took to that phrase particularly well. He repeats it in his mind when he feels himself on the verge of a breakdown, and it helps de-escalate.

You knew you had to buy it. But keeping it secret from Saeran was kinda a challenge because he likes to tour around your internet history when he’s bored. Not for malicious reasons, he’s just curious and wants to know what kind of stuff you like to re-tweet, or what shops you frequent.

So with Saeyoung’s help, you ordered the sweater under a guise Saeran wouldn’t be able to crack without some effort, and it ended up being a legit surprise when you handed Saeran his gift.

You watched his eyes trace the quote carefully, and at his fingers tracing the screenprinted flowers. He was quiet for a long while, just exploring the sweater thoroughly.

He can’t remember the last time he’s gotten a gift. Maybe it had been never. His eyes teared up.

You hugged him close and stroked his hair like he said he enjoys. It was almost hard for him to accept this from you; he’d spent years trying to approve others under threat of violence, and he’s rarely gotten to experience true generosity.

He wears it at least once a week. It’s his absolute favorite article of clothing forever and ever.

-- Jihyun: Filled Scrapbook --

For the holidays, Jihyun had given you a beautiful set of jewelry over dinner, along with a framed photo of yourself that he had taken some time before. He rarely decides to spoil you with his riches, but sometimes the occasion calls for it.

How can you match up with his generosity? You knew Jihyun would be charmed with whatever you gave him, but you wanted your gift to mean something.

Once your anniversary began to creep up, you had an idea and began working on your project two weeks in advance - it was going to be a beautiful scrapbook of not just Jihyun’s photos, but also little momentos and decorations on every page, detailing particular moments of your life together up to this point.

You scoured his instagram, printing out copies onto photo paper and cutting and pasting. You folded within old plane, bus, and boat tickets. There were sightseeing brochures from trips abroad, old restaurant menus, stamps from envelopes he had sent you. You wrote messages and captions with multicolored ink.

Extra special were the pages dedicated to when the two of you moved into the new apartment together, and when V was officially recovered from retina surgery, and also the first RFA party he co-hosted with you. Some pages touched on more sad subjects.

Finally, you finished the scrapbook just in time for the anniversary, and it was all worth it to see Jihyun completely blown away by the effort you put into it. He spent several minutes on every page, talking them over with you and reminiscing.

He managed to hold in his tears until the last page, which you kept empty except for a calligraphy script that said, “... and into the beyond.”

#mystic messenger #mystic messenger imagines #mysme #mysme zen #Yoosung Kim #jaehee kang #jumin han #saeyoung choi #saeran choi #jihyun kim

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recentanimenews · 3 years

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ESSAY: How Does My Hero Academia Fit Into Global Superhero Culture?

In 1989, Batman became the first film to make over $40 million in its opening weekend. In 2002, Spider-Man became the first film to make over $100 million in its opening weekend. In 2007, Spider-Man 3 hit over $150 million. In 2012, The Avengers nabbed over $200 million. And in 2019, Avengers: Endgame got over $350 million. Despite the fact that there have been concerns over “superhero movie fatigue” for literal decades now, it’s a genre that shows no signs of slowing down. As its universes expand on streaming services like Disney+, it’s apparent the age of the cinematic hero might be an indefinitely lengthy one.

As Marvel Comics luminary Stan Lee once said: “The pleasure of reading a story and wondering what will come next for the hero is a pleasure that has lasted for centuries and, I think, will always be with us.” In that quote, it seems our destiny is almost sealed — we crave heroes and we crave their stories and we crave their sequels.

This is the environment in which My Hero Academia was born.

My Hero Academia is, first and foremost, a superhero story. One could argue that most narratives of its ilk are superhero tales — anime like Dragon Ball, Naruto, One Piece, and others are full of good guys shutting down malicious attempts at local or world domination — but My Hero Academia embraces the iconography, both thematic and physical, of the superhero in a way that many other stories don’t. In fact, it might be one of the purest explorations of that kind of universe ever in fiction. It’s a world where heroism is practically currency, where roughly 80 percent of the earth’s population is imbued with some kind of inherent genetic power.

Populating your superhero story with powerful people instead of going the typical cinematic route of having one or two supernatural characters with a supporting cast of everyday folk might have been subversive 20 years ago. But in the age of the Avengers, where multiple heroes cross in and out of each other's storylines and the narrative objective was to eventually wrangle them all in one mega-movie, My Hero Academia fits comfortably. That doesn’t render it as uninteresting, though. Instead, rather than build to the issues that will inevitably crop up in a world full of Supermen, these themes are inherent in the story.

As such, most of the plotlines have to do with the idea of rampant heroism and the backlash that it would create. Plenty of superhero films address this (multiple Batman movies make the case that if there were no Batman there would be no Joker), but in My Hero Academia it is a constant struggle. Overhaul, wearing a variation of a 17th-century plague doctor mask, looks at these “Quirks” as if they’re a disease. Stain is against superheroes using their status for fame. Tomura Shigaraki wishes to destroy society as we know it, hating its values and its borderline divine treatment of figures like All-Might. These patterns are not just repeated in My Hero Academia, but inevitable. They are anime embodiments of that “superhero fatigue” article I shared above, except in this case they hurt and destroy in their attempts to find an alternative to the super status quo, rather than write essays in The New York Times.

It’s certainly an enthralling formula, though: My Hero Academia continues to be a best seller and has won numerous awards. Its anime has been similarly well-received. Despite the fact that superhero films very rarely have the same box office prominence in Japan as they do in America, My Hero Academia has been able to make an impact. That might be because, at its core, My Hero Academia adapts the ethos found in a hero that many Japanese creators really do enjoy: Spider-Man.

Kohei Horikoshi, My Hero Academia’s creator, loves Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films. Creator of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Hirohiko Araki gushed over his love of Spider-Man 2 to director Sam Raimi during an interview. Yusuke Murata, illustrator of One-Punch Man, has done some absolutely amazing work when it comes to posters for Peter Parker’s cinematic adventures. Hideo Kojima, a video game designer whose creations are absolutely inspired by anime, called Into The Spider-Verse a “great masterpiece” and was “moved” by Spider-Man 2. After it became the best-selling game to be developed in the West but funded by Sony since 1998, Japanese game developers voted Marvel’s Spider-Man as their 2018 game of the year. So why the embrace of this particular character?

Journalist Kuremasa Uno told the Japanese site Business+IT that it’s because Japanese youth are more accustomed to embracing younger heroes. Since so much of Spider-Man’s Hollywood journey deals with him experiencing problems as a teenager and young adult, he fits in among the protagonists of series like Gundam or Naruto. Hideo Kojima even told Famitsu that Spider-Man is “similar to Japanese heroes,” as he has “worries.”

The aspect of youth is particularly interesting, as it’s what often renders heroes like Spider-Man to be the most relatable of all of their peers and rivals. In the comic book world, age tends to warp characters, turning them into beacons of impossible standards rather than troubled everymen. We have little in common with the hulking, aging Batman snapping bones in Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. We are enthralled with the story on a narrative level. Even the legendary curmudgeon of the comic book industry, the supremely talented Alan Moore, found The Dark Knight Returns fascinating because it gave a hero a chance to end, rather than cycle through an eternal series of escapades. If you know Moore’s stance on heroes, that’s high praise, but it’s hard to connect with him no matter how cool he looks taking down the Mutant Leader.

In youth we find common ground. We all grow up, and for the most part, we all experience that mix of angst, desperation, and uncertainty that comes with finding yourself on a bullet train to adulthood. In my interview with Matt Alt, author of Pure Invention: How Japan’s Pop Culture Conquered The World, the writer/historian affirmed these feelings as especially true in anime: “It doesn’t look at adolescence as a lesser form of adulthood and it doesn’t condescend to the young people experiencing problems.” That is true of My Hero Academia, which treats Midoriya’s teenage problems as valid and worth concern, and is also true to Stan Lee’s affinity for Spider-Man: “He’s the one who’s most like me — nothing ever turns out 100 percent OK; he’s got a lot of problems and he does things wrong, and I can relate to that.”

So perhaps it is in collecting a cast of characters that, like Spider-Man, are all dealing with youthful problems that Horikoshi found the fantastic formula for My Hero Academia. It’s a world with teachers and Pro Heroes, but there is no real equivalent of a Justice League, no impenetrable class of demi-gods to impart moral lessons on not just younger heroes but the world at large.

Instead, much like in real-life youth, the characters of My Hero Academia and the class of 1A must discover those lessons for themselves. With that, the reasons for the aforementioned creators’ adoration of films like the Spider-Man trilogy and Into the Spider-Verse seemingly become more clear. Though these films feature a ... ummm ... supportive supporting cast, the integrity must come from the hero alone in the end, no matter how tough their obstacles become. You are born with Quirks, but how you choose to implement them for the good of mankind is up to you. Great power, great responsibility, etc.

My Hero Academia and Spider-Man are not a 1:1 comparison as, again, the basics of its world and the attributes of its cast fit it more firmly with late-term Avengers films where dozens of heroes interact in a spectacle created by the sheer existence of their number. My Hero Academia rarely feels as lonely as Spider-Man tends to be. But in capturing the relatable qualities of adolescence and focusing on the “quirks” of what is essentially high school life, it does manage to hit some of the same high notes, notes that I imagine contributed greatly to its popularity.

Does that mean All-Might is an Uncle Ben character, with his “Now it’s your turn” point to Midoriya serving a similar purpose to the “Great responsibility” speech? Eh, a little bit. But in relating it to the superhero genre that currently forms an entertainment monolith around the world, especially when it has to do with the character of Spider-Man, we start to unlock some of the reasons why My Hero Academia has been such a powerhouse series over the past few years. You can see just as much of Midoriya in Peter Parker as you can in guys like Naruto or Asta — characters that aren’t relatable simply because they’re young, but because we connect to their experiences of youth, experiences that are somehow both deeply specific and also beautifully universal.

Daniel Dockery is a Senior Staff Writer for Crunchyroll. Follow him on Twitter!

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features.

By: Daniel Dockery

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

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lemonsandstrawberries · 5 years

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Christmas Sweaters and Christmas Socks

fandom: Stony (Steve x Tony), Avengers (pre-Stony to Stony), mentions of OG6 Avengers team

summary: Every Avenger brings holiday cheer into the Tower and Steve is the most intrigued by Tony’s way, but isn’t he always the most intrigued by Tony anyway?

length: 2 972

a/n: it is a Christmas miracle and I actually found some time to write! so, as my gift to you all I give you this fic - took inspiration from this prompt, but made it more Christmasy. hope you will like it, feedback, reblogs and likes are welcomed and needed!

——————–

Christmas Sweaters and Christmas Socks

There was something mysterious and confusing about December. On one hand, Christmas atmosphere was in the air, gingerbread houses and smiling Santa Claus resembling figures appearing in every shop display, streets were decorated with colorful lights and pleasing the eye. On the other hand, it was an extremely busy month, people running around trying to find the perfect gifts, perfect food for Christmas dinner while being bombarded with commercials promising their products to bring the perfect, cozy mood.

The pattern repeated in almost every house and Avengers Tower wasn't an exception.

On the outside, the tall building in the middle of New York was decorated with lights going around the tower and topped with Santa's sleigh and a row of reindeers, twinkling with colors. Inside matched the exterior, with a beautifully decorated Christmas tree in almost every room that could fit a one, something Tony personally coordinated and took care of, garlands and Christmas wreaths stretching from wall to wall. It was a nice distraction and a calming breath in the near end of the year chaos, while everyone kept rushing from place to place, trying to wrap things up, both work and personal.

In all the rush, the team members didn't forget to bring the Christmas atmosphere in, and so, Thor cooked up a storm in the kitchen, giving out plates of homemade gingerbread cookies with the most delicate, intricate patterns done in royal icing. Natasha, rushing through the corridors with stacks of SHIELD papers, put a headband with reindeer antlers and small bells in her red hair, making everyone who looked at her smile. Bruce served cups of amazing hot chocolate and herbal tea, infused with a secret mix of spices that warmed up everyone, and Clint left small notes filled with uplifting messages and holiday sweets in various corners of the Tower for anyone who needed a quick pick me up. Every team member had their own unique way of bringing Christmas cheer into the Tower and into their family and it was a welcomed distraction in the busy month.

Steve also found his way and switched his usual white cable knit sweater for an array of the infamous Christmas sweaters - his current pick for the day, was an all red sweater with white patterns and reindeer on the arms and knitted 'merry Christmas, ya filthy animal' on the chest, a quote from a movie that was a must to watch during the holiday season in the Avengers Tower. His collection of Christmas sweaters was carefully selected and eye-catching in a bad way and photos of him in more or less offending sweaters were all over the press and people were going crazy. Steve wasn't bothered, and he even ordered everyone else on the team their very own, personality matching Christmas sweater, already wrapped and waiting under the Christmas tree for the official unpacking of the gifts. That would be one Avengers group photo, Steve couldn't wait to be 'leaked' into the press.

In all this pre-Christmas chaos, Steve found his quiet corner in the library. It was filled with rows of various books on every topic imaginable and comfortable furniture and Steve took a particular liking to a big armchair where he could curl up with a book, while a Christmas tree was blinking at him with colorful lights and swirls of steam rose from a cup of hot chocolate. It was his place to relax and enjoy the Christmas atmosphere.

It didn't take long until his hiding spot was found out and he began to have company. It started pretty innocently, with Tony barreling one day into the library, eyes circled and hair in a crazy mess as there was a lot of paperwork to be done for SI before the end of the year and it kept Tony awake, probably following the scent of chocolate. It was a short break, Steve and Tony chatted, Steve allowed Tony to drink his hot chocolate, and Tony was on his way, back to his home office. The pattern repeated for a few days until Tony started to bring his tablet with himself and stretch out on the couch, just to change his surroundings a bit. Steve didn't mind, Tony, usually chatty, didn't try to engage him in a conversation and they just sat together, both in their own worlds and enjoying the quiet companionship. Just with time, Steve found it pretty distractive to be around Tony, as something was attracting his attention.

