#i adored the way they closed out simon & betty's story.

[continuousmeowing]

i liked the ending! I thought it was sweet. I have a few gripes, but i think it was overall pretty good.

[trevanent]

God I loved the series but I only wish they had more time! There was a ridiculous amount of ambition just bursting from every seam non-stop and so many potent threads I feel they didn't even have close to enough space to go into.

Like, in the end it kinda felt they wanted to sorta resolve the apparent Wake of Tragedy F&C&S left behind just because they weren't confident in getting anymore seasons to elaborate on that really but honestly I loved the ambiguity and interpretability of the intense and self-contained arcs of the universes in each episodes. It was very well done, maybe more well-done than they had realized!

Anyways the highlight of it all by far the biggest catharsis and vindication in seeing that they did basically smuggle in atleast some kind of closure for where Simon and Betty's story left off. And man... just seeing GolBetty in the horrible void all statuesque in her movements and always grimacing was so painful and fascinating... the animation! (like holy fuck that part where she does whatever the Hell that was to the Lich and simultaneously explaining what those floating shapes are! More or less.) The implications left behind by it all, the strangeness and the ambiguity all lent well with their commitment to the Lovecraftian horror of her new form. It was really amazing actually getting to see GolBetty as her own character now, and I could just go on about that last interaction on so many levels.

I think, above all, the most intriguing thing to me was that it seemed to me at least that she wasn't trying to stop him from wearing the crown because of how hard she tried to undo it, but just to give him a last chance to really understand her and their relationship beforehand at the very least. I guess she did also stop him by seemingly helping out with canonizing Fionna's universe, but just. Damn. Like she really is kinda gone, but still there. She is still her and she knows who she is, unlike Ice King, but she also seems so much more impossibly distant than Simon ever was as Ice King. Like... she truly is kinda beyond comprehension at this point, unfathomably powerful yet you feel so concerned and sad for her, or maybe just who she was. It does seem like she made peace in some kinda way. It just really hurts nonetheless. Also the little Casper and Nova story allegory was so cute and sad :( and seeing Simon posess Shermy was the most bizarrely adorable thing ever.

[perispinel]

Adventure Time Finale Liveblog

Already this episode is off to a weird start, starting with a flashforward in the future with two random one-off characters and- OH MY GOSH THEY FOUND FINN’S ARM AND THEY LIVE IN MARCELINE’S HOUSE NOW!

Did Finn like die? THis has to be a fakeout about this.

King of Ooo is alive far int he future? he melted in the fire as wax remember writers? 

Oh my gosh this is why they showed the Enchiridion episode last, Mount Kragdor is back!

the king of Ooo is BMO! Wait why does he have PB’s crown... oh my god BMO outlived everybody. he is unfazed by death

BMO is kickin’ em out already, what a savage

That arm is giving BMO some flashbacks. Awww adorable!

Heh after so long BMO is having trouble remembering Finn’s name.

The plot description said NEPTR was telling the story, they faked us out totally!

Finally, more Betty! 

Finally, more Maja!

Looking at Finn is like “you die eventually. BMO has your arm now.”

Having BMO narrate the whole story makes it sound like a five year old trying to describe World War II. 

Finally Duke of Nuts, my favorite character!

Literally no one likes him, he wants to be MacGyver

Justin Roiland has work while R n M is off

Princess Bubblegum is going the Leia route of going from Princess to General

Oh no a little cake spy.

Huntress Wizard, played by Mona Lisa from Parks and Rec, did a good job getting rid of that sky

Come along with me, it is time for war you seeeee

Marceline and PB better makeout RIGHT NOW Marceline, yes, please reconsider PB Oh geez Marceline is just casually like “I saw people die PB.” Marceline be like “I felt worse” all over us

Finn is right.

W-what? Finn whatcha goin on about with nightmares? I thought he was gonna break the fourth wall

I love when a war begins with someone repeating “WAR” over and over

Yep yep there goes the banana guards. What a great plan

“You’re weird” isn’t what I’d say honestly

He doesn’t know what fruit is apparently

Lemongrab is totally piiiiiissed... Oh he’s just sad.

Gumbald literally is backing UP because of them being serious Finny boy

Hey Fern, remember when I accidentally killed ya? Good times boi

“You’re a toddler” is the cue for “I kill you or you give up”

What a great time for a commercial break. 

Okay, time for my thoughts in-between the show: this is giving me crazy feelings. Like, knowing BMO outlives everyone, regardless of the war’s outcome... wait, BMO said Finn was heroic til the end right? Oh my gosh will Finn sacrifice himself? Well either way BMO probably SAW him die, old age or not. BMO is literally the imbodement of a child who doesn’t understand the consequences of anything. Back to the show!

