#whats EXTRA hilarious is an old interview

[catindabag]

TBOSAS on Crack short take (46)

Hilarius: Guys, we have a problem.

Felix: Hilari, please don’t tell me that you’ve invited your creepy old man to one of our ✨TGIF✨ parties again-

Hilarius: That was just one time, Class Pres!😫

Sejanus: Your father literally tried to kidnap my Coryo, my Snow Angel right in front of me, Heavensbee!

Coryo: He also tried to blackmail our poor drunk Felix to go “stargazing” with him.

Festus: And don’t forget Clemmie.

Clemensia: Don’t remind me!😩

Felix: Seriously, Hilari, don’t force me to give your old man another restraining order-

Hilarius: Just listen to me for a sec!😭

Felix: Fine. Fire away, Heavensbee.

Urban: But it better not be about your stupid father!

Hilarius: I swear it ain’t about him! It’s about Juno!

Apollo: What about Juno?

Hilarius: She forgot to take out our school pants from the laundry room!

Festus: So?

Hilarius: They’re still wet from when we “accidentally” flooded that insane monster’s- I mean, Dr. Gaul’s lab with yellow glitter earlier.

Coryo: All of them?

Hilarius: All of them.

Livia: I am so gonna sue Juno and her family for this!

Arachne: Liv, she’s royalty. No one can touch her family-

Livia: Except my mama!

Diana: Where’s Juno anyway?

Hilarius: She’s at the clinic.

Felix: Why? She fainted?

Festus: Was it because of the rabid raccoon I brought earlier to distract Dr. Gaul?

Hilarius: No. She accidentally ate one of Palmyra’s expired egg rolls.

Florus: Not the egg rolls!😱

Felix: Is she still alive?!

Hilarius: Barely.

Palmyra: Don’t look at me~. It’s not my fault that Princess Phipps is not immune to poison-

Livia: But what about our pants?!

Coryo: And our dignity?!

Festus: What dignity?

Coryo: Don’t you remember?! We have another important interview with Lucky Flickerman and his stupid talking bird in two hours!

Felix: On LIVE TV?!

Livia: Duh~.

Lysistrata: Why are we doing another interview with Weather Boy anyway?

Dennis: Our school wants more sponsors, Lizzie~.😏

Apollo: Yup. More sponsors, more money~.🤑

Lysistrata: Then I’m not going!

Gaius: Yo, guys, calm down. We still have our pretty red skirts.

Everyone: . . .

Domitia: Breen, you’re joking right?

Gaius: Nope. And besides, my Tribute needs those sponsors.

Felix: Sh*t. You’re right. I forgot about that.

Androcles: To be fair, we all need sponsors after our last disastrous interview.

Gaius: And honestly, we can still save ourselves from humiliation if you guys just follow my plan.

Coryo: No pants, just skirt- Gaius, you’re a genius!

Sejanus: How is Breen a genius, my love?🥺

Coryo: Babe, don’t you get it?

Sejanus: Get what?

Coryo: We can attract more sponsors with just wearing our iconic red skirt!

Sejanus: Really?!

Lysistrata: Coryo’s right. No pants, just skirts, more sponsors, if you know what I mean~.😏

Dennis: Lizzie, don’t lie. You just want to see Coryo, Felix, and Hilarius in mini skirts-

Lysistrata: And there is nothing wrong with that!

Florus: Well, don’t mind me, I’m just gonna go home-

Pup: Florus, get the razor! We’re all gonna shave our legs today!

Florus: Why?!

Festus: Bestie, if we’re going to go out there and wear our school uniform without pants, and in front of Panem, then we better look sexy in our frilly red skirt-

Dennis: Like those ladies from Breen’s banned magazines?

Sejanus: The same magazines that almost got Highbottom fired from his job?

Festus: Yeah!😎

Felix: *sighs* Well, our reputation is trash anyway. So let’s do it!

Gaius: For the sponsors!

Festus: And the marmalade!

Livia: Fine! But if Hilari’s stupid old man ever comes near us-

Hilarius: Don’t worry, Cardew. We’ll call the Peacekeepers on you- I mean, on him-

Coryo: Hilari, does your old man have a skirt fetish by any chance?

Hilarius: Maybe?

Felix: He does, doesn’t he.😒

Livia: Like father, like son.

Hilarius: I don’t have a skirt fetish!

Sejanus: Then explain why you stole Urban’s extra skirt from his locker yesterday.

Urban: That was you, Hilari?!😡🔪

Hilarius: Why are you guys bullying me!? I’m baby!😭

*Hours later, at the Lucky Flickerman Show*

Lucky: Welcome back, everyone! This is your host, Lucky Flickerman, your favorite Weather Man-

Casca: Booooo! Start the show, Weather Boy!

Lucky: Fine.😞 Let’s welcome back our favorite Mentors-

Domitia: Hi, Lucky!

Lucky: Hi- What happened to your pants?! Why are you guys just wearing your skirt uniform?!😱

Casca: And on LIVE TV?! Crassus Xanthos Snow, how dare you wear your pretty red skirt in front of me-

Coryo: To get more sponsors.🙄

Lucky: Who told you to-

Festus: Dean Highbottom made us do it.😉

Casca: WTH, Creed!😡 I did not-

Felix: My granduncle, the ✨President of Panem✨ gave us permission.😌💅

Casca: That’s a lie!

Urban: So what do you think, Lucky? Do we look good or what?😊🔪

Lucky: Um- I- Well, for legal reasons, we’re ending the show early-

Mr.Heavensbee: Don’t end the show yet! I’m a sponsor! I paid for this!

Hilarius: Why the heck are you here, old man?!

Mr.Heavensbee: I need more cute and sexy photos of-

Lucky: Yup. We are ending the show right now! Bye, everyone!

Casca: I’m calling the Peacekeepers on you, Heavensbee!

Mr.Heavensbee: You can’t arrest me! I’m a senior!

*Meanwhile, at the Zoo*

Jessup: You know what, I’m just glad Coryo and his rich boyfriend provided us a screen to watch their live interviews.

Lucy Gray: Oh, my dear Jessup, you just don’t understand~.

Jessup: Understand what?

Lucy Gray: That their interviews with the funny bird man are always ✨comedy gold✨.

Tanner: Brilliant even.

Coral: I can’t believe my idiot Mender-

Facet: Mentor.

Coral: My idiot Mender looks good wearing that stupid ass skirt!😫

Lucy Gray: Mine too!☺️

Treech: Mine’s the best!

Sheaf: No, mine!

Dill: You’re all wrong! Felix has the sexiest legs!

Mizzen: Dill, shut up! You’re too young for this!

Dill: You’re just jealous that my Mentor’s prettier than yours!

Mizzen: That’s just Ravinstill Propaganda, Dill!

Reaper: Why can’t they just be normal?!😩

Brandy: Says the one who’s shouting at the sky all day.🙄

Lucy Gray: But we all know that my Mentor is the prettiest!

Marcus: F*ck this. I’m going to bed.

[amethystina]

I'm waiting so excitedly for your updates, old and new, I can't begin to tell you! You are the fandom treasure! And as I'm waiting and biting my nails I wanted to ask something, what do you think about the final scenes of episode 8 where Gaon has dinner with his professor and tells him he chooses Yohan's side. How come Yohan knew where to find them and the precise moment to come in and pick Gaon up, was he following them or did he and Gaon had a deal?

And what's with leaving his car to stand next to Gain and look at professor? I love this scene so much but I don't know if I understand its message right. Was it posturing, laying a claim on Gaon or what? I tend to feel that Yohan was possessive of Gaon when it came to professor and his police friend and I think I feel some of it in this scene but I'm not sure, I just don't have a clear grasp on it. Would love to know your thoughts!

Aww, thank you so much, sweetheart! This is definitely the first time I've been called not just a fandom treasure, but the fandom treasure. Thank you 💜

Ah yes, the "Ga On runs off with his new sugar daddy" scene. Or, as I sometimes like to call it, the "You just don't understand, dad professor — I love him" scene.

I'm joking, obviously.

(... or am I?)

I would say that Ga On and Yo Han made an agreement beforehand, yes. They probably talked about Ga On's choice to switch sides and while Yo Han would no doubt have loved for Ga On to continue on as a double agent (feeding Professor Min intentionally faulty information) Ga On is way too honest for that. So he probably insisted that, no, he'll call Professor Min, meet up with him, and just flat out tell him that Ga On's spying mission is over. He's now going to elope work with Yo Han instead.

And I find it hilarious to think that, most likely, Yo Han was just sitting in his car, perhaps scrolling through his phone, waiting for his newly acquired sugar baby to finish telling his semi-father figure that he's going dark side. Because Ga On gets up and starts walking before Yo Han drives up, meaning that it's not like Ga On saw the car coming and went "oh, better wrap this up now." It was probably the other way around, where Ga On leaving the table was the signal for Yo Han to come pick him up.

So yes, they definitely had an agreement, especially since Ga On seems to know in exactly which direction to walk, even before the car shows up, and doesn't look the least bit surprised by Yo Han's arrival.

They planned that shit.

Brutal.

As for the fact that Yo Han gets out of the car? Well, buckle up, my darlings, because I think we should take a detour to discuss intent.

