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purplerose244 · 3 years

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My thoughts on Seabound!!! 🌊🌊🌊 (1/4)

SPOILERS ALERT!!!

Finally Nya's season! Our queen, our water goddess, our amazing girl gets what she deserves! 😍😍😍

What I know about the season beforehand is that Nya's powers apparently are getting problematic for some reasons? Which is a pretty common topic in other shows but it's a first in Ninjago, usually the elemental powers don't have focus and I LOVE that we now get to see stuff like that 💕💕💕

I know there should be Wojira involved, trusting The Island to deliver that little foreshadowing at the end of the episode 🤷‍♀️ Also Maya is back... MAYA IS FINALLY BACK AFTER SEVEN SEASONS YES!!! 😭😭😭

I have nothing else to say, I have no idea what this will bring, hopefully something as good as Master of the Mountain! 🖤

Alright, here we go!

GENERAL THOUGHTS

Warning reader, I might be fangirling to an extreme because I love mah girl Nya and I've been wanting Kai and Nya's parents to be back ever since Hands of Time ended. So yeah... screaming alert 😅

At this point I don't doubt that the intro is great, we reached such a level of animation and we got The Fold 😍😍 Love the marine vibe and how it's similar to The Island, because it's a great intro 👌

NOW I like the writing! Maybe they rushed the dialogue's quality for The Island to get here? It's just fun and in character, maybe it's just me but I'm enjoying it a lot for now

How many episodes are in this? Wiki says ten, then I checked again and it's sixteen like with Master of Mountain... eh, it looks good so far so it's fine whatever happens 🤷‍♀️

A BIG SPLASH

Oohhh, new villain! One that uses... flames... huh, does she know there's literally a master of fire in the ninja team? Eh whatever she looks cute, give it up for Miss Demeanor!! 👏👏

Wait... OMG IS THAT ERIN MATTHEWS??? WE GOT MACY!! ❤❤❤

Whoa, we're finding out where did the order of the vengestone from season 13 come from?? YAS! CONTINUITY!

Yep, there it is, Nya lost control... her attacks look so cool 😍

Lol that kid trying to be a nindroid and Zane being offended 😂😂 Sorry hun, you're that popular

Aaahhh, thank you Ninjago! You gave me back Nya the perfectionist 😂 I was worried her reaction to her powers wasn't going to be in character but it looks fair so far. Brings me back to Possession, my favorite season 💙💙💙

WE GOT BACK THE FACT THAT SHE CAN MAKE IT RAIN!!! YAS!!! I might be easy to please but I love these details 🤩

🤯🤯🤯 Okay they are definitely going somewhere this time and I LOVE IT, because wow. WOW. Are we actually addressing the forever questioned fact that wind and water weren't elements that Chen needed at the Tournament? Are we giving a reason for them to exist outside the main set of elements and the elemental masters?? Duuuude, season 15 don't let me stop you, keep going 😍

Mm, so water and wind are connected to Wojira (now I see the connection with the special). Are we setting the ground for a new master of wind? 😏😏 It's risky going for a Morro replacement but it's a super intriguing idea! Oooor Edgy Boy TM might come back? WHO KNOWS I'M CURIOUS ANYWAY 🤩

Love how it is universal knowledge that Nya is super indipendent 👌

YES YES FINALLY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MAYA!!! 😍😍😍 Is it too much hoping into a Ray cameo as well?? Pleaaaase? Also addressing Krux after so many seasons, this feels exciting!! 😊

This is what I'm talking about, training, fighting scenes, show me everything that water goddess can do! 🌊🌊🌊

Aaahhh, Nya flexing her mightiness through anger, just to remind us that she is the descendant of a water master as much as of a fire master 😅

YES YES YES YES IT'S HAPPENING FINALLY AFTER SEVEN SEASON THE FIRE WATER PARENTS ARE FINALLY BACK!!! 🔥🌊🔥🌊🔥🌊 I'M SO HAPPY I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR SO LONG!!! 😭

RAY IS THERE TOO HECK YES!!!! 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 I shouldn't get this excited at only the first episode... WHO CARES RAY IS BAAAAACK!!! ❤❤❤

Omg Maya is definitely different from what I expected, turns out Kai's enthusiasm came from her 😂

Oh look at my flame babe 😍

He's so happy his parents are here, he's a total family man ❤❤❤

Nya is maaaaad... 😅

THERE SHE IS

WELCOME BACK JILLIAN I MISSED YOU 💚💚💚 Would it be too much having a "Your voice sounds familiar" moment with Maya and Lloyd? 😂

I'm so stoked for this! I want all the interactions I've missed for all of this time, asap!! HECK yes!! 😍😍😍😍

Oh, are we looking over the Miss Demeanor, vengestone situation? Mm... for now at least... WHO CARES FIRE WATER PARENTS!! 🔥🌊🔥🌊🔥🌊

THE CALL OF THE DEEP

Imma just slow clap for The Fold because this is another amazing intro, one of those things in this show that stays awesome no matter what happens 👍👍

So Maya gave Nya her discipline and perfectionism, but not the passion behind it 😂 I like this, it's not your conventional master of water, although I'd say it's different from the impression she gave me back in HoT. Maybe this is how she is when she's not trapped for fifty years? 😅😅

Is it too much asking for Kai and Ray bonding while the water women get the work done? 😅😅

Is this the sequel of Green Eggs and Ham?

Green Pancakes and Ham? 😂

Oh it's seaweed nevermind... at breakfast? I'm all for sushi rolls but this is a little 😅 Although since Maya missed their childhood she probably never cooked meals for them... how did I get myself sad 😢

Whoa, Maya is a strict teacher! I got flashbacks from my first and only dance lesson, teachers nitpicking every single pose, uuurrrggg I feel ya waterlily 😡

Again, not a fan of Misako, but coming from her the whole speech about wanting to be there for her child makes a lot of sense

Yes. YES.

YEEEEESSSS KAI AND RAY FAMILY BONDING THIS IS EVERYTHING I'VE EVER WANTED I'M GETTING ALL OF MY WISHES GRANTED FOR THIS ONE ❤🔥❤🔥❤🔥❤🔥❤🔥❤

AND MY FLAME BABE IS SO GLAD HE GOT HIS PARENTS!!! 😭😭😭

Lol with Kai's new hair they look even more related 🤣

Ray also sounds so happy he gets to have his moment with his son 😢 I feel so blessed in this moment 👍

Also this scene makes a lot of sense. Nya grew up to be indipendent, one that succeed in most of stuff without problems, she built her life without any help and doesn't look for it. Kai grew up more insecure, he got some walls up but loves to take care of others and be taken care of. With a childhood lost he looks forward to a bit of softness ❤❤

Did Maya make real bacon for that sandwich? Do I smell some favoritism? 😅 Or maybe she really wants Nya to get onto the water mind setting idk 🤷‍♀️

Little tiny complain, why isn't Jay doing the fixing? Did he give up mechanics completely? It feels like we haven't seen him do tech stuff in so long, I miss techy boy in action 😞

And no, having to check on the bathroom doesn't count 😅

Aww robot date 💜🤍💜🤍

AAAHH ROBOT DISASTER 😱😱😱 ZANE DANG IT YOU WERE DOING SO GOOD NOT TRYING TO DIE IN THE LAST TWO SEASONS!!

Oh that was weird, weird magic purple wave thingie?

I DID NOT ASK FOR A SEASON WITH A BEST GIRL AT THE EXPENCE OF ANOTHER BEST GIRL PIX DON'T YOU DARE DO THIS TO ME 😱😱😱😱😱

"Well this is troubling." I love this samurai so freaking much 💜💜💜

GUYS THIS IS ONLY THE SECOND EPISODE, I'M A LITTLE SCARED NOW 😢

Okay Nya admitting that something's wrong looking so apologetic, girl you don't need to do that you already own my heart 😭

Alright, I'm guessing this is Wojira's power or something, and they will have to go down below and find out why... just throwing this in, maybe Maya did something? Because she wanted to finally be with her family and needed an excuse? JUST A THEORY WITH NO BASE I REALLY HOPE I'M WRONG!!!

Okay, two episodes and I'm BEYOND engaged, let's keep it up! 😍

UNSINKABLE

Getting an idea how this episode might end already 😂😂

Look, I love best girl Pixal, but I'm kinda sad that she seems to be the only one tinkering at this point. Like, I saw Nya fix little stuff, while Jay dropped engineering altogether, I miss my engineers team 😭

Aww, the guys didn't want to crush Pixal's dream of an unsinkable boat 💜 But honestly yeah, I agree with Cole, this might end badly 😅😅

Thank goodness

I was worried they forgot about Jaya ❤💙❤💙 Jay is such a cutie omg

Nya: Mm, going on a potentially dangerous mission with unstable powers in the heart of my element or... mom's tofu pancakes... *yeets herself over the ship*

I'm making too many screenshots of the Smith family... WHO CARES THEY ARE BACK AND THEY ALL LOOK SO GOOD!!! 😍😍😍😍

Aww Ray wants to play with his son and his friends so CUTE ❤❤❤ Still can't believe they play Prime Empire after everything that went down 😂😂

Whoa whoa whoa, Kai and Cole are sitting this one out? That's actually interesting, I'm pretty sure I saw Cole's scuba suit in the sets though so I didn't expect it... lol it's actually kinda fair that the two that used to be afraid of water aren't going 😂😂

Bet Kai is happy to stay behind because he gets to spend time with his dad 😭

Also studying the fire elementals?? Uhm, yes please?? TELL ME EVERYTHING ABOUT MY FLAME BABE!!! 😍😍😍😍

I'm sure this one scene...

... made so many lavashippers happy ❤🖤❤🖤 Cole you got Ray's blessing

Ninja team acting cool while Jay is being Jay, it's how it always goes, it's the entire show's description and I absolutely love it 😂 That wink though 💙

PIRATE ZANE IS BACK 😂😂😂 Haven't seen him since Possession, and this time he's not even malfunctioning 👌 Pixal is so done with his dorky boyfriend 😝

Of course Jay already has a ghost butler theory going on 😂

OF COURSE IT'S MAYA 😂😂

To be honest muffins would sold me too 😅 Not sure if she will make them out of tofu again though...

