#it means no worries! (timon)

[musemelodies]

"what if scar or gaston or so and so had a tragic backstory, though?"

timon:

[jillyb2004]

Happy (Late) 30th Anniversary to The Lion King!

Based on this rare poster

[dcxdpdabbles]

Cave boy Danny AU where he's half asleep and rambling as he mentions some people back home like his exes (especially Valerie), his English teacher, this stalker of his who he likes messing with, and the annoying fruitloop who's the bane of his existence! They're concerned. Only once he's fully awake when they ask for names.

Lancer is Alfred, Talia is Val, maybe Paulina is Julie Madison but idk, Wes is Edward/The riddler (I'm pretty sure there was a time he had a reddish orange hair. Either way, he was the same model as Danny so maybe Wes dyed his hair to not be confused with the Fentons in this AU), and Vlad is Ra's!

Hello! This actually falls out of my planned plotline for Cave Boy, but I will write something for you that is close to the prompt to make up for it! Hope that's okay and that you like it

Flash sends them a message sometime in the early afternoon before any of the Bats are ready to go out. In fact, Damian, Duke, Steph, and Jason are in class when his message arrives.

Bruce, Dick, Tim, Cass, and Barbara are at work. As the Flash is one of the few who knows what the Batfamily is doing during these hours, it is rare for him to bother at this hour. He would have usually waited until after five as that was when a majority of them became available.

They all quickly check their phones when they vibrate to ensure it's not a world-ending threat, just in case.

Since the messages would be sent to their civilian phones- anyone in the know of the Bat's real identity chooses to text in a very specific code. This way, no one would know what they were saying, and the Bats would realize they were speaking to who they thought they were.

Barry Allen chose Disney theme GIFs as his code.

A gif of Mulan singing Reflections lets them all know that somehow, the speedster has again opened a portal into a different dimension and/or mess with time.

"Why is my reflection someone I don't know?" meant "A double of one of you has crossed over from a different dimension and/or timeline"

This causes a brief ripple of anxiety. The last time someone had a double, it was Tim, and his future version of himself was crazy, evil, and surprisingly capable. It took Tim almost ending his life to beat the guy.

Thankfully, the second GIF comes through seconds later. This one is Mulan's Honor To Us All.

"Please bring honor to us all" meant "The double is friendly."

The last Gif was from Lion King, Timon cheerfully singing Hakuna Matata. "It means no worries for the rest of your days" meant "Sorry for the trouble."

Those in class return to their various lessons, but Tim quickly responds, "I love that movie! We should watch Mulan again the next time I see you, Uncle Barry!"

This means, "We will meet the double tonight."

The rest of the day drags on as they all slowly start to make bets on who the double would be for. They all agree that Cass is long overdue to face herself again. Still, Dick makes the complying argument that Duke needed to have his first "My counterpart from another dimensional/ Timal plane" moment.

They all actively hope Duke can clear another block on his Bat-bingo card. He gets two more and a complimentary tray of any of his favorite Alfred's desserts.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

That night, they all meet up in the watch tower, each clutching their bingo card just in case. (The game resets every month, and so far, Jason has written down the most accurate predictions. He needed two more squares for a cooking lesson of his favorite meal, and he was out for blood)

They all silently go to the conference room, where Barry entertains the guests. Apparently, they were trying to find discrepancies in their world's history and the double's life to help find which world they came from and send them back.

They were being shown the main rouges to test the timeframe.

"Is that Wes!?" A young male teenager yells. Sadly, Steph swears, staring at her "A new Batgirl from a different world" box.

"We call him Edward when he's not in his costume. Otherwise, his name is the Riddler." Barry answers, amusement clear in his voice.

"Riddler? How is Riddler menacing? What does he tell you, riddles of death or something?"

"You be surprised......."

Bruce gets to the door, pushing it open with a quick flick of the wrist, and inside is Barry sitting at the conference table next to a boy with dark hair and blue eyes. In front of them is a hologram showcasing the Gotham Rouge files.

There are papers and pencils scattered on the table. Likely, they have been writing down notes of the differences they have spotted.

Barry's eyes flicker to them, but the boy is too distracted to count on his fingers.

"Okay, so Wes is Riddler, Val is Talia, Fruitloop is Ra's, Sckuller is Bane, and ugh....for some reason, Spectra is Harley Quinn." The boy finishes checking his notes.

"For some reason? I thought you said Spectra studied psychology too."

"yeah, but Harley Quinn actually got a Ph.D. What did Spectra do? Land a school counselor position? Please." The boy rolls his eyes dismissively, and Barry frowns.

He's never taken kindly to people disregarding another person's profession, especially if it was connected to the educational system in some way.

"Hey now, that's an important job, and you need years of study before you can be a school counselor-"

"I bet Spectra peaked in high school. That's why she's like that." The boy cut him off, nodding as though he had found the universe's answer.

Well.....this was either a version of Jason, Tim, or maybe early Dick, that was a little too sassy but not angry? It's not sad either; it's more like, fed up? Or teenage tired.

"Oh, who are they?" The boy asks, and Barry zips right next to Batman.

"Danny, meet Batman...the you of this world. And his kids."

Danny squints. "Who is your mom, and how easy am I? Because there is a lot of you that I fathered for me to not be easy."

Jason burst out laughing, checking a box. "Yes, someone calling Bruce easy in costume. That's on bingo for me!"

[a-dauntless-daffodil]

i love lion king 2

i love how we see Simba overcorrecting for his own childhood, how Kiara can recite lessons on the circle of life at the same age when Mufasa was just starting to introduce the idea to Simba

i love how Kiara is already so aware of the responsibility she'll have as ruler that, when cub Simba was bragging "I'm gonna be king of pride rock" and singing "Oh I just can't WAIT to be king!", Kiara, his daughter, who he's been raising to not make (or suffer) any of his own mistakes, instead says "But what if I don't want to be queen? It's no fun..." and sings "If there's so much I must be, can I still just be me, the way I am?"

I love how we see this PAY OFF at the end, when Kiara's sense of responsibility means she never once thinks of running off into the sunset with Kovu, no, of course she has to go back, of course she has to try reuniting both of their prides-

And maybe that's also some of Nala's spirit shining through her daughter, but really, Kiara is so much like Simba in all other ways (including her terrible pouncing, her thirst for adventure, her rule breaking) it really just feels like this is who Simba might have been if Mufasa hadn't been so confident he'd be around for his son so much longer, if Mufasa had focused more on preparing Simba for what the circle of life really means-

At The Same Time, even though it's good for the pride lands and the outlanders in the end, there's something tragic in comparing Simba and Kiara as cubs

how confident and carefree Simba got to be, how stifled and resigned Kiara ending up being, how she didn't get that kind of childhood at all thanks to her father's fear that it might be suddenly cut short, so much of Simba's talks with cub Kiara are warnings or lectures-

(when we see her play pouncing she's doing it on her own, contrast that with Mufasa and cub Simba playing together, contrast that to Simba's restraining paw scooping up his young daughter and keeping her in place)

-and even as an adult she ends up singing about how "I may not be brave, or strong, or smart" like this is more than just not being self-centered, this is depressing as heck, this girl doesn't think she's good at ANYTHING

(Timon you are not helping)

(I understand you might still be traumatized by your first meet-and-almost-eat with her mom and be worried about disappointing or hurting your adopted lion son if his cub gets hurt under your watch, but please, stop)

dear gods she never ever got to be herself without being held to the same standard as the great kings of the past

(except for when she snuck off on her own and got have a little adventure with Kovu, which she got through as HERSELF, not a princess, just a cub swatting at crocodiles and jumping on their gaping mouths just in time to save her new friend from getting eaten)

(meanwhile, Simba doesn't even acknowledge (or even hear???) her sad little line in their song together, he goes on talking about life lessons and leadership and she's the daughter of a king they are one, good, great, Simba your daughter is Distressed)

and that could have driven such a wedge between her and Simba, that could have pushed her into wanting escape and independence more than anything

except, she knows he's feeling THE SAME THING too

and we know she knows because when she wants to hurt him, to jar him, to criticize him for exiling Kovu while claiming he's doing it to follow in his father's paw prints, she tells him

"You will never be Mufasa!"

