#how does taika always look so good

[edsrosetattoo]

Do you ever see something that makes you go slightly insane?

[saltpepperbeard]

Poison into Positivity: A List of What I Liked in OFMD S2

Hello hello everyone! Things have been a little rough around here. Even away from the more heated takes, I've still seen a few "down in the dumps" murmurs. To which, I'm giving y'all big hugs, but also offering up some little bits of warmth! I wanted to share quite a few bullets of the things I enjoyed about this season. Maybe it'll serve as a reminder, or maybe it'll just serve as a chaotic, silly little read as per usual PFFF.

But I invite you to read along, and even add some of your own points should you feel inclined! Also, this might not even be my full list; these are just the ones that came to me quickly/off the top of my head. Still, let's dive on down like a fantastical, dazzling goldfish, shall we?

All the callbacks/parallels. My goodness. When I tell you I'm a SLUT for metaphors/parallels/callbacks/etc etc. Seeing so many things and being able to just *Leonardo Dicaprio pointing meme.* I know people might not share that same opinion because some might view it to be excessive, but I personally LOVED being able to point at my screen and be like "oH EYYYYYYY!!!" Maybe because it makes for such immaculate gifset/meta material <3 SJKJDLHSK

The costuming and makeup. WHEN THEY TALKED AT ECCC ABOUT EVERYONE GETTING HOTTER, THEY WERE NOT KIDDING LMAO. EVERYONE LOOKED SO, SO GOOD. and listen, i am on my knees begging for them to give ed with his hair up back to us. i need Her back,,,ALSO, SOMETHING SOMETHING COMPLICATED EMOTIONS TOWARDS STEDE'S LATTER HALF LOOK, BUT ALSO...GOD DAMN, MR. DARBY,,,,,,

Speaking of Mr. Darby, the acting in this season. The ACTTTINNNGG. Everyone acted their ASSES off. Everyone put their entire piratussies into this season. Though, I'm PARTICULARLY impressed with Taika and Rhys, because again with their "oh we're comedians lol so idk drama can be Difficult Difficult Lemon Difficult." MMMM I THINK THE FUCK NOT, MY GUYS LMAO??? They both did SO well with all the drama and painful moments. The acting in episodes 2, 3, 6, and 7 in particular like...God. GOD!!!

I loved so many characters in this season, and I'll of course have to give two individual shoutouts to my two favorite new ladies, but man. LET'S GO FRENCHIE!!! ALWAYS A DELIGHT!!! FANG/KEVIN MY ABSOLUTE SWEETHEART. JIM SERVING ABSOLUTE FUCKING GENDER THIS SEASON. OLU OLU DARLING OLU. PETE NEVER MISSING WITH HIS ONELINERS. LUCIUS BEING SO THEATRICAL AHDJKSDK LIKE NATHAN PLEASE YOU KILL ME. ROACH MAKING ME LAUGH OUT LOUD NUMEROUS TIMES AS HE DOES. WEE JOHN AND HIS KNITTING AND DRAG!!! AND THEN OF COURSE MY DEARLY BELOVEDS, ED AND STEDE. I JUST LOVE THEMMMMM!!! But okay okay okay-

Zheng my beloved. I just love this badass pirate queen with her sweet little pigtails and her IMMACULATE LINE DELIVERIES SDHJKSKL. A lot of my favorite deliveries from the entire season came from her quite honestly. Please see: "Girl, how ARE you?" and "Hiiiiiii. I KNOWWW it's been a day" and "I've killed mediocre men. I've killed exceptional men. But you're the worst kind: a mediocre man who thinks he's exceptional."

AND ARCHIE MY BELOVED. She kills me because I remember seeing like, those ~*~audition tape whispers~*~ WAY back in the day, and subsequently thinking she was going to be quite a different character. Only for this silly goofy bubbly energetic darling to pop up and snag my heart. HER deliveries kill me also, like when she goes "Like...STEDE Stede?" and the whole "I was IN the fuckin' snake!" also hhngngngngnershkfhslkds tattooed ladies Hot :(

Speaking of which, the comedy. THE DELIVERIES. THE WAY I LAUGHED OUT LOUD NUMEROUS TIMES THROUGHOUT, EVEN WITH THE DEEP UNDERCURRENT OF DRAMA/ANGST. The whole bit where Stede is in hysterics over his cursed coat is just hsjkdhsklds; it will NEVER not make me wheeze. And then, like I said, almost EVERYTHING Pete says this season kills me; another thing that will never not make me laugh is "a doggie...?" weird little pirate show with weird little humor my beloved

The ROMANCE??? I genuinely was going into the season with the expectation of getting maybe like, one or two Gentlebeard kisses. Imagine my shock and utter delight when we ended up with FOUR, AS WELL AS AN INTIMATE SCENE, THE LETTER SCENES, AND THE LOVE PROFESSIONS. Like, one of them dropping a legitimate "I love you" felt like an unrealistic expectation--the HIGHEST dream tier really. And then wouldn't you know it. And that doesn't even account for all the rest of the couples either! The murder wives having their chaotic little moments of fucked up affection??? LUCIUS AND PETE GETTING ENGAGED AND THEN MARRIED??? HELLO??????

The sets! I know people have pointed out that the world felt a bit simplified this time around, due to budget restraints and what have you. But I still loved what they did with the world even with the various constraints. The market in episode 6 is a PARTICULAR favorite of mine; it's just so lush and colorful. I also love what they did with The Revenge during episode 6 too!

Also, this might be an unpopular opinion, but I really actually liked that they filmed on location. First of all, love that the Kiwis got to be right at home in Aotearoa. Love that they have an even more special connection to the show now. But second of all, I just like when scenery is...actually THERE? It feels way more TANGIBLE. Don't get me wrong; that hugeass wraparound screen that they use to film a lot of sets is a technological marvel. But I'm a sucker for practical.

The deeper and more complex dives into character motivations/trauma. Like, homie lol...When I tell you episodes 6 and 7 utterly set my brain alight in the best way possible. I was CHUGGING through thoughts. You know those gifs where someone is walking around and ranting/passionately talking,,, yeah. Yeah. Maybe because a lot of it "struck a chord" with me indeed, but I love love LOVE getting brain food like that.

Speaking of brain food, in PARTICULAR, the deeper dives into Ed's self-loathing and into Stede's troubles with confidence and masculinity. A lot of Stede's choices were fueled by those two things, and it was SO friggin fun to catch all of them, put them in a jar, and shake them around. I've seen a lot of people fearing his actions in the latter half were out of character, but to me, I don't see it that way. I just see a man who has been so spurned, so left behind, and SO deprived, a man who is stuck thinking he has to be someone else to mean something. And I think that plays a lot into even the EARLIEST developments we saw in season 1, so it was just so intriguing to watch everything messily play out.

THE INNKEEPER. THE INNKEEPER MY BELOVED. SO much about that episode absolutely has my heart. All the different developments, the stakes, the pacing, and the payoff at the end. Not to mention that I had a FEELING that mysterious figure in the trailers was Hornigold, so it was so SO validating to see him pop up PFFF. And also, all those dream/gravy basket sequences were so so good too. I don't know if it's the chemistry between Taika and Mark, or the deeper symbolism, or the lines that have become vocal stims for me SJKDLS (please see: ooOOoooO eddie eddie eddie...you're laying some heavy shit on me, bro), but man. MAN.

