Tumgik
#Romeo & Juliet story
real-life-senshi · 6 months
Text
10 (Mostly) Spoiler-Free Reasons to Watch Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon 2003 Live Action
A countdown to the 20th anniversary of Act 1 air date!
Reason 6: A more developed ✨Miracle Romance✨!
How can one ever talk about Sailor Moon without discussing the most iconic and legendary couple in history that rivals Romeo and Juliet - Usagi & Mamoru?
Had the live-action done this couple's story dirty, they might as well chuck the whole project out the window! Thankfully, they didn't screw it up, and in fact, I personally think their love story got a further glow-up!
A more well-rounded developed relationship
The live-action gave more space and time to develop Mamoru and Usagi's relationship, making it more believable, and realistic, and proving to the audience their feelings for each other are genuinely mutual! It started off with an almost antagonistic, pigtail-pulling relationship, developing into what seems to be a "one-sided" crush because they are both so oblivious, to mutual love and respect.
Like seriously - this is how Usamamo meets in Act 1 (shhhhhh, it's Act 1, barely a spoiler):
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
While technically this is also another spoiler, I'm going to say it anyway to highlight the difference here: Basically, Usagi falls in love with Mamoru AND comes to terms that she's in love with Mamoru and "not Tuxedo Mask" before finding out Mamoru's true identity and their shared past life. I think this is such an important, and much better narrative because it leaves no room for debate that Usagi is in love with Mamoru for the right reasons, instead of being in love with the idea of him because he's Tuxedo Mask and it's romantic. In fact, how romantic it is to consider Usagi fell in love with the same person twice without realizing it???? I think that’s romantic!
To me, there's a difference between "they are bound to fall in love with each other because it is their destiny" versus "they fell in love with each other just as it was foretold by destiny". The live-action strictly falls into the latter category. It's all a matter of choice and agency from the characters!
More dramarama!
The live-action seriously amped up the drama between the two of them, on both fronts regarding their personal lives and also their heroic lives! The additional dramatic elements (that I will NOT spoil) created a heightened "will they, won't they" tension that will make UsaMamo fans anxious to watch. There's quite a bit of mutual pining for Usamamo fans to look forward to in the live-action!
Angst is also a must in the live-action universe, and it's a treat to watch these two coming together trying to defy the odds. Even the filming angle and post-production editing go all out to amp that up!
Minimal "damsel in distress" routine, reverse or otherwise!
I know... it's a running gag in the manga and anime universe that Mamoru always gets kidnapped or brainwashed. Thankfully, the live-action took a different trajectory with their storytelling.
That's not to say there's zero kidnapping/held hostage-type situation, etc. But even in such scenarios, the Prince of Earth always is still in control and does everything he can to ultimately come to a resolution in his own way.
Personally, I don't care much for Mamoru in manga and anime verse, thinking he's just there to make Usagi look good, but I actually like Mamoru's character in the live-action. No matter as Tuxedo Kamen or Prince Endymion, he has quite a bit of involvement in battle scenes. And he is ACTUALLY competent and pairs up really well with Usagi as a couple and with Sailor Moon as a fighter. Some of their duo fight scenes are really cool!
Tumblr media
Oh. And there's none of the "kissing you while you are asleep/unconscious" stuff. I'm not going to argue it wasn't romantic in the manga, etc. But times have changed since the original material was written/drawn, and I don't think that's something that will fly well with people in this current age and time. The live-action caught on with the time and used other techniques to make the romance pop instead, and for that I am thankful!
Opposite attracts
Mamoru is written a bit differently than manga and anime. Mamoru's more aloof, prickly, and definitely tsundere. He becomes awkward when he warms up, which is really adorable to see. Also, he wears leather jacket and rides a motorcycle, which amps up his "cool" factor by... A LOT!!!
Usagi is mostly the same as manga and anime, but less crybaby. Like I mentioned before in part 2 of this, Usagi is not exaggeratedly "stupid", just slower, and appropriately immature and innocent for someone her age who hasn't experienced much adversaries until the Senshi business. (No, butt-heading with your little brother doesn't count. lol)
So all's to say in the live-action, they really build up this whole opposite-attracts kind of deal with Usamamo, and where Usagi had to work to see through Mamoru's prickly exterior and soften him up.
Also, I think they cast Mamoru and Usagi really well. Just look at their height difference! Another thing that makes them look so good together????
Tumblr media
You can watch the subbed versions of the series at:
Miss Dream Fansubs
Sea of Serenity Fansubs
The series is also on other online streaming sites, but be cautious to only visit them with good adware and firewall installed.
5 days till the 20th anniversary of Act 1 air date!
Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10
44 notes · View notes
destinyc1020 · 1 year
Note
Baz posted a pic with Z, Tom and some of the FFH cast when they went to his Romeo+Juliet staging of Secret Cinema back in 2018. He was standing next to Z. He first posted a pic where you can't see Tom and then posted the one where Tom can be seen https://zendayac-news.tumblr.com/post/176988256091/zendaya-in-baz-luhrmans-instagram-story/amp
Awww..... Jazzy Baz 😊
I remember this picture! Awww..... seems like ages ago! 😂
Thanks for sharing these memories Anon ❤
No wonder he was rooting for Zendaya tonight lol 😆
20 notes · View notes
Text
My Thoughts on Issue 4: Tale Old as Time
I admit, I didn’t do issue 3 as I was busy and the problems with digital copy on Amazon made me look at spoilers before I got my physical copies and they came quite late too. 
I got issue 4 a lot quicker, it was actually dispatched on Tuesday, so they arrived on Friday. The Amazon digital copy issue seems to be sorted out as well (but it was still late). So hopefully I will get Issue 5 with no problems, cross fingers
Spoilers
Here some small thoughts on Issue 3. It was still a good story, liked that Broadway was narrating and quickly figured Thailog kidnapped Maggie and Mary. Great to see Xanatos again along with Alex (who’d gotten big) and Fox (her powers are evolving more). Talon and Maggie’s baby is cute, love that he’s named after both of their Fathers. I always figured he would be human and would have lightning powers.
My favourite cover for issue 3 is, Cover D Variant Lesley Leirix Li. I just love this one.
On to Issue 4
The Art/Colouring is amazing, I love it.
.Goliath narrating, which fits perfectly for this issue, due to the ending
We meet Dino Dracon and he’s brutal. He just slammed Pal Joey’s head on the dashboard and kicked him out of the car, due to Pal Joey splashing water on his shoes. Antoinette didn’t even correct Dino when he called her Toni, so she’s definitely scared of him. 
I wonder who’s watching TV, Renard perhaps.
In issue 3 we were introduced to some new characters of the other crime families and got there last names in this issue and 2 of those last names were familiar (more on that later) So, Huracan Sanchez, YingPei Choi, Grisha Volkov and Izakk Slaughter.
The Police station has been rebuilt and re opened, so I guess could be 7 or 8  months after it was destroyed. So it could be June/July. 
I wonder what Margot Yale showed Matt on the clipboard, he certainly didn’t look happy about it. 
The Gargoyles wake up and Goliath was about to talk to the others but they went did there own things. Brooklyn and Katana giving Gnash a history lesson, but he thinks he doesn’t need it.
I wonder what Angela and Broadway wants to talk to Coldfire about and why it’s so exciting, Mating ceremony perhaps, I’m excited now.
Poor Lex, he needs a hug, glad Goliath and Hudson noticed that the Trio are drifting apart and Lex being left out. He’s now spending time in the computer lab, I wonder if he’s online chatting to Amp.
Rosario Sanchez and Peter Choi finally appear, I recognised those last names from the episode High Noon, they saved a child from drowning. So they are secret lovers (referencing Romeo and Juliet) and there families are part of the 5 crime families, Yingpei Choi and Huracan Sanchez. 
I assume the masked men in Gargoyle masks are Dino Dracon, Glasses and Pal Joey who are kidnapping Rose and Peter.
I wonder this is what Margot was showing Matt on the clipboard, that they got new choppers. I wonder what the budget was in the end because in Invitation Only, Matt said in his meeting that the Chief and the Mayor were still duking it out over their budget for the Taskforce. So it must be a very good budget to get those choppers. But maybe they could be a donation from someone.
So Goliath has been captured and he’s going to be in prison for longer than 3 issues, due to the description for issue 7.
Can’t wait for issue 5. I wonder Hudson or Brooklyn will be narrating.
4 notes · View notes
nexthlive · 5 months
Text
Get ready for a spine-tingling night of music, romance, and Halloween chic at the Nexth Verona Grande Theater in Verona, Italy. It's time to immerse yourself in the enchanting world of "Romeo & Juliet Reborn, Eps.2 - Scent of a Woman," a Halloween Special Edition brought to you by Nexth City iRadio. This event is set to take place at 21:00, with a thrilling Cocktail Party that you won't want to miss. The Dress Code is "Halloween Chic," and the Event Code is "Eternal Love." Be prepared to be swept away by the haunting melodies and timeless love story of Romeo and Juliet in the heart of Verona.
1 note · View note
adverbian · 6 months
Text
So but like. Good Omens S2 felt so out of joint that I don’t know what to think.
Aziraphale’s turn back to Heaven makes no emotional or narrative sense. If he genuinely believes Heaven is the side of good, or believes he can change it from within, after everything, then that just… is a fundamentally different character, and a fundamentally different story, from the book and from S1.
The only thing I can think of to make it make sense would be if Aziraphale was told “Come back with us or we will destroy Crowley.” That is the only motivation that makes emotional sense for him. Especially after S2 doing so much work to establish a romance. That’s about the only thing S2 did.
But if that’s the case… why not let the audience in on it? It wouldn’t make it any less heartbreaking. I mean, hell, even in Romeo and Juliet, the audience knows the truth. That’s what amps up the tragedy.
Anyway — why would that threat be made? Why would Heaven need Aziraphale specifically? If they threatened Crowley’s life, then why would they either allow or compel Aziraphale to offer Crowley a chance to come with him? Especially as everyone involved had to know he would never accept? There’s zero text for any of this. Literally nothing.
So we’re left coming up with these increasingly desperate-sounding red-string conspiracy theories to make it make sense, and I’m very much afraid that it just… won’t make sense. That we’ve just… already been let down, and we’re in denial about it.
Like I don’t want to believe that, but I also don’t want to be taken for a fool.
I don’t know. Maybe I’m just too emotionally scarred by Steven Moffat.
In summary, I will undoubtedly shortly return to my regularly scheduled 🤡🤡🤡🤡
I just needed to have a moment.
0 notes
danielleurbansblog · 3 years
Text
Review: One Step to You
Review: One Step to You
Synopsis: From an international bestselling author, this modern romance story explores whether distance and separation can ever keep true love apart. One Step to You has captured the hearts of millions and garnered a dedicated fan base across the world. In this first novel in the internationally bestselling trilogy, published for the first time in English, two teenagers spend the best days of…
Tumblr media
View On WordPress
1 note · View note
Text
Caught Recommendations
Tumblr media
Author’s Note: I’m trying to keep track of the amazing BTS-themed series and fics that I’m reading on Tumblr, so I decided to create this post with some short reviews (so I can have them all in one place). These writers are amazing and they keep me coming back for more. They are all smutty as hell and full of amazing characters and conflicts.  This is by no means a comprehensive list, and I will be adding them as more catch my eye. Check them out if you get a chance!
