#rosy hours redux

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Johnlock Podfics by Podfixx

Hey all! Today’s a different kind of Fic Rec Sunday! I was recently asked to send some love to the amazing @podfixx, and of course I said yes! And I’ve decided to do it in one of my fave ways for content creators: promoting their work!! While I’ve never listened to podfics (it’s not really my thing) I know that Podfixx is a staple of the Sherlock podfic community and deserves all the love for their hard work, professionalism, and dedication.

I want to share my own happy experience with Podfixx: they are the reason I have chapter counts on my fic recs now, if you guys didn’t know. They asked me a few years ago if I could add Chapter counts to fics, because [and this isn’t verbatim, but it’s how I interpreted what they told me... can’t find the message now, it was so long ago] adding chapters actually helps podficcers in deciding which fics to pick next to read, or how to break up a LONG 1 Chapter fic, and helps them plan out their podfic schedule. First of all, I was FLOORED that someone as amazing as Podfixx even read my fic lists (I’m always shocked when anyone takes vested interest in anything I do), but that, at the time, they used them to help pick fics. And since then, I’ve always put chapter counts on all my fics.

So you guys should go and give them a listen!:) This list is OBVIOUSLY not comprehensive, and not everything they’ve done, but PLEASE check out their “Podfixx” tag for everything they’ve read (including Good Omens and Jeeves and Wooster!), and give them some love!!

Click on the “PODFIC AVAILABLE” link to go to the Tumblr or Ao3 posts linking to their Spotify Tracks!

Enjoy! And thank you @podfixx for providing endless hours of fics for the community! This one is for you 💜🖤

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The Lustful Cockmonster by hubblegleeflower (M, 954 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Established Relationship, Pet Names for Penises, Fluff, Humour) – Not many people know this, but Sherlock is the funny one. Part 2 of the Favourite Ficlets series

Something red, something green, something sparkly by Silvergirl (M, 1,106 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Christmas, Texting, Impending Desperation, Gift Shopping) – If you can't solve a puzzle yourself, ask the experts. Of course, the experts may be utterly useless ... until they aren't.

Out of the Shadow of Missed Chances by MargueriteSomebodyoranother (T, 1,132 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post TRF / TEH Fic, Reunion, Idiots in Love, Mutual Pining) – He’d had eighteen months - it seemed like a goddamned eternity at the time - and he never uttered a word.

The Man in Aisle Ten by standbygo (G, 1,395 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Christmas, Shopping, Gifts, Original Female Character POV) – It's Christmas Eve, the busiest day for shopping at Harrod's, and there's a guy in aisle ten who's snapping at every sales associate who dares to approach him. It's up to Moira to help him find the perfect present. [TRANSLATIONS: Русский || 中国] 

Ink by Strange_johnlock (T, 1,460 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Parentlock with Rosie, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss/Time, Tattoos, Mutual Pining, Angst, Fluff) – Every tattoo Sherlock gets has to do with John.

On The Dangers Of Semi-Skimmed by loveanddeathandartandtaxes (M, 1,536 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post-S4, Domestics, Masturbation, Accidental Voyeurism, First Time) – “I don't mind,” John blurts. Sherlock looks at him. “If you were to come up to my room for - anything.”

Letters, Redux by earlgreytea68 (G, 1,730 w., 1 Ch. || PODFICS AVAILABLE: [PODFIXX || THEMUSECALLIOPE] || Tags to Be Added) – While he's dead, Sherlock writes John more letters. Part 3 of Letters  [TRANSLATIONS: Polski || Русский]

Say you won't let go by WritingOutLoud (G, 1,996 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || TSo3 Fix It, POV John First Person, Drunk Sherlock, Drunk John, First Kiss) – Short ficlet about what could have happened if they hadn't had a case on the stag night. [TRANSLATIONS: Español]

Letters, the Writing Of by earlgreytea68 (G, 2,416 w., 1 Ch. || PODFICS AVAILABLE: [PODFIXX || THEMUSECALLIOPE] || Tags to Be Added) – While he's dead, Sherlock writes John letters. Part 1 of the Letters series [TRANSLATIONS: Русский || Polski]

The Perils of Pair Bonding by Infinitely_Stranger (M, 2,761 w., 2 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post S4, Awkward Conversations, Idiots Being Idiots) – Sherlock turns out to have been a bit wrong about something. John turns out to have noticed.

The General Idea by agirlsname (T, 3,022 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Retirement, Promise of Forever / Proposal, POV John, First Kiss, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Soft Sherlock, Idiots in Love, Crying / Emotional Sherlock, Love Confessions) – After twenty years of friendship, John is used to Sherlock acting weirdly. But the news Sherlock finally brings himself to deliver change the carefully built dynamics between them, and John realises it's time to act.

The Beauty of Broken Edges by snorklepie (E, 3,181 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || POV John, John’s PTSD, Sexuality, Blow Jobs, Idiots in Love, First Time, Friends to Lovers, Feelings Realization, Fluff, 221B Baker Street, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Frottage) – John Watson thinks he's Very Bad at Relationships. Sherlock Holmes dreams of wandering around his entorhinal cortex.

By the Rivers of Babylon by verdant_fire (T, 3,359 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post HLV Canon Divergence, Love Declarations, Exile, Pining Sherlock, Longing, Angst, POV Sherlock, Reunions, First Kiss) – Sherlock goes back to Serbia, and endures exile, boredom/torture, and a certain chemical defect, for the sake of one person and three improbable words.

Safe Harbour by 221b_hound (G, 3,842 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post-TRF, Angst, Emotional Hurt / Comfort, Five and One) – Five times John comforts someone, and one time someone comforts him.

The Romance Was There by apliddell (G, 4,011 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post S3, Post Mary, Christmas, Domestics, Villain Mary, Platonic Bedsharing, Love Confessions, First Kiss, Angst, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Love Letters) – In which Sherlock reveals his merits as a housekeeper, and a few other things, too.

Tree Topper by May_Shepard (E, 4,017 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Christmas Tree, Christmas Fluff, Drunken Shenanigans, Smut, First Time, Friends to Lovers) – Sherlock and John are celebrating Christmas the best way they know how--alone together, with booze. They've almost finished decorating their tree, but John is determined to find the best way to top it.

Golden Hours by stopthat (M, 4,783 w., 2 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || POV Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, Fluff and Angst, Hugs and Cuddles, Conversations, First Kiss/Time, Seaside Cottage, Love Confessions, Frottage, Tenderness, Sexual Tension) – John is too quiet. Sherlock whisks him away to the sea.

Letters, the Reading Of by earlgreytea68 (T, 5,334 w., 1 Ch. || PODFICS AVAILABLE: [PODFIXX || THEMUSECALLIOPE] || Tags to Be Added) – While he's dead, Sherlock writes John letters. John reads them. Part 2 of the Letters series [TRANSLATIONS: Polski || Русский]

Five Times Sherlock Fell Asleep in John's Arms by Accident and the One Time He Did It – Accidentally – on Purpose by WillowGrove (T, 7,201 w., 6 Ch, || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Five and One, Falling Asleep, Cuddling & Snuggling, Texting, Tea, First Kiss, Dreams, Fever, Comfort, Caretaker John, Love, Humour, Fluff) – Sherlock notices that John keeps cuddling him to sleep and he rather likes it. But then John stops, and Sherlock has to result to schemes to make it happen again. Who falls asleep, who wakes up in who’s arms, and – most importantly – will there be a kiss in the end?

Three New Messages by earlgreytea68 (M, 7,485 w., 2 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Tags to Be Added Upon Reading) – If you were dying, if you'd been murdered -- in your very last seconds, what would you say? [TRANSLATIONS: Русский || 中国]

of midnight moments and mistletoe by hudders-and-hiddles (M, 7,669 w., 4 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Christmas, First Kiss, Fluff, Mistletoe, Snow) – John and Sherlock are throwing a Christmas Eve party, and the flat is all strung up with mistletoe.

The Love Song of Two Idiots by SkipandDi (T, 7,868 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Crack, Humour, Proposals) – The eighth time Sherlock proposed to John, it was on a Thursday afternoon in the middle of a Tesco. And like the seven times before, he got rejected. Part 2 of The Infiltrate Series

Tomorrow by Berty (M, 9,517, 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Magical Realism AU || Canon Divergence, Christmas, Hurt/Comfort, Spells and Enchantments, Married John/Mary, Difficult Decisions, Fluff and Angst) – The night before they travel to Dorset to spend Christmas with Sherlock's parents and John's wife, 221 Baker Street is peaceful with the smell of baking, flickering candles and presents under the tree. But Father Christmas can't be relied upon to bring the boys their heart's desires. Just as well Mrs Hudson - who is NOT a fairy godmother OR their housekeeper, thank you very much - is so good at her job.

Casualty by Silvergirl (E, 12,051 w., 4 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Canon Compliant Until T6T, Mary’s Dead, Trauma/Comfort, John’s a Good Friend, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss/Time, Sherlock Learns Teamwork, Parentlock) – Sherlock renders assistance at a hit-and-run and is left deeply shocked. When the accident turns into a case, John moves back in to 221b to help—and finds that Sherlock has way oversold his image as an emotionless thinking machine.

A Thousand Kisses Deep by Susan (E, 12,689 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Time Travel, Longing, Angst, Post S1, Time Travel Fix It) – “Come here,” Sherlock said and when he did, he put his arm across John’s shoulder, and pulled him close. John let him, and after a moment, rested his head against Sherlock’s chest. Sherlock felt the familiar ache, a longing for what might have been. If only he’d been braver, more sure of John’s feelings. He dropped his arms and stepped back. It was too late. Things were as they were meant to be. But it was autumn in Sussex, and everything was changing. If you were given a chance to go back to the beginning and make things right, would you take it?

The Zebra Sheets by agirlsname (M, 13,733 w., 35 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post TRF, POV Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, UST, Dialogue-Heavy, Relationship Negotiation, Holidays/Sussex, Touch-Starved Sherlock, Brief Mentions of Torture, Falling in Love, Mentions of Past Drug Use) – Sherlock is back from the dead and he's exhausted. So is John. They go on a holiday to a faraway cottage and unexpected truths are revealed.

Almost Home by Berty (E, 13,871 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Alternate First Meeting, Captain John, Pining John, University Student Sherlock, Gay Bar, First Time, Anal, Mutual Masturbation, Protective Big Brother Mycroft, POV John, Time Skips, Memories, Angst With Happy Ending) – He pulls out the ID card – the one that Sherlock had somehow seen when he was buying drinks at that awful club. He’s had other ID cards since then but he’s hung on to this one for some reason. He looks at the image of his face, young and pale and idealistic, and he knows that just a month later that man would have found and lost the love of his life within a week, and even knowing that, John wouldn’t change a single thing.

