#i stan one (1) youtuber

[silentreigns]

I'm gonna miss the Lollipopman videos. Some weekends I looked forward to the videos more than the actual race

[diathadevil]

My post canon HC for Princess Tutu is that after Gold Crown is restored the main cast just ends up reforming themselves through a bunch of modern music. Fakir goes from listening to MCR to switching it over to The Killers. Maybe even Paramore (something him and Rue would eventually bond over).

Meanwhile Ahiru ends up learning about Carly Rae Jepsen’s discography.

[star-sim]

"noo! she's taken!" ☆ enha hyungs

☆ non-idol! bf! enhypen hyungs x celebrity! fem! reader ☆summary: you are a very well-loved celebrity, and your relationship is finally revealed to the public. ☆genre: fluff, silly boys ☆warning(s)? ygs liked the maknae ver so here's the hyung ver! maknae ver

heeseung ☆

i think ur a musician here

one of those very personable and insightful ones

giving laufey or mitski yk?

anyways heeseung is THE stan

within your fandom

he's the guy that EVERYONE KNOWS

like ppl will argue who is the best [name] stan and the moment he's brought up they shut their mouths

heeseung does not play around when it comes to stanning you, his gf

somewhat like riki, heeseung runs multiple stan accounts for you

but he's most active and most well-known on 1) youtube and 2) tiktok

all his youtube videos are titled

"[name] concert 11/25/2023 nyc, usa (she looked at me!)"

"[name] concert 11/26/2023 miami, usa"

"[name] concert 11/27/2023 berlin, germany (i touched her hand!)"

"[name] concert 11/28/2023 jakarta, indonesia"

"[name] concert 11/29/2023 melbourne, australia (i met her!)"

like how the fuck is he going to all of these concerts when theyre literal hours apart and OCEANS AWAY

he likes to vlog his concert experiences

and theyre very entertaining because he's like genuinely enjoying himself

on his tiktok he also records his concert experiences

but i also think he posts your fancams and makes edits of you

too many times where an edit of you became known as "that one [name] edit"

he makes a lot of thirst edits of u

too many captions like "i want her so bad" or "she's so fine i need her biblically"

everyone knows who he is, even ppl outside of your fandom or the music scene

hes just that one guy that really likes you

one day ur on tour

its all fine and dandy, ur eating everything up, ur fans are loving it

and heeseung is documenting his concert experience

as he always does

and then it ends and heeseung posts it

however

this concert vlog

is

uh

receiving a lot of attention

TOO MUCH ATTENTION

THAT ITS

VERY

SUSPICIOUS

........

you and hee are just hanging out in your hotel when his phone starts blowing up

and yours too

all the comments on his video are normal, the ones that are expressing playful envy at heeseung's presence at ur concert

and like

it's not like heeseung doesn't get these types of comments

but one comment catches his eye

it has like 50k likes

and hes like oh shit

"at 3:05 heeseung why are you kissing [name]"

kissing.

[name].

he clicks that timestamp

and oh my god

THERES LIKE A CLIP OF HEESEUNG KISSING YOU

you see

when heeseung records your concerts he's recording it both for his fanpage and for the memories

he'll take as many cute couple pictures and videos with you as possible

and he just so happened to accidentally add one of the clips of you and him

kissing.

in fact

he accidentally added A LOT OF CLIPS AND PICTURES of you and him being a couple

ones of you hugging him backstage, ones of you two holding hands, even one where viewers can faintly hear you calling heeseung "babe"

and the other comments

OH LORD THE OTHER COMMENTS

"THAT SHOULD BE ME"

"HEESEUNG MOVE ASIDE!!!!!!!!!"

"i hate seeing people live my dream"

"SHE'S MINE *growls*"

"[NAME] GET BEHIND ME"

obv theyre all half joking half confused, but i think ppl are able to joke w him bc he's such an obnoxious stan 😭

and heeseung is like

poor heeseung is sweating and panicking

bc shit HE JUST EXPOSED UR RELATIONSHIP

but when he tells u

you literally are just like

"okay"

OKAY????

"it's not a big deal"

heeseungs like WHATATATATA

at first he's kinda unsure

bc ur so chill abt it that he's almost afraid that ur actually mad at him 😭

but you legitimately do not care

and when he realizes this

he goes from

😱

to

😈

because

NOW HE CAN FLEX ON EVERYONE

he goes straight to twitter and drops more couple-y pictures of you and him

he probably posts a tiktok that pans over to you on his bed or something

caption like "it's exposed now, but yeah, [name] is actually my gf"

its goes so viral

hes so smug about it too

like whenever he gets into arguments abt who's a better fanpage hes like "I'M LITERALLY A HER BF???"

he becomes an inside joke in ur fandom

i think everyone jokingly flames his ass too

"why did she pick heeseung of all people...."

"pixelated fancam, ass editing, shitty camera, yet [name] still chose him... what did we do wrong"

"[name] wasn't lying in her song when she said she has bad taste in men"

"i can't believe heeseung literally stole my spot... i should be the one that she writes all her love songs about..."

free him 😭😭😭

jay ☆

ooh this one is kinda juicy

ur a musician slay

but sometimes you do modeling

for one of your shoots

you're showing off your midriff and ur just glowing sorry

all ur followers are like

"ughhh step on me [name]"

"i don't think ygs understand i need her"

"[NAME] ONE CHANCE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE"

"i want her."

very quickly goes viral

ur just so hot ughhhhh

but ppl notice something upon closer inspection

you have a tattoo on ur back

at first everyone is like

"okay sexy lady love the tat"

but then

when they look closer

they can't help but see that incorporated into the design

is two

very

specific

letters

J and P

almost like they're someone's initials

🤨🤨🤨

hmmmmm

interesting.....

who is JP?

HMMM???

and now that ppl look at it

you have so many songs and albums that refer to JP

like ur one album

called

"just playing, i love you" but it's commonly abbreviated as "jpily"

JP????? ILY?? JP I LOVE YOU???

WHO THE HELL IS JP

"whoever jp is, he needs to meet me in the parking lot so we can have a talk 😆"

"jp my opp"

"jp kys!!!"

"jp is living my dream"

hehe

you see this

and jay aka mr JP himself sees this

and ur like

yk what let's tease the fans

for the next few months ur just teasing jay's existence

using his intials

like one time you wear a heart necklace that has the letters jp engraved in them

or when you tweeted "i love jp" but followed it up with "Jurassic Park is a wonderful movie 😆"

oh god you make it so obvious

"jp is the reason i make my music" and then following it up with "Jimmy Page is my favoritie guitarist 😛"

like ur fans are tired

and theyre getting outright insane

"guys the winter is getting cold and dire... the voices in my headare telling me that [name] is dating this jp person and i don't know how much longer i can live in denial"

"fuck you jp that should be me!!!"

"i hope jp knows how lucky he is... if a hot woman like [name] tattooed my initials i think i'd die maybe"

"i'm fighting demons (and jp)"

until finally!!!

you go to an award show

you look great as always

ugh queen

and ur getting interviewed

the interviewer asks you a playful question like

"oh are you here with any date?"

AND YOU JUST SMILE

"of course, i'm here with my boyfriend, jay park."

oh man

when that gets posted

EVERYONE IS GOING CRAZY

JAY PARK

JP

AAAAAAAAA

and when the actual award shows gets posted

it keeps panning over to you and jay

and everyone is like

THAT'S HER BF????

all jay can say is that he's prideful duh

everyone wants u but he's the only one that can have you

you definitely take a lot of pictures on the red carpet at the award show

and jay is with u in a lot of them

he's holding ur waist so tightly

like you're not gonna run away cuh it's okay omg 😭😭😭

anyways i think it gets resolved pretty easily

ur fandom accepts jay

but they still joke abt him

and when jay makes a twt account it gets worse

he WILL respond to them

and he WILL flex u

every time he does it shuts down the argument right away.... if he wants to win he just needs to mention ur name

"jay meet me after the concert, we will fight to the death for [name]'s love"

and this mf responds "can i bring [name] to be the ref?"

"jay ur hair looks so fucked up in this picture"

and he responds "yet [name] still picked me and not you"

you have to tell him to stop fighting ur 16 yr old fans HELP

jake ☆

sorry ur a musician again

you have a new song that came out

yk how in some songs

there's almost like an interlude

where there's speaking parts

like in agora hills theres a small part where doja cat says "baby can you call me back, it's so lonely in my mansion" yk?

you have something like that in your newest song

cute!

except it's not just your voice

but a MAN'S voice too

JAKE'S VOICE

the speaking part is very flirty and suggestive

and when it comes out

ppl are like

WHO IS THAT MAN

and then when the music video comes out

theres a male actor that you have many scenes with

now.... the male actor's face is cut out...

but there are still many scenes with you touching him, holding him, kissing him, and vice versa

and when the speaking part comes on

that male actor is supposed to be the male part if that makes sense

that male actor is

drum roll plS

JAKE

when ppl read the credits of the song and music video

they can't help but notice "jake sim"

and when they search ur other songs and mv's

"jake sim" has never showed up...

until this song.....

interesting....

ur fans do a lil detective work

and this jake sim guy doesn't have any involvement in the music or acting industry....

so why is he in ur song AND music video....

hmmmm

they can't find any ig account linked to him

except one that's very obscure

it has a funny username like

"@laylasdad1115" so ppl are like "oh that's probably not even him" and you weren't even following that account so they just let it go

WRONG!!1

@LAYLASDAD1115 IS JAKE

and although you're not following that account on ig

when ppl scroll down to your very very old posts

they see something

very

very

very

miniscule

but

very

very

very

crucial

a post of you and a golden labrador.... and the caption says "i love you layla"

layla... laylasdad1115

and THEN BOOM

NEW SONG COMES OUT

AND AT THE BEGINNING

YOU SAY

"jakey, kiss me!"

OH MY GOD

WHO IS JAKE SIM!!!!!!

"@laylasdad1115 u better watch out...."

"who do you think u are jake sim..."

and then you have a concert

and its not a massive stadium, it's very casual

and there's a part of the concert where you just answer questions that ur fans have and just hang out w them

and someone asks as a joke

"who's jakey in ur song btw?"

and with the most straight face

ur just like

"oh he's my boyfriend!" and then you point to the front row and ur like "he's actually here tonight, say hi baby!"

and jake is so enthusiastic abt it, hes like "hi guys!"

while everyone else in the room is like

WHAT.

the way ygs are so casual abt it is so appalling

"[NAME] YOU CAN'T JUST CASUALLY DROP THAT U HAVE A BF I THOUGHT WE WERE GETTING MARRIED"

"she's taken..... i'm gonna die.... "

LMAAOAOAO

it's known in ur fandom now that ur bf is jake sim or wtv

i don't think anyone even calls him jake

out of pure disrespect (😭) they call him by his instagram username

"laylasdad1115 might be dating [name] but i'm legally bound to her so who's really winning"

when jake shows up to your concerts i do think your fans joke w him like

"ouuu jake ur so lucky [name] is here or i'd give you a black eye"

FREE HIMMMM

sunghoon ☆

three words: your personal bodyguard

you're an actress cutie

and it's award show season

at all of your award shows ppl notice there's this tall brooding figure looming over you

ITS SUNGHOON LMAO

he's like

GLARING AT EVERYONE

HE KEEPS SQUARING UP RANDOM PPL 😭😭😭

ik this might be a crazy crossover but the moment he spots ryan gosling he's so ready to throw fists

"okay barbie boy you look like you want a broken nose"

sunghoon is very protective of you

obv bc the film industry is lowk kinda sus and exploitative, he def watches out for u a lot

everyone kinda just assumes that he's ur scary bodyguard

but then paparazzi pictures come out

and hes with you

in every

single

one

"goddamn her bodyguard is passionate about his job 😭😭😭"

in fact when the annoying invasive paparazzi interviewers come to talk to you sunghoon is sending the the NASTIEST GLARES

but like it's valid bc ur literally walking to Walgreens at 9AM on a tuesday why do you need to be photographed

"hi [name] can we ask you a few questions-"

hoon literally answers for u

"No. 😐."

interviewers are so rude, theyre like "well i didn't ask you, did i... [name] can we ask you-"

sunghoon just blinks and says

"No. 😐😐😐😐😐😐😐." again

and then ygs leave

theres clips of you at the airport where sunghoon is scaring all ur fans, which makes way for you to have a cmfortable flight

i think ur fans appreciate him but theyre lowk scared

"oh god this guy does not play abt his job 😭😭"

until one day

you get playfully asked abt ur bodyguard on an ig live

and ur like "wait what that's not my bodyguard, that's my bf"

UR WHAT????

HUH????

😱😱😱

ur fans are in the trenches

"i cant hate him bc he protects [name].... but damn i wish that was me 😞😞😞"

and when they review some of the clips w you and sunghoon they see you smiling and giggling with him

"he makes her happy so ig i'll let him have her </3"

"this is the hardest sacrifice i have to make"

i lowk think sunghoon doesn't care

he FIGHTS EVERYONE

only for u ofc 😊😊😊

maknae ver

[ohbabydollie]

omg so i’m new here but i currently have brainrot for 2 things

1) being a famous celebrity (sortaaaa like the famous streamer one but more famous) where ur like, an actress or model, things like that. and having a semi-public relationship with schlatt where you’ll be spotted holding hands on occasion, or on a red carpet but not really publicly discussing your relationship (even though everyone knows you’re together), and everyone is either super happy and ships the ever loving shit out of you, or they clown on you a bit and make “who’s punching up” videos and odd comments, and just not giving a fuck and being happy together but kinda wanting to be viewed like any other couple and not just another famous couple to be analyzed. (also similar to mutual break up but you don’t care about hate and stay together)

AND

2) schlatt made a joke about having his cock out in the latest chuckle sandwich episode and….. giving him head under his desk when he films….. for some things, like recordings where he’s not showing his face, it’s easy, but when he has his face out, it’s a bit more challenging. he has to restrain the urge to watch you and moan SOOO bad…. that’s all.

LMAO NONNIE THE FIRST ONE, I HAD TOO

okay, let’s say you’re a celebrity that is agreed by men, women, etc. to be absolutely stunning

so many people that love you, call you their wife, etc.

you are an absolute style icon, wearing pieces made for you to exclusive red carpet events

even people who hate you have to agree you’ve got a great style in clothes and makeup and yes, you’re iconic, at least a little

then somehow you make your way to the youtube community

people assume from you being so open and sweet and social is how you find yourself starring in a project directed by Ted Nivison

you’re so excited for it, interacting with other creators, etc.

Jschlatt knows of you, but thinks you’re probably like all those LA stuck up influencers that managed to make enough connections to get what you wanted

but when he has his first interaction with you on twitter??

he’s taking the chance to flirt with you publicly

in any way shape or form

and is so public about his crush on you to the point everyone is convinced he runs a stan account for you

you both do get closer behind the scenes but don’t tell much people about it

especially considering his jokes that people love taking seriously and out of context

you both are pretty secretive about it, super down low about it until the day he decides to pay for your nails

a small j is on the underside of your ring finger as to not show it off too much

it can’t even be seen unless it’s up close

then someone points it out on twitter in a selfie

you say it was dirt, but they know what they saw

then the paparazzi comes in and takes a photo that goes viral of you in sweats and a suspiciously familiar wilson hoodie

you say it a coincidence over and over again but the evidence is undeniable when you post multiple selfies in familiar hoodies that look just a little too large for you

small scratches and bite marks on your arms but you never mentioned getting a cat

then you appear in a chuckle sandwich interview

but the vibe is different in that video compared to the rest with guests

schlatt is polite??? and listening to you??

he looks at you with so much affection

yeah, your team does damage control and quickly

claiming that you’re currently single and focused on your career

then you fuck up on your own

a misclick on a story made for your close friends of you kissing your boyfriend’s cheek as he has the biggest smile ever plastered on his face

oh well, too late to deny anymore

so you don’t say anything until your next red carpet event where he’s essentially your accessory

like arm candy and dressed to match you

then everyone definitely knows

and let me tell you, some stans are sobbing

lots of “i waited 3 1/2 years, white man did it in one week” from fans and other celebrities

punching the air too

lots of crying and audios after they realize you’re dating him fr fr and not them

people definitely make memes out of it

goddess s/o and bf they probably found digging around in the trash and probably has rabies

yk that one meme of shining armor and princess cadence?

yeah, that + other attractive partner and their silly bf

so so so many of those “do you think we’re…in another universe?” slides

they clip any time he talks about you and use it for edits

editing characters you play with c! schlatt (it’s giving jack frost x elsa)

they love the two of you and seriously cannot get enough

but they really are punching the air when he marries you and when he gets you pregnant (if applicable)

[mediocre-shark-tales]

Colby Brock x Reader

Summary - Colby didn't realize that another girl had been trying to pull him away from you. He fucks up big time and has to earn back your trust, earn back that unconditional love he's close to losing.

WARNINGS - angst, mentions of cheating, depressed thoughts, self hate, arguing, mentions of light violence, and swearing.

Masterlist

You sat in your room, tears cascading down your face. You were currently living with Sam, Kat, and Colby in one large house. You and Katrina did have your own rooms, but they had been transformed into small office spaces where you both could do work from home or anything you needed to do without distractions around. Your office space did involve a small single person bed for the nights where you would get lost in work, or so overloaded that you would stay locked away in there. But Colby did have a key to your room and would usually carry you away to his room. That was where you normally stayed, since you two had been dating for so long. It was typical by now for any couple to be comfortable with sharing a room. So you two did.

Today had been your 25th birthday, Katrina being your closest friend had planed you a big party inviting all the friends you had made over the last few years. Seeing everyone was so great, especially Jake and Tara. Even though they were no longer together, they still were my close friends. On a scale they would sit together right below Katrina. As the night went on, I had become more and more frustrated. There was still no sign of my boyfriend, the one person I should have been guaranteed to celebrate with.

It was only 3 hours into the party when he posted on his instagram. It was him and Stan, they were hanging out together at some random bar or nightclub. I didn't pay attention that much, only that Colby was with Stas. That he forgot my birthday and had gone to a bar with another girl without telling me before hand.

Some may think that is insecure and jealous of me to expect him to tell me when he hangs out with girls. However when both of us are popular YouTubers who have fans watching and theorizing about our every move on a daily basis. Honesty about where we are and who we are with is the best way to keep our relationship happy and stable. I was already getting spam from comments trying to tel me Colby must be a cheat this time for hanging out with Stas on my birthday without me. They knew I wasn't there cause all of my friends and I had made a post about my party. Them wishing me happy birthday on different socials.

After seeing that text, I had begun overly drinking trying my best to get wasted. Jake, Tara, and Kat were keeping close eyes on me the whole time. Sometimes they tried to slow me down, or calm me down, anything that would get me to stop pushing myself. Sam had even told me that he was on my side about this whole mess up from Colby. He was trying his best to get in contact with his friend. But all of that was to no avail.

Which is why I now laid in my bed, locked away in my own room. I had stolen Colby's key to my room from him. He always kept it in the same drawer in his room. It was rare that he needed to use it so he always left it in the same place. I had thrown it onto my desk with my own key after locking the door.

It had been 1 hour since everyone told me goodbye and left back to their homes. I stared at my ceiling, the time I had spent crying had finally begun to lull me to sleep.

However when the front door opened, I could hear the footsteps of someone coming closer and closer to my room. When they tried the door handle, that is when I knew it must have been Colby. He tried knocking on the door, but I continued to ignore his attempts.

I even heard Sam talking to him. "Leave her alone Colby" He said with venom dripping from his voice. "You fucked up, and while you do owe her an apology and explanation, she had an emotional breakdown. You know what that means right? Maybe you don't since you had the audacity to forget such an important day. Well she went and got herself wasted, I was sure she would blackout or throw up in a matter of minutes after she started. So even if she was awake, she would be in no way able to talk to you." Sam finished. "But I-" Colby started but sam cut him off. "she could barely get up here by herself Colby. Jake, Tara, and Kat had to convince her in anyway possible to stop drinking and go to bed. You know what she talked about the whole time?" Sam asked. I heard another pair of footsteps come up, Katrina. She spoke finishing Sam's story for him. "She started to talk about everything she 'thinks' is wrong about herself. Don't you remember how many guys broke her heart like this Colby? You and I were her closest friends at the time. The way she came running to us back then, well that's exactly what happened tonight. She's in there probably covered in tear stains thinking the worst of herself. Until she found out where you were, she would ask us if we had heard from you yet. In a room of all her favorite people she still looked for you. She wouldn't have cared if you were just late, she just wanted to celebrate her birthday with you." I heard Katrina scoff before continuing. "And to think, she had spent a week preparing for your birthday, spending all of her time that day with you just last month. You couldn't even remember her birthday."

Sam spoke up once more. "Colby we are so disappointed in you, You better fix this, make it up to her. For now though, just go to bed and leave her alone for the night. She deserves that much from you." Colby said nothing more before walking off. Sam and Katrina also leaving to their room moments later. My body slowly gave out only a few minutes later, succumbing to the sweet release that accompanied well earned sleep.

When I woke up the next morning, my head had a dull small ache. Looking at myself in the mirror across from my bed. I saw that I looked like a mess. So I got up, changing into a pair of sweats and a random hoodie of mine. I then brushed out my hair and put it up into a messy bun. Checking myself over, I grabbed my phone and room key before heading out. I locked the door behind me, before waltzing down to the kitchen. I was in need of some water, I felt the dehydration buzzing through my system.

Turning the corner into the kitchen I saw Sam and Katrina. Across from them sat Colby and Stas. Colby looked like he slept horribly, Stas never once faltered the smile on her face. Katrina was scowling at them but gave me a sympathetic smile. Sam was the one to speak seeing me. "Hey y/n, there's some water bottles in the fridge for you. We left some medicine to help with the hangover on the counter over. The two burgers next to it are also your to help the hang over." He pointed to the counter where the meds and burgers sat. I nodded. "Thanks Sam."

Within the next two steps, Colby was already trying to get up and come over to me. "Y/n I'm so sorry-" I put my hand up towards him and he stopped mid step. "Now is not the time Brock, We will talk later, not while I'm suffering from a hangover. Especially when I have barely had any real time to process what the fuck you did last night. So sit you ass back down and continue with your conversation that I so terribly interrupted." He returned to his seat sadly, watching me with worry.

With that Stas got up coming over to me. "What is your problem y/n? he's just trying to explain himself, he deserves more respect from someone who just let their insecurity take over on some random night." I shook my head and rolled my eyes. She didn't deserve shit from me. In the next second my head was forced to the side, my left cheek slowly increasing in a hot burning sensation. The others yelling at Stas for slapping me. When I looked back at her, I watched her face fall from the angry smirk she gave me. I looked at her with the exact same blank stare I was giving her before. No reaction to her actions like she wanted.

