#the marissa discourse

[safflowerseason]

this is what the reddit commenter didn't include their summary of Sepinwall's response to MB's interview.

[ugly-lizard-crab-thing]

lmao so apparently the first few chapters of Cursed were released as a sample for reviewers and naturally i wanted to see what those lucky bastards thought (as I don’t have access for the sampler). And then I read that some people think the erlking might be getting a redemption arc. My dudes, the guy murdered children. Not only do I personally not want to see him redeemed, but it will be an unsatisfying conclusion for the entire duology (i.e.: the guy murdered Serilda’s students. Also was the cause of her father’s death. And possibly her mother’s). 

So no matter how awful Perchta or the gods or whoever might me, Erlkönig won’t become a good guy. Aside from him remaining a horrifying villain (very cool!), this is Marissa Meyer we’re talking about. This duology is darker and more mature, sure; but it’s also written by the author who brought to us queen Levana (notoriously commited infanticide). And how did Levana end up? With a bullet in the head. *mic drop*

[aboutafox]

Marissa Meyer’s use of a German dictionary while writing ‘Gilded’ must rate on a scale somewhere between free-spirited and unhinged.

[animefeminist]

Unlovely Complex: Social Justice, Misogyny, and the Lovely Complex Dub

I had never heard of Brendan “JelloApocalypse” Blaber before February 11, 2024. Until that day, he was best known by the general public for the webseries Epithet Erased, plus his “So This is Basically…” Youtube series commenting on and parodying nerd media culture tentpoles like Tumblr and Pokemon and had a burgeoning career as a voice actor. However, my introduction to his work was a lengthy public Patreon post he made entitled, “Marissa and I Wrote an Anime Dub,” in which he wrote 5,000 words about the localization process for the dub of Lovely Complex, which included in-depth discussion of his hatred for the series, the protagonist Koizumi Risa, and the artist, Nakahara Aya.

Frankly, Blaber’s post infuriated me. It started with him stating confidently that Lovely Complex, a series I’ve loved since it first aired in 2007, “is considered a grandmother of the shoujo genre, mostly because it’s old,” and only got worse from there. Each paragraph brought a fresh insult as he revealed details about the dubbing process that doubtless was never meant to be public knowledge and insulted the characters, story, and artist, and threw fuel onto the blazing tire fire that is current localization discourse with his brags about how he had altered the characters. Most baffling of all was his inability to understand the story and heroine of this fairly straightforward romantic comedy, who he proclaimed to be “psychotic.” The way Blaber talked about the show and his inability or refusal to unpack even its most basic themes spoke to the sort of misogyny that pervades critical analysis, in which female characters and creators don’t get even the slightest grace for being messy, imperfect beings.

Read it at Anime Feminist!

[get-hamilton-on-your-side]

I've been seeing posts like these going around lately, and I don't want to start Discourse™️, but I do think it's an interesting conversation to be had.

OP mentions that this is a sentiment occurring in younger viewers, and I think there are lots of reasons for this response. I'm in my early twenties, and growing up, romance was pretty much guaranteed for any book/movie/TV series with a YA audience, even if it wasn't specifically in the romance genre. There were largely popular romance series, of course, (Twilight, The Selection, etc.), but romance was also integral to several series NOT centered around romance. The Series Which Shall Not Be Named ends in a hetero utopia, where basically every member of the original crew grows up, marries each other, and all have kids. Almost every main character of Rick Riordan's series experiences a committed romantic relationship, with the exception of Reyna, (although she's mostly a side character throughout HoO) and Meg (who is a god, and an actual child). The Hunger Games has fewer romantic pairings, but the marketing for those movies were very dedicated to the "love triangle" narrative between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale.

The dedication to establishing romantic relationships does appear somewhat differently for male/masculine and female/feminine coded characters well. For example, I've seen multiple series have a sort of "7th wheel syndrome" where one member of a friend group is made fun of and/or left out in some way because they're the only one not in a relationship. Shows like The Big Bang Theory majorly have this problem, where every character's main goal in life is to fall in love and have a family. In TBBT, Raj has major dating troubles and actually ends up settling for an arranged marriage because his friends are all married and he doesn't want to end up alone. Riordan's HoO series, once again, paints Leo as a tragic figure for being the only single person on the Argo II, but his self worth is finally in tact by the end of the series when he saves the day and gets the girl. Fez in That 70s Show is regularly made fun of for his inability to get a girl. It's not lost on me that many of the male characters in these situations are POC.

While male characters are set up with a last-minute shoehorned romance, female characters (particularly white women) are often given a love interest planned from the beginning. I love Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles but I was kind of dumbfounded by the end because every one of the 8 major characters ends the series in a committed relationship. Every single Disney princess up until 2012 had a prince (although, this has since changed---the only princess post-2012 with a prince is Anna).

And then, of course, you have the plethora of sitcoms that end with every character (or at least every main character) happily in a relationship. New Girl, Parks and Rec, Friends, The Office, The Good Place, Ghosts (US). Even shows like Phineas and Ferb assure the audience that the couples stay together when they're grown up. Almost every Marvel and DC superhero has a love interest, and most action heroes have a girl to save.