About Sleep and Coffee and the Existence of Fate by Atiki (E, 17,426 w., 6 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Fluff, Marriage Proposal, Humour, 5 and 1) – Naturally, John was startled when suddenly the ultimate solution occurred to him: Marriage. This was, of course, a bit of a fundamental problem rather than an actual solution. One didn't simply use the words “Sherlock” and “marriage” within the same sentence. Not even in a hypothetical context. Five times John kind of wanted to propose to Sherlock, and one time he didn’t have to.

Straight Boy Pain by Glenmore (NR, 18,257 w., 10 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Coming Out, Pain, Romance, Birds, Sexuality) – Sherlock is in pain. Billy Kinkaid, the Camden garroter and best man Sherlock knows, diagnoses it. Ademar Silver, a male prostitute in south London, attempts to treat it. Lestrade, kindly Detective Inspector of New Scotland Yard, doesn’t notice it. Eventually, John Watson, healer and registered medical doctor, cures it. And a beautician called Penny paints Sherlock’s toenails.

Over Cloud and Under Cloud by khorazir (T, 16,477 w., 3 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Cabin Pressure Crossover || Post-TRF, Angst, Humour, Pre-Slash, Pining) – After his Fall, Sherlock travels the world to destroy what remains of James Moriarty's criminal empire. When things don't go according to plan and he finds himself in desperate need of a discreet means of travel, cue MJN Air... Part 1 of the Over/Under series

Winter to Spring by standbygo (E, 19,416 w., 10 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post S4, Post-Nuclear War, Parenthood, Danger, BAMF Sherlock, Whump, Angst with Happy Ending) – Sherlock is babysitting Rosie when the ultimate disaster strikes London. There will be fear, there will be danger, there will be despair - but in the end, there will be love.

Divinest Sense by ChrisCalledMeSweetie (E, 25,001 w., 18 Ch. |  PODFIC AVAILABLE || Alternate First Meeting, Mental Health Issues, First Kiss/Time, Coded Clues, Virgin Sherlock, Bisexual John, Slow Burn) – John has been sectioned — deemed to be a danger to himself and others — and is facing six months in an experimental psychiatric treatment facility. After his recent drug overdose, Sherlock is being shipped off by his brother to live amongst the mad, as though this will somehow improve his mental health. What will happen when these two damaged men meet under the least auspicious of circumstances?Hint: You can expect some humorous misunderstandings, burgeoning attraction, coded clues that the reader is invited to try to decipher, eventual explicit sex, and altogether more fluff than one might imagine, given the rather dark premise of this story. Part 1 of the Divinest Senses

Extraction by holmesian_love (NR, 28,594 w., 15 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post-TRF/Hiatus, Kidnapped Sherlock, BAMF John, Rescue Mission) – While Mycroft spends a month working overtime to find his brother, with agents reporting back and an extraction team in place, John's world is turned upside down, after a surprise delivery shakes his foundations. He is forced back into the world of Sherlock Holmes, completely unprepared to face the consulting detective.The extraction is only the beginning for these three men as they face the consequences of past actions. Part 1 of Extraction

The Whore of Babylon Was a Perfectly Nice Girl by out_there (E, 32,897 w., 1 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Past Drug Use, Blowjobs, Toplock, Mentions of Switching, Rough Sex, Background Cases, Sherlock’s Past, Sherlock’s Sexual History, Experienced Sherlock, Past One Night Stands, Fingering, Cuddling, Possessive Sherlock, Paris Holiday, Bed Sharing, Naked Lie-Ins, Bathing Together, Confessions, Worried Sherlock, Laying in Bed All Day, Meddling Mycroft, Naked Lazy Day) – Sherlock walks into a room and takes all the space right out of it. He does the same inside John's head.

You Should Have Changed Course Long Ago by msdisdain (E, 33,235 w., 12 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Epistolary, Slow Burn, Angst, Flashbacks, Frottage, Rimming, Anal Sex, Fingering, Blow Jobs, First Time, Outdoor Sex, Light Dom/Sub, Blogging) – John realizes too late what has been in his heart all along, and flees London. But can he ever truly leave Sherlock behind?

Ride On by Silvergirl (M, 34,342 w., 9 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || TEH Divergence, Reunion, First Kiss / Time, Mutual Pining, Alternating POV, Sherlock’s Violin, Music, Original Characters, Happy Ending) – After the disastrous reveal at the Landmark, John tells Sherlock there can be no excuse for what he’s done, and no forgiveness. Sherlock leaves London and starts a new life, and not even the British Government knows where. It’s up to John to track him down and make things right, with a trip around the world and a clue only John would recognize.

Chances Are by Berty (M, 51,830 w., 14 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post TGG, POV Sherlock, Head Injury, Medical Procedures, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Mycroft Being Mycroft, Injury Recovery, Sherlock Whump, John Whump, Developing Relationship, Emotions, Revelations, Friends to Lovers, Doctor John, First Kiss/Time, Aphasia, Muteness, Feelings) – Sherlock is spending some time in his mind palace - so far, so normal. But why is John there, why do things keep changing and why are there only two exits from the sitting room at 221B, neither of which seem to go anywhere useful? It's a case like no other for Sherlock Holmes and John Watson.

Quarantine by wendymarlowe (T, 53,950 w., 200 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Coronavirus / Quarantine, John’s Blog, Asexual Sherlock, Slow Burn, Epistolary, Developing Relationship, Real Time, Case Fic) – John and Sherlock are stuck at 221B together due to coronavirus concerns. Sherlock slowly drives John barmy. [TRANSLATIONS: Русский]

Letters, Resolved by earlgreytea68 (M, 55,253 w., 14 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Tags to Be Added) – The letters have been written, read, and discussed. But that doesn't mean anything's been resolved. Yet. Part 5 of Letters [TRANSLATIONS: Русский]

Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Baker's Yeast) by yaycoffee (E, 60,879 w., 13 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Unplanned Pregnancy / One Night Stand, Drunken Sex, First Kiss/Time, Bit of Case Fic, Sally/Sherlock Drunk Sex First Ch.) – Sometimes, one makes an imprudent decision born of a devastating combination of drink and sentiment. Sometimes, the consequences of that decision take on a life of their own. And sometimes, the facing of those consequences shapes every aspect of one's life--from the hugely meaningful down to the seemingly insignificant. Part 1 of the Knows His Own series

In Memoriam by strangegibbon (E, 66,136 w., 15 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post-TRF, Romance, Angst, Drama, Amnesia, Humour, Sherlock’s Violin, Sherlock in A Sheet, Blogs, Alcohol, PTSD, UST, Mystery, Hurt/Comfort, First Time, Anal Sex, Oral Sex) – Sherlock returns from his self-imposed exile to find a John Watson he barely recognises. Now he must solve the mystery of the disappeared man and try to rebuild their relationship as well as deal with his own return to a London that has forgotten him. Part 2 of the In Memoriam series

The Vapor Variant by 88thParallel (CanadaHolm) (M, 72,684 w., 18 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post-THoB, John Whump, Protective Sherlock, Guilty Sherlock, Anxious/Worried Sherlock, Virgin Sherlock, Angst with Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, PTSD John, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Suspense, Virus, Sick Fic, Big Brother Mycroft) – They stood face to face in the middle of a clearing. The dim light of the moon barely allowed Sherlock to see the glassy terror in John’s eyes and the sweat that glistened off his forehead. His nose was bleeding again, blood dripping in a slow stream from his right nostril. They were both gasping for air, John’s eyes locked on Sherlock’s. There was no recognition there, just wild animal fear. Time stood still for an eternal few seconds, and Sherlock took a shaky breath. “John—”Spell broken, John spun and bolted back into the woods. Still heaving for air, Sherlock took off after him. 

The Wedding Garments by cwb (E, 105,390 w., 36 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Alternate Future AU || Alternate First Meeting, Dating / Arranged Marriages, Romance, First Kiss/Time, Heavy Petting, Cuddles, POV Sherlock, Virgin Sherlock, Idiots in Love, Slow Burn / Falling in Love / Dev. Rel., Nervous/Anxious Sherlock, Jealous/Cranky Sherlock, Hiking, Vacation Homes / Honeymoon, Sherlock’s Family, Horny John/Sherlock, Patient John, Massages, Hand Jobs, Assassination Plots, Oral Sex, Case Fic, Emotional Love Making, Bath Time Fun) – This is the story of a young consulting detective who wants nothing to do with marriage and an army doctor who wants to find true love. It's 2020 post-Brexit England and the British government is encouraging arranged marriages. Candidates meet through state-run agencies and date in hopes of finding love (and tax benefits). Sherlock doesn't need or want a spouse, at least not until John Watson shows up. Hesitant to give in to his more carnal urges because of the way they derail his mind, how will Sherlock progress toward the more intimate aspects of a relationship? The answer lies in a very special wedding gift.

Proving A Point by elldotsee & J_Baillier (E, 186,270 w., 28 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Me Before You Fusion || Medical Realism, Insecure John, Depression, Romance, Angst, POV John, Sherlock Whump, Serious Illness, Doctor John, Injury Recovery, Assisted Suicide, Sherlock’s Violin, Awkward Sexual Situations, Alcoholism, Drugs, Idiots in Love, Slow Burn, Body Image, Friends to Lovers, Hurt / Comfort, Pain, Big Brother Mycroft, Intimacy, Anxiety, PTSD, Family Issues, Psychological Trauma, John Whump, Case Fics, Loneliness, Pain) – Invalided home from Afghanistan, running out of funds and convinced that his surgical career is over, John Watson accepts a mysterious job offer to provide care and companionship for a disabled person. Little does he know how much hangs in the balance of his performance as he settles into his new life at Musgrave Court. Part 1 of the Care And Companionship series

The Case of the Green Gown by splix (E, 209,261 w., 29 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Post S3, Case Fic, First Time, Action/Adventure, Angst, Peril, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Slow Burn, Torture) – ...Watson had at that time deserted me for a wife, the only selfish action which I can recall in our association. I was alone. –– Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier

[persephone-victorious]

Years have passed since his flight from Persia and the man who will eventually be called Erik sees an interesting opportunity to set things right for the frightened child he once was and re-discovers that some cages are better than others...