Nice job making me almost sad BMO.

Unconscious world? That’s crazy man.

So no war? Aiight.

Finn was all like “go to dreamworld and talk things out” and they be like “let’s have a war again”

Ooh cool, let’s get those songs for the album here

Jake is going back to his roots

Ooh let’s get Tom Sharpling up in this guys

Aww poor Fern. 

PB isn’t reluctant at all to kill someone even if they look like Finn, as long as they be an enemy. 

Oh sweet evolution Fern! 

Fern is going the toddler solution, that’s fine.

Okay Greg from Steven Universe, enjoy your appearance while it lasts.

Is John DiMaggio spending the episode in a dream state?

Pinching people in the dreamworld really wakes you up? That’s dope.

W-what? why’d they just vibrate

Fern does sound like a knockoff Finn sometimes honestly. Heh prove you’re tormented Finn! 

Oh geez this is really dark, PB had a messup life. Recreating that scene for some symbolism I suppose!

Ooh subconscious world!

Aww his girlfriend is here- I wish I spoke korean.

It’s nice his kids- oh nevermind. 

Is this symbolism for him being connected to his wife like by the sides?

Hahah we got a fart joke everyone, wrap it up! Just kiddin I don’t care either way

I bet Pb is learning what it was like living as a completely unintelligent being without any choice. Will this cause some empathy?

Yeah repressed memories must smell awful.

Obviously Fern and Finn share the same memories, but it’s cool to see them confront it Mindful Education-style

I missed Adventure Time’s art style honestly. 

Oh I get it, Fern originated from the Finnsword.

Oh wow, all of that took place in the span of one second!

PB and Gumbald are learning empathy now, are we not having a war or?

“No no no that happened next.” Good job faking out the fake out.

I love these breaks telling us small bits of lore and secrets about what’s going on that we’re not noticing. Anyway, I am excited to find out what this portal is exactly- I’m guessing Magic Man, Betty, and Maga’s weird cryptic chant is gonna cause some big bad event. Will Adventure Time end with the end of the world? I’d be mega shocked if Finn just died. Wait why isn’t Marceline in the future? Realistically she should be there UNLESS she got killed, soooo... back to the show!! :D

We saved the day! Big scary baby is definitely good!

Wait Fern is in the real world now???

Ice King was just gonna leave until he had that flashback

It is so cute seeing Betty and Simon’s past, I wwant fanart of them having a happy life.

Did I mention FP is super cute? I love Flame Princess

This is getting quite dark man. Even Marcy is scared.

PB don’t martyr yourself

Aww what a great leader, telling her army to flee in terror instead of dying without purpose!

Oooh Fern is on good side now!

Gumball Guardians are her real children

Is this even a kids episode? this should be rared PG-13 man

I hope all this rogue gallery characters still get lines. oh there they go

Heh Jake and Amethyst have some similarities don’t they

Wow what a dark end for someone, skull cracks open and innards bounce around and endanger people

Ice King is the savior! How cute

This is more epic than Reunited but that’s not fair to say exactly, one is finale and one is a special

Oh no poor bananas, so dumb

Let’s go Jake, doing what he does best and being helpful!

Did Jake explode and die?

Remember when LSP and Lemongrab dated?

Aww Lemongrab and LSP is a canon ship, only straight ship allowed for those two

Come on Ice King, remember who you and Betty are!

Ice King is reciting the song from the episode. Oh my gosh come on dude, replace at least ONE word in the song silly!

Betty is too crazy to not throw a tantrum I guess.

Maga the Sky Witch- Kill Count 1

No no no Flame Princesssss! Maybe she’s okay?

Fernnn! 

Did PB just die? Oh my glob

Oh Marcy’s going back to her roots

Okay PB is alive, it’s fine.

Marceline just had a PLanet Hulk moment right there.

Aww it’s canon now guys! Marceline X Bubblegum eternally and they kissssed! Guys they made up for so long of teasing!

Oh no I think they’re breaking them apart layer-by-layer

Ice King is Simon again, yeyyy!

I love that the moment PB and Marcy are confirmed gay for real they just have them holding each other close to prove it even more

Finally Jakei s confirmed not dead

Oh no is Jake dead, 2.0.?

Finally we have a reason BMO knows what happens. He nearly died.

