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themaevethcometh · 2 years

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i think what bothers me most about stranger things season 4 volume 2 is all of the unfulfilled promises.

Let’s start with the deaths. We were told that the end of this season would be carnage and that there would be a body count. At one point “five confirmed deaths” was thrown out there. First of all, I don’t think I can even list the five deaths.

Eddie, obviously

I assume they’re including Max since she was technically dead for a minute

Brenner?

Jason?

Genuinely don’t know who this last one would be

I found none of these deaths satisfying.

1. Eddie - narratively, it didn’t make sense for him to choose to fight the bats. I know that they wanted to give him a hero moment where he could be brave since he was upset about running when Chrissy was killed, but he didn’t have to do that! He was meant to be the distraction, and running was still distracting, plus the instructions for him and Dustin were to get out of there when things became too dangerous. There were other ways for him to be brave. I didn’t see a reason for him to stand and fight there, especially when the demobats died shortly after anyway. It felt useless, it felt wasted, and it felt like a death just for the sake of having a body count rather than furthering the story. Adding on to the fact that his name will never be cleared and that Dustin/his uncle are the only two who seem to be mourning him (despite him having multiple friends in the D&D group and friendly allies with the rest of the Upside Down crew), this doesn’t feel like a meaningful or worthwhile death.

2. Max - I think this death had so much potential that they didn’t follow up on, and it was negated by the fact that El suddenly was able to bring her back to life???? It took me a second to realize that Max was actually dying since her injuries weren’t the full vecna-ed extent, but having her die as part of a sacrifice would’ve been super impactful on every other protagonist and would’ve actually felt like a loss. If they were going to bring her back to life, it should cost something. Right now she’s obviously not fully okay, given that El couldn’t psychically connect to her and she’s in a coma, but to suddenly give El the power to bring people back from the dead and show her being perfectly fine afterwards didn’t make sense to me. It would’ve been extremely interesting to me if El did some sort of trading of her life for Max’s (especially considering the lyrics of Running Up That Hill and how significant that song was this season), and still had Max come back slightly off (and possibly with residual affects of El’s powers). Obviously this would’ve unlocked a whole new can of worms, but to have the only multi-season protagonist death be immediately negated and undone felt cheap.

3. Brenner - could not care less about this man. They tried to make his death huge and emotional and I simply did not care I was glad he died

4. Jason - once again, could not care about this guy, and his death was so sudden that I don’t think we were necessarily supposed to feel the impact of it.

We were promised carnage, we were promised a body count, and what we got was one death that was unnecessary to the narrative, one death that was immediately undone by a super powered girl who’s powers seem limitless for the fourth season in a row, and two deaths of antagonists that I felt nothing over. If you’re going to advertise the deaths in a series, have the guts to follow through. Would I have been upset if Steve died? yes. Would it have been extremely impactful for the babysitter/hero to die? yes. It would’ve had lasting effects on the narrative and actually meant something to the characters. Would I have been upset if Dustin died? yes. Would it have been interesting to see the impact and seriousness of a 14 year old dying? yes. Would it have considerably raised the stakes and the sense of danger? also yes. Would it have been interesting seeing how the mix of the kids and young adults proceeds forwards as a group since he was the main bridge between the kids and Steve? yes. Would I have been upset if El died? yes. Would it have raised the stakes for the show in a new and interesting way now that they don’t have their saving grace around? yes. Would it have been fascinating to see how that would impact Will? Mike? Hopper? Max? yes. Would I have been upset if Mike died? yes. Would killing the so-called heart of the group have a deep impact and spur them forward? yes. Would this have lasting effects on El that likely would impact her powers in some way? yes.

There are so many ways that they could’ve made the deaths significant and important. Instead, they refused to truly kill any of their main protagonists, greatly lowering the narrative stakes and leaving me feeling unfulfilled. If someone’s death has a narrative reason and impacts the other characters/the plot, that is a worthwhile death, even if I’ll be sad and go read a bunch of fix-it fics. None of these deaths fulfilled that.

Queerbaiting was another unfulfilled promise from volume 2. I personally didn’t ship steddie and I didn’t think byler would be requited and canon this season, but it is an undeniable fact that they utilized both of those ships during the advertising of volume 2 only to make steve go after nancy again with big speeches that didn’t fix the context they were given in, kill off eddie, and have will’s gay pining be used to further mileven while mike remains oblivious to will’s feelings. Will being gay isn’t in question anymore, I personally am not waiting on a verbal “i’m gay” from him and don’t think that’s part of the queerbaiting because anyone with a brain or a smidge of media comprehension can see it, but only using him to further the plot of the straight couple and then not letting him have a full confession to mike where he is heard and understood is queerbaiting after the emphasis that was put on this pairing.

There were a slew of other things that I felt went unfulfilled: the use of “Running Up that Hill” implying some sort of last minute sacrifice to save a loved one, Will’s not being able to take ownership of the painting and saying that El commissioned it, therefore not having Mike understand the grand emotional moment of it, the D&D game at the beginning having Dustin lose on an 11 and Erica (an outsider) managing to win with a 20, yet El was still the savior of the day ultimately despite the opening of the gates, literally everything about Will’s connection to the upside down and vecna not being touched on and him being reduced to the pining gay friend. On top of that, the only person who devloped as a character was Eddie, and he died for it. Jonathan is still lying to Nancy about college and they’re both still not communicating with each other. Will is still pining for Mike in secret. Mike is still hyper-focused on El and completely ignorant of what’s going on with his friends. I suppose Lucas realized that jocks are bad, which is not a good takeaway and I’m still mad that none of his friends supported him when he wanted to get involved in another extracurricular activity, and that just puts him back to where he was at the end of season 3. El still needs Mike and his love confession to spur her powers forward, rather than being able to rely on herself and not having to be anyone’s special superhero. Steve is still hung up on romance and specifically Nancy, something I thought we left behind a while ago and which serves neither of their characters right now. Dustin might feel a renewed responsibility for leading other kids with nonconformity, but that’s less of a development and more of a reaffirmation of who he already unwaveringly is. We didn’t get to see Max at the end of the season because she’s in a coma, but would her realization that she deserves to live, wants to live, and isn’t responsible for Billy’s death still stick after vecna’s abuses?

I think the reason that these last two episodes felt like a letdown for me personally is that we were promised so much and given so little of it. Don’t give us expectations if you’re not going to follow through. That’s bad writing.

#maeve posts #stranger things #stranger things spoilers #st4 spoilers #yeah i have a lot of thoughts #i wanted to like it so much more than i did #there were still some fantastic parts! but overall i was disappointed. my expectations were too high i suppose #the russia plot actually ended up being one of my favorites which i did not anticipate #but i felt like it was one of the cleanest ones and had consistent characterization

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marypsue · 2 years

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REVERSE CURSE DAY!! Very underformed theory on what may happen: we’re gonna see more of what’s happening with billy leaving max alone and it’ll be ominous and concerning. Two, the eleven is heading off and I’m curious if she’ll still go alone this time. Jonathan is gonna be Not Handling the loss of powers, and also (this one more is out there) maybe he’s also possessed and to maintain spy qualities it was impossible for him to keep his powers and not immediately freak over will. Theory two, ?????idk maybe the mind slayer was so unknowable or unpleasant his mind shut itself down in defense????? Buuuuut it’s a good chance to Jonathan to learn to communicate/be with people sans comfort blanket (turns out I’m actually very bad at coming up with theories but I swear I also just woke up). Also I wonder what we’ll see now that Robin is no powers team confirmed(NANCY ILY BUT NOT EVERYONE THAT IS HIDING IS HIDING POWERS) . Even if she doesn’t show up it’s also very funny to me if Steve walks into scoops and she’s immediately like so you have powers huh. Buuuuut obviously Robin is iconic and I’m rooting for her joining the plot sooner ( Steve and Robin are shamelessly my favorite duo) (( but I do love curse reverse Jonathan and Steve energy! Also max and El friendship being well done and not the duffer’s favorite/only way to write female relationship which is stupid conflict and then miraculous bonding ) Also I love your season four observations, and the way the show would’ve been better in your hands!! No more Russia plot lines!! Also I think it would’ve been objectively very funny if Nancy and Jonathan both decided to do a last minute hurrah and fly out to Hawkins/Calif and they ended up both switching teams. Also imagine the insane opportunities of a will Joyce Mike Nancy and Argyle set up. Maybe Joyce isn’t there bc the show tries to respect it’s audience and has her present during El’s “““ arrest””” and she ends up accompanying her to the Nina Project. Then we still get to see Nancy the big sister which is a role that we don’t see often. Also I cannot believe they did an entire season badly trying to show our Hunt The Freaks and made up a new one instead dod using Jonathan. Who isn’t well liked, under mysterious circumstances got to bring his brother back to life, is always there when shit goes wrong, and also experiences class based ostracism. Because imagine the cool potential for a Steve and Jonathan dynamic and actual growth bc then they can finally go back to foils but with growth. Steve is kinda wierd now, Jonathan in some ways has things that Steve doesn’t, also they’re both the protectors of their respective band of kids and are both shown to have been distancing themselves from that role kinda. ANYWAY that’s not relevant but can’t wait fir the chapter tonight!!

Fic day!! And thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. Now I am ridiculously excited to share the next couple of chapters! (Steve and Robin are also my favourite duo. Shh, don't tell the others.)

I'm still only at the end of episode three, so I can't say much, but oh my god the hilarity of Nancy and Jonathan just missing each other? That would have been pure gold. And I never even thought of it, but you're right, it would have made so much sense to have Jonathan be the target of a witchhunt, and given so many good character opportunities for him and Steve. I just feel so bad for him, like, very clearly the Duffers are wishing they could just write him out and he deserves so much better. I did not expect to get this attached to him after my first watchthrough, but here we are.

(Tangentially related: the beautiful and talented @daddygrandpaandthebeaver is, as we speak, working on a season 4 AU rewrite where the timeskip between s3 and s4 is three years instead of nine months, and Dustin is the one who's running a drama I mean, D&D club and gets a murder unfairly pinned on him and the Party and assorted friends and relatives have to assemble to save him from the torches and pitchforks, and I am so hype for that fic that it's unbelievable.)

#chatter #stranger things #for season four talk

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skyhopedango · 3 years

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Episode 10!!!

Plot switches into high gear! Baby brothers take focus! They're cute and brave! hooray for baby brothers! But also, Naoto is awesome. Like, Naoto from the drama & novelization thereof will always be my favorite, but 2041's Naoto is pretty damn great in his own way.

Also, damn, two more episodes left? :( I've bought the second part of 2041's novelization but I'm holding out, even though I'm really curious about just wtf is really going on here because even this episode raised more questions than it answered.

And a note on the animation: yet again I really really appreciate the way they pay attention to small things that you rarely ever see even in "traditional" animation. Look at the eye movements! They track what the character is supposed to be looking at, paying attention to, or even when they just look around.

Anyway....

Yuuya is really such a good kid. ;__; ) I guess the two pairs of brothers are similar in their basic nature, and beneath all the military training Yuuya is just as kind as Naoya. (Meanwhile, Naoto and Takuya... :D )

So anyway, hey, Russia arc, kind of! It's Russia, anyway!

I get it now - instead of Naoya moving to hide behind Naoto's back or clinging to his arm at the first opportunity, in 2041 the brothers' thing is Naoto moving to stand in front of Naoya at any opportunity. :D Like at this point it's his first reaction to meeting anyone. :DDD

Also, so basically, the Russian lab is a sort of super-mind made up combining the powers of those psychic kids and Mikuriya, that created "pockets" like Mikuriya's lab or that shrine, and also brings people back and forth from the Awesome Spirit World, right?

Also, OOOHHH I get it now. So Mikuriya took in the Kirihara brothers in 2014, but oops, in that exact time they were quite literally spirited away into the Awesome Spirit World. So Mikuriya was like "well damn, wtf" until 2023 when Shouko showed up, aaand THAT'S STILL 18 YEARS UNTIL 2041 NOT 15!!!! WHAT AM i NOT GETTING??! (it must be something super obvious, also I suck at maths.)

So anyway, how does Misaki figure into this? Sure, he provided the prophecy and then he died, but he's still around as we saw in the previous episode.

Also, wait, so what about the whole reincarnation thing? In episode 9 Misaki told Akiko that she's already reincarnated in this world - originally I thought he'd meant the Awesome Spirit World but thinking about it, he must have meant this Bad Material World, otherwise it wouldn't make sense at all. So technically Akiko was dead and had already been reincarnated, and so she disintegrated because there obviously can't be two of her at the same time...

...which is eerily like the paradox they mentioned re: the Kirihara & Kuroki brothers, and it certainly fits the way they keep telling us that they're essentially the same. So if they're technically the same there can't be two sets of the same people going around at the same time.