Now, intent isn't necessarily important when you want to interpret a scene, but I like the extra nuance it can offer. And by intent, I mean what the scriptwriter/director might have intended with a scene. Why is this scene here? What was the plan behind it? How is it supposed to impact the overall story? How does it tie into the rest of the plot?

Which is never something you can say for sure, of course, unless there are interviews expressly stating it, but, a lot of the time, we can guess.

The intent behind this scene, in its simplest, purest form, is to show that Ga On is switching sides. And, with that in mind, it makes sense that he crosses that road to Yo Han's car (if you know me and my metas, you know how much I love lines, characters crossing said lines, and the symbolism of that) and stops to stand next to Yo Han. It's a very simple yet effective way to show Ga On's choice and where it will take him.

Into Yo Han's arms.

NOW. Intent is very useful because, depending on how skilled the person writing is, you can hide a lot of subtext and leave room for a lot of interpretation with a cleverly formulated intent. That's how censored shows get away with so much, because they can point to the perfectly reasonable, heteronormative intent behind a scene and pretend that there aren't also a lot of subtler nuances to the reading.

And, if they're extra bold, they also add hints in the presentation and execution.

The scene where Yo Han invites Sun Ah to the house is a perfect example of this, where the intent is to make her feel lonely, like an outsider, as she's invited to observe this warm, comfortable family. Not a bad tactic as far as manipulation goes, I have to say. So, in other words, very reasonable intent — makes sense with what they're trying to achieve.

The fact that it ends up looking more like Yo Han is proudly showing off his doting, doe-eyed househusband who's passively-aggressively and not-so-discreetly staking his claim is... well, that's just an accidental side effect, isn't it? Not intent at all.

And that's true. It's not intent that makes it look gay.

It's the presentation of the intent.

(Sidenote: To be a fly on the wall when Yo Han and Ga On came up with this strategy. Because, clearly, they were both in on it and, I mean, how did that conversation go? Inquiring minds need to know.

Like, how did they go from: "We need to throw her off balance. We'll invite her to the house, show what she's missing out on, but also give her hints that she could have it all, if she's willing to surrender" to Ga On going: "I'll cook a fancy dinner. That'll make her jealous."

I mean, he's not wrong but, like, Mr. Sugar Baby. What? x'D

Also, imagine Yo Han's face. Transcendent.)

Anyway. Intent can also ruin a story. I think most of us have read a fanfic and gone: "... that character wouldn't do that. This makes no sense." That could be a sign that the author's intent is clashing with the characters or the story they're trying to tell. Or, put more bluntly, that the author is so focused on forcing an idea that they don't realise that they're going against the logic of the story or characters' personalities. Things happen because they want them to, not because it makes sense, meaning that the intent isn't tied to the story or characters, but what the writer wants. This is badly planned intent.

And, most of the time, readers can tell when the intent is off, even if you might not be able to put your finger on it while you're reading. But if you're feeling a niggling doubt at the back of your mind, wondering why this scene is here, what this scene even means, or why this character suddenly seems to act so strangely, it could be that the writer didn't plan it well enough.

That's not to say that a reader must always know the intent behind a scene. Ideally, the story should be good enough that they don't have to stop and think about things like that. If the intent and internal logic are sound enough, it should just flow naturally.

Because, when it comes down to it, pretty much all scenes in a story have an intent and that intent should be in harmony with the characters' personalities and how they would choose to behave. And I don't mean that there can never be conflict or that characters can't disagree — I mean that all scenes should have a reason for being there. It doesn't have to be a deep or complex reason, but there should be a reason that ties into the overarching plotline. And characters shouldn't be forced into a scene they have no business being in. Intent is very important from a crafting standpoint.

And intent is one of the things that makes The Devil Judge such an absolute joy. Because while there is always a perfectly reasonable — and very heterosexual, we promise — intent behind most scenes, they often choose to present the scenes in a way that leaves room for a much queerer reading. Now, that can happen with almost any story, but what sets The Devil Judge apart is that it seems to be entirely intentional.

The presentation is by no means subtle or accidental.

Like, they didn't have to make Ga On shuffle up in a soft, comfortable sweater and greet Sun Ah like a caring househusband, but they did. That was a conscious choice.

And this scene you mention, with Yo Han getting out of his car when he's picking Ga On up, falls into a similar category in my mind. The surface-level intent is clear — show that Ga On is switching sides — but he could simply have said so. He could have borrowed a car and driven himself. Yo Han didn't have to come pick him up. And he certainly didn't have to get out of the car.

But he did.

And that might be what you're picking up on when you're saying that you're not sure if you're understanding the message correctly. Because in a drama this clever, that puts so much effort into details and, again, intent, it feels almost a bit odd to leave this gaping hole, doesn't it? Yo Han stepping out of that car should mean something, right?

And, once you've gotten this far, you've got a couple of options to choose from to fill in the blanks. Either you can assume that it was just something the creators chose to do because it looked/seemed cool and therefore might not mean much at all. And considering that this drama does that a couple of times, this could honestly be the case. Maybe they just thought it would be more effective to have Yo Han to step out of the car? To really hammer it home to Professor Min what's happening?

Your other option is to bring in the harmonisation between intent and characters. Because, if the writer is good and their characters consistent, you should be able to pick up on secondary layers of intent, running parallel with the main one. Because while each scene has an intent, each character IN that scene also has one (though perhaps it would be more comfortable to call it purpose at this point?).

In other words: If "it looked cool" isn't the answer, could we find it in the character's behaviour instead? What is their intent, based on their personalities and previous actions? Does that give a more satisfying answer?

What reason would Mr. Kang "Abyss" Yo Han have for stepping out of that car?

I, personally, think that the answer is pretty simple.

He is absofuckinglutely staking a claim.

He's stepping out of that car because he's a Possessive, Dramatic Bitch and wants to rub it in Professor Min's face. He wants to show that he's won, that he's turned the spy Professor Min sent, and that he's, quite literally, taking Ga On away.

Yo Han is basically going: "Thanks for the sugar baby — I'll make sure to ravish savour treasure him."

So while the main goal of that scene is to establish that Ga On is switching sides, the intent Yo Han adds with his actions leaves room for a very gay reading. In fact, I'd argue that doing so only makes the scene more believable, since Yo Han's actions are otherwise kind of... unnecessary? He has no reason to step out of the car and make himself known, unless it's for the dramah.

Again, the presentation of the intent is where the magic happens.

So, why this long, godawful rant about intent, you ask? When I could just have answered the question right away?

Because while I know that I'm preaching to the choir in terms of this drama being gay as hell, I just want to highlight the importance of intent and how it can change the reading of a scene. I think intent — or specifically the harmony between characters and intent, and the various layers of intent — is absolutely fascinating, especially in this drama.

Especially if you want to argue that it's gay.

Because there is, in fact, some scenes where I just... I can't. The intent and characterisation don't match at all — unless you add a queer element. Like, this drama is so clever. Not perfect, mind you, but so clever. And so careful with especially Yo Han and Ga On's characterisation. Very little is left to chance.

And so, if you keep everything I've said about intent and characters in mind, and I ask you to explain the intent behind this one, singular shot, can you do so without making it gay?

I'm not joking when I say that this scene, right here, was the one that definitively made me go "oh fuck, this is gay gay."

Because in most others — if not all — I can find that safe surface-level intent which means that the people behind this drama can claim plausible deniability. Of course it's not gay! Look at this perfectly reasonable, heterosexual intent!

Except this one.

There's no explanation for this. Ga On has no reason to look this jealous unless his jealousy is the main intent behind this shot. There just isn't. And it's only made worse by his huff and the way he clenches his jaw a couple of seconds later. Not even the argument that Sun Ah is their enemy so letting her fix Yo Han's tie might be dangerous can justify this, since that's not a look of concern or alarm — that's jealousy.

The intent is jealousy. Plain and simple.

And that's why intent is important. Because, if push came to shove, the intent behind this one, singular screenshot could, theoretically, be the only evidence you need if you wanted to defend a queer reading of this drama.

Because there is, quite frankly — in my humble opinion as the fandom treasure — no other way to explain the look on his face in a drama this meticulous and obsessed with details.

In this scene, unlike all the others, the queerness isn't just in the presentation anymore — it's in both the intent and presentation.

So, if you want the scene that says "this shit's gay, fam"?

This is the one.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

[blonndiec]

What if Victor Nikiforov knew about his stars?🌌✨

Picture this:

22-year-old Victor, figure skating’s golden boy, dazzling on a US charity show, thinking he's just there to charm viewers and raise some cash for a good cause. But instead of the usual interviews, he’s to participate in a segment by an eccentric astrologist who dives deep into his birth chart, right there on live TV.

Capricorn Sun? Ambitious, disciplined—check. Leo Rising? Oh, he’s got the drama down, extraness and wow factor. But then she hits him with his Pisces Moon, whispering of a deep, emotional connection with a partner who shares this sign.