And this one gets its own bullet because of course it does: the fucking mermaid scene. Like, are we kidding. ARE WE KIDDING. THE ROMANCE OF IT ALL? THE FANTASTICAL-NESS INDEED?? THE WAY IT WAS ALL FUCKING PRACTICAL AND RHYS SWAM DOWN TO TAIKA AS A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE GOLDFISH AND THEY HAD TO THROW HEART EYES AT EACH OTHER UNDERWATER??? WHAT THE FUCK!!! And don't even get me started on Kate Bush lol. This Woman's Work might easily be one of my favorite songs, if not my FAVORITE song from the season. And man. Man. The whole meaning behind Ed seeing Stede as this beautiful, sparkly being, and not some hypermasculine/extraordinary thing. He fell in love with Stede for who Stede really is. And so I ADORE that acknowledgement.

Speaking of songs, the MUSIC!!! Absolute bangers all throughout. And I loved how there seemed to be even more intermixed within the episodes. Like God... "These are the kids..." 🗣️ HELLO MY LOVE I HEARD A KISS FROM YOU 🦗🦟🦗🦟🦗🦟 . And all the beautiful classic piano pieces and NINA SIMONE AND JUST HSJKDHSFJKLHSKD????

Okay, I've always had and STILL have complicated thoughts and opinions on Izzy, but man, seeing him interact with the Revenge Crew was really something. Seeing Stede's influence come over the lot of them like a warm blanket, extending its welcoming and familial hands...It was just lovely. I love seeing our little sea family care for each other so much. They've probably all hurt so so much in different ways, so to see them all being a collective heart is just so nice.

Speaking of which, the queerness of it all, the queer celebration of it all. The way the whole crew is just...a representation of queer people finding each other, and subsequently finding love and family in each other. Like, when the whole world wants to cast you out, you pull each other in. When no one else wants you, you take refuge in each other. And just...the joy, beauty, and wonder that can be found in that.

And speaking of which x2, the overall care that was put into the entire thing, the effort that was put into the entire thing. I know Max fucked us over with the budget, which subsequently fucked things like the intricacy, the amount of characters, and especially the pacing. But, I don't know; I personally could still tell everyone involved was trying so so hard to deliver for us. Based on the little details, the little callbacks, and the little moments that felt so catered to us, it just seemed so...gifted to us. Not to mention of course, the way they so deliberately chose to end on a hopeful note in case we never get a third season. They care about us. They've always cherished our excitement and passion, so it just...idk; it feels so special to have a bit more of an intimate connection like that. I've never been involved with a piece of media that so avidly SEES its audience, and celebrates along with us. So, despite everything, despite any sort of troubles, despite any sort of lows, that's a big part of what has me clutching all of this so closely to my chest. And I really hope they can still see that love, because I want nothing more than for them to see this beautiful story through.

Also, getting to enjoy this with everyone. Getting to ride the wave from the beginning of filming, all the way through the finale. Getting to see all the excitement, all the theories, all the art, all the fanfiction, all the gif sets, all the meta, and everything in between. It has carried me through some nastiness in my personal life, and has subsequently served as a very welcomed distraction. It's been such a pleasure getting to delight in this new content with you all, and I hope we get to do so into the future. <3

[bringinghometherain]

I think the whole "I had to drop my phone...and go to Costa Rica for a while" thing is very likely because Rhys has been almost entirely a comedic side character in his work for like, 25 years. He's been earning his living being funny and awkward in front of a camera, which is a different subdivision of Hollywood from being attractive in front of a camera. He probably, as he got older, settled into that identity just fine. He likes being the funny guy, he feels fine about how he looks, he married a lovely woman and therefore didn't need to fixate on his appeal in the way that people who are dating need to (or feel they need to, rather).

Being Funny as an identity (especially for Rhys's generation of comics) often means you have written off the idea of being considered conventionally attractive. Not because you're not attractive! But because you start being funny when you're a kid to get people to like you, because you're kind of weird and awkward and you have bad skin and don't really fit into your body, and nobody will like you unless you have "being funny" to offer to the group.

Being Funny also means you're probably very good at redirecting conversation away from the parts of yourself you don't want people to see, you're very good at self-deprecating jokes, and you probably feel like you need to earn your space in most situations by Being Funny (ask me how I know). And when you're in your late 40s and quite settled into this identity, becoming an overnight sex symbol and having your social media feeds suddenly flooded with incredibly detailed artistic depictions of you as a sex symbol, I would guess that is extremely hard to wrap one's head around!!! It probably feels uncomfortable at first!! If your relationship with your body is "oh that old thing, don't worry it tells jokes," then having dozens of people drawing you as a tasteful nude has gotta be weird! I get it, and I sympathize. If I had something that big happening to my identity I might also go to Costa Rica for a bit (no I would not, I cannot afford that, I would probably go to Lake Michigan for like a day and call it even).

And as for why Taika and Con have been able to embrace the fanart from the start, well. Leslie Jones has already asked the important question of Taika: "Do you know you fine as hell?" And yeah, he absolutely does. And like he says, he knew it in high school too. And I say this because he went into entertainment, he probably wanted this at least a little bit, like come on. He's funny too, obviously, but he's always been hot, and he knows that. He didn't have to fall back on being funny because he was also Fine As Hell. Before OFMD was even an idea he'd already had all these photoshoots of him being a goofball in one shot and a Brooding Romantic Lead type in another. Dude knew his range well before the first sketch of Blackbeard in fishnets dropped. He was always gonna be fine.

And Con! Con has been a romantic interest several times in his tv/film career, from the very start. He's a side character pretty often, but the man has gotten plenty of feedback that he's attractive enough to be a romantic interest on a screen. Hell, just in 2020 he was a romantic lead on a podcast drama (which was a great story, he's great in it, very fun little horror drama). So while he may not have the same Fine As Hell and Knows It energy Taika has, Con probably came into OFMD more sure of his physical attractiveness than of his comedic acting skills. And when the Izzy fanart started dropping, he probably didn't have much trouble getting excited about it after the initial surprise, because he hadn't written off his physical attractiveness in the way Rhys probably had.

[gentlebeardsbarngrill]

04/15/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR; David Jenkins; Taika; Samson Kayo; Kay Buchanan; Nathan Foad; Watch parties; GLAAD LAST DAYS; Fan Spotlight; Love Notes; Daily Darby / Tonight's Taika.

== David Jenkins ==

Okay so I apologize all-- somehow I missed that all the David Jenkins pics going around were NEW. I don't know why but I thought they were from a while back. My taxes brain really has me messed up. So these are from the past 2-4 days. Now it makes a lot of sense too as to why everyone's been honking louder! You can see him there at WB Studios, and yes that is him with OFMD fan-stickers on his laptop.

Source: Kinga Malisz' IG

== Taika Waititi ==

A small glimpse of Taika and his ginormous doe eyes on the set of Klara and The Sun. Src: Vas J Morgan's IG

== Samson Kayo ==

Samson was out in Abu Dhabi U.A.E sporting his Prada Sun Glasses! Chaos Dad and Samba happened to pop into his comments as well! Thanks @ashes-skye for pointing out these great photos! SRC: Samson's Instagram

== Kay Buchanan ==

Our lovely leatherworker Kay Buchanan posted lots of cool things today on her instagram! Stede's Dagger Sheath

Next up was the Gunpowder Pouches for OFMD

== Nathan Foad ==

Some first shots of Nathan in his role in #LovesLabourLost! Src: Royal Shakespeare Company IG

== Watch Party Reminders! ==

== Flight Of the Conchords ==

Season 1 is done! Season 2 starts tomorrow with Episodes 1 and 2! Join Save OFMD Crew, and @/ iamadequate1 this week for Flight of the Conchords watch parties! You can watch each day at 4pm PT, 7 pm ET, 11pm BST! If you don't have access, feel free to join us on the #RhysDarbyFaction Discord server, you can hit me up for an invite.