And right enough, both Naoya and Yuuya are disintegrating, implying that they'll die? probably? When Miki & Masayuki disintegrated Mikuriya said they "went back" to the Awesome Spirit World. But when Akiko disintegrated she supposedly died, as Misaki said he would've wanted Akiko to see the world he'd seen. The way Naoya & Yuuya are disintegrating though... apparently they're also technically dying, then?

(But also what about the older brothers, why are they OK? ...maybe because the two younger ones are empaths which makes them more vulnerable to this sort of thing? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )

...right, I give up. :D I'll just let the story tell me when it wants to tell me.

Anyway, aww, baby brothers connecting! Communicating, even!! Working together!!! Baby brothers save the day! That was so nice. And the older brothers being all "hrrr grrrr hrrrr" about it. :D

So anyway, Naoto is awesome. Missiles? NO PROBLEM. I'm on a mission here. I may die but I did my job. Also I may die doing something actually useful for once. I can see drama!Naoto being pretty satisfied with that, although he didn't really have a death wish... he did hate having this seemingly terrible power though, so he would've liked to go out using it for a greater good, especially if that involved protecting Naoya. But also, Naoya deciding to stay, and the two of them standing there being all against the world and everything was pretty great.

Takuya, my friend. You're so, so dumb. You're very pretty but oh you're so dumb.

Also, look, this is hugging, OK? Sure, Naoto is covering Naoya from the blast but Naoya's arms are around him, so that's technically a hug, OK? Let me have my fantasy.

(Even though 2041 is lightyears better than Genesis about literally everything, I still find it kind of hilarious that it still can't show even a fraction of the physical contact between these two that the drama has... let alone the Tateno Makoto manga that shamelessly wallows in shipping.)

Wait, Miracle Mick is involved somehow? That's one plotline I didn't expect to get picked up again. :O

I'm going to be so sad when this ends. :( Gonna be lonely again... the show doesn't have any fandom that I can see, and with me sucking at drawing or writing, it's gonna be back in my, er, spiritual world of beautiful brotherly love, sigh. Well, at least from now it will come in two flavors. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#night head 2041 #night head #kirihara naoto #kirihara naoya #kuroki takuya #kuroki yuuya

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lliaq · 2 years

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mhm man do I have conflicting feelings about Vol 2 (this is prob gonna be kinda rambly and all over the place but I have Thoughts™ and I need to put them down)

okay first of all I gotta commend Sadie, like she absolutely killed it this season. Definitely one of the highlights. Caleb too. That attic scene- oof. I was just straight up bawling. Max and Lucas were never my favorites (didn’t dislike them either, they were just sorta in the middle for me), but they really felt like the heart of the show more than anything or anyone this season. Which is ironic given Will’s whole speech about Mike being the heart like-the fuck where?

I just- do not like Mike. At all. idk what it is, if it’s the acting, writing, or both, but he feels so incredibly unsympathetic as a character. He was also one of those middle characters for me at first, but unlike Max and Lucas he’s just been dropping down season by season and I literally can’t stand him now. Slow clap for that A+ character assassination. He only exists as Eleven’s bf now, and doesn’t seem to care about any of his friends, or anyone, really. And don’t even get me started on how they used Will’s feelings and sexuality “storyline” to further Mileven. there’s already a hundred posts about that, so I’m just not gonna even go there.

Another slow clap for the incredible Queerbaiting (listen idec that much if Byler becomes canon or not, but they 100% used Will’s sexuality and the potential of Byler to hype up the show and string queer audiences along(during Pride month, no less), it is textbook queerbaiting)

Mileven is also one of those ships that I don’t care about. Might have to do with my dislike for Mike, but something about it just doesn’t click for me. And boy did I feel that lack of investment during Mike’s monologue. Made the entire scene just completely fall flat for me. But where I was mostly ambivalent about them in S3, I’m actively rooting for them to break up now lol. Eleven, girl, get out of there.

Like, genuinely, her character feels like it’s stuck. Or like going in circles. I think she’d have more room to grow without Mike. idk I’m too tired to be big brain about this rn

Anyways, moving on. Dustin felt a little sidelined this season. Like what even was his arc? Being Eddie’s friend (just for Eddie to die)? Wow, great. Amazing. But y’know, same thing with Jonathan and Will. Maybe they just have too many characters at this point.

Couldn’t care less about Jonathan and Nancy as a couple. I’m not a big shipper (regardless of canon status), so if a relationship isn’t actually interesting...I just won’t care. They’re boring to me, that’s all I really have to say. I’m not fully on board the potential Steve/Nancy train, if they’re even going there in S5. Def felt like that’s what they were setting up. I’ve seen some people say that them getting back together would undo their character growth and I don’t know if I agree with that either, like... if they got back together, it would literally be because they spent time apart, growing as individuals. What they had before wasn’t working, but they’re not those people anymore, that’s the whole point. It would only be regression if they got back together and went back to being exactly like they were in S1/2.

I mean, in an ideal world I would hope for Ronance, and Steve ending up either with someone else or single, but...I’m not gonna hold my breath for that, lol. After all, they gave us copy-paste lesbians. Great representation, pack it up everybody. You know what, I’ll give that one another slow clap. I’m always down for more wlw rep, but that was half-assed at best. More like quarter-assed.

Steve also felt, idk, sidelined in the sense that he just went back to pining about Nancy and that was really all there is. Idk honestly it felt like a lot of characters were just kind of there, this season. Like, they participated in the plot....and that was it. And some barely even did that. Again, might be an overcrowding issue.

I’m sorta meh about the Russia plot. Murray is ok, I guess, but the over the top kind of comedy they use him for isn’t my cup of tea, so he’ll never be my favorite. I’m pretty ambivalent about Jopper as well. It’s one of those ships where I’m like I’m fine if it happens, and I’m fine if it doesn’t. I will say that my perception of Hopper still hasn’t fully recovered from whatever the fuck they did with his character in S3, but it’s getting there, I guess?

Joyce...went to get her man. Good for her, I guess. idk, don’t really have much to say.

Eddie though- man. Boy. He’s like the definition of deserved better. My man thought 86 was going to be his year and then it all went to complete and utter shit. I can’t say I’m surprised they killed him. He’s the Barb/Bob/Alexei of this season, with the exception that he was probably more of a fan favorite than any of the other 3. The thing about his death is just... it seems so pointless. I know they painted it as this whole Hero moment, he decided to fight instead of run, yadda yadda. But really he died in a “sacrificial” act that was ultimately meaningless and didn’t accomplish anything, he died being hated by an entire town, and I assume they left his body in the Upside Down bc he was officially “missing” still, so...he didn’t even get a burial. He’s like one of the very few characters that went through actual character growth this season , and he died for it. Good one. (here, I’ll toss in another slow clap) I did feel the lack of reactions was odd at first, but then I thought about it a bit and remembered that the timeframe of this season is pretty short. Idk how long exactly, but I’m pretty sure it’s a week or less, and he spent a decent amount of that time in hiding. So most of the others spent like a couple hours total with him, maybe. I’d have expected something from Lucas, though. Mike apparently doesn’t care about anyone other than El, so that tracks lol. But the only one we’ve seen affected at all was Dustin (and Eddie’s uncle). So, it was still a little lackluster.

Anyways, yeah idk. Visually, the show is still stunning (even if the CGI was actually not that great in a lot of shots, imho), and there were some standout moments. I loved the one-take shootout (I’m a sucker for long one-takes, DD hallway fights my beloveds), and of course the entire Running Up That Hill Sequence, which might be my favorite scene in the entire show. But some of these writing choices really soured it for me.

This very much feels like a case of It could have been great, the potential was there, but they didn’t stick the landing.

#stranger things #st4 spoilers #just needed to get some stuff out of my system

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villa-kulla · 3 years

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Fic Writer Review

Tagged by @fontainebleau22, thanks for the tag, sorry for the delay!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

26 at the moment.

2. What’s your total AO3 wordcount?

722 309. I’d have thought it would be more considering how long some of mine seem to get, although looking at other people’s answers to this meme, I guess 26 isn’t really a huge number!

3. How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

My first fic ever was a little Lord of the Rings experiment for an exchange thing. But my first proper dip into writing for a fandom would have been Breaking Bad, where I wrote for a couple of years before it felt like my ideas had run their course. Then there was a Kingsman fic, and then Mag7 where - similarly to BrBa - wrote feverishly for a couple years until it felt like the well had been plumbed. Oh yeah and then jumped into the Marvel fandom to drop one Marvel fic before immediately jumping back out lol.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

So the Marvel fic has officially just become my most kudoed fic, which is kind of hilarious considering it was a SUEZ! CANAL! FIC! But in my opinion, a good one lol. So yeah, it would be 1. The SamBucky Suez Canal fic, 2. The Kingsman soccer AU, 3. Desert Sand, 4. Chisolm’s 7, and 5. Blue Devils. That last one surprises me, but I guess it was an early one for the fandom, so I think it became an automatic read.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not

I do! It’s possible I’ve missed some here and there, but generally I try to get them all.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I don’t think any of them! While my fics definitely include angst, ideally it’s still in a fun way, or at minimum, bittersweet? I don’t generally want the last taste in a reader’s mouth to be angst. ALTHOUGH. I really really wanted to include an epilogue to the selkie fic that’s kind of angsty. Basically the story would end, but then many years later we’d see an old man get off a bus on the coastal road, carrying a suitcase. He’d be wearing a suit, clearly back from many years travelling. He’d walk to the coast, back over a hill where there’d once been a little fishing cottage, long since torn down. He’d walk down to the beach and into a little cove where he’d kneel by the water he knew better than anyone. Opening the suitcase he’d take out a box which he’d then empty into the ocean, ashes spreading across the water. He’d take out a folded bundle of cloth and wrap it around his shoulders. Then he’d dive into the water, disappearing into the waves, leaving nothing but an empty suitcase behind him, and a folded pile of clothes.

I loved that ending but I’m still not 100% sure if it was keeping in tone with the actual ending, so I left it out. Maybe one day I’ll go and add it as en extra chapter snippet.

7. Do you write crossovers? If so what’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I don’t know if I’d call them ‘crossovers’ exactly, although I did stick Goody and Billy into a Some Like it Hot ‘jazz band on a train’ situation, and I also did a Breaking Bad one that used some elements of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Those feel more like ‘AUs’ though. I like situational crossovers, but I’ve never been super into fics where characters from different fandoms actually interact.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Thankfully not. The most off-putting comment I’ve gotten was someone who - despite being very complimentary - decided to make a full-on laundry list all the anachronisms in a chapter lmao, like what. Stuff like "interesting that this character used this expression when XYZ would only been invented 10 years later!” etc. I’m positive they didn’t realize how it came off, but still, that was kind of hilarious in its.....obliviousness lol. It was special.

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I do. And I guess I’ve done the full spectrum of ‘fade to black’ to ‘describe every bead of sweat in pearlescent detail’. It really depends on what the fic calls for! I’ve done some I’m quite proud of tbh, but there are others I’d like to go back and have another stab at, just because they felt kinda cookie-cutter.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of!

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

There’ve been a couple! I can’t remember which ones specially, but I had some people asking to translate some Breaking Bad ones, and I think a Mag7 one too. I remember someone messaging to ask permission like “We love your fics in Russia!” and that was a very sweet and wild thing to hear.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes, I wrote one with @yoporkchopsandwiches! Our Victorian opium dens Breaking Bad AU lol. I was just thinking of that recently actually and remembering how fun it was to read what the other wrote! We plotted out most of it together, and then took turns writing chapters or scenes. But of course while writing you come up with other details or ideas, so we’d then present the new chapter to the other with all the new bits added. And it was so fun to read what the other came up with like ‘omg no way didn’t see that coming/good idea!’ and then picking up their idea from there. In that sense it was almost like improv but for writers.

13. What’s your all-time favourite ship?

That I’ve written? I think I’ve had the most fun with Goodnight/Billy, partly for the time period, partly for the dynamic, but mostly for the plausibility. While I really enjoyed writing BrBa, it felt more like it came from enthusiasm for the show, not the central ship lol. Don’t get me wrong, the chemistry and its potential was extremely fun to write in a fic setting, but I don’t find I actually shipped it while watching the show itself. Whereas it’s been nice with Mag7 to write for a ship that’s actually....more believable lol.