No, two things.

Meaning Tony's feet, always dangling over the couch armrest, lightly kicking to some pattern. Tony's feet were not large at all, they couldn't be, as Tony had a sturdy, short frame, and big feet were not needed, unlike in Steve's case. He had big feet and needed big shoes to balance all the muscles and keep him stable from toppling over. Steve was a practical man, and for those reasons his choice of underclothes was pretty monochromatic - it was easy to train in white tank-tops and dump them into the washing machine with white socks and white boxers, and or do the same with a set of black underclothes.

Tony represented an opposite view. To start with, Tony had a liking of walking barefoot, which seemed natural as in some part of the Tower the floor was heated, and rarely wearing socks, but when he happened to wear ones, they were blindingly colorful. Steve noticed that some time ago, and as most of Tony's wardrobe was in cool, perfectly matched tones, the socks were an explosion of colors. Bright yellows, cheerful oranges, screaming pinks, or vivid purples. Sometimes one color, sometimes striped, or polka dots, sometimes mismatched. Sometimes socks told a message like some had a periodic table or multiplication table, but with roman numerals or list of time periods, starting on one foot on prehistory, ending on middle ages, to start with modern history on the other foot and continue up to contemporary times.

It was quirky and adorable and oddly charming and somehow fitting for a guy like Tony.

That's why for the first few days, Steve didn't notice when Tony switched his colorful socks for Christmas themed ones, and once he did, he started to pay very close attention to them, trying to keep a low profile and not seem creepy. Penguins, reindeers, candy cane stripes, rows of small Christmas trees. It was pleasant to look at and was supposed to make people smile, opposite to Steve's idea of wearing increasingly ugly sweaters to make everyone cringe. In particular, the colorful socks were always bringing a small, fond smile on Steve's lips whenever he had caught a glimpse of them, while Tony was working on the couch.

It was unexpected of someone who was such an important figure in the business and science world to have such silly socks and wear them so casually and Steve thought that Tony was someone really special, even if he himself didn't realize that.

Steve never asked about his teammate's choice of socks but found himself waiting for the moment when Tony would join him in the library, sporting a new set. And then came a day, when Steve kept squinting at Tony's feet for way too long and just had to ask.

"Are those music sheets?"

"Huh?" Tony twisted to the back from his laying on the stomach position, looking at Steve with a thoughtful face. Even when he turned around, he kept tapping on the tablet, which was quite impressive.

Steve smiled, feeling nervous, but trying to act casual. "Your socks. I can't figure it out," he said, trying to not sound like a creep who had spent last days staring at his teammate's feet.

Finally understanding, Tony turned around, a light, playful smile appearing on his lips. "Come closer and find out for yourself," he advised, turning his attention back to the device.

It was an unusual offer, but Steve decided to take it. He wouldn't pass an opportunity to get close to the brunet and seeing that Tony invited him over it would be a shame to not take it. Steve walked closer, and the mystery solved itself. Indeed, on the background of a light cream color were music lines with notes, but no lyrics.

"Oh," Steve said, looking at the notes. Tony giggled and wiggled his toes playfully and maybe Steve got a little mesmerized by the sight.

"Satisfied now?"

No, not yet. Steve, of course, didn't say that and looked at the back of Tony's head.

"What song is that?"

"A Christmas song."

Well, duh. Steve's shoulders lowered a little in disappointment after hearing the clipped answer. He was hoping for something more specific.

"Yeah, but which one?" Steve tried to push, without sounding too pushy. After all, it was supposed to be their quiet time.

Tony didn't answer, just tapped more on his tablet. "How about you try to play it and find out?" he asked playfully.

Steve felt a little bashful. It seemed like crossing some boundaries, but Tony was in one of his friendlier moods and Steve would beat himself up forever if he didn't take the invitation.

"Okay, move," Steve demanded in a surprisingly firm voice, that was used solely to convince himself to do it, batting on Tony's calves lightly.

Tony made a quiet, surprised sound Steve didn't miss and obediently turned on his back and sat up, pulling his legs to himself while maintaining a sideways position, not really expecting Steve to play along. Using the recently freed space, Steve sat down and pulled Tony's feet into his lap, a very bold move that made Tony's eyes bulge out in surprise, but Steve didn't really pay attention. The socks still intrigued him and he carefully placed his hands on Tony's ankles, as if informing the brunet of his intentions. Tony didn't react and Steve took it as a signal to continue. He slid his hands further, gliding palms over the smooth material until they stopped at the toes, and Steve lightly pulled on the socks, smoothening out the creases to get a better look at the design. The notes were on the upper part of the sole, stretching over pads and ending all the way down to the heel. He put his fingers against one note and gently pressed as if it was a piano key.

He didn't expect Tony's knee to jump and his whole foot wiggle. Steve stopped his fingers at the reaction, but Tony didn't take his feet back. Instead, they still stayed in his lap, regaining their stillness.

There was something very sweet about this situation and Tony granting Steve this moment of closeness. He put his fingers back against the pad, and resumed the light pressing on the notes and started to hum, trying to decipher the song. The whole time, Tony kept his face hidden behind the tablet, but the quiet, muffled giggling, and the small body jolts from time to time, were giving him away.

Steve never before had an occasion to be so close to Tony, and brunet clearly craving his touch was giving him hope for the future. He kept gently tracing the pattern, letting his fingers venture lower and scribble back up the soles, and Tony quietly giggled away and curled his toes. Steve noticed that he was still holding the tablet as a disguise, but his free hand was not pointed at the screen, but covering his eyes as he kept giggling away. Steve really wished for the tablet to be out of the way. After a less than a minute of soft warm-up, he felt confident enough to increase the pace and pressure, and moved his fingers more roughly, not sketching, but really digging into the material.

"HAH!" Tony yelped, almost sending the tablet flying across the room, quiet giggles changing into a steady flow of laughter. "HAHAHAHA!"

Steve was utterly delighted. Tony was beautifully responsive to the ticklish sensations on his soles and his whole face scrunched up while giggling away and it was as adorable as Steve expected it to be. Feeling more confident, Steve changed the up and down pattern to a more chaotic one, brunet's laughter rising by an octave. Good thing that the library was in a secluded area and not visited by many, or they would have a lot of explaining to do.

Steve continued to tickle the wiggling feet, even though Tony tried his best to stay in place and not end the moment. Just when Steve pushed Tony's feet back and wiggled fingers into the spaces between the toes, brunet completely lost it.

"HAHAHA! You ahahahahare not plahahahying!" Tony pointed out, trying to tug his feet away and Steve was fast to wrap one arm around them, locking them in place.

"I am," Steve said happily, temporarily scribbling his fingers back on the pattern, "it is just a really hard song and it seems that my instrument is malfunctioning."

Tony took a swing, which Steve efficiently ducked away, but instead of feeling offended, it just made his smile brighter.

"Okay, so you see, I am playing on the notes, but instead of a song, there is this high pitched sound coming out-"

"Whahahat the-?!"

"- I don't know, maybe I need someone to repair it -"

"Steheheve! Doahan't! Hahaha!"

" - or a mechanic! You're a mechanic, right?"

"HAHAHA! I gihihhihve up! It's -"

Steve didn't want to hear the answer yet. Instead, he dug his fingers into the spot below the big toe on Tony's left foot, which turned out to be a reaaallly good spot, because Tony completely lost it and flailed his arms around. He pushed himself so hard away that he fell off the couch with a loud thud and a big smile, while Steve was left with one sock in his hand and an equally big smile at such reaction.

Tony took a minute to regain his breath and when he uncurled from the floor, he looked at the soldier with sparkling eyes, his face full of a healthy pink blush Steve's antics had caused.

Steve just calmly examined the sock in his hand, and while not on wiggling foot, the notes became pretty clear.

"Oh, it's 'Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer'," Steve said with a fond smile. "You kinda look like Rudolph now yourself," he playfully pointed out, locking eyes with Tony's.

"You jerk!" Tony laughed, doing the not well-thought thing and trying to kick Steve. Supersoldier reflexes or just pure luck, Steve easily grabbed Tony's foot by the ankle and brought wriggling fingers closer to the bare foot, slowly enough to let the other man know his intentions. Tony screeched and tugged his leg away, standing up in panic as he saw the mischievous expression on the soldier's face. Quickly, Tony understood what a big mistake it was to let Captain America know about your ticklishness. In a second, Tony bolted out of the library and ran for his life, fearing that Steve might want to test on what other parts of Tony's body he could play. Steve laughed and quickly followed the one socked genius. He even tried to trick Tony into slowing down by promising to give him his sock back, but Tony only yelled that he could keep it and kept running. It was a bizarre sight, but when Steve finally caught Tony there was a lot of laughter.

In hindsight, it was one of those moments that pushed Tony and Steve to go on a first date, and in consequence, become a couple.

"Hey! Come here faster!"

"Okay, okay," Steve laughed when one year later, he watched his boyfriend bounce on the bed, holding a colorful package he had just taken from underneath the Christmas tree in their shared bedroom. The Avengers team was supposed to exchange gifts tomorrow, but before that, Tony and Steve wanted to have their personal moment, almost a year after the evening in the library that helped to unblock something in their heads. When Steve sat on the bed, Tony stopped bouncing and handed him the package right away.

"Merry Christmas!" he exclaimed, smiling from ear to ear.

"Merry Christmas, babe," Steve smiled back and after a kiss, Steve started to unwrap the silver paper. "What!" he laughed, seeing a six pack of colorful Christmas underwear and socks, in bright, blinding colors and patterns. Just like Tony's socks were. Once, Steve had wondered if Tony's bright socks matched his underwear and after a year of dating, he could say with all confidence that yes, yes, they did and it looked like Tony was trying to push his stylistic choices on Steve.

"Hope you like them," Tony smiled brightly, "your white boxers and socks were driving me crazy for the past year," he justified his choice of a present.

"So is this for you or for me?" Steve asked in a playful tone.

"For us both," Tony decided with a laugh.

"Convenient," Steve smiled and handed Tony his present. It wasn't half as neatly packed as Tony's, but it didn't matter, as Tony was already tearing the paper to get to the inside. His mouth fell open when he saw his present.

"Seriously?" he asked, taking out a pair of knee high socks. White. "This is what you want me to wear?"

"Look at the bottoms," Steve smiled and watched with pleasure as Tony's eyes widened when he did that.

"Oh," Tony murmured softly, putting their presents aside and purring invitingly, "I am gonna wear them for you every day," he promised, before locking their lips in a kiss, and pushing Steve on the bed, starting their celebration.

On the edge of the bed, next to the colorful underwear, were two white socks, one with 'kiss my feet', the other one with 'tickle my feet' written across on the sole in bold, black letters.

#stony #steve rogers #tony stark #SUPERHUSBANDS #pre-stony #pre-stony to stony #feet tickling #tickle fic #fanfic #fanfiction #Merry Christmas

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kanna-ophelia · 5 years

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Hard Nut to Crack

31 Days of Ineffables challenge Day 3: Nutcracker

Book version all the way on this one.

Hard Nut to Crack

“I have no idea what you are afraid of,” Aziraphale said, because it was clear Crowley was afraid. The demon was sitting with conscious elegance, legs crossed at his ankles, not at all in the relaxed slump he usually used in the shop’s backroom. It was irritating, and also endearing, and Aziraphale had long ago stopped trying to untangle the two responses when it came to Crowley.

“I’ll harm you,” Crowley said, in reasonable tones.

“If you think you are capable of doing me serious harm, my dear, I’m afraid you are rather flattering yourself.” He looked Crowley up and down rather pointedly, then down at himself. A skinny being in a fallen state compared to a solidly built angel in a state of grace.

“No need to be insulting about it.” Aziraphale fancied Crowley’s posture relaxed just a little.

“Then what? You’re afraid your saliva is laced with hellfire?”

“I’m more worried yours might be holy water,” Crowley muttered.

“So it’s not really me you’re concerned about after all.”

“Don’t be stupid, and don’t sound so smug.” Crowley ran his hand through the carefully unkempt looking black waves, turning them into actually unkempt black waves sticking in all different directions. There were two locks in the middle sticking up at angles like television antennas.

The scale was definitely leaning towards ‘endearing’

Aziraphale looked at the bowl of nuts on the coffee table, next to the novelty angel nutcracker Crowley had bought him one Christmas. All the easier to crack nuts were gone, and the Brazil nuts, as often happened with nut selections, were left. The centres were tender and delectable, but it was so hard to get to them through the shell without destroying the fragile insides.

“What are you afraid of?” he asked again, patiently.

“I’m venomous, you know.”

“Then don’t bite me.”

Crowley carefully looked everywhere but at him. “Might not be able to help myself.”

“I trust you,” Aziraphale said, patting Crowley’s knee encouragingly. It was bony under the expensive mulberry silk and wool blend trousers, or what would have been expensive trousers if Crowley bothered to actually buy them. The boniness tipped the scales even further towards ‘endearing’, and for some inexplicable reason added a solid weight of ‘arousing’ as well

Whatever Aziraphale had dreamed or feared about Crowley’s response to a whispered “May I kiss you?”–which ran the gamut from gentle murmurs to mocking laughter, from being shoved passionately against a wall to being shoved away and not spoken to for decades–he had not expected to be sitting in the bookshop still discussing it twenty minutes later. Stone cold sober, too. He had clearly underestimated the hard shell the demon had grown around his soft interior.

But Crowley had not said no. He could have said no at any point, but he had very, very noticeably not said no. He was sitting there, closed away in a hard shell, not saying no.

Just not saying yes.

“So how do you think you will harm me?”

“You’re too intelligent for this. You’re an angel, I’m a demon.”

“Yes, yes. We established that back in the Garden of Eden.”

“Consorting with demons. Not exactly encouraged in an angel, is it?”