"Actually Anastasia, I wasn't insecure about him being with you. I could care less because I know Colby has long gotten past whatever minuscule amount of adoration he held for you. The only girl he wants to be with is me. What I am upset about is that my boyfriend, forgot my birthday and instead spent the day with someone else. He could have hung out with anyone else in the world, I would still be the same way. Oh but keep trying to steal him away sweetie, maybe if you are lucky enough he may change his mind. However if you have a brain behind those eyes, then you would know to give up now and move the fuck on." I spoke to her in the same dead flat tone that my face showed.

I picked up my burgers and meds, grabbed a water bottle and walked out of the room. On the way back up to my room I could hear Kat yelling. "Stas, get the fuck out of our house. I don't want to hear from you or see you for a long time. Maybe until you know how to get your act together and move on from your hopeless love. Y/n used to be your goddman friend, how could you hurt her happiness just cause e you were crushing on her man!? Nope! Don't even try to explain yourself right now! OUT!" I smiled, I was glad to know that Kat would pick me over her without hesitation. I never wanted her to have to pick between me and Stas when the two of us fell out. But right now, it was nice to know someone had my side.

I opened the door to my separate room and went in. The door shut behind me as I sat down at my computer. After taking the meds, I began to edit some footage for a vlog I had gotten last week. Occasionally I had some bites of burger, this was how I was going to destress and calm down from that whole interaction. About 30 minutes later there was a knock at my door. "Come in." Glacing back I saw Colby open the door and peek in. "is it really okay for me to come in babe?" I sighed. I would have to get this over eventually.

"Alright, I can take a break, come in and sit." I turned around and watched him walk slowly over to my bed sitting down next to me. I looked at him and spoke first. "You have 5 minutes tops to explain yourself or whatever you wanted to tell me, then it's my turn to talk without interruption no matter what I say." He nodded and began.

"y/n, I am so sorry for what I did. I completely forgot the one day a year to celebrate you and just you. I wasn't actually planning to meet stas that day, I was actually attending a sponsorship meeting for Sam and I. She texted me asking if I had time to go to the bar with her and hang out. After that long and boring meeting I was in need of a stress relief. But this isn't my excuse or my way to push the blame of me. It is my fault for forgetting in that moment about you. I promise you that I love you and only you. Whatever it takes and no matter how long it takes, I will make it up to you. I only want to see you happy. I'm sorry." With that Colby finished what he wanted to say.

I took a breath and began my speech. "Colby I can forgive your forgetfulness but it's gonna take a lot for me to forget it. Right now I just need you to be honest with me, Do you still want to be with me or not? If you have lost the feeling we used to share then we can end it right now, it will hurt a lot less." Colby shook his head. "No! I love you please don't say otherwise." I sighed at his words. "Okay, then you better stick to you words cause I have spiraled for the last 12 hours, I didn't know if I could ever try love again had you really lost love or worse cheated. I have been through that too many times. You are literally my last hope." I felt ears brim and fall from my eyes again. Colby's expression softening more.

He held his arms open and I hesitantly fell into them. He slowly moved to lay us together on the small bed meant for one person. He pet my hair as I cried into his shirt. "I'm so sorry for making you feel this way. I really fucked up. I will make it up to you. I will show you how much I love you, how desperate I am to be with you, all the reasons I love you. I will do this till the day I die. I love you y/n" His words slowly soothed me to sleep. Cuddling with him as we both napped in each others arms.

Masterlist

[canyouiimagine]

My favs

Y'all know I can be a little lazy so... I will be updating this in the next few days 👀 but I absolutely love these fics and I want to say a big thank you to the people that wrote them 🫶🏾🩶.

@non-stop-imagines

❤︎ Cute (CL16 x Black Fem Content Creator!Reader) In which Charles thinks you're really cute and it gets annoying. ❤︎ Repeat That | 0 | I.1 | I.2 (MV1 x Black Content Creator!Reader) ❤︎ Handled (DR3 x Black Actress!Reader) ❤︎ Calm Down (OP81 x Black Fem!Reader) Oscar has his own ways of calming his you down. ❤︎ Valentine (LN4 x Hamilton!Reader) In which Lando falls hard and you don't know what to do.

@serpenttines

❤︎ Clarity | II (CL16 x Black Mean Girl!Reader) Charles is a taken man, so when he starts having feeling for another woman things get complicated. especially since y/n isn't known for being the nicest person. ❤︎ Play To Win (ex!CL16, LH44 x Black!Reader) You don't know what game Charles was playing at, but you wanted needed to win. ❤︎ Call It Crazy | II (LH44 x ex Black!Reader) "you can say I'm crazy, if you want to that's true i'm crazy 'bout you" | "baby, when you finally, get to love somebody. guess what, It's gonna be me"

@saintslewis

❤︎ The Motherland (Platonic F1 Grid (not all) x Black Driver!Reader / LH44 x Black Driver!Reader) In which reader takes the f1 pilots to experience her culture and the beautiful country that is South Africa. ❤︎ Pink + White (CL16 x Black DJ!Reader) In which your relationship with Charles gets exposed so you decide to just hard launch. ❤︎ Get You (LN4 x Black!Reader) Joining a specific group of YouTubers on their channel wasn't something you'd envisioned for yourself but your friend, Ria, managed to get you into Quadrant. How Lando reacts is for you to keep reading 🤭 For OC readers: ❤︎ Renaissance (LH44 x fem!oc) The Browns and the Hamiltons have been neighbours for many years, Nadia and their oldest son, Lewis, not being as close as the families had hoped they would be. Years later, everyone drifts apart into different neighbourhoods, some others becoming one of the best drivers to ever grace the sport of Formula One however being a man of his stature, fame came along with it and so did the scandals. Can a fake marriage to a complete stranger help keep his image alive? let’s find out!

@thisismeracing

❤︎ King of manifesting (CL16 x Black Singer!Reader) You've been secretly dating Charles for a while, but fans can't believe it when the rumors start to go around. What do you mean a vroom-vroom Ferrari guy is dating their idol? ❤︎ All Because I Liked A Boy | II ( CL16 x Black Singer!Reader) Yn fell in love with Charles and secretly dated him for almost a year. She didn't consider, however, how fans would react seeing they used to love and still stan Charles' past relationship. What happens when their hidden love gets out in the open?

[fordtato]

I am happy to announce this year's Project Six-Eighteen video lineup!

Every year I make a series of video projects related to Gravity Falls. These videos tend to be shorter than my main video essays (which tend to be between 1.5-3 hours long), and usually are between 20-60 min.

All of the dates above are subject to change, but a couple have been in the works for about a year! I will tentatively say that if a video does not come out in the allotted time, you can expect something to be bumped to July. But please be patient if something does not go according to plan. It is difficult to juggle this project with my workload, but I will do my best.

Subscribe to my YouTube to stay posted

Support my work, AND SEE EXCLUSIVE CONTENT on Patreon

Last year's Project 618 playlist

[Text from image can be found in alt text, also below cut]

Image 1: Project 618 2024 Video #1 - June 4 Interview w/ Rob Renzetti

Video #2 - June 11 A look back at Musical Falls - My favorite fan project that you‘ve never heard of

Video #3 - June 18 A Scene-By-Scene analysis of A Tale of Two Stans

Special stream - DATE TBA Giving myself an all-star tattoo* while playing GinJuiceTonic’s Ford Dating Sim (For a future video In July on GF Dating Sims) (Celebrating 50 Patrons, 10k Subs)

Video #4 - June 25 Gravity Falls AUs: (Some of) The ones I missed Last Time

Video #5 - June 30 Defending Stanford Pines: A look back at the Stan Wars Note: All dates are tentative. Watch all of these videos on Hana Hyperfixates’s YouTube channel. *It’s an inkbox temporary tattoo, though if i reach 1000 patrons, then we’ll talk.

Image 2:

Project 618 PATREON EXCLUSIVES

Video #1 - June 5 Behind the Scenes of my interviews with Alex Hirsch and Rob Renzetti

Video #2 - June 17 A Scene-By-Scene analysis of The Last Mabelcorn*

Video #3 - June 23 A Patron-Only Zoom Call! (Future video discussion [Mystery Trio vid essay, etc.), Channel Updates, Chat with me, Join me in Celebrating Sonic the hedgehog’s birthday, and More)

Note: All dates are tentative.

*This will replace the current Patreon-exclusive video “Where is Gravity Falls?”, which will be re-edited and posted to YouTube later that month.

[ju1cyfru1t]

rottmnt headcanons (pt.1?)

this is short I was just bored 🤞

(I have hella more than just these)

Raph

- he has one of those stuffed animal net things above his bed because he doesn’t have room for all of them ON his bed

- ^ apologizes and feels bad if he knocks one off accidentally + makes his brothers apologize if they so much as move one to make room or if they knock one off (Leo throws them across the room)

- Implemented a swear jar; to no surprise, Donnie has paid the most

- has a scar on his bottom lip from his snaggle tooth and accidentally biting himself

- sobbed while watching the Barbie movie because he realized they don’t rlly have a mom 😭 (he still smothered Splinter after)

- there are just random holes and dents in the walls in the lair (especially his room) from his spikes

Leo

- said it once, and I’ll say it over and over again. He is a Taylor Swift stan, and ONLY refers to her as ‘TayTay,’ ‘T Swizzle,’ or ‘T Sweezy’

- ^favorite album is 1989

- Blasts ‘tolerate it’ when he’s “mad” at Donnie or Raph (or when they hurt his feelings)

- messiest room out of his brother, EXCEPT he keeps his shelves with his figures, comics, and stuff super neat

- ^walls are almost fully covered in posters

- makes A LOT of audible turtle noises like hissing, churring, etc.

- his knuckles and joints crack so fucking loud (he does it just to annoy Raph bc he hates the sound)

- ASTONISHING intuition. he’s one of those people who just KNOW when you’re hiding something or just like when bad things are about to happen.

-

Donnie

- HATES carbonation

- Doesn’t usually show it, but it genuinely hurts his feelings when his family doesn’t listen to him about his science and inventions and interests

- He had a thin eyebrow phase only for like 3 days and it was NOT good 😭 he got absolutely flamed for it

- Velvet, felt fabric, and being sticky are big sensory no-no’s

- calls inanimate objects that he bumps into (and Leo) a whore

- I don’t think he likes coffee so much but if he does drink it it’s black

- his mask covers them but he has hella eyebags and dark circles

- prefers to watch a show/movie or youtube while he eats (iPad kid)

- Queen (the band) stan

Mikey

- graffiti artist. not in like an illegal way, but like on alleyways, on the walls of the sewer, rooftops, abandoned buildings, etc.

- Copies Leo and also blasts ‘tolerate it’ by Taylor Swift in his room at full volume when he’s mad at Donnie or Raph /if they hurts his feelings, but he screams the lyrics (specifically the bridge)

- there’s still a family portrait he drew when he was like 6 hanging on the fridge

- ADHD

- his nails are always painted; yes orange, but also tries like every color you could think of it

- ^ spent a lot of time perfecting nail art (like smiley faces, flowers, patterns, etc.)

- has THE fastest fucking metabolism you have ever seen. the teenage boy hunger is STRONG

- Melanie Martinez stan

- ^ his favorite album is Crybaby

- has his own little game where he tries to see how many stickers he can put on his brothers shells without being caught

- 20+ hours of screen time on YouTube every week

- rarely ever sleeps in his own room and rotates sleeping in Leo, Donnie, or Raph’s room

- Conan Gray stan

- dreams of having his own talk show like Wendy Williams 😭

[charcubed]

Disneyland's Rogers: The Musical, propaganda that turns Steve Rogers into more myth than man, and revisionist history (possibly) to a purpose

Any of my thoughts in this post could just be me reading too far into things. I'm very aware of that, and please know that this post exists just because this sort of thing is fun for me! This is a thought exercise where we propose "What if we live in a world where the MCU is actually doing a cool and interesting thing as a longcon?" If you have anger at Marvel, that's valid and relatable, but please don't get angry at me or imply I'm an MCU stan who doesn't think critically about the mouse. Thanks!

Breaking news: I'm back on my bullshit!

A quick personal recap: I infamously hated Avengers: Endgame for a long list of reasons (and I even rewrote the movie). One of those reasons is that I've always taken issue with Steve's ending. But in the years since then, and as the MCU's phase 4 has evolved, my frustration at Steve's "ending" has turned into an ongoing and legitimate theory that the MCU could be slowly leading into a loosely adapted Secret Empire plot line. I know we've all been joking about Steve being trapped or about an imposter Steve since 2019, but uhhh, it's kind of not a joke to me anymore? It feels weirdly plausible at this point and so I enjoy discussing the potential.

You can find a full elaboration on that here, where I wrote out my "Steve was snatched by HYDRA" theory in 2021.

In that post, one of the things I mentioned at the time was Rogers: The Musical being in the Hawkeye trailer.

[The musical's] very existence is an example of how in-universe the stories of the lives of the heroes are being commodified, especially (in terms of how they’re framing it) for Steve’s. The heroes are no longer seen as people, if they ever were. They are, as Kate Bishop says to Clint in a recently released clip, more about “branding.” Sam Wilson will be redefining the shield moving forward in a Cap context, but simultaneously, the world is still enamored by Steve Rogers as a symbol in his own right. And that is ripe for manipulation as a Trojan horse to control public opinion… whether in the context of things like this by themselves (is the musical portraying Steve accurately, or is it painting an inaccurate picture of him the world accepts as fact?) or in future (is this propaganda that makes the public see Steve a certain way and continue to love him, to set up a fake or brainwashed Steve coming on the scene later?).

Now a form of the musical exists in full, at Disneyland and all over Youtube. Considering some of its baffling content – which I will break down below – this perspective seems even more strongly worth considering.

I have two main reasons for why I'm defending examining this musical so closely:

1. It is (arguably) an in-universe piece of media that has bearing on the MCU canon. It isn't like any other typical Disneyland attraction; its very existence is meta and it was in canon first. Obviously it's seen in Hawkeye, but there are also posters for it in several different phase 4 properties. It's lurking in the background indefinitely. So what can this musical tell us about what the wider public within the MCU is being told about the life story of Steve Rogers?

2. This Secret Empire graphic – which is animated in the center of the stage of a prolonged period of time – feels like a literal sign to pay attention.

Granted, this is obviously still ancillary material. 99% of the MCU audience will never see this musical, whether in person or on YouTube. But just because it isn't a vital piece doesn't mean it's automatically an entirely irrelevant piece.

They've given me an inch with that sign and I'm taking a mile.

So if you're interested, please join me on this journey :)

For the record, let me just say that I salute the creative team behind this show. It's pretty fun and the songs are catchy, the sets and costuming are cool, and the cast is overall very talented.

It's also fucking maddening. LMAO.

Why? Firstly, because of the seemingly deliberate ahistorical inaccuracies. We all know Ant-Man is wrongly shown in the Battle of New York, which originally "came from [the Hawkeye showrunner] and Marvel, as something to further aggravate Hawkeye as he watched the show, and also as a comment on how movies and articles and people always get something wrong." It seems like they expanded those meta nods, but most inaccuracies are now in service of glorifying Steve and Peggy's "love story." Yes, romance objectively makes for good theater; but again, I feel that this is worth examining considering the full context.

And secondly, Steve's ending is framed as an offer presented to him, convincing him it's the happy ending he deserves because he's tired. In my mind, these two big elements go together, and I'll walk you through the details of what happens in the musical before I tie the thought threads back around into some theorizing.

For your reference, here's a list of the main songs and story beats:

• "U-S-Opening Night" - the Starkettes (who are basically a Greek chorus) frame the show's story, and then it turns into an ensemble that loosely takes place at the Stark Expo. • "I Want You" – Steve's "I want" song about trying to enlist in the army. • "Star-Spangled Man With A Plan" – Steve performing on the USO tour obviously, and then there's a reprise with an added voiceover that (very briefly) covers the Howling Commandos' rescue + the war via comic book imagery. • "What You Missed" – Fury and the Starkettes tell Steve some pop culture things he missed while he was frozen, + they tell him about the Avengers. Then Fury goes down a list of other hero characters, including the Guardians? Doctor Strange? Wanda?? It plays loose and fast with time, because many non-2012 characters are bafflingly mentioned in this nonlinear Avengers list – including the Winter Soldier (???). • "Save the City" – this is the song seen in Hawkeye, with the civilians + the Avengers all involved, but it's slightly different here and expanded to also reference other battles. • "End of the Line" – Old Steve presents main Steve with the time stone as an opportunity for his happy ending, and they reflect on things together. (Yes, this is insane.) • "Just One Dance" – Steve and Peggy reunite and sing about their love. • And then there's basically a reprise of "Save the City," with the Starkettes and the whole cast closing the finale out.

Right out of the gate, let's address this: the main reason you're going to see some fans pissed about this musical is not only that Steve and Peggy's ~epic romance~ is made a pillar of the story... but also that Bucky's importance/involvement in Steve's life is minimized as much as possible.

And they took Bucky-related elements from canon and made them center more around Peggy instead.

• For some weird reason, Peggy is in the Stark Expo scene. When a soldier is hitting on the Starkettes ("hey sweetheart, I wanna dance!"), Steve tells the soldier to show the ladies some respect. The soldier grabs Steve and throws him down, and then Peggy swoops in to yell "Pick on someone your own size!" and punches the guy before walking away. So she's given Bucky's TFA line verbatim, and she is given the role he had of saving Steve from bullies. There is blatantly no reason they couldn't have had Bucky still serve that function and be truer to "history," because he briefly enters this scene in uniform less than a minute later to announce he's shipping out to the 107th – and then he spins off with a date on his arm. (We don't see Bucky on stage again until the full cast comes out for the finale!)

• After the Star-Spangled Man show, Peggy rushes in to talk to Steve. Steve is excited about his USO performance (???) but she urgently tells him to listen as she says that the 107th has been captured. Peggy apparently knows it's Bucky's division, and she knows Steve is going to go, so she tells him that she's already arranged transport for him. This is a subtle twist from the truth of how it went down in TFA, in which Steve recognized 107 as the number of Bucky's division, and his dogged determination inspired Peggy to relent and help his rescue mission. Here, Peggy is given a stronger role in the Cap origin story. And before Steve rushes off, Peggy sings a short untitled ballad hoping for their dance, so Steve pauses before he leaves to ask her to go on a date with her when he returns. • The most egregious Bucky-to-Peggy change of all is the song "End of the Line," in which the infamous Steve and Bucky line/promise (that broke Bucky's brainwashing...) is re-contextualized to be about ???? Peggy waiting for Steve in the past??? Old Man Steve and regular Steve sing it together. But we'll go back to that in a minute.

Again, I get it, yeah? It's for theater. Whatever. But in reality, the obvious logical truth is that Peggy is centered (to the point of taking elements from Bucky's story, and in turn Bucky is downplayed) because they needed to convince the audience that Steve going back in time to be with her makes sense. Steve's time travel ending had to be justified, so the Peggy and Steve "love story" had to be a pillar in this with everything else being given lesser weight.

And the inherent selfishness of him doing something as big as going back in time also had to be justified... which is why they do their best to convince you Steve fought so much he deserved it.

Let me elaborate on that by describing the lead-up to the "End of the Line" song.

So, right before "End of the Line" is "Save the City" – which includes Steve belting "I can do this all day!" repeatedly, of course. It's the 2012 Battle of New York as the Avengers come together to win.

As they begin to disperse, the song then transitions to a voiceover alert mentioning Sokovia being under attack by artificial intelligence (a.k.a. Age of Ultron). The Avengers group rushes back to center stage to say "Save the city! Help us win!" together for battle again.

And then things get fucking weird.

Because the next voiceover threat is "Washington DC. Attack: the Winter Soldier." This is not accurate to the order of events! The Winter Soldier events were before Age of Ultron; the public of the MCU would also know this.

And suddenly on stage Steve is now in the center while everyone else gestures to him. Instead of singing with him, they're telling him "Save the city! Help us win!"

Then, another voiceover: "Wakanda, under attack" (Infinity War) and again, Steve is centered while everyone else points to him. The ensemble says, "Save the city, help us win! Save us all from the state we're in! Got to hear you, got to hear you, got to hear you say..." as Steve is buckling to his knees under their pointing. And as the lights go down to one spotlight on him and everyone else leaves, he says "I can do this all day" one last time, but now it's subdued.

The implication is that Steve has been fighting and fighting, people leave him or he loses them, and he's tired.

And then fucking Old Man Steve arrives.

He says "On your left," because yes, they gave him Sam Wilson's line. BATSHIT.

So now there's two Steves on stage! There has been no mention of Thanos or infinity stones or anything up to this point! (I can only assume that's because in the MCU universe no one would want to be reminded of the trauma of "the Blip" – though it's pretty wild that they're allowed to know about magical time travel?)

Steve is baffled by Old Man Steve's arrival. I, too, was baffled by Old Man Steve's arrival.

As Steve questions how this is possible, Old Man Steve shows him the time stone from his pocket – and only the time stone – which Steve recognizes.

OLD MAN: "You've got to remember where you've been to know where you're going." STEVE: "Where am I going?" OLD MAN: "A date with destiny." STEVE: “Destiny. So we’re the hero till the end?” OLD MAN: “That’s the thing about endings, Steven. They can be rewritten.”

Lmao???????

Steve starts singing about how he hopes this means they "win" and calls himself a "tired hero."

STEVE: "But sometimes I wonder, who will save the savior? Can we really do this all day? So here I am, now and also then. Just a man, looking back at where he's been." OLD MAN: "The road is rough but wounds are healed by a thing called time. You can't forget what's waiting at the end of the line."

Me, watching this: the fact that he says this out of the blue makes absolutely no sense.

There's a bit more singing, including "end of the line" repetition, and then Old Man Steve pulls out the time stone to essentially show visions of... I don't fucking know. Past, present, and future?

That's pre-serum Steve, Steve with Mjolnir, and Sam Wilson as the new Cap. This is the only reference to Sam in the whole thing.

More singing, and then: Peggy's silhouette.

OLD MAN: "Can't forget who's waiting..." STEVE: "I can't forget who's waiting..." BOTH: "Don't forget who's waiting..." STEVE: "At the end of the line."

At this point I'm like, what in the hell?

Did Old Man Steve just brainwash normal Steve into thinking "end of the line" is now about Peggy? Because uhhhh, sorry, that's what it feels like!

Then Steve uses the stone to go back in time, reunites with Peggy, etc. etc. finale.

It's truly some crazy shit.

[drags hands down face]

Look... there's a lot to unpack here, and there's a lot that gets me about it. I know this is dramatized for the stage! I KNOW! But the fact that Old Man Steve shows up to convince Steve he should go back in time makes me want to gnaw on furniture.

Another person essentially uses the lure of a life with Peggy to tempt Steve into doing this, dramatized or not. That is how it's framed.

It's a hell of a way to frame it, and it makes Steve's ending stand in even starker contrast to so many other things in phase 4. Desperately trying to go backwards when you shouldn't or to bring back a lost lover is an evil temptation, and it results in a trap or negative cosmic consequences for basically all of the other characters in the MCU.

