#i've still got the music star version though

[factual-fantasy]

19 Asks! :00 Thank you! :DD 🧁

And now you see my frustration and lack of patience. <XDD

Its the easiest to follow boundary that I can think of. Yet people still wanna fuss about it and send me horrible messages and run me down. Calling me selfish, ungrateful, spoiled.. Its exhausting. :( 💔

Sorry, I don't take requests. :/

Do beasts like that exist in the game?? :00 Dang, that's spooky-

Well, I imagine that Seafoam, Octo, Louis and any other tough guy on the ship would go down there and weed it out. Dragging it up onto the deck so that Blue Beauty could snatch it and dispose if it however she needed to <XDD 💀

I must specify that my cookie run characters are not in "my version" of the world- <:0 as in I didn't create the world they live in and how it works-

These cookie characters are fan OCs for an existing game! And note, its a game that I know next to nothing about! <:( I only researched enough to make characters that might fit into that universe somewhat realistically,, other than that, I've got nothing! :(

So about a pirate community being led by a King or Queen of some other chocolate brands..?.. aaaaaa I have no idea! <:0 Its not my world! Does it fit? I don't know.. Sorry.. :(((

@yourstrulylightstar283

Thank you <:) but hey, I have high hopes that this trial will end within the next few weeks! :D ..I really hope it will :')

@neo-metalscottic

:DD No problem! While I am spending an unfortunate amount of my time just lounging around trying to feel better.. I at least want to get around to answering asks! Its darn near my favorite part of running this blog after all! <XDD

When it comes to the Commander, he is not meant to have any fancy powers like in the movie or from Kamek. Magic in my universe is meant to be a very complicated practice. Something that would take years of studying and training to perfect. At least to the level where it can be used reliably in combat.. What I mean by this, is I don't think there's any magic related tricks that the Commander could "pick up" or be taught.. Magic also has everything to do with a magikoopa's gem staff thing, soo... <://

Though I suppose that the "superspeed flight" and the "self destruct" aspect could be incorporated into the Blue Parakoopa species somehow.. Perhaps due to the shape of their winds and flying styles, they could be incredibly fast. And Since they are so big and sturdy, perhaps they have been known to rocket towards their enemy and come crashing down onto/into them with all their might. Completely obliterating what ever they happen to hit. Like an explosion! XD Hmm.. I might just adopt that XDD Thanks for the idea!

Also he might make for a decent sparring partner if he was asked to do so! :0 though that's not his primary job..

As for Larry, unfortunately I've thought about him the least amongst the Koopalings. :((( Though I do intend to keep his star mark somehow.. and I didn't know about the music thing! :0 My Larry definitely wouldn't be a DJ, but I could certainly add an interest in music into his character! :0 Sounds like you kind'a built a bit of Larry for me! XD

@kaylee4509

Thank you so much!! I'm glad to hear it! :DD And "like spam", XDD there's no such thing on my blog! I consider it a huge compliment! :DD

@ripchaos69

:DD Thank you very much!! I'm glad you like what I've made!! :}} ✨💖✨

Me neither man, me neither. If someone else had set a boundary like that I would just drop it no questions asked. I don't get why its so hard for others to do the same.. and its such a small and simple boundary at that. It just baffles me, it really does. :'((

@petra-creat0r

I always knew/assumed that's why people harp on me so much about it. "All other artists like it. So why don't you like it? You make no sense."

I understand how everyone else sees it, but even then I wish people would get the message and just leave me alone about it. You know?

When I set a boundary, don't come into my ask box and question me about it. Don't start criticizing me or send me death threats or call me selfish and ungrateful. As has happened before..

Just read the boundary, "please do not make fanart of any kind for me" and then leave it/me alone. Its all I ask. :( I promise I would/will do the same for you, 💖

Thank you for the kind message and support, it really means a lot <:}

I'm doing by best every day to heal and work on myself as much as I can. I'm hoping to see improvements soon! <:}

@jennifergacha

Sorry, I don't take requests. But it sounds like you already have a good idea goin. Why not give it a go yourself? :0

:DDD Thank you so much!! That means the world!! :}} 💖

I have not :( I've seen and heard wonderful things about it though! No doubt its an awesome show :}}

@littlelightfish

WAAHAHAGG THANK YOU!! :DDD Nothing means more to me than to see people so passionate about my original characters! My ORIGINAL! CHARACTERS!! 😭😭💖💖💖 IM SO HONORED!!

XDD No no don't worry! You're fine! :}

Now, I do advise that people don't shove headcannons onto my charaters- BUT! I say this because in the past people have shipped my original characters together and have put mental illness and sexuality headcannons on themm.. which is just not ok. It made me super uncomfortable and should be a no brainer. Don't do that with peoples personal characters unless they say they are ok with it-

But this is a bit different, taking what I've already established and just gushing about it/digging into it a little deeper is alright! Honestly its such an honor! :DD It makes me very happi :}}} 💖💖

@jayden-for-now

@komikudikentalendo

:(( I been goin through it ngl. But I'm sure in a few weeks and maybe after I get a couple good rainy days under my belt? I'll be back to my old squiggly self :}

@beryl-shade (First link/video in question) (Second link/video in question)

I like to look at my cookie crew through more "serious" glasses. I don't think they ever would be involved in a coordinated musical number..

But even if they were, I'm not too sure how they'd react/feel.. :( I know Octo and Spidercrab wouldn't be having a good time though, that's for sure! XDD

[paarthursass]

A few thing's about the Muny's Les Mis that really stuck out to me:

Overall this is probably the first time that the interpersonal relationships really landed for me in a production of Les Mis. Intellectually I always understood that Valjean took in Cosette because he felt responsible for Fantine's suffering, but John Riddle did an excellent part in portraying Valjean's guilt. Peter Neureuther and Emily Bautista also got across Marius and Eponine's friendship really well. You felt the friendship and love between them.

The staging for At the End of the Day had Valjean up on the second level, watching the women and the foreman mob Fantine but not doing anything to intervene. In the transition to I Dreamed a Dream everyone left the stage except Valjean (still above her) and Fantine. Fantine looked up at Valjean, and he turned away and left her alone.

Valjean and Cosette both humming Castle on a Cloud while he leads her out of the woods and back to the Thenardier's inn 🥺

Jordan Donica sang the best version of Stars I have ever heard. That's all.

Though the musical never mentions that Gavroche and Eponine are siblings, the director obviously took pains to ensure the actors knew this. Gavroche was always watching Eponine when she was on stage with him, though they didn't interact all that much.

Emily Bautista is probably one of the best Eponine's I've ever seen. She's joyful in her scenes with Marius - you get why she's in love with him - but also has a clear chip on her shoulder when interacting with her father. Her On My Own was likewise great; we love an Eponine who expresses more than just general sadness.

During A Little Fall of Rain, no one notices that Eponine's been shot at first. Marius and Eponine sing while everyone else at the barricade goes on about their business like nothing's happening. Gavroche is the one who notices that Eponine is dying, and he rushes to get Grantaire and Enjolras's attention, at which point everyone realizes what's happened. Gavroche is visibly distraught, and one of the women hugs him and covers his eyes, forcing him to look away as Eponine dies. Graintaire also comforts him, and they continue to shield Gavroche as Eponine's body is taken away.

The aftermath of A Little Fall of Rain is haunting. Even Enjolras is visibly shaken; you can see in everyone's faces that Eponine's death has brought the glory of the revolution to a halt in the face of the reality that they could all die.

During Drink With Me, when Graintaire stares to sing his verse everyone in the barricade flinches, and Enjolras and some of the others rush forward to try and stop him from continuing.

John Riddle most beautiful version of Bring Him Home I have ever heard.

In the after math of the barricade, Javert comes on stage and first sees the bodies of the men. Then the turntable turns to show the other side of the barricade, where only Gavroche's body is. Javert is visibly shaken by this; he struggles to give orders to the other soldiers afterwards. You really get the sense that this, in addition to Valjean's sparing of him earlier, is what tips him over the edge.

I saw this on Friday so I know I'm forgetting other things but this was just SUCH a lovely production. I wish I could sear it into my brain so I could remember every little piece of it always. I'll never be able to watch the movie again.

[slavghoul]

First musical emotion?

TF: I grew up in an environment full of music, with a very open-minded mother who listened to a lot of pop and rock music and, above all, an older brother who was 13 years older than me. That's how much I was immersed in teenage culture as a child. I was 3 years old in 1984 when the glam metal wave invaded the airwaves and TV screens. These bands, like Kiss, WASP or Mötley Crüe, very strong visually for a child, attracted me irresistibly. And let's not forget Twisted Sister. I Wanna Rock is the track that remains the basis, the trigger for everything for me. A song that, at 3, 13, 23 or 43 years old, still has the same effect on me as soon as I hear it: to jump in the air like a madman.

First record bought?

If not Kiss, probably a Rolling Stones album. It didn't make much of an impression on me because my brother used to buy so many of them, so my money was mostly spent on Star Wars stuff. There are tons of bands I love, but I think the Stones are my favourite. Because they embody everything I love about rock, even though they weren't as sophisticated as the Beatles or Pink Floyd. Between 1967 and 1972, in their darkest period, nobody did it better than them: they had the look, the attitude, the style and, on top of that, the songs! Let It Bleed is incredible, with songs like Midnight Rambler and Live With Me. As much as I admire technical singers, virtuosos of harmony, Jagger remains unique. I've never tried to imitate him, but as a performer he is the absolute model.

First concert of note?

My brother used to take me to see local punk bands at a very early age, but I remember B.B. King most of all, when I was about 5 or 6, with my mother. It was a jazz festival, outside in the courtyard of a castle, a very cool atmosphere. As soon as B.B. King started playing, there was electricity in the air. Everyone got up and started dancing, I was blown away. And as I was the only one of my age, I could move around freely, so much so that I found myself in the backstage, in front of B.B. King himself! He invited me into his dressing room: "Do you play the guitar?" - Yes! - so don't stop!" And I took his advice. Even though I sing on stage, the guitar is still my favourite instrument, the one I play and master the most.

The band that best managed to avoid the pitfall of the image taking precedence over the music?

Kiss, unfortunately, was far from being up to the task musically. Alice Cooper, after two minor first albums, went on to make four incredible albums with the original Alice Cooper Group. Above all, he made a phenomenal comeback with Welcome to My Nightmare in 1975. After that, the show took over... The band that managed to stay straight and dignified, without compromising the artistic quality of their work, is undoubtedly Iron Maiden. All of their 80's production is impeccable, and if they had a slump in the 90's, they came back even stronger with the return of Bruce Dickinson, and have been going strong for twenty years! Their work ethic is exemplary. With Ghost, we take up Phantom of the Opera, one of my favourite tracks from their early period, and one of the few where I felt we could add a little something to it.

Best punk song in the world?

There are so many, because I was also brought up on the sounds of the Pistols, the Ramones, the Dead Kennedys... But as a kid, I never got tired of listening to The Great Rock'n'Roll Swindle again, especially the sequence where Sid Vicious sings My Way. His version is one of my favourite songs of all time. What could be more awesome than to see a guy slaughtering this standard while doing the same, shooting the shit, with the audience that came to see him! It was like the ultimate middle finger, and it made me happy, and it showed me the way.

The band that remains the grail for you?

