#the ending song and scene where they sail away literally makes me cry

[cruelsister-moved2]

guys im ngl arietty is underrated the soundtrack is actually stunning the end credits scene was gorgeous i didn't even realise it was a directorial debut. its also a case where it actually makes sense to adapt a book in that way where you keep none of the plot and play with the concepts bc it's just an extremely charming whimsical concept to animate I probably would've enjoyed it if it was just their daily life and nothing happened

[paunchsalazar]

hey!! i loved your hoo playlist! can you explain more or less where which book begins and ends? or just your thought process behind picking the songs?

omg hi!! this is going to be really long I’m so sorry... I vaguely broke them up by book and sorta character/event/theme, it’s not super strict or anything but that was the logic!

I kinda imagine it playing out like a movie or tv series.. and so some of these kinda play over a scene or transition to the credits in my head? some more than others! otherwise it’s like punny titles or just songs that remind of plot points!

Lost Hero

- Goodbye Stranger - for Jason, since he has no idea what’s going on lol

- Teenage Dream - for the three of them, but mostly Piper!

You think I'm pretty without any makeup on You think I'm funny when I tell the punch line wrong

- Parachute - kinda Jason and Piper, I think as she realizes their relationship isn’t quite what it seems? (and just playing with his flying lol!)

- Metal Guru - Leo! 

- Pretty Girl - Piper, I was imagining this when she clashes with Drew/learns about the Aphrodite cabin

And I could be a pretty girl Shut up when you want me to And I could be a pretty girl Won't ever make you blue And I could be a pretty girl I'll lose myself in you

- The Sky’s The Limit - when the three of them take off on Festus

- Snowqueen Of Texas - this was for Khione lol

I'm on my knees, your majesty; Snowqueen, save a cold kiss for me I'm on my knees your majesty

- Sweet Talkin’ Woman - this is book-wide but it’s for Piper’s charmspeak!

- Are You Gonna Be My Girl - is sorta general but I was imagining it when Jason and Piper kinda decide to be together/give it another go

- It’s Not Unusual - I think this was sorta the entire book/wider series but I just think it’s cute and fun and a Guardians of the Galaxy type end credits song? And just them accepting their very bizarre situation 

Son of Neptune + Mark of Athena

I put these together because there wasn’t really a set bookend in my head!

- Hello Stranger - finally reuniting with Percy! (and I wanted the Percy and Jason songs to mirror each other)

Hello stranger (Ooh) It seems so good to see you back again How long has it been? (Ooh it seems like a mighty long time)

- Diamonds - Hazel 

- Don’t Go Breaking My Heart - Frank trusting Hazel with the wood, also Percy + Annabeth, everyone really

Don't go breaking my heart You take the weight off of me Oh, honey when you knock on my door Ooh, I gave you my key

- Beautiful Soul - I literally don’t know why I added this I just wanted an excuse to add a Jesse McCartney song (which feels so tonally correct to me?) but also I think it’s Frank liking Hazel in spite of her big secret and Percy loving Annabeth

- Pocketful of Rainbows - encountering Iris!

I don't worry Whenever skies are gray above Got a pocketful of rainbows Got a heart full of love

- Am I The Same Girl - Annabeth’s POV upon reunion!

Why don´t you stop And look me over Am I the same girl you used to know?

Why don´t you stop And think it over Am I the same girl who knew your soul?

- Bizarre Love Triangle - Frank, Hazel, and Leo

- Treasure - Hazel again + the literal treasure?

Pretty girl, pretty girl, pretty girl you should be smiling (you should be smiling) A girl like you should never look so blue (blue) You're everything I see in my dreams I wouldn't say that to you if it wasn't true

- The Sweet Escape - off on the Argo II

- Okay Okay - to Italy! and I just think Italian disco is so fun

- On An Evening in Roma - walking around Rome, seeing all its history

Though there's grinning and mandolining in sunny Italy The beginning has just begun when the sun goes down So please meet me in the plaza near your casa I am only one and that is one too few On an evening in Roma Don't know what the country's coming to But in Rome do as the Romans do Will you on an evening in Roma

- Stuck on the puzzle - Annabeth + the Mark of Athena

- Coca Cola - I was imagining the pirates+sacrifice to Dionysus/ his appearance

- Edge of Seventeen - I think Annabeth remarks to herself something like am I really going to die at 17? so this is for her and all the kids just on the cusp of being 17

And the days go by, like a strand in the wind In the web that is my own, I begin again Said to my friend, baby (everything stopped) Nothin' else mattered

- Landslide - when everything goes wrong and they start falling to Tartarus

Oh, mirror in the sky What is love? Can the child within my heart rise above? Can I sail through the changin' ocean tides? Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Well, I've been afraid of changin' 'Cause I've built my life around you But time makes you bolder Even children get older And I'm getting older too

House of Hades + Blood of Olympus

these are more thematic I think? but a few moments in particular

- Head Over Heels - falling down... 

I made a fire, and watching it burn Thought of your future With one foot in the past, now just how long will it last?

Something happens and I'm head over heels I never find out until I'm head over heels Something happens and I'm head over heels Ah, don't take my heart, don't break my heart Don't, don't, don't throw it away

- You and Me - Percy and Annabeth in Tartarus

If the stars don't shine If the moon won't rise If I never see the setting sun again You won't hear me cry as I testify Please believe me boy you know I would I lie As long as there is you and me

- Don’t Worry Baby - Percy and Annabeth in Tartarus, on the shore of the river

Well it's been building up inside of me For oh I don't know how long I don't know why But I keep thinking Something's bound to go wrong

But she looks in my eyes And makes me realize And she says "don't worry, baby"

- It’s Only A Paper Moon - the mist and Hazel starting to understand it

You smile, the bubble has a rainbow in it Say, it's only a paper moon Sailing over a cardboard sea But it wouldn't be make-believe If you believed in me

- Money, Money, Money - Hazel + Pluto

Money, money, money Must be funny In the rich man's world

- Magic - the whole story, but particularly with the presence of Hecate 

- Summer Wind - Jason harnessing the winds!

The summer wind came blowin' in from across the sea It lingered there, to touch your hair and walk with me All summer long we sang a song and then we strolled that golden sand Two sweethearts and the summer wind

- Mala Femmina - the return of Khione

- Would You? - Leo and Calypso

Well, you know she took my hand And we walked away And I can't understand why she would stay Would you like to fall in love with me?

-  Love is Like a Fire - Leo and also Frank 

- Don’t Wanna Fight - Percy and Annabeth

Take from my hand Put in your hands The fruit of all my grief Lying down ain't easy When everyone is pleasing I can't get no relief Living ain't no fun The constant dedication Keeping the water and power on There ain't nobody left Why can't I catch my breath? I'm gonna work myself to death

- Love Really Hurts With You - Leo after leaving Calypso’s island

- What Makes the Sunset - Percy and Annabeth (and by extension Bob and Damasen)

What makes the sunset? What makes the moonrise? What makes the tide remember to hide and why does it soon rise? What makes a star fall? Where does it fall to? Why does its flight make us stop in the night and wish as we all do?

- Dedicated to the One I Love - everybody, but an ode to Bob and Damasen (their goodbye made me cry!)

While I'm far away from you my baby I know it's hard for you my baby Because it's hard for me my baby And the darkest hour is just before dawn

Each night before you go to bed my baby Whisper a little prayer for me my baby And tell all the stars above This is dedicated to the one I love

- Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want - Percy and Annabeth in Tartarus, I was thinking about this post-curses and them being so done with everything

Good times for a change See, the luck I've had Can make a good man Turn bad

So please, please, please Let me, let me, let me Let me get what I want This time

- Lonely Boy - Nico 

- Fantasy - indulging all their visions... the mist, etc. 