Mafia AUs
The Birdcage  & the sequel The Lion’s Den by @untaemedqueen
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Mafia AU; Jimin x Reader
What You Need to Know: Jimin-heavy series (and sequel) that dives into Seoul and Busan mafia underground, violence, guns, knives, bombs, pregnancies, and OH so much drama - the writer creates some fascinating characters that we root for and fall in love with over and over again.   
Thou Shall Not Steal by @xherxx
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Mafia AU, OT7
What You Need to Know:  The richest mafia lord in the industry throws a huge yet twisted deal before he retires and every gang out there wants to get their hands on his riches. - The drama is real in this one and there is plenty of hot, steamy scenes that will make you tingle. 
Don’t Care If It Hurts by @hollyhomburg
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Mafia AU, Jimin x Reader
What You Need to Know: After a rival gang makes an attempt on your life, Your older brother, the infamous leader of Seoul’s largest gang; Kim Namjoon, gets you a guard hybrid; Park Jimin, The reigning champion of Seoul’s underground hybrid fighting ring. - Yeah, this is also a hybrid series, but the mafia background is much more prominent. The OC is also smart as a whip and Namjoon as the angry leader and older brother is something to behold. The other members feature as well skilled companions and are very good at their jobs.
Omertà by @lamourche
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Mafia AU, Namjoon x Reader
What You Need to Know: A story about an unlikely mob boss and his mafia princess wife. This is a love story set in a brutal world. - Namjoon and his crew are tight knit and set to take over the mafia underground. In a true Romeo and Juliet twist, you are from an opposing family and are desperate to get away from their oppressive clutches. As an added bonus, you and Namjoon fall in love and build up his empire together. 
Blackjack by @kpopfanfictrash
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Mafia AU, Jungkook x Reader
What You Need to Know: Bangtan is one of the most vicious mafias on the west coast. Only six members are known by name though, with a mysterious seventh member dubbed only as 'the shadow.' When you become indebted to the worst of the worst - how, exactly can you find a way out? - Jungkook is such a gem in this fic and the action is amped up to 11 throughout the series. 
College/Business AUs
Thesis-It (and the sequel) Prove It by @xherxx
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, College/Career AU, OT7
What You Need to Know:  “When life gives you lemons, make cocktails! It doesn’t solve any problems, but then again neither do lemonades. Besides, it has the word cock in it, just like what the Bangtan boys have on them. So, why don’t you just suit yourself?” - This series was a ROLLERCOASTER of emotion, even when it hurts, you keep going back for more. The sequel takes place AFTER college, but the characters still act like college idiots. LOVE THEM!
Fear & Dumplings by @softyoongiionly
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, College AU, Yoongi x reader
What You Need to Know: You’re in your final semester at University when your Abnormal Psychology professor assigns you a partnered project surrounding your greatest fears. Lucky for you, your partner just so happens to be a cute boy named Min Yoongi. - The build up to this relationship is just wonderful and you will be completely enamored by Yoongi in this fic. He’s such a soft precious bean and I want to ruin him. 
The Gentlemen by @honeymoonjin
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Reality Show AU, OT7
What You Need to Know:  Sick of unsatisfying hookups, boring relationships or the company of your own hand? Apply today for the chance to be on bangasm.com’s very first reality show! Seven attractive young gentlemen will be vying for your choice of who is best in bed. All from different backgrounds, these men claim they’ll be able to rock your world, so don’t hesitate! Apply now! - BEST REALITY SHOW EVER! The characters are vivid and entertaining and the smut scenes are on point. I dare you not to fall in love with every single one of these eligible bachelors. 
Tease by @adonis-koo
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Stripper AU, Jungkook x reader
What You Need to Know:  You came with the intentions of your best friend landing a job as a stripper. You never meant to catch the eyes of the king stripper of the establishment- Jeon Jungkook, yourself. With what was supposed to be a harmless way of paying off college debt faster you find yourself falling into a very odd and passionate relationship with your new mentor. Between infidelity, passion and jealousy there’s never a dull moment at Cherry Bomb. - Jungkook starts off arrogant and difficult, but as the relationship progresses, he starts embracing his softness for his new trainee. There is also some hot Big-Little action going on here. 
No Strings by @kpopfanfictrash
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, College AU, Jimin x reader
What You Need to Know:  You voice your concern that you are bad in bed and Jimin offers to test that theory. What ensues is an angsty friends with benefits situation that threatens to tear your friend group apart. You may want to smack Jimin around a bit, but I promise you will not be disappointed in the end. 
The Holi-Date by @kpopfanfictrash
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Career AU, Taehyung x reader
What You Need to Know:  When your ex-boyfriend becomes engaged to his new girlfriend at your annual Holiday party, you admittedly are not in the best place. Which explains why you down six shots of alcohol, enthusiastically drop it low on the dance floor and - oh, yeah - tell everyone you are also dating someone. The only problem? You are obviously not. Good thing your neighbor happens to be cute and in need of a ride to work every morning. - I absolutely LOVE Taehyung in this fic; he’s playful, sweet, passionate, and funny. 
Hybrid AUs
The Mark of Yun-Ki by @ladyartemesia
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Historical Hybrid AU; Yoongi x Reader
What You Need to Know: This story was wonderfully crafted and if a Tiger-hybrid Yoongi full of ferocity and passion and admiration doesn’t do it for you, I don’t know what will. 
Reasons Wretched & Divine by @hollyhomburg
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Hybrid AU; Namjoon x Reader x Jimin x Yoongi
What You Need to Know: You live on an isolated but sprawling farm with your abusive husband, but things start to change for the better when your husband adopts a retired police dog hybrid named Namjoon. - There are definitely some trigger warnings you should read at the top, but the series is full of mental and physical healing that endears the characters to the reader. The other members are also present as side characters and are hella sweet. 
Abundance by @angelicyoongie
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Hybrid AU; OT7
What You Need to Know:  You never expected that you would end up adopting a hybrid, and if someone had told you that you would end up with seven? Well, you would have thought they were crazy. But here you are, with three different packs of hybrids that don’t get along – but all want to stay with you. Yeah, turns out crazy is an understatement. - This is a sweet complicated hybrid situation where three different groups have to find a way to live together. It takes some time, but they all eventual pull together as a family. 
Jackrabbit by @jamaisjoons
Genre: Pure Smut; Hybrid AU; Jungkook x reader
What You Need to Know: On a university-wide Easter egg hunt, Jungkook decides to educate you on just how wrong you are about him. - this one shot will have your thighs rubbing together vigorously wishing that you could get a few minutes alone with this domineering bun (just don’t call him that unless you want to get punished).
Strawberry Cream & BBQ by @thatmultifandomhoe
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Smut; Hybrid AU; Hoseok x reader
What You Need to Know: Your best friend knows she can count on you for anything, so when she asks you to watch her hybrid while she’s gone for a study abroad trip for four months, you can’t say no. But when these four months are over, things have changed in a way no one expected. - The relationship between Hoseok and the OC is so sweet and the drama that erupts after they get together pulls on the heartstrings. 
Sci-Fi AUs
Void by @btssavedmylifeblr
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Space AU, OT7
What You Need to Know:  You are the only female crew member on a 12 year space mission with seven handsome men. - The sexual tension is real, y’all. The OC is sassy and hilarious, the other crew members provide colorful commentary and conflicts that keep the reading salivating for more. 
The Turing Test by @fortunexkookie
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Android AU, Jungkook x reader
What You Need to Know: You are an engineer who created an advanced form of Artificial Intelligence named Jungkook, but with every technological advance, there are always some bugs to work out (and not all of them deal with the creator or the creation). 
Parenting AUs
Gingerbread Man by @btsracket
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Jungkook x Reader
What You Need to Know: Jungkook (a recent widower) is a fantastic baker who owns his own shop. The reader bounces in to place an emergency order and fate takes over from there. Jungkook’s son, Jude, is absolutely adorable and all of the angst and drama derived from moving on from an unexpected spousal death makes for one incredible recipe for success. 
The Stand-In by @yoonia
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Namjoon x Reader
What You Need to Know:  Gaining the courage to leave a loveless marriage was hard enough, but is it really a good idea to run to your best friend for help? And would you refuse him when he offers you another kind of ‘help’? - The themes revolving around infertility and then a sudden pregnancy catapult these characters into a wonderful relationship full of love and possibilities. Plus, Daddy Joon is always a yes on my list. 
Intro: Her by @jamaisjoons
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Namjoon x Reader
What You Need to Know: You enter Namjoon’s life in the most unexpected of ways, but will you be able to stay, especially when he comes with three adorable but chaotic children, even more chaotic best friends and a bitch of an ex-wife? not to mention your own emotional baggage. - Namjoon is raising his three boys Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook as you enter his life as a marine biologist. The kids are sweet and sassy, Namjoon is a total mess, but a sweetheart. I never wanted to be a mother to children more than these tots, and the bonus would be snuggling into Daddy Joon’s arms. 
Idol AUs
Let Me Hold Them by @jjungkookislife
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; OT7
What You Need to Know: An OT7 series that includes mxm, threesomes, open relationships, polyamory, and angst.  Please read at your own discretion & the warnings on each chapter. - It starts off small, and then it escalates quickly. I promise, you will not be disappointed. Read on!
Slight Changes by @jiminimoon
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Taehyung x reader; Jimin x reader
What You Need to Know: Your relationship with Taehyung takes a nose dive when his infidelity is exposed. Luckily, the other members (especially Jimin) step in to make sure you don’t suffer alone. Prepare for angsty chapters and a lot of soul searching in this fic. 
The Studio Sessions by @getitinbusan
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Yoongi x reader; OT7 x reader
What You Need to Know: It’s Min Yoongi’s birthday and you’re ready to give him whatever he wants. When he makes a sarcastic wish while blowing out the candles he didn’t think you’d take it seriously. But he’s glad you did. When word spreads about these special “Studio Sessions” everyone wants to collaborate. - You start with one and work your way through the rest without blinking an eye. It’s a smutty paradise. 
Love Well Done by @oraclemarie
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Yoongi x reader
What You Need to Know: You are the executive chef of your very own fine dining restaurant. A big company makes you the offer of a lifetime, setting you on a path straight to Min Yoongi-your drunken hook up. - once these two start admitting their love for one another, it ups the drama; people can let jealousy turn them into monsters. 
Soulmate AUs
A Thousand Springs by @whitesparrows97
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, OT7
What You Need to Know: Life is short. Eternity is long. Why you in particular are approached by a super attractive man in a club, you did not understand. You understood even less why he wanted to kill you. Fortunately, seven young, also incredibly handsome men show up to help you with this little problem. Purely by coincidence, of course. Or do you really believe in fate? - This fic is action packed with crazy conflicts, special powers, and spicy smut scenes. 
The Immortals by @bang-tan-bitches
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, OT7
What You Need to Know: Sometimes, you find your destiny. And sometimes, your destiny does whatever it takes to keep you. - There are some amazing things happening in this fic and I just want to crawl onto that giant bed with all of them and their mysterious golden powers.
