#with (k)Anthony fans | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

gunterfan1992 · 7 months

Text

Episode Review: “The Star”/“Jerry”

(Fionna & Cake, Eps. 7–8)

Airdate: September 22, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Iggy Craig, Graham Falk, Jacob Winkler, & Sonja von Marensdorff

Directed by: Ryann Shannon (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

It is hard to believe that we are already privy to the penultimate episodes of the Fionna & Cake miniseries. So far, this series has been hit after hit. So do "The Star" and "Jerry" live up to what has come before them? Read on for more...

The plot to "The Star" is deceptively simple: Fionna, Cake, and Simon are transported into a universe where Simon was killed by vampires, which led to Marceline being abducted the ice crown-wielding Vampire King (once again played by the wonderfully sonorous Billy Brown) and turned into his protege, known as "The Star." While the world has been almost entirely overrun by vampires, a Mad Max-esque version of Princess Bubblegum is still putting up a hell of a fight (Mad Max Bubblegum is aided in this task by Peppermint Butler-as-a-Tank, a human[?] version of Huntress Wizard, and a non-psychopathic version of Martin). Cake's shapeshifting impresses Mad Max Bubblegum, and so she decides to enlist Fionna, Cake, and Simon's help in defeating the Vampire King and his evil 'daughter.' Alas, as goes the best-laid plans of mice and men... The episode ends on a purposeful anti-climax: Fionna, recognizing that all is effectively lost, forcibly teleports herself, Cake, and Simon away from Vampire World while Mad Max Bubblegum and The Star struggle in the sky, with neither wanting to land a killing blow. The fate of Vampire World is thus left unresolved.

As a major fan of Stakes, I was delighted to be transported back into the world of vampires in "The Star." And this time, the show does a very solid job showing just how powerful and scary these monsters actually are (despite their Kermit the Frog-meets-Nosferatu appearance). And let us not forget Evil Marceline (oh, where to start)! I quite like that Ooo's Marceline is a heroic anti-anti-Christ, but even I found the titular antagonist of "The Star" to be a terrifying delight. It has been a good long while since Marceline has rightly pranked someone, and while I don't know if killing people or sucking souls count as pranks, it was nonetheless wonderful to see her ornery side return—only this time, turned up to 11. You can tell that Olivia Olson had a lot of fun recording her lines for this episode; her performance is energetic, her tone mocking. When I heard The Star taunt Mad Max Bubblegum and Co., it took me back to when I first heard Olson's voice acting in "Evicted!"

It was a clever move having The Star and Mad Max Bubblegum be sworn enemies, as it allowed the series to explore their dynamic as a couple without focusing on their past or present relationship. In the Vampire World, we learn that the two have never been in a relationship together. But despite this, still found themselves pulled toward one another in an almost preternatural way. Who knows… Just as the souls of Finn and Jake seem to be destined to always find one another, perhaps Marceline and Bubblegum are "soul mates" in a similarly metaphysical sense? Regardless, the hesitancy to kill one another that both characters show at the end of the episode speaks volumes as to how they feel about one another, even in a universe where they are sworn enemies. (Man, I really hope we get a Bubbline spin-off one of these days…)

Ah, I feel like I could talk about the Star for days, but there is more to consider, so let me move on to…

Airdate: September 22, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Jim Campbell, & Jackie Files

Directed by: Steve Wolfhard (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

"Jerry" begins with Fionna, Cake, and Simon finding themselves in a dead and desolate world—humorously dubbed "Crapworld" by Cake—that we later learn was created by the Lich's wish in the season five premiere "Finn the Human." (As a mythological aside, when the Lich made his initial wish, it seems that Prismo did not simply wipe out all life in the Oooniverse; instead, he effectively created a copy of the Oooniverse within the Oooniverse. After killing off all life in this bubble dimension, Prismo then transported the Lich to his new wish-altered reality. Really, it is turtles all the way down…) While searching for the Crapworld ice crown, Simon tries to cheer up an increasingly despondent Fionna by telling him the story of how he and Betty met.

Eventually, our heroes run into Crapworld BMO, who upon learning that Prismo's remote is out of juice, attempts to recharge it with his robot heart. This does not go as planned (it actually results in Crapworld BMO spectacularly exploding, which is somehow both horrifying and funny), and Simon, Fionna, and Cake decide to track down Crapworld BMO's oft-mentioned friend "Jerry" and tell him that BMO has passed. Upon finding Jerry, however, the trio discover that he is actually the Lich… albeit a depressed Lich; it seems that after fulfilling his mission of ending all life, the Lich lost a sense of purpose. (I've been there, dude...) Simon sees this as an opportunity, and using the Crapworld ice crown and the Lich himself as a conduits, he manages to summon GOLB just as Scarab materializes to deliver divine punishment.

To be continued!

"Jerry" is a decidedly bleak episode that more than anything radiates the creative sensibilities of its supervising director, Steve Wolfhard. For those out of loop, Wolfhard was a storyboard artist on the original Adventure Time series, and he helped write some of the show's strongest outings (e.g., "Puhoy," "Lemonhope," "Escape from the Citadel," "Graybles 1000+"). Wolfhard has a unique approach to writing, often using humor/cuteness to paste over more existential horrors, and while he did not storyboard "Jerry," the episode nevertheless feels like the apogee of his "voice," brimming as it does with a darkness that is only lightly covered with a veneer of humor. Indeed, many of the episode's funniest moments (e.g., the scene in which BMO cheerfully, stupidly kills itself, the reveal that the Lich has depression) cannot be described as anything other than gallows humor. Wolfhard often joked in interviews that many of the episodes he pitched involved main characters dying. With "Jerry," he finally got his chance.

Ultimately, what prevents "Jerry" from becoming a bummer-fest is the way the episode is interspersed with flashbacks that tell the story of how Simon and Betty fell in love. Despite their being the emotional heart of the episode, I do not have much to say about these scenes other than they are sweet. They largely expand upon details that we already knew, but in doing so, they enliven those details, infusing them with a sense of affect that exposition or background detailing could never convey. There's a couple easter eggs thrown in for die-hard fans (e.g., several relics from the main series are name-dropped, we see when a photograph of Simon from "I Remember You" was taken), and its all tied-up nicely with a new HALF SHY song, "Everything in You." All in all, these scenes are the sweet, sweet eye bleach we need, given the tone of the episode's other half.

My biggest gripe with these episodes is that they both lean too far into Fionna's failures while somehow not leaning in far enough. The former issue is most noticeable in "The Star," the beginning of which sees Fionna follow up her candy genocide by making a series of increasingly bone-headed decisions, one of which leads to the direct death of a character (although, Mad Max Bubblegum was also quite bone-headed for letting Random New Girl put everyone in danger immediately after introducing them to her few crew members). Put simply, I feel the episode excessively plays up Fionna as a gullible girlfail, which seems a bit much. Paradoxically, in "Jerry," the show did not have Fionna properly, fully, believably consider the ramifications of the mistakes she had made; instead, the episode focuses much of its emotional energy on the story of Simon and Betty's relationship. Yes, Fionna does have a realistic breakdown in the middle of the episode, but almost immediately, the show decides to have Simon distract her with more of his own love story. None of this sinks the episodes, but it does make them less than perfect.

For some, the episodes' bleakness might also be a defect: indeed in both "The Star" and "Jerry," lots of characters die, and the fridge horror is off the charts. But while I have criticized the show for such cruelty in the past (e.g., my review of "Wizard City"), the bleakness in these episodes is not meaningless. Instead, it arguably serves to underscore that without Simon Petrikov existing and doing all that he has in the Ooo Prime universe, the world (any world) quickly goes to hell. (This is perhaps most noticeable in "The Star," given that the big twist of that universe is that Simon was killed by vampires, presumably before he placed the ice crown on his head, thus resulting in Marceline's capture and indoctrination by the Vampire King.) Even in his crazed "Ice King" state, Simon is something like a cosmic lynchpin holding together reality! Considering how much Simon/the Ice King is a woobie in the original series, it is nice to see Fionna & Cake accentuate just how important he actually is.

Final “The Star” Grade: A-

Final “Jerry” Grade: A-

#adventure time #atimers #marceline #review #marceline the vampire queen #princess bubblegum #bubblegum #bubbline #fionna and cake #fionna campbell #cake the cat #simon petrikov #ice king #lich

65 notes · View notes

sunskate · 30 days

Note

fans of other us teams grumbling about how cpom are the judges' pets and USFS darlings are how you know they're FULLY back lol. (I do think they're favored, but I think they've painstakingly EARNED that favor with their longevity as a pair, their skills, their amazing improvement, and their steadiness and confidence since Anthony got his surgery. That's how they've beaten out their rivals imo)

i guess i'm not where the grumbling is, and i'll be blissfully ignorant of it i guess 😅

remember the start of the season when the buzz and TSL had Z/K overtaking CPom, and Gr/Pa should have had more momentum coming off of Worlds? and Fabbri/Ayer were ahead of CPom in the RD at the Quebec summer competition, and then they had the ! in the ChRS at Nebelhorn and finished 6th in the RD behind the Mrazeks and Kazakova/Revia? and how they keep getting GP assignments that pit them against the home team and placing 4th?

well, they and their team were focused on the right things all along. they've been putting quality on the ice and had a grand total of 1 element in a program with negative GOE in the last 2 seasons. that's how solid they've been. while improving in pretty much every way you can think of - performance, skating skills, mental toughness -

they've only been USFS darlings since January, and that's because USFS decided they needed them in order to keep their 3 Worlds spots based on how well and consistently they've been performing. it was hardly gifted to them. and they'll keep having to show up like this for a while before they can count on this status with the fed. favor is fickle in skating til you have a track record and more medals in hand. but it is good to see them recognized and supported ❤️

9 notes · View notes

pixelprinxe · 1 month

Text

Honeslty Ian gives such silly guy vibes so it’s whatever. But Anthony is so hot- THAT IS TO SAY not in that Ian is like ugly. He’s very cute. But he gives such silly guy vibes. And i d k maybe it’s cuz I wasn’t ever a smosh fan and only saw him as the serious interview guy. But seeing Anthony be Ian type of silly is like wow that’s so not fitting. OKAY FINE IM ALSO JSUT MORE INTO HOW ANTHONY LOOKS SUE ME. Tho him saying “ch*ke me” in the blind slap challenge? When it coudlve been ANY of the staff? Especially with him being one of the big bosses? That gave me the ick. Luckily it was a man. But imagine that same scene with that a woman staff member? He’d be cancelled. IM JUST SAYING

#smosh #ian and anthony #ian hecox #anthony padilla

7 notes · View notes

low-budget-korra · 8 months

Text

Resident Evil Fancast #2

So, I've already did a Fancast before but it was like...I don't know, years ago? I still like it but now I'm taking more of a "realistic approach" choosing actors that could actually play the characters based on their Hollywood Status and age. I will also be remembering the Remakes when choosing the actors

Ps: I really like the cast of Welcome to Raccoon City and would totally watch them again in a sequel. I just choose not to put any of them here

Chris Redfield

So, for Chris my first choice was Gabriel Basso who stars in The Night Agent, I haven't watched the show but I think he matches the look with the character. He also have that aura of being serious but chill and trustworthy, he is in his late 20's so basically around the same age Chris is in Re1. The second actor is Marco Pigossi, a talented Brazilian actor that stared in Tidelands and will be in the spin-off of The Boys. He also matches the physical description of the character, and also have that aura that Gabriel also have plus those gorgeous charming and kind eyes. And Lastly I picked Dj Cotrona, he is the older of all, being in his 40's, I like his role in the From dusk till dawn tv series and doesn't hurt that he also matches the physical appearance of the character plus he really looks like a military man I don't know.