“We have been consorting together for centuries. If we were going to get cold feet, perhaps before averting the Apocalypse would have been appropriate. I’m at peace with consorting with you. What I want, very much, is to kiss you.”

“Cause I tempted you,” Crowley said under his breath.

Aziraphale blinked. “When?”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed? Even once?”

“I’m sorry, dear boy.” He wanted to say that Crowley tempted him just by existing. He wasn’t sure if that would be complimentary or just rub salt into the wound. He decided it was safer to say nothing.

“I am the bloody Serpent of Eden. I tempt. That’s what I do.”

“I didn’t mean to hurt your professional pride.”

Crowley said something that sounded like nrrghgurgle.

“Are you worried you will tempt me into carnal sins of the flesh?”

This time it was more like nrrghdsplt. “How can you just sit there, sipping bloody tea, and say things like that?”

“Well, someone has to say them.” Aziraphale hesitated. “Unless you don’t want to me to kiss you.”

“It isn’t–it’s not… Oh, angel, you are hopeless.” Crowley pushed away Aziraphale’s rather nice coffee table with his snakeskin boots, and flounced out like a slighted soprano.

Aziraphale sighed, picking up the Spiller nuts from the bowl. Perhaps it had been a bad idea after all. It might be months before his demon spoke to him again.

Still. Crowley, with mussed up hair and sharp suit, flouncing, was adorable. And he had, very definitely admitted to wanting to be kissed. The sweet dear boy.

Better to leave him for a while. In the meantime, nutcracker in hand, Aziraphale remembered reading that it was much easier to crack Brazil nut shells without cracking the insides if you let them sit for a while in cold water, chilling.

* * *

A fortnight later, a Bible arrived. It was 1599 Geneva Bible in exquisite condition, and Aziraphale’s hands trembled as he unwrapped it, despite the ominously snake themed wrapping paper.

At least, it had been in exquisite condition, until someone had gone through it with a green fluorescent highlighter, marking all the passages about fornication or the Serpent of Eden.

It was almost impressive how much trouble, expense and mortal danger Crowley had put himself through in order to ruin a priceless book to prove a point. Endearing, Aziraphale told himself. Endearingly mischievous snake. The sweet dear boy. Aziraphale’s pampered hands shook with barely restrained holy fury.

A scrap of paper fell out. “See particularly Galatians 5:19.”

Right. That was it. It took every ounce of practice Aziraphale had not to swear.

He started talking too soon, realised it was the answering machine, and took a deep breath.

“Crowley, humans might be less worried about the original tempter if they knew what a ridiculous prude he was.”

There was a click as the receiver was picked up. “I’m not a prude. I’m trying to make you think it over, angel.”

“You are a prude. And how dare you point me to Galatians? Paul was an even worse prude than you are. If he even wrote that letter, which you know as well as I do that he didn’t.”

“Your lot seem okay with humans claiming he did.”

“My lot are beside the point. You don’t quote 5:21 at me when I share my most precious wine stocks with you.”

“No. I’m too busy staring at your thighs and trying to resist the impulse to dig my fingers into them and see what kind of noises you make.”

Fire exploded somewhere in the depths of Aziraphale’s thighs, as if they were responding to being talked about with such naked honesty. “I wish you wouldn’t resist. What kind of demon are you, resisting lust?”

“What kind of angel are you, tempting to lust?”

“It’s not just lust.”

“That’s part of the bloody problem!” There was a silence and Crowley said, more gently, “I don’t think you’ve taken enough time to think about it.”

“I’ve taken six thousand years. How much longer should I consider?”

Crowley choked back a laugh “Okay, okay. Point taken. And me, too.”

Aziraphale closed his eyes and tenderness swept over him. He could answer honesty with honesty. “I want to kiss you more than I’ve ever wanted anything.”

“Oh, Aziraphale.” No barbs on Crowley’s voice now, just a defeated sounding hiss. “That’s not all I want. But what I want most of all is not to harm you, and not to drive you away. I’m not losing you again.”

“You won’t. Just–just kissing. It doesn’t have to be a fuss. We could exchange a kiss in greeting and farewell. Just like–”

“A couple.” Crowley breathed, and his longing was something thick and painful down the phone.

“How much danger can I be in with a kiss?”

“You’d be surprised, angel.” Crowley hesitated. “Look, there’s this place just opened, old fashioned Italian cooking. Surprisingly decent wine list. You’ll like it. I’ll pick you up, and we could–maybe. First.

Aziraphale understood and appreciated it. They would have somewhere to go. No reason to linger and be further tempted. “That sounds lovely.”

“That’s the worst of it. It does.” Crowley hung up.

Aziraphale probably should have been surprised when Crowley turned up awkwardly clutching a bunch of costly red roses.

The demon stepped inside and threw the flowers on a chair like he wasn’t sure how he came to be holding them, followed by his sunglasses, which Aziraphale found interesting. “Well, then.” His yellow eyes were round and terrified.

“Well, then,” Aziraphale repeated, in his kindest voice, despite his dry throat. He realised he wasn’t quite sure what to do with his hands. He tried placing them on Crowley’s thin shoulders, which seemed to work well, as Crowley stepped closer and, amazingly, put his own hands on Aziraphale’s thick waist.

“Hullo, angel,” he said, and his sharp-toothed grin flashed, and it was suddenly easy, really easy, to close the remaining gap between them and kiss his mouth.

“Just one kiss,” Aziraphale murmured against soft dry lips.

“I suppose we should cancel the dinner reservation,” Aziraphale said.

* * *

Crowley, sprawled over Aziraphale and lazily kissing his shoulder, shrugged with one of his liquid movements. “Never actually bother making them. How’s your back?”

“Sore.”

“Me, too. Unused muscle groups. It will get better with practice. Knees?”

“I should probably do something about the rug burn,” Aziraphale admitted, noting that Crowley was out of practice too, and wondering exactly how long the demon had been, well, not practicing. He certainly seemed to have known what he was doing.

“Poor darling,” Crowley said. He had certainly never used that endearment before. His hand trailed down over Aziraphale’s hip and thigh to find a knee and caress it soothingly. “I should have taken more care. You do have nice knees.”

“So do you.” Aziraphale pulled Crowley’s face up to kiss his lips.

“Just a kiss,” Crowley said bitterly, as their lips parted. “What harm could it do?”

Aziraphale stroked his hair, despite the amount of hair product in it. “Seems to be no harm done except some minor aches and pains.”

“I put you at risk. Again. I’m always putting you at risk.” He put his head down on Aziraphale’s shoulder. “You shouldn’t let me.”

“My dearest boy, it’s not a matter of letting. And it was worth it.” He scritched Crowley’s scalp with his fingertips, soothing with deep pressure. “You are worth it. You are always, always worth it.”

“Ssso are you,” Crowley hissed against his shoulder, and Aziraphale marvelled, once again, at the absolute tenderness inside that hard shell.

He was determined to keep his precious demon safe.

#31 days of ineffables #fanfic advent calendar #day 3 #nutcracker #ineffable omens fanfic #ineffable husbands fanfiction #aziraphale x crowley #good omens novel #airconditioning

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graciehart · 5 years

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Lover track by track

SO. I’m currently out of the country and it took me awhile to finish this, but I’m sharing my thoughts for anyone who cares to read it. There’s SO much more to say and I wish it was better written because I like when words are nice and convey exactly what you want to say (I’m doing this all on my phone) but you get the general feel and that’s what’s important, the emotions. Come talk to me if you want!!!!

I tried to put a read more but I’m not sure if I can on mobile? Because mobile is its own special nightmare so I’m soRRY

I Forgot That You Existed | The way this song starts (and the whole thing) reminds me a lot of a Lauv song. Something about it just does. It’s a wonderful start to the album, I think, because it IS her moving on, but it isn’t yet the level of “step into the daylight and let it go.” It’s the first step; it’s realizing that not everyone deserves a place in your life, but closer to Reputation than other songs on the album (like the “so... yeah” which I LOVE but, I think, has a slightly different attitude than she ends with). I love her delivery of different lines in this song; you can hear the freedom in her comments, giggles, and speaking.

Cruel Summer | I saw a post that said fans of “Getaway Car” would like this one and I GET IT now. It’s inexplicably tied to that song in my mind, something about the production and melody and everything, even the ending on the third beat. And I love it. One thing I’ve missed about pre-1989 is her lyrics; not to say any album of hers doesn’t have insanely clever and meaningful lyrics (because they all do), but I think there is just something so incredible about her Speak Now and Red lyrics especially. It’s part of why pop music in general isn’t my main genre. But this early on and I knew Lover was everything I have ever wanted in a pop album. “Taylor Swift” is its own genre, and will always be my favorite genre, but this song just... so perfectly marries her older songwriting with her newer song production. Her voice when she calls him a devil oh my that was god tier I swear—and lines like “devils roll the dice, angels roll their eyes” and “in these trying times we’re not trying” are so clever and akdjslsjsk I love Taylor Alison Swift.

Lover | She mentioned that the album was almost called Daylight and even though I might’ve preferred that (lover is still not my favorite word), I’m so happy that “Lover” is the, as she calls it, flagship song. There is a palpable warmth and security in the tone of the song, and you can hear her smile as she sings. She is in love—a real, steadfast, quiet love. A love that isn’t composed of extraordinary moments that her younger self fantasized about in songs, but of little details and daily routines and the way love’s presence pervades every aspect of life.

The Man | Ugh she IS a fearless leader, she IS the alpha type—to write a song with as much BDE as this you have to be. She is the shit and she knows it, and I love the lyrics and vocabulary of the song! Like how she talks about being able to separate behavior from ideas and accomplishments or actions from character—it’s such a difficult thing to really work into a song as seamlessly as she does. Also, THE BRIDGE. Holy moly. I think it’s one of my favorite bridges on the album. I had no idea how badly I needed to hear her say “bitch” like this. I love her.

The Archer | I SEE RIGHT THROUGH ME! I SEE RIGHT THROUGH ME!!!! Also, the transition into “you could stay...” is just so beautiful. And I think it’s such an interesting choice that she doesn’t end it there, that she goes back to combat. It echoes what she says in “I Forgot That You Existed,” that she would’ve fought the whole town for them. She’s opening herself up to someone new and asking them to stay, but saying that if they do, she’s ready to fight for this love.

I Think He Knows | “Boy, I understand.” That’s it that’s the whole tweet. (Not). But also the snaps and “we can follow the sparks, I’ll drive” is just ?!?!!! Mind blowing. She’s incredible.

Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince | Okay... this was the most unexpected love for me, even though I know titles don’t mean anything, I was so surprised how much I love this one. I love the “okay!” and the way she yells different words, it really echoes the sounds of a high school sports game and that’s just so smart because that’s the theme of this song. I don’t know it’s just SO GOOD. And there are some really heartbreaking lyrics (“you are the only one who seems to care,” “no cameras catch my pageant smile/muffled cries”) where you just get this sense of loneliness and fear and in its own way it reminds me of “Safe and Sound,” when she says “don’t you dare look out your window.” The five of this song feels like her holding her lover’s hand and running behind him with their heads down through the storm of a high school hallways—“now the storm is coming but it’s you and me, that’s my whole world.”

Paper Rings | For whatever reason, this song gives me major “The Middle” vibes. I saw someone say that it’s “‘Stay Stay Stay’ 2.0” and it makes it even more adorable because then she was daydreaming about real love again... and now she’s here. The prechorus is everything, so much of this album has left me incoherent with its sheer perfection and genius honestly it’s so hard to comprehend... her MIND. It’s so cute I hate I can’t believe I literally could cry and also there’s one part where she says “I’m with YOU!” and it made me think she’s saying “YOU!” in the way she says “ME!” with that pure celebration and joy and loving him because he’s the only one of him, too. I’m with YOU like ME also that sigh and how she says she wants ALL of it, the complications and dreary Mondays and to have him in ALL her dreams, good, bad, and in-between. Just like she wants his midnights... she wants all the midnight moments, the celebrations, the magic... but ALSO wants to be around for absolutely everything, cleaning up bottles on New Year’s Day. The everyday, quiet moments of companionship.

Cornelia Street | Oh... this one is surprisingly hard for me to listen to. When I first heard “Lover,” I brought up this Brené Brown quote about rehearsing tragedy—she talks about how joy is the most vulnerable emotion we experience. It’s so hard to immerse ourselves in joy because of how fragile it feels (she says it more eloquently), and that’s where this song hits for me. “Lover” is her being able to experience joy and contentment and let go of the need to prepare for the worst while “Cornelia Street” references the pull to dress rehearse tragedy. The song captures the risk of opening up to happiness, love, joy, any good feeling... because how could you survive if you lose that? Isn’t it better if you never feel so deeply and don’t have to worry about what’ll happen if you lose it? And she talks about that fear, about not wanting to open up and risk being hurt or made a fool of when she says she left Cornelia Street... but then he showed his hand (don’t even get me started on that line oh my heart). That song walks that delicate line of not dress rehearsing tragedy, but really conveying the vulnerability in finding any kind of love. And I love that she ties it to a street, to this concrete place that is nothing spectacular but for her is associated with her most cherished memories. Because that’s the other thing about love and loss—it’s not only extraordinary moments that matter. Love touches every part of your life.

Death by a Thousand Cuts | What a METAPHOR. Like holy shit. “Flashbacks waking me up,” “looking through the windows,” “can’t pretend it’s okay when it’s not.” It’s death by a thousand cuts. It’s prolonged and painful and persistent. It lingers. Ugh her MIND is just so brilliant and I feel so lucky that I happen to be alive at the same time as her? Like how wild is that???? “Paper cut stings from my paper thin plans” is so clever?? The way she says “lawless” is so good???? And the LONELINESS of asking a traffic light if it will be alright... of hoping for a sign, any kind of sign. And rather than saying she found comfort or affirmation, she says their answer was “I don’t know.” The courage and loneliness and fear and heartbreak of living with that uncertainty... this is So Much™

London Boy | This song is so Pure 🥺 Like... that’s it that’s the song it’s so fucking cute and simple and sweet, using all these London terms... it is Soft and Pure there is no other way to describe this song.