(sequel to Rosy Hours Redux)

[seek--rest]

Maybe in Another Universe Masterlist

A series of unrelated fics about Peter and MJ, inspired by film/tv/books/meta

maybe in another universe (i deserve you) (meta)

someday we'll know (a walk to remember)

could've stayed beside you (could've stayed for more) (tuck everlasting)

drown. (bridge to terabithia)

red stains. (time machine)

under the mistletoe (the holiday)

a fire in his heart (last christmas/grey's anatomy)

i like me better (when i'm with you) (to all the boys i've loved before)

to build a home (life as we know it)

we found love (in a hopeless place) (the good place)

like a dream (you can't quite place) (hamilton)

mind over matter (upload)

the prince's diaries (the princess diaries)

this never happened before (the lake house)

live (and love) in new york (SNL)

indirect proof (Spider-Man: Blue)

where rainbows end (love, rosie)

magic hour with @promiseofthepremise (hollywood meta)

tiny perfect things with @iovewords (a map of tiny perfect things)

may you always be satisfied (hamilton redux)

[s4library]

TS4 PALETTE MASTERLIST – a compilation of palettes for cc creators

created august 25th, 2019 | 5:37 pm | sunday

please message me at anytime to recommend anything i can do, change, or update to make navigating this easier or if i made any mistakes! if you would like, even drop some of your favorite palettes in the replies!

THE PALETTES

@cadmiumcafe's –– bistre bleu

@cakeiko's –– the gobi palette

@catplnt's –– retrospective

@citrontart's –– the only colours i would wear in real life palette

@cowplant-pizza's –– cherub palette

@cowplant-pizza's –– cute in denim

@cowplant-pizza's –– emy

@cowplant-pizza's –– introducing... loona

@cowplant-pizza's –– muted loona

@cowplant-pizza's –– rosy

@cubersims' –– dirty denim palette

@cubersims' –– vintage love palette

@cupidjuicecc's –– dream pop palette

@cupidjuicecc' –– palm springs palette

@dogsill's –– the retro palette

@double-plumbob –– autumn shade palette

@dustflwr –– anathema palette add-ons

@eversims' –– ever so lovely colour palette

@eversims' –– ever so vibrant colour palette

@frutticake's –– cereal 4 lunch

@ghostie-sims' –– vertigo

@glumbut's –– friday palette

@glumbut's –– sunday palette

@grimcookies's –– neutrals

@ht0's –– pocket pup!

@kandyisdandy's –– blue's clues (can anyone find this on my blog?)

@kaydandthesims' –– image spectra

@lakemizu's –– beenie baby color palette

@marvell-world's –– autumn palette

@mermaidkelp's –– naturally palette

@myshuuno's –– awoo palette

@myshuuno's –– heroes palette

@myshuuno's –– la vie en rose palette

@myshuuno's –– love bomb palette

@myshuuno's –– txt soobin palette

@noodlescc' –– natural hair color palette

@nords-sims' –– nordy palette (can anyone find this on my blog?)

@pastel-spells' –– folklore color palette

@pastry-box's –– 8bitto cafe

@pastry-box's –– sweetened saccharine

@peacemaker-ic's –– airy hamptons colour palette

@peacemaker-ic's –– cool contemporary colour palette

@peacemaker-ic's –– pleasantly playful colour palette

@peachplumbite's –– a disney palette

@peachplumbite‘s –– a small disney palette

@phsims' –– color palette

@phsims' –– sulani palette

@pinkguva's –– bing

@pinkguva's –– ok!

@pixeloasis' –– my first yellow stuff

@pixelore's –– natural hair color palette

@plasma-tree's –– black cohosh palette

@pleyita's –– april showers

@pleyita's –– autumn in august

@pleyita's –– matte palette

@plumbobteasociety's –– cottage garden palette

@plumbobteasociety's –– rustic romance palette

@purrsephonesims' –– purrfect basics 2.0 & denims

@purrsephonesims' –– purrfect denim palettes

@pyxiidis' –– the witching hour (external link, blogspot)

@rachirdsims' –– modified saccharine

@rachirdsims' –– satellite mind

@rachirdsims' –– shafísle

@retro-plasma's –– retroesque palette

@ridgeport's –– art deco

@ridgeport's –– gelato

@ridgeport's –– poutpourri

@saartje77's –– wonderland

@schmapple's –– upgrade

@simblrbreezycakes' –– pigeon palette

@simsadilly's –– iridescent palette

@simsontherope's –– nuances palette

@simsrocuted's –– lisa's colors (cannot find this on my blog but i know i reblogged it)

@smubuh's –– mile high color palette

@smubuh's –– teased color palette

@softsimmer's –– dusk palette

@starshnes' –– that 70s palette

@stephanie-sims' –– pudding palette

@storylegacysims' –– tell me a story

@sulestial's –– dulce flora

@tartette –– silk palette

@tartling's –– softie palette

@teddythepenguin's –– earthly goods palette

@thesimparrot's –– wednesday palette

@toxicsimlish' –– chocolat

@treefish –– eversims palette compilation

@twikkii  –– basics palette

@twikkii  –– basics v2 & teeny basics palette

@twikkii's –– edited palm springs palette

@twikkii's –– lovechild palette

@twikkii's –– sol palette

@twikkii's –– twikkii island palette

@twikkii's –– twikkii island redux palette

@twikkii's –– vacation palette

@vvildhoneypie's –– maxis match colour palette

@wildlyminiaturesandwich's –– sandwich colours

@your-tokig's –– appaloosa plains palette

[tellywoodtrash]

Okay, I stopped watching after Laal Ishq track, but I've kept following updates on IB. I don't understand one thing: most of the ppl complained about groupbaazi, then the Rosie Rani track, then Chutki track (they didn't want Gauri, I think), then the social message tracks, then they whined during redux, so...if they are upset about tracks since the last 11 months, then why are they unhappy that IB, as they know it or Shivika, is ending? What did they want for Shivika??

Agreed. Like, I truly don’t get what people want out of this show anymore? They legit just wanna see this one fictional couple live their boringass everyday life????????????? (That’s what yesterday’s ep was and lord, I couldn’t even get through it.) Coz that’s all that’s left to these two. In either universe. If there’s anyyyyyyyyyything to be explored in this show, it’s the “groupbaazi” (So many interesting dynamics.) Par they’d rather have the show as they know it end than watch THAT, so lol, ab bhugto.

First off, this narrow-minded tunnel vision people have had towards the OU since this redux started has always puzzled me. It’s been very obvious from the start of this whole thing that the OU is OVER, and this is the new reality. They took this step because all plots in that universe for those characters have been completely exhausted. I’ve never understood all these ~~fantastical~~ sci-fi/psychological “theories” people have cooked up and bent over backwards to explain the redux as some kinda temporary thing. Go back to the OU and show what exactly? There’s nothing left there. There’s no plot left even HERE after the remarriage/exposure of Bua’s fuckery track ffs.

Then they wanted a goddamn pregnancy/kids track to show that Shivika are living happily ever after (as if procreating is the only endgame to happiness in life; its 2018, get with the program pls; a childless couple can lead perfectly fulfilling lives too) and Surbhi (rightfully, at the age of 29) didn’t want to do that; so the only alternative left for the show now is this. (Tbh if you ask me, this “Shivika ka pregnancy/bachcha chahiye!!!!!!!!!!!” garbage is to blame for all of this. Yeah, I said it.) They cannot have Surbhi playing a love interest to Shivaansh, whether it’s played by Nakuul or not. WHY AND HOW THE FUCK WOULD HE FALL IN ROMANTIC/SEXUAL LOVE WITH SOMEONE WHO HAS THE FACE OF HIS MOTHER? Narbhi simply CANNOT portray romantic interests against each other in the next generation without making it weirdly incestuous. One of them will have to go (QH S2 style.) The one way they could have made it work was a reincarnation track; but now they cannot do that either because that’s effectively what the redux is. They wrote themselves into a corner and this is the end-result. It’s time to let these characters end now. They’ve served their purpose, and it’s time for them to go.

Also, Gul makes some veryyyy pertinent points in her IV; for allllll this naatak, where’s the ultimate tangible result? She stated concrete numbers of TRPs and Time Spent Viewing, and Hotstar’s internal ratings, which are clearly unsatisfactory. These are the actual indisputable facts of the show. 4Lions khairaat baatne ke liye nahi banaate yeh show. This is a business. And if the business isn’t getting the returns, it will evolve/shut shop. The audience of this show are like those fakeass instagram food bloggers. Who go to places and take pics of stuff in the display cases/the bhaiyya talofying the jalebis on the street, and what not, NOT ACTUALLY BUYING ANYTHING, and in the end getting mad that the place shut saying “How daaare they close, I went there everyday!!!! I GAVE THEM SO MUCH LOVE AND ONLINE PRESENCE! HOW CAN THEY NOT RESPECT THEIR CLIENTELE LIKE THIS?!!?!??” Lol, get fucking real. Tweetstorm machaane ke alaava kuch karte nahi, aur chahiye Shivika ka hour-by-hour Bigg Boss-style reality show, which they themselves will tire of and complain about in 2 weeks. For once, I am on Gul’s side, coz she’s making decisions as a rational businessperson. Twitter trends aur instagram hashtags se chulha nahi chalta. Dena hai toh TRP/TSV do. In the immortal and oh-so-poetic words of Chetan Bhagat, “Deti hai toh de, warna katle.”

[imjustthemechanic]

The French Mistake

Part 1/49 - A Visitor Part 2/49 - The Kulturhistorisk Museum Heist Part 3/49 - Cutscene Part 4/49 - The Marvel Cinematic Universe Part 5/49 - Breathless Part 6/49 - Escape at Last Part 7/49 - Fox in Socks Part 8/49 - Things Go Wrong Part 9/49 - Downey and Out Part 10/49 - Road Trip Part 11/49 - Temptation Part 12/49 - An Awful Reunion Part 13/49 - Unreality Intrudes Part 14/49 - A Call for Help Part 15/49 - Loki’s Guests Part 16/49 - Stan Lee Cameo Part 17/49 - Reassessment Part 18/49 - Midnight Invasion Part 19/49 - Elevator Fight Part 20/49 - Courage Part 21/49 - Unwelcome Back Part 22/49 - Darkest Hour Part 23/49 - They Are Here Part 24/49 - The Jet Propulsion Laboratory Part 25/49 - Word of God Part 26/49 - Avengers Assembled Part 27/49 - The Houston Underground Part 28/49 - Houston has a Problem Part 29/49 - Onward and Upward Part 30/49 - The Chi’Tauri Queen Part 31/49 - Through the Wormhole Part 32/49 - Prisoners Part 33/49 - Arm’s Length Part 34/49 - A Moment’s Respite Part 35/49 - Ravagers to the Rescue Part 36/49 - What Happened to Hiddleston Part 37/49 - Haven Part 38/49 - Steve Has a Terrible Idea Part 39/49 - Can’t Be Choosers Part 40/49 - Stan Lee Cameo Redux Part 41/49 - Shipjacking Part 42/49 - The Gauntlet Thrown Part 43/49 - The Queen’s Chamber Part 44/49 - The Guardians Part 45/49 - The Nest Part 46/49 - Heroes Part 47/49 - Homeward Bound Part 48/49 - Loose Ends Part 49/49 - The Return

Not exactly happily ever after, but for the Avengers, it never is.