Queen, because the show side, the big show, is the ultimate for me. In the early 70s, my favourite musical period, there were no big shows yet, like the Stones started doing afterwards. Queen is the same. Of course, their best albums are from the 70s, but the peak of their career for me is the Wembley concert in 1986. Magic wasn't a great record, but the show was breathtaking, dantesque, with a repertoire as vast as it was delirious. If Ghost could ever come close to the 1986 Queen, I would be delighted.

The greatest Swedish band?

ABBA, of course. No one will ever be able to stand in their way. The Beatles are the monarchs of English rock, ABBA the monarchs of Swedish pop. Björn and Benny are national heroes. I found myself at a huge, formal party when Benny suddenly sat down at the piano and started Thank You For the Music. There was silence in a second. This guy is a monument. You can't imagine what ABBA has done, not only for pop music, but also for Sweden and the Swedes. This band proved that you can move mountains.

Which Ghost song are you most proud of?

Cirice, probably. I often write my songs by singing into my phone a melody that is in my head. We were about to finish the album Meliora. And the co-producer tells me that a really heavy and powerful track is missing. I tell him I have this heavy, heavy, macabre sounding tune with a long intro and a crushing riff. He suggests I tweak it while he goes for a run. When he came back, I had written a chorus, lyrical, catchy. It wasn't the leaden track he was hoping for. But it won us a Grammy!

The most evil band?

Certainly not Mercyful Fate, as one might imagine. They, like most Norwegian death metal bands, more or less satanic, are the most charming guys I've ever met. They seem more like nice teachers than evil creatures. The scariest band is probably Von, a mythical American black metal band from Hawaii. These guys were really scary, with their terrifying size, they looked really dangerous. But I think the evil is mostly on the side of those who pretend to defend the good. For me, the most evil and unattractive musician is Ted Nugent. He's pro-life, pro-hunting, and claims he's only fighting for freedom. But the world he defends is about as free and tolerant as Vladimir Putin's. I refuse to listen to him.

[broadway-heere-i-come]

“This opening night was a long time coming,” says Sky Lakota-Lynch, who stars as Johnny Cade in the new Broadway musical The Outsiders. “I’ve been with this show for six years, I began working on it in 2018, and it’s been such a long journey to get to this point—it’s unreal that it just finally happened!”

Six years isn’t such a long time, however, in the lifespan of the story. S.E. Hinton’s novel The Outsiders, about rival gangs of greasers (including Johnny) and rich kids in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was first published in 1967, and it was 16 years later that it was adapted to make a beloved film. Still, after years of working on the show, the cast was ready to share it with the world.

“It was a total celebration” Lakota-Lynch says of opening night. “There’s something blissful about seeing the show come to life and having audiences embrace it in such an amazing way. What more can you ask for?”

Here, Lakota-Lynch shares his opening night diary—with photos by Jenny Anderson—with T&C.

"I do have an opening night ritual: I meditate before every single show. For this character, I have to act with my energy, so it helps me to ground myself and not be worried about the outside world. Just having a moment of complete silence is so important for me."

"Shockingly, I'm not that nervous in The Outsiders. I was really nervous in Dear Evan Hansen because it was new to me and I was stepping into the role someone I was replacing. With The Outsiders, our director, Danya Taymor, builds such a comfort zone for people that cast feels like brothers and like we aren't necessarily acting every night. So, the nerves don't really come for me in The Outsiders. Honestly, I get more nervous after the show having to say hi to people than for the show itself."

"Before every show, we do circle up and one person makes a little speech, and then we all break to think about the theme of that speech, which could be freedom, peace, or love. Every single show we do this, no matter what."

"My friend and cast mate Tilly Evans-Krueger got this amazing thing called the Legacy Robe, which is a tradition in the theater. She puts it on and runs around us three times clockwise, and we all touch it for good luck, and then she visits our rooms in the robe and it blesses the show."

"I've known Brody [Grant, who plays Ponyboy] for five years. I knew Brody before he was even in the show because my understudy at Dear Evan Hansen was Brody's roommate in college. Lo and behold, here we are and Brody's one of my best friends. It's so rare that you get to work with people who you actually love, and there's not a singe person in my cast who I dread seeing."

"I got to be close with Angelina Jolie, who's our producer, because we went to Tulsa, Oklahoma together, and she asked to design my opening-night outfit. She and this amazing tattoo artist named Mark Mahoney designed the jacket and all the little patches. Next week I'm going to get a tattoo from Mark."

"This is our fight call, which lasts an hour every single day. Because the show is so physical, we have to make sure that no one gets hurt. So we get called an hour before curtain and we run through the physical numbers just to make sure that everything is set and that everyone's body is OK before we actually run it full speed during the show."

"Our stage door has been really crazy. People love The Outsiders, and the response has been wild. Every single night a crowd gathers and is screaming outside of our dressing room windows. This lady has been there every single night, and though I've been skipping the stage door because I've been so tired leading up to opening, I finally got her picture with me, which was awesome."

"Right before the curtain, before I got into my wig and makeup, Jenny was like, 'let me get one last picture of you before you go inside.' The Jacobs Theatre has this really cool indoor-outdoor alley and it connects to the Majestic and the Golden. It's historic, so we just took pictures there and it was awesome."

"After we did the show, we had an after party. There were a lot of cool people there: Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys, Jeremy O. Harris. It was very overwhelming, and I didn't stay too long. I had gotten a hotel room with my family and I was just like, you know what, I'm going to enjoy it for as long as I can and then I'm going to go home."

[rainbowsky]

Hiiiiii. I'm here again!💛 My question is: what are your top 3 solo dance performance of Web?

Mine includes his recent interpretative dance of Like the Sunshine, opening dance during SDOC4, and the classic Versace on the Floor, duh! 😘

You're anonymous so I have no idea who you are, but hello! Nice to see you! 😊

I absolutely love this question, thanks so much for asking it! DD's dance performances are always exciting, and something I eagerly anticipate - probably more than anything else from him!!

#1 Like the Sunshine

There can be no other winner. Truly the most memorable performance he's ever given. So special on every level. Even though I've been unable to watch it since January (long story that I talk about in my post* about the song, which is still in drafts), I think about it a lot. Exceptional, beautiful, powerful.

*Sorry to bring up a mystery post, it WILL be published eventually!

#2 SDOC3 Captain Dance & Rehearsal

I loved this practice version because we got to see DD dancing out of costume, and he looks so fucking amazing (he really can rock a tight-cuffed pant, windbreaker and ball cap like no other). This clip holds a special place in my heart. I love watching his practices. DD in his own clothing, just being DD, being a great dancer.

Both the practice and the live performances show DD's strong skill, professionalism, and talent. (DD's starts at 12:40).

After the captains' opening performances the dancers all voted with their towels to choose the best one. DD ended up getting the fewest votes of all the captains.

If you rewatch the performances you can see that other performances weren't nearly as intricate, coordinated or frankly 'cool' as DD's, but we got to see these performances from a very different vantage than the dancers, so I'll cut them some slack for being so blind. There were even some comments after the fact, that they couldn't see the complexity of it from where they were sitting.

It's crazy to me to think that he ended up in the bottom from this, and he even made a statement about hoping to improve. 🥺

This dance was so good, he performed it so well. It really shows that perspective is everything.

#3 VOTF

It feels like this performance wasn't meant for our eyes (😅), but I love it anyway. For all the same reasons everyone else does. It's just so smouldering and sexy, and he looks godly here.

My CPN post about the performance can be found here.

Special Mention: YH Practice Clip

This practice dance has to be mentioned because it's been a favorite of mine for years. Not just because he looks so stellar in it, but also because more than a lot of other videos out there, this one really shows DD's exceptional gift for dance.

If you watch the presence/power of his performance vs the two dancers behind him, you can really see how much he stands out - how much star power he has just based on his overall demeanour. He has such beautiful lines, precision, musicality and quality of movement. He hits every beat and every step effortlessly, while giving so much swagger and fluidity. His transitions are unbelievable - so smooth and so strong. It's mesmerizing to watch.

It's crazy to think it's only 1 MINUTE of dance. It feels like an entire epic story of movement.

The same is also true with the Swalla video that is popular among fans. Same thing. You can really see DD's talent in these clips. I fervently wish he'd release more of these, although I understand it's not likely to happen again. It would be a feast for me if he did.

[syrupsyche]

Went to stalk Facebook for pics of me watching Les Mis when it came to my country and thank GOD for 15 y.o. me taking a pic with the cast list (though it was mainly bc an actor had the same name as me lol) so now I can look back at my very blurry memories and attach faces to the characters.

For starters, it mostly comprised of the cast from the Australian production back in 2016, with the exception of Earl Carpenter as Javert:

and opposite him starred Simon Gleeson as Valjean:

Alas I do not remember much of their performances but I do remember liking Valjean's Soliloquy and Javert's Suicide alot as well as crying at both of their death scenes so pretty sure they did something right lol.

Fantine was played by Patrice Tipoki:

I also do not remember much but I did find her death scene to be extremely haunting. The production I watched had the stage feel really bare so the coldness of it all really seeped in.

Marius and Cosette were played by Paul Wilkins and Emily Langridge:

Again I don't remember much LMAO but looking at Cosette's outfit here, it's extremely pretty! Alas I think by this production, Every Day (Marius and Cosette) had been cut out (or extremely cut down) so I didn't get to hear their rendition of it :(

Éponine at the back was played by Kerrie Anne Greenland:

I was an Éponine girlie at this age so I was really focusing on her parts lmao. She was good from what I can remember! Her On My Own was brilliant and I did cry at her death scene :')

Enjolras was played by Chris Durling:

Slight side track but WOW looking back at these pics, he is quite the quintessential Enjolras. Though Les Amis didn't catch my attention in the movie the first time I watched it, the images that burned into my mind the most from this production were of Enjolras and Les Amis. I know fans aren't too happy with the revolving barricade switch-off (and now that I know of it, I definitely agree the new scene doesn't hold a candle to it) but imagine 15 year old me seeing the guy I've been rooting for unceremoniously dumped in the wheelbarrow alone under a spotlight? It was still chilling, especially when compared to the colours and noise of the movie version. Another scene that haunted me was Empty Chairs at Empty Tables, when the ghosts of Les Amis picked up the candles left behind. THAT was good, I really loved it.

The Thénardiers were played by Cameron Blakely and Helen Walsh:

Hilarious duo lol. My favourite memory comes from Master of the House, when a young girl sitting in front of me asked her father what Mme. Thénardier was doing with the baguette during "...but there's not much there" and what the joke meant. Her father just said she was too young to understand 😭😭

Overall, this production of Les Mis was a changing point in my life. It was my first ever live musical and it expanded my interest for musicals and Les Mis ever since. I had only watched the movie previously just so I could be caught up with the plot, but iirc, this production got me to buy and read The Brick shortly after. And 7 years later, here I am still screaming about it :')

Also I found a rendition of One Day More by the 2015 Australian Cast so y'all can hear roughly what I had experienced back in 2016! Only difference is that Javert is played by Hayden Tee, Marius is played by Euan Doidge, and the Thénardiers were played by Trevor Ashley and Lara Mulcahy. Enjoy!