Fate? Coincidence? Or just a really persistent Pisces Moon? Either way, Victor’s got a prophecy to prove, and it’s hilarious, heartfelt, and maybe, just maybe, written in the stars all along. 🌙💫

This is the premise of the one shot I’m writing this weekend, as I couldn’t get inspired to clean my ongoing WIP drafts and decided to work on this idea I had for a looong time now…

Stay tuned!

[krystalskeleton]

1992.11.11 – RAW Magazine Interview with Izzy

Music

"Yeah, music is partially my saving grace. It's been part of my life every day of the week since I was a kid. It doesn't have to be a specific type of music, it can be any type because the whole of it takes you away from the mundane, every day sort of thing.

"Being on tour, I find it like a luxury item because when I'm on tour I don't have a big stereo, I have a Sony player that cost 50 bucks, it's mono and it has this tiny speaker. For the first couple of days I only had my walkman which is fine for airplanes, but otherwise they're a drag. I found myself looking in the window of these shops at these stereos and there was this one in Chicago which was four and a half feet long and three feet tall. It was this boom box with neon lights inside it. It was really freaky looking, but I ended up getting this small Sony because it would fit in my bag, it plays cassettes and it records so I can write songs on it too. I find that if I hear a stereo now, even if it's a PA at gigs and they're playing a tape, it's a luxury and I really enjoy it."

Food

"Indian food and pizza are my favourites. I stopped eating meat a few years ago. I don't eat red meat or chicken, but I eat fish. I stopped eating meat shortly after I stopped drinking and using drugs. I think it was a case of wanting to heal myself a little quicker rather than objecting to meat, plus there were some cases on the West Coast where people were dying after they'd eaten bad meat. I'm big on salads. Salads in America are just a couple of bits of dead lettuce, but over here people are a bit more conscientious.

But Indian food and pizza are my favourites and that's why Chicago is like heaven to me because you can get a pizza delivered at 5am and it's damn good pizza. There's a place there called Mama Mia and they deliver all night long. They've got pizzas that are two inches thick with like a cracker crust with fresh tomatoes on top. "

Drink

"I like mango lassi and sweet lassi from Indian restaurants. My second would be fresh squeezed orange juice. Those are the only things I drink. I gave up drinking because I just had enough of waking up in my own vomit and not remembering who I was hanging out with the night before, getting arrested and all that stuff. Waking up in jail, and that sort of thing became old for me and I finally realised that I had to stop this and figure it all out. It wasn't easy and it took a while. I feel a lot better for not doing it."

Hate

"It's destructive in nature. Sometimes you can get angry, but it usually doesn't help fix anything. If I hate something I just get hung up on it and dwell on it. I find it easier to try and dismiss it. Otherwise it's extra baggage to be carrying around. You see hatred every day on the TV and some other places and that's enough for me, I don't need to live with it anymore."

Rock 'N' Roll

"It's that life blood. You can't put your finger on it. For me it's that other thing that only people who listen to it or love it know what it is. To the rest of the world though it probably doesn't mean shit!(laughs)

" The funniest thing I ever heard in Guns N Roses was from this guy in Canada called Gabe. God, he was hilarious! He said he saw something on English TV once that said no matter how many records Elton John sold in 1976, there were still 40 billion Chinese people that don't give a fuck and that rang so true to me- this was back in '86 so I've always kept it in mind. It's true. If you look at the globe and spin it and put your finger wherever it lands there's people there who don't know what Rock 'N' Roll is. For people who do love it, though, it's their whole life. For me it's very special.

" We used to have Rock 'N' Roll bands come to play at our house when I was a real young kid. My dad used to have these parties and me and my brothers were beer runners. The bands were always downstairs and I always hung out with them. When you're a kid and these guys would show to play stuff on the drums, it was great. They'd play stuff like (Credence Clearwater Revival's) 'Proud Mary'. I was lucky 'cos I got to grow up with that. I've been hooked on that ever since."

Drugs

"It's up to each person. It doesn't do any good to tell people not to do it. If people want to do 'em then they're gonna do 'em. All I can say is for myself they stopped being a good thing. It became a complete pain in the ass. It was destroying me as a person and I got to the point where I decided to give up. It wasn't like I didn't know 'cos you go through a peroid where you know you're tearing yourself up. I knew I had to stop or everything was gonna go down the tubes."

Sex

"It's pretty important, but to a lot of people it's hard to understand that it doesn't mean much unless you care about the person you're with. I'm lucky, 'cos I do."

Love

"It's a great thing. Everybody needs it and wants it. Life can be pretty bleak without it. I've got a German shepherd and I've had him since he was a puppy, ya' know. I bought him when he was just a twerp. He's three years old, he's healthy, he's big and he can run 40 miles an hour and he's great. I love my dog!

"I've had a steady girl for a few years and it's a great thing. Love makes life a lot easier."

Work

" I worked in a car wash when I was 15. I worked where the cars come out and you have to dry the cars off. In the winter time with the wind chill it can be 10 or 20 below zero, and that was real work getting up at five or six in the morning. It was cold and you've got these towels that are freezing and you're washing these fuckers off. Music is more something that you love to do so it doesn't seem like work. The thought of having to get a real job is difficult. I was never that good at keeping a straight job and getting enough money to do what I wanted to do. At the same time I had to work as a kid. If you gotta do it you do it.

" I've had different jobs. I worked in pizzerias and I actually enjoyed that. That was one job that didn't feel like work unless there was a gig or concert that I wanted to go to. In that case I'd leave work early anyway. I actually liked cooking pizzas, flipping the dough and stuff was cool.

"If I had to get another real job I would probably work in a pizzeria, or I'd work in the car wash and I'd be on the front end. The front end is where the guys would pump gas and vacuum the cars, and these guys were always the envy of everyone else who had it rough. This was back in the '70s when people would drive around with big joints in their cars. They'd smoke half a joint and leave the rest so that when one guy pulls up with half a joint in his ashtray, what happens to the joint? It ends up in the pocket of the guys who are up front who'd smoke them! I think I'd rather work in a pizza place though where it's warm and there's music."

Photo © Paul Jendrasiak, 1993

[queenhellwitch]

Jared Fucking Padalecki.

Re: Twitter, and the bunches of people who are criticising Jared for not being as good at acting as Jensen (misinformation about Jared's "problematic nature" aside, the intricacies of "he's not your fave but he's right there in every episode so he's not a bad actor, he just annoys you" aside, and the [probably correct] "you just hate him cuz he's not part of your ship" ideas also aside...)

It's so easy to see Sam as the boring, huffy, grumpy one who is only there to piss Dean off and to piss on Dean's always ever-so-hilarious bonfire (I've actually seen people use Sam's 'I'm so done with this shit' persona as the reason to claim Jared is a bad actor - that he's merely playing himself, just stands there and "huffs and puffs", he's booooring, wah wah. Tell me you've never seen Jared being Jared without telling me etc etc...)

And then there are people who understand and love Sam. We relate. His trauma is palpable and we see it and feel it and can't ignore it, like a lot of fans of this show seem to do.

But there's an extra nuance - and I'm gonna be extra patronising here - it's called understanding the dynamics of the game. Acting is a game of tennis. It's a call and response, a dance. J2 talk about it ALL THE TIME.

Dynamics. J2's chemistry, their brotherly relationship on and off screen and love for each other cannot be denied. But also, thanks to these TWO SKILLED ACTORS, Sam and Dean are a beautifully crafted comedy duo. The clip from "LARP and the Real Girl", where Sam suggests belladonna, and Dean and Charlie say "The pornstar?!" - that scene? There is a beat. Of perfect length.

And Sam says, "...the poison." It is a great example of masterful acting/comedy dynamics. People who clip/gif this scene after "The pornstar?!" and miss the next line absolutely suck. The reaction from Jared/Sam is what absolutely MAKES this moment as great as it is. It is absolutely, perfectly perfect, straight-man comic timing. He masters it, every time, every episode.

Then there's all the other things he does to bring the Sam I love to full, dynamic, dimensional life. Let me count the ways.

Just the other day I watched a clip of 20-year-old Jared giving an interview with the rest of the cast of "House of Wax". He talked about the lighting, the angles; he mentioned all sorts of things. Bashful, rosy-cheeked and so earnest, full of awe and respect for the art of filmmaking, even when his fellow young cast members were either jibing each other, or silently lounging, sunglasses on, like rockstars.

He's a beautiful actor because he cares so much about how a story is told.

He's a beautiful actor and one who deserves to be celebrated.

https://youtu.be/toiE_Q5S290

[grunklejam]

One of my favourite things about the Jason Ritter interview is that we only asked like six of our own questions out of a total of 35.

Let me explain if I may - when we first started organising all this, we immediately realised we didn't want to keep this closed. No press outlet reaches out to Jason to talk about Gravity Falls; the show is too old for that. Alex, sure, as he's the creator - but if a Hollywood actor is put in front of an interviewer, it's usually to talk about a current role.

So we told people, and opened up the room. We had over 150 questions piled into a Google form, ranging from What's your favourite episode to Do you eat mac 'n' cheese with a spoon?

When we asked if we could make it a live endeavour, I actually think he got more excited over the fact - as did the people asking questions, naturally. The interview became a hugely active time for the server - a genuine carnival atmosphere broke out. We had people live reacting and throwing in extra questions, we had people asking us to do things - I even had somebody ask me to shill my fic, which was utterly hilarious.