It's actually really interesting that we still haven't met the actual enemies, it does build up excitment! Very curious about these squid guys 👍

Well what do you know, the Unsinkable sank. Who would have thought?

... yeah same, sorry Pix 😅

FIVE THOUSANDS FATHOMS DOWN

Aaaahhh, Nya fixing stuff! That's more like it!! 😍😍

Oww, that one speech, I've been waiting for so long for that! Maya just wants to catch up with her daughter and it's not her fault she was separated from her children, but Nya did everything on her own with Kai. Only fair she isn't seeking for her help right now... still sad 😢

Pff, with this ninja team there's not a moment of privacy 😂😂

Maya cleaning his future son-in-law's laundry what the HECK 😂😂😂 To be fair Jay has a bit of a history of having to change underwears during sea travels 😝

Zane was attached to a battery? When?... are you talking about that one scene in Prime Empire? Cause that's not really a flashback I wanna ha- whoops never mind got the flashback 😱

Maya looks more calm now, I think she's trying to act more reasonable and she's got good points 👍 I know people were a little weirded out by how more cheerful she looks in comparison to Hands of Time, but I think she gets the most serious and rational when time needs. That's actually fascinating of her 🤔

CALLING OUT AN ATTEMPTED MURDER

THIS GIRL IS TOO GORGEOUS MY HEART CAN'T TAKE IT 🤩🤩🤩 Like my gosh that smirk, what the heck Pix 💜💜💜

Okay but Jay looking at Nya until the doors are completely closed?? CAN YOU FEEL MY JAYA HEART BEATING?? ❤💙❤💙

Whoa green gas I thought this was Nya's season 😂

MAYA WHY ARE YOU SAYING THIS STUFF YOU'RE SCARING ME 😱😱😱 I SWEAR LEGO IF YOU BROUGHT BACK WATER MOM JUST TO KILL HER OFF I'M GONNA SUE YOU 😭😭😭

I really REALLY like the atmosphere of the entrante of the temple! Super sealike and ancient! 🌊🌊🌊

Maya: off we go, into the spooky old temple! (Why does it feel like something Kai would say? 😂)

Oh gee, someone sleeping in the deep, who could that be? Coff Wojira coff

Whoa the jellyfishes look pretty lifelike!

HERE HE COMES

WELCOME BACK GILES!!! ONCE AGAIN ON A LEGO SHOW I MISSED YOU SO MUCH YOU AND YOUR GODLIKE VOICE!!! 😍😍😍😍 Gosh he's a villain but he's got Clay's voice, how can I even try to hate him?? 😅

Alright, knocking down my water girls, that is pretty hateful material... BUT CLAAAYYY 💙💙💙

So they need the two amulets to wake up Wojira? Isn't one on the island? Fire dad and son coming to the rescue? WHO KNOWS BUT I'M ENJOYING THIS A LOT SO FAR KEEP GOING SEABOUND 😍😍😍

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fandomlurker · 3 years

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A Ponderous Rewatch: Pavlov’s Mice and Cameo

So thanks to Tumblr nerfing my ability to make an admittedly absurdly long post combining the previous episode rewatch with this one, I had to do this entry in two parts.

But at least now we’re in for the real treat: The first episode in airing order that’s animated by TMS Entertainment. And hey, even the Animaniacs show itself seems to acknowledge that this is special, because theme song rhyme is…

We're Animanie! Totally insane-y!~

Pinky and the Brainy!~

…which hasn’t been done since their debut. So this is gonna be fun.

Might as well get this out of the way, then, since this episode obviously involves Ivan Pavlov. I think most people who know of Pavlov through cultural osmosis pretty much know him as just “that one scientist who got dogs to respond to the sound of bells as if they were being offered food”. This is what happened, but it’s only part of the story. In reality, Ivan Pavlov was doing research on the physiology of digestion in dogs and he noticed one day that the dogs he was studying started to drool in the mere presence of the lab technician who regularly fed them even if the technician didn’t have food with them. Pavlov developed a way to redirect the dogs’ digestive juices outside of the body so that they could be measured, and then he ran some conditioning experiments to see if he could get them to salivate in response to external stimuli that had nothing to do with food, like ringing a bell.

The year in the title card, 1904, was the year Ivan Pavlov was awarded the Nobel Prize for the previously mentioned experiments, which he published the results of in “The Work of the Digestive Glands” in 1897. Basically, by 1904 he was done with his work with dogs and he moved on to experimenting with mice…at least according to this article in National Geographic by Virgina Hughes.

With that, let’s begin the episode proper.

“At the dawn of the 20th century, Russian scientist, Ivan Pavlov, trained animals through his technique of conditioned reflex” says the narrator as we zoom in on a laboratory with Pavlov and our lovable mouse duo.

“Time to earn your dinner, my little mousey friends!”

It’s interesting how Pinky is the one that flinches uncomfortably at the loud sound of the gong while Brain simply snaps into his conditioned response. And that response? Uhhh…

“I’m a little teapot, short and stout.~”

“This is my handle, this is my spout.~”

(Is he…you know…?)

“When I get all steamed up, hear me shout!~”

“Tip me over and pour me out.~”

Oh no… This is a cute and funny scene and all, but when you know about Brain’s canonical issues with how he hates not being in control of a situation and all the traumas he’s endured (for those of you not in the know, yes, Brain does have a lot of trauma in his backstory that we learn about much later, both in the 90s spin-off and the reboot) regarding both general control and losing family and friends…there’s a bitter tinge to this scene.

He’s so embarrassed and humiliated.

He takes the cheese but he is positively fuming with rage, and I can’t exactly blame him from what I know about him.

This is made all the worse by Pinky’s innocent reaction to Brain’s little song and dance.

“Hahahahaha! Wonderful! Hahaha! EGAD, Brain, I could watch you do that dance all day! Haha, narf!”

For Pinky, this is harmless silliness and he gets to see Brain sing and dance and “have fun”, which is not a usual occurrence. But for Brain? Well...

“You have watched it all day, Pinky. Sixty-one times, to be exact. It’s a conditioned reflex to that infernal gong.”

“I’m powerless to stop it!”

Well, Brain, at the very least it’s not like you were a part of a more inhumane experiment like one regarding, say, learned helplessness or anything. …Oh wait. Whoops. (For those sensitive to animal abuse, I suggest refraining from clicking on the second link, and caution against clicking on the first if even more clinical text descriptions of such would upset you. The third link is spoilers for the reboot.)

All that aside, it seems like it’s Pinky’s turn. He gets the more traditional bell chime for his stimulus.

And the result is him going into an uncontrollable and very enthusiastic Slavic folk dance.

With violent results. I hope you appreciate that last screencap, as the animation goes by so quickly I had a lot of trouble isolating the part where Pinky kicks Brain and he goes flying.

Pinky is all too happy to get a reward of cheese, his favourite food, for doing something that he has no memory of.

“What’cha doin’ over there, Brain?”

“Contemplating your afterlife, Pinky.”

That’s not exactly fair, Brain, you know he has no control over this. To Brain’s credit, though, he doesn’t bop him or anything for kicking him involuntarily.

Pavlov leaves, playfully saying that he hopes the mice dream of cheese tonight, and the mice are immediately down to business.

“At last, he’s gone.”

“Now we can begin our conquest of the world!”

We’re already back to it being “our” conquest of the world, eh?

“Behold my latest creation, Pinky: The Vacuum-o-nator.”

Brain has never been good with naming things, has he? At least, not so far. I wonder if this will continue throughout the franchise?

Pinky is certainly very happy and impressed, though.

“It uses reverse air pressure to vacuum everything toward it.”

You know, I was just about to roast Brain for thinking that making a very odd version of a vacuum cleaner was such a brilliant thing, but then I remembered that this takes place in 1904. The vacuum cleaner as we know it was “invented independently by British engineer Hubert Cecil Booth and American inventor David T. Kenney” in 1901 according to Wikipedia, and portable vacuums were available to the general public starting in 1905.My apologies, Brain, that actually is very impressive.

Although, this all hinges on if the viewer considers episodes that take place in the past and/or at different locations than Acme Labs California to be mere Alternate Universe/What If? stories or Brain and Pinky using some kind of time machine to go to a different place and time for these episodes. (Before you tell me that this is just a cartoon and sicc the Please, Please Get a Life Foundation on me, I do this to have fun and maybe educate myself and the reader along the way. I promise I have a life. Barely.)

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking, Pinky?”

“Uhh… Yeah, Brain! But where are we gonna find rubber pants our size?”

Pinky, that’s… Listen, folks, don’t make the same mistake I did and google “rubber pants”. It’s not what you think it is. You will be disappointed.

BONK!

Seems like you’re enjoying yourself there, Pinky.

“No, Pinky. We’re going to use the Vacuum-o-nator to steal Russia’s crown jewels!”

Man, the animation for even this one small proclamation by Brain is so, so good. Brain standing authoritatively and holding the pen like a scepter or spear, the grand sweep of his arm as he says “no”, the serious and slightly menacing expression on his face, a violent and grabby swing of his arm on the word “steal”, and a dramatic point and look up towards the sky when he finishes. TMS does great work, folks.

“Narf! Genius, Brain!”

Look at Brain’s satisfied smile at Pinky’s simple compliment. Remember what I said earlier about Brain going through his explanations to show off to and impress Pinky? At this point I’m absolutely convinced that that’s why Brain turns up the theatrics more than necessary when going through his plans. After all, Pinky is (oddly and rather sadly) the only one in-universe who thinks Brain is a genius and a good person.

…Of course, the effect can sometimes be lessened by subsequent innocent bumbling.

“Turn it off, Pinky.”

He says this so exasperatedly yet so deadpan at the same time, it’s great.

“Oh! Right-o!”

Even Pinky immediately knows that he fucked up.

“Zort! Whew! Wild hairdo, Brain! Heh heh, I like it.”

He even pets Brain’s “hairdo”, aww. And though I personally could take or leave the ‘do, I like the pointed, sharp look this mishap’s given to his ears.

BONK!

“Now I feel cleansed.”

Okay, this one might have been a little too much, Brain.

“But Brain, aren’t the crown jewels always guarded by giant Cossacks?”

Well, Pinky, from what I know Cossacks were usually used extensively in the police force and as border guards during this time, so I guess that’s possible?