Okay so... Flame Princess and Fern are taken out while Maga is definitely dead. I have a feeling Marceline might die,or else we’ll need a thorough explanation for why she’s not living in her house. Like I can tell that this character voiced by Willow Smith is Jake’s descendant but Marceline is potentially an immortal I assumed so they wouldn’t have her be gone without explanation. Then, here’s a question: is Jake about to sacrifice himself to save BMO?? Also, BMO straight-up says the world ended so I have a feeling that he wasn’t just being coy.

Oh my glob, what’s about to happen. Jake and Finnn’s home is destroyed. 

BMO is getting deep. Okay HE’S SINGING THE SONG :D

Is this about to have a Rogue One ending? How is this going to end happily?

This song is meant to be bittersweet, no way is this a happy ending song guys.

Is BMO secretly badass? CARTOON CONSPIRACY No it’s just the power of music.

Oh I get it! Discord, Harmony, Music, it all makes sense! 

Oh literally everyone sings this! along with screaming!

They got so many voice actors for this! 

Is he going to explode? Oh my glob?

Here lies Finn. he was a good man. I love him. 

“No one gets to choose how it happens. the most important thing is that we’re here together.” Nice way to make me sad twice

Is Simon going to become Simon forever? What’s going on here? Is Betty going to get her bones crushed???

Aww how cute of you Betty. not making my heart any calmer

Ooh yes he’s Simon again :DDD

Oh my gosh this is a crazy kind of ending

Oh no I’m scared now.

thanks for the reminder of The Tandem Elephant’s existence man. Okay, so... this is crazy. Simon is back, like for real, he’s not dying or anything... Betty is potentially dead... Finn didn’t die, which is dope... my eyes are watering, definitely not about to cry. I can’t believe it I’m emotional over cartoon show wow. Just knowing I have eight more minutes until it for real is all over. Maybe I’ll just like, watch it again so I can pretend it didn’t end yet? No that’d be fake. I normally don’t even cry in situations where it’d make sense so this is telling for me I guess. These commercials really make me appreciate how good the show I’m watching are. :’D Okay so, I don’t think Magi actually died, although it’s hard to tell really since I didn’t get a good look at her. I have no idea what is about to happen but I am freaking out. 

Ultimate Adventure continues now

Oh wow Betty fused with the crystal boi

Simon and Marcy, reunited for real

Imagine how much it must suck to wake up after so long of being stuck as someone else

I DON’T FEEL SO GOOD. is that a reference... Oooniverse?

Okay so Gunter is the future beard boy I guess.

Oh wow they grew a Fern. and found a new sword. 

YES HE SCREAMED. THE BOY SCREAMSSS!

Thanks for disobeying me Finn

Finn officially has the singular arm. Dope.

Future baby boy has a big beard

Finn and Jake can’t live forever, this is the past yes

Ooh the music hole is here again! Epic callback broos

Ooh the hole sings the End Credits Song oh geez

New Ice King is Gunter, old ICe King is Simon

Ooh nice glimpses of what might become of some of our friends in the future

Ooooh Lemongrab and Jake get along better. 

Aww cute his dad is going to space now

Flame Princess and NEPTR friends forever

Jiggler callback! 

Susan is here!

Normal Man is cool!

Huntress Wizard continues to be fun! 

PB and Marcy are still gay, Pep But is still edgyyyy

THE HUMANS ARE BAAAAAACCCCCKKKK

They found the sword oh glorb! 

OH WOW THEY JUST HINTED AT WHAT A FUTURE ADVENTURE TIME SPINOFF WOULD BE LIKE!

I LOVE THE FACT THAT THEY DIDN’T RESET BUTTON US BUT DIDN’T KILL EVERYBODY OR SOMETHING! 

Okay I have a lot of thoughts... that was a ffinale. It really was. It was not something I got disappointed in because they didn’t wrap up anything. It wasn’t like waiting 10 years for 10 more episodes of a cartoon. It was like epic man. I naerly teared up guys. It didn’t end with a Reset Button like some finales would- Everything Stays, but it still changed. Sorry, this post is too long for anyone to read all the way through, but I still hope you enjoyed my thoughts on the last Adventure Time episode. A zillion out of ten guys.

[fountainpenguin]

Muse-Ic

I’ve had some people asking me lately about music and whether I listen to anything in particular when gearing up to write certain characters. I never listen to music while I actually write, but sometimes I’ll pull up songs in the morning and then carry them with me throughout the day while I plan things out.

So, here are some little character playlists for you guys, including some songs I’ve shared before and others I haven’t. Since the 130 Prompts are now on hiatus for the next year, it feels like a good time to share this.

You can find the entire 100-song playlist on YouTube HERE.