Hashtags:

#FlagOfTheConchords

#OurFlagMeansDeath

== LAST CHANCE FOR GLAAD ==

Voting closes in two days, get your votes in while you can! Remember: you can vote more than once. 😉🏴‍☠️

IMG Src: @saveofmdcrewmates

== Fan Spotlight ==

One of our crewmates @/RabinaryCode on youtube has put together this cute Queen Parody for Rhys! Give it a listen if you have some time :) Vocals: @ferventrabbitao3

Lyrics: @tanteclem

== Cast Cards ==

To quote @melvisik "Tonight is Ian Alda (yup, related to Alan Alda) playing the clerk... reads notes Clark Clerkwell... person who told Stede he's dead "

== Love Notes ==

Hey lovelies. I hope you all are having a fresh start to your week. I've heard good news and rough news, so I truly hope if you have good news, it stays that way and if you have bad news, it looks up for you!

I really am so glad to see people clowning though. I know no one wants to get their hopes up, but it's nice to see that kind of energy flowing through the fandom again. We deserve a little treat of hope once in a while and it warms my heart how much people are running with it.

Hope is the dream lovelies. All things spring from hope. Don't give up on it. Even when things feel the worst, hope is what keeps us going. I have so much love for you friends. I know we have our bad days, but I hope you know that no matter what happens me and the crew will send you love. We love sharing this space with you. Rest well lovelies. Some quotes about hope tonight:

"The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience." - Emily Dickinson

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." - Eleanor Roosevelt

== Daily Darby / Tonight's Taika ==

Sorry, tonight's theme is just... this interview because every time I see it it makes me smile so horrendously huge. I love them so much and certainly together like this. The goofy bastards. Gif Courtesy of @captain-flint

[celluloidbroomcloset]

I've seen it floating around a bit that the numbers Bloys was talking about were demographics, not actual viewing numbers. I...do not think this is accurate.

"Numbers" is a catch-all term that's an easy excuse—and he cannot say "yeah, it was cancelled at the last minute because my boss is a fucking asshole." Every streamer has used "numbers" as an excuse for cancellations, but it's getting harder for them to do so because things are getting more transparent.

Now, there may be an argument in terms of longevity of numbers, because a show that doesn't go on and on is going to dip. Our Flag Means Death is essentially a limited series, and was always intended to be (I doubt anyone thought that especially Taika and Rhys were going to go on making it for ten seasons or whatever). But there are very few fictional shows that are going to be watched forever and ever, and even fewer that would consistently rate at the top of any list. Shows spike and then another show comes along and people watch that. Quite a few streamers and networks already know this—we see limited series like Ted Lasso and Good Omens, which will never keep going beyond a few seasons. That's actually something HBO used to specialize in.

What about demographics? If the argument is that OFMD's only, or major, appeal is to the LGBTQ+ community, I don't think this one holds water either. You don't get to be the most-watched show on Max by appealing solely to one demographic, and there's no evidence that the viewership is only made up of queer people. It is a queer show; it's also a comedy about pirates. It's a queer comedy about pirates. Yes, the first season was practically straight-bait (oh, haha, a pirate comedy! Wait...those pirates are...they are super gay), but the second season proved to retain and even expand viewers. Just anecdotally, I can't tell you how many straight people I've sold on this show in part because it's not queer-bait-y.

Rainbow capitalism is an actual thing and the reason behind it is because queerness does indeed sell. It's profitable. One of the reasons for the intense cultural backlash against queerness is that it's profitable and conservatives see themselves losing even more of their grip. This has been a marked shift from the 90s and 2010s. This is not just because queer people exist and buy things, but because straight allies exist and buy things too. Companies have scrambled to try to package and sell queerness. It's a problem in a lot of ways, but it also indicates that it's a sound investment.

So, no. I think the numbers comment is exactly what it looks like—a dodge to try to explain cancelling a very popular show at the last minute, without giving the real reasons behind it. I doubt Bloys could've say anything else to that question, really, but he's going to bear the public brunt of it.

[firespirited]

It's always funny to me how a company says "we own everything an employee makes even on their own time" when the employee can just...

not tell them. Sit on it until they're unemployed.

well... about that... Carter Bryant waited until his contract was over before pitching the full Bratz concept while trying to get work elsewhere.

When Bratz made it big, someone at Mattel did manage to remember he had at some point vaguely tried to pitch a teen doll line and it'd been rejected and they went digging. In court, they used the fact that he'd done some sketches on the free notepads they hand to their designers as evidence it probably wasn't done on company time but on company "property".

For a while there Mattel owned Bratz until the decision was reversed. And you might be thinking like I did, ah good the property reverted to its original owner.

Nope, Bryant gets nothing. MGAe are using the work he did in the early 2000s on the repros and he gets nothing. Both big doll companies won't employ him. Same for Garrett Sander: he sells artwork of "teen monsters" and does conventions.

It was part of their job to keep coming up with ideas and pitch as many as possible but it's also part of their job that they're disposable as designers... but if they pitch old ideas there's a chance it could result in litigation. I can't be certain but I think Sanders is hamstrung by having worked extensively on the (non cartoon) She-Ra: he couldn't pitch a warrior princess, magical girl or superhero line to any company without Mattel saying they own it or some design elements like a cape and sword combo, look they have these files in their vaults!

This, from companies that copy liberally from each other, from celebs and from fashion. The whole thing is absurd. These two designers have less ownership over their work than your local painter.

So a doll designer can't sit on anything unless they keep their ideas in their head and it's literally their job to be not just spitballing but sketching ideas all day and the company will only produce a few (but own them all).

I don't know many many industries this spans but it's wild: imagine Disney suing Taika Waititi for a new film he wrote the super basic outline for while he was bored on a plane for a press conference for Thor 4 because he used a company rental tablet to rehearse for questions and send himself an email, what if it had jokes he pitched in a writers' room at some point not knowing someone was keeping minutes?

Steven Sumners currently works for MGAe but I've been following on flickr since the 2010s and he's worked at Spinmaster, Mattel and Hasbro. They're expected to bounce around the industry as doll lines come and go but somehow keep the ideas flowing but also locked in their heads? Also no royalties, no copyright. Baffling.

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

Once Upon a Time on the Razor Crest

Summary: First steps to friendship

A/N: Hello lovelies,

I hope everyone had a good week. I just want to put this out there as someone who works in the medical field, please be kind to doctors, nurses, technicians, receptions, and cleaning crews.

Just be kind in general. I had a rough week with a very rude patient. It might not seem like much but after a while it takes a toll. So to everyone and anyone who needs to hear this, thank you for all the hard work you do.

Love oo

Due to the past history of the OC there will be discussions alluding to past domestic abuse, please note that as it could be a trigger for some.

Warnings: discussions of lunch, trying to avoid isolation, mentions of past trauma (blink and you'll miss it), discussions of being dirty (physically), possible mud (use your imagination). If I miss any warnings, please let me know.

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Main Master List   |  Once Upon a Time on the Razor Crest

THE CRESTWORLD

CHAPTER NINE

As we watched Taika and Misty munching away, it made me remember we needed to eat too, “Din, what do you want for lunch? There’s some leftovers from last night’s dinner or I could make us a sandwich and salad …”

“You know…” he cut her off, realizing he needed to make more of an effort with her. 

