#i have a plan for every sequel trilogy character in this au and what animals they work with

[kylosbreedingkink]

You can tell zookeeper aus are never by actual zookeepers as they always focus on big cats and have the characters actually go in with the large dangerous animals

And I know I'll never write one as people will read it expecting this sort of shit when really ill be writing about hux being overly pedantic over beetles no one gives a fuck about, phasma resenting the fact that the aye ayes are now on her tropical house section and kylo discovering he's not really into large carnivores like his dad and much rather prefers the ratites and other birds. But not the penguin as no self respecting bird keeper likes penguins

[jadelotusflower]

June 2021 Roundup

It's been a month of highs and lows. Every year my city holds a cabaret festival, and I've seen some truly amazing acts over the years - including Lea Salonga, Kristin Chenoweth, and Indina Menzel. This year's Artistic Director was the great Alan Cumming, and although due to covid he didn't quite get to curate the program he wanted to, the opening night Gala was still a highlight, as was Alan's DJ set at the pop-up Club Cumming afterwards, where there was much singing at the top of my lungs and dancing to pop anthems and theatre tunes. At one point Alan, dressed in a onesie and perched on the shoulders of a man wearing only sparkly short shorts, was carried around the dance floor while Circle of Life blared. Reader, I was delighted.

I was also able to see his solo show Alan Cumming Is Not Acting His Age, which was hilarious and damn, he can sing!

As for the low, I was meant to fly to Sydney for the weekend to see Hamilton, a trip I have been looking forward to for almost a year, but had to be cancelled because of a covid outbreak and border closures. The tickets have been rescheduled, but I'm still kind of bummed about it (while completely appreciating the need for covid safety, especially when our vaccine rollout has been completely botched by our incompetent, corrupt federal government)

Anyway.

Reading

The Hundred and One Dalmations (Dodie Smith) - With all the bewilderment over Disney's Cruella, I decided to revisit the original novel which I first read as a kid. It's funny, I had very vivid memories of this book, or rather thought I did, particularly the scene where Roger and Anita have dinner at Cruella's house that fixed in my young mind as utterly disturbing with all this devil imagery and the implication Cruella was literally some kind of demon, which must have been either a) my overactive imagination or b) an illustration, because it's not as clear as I thought it was. The strangeness is there (food with too much pepper, Cruella's inability to keep warm, the walls painted blood red) but not the explicit demon imagery I had remembered. There is a part later in the book recounting the history of Hell Hall and the rumors of Cruella's ancestor streaking out of the place conjuring blue lightening, but clearly child me was reading far more into the book than was on the page.

But I still wish they'd gone with this version of Cruella's backstory, because to me an aristocratic, ink-drinking, heat-obsessed, possibly-demon spawn, high camp villain is more interesting and rings far more true than plucky punk against the establishment.

Smith clearly had Facts About Dalmations to share, and she does really craft a wonderful animal-based story that the Disney animated film is largely faithful to. Key differences include: Roger's occupation (he doesn't have to pay tax because he wiped out government debt somehow?!?), Pongo's mate and the puppy's mother is called Missis, Perdita is another dalmation who acts as a kind of doggie wet nurse, Roger and Anita both have Nannies who come to live with them (Nanny Butler and Nanny Cook), Cruella is married to a furrier (who changed his last name to de Vil). Also odd, on her first description Cruella is described as having "dark skin" but later in the novel her "white face" is mentioned, so I'm chalking it up to 50's descriptors not having the same meanings they do today.

The Duke and I (Julia Quinn) - After being just whelmed by the tv series, I wasn't really planning on reading the books, but I saw this on the top picks shelf at the library and damn, the top picks shelf is irresistible. This is very much Daphne's book (and I had known each in the series dealt with the different sibling) so many of the characters and much of the plot of the show is absent, as are some of the more baffling elements of the show like the Diamond of the First Water nonsense, which I always thought was a strange character choice in that it stacks the deck for Daphne when her character arc is better served as somewhat of an underdog (in her third season, the kind of girl who is liked but not adored), and the Prince subplot which was always far too OTT even for soapy regency romance.