Timmy

“Proud of Your Boy” - Deleted Aladdin song / Part of the musical

“Welcome to My Life” - Simple Plan

“What the Heck I Gotta Do” - 21 Chump Street

“Let Me Be Surprised” - All Dogs Go to Heaven

“Nothing” - A Chorus Line

Cosmo

“Leading Man” - Will Jay

“Why Don’t You Love Me?” - Hot Chelle Rae

“Rude” - Magic! 

“Make ‘Em Laugh” - Donald O’Conner

“Nobody Else But You” - A Goofy Movie

Wanda

“Who Are You?” - Fifth Harmony

“Everything You Want” - Vertical Horizon

“I Do Adore” - Mindy Gledhill

“Upside Down” - The A-Teens

“Mine” - Taylor Swift

Chloe

“The Story of Us” - Taylor Swift

“Dreams to Dreams” - An American Tail: Fievel Goes West

“Reflection” - Mulan

“Halfway Around the World” - The A-Teens

“A Guy That I’d Kinda Be Into” - Be More Chill

Crocker

“Almost” - Bowling For Soup

“Babel” - Mumford and Sons

“Unwell” - Matchbox 20

“Don’t Fall In Love” - Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas

“My Nemesis” - Phineas and Ferb

Kevin

“Blood Red Summer” - Coheed and Cambria

“Up the Stair” - 101 Dalmatians Animated Storybook

“Not One of Us” - The Lion King 2

“Get Off My Back” - Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron 

“Who You Really Are” - Balto 2

Remy

“The Mine Song” - LazyTown (Okay, this one was a gimme)

“Wolf” - First Aid Kit

“Perfect” - Simple Plan

“Regret Message” - (Vocaloid)

“Never Been In Love” - Will Jay

Juandissimo

“Closer to Her” - Big Fish

“Say You Like Me” - We The Kings

“Fairytale” - Alexander Ryback

“The Man Who Can’t Be Moved” - The Script

“Version of Love” - Will Jay

Head Pixie

“Grow Up” - Simple Plan

“Cowboy Cassanova” - Carrie Underwood

“Wonderful” - Wicked

“Oh No” - Marina and the Diamonds

“Chomp and Munch” - The Brave Little Toaster: Great Animal Rescue

Sanderson

“Thank You For the Music” - Abba

“The Company Way” - How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying

“Loser of the Year” - Simple Plan

“I’d Lie” - Taylor Swift

“Servant of Evil” - (Vocaloid)

Anti-Cosmo

“Take Me to Church” - Hozier

"Anything For You” - Ludo

“A Meticulous Analysis of History” - Pinky and The Brain

“Mr. Policeman” - Brad Paisley

“Bad Apple” - (Vocaloid)

Anti-Wanda

“Broken Glass” - Robbie Shapiro

“Takes One to Know One” - Maria Mena

“The Wolf That Fell In Love With Little Red Riding Hood” - (Vocaloid)

“Criminal” - Britney Spears

“Devil’s Backbone” - The Civil Wars

Poof

“Puff the Magic Dragon” - Peter, Paul, and Mary

“Popular” - Wicked

“18 Till I Die” - Bryan Adams

“Too Close” - Alex Clare

“Wildfire” - (Vocaloid)

Goldie

“Dear Future Husband” - Meghan Trainor

“Good Girls” - 5 Seconds of Summer

“Ex’s and Oh’s” - Elle King

“Self-Fulfilling Prophecy” - Maria Mena

“Boyfriend Kisser” - Total Drama World Tour

Foop

“Duality” - Set It Off

“Marry You” - Bruno Mars

“Led You On” - Noel Gourdin

“Evelyn, Evelyn” - Stars

“This Is How We Will End It” - Total Drama World Tour

Hiccup

“If I Didn’t Have You” - Quest for Camelot  

“Shut Up and Kiss Me” - Orianthi

“The Portrait of Pirate F” - (Vocaloid)

“Battles” - Hudson Taylor

“Karma” - (Vocaloid)

Anti-Marigold

“Complicated” - Avril Lavigne

“Does He Love You?” - Rilo Kiley

“King of Anything” - Sara Bareilles

“Tell Me Lies” - Cats Don’t Dance

“My Life Would Suck Without You” - Kelly Clarkson

Cavatina

“The City’s Yours” - Annie (2014)

“It’s a B-Movie” - The Brave Little Toaster

“The Logical Song” - Supertramp

“Facade” - Jekyll & Hyde

“I’m Gonna Make It” - Total Drama World Tour

Happy Peppy Gary

“Shut Up and Dance” - Walk the Moon

“My Happy Ending” - Avril Lavigne

“Sad Song” - We the Kings

“Egoselfish” - (Vocaloid)

“My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark” - Fall Out Boy

Happy Peppy Betty

“Human” - Christina Perri

“Just a Friend to You” - Meghan Trainor

“What’s Wrong With Me?” - Singin’ In the Rain

“He Likes Boys” - Simone Battle

“Once Upon a December” - Anastasia

These are actually pretty dead-on if I do say so myself. Study them with heavy consideration if you wish. You think you know where these plot arcs are going, but you do NOT! ... Maybe.