Don't get me wrong, I think many of the romances in the media I've talked about so far are good, well-written, and well-established. But based on the previous track-record of shoehorned romances, that is a concern I have about shows like Stranger Things (I won't talk much about The Bear because I haven't seen that show). Stranger Things has highlighted friendship as a major theme in the show, but as the characters have grown older, they've explored various romantic relationships as well. Many people online have already discussed how they fear relationships will be shoehorned in at the end of Season 5, since it is the final season. Ships like stancy, where it's clear that they wouldn't really work well together. I agree with Maya Hawke's sentiment about delving deeper into her friendships. It has been established that she has a crush on Vickie, but we've barely seen them together, and in a show that has to balance SO many different characters, I'm not sure it would serve the show well to put Robin in a romantic relationship. (There is, of course, another conversation to be had about how minority characters are presented in romantic relationships in media. Lesbian relationships are less commonly found in media and they can be really important to some viewers. My agreeing with Hawke is just my 2 cents as an ace lesbian. Other users have also mentioned that when it comes to The Bear, it can be harmful to perpetuate that a Black woman character shouldn't be in a relationship with the main white guy. I haven't seen the show and I myself am not Black, so I won't weigh in on that aspect, but it is another thing to consider in this conversation).

With romance so prevalent in media, it makes sense that our generation is taking a steep turn in the other direction. We've been shown all our lives that romance and sex trumps friendship in importance, but that's not how many of us actually live. Younger people are having sex less. I'm 22 and I'd say half of my friends are not currently in a romantic relationship, and many of them aren't looking for one. I know plenty of adults as well who are happily single, not looking for any more romance in their lives. Even the way people are experiencing romantic and sexual relationships is vastly different from what is shown on TV as there are more openly queer individuals, queer platonic relationships, and polyamory is becoming more prevalent.

I'm not an expert by any means, so take everything I say with a grain of salt. This is all based on my own observation and there is still a lot of media out there that don't have romance as a focal point, media like The Lord of the Rings, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Letterkenny, Bob's Burgers, Reservation Dogs, What We Do in the Shadows, Derry Girls. Shows like Doctor Who have characters in romantic relationships, but the romance is never placed above friendship with the Doctor. The amount of romance in a piece of media also relies on the genre it's in. I've mainly been discussing comedies, science fiction, and action, but other media such as horror, for example, treats romance and sexuality differently.

Still, showing romance, sex, and innuendo in media isn't counterculture, as is suggested by that second Twitter post. It's almost everywhere you look (and lots of kid shows/movies even include those kinds of jokes, as is shown by the amount of videos I've seen titled "I Didn't Get This Joke as a Kid.") I know we're on the internet so people don't care if they hurt other people's feelings, but acting like people who want a little less romance are immature or stupid can be hurtful. There's room for all different types of relationships.

TL;DR, I think a lot of people are just tired of media treating romance and sex as the most important relationship you can have with a person. We're not saying no media should have romance or sexuality or innuendo in it. It's just that as media diversifies, I think it's important to diversify the types of relationships highlighted as well. There's room for romance, sex, and friendship in media, and I don't think people should judge others for wanting positive representation of friendship.

[chemicallyyourss]

I’ve come to a possible theory/conclusion

Not to add to the discourse about Cinder’s race/ethnicity, especially since it sort of became a toxic topic for some, but I think her ethnicity is partly Cambodian.

I looked into the names, and I didn’t look too deeply into Levana other than seeing that there were some roots in Greek, but Channary is primarily a Cambodian name that means “Full Moon,” mentioned specifically to be primarily of the Khmer women. I wouldn’t be surprised if anyone already found this out really. Cambodia is an asian country and their women are usually tanner skinned asian women. Matches Cinder and Channary’s descriptions of being darker tanned asians. It’s mentioned that Cinder’s father is unknown so her entire background isn’t fully known, so there’s a high chance she’s mixed of some sort, but Channary being a common Cambodian Khmer name gives a strong lead.

Looking a little more into it, both names Levana and Selene are of Greek origins, so I’m wondering if Cinder is of Cambodian and Greek descent on her mothers side, and unknown on her fathers side.

It’s mentioned that Channary is deeply tanned (so is Cinder) and Levana is pale, but Levana’s entirely true appearance may be somewhat unknown as she covers it so much with glamour and has changed it so much over the years even, and she was also disfigured from fire burns as a child which can deeply change your appearance obviously. Not to do a tap out, but mixed race (and singular race people like fully white, black, asian, etc.) can vary in skin tone and appearance (…..again, obviously) and can even vary wildly from their parents and siblings. I know a pair of mixed fraternal twins, both pale white, one with light blonde hair and one with red hair lol. I don’t really assume Marissa was being ignorant with her writing here- most writers probably would agree we usually do a ton of research before writing a character or story lol. But I wanted to put my two cents in because realizing all of this really makes sense.

Anyone else think this may make sense or have anything to add?

[mischas]

I randomly remembered that after the "being blackmailed into stealing a car" saga, Ryan was like oh God Marissa I was with you the whole night and Marissa was immediately like you ok? Yeah I'll be your allibi 😭

I just love that they were broken up here but of course the trust and the ease were still there and they were almost... functional? (which the writers can't let them be when they are together?)

And then Marissa drove him to the Cohen house (or Sandy's meeting? I don't really remember) and Ryan was freaking out because there were cops, and she was like "Don't worry you were with me the whole night". Turns out the cops were there because Seth smoked a bit too much weed and accidentally set the whole office in fire 😭😭

Ok I hope what I wrote makes sense but on a serious note, the whole "Marissa dragged Ryan into her mess" argument is just dumb and misogynistic because first of all, they willingly involve THEMSELVES in each other's mess; secondly Marissa got involved in plenty of Ryan's mess too (Trey? Hello??) and also in this case, we can say that Ryan involved her in his mess. (Of course, unless one thinks that Ryan assaulting Volchok over jealousy about Marissa is her fault and therefore getting blackmailed by him into stealing a car was her fault too.) Now, as a shipper I thought that Ryan's jealousy was delicious and V-Man was asking for it anyways but it wasn’t the right thing to do and ultimately the assault->blackmail->stealing pipeline was on Ryan and Volchok and no one else.