Jill Valentine

Just by looking at Daniela Melchior you understand why I pick her, he is also in her 20's and have all the talent and charisma necessary to play the character . The second is Adria Arjona cuz I really love the idea of a Latina playing Jill, she in her 30's and has those damn eyes that just get you. Lauren Cohan is a bit older for the role, but she would be the perfect Jill to DJ Cotrona, if the movie wanted to portray them as older characters. Btw, the four protagonists I choose people around the same age to play the characters because I think it would be weird to have a 40'old Chris with a 20'something.

Claire Redfield

Annalise Basso look more like the og Claire Redfield, she is also the youngest of the 3 actresses here and have very kind and loving eyes and features, and she is the youngest sister of Gabriel Basso and I think it would be pretty dope to see two siblings play the Redfield Siblings. Nell Tiger Free looks more like remake Claire, she have that "insta model" look and a "cool girl" vibe, she stars in Servant and is a very promising actress, and for all the Game of Thrones fans, she also played Myrcella Baratheon on the show. And Lastly, Sophie Skelton is the oldest on them, a talented actress that starts in Outlander , her looks is kind of a mix between old and new Claire, she is also have a more mature posture and would be the Claire to Lauren Cohan and DJ Cotrona Jill and Chris

Leon Kennedy

Nicholas Hamilton, the bully in It would be a nice Leon to Annalise's Claire, since they both worked together before in Captain Fantastic. Second we have Nicholas Galatzine , who stars in Red, white and royal blue...I mean look at him, he really looks like remake Leon. Brenton Thwaites is the oldest of them and just have that friendly nice guy face. I think Leon needs someone who could appear/convey adorableness and capable inexperience and bravery. And I think these three fit this.

Albert Wesker

Anthony Starr is the Wesker we always dream of seeing in the big screen and I will die on that hill. Warren Cole is good second choice, I mean he is a himbo in Yellowjackets but he also appeared in The Wilds and damn, he was intimidating there as the homophobic father. Lastly we have Kevin Janssen, I mean, look at him, he just have a villain face c'mon. Also he did portray a real, terrifying bad guy in Revenge (the good revenge corn movie)

For RE1 I think of Kiernan Shipka, Nick Offerman and Jack Quaid as Rebecca, Barry and Brad.

Resident Evil 2

Resident Evil 2 we have Jung Ho-yeon as Ada but I also think that Gemma Chan would rock that role. Sterling K Brown is Marvin c'mon. Violet McGraw as Sherry. Andy Garcia would be terrify good was Chef Bryan Iron. And Teddy Sears and Tricia Helder as William and Annette Birkin

Resident Evil 3

Diego Boneta as Carlos Oliveira, just look at the gorgeous hair and beard. Stephen Lang as Mikhail Victor. Igor Jijikine would make Nikolai look even more intimidating. And Trevante Rhodes as Tyrell Patrick

Resident Evil Code Veronica

Ewan Mitchell and Phia Saban from House of the Dragon would be so good as Alfred and Alexia Ashford. Jaeden Martell is basically at the same age of Steve and I think his character needs to be played by a young actor anyway. Tenoch Huerta would be a interesting Rodrigo Juan Raval

Resident Evil 4

Diego Luna would be the perfect cast for Luis Será, not only he looks the part but also has that riz. Sophie Thatcher is a extremely talented young actress who would be able to portray a more develop and cool Ashley, like the one we saw in the Remake. Paula Patton was a nice voice, is elegant and would be a nice choice for Hunnigan, another actress that I think could play the role is Jennifer Connelly. Alan Ritchson as Krauser, I don't think I need to sell this one. Mads Mikkelsen is such an imposing presence on scene, he would be amazing as Osmund Sadler. And Lastly, Jack Gleeson, our beloved Jeffrey Baratheon, would be a perfect Ramon Salazar

17 notes · View notes

castlesrp · 2 months

Text

Face Claim List

Below the cut, you will find our list of face claims featured on our canon list. Enjoy this sneak peak at what is coming your way when the canon lists start being released this week!

FC List:

Abigail Cowen Aishwarya Rai Bachchan Amita Suman Amy Adams Ana de Armas André De Shields Andrew Garfield Angela Bassett Anna Kendrick Anne Hathaway Anthony Anderson Anthony Mackie Anya Chalotra Anya Taylor Joy Aja Naomi King Avan Jogia Avantika Audra McDonald Austin Butler Beanie Feldstein Ben Barnes Beyoncé BD Wong Bette Midler Caleb McLaughlin Camila Mendes Catherine O'Hara Charles Melton Chiwetel Ejiofor Chloe Bennet Chloe Bailey Christina Hendricks Christina Nadin Chrissy Metz Cody Christian Constance Wu Courtney Eaton Dakota Johnson Danai Gurira Daniel Ezra Daniel Wu Danny Trejo David Harbour Deepika Padukone Denzel Washington Dev Patel Diana Silvers Diane Keaton Dianna Agron Dove Cameron Dylan O'Brien Eddie Redmayne Eiza González Emily Alyn Lind Eva Longoria Ewan McGregor Fan Bingbing Felix Mallard Florence Pugh Froy Gutierrez Gabrielle Union Gemma Chan George Takei Gillian Anderson Gina Rodriguez Gina Torres Hailee Steinfeld Halle Bailey Harrison Ford Harry Shum JR Harry Styles Henry Cavill Hero Fiennes Tiffin Hunter Schafer Hugh Jackman Idris Elba J. Cameron-Smith Jacob Artist Jacob Elordi Jameela Jamil James McAvoy Jamie Chung Jamie Lee Curtis Jasmin Savoy Brown Jason Momoa Jason Sudekis Jean Smart Jeff Goldblum Jeffrey Wright Jenna Ortega Jensen Ackles Jesse Williams Jessica Chastain JK Simmons Joe Locke John Boyega John Cho John Krasinski Jon Hamm Jonathan Bailey Jordan Connor Jordan Peele Julianne Moore Justice Smith Kate Winslet Kathryn Hahn Kathryn Newton Keanu Reeves Keith Powers Keke Palmer Kerry Washington Kit Connor [1] Kit Connor [2] KJ Apa Kristen Bell Kumail Nanjiani Lana Condor Laura Harrier Lauren Ridloff Leonardo DiCaprio Letita Wright Lili Reinhart Liv Hewson Logan Browning Logan Lerman Loretta Devine Lupita Nyong'o Mädchen Amick Madelyn Cline Madison Bailey Mahershala Ali Manny Jacinto Manny Montana Margot Robbie Mark Consuelos Mark Hamill Mario Lopez Mason Gooding Maude Apatow Megan thee Stallion Melanie Lynskey Melissa Barrera Michael Cimino Michael Evans Behling Michael Fassbender Michael Peña Michael Shannon Michelle Yeoh Morgan Freeman Naomi Scott Natalia Dyer Natasha Liu Bordizzo Nina Dobrev Noah Centineo Normani Octavia Spencer Olivia Coleman Olivia Rodrigo Oscar Isaac Paul Rudd Pedro Pascal Phoebe Deynover Phoebe Tonkin Phylicia Rashad Priyanka Chopra Rachel Weisz Rachel Zegler Rahul Kohli Reese Witherspoon Regé-Jean Page Renee Rapp [1] Renee Rapp [2] Riz Ahmed Robert Pattinson Robert Downey JR Rome Flynn Rosamund Pike Rose Byrne Rudy Pankow Ryan Gosling Ryan Guzman Ryan Reynolds Sadie Sink Sam Claflin Samantha Logan Samara Weaving Sandra Bullock Sandra Oh Sara Ramirez Sarah Jeffrey Sarah Paulson Sebastian Stan Selena Gomez Sigourney Weaver Simu Liu Shawn Mendes Skeet Ulrich Sophia Ali Sophia Bush Sophie Turner Sonam Kapoor Sophie Thatcher Sterling K. Brown Steve Martin Steven Yeun Storm Reid Sydney Sweeney [1] Sydney Sweeney [2] Taika Waititi Tati Gabrielle Taraji P. Henson Taron Egerton Taye Diggs Taylor Zakhar Perez Ted Danson Timothée Chalamet Thomas Doherty Tom Blyth Tom Ellis Tom Hardy Tom Holland Tony Goldwyn Tyler James Williams Tyler Posey Uzo Adubo Victoria Pedretti Viola Davis Whoopi Goldberg Wolfgang Novogratz Will Smith Willem Dafoe William Jackson Harper Winona Ryder Winston Duke Yasmin Finney Zayn Malik Zendaya Zoey Deutch

#jcink rp #jcink roleplay #roleplay #rp #jcink #updates #canons

6 notes · View notes

granvarones · 7 months

Text

the 1980s marked a pivotal era in the rise of latino english-speaking recording pop artists who achieved mainstream success. this period witnessed the emergence of gloria estefan, menudo, and lisa lisa & the cult jam broke down barriers by blending dance-pop, soul, and electro music with latin rhythms. this captivating fusion created a path for a generation of young latino artists, including a teenage brenda k. starr to leave an indelible mark in the tapestry of pop music.