[siodymph]

Fiddauthor “Crushing”

Wow I actually got a prompt done on its actual day! (Just barely lol) I had a lot of fun with this one, gave me a good excuse to insert some of my favorite crossover characters and give Ford and Fidds the full nerd-herd they deserve lol

And just a reminder I’m taking fiddauthor requests till August 4th so send any stories you’d like to see my way!

You cand read this story under the cut or over on my AO3!

word count: 1383

Every Wednesday when he had the time, Fiddleford always met up with a few of his friends in the campus library to go over their physics work. Their own unofficial study group of sorts. Though if Fiddleford was honest, most of the time they usually got side-tracked and goofed-off, especially when Rick Sanchez high-jacked the conversation. But today it was Fiddleford’s own head keeping him distracted. He caught sight of his lab partner in Organic Chemistry walking through aisles searching for books. His friend’s argument began to fall on deaf ears as he kept looking longingly at his lab partner.

“I don’t get what you see in him, the guy’s a total dick.”

Fiddleford immediately turned around, he could already feel his face burn up. “You shut your mouth right now Rick!”

Rick just shrugged. “I’m just saying. He’s super weird too. You ever have a real conversation with him?”

“Of course, we’re in the same laboratory for three hours straight!” Fiddleford snapped back. Usually he and Rick got along fine, but whenever he got all antagonistic like this Fiddleford couldn’t help but feel testy.

“Jesus, I don’t know how you do it, man.” Rick said groaning. “Like, I was his lab partner all last semester and I wanted to beat the shit out of him. He never let me do anything!”

“That’s probably because you never actually do the lab assignments.” Betty Grof piped in from across the table. “I’ve seen you dude, you just mess around with stuff and bs the lab reports. I have no idea how you pass any of your classes.”

He smirked, kicking his legs up. “Me neither. I’m pretty sure ever professor here hates my guts-“

As the two kept talking Fiddleford felt himself drawn back towards Stanford. He had this adorably determined look on his face and he kept looking between the list in his hand and the shelves of books surrounding him. Fiddleford couldn’t help but notice his lab partner had a really nice face. Especially whenever he looked up, all Fidleford could focus on was that jawline and the way his eyes sparked. And when he’d look back down at his list his hair would bounce a little.

He got so wrapped up in the sight he jumped when he felt a hand jostle his shoulder. It was Simon. He looking at him curiously. “How long have you known this guy? I don’t think I even heard about him till Rick started complaining about him.”

“Since the beginning of spring semester.” Fiddleford explained, sounding wistful. “That’s when we were in the same lab. He said he was late signing up for school and had all evening classes. That’s why we never saw him anywhere in fall. He’s also pretty shy so he never went out much.”

“Oh that’s a shame. So what’s he like? Cause Rick didn’t paint the most flattering picture.” Simon asked.

Fiddleford wasn’t quite sure where to begin. There was a lot about Stanford he had noticed in the short time they had been living together. Some of it might be too much even. “Well… He’s a pretty sweet fella. Shy like I said, real quiet. But once you get to know him you find out he’s pretty nice. And as much as he’ll try to deny it, you can tell he’s really excited to be here. Has a lot of passion for science and just… just discovering new things. Just a really sweet guy.”

“Hmmm, seems like it.” Simon said. “We should invite him over!”

“What? No! No no no. I barely talk to him outside of class. I never even see him normally! And he’s pretty shy! Uh- um plus Stanford and Rick don’t have the best… impression on each other.” Fiddleford said rushed. He had no idea what would happen if Stanford joined their circle. He hated to think it might ruin things between him and Ford.

Simon frowned at him. “You sure? He sounds like he would fit right in. Plus if he doesn’t have many friends like you said…”

“I wouldn’t want to put him on the spot though! Please Simon, things are alright where they are. So let’s just keep things… normal.” Fiddleford said, slouching down and giving Stanford one more longing look.

It was nice having him as a lab partner and a friend. Even if they weren’t the closest they appreciated what they had. But Fiddleford knew how he felt inside. The way he’d never dare say in front of his family back home, yet said so freely in front of Rick, Simon and Betty. The three of them might understand him, but who could say Stanford would be as understanding? And… and he really didn’t want to risk destroying what he had right now…

But much to his dismay, Simon wasn’t giving up. “Well what if Stanford doesn’t want to keep things ‘normal’ either?”