Marissa in 3x24 is such a delight to take in. For just two seconds they let up on her in the writing and it's like a breath of fresh air. The party was Sandy being named The Man of the Year for... some reason. Something to do with his shitty hospital executive storyline or whatever.

Of course it makes sense :) Yeah, that's always been a point of contention in discourse surrounding this show. Not only is Marissa helping people out of the goodness of her heart with a splash of a hero complex, but Ryan's doing the same damn thing. He is willingly putting himself in these same situations but she is the only one cast out as 'leading guys on' and 'not treating her partners right'. It's just exhausting. They're mirrors of one another in many ways and I'm not sure the s3 writers even realized it.

So I personally think Ryan's jealousy is also very hot, but one thing I love about Marissa is that she is never, ever impressed with Ryan's violence or machismo. I think it makes her so three-dimensional. Another way these people writing her had no idea they were crafting such a subversive, compelling teenage girl.

[likeadaydreamorafever]

There's a new book out by an entertainment journalist about various early 00 shows. And I have screencaptured the Mischa tidbits (and one Ben tidbit that amused me, lol how did Mischa get all of the blame with being the 'difficult' one in the discourse at the time? jfc).

Some observations:

The ferris wheel kiss was UNSCRIPTED. And they enjoyed it!

Can we please stop with the 'Olivia looks strong, Mischa looks weak' discourse. Please, I am begging you.

Great to get more info about the screen test. Thank you Patrick Rush for containing yourself and not commenting on Mischa as an actress like you so rudely did on the podcast.

Mischa's Eric Cartman request might be the cutest thing I have ever heard. God, she was so young.

The reference to RM being in love by the TJ episode.

Wish they had mentioned how much of a role Mischa played in developing Marissa, "she didn't ad-lib" doesn't do her justice.

[goddess-mixmi]

I’m Mimi, I’m a black artist who draws whatever when I get the time to! I mainly focus on my oc’s / oc x canon and sometimes I do fan art of my favorites. I like JJBA, Marvel ( especially the cinematic universe), Demon slayer, JJK etc. I make content that I enjoy making because it brings me joy. I’m an Abbacchio enjoyer ( & his wife /hj) and part 5 enthusiast. Keep any and every form of discourse away from me thank you. No proship or anti nonsense either.

Here are a list my oc x cannon pairings (I have A LOT):

✨Jojo✨

(Leone Abbacchio x Daniella Kishibe), (Bruno Bucciarati x Angelina Rosa), (Rosaria Bianco x Secco), ( Nicolette Céleste x Weather Report), ( Christine Céleste x Rikiel),( Lucía Russo x Pesci), ( Trish x Antonio),( Terrence T. D’Arby x Nefera DeNile), ( Dirty Diana x Sandman), (Josuke Higashikata x Madeline DeNile-Kishibe) Kars x Normani, Esidisi x Selena, Santana x Magnolia, Maria x Luca

Demon Slayer

Akira x Rengoku, Hanako x Haganezuka,Megumi x Kokushibou,Megumi x The Hantengu Clones

Tokyo Revengers

Misa x Baji,Misa x Taiju,Misa x Hanma, Rina x Chifuyu,Ericka x Ran, Tianna x Kazutora, Ashanti x Izana

Jujutsu Kaisan

Marisa x Geto, Marisa x Choso,Willow x Fushiguro, Apollo x Shoko, Ai x Sukuna, Hisui x Ino

Marvel

Ballet Punk ( Hobie x Melanie) ,Miglynn (2099 x Widow Spider),Imani x Erik/Bucky/Loki

Fairy Tail

Jarissa (Jackal x Marissa),Tempester x Liliana,Ajeel x Eleanor

[sinceileftyoublog]

Riot Fest 2023 Preview: 4 Reasons to Come Early, 1 to Stay Late

Just Mustard; Photo by Olof Grind

BY JORDAN MAINZER

Is it me, or is this the biggest Riot Fest yet? The independently run festival has managed to book bands that can fill arenas (Foo Fighters, The Cure), in-demand anniversary full album plays (Transatlanticism, Give Up, Last Splash), and previous headliners as sub-headliners (Queens of the Stone Age). As always, though, there are just as many highlights in the fine print as on the first row. Here are our top 5 picks: 4 reasons to show up before sunset, 1 to stay till the very end.

FRIDAY

Quasi; Photo by John Clark

Quasi, 1:25 PM, Roots Stage

A couple years ago, if you had asked me what band I thought would have a post-pandemic reunion, Quasi would have been at the bottom of my list. The duo of Sam Coomes and ex-Sleater-Kinney drummer Janet Weiss hadn't released a full-length since 2013, and in 2019, a car crashed into Weiss's car, which broke both of her legs and collarbone. As it turns out, during her recovery and COVID lockdown, Weiss, along with Coomes, used free time to bang out new songs in Quasi's practice space. The result is their Sub Pop debut and first album in 10 years, the awesomely titled Breaking the Balls of History, released earlier this year. The album is certainly of a time and place, riddled with references to pandemic-era isolation and the anti-science Neanderthals that have dominated discourse on the political right. But what stands out more is how revitalized these two sound to play music together, and Weiss in general. If her departure from Sleater-Kinney came after an album that minimized her role as a drummer, her meaty fills absolutely dominate "Last Long Laugh", "Queen of Ears", "Riots & Jokes", and "Nowheresville". In tandem with Coomes' fuzzed-out guitar and warped keyboards, Weiss' timekeeping creates an almost retrofuturist aesthetic, 60's pop harmonies rubbing elbows with distorted keys and drums on tracks like "Shitty Is Pretty". And The one I can't wait to hear most at the festival is "Doomscrollers", a surefire anthem for those crumbling under the weight of the world--or their phones--and even "everyone else just tryna get by / To stay alive or at least not die."