[all-de-fandoms]

MEAN GIRLS MUSICAL MOVIE LESGOOO

I literally just found out about this today and- yeah yeah yeah I know the musical got a lot of hate but genuinely I adored it (and it was one of my go-tos whenever I got dragged to a scary horror movie!). So to find out that they're making a movie out of it..... I mean yes, I've got some mixed feelings, but mostly I'm excited!

I've listened to the movie album on Spotify already, and held it up against the original. I have lots of opinions.

Cast Performance

Erika Henningsen vs Angourie Rice as Cady Heron: I’m sorry Angourie I’m sure you’re great but Erika really put her soul into her Broadway performance. So much emotion, so much energy and personality in her voice. By comparison, Angourie mostly seems to be singing to sound good rather than to communicate parts of the story in the musical. (I will say however that she did do pretty good in her last song, “I See Stars”.)

Taylor Louderman vs Renee Rap as Regina George: Renee! She did actually play Regina on Broadway after Taylor Louderman. Truth be told, I love Taylor’s version (lol) the best but Renee’s is nothing to sneeze at either. 10/10, no notes.

Ashley Park vs Bebe Wood as Gretchen: Ashley Park did it better. Bebe’s songs are.. okay. But they did cut a lot of Gretchen’s lines in the MG 2024 Spotify album, so that does affect her rating.

Kate Rockwell vs Avantika as Karen: I can’t choose, they both did a good job with their roles. I feel like Kate’s Karen really echoed Amanda Seyfried’s Karen in the original movie, but from what I could tell in the Spotify album, Avantika’s spin on Karen sounds equally good. I do wish they’d given her more songs/lines!

Barrett Wilbert Weed vs Auliʻi Cravalho as Janis!! OH MY FUCKING GOD you guys. If Renee gets a 10/10 Auli gets an 11/10 from me. Auli'i definitely did her homework. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

Grey Henson vs Jaquel Spivey as Damien: There's absolutely nothing wrong with Grey's version of Damien, it's a very good match for the movie one. But Jaquel’s Damien? He had such a beautiful voice, he really went above and beyond for Damien. My vote’s for Jaquel all the way.

The Songs

I won’t be listing them all because that would make this post much too long but here are my highlights:

They cut “It Roars” for “What Ifs” in the movie. Booo. “It Roars” told a good story, “What Ifs” is forgettable, in my opinion.

Auliʻi Cravalho’s version of “Revenge Party” is awesome. She absolutely killed it (/positive) and although I’m not one to usually approve lyric changes, I love the enhancement to Janis’ character by making the song more bloodthirsty.

Renee Rap nailed “Someone Gets Hurt” but I expected no less of course.

They changed some of the lyrics in some of the songs. Some of the lyric changes were just one line, or shifting around of roles ("Apex Predator").

“Meet the Plastics” got pared down in the movie album. Actually, a lot of songs got pared down for the movie album, or just moved altogether. I guess it was to adjust for time, and also to accommodate Angourie Rice’s vocal range. Aaron apparently has no singing roles at all.

"What's Wrong With Me" is another one that got pared down. The original song from the Broadway version tops this one, hands down. Had more plot and characterisation to it, this one was. Not it.

They cut Karen's funny lines in the beginning of the song "Sexy" which. Again, is such a shame. Avantika did amazing though.

They changed parts of "I See Stars", but I'm not mad at it tbh

Final Thoughts

I think my main gripe with the movie (from what I can tell based on the Spotify album) is that Angourie Rice is just not built for the powerful belting songs that Cady sings in the musical. That’s not bad, but I just. Surely they could have found another actress to play Cady? One who could actually perform in a musical? I’m a little tired of people being cast in a movie musical and still singing as if they’re trying to record an album. They’re two different things, people.

I guess they were trying to communicate Cady’s innocent and naïve personality in the original movie? but they cut out the rest of her personality in the new songs, making her just. So flat. This is particularly noticeable in the Broadway version of “Stupid With Love” vs the movie one. We were also robbed of Cady's growl in the line "watch me shake my mane" from "Apex Predator" (which is one of my favourite parts of the musical!) It’s tragic, is what it is. I don’t think this is necessarily all Angourie’s fault- mostly, this is poor writing and/or directing.

Similar gripe with Christopher Briney, Aaron’s actor in the movie. Apparently, he didn’t even want the role when he found out it would be a musical, so they cut out Aaron’s singing parts for him. Like?? Just? Hire someone else? It’s a musical, they ought to be committing to it.

Auliʻi has such a freakin beautiful voice, and as far as her singing performance goes she is the perfect casting for Broadway-Janis. Her performance is on parr with Barett’s in my opinion. She is the perfect example of someone who almost certainly did her homework: she understands the role, she puts in the attitude, the grunge, the “fuck you” attitude that made Barett’s version so damn good. I freakin love her.

Honestly from what I can tell I do love most of the people in this album (Jaquel Spivey!!) except for Cady and Aaron. Which is kind of a shame.

[a-moth-to-the-light]

Current Top Ten 2NE1 Songs

Okay, I mentioned "Gotta Be You" a little while ago, and I've been streaming 2NE1's discography nonstop since then. So now I have to impulse-write this one, because I forgot how much I love their music and I absolutely must screech about it!! I think EXID is my favorite second-gen group, actually, but 2NE1 is a very close second--they have the kind of star power that I'm completely in awe of. I got into 2NE1 in 2020, via Angelina from ktube, so I've never experienced a comeback from them (though let's just say Park Bom's "Do Re Mi Fa Sol" took over my life for a good while when it came out), but I've still made so many memories with their music over the past four years & have plenty to say about it!

1. Gotta Be You

One of those perfect pop songs--it's almost four minutes long (cue the cheering from fifth-gen stans!!), and each moment feels perfectly engineered to be a dopamine rush all on its own. It's bright and full of life, and even after four years of being a mainstay on my playlists, I still find myself obsessing over this one.

2. Fire

This could easily be my favorite debut ever, though I'd hate to overlook Lucy's "Flowering" like that! The 2NE1 ladies are SO commanding in this song, and it's crammed full of hooks that have stood the test of time. Even with its quilted-together approach to song structure, "Fire" is pretty much infinitely danceable & never feels jarring. It's a similar style of campy dance-pop to 4Minute's debut with "Hot Issue" (which I also love), but "Fire" is constructed so much more carefully--it has an incessant energy that "Hot Issue" doesn't, and it shows off 2NE1's capabilities so impressively!

3. Lonely

This is definitely the most obvious pick here--of course "Lonely" is in the top three. For newbies: before Blackpink's "Stay", there was 2NE1's "Lonely". This one is such an easy listen, a comforting ballad that never tests your patience. Its hook isn't a big final chorus that you have to wait for, it's the steady presence of the chorus throughout the song that's so simple, yet so satisfying. Though this may not be what you expect from a hit 2NE1 song, it's iconic in its own way.

4. Come Back Home - Unplugged Ver.

If you've ever heard me talk about Blackpink's "Whistle - Acoustic Ver", this should come as no surprise! These two songs occupy similar spaces in my mind. I love that we got this unplugged version, without the beat drop, because it really gives the sadness and longing of "Come Back Home" room to breathe. And the 2NE1 ladies really take advantage of that, too--their line deliveries are crammed with interesting details that really make this track special. Also, CL's rap over acoustic guitar is such a highlight.

5. It Hurts (I usually listen to the Japanese version!)

Yes, this is the third ballad in a row, sorry! This one took me a while to get, but now I'm wailing "YOU'RE NOT MINE ANYMORE !!!!!" right along with them. This whole song is one really slow build, so it took me a while to find the patience for it--but the payoff, with those big emotive high notes, is so worth it.

6. Scream

You really have to look past the second-gen cringe for this one, but I'm more than willing, because "Scream" has quite a bit of depth to it behind that grating post-chorus. This is the best use of Park Bom's vocals like, ever, I think--she sets the chorus on fire. And that bridge is heavenly; after CL's first "I fell in love", my heart melts.

7. Don't Cry (Park Bom solo)

This song saved a friendship for me once, funny enough. I know not everyone loves Park Bom's voice as much as I do--she doesn't have the range of abilities that a lot of other vocalists do, so I get it--but I find her performance here, paired with that fuzzy early-2010's production, just so wonderfully soothing.

8. Ugly

A once-in-a-generation kind of chorus, and 2NE1 have the vocals to back it up.

9. Falling in Love

Yeah, sue me, "Falling in Love" is in the top ten. This is trash, sure, but it's exactly my kind of trash. For being as annoying as it is, this song has some legitimately gorgeous vocal sections, too (what is this, an NCT song?). Like, Minzy's voice in the verses? Oh my god. And CL's first-verse rap may well be 2NE1's best--it's fast-paced but sooo catchy, it flows easily but has quite a bit of kick to it. In conclusion, I can see how people think this is an absolute abomination, but I've never had a bad time listening to it--and I listen to it a lot, believe it or not!

10. Please Don't Go (CL & Minzy)

After I heard the chorus once, I knew I'd never be able to stay away from this song. Be warned: the second-gen cringe is strong here, so this won't be for everyone, but CL & Minzy really perform the hell out of it--they bring "Please Don't Go" some clarity, and it ends up a really addictive pop anthem! And that final chorus, when the vocals (the HARMONIES!!!) get to take center stage?? This song is a gem, truly.

Honorable Mentions: You & I (Park Bom solo), Hate You, Missing You, I am the best (obligatory), I Love You, Hello Bitches (CL solo), Spring (Park Bom & Dara), Lovely (Minzy solo) (there's also a Tagalog version of this one, which is so cool!)

[thessalian]

Thess vs the Proving Lab

Welp. That happened.

And here we are - what's left of HADES. I mean, I'm surprised there's anything left of HADES at all, honestly. But I guess Sylens doesn't have so much a concept of mercy.

HADES, you are a shitheel. I mean, the Derangement and the Mysterious Signal probably contributed to that, but I don't think getting mucked with by Travis Tate et al helped all that much.

So ... wait ... Sylens, are you seriously telling me you left HADES alive (insomuch as an AI is alive) specifically so you could keep your word way back when you said you'd give me the means to destroy it? ...Well, if I'm running around settlements that look like Dreamer's Terrace, I guess it's fitting that I've got Fae-wording bargains coming from this dipshit.

And now you give me a schematic to let me ignite firegleam. Only when it suits you. Ugh, fine, I'll go hunt Leaplashers. (I hate Leaplashers.)

Best way to deal with Leaplashers - from the next post code over.

"Story and Easy Mode: you do not have to shoot off the power cores--" Can I ... do it anyway?

Right. Firegleam ignited. In we go!

So ... there was no mechanic for just ... letting me swim there? Really?

We're really hammering home the parallels between Sobek and Aloy, aren't we. Also ... why can I not punch Travis Tate in the face? I mean, really, I want to punch him in his face.

.........Well, this wasn't what I was expecting the "We still have dozens of hours of gameplay to give you so we'll contrive a problem" to be, but I'll take it. This game really enjoys kicking one in the metaphorical balls.

Sylens ... these are unknown quantities trying to come through the door, and you're not tellng me nearly enough, but I've done enough reading to know that the little you say you know? Is complete bullshit.

Yeah, see? Though now I'm almost regretting having crunched that particular Focus because I want a very good, very solid, "I TOLD YOU SO" right now.