14. What’s a wip that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Ugh I can’t beLIEVE I have an unfinished fic up on ao3 lol it haunts me. I was sure I was done with Goodnight/Billy, and then early quarantine last year I had a train robbers AU idea, so I posted a couple chapters. But I don’t think my heart was super in it, I was more just messing around with the idea. I don’t want to delete it, but I’m also not super motivated to finish it haha, but we’ll see what happens. But tbh I like the poem summary better than the fic itself:P

15. What are your writing strengths?

Plotting, keeping things moving, and making stories feel visual maybe? They’re almost all movies in my head anyways, so I think I have good instincts for ‘cinematic moments’.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

I think I’m a little lazy, and also ‘end-product oriented’. In some ways it’s helpful to picture the whole fic before you write it, but sometimes it results in some scenes feeling slightly slapdash because I’m just trying to get them out to move onto the next. Like ‘everyone did everything I wanted to in this scene? Great, next.’ I could stand to ‘stop and smell the roses’ more while I write, and actually see what else I can do to improve a scene.

(also if I use a word once it sticks in my head I end up using it like 5 other times in a scene and don’t notice lol, I need to stop that)

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

All for it! Depends how it’s done though. I personally find long scenes of dialogue where you have to constantly jump down to the author’s notes for the translations to be distracting. I like when it’s integrated more naturally where actual translations aren’t super important. Like in River Grit, Billy overhears this little exchange between Goodnight and his childhood nanny:

“Ah c’est vrai, mon petit Bonsoir! J’en peux pas le croire!” she cried out and laughed as she embraced Goody. Billy realized with a start that he actually recognized one of the words: ‘Bonsoir’. Goodnight. (insert brief flashback of Goody teaching him the nickname) / “Ma Serafine,” Goodnight said with a laugh. “C’est vrai que tu ne vieillis pas. Tu vas me rendre jaloux, heh?” / Billy had no idea what Goodnight was saying, but he sure as hell recognized Goodnight’s tone for flattery, and it was confirmed when the old woman laughed and smacked his arm.

What they’re actually saying is: “Oh it’s true, my little Goodnight! I can’t believe it!” / “My Serafine, it’s true you never age. You’re going to make me jealous”. But it doesn’t matter because this fic is from Billy’s POV so it’s about how he experiences the language around him, which is why I wouldn’t have included a translation for the reader. If you understand it then it’s a bonus, but the words themselves aren’t really the point!

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

That lil Lord of the Rings fic.

19. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Hmm for Mag7 I’ve always liked River Grit and love how it turned out. I also think Ashes feels very complete as a fic and I liked the flashback format. And while it’s not my favourite fic, in hindsight I’m impressed with the Kingsman football fic and how I had to write about 5 different soccer games and make them all feel different and exciting, and not just some variation of ‘He kicked the ball!’ I’m really pleased with how those sequences all turned out.

La fin! Not tagging anyone this time, but please feel free to do this if you see it! I love when people just take initiative to do these things without waiting for a tag (also please tag me in it if you do, ‘cause I love reading these things lol)

#shares #fontainebleau22

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deathvsthemaiden · 3 years

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ok wait after u sent me that ask i have to know ur top books!!! dw if u don't feel like it but i would love to hear them 🌷

This is so sweet and considerate! Thank you Eva, you gave me 5 so I’ll try to keep it to that # as well 💖🐰 off the top of my head:

🌷 The Stormlight Archive series, especially the second book, Words of Radiance. Stormlight is like 4 books + 2 novellas right now, and is projected to be 10 books and ???novellas eventually. And on top of that each main book is 1000+ pages and while you can read Stormlight on its own, most of the other books by the author, Brandon Sanderson, are part of this larger fictional universe called the cosmere. Each series takes place on a different planet, and if you are invested in the whole cosmere, there’s Easter egg references to other series in other series. So like! While I rec these books often, most people understandably don’t take me up on it wgshshh 🤭 Sanderson’s non-Stormlight books are all MUCH shorter but also much more flawed imo. Like I wouldn’t count him among my favorite authors were it not for Stormlight. anyway I’m a die hard fantasy fan so the length didn’t deter me, and I picked these up because a friend told me the world building in these books was genuinely unique instead of the typical very lazy maps composed of like. Fantasy Russia and its hostile mysterious neighbors Fantasy General East Asia and Fantasy Africa lol. and she was right! The world building is exquisite and refreshing and almost every character is canonically of color. They live in a society with an eye color based caste system and it’s.., so hard to sum up this massive series with four main characters and a ridiculous(ly fun) amount of plot lines, so I’ll cut this short and say 1) the first book, The Way of Kings, is highly expository but the ending is so so worth it, and if you enjoy the ending you’ll find merit in continuing with the series 2) Words of Radiance is my favorite book so far partially because I haven’t read the newest, Rhythm of War, yet, and also because it’s the book with the most scenes that solidified Kaladin Stormblessed (one of the main characters) as one of my favorites of all time. Another one of the best things about this series is how Brandon Sanderson portrays mental health in very natural ways, and it makes Kaladin’s growth so incredibly soothing to follow (I MEAN. He has low points that sometimes hit too close to home, but it makes you root for him harder) he really is just. Truly my definition of a hero, if we wanna get cheesy about it, and I had to pick one solid example. I love him so much this isn’t even the tip of the iceberg as to why 😭!

🌷Jane Eyre. Silly frivolous teenaged girl that I am this book swept me off my feet when I first read it and I condone every problematic aspect of it❤️ (I DONT ofc but like! I love drama and being played like a fiddle by narratives and the book delivered on both fronts! And it couldn’t have without its unsavory plot twist soooo 😙💖) (the hate this book and especially one specific character gets is funny to me just because like. Hate for the former (imo) usually stems from people taking the book too seriously while simultaneously missing the point (JE and du Maurier’s Rebecca (highly influenced by the former) are oft considered loose Bluebeard retellings for a reasonnnn!) and hate for the latter is usually just like. Warranted and then taken over the top like... he’s just a fake funny little man you guys :( and the book would’ve been boring if he wasn’t so twisted and out of touch and passionate ): not to mention I do personally in a mean ish way think it’s funny how for some people this character is one of the worst examples of men they can imagine. Like good for Them! I don’t want them to have lower standards for horribleness in people But also omg 🤭 it just reminds me of how... irony of all ironies, I’m semi frequently told I’m too harsh on real life men and then when I love twisted ones in books (for being funny and entertaining and good solid characters) I like. get the most interesting side eyes (whether figurative or literal) bwjswnhshe anyway I have nothing against Austen, I definitely enjoy her, but from what I’ve read so far, I prefer the Brontës a lot more... I need adventure! Show me horror show me rot etc etc❤️ also I’m. A stupid sucker so the fact that the book was Charlotte Brontë’s attempt to write a plain looking lady protagonist and to make her praiseworthy and virtuous and worthy of spellbinding romance makes me... 💗💓💕

🌷Keturah and Lord Death — Martine Leavitt. I haven’t seen it officially stated anywhere but to me it’s p clear this book is a retelling of/highly inspired by Godfather Death (the Grimm tale) Very simple, predictable but effective plot, and the characters are just. So much fun. From my url you can probably tell I love stories in which women (or anyone but you know. Death and the Maiden is its own trope for a reason) outsmart/face off against death. If they also k*ss, when done right, I think that’s swell as well.

🌷A Thousand Splendid Suns — Khalid Hosseini. By far the heaviest book I will mention in this ask, and I don’t rec it willy nilly for that and a few other reasons. It’s a forever fave to me because I read it at the exact right time in my life, where I was like... noticing a ton of things irl and things at home were tumultuous, and when I saw very similar things unfold in this book while I was being silenced and made to feel crazy by the adults around me, it meant so much to me to see reality as I was experiencing it in real time reflected back at me via this novel. The context of the story is wildly different from my own life and the stakes the characters face are far higher, and it is if I remember right mostly a novel about the horrors of war, which isn’t something I pretend to have any firsthand experience with, but! It was legitimately cathartic to read when I read it, and it especially meant a lot to me at the time that the author was a grown man. Not to mention how my mother is not and never has been a reader, and somehow the one and only book I ever managed to get her to read was this. Hilariously she got mad at me for only (“only”) reading depressing things (there’s... a grain of truth to that but she doesn’t need to know! 🤫) but also... she was hooked I could tell! (I got all tmi explaining this one gag I’m so sorry)

🌷A Slight Trick of the Mind — Mitch Cullin. Retirement-era Holmes! Holmes as an old man! A sad old man who keeps bees!! It’s the novel the movie Mr. Holmes was based off of (haven’t seen it yet) and I was not expecting it to get me all sentimental like it did 🤨😪 but anyway it’s like. A prolonged character study and explores some of the most interesting (to me, anyway) parts of Holmes that are only lightly touched upon in canon, like his occasionally huge follies when navigating his few close relationships and how he copes with them afterwards, his fatigue at the random injustice of the world, how he’s often mistaken both by characters that surround him and people irl as a man without feelings, etc etc. like there’s no Dr. Watson or Mrs. Hudson in this book, and the people he interacts with are almost entirely original characters, but as I listened to the audiobook it barely occurred to me to miss Watson and Hudson (I know! 😦) and the author’s original characters interacted with Holmes so believably that I sometimes forgot they weren’t ever Doyle’s. Def recommend to any flexible Holmes fan that’s not a total stickler for canon (though you don’t actually have to know much about Holmes to read this book and enjoy it! 🐝)

🌷Sleepless — Sarah Vaughn + Leila del Luca. I began with the longest book, so let me end with the shortest. It’s a 2 volume long graphic novel series and that it’s so short is the only long standing, legitimate complaint I have of it! Gorgeous art, really effectively written romance, a dark skinned girl who gets to be the proactive, lively protagonist and stunning, pined after love interest at the same time, a cast of characters that is majority of color, the perfect %-age of drama and angst etc etc. if you can find it via your library or online or smth, you can knock it out in one sitting and leave the experience eternally altered in the funnest way 👁👄👁

Honorable mentions: The Botany of Desire — Michael Pollan, Troubling Love — Elena Ferrante, The Girl from the Garden — Parnaz Foroutan

#asks #book recs #wasn’t sure if you’d read Jane Eyre before so I was vague abt it qgzhshshs #long post

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uservillanelle · 4 years

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Killing Eve ― 3x04 (Review)

Last episode was... something else for me. Episode 3 will ALWAYS have a special place in my heart because of Villaneve’s kiss and all that, but this episode. It has to be my favorite this season and if they keep up like that... not only will we have a PERFECT season, but it will be impossible for me to pick a favorite episode. I’ve watched it probably close to 10 times already and I’m not going to wait any longer. We have bunch of stuff to discuss! So let’s start!! (This will be a LONG review, so I apologize in advance lol!)

The Titles

It’s so interesting that they chose this season to experiment with episodes. Back in episode 2 we had the very first additional credits sequence which I, personally, liked a lot. However, maybe they didn’t like it as much? Since they didn’t use it anymore. I wonder why they haven’t placed the credits sequence in the premiere instead? It would still be unpredictable gesture, so I’m still wondering about it.

ANYWAYS! By titles, I meant the NAME titles this episode. The past two seasons we were used to having titles that indicate the names of PLACES e.g. RUSSIA, LONDON, TUSCANY ect. They are still doing that, in different way, the letters are smaller now and they use this interesting “blinds” effect that the letters appear and move like blinds would if we opened/closed them? Really nice touch, I must say. It’s something different, something we haven’t really seen before in the show.

Now the names. I’ve read a couple of people saying something like “why the name titles? we obviously know who the person is? so what’s the point of that?!” I found that quite funny lol! I mean, YES, we know exactly who they are but that’s not the reason why they’re using those name titles. Name titles, in this case, are to show us WHO the show is focusing on for the time being. That also means that the normal sequence of events will be disrupted since there won’t be any scenes switching between different characters. For some reason I felt like something like this happened before but then I remembered that something like this was used in another show called Dare Me! That’s why it felt so familliar and Killing Eve is exploring that type of narrative and honestly, I dig it. Yeah, it might get confusing for some people, having to bounce back and forth between the timeline and the events, but it’s perfect for those of us who has a sharp eye for details. It’s for the viewers who analyse and put pieces together. It’s exactly what Eve is doing at the end of the day with all the kills, isn’t it? So thinking about it, makes it all even more fascinating. Damn. I’m REALLY falling for the show... aren’t I?

The titles makes it SOO much easier for me to write these reviews as they basically tell which character they are focusing on right now and that’s what I did in my reviews lmao! I’ll just follow the characters in the episode so I’m sure you guys will be able to catch up with me with no problems!

Niko

So... THE MUSTACHE IS GONE.

I didn’t see it coming. The way they released all those trailers/sneak peeks featuring Niko made it seem like he was finally getting his fresh start and like, I had a feeling we might even get an episode fully focused on him and maybe Eve or something? So, that’s how well they mix things up. My mind, yet again, has been BLOWN.