Soon You’ll Get Better | I knew as soon as I heard about this song that it would be one of my favorites because it’s just who I am... but this song is so beautiful and reminds me of her older work because of how simple the production is. I think a lot of why I love this song is the same as why I love “You Learn to Live Without” and my analysis would be similar—the chorus is so simple and repetitive because she’s repeating it to herself, to her family, to anyone. “You’ll get better soon... because you have to.” It’s like telling someone, promising them, that it’ll be okay; you can’t know, you can’t ever know. But sometimes you say it because you have to. Because there’s no other option. In “You Learn to Live Without,” it’s a similar situation... almost every line starts with what “you learn” how to do. It’s repetitive and she relies on that when she falters. It feels like there’s no way to survive such a devastating loss, but you learn, because you have to. There’s no other option. The song is so simple and the lyrics are everything that makes Taylor Swift music so special. Personal, specific, and yet relatable in, even because of, its specificity. You can hear her shaky breaths, which is always devastating. The bridge took my breath away because I’ve expressed those exact feelings before, and it hurts my heart that she’s felt it but it also is why I love her so much, because it connects so deeply.

False God | Going from “Soon You’ll Get Better” to this is a LOT (to be fair, anything would be) but it also reminds me of desperation and makes sense in that way—how you turn to anything at all, even a false god, if it will help you make it through. And that line about daring him to leave her... what a mood. But also bless Joe Alwyn. Also we neED TO TALK ABOUT THE FLAWLESS TRANSITION INTO YNTCD THAT WAS SO SATISFYING HER M I N D.

You Need to Calm Down | The “oh-oh” totally gets to me because when she was about 12-14 months, my focal child used to go “uh-oh” in almost the exact same way, so I always hear it in her voice. I love these lyrics because they’re just... so fun?? To shout???? And SHADE NEVER MADE ANYBODY LESS GAY SO

Afterglow | I had no idea what to expect from this song, but I love it. The connection she makes about fighting because there’s “chemistry until it blows” is so good because then you can really picture and understand what she means when she says “meet me in the afterglow.” It’s the quiet after the storm, when things are calm and hazy and you can take a step back and reflect. You can truly listen. And if you stay, like she asks him to, you can survive it. You may even have a stronger relationship because of it. And she wrote this song about taking responsibility and the messy parts of a relationship and how hard it is when you hurt someone you love and it’s just so beautiful that she allows us into this process, all the messy and flawed lessons in learning how to heal and forgive and love.

ME! | I’m so proud of her for reaching this point because it’s true, she’s the only one of her. There will never be another Taylor Swift... her incredible ability to write songs, to make music, to connect, her generosity, her love, everything about her... she is SO special.

It’s Nice to Have a Friend | I’m going to give this one a little more time because I love the idea of the song, the lyrics, the simplicity, but I need more time to really decide how I feel.

Daylight | This song makes me so emotional in the way I always get when I listen to “Call It What You Want” and hear how happy she is, she’s doing better than she ever was... she’s so happy and I love her so much and this is all I wanted for her agh but also this song, what a beautiful song. “I’ll tell you the truth but never goodbye” is just... unconditional love. I’m in love with the way she sings “daylight,” it echoes the entire song. Something about it is just lighter, louder in a soft, airy, ethereal way. It gets lighter, like you can hear it take on the quality of daylight. There’s so many things calling it back to old songs, too. I kept thinking about “this love is glowing in the dark” because this song is about how love, true love, is golden like daylight. It glows. And how she’s been sleeping in the darkest, longest night, but now all she sees is daylight. This love glows in the dark and glows so bright that it overcomes it. And then she so explicitly calls back to “Red” and how she used to think love would be burning red, but she’s realized instead that it’s golden. Red love is so fiery and passionate in all its emotions, and the idea of something being fiery means that it could, occasionally, be golden, when it’s glowing bright. But that’s an intense golden... this golden is soft. Ethereal is the best word I have for it. She sings of golden daylight, and this song is that—daylight. It’s true gold; it isn’t burning red because it’s softer. It’s warmth, not heat. It’s contentment, it’s quiet, it’s safety, it’s trust, it’s reconciliation. It’s illuminating, but not blinding. I just... this song is bursting with warmth and softness and light and I can’t get over it or put it into better words.

tl;dr I love Taylor Swift with my whole heart and Lover is simply incredible and, quite frankly, THAT bitch. 💘💕✨

#taylor swift #lover #lover album #taylor nation #ANYWAY who wants to converse

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fan-think · 6 years

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SKAM FRANCE PROJECTION - Q&A RECAP

I wasn’t sure I wanted to write a description of the Skam France projection in Paris because I knew it would be so long ; but we were so privileged with all those informations that I though I needed to share with you some of it. And also for myself, so that I don’t forget this day. I’m just gonna keep a few details to respect the kindness and sincerity they had for our little audience, and I don’t feel confortable repeating to hundreds (or thousands) without their consent. Important note : I didn’t take notes, I’m not a machine so I don’t remember everything, I don’t remember what they said word by word, so, I’m sorry if some quotes or meanings are a bit inaccurate. I tried my best, please don’t hold it against me.... :) Now, lets begin this VERY LONG recap. I’M SORRY !!

We arrived a bit before 5pm, and people were waiting in line outside. The movie theater didn’t open before 5. Somehow, while waiting peacefully, we saw the cast and crew arriving just in front of the theater, greeting each other and talking together, like a reunion. That was nice. Marilyn came to us and greeted some people waiting as well. Then we went in the theater, were handed a flyer/postal card (see at the end) of the Skam cast, and headed to the cinema. The crew and actors were already seated. We all sat, then David (the director) came on stage with some people from the production, France TV and Niels Rahou (main screenwriter). Him and David had a cute moment sharing the mic and saying I love you to each other/declaring their flames haha. What a pair ! David thanked all of them, the cast as well, we applauded (of course). Then David said : Are you ready to see Lucas and Eliott fall in love ?? We applauded loudly again, then he sat down and we started watching the first episode. We laughed a lot reacting to the funny scene or lines, and when FINALLY we saw Eliott for the first time on screen, everyone screamed and clapped. So I took a look at Maxence reaction, he has his face in his hand, kind of hiding but was smiling like crazy, that was adorable. From there, almost every time Eliott was on screen, we could here reaction in the cinema. When the episode ended, we applauded loudly. We waited 2 minutes, and the second one started. It was nice to hear people react to the jokes, we really felt connected. When Eliott appeared at the bus stop, same thing everyone screamed a bit and the next 15 minutes were intense ! I tried to take a look at Maxence pretty often during those big moments, he was smiling like crazy and hiding himself at the same time. He deserves everything. When the screen went black, we clapped, whistled and screamed a lot more, because... HEY what an experience to live ! And because we’re so grateful for everything they did obviously. Then, the whole cast and David came on stage, David expressed his big though for Axel who couldn’t be here because he was filming a movie. Big clap for him too! Then he opened the Q&A part. Since it lasted quite a while, I’m gonna proceed with bullet points from what I remember. • The first question was for the whole cast but more for Maxence and it was how does it feel to see yourself on screen. He answered it was kind of weird (chelou) since it’s his first role mostly... • When ask what was their common points with their characters. Marilyn said she was a bit “motherly” like Manon. She has the tendency to tell people to be careful about what their eat, they do etc. They all agreed it was weird to speak about themselves like that, then she took the mic when Edouard (Mika) started talking and started praising him for his acting because he is the opposite of Mika, she saw him acting a couple years back and said she was so impressed that when she understood he was in Skam as well, she was really impressed and afraid to play with him. It was so nice, we applauded a lot. (The joke was that she actually added him on facebook 6 or 7 years back and he never accepted her request before Skam hahaa) For this same question, Maxence said he his a solitary/lonely person like Eliott. Lula is a workaholic, very invested in what she does and make people laugh without intending to. Assa is very similar to Imane, even if she might not have a temper as strong as Imane (but pretty much). And Léo (Yann) said he is pretty open (minded), and chill about things, people (I think.. not sure on this one) • Maxence and David explained how he was cast. David said that when they started the casting, they wanted to feel and know from the moment the actor would enter the room that it was him. But unfortunately, this feeling never came, for months... Then, the cast director called David and said she may have seen someone that could fit (at a “representation”). But she warned him that this actor had broken his ankle in the morning, so... for the “walk in the room and we know it’s him” it was a bit compromised because of the crutches. So David and Maxence just sat down and talked, the feeling was there though, and this is how it started. Maxence then added : when he was called for the first casting interview, he didn’t want to go because he just finished his acting studies and wanted to go in vacation basically haha But then he convinced himself it would be just an exercice, so why not. Obviously it went well. Was called back for a second try, and a third try with Axel. He was in vacation when David told him he had the role. The moment he picked up the phone, a thunderbolt fell right next to him(Maxence) and David added at the theater “it was a prediction from what was about to happen” because “thunderbolt” is “foudre” in french, and when people fall in love at first sight we call it “coup de foudre” (coup = a stoke/a blow of thunderbolt)..... ❤ • During the casting call, Axel and Maxence did a scene but they incorporated the crutches situation in the scene, and it went very well. Also There was no weirdness between the two from the beginning even if Maxence said something to Axel that could have offended him. But he wasn’t and from that point, Maxence knew it was all good with Axel. He said they were lucky (I think?) that they had a such a good chemistry. • A question was about the boys gang. Niels took the mic and made a big point on that. Saying that their reaction is normal. Here, they are teenage boys who know Lucas as there straight friend, they can not imagine or understand why he is acting now, what he has in his mind. They’ve been raised in a environment were masculinity is toxic, like any-elsewhere and we must not hold it against them because it’s reality. We (Skam viewers and lgbtq+ community) are well educated on the subject, but this is reality. • Anne-Sophie (Chloé), David AND Niels especially made a big point on how Chloé is essential and must not be hated. She is a girl in love that is being fooled by Lucas. The only thing she does wrong in the og is outing Lucas like that, but apart from that, there is no reason to hate her. They were pretty passionate about that point. • A recurring theme/question was about a fifth season... with (most likely from the person asking the question) Daphné. David, the head of production and a France TV representative, they all took the mic to speak about it, and the main thought was : they would love to do it because they love Skam so much BUT because of legal reasons, of the views on Season 3 and 4, and so much more things, there is NOTHING planned on that yet... Somehow, they emphasized on how much we -the audience- matter for this kind of future. If we talk about Skam to people, if we raise the views, express how much we love it on social media etc, it might help.... So... talk about Skam France to everyone you know, and maybe, only MAYBE, we might have a change for more seasons... • Same thing with how homosexuality is usually shown in french TV. He said something like “If you’re expecting the usual kiss and then, a fade to black... No, that’s not gonna happen. We talked with France TV (the diffuser), they told us “no, you can give us all you want, we want to show a lot more”, so... since we had the images, a lot of images, we went thoroughly on that. Don’t worry for that, really ! There might be some bloopers/BTS too...” • Maxence hadn’t seen the Skam og or anything before shooting (apart from the toilet scene) because he wanted to be just like his character : he didn’t know anyone or anything of what was happening. Also, from what he saw in the toilet scene, he said he didn’t want to be like Even, it felt too “”“pushy””” and this wasn’t him or who he wanted Eliott to be. After shooting the season, he “binge-watched” everything in two days. • Now... If you are still afraid of the chemistry and the “intimate” scene. Just know that David made sure it would be realistic... that all I’m gonna say on that. • They only had 35 days to film the two seasons!! It is extremely short. The other remakes shoot one season at a time. David emphasized on the few hours of sleep him and some of the crew had. Also, they shot around 15 minutes per day of images. It is HUGE. The work they put into the last 2 seasons is enormous. • Before staring, David thanked his wife for taking care of the kids 6 months during the year while he is filming (we clapped a LOT) • The first kiss scene was taken in one shot (correct me if I’m wrong) • Lula never wears jeans or pants, only skirts and dresses. In real life, but also on the show. • Basile falling was an improvisation from Paul, they shot it twice (I think...) • Axel doesn't play the piano, he just learned this piece for the scene (Maxence told us) and they shot the scene multiple times. • Marilyn complimented Michel on the common points questions. • Alex’ bisexuality was a random suggestion from Coline just before shooting the scene when we know about it. Easy peasy. • David and the whole team were frustrated for season 1 and 2 that they had to follow exactly the original script and lines. Even more frustrated when they saw the other remakes... • Niels was wearing a unicorn shirt, perfect ❤ • Philippine (Emma) and Coline (Alex) told us 2 jokes. • Lula (Daphné) is the most likely to laugh on set • They all see all your reactions, all you comments, the bad ones as well, they knew all the bad comments from season 1 and 2, knew all the pressure for season 3 and 4, so they just hope you’ll like it because they fucking love it ! :) • The journalists only saw episode 1 to 4 and the reviews are good, even if, according to Niels, they havent seen anything yet.................... so, we kind of know what to expect. Or not. Seriously, I think we’re not prepared at all. • Neither are we for season 4 apparently... Warnings from David. Then everyone started to leave but... not really haha. The room stayed pretty full for a good 30 minutes. Personally I stayed close to David who was answering questions in a corner. I can tell you : he is SO PASSIONATE about this season, about Eliott and Lucas, his actors, it is SO heartwarming ; but above all, it confirms to me that this season has an intense depth that - in my opinion - we are NOT ready for. Outside, everyone was talking with the actors, especially Maxence, obviously... I talked with Edouard (Mika) and with Niels (the screenwriter) mostly. I just stopped Maxence who just finished talking and taking pictures with everyone to thank him, and let me just say he is an adorable sunshine. I barely started to say something, he was hugging me and he made the pictures I took with him adorable. He was jumping all around, a real ray of sunshine and kindness. Then he ran to hug David and it was the cutest thing I’ve witness that night. He must have seen me grinning like crazy at him and David, but I don’t care. It was WAY too heartwarming. They are all absolutely ADORABLE. ADORABLE !! THANK YOU SKAM FRANCE !!!