Sure she was his employee, but he was also the only person she knew out here. Cobb and Fennec were always busy in town and the surrounding areas,  and Fennec had even less time than Cobb, being Boba’s right hand. Then there was Grogu, and as fun and enjoyable he was for a little kid, it wasn’t the same as having someone around her own age to hang out with. 

He nodded to himself, resolving he needed to do better, “You did a really good job today, Ann. Looking after Bessie, milking her, noticing there was something off about her. You could’ve easily brushed it off, or not even bothered to tell me about it. But you did, and because you did, I can tell you there will be a new addition to the ranch. Nerfs have a faster gestation than most quadrupeds. We should have a new addition in a month or two depending on if it’s a bull or calf. Not to mention you fed the nunas and collected the eggs, even though I know it freaks you out a little. I even noticed that you stamped the eggs with the date, and put them away. Cleaned out the pens as best you could … before I got here.” He smirked.

I tilted my head to look at him, resting my head on my arms that were propped on the railing of the corral. I didn’t say much, simply looking at him as I narrowed my eyes at Din, “I can’t tell if you’re making fun of me, or if you’re being genuine”

He chuckled, as he glanced over to her, shaking his head. “Genuine, I’m being genuine,” he turned back to look at Taika and Misty, “plus, I owe you for this morning.” 

I smirked, focusing back on the horses, “So … does this mean, I’ll get a pay bump?”

“Ha! No.” He stood stretching, “However, I do believe, your good work today, and for my …”

“Assery?”

“That’s not even a word.”

“Words aren’t words, until you start using them more often”

Din shook his head laughing, “Anyway, I do believe this entitles you to lunch on me. How about we go into town for lunch? I know a good restaurant.”

“Oh, um … yeah, I guess…”

He hadn’t expected that reaction, “Do you not want to?” Din glanced over to her.

A thousand scenarios ran through my mind, my biggest concern was bringing danger to this small town, but … Fennec went through a lot to cover my tracks so I could make it here. I couldn’t keep hiding on the ranch like I was. I needed to stop letting my ex dictate terms. I needed to start living again. 

I closed my eyes, and reminded myself, I wasn’t that same weak girl, he initially married.

 “No. No.” I focused on the landscape before, taking in the beautiful mountains, the crisp air. I was far away from him. “I’m up for going into town. After all, I need to see more of this area, get to know the town and people. As beautiful as this ranch is, I can’t exactly be holed up here forever.”

“No. You can’t” he smiled.

 I smirked, as my eyes glanced down, looking over my dirty outfit, “Maybe I should change? Take a shower at least?” My hand subconsciously went to my forehead and hair, wiping away some of the sweat and dirt.

Din shrugged, “You can if you want to but there’s no need, we’re going to a diner, not some fancy five-star high-end Coruscant restaurant. Plus this is a farming town, we’re all used to being a little dirty.”

“Hmmm … Well, I guess, if you’re going like that” I motioned to his shirt, “then I guess I can go like this” I motioned to my less than stellar outfit.

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” He looked down, sure there was dirt, hay, dust, some grass strains, and something … he hoped but wasn’t entirely sure was mud. The more he thought about it, the more he changed his opinion, “You know, now that you mention it, maybe a change of shirt wouldn’t be the worst thing.”

I chuckled, nodding in agreement, as he tried to flick a nondescript dark matter off his shirt towards me. I squealed, flinching away from him, increasing the distance between us. “Hey …” I held up my finger as I moved further away, “I’ll have you know, I have enough of my own questionable dark matter on me, I don’t need to take on yours, too.” I shouted over to him, when I was far enough away and headed back into the house.  

Din watched as she headed back to the house, slipping off her boots before she went in. 

He stood in the open glancing over to the pens, the horses grazing, and Bessie chewing away as she stood there looking at him, and he couldn’t remember a time he felt this content from cleaning the pens and grooming Taika and Misty. He shook his head, pushing his thoughts aside as he headed into the house to change.

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@littlemisspascal @sprout-fics @liadamerondjarin @badbatch-simp24 @spicymcnuggies @lady-ren @firstofficerwiggles @darkangel4121 @discofern @kavecika @monako-jinn-stories @ladykatakuri @avathebestx @theroguesully @furyhellfire66 @carodealmeida @ciramaris @twinkofthedink @dindjarin-mandalorian @tortor-mcgee @sarcasmismyonlydefense24 @chiyo13

[ourflagmeansgayrights]

if ppl are looking for ways to explore Ed's adhd without playing into dicey territory surrounding cleanliness, they can just look at Taika's own list of very obvious adhd symptoms (that he doesn't seem to realize are adhd) like suddenly needing to run around the set, getting easily overwhelmed around other people, and becoming so obsessed with online chess that he can't sleep.

i have worked. VERY hard to keep my parasocial attachment to taika waititi at an appropriate level. so i did not know those things about him and also i personally will not be doing any research into taika waititi’s adhd symptoms. but these are VERY good ed traits and that’s not a bad idea lol

it’s not just cleanliness (and that part was more me talking abt my depression rather than my adhd lol) that becomes dicey with some people’s adhd/neurodivergent headcanons. one of the biggest ones i’ve seen that’s incredibly pervasive in this fandom but also isn’t actually supported by canon is the “ed needs izzy to run the ship, he’s incapable of staying organized on his own” read. and like, i’m saying this as someone who DOES need external support: there is no reason to headcanon ed as needing a white man to keep his life together. ffs, apply taika’s work ethic and how he always has a million projects going on to your ed interpretation. fuck your “ed gets bored of things quickly and leaves things half-finished” headcanons give me “ed picks up new creative outlets all the time and fucking excels at all of them.” that’s more in-line with what we see in canon, anyway.

[tinyagitator]

Okay so @scordoesart posted a lovely Bellhands thing the other day and I got thinking again, which can either be fun, or lead to sheer madness and brainrot and this is the brainrot kind of thinking apparently. So I had to write it down and regain some semblance of sanity again.

So, Bellhands is all well and good (and honestly, probably the most likely option for Izzy's long lost boyfriend please cast Matt Berry as Sam, he is so perfect), but then I doodled a little piratey dude the other day, thought he looked like he could be a good boyfriend for Izzy, but he didn't feel like Bellamy to me, and then I thought

Blackbeard is a pirate with a bloody reputation, but a soft side for his beloved.

You know you else had a big, nasty, bloodthirsty reputation?

Charles Vane

Hear me out:

In history, Vane got started sailing around the same time as Stede and Blackbeard under Henry Jennings, and pretty quickly made a name for himself and gained a reputation for like, torturing captured crews, and being the "leave none alive, show no mercy" sort of pirate captain.

So if Vane is a big name in the pirate world, why wouldn't Izzy hear that name and go "that's my boyfriend! He's alive!"

Some pirates likely changed their names to protect their family's reputation, so maybe when they were younger, Izzy didn't know him as Charles Vane?

From what I skimmed on Wikipedia, Vane didn't sail with Hornigold, but we're history inspired here, not completely accurate. I read somewhere that Taika said he read like 4 sentences of the Blackbeard Wikipedia page and decided to just wing it from there, so if it's good enough for Taika, it's good enough for me

So, what if he did? What if he sailed with Hornigold and company under his legal name, and then later changed it to Vane when he started building his own piratey reputation?

Some time after Blackbeard gets to captain his own ship, something happens and Charles gets separated from the crew (arrested? Falls overboard and picked up by a different ship? Idk, something) and Izzy thinks his boyfriend is dead

Maybe Charles has some connections somewhere and talks his way out of being hanged for crimes of piracy, but has a hard time getting back out to sea for some reason. Eventually he does get away and back out to sea where he meets Jennings, and somewhere down the road, he gets to captain his own ship and goes off to try to reunite with Izzy and company.