(Also, if she was carrying around a spare Focus - or several, given what she told Varl at the beginning - why did she not do that six months ago? Or even when she discovered what he did to HADES? She knew Sylens had spyware! If she wanted to keep getting answers from him, she shouldn't have destroyed the spyware-filled Focus; she should have shoved it in a belt pouch and used a different one - at least until she wanted to pry answers out of Sylens again.)

...What the fuck are you people wearing? Did you get all your ideas on future fashion from Star Trek: TOS? That's tacky as fuck, guys.

Except you, Mini-Me. ...I have a Mini-Me. Great. And someone really needs to give you some actual shoes. Your feet must be cold.

(Yes, I notice this shit.)

Okay, these are not the machines I know, and ... yeah, I read a review at some point that talked about the "new machines" and how disappointing their designs were, and ... I get what they mean now. Robots should not ooze.

"One is trouble enough". Oooooh, Sylens, I wish I'd left you eavesdropping. Just because of how much you fucking hate being wrong.

Oh, so your horrible blingy jumpsuit has a forcefield on it. So this is going to be the most annoying fight ever.

...I get Aloy wanted information, but why was there no option to just jump in the damn water and swim?!? Why did she have to play some demented version of Tag to crash an entire ... whatever that fucking thing was when it wasn't even going to hurt him?!?

So jumping puzzle plus oxygen management plus stealth out the ass. This has been the most annoying fucking thing ever and I hate it. Good thing I'm way better at stealth.

...Crippling by Cutscene. THANKS FOR THAT.

Ah. Hi, Varl. Guess you're feeling better. I personally feel like shit. But I'm going to Do The Thing anyway--

Okay, that's fucking clever. The Utaru name their settlements for music because they remembered the old "do-re-mi" scale-singing from their ancestors' Cradle teachings, and let it live on in the name of their "land-gods". And this is the first civilisation that actually acknowledges what the machines were supposed to do. Everyone else treats them as a hazard at best; the Utaru worked in concert with them. So ... basically it's the Utaru that have it right. Neat.

Yeah, go be with your girlfriend, Varl. I will stay put, I promise. If only because a) the cutscene wants me to and b) I don't want to be that much of a hypocrite given everything I've said to you and Erend over the last little while. Also, c) someone ought to have a romance option that isn't one throwaway bit in the DLC.

(YES I KIND OF WANT TO ROMANCE EREND SHUT UP.)

Aaaaaaaand my ribs are better. And little green exclamation mark. Hi, Xenophobe Lady.

...Aloy? Why could you not just explain to the Xenophobe Lady what a 'thrush' is?!? Maybe she'd stop being such a bitch!

Right. I know there's all this saving-the-world stuff (though I have to admit I'm a lot less jazzed about that when I'm fighting Futuristic Techno-Gods or whatever), but I'm going to take a break and then I am going to go and ignite every bit of Firegleam I have passed so far. It has been taunting me.

(No, seriously, Futuristic Techno-Gods who bring all of the mindsets of the Old World with them? I don't want this. I am in this game for seeing how civilisations might shape themselves outside of the influence of the Old Gods - this is speculative fiction at its finest! And now you're giving me Futuristic Techno-Gods who are, in point of fact, generations old? And where were they all this time?)

(...They were in space, weren't they. IF THIS GAME SENDS ME TO SPACE I AM GOING TO THROW IT OUT THE WINDOW. METAPHORICALLY.)

Right. Yes. Break. Then, Firegleam and hunting. I ... am weirdly less jazzed about this game now that we're bringing the Old World this far into it. There's still enough for me to love, but none of it's the main plot. It's getting space-opera convoluted here - more clones, advanced technology, people treating the civilisations that formed without APOLLO as lesser--

...Wait. If we have APOLLO and DEMETER and HADES and HEPHAESTUS ... why do we have MINERVA? Every single one of the subordinate functions, and even the rogue AI Nemesis, were named for Greek gods, so why didn't they go with ATHENA?

Anyway, we're going into a vaguely colonialist direction far beyond shit like the Carja being stuck-up about everything and I am not sure I like it. Also I want to punch Sylens in the face for effectively arming the rebel Tenakth. What does he gain from destabilising the region? More to the point, what do these Techno-God dipshits gain from it? They have to be helping with that shit somehow.

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "Wolves And A Door"/"A World Between Worlds"

Things get Force Weird as we approach the final stretch.

Live reaction version.

Right so I'm probably going to be cannibalizing some of my "Ezra Bridger as a thematic Chosen One in Star Wars Rebels and the messianic imagery of “A World Between Worlds”" essay because even though I still want to make that its own separate post someday, there's going to be things about these two episodes that I have to bring up and observations that will crossover with that essay when and if that finally gets finished.

I'm going to try to be very sparing with the caps too, because I've got two whole episodes to cover and ghksajhfkjahkjh there's way too much pretty to show off, I honestly don't know how I'm gonna do it guys.

I love that after the somber musical fog they put us through last episode they start us off with bouncy plinky pizzicato strings and Loth-cat cuteness. They were like, "Hey, we know things have been heavy lately and they're gonna be again, but in the meantime have kitties sitting on top of doggos and feel for a moment reassured that there is still goodness in the world."

Zeb's skepticism re. the wolves is a little silly given that they've already shown that they're intelligent sentient creatures.

Ezra's already showing signs of the serenity and dignity he takes on as de facto leader of the Lothal rebels. Hera actually kind of cedes that role to him, and Ryder has certainly already taken several steps back out of cynicism.

So it falls to Ezra to lead them, to plan out their attack strategies, to be their head.

He's matured so much I'm so proud of him.

The wolves are deeply connected to the Force, and to Lothal. Ezra is too. In a way, he's of their kind. And after accepting his task from them last episode they consider him officially part of the pack it seems, because they readily come to his call.

Ezra's unique ability to connect, once again an invaluable asset.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The tufts of grass that wobble as the wolves walk through them.

Ezra's favor with the wolves extends to the others, so they are all able to climb on board and hitch a Force-assisted ride back to the northern hemisphere where the Temple is.

Love this sequence. The pounding drums. The sound design. The slow phasing of the wolves into the ground and disappearing soundlessly into it, with just a whisper of wind in their wake.

I can't get over how the Loth-wolf visions keep going back to Kanan's "You want a ride?". Filoni has mentioned that Ezra's tuned into the "echoes" that are particularly relevant to him while inside the WBW and I guess the same must apply to the hyperspace wolves tunnels. It's fascinating, we've always taken hyperspace for granted but since it's part of the galaxy, it has to be part of the Force as well, so it makes perfect sense in a way that ancient Force guardians like the Loth-wolves, or creatures just intimately connected with the Force like the purrgil, can make their own hyperspace tunnels naturally, in order to pass through time and space.

"It surrounds us, it penetrates us, it binds the galaxy together."

Something I really love about the whole concept of the World Between Worlds is the idea that we're getting a rare glimpse at the inner structure of the Force itself, the tendons and strings connecting it together.

Anyway, sob with me about how the echoes end with Ezra's "There's just you and me." from "Siege of Lothal". It was just them, two flickering twin moons against the blackest night, holding back the darkness until sunrise.

And now it's just Ezra alone.

What I wouldn't give to know what they're talking about.

Frick his whole bearing is different. He's quieter, more somber. We blinked and he grew up, aged five years in a night.

We reach the Temple and it's as bad as we've feared, the Empire has set up all around it and the area bristles with lights and equipment. They've burrowed down to the foundations of the Temple, trying to pull up its secrets by the root, and they've wholecloth removed the familiar doors from it, leaving a gaping surface level hole.

The Temple itself has sealed itself tight, barring entry to the interlopers, and I LOVE the thematic fairy tale underpinnings of this.

There's a line in The Magician's Nephew, one of the Chronicles of Narnia and another strong influence on the show's writing and concepts, that goes like: "Come in by the gold gates or not at all, Take of my fruit for others or forbear, For those who steal or those who climb my wall, Shall find their heart’s desire and find despair."

This is another overarching myth archetype: Only The Worthy May Pass.

If your heart is true, and you ask permission, show the Threshold Guardian respect, walk humbly and seek the boon for others, it will be granted to you freely. But if you're selfish, if you lie and cheat and steal and trick your way in, brute force what you want and are arrogant, demanding the prize, you will receive your just reward. And you won't like it.

Think of the last Indiana Jones movie. Indiana Jones is the one that takes all the risk, makes the leap of faith to save his father, and is granted permission to use the Grail's healing powers. The Nazi-aligned academic rival who barged in with tanks and guns and wants to live forever using the Grail's powers, however?

Indiana Jones vibes are aaaaaaaallll over these whole two episodes by the way. The whole general feel of an archaeological adventure with an unexpected encounter with the divine, it's great.

I still think it's immensely clever that they used the recording of Thrawn to distract the Scout Troopers. Still hilariously convenient that one of them is female.

Even the music gets Indiana Jones-esque when Ezra and Sabine make it down into the hollow.

Hi Hydan!

I love him. He's such a good oneshot villain. Cordial and affably polite and yet my skin crawls whenever he threatens either Sabine or Ezra. He's another Thrawn archetype/parallel, he studies the mysteries of the Force in the hopes of understanding them, not for himself, but to grow the power of his Emperor. He plunders the wealth of the Lothal Temple not out of respect for it, but to dissect it for knowledge and power.

An absolutely seamless Mind Trick from Ezra here. So proud of him.

The matching "Oh crap!" expressions on their faces when they realize that's Emperor Freaking Palpatine on the other end of the line.

The Mortis arc is actually one of the few TCW arcs I watched in full. Sue me I love me some Force Weirdness. So it was quite a delight to see the Mortis gods returning as artistic archetypal representations of the aspects of the Force. The Light, the Dark, the Unifying/Cosmic Balance. (Even the Living Force is represented in the mural by the Loth-wolves.) Since we're exploring the very inner scaffolding of the Force itself these episodes, it made perfect sense to me to bring them back, and tie them into how the Lothal Temple operates.

Unsurprisingly the Emperor's leitmotif makes an appearance here. Palpatine already has extraordinary clairvoyent powers but they've become confused after Kanan's sacrifice. Kanan has altered the fate of Lothal somehow, and even Palpatine can't figure out why.

(Pssst, it's because the Force is actually working against you buddy, it's trying to restore proper balance.)

This moment was very mean and hurted in all the right ways.

"They'll be fine." "I used to always believe that." This hits right in the parental bone, ouch.

Harps and female vocals once again signifying the arcane mysteries of the Force.

And this is gorgeous.

Ezra and Sabine begin to puzzle out the meaning behind the mural, Ezra only able to identify the Loth-wolves and the green convor that liked to follow Ahsoka around. (We've still not been given an explanation for that one yet. The prevailing theory is that it's what left of the Daughter, acting as a spirit guide/guardian for Ahsoka.)

The golden pathways correspond to the paths and doorways inside the World Between Worlds and when they're aligned on the mural, the wolves awaken to form the portal that grants access. Only one who can channel the Light Side is able to unlock the mechanism to align the pathways, via connecting to the Daughter part of the mural.

This is one of the reasons why Palpatine needed to cheat to get inside. The other reason is that, per word of Filoni, the World Between Worlds is actually a bit choosy about who it lets inside.

Again, Only The Worthy May Pass. Ezra is connected to the Force and to Lothal, a native son of the planet, a Jedi, and he has the wolves' favor, so he is granted access.