PS : If he agrees, I’m letting David tell the story about his child name and their request :) You’ll melt and be happy about our future. PS 2 : Thank you to Manon et Laura who helped me remember a few things. Twitter : @lau_helder

#skam france #skam #skam projection #skamfr #skam season 3 #elu #lucas x eliott #skam q&a #skam translation

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euphoriecs · 5 years

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11/11/11 tag !!!

thank u sm for tagging me @yikescomma, @buckaroowrites nd @yikeskimi !!!

rules: answer 11 questions, write your own 11, tag 11 people !

under the cut bc its a Lotta questions KSKSKSHK

yikescomma’s questions!!

1. what’s your favourite place to write?

oh this is ?? kind of a tough one bc i feel like i never Branched out in my spaces when it comes 2 being productive,, like a lot of my work is done in my bedroom just bc my desk is there and it’s the most convenient,,,, honestly im jus gonna say my favorite place to write would be from . my desk . bc it faces the window :-)

2. which character(s) from your wip(s) is your favourite?

since i only have wtsf confidently worked out ,, i’ll use those ocs !! but i think , quite Honestlie ,,, that wendy is my favorite character !! im rly in love with how she progresses as a person nd also she’s jsut . she gets it u know .

3. what are some inspirations for your wip(s)?

I TALKED ABT THIS BEFORE but b/ts’ hyyh series, my neighborhood, spring day by b/ts are a few inspirations for wtsf !!!

4. how did you start writing?

my dad got me hooked on reading when i was really really young !! and being able to read abt all these huge worlds nd being given an opportunity 2 fall in love w them rly inspired me to want to write worlds of my own . plus , i watch a lot of different shows nd animes that feed into my daydreams nd sometimes im like ‘yo,,, that was a good daydream,,,,, time 2 story it’ .

5. which of your ocs is most difficult to write?

uHGHHGHGS ARTHUR ...... trying to capture this like . enigmatic feeling while keeping close 2 his reasons for acting That way is actually ,, rly hard?? hes a tough cookie 2 crack but i will crack it .

6. what aesthetic do you associate with your wip(s)?

for wtsf ,,, quiet towns , lonely beaches , sunset nd sunrise ,,, running through the streets ??

7. do you like planning?

YEA !! i see it more as like . being able to explore ur wip and what directions it can take nd its also jsut rly helpful to have a solid foundation .

8. what is your favourite quote from your wip(s)?

i pulled this from my drabbles but: “Slow down.” Wendy grabbed Arthur’s wrist, pulling him down to sit on the sand. “This world can’t keep up with you.”

9. do you like to listen to music while you write?

yes and no ?? im very particular to the kind of music im listening to nd more often than not, i write in complete silence ,,, but sometimes i’ll find a song that i feel rly fits the vibe of what im writing nd i just put it on repeat HGSHJK

10. what do you like most about your own writing?

i think i like the descriptive aspects of it ?? like how i describe places nd feelings ,,,, :-) !

11. what are/were/would be your ocs favourite subjects in school?

everyone except piper in wtsf is graduated from high school but ,, wendy liked english class the best bc it was fun nd she got good grades !! rafael definitely loved psychology nd took it at an ap level ,, arthur liked math nd chemistry .. chemistry he liked More bc he got 2 blow stuff up SKKSKSEH and piper likes world history!! tho shes not good at it . but she likes it!!

buckaroowrites’ questions!!

what is your favorite subgenre to write? to read?

i lov urban fantasy and low fantasy JGHDSHGJKS like its my favorite to write nd read bc like .. o heck ?? ghosts nd ghouls nd just overall supernatural stuff irl ?? that’s the way 2 go

if you had to be trapped on a desert island with any of your ocs, who would it be and why?

if i had 2 be trapped on a desert island ...... i’d probably choose rafael . honestlie he just seems like he always knows what’s up nd my chances of survival would increase w him JHGJKSJKS

what is your favorite medium to write?

definitely novels !! its a format i’ve pretty much grown up w and im more comfortable w this medium than any others GHSHJKS but i’d love to explore like ,, screenplays nd see where that takes me

who was your first oc?

HYLLY SHITTTT THIS BRINGS ME BACK SJHJHJGJKS i used to draw a lot back when i was younger nd so i had this oc JHJS his name was ian and he was meant for the maximum ride universe but he was a dumb dude who was 2% cat . nd he had an adopted sister ,, i forgot her name but she was part bird .

what was your first wip about?

world end club is supposed 2 be abt a group of teens who work together 2 take down a corporation that wants 2 essentially control the artificial island they live on thru engineered soldiers . ITS A CONCEPT ,, nd it requires a little Too Much for my one brain cell to think abt

thoughts on shakespeare?

uhhh no thots bc i never read his work in high school i jus know macbeth is cursed .... wow i rly dont know anything abt shakespeare huh .

poetry or prose?

o this is TOUGH i rly adore both .......... im gonna . im gonna go w prose . i lvoe poetry so much sometimes there are lines that just rly fucken punch u in the face but im gonna go w prose bc its familiar !!

would you ever co-write a story?

nO ..... i wouldnt b able 2 compromise i’d jus b like oH ACTUALLY SKSKKS MY IDEA’S DUMB LETS JUST DO URS

write what you want to write or write what you want to read/watch?

oh . fuc .... i feel like its important to have a good balance of both but . honestlie im very partial to what i want to read/watch ..

do you like to write violence?

i dont Like 2 write it but its In My Wips !

what is your favorite trope?

oH ,, probably ‘fire forged friends’ or like . mutual pining ... i have too many favorite tropes nd somehow im gonna incorporate them all .

yikeskimi’s questions!!

Tell us about the main character(s) in your current WIP!

oKAY SO im gonna try to not make this too long SJKHJGS !! wendy is a very like . prickly character . shes like a cactus . nd she’s not too fond of letting ppl get close, but the ppl who do manage to get close to her are happie 2 learn she would actually die for them . loyalty is a Huge Huge part of her character, and she cares very deeply abt the people she calls family . shes also v sarcastic nd like . ‘open ur eyes dummy’ .

arthur is a kind of person who lives heavily on false pretenses . like he projects this image bc its an image that he can control nd he jsut Rolls w it , but hes actually someone who likes 2 tease his friends nd be friendly to them ,, hes got Issuez nd is very much the type of person to be like ‘o lol im ok :-)...’ nd prioritize the needs of others

rafael is , in all honesty , just babey . he studied a lot during high school nd rly pushed himself beyond his limits bc he wants to be able 2 go 2 a good college on scholarship nd get a job 2 support his family , nd hes just ?? very responsible nd sweet but that can also manifest into him taking on more than he should nd burning out .

piper is a very ,, honestlie kinda sad character kjHGJSJ she spends a lot of time just trying 2 appeal to other ppl bc she knows her interest in the supernatural make her a ‘weird’ person nd she wants to be able 2 have real friends ,, but when she learns 2 let go of this she’s very silly nd always making jokes During The Right time ..

Do you have an all time favorite OC? Tell us about them!

hMMMM i dont think i do ??? my memory of my ocs is rly bad JHSJ so more often than not i just ,, rip i dont remember them </3

If you could be best friends with one of your OCs, who would it be and why?

ms piper chaiyathan !!!! shes a very open nd kind individual nd i feel like our humor nd joking style would match V v v well !!!

Last line you’ve written in your WIP?

Wendy, unlike her brothers Adam and Nate, had inherited her father’s rough touch, and that made them both unwanted in the high stakes setting of a diner kitchen.

If you have a chosen title for your WIP, were there any titles you considered before it? And if not, what are some titles you’re thinking of?

when the sun falls went through SO many titles nd i actually have them all here: where the sun goes / fever dreams / above the sun / where the sun follows / the drowned sun ... as u can see the sun was smth i Needed .

What is an important element in the world your WIP takes place in?

uHHHH the supernatural element is . Very important but i cant be too specific about it but i will tell u it involves a dead tree on the beach .

Tell us an out of context spoiler.

arthur gets a cool new set of eyes.

Any power couples/ships in your WIP?

wendy nd arthur babey ,,,,,, bat nd molotov cocktail duo ,,,, last name central until the important moment nd THEN they use each other’s first names ..

Any music you like listening to while you write?

uHHHH specifically for wtsf i listen 2 a lot of hozier, lorde, conan gray, khalid nd halsey :-)

What would your main character(s) favorite song be?

oH okay i got this in the BAG ... wendy’s favorite song would Absolutely be work place by hozier or more than sorrow by a-lin ,,, arthur would definitely b listening 2 like . free spirit by khalid .. piper, since she p much spent all of middle school nd 2 years of high school in thailand ,, i think she’

Which character in your WIP could you relate to the most?

honestly? all of them !!! a lot of the characters in wtsf have little bits nd pieces of me bc thats how all my ocs come into existence nd theres no One character thats like “oh,,, das me”

and here are my 11 questions !!

Which one of your OCs do you think could survive a zombie apocalypse? Why?

What’s something you’ve been itching to write about?

Share the last paragraph you wrote!

Do you prefer coming up with plots or characters? Why?

Do you have any abandoned WIPs? Tell us about them!

What are some favorite themes/tropes to write about?

How do you get into the zone for writing?

Tell us a random fact for any of your OCs !!!

Are you someone who needs a visual for your WIPs?

What are some influences to your writing style?

If you had to be a character in one of your WIPs, which WIP would it be and what role would you play?

i’m gonna tag @babyreeds @holotones @alejandroistyping @noloumna @faerisms @omniawrites @aslanwrites @ashesconstellation @thegrievingyoung @glittcrpeach @syposium !!! no pressure to do it if u dont want to tho <3

#tag game.#AAA this was fun :-) !!!

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inappropriatefangirlneeds · 6 years

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Gotham s5ep9 “The Trial of Jim Gordon” Personal Review

“Well, I did not see that coming” Warning NO spoilers below, why am I so late with this ..