- Stupid Cupid - Nico and Cupid (of course)

Stupid Cupid you're a real mean guy (stupid Cupid) I'd like to clip your wings so you can't fly (stupid Cupid) I'm in love and it's a crying shame (stupid Cupid) And I know that you're the one to blame (stupid Cupid)

Hey hey, set me free Stupid Cupid stop picking on me

- Suzanne - still Nico, looking over at the couple (sorry... all the mopey songs)

- Dream A Little Dream of Me - dreams... also Percy’s wishes of the future

Stars shining bright above you Night breezes seem to whisper "I love you" Birds singing in the sycamore tree Dream a little dream of me

- Our Day Will Come - I think Annabeth says a line almost like this? somewhere at the end of HOH, I think when they’ve just gotten out of Tartarus and are all sitting together, like haven’t they had enough? won’t their day finally come?

Our day will come If we just wait a while No tears for us Think love and wear a smile Our dreams have magic because We'll always stay In love this way

- Call Me - all of them! also Nico and Reyna, just being there for each other

Tell me and I'll be around Now don't forget me 'cause if you let me I will always stay by you You've got to trust me, that's how it must be

- Nobody - Nico... oh buddy 

Venus, planet of love Was destroyed by global warming Did its people want too much too? Did its people want too much?

And I don't want your pity I just want somebody near me Guess I'm a coward I just want to feel alright

- I’m a Believer - Jason and Piper

I thought love was only true in fairy tales Meant for someone else but not for me Love was out to get me That's the way it seemed Disappointment haunted all my dreams Then I saw her face, now I'm a believer Not a trace of doubt in my mind

- Summertime - Piper singing and it being the end of summer

- Happy Trails - more singing ( I want to include the songs actually mentioned!)

- The End of the World - the big battle!!

Why does the sun go on shining? Why does the sea rush to shore? Don't they know it's the end of the world? 'Cause you don't love me any more

- Too Late To Turn Back Now - departing with Festus (I think Leo almost says this too!)

- Here Comes The Sun - day comes, the Athena Parthenos is back

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here

- Walking On Sunshine - Will Solace

- Evil Woman - Gaea fight

Evil woman, how you done me wrong But now you're tryin' to wail a different song Ha, ha, funny, how you broke me up You made the wine, now you drink a cup I came runnin' every time you cried Thought I saw love smilin' in your eyes Ha, ha, very nice to know That you ain't got no place left to go

- Seven Wonders - the seven! also traveling the world... making it this far

If I live to see the seven wonders I'll make a path to the rainbow's end I'll never live to match the beauty again The rainbow's edge

- This Will Be (An Everlasting Love) - to me this is just after Annabeth and Percy’s kiss, shots of everyone back to camp, wides of people running around, new cabins under construction, the sun is shining, the camera pulls out 

Loving you is some kind of wonderful Because you showed me just how much you care You've given me the thrill of a lifetime And made me believe you've got more thrills to spare, oh!

- Love Makes the World Go Round - like the end credits! last pov with Piper, love makes it all happen

Without love flowers wouldn't grow in the spring And without spring, yeah the birdies just couldnt sing Everybody needs love to watch the twinkling stars above It makes a boy and girl, Say they feel so fine, now

[arcanadreams]

y’all know that dialogue from the beginning of episode 4 where you talk to Mathieu? the one where you can ask if he wants to reenact Titanic with you? yeah well i’m still salty we didn’t actually get to do that so i’m fixing it with some added self-indulgent headcanons for good measure (in second person format of course because i exclusively write and read x reader fic LMAO) headcanons will be under the cut!!

-----

“Want to come to the front of the ship with me and yell ‘I’M THE KING OF THE WORLD!’?” Mathieu merely blinked in response to your suggestion, arching an eyebrow at you. 

“...No? Why would I do that?” You were honestly surprised at how unenthused with the idea he was. The only other earthling in the entirety of El and didn’t event want to reenact Titanic with you! The audacity!

“Because it’s fun! Why else?” Mathieu clearly disagreed with your reasoning, narrowing his eyes at you skeptically. “Fine, be that way. I’m going to go bask in Leonardo DiCaprio’s glory all by myself, and I’m going to have a great time.” With that, you left the brunette standing on the ship’s deck. You made your way to the bow. Standing at the edge, you sucked in a deep breath of air, sticking your arms out.

“I’M THE KING OF THE WORLD!!”

Mathieu:

Still as unimpressed as when you proposed the idea, to be honest. But he respects that you have the gumption to go through with it.

You glance behind you when you’re done and stick your tongue out at him before smiling triumphantly.

It’s contagious, he’ll admit...he can’t help but smile back. Maybe it would’ve been fun to join in, if only to see that smile up close...

And the way the wind is blowing through your hair is quite pretty, too...

It’s only when you wink at him that he realizes he’s been caught staring.

His cheeks turn a light shade of pink and he looks away, running a hand through his hair in that way he always does. This time, though, there is a noticeable sheepishness in the gesture that isn’t usually present.

Later you tease him about it, saying he should’ve thrown his ego away and joined you if he was just going to watch all the fun you were having and shoot envious eyes from the sidelines the whole time!

Yeah...that’s definitely why he was staring...cough...

Lance:

Literally what in the name of fuck are you doing? - his inner monologue

AT FIRST

He’s an observant man; he looks around for context. Honestly, the way Mathieu is rolling his eyes and Koori is laughing at the scene makes him think you lost a bet of some sort and were purposefully embarrassing yourself.

But before he can think any more on the matter, you turn around with this brilliant smile on your face.

(heart eyes.jpg) It’s such a far cry from the sides of you he has seen up until now; he’s only ever seen you distressed or enraged...both of which were due to his actions and presence.

Seeing the crinkle of your eyes when you’re genuinely happy is new and, dare he say it...intriguing. Beautiful, even.

But then the sun hits your hair just right and you almost have a halo around you and suddenly he remember who he is looking at: the savior of El, the hero who saved the entire world...from him. And he remembers he has no right to be looking at you like this, to be peering in on your moment of joy. So he looks back out over the horizon instead.

Leiftan:

Ah, there’s the Y/N he knows. Always there to bring levity to his aching heart.

...Even if he has no idea what the fuck you’re doing.

Just be careful, please!! Don’t topple over the edge of the ship!! He’s a worrywart, be patient with him.

If he weren’t in self-imposed ‘all things to do with Y/N’ exile, he’d be heading right over to ask just what the hell you were doing.

But then the wind rustles your hair and you turn around, resting your elbows on the railing, and oh...the sunlight creates a halo around your head as you close your eyes, clearly enjoying the salty sea air.

Mans about to have a heart attack! You look just as stunning as you did the day he lost you (and himself but he doesn’t really care about that part) to the crystal.

He can literally feel your angelic aura singing, calling out to him in that moment, but he squeezes his eyes shut and shakes it off. He has sworn off anything of the sort. No matter how mesmerizing you are, he can’t give in...(yet)

Nevra:

“Good to know you’re taking this mission seriously, Y/N.”

We’ve got a Debbie Downer on our hands, folks! Ugh! (Just say, “You weren’t as much of a party pooper before I died for seven years.” That’ll shut him up!)

“I’ll have you know I am taking this perfectly seriously,” you turn your body around to face him, and he resists the urge to smile at the grin you meet his gaze with. “In fact, what I just did is a tradition on Earth for sailors. It promotes safe travels.”

“Is that so?” As you nod assuredly, the vampire rolls his eyes. He knows you’re bluffing...but he’ll still probably ask Mathieu about it later. When you’re out of earshot, of course.

“I learned from the best that having a little fun on missions never hurt anyone,” you say, thinking back to your first few missions with him, back before the crystal. Back when he was...different.

“And I learned that it can kill,” argumentative as always, he was...you sighed. Seven years in a coma and your favorite mischief buddy had shoved a stick up his ass while you were gone! Damn.

He noticed the disappointment in your eyes, then, as the sun vanished behind a cloud. Shit. He didn’t...he never meant...ugh. “...If the journey to Genkaku goes well, I suppose your sailor’s tradition will be proven to work.” He was happy to see your face light up the slightest bit at his peace offering. 