Before we talk about the elephant in the room, I just want to say that Niko was a good person. I might not have been a huge fan of him, but I felt IT. Speaking of fans, I think it’s normal to NOT like him because he is playing the boring husband type and obviously he stands between Villaneve. But other than that, he IS a good, ordinary person. It’s a fact and Eve knows it. Niko keeps Eve grounded, safe, STABLE. He is all those things she found boring before in season 1 and didn’t appreciate enough I feel, because she was too used to them as all of us are.

He gets to play the part of a normal, ordinary man who got scared when he found out that his wife is chasing an assassin, who soon enough possibly murdered Eve’s colleague and a dear friend. Yet, it didn’t seem to slow Eve down nor did she notice any of the red flags in front of her face that straight up screamed DANGER. I think most of us would’ve reacted to things like that the way Niko did. Yes, we would’ve been a boring man/woman who the viewers hate, because they crave for danger and psychotic obssession filled with hatred and lust and a LOT of craziness. It’s what we crave now, watching the show and WAITING for Villaneve to happen.

This morning I’ve been watching a few of reactions of the episode and I got to explore different perspectives of people reacting to the same thing. I love that. I want to know what other people see in things, you know? And so... one of the people made a point about KE writers killing off whoever they want, probably to surprise the viewers as they probably don’t know how else to drive the story. Meaning that Kenny or Niko didn’t have to die. But that’s the whole point... one thing is to claim that they are doing whatever they want with the show, but another is to actually COME UP with ideas for a decent, I mean.. not even decent, AN AMAZING plot that people would be shocked and amazed by at the same time. You can only go this far without having to touch any of the main characters, you know? There comes a time when you have to make big, serious choices in terms of the story and this season Suzanne is GOING FOR IT. Like I mentioned in my previous post here, the first two seasons were amazing, but it only NOW feels like things are getting real. Suzanne took over and she’s getting shit done. She’s taking this responsibility and making huge important choices that will shift the main plot AND Villaneve in certain direction and so far it’s going sooo smoothly and brilliantly.

I mean, yes, Niko deserves to start over and have a nice life but the moment Villanelle found out about Eve... Niko’s fate was decided for him whether he liked it or not. And having him simply disappear from Eve’s life AND from the show as if nothing... I’d see it as waste of character’s potential. So instead of not having Niko around but have HIM affect the story in such a profound way, I think killing him off was a great idea. This way... his character gains so much more meaning and it helps to drive the main story forward, but most importantly it will change and affect Eve in ways we have never seen before. So, I think I’ve read somewhere that Owen McDonnell (Niko) wanted his character to go out with a bang, and he truly did. Yes, it was a very brutal, shocking death but it was definitely a very strong one.

Now, the soundtracks STRIKE yet again. I’m talking about Niko’s soundtrack, Dear Diary by The Moody Blues is soo well fitting for his character while showing him trying to start over with his life. It carries this... sort of bittersweet feeling, but at the same time it’s so... freeing? And the lyrics speak his story without Niko having to say anything at all.

“ Woke up too late. Wasn't where I should have been For goodness sake, what's happening to me?”

Yeah, he WOKE UP a bit too late and realized that the life he had wasn’t really for him anymore.

“So many people by the score Rushing around as senselessly They don't notice there's people like me”

And we basically see him drive through the town and watch people going with their lives and not really notice him for who he is now, for what he had to go through. Probably none of them had to go through so much trauma and had their lives in danger the way Niko has.

“If they weren't so blind, then surely they'd see There's a much better way for them to be”

Perfect description for Niko the previous two seasons. Now that he’s “woken up” I wouldn’t be surprised if he thought that way. Again, this show picks the soundtracks for a reason and I’m not sure if in first two seasons the songs described and spoke instead of characters, but this season they are really going for it.

Eve

Oh boy, where do we start?

So... from now on Eve spends her nights at Bitter Pill office. I mean, after being shot by a crazy assassin girlfriend, who, found out where Eve’s living now, it’s more than understandable for her to NOT want to stay in her apartment any longer. But staying in the office is not the best idea either. I mean, she still can go back to her apartment to clean up and all that? Guess not this day. Which happens to be her BIRTHDAY. I was convinced that Villanelle sent her the cake of a bus was only to remind her off their mindblowing kiss, because let’s remember back in 1x04 Villanelle had just murdered Bill and threw a birthday party to Konstantin. And it wasn’t his birthday. Yes, she tried to get on his good side, but I really thought this would be yet another example of Villanelle’s behavior. Turns out.. it IS Eve’s birthday... and my mind is blown yet again. I NEED to know what day is her birthday. Like, seriously?! And.. Niko hasn’t messaged her despite it being her birthday. Like.. you two have huge issues still, but hello? It’s your wife’s birthday... or maybe he forgot? But here is Villanelle not forgetting about Eve’s special day... and the fact that it’s a goddamn bus... WE GET IT, VILLANELLE, YOU’RE A HOPELESS ROMANTIC.

Before the cake arrives, we have a scene of Eve cleaning up in the bathroom, checking out her bruise and then the moment with Bear. Everything made total sense. Eve brushing her teeth, smelling herself, probably aware that she’s in desperate need for a shower, then again smelling her hair until Bear points it out for her. Yes, SMELL is the reoccuring theme in Killing Eve. So that was alright. Everything was going smoothly UNTIL Bear spotted the UNDERWEAR. Now, I did some digging to find a confirmation that it indeed was underwear and not some random piece of clothing or whatever... and in one of the recaps online they did say it was underwear. My question is... WHY? Why did they include THAT specific bit? The fact that Eve needs a shower was established more than ONCE, out loud and through a solo scene in the bathroom. So it got me thinking... and by thinking, I almost immediately got an idea... If it’s still not clear for you, let me remind you just how the last episode ended... with Eve sitting on her bed listening to Villanelle’s recording with her eyes closed. And now... the underwear being spotted and throwin in a bin and all the smell? Okay, I’m so going to say it now. Eve masterbated while listening to Villanelle’s voice. Okay. To me it happened and the underwear bit is a confirmation of that. And if that’s not the case... please let me know because I NEED to know what the hell did that bit mean. But until someone does that... I already know what happened and I’m happy with it.

Now the cake moment. So not only does Villanelle know where Eve’s apartment is but where she works?! This gurl is putting some EFFORT for her girlfriend and on top of that buying a very expensive cake which Eve threw off the rooftop moments later. The reason for that is.. Villanelle. Duh. I was completely mesmerized by that scene. Again, THE SOUNDTRACK. I love, love, LOVE this score that was playing during the scene. It’s probably another new addition to Unloved album, but if anyone has seen it somewhere or has a link, please let me know!! The lyrics do all the work in this scene too...

“Set me free”

It all started in season 1 episode 7 when Villanelle told Agniya that she’s free to go and do whatever she wanted to. She replied with “I don’t want to be free” so she was killed off. Now, Being FREE has been mentioned SEVERAL times this episode. Including the lyrics in the soundtrack AND Sandra Oh talking about Eve trying to FREE herself from the Twelve and basically from the life she has been living before. Such a huge theme for Killing Eve. What does it mean for Eve to be free? Is it the same thing as it is for Villanelle? Again, in the scene with the accountant’s wife, Bertha, Villanelle tells her “You’re free now. You can be whoever you want.” and the other replies only with “But.. I don’t want to be free”. What an iconic parallel. So, for Villanelle, being free is being alone, as it seems. And in this case Eve is desperately clinging to Niko because she, like Bertha, doesn’t want to be free. Or more like.. she THINKS she doesn’t want to be free. So all those small gifts coming from Villanelle including the cake tells Eve that she CAN be set free. And.. as we can see from how the episode eneded.. Eve is now finally FREE.

She opens the box soo carefully, not knowing what to expect from Villanelle and then sees the cake. Immediatelly gets flashbacks to their moment in the bus and how they fought and most importantly, KISSED. And next thing you know... we see how a gush of air blows in her face with the sound of someones BREATH. The sound of it is soo familiar. We know exactly who it is. Villanelle, breathing in Eve’s face. And for a second she closes her eyes. Gives into it... into Villanelle but then something shifts, the struggle within her continues to take over and she grabs the cake once she gets emotional and throws it off the roof. Only to instantly regret it afterwards. The complexity of this scene and of Eve’s character is just.. on one hand she hates feeling like this now that she knows she has feelings for Villanelle, but on the other hand she likes it... she admits it and a part of her just wants to give in. We saw the same thing, only reversed feelings, in previous episode. She finally gave in and kissed Villanelle only to headbutt her right after, once she realized what she did and how WRONG it’s supposed to be. Here, she gives in for a moment.. closes her eyes and then realizes how fucked up that is and what a terrible person and WIFE she must be so she throws it off and THEN the feelings for Villanelle comes back... I just have to say.. I’M LOVING THIS! I hope that at the end of the season Eve WILL fully accept her feelings for Villanelle and become new version of herself, new version of Eve who is FREE. And I can’t wait to see what kind of person will independent Eve be like.

Next. Eve and Jamie. I’ve seen pictures of them in Jamie’s house and I did NOT like that atll. I still have a feeling something might happen between them and god, do I hope I’m wrong. But that scene as they were just chilling in his living room was so great for Eve because she needed someone to have this frank conversation with. She has been focusing on herself lately so much that she didn’t think other people did mistakes or terrible things like she did until Jamie proved her wrong. FINALLY we are getting some information about the dude. Even if it’s not pretty. At least it’s the truth. Eve really needed to hear it and especailly the ‘choices’ part. Someone had to remind her that SHE is in control of her own life and it all depends on the choices she makes at the end of the day.

Speaking of choices, as soon as Eve gets a reply from Niko, she gets hopeful and goes even as far as to meet him. I appreciate that she is putting so much effort in trying to fix things between her and Niko, but at the same time I feel she’s only doing this for herself... meaning, that she doesn’t want to lose the person that keeps her somewhat SANE still and used to ground her. And in the middle of this, she gets so distracted with this thing with Niko, she doesn’t even realize that it’s not actually Niko who’s messaging her and really, I don’t blame her for not realizing it, I, myself, the first time watching didn’t catch the sight of Dasha in the beginning and yeah I was also played like Eve. But this is where I noticed a nice similarity/parallel between Eve and Villanelle. Eve’s all distracted with Niko and desperate to patch things up, she’s not realizing how someone else might be manipulating/using her. DASHA is doing exactly that. And she does the same thing with Villanelle at the same time. Now, Villanelle is all about family this season, whenever she hears about family, suddenly she’s distracted and the same is with power. I mean.. is she really that naive to trust Dasha again? It looks like Villanelle believes everything Dasha tells her, or almost everything. And so Dasha gets to manipulate her into doing what she wants her to do.

Gotta mention the teddy bear Eve found in one of Jamie’s rooms she’s staying at. Literally the previous night Villanelle sent her a teddy bear with recording and even here... at some strangers house she finds a teddy bear. Seems like she can’t get away from Villanelle no matter how much she tries. “What do you want from me?” She’s asking Villanelle because she clearly isn’t leaving her alone.

The last scene with Eve witnessing Niko’s death... all I can say is GIVE SANDRA OH A GODDAMN EMMY ALREADY!!! Her seeing Niko suddenly being stabbed with a fucking pitchfork in the neck forced her to freeze and stare in terror and that chuckle of disbelief that followed afterwards.. as if saying “am I dreaming? Is this really happening? It can’t be” because Kenny JUST died... what are the fucking odds someone just stabbed Niko in front of her eyes?! I would lose my SHIT... and Sandra expressed it so beautifully... her slowly approaching the scene but then has that massive lump in her throat and she can’t breath and next second she’s losing her balance and falling to her knees in complete defeat and just stares at his body... powerless to do anything about it. This scene and the scene where Konstantin tells Villanelle that Eve is alive.. these two scenes HAVE to bring Jodie and Sandra EMMY’S because thats ART of acting and pure talent and I can’t imagine them NOT getting the awards they deserve. And they deserve EVERY single one.

So there is literally NO ONE left for Eve. Bill’s long gone, Kenny as well, now Niko. I think that will be the last straw for Eve. I really don’t know how she will be able to come back from this or.. keep going. She’ll have to do it to avenge the people she loved. But she really has no one except Villanelle now. And I think.. yeah, Villanelle will also only have Eve when she’s done with her “family” and realizes that Konstantin/Dasha were playing her and Eve all over again.

Konstantin

You’re in some DEEP shit, mister.

Question time. Why Konstantin went to visit Irina? What was the point of doing so? Was it only so he could ask about the German car that his wife’s boyfriend owns? Or was it purely on Irina’s part? Because the conversation they had proved once more that Konstantin is NOT fooling anyone. Everybody knows he’s working for himself. Eve pointed it out during Kenny’s funeral, then Villanelle with “You’re full of shit” and now Irina, paralleling Villanelle by saying “you’re full of shit” and walking off. This girl has grown so much and she’s soo mature already and smart and a fucking badass! I missed her. And by putting her father in his place she mentioned ending up “dead” .. you know what that sounds like to me? FORESHADOWING. It is exactly that, isn’t it? For Irina to straight up tell him his future if he doesn’t stop whatever he’s doing. And I guess he won’t stop.. or will he?