“Gotham has a chance to be born anew. To return to what it was before people ripped down the trees and paved over the earth. He's trying to reunify with the mainland to save all these people. A return to filth. Pollution. He's fighting for death, while I promise life in its purest form.” “The plants will adapt; they always do.” So IVY PEPPER is the big bad in this episode she wants to get rid of Gotham people and one of the first steps is getting rid of Jim Gordon. But in the end she´s gone and forgotten about, you´d think there would at least be some tiny reference. Honestly I think I could really dig misanthropic Ivy (is there some plant based black metal .. hmmm ) but I don´t think they built this up well enough, that they just give her these ridiculous powers and send her out to try to kill a lot of people and now all people, and then just have that fade into nothing basically doesn´t help the case. Ugh. Also Ivy leaves Selina with that gang guy she already fought against and they repeatedly mention their history despite the guy being also under the influence of Ivy. Which is odd because .. first of all, if the history with Selina is important he should be there without being drugged. Also if his history with Selina is not important she could have just picked anyone else and probably would have had a better chance because as we all know SELINA KYLE already had a field trip with him. So why would he be a threat now? (I mean unless you count some the presence of my dame made me win the jousting effect, which is a thing but not in gotham) Well the whole plot is Ivy gets Jim shot by Zsasz. Okay so this is stressing me out, I thought I came here for a crazy dream trip but Lee´s voice is haunting me. Can just everyone be alive n happy, pls. Hm I don´t quite know what to make of this trial, probably because there really isn´t anything about it .. and I think most meta in this fandom did a better job plenty times already. Nevertheless, he´s his own prosecution and nice, also is this his theatre stage voice? Before Ivy´s interruption the whole think started with JIM GORDON lamenting how the gangs get more aggressive and that they need at least a temporary CEASE FIRE to get their reunification and save lives. Oswald Cobblepot provided the venue for this and Barbara was present as well. But that does not matter too much. Big theme this week: RESPONSIBILITY And for fucks sake, the JIM GORDON trial just beats the same crap again that I´ve been annoyed with for forever. “I did my best. Your best never seems good enough.” “Therefore we pose one simple question: Are the people in Jim Gordon's life better off with him alive or dead?” I mean Jim did Lee dirty that’s a valid point but she´s not the only one and most of the trial bulk is about Jim just not being able to save people. People being mad they trusted him looking for safety. And I´m gonna try to just sum up the whole rant in short: If some pyromaniac sets a fire and the firefighters can´t extinguish it quickly enough it´s still not the firefighters to blame I´m so tired of this nonsense. Also we have a hint of the same nonsense with BRUCE WAYNE: He´s thinking that he is responsible for Ra´s and Galavan but again, see above. Or in other words: What Selina Kyle said. She hit the nail on the head with: “Jeremiah blew up your house”. There really isn´t anything to add. “And I know that a lot of people lost a lot more, but part of me wonders if it wasn't fate.” “It wasn't. It was Jeremiah blowing up your house.” Maybe it's time to move on. (…) And how many terrible things have happened to it because of me? Galavan. Ra's al Ghul. If this city really is my home, then maybe the best thing I can do for it is leave.” VICTOR ZSASZ oh Victor .. Victor in love is a delight, Victor in anything is a delight * So first of all he gets rough with ALFRED again, okay the other way round but, idc, it was too short * Also they just like repeating things .. I´m here for Gordon only Gordon we´ve had this but tbh I´ll take it again and again. “Okey-dokey. Time to boogie. Hey! I'm only here for Gordon. So all of you stay down. 'Cause I see anyone and, you know bang.” “Oi, oi! Now, I heard you were looking for Jim Gordon.” “Uh-huh.” * So technically, with Bruce doing “IvyLingo” the William Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet quote could have been just Ivy´s influence but Zsasz reading Shakespeare is just right as roses as well, //gotham language// “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. You know, I'm really taking the time to stop and smell the roses these days.” * More is this IvyInfluence of is this something coming out of the drugged person. The name thing was such a childish take on being in love and I feel like there´s meta in this about IVY PEPPER and her age ups, or maybe not fully age ups (but I´d still like to believe it wasn´t just body age ups but brain chemistry n stuff too but still experience is another factor) but, buut instead of thinking about any implications of that I´m just gonna find Zsasz adorable “Uh, I'm technically not allowed to say it. Her name. Which is such a bummer, because it's the most beautiful name in the world.” “You watch him.” I could say it all day. Hey, I will say it all day. Ivy. Ivy Pepper. Mrs. Ivy Pepper Zsasz. Oh, that sounds good.” * “Don't worry, though. I'm just a distraction so she can finish off Jim once and for all. You know, that's how great couples work. Maybe I shouldn't have told you that. Oh, well.” Okay so Zsasz ~is~ a damn chatterbox and can´t keep his mouth shut. // On a side note. I think I went into this a bit in a fanfic and this is imho such unused potential even with Ivy 2.0. Zsasz conditioned Butch to follow orders, Ivy just does it with a little whiff of a scent. I believe Zsasz would be SO intrigued by this, like not only for doing good work professional reasons but how fascinating would this be, he´d sure want know its limits, he´d certainly would want to know how far this perfume actually could push a person, skin themselves alive? // // On another side note: Zsasz was so close to spilling the name and he sure spilled the distraction plan which is so totally unbelievable dumb, which is why I´m wondering if 1.) Ivy would have needed to give better instructions 2.) Zsasz got some slight resistance gene to the perfume or 2.) if InLoveZsasz is just such a tremendous idiot .. // * “Alvarez makes a hell of a Mai Thai. I can barely feel my face.” Oh I want one of those, wait no make that two. Also someone make two or more fics involving Zsasz, Alvarez and cocktails. Please. * “I can tell you one thing. I am sick and tired of getting shot at in my own precinct.” It was about time someone said it, thanks Harvey Bullock. * “I'm sorry. Did you just say "People. Ugh"? “Lucius, what if I were to tell you I have in my possession the most intoxicating perfume you'll ever smell?” “I would tell you that's an abrupt change of topic. Can we go back to the part where you said "People. Ugh"? “ Okay that´s the only sensible and appropriate reaction anyone in this city ever had. LUCIUS FOX is the real freak on this show, cause he got his shit together. And his Ivy love grin is adorable. * “We're perfectly bonded, like carbon and oxygen or hydrogen and oxygen “ “We do not have time for this.” Lucius Fox and Selina Kyle being awesome. * SELINA KYLE and BRUCE WAYN being on the same “maybe” page was sweet. Also her being mindful of her claws and not touching his cheek during the kiss. “If I didn't know any better, I'd say this was a date.” “Maybe it is.” “That okay with you?” “Maybe.” * Another repeat thing and another piece on the BARBARA KEAN turning into OSWALD COBBLEPOT list is her poisoning the gang leaders with alcohol. Oswald did it with Cannoli and well he killed them for good but it counts. * Also if the show had just put them side to side earlier, it could have been so good, soo good. * Also HA! I knew it. I mean my first impulse was to be like, wtf, why is everyone and their aunt trying to get on such good graces with Jim suddenly, why is Jim Gordon the key to survival now? Oswald and Barbara sure both did their fare share of courting Jim. And I did use this word on purpose because as Oswald later calls it, Barbara´s motive was not just strategical and political it was also motivated by her love for Jim Gordon. Which clearly and totally also means: Gobblepot. It´s just a logical extension if you follow the parallels. Oswald´s actions too were about liking Jim. And if that doesn´t convince you enough he has had that quip about Barbara knowing all about keeping Gordon happy. He sure would do the same, if Jim let him. That was all jealousy talking. * “If we're really going to leave Gotham, we need to keep Gordon happy. You know all about that, don't you?” * “What exactly are you doing? I'm trying to keep this city from ripping itself apart.” “So this has nothing to do with your feelings for Jim?” “What if Ed fails, and we are stuck here? This will put us in Gordon's good graces. Consider it a backup plan.” * “Controlling the gangs was not a backup plan. You saw a chance to convince James Gordon that you had changed. But he will never see you as anything but a dangerous woman keeping his child from him.” * “Ms. Kean, this may come as a surprise, but building a submarine from scratch by yourself takes time.” Didn´t I say so .. this still stresses me out though, building a whole submarine from scratch, how even * “I don't know what's going on inside that man's head sometimes.” “I think you'll find that he needs you a lot more than he's letting on.” Well, I need to hear it from him.” Well and there she goes, hearing it right after Jim woke up. LESLIE THOMKINS stays at home while Jim goes out and hunts. She´s not happy at first but then comes to terms with it I guess, Jim has this line about what else should he do not being him anymore. Well idk. Leslie doesn´t seem to be quite herself either. She went out as well, ran a fight club n stuff .. * “I never thought that this was how my life was going to be. I have no interest in being a father myself. I always presumed that I was unfit to be one.” Well, honestly I don´t think ALFRES PENNYWORTH can be considered fit to raise a child. What was nice this week was that he talked to Lee and offered his own insight about parenting without being a blood relative. That was a kind and considerate touch. * I have to look up which episode it was where Jim Gordon woke up to Edward Nymga and Oswald Cobblepot singing because wow that must have left a lasting impression if this visual turns up again * Edit: I didn’t really notice until I made gifs but Barbara´s “See, those drinks I just gave you they're poisoned. And you had two shots before everyone got here. So that should be taking effect around PAUSE now the rest of you have 48 hours before you'll need the antidote” line was so well structured. Like the now doubles as a 1) you´ll die like now and as a 2) so ~now~ that we got that out of the way let´s get to the real business .. and I love it //Gotham language //

#gotham #gotham meta #gotham s5ep9 The Trial of Jim Gordon #Victor Zsasz #ivy pepper #mine Gotham full episode reviews #gotham language

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douxreviews · 5 years

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Legends of Tomorrow - ‘Nip/Stuck’ Review

"Gary Green is all the man we need."

This episode title got about 1000% funnier after the reveal of Gary's evil nipple last week.

I'm just saying.

Technically, this week's title only represents two out of the three plotlines. What we really get is more like Nip/Stuck/Sunday in the park with Neron, but it's hard to complain too much about it since it's both a solid joke and a pleasant reminder that the show Nip/Tuck was a thing once. Plus, and it hurts me to say this, the Constantine stuff was really the weakest of the three plotlines.

That's probably a good place to start. At the end of the last episode, Neron-in-Ray's-Body teleported away from the Waverider taking with him Gary and Constantine. I actually missed, at the time, that John had been taken with them, and so I was a little confused when we opened in the ice age with Him and Neron and no Gary in sight. That said, they cleared up pretty quickly that Gary had been sent to the Time Bureau, although why Neron would bother to do this was a little unclear at first.

Gradually, however, one thing became very clear. Neron is probably the most competent villain that the Legends have ever encountered, and his 'to do' list is shockingly task oriented. What Neron wants, ultimately, is his lady friend Tabitha to be released from Hell. Once she's out there's probably some idea about conquest and domination, but for now all we really see is Neron being laser focused on getting her out. Seriously though, how nice would it be if step two was just him and Tabitha taking a nice vacation in the wine country and getting a couples massage?

In any case, Neron has clearly taken a moment to troubleshoot his plan, because he's very efficiently begun from 'the Legends will try to stop me', reasoned that forcing John to use his magic over a very large trap will be a nice way to get them out of the way, foresaw the hitch of the Legends just calling the Time Bureau to rescue them and headed that off by getting Gary on his side and having him make the Time Bureau unavailable to help.

So, despite how things look at first glance, all three of the plotlines this week are just three different pieces of the same plan, and neither Neron nor the show feel any need to overtly point that out. Indeed, the most impressive part of Neron's plan such as we see it this week is just how not flashy it is. He's not showing off for anyone or trying to impress his enemies, or any of those common villain-flaws. He's efficiently anticipating threats and neutralizing them while simultaneously maneuvering John into the position of either allowing both himself and an innocent to be sent to hell, or to stabilize the portal to Hell which will allow Tabitha to come back to him.

And the ultimate result of this well prepared and competently executed plan? He wins. Absolutely, 100% Neron achieves exactly what he intended to do, with no hiccups whatsoever. There are precisely two things that happen which Neron didn't intend, and neither of them matters to him in the slightest. The Legends manage to escape from their snowy grave and Constantine decides to swan dive into hell to save Ray, and neither otf those things matter, as they have zero impact on Tabitha's successful escape.

The Swan dive into Hell was a nice resolution to a theme that's been bubbling away under John's plotline. He's repeated many times that he's a complete bastard, that he's a monster, that he's a horrible person. Because believing that about himself is kind of Constantine's character brief. But the emotional climax of that theme was probably the easiest thing to miss in this episode. We're told that the Puca only mirrors those that are around it. If you're angry, it's angry, If you're violent, it's violent. And when it's alone with John, it's kind. Judging from the look on John's face when the Puca heals his forehead, he didn't miss the significance. That's what brought about the change of heart that led him, the first one to board the 'Ray's gone and never coming back' train, to jumping into Hell to bring back his friend.

That's just a really solid emotional through line.

Meanwhile, The Waverider is trapped below 500-odd feet of snow during the ice age. Sara immediately makes the logically correct choice to turn power down to minimum so that they can conserve it as long as possible while they slowly freeze to death while bickering. How nice was it, by the way, that they were all wearing spare Captain Cold jackets because Snart left a supply of spares. That was just adorable.

It's easy to give Ray short shrift as compared to his team-mates. He's the sunny, optimistic one, and that's a character type that it's just way too easy to make fun of these days. Character's like Mick and Sara, with all their gruff cynicism are just more fun to watch, we tend to think. How wonderful is it, then, that the secret to the Waverider's escape was to find and embrace their inner Ray, turning the heat back up to full and determining to enjoy each other for as long as they can, because even if all they have is each others company, that is not nothing. The answers in the Cards to Save the Timeline game were a little on the nose, but I don't care. The Legends were saved by the magic power of optimism and friendship, and that's just fine by me. We need more of that. Also, please mass produce that card game, I want to play it.

Which leaves us with Gary and his hypno-nipple, Stepford Wife-ing his way through the Time Bureau and interrupting Nora's new hire paperwork. This is basically your by the numbers 'all of your friends are being turned against you, one by one' template, although it's very well done. It also must have been nice for Adam Tsekhman to get to shake things up in his portrayal of Gary, although I do wonder if he was told early on just how much of the plotline this year was going to be driven by his nipple. I feel like that would be a weird burden to carry. It's thematically pleasant that this plotline too was solved by remembering that you aren't alone. In this case, Mona and Wolfie. It would appear that Wolfie is essentially a separate personality from Mona, and can take control of just portions of her body to communicate, which is interesting.

So, three distinctly separate plot threads, all of which are really just different parts of the same plot thread, all of which essentially boil down to the idea that 'friendship is good'.

This episode just works really, really well.

Everybody remember where we parked:

The first stop for both Neron and the Waverider is the Donner Pass in the Ice Age. This is little less precise than they usually get, as there were at least five ice ages, and they tended to last for a little while. Things get a little more specific when the Legends trace John's magic and realize that he's 1.3 million years in the past, but that still seems like a suspiciously round number.

It also begs the question of whether the Donner Pass would actually exist 1.3 million years ago. Wikipedia assures me that the Sierra Nevada range began it's uplift 4 million years ago, so it's theoretically possible, I suppose. But let's be honest, they really only set things there for the sake of a few cannibalism jokes.

Next, Neron takes john to a 'Celtic village' in 55 BCE. That's 'Before Current Era', which is an alternative phrasing to B.C. although they both refer to more or less the same thing. It's a little odd that a show that's already confirmed the existence of Christ would use the more neutral term.

Quotes:

Nate: "And who knows what he’s doing in Rays name, or his perfectly grass fed organic butter-body."

Nate: "What do we do till then?" Zari: "Stress eat." Mick: "Drink." Charlie: "Yeah, how’ve you lot survived until now?"

Gary: "Let’s rap for a sec." Mona: "Is Gary cool now?" Co-worker: "That’s impossible."

Gary: "No need to stress. Unless your infraction is looking too good in that suit. Agent Reyes knows what I’m talking about." Mona: "Oh my god, I think she just swooned."

Sara: "There is such a thing as too much exposition, Gideon."

Nora: "My forms keep getting rejected because records show I’m fifteen and living in a mental institution."

Charlie: "Good thing that this Snart bloke kept a supply of supply of jackets though, innit? They smell good, too, actually. What is that, is that sandalwood?"

Sara: "Look, I know that book convention was important to you. And I’m really glad you got to go." Mick: "I’m glad you have Ava."

Sara: "Look, Ray would want us to have faith that we will escape. He wouldn’t want us cold and miserable. So right now, we are going to enjoy our time together. Let’s go."

Wolfie: "You will do no more harm with your nip-ple!"

Ava: "It’s a long story, but Gary took over the bureau. He nip-notized everyone." Nate: "Yeah, you’re gonna have to explain that."

Bits and Pieces:

-- So Tabitha is the fairy godmother from 'Witch Hunt'. I did not see that coming. Did they meet in Hell after the team sent her there? Are fairy godmothers all really demons? I have so many questions.

-- They seem to have forgotten that Mick likes Ray. That was sad.

-- It's out of character for Mick to question Sara's decisions. That felt forced.

-- It appears that Wolfie ate Gary's Evil Nipple. Is Gary still evil? He did choose to go with Neron at the end.

-- 'Gary's Evil Nipple' is going to be the name of my new punk band.

-- Dragon eggs need more heat than that. They should be kept on a fire because their mothers breathe on them. Yes, I am a Ravenclaw.

-- It's surprising that we went anther week without Wixtable the Dragon hatching or becoming particularly relevant. Perhaps they're saving him for the finale.