Like Maul back on Malachor, Palpatine cannot open the door on his own.

Sabine does a pretty good job bluffing the Troopers that come to investigate her presence by the mural, buying Ezra enough time to connect to the Daughter and open the portal.

Ezra remembering Kanan's last words to him, the reminder to listen.

Rebels animation is gorgeous, I will hear no slander.

And this technique they developed to animate 2D images on top of a 3D CGI environmental surface was probably the same technology they used for mini Maui in Moana. Put to absolutely beautiful use, there's zero weird blending or edging at all, it just looks fully integrated and a natural part of the image.

Now, obviously the mural wolves need a clear space in order to form the portal but I also think they were drawing Ezra far enough away from the Stormtroopers that they wouldn't get to him in time. So that they couldn't stop him.

I'm actually reminded of a scene in Avatar: The Last Airbender (which Filoni also worked on), where Aang manages to slip in last minute through the giant door into the inner shrine that could only be opened by several Fire Sages working in tandem, and the way Roku--the previous Avatar before Aang, and a Firebender himself--seals the door behind Aang, so that even the Sages can't open the door anymore.

Ezra has a meeting with the Divine, and the Empire is not invited.

The score going full blast Indiana Jones mysticism, love it.

Like Thrawn, Hydan clocks Sabine as someone who doesn't belong there immediately, recognizing her from the incident before. The dig site is put on full alert and Troopers close in on Ezra, who's paralyzed for a moment, nervous to enter the portal.

Sabine yells for him to go.

And with determination and purpose, he does.

And the portal seals behind him.

Sabine's worry and fear. <3 Even though she told him to go, watching him literally disappear into a wall has to be frightening.

AND NOW FOR THE EXTRA FORCE WEIRD PART. :D

The World Between Worlds is a place where time and space have no meaning, because all time is present at once. Past, present, and future is all happening simultaneously inside the starvoid, which pulses with the whispers of those who have come before, and those who are yet to come. It's a liminal space, a space of transition, an "in-between" that is neither here nor there. @seleneisrising has an excellent series of posts comparing it to the Wood Between The Worlds, again from The Magician's Nephew, a seemingly endless wood with countless pools that represent different worlds one can enter and exit, if one has the proper travel implements (green and gold rings, in this case).

It is not time travel. Filoni and other writers make it very clear that you cannot, SHOULD NOT, actually use it for that purpose, because if you take something out of its proper time and space, things could go very very badly, and you could create a paradox that destroys time.

Ezra doesn't know this when he winds up pulling Ahsoka out of Malachor, but Ahsoka suspects--since she's been in this kind of Force Weird situation before--so that why she's immediately all, "Okay you have to put me exactly back where you found me." and declines to come with Ezra out his portal.

And that's also why Ezra can't save Kanan.

More on that later.

Our first series of echoes is about the Force, in general, and specific quotes apply to Ezra in particular, for the character journey he's going to complete inside this liminal space.

"Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose." "What you need you already have. Unfortunately, you seem to be letting it all go." "I won't let him lose his way. Not like I did."

The World Between Worlds is already warning him of the temptation that Palpatine will offer, first with Kanan, and then with his parents. Palpatine will dangle the idea of undoing his loss, reversing and cheating death, the same thing he offered Anakin, if he would only just lend Palpatine a little of his power, just a small favor, just open this door for me good lad, don't you want this?

It's a trap. A trick. A lie. There is no reversing death.

You cannot go back down into Hades.

The Force theme permeates this space, floating above our heads with the stars in the vast empty void. Obi-Wan pipes in, via voiceover, to explain what we're seeing, in essence, the very scaffolding and inner workings of the Force.

Meanwhile outside, the troopers are not gentle with Sabine. Hydan tries to make nice and she sasses him to hell and back, refusing to cooperate.

Sabine trying not to let her worry for Ezra show, when Hydan threatens that the Emperor will find him inside the World Between Worlds. <3

Vocal cameos from across the Star Wars canon as Ezra crosses the World Between Worlds. I know someone has identified all of them but I don't have the list at hand. Most of them aren't relevant to Ezra in any case.

Morai appears though, to help guide Ezra to the Malachor portal. I know it was suggested that Kanan helped orchestrate Ahsoka's rescue from beyond the grave, as some kind of "unfinished business" Kanan had yet to do before he fully pass on. Some people were confused why Kanan would want to do that, he was never particularly close to Ahsoka nor was he particularly as devastated by her apparent death. Not like Ezra.

I can accept that logic from the writers though, if it's Kanan trying to help Ezra finally assuage his guilt over Malachor, give him a chance to make things better. And give Ezra a Force Sensitive ally to help find him after everything is said and done.

Kanan knew he was going to die. Knew he couldn't be there for Ezra. So he arranged a way for there to be someone to look for and after Ezra after he was gone. He knew they would need Ahsoka's help.

My thoughts, anyway.

Ezra's quiet horror when the portal activates and shows him the tail end of the Malachor confrontation. :(

It is hilarious to think about how this must look to Vader and Ahsoka. On Vader's end he's swinging down and all of a sudden a hand comes out of a shimmering patch of air and just yoinks Ahsoka away into thin air and then the floor collapses under him and he just had to go back to Palpatine and explain all of that or else pretend that didn't happen, lol.

And then Ahsoka had to wake up in a weird place after fighting Vader and unpacking all of that My Master Is Evil trauma and then see an older Ezra in Stormtrooper armor, learn that Kanan was dead, help Ezra not break the universe, fight an apparition of the Emperor, and then run back to Malachor so she wouldn't break the universe either. Girl needs a damn nap after all that ha ha.

Sabine continuing to be super uncooperative with Hydan. He eventually loses patience and lets the Death Troopers smack her a bit. She's not badly hurt but the point comes across; she needs to play nice or else.

Ahsoka looks SO confused lol.

Vader echoes sound in the background, these ones attuned to Ahsoka, responding to the revelations she has just had about Vader's true identity. As well as an echo from the Daughter, when Ahsoka notices Morai.

(This resonates with what Filoni says about the World Between Worlds in a recent interview, that it attunes to whoever is currently inside, or the person inside only truly hears echoes that are relevant to them, the rest may as well be static and noise, incomprehensible.)

Ahsoka's the one who suggests Kanan's spirit is lingering, trying to guide and teach Ezra one last time from beyond the grave, through the manifestation of the Dume wolf, and yeah, it tracks. I kind of like the notion that Kanan clung to himself just long enough to make sure Ezra was okay before he let himself move on and dissipate into the ether.

Ezra latches onto the idea that Kanan meant for him to save Ahsoka, and then tracks that thought straight into "I can prevent Kanan's death too."

But it's not the same.

Ahsoka knows she has to go back through her portal and return to the time she left, sooner rather than later in order to prevent any kind of paradoxical damage to the timeline. But she can't leave the grieving Ezra in limbo and so she rushes after him to hold back his hand.

Once again, "You want a ride?" echoes, the moment Kanan first offered his hand and help to Ezra, which must be so intimately imprinted on him that it's what he always first hears.

"You can learn what it truly means to be a Jedi." And he's about to, Kanan, believe me.

Ezra's theme plays here. It doesn't complete, never making it to the second stanza. Ezra's not thinking straight. His words echo Anakin's, "I can stop people from dying!" He's too wrapped up in his grief. He's trying once again to reach for power that isn't his to grasp, in order to stop loss from happening to him.

He is attached.

Attachment in the Star Wars universe has a very specific connotation. It has never meant love, or relationships, friendships, other people, cherished places or things. It is all about one's own mindset when relating to those things. Jedi are supposed to love everyone, selflessly. But they are supposed to understand that nothing lasts forever. Things die, people move in and out of your life, the change happens and you can't stop it "Any more than you can stop the twin suns from setting." Shmi says. Children grow up and leave home. Being a Jedi, being balanced in the Force, means you accept the transitory nature of things and let go of your fear of loss.

Because fear leads to the Dark Side. Being afraid of loss, of being without the things important to you, makes you angry at what might try to take those things. Which makes you jealous, clingy. Greedy. Makes you grasp tighter. Makes you desperate. Makes you seek for the power to keep those things with you. And there the Dark Side is, calling to you, offering you that power. Promising to help you keep those things you want.

But it's a trap. The Dark Side will consume you. It will not help you save what you fear to lose, it will instead demand their sacrifice. The desire for power will overtake everything else, every other noble intention or motivation you had. What you intended to save you will no longer care about. The Dark Side will be all there is.

So you must let go of the things you fear to lose. Let go of that fear, and it will have no power over you. Accept the loss, and do not grasp for the power to break reality, to cheat the natural order, just to spare yourself the pain of not having that thing or person in your life.

Because you cannot go back down into Hades.

You cannot turn back time. You cannot undo death.

"You can't save your master," Ahsoka tells him, so so gently because she knows how hard this is. "And I can't save mine," she accepts.

And so Ezra looks at the portal, everything in him screaming in grief. And Ezra, who has abandonment issues and so much of his own worth and validation wrapped up in Kanan--"Kanan believes I can."--who thinks of Kanan as more a father than a teacher, who is still at heart a lost little boy who misses his parents... does one of the hardest and bravest things ever required of him.

He drops his hand, and turns his eyes, and lets go.

He faces the grief and loss head on, and accepts it. Doesn't let it master him.

And thwarts Palpatine one moment more.

Because the image of Kanan was not actually him. The Dark Side will never actually keep its promises. Or it will fulfill them in a way that makes it not matter. It all consuming, always hungry, never satisfied, and it will suck you dry.

The portal Ezra was tempted by leads straight to Palpatine. Who reveals himself like a cackling demon, shrouded and surrounded by blue flames.

Yikes.

Outside, Hera and Zeb are preparing to spring Sabine free of Hydan's "company", though not before she learns the way to seal the portal again.

The lovely dichotomy of "Sabine will know."/"He's on his way." is great BTW, they have so much faith and trust in each other.

Sabine's cheeky little, "Sorry about the mess." :)

I am fairly certain, though I can't find the post from Celebration that talked about it in overview, that Dave et all recycled several ideas from the planned Season 7 arcs for TCW into Rebels. This fight I'm sure was one of them, I remember something about fighting Palpatine in the basement of the Jedi Temple, where the nexus is.

Full male chorus for this moment, love it.

Palpatine won't give up so easily. He still needs to piggyback off Ezra's permission, because the Temple accepted Ezra and rejected him. If he cannot trick Ezra into being his anchor, he will simply attempt to latch onto him from the other side by force, through Sith sorcery.

YEAH NO THAT'S TERRIFYING.

Also fanficcers once again have let me down, I need way more Bad End AUs to this scene than just the one I wrote.

"When you get back, come and find me!" An obligation yet to be fulfilled. Hopefully the Ahsoka show will finish this out. *fingers crossed*

Ahsoka runs back off into the shot where her back was to the camera from "Twilight of the Apprentice" and Ezra escapes, to Palpatine's severe annoyance I'm sure. I would not want to be in the room when that happened, lemme just tell ya lol.

OH HEY HERE'S MY FAVORITE NO CONTEXT SIGNATURE SCENE. :D

There's so many things about this scene that I love. Sabine grabbing Ezra's arm to help him up. Zeb practically holding Ezra to him as they run, giving him cover from the blaster fire. Chopper's Big Damn Heroes moment as he drives a freaking drill (one he was eyeing earlier) into the crowd of Stormtroopers.