This is her fear, that she'll never be enough to be a good queen, this is also her fear, that the only way to be a good ruler is to stop being yourself

And it's what she rejects the moment she pulls a Nala and runs from pride rock alone- not to get help, but to give it- and when she returns to confront Simba with the wisdom she's learned, using the words he taught her

She looks at him, finally confident in who she is (with her back turned to the outlanders, defending them from her pride, "my father says to never turn your back on an outsider!" but she has grown since then)

she says "A wise king once told me" (Simba listen to yourself)

she says "we are one" (listen to the part of me that I learned from you)

"I didn't understand him then. Now I do" (Listen to me, now)

she says something that is true about pride landers and out landers, about Simba and Zira, about Kovu and Simba

"Them? Us. Look at them, they are us. What differences do you see?"

(between the desperation of lions on a starving land, dead loved ones, the thirst for revenge, children following in their parent's pawprints, to be so blinded by your own pain (fear, shame) that the pain of others fades away)

she asks him not to be a great king, but to see himself in them, these 'outsiders', and then to be himself in answer

And Simba listens

He looks at the daughter who had the same fear as him (Simba, who looked for guidance in the stars, saying "My father would never-" who Nala also understood so well, "Oh my Simba, you want so much to walk the path expected of you."), he looks at Kiara, who also feared that she couldn't be enough, as herself

Only... she isn't afraid anymore. She is a queen already, smart enough to find wisdom, brave enough to speak it, strong when she has to be

(he was so afraid of losing her but she had the chance to run and she came back, she came back and she is asking him, just once, to please finally-)

He listens to her. The clouds part.

We can feel Mufasa watching over them.

We look into Simba's eyes as he sees this (recall the same pattern of clouds and gazing when Mufasa told his son "you have forgotten who you are, and so you have forgotten me" and to "remember who you are")

The words Simba says as he accepts Kiara's wisdom "It's time to put the past behind us"

The lesson he learned from Timon and Pumba, this time used not to run from responsibility and pain but to face it, this hard part of his past that IS part of him

And the fact that even with all the reasons in the world to want Scar dead he still didn't want to be like him, he didn't want to kill his own uncle

(Mufasa never wanted to kill his brother, even as openly resentful and threatening though Scar was. There, the shock and horror in Mufasa's eyes as his brother betrays him- Mufasa never would have- Mufasa could have killed him any time before now, but he-)

Simba gave Scar the chance of mercy. Now, he gives it again. His daughter, his refection, his pride, has reminded him.

He looks at Kiara and he find himself in her.

He finds his father in her.

Great Kings of the past and present, great Queen of the future- Three generations and the choice of who they wish to be, and how that guides them into kindess, into mercy, into healing more harms than they cause.

Kiara speaks. Simba listens. Mufasa lives on in them

....

...then the contrast, sudden, stark, painful, of a daughter who speaks and a parent who does not listen

(Vitani says "No, mother" says "Kiara's right" pleads "Enough")

(Nuka is already dead, Kovu is scarred-)

(Their enemy no longer wants to fight, no longer IS their enemy-)

(Zira's smirk as she condemns her own daughter to death)

and the point hammered home, as the outlanders turn in disgust from their leader, that they were never evil

The point that the 'evil' which doomed Scar and Zira and Nuka (drove them on, single minded, into danger, into death) was a simple choice they all had faced. The simple question not everyone asks

Who are you?

Will you close yourself off to everyone and everything that does not feed your own conviction? Ignore anything that doesn't further your own goals?

(Nuka was loved for what he was, even if his mother never showed it. But his brother spoke up for him, his sister looked out for him, his pride all mourned him- he never needed to be the "chosen one")

(Scar was not the great king he thought he was, all around him is proof of his failure, the pridelands barren and empty, and his chance to do better, lead the lions from pride rock, make a new life- but it was never about being a good king to others. "I am the king, I can do whatever I want"- Simba's cubhood song, echoed in a lion who never learned better. Simba's offer of mercy, to let Scar escape with his life, thrown back in Simba's face (Nala's trick of always throwing off the lions who leap on her, here mirrored, saving Simba's life) and Scar, always thinking of himself, killed by his own self serving words and the hyenas he was so quick to betray)

(Zira wanting revenge for her pain, for Scar, wanting Nuka's death to be the last time Simba hurts her- Losing her daughter, because she will not stop the fight, losing her follows, because she would killed her daughter for refusing to fight... losing her life, swatting at the helping paw held out to her, only wanting to cause pain, only causing her own pain instead)

Will you cling desperately to what you have, or what you think you are owed, even when another way is offered?

Or will you listen.

(Vitani, so loyal to her mother, so vicious in her battles- Kovu's confused look as she changes her choice, choosing peace, Kiara's answering smile)

Will you see yourself in others and use that wisdom to decide who you want to be...

(Kiara, Simba, Mufasa- remember, remember)

...or who you do not want to be?

(the rest of the outlanders turning away from Zira. Their disgust at a mother who would kill her own child. The choice to leave her behind)

(the ending of the war)

I love lion king 2

it's the kind of sequel that makes me love the original more than i did before, it's so good it makes the first one even BETTER than it was on it's own

it makes the first movie sadder to re-watch

seeing how unprepared Simba really was. How Vitani proves that Scar had another way out

seeing Mufasa with his son, giving him a wonderful childhood, unaware of how has Simba will have to grow up- how long it will take him- the nightmares still haunting him- the gap between Simba and his own child thanks to his fears, his shames- (Mufasa's spirit, making leaves dancing as little tiny Kiara playfully swats at them) -Mufasa raising his son with no idea how much pain it will cause his granddaughter when Simba tries to make up for it...

...seeing all that, and knowing it still turns out okay

i wouldn't enjoy lion king 1 half as much without Simba's Pride. They fit together

i love them i love them i love them both

(also i am Gay and kiara is WOW)

(also also vitani too)

( also also also the fact that i just wanted to wrap kovu in blankets and never let anyone hurt him meanwhile he was everyone else's crush-> hmmm i wonder why that was....)

[tired-lamb]

too bad I'm gonna ask. give me kion headcannons NOW

LMAO I like the spunk, dude!

headcanons for the fiercest

he is typical teenager tm you cannot convince me otherwise. he may look put together and capable but on the inside he is winging all this shit and crossing his fingers

(doesnt mean I dont think hes a capable leader. I think hes an extremely good one, just that I hc he struggles in believing in himself and his capabilities)

in relation to that he and bunga have tried kissing once. Like they both wondered how it felt and decided there was no way better than to just Do it

they both end up disliking it and vow to never do it again

kion craves his dad’s approval a lot and often tries to do things the way simba would; kinda like how simba rlly wants to be as good a king as mufasa was yk?

kion is completely oblivious to the fact that hes the mother friend of the group. if you were to ask him how he’d categorise himself he’d probably say the quiet one

meanwhile the rest of the guard cannot be trusted by themselves unless kion is there

in relation to that I hc that a lot of times when the guard isn’t.. well, Guarding the pridelands and theyre just sitting around enjoying each others’ presence, kion takes a backseat and just lets himself relax

his friends and their voices always soothe him + calm him down :]

kion was extremely free spirited before he became the leader of the guard and would often sneak in on kiara’s training-to-be-queen lessons with simba just cause he wanted to know what its like to have a big role in the circle of life

fast forward a few years into him having a big role in the circle of life and he starts struggling with his relationship with the circle of life

dw kiara helps him out since she faced the same problem

kion is a lot more similar to nala than he is to simba

idk if I like, headcanon headcanon this one but I do like that some ppl gave him nala’s blue eyes!!! canon doesnt exist if we look away /j

he’ll never admit it but he misses the days when all he would worry about was winning against bunga in their baobab seed game

he really likes his uncles timon and pumbaa and especially loves to hear about the stories they have of his dad

kion definitely wanted to join on a girls day with tiifu, zuri and kiara once

can ya blame him tho? mud baths and basking in the sun look insanely relaxing

he has bitten rafiki, timon, and pumbaa as a cub multiple times

heck his favourite thing to teeth on (do lion cubs teeth??) was simba’s ear (real life lion cubs do this too!! :D)

as a cub he would never be able to distinguish between other felines (eg: cheetahs and leopards) and himself so he’d see cheetahs running super fast and try to do the same

same thing with leopards. he’d see them climb all over trees and nala will be looking for her baby only to find he got stuck in a tree while trying to be like a leopard

cub kion was super friendly with baby/calf beshte!!! his bff may be bunga but those two loved playing with each other

not exactly a hc but I really like @australet789 ‘s kion design!! I always love it when people draw the siblings with traits from their grandparents

whew I went on a ramble with this one. I would continue but I think the post is already long enough x] feel free to ask for more kion hcs or hcs for any other character tho, I love answering them! /gen

[storycraftcafe]

What's your process like when writing dialogue? Has it ever happened to you that like, you know something is off about what your character said and how they said it, but have no idea what it is? and what do you do with such cases?

