#plus this is completely subjective but i think the actor who plays luke has a very awkward chemistry with alexis bledel

[marrissacooper]

I was rewatching the chris and rory scene in the revival and I don't understand how people can watch it and go "this conversation foreshadows that rory will raise her baby alone" like they both look so sad... they made chris say it happened the way it was meant to be but it's obvious he regrets it (plus he contradicts himself every second like first he says he chose not to get between lorelai and rory, then he says no one could've made lorelai change her mind... but that's a conversation for another post) and rory doesn't look much better. again, it's obvious that a part of her will always wish things were different. that her dad had been a better man, that he'd been in her life more. and chris keeps saying he loves rory but she doesn't say it back, it's tragic. why would she want to put her own child through this? it makes no sense

[kyluxtrashpit]

Hello naughty children, it’s 1 am rant time

So! My brain is slightly more together now than after the trailer first dropped and I’ve had some time to process all my Feels. I’ve settled on cautiously hopeful, with a hint of apprehension and a strong dose of ‘oh my god, this is really the end’. But overall, I think I feel pretty good about it, though it really raises more questions than answers. They meant it when they said ‘teaser’ lmao

(Rant is mostly positive, includes explicit discussion of what we’ve learned from the panel and the trailer. Some reservations and negative thoughts, plus a lot of speculation and touching on such controversial subjects as Reysky, Kylo redemption, and Hux in TLJ. Cut for length because I have no idea how to just use fewer words lmao)

I especially liked that it was so focused on Rey and that it’s a very clear torch-passing. Which, tbh, probably should’ve happened before now and did a little bit, but this really felt like the true moment of it. She’s the hero. She’s going to be a legend. I love that. Also that flip? Holy fuck. Slammed in the face by the reminder of how gay I am lmao. I have some Thoughts about it I’ll get into below, but from a visual point of view, it’s RAD AS HELL. I also love Finn and Poe featuring heavily and that the trio really does seem to be together for most of the movie. Which is nice. I think we need that. JJ said something in the panel about it being an ‘adventure’ and I think that feeling was captured well in the trailer. That part really excites me

Also! My boy! Kylo’s looking like a right hot mess and tbh I’m here for it lmao. I still have a strong urge to bathe him and kinda hope he doesn’t look like a depressed wreck of a human being for the entire movie, but still. I love my big messy boy. Also him just yeeting that dude into the ground? DAMN. I sometimes forget that Kylo is like… b i g. It’s a nice reminder. I also LOVE that the broken helmet rumour was real. That’s my fucking boy. I frequently tag him as ‘my precious disaster boy’ for a reason and I’m glad to see more of that. I would honestly probably lose interest in Kylo completely if he was ever like, calm and composed and not a complete fucking mess lmao. I kind of wish we’d seen just a touch more of him, but I know there’s more info to come and I still like that it focused heavily on the heroes for the first one. I imagine we’ll see more of him later

I’m… not really sure what to think of the Palpatine reveal. If he’s going to show up as a cameo of some sort, say as a Force ghost or something, then that’s pretty dang cool. If he’s going to show up as a ‘hello naughty children, it’s Force lightning time’ and take over as the main threat, I’d admittedly be disappointed. As much as I think a Kylo redemption is likely (and whether people like that or not, I’m indifferent and have made my peace with it as long as it’s done in an okay way) in no small part because Disney likes money, I still feel like replacing him with Palpatine is just… it feels derivative. We’ve had Palpatine before. A lot. 6 movies of him plus his appearances in the side materials. Do we really need more?

Now, there’s been heavy suggestion that there is some unknown threat that comes into this one and if that’s Palpatine, it would match up with the rumours. But I’d much rather it be something from his legacy with him only having a cameo. Because the really terrifying part about Palpatine is he had a plan for the continued survival of the Empire even in the case of his death. The Aftermath novels are really well done that way and tbh, especially with Chuck Wendig’s hinting on twitter, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see something from there come up. I mean, technically the entire First Order is Palpatine’s legacy. Something from his legacy could truly be anything and I like that possibility a lot more than just ‘oh damn, time to kill this asshole again’. Idk. We’ll have to see how that plays out