Screaming Females

Screaming Females, 4:50 PM, Rebel Stage

Desire Pathway (Don Giovanni), the first album in 5 years from the New Jersey punk greats, is a an album inspired by and about breakup and heartbreak. Thankfully, it doesn't sound down in the dumps. In fact, it's quite the contrary, the hardest rocking Screaming Females album yet, less snot-nosed punk and more mammoth metal. As much as Marissa Paternoster likens herself to "a freight train in the desert dragging chains," her theatrical vocal performances and limber axe wielding show a musician at the top of her class. The album starts unexpectedly, with feedback-heavy synths on "Brass Bell", but not before Paternoster and drummer Jarrett Dougherty enter with power riffs and snares akin to your favorite sludge band. Even a summertime sadness rave-up like "Ornament" yields the same sneering, anthemic quality as the best Screaming Females songs, Paternoster menacingly chanting, "An ornament / Your head hangs heavy on it." So as much as she offers a sense of humility on "Let Me Into Your Heart" and "Titan", don't get in her way on Friday.

Foo Fighters, 8:00 PM, Riot Stage

You know the story by now. In a short amount of time, Dave Grohl experienced two devastating losses: the passing of his mother Virginia and the tragic, sudden death of Foo Fighters' longtime drummer, Taylor Hawkins. Such periods of shock often cause massive shifts in life perspective, and perhaps, as a silver lining, it caused him to rethink things musically. Songs on recent Foo Fighters albums seemingly followed the tired formula of starting out quiet and melodic and building into an instrumental avalanche and full-throated screams. But Here We Are (Roswell/RCA), on which Grohl plays all the drums, instead recalls earlier Foo Fighters albums with confident and consistent paces and even explores new territory for the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers. It starts immediately raw and in shock on "Rescued", Grohl describing learning about Hawkins' death in clear terms: "It came in a flash / It came out of nowhere." Elsewhere, the wah wah guitars of an umptempo jam like "Under You" recall the talk box thrills of an older tune like "Generator", and the strutting drum and guitar interplay of "Nothing At All" ascends with a clatter like the band's early Aughts records.

As But Here We Are goes on, the band opts for the unexpected. On the self-reflexive "Show Me How", Grohl and his daughter Violet duet over shoegaze electric guitars and dream pop strumming, singing about his mom's passing, realizing the same thing will one day happen for Violet. The penultimate "The Teacher" is like a ten-minute question, Grohl wondering how to deal with grief and anxious about life and death, wincing, "Who's at the door now?" over scraped guitars and strings. The song slows down and rebuilds gradually with a chugging drum beat and chiming, dreamy guitars, ending with static. That sets up "Rest", on which Grohl repeats, "You can rest now." Such a statement seems like it's as much a mantra for himself as it is a directive to Hawkins and his mother. "Life is just a game of luck," he declares, "All this time escaping us, until our time is through." After the biggest explosion of guitar distortion on a major label radio rock record since "Hurt", Grohl ends the song, "In the warm Virginia sun, there I will meet you." That it's the name of the state in which he grew up and of his mother is not a coincidence, as he's using the memory of his mom, Hawkins--heck, even Kurt Cobain--for comfort.

With new drummer Josh Freese in tow, stay late and catch Foo Fighters performing songs from their best album since The Colour and the Shape.

SATURDAY

100 Gecs

100 Gecs, 7:00 PM, Radical Stage

When 100 Gecs released "mememe", the first single from what would be their long-awaited second album 10,000 Gecs (Dog Show/Atlantic), the first thing you noticed was that Laura Les' vocals were notably less pitch-shifted. A trans woman who had experienced voice dysphoria, Les was now taking voice lessons and deciding to reveal her voice unaffected. That, and her experience with gender transition surgeries and HRT treatments, informs some lines on songs on 10,000 Gecs. "I did science on my face," she sings on "Dumbest Girl Alive". "Everybody shuts the fuck up when I'm passing / You can see me on the fuckin' news, and I'm laughing," she sings presciently on "The Most Wanted Person in the United States", as a few days later, the notoriously anti-LGBTQ+ Fox News would go on to play 100 gecs on air due to anchor Greg Gutfield's fandom. This is the world in which 100 gecs thrive, appealing to all by feeling free to be themselves, refreshingly sans irony no matter how bonkers their juxtapositions. Ribbits nestle between guitar strums and harmonies on the ska-infused "Frog On The Floor". "One Million Dollars" creates a dance jam out of TikTok TTS voice, samples from anti-weed government propaganda, and Primus-level wiry breakdowns. "Hollywood Baby" and "Billy Knows Jamie" are respective tributes to pop punk and nu metal. And Les sings about everything from snack foods to her removed tooth like long lost loves. Even if they sound anything but, 100 gecs might just be the most earnest band around.

SUNDAY

Just Mustard, 1:15 PM, Riot Stage

You don't normally associate minimalism and ambiguity with bands playing Riot Fest, those with riffs and messages that hit you over the head and hooks and feelings sky-high. I bet Irish post-punk quintet Just Mustard wins over some festivalgoers looking for respite, whether from the sun or the distant cry of pop punk. Last year, they released their second album Heart Under (Partisan), and the first on which Katie Ball took full-time lead vocals. Their deliberate tempos and masterful control of dynamics should serve as hypnotic as it is beguiling.

[ccthewriter]

CC's New Watch Ranking 2022: #7 - The Passion of Joan of Arc (and Immortality)

1928, dir. Carl Theodor Dreyer

Every year on Letterboxd, I make a list of the 100 best films I’ve seen for the first time. It’s a fun way to compare movies separated in time, genre, and country of origin, and helps me keep track of what I’m watching! This is a series of posts about my Top 10.