“What? I don’t-“

“Cause he’s been looking back here this whole time too.”

“What!?” Unable to stop himself, Fiddleford snapped his head around. He caught Stanford burying his head into a random textbook as fast as he could.

Dag’nabit… They both knew the other was here. Why did things have to be so awkward? Simon gave him an expectant look, to go up and say hi to him but Fiddleford felt frozen in his spot. Why did he always have to be so weird?

Then all at once, Simon got up from their table. “Alright, that’s it! I’m inviting him over!”

“Simon Petrikov, don’t you dare-”

But he was already walking away. Directly over to Stanford. And began animatedly talking to him and gesturing back to their table. Fiddleford’s face felt like a furnace.

And when Simon came back to their table with Stanford in tow Fiddleford wanted to curl up and die.

Stanford came to the table curious, but when he saw Rick there his smile quickly fell.

“Rick.”

“Stan.” Rick said back smugly.

Stanford obviously hated the nickname but decided not to say anything about it. When he looked around the table and saw Fiddleford, he started smiling again. Almost beaming. “Oh Fiddleford! Hi! I uh- I didn’t see you there.”

Fiddleford, who had sunk half-way off his chair and under the table awkwardly pulled himself back up. “Hi’ya.” He said sheepishly.

“Your friend Simon here, invited me to join your study group.” Ford said, gesturing to Simon as he spoke. Simon in part offered him a chair and Ford seemed to need a few seconds to fully process what was happening and sat down. Right next to Fiddleford. “So, you’re all studying physics.”

As he and Betty began talking, and Rick kept interrupting them and instigating Stanford, Fiddleford took a moment to glare daggers at Simon. Mentally screaming ‘Simon Petrikov I cannot believe you! If we weren’t friends you’d be a dead man!’ But Simon just gave him a cheeky smile.

Fiddleford couldn’t decide whether he want to thank Simon or beat him, or if he wanted to run away from the table or stay. He’d felt so distracted seeing Stanford on the other side of the library, but now that he was sitting directly next to him he could barely think straight.

And then Stanford just had to turn around and smile at him. And Fiddleford couldn’t stop himself from seeing that slight blush on his nose and cheeks too. He always managed to look so cute. And despite what he said about being terrible at making new friends he seemed to warm up quickly to Simon and Betty. And even while he’d glower at Rick he still respected him enough to listen to what the other man said. Maybe this could work. It could be nice having a fifth member on their team. And it would give him a way to see Stanford more often. Maybe they could become better friends? And if he was reading the looks Stanford kept giving him-

Crap! He’d just asked him something while Fiddleford wasn’t listening. He was pointing down to a series of equations he’d scribbled out. Fiddleford tried to mentally slap himself back into reality and focus on the equations in front of him. But even as he worked through the problem, he was still hyper-aware of how close Stanford was sitting to him.

[clayray3290]

Clayray Closeout 2018

Another momentous year has passed, and I am feeling reflective about my tastes and my year, so once again, clayray is closing out the year. Usually I don’t do this, but this year, I traveled a lot, like A LOT a lot, and I made the move across the country to LA, so before I reflect on my media consumption, here is a list of all the places I went to this year:

January - Baltimore for a baby shower February - San Francisco Sonoma for a wine tasting trip with college friends March - New York City to see musicals April - Las Vegas for PBS TechCon Two days after getting back - Sarasota for Roadshow Less then a week after - Tulsa for Roadshow May - San Francisco for CAAMFest Louisville for Roadshow Literally the day after - LA San Diego for Roadshow June - Detroit for Roadshow Toronto with mom Montreal to see Sarah July - Charlotte to meet up with Colleen and Katy Smoky Mountains for a bridal shower New Hampshire for a wedding September - Moved to LA! October - San Francisco for a wedding Boston Newport for a wedding November - Florida for Thanksgiving

Whew! As you can see, August and December were the only months that I didn’t travel, and that was because August was spent preparing for my big move and in December, my family came to me. What with layovers, I was on 33 flights plus 5 significant buses plus several “road trips” with friends/family, too. And some of these trips were so back-to-back that I barely spent any time sleeping in my own bed!

Now, I’m still in a weird period of transition, but soon enough, I will develop a routine and establish a place here. I moved across the country with no job, no apartment, and very few friends, and it was a humongous change to make. But as scary and hard as it can be, I think I have enough faith in myself that it will all work out and I will be okay. And with that, I’m looking forward to 2019!