Fantasy AUs
Blood Moon Rising by @yoonia
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Vampire/Werewolf AU; Jimin x Reader
What You Need to Know: As beings from ancient times, the Vampire Clan has undergone numerous changes to thrive in the Modern Age after surviving the Ancient Blood War. As a part of the traveller family in his clan, Jimin has parted ways from the coven until the day his Lords warned him of the lurking danger from inside the clan. And all so suddenly, he was pulled out of his solitary, only to have given the responsibility he had never wished to have, along with the threats that come as a part of the deal. 
Born as youngest yet having lost so much, you have given your family your loyalty, your protection, and had been given their love and support that had become the only thing that keeps you going. But what happens when the only people you have put your trust in only repay you with betrayal?
This series expands beyond this world and into a whole universe of shifter characters. This storyline also includes characters from her other Shifter Series. The storylines are rich and beautifully crafted, and you will love the way the characters stick together on this magnificent adventure.
Of Fire and Love by @hollyhomburg
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Dragon-Hybrid AU; Yoongi x Reader
What You Need to Know:  When Dragon Yoongi finds baby Jungkook in the wreckage of a house he burned down, he can’t bring himself to kill the child. Months after someone drops off a baby at your door, you start to notice something- or someone, lurking at the edge of the woods. - This fantasy world just keeps growing in each chapter and you also get to enjoy a baby Jungkook and a baby dragon Hobi. Beware of fairy Jimin - they’re a sneaky one. 
Faerie Realm by @ddaengyoonmin
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Fairy Video Game AU; Jungkook x Reader
What You Need to Know: Your mother gifts you a video game set that allows you to fully enter the brand new virtual world of Faerie Realm on the first day of its launch. You lack any of the skills or knowledge of playing video games, but you end up having fun thanks to skilled player you meet named Kookie! You are lucky to have met him, because this deadly game is not what it seems.- Based on Sword Art Online, but I think it’s better. The other members become a part of the group and drama ensues. 
Sweeter than Sweet by @gimmesumsuga
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Vampire AU; Jimin x reader; OT7, eventually
What You Need to Know: You never would have expected someone like Park Jimin to notice you. As handsome and beguiling as he is deadly, you’re enthralled from the very moment you meet. Addicted to his kiss and his bite, Jimin opens up your eyes to a whole new world of love, lust and seduction. - this is a LONG series, but it is TOTALLY WORTH IT. Once you dive into the story, there is no resurfacing until you finish. 
A Court of Curses & A Court of Moonlight by @readyplayerhobi
Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff; Vampire/Witch/Werewolf AU; Hoseok x reader; Yoongi x reader
What You Need to Know: (ACOC) For millennia, the vampires and witches have hated one another and war has raged between the two. When tensions flare up once more and spill into neutral land, peace is forced upon the two by the faeries. The price of peace sees the Witch Queen married to the Vampire Prince. One hundred years later, how have things changed? (ACOM)  As Prince Hoseok’s personal attendant, you travel with him on a diplomatic visit to Lunatis, home of the werewolves. There, you meet the enigmatic and intriguing werewolf prince, Min Yoongi, and discover more than you expected as a mere attendant. - this world is so full of magical wonder and I am so invested in seeing how everything comes together. It also makes me soft when I see how loving Prince Hoseok is toward his family. 
Caught-in-a-seesaw-stigma’s MASTERLIST
473 notes · View notes
digitalcomicmuseum · 4 years
Photo
Tumblr media
Comic Uploaded: 07-02-2020 Stories By Famous Authors Illustrated 010-Romeo & Juliet (diff ver) Uploader: comicwanderer Download Link: https://digitalcomicmuseum.com/index.php?dlid=33055 Read Online
0 notes
p-antomime · 2 years
Note
Hi, Kiki!~ 💕 Can I request a Mikey X Fem!Reader long one shot based off of splediferachie’s English Dubbed Cover of Romeo And Cinderella by Doriko/Hatsune Miku and the English Translated Lyrics of ANOTHER: Romeo And Cinderella? https://managarmr.wordpress.com/2009/04/12/lyrics-hatsune-miku-romeo-to-cinderella-another/amp/
Mikey and Y/N are in a forbidden relationship.
Her parents do not approve of their precious daughter dating a delinquent — Especially, the commander of an infamous gang.
All in all, this is my excuse to guiltily ask for a fic centered around Dom!Mikey with a kink for corrupting the innocence of his princess. 💕
The storyline itself may be cliché as hell, but just imagine eloping with him. 💕
Racing into the night on his motorcycle, arms wrapped around his waist as you cuddle into his back, the dainty engagement ring on your finger shining in the light of the moon…? 💕
hi babe ! FIRST OF ALL, I wanted to say that I LOVE your req? like, from the bottom of my heart, i love the atmosphere and the general theme that you proposed, especially 'cause I really like this game of dynamics between the lil perfect girl x the boy who doesn't follow rules and who's practically the girl's parents' nightmare AND I LOVE THE STORY OF ROMEO AND JULIET, you got my heart at this exact moment
YOU ARE AN ANGEL BABE ! your taste is divine, immaculate, thank you for giving me the opportunity to write something like this with mikey!
and here we go ! <3<3
39 notes · View notes
faintingheroine · 3 years
Text
Tumblr media
https://www.google.com.tr/amp/s/markmanson.net/romantic-love/amp
Has the person who had written this ever read any Medieval or Renaissance poetry? How is he equating the Ancient and Medieval views on love? While it is true that in those times romantic love wasn’t as big of an ideal to attain for the average person as it is now and marriages weren’t usually done because of love, romantic love had been a staple of literature and poetry at least since the Medieval times. Even if you argue that Romeo and Juliet wasn’t a celebration of love (whatever that means, a story not endorsing everything that the lovers do doesn’t mean that it isn’t a passionate depiction of love at the end of the day) what about Shakespeare’s sonnets? The writer of this piece argues that the “happily ever after” is a recent postindustrial invention, then what about Shakespeare’s romantic comedies?
Nor is romantic love a Western European invention like some people claim. First of all romantic love is really not an invention, it is a fairly universal thing that people experience in similar ways, the difference is in how much value different cultures place on it. And most of Middle Eastern poetry (as well as many folkloric narratives) is about romantic love. Actually it is sometimes argued that the concept of “courtly love” arrived in Western Europe after the Europeans were exposed to Middle Eastern love poetry during the Crusades. Whether that is true or not, it is true that different cultures have similar depictions of romantic love. Romeo and Juliet is similar in plot and cadence to stories like Leyla and Mecnun or Tahir and Zühre, despite these stories being from completely different cultures.
* Here is Tahir and Zühre’s story.
16 notes · View notes
transmasc-wizard · 2 years
Note
What does it mean when you say you're writing a retelling of a story?? How does it work? How do you write it?
(sorry if this is a difficult question, I'm just really curious)
hi! it's not a difficult question at all, don't worry!
So basically, a retelling is very much what it says on the tin: you take an old (public domain!) story and rewrite it as something new.
Sometimes it's very close; think children's books of rapunzel that just maybe make it simpler and shorter. Sometimes it's farther from the source, such as Disney's the little mermaid, which changes some major plot details. and sometimes they're like my wip, which is an absolutely off-the-rails loosest possible form of retelling!
Some good retellings include: Cinder (Marissa Meyer), a sci-fi cyberpunk cinderella retelling; The Boy Who Steals Houses (C.G. Drews), a fun modern goldilocks retelling; and These Violent Delights (Chole Gong), a Chinese 1920s Romeo & Juliet retelling.
Retellings are often but not always retellings of fairytales/folktales. This is because most fairytales are no longer copyrighted; Cinderella, Rapunzel, Snow White... all of those are public domain. (yes disney has retold them, but the copyright is on the disney versions only. it's still legal to retell, like, the 1600s original cinderella.) They're also often old classics! Jane Austen books get retold a lot, as do Shakespeare stories. you can't retell something like LOTR, because LOTR is still under copyright. (You can be inspired by LOTR though, and many authors are.)
As for how do you write it, there's a lot of ways! But typically a big part of writing a retelling is reading the original story/stories, then deciding what you want to keep and what you want to yeet! From what i've seen, most people keep general ideas of character, the basic plot structure, central objects/things, and the overall themes. Personally, for GFW1--my Cinderella retelling--i kept a very, very loose version of the plot, amped the themes up to 11, kept some central objects*, and almost completely rebuilt the characters' personalities; their roles are the only hint of who they were.
(*the pumpkin carriage became an old taxi they stole and fixed, the shoe is still there, the ball became a masquerade, the fairy godmother and stepmother are 1 and the same but still there.)
Then, once you've figured out what you're keeping, you fill in the rest of the details and write the story.
I personally love retellings; they're really good examinations of theme and plot and stories, because a cinderella retelling is not actually cinderella, and yet almost everyone who reads it will understand where it's coming from if you do it right. Also, from a much more chaotic viewpoint, i personally love going "hmmm how many gay necromancers can i add before this story is unrecognizable??". Aka, seeing how far i can stretch it and still keep the story.
(btw gfs is only cinderella for the 1st book. after that it rotates through fairytales like a roulette wheel and gets looser and looser each time.)
I actually highly suggest that curious writers dabble in retellings a bit on their own! Even just, like, 1000 words. If you're interested in retellings, they're great to try out. They can make you think a lot about what makes this story this story and think about themes and dynamics and worlds, as well as stress less, because nothing is original anyway!
6 notes · View notes
tatertotthethot · 4 years
Note
As an ex avid "middle school Wattpad" fanfic reader, TDND should be considered the next Romeo and Juliet. Not only do we have a fic that's written and a really nice an light hearted way, it doesn't ridicule or take away from the more intense and serious moments. The characters feel real and the insecurities of the reader don't magically vanish magically, rather they get "calmed" which I actually appreciate. Also the comedy is funny, even if it isn't my style it isn't cringe.
Fuck, this made me take a deep, much needed breath for the first time in over an hour. The thing with me is that I want my writing to be a little crackish just to amp up the entertainment perspective so that when the intense moments come you’re just like 😄😳😨🤯 ya know? I sprinkle it in to keep you hooked and string you along so that the real shit hits different. And with the reader being the typical insecure trope or wtf ever, her emotions, insecurities, and the overactive anxiety she has, comes with a story behind it. I used the “show not tell” strategy with that and it worked. I’ll be doing the same with her breaking, her healing, and her character development. Same with Taekook. Everything has a story behind it and a reason. And as for the first smut scene being awkward— or, realistically appealing, as I like to call it— The plot itself is already wild and uncanny but I still wanted the emotions to stay natural so that you could feel like you’re there. A timid, insecure girl getting invited over, stripped down, and eaten out by two gorgeous and intimidating men who are known sadists? The ones she heard fucking somebody else up just a few nights prior? It’s bound to get a lil tense and uncomfy ya know? Did you really expect it to be smooth sailing? This is a bdsm fic, every sub once went through a vanilla phase before they discovered it and it peeked their interest. Certain subs discover it like y/n when they find themselves aroused by feeling vulnerable and intimidated and don’t know why or how to deal with it fluently or if what they’re feeling is okay. She is in her divulging/discovering phase. If you felt embarrassed and cringey but hot at the same time then I did my job. If she would’ve magically transformed into a sub slut right then and there and the scene into an ideal scenario righht off the bat then that would’ve completely disconnected the reader because it wouldn’t make any fucking sense. I know what I’m doing with this story. I welcome constructive criticism but if you just straight up don’t like it then don’t read. PERIODT.