He was so happy to be there that when we finished the interview and told him he was 'free to go', he actually stuck around for about 45 minutes just talking in chat and listening to the afterparty.

He also had absolutely no idea about the fact we were going to advertise his family's charity. That reaction in the video is completely authentic. I think that's worth the months of work we had organising it alone.

[sarahjtv]

My Hero Academia Chapter 429 Spoiler Talk: The Penultimate Chapter

So here it is. The second to last chapter of My Hero Academia. Unless Horikoshi gives us a sequel series like Naruto: Shippuden, this and the next chapter is the last we'll get manga content about MHA. Well, at least until Horikoshi gives us another Ultra Analysis book or an art book with extra information. It's still hard to believe honestly. I don't know if I'll be able to accept that our beloved series is ending until it actually does. Let's see what Horikoshi-sensei gives us until then. Also, my health isn't 100% today, so I apologize if my writing sounds messy:

First off is our last Weekly Shonen Jump and Chapter color pages! They are absolutely beautiful celebrating both the 10th anniversary and My Hero Academia as a whole. Everyone is smiling and it's a wonderful sight to see. I won't show them here because I think they deserve to be seen with your own two eyes. Let's just say that I love them and I can't wait to get the HQ versions of them when the official release comes out. Just know that you can tell Horikoshi put a lot of love into these pages.

From here on out, I think I'm just going to talk about what I thought of the chapter because I'm not 100% down to type everything out tonight. Sorry about this:

I think the chapter was another solid one, though it somehow still doesn't feel like the series is ending yet for me.

I'm glad we got to see Ochako and Deku talk about not being able to save their respective villains because we all know how badly this was haunting them. Neither of them would have been able to move on and genuinely smile again until they got that all out to someone who understood. Thankfully, they have each other 💚💖. I'm also really glad Deku told Ochako she was his hero and let her take her hand. This is the closest we'll probably get to an actual romantic confession from either of them unless Horikoshi does something for them in the last chapter. The thing is, it works because this wasn't the time for a love confession. This was a time for two broken people to talk their trauma out and get reassurance from someone close to them.

Really sad to hear that Himiko Toga did die. Granted it was from Ochako's dialogue and we didn't see any panel with her body drawn, but we can really only take her word for it now. Horikoshi could absolutely pull a fast one on us and show a glimpse of her alive in the final chapter. However, I think it's safe to say that she is dead and that honestly sucks.

I love the slice-of-life panels we get of the rest of the kids and seeing Aizawa smile is beautiful! He's so proud of his kids 🥹.

Monoma getting a statue at the school and bragging about it is fucking hilarious 🤣! He honestly deserves it though because the whole world would've been dead if not for him. Deku better get a statue too or else I'm going to throw hands.

Eri excitedly singing at Aoyama's farewell party is the most wholesome thing I've seen in a very long time and I truly hope she achieves her dream someday 🤍! Make her the best idol in the world, Horikoshi!

Finally, there's that mysterious man we saw a few chapters ago. We still don't know his name, but we're told he was abused and abandoned by his family because he has a mutant Quirk similar to how Eri's Quirk in the sense that neither of their Quirks were inherited by their family's DNA. He looked like he was going to walk down a similar path as Tenko, but the old lady who first ignored Tenko many years back found this new man and finally offered him a hand thanks to Izuku's inspiration. This is sort of a redemption for the old lady. I know that she was a catalyst for why Tenko became who he became, but I think this is a start for her to start over at least. Thankfully, I think this man is going to be ok.

I remember reading the interviews Horikoshi did over the past week and one of the things he said he wanted to express was that even someone having your back is heroism. Someone who can do something so simple as reaching their hand out when someone is in need is a hero to that person. You can tell that that is what Horikoshi is telling us here. He also said that making us cry was an important part of the story too because it's how he wants us to connect with it, so I expect to shed tears next week.

So, yeah. That's the second to last chapter of the main My Hero Academia manga. It still doesn't feel real to me. The final page of the chapter left things open-ended, so I would not be surprised if we got a time skip of some sort in the final chapter. I honestly thought that Horikoshi was setting up one more villain for the kids to fight with that mysterious man, but it was wrapped up in a very simple yet poignant way. I will agree that it feels rushed and that there's something missing, but I can't pinpoint what. Horikoshi's been writing and drawing this manga for 10+ years at this point, so I can't entirely blame him for wanting to finish things up. However, I'm a little more nervous about him sticking the landing for the ending. While I think he can still do it, I've seen too many mangaka end their story on a bad note for one reason or another. Our best bet is that he revises or adds some things to make the chapter better in the volume version. I'm going to do my best to keep my optimism alive for the next few weeks.

I honestly can't begin to accurately predict how the manga will end. I could see it ending with the kids continuing their lives at UA, at graduation, or as pro-hero adults maybe with families of their own. Honestly, anything goes. Part of me wants to be here when the chapter might get leaked next Wednesday, but another part of me wants to wait until next Sunday for the official VIz release so I can read and cry together with everyone else. I think I am going to try to do the latter and then write some kind tribute to honor the series, but I may or may not be out of town next week, so I'll have to see about that.

One more chapter left.

[lover-of-mine]

Lady Whistledown.. My dearest Anna!!! It's hilarious how you live rent-free in a lot of BTs heads. I'm sure others as well, but your bee coverage in regards to Bridgerton annoys them. They may make up weird stories, but behind the scenes. They know it's not Tommy related. Watch out for your inbox because I wouldn't be surprised if you got hit with some extra negativity.

On the Hen thing. Let's step into Narnia. It hasnt been addressed a lot how Lou talked about Hen as a WOC in that interview. So it's weird they are trying to celebrate that old like but are also ready to bring out........ wait for it....... Lou was, of course, a little salty because he had filmed the scene with Hen months ago and actually understood better context in that interview than any of us, so he was validated in his dismissive attitude of his actual racism.

For reals though. They are a tragic mess right now. If I hadn't been watching them for months, I might actually feel bad.

Hello baby 🩷🩷

I love that I bother them so much lol and let's go buddie going canon kanthony style kapakpakapakaa and honestly, I have a block button and I'm not afraid to use it, it's gonna be fine.

My brain actually hurts trying to understand their logic on the Hen thing. The lengths they are going, dude, what the hell.

And all we got today is a behind the scenes from Ryan. Imagine when we get some actual new buddie content once filming starts.

[nikethestatue]

It’s hilarious to see the Gwynriels trying to convince themselves that “Azriel’s secrets aren’t just about Elain.” And every time they say that, I think to myself “so y’all admit that at least one of his secrets/THE secret is about Elain. Even they back track on what they say most times. SJM said in an interview that Acosf was full of “little secrets”/hints about what’s wrong with Azriel, and that Nesta understand him. It’s 2024, and they still think his secret is abut Azriel’s trauma making him think he is undeserving of his friends. They need to be F fr. 🤣

GA love themselves some TrAuMa.

Azriel is 540 years old. He's been with Rhys and Cass for 530 year. I think he isn't spending his days thinking he is undeserving of them??

I think the funniest thing is that GAs will saddle everyone with extra trauma. Everyone is so traumatized they cant make any decisions. Elain is so traumatized she wants to be human and skip over to Graysen's. Azriel is traumatized by Mor and can't be in a relationship, and he needs therapy before he even attempts to be in a female's company.

the only person who apparently overcame her trauma, is all nice and dandy, ready to be tied up and have rough sex with the kinky shadow singer is Gwyn.

It says ON PAGE--'his secret' and then get to read through them:

a headache powder he kept on his nightstand at the House of Wind. Not to use, but just to look at. Which he'd done every night he’d slept there. Or attempted to sleep there. 

Because her mate had been in the family room and Azriel had needed to stay by the door the whole time because he couldn't stand the sight of it, the scent of their mating bond, and needed to have the option  of leaving if it became too much.  

He needed to know what the skin of her neck tasted like. What those perfect lips tasted like. Her breasts. Her sex. He needed her coming on his tongue --   

He had only allowed himself these thoughts in the dead of night.  Had only allowed his hand to fist his cock and think about her then, when even his shadows had gone to sleep. How that beautiful face might appear as he entered her, what sounds she'd make.

Definitely sounds like his secrets are about his friends and their acceptance.

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

I made a post a year ago, I think, about how I enjoy that this site has a few blogs that are entirely dedicated to being obsessed with Tim Key, so everyone once in a while I’ll open Tumblr and be flooded with images of Tim Key, because the Tim Key blogs have decided to be active today, and I guess it’s Tim Key Monday.

Well, this time, for once, it’s been Tim Key Week in my comedy calendar, and it’s been a good time. Here are some things this week has covered:

- It started because Tim Key recently went on RHLSTP, and someone recommended it to me, so I listened to that latest episode. This was the first episode I’d ever heard of that podcast (aside from that YouTube video of the car crash with Stewart Lee) because I’m not a massive fan of Richard Herring, but I really enjoyed that one. So then I listened to the other three appearances that Tim Key has made on there, all within the last few years, because Tim Key has been very busy with writing books lately (just putting out his third book since the start of COVID) and keeps going on there to promote them. But then he ends up not promoting them, and just spending the whole time talking shit about Richard Herring.