Brain picking the lock with the pen is a fun little detail.

“Don’t worry about the guards… For tonight, Pinky, at precisely 1 am, there’s a total lunar eclipse. “

Again, this is probably not a thing the average person could look up quickly and easily in the 90s and the writers most likely didn’t care about accuracy here, but there were no total lunar eclipses in 1904. There were some penumbral lunar eclipses in March and September of that year, though. Just a fun fact for you folks.

“The Earth’s shadow will completely cover the moon, blacking out all of St. Petersburg for a period of 30 seconds.”

Brain…?!? Brain, how did you get the diagram on that piece of paper to animate like that? What kind of Harry Potter-style magic bullshit is this?

I know this is a cartoon and all and I’m not truly upset but this honestly came out of nowhere and made me do a double-take.

“In that brief time, we will sneak past the Czar’s guards under the cover of darkness and steal the crown jewels…for he who controls the jewels controls Mother Russia!”

More dramatics!

“But…I thought your mother’s name was Désirée?”

I love Brain’s pose here. Very grumpy and sassy.

As for Pinky’s comment: We do get to meet Brain’s parents way later in the spin-off, though neither are addressed by any name. I’m taking this joke as canon anyway because it’s funny.

Well, well, well… Looks like we’re shaking things up a bit with an inking instead of a bonk. That’s gonna be a pain to get out of his white fur, though.

“Soon, Pinky, I will rule Russia…so from now on, call me Czar.”

Another sassy hand-on-hip pose.

“Right-o, Brain!”

“—eek! Czar Brain!”

“Come along, Pinky… Conquest awaits!”

Nice to know that despite the inking, Pinky’s still following him anyway. Plus he’s doing it with that fond look on his face again. Hmm…

What follows is a cute and ingenious sequence of Brain launching Pinky and himself through an open window via the spring force of a mousetrap. It goes by very quickly, but I just wanted to highlight a few things I managed to notice while pausing through it. Kudos to the animators again for these little details.

Pinky’s the one that wraps one arm around Brain’s shoulders so that Brain has both hands free to spring the mousetrap properly and so that they’ll be launched together.

Interestingly enough, Pinky’s the cautious one who braces for impact right away while Brain gleefully flies through the air with his arms outstretched.

The “camera” changes perspective and while Brain is still boldly flying forward with confidence, Pinky is still worried but has now opened his eyes as they fly towards the window.

Pinky’s still holding onto Brain and the Vacuum-o-nator as tight as he can. As they get closer to the window, however…

…Pinky seems to realize he’s going to smash into the wall above the window if he doesn’t let go, so he lets go of Brain. Brain doesn’t realize where his trajectory is taking him.

Pinky angles himself downward and through the open window, but it’s too late for Brain.

WHAM! RIP, Brain.

But his pain is not done! It looks like Pinky’s landing was in the soft snow. Meanwhile, Brain slides down onto the window and through the opening, only to bash into the lid of a garbage can, much to Pinky’s concern.

Then Brain falls headfirst into the snow.

And finally, Brain is clonked on the head by the same garbage can lid, which makes a loud gong noise. Someone get this poor mouse some Aspirin.

But since there was a gong noise, you all know what that means!

Cutely, Pinky joins in on the dance in the middle of it.

“Ha! Oh that was fun, Czar Brain! But let’s give it another go, right? Only this time with feeling!”

Man, that side-eye at the beginning from Brain…

Pinky’s body language is great in this episode, too. The gleeful flapping of his arms and feet and the “with feeling” gesture are fantastic examples of his more open and energetic nature coming through.

Oh hey, there’s that one shot of Brain being ticked off used in the spin-off theme song! I can’t exactly blame him for his anger here. He just went through a lot of pain in a short amount of time and was then involuntarily made to humiliate himself. Pinky doesn’t mean to be mean here—he genuinely wants to have some sing and dance fun with Brain—but it’s gotta sting to have the humiliation highlighted.

Pinky still doesn’t deserve a bonking for it, though. But it’s slapstick, so he’s fine.

Heh, “deliveries to rear” indeed.

Oh, are those jingle bells on a sleigh that I see?

Uh oh…

“No, Pinky… Not now!”

It cannot be stopped, Brain. He must dance!

Another quick detail as Brain launches himself at Pinky’s midsection to either topple him over or hold him still to get Pinky to stop.

Alas, Pinky’s dancing is too strong.

OUCH!

The face of regret.

His punishment is swiftly thwarted, though.

“…That was unpleasant.”

They take a different and more uneventful ride on a hay wagon to the palace.

I love the exaggerated perspective going on here.

Peekin’.

“We made it inside, Brain!”

“…’Czar Brain’.”

“Czar Brain.”

He says it so quietly and sweetly, aww.

“Yes, Pinky. There are fleeting moments when I even amaze myself.”

I…don’t know if it’s much of an accomplishment yet, Brain. Settle that ego down a bit.

Oh, that’s some classic Looney Tunes-style sneaking animation there.

Wait, why is the door to the treasure room just open behind them? Czar Nicolas II, what gives?

Speaking of…

Hello, Czar Nicolas II. I hope you’re enjoying your “eclipse party”. You only have another 14 years or so to live it up, after all.

“In just a few minutes, it’ll be totally dark and scary. OooOOoo!~ But don’t anyone touch me, I have cooties!”

I, uhhh. Okay, then.

Same, boys. Same. Best to get down to business.

“Behold the crown jewels of Mother Russia, Pinky. World conquest will soon be ours!”

Again, world conquest is “ours” and not just Brain’s. Also you can just tell Pinky’s thinking “I’m going to wear so much of this jewelry!”

“Now, Brain?”

“Not yet. Wait for the total eclipse.”

Speaking of…

“Complete darkness, Pinky. Start the Vacuum-o-nator…”

“NOW!”

That gonging noise is an interesting choice for a chime. Surely this ornate clock is only an omen of good things for our duo.

Pinky, you’re swooning again. And Brain…

Oh no.

Another clock! Who’d have thought Russian nobility loved clocks so much? This one has a more pleasant bell chime, though.

…Oh NO!

Well, looks like things are going to hell pretty quickly.

Goodbye, boys.

Goodbye, Czar Nicolas II! You might wanna look out for a man named Grigori Rasputin in the future, okay?

Nice hat, Brain.

“Whu--? The eclipse is over? Narf! What happened, Brain?”

BONK!

“Zort! I mean, Czar Brain.”

“We failed again, Pinky… But just wait until tomorrow night!”

“Why? What are we going to do tomorrow night, Brain?”

“What else, Pinky?: Try to take over the world!”

It was a nice try, boys, but honestly I don’t know how you were going to fit all those crown jewels into that tiny improvised vacuum bag, anyway.

One last cute little detail in this episode is our mousey duo jumping up with enthusiastic determination in front of the silhouette of the moon on the last note of the theme reprise. One day, you guys. One day…

Oh! And before I forget, have another short cameo from “Plane Pals”. It’s a tiny one.

Pinky and the Brain steal a sheep off of an airplane. For what purpose? Who knows? But that’s it. I’m kind of wondering if the writers wanted to make a running joke of them making cameos to steal random things for world conquering purposes and just sort of gave up.

Anyway, so ends our recap for this post. It sure was a long one, but what can I say? There were some very cute details that needed to be shared. Have we learned anything new this time? Well, I mean, besides historical trivia.

Brain thinks both he and Pinky are great actors, despite his own near inability to lie and keep up an innocent pretense. Oh, he can be sarcastic, sure, but he can’t seem to manage to stop himself from revealing that he’s out for world domination whenever he has an audience.

For the first time we see Brain’s annoyance and humiliation resulting from him being a lab mouse. Though it’s on the more subtle side at the moment, Brain seemed extra grumpy and violent during that last episode because of the conditioning he’s unwillingly gone through. I’m curious to see if there are any more examples of this before we reach an episode touching on his origin story. Or…one of his origin stories, at least. There’s around four of them last I checked and all but one of them can reasonably fit into the others.

Pinky is truly beginning to show how much he adores Brain, which is nice. Beforehand we knew he was down with his world domination plans for whatever reason and also that he thinks Brain’s plans are great and ingenious. Now, though, we’ve gotten to the point of him literally swooning at Brain and his plans. Something’s definitely brewing there.

Next time: We get some more substantial cameos, join our mouse duo on a Fort Knox heist, and meet a new character that is both pretty important to the “lore” of the show going forward…but also doesn’t appear in person after their introductory episode until the very end of the Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain spin-off run.

See you then!

#Pinky and the Brain #PatB #Pavlov's Mice #Plane Pals

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beevean · 4 years

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SEGA and the eternal issue of the Sonic-Amy dynamic

[Translator’s note: here’s the original article written by @latin-dr-robotnik, originally written on the 26th of August 2018]

While the Bowsette phenomenon shattered the internet into a thousand pieces, it seems like the Sonic fandom is splitting itself over a completely different matter: the eternal discussion over Sonic and Amy’s dynamic, and how much it can be considered official from SEGA’s perspective.

Note: this article ended up becoming the first part of a trilogy. Stay tuned for the next two parts!

The main culprit of this new chapter of the discourse is, believe it or not, the official SEGA Shop.

Emi Jones (I don’t need to introduce her, most people in the fandom know her) brought the attention on the description of one of the new clothing pieces that appeared in the shop for Amy’s 25th birthday, which essentially invited us to “celebrate 25 years of Sonic the Hedgehog’s girlfriend”. This short sentence generated a chain reaction in the fandom, both positive and negative, and it brought to the light once again the eternal question: is it really possible that they’re actually a couple? What is the official position of SEGA about this? There are good arguments for both sides.

Eggman: If you fight my robot, we’ll be disqualified and you’ll never win that couch for that whiny little girlfriend of yours.

Sonic: SHE’S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!

*wrong answer noise*

Sonic Boom – S1E41

First and foremost, who is Amy?

Note: the article is based on Cutegirlmayra’s research in different magazines, in the games’ canon, in the differences between Japan and the West, in the structure of the relationship, and in SEGA’s marketing.

Note 2: while there will be mentions of other medias such as comics and TV series, this article will explicitly focus on the dynamic between Sonic and Amy in their official Modern versions, that is, from the videogames.