born brenda joy kaplan in new york city, a chance meeting with singer, actor, and activist harry belafonte on the set of the 1984 hip-hop movie “beat street,” landed a teenage brenda a role in the movie. the cameo garnered the attention of producer arthur baker who helped starr secure a record deal with mirage records.

youtube

brenda’s debut single, the pulsating “picking up the pieces,” was released in the summer of 1985 as the latin freestyle music genre was still taking shape. the song reached #10 billboard’s dance chart and #83 on the r&b chart. the success of the single made brenda one of the first latino breakout stars of the still-emerging freestyle genre.

by 1987, brenda signed with MCA records and released her eponymous sophomore effort. the album generated three charting singles, “breakfast in bed” (#6 latin, #18 dance), “what you see is what you get” (#6 dance, #24 pop), and the quiet storm classic “i still believe.” released in february 1988, the single ignited radio and propelled into the top 20 on billboard’s hot 100 and adult contemporary charts.

youtube

before i began to buy music with the money i earned from babysitting, i’d record my favorite songs from off the radio. whew, if that isn’t a generation x testimony, i don’t know what is. but i digress.

one of the songs i remember recording was puerto rican pop singer brenda k. starr’s 1988 hit “i still believe.” i was living with my late aunt blanca in the spring of 1988, and we listened to power 99 fm’s quiet storm every night to record songs. one night, when “i still believe” began to play, blanca screamed, “record it!”

as the 90s dawned, brenda would experience personal and professional setbacks. the commercial viability of latin freestyle began to dissipate. many latino pop/dance artists found themselves banished from top 40 radio, and despite brenda’s multi-genre success, she had become primarily known as just the “friend who helped mariah carey secure a record contract.”

in the mid-90s, former latin freestyle artists india and marc anthony had successfully pivoted into salsa music as younger audiences re-discovered the genre. this opened a lane for brenda’s re-emergence as a salsa music sensation. her 1997 cover of myriam hernandez’s “herida” topped billboard’s tropical chart in the spring of 1997.

youtube

almost a decade after that summer with my aunt blanca, brenda’s music would have another family member screaming at me. in early 1997, my cousin evy called me at work to ask me if i remembered brenda k. starr. and of course, i did. she then said, “she is doing salsa now” and began to play “herida” over the phone. up until that point, salsa music was heard at family parties. but it took only one listen to brenda’s version of “herida” for me to run out and purchase her “te sigo esperando” album.

brenda’s album resonated with a new generation of fans and further showcased her ability to transcend and excel in multiple genres. in the years that followed, brenda continued to release and chart singles on the latin charts, including a 1999 salsa version of “i still believe.”

brenda k. starr’s musical odyssey continues. her journey from latin freestyle to her reinvention as salsa songstress has remained an enduring presence in her musical prowess. in just the past year, she has released two slammin’ freestyle tracks, “the only one i love” and “always remember,” and a pair of soaring salsa tracks, “quedate” and “soy otra mujer.”

youtube

a couple of months ago, i texted a friend a link to brenda’s latest freestyle single “always remember.” it is only now, as i write this, that i recognize how music brenda’s music has been something i shared with family and friends – for 35 years! whew, my gawd.

brenda k. starr is a luminary preserving the sounds of both latin freestyle and salsa music, genres with strong roots in puerto rican communities. her musical journey is a testament that great artists are not confined to boundaries. instead, they adapt, evolve, and continue contributing to the ever-evolving sound symphony. this is why i still believe in brenda k. starr.

#granvarones #latino heritage month #hispanic heritage month #brenda k. starr #storytelling #queer #gay #afrolatinx #1990s #Youtube

14 notes · View notes

magicalyaku · 8 days

Text

I wrote this weeks ago and forgot to post it, oops. uAu March was hard with work and con preparation so I didn't read much. I thought it'd get better afterwards buuut ... it's even worse now. xD Oh well. That's for later! Here's what I read in March:

The School for Invisible Boys (The Kairos Files 1) (Shaun David Hutchinson): It's been a while since I last read something by this author. Missed it! Though, this one is middle grade, so it felt a little different. A little less strange. Like, for once, the monster is an actual one instead of just a metaphor (not that it isn't connected to one. I also wonder if that whole Catholic setting is intentional because the Catholic Church and young boys don't have the best history together …). So, yeah, I like his other stories better, but this one was pretty good as well. I really liked the main character, because while he was timid of some sort, he also was easily brave and bold when he had to (that whole "he was mean to me, so I set his project on fire" is obviously not something to encourage in real life, but it is badass and I have respect for it in a a story xD), and he was able to apologise when he realised he made a mistake. I wonder what the next volume will be about.

Gallowgate (K.R. Alexander): So apparently, 'gay boys and ghosts' is a thing I'm into. The other two series I read, Oracle of Senders and Sixteen Souls, I like better, but this one is also middle grade while the other aren't, so they're not that easy to compare. Gallowgate starts out really dark, like really dark. Poor kid. It gets more whimsical afterwards with the school being run by ghosts and a general morbid decoration of which I've never been a fan, but most kids probably eat this up. Some story decisions are a bit questionable in my eyes like when the adults tell the protagonist to tell them anything strange that happens to him, but when he does they go "oh, that's not possible, you must be imagining things" … How did they think, that would solve any problems? It is addressed in the story, so it's not too bad, but still. Other than this, it was quite fun and I wonder if there's going to be a sequel.

Skater Boy (Anthony Nerada): What can I say about this one other than I liked it? :'D It's a pretty basic story: delinquent boy falls for someone who is like his polar opposite, in this case a ballet dancer, and wants to get a grip on his life for him. But it's done well, doesn't feel stale or anything. All of the characters are nice, even if they aren't, the protagonist is likable, even if he isn't the type of person one would like to hang out with (for most of the story anyway). Friends and family are just as important as the romance part. Hm. It's probably like this: There's more to the protagonist than meets the eye, and it's the same for the whole story? Sounds simple, but there's an honest heart in it.

Icarus (K. Ancrum): By chance, here's another one with a ballet dancer. :'D This one starts out really strange. The chapters are so short, at the beginning they felt a bit disconnected. It took me a while to find my footing in this. I had to ignore all the headlines to not always get taken out of the flow with every new chapter. Which also means, I probably missed a lot of the layers of the story, that are implied by the chapter titles. But it's worth it! It's kind of a strange story, but it gets really warm (there's romance, but the friendship part is also pretty strong). It has things to say (there's intersex rep for instance, and a genetic disease (was it EDS? I don't have my copy at hand to look it up, sorry) and the writing invokes that eerie feeling throughout. If you put it in a visual medium, you'd probably have to be very careful about the framing because it's about art (among other things) and everything feels very artistic and intentional. It's good!

#yaku reads #march wrap up #books #lgbtq books #bookblr #queer books #queer lit #skater boy #icarus #gallowgate #the school for invisible boys

2 notes · View notes

canon-asexual-poll · 6 months

Text

(New) Canon Asexual Poll Lineup

Hello folks, new host here taking over to get this tournament on the road. I can't edit the older posts, so here's a reminder/update on the current lineup. I've personally decided to break up characters from the same series which is a slight difference from the previous lineup. Hopefully it makes for a more rounded out lineup!

Nominations are closed. Each approved character now has a live interest poll post linked to their name to determine seeding. There are 2 answers, one for liking the character (+1 point towards seeding), and one for liking them & finding their asexual rep in canon significant (+2 points towards seeding). These posts will also be used for collecting propaganda for each character.

Approved Nominated Characters:

Lilith Clawthrone from The Owl House

SpongeBob SquarePants (aro/ace)

Todd Chavez from Bojack Horseman (allo/ace)

Maya from Borderlands

Jughead Jones from Archie Comics (non-SAM asexual, aro/ace)

Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb

The Professor from Gilligan's Island

Bill Cipher from Gravity Falls (aro/ace)

Luffy from One Piece

Peridot from Steven Universe (aro/ace)

Kale Romero (aro/ace) from Monster Prom

Coach (allo/ace) from Monster Prom

Jonathan Sims from The Magnus Archives (bi/ace)

Anthony Drake/Argent Adept from Sentinels of the Multiverse (aro/ace)

Jody Marsh/Runner Four from Zombies, Run! (non-SAM(?) asexual)

Sakuko from Koisenu Futari (aro/ace)

Takahashi from Koisenu Futari (aro/ace)

Gwendolyn "Gwen" Poole/Gwenpool from Marvel Comics (aro/ace)

Connor Hawke/Green Arrow from DC Comics (allo(?)/ace)

Bizu from Bizu (aro/ace)

Dr. Sally Grissom from ARS Paradoxica

Sir Fitzroy Maplecourt from The Adventure Zone: Graduation (allo(?)/ace)

Mordecai Heller from Lackadaisy (acespec)

Count Orlo from The Great

Caduceus Clay from Critical Roll

Isaac Henderson from Heartstopper (aro/ace)

Isaac M Rydle from Val and Isaac (aro/ace)

Twitch "Lore" Woodwind from Val and Isaac (aro/ace)

Diane/Artemis from Lumberjanes (allo/ace)

Ca$h Piggott from Heartbreak High (allo/ace)

Nellie from Rain (homoromantic/ace)

Alex from AJ & Magnus

Mousefur from Warrior Cats

Disqualified Characters

Mishandled by creators:

Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory. The writers see his asexuality as a problem he needs to fix.

Alastor from that one hotel show. He's an aro/ace serial killer, and when his creator heard about how a-spec fans were upset about people erasing his orientations to ship and sexualize him she encouraged it.

Lack of evidence:

Odo from Star Trek. (All I found when I looked for proof was headcanons. Disqualified because he's canonically shown sexual attraction.)

Carpenter Glass from The Silt Verses ("Up for interpretation" usually means that they don't want to shut down headcanons but don't intend to write the character that way intentionally or follow through on it)

Klaus from Spy Classroom (he is canonically aromantic, but I could find no canon proof that he is asexual as well)

Patty O'Connor from Kevin Can F**k Himself (writers leave her sexuality ambiguous on purpose as the story is written as her figuring out her identity without ever having her land on what it is)

#canon asexual poll

4 notes · View notes

theatrekidstatus · 4 months

Text

Chapter 9

Y/n pov: Like Ant did?