God, he’s ridiculously quick. He just goes right into character and stays there the entire time, he can take anything Richard Herring says and spin it around in a split second and hit him back with it. Really sharp and can make absolutely anything funny. Literally anything. I re-watched that DVD extra interview he did with Simon Amstell last night, and that really highlighted how much he can make the most mundane thing in the world hilarious.

It's amazing style, I think. Be just a few steps outside of what is normal and reasonable to say, but say it with full confidence, and then ask other people what’s wrong with them when they don’t keep up. I’d previously seen him do it for five sets of No More Jockeys, and delighted in hearing he’s like that all the time.

- I enjoyed that, so got sent some more Tim Key things. His Radio 4 documentaries, of which I had heard one before, because it featured Kitson, and earlier this year I did my huge trek through every weird tiny thing where Daniel Kitson might have had even the most obscure role (I watched a terrible movie called Dog Eat Dog, the rabbit hole went deep, and the rabbit hole contained a Tim Key documentary about a Russian novelist). But I hadn’t heard some others, so I spent an evening listening to Tim Key talk about Russian poets and writers and how to start a novel, and that was lovely. I enjoyed that.

- But the main things I got were a couple of recordings of his old stand-up shows, and this album he recorded in 2010, called On a Boat With a String Quartet, where he reads poetry and talks shit to Tom Basden. I really, really enjoyed listening to Tim Key read poetry and talk shit to Tom Basden. I realized I have heard that before, as they were together on season 2 of Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better, and on Mark Watson’s Live Address to the Nation, and they did basically the same thing there. This album made me remember how much I enjoyed those radio shows, partly because of how much I enjoy listening to Tim Key read poetry and talk shit to Tom Basden. “Wow,” I thought. “I wish there were only some way of hearing more of Tim Key reading poetry while talking shit to Tom Basden.” Then I remembered he has a five-season radio show that I’ve somehow never heard before.

- So next on the list was the Late Night Poetry Programme, which I’d been vaguely meaning to listen to “at some point” for ages, and this was clearly that time. God, it was good. I’d heard Tim’s poems before in various contexts, but really enjoyed hearing so many of them at once. And the soundscape was nice. And of course it was fun when he talked shit to Tom Basden.

I think the first few seasons were pretty well perfect, just those two in a studio with little hints of their life outside it, dropped through a line or a word or two, throwaway jokes where the meaning hits you a little at a time as you realize what it implies about the life they live. It was cool at first, when they started opening it up and we actually saw that bigger world that they’d been teasing for a while. By season 5, I have to admit, I felt like it had gone too far. Which they acknowledged several times, Tom Basden making comments that they’d gotten too far away from season 1 and Tim Key doesn’t even read his poems anymore. But I did kind of think the character was right. The sitcom was still fun, I enjoyed every episode. But I think my favourties were when it was just two people in a studio reading poetry.

Katy Wix was good, though. And I did enjoy the guest stars throughout all five seasons. That turned into a game that I was able to play due to my abysmal lack of talent for identifying people based on the sound of their voice alone. Because I’m so bad at it, I avoided looking at the notes beforehand, and tried to guess who that episode’s guest voice actor was, and would then hear in the credits whether I was right. I was quite bad at it. I went through an entire episode with Sally Phillips, and two entire episodes with Mike Wozniak, convinced that they were played by people I’d never heard before, even though I know both those voices quite well.

I only guessed a few. By the end of Isy Suttie’s episode, I was about 80% sure it was Suttie, and then I turned out to be right. I got Bridget Christie’s voice right away, though that’s partly because I knew from a No More Jockey’s episode that she’d show up at some point, and she hadn’t been on it yet and this was the last episode, so it had to be her. The only voice where I was immediately, 100% sure who it was was when they had Liam Williams on. Absolutely no question there. That is an extremely distinctive voice, it was almost distracting because every time he spoke I just thought “Oh it’s Liam Williams” rather than believing it was a farmer or whatever.

- After that, I wanted even more Key & Basden, and I remembered how Stuart Goldsmith says that his best evidence for why TV isn’t a meritocracy is that Cowards never got more than three TV episodes. So I downloaded those TV episodes. But of course I have to do things in order, so first I downloaded the radio episodes. Did the radio show and then the TV show.

I really liked those, and I’m often not big on sketch comedy. These were fucking great, though. The TV show had quite a few sketches that I could see myself re-watching on YouTube one at a time. And that’s nice, because for years I’ve done that regularly with Mitchell and Webb, but these days I watch those and have trouble enjoying them as much because, you know, transphobia. I guess I should stop being shocked when it turns out that Footlights men from the early 00s may not be the most clued-up people in the world about trans issues (Webb, Ayoade). But if Tim Key or Tom Basden or those other two guys (sorry, I do vaguely know they both have quite good careers in their own right, but in my mind they are those other two guys) in Cowards have any views on trans people whatsoever, I’d like them to keep that to themselves so I can have some new sketches to re-watch on YouTube without feeling guilty. No more Footlights guys from the early 00s should be allowed to talk about trans people (except John Oliver, actually Mark Watson’s made some pro-trans rights statements too, they can stay).

Anyway, the point is that I really enjoyed the sketches. They all seemed so cohesive – the characters, and the plots, and the actors. A lot of sketches didn’t end on huge punchlines, which I always think is the sign of a good sketch, if it’s funny enough to get laughs throughout and not just for a twist at the end. Really good stuff. I see Stuart Goldsmith’s point.

- Then I still hadn’t had enough Key & Basden on Radio 4, so I downloaded the sitcom Party. That was pretty good. The jokes were consistent and funny, which is the main point. I have to admit the premise didn’t work quite as well today as it might have then, which is not Tom Basden’s fault, as you can’t have expected him to foresee the fall of Western civilization back in 2010. In 2010, I remember that the idea of naïve youths involved in politics was funny. Straw feminists and all that. Whereas these days, the situation is so dire that if I see a young person who’s politically engaged, I don’t want to make fun of them for being underinformed anymore. I just want to say “Thank you for doing anything besides making Tik-Tok videos and listening to Joe Rogan while Rome burns.”

Having said that, the point of this show was not exactly to be hard-hitting satire of student politics, it was to be a vehicle for jokes. And it did that very well. It was funny. The characters were good, too. Five different main characters it a lot for a sitcom that started with only four half-hour episodes, but by the end of the very first episode, I had a clear idea of who was who. I could tell their voices apart, which helps (Tim Key’s voice I know, Tom Basden’s voice sounds a bit too similar to Johnny Sweet’s but I could tell them apart if I tried hard enough, I can tell Katy Wix’s Welsh accent apart from Anna Crilly). And each character was sufficiently distinctive for me to see why they were there.

- Just today, I watched The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island, written by and starring Key & Basden. I enjoyed it. Short films, or films in general, aren’t hugely my thing. But I liked the pretty shots of English countryside. I liked the dismal shots of the ocean in bad weather and little rowboats and the old house. And it was a nice story starring a folk singer and an eccentric person, and what more could I want out of some characters?

I know Tim Key has done a bunch of short films before, some with Tom Basden. The only other one I’ve seen is Very Few Fish, which I watched entirely because of that bit at the end of a No More Jockeys episode, where Tim lists all the Taskmaster contestants he has or hasn’t touched, and says he’s kissed Aisling Bea, on screen. I found out that he’d kissed her in this weird short film written by Tom Basden, so I watched that out of curiosity.

And found… it was quite a good film, probably deserved to get more commissioned. But I didn’t like the bit where he made out with Aisling Bea. I’d just watched all this No More Jockeys, where he’s in his house and playing himself so I felt like I knew him. And I don’t want to see people I know graphically make out with other people. It’s like when your friend is doing PDA at a party. It’s even weirder than when a stranger does it, because you just think, I don’t want to see you that way. I know you, I like you, that side of you is meant to be kept behind closed doors please. That’s what Very Few Fish felt like. Like following a friend on a date and watching him make out with someone. It was weird.

That’s an interesting level of parasocial relationship, isn’t it? Watching No More Jockeys has parasoically made me feel like that guy is my friend, but the effect is not for me to try to hang out with him on social media or anything creepy like that, the only effect is I don’t want to watch him kiss anyone. That’s probably okay, as far as these things go.

- Last night, I tried the first episode of We Need Answers. I’d have absolutely loved to see the stage version of this, I have collected pictures and short videos of it from various corners of the internet (including those fucking unhinged promo videos on Alex Horne’s YouTube channel that introduce the contestants), they had all the best comedians and it seems like a great showcase of my peak area of interest, which is 00s Edinburgh comedy.

However, I’ve always avoided the TV show because the list of guests is awful. Almost no comedians, heavy on presenters and reality show people. It didn’t help that the first episode featured noted transphobe Germaine Greer (also, as I always feel the need to add when her name comes up, she wasn’t some perfect feminist who was ruined by going TERF, I always disliked some of the comments she’d made about cis women who didn’t fit the type of womanhood that she liked, and I hate the she’s held us as an example of great feminism). So I’m open to giving it another shot. Does anyone have opinions on whether it gets better in the future? The first episode was all right, but I didn’t enjoy it all that much.