• In Shang-Chi, Wenwu is tempted by the Soul Eaters beyond the Dark Gate. They use the voice of his deceased wife to convince him to set them free. • In "What If" episode 4, Doctor Strange becomes evil in a desperate bid to save Christine and he destroys his universe. Along the way, he tries to tempt/trap the good Strange who's fighting him by using visions of Christine, but good Strange knows she isn't real. • Wanda's grief and desire to bring back Vision leads to – well, you know. • In No Way Home, Peter trying to undo things is what causes the multiverse problems.

And the fact that they frame it as Steve being tired, so basically the argument is he deserves that time travel ending (just like MCU fans who defend Endgame say in real life)... Well.

There's no way to make it hold up, especially because in "What If" they explicitly subverted that and had Captain Carter not go back in time despite how she felt she'd "earned" it.

Lastly, in this musical as Steve decides to pursue time travel as his course of action, he basically has the meaning or memory of "end of the line" rewritten for him. I refuse to not think that is some nefarious shit. Yes, it's not out of the realm of possibility that it's just some general Disney erasing Steve and Bucky nonsense.

But... this is on another level to me. I do think that it's a blatant choice that they had to be aware even general MCU fans would call bullshit on. Everyone knows it's inaccurate. "End of the line" is embedded in pop culture consciousness as being connected to Bucky. It just is! Surely that means it's not a stretch to theorize it could be deliberate meta commentary.

How, in the MCU world, would the in-universe playwrights even know the phrase "end of the line"? How the fuck would it be accidentally applied to Steve and Peggy? Not to sound like a crazy person, but who the fuck was rooting around in Steve and/or Bucky's personal business or their brains in order to obtain that knowledge and then remix it, and why? Neither of them would flippantly mention it in the public eye or interviews ever. So where did its inclusion come from?

And in the finale ensemble, this is Bucky's line when he comes out on stage and salutes + points to Steve: "Don't forget who's waiting..." And Old Man Steve completes it with "...at the end of the line."

What on God's green earth am I meant to do with THAT?

Smh.

The vibes are fucked, folks.

The MCU public wouldn't know enough to say the vibes are fucked. The MCU public wouldn't know the origin of "end of the line" as a phrase. But us? The ones who know the "true story" via the movies? We can call bullshit.

Whether the creative team behind this musical did every aspect of this consciously or not, in my opinion the fact that they had to tweak canon "history" to A) make Peggy's involvement in Steve's life more central and B) emphasize Steve as a tired hero all works as commentary on and almost a condemnation of Endgame's frustrating ending. In a way, it's also what Endgame did with the compass and 1973 moment with Peggy as well.

Steve's ending had to be convincing.

It's theater.

And so, maybe the same is true for the in-narrative perspective of this musical in the context of the MCU world. What purpose would it serve to tell the MCU public a feel-good narrative about how all Steve Rogers wanted was to no longer be a tragic man out of time and get to make a life with his best girl? To frame it as being about how he fought so hard for years and so he earned a happy ending? To minimize and nearly erase Bucky's importance in his life?

Who would want to do that sort of propaganda, and why?

The MCU civilians are given this happy explanation and maybe don't widely question it. Who cares about the details or logistics if it makes a good story, I guess. It's a stretch, but maybe they mostly applaud it. Maybe they're happy for "America's favorite son" (not unlike people who uncritically liked Endgame). In a way, it's even a rehabilitation of his image (after the Accords) like putting the shield on the Statue of Liberty. And maybe they'd even be ready and waiting to applaud if Steve ever made a dramatically selfless and de-aged return to the spotlight or a position of authority.

But mostly, the public is being conditioned to not know or to forget that anyone else like Bucky Barnes or Sam Wilson would possibly know Steve Rogers the person well enough in the modern day to call bullshit on any of this – or on his hypothetical miraculous future return.

So. Sure, it's probably nothing.

But what if it's not?

-------

UPDATE: @faeriecap added to this post with some incredible information and further behind-the-scenes context about the MCU/Marvel stuff at Disney parks! Check it out here :)

[absolutebl]

Hello, hi.

Next week is Cherry Magic's last episode and I'd like a suggestion as to what to watch next. Since last year I've watched some shows that I've enjoyed to different degrees. So far I've vibed more with the Japanese ones and only have watched two Thai shows: step by step and cherry magic.

I definitely like cherry magic more but I'd like to watch some more Thai bl, as I can see they're very popular, but honestly I don't know where to begin. I don't know if mentioning my favorite shows would help?

Old fashion cupcake

Cherry magic (JP)

I cannot reach you

Semantic error

Thank you so much in advance 🙌🏽

This is a perfect question for me!

I think you're vibbing more with Cherry Magic Th because it's following the original yaoi so closely, so it's def more JBL feeling story than it is ThBL.

Okay so your favorites are:

Old Fashion Cupcake

Cherry Magic original

I Cannot Reach You*

Semantic Error*

You've named some of my all time favorites, and 2 of my VERY few top 10s*. (For more of my top 10 JBLs, try here (pre 2023). For my top 10 KBLs, those are here. And my top BLs of all time are here.)

But you want Thai recommendations?

Before I start, off script, seek ye Seven Days. It's my favorite JBL of all time and it's absolutely amazing and very special. It's in two parts and worth every effor to try to find. Here's me talking about it.

First, let me triage some connective tissue.

It seems like you like soft and gentle BL. (Try this cozy list.)

You like JBL so that means higher filming standards and certain aura of authenticity.

Also a lower heat level.

Okay, here are 10 Thai BLs I think you should try, in order...

10 Thai BLs to try if you prefer soft Japanese BL

1 Until We Meet Again (YouTube)

UWMA is, without question, a work of narrative genius with a powerful and cohesive romantic backbone and stellar performances. It is (to date) the only Thai BL that I’ve rated a 10/10 predominantly on the basis of story structure. That said it is also very well cast (and it’s a BIG cast), with solid production values, and enduring pair branding and a softness and complexity that should appeal for a JBL stan. More of my feels on this on here.

trigger warning on the original trigger

2 I Feel You Linger in the Air (iQIYI or grey)

I truly loved this time travel romance. IFYLITA is an exquisite BL, from filming techniques to narrative framework (much like Until We Meet Again). Steeped in history and family drama it edges into lakorn AKA soap opera. This is an elegant and classy BL… from Thailand which normally doesn't even try for classy. The main couple (both as a pair and individuals) were excellent, particularly Bright (Yai) whose eye-work acting style is a personal favorite of mine. Pity about the ending. Oh it wasn’t that sad but it wasn’t great either. However, JBL isn't noted for sticking the landings either. Full review and discussion here.

3 My Ride (Gaga)

Thai BL grew up with this little pulp (the first ever to make my end of year top 10). It’s a truly lovely and special little show featuring the extremely rare pairing of sunshine/sunshine (AKA a cinnamon roll couple) plus mature explorations of relationships using one of the softest, sweetest and most innocent friends to lovers vehicles. Kindly, overworked doctor meets broken-hearted motorcycle taxi driver in an “other side of the tracks” slow burn romance. The support cast is excellent, making for great friendship groups and family dynamics. With honest queer rep that adds to, but doesn’t impede, the story, and genuine conversation about the nature of class, wealth, and classism, not to mention communication, honesty, and respect for boundaries, you can’t go wrong with this show. Full review.

My caveat with this one is, like Step by Step, it is a Thai pulp which mean production values will not be up to Japan's standards. So if you bounce hard off the style of the first few 2 eps, it doesn't get better, so drop it and move on.

4 A Tale of Thousand Stars (YouTube)

With great casting and cinematography this drama nods at BL tropes but manages to elevate them (and itself) with a strong mature story concept about a spoiled rich kid who gets a heart transplant and becomes a rural teacher in order to pay out survivor’s guilt. On the way he falls in love with a local park ranger and contends with his own classism and escapist tendencies. Everyone seemed to perfectly suit their roles and GMMTV made the most out of its stable. Combined with excellent production (and post production) values, 1000 Stars is without question GMMTV’s most mature, charming, and smart BL series. I think it should go down as one of the top BLs of all time. I feel safe recommending this one to friends and non BL watchers.

5 He's Coming to Me (YouTube)

Boy and ghost boy fall in love, must solve ghost’s murder. Peak pining but also pretty tame, features my favorite sweet but important coming out sequence. The third in my precious triumvirate of unbeatable Thai BLs, that are only nominally BL because the story, acting, and production values are so good. (others are UWMA & 1k*)

You don't mention any PNR or high concept, but I still think it's worth giving this one a try.

6 Moonlight Chicken (YouTube)

I enjoyed this complicated little show, even though it’s spectacularly messy gay with lots of shrapnel and authentic pain. I thought the leads (EarthMix from 1k*) turned in their most compelling performance to date. But it was GeminiFourth (My School President) who stole my heart. That said, the most interesting central relationship was that of Jim & Li Ming, their father-son angst mixed with evident affection made me tear up. This was more slice of life than it was BL, but it ended happily so I’m not mad at it. Full review here.

It's not as soft as you like, but you might try it anyway, because it is Very Good.

A note if you watch this and enjoy GeminiFourth, you could try their BL, My School President. I chose not to explicitly rec it to you because it's VERY Thai Bl with lots of comedy and slapstick, and you named prestige JBL and KBL (which are the anthesis of this). Taht said, MSP has no more or less than Japan's Cherry Magic, so you might enjoy it.

7 Make a Wish (grey)

An odd pull but I'm going with it. This PNR (from noted Y-novelist Sammon - Manner of Death & Triage) about a doctor who can see the dead and strikes a bargain with a wish-granting irreverent tree angel - naturally they fall in love. The Thai afterlife is incredibly bureaucratic but I enjoyed the premise and the unfolding of the story (it’s not predictable but still satisfying and with nice little twist). I like that the doctor is just gay af and has a fag hag bestie and everything. The cast is excellent but the comedic stylings could feel too overblown and tonally off. (But again no more than something like Japan's Cherry Magic.) It had sad parts and did make me cry but is ultimately happy with a great sex scene, good smiley kisses, and all the agency.

8 Bed Friend (YouTube -cut version, iQIYI - v high heat)

You didn't name My Personal Weatherman (a great high heat JBL from last year) but if you want to try some Thai-style high heat, this is your best bet. Office frienamies transition a flaming hot one night stand into a f-buddy relationship that is built on a puppy/cat dynamic (and kinks into it at one point). Our puppy is loyal, smitten, and protective with endlessly longing eyes, while our cat is snarky, prickly, and deeply damaged (ALL THE TRIGGERS). NetJames give lovely high-heat with excellent chemistry and tuned-in performances of surprising depth, the story ultimately fails them at little as it waffles and went off the rails. But that's a Thai BL thing. Full review here.

Triggers include: child abuse, attempted rape, family abuse

9 The Eclipse (YouTube)

This is a good show but the cast is excellent and the leads are absolutely flawless, which elevates it beyond just good. We got a nuanced and multifaceted burgeoning relationship: philosophical (and socio-political) conflict contrasted to moments of empathy; flirtation contrasted to moments of genuine affection, plus plenty of angst. This narrative is less about love than it is about courage and tenderness. However, near the end the pacing was off and the plot frustrating. Still, this is an enjoyable watch, with a finale that features verbal consent and a fun blooper reel.

10 Love By Chance (YouTube)

Okay I dithered a lot over this last one and finally chose this. Because in an intro to Thai BL you should have at least one trail by fire and that's bound to be a MAME offering.

AePete’s meet cute is one of the best ever put on screen. They are just so genuine and soft with each other, it’s hard not to love them from the first moment. All the best Thai BL tropes deployed (and there are a lot of them) are earned honestly by the narrative, including the seme/uke dynamic (such as it is). The characters are unique as this is a poor/rich pairing, where Ae is tough & scrappy, caring & protective, and probably demisexual, while Pete is timid, shy, lonely, and out gay (with his peers). The language is also glorious with Pete using formal (even old fashioned) register, while Ae is entirely rude. You can train your ear for Thai high & low registers with this show (in fact, it's why I started learning them). As surrounding characters point out, they shouldn't work together, and yet they're very much wonderful when they are together.

HOWEVER: You watch LBC for the mains, ignore the sides (trigger warnings), and don't bother with any of the follow ups and you'll be fine. AePete will remain in your heart for a really long time. They are still one of my all time favorite couples. Also (still) two of the Thai BL industry's most famous actors.

For those who are wondering, yes the last contender was, indeed, Bad Buddy. But I chose LBC purely on the basis of softness.

There it is.

I hope I have picked some winners for you and please loop back around and let me know how it goes?

I really want to know if any of these worked for you, this was such a fun challenge.

(source)

[wildpeachfarm]

Ok anyone else reading this who doesn't know me as well as Moku; all of this is the opinion of someone who's been watching Jacksepticeye and Markiplier since 2012/2013, and is also incredibly loud themselves. We're talking ultra stan, I've been to both of their youtuber liveshows and have signed merch.

Jack lost a little bit of relevancy. It's (mostly) not his fault, as time passes some youtubers fade or quit and while it's sad (thumps fist against chest then raises it to sky, Matpat Game Theory) it's the cycle of life, and the life of youtube is not something that can be kept up forever. Jack is not pulling the same views he used to- and to be fair to him he's not the only one, Mark also sometimes doesn't pull the same views, its the cycle of life. Not all of it is Jack's fault.

HOWEVER.

Jack did also shoot himself in the foot a little bit. He started doing less collabs, something that always helps with combating less relevancy. For comparison, Mark still does collabs all the time (tbf with the same two/three people, bob wade and ethan, but he still does them). Jack also started changing his content a few years back. Instead of just gaming videos, what he's always done, he started adding in react andy content- meme time reddit reactions, tiktok compliations, cringe comps, epic fails, that kind of thing. There's no harm necessarily in reaching out to try new content but it always does come with risk.

He also changed how he posts videos. Idk about yall but 30min to 1hr is my golden zone for videos. 1.5hrs max (or 3hrs max for a vod). He was/is uploading full games as 1 video. 4hrs plus. Saw one even that was 12 hours. Clickbait titles. Or titles that are just "(game name)- full game". For me this was a personal turnoff. I don't have the attention span for content that long.

He also, and this is the potentially upsetting part to people as I know my comments will butt heads with Irish culture and stereotypes, but like, he didn't "get with the times". The way he yells and overreacts in videos is very 2010 youtube era. Yes some of his volume control is due to being Irish, I get that, I also have volume control issues, but sometimes it's reminiscent of like. Jake Paul videos. Ricegum videos. Even with a nostalgia bias it's hard to swallow sometimes and I'll click back off a video.

For comparison, Mark still does (although limited) collabs, and interacts with other youtubers in the community. Mark has stuck to similar/the same content he's been known to make, and although he does branch out (A Heist, In Space, Iron Lung, sponsered videos, or other video game genres) he usually still sticks to what he's known for- horror video games, and has stuck to the same video lengths with only a few variations for reasons that are usually extremely understandable. And this is less of a fair comparison because Mark was never "loud" to begin with, so while he did tone himself down he did not have to tone himself down as much as Jack in theory would.

My speculation is that Jack is taking the "lost a little bit of relevancy" a little bit too hard, a little bit too personal, RSD style (we know for a fact he has ADHD). Whereas Mark (and again I'm trying to make this as fair a comparison as possible, Mark is also ADHD) hasn't taken it personally because he seems to recognize any loss in viewership is not his fault but rather just a fact of times changing and people growing older. While I can't recall if Jack has ever said anything on the same lines, I can recall Mark on multiple occasions saying he could never quit youtube or making videos, because even if he's "only making one single person happy with his videos, that's still one person he's making their day better". Less of a views thing for Mark, and more of how Dream sees videos and content creation- trying to bring joy and happiness to people. Idk if Jack has ever said anything like that, or if he has it's not something I can currently recall so it was likely a once-off, whereas I remember Mark and Dream saying those things because they've both talked about it multiple times.

Essay Andy Echo out.

This is so interesting, thank you Echo 🫶

[artoatsblog]

What your favorite Nick toon says about you but it's EVERY Nick toon

Doug- When you were asked what you wanted for Christmas, you said "plan white bread."

Rugrats- You're a "90's kid" who wants the modern cartoon enjoyers to get off your lawn.

Hey Arnold-Same as Rugrats, but 5 time worse.

Rugrats (2021)- You only said this one to piss off the above two.

Ren & Stimpy- You're a gay man and all you OCs are ugly men who you need to kiss each other or else you'll die (This isn't an insult, you're the strongest member of our society.)

Rocko's modern life- You relate to at least one character way more than you would like to admit to others.

CatDog- Weird furry.

The angry beavers- Weird furry with taste.

Aaahh!!! Real monsters- You like the idea of Tim Burton's movies but your too cool to actually enjoy them, also your probably non-binary.

Kablam- As a kid you wanted to make something with this exact energy and now, you're a youtuber.

Oh Yeah! Cartoons- same as Kablam but you really miss Cosmo's old voice.

The wild Thornberry's- You worship the ground Tim Curry's walks on SO BAD.

Rocket power- Honest 90's kid.

SpongeBob SquarePants seasons 1-4- You're annoying about seasons 5+.

SpongeBob SquarePants seasons 5+- You know better than me about those people being annoying about seasons 5+.

As told by ginger- You were going to say Hey Arnold, but you didn't want to be lumped in with certain other people.

Action league now- You made at least five short films that look exactly like this.

Chalkzone- Your playlist for working out has the theme song for this show looped for five hours and nothing else.

The fairly oddparents- Your trans, and you hate no other person more than Elmer Hartman.

Invader Zim- You were a vary emo kid/teenager in the late 2000's (same, no shade)

Jimmy Neutron- you're really glad that that you picked the show in "Jimmy Timmy power hour" that wasn't made by an asshole.

All grown up- Come on guys "As told by ginger" is right there.

Avatar: the last airbender- I don't want to hear the lore of the fantasy book you wrote.

Avatar: the legend of Korra- Same as atla but You also made a LOT of shipping fanfics.

My life as a teenage robot- Transfem.

The X's- You don't exist, if you're going to go into the comments and say this is your favorite Nicktoon, you're lying.

El Tigre- This is just the good version of Danny Phantom.

Danny Phantom- That was a Joke don't yell at me.

Mr. meaty- You want this odd but cool type of puppetry to come back (if you thought I was going to make fun of this one your wrong.)

Tak and the power of Juju- Your enjoyment of this show is based entirely on the fact that you liked the games.

Back at the barnyard- Shitposter.

Fanboy and Chum Chum- Shitposter but awesome.

Catscratch- Yeah, I think Wayne Knight's voice is hot too.

The mighty B- Gay.

The penguins of Madagascar- I don't have a joke for this one I just think you have impactable taste.

Planet Sheen- You always wanted Jimmy Neutron to have more "Rawr XD" swag.

T.U.F.F puppy- You ether are Jerry Trainor, or you have a Jerry Trainor stan account.

Kung fu panda: legends of awesomeness- You have a three-hour lore video on this franchise, and I hope it does well.

Winx club- You wanted to help them get free from Netflix.

Robot and Monster- It may just be me, but I think you might enjoy Dan vs.

Teenage mutant ninja turtles (2012)- You don't like rise of the tmnt.

Rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles- You don't like tmnt (2012).

Sanjay and Craig- You used to freak other kids out with your scabs.

Monsters vs aliens- You can deny Coverton's rizz (sorry).

Breadwinners- Your about to go into every cartoon reviewers house with a shit ton of water balloons.

Harvey Beaks- In the middle/late 2000's you were more of a cartoon network kid, you loved Cowder.

Pig, Goat, Banana, Cricket- Same as Harvey Beaks but with Flapjack instead of Cowder.

Bunsen is a beast- Your Elmer Hartman.

Welcome to the Wayne- You wrote at least one fanfic for the ending of this show.

The adventures of kid danger- We don't talk about this one.

Middle school Moguls- it's ok monster high is about to come to Nick for real.

The loud house- Your ether a sapphic girl or a straight guy with a DeviantArt account who needs to be punished.

The Casagrandes- Same as the loud house but with the added advantages, because if you have a DeviantArt account in this one you're more likely to have a normal relationship with your family.

It's pony- You don't hate the British as much as the rest of us.

Middlemost post- John trabbic III is such a bad ass name though, wait this show has Del the funky homosapien and Tony Hawk as guest stars, I might need to which this.

Star trek: prodigy- You really like Netflix original animated shows don't you.

Big Nate- You haven't read the books.

Monster high- You the perfect in-between of goth and prep.

Transformers: earthspark- Why does this show have better non-binary rep than most other shows...I mean they are called Transformers for a reason.

[notes-from-sarah]

Magneto: A Biographical Timeline, 1963-1991

Magneto just might be one of the most iconic comic book antagonists of all time. He was created in 1963 by Stan Lee and started out as the X-Men’s deadliest foe. Not much is revealed about Magneto through the 60’s but when author Chris Claremont takes over writing the X-Men starting in 1975 he began to develop the character and give him a complex backstory. Magneto quickly started his journey to being a hero and by the 80’s he was no longer a foe of the X-Men, but an ally, and eventually the leader of the Xavier Institute. After corporate meddling forced Magneto back into an antagonistic role in the 90’s, Magneto was eventually killed off and Claremont was fired. This was the end of a cohesive story and trajectory for the character.

Magneto’s backstory has become murky in the years since. The wiki pages (both fan wikis and wikipedia) often take the angle of attempting to synthesize everything ever said about the character into one cohesive story. That, of course, isn’t very helpful when there’s been sixty years of contradictory information and continual reboots – both hard and soft – of the character, his relationships and his backstory. Even his name has come to be muddled with every few years someone deciding to give him a new one. Below, I’ve compiled a list of all the relevant biographical details as they appeared in print from 1963 – 1991. This is a comprehensive overview of the character during his most iconic storylines, many of which have gone on to be adapted to both television and film.

I have included links to relevant historical information at various points as well as to an excellent 2018 documentary, available on YouTube so be sure to check that out as well.

1963

September

X-Men #1 published

1964

March

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #4 “The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants” by Stan Lee

Wanda and Pietro are introduced with the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. They are introduced as brother and sister, no last names are given.

Wanda owes Magneto a life debt because he prevented villagers in the heart of Europe from burning Wanda as a witch. Wanda and Pietro aren’t happy about being in the Brotherhood.

Magneto is described as tall.

1965

May

Avengers (1963) #16 “The Old Order Changeth!” by Stan Lee

Wanda and Pietro join the Avengers.

Wanda mentions that Pietro is older than her.

Wanda is described as “black-haired” (though in many later appearances she is most often drawn with brown or red hair)

1968

November

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #50 “Hail, Queen of Mutants” by Arnold Drake

Mesmero claims that Polaris (Lorna Dane) is Magneto’s daughter and attempts to brainwash her to join Magneto.

1969

January

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #52 “Twilight of the Mutants” by Arnold Drake

Iceman (Bobby Drake) reveals to Polaris that Magneto is not her father and is “conning” her.