“It’s gonna be smooth sailing from here on out, and I’m gonna rub it in your face after.” “I look forward to it,” despite himself, his lips tilted upwards the slightest bit. He felt lighter, much more ready to face the mission ahead...as well as your teasing if you were right about the trip in the end.

Koori (because I’m gay and I love her):

Stands next to Mathieu and laughs. Like a lot. What can she say? What you’re doing is already funny enough, but the fact it’s making Mathieu facepalm is just the perfect cherry on top!

She loves when you get mischievous like this. She happily approaches you to ask what you’re doing.

“I’m reenacting a human movie by myself since Mathieu is too much of a coward to join me.” (There’s a clear “Hey!” in the background but the two of you mutually elect to ignore it.)

“Is this the same movie with the Let It Go song Mathieu likes to sing?” She asks, and you laugh. “No, but is it probably just as famous. It’s about a huge cruise ship that sank.”

“Don’t tell me you just set us up to get swallowed by the ocean!” Her ears pressed down to her head as she joked with you. She watched you laugh, the sun shining off your hair and creating a slight halo effect. It kind of reminded her of when she was able to create that illusion of your angel powers for you, only much, much prettier...

She asks for you to tell her all about the Titanic “so we can avoid the same fate,” but in reality she just wants to stare at you in this lighting, in this moment, for longer. 

Soon enough the two of you are sat on the stairs to the bow while you blabber on the whole story. She watches the way your eyes light up as you recount the dramatic bits and smiles. You’re so cute. You’ll make this rough journey easier on her, she’s sure of it.

[dorki-c]

My Guardian Demon| Chapter 1, Part 3: Inheritance

Relationship: Izuku Midoriya X (Reader)

Rating: 16+

A/N: I thought writing this part would be really hard...Nope. Not at all. I’m surprised! I hope you all enjoy!

TW: Brief mention of Fire, Swearing 

[Masterlist] [<— Previous| Next —>]

(Song recommendation for this chapter: All the good girl’s go to hell By Billie Eilish)

PROMPT QUESTION FOR THIS STORY ARC: Are all demons ‘bad’?

“But I’m not giving up on my dream, if you aren’t going to give up on yours.”

Alas, the gloriously golden sun highlighted the features of the old dusk that was soon turning into their new dawn.

(And might I say, if society got in their way, they will pay their dues the hard way.)

The two of them knew they had to paint the sky a fresh light blue, to develop the painting of the environment with creative splatters of white to resemble the clouds.

With the sun almost sliding to horizon’s edge, a cloudy vermillion mist (that was his demon) slipped into the view of the sun, highlighting their features but not letting a shadow smudge the surface of the pretty earth that the star ruled over.

“I know you won’t give up on your dream.” Even from three footsteps away, Izuku could still make out the multitude of voices mixed together. 

“So, I won’t give up on my own dream.” Although, even if one voice is made up of many sounds, that doesn’t mean it can’t resonate with tenacity.

“Got it!”

From a roof top of an apartment building to the lonesome streets below, it was still unbelievable to the middle schooler that he…literally met All Might.

(And that he had learned of All Might’s weakness.)

Nonetheless, after every battle we grow stronger.

(Right?)

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The days of our years always past through fingertips that have soaked in sin.

Yet, those who want to fight are the ones who shoulder said sins like an unlucky medal garnished in pure gold.

And how this medal got passed into Izuku’s somehow capable hand, who knows?

Where the demon stood at the back of the mass of people surrounding them, Izuku was at front of the crowd. A racing horse of many thoughts drowned his selfish needs and his demon’s hopeless demands.

How can he prove to society that he is capable to be a hero?  

How can he do it?

The scene of a filthy crime, the stage was set with a hostage and villain. One of them had manifested as a flaxen haired male, maybe around Izuku’s age? Though the moment the green-haired boy saw a familiar dandelion crackling outlining the big BOOM destroying the landscape around the hostage—he just started moving too fast for his demon’s claws to catch.

(T-That’s—that’s the same villain who attacked him!)

At first, a cold breeze of (what he believes might be) your hands about to catch him. Were you about to halter or allow him to write a new beginning?

(No, you weren’t stopping Izuku. Did you want to see this event play out?)

Sure, when the main act was about to end, maybe another new role can rush in and save the show.

Why were you staying behind? Did you approve of his actions? Izuku thought you hated it when he played the saviour role. Was he wrong?

(Izuku has never been a clairvoyant, however, he can be a saviour.)

Knocking and shoving past the innocently confused bystanders, visions of red scorching the surface of the road, the sight of that same gloopy villain cackling in satisfaction at the catch they managed to reel in.

“None of us have the right quirks to stop a villain like this!” The false heroes would always say.

“I’m not a real hero…” The Symbol of Peace may whisper to himself after saving many people.

“I want to be a hero!” Is the cry of a boy whose been doubted for his whole life.

Will he be successful in his attempt of grabbing “KACCHAN!” out of the sludge after throwing his yellow bag straight at the target?

(He ends up hitting the villain’s eye! Whoop! Whoop! Bullseye! )

If it wasn’t the summer sun of this fateful day.

Then it was the memories of childhood youth coming to ride the sailing riptide of the small green-haired boys kindness.

Where pebbles tumbled down the riverway above the stream of shallow river water travelling downwards was a large tree trunk pretending to be a safe bridge for the five children carelessly bumbling across it.

As the ringleader lost his footing and slipping down, down, down into the small riptide, if it wasn’t for the cicadas- clicking away with their summery sounds whilst they hide in the bushes- then a small splosh of water could’ve sounded like splashing into a large rain puddle.

(But it didn’t, instead the sound was nearly as silent as a dormouse sneaking into your fridge for cheese.)

Underneath Mother Nature’s bridge, casted a shadow blanketing the vermillion mist where the desolate being stood waiting for its owner to notice them, but the owner ignores the mist like he usually did and opts for helping the blonde-haired ringleader.

(He’s always helped people. (Y/n) can’t tell you when he hasn’t helped anybody.)

Extending his chubby baby hands, the green haired boy asked the blonde one “are you alright?” Though the demon knows that Izuku didn’t intend for that sentence to make the other child to narrow their crimson eyes.

However, whoever anybody is, Izuku will always extend a hand.

This does not exempt from his childhood friend, Bakugo Katsuki.

(This is what it means to be a saviour. Not a hero.)

The performance of a brave act had concluded with a boring aftermath.

(Like how can a demon say that watching All Might change the weather was exciting?)

Clobbered around Izuku’s tired form was a few (false) heroes who lectured him about how he should “be careful, because you could’ve easily died” to that villain.

(Though the demon had the audacity to scoff at the shitty remarks, if those heroes did their jobs properly and pulled Bakugo out of the villain’s grasps, then Izuku wouldn’t have had to.)

Let’s not forget, that Izuku was the one who had the guts to do what the heroes couldn’t do and that Bakugou was praised for his bravery.

What ‘bravery’ was there to show? If anything, those vermillion eyes showcased fifty shades of fear and that’s not tipping the iceberg of what those falsities had said about bravery.

(They were only boosting his ego.)

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

“Do you think I did the right thing, (y/n)?” Izuku muttered out loud, although his demon was occupied with ignoring the ‘demon therapy’ poster that hung desolate on a lamp post and instead had the goal of catching a freaking butterfly.

When their hand reached out to grab it. They halted, turned towards Izuku, then asked “were you talking” because they were highly busy trying to catch an insignificant insect to notice that Izuku said something out loud.

“N-no! Don’t worr—” A rough, maybe a tad bit too loud of a bark cut Izuku off when he heard the familiar insult of “DEKU!” from the distance.

“Oh god, what does Bakugo want?” Izuku simply shrugged. Nobody really knows what Bakugo wants anymore. Is it validation? Pride? A sense of superiority?

Nobody, not even Izuku’s demon, could make out what he wanted by his little prompt speech about not owing Izuku a dime of gratefulness. With his whole act of calling Izuku a “quirkless failure who wouldn’t cut out to be a shitty rent-a-cop, even if he tried.”