It's a breezy, fun read (that scene excepted), even if the misunderstandings are contrived and I'm never going to take "I'll never have kids because I hate my dad" as a credible romantic obstacle deserving of so much angst.

Faeries (Brian Froud and Alan Lee) - A lovingly detailed and illustrated compendium of Faerie and its inhabitants, drawing from a range of European (but primarily Celtic) folklore and mythology. Froud was a conceptual designer on The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth, and the link is clear in the art as well as the focus on faeries as mysterious but oftimes sinister beings, where human encounters with them rarely end well. Lee has illustrated several publications of Tolkien's novels, and was a lead concept artists for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, and there is a touch of Middle Earth here as well, or rather the common inspiration of the old world. A useful resource for my novel!

Watching

The Handmaid's Tale (season 4, episodes 4-8) SPOILERS - So when I last wrote about this show in the Roundup, I was complaining it wasn't going anywhere. Well, I'm happy to be wrong because they finally changed things up with June finally escaping to Canada. That part of the plot following the survivors and their trauma has always been far more compelling than Gilead, and so it was a welcome development even if I side-eye some of the choices (none of these characters is seeing an actual licensed therapist why?).

This show has always been difficult to watch given the subject matter, and that has not changed after the shift in power dynamics. I will give the show credit for showing a broad range of trauma responses, from Moira wanting to move on and not let it consume her, to June, a ball of rage and revenge on a downward spiral, to Emily, trying to follow Moira's path but being drawn to June's, to Luke, trying his best but utterly unequipped to deal with what is happening.

But it is very hard to watch June go down this path - raping her husband (I concede the show perhaps didn't intend for it to be rape, but that's what is on screen and framing it as just "taking away Luke's agency" doesn't change that), wishing death on Serena's unborn child, and orchestrating Fred's brutal murder by particulation, then holding her own daughter still covered in his blood and it getting smeared on Nicole's face (an unsubtle metaphor in a series full of unsubtle metaphors).

There are interesting questions being asked of the viewer, and the show (perhaps rightly) not giving any answers. I can certainly appreciate the catharsis of Fred getting what he deserves even if I personally find the manner of it horrifying, but where is the line between justice and revenge, is revenge the only option when justice is denied, when does a trauma release become cyclical violence/abuse - the show is, for now, letting the viewer decide.

Soul (dir. Pete Docter and Kemp Powers) - In a world full of remakes/reboots/sequels, Pixar is perhaps the lone segment under the Disney umbrella committed to original content. However, there does seem to be a Pixar formula at work directed to precision tugging the heart strings, and some of the film feels like well-trod ground. On the other hand, it's hard to criticise the risk of centering a kids film around the existential crisis of a middle aged man, even with the requisite cutesy elements (and of course, the uncomfortable pattern of yet another film where the black lead character spends a great deal of the runtime in non-human form - herein, an amorphous blob or a cat). But the animation is stunning, it successfully did tug my heart strings, and the design of the Great Before and the Jerrys is original and fun.

RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under - Drag Race is somewhat of a guilty pleasure for me, since I generally don't watch reality shows, and this is something I really enjoy even if I'm not invested in the fandom (which like many fandoms can be very yikes). This year it was time for the Australian/New Zealand (Aotearoa) queens to show their stuff, although it's been met with mixed reactions. Covid restrictions didn't allow for guest judges, relegating them to mere cameos via video calls, and its clear that Ru and Michelle really don't quite get all the cultural nuances - Aussie judge Rhys Nicholson was however always delightful. But it wouldn't be Australia without a racism scandal, with the great disappointment of the two queens of colour eliminated first, and one queen having done blackface in the recent past yet making it all the way to the top four.

In the end, the only viable and deserving winner was last Kiwi standing Kita Mean, and it was pure joy to see her get crowned. I do hope they fix the bugs and indeed do another season to better showcase AU/NZ talent.

Writing

A far more productive month - to try and get out of my writing funk I had a goal to try and write every day, even if it was only 100 words. While I didn't quite achieve a consecutive month, I did get a pretty good average, at least got something posted and two others nearly there.