July

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #58 “Mission Murder” by Roy Thomas

The Magneto who appeared in issues #49-52 is revealed to have been a robot all along and Magneto is unconnected to the plot of the robot Magneto.

December 1970 – June 1975

No new books are written for X-Men and the title exists solely as reprints of earlier issues. In effect, the book is dead.

1974

October

Defenders (1972) #16 “Alpha, the Ultimate Mutant” by Len Wein

Magneto is turned into a baby by the mutant Alpha.

1975

August

Chris Claremont begins writing for the Uncanny X-Men starting with issue #94.

1977

April

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #104 “The Gentleman’s Name is Magneto” by Chris Claremont

Magneto is returned to adulthood by Eric the Red.

November

The Champions (1975) #16 “A World Lost!” by Bill Mantlo

Magneto works with Beast (Hank McCoy) to free the former X-Men team from Doctor Doom’s mind control. (I believe this marks the beginning of Magneto’s turn to being a hero)

1978

May

Marvel Team-Up (1972) #69 Featuring Spider-Man and Havok “Night of the Living God” by Chris Claremont

Polaris reiterates that she is not Magneto’s daughter.

August

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #112 “Magneto Triumphant” by Chris Claremont

Magneto reiterates that he never worked with Mesmero and the being who claimed to be Polaris’ father was a robot.

September

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #113 “Showdown!” by Chris Claremont and John Byrne

Magneto’s Antarctic base is destroyed and with it the “work and memories of a lifetime.”

Magneto is sad to have the X-Men destroy everything but steels himself with the thought “I am alive.”

1979

August

Avengers (1963) #186 “Nights of Wundagore!” by Steven Grant, Mark Gruenwald and David Michelinie

Wanda and Pietro return to Transia looking for information about their past.

Transia is a German-speaking nation.

Their mother is revealed to be Magda, no last name is given for her.

Magda left her husband because she feared his powers and desire to rule the world. (This story will change somewhat as the idea is developed)

Magda ran away from Transia after giving birth.

The narrative implies she went into the wilderness to die.

Wanda and Pietro were then given to Django Maximoff and his wife to raise.

September

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #125 “There’s Something Awful on Muir Island” by Chris Claremont

Magneto runs across an image of Magda on a memory tape and reminisces about his late wife thinking “Magda… my late wife. I’d almost forgotten how beautiful you were… How deeply it hurt when you ran away from me.”

This reveals him to the reader as the father of Wanda and Pietro.

1980

October

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #138 “Elegy” by Chris Claremont and John Byrne

Polaris is once again mentioned as not being the daughter of Magneto.

1981

January

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #141 “Days of Future Past” by Chris Claremont and John Byrne

In a far distant possible future Magneto is revealed to be working with the X-Men after mutants face genocide and persecution.

Magneto’s name is revealed to be Magnus for the first time, no last name is given.

August

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #148 “Cry, Mutant!” by Chris Claremont

Magneto meets Cyclops’ (Scott Summers) girlfriend, Aleytys “Lee” Forrester, for the first time on his island base in the Bermuda Triangle.

September

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #149 “And the Dead Shall Bury the Living” by Chris Claremont

Charles Xavier reveals that Magneto is “Caucasian, probably Nordic.”

Charles reflects that Magneto was “the first ‘evil’ mutant the X-Men fought.” (The use of quotes around the word evil is intentional to suggest that Magneto is not really evil)

Charles thinks that “Magneto and I are uncomfortably alike.”

October

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #150 “I, Magneto” by Chris Claremont

Magneto learns of Jean Grey’s death and says that he grieves for her. He states “I know… something of grief. Search throughout my homeland, you will find none who bear my name. Mine was a large family, and it was slaughtered.”

Magneto speaks to the crew of the Soviet submarine Leningrad in Russian.

Magneto keeps his computer programming book written in a language neither Kitty nor Storm (Ororo Munroe) can read.

Later, after a fateful confrontation with the X-Men, Magneto thinks he’s killed Kitty Pryde. He is gripped with remorse saying “What have I done?!” and “Why did you not understand? Magda – my beloved wife – did not understand. When she saw me use my powers, she ran from me in terror. It did not matter that I was defending her… that I was avenging our murdered daughter. I swore then that I would not rest ‘til I had created a world where my kind – mutants – could live free and safe and unafraid. Where such as you, little one could be happy. Instead I have slain you. I remember my own childhood – the gas chambers as Auschwitz, the guards joking as they herded my family to their death. As our lives were nothing to them, so human lives became nothing to me.” (This is the first time Anya is mentioned even if she is not yet named, as well as the first time that Magneto is mentioned to be a Holocaust and Auschwitz survivor.)

Storm tells Magneto to pray to his deity as she intends to kill him for hurting Kitty. Magneto replies “As a boy, I believed. As a boy, I turned my back on God forever.”

When Storm suggests that his good dreams have been corrupted, Magneto insists that he is too old to change and has lived with his hatred too long.

Afterward, Charles offers that Magneto “Will emerge from this crucible the good man he once was and may yet be again.”

1982

September

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #161 “Gold Rush” by Chris Claremont

The narrative tells us the following took place twenty years ago placing these events around 1962.

Charles recalls meeting Magneto long ago in Israel when he went there to help treat Holocaust survivors.

Magneto is a volunteer at the hospital where Charles is working.

Magneto is introduced as Magnus, no last name is given.

Magneto reveals that he grew up in Auschwitz and states that “I have no family, Dr. Xavier. Anymore.”

The Auschwitz prisoner number tattooed on Magneto’s arm is revealed to be 214782.

The doctor Charles is working with says most of the volunteers were concentration camp survivors who “bring a degree of empathy to their work that the rest of us can’t match.”

Charles and Magneto grow close during their time together despite different views on the future of humans and mutants.

They also become close with Charles’ patient, Gaby Haller who is suffering severe psychic trauma from her experiences during the Holocaust.

Charles eventually comes to realize that “in many ways, Magnus has been as deeply scarred by his experiences as Gaby.”

Charles and Gaby start dating.

Eventually Charles and Magneto reveal to each other that they are mutants.

Charles and Magneto go to Kenya to rescue Gaby, who has been kidnapped by Hydra.

Magneto tells the Hydra leader, Baron Strucker, “You will find me considerably harder to slay than your countrymen did my family at Auschwitz.” and “Unfortunately, my power did not manifest itself ‘til I reached adulthood. By then the war was over. But had I possessed it in the camps, butcher, the tyranny of your Third Reich would have been ended overnight!”

They rescue Gaby and part ways still ultimately disagreeing about means and ends because of the violent methods Magneto used against Hydra.

Magneto flies off with an enormous stash of Nazi gold plundered from Hydra.

Until he disguises himself as Hydra, Magneto only wears white throughout the issue.

December

Marvel Graphic Novel #5 “X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills” by Chris Claremont

(This story is a stand-alone story, it doesn’t really get mentioned in the regular Uncanny X-Men timeline or referenced anywhere else, unlike the Dazzler graphic novel published in the same line. That does not necessarily mean it is out of continuity, just that it doesn’t ever get called back to during Claremont’s further writing.)

Magneto joins forces with the X-Men to save Charles from Reverend Stryker and prevent his anti-mutant genocide. He tells Cyclops “I am not your enemy, X-Men, nor do I consider you mine.”

Cyclops presses Magneto about his plan to become world dictator and Magneto replies “I have lived under a dictatorship… and seen my family butchered by its servants. When I rule, it will be for the betterment of all.” Cyclops asks who takes over after Magneto dies, Magneto responds “You, of course, Cyclops. And the X-Men. Why do you think I want you by my side?”

Charles refers to Magneto as Magnus.

Magneto asks Charles to join him and his cause after they defeat Stryker, and though tempted, Charles ultimately refuses holding on to his dream of human/mutant integration.

Magneto parts ways with the X-Men despite them asking him to stay.

1983

February

Vision and the Scarlet Witch (1982) #4 “Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself…!” by Bill Mantlo

Magneto discovers what happened to Magda after she left him and finds out that he is Wanda and Pietro’s father.

Magda’s fate is more vague in this telling, saying only that she “fled into the night” without the implication that Magda wanted to die.

Magneto reveals this information to Wanda and Pietro. He meets Pietro’s daughter, his granddaughter, Luna.

Magneto asks Pietro and Wanda to accept him into their lives.

1984

May

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984) #1 “The War Begins” by Jim Shooter

(Though the Secret Wars story line continues to be published after this date, the event ends and the regular in-universe timeline resumes with Uncanny X-Men #181 published in May 1984.)

When the Beyonder transports heroes and villains to a far away planet to fight each other, Magneto is placed among the heroes.

The other non-mutant heroes are leery of Magneto so Magneto decides to leave and solve their predicament by himself.

July

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984) #3 “Tempest Without, Crisis Within!” by Jim Shooter

Magneto captures Wasp (Janet Van Dyne) and brings her to his headquarters in hopes of convincing her to join forces with him

Wasp, addresses Magneto as Magnus.

Magneto and Wasp have sex.

August

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984) #4 “Situation: Hopeless” by Jim Shooter

The X-Men leave the other heroes and join Magneto to try and end the situation they were brought into.

November

The New Mutants (1983) #21 “Slumber Party!” by Chris Claremont

When Warlock falls from space he crashes into Asteroid M. Magneto attempts to create a force field to protect Asteroid M but is unable to do so. Asteroid M is destroyed and Magneto is apparently knocked to Earth from space.

December

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #188 “Legacy of the Lost” by Chris Claremont

Lee Forrester finds Magneto injured and floating in the water near the center of the Bermuda Triangle. She fights off a shark and brings him aboard her boat.

1985

January

New Mutants (1983) #23 “Shadowman” by Chris Claremont

Magneto insists on leaving the hospital and going back to his island base in the Bermuda Triangle.

Lee and Magneto journey there alone on Lee’s boat.

Magneto is seasick the entire way there.

On the island Lee challenges Magneto on his anti-human stances.

February

New Mutants (1983) #24 “Hollow Heart” by Chris Claremont

Magneto apologizes to Lee for being rude to her and compliments her appearance.

Lee begins to see Magneto in a new light.

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984) #10 “Death to the Beyonder!” by Jim Shooter

Magneto is tempted to join forces with Doctor Doom, who the narrative implies is using some sort of power to sway Magneto to his side. Magneto “Reaches out to grasp Doom’s spectral hand – but then, he hesitates. His eyes find Xavier’s, and for an endless split-second, he trembles on the brink…”

April

New Mutants (1983) #26 “Legion” by Chris Claremont

Lee is awakened by Magneto having a bad dream, he is making noise and screaming.

Magneto is using his powers in his sleep and speaking in a language Lee doesn’t know.

She wakes Magneto before he causes himself harm and he is grateful to her for saving his life.

Magneto tells Lee that he was dreaming of “a time and place I thought forever… buried.” Lee says she’s never heard such desolation in his voice. Magneto replies “Death. Resurrection. I’d have died tonight, I think, if not for you. Twice now, I owe you my life.”

Magneto and Lee have sex.

Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984) #12 “...Nothing to Fear...” by Jim Shooter

It is reveled that the Beyonder placed Magneto in the hero team because “His desires seemed like theirs.”

June

New Mutants (1983) #28 “Soulwar” by Chris Claremont

Lee has second thoughts about Magneto the morning after.

Magneto brings her breakfast the next morning, complete with a rose.

Magneto uses his powers to prevent Lee from leaving their conversation and this frightens her.

Magneto pleads with her to give him a chance. He tells Lee how Magda left him after learning he was a mutant. “My wife, Magda, had such a look on her face – I had saved us both from a marauding patrol of secret police, yet all she saw was that I had used super-powers to do it. In that moment, I became different – our love meant nothing. I was no longer human. I was a mutant, a thing. She ran from me, in terror. I never saw her again. Never knew – until much later, far too late – that she had borne my children. Don’t – please Lee, don’t you run from me, too. I cannot bear to be alone and I am sick at heart at the realization of what I have become. Help me, Lee, I… beg you. I need you.” (In this telling there is no mention of Anya, only a reference to the twins – Wanda and Pietro)

Lee refuses Magneto leaving him brokenhearted.

July

New Mutants (1983) #29 “Meanwhile, Back at the Mansion” by Chris Claremont

Lee has time to reflect and realizes she does have feelings for Magneto. She confesses her feelings for him and they reconcile.

Magneto apologizes for using his powers in a high-handed way and promises to do better.

Charles asks Magneto to lead the X-Men and the New Mutants against the Beyonder.

Secret Wars II (1985) #1 “Earthfall!” by Jim Shooter

Magneto rallies the X-Men and the New Mutants to fight the Beyonder, and as the Blackbird is out of service, Magneto uses his powers to fly the Xavier institute limousine from New York to California.

August

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #196 “What was That?!!” by Chris Claremont

Magneto is brought into the X-Men fold.

Magneto dissuades Rachel Summers from killing an anti-mutant extremest demonstrating his full acceptance of doing things the Xavier way.

Magneto states that “My children have disowned me.” Referring to Wanda and Pietro.

Magneto draws a parallel between himself and Rachel Summers saying that he “Like Rachel… has dwelled too long in the valley of the shadow of death. In too many tragic ways, we are kindred souls – survivors of the holocaust, children of the abyss.”

Kitty remarks that Magneto has the makings of a hero and Magneto replies “No. I am no hero, merely a man… who has seen and done and endured what can never be forgotten… or forgiven.”

November

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #199 “The Spiral Path” by Chris Claremont

Magneto and Kitty attend a reception at the National Holocaust Center in Washington, D.C.

Kitty asks those in attendance if they have any news of her great-aunt Chava who lived in Warsaw before the war.

Magneto reveals that he knew Kitty’s aunt at Auschwitz. He also runs into some friends, other survivors who were at Auschwitz with him. They remark that Magneto helped to save them, and many others. (One could read this conversation as implying Magneto was Polish by nationality)

Magneto’s friends state that he had been in Auschwitz “from the very start.”

Neither of his friends use his name during the conversation.

Mystique and the Freedom Force arrest Magneto for the US Government. Magneto surrenders himself into their custody.

December

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #200 “The Trial of Magneto” by Chris Claremont

Magneto is put on trial before the World Court.

Gaby Haller acts as his defense attorney.

She argues that Magneto should only be judged for actions undertaken after his rebirth from infancy.

She reveals that Magneto was an inmate in Auschwitz “as an adolescent.”

Magneto is revealed to be, biologically, only in his early thirties.

The proceedings are interrupted by an attack. Charles and Magneto end up away from the court.

Charles entrusts the running of his institute and the keeping of his dream to Magneto telling him not to return to court to be martyred. Charles is then beamed aboard a spaceship for urgent medical care.

1986

January

New Mutants (1983) #35 “The Times, They Are A’changin’!” by Chris Claremont

Magneto takes up his post as the headmaster of the Xavier Institute. Magneto tells the New Mutants he is doing this to “honor that friendship” he has with Charles.

The New Mutants are skeptical of Magneto, but Magneto asks them to give him a chance. He says that both he and Charles view this as a way of “putting things right” after all the evil he has done in his life.

Magneto has doubts about his ability to run the institute.

Magneto wishes Lee were with him, but she’s running her ship. Magneto misses her which surprises him because Magneto “thought I was beyond such caring.”

Lee wrote Magneto a letter telling him that she loved him and calling him darling.

Mirage (Dani Moonstar) is attacked on her way home from town and once Mirage is safe, Magneto finds the attackers. He destroys their house and threatens “Once, with far less cause, I would quite cheerfully have slain you – rent your bodies limb from limb as easily as I did your house. Indeed, I am sorely tempted. The world would not miss such as you. But I am older, a littler sadder – and I hope, wiser. I have learned a better way.” and “Mine is the power to destroy – but I choose not to. Profit from my example. The evil you do others returns unto you a thousandfold – it scars both body and, far worse, soul. Continue down this cruel and bloody road you’ve chosen and one day, you’re certain to meet one not as forgiving as I. Is that what you want? The choice, as ever, remains your own.”

Mirage’s attackers turn themselves into the police.

February

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #202 “X-Men, I’ve Gone to Kill the Beyonder!” by Chris Claremont

Magneto uses Cerebro.

March

Vision and the Scarlet Witch (1985) #6 “No Strings Attached!” by Steve Englehart

Wanda invites Magneto to her thanksgiving dinner but ultimately tells him that he will have to prove himself before she’ll accept him into her life.

Magneto takes responsibility for being a bad father. (the author doesn’t write consistently on if Magneto knew he was the twins’ father or not, he also doesn’t seem to care if Pietro has any hard feelings about Magneto, Wanda is the only one who counts. Also, he has Magneto call pregnant Wanda hysterical for no reason, just fyi.)

April

New Mutants (1983) #38 “Aftermath!” by Chris Claremont

The New Mutants are collectively dealing with psychic shock after their meeting with the Beyonder. This includes nightly collective nightmares for the students and Magneto.

Magneto has doubts about his ability to help the students recover.

Emma Frost offers that Magneto should send the children to her Massachusetts Academy where she can use her powers to help them.

Magneto meets the Salem Center High principal Analie Hogarth. Magneto reveals that he is posing as Charles’ “mysterious older cousin” and going under the alias Michael Xavier, an identity Charles created for him.

One of Emma’s students, a Hellion named Empath (Manuel de la Rocha) is revealed to the reader as having manipulated Magneto to feel lost and confused.

Magneto tries throughout the issue to help the New Mutants, but nothing works. He finally agrees to Emma’s offer.

May

New Mutants (1983) #39 “Pawns of the White Queen” by Chris Claremont

Magneto goes into a spiral after sending the majority of the New Mutants away to Emma’s school, Mirage and Warlock being the only students who didn’t go. Mirage criticizes Magneto for not doing more before leaving to go back to her family.

Magneto swims.

Magneto shaves with a straight razor.

Magneto learns that he was manipulated into letting the New Mutants go to Emma’s school. Magneto proclaims Emma “Will learn – very soon and to her eternal sorrow – the Magneto is not a man… to have as one’s enemy!”

Emma alerts the police, telling them that Magneto is attempting to abduct her students knowing that the Avenger’s will try and stop him.

June

New Mutants (1983) #40 “Avengers Assemble!” by Chris Claremont

The Avengers are told Magneto is going to abduct children, all of them assume Magneto has gone bad again and wants to use the children to reboot the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants with younger, more malleable minds.

Magneto has a conversation with Warlock reminding him to never take someone’s “lifeglow” aka their life force which would kill them.

The Avengers battle Magneto who tries to keep Warlock safe and not harm the Avengers. He attempts to explain himself but the Avengers refuse to listen. Captain America tells Magneto of Namor’s heroism during WWII, Magneto replies saying “How fortunate for him, Captain. At the time, I was but a victim of that self-same tyranny. Then, I lacked the strength to win my freedom – and save the lives of those I held dear – but Never Again!” Magneto insists that he has “learned a better way” and is no longer a villain.

The New Mutants rally together and come to Magneto’s aid giving Captain America pause to reflect that the Avengers have welcomed other reformed villains, why shouldn’t they also welcome Magneto.

Magneto and Emma work together to heal the New Mutants’ psychic shock. Emma “made their minds whole… but not their hearts, or souls. Now, at last, with their teachers’ help and support, they have faced their nightmares… and dealt with them… each in their own way.” Emma remarks that Magneto was able to reach the New Mutants on a deeper level which made a “crucial difference.”

September

Vision and the Scarlet Witch (1985) #12 “Double Size Climax!” by Steve Englehart

Magneto is invited to welcome Wanda and her twins home from the hospital after she gives birth.

October

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #210 “The Morning After” by Chris Claremont

Magneto is invited to take the place of the White King in the Hellfire Club.

November

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #211 “Massacre” by Chris Claremont

Magneto chides Kitty for eating junk food and tells her “Just don’t make a habit of such behavior.”

The X-Men discover that the Morlocks have been massacred. Magneto says “No! The horrors of my childhood, born again – only this time, mutants are the victims, instead of Jews.”

December

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #212 “The Last Run” by Chris Claremont

Magneto uses his powers to heal Colossus from grave injuries. The narrative states Magneto “Has taken life so often – brought harm so easily it became almost second nature. Now he has a chance to heal. He will die himself before he fails.”

1987

January

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #213 “Psylocke” by Chris Claremont

Magneto informs the X-Men that he intends to join forces with the Hellfire Club and have the X-Men work alongside the Hellfire Club against the Marauders. The X-Men agree.

New Mutants (1983) #47 “My Heart for the Highlands” by Chris Claremont

While dealing with the aftermath of the Morlock attack, Magneto urges Moira to eat and prepares a meal for the two of them to share, complete with full place settings and candelabra.

Magneto tells Moira “I have lived my whole life with despair, Moira, believing the worst of humanity. But since becoming headmaster of Xavier’s – more especially, by knowing the New Mutants – I have learned… the virtue and power of hope. This is a lesson I will not easily cast aside.”

February

Fantastic Four vs. the X-Men (1987) #1 “Are You Sure?!” by Chris Claremont

(This miniseries dovetails into the regular Uncanny X-Men timeline and even though it runs concurrently with the similarly titled “The X-Men vs. the Avengers (1987)” these stories are not overlapping timeline wise and the events of the Fantastic Four miniseries only makes sense to have concluded before the Avengers miniseries begins.)

Kitty is in need of high tech medical care to resolidify herself after being stuck in a permanent phase. Without help she will eventually dissipate. Magneto goes to seek help from Reed Richards.

The Fantastic Four are suspicious of Magneto but agree to help.

Upon arriving at Moira’s Muir Island research facility, Reed has second thoughts and declines to help for fear he could outright kill Kitty accidentally. Magneto insists that he at least try and even attempts to steal Richards’ machine to use it himself, but the Fantastic Four thwart this plan and the X-Men are left without hope for Kitty.

New Mutants (1983) #48 “Ashes of the Heart” by Chris Claremont

Magneto is alone at the Mansion, the New Mutants having disappeared and by many are presumed dead.

Magneto goes through each New Mutant’s room and tidies it with the help of little robots he calls widgets.

Stevie Hunter, the school PE teacher, tells Magneto he should give up and face reality that the New Mutants are dead. Magneto tells her “I’ve come to know these children, and… care for them. Whatever I was, Stevie – whatever I become – they mean too much to me… to abandon them.”

March

Fantastic Four vs. the X-Men (1987) #2 “Truth and Consequences” by Chris Claremont

Magneto and the X-Men turn to Doctor Doom for help to save Kitty.

New Mutants (1983) #49 “Ashes of the Soul” by Chris Claremont

Magneto has a dream of when his family was killed by the German death squads known as the Einsatzgruppen.

It is spring time. A small group of people are gathered in front of a pit in the countryside.

Magneto is depicted as a young, black-haired boy, perhaps 10 years old, wearing short pants and long socks.

Magneto’s sister appears to be two or three years older than him.