Furthermore, how dare the blonde-haired boy think that Izuku was looking down on him. He first calls Izuku a “weakling” after all he had done, then accuses him that “he did nothing to help,” and then decided to strut off like the moody teenager he is.

(But what if you were mistaken to think he was moody?)

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

When passing maybe two, perhaps three corners of rows with houses lined down the sides of the passageways, with boxed in backyards and the sun starting to lay its weary head down for a long desolate nap, Izuku was once again setting his mind straight and into autopilot.

“Hey Izuku?” You were asking the questions and he was answering back with his answers. Usually, you either stayed quiet or screamed at anybody (besides his mom) who dared to touch his precious face, so if he was guessing why you were asking him a question; it was because you were asking him an ‘important’ question (or so you labelled them to be important, because they seriously aren’t).

“Y-Yes (Y/n)?”

And of course, Izuku isn’t clairvoyant, so how would he know that your upcoming question was “what were the colours of the sky?” since your quite forgetful at times.

What? Why were you asking that question again? He’s told you a couple times before “there’s only one colour of the sky, its blue” but knowing you and your airheaded attitude, he has to stay patient. With your small nod to his answer, you seemed satisfied with the small talk until—

“I AM HERE!” Booms behind the green-haired boy (unexpectedly).

If it wasn’t for puberty, then Izuku could’ve lost his voice by the singlehanded scream of “ALL MIGHT! WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!”

(And what’s the point of saying “I stand for justice!” when you can’t stand up in your hero form for five minutes before spewing blood from your mouth?)

All joking aside, when the pro-hero stood in front of Izuku in his rawest form, he had a statement to say for the green-haired boy.

“Young man, I came here to thank you and discuss your question.” What? All Might was giving up his time and energy to speak to him? A quirkless nobody?

Well…colour his demon’s pointed look at the worn-down man, in the richest colours of a rainbow. What does this pro-hero want with Izuku? .

.

.

“If you hadn’t told me about your life or had run into that fight, then I would have been a worthless bystander.” With the movement of his face allowing the thin-skinned cheek muscles to stretch his lips up to his onyx encircled blue eyes, All Might had presented the most sincerely painful smile he could muster in this small snippet of time.

Though, not surprisingly enough, this caught Izuku off guard. His expression paling as he frantically waved his hands about and only managing to utter the words of “N-no! No! It was my fault to begin with! If I hadn’t wasted your time and made you drop the villain t-then--!”

All Might cutting Izuku off mid-sentence was like a miracle out of the ninth circle of hell for (Y/n).

“I’m not done talking,” Hushing the 14 year old, All Might had continued his statement from earlier, “You told me you were powerless, so when I was standing in the crowd—watching this timid, quirkless kid rush into danger.”

The pro-hero paused in trying to find the right words.

“That inspired me to act as well.”

With a hand on his heart, the moment was truly overwhelming for Izuku.

“AND WITH THAT!”

All Might had poofed back into his hero form as soon as the sent his exclamation out to the world.

“I HAVE DEEMED YOU WORTHY OF INHERITING MY POWER!”

(Wait…what?)

The revelation of what the hero had unveiled to both the green-haired boy and his red demon was very confusing to process.

(And when did heroes become so self-righteous? Like jeez, calm down on that ego of yours All Might!)

Taglist:

@glitterfreezed, @izukubabe​, @sweater-weather-seven, @nyanyabisjjj, @quietlegends, @dragonsdreamoffire​, @candybabey​, @honeylavender13​​

CREDITS:

All content and art used within this story belongs to their respective owners. PLAGARISM WILL NOT BE TOLERATED!

Art credits: Dorki-C and @glitterfreezed​

[MASTERLIST OF “My Guardian Demon”]​ [MAIN MASTERLIST]

[boyfriend-kisser]

Episode 5: 

> How fucking old is Glimmer jesus 

> Also yay Bow's there 

> "With She-Ra and a boat, we can conquer anything" bitch wdym just use She-Ra as a boat 

> JESUS CHRIST I FORGOT ABOUT HOW ANNOYING THE INTRO IS DONT JUMPSCARE ME LIKE THAT SKIPSKISPKSIPKSIPSKIP 

> Wow those boats float like, in the air those old boats DO float they're dope 

> Omg Bow is adorable he loves everything he's always so happy I love himso much if anything happens to him I will cut my ligaments off 

> Bow: No pirates? 

Glimmer: No pirates. 

Bow: *Sad arrrr* 

i love him 

> That green lump can sail? 

> Nvm they meant whoever he was arm wrestling with 

> Wow Sea Hawk is hot 

> Uh oh he's a narcissist 

> Bow is also feeling the gay vibes for him so Im not in the wrong 

> Sea Hawk dresses like Papyrus in that AU where sans dies instead of him?? Yknow?? And he's wearing sans's's' jacket and shit??? 

> Yes Adora, show him that he's retarded. Show him how retarded his sexy face is. 

> Bow grr I love you 

> AHAHAHAHA ADORA BEAT HIS ASS WITHOUT EVEN NEEDING TO USE SHE-RA 

> Oh yes, lay the sass on thick Catra 

> Omg Scorpia's hAIR I LOVE IT 

 > oMG SCORPIA'S A  BIG FRIENDLY GIANT AND SHE HAS LOBSTER HANDS AND LITERALLY ALL I'VE HEARD HER SAY IS "KITTY! JUST SO YOU KNOW, I'M A HUGGER" AND I ALREADY LOVE HER 

> HAhahahaha cat on boat 

> Scorpia's great nnn please tell me she stays being great forever 

> wTF Sea Hawk set his own boats on fire this DUDE I like him already 

> Okay updated favourites list: 

1) Bow (with or without flowers)

2) Catra (she got promoted back up the favourites list again but I'm still mad at her) 

3) Scorpia 

4) Flower princess 

 5) Sea Hawk

> SHANTY TIME HECK YEAH 

> Aw nvm

> OMG BOW IS ALREADY TYING KNOTS HE'S SO SMART LOOK AT HIM GO 

> GUYS BOW BLUSHED HE HAS A HUUUUGE CRUSH ON SEAHAWK GUYS HE'S SO CUTE 

> SPARKLE TELEPORTS AWAY he called her sparkle im crying 

> Adora fucking showing Sea Hawk who's boss by unfurling the jib by herself heck yeah 

> Sea Hawk's trying his best guys come on be nice 

> Omg Sea Hawk's singing 

> OMG HE'S HOLDING HANDS WITH BOW 

> BOW HAS A VIOLIN 

> Aw the song's over :( 

> Bow's so supportive of Adora as she beats Sea Hawk's ass AGAIN 

> *CRASH* 

Sea Hawk: aHA WE'RE HERE 

*CRASH* 

I love this show 

> Oh yeah adventures with Sea Hawk and WHAT THE FUCK GIANT OCEAN WORM 

> Lmao you can just hear "FOR THE HONOUR OF GREYSKULL" in the background 

> AWWW THERE WAS NO EPIC TRANSFORMATION SCENE :( 

> Omg she jumped off the boat wow epic hero moment 

> Lol she's dead 

> Sea Hawk isn't phased by this at ALL 

> HE'S SO MAD THAT SHE-RA'S COOLER THAN HIM 

> "adora GET IN THE BOAT" 

lmao I dont see how anyone could be scared of Glimmer 

Her name is fucking GLIMMER 

And she's so small and pink 

> Catra MAD WHY HAVE WE STOPPED 

> lOL SHE JUMPED ON HIM 

> There's a Force Captain Orientation???? 