Hey, thanks for waiting for this!

Generally dialogue for me is fairly instinctual and I do a lot of the ground work in my head and I approach it with who and what this character is as a person in my mind. The way someone talks, the words and phrases they use, their accent, their speed and rhythm and how that shifts with mood and company can convey a lot about character in a really fast amount of time. So this means culture, age, education, personality, etc, all of which informs a lot about how someone talks. 

Are they blunt and direct or slippery and evasive, well educated or maybe less so, upper class or poor? Are they happy, playful, pissed off, talking with a friend, enemy, teacher, authority figure? Are they being honest and plain or are they hiding something?

All that guides me in writing their dialogue. 

It’s not terribly formal, and I tend to refine as I write, tinkering with a scene until I like their particular ‘voice’, until it’s distinct enough for the character and I can almost hear it in my head. Once I have that, dialogue comes pretty easily for me usually. And if I lose that sound, reviewing past examples of dialogue generally helps me to pick it back up. 

I also try to make sure my dialogue is doing ‘double duty’, by which I mean it’s conveying not just character and their wants, deceptions, etc but serves the story, gives exposition, and so on. It’s not possible all the time but that’s the goal I work towards. 

So when it comes to cases of dialogue just never quite sounding right and not knowing why? This happens to me on a fairly regular basis and it’s usually because I’m still figuring out the flow of an argument or a heartfelt conversation,  I’ve lost track of what the character’s want and are trying to achieve and sometimes just because what I’ve written is just off.

If it’s a first draft I try not to worry about it, I either retry by rewriting or flag it and move on, but if it’s during a rewrite or I get well and truly stuck, I take a step back and ask myself a few things.

What is this character trying to achieve? What’s their goal?

Why? And what are their usual methods? Are they doing something different here and why?

I also check my notes and try to remind myself what the point of this conversation and scene, both in the moment and in the larger story. I remind myself of this character’s voice, think about the way they talk and I try again. I write and rewrite and tweak until things start to click.

And if I still can’t get it, I poke at a trusted friend for their input.

Here’s some advice.

Listen to how people talk in person but also on screen and in books. Book/screen dialogue is far more refined and pointed than real life conversation so keep that in mind.

Think about some books or media that you enjoy and how the dialogue varies not only from story to story, but from characters too. Screenmedia is actually really good for this since screenplays/stageplays are mostly dialogue and that's where those characters start. 

Consider The Lion King. How does Mufasa speak and how does that change when he talks to Simba, Zazu or Scar? Contrast that to how Timone and Pumba speak and then compare with Scar. The Guardians of the Galaxy is another example of distinctive character voices (and humour) in a single film.  

If you’re fine with the genre typical violence I recommend John Wick (basically every main character has a distinct way of speaks that is instantly recognisable) and Guy Ritchie’s Snatch which is a fantastic example of giving characters all from the same ‘world’, area, accent and class, very distinct dialogue that makes them stand out. (It is a ‘gangster’ film so TW again for violence and how Richie handles Irish Travellers.)

Then when you’re writing or developing a character, think about who they are and how that’d shape how they talk. Try writing them and tweak it until you’re satisfied. Then put them in a different situation with different people and figure out how they talk changes. 

Do try to avoid writing accents and overly pronounced stutters and be careful with slang you’re not familiar with and always keep in mind stereotypes and cliche. 

And if you get stuck, step back and try to pin down what they want and how they’re aiming to get it. What’s the end result that you as the writer want?

And of course, all this comes with practice and rewriting something until it works. 

Sorry for keeping you waiting on this, I hope you find something useful.

Good Writing!

[aquamarine-dream-queen]

September on Broadway Day 5: The Lion King

Remember when I drew my high school friend Kaelyn as Simba from Disney’s The Lion King on Broadway last October for my 31 Days of Halloween Costumes challenge? She’s back with Sofia and Isis dressed as Timon and Pumbaa, respectively. That’s right. Hakuna Matata is a problem-free philosophy and such a wonderful phrase meaning no worries for the rest of your days.

[pussinbootsandbountyhunter]

Once Upon a Studio: Wishing Upon a Miracle by Two Cousins (Part One)

(From Enemies to Friends, Slowly but Surely)

Long ago, an 5-year-old Magnifico was gazing at the stars when his father Cosmos asked him to come and see his uncle Marte’s newborn baby that had arrived a week ago.

When the young prince meets his baby cousin, he was worried because he looked so small but his uncle assured him that his baby boy was okay and seemed to be perfectly strong enough to even see the stars. Cosmos also replied that someday, Magnifico and the baby will ruled the kingdom together as brothers to keep the universe safe in harmony from danger who dare to harm the people.

Magnifico stared at the baby who was trying to reach out to him and their hands touched, sparking a great bond in the future…

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

Years later, it was Agustín Madrigal’s birthday that made his three daughters Isabela, Luisa and Mirabel to create something really special for him while their mother Julieta worked on helping the rest of the family with decorating their home Casita.

They’ve been able to invite their friends, including villains, from Walt Disney Animation Studios to congratulate Agustín’s birthday, even though it’s Father’s Day.

Mickey and the Mad Doctor talked about Walt Disney while Anna and Gremlin Prescott discussed about 101st anniversary of Disney in October, and Olaf was super excited about the party that the Genie promised him that tonight will be worth remembering for which Timon doubted about it in case something bad happened and Pumbaa thought it would be impossible to think that.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

Later that night, the party seemed to be a full swing when Agustín’s parents Marte and Sophia arrived to see him and their three granddaughters until Marte noticed Magnifico by now his eyes were shining bright like a blue sky and he remembered him when he was only five.

When Agustín asked how would he know him, his father replied that he had an older brother who was Magnifico’s father Cosmos which lead them to realise something shocking; Agustín and Magnifico were actually cousins!

Dolores pointed out that if Agustín was Magnifico’s cousin, that means he would have been a prince and the girls would have been princesses as well, much to Isabella’s shock as her hair was burst into pink flowers.

Timon called out that he knew something like this would happen and Mushu was impressed by this family secret that turned out to be royal.

Alma Madrigal thought it was a wonderful news that Agustín had a royal family which made her thinking that Encanto and Rosas would have the best community in their two lands, but that quickly turned into a argument between Agustín and Magnifico as they both agreed that two lands will not be shared since Agustín wasn’t crowned prince and Magnifico wasn’t a Madrigal.

Then, the fight broke out between two cousins when Magnifico commented something about Mirabel that got Hercules and Aladdin to separate Agustín away from the king and Alma immediately calmed the situation down and confirmed everyone that she and the family will discuss the plans between two lands eventually, much to Queen Amaya and Julieta Madrigal’s unsure and disagreement since their husbands just fought.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

At the kitchen, Agustín and Julieta talked about the event which Agustín couldn’t believe this was happening to him and he had no idea about unless his father didn’t tell him sooner, but Julieta mentioned that he might have a reason why he couldn’t tell him because Agustín might do something risky to discover the family member or that he won’t believe his own father. Agustín doesn’t like the idea of what Alma mentioned about Encanto and Rosas being in one community together and won’t stand a chance to even getting along since Magnifico did horrible in the past. Julieta understood and believed it was best to take time for him and Magnifico to try and get along if the two lands would work together in the future.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

Back in Rosas, Magnifico couldn’t sleep as he kept tossing and turning while trying to not wake his wife up. He decided to get fresh air when he noticed that Asha was up to and she was talking to Star about her father Tomás before he passed away when she was only 12 and she talked about what was going to happen now after the family secret revealed before she and Star goes inside. Magnifico, who heard everything, decided to try his hardest to get along with his so-called cousin.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

The next day, the three brother-in-laws of the Family Madrigal were helping Pearl sorting out the farm while she and the sheriff were dealing paperwork when Magnifico was able to talk to Agustin about last night and decide to invite him and Julieta to have dinner with him and his wife Amaya.