German soldiers fire at the group of people killing all save Magneto. Without understanding what happens, Magneto’s powers manifest enough to spare him from death, “His mind burns, power he never dreamed existed coming alive.”

He is buried with his family and the rest of the victims, but since he did not die he climbs out of the pit.

Magneto is depicted breaking through the earth to the shock of the German soldiers. Magneto’s black hair has turned white.

Magneto wakes from his memory-dream thinking “So long ago, so far away. Yet the memories are still vivid. Every detail, etched with acid. My power – my mastery over magnetism – first manifested itself that morning. It saved me, why wouldn’t it do the same for those I loved?! The Germans were so astonished by my survival, the decided to spare my life. I was sent instead to a concentration camp. Auschwitz. Sometimes, I wish I hadn’t struggled so hard.”

Magneto wonders if his dream is a harbinger of mutantkind’s eventual fate.

Magneto is still undecided about joining the Hellfire Club thinking “If we stand alone, we could be destroyed. If I accept this alliance… we could be destroyed! The choice is mine – the responsibility is mine – but I don’t know what to do!”

April

The X-Men vs. the Avengers (1987) #1 “Justice for All” by Roger Stern

The Avengers track down Magneto and insist they’re going to bring him back before the World Court and end his trail properly.

(Jim Shooter is fired as Editor in Chief from Marvel Comics this month leading to several years of corporate fuckery that resulted in erasing all of Magneto’s character development and pivoting him back to being an antagonist by the 90’s)

May

New Mutants (1983) #51 “Teacher’s Choice” by Chris Claremont

Magneto and Storm work together to repair a failing breakwater and save a human community from a hurricane.

Storm urges Magneto to accept the position of White King in the Hellfire Club.

Magneto refers to his helmet as a symbol of his past life as a super-villain.

Magneto and Storm jointly accept the role of White King.

June

Fantastic Four vs. the X-Men (1987) #4 “A Matter of Faith” by Chris Claremont

Magneto confides in Storm his feelings of helplessness to do anything to save Kitty. He reflects on his past saying “Roughly five hundred miles in that direction is Auschwitz – the Nazi death camp – where my parents and sister were murdered. I should have died with them. And due west from Latveria is the Soviet city of Vinnitsa. There was a fire. I was injured saving my wife. My daughter remained trapped in the burning building. She was much like Kitty, my Anya. The most beautiful of children – two years old, Ororo, and she never cried. She only laughed – with wonder and joy – as though life was some magnificent adventure, staged for her alone.” (There is some contradiction between this telling and the others, some of the details change as ideas are developed even though the story remains wholly the same.)

He goes on to say “She burned, Storm! My power was weaker then. I used it to save my wife, but couldn’t reach Anya. A crowd had gathered. I begged for help. They refused me. They saw I was a mutant and some called for me to be hurled into the same flames that consumed my child. Too late – in rage and a grief that ravages me still – I came at last to my birthright: the absolute control over the forces and manifestations of magnetism that is the power of… Magneto! Magda… was so terrified of my power… and how I wielded it… that she fled from me. How different, I wonder, would the pathway of my life have been if she had not? In that awful moment, Storm, I lost everything.” (This telling of the story does not include the secret police)

Magneto tells Storm that he feels he is forever haunted by his past saying that people insist on seeing him as a villain even though he’s changed. He reflects that maybe he should have gone back to finish his trial.

Reed Richards finally comes to help them save Kitty and later Magneto and Richards make peace with each other.

July

The X-Men vs. the Avengers (1987) #4 “Day of Judgment” by Tom DeFalco

Magneto surrenders himself to the Avengers and agrees to finish his trial before the World Court.

Gaby Haller once again acts as his defense attorney.

Magneto uses his helmet and advanced technology circuits to influence the chief justice to rule in his favor. It is unclear, however, if he actually was able to influence the judge or if the judge ruled in Magneto’s favor of his own volition. The court declares it has no jurisdiction over Magneto.

Marvel Fanfare #33 “Shadows on the Soul” by Chris Claremont

(This story originally written for a different series but never released until 1987.)

Magneto and Lee are together and confess their feelings for each other.

Magneto calls the X-Men his friends.

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #219 “Where Duty Lies” by Chris Claremont

It is revealed that Magneto has publicly assumed the identity as a cousin of Charles’ who also bears the last name Xavier.

August

Classic X-Men (1986) #12 by Chris Claremont

(Classic X-Men reprinted earlier Claremont X-Men stories but added new material (sometimes individual pages, sometimes additional short stories) to fill out the issue and tie into current comic continuity. Claremont wrote both the original X-Men issue that was being reprinted and the new material that was added.)

(New material that takes place directly after Uncanny X-Men (1963) #104)

Magneto is asleep not long after being resurrected by Eric the Red. He is dreaming “As always, the dream begins with Auschwitz… and Magda. More than a million people died in this camp. And with World War II ending – the Third Reich defeated – it’s guards wanted no witnesses left… to tell the tale of this horror.”

Magneto prevents a camp guard from killing Magda, then takes the guard’s gun and runs away with Magda.

Magneto is said to have “been here from the start… grown to manhood within its electrified barbed wire fence. If he was to die, it would not be in this abattoir… and not without a fight!”

Magneto and Magda run into the wilderness, eventually escaping into the Carpathian Mountains where they eventually settle and begin to build a life together. The page shows Magneto felling a tree, learning woodworking, studying, Magneto socializing with friends at a dinner table, getting married to Magda and cuddling his wife and newborn daughter, Anya.

Magneto is described as having “an insatiable hunger for knowledge, coupled with a wildfire intelligence” so eventually “he bade the village farewell and took his family eastward, into the Soviet Union, hoping to win a place at university” (This suggests that Magneto was living in a village in the Polish side of the Carpathians)

Magneto, Magda and Anya come to the “city of Vinnitsa, the biggest they’d ever seen.” (This suggests that Magneto and Magda came from a rural village or town before being sent to Auschwitz)

Magneto leaves his wife and daughter to go find work.

Anya is depicted as a child between 4-6 years old.

Magneto’s powers first manifest when he has a disagreement with another man. Magneto realizes the powers come from himself and isn’t sure what to make of it.

Magneto returns to the inn where he and his family are staying since this is their first day in the city. The inn is on fire and Anya is trapped on the second floor of the building.

Magda is in the building trying to save their daughter, Magneto uses his powers to get her to safety.

Magneto curses in Russian.

Magneto attempts to get to Anya but is prevented by secret police who are trying to arrest him for his earlier disagreement.

Anya dies in the fire, Magneto’s powers break loose killing those around him save for Magda.

Magda is terrified by what she just witnessed and runs away from Magneto.

Magneto wakes from his dream and uses his powers to save a nearby mother and child from a fire.

Magneto speaks French.

1988

January

New Mutants Annual (1984) #4 “Mind Games” by Louise Simonson

Magneto lectures Sunspot (Roberto da Costa) that the new Mutant Registration Act presents a real danger to all mutants. He states “There are diverse elements in the government who are eager to locate us mutants… in part through their Mutant Registration Act. Some of them would use us. The others would destroy us. I have staked my life that they will do neither.”

New Mutants (1983) #59 “Fang and Claw!” by Louise Simonson

Magneto is overjoyed when Sunspot and Warlock return from an absence.

A villain pulls up a file on the New Mutants showing their images and listing everyone’s name, code-name and powers. Magneto’s profile lists him as “Magnus, Magneto, Master of Magnetism, School’s Headmaster” no last name is given.

February

Classic X-Men (1986) #18 by Chris Claremont

(Additional material to Uncanny X-Men (1963) #112)

Storm reflects on when Magneto was turned into an infant, thinking “He returned completely to a state of grace.”

March

(The X-Men are presumed dead after the events of Uncanny X-Men #227)

New Mutants (1983) #61 “Our Way!” by Louise Simonson

Magneto discovers one of the New Mutants, Cypher (Doug Ramsey) has been murdered after a misadventure. Magneto lashes out at the New Mutants for not protecting Doug and for disobeying him. Everyone is deeply upset.

Magneto goes to the infirmary where Doug’s body is laying. He pulls back the sheet covering Doug and looks at the boy thinking “Curse you Charles Xavier, for putting me in this position! I have no rapport with these children. Observe the bitter fruit of my labors!” Magneto kneels at the side of the table where Doug lays and weeps over his body. “An ill wind is coming… they are registering mutants like the once registered my people in Poland…! Who knows what horrors await us. But they are only children. How can they possibly understand… any of this.” (This suggests Magneto is Polish by birth)

Classic X-Men (1986) #19 by Chris Claremont

(Additional material to Uncanny X-Men (1963) #113)

Magneto is described thusly: “His wealth places him far beyond the dreams of avarice. And he numbers some of the finest minds on Earth among his acquaintances. The one facet of his personality that has not changed throughout the decades is his love of learning coupled with an insatiable curiosity about the universe.”

Magneto is a regular correspondent with Stephen Hawking.

Magneto is seen working with advanced scientific equipment making discoveries capable of revolutionizing particle physics and would qualify him for a Nobel prize.

Magneto remembers that Magda used to find him studying long hours to the point that he’d “forgotten food, and sleep, and even her.”

Magneto shaves with an electric razor.

Magneto thinks about Magda and Anya thinking since his resurrection he’s never been stronger or more haunted.

Magneto wonders if Magda is still alive and if she recognizes the famous “evil mutant” as her former husband.

Magneto describes Charles as his dearest friend.

(New material presented in the form of a backflash that takes place at some point after the Uncanny X-Men (1963) #161 story which details Charles and Magneto meeting for the first time. This story suggests that these events take place shortly before Uncanny X-Men #1 when the X-Men face Magneto for the first time in 1963.)

Magneto single-handedly takes out a secret Nazi base in South America and captures Oberstrumbanführer Hans Richter to be taken back to Israel and put on trial.

After using his powers, Magneto suffers from debilitating psychic pain “Worse than the bite of the kapo’s whip, the murder of parents and family. The death of a child. The loss of a beloved wife. It passes quickly leaving him alive – and almost wishing he wasn’t.” Magneto observes that “These seizures strike now whenever I use my powers. More extreme my usage, more debilitating the attack.”

Magneto reports of the captured Nazi to a group called only “Control” (This seems to be a stand in for a Mossod style organization.)

Two weeks later, in Rio de Janiero, Magneto reads an article about Charles Xavier and wonders if he shouldn’t reconnect with him and seek help for his psychic attacks.

A woman in a bikini and sarong approaches Magneto asking why he’s dressed so formally in a suit and tie at a beach front cafe. Magneto replies “This, I’m afraid, is as uninhibited as I get.”

The woman turns out to be Magneto’s lover Isabelle, no last name is given.

Magneto recounts to Isabelle about how Anya died and Magda left him.

Control did not want Richter captured as he was a useful informant, so they send a squad to kill Isabelle and Magneto. They succeed in slaying Isabelle, but Magneto uses his powers to fight against them.

Magneto looks on Isabelle’s body completely disillusioned with humanity. The reader is told that “the dream dies… and the nightmare is born.”

June

New Mutants (1983) #64 “Instant Replay!” by Louise Simonson

Magneto is disgusted with himself after being forced to lie about the circumstances of Cypher’s death. He tells the New Mutants “It’s wrong. His parents have the right to know the truth about their son… about the way he died. But I feel that it would be dangerous to reveal ourselves as mutants at this time.”

August

New Mutants (1983) #66 “Sorcerer’s Duel!” by Louise Simonson

Magneto is seen in his old purple and red villain costume for the first time since Uncanny X-Men #188 and Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #12. This seems to be the start of Magneto’s corporate mandated pivot back to being an antagonist.

November

New Mutants (1983) #69 “Bad Company” by Louise Simonson

Magneto, dressed once more in his traditional red and purple outfit, holds his helmet in his hands as he says “All I have ever wanted for mutantkind is peace and prosperity. I thought I had found a better way to achieve my goal… and eschewed my old, violent ways. I had hoped to find solace as teacher and protector of the young. But they refuse to be safeguarded, if they are on Earth, I will find them… and protect them actively in the way that I know best.” Magneto puts his helmet on.

1989

April

New Mutants (1983) #74 “The Right Stuff” by Louise Simonson

Shaw blames Magneto for damages to New York City caused by Magick’s (Illyana Rasputin) Limbo demons.

Magneto and Sebastian Shaw fight each other briefly, Magneto accuses Shaw of not caring for mutantkind.

Later, Magneto talks to Emma and suggests that Shaw was right to blame him.

May

New Mutants (1983) #75 “King of the Hill!” by Louise Simonson

Magneto fights with Shaw for control of the Hellfire Club.

Magneto comes out of the confrontation victorious and Shaw is expelled from the club.

Magneto and the New Mutants have a falling out and the New Mutants refuse to have anything more to do with him.

November

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #253 “Storm Warnings” by Chris Claremont

Magneto and Moira quarrel on Muir Island about him parting ways with the X-Men, the New Mutants and the Xavier Institute.

Magneto is convinced “There is a war coming, Moira. And you are a fool if you do not see it. We mutants cannot be wished away, we are here on this earth, more and more born every day. There are those who will accept us, and those who fear us and seek our destruction. And, worst of all, those like Genoshans… who desire to exploit us for their own power and profit. We must be strong enough – as a people – to survive without the sufferance of the one or the aggression of the others. I mean to ensure that. I must – because there is no one else.”

Magneto tells Banshee “I am sorry things have to end like this – but I suspect it’s for the best. Some roads are better traveled alone.”

Magneto leaves.

1990

October

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #269 “Rogue Redux” by Chris Claremont

Magneto intervenes to save Rogue’s life after she is reborn from another dimension without her mutant abilities. He attempts to return her to her previous strength and powers in his base in the Savage Lands.

1991

February

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #273 “Too Many Mutants” by Chris Claremont

Jean tells Storm that she’s concerned Magneto is returning to his old ways.

March

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #274 “Crossroads” by Chris Claremont

Magneto narrates this issue: “All my life, I have been drawn to the wild and desolate places of the world. As a boy, I saw myself walking where no man ever had. Alone against the elements. The more I came to know of people… the more strongly that yearning dream spoke to me. As the fierce, unyielding emptiness without struck some resonant echo within my heart and soul. Yet for all of that… for all of life replete with it’s share and far more of rage and pain and suffering, as harshly given as endured… still I manage to find myself with allies. Who appear determined to stand by me, regardless. I wonder which are the greater fools: they for trying and trusting, or me for allowing it.”

Magneto is working with Ka-Zar and a depowered Rogue in the Savage Lands against the evil Zaladane.

When Rogue fights one of Zaladane’s goons, Magneto intervenes, thinking “I hear my daughter Anya scream as she burns before my eyes… hear Isabelle’s gasp of surprise as she is murdered… two I loved but were unable to save. Only avenge. It will not be that way with Rogue.”

Rogue presses Magneto to be merciful, saying “We’re the good guys, right?! We’re s’posed t’ stand for something better!” Magneto narrates “She actually believes that. Why can’t I? All I see is blood. That already spilled. That yet to be. I see my path so clearly. But I turn away.”

Magneto narrates “Later in my citadel, I reflect that ages ago – in what for me was another lifetime – I used my knowledge of genetics to mutate a band of swamp savages into super-powered beings. When they were no longer useful, I abandoned them to their fate, forgot their very existence. More of my past come back to haunt my present and threaten the future.” and in regards to his past as leader of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants “It is a goal I once had, in those long-gone days of madness, when I was reviled and condemned as a super-villain” and then later “My life’s ambition has been to safeguard my fellow mutants. Zaladane has no such compunction. And I hear the echo of Der Führer’s voice in the radio of memory, smell the awful stench of the sick and dying as the cattle cars brought the condemned to Auschwitz. I wear red, the color of blood, in tribute to their lost lives. And the harder I try to cast it aside, to find a gentler path… the more irresistibly I’m drawn back. I should have died myself, with those I loved. Instead, I carted the bodies by the hundred by the thousands… from the death house to the crematorium… and the ashes to the burial ground. Asking now what I could not then – why was I spared?! To bring others the death that passed me by?”

Magneto narrates on Zaladane “The more I come to know of her… the more I find myself trapped in a mirror… staring at a distorted vision of myself. Sleep is a mistake. But I’m so weary this once I can’t resist. Any more than I can hold at bay… the nightmares that come along. Flowers. Scent of growing things. Joyful sounds of life. So clear. So crisp, after more than half a century. Someone sobs. My sister holds tight my hand. My father still cannot believe this is happening. I hear laughter. The guns blaze, and I’m falling with the others. Into darkness. Loamy earth smell tainted by the acrid burning of lime. All of us pressed so tight together, embracing eternity. So easy to give up. Lie in my grave. Breathe my last. But I fight!” (This recounts the events around Magneto's family's death depicted in The New Mutants #49)

Rogue wakes Magneto and they share a moment before being interrupted by Ka-Zar. Magneto thinks “Am I imagining the sudden spark between us. Leaving Rogue as shaken as I? Leave well enough alone. I am pledged to another. As much as one can pledge a heart full of ghosts.”

Magneto narrates “I cannot recall a point in my life when I did not fight. Nor any longer of a time when war held the slightest horror for me.”

Magneto’s group is aided by Nick Fury’s group which includes the father of one of the Soviet sailors killed by Magneto on the submarine Leningrad. Magneto narrates “Again, a cry from the past. One father to another, in anguished grief for a slain child. At the time, my actions seemed quite appropriate. The Leningrad had fired a salvo of nuclear ballistic missiles at me, so I sank her, with all hands. Thinking of that crew not as people, but merely an object lesson: how dare they defy me, threaten me, these Russians whose countrymen let my daughter burn to death? There is too much history and hate between us. I cannot talk to these men.”

April

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #274 “The Path Not Taken” by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee

The Russian colonel guns down Magneto leading to him being captured by Zaladane. The colonel joins Zaladane. Zaladane uses a machine to try and transfer Magneto’s powers to herself. Under the influence of the machine Magneto narrates “Try as I might, I cannot stop this. And worst of all, as my life is torn from me, turned into a sideshow entertainment for the Brainchild’s sadistic pleasure… with my strength devoted wholly to that struggle, I have nothing left to block my emotional responses to the memories themselves. Once more, I hear myself howl ‘til my voice shatters at the sight of my daughter, Anya, burning to death before my eyes. Once more, hot blood mixes with salt tears as my beloved Isabelle’s throat is cut by those I thought my trusted friends. Once more, rage flashes through me… hand in hand with a terror I’d not felt since Auschwitz… as at last I confront the Shadow King. Followed by sick shame at the awful cost of my survival.”

Zaladane leaves Magneto with her minions. Rogue and her team have infiltrated Zaladanes stronghold and once Magneto realizes they are there, he strikes the minions unexpectedly. Magneto narrates “They think me beaten, finished. A mistake many have made in the past. As I found the strength, as a boy, to survive being machine gunned and buried alive, and later the unimaginable horror of Auschwitz… so do I find it in me, here and now, to break free.”

Magneto narrates “The primal, paramount lesson of my life is that I can depend on no one save myself.”

Magneto fights against the Russian colonel saying “I am sorry for your son, colonel. Which is more than I ever heard… for the slaughter of those I loved.” Colonel Semyanov says “Your… daughter you mean? And that absolves you of any crime?” Magneto replies “I never said it did. For who we are, and what we have done, comrade colonel… we are both of us condemned.”

Rogue and Magneto argue over how he intends to deal with Zaladane. Magneto says “The New Mutants were left in my charge and they suffered for it – because I tried to pattern myself after Charles Xavier. I am not Charles Xavier. I will never be Charles Xavier. I was a fool to try. As he was, for believing I could succeed. My people are in danger – more so now than ever before – from the Hellfire Club and their accursed Shadow Kind, from foul creatures such as this, perhaps even from the very United Nations which Colonel Fury loyally serves. And a kinder, gentler Magneto cannot save them.”

October

X-Men (1991) #1 “Rubicon” by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee

Magneto has established a mutant haven on a new Asteroid M. World governments are wary of it and the X-Men are dispatched to discover what’s going on.

Magneto raises the submarine Leningrad (which he sank in Uncanny X-Men #150) from the sea floor. He finds some of the nuclear missiles the submarine was carrying are intact.

Inside the submarine, Magneto finds himself sitting among the bones of the Leningrad’s crew. “Now though, at last, he finds himself face to face with the consequence of his acts. And he remembers another time, other bodies, bones still coated with the flesh of family and friends, tossed into a lime-soaked pit and him along with them, only he was still alive. Somehow, he clawed his way to the surface.” (This again refers to the account of Magneto's family's death in The New Mutants #49)

Rogue tells Magneto that his actions are scaring people. Magneto says “I tried my best to change, I did my best to follow Xavier’s path to a peaceful co-existence between Homo Sapiens and Homo Sapiens Superior. And paid for that folly with the blood of innocents.”

Later on Asteroid M, Magneto ruminates on his latest conflict with the X-Men thinking of Wolverine in particular “For the brief time I worked with the X-Men, he accepted me wholeheartedly. If not as a friend, then at least as a comrade-in-arms. Why then has he turned on me? What has changed? Why must blood always come between me and others?” (Magneto has been working with the X-Men and the New Mutants since 1985)

Radical mutant acolytes that have decided to follow Magneto, led by Fabian Cortez, fight with the X-Men. Magneto puts a stop to it and says “All my life, I have seen people slaughtered wholesale for no more reason than the deity they worshipped, or the color of their skin – or the presence in their DNA of an extra, special gene. I cannot change the world but I can – and will – ensure that my race will never again suffer for its fear and prejudice. Henceforth, I declare Asteroid M a sovereign world. Home and haven to mutantkind. If you are born Homo Sapiens Superior, then you are automatically a citizen, entitled to safe haven above and security below. Even you X-Men – even your mentor, my old friend, Charles Xavier – are welcome here. But mark this and mark it well – harm done against any mutant is harm done to me. And I shall respond accordingly.”

November

X-Men (1991) #2 “Firestorm” by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee

Beast says that the Genoshans are changing for the better, and asks why Magneto is going in the opposite direction. Magneto says “You know that answer, Beast… you would have to live my life. And I would not wish such a fate, even on my most hated enemy.”

Magneto abducts Charles and Moira looking for answers about his genetic structure. Moira admits that she saw there was a genetic instability in Magneto’s genetic matrix, and she tried to stabilize it when he was an infant in her care.

Magneto is infuriated that Moira conducted genetic experimentation on him in an attempt to change who he was. He questions every decision he’s made since his rebirth.

Moira is apologetic, but Magneto’s anger is unabated. He tells her “I heard those same rationales as a boy, in the Auschwitz death camp, from Dr. Josef Mengele himself!”

December

X-Men (1991) #3 “Fallout” by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee

Moira reveals that the genetic experimentation she did on baby Magneto didn’t work.

Moira also points out that Cortez has been using his power to weaken Magneto.

Cortex flees Asteroid M and fires a shot at the complex that will kill all the inhabitants.