So... was it him who stole those 6 millions? I thought it was Sergei... but it kind of seemed like someone set him up. Was it Konstantin? Because when he went to visit Bertha and she mentioned about how her husband worked out who took the money... and Konstantin’s face during that scene... he is literally shitting his pants lol! That makes me believe he had something to do with this and he defintitely has... but what exactly did he do? And now that Bertha knows about the email and some information about it, Konstantin doesnt hesitate to reach out to Villanelle to ask her to get rid of the accountants wife only to save his own arse. Once again.

Next up: Konstantin’s relationship with his DAUGHTERS. Am I the only one who sees that Konstantin is treating Irina AND Villanelle the same way?! They basically have the same dynamic. Both Irina and Villanelle curse at Konstantin, have their small tantrums with him and can put him in his place. And both of them have already done so. And let’s not forget... the producers ALSO call Villanelle and Irina his DAUGHTERS so it’s confirmed. Everybody knows it. And recently I saw a BTS video of this latest episode about Konstantin and hearing Jodie then say “then there’s Konstantin’s REAL daughter” and then there’s dramatic close up on Villanelle LMAO! The jealousy and the way they edited it... damn. Okay, let’s just agree Villanelle is Konstantin’s daughter.

Now, did he visit Geraldine?! Because when we saw Carolyn drive back home, she saw Konstantin walking from the same direction her place is located. And her daughter was home at the time... so did Geraldine lie about Konstantin not visiting her and being there or she didn’t even know when Konstantin sneaked inside? I’m getting really suspicious now.

Villanelle

GO AWAY, HICCUPS

Villanelle? Listening to MUSIC? What did I miss? Back in season 1 she was interested only in national anthems. Now she’s listening to other kind of music?! Music to me is EVERYTHING, it’s a massive escape, it’s something that helps me get through every day and it evokes FEELINGS. It is associated with feelings so much and what does it say about Villanelle? That she has FEELINGS. The layers are slowly being peeled off her as Oksana is coming out and I can’t wait for the next episode. I’ll write another small analysis/discussion about Oksana and Villanell soon as I feel this deserves a separate discussion.Going back to the topic of music, at the end of the episode Villanelle arrives HOME and is wearing headphones indicating that she probably was listening to music on her way there. I’m sensing BIG changes. Villanelle is truly progressing and developing and we are getting to witness it!

Okay. the part we all have been waiting for. THE HICCUPS. The very first time they start is EXACTLY after Konstantin mentions “FAMILY” Villanelle is really invested in her family now and was in previous episode so now knowing that Konstantin found them probaly quickened her breathing and she got nervous/excited. The hiccups are involuntary contractions. You can’t control it. And at the same time they tend to be constant. We have never seen Villanelle have them before. And they only start after she hears “FAMILY”. This reminds me of a scene in 1x02 where Konstantin tells Villanelle Eve’s name for the first time and then suddenly the champagne’s bottle pops. It’s a sign. And the hiccups seemed to stop for a short period of time, right until Bertha approaches Villanelle and tells her that she wants to be a FAMILY and hugs her. Seconds later hiccups come back. The concept of FAMILY must be very foreign to Villanelle. It’s something she never really had and so now learning about her family, something so unknown to her, is affecting her body. And the way I see it... the hiccups are like a constant reminder to her, that yes, she never had family and that she’s finally interested to find that family again. So the hiccups symbolize the LOSS of something she never had. In this case, her family. Because we see her get off the train at the end of the episode and she reaches out to touch her neck. This scene for me has so many different meanings it’s sooo fascinating? And one of the meanings, probably the main one, is that she reaches out to her neck once she realizes that hiccups are finally gone. And that is exactly when she’s back at HOME. Back where her FAMILY is. So it’s like... she’s no longer alone, the void from before has been filled because she found her family now.

Now, the very first time I watched the episode and that last scene.. I was like “shit, did she, by any chance, feel Niko’s pain?!” I mean that’s IMPOSSIBLE. Because Niko has just been stabbed in the neck with pitchfork and yeah it just occured to me. But then... I realized that maybe it’s not Niko’s pain she’s feeling but EVE’S. We see Eve freeze and struggle to breathe and have lump in her throat and that’s when Villanelle stops having her hiccups and she has this MOMENT. Almost the same moment as Eve had when she felt Villanelle’s BREATH on her face.The connection thesr two have... I mean.. VILLANEVE IS ENDGAME, OKAY?!

We got a tiny problem now. Dasha FRAMED Villanelle. It got me thinking.. this is basically a betrayal. And could that mean.. that maybe Dasha did something similar to Villanelle in the past? Like, framed her with some kill? Could it be that huge thing that happened between the two of them? I hope we will find out at some point this season. And I mean.. the way Dasha killed Niko is NOT Villanelle’s style at all. Villanelle had PLENTY of chances to kill Niko herself and she didn’t because she knew well enough that if she hurts Niko, Eve will never forgive her for that. So she didn’t. But Eve doesn’t know that. She wasn’t a part of that conversation Villanelle had with Niko and Gemma. What Eve does know... is Villanelle’s handwriting. The iconic “Sorry Baby” should be a perfect example. Let’s not forget the postcard Villanelle sent to Eve in Amsterdam. Yes, Carolyn took it, but maybe... she’ll give it to Eve once she knows what happened? I mean there is NO way Eve will believe that crappy note is Villanelle’s. Not even her handwriting. Plus... if Villanelle wanted to kill Niko, I don’t think she would’ve done it in front of her eyes. And even if she did... I think she would have wanted Eve to SEE her do it. At the end of the day, Villanelle wants Eve to know about each and every kill she does. And Niko wouldn’t be an exception. She’d leave a PERSONAL note/message for Eve. What did Dasha leave?! “Still Got It”? Really bitch? Is that a note to Eve or Villanelle? If it’s to Villanelle... you just prepared your grave, Dasha. I can only imagine Eve finding out it was Dasha and ending up killing her to avenge her husband. And Villanelle being there to gladly assist her with everything she needs.

Carolyn

Never thought frog sounds could be this relaxing

She’s still dealing with Kenny’s death. In her own way. I mean, I understand Geraldine completely when she confronts her mom and basically tells her that she wants them to talk about Kenny’s death. If I was in her place, I would want to talk about it too. But Carolyn doesn’t seem to operate in that way. Plus, she dropped the line “there are things you don’t tell me, that are for quite different reasons” and she means it about Konstantin. She saw him leave her house. Geraldine said nothing about it. So... is she working with Konstantin now? What’s happening?

The dynamic between Carolyn and Konstantin though. Both of them are double agents and ready to betray one another at any given time despite knowing each other for YEARS. One minute they are working together as they were in season 2, then now Konstantin is doing his own thing, and even maaybe going behind Carolyn’s back with her own DAUGHTER?! I don’t believe this. I don’t think Geraldine knows about him visiting the house.. or does she?!

She comes back home, lies down and turns on frog sounds to relax herself while grabbing a pillow to press against her own face. Makes me wonder if she did it because she kept on repeating that she MISSES Kenny’s smell, but why would that pillow smell like him? So maybe she only wants to run away from the world and shut off by grabbing the pillow? Though for a moment or two I really got worried she might be suffocating herself lol! Careful with grief, Carolyn!

Dasha

The old hag of the hour.

You fucked up, Dasha. BIG TIME. But before we get into the killing, I have to mention the scene where she meets the Lady of the Twelve. That’s what I will call her from now on. So, she’s either a keeper, or someone higher. I don’t think she is one of the Twelve, but she might be very close to them. Probably an assistant or something? Because she obviously has the power to HANDLE the HANDLERS. In this case, Dasha. I mean, I only saw her once and I already have the hotts for this lady, but she’s one of the bad guys and... WHEN DID THAT STOP ME BEFORE? I’m literally in love with a psychotic assassin LOL!

Can I just point out the fact that the Twelve KNOW about VILLANEVE??? Apparently they have spies EVERYWHERE, like Eve said back in season 1 episode 3. “They are completely invisible and they could be literally everywhere”. That explains someone spotted Villanelle going around London, buying expensive ass perfume only to visit and fight with her girlfriend. And the Twelve know it. That’s a HUGE thing. They are treating it like a huge thing and they do not like Villanelle chasing Eve. That makes me think... so why would Konstantin let Villanelle know that Eve is alive if he is also working for the Twelve?! The same is with Carolyn and Eve!! Like?? Who is working for who now and who is betraying who?! I need explanations and QUICK!

Now Dasha proposing she can kill Eve... is this yet another foreshadowing moment? I know, the lady told her NOT to do it, but I have a feeling Dasha will try to hurt Eve at some point... and I hope Eve will be ready for it. As much as I would LOVE for Villanelle to save Eve.. I want Eve to handle Dasha by herself and take her revenge. I want dark!Eve at the end of this season. Am I asking for too much?! She already killed once. Might as well do it twice lol!

So Dasha is supposed to “drive a wedge” between Eve and Villanelle. And when I realized Dasha stole Niko’s phone and was texting Eve to come to him... my first thought was “Okay, so is Dasha really trying to bring Eve and Niko back together?!?” But that is complete NONSENSE! I mean, I don’t think even a professional therapist will be able to bring them back together OR let alone recommend them to try to fix their marriage so how in the HELL would Dasha do it? It didn’t make sense.. but how else can she really fuck up Villaneve? Apprently by getting rid of Niko!! Dasha, sweetie... you ONLY BROUGHT THEM CLOSER BY ELIMINATING THE ONLY OBVIOUS OBSTACLE IN THEIR WAY!!! The hell was she thinking?! Does she really believe Eve will fall for her bullshit? Or does she expect Eve to find out it was HER and that’s when Dasha gets to kill Eve?! I don’t think she’s that smart. Either way... Dasha is done. I can totally see her dying this season, or possibly somehow magically escaping but I doubt it. Eve and Villanelle will deal with this bitch and it will be SOO delicious to watch them get their revenge.

Overall Thoughts

JESUS. This was a LONG ass review. I honestly apologize, but if you reached this point, THANK YOU SO MUCH!! You’re all amazing for spending your time reading my nonsense lol! It’s just that this episode had soo many great things worth discussing and so many symbols and meanings that make the show so complex and fascinating and god... I could talk about it for hours. I probably spend around 3-4 hours writing this so yeah, the proof that I have a serious fixation lol!

But like I said.. this episode is my favorite this season. Perfect. I can only imagine how great the next 4 episodes will be. Also, can’t believe we are already halfway into the season. It’s crazy how quick the time flies!

And as always, if you have any thoughts/reactions/predictions you’d like to share don’t be afraid to message me or drop in my askbox!! I’m always up for discussing things like that!!

#ke spoilers #killing eve #villanelle #jodie comer #eve polastri #sandra oh #villaneve #ke s3 #ke 3x04 #ke review*#ke*#ke 3x04 review #this shit is LONG™#creation

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starrlikesbooks · 4 years

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I decided to go through each month since Quarantine started and pick out my favorite book I’ve read in each! I’m not counting rereads here, and I was very strict about only picking one. And, September isn’t over yet but:

A little on each book under the cut!

March - Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden. This is the last book in the Winternight Trilogy, which starts with Bear and Nightingale. I started this book literally the day my job closed and I realized that this was going to be... a thing. The series is historical tilted fantasy in Russia, and this book is a really wonderful ending to it.

April - Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson. This is another book I picked up from the library before things closed down, and I’m really glad I did. This is a fun magical realism book about a generally messed up woman taking on a job nannying some also messed up kids who spontaneously combust. I love the characters in this book, I love the writing, and I’m really excited that it’s getting adapted to a movie.

May - This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone. Everyone else has already said plenty about this book and how great it is, so I don’t know what else I can add except the hype does not lie. If you’ve managed to miss the internet yelling about this book, it’s a novella about pretty abstract time travel and two agents falling in love across enemy lines via poetic, sapphic, really weird, letters to each other.

June - The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune. I have to be honest, I didn’t love this one as much as a lot of other people do- I still liked it, obviously, but it wasn’t the perfect book plenty of other people hyped it up to be. However, I’m one individual reader! And this book was light, fluffy, and cute, so it definitely helped distract me from all the heaviness of the world like the plague and all the brutality.

July - Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston. Another book I’m only one of many, many others screaming about, and, honestly, I’m a little late to the game. I think I avoided this book before because there was just too much love for it- dumb, I know. That vague counter-culture temptation to ignore the popular mixed with a fear of being let down by hype kept me from picking this up a while ago, but it felt like a good time to try it. Let me be completely clear- THIS BOOK IS PERFECT. Where the previous book didn’t hit me quite right, this one feels kind of like it was meant for me, and people like me- which is actually the point, so! Plus, with all the government stress, imagining a world with this alternate president and all together good mom, and where the bad guys doing illegal stuff actually lose? Cathartic.

August - Master of One by Jaida Jones & Dani Bennett. I’ve been reading a lot of ARCs on my phone and I tried not to pick ones that haven’t come out to rec but honestly I loved this one too much to not talk about, and it was definitely my favorite book I read in August. It comes out in November, so add it to your TBR! This is part heist story, part “chosen one” quest, part gay love story, part found family (well, it’s getting there anyway!), and it’s so good.

September - Burn by Patrick Ness. If you too saw “Patrick Ness” and “dragons” together in a synopsis and immediately added it to your TBR, you’ll happy to know this book doesn’t disappoint. It’s basically about the 50s in an alternate world where dragons exist and have inspired both prejudice against them and a genuine cult following. The main character is half black with a Japanese love interest, one of the main-ish characters is gay, and the plot is really just “there’s a prophecy and things get really... weird”. It’s great!

Fun fact- every single book on this list except the March pick is queer in some way! I mean, I definitely have a type.

What have you guys been reading in Quarantine?

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cyberramblings · 3 years

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James Bond Thoughts: 1962-1985

I'll be listing the films and my brief thoughts on them in the order I saw them, which is just a touch out of order.

004: Thunderball (1965, Connery)

I liked this one alright. In the first hour, I felt the film was way too slow, as this was the first pre-Craig Bond film I had ever seen. By the second hour, I had warmed up to the older pacing and style of the film. The underwater fight scene at the climax was impressive at the time, if not super cool to a modern viewer such as myself. Terrible title.

Should've been called: Stakes Under The Sea/Two Whole Nukes

005: You Only Live Twice (1967, Connery)

The old fashioned racism towards Asian culture made this one difficult to watch now, but the bones were fine. Clearly defined stakes, an exciting climax, fun without being too campy. But it is hard to look at the screen when Sean Connery is "disguised" as a Japanese person. Not a great title, especially since the "rebirth" of Bond is just a throwaway gag at the beginning.

Should've been called: Spaceship Eater/[CONTENT REMOVED DUE TO RACIAL INSENSITIVITY]

001: Dr. No (1962, Connery)

This was one of my favorites. It is a lot more barebones than the other Bond films, but that makes it more of a compelling spy thriller rather than having an emphasis on stunts and gadgets. Dr. No himself delivers a great performance with an amazing death scene. Easy to remember name, since it is also the villain.

Could've been called: Bikini Prime/The Man With The Metal Hand

002: From Russia With Love (1963, Connery)

Another good spy movie. The mechanics of the plot make at least a little sense, and the tension between Bond and the love interest actually matter in this one. Plus, this is the closest we get to a "Bond equal rival", especially with the excellent opening scene showing Russia's top agent actually killing a henchman in a James Bond mask in a live fire training session. The train scene at the end is iconic. Great title, actually makes some kind of sense.

Could've been called: Cryptographer's Delight/Into A Trap

003: Goldfinger (1964, Connery)

This is probably my least favorite of the initial five consecutive Sean Connery films. The villain isn't very menacing. His plan seems too over-the-top to be realistic but not far-fetched enough to be compelling. James Bond spends far too much of the movie in captivity. However, the ending somewhat redeems the film with the amazing moment of all the US marines standing up after faking their deaths at the sabotaged poison gas. Goldfinger's iconic golden gun seems silly and out of place. Oddjob fails to accomplish anything of note with his iconic razor hat. The golfing scene and poolside card cheating scene are good fun though, establishing an excellent motif in the Bond films of James outsmarting cheaters. Decent title since it is the name of the villain, but did he even have a golden finger?

Could've been called: Horse Farm/Fat Man Takes It All

006: On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969, Lazenby)

I am torn on this one. Lazenby does an...okay job. He spends most of the film in disguise as a posh genealogist, which ironically seems more natural for Lazenby. Blofeld's constant recasting doesn't do wonders here either. In fact the whole film has a bit of a fever dream feel to it. The whole allergy thing is a bit silly, especially the chicken allergy hypnosis scene. This marks the first appearance of winter sports in a Bond film, which becomes all too familiar during the Moore era, even down to a luge chase during the climax. The ending scene is gut wrenching admittedly, even if only referenced once (that I have noticed) in future films. Terrible generic title. Also I had forgotten that this movie features a mobster boss begging Bond to marry his daughter.

Should've been called: Allergy Farm/In The Lord's Name

007: Diamonds Are Forever (1971, Connery)

Too campy. Connery too old. A couple fun moments but a lot of wasted potential, like wasting the gimmick of 2 Blofelds instantly. Some fun stunts, like Bond ascending the side of the casino, but generally a boring watch. The bit where James Bond pretends to have just killed James Bond while impersonating a diamond smuggler was fun, as was the preceding elevator fight. Fine title, if a bit on the nose.

Could've Been Called: Stays In Vegas/Smuggled Abroad

008: Live and Let Die (1973, Moore)

The first Roger Moore film. Kind of a crossover with the blaxploitation genre, with predictably awful results. Terrible twist of the two villains being the same man. Terrible villain scheme of plotting to provide...free heroin. Feels like an imitation of a Bond film. Title now iconic because of the song, but nothing to do with the plot. Terrible death scene where the villain pops like a balloon.

Should've been called: Addiction's Delight/[CONTENT REMOVED DUE TO RACIAL INSENSITIVITY]

009: The Man with the Golden Gun (1974, Moore)

Christopher Lee carries every scene he is in, Everything else here sucks, including his villainous plan...to sell solar panels...for a price. The climax where Bond defuses a laser beam is groan inducing. Moore continues to be a bit wooden in this one. I suppose the title is fine, but the gun itself is a bit silly.

Could've Been Called: Million Dollar Bullets/Assassins' Business

0010: The Spy Who Loved Me (1977, Moore)

The first good Roger Moore Bond film! This one clearly borrows from the earlier films. The "ship eats smaller US and Soviet ships" from You Only Live Twice. The Russian blonde defector from From Russia With Love. The twin nukes from Thunderball. Bond riding in a trolley and freeing prisoners from You Only Live Twice. The tense nuke defusal from Goldfinger. Moore looks the part and acts the part in this one finally, and we get a competent love interest more than ever here. This is Roger Moore at his finest as Bond. Jaws even debuts here! The title even works well here.

Could've been called: Triple X/Double Agent

0011: Moonraker (1979, Moore)

This one just kind of sucks. Even before the space stuff starts, the film is campy and boring. The only good moment I can recall is when Bond noscopes a potential assassin that was supposed to gun him down during a hunting "accident". The villain is villainous at least, but his grand scheme is completely out of the blue right at the end. Of course the film goes off the deep end once Bond goes to space. Jaws is here, somehow, but his joke-y romantic subplot manages to steal the show because of how little competition there is. The cable car scene is an example of a particularly poorly paced action scene before the space shenanigans even start. Don't even talk to me about how Jaws and his girlfriend survive an exploding space station. Also please do not talk to me about the increasingly tired trend of the film ending with everyone seeing Bond in bed with a girl. I guess the title itself is fine, but the moon is 0% involved with this film.

Could've been called: Bond vs. Jeff Bezos/The One With The Space Crap

0012: For Your Eyes Only (1981, Moore)

This is isn't particularly bad, it is just boring. I recall very little about this film other than winter sports, a girl so young that Bond turns her down, a girl avenging her parents, and Bond climbing a cliff for far too much of the film. Paced poorly. Title means nothing to the film aside from a single throwaway line.

Should've been called: Dig Two Graves/Under Attack (Like ATAC? Get it?)

0012.5: Never Say Never Again (1983, Connery)

Not a canonical Bond film, but we watched it all the same. Remakes Thunderball but changes enough to stay interesting. It goes to show that all the Bond films are so similar that a direct remake is still different enough. Somehow Connery seems more full of vigor than he did in Diamonds are Forever. The lack of James Bond theme is disturbing and all the replacement music stinks. Not a bad film, definitely better than half of the Moore films. Terrible title, again just a throwaway line, although it is more of a meta-commentary.

Could've been called: Thunderballs/From The Brink

0013: Octo...you know (1983, Moore)

First off, worst title for a Bond film ever. Otherwise, a surprisingly...fine Bond film. I could do with less clown footage in my Bond and the climax is a bit nonsensical, but this one generally delivers the goods. Too much circus screentime and the villainous scheme of "sell fake faberge eggs" isn't enthralling.

Should've been called: Literally Anything Else/Easy Side Up

0014: A View to a Kill (1985, Moore)

Absolutely bonkers, but a bit of fun in its own way. Too campy, too zany, but Christopher Walken gives a great performance. Moore is far too old by this film and it really undercuts the many romantic scenes. Iconic title because of the song, but nothing to do with the plot. Way too much skiing and horse screentime.

Could've been called: At Fault/Back In The Saddle

So, there it is. I wanted to record this before all this information left my mind. So far, I vastly prefer Connery over Moore. Of the Moore films, The Spy Who Loved Me was the only one I felt like really resonated with me, while I was pretty fond of the first five consecutive Connery films on the main. I suspect that the Dalton and Brosnan films will vary, but sit somewhere between the extremes of From Russia With Love and Moonraker.

#bond #james bond #007 #james bond 007 #sean connery #roger moore #george lazenby

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astrarche-x · 4 years

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Six of Crows (+ Crooked Kingdom)

If somebody gave a penny for my thoughts on books, I’d have zero pennies, but here are my thoughts anyway!

It’s not a very spoiler-heavy note.

I know I’m super late to the party, but it’s only a month left to read the book before the show is released and that was a motivation to finally read it. (That and the fact that I have 3 written assignments due the end of the week).

- I haven’t read the Grisha trilogy, but Six of Crows was perfectly understandable without it, so that’s an asset. I wouldn’t mind knowing more about the war in Ravka, but generally it was ok.

- Found family in a juvenile delinquents gang is one of my favorite tropes in fiction and this book is all about that, so I was absolutely delighted. I liked how it wasn’t very obviously sugar-coated - obviously it wasn’t horribly realistic (I guess), but it avoided the Robin Hood or “criminal with a heart of gold” trope and that was nice, because it would reek of moralism.

- I liked the descriptions of the architecture etc. and could almost feel myself walking through the streets of Ketterdam. But the descriptions of Fjerda were very inconsistent to me in regard to the rest of the novel - I kinda felt like I was thrown from historical fiction to sci-fi (all that laboratory stuff) and that was weird.

- The action was very well-paced - without unneccessary delays and plot detours, but at the same time giving the characters and the reader time to breathe and bond. The only aspect I wasn’t satisfied with was the ending - it was too easy to predict the plot twist and it drained away the suspense and the sense of high stakes. And while some could say that it means that the writer set it up well, I think it would be better if it was unexpected, especially given that it’s not the kind of plot twist that changes the reader’s perception of the whole book, it just marked the turn in the action.

- post-CK addition: in Crooked Kingdom I felt that the action was moving a lot faster and left me quite exhausted at times. The moments to catch a breath were a bit too rare, but at least exuisite every time.

- While I’m rather glad that the “multiple POV” trend is dying, it was pulled off well in “Six of Crows”, because the narrative was in 3rd person. That allowed readers to switch rather effortlessly between the chapters while still directing their focus to a particular character.

- the characters, aka the best thing in this book: they are all lovable in their own ways and honestly I can’t decide who’s my favourite (jk jk it’s Matthias and Inej). I think that the number of characters is just right, not too big and confusing, but allowing for diversity in narratives. I only had an impression that characterization of Wylan was dropped halfway through the book and he’s been a plot device for solving technical problems most of the time, which is kinda sad. Also his change in personality was a bit unexpected.

- post-CK addition: ok, Wylan got his POV & his development, but I still feel like 75% of his character are family problems. I hope that maybe a reread in a few months will make me appreciate him more.