Maggie, who was eating with Mrs. Caloway and Grace, noticed something was heated and decided to go to them while the two cows followed her. Agustín asked him why would he invite them when he made comment about Mirabel which Magnifico questioned back by why he got some nerve to attack him like some cows would do to fight for the farm, he then apologised to the three cows when Grace replied it was alright.

Mrs. Caloway told the two cousins to not fight here in this unless they can it somewhere else, which Maggie said that they can do whatever they as they got popcorn for the show. Agustín still waiting for answers and then started to push Magnifico around until Magnifico swung a punch in his face that caused him to fall onto the mud, Felix and Bruno tried to help Agustín when their brother-in-law attack the king again.

Despite those two had a mud-wrestling and had a time-out in the Sheriff’s Office, Agustín accepted the invitation as long as his three daughters were coming to that got Magnifico to asked Asha and Star to join them which both of them agreed.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

At dinner time, the royal couple and Mirabel’s parents were feeling awkward while the girls and Star were enjoying their time together, chatting about their lives and what to do in the future.

Just then, Agustín demanded Magnifico to apologise for insulting Mirabel as he was still waiting which the king did, but in a sarcastic manner that made Agustín comment about his actions as a hypocrite over wishes that he was cowardly enough to not grant them.

They argued again and it’s got heated up once Agustín did replied that Magnifico’s parents would be very proud of him if they were actually around which made Amaya and Julieta gasped, Star hide behind Asha’s hair and Magnifico lunged at him which got Valentino to cheer Agustín on and Star decided to get himself ready to jump in when Asha be able to stop him from doing so.

They took it outside to fight until Amaya demanded them to stop immediately which they surprisingly did and told them that they need to stop acting like pair of kids, Agustín would if he didn’t have a cousin who turned out to be selfish man and nearly killed everyone.

Everyone around were shocked to hear this, Mirabel tried to calm the situation down but few of the crowd mentioned that Magnifico was like a psycho back then after Star came to this kingdom, made Asha felt embarrassed and Star looking small as the people complaining about the wishes and the chaos that got the king absolutely mad.

Magnifico silenced them all and then confessed to Agustín that he may have done awful things to them for a good reason as he doesn’t know how to rule the land properly with his magic wasn’t strong enough as he was crown king when he was only 14 after his parents’ deaths at age 8, he also said that he never meant to hurt Asha and her family as he did made a promise to her father Tomás that he would protect her, and then an unusual plant came out between them and showed to be a Dragon Plant.

While Mirabel said that was a serious confession and Sabino explained that the Dragon Plant was his son Tomás’ dream sketch that he wished for it to come alive as it got dragon flowers/flies/fruits and Star somehow got curious about this plant, Magnifico couldn’t believe what he just did until Star looked at him absolutely upset along with worries.

That made the king realised that Asha heard it all and just ran away in tears which Magnifico hesitated to go after her, which Star and Amaya insist him to go after her which he did. Asha’s mother scolded Agustín for being irresponsible and should not pushed the king’s limits as he has been through enough as it was, Isabela couldn’t stop staring at how beautiful this Dragon Plant was and Julieta apologised to Amaya for her husband’s actions towards Magnifico which the queen let her know that she will do something about their beef sooner or later.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

Magnifico found Asha as she sat on the tree where her and father used to go there and see the stars before he passed away when she was only 12.

He came to her and apologised to her, but she understood why he would actually say that he never wanted to bring up or never wanted all this to happen and she also apologised that the king had to go through without parents to guide him as he was crowned king at such a young age and that she should never have crossed him as he doesn’t want everyone to get hurt.

He explained that he and her father known each other since they were kids at age 3, but Tomás had always act like a big brother to Magnifico when he feels worthless in his time as king and never left his side no matter what. The king also explained that Tomás was fearless and willing to risk his life to save him from the people who wanted him dead along with his parents, and then he told Asha that he had to watch his parents being murder in front of him as a child and he unleashed his powers to kill the murders of his parents. After all that, he was told to be crowned king by 14 and he was already had a panic attack during his coronation day when Tomás be able to help him go through.

He had always believed that he would never be a good king like his father was, but he knew that he would done something terrible for a good reason to protect everyone from the stars as he feared that he was just a normal man with his heart hiding grief and fear from everyone, especially Amaya.

He still apologised to Asha, and replied that she was trying to help others and never hurt them, blaming himself in disgrace when Asha said that the people in Rosas had all the hopes and dreams in their hearts to believe the wishes would come true because of him; They were willing to be more than what they were because of him, they would make mistakes and learn from them because of him.

Then, Magnifico and Asha had emotional embraced as Star came to join them and booped the king’s nose as he forgive him.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

The next day, Agustín couldn’t shake the feeling of him in guilt and let his frustration out while Felix and Bruno listened to him.

He kept complaining and groaning at his problems with Magnifico when Bruno accidentally snapped at him and said that he needed to get a grip and accept the fact that Magnifico is his cousin, he then apologised to him for snapping. Felix pointed out that he needed to apologise to him for what he did yesterday by pushing his limits to confess that he had doubts about being a good king.

Even the three cows agreed with them as they all said that he need to think about his cousin than just his daughter Mirabel as they know about his thoughts on the one person in the family who doesn’t have a gift, Agustín thought about it before made a decision and decided to go to the kingdom of Rosas right after, apologising his so-called cousin whether he liked it or not.

🦋🌟🦋🌟🦋

Agustín traveled to the Kingdom of Rosas and was greeted by Amaya who was surprised to see him, but also grateful that he was only came to apologise Magnifico for his behaviour towards him and in front of everyone.

While the queen goes to find her husband, the blue madrigal goes to the shelves of books that he had never seen before, then his eyes were on the Book of Forbidden Magic that caught him curious. But before he could touch it, Magnifico stopped and warned him that book was strictly forbidden. Agustín wasn’t sure but his hands were still in the case when magical dragonflies came out and started to attack him, Magnifico came in and controlled the dragonflies and put it back where it’s belong.

When Magnifico asked why Agustín was here, the blue madrigal replied that he came to apologise since Bruno and Felix made it clear that he did pushed the king too far but Magnifico said that he did found Asha and those two somehow reconnected as friends.

Then, the king noticed that Agustín’s socks were different colours and patterns which he explained to the king that Mirabel made these socks for him that resemblance to her and Luisa since he had a pink flower as Isabela. Agustín explained that he was proud of his three daughters, especially Mirabel as she was the only one who doesn’t have a gift, and he and his wife Julieta would always be there for her when she felt so alone and not fitting in the family since Alma doesn’t seem to care about her for 10 years.

He admitted that he had always wanted to hurt the mother-in-law so badly that he once had a dream about hurting her while she was arguing with Mirabel before Casita fallen apart as the magic died once, took an axe and about to throw it at her after he moved Mirabel to the side as he ignored everyone around him.

Magnifico couldn’t believe what he was hearing and understood what was like to hurt someone who treated that person you cared the most means nothing, the king mentioned that he was once struggling to deal with the nightmares he had that kept haunted him since the day he lost his parents. He mentioned that he was only a child when his powers came out of him and accidentally killed the men who murdered his parents in front of him and the people around him. Agustín had no idea, and yet he apologised.

Magnifico explained that he felt weak after he somehow used all his powers to stop the murderers from killing more innocent lives and he slowly recovered after 1 week in bed, he couldn’t forget the night that changed his life forever once he became king at age 14 and he would promise himself that he would do anything he could to protect his old homeland from what happened in the past. He did truly regret his actions after Star came to Asha’s help to have something more for everyone than what he had done, he did asked forgiveness to Amaya who surprisingly forgive him and apologised to him for not be able to save him as she sense that the book contained dark magic.

Agustín replied that the queen loved him more than anything in the universe as he can see from those two being like young lovers, Magnifico chuckled at that and mentioned that he met her on his coronation day when she was so shy around him but showed great kindness towards him and supported him while she and her family were staying for a while. They became good friends until they turned 18 that lead them to fell in love with each other, Magnifico still remembered it like it was yesterday and noticed that Agustín’s smile before he explained to him that he felt the same way about himself and Julieta when they were young at age 12.