Charles and the X-Men prepare to leave in their spacecraft, but Magneto refuses to leave with them instead choosing to stay on the asteroid to preserve its integrity as long as possible using his powers. He tells Charles “My life was shaped by forces and events none of you can possibly understand. You speak to the best of humanity. I have endured the worst. You imagine the reality of the Holocaust, of the Nazi death camps. I grew up in one. Perhaps, as you say, I am tainted by blood and rage – and death. But perhaps as well, that blood and rage and death comprise the armor that will sustain me and those who stand by me through the ordeal to come. The past is prologue, old friend. And the future I behold for you is… war. We have already chosen our path.”

Asteroid M blows up just as the X-Men escape. Charles tells them all “At the last… he opened his thoughts to me. He is still the man I remember from younger, happier days – who was my friend – and yet… none of that matters anymore, does it? ‘I save you, X-Men,’ he said, ‘because that is my task in life: to safeguard my people – Homo Sapiens Superior – mutantkind – from those who would do us harm. And those forces are legion. In that and I suspect nothing else, Charles, we are much alike. I have survived one Holocaust, I could not tolerate another. Nor any who – by accident, by intent – act to bring it about. I bore no animus to you, old friend, or your students until you chose to oppose me. Then, I had no choice but to count you among my enemies. Have no illusions on that score. Perhaps it’s best it end this way, Charles. Best for my dream to end in flames and glory, here far above Earth… for if we were ever to meet again… I would have shown you no mercy. I give you your dream, Charles. But I fear, in time, your heart will break as you realize it has ever been a fool’s hope. Farewell, my friend.”

Chris Claremont was removed from the X-Men without explanation and left Marvel after this book. He had been writing for the X-Men for 17 years. To learn more about Chris Claremont and his work on the X-Men and the corporate fuckery that lead to him leaving watch the 2018 documentary Chris Claremont’s X-Men which is currently available free on YouTube.

If you feel like I’ve overlooked or left out an important issue from the 1963-1991 era, please contact me and let me know. I will update this list with more information if any comes to light.

[chiskz]

[ 💿💽 ] CHICHI 2nd Birthday Album (Physical) "moirai"

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♡ teaser/concept photos

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♡ tracklist

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♡ meaning

In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Moirai (often known in English as the Fates) were the personifications of destiny (via Wikipedia).

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moirai by CHICHI (Stray Kids)

Studio: JYPE (Seoul), Channie's Room (Seoul)

Length: ~ 33 minutes

Released: 12 January 2024

Language: Korean, English, Japanese

Previous solo album (1st Birthday Album [Digital]): Member Branding

Tracklist:

spotify & youtube links are provided. you can also listen whole album here .

1. TITLE Crazy Fate (feat. Park Junhee of A.C.E.)

2. The Footsteps of My Dear Love

3. LAW (feat. Jurin of XG)

4. Loner

5. Villain

6. Devil by the Window

7. Run Away (feat. Seungmin & I.N)

8. YAMAZAKI (feat. SUGA of BTS)

9. IDOL

10. I Don't Wanna Know

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♡ trivia

➥ IDOL was presented during a performance with Avantgardey at MAMA 2023

➥ YAMAZAKI was previously released as a single and won "The Best Collaboration Award" at MAMA 2023

➥ Run Away with Seungmin and I.N was originally intended to be released as SKZ-PLAYER - the song was written in Paris during Stray Kids' visit to Music Bank Paris

➥ I Don't Wanna Know was created by HAN with lyrics by CHICHI - it debuted as SKZ-PLAYER

➥ with Crazy Fate and Loner CHICHI becomes:

* the fastest rapping idol considering each generation

* the fastest rapping idol whose first language is not Korean

* the fastest rapping artist in general using Korean

➥ Junhee's part for Crazy Fate was recorded right after he got out of the army (he got out of the army on 6th August 2023, and recording was already done in September 2023)

➥ The Footsteps of My Dear Love was written by CHICHI as early as two years ago - however, she did not feel vocally ready to perform it earlier

➥ critics assess the album as "an emotional rollercoaster leading to the discovery of one's own identity by a person lost in their own self"

➥ with the album's release, Twitter is trending #CHICHIselfmaderapper , a hashtag under which STAY and CHICHI solo stans express their pride and admiration caused by CHICHI becoming the fastest rapping k-pop rapper, when until recently she was not comfortable with the Korean language (because of which she was a victim of derision)

➥ CHICHI describes moirai as the most important musical release of her life

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♡ quotes from moirai songs describing the whole album

" No matter how pretty the memories are, everyone will forget it. "

" Let's dream a happy dream, just like long ago. "

" It's love and war. "

" I fight with another me, hiding inside of myself. "

" The villain you failed to notice breathes within you. "

" No, I can't tell what is fake in my reality. "

" When the night is nearly ending rewind the clock, rewind now. "

" If you fall back, you're dead. "

" I cannot accept any version of you other than the one stronger than everyone else. "

" Don't stop me now. "

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coming soon: Crazy Fate M/V & Behind The Scenes

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moirai album cover by my amazing fiancee @moondust-kitten ♡

♡𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭: @amyysfics , @smh-anon , @neohyxn , @stealanity , @alixnsuperstxr , @juliawritingblog , @rizzshimura , @elizalabs3

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[jgthirlwell]

2023 Year In Review

This year once again I invited some friends and colleagues to reflect on 2023

JG Thirlwell Composer Foetus Xordox Manorexia Steroid Maximus Venture Bros Archer

2023 was an intense year. The year began with the premiere of my symphony for Alarm Will Sound and ended with guesting vocalizing with Dinosaur Jr on some Stooges classics. I completed the final season of Archer. Wrote a lot of material for new Xordox and Foetus albums. Released an album of string quartets and scored a Venture Bros movie. Worked with some great singers and premiered my Ensemble project in London. I spent several months traveling and set up a small studio in Melbourne for a bit. Road tripped through NZ with my partner, Dora. I played some excellent shows in London, Colchester, Auckland, Wellington, Melbourne and Sydney. I still woke up 5am in a panic on too many occasions. And I saw some great concerts.It was difficult to whittle down this list but here are a lot of albums I enjoyed in 2023, in no particular order.

Albums

Poil Ueda Yoshitsune (Dur et Doux) Poil Ueda - Poil Ueda (Dur et Doux) Genevieve Artadi Forever Forever (Brainfeeder) Knower - Knower Forever (Brainfeeder) Ultraphauna No No No No (Dur Et Doux) Gahlmm Break A Leg (GEIGER Grammofon) Oneohtrix Point Never Again (Warp) Lankum - False Lankum (Rough Trade) Evian Christ Revanchist (Warp) Chromb Cinq (Dur et Doux) Deskartes A Kant After Destruction (Cleopatra) Gazelle Twin Then You Run (Original Score) L’Rain I Killed Your Dog (Mexican Summer) Loraine James Gentle Confrontation (Hyperdub) Royal Blood Back To The Water Below (Warner) John Luther Adams Darkness and Scattered Light (Cold Blue) Catherine Christer Hennix Solo for Tamburium (Blank Forms) Rachel Fannan Bjork Impersonations (Instagram) Regal Worm Worm! (Quatermass) Wild Up Julius Eastman Vol. 3: If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich? (New Amsterdam) PJ Harvey I Inside the Old Year Dying (Partisan) Poppy I Disagree (Sumerian) Sparks The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte (Island) Queens Of The Stone Age In Times New Roman (Matador) Time Wharp Spiro World (Leaving) Murderpact Ultraheaven (Bandcamp) RVG Brain Worms (Our Golden Friend) HMLTD - The Worm (Lucky Number) Catarina Barbieri - Myuthafoo (Editions Mego) Ligeti Quartet and Anna Meredith - NUC (Mercury KX) Mandy Indiana I’ve Seen a Way + EP(FireTalk) Kate NV WOW (RVNG) Kelly Moran Vesela EP (Warp) Kurws Powiez / Fascia (Korobushka) Fever Ray Radical Romantics (Mute) Netherlands Severance (Svart) Tim Hecker No Highs (Kranky) Bohemian Flesh Bohemian Flesh (Ojet) Pure Adult II (FatCat) Model/Actriz - Dogsbody (True Panther Sounds) Laurel Halo - Atlas (Awe) Water From Your Eyes - Everyones Crushed (Matador) Moritz Von Oswald - Silencio (tresor) REZZETT Meant Like This (Trilogy Tapes) Jess Johnson and Simon Ward 'Terminus' Virtual Reality exhibition at the Museum in Dunedin NZ.

Books

Naomi Klein Doppelganger Graham Rayman and Reuven Blau Rikers : An Oral History Thurston Moore Sonic Life Malcolm Gladwell The Bomber Mafia Tony Cohen Half Deaf, Completely Mad Brett Anderson Coal Black Morning Book Wesley Doyle Conform To Deform Primo Levi Survival in Auschwitz

Films + TV

Beef Barry Fargo The YouTube Effect Mutiny In Heaven Beau Is Afraid In The Court Of The Crimson King Oppenheimer

Concerts

01.28.23 Kodak Quartet performed at the Jack Studio Festival Event at The New School, performing a work by Khyam Allami and a stunning rendition of Ligeti’s String Quartet No 1. 02.21.23 Pure Adult opened for Gilla Band at Brooklyn Made and both were excellent! 02.22.23 Clown Core (featuring Louis Cole on drums and keys) Elsewhere in NYC. 03.02.23 Laurie Anderson performs at a drone event anchored by Lou’s guitar generating feedback drones, on the occasion of Lou Reed’s birthday .Other musicians joining the drone included Shazad Ismailey, Steven Bernstein, Stan Harrison, Briggan Krauss and more. 03.09.23 Michael Byron’s new work In One Second There Will Be A Thousand Plateaus Perhaps for two pianos and small orchestra featuring pianists Joseph Kubera and Steve Beck with Petr Kotik conducting members of the S.E.M. Ensemble. At Roulette Intermedium. 04.04.23 Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs brought the rock power and played an intense and triumphant show at Mercury Lounge to end their first US tour. 04.08.23 Amarcord Nino Rota, a reimagining of the Hal Willner’s Nino Rota tribute album, at Roulette Intermedium. 05.03.23 Genevieve Artadi played a grreat set at Public Records in Brooklyn to support her new album Forever Forever, with Louis Cole on drums. 05.27.23 Gloryhammer at Irving Plaza. Saw them in Melbourne too. 06.27.23 Sparks played a brilliant show at the Beacon Theater in NYC and I also caught them at Palais Theater in St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia on 10.26.23 07.04.23 75 Dollar Bill at Union Pool 08.20.23 BeatFox . Incredible luck to see this guy busking on Brick Lane. 08.21.23 The very wonderful Deerhoof at The Lafayette in London 08.22.23 clipping. played a killer show at Outernet in London 08.23.23 The incredible Poil Ueda from Lyon, France played in London at the Lexington + Lost Crowns 08.24.23 Swans played an epic set at The Troxy in Londo 09.24.23 TENGGER played an amazing set at the Art Gallery of NSW. 10.06.23 Fuji|||||||||||ta at Tempo Rubato in Melbourne, Australia. 10.07.23 RVG played a killer show to a packed house at Northcote Theatre in Melbourne, Australia 10.17.23 Chloe Sobek at Make It Up Club in Melbourne Australia. 10.21.23 Paul McCartney at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne Australia 10.28.23 Sarah Mary Chadwick at Wesley Anns as part of The 86 Super Saturday Festival 10.28.23 Party Dozen from Sydney played a great set at The 86 Super Saturday Festival in Melbourne Australia. 11.10.23 Devon Townsend played a beautiful, brutal and ecsatic show in Melbourne Australia at the Forum. 12.06.23 Ashley Bathgate and percussion sextet Mantra Percussion performed Matt McBane’s Topography at National Sawdust in NYC.

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Michel Langevin (aka Away/Voïvod)

My coups de coeur in 2023:   TV Series: The Last of Us   Music: The Damned - Darkadelic Godflesh - Purge Crown Lands - Fearless Gong - Unending Ascending Soft Machine - Other Doors   Best show: KISS End of the Road World Tour in Montréal on Nov 18th   Best Moments: -Recording and touring the new Voïvod album, Morgöth Tales, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the band -Celebrating my 60th birthday on stage in Lyon on the Voïvod/Testament Euro tour -Jason Newsted joining the band on stage in Fort Lauderdale, USA -Eric Forrest joining the band on stage at Hellfest, France  

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Lydia Lunch

https://www.lydia-lunch.net/

“Time-one long second that goes on forever” So enjoy it motherfuckers!

BOOKS

Love the World or Get Killed Trying Alvina Chamberland Mother Howl Craig Clevenger Nein, Nein, Nein! : One Man's Tale of Depression, Psychic Torment, and a Bus Tour of the Holocaust Jerry Stahl Mystic Debris Justin Gradin Niagara, NY Ric Royers The Pale-Faced Lie : A True Story David Crow The Conspiracy Against the Human Race: A Contrivance of Horror Thomas Ligotti The Field: The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe Lynne McTaggert Yuval Noah Harari Box Set (Sapiens, Homo Deus, 21 Lessons for 21st Century) Season of the Witch Cathi Unsworth Every word John Tottenham utters or writes

TOURS with Sylvia Black & Gregg Foreman, Joseph Keckler, Marc Hurtado (tribute to Alan Vega & Suicide), Ian White, Kevin Shea (Sinister Impulse), Tim Dahl & Matt Nelson (Murderous Again)

Workshop & Performance Badass Babes of Burlesque w Rita D’Albert Zebulon LA

Workshop at the University of New Mexico thanks to Greg Moss

Reading with Zoe Hansen & Ron Athey at The Philosophical Research Center LA Reading with Eugene Robinson Makeout Room SF

Finishing the documentary with Jasmine Hirst Artists - Depression, Anxiety, and Rage and premiering it in Italy

Meeting butuh Queen Azumi OE and discussing up coming performances together with Tim Dahl

Completing the 233 episode of The Lydian Spin with Tim Dahl

FUN

Nights in London & Brighton spent with Nick Soulsby, Cathi Unsworth, Billy Chainsaw, Chris Bohn, Jack Sargeant, Pam Hogg,

Tina Kit (opened for my Suicide tribute in London & Brighton) best new band of suited and booted bad boys

Squired around Europe by Sebastien Greppo, a man like no other - who so lightens my burden…

Watching every episode of The Dark Side of The Ring with Kevin Shea

Training squirrels, levitating objects, saving lives, screaming into the void.

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Mike Berdan

(Uniform) https://uniform-nyc.com/

ALBUMS

Lankum - False Lankum

Surgeon - Crash Recoil

Ryuichi Sakamoto - 12

Fellwinter - The Dawn Of Winter

Abysmal Lord - Bestiary Of Immortal Hunger

Death Kneel - Dawn Simulation

Shit And Shine - 2222 And Airport

Carnivorous Bells - Room Above All

Agonal Lust - Mankind Is A Talisman Of Misfortune

Godflesh - Purge

FIRST-TIME READS

A History Of Violence (1973) - David Cotner

Someone Who Isn't Me - Geoff Rickly

Your Dreams - Thomas Moore 4. In A Lonely Place - Karl Edward Wagner

Burn You The Fuck Alive - B.R. Yeager

The Holy Day - Christopher Norris

A Collapse Of Horses - Brian Evenson

The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty - Charlene Elsby

Let's Go Play At The Adams' - Mendal W. Johnson

Counterillumination - Audrey Szasz

MOVIES

Godzilla Minus One

CIGARS

Cohiba Magico Maduro Petit Robusto

God Of Fire Serie B Double Robusto

Padron Family Reserve no. 95 Maduro Petit Gordo

El Pulpo Toro

Tatuaje Reserva J21 Broadleaf Robusto

Atabey Benditos Double Corona

Romeo y Julieta Línea de Oro Nobles

H. Upmann Half Corona

Foundation Cigars The Tabernacle Robusto

OpusX Eye Of The Shark

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Mario Diaz deLeon (composer, Luminous Vault, Bloodmist)

ALBUMS Evita Manji - Spandrel? Eartheater - Powders Slowspin - Talisman Marta DePascalis - Sky Flesh Kalia Vandever - We Fell in Turn Eraldo Bernocchi + Hoshiko Yamane - Sabi JakoJako -  Verve Surgeon - Crash Recoil Cavalera - Morbid Visions / Bestial Devastation Bell Witch - The Clandestine Gate Steve Lehman + Orchestre National de Jazz - Ex Machina

SONGS Kelly Moran - Vesela Vines - I Don’t Mind Cybotron - Maintain Barker - Birmingham Screwdriver VMO - Supergaze Omar Hisham - Adhan (Be Heaven)

EVENTS New Firmament: MONAD - Roulette Peter Evans: Being and Becoming - Roulette Anna Sperber: Amplifier - Roulette 20 Years of Shinkoyo - Roulette Anthony Braxton + Wolf Eyes - Pioneer Works Caterina Barbieri - Pioneer Works Felipe Lara + Claire Chase + Esperanza Spaulding + NY Phil TAK Ensemble: Swoonfest - The Clemente Center Kayo Dot: Choirs of The Eye - MilkBoy Cecilia Vicuña / Raven Chacon - The Poetry Project Krallice / Indocrithere / Geryon / Ocrilim - Saint Vitus Cavalera: Morbid Devastation - Irving Plaza Hulder / Blackbraid / Aeviterne - Le Poisson Rouge Eartheater / Concrete Husband - Elsewhere

BOOKS Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz - An Indigenous Peoples History of the United States

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Alexander Tucker (Microcorps)

I started off the year by releasing a project very close to my heart: Fifth Continent, a collaboration with the late Keith Collins, partner and collaborator of film maker and artist Derek Jarman. The album was partially recorded in Jarman’s cottage in the desert-like landscape of Dungeness, on the South East coastline of Kent, in the UK, with elements constructed from Collins own spoken word pieces, and environmental recordings. The album was released on James Ginzberg’s Subtext label, and we also produced Fifth Quarter, an anthology publication of writing, recollections, photography and newly commissioned artworks about Jarman, Collins and Dungeness.

Although I probably made more music than usual this year, and had a greater focus than ever on the various projects I have underway, 2023 felt like a weird and often frustrating year for me and music. About five years ago I set about teaching myself modular systems, experimenting, and recording the results as I went along. This culminated in a new solo guise primarily for electronics and the synthesis of voice and acoustic instruments, MICROCORPS (the debut album Xmit came out on Alter records in 2021). Using these systems is at the same time liberating and incredibly frustrating. For a while this year nothing felt good enough: I could feel the potential of my ideas glimmering in the distance but was unable to catch up with them. I decided to take a short break from the modular, and focused upon compositions for cello, saxophone, and clarinet. But the pull of electronics is never far, so I began processing these recordings, using granular synthesis to stretch, mutate and reorganise the audio into new pieces. As soon as you want more from your practice and yourself, things can become more laborious - it’s difficult to be in the moment and focus on what’s in front of you. I used to be happy with the immediate effects I produced, but I think this is being replaced by a different approach, something more considered, which is exciting and, in some ways, sobering - even if the results are far from what you would describe as sober. I’m also so lucky to have many friends and fellow artists around me to offer help and suggestions, to whom I’m eternally grateful. As R.Crumb says, “Keep on truckin”.

Music I dug this year: Godflesh - Purge (Avalanche Recordings) Rắn Cạp Đuôi - *1 (nhạc_gay) Mun Sing - Inflatable Gravestone (Planet Mu) RS Tangent - When A Worm Wears A Wig (The Trilogy Tapes) Arnold Dreybaltt And The Orchestra Of Excited Strings - Resolve (Drag City) Elvin Brandhi and Lord Spikeheart - Drunken Love (Hakuna Kulala) Mark Fell and Will Guthrie - Infoldings / Diffractions (NAKID) Afrorack - The Afrorack (Hakuna Kulala) Kinn - Dogtooth (First Light Records) General Magic - Nein Aber Ja (GoTo Records)

Live shows: Emptyset - Village Underground Elvin Brandhi - IKLECTIK Mick Harris/FRET – Downwards’ 30th, Centrala Mun Sing, Crys Cole, Penelope Trappes - Boundaries Festival  Maxwell Sterling - Cafe OTO Pole - EartH Nik Colk Void - Too many to count! Phew - Cafe OTO Residency Acid Horse Festival Devo - Hammersmith Apollo Kinn - New Cross Road Baptist Church

Comics: In 2023 I produced a new issue of my ongoing oblique and nonlinear comic series, Entity Reunion. For this issue I drew upon my love of HP Lovecraft, using the repetition of the comic format to peel back layers of the everyday to reveal omnipotent entities underlying all reality. The viewpoint of each page is from the point of view of the protagonists, who hold an electronic device, photographing their surroundings only to capture the blurred features of some insidious face. There are also references to Lovecraft’s own fictional grimoire the Necrononmicon. I wanted that dreamlike sensation of being the protagonists of the dream but also viewing yourself as separate entity.

Books: I read nearly all of Patrica Highsmith’s ‘Ripley’ books, a bunch of John Le Carré novels, Mark Kermode’s book on The Exorcist and I’m currently working my way through the spy novelist Eric Ambler’s books. I also re-read Bruce Robinson’s analysis on Jack the Ripper and Victorian society, ‘They All Love Jack’. 

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Tom Chiu (composer, Flux Quartet)

2 0 2 3  IN  REVIEW

Albums Worth Exploring (including a couple entries from 2022 that I discovered late)

Bar Italia                 Tracey Denim (Matador)

Blur                         Ballad Of Darren (Parlophone)

Bush Tetras             They Live In My Head (Wharf Cat)

Death Valley Girls    Islands In The Sky (Suicide Squeeze)

Dummy                    Mono Retriever (Sub Pop)

Duster                        Remote Echoes (Numero Group)

En Attendant Ana       Principia (Trouble In Mind)

Everything But the Girl     Fuse (Verve)

Horse Lords               Comradely Objects (RVNG)

Kelela                         Raven (Warp)

Lael Neale                  Star Eaters Delight (Sub Pop)

Lana Del Rey             Do You Know That There's A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd (Interscope)

Lewsberg                   Out And About (12XU)

Munya                        Jardin (Luminelle)

Slowdive                    Everything Is Alive (Dead Oceans)

Sweeping Promises    Good Living Is Coming For You (Sub Pop)

Wednesday                Rat Saw God (Dead Oceans)

Yo La Tengo               This Stupid World (Matador)

Night at the Movies

Poor Things Past Lives Monster

Recurring Personal FAVES

FAVE Sandwich: Mekelburg's  Clinton Hill, Brooklyn

FAVE Burger: Two8Two Bar & Burger, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn

FAVE Craft Beer Brewery Omnipollo (Sweden), brewed at Twelve Percent Beer Project, North Haven, CT

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Pierre Cerrato

Producer - Editor  Floyd County Productions (Archer)

Favorite Movies/TV Archer Season 14 The Last of Us Gen V Beef This Fool Season 2 Fargo Season 5 Primo (Amazon Prime Show) The Bear Season 2 Episode Barry Season 4

Favorite Records  I listened to a lot of music but these were in constant rotation.  Some are from last year but what is time and who cares?