But meanwhile, continuing to look back:

Music - Artists

La Luz

Joywave

Jesse McCartney

Younha

Saint Motel

30 Seconds to Mars

Betty Who

The Aces

BTS

Infinite

As always, artists that I saw live are a huge presence in this list: La Luz, Saint Motel, 30 Seconds to Mars, and Betty Who, and technically I was walking up to the venue when Joywave was playing (which I am still bitter about, for the record.) Other artists I saw live this year: MisterWives and Walk the Moon opening for 30 Seconds to Mars, Tamia, Duckwrth and Buyepongo at the Made in LA Festival literally my second day in LA, Gymshorts opening for La Luz, Vincent Vallières and Brigitte Boisjoli and Martha Wainwright and Michel Rivard and Klô Pelgag at the Fete in Montreal, Bleachers, Sara Bareilles at MisCast, Dionysia and Bazmati Vice, Gryffin, and I guess technically I saw Pregnant Boy.

I have been in love with Jesse McCartney since I was 11 and he released new music this year, which I adored (which you will soon see in the Top Tracks), so of course he’s that high up. Similarly, Younha released an excellent album this year and I’ve always loved her. I actually didn’t find Infinite’s album particularly thrilling, but I guess I liked it well enough that I wouldn’t skip their songs whenever they came up.

I had actually listened to The Aces before, but this year was when I really got into them. Their album is stellar and I love their sound and their look!

And as for BTS, my mom’s actually a huge fan and there was no escaping their immense worldwide popularity. I remember when they debuted! It’s great to see how they have grown to be the K-Pop group that has “made it” to the States.

This is the first time in a long time that my all-time favorites like Secret and McFly haven’t been in the top. Secret’s disbandment really hurt, even though we all saw it coming, and I’m still not over it.

Odesza didn’t make it up to the very top, but I also listened to them a lot with my boyfriend. :)

Music - Albums

Younha - RescuE

The Aces - When My Heart Felt Volcanic

Infinite - TOP SEED

Hamilton OBCR

Alexz Johnson - A Stranger Time

Dan Masterson - When Reality Calls

La Luz - Floating Features

Janelle Monáe - Dirty Computer

Eric Nam - Honestly

Anastasia OBCR

Unsurprisingly, my top artists are showing up in the top albums. I was surprised to see that the Hamilton OBCR was so high, but then I remembered that I featured it heavily in my 4th of July playlist that I played during my party. I’ve been fond of Alexz Johnson since Instant Star, even though I didn’t actually watch the show, and my friend Schuyler and I had a bit of a phase reminiscing about that era of “teen show” singers like her and also Drake Bell.

Dan Masterson is, full disclosure, a friend of mine from college, but his album is really excellent, and you should check it out if you’re interested in piano-based singer-songwriter tunes!

What is there to say about Janelle Monáe except that she is a beacon of brilliance, and we are lucky just to be able to witness it.

The other musical on this list is Anastasia, which is one of the musicals I saw this year. I saw it on Derek Klena’s last evening performance, which is actually one of two times that I saw him. I also saw him in Jagged Little Pill at the A.R.T (he is not the best part of that show, though, Lauren Patten’s “You Oughta Know” is hands down unequivocally the showstopper). The other musicals I saw this year were Allegiance, Hello! Dolly, and I saw the Genies’ Jukebox. Not a musical, but I also saw the off-Broadway show Puffs, which was hysterical.

I’m not sure why I didn’t pay attention as much, but Death Cab’s album this year is pretty great. I didn’t love the Arctic Monkeys’ album as much as I wanted to, though they actually just missed being in my Top Artists by 10 listens. Robyn’s album this year was also pretty stellar, but it was released pretty late in the year.

Movies

As always, subjective ranking and not numbers-based.

Won’t You Be My Neighbor? Okay, biased, what with my children’s media thing and PBS thing. Tbh I don’t even like documentaries that much, but this one. I wept. And we really needed this film right now.

Blindspotting I saw this at the Independent Film Festival Boston, with a Q&A with Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal afterwards, and just wow. This is an incredible tour de force. Brilliantly crafted and visceral and hilarious, too. I know a bunch of people were drawn to it because of Daveed Diggs and his Hamilton fame, but genuinely, he and Rafael Casal’s passion for this film and overwhelming talent shine through in this.

Searching Look, I love love loved Crazy Rich Asians and Asian August and Asian-American women bringing back the rom com. As an Asian-American woman, I have been waiting for so long for this to happen. But I picked Searching because as a film, Searching takes the screen footage tactic, heretofore only really used in horror films, and capitalizes on it to such amazing dramatic and emotional effect. John Cho is fantastic, of course in this very tense and very stressful film.