DEAN KINER'S EXCELLENT "THE TEMPLE COLLAPSES" MUSIC CUE WHICH IS OF COURSE MY FAVORITE OF THE WHOLE SOUNDTRACK.

Ezra looking immediately to Sabine to tell him which one to activate, because he trusts she's figured it out. Zeb helping lift him high enough to reach.

Ezra connecting to the Son, the score piping in with piano to signify the Force usage. Maybe Ezra is having to call upon the Dark Side, maybe he is just making a connection, but either way it's harder than it was with the Daughter. Takes more effort. He collapses immediately into Zeb's arms right after.

But look at Ezra’s expression:

The way his lips and eyes pinch, how his face tightens.  The minute tremble in his lip. It’s not anger or fear or passion he’s channeling here.

It’s grief.

Ezra falls unconscious into a Pietà pose (more on that in the messianic imagery post) and looks incredibly small here in Zeb's arms. This is such a soft moment and it's so sweet, I love it.

The mural turns crimson red and the Temple begins to seal and collapse. Removing itself from the physical plane of existence entirely, to deny Palpatine access.

Our heroes flee, Hydan perishes, the most gorgeous animation of the show splashes across the screen as the wolves return to their place, the Daughter and Son descend, and the Father claps his hands and sinks the Temple.

Ezra is barely conscious the whole time, a lot having been taken out of him. It's similar to how he collapsed in "Gathering Forces" and "Vision of Hope" and "Holocrons of Fate", too much Force energy exhausts him. As he fades out, Kanan's voice calls out from the white light.

"The Force will be with you, always."

By implication, "I'll be with you Ezra. I'm alive inside of you now."

And then all that's left is to say one last goodbye to Kanan, across the glasslike surface of the plain where the Temple once stood, into the rising light of dawn and the fading footsteps of the white Loth-wolf.

Kanan's theme plays us out over the credits.

These two episodes contextualize, and re-contextualize SO much about the overall story. Finally we know what Ezra was meant to do, what made him so special that the Force chose him, not as the Chosen One, but as a Chosen One, with a specific destiny and purpose that he needed to fulfill.

A child of Lothal, tested and found worthy by the wolves, who was already blessed by the Jedi Temple before. Favored by the Force to enter into its innermost sanctum to protect it from those who would desecrate it, twist it to their own purposes.

Ezra's narrative importance to the overall Star Wars saga becomes immensely clear. His character development is complete, and he now has the strength to stand against Palpatine's temptations, and the bravery to make the ultimate sacrifice for his planet and people. One whose results he won't even be able to see.

Just like Kanan did. Kanan's last lesson--To love unselfishly and give of yourself, even if means losing what you hold dear, simply because it is right and you are needed--will be Ezra's final act as well. And it took being asked to let go and accept Kanan's death for him to understand.

These episodes are beautiful in theme and message. The World Between Worlds is a fascinating perfect addition to Star Wars lore. The character work is fantastic and I can even pardon the clear favoritism in managing to bring Ahsoka back. I love these episodes so so much, they're my absolute favorites of the whole show.

We're almost done my loves, let's watch Ezra's character development pay off next time. :)

[heresmyfiddlestick]

i long for the days of shot-by-shot breakdowns of any new trailer, and since im not on twitter (where this has undeniably already happened) im doing it myself here

why is nobody talking about hebe harrison

so the trailer starts with a silly mini trailer. we'll see all of these shots later on and i'll talk about them more then. tenteen looks around bewildered (best guess: special #1 The Star Beast

donna surrenders (best guess: special #2 Wild Blue Yonder)

avengers tower/UNIT flies the tardis around on a helicopter (an anniversary tradition? (best guess: special #3 The Giggle)

explosions in a front hallway (best guess: special #1 The Star Beast)

peekaboo (best guess: special #1 The Star Beast - we'll get to why later)

and then the title card.

we start, in earnest, with a stock footage shot of London at night, which RTD has made reference to in recent DWMs. this is the opening shot of special #1 The Star Beast

then we get Donna, talking to her mum, "Sometimes I think there's something missing. Like I had something lovely..." - this is clearly immediately post-End of Time Donna, no memories of her travels with the Doctor, so special #1 The Star Beast

intercut with the Doctor snooping around a busted up, industrial area. importantly, he's alone. without knowing exactly how Liberation of the Daleks is going to end, i think it's safe to assume the guy is travelling alone at the start of these specials, so this shot (and the ones that follow) is from special #1 The Star Beast

Donna continues, "... and it's gone." over a shot of her with different hair and top. the colours look close enough to the other Star Beast shots to have me think this is the same episode, but it's tough to say. it also seems like the trailer is going chronologically, which would mean this is from special #1. the music, voiceover, and her *emphatic blink* might indicate this is *the moment she remembers* but with that i'll cease putting on my clown makeup.

back to Donna in the kitchen, "I lie in bed thinking... what have I lost?" intercut with this creepazoid, who is definitely investigating Beep the Meep's spaceship construction. this is probably the same sequence as the jumping-through-the-hole shot above. this is where we get our peekaboo shot again. buddy is definitely looking at a nasty Meep warship being constructed. jury is still out on whether he remembers this exact thing happening back when he had curls and a scarf...

switch POV, time for Tenteen's Story. this is all for sure still in special #1 The Star Beast. he lands the tardis (i share RTD's enthusiasm that it's 13's exterior!!!) and jolts out of it (unexpected landing? does he recognize Beep's distress signal? is he thinking about all the melty daleks he just left behind?)

he begins to infodump (to whom?), "I've got this friend, Donna Noble..." and we get these two complementary shots: Dr. Who turns somewhat tentatively toward a stack of boxes, and Donna and Rose are in the same area, carrying boxes (shopping? moving? looks like rolls of tissue paper and bubble wrap in Donna's box) - for consistency's sake, i note this is all still part of special #1 The Star Beast

("I had to wipe her memory to save her life") as if the infodump wasn't enough, we have some shots of ten, the parthenogenesis, DoctorDonna, and one of the worst things to ever happen on this show. in case you forgot... (i wonder if and sincerely hope that we don't get these flashbacks in the episode itself)

and now we get context for where and to whom Tenteen is saying all this: he's sitting, wearing a new version of ten's "brainy specs" (can you hear me rolling my eyes?), saying, "if she remembers me, she will die" to...

HEBE HARRISON!

Hebe is a companion of the Sixth Doctor, whose adventures have hitherto only been on audio with Big Finish, and whose departure from the tardis has not yet been described (as far as i know), since stories with her only began to be published in May 2022. she's a 21st-century lady, though. she is also (according to the Tardis Wiki) the first companion that uses a wheelchair. this is very exciting for me (big finish brain rot) though i have not listened to any of Hebe's stories. Hebe was on the tardis with Mel too, which may be a fun coincidence or very relevant for next series!

what does Hebe think of this Doctor who is so much older and very different to the one she travelled with? how did they even meet up? where the heck are they? idk but im downloading Water Worlds right now

okay moving on

Doctor: "So what happens next? A spaceship crashes right in front of her, it's like she's drawing us in" over shots of that same busy market from before, Rose looking excited, and the Meep's spaceship burning through the atmosphere over a WeWork. I'll also note that the Doctor says "drawing *us* in" - meaning Hebe and him? is there some cosmic stuff happening to throw companions, Doctors, and other aliens in front of Donna's path to revive the DoctorDonna? who would do that? why? what's clear from this dialogue is that the conversation with Hebe takes place after the scene in the market with the spaceship crash landing. if i' m right about the snooping scenes' place in the original comic's narrative, they'll come after the Wrarth Warrior fight below

(Beep: "ah!" Donna: "what the hell?!") Donna discovers Beep the Meep hiding among (Rose's?) stuffed animals in their shed. i have to say i like the decision to make Beep's fur white, though personally the blue fur colour is what i think of when i think of The Most High

Tenteen in a residential neighbourhood with soldiers nearby (this is the first shot in the trailer of the Wrarth Warrior battle). is the Doc with the soldiers? is he following the Wrarth on his own? i'm curious to see how they adapt the comic story, since it seems like Rose follows a bit of a different path than Sharon

namely because her mum seems to find out about the Meep before the Doctor does (Donna: "we've got a bloody martian in the shed!")

cont in a reblog

[bzedan]

We watched Civil War early on in the month and although some of the camera stuff wasn't on (watching any photography-focused movie with a person who was a photojournalist for over a decade, when oneself also has decades of photography experience is like watching VH1 Pop Up Video) the music was a fun mix, and reminded me how much I love the band Suicide, and the use of 'Rocket USA' was solid.

Speaking of music from movies, 'Sara Loves Her Juicy Fruit' has been on my monthly playlists before and is from Creep 2. It came up naturally in a suggested playlist and I dug it and couldn't figure out why more of this "Albert Natural" band wasn't out there then learned it was just a movie-only song very much riffing on like, Phish (though my partner clarifies it really is more in the style of Umphrey's McGee).

Realising there are a lot of covers in this one.

Related media to some of the songs:

We all know 'Baker Street' but have you heard the demo, which has guitar in place of sax? It's got a different, but also very good, vibe. Not as sad, more dreamy, I guess?

The_miracle_aligner overall has many classic language covers of songs that bop, but this cover of 'All Star' also I think is one of those covers that helps underline how genuinely a bop a song is. I've linked the orchestral version by Eric E. Britt before, I'm sure.

Hey, you know how I first heard The Polyphonic Spree? In a flash game called The Quest For The Rest, by Amanita Design. The first scene of it is thankfully archived on Archive dot org, and it was so wild to play it um, literally 20 years later.

Anyway here's a link to August's playlist on Spotify, with the track list below the cut.

And embedded, if you like that:

'A Message to You Rudy - 2015 Remaster' - The Specials

'Come On Let's Go' - Broadcast

'King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 1' - Neutral Milk Hotel

'Owner of a Lonely Heart' - Yes

'Everybody's Gotta Live' - Love

'Sara Loves Her Juicy Fruit' - Albert Natural

'Treat Me Right' - Norma Tanega

'Bone' - King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

'Hopscotch' - Pinc Louds

'The Secret To Life' - FIZZ

'Pure' - The Lightning Seeds

'All Star in Classical Latin' - The_miracle_aligner

'A Beautiful Morning - Single Version' - The Rascals

'Baker Street' - Gerry Rafferty

'This Is Gonna Hurt' - Dirty Nice

'Water Underground' - Real Estate

'Repetition Kills You' - The Black Ghosts

'Section 12 - Hold Me Now' - The Polyphonic Spree

'Black Hole Sun' - Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox

'Hold Me Closer' - Elton John

'Happiness' - Lovequest

'f*ckthat' - IAN SWEET

'Wicked Game' - Giant Drag

'Picture Book - 2018 Stereo Remaster' - The Kinks

'I Will Walk You Home' - Melanie

'Jubilation' - Norma Tanega

'Bark Like a God' - Sloppy Jane

'Night Life' - Scissor Sisters

'Heart And Soul' - Huey Lewis & The News

'Red Wine Supernova' - Skatune Network

'Still Be Friends' - Boy Jr.