Since her official conception in Sonic CD, Amy has simply been considered our blue hedgehog’s girlfriend without any issue, but Sonic Team looked for a way to make this common cliché a little different. So a “unique” dynamic was established between them: Amy is the one chasing Sonic, Sonic tries to avoid her explicit affection, but despite this they are destined together, both in the proper canon (according to Amy’s tarot cards the two are made for each other) and outside of it (SEGA’s directives). This means that their dynamic is written in an implicit manner, and it’s never clear if Sonic wants to flee to a different galaxy to get away from Amy or if he wants to stay with her forever. Officially, there have been signs both in favor and against it, and the rest is normally left to the interpretations of the fans. Nevertheless, SEGA of Japan and SEGA of America (with the complicity of Europe) have radically different ways of dealing with the Sonamy dynamic.

Sonamy in Japan

The relationship between Sonic and Amy, with its twists and turns, is deeply rooted into the Japanese culture of the ‘90s. According with the material found by Cutegirlmayra, Sonic and Amy are a couple in Japan, no doubt about it. This simple vision is due to how the Adventure era games were written: Sonic is much more gentle and subtle with Amy, to the point that there is a clear difference in tone in the Adventure 2 scene when Sonic, about to be sent off into space in a capsule, tells Amy to take care of herself. Japan didn’t have this vision of an openly hostile Sonic or of a totally-obsessed-to-the-point-of-violence Amy, in their culture and in the game scripts everything is much more serene and acceptable. At the same time, the situation is kept under control thanks to the mandates that SEGA strictly enforces over how to write the characters: for example, one of the most infamous ones is “Sonic can’t explicitly show affection to Amy Rose”. This kind of control allows SEGA of Japan to avoid problems like the ones in the West.

Then we have Sonic Channel, the official Japanese website for information and art, where once in a while events about Sonic and Amy take place, with fans sending their fanart of the official couple.

And finally, we can’t forget Sonic X, that, despite not being part of the official game canon, clearly shows the agenda of SEGA of Japan and Sonic Team for the two characters: dozens of scenes that imply something more, many songs about love/lovers and, well, everything about the famous Episode 52 ending.

Sonamy in the West.

In the West things became more complicated. On one hand, the West came to know Sally Acorn before Amy, and the way they presented the Sonic/Sally relationship was, without any doubt, much healthier in SatAM than, for example, Sonic/Amy in Adventure (note: I purposefully won’t mention Archie Sonic here). At the same time, the differences in translation of the original Japanese scripts, and the cultural differences between these two countries on opposite sides of the world, radically changed the personalities of both characters, giving us the infamous “hysterical fan” Amy in Adventure and Heroes, the one who chases Sonic to force him to marry her. The general public’s perception quickly opposed these attitudes, seeing that they could be potentially toxic and that they undermine the very nature of Sonic. Sonic X did little to help in the West due to the strong censorship process it received when translated from Japanese to English. By 2006 the damage was done, and subsequent attempts to modify Amy’s personality, so that she was not as effusive with Sonic, have been tried over the last decade to repair their dynamics, with a little help from Sonic Boom (where the dynamic is so well written that, in the penultimate episode of season 2, Sonic literally stops racing Tails and Knuckles at Amy’s request to go buy ingredients for the cake he was making - Modern Sonic wouldn’t do that in a thousand years) and from the direction Ian Flynn has been taking the comics he’s been involved in. SEGA’s mandates were applied in the West as well, but relatively late and as a consequence of some things that were slipping out of control, like Archie Sonic. Both Flynn and the writers of Sonic Boom had to find new ways to present the characters, adjusted to both Western cultural patterns and also to the mandates of a Japanese company. Anyway, thanks to the recent accomplishments, we can deduce that the rigid structure of the official mandates is going through some changes that could mean a new agenda from SEGA to represent the Sonamy dynamic.

All of this information leaves us with the last question, that brings us back to the topic of this article and concludes it:

Could Sonamy work today?

In the last 5 years we’ve seen a series of important transformations, both in the way Amy sees the world, her responsibilities and Sonic (ex: Sonic Lost World), and in the way Sonic himself treats Amy. Sonic Forces took some pages from Boom’s book when it came to their personalities, and it seems to be the beginning of a new era, made explicit by that description appeared in the SEGA Shop that sparked today’s discussion.

In 25 years, we’ve seen Amy chasing Sonic all over the world, living a life of adventures that contradicts her dreams of a stable life and a marriage, according to her declarations in games like Adventure. At the same time, Sonic never stopped seeking adventures all over the world, both alone and with his friends, of which he became the protector, including Amy. For the Sonamy dynamic to work today, I think the most obvious solution would be for the two of them to go on adventures together. How we see love has changed a lot in the span of 25 years, and Sonic and Amy would fit well the modern stereotype of those couples that travel all over the world to find adventures, and that we see in those posts labeled “Relationship goals”; at the end of the day, Sonic and Amy are this, stereotypes that follow a certain pattern. What’s more, such a relationship can still be kept subtle and true to official mandates if we add the rest of Team Sonic to the equation, which is basically what Sonic Boom did.

No need for kisses, no need for grandiose love declarations, weddings, or forming a family. All of this would even be extremely out of character for Sonic, and I’d hate for something like this to happen. Team Sonic is the only family he needs, and the Sonamy dynamic could benefit from the adventures, the anecdotes and the moments they spend together. A race at sunset, the view of a mountain, defeating a giant robot together… that’s how I would see a canonical relationship possible, and indeed I’m not the only one who sees it that way - remember IDW Sonic #2? [Translator’s note: the article is in Spanish and outdated]

And let’s not forget about this scene from IDW Sonic #2: Sonic tells Amy that she can come on an adventure with him, but Amy refuses Sonic’s offer because of her responsibilities. Small changes like these have the potential to be slowly integrated into the official canon, and we have already seen how in Forces Amy barely bothers Sonic with her feelings.

So, when the eternal question of whether or not Sonic and Amy would work as a couple comes up again, you can say, yes! Yes, it can work without Sonic having to sacrifice his freedom, or Amy her dreams! The current context is making way for this, and while I may not think this whole SEGA store thing was completely intentional to drive the fandom crazy, I do think it’s time to start accepting the validity and potential of the couple. At the end of the day, everyone will ship what they want anyway, and that’s perfect. It will sound cliché, but remember that phrase that always circulates on social networks: "There are best friends who look like a couple, and couples who look like best friends."

#sonic the hedgehog #amy rose #sonamy #translation #analysis #personal comment: i disagree very much that amy in adventure was as crazy as she was in heroes #i think it was much more balanced and she had her shiny moments #but not my place to change the original words :P #also the bowsette joke immediately dates this article lol

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justletmeplayminecraft · 3 years

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What are your theories on HCBBS?? 👀

I'll preface this by saying: I suck at theories! I'm terrible! I love following other people's investigations, but I honestly Suck at actually figuring them out. So, I don't have anything solid, just a lot of observations and ideas which are under the cut. It's basically my thoughts so far. Which, if you know me, is a lot.

I cover why I think it's not an end of season counter, the symbols, who I think might be behind it, touch on the 'change over' element, and some theories what it might all be. Enjoy this mini essay!

Firstly, I'm personally dismissing the 'counting down to end of season' theory. A lot of hermits have new ideas or continued projects, and it's been said recently there's no date set (I think X's livestream was the last place I heard that?) I believe the new season will start around the Caves & Cliffs update, simply because working out the world gen? That would be yikes. With the Village & Pillage update they expanded the world border, but that mostly affected isolated structure generation. With the Nether Update, they agreed the Nether would be reset. Cave generation? Yeah, I can't see an easy way to do that besides a new world.

The lanterns are also counting down fairly quickly (maybe one a day?), so whatever it is, it's happening within the next few weeks. End of season is a possibility, but I don't think so.

As for what I think it stands for... I'm really not sure. I think it's interesting that the first two work with 'HermitCraft'. I wonder if we were supposed to guess that. Obvious on purpose. I don't think the symbols represent anything, though, I think it's Zalgo generation.

However, I'm not sure if the number of symbols is on purpose or not.

As demonstrated in this image, the person knows how to use symbols for effect, too. So whether the number of symbols represents the number of letters? I'm undecided on that. The maximum characters for naming is 35, and the HCBBS is at 26.

My second point: I think it's Mumbo behind it. He tends not to get involved in plotlines unless he's dragged into them, so for him to start a plotline is very unusual. It's worth remembering that the hermits schedule their 'plot' videos behind the scenes. For Keralis returning in S6, for example, it was first revealed in Cub's video from the surveillance drones! Plotlines are discussed and planned, to an extent. So I think the fact Mumbo revealed it is a little Too coincidental.

Other evidence, it fits Mumbo's build style. People have pointed out a lot of similarities to the button, and it seems like redstone Mumbo is familiar with. Also, I've not seen many people talk about this but- Mumbo's a filmmaker! He made a whole trailer about his new computer coming from space or something! The guy knows how to script and direct, just because he's rarely involved in plots doesn't mean he doesn't know how to write them. The Saturator last season, and the Halloween costume machine this one were small opportunities for content & story, perhaps this is something bigger.

He also established a hashtag for it in his description, and tweeted about it. Combined with the outro to his video breaking his usual conventions, it shows he's got the most engagement of any hermit so far with this storyline. Even if it's not his, he's the one who's pushing it.

I think there's also an argument for Cub, though. In the video where he signed up, his intro was 'Hello people of earth'. He also said Hermits had been talking about it, but from my discovery timeline it seems like it went Mumbo - Joe(? Might be after Cub) - Cub - Keralis. Potentially people in-between if you count the number of paper, but I'm too lazy. So how many hermits would've been talking when he signed up? Cub loves these kinda plots, so it wouldn't be too unreasonable, and the redstone is definitely on his level. It's also verging on his shop plot, so I think whoever made it would've asked him for permission, at least.

Moving on to this

The fact it's 'the' changeover implies a one-time event of some kind. Good for drama. It's pretty obvious whatever it is will occur once the countdown ends. I think the question is: will it start, or will it happen? The start of something longer, or a one time event. Also, if the involved hermits will be there when it does, 'cause that's hard to schedule. We're already covering multiple timezones.