> Also hi Scorpia I missed you and your lobster arms <3

> Catra's hot 

> Omg is Scorpia lesbian 

> I agree, very impressive captain yell 

> Mermaid land is PRETTY 

> AHAHAH Mermista (is that her name? fuck i already forgot) looks so fucking done with Sea Hawk I love it >I like Mermista's outfit tooo she's pretty wow 

> Please don't tell me she keeps that attitude for the entire show 

> SEA HAWK I LOVE YOU BUT STFU YOU'RE MAKING IT WORSE 

> I'm TRYING to talk to my new friend Twinkle 

Glimmer: bITCH WHAT DID YOU FUCKING CALL YOU I'LL SHOW YOU A MOTHERFUCKING TWINKLE 

> No dont get rid of your guard or else... Aaaand Sea Hawk is sitting on your throne 

> Ok I like Mermista because she stood up and seems a little (lITTLE) more energetic and less bitchy now 

> S E A  H A W K  SHUT THE FUCK UP THE ADULTS ARE TALKING AND THE PLOT IS ADVANCING

> Don't sit in her lap that's rape 

> Why does Sea Hawk set everything on fire 

> Have I told you how much I love Bow yet? 

"That's Adora, she has a magic sword :)" 

> Oh yeah Adora, READ THE OLD WRITING 

> AWWW BYE SEA HAWK i actually feel bad he got flat-out rejected and like he's super annoying so i see why but still he just wants people to like him :( 

> THEY SKIPPED THE TRANSFORMATION SCENE AGAIN NOOOOOOO please say there's one later :( 

> Fuck yeah Mermista BE impressed bitch 

> Ffs Bow I love you and youre adorable but hushh 

> Tf Sea Hawk where u going 

> GLIMMER TAKE BOW WITH YOU SO HE CAN HELP YOU TALK TO SEA HAWK BC HE'S NICER THAN YOU 

> Sea Hawk's little scream made me laugh really hard 

> Aw, poor Sea Hawk feels useless (he kinda is but dont tell him that hes very fragile) 

> He charmingly set boats on fire omg I love him this is actually really sad 

> OK THANK GOD GLIMMER'S BEING NICE 

> When your powers are shparkles 

> NOBODY CAN GET HER FUCKING NAME RIGHT I'M CRYING GLITTER 

> Yes I knew Sea Hawk was one of my favourite for a reason 

> YAY THEY'RE FRIENDS 

> Aw he looked so happy 

> OK BACK TO SHE-RA LAND 

She's still using a sword like a gun to turn a hologram blue. 

> Hi Bow I love you 

> Bow why do you look scared??? 

> OH SHIT IT'S THE HORDE THAT'S A GREAT REASON TO LOOK SCARED 

> Oh it's Catra 

> AND SCORPIA 

> I love them both a lot 

> Holy fuck Mermista got a TAIL 

> Catra just wants to see her girlfriend 

> OMG BOW'S BOW CAN BE USED AS A GRAPPLING HOOK ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?????? 

> He's so cool living out his pirate dreams 

> FUCK THEY MANAGED TO MAKE ME BA ATTACHED TO BOTH THE PROTAGONISTS TEAM AND THE ANTAGONISTS TEAM AND I DONT KNOW WHO IM ROOTING FOR 

> Im rooting for Bow. 

> Half of this si just me screaming about my love for Bow 

> NO SCORPIA THREW BOW IN A BLENDER NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO 

>THANK FUCK SEA-HAWK SAVED HIM 

They're having a gay moment 

 >Set your ship on FIRE 

> Im excited for flmaing boat time

> HE LOOKS SO HAPPY ABOUT SETTING HIS SHIP ON FIRE IM GOING TO CRY 

> Catra and She-Ra are having a conversation I'm so happy (even if Catra's being mean) 

> Catra just sitting atop She-Ra's sword is so cute to me 

> Ouch Catra scratch 

> She-Ra's so TALL 

> NO CATRA DONT fIGHT YOUR WIFE THIS IS DOMESTIC ABUSE 

> Speaking of lebians, where's Scorpia? 

> MERMISTA'S GAY SHE'S BLUSHING OMG 

> Oh, THERE'S Scorpia 

> I wanna cosplay Scorpia 

> SEA-HAWK AND GLIMMER YAY THEY'RE GREAT 

> I kinda wanna cosplay Sea-Hawk as well 

> FUCKING FLAMING BOAT ATTACK I LOVE IT 

> Aw Catra in the water sad 

> Scorpia will rescue you Catra it's ok 

> Yay the gate's fixed and WOW yeah it's beautiful 

> OMG SEA-HAWK HIT THE JACKPOT HE GOT A REALLY NICE SHIP FROM MERMISTA THAT'S GORGEOUS WTF 

> Hes so happy :) 

>HAHAHAHAHA 

Merm: Don't set it on fire. 

Sea-Hawk: nO PROMISES 

> Aw Sea-Hawk's being useful he's actually kinda cute I love him 

> YES MERMISTA'S IN YESYESYESYES 

> sHE-Ra get's all the bitches (except Catra) 

> Is everybody gay in this show??? 

> oMG BOW'S SINGING A SHANTY ABOUT THE BEST FRIEND SQUAD I LOVE HIM SO FUCKING MUCH HARWEFYGYERWABFYIHHWUIFHIEWJNFBIHWQF 

> tHAT WAS a perfect ending to that episode Bow's so cute

[littlepryingpandorica]

Project Rebuild Chapter 2

A.k.a. “Everything you need to know about the ninja without a single line of dialogue in 3 and ½ minutes.” References included. 

EXT. NINJAGO HIGH SCHOOL – DAY

We fade in to see a shot of Master Wu from the back as he looks on to see a school campus. The song "Believer" by Imagine Dragons begins playing as an entirely wordless montage sequence of Master Wu recruiting the ninja occurs.

We see a close up of Master Wu in deep thought. We then go into his POV (point of view) shot as he looks at a sign on the right side that reads “NINJAGO HIGH SCHOOL.” The national emblem of Ninjago can also be seen. It is a rectangle with six dots inside, resembling a 3x2 Lego brick standing upright.  

INT. SCHOOL GYM – DAY

Several teenage boys are playing a game of dodgeball. We see a close up of one of the boys with a confident look on his face. This is COLE, a young man with black tousled hair and long bangs. He has thick, black, bushy eyebrows that accentuate his expressions.    

[Song: Believer by Imagine Dragons - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is0qM0aAJqg ]

[First things first, I’ma say all the words inside my head]  Cole throws a dodgeball at his fellow classmate so hard that the other student smashes through the wall of the gym, leaving behind a minifig-shaped hole. Cole sheepishly raises his hands as though to say “whoops”. 

[I’m fired up and tired of the way that things have been, oh-ooh The way that things have been, oh-ooh] Everyone else is freaked out by Cole’s super strength and runs away from Cole. Saddened, Cole hangs his head down when he is left alone in the gym. Alone except for one person. Master Wu puts his hand on Cole’s shoulder and recruits Cole for his Secret Ninja Force. Cole looks up and smiles.  

INT. SCHOOL SWIMMING POOL - DAY

Several students are swimming laps around the pool filled with actual non-Lego water. But one lone student can be seen meditating at the bottom of the pool. Close up on this boy. He is ZANE, an unusual young boy with a white crew cut. 

[Second things second, don’t you tell me what you think that I could be] Suddenly, large spikes of non-Lego ice emanate from where Zane is sitting at the bottom of the pool. The ice spreads until it freezes the entire swimming pool with everyone in it. Zane opens his bright blue eyes and is shocked by what he has done. 

[I’m the one at the sail, I’m the master of my sea, oh-ooh The master of my sea, oh-ooh] Cut to Zane out of the pool while school staff are trying to break the other swimmers out of the ice. Zane is frightened by the angry glares all the swimmers are giving him. Master Wu approaches Zane and puts his hand on Zane’s shoulder. Zane turns to Master Wu and sees Cole in the background nervously waving hi. Zane nods and Master Wu recruits Zane. Zane hugs Cole and Cole smiles gleefully.

INT. SCHOOL SCIENCE LAB. - DAY

At a science class, the students are busy working on their experiments. We focus on a freckled boy with messy, dark brown hair. This is JAY, a cautious but inventive individual.