The title is also curious because it really confirms one of 2 possibilities: either Reysky, Kylo redemption, or both. Which, again, both of those are huge spoilers, so it’s an interesting choice to play for a title. That said, we don’t know which, so it doesn’t tell us definitively, I suppose, but still. And no, I don’t buy the theories about it referring to Luke or Anakin somehow returning; that would be stupid. We have new characters for a reason and they need to be the central focus. This is the same reason I’m not fond of Palpatine being the big bad; let the new villains shine. I also don’t believe it’s Leia because I doubt they had enough left over footage of Carrie to make that work

Of course, I would’ve enjoyed having a nice 0.2 seconds of the back of Hux’s head lmao, or even any info on the dark side characters at all because I’m a filthy villain fucker, but I’m not super upset about it. I’m kinda sad that Phasma is confirmed as dead, but I also expected that. My biggest hope for Hux is really that he gets to be scary and not treated as a joke, so I hope JJ really leans in to that. Let him have his moment. Let him be a credible threat because, really, he is. Tbh, I’d be more afraid of him as my nemesis than the vast majority of Star Wars villains. He’s got a higher kill count than anyone in all of Star Wars except maybe Palpatine himself (exact number of deaths due to the Clone Wars, the Empire’s rule, and the rebellion combined are unknown, but are probably in the billions, which would put him and Hux, terrifyingly, on the same level). It still throws me for a loop how often that’s forgotten, both by fandom and, sometimes, the official material. Hux is what happens when ambition, intelligence, ruthlessness, and fervent belief in a cause converge. I know he’s going to fail and he’s going to die in this one but, fuck, please let him die as the Starkiller instead of a ‘miscast tinkerer’. He deserves that much and, more importantly, so do I lmao. And Domhnall does too, tbh, because he’s a great actor who deserves better than being sidelined completely

(Another reason not to like Palpatine coming back: basically guarantees Hux has no role and gets completely forgotten because there’s a new big bad in town. I might actually cry if that happens)

I also know we will get more on the villains later, so we’ll just have to see how that pans out. As for other new stuff, Naomi Ackie’s character looks rad as fuck and I love her already. I’m also ECSTATIC to see Lando back. I fucking love Lando. And he finally got the Falcon back! Tbh I hope his role is rather significant and it’s kinda in line with Han’s role in TFA. I’m excited by that possibility. Also the Leia scenes… fuck. That hug with Rey fucked me up hard. I can’t believe we’re doing this without Carrie and it breaks my heart tbh

Another curious note: so we see a tie fighter that looks like a modified Silencer flying at Rey. We also see Kylo in a cockpit that definitely does not match the Silencer’s from TLJ. So it’s possible that was not actually Kylo flying at her, which raises some interesting questions. I saw some people saying they could see Poe’s jacket in the window but I think they’re full of shit and just seeing something they want to lmao. It remains to be seen who is actually flying it. The context of that scene is also odd: in what fucking universe does it make sense to use a SPACE craft with GUNS capable of atmospheric flight to run someone ON FOOT over from like 3 feet off the ground? It doesn’t. That’s stupid. That does make me think it’s possible it’s some sort of really risky training exercise, no matter who is behind the controls. I suppose it is possible that perhaps the guns were disabled somehow and the pilot is just going for broke, but the ship looks undamaged and that strategy still doesn’t make a lot of sense. The correct thing to do would be to come from above and crash it into the person while ejecting moments before impact, not chasing them like you’re driving a car. It’s dumb. I really hope that’s not real combat because it makes no damn sense to me lmao. Another reason lending to the training exercise idea: if I were Rey, I would’ve gone below, not above. She’s small. A tie fighter hovers. She would’ve fit under it easily and been able to slash from below without having to jump into the damn sky. Though, counterpoint: she has her lightsaber ignited and is turning to slash at the cockpit. Not really a nice thing to do to an ally of yours helping you train, hm? Idk. The scene looks cool as fuck, but the more I think about it, the more it bugs me tbh lmao