16 notes · View notes
junemo10 · 4 years
Text
I’m so sorry. But I’ve been rewatching The Flash and I finally got to my favorite episode and had to scream about it. Feel free to ignore this, I’m only posting it for the chance that someone else shares my same feeling about it :’)
“Duet”, Episode 17 of Season 3, is (one of) my favorite episode because it not only is a musical and features all my favorite people singing. (Not to mention the ending?? HELLO??)
No no. It’s also because ALL THE ACTORS ARE LEGENDS AND ARE INCREDIBLE OKAY?
Not only does it have Grant Gustin and Melissa Benoist, the gorgeous superfriends, amazing singers/dancers and my Glee favs, having fun while singing and dancing. But it ALSO HIGHLIGHTS ASPECTS FROM THEIR LIVES?? I mean REAL lives?
Barry watches singing in the rain for comfort? Grant said, at least from what I read in an interview, that watching Singing in the Rain was the reason he started tap dancing as a child! The musical they are trapped in also appears to be a Romeo and Juliet story, which Barry says “this is just like West Side Story” and guesssss what? Grant was IN WSS. (And if you search it on YouTube, you will not be disappointed, TRUST ME)
Melissa is just an amazing actress. If I remember correctly she’s been so many theatre productions such as The Sound of Music and Evita and Footloose. Also she was on Broadway as Carole in Beautiful: the Carole King musical, which is, so cool!
But also Jessie L. Martin!! who plays Tom Collins in Rent, amazing in every way, such a lovely man. (Whenever Joe wears a beanie, I think of Tom.)
And Victor Garber???? Wonderful man with a voice of an angel who starred in Annie and The Music Man (which is one of my favorite musicals!). I will NEVER stop appreciating his talent ever.
Not to mention John Barrowman, West End and Broadway performer, voice like honey. I think I spent an entire month just listening to YouTube videos of him singing.
We also get exposed to Carlos Valdes’s fantastic voice!! I meaaan why can’t we hear it MORE!
ALSO ALSO Jeremy Jordan, THE Broadway man, Newsies, The Last Five Years, incredibly talented man. I just cannot.
And also Chris Wood, who is my Vampire Diaries love okay, he’s just. He didn’t sing but he didn’t need to. I already love this Man. That’s enough. However! I read something about Grant and Chris going to school together? Wild.
AND TO TOP IT ALL OFF: THE ONE. THE ONLY. DARREN FREAKING CRISS. -glee, StarKid, Broadway for Hedwig and The Angry Inch, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, and new American Buffalo for 2020 (when that happens). The man?? The myth?? On The Flash?? Mind blown?
Gosh, nobody has done a musical episode quite like the CW, okay? But this one. This musical episode. Not only worked well for the plots of not one but TWO shows (since it was a cross over) AND it was believable! It was perfect to show the struggles of the two heroes and how music gave them their strength back after they had been beaten down.
The opening number is my favorite song, “Put a little love in your heart” by Jackie DeShannon. Getting to see Grant and the cast just sing their hearts out and have a blast, it was so clear that they all had fun making it. And Watching Grant and Melissa tap dance and sing a song about friendship? GOSH I DIDNT REALIZE I WANTED IT SO BADLY. Not to mention “Runnin Home To You” just being the perfect song for Barry and Iris after everything they had been through? Sighhhhhh, my heart! I’m not crying! At least not anymore! I swear! Maybe!
It was just heart warming and hilarious! Watching Barry and Kara explore the plot was just so cute and I LOVE their adventures. They are just so great when they work side by side.
“If you ever need a hand-“ “I’ll be there in a flaaash!” “Barry.” “That was funny.”
“I’m your super, that has a double meaning, friend!”
The harmonies, the songs they chose, the meanings, the messages, THE ENDING. I mean. One can only DREAM of something like that haha. The ending just brought it home for me ~PUN INTENDED~
I know people had problems with it, and I can’t say it was perfect. But as someone who just watches shows with a full and invested heart, it was hard NOT to appreciate it. Of course, Anyone can say what they want about it, I respect your opinions 100%!! but my brother who is not a musical fan, enjoyed this episode and could appreciate the work. And that says A LOT.
Just. AmaZing. The genius of this episode. The beauty of it. I’m just stunned and humbled by the creation. And I will never stop appreciating it.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Bonus:
Tumblr media
cuties
And just for me, where it all started:
Tumblr media
Blaine and Sebastian Darren and Grant
Tumblr media
Blaine and Marley Darren and Melissa
HUGE NOTE:
While fact checking myself before posting, I came across this article which just, grew the sentiment for me realizing what a huge reunion it was for almost the entire cast!
https://www.google.com/amp/s/ew.com/tv/2017/03/09/flash-supergirl-musical-crossover-spoilers/%3famp=true
Also I’m weak, so here are the couple pictures I found of Grant in West Side Story
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Did I miss anything? Please feel free to add :)
4 notes · View notes
readingrobin · 5 years
Text
Introducing my OCs
So last week I shared a couple of my fiction children, only the queer ones, so I figured now was a good time to bring out the whole shebang. Funny enough, about two or three of them are actually straight, so there aren’t too many new faces, but hopefully some new info should spice things up.
At the moment, these characters aren’t a part of a specific story (except maybe Reg and Diana, I’m still toying with them) outside of some roleplaying I do with a friend. Maybe I’ll actually have time to create something with them, but we’ll see.
Without further ado, here they are.
Reg/Regulus: A Direwolf, the unknown and forgotten triplet affiliated with Romulus and Remus. They were abandoned at birth and raised by a she-wolf, eventually becoming the first werewolves. Reg was the weakest and the runt of the litter, picked on mercilessly by his brothers. However, the goddess of the hunt and the Moon, Diana, favored him and he eventually became like a familiar and companion to her. With her being tied to his, this gave him an immense boost in power, changing him into something entirely. He became the first Direwolf and sired an entire species.
Direwolves are, essentially, werewolves amped up to the nth degree. They are stronger, bigger, faster, and able to shift at will. Unfortunately their power is entirely tied to the Moon, like Diana’s, so their powers weaken the more it wanes. This makes them easy targets for werewolves, who hold a grudge out for the entire species. Reg, who holds a closer bond to Diana, is not affected by these changes, but there is only so much he can do to protect his people.
Reg is kind, gentle, and evokes a peaceful energy. He has been around for millennia, serving Diana while also trying to find his place in the world. Even to this day, he questions if he truly deserves the power she has bestowed upon him.
Diana: Goddess of the hunt and the moon. She has known Reg and his family since they were infants, as their mother was once one of her devout worshippers. Unfortunately, the mother died in childbirth and Diana tasked a shewolf to raise the children. She took easily to Reg, who had a good heart and noble disposition. His brothers were arrogant and too quick to throw around their power and strength. Once he was of age, she tied Reg to her being, giving him the power that matched his strong spirit. She occasionally tasks him with the odd job or message to send, but their relationship is more of dear friends than a boss and her employer.
Nadia: Child of Reg. Direwolf. She has many of Reg’s good qualities, but with a more assertive disposition. She is stubborn and strong-willed, and willing to do anything to protect her family. Oddly enough, eventually she falls in love with a werewolf, prompting a Romeo and Juliet situation, and it ends just about as well. She survives with the children she had with him, but lives in regret that she couldn’t do more.
Caleb: Son of Nadia. Direwolf. Definitely the more strong, silent type that is quick to anger. Has very little sense of humor, but can be snarky from time to time. Due to the mixing of Dire and werewolf blood, his shapeshifting capabilities are somewhat hindered. He is mostly stuck in the shape of a large black wolf, and can only assert human shape when the moon is full. His family has done everything they could to help, but there is nothing that can be done. Oddly enough, Caleb prefers it like this.
Fer/Ferris: Son of Nadia. Direwolf. Despite his brother’s condition, his shapeshifting capabilities are like any other Direwolf’s, but he’s mostly on the runty side. He makes up for this by having a big personality, being very boisterous most of the time. Is the more wily of the two brothers, more prone to taking risks and spur of the moment decisions. This has gotten him into a bit of trouble now and again, but he somehow manages to get out of it.
Nox: A God of Darkness. While that moniker is a bit foreboding, Nox is not actually all gloom and doom. They are mostly in a chill and relaxed state, very level-headed and willing to listen to reason. They appear as a non-corporeal impish creature, though their form can shift into anything they want. Most of the time, they do not choose to take a more human shape as they find it very constraining and claustrophobic.
Cas/Casimir: Child of Nox. A Nightmare: At some point, Nox becomes involved with a Unicorn, a being of pure Light and Purity. This results in Casimir, who definitely takes more after Nox. Unlike them, however, Cas takes a more human appearance, drawn towards a more gothic aesthetic. He is sensible, mysterious, and has a gentle and soft heart despite his somewhat chilling demeanor. He can take an equine form, and he eventually gets a job as a steed for a Grim Reaper. (As a side note: no, he does not appreciate those, “getting rode by death jokes” and one would be wise not to bring it up). He has seen that there must be a balance between life and death and believes everything must end in their own time.
Locke: A Dragon. Locke is very shy, withdrawn, but can be excellent company once he opens up to people. He is very much not like other dragons, taking more of an interest in books and learning than keeping a hoard of treasures and terrorizing villages. In fact, when venturing out into the world, he tries to keep hidden all the draconic features that carry with him to his human form. He passes off the black scales on his cheeks as freckles, and shaves down his horns so that they can be covered by a large hat. Only his eyes make people glance twice. He is easy to startle and excite, which may not be a wise idea, as that’s when his acid-spitting defense mechanism kicks in. Better not stand too close when that happens.
Azul: A Dragon. Child of Locke. Like their father, Azul has more practical interests than just obsessing over treasure. They are obsessed with how the world works and how just the slightest bit of innovation can change it. They become a scientist, mostly a chemist, and tries to figure out the mysteries of life. Unlike Locke, they are straight forward, sarcastic, and somewhat dry-witted. Just as Locke can be absorbed by a good story, Azul can loose themself in science and a good swim.
Tommy: A God of Rebellion. He was once just an average kid until godhood was suddenly thrust upon him. (i.e. still in development). Tommy is rash, bold, funny, and all around just a little shit. Imagine if there were a Peter Pan for young adults, but was more engaged in activism. As Tommy knows that young people are the ones who thirst the most for rebellion, he aligns himself with them and mostly sticks to the appearance of a punk rock looking 18-21 year old. Tommy looks to rid the injustices that plague the world, constantly looking for followers to take up the cause. His favorite alternative form is that of a crow, and will adopt wings in his human form, whether it be because of ease or aesthetic.
I would love to hear any feedback about them! Feel free to ask questions about them or even ask something to the character directly. It helps so much in rounding out their personalities!
6 notes · View notes
metawitches · 5 years
Text
Tumblr media
Roswell, New Mexico is The CW’s latest entry into the reboot and revival craze that’s brought back so many old TV shows, whether they should have been resurrected or not. As a fan of the original Roswell series, I had mixed feelings going into this version. After watching the pilot, I think that if viewers can focus on this version and leave behind expectations based on the original series, it’s an enjoyable show. Roswell, New Mexico has the potential to live up to some of the early promise that the original showed, before it turned into a charming mess.