And then:

This is just quick from Google, but I'm assuming we must be going for the first definition? Thing is, I'm not sure what could change on HC. A rule maybe, similar to Demise? I'm not sure if this would be Demise 2.0 but it's possible. Demise was well received and a good push to the end of season. And it would be changing to a new system/situation, one where death matters. Other theories I had were the government system, or perhaps replacing the grass again - but those wouldn't need to invite people. Plus I doubt X is giving up his gardener job so soon. So I think it's some kind of minigame set up.

Things I think it might be?

Let's get the disappointing out of the way: Pacific advertising. I mean, look how hard Mumbo was prepared to go for Mumbo for Mayor. He would. I'm hoping it isn't. I also don't know if they have an opening date for Pacific in mind, since Iskall has been busy with Vault Hunters. He's making episodes again now, though. I can't discount it, and will be disappointed if that's the case.

I think it's likely a minigame of some kind, where a fundamental rule of the world changes. But besides death, I don't know what that could be. Another tag kinda game? Curse of binding heads? Who knows.

From the letters, I think a Build Battle could be pretty fun! They've shown having the hermits working on minigames in a small space works great for content, so maybe an extension of that. But it's not exactly a change over.

My far out dream, an old hermit returning. Jessassin is playing with them for an event on Friday! However, I think it's pretty easy to dismiss that on the earlier mentioned 'Why invite people then?'

In conclusion, I'm leaning towards sign ups for a minigame. It makes sense why they'd want names, and if it's a Demise esq event, some build up for it would be interesting! I'm leaning towards Mumbo or Cub as the creator/writer, but Mumbo is definitely driving the plotline. Right now, I'm just excited to see who signs up.

#hermitcraft #hc #hcbbs #hermitcraft spoilers #im mostly collecting info rn and observing #same as i did for demise!#i suck at figuring stuff like this out jkjgf

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weekendwritingmarathon · 3 years

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This weekly roundup includes fics written (at least in part) during the 1k1h sprints and/or the Weekend Writing Marathon events.

Fics are ordered first by fandom, then by word count from smallest to largest.

Promises from Fathers by Yuliares

DOTA: Dragon’s Blood || gen || Teen & up || Major Character Death || 812 words || Complete

Summary: Invoker and Filomena leave the temple, and return home. There's a little more time for them, together.

Other tags: Angst, grief, sick child, father-daughter, spoilers

A Taste of Salt by Yuliares

The Irregulars || gen || General || No major warnings apply || 650 words || Complete

Summary: The crew settles into 221B, and Watson gets a tattoo.

Other tags: Found family, domestic fluff, tattoos, 221BBaker Street

Strangers Who’ve Known Love by Yuliares

The Irregulars || M/F || Teen & up || No major warnings apply || 2,308 words || Complete

Summary: In the face of loss, Leo tries to build something new.

Other tags: Making the best of an arranged marriage

A Heart On Its Own Feet by treefrogie84

The Old Guard || Joe/Nicky || Teen & up || No major warnings apply || 6,165 words || Complete

Summary: Yusuf is twenty-seven when he learns the last principle of growing up: you can't go home again. He's thirty-three when he meets the love of his life. He's... a lot older than that when he comes home again.

Other tags: You Can't Go Home Again, 5+1 Things, Comfort No Hurt, post 9/11 racism, minimal historical research done, FTH Auction 2021, food as memories, language as memories

The Emptiness of Burning Cities by treefrogie84

The Old Guard || Joe/Nicky || Mature || Graphic Descriptions of Violence || 6,811 words || Complete

Summary: They’ve been running missions non-stop for over two months, and Andy just keeps pushing for more: more jobs, faster. They’re all exhausted and Joe just wants a break. One more job and then he’s putting his foot down, grabbing Nicky, and running for the hills. He just wasn’t expecting it to go so very bad.

Other tags: Background Relationships, Canon Typical Major Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, Exhaustion, Unprocessed Trauma, Mercenary Work, prison labor, bad things happening to kids, Political Prisoners, Depression, Pre-Canon, the cost of violence paid by the soul, stressed team

Not Your Guardian Angel (chapter 27) by @tryslora

Original Fiction (Welcome to PHU) || M/F/F (Shane/Pels/Jess) || Teen & up || Author chooses not to give major warnings || 3,245 / 102,546 words || WIP

Summary: Seth’s voice is low, almost gentle. “If you’re hungry, you should eat.”

Other tags: Magic, College, Guardian Angel, Ghosts, Soulmarks

Not Your Guardian Angel (chapter 28) by @tryslora

As Above || 2,577 / 105,123 words || WIP

Summary: Pels pushes her hands harder into her pockets. “Let’s do this,” she mutters.

Letters Addressed to the Fire by treefrogie84

Supernatural, Wayward Sisters || gen || Teen & up || No major warnings apply || 978 words || Complete

Summary: The match flares, sulfur bright, as she drops it into the bowl. The ingredients spark and fizzle as they light, wormwood and saffron going up in smoke and reflecting into the glass sphere suspended above it. Patience takes a deep breath and holds it while she glances over the notepad balanced on her knee. Breathing out steadily, she carefully reads off the summoning and settles back to wait.

Other tags: spell casting, failed summoning

A Snowstorm of Dreams by treefrogie84

Supernatural, Wayward Sisters || Kaia/Claire || General || No major warnings apply || 1,202 words || Complete

Summary: The burned out ruins aren't a hunt, just a landmark for them to stop at for the night on their way north. Nothing special at all.

Other tags: Road Trips, getting engaged, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Days Off

Reach the Morning Light by treefrogie84

Supernatural, Wayward Sisters || Kaia/Claire || General || No major warnings apply || 1,585 words || Complete

Summary: Good news! She's out of court-ordered rehab and at least a state away! Bad news! She's in the hospital, there's another hunter on her ass, and her nightmares have broken through and are chasing her down. (Aka: Wayward Sisters from Kaia's pov)

Other tags: Pre-Relationship, Episode: s13e10 Wayward Sisters, POV Kaia Nieves, Lesbian Claire Novak, demisexual kaia

Sicarius by DomesticatedFeral

Teen Wolf || Stackson || Teen & up || Author chooses not to give major warnings || 16,894 words || Complete

Summary: “No, I began training to become an assassin. I didn’t feel like I had the time to get involved in a relationship, nor did I want anyone getting involved in all-” he gestured to himself- “this.” Jackson raised an eyebrow at his statement. “The assassin thing.”

Other tags: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Assassination Attempt(s), BAMF Stiles, Lawyer Jackson Whittemore, Assassin Stiles Stilinski, POV Multiple, Brawling and Fighting, Internal Conflict, Beacon Hills does exist in this AU, Past Ethan/Jackson Whittemore - mentioned only, Psychological Torture, Angst, Original Character Death(s), Car Accidents, Jackson Whittemore is Bad at Feelings, Mutual Pining, Past Lydia Martin/Stiles Stilinski - mentioned, Gunshot Wounds, Mild Gore, Blood and Injury, Love Confessions

Have you posted a fic recently? Any active WWM participant can Submit your fic here by midnight EST Wednesday and it will be included on next Friday’s WWM Fic Roundup post.

#wwm fic roundup #DOTA #dota: dragon's blood #the irregulars #the old guard #original fiction #welcome to phu #supernatural #wayward sisters #teen wolf #fanfic

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letterboxd · 3 years

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How I Letterboxd #12: Joe Lynch.

Self-described cinedork and Mayhem filmmaker Joe Lynch tells Horrorville’s Brett Petersel about cinematic sausage, getting to direct Creepshow episodes and being a three-star starter on Letterboxd.

“Even when I watch what I would think is a real stinker, I also consider that there were many people involved in that film who didn’t walk on set going ‘okay people, let’s screw this up today!’” —Joe Lynch

It is always a pleasure to find film directors lurking on Letterboxd. Joe Lynch is a bona fide, OG member, having racked up more than 1,500 diary entries, giving half-star reviews to his own work, and creating lists of the movies that have influenced the making of his films.

There are the films that were in Lynch’s subconscious when he made Mayhem, a workplace splatter led by Steven Yeun and Samara Weaving. There are the movies he watched while researching the Salma Hayek-starring Everly. And this just in: films that influenced The Right Snuff, one of Lynch’s two episodes for the new Creepshow series—based on the 1982 horror-comedy classic and its sequels—which premieres on Shudder April 15.

Like so many of us, Lynch took time during the pandemic to catch up on films he had neglected to watch in spite of a previous career as a video-store clerk (a Criterion Channel subscription helped him get on top of the backlog). In this edition of ‘How I Letterboxd’, Lynch discusses how those classics have informed his craft, who his Letterboxd faves are, and why the horror genre is the future of the industry.

Steven Yeun and Samara Weaving in Joe Lynch’s ‘Mayhem’ (2017).

How long have you been on Letterboxd? Joe Lynch: I remember when Letterboxd was in its beta phase way back in good ol’ 2012 and I couldn’t wait to sign up, breathlessly waiting for an invite to the party. At the time, I had a digital database where I would log movies I’ve seen, but it was always subject to whatever laptop or device I had handy and would just be a mess of titles with no rhyme or reason.

When a member follows you, what should they expect? I put it right up top in my description: “I am not a critic”, just a lover of cinema. At first I didn’t want to write “reviews” in the description, especially since I first started using the service whilst in the throes of a horrible experience making a film that I thought would bury me and I’d never work again. I was like, and I still feel this way, “who am I to rip on a movie when someone can throw it right back at me? Like ‘dude, you directed Knights of Badassdom, sit down’.”

I’ve always had the highest regard for filmmakers who can get anything made. So even when I watch what I would think is a real stinker, I also consider that there were many people involved in that film who didn’t walk on set going “okay people, let’s screw this up today!” but instead were trying their best and circumstances just got in the way, which always happens. Having made a few films and TV now, I’m fully aware of the trials and tribulations that go into making a movie and have all the respect in the world for anyone who can steer that ship to completion. It’s hard making movies and even harder making one that is your original vision [and] that is widely embraced by an audience.