As a last thing… it’s really hitting me that this is it. This is the end of the Skywalker saga. Even though I know they have other stories planned with new characters at some point, imo, this is really the end of the true part of the franchise. How much am I really going to care about Star Wars without the familiar faces? After decades… this is really it. That’s… very bittersweet. I have loved these movies, always, but especially so in recent years (as evidenced by the existence of this blog lmao) and they’ve been a big part of my life. Yet here we are. And I just… I’m feeling melancholy about that in and of itself, but I also really, really want this to be a satisfying ending. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but I want it to fit. I want it to feel right. I want closure and I want this ending to do justice to these characters, including the main ones, the side ones, and the ones who came before but aren’t featured in this trilogy. That’s really what I’m aching for here. And I am cautiously hopeful, but I am also nervous. This is a very tall order and, while JJ is probably the person best qualified to give that to us, it doesn’t change how much of a challenge that is. It’s a lot. And… I am definitely sad about this being the end. Even if I love the movie and it’s amazing and lives up to all of my dreams, it will still end and this will be it. I honestly don’t know how I’m going to feel when that actually comes and it kinda scares me a little. But a satisfying ending would help soften the blow, so we shall see. Idk. I’m sad and a little scared just because of that, all other reservations aside

I think that’s all I’ve got for now? I’m excited for more and I don’t know if we’ll get much over the rest of celebration, but there might be snippets. I’d still like to see the Knights of Ren too, given that we’re pretty sure they’re in the movie but like… where? Lmao I want to know. Anyway. This is mostly word vomit, so don’t take it too seriously. My predictions could be way off base and we won’t know for a while so yeah. If you read this far, congrats and thanks for reading my rambling!

[81scorp]

More thoughts on Tangled

I thought that all of my thoughts on Tangled might be a little much to read if put into one editorial, so I decided to divide it into two. Here`s the second half. You broke my SPOILERS ! Small constructive criticism

On the fence: Rapunzel hiding the satchel Where did Rapunzel hide the satchel? On her body I mean, before the scene where she gives it to Eugene in the boat. How about: She could have left the tower with her own, selfmade handbag to carry small stuff, like provision. When Gothel gives her the satchel she could take the crown out of it and hide it in her handbag and give it to Eugene later. "But if you`re gonna question the realism why don`t you also question why her hair doesn`t get dirty from being dragged on the ground or get stuck more often?" you might say.

Because A: Tangled seems to operate more on a fairytale logic than a Looney tunes logic where characters can pull things out of thin air whenever it`s convenient and the satchel was too important to the plot to be hidden in such a way.