They stayed at the Space Center overnight, waiting for Natasha to return from California.  Steve was nervous that another shipful of Chi’Tauri would come for them, but none did, and he supposed since they had the tesseract, none could. Still, he knew he wouldn’t sleep well. He wouldn’t sleep well until they were safely back in their own universe.

After having a shower and getting some pajamas on, Steve went down the hall to talk to Thor.  He didn’t have to knock – Bob Downey was there ahead of him, smiling as he handed Thor a plastic shopping bag.

“I got Ghostbusters, Rush, Cabin in the Woods, Star Trek even though he’s only in it for thirty seconds, and I threw in that episode of Australian Dancing with the Stars, just for laughs,” he said.

“Thank you, Robert,” said Thor.  “I’m sure Darcy and Jane will be delighted.”  He looked into the bag, and then pulled out a DVD. “Tinkerbell and the Pirate Fairy?”

Bob grinned.  “Tell them to listen to that one real careful.”  He turned to Steve.  “I brought some for you, too – you’ve heard of the Fantastic Four, right?  They’re a thing in your world?”

“Actually,” Steve said, “I need to have a word with Thor. In private.”

Bob handed Steve another bag and nodded. “Don’t let the fans find out,” he said. “You thought that drawing of you and Bucky was bad!”  He waved goodnight, and walked away with his hands in his pockets, whistling.

Steve stepped into the room and shut the door. Thor was also wearing pajamas – while Steve’s were plain striped ones an employee had loaned him, Thor’s had his own picture on them, airbrushed golden locks streaming in the wind.  “Thor,” Steve said, “remember what Dr. Farinas said at dinner?”

“I do,” Thor said.  “I don’t believe she meant it as a serious suggestion, but she spoke of us leaving the tesseract behind here, for the scientists of this world to use.”

“We can’t, can we?” asked Steve.  He was pretty sure what the answer would be, but he needed to be sure.”

“We could, but there would be no way for us to protect it if somebody came for it again,” Thor replied.  “Besides, admirable as Dr. Farinas’ desire to explore the solar system is, we cannot trust that all her fellows would share it.  If there are no native infinity stones in this universe, the people of this world could create a weapon unlike any other.  No, it is better to have it in our world, where we can keep watch over it.”

“I thought so,” said Steve.

Thor squeezed his shoulder.  “Do not look so unhappy, Captain,” he said.  “We won the day, and we have learned a great deal. Perhaps we may yet prevent the calamity the Watcher warned of.”

What had they learned, Steve wondered.  They’d learned that there was a universe in which the people knew all the worst things the Avengers had ever done, and yet still looked up to them. They’d learned that Thor could wield lightning without Mjolnir, although he hadn’t figured out how.  They’d learned that Spider-Man’s real name was Peter Parker and they’d learned a lot about Chi’Tauri social structure.  Would any of that help them?

They’d learned that Bucky was going to be okay. That helped Steve a lot.

“I guess we’ll have to see,” said Steve.

Two days later, Natasha flew back into Houston without Scarlett, and did not volunteer any information about their meeting with Dauriac.  When Steve asked her how it had gone, she shrugged.

“Could have been worse,” she said, “but it could have been a lot better.  They’re both getting lawyers.”

Steve winced.  “Well, from what Scarlett said, it sounds like it would have ended sooner or later anyway.”

“Yeah, but it didn’t,” said Nat.  “It ended because of me.  I’ve ruined marriages before, but only when I had orders to.”  She shook her head.  “Rosie doesn’t deserve that.”

There was nothing Steve could say to make her feel better about that, so he changed the subject. “Dr. Farinas figured out how to program the Chi’Tauri’s wormhole machine,” he said, “and Thor and Loki refilled the crystal.  So any time you’re ready, we can go home.”

“Oh, good,” she said.  “I’m ready now.”

The people at NASA insisted on throwing them a small goodbye party, with gifts to take home and a small brass band to play what was apparently the theme from the Avengers movies.  Kevin Farinas, Colleen Hobb, and Ellen Ochoa all came to wish them well, as did Donny and Bob – and Hayley Atwell, who Steve was happy to see one more time.  He’d watched her talking to Chris Evans before the actor went to the airport to meet his parents, and she’d given him a hug before he got in the taxi.  Clearly they were good friends, but not lovers.  That was a little disappointing, somehow, but he was glad that some version of himself got to go on knowing her.

When she came to say goodbye to him, he gave her a hug just as Chris had, and smile even as his insides clenched.

“So you managed to save the day without being a self-sacrificing wanker,” she observed as she stepped back.  Was Steve imagining it, or were there tears in the corners of her eyes?

“I did have a couple of self-sacrificing wanker moments,” Steve admitted, “but every time I did, I thought about how disappointed Peggy would have been in me, and found another solution.  So I mostly just ended up being disappointed in myself.  I don’t like thinking I’m a coward.”

“You’re not a coward, Steve, don’t be silly!” said Hayley.  “I’m just glad you’ve figured out you don’t need to destroy yourself to be a hero.  Peggy would be proud of you.”

“Oh, would she?” asked Steve.

“Absolutely,” she assured him.  “She was always proud of you, but she would have been prouder than usual.  I think she’d also want me to give you this,” she added, and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him.

Steve would have protested, but it was the closest he would ever come to kissing Peggy again – and Hayley herself apparently wanted him to think of it that way.  So he just held her against him and let it linger, trying to memorize the feel of her arms around his shoulders and the taste of her lipstick, and finally letting himself enjoy this one tiny bit of a world full of things he wanted but could never have.

“Nice!” said Musa.

Steve and Hayley broke their kiss, and both turned to look at her.  She was smiling.

“I’m cool with threesomes,” she said.  “The more, the merrier, right?”

Hayley shook her head.  “Everything will be fine,” she promised Steve.  “It always is, in the movies.  Just remember that it’s possible to both save the world and live to enjoy it, and I’m sure you’ll do great.”

They climbed back into the Leviathan.  Kevin was in the cockpit, tweaking the wormhole device and fitting some kind of sensor.  She’d showed it to them at breakfast and had told them it would transmit readings of the shape of distorted space-time to her right up until they vanished – Steve hadn’t understood a word of it but he was sure it was important.  She said goodbye again and gave everybody hugs before leaving.  Then at last, with his friends on board – Thor, Loki, Natasha, and Musa – Steve guided the vessel into the air.  He flew a wide circle around Houston and the Gulf coast, gaining altitude, and then touched the circle icon.

Kevin had listed a number of things that might go wrong and had suggestions for dealing with them, but there was one she hadn’t anticipated.  This particular Leviathan had been through a lot in the past few days.  It had been in and out of hyperspace, towed behind the ravager ship.  It had busted through the walls of the space station at Haven and the Chi’Tauri mothership – the latter twice.  It had been picked up and used as a projectile.  It had been shot at by all kinds of weapons, its mouth welded shut, forced through fields it was never supposed to even try to penetrate, and all this on top of being retrofitted for interdimensional travel it was not designed for.  The blue crackle flashed over them, and then with a loud snap, all the displays went out.  Steve barely had time to think oh shit, and then could only hit the deck and cover his head as they plowed into the lawn of the Johnson Space Center.  The antigravity field around the ship collapsed, and the Leviathan, no longer able to sustain its own weight, did likewise.

When things stopped falling apart all around him, Steve spent a moment focusing on his limbs to make sure he didn’t have any major injuries, and then began digging his way out of the wreck.  The roof of the cockpit was layers of armor, wiring, sensors, and hologram projectors, all of which had fallen right on top of the passengers.  He shoved the pieces aside until he reached the surface, where he found that Thor had also turn his way out and was dragging Natasha, bruised and weary, out of a tangle of wire.  People from the buildings around them were already running to see what had happened, but Steve paid no attention to them for now.  He had to find the others.

“Loki!” he shouted.  “Musa!  Can you hear me?”

“Over here!”  A hand popped out of the wreckage.  Steve went and lifted the huge metallic jaws of the Leviathan, which had fallen on top of her, and discovered her trapped between two bulkheads below it. With her pushing from below and him pulling from above, he bent them apart with a sickening metallic noise, and she squirmed out and grabbed him to pull herself to her one good leg.  Not far away, Loki kicked a section of armor plating off himself and shook his leg, as if having the piece on it had cut off the circulation.

Steve breathed a sigh of relief.  They were all okay.

Relief couldn’t last long, though – vehicles were pulling up, people were yelling, and men and women in SWAT uniforms were surrounding them.  The first helicopter that flew over had a news channel’s logo on the side, but the second was military.  Within minutes, there were at least a dozen guns trained on them, and those were just the ones they could see.

Steve sighed again, and raised his hands.

Musa held on to Steve with one arm, but raised the other to show she was unarmed.  “I thought you’d be more popular,” she observed.

“That’s what you get when you run off with a guy you only just met Thursday,” Natasha told her.

Twenty-four hours later, they were in the Raft.

Thor and Loki weren’t with them, of course. Loki had been carrying the tesseract, so Thor had summoned Mjolnir, which must have flown all the way from the museum in Norway to his hand, and then called for the Bifrost.  The two gods vanished in an explosion of coloured light.  But Steve, Natasha, and Musa had all been arrested and were now in separate cells, specially built and reinforced to hold the super-powered.  This was where Clint had ended up, Steve reminded himself. And Sam.  And Scott.

And Wanda.  He should have sent Wanda home.  He could have, and he hadn’t. She would probably have refused to go, but he could have tried.

He was sitting sullenly on his cot, stewing over that, when somebody banged on the bars.  “Hey, Captain,” said a familiar voice.

Steve sat up to look.  The elderly man standing outside was wearing a guard’s uniform, but he had a startlingly familiar face.  “Stan Lee?” he asked, and then corrected himself – wrong universe.  “Watcher?”

“Who, me?” the guard asked, and pointed to his nametag.  “Nah, I’m Officer Smith.”  He winked at Steve.  “You’ve got a visitor.”