I have very weird tastes so don’t be shocked if you glance at my recent activity and you see Casablanca, The Silence of the Lambs or Bigger Than Life right next to The Legend of Billie Jean, Con Air or Candyman 3. I’m usually bouncing all over the place in terms of what kinds of movies I’m screening. From films recommended to me, to films that I may be watching for research, or even just how I’m feeling that day and maybe need a good laugh or a good cry or to be scared stiff. I like that kind of variety. There’s something out there for everyone and every emotion. If anything, I’d say expect the unexpected when it comes to my viewing habits.

What’s your favorite feature to use and why? One of the residual effects of working at video stores as a kid was my desire to siphon people’s tastes in movies and possibly recommend films to others as well, so my favorite feature is the ease of use in logging films and being able to quickly recall those films as well in the event someone asks me “what’s something I should watch?”. Getting older, the “employee’s picks” in my head is getting a little harder to cross-reference than usual so to have the ability to whip out my phone and say “oh man, I just watched Possession and it was awesome!” is exponentially helpful to a cinedork like myself.

‘Big Trouble in Little China’ (1986)—a five-star film says Joe Lynch.

How do you rate the films you watch? For example, what type of film is worthy of a five-star review? Funny, I always start out on three-stars mainly because I’m so proud of the filmmakers actually getting it completed! I’ve been there! I’m somewhat biased in my reflections because I’m always rooting for the artists and from there, it’s usually gauged on both an emotional level and a technical level. I always get made fun of while watching movies because I can point out hidden cuts or when a shot is reversed but [I’m] not trying to point out flaws, it's just how my brain is wired at this point. When you pull the curtain back enough to see how the cinematic sausage is made, it's harder and harder to objectively watch a movie without trying to dissect how it was done. I try so hard to shut that part of my brain off to just passively enjoy a movie but it’s tough. I usually skew towards the positive.

The films I’ve given five-stars are movies that have continually affected me over the years and have inspired me as a person and a filmmaker, which is everything from The Empire Strikes Back, Dawn of the Dead and When Harry Met Sally... to Big Trouble in Little China, The Blob, The Last of the Mohicans. I looked back at my five-stars and it’s mostly movies that made a significant impression on me from an early age and continue to do so, maybe even more so as I get older and I view these movies in a different light.

The anthology show Creepshow returns to Shudder this month. Tell us about the two episodes you directed for the series, ‘Pipe Screams’ and ‘The Right Snuff’. Both Creepshow and Creepshow 2 were important films in my youth and even today, they were some of the first movies I remember where I wasn’t quite sure if I was supposed to be scared or laugh. These films proclaimed we could do both! As a disciple of George A. Romero, Stephen King and Tom Savini, Creepshow really shaped how I watched movies and how I made them—consider the anthology I did a few years back, Chillerama, as a prime example. So when Shudder announced the show, I had to do everything on my part to convince them I could take the baton from these masters of the macabre and do them and the many fans proud.

To come to the table and say “I want ‘The Right Snuff’ to feel like 2001: A Space Odyssey crashed into The Andromeda Strain, and ‘Pipe Screams’ is my homage to The Blob and Delicatessen”—and then everyone just immediately getting it—was a dream. Between the casts I was lucky enough to work with and the amazing crew, especially the FX geniuses at KNB, it really was one of those dream jobs I’ll never forget. I hope audiences dig the madness we conjured up on those!

Season 2 of the Shudder series ‘Creepshow’ returns to the horror streamer this month. A third season has been ordered.

If you were to expand the Mayhem universe, what would it look like? We tried! I pitched the producers the idea of the ID-7 virus in other locations and situations because in essence the idea of being uninhibited by mental and emotional constraints is so ripe. My favorite was the idea that it would get loose in a Wal-Mart or a mall on Black Friday when consumers swarm to these department stores for the best deals. You’ve seen the videos, it’s just mass hysteria. The footage already out there would have been perfect to use already and those people aren’t even infected!

Sadly it didn’t come to pass, mainly because they asked “how do we get Steven and Samara back?” and I didn’t want to force those characters into that scenario, Die Hard 2 style. Plus they’re both huge stars now and likely unavailable for the next twelve years. But the ideas people have thrown out to me show that it was impactful enough to warrant variant scenarios in a “what if?” way that’s really exciting. Who knows, maybe the ID-7 virus could find its way onto the set of a movie production…

What excites you about the future of filmmaking, especially in horror films? The world is embracing new faces and voices more than ever and it means we’re getting stories that may not have ever had the chance to flourish and be seen and heard before. For the longest time the system was much more rigid because executives and producers thought that the audience was much less accepting of a wider world view in cinema and I think the last ten years has proven them wrong. There shouldn’t be any more “token” character or “strong [insert non-white-male] character” descriptions in development meetings. I hear it less and less, which is great because that’s not our world and since cinema—especially horror—is and always should be a reflection of our culture and times, it should reflect these evolutions as well.

When I made Wrong Turn 2: Dead End, the discussions over how one of the characters—a Black character played by Texas Battle—survived at the end was not in the original script but I pushed for it mainly because it was rare for the Black character to do so in a horror film. That shouldn’t be an anomaly! Why can’t there be a ‘final guy’ or have the survivors be LGBT+ or a POC and not the usual stereotypes?

I think now it’s more commonplace to see this and it excites me for the future of the genre that artists are being more welcome to express themselves without it feeling like it’s a gimmick or a twist on the norm.

I think generations of kids growing up with horror now are gonna see these strides in the storytelling—and who’s telling the stories—and push it even further. Places like Netflix and Shudder are willing to take chances with new voices more than the studio system, now more than ever, and that’s only going to produce some great stories now and in the future.

Erica Leehrsen and Texas Battle in a scene from ‘Wrong Turn 2: Dead End’ (2007).

How has the pandemic affected your creativity and influenced your work moving forward? Aside from losing a bunch of gigs due to the shutdown and being delayed on shooting Creepshow—which was a blessing in disguise considering the time we took to further develop the scripts and design of each episode—one of the main effects of the pandemic was how it gave many of us the time to catch up on a lot of films, mainly older ones. As you’d see from my diary entries on this very site, my viewing habits changed from a lot of modern films in that rat-race of catching up with the latest release, to mainly watching films I loved in the past and a lot of ’40s to ’70s films that I never got around to.

We have the tendency as film lovers to keep a mental list of films we’ll eventually get around to as if we have all the time in the world, but with the threat of the apocalypse and no real new content coming our way at the usual rapid clip, it was so gratifying to buy an annual subscription to Criterion Channel and start watching films like The Old Dark House, The Crimson Kimono, Contempt and many others.

All of these films impacted how I view film now and have bled into future projects I’m working on—especially on the technical side, when the world wasn’t influenced vicariously through MTV coverage and letting scenes play out in masters or longer takes, relishing in the performance or the mise-en-scéne. So, silver linings!

Before we go, who are some of your favorite follows on Letterboxd? I’m a big fan of Sean Baker, who I’ve known for almost 20 years now! We worked together in NYC and I was already a big Greg the Bunny fan but our mutual appreciation for fringe and exploitation films, especially international horror and genre films, seems to have bonded us for life. I love when he posts what he’s watching. Even if he’s just saying he screened something on Blu or streaming, his thoughts on cinema are always enjoyable and engaging.

In the same breath, filmmaker Jim Cummings has the best perspective on modern filmmaking and he’s clearly a big fan of using Letterboxd, so whenever I see peers like them using the app it makes me feel less like an obsessive movie dork myself, who should be getting back to work.

Some of the other follows I really enjoy are cineastes like Elric Kane and Brian Saur, who are the hosts of the New Beverly podcast Pure Cinema. Writers Anya Stanley, David Chen, Walter Chaw and Lindsay Blair Goeldner, musician and filmmaker Brendon Small, writer and critic Brian Tallerico, author Glenn Kenny, filmmaker Rodman Flender—just to name a few people who clearly love film and love sharing their thoughts on films in a very thoughtful way.

More times than not, I’m getting some great advice for what to watch next in my “new from friends” section! Because, like being at the video store, it’s casual conversations like the ones on Letterboxd that I love and always steering me to new films or revisiting old ones with a new perspective.

Related content

Joe’s film influences for ‘The Right Snuff’ Creepshow episode

The Video Store: Hollie Horror’s list of horror films with memorable scenes in video stores

Office Workplace Horror: J Cara’s list of office horror and workplace thrillers

Follow Brett on Letterboxd

Follow Horrorville—the home for horror on Letterboxd

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kenanda · 3 years

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ok so here’s what i’ve been thinking about jmart and emotional anchors

bear with me cuz i’m completely insane aND VERY SLEEPY tonight

*contains tma s4 spoilersss*

In Mag048 – lost in the crowd, a stranger tells Andrea that she has been marked. He doesn’t know by what, but the general rule seems to be that, whatever has marked you, you’ll need a strong anchor to escape it.

Because the stranger urges Andrea to think of her mother if things become worse, it’s reasonable to think that, per rule, an anchor must symbolise a strong emotional connection between the Marked and this world. In Andrea’s case, her ancho also manifests in physical nature, due to being related by blood. Whatever the particulars of it, fact remains that it’s the act of turning her thoughts to her mother that ultimately allows her to escape the faceless crowd (and what I can only assume is the Lonely).

We see something similar happening in mag150 – cul-de-sac. Herman wanders for hours, and is on the verge of losing it, when he finally sees his car and hears his phone ring, but we only see him actually snapping out of it and escaping the Lonely once he reads Alberto’s name on the screen.

The fact that his first words upon answering the call are “I love you” contributes to the hypothesis that an anchor is a deep emotional tie. One could argue that the “physical” nature of Herman’s anchor is his (failed) marriage to Alberto. A marriage has something “material” to it, but it’s turning his thoughts to Alberto that ultimately saves Herman. But had Alberto not called, perhaps Herman would’ve been lost forever.

I’ll get back to the bit about turning one’s mind to their anchor in a bit. First, I’d like to talk about a few other instances in which an anchor might’ve been something entirely physical, and my thoughts on why it was so.

In mag051 – high pressure, Antonia sticks her head in an underwater hole that, from the description of it, has her gazing upon a manifestation of one of the 14 fears. The pressure is so strong, that the only reason she manages to pull back and escape is because the jagged edge of the metal framing the hole cuts into her hands and allows her to snap out of it.