Insightful writers have been commenting on this film for nearly a century. I don’t expect to add anything very meaningful to that discourse, but I would like to use this film as a launching point for discussing the best game I played this year, one that I started the day after watching this masterpiece - Immortality. Perhaps it’s the adjacency with which I engaged in these two pieces, but they seemed to be intentionally, brilliantly in dialogue with one another. Immortality is a game about legacy, sacrifice, and the dangers of making art. The Passion of Joan of Arc is a living example of those lessons. 

First, the film - Passion is a psychological study of the last days of Joan of Arc’s life. It takes its sparse dialogue from the real transcripts of the martyr’s trial. The dominant image is extreme close ups on Joan, played by Renée Jeanne Falconetti, as she stares and responds to the priests who are persecuting her. Cutaways to them is almost always from Joan’s point of view - the camera is her gaze, transforming this from a history film into a character study. Joan’s despair, her strength, her disbelief in the injustice she’s facing, the cycles of emotion as she approaches her end - they emanate from Falconetti with the force of gales. This is one of cinema’s great performances. 

The palpable discomfort, the central element of its atmosphere, is reinforced through every other production aspect. The sets are claustrophobic, the priests act grotesque, every element seems to linger in suffering. There are popular rumors that Dreyer was a tyrant on set and evokes Falconetti’s performance with heavy handed cruelty, but most sources I’ve found seem to show that she and other crew members denied such behavior ever happened. What is sure is that Falconetti struggled with internal suffering for most of her life. After filming was done, she did not act on film again. She died in tragic circumstances. Falconetti’s masterful performance is born out of some connection with the immense suffering Joan, the historical figure and this telling’s character, experienced throughout her own tumultuous life. Everything about this film, from its literal contents to the context of its production, provokes the viewer into a meditation on suffering. It provokes thorny questions, and after a century of doing so, it’s safe to say it will continue to prod audiences for as long as we’re around. This movie has a kind of eternal power, a lasting quality that keeps it relevant. 

It has a kind of immortality. 

Immortality is a game by Sam Barlow, creator of Her Story, that has the player explore a fictional archive of films. All three were never released, sharing a lead actress named Marissa Marcel (player by Manon Gage). By clicking through objects and people in the clips, you can match-cut to a similar image in another clip, and go through the game spinning through footage, trying to learn the plot of the films, as well as the behind-the-scenes footage that shows Marissa’s life. (Spoilers ahead.) Eventually, the player will discover that by reeling the footage backwards, and feeling out a certain sweet-spot through controller vibrations and a sound effect, you can access secret footage. Marissa is possessed by a supernatural figure called The One, played by Charlotta Mohlin, a sort of demonic spirit that feeds off and influences humanity. They - and I’ll refer to them as a them, as they seem to the sort of species that transcends a gender binary - address you directly, telling the story of how they first became Marissa, their life, and what they were trying to achieve in becoming mortal. You learn about their tragic end at the hands of The Other One, another spirit that is inextricably paired to them. 

This many layered narrative revolves around themes of suffering, manipulation, and sacrifice in the pursuit of fulfillment. The content of the three fictional films have plots with similar themes. Behind the scenes, Marissa retires from acting after accidentally killing her co-star in her second film - an act orchestrated by the possessing One to murder The Other One who is in the co-stars body. Maris emerges from retirement decades later, only to be murdered in turn by The Other One who has possessed yet another actor. It is the fulfillment of their eons-long struggle for control and independence. You learn their story through black-and-white shots, mostly closeups of The One’s face. They address the viewer directly, occasionally cutting away to them literally possessing the actors in a scene, inserting themself in the action. A strong sense of fear, of discomfort, emerges as you search for The One’s footage, as they break the cinematic language of the rest of the game. They pop up like a jump scare - the intensity of their gaze, the cruelty and desperation, is on full display. Every element, from the music, to the controls, to the performances throughout the films, provokes thorny questions about the act on creation. 

And The One meets their end by being burnt alive. 

It surprises me, given these parallels, not to see this particular version of the Joan of Arc story on Half Mermaid’s own Letterboxd list of films that inspired the game. The 1957 version, directed by Otto Preminger, is listed instead. Though I strongly suspect this inspired certain moments in the game, what matters is that the elements that make Passion so powerful are the same that make Immortality one of the best games I’ve ever played. Barlow understands the power of faces. His other game, Her Story, is entirely comprised of close-ups of a single actress, as you see her character’s responses to questions asked off-screen. In Immortality, the One’s appearances are shot with even more focus on Charlotta Mohlin’s powerful gaze. She has an otherworldly air, and the stark black-and-white photography stands in sharp contrast to the rest of the colorful footage. In Passion, Joan tends to be shot with a softer lighting scheme compared to establishing shots of her prison and the priests she’s interacting with. They are sharp, harsh, and alienating. 

The contrast between these shots, in both works, creates a sense of reality for their central figure. The One feels like a real entity that has possessed your screen, a creepypasta legend come to life. She can be shot in full definition, compared to the grainer footage of the three films that emulate moviemaking of their decade. She can enter the frame in ways no one else depicted can. Joan’s presence is likewise ethereal, and the realness of her portrayal of pain makes her come to life like no other figure in cinema. She really seems to leap through the screen, boring into your soul. 

Passion’s exploration of suffering ultimately leads to - unsurprisingly - a rather Christian message of martyrdom. Through Joan’s sacrifice the peasantry revolt, inspired and moved by the suffering she volunteers for. She is depicted as a Christ figure. The One, by contrast, claims to be responsible for that particular myth. Their demise, their suffering, appears to be more self-serving. The One wishes to be immortalized, to be loved forever, to always exist through being viewed, being understood. That’s what you give them by playing the game. Their death serves their mission, much like Joan’s sacrifice makes her a martyr and completes her cause. 