- Nina and Matthias: my absolutely favourite subplot (and ship in this book). It’s been a while since I’ve read so well executed enemies to lovers. The emotional and sexual tension between them! The desire to love vs the memory of past wrongdoings! The wish to trust and be vulnerable again vs the fear of betrayal! Them disagreeing on fundamental issues but finding points of mutual understanding nevertheless! Them caring for each other more than they care about their causes, even though the causes are everything! The banter! I just... can’t. Their story is such a good blend of cuteness and dark themes. I found it extremely interesting when the first chapter from Matthias’ POV showed how he was kinda deranged by his stay in prison and his desire for revenge and for love that were knit together so thight. Whereas he more or less regained his sanity as the book progressed (I wish it was more developed) he was still very much not in the best mental state and that made him a wild card, so the plot twists involving him were convincing. I also think that his disillusionment with his religious militia was quite well-written (as for an adventure novel, that is, where it was not the main plot). I liked how Matthias was trying to play 4D chess with the rest of the crew with his schemes and Nina joined him in part. Also the scene when the Crows try to get back to their ship in Fjerda and Nina gets shot, but heals herself so fast... Damn, that was some king shit. I love their dynamic, even though it’s the epitome of problematic(tm) by tumblr, but oh well, I’m all in for eros/thanatos motives and some good chemistry. One thing I feel their relationship lacked were the sex scenes - this is probably due to the book being technically YA (and that’s another reason why writing it for a bit older audiences would be ok), but both Nina and Matthias are so horny for each other that I find it impossible that they’ve never had sex.

- post-CK addition: my heart is broken but Matthias’ character arc? Pure gold. I was so proud when he started questioning his religious beliefs and tried to reconcile them with his love for Nina. Love one redempted magic fascist. Also poor Nina... I still kinda don’t understand why their subplot had to end like this - and it’s really tempting me to read King of Scars.

- Inej’s moral/religious dilemmas were so good and I identified with them a lot (not that I’ve killed someone, but still). Also I found her characterization to be top notch, because she clearly isn’t an extrovert, but is not reduced to “i have no social skills” stereotype. I love her.

- Kaz was a briliant character and his plans were so well written... But I have one issue with them: especially in Crooked Kingdom, when there’s a plot twist, it’s usually revealed to be just another layer of Kaz’s plan. When does he have the time to set it all up? I know he barely sleeps, but still, it feels like it kinda gets out of nowhere. But generally I’m all for scheming, ass-kicking gang boss. I also like the fact that he was still a very skilled fighter despite his disability, which allowed the author to escape the “disabled body means he can only use his mind” trope (which is justified sometimes, but still). And his trauma was so well-written... Honestly, the first full flashback with Kaz clutching to Jordie’s decaying body was one of the two most disturbing scenes in the novel (the other being Kaz ripping Oomen’s eye off) and I kinda wasn’t prepared for this. On the other hand, the bathroom scene in Crooked Kingdom with Inej? It was so beautiful, so well-crafted, so intimate; I felt the world stand still for a while.

- me looking at Jesper: adhd

I found him very relatable in terms of escaping his problems and felt sorry for his gambling addiction. But I wish his struggle over his powers was more expanded - he is shown being in two minds about this, but we as readers don’t really get full insight into the pros & cons of both option. But maybe it’s just the character’s specific way of going more by gut feeling and I’m being picky.

- a pet peeve of mine: if the author was really going so hard for the tzarist Russia vibe for Ravka, why did she name her character “Zoya Nazyalensky” and not “Zoya NazyalenskA” or, even better, “NazyalenskAYA” as it should be? C’mon, names ending in -sky have their female counterparts and it’s not hard to understand.

- what was a bit of obstacle to immerse myself fully in the Six of Crows was the fact that the whole novel was so well-planned and logical that I sometimes felt like watching the author’s creative process unveil - and while it would be helpful if I was looking for writing tips, I was there to have good fun and forget about my assignments, so it kinda got in the way. It was like “ok, I want them to get inside the prison... but how they’re going to do it? Ha, I know: the jailers’ carriage. Next: what happens next in prisons? Oh right, they will be searched and... probably put in new clothes. So no clothing and no weapons means it’s time for Jesper’s big reveal. This is where I pepper in his crush on Kaz. I can cross this off the list of his character development now”. The Crooked Kingdom was better in this aspect - as the characters’ subplots were more separated and the chronology was going in loops (character A’s POV ends with all people parting ways --> character B’s chapter describes their mission --> character C’s chapter starts again at the end of character A’s POV), it was more natural and captivating read.

- Kuwei was... very forgettable. I actually for most of the time totally forgot he was a character. I know he wasn’t a main character, but I feel like I know more about Specht and Rotty, some totally secondary gang members, than him.

#six of crows #crooked kingdom #book ramblings #generally 8/10 would read again

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encyclopika · 4 years

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Oh man, I was going to ask top 5 fish too! Top 5 books??

Hi Izupie! LOL Well, it got answered, so it’s almost like you got two answers! :P

From this ask game.

Gotta say, I wish I read as much as I’d like to or even preach. There just aren’t enough hours in the day, even in quarantine, for me to make AND consume media at the rate I think should be possible. I’ve spoken about my favorite books before, but more like all-encompassing to their series rather than the individual books, so I’m happy to do that now. And luckily, I own all my faves for this list:

1. Blackout by Rob Thurman

So, since I can’t shut up about Cal Leandros, it stands to reason one of the books in the Nightlife/Cal series will be on this list. I’ve talked about how I love the way this series in narrated, in that Cal himself tells this story from so deep within his own POV that you even get instances of TMI (too much information) like you’d get if you were actually sitting in the living room with this asshole and listening to him tell you the story. I love it so much that I tried my own hand at it with my own OC, Asuka/Krow. And it’s liberating af. But anyway, Blackout is like, the sixth book in the series, so at this point, we’re familiar with who Cal is and have come to accept his character. In this installment, we start with Cal waking up on a beach having absolutely no idea where or who he is. Rob Thurman does such an amazing and subtle job of keeping Cal in-character while also basically admitting that most of his snark is equally who he is and the environment in which he grew up. Thurman does such a great job with her characters in this way, that the POV can shift like this while still being undeniably Cal, and that’s real talent.

2. Darkfall by Stephen Laws

The book looks raggedy and shitty because I made the big mistake of letting my mother borrow it and this is how she treats books. -sigh- ANYWAY, this is probably my first “big girl” book and it’s a horror and I probably should read it again because I barely remember much about it. I don’t even remember much of the premise or the main characters, but the horror effects in it will always stick with me. It starts out feeling like a “whodunit” crime mystery and quickly turns into something fantastical and horrifying. And that was cool af to young me getting into books that weren’t “required reading”. In fact, I’d say Darkfall saved me from falling into the “I hate reading” that I feel is all too common when schools assign books that are, yeah, classics, but that doesn’t mean everyone will like them. It was really interesting and the mystery and suspense in the book was damn good.

3. Frostblood by Elly Blake

I have spoken about this one before and it’s probably the least grisly one on the list. All the others have themes of violence and horror and death, but this one is much more fantastical. That’s not to say it doesn’t have its dark undertones, namely the apparent racism between blood factions, in this book being the apparent suppression of Firebloods, for which the main character is one, by the Frostbloods. The world building is so on-point and it’s the exact ratio of main plot-to-romance plot that I write myself, in that the romance is there only secondarily to the more overarching issue, that being the rule of the current Frostblood king and the fact that Ruby, the MC, is tasked with taking him down, for which her Love Interest is entangled. It’s pretty great...I read it in two days, couldn’t put it down. And that was from a book I picked up on a whim while out with my sister one day!

4. Metro 2035 by Dmitry Glukhovsky

Yes. I did pick this series up because I loved the video games so much. Of the 3 books in the series, it’s this last one that I think is not only better than the others (although Metro 2033 is great, it drags in some spaces), but it’s better than Metro: Exodus, the video game that draws inspiration from it. In fact, I read this book first before playing Exodus, and they’re just NOT THE SAME in really any regard. In fact, Exodus doesn’t do any justice to this book. First of all, Artyom and pals do not hitch a ride on a train and travel across Russia looking for the perfect place to settle post-apocalypse. Instead, this book further delves into what’s wrong in the metro and continues to explore the desperation and “herd-mentality” of people when frightened and uninformed. And the twist here is one for the ages. Metro as a whole is a narrative that, for the most part, doesn’t have a true villain, but rather shows how even the most well-meaning people can make or let bad things happen.

5. Dead Boys by Gabriel Squailia

Here’s another one I picked up on a whim and for a long time, I really didn’t know what to think of it. The premise is BONKERS and right up my alley, though. It takes place in the Land of the Dead, a kind of “upside-down” where things that die in the living world - even buildings and old artifacts - appear here. Jacob is a dead guy “living” here (idk how else to say it lol) and he provides other dead people living in his “city” a kind of taxidermy so they can look as alive as time will allow. He gets word that there’s a guy who crossed into the Land of the Dead without dying first and since that’s cool af he abandons his home to meet the guy, and has two obnoxious and lovable friends who accompany him on this journey. It’s just really creative and fantastical and yeah, it even has a moral to the story at the end.

So yeah...I really recommend these very highly.

#books #book rec list #cal leandros #frostblood #metro #ask games #THANK YOUUUUU

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kanyniablue · 4 years

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fic writer tag meme

i was almost finished when i lost this post TWICE!!! TWICE

tagged by america-oreosandkitkats, which tumblr is not letting me @ ! i love new updated tumblr! it’s my favorite!

AO3 name: kat_blue, however i haven’t actually uploaded anything. it was #newyearsresolution2020 to start uploading some writing, just to say “i’m D O N E im not going to touch it again” but...2020 got in the way

Fandoms: overwhelmingly hetalia where i set up camp back in 2010-2011 and never moved on, harry potter but only in headcanons/crossovers, Discworld but don’t test me, uh, The Outsiders, yes that book we read in middle school, Coco (2017) because im a corporate sellout

Tropes: 30 AU Pileup, Historical AU, 20 Minutes into the Past/Future, Gen, Enemies-to-Lovers, Friends-to-Lovers, Hookup-to-Something-More, Enemies-to-Lovers-But-They’re-Still Enemies, Unhealthy/Codependent Relationship (romantic, platonic, familial...), Breakup Fic, For Want of a Nail, Everyone’s Dead Dave/Tragic End, Postcredits Scene/whatever you’d call it when you write what would happen after canon says “the end,” Character Study (not sure if that’s a trope but it’s mostly what I write)

Number of fics: ...a bunch. i write in several documents, some of which are inaccessable to me because of a computer crash. i honestly have no idea

Fic I spent the most time on: considering it’s not even finished, Sun Down (WWI Prussia that was supposed to be PruHun but turned into an extended character study/war novel/just torturing the guy but he kind of deserves it) has been limping along for 2+ years...although mostly nowadays I just poke at it occasionally

Fic I spent the least time on: i have no idea, i’ve got a bad habit of coming back to a “finished” fic months or even years later and messing with it. Maybe The Witch Dreaming, a weird little Nyo!EnglandxGreece fic that needed more notes explaining what it was about than it had actual words. it was one of those *sudden inspiration* *scribble scribble scribble* “wait, what the fuck is this?” fics

Longest fic: Brother, Can You Spare a Dime (RusAme domestic fluff & death threats in the Great Depression/Stalinist USSR, burns so slow they barely manage to kiss right before WWII breaks out, ends badly) clocks in at roughly 21K and it’s not even half finished. technically my main WIP but i don’t focus

Shortest fic: The World in the Palm of Your Hand, a tiny little Revolution!America character study, 147 words including its entire title? i know i used to write drabbles & flashfics but that document is...problematic right now

Most hits/Most kudos/Most comment threads/Most bookmarks: yeaaaah, about that...see “haven’t uploaded anything.” i think i uploaded a couple of fics to tumblr, possibly an old account, but if i did nobody ever read ‘em

Total word count: eeesh, probably at least 150K if we’re counting everything

Favorite fic I wrote: it changes but im still fond of Skin, a bunch of little spamano...vignettes? that i started back around 2014 and still enjoy, which isn’t something i say about a lot of my old writing

Fic you want to rewrite/expand on: ...all of them. if i have to choose probably Take the Long Way Home, a partially-finished NorwayxSouth Italy Human!ExchangeStudent!AU that i used to love back in its day of ~2012-2014 but now is very...dusty. writing style changed a lot from what it was back then, lots of “new to the fandom” tropes, lots of “real humans don’t act like this it’s just more dramatic” plot holes...i could do a lot with rewriting it, i just generally work on more recent things and i leave it fossilized and occasionally say “but what if”

Share a bit of a WIP or a story idea you’re planning on:

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime: What was supposed to happen was that they’d be met by the secret police at the train station, and U.S. Personification Alfred Jones would be arrested as a foreign spy.

What actually happened was that after giving up at the train station, one of Ivan’s bosses’ secretaries met them at the front of Ivan’s office building, where he waited and kicked his heel against the wall because he couldn’t light a cigarette without dropping America’s wrist and no amount of exasperated sighs from America was going to convince him it was safe to do so, and when the human secretary did get out there all he said was, “The police aren’t coming.”

Ivan closed his eyes. “Why are the police not coming?”

“They say you seem like you’ve got it handled, Comrade Braginsky,” said the secretary.