This suggests that, however lost a person might be, there’s still something sacred (for lack of a better word) about one’s physical body. We are our first anchor, and a reminder that we are still flesh and blood can be a strong enough shield against the mental traps of these Fears.

Mag156 – reflection supports that idea, in that it’s the sudden awareness of how much flesh there was on his body that has the “young man” of Dekker’s letter finally running for his life, in an attempt to escape that place, which he succeeds (if we’re being optimistic). I don’t remember very well which episode it was, but I remember Basira talking about how she escaped the Unknowing involved looking inwards and ignoring all else. Once again, the body was the anchor.

In mag130 – meat, Gertrude talks about the siren call of the flesh. If I’m not mistaken, she is talking about the Fear, but that still provides some valuable insight into how the body might serve as the primary anchor — whether one is actually marked and lured or just finds themselves trapped in a maze of terror, which I believe is the case with statements where no external emotional bonds are involved. If all else fails, you still got your body to get you out of there.

When Jon goes into the Buried, he has no one else to resort to, no apparent close emotional bonds, which is why his anchor has to be of physical nature. The same isn’t true for Martin in mag159 – the last, because his own perception of self is warped and nearly gone. It takes Jon’s looking at him and encouraging Martin to look back to help Martin feel real again. Not only does Martin reach out to his emotional anchor at that moment, but Jon also seeks after him.

In lost in the crowd, Andrea thinks of her mother, while in cul-de-sac, Antonio calls Herman. They are different ways of reaching out, but they still serve their final purpose. In Martin’s case, however, it takes both looking and being seen to save him, and perhaps it only works because these happen simultaneously.

It goes to show that there is power in being at the centre of someone’s attention. Having someone feel and fear for you can help pull you out of dark places, which is what I believe happens in mag132 – entombed.

Jon leaves a part of himself behind so that he can find his way back, but much like Martin, at some point he loses connection with himself. He is forever below creation so, for all accounts, who is to say that he even exists anymore? He is virtually a mind without a body in that moment, but he still manages to find himself again.

Why? Well, it could be the tapes scattered around the coffin, reminding him that he belongs to the Eye. It could be that the pull of his new nature is so strong that it refuses to be stuck in a place where it can’t even dream.

But it could also be that having someone thinking of him and going out of their way to call him home, however that may be, however he may come, is what finally reminds Jon that there’s still a part of himself out there which he can’t lose sight of.

And he doesn’t. He looks them right in the eye and says “don’t worry, I know the way” when it needs him most.

like my thoughts subscribe to my channel or idk just leave a sexy comment in my inbox. luv, nanda

#tma #tma s4 #jmart #nanda's ramblings #no spoilers pls #a bitch is still in s4

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five-wow · 4 years

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10.19!!! watched it, had thoughts about it, wrote them down. the usual under the cut.

there is a random man in steve’s kitchen (is it the helicopter guy? i... don’t know him well enough to be sure but i am genuinely unsure who else it would be) wearing a “seals do it better” apron while he’s cooking and talking to junior about how this recipe helped him “seal the deal” with the love of his life. okay, random man. you’re not acknowledging it, but you just made a seal pun, so you have my attention.

btw, for a good long moment i genuinely thought this guy might be danny in some kind of weird dream sequence future. i mean, old danny in steve’s kitchen wearing a seal-themed apron and making waffles? i wouldn’t hate it.

junior about how it’s going with tani: “it’s amazing.” okay a) YAY and THAT IS VERY CUTE and b) even so, it’s hilarious to me when random guy says “sounds like you’ve got it bad” just based on junior saying that it’s amazing while he kind of smiles vaguely. cute as it was, it wasn’t a passionate love declaration.

junior lies in bed awake at night dreaming of his thing with tani working out (and not sleeping because he’s scared it might not) and i just !! he’s a smitten mess over her and i adore it, even though his level of anxiety sounds like it’s a little detrimental for his sleep, omg.

fjdkfd we get a scene of adam and quinn who went surfing together and OF COURSE they’re standing under the beach showers as they talk because i feel like adam is literally contractually obligated to have a certain number of shower scenes each season.

tani!! gave quinn!! some surfing pointers!! let’s review: we know that tani is really great at surfing and definitely better than junior, because we had a scene once of them getting back from a surfing trip and junior was slightly pouty over it and tani was absolutely unwilling to downplay her own skill and it was Very Good, and now, in these last few episodes, tani was first present during noelani’s surfing lessons and now she’s apparently been giving quinn advice, and the idea of the h50 women hanging out? the idea of tani being supportive and sharing her knowledge? it’s all so good, ahhh. (ALSO. my mighty need for tani and kono to meet grows with each and every mention of tani’s surfing skill.)

oh my gOD i wrote that bit in brackets and hit play on the episode and IMMEDIATELY adam says that he’s used to being second best in the ocean because “my ex wife was a pro surfer, and very competitive.” YES. GOOD. LOVE THE KONO REFERENCE.

quinn gets a dramatic call from an olivia! i read an episode description, so i know that’s her ex-step daughter. i’m a little hesitant about this “btw quinn has an ex-husband” subplot, but also curious to see where they’re going with it, and quinn jumping to help out a teen girl that she still has a strong bond with is an angle of approach that could potentially be very very relevant to my interests.

cows! “moooo” say the cows, quietly, under the music. they’re not important or plot-relevant, i just like cows.

fjdkfd olivia has a Bad Dad and yes, i do want quinn to adopt her now. it could be good! she could swap tips with steve about how to let your adopted teen know they’re loved and safe and worth so much more than what their parents gave them.

tani to junior: “what, you think i didn’t have a life before i met you?” junior’s eyes: [shoot up to steve, standing right behind tani, who is junior’s mentor AND boss, making it slightly awkward to have a relationship talk right in front of him during work hours] POOR BOY (but also, yes, tani, tell him).

junior is now obsessed with the mystery of why tani is so familiar with a random rancher bar an hour away from her house, and to be honest, so am i.

tani wON A LINE DANCING COMPETITION FOUR WEEKS IN A ROW. that is the BEST solution to the mystery, my gosh.

tani: [brags about her line dancing skills and calls herself the queen] junior: “who are you?” fdjkfdjkfd junior, i don’t even know why you’re suprised that a) tani slays at something she did or b) she is utterly unapologetic about that fact.

olivia says that maybe quinn could come watch her play volleybal some time and quinn says that she’d love to but it’s complicated and don’t do that, quinn! my heart hurts now!

OKAY so olivia isn’t doing cheer this year even though she was captain the previous year and she makes up an excuse about it being because of the other girls but it’s actually about HER DAD taking the money that quinn gave her for a UNIFORM which means she probably couldn’t even try out and I HATE THIS. find your ex and kick his ass, quinn.

lou, after talking about macadamia farming: “but here’s where the story gets a littllllle... nutty.” tani, fistpumping: “nice one.” punner solidarity!! good stuff, good stuff. (though i do wonder what happened to danny’s punning streak in later seasons. anyone remember 1.14, when he joked about the head in a box? he’s lost his appreciation for this fine art and it’s a tragedy, honestly.)

quinn has enlisted adam’s help in tracking her ex (jake) down and she’s telling adam a little about how she never thought she’d fall for a guy like him but he was charming, and then she says “and olivia” and THAT’S when she really smiles, and look, PLEASE don’t let this episode end with olivia still living with her dad because will have to write fix-it fic.

quinn: “i haven’t told anybody i was married, not even steve.” that’s cool, but like, do we believe that means steve doesn’t know? if his background checks haven’t gone completely downhill in the last few years, i would assume he’s figured this out, right? (i love quinn’s “in case you haven’t noticed, i’m not really a sharer” that she adds, because it fits with her personality and it’s just nice to have a female character that’s allowed to be a little secretive about her past in a way that doesn’t feel, idk, sensationalized.)

i have seen a lot of gifs of this episode by now and they’re all of steve and danny and the horses so i’ve seen most of their very polite discussion that ensues when danny calls steve out on not asking him if he wants to ride along, but it’s still utterly glorious. grace gets mentioned, too! and the way danny ends it with “why don’t you try to keep up?” as he passes in front of steve, with steve watching him go? that is flirting. blatant flirting in front of all of their poor teammates. (at least now junior can feel a little less awkward about bringing his relationship with him on the job!)

fjdkfdjk lou’s “all this and they still go time to argue, isn’t that nice?” is A+

steve and danny, as they’re super leisurely chasing some criminals through the woods on horseback: yes, this would be a good time to make up an argument about absolutely nothing at all.

oh gosh, okay, danny says “you know i can uh, i can hear you at night” and steve’s response is “why don’t you get some earplugs?” and um. uh. it’s followed by context, i know, but come on, jfc.

“when i moved in a couple months ago” he’s just GOING for it now, omg. not “came to stay with you”, no attempt at hiding that he’s been staying with steve for literal months at this point - just. when i moved in. a couple months ago.

(i am obviously also very aware of what danny is saying about steve not sleeping and how that’s a new thing because it wasn’t like that a few months ago and steve’s evasiness about it and i am VERY WORRIED ABOUT THAT but i’m also electing to somewhat ignore it because. my god. screw that. we don’t want any of where that seems to be headed in this house.)

“i appreciate it. thank you.” this is growth and it’s good and it’s steve realizing that maybe just his quippy putdown isn’t enough of a response to danny’s genuine offer of support! (and again, we’re not thinking about reasons why he might want to think twice about how he treats danny so danny will know he’s appreciated, because there is no reason for steve to be worried about that, because nothing is going to happen.)

steve: “cuff him, danno.” DANNO. danno has returned from war!!

fjdkfd and then steve says it again in like, the next sentence he says. really cramming in those danno’s suddenly.

oh noooooo. quinn tells adam that jake could be a very good dad (which is valid! addiction is a disease and it’s good to know he wasn’t always like this to olivia, even if i don’t think it excuses what’s happening now), but then she says that jake was all the things she always wished her own dad could be and that maybe that’s why she was so drawn to him, and. okay. did not need that. h50 has a tendency to make women compare their love interests to their dads that makes me very uncomfortable. (the other big one that springs to mind is when abby and chin are courting and chin opens a car door for abby and she says something about how she always admired chivalry in her dad and she thought that died out with his generation and it’s this weird thing where she seems to be flirting by going “wink wonk you make me think of my dad” and oh my god. let’s just say it’s very much not my thing.)

steve and danny end up holed up in a cabin while seven people shoot at them and ahhh, just like old times. also just like last episode, to be honest, with the whole cabin filled with poison thing, but at least there’s no poison this time! that’s a plus!

steve’s improv involves LASSO’ING a guy i’m screaming

dude gets the drop on steve, they have an epic fight, steve HITS HIS HEAD and the dude picks up a GIANT LOG to hulksmash on steve’s head, presumably, and then danny swoops in to the rescue and!!! that’s also very much like old times!!! especially with this forest green color scheme and steve lying on the floor a little dazed it really reminds me of that episode with the girlscout troop in season 3.