-- Everybody knows that Zari and Nate are hooking up and responses are in the positive to indifferent range.

-- Neron slicing his own throat was a really nice effect. And of course John couldn't not stop him.

-- calling John 'Johnny' was Dez' thing, not really Neron's. It seems odd that Neron is still doing it.

-- Honestly, the gimmick of John's ancestor being the one who was persecuting the Puca felt a little gratuitous. Like, they really only did it because they thought it would be fun for Matt Ryan to play a different part for a bit.

-- 'Persecuting the Puca' is going to be the name of my new punk band.

-- Back in the day, the Hellblazer comic's letter page was constantly full of the debate about whether it was pronounced Constantine rhyming with 'mine' or Constantine rhyming with 'mean'. The publisher was very clear that it was 'mine'. I suspect we've ended up with the other pronunciation entirely because of the Keanu Reeves film, which isn't as bad as you remember by the way.

A deceptively elegantly structured episode that comes down whole-heartedly on the side of optimism. What's not to like?

Three and a half out of four creepy nipples.

'Creepy Nipples' is going to be the name of my new... oh, never mind.

Mikey Heinrich is, among other things, a freelance writer, volunteer firefighter, and roughly 78% water.

#Legends of Tomorrow #Sara Lance #John Constantine #Ava Sharpe #Ray Palmer #DC Comics #Arrowverse #Legends of Tomorrow Reviews #Doux Reviews #TV Reviews

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meny-sempai · 6 years

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MO DAO ZU SHI IS A MASTERPIECE – part 04

Hey guys!

First of all:

How is it possible that there are only 19 votes for this? Jeez…

This week’s newsflash!

Quote from the novel:

“Every day when Wei Wuxian was free, he played with the toddler Wen Yuan, son of Wen Qing’s cousin. He either let him hang on trees or buried him in the ground, fooling him that he’d grow faster if he was watered and bathed in sunlight… Turning around, though, he realized that Wen Yuan was gone. He almost turned pale, searching for the toddler all along the streets. Suddenly, he heard the wails of a child, and he immediately rushed over…

…

Wei WuXian, “Do you want one?”

Wen Yuan thought that he was going to buy one for him. He spoke embarrassedly, “Yeah.”

Yet, Wei WuXian walked in the opposite direction, “Haha, let’s go.”” (ch74)

Wei Wuxian, my son, you are so adorably horrible at parenting. Do keep it up. AND. If you think I’m not gonna use this in my favour, you’re wrong:

“Wei WuXian laughed madly, “Hahahahaha! Lan Zhan, congratulations! He’s taken a liking to you! He hugs the leg of whoever he likes, and he never lets go.”” (ch74)

“Jiang Cheng didn’t know when, but a child about one or two years old crept over and hugged his leg. Raising his chubby chin, he looked up at him with his dark, round eyes.” (ch73)

My boy JC = instant like. The children know.

Aaand that’s a wrap, see you guys next time!

… You wish. Let’s get started!

Before I begin I’ll just repeat this for the new readers:

I’m not a native English speaker so please bear with the mistakes I’m bound to make. I did read the novel, but only as far as the Exiled Rebels Scanlations translated it (thank you Rebels, you’re gods). I know a lot of spoilers, but I can’t say I know the whole story – If I start theorising be aware that I’m just theorising, I’m not actually telling the plot, but, just to be sure: SPOILERS ahead, I will use the facts I know for my analysis.

In this short series I’ll talk about the episodes, but I’ll also have long monologs about a certain topic.

EPISODE 07 – or, man I hate the Wens but I LOVE that theme music of theirs

… Has anyone ever told you the story about the boy who cried wolf?

And half of the fandom just died in the most satisfying death. I love how he just took a glance at the tables and was like: Nope, I’m not having any of this shit. And I’ll be theatrical and dramatic about it for all to see.

Remember what I said in one of my posts about the clans - how they don’t seem to be willing to play as a team and mostly watch their own? I think there’s a lot of truth in this and I suppose this is one of the reasons why the Wens grew so much in power. Nie sect obviously has a grudge against the Wens and wants to act on it. Now that Nie Mingjue is old enough he could do it. In theory. But without the assistance of other sects it would be suicidal. Was that why the Wens left Nie Mingjue and his brother alive after they killed their father? Did they know the other sects wouldn’t be willing to lift their fingers for the Nie? We can assume they didn’t react to the murder of Nie Mingjue’s father, so why would they help the Nie in revenge?

From my POV and understanding this advice of Lan Qiren should be pissing the hell out of Nie Mingjue. He is telling him to suck it up. Yes, for the sake of his clan, but also, because any kind of mess like this is endangering the other sects. Other sects chose to keep to themselves, so the advice is also: You do this, man - you’re alone.

On the other hand, this sentence can be also seen as how Lan Qiren himself feels. We saw him being enraged by the Wen clan because they let the Waterbound Abyss in their territory. But he can’t voice out his dissatisfaction, because he himself is sucking it up for his sect. If we see it that way, he’s basically saying: Even if we both riot it would be a suicide (Because, you see that yellow prick behind you? He’s not gonna help us and he’s the richest of us all. Jiangs are playing friends with them, they want to be family. We can’t count on any other help.)

And Lan Qiren is right. Nothing happened after Cloud Recesses was vandalized.

I don’t think the four big sects trust each other very much. The Wen sect actually brought them all together with all the shit they did. But teaming up happened mostly because the young ones took over.

I don’t even think they like each other. Which is kinda expected – they are all very different - their origin, mentality, temper, code, cultivation method. It’s actually funny how the Gusu Lan and the Nie are showing the first signs of teaming up since they are completely different in everything.

Instant confirmation to both Nie Mingjue and Lan Qiren. If you are understanding the scene like I described it, this guy laughing after what Lan Qiren said gets a whole new meaning. UGH. I don’t know why, but I really like the sound of his voice. Ugh…

And now we get the Jiang’s POV. The leader of the Jiang doesn’t care about the sitting arrangements (about the current situation of the sects). For him, the way things are, everything is already settled and can’t be changed in the present situation. What he cares about is THE FUTURE. Who will come after Wen Ruohan? Considering we know how deeply Jiangs value their family we can assume Jiang Fengmian is only thinking of how all of this will affect his children. Especially the future leader of Jiang.

What if? Jiang Fengmian always talks about the clan’s moto, he cherishes the “attempt the impossible”. But he himself is a very mild mannered man who doesn’t seem to have accomplished anything “amazing” in his years. And the way he acts could be seen as “weak” – he “accepts” the Wen sect, he “accepts” the wife’s anger, he “accepts” the marriage, he “accepts” the betrayal of his servant and friend. He is actually… very similar to Jiang Cheng.

What if the reason he’s being so strict and emotionless towards his son is because, in his way, he’s trying to make his son a better man than himself. Attempt the impossible/be like Wei Wuxian – don’t be like me. The future is bleak, and as a leader, you, my son, my heir, you can’t be like me.

Once again, MDZS makes a fabulous scene out of nothing.

Not at all.

My god, I love the dialog in this. Also, remember what I rambled about Wen Xu? Could this also be a hint? Did the sect leaders maybe hope to see him there? Instead, they got an untalented punk – worse than his father.

I’m sorry, for some reason I always laugh like an idiot during this exchange. I don’t know what it is that makes this scene so hilarious to me. Please, someone explain it to me.

He’s so precious!

Ah… JC, we meet again. I’ll talk about this moment down below. Just, remember it.

*squealing from love and insufferable pain*

JC: “Let’s split into two groups, then gather at the exit later.”

WWX: “Hey, where the hell are you leading me to?” (smiling)

JC: “Stop complaining! Just follow me.” BAM

WWX: “How about we go back the way we came? Rest assured. I definitely won’t tell anyone.” (teasing)

JC: “Just shut up, will you!” BAM

WWX: “Ahahahaha! Jiang Cheng.”

JC: “What now?”

WWX: “Look.”

I laughed my ass off the first two times I watched this. The third time… I noticed something.

Jiang Cheng takes the lead the moment the archery tournament starts, as an heir should. He gives out orders and goes into “follow me” mode. He has a path in mind, this strange and hard path looks right to him. He has a gut feeling he’s right in his decisions and he follows his gut. Wei Wuxian questions the plan like any of us would if someone started to drag us through “tight spots” for no reason. He questions him but he follows him nevertheless. I don’t think he even questions him for real, I think he’s just having fun watching his brother plays leader. And that’s one of the problems. Jiang Cheng is not playing. He’s trying to prove himself. This is his chance. So, when Wei Wuxian pokes fun at him he snaps like he usually does, but this time there is also an injury. Their conversation and Wei Wuxian’s comments hurt. Hence the head bumps. You can clearly see the change in Jiang Cheng’s expression after the first bump. He’s not so decisive anymore. He actually looks sad as if he’s starting to question his decisions too. But he can’t back down now so he just keeps going. And the smart-ass Wei Wuxian knows his brother too well. From his next comment we can see that he figured out what is bothering Jiang Cheng and as any decent sibling he pokes at it. Of course, Wei Wuxian doesn’t mean any harm, he’s just playing like the brothers always do. JC says some harsh things to Wei Wuxian too, it’s all part of being siblings. Sure, Wei Wuxian makes comments, but he still follows. He’s not even truly questioning anything, he’s annoying, but he completely trusts JC’s lead. He never thought of leaving his side, not even during “tight spots”.

Jiang Cheng doesn’t get hurt because of what Wei Wuxian says, he knows Wei Wuxian is probably the only one who doesn’t and won’t ever mean any of it. And that’s the biggest problem. Jiang Cheng believes in Wei Wuxian, he believes in WWX’s love for him, he trusts Wei Wuxian, but he doesn’t trust others. When someone says similar things that Wei Wuxian would jokingly say to him, Jiang Cheng can’t ignore it. Why? Because the same things have been said to him by the people who should love you the most. When your mother is always attacking your brother and saying you’re a fool to love him, when she is constantly dissatisfied with you and even says things like:

“You really are an idiot. I’ve told you long ago that you’ll never in your whole life be able to surpass the one sitting beside you. Not over cultivation, not over night-hunting, even over shooting kites, you can’t surpass him! … Your mom tells you countless times not to fool around with him, yet you’re still defending him. Just how did I give birth to a son like you?!” (ch51)

When your father never acknowledges you, when your parents are fighting because you’re not good enough, how do you feel? Wouldn’t any kind of comment affect you? Wouldn’t hearing that you’re worse at archery than some guy who missed the whole target hurt you? (But, they’re fighting because of Wei Wuxian and his mom, not because of JC.) Sure. But, would that be such a big problem if Jiang Cheng was as good as Wei Wuxian? If he was as good, wouldn’t that make his mother as good as the other woman? Wouldn’t that make his father love them equally? Besides, what child doesn’t think it’s his fault their parents “don’t love each other”?

“Jiang Cheng told him from inside, “Go sleep somewhere else! This is my room! You’re even gonna steal my room?!”

At that time, Wei WuXian didn’t know what Jiang Cheng was mad about at all. After a pause, he replied, “I didn’t steal anything. It’s Uncle Jiang who told me to sleep with you.”

Hearing that he was still bringing up his father, almost as if he was purposely showing off, Jiang Cheng’s eyes reddened as he yelled, “Go away! If I see you again, I’ll call a bunch of dogs to bite you!””(ch71)

This scene ripped my heart to shreds. Poor WWX, so confused and scared. Poor JC. Yes, this, THIS is jealousy. A full blown toxic jealousy attack, but there is also a lot to be read between the lines. Why is he exploding like this out of the blue? He was ready to forgive the fact that they’ve taken his only friends away from him. He was ready to share the room with the person for whom he had to give up his dogs. So why? He’s a child and he’s jealous, but is that really it? You know, seeing your father hugging someone should not be a trigger. It’s not normal to compare yourself just because of that. There has to be more, more unspoken reasons why someone would instantly compare oneself with someone. JC is someone who puts up with a lot of shit without saying anything – such people tend to explode for “no reason”. Realizing he’s been hugged only five times is the last straw.

When a very young child is unsure of whether his father loves him – you, as a parent, are doing something wrong. When a child is so afraid that his mistakes will make his father not like him even more – you have a very insecure child. An insecure child/person has a very low opinion of himself.

“Looking at Wei WuXian’s legs, Jiang Cheng’s face was full of nervousness. If any other disciple or servant learned about this and told Jiang FengMian, after Jiang FengMian knew how he threw Wei WuXian’s sheets out and made him hurt his leg, Jiang FengMian would definitely dislike him even more. This was also why he only dared chase after them alone and didn’t get anyone else.

Seeing how worried he seemed, Wei WuXian took the initiative, “Relax. I won’t tell Uncle Jiang. I only hurt myself because I suddenly wanted to climb a tree last night.”

Hearing this, Jiang Cheng sighed in relief. He swore, “You can relax as well. Anytime I see a dog, I’ll chase it away for you!”” (ch71)

I do believe this was the beginning of the ultimate trust. Also, after his jealousy attack, JC immediately realized what he did and felt bad. Yes, he was afraid of his father, but I do not believe for a second that that has any significance in his love for Wei Wuxian.

“Jiang YanLi put Wei Wuxian onto her back and began to walk back, wobbling in her steps as she spoke, “A-Ying, no matter what A-Cheng said to you, don’t bother about him. He doesn’t have a good temper, so he’s always home playing with himself. Those puppies were his favorites. Dad sent them away, and so he’s feeling upset. He’s actually really happy that somebody’s here to be with him. You ran out here and didn’t go back for a long time. I came to find you only because he’s worried that something happened to you and went to wake me up.””(ch71)

I love A Li, I’ll talk about her more later. She’s a great sister, but she does sometimes unintentionally do things that are unfair to Jiang Cheng (don’t attack me, wait for the next post for the elaboration). In this particular scene she was amazing. She didn’t get mad at JC (out of all the people he trusted her to bring back Wei Wuxian and don’t tell father about his mistake – that’s love). She carried them both (which is a nice contrast to Jiang Fengmian who carried only Wei Wuxian in the scene before). She tended to JC’s wounds from falling into the pit and encouraged him to say sorry. She. Was. Great.

