#then break from that and filming the days i work the day job (in theory at least lol tho after shift time who knows)

[izzy-b-hands]

prolific is slow, so more filming and posting it is for today (tho I'm making!! slow progress!! towards enough ad revenue for a payout, and i got like 100 views across all my stuff yesterday alone! which isn't a lot for most ppl but for me it's !!!! which makes it worth it to try and keep up the tighter filming/posting schedule as best I can)

[alex51324]

So, the NDA signed by producers of The Apprentice just expired, and one of them has published a tell-all article. Most of the article is about how they used standard reality-TV tricks to portray Trump as being wealthy and intelligent, when in reality he was, and is, a deeply indebted buffoon.

The money shot, however, comes when Trump and the producers are preparing for climax of the final episode, when the winner will be decided.

Per the FCC's rules for game shows, producers could not be involved in deciding who would be fired each week, or who would ultimately win: it had to be Trump's decision alone, like contestants and viewers were told it was. The producers could, and did, give him a presentation about the strengths and weaknesses of the contestants each time he had to make a decision. These were recorded, in case questions ever arose about whether the producers had crossed the line.

So, for the final episode, there were two contestants remaining. Both were men, one white, the other Black. They'd both done well in the final challenge of the competition. As the producers were summarizing the points for an against each candidate, this happened:

“Yeah,” he says to no one in particular, “but, I mean, would America buy a n— winning?” Kepcher’s pale skin goes bright red. I turn my gaze toward Trump. He continues to wince. He is serious, and he is adamant about not hiring Jackson.

In the finished program, Trump chose the white contestant as the winner.

(Four years later, Trump would propagate the baseless conspiracy theory that Barack Obama was not a native-born US citizen and therefore had not legitimately won the presidency.)

The article also describes how women working on the production faced discrimination based on whether or not Trump wanted to look at them while they did their jobs:

While leering at a female camera assistant or assessing the physical attributes of a female contestant for whoever is listening, he orders a female camera operator off an elevator on which she is about to film him. “She’s too heavy,” I hear him say. Another female camera operator, who happens to have blond hair and blue eyes, draws from Trump comparisons to his own Ivanka Trump. “There’s a beautiful woman behind that camera,” he says toward a line of 10 different operators set up in the foyer of Trump Tower one day. “That’s all I want to look at.”

And there's a third anecdote where he pressures a woman producer to break the FCC rules, while being casually misogynistic toward a contestant:

Trump corners a female producer and asks her whom he should fire. She demurs, saying something about how one of the contestants blamed another for their team losing. Trump then raises his hands, cupping them to his chest: “You mean the one with the …?” He doesn’t know the contestant’s name. Trump eventually fires her.

This information is pretty unlikely to persuade anyone who wasn't already persuaded by any of the other things Trump has done and said, which would for anyone else be a career-defining scandal. But it is a useful reminder of who we're dealing with.

(Link is to Slate, an x-number-of-free-articles-a-month site, but the incognito window trick works.)

[respectthepetty]

@italianpersonwithashippersheart and @slayerkitty, I think Dee will win the scholarship too because he is a winner and will burn the hospital down if he loses, but I think he going to stay because he has to make a decision and even if he wins the scholarship, he'd still lose.

Follow me down Wild Ass Theory Road:

The director said all the money and high-tech equipment is pointless if they don't have component doctors in the hospital.

Dee took personal responsibility for his youngest patient's care.

And Dee is here for the patients.

Dee is a doer rather than a thinker like Ter, so he likes to be hands-on. Ter is compiling a lit review and filming videos, which is valid.

But Dee is conducting original research and coordinating activities.

Dee also doesn't like presenting.

Ter likes brushing shoulders with the big wigs.

Dee, strangely, isn't about that life, and really just wants to do his job, very well.

He could've been a face (dermatology), but he didn't want to do that.

He wanted to flex some knuckles, break some bones, and get the joints poppin'!

Dee is (fake) dating the boxer that the hospital, specifically his department, is sponsoring, and if the rumor mill was doing the rounds before when news spread that he was only applying for the scholarship because Ter rejected him, if he wins, I think the rumors will spread that he only got it because the hospital wanted to please their World Champion Boxer.

I'm blind when it comes to Ter, so I think this would be a good chance for him to redeem himself and step up to defend Dee which is something he DID NOT DO last time.

Dee is going to win, but he doesn't want to really study abroad. He wants to be in the hospital, doing his job, helping his patients, and doing his own research. Ter wants to study more and be a nice prop for the hospital, so let him.

Give the real loser his dream while also rubbing salt in his loser wounds letting him know that he is only getting this because Dee, the winner, is letting him.

Also, when Yak was busy with training, Dee sent Yak a message first.

Then, when Yak went to training, Dee drove four hours round-trip to see him.

Dee didn't even want to stay longer in Japan and he checked in on Yak's fight while he was out of the country. Also note that Dee didn't want to present on their work from the previous year, while Ter was quick to state they would once again proving that Dee isn't trying to rehash the past but build on it so he can keep making advancements. Also, the director is Team DeeYak.

Never once during these events did Dee admit he missed Yak first because Dee. Must. Win. And admitting he misses Yak makes him a loser.

So would Dee really study abroad and leave Yak in Thailand when he misses him so much even after a few days? Or would it be better for Dee to finally admit that even if he won the scholarship, he doesn't want to be away from Yak? He wins, but he loses.

Finally, a wedding IS coming. Last Twilight already gave us a breakup and time jump before a wedding brought the couple back together. That could happen here, but it shouldn't have happened the first time, and it'd be hella weird for it to happen twice, from the same company, in the same year. This isn't the Japanese BL run. We don't need two nickles for this.

And Dee is wearing Yak's chain in the BTS image, so they are still together, and considering how much Thailand makes a WHOLE THING over couples trying to stay together when one is abroad (Never Let Me Go, Bad Buddy, 23.5), they are together at that wedding.

Therefore, my Wild Ass Theory is that Dee will win the scholarship and will have to leave before Yak's big fight or Cher and Yei's wedding, so Green Flag Yak will say, "take the opportunity because you deserve it" but Dee will say "NO!" to the scholarship, make it to Yak's fight or the wedding at the final moment paralleling this scene,

Then, he'll scream "YAK, I MISS YOU" and *scene*

Dee has gotta lose eventually, so let it be in the finale admitting the one thing he refuses to admit - Winning doesn't matter if he loses Yak.

AMEN!

[xanthippe74]

Masterlist of my “12 Days of Fandom” recs, inspired by this post. As always, please check the tags and author's notes before reading. Enjoy!

🔸 Terminal Lucidity by @romaine2424 (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated G, 3K) This bittersweet fic has Harry putting his abilities as Master of Death to good use by comforting those close to death themselves. We see him at work here, adeptly easing the way for someone dear to him with compassion and care. I found this story incredibly moving and a beautiful portrait of family ties in the face of an impending loss. Featuring older, established Drarry and the Black-Malfoy family.

🔹 Our Objective Remains Unchanged by @citrusses (Drarry, rated E, 46K) Gorgeously and vividly written, this university rowing AU drew me in right from the get-go, despite the fact that Muggle AUs are not my typical cuppa. The enemies-to-lovers tension is perfectly paced as Harry and Draco fight for the same spot on the Oxford team. Citrusses did a fantastic job translating their backgrounds and personalities (as well as those of other familiar characters from the books) into this world. Class divisions and the pressure of a highly-public sporting event stand in very effectively for Harry’s canon experiences. All in all, the story has the poignancy and drama of a lush coming of age film, and I can’t recommend it highly enough!

🔸 The Pile by @b-vul (Drarry, not rated, about 1.5K) This hilarious ficlet was born out of littlewinnow’s tumblr post about Veela!Harry performing an intricate mating dance to impress Draco. Delightfully, it’s from Harry’s POV as he blindly “trusts his instincts” to guide him into increasingly bizarre actions. And the evolution of Draco’s reaction is pure comedy gold. I’ve come back to reread this one a couple of times, and it never fails to have me in stitches. (The tumblr thread also contains adorable art by regretfulcorrine!)

🔹 Shine on, You Crazy Diamond by @lagerloutfic (Drarry, HD Mpreg Fest, rated E, 42K) This is one of those fics that you can’t stop reading once you start (something I confirmed this morning when I went to skim through it for this rec and wound up spending a few happy hours devouring the entire thing again). It’s laugh-out-loud funny and deliciously smutty, with a full cast of delightful side characters and just the right amount of feelings. The story begins with the discovery of Draco’s surprise pregnancy, then switches to a long flashback of Harry’s gay awakening and his fast sexual/slow emotional burn relationship with Draco. The entire fic has a joyful feel—banter-filled pub nights, chaotic family dinners, audacious curse breaking—culminating in the baby’s arrival, which left me in happy tears and wishing for another 40K of this fabulous story. Featuring confident Harry, supportive friends & family, hot Charlie, and some shamelessly kinky Unspeakables.