Agustín mentioned that he and his family were travelling in their lives since he was a baby until they entered Encanto where they met the Family Madrigal, Agustín were playing the piano and met Julieta who was dancing along with the music he was playing. It was love at first sight to them but they kept a secret until they were 21 where he proposed to her in front of their families. He also said that Alma never got along with him and was skeptical that he would fall in love with her daughter since Agustín wasn’t Alma's first choice to marry Julieta, besides judged him harshly for his clumsiness.

But Magnifico mentioned that Julieta loved Agustín so much just like how Amaya loved the king, which the blue madrigal agreed.

Agustín decided to invite Magnifico to the Family Madrigal dinner tomorrow night and he could bring his wife, Asha and their friends if they want to come along as well. When Magnifico asked why he would invite him and the others over, Agustín mentioned that they’d better get along or they’d ended be at each other’s throats again and again.

Magnifico commented that it was like they were acting like brothers than cousins or maybe like Lilo and Nani when they have a sister-fight over the smallest things as possible like how the social worker Cobra Bubbles arrived and left, both of them laughed at that when they were told by Goofy about Lilo and Nani’s relationship few weeks ago.

While they laughed, their chest suddenly glows that led the entire kingdom into warmth and hope in their hearts just like Star did when he was summoned by Asha, but much more love of the family. But it was not just the Kingdom of Rosas, it also in Encanto as well they.

Once they’re done laughing, Magnifico notices that his wishes were glowing multicolour which was unusual, but decided to not bother with it.

(Part two will come real soon)

Song opening for years later after child Magnifico meet his baby cousin, not knowing that he’s Agustín Madrigal: The Family Madrigal (Once Upon A Studio Version)

[makur0]

TWST Reader Personas

synopsis — dorm mc’s based off of those fairytale characters? [Part one]

content warnings — sfw

author’s note — pretty generic, but i really wanted to do this, especially as my first twst fanfic + self indulgent. i also will add more depth into these rants (will link) but not just yet

word count — 558

[The Caterpillar - Heartsabyul]

First things first, you don’t smoke. Gotta make that clear (but you do have a sufficient supply of those scenting sticks). You’re also shorter than Riddle... but unlike him you could care less. In fact you love one-upping the beanstalks of the dorm. Of course, if you feel like it. You are one of the laziest people in Heartsabyul, which irritates Riddle down to the bone (How you got into this dorm nobody knows). A perfectionist clashing with a slacker... sometimes Trey mediating the entire thing isn’t enough. You are rather liked by the other dormmates though, rather the first-years who aren’t used with Riddle yet. Once they finish their tasks and escape Riddle, they crash at your dorm and you tell made-up stories about your ‘travels’ and that you’ve been all around. Of course you don’t hide the fact that you’re lying, but they don’t seem to care as long as they’re distracted to schoolwork and such. Overall, people both respect you and like you, even though you try to have the first-years do your tasks with no reward.

[Timon - Savanaclaw]

Relating to the original storyline, you’re an outcast of your family. But do you mind? No. Not really. In fact you joke about your parents disowning you so much that even Leona is concerned about your mental wealth. Anyways, everybody loves you. What’s better than living a carefree life, not stressing out about schoolwork? says the person who's been in detention several times You’re like everybody’s therapist, in a way. Like the shoulder everybody needs to lean on. Not that you particularly mind, but every once in a while you shove Ruggie into the mental help group (sorry). Leona didn’t like you at all when you first joined the dorm, especially after you got along so well with his nephew Cheka and became the Dynamic Duo. But as time passed, he envied you on how easy you were about leaving your family and overall the life that was set out for you. Maybe he could learn a few things from you... but for now, you’re his second servant when Ruggie isn’t around to serve him 24/7. He also officiated you as Cheka’s babysitter whenever he visits.

[Sebastian - Octanivelle]

You’re carrying Mostro Lounge with your music. Although Azul was extremely reluctant because you had no background information about your career in orchestra and such, he relented because, well... you got along great with the crowd. And that means more money for Azul. Moving away from that, you’re a generally a nice and carefree person, a stark difference to the schemers of the dorm (You get along GREAT with Floyd). You are smart yourself (Why else would you be in that dorm?) but unlike the others you want to solely pursue in music. After your schoolwork, of course. And whenever Azul calls you to do some dirty work. Yes, whenever the Leech twins are nowhere to be found or busy with something else, the housewarden goes to you partly because you did say that you would help him in whatever, and he could trust you (he doesn’t have to worry about you thinking about double-crossing him. you’re not that smart for that lol). But despite your generous personality you’re indifferent with the other students in the dorm. They have their interests, you have yours.

[life-in-toontown]

That last reblog just made me wanna clarify that I absolutely hate 90% of Disney’s direct-to-video sequels but I do still like Lion King 2, despite having several issues with it.

I admit maybe this is just because I’ve been so deep into the Lion King fandom since I was a kid that disliking TLK 2 despite having so many problems either it just feels impossible lmao.

As for the problems, well first off there’s the one mentioned in the last reblog about how Scar having an heir that isn’t biologically related to him wouldn’t benefit him, but of course you can’t make him Scar’s bio son because that would make Kiara his cousin which means instead of their Love Song being “Upendi” it would instead be “Sweet Home Alabama”.

Also, where did Zira and the Outsiders come from? Yes you could say they were just background lionesses in Mufasa’s pride that remained loyal to Scar but then why weren’t they helping protect Scar once Simba came back and challenged him for the throne? I know the answer is “because the sequel wasn’t planned yet and they were worked on by two separate teams” but STILL, if you’re a person who completely accepts everything in TLK 2 as canon then it’s kinda hard to explain this one.

Also since Scar isn’t Kovu’s father then who is? And when did Zira have time to meet a male lion, mate with him then show her cub to Scar to convince him to let him become his heir? And what about Nuka and Vitani? I have seen a theory that Vitani is actually NALA’S daughter with the implication that the scene where Scar tries to seduce her (which was cut from the movie but used in the Broadway show) had a more horrific ending where Scar impregnated her and somehow Zira ended up adopting her. And while I do love that as a “what if” AU, I don’t consider it canon myself.

Now I’m gonna leave the massive plot holes for now and focus on little character pet peeves that annoyed me:

First of all, Timon and Pumbaa weren’t funny at all in this one. Like they’re one of Disney’s most iconic gay couples comedy duos but they were so “meh” in this. One time I did a screenshot redraw of them to resemble the art style from the first movie and in the description I added a rewrite of ways they could’ve been used better which I’ll link here just for funsies:

And now onto Nala. She was a strong character in the first film, leaving her home by herself to look get help, wasn’t afraid to call Simba out for refusing to go back to Pride Rock, plus she helped fight off the hyenas with the other lionesses. In the sequel? Well she popped a baby out which means now her only character trait is Supportive Wife and Mom. She only showed up to occasionally say “Hey Simba, chill out man, Kiara’s totally gonna be fine, stop worrying” then leave. Yes I know this was a father/daughter story but that doesn’t mean Nala has to be reduced to a robot that’s only capable of repeating phrases letting Simba know things will be fine.

And lastly maybe this one is just me, but I kinda wish Nuka as a tragic character was portrayed more. Yes I know his death scene was absolutely heartbreaking and yes you can tell he was jealous of Kovu getting his mother’s love but he was mainly just goofy comic relief. And I actually don’t mind him having funny moments but idk, I wish the tragic side of him was explored more before his death scene. Idk, maybe this one’s just me lmao.

So after all this you’re probably thinking “Wow are you sure you like Lion King 2? It sounds like you hate everything about it”

And like…I mean…I do but…can’t I also fantasize about how it could be better??

[the-rewatch-rewind]

Sometimes our childhood favorites really are that good.

Script below the break

Hello and welcome back to The Rewatch Rewind! My name is Jane, and this is the podcast where I count down my top 40 most rewatched movies in a 20-year period. Today I will be talking about number 25 on my list: Disney’s 1994 animated musical The Lion King, directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton, featuring the voice talents of Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, and James Earl Jones.

Desperate for power, Scar (voiced by Jeremy Irons) murders his brother, King Mufasa (voiced by James Earl Jones), then blames and exiles his nephew Simba (voiced by Jonathan Taylor Thomas as a cub and by Matthew Broderick as an adult). Simba grows up in the wilderness with the help of a meerkat named Timon (voiced by Nathan Lane) and a warthog named Pumbaa (voiced by Ernie Sabella), whose motto is “Hakuna Matata” or “no worries.” But after Scar and his hyena henchmen destroy the pridelands, royal advisor mandrill Rafiki (Robert Guillaume), Simba’s childhood friend and adulthood lover Nala (voiced by Niketa Calame and Moira Kelly), and the ghost of Mufasa all remind Simba that he actually does have some worries, and convince him to return home to challenge his uncle.