'The Water' - Indigo De Souza

'On My Mind' - Sun City

'Rocket USA (2019 - Remaster)' - Suicide

[cidthesquid]

Style Savvy Sunday | Style Savvy : Styling Star #04

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Welcome back, I hope you're all doing well As you can see I've now added a navigation header, hopefully this is may it easier for new people to get caught up on my journey though the games. Anyway, here's today's outfit:

Alright, So we've reached a new day, and it looks like the florist just opened.

So let's go check it out!

It looks like they're not open yet, but for now I'll assume it will be an expanded version of the flower stall from 'Trendsetters' where they act as decoration.

The next thing I did was stock up on new clothes, I always seem to be running low, on stock and money, despite hardly ever buying things in bulk.

(maybe it's because I buy too much without considering how it will be used.) Alright, well back to the shop! It looks like Jo is back,

It looks like she's decided to start the music club herself! and she needs our help. But before she can tell us more, she dives to find a place to hide as her brother shows up:

It appears he does not care for her taste in music or lifestyle, They drop some hints about a style he is needs for a client, (baby doll) As well as a favorite style of his (gothic) and then run off to try to find Jo. After he leaves, Jo returns from hiding and informs us that her brother in rich and in charge of the family business and finances, mentioning that he could easily fund the club:

She goes on to mention that they were formerly close, but after some undisclosed event, they seem to be fairly distant recently. She later mentions that one point of contention is how her brother gets upset that she won't dress in a more professional manner, when working on her own business ventures. So her request, is that we help finder her an outfit so she can approach him at a social event to seek his support with her club. (seems easy enough) Next, we get a visit from Niamh, asking what brand we should open next.

This is similar to how progression has worked in previous games, however we only get two choices at the start Marble Lilly (baby doll) and Raven Candle (Gothic). So it's directly tied to the previous event. (very cool!) And much like the previous event with Rosie where we got to pick a style for her, it looks like this may be our style choice for the Jo's event. ( I went with Raven Candle, I just love working with their clothes!) And that was all the customers for today, so time to close up shop, and get some sleep:

(I just noticed how much I shift perspectives when writing this, it probably sounds a bit odd to read, let me know if it gets too weird) So today I spent a ton of money, and did not get any back, But that's fine.

Also it looks like the daily recap screen will show the last photo you took that day! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- And the next day Rosie returns to the shop:

She mentions that she wants to become a popstar! (maybe I should have picked the other style choice for her.. oh well)

Anyways she mentions that she's already got an audition lined up at Nin10, and wants up to come up with an outfit for her, (Still in the rock style) I wish I had the funds to restock, but I'm pretty happy with how this turned out:

Again, I did not have a ton to work with, but I really like how the neon tank top paired with the sleaved inner! Aside from the clashing patterns, (contrast-wise) I think the overall top design looks nice!

She was not as impressed, I think the tights being from a different style may have been too much. Well I guess I help some other customers to get funds so I can better complete the look. It looks like there's a new customer request type now:

You still get the 'wait, while I restock' option, but you only have one shot to impress them! (Not a big deal for me, I always just say "Try it on!", haha)

I don't have any 'rock' trousers in red at this time. Hopefully she's okay with going with 'bold' instead...

And yup, it worked, out! Bold and rock generally crossover well. Ok, next up:

I think this would have looked better without the black inner, But hey, it's an extra 40 bucks! It doesn't ruin the look!

I helped a few more customers, but as soon as the in game time trued to 'night' the rest vanished. So I'm guessing your workload functions based on the time of day. Each major time shift adds new customers, and they leave at night. A start contrast to previous entries, but it adds rhythm that keep the player manually progressing the days.

--- Alright, new day, new customers,

Sadly, Rosie has not returned yet, So lets work on others:

The glasses looked a little goofy on the mannequin, but I think they turned out okay!

...This lady really just walked into my rock themed boutique to buy... Socks?

I guess she really liked them? haha. Anyways, with that I used up all my customers for the time slot. So for now I'll just restock my inventory to prep for Rosie's return. But I think we'll save that for next time! --- Alright, so my opinion on this game just keeps improving! The customer limit is a little odd, but it keeps the game flowing at a steady pace. I'm still a little saddened by the extreme lack of town NPC's to talk to, But there are a lot more important character already, and they're hugely more developed than any of the characters in the previous games. So you're really just trading off tons of tiny 'fluff' conversations, for a lower number of more impactful ones. The achievement tracker (awards) is a nice addition too:

It gives you dozens of different changes to aim for, and even notes down when they were completed. So yeah, lots of nice changes, and I had a lot of fun playing. I don't really have any specific personal connections to note down. But I've noticed a few positive changes in my personal life overall, So, it looks like a few things are generally headed in a good direction. But there's still a ton I needed to define for myself, and get sorted out But I'm glad I have a positive creative outlet with this blog, Writing post, and seeing your likes & comments has been really nice! So yeah, thanks for reading, Until next time!

<Next Post> ---- As always, all comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome! (I'm also looking for feedback on this new style, how's the formatting?)

You literally can't bother me, (unless you go out of your way to be a jerk), so post whatever you need to say!

[kai-anderson-whore]

He's a cult leader (part 7) (kai Anderson x fem reader)

Summary:y/n moved back to Michigan after her college degree in music where she reunites with an old lover kai Anderson

Chapter warnings: planning of a murder and terror to ally, apart from that it's mostly fluff we get soft kai today 😊🥰

Part 6 here

•¤❅¤•.•°˚˚°•..•°˚˚°•.•¤❅¤•.•¤❅¤•.•°˚˚°•. .•°˚˚°

As the weeks progressed kai was a step closer to winning, it was one of the last meetings before everyone finds out who wins, you sat on the chair of the room where the meeting was held as kai rambled on about the changes he will make.

You got dragged here for your support, which was listening to what he has to say then once that's over doing whatever we need to do to put the fear of God in Michigan which was killing people and tormenting ally Mayfair Richards, that's when Sally keffler announced that she will also be running for senator even thought it was a bit too late to do so.

You glanced at kai noticing his cool demeanour but you can tell in his eyes he was pissed, but you didn't care all you could think about was getting out here for a cigarette, as for you and kai, you kept telling yourself that it was over but by the end of every argument you both would have you'd end up in his bed again which made you give up on lying to yourself.

You would purposely tease him when the cult members were around, which led you both having sex upstairs whilst everyone was downstairs especially Meadow, knowing it would hurt her that it wasn't her up there getting railed by kai.

After the meeting you and kai went outside the rest of the cult that came following you both, you fished out your cigarette packet from your jacket, pulling out the stick placing it between your teeth, lighting it up taking a drag, Sighing at the relief it gave you.

Kai walked by yourside to the car, "we need to pay her a little visit" kai said fir only you two hear, "she's fucking up the whole plan" you replied getting in your car turning the engine on cigarette still in hand rolling your window down smoking while you drove.

The aux in your phone since the radio was boring, 'Sunday bloody Sunday' by u2 playing you sang along not paying attention to kai who was staring at you, his mind racing at how pretty you looked making plans about your future that you didn't know of.

"Sunday bloody sunday" you hummed along to the song your fingers tapping the steering wheel, "Hey pull over to the store for a minute" kai said, you nodded pulling over to the store, "what are you going in there for?" You asked.

"Just need to get a few things that's all" he said getting out the car and into the store, you pulled out your phone flicking through your playlist putting on 'when the stars go blue' the corrs and bono from u2 version, you sang along to the melody waiting for kai.

He finally walked out the store a bag with items inside, you wondered what he had bought as he entered your car, "What's in the bag" you asked intrigued on what he had purchased, "it's a secret" he said you smirked holding your pinky up.

"No I'm not doing pinky power" he said, "boring" you teased driving back to kai's house, once you had arrived you both got out the car locking it, kai was first to enter the house with the mystery bag in hand you followed locking the door behind you, "now can I know what's in the bag?" You asked the anticipation eating you up.

"Fine since your so impatient" kai sighed with a smile, "you have one cheek to talk" you replied with a joking scoff even though it was true you and kai are inpatient, he told you to close your eyes as he pulled each item out the bag, "okay open".

You opened your eyes to find sweets and treats from popcorn, chocolate, candy, potato chips, and face masks ect, "What's all this?" You asked scanning the products, "I've been an asshole to you and you've been by my side through everything when I was in the hospital and looked after your divine ruler so I wanted to treat you to a movie night like we used to do" he shrugged.

"Oh kai" you smiled kai never really did nice thing apart from your birthday that's the only time but that came with a cost, you wrapped your arms around his neck thanking him, "you better do a face mask with me" you said making kai chuckle "I'll think about it".

You didn't know what came over kai for him to be kind he wasn't kind not the way he used to be, you still love him, the good, the bad and the ugly you always cherish the moments with him even though you weren't back together now.

"We'll have a meeting early today then tonight is your night sound good?" He asked as you went to get a glass of water, "sounds great kai thank you" you smiled which kai returned, a genuine smile, it made your heart flutter that's one of the thing you love about him his smile it was rare to see it now.

A few hours later the rest of the cult came for the meeting, everyone gathered around, you stood by kai's side   going over the plan, "we kill Sally tomorrow night Meadow I need you to go to ally and pretend your going to be killed by us, and Meadow you baby sitting but when Meadow comes you flee" kai instructed as everyone listened.

You wanted this to be over with you felt excited for after the meeting to spend time with kai alone be normal for once,  you missed it like a lot of things you missed about kai.

After the meeting everyone left leaving you and kai to do what he had planned for you both, "will you do a face mask please kai you owe me it" you said with puppy eyes kai couldn't say no when you made those eyes at him, he always grew weak at the knees for you.

"Fine then" he chuckled you beamed grabbing the face masks and skin care products, also the treats, "put music on" you said your hands full with items.

"What song do you want on?" He asked flicking YouTube on the tv, "play johanna by Bobby mackie" you requested setting the products on the sofa pulling the table closer to you both setting everything on it.

The song played the guitar riff at the start before going on to an acoustic guitar, "where did you here this?" Kai asked.

"There's actually a cool backstory behind the song" you started, "so the singer bobby mackie owns this place names after him and it's actually haunted with all sorts of shit, and johanna is one of the spirits that haunt the place there's also a devil's portal I'm sure were back in the olden days the did rituals I saw it on ghost adventures" you ranted kai listened then scoffed.

"You don't believe that shit do you?" He asked you shrugged "I don't know but I think her story is so romeo and Juliet she was a real person I kinda want to visit there someday seems cool" you replied.

"It is a cool song I guess" he said as you opened the cleansing water pouring some on a cotton pad, "here wipe your face with that" you informed doing the same with your own.

"Now put the face mask on" you said giving him the sheet face mask, "why is it so cold" he shrieked making you laugh "because it helps with depuffing the face" you informed.

"I can't believe I'm doing this" kai chucked leaning his head back relaxing letting the face mask work it's magic you did the same, after munching on some candy.

"Well because you owe me and plus who doesn't want to spend time with me I'm awesome" you smirked making kai glance at you rolling his eyes, "guess your right" he replied.

"Anyway what's with all this there's a reason behind it- not that I'm complaining it makes a change from arguing then fucking" you asked, "well I want you back as my other half I know I've done what I did and I promised you but y/n I don't beg but right now I'm begging take me back" he said.

"Fine but on my terms, no more fucking Meadow or anyone else if we're together it's you and me" you stated kai nodded, "can I take this off now" he then asked making you giggle, "yes".