The Lady of the Lake - 2441 words, Chapter 4 posted.

Against the Dying of the Light - 2745 words

Turn Your Face to the Sun - 1752 words.

Here I Go Again - 1144 words

Total words this month: 8082

Total words this year: 35,551

[erza155]

DC Primer By Erza155 (for the absolute n00b

ok, before you even look at all of this, just know that this is all my personal opinion. just so you know

Movies

               Live Action

Justice League- Awesome. Awesome. You’ve probably already seen it.

Wonder Woman- See above.

Man of Steel- The first time I actually found myself actually being interested in Superman. This movie pushed me to actually research into Superman and see something beyond the corn-fed all-American boy narrative idiotic fanboys have shoved down our gullets for the last few decades.

Suicide Squad- Bomb soundtrack. It’s weird but it’s worth a try. A few members of the Justice League make 3 second cameos.

Batman vs Superman- The movie that launched a thousand superbat shippers. I personally like the cinammonmatography, but a lot of people disagree but that’s them.

Superman (2006)- I’m not sure how I feel about this movie. But Brandon Routh is pretty. And Routh!Superman/Bale!Batman was pretty big for a while. But it’s rare to see that around anymore.

               Cartoons

Superman vs the elite- Superman fights British dudes and goes crazy because of red kryptonite. People actually die because of Superman’s direct actions.

Justice League Animated Movies (2012-2017) Chronological Order

Justice League: Doom- Vandal Savage uses stolen information from Batman's secret files to mastermind a plan to exterminate the Justice League. That’s the plot. I actually don’t remember if I actually watched this movie? Make of that what you will.

Justice League: War- New 52 cartoon of the Justice League. This is how they come together in the new DC Universe. Has some casual Overlaps with the live action Justice League (2017) movie. Fun watch. Also, great banter between Green Lantern and Batman.

Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox- Sadness. There’s a few moments of happiness, but this movie is fucking sad. It deals with what happens when you fuck with the timeline and it’s mcfucking weird. Now that the plebian opinion is out of the way, I personally loved this movie. It was so twisted and it made my tiny heart flutter.

Justice League: Throne of Atlantis- Atlanteans are coming for you bitches and Batman is not happy. ™  

Justice League: Gods and Monsters- AU version of justice league. It’s bomb. It’s like Injustice and Justice Lords but with Vampires!

Justice League vs Teen Titans- Exactly what it says on the cereal box with additional prizes on the inside. But, this is the new teen titans led by my favorite brat, Damian Wayne.

Justice League: Dark- Magic! Adventure! Gambling with demons! Sassy Batman. This movie is coming for your wig. Be prepared. It’s awesome and I love it. But then again, I’m a slut for DC.

               Batman Movies

Batman: The Killing Joke- This one is weird. Read the original comic book instead.

Batman: Assault on Arkham- Suicide Squad, The Cartoon!

Batman: Gotham Knight- Apparently if you liked the Dark Knight Trilogy, this is the movie for you. It fills in the blanks for certain spots that the movies don’t touch and it has an interesting animation style.

(There’s a bunch more but I don’t exactly have high opinions of those, so yeah…)

               Batman Has Problems with his Children/ Batman’s Problematic Children

Batman: Under the Red Hood- Jason Todd (Robin #2) comes back from the dead and kicks ass. Additional awesomeness in that Jason Todd is voiced by Jensen Ackles.

Son of Batman (2014)/ Batman vs Robin (2015)/ Batman: Bad Blood (2016)- Damian Wayne trilogy. If you like hyperviolent, bratty children who learn to come to terms with themselves, this is the movie for you. If not, oh well ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

               Batman and Superman Are Totally Super Manly Men Who Work Well Together

Superman/Batman: Public Enemies- Batman and Superman work together to stop Lex Luthor and a meteorite. I don’t remember watching this.

Superman/Batman: Apocalypse- Direct sequel to the above but can function as a stand-alone. Batman and Superman go to another planet. Wonder Woman and the Amazons are awesome. Big Barda reminds me once again that I am Gay™ for strong women. Supergirl is introduced.