The greatest works of art embody their subject matter on every level. The controls reinforce the story; the images reflect the theme. This is the quality I’ve grown to appreciate the most as I contemplate the works of art that have moved me this year. Right now we seem to be subsumed in media that feels disposable, stuff that is meant to occupy our time without offending our sensibilities too much. Everything is algorithmically calculated to provide just enough. If it wants discussion, it’s only provoking discourse for advertising purposes. Engaging with works of art that really seem to be hammering at some essential, something shared between people, is what’s keeping me going. I think works like these can inspire people to demand more of their media, to be open to receiving challenging ideas. To be satisfied with a series of question, rather than a prescribed list of answers. I came away from both these works filled with wonder and curiosity. The Passion of Joan of Arc has been inspiring interest for a century and forever. I can’t say for sure if Immortality has that potential… but I do wonder. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for reading! If you made it this far why don't you give me a follow on Letterboxd, where I post reviews and keep obsessive track of all the movies I watch. Feel free to drop a line if you checked this movie out and want to share your thoughts!

[safflowerseason]

I also haven't done a comprehensive book post but I'd love to hear your thoughts! If anything, it's just made me have 10,000 more questions than I did before which was already A Lot. Also Justice 4 Mischa/Marissa always.

You sent this before we got Mischa Barton dropping major bombshells!! Now so much has changed!! 

I said this briefly in earlier comments but my overall take on the book now is that, while it had lots of insights in other areas not related to Mischa Barton, it ultimately demonstrated the limits of the oral history approach. MB’s specific revelations also demonstrate why an oral history was probably not the best way to really get “behind the scenes” of what happened on this particular show. Like, in my experience oral histories are generally pretty fluffy and they kind of allow everyone to share memories and their recollections without much pushback…which is basically what happened in the book. If you interview as many people as Sepinwall did and absolutely everyone refuses to go on the record about two co-stars dating because they know just how fucked-up it is…that is a story that requires a *totally* different angle than a fluffy oral history, especially one that's such a direct collaboration with the showrunners. I’ve been thinking about the book recently published by Mo Ryan called Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood. That’s the kind of approach you’d need to do her story justice. 

At the same time, I do maintain that Sepinwall emphasized that what happened with MB’s exit was not her fault, in spite of his past (sketch) history with the show. He gave a lot of detail about network fuckery, Schwartz’s failures as a show-runner in S3, and he also showed that Brody and McKenzie were actually the ones being assholes on set, not MB, but that no one in charge cared because to Schwartz they were the two most important characters - ie, MB was considered expendable and the men were not. 

As for Schwartz…I already thought he came off pretty terribly in the book but now, like, oh my god. I don’t know how anyone but ESPECIALLY women could work with him ever again. I think it's so gross to claim that you're going to be open and honest about everything that happened on your show when you know this HUGE SECRET. Like I *get* why nobody wanted to go on the record about this and of course it's fundamentally Ben McKenzie's or Mischa Barton's news to share, but then don't PRETEND that you're going to fully explain what happened twenty years later when you know it's not the full story. Jesus Christ.

What makes me so mad is that the only reason Schwartz was so comfortable “taking the fall” in the limited way he did for what happened with MB and the show’s decline in quality is because it hasn’t actually cost him anything, and sadly I don’t think MB’s interview is going to change that. Nobody important in Hollywood cares because it was so long ago and it was his first show and one actress’s mental health and career prospects are a small price to pay for letting a man do whatever he wants on a set. So he didn’t risk anything by going on the record about all this. 

As for the non-MB parts of the book, of course I enjoyed reading everyone’s perspectives looking back, especially in the first year, and the little random fun stories that were sprinkled throughout. Chris Carmack came off as a pretty decent guy to me, and Adam Brody clearly has done a lot of reflection on that era of his life and how he acted at the time. I love Kelly Rowan and Peter Gallagher so much and I enjoyed their take on things (also intrigued by the comment that they weren't super tight on set?!) And I thought the book was a great overview of just how many factors and voices and interests went into making a single piece of television during the peak years of network tv. Like, so many different execs in charge of different things, all putting competing pressures on the show…it’s easy to see why television was so formulaic in that period. The O.C. in its earliest and best days really didn’t fit the mold for anything on TV, and as the book laid out why that was kind of the show's undoing in a way (in addition to Schwartz f*&king it up).

That was a lot and seems like enough to be getting on with for now, haha. Ultimately what I really want is a two volume exposé on the toxic culture of Hollywood in this early 00's era and how so many young women were chewed up and spat out by the system, with Mischa Barton's story as a prime example. She deserves justice!

[blacklister214]

Reflections in Shadow Ponds: Questions

Chapter six of Boris POV story.  Last Marisa flashback chapter.

Havana, February 2004

Boris expertly flicked his brush across his horse’s back, a sense of contentment filling him. Though this hadn’t been part of his initial Valentine's Day plans, it wasn’t the worst way he’d ever spent the holiday.

“Am I doing this right, Senior Boris?” Boris looked over at the boy standing beside him. Marisa’s nephew was the most animated he’d seen him in three days. The nine year old’s dark eyes were shining with excitement as he groomed the horse.

“Solemente Boris, Miguel. And yes, you are doing an excellent job. Afortunada likes you.” Boris liked him too. Boris had had very few interactions with children in his adult life. Speaking to Miguel had been refreshing. The conversations held an honesty rarely found in adult discourse.

“Ella también me gusta. Do you think I can give her a special treat?” Boris smiled at the boy’s earnestness.