Black Panther I cannot believe it hasn’t even been a year since Black Panther. Can we start using the term BBP and ABP for Before and After Black Panther? I saw somewhere that Letitia Wright is the biggest box office star of the year, which is fabulous because she is fabulous (and a Disney princess!). The world-building is amazing, the action is amazing, the eye candy is amazing (Helloooooo Michael B. Jordan and Chadwick Boseman and Danai Gurira and Lupita Nyong’o and...you get the point).

Ralph Breaks the Internet I spent a lot of this film marveling at how only Disney could have pulled this off, this massive ambitious bringing together of so many brands and characters and, y’know, the internet. I also enjoy that this is not a romantic love story, and it is a story about love in other ways. Loving your friends and caring for them and respecting them is so important, and dealing with insecurity is as well. This is such a smart movie, and as somebody who cares about children’s media, that is the standard to which we should aspire.

Honorable Mentions: A Quiet Place (Though of the horror films this year, Hereditary and Annihilation were also very good), Madeline’s Madeline for Helena Howard’s performance, I Tonya because um duh figure skating but does not make the list because trying to pass off Margot Robbie as teenage was laughable, Three Identical Strangers

Movies I Want to See But Haven’t Yet: Eighth Grade, Sorry to Bother You, Support the Girls, Widows, Creed II, The Hate U Give, Halloween, Burning, RBG, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Dumplin’ (My roomie’s in it!)

Movies I Should See But Haven’t Brought Myself To Care About: A Star is Born, Mission Impossible: Fallout, Mary Poppins Returns, Green Book, Love Simon, Paddington 2

2020.12.02 EDIT: I was wrong about Paddington 2. It is an incredible film.

Television

Sharp Objects I’ve read the book (and own it somewhere...) but it had been a while, so Sharp Objects did what a good mystery does - even upon a revisit, the things you don’t remember are tantalizing and the discovery of new clues and revelations keep shifting your perspective and giving it a jolt each time. Amy Adams is phenomenal in this (as she always is) and Eliza Scanlen as Amma gives a piercing performance in this.

Queer Eye All of the remakes happening incessantly is tiring and also eyeroll-inducing (it’s cliche but honestly, where are the original ideas nowadays?), but then we get something like Queer Eye. Reality TV gets a hard rap, but with Queer Eye, you get the entertainment factor and also incredibly moving emotional heft as well. Also, I genuinely wonder at how Bobby gets all that house remodeling done and he doesn’t get enough credit for it!

The Haunting of Hill House I love the Shirley Jackson story and also the original movie (I have not watched the 90′s movie and I don’t think I ever will), so my only real gripe with this show is that I wish they didn’t call it The Haunting of Hill House because it really isn’t. But what it is, is a brilliant family drama launching off of the Hill House story. It is captivating and beautiful and spooky, and also the casting of the young kids is impeccable.

Nailed It! Sometimes you just need to guffaw over people’s ridiculous failures. This show doesn’t take itself too seriously and because it embraces the silly, it’s full of heart and joy.

Élite I love foreign teen dramas. I love murder...in my television/movies. Of course I was gonna love this show. But just because it has these two elements doesn’t mean that I automatically was going to think it’s a great show (It does probably mean I would automatically enjoy it, but that’s different). Both of these genres are rife with tropes, but this show takes them and executes them in such a way that it rings true and doesn’t distract from your enjoyment.

Honorable Mention: Memories of the Alhambra only because it’s still ongoing! It’s a brilliant way of looking at technology and combining it with all the elements of a K-drama that you could want. It’s kinda like if a good episode of Black Mirror (because goodness knows that quality varies) combined with a K-drama.

Also of mention are some excellent series that continued this year. I can’t believe I didn’t watch them when they first came out, but The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Big Mouth are both so so good. Though I have strong feelings about the second season of Maisel and think the Paris bit was just an awkward flex and should have been cut, and the Catskills could have been an entire series of its own. Also, I actually saw Nick Kroll do some readings of all the characters in Big Mouth at the Vulture Festival this year!

In addition to the show-watches-from-the-beginning that I am still working through (Parks and Rec, The Wire, Gilmore Girls, Mad Men, etc.) I’ve also started watching Ugly Betty and Strong Woman Do Bong Soon from the beginning.

There are a few new shows from this year that I really have been wanting to watch but haven’t yet: Killing Eve, Kidding, Homecoming. Mostly Killing Eve for Queen Sandra Oh and also the girl from MMFD!

Okay, whew! That’s enough of that. Where do I even find the time to watch all this stuff??