“Who?” asked Steve, getting to his feet.  But a moment later he could hear the voice approaching, ranting away.  Something about certainly not expecting him to show up out of nowhere with Romanov and Chiquita Banana…

Steve grinned, then quickly composed himself.  His guest would expect him to look serious… but then Stark sauntered up, wearing an Armani suit over a t-shirt with an iguana in sunglasses on it.  He pulled his glasses down his nose to peer over them, and Steve couldn’t help smiling just a little, because he knew exactly what Stark was about to say.

“Hey, Dorito.”

“Hey, Stark,” said Steve.  “Believe it or not, I’m happy to see you.”

[hayleyftvs7]

it’s that time again--here’s my semi-annual Steam Sale post copy-pasted with updated prices for my <$5 game recommendations, which are almost all the same or lower than this year’s summer sale:

the Portal series: Portal for $0.99, Portal 2 for $1.99, or both for $2.23 – if you have Steam, you almost definitely know about Portal. for those who don’t, they’re first-person physics-based puzzle-platformer games with a dystopian sci-fi narrative. they’re funny and aesthetically-gorgeous and the puzzles are genuinely good. i can’t do these games justice–they’re classics. and if you already own and have played both games, cool! in that case, i recommend Portal Stories: Mel–a really excellent free mod for Portal 2 with a full story campaign.

The Stanley Parable: $3.74 – this game is a sort of “walking simulator” that takes a form similar to a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ book–there are many paths that lead to various “endings”, and upon completing one, you’re ushered back to the start to retrace your steps and find another, but none of them are really the end. it’s a commentary on videogame structures and the nature of narrative in general. clever and funny at times, ominous and surrealistic at others. the voice-acting is perfect.

Gone Home: $4.99 – this is a first-person narrative game focused on exploration. it’s both atmospherically-creepy (although you’re never in any danger) and heartwarming, and even though the gameplay consists solely of walking through a house and picking things up to uncover the storyline, the experience feels meaningful and personal. due to the nature of the gameplay, though, you’ll get the most out of it if you’re a very detail-oriented and patient person.

The Beginner’s Guide: $3.99 – this game was made by (and narrated by) Davey Wreden, creator of The Stanley Parable. it’s a much more linear and narrative experience than The Stanley Parable was, but it’s equally as meta, and made me think about games and game design in equally interesting ways. my impression was that it’s more of a playable art piece (akin to walking through a videogame museum while directed by a voiceover) than a game. it felt like a gift for fans of The Stanley Parable… even though it might not want to be. (there’s also a bundle available with The Stanley Parable that gives you an extra 10% off both.)

Dr. Langeskov, the Tiger, and the Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist: FREE – this is one of the funniest games i’ve ever played, and definitely the best thing i’ve played for free. it was also created by a developer who worked on The Stanley Parable (William Pugh) and has a very similar spirit. Simon Amstell does the narration brilliantly. it’s marketed as a 15-20 minute game, but it took me about an hour the first time through, and is worth replaying a couple more times for extras. you’ve got nothing to lose, and if you enjoy it, i’d recommend keeping an eye on the dev company—Crows Crows Crows—for future projects. they’ve since put out a Twine game (text-based browser game) that’s pretty cute and collaborated with Justin Roiland (of Rick and Morty) on a hilarious VR game called Accounting.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter: $3.99 – i think this game might be the prettiest one i’ve ever played. it has a captivating dreamlike quality to it–at times it felt as if i’d stepped into the abandoned world of a less-than-rosy fairytale. it’s an atmospheric first-person exploration game with a sort of linear-yet-open progression, puzzle-solving mechanics, and a mystery storyline. you can technically walk from the start of the game straight to the end location without accomplishing much, but the story is only uncovered when you stop to explore and complete the puzzles. there were many parts of this game that were challenging for me, and there definitely isn’t much hand-holding (you might want to glance at a walkthrough at least once to make a checklist), but i think it plays out beautifully and was worth every bit of effort and patience i put into it. (*note: the version i played and recommend is the Redux version–it will automatically show up in your library as a separate listing after buying the regular game.)

Life Is Strange (Episodes 1-5 Bundle): $4.99 – this is a choice-based episodic game similar in format to what Telltale does, but with subtle differences in mechanics that make it more enjoyable to me–namely the option (and occasional necessity) to rewind and re-do choices in a limited timeframe, which adds a puzzle element that feels very natural. to be honest, though, all of that is minor compared to how beautiful every aspect of this game is–the visuals, the writing, the voice-acting, the music–and how great it is at making you care. (i cried at everything.) i highly recommend a blind run; i was too anxious to not read walkthroughs but i feel like i would’ve had a better experience without them. if you need convincing, Episode 1 is free on its own. go play it. (and if you’ve already played all five episodes, then check out the incredibly faithful prequel Life Is Strange: Before the Storm--two episodes are out already, with the third coming probably late December.)

[*new to the list*] Virginia: $0.99 -- this game is fairly limited in its gameplay and is carried solely by its plot and visuals, since it has no dialogue or narration of any kind, but it’s an intriguing story and an enjoyable experience, which is especially worth trying at 90% off. if you’re not detail-obsessed like i am, you could probably play through it in one sitting, and i was able to get all the achievements in 5-6 hours. if you like cinematic mystery thrillers with orchestral music, give it a shot. (a note about graphics settings: on my first attempt to play this game, i experienced a bit of dizziness/nausea after about 20 minutes. if this happens to you, i recommend running the game at 60fps with motion blur off and camera smoothing off--some of these might affect you differently, but those settings allowed me to play the entire game with no issue whatsoever, so try them before you give up on it!)

those are my main recommendations, but as a side note, a bunch of the older Nancy Drew point-and-click mystery games are on sale for $4.19 each. i’ve played every game in the series since i was a kid, and while that makes me incredibly biased, i’d also like to think it makes me extremely qualified to recommend them. they’re a little silly and generally geared toward young teens, but i still genuinely enjoy the stories and puzzles, and Her Interactive are a class act. plus Nancy’s kind of a badass. my favorites out of the Steam library are Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon and Curse of Blackmoor Manor. (disclaimer: i’ve only ever played these games via physical disc copies, so i have no idea how well they play on Steam, although i assume they’re totally fine, albeit dated.)

and if you’re not concerned about the $5 budget, two other games from last year that i adore are Firewatch ($7.99) and INSIDE ($9.99)--both of which are worth the extra money if you have it.

if you’re a person who plays Steam games, i’d love recommendations for narrative, puzzle, exploration, or adventure games (on sale for around $5 or less is a bonus, but i can always add games that aren’t on sale to my wishlist for the future)–what are some of your favorites?

[weekendwarriorblog]

The Weekend Warrior Feb. 7, 2020 – BIRDS OF PREY: ETC. ETC.

Thank heavens that there’s only one new wide release this weekend, and just as thankfully, it’s a movie that could help revive an ailing box office that’s been all about Sony’s Bad Boys for Life, Universal’s 1917 and Dolittle for the past few weeks. I never got around to seeing last week’s Gretel and Hansel, and I might still if I have time, but The Rhythm Section wasn’t that bad, and it certainly shouldn’t have bombed as badly as it did, making less than $3 million in 3,000 theaters. Yup, last weekend wasn’t great, and it was only partially due to the Super Bowl.

Clearly, it’s time to move on to this week with the first “superhero” movie of the year, the follow-up to one of DC Entertainment’s biggest outings but also meant to be its own thing, which is BIRDS OF PREY: AND THE FANTABULOUS EMANCIPATION OF HARLEY QUINN (Warner Bros.). It stars recent Oscar nominee Margot Robbie reprising her role as Harley Quinn, the Joker’s girlfriend/therapist, who is branching out on her own with her own supergirl group, which includes Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winsted), Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), Renée Montoya (Rosie Perez) and Cassandra Cain (at one point, called Batgirl), played by Ella Jay Basco.  Robbie first played the role in 2016’s Suicide Squad, which earned over $300 million domestic, which some might point to the popularity of Harley as a comic character, but you could also point to things like the fact it starred bonafide box office star Will Smith (whose most recent movie Bad Boys 2 is currently the biggest movie of the year. Birds of Prey also stars Ewan McGregor and Chris Messina, as two well-known Bat-villains, Black Mask and Victor Zsasz, making their big screen live action debuts.

Unlike Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey is Rated R as DC and Warner Bros. have seen the huge success of the recent Joker movie, as well as the two Deadpool movies as proof that R-rated comic book movies can still do well even without the teen and tween audiences that usually go to see them. Presumably, Birds of Prey will attract more women due to the characters, although I’m sure there will be some men who who are just as interested due to the connections to the DC Universe. I’m just not sure this will be as big a draw to men as some of those other movies. I’ll have my own review on the blog a little later today.

While I don’t think Birds of Prey will open as big as Joker– let’s face it, the characters therein just aren’t nearly as well known, even Harley – I do think it will do quite well, making somewhere in the $60 million range, maybe more if the reviews are as positive as the early raves that were posted last week. (Having seen the movie and with my review on the way, I don’t think it will fare that well among real critics. You can read my own REVIEW here.)

Either way, Birds of Prey will the weekend with relative ease, although we’ll have to see how Sunday’s Oscar celebration affects all the movies’ business towards the end of the weekend.

This week’s Top 10 should look something like this…

1. Birds of Prey, Etc. Etc (Warner Bros.) - $64.5 million N/A (up $1.9 million)*

2. Bad Boys for Life (Sony) - $9.7 million –45%

3. 1917 (Universal) - $6.3 million -35%

4. Dolittle  (Universal) - $4.7 million -40%

5. Jumanji: The Next Level  (Sony) - $3.7 million -38%

6. The Gentlemen (STXfilms) - $2.9 million -48%

7. Gretel and Hansel  (U.A. Releasing) - $2.8 million -55%

8. Little Women (Sony) - $2 million -35%

9. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Lucasfilm/Disney) - $1.7 million -46%

10. The Turning  (Universal) - $1.3 million -55%

* UPDATE: I lowered my prediction a bit after seeing the movie but seeing that reviews have mainly been positive, I think it will help the movie bring in more business before Sunday.

LIMITED RELEASES

Two genre films that have been playing on the genre festival for the last year or so will open in select cities, the first being COME TO DADDY (Saban Films), the directorial debut by horror producer Ant Timpson, who was responsible for horror anthologies, The ABCs of Death and The Field Guide to Evil, as well as popular genre flicks Turbo Kid and The Greasy Strangler. In the movie, Elijah Wood plays Norval Grenwood, a young man called to the remote cabin of his estranged father (Stephen McHattie) who he hasn’t seen in 30 years, since his father walked out on his mother when he was just five years old. Once he gets there, he learns that his father is an abusive alcoholic, and yet, nothing is really what it seems. I saw this at the Tribeca Film Festival and mostly enjoyed it, and I really like Timpsons’s sensibilities as a filmmaker but it really starts to go off the rails as it goes along. Some will definitely enjoy that.