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯:fuck you

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯:WAIT

ANT ALREADY DID

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯: I knew your we're going to that

Muhahahahahahahaha

"Y/n" ant called "sup?" I replied "We're on break let's take a walk around." he suggested "aight" I answered "Come on in here." ant said We walked in and saw Alexa sabotaging some of what I assume to be our food "Let me text Lin." I whisper to Ant

Come here

LiNaMiNrOlL🥶😨😓🫣🫡😶‍🌫️😰🤗🤭🤫😱😥🤔🫢🫠:k

Lin cum's I MEAN COMES "ALEXA WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING." "getting revenge" "why" "Let me tell you...."

-flashback music-

"It all started while I was straight out of college with a dream to act and act only, so I auditioned for In the Heights,21 Chump Street. (What the heck do I gotta do to be with you)

And you didn't cast me even though I was the best not LINDSAY. I then saw Anthony and fell in love with him. (I like Lindsay I don't know her well but she seems cool) Then I auditioned for the heights again. for anyone 'NoPe'. NOW I auditioned for Eliza, Peggy, Angelica, Maria, and EVEN Ensemble but no I wasn't good enough. BUT THIS GIRL WHO DIDN'T WORK ON THE SHOW GETS TO DATE ANTHONY. So I decided to do tech and ruin everything from the inside, so you might be thinking. 'Why confess all this' Because everything is already happening." she explains

We suddenly hear coughing, people throwing up, we see blood and people fainted. She ran out of the theatre. Ant tended to the wounded I counted the fainted (get it? ;) ) and put them in my dressing room checking pulses and turning on fans. Lin took the sick to the bathroom to throw up and gave them masks, water, food, naps, and even called the ambulance they got everyone to the hospital.

"Are you guys ok?" I ask "No I was so excited to be in a possible in a big show and some bitch ruined it" Ant shares "And I was excited to have one of my shows on stage and back on Broadway but then this." Lin confesses "I'm sorry guys but the doctors say they will be better by next week maybe even before then." I say trying to cheer them up "We'll that's good I guess visiting hours will be over soon let's say Bye to everyone" Lin brings up. We did just that we said bye and I said I'll text them everything later.

-in the car-

"Are y'all feeling better?" I wonder "A little I just want them to be ok" Ant answers "Ant" I call "Yes" he replies "Never mind" I retract "No tell me" he demands "It's stupid and you'll get mad" I try to explain "you don't have to tell me but I won't be mad" he concludes "when that girl said she was in love with you were you with her I mean she was pr-" I started "listen, babe, I love you and only you, not her or any other girl in this world, YOU at this point not even old celebrity crush's can compare too you and that girl was always weird she touched my butt, made sex jokes, and made me uncomfortable, I got her not cast in 21 chump street so no I never loved her". he said not once yelling

"Ant..." I start "yes" "you love me" I ponder "sí mí amor." he responds (a/n: sí yo hablar espanol 🙄) "I love you too." I confess "I love both of you." Lin adds "Ahh shut up Lin." We said in unison "Are you ok Lin" I asked still laughing "Your guys talk made me feel better." "Ok, I'm going to text everyone what happened." I shared "ok" and "cool" was their response

Are you ok?

Jazzy poo bear😭🙄🔛🔝‼️🗞️🧍🏼‍♀️🫶🏾🤭🎶🗣️🪄✅😑👍🏾🩷😂👦🏿🖕🏾😘❕🔥😔👦🏾💞👹❗️🔊🎩

👦🏽: Yeah what happened

So basically the Alexa tech girl had a history with Lin not casting her, so she

did tech and sabotaged everything but we caught her sabotaging me Ant before she could get to Lin.

Jazzy poo bear😭🙄🔛🔝‼️🗞️🧍🏼‍♀️🫶🏾🤭🎶🗣️🪄✅😑👍🏾🩷😂👦🏿🖕🏾😘❕🔥😔👦🏾💞👹❗️🔊🎩👦🏽:she seemed so nice though

IKR.

Jazzy poo bear😭🙄🔛🔝‼️🗞️🧍🏼‍♀️🫶🏾🤭🎶🗣️🪄✅😑👍🏾🩷😂👦🏿🖕🏾😘❕🔥😔👦🏾💞👹❗️🔊🎩👦🏽: maybe Lin should have cast her because damn

Bahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahah.

Are you ok?

Pippy poo😀🥹☺️😃😅😊😄😂😇😁🤣🙂😆🥲🙃: mhm why did everyone get sick?

So basically the Alexa tech girl had a history with Lin not casting her so she did tech and sabotaged everything but we caught her sabotaging me ant and before she could get to Lin

Pippy poo😀🥹☺️😃😅😊😄😂😇😁🤣🙂😆🥲🙃: I think she tried poisoning me first because there were a bunch of cookies with nuts in them but not the ones I'm allergic to and she always stared at me weird like confused

That bitch

Pippy poo😀🥹☺️😃😅😊😄😂😇😁🤣🙂😆🥲🙃:fr

Mommy nèa(not dirty🙄)😉😗😝🤓😌😙😜😎😍😚🤪🥸🥰😋🤨🤩😘😛🧐🥳:y/n what happened today

So basically the Alexa tech girl had a history with Lin not casting her so she did tech and sabotaged everything but we caught her sabotaging me ant and before she could get to Lin Pippa just told me that she tried poisoning her first because there were bunch of cookies with nuts in them but not the ones shes allergic to and she always stared at her weird like confused

Mommy nèa(not dirty🙄)😉😗😝🤓😌😙😜😎😍😚🤪🥸🥰😋🤨🤩😘😛🧐🥳: I think she put the glue in my brush

IT ALL COMING TOGETHER

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯: Did you put nuts in my cookies

No Alexa did

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯: nice tech girl?

Well not so nice because the Alexa tech girl had a history with Lin not casting her so she did tech and sabotaged everything but we caught her sabotaging me and Ant and before she could get to Lin Pippa just told me that she tried poisoning her first because there were a bunch of cookies with nuts in them but not the ones shes allergic to and she always stared at her weird like confused and put glue and neas brush

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯: SHES THE REASON WERE ALL IN HERE

Yeah

CoOkIe MoNsTeR😏😕😫😤😒🙁😩😠😞☹️🥺😡😔😣😢🤬😟😖😭🤯:thanks for the info🫡

No problem 🫡🫡🫡

LoserLeslie🤫😐🙄😲🫠🫤😯🥱🤥😑😦😴😵‍💫😶🫨😧🤤🤐🫥😬😮😪🥴: what did you wanna tell me y/n

Loser Leslie 🤫😐🙄😲🫠🫤😯🥱🤥😑😦😴😵‍💫😶🫨😧🤤🤐🫥😬😮😪🥴: she must have cut my costume in all the wrong places

She prolly diddddddddddddddd

Weird David 😮‍💨🤢🤕👹😵🤮🤑👺😵‍💫🤧🤠🤡🤐😷😈💩🥴🤒👿👻🤖:Wsp y/n

The sky anyway So basically the Alexa tech girl had a history with Lin not casting her so she did tech and sabotaged everything but we caught her sabotaging me and Ant and before she could get to Lin and Pippa just told me that she tried poisoning her first because there were a bunch of cookies with nuts in them but not the ones shes allergic to and she always stared at her weird like confused and put glue and neas brush and nuts in thaynes cookies and cut les's costume and destroyed your mic

Weird David 😮‍💨🤢🤕👹😵🤮🤑👺😵‍💫🤧🤠🤡🤐😷😈💩🥴🤒👿👻🤖: I never did trust her because I once caught her in your dressing room doing something the abruptly stopped and when I saw her I joked and asked if she was going to sabotage the show and she just left and bumped into me

WHEN WERE YOU GONNA TELL ME SHE WAS IN MY ROOM

Weird David 😮‍💨🤢🤕👹😵🤮🤑👺😵‍💫🤧🤠🤡🤐😷😈💩🥴🤒👿👻🤖:I forgot

>_<

ThEy DiDnT sAy I CoUlDnT sIng 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏻:y/n why is everyone in the hospital

ThEy DiDnT sAy I CoUlDnT sIng 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏻: she cut my shoes.

Huh, what shoes?

ThEy DiDnT sAy I CoUlDnT sIng 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏻: I was looking for costuming or Lin to ask I could use these shoes, my grandma, I gave me in the show and I found them in my room cut up.

Alexa will pay for this behavior (you see it right)

ThEy DiDnT sAy I CoUlDnT sIng 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏻: she better lucky I fixed them but I'm not satisfied (I'm on a roll this chapter)

Oakyyyyy the unfuckable tree👉🏾🤚🏾🫲🏾✍🏾👆🏾🖐🏾🫱🏾🙏🏾🖖🏾👇🏾💪🏾🫵🏾☝🏾👋🏾🦾🦶🏾✋🏾🤙🏾🖕🏾🦵🏾: nigger

Monkey

Oakyyyyy the unfuckable tree👉🏾🤚🏾🫲🏾✍🏾👆🏾🖐🏾🫱🏾🙏🏾🖖🏾👇🏾💪🏾🫵🏾☝🏾👋🏾🦾🦶🏾✋🏾🤙🏾🖕🏾🦵🏾: Why did I faint

Idk but was something Alexa did because the Alexa girl had a history with Lin not casting her so she did tech and sabotaged everything We caught her sabotaging me ant and before she could get to Lin Pippa just told me that she tried poisoning her first because there were a bunch of cookies with nuts in them but not the ones shes allergic to and she always stared at her weird like confused and put glue and neas brush and nuts in thaynes cookies and cut les's costume and destroyed daveed's mic and cut up Ariana's shoes that her grandma gave her

Oakyyyyy the unfuckable tree👉🏾🤚🏾🫲🏾✍🏾👆🏾🖐🏾🫱🏾🙏🏾🖖🏾👇🏾💪🏾🫵🏾☝🏾👋🏾🦾🦶🏾✋🏾🤙🏾🖕🏾🦵🏾: when we're all off broadway THEN WE JUMP HER