(side note: at least according to Wikipedia, he sailed on The Lark, The Ranger, The Katherine, and a different ship called The Ranger. Hornigold also had a ship called the Ranger, so there's the basis for my half-assed 'Vane used to sail with Hornigold' theory. I’ve also decided that his ship the Katherine is named after someone he knows. A beloved little sister, maybe?)

Historically, Vane and Calico Jack sailed together for a time. Per Wikipedia, Jack was Vane's quartermaster, and later became captain after voting Vane out of his captaincy. Again, vaguely historically inspired, my vision of Vane (fairly level-headed and laid back, but prone to bursts of anger and murder) probably doesn't like wild, rambunctious Jack too much, and maybe only briefly reunited with him prior to ep 8. So maybe when Charles reunites with Blackbeard and Izzy, there can be a "why the FUCK didn't Jack tell you I've been looking for you, I'm gonna fuckin kill him" moment

Maybe Vane got his violent reputation while looking for Izzy. I'm picturing like, Vane shows up in the republic of pirates, asks about Blackbeard, and the guys there are like "oh yeah he was here like a week ago, you just missed him. No idea where he fucked off to this time", and he starts taking out his frustration on captured ships because his former shipmates are just always slightly out of reach. Or maybe gossip spreads about Ed and Stede taking the act of grace, and Vane starts getting extra passionate about hunting English ships, hoping to find Blackbeard on one of them and reunite with his old friend?

how did Izzy and Charles end up together in the first place? Still working out the details on that one, but it's coming together, just slowly

This may turn into a actual fic some day (probably not, I have no time, nor am I good with words) but for now it's just a jumbly, scrambly list of half-formed ideas that need to be dealt with eventually

[missbaphomet]

ur the only source of information about the met gala. can you do a tier list or rate their looks? i refuse to look anything up i want it filtered through you

I can do that! Just as a heads up I don't really follow celebrities so idk who most of these people are. I just like fashion.

So the Met Gala 2023 theme was "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty". Personally I hate themes like this. This theme is for the creative director from like 1983-2019 for Chanel. I believe he died in 2020 so uh. Real timely on that theme there.

I had to look into Karl to understand the theme and I found he's German and known for baroque and European influences in his work. As someone who really likes old European fashions like victorian and baroque and such I was hype. Oh how disappointed I was.

I'll start with looks I liked because there aren't many

Jenna Ortega: I feel like the fatal flaw of Chanel always comes down to boring black and white formalwear. This piece does a good job of mixing the classic and the modern. I would kill for the platform Oxfords. This piece isn't quite a lolita silhouette but you can definitely read the influence in the bowknot, the sleeves, the bodice, and the waistline.

Kendall Jenner: I have no love for the Kardashian/Jenners but I do love this.

Anne Hathaway: it's a pretty look but the texture doesn't look good in photos.

Conan Grey: at least it's not just a suit

Bella Ramsey: I like the callback to the original Chanel LBD but the suit jacket does nothing for her

Devon Aoki and Jeremy Scott: I'm a sucker for wing details

Ashley Park: I don't think she understood the theme but this kicks ass

Camila Morrone: Somehow the most on-theme, still looks boring

Kristen Stewart: Same.

Jennie Kim: it's a pretty look but it looks like exactly everything else on the runway

Yara Shahidi: corsets my beloved, actually pretty on theme.

Suki Waterhouse: at least its not black and white

Brian Tyree: Man must have fist fought gay count Dracula for this look and I love it

Penelope Cruz: Definitely not on theme but it's pretty

Rami Malek: favorite category: celebs that look like they forgot what the met gala is

Vanessa Kirby: art deco my beloved *still not on theme tho*

Taika Watiti: sir shouldn't you be on some kind of spiritual retreat in the Bahamas or something

These are just ones I like to get started. I haven't even gotten to Jared Leto's fursuit yet

[londonspirit]

Well then...

It's been two weeks since the final episode (HOW?) and i have finally sorted my thoughts enough to write little about it (mainly for myself - as always).

First of: I fucking LOVED it!!! Yes, it wasn't perfect but that's only the studios fault and nobody else's.

(although I do have a few issues with the editing of especially the last episode: there's too many things wrong to ignore it. There's tiny bits not lining up before which is fine because one can overlook them; Ed going in for the kiss at the beach from the left and the close up is from the right, things like that. In the last epi there's too much of that: the crew behind them when Izzy dies, that's just bad editing; although once again, I'm pretty sure that's the studio's fault, if they could've done it like they wanted to, there would've been reshoots for it *sighs* It's a shame, because that scene is beautiful otherwise; sad as hell but incredibly well done. Taika and Con are really going for it, and it's amazing!)

Edit: knowing now that they cut FORTY fucking % I only keep my 'critics' because this is mainly for me! Knowing that, I am even more in awe about what they managed to make with that!!! They are all fucking MAGICAL for making this show as beautiful and amazing as they did!!!! And I really hope ONE DAY we can get a Director's Cut or something that's gonna make it all more smooth and just that more coherent, just like DJ would've wanted it to look!!!

Anyhow, i loved it. Im so happy to now have 8 more episode to obsess over again, to rewatch whenever I want and revel in the fucking MAGIC they gave us! The writers have really outdone themselves this season! It's tight and fast-paced but it still works fantastically well!

Personally, I've never been more in love with Taika - his acting was outstanding this season!!! Absolutely NO notes on that!! That man's soo fucking talented that whenever he says otherwise I wanna smack him over the head and shake him. I REALLY hope he does more of this because it was insanely good and I want more. (also: he's never looked more gorgeous!! the HAIR! the BEARD! the fucking EYES!!! GUH!! I wanna give him all the awards for this role alone but that's just me!!! So yeah, much much love for him!!) Same goes for Rhys - they're both soo fucking good together, and I cannot wait for them to do more drama because they'd fucking smash it! And not to forget the rest of the cast: every single one gave their absolutely best and I loved every single second of it!!!

What else? The fucking LOCATIONS!! God, I've always wanted to go to AoNZ but this season made me so much more needy!!! (not happening anytime soon but yeah, ONE DAY!!). Sooo stunning, sooo damn beautiful!! GUH!!!

Also: Guest stars!!! First and foremost: FAMILY!! Say what you want about that, but I fucking LOVE when shows do that!!! Taika's kids made me squeal soo much in the BTS vids already, but having DJ's wife in it as well??? With a rather substantial role? And her absolutely smashing it?! Totally made that episode even more amazing!!!

VERY much in love with Ruibo!!! Her Queen was incredible and I loved every second she was on screen!! Her character was so nuanced and wonderful and perfectly balanced. I REALLY hope we can get her back for a 3rd season - she fucking rocked it!!!

And we got ALL THE KISSES!!! I mean, I was hoping to get some more, and something a little more passionate than in S1 (don't get me wrong, I still love that one but yeah...) And we got soo many!! And soo many wonderful ones!!! And no I can't pick a fav: I love them all. The moonlight one had me losing my shit all over the place (at work no less) - the callbacks, Ed's fucking EYES and Stede's shy glances!! GUH, that was just soo delicious!!! The Calypso one was just hot as hell and I may have cursed them for not making that longer!! And the beach one was just utter perfection! Their faces, their smiles, Ed's 'I love you' still makes my stomach all gooey!!!