Severin Fialla and Veronika Fanz, the Belgian filmmakers behind Goodnight Mommy, return with THE LODGE (NEON), a creepy thriller in which a couple kids (Lia McHugh, Jaeden Martell) go to a remote cabin near a lake for the Christmas holidays with their new stepmother (Riley Keough) after learning a lot more about her dark past before meeting their widowed father (Richard Armitage). There’s so much more to this movie than what you can see in the suitably eerie trailer, and I certainly will not spoiler any of the experience, although personally, I found this to be more of a downer than Hereditary, a movie that I absolutely loved. This one might take another viewing for me to really get behind it, but other than the performances, the overall look and eerie feel and the twists, it’s pretty dark and depressing, so I’m not 100% sure I’d really want to see it again or can recommend it wholeheartedly.  Either way, both of these movies are opening at the Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn as well as other select cities.

Ben Cookson’s Waiting for Anya (Vertical), adapted from the novel by the same name from the author of War Horse, stars Noah Schnapp as Jo Lalande, a 13-yearold sheperd boy who joins with a reclusive widow (the amazing Anjelica Huston) to help smuggle Jewish children into Spain during World War II.

From Yash Raj Films comes this week’s Bollywood selection Mohit Suri’s Malang, starring Aditya Roy Kapoor as the introverted Advit, who visits Goa where he meets a free-spirited girl from London named Sara (Disha Patani), who has come to India to live like a vagabond or “Malang.” Something happens that changes as five years later, we meet a vigilante killer cop (Anil Kapoor) and a righteous cop (Kunal Kemmu)… And suddenly, I feel like I need to see this movie. It will probably open in 100 theaters or more.

STREAMING AND CABLE

Let’s start out with the Netflix offerings, beginning with the recent Sundance premiere, HORSE GIRL, the new film from Jeff Baena (The Little Hours, Life after Beth), co-written and starring Alison Brie as a socially awkward woman into horses and supernatural crime whose lucid dreams start infiltrating into her waking life. I haven’t seen it yet but I’m definitely interested in the premise, and I generally like Brie’s work.

I never really got into Joe Hill’s books/comics, but I’ll probably give the series LOCKE AND KEY a look when it debuts its first season on Friday. It involves three kids who move with their Mom to an ancestral estate where a series of keys unlock secrets and powers.

On Wednesday debuts the Netflix docuseries They’ve Gotta Have Us from Simon Frederick and Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY will premiere, looking at some of the important and iconic voices in Black Cinema.

If you haven’t had a chance to see DGA winner Alma Har’el’s Honey Boy, starring Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges and Noah Jupe, based on Shia’s semi-autobiographical screenplay, then it will premiere on Amazon Prime this Friday.

Premiering on Hulu this Friday is Into the Dark: My Valentine, the latest horror feature from Blumhouse as part of this ongoing horror series, this one written and directed by Maggie Levin, who has directed a bunch of shorts. It involves a pop singer whose songs and identity are stolen by her manager ex-boyfriend and pasted on his new girlfriend, which comes to a head when they’re locked up in a small concert venue and things get violence.

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

If you went out to see Makoto Shinkai’s Weathering with You and enjoyed it but haven’t seen his previous movie Your Name (which is just as excellent) then you’re in luck cause the Metrograph is showing it a number of times starting Friday. Thursday might be your last chance to see the new 35mm print of Martin Scorsese’s 1977 film New York, New York unless it’s extended, but the Hal Hartley serieshas been extended through the weekend with reruns of Trust (1990), Simple Men (1992) and Amateur (1994), all good, but Trust is my favorite of those three. This week’s Welcome To Metrograph: Redux is a good one, Lars von  Trier’s 1996 film Breaking the Waves, which will screen Saturday and Sunday nights.This week’s Late Nites at Metrograph is Orson Welles’ The Lady from Shanghai (1947), while the Playtime: Family Matinee sselection is Amy Heckerling’s classic Clueless (1995).

ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE BROOKLYN (NYC)

Wednesday might you can maybe get tickets for the “Weird Wednesday,” the Lone Wolf and Cub movie Shogun Assassin (1980) – I’ll be there for the 7pm screening. Thursday night is a screening of the 1932 Dorothy Arzner film Merrily We Go to Hell. On Monday, Video Vortex presents a J-Horror Bloodbath double feature of Demon Within and Biotherapy, both from 1985. ($5 admittance!) Next week’s “Terror Tuesday” is 1980’s Terror Train, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, and then next week’s “Weird Wednesday” is 1990’s White Palace, starring Susan Sarandon and James Spader, picked by Alamo programmer Christina Cacioppo, so you know it’s gotta be very weird! J

THE NEW BEVERLY (L.A.):

The Weds matinee is the musical The King and I (1956), starring Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr. Weds. and Thurs. night are double features of the Safdies’ Uncut Gems with The Object of Beauty (1991), starring John Malkovich and Andie McDowell with the Safdies doing a QnA on Thursday. Friday’s matinee is the 1982 Paul Schrader Cat People remake, while that Friday’s midnight is True Romance, while Saturday’s midnight movie is 1975’s Aloha, Bobby and Rose. This weekend’s Kiddee Matinee is 2002’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, continuing that series, as well as there being a Cartoon Club on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Monday’s matinee is Vincent Gallo’s Buffalo ’66while the Monday night double feature is Fear is the Key (1972) and Villain(1971). Tuesday’s Grindhouse double is Hot Potato (1976) and Golden Needles  (1974)..

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

Mostly taking a break this week to air the Oscar-nominated shorts but Joseph Mankiewicz’s 1950 classic All About Eve will screen in 35mm as part of the “Sunday Print Edition.”

AERO  (LA):

Elliot Gould will be on hand Friday to discuss M*A*S*H* airing as part of the “Antiwar Cinema,” then Friday, there will be a double feature of Grand Illusion(1937) and Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence  (1983). On Friday, Aero will screen Masaki Kobayashi’s “The Human Condition” trilogy, three movies from 1959 through 1961, airing as a triple feature.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC): This Friday, the Quad begins screening Albert E. Lewin’s 1951 film Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, starring Ava Gardner and James Mason, restored from Martin Scorsese’s own 35mm print. Also starting Friday, the Quad will also be screening a series of Man Ray shorts from 1926 to 1929.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

The “Black Women” series continues this week with The Omega Man and Strange Days on Wednesday, Set It Off, Bright Road and Poetic Justice on Thursday and more over the weekend. It continues through Thursday, February 13. This weekend’s “Film Forum Jr.” is the recent movie-musicalDreamgirls.

MOMA  (NYC):

Modern Matinees: Jack Lemmon continues this week on Weds with 1951’s Kotch, Thursday with Robert Altman’s 1993classic Short Cuts, and then on Friday, another screening of the 1960 Oscar winner The Apartment co-starring Shirley MacLaine.

FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER (NYC):

On Friday, FilmLinc starts a new one-week series called “Dreamed Paths: The Films of Angela Shanelec,” and I honestly have no idea who that is. It’s a pretty comprehensive retrospective of the German filmmaker’s work, so I’m shocked that I’ve never seen a single one of her movies. Besides her work, the filmmaker will also be showing a few hand-selected films like Manoel de Oliveira’s I’m Going Home (2001), the Korean film The Day After and Maurice Pialat’s 1972 film We Won’t Grow Old (1972).

ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES (NYC):

The Anthology’s “The Devil Probably: A Century of Satanic Panic” continues this weekend with Edgar J. Ulmer’s The Black Cat (1934) on Wednesday, Sidney Hayers’ Burn Witch Burn (1962), Terence Fisher’s The Devil Rides Out (1968), Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby (1968) and more screening over the next week.

NITEHAWK CINEMA  (NYC):

Not to be outdown by the Roxy, Brooklyn’s Nitehawk is getting on the Nicolas Cage love-a-thon with the Williamsburg doing an “Uncaged” series starting with Cage’s latest Color Out of Spaceat midnight on Friday, and then Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) on Tuesday. (The latter is sold out.) Williamsburg is also screening Tony Scott’s True Romance (1993) on Saturday afternoon.Prospect Park is showing Barry Jenkins’ Schmoonlight Saturday to kick off its Valentine’s Day series.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

Weekend Classics: Luis Buñuel is taking another weekend off for no obvious reason – it’ll be back next week -- but Waverly Midnights: Hindsight is 2020s will screen the 1973 sci-fi classic Soylent Green and Late Night Favorites: Winter 2020 is going with the 4k restoration of David Lynch’s Blue Velvet.

BAM CINEMATEK (NYC):

Starting Friday at BAM is Horace Jenkins 1982 film Cane River, starring Richard Romain and Tommye Myrick (both doing QnAs over the weekend), and the actors and relatives of Jenkins will be appearing at a number of screenings this weekend.

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

2001: A Space Odyssey will once again screen as a Saturday matinee in conjunction with MOMI’s exhibit.

ROXY CINEMA (NYC)

The Nicolas Cage love continues with two of his movies from 2003: Charlie Kaufman’s Adaptation (2003) on Wednesday and Disney’s National Treasure on Thursday.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART  (LA):

Not to be outdown by the IFC Center, the Nuart’s Friday midnight movie is Dario Argento’s Suspiriafrom 1977.

Next week is Presidents Day weekend, another four-day holiday weekend, but it’s also Valentine’s Day Friday, so we’ll get kiddie movies like Sonic the Hedgehog (Paramount), romantic movies like The Photograph (Universal) and horror movies like Fantasy Island (Sony).

[mycroft-silently-judges-you]

TFP: Summaries for Forthcoming Meta

Like most of you, I had no idea what to make of TFP after I first saw it. It was full of continuity errors and dream logic; two things the show had generally done a good job of avoiding. It didn’t even feel like a Sherlock episode. Only after multiple viewings and filling out an observation notebook that is increasingly starting to look like a compact version of Anderson’s theory wall, I think I cracked what the problem is with TFP.

I’m not presumptuous or arrogant enough to think that all my theories are going to be proven correct, but even if I’m only half right, then this episode, as crazy as it sounds right now, will prove to be Moffat and Gatiss’ meta magnum opus. That TAB was child’s play compared to this.

Because that is the problem with TFP: it went so meta that every line, every action, Every. Fucking. Frame. is so interconnected that there really is no one place to start a coherent analysis.

But I’m gonna fucking try.