“I may have some carrots in the kitchen. You can stay here and keep brushing her. Remember what I said about areas to avoid?” Miguel nodded vehemently, his dark hair briefly falling into his eyes.

“Si, no head, mane, tail or lower legs.”

“Bien. If you have any questions, ask Victor.” Boris turned to the groom who stood at attention nearby. “Mantenlo vigilado.”  

He wasn’t truly concerned Afortunada would spook, but he believed in being cautious. Boris had purchased the mild-mannered mare hoping Marisa would take a shine to her, but unfortunately, Miguel’s love of all things equine was not shared by his aunt. Still, Boris had little call to complain about the current trajectory of his life.

It had been nearly five months since the investors party and Boris had never been happier. It was as if a weight he’d been carrying for years was lifted. Being with Marisa was invigorating in all of the best ways.

It wasn’t perfect, of course. He still was required to travel quite a bit more than he liked. He’d missed Christmas by a week, thanks to an unforeseen crisis in Turkmenistan. Interestingly, it hadn’t been the fact he’d failed to appear for the holiday that had gotten him into trouble. No, it had been his gift.

Boris had bought Marisa a ruby necklace valued at a half million dollars. He’d thought he’d restrained him admirably. In fact Dima, whom he’d made the mistake of consulting, thought it a bit plain. Marisa had the opposite reaction, asking him whose coronation he was expecting her to attend. The ensuing argument had been…illuminating.

His position had been that, given his vast wealth, a gift of what Marisa considered ‘reasonable value’ would be the equivalent of a normal man gifting her a toy from a cereal box. He wanted to present her with something that properly expressed his high esteem. Marisa had opined that the point of a gift was to please its recipient. She felt his offering was an unwelcome reminder of their vast socio-economic differences.

In the end, Boris had returned the necklace and purchased a set of gold earrings and pendant necklace from a local jeweler. However, he had not been willing to completely allow Marissa her way. In what he’d felt was a fair compromise, he’d flown in half a million dollars worth of broad spectrum antibiotics from his pharmaceutical company Germany. He still got to spend the money on something he knew she wanted. She could hardly feel guilty accepting something from him she would turn around to distribute to those in need. Marisa had graciously acquiesced and the issue had been put to bed.    

On this visit he had brought more jewelry, though he fervently hoped this time he wouldn’t have to send it back. Boris thought of the small gold band surrounded in high clarity diamonds locked in his safe upstairs with excited anticipation. Making the decision to buy it had been simple. Figuring out how to give it to the woman he loved was proving more difficult than he’d imagined.

He’d envisioned surprising Marisa by arriving three days early and whisking her away for a long weekend at his villa in Tuscany. There he’d hoped they could spend their days drinking from wine in his vineyard and making love. He’d hoped to cap the experience with a marriage proposal over a private candlelit dinner.

Unfortunately, when Boris had shown up at Marisa’s home, he’d found her loading a suitcase into her car. He had then learned that her father's birthday was February 13th and the Casseras were gathering to celebrate. Marisa had planned a short stay in her childhood home before returning to meet Boris on the 14th.

He’d rallied by inviting Marisa’s family to stay at his home instead. Boris had sent his car for her father and brother, both of whom lived locally. He’d sent his plane for Marisa’s nephew, sister, and brother in law, who lived near a resort on the other side of the island. In the end all but the brother in law were able to attend.

Perhaps things had worked out for the best. It was only right Boris met his future wife’s family and that they met him. He was as yet undecided if he should follow tradition and ask for Marisa’s father’s blessing. On the one hand Marisa was a modern woman and might resent the implication her father had any say in her marital decisions. On the other hand Marisa was very close with her remaining parent and had a deep respect for the customs of her country. Another consideration was that Boris liked Hector Casseras and felt perhaps a word of warning was due, considering how drastically marriage into his family would change Marisa’s life.

On the whole he thought the weekend was going well. Hector seemed pleased with the cigars Boris had gifted him with. Roberto had challenged him to a game of chess and had proven a decent opponent. Miguel, after two days of being in apparent awe of him, had overcome his nervousness to ask about his horses. Only Julia, Marisa’s older sister continued to be distant with him.

She wasn’t directly rude, and had he not caught the glares Marisa kept aiming at her, Boris might have mistaken it for reserve. He wasn’t certain if it was normal protectiveness over her younger sibling, or something more personal. Latter troubled him more than he’d like to admit, because he genuinely wanted to make a good impression on the Casseras. From everything Marisa had told him, they were a close family with the kind of rapport he envied. It was for this reason that the raised voices he heard as he moved toward the kitchen surprised him.

“-has been nothing but hospitable, and you have been nothing but judgmental.” Boris froze at the sound of Marisa’s heated voice. They were talking about him, hidden away in one of the last places he was likely to interrupt.

“I’m sorry if I’m not easily impressed by a big house and a fancy plane.” Julia’s acidic tone burned through any illusion Boris had about her standoffishness stemming from the more general kind of sibling disapproval.

“He opened his home to you and your son. He’s spending his afternoon taking Miguel riding. The least you can do is be polite.”

Boris struggled to think what he possibly could have done to offend the woman. Perhaps Marisa’s family had been more upset about his missing Christmas than she told him. It wasn’t as though Marisa had been able to tell them the true reason he’d been absent was that he'd been stranded in the Karakum desert. His failure to appear without even an excuse may well have counted against him.

“Especially considering his original plans for this weekend probably involved a lot more private time with Marisa and a lot less clothing.”  

“Roberto!” The additional two voices alerted Boris to the fact that this was no tête-à-tête, but a full Casseras family affair. An intervention of some sort perhaps? The question remained if it was for Julia or Marisa?