[I was broken from a young age, taking my sulking to the masses]  Jay works furiously on building a potato clock. Several quick shots of Jay taking various items including a non-Lego marble potato, non-Lego galvanized nails and some copper wire. As he takes each of these items, tiny sparks of electricity flow from his hands into the objects. 

[Writing my poems for the few, that look to me, took to me, shook to me, feeling me] Beside Jay is the Lego clock he built. It is connected to the copper wire, connected to the potato. Jay inserts the galvanized nail into the potato and the Lego clock ends up shooting lightning everywhere. The bursts of lightning are synchronized with the beat of the lyrics.   

[Singing from heartache from the pain, taking my message from the veins] Everyone in the science lab runs out. Master Wu looks under one of the tables and sees Jay, huddled by himself and scared. 

[Speaking my lesson to the brain] Master Wu recruits Jay. Cole welcomes Jay to the team, patting him on the back. 

HARD CUT TO EXT. SCHOOL SOCCER FIELD – NIGHT

Bright spotlights illuminate the soccer field as the students are playing a nighttime soccer match. We track an enthusiastic teenager as he rushes to kick the soccer ball into the goal. This is KAI, an impulsive young man with a scar running through his right eye. He has incredibly spiky, dark brown hair.

[Seeing the beauty through the...] As Kai runs, flames sprout from his back, resembling wings. 

[Pain!] At "Pain!", we see a slow motion shot of Kai kicking the soccer ball, his fire wings fully extended. Flames emanate from his feet, setting the ball on fire.

[You made me a] Now set aflame, the ball hurtles into the goal, setting the goal on fire. 

[You made me a believer]    Kai stands triumphantly for a few moments while the crowd gasps. He doesn't realize he has accidentally set his clothes on fire, leaving him almost entirely naked.  

[Believer!] We see from behind Kai, a visible shot of Kai’s Lego butt, which is basically just a regular set of Lego legs but entirely yellow.  In the background, the crowd cringes and looks away.  

[Pain!] Kai notices his lack of clothing just as the fire spreads to his underwear on his front. His fire wings dissolve into nothing. 

[You break me down]  Ashamed, Kai covers his nether regions and runs to the locker room, crying.

INT. SCHOOL LOCKER ROOM – NIGHT

[And build me up, believer] Kai is crying in the locker room. He looks up and sees Cole, who averts his eyes.

[Believer!] Without looking at Kai, Cole hands out spare clothes to Kai.

INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY – NIGHT

[Pain!] Kai comes out of the locker room wearing the new clothes. 

[Oh let the bullets fly] Master Wu recruits Kai.  

[Oh let them rain]   A person walks by, obstructing our view. As the person leaves, the scene transitions to the same location during daytime.

INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY – DAY 

Many students are walking around the hallway. Some are crowded around a bulletin board. On the board is a poster that says “Art Competition Finals”.

[My love, my life, my drive, it came from... Pain!] A teenage girl runs toward the bulletin board. She is NYA, the younger sister of Kai. She sports black wavy hair in a ponytail with long bands and has a small beauty mark on her face. As she runs, Nya tracks water with every step she takes. At “Pain!”, a student slips and falls on a puddle of water Nya left behind.

[You made me a, you made me a believer, believer] Unaware of the trail of water she leaves behind her, Nya is ecstatic at seeing the art competition poster, so much that globs of water manifest from her hands and the rest of her body. Other students begin to notice. Her power leaves her wet causing others to think she wet herself.  

[Third things third, send a prayer to the ones up above] The students all laugh at Nya. Ashamed, she runs to the corner dead end of the hallway where no one can see her. She crouches down and starts crying. 

[All the hate that you’ve heard has turned your spirit to a dove, oh-ooh] Nya looks up and sees Kai. Kai sits beside his sister and gives her an extra set of clothes. 

[Your spirit up above, oh-ooh] Nya comes out of the girl’s bathroom wearing the new clothes and sees Master Wu and the other ninja. Master Wu recruits Nya.  

EXT. FIELD – DAY

[I was choking in the crowd] We see the ninja training with Master Wu. They are all wearing black gi uniforms. Master Wu makes a striking motion.

[Building my rain up in the cloud] Cole strikes a regular non-Lego brick and breaks it in half.  

EXT. SNOWY MOUNTAIN - DAY

[Falling like ashes to the ground] Zane leads the others through snow-covered terrain. The others fall down in time with the lyrics. Emphasis on Kai.

[Hoping my feelings, they would drown]  Cole tries to pick up his teammates but he sinks into the snow himself. Zane goes back and helps everyone out. 

EXT. MASTER WU’S OBSTACLE COURSE – DAY

We see the ninja before a complicated obstacle course consisting of several rotating contraptions and wooden dummies.  

[But they never did, ever lived, ebbing and flowing, Inhibited, limited, till they broke open] Jay goes through the obstacle course and dodges every blow from the spinning contraptions and the wooden dummies. His movements are synchronized with the beat of the lyrics. 

[And rained down] Cole cheers.

[And rained down, like] Kai enters the obstacle course. We sees Kai’s surprised face as the arm of a wooden dummy comes down on him.

[Pain!]   We see from behind the wooden dummy as Kai smashes through its arm with a powerful fire kick.

[You made me a, you made me a believer] Kai goes literally right through the obstacle course and destroys every obstacle and dummy in the way. His movements are also synchronized with the beat of the lyrics. 

[Believer!] All the ninja cheer.

[Pain!] Reaction shot of Master Wu as he is shocked that Kai demolished his expensive equipment. 

INT. MASTER WU’S DOJO WAREHOUSE – DAY

[You break me down and build me up] We see a shot of Nya looking at various flat Lego tiles containing blueprints.

[Believer, believer!] Everyone cheers as Nya builds the SAMURAI X MECH.

[Pain!] Cole and Nya do a fist bump in the foreground. The shot is framed such that Jay is in the background in between Cole and Nya. Jay has a shocked face and he covers his mouth as they fist bump.

[Oh let the bullets fly]  Cole notices Jay has a crush on Nya. 

[Oh let them rain] Cole calls Jay over. 

[My love, my life] Jay and Nya do a fist bump.  

[My drive] Jay blushes.

[It came from… Pain! You made me a, you made me a believer, believer!] We see a panning shot of all the ninja lined up as they punch out their element one at a time. Cole leads and the others follow. Earth, Ice, Lightning, Fire, and Water. Master Wu looks on proudly in the corner.   

INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY LOCKERS – DAY

We see a young boy with green eyes and blond hair. This is LLOYD GARMADON, the son of Lord Garmadon.  

[Last things last, by the grace of the fire and the flame] Lloyd walks towards his locker and sees the word “Garma-dork” spray painted on it in black paint. He is bullied for being Garmadon's son. Lloyd’s green eyes turn red in anger and he pulls up his black hoodie to cover his face.  

EXT. NINJAGO CITY STREETS – DAY

[You’re the face of the future, the blood in my veins. oh-ooh] Lloyd steals and vandalizes property. He runs out of a candy store with a wheelbarrow carrying a single  piece of non-Lego candy.  

[The blood in my veins, oh-ooh] Master Wu and the ninja confront Lloyd. All the ninja are scared of Lloyd except Cole. Master Wu places his hand on Lloyd’s shoulder and recruits him. Lloyd’s red eyes turn green and full of hope. 

EXT. FIELD – DAY

Again, we see the ninja training with Master Wu, wearing their black gi uniforms.

[But they never did, ever lived] Master Wu repeats the same striking motion.

[Ebbing and flowing] Lloyd strikes a non-Lego cement hollow brick and breaks it in half. Surprised reaction shot of Cole who cannot believe his eyes.

EXT. SNOWY MOUNTAIN - DAY

[Inhibited, limited, till it broke open] Lloyd leads the others through snow-covered terrain but instead of everyone walking, all the other ninja are on snowboards attached to a thread rope. The rope is tied to Lloyd who runs at full speed like a sled dog, pulling all the other ninja along. Kai is having the most fun but the other ninja are just trying to hang on.