Apparently the first movie I ever saw in a theater was a re-release of Pinocchio, but the first movie I actually remember seeing in a theater is The Lion King. My aunt took me to see it first, and while I don’t have many specific memories of that experience (I was four), I do remember being overwhelmed with awe. I loved the characters, I loved the gorgeous animation, I loved the music, I loved the intense emotions – everything about it spoke to me. Later that year, I visited Disneyland for the first time, and the main things I remember from that trip are watching a Lion King themed parade and visiting a gift shop at the end of the day to get a Simba stuffed animal, which I still have. After we got back home, my mom took my sister and me to see the movie at a second-run theater, and I was very excited to be able to bring my Simba to see it with me. My sister also brought a stuffed animal of her own. I have a very distinct memory of being in the bathroom of that particular theater after watching this movie and saying, “Simba was very brave,” and when my sister commented that her stuffed animal was brave too, I said, “No, I mean in the MOVIE!” Why that has stuck with me for almost three decades I have no idea, but that exchange is indicative of how much I wanted to talk about this movie for my entire childhood.

As I mentioned in the Sound of Music episode, to my friend Christina’s shock, despite growing up in the 90s, I did not have a VCR until I was about 10 or 11 years old, which was around when most people started replacing their VCRs with DVD players. But my grandparents, who lived about a thousand miles away, had one, so I got to watch videos whenever we went to visit them, which was usually for several weeks once or twice a year. My grandma is not much of a movie person, and she only very rarely watches something more than once, so she has always been baffled and slightly amused by my penchant for rewatching. Before The Lion King, my favorite thing to watch over and over at their house was a video of four old cartoon shorts, two of which featured Humpty Dumpty, but after The Lion King was available for home viewing, that was what I wanted to watch the most. Whenever I put it on, my grandma would teasingly inquire, “How many times have you watched it now, Jane?” and for a while I could answer precisely, but I lost track somewhere around 10, 11, or 12 views, and that’s part of what eventually led me to start keeping track of my movie watching in 2003. So if this podcast was based on total rewatches throughout my life, The Lion King would be much higher in this ranking.

Eventually we did get a VCR and a DVD player, and we got a special edition DVD of The Lion King around 2004. We also got The Lion King 1 ½, which I very much enjoyed for a time, but haven’t revisited since 2005. I remember watching The Lion King II a few times, but apparently they were all before 2003, so I don’t remember much about it. But as far as the original Lion King, since keeping track, I saw it three times in 2003, twice each in 2004, 2005, and 2006, once each in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2018, and 2019, twice in 2020, and once in 2022. When my brother and I watched through all the theatrically released animated Disney films and ranked them in 2020, we knew we would be biased toward our childhood favorites, but I think we were both unprepared for just how clear it would be why the Disney Renaissance is so named. The striking, exponential increase in quality over the films immediately preceding this era cannot be overstated. But while the early Renaissance masterpieces The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast are incredible, we noticed that some of the animation sequences left something to be desired. Aladdin was much improved in that sense, with some breath-taking scenes – seriously, re-watch Aladdin’s attempted escape from the collapsing Cave of Wonders. And then The Lion King. Nearly 30 years after it came out, The Lion King is still one of the most gorgeous movies I’ve ever seen. I knew going into that project that it would probably end up pretty high on the list, but even I was kind of shocked to find that, at least based on the specific criteria we were looking at, there was no contest. The Lion King was number one. We definitely had differences of opinion throughout the project, but on that we were in complete agreement.

One thing that I particularly noticed while we were doing that project is that The Lion King’s voice cast was one of if not the most racially diverse of all animated Disney movies up to that point, which shows just how incredibly low the bar was, since most of the main cast is white. Robert Guillaume was put in a similar position as Samuel E. Wright in The Little Mermaid in having to adopt a rather stereotypical accent, but despite that, his is an excellent performance. The main hyenas were at one point going to be voiced by Cheech and Chong, and Cheech does voice one of them, but Chong had to drop out and was ultimately replaced by Whoopi Goldberg, which worked perfectly because hyenas are matriarchal, and because there really needed to be more female characters in this movie. Sarabi, Simba’s mother, was voiced by Madge Sinclair, in her final feature film, and definitely deserved a bigger role. Nala is really the only other female character who is at all important, and for some reason while young Nala is voiced by black actress Niketa Calame, adult Nala is voiced by white actress Moira Kelly. Not that she does a bad job or anything, I just don’t understand why they couldn’t have cast another black actress. But at least they cast James Earl Jones as Mufasa. His voice and acting were so perfect that he played Mufasa again in the 2019 remake – which, despite having an iconic and much less white cast, I will never voluntarily watch because the few clips I’ve seen look like they were made by a group of internet trolls as a bad joke, but I digress. All of the voice acting in this movie is fabulous, but James Earl Jones’s performance is unquestionably in the top two, along with Jeremy Irons’s portrayal of Scar.

I absolutely love Disney villains, and Scar has always been one of my favorites. I remember once when I was fairly young trying to articulate to my parents how much it delighted me that when he tells Simba that Mufasa’s death is Simba’s fault, his exact wording of “If it weren’t for you, he’d still be alive” was technically true on multiple levels, because not only did Mufasa die trying to rescue Simba, but it was also Simba’s birth that made Scar desperate to kill both of them, since before Simba was born he was first in line for the throne. But Scar was neglecting to mention that he was the one who had arranged the stampede. And I thought that was SO CLEVER and it blew my child mind. In more recent years, it has occurred to me that part of why I’m so drawn to villains is because they rarely have romantic partners. Sometimes that’s because of the painful stereotype that the hero wins romance and the villain is punished with singleness, but often the villain shows no interest in romance, and that is the case with Scar – or at least, the version of him that ended up in the movie. At one point he was going to hit on Nala and prompt her to leave the Pridelands, which is a storyline that was added back in for the Broadway musical. I appreciate that the creators of the musical wanted to expand the female characters, but I feel like there were better ways of doing that than showing Nala being sexually harassed. Anyway, movie Scar, like many if not most animated Disney villains, is very queer-coded and could potentially be aroace, and even though he is very evil, I’ll take any representation I can get. The way his ultimate downfall is that he betrayed his friends emphasizes the importance of maintaining trust in non-romantic relationships at a level that most stories wouldn’t dare approach.

Speaking of queerness, Timon and Pumbaa are the closest a Disney animated feature has come to showing a gay couple raising a child together. Personally I like to think of their partnership as a QPR, or queer-platonic relationship, which is a committed intimate relationship that is not romantic but is also different from a friendship, but that is entirely the aromantic in me projecting. To anyone out there who reads them as being in romantic love, that is a 100% valid interpretation. As is the interpretation that they’re friends. Their relationship is ambiguous, and I kind of love that. I wish that the movie hadn’t forced Simba and Nala into a friends-to-lovers path. Their friendship as kids makes me so happy, and their romance as adults has always confused me. For a long time I assumed that it was normal to eventually fall in love with a friend of the opposite sex, and that there was something wrong with me for not doing that. But it got to the point where now I’m just annoyed at that part. Not that Can You Feel the Love Tonight? isn’t an excellent song – it is! I just…don’t really think it belongs in this movie. And I get that they wanted the story to end as it began with a baby lion to emphasize the Circle of Life theme, but still. It would have been nice to have ONE Disney Renaissance film that wasn’t steeped in romance (besides The Rescuers Down Under, which doesn’t really count).