🔸 Silhouettes by @sweet-s0rr0w (Draco/Ron/Harry, Dronarry Fest, rated E, 16K) Draco/Ron/Harry is not a ship I’d ventured into before I read this fic, but I’m so glad I did! Sweet’s writing always hits the right spot in my brain, and her alternating POVs and spot-on characterizations of all three boys are delightful. I especially loved Ron’s sexy self-assurance here. The unique magical theory around sentient houses is fascinating and ultimately poignant, once Draco gets to the root cause of the Burrow’s behavior. Sweet-sorrow surely lived up to her username with this one, weaving grief with humor and a heartwarming resolution.

🔹 Harry Potter Gets a Job (A 106-Page Comic) by dustmouth (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated M) Dustmouth’s comics never miss, I swear! In this one, we find Harry overcoming his distrust of Draco with the help of the Weasleys, especially Ron (who is definitely up to something himself). All of my favorite Dustmouth elements are here: the expressive characters, Draco’s wild wardrobe choices, and punchy dialogue galore. Also featuring drunken shenanigans at the Burrow, adorable Teddy, and some first-class Slytherin-ing by Draco to win his man (and find Harry that job). What a treat!

🔸 the earth from a distance by spqr (Drarry, rated E, 15K) A whirlwind time-travel fic with breezy humor, bedsharing, and spqr’s unmatched smut with feelings… What more could you ask for in a fic? Oh, yeah: fantastic worldbuilding for Hogwarts in 1599, brilliantly clever Draco, and a dash of enemies to lovers. I can never get enough of this author!

🔹 A Year In The Life by @ladderofyears (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated M, 19K) I swear, the author conjured a little bit of magic to write this story. It’s told entirely with 50-word microfics, one journal entry for each day of 2006 (an impressive feat, by itself!), and yet it reads just as smoothly as any traditional fic. Draco’s voice is perfect here, full of wit and subtle emotion, as his and Harry’s developing romance takes a sharp turn with an unexpected pregnancy.  Draco’s anticipation, worry, and joy are mixed with deftly-chosen details of his daily life, all captured with Emma’s trademark tenderness and warmth. This fic is a perfect comfort read for family feels and gentle romance.

🔸 try to fix you by @maesterchill (Harry/Ron/Hermione, HP Snooze Fest, rated M, 2K) A beautifully and tenderly written hurt/comfort fic set in the aftermath of the Battle of Hogwarts. Ron is the glue that holds the trio together here, caring for Harry and Hermione with gentle devotion. There’s no dialogue needed to tell this story, just Ron’s perceptive POV that captures the grief and love that compel him. I have a soft spot for this triad forming immediately after the war, as a way of holding onto each other and holding themselves together. Maester’s fic makes their transition from friends to lovers feel like the first step towards healing.

🔹 The Scent of Soft Rains by @dodgerkedavra (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated E, 20K) When Harry is left housebound and isolated by a traumatic injury, magical prosthetist Draco gets called into help. But Harry’s struggles go far beyond the physical ones. This recovery fic combines magical and non-magical therapeutic treatments in a way I can’t remember reading before. The hurt/comfort is just as it should be—both heart-wrenching and soothing—but there are enough surprising revelations to keep the story from feeling predictable. Draco is wonderfully unflinching and patient, and the ending left me crying happy tears. With lovely, restrained prose and vivid magical imagery, this one’s an absolute stunner.

🔸 Connecting Lines, Connecting Crimes by @sleepstxtic (Drarry, H/D Career Fair, rated M, 15K) With its intriguing careers, fascinating magical theory, and well-researched worldbuilding, this story captured my attention immediately, and the mystery at the heart of it kept me engrossed. This was one of the more thought-provoking fics I’ve had the pleasure of reading, exploring the intersection of magic, the environment, and colonialism. Harry’s first-person POV is lovely, and it feels like we’re learning to love India and the people he meets along with him. The getting-back-together romance is gentle but satisfying, propelled by pent-up yearning that’s palpable. There’s so much to enjoy here, all in only 15K words!

🔹 Waking Up Slow by @sweet-s0rr0w and @ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm (Drarry, H/D Wireless Fest, rated E, 22K) The first word that comes to mind while reading this fic is charming. First there’s the novel setting: a Christmas shop in the tourist destination of Cheddar Gorge, in the middle of a July heatwave. Next, there’s the shop itself, so imaginatively described and full to the brim with clever Muggle and magical details. Then there are the delightful OCs, Draco’s seemingly unhinged enthusiasm for all things Christmas (including ridiculous jumpers), and Harry’s complete disregard for professional behavior. But underneath the playful banter and humor, there’s also a layer of poignancy to tug at the heartstrings, especially when we find out the backstories behind Harry’s and Draco’s unlikely careers. And to top it all off, like the glowing star on the tree, are Joy’s exuberant, colorful illustrations. This is a Christmas-y fic I’d reread any time of the year.

Thanks to all these brilliant creators for sharing their work with us!

Happy New Year!

[mcflymemes]

PROMPTS FROM HOW TO LOSE A GUY IN 10 DAYS *  assorted dialogue from the 2003 film, adjust as necessary

you can't lose something you never had.

what other girlfriends?

i want you to respect me.

hey, what's wrong?

you see, the key to this game is being able to read people.

so tell me how long have you guys been seeing each other?

you know what? you did your job.

you are the first girl he ever brought home.

uh, she's not here.

oh, you are never going to pull this off.

i respect you for respecting me.

do you have an ethical problem with rifling through a woman's purse?

watch me.

you're up, you're down, you're here, you're there, you're like a frickin' one woman circus.

you're not going to burn his apartment down or bite him or anything?

is that too soon to be seeing a therapist?

i'll be clingy, needy...

i was just a girl somebody picked out in a bar.

our love fern! you let it die!

what's wrong with that?

i don't think i can be with someone who doesn't like animals.

i can't eat in front of you! i have to go to the bathroom.

yeah, you know what? big deal.

he's inviting me over to his house for dinner.

it's a woman's purse, all right? it's her secret source of power.

you wanted to lose a guy in ten days? congratulations. you did it.

true or false: all's fair in love and war.

so that's what i was, huh? i was a guinea pig. somebody you can test your theories on?

i've got a feeling about this one.

like... do blondes really have more fun?

that's what i'm talking about.

no honey, it's just sleeping.

ooh, call him in the middle of the night and tell him everything you had to eat that day.

why this place?

it's like a week.

look who made the trip with me!

i love you... but i don't have to like you right now.

you're already falling in love with me.

now you can even use it as a little twist in your story.

there are many dark and dangerous things in there that we, the male species, should know nothing about.

look, just give me back the necklace. then you guys can go on and kill each other.

it looks like the inside of a raincoat.

that's a good idea. maybe we should bet on it.

i'm gonna make you wish you were dead.

you gotta name it something hyper masculine, okay?

is she on to something?

in that case, i better get going. take care of our love fern, honey.

i can't eat in front of him!

nothing. it's beautiful. you're beautiful.

she's got an interview in washington.

you're not a therapist, are you?

you know what, due to intense humiliation, the king has momentarily abdicated his throne, okay?

you owe me three hundred bucks.

don't you break his heart now.

tone-deaf and drunk is not a good combination.

it's our love fern!

c'mon, blow. nobody likes a mr. sniffles.

look look look, wait a minute.

you have to take it away before i gag.

have you looked inside?

now, i'm going to go back inside and finish watching "sleepless in seattle." nobody screw with me.

i'm taking this love fern with me!

we got a whole bunch of work we have to do, but we're still on for poker at your house this weekend?

why do they always forget my bacon?

when are you seeing him again?

[datcloudboi]

List of Films Turning 10 Years Old in 2024

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

American Sniper

Annie (the remake starring Jamie Foxx)

As Above, So Below

The Babadook (we stan a gay icon)

Batman: Assault on Arkham (a direct continuation of the Batman: Arkham games)

Big Eyes

Big Hero 6

Birdman (won the Best Picture Oscar for this year)

The Book of Life

The Boxtrolls

Boyhood (filmed over the course of 12 years)

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Chef

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead

Dear White People (the basis for the TV series on Netflix, and made by the same guy)

Dracula Untold (this was Universal’s second attempt at launching the Dark Universe)

The Drop (a crime drama starring Tom Hardy)

Edge of Tomorrow/Live Die Repeat

The Equalizer

Exodus: Gods and Kings (a biblical epic directed by Ridley Scott)

The Expendables 3

The Fault in Our Stars

Foxcatcher

Fury (the war movie with Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf)

Get on Up (the James Brown biopic starring Chadwick Boseman)

Godzilla (the 1st film in the MonsterVerse)

Gone Girl

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1

The Guest

Hercules (the one starring The Rock)

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (did you guys know the working title for this movie was “The Hobbit: There and Back Again”?)

