#the characters are messy and imperfect and thats the beauty of it

[starlitsequins]

i think i wouldve liked the nimona movie more if ballister and goldenloin, the 2014 blueprint of repressed old gay men who hate their jobs, werent changed to the point of being unrecognizable </3

[georgi-girl]

UglyDolls Movie Analysis.

Edit: added more content.

So, I wasn’t interested in UglyDolls when it first came out. I’d never heard of the toy line it’s based on and it looked like just another “beauty is on the inside” message cranked out by hypocritical Hollywood. But recently, I’ve finally got around to watching it and it’s not just about looks.

It’s about disability.

The movie takes place in an automated, possibly magical toy factory where different types of dolls are put together; pink rag dolls, grey teddy bears, red birds, and featureless humanoid fashion dolls known as “pretties”. Every toy is scanned and any one that has imperfections gets tossed down a shoot and sent to “Uglyville”. This is just like how disabled children are abandoned or killed by their parents when they’re born.

Uglyville is essentially a paradise with endless celebrations and all the junk food you can eat. The leader Ox (voice by Blake Shelton) tells everyone that the “Big World” of humans isn’t real, and everyone has pretty much lost interest in leaving. All except Moxie (voiced by Kelly Clarkson) a short and stumpy ragdoll who wants a human so badly, she runs away through the shoot, with her friends tagging along. Her friends include a grey blobby guy and a red bat. They end up with the pretties in the Institute of Perfection where the dolls are trained in surviving the Big World before going through a portal that sends them to their ideal child. This place is run by exposition bots and a scanner gate that assigns the dolls their appearance, name, and even careers. (Everyone is something slash model).

There, the Uglies meet Lou, (voiced by Nick Jonas) the most perfect doll and leader of the institute who tells everyone, through song, that being ugly is bad and that kids don’t want ugly toys. (Shows what he knows) They also meet Mandy, (voiced by Janelle Monae) the one doll who's nice to them and who hides the fact that she needs glasses. Tangent: I don’t know if it’s my place to say this since I’m white. It is so nice to see a black woman get portrayed as feminine and friendly and have her own character arc outside of helping the main character.

Anyway, Moxie and her friends stay, and Lou allows it, just to make himself look more benevolent. The dolls are trained to avoid getting messy or damaged (reasonable hazards for toys) and prepare for a real-world simulation called The Gauntlet. As hard as the Ugly dolls work, Lou keeps sabotaging them. He also sends a trio of girls to spy on Uglyville and kidnap Ox.

It turns out, Ox used to live in Perfection after landing there by accident. But he failed the program, learned that toys like them, rejects, are originally meant to end up in the recycling bin where they’re burned in the incinerator. Ox kept the ugly dolls sheltered in a place they’d never want to leave because he was afraid of them facing rejection. Thats also something lots of parents of disabled kids do. This news floors Moxie. She and the others never knew there was anything wrong with them. Not until it’s cruelty pointed out. As Lou tells her, “they were never meant to exist”. Eugenics much?

The uglies return to their home and break the news to the others. Everyone falls into despair; it’s one thing to never find your soulmate, it’s another to be told that nobody wants you. But then Mandy arrives, telling Moxie that she should run the gauntlet anyway because thanks to Moxie’s sweet affirmation, she feels encouraged to wear her glasses with pride. And they share a beautiful duet about how there will always be people who give who flack for being yourself, but you should be yourself anyway. There’s only so much you can do with the body you’re born with. And I love the trend of animated films saying that perfection is overrated. Encanto, Turning Red, the latest Trolls movie all have this message. And it’s good. Progress and self-betterment are great, but not when they come at a personal cost of conforming to someone else’s unreasonable standards. Moxies’ hope is restored. Just in time for Lou to have them both kidnapped and thrown in the incinerator. The other uglies save them, and they enter the gauntlet. Lou enters as well just to make sure they lose.

They have to go through life-size human house and dodge obstacles. At this point, I’m wondering who exactly is in charge of this toy factory and how they can afford all this crazy machinery.

While the pretty dolls focus on staying clean and looking out for themselves, the Uglies focus on having fun and being loving. They go back and help those who’ve fallen behind, they befriend the mechanical dog and mechanical baby they encounter. They choose to lose together rather than win alone. This ends up helping them pass in while Lou, who actually made it through the house, ends up failing.

While the audience isn't surprised by this, everyone else is. Perfect Lou failed at something. This triggers a breakdown in which Lou reveals that he isn't a real doll, he's a prototype. He can't leave the factory or be purchased by a child. Big kudus to whomever came up with this plot twist because this explains so much about Lous' character. Of course he's insensitive towards others. Of course he can't handle being played with. Whatever love-and-be-loved instinct the other dolls got, he didn't get it. But he still wants to go to the Big World. And that led him to resent the others, especially the Uglies, who can go through the portal despite their imperfections. In a way, Lou himself is disabled. But he could never admit it. And that's what leads to his downfall. He destroys the portal to the Big World and gets thrown in the very washer that he kept sending the Ugly Dolls to. A lot of fans are disappointed that he doesn't get redeemed in the end, I totally get that. But to be redeemed, you have to want to be redeemed. Lou just wanted everyone to forgive him immediately. Plus, he's still alive in the end, so his arc has an open ending.