EXT. MASTER WU’S OBSTACLE COURSE – DAY

[And rained down, and rained down, like] Lloyd goes through obstacle course, dodges every blow and still destroys every obstacle after he has dodged it. All the ninja are amazed. Cole’s eyes are full of awe but also slight apprehension from being progressively outclassed by Lloyd with seemingly little effort.

[Pain!] Reaction shot of Master Wu with an “I just fixed that!” look on his face. 

INT. MASTER WU’S DOJO WAREHOUSE – DAY

[You made me a, you made me a…] We see a shot of Lloyd looking at various flat Lego tiles containing blueprints.

[Believer, believer!] Everyone except Cole cheers as Lloyd builds all the mechs of the other ninja, the WATER STRIDER, the FIRE MECH, the LIGHTNING JET, the ICE TANK, and the QUAKE MECH. Cole is now more visibly bitter and cynical. His hair is now tied up in a man bun.

[Pain!] Cole quietly leaves the dojo as the others cheer Lloyd on.

[Oh let the bullets fly, oh let them rain] Cole runs back into the dojo, frightened. He points outside and gets the others’ attention. They all run outside.

EXT. OUTSIDE MASTER WU’S DOJO WAREHOUSE – DAY

[My love, my life, my drive] We see the GREEN DRAGON MECH that Lloyd built. Cole is frightened by it and cowers behind Zane.

[It came from… Pain!]   Zane turns to Cole and makes robotic movements indicating that it is a robot, not a real dragon. Cole laughs sheepishly.

[You made me a, you made me a...]   All the ninja put on their ninja hoods but now, instead of black, they are wearing different colors to match their elemental powers. Lloyd wears green to match his eyes. Cole is the only one who continues to wear black.

[Believer] Wide shot of all the ninja jumping in attack formation toward Garmadon and his forces. Secret Ninja Force on the left and Garmadon and his army on the right. The ninja all have their weapons drawn. Jay has a pair of nunchucks. Nya has a spear. Kai has a pair of twin katanas. Lloyd has a broadsword. Cole has a scythe. Zane has a pair of shuriken. 

[Believer!] Epic slow motion shot of the Secret Ninja Force and Garmadon about to fight each other.

Fade out to black just before they make contact. 

CHAPTER INDEX

[littlemissshortypants-blog1]

This Musical Can Change Your Life...

Hello, my name is Kayleigh Allan and I would like to share with you (one of) the most amazing musicals... Whilst I was in London last week, I was lucky enough to win front row Lottery tickets for The Book of Mormon. Below is a review I have written on said musical. The Book of Mormon - Review (14th Jan 2017) Genre: Musical Comedy Theatre: Prince of Wales Theatre Book/Music/Lyrics: Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, Matt Stone I often hear the phrase 'crying with laughter' used in it's figurative term, however I assure you that when I say The Book of Mormon had me crying with laughter, I truly mean it - in its literal sense, that is. Not only did this musical overwhelm me with happiness, have me sobbing uncontrollably in the front row (so much so the cast members were laughing at me) and have me gawking from the very first show stopping number (and it had only just begun), but it also reminded me of the importance of a well told story, its impact on an audience and once again, the beauty of good theatre. The set was standard; uncomplicated yet effective. Using simple flats and flies for scene changes, I admit the set wasn't the most miraculous I've seen but in all honestly, it didn't need to be. In my opinion, the overall performance still knocked Aladdin (the most picturesque set I've seen) off the scale. There was however one specific which caught my eye - the proscenium arch of the stage being lit up to look like the interior of a church. Nowadays, I feel new musicals are under pressure to create the biggest 'spectacle' and feel the need to compete with current shows such as Les Mis, Aladdin and The Lion King. I admit that I do enjoy seeing a good old revolving stage, a flying carpet and puppets parading the auditorium, but the reason I go to the theatre is to see good acting. After all, what's a show with a magnificent set but terrible actors? A shambles. Featuring impeccably dressed men in pink sparkly waistcoats, charismatic choreography and superb comical timing, all cleverly dwindled together, with a feel good, head bobbing musical score, this is a musical must see which includes "something incredible" for everyone! This cutting edge musical follows the story of a group of quirky, energetic and loveable members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (more informally known as Mormons) on a desperate voyage to convert anyone and everyone into their religion. The show begins with the initial pairings of the Mormons at their missionary training centre. All the eager and earthy Elders are paired to their likings and prepare to set off on their 2 year endeavours to glorious locations spread across the world....except for one man and his soon to be 'best friend'. Elder Price (KJ Hippensteel) a passionate young man, appears to be the ideal candidate to succeed at numerous baptising and yearns to spend his mission in his childhood, dream destination, Orlando. Instead he finds himself stuck with a needy and nerdy missionary who struggles to tell the truth. Naively hopeful, yet kindhearted Elder Cunningham (Brian Sears - I was lucky enough to see him on his final day) isn't exactly the stereotypical Mormon depicted in people's minds. To make matters worse, they're sent to Uganda, Africa - a place in which General Butt Fucking Naked (no, that wasn't a typo) shoots people in the face, all the villagers have aids (one man thinking it's acceptable to rape a baby to try and cure this disease) and a doctor who constantly reveals that he has maggots in his scrotum. Read that sentence again...Uganda is not the place these Elders were hoping for, but despite their misfortune, they head off on an unforgettable adventure hoping to please people through their politeness. Highlights of the show are present throughout every number but I've tried my best to whittle it down to as few as possible, starting with the unbalanced relationship between the two Elders in "You and Me (But Mostly Me)". This song is a belter. It's saddening, yet also heart warming to see Cunningham's desperate attempts to persuade Elder Price that they are best friends. Telling Cunningham 'every hero needs a sidekick' in order to satisfy him, Price's mind is, in fact, occupied with the hope that he will one day become "the Mormon who changed all of man kind" whilst sailing along in his own little sea of egoism. The other highlights include; Stephen Webb's fantastic leading performance in "Turn it Off", KJ Hippensteel creating a Corny Collins esque vibe whilst teaching the audience about the "All American Prophet", Brian Sears rockstar like performance during "Man up", the exceptionally clever lyrics of the song "Baptise Me" which sneakily makes the audience question whether Cunningham is actually prepared to baptise Naulungi or instead take her virginity and last but not least, the running joke about one of the African villagers name; Naulungi. A name Elder Cunningham struggles to pinpoint and therefore, throughout the show, ends up calling her a number of silly names including, Nutella, Nicki Minaj, Naba-Beyoncé and Jon Bon Jovi but the one that had me in stitches and falling off my seat was Nigel Farage. And finally, "Joseph Smith American Moses"; the song which well and truly broke me. From this song onwards, to the end of the show, I lost all ability to control my emotions and was left in a state of hysteria I had never felt before. The song in which, after being taught 'scripture' by the well intentioned yet not entirely truthful Elder Cunningham, the African villagers willingly volunteer to put on a performance of their teachings to the Missionary President. You can see where this is going...I was in as much shock as the Missionary President and at times, had to force myself to look away because I couldn't bare to watch anymore without potentially having an accident. To give you an insight into the outrageously crude, but at the same time utterly hilarious, nature of the song, I'll leave the last line to linger in your minds; "Joseph Smith fuck frog. Brigham Young clit face. Shit come out the butt. Jesus says fuck, fuck, Mormons!" Overall, even though some may say controversial (which all things are in some way or other), I believe The Book of Mormon to be a pretty darn good musical and I have no doubt, in my mind, that if you go and see this show you'll have a full ab workout from laughing so much. But not only is it great because it's funny (which I reiterate once again - it is very funny.) but because, like all great pieces of theatre, there's a message hidden beneath the story. It doesn't just portray the story of some Mormons trying to change the beliefs of others, It shows us the importance of a group of people working together to achieve greater things, and most importantly encourages us to be courageous; take a risk, try things out and don't be afraid to stand up for what you believe in.

[slothcritic1]

Moana (2016)

Amazing Hair: The Movie. Moana is a tale of Hawaiian/Polynesian folklore centering around Dwayne The Maui Johnson and brand new talent (Auli'i Cravalho) as the titular character.