 TV Shows

               Live Action

Smallville- The original. This baby ran for an actual fucking decade. And every live action superhero show that is currently airing in the U.S. needs to thank this show because it’s what started the whole phase.

Arrow- This show is about Green Arrow and a lot of people like it. I think I gave up somewhere between seasons 2 and 3. It wasn’t my cup of tea. The reason I’m mentioning it is because, it actually started an entire spinoff universe known as the arrow verse and every year there’s a really big crossover that gives lots of nerds boners. (me included)

The Flash- Spinoff of the Arrow? But it’s about the Flash. It’s #2 in the arrow verse. It’s interesting and I love it. They made Iris West black and I was here for it. Candice Patton is amazing, and each season only gets better. The more characters they add, the happier I am. Although, I do bitch sometimes. (I have never been satisfied- Hamilton)

Legends of Tomorrow- Spinoff of The Arrow and The Flash. Secondary characters from both shows come together in this show and travel through time. It’s beautiful. Like it’s actually really great. Please watch it. Also #3 of the Arrow Verse.

Supergirl- 1st season was by CBS and is currently the only season I’ve watched. It was pretty decent but it took a lot of Superman’s villains and transplanted them to Supergirl’s story. Also, Tyler Hoechlin played Superman in this show for a hot minute. People liked it. I try not to think about it too much. #4 in the arrow verse.

Arrow Verse Wiki for more info

Additionally, the DCEU has a bunch of extensive shows that do not relate to superheroes like Lucifer, Izombie, and Preacher. ← All of which are awesome shows with supernatural aspects by the way.

               Cartoons (In no Particular Order)

Young Justice-  Babies. Beautiful Babies. Season 3 is supposed to come out this year and I would sell my grandmother to salt mines just for an early peek.

Static Shock- Cartoon with a young black protagonist? Sign the fuck up! This show was my shit! It’s honestly really awesome and positive.

Teen Titans- You already know.

Batman the Brave and the Bold- Classic. Timeless. There’s not enough space or time. This show introduced me to Plastic Man and I would die for this show. And this version of Batman is honestly just amazing and everyone in this show is amazing. I love it.

Justice League- Ok so the original show is awesome but I don’t care if you watch it or not. The only thing I care about is that you watch the specific episodes I am going to list.

Episode #37- Season 2 Episode 11 “A Better World Part 1”

Episode #38- Season 2 Episode 12 “A Better World Part 2”

These two episodes are my shit. Please watch it. I’ve watched these specific episodes so many times. Just please.

Batman Beyond- Bruce Wayne is old and there is a new young Batman. This show is weird, but the interesting kind of weird. It wasn’t my cup of tea, but I didn’t hate it. Some of the episodes were actually gold though. Harley Quinn has twin Granddaughters.

Video Games

You’re asking the wrong person sorry. The only video game I care about is Injustice and I only watch the playthroughs for the Lore (animated version).

 Comics

               Personal Faves:

·         DC Bombshells

·         Gotham City Sirens

·         Injustice

·         Red Hood and the Outlaws

·         Earth One series

New 52 vs Golden Age vs silver Age

Ok, so unfortunately, comics are weird. Like really fucking weird.

This is the Timeline you need to remember in regards to DC specifically

Golden Age- 1930s to 1950s. Comic books were first being published. Batman was a caricature, and used guns. Superman fought the KKK.

Silver Age- mid 1950s to 1970s. Post World War 2. Introduced new heroes like the Flash. Parallel Universes introduced.

Bronze Age- 1970 to 1985. Teen superheroes are now an established thing. Also, DC fucked up a lot but these times are past

Modern Age- Hi! It’s your buddies dark and gritty storylines. Anything from 1985 until now falls into this era/age.

New 52- 2011 relaunch by DC. Introduced new canon and fucked all of us up.

Rebirth- 2016 relaunch. Once again, fucked all of us up.

Pick and choose what you want. It’s what we’re all doing.

If you want an additional document for shipping, please inform me.