“How am I supposed to handle him?” Ivan said through his teeth, waving America’s arm, “Keep a grip on him like he’s a child until they feel fit to interrogate him?”

<<Hi,>> said America sardonically.

The secretary pressed his lips thin. “I don’t know, comrade.”

“He’s an American spy!”

“I am not being spy!” America said. “Not!”

The human looked between them, then said to Russia, “I don’t know what else to tell you, Comrade Braginsky. I don’t have the authority to override the chief of police.”

Slowly, Russia rubbed his eyes. “...I know, comrade. Very well. Take down a message for me, will you?”

Russia’s bosses received a note, in lieu of Russia returning to work as he’d planned: Have in custody suspected American spy, name of ALFRED JONES (note English spelling). Contact American consulate as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Russia would take America to the only place he knew he could keep an eye on the foreign nation.

[and then they were roommates. I don’t know nearly enough about Soviet Russia to depict it with any amount of accuracy but I’m writing gay country anime boys, this isn’t the place to look for a documentary.]

i know a lot of people who follow me write fanfiction so if you do and you see this, you’re tagged! let’s try to tag people who i know write: @gothicmagpie @knowledgequeenabc @convenientalias uhh I don’t know how many of my other followers are both active & writers

#tag meme #fanfic meme #quaranmeme #even right now im like 'no DONT POST THAT SECTION I PLAN ON CHANGING IT' which is why it's important to work on your new year's resolutions

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scni · 5 years

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chicago’s very own addison sani has been spotted on madison avenue driving a rolls-royce wraith , welcome ! your resemblance to greta onieogou is unreal . according to tmz , you just had your twenty fourth birthday bash . your chance of surviving new york is uncertain because you’re reactive , but being tenderhearted might help you . i think being a virgo explains that . 3 things that would paint a better picture of you would be walking out of a casino with double the money you walked in with, sunkissed skin all year round, drunkenly dancing on a table . ( my dad has ties to the mafia and when things started getting out of hand my mom forced him out of our lives what she doesn’t know is that i meet him for lunch every week ) & ( cisfemale + she/her ) + ( taylor , twenty , she/her , est )

wow ok guys , this took me alot longer than i expected ? i’m TIRED , lol . i’m taylor though , hi legends ! i’m 20 and live in the est + go by she / her pronouns . a little about me before we get to my lil baby — i spend too much time in the timewrap that is youtube where i’ll watch a ricky thompson video one minute then daily vlogs of a raccoon to mgk’s kelly vision vlogs true story , this MAY have happened while i was supposed to be getting this intro up 🥺 i’m a total music whore and love everything that has a good flow idc if it’s rap or country if it’s good it’s lit ! also heads up i have the attention span of a squirrel so if i don’t respond to a thread or ims it’s because im a dumb hoe , i still love ya . anyways , enough about me lets get this intro rolling ! give this a like if you’d like to plot . ALSO ? i know the background is a lil long it was honestly mostly for me to really flesh addison out and give me something to look back to , so if you wanna get to the point of the intro just skip the background ? there is a tl;dr after it followed by her personality / secret / stats + some basic wcs toward the end of the post !

* 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 !

addison mikhailovna sani , was born in saint petersburg , russia where she grew up in a home too big to even be referred to as a house . she wasn’t the first child of ivanka and mikhail but she definitely was their first planned child . a couple that met early in their twenties , had their moments but at the end of the day they loved one another . both extremely traditional and their beliefs , they were given no choice but to accelerate their love story when they turned up pregnant with their son . he was a beautiful and happy little boy , but posed a threat the ivanka and mikhail’s pretty storybook life they wanted to set up for themselves . obsessed with staying on some sort of timeline , ivanka began her campaign for her budding political career . then she turned up pregnant again , with their second child , a daughter this time . in their eyes their daughter was just another bump in their perfect life . they held a sort of resentment against the kids for that , especially given that ivanka had lost her window of political popularity . she’d resigned to the life of a socialite and stay at home mom and they decided the best way to fill her time up was with another child . this time , one they truly wanted . her parents would never admit it , but they hadn’t seen the true “ sani potential “ in their children that wasn’t until they had addison . her parents truly doted on her . from her point of view life was perfect . silver spoon life did her well . that was until the perfect facade the sani’s held up was beginning to crumble before their eyes . her father , a wealthy international real estate investor comes from a crime family , it was a world he hid in the shadows but things grew rather messy and the family was posed with a choice (a) leave russia and start up life somewhere else or (b) stay in russia and chance mikhail going to jail for the entirety of the kids childhood . of course they chose to leave russia , on the one promise to ivanka that mikhail was done with the life of organized crime .

they made the move to chicago , illinois when addison was just ten years old . luckily for her she’d grown up speaking three languages russian , nigerian , and english and so coming to america was made just a bit easier for her as she wasn’t completely fluent but was able to get by and converse with others . her parents quickly integrated themselves into the elite society within chicago’s wealthiest families , which wasn’t too hard with her father’s up - and - up line of work of real estate investing and her mother’s status as an heiress . the same could be said for the kids at school , each one integrating fairly well into their own friend groups . like at home stayed the same , they may have been in a new country but her parents love or obsession with addison knew no borders . she had everything a little girl could ask for and more , plus her busy parents actually made time for her - that was much more than her siblings could say . addison knew the dynamic , she was a smart girl and picked up on it quickly . often apologizing to her older siblings and offering up her own support for their lives in place of their parents . as she grew older the pressure from her family started taking it’s toll . when ivanka and mikhail sani thought you were destined to be great , they really pushed you and placed the highest of expectations on you . addison carried around the fear that one day they’d look at her the same way they did her siblings and so she worked herself in all aspects of her life to be the perfect daughter . she excelled at everything she did - academics , ballet , student government , and even becoming a debutante .

it wasn’t until she was sixteen that the toll really started chipping away at addison . she’d spent a month on a downward spiral; popping pills , drowning herself in alcohol , losing her virginity , and throwing parties . it all came to a head when she stole millions from her father’s secret stash and booked a private jet with a couple friends . the three went missing for nearly two weeks before they were spotted at a resort in ibiza . her parents brought her home only to send her away to an inpatient program for a little over a month . addison spent that month really digging deep , finding out who she was and what she actually wanted . her therapist had told her for her to get out of the dark place she was in she’d need to separate her thinking from her parents and let go of the perfectionist act . when she came back home it was like the last few months had never happened , her parents ignored it all . to them , the issue was fixed and now it was time to sweep it under the rug but for addison it broke her heart . she realized over that next year that her parents didn’t see her as a person with her own choices but instead some sort of maniquin for them to play some weird version of real life sims with . despite this realization she couldn’t help but to fall back in line .

senior year of high school came quick and the four years of student government , mock trial , equestrian , and perfect grades was nearly over but not before addison’s whole world crumbled before her . no matter how perfect she tried to be the sani’s could never run from the truth . they weren’t this perfect family , when her mom caught her dad tied up with the russian mafia within the city of chicago it was over . by the end of the night ivanka was kicking him out of the house , with the threat that if he so much as looked in the direction of her and the kids she’d have him sent to jail for the rest of his natural life . the threat was enough to spook him , he’d known her well enough to know she wasn’t bluffing . just a few months later he moved out of the state leaving secret letters for the children to let them know he loved them . but of course , addison wasn’t allowed to so much as miss a beat . ivanka was still on her like some crazed momager and when she landed multiple acceptances in some of the top schools across the country the two inevitably made the decision for addison to attend yale . secretly she wanted stanford but bit the bullet . she studied finance with a major in philosophy . joined a sorority and mock trial . in truth she took a liking to connecticut and the change of scenery helped her forget about everything happening back in chicago .

during her senior year at yale , her mom broke the news of the family making the big move to new york city . which really just meant addison and her mom were moving to new york city because her brother had started a family in his college town of durham , north carolina + was also playing for the carolina panthers while her sister traveling the world on some sort of instagram model high . her mom rambled on for week about how the move was perfect since addison would be attending columbia for law school so now the two could see one another more often . even at twenty two addison couldn’t put her foot down when it came to her mom and so for the millionth time in her life she held back what she really wanted to do ( finally going to stanford , for law school ) and committed to columbia law .

* 𝐭𝐥;𝐝𝐫 !

basically , addison is the baby of three kids . born in st petersburg , russia but grew up in chicago . she was always the favorite of her parents ivanka ( a russian heiress + philanthropist ) and mikhail ( a international real estate investor ) as she grew older she realized their love was more of a obsession with control + perpetuating a picture of a perfect family + daughter . the pressure to a toll on addison during highschool and she had a break down that led to a major downward spiral landing her in an inpatient facility for a month . when she got out , her parents ignored all the issues within the family and went back to treating addison like some sort of puppet + addison continued to go along with it , as she didn’t really know how else to be . today she struggles with being who she wants to be and who her mom wants her to be . she and her siblings have always gotten along , even though their parents never treated them all the same they were all able to see the struggle in how each one was treated and able to bond through their messy parent situation . as of now addison’s trying to play up a double life sort of situation . having fun + being the perfect daughter . she’s also on the path to becoming a big time lawyer . she’s in her 2L of law school at columbia + also works as a paid intern at the district attorney’s office .

* 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 !

addison has always been full of love and unlike her parents her love isn’t conditional maybe delusional sometimes but never conditional . don’t worry , after a nation wide search i’ve found the first girl who doesn’t suffer from resting bitch face . instead you’ll always see a smile on her face , to the point where if you ever see her not smiling be worried . something life shattering has happened . she’s the type to say she “ hates drama “ but perk up the minute she hears about drama going on in some else’s life . don’t worry though , after she done being nosy she’ll do all she can to help fix the issue even if you don’t want her too . hey , she may make things worse in the process but atleast she cares , right ? maybe not , i don’t know . incredibly loyal and loves to have a good laugh , she’s incredibly witty and a lover of corny jokes . very talkative . wants everyone to like her and if you don’t like her get ready for her to try at every chance to win you over . very much so the “ pardon me , but you really hurt my feelings “ type . she’s really just a soft , smart rich girl trying to navigate through this big world . also she falls in love quick , although she’d never had a real relationship . not because she’s a T H O T , she’s not , well , she doesn’t mean to be atleast . she just finds her befriending guys more than becoming their girlfriend . despite her naturally affectionate behavior , she just has this weird “ no boyfriend “ curse going on . maybe she’s pushing them away when things get close to serious in fear of losing the guy from her life . on a negative note , addisons hands down worst quality is her inability to control a situation she is incredibly reactive / volatile . she’ll easily fall into a screaming match or crying fit . never the type to walk away . a true virgo , y’all , the girl can and will argue until you’re blue in the face .

* 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 !

so basically , her dad is apart of the russian mafia . he was heavily involved while they lived in russia but when the government was catching onto his actions the family fled the country before they could dig any deeper into the case . he was supposed to cut ties when they moved to chicago but it was a way of life he simply couldn’t let go of . when addison’s mom found out she forced him out of their lives threatening to turn him in if he so much of looks at his children . despite this when addison and her mom moved to new york he reached out to addison . they’ve been meeting for lunch once a week for almost a year and a half behind her moms back . absolutely no one but those involved with the mafia know about her dad being within the mafia , which is exactly how he’s always wanted it , which is why her mom could never find out addison and he are continuing their relationship .

* 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 !

full name : addison mikhailovna sani age : twenty - four date of birth : september 7th place of birth : saint petersburg , russia zodiac : virgo label : the facade pronouns : she/her gender : cisfemale orientation : bisexual , biromantic height : 5′8″ weight : 132 lbs ethnicity : nigerian , russian hometown : chicago , illinois occupation : law student , intern @ the district attorney’s office more : allergic to apples , hates takeout food , has an affinity for adult cartoons and stand up comedy, lives for alternative music , believes cuddling is a natural human interaction , loves video games , graduated valedictorian of her high school , loves painting .

* 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 !

soooo i know these are pretty basic but im just throwing things at the wall here and hoping they stick , okay ? im down for really anything so we can take inspo from these ideas ? expand more on them ? or just brainstorm something completely different ? whatever works ! , best friends , GIRL squad , drinking/party buddies , we’re just friend or at least that what we say but i always bring you as my date to big events type of deal , flirtationship , sibling like friendship , someone who has a crush on her , they don’t like her and she’s always trying to get them to change their mind , someone who tries to talk her into standing up to her mom , a confidant , someone she has a crush on , booty call maybe she initially wanted something serious from them but just fell into this booty call dynamic and she wont say anything otherwise because she likes having them around , someone she has a crush on , an ex friend who probably broke her trust .

#wealthyhq:intro #( 🍒 ) a look 𝓫𝓮𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓭 the mask — ooc #rehab tw

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