How to Train Your Dragon 2

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

If I Stay

The Imitation Game (the movie where Benedict Cumberbatch plays Alan Turing)

Inherent Vice

Interstellar

The Interview (the movie that almost caused World War 3)

Into the Woods

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

Jodorowsky's Dune (a documentary about the Dune movie that we never got)

Joe (one of Nic Cage's best movies)

John Wick (the 1st one)

Kill the Messenger

Left Behind (one of Nic Cage's worst movies)

The Lego Movie

Life After Beth

Lucy ((the “humans only use 10% of their brain” movie. Which has since been proven false. Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-people-only-use-10-percent-of-their-brains/ )

Maleficent

The Maze Runner

A Million Ways to Die in the Weset

Mr. Peabody and Sherman

Muppets Most Wanted

Need for Speed (Aaron Paul's first project after "Breaking Bad" ended)

Neighbors

Night of the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (the third one. Also one of Robin Williams’ last movies)

Nightcrawler

Noah (a biblical epic directed by Darren Aronofsky)

Non-Stop

The Nut Job

Obvious Child

Oculus (one of the 1st projects from Mike Flanagan)

Ouija

Paddington

Penguins of Madagascar

The Purge: Anarchy

The Raid 2

RoboCop (the reboot that was actually decent)

Selma

Sharknado 2

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

Son of Batman

St. Vincent

The Taking of Deborah Logan

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (the one produced by Michael Bay. It’s also the one where the Turtles look like aliens)

The Theory of Everything (the movie where Eddie Redmayne plays Stephen Hawking)

Third Person

300: Rise of an Empire

Transformers: Age of Extinction

Tusk

22 Jump Street

Veronica Mars (the film continuation of the TV show)

A Walk Among the Tombstones

What If? (a rom-com starring Daniel Radcliffe)

What We Do in the Shadows (the film that was the basis for the TV show)

When Marnie Was There

Whiplash

X-Men: Days of Future Past

[aerodaltonimperial]

hi, friends, guess what time it is? it's DEEP DIVE RING POSTS with katy (and vamp). today's theorizing sesh is near and dear to my heart, namely because it actually took me awhile to figure this one out.

(but before we start, this is one of those moments where i'm going to say remember how a month ago we said they were majorly stalling this storyline until wrestledream because all this shit started to not make sense anymore - WE WERE CORRECT! we just didn't have all the information, since we clearly didn't know about copeland hopping over and that was in the works during the stall time. but while we didn't have the players right, we were spot-on with the tactics being used because they didn't make sense with what had happened earlier. i'm gonna give us like a B+ on that assignment, for getting the details right but not the main characters, and this is using my 11th grade civics teacher as a model after i wrote a 3-page essay on a historical presidential election where i could remember minute details but not who fucking ran in the race.)

anyway, keep that in mind as we head into DEEP DIVE THEORY TIME with katy, because we're going to look at these two theories:

darby is not actually injured

they are stalling again

let's start with #1! WHAT?? you say, and yo, i know, it took me weeks to figure this out, too, because dude has legit been doing a good job with this. except... not quite good enough. let's break this part down first, because honestly, we're giving him mad props for his, on account of he's fucking smart, and also we were suckered in and i mean, i gotta give props where props are due.

i'm still not totally sure if he really did get injured at wrestledream or not, but if he DID, it certainly wasn't bad enough to stop him from immediately going to europe and climbing mountains for like 2 weeks. dude was rappelling. there's some really fucking important shoulder and arm shit that goes into rappelling lol. but specifically, i kept waiting for an update after wrestledream that never materialized - either on the dirt sheets or on his IG stories, like a "haha broke my arm #coffindrop" you know what i'm saying? never happened. he showed up once, did a promo, and left. to climb mountains. sus.

then, he comes back. attacks nick after his interview with his mom (typing that sentence was a joy, i can't lie). the next day, goes to nitro and absolutely does not land that flip. what he DOES land is on his shoulder. the dirt sheets DID pick this up, with some pretty hilarious headlines. after this, he appears on AEW in the sling. the very, very prominent sling. it's so prominent, that it's on top of his suit during the ric flair segment. he even goes so far as to film an IG story with sting as sting tells him NOT TO GO TRY THE TRIKE FLIP AGAIN and darby being like NO I HAVE TO DO IT EVEN IF I'M INJURED and you know what, me not catching it here is on me, 100%. they were laying it on way too thick. that injury was THROWN IN OUR FACES lol. i'm better than this, i swear.

he even got nitro to go in on it, which, again, props. they were all "oooohhh against doctor's orders" okay but you know what works? if he actually wears the sling. when he goes. and has something on his arm. when he does the flip again. and doesn't fucking coffin drop a dude backstage from a cabinet using his bad shoulder without missing a beat and then going in for one of those half bro hugs after. he completely no sold it there. that shit ain't injured.

(also please enjoy the random wrappings - sometimes it's his elbow! sometimes it's his wrist! sometimes his shoulder is broken, other times fractured! good lord, he's like a fucking wizard.)

i'm pretty impressed, though. he knew that everyone would go "this idiot is ACTUALLY DUMB ENOUGH to do this shit while injured!" and he banked on it and he played us. that's like... the most self-aware thing ever. god dammit. he's hotter now. i'm so mad. I AM SO MAD lol.

so okay, he's not actually injured. that's fucking kayfabe. but the question is... why? why are they running a kayfabe injury? if they just needed to get him time off for his europe trip, then... he's back now? why keep it up now? in fact, why go HARDER with it now, when there isn't any reason to keep him out of the ring?

and that's #2: they're stalling again.

specifically, they are stalling for full gear. this storyline has suffered so many incidents of stalling, and we've really only identified the source of one of them: copeland. but, like, why did darby win the battle royale on july 19 to get a shot at the TNT belt AT THE BEGINNING OF SEPTEMBER? why on EARTH was that so delayed? anyway, i digress, the point is they are stalling, and i don't know why. sting is around until march. this feud has been going for months, so they don't need to add any additional story, so... unless darby fucks off for another climbing trip, i can't figure out why they would stall just for another PPV. this FUCKING STORYLINE has run for MONTHS and there is no REASON that christian should still be targeting darby when he's gotten everything he wants (the belt and nick wayne).

they are obviously teasing that copeland is going to be the third person in the sting+darby team, but vamp doesn't think he will be and i'm inclined to agree with her. the copeland v. christian feud is going to be a major thing for them, and it doesn't make much sense for them to go against each other in the ring for the first time!! ... in a 6-way tag match that isn't even really about them. we think there will be a bait and switch with this: they'll tease it like it will be copeland, as they already are, and then they'll pull the "i can't fight my friend" and bring someone else in, thus prolonging the inevitable copeland v christian show-down for later when it can be its own match, as it deserves to be.

but why. are. they. stalling. this. until. full. gear.

so the options are, in order of most likely to least likely:

darby is going to leave for another trip and they needed to give him time off. since it's his fake injury, this is my most likely option. the only reason i question this is because he's pulled this kayfabe injury into REAL TIME and darby... does not really do that super often. his IG runs non-kayfabe at all times. they could easily "fake" the injury on screen and he does whatever he wants off-screen.

they want to put more story into this, which is not necessary at this point because this has literally been going since july. but AEW likes beating dead horses with sticks, so. possible.

they are going to use ric flair and wanted to give him a PPV so it's a bigger match, which doesn't really make sense since he had a huge retirement match last year. but, maybe it's a big middle finger to everyone else, who knows.

they are stalling because they need the location of full gear.

why would they need the location of full gear? because full gear is happening in los angeles. if you needed to bring someone back after an altercation and were not sure what the reception was going to be, the best place to do it? hometown crowd. BUT KATY THIS MAKES SENSE WHY IS THIS THE LAST OPTION. because i don't trust ANY OF THESE FUCKS to do what makes narrative sense here lol. bringing jack in for copeland IS THE MOST SATISFYING NARRATIVE OPTION IN THIS STORYLINE. it's got punch, it's got pop, it's got the mirror of the mentee vs mentor we already have with darby and nick. it's finally bringing jack in when his GHOST has been behind this entire thing from the start. BUT IT HAS ABOUT A .2% CHANCE AND WE KNOW I DON'T EVER GET WHAT I WANT. so it's the last option. is it the most satisfying? yes. would it be what i wrote if this was a story? yes. will they do it? no.

honestly, darby doesn't need to BE in this story any longer. the only thing he needs to come back for now is nick, and they can tease that out until march before he leaves for everest and have the big darby vs nick showdown then. there's certainly no need to do it now: let it simmer. let them beat each other up backstage more. let shayna have more tearful interviews about their bro-tastic relationship. but he doesn't need to be here. and i can't figure out why christian is still targeting him, specifically. there's no point.

so... i'm stuck. i guess we'll see where they go with this, and if darby fucks off again, then we have our answer as to why they were stalling for nov. 18th, but for now.... i don't know! i have nothing. i have the most compelling narrative option, and i don't believe that they'll do it. so we're stuck lol.

i welcome any ideas to this, because i'm annoyed that i can't find the thread to pull this one out. and as always, if i'm wrong, it's because i'm actually kind of dumb: remember that essay. that B+ was kinder than it should have been hahaha.