“What? I meant at the beach.” Boris couldn’t decide if he was more annoyed at Marisa’s brother’s lewd (if accurate) assumption or grateful he had someone besides Marisa in his camp.

“Marisa and Roberto are right, Julia. Boris had been a generous host. You bring shame to yourself and your family with your behavior.” Warmth spread through him at hearing Hector reprimand his eldest child. It was a comfort to know that the majority of the Casseras had taken his part.

He wondered if he should slip out before he was discovered. It may have been his home, but eavesdropping anywhere was poor manners. Besides there was no need to create unnecessary tension, especially not when everyone but Marisa was departing soon.

“Forgive me for not being more enthusiastic that my sister has become some rich foreigner’s mistress. One of them, at any rate.”

Boris had been nearly out of the room when he heard the words that made him turn on his heel. To insult him was one thing, but he was not going to allow anyone to slight Marisa. Julia Ramerez would not stay one more minute in his home. She could wait outside in the hot sun for the plane. Only the fact that Miguel was with her prevented Boris from withdrawing his invitation to fly her back at all.

“Don’t confuse Boris with your husband, Julia.” Boris’ froze on the handle to the kitchen door. A philandering husband would somewhat explain Julia’s attacks. It didn’t excuse them, but it was enough to drain some of the stream off of Boris’ outrage.

“Enough! Julia, nothing that I have seen of Marisa's boyfriend has been to his discredit. On the contrary, I have found him thoughtful, intelligent, and devoted to Marisa. Marisa, attacking your sister’s marriage is beneath you, regardless of whether or not it was provoked. You are sisters and you will act like it.”

Despite his fading anger Boris couldn’t help but feel a small spark of amusement at Hector’s making two grown women apologize to one another like school children.

“Good. Now it’s about time for all of us to depart. Roberto, Julia, why don’t you go pack?” For a tense moment Boris thought he would be uncovered but, to his relief, he heard footsteps heading away from him. They must have used the servant’s staircase to avoid drawing attention to their family summit. Unsurprising given the nature of their conversation.  

“Thank you, Papá.”  

“You have no need to thank me. He seems like a fine man, who has the good sense to adore you. How could I find fault with that? However, as your father, I do need to ask: Do you see a future with him?” Boris was frozen in place. Before he’d been eavesdropping on Marisa’s family, which was one thing. Spying on Marisa herself was another.

“I love him.” Boris knew the steel in that tone well. He heard it only when Marisa was at her most intractable. Boris had learnt not to press when that timber sounded unless he was interested in an argument that would shake the walls.

“That is obvious in the way you look at him. But what about marriage? Children? Where will you live?” The questions made Boris feel slightly uneasy. Marriage was simple. There was nothing he wanted more than to have his name tied with Marisa’s. To wear a band on his figure that told the world he belonged to Marisa and Marisa belonged to him. The other two however, he’d never really asked.

Boris knew he wanted Marisa to defect. He based himself at Shadow Pond so he would be close to the world’s best medical facilities when his illness began to progress. He knew it wasn’t ideal, given they hosted the ribbon cutting ceremony on Marisa’s research center less than a month ago. Still he could easily afford to establish another facility in the United States for Marisa to conduct her research. The major problem was the distance from her family and her home.

The children question threw him most of all. Marisa had never mentioned wanting to become a mother. She was good with her nephew, but that didn’t mean she wanted a baby of her own. He’d always assumed given her single-minded devotion to her career, that she’d planned to remain childless. That dovetailed perfectly with Boris’ wishes. He would never inflict his family’s disease on another soul. He would never raise a baby and force it to watch him waste away.

“It’s complicated.” Uneasiness was rapidly growing to a decided sense of dread. Why hadn’t she answered her father? Was it simply that she didn’t know how to explain her plans without being able to mention his illness? Or was it some other reason? Either way he was done listening at keyholes. He retreated to the main hall and flagged down one of the maids.

“Necesito zanahorias por favor.” She bobbed her head once and sped off to the kitchens. Within a minute she had returned with a half dozen of the orange vegetables. Boris took them with a brief “Gracias.”

Slowly he began to make his way back to the stables. At least Afortunada and Miguel would be happy. As for himself, he was no longer certain. Five months ago he’d been unable to stop himself from pursuing his feelings for Marisa. He’d never regretted that decision until this moment.

Boris thought they’d cleared all the obstacles from their path. He accepted his evitable death would be more painful, but he would take that trade to share his remaining good years with the woman he loved. Marisa had become involved with him knowing how very little time they would have together. A fear had now entered his heart, that Marisa may want the one thing he couldn’t give her. What would he do then? Be selfish and let her sacrifice even more for him? Or be strong and release to find the life she deserved?

[creampuffqueen]

me watching the tlc fandom blame cress for having a relationship with an adult:

[ask-fantasy-sanders-sides]

...will no one talk about marissas hearthfelt speech wtf guys? She kind of admited she has the ability to actually love and all the things she did is most likely because of hoarce s fucky experiments that may very well have similar effects on Jan? Are we really going to ignore that she litteraly admited that she is azula in dragon form that just wants to have a grand finale fighting Roman? Or I’m assuming it's Roman in the painting but still. -🦝

(I suppose so lmaoo)

[degenderates]

lunartics i love y’all but i really don’t think that we should be harassing MM about why jacinter didn’t get a second kiss. there are so many possible reasons, like that it didn’t fit into the story or that her editor told her to cut stuff out. and none of that even matters anyway because it’s her book! and even though we are her loyal fans, it’s still her property and she can do with her series what she wants.

also it’s just not right to spam creators and authors. they have lives. things like that, so many messages at once, can stress people out. just....please don’t. write a fanfic where they have a second kiss instead!!