We (Metamaiden and Metacrone) loved the original Roswell fiercely. We own the DVDs and have watched the entire 60 plus episode series ‘I don’t know how many’ times. Actually, we should probably write a Quick Review of the series and recommend essential episodes. Keep an eye out for that review.
We also own the original Roswell High Series of 10 books by Melinda Metz. The original TV series was commissioned based on the first book, so the two series don’t have much in common beyond the basic premise.
What we’re trying to say here is twofold: This is a major fandom for us, and Roswell has always been a story with multiple versions. The novels and the original series were written at the same time. So which is the real cannon? Neither. The story works best if you’re open-minded about many things, from “mixed relationships” to different versions of stories about aliens to reinterpretations of beloved characters.
Stories stay alive and vital because they are periodically reinterpreted. The Roswell story has been around since 1947, but stories about alien invaders have been around for even longer. Jason Katims and Melinda Metz didn’t invent the basics of this story. They wanted to make a modern-day Romeo and Juliet, based on Shakespeare (who is no stranger to reinterpretation) and settled on an alien story, as a distinction that would still pose issues between two people who are in love.
Let’s give executive producer Julie Plec, the creative force behind the wildly successful Vampire Diaries franchise, and Carina Adly MacKenzie, Plec’s young protegé and the showrunner for Roswell, New Mexico, a chance to take their shot at this timeless story of strangers in a strange land and true love that must beat impossible odds. And let’s applaud The CW for continuing to support female showrunners, and giving young women a chance to prove themselves.
Recap
The Pilot’s opening is narrated by Liz Ortecho, who introduces us to her hometown of Roswell, NM, site of the infamous alien spaceship crash which took place on June 14, 1947. The ship’s crash landing, which happened on Foster Ranch, in the desert outside of town, is summarized in images, while Liz discusses its impact on the town. We’re shown a meteor-like green glow which has a high-speed collision with the ground. The glow turns out to be an alien spaceship. It breaks into glowing pieces which are investigated by local and military authorities.
Liz tells us that the crash has drawn in tourists and seekers ever since, searching for answers to their existential loneliness. While growing up, Liz was searching for something in Roswell, too, until she realized that it’s really just a mundane small town, full of small-minded people, living small, petty lives. She couldn’t wait to leave, and never looked back.
Switch to the present day, and the action happening in real-time.
Liz is alone in her car, driving back to Roswell, late at night, when she is stopped at a police checkpoint. She assumes she’s being stopped because she’s a Latina. Max will deny this, but I’ve seen it happening at checkpoints in southern New Mexico, and that was before the immigration issue got crazy.
If you want to move illegals around without getting stopped, ask a middle-aged Anglo friend for help. Youngsters are always suspicious in a state with drug issues.
The cars are supposed to drive slowly through the checkpoint, so the police can look at their license plates, registration stickers, the people inside, and anything else that catches their eye. But this is a made for TV moment. Only the Feds check immigration status in New Mexico. Other branches of the justice system leave the Feds to their business.
Liz rolls down her window, already making a speech about her rights as a citizen and the call she’ll be making to the ACLU, as she pulls out her passport. She stops cold when she sees that it’s Max, and flashes to a high school memory. They realize that it’s been 10 years since they’ve seen each other. Max has stayed in town. Liz seems surprised. Max seems happy that she’s back.
Sheriff Valenti, who is the mom of Liz’s ex-boyfriend, Kyle, interrupts them. She assumes Liz is in town for the ten year high school reunion, and is the same good girl that she always was. She lets Liz go without further ado.
Liz goes straight to her family’s restaurant, none other than the Crashdown Cafe, where the food has an alien aroma to it and the waitresses have little green antennae. An alien conspiracy theorist is podcasting from a booth in the diner as we speak. Sometimes it’s hard to tell which kind of illegal aliens he’s referring to.
“I know you think you’re safe, but you’re not. Aliens have already ruined your life. Aliens are the illuminati. They’re conditioning us. You ever tangle with a Beyoncé fan on Twitter? Relentless. They’re brainwashed by subliminal messaging in the music. And soon, the war for the soul of America will be on. This is the Gravity of It All Podcast. Now a word from our sponsor, Alpha Testosterator gelcaps.”
Liz enters the diner just as the podcaster finishes. They strike up a conversation. When he asks if she’s a believer, she tells him that her great-grandfather was abducted and impregnated by an alien in 1947. Ever since, only the men in the family have been able to carry children.
Liz’s father, Arturo, catches her teasing the customers again and can’t believe his daughter is such a miscreant, after he carried her for 14 months before giving birth. 😉
They have a warm reunion, then Arturo goes back to work. Liz tells him she went through an ICE checkpoint (ICE= Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and suggests, again, that they move to a sanctuary city where his immigration status wouldn’t be such an issue. Arturo doesn’t want to leave his home and his super cool business, which he obviously couldn’t transfer anywhere else. Liz just wants to sleep at night knowing he won’t get deported.
Not going to happen for the next few years.
Arturo asks how the drive was, and Liz sarcastically says it was awesome, since there’s so little to look at between Denver and Roswell.
The New Mexico and Colorado natives always think this. There are actually spectacular mountain and desert views, plus you go by Colorado Springs, Santa Fe, other small cities and a couple of casinos.
Liz gravitates to a bulletin board on the kitchen wall, where a funeral notice for her sister is still hanging. It says, “In loving memory of Rosa Ortecho, January 17, 1989- June 1, 2008.”
Liz sends her father to bed, promising to finish the shift for him and close up. After a bit of negotiating, she wears the antennae that go with the waitress uniform. Once everyone is gone, she puts her favorite song, Mrs Potter’s Lullaby by Counting Crows, on the jukebox and dances to unwind.
youtube
Max slowly makes his way in, watching her dance and clean up the dining room, but not wanting to be too creepy. After a minute, he coughs a little to let her know he’s there. The music fades, because they only have eyes for each other. It may not be a teen romance, but they’re still soulmates who’ve been separated for ten years.
I’m holding back on those crying emojis, ok? Imagine original Max and Liz being separated at the height of season 1, supposedly for their own safety, and her mind being wiped by Isobel or Tess. Then they meet up again 10 years later. That’s roughly the situation we have here.
This reboot moves beyond Romeo and Juliet, to give us Persuasion, my favorite Jane Austin novel. It’s so much more meaningful when grown ups who’ve suffered find love than when it’s teenagers who don’t know what they’re doing. I have nothing against teen romance, but grown up love is so much more complex, and a love that’s been lost and rediscovered has so many obstacles to overcome, but also has so much depth.
Nathan Parsons is really nailing that whole soulful staring at Liz thing that made Jason Behr a heartthrob. I could cry just watching that.
Remember when I said this was a major fandom for me? I may be happier to see it return than even I realized. But I will attempt to be a professional, if unpaid, recapper from here on out.
Max explains that he came by to tell her that one of her running lights on her car is out. That’s why he stopped her at the checkpoint, but she didn’t give him a chance to mention it. He wants her to know that he’s not one of the bad guys. He makes to leave, but she’s been doing her own soulful staring, and doesn’t want to let him go. Just as he’s on his way out the door, she asks him if he wants a milkshake.
Liz makes him something green and offers to put a couple of shots of bourbon in, to make up for the way she treated him earlier. He tells her not to worry about it. Immigration has been pestering them, but he didn’t join the force to tear families apart. Liz asks why he did join. He wanted to protect people. It helps him sleep at night. Liz remembers that he wanted to be a writer.
Max notices the song playing on the jukebox. Liz explains that it’s her favorite song, the song that picks her up when nothing else can. It was her sister Rosa’s song, too, and Liz always copied her big sister.
Max asks where she’s been lately. She tells him she’s been in Denver, working on an experimental regenerative medicine study. They were onto something special, but their funding was redirected to building an unnecessary border wall, and she lost her job. So she came home, and now she’s sharing a milkshake with her high school lab partner.
Just as Max starts to get serious, several shots are fired through the front window of the diner. Max pushes Liz down to the floor to protect her, but he’s a few seconds too late. She’s already been hit in the chest, on the left side, and is bleeding out quickly. He puts his hand on the wound and heals her, but she’s mortally wounded, so it requires an immense amount of power. Max draws power from the environment around him to supplement his own. Apparently that includes the power grid, since lights explode and the power goes out, but there also looks to be a small earthquake.
As Liz starts to regain consciousness, Max breaks open a bottle of ketchup and pours it over the wounded area to disguise the blood. He makes sure she’s alright, then races out of the cafe to pursue the shooter. Liz tries to understand what happened to her, and discovers the bullet hole in her dress.
The Roswell, New Mexico title card comes up.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
There were definitely sparks when they began their relationship. And blood. And ketchup. There must be some significance to that combination.
At least he’s not a vampire.
There’s a lone gunman, on foot, but Max is too depleted from healing Liz to keep up with him. Max follows the perp into an alley, then collapses to the pavement. He uses his special alien psychic communication powers to let his sister, Isobel, know he’s in trouble.
Isobel is having a date night in with her husband, Noah, and trying something new. Noah is tied to the bed and wearing a red eye mask, while Isobel has on a black Teddy and stockings. Noah has agreed to obey her all night long. When she tells him she has to leave for a while, she also says that it’s part of the thing, possibly called “hoverboarding” (she’ll have to check the book), and he’s not allowed to question her. She puts on her coat and rushes out to find Max.
After the noise and excitement, Arturo has woken up, and is cleaning up the dining room. Liz asks why he stays in a town where people hate them for no good reason. He disagrees, pointing out that they have a reason. Rosa did drugs and drove, got in an accident, and killed two innocent girls, along with herself. The ten year anniversary is coming up, which is bringing up memories for everyone, and putting people on edge.
Sheriff Valenti arrives at the diner to make sure everyone is okay. Liz goes on the attack, wondering why no one is protecting her father and his business.
Isobel finds Max in the alley, still on the ground, and hurries to bring him a bottle of nail polish remover. He drinks it as fast as he can. As he does, the power comes back on, so he must have still been pulling whatever energy was available from the grid.
But what’s the deal with the nail polish remover? And how did they, as tiny kid aliens, figure out they needed to drink an otherwise poisonous substance, then convince their parents to buy it for them? Did it smell good to them? I hope it tastes good. Shouldn’t Max keep a flask of it on him for emergencies, like you’d keep an epipen for a serious allergy? So many questions about this development.
As Liz gets ready for bed, she notices a red mark on her shoulder where the bullet entered. She goes to see her ex-boyfriend, Kyle Valenti, who is now a surgeon, at the local hospital to ask him to examine her and do some scans. She remembers getting shot, but obviously she didn’t, so maybe she has a concussion or she’s going crazy. Kyle suggests she’s suffering from trauma because of the gunfire and orders the scans.
At dawn, when Max is done with the night shift, he checks in with Sheriff Valenti, who tells him Liz seemed okay after the shooting, though just as mouthy as ever. She orders him to write up his report, then go to bed. And shave. He replies that he knows how she feels about patriarchal dress and grooming standards, and he’s just supporting her feminist agenda. She’s amused, but not fooled. And, by the way, there’s a surprise for him in the drunk tank.