And then there's Izzy. *sighs* My little angry raccoon man. Our indestructible little fucker. Con motherfucking O'Neill. UGH!! I hated him (Izzy, not Con) all the way through S1! There was not one redeeming feature on that bastard. BUT... when you've read all the Ed/Stede fics and you start to look for something new and then find some beautifully written Izzy/Roach ones and then start to like him and eventually read more and then end up reading (and writing) some SteddyHands and you're like 'yeah, I can see it now'. It also helped A LOT that Con's such a darling man and so real for it all, and you have too much time to fall in love with him after all... So naturally you start to like S2!Izzy. And then you start to love him, and you fucking ADORE the SASSINESS he's got this season. (Still not over the morning after Izzy - the SASS was through the fucking roof!!!) AND THEN THEY LET HIM SING!!!! DEAR GOD!!! I would've loved for a full on musical episode (I mean, that talent show would've been such a GREAT opportunity for that!) The ENTIRE cast is freakishly talented and they all could've pulled that off. So naturally I was VERY HAPPY that at least they let Izzy sing!!! I'm still not over that!! (And Im highly amused that even some of the crew had no idea that he could do that!!! I mean... he got a fucking OLIVIER award to prove it!!!) (but then again, I spend way too much time on YT to find his stuff so that's probably just me!) AND DID HE DELIVER!!! The whole party bit, with the make-up and the shyness at first and then just BURSTING it out was just sooo fucking beautiful!!! Every damn frame of that was a bloody masterpiece and I'd KILL for the bits they cut - I'd pay a very good price for a DVD with ALL the deleted bits because I KNOW that DJ had to tighten that baby down massively!!! I NEED THAT!!! *exhales*

So yeah, S2 made the impossible possible and made me LOVE Izzy fucking Hands! Which im certain was their plan all along - otherwise his death wouldn't have been this devastating!!! Which is fucking WAS!! I cried at work (thankfully there was nobody there!)! And im still not over it!! I totally understand WHY they did it. Doesn't mean it doesn't still hurt. (here the strange editing sort of took away from the PAIN of it all a bit but if you concentrate on Ed and Iz it can be ignored).

*sighs* I'm just so sad that some people went and attacked our beautiful writers like they did. I know it's only a small part of an otherwise amazing fandom but I HATE that they're soo fucking loud - i can only hope DJ and his writers know that most people love what they did! (and NO, I do NOT wanna discuss it. you can be sad, yes, and you can be mad too but you do NOT go and shit-talk the writers or send them death threats - that's an absolute no-go! And no, in a show that's all around queer and has a lot of disabled character, it's not homophobic or ableist - it IS after all just a tv show. If YOU put too much of your own wants into it, that's on YOU! Ugh, sorry, didn't want to get into this but it makes me soo mad!!!) Once again, I'm very glad that I follow only the right people, no need to block or unfollow anyone on here or on Twitter! *blows kisses*

So yeah, despite some small flaws and scenes I KNOW have been cut, I love the second season just as much (if not more) than the 1st one. I can only hope that the studios decide to let DJ finish it. Im so happy with what we got - fanfiction can totally work with that. But I would love to see more Ed and Stede (trying and probably failing) to run their Inn, see the crew of the Revenge get into insane adventures, maybe even meet some more new characters (JC and BM still need to make a cameo!) - there's still soo much story to tell and I would LOVE to actually SEE it on screen!!!

I also would LOVE for the cast and crew to be able to finally talk about it, promote it, share stories and pictures and everything during a 3rd (and last) wave of MADNESS surrounding the show. Everyone deserves to bask in the love we have for them and our show. S1 had barely any promo. S2 aired during a strike. S3 could make up for all of that and get cast and crew the love, recognition and adoration they soo very much deserve!!!

[bonesandthebees]

ello bones hope youre doing good

just found even more cool songs thanks to you, how do you always have more???

also WE COULDVE HAD YOU DOING ASL??? aw man :( (/lh)

anyway, I just turned in my paper that ive been working on for the last few months (yay, finally, it ate like all of my free time and energy) and suddenly I have too much free time and not much too read or watch (I had saved so many fics I cant manage to read anymore)

any coming of age books (or fics) or movies recommendations? (I need me some honey and tangerines vibes yk? ive been listening to the playlist too much again. one day I think ill read that fic again, but today is not the day)

much love to go you all in the ask box, eli <3

I'm doing pretty good! went to a yoga class tonight and I'm seeing the tommyinnit live show tomorrow so it's shaping up to be a pretty great weekend!

I actually filmed a video to post here on language day and everything but I wanted to redo it so my face wasn't fully in frame but then I just didn't get around to it :( oh well next time

OOO congrats on turning in that paper!! that's a huge accomplishment, I hope you get a great grade on it. and yay for free time!

oh boy ok coming of age recs I can do this. I haven't read any coming of age books since I was a teenager though so keep in my my memory of these are all hazy

books:

the perks of being a wallflower by stephen chbosky - hallmarker of the coming of age genre, read this when I was 16 and cried, even if you've seen the movie I highly recommend the book

aristotle and dante discover the secrets of the universe by benjamin alire saenz - literally was one of my favorite books for so many years. I read it when I was 15 and became obsessed with it. I still look back on it so warmly it's just such a great book

it's kind of a funny story by ned vizzini - also read this one when I was like 16ish. I remembered enjoying it but not as much as the other two I've listed here. still very good though!

movies:

cha cha real smooth (2022) - actually one of my favorite coming of age films I've ever seen. it's a coming of age film about a guy in his early 20s instead of in his teens which is refreshing in its own. it hit particularly hard for me because I saw it when I was 22 and freshly graduated from college unsure what to do, the main character is 22 and freshly graduated from college unsure what to do. it's also a very unique setup and I really loved how they pulled it off

the edge of seventeen (2016) - this might be a controversial pick because the main character is actually pretty insufferable in this, but that's part of why I enjoyed it. the character is meant to be insufferable. she's a teenage girl dealing with the hell of being a teenage girl and she sucks! it's an intentional thing and it does it very well! I would say it still falls flat in some areas, but I'm mainly recommending it because it's so refreshing to have an mc genuinely be a shitty person

sing street (2016) - I count this as a coming of age movie but it's also kind of a music movie? it's incredibly fun no matter what. the songs are so catchy, the characters are all great, and the relationships are just all very well done

the kings of summer (2013) - genuinely why do I never hear anyone talk about this movie. I haven't seen it in so long but I remember it being incredibly funny with a great dose of summertime whimsy

hunt for the wilderpeople (2016) - tbh I never thought of this as a coming of age movie and it might be a bit different than most of the films on here but I was looking up lists of coming of age movies to try and remember which ones I've seen and I saw this one mentioned a few times. if you're a fan of taika waititi films, in my opinion this is his best one hands down. it's hilarious but also incredibly sweet and heartwarming at the same time

moonrise kingdom (2012) - very charming and storybook esque in the way all wes anderson films are, but with a really sweet story between two kids at its core. again, different from most of the ones on this list, but definitely an enjoyable one all the same

hope this list helps!

[galaxythreads]

Why not let taika be dumb by himself, whats the point in stalking and making fun of his new stuff just because of a marvel movie he made? (Also its a bit insensitive considering he isn't even white)

Unfollow me, please. Please stop harrasing me. Leave me alone. If you send me another message like this I'm going to report you to tumblr for harrassment. I know you're the same person. I recognize your speech pattern. Your anon handle means nothing. I could find you on Tumblr and I might, soley to block you. You've sent me more than five of these. If you were going to change my mind about Ragnarok, you would have done it by now. Stop.