As someone who grew up with Toy Story, it’s funny to think about what this movie represents from a technical standpoint. Toy Story purposefully did not have an explositions or exposed liquids due to the limitations of technology at the time. And now we have a movie that takes place 90% of the time in the middle of a huge ocean.

The movie has some genuinely good songs, thanks to the singing talents of Ms Cravalho and, surprisingly, Dwayne Johnson himself. Yes, The Rock can sing, and while it’s semi-obvious that he doesn’t have the range of some other singers, he works within his means and knocks it out of the park in the song You’re Welcome

The plot structure itself is very formulaic however, which is a shame as everything else holds up so wonderfully. The focal girl has a duty to uphold, but instead decides to “follow her destiny” and choose a life of adventure over the life she’s expected to live (you know, like Brave, Frozen, Mulan, Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Tarzan… you get the point). She then meets up with the wacky, street wise (or ocean wise), reluctant helper that she goads into helping on her journey. They become friends and bond, then theres the third act break up where the helper separates for no good reason, and the fourth act triumphant return at the ending climax for even less of a good reason.

With that out of the way, the movie rocks. Some people completely judge a movie only on plot, but I think it’s more about how it makes you feel. A movie is a vessel for emotion and intrigue.

Aside from the stunning visuals (which, lets face it, are now a standard practise for Disney Pixar films) and a catchy song (songs however are much easier to screw up, and this movie has a lot of good ones), the opening scene is bland. It sets up Moana to be the next village chief and her journey into leaving the island. The scene doesn’t really have anything for itself, but rather is used to carry the impact of when she actually disembarks. It’s necessary for backstory (no one ever leaves the island), exposition (Moana is the daughter of the village chief, etc) and the premise (find Maui and have him restore Heart of Te Fiti to stop a black virus from consuming all life), but doesnt do too much on its own.

The disembarkment scene however is wicked powerful. My friends thought I was alien for not crying or tearing up during it, but I will admit it did give me a good *pang* in the heart. Magical spirit stingray!

Two things should also be mentioned at this point. 1) A rooster named Hei Hei has snuck aboard Moana’s boat. It’s a very special rooster that my friends would not stop comparing to me. And B) The ocean is a sentient character of sorts, and provides some of the comedy for the movie.

Moana follows the constellation of the fish hook to where Maui is, since thats his dealio. At some point however, the lovable ocean gets triggered and decides to unleash its torrential stormy wrath upon Moana. I mean, it does get her to Maui’s island, but I’m sure there were less dickish ways of accomplishing that. Though I don’t think ocean cares since it killed Moana’s dad’s best friend. Oh, ocean, you little scamp.

Maui pops in and drops my favorite song of the movie, then steals the boat and leaves Moana to… I dunno, die? But she makes it back to Maui and explains that he needs to help her because, guess what, she’s the Disney Princess of this movie. And yes - She is. Her father is chief, which is like a king. She’s the chief’s daughter, which is like a king’s daughter, aka princess.

Maui responds by throwing the Heart of Te Fiti several miles away. This almost works out for Maui until p̶l̶o̶t̶ the ocean interferes by throwing it back, railroading him into a whole new world.

Maui however is at a disadvantage in his current state; He’s missing his hook. No hook, no powers. So when tribal coconuts show up on a HUGE ship, armed to the coconuts with poison blow darts, they’re kind of fucked, especially when they steal the Heart of Te Fiti, which is… currently inside Hei Hei.

Luckily, Moana does some badass shit while Maui handles the boat and the three of them get out fine. Next stop, Maui’s hook. But before that, Moana wants to drive the boat. Maui says no, and the ocean pricks him with a stray poison dart. Now he cant drive. But he can pee in the water just as he tells Moana to check for a “warm current”

I can get on board with that level of petty.

They arrive at Monster Island, which is where Maui’s hook is. Maui tells her to stay on the boat and do nothing like a good woman while macho man demi-dude saves the whole day. It has little success. I should also mention, this entire time they’ve been traveling from Casa de Maui to Mount Doom, Maui has just been roasting Moana for being a Disney princess. To summarize:

“Oh look at me. I’m the chosen one. I’m like 8 years old and never sailed a boat in my life, but here I am thinking the ocean chose ME, with my bleeding heart spiel and animal companion to try and save the world.”

To be fair, large bodies of water have never been good at chosing leaders - Ask Monty Python.

Regardless, Moana and Maui both climb what is basically a 90 degree incline to the top of the Dread Spire. It is at this point Maui informs Moana that the door to the monster realm can only be opened with a human sacrifice. Before Moana can protest, Maui ritually disembowels her with his own hands to appease the ancient blood gods.

Kidding. He chants a few words and the gateway opens. The two jump in, and Moana is almost eaten or killed numerous times with the first few moments of being in the realm of the monsters.

Maui’s hook is resting upon a mountain of gold. Seems innocent enough to Moana, but Maui insists she wears a bright and gaudy disguise to draw the attention of… something.

The mountain of gold rises up. Turns out thats just its back. Meet the British Crab. He sings a song about how he loves shiny things and then nearly eats Moana, until Maui reveals he retrieved his hook from the British Crab’s back.

But he’s a little rusty and it, uh, doesn’t work right. So Maui gets his shit stomped by BC. Moana saves the day by painting a rock with bioluminescent algae to make it look like the Heart of Te Fiti, which is shiny, and BC is all about the shiny.

They escape, and Maui learns to reuse his hook. Everythings looking swell until they try and take on the great evil of the story, Te Ka. He uses fireball and Maui presses E to deflect with his hook, only instead the hook gets mad cracked. It sparks like its somehow made of electricity, which I find weird. Maui is now done with life since his hook is nearly toast and he fucks off, leaving chosen girl all by herself, depressed as fuck in the middle of nowhere, ocean.

One drug trip and amazing song later, she regains her confidence and tried to take on Te Ka by herself. It surprisingly works, because now she knows how to drive a boat. Hei Hei comes in clutch and stops the Heart of Te Fiti from falling off the boat, and they make it through the border islands towards their main goal.

Te Ka is still rather pissed, being a giant lava demon and all, so he keeps trying to kill Moana. And for no real reason, here comes Maui to save the day - or at least to stall Te Ka until Moana can do the thing. His hook gets completely totalled but its okay, because he learned a valuable lesson off-screen that he’s still Maui, hook or no hook.

Moana realizes that the Heart actually goes into Te Ka. So she pulls a Moses, lets Te Ka come at her bro, and puts the Heart into her chest. This turns her from the red Lava Groot to the green Mother Nature Jemima, and everything is better forever. And hey, she gives Maui a brand new hook after he apologises for being the literal cause of ALL of this. Maui does his own thing and Moana becomes the leader of a brand new generation of voyagers.

I do have to applaud Disney for NOT having the two of them kiss at the end. Its always nice to see a platonic m/f duo in movies and the romance subplot sells so well to resist sometimes.

Overall, very stunning. I often cite “movie feel” as a reason why movies with plot/cliche/logistic problems can still make good movies, and this movie does a wonderful job of sweeping you off your feet. Though honestly, the writing on this movie is not bad. Rather, I would say its poorly structured. Think of it like a support beam a beanstalk might grow up. The characters were amazing; Full of life, personality and moderately complex emotions, the animation is so good the whole movie is like a humble brag about how awesome the DisneyTech is, a lot (i’d say 80%) of the script is bang on, and an astounding amount of the songs are really good - Songs are easy to screw up and I’d say that’s this movies second biggest strength (behind hair/water animation). It just struggles with the standard “winning formula” plot structure that was honestly ill-fitting in parts and did not impart a wholesome explanation or comprehensive rationale behind certain scenes.

I’m not a big Disney buff (unless you count the Star Wars acquisition), so I’m not qualified to say how this ranks compared to other movies (disregarding modern tech advancements and focusing more on storytelling) - However I will say that it’s better than Frozen.