The dolls work together to repair the portal, and set up a new system in which their communities live together and go back and forth through the portal so they can hang out whenever their humans are asleep.

And at the very last scene, Moxie meets her kid, a little girl with bad teeth like hers. Believe it or not, kids want disabled toys. There are Barbies with blindness and albinism, there are baby dolls with Downs Syndrome, there's and old man who crochets dolls with vitiligo patches. A girl in an online video painted a facial birthmark on her doll to match her moms' facial birthmark. I myself keep toys with missing limbs and chewed-up faces. Representation matters. And it's good that companies are finally acknowledging that. Even when they sometimes do a bad job at it.

It should also be noted that while the Pretties supposedly have it better, the Uglies live better, with a community that values joy and friendship and individuality. That really drives home the message that differences should be accepted and celebrated, not ignored of erased. (Just like that other animated musical starring Kelly Clarkson…)

One last thing, while the movie is officially the property of Universal, it was financed and worked on by two Chinese company. A movie about dolls, made in China. Brilliant.

[ravenkinnie]

hello! :) I’m sorry if this too intimate to ask but you kind of implied the escort Au was a way for you to process and express certain things as well? May I ask what inspired you to write it? Reading it feels like a lot of emotions are sitting in it but it still has this mysterious air around it…like not fully knowing what the characters are going through only that they find a sort of solace in each other. I think that’s very beautiful

honestly a big part is exactly the summary, i wanted to write about sex in a way that of course includes smut but largely focuses on everything that surrounds it besides desire and attraction - about the need to be close with people and physical touch, these sort of intricacies of how it consists both of something real and raw but can still be a performance, a facade. because it was always meant to be a shorter story with a focus on romance I leaned into what those things feel like rather than how they would be examined, there are I think few moments where caitlyns narration says that she doesn't know what X means but she knows where that feeling lives

a more direct was honestly "my lesbian experience with loneliness", where specifically nagata kabi describes hiring an escort to lose her virginity with and all the awkwardness and weirdness that comes with that experience and then how afterwards she said goodbye to the girl and realised she didn't really want to sleep with her, what she wanted was a hug. I've always had a fascinating and troublesome relationship with sex so I love stories that examine what it can mean and also that show this imperfect but still good reality of it which is why across 30k words they only successfuly fuck 3 times with like 6 attempts

so thats why I think it comes off the way you described, that there's a sense that they are going through something but not through what exactly and find solace in each other - there's backstory and details there that flesh out why they are in this place emotionally that they are in but the focus is shifted from examining those exact things onto how that affects how their intimacy develops

so there's a small background of caitlyns neuroticism, her loneliness and isolation, the pressure she feels in her life and a strained relationship with her mother, there's jinx and the wee sketch of her messy family relationships, her job and mental illness that she hides away for herself, how she keeps parts of her life separated from each other and doesn't let caitlyn be the aspect that weaves them together - which combined with class differences is this tension that doesn't boil over because i don't care for act three breakups but constantly simmers under the surface

because another thing i wanted to focus on, and the reason the second part exists, is those troublesome odd beginnings of relationships, when there's so much you know is hiding there but you just don't knwo what it is yet and how scary it is to navigate that. which is also why not everything is neatly wrapped up by the end I guess, because even years later you will be still peeling off layers to discover more and more, this longterm gradual process that i only touch the basic initial layers of

honestly i could have written it as a proper novel length multichapter and explored those things much more in depth and better but because I chose to do in those shorter forms there are things that can feel unexamined but im happy with how complete of a story it is for what I set out to do

lalala obligatory context link

[notdingalingalingalingrita]

important question. what is your moral alignment. im thinking chaotic neutral

If i were a character so nothing actually had consequences i would love to be lawful evil because HOLY SHIT THOSE ARE THE COOLEST CHARACTERS

Schlatt, Alastor, hell I’m pretty sure Megamind is considered lawful evil.

Having like a logical and resonable plan with a specific but strange and disagreeable moral code is just!!! So!!!! Interesting!!!! Genuinley this is my favorite alignment.

AT THE SAME TIME THOUGH CHAOTIC EVIL IS SOO FUN

Just do whatever the hell causes the most destruction EXCUSE ME i can IMAGINE my badass villain outfit

Pointy sunglasses, half buttoned Hawaiian shirt, trademark messy hair.... just a guy blowing shit up cause he thinks its fun. IDEAL.