-

And for the record:

Waititi's race did not even occur to me. .....?......? Why would it have? I literally just googled it. Okay. He's a Polynesian Jew. That's awesome. But like. What am I meant to do with this information beyond respect it and move on??? No I mean that genuinely. Am I supposed to do something else with this knowledge?

Dheisbdiehdhd.

Look. If I decided to pick apart every Polynesian or Jewish piece of media (which if I did something is deeply wrong with me and I need a hug and someone to slap me) and insisted that there was something wrong with them the storyteller inherently for being this race, that would be racist. Or that Polynesians/Jews can't write good stories, that would be racist. Me saying every black person isn't a good writer would be racist. Or every white person. Racism. Racism is when you single out an entire group to loathe and insist that they're abnormal or dangerous for being born that way. (Also it's ignorance, but you can't know everything all at once, so just listen and apologize. Most people will be very understanding you didn't know the Thing.)

Me discussing one (1) movie that Waititi made, where I never even brought up race because WHY WOULD I HAVE????????? is not racism? It's discussing storytelling?

Wait. Do you think I hate Waititi as a human being for Ragnarok? Anon????.?.??....? I don't like him as a director. I would still happily take a bullet for him because he's a human? And he does, outside of his work, seem nice-ish. I don't think we could be friends, but that doesn't mean I want him dead. Oh my gosh. Go to sleep. Eat a KitKat.

People are not racist for discussing bipocs work. I love discussing all writing from everyone. My favorite ao3 author is Jewish, and I love all the references she puts to her religion in her fics. Genuinely, always brings a smile to my face. I love it when culture bleeds into a fic or a movie or a book. Look, Im not a good writer just because I'm lesbian. It didn't give me magic powers. Your identity doesn't protect you from bad writing.......good writing does. And every race and culture has amazing writers.

You know why I hate Ragnarok? Do you? Honestly? Have you thought to ask yourself that? Because I have never spoken about it. I just circle around the point and make bad jokes.

It has nothing to do with the comedy. I hate Ragnarok because it is one of the most insensitive films I have ever seen when it comes to mental health. That's it. Waititi is so insensitive to mental health struggles it is harmful. A fact I break down in detail in my video on why and how. It had nothing to do with his race. WHY WOULD IT EVER HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH HIS RACE???

I---

[balladtv]

okay so, not music related (if u twist it, it can be tho) but. you mentioned media and that so, top 5 films? my fav question to ask anyone as a (almost) film student

Finally found the time to answer this as I’m on a 3 hour train ride (willing myself to not make a 1975 reference right now) so here ya go!! thank you for your patience :)

1. Knives Out (Dir. Rian Johnson)

my favourite genre of typically everything will always be a good classic murder mystery (I am a massive agatha christie fan), I love anything that really makes you think and look out for stuff whilst you’re watching it and gets your heart pumping, so this is why this will always be my favourite film because of how masterfully it was developed. everything down to the angles chosen by rian to literally everything in the film (I’ve watched the videos where he breaks down scenes on YouTube so many times) is just perfect and makes so much sense — something that gets lost sometimes (in my opinion) in mysteries. although the sequel isn’t on my top 5 list, I genuinely think it was one of the strongest second instalments to any franchise and I throughly enjoyed it.

2. Red Eye (Dir. Wes Craven)

similar reason to knives out, I love the thrill of the film because of the confined space, which initially would make the audience think there wouldn’t be much you could use and get stuck, but I don’t think this was an issue in the film at all. my mate initially chucked this on without telling us anything about the film (besides cillian murphy being in it, which was enough to convince me) so imagine the surprise on my face when I realised this wasn’t a cute corny romcom. the ending fight sequence in the house was also fucking amazing and quickly shot to my top 5 list immediately after watching it. I also fancy the duck out of rachel mcadams so this was a bisexual dream.

3. Moulin Rouge! (Dir. Baz Luhrmann)

I just love love. I love love love love. the best love story to ever be told in such a extravagant way with an hilarious cast. this is also my favourite stage musical of all time and the way they adapted it was brilliant. really does pull the story together amazingly and teaches the audience a lot through it’s hard hitting ending — I cry every time, and despite my love for satine I don’t think I’d love this film as much if it didn’t end the way that it does.

4. JoJo Rabbit (Dir. Taika Waititi)

this is also another film that made me bawl so much when I saw it in the cinema, the way that it made me feel emotionally pulled on my heartstrings like no other film I had seen before, especially with the masterful shot of rosie’s shoes. that’s what got me (and I’m pretty sure what got everyone). to be on my top 5 list, a film either has to emotionally destroy me which makes me experience emotions I never thought I had, or blow my mind. as you can see every film on this list at least meets one of those factors.

5. Now You See Me (Dir. Louis Leterrier)

finally, the awesome film that is now you see me. I admittedly am quite obsessed with jessie eisenburg in this film (unashamed) and I feel bad for my friends who saw me whilst I was at my peak obsession with this film. but all the characters / cast compliment each other really well, and either I’m just insanely easily impressed (all of my friends will definitely agree with me on this) or the ending was just mind blowing. maybe a mixture of both? either way, I also think this film has one of the greatest scores of all time. truly is a masterpiece in every sense of the word!

I will mention the most recent film I watched in the cinema was Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Pt. 1 and I was absolutely blown away by it. some excellent directing and choice of shots, costumes etc. as a media student genuinely did feel that everything (down to the last detail) was carefully thought of. also so excited for barbenhiemer I will be watching them both on the same date as a double bill — it’s the law.

[demivampirew]

I think u need some perspective. A. It's normal for people to work remotely since 2020 especially if they're at the corporate level. Plus if her focus is on the Warhammer stuff it makes sense that she's always with Henry. B. Social media is an extension of a person not the whole person. Henry probably made a conscious choice not to post as much for whatever reasons. Also it's normal to post the person ur in a relationship with.

The reason you're so upset is because you put Henry on a pedestal in the first place. He isn't required to interact with fans on Instagram or post about his life, and demanding that he post what you want him to post is entitled. Daddy isn't punishing you (also so weird to call him that even if you were being sarcastic). For example a celebrity years ago stopped posting on social media and wasn't interacting with fans as much and his fans were being demanding and angry about it like you. Then it turned out his mother passed away and that was the reason he took a step back and it was quite disgusting that fans were demanding he post selfies and updates while he was going through that.

And C. You only know Henry through Instagram and magazine/tv interviews which are not on the fly. Usually famous people choose which questions they answer and practice what they will say to seem relatable and interesting. So basically even if Henry said he likes xyz, we don't really know if he's telling the truth, but people in his real life like his family and gf know him for real and she probably fits his type despite what he has said in the past to seem appealing to the masses. Also he might have said he wanted a lowkey relationship but as far as famous people go this is pretty low key, just look at taika waititi and Rita ora for comparison or any "power couple" constantly posting about each other. Also if Henry is in love which it seems like he is, it's natural for him to want to post his partner, that's a normal thing that people do. He's still posting about his projects in between so it just seems like to me even if he never posted her again you would still be unhappy.

Let's just say, the way my brain works, when I noticed a change in behavior I need to find a cause for it to understand it. He was a way with fans and since Miss Influencer showed up in the picture, he's been acting in a completely different manner. He's been avoiding us and doesn't even take the time anymore to post things like "Thank you for watching my show/movie, I truly appreciated it" like he used to. Why if I acted like a "good fan" (don't talk publicly about his personal life or pretend everything was ok) and don't comment or send nasty dms to her or anybody, am being punished because some fans do?