It’s not that much of a surprise, since Max’s alien brother, Michael Guerin, is a regular and a ne’er do well. He’s also in the process of using telekinesis to steal the keys to his cage so he can escape. Max grabs the keys and reminds Michael of the cameras. Michael has insider knowledge that the cameras are all malfunctioning, darn the luck. Max still mildly suggests that Michael follow procedure for getting out of his cell.
Michael wonders what’s up with Max, since he would usually get a lecture along the lines of: “Why you got to cause a scene, Michael? Why don’t you drive the speed limit, Michael? Why don’t you spend your nights like I do, crying and masturbating to Russian moralistic literature, Michael?” It almost sounds like a song, doesn’t it?
Isobel joins the party, looking for an explanation about the night before. She tells Max he has 30 seconds to start talking, or she’ll melt his brain. Michael, who is a total gossip, is all in on the conversation, and dying to hear what Max did. When Max is done explaining about healing Liz, both Isobel and Michael have fits at him. Isobel can’t believe he risked their secret after 20 years, especially for Rosa Ortecho’s sister. Michael blasts his way out of the cell and blames Max for putting heroics over protecting his family. He blasts Max across the room and walks out.
Isobel remembers the cameras in the room, but Max tells her not to worry about them. She goes into a vicious rant: “Don’t worry? I have been worried my entire life that someone would find out about us. That we would end up dissected, imprisoned. I am married to someone who can’t ever know who I am, and that kills me. But I keep this secret, because you, me and Michael swore that we would. And now in one moment, you’ve thrown that all away, on some girl you had a thing for in high school. I hope she was worth it, Max.”
So, call me crazy, but don’t all of those burdens she just listed apply to Max and Michael as well? Isn’t Isobel, in fact, the only one who isn’t alone? And that last part was just mean and cold. The narcissist red flag is rising on this one.
Michael goes home, which is an airstream trailer on Foster Ranch, the same ranch where the alien ship crashed. His landlord and some military men are waiting for him outside the trailer. The landlord tells him that the Air Force has acquired the land, so Michael needs to move and take his trailer with him.
Michael sees another man peeking in his windows and goes to pull him away. When he does, he discovers that it’s Alex Manes, just back from a tour of duty in Baghdad. He came back minus a leg and is working with his father, Master Sargeant Jesse Manes, who is nearby collecting samples.
Michael’s too caught up in seeing Alex again to think about the implications of the Air Force acquiring the crash site and collecting samples. I’m thinking it’s not a coincidence.
Alex asks what Michael is doing in the trailer. Michael baits Alex by telling him he’s doing weed and casual sex. Plus, “Covert plans to violently overthrow the government. Quick, Alex, run and tell your daddy.” It sounds like there’s some history there. Michael goes inside. He has spaceship plans all over the walls, and some sort of sparkling, rainbow colored solution in a plastic bag.
Liz drives out to the site of Rosa’s car crash, where there’s a small memorial set up. Before she gets out of the car, she remembers telling Rosa about Max, just before she graduated from high school. Liz realized she cared deeply for Max and didn’t want to leave him behind when she left town. Rosa tried to convince Liz that she was already gone and shouldn’t weigh herself down with any baggage from Roswell.
There are three small wooden crosses at the site, with the names of the three victims on them. They all have flowers and rosary beads, but Rosa’s has been pulled up out of the ground and tossed aside. Liz puts the cross upright in the ground again, noticing that there are friendship bracelets on the arm of the cross.
youtube
Liz goes back into town and brings Max a milkshake. She waits for him outside of the police station, while Michael watches her from his truck. When Max comes outside, Liz tells him the shake is to make up for the one that got interrupted the night before and to thank him. He insists he didn’t do anything special.
Liz tells Max that her mother and her sister both had mental health issues, and she’s worried that she’s developing them, too. She was hallucinating, and thought she was shot. She even went to see Kyle at the hospital, and had him check to make sure there wasn’t a bullet still in her body. But there wasn’t, so she must be going insane.
Liz turns and starts to walk away. Max calls her back, but before he can say anything, Michael blows out all of the windows in a nearby car. There’s a woman in the car, so Max has to make sure she’s okay. Max knows this was Michael’s doing. Liz puts a plastic bag over the milkshake straw to protect the DNA in Max’s saliva, and hurries away.
Liz visits her high school best friend, Maria, who now works as a bartender at the local townie bar, The Wild Pony. Maria does fortune-telling, and is just finishing a palm reading for Hank, who makes a nasty, racist comment about Liz when she walks in the door. Maria calls him on it and sends him on his way. Then she tries to send Liz to the town’s tourist bar. Liz thanks Maria for leaving something at Rosa’s memorial. They drink a toast to Rosa.
When Max gets home, he finds Isobel waiting for him. She needs a photo of the three of them from high school for the reunion. She coos at the photo Max gives her, then goes straight to a cutting remark about Max and Liz. Max tells her that he’s going to tell Liz the truth. At this point, it will be less dangerous than leaving Liz in the dark. Isobel loudly insists that he can’t bring a stranger in on their secret. Max yells back that he’s not asking permission.
He immediately apologizes, having surprised them both. Isobel asks, half jokingly, if he’s in love with her. Max says that he hasn’t seen her in ten years. Isobel reminds him that there are too many secrets that Liz, in particular, can’t know. Being with her would just be too complicated. He needs to find someone, anyone else. Max sadly tells her that it’s been ten years. If he were going to move on, he would have done it by now. Several emotions cross Isobel’s face. Remorse, and the awful realization that she might have ruined his life for good, are in there somewhere.
Maria thinks it’s romantic that Max and Liz went through a shooting together. Liz notes that Max doesn’t seem to have any romantic interest in her. Maria tells her that the cure for rejection is sex with a rando. Liz has had a few shots by now, and decides that’s her cue to leave, before one of the townies in the bar starts looking good.
She goes outside to call an Uber and runs into Kyle. He asks if she wants to spend the evening together and forget about whatever’s bothering her. She takes him up on the offer, which turns into car sex, though he was up for whatever she wanted to do. I guess she’s a cheap date.
He tries to stop things at one point, thinking that using each other for random sex is a bad idea, but Liz wants to keep going. A minute later, he sees the telltale glowing, rainbow alien handprint where Max healed Liz. When he asks what it is, Liz cuts the date short.
Great job playing it cool, Liz.
The podcaster is back at the Crashdown Cafe, sure that the blackout was caused by aliens who are out to takeover the town by raping, murdering, and stealing their jobs.
Liz looks at Max’s cells under a microscope and discovers that they aren’t human. She goes looking for him, but finds him looking for her. She shows him the handprint. He asks her to take a drive with him.
Kyle calls Jesse Manes, because, before he died, his dad drilled into him the mantra, “If you see the handprint, go to Manes.”
Max and Liz go out into the desert, where he takes her into a boarded up cave. She fusses the whole way there, sure that he’s actually a stranger who’s going to serial kill her and lumping him in with the way she feels about the rest of the town. Max reminds her that he’s not a stranger, he’s a decent guy who stays in Roswell because he likes it there and the people have been decent to him, even though he knows people treated her badly after Rosa died.
Inside the cave, Max shows her three glowing pods that are  floating, save for a spot where they’re tethered to the ground. They think the pods are the reason they survived the 1947 crash. They woke up 50 years later, in 1997, looking like 7 year old children, and wandered out into the desert. They were found by a trucker, then Max and Isobel were adopted and Michael went into foster care.
Liz is actually relieved to find out the truth, because it’s better thinking she’s going crazy. She’s already proven to herself that his DNA isn’t human, now he’s just confirming it. Max explains that keeping their secret has always been the most important thing to him, until he realized she was dying. Liz promises to keep the secret, too.
Jesse Manes also takes Kyle for a drive so that he can explain some things. He tells Kyle that after the 1947 crash, the Valentis and the Manes started an organization together that’s dedicated to keeping the town, the country, and the planet safe. He uses a digital palmprint reader to open what looks like old, metal storm doors on a derelict old building. Inside, it’s a huge underground facility, which Manes calls Project Shepherd.
At the high school reunion, Isobel and Michael are plotting the best way to ruin Max’s life, for the second time. Michael wants to make sure that Isobel is prepared to use her mind-wipe powers on Liz to take away her memories of Max, should Liz betray them. Just like Isobel did ten years ago, when they made her leave town without Max.
Liz has lots of questions about aliens for Max, but he doesn’t have answers. He’s just a guy from Roswell who happens to have powers. He did consider leaving town once, ten years ago. If it wasn’t for Michael and Isobel, he would have followed her- followed in her footsteps that is.
He has to leave to go to the reunion, because it’s important to Isobel. Liz decides to go with.  She asks about the other times he’s saved people, but he never uses his powers to save anyone. Liz realizes that he did it because it was her. She asks why.
He responds by asking if she remembers the first time they met. She doesn’t but he does. He offers to show her by connecting through the mark, but he has to touch it. She tells him to do whatever he wants. He’s a gentleman, so he just steps forward and touches the handprint.
Through a montage, he shows her images from their childhood and teen years. They were close friends who spent a lot of time together. She often shared her music with him by giving him one earbud while she kept the other.
When it’s done, she looks at him and says, “After high school, you would have followed me.” He replies, “Yeah. Anywhere.”
She tries to kiss him, and he wants to, but he stops her. He explains that the handprint is part of a psychic bond that the healing creates between them. It allowed him to show her his memories. What she’s feeling right now are his own feelings, coming through the bond. Until the handprint and the bond fade, he won’t get involved with her. It would be taking advantage.
It will take a few days to a week for the handprint and the bond to fade. Liz decides that she’ll wait and kiss him then, when she can prove her feelings are real.
youtube
Back in the bunker, Jesse is about to initiate Kyle into the family conspiracy business. He and Kyle’s dad were close friends, and everything he shares with Kyle in this room is fact.
The Facts, as Jesse knows them: The 1947 crash was real, and what crashed was a ship full of monsters. Most of the monsters died the night of the crash (he doesn’t specify if they died in the crash or if humans killed them afterward). But at least one survived. If Kyle saw a handprint, the violence isn’t over.
What I love about the way Jesse talks about the aliens is that it’s clear that the humans were and are the perpetrators of the bulk of the violence.
At the high school reunion, Alex confronts Michael about his trailer. The Air Force chemical engineers found high levels of phenyl-2-propanone around the trailer, which would be present if Michael were cooking meth. Michael stands up, and says that it’s not P2P, but it’s something similar. Alex gets right up in his space. As Michael tries to brush past him to walk away, Alex grabs his hand. Michael asks if Alex is trying to hold his hand. Alex asks if he ever gets tired of doing his macho cowboy thing. Michael asks the question right back and walks away. Alex watches him until he leaves the room.
Their lips were about two inches apart during that exchange, in case the actual conversation wasn’t enough to convince you they were hate-flirting. Michael is a cat, or a Klingon, and all romantic endeavors must begin with a heated, possibly violent, argument.
When Liz and Max get to the reunion, people stare at her and make rude comments. She and Max are ready to leave, but then Maria proves she’s a truly great friend by getting the band to play Liz’s favorite song and dancing in the middle of the floor. Liz knows she has to join in.