[hellyescharlesedwards]

Quashing this Michael Gregson/Downton Season 4 rumour once and for all (hopefully).

I've seen this going round for a while, that because of Charles and his busy schedule, Gregson got killed off and never made it past season 3.

Here’s the rumour taken from a Screenrant article:

Two words. Citation needed.

Where did this come from? Who said this? Fellowes? Production?

Charles?

Certainly not.

Under the cut is my theory (only a theory, but based on evidence I have gathered) as to the real reason why we got no Gregson after s3.

The biggest red flag to me is that Charles himself has stated that he was actually very keen to come back, saying,

"I’d have liked to have married Lady Edith, of course I would. It was denied me. I don’t know why.” - interview from OfficialLondonTheatre.com

I don't know why.

Now if the rumour was true, you would think Charles would have said something like, "I would’ve liked to have married Edith, but due to my other work commitments, I could not fulfill this wish," instead?

Granted, during season 4 filming, he was doing a stage job at the West End (a few Downton allumni, inc Joanne Froggatt, went to see him during its run), so maybe the rumour started based on the fact he already had a job so couldn’t have fit Downton in, right?

Not necessarily.

Did you know, that during season 3 filming, Charles was actually doing two acting jobs? Yes. Downton during the day, then a National Theatre production in the evening. His play opened on 23rd Feb 2013, then the day after, he was spotted filming in St Pancras station with Laura Carmichael. So it is entirely possible that he could have fitted in season 4 filming alongside a stage job if he had to.

But but but, I hear you cry, Charles would have had to take some time off from his play to do Downton? He could have done that yes; actors have been known to break off a theatre run for other projects, but nope. He made it to every single performance. The theatre would have announced if he had to leave for a period due to other acting commitments, but never did. So 🤷‍♀️

I'm going to add Fellowes could have also gone, "Right Charles, we're signing you up for season 4," and if he had already accepted the stage job, could've cancelled and done Downton as top priority (Charles did once have to forfeit a stage role for a TV role due to a scheduling clash - in 2022 he was signed up to do Best of Enemies at the West End, but Rings of Power was a much bigger commitment than preciously predicted, and due to a plethora of reasons, filming ROP AND perfoming BOE would have been an impossible feat).

So in conclusion, it wasn't Charles's fault we got no more Gregson. It was Fellowes's doing; he didn't want him back. Or did, but couldn’t think of how to bring him back.

TL;DR: Charles wanted to come back and could have fitted season 4 into his schedule, but Fellowes didn't ask him to return.

Also I'll add in my sources later, I'm just tired to fit them all in rn lmao

[heybaetae]

Actually, your answer was really interesting because I did not know any of these things! :D Also can I just say, even though you very rarely talk about your experience with cameras/film, it's so nice when you do! I love seeing people talk about something that they are passionate about and/or have relevant experience in.

If I remember correctly, even their bangtan bombs/eps and run bts episodes used to be better quality a few months or years ago. They obviously do not need to be as good as their docus (i love break the silence's quality AND editing so much!), but I noticed a few CCs talking about how it got worse. Why do you think they switched?

oh good i was kinda worried i came off a bit snobby with that response when i totally didn’t mean to 😭 i’m really only just speculating and applying my own knowledge of cameras to what i’ve observed, but i’m no expert and could of course be wrong. i definitely don’t claim to know better than a professional film crew, but in my experience working on sets and learning about what types of cameras work best for the overall product and will provide the best results, it’s been interesting (and frustrating as a cc lol) to see the quality steadily reduce in things like run bts and bangtan bombs. my theory as to why they’ve downgraded to cheaper cameras for those types of media in recent years? besides it being cost effective, well…frankly, they don’t have to hire people with previous experience on any type of film crew to do it. and i’m not saying they don’t have people around who know what they’re doing and are using great, high quality equipment when a situation calls for it—but i think they ALSO have inexperienced staff who they put in charge of the “b-roll” cameras for content that isn’t as prioritized as what the bigger documentary cameras pick up. so like youtube stuff for example. or even most stuff they release on memories dvds. that inexperience comes through a LOT in those videos these days, especially when it comes to simple camera settings like adjusting the white balance to the light in the room or changing the ISO to give a slightly brighter image. really simple fixes that are instead consistent nuisances. i hate to say it so bluntly but i really don’t think some of these staff are taught to use a camera properly at all seeing as they have become a bit careless about it. if you’ve ever seen fan videos from afar of the boys and you notice like one random person trailing behind some member with a small camera in one hand, that’s the kind of thing i’m talking about. proper film crew members are usually distinguishable by the bigger shoulder cams and extra gear they’re wearing, especially if there are extra bodies around them with lights and better mics. that candid footage is fine and it works in certain contexts, i’m not trying to completely disregard certain job roles because i’m sure it’s not easy trying to catch everything all the time, but for a company with so much money it’s a bit laughable how lazy, for lack of a better word, they’ve become when it comes to providing decent footage of certain moments. but sometimes it later turns out that a professional doc crew caught those same moments from other angles! i’ve noticed that happen and we’ve already seen it in one of the disney trailers with the moment they were nominated for their first grammy.

bangtan bomb, cheaper HD camera:

beyond the star doc series, 4K movie camera:

another example…

love yourself concert dvd, cheaper HD camera:

bring the soul doc series, 4K movie camera:

different qualities, aspect ratios, white balance, color grading, just overall better version for the content it was used and intended for. :)

[nodataavaliable]

My son thinks he is a "Skibidi Toilet"

I've taken him to several therapists but nothing works. My son thinks he is a "Skibidi Toilet". He honestly and truly convinced he is one of these singing toilet creatures, and will not stop insisting that everybody else believe him too. It is relentless and unnerving.

I've quit my job to become a stay-at-home mom ever since my husband divorced. He went to go work for a camera factory, and disappeared from family life. My son turned to YouTube incidently from that moment on, which was but a few months ago.

The obsession with "Skibidi Toilet" started with Roblox, where I was oblivious to the psychological harm it would cause us at the time, and often gave him money to buy things from the game. Looking back now, I notice every purchase on my credit card went towards some stupid accessory in only the games about the toilets.

He started watching the "Skibidi Toilet" YouTube series. Over and over again. He would sing the song along with the toilets, until he had it memorized, and started singing it all the time. He watched videos from lore and film theory channels, learning anything and everything about the "Skibidi Toilet" ever thought and recognized in the "Skibidi Toilet" universe. I've caught wind of several of these videos when they've been on in the house, but I don't understand if there's any coherent narrative to any of them.

It seems like an AI script is writing all of it. A very bad AI script at that. I find it harder and harder each day to believe an actual person, or set of people, is behind this complete and utter nonsense. What kind of goals does the Algorithm set to accomplish? Convincing kids they are toilets? That they can "identify" with whatever they want?

My kid used to be smart and bright but his mental capacity is waning because of this. I fear for his future development and potential growing into an adult. His schoolwork and reading comprehension scores have gotten lower and lower, and his social interaction skills have faltered as well. I used to expect a "hello" or "good morning" from him, but now all I get is a ""Skibidi dob dob yes yes yes, Skibidi dob dob dip dip" ... you know, "Skibidi" this and "Skibidi" that. I've had it with this stupid fucking song and everything.

The effect this phase has had on him is almost too much to bear to witness as his loving and deeply concerned mother. He started climbing into public toilets and cramming himself into the bowl. He has been sent home from school early several times because of this unexplainable behavior, which ends up involving several adults forcefully pulling him out and suffering a tantrum back from him.

Therapy has done nothing. I had over-optimistic hopes in his last therapist, who merely prescribed drugs to absolve the problem. The drugs had zero effect on him, so I quit that very medication instead of refilling it when the time came.

We went to Home Depot to pick up some gardening equipment together, and he saw the display toilets in the bathroom aisle. I had to pull him out of one of those toilets, but accidently caused it to fall over on its side, which shattered it. He was emotionally attached to it, screamed and desperately tried to put the useless shards back together. It caused a giant public scene and embarrassment and I had to pay for the broken toilet myself at checkout.