And the "He isn't required to interact with fans on Instagram or post about his life, and demanding that he post what you want him to post is entitled." is a stupid argument on your part. He's not forced to but when he acted a certain way for years and all the sudden he changed and didn't engage with social media anymore without explanation and, the only "explanation" is a "f*ck off" post he made calling out all fans when in reality it was just a loud minority the ones behaving "badly" (I put badly in quotation marks because some were actually nasty and others just questioned him for flying an American woman to the UK in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, showing how he abused his privilege as a celebrity), he should expect those fans who acted like he considered good, to question why are we being punished and blamed for other's actions, especially how in the past the same happened with his other girlfriends and he still was nice to all fans (not just the ones he sees live at events). Am I supposed to wait until he decides to come back to Argentina, if he ever does it, for him to show appreciation for supporting him? And, about your point of me being entitled for expecting him to act like he used to and the only reason I see why he wouldn't is that he's punishing us for fans not being in the Nathlee fans club, is that's an entitlement, well, go ahead an call me entitled. For all I care, you can call me the Entitled Karen of the fandom, idgaf.

About your point that something serious could be going on with his family; Charlie, and Heather act normal. His "girlfriend" is doing her influencing online so, if something serious happened, she doesn't give a single f*ck.

And point "C", I don't claim to know who he's really inside and in his personal life, I just loved his public persona before Miss Influencer showed up (admittedly ignoring some red flags like the fact that he dated someone much younger than him and he dated a woman that hunted animals as a sport because, at the end of the day, he made the right decision to call off those relationships) But now, his public persona is someone who doesn't engage with fans unless it's obligatory for press; he only posts ads, posters, and trailers (no thank you posts, I appreciate your support); we spend a f*cking year asking for a picture of Kal and he only posted when he could make it about Natalie and made a coordinated post, like if she was f*cking important.

[weareunderthesameskies]

watched the new thor!!! wanted to get my thoughts down so um read on for a long, rambly review (first bit is non-spoilery, the last half is more specific about plot things)

first off, it was hilarious, because of course it was. definitely had some strong, loud belly laughs. that's the mark of a waititi movie. entertaining, colorful, no doubt.

secondly, it's worth considering that it's incredibly difficult to top ragnarok. taika has said he used a lot of his bangers of suggestions on ragnarok since he didn't expect to get hired again. so in my view, love and thunder isn't better than ragnarok (since that one did so many new, innovative things in one stride) but it's a different flavour of thor that i definitely enjoyed. it doesn't seem like taika himself thinks this is better than ragnarok (based on how he promotes it and carefully talks about 'topping' ragnarok - he's mentioned that that was scary for him to pursue), but he seems to have made peace with it.

gorr was an incredible villian. bale plays him so sympathetic and creepy, and he has his own humor whilst also being a heavy heart for the emotions of the film.

i enjoyed having more time with valkyrie, and i friggin love that val and jane have some bonding time.

on that note, it seems like an absolute blast to have been on set. like, the entire crew always talks about the mood that taika brings, playing music, improvising, and for this one, having all their kids on set too. waititi's, hemworth's, portman's, bale's - like, it's really unheard of to make a family movie in that way. coming from a film background myself, i feel like most movie sets have this air of "importance" to them, or that actors suffered "bc its worth it if the movie was good in the end" but often times the movie isn't even that good to defend the shitty feeling they might have had meeting on set. it means a lot to me that taika is not only shaking up the content of what we see in hollywood (more queer & indigenous for sure) but also behind the scenes trying to change what it means to work on movies. you dont have to suffer for art he says, it's playful, its joyful, it's ridiculous, it's fun. and i respect him so much for that. so it does bring me a certain happiness thinking of the movie when i know they had so much fun making it, and i feel like that shines through.

love jane as mighty thor, love how she both got more emotional depth, comedic moments and most importantly - agency.

i do wish valkyrie had a more in depth arc - she's probably the only major character of the cast (thor, jane, val and korg) that i was kind of unsure of what changed for her during the movie. i know she had an arc planned that they kind of scrapped again? but from interviews it kind of sounds like that was also tessa's wish? in any case, it was missing.

but still, the ratio of 2:1 with jane, val and thor is not something that goes over my head lightly. do you know how friggin rare it is to have a superhero line up in a final battle with two female characters where it's not like, a gratuitous "look, the women are here" sequence? literally lets just compare it to the first thor movie, where it was only sif as the "one woman in the group of men, look, we're diverse". it felt organic, it feels good that valkyrie is thor's bff and also that he makes space to fight side by side with jane. it just. it feels good man.

more overall iffy things:

the structure is very straightforward. combat, break/talk, combat, break/talk. it gives space for the characters to elaborate their feelings, but it's also very predictable rhythm, especially towards the end.

there's a sequence with thor interacting with heimdall's kid, where thor bickers with axel. the sequence is that the kid is briefly introduced where they say he 'used to be called astrid, now wants to go by axel' and thor uses essentially his deadname, before eventually agreeing to calling him axel, and then uses axel for the rest of the movie. it's a liiiiiittle uncomfy bc of the "this is dumb, thats not your 'real name'" rhetoric, but the humor mostly sticks on a 'dumb thor' moment (think of all the bickering with hulk in ragnarok. he's a really stubborn, dumb character at times) but it cuts a little to close to home for trans people i imagine. on the other hand, canonical trans kid of heimdall? and like, if that's how some people are introduced to the idea of using a new name, the interaction still ends with thor consistently using it and never bringing it up again. so the moral is still, even though thor is dumb and stubborn, he's still respectful enough to use axel's name. but i felt umcomfy and i fully understand if some people overall dislike that sequence.

!!! MORE SPOILER SPECIFC THOUGHTS HERE !!! !!! seriously, spoilers spoilers !!!

going back to gorr, i loved the ending, i cried at the ending. how unbelievable is that, that he lets thor adopt his daughter. also, played by hemsworth's daughter? that's just too sweet.

love and thunder. like that was just. so good. "sweet child o mine" YAH. thor DILF era lets go. i think it's kind of interesting how a lot of MCU characters have started to consider the impact of children more. ever since tony with the "i love you 3000" and recently wanda's quest for her sons. i liked that gorr's mission was never "destroy the world", it felt much more like "i hate the privileged 1%" (which, you know, thor literally agreed with. refusing to be king, sharing the might thor titel with Jane, k i l l i n g Zeus. COMRADE THOR). it was a relatable villian goal, and when he then got the magic wish to bring back his daughter he took it and i just.

i love how thor's major super power is empathy. he cares so much for humans, his friends, even his villain's daughter that he raises as his own. how crazy is that. the biggest muscle is indeed the heart.

going back to jane and her agency. it's sad that she dies at the end, yes. technically, if we wanna put those glasses on, she dies and thor has character development from it, which, you know, could be one of those classic "sigh" moments. this feels different for a few reasons though. one, she choose it. and not in a spur of the moment, she was safe, away from the fighting, and she choose to put herself back in. thor begged her not to, but she said it's my life, i want to decide what happens and that's fucking powerful.

secondly, she had cancer and that was not just something to brush over. her journey was sad and serious, and this is one aspect of taika's filmmaking that shouldn't be ignored. people die in his movies - odin, the planet of asgard, but also in his others - hunt for the wilderpeople, jojo, boy - death is a really important part of the stories he tells. for natalie, getting to play jane with true emotional depth must have been revelatory for her as well. she's not just a brush over love interest, she's a complete character.

if you read all that, you get a gold star, well done. give me a lil exclamation mark in the comments or something and hit me up if u wanna talk or discuss more.