So that is my Tim Key binge. Does anyone have recommendations for things I’ve missed? Especially short films, I know there are other good ones. Happy Tim Key Thursday, everyone!

[spurgie-cousin]

ok i couldn't resist i had to read the Jinger NYT article immediately:

(CW: sexual assault and r*pe mention)

they almost exclusively refer to Jinger as Mrs. Vuolo which for some reason makes me feel feral. it's just clunky and I don't like it.

the Jill Dillard erasure!!!!!! another article claiming Jinger is the 'first' to question her parent's religion when that is just 1000% not true and like, what kind of fact checkers would not investigate if any of her siblings were up to something similar?

and on that note, why won't Jinger herself acknowledge Jill???? purely to sell more books as the 'first' to break away, bc that's pretty irritating

i learned from this article that Bill Gothard never married which is just fucking hilarious to me. all these rules about how to live as a married couple and this bitch really had no experience or idea what he was talking about (another example of how men really do just be saying any old thing and getting away with it)

Jinger makes a point to the interviewer that the reason she is trying to avoid the term 'deconstruction' is because she doesn't want to scare off readers who might currently be involved with IBLP or similar structures, to which I say, fair. she says that of all the people who'd possibly read the book those people are her intended audience (although I'm sure she's not mad at being an NYT bestseller right now).

the interviewer notes that the book is very generous to Jim Bob in Michelle, which I know I've talked about a lot before, just noting it again.

apparently she talks about Josh a bit, says they haven't spoken in 2 years, calls him a hypocrite and compares him to Gothard so. at least there's some kind of shit talking.

Bill Gothard is still alive and has started a new organization, apparently. Jinger adds in the book that she believes the women who have accused him of harassment and r*pe.

here's what they include about MacArthur's church, which I think is important for people to know:

"Mrs. Vuolo characterizes her current church in Southern California as very different than the environment she was raised in. The church, Grace Community Church, is led by John MacArthur, a popular pastor known for his rigorous preaching style, his opposition to “superstitious” charismatic theology and, more recently, his resistance to keeping his church closed in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic.

The church is conservative on issues like homosexuality, gender, and women in church leadership. Christianity Today reported this week that leaders at the church repeatedly advised women to avoid reporting their abusive husbands and fathers to authorities, and instead to forgive and submit to them. ..... The church plays a large role in Mrs. Vuolo’s family’s life. Her husband leads a Bible study group for college students and is employed by a seminary affiliated with the church, the Master’s Seminary, where he is working on a doctorate of ministry. “Becoming Free Indeed” credits a ghostwriter named Corey Williams who is the seminary’s chief communication officer. “This is what people won’t like about this story,” said Austin Duncan, director of the seminary’s MacArthur Center for Expository Preaching, who knows the Vuolos well. “They still have a standard of authority that’s outside of themselves.”"

To which I just have to say, nobody's issue with Jinger's religious affiliation is that she still "has a standard of authority outside" herself 🙄🙄🙄 or at least not people who are coming at the story in good faith.

The issue is listed clearly in the paragraph above that one: it's a church that still promotes misogyny and homophobia, and is anti-science and intellectualism. As did Bill Gothard, he just added a bunch of stupid extra rules on top of it.

[brian-in-finance]

https://www.revamp-magazine.co.uk/lauren-lyle?utm_campaign=later-linkinbio-revamp_mag&utm_content=later-30175435&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkin.bio

Link to interview and there is an Instagram Story.

Thanks for the message, Anon.

Lauren Lyle

9 October 2022

Necklace / Maria Black // Dress / Missoni // Photographer: Stewart Bywater

Interview & Editor: Owen James Vincent

Stylist: Ben James Adams

Hair: Joe Pickering Taylor

Makeup: Maria Asadi

Photographer’s assistant: Hannie McBride

Stylist’s first assistant: Linda Houtsonen

Stylist’s second assistant: Fatima Koko

Cover Design: Emily Curtis

A big thanks to Georgia & Ellie from Public Eye & Sorcha Adamson from Arch The Agency

With ITV drama 'Karen Pirie' coming to an end. We got to chat to Lauren Lyle about her time on the show, preparing herself for the role and behind-the-scenes stories.

Dress & Gloves / La Musa @ Cult Mia

Hi Lauren! Thanks for chatting with ReVamp Magazine. Has 2022 been good for you?

It has, i’ve been very lucky to travel a lot for work from LA to the very most Northern Island of of the UK so i’ve seen some amazing sights. A grey whale in California and a colony of grey seals in the North. It’s been such a good summer in London too. After working away loads it felt cool to reconnect with my friends and actually live in my newly renovated apartment.

Do you remember the first production you worked on?

My first ever proper acting job was The Crucible at The Old Vic on The West End. I couldn’t believe it. TV wise it was either a BBC comedy called Radges which was hilarious and written by now a very successful comedian Fern Brady. Or it was Holby City! An absolute right of passage for a UK actor, i’m honoured to have got an episode before it ended.

Shirt / Letoit // Trousers / ArmedAngels // Shoe / Grenson

You’re the lead role in the ITV crime drama ‘Karen Pirie’. How has the reaction been so far?

It been crazy. I’m quite overwhelmed, and even Twitter which can be a horrible place is largely very positive. I’m so happy everyone is loving it and despite not wanting to read reviews it is good to know even rival papers are agreeing that is a great show. I knew we were making a good thing and its such a relief now its finally out.

How did you prepare yourself for this role?

I read the scripts a million times, watched all the detective shows I could, and created my own big wall which outlined the case and all the suspects. It was very intense wrapping my head around the case and every little details but a real pleasure diving in and immersing myself. Then when it came to line learning it was just repetition repetition repetition. And then sometimes the pub alone, with a half pint and my script.

Jacket / Dagmar // Shoe / Grenson

What was it like to be part of Val McDermid’s world?

Very cool! She’s created such iconic characters and much loved worlds. I was slightly daunted a the prospect of playing a character so many already loved from the books knowing I might not be everyone’s Karen they imagined in their head, however having done it once with Marsali as a book character from Outlander I knew this was our version and people would hopefully honour that. Which they have.

Do you think we need to see more female representation in big roles such as Karen's?

Always. I think telling this story through the lens of another young woman who also knows what it means to be nervous walking home at night is relevant and important. The case is very personal to Karen and the subject matter is to me, so i definitely feel proud to be opening up that conversation further into the mainstream. I’ve had lots of amazing messages from women saying that seeing a vanity free, funny, relatable woman on screen is so refreshing and reassuring.

Earrings / Maria Black // Dress / JC Pajares @ Cult Mia

Have you got any funny behind-the-scenes stories?

I got my parents into the final scene of the whole show as extras. It was quite special to bring them to work and show what I do. We did one take where we picked up half way through the scene and on one told my mum so she started acting out the very beginning of the scene. She stalled the whole take and accidentally got in Chris Jenks (The Mint’s) shot. Luckily the director through it was hilarious and filmed the whole thing.

Lastly, have you got any plans for the rest of the year?

I have just finished another film and i’m preparing to go away to an Island to shoot another one which will take me up to Christmas. Then it will be Christmas dinners and sleep.

You can catch the last episode of 'Karen Pirie' on ITV tonight at 8pm or watch the whole season on ITV Hub.

Revamp

Remember… I got my parents into the final scene of the whole show as extras. It was quite special to bring them to work and show what I do. — Lauren Lyle

[themoomoorn]

LA SAGA DE BAGUETTE PART DEUX: BIENVENUE A CHILI'S

It's time to balance our blossoming war with activity micromanagement on a magical, overloaded airship-fortress-sports bar. Y'know, as you do.

The Somniel may not have a Chili's, but they better have a Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie in that kitchen anyway!

...what do you mean Chili's doesn't make it anymore!?

Emblème, Engager!

This enchanted doggo poops out Bond Shards if you feed and pet it. That's nice and all, but can it also poop out Happy Hour priced custom margaritas? Didn't think so.

Yeah, not weird at all /s

Also, can we please just have a normal war camp again??? I'm siding with the Tellius fandom on that one.

After getting acquainted with the Somniel, we begin our journey proper by getting a set of rings from Firene, the perpetual springtime kingdom and also the most peaceful and religious of the lot. Their current monarch is Ève, and her heir is Prince Alfred. We meet him his sister, Princess Céline, and their respective retainer duos after finding out that a local town is being sacked by Corrupted.

Per Lumera, Lythos kept two rings and the other countries got two to three apiece. She kept the ring for Sigurd, and Alear had Marth's on during their epic millenium-spanning post-con crash. For Firene, they have the rings for Celica and Micaiah (the latter we find for ourselves later on, as it's in a shrine at the border).

Here I have Alfred Engaged with Sigurd, and Céline will always enter combat in this Chapter with Celica in tow. Both of them rock their respective outfits well and are also good fits for their respective skillsets. I do find it odd that Sigurd's Engaged hair color is a vibrant lilac though.

I wonder if this crystal is made of trix yogurt?