Right there with y'all 🫡🫡

Oakyyyyy the unfuckable tree👉🏾🤚🏾🫲🏾✍🏾👆🏾🖐🏾🫱🏾🙏🏾🖖🏾👇🏾💪🏾🫵🏾☝🏾👋🏾🦾🦶🏾✋🏾🤙🏾🖕🏾🦵🏾:yes sirrrrrrrr🫡

Christopfuckme👶🏾🧑🏾👩🏾‍🦰👱🏾‍♂️👧🏻👨🏾🧑🏾‍🦰👩🏾‍🦳🧒🏾👩🏾‍🦱👨🏾‍🦰🧑🏾‍🦳👦🏿🧑🏾‍🦱👱🏾‍♀️👨🏾‍🦳👩🏾👨🏾‍🦱: Im too old for this shit what happened

Hella shit so... Alexa girl had a history with Lin not casting her so she did tech and sabotaged everything but we caught her sabotaging me and Ant and before she could get to Lin and Pippa just told me that she tried poisoning her first because there were a bunch of cookies with nuts in them but not the ones shes allergic to and she always stared at her weird like confused and put glue and neas brush and nuts in thaynes cookies and cut les's costume and destroyed daveed's mic and cut up Ariana's shoes that her grandma gave her

Christopfuckme👶🏾🧑🏾👩🏾‍🦰👱🏾‍♂️👧🏻👨🏾🧑🏾‍🦰👩🏾‍🦳🧒🏾👩🏾‍🦱👨🏾‍🦰🧑🏾‍🦳👦🏿🧑🏾‍🦱👱🏾‍♀️👨🏾‍🦳👩🏾👨🏾‍🦱: IS SHE FIRED

Mhm

Christopfuckme👶🏾🧑🏾👩🏾‍🦰👱🏾‍♂️👧🏻👨🏾🧑🏾‍🦰👩🏾‍🦳🧒🏾👩🏾‍🦱👨🏾‍🦰🧑🏾‍🦳👦🏿🧑🏾‍🦱👱🏾‍♀️👨🏾‍🦳👩🏾👨🏾‍🦱: SO LIKE REVENGE?!?!

Hold up

"Dad I- mean Lin sorry" I start the correct myself "OH THANK GOD IVE BEEN WAITING FOREVER FOR YOU TO CALL ME DAD" Lin confesss "I thought you wouldn't like it since you have a child" I share "No Y/n I have two" he corrects "That's mad sweet yo" Ant adds "Are you crying?" I ask "No" he lies "Yes you are come here, softie". "We're home oh I forgot to drop you off Ant guess you gotta stay with us gosh darn it," he said sarcastically "Oh no," he said playfully "I had plans tonight but guess it will be a group face time, let's get inside though".

AlExeNdEr HaMiLtOn

Are y'all ok to FaceTime

Loser Leslie 🤫😐🙄😲🫠🫤😯🥱🤥😑😦😴😵‍💫😶🫨😧🤤🤐🫥😬😮😪🥴:yeah

Weird David 😮‍💨🤢🤕👹😵🤮🤑👺😵‍💫🤧🤠🤡🤐😷😈💩🥴🤒👿👻🤖:sure

ThEy DiDnT sAy I CoUlDnT sIng 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏻: yup

Oakyyyyy the unfuckable tree👉🏾🤚🏾🫲🏾✍🏾👆🏾🖐🏾🫱🏾🙏🏾🖖🏾👇🏾💪🏾🫵🏾☝🏾👋🏾🦾🦶🏾✋🏾🤙🏾🖕🏾🦵🏾: yes sirrrrrrrrrrr

Christopfuckme👶🏾🧑🏾👩🏾‍🦰👱🏾‍♂️👧🏻👨🏾🧑🏾‍🦰👩🏾‍🦳🧒🏾👩🏾‍🦱👨🏾‍🦰🧑🏾‍🦳👦🏿🧑🏾‍🦱👱🏾‍♀️👨🏾‍🦳👩🏾👨🏾‍🦱: I was sleep but ok.

Well this is important so stay mad

Jazzy poo bear😭🙄🔛🔝‼️🗞️🧍🏼‍♀️🫶🏾🤭🎶🗣️🪄✅😑👍🏾🩷😂👦🏿🖕🏾😘❕🔥😔👦🏾💞👹❗️🔊🎩👦🏽:ofc bbg

My mannn💀🎃😼🫶🏾☠️😺😽🤲🏾👽😸🙀👐🏾👾😹😿🙌🏾🤖😻😾👏🏾:back off

Jazzy poo bear😭🙄🔛🔝‼️🗞️🧍🏼‍♀️🫶🏾🤭🎶🗣️🪄✅😑👍🏾🩷😂👦🏿🖕🏾😘❕🔥😔👦🏾💞👹❗️🔊🎩👦🏽:nah nigga you back the fuck off the fuck 🫵🏾🫵🏾😹😹

Pippy poo😀🥹☺️😃😅😊😄😂😇😁🤣🙂😆🥲🙃:anywhoooooooooooo I am

Mommy nèa(not dirty🙄)😉😗😝🤓😌😙😜😎😍😚🤪🥸🥰😋🤨🤩😘😛🧐🥳:same

LiNaMiNrOlL🥶😨😓🫣🫡😶‍🌫️😰🤗🤭🤫😱😥🤔🫢🫠: added 480-369-289

Who dat be

LiNaMiNrOlL🥶😨😓🫣🫡😶‍🌫️😰🤗🤭🤫😱😥🤔🫢🫠:my hubby🫦

Groffsauce 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏾:🤭

Hey dude do yk what happened Groffsauce 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏾: Yeah

FaceTime now.

"Get comfy I gotta take us somewhere"

-dressed-

-on face time-

"Why am I here If this is a Hamilton thing?" Vanessa asked "This isn't Hamilton thing Listen you're my mom Nèa is a second one Lin Is my dad, the cast are my friends, Sebby is my little brother, Ant is not abusive, and I've never had a group of friends before and the one I did were fake and toxic and you guys aren't you are my friends and since y'all are my family I want you to be here when I get rid of my blade. I'm going full clean". "Babe I'm so proud of you Come here," Ant tells me while embracing me "It's gonna be hell to get him back to sleep but I don't care, sebby sebby wake up this is important". she says smiling at me "y/n I'm so proud." everyone chanted this it was my negative reason if that makes sense I buried it "bye trauma" I whispered to my self "THATS MY GIRL" Lin nèa and Nessa yelled. Everyone was proud but most importantly I was proud and free. "I'm GLAD YOU WOKE ME UP" Chris shouted "No problem Chris," I said while nodding my hair

Anthony's pov: "Y/n" I call "sup" She replies "We're on break let's take a walk around" I suggest "aight" "cmon all re" We walk in and saw Alexa sabotaging are food y/n said something texted Lin while we stayed quiet

Lin COMES "ALEXA WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING" Lin yells "Getting revenge" she calmly "Why" Lin queried "Let me tell you" Flashback music

"It all started while I was straight out of college with a dream to act and act only, so I auditioned for 21 Chump Street (what the heck I gotta do to be with youuuuuuuuuu) and you didn't cast me even though I was the best not LINDSAY. I saw Anthony and fell in love with him. 'ew' I thought

Then I auditioned for the heights for everyone 'NoPe'. NOW Eliza, Peggy, Angelica, Maria, EVEN Ensemble but no I wasn't good enough, so I decided to do tech and ruin everything you might be thinking 'Why confess all this' because everything is already happening".

We heard coughing, and people throwing up, and we saw blood, and people fainting She ran I tended to the wounded y/n counted the fainted (get it? ;) ), and put them in my dressing room getting band-aids and wipes and stuff Lin took the sick to the bathroom to throw up, gave them a mask, and water and food and stuff and naps called the ambulance they got everyone to the hospital

"Are you guys ok?" y/n asked "No I was so excited to be in a possible Being in a big show and some bitch ruined it." I replied I was excited to have one of my shows on stage and back on Broadway but then this." Lin shares "I'm sorry guys but the doctors say they will be better by next week maybe even before then". y/n explains "We'll that's good I guess visiting hours will be over soon let's say Bye to everyone". We did just that we said bye and I said I'll text them every thing later

in the car

"Are y'all feeling better?" Y/n asked "A little I just want them to be ok." I explain "Ant" she calls "yes" i reply"never mind" she retracts "no tell me" I demand "It's stupid and you'll get mad" she explains "you don't have to tell me but i won't be mad" I offer "when that girl said she was in love with you were you with her I mean she was pr-" I cut her off "listen babe I love you and only you not her or any other girl in this world YOU, at this point not even old celebrity crush's can compare too you, and that girl was always weird. She touched my butt made sex jokes and made me uncomfortable I got her not casted in 21 chump street so no I never loved her". i said not once yelling

"Ant..." she says hesitantly "yes" i reply "You love me?" she ask "sí mí amor" I answer (a/n: sí yo hablar espanol 🙄) "I love you too" she confess "I love both of you" Lin adds "ahh shut up Lin" we said in unison "Are you ok Lin" she ask still laughing "your guys talk made me feel better" "ok I'm going to text everyone what happened" "ok" "cool"

"Dad I- mean Lin sorry" y/n states "OH THANK GOD IVE BEEN WAITING FOREVER FOR YOU TO CALL ME DAD" "I thought you wouldn't like since you have a child" "no y/n I have two" "that's mad sweet yo" "are you crying" "no" "yes you are come here softie" "we're homeeeeee oh I forgot to drop you off ant guess you gotta stay with us gosh darn it" "oh no" "I head plans today but guess it will be a group face time,let's get inside though"

AlExeNdEr HaMiLtOn

Are y'all ok to FaceTime

Loser Leslie 🤫😐🙄😲🫠🫤😯🥱🤥😑😦😴😵‍💫😶🫨😧🤤🤐🫥😬😮😪🥴:yeah

Weird David 😮‍💨🤢🤕👹😵🤮🤑👺😵‍💫🤧🤠🤡🤐😷😈💩🥴🤒👿👻🤖:sure

ThEy DiDnT sAy I CoUlDnT sIng 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏻:yup

Oakyyyyy the unfuckable tree👉🏾🤚🏾🫲🏾✍🏾👆🏾🖐🏾🫱🏾🙏🏾🖖🏾👇🏾💪🏾🫵🏾☝🏾👋🏾🦾🦶🏾✋🏾🤙🏾🖕🏾🦵🏾:yes sirrrrrrrrrrr

Christopfuckme👶🏾🧑🏾👩🏾‍🦰👱🏾‍♂️👧🏻👨🏾🧑🏾‍🦰👩🏾‍🦳🧒🏾👩🏾‍🦱👨🏾‍🦰🧑🏾‍🦳👦🏿🧑🏾‍🦱👱🏾‍♀️👨🏾‍🦳👩🏾👨🏾‍🦱:i was sleep but ok.