But, let’s address one more thing. What does she mean by JC not having a good temper? What kind of a bad temper can a child have to not be able to have friends? Older JC is stiff and grumpy, but he does have friends in his sect and other people want to be his friends (Nie Huaisang for example).When you doubt your own worth, you can’t trust people to like you. Being around people can be hard. Being around dogs that have unconditional love for you can be very easy. It’s pleasant. I think Princess, Jasmine, and Love were healing his soul (like dogs often do) and taking them away was way more tragic from JC’s POV than it seems. No wonder he was wailing.

It’s funny how Wei Wuxian is afraid of dogs, but has so much unconditional love in him for his family.

I’ll talk about Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng more – the juicy episodes are coming. I’ll just say this: I really admire both of them. It would have been so damn easy for those two to hate each other’s guts, but they just don’t. And, yes, I don’t know the whole story, but right now, I believe JC never truly hated WWX, not even after everything.

Anyway.

Back to the scene from the donghua.

So, JC bumps his head and we laugh because it’s funny. If you are overthinking, like I am whenever JC appears on the screen, then you might see the head bumps as a metaphor for the comments JC has to live with. There’s one more way we can take this scene. Let’s say this is some form of foreshadowing. JC becomes the leader. Through thick and thin he leads and WWX follows him. JC’s decisions are not always the best, but the one who gets hurt by those decisions is him. Let’s go further and say the first bump is Shijie’s death.

Wei Wuxian: “How about we go back the way we came?”

I don’t know how it happens, but JC most certainly refuses to go back to how things were, he can’t go back. Even if you see honest hurt on his face, he continues and his leadership and decisions hurt him again. The death of Wei Wuxian. Even after this, JC continues on and in the end he reaches his destination. He was right all along, the path did lead to their goal (feral ghosts in this particular scene), but when he’s finally reached his goal he doesn’t see it. Not until Wei Wuxian points it out. When JC lost all of his family (Wei Wuxian in particular) he lost his focus. The goal became invisible because it had no worth anymore.

The two heroes of Yunmeng Jiang – Jiang Cheng needs Wei Wuxian in order to be himself and show his best.

I can’t wait for more chapters of the novel to analyse all of this and have a full picture of their relationship.

I know, ladies… Aahh… I know.

Well, you are extremely striking, Wei Wuxian, I’ll give you that. You’re so damn pretty here, my son.

One starts, the other one finishes. Both in their own ways. I just remembered this quote from the novel while re-watching:

“The two knew how to continue each other’s words ever since they were young. Now, one sentence after another, the argument flowed seamlessly…” (ch62)

I TOLD YOU NOT TO CRY WOLF! LOOK WHAT YOU DID! Calm down, Lan Zhan, breathe, my child brea-

HOLY FUCK! Down, Lan Zhan, stay down, remember the code! Remember, you’re a good boy, the best bo-

OK. OK, yeah, let it out. That’s healthy. Just… yeah. O.O (You better not piss off this dude. Fear the quiet ones, FEAR THEM.)

How can you be so smart, yet so stupid? XD Seriously, did you or did you not copy the damn rules for a month??? But, yeah, poor Lan Zhan, and poor Wei Wuxian – he is honestly confused. He wasn’t given a moment to properly apologize and he clearly wanted to. These two… they’ll be the death of me. Btw, the whole ribbon thing is so interesting, such a nice detail to the world building. But! I do admit that you most likely wouldn’t know about it if you follow only the animation. They should have made it more obvious. Unless. They did it like this on purpose, only to reveal it in the next season, which is also cool.

He feels so bad. TT_TT Don’t make that face at him, Lan Zhan, he’s a gentle soul. He doesn’t look like it, but he is.

Exactly. We won. Love is strong in JC. And look at those dorks. Precious. These moments are truly the blessing that we got from the animation. For me at least, it made me care about those guys even though I can’t remember their names. Those two nameless purple boys were the ones who made me drop my first tear in ep 11. These small things are so important. This is how you write a scene.

Envious much? I get you, though.

EPISODE 08 – or, where have all these bitches come from???

Diminutive - used to express the fact that something is small, often either to show affection or to suggest that something or someone is not important: Adding diminutive suffixes is often a disparaging tactic. MDZS has this fascinating ability to tell and show without actually spending too much time to tell and show.

Once again, such an imaginative way to progress the scenes.

“The cultivation clans kept silent in indignation (after the fall of many clans), only to share their resentments secretly. In the same year Wen Ruohan commanded his eldest son, Wen Xu, to aggressively intrude and burn down the Cloud Recesses.”

Ah, Wen Xu, I had so much faith in you. But, at least you didn’t burn everything and killed everyone like Wen Chao did. And defying your father/leader is a no-no. Eh, dunno, I wish we had more on him.

Don’t touch my baby! *animalistic growling*

That was really… cruel. But, I already talked about it. I want to say another thing here. I think the main reason why Wei Wuxian immediately jumped to the chance to go with Jiang Cheng is because Jiang Cheng will be safer with him than alone (I think Jiang Fengmian knows this too). Wei Wuxian is very protective of his shidi, he always saves him from (physical) danger. Man, I really love the Jiang siblings.

This is a nice parallel to that one moment when Wei Wuxain absorbed resentful energy in the earlier episode. The core melting must hurt as hell. Since I know almost all of the Jiang family lost their cores in similar fashion I get so pissed whenever I see The core melting hand (I don’t care for his name, he doesn’t deserve to have a name, I actually hate him more than any other Wen. He knows what he’s doing is wrong, he knows his lords are evil and he does nothing and his excuse is some favor. I totally get why Wei Wuxain was so furious with him.)

SCREENSHOT!

Don’t do something that will kill you.

Also, I like how the moment Wen Chao said “Who else dares to defy my orders?” Wei Wuxian immediately showed up in the frame. It’s such a nice touch to his personality and it’s a nice “invisible way” of foreshadowing.

He’s such a good child… *ugly sobbing*

The world doesn’t deserve Wei Wuxian. The world punishes people like Wei Wuxian and everyone knows this fact. The world is just not ready for someone as good and righteous. It probably never will be and that’s sad. But being “good and righteous” is complicated and debatable. The world will never agree on “good and righteous”, the agreement can never be pure and open-minded – someone like Wei Wuxian will never be accepted in the real society. We can all say we admire him and we truly do, but we also call him a fool.

He is so creepy. I love the VA for this guy. The way he laughs and yells Yahoo adds to the craziness.

All of them are so cute here. Lan Zhan too, with his childish jealousy. They just look like kids playing around. Also, Nie Huaisang, I can’t wait to see more of your shady ass in the future.

… I just think this shot is beautiful.

Jin Zixuan: Did you just touch my shoulder with your filthy finger?

Me: Fret not, babe, I’ll have Wei Wuxian make him eat that finger.

Lan Zhan and Jin Zixuan started it, Wei Wuxian brings a whole new level to “Fuck you”. I mentioned this before, I’ll say it again: I really like how our MC fights first with his smarts and even when he’s physical you can see that he’s using wits and tricks to win. That’s not usually the case with MCs. In this particular case, because he used his wit to disgrace Wen Chao and the Wen sect, he got remembered and became the main target to Wens’ revenge. JC must be eating himself up over this. He tried so hard, yet at the end he let his brother do something that will kill him. Honestly, though, I would have done the same as Wei Wuxian… and then I’d be feeling guilty for the rest of my life… just like him.

… Um… Wei Wuxian sweety, your Yiling Patriarch is showing.

“Attempt the impossible” sequence is a go. Also, this is such a cool shot.

Can’t you see a giant killer turtle behind you??? Good to know what your priorities are. You dumb bitch. Also, that scream… That was a really good scream of Wei Wuxian. Well… not good. You know what I mean.

And that’s all for today. I always say to myself I’ll make it shorter next time and I always fail to do so. Well, hope you enjoy my rambling. See you!

#mo dao zu shi #grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation #wei wuxian #lan wangji #jiang cheng #jiang yanli #jin zixuan #wen chao #nie huaisang #donghua #animation #character analysis #analysis

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surflove808 · 6 years

Text

On “social justice warriors” in the SPN fandom, knee jerk reactions and why they’re harmful to everyone.

I keep seeing people trolling Jensen after the (insert sarcasm font) terrible, horrible, remark he made during a roundtable discussion at SDCC2018. When asked about the challenges of speaking another language as a new character, he said, and I quote: "It was Arabic and it was an actual verse from the Quran and so, um, you don't wanna mess that up. (laughter from around the table) (Said with nervous laughter) I mean is ISIS gonna come after me if I'm saying the wrong thing?" (More laughter from around the table).

In another interview he talked about the importance of speaking and enunciating the language correctly especially because it was a holy verse from the Quran. Respect for the language, respect for the verse and respect for the religion was the name of the game, thematically speaking. However... we have our usual peanut gallery making a mountain out of a molehill, so here I am to be an equal, but just as obnoxious voice on the matter.

Even though my brother-in-law and his family are from Iraq and have been a part of my family, and ours theirs, for many years....even though my sister and a handful of friends (Palestinians and Iraqis predominantly) are practicing Muslims, I'm not arrogant enough to speak on behalf of the Muslim majority based on my small association. Unlike a lot of commenters I’ve been seeing.

I'm not of the Muslim faith. What I'm about to tell you guys is based on my knowledge and opinion alone. But I can tell you, my brother-in-law thinks the uproar over this is ridiculous with a capital R. AKA: "Majnun"

Islam is complex and misunderstood, to say the least. But for those of you who care to educate yourselves or others on the basics, read this: https://www.islamreligion.com/articles/10256/core-values-of-islam/ But really, read more. Much, much more.

The core values of ISIS are similar to the core values of Islam, but the way they practice is fundamentally opposed to the Muslim faith at large. That's why they're considered an extremist group. They're responsible for countless human rights violations, genocide and acts of terrorism not only against Westerners, but fellow (and especially) Muslim people who don't bow to their attempts at suppression.

Jensen stated that it was important to him to get the Arabic language and enunciation right because he was reciting holy verse from the Quran (which in and of itself, is a dangerous thing to do as a public figure on a t.v. show as far as ISIS is concerned) and he's pretty fucking on the mark about being concerned about flubbing the verse and dialect as far as ISIS is concerned. I guarantee you that this is a conversation that took place on set that day. This is a real thing, people.

What he did NOT do at any point in time, was equate fear of retribution with Islam or Muslims. He equated fear of retribution with ISIS. A splinter group of jihadists. It's a pretty valid concern, even said jokingly. Because these people do NOT have a sense of humor.

The only people I see generalizing around here and on his instagram/twitter are the people insisting he apologize and going off on him for his remark. They are literally assuming that ISIS=Muslim, and that’s beyond ignorant. They can assume all they want, but his statement does not reflect what they are accusing him of. Bottom line.

Reactionary children are equating his comment with anti-Muslim sentiment when it's simply not. ISIS is a relevant, dangerous and very real group of individuals who seek to terrorize their own countrymen into submission and the world-at-large, if possible. Stop conflating the two, people. You're only making matters worse with your fake "wokeness".

Some misguided people and their dire need to be social justice warriors could very well turn this into a very real, and very dangerous issue. You think I'm kidding? Remember Charlie Hebdo?? Try reading a bit, learning a bit...before you go off on social media. For fucks sake, people. If you don’t know about the massacre at the offices of Charlie Hebdo, google it.

I see some comments on Instagram saying "Well, I've spoken with MANY Muslims and they're ALL offended...." I'm sure you took a poll in the past 4 hours in order to compile your results. That must have been very challenging...I'm just kidding, you're full of shit.

It's always easier to go after a random celebrity when you're arrogant enough to think you can influence their lives, their decisions. Makes you feel powerful knowing that maybe something YOU said helped them see the light and change their ways. Right? Gives you some sense of control over the object of your adoration.

In some instances, I could see the logic in public shaming. Holding a public figure accountable for actions that are genuinely harmful. I get it. But (and I hate to say this. Because it sucks) this is the SPN fandom we’re talking about. Rife with ship wars, trolls and anti’s. After everything I’ve seen around here, it’s becoming difficult for me to trust attempts at calling one of these guys out on the basis of “social justice”. It feels dirty, because most of the time - it is.

If you want to change the world.... there are much more effective ways than misguidedly harassing an actor on a t.v. show. I've stated a variation on this theme a few times in past posts. And I'm not thrilled that I felt compelled to write and post this, but when I see and have seen the destructive power of the gloriously anonymous comment sections on social media and the ripple effect that can come from a few determined Boneheads On A Mission.... it sets me off on the fucking broke down, held-together-by-duct tape rantmobile that I call my conscience.

I'm not active on Twitter and don't do Instagram or FB because I generally feel social media does more harm than good. I'm not gonna repeat myself here, there or anywhere. I just needed to get this out of my system and hope that maybe someone reads this long ass essay and comes away with another perspective. Because.... common sense?

These issues are far more complex than a soundbite and the ensuing knee-jerk reactions. This is an important discussion that transcends the “He said/She said” nature of this conversation and it merits real, thoughtful exploration. And it deserves to be held with accountability and respect for one another and a degree of seriousness that you’re just not gonna achieve with your bullshit back and forth on an actors social media account.

My question for you is: Are you more concerned about shaming someone, getting their attention even if for negative reasons, and bending them to your will... or do you want to make the effort, do the research and have an intelligent discussion with your friends, family, professors, the world at large? Because I guarantee if you guided your attentions to positively provoking discussion and being receptive to other peoples experience, opinions and knowledge, you’d be a helluva lot more productive.

#jensen ackles #dean winchester #spn fandom #spn family #supernatural #fakewoke

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