Here we meet Veyle, our Mysterious Fragile Female Waif-type. As you can see by the BDSM choker and the chains on her legs, she will presumably continue the Great Shouzou Kaga's legacy of women being too "pure" and "innocent" to be evil. As these interviews show, the guy presumably needed to have his teeth pulled out with pliers to even conceive a character like Jugdral's Queen Hilda of Chronos.

This game continues the trend of NPCs having banger designs, and for Firene, this includes a lot of floral prints. I love the dresses, and I'd love a button-up with a pattern like it. The item shopkeeper is also really pretty!

Framme is the only character who sorta responds positively to being gifted horse manure. Sigh.

"Alear has that sadness and longing in his eyes that you only see in eastern European gay porn."

Exercise mini-games, which offer a temporary stat boost. Here we have Alear doing push-ups in improper form. Most of the Somniel activities are more valuable for grinding up Bond Fragments more than the activity itself, although fishing is a nice extra spot for cooking ingredients.

In contrast to her daughter's absurd gown, Queen Ève's is nicer, and also has a prettier color palette.

We are introduced to our smex appeal female henchman of the game, Zephia. I will be inevitably disappointed when we are forced to see her sob backstory and be forced to sympathize with her.

She's also voiced by Elizabeth Maxwell in English, and while I know she's had many, many roles, I still mainly hear P5's Sae Niijima, which in this case is kind of hilarious.

This line is actually pretty funny. And hey, if Alfred actually didn't have the capacity of trampling over people like Sigurd himself did, lance abilities, or a workout routine that would presumably fit right in on TikTok, then Nelucce would have a leg to stand on!

Hopefully his passing was uneventful and not the stuff of nightmares, like poor Cornelius.

...Is Vander a cat???

In good old Post-2012 FE fashion, we have a Paralogue off the beaten path to do before running to the border to get Micaiah's ring. And in said same fashion, this map is where we recruit our steroid-injected child who presumably got Tommy John surgery at the age of seven under the pretense that it would allegedly enhance their performance. Yes, I do like baseball actually.

Anyway, our trainee unit for this game is Jean, and he is my new fictional son. I love him. I also love his hot dad and his drip.

Alear raids a farm at night and steals a nice, light, feathery cock. Kinda shocked we don't have more memes of Alear hoarding animals for the Somniel's farm.

Hiyah Papaya, it's time to meet Yunaka, who's actually one of the best characters AND units in this game, despite having one of my least favorite designs, but that's also the power of a good story and good voiceover work (Laura Post in this case) for you.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about Emblem Micaiah, who, like some of the other Emblems, is presented here in sanitized fashion. Yunaka enters the scene Engaged with her, which is convenient as Micaiah's Shine tome lights up this Fog of War Map.

Also, Fog of War maps are back. Sweet.

Veyle is back. Another plot trinket is bestowed upon us. The vivid red shade presumably denotes that it's eeeeeeviiiiilllll.

Another Paralogue before we wrap things up and head to Brodia, and it's Anna's. We get a refreshing change of pace with a female bandit boss and some female bandits, which is pretty cool actually. She even has a 9/10 design.

The remaining 1 point was knocked off for the micro hot pants.

I didn't bother with screenshots, but Anna is a viable playable unit after being completely shitty in 3H. She's a pretty mixed bag in terms of stats, but her Personal Skill is extremely useful providing her Luck levels up (She can plunder 500 gold from an enemy she defeats off a percentage of her base Luck stat). This also might be the most likable Anna so far...not that that's a very high hurdle to clear.

Her being 11 in this game is also still odd, but she got a far better and less rotten English VA out of it in the end.

And that wraps up the Firene Arc. Next time, we head to Brodia, the testosterone-poisoned Sparta analogue. What rings will their royals have, and will they be as inoffensive and mild as -

...wait.

I hear rattling.

Rolling along the grass, over there...

Is that...a bracelet...?

...oh no.

ALEAR NO -

[garrettwrites]

Hi, how's it going? Anything new and exciting in your life?

I see you're obsessed with vampires, who are your favourites? 👀

Sorry for the 3day delay I had to think on this. Picking favourites is hard. Reminder that I welcome all sorts of asks! Especially vampire and Worldbuilding ones!

Life's hard, gotta study the hell out of roman fish productions while simultaneously making art for social media and my portfolio, but what's life without a little stress.

Onto your question (which I ended up rambling on, sorry), lore wise I have two absolute favourite pieces of vampire media:

VtM: Bloodlines (2004 game). My love. I like how they write vampires and set their powers, clan divisions and hierarchies. The aesthetic of the game is also early 2000s late 90s, which is nostalgic. It's more fantastical than straight forward, a vampire DnD in fact, so it offers a lot of liberty and flexibility for whatever story you want to tell. It also works well as inspiration for original works, since the more you look into it the more you can pick what to use for your own vampire stories.

Second one is the netflix series Vampires (2020). It's french. It is an... incredibly fresh take on vampires. The series unfortunately only has one season with six episodes. It follows the life of this poor vampire family, but the twist is that vampirism is biological and vampires are born as such, and can die of old age (they just age much slower). Their weaknesses, their biology, their social structures and the way the series explores them through the eyes of a teenage girl slowly coming into her vampire disease (because it is kind of an illness), the way the series IS NOT AFRAID of pushing forward extremely embarrassing moments (such as the girl, still unable to control herself, biting the boy she loves IN CLASS and being viewed as a weirdo for it - refreshing when many writers are afraid of such realistic moments due to how cringe they may come across as for general audiences.... It's pretty solid. The scenes with the girl's mother walking into the sun covered in scarves and pieces of cloth is also really good, more series should do that - makes sense that a vampire would still go outside during the day, they'd just need to look absolutely out of place while doing it. Which they should. Vampires don't belong in daylight.

Honorable mention: Interview with the Vampire. Of course. Especially the new TV series. I love the psychological exploration of vampirism in there. However, I think the series is good because of the characters themselves rather than the blood sucking of it all. Vampire wise I don't care much for the lore, it is there to solidify the fact they're all monsters.

Extra 2: Unironically? I know this might sound cringe, but if you ignore the main storyline and exclusively look at the lore... Vampire Diaries is kinda good. The writers clearly did their research and included ideas from all over the world in their social structures, vampiric powers, etc. One of my favourite aspects is how they utilise the concept of "vampries can't enter a house without consent" to its absolute fullest. There's even a character who is turned into a vampire, and gets locked out of his own home because he lives alone and no one is in there to allow him in. Hilarious.

CHARACTER WISE...

Lestat is definitely one of my all time favourites. He symbolizes what a vampire should be for me, but is still multi faceted enough to be a person rather than a caricature.

Olrox from Castlevania: Nocturne (animated series). I miss drawing him. I wrote two whole ass fanfics about him, but they were romantic rather than focused exclusively on him.... A shame. I think he's pretty interesting. Depending on where Nocturne goes, he might surpass Lestat in the future. He's charming, but dangerous. Tragic yet with a chance of rising above the rubble. He's also native american, and possibly a god - all really fresh concepts. I really love Olrox. Top tier vampire dude, sorry Alucard but you're just not as cool.

Talking about Castlevania... Carmilla. She's not even that original as a character, but she's what people nowadays call a "Girlboss" except she's actually well written. You feel for her. You love her. You hate her. And she's a vampire that knows she's a monster and wants to keep being one. None of that "oh naur I'm immortal but must... commit the sin of drinking blood" bullshit. She, much like Olrox, steals every scene she's in.

Jonathan Reid from Vampyr (2018 game). A very... text intensive game. But I like reading, so I don't mind. He's a doctor, and was a soldier during WW1. He's the main character of the game and you can take his path in multiple directions. He's a favourite of mine because I like the concept of a doctor vampire, plus I genuinely love Vampyr.

The cast of The Lost Boys. No explanation needed,

Least favourite vampire: Astarion because 1) he took over my dash, can't talk about vampires anymore without that man being there and 2) people can't tag his fucking name properly and I'm over here trying to find minotaur content (AstErion) and I see that kind of muscular kinda lean white haired small fangs elf taking over the tags. Please people. Learn how to tag.

[saltygilmores]

THOUGHTS WHILE WATCHING GILMORE GIRLS: SEASON 3, EPISODE 3-“Application Anxiety" (Part 2)

bint. / (bɪnt) / noun. offensive, slang a derogatory term for girl, woman.

According to Mr. College Admissions Dork, the following fatal errors will guarantee your REJECTION! From Harvard. Bad handwriting (how quaint) Your chosen after school activities are considered boring to Mr.Dork. You don't have enough after school activities. Not enough means you're not trying hard enough. You take too many after school activities. Too many means you're trying too hard. As per Mr. Dork, nobody is interested in everything, and if you like too many things you will be !REJECTED! You submitted your application too early. You are a hopeless idiot if you believed the myth of "Early Admission". Ha ha! Dumb idiot kids! You're too intense. Hyper intense students will FAIL their admission interview! Mr. Dork along with his cohort, Mrs Dork, the delightful rays of sunshine they are, seem to find great joy in publicly dragging their own future students, mocking children who dare to dream of Ivy League admission and cover their walls in university paraphernalia, calling them "hungry and immature". These people are assholes. I think Season 1 Spitfire Rory would have pushed these admission dorks right off the stage. QUIPPY! Rory is wetting her pants and Paris is twitching. Let's flash back to early season 2, where Rory was contemplating some potential after school activities. *sparkly flashback music*

The extra cirricular/summer school options visible behind Rory were: Junior life saving, rock climbing, botany, contemporary art, hiking, loom weaving, local geology, role playing (????), field hockey, and Shakespeare. Harvard will be jumping to accept the applicant with a strong Role Playing/Loom Weaving background. I guess the Asshole is technically not wrong that the school newspaper seems passe* with those options available.