The next morning you woke up feeling kai's arm around you holding you close to him like you will slip away at any given moment, it made your heart flutter.

You felt soft lips on your shoulder from kai, "morning" you smiled turning to face him, "a very good morning" he smiled back his arm still draped over you, "you ready for tonigh?" He asked you just nodded still half asleep.

"Kai erm Meadow wants to talk to you she's downstairs" winter said the door was already open, you felt mad that she wants to talk to kai, even though it could purely be about the cult, "tell her I'll be down in a minute" he replied.

He let out a sigh turning back to you, "wanna come with?" He asked you nodded getting out the bed and downs in only one of his sweaters, kai in his grey sweatpants, Meadow was in the kitchen waiting on kai hoping it was just him.

"Meadow what can we do for you" you asked first one into the kitchen pouring yourself a coffee, "I wanted to speak to kai alone" she bitterly said, "whatever you need to say you can say it here" kai shrugged as you handed him a cup of coffee, he placed a lingering his on your lips his hand resting on your ass.

"Thank you" he mouthed taking a sip of the beverage, "I don't think the plan will work kai" she sighed you let out a scoff, "what do you mean it won't work of course it will your divine ruler thinks everything through" you said sitting on the island of the kitchen, "fine" she huffed leaving the house.

"She didn't come all the way over here just to say that" you said looking over at kai, "nah she didn't but she looked upset when I kissed you" he smirked moving closer to you, "really?" You giggled, "uh huh" kai placed a kiss on your lips only to turn into a heavy makeout session.

"I really do love you" he mumbled against your soft lips, "I love me too" you grinned teasing him, "Oh really then I guess I'll fuck the love back into you" he stated picking you up and on to the living room sofa.

[cchickki]

"About the Blogger" Meme

Thanks for tagging me @currymanganese! ❤️ sorry i'm doing this super late ugh

Star Sign(s):

virgo sun, pisces moon, capricorn rising (i can list my entire chart if anyone is interested lol)

Favorite Holidays:

i'm not religious but i absolutely love christmas. my favorite time of year and favorite holiday. i get depressed whenever it's over and i have to take the decorations down.

Last Meal:

i think a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. i was craving it lol

Current Favorite Musician:

lana del rey and kendrick lamar! i listen to a lot of music and all different genres, but those are my go to. there's something about fantastic writing/wordplay and production across both of their genres that just inspires me and transports me to a different place when i listen.

if anyone is interested, my spotify profile is here: (x)

When the Tigers Broke Free by Pink Floyd

The Wall is one of my favorite albums!

Last Movie Watched:

Everything Everywhere All At Once

i'm so glad i finally got to watch this movie, it was incredible. although watching it with my boomer dad at parts was awkward (aka the butt plug part lmaoooo)

Last TV Show Watched:

oh man, still trying to finish Succession, my husband is dragging his feet with it even though we both are enjoying it. finished The Boys almost 2 months ago, need to start Gen V soon. i'm bad at finishing shows, unless they're mini series.

Last Book/Fic Finished:

i recently reread Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas, the prequel to The Hate U Give. i haven't finished any of my fics in awhile, except for the two mini requests from my friend @chrissymodi-frost.

Last Book/Fic Abandoned:

oh boy... i've got quite a few i'm struggling to get through... just look at my ao3 and you can see how bad my writer's block has gotten lately :(

Currently Reading:

rereading The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas <3

Last Thing Researched for Art/Writing/Hyperfixation:

i graduated in may 2023 with my art history degree, so i was deep into ancient egyptian history and art, and had to write a hefty 20 page paper on german painter Albrecht Dürer. my most recent hyperfixation was the uncharted games again, so while writing i was researching the Hoysala empire

Favorite Online Fandom Memory:

first joining tumblr and meeting so many friends on here. but i'll tell you back in 2013 when the citadel dlc for mass effect launched, that was an incredible build up and very fun few months.

Favorite Old Fandom You Wish Would Drag You Back In/Have A Resurgence:

not really an "old" fandom, but i was HEAVY into spiderverse over the summer, met some great mutuals through it. i still spiderverse, but don't feel as fixated with it at the moment. the fandom was kind of annoying with some people's think pieces, not gonna lie, and kind of turned a few of us off from it. i'm sure it'll have another "resurgence" when the next movie Beyond the Spiderverse comes out!

Favorite Thing You Enjoy That Never Had an Active or Big "Fandom" but You Wish It Did:

most recently the movie The Creator! movie was so visually stunning, with great/powerful themes, and one of my favorite tropes: found family (kinda) with a father/daughter dynamic. not enough people liked it/saw it which sucks, so the fandom is pretty much non existent for it. i want more art and fanfics from it! i'm going to be buying it soon, that way i can get inspirited and hopefully create more for it!

Tempting Project You're Trying to Reign In/Don't Have Time For:

i was working on creating a real-life version of nate's notebook from uncharted 4. it's taking a lot of time, and is quite an undertaking so i had to take a break from it. i do want to continue it though!

no pressure tags (sorry if you were already tagged!): @mothertodaughters, @chrissymodi-frost. @malabadspice, @not-those-kids, @durrtydawg, @lilylavender, @lilsnatch, @libertatias, @xinamiguel, @georgieluz, @distantsonata, @soft-girl-musings (and anyone else who wants to! sorry i'm trying to remember all my moots tumblr names)

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Hello! I would like to ask what you think happened to the lives of Ámbar and Simón at the end of the series. Specifically even after several years. I just saw a video on tiktok about this topic, where it was said that Simón would be a singer, and Ámbar would basically just be a "housewife". It wasn't said exactly like that, but it gets the point across. I always thought that Ámbar would also have followed her singing career like Simón, or she would have focused more on skating, or she would have become the CEO of some company, rather her own company. You understand, right? I don't know if I'm explaining it the way I want 😅 It just seems to me that people from the fandom completely underestimate her abilities and I'd like to see what direction she decided to go in your opinion.

I'd also like to ask if you think Ámbar went back to work at Jam & Roller in the series, because after they fired her and she got the document plates back, it wasn't said if they gave her back or not. Anyway, I love your stories and can't wait for the new version of Cruel Summer chapter 4 💕 I wish you a lot of strength and energy, and above all, don't overwork yourself and rest 💗

Okay, anyone who says Ámbar would just be a housewife deserves jail. Like, sorry not sorry, but we did not watch the same show if that's what you think my girl is doing years from now. Actually, I think Ámbar Smith would be insulted by the notion. Like, what the hell do you mean the man is out there taking over the world with music while she's staying home all day taking care of the kids or whatever-- What 1950s male fantasy trash book did you take that idea from?

Don't take me wrong, Ámbar would 100% want to be involved in the life of her children, if she had any, because she would not want to be a neglectful mother like Sharon was to her-- But there are other options, okay? Not just housewife. Especially because the girl is rich, and, if the Roller Band is doing good (or Simón went solo or whatever) he is also rich, so neither of them need to be home all day taking care of everything, they can pay someone else to do so.

"or she would have become the CEO of some company, rather her own company. You understand, right?" EXACLTY. Like, I'm gonna be honest, I don't know what exactly Ámbar would be doing in the future job-wise, mostly because I don't think she even knew by the end of the series, so how am I supposed to know? But, I do know 100% that she would want to do something of her life, and something big. I don't think music was her dream, so I would scratch that, not because she couldn't, because of course she could've been a star, I mean, she ticked all the boxes, but simply because I get the feeling she loved more the attention that she got from her performances than the craft itself as Simón does.

As for rollerskating, yes, she could've pursue it professionally, but I don't know... Correct me if I'm wrong, but I get the feeling like Argentina is not the most supportive country to sports unless we're talking about football. I mean, it's not like Ámbar would need the economical support, but still, like, I can only think of one argentinian guy who does rollerskating professionally and it's gotten kinda far, and even then, rollerskating on itself is just not that well-known of a sport. I mean, if Ámbar was really passionate about it then I guess she wouldn't care if it was a big sport or not, but I just don't know if she's passionate enough to make it her whole career. I just feel like she always had other stuff in her mind, like, her studying abroad in Paris. I could be wrong though.

Lately, I've been toying with this cute little idea that Ámbar could be Simón's manager. BUT NOT JUST HIS MANAGER, OKAY? Don't come at me saying she would revolve her whole life around a man, hear me out first. I came up with this idea because my favorite ASMR artist on YouTube, Gibi, is married and her husband is her manager, and the story behind it is that, this man studied industrial engineering and economics, and so he was out of college and managing some businesses, some companies, etc etc, while Gibi was doing her YouTube channel. At some point, she started gaining more followers and working with sponsors and stuff, and so it became a business, so she turned to her (in that time, boyfriend) and said, "Hey, you already do this for a living, you could totally manage me!"

So, Ámbar could study something of the sort, like, business administration like Matteo or something, and she could first dabble in some businesses, some corporations, and then, I think she could enter the world of show business, because, Jim and Yam would be fresh out of art school and doing stuff, Delfi studied cinema so she would be doing movies or TV, Jazmín is a content creator, Matteo is a singer, and, by that point, the Roller Band (or just Simón) would be kind of famous already, so Ámbar would literally be surrounded by it from the start. I think she would totally see a business opportunity there managing content creators and artists-- And, I think she would totally look at how their current managers are doing and think "I could do that so much better." ksdjnf. So, yeah, I think she would offer Simón to manage the business-side of his career so he can focus on the creative side of it, and I think it would be fun if she, like, bossed him around a bit hahah I think Simón would joke that it reminds him of when Ámbar was the Roller's manager, but the difference would be that, technically, Simón could fire Ámbar this time if he so wanted😂 But, again, she would not be dependent on him because she would have many different clients. Like, maybe she would even take new artists under her wing and try to help them achieve their dreams. I think she has an eye for talent and she would know how to sell stuff to audiences 😎

(If I end up writing this in one of my fics in the future, please act surprised skdjfn)

Anyway, as for your other question, I don't think Ámbar got her job back in the Roller, but I think that's a good thing in the long term, because, it was implied many times throughout the season that all this workload had been dropped on her lap overnight and that Vidia kinda didn't help her at all. Like, they just expected this 18/19-year-old girl to have it all figured out just because Gary appointed her as manager?? I remember in the beginning Ámbar would try to call them to ask for guidance and they would just be like "Deal with it on your own or we'll fire you and find someone who can."

So, yeah, I think the work environment was kinda toxic. And Ámbar was definitely not qualified for the job. She learned as she went though, which, seriously, IMPRESSIVE, like, give this girl a medal because she did so much while I know so many others would've crumbled under the pressure in a week. That's how I KNOW this girl can handle anything she puts her mind to, and if she wanted to be CEO of any company or her OWN company, she could completely fucking do it. But she needed to study for that, so, it really is good that they fired her because that way she would finally have the time to 1- figure out what she wanted to do with her life, and 2- pursue it.

Finally, thank you so much for your well wishes, anon, they really mean so much to me❤️❤️🥹 Especially the cruel summer bit because even I hate myself a little for that one skjfd. But it's coming along nicely! I swear!

Thank you for the energy, I really need it ksdjnf. In fact, I'm going to sleep right now so that I'll be ready for more writing tomorrow ♡ Goodnight, anon! Love you😘