B: I am very selective in my pedantic nitpicking. However: Rapunzel and Eugene`s sleeping place wasn`t that far from the castle. It`s possible that Rapunzel had time to run and get the satchel in the time it took Eugene to go and buy the lanterns. She could then have hid it behind her back until she knew what boat they were gonna use and then hide it on the boat. (Kinda how (I assume) Eugene hid the lanterns.) Besides, even if the satchel technically was too important to the plot to be hidden in such a looney tune kinda way it`s still technically a small thing in the plot that I didn`t really thought about until I looked a little closer and put a little extra thought into it. At the end of the day, I`m willing to let this slide. On the fence: Eugene getting hanged for stealing a crown People think that the punishment doesn`t fit the crime, that the hanging was just a way to raise the stakes and make it more dramatic. How about: Instead of being escorted to the gallows, he was being escorted to a boat that would take him to a prison-island where he would be locked up for who knows how many years. However: I don`t mind the dramatic punishment. It may have been disproportionate to the crime, but I like the raised stakes and it worked for the story. The Queen recognizing Rapunzel The last time she saw Rapunzel she was a blond baby, and now this grown up brunette shows up and she still recognizes her? Yes, if you`ve seen the scene you remember that they looked alike and that the Queen looked at her for a few seconds to find similarities. But how does she know she`s not some lookalike impostor? It would have been better if there was one more little thing that could help confirm Rapunzel`s identity. How about: Rapunzel was born with a flower-shaped birthmark behind one of her shoulders and the only ones who knew about it was the King, the Queen and Mother Gothel. And when they`re reunited the Queen checks her shoulder to be absolutely sure. But I guess most of us are willing to overlook this little detail because of the fairytale tone of the movie and because we know what Rapunzel`s been through. After all her hardships and struggles we want her to have her happy ending damnit! 2D animation and 3D animation This isn`t the first time Disney has done a fairytale musical or a computer animated movie but it is the first time they have combined the two. I like that they try something new, sure I would have liked if it was 2D, but I have no problem with the 3D. I just hope that there is still room in the future for some more handrawn Disney movies and that they don`t disappear completely. I wouldn`t mind seeing some more movies made with the Meander animation, like in Paperman. At least Disney`s last handdrawn movie wasn`t Home on the range. Tangled ever after Schopenhauer once said that a happy ending is an illusion created by the curtain closing at the right moment. What he meant is, and let`s be honest, most stories are about (Or at least involve) suffering and struggling. After the hero and heroine have suffered enough they are finally reunited in each other`s arms, the curtain closes and it`s a happy ending. Had it not ended there, the two lovers would once again have been separated and forced to struggle and suffer until they found each other again. If Tangled got a sequel Rapunzel and Eugene would once again have to struggle and suffer and it would weaken the big happy ending in the first movie. However, Hollywood does this all the time. Star wars: A New Hope ended happily and in the sequel Luke and his friends are back to hiding from and fighting against the Empire. Another important part of the movie and the fairytale it was based on (and the biggest reason why the filmmakers decided to not make a sequel) was Rapunzel`s insanely long hair which was cut in the movie`s climax. Without the most important thing it had in common with the fairytale it was based on, a sequel to Tangled would just seem forced. But if Disney were to make a sequel, what more could they actually tell the audience? Do we really want them to have a tragic turn of events just to make an interesting sequel? Was there a story left to tell and if so, what would it be about? Rapunzel and Eugene didn`t get married in the end of the first movie but a wedding was mentioned. In the end we got a short fim called Tangled ever after. I like it. The cartoony slapstick reminds me of the classic Tom and Jerry cartoons and I like that they continued the story with a short film. Not everything has to be big and feature length. Sometimes some things work best in a small scale. In the short film Eugene and Rapunzel take a back seat to Pascal and Maximus, which makes sense since their story was already told and pretty much came full circle in Tangled. And they still can`t get Eugene`s nose right! Tangled the series Just found out that they`re making an animated tv series that takes place between the first movie and the short film. It kinda, sorta weakens what I wrote about making sequels earlier since it kinda, sorta works as a sequel. How do I feel about a tv series? Cautious optimism. It could be good. I shouldn`t have high expectations but I hope that they at least give names to the unnamed Thugs from the Snugly Duckling. I mean seriously, you get recognizable actors like Brad Garrett and Jeffrey Tambor and you don`t even give their characters names? Tangled and Frozen If you haven`t seen Frozen or read my previous editorials

Do you want to read some SPOILERS? Ah yes, Tangled and Frozen. By the time I`m writing this they are, so far, Disney`s only 3D animated fairytale based musicals. That`s probably why people compare them to each other.

I like Tangled more than Frozen, that does not make Tangled objectively better than Frozen, nor does it make Frozen objectively worse or even bad. You can like one thing without hating the other. But why do I like Tangled more? I think one of the reasons (the reasons I can explain at least) is expectations.