So yeah, there are things about this movie I don’t love, but they are so overshadowed by the aspects I do love that I don’t usually dwell on them. Even after all these rewatches, there are still scenes that give me chills. That opening, when the sun and Lebo M’s voice break through at the exact same moment, and all the animals are heading to Pride Rock through the fog and the intro to Circle of Life – ugh, it’s so beautiful! And the wildebeest stampede! Apparently it took over two years just to animate that two-and-a-half-minute stampede scene, using and innovating new computer programs and systems, and man, did that work pay off! As with the opening, the score and choir greatly enhance the stampede scene as well. Even if I didn’t love the story and the characters – which I do – the gorgeous animation and music would be enough to convince me to keep rewatching this movie. Which is particularly interesting given that most of Disney’s top animators at the time, along with Disney Renaissance music superstar Alan Menken, were working on Pocahontas instead because the studio wasn’t really taking this lion movie seriously. So the visuals were created by relatively inexperienced animators, and the score was by Hans Zimmer, who had never worked on an animated film before. The story itself went through a staggering number of concept changes and rewrites. Three people are officially credited as screenwriters, but then there are 17 people credited with contributing to the story, an additional eight people credited under “additional story material,” plus a story supervisor. At one point it was going to be a story about lions vs baboons, and the original title was King of the Jungle before somebody realized that lions don’t actually live in the jungle. Eventually the pitch became “Bambi in Africa meets Hamlet” and everyone just ran with that. Somehow, seemingly by accident, exactly the right people with exactly the right talent and dedication managed to create a masterpiece out of what by all logic should have been a disaster, and learning all of this over the years has made me appreciate it even more.

The Lion King is also full of difficult lessons that I still find relevant as an adult. Hakuna Matata is a good motto to apply to things you truly have no control over, but should never be used as an excuse not to work on problems you can do something about. Often it’s hard to tell which is which, and that’s why we all need friends and mentors like Nala and Rafiki to help. This movie also provides a deep and profound portrayal of grief through the eyes of a child, and how it stays with him through adulthood. Many other Disney protagonists have deceased or absent parents, but there’s no other moment in the Disney canon anywhere near as devastating as Mufasa’s death. It’s not exactly the same situation, but my aunt who first took me to see this movie died of cancer when I was 11. That was the first real loss of my life, and I think the fact that I will always associate The Lion King with her has significantly deepened my appreciation for this movie. My first viewing in 2020, before my brother and I embarked on our Disney project, was in honor of the 18th anniversary of her death, and I sobbed through most of the movie. It was very cathartic. I know that The Lion King is widely beloved and acclaimed – it’s the highest grossing 2D animated film of all time, it won two Oscars, it has 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, and it’s currently ranked #37 on IMDb’s top 250 movies – but it still feels incredibly personal to me. It was the first movie that I ever fell truly, deeply in love with, so it will always be one of my favorites.

Thank you for listening to me discuss another of my most frequently rewatched movies. Stay tuned for next week, when I will be talking about another Disney film that I’ve seen 19 times. As always, I will leave you with a quote from that next movie: “Darling. Could you, like, chill for a sec?”

[musemelodies]

the biggest divas in the pridelands:

[cannibalcoyote]

Scar's Adopted Brother Ch.6: Foreboding

Ch.5 Ch.7

"Crow!" Simba jumped slightly, hugging his body against mine. I'm slightly surprised, especially since we barely know each other, but I chalk it up to how he just lost his father.

"Simba I... I'm sorry I couldn't save your father." I stutter out, I know I agreed to help Scar, but I had no idea he would go about it this way. I never really wanted to kill Mufasa, and what happened will stay with me forever.

Simba tenses slightly, his face becoming somber as the memory floods back into his mind. His ears drop back against his head, his gaze shifting downwards as he pushes himself against me even harder. I crouch down, wrapping my paw around his back and lowering my head against his, a sort of hug to comfort him.

"It'll be alright Simba, I'll keep you safe." I promise to both him and to myself, my whispering barely loud enough for him to hear. He only answers by nodding his head, I can hear his sniffles as he cries for the loss of his father.

As he pulls back, I hear someone loudly clear their throat. Both Simba and I glance up to the disturbance.

"Hi, sorry to interrupt, but I would like to, oh I don't know, maybe know WHO YOU ARE!" A meerkat sarcastically states, yelling slightly at the end as he throws his paws up in the air at the end. The warthog behind him simply nods, still looking at me with slight fear in his eyes.

I raise an eyebrow at Simba, who simply gives a slight smile at my reaction. He turns to the meerkat.

"Timon, Pumba, this is Crow; Crow, this is Timon and Pumba."

"Nice to make your acquaintance." Pumba says as he walks forward.

"Please, the pleasure is all mine." I replied. Turning away from Timon and Pumba, I focus on Simba.

"I must head back now, I'll make sure to check on you at least once a week, I'm sure you can make do for yourself." I say, ruffling my mane as I finish my sentence.

"Don't worry about me Crow, I'll be fine." Simba replies, his smile dimming slightly at my goodbye. I allow a small fond smile to grace my features, I pull him into another hug before pulling away, ruffling the fur on his head before heading back to Pride Rock.

———————

It was well dark when I returned, heading straight to the watering hole, that desert trip back-and-forth is going to suck.

I don't know how to describe it, but the atmosphere feels heavy, like it's humid, every step closer feels wrong, like I should turn back time and stop anything from ever proceeding. As I approach Pride Rock I am met with the cynical laughing and yelping of hyenas. I'm immediately on edge, last time I had to deal with hyenas, I had to stop them from killing Simba.

I'm thrown out of my thoughts by a sudden attack to my neck, a couple hyenas had circled me, and one had snapped at my throat. I immediately swipe at him, my claws deeply scoring their face, a loud screech of pain reverberating through the plains. I roar quickly, requesting help from anyone available, and I receive a surprising response.

I not only hear the roars of response from my tribe, but also from other lions, probably Mufasa's. I try to keep fighting them off, but more hyenas have joined, there's now at least 15, all of which are attacking me at random. I try and try, but each attack of mine is met with 4 more from all sides, I can feel the blood dripping down my legs, blood matting my mane and dripping into my eyes. I'm about to give up when both lion prides arrive.

The hyenas are quickly torn off of me, being attacked by both sides, the roars of anger creating a cacophony that fills my ears. A loud roar creates silence, but I pay little attention to it as I can barely maintain my balance. My vision is going blurry, but I can still see where the roar came from, the figure jumping down from Pride Rock and coming closer to me. The hyenas immediately listened to this lion, meaning it could only be Scar, and the fact that the lions listened too means that his plan worked.

I can't think anymore on the topic, though. I feel my legs give out, leaving me laying across the floor, breathing heavily before falling unconscious. The last thing I heard being:

"BACK AWAY FROM HIM NOW!"

Ch.5 Ch.7

[londonspacegirl]

In the shop for a few hours. Doing some sorting and hanging. Have given my friend her birthday card and present. A Lion King tote bag with Timon, Pumba, and Simba on with "it means no worries for the rest of your days" on. Makes a change from Friends. Lol.

[greensparty]

Talking with Ondi Timoner

When I read the news about the Oscar Shortlist of Best Documentary Features it made me quite happy to see one particular documentarian on the list, which is made up of 15 documentaries released in 2022 that will be whittled down to 5 nominees when the Academy Award nominations are announced on January 24. It was a really strong year for docs and I was glad to see Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song and the David Bowie doc Moonage Daydream make the list, but I was elated to see Last Flight Home from director Ondi Timoner. She is one of the great documentary filmmakers of our time. Hands down! I was so blown away by her 2004 years-in-the-making doc Dig! about the friendship and rivalry between indie rock bands The Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre after I saw it in the movie theater that I actually reached out to her via her website and she got back to me. I sent her my short film Musician For Hire, which had some similar themes as Dig!, and she gave me some great feedback and we later met up at the Dig! DVD Party in NYC. We have met a few times since and stayed in touch. Since Dig! she has made several fascinating docs such as Join Us about escapees from a cult and We Live in Public about an early dot-com pioneer. Now she has made her most deeply personal film yet. 

In early 2021, following some hospitalizations Ondi’s father Eli (the founder of Air Florida), made a decision to end his life under California’s End of Life Option Act. Leading up to Eli’s final days, Ondi documented her family’s time with him in his home. Ondi’s mother Elissa and her siblings Rachel and David bond with their father in his final weeks and the doc looks at his extraordinary life. It is shot cinema verite style. For me, I definitely got choked up more than a few times while watching it. The documentary premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival and has played multiple festivals before MTV Documentary Films released it in Fall 2022. I recently caught up with Ondi via Zoom.

movie poster (with young Ondi in the blue jacket)

OT: What’d you think of the film?

Me: It was amazing. It hit really close to home for me, obviously this is the story of your family and father, but there were many things that hit close to home for me and I got choked up many times throughout the film. But I have nothing but respect for you in telling the story in the way that you did. Not just saying this, but sometimes you see films that just go beyond being a film or a documentary and are more of a life experience, and this is very much one of them. 