Now I leave him at home and keep him suspended from school. I don't believe he is ready to return anytime soon. I am on the verge of breaking down in tears. I keep the bathroom locked, but he often finds a way in regardless. There is nothing he likes doing more than crawling into the toilet and singing the "Skibidi Toilet" song. He believes now 100% that he is a "Skibidi Toilet", referring to our bathroom toilet as his "exo-skeletal shell". I woke up to him doing this at 3:00 AM this morning and was so exhausted that I did nothing and tried to go back to sleep. I feel like a failure as a mother. I just don't understand this.

Our lives a "going down the toilet", so to speak. I can't "handle" much more of this. I just "can't stand" to see my child's mind and soul hit such a low point in life, going so deep down in the "sewer".

hey guys look at this cool ask its been sitting in my inbox for months

[toindeedbe-agod]

ill get into real posting in a sec i need to deliver new hcs for the modern au tho 🙏

neil

on the academic team at welton. he plays jv and is not great at it but damn does he try

spiritual connection to jeff buckley. the other poets are only mostly worried esp since he doesnt know how to swim

fucks around with his schedule so hard he ends up taking keatings three times in one year on top of also being his ta

has never climbed a tree ever

knows how to tie his shoes like, in theory

major gleek. dragged todd into it

absolutely cannot cannot cannot drive. do not trust him with it. he can get himself to school and back and only just barely.

considers himself Artsy and Pretentious. listens to dua lipa

last true high school shakespearian scholar

todd

holder of the groups dab pen 🙏

has a cat that charlie swears up and down looks like tom cruise. no one else sees it.

listens to midwest emo

insomniac.

watches the princess bride once a week

favorite author is ray bradbury

only one in the friend group who likes the great gatsby and it genuinely pains him to this day the extent he believes the others are misunderstanding it

secret lana del ray listener

unfortunate addiction to toaster strudels. school supplies $20 new books $70 toaster strudels $898759 gifts for friends $30 someone whos good at budgeting please help

charlie

#1 shenanigans getter-up-to. a real ne'er-do-well.

will do anything if he thinks itll be fun enough. starring in the school play w neil? sure. breaking into the local middle school? absolutely. helping film a music video for one of pitts' fave bands at 8pm cause hes the only one w a video camera? whatever dude just give him a heads up to put pants on

probably genderfluid but he has a job so he doesnt really care (<jobless loser tho)

hes actually native and not racist. trust im native and im literally him

wears the same busted ass pair of doc martens every day. theres a hole in both of them. theyre covered in what is either red paint or blood. the laces are in complete disrepair. theyre so so scuffed. he loves them

#gorewhore. #horrorfanatic. #fangs. absolutely loves horror movies, the freakier the better

takes naps like its his fucking job.

meeks

takes ap classes for fun. everyone hates him for this

has a deeply held suspicion that charlie may have actually boned his mom but it hurts too much to think about

tried so hard to be a twitch streamer when he was 12 and charlie will never let it go

tries every year to show charlie either 1. lord of the rings 2. dune and it never ever works.

made a tiktok recipe for a friend hang out once (1) and now he has to make it every time for threat of tears from charlie and neil

babysits for extra cash. teaches the kids how to swear

had braces from 7th grade to 11th grade

isnt allowed to eat white bread

gets sunburns in the shade

pitts

failed econ 🙏

has seen all the human centipede movies. thinks the first one is great but the second one is just awful.

plays crazy amounts of dating sims and visual novels and shit. steam account is literally radioactive

gets yelled at for wearing airpods in class once a day

only one brave enough to eat school lunch

secret soft spot for romcoms. dude just wants love

massive crush on natasha richardson he misses her every day

likes the star wars sequels. even ep 9.

keeps a shaved head (after he accidentally set his hair on fire)

totaled his car. was still bought a new one

has walked into hotels just to abuse the complimentary waffle machines

knox

also failed econ 😔

scared of the rock bottom episode of spongebob

big spongebob watcher in general

also a big stranger things watcher

lowkey if its a basic tv show hes watchin it. knox is helping to bring down the average media literacy rate of the world singlehandedly

obsessed with romcoms. especially terrible ones.

kiss me by sixpence none the richer can make him cry if you time it just right

#loverboy

would lose his head were it not attached to his body

certainly the prettiest crayon in the box, if not the sharpest

probably dyslexic but we'll never know

[stormyoceans]

tried to compile all my theories and wishes for last twilight and if i didn't forget anything (which let's be real.. i did) this is what i have for now:

day's losing his vision is due to a badminton related accident. bonus point if august is responsible for it (of course without meaning to) and we get the two of them struggling with guilt and forgiveness;

film plays mork's sister and she is in love with porjai;

mork's parents died when he was around 17 y/o and he dropped out of school to raise his little sister. the garage belonged to his parents and it probably would be easier to sell it since he hardly makes any profit out of it and has to look for other jobs to keep going, but it's the only thing left from them, so mork doesn't want to give it up;

night and porjai already know each other at the beginning of the story and maybe even have a thing. that's how mork eventually ends up knowing about the job as day's caretaker: night tells porjai what happened to day and how his brother is sending all the caretakers running, so porjai asks him to give mork a chance;

if night and porjai are indeed in a relationship, it's a very complicated and not very healthy one, which is one of the reasons they get worried when mork and day get closer. bonus if at the end they break up and porjai ends up with film's character (THE CLOWN MAKE UP STAYS ON);

mork and day are out for a walk when they get surprised by a sudden downpour so mork takes day to his garage until the rain stops since it's close by, but by the time they get there they're both absolutely soaked so mork lends day one of his work clothes to change into. bonus for mork having to look away from day as he changes;

mork teaching day about all the tools in his garage by describing them in details and making day's hands feel them one by one;

day jerking off to the smell of mork's clothes;

day tracing mork's tattoo and liking to touch the back of mork's head where the hair is shorter;

THE BEACH SCENE AND THE GUIDE RUNNING SCENE FROM THE MOCK TRAILER STAY;

an underwater scene where mork wonders if that's what day's vision is like;

mork staring at day's legs in shorts and going through the 5 stages of horny;

mork and day cooking together;

mork describing a movie to day;

MORK AND DAY SLOW DANCING;

a scene with mork's debt collectors and day: either they show up when mork and day are together or they go after day to threaten mork;

AT THE VERY LEAST 3 KISSES I SAID WHAT I SAID. bonus if one is over a book;

day eventually being the one to pursue mork with confidence while mork has a lot of self doubts and insecurities;

mork eventually deciding to leave and day's mom pushing him to do that. bonus if day's fish dies when mork stops showing up;

day helping mork recognizing his worth and pushing him to follow a dream he had to give up after his parents died;

MORKDAY GET A HAPPY ENDING WHICH INCLUDES DAY COMING TO TERMS WITH HIS DISABILITY, NOT GIVING UP BEING AN ATHLETE AND BUILDING A NEW FUTURE WITH MORK.

[caintooth]

you give off grad student vibes; are you?

yeah i’m a grad student, like, spiritually ;) no LMAO i’m kidding it would be fucked if someone actually claimed that

real answer tho, no i’m not currently! i’m taking some time off to work a job, have hobbies, and be a “student of life” or whatever, which is what i was trying to convey with that bad intro joke.

so, this is way more than you asked for, but… idk i’ve been meaning to say a lot of this for a while and writing it all out felt good, so unfortunately your ask is now the base for it lmao!

i think it’s important to talk about academic stress and how it can ruin not just your love of learning, but your sense of self.

for background info, i have a general Associate of Arts degree, and a Bachelor of Arts degree for which i completed a comparative literature major, with an ‘official’ focus in creative writing (though ‘personal’ focus in poetry, video games, film, and the fluidity between those mediums), and a minor in religious studies. i graduated in may of this year.

now, as a child, my mom was very harsh about school, to the point that my cousins would not want to come over during summer breaks because they knew we would be doing some sort of worksheets that my mother had designed. my “free” time was filled with non-stop educational camps, day classes, documentary watching, museum trips with worksheets, etc. until i was about age 14. and i do know that on one hand i am extraordinarily privileged to have had those experiences, and i am very thankful for them! but the reason those stopped is because i also grew up with several undiagnosed, thus untreated and increasingly severe mental illnesses. so i’m sure you can make the connections necessary to see how… damaging… my mother’s academic pressure became. i didn’t continue with further extracurricular programs because i ceased to be able to go even to regular school. my anxiety, both academic and social, became so severe that i was placed on a local program called “home hospital school”, which is normally reserved for terminally ill patients. i eventually transferred to an “early college” program because i could not go back to “regular” high school and at that point, wanted to be done with school as quickly as possible.