First time I saw Tangled it surprised me, not just with the songs but also with three great scenes in a row: the Kingdom Dance scene, the wordless scene with the King and Queen (It hit me right in the feels!) and the big lantern scene. Suddenly this silly adventure comedy had become very heartwarming and a little bit more mature. Now you may say: "But it`s Disney, heartwarming is kinda their thing." Yes, but for a while they toned that down to focus more on silly comedies. Frozen is very hyped and it has led to it getting a lot of hate, something I think is sad because it`s not a bad movie. It is the hype that is the problem. Tangled was (in my experience at least) not as hyped as Frozen. (Probably because Disney wanted to keep the part about it being a musical a secret.) Because of that some of the best scenes were not shown in trailers and teasers, at least not much, to my knowledge, making it more pleasant to see them for the first time in the cinema. When Disney learned from Tangled that people like 3D animated musicals they made sure to play the Crap out of "Let it go". I Usually try to avoid hype. But then I saw a video where movie critic Kyle Kallgren mentioned Frozen in a list of movies that he recommended. He said: "Never before have I seen a Disney film with so many subversions". That word: "Subversions" (A word that I at that time thought meant the same as "toned down" or "avoid".), and the fact that Kyle usually watches highbrow movies, made me think that it was gonna be so much more different from the ordinary Disney films than it actually was. Plus, he also spoiled that it was sisterly love that saved the day. (But he didn`t go into details how it happened and fortunately he didn`t reveal the twist with Hans, all he said was "false prince". I assumed that Hans was a good guy (but not her true love) pretending to be a prince.) So curse you Mr Kallgren! Curse you for unintentionally raising my expectations about this movie only to find out that, while not the movie I thought it would be, it was still good and technically lived up to your description! May you be forced to watch godawful movies that... uh... uhm... Nevermind. But, like I said, his description was technically accurate.To it`s credit, Frozen has some new twists that we haven`t seen before, or at least often, in Disney movies. Where Tangled stayed more true to the Disney formula, Frozen gave us some new things. Like a clever villain who fools not just the heroines but the audience as well, platonic sibling love saves the day, not romantic love and we get a Disney queen (who plays an important part in the plot) who`s not evil. Another factor that makes me feel the way I felt about Frozen is (and this is very subjective) feels. Like I said before, I went into the cinema to see Tangled with low expectations and was surprised. The wordless scene with the King and the Queen before the release of the lanterns poked me right in the feels. Next Disney movie was Wreck it Ralph and much like Tangled I didn`t have high expectations about it. I saw it because a movie with a scene where several famous videogame badguys (like M. Bison and Bowser) meet in a support group seemed too hilarious to miss. I expected it to be funny and I was right, but then there were some good scenes with Ralph and Vanellope that hit me right in the feels. I thought it was just gonna be a silly comedy about videogame characters! Well played Disney, well played. This was also the first time I experienced Disney`s strategy of lowering our expectations and intentionally misleading us (Disney you magnificent bastards!). With two Disney movies in a row giving me the feels I think it`s understandable that I would expect their next movie (that was well recieved by critics) to do the same. Unlike Tangled and Wreck it Ralph my expectations with Frozen were not low, but relatively high-ish, like they usually are for most animated Disney movies. Frozen met my expectations much more than it exceeded them and it did not give me as strong feels as Tangled and Wreck it Ralph did. I didn`t feel that different from what I usually feel when I watch a good animated Disney movie. With Frozen I was waiting for that little extra thing that it technically never promised to give me. But you can`t really judge a movie`s quality (or likeability) based on how much feels it gives you, because feels are not necessary and there are many other things that can work to a movie`s advantage. However, there are some cases where some Disney movies have aged well for me and made me feel a little more when I´ve rewatched them after a few years. When I watched Beauty and the Beast as a little kid I liked it, but mostly for the humour. When I watched it again in my thirties a few years ago I remember seeing the dancing scene between Belle and Beast in a new light. Beast was being nervous and gulped while Belle was calm and gently took his hand and put it around her waist. I realized that this was probably the most intimate experience he had ever had with anyone, not so much physically but emotionally. This was not just a dance, this was a moment where a man was coming out of his shell and learning to trust someone else. If I`m not mistaken there are a few seconds where he looks where he puts his his feet but then gets more confident and realizes: "Hey, I`m getting good at this! I don`t need to look where I put my feet, it`s coming to me naturally!" In a way, this is a scene where Beast transforms on the inside. I love the line sung by Mrs Potts: "Both a little scared, neither one prepared", it sums up Belle and Beasts relationship perfectly. It`s a tale as old as time because it`s a tale worth retelling. My first-time experience with Brave was similar to my first-time experience with Frozen. I expected it to be different because it was Pixar. After watching it I felt: "It wasn`t bad, but it felt very conventional for a Pixar movie". It was on TV a couple of weeks ago, I gave it a watch and it had changed for me. The emotional moments had more of an impact on me this time and it gave me some feels. And don`t get me started on Dumbo. Who knows, maybe if I watch Frozen a second time some day in the future, now knowing better, I might see something in it that I didn`t see before and maybe it`ll give me the feels. Or maybe not. Like I said, a movie doesn`t have to give you the feels to be liked, and Frozen has other things that works to it`s advantage. Finally saw the Frozen fever short by the way. It`s as I expected: a cute, small project one would do between bigger projects. Cute songs, good animation and some funny moments. It does what it can with the short runtime it has. Yes, Frozen has flaws, but so does Tangled, and in both cases (for me at least) most of them are small and overlookable.

Tangled`s strength is it`s simplicity and humour. It also had the luxury of being the first 3D animated fairytale based musical. Frozen, not having the same luxury, has it`s strength in more memorable songs and challenging some of the tropes in the Disney formula. So, who wants a piece of cake?