Max remembers watching Liz dance to the song in high school with her sister and friends. She was inside the diner, while he stood outside. As has happened several times throughout the episode, words and lines from windows and reflections cover his face and mouth, a reminder that he’s trapped by circumstances he can’t control, and things he can’t say.
Alex adjusts his prosthetic in a room off to the side of the reunion. Michael finds him there. Alex says that he thought sure Michael would have left town by the time he got back. Michael asks if Alex wants him to leave. Alex thinks that what he wants doesn’t matter, since he’s not a kid anymore.
As they’ve been talking, Michael has been slowly walking toward Alex. Alex sort of gravitates closer to Michael, and they finally smash themselves together, kissing like they’ve been starving without each other.
Isobel finds Max, who’s watching Liz dance with Maria. She guesses that he told Liz. He admits that he did, and explains how well it went. He’s sure they can trust Liz. Isobel scoffs at him.
When the trust breaks down, as it inevitably will, it’ll be Isobel’s fault.
Jesse, still talking to a rapt Kyle: “They are a violent race. They despise compassion. They despise freedom, love and they thrive on our tragedy. They are at their very core, killers.”
Michael and Alex are just existing in each other’s space and letting it bring them back to life for a few minutes.
Isobel asks if Max told Liz about the other thing, and he cuts her off before she can finish. Liz can never know the truth about what happened to Rosa.
Liz touches the handprint, which is close to her heart. Then she pulls Max out onto the dance floor with her.
Tumblr media
youtube
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Commentary
The Alien Diaries* Roswell, New Mexico has a 13 episode season, of which 5 are directed by women. The pilot and one other episode are directed by Julie Plec. Shiri Appelby, who played Liz Parker in the original series, directs episode 9. Paul Wesley, from The Vampire Diaries, also directs an episode. There are female writers credited on 8 of the episodes.
The regular cast includes Jeanine Mason as Liz Ortecho, Nathan Dean Parsons as Max Evans, Lily Cowles as Isobel Evans-Bracken, Michael Vlamis as Michael Guerin, Michael Trevino as Kyle Valenti, Tyler Blackburn as Alex Manes, Heather Hemmens as Maria DeLuca, Trevor St. John as Jesse Manes and Karan Oberoi as Noah Bracken.
Recurring characters include Rosa Arredondo as Sheriff Valenti, Carlos Compean as Arturo Ortecho, Riley Voelkel as Jenna Cameron, Amber Midthunder as Rosa Ortecho,  Sherri Saum as Mimi DeLuca, Claudia Black as Ann Evans,  and Dylan McTee as Wyatt Long.
I’m looking forward to seeing Claudia Black as Max and Isobel’s mother. Amber Midthunder plays Kerry Loudermilk on Legion. Though she’ll only be seen in flashback, since her character passed away 10 years ago, it’ll be fun to see her in a new role. Michael Trevino appears to be playing another character that I just can’t bring myself to like. I’m sure he’s a lovely person in real life, but the werewolf and now the jealous snitch both get on my nerves.
They left out Liz’s childhood cupcake dress, which is in both the books and the original series. That was a chance to show a little levity and put their own twist on a beloved image, while providing continuity with the other versions.
Themes in this episode: Dangerous secrets; What helps you sleep at night; Protecting people; The varying ways hands touch people- with good or bad intentions; The positives and negatives of loyalty; The meaning of home and how much it’s worth sacrificing to stay in one’s home.
Personally, I might draw the line at dating someone who smelled like nail polish remover. Too many chemical fumes. I’ll still fight for their equal human rights, obviously. But my chemical sensitivities probably preclude a relationship. However, I do miss the addiction to hot pepper sauce that the original trio had. It made sense for New Mexico, the chili pepper capital.
Mysteries and Potential Storylines
What really happened to Rosa? We saw her trying to convince Liz that Max wasn’t worth getting fussed over. Did Isobel control Rosa’s mind and force her to say that? Is that why Rosa thought she was crazy? Did Isobel and Michael drive Rosa to her death, then Max helped cover it up, and let Liz go to keep peace in the family? What about Rosa and Liz’s mother? Did an alien also cause her to think she was insane? Do interactions with aliens run in the Ortecho family, instead of mental illness?
It looks like it’s the Manes and Valenti families who have issues with hereditary mental illnesses, especially illnesses involving obsession, delusions, extreme paranoia and anxiety. Those guys have been feeding their hate and fear off of ancient history for decades. Neither Jesse nor Kyle’s father would have ever even seen an alien.
Now Jesse’s initiating Kyle into their cult, and it looks ike Kyle is buying into the lies. Of course he is. He told us earlier in the episode that he doesn’t feel like he’s good enough, despite his good looks and accomplishments.  Joining a secret warrior cult puts him a step higher than everyone else, making him feel important and special. Giving him a specific target for his free-floating hatred and anxieties let’s him release those feelings against a real world target, which is very satisfying in the short-term. In the long-term, a cult that’s devoted to hatred can eat away at your core until nothing good is left, just an angry shell that follows cult leaders’ orders.
Whatever Isobel and Michael did to Liz and Rosa, they didn’t understand how serious Max and Liz were about each other. Whatever the other reasons for wiping Liz and killing Rosa, part of it was to keep Max for themselves and put something between him and Liz that could never be overcome. Now, ten years later, Isobel, at least, realizes the seriousness of their actions, and how badly they screwed up. But Isobel is a defensive person who doesn’t admit when she’s wrong and doesn’t like to share Max with anyone but Michael. Realizing her mistake may cause her to treat Max and Liz worse instead of better.
It’s ironic that Max and Isobel are so worried about Liz, and apparently always have been worried about the Ortecho sisters and Max’s connections to people in general, but don’t give a moment’s thought to Michael’s connection to Alex. Michael saw Alex looking into his windows and Alex told him there are military chemical engineers investigating him. But Michael thinks he’s too smart for anyone to figure out what he’s up to.
Meanwhile, his ex-boyfriend distracts him from the nefarious alien hunting and investigation activities of the Air Force and Project Shepherd. It doesn’t seem like Alex knows about Project Shepherd, but he could be using Michael. Or, Jesse could be pushing an innocent Alex toward Michael for the purposes of distraction and incidental information gathering. Jesse doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who’d be okay with a gay son or a handicapped one, neither being manly enough for him, so using his son wouldn’t be a problem for him. He wants Kyle, the straight, able-bodied hero-doctor, as his replacement son.
Roswell, NM kept each character’s specialized powers from the original show, which wasn’t in the books. In the books they all have the same powers. In the old show, their powers are related to their previous positions as royalty on their planet. The way that they are doing each character’s personality feels like they might be planning to do something with that aspect of the storyline, even though it was part of the messed up plotlines that didn’t really go anywhere. There are many directions you could take a story about exiled alien royalty. I wouldn’t mind seeing where it could go, if done well. The Roswell novels that followed the series did follow up on that storyline in a more gratifying way.
I would bet good money that the experimental regenerative medicine study that Liz was working on was based on alien DNA from the aliens captured in the ’47 crash. That thread will be picked up again, sooner or later. And the scientists will want fresh DNA to work with. Could they have hired Liz because she’s from Roswell, then have laid her off hoping she’d go home and lead them to an alien?
Roswell vs Roswell, NM
The original Roswell pilot was one of the best pilots I’ve ever seen. I still go back and watch it sometimes. Its climax is at the Crash Festival, where all of the story elements come together. The visuals are amazing, speaking to questions of identity and the nature of what makes us human. The Dave Matthews song “Crash into Me” is used as a centerpiece, highlighting the tragedy that befell the aliens’ parents, which is now celebrated as a tourist attraction, but has left them alone and hunted.
So far, Roswell, NM doesn’t have the visual pizazz that the original had. In the new pilot, the high school reunion replaced the festival, and it’s visual and musical styles were workman-like, using a cover of a song when we’d already heard the original and a space that was indistinct and industrial, like every other poorly lit space on TV this year.
Roswell, New Mexico is obviously trying to forge its own way and not copy the original’s big moments, which is both a good idea, and frustrating. There are some iconic elements that they didn’t change, like Liz getting shot in the diner and Max healing her, but they changed much of what surrounded the moment. My guess is that scene plays fine, if you aren’t comparing it to the original, which had a song playing over Max healing Liz that became iconic, and witnesses who became a big part of the story. But “fine” isn’t the same as creating new iconic moments of their own.
They seem to be focusing on making Roswell into a drab little town, so the cinematography also comes off as drab. Maybe that will change as Max and Liz get closer and the aliens explore their powers. A world that feels more magical should look more magical, and there were touches of that in this episode, in the pods, the handprint, the sparks outside the Crashdown Cafe, and Max and Liz alone in the diner.
They did use several big songs at key moments, and the showrunner has said that her dedication to the soundtrack is her homage to the original, which also had a great soundtrack. But if the show is going to work, they also have to be able to do what I asked viewers to do in the beginning of the recap: Put aside the original, and let this show be something all its own. If it makes sense to highlight a moment, do it, even if it was also an iconic moment in the original. If the show is worth watching, it will develop its own audience, who won’t care about the moments from a 20 year old show.
In the original pilot, the scene where Max reveals to Liz that he’s an alien is unforgettable. Even Mr Metawitches was looking for those iconic lines. I didn’t mind that they were changed, but I did mind that the scene was played down to the point where Liz decided that it was no big deal that Max is an alien. She’s a scientist. She should feel some excitement and wonder looking at those pods and hearing what Max has to say. Her reaction shouldn’t be emotionless interrogation of a man she cares about and has known all of her life.
Max and Liz have a sweet, passionate chemistry. Michael and Adam have intense chemistry. The actors who play Liz, Michael, Alex and Max all work as the characters they’re playing. Michael Trevino seems like he’ll work out as Kyle, especially if he remains conflicted or turns against the aliens. We didn’t see enough of Maria for me to form an opinion of Heather Hemmens. Rosa is an intriguing character and I love Amber Midthunder, so if there’s any way to bring her back to life, I vote we go for it.
Isobel is a bit of a problem, since the actress and character come off as petty and selfish. She’s married, but Max can’t be with Liz, who she’s already driven out of town once? She seems like the type who pulls out her claws every time a woman comes near her brother, with the excuse that they have to keep their secret, and he can’t be trusted. That’s a soap opera-level downgrade of the high-strung but generous and intelligent character Katherine Heigl originated. I hope this Isobel will grow into a better person, fast.
The adults who we met in the pilot seemed well-cast. I like the switch up of making Sheriff Valenti a reasonable Latina woman, and bringing in military man Jesse Manes to play the evil alien hunter that Valenti was in the books.
Project Shepherd and the underground facility are straight out of books (though Project Shepherd has a different name), so that may be the biggest way that Roswell, NM intends to differentiate itself from the original series. There’s a wealth of material in the books, that the original series didn’t touch on, for the new series to mine for inspiration. I’m excited at the prospect of Roswell, NM going in that direction.
Original Roswell’s giant failings were its plot and consistency. Showrunner Carina Adly MacKenzie says that she has a detailed 5 year plan already laid out for Roswell, NM. A showrunner with experience in making a supernatural/scifi show, with a plan and a show bible, and a network that’s on board with that plan, is much more than the original show had at any point in its run.