i took a gap year after graduating with both my high school and 2-year college degree on the same day. i was terrified and exhausted and having regular breakdowns about having to apply for more undergraduate classes. eventually i applied to 2 programs just to appease my mother that i would have at least one school and a “back-up,” and my first choice was the program at UNC-CH i just graduated from. i attended therapy just to push myself to do those applications.

and the first half of my time at UNC was… terrifying and confusing. i didn’t know what i actually “wanted” to do with my life let alone my day-to-day time, what i enjoyed, or why i was there. my dissociative disorder grew worse during that time than it had in my entire life. but eventually, being away from my mother gave me the chance to explore topics i never thought were even possible in an academic space! i took classes where we played video games for an hour straight, talked about the social origins of different urban legends, dissected how people fall for conspiracy theories, excitedly discussed queer and disabled life as a form of radical resistance… i even got so lucky that in my senior year, i was able to take only the classes i wanted and had chosen for personal enrichment.

what i’m trying to say is that i’d forgotten that learning could be fun. the reason my mom pushed me so hard in the first place, that little spark she saw in my eye: i fucking love learning, i love to discover, to fuel my curiosity, to ask dangerous questions. i love digging into the meat of life and finding out why and how. because it helps me understand more about myself, my friends, my passions. i spent so long doing what my mother wanted that i no longer knew what i wanted, or who i even was outside of her expectations.

which is exactly the reason i can’t go back to school right now. what i hope anyone still reading takes away from my words is this: if the subject doesn’t make you hungry for more, it’s not the subject for you. if you’ve spent so long being force-fed that you can’t remember what’s actually good to eat anymore? you must re-learn not only how to chew, but how to truly taste your food.

‘cause personally i feel like i need to stock my kitchen with so many more ingredients before i’ll be ready to cook the meal i truly want, y’know? and i know some of those ingredients i probably don’t even know the name of yet. to go back to school right now would be limiting for me. i’m pirating anthropology essays, experimenting with new photography methods, taking metalworking classes, writing a fake thesis about my favorite band, reading and reading and reading whatever the hell i want about any weird subject that strikes me. i’m expanding my goddamn palate.

[princepaddy]

‘I wanted all eyes on me’ – The OA and Shadow and Bone star Patrick Gibson on his acting pedigree

After the Netflix series that gave Patrick Gibson his break-out role was cancelled, it was no doubt tempting to jump at the next thing that came along. But the Dubliner — who has been acting since age eight — has chosen his roles carefully to forge a long-term career. It helps that he’s had his thespian parents, Lenny Abrahamson, and a clown professor to guide him.

A solidarity exists among those who survived hotel quarantine during the pandemic. On encountering a fellow detainee in the free world, an immediate bond forms over a shared experience in enforced confinement, and occasionally, so does a dynamic of oneupmanship.

“A fortnight without an open window,” I’ve smugly responded of my own quarantine episode, to those who underwent a mere week to 10 days with a terrace. “It was tough, yet strangely cathartic, and actually quite spiritual in some ways,” I then deliver with a martyred air.

Consequently, I feel completely diminished by Patrick Gibson’s multiple bouts with room-serviced captivity. “I think I did it five times,” the actor casually estimates, scratching a whiskered chin. “Once in Australia, once in America and a couple of times while going back and forth between the UK and Belgium.”

He’s unsure how long in total, something I chalk up to a coping mechanism from the residual trauma. “Maybe,” he agrees. “I mean, the days blended into each other. I did keep a video diary as a way not to lose my mind, but I’m too terrified to look back at it now. And I had it easy compared to some of my friends who’re actors. A couple I know were in and out of quarantine once a month.”

With each stint in confinement preceding an acting job, Gibson explains that all delivered the perfect duration in which to learn lines; to find a character’s motivation, and even workshop with a clown professor. Yes, you read that right — a clown professor.

“I was quarantining in Brisbane to work on a film I was shooting in Australia called The Portable Door which has a lot of physical comedy in the script, something I’ve never done. I’ve never done comedy — there’s actually nothing scarier than doing comedy because the reaction is so much more immediate. You know if you do something and people don’t laugh, you’re in trouble. It’s not as nuanced as drama.

“So I did workshops on Zoom with a clown professor. He’s an amazing movement coach teaching in one of the best drama schools in Australia. And it was about facing the fear of falling on your face, which is at the core of clowning; getting comfortable with that, not giving a shit if you make an idiot of yourself. It was actually way more philosophical than I expected. The theory of clowning is so fascinating.”

I’m disappointed with the distinct lack of clown tropes in his account of the experience: no red squeaky nose, no water-squirting flower. There must have been some slapstick involved.

“There was a physical [slapstick]. He would get a chair, give himself a simple task to unfold the chair and do a 60-minute routine, which was hilarious. And I learned from that, just doing simple things and allowing myself to flow with it. He’d have me waving my arm around, and then he’d click his fingers, and I’d be waving the other one, or my leg, or some other crazy action. Jumping up and down. Using my whole body.

“If I was being monitored [during quarantine], they’d have thought I was losing it in there.”

It’s Friday evening in Los Angeles. Gibson (27) who found fame with the Netflix cryptic fantasy series The OA, talks to me from his hotel room. “At least this one I can come and go from,” he laughs with a drawn-out titter.

He periodically repositions the camera during our video call, often at an upward angle, which for most of us would manufacture a furl of unfortunate chins, but only serves to enhance his pale, cinematic features.

The Dubliner, raised in Stillorgan and schooled at Gonzaga College in Ranelagh, is on a flying visit to meet his agents, Dar Rollins and Andrew Kurland at Creative Artists Agency (CAA), who between them represent and negotiate for screen luminaries such as Michael Keaton, Samuel L Jackson and Sarah Michelle Gellar.

I’m imagining the agency as an open-plan office, with blinding white furnishings, floor-to-ceiling views of the Hollywood sign, and skittish assistants clumsily clutching scripts and offering green juices. “Well no, not quite,” Gibson smiles.“ But we went for a coffee on a roof of some fancy hotel, which was still very LA.”

Since a breakout role as a disaffected delinquent in The OA — a supernatural, sometimes baffling series, circling near-death experiences and alternate universes — Gibson has ricocheted from sumptuous costume saga in The Spanish Queen; to Gen Z romcom In A Relationship, alongside Emma Roberts; and a West End stage debut in Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer-winning Sweat.​

Meanwhile, the fruits of his quarantine labour are set for imminent release, including a second season of Channel 4 crime series Before We Die; independent teen drama, Good Girl Jane, lauded at the recent Tribeca Film Festival and a central role in the next run of Netflix mega-hit Shadow and Bone.

As a rule, agents largely guide and counsel an actor towards success, while sometimes inadvertently steering them into failure. Does Gibson feel comfortable placing his full faith in his LA-based representatives?

“Good agents, who you feel completely at ease with, who understand your goals and what’s right for you, they will have your back. And [my agents] have my back. Right now, there’s so much content being made with all the streaming platforms, it’s important to know the next thing you’re going into is right for you. Because once you’re in, it’s a big commitment.

“Shadow and Bone, that’s six months of the year. That’s a massive project to sign on for, so it’s important to have a team of people to discuss with, feel it out. Some have their own motivations and will encourage you to work on something that serves the immediate, rather than the long-term plan. A good agent will encourage you to say no if you need to.”

At just 27 and still in the infancy of his career, is saying no to work frightening? “Saying no is scarier than saying yes but it shouldn’t be. Also, if you say no to something, people can then assume you’re not working but I don’t think it’s good to make decisions over what others might think of you.”

For Gibson, performance is in the DNA. His parents, Irish mum Kate and his dad, Richard, who was born in Uganda and raised in the UK, met and fell in love as actors on London’s West End. “One of them was doing a Noël Coward play I think, I can’t remember what the other was [doing].”

While Kate walked away from acting, ultimately transitioning into marketing, Richard continued his career on stage and screen, notably doing a 10-year stint as Nazi buffoon Herr Flick in the iconic BBC sitcom ’Allo ’Allo!.

During summer breaks from school, young Patrick and his older brother Billy played backstage during Richard’s touring stage productions, mingling with cast and crew. For Patrick, a seed was planted. “The costumes, the transformative atmosphere, the creativity — it captured my imagination.”

Gibson tagged along to his father’s theatrical agency in Dublin, communicating his desire to act. Aged eight, he landed his first commercial for Vodafone and enrolled in afterschool drama classes, the latter a futile exercise.

“I remember briefly doing Betty Ann Norton, Billie Barry [stage schools], and my parents being told, ‘This kid is not designed to be in this environment, he’s too mental’. I imagine I was incredibly annoying to teach; must have been a nightmare. I had no interest in group collaboration. I wanted all eyes on me.”