Well this is important so stay mad

Jazzy poo bear😭🙄🔛🔝‼️🗞️🧍🏼‍♀️🫶🏾🤭🎶🗣️🪄✅😑👍🏾🩷😂👦🏿🖕🏾😘❕🔥😔👦🏾💞👹❗️🔊🎩👦🏽:ofc bbg

My mannn💀🎃😼🫶🏾☠️😺😽🤲🏾👽😸🙀👐🏾👾😹😿🙌🏾🤖😻😾👏🏾:back off

Pippy poo😀🥹☺️😃😅😊😄😂😇😁🤣🙂😆🥲🙃:anywhooooooooo i am

Mommy nèa(not dirty🙄)😉😗😝🤓😌😙😜😎😍😚🤪🥸🥰😋🤨🤩😘😛🧐🥳:same

LiNaMiNrOlL🥶😨😓🫣🫡😶‍🌫️😰🤗🤭🤫😱😥🤔🫢🫠: added 480-369-289

Who dat be

LiNaMiNrOlL🥶😨😓🫣🫡😶‍🌫️😰🤗🤭🤫😱😥🤔🫢🫠:my hubby🫦

Groffsauce 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏾:🤭

Hey dude do yk what happened

Groffsauce 🤝🏾🤛🏾✌🏾🤌🏾👍🏾🤜🏾🫰🏾🤏🏾👎🏾🫷🏾🤟🏾🫳🏾👊🏾🫸🏾🤘🏾🫴🏾✊🏾🤞🏾👌🏾👈🏾:Yeah

FaceTime neow.

Mommy nèa(not dirty🙄)😉😗😝🤓😌😙😜😎😍😚🤪🥸🥰😋🤨🤩😘😛🧐🥳:same

"Get comfy i gotta take us some where"

-dressed-

-on face time-

"why am I here If this is a Hamilton thing" Vanessa asked "this isn't Hamilton thing listen you're my mom to nèa is a second one and Lin Is my dad and the cast are my friends and sebby is my little brother and ant is not abusive and I've never had friends before and the one I did make was fake ans toxic and you guys aren't you are my friends y'all are my family so I want you to be here when I get rid of my blade I'm going full clean" "babe I'm so proud of you come here" I tell her while grasping her in a tight hug "it's gonna be hell to get him back to sleep but I don't care sebby sebby wake up this is important" she's says smiling at y/n "y/n I'm so proud" everyone chanted she buried it "bye trauma" "THATS MY GIRL" Lin nèa and nessa yelled everyone would was proud but most importantly she was proud and free" "IM GLAD YOU WOKE ME UP" "no problem Chris"

This took me 4 hours to write so you better enjoy this

#hamilton fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #fanfics #fanfic authors #fanfic writers #fanfiction writer #fanfic writing #fanfic #fanfiction #anthony ramos #musical theater #musical theatre #theater #theatre #21 chump street #broadway #hamilton musical #lin manuel miranda #anthonyramosxreadertheatrekidstatus

2 notes · View notes

1016anon · 2 years

Text

Title: Showmance Author: 1016anon Fandom: Bridgerton Pairing: Anthony Bridgerton/Kate Sharma Summary: It's called showmance.

Trigger warnings: Underage (A is 15 and K is 13), child abuse, codependence. Read more details under the cut.

Underage. Anthony is 15 and Kate is 13 when they begin pretending to be in love (showmancing can and does start at a young age in competitive ice dancing). Between Anthony and Kate, there's kissing (closed lips), hugging, sharing a bed (literally sleeping). There is no sexual contact.

Child abuse. Anthony and Kate showmance at the instruction of their coaches for the sake of competition and performing in front of the crowd and judges. Due to the extremely isolated nature of their upbringing and training regimen (they've been skating together since A was 9, K was 7), they just accept that this is how it is; they don't actually know the larger meaning of what they're doing.

Codependence/enmeshment of personality. Kate and Anthony literally cannot function without each other. Because: young children + years of social isolation + years of abuse + years of living in a high pressure environment to achieve = the completely unhealthy, not romantic feeling that you are them and they are you, there's no boundary, what you feel is what they feel, what they think is what you think.

PLEASE TAKE CARE OF YOURSELVES AND DO NOT READ IF THIS MAY TRIGGER YOU.

A/N -- I am not an ice dancer, nor am I part of the ice dancing/figure skating community. This fic/series is inspired in part by Virtue Moir's history in ice dancing. However, I want to note that I do not RPF ship Virtue Moir, and I'm amazed they emerged from their careers as individuals with boundaries, rather than a codependent pair.

"The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series features some of the up and coming skaters of the world and provides young skaters aged 13 to 19 (21 for the male Ice Dance and Pair Skating partners) with the opportunity to compete at a high international level."

It's called showmance.

Anthony and Kate have been showmancing since she was thirteen.

They sold it to the judges and audiences as a shy, blossoming teenage love; an innocent crush which naturally arose from two people who did everything together. The other pairs at Juniors looked uncomfortable trying to sell the intimacy, but Anthony and Kate have no problem. They'd been taking classes in acting for years, in addition to their dance classes, strength training-- all in addition to skate practice and working on lifts off the ice.

Kate mastered the wide, doe-eyed look, at turns playful and at turns shy around Anthony, while he acted the part of a hapless teenage boy who didn't know what to do with his feelings. As soon as she and Anthony climbed into the car to go to skate practice, they were showmancing; judges, fans, the competition were always watching. Of the three groups, two knew how the game was played, and for the most part, told themselves they were not taken in. However, humans are a visual species-- they believe what they see. See it enough and some belief slips through the cracks.

Anthony and Kate, however, took it to the next level.

They acted like they were stealing kisses. At turns a normal pair of junior ice dancers, then suddenly bashful and embarrassed for no good reason. Such was the way of teenage love, their acting coach told them. Anthony learned to pretend he was suddenly self conscious about hugging Kate. Kate learned to pretend to be giddy with happiness when he took her hand outside the rink. They brought their bodies close, then jumped away. It was its own dance, their coach told them, with beats and marks to hit. Not so different from what they already did on ice.

Anthony and Kate sold it really well. So well, even their parents believed it. Violet could comfort herself that she was not using two children below the age of consent to chase after gold medals; they already had a natural affinity for each other and she simply facilitated bringing them together.

Miles was furious. Kate was thirteen years old, and Anthony was fifteen. When Violet had approached him and Mary about the potential she saw in Kate and Anthony as the next great ice dancers, this was not what he signed up for. He and Mary had been watching with apprehension, not sure why they were apprehensive because Kate so clearly loved ice dancing. Now?

He had pulled her out of ice dancing abruptly, one day announcing she was no longer going to practice. Kate hadn't understood-- was there a surprise holiday? Had auntie arrived from India? There were very few reasons why she did not go to practice.

A day passed. Then two. Then five. She kept asking when she would go practice, she'd already missed four days of working on their new lifts. Miles had confiscated her phone-- Anthony had been calling her every day and sending increasingly frantic texts, asking her where she was, what had happened. As it became clearer to her that Appa meant she was never going to ice dance again-- that he was separating her from Anthony forever, Kate collapsed.

She fell into an abrupt depression, wouldn't come out of her room, cried for hours, refused to eat. She wouldn't speak to Mary, Miles, Edwina, or anyone else. It was not even a dramatic explosion of anger-- it was as though her entire personality had been propped up by ice dancing and Anthony; now that it was gone, she didn't know what to do with herself or how to pass the time. But that wasn't the real problem.

The real problem was: Kate didn't know who she was.

What Miles should have done was to gradually cut back the hours Kate spent ice dancing, gradually increasing the hours she could spend with family, make friends outside of skating, pick up hobbies wholly unrelated to anything she was training in now. Eventually, he could enroll her in school, instead of having her take online courses supplemented with tutors. Violet would have fought him, tooth and nail, but so long as he didn't capitulate, it was a war he would have won. Kate's entire world was centered on ice dancing-- everyone she knew was somehow related to ice dance.

Suddenly tearing her away from it all was the psychological equivalent of kidnapping her and moving to another continent. With careful planning, he could have weaned Kate off this total dependence on figure skating-- and Anthony, by extension.

However, Miles had panicked, and understandably so. The apprehension he'd felt had crystallized and exploded in his face and the only thing he could think to do was to put as much distance between his barely teenage daughter and ice dancing.

They should have remembered that everything Kate did and felt, Anthony did too. Before Miles and Mary could regroup and put together a plan to go forward, Anthony rescued his other half.

After a week of separation, Anthony acted without thought. There was no grand plan, no idea of heroics. There was no choice. He simply needed her; he needed her with him. He knew she needed him. There was no question.

So he appeared outside her window; she sat up from her bed as though she'd been waiting for him. They hugged, desperately, while they both cried silently, unable to put words to the relief they felt being reunited. Life felt like it had purpose again. Emotions which had faded to grey came back in full color. Kate regained her appetite; her stomach made a loud noise. Anthony helped her pack some essentials, they climbed out the window, got into the car he'd parked two blocks away, and went home.

When Violet burst into his room asking if he knew where Kate was, Anthony pretended to be the depressed, vacant, lost boy he'd been without Kate. His mother bought it because he and Kate were always showmancing, in one way or another. Only they knew when they were real and when they weren't-- they were of the same mind, at times so eerie in their wordless communication that their strength trainer had teased them for having telepathy.

Telepathy implied communication between two distinct entities.

Anthony and Kate did not have telepathy.

He had pretended to be stuck in his depression because they were both afraid that Violet and Miles would take Kate away again. Anthony and Kate held each other so tightly in his bed, completely silent, breathing synchronized. She was only beginning her growth spurt; she was able to fit into him entirely, so much so that no one noticed the Kate-shaped lump next to him.