The Dot-Com Bust. How quaint. I'm old enough to remember hearing about it at the time (I was still a teenager) but thanks to GG I decided to do a little research on the topic and learned more about it. Thanks Emily!

The notion that college=guaranteed success? How quaint. And Rory majoring in journalism is the cherry on top of the Quaint Jello. It's okay, she couldn't know. The brutal and hilarious truth is that Jess (who didn't finish high school but is already a published author and running his own business by 21) and Dean (who ended up working in construction, which tends to pay very well) were more succesful than Rory with her Yale education in the end. In fact, Rory had the nerve to needle Dean in S4 about his construction job when she has an Ivy League education but won't even take a job waiting tables. Hell, it's even implied that Luke is sitting on a lot of money and he didn't go to college (although maybe not the best example, as that might have been an inheritance, I can't remember if it was ever discussed in detail). Hell, pretty much everyone in Stars Hollow didn't go to college and they seem very happy with their little working class lives. And if Jess didn't dismember Shane and dump her body in the lake she'd have made a good living as a hairstylist or makeup artist. In a later episode this season, Lorelai turns up her nose at the thought of Rory not going to the most elite college and implies that beauty school and community college are beneath Rory. But lemme save that special rant for when that episode comes along. However, in a few moments, Lorelai does tell Rory, "You HAVE to go to college." I get it, okay. I get what she's doing. She wants Rory to reach for the stars and do better in life than she did, get a good education etc etc. But this notion that attendance at an elite college as the only possible means to achieve success and anything less is just short of failure feels short sighted. Emily continues: the competition is fierce for admission, every student takes honors classes and works on the student council, a high GPA is not enough anymore, Rory needs to do something to stand out, extra cirriculars, etc, etc, we know, we know. Emily: Now even celebrities are going to college. I was watching that insipid Kate Hudson and even she talked about going to college. She's going to get in over Rory! Kate Hudson must have been a big deal in the early 2000s (I vaguely remember it) because they reference her a lot. Almost Famous came out in 2000 and How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days came out in 2003 and she made 11 movies total between 2000-2004. So that tracks. Back on her home planet, AmyShermanPalladino must have picked up an Earth People magazine and read about how Kate Hudson was popular with Earthlings. Really funny that Emily is more aware of current pop culture than any character under 35. Lorelai's still over here spouting references to Yo Yo and Dingus from 1973 or whatever. Lorelai: Don't worry about it Mom, Rory's special, she'll get in to Harvard. Emily: Of course Rory's special. She knows that, I know that, you know that, we all know that. Years of that "Rory's a special snowflake who can do no wrong" talk is definitely not going to have adult Rory up to her eyeballs in therapy bills. Rory shows up at Emily's and Lorelai, Rory, and Paris (on the phone) proceed to have a three way simultaneous Nuclear Panic Attack over the Harvard applications. The next morning at the Gilmore abode, Lane is visting and fielding phone calls about her rock band personal ad. Still no Rygalski.

If that's what you want.

A SMALL CHILD IN STARS HOLLOW! HOW DID IT BREACH CONTAINMENT!

This dapper gentleman addresses Luke as "Sir" , orders an "Egg cream" and offers to pay for his meal (so he's definitely an outsider). Another child and then a manchild (Kirk) followup with requests for other malt-shop items that nobody has ever ordered outside of a 1950's Archie comic. ,... Waaaaait a minuuuute. I know what's happening. These children are Taylor's operatives sent to scope out Luke's Diner. The "Taylor Opens an Ice Cream Parlor Next Door" plot will soon have liftoff.

Between telling a small child to go to hell and insulting Dean to his face for no other reason than he felt like it, I could not love Luke more in this episode.

Things googled while watching gilmore girls: *Passe (I definitely think I used this word incorrectly). Bint Common extra cirricular activities Dot com bubble burst Kate Hudson IMDB How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days Almost Famous

[daggerzine]

Gary Olson talks afternoon into evening! (interview by Eric Eggleson).

It’s been a while since I caught up with Gary Olson of The Ladybug Transistor; he’s quite the busy guy, but he’s never too busy to take time out of his schedule for Dagger. When he told me about a reunion tour and an amazing concert in Norway, I had to find out more. 

How did you end up in the Norwegian festival? (Egersund)  The Ladybug Norway connection goes back a couple of decades now. We had a lot of opportunity to play there in the early 2000s after Albemarle Sound was released. Audiences were great and we developed a lot of lasting friendships. It seemed like a natural place for a reunion. 

What was it like playing the old tunes again? How much preparation went into practice?  Oh, so much fun! It really brought home that we had four distinct writers (Gary, Jeff, Jennifer, and Sasha) in those days and our individual styles rounded into something special. We chose a set list months in advance and made notes… Everyone came prepared as we only had four days for rehearsals. We practiced in Norway as most of us live in different cities these days. Julia and I are in New York, Sasha is in Montana, Jeff is in Burlington, and Jennifer is in Pittsburgh.  

How did you choose your setlist?  We got together in 2019 to play the entire Albemarle Sound record for its 20th anniversary so we stuck with what worked best from that set and added some of the stronger material from Argyle Heir and Self-Titled.  

Many great bands at Egersund, which were you excited to see?  There was so much to see in those few days! High Water Marks, Minus 5, No Ones, Rishis and Teenage Fanclub. A new band called Colored Lights really stood out. They have an LP out soon that you should check out.  

Did you join any of them on stage?  Sasha and Jennifer sat in with the No Ones for a song.  

How long were you in Norway?  A few weeks. We arrived early to settle in, practice and do some sightseeing… hiking in the fjords. It’s a spectacular place to spend time in the summer. I did a duo tour with Ole Johannes (The Loch Ness Mouse) following the Ladybug show so that kept me there an extra couple of weeks. 

The Elephant 6 documentary also aired; was that your first time seeing it? Yes, glad to finally see it. I was waiting for the opportunity to watch it on the big screen in a proper theater. Jeff Baron took part in the Q & A, along with Hilarie from Apples (and The High Water Marks), and Adrian from Elf Power.  

Let’s move on to the reunion tour. Why only these five venues? We had a show at The Andy Warhol Museum booked in fall of 2020 and that got postponed during the pandemic. When they rescheduled for this year, we decided to build a little tour around it. Five shows seemed manageable. If it goes well, we will certainly be open to more.  

Why these venues? Have you played at them before?  We’ve played at Schubas in Chicago many times, but it’s been a while. We played Warhol ages ago. The rest are all new to us.  

Any chance for more dates later?  2024 will be the 25th anniversary of The Albemarle Sound so I hope we have the opportunity to do something special. Feel welcome to make any suggestions!  

Will you be bringing merchandise? (My t-shirts are getting small!)  Yes, working on that now. Sasha is an astrology enthusiast and says this is meant to be the year of Ladybug’s return so we may make some comet themed merch.  

Any news on opening acts? Kyle Forester and his band will open in Brooklyn. It seems especially appropriate as he’s been such a good steward to Ladybug through the years. Giant Day (Derek Almstead and Emily Growden) are opening in Pittsburgh. And we've just confirmed that Derek will be joining us on drums for the November dates.

Will you be playing any new songs? Just the oldies, but It would be fun write some new ones with them. 

And now some updates on your production work. What bands have you been working or will be working with? Finishing some of Phil Sutton’s projects, Love Burns and Pale Lights. He’s a constant in the studio. I just completed an album for Auguste Juillet Meets The Swedish Miles, which is Jay (Hough) from Sapphire Mansions latest project. That should be out later this year. I worked on the new Sloppy Heads album that was recently released. Give them all a spin! 

Are you writing any new music? Your solo album came out in 2020 (Wow, where did the time go?). Loved that, I’m also a huge Loch Ness Mouse fan! How did that come about?  Ole Johannes from Loch Ness has been a close friend since my early visits to Norway. We started writing songs together along with his brother Jørn about six years ago and that evolved into an album. It’s a great partnership and we will do more.  

Looks like Let’s Whisper is your most recent release. (That also includes Jeff!)  Yes, it’s always great to work with the Vermont crew.  

I see Jennifer is releasing another The Garment District album in the fall.  Very excited for Jennifer’s new Garment District album. I got a preview of the vinyl, and it looks and sounds wonderful.  

Well, there you have it, Gary is as friendly today as he was back when I interviewed him many years ago. (Time to check the Dagger archives.) I’ve listed the venues and ticket websites if you’re interested in catching this reunion tour. I know I won’t miss this one. I’m hoping the tour goes well so more cities can be added.  

www.gary-olson.bandcamp.com

www.tapeterecords.de