Boris/Uniform - Bright New Disease (2023) Birds in Row  - Gris Klein (2022) Fleshwater - We Are Not Here to Be Loved (2022) Asunojokei - Islands (2022) Everything But the Girl - Fuse (2023) Night Owls - Versions (2022)

Honorable mention Boris - Feedbacker (2003) this was my introduction to Boris. This year is the 20 year  anniversary of its release. Roberto Carlos Lange shared it with me one day while at work. He said it was something he thought I would like. Blew my mind and I have been a fan  ever since.

Favorite Concerts The Cure - State Farm Arena - also saw The Cure at Riot Fest but this was better of the 2. I regret not going to Night 2 in Atlanta because they played Disintegration.  H20 - Riot Fest 2023 Set Fleshwater - Riot Fest 2023 Set Future Islands - Shakey Knees 2023 Set The Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Shakey Knees 2023 Set Converge / Brutus - The Masquerade Drain / Drug Church - The Masquerade Donny Benet - Terminal West Idles - Re:Set 2023 Set

Favorite Food

MF Sushi - Atlanta - went twice and each time it was a special occasion.  Heirloom Market BBQ - Atlanta - best BBQ in my neck of the woods. The Aviary - Chicago - specialty cocktails with spectacular presentation.  Cafe Tola - Chicago - best empanadas i've ever had in my life.  Selva Negra - Miami - a solid contender for Nica food. Jaguar - Miami - great vibes, service and ceviche! No Hard Feelings - Chatanooga - great cocktails and vibes! 

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Zachary Lipez

(editor at large of Creem Magazine, writer, singer of Publicist UK)

Music I made a (very) long list on my wildly popular blog, Abundant Living. But, for kicks and with the understanding that maybe you don’t feel like reading (or subscribing to) my wildly popular blog, here’s some stuff I included and some stuff I forgot (with particular attention paid to albums I think might be of particular interest to JG friends/fans but which may have slipped through the radar) (meaning: I mainly put the stuff that wasn’t on too many other lists). Fatboi Sharif Decay (Backwoodz) Skech185 He Left Nothing for the Swim Back (Backwoodz) Zohra Murder In The Temple (American Dreams) The Native Cats The Way On Is The Way Off (Chapel)  Geese 3D Country (Partisan) Gold Dime No More Blue Skies (No-Gold) Algiers Shook (Matador) EXEK The Map and the Territory (Foreign) Skinhead Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt (Closed Casket) Débruit & Alsarah Aljawal ا​ل​ج​و​ا​ل (Soundway) Fairytale Shooting Star (Toxic State) Among The Rocks and Roots Pariah (Cacophonous Revival)  Full of Hell, Nothing When No Birds Sang (Closed Casket) Uniform & Boris Bright New Disease (Sacred Bones) Sleaford Mods  UK Grim (Rough Trade) Money&King Act Unnaturally (self released) Blu Anxxiety Morbid Now, Morbid Later (Toxic State) Nana Benz du Togo  AGO (Komos) Citric Dummies Zen and the Arcade of Beating Your Ass (Feel It) Ghösh  Prismassive (Ramp Local) Peasdez  Fenomenologia Del Espiritu Agonico: De La Existencia Sordida Al Pendulo De La Nada (SPHC) Upper Wilds Jupiter (Thrill Jockey) Death Valley Girls Islands In The Sky (Suicide Squeeze) Raphael Rogiński Talán  Body Void Atrocity Machine (Prosthetic) Feeling Figures Migration Magic (Perennial) Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band  Dancing on the Edge (Sophomore Lounge) Nosaj from New Kingdom & steel tipped dove House of Disorder (Fused Arrow Records) mclusky unpopular parts of a pig / the digger you deep (self released) Advertisement Escorts (Feel It) King Vision Ultra  Shook World (hosted by Algiers) (PTP)

Live Shows that Stand Out In My Memory Moor Mother/Armand Hammer/The Caretaker/Raphael Roginski for the Unsound Fest at Lincoln Center (I covered this for The Quietus if yr interested) Sleaford Mods at Coachella (profiled them for CREEM) Lydia Lunch/Zohra at St.Vitus Lydia Lunch Retrovirus last American show ever (?) at TV Eye Various skinhead/nü oï bands at the Monarch/TV Eye etc. with Liberty & Justice being the standout Son Rompe Pera at TV Eye Chisel (the Ted Leo outfit, not the neo-bootboy band with the “the” in their name) at LPR

BOOKS My phone has pretty much eliminated my ability to read. I did read the first 100 pages of more books than I care to admit. I finally finished Mark Andrews’ Paint My Name In Black and Gold: The Rise of the Sisters of Mercy and I recommend it if, like me, you think The Sisters of Mercy are better than the Beatles (or whatever inane comparison annoys your friends the most). I also discovered Gene Wolfe and read the first book in the Book of the New Sun trilogy. Otherwise, it’s pretty much been just using Louise Glück poetry as inspiration to write terrible versions of Louise Glück poetry. 

TV Doom Patrol Pokerface Rick and Morty (idc idc idc idc) HasanAbi twitch stream  A ludicrous amount of Britbox mysteries and—passively, yes, but not without a fair amount of emotional investment—various Real Housewife shows/spinoffs

Movies Didn’t watch any new movies this year but I did have a lot of youtube videos playing in the background while I did other things, and sometimes those videos would be three hour long screeds about what was wrong with a number of movies I’d never heard of. So I feel like I got the gist. 

LIFE Converted to Islam and married Zohra in January. Both choices have proven to be rewarding as all hell. Cashing in my “as a Jew I…” argument card—while simultaneously being too new a Muslim to reasonably claim either special knowledge and/or marginalization status—has really fucked with my ability to be self-righteous online. But the love that Zohra and her family have shown me has more than made up for my newfound inability to really wipe the floor with a motherfucker in the instagram comments. In fact, I liked marrying Zohra so much that I did it again in December (first time was a religious ceremony, the second time was our rendering to Caesar etc). If you know me/us and weren’t invited to either that’s because essentially no one was. As my parents couldn’t attend (on account of being dead) I didn’t really see the point of a big party. That was perhaps selfish. We love you (probably) and will have some sort of to-do in 2024. 

Otherwise, I am still very much enjoying working for the new CREEM Magazine (please subscribe) and doing my newsletter (please subscribe). Musically, I lived vicariously through Zohra and the release of her first solo album. Murder In The Temple, with amazing production by Ben Greenberg and contributions by Lydia Lunch, is a synthesis of so many of Zohra’s obsessions. It’s unlike anything in the post-goth-dark-whatever sphere and I can’t express how proud I am of it and her. As for my music, I did some neat-o Scientists-esque stuff with Telematics (Sohrab Habibion, Robert Austin, and Alexis Fleisig) and Zohra and I did a Sheer Terror cover in the style of Tindersticks to commemorate Paul Bearer’s marriage. Also, I’m pretty sure my most successful band (Publicist UK) got dropped by our label (apparently taking eight years to finish a demo is a long time) so get at me if you have a low-to-mid tier label and want to put out an album of eight minute gothic metal songs with zero mosh parts, about an aging hipster loving his wife and cats and missing his dead mom and dad. C’mon, do it. You’d be printing money. 

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Jim Siegel

Vivid Oblivion

Records And Other Things I Liked In 2023

Lankum - False Lankum (Rough Trade)

Milford Graves with Arthur Doyle and Hugh Glover - Children Of The Forest (Black Editions Archive)

Nakibembe Embaire Group (Nyege Nyege Tapes)

Henning Christiansen - Mediterranean Music-Water (Holidays)

Alain Goraguer - La Planete Sauvage (Expanded) (Decca)

Phill Niblock - Boston III (Alga Marghen)

Sam McLoughlin & David Chatton Barker - The Heavenly Realms (Folklore Tapes)

Svitlana Nianio & Tom James Scott - Eye Of The Sea (Skire)

Half Mortal - Creature Of Christ (Hospital Productions)

Pharoah Sanders - Pharoah box (Luaka Bop)

Ragnar Johnson & Jessica Mayer - Spirit Cry Flutes And Bamboo Jews Harps From Papua New Guinea (Ideologic Organ)

PJ Harvey - I Inside The Old Year Dying (Partisan)

Jana Winderen - The Blue Beyond (Touch)

Rezzett - Meant Like This (The Trilogy Tapes)

Arsenije Jovanovic - Sailboat Galiola Nuria's Unfinished Logbook (Pentiments)

Only Voices Vol. 1 + 2 (DDS)

Wounded Son - Pain Is All I Have For You (Hospital Productions)

Various - Cease & Resist: Sonic Subversion & Anarcho Punk In The UK 1979-1986 (Optimo Music)

Umeko Ando - Upopo Sanke (Pingipung)

Philip Jeck & Chris Watson - Oxmardyke (Touch)

Lori Vambe - Space-Time Dreamtime: The Four Dimensional Music Of Lori Vambe (Strut)

Mozart Estate - Pop-Up! Ker-Ching! And The Possibilities Of Modern Shopping (West Midlands)

Sandwell District - Feed Forward box (The Point Of Departure)

Japan Blues - Japan Blues Meets The Dengie Hundred (DDS)

Various - A Web Of Braided Willow - The Folklore Of The Wickerman (Folklore Tapes)

Surgeon - Crash Recoil (Tresor)

Mark Glynne And Bart Zwier - Home Comfort (La Scie Doree)

Ariel Kalma - French Archives Vol. III 1964-89 (Black Sweat)

Marginal Consort - 06 06 16 (St Elisabeth Kirche, Berlin) (901 Editions)

Brendan Perry - Eye Of The Hunter / Live At The I.C.A (4AD)

The Complete Obscure Records Collection box (Dialogo)

Various - Avant Garde 21xCD Box (Deutsche Grammophon)

Bill Nace Live at Public Records, December 2023

The Elephant 6 Recording Co. Documentary

Squaring The Circle - The Story Of Hipgnosis 

Shame And Dignity with Stanley Schtinter and Sukhdev Sandhu at UnionDocs, NY November 2023

Godland, dir. Hlynur Palmason

Wawa Pretzel w/ Melted Cheese (Sandwich)

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Simon Karis

(CEO of Nice Music, recording artist)

Okay so fave releases of 2023

Absurd Cosmos Late Nite 'These Magic Clothes Don't Play Themselves' (Reseach Laboratories) Actress 'LXXXVIII' (Ninja Tune) Armand Hammer 'We Buy Diabetic Test Strips' (Fat Possum) Danny Brown 'Quaranta' (Warp) De-Bons-En-Pierre 'Card Short Of A Full Deck' (Dark Entries) Evian Christ 'Revanchist' (Warp) Eyes Of The Amaryllis 'Perceptible To Everyone' (Horn Of Plenty) Francis Plagne 'Into Closed Air' (Bison) Francis Plagne 'Udge' (Horn Of Plenty) Giuseppe Ielasi 'Down On Darkened Meetings' (Black Truffle) HHOST 'Windswept Italics' (Altered States Tapes) HHOST 'Veil' (Snail Editions) JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown 'Scaring The Hoes' (no label) Kassell Jaeger 'Shifted In Dreams' (Shelter Press) Khanate 'To Be Cruel' (Sacred Bones) Klein 'Doubt'/'Normani's Torment'/'STORM' (no label) L'Rain 'I Killed Your Dog' (Mexican Summer) Land's Air 'Land's Air' (Tone List) Locust 'The First Cause' (Mysteries Of The Deep) Low Flung 'The Wheel' (Snail Editions) Matt Harkin 'The Door Knocker' (no label) Nick Ashwood 'Inside The Body Of A Wave' (no label) Nuno Loureiro 'Lua Onus' (Super Pang) Patten 'Mirage FM' (555-5555) Pissed Jeans 'No Convenient Apocalypse' (Sub Pop) Princess Nokia 'I Love You But This Is Goodbye' (Arista) Red Wine & Sugar 'Turkish Coffee & Twice Baked Potatoes' (Chocolate Monk) Rezzett 'Meant Like This' (The Trilogy Tapes) Richard Youngs 'Modern Sorrow' (Black Truffle) Rory J S 'P' (no label) Rrose 'Please Touch' (Eaux) Solo Andata 'Slip Casting' (12k) WPH 'III' (no label) 100 Gecs '10,000 Gecs' (Dog Show/Atlantic)

fave back catalogue listens that made sense in 2023 Armand Hammer & The Alchemist 'Haram' (Backwoodz Studioz) Beherit 'H418ov21.C' (Spinefarm) Bernard Parmegiani 'De Natura Sonorum' (INA-GRM) Bowery Electric 'Beat' (Kranky) Charalambides 'Exile' (Kranky) Def Leppard 'Hysteria' (Mercury) Elastica 'Elastica' (Deceptive/Geffen) Elucid 'I Told Bessie' (Backwoodz Studioz) Emptyset 'Demiurge' (Subtext) Emptyset 'Recur' (Raster-Noton) Hematic Sunsets 'Musik Aus Dem Aroma Club' (Klang Der Festung) Joey Beltram 'Classics' (R&S) Ka 'Languish Arts' (Iron Works) Kim Cascone 'Cathodeflower' (Ritornell) The Kinks 'Lola Vs Powerman And The Moneygoround Part One' (Reprise/Pye) Kreator 'Terrible Certainty' (Noise International) Lol Coxhill & Morgan Fisher 'Slow Music' (Pipe/Aguirre) Low 'Hey What' (Sub Pop) Marsfield 'The Towering Sky' (Faraway Press) Massive Attack 'Mezzanine' (Virgin) Matt Harkin 'Sanctuary 1, 2015-2016' (Hobbies Galore) Maurizio Bianchi 'Endometrio'  (no label/Dais) Moodymann 'Mahogany Brown' (Peacefrog) Moor Mother & billy woods 'Brass' (Backwoodz Studioz) Nearly God 'Nearly God'  (4th & Broadway) Nightcrawlers '2031 AD' (no label) Richard Youngs 'Beyond The Valley Of The Ultrahits' (Sonic Oyster) Rita Revell 'I Had A Very Bad Time!' (Happy Endin') Roc Marciano 'Reloaded' (Decon) Seine Trance-Parenz Fredi Alberti 'Klaenge Aus Dem Engelsraum (Die Verdunklung Der Sonne Und Des Mondes)' (Scribble Art) Simbiosi 'Elements' (Werkdiscs) Suede 'Dog Man Star' (Nude) Valerio Tricoli 'Say Goodbye To The Wind' (Shelter Press) 100 Gecs '1000 Gecs' (Dog Show)

fave melbourne/naarm restaurants in 2023

Khabbay (Indian/Pakistani, Carlton) Laksa Village (Malaysian/Chinese, Donvale) Cinger Biang Biang (Dolan/Uyghur/Chinese, Carlton) Lim Kopi (Malaysian, Naarm/Melbourne CBD) Raya (South East Asian desserts, Naarm/Melbourne CBD) Taste Hunan (Hunan/Sichuan/Chinese, Naarm/Melbourne, CBD) Laksa House (Malaysian, Naarm/Melbourne, CBD)

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Brendon Randall-Myers

(composer, Scarcity, Marateck, Glenn Branca Ensemble)

If 2022 was the Return of the Show and the Return of Travel, 2023 was about Building Stability (i.e. making my teaching studio a primary income source), Hunkering Down to Finish Two Albums, and Re-Learning How to Be a Human Being. I also played a bunch of cool shows with Dither (collabs w/ Carla Kilhlstedt, Lee Ranaldo/Brian Chase, Amirtha Kidambi, AJ Santillan, and Laurie Spiegel; playing Electric Counterpoint on GFA), a couple fun Scarcity shows (playing with Liturgy, improvising on graphic scores by Anthony Hawley) and did some performances with Whimbrels and Contemporaneous. 

These were albums I enjoyed (incessantly) at some point during 2023 that were mostly - but not exclusively - also released in 2023.

Agriculture - Agriculture Armand Hammer - We Buy Diabetic Test Strips Arnold Dreyblatt - Resolve Big Brave - Nature Morte Blackbraid - Blackbraid II Bummer - Dead Horse Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You goat (JP) - Joy in Fear Goldfeather - Change JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown - SCARING THE HOES Jute Gyte - Unus Mundus Patet KEN Mode - VOID Killing Joke - Night Time Krallice - Mass Cathexis 2 - The Kinetic Infinite Model/Actriz - Dogsbody Modern Nature - How to Live  Nabihah Iqbal - Dreamer Neil Young - Greatest Hits Oren Ambarchi - Shebang Pink Pantheress - Heaven knows The Prodigy - The Fat of the Land  Rid Of Me - Traveling  Slowspin - Talisman Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream Swans - The Beggar Trauma Bond - Winter’s Light  Tristan Kasten-Krause and Jessica Pavone - Images of One Victory Over the Sun - Dance You Monster To My Soft Song! Yaeji - With A Hammer

Here were some shows I attended:

Wolf Eyes + Raven Chacon @Union Pool Liturgy @TV Eye Gamelan Dharma Swara, Ridgewood Presbyterian Church Moor Mother @Merkin Hall Object Collection @The Brick Theater Spectral Wound @Saint Vitus Pyrrhon + Barrsheadahl @Saint Vitus The Smile @Forest Hills Stadium Krallice @Saint Vitus Mediaqueer @Windjammer Sarah Hennies + Tristan Kasten-Krause @Issue Project Room Peter and the Wolf @Guggenheim Model/Actriz @Music Hall of Williamsburg  

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Grace Bergere

(songwriter / singer / performer)

This year was full of firsts for me! 

Definitely the most musically eventful year of my life to date. I went on my first tour playing bass with my great friends in COP/OUT, supporting Days n' Daze (A band I'd been listening to for years as a young punk kid.)  I immediately realized touring is really all I want to do.  I also got to tour alongside Subhumans in Cop/Out. Meeting them and getting to know them was mind expanding.  They were all kind and humble thoughtful individuals, completely down to earth and engaged with everyone they spoke to. Every night across the midwest they brought the crowd to a cathartic screaming euphoric mess. Working with COP/OUT, whose message is so clear; to be good to each other, question everything even when it means swimming upstream with every bit of strength you have, filled me with hope.  Playing on that tour with them, and watching Subhumans every night reminded me the power of music to affect real social change which is something I believed to have been  lost in recent years.  I met my great friend Jessica Mills on that tour and we still talk all the time. 

I also started playing guitar in The Art Gray Noizz Quintet. One of my longtime favorite bands (that my very talented cool boyfriend happens to play bass in.) We went all across the West Coast, landing in Las Vegas. Playing with them has demanded I advance as a guitarist, stepping into Andrea Sicco's shoes. Andrea is a complete beast of a musician and all of his musical projects are awesome. Check out MOVIE MOVIE, his most recent project. 

I also joined Crazy And The Brains on second guitar. They’re a super fun high energy punk band. I love being around such positive fun loving musicians and watching them bounce around while I do my best to keep up. 

I recently finished recording my album at HOBO SOUND in Hoboken by James Frazee. The time and effort it took over the several years since I started, was at times grueling. But James never stopped caring or checked out. He helped me shape this album into something I am truly proud of, along with Richard Dev Greene, one of the first people to ever believe in my music. I am so grateful to both of them.

I started spending time with Victoria and Kay of Puzzled Panther. They quickly have become two of my best friends. It is so meaningful for me to have found such badass, driven young women to share a dream with. Puzzled Panther is raw and hypnotizing. They have a unique strong hold over their audience and every show of theirs I’ve been to has been fantastic.  Victoria has joined me a few times on a song at my shows, and every time I believe has been one of the strongest points in my set. 

I Met Eugene Hutz of Gogol Bordello (the first huge band I ever went to see as a young teenager.)  He will be releasing my upcoming single and video for “Come And Go”  on his label Casa Gogol Records in early 2024. 

I just played the biggest show I’ve ever played with my solo project that plays under my name.  We were on a bill with Gogol Bordello and JON SPENCER (Also one of my favorite artists.)  Being on that stage standing there in front of more people I’ve ever seen in an audience from that vantage point, I felt like every second of my life was leading to that moment. Each song brought me back to the time in my life when Id written it and it felt very much like watching my life projected in front of me. It was indescribably satisfying to be on that stage. Later, in the audience, I screamed along to Gogol and watched my mom dance to songs she'd heard me blasting through the house as a kid, and felt just as moved by them as I did as a young teenager the first time I saw them.

I am so grateful to be working with Eugene. He is kind and thoughtful in his feedback and hugely supportive of me and my dreams. 

I will be playing New Years Eve with the Art Gray Noizz Quintet before Kid Congo Powers and The Pink Monkey Birds !!

This last week I can honestly say, has been the best of my life to date. Like looking out over a valley after climbing for years.

BEST SHOWS

(other than the ones I was lucky enough to play at listed above) 

RICHARD DAWSON 

I got to see Richard Dawson three whole times!!! it was his first US appearance. He is a completely unique force. I’ve never seen such a captivated crowd. we all cried and screamed along with him. 

PIGS X 7 

One of those times he was playing with Pigs x7. They quickly became another favorite band of mine despite having severe technical difficulties. it was actually kind of a highlight because their front man just started joking around and had the entire audience laughing along with him and talking for about 10 minutes. I got to see them two other times that went perfectly. What a band.. 

JON SPENCER AND THE HIT MAKERS

I saw them at TV Eye. I had been able to squeeze myself into the DJ booth for their set. They hammered away into some kind of magical hypnosis that made me feel like I'd taken MDMA. (I had not.) I had to lean against a wall to keep my balance. They played with Licks, a badass 60s garage rock inspired band fronted by my friend Skunk. 

LYDIA LUNCH RETROVIRUS 

Also driving and hypnotic and loud as hell. I was left with a similar feeling of having been dosed with something at all of their shows…

JOSEPH KECKLER

The first time I saw Joseph perform was at TV eye with Lydia Lunch. He’s completely unique. He writes gorgeous songs that he sings in an incomprehensibly wide range, sometimes in languages that he has invented himself! His seamlessly mixes humor with honest beautiful songwriting.

SONGS I LISTENED TO A BILLION TIMES THIS YEAR. 