As a forward for all the meta to come, every bit of it hinges on EMP theory and Johnlock being the ultimate purpose of the show. I know morale and faith is low right now and if you need to stay away from this type of content for your own mental health, I wish you the very best and please feel free to ignore me. But if you still have a drop of hope and are ready to continue believing, this is a preview of meta coming in the following days and weeks (subject to change because I’m still making connections):

Sherlock and Hannibal: How one tweet from Mark Gatiss in 2012 helped prove EMP Theory

Sherlock and House: Dissociative comas, shared knowledge, and the breaking down of the dream - a potential episode map for 5x01

Sherlock and James Bond: Every connection and its purpose

Sherlock, Star Trek, and the Three Streams of Consciousness

Sherlock and LGB+ Representation: Analysis of all the queer-coding this episode

Sherlock and Horror: Mark Gatiss’ love for the genre and its heavy influence on TFP

Sherlock and Music: The purpose of the musical choices

Sherlock and Locations: Significant locations, their usage, and inconsistencies

Sherlock, Hell, and the Four Rooms: Why Sherlock is willingly in Hell and how the game was a Rosetta Stone for series 5

Sherlock and Self-Awareness: Sherlock’s perception of himself

Sherlock and John: John’s series 4 characterization and why Johnlock didn’t happen now, but will

Sherlock and Mary: Proof he now knows she is a villain and is gunning for her

Sherlock and Rosie: Evidence that the baby is faker than Richard Brook

Sherlock and Eurus: What she represents and why she exists in the narrative

Sherlock and Humanity: The death of the sociopath and the pedestal he puts people he loves on

Sherlock’s Mind Palace: An in-depth analysis of its depths, capabilities, and influences

THAT Ending: It’s the beginning of something beautiful, but not what you think

Redux, Retcon, and Mirror: The making of the ultimate episode (potentially a 13 part series)

To Hell with Deferred Pleasure: Analysis of the promotion scheme for this series and why Ben’s “love conquers all” comment is correct but was said at the exact wrong time

I am aware that someone or multiple someones may have already covered a meta mentioned above, but I’ve somewhat isolated myself from the fandom after the first 36 hours following the premiere because it was far too toxic an environment for me and I just plain didn’t agree with anything I was reading because I’d already had my epiphany. And it was a literal epiphany too. I was walking my dog when a legit east wind hit me and I tripped over my own two feet and nearly took my dog down with me. It was fucking wild. So please feel free to send me links to posts that have already meta’d a topic I’ve posted above, but I respectfully ask that you wait until AFTER I’ve posted mine. If I see beforehand that people are already running with theories similar to mine I won’t be as motivated to post and my goal with this is to add a fresh perspective to the mix that hasn’t been influenced by a week’s worth of rhetoric. I guess I’m asking that my meta be treated like a control sample??? If I notice something that’s already been discussed, it could act as further proof that what you all have noticed is being seen from the outside as well.

I hope this project of mine will help those of you who still want to believe and if you have any questions, my ask box is always open.

BONUS THEORY: How Moriarty could have faked his death and planted Mary

[thenonconformistcurmudgeon]

RANDOM THOUGHTS

As any legitimate writer will tell you, some stories don’t make the final cut.  They end up in the editing room cyberspace.  Here are a few that went nowhere for me but had a nugget of an idea.

Apocalypse Now/Heart of Darkness

Two cats conversing:

Cat # 1 Did you hear? Fluff’s family forgot to give her wet food one day.

Cat # 2 The horror! the horror!

Clockless

What did people who woke up in the middle of the night do before clocks were invented?  The old sundial wasn’t helpful. Can you imagine waking up and not knowing if you have an hour before dawn or 6 hours before dawn.  That would drive me wacky.  Not like you could pick up a book to read or watch the tube for a bit.   Hard to get comfortable on that bed of straw, especially with the mice rummaging in it and your goat eating your bed at the same time. Both you and the family stunk from being around the animals, lack of regular bathing and laundering, and generally covered in soot and ash from fires. Family members full of disease, all living in smaller spaces than a NY apartment.  Amazing, that humans survived and multiplied under these conditions.

We have come a long way. That is made clear by my most recent reading of an issue of AARP.  They had an article entitled, “The Art of Falling Safely”.  

Things you should never say:

When you are out for Mother’s Day dinner with the wife, don’t suggest as a lark to introduce her as your mother to the waitress.  

Name the only four Australians you know to a family of Australian’s.  

Wood vs. Plastic

Paper or plastic? It was a common question, now mostly replaced by cloth. However, there is another decision that does not get much run during conversations.  Wood vs. Plastic toilet seat.    I bet their fiercely loyal supporters of one over the other out there.  I use to be a wood man myself until moving into our condo that had plastic.  Now, waving the plastic seat banner.  Easier to clean, doesn’t stain, paint doesn’t disappear, no crashing sound when you drop the seat or lid.

Apocalypse Now Redux

Word on the street is that a former stock boy heisted cases of toilet paper and is auctioning them off a back alley off Lisbon Street in Lewiston, Maine.   Other stock boys are being paid to send text messages to folks when a new shipment of toilet paper comes in.

The Shelter on Maple Street

Dateline, North America, 2027:  The break-up of the former United States is near completion.  The last refugees are streaming across the borders to their newfound homeland, not always welcomed.  Hostility has been rampant for the last seven years as the disintegration of societal mores was rapid and rampant. Maine through Maryland is a new nation, as is the former states of California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada and Colorado.  Minnesota decided to join Canada. The rest of the nation stayed together with Fearless Leader.  These homelands were now divided by politics and race and millions and millions were forced to move so as not to be killed.

In 2020, Fearless Leader declared Marshall Law, disbanded the supreme court and congress, and halted elections.  He travelled to his preferred states with gifts of toilet paper and sanitizer, throwing them into the crowd, rallying his followers, promising a rosy future and blaming his enemies for the virus, the poor response to the virus, failing markets, and the thorough dissolution of everyday life. While throwing out rolls to the adoring crowd, he told them that he himself was close to inventing the cure, and they would have it any day now. On cue, the crowd roared and repeatedly said, Lock Her Up, referring to Pelosi.  

Things to say to impress others or when on a date:

Did you know that 98% of American Hazelnuts are grown in Oregon.  However, the output pales in comparison to the hazelnut crop of Turkey.

Recent Medical Problem

I went for my annual physical and to get my yearly ear wax clean out.  When the nurse started the ear wax removal process, she mentioned that the doctor told her I had small ear canals.  Actually, I think the nurse said tiny, which sounds immeasurably worse. Imagine going 60 years without knowing about your tiny ear canals. The doctor has never mentioned it to me, has always swept it under the rug, keeping me in the dark.  Thus, it is obviously a condition I should have some shame over. Tried starting a support group for the condition but only one guy showed up.  He said he was already in 12 other support groups and thought the snacks might be better at this one for some reason.  Told him to leave and will suffer in silence.   Not that I can hear much from all the wax.  

[persephone-victorious]

Things start out very well in Persia for the French visitors. Oh, but women are so inquisitive, aren’t they? They weren’t content to just hear the voice, they had to see the face...and they might regret getting what they wanted! 

For extra history points read below the cut: it’s said the shah of Persia really did like the ballet and made sure to get tutus for the women of his haram. 

Of course, I’m kind of fudging history to make it fit the story, but this would be around the time the shah took an interest in ballet and European/Western style arts and culture. For example, I have the dance of the four swans in here but Swan Lake was kind of a disaster when it debuted in the late 1800s and wasn’t taken out of Russia for decades. This fic takes place a little after 1875, when the Palais Garnier was first built. 

The other ballets mentioned are Coppelia and Sylvia, both by Delibes and very popular at the time in France. I personally love Coppelia because it has a famous scene in a room full of dolls that scare a group of girls as they turn them on and bring them to life. 

The story is there’s a girl, Swanhilde, whose boyfriend is in love with this girl who just sits on a balcony and reads. She and her friends break into the old man’s house where the girl lives and she finds out that the girl is a clockwork automaton. She ends up hiding when both her boyfriend and the old man show up and disguises herself as the doll. 

This ballet was popular before the siege of Paris. The girl who developed and debuted the role, Giuseppina Bozzacchi, first danced the part at 16. The siege happened soon after and tragically, the ballerina starved to death and died on her 17th birthday. 

Although Mlle. Giry is in her 30s in the fic, Giuseppina would’ve definitely been one of her peers and young artist’s death no doubt still weighs on her heart. The other ballet is Sylvia. There’s a famous solo, the pizzicato, that is meant for a ballerina at the height of her skills. As you can see, it’s very challenging, lots of pointe work. You might recognize the music too since it’s very famous and shows up in commercials all the time. Here’s a comparison video of different variations so you can see how challenging this particular solo is. 

Thanks for listening to my little history rant and letting me share some ballet with you! I’m no expert by any means but I love the little that I know. 

[seek--rest]

WIP Tag Game

Thanks @ixoren @friendofspidermannedleeds and @premiere-pro for the tag. I’m not sure of the rules other than just,,,, posting about WIPS?

Published Ongoing Solo WIPs:

You and Me (are Alright) (definitely maybe au)

Where Rainbows End (love Rosie au)

You Can Hear It (in the Silence) (your hand In mine redux)

Mind Over Matter (upload au)

Ghosts That We Knew (Inverted biodad)

Of Magic & Mischief (Harry Potter au)

My Tears Are Becoming a Sea (a spite fic turned college ennui)

I Like Me Better (When I’m With You) (TATBILB AU)

To Build A Home (life as we know it au)

Come Home (to My Heart) (prem day meet again after blip)

In the City of Blinding Lights (devil wears Prada au)

Not About Angels (Karli didn’t need to die send tweet)

Say You Won’t Let Go (team red red bang)

All the Right Moves (irondad but make it mj)

I Once Believed Love Would Be Burning Red (but It’s Golden) (college au finale)

Published Ongoing Collab WIPs

Don’t Think Twice (it’s Alright) with @groo-ock (weird vibes)

A Whispered Promise in the Night with @blondsak (weird vibes take 2)

You’re Only Ever Who You Were with @groo-ock (hot idiot summer)

magic hour with @premiere-pro (Hollywood au)

Solo WIPs in the drive (ranging from complete to fleshed outline. Vibes & future fics not counted):

Spideychelle Big Bang

SarahBucky Big Bang

Part 2 of Never Meet Your Heroes

Part 2 of Call It Dreaming

Plus One AU for @tvfanatic97-2

Swipe Right Part 2

Pride and Prejudice AU

May/Sam Interlude

The Bake Off

MJohnny 2

Holidate AU

My Girl AU

Would it Be Enough (if I could never give you peace)

All I Want

Collab WIPs in the drive (ranging from complete, to fully fleshed outline to general vibes)

[redacted] AU with @blondsak

Super weird AU with @blondsak and @groo-ock

Cosplay copulation with @groo-ock

Hot Idiot Summer with @ixoren

Domesticity with @iovewords

Grandpa Tony with @akillerqueenyouare

Toast 2 with @premiere-pro

But fuck you with @premiere-pro

Grad students with @premiere-pro

Tagging:

@blondsak @groo-ock @iovewords @momentofmemory @lunannex @reachingforaspark @pepperminttegan

[newyorktheater]

The third annual BroadwayCon demonstrated that theatergoers can be as creative as theater makers — witness above the trio of cosplay artists as (left to right) Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet, or the winner of the Cosplay Fashion Show, dressed as Squidward Tentacles from Spongebob Squarepants, complete with a homemade costume with four legs.