This unapologetic self-interest proved rewarding on the local audition circuit, with Gibson and his brother cast as Liam Cunningham’s sons in a 2007 RTÉ production of Maeve Binchy’s Anner House. Shot in Cape Town, it’s the only time Gibson has travelled to the African continent. While far removed from his father’s childhood home in Uganda, it gave Richard the opportunity to introduce his children to a taste of his African upbringing.

“Dad left Africa when he was 10, moved to London when his father was working there and he had a mad transition. Uganda was all he knew, and he’s told us how wonderful it was to grow up there and then he moved to the UK where it was grey and miserable. So being able to revisit Africa with us as kids was significant for him. He brought us to Kruger National Park, which isn’t in Uganda but he had been there as a child and it was a special trip for all of us.”

By the time Gibson attended Gonzaga, he had appeared in a couple of episodes of The Tudors and was a ‘lost boy’ in Neverland, Sky’s expansive adaptation of Peter Pan. “That’s where the penny dropped. That’s when I realised, ‘Yeah, I really want to do this’.”

Disappointment came with an audition for Game of Thrones’ adolescent despot Joffrey Baratheon, a role which ultimately went to Cork’s Jack Gleeson. “I was 15, maybe 16 and I know I got close. Not final two, but I got really close. But Jack was Joffrey. There’s a DNA in every part that casting directors are looking to match that up with. When you see it, it’s undeniable. I’ve had parts I don’t get because no matter how hard I work on that character, there’s somebody who matches up [more than I do].”

A successful casting for Lenny Abrahamson’s What Richard Did as an impressionable young sidekick to Jack Reynor’s titular anti-hero heightened his profile and fostered an enduring relationship with the Oscar-nominated director. Abrahamson was directly instrumental in Gibson studying philosophy at Trinity College.

“I was thinking about doing philosophy, and at the same time talking about drama school and Lenny gave me the nudge. He said: ‘If you want to be an actor for the rest of your life, do something now that’s different. And if you’re going to act for the rest of your life, philosophy demands you look at everything from every angle.’ It encourages you to analyse and assess beyond a linear point of view.”

However, Gibson struggled to balance work and college. “I missed classes, tutorials. I missed my exams two years running,” and after landing The OA in 2015 and relocating to New York for five months, his studies had to be ultimately sacrificed. “I will go back, some day,” he promises with a cackle.

The OA was a complex learning experience for Gibson. Conceived by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, the creative duo behind indie efforts The East and Sound Of My Voice, the series was a psychedelic blend of comic-book fantasy and murky mystery, and hailed as being both brilliant and baffling. One critic called it, “bonkers with a vengeance,” while another dismissed it as “gripping but annoying”.

With Marling taking centre stage as a blind woman missing for seven years who reappears with her vision restored, a mysterious carving on her back and a flat-out refusal to disclose where she had been, the show amassed a keen audience who were left bereft after the shock cancellation in 2019, leaving the storyline on a cliffhanger.

Some were so disappointed they raised funds for a ‘Save The OA’ digital billboard in New York’s Times Square, with one devotee going on hunger strike outside of Netflix’s LA offices.

Gibson was deflated by the cancellation. “I got a call from Brit and Zal when I was coming back from a music festival, which was a slight buzzkill. And they said, ‘We have some sad news’. From their side, while everything in that show had been a challenging thing to make, I found the whole journey was so bizarre and magical. And it didn’t feel that out of the ordinary the way it ended. With something like Shadow and Bone, that would surprise me if it was cancelled that way but, with The OA, it felt right in a strange way.”

Shadow and Bone is Gibson’s second punt with the Netflix machine. Joining the hugely successful show in its second season, after the debut series drew in 55 million viewers in its first 28 days, long-term success appears a more likely outcome.

Adapted from a series of popular fantasy novels by Leigh Bardugo, the glossy saga boasts a central band of heroes and cads with varying degrees of magical capabilities. Starring Chronicles Of Narnia’s Ben Barnes, British-American actor Zoë Wanamaker and Irish newcomer Danielle Galligan, audiences were gripped by an interspersing, sweeping narrative framed against the battle for Ravka, a fictional realm heavily influenced by Imperialist Russia and the reign of the Tzars.

Joining the conflict is Gibson’s Nikolai Lantsov, a prince of Ravka masquerading as a pirate — a duality the actor relished. “He’s a prince and a pauper, an alter ego in disguise and he brings this massive bravado; a pirate who has this massive ship, has got this massive swagger. Kind of like Robert Downey Jr in Iron Man, he gets on people’s nerves but he’s also hard to hate. Underneath, he’s vulnerable, not given a chance by his family. It was fascinating to be able to explore both sides of that person.”

With Lantzov a standout fan favourite of the book series, the actor is keenly aware of a pressure to please with his take on the character. Unusually for an actor in his 20s, Gibson employs a veteran’s perspective to quieten such anxieties.

“With movies and TV shows, everything is talked about like it’s life and death, and it can often feel like it is, but at the end of the day, it’s not. Other people’s jobs are — some literally.”

He tells me his brother Billy — now a father of two, who works as a cardiologist in a Dublin hospital — is a massive inspiration. ​

“Working a 24-hour shift, then taking his kids to the pool, has a few hours off, then goes straight on to another night shift. And the stakes he’s dealing with, the health and well-being of people, their actual lives — it always puts it in perspective for me.”

Quite the effective reality touchstone, I remark. But does it always work?

“You hear actors complaining all the time. We’re the number one for it. But you know what, it’s absolutely unwarranted because to get to do this as a job is the most fortunate thing in the world. It really is. And I won’t take that for granted.”

[radellama]

Heya! Sorry to dip, things went crazy. Anyways.

👻🐌💥 for the writing asks if you are still doing those, thanks!

Haha you're all good! Hope you've been well!

👻 Is there a new genre you'd like to write?

Ohhhh, definitely! Since studying film theory for the past couple years (and thinking more broadly in narrative as a whole) I'm really fascinated by genre and the tropes expected from them. I write a lot of angst, and I'm usually writing sci-fi/fantasy/drama/slice of life style things, and I'd like to try every genre ever if I'm being honest LMAO.

What fascinates me most, though, is the way you can blend genres. Like, you know how action/adventure or sci-fi/thriller can just go hand in hand sometimes? I wanna try out various blends or even try to see if it's possible to make new blends/create something decent in a blend that 'doesn't work,' I just wanna try out all the stuff and push the boundaries, for both my fic and original works. Know the rules to break them yknow?

🐌 What is one of your smallest writing goals?

Make notes!! And I've already kinda succeeded haha.

I noticed when I was writing my hylink fic all the way back when, when I inevitably got busy with life I just couldn't access the same headspace anymore and had to drop the fic, even though I didn't want to. I'm still talking and thinking about it all these years later (and I'd love to restart and eventually complete it in future!) But it taught me that I need to make really solid notes so that I can plot everything to my standards and access that same headspace no matter how much time has passed- cause turns out! I'm really slow and nitpicky!

Some of my fics are 5+ years in the making at this point, and cause I like to let things marinate in my head for ages, making notes for stories and actually going more in depth with them so it's easier to draft later is so important to me these days. That's why, that'll be my little goal >:)

💥Is there a chapter, scene, or WIP you're most excited to write? Share a snippet or tell us about it!

Ahhh man.. all of my fics/original stories??

For now, since I've been talking a bit about it with some friends, he's a snippet of a possible introduction for my most recent OCs/original story, Abe and Orc.