When their parents finally found them, they were asleep, still wrapped around each other. Miles watched the following day as his daughter smiled, ate, acted as though nothing had happened at all. Violet watched her son do the same. There was no neediness or clinging that one might associate with codependence. It was as though the table missing two legs was now repaired, with nothing to show for it.

For better or worse-- and there was no better, only for worse-- Anthony and Kate were inseparable. Inseparable in the most literal sense: they could not be separated. The past week demonstrated that if they did, they would cease to function.

Miles cursed the day he'd ever met Violet Bridgerton, but he felt he had no choice. His daughter may as well have been a corpse without ice dancing; between having her mute and unresponsive versus talking and laughing, he would rather have the latter.

Violet was sorry, but not sorry enough to stop. Not sorry enough to offer alternatives, a healthier path. It was a slight exaggeration-- but not too much of one-- to say that she had planned Anthony's career from the moment he was born.

So: the showmance must go on.

Anthony turns 16 and it begins to dawn on him that the meanings he and Kate give to words aren't quite the same as the meanings everyone else gives those words. For example, people persistently ask if they're "together."

His response: of course they're together. They live together, eat together, train together, attend online classes together, study together. She's always had her own bedroom and en suite, but when they were kids, she always snuck into his room. She still sneaks into his room. Half his closet is full of her clothes, he's got tampons under the sink and there are two razors in the bathroom. Her room, they use mostly as another place to study, watch tv, play video games.

When his dad comes to visit, Anthony and Kate overhear him having an argument with Violet about boundaries. He says that Anthony and Kate have no boundaries; they're growing teenagers going through puberty.

He and Kate don't need to speak to know that this is a ridiculous argument. In competition-- and therefore for hours on ice-- the only time he and Kate are allowed to be apart is when they're moving in complete synchronization, doing twizzles or a choreographic character step sequence. Otherwise, they must always be touching; if they're not touching, they always have to be within two arms lengths of each other for no more than five seconds.

Ice dancing is a sport built on the concept of maximizing contact. The rules dictate that pairs are not allowed to have boundaries. There is no part of Kate's body he hasn't touched in some way, shape, or form; the same goes for her of him.

This, combined with the showmance which has gradually escalated-- Kate no longer plays the part of what their acting coach called "the next door neighbor with a crush" (whatever that meant); Anthony is not the "tongue-tied teenager who's afraid of girls" (again, whatever that meant). Kate's hit her growth spurt and looks a lot less like an ingenue and a lot more like an awkward array of spider-long limbs (Anthony had teased her relentlessly about this. He wasn't teasing as much when she started catching up to him in height).

In any case, Kate is now a cheeky teenage girl who wears lip gloss, paints her nails-- "head cheerleader in the making" (their acting coach was really fond of comparisons they didn't understand)-- who holds Anthony's hand outside the rink without hesitation (they never understood this bit about the hesitation, but who are they to question their acting coach?); Anthony is a hot high school jock who wears a proverbial letterman jacket (they looked up letterman jackets online and agreed they were hideous).

Showmance-wise, this apparently meant Anthony was eager to carry her bag (he was not eager to carry her bag), Kate was happy to wear his jacket (she didn't understand this because they wore the same jacket, just different sizes), they ate non-fat frozen yogurt together (they spent their life surrounded by ice; they both would have preferred something warm, but hot chocolate had too many calories), and for some obscure reason they neither could divine, Anthony was supposed to try to learn to play the guitar.

Apparently it was supposed to go on their instagram for some sort of fanvid.

Thankfully, that last bit of showmance was vetoed by Violet. Anthony and Kate had no time to learn musical instruments to sing romantic duets together. They did, however, make tiktok videos, which their media manager posted regularly.

Neither Anthony nor Kate had any sense of proportion as to how deep their act went. It was part of life: practice at the rink, eat a perfectly balanced meal, go to dance class, post a tiktok of them doing the foxtrot, do their coursework, go back to the rink, pose for a few cute selfies, post to instagram, go home, &tc. Rinse, repeat.

To well adjusted, mentally balanced people, it no longer looked like a teenage crush. It looked a lot like a teenage romance-- perhaps even love between two sweethearts. It was too early to say the "soulmates" word, but the potential was there. This was what well adjusted, mentally balanced, properly socialized individuals with a healthy sense of self saw, and they saw no reason to question what looked so natural. So incredibly organic.

For Anthony and Kate, it was all part of the training necessary to become world champions, Olympic gold medalists, the greatest ice dancers of all time.

Was it love? Were they in love?

They had no idea what the question meant, only that their media manager told them to say they were best friends (true, in the sense that they were practically each other's only friends, in addition to everything else) who were lucky to be doing what they loved best (that word again, love-- was it love if they didn't know how to do anything else, and never had a chance to try?) and really glad to be on this journey together (also true, in the sense that they couldn't imagine being with anyone else because Anthony was Kate and Kate was Anthony).

So they never outright said they were in love, but apparently those words-- best friends, competing together, doing what they loved, glad to share the journey with each other-- combined with all the tiktoks and photos of them smiling and holding hands, or Anthony with a look of intense concentration on his face while he did a lift with Kate, her arms posed elegantly like a ballerina (because they both took ballet classes), or Kate leaning into Anthony for a choreographic spinning movement, her pose one which normally socialized people associated with intimacy and trust-- it all implied love.

Therefore, they must be in love.

No one needed to say it because it was all there for the world to see. There for the world to believe.

There was another question under it all that no one ever asked, but everyone wanted to know: were they together together? In the body sharing, bed sharing, passionate love making sense?

Anthony and Kate's first response to their media manager was to say yes. They shared a body: Anthony's body was Kate's and Kate's body was Anthony's. His limbs were hers, her limbs were his, their hands never separated. And it was true they shared a bed; they'd shared one since she was seven and he was nine. They weren't certain about the passionate love making, but their programs were often described as passionate, and everyone said they were in love. It seemed the answer to that question was yes.

Which was why they had a media manager. Because the answer to every variation of the question was no, no, emphatically no. They were in a completely close-mouthed kisses, tender hugs, forehead touching, intense eye-staring, hand holding relationship which did not involve any kind of baseball metaphors or activities which raised red flags about the age of consent.

Anyone-- truly, anyone-- looking in from the outside would find it difficult to believe that Anthony and Kate were this naive. It stretched the bounds of credulity.

Puberty brought hormones. Hormones brought changes. Changes brought things like sexual desire and attraction.

There were movies! They had the internet! Smartphones! There was no reason for them not to know!

On the flip side, there was no reason for them to question what they were told. In fact, it was usually essential for them to do exactly as they were told; otherwise, Anthony might fall in the middle of a hold, causing Kate to knock her head on the ice and suffer a concussion. Kate might slice Anthony's leg open with her skates while she stood on his thighs during a lift.

They were in their own world and most of the time were so busy with classes and coaches and tutors and homework and training that they fell into bed exhausted. And: they didn't go to school. They took online courses designed for serious student athletes. They met tutors three times a week.

Questions can only be asked if you know a question exists. You don't know what you don't know; Anthony and Kate, as difficult as it was to believe, didn't know.

Despite the movies, internet, and smartphones.

Violet was squeamish about giving them a healthy, comprehensive education on the changes going on with their bodies. She gave them the bare minimum and decided it was best for them to put all that teenage energy to more training. Push them to perfection, introduce more advanced lifts, complex choreography, and expanded repertoire of dance.

But truly, it was the information age. Weren't they even curious? They were incredibly fit, so hot anyone would hit it, oozed amazing chemistry in their routines, looked so sexy in their outfits. Anthony and Kate were turning out to be astoundingly photogenic. They were gorgeous together. How could they not know?

They had tiktok! They had instagram, and hundreds of thousands of followers.

Tiktok accounts they didn't manage, instagram comments they never saw; that was the job of their media manager.

Anthony and Kate did one thing and one thing only: ice dance.

Besides-- no one was looking in from the outside. There was no reason to examine below the surface and debunk the fairy tale Kate and Anthony had so successfully sold.

Kate and Anthony were the perfect love story: two beautiful people who met as children, fell in love while they pursued their passion, were working together to reach a common goal. It hit all the classic romance buttons.

Why ruin a good thing?

Why dismantle an illusion when there's no illusion to dismantle?

If the outsider looking in would find it difficult to believe Kate and Anthony were so naive, it went the other direction also.

The insider looking out would find it difficult to believe people were so naive that they believed everything they saw; they would find it amazing that the outsiders never asked those obvious insider questions outsiders should have known were there to ask.

The outsider looking in had movies, the internet, and smartphones. They had the advantage of being well adjusted, mentally balanced, self aware, properly socialized. They attended school, had friends from a variety of backgrounds, were given the opportunity to develop many interests and cultivate several hobbies.

The outsider looking in does one thing and one thing only.

Watch.

The problem is--

When brushing your partner's face is part of the choreography; when holding your partner's waist is something you do for at least four hours every day; when sneaking close mouthed kisses are taught in acting class; when the moment you step out of the car to go to practice is the moment you are already practicing; when the sport you've been practicing-- before you even understand the concept of fractions-- teaches you continuous touch--

When the romance is all part of the performance, and you do not know who you are without your partner--

What exactly does intimacy mean?

The words people used meant something completely different to Anthony and Kate. Romance was engineered and acted out. Love was a word associated with media, images, and performing to get an edge on the competition.

The problem is that intimacy is something shared between two people. Just like Kate and Anthony did not have telepathy, they did not have intimacy.

It looked like it on the outside.

It was the furthest thing from the truth within.

Anthony and Kate are 16 and 14 when they win silver at the Junior Grand Prix.

They put on a great showmance.

#bridgerton #kathony #fanfiction #ice dancing au

20 notes · View notes

gunterfan1992 · 8 months

Text

Episode Review: "Fionna Campbell"/"Simon Petrikov" (Fionna & Cake, Eps. 1-2)

If you had told me on the day that Adventure Time was canceled that almost a decade into the future, I would still be writing reviews about new episodes, I would have never believed you. And yet, today saw the release of not one, but two new episodes. (It seems that the fun really will never end!) What a world we live in!