This show knows what it is and where it’s going, which should help it avoid accidentally reinventing itself every season and contradicting what’s come before. And help keep Roswell, NM from succumbing to plain old silliness, though sometimes that’s too much to ask for on any show based on speculative fiction.
Still, if Roswell, New Mexico is going to compete with original Roswell, it needs to go big or go home. It’s off to a good, but not great, start. Hopefully, with a little time to find its own rhythm, it will grow into something amazing.
Carina Adly MacKenzie did an amazing interview with Collider.com in conjunction with the series premiere in which she addresses all of the typical viewer concerns. As far as I can tell, we couldn’t be in safer hands.
Related items from Amazon.com:
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
*Couldn’t resist!
Images courtesy of The CW.
Roswell, New Mexico Season 1 Episode 1: Pilot Recap Roswell, New Mexico is The CW's latest entry into the reboot and revival craze that's brought back so many old TV shows, whether they should have been resurrected or not.
1 note · View note
Link
[excerpt] 15. This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things
Does anyone apart from Pusha T relish a good diss track as much as Swift? 2017’s Reputation might have its patchy moments of just-out-of-date beats but it’s also full of deliciously vicious moments. I Did Something Bad was a beautiful middle finger to an ex (Calvin Harris, apparently), Look What You Made Me Do cut down her critics and this track, which is effectively a more bitter Bad Blood, battered Kim and Kanye. “Friends don’t try to trick you/Get you on the phone and mind-twist you” she sings in an apparent swipe at the ‘I made that b**** famous’ controversy, while underneath stuttering electro-pop clashes with tinkling piano. The chorus is Swift at her most bitingly patronising, smiling as she twists the knife in.
14. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
Swift managed her first US number one with We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together. The singer’s knack for an earworm is obvious here, with the song one of the simplest but strongest of her career. The rest of Red dabbles with pop but Swift’s country roots are still very visible here. A foot-stomping acoustic guitar riff is right at the heart of the track, which is a much lighter take on the relationship at the heart of All Too Well. The old Taylor might not be able to come the phone right now, but she was on top form here.
13. Our Song
Jaunty violins, talk about God, a Nashville accent that twangs like a banjo string: Our Song is Taylor in full country mode. It’s got all the hallmarks of her early verse-chorus-bridge songwriting, and Swift reportedly put it together in 20 minutes for her ninth grade talent show before the record company nabbed it for her debut album. Built around a colossal chorus, where her delivery cracks like a drum beat, Our Song is a vivid picture of her teenage years and a testament to Swift’s natural songwriting nous – a reminder that, despite the headlines, she’s built a career on talent, not merely hype and controversy. Tim McGraw, which starts the album, has much the same effect.
12. I Knew You Were Trouble
2012 album Red took Swift’s popularity to new levels and the universal appeal of I Knew You Were Trouble was a key part of that success. The song became one of the most parodied tracks of the year but even adding screaming goats into the mix couldn’t the hamper its impact. It’s perhaps surprising that despite the song’s success, the chorus marked one of the singer’s most experimental to date, flirting with dubstep, pop and dance influences. It’s the perfect example of Swift’s early musical experimentations – as was the U2-esque album opener State of Grace – which would eventually pave the way for the reinvention on 1989 two years later.
11. Shake It Off
Shake It Off is perhaps the perfect song to explain Taylor Swift and seems to encapsulate the contradictions which have made her a star. For everything that’s toe-curling and cringeworthy (see: “this sick beat”, the whole “my ex man” riff), it’s also infectious, irresistible and triumphantly confident; Swift knows it’s geeky and doesn’t care. It’s a song to shimmy to – and then to kiss your crush to, when she asks the fella with the hella good hair to shake, shake, shake. Grab the white wine and go be basic – sometimes it’s fun.
10. 22
While Swift can occasionally lean-in on her wry way of seeing the world, she’s also gloriously unafraid of big, dumb pop. 22 is almost comically simplistic: the opening guitar riff is just a watered down Wild Thing, the drum beat is mindlessly insistent – a bass kick on every single beat – and the main hook (“I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling 22”) has all the intelligence of a failed GCSE. None of it matters; the song is a joyous riot, set in a world where there are no pressures, no bills and the sun only goes down so everyone can go to bed together. It is fun, it is silly, it’s happiness is infectiously single-minded and the best lines come right at the end: “You look like bad news, I gotta have you”. There’s even Nile Rodgers-style guitar thrown in on the chorus. Splendid stuff. No wonder it’s said to be Harry Styles’ favourite Swift song.
9. Fifteen
Much has been made of Swift’s big transformation from country singer to pop behemoth but even before she was out of her teens she was flirting with stadium friendly rock. Still, Fifteen had plenty of banjo all over it, while her voice charmingly twangs as she talks boys and cars and heartbreak. Of which, it’s the lyrics that make this one: the song itself is so polished and clean it could have been assembled on a Tennessee production line, but Swift manages to infuse it with a sense of failed teenage romance that feels real – unsurprising, perhaps, given it’s based on her and her best friend Abigail Anderson’s years at Hendersonville High School.
“In your life you’ll do things greater than/Dating the boy on the football team/But I didn’t know it at fifteen” she sings, “Wish you could go back and tell yourself what you know now”. Ain’t that the truth.
8. Love Story
Ten years ago, pre-Kanye-at-the-VMAs, Swift was, in Britain at least, still that country girl with that one catchy song. This was that song; a hopelessly romantic tale of teenage love, Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet over pop-punk guitars and key changes and, of course, a happy ending replacing the tragedy. Eight million copies sold, making it the best selling country single of all time and paving the way for the decade of massive success that followed.
7. Blank Space
Blank Space is a minimalist masterpiece that paradoxically is crammed with hooks (something she manages again, like a magic trick, on Clean). The song in itself is actually surprisingly slow-moving; chords are long, drawn-out and the drums snap but are unhurried. The genius here in is Swift’s vocals, which are catchy enough that the whole thing seems to be one long chorus. Blank Space also marks the beginning of Swift sending herself up; in it, she satirises her media image as a man-obsessed, relationship addicted nightmare who serially dates for songwriting material. Hilariously, the key line (“Got a long list of ex-lovers/They’ll tell you I’m insane”) has often been misheard – including by her own mother – as “all the lonely Starbucks lovers”, which rather changes the point somewhat. The video is a work of art too, introducing the world to the ‘new Taylor’ – before the new Taylor became the old, dead Taylor. Oh, and look out for her slip up at 3.40, it’s hilarious.
6. New Year’s Day
The beautiful, reverb soaked piano that flutters through New Year’s Day is a sign of what could be to come for Swift – not now, perhaps, but maybe in 20 years. It could be played then and just as good. If All Too Well is her great grown-up heartbreak track, this is her great grown-up love song. Whereas 1989’s You Are In Love used a similar sound for a rip of Bruce Springsteen’s Street’s of Philadelphia, here it’s more of a James Blake vibe. The beauty is in the simplicity; this is a love as rational as it is passionate. The metaphor is about being there for the good times (the party at midnight) and the bad (cleaning up bottles on New Year’s Day). There is a stroke of brilliance, too: “Please don’t ever become a stranger whose laugh I could recognise anywhere” she sings as a reprise, realising what too few of us do until it’s too late: love is as fragile as it precious.
5. You Belong With Me
Taylor has a long-standing love affair with power chords and pop-punk goodness. On Red, there’s Holy Ground, before that was Speak Now’s girl-breaking-free-to-rule-the-world Long Live and before that was You Belong With Me on Fearless. It’s sometimes criticised for being too similar to her other early hits but in truth, it’s just the best example of them. It’s also wonderfully full Taylor: she plays the self-deprecating dork in love with her best friend, and the video is completely, brilliantly hysterical. There are all the elements needed: crashing guitars, unrequited love, a little teenage angst. It’s far from perfect: the lyrics are her corniest, the premise is cliched and the country embellishments have been tactlessly tacked on as if purely to placate the country audience. But, in the end, it’s catchy, sweetly endearing and you’ll be singing along merrily. If you want another fill of the good stuff, put on Fearless, which is just a little less catchy but with a better guitar solo.
4. Ronan
Little known, not on any albums and barely performed live – to date it’s only been aired twice, with the first version live on a Stand Up to Cancer telethon the one to listen to – Ronan perhaps seems a unlikely entry on the list, but it stands the Swift song that aches the most, and is unlike anything else she’s written. Over the chime of trembling guitar chords, she sings as the voice of Maya Thompson, a mother who lost her four-year-old Ronan to cancer. Written after reading Thompson’s blog, Swift articulates the unsteady, insistent rhythm of grief with painful clarity. In the end, like in life, the loss stings the sharpest in the little things. “And it’s about to be Halloween, you could be anything you wanted” she sings, her voice shaking and her eyes glassy with tears, “If you were still here.”
3. Out Of The Woods
Like the heartbroken logic in All You Had To Do Was Stay (the song Ryan Adams’ did best on his mixed 1989 cover album), it’s the naivety in this one that makes it so damned sad. Jack Antonoff produced a piece of driving rock dressed up as radio-pop, the stuttering drums and Blade Runner synths casting shadows over everything, the choir on the chorus giving it enough size to fill stadiums. It’s one for anyone who’s been wrapped up in a love that’s left them shaky with the uncertainty of it all, who’s gone to sleep and woken up with the same thought, of praying they’re getting as much love as they’re giving.
2. Style
Like a designer parading a new collection down the runway, Swift showcased her new direction perfectly on this aptly titled track. Pulsating synths drive the verses along before a huge sing-along chorus kicks in, marking a dramatic change from her guitar-led earlier compositions. It’s a formula that Swift would return to time and time again in her later work, not least on the similar Getaway Car from 2017 album reputation. The song remains a highlight at Swift’s live shows — after all, pop hooks as good as this will never go out of style.
1. All Too Well
Everyone jokes about the lost scarf, but this is Swift’s most sincere tale of heartbreak and is heartbreaking itself. Though it takes a handful of listens at least to ‘get’ this track, it’s worn out and weary and the hurt goes deep. Swift says it was one of the hardest to write, and it’s one of the hardest to listen to; she sounds like she’s singing right from the bones and it’s searingly, uncomfortably intimate. Having it on doesn’t feel so much like listening as eavesdropping: other ruminations in her back catalogue are broader, relatable, but here we’re hearing her specific turmoil. Nowhere else on record does she sound as cut up the way she does halfway through this one – Jake Gyllenhaal, you realise, really broke her heart.
Plenty of Swift songs are overwrought, but the drama here is sincere: her voice trembles with pain, and the song, which starts sparse, swells and hardens up like a lump in the throat. It’s little surprise the original cut was 10 minutes long; the song is cinematic, with a touch of Raymond Carver in the sparse, classically American lyrics: “'Cause there we are again in the middle of the night/We’re dancing round the kitchen in the refrigerator light”.
When she gets to end of it, there are lines that induce a wince: “You call me up again just to break me like a promise/So casually cruel in the name of being honest” she says. Then you hear her lost to her heartbreak: “Time won’t fly, it’s like I’m paralyzed by it/I’d like to be my old self again/But I’m still trying to find it”. Love – especially when it cools – changes everything.
40 notes · View notes