[Also wanna preface this and say it's suuuuuuuper work in progress, and I'm not sure I want to write it write it, as I think it might do best in a visual medium like a web comic haha]

~~~

He tossed some game to the bushes near the orc's campfire, staying hidden up in the trees. He watched with a keen eye as the orc investigated the sound, finding the animal carcass and brushing the dirt off of it.

"Thank you." He called out, to no one in particular.

Abe didn't respond, just looked over him.

He watched as he tried to gut the hare, not doing a very good job it of it. Maybe it was due to the sheer size of this orc, with his huge knife and even huger hands, but he was making a right mess of it.

Abe groaned to himself, before jumping down from the trees and making himself known.

Abe pointed his knife at the orc, gauging his reaction. The orc stayed still in shock, sheepishly raising his hands in surrender and placing his knife down.

Rolling his eyes, Abe stomped over to the stone where the dead hare laid, and started to gut and skin it properly for the orc.

He worked fast, expertly preparing the meat in the firelight while the orc watched in fascination. Neither of them said a word, but Abe would keep a cautious eye on the orc while he worked.

As soon as he was done, he ran off into the trees, ignoring the orc as he tried to shout his thanks.

The orc carefully began cutting the meat, and skewering it on some sticks to roast on the fire. He was thankful for the kind stranger, this was this third day on whatever berries and plants he could find, and it simply wasn't enough for him to keep going. Some meat, however small, meant a lot to him.

---

In the distance, down by the river, he saw that kind stranger. Excited, he ran down to the riverbank to talk to him.

As soon as he heard the ground shake with each step the orc took, Abe panicked and reached for his knife. He didn't have time to recognise that it was the same orc from before, only registering a large being bounding right towards him.

He quickly slashed the orc, cutting right across his forearm. As he recoiled in pain, Abe used the time to quickly climb a nearby tree and gain his bearings.

"Ow!!!" The orc didn't try to attack him back, didn't even turn to look for him in the trees. In fact, he didn't even try to defend himself, or protect himself from another attack.

"I just wanted to talk with you..." The orc sounded on the verge of tears.

Abe watched for a moment, before jumping out of the tree and landing behind him. He tapped the handle of his knife on the back of the orcs head.

"You're dead."

The orc instinctively reached to rub the back of his head, turning to look at the small man.

"Why did you cut me?" He whined.

"Why did you come running at me!?" Abe yelled back. When he saw the orcs lip start to quiver, he regretted saying it so harshly.

"I just wanted to thank you. For the meat."

Abe stayed still, unsure if he'd heard right. Not once had he ever heard of an orc that cared enough to use manners like this...

He began to pick up the remains of his clothes by the riverside and walk off into the forest, but before he could disappear, the orc called out to him.

"How can I thank you!?"

Abe ignored him, and walked away.

To his dismay, Abe heard the orc follow behind him as he walked further into the forest. He glanced over his shoulder, and sure enough, the orc was a few footsteps behind. He picked up the pace, weaving through the trees in the hopes that he'd lose the orc, but he was always right behind him when he turned to look.

"Why are you following me!?" Abe spat angrily.

"I want to thank you!" The orc growled back at him.

Abe stopped running, and turned to face the orc.

"I fed you, and I've cut you. Now don't bother me!"

The two of them stared each other down, neither willing to budge. Abe wasn't willing to back down, not caring that he was barely half the height of this orc- He could, and would fight.

But then he noticed that the orc was still cradling his arm, blood dripping between the fingers that gripped the wound.

Abe sighed. "You're going to get an infection if you hold it like that."

The orc looked down at the wound, removing his hand to see the bloodied mess. He couldn't even see where the gash was amongst the blood the seemed to cover his entire forearm.

"How do I clean it?" The orc asked.

Abe waited to see if the orc was joking, but he was genuine. Blood continued to drip from his arm, and Abe just groaned and led the way back to the river. The orc followed closely behind him, kneeling down by the riverside when the man gestured for him to.

He watched curiously as the Abe washed his hands in the water before grabbing his arm and submerging it in the river. He rinsed the blood away and pulled his arm out, quickly slapping some leaves on the open wound.

The orc gasped in pain as the leaves touched his skin, but the human held his arm still between his knees to continue applying the leaves.

"It stings!" The orc complained, but Abe ignored him.

He watched with a grimace as the human finished with the leaf dressing, and reached out to cut some river weed. He used it to tie the leaves to his wound securely, and walked away to put a few steps of distance between them.

The orc looked his arm in awe, it was so simple and resourceful, and even the stinging was starting to subside.

"Thank you."

Abe grunted. "Don't come running at a man while he's trying to bathe next time."

"Sorry..."

The orc watched the as he grabbed his shirt and shook it, quickly turning his head when he realised he was trying to get dressed.

Abe saw him trying to give him privacy, and waited to see what he'd do. The orc just sat with his head turned to watch the river, once again leaving himself fully open. Why this orc trusted him so much was a mystery to Abe, but he had to admit that he was intrigued by the strange behaviour.

"What's your deal?" Abe asked, and the orc turned to look at him with a flustered expression.

"Pardon?" He asked.

"Why are you out here?" Abe asked flatly.

The orc sighed, fiddling with the hem of his skirt. He didn't answer, and Abe watched as his demeanor changed the longer he played with his skirt.

"Do you even know how to hunt?" Abe asked, rather harshly.

"No..." The orc replied, still avoiding eye contact.

Abe sat down on the riverbank and sighed a heavy sigh.

He didn't want to, but a sense of pity was creeping over him. He remembered how hard it was when he first came to the forest - he recognised that struggle with this orc.

"How long are you out here for?" Abe asked.

"Indefinitely." The orc replied solemnly.

"If I teach you to hunt, will you do everything I say?"

The orc looked up in surprise, a wide smile breaking out across his face. "You'd teach me?"

Abe shifted his gaze to avoid looking at the smile, but he could still feel how excited the orc was.

He instantly regretted offering, but it was too late to back down now. He stood up, dusting the dirt off his pants as he looked to the horizon. It would be dark soon...

"Keep up." He instructed, and headed into the forest.

The orc quickly stood up and followed closely, but this time Abe didn't bother looking to check if he was still hovering behind him. He just walked forward, twisting and turning through the forest as the sun set.

[snailsnfriends]

okay same ece teacher anon as before, wanted to send a second ask on the topic that was less related to my other point so i figured i’d separate them

i have genuinely spent a lot of time thinking about cocomelon and its pros and cons. i quite literally wrote an entire paper on it for my film theory class. because it was absolutely a show carefully made and consulted with child psychologists over, with the intent to make it engaging to children. i think the conclusion I have come to, though, is that it is genuinely a good thing in small doses, and clearly not in hour long episodes.

in each of the songs, there is a teaching goal of sorts. and because this is content intended for toddlers, things like “bath time routines are fun” and “vegetables are yummy” are the lessons they are learning. i know cocomelon is marketed towards 4 and 5 year olds as well, but in my experience, those kids have outgrown it and are far less interested because they perceive it as “for babies.”

people often cite how engaging the content is for kids as a negative thing and some times literally refer to it as “addicting,” but having something be engaging is actually an inherently neutral quality. a kid needs to be engaged in the content to learn anything from it, and this perceived “too” engaging quality is really just parents not teaching their children social emotional skills. the evidence they cite for their point is that children scream and cry when their screen time is taken away from them and beg to watch more. as someone who works with a room full of two year olds, that behavior is literally just a sign of a child 1. having interests and 2. not having the skills to cope with not getting what they want at all times. it’s not that cocomelon is so engaging there’s no way for a child to enjoy it and overcome its pull — we show short videos to our children sometimes, and the one or two kids who might cry over it being turned off are the same kids who cry when they have to leave a toy to go potty or come back inside from the playground, and so it’s our job to help them through those transitions.

i think the main problem is that children’s content used to be 30 minute episodes your child could watch on the tv while you cooked dinner and listened with them through the open door and the child could come talk to you during commercial breaks, and now it’s hour long YouTube videos they watch on their iPads in their bedrooms. the issue springs a lot from the format change, which springs from how hard it is to get a good kids tv show on the air long term when compared to the much easier method of posting YouTube videos. sure, there is plenty of really bad content out there and oh my god toy unboxing videos are so awful. but it’s difficult for any kids content to thrive in an environment where it’s supposed to be the child’s babysitter and there are no real life adults involved at all.

so i don’t think cocomelon is the root of all evils, but it’s understandable why it’s the face of issues with children’s content these days. i can put on the shape song video for my children and be comfortable knowing i’ve added something to their eduction — 2 year olds learn very well from songs and i am not a lyricist — but i would never say that those hour long videos parents park their kids in front of are educational, because that isn’t how 2 year olds learn. commercial breaks are a thing of the past for a lot of kids now, but i would say they were actually really important for learning through tv! because kids can’t pay attention and learn effectively for long chunks of time. they can’t be actively thinking and engaged non stop for an hour, but they can for little bits of time with breaks in between.

anyways sorry for sending you two very long asks oh my god this god way long than i expected lol oops

don't be sorry!! this is a fun conversation to have; I'm interested in child development and hope to pursue it in the future. and I think the problem with cocomelon is exactly what you cited: parents put on complications that are hours and hours long and by that point you might as well be lobotomizing your child. commercials, though not so great because advertising to literal babies isn't great, do have their upsides as you stated. they allow kids to get up, move, talk to parents, and digest what they're watching. even outside of youtube, I don't think it's great for children to just sit in front of any screen for hours, whether they're watching something like sesame street or cocomelon. I think there is something to be said about the frame rate of cocomelon, though, which is faster than most children's shows. I also think it's so hated because it's not particularly engaging for adults. ofc no children's show is obligated to entertain parents too, but if given an option I'd pick most shows on cable television over cocomelon. regardless, I think the true issue is parents using technology in any form as a babysitter and not a tool is a real problem.