THEN NEUTRAL EVIL

Its not interesting like lawful evil, its not fun like chaotic evil, it’s just *evil*. Raw, unfiltered, evil. Can you iMAGINE MY VILLIAN SONG!!!! The eviler the villain the better the songs sorry just true.

Oh fuck am i going to explain why I’m in love with every single alignment and then try to figure out which one is mine???? .... maybe

Ok I’m DEFINITELY not lawful neutral. I have a pretty simple moral code where I try to consider everyone’s wants and how different actions affect the people involved, and as a sorta “cheat sheet” I imagine “if everyone took this action, would the world still be okay”. And although this sorta does dictate a lot of what i do, it’s not essential to my character. It’s the character I am in real life because I want to be good, but not the character I am if I were a fictional exaggerated version of myself because it’s not an intrinsic part of my personality. But!! I do love this alignment because it sets up for GREAT internal conflict.

I mean its about how someone doesn’t have their own wants but rather follows a learned code. Or someone who once thought they only cared about themself learning that community is important and clinging to it because they WANT to be good, not because they think they ARE???? Beautiful shit

TRUE NEUTRAL

The real “i dont give a fuck” additiude is gorgeos. 10/10. Is this me??? I dont think so. I kinda like it??? Like just the sexy “might switch up sides I’m bored” additude is alluring, but the pure apathy is something I don’t posses. I’m super gay for this alignment though.

CHAOTIC NEUTRAL

I’m pretty sure you were right about this one- if i was a character, I would ABSOLUTLEY have this alignment. It THRIVES on the absence of morals. FREEDOM! CHAOS! Its all about f u n. No process or government. No drama. No cares. Everything is fluid, everything is a distraction, everything is an oppertunity. The constant energy. Lovely. and honestly, what is so great about this is that when excecuted well, these characters DONT exhaust all paths they can take. They dont run out of adventures to have. They dont stop getting new ideas. They never reach the limit of projects they can take on. It’s immortality, it’s all i want.

LAWFUL GOOD

A brilliant character is a lawful good who hates being lawful good. Someone who’s says that they’ll finally break a promise or tell a lie but can’t. Someone who is attracted to the carefree chaotic lifestyle. And yet, they do best with order. A journey of learning that lawful doesnt mean serious and that systems can be more of a powerhouse than anarchy, a leader who’s excellent about what they do, a steady hand to drive their story. love!!

NEUTRAL GOOD

This is probably me in real life. Someone who does what they think is best and stays in the moment. No specific loyalties or rules to follow, just on a personal adventure to do good. It’s so pure and simple. I like these characters (quackity is a neutral good and he is my favorite person so what can i say) a lot. I don’t know if I’m allowed to compliment them since its how i self identify though ahah

CHAOTIC GOOD

“I dont give a fuck” but ALSO good and kind???? Just like that???? Just effortlessly????? FUCK thats AMAZING and THE BEST ALIGNMENT holy SHIT i mean. “I’m going to do the right thing, but not YOUR right thing. I’m doing MY right thing”. So. Pretty. So strong. The true rebel, the true protagonist, the true showman who has the entire world watching. “Idk might solve world hunger I’m in a good mood”. Its so. Imperfect. Like their motives are so flimsy its AMAZINg. Maybe they saved the world for attention! Idk! I love them either way! They reveal their cure for cancer in a shitty google slideshow and hook up machines they designed to throw roses at them when theyre done! They catch one in their mouth! A hero of the story who is happy with themself and uses their trust in themself as the core of their strength and i just. Love these characters. (Not as much as lawful evil but second best for sure)

Oh ps the slideshow on Julia will be out today, sorry I’m a bit behind school has been cruel to me

[mejomonster]

OKAY starting early tonight but im on ep 38 and xiao guo is getting ready to broadcast and im just thinking a lot ab like. Guo as the narrator/main character bc it really did seem like we were only going to follow him in the beginning (which surprised me bc i only saw The Boys on my dash--i had never seen guo) but its like. Idk very cool how theyre delivering this message that even around people who are stronger or smarter or more powerful or a better shot or a better judge of character, you can still shine with just empathy and compassion. His entire character is built around wanting other people to be happy and he still makes a difference and i think thats a beautiful point to make

yesssssss yes i agree ;-;

i really appreciate Guo Changcheng’s role in the story, and while i think Zhao Yunlan more or less gives the same message in his own speeches toward the end, i think it hits me harder when it comes from Xiao Guo. i deeply appreciate stories about how the world very much is imperfect, and how people have a responsibility and a need for themselves and others to work on helping. and i appreciate it even more when the heroism comes from simply being willing to try and do what you can, to care, instead of some grand talent. Like... star treks one of my favorite shows, and although its chock full of talented people lol, its also at its core just about like. trying to do the right thing, trying to help, even when it seems theres little that can be done or when it seems like everything is two steps backward idk (ds9 in particular, i feel is a lot about working in an imperfect messy world and still trying to figure out how to be kind and help and keep striving to try idk). so guardian going for that point really. hits my heart. especially with Xiao Guo, and how it brings so many ‘case episode’ people back like Sha ya, to show how everyone is meaningful and all efforts are worth something.