----

When I first heard that Fionna and Cake would be the focus of the newest Adam Muto-produced Adventure Time spin-off, I was a touch apprehensive. It is not that I disliked the characters... I just worried that they might not be able to anchor ten 22-minute episodes. After all, the two were always something of a funny gimmick. Other than explaining if they were real, what more was there to say about them?

My tentative apprehension started to dissipate when I learned that the one, the only Simon Petrikov would play a major part in the miniseries. Simon was always a strong character, and there was much to his story that still needed to be teased out. His presence in the miniseries signaled one thing: Fionna and Cake would not just be a fluffy romp, but rather one of mythological significance! Needless to say, my interest was fully piqued, and I began to count down the days when the miniseries would debut.

And now that the first two episodes are out, I am happy to say that my tentative fears were likely misplaced. Indeed, if "Fionna Campbell" and "Simon Petrikov" are indicative of the overall quality of this miniseries, we're in for a good time!

So let's dig in!

Airdate: August 31, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Haewon Lee, Jacob Winkler

Directed by: Ryann Shannon (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

The miniseries kicks off with "Fionna Campbell," which follows the story of Fionna the human... No, not that Fionna the Human. This Fionna does not live in a magic land, and it is only in her dreams that she's a swashbuckling hero. Instead, the Fionna we meet lives in a mundane world very much like our own. This Fionna seems to feel as if she fundamentally lacks any sense of purpose. Accompanying her throughout her non-adventures in this alternate reality is Fionna's (non-magical) cat, Cake. The main plot of the episode begins after Cat and Fionna have a strange dream, whereupon Cake begins to act erratically; it is almost like she desperately needs to be in contact with ice of all things. After a series of humorous set pieces in which Fionna repeatedly discusses the dullness of her reality with a variety of uncannily familiar characters, Cake goes bananas and makes a mad dash for an ice cream cart. As Fionna gives chase, Cake dives into the cart, which turns into a magic portal and teleports Cake to a different world...

Of the two episodes discussed in this review, "Fionna Campbell" was the least impactful. Do not misunderstand me: It was still a fun, charming episode, but it did little more than introduce us to our heroines and set up the plot of the miniseries. The issue with this is that it makes much of the episode, on a strictly narrative level, superfluous (for instance, were you to have Cake dart over to Fionna's ice dispenser and have it—rather than an ice cream cart—the overall story would still work just fine). But while much of this episode is technically "unnecessary," it nevertheless mines a lot of goodwill and humor by introducing us to gender-bent "real world" versions of beloved Adventure Time characters (e.g., "Queen" [Queen of Ooo], "Ellis P." [Lumpy Space Prince], "Gary Prince" [Prince Gumball]). Perhaps I am biased as a Marceline fan, but hands-down the best of the gender-bent bunch is Marshall Lee, played once again by the uber-talented and oh-so-witty Donald Glover. (That said, Pen Ward's oddball hobo-vet character, "Ellis P.," is a close second.)

Regardless of any narrative weirdness, I applaud Muto et al. for approaching this Fionna and Cake storyline from a different angle. It would have been very, very easy to simply drop us back into the genderbent world that we have already visited in the main series. This, honestly, is what I was expecting the series to do. Instead, the writers decided to introduce versions of Fionna and Cake that feel more like they are from our world. This makes them solid audience surrogates. Over the course of the episode, I came to see Fionna as a character in and of herself, not just as a female version of Finn. Likewise, Cake felt less like "feline Jake," and more like a goofy house cat (albeit one that has a case of the Zoomies from Hell). "Fionna Campbell," in a word, gives Fionna and Cake a chance to become their own people before throwing them into the wider world of Ooo.

Airdate: August 31, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Iggy Craig, Graham Falk, Jim Campbell, Lucyola Langi

Directed by: Steve Wolfhard (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

After the purposefully abrupt ending to "Fionna Campbell," we are suddenly thrown head first back into the familiar Land of Ooo with "Simon Petrikov."

This episode picks up several years after the main series. Simon is now living a, shall we say, "unorthodox life in a museum-like facility, where he is treated as a relic of the past. He has lost his sense of purpose and direction, and he struggles with loneliness and boredom. Simon, in a word, is depressed. It does not help matters that people keep asking him about "his" Fionna and Cake novels--novels that he repeatedly emphasizes Ice King wrote. Alas, it is no use, and so Simon goes to the tavern owned by Dirt Beer Guy (A+ cameo) to drink his sorrows away. It is here that he runs into a 20-something Finn in all his himbo glory. Finn sees that Simon isn't doing well and insists that he must go on an adventure to reclaim his joie de vivre. Simon reluctantly follows Finn into the most primordial corner of Ooo, where the two are nearly killed multiple times.

At the end of the episode, Simon returns to his museum-home feeling just as bad as he did before. After sneaking off into his closet, we learn that his depression has driven him to create a shrine to GOLB; using the demoniac power of Evil Choose Goose, he subsequently attempts to summon the deity, presumably to reconnect with Betty. But, just like the best laid plans of mice and men, Simon's scheme fails to summon any eldritch abominations, but it does open up the portal we saw at the end of "Fionna Campbell." And out from this portal pops Cake the Cat!

The episode immediately shifts to Prismo's time room, where we see an alarm on the wish-master's remote begin to blink ominously…

Wow, what an episode!

I appreciate the focus "Simon Petrikov" places on depression and the struggle against nihilism. Simon, after all, is a man thrust into a new world. Everything he used to strive for is gone. Even the madness that took his old world away from him is gone. This might sound like a good thing, but interestingly, it seems to have had a deleterious effect on Simon’s psyche: Previously, when Simon was metaphorically locked within the recesses of Ice King's mind, he had something to strive for: He could overcome the crown’s curse and regain his sanity. And then he did! Thus, Ice King ended and Simon was back. But alas, his arrival occurred at the literal end of the story. The big bad was gone. The goal had been reached. All that was left was the ride into the sunset. But Simon could not do that, because even though he regained his sanity, it ultimately cost him his love, Betty.

I won't lie: I found Simon's story to be deeply relatable. For those who don't know, I recently earned my PhD. It was a long, uphill battle, and after I earned that degree… I didn't know what to do. In truth, I still don't know what to do. I have been a student almost my entire life, and now the rest of that life lays out in front of me. I achieved what I originally wanted; it is time to figure out what I currently want. Honestly, it has been an occasionally gloomy time, and I won't lie, I have struggled quite a bit with depression these last few months just trying to figure everything out. In doing so, I have realized just how much of my life I have sunk into my degree. It has been a bit disheartening to realize that while I have a doctorate, but it cost me the entirety of my 20s to get it. So yes, while I did not lose the love of my life to an eldritch demon-god, I still empathize with Simon's listlessness and his existential angst. (As an aside, post-PhD depression is very a real thing, y'all!)

When you have gained what you thought you wanted and lost that which was really important, what do you do? Of course, it is easy to simply collapse in despair. This is capitulation to vulgar nihilism, and it is something that I have struggled with ("Why even bother doing anything..."). At the start of "Simon Petrikov," the titular character is very close to this collapse, too. Indeed, Simon starts off in a dark place, but paradoxically, this darkness holds the seeds that can grow into a life-changing journey. After all, when we are at our lowest, the only (productive) way to go is up. Put most simply, Finn was actually right: Simon needs an adventure to reignite within him that sense of drive and purpose. But the catch here is that that adventure needs to be meaningful to Simon. It needs to spark something unique within his soul. The bizarro arrival of Cake may thus be exactly what he needs. Cake is not just a mystery—she's a mystery that perhaps only Simon can solve, since it was Simon (or, at least a version of him) who dreamed her up in the first place!

Simon now has a purpose.

Purpose.

Once again, Adventure Time is reminding us of the importance of "purpose." Purpose, the show seems to be saying, is what gives meaning to our lives, what motivates us to overcome challenges, and what inspires us to contribute to society. Without purpose, we may feel lost, empty, or hopeless. What, then, is the show suggesting we do to gain this sense of purpose? It is hard to say, given that the miniseries isn't over, but my guess is that the show is emphasizing that while meaning can emerge from even the most chance of occurrences, it is not enough to just recognize these coincidences. Instead, we have to seize them, embrace them, and make them our own. We have to act on our purpose, and not let it slip away. At the end of "Simon Petrikov," Simon is put in this exact spot, and while he might show some reluctance to seize the moment, something tells me that he'll eventually act in a major way.

Am I on the right track? I guess we'll have to wait a few weeks to find out!

----

When news about the series first started to leak, I remember there was a lot of hubbub about its more "adult" tone. I was a bit apprehensive when I heard this; part of what I love about Adventure Time is that it is capable of being scary and profound without having to stoop to the shock value of cheap swears and bloody violence. After seeing these episodes, my worries have mostly been put to rest. After all, most of the "swearing" is pretty mild, and it seems to be used rather judiciously. (That said, I did a double take when Cake told Fionna to "Puke [the bad guy] up"—I thought she said another "-uck" word!) On top of all that, it was often just funny! Queenie shrieking "Jesus!" when Fionna ripped her pants off was comedy gold, as was Finn's line about "bust[ing Simon's] balls" back in the day. I'm a bit more ambivalent when it comes to the gorier elements (e.g., Finn killing that mudskipper in a bloody splatter), but that's largely because it feels a bit incongruous with the lighthearted Land of Ooo that we know. Adventure Time was often violent, this is true, but it was rarely gory. That said, the violence in these episodes is not over the top—this isn't Superjail! or anything—and I hope the show continues to maintain that nice balance. Right now, everything mostly feels "right."

All in all, these were solid episodes. In addition to all the positives that I outlined above, there were a variety of other things that made me smile. I'm quite happy that the show is returning to the multiverse lore, as I always felt that was a story thread that the show never explored to the fullest. The various cameos were also delightful (I had a lot of fun guessing who all the gender-bent normies were supposed to be representative of), and I loved the little post-Mushroom War Simon & Marcy moment. And of course, hearing Marceline say that someone is "pissed" is something that I didn't know I needed to hear!

I cannot wait to see what the series has in store for Simon, Fionna, and Cake.

Final "Fionna Campbell" Grade: B

Final "Simon Petrikov" Grade: A

#adventure time #atimers #fionna and cake #fionna campbell #simon petrikov #marceline the vampire queen #princess bubblegum #finn the human #cake the cat #fionna the human #review #miniseries

107 notes · View notes