ART GRAY NOIZZ QUINTET- Lie Come True  JOSEPH KECKLER- The Ride JON SPENCER AND THE HIT MAKERS- Death Ray  GOGOL BORDELLO- Shot Of Solidaritine  PUZZLED PANTHER- Smoke And The Mirrors We Broke  PIGSX 7 - Reducer  ARCHERS OF LOAF- Banging On a Dead Drum 

OLDER HITS THAT WERE NEW TO ME

LAURIE ANDERSON- Poison  POISON GIRLS- Fear Of Freedom CULTURE SHOCK- Things To Do  CAPTAIN BEEFHEART- Tropical Hot Dog WARREN ZEVON- Desperados Under The Eves MINNIE RIPERTON- Les Fleurs  BOBBY GENTRY - Ode To Billy Joe TOWNES VAN ZANDT- Highway Kind

BOOKS 

Joseph Keckler-  Dragon at the edge of a flat world.  Mark Lanegan- Sing Backwards and Weep Miriam Toews- Fight Night

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Marc Urselli

producer / engineer / sound designer

I want to thank JG Thirlwell for inviting me to submit my 2023 Year in Review. I had never done one of these before and it's been a fun challenge to go through my calendar and social media to remember and realize how much I was able to pack into this year! Selecting and writing down all of these things also helped me further grasp and understand how tremendously privileged and lucky I am to be able to do what I love all year around, year after year, and to live my life to the fullest and according to my own wishes and my own design. I don't take this lightly and I don't take it for granted. I am very aware that it comes from hard work, limitless passion and unweavery dedication, not just luck and good fortune, but nevertheless I am grateful every single day for this life and for being healthy, being able to do all of this, and for all the people in my path who trust me, inspire me, support me, challenge me, and enlighten me!

STUDIO SESSIONS, ALBUMS & PRODUCTIONS When compiling this list, it really dawned on me how fortunate I am to be working with such incredible talents and how priviledged I am to be able to witness, participate and contribute to the creation of exceptional works such as the following:

Producing, Recording & Mixing sessions with David J of Bauhaus, Norwegian artist Ihsahn (of Emperor) & Toby Driver (of Kyao Dot), John Stanier (of Battles), Brian Chase (of Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Restless Spirit, Vicki Peterson (of the Bangles), John Cowsill (of the Cowsill Family and The Beach Boys touring band) and many others for my new RAMONES tribute album to come out next year on Magnetic Eye records

Producing, Recording and Mixing a cover of Soundgarden's song "4th of July" with my doom metal / throat singing project SteppenDoom for the Magnetic Eye album "Soundgarden (Redux) and featuring Matt Cameron of Soundgarden themselves on drums

seeing the release of Brian Carpenter's "Ghost Train Orchestra & Kronos Quartet - The Music of Moondog" album featuring Kronos Quartet (which I recorded at EastSide Sound) and many other amazing guest artists

Producing, Recording, Mixing, and Mastering a live album by Brazilian artists Zé Ibarra, Dora Morelenbaum and Julia Mestre of Bala Desejo for Glasshaus Presents & Tower Records

Mixing new albums by Glenn Max Vanderwolf (produced by Dennis Martin), by Bloodmist (Toby Driver, Mario Diaz De Leon, Jeremiah Cymermann), and by Ikue Mori & Zeena Parkins at EastSide Sound fully utilizing the analog console and the analog outboard gear (something nowadays is more and more rare)

Recording & Mixing 6 new albums by John Zorn this year alone, which brings my total JZ count to over 120 albums, and which as of this year can finally be heard on streaming platforms as well!

Recording and Producing a new album by Marco Cappelli's Italian-inspired band IDR at EastSide Sound in NYC and then going to Rome, Italy to overdub trombone and vocals with famed contemporary Neapolitan singer Raiz

Producing, Recording, Mixing, and Mastering 2 new albums by incognito jazz / blues artist Russell Orr with legendary Brian Marsella & Brian Mitchell on keys, respectively

Recording, Mixing, and Mastering two new albums by Jessica Pavone and her trio

Producing, Recording, Mixing and Mastering a "We Are the World"-type track for NYC Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs with a song composed by Captain Beefheart / Jeff Buckley's guitarist Gary Lucas and 10 other musicians from various parts of the world playing their local instruments and singing in their mother's tongue

Recording and Mixing the new album by Italian singer/songwriter Beppe Voltarelli, produced by Simone Giuliani, which took second place in Italy's Premio Tenco

Recording a new film score by composer Billy Martin (of Medeski, Martin & Wood) and arranged by Simon Hanes (of Tredici Bacci)

Producing, Recording, Mixing, and Mastering contemporary classical music sessions commissioned by Miller Theater and Columbia University with artists such as Laura Barger & Julia Den Boer, Miguel Zenon, Matt Mitchell & Miles Okazaki, Russell Greenberg & Vicky Chow

Recording new albums by contemporary classical/jazz musicians such as Miles Okazaki, Brian Drye, Anna Webber & Matt Mitchell and others Recording new albums by amazing Latin Jazz artists such as Gili Lopes, Homan Alvarez, Rodrigo Recabarren, Benjamin Furman

seeing the HBO release of John Lurie’s “Painting with John” new season where all the music was recorded & mixed by me and seeing my face briefly on TV

recording in an old church in Italy with Adriano Viterbini and Vincenzo Vasi for a project that will come out sometimes next year hopefully 

SOUND DESIGN GIGS & LIVE SOUND MIXING GIGS Similarly to the list above, I am eternally greatful for the fact that all these wonderfully talented people trust me with designing, mixing and amplifying their sound so that the rest of the world can truly and fully experience their art in the most complete, sonically articulated, detailed and full spectrum way there is! Some of these highlights include:

Mixing a 90-piece orchestra + 90-piece choir playing the score to Stanley Kubrick "2001: A Space Odyssey" live-to-picture  conducted by Brad Lubman in the Auditorio Nacional of Mexico City to a sold-out crowd of 10'000 people 

Mixing the Grammy Award Premiere Ceremony in Los Angeles and being there to amplify and mix the immensely talented house band led by Cheche Alara and the performances by musicians such as Samara Joy, Anoushka Shankar, Arooj Aftab and more…

Mixing the Robbie Robertson tribute concert & memorial organized by Martin Scorsese at Village Studios in Los Angeles with artists such as Jackson Browne, Jason Isbell, Rocco DeLuca, Citizen Cope, Angela McCluskey, Blake Mills and Jim Keltner

Mixing the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony concert at the White House with artists such as Dionne Warwick, Samara Joy, Joe Walsh of the Eagles, St. Vincent and others.

Sound Designing and Mixing the world premiere of "Perle Noire: Meditations for Joséphine" at the DNO Dutch National Opera House in Amsterdam, a beautiful performance/concert/opera directed by Peter Sellars, composed by Tyshawn Sorey and performed by Tyshawn Sorey and ICE International Contemporary Ensemble with soprano Julia Bullock

One of my sound design pieces inspired by Icelandic nature sounds and folklore was presented at the "Le Son 7" Art Gallery in Madrid between the 3rd and the 13th of May 2023, after it was presented the year before in London and will be presented in January 2024 in New York

mixing 12 shows by John Zorn in 2 days at Big Ears Festival in Knoxville TN

mixing more shows by John Zorn to celebrate his 70th birthday in places like Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Miller Theater in New York, Reggio Emilia and Modena in Italy, Philharmonie in Paris, November Music Festival in Den Bosch Netherlands and Mexico City

Mixing Brian Carpenter's Ghost Train Orchestra live at Roulette with special guests David Byrne, Karen Mantler, Joan As Policewoman AND doing so right after I mixed another matinee gig earlier in the day with the New York Choral Society

working sound for the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with musical guests Lizzo and David Byrne

Mixing Claudia Acuna at Lincoln Center

mixing Idina Menzel's performance in Trafalgar Square in London for Gay Pride 2023

playing keys (something I almost never ever do!) for Japanese electronic artist Coppé's first-ever performance in Italy

mixing my first ever K-pop gig in Times Square NY

teaching Mixing Workshops at SAE in Mexico City and MOB Studios in Rome, Italy

RECORDS In no particular order, here are some of my favorite records of 2023 that I was not involved with but I wish I had been ;-)

Anohni and the Johnsons "My Back Was a Bridge for you to Cross"

Lil Yachty "Let's Start Here"

Boygenius "The Record"

Ryuichi Sakamoto "12"

Jaimie Branch "Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((World War))"

Arooj Aftab / Vijay Iyer / Shahzad Ismaily "Love in Exile"

Peter Gabriel "I/O"

Hania Rani "Ghosts"

Meshell Ndegeocello "The Omnichord Real Book"

Bill Frisell "Four" - Ambrose Akinmusire, Bill Frisell, Herlin Riley "Owl song"

Porcupine Tree "Closure / Continuation"

Dr. John "The Brightest Smile in Town"

Spencer Zahn "Statues II"

Meshuggah "Chaosphere 25th anniversary 2023 Remastered edition"

Ennio Morricone "Segreto Songbook 1962-1973"

Sin Fang, Kjartan Holm "Angakok"

MUSIC SHOWS It's always hard for me to recount the shows I've seen because I usually see about 300-500 shows every year. LPR (Le Poisson Rouge) definitely shines through as my favorite venue and the one I've visited most often! Here are some of the highlights of 2023:

Spotlights, Imperial Triumphant, Puzzled Panthers at Saint Vitus

"La Splendida", a heavy metal opera by Laurent David & Kilter at Culture Lab LIC

Exotech 3 times, at Public Records, Mark Morris Dance Theater and at LPR

Tredici Bacci at least 2-3 times, one of which at Sultan Room

John Cale at Paradiso, Amsterdam

Plini at Melkweg, Amsterdam

Mary Halvorson Quintet at Bimhuis, Amsterdam

Thurston Moore at OCCII, Amsterdam

Jeff Goldblum at Town Hall

Xylorius White at LPR

Hal Willner's Amarcord tribute concert at Roulette

Snarky Puppy at Beacon Theater

Tim Bernardes at LPR

Groa at Taste of Iceland showcase at Pianos

JG Thirlwell & Mivos Quartet at National Sawdust

Bloodywood at Irving Plaza

Hermeto Pascoal twice, at Pioneer Works and LPR

Sexmob at Fotografiska

Grace Jones at Hammerstein Ballroom

Lisa Fisher at Blue Note

Iggy Pop and Debbie Harry / Blondie, London

Laurie Anderson & SexMob Let X=X at Barbican in London and BAM in Brooklyn - The Cult at MEDIMEX festival in Taranto, Italy - Tom Morello at MEDIMEX festival in Taranto, Italy

Emperor at Kings Theater

Ibrahim Malouff at Drom - Elan Mehler & Dave Douglas at Fotografiska

The Misfits at Prudential Center - Oumou Sangare at Brooklyn Bandshell

Red Fang at Gramercy Theater

The Eagles & Steely Dan at MSG - Tammy Faye Starlight at Joe's Pub

Julian Lage at Village Vanguard - Mdou Moctar at Summerstage

Makaya McCraven at Locus Festival, in Locorotondo Italy

Fatoumata Diawara at Locus Festival, in Locorotondo Italy

Sisters of Mercy at Cinzella Festival, in Grottaglie Italy

SunRa Arkestra at Locus Festival, in Locorotondo Italy

Robert Plant at Locus Festival, in Bari Italy

Mr. Bungle at Terminal 5

Melvins, Boris and all the other amazing bands at Desert Fest at Knockdown Center

Front Line Assembly at LPR

Peter Gabriel at MSG

Empire State Bastard at LPR & St Vitus

Cavalera Conspiracy at Irving Plaza

Swans at Music Hall of Williamsburg - Steven Bernstein w/ Millennial Territory at Dizzy's

Nick Cave & Jonny Greenwood  3 times, twice at Beacon Theater and once at Kings Theater

The Mission at LPR - Titan to Tychons at NuBlu

Dresden Dolls at Bowery Ballroom

Robert Glasper's Art Blakey tribute at Blue Note - Puzzled Panthers at Bowery Electric

Ghost Train Orchestra at Roulette

Arthur Brown in London

The Mongol Khan theater production at the Coliseum in London 

8 Bit Big Band at Sony Hall

Bud Spencer Blues Explosion at Monk in Rome Italy

plus all the amazing artists I can't recall individually that I have seen at Winter Jazz Festival, Long Play Festival and Big Ears Festival

BOOKS I am sadly a slow reader and my pile of books on my bedside table is always bigger than the time awake I have when I finally do get to bed, but here are some I have read, or started to read or am planning on starting to read:

Kid Congo Powers "Some New Kind Of Kick"

Nick Cave & Seán O'Hagan "Faith, Hope and Carnage"

Warren Ellis "Nina Simone's Gum"

Rick Rubin "The Creative Act: A Way of Being"

Quincy Jones "12 Notes: On Life and Creativity"

Quincy Trouple "Miles & Me"

MUSEUMS I try to visit museums in every city I go to, whether I am on tour, working, traveling for pleasure or whatever the reason is… Art is my passion, my love and a way of life…

Museu Picasso, Barcelona, Spain

Fundcaio Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain

The Salvador Dali Theater and Museum, Figueres, Spain

Salvador Dalí House / Fundació Gala, Cadaqués, Port Lligat, Spain

Park Gúell, Barcelona, Spain

Moco Museum, Barcelona, Spain

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Vermeer Exhibit, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Moco Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Amsterdam Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Art on Paper, New York

Frieze, New York

Karl Lagerfled "A Line of Beauty", Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY

Yayoi Kusama "Infinity Mirror Rooms", Tate Modern, London, UK

Frida Kahlo & Diego Riviera House & Studio, Mexico City

Palacio De Bellas Artes, Mexico City

Museo Jumex, Mexico City

Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporanea, Mexico City

Paul Gugelmann "Poetic Machines", Aarau, Switzerland

MOVIES There are soooo many movies I still want to / need to see… I love movies but I prioritize work and live music in my life and I will only watch movies on planes, on (very very) rainy days or those rare times when I don't have a concert on my calendar, so here are a few of those rainy/non-concert films, in no particular order:

Killers of the Flower Moon (for the story, the acting and the soundtrack)

Equalizer 3 (because aside from its Hollywood-ish story and ending, it's a realistic look at how organized crime works in Italy)

Little Richard: I am Everything (for his story, his character, his music and his courage!)

Psychedelicized: The Electric Circus Stroy (for the amazing portrait of a time that's past but that changed NYC forever!)

American Symphony (for the amazing story, talent, spirit and courage of Jon Batiste)

32 Sounds (because my life is about sound…)

Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song (because Leonard was an amazing artist and songwriter and singer and so many friends are in this movie)

Oppenheimer (because that history is so complex and so divided as the country in which it took place)

TRAVEL Travel is the richess of life! I travel SO MUCH that I am on a plane AT LEAST once a month and usually it is to an international location… This year was no different, so I've decided to only list 12 trips for this section:

January: Ringing in the year in a medieval tower in Barcelona and spending the first 4 days of the new year trying all the tapas bars, restaurants, food stands this beautiful city has to offer and seing the Sagrada Familia cathedral for the 3rd time in my life

February: Living in Amsterdam for 3 weeks visiting all the musuems, all the music venues and all the while working at the Dutch National Opera with some amazing folks (see list above)

March: Snowboarding the Swiss and the French alps

April: Visiting Knoxville Tennessee for Big Ears (easily the best independent music festival in the US!!!) for the 2nd time in 2 years, and hopefully the beginning of many more visits in the future!

May: Spending time in sunny Los Angeles and plotting a way to spend more time there and make music

June: Visiting London twice in one month to work and see amazing music shows, theater shows and art exhibits

July: coming back from London on July 6th only to realize that strangely there is no travel for the rest of this month! So weird and unusual!

August: Spending the month in Puglia, Southern Italy eating good food, kitesurfing in the Adriatic and Ionium sea, seeing tons of concerts and playing one myself!

September: arriving in Mexico City and getting my very own police escort motorcade to make it in time from the airport to the theater

October: On tour with John Zorn in Italy, France and the Netherlands

November: Flying to Los Angeles with a 36 hour notice for a concert I was hired for in secrecy having been told "we need a mixing engineer who can mix music for a room full of musicians" and showing up for the Robbie Robertson tribute orgnaized by Martin Scorsese with people like Joni Mitchell and Leonardo DiCaprio in attendance

December: DC-to-DF aka flying to Washgington DC to work at the White House and then flying straight to Mexico City I've finished the year with travel to my motherland of Switzerland, my fatherland of Italy and my second home of London UK!

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

DJ Food aka Kevin Foakes

Music: Kosmischer Laufer - Volume 5 LP (UCR) Soia, Julien Sénélas, Jérôme Vassereau - In C for 11 Oscillators and 53 Forms LP (unjenesaisquoi) Cate Brooks - Tapeworks DL (Cafe Kaput) Memorials - Music For Film: Tramps! LP (State 51 Conspiracy) King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - PetroDragonic Apocalypse… LP (Album of the year) Brian Eno - The Lighthouse radio station (Sonos) (most listened to) Niholoxica - Source of Denial LP (Crammed Discs) SareemOne - Olivine Window Coast Contra - Breathe & Stop Freestyle/Never Freestyle/Scenario Freestyle Move78 - Grains LP Heiroglyphic Being - The Moon Dance LP (Apnea) Raj Pannu - Past Crimes EP 12" (To Pikap Records) Gordon Chapman-Fox - The Nine Travellers LP (Castles In Space Subscription Library)

Gigs / Events: Beyond The Streets exhibition @Saatchi gallery, London Sunroof / Finlay Shakespeare @iklectik, London The Light Surgeons - The Consensual Hallucination @iklectik, London Memorials at the State 51 Summer Psych party @State 51, London FogFest2 @iklectik, London JG Thirlwell & Ensemble @Bush Hall, London Machina Bristronica, Bristol Visiting Peel Acres with Eilon Paz for Dust & Grooves Nihiloxia @the Jazz Cafe, London

Design / Packaging: Yves Malone - A Hello To A Goodbye LP (Castles In Space) Drumetrics - Phuzzle (Drumetrics) Waclaw Zimpel - Train Spotter LP (State 51) David Boulter - Factory 3" CD (Clay Pipe Music) Fluctuosa - Wetware EP 12" (Analogical Force) Fluxus - Orbit & Shine LP (Castles In Space) Floating Points - Birth4000 12" (Ninja Tune) Cate Brooks - Easel Studies LP + badge (Clay Pipe Music) Brian Eno - Top Boy OST CD (Beatink)

Books / Magazines / Comics: Medical Grade Music - Steve Davis & Kavis Torabi (White Rabbit) Doctor Strange - Fall Sunrise - Tradd & Heather Moore (Marvel) Tales To Enlighten - The New Testament - Matt King and James Edward Clark Pop - Milton Glaser (Phaidon) Kevin O'Neill Apex Edition (2000AD) Mark Stafford - Salmonella Smorgasbord (Soaring Penguin Press) Savage Impressions - Bruce Lichen (Independent Project Records) Hexagon Bridge - Richard Blake (Image) Monica - Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics) Acid Valley - Luke Insect Petrol Head - Rob Williams & Pye Parr (Image) Lawless - Dan Abnett & Phil Winslade (Rebellion) Giant Robot Hellboy - Mignola/Fegredo (Dark Horse) Facelss & The Family - Matt Lesniewski (Oni Press)

Films: Barbie Squaring The Circle : The Story of Hipgnosis

[greenqueenhightower]

How did Olivia and Fabien’s interview- where they’re clearly talking about a scene that got scrapped this season, snowball into Team Black and Alicent haters believing that they meant season one?

https://x.com/marebarrow1929/status/1799861473969160237?s=46&t=a2c3OPYBKMaDot90jYoK4A

Now they’re stating it as a fact that when Aemond got his eye sliced out, Alicent was sleeping with Criston. She is therefore a bad Mother and an even worse Mother if they’re having sex during blood and cheese (because she and Criston totally knew it was happening that night and said fuck Helaena and the twins).

It’s even become a fact to them that Alicent and Criston have been sleeping together before Rhaenyra even slept with Criston 😂😂 They’re saying it’s a 16 year affair and Daeron is definitely Criston’s son and I’m like “What about Aemond??” Would he not be their son too?

They seem to have forgotten that someone has been posting season 1’s script and some of Alicole’s interactions definitely show a mutual attraction and devotion- but they’re also all PG…. There was no “beautiful, messy, scrappy” sex scene anywhere in the scripts amongst the deleted scenes. There is nothing to allude to them having a sexual relationship. An inappropriately close relationship that blurs the lines between the Queen and her Guard, yeah that’s there but we already knew that from the scenes that did make it to the screen.

They’re holding “Hiding under your cloak of righteousness” and “Now they see you as you are” close to their chests right now.

Desperately grasping at straws to make Alicent sleeping with Criston after her husband is cold and dead, comparable and worse to Rhaenyra having 3 bastards with Harwin’s skin coloring, hair color, hair texture AND face while being married to A biracial Valyrian man, claiming they’re trueborn. Placing them in the line of succession for the IT and DWT, gaslighting and lying through her teeth about it. Something that causes Vaemond Velaryon to be murdered fighting for it to remain in his family. Let’s also not forget that Rhaenyra is seen on screen having sex with her uncle at on the night of his dead wives funeral, on her ancestral lands. While her parents and her daughters grieve.

It can’t be compared. Alicent went to her marriage bed a maiden, she took care of a man who didn’t care for his own children while Rhaenyra abandoned him for years. She was faithful to him and gave him 4 Targaryens. He’s now dead now and her job is done. Her son is on the Iron throne and she crowned her Daughter, Queen. She even gave up her rooms to her. If there wasn’t a war going on and if she hadn’t been scared for them their entire lives, her duties would be passing the reigns to Helaena. Mentoring her but mostly just living a life of leisure and comfort as the Queen Mother. She could even go back to Oldtown if she wanted or anywhere else. She could marry again if she wanted. She is a young woman still, in childbearing age.

Apart from it being out of wedlock, which is hypocritical but we already know her to be a hypocrite, just like we know Rhaenyra to be a hypocrite- it’s their thing that they do. It’s still not the same and definitely not comparable to Rhaenyra’s great big screw up.

I've honestly concluded that some of the TB stans lack media literacy, are eager to jump to conclusions, do not have the patience or willingness to discuss matters peacefully or educate themselves about the other person's POV, are content with stirring up drama and spreading misinformation, and take things out of context. This time is no exception.

I watched the whole interview of Olivia Cooke and Fabien Frankel with Jonatan Blomberg from MovieZine (he is a Swedish interviewer) before he made it private on his YouTube channel, and it is clear that they are talking about S2. Before he asked them about the experience of filming intimate scenes together, they had been talking about S2 for quite some time and how their characters' dynamics changed this season. Then, Jonatan (knowing about the leaks obviously) asked them about the experience of filming intimate scenes and how they approached it.

So there clearly was NO MENTION OF S1, and neither did Fabien nor Olivia talk about the experience as something that occurred in the previous season. Olivia literally says: "We know each other so well at this point," meaning the time they started filming scenes for S2, and Fabien adds: "We have this sort of added bonus of having worked together for a year and having developed a friendship and a trusting relationship."

So they are clearly talking about S2, for which they shot a "beautiful, messy, scrappy sex scene" but which did not make the cut for reasons known to the producers. They did make it sound as if they filmed other sex scenes though, which we will again see this season.

For my take on why Alicent and Criston could have started sleeping together in S1 only after Viserys' death, and why the "Daeron is their love-child" theory holds no ground, see here.