[2n2n]

Man I could listen to you ramble about AT all day long, I feel like you bring in interesting perspectives I haven't seen in all my years in the fanbase. Like your Breezy critique, I didn't like the episode either but I never really even considered that. Does your dislike of romance mean you don't like Finn's stuff with PB/FP or all the Bubbline episodes (they're not romance but come on everyone gets what's going on at this point)? Or is that stuff cool for you cause it's mostly pining?

:^) THATS GOOD CUZ I CAN GO ON FOREVA!!!

Thank you! I keep adding more thoughts to it. I think Breezy is the ep I see most often criticized, but not for the thing that most puts me off about it. 

I actually just coincidentally made a post about this?! But I want to answer this directly anyway. My thing is– I have a huuuuge interest in like, interpersonal interactions. I love Finn’s pining, fucking up, I love messy situations and feelings, I even love the ache of wanting someone. I love his whole emotional journey from PB to FP and now to his casual situation with HW & maintained friendships with FP/PB. I like that being a soft-hearted goober is a part of Finn’s life, even if I don’t like romance. I like that he has to cope with it realistically. Nothing is so ideal or romanticized for him…. 

I really love what we can see of Bubbline’s history, & how their tumultuous past makes really obvious sense for their clashing lifestyles & emotional landscapes. …. Marcy’s totally romantic & sensitive nature VS PB’s very scientific & rational mind. Marcy is very passionate/reactive & PB very methodical/calculated.  I think that’s interesting– I also think Finn’s interest in the volatile/violent FP is interesting in the context of his character. but I don’t think…..

well. my thing is that I just don’t really like ah… like, “happily ever after”, domesticity, married couples, the concept of like, eternal love or true love or soulmates. Love that conquers all. Love that prevails.  A lot of emphasis placed on how perfect or beautiful a relationship is/was makes something fall flat to me. 

I really like the reality of people trying their best— having the best of intentions– but still hurting each other. I love people learning to move on from something that was their Everything.  I’m bored when it’s like, “and they love each other and are so in love forever for 1000 years”.  That’s nothing to me, you know?. Marriage or relationships, as the “end of the story”, bore me. As the middle of a story, I can find them interesting….! 

If Finn had….Married FP & had babies & the series ended with a portrait of them on the mantle, roll credits, I wouldn’t have liked them. But I liked how things played out, which was extremely not like that! The way it played out tells you so much about the two of them!

its like… you fall in love. But then you have to keep on living. Life goes on. As the final page of a book, I get no satisfaction out of ‘love’. And a story that tries to say, like, “isn’t that so beautiful & perfect how they are soooo in love?” makes me want to barf & die! 

my feelings about bubbline are pretty. complicated. aheh. I’m interested in them as people who have hurt each other so badly in the past & are trying to not hurt each other anymore. Like Finn & FP, it would be boring to me if that ended in eternal monogamy & being soulmates. I like more atypical situations & solutions to troubles. I like that they fulfill a unique niche in each other’s lives; which is why Marcy couldn’t help but come back, even after PB clearly hurt her badly. This is imperfect, & interesting. There is some inequality between them that I think is always going to be there– the gap where Marcy is simply more needy & sentimental & raw than PB. & I like that gap being perpetually there, no matter how many times you route back around. This is such a human difficulty; this is people living & trying. Even if their story is undoubtedly romantic, I have interest in it, even if romance isn’t my interest. Because I like them, & because things don’t feel forced.

I guess in a lot of series, relationships are very boring for me, because they’re usually very… how do I say. Romanticized?! I can rarely suspend my disbelief for ‘em. They are usually screaming at you about how sweet & beautiful the love is. I actually generally like how AT handles them as continued stories. I like how SU handles its ever-changing relationships as well! I often have a much lower tolerance for it! But I don’t mind it in AT or SU!

I don’t have judgement towards people who do get something out of cute sweet saccharine romance or domesticity, btw. I’m not woke or something, just literally gut-repulsed by displays of romance, or things being presented in a romantic… way. Romance being used for tragedy really misses me, so simon/betty or magic man/margles don’t do it for me. But I’m interested in Finn & Marceline, so I like how their respective relationships effect them, why they are attracted to who they are, even if I’m not really interested in the canon ships in the traditional sense. Like, I don’t care to read fic or comics about established canon relationships… personally, I only like to explore the friendships existing outside of/alongside of those established relationships !

 tl;dr I appreciate their arcs that include romance, even if I’m not interested in romance, itself.