But this week in theater was also a series of showcases for the professionals — with Broadway’s distinct presence at the Grammys (Watch below Patti LuPone sing in tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Platt in tribute to Leonard Bernstein), and at the Oscar nominations, the Phantom at 30  celebration, and sneak peeks of forthcoming Broadway shows BroadwayCon. At its tenth reunion, original cast members of “In The Heights” sang songs that didn’t make the final cut.

Broadway At The Grammys

“Dear Evan Hansen” won the best musical theater album Grammy. The songwriting team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul now have won a Grammy, Oscar (for song in LaLa Land), and Tony (for Dear Evan Hansen.)  They are only missing an Emmy, to be #EGOT winners, along with just a dozen others, including Bobby Lopez, Whoopi Goldberg and Helen Hayes

Lin-Manuel Miranda won a Grammy (his third) for “How Far I’ll Go,” from the movie Moana. (He too is just short of an EGOT, having won three Tonys and an Emmy for the music and lyrics at the 2013 Tony award show, but no Oscar yet. He is, however, winner of a Pulitzer Prize, a McArthur ‘Genius’ Grant, and the gratitude of the crowd at BroadwayCon (see below.)

Patti LuPone sang, in tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber

Ben Platt sang, in tribute to Leonard Bernstein

Ben Platt – Somewhere @ 60th Grammy Awards Performance #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/xUuNLJZPln

— snap: thedjjei (@thedjjei) January 29, 2018

Broadway at the Oscars

Theater veterans nominated for the 90th Academy Awards include Laurie Metcalfe (soon returning to Broadway in Three Tall Women), Denzel Washington (soon on Broadway in Iceman Cometh), as well as Frances McDormand, Christopher Plummer, Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, Meryl Streep (of course, nominated for the 21st time)…and newcomer Timothée Chalamet

What I wrote about #Oscars nominee @RealChalamet in 2016’s Prodigal Son: “Chalomet’s performance strikes me as the sort of magnetic stage debut that marked young actors in the past as stars of the future – actors like John Garfield and Marlon Brando..”https://t.co/kxHVfy4apM pic.twitter.com/f7NBhuLUI5

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 23, 2018

Guillermo del Toro’s much Oscar-nominated The Shape of Water was shaped by Paul Zindel’s 1969 play Let Me Hear You Whisper; the filmmakers used the play’s plot without giving credit nor buying the rights, his son David Zindel tells The Guardian The late Paul Zindel is best known for his play The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, which won the 1971 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

The Week in New York Theater Reviews

Miles for Mary

Miles for Mary” is the Mad Ones theater troupe’s spot-on, deadpan funny look at a year’s worth of planning committee meetings for a local telethon at an Ohio high school. Originally presented last fall Off-Off Broadway at the Bushwick Starr, where it was well-received, it is the first production in what Playwrights Horizons is calling its Redux Series, an effort to bring shows at smaller theaters to Off-Broadway for a longer run. As such, it seems like a test case. Will the Playwrights Horizons audience take to a show that requires so much patience and at least a little insolence?

The Week in New York Theater News

. @ManhattanDA announces the Work-Related Sexual Violence Team, staffed by 15 Assistant District Attorneys and a social worker, (perhaps in penance for DA Vance’s failure to pursue charges against @HarveyWeinstein?) pic.twitter.com/ZRaZWKLRve

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 25, 2018

2018 finalists for $100,000 Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History: Junk by Ayad Akhtar Bella An American Tall Tale by Kirsten Childs Roe by Lisa Loomer Skeleton Crew by Dominique Morisseau King of the Yees by Lauren Yee

Phantom of the Opera Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary on Broadway

“The Prom,” is scheduled to open on Broadway (theater not yet announced) on November 15, 2018 with a cast including. Brooks Ashmanskas, Beth Leavel, Christopher Sieber, Caitlin Kinnunen, Isabelle McCalla, Michael Potts, Angie Schworer, Courtenay Collins and Josh Lamon. The musical is about two snubbed Broadway stars who, hoping to get some Good Samaritan credit and attention, descend on a high school to support a student wants to go to the prom with her girlfriend. Here is a song from the show as previewed at BroadwayCon

  Joining Denzel Washington in the cast of Eugene O’Neill’s Iceman Cometh (opening April 26th) are some veteran Broadway actors:

Colm Meaney, David Morse, Bill Irwin, Tammy Blanchard, Carolyn Braver, Austin Butler, Joe Forbrich, Nina Grollman, Thomas Michael Hammond, Neal Huff, Danny Mastrogiorgio, Dakin Matthews, Jack McGee, Clark Middleton, Michael Potts, Reg Rogers, and Frank Wood.

Audra McDonald to receive Human Rights Campaign’s National Equality Award “she uses her incredible talent to help make the world a better place by speaking out for the vulnerable and the oppressed. We are proud to recognize such a vocal advocate for LGBTQ equality.” (Equality is her middle name)

Shakespeare in the Park, Summer 2018:

Othello (May 29-June 24), directed by Tony Award winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson

A re-imagined staging of the critically-acclaimed Public Works musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night (July 17-August 19), conceived by Kwame Kwei-Armah and Shaina Taub

Tootsie, musical based on 1982 movie, music by David Yazbek (The Bands Visit) starring Santino Fontana, aims for Broadway in 2019 after run in Chicago’s Cadillac Palace

Choir Boy, the 2013 play by Tarell Alvin McCraney (Oscar winning screenwriter for Moonlight), which appeared Off Broadway, will open on Broadway Jan 22, 2019, at MTC’s Samuel Friedman Theater.

Jelani Alladin as Kristoff and Patti Murin as Anna

Four brand new songs written for the Broadway production will be released on consecutive Fridays beginning on February 23, the day after Frozen’s first Broadway performance at the St. James Theater

The Genesis Plays, 5 plays inspired by stories from the 1st book of the Bible, & devised w/ Jewish communities in 5 different cities. will be performed in rep May 1-18 Theater at 14th Street Y

Rhea Perlman joins the cast of “Good for Otto,” The New Group play by David Rabe about a rural Connecticut mental health center. The play opens at Signature Center on March 8. She replaces Rosie O’Donnell due to illness.

Responding to criticism in this #MeToo era, Harvard ‘s 223-year-old Hasty Pudding (“the third oldest theatrical group in the world”) says it will allow women to join its cast starting next year. This comes after people had urged #MilaKunis to reject the theater troupe’s Woman of the Year Award.

  Scenes at BroadwayCon

She’s been at #bwaycon2018 just two hours! pic.twitter.com/9gXO6zC4C9

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 26, 2018

.@WICKED_Musical characters taking front seat for Activist panel#BroadwayCon @bwaycon pic.twitter.com/xjIfmw0tS8

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 26, 2018

More play coming up at @bwaycon today#BroadwayCon pic.twitter.com/X0UNvbnJcO

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 27, 2018

I feel like I’m a better mother when I’m working — @LauraBenanti , mother of an 11-month old.#BroadwayCon pic.twitter.com/nvJs4eLV0w

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 27, 2018

…and a better actress now that I’m a mother

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 27, 2018

.@LauraBenanti spilled some water. A little boy in a Hamilton costume brought napkins to the stage. Laura: how old are you? Boy:8 L What’s your favorite show? b Hamilton L What’s your 2nd favorite show? B In The Heights l What’s your 3rd favorite show B Come From Away

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 27, 2018

This @Bwaycon attendee is dressed as Eliza Hamilton, and she has the parchment to prove it!#BroadwayCon final day pic.twitter.com/d37eTfSDMZ

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 28, 2018

I asked a woman if she was dressed as a character in @AnastasiaBway . She said no, she was about to attend an awards ceremony, unconnected to #BroadwayCon . (At least I didn’t ask her if she was from #BeautyAndTheBeast )

— New York Theater (@NewYorkTheater) January 28, 2018

BroadwayCon! Broadway at the Grammys, Oscars, and Empire State Building! Week in NY Theater The third annual BroadwayCon demonstrated that theatergoers can be as creative as theater makers -- witness above the trio of cosplay artists as (left to right) Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet, or the winner of the Cosplay Fashion Show, dressed as Squidward Tentacles from Spongebob Squarepants, complete with a homemade costume with four legs.

[morphettes]

Enjoy a two hour stream of great indie & alternative tracks from Wednesday’s Morphettes Radio show.

Playlist –

Dream Wife – Hey Heartbreaker Honeyblood – Ready For The Magic Jump The Shark – Sooner Said Public Access T.V. – Patti Peru God Damn – Sing This NGOD – Blue HMS Morris – Interior Design She Makes War – In Cold Blood The Tuts – 1982 Dama Scout – Forget It’s Good Beach Baby – U R Anteros – Ring Ring Savoy Motel – Hot One RedFaces – Kerosene Jack Perrett – I’ve Got It All But I Want More Pet Crow – Shake It Out Peach Club – White Girl Estrons – Call You Mine Blush – Crying Glitter Charlotte Carpenter – Lately TRAAMS – Penguin Jennie Vee – Never Let You Down Fear Of Men – A Memory Dagny – Fools Gold INHEAVEN – Baby’s Alright False Heads – Weigh In Alice Jemima – Dodged A Bullet Pax And The Scarlet Field – Caught Up Kid Kllo – Walls To Build Snuff Redux – No Reasons Good Night Flowers – Glow In The Dark Tired Lion – Agoraphobia Realms – Blood & Water SKOTT – Lack Of Emotion Rosie Bans – Walking In The Cold

[persephone-victorious]

Thanks so much for everyone that has read my little story! It means so so so much that you’ve enjoyed it. If you liked this story, there will be a sequel coming up soon. 

[persephone-victorious]

They asked to see, didn’t they?