OT: Yeah, I feel like it’s more of a spiritual experience from the way people react to it. It affects people so deeply. I had no idea that sharing something so personal would be so affecting. But it’s obviously a beautiful thing. I worried at the premiere what the result would be of putting my family on display in their most vulnerable moments. But the result is it tends to really heal people in a lot of ways. Even if they cry, a lot of people call them tears of joy, that there is a catharsis that occurs that is different than watching a normal film. I’ve just never had feedback for anything in my life for anything I’ve ever made. I don’t know if I ever will again. It’s kind of its own experience really.

Me: Prior to the beginning of 2021 when this documentary begins, did you sit down with your family and discuss making a documentary about this? Or were you filming for the family and then much later thought it would make a good documentary?

OT: I was filming this for the family, that’s exactly right. I was filming it for myself, because when Dad said he wanted to die, that came as complete shock to all of us because he had been such a tenacious and positive person his whole life, despite the stroke. He always rooted for all of us, he never complained. But the idea of it, I mean of course everyone dies, but we never expected for him to elect for that. We didn’t even know there was a law for that, he was just electing for that because he realized he was going to have to go to a facility. That was where he relied on quality of life, because everything he loved was in his house with my Mom and being around the family. That is what kept him going. So when he made that call and decided that he needed to die, I panicked and decided I needed to film. As you can tell in the film I started recording audio right away. I went to see a therapist because I was so concerned that I was trying to mediate the experience or that I was trying to distance myself or that I’d be hurting my family. I thought this must be a terrible idea, but I just felt such an impulse to film. And I had no intention, Eric, of ever making a film. I was always going to make a scripted film about Dad. When you look at the footage or maybe you remember, you see papers on the bed - that’s the script I had written about Dad and that I’ve been working on for years. Because the only archival footage I have of Dad and the airline is about fifteen minutes worth of footage. So people my whole career that told me “wow, your Dad has such an extraordinary story” and it was always my dream to tell his story, but I always believed I’d tell it with a scripted film. So anyways, the therapist, I told “I feel like I have to set up cameras and film my Dad’s final days” and she said “if you feel like you should film, you should film”. So I called my Dad and he said “I instinctively know you’re on the right track”. I didn’t even know what track I was on, but I was on a track that he knew more than I did. He never had us turn the cameras off. I honestly felt like the presence of cameras felt like a relief to me. It allowed me to focus on his care and it allowed me to know that I wouldn’t forget him. That I wouldn’t forget his voice and his personality. It was like a safety blanket or something. More than anything it made pure presence possible. As opposed to taking presence away. I don’t think that would’ve been the case if I knew I was making a film probably. But I also set up that nest camera - you saw that’s a surveillance camera in the scene when Gigi (his granddaughter) comes. I set that up because I didn’t want to focus on the filmmaking process or the process of documenting. I just wanted it to be seamless and visible as possible. So what I did was I set up cameras all around and what I did was I would move them or operated them when other people were with Dad, otherwise I would just turn them on and be with Dad and take care of him. Those were the most beautiful days of my life in a lot of ways. I felt like that was just an absolutely sacred space in that room. I know that Dad was really so happy and at peace to know that we were supporting his decision. That set the tone for the room. He was kind, he was funny with everyone who walked in the room. I didn’t realize that until I started watching the footage when my sister asked me to make a memorial video after Dad died. 

Me: It’s such a beautiful thing that you have all this footage of grandkids, friends of the family, everyone with your Dad.

OT: You know, when my sister asked me to make this memorial video it was only about two weeks after Dad died. I could not believe the footage. I was blown away. She just said “you have footage of Dad, don’t you? Can you just cut five minutes of footage?” and five weeks later we had a thirty-two minute memorial video. I didn’t even leave the room. Dad was alive inside the Avid and I could laugh and cry with him. And I started noticing all of these incredible arcs. I kind of went from daughter to filmmaker in those weeks. I just went - oh my God! There is so much here of all of this incredible transformational material. I knew as we went through it that it was deeply profound, but I didn’t know until I watched the footage that every single person in that room had changed. I so busy as his daughter, trying to host people and make sure these zooms happened. More than anything, I tried to get Dad to realize that he gave us everything because he thought he was a failure and gave us nothing. So I had different goals and trying to get my Mom to face it. I was just caught up in the family. But as a filmmaker I could watch all I wanted in the Avid and I couldn’t stop cutting. After the memorial a lot of the people on the zoom memorial felt like their feelings about death had changed. So I realized this footage was really valuable to people and I realized this is something we all go through. And so I just kept editing after that. And of course my Dad’s arc in realizing he had measured his life wrong and thought that success was based on money and stature. He thought he was a failure and in fact he was a massive success because he had gained all of our love and devotion. He had everyone’s love he had ever touched in his life. That was what really put it over the top for me to share this footage. For me, for you, for all of the people out there to feel like they have shortcomings, this is an invitation to let go.

Ondi Timoner

Me: I have nothing but respect and admiration for you in being able to compartmentalize and say “I’m going to be here for my father and my family” but then put on your filmmaker hat and be setting up the camera and the microphone at the same time. On that note, you mentioned the scripted film of your Dad, prior to his final years, had you thought about doing a film about your father’s life?

OT: I started writing it eight years ago. I wrote the first draft. But I told a producer who reminded me recently that when I won at Sundance for Dig! in 2004, a producer asked, then, what I wanted to do and I said I wanted to make a scripted film about my father. I sort of pitched them the story then. But it wasn’t until I cracked my foot and I was off my feet for a month. In that month I would call Dad everyday and I’d just talk to him and interview him basically and just go through newspaper articles and everything and I put the first draft of the script together then, which I still dream to make. I would love to do it. The whole experience of sharing this emotional film and audiences telling me a lot about their own experiences has influenced the script for me. I need to do another rewrite on it, but it’d definitely my dream project. 

Me: Looking at your filmography, I feel like the through line in all your films is these extremely multi-layered intriguing subjects, i.e. Anton Newcombe, Josh Harris, Russell Brand, Robert Mapplethorpe - whether you like them or not, you’re just fully engaged with what they’re doing. Is that your priority when you’re deciding a film project to take on?

OT: What I care about is telling the story of people I care about who do what they do against all odds, who change the rules along the way. Most of my characters are extremely flawed as you know and I don’t shy away from those flaws. My father is by far the least flawed of all of them of what I call the Impossible Visionaries. But he is also, in fact, he’s my Original Impossible Visionary. He takes on the impossible and he’s not going to take no for an answer. That’s what he did, that’s how he built the airline, that’s how it became the fastest growing airline in the world, that’s how he stayed positive against all odds through his life and kept creating and creating happiness around him and joy for all of us. And being there for us. And to recover from the stroke as much as he did with such positivity. I really hope to make the scripted film because that really brings the 1970s and 1980s part of his life alive. It was a crazy time in aviation and Dad put deregulation through congress and he worked hard to make the skies open to all people no matter how much money you had or how old you were. He had senior citizens and students flying for eighteen dollars. They were called Pleasure Fares and he would offer students a massive discount to fly around. Things like that. My whole life, he’s inspired me to be who I am.

Me: Some of my favorite filmmakers are the ones who dabble in both narrative and documentary. You did the narrative film Mapplethorpe. In addition to your father’s scripted film, do you have plans for more narrative storytelling?

OT: No plans beyond this one, but I’m open. You never know what happens in this world. With Mapplethorpe, it was invited to premiere at Sundance and that was the Director’s Cut. It was on Hulu and now I have to figure out what happened to it, because that’s the complete version, that’s the script that I wrote.

Me: The timing of this interview is incredible because it was just announced that your new documentary The New Americans: Gaming a Revolution is premiering at South By Southwest in March. Congrats and not to jinx anything, but best of luck during awards season with Last Flight Home as well.

OT: Thank you! Well, my Dad is definitely my favorite leading man of all. He’s quite an inspiring character and his wisdom is captured in that footage. I think that’s his gift to me and now it’s his gift to the world.

me with Ondi at the Dig! DVD Release Party in NYC on 4/11/2005

For info on Last Flight Home: https://www.interloperfilms.com/lastflighthome

For info on Ondi Timoner: https://www.interloperfilms.com/about-ondi

[teachinginreallife]

When it’s finally summer vacation

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