(so. in this possible universe we’re not talking about where steve might be sick again and could be pacing at night because he knows or fears he’s going to die (you know the one) do you think that maybe part of why his first words to danny are “why’d you leave the cabin? that wasn’t the plan” is that he was kind of... hoping the other guy would get to finish him off? do you ever think about how steve mcgarrett, man of action, would almost definitely rather go out in a blaze of glory after taking out six guys all on his own with danny having his back, than after watching his own body slowly betray him and give out on him after losing a painful and drawn-out fight with itself?)

confused, frowny steve who almost definitely has a concussion and is also still very bloody is oddly cute, gosh. also, nincompoop! definitely one of danny’s most wonderful insults yet.

quinn gets her ex arrested and yells at him and tells him that if he doesn’t clean up his act, he’ll lose custody of his daughter, and then she drives away and she’s sobbing and trying not to and just !!!!! this was definitely the good kind of “quinn has an ex-husband” storyline, but also very painful.

the sunset scene! seen this in gifset too, but hoooo boy, it hits very differently with actual sound. (i may also have described the scene to my sister and mentioned the “probably ‘cause i figured i’d see a million more” and her immediate response was “oooh, he’s dead” and yES, that’s what i was TELLING YOU i’m worried about and also what i’m not thinking about so let’s just pretend i’m not typing these words right now.)

fdjkfdjkfd i’m sure that steve turning to danny just as he says “those are the things that you’re gonna miss the most in the end, you know” after mentioning things you see every day is just. a total coincidence. yeah. he’s totally just turning away from this sunset he was so entranced by a moment ago to look at danny’s face because he wants to stretch his neck. uh huh.

there’s banter about squirrels and it’s good and then steve says “admit it danny, you’re gonna miss this when it’s done” and that sounds very meta, omg, but it gets better when danny says “yeah, maybe, but i would never say it out loud” because that is literally a way to say it, out loud.

a very good episode!! i loved meeting olivia and learning about quinn’s background and there was some prime tani content and to top it off a lot of mcdanno in the second half, and if we just completely ignore that this episode also made my anxiety about the series finale skyrocket (which i knew it would, based on what i’d gathered of other people’s response to it, but that still didn’t accurately prepare me) it was wonderful and i liked it a lot!

#10.19 #h50 spoilers #h50 #I. DO NOT WANT TO THINK ABOUT WHAT MIGHT BE AHEAD

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anhed-nia · 3 years

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BLOGTOBER 10/27/2020: THE CURSE OF CATTOBER pt 3 - THE CORPSE GRINDERS

Ted V. Mikel's notorious sickie THE CORPSE GRINDERS is one of a few movies that has become symbolic of my whole journey with psychotronic cinema. Today, I would understand exactly what kind of movie this is, even if I had not seen this exact item: An exploitation movie in the truest sense, just as infamous for its grossout premise as it is for its extraordinary cheapness, delivering all of the moral turpitude and almost none of the over the top effects promised by its attention-grabbing key art--or its dumbfounding title. But when I was a kid, I seriously wondered about these films; worried about them, even.

I wasn't allowed to watch anything that smacked of bad taste, but I still managed to build up a vivid awareness that there were movies out there about forms of perversion and evil that I could never imagine, made by freaks of the highest order. I would hunch nervously over the horror rack at our local mom & pop video mart, earning me the nickname Igor from the amused heshers behind the register, while my parents went through the motions of renting me LABYRINTH for a eight zillionth time. I was allowed to buy exactly one copy of Fangoria (the December 1990 issue featuring LEATHERFACE) before my mother reneged on this gesture of tolerance, but I was allowed to read most anything I wanted--my intellectual hippie folks wouldn't dream of censuring the written word--and I spent many hours, nay years, poring over the Re/Search book of Incredibly Strange Films. This helped create a kind of cinema of the mind for me, in which I tried my best to realize what the movies discussed in the book could possibly be like in real life. The book's detailed descriptions of pictures like SPIDER BABY, THE WIZARD OF GORE, SHE-FREAK, THE UNDERTAKER AND HIS PALS, etc were stimulating in some ways, and only added to my confusion in others. Without seeing them up close, it was hard to make sense of their combination of laughable cheapness, unfunny comedy, and genuinely sickening crimes against human dignity. What these movies are like, is something you can only find out for yourself.

Having said all that, I'm still going to try to tell you what THE CORPSE GRINDERS is like. We open on the rainswept grounds of the Farewell Acres cemetery, where a jerky-addicted ogre called Caleb (Warren Ball) is extracting freshly interred bodies from the earth, as a gaggle of geese honk savagely from being a wire fence. Caleb's dotty wife Cleo (Ann Noble) argues with Caleb for not-the-last time about how his jerky habit is going to ruin his appetite for the dinner she slops out for her filthy baby doll instead, while Caleb bitches about not being paid by a Mr. Landau for his latest job. What's the job, you ask? Selling corpses to the Lotus Cat Food company, where Landau (Sanford Mitchell) has discovered that human flesh is the secret to his success, having kinda-accidentally fed a difficult shareholder into his cat food grinder. It's hard to say exactly how this has led to such a windfall for Landau, especially since he has to produce the illicit pet food one corpse at a time with his neurotic assistant Maltby (J. Byron Foster, my favorite guy in the movie). I guess I've just never dealt with a cat whose specific addiction is so obvious, so oppressive, even, that it forces me to buy the most expensive cat food on the market. This is what is happening to customers whose cats have fallen under the spell of Lotus, and they pay for it with their very lives because Lotus has given their pets a taste for long pig. Landau struggles to find more sources for his secret ingredient, including a mob hitman, giggly morticians who load the bodies up with "pork-flavored fluid (instead of) formaldehyde", and his own employees--"The world is full of ingredients!" he declares, hopefully. Meanwhile, Doctors Howard Glass (Sean Kenney) and Angie Robinson (Monika Kelly) decide to investigate the recent rash of cat attacks; it's hard to imagine how they're going to get to the bottom of anything, amid many makeout breaks and random changes of clothes, but somebody has to stop all these house cats from devouring the rest of Los Angeles, and it might as well be them.

So that's the plot, but THE CORPSE GRINDERS is still a lot weirder than what I've described. You could be forgiven for wondering whether the movie is supposed to take place in Andy Milligan's version of 19th century London, with Cleo's bizarre insistence on a cockney accent, and Caleb's grumbling about finances involving "pounds" (actually pounds of flesh) in their ramshackle dwelling on the edge of a cardboard-and-styrofoam cemetery. A further Dickensian touch is provided by Landau's one-legged deaf-mute assistant Tessie (Drucilla Hoy), who limps around glumly in a sailor dress and Little Orphan Annie fright wig. If she could talk, she would probably sound like the widow Babcock (Zena Foster), whose husband was the first to go into the grinder, and who speaks in a twittering falsetto that would sound more natural coming out of a sock puppet. All of these community theater touches contrast jarringly with the movie's exploitation nature, which revels in scenes of hardboiled scumbags shaking each other down, of women taking their clothes off for literally no reason at all, and in the suggestion that the gloopy pink paste extruding out of the cat food grinder was once a beautiful girl or a rotting cadaver. The grinder itself is a sight to behold, reminding me at once of something from SANTA CLAUS CONQUERS THE MARTIANS, and the Wish Squisher invention from the MST3K episode of SANTA CLAUS CONQUERS THE MARTIANS. The metallic gizmos whirring along its façade glint in the fabulous gelled lights over the production line, optimistically evoking the rich purples and greens of a Mario Bava picture; in a movie that's explicitly about money woes, in a subgenre that's specifically known for its cheapness, it's nice that director Mikels shelled out to add a little extra style to the grinding scenes.

And on that note, I would like to propose, without having much to say about it yet, that some exploitation films are allegories for exploitation filmmaking itself. I don't include all genre movies about money in this category: it's easy to identify many thrillers as being about more general economic conditions that affect us all, including a lot of noir entries. But then there are movies like THE CORPSE GRINDERS, or LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, or COLOR ME BLOOD RED (or its predecessor A BUCKET OF BLOOD), in which the main character tries to solve his financial woes by committing an utterly dehumanizing crime. In these three examples, there is the revelation that honest work doesn't pay, and that money is only gained through the individual's willingness to exploit sensational imagery and/or decadent sensations to tease, titillate, and even addict the customer. It's hard not to see Landau, Seymour, and Adam Sorg as avatars for Ted Mikels, Roger Corman, and Herschell Gordon Lewis, in their similar quests to prey on the craven appetites of the public, at a minimum cost for a maximum payout. If you have other movies you'd like to add to my list, please feel free to reach out.

All told, it's hard not to like THE CORPSE GRINDERS for its sheer audacity--first, in selling something so meager as a "real movie", and second, for making the movie be about THIS. Also, all of this is significantly enriched when you know a little something about Mikels, a polyamorous eccentric who lived in a castle, whose grounds--and guard geese!--were used for the scenes in Farewell Acres. I'm not even going to try to discuss his prolific exploitation career and personal exploits, because that would be better handled by a longform piece on him specifically. It seems like a few documentaries have attempted the subject, but I don't know whether they're any good. It would be nice if Frank Hennenlotter would give it a try, or someone similarly capable, if there even is such a person. In the meantime, I will contribute the sole piece of information that my own scant research has turned up in preparing for this Blogtober entry: That THE CORPSE GRINDERS was co-written by Arch Hall Sr, and Joe Cranston--father of the now-iconic Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston. I don't know if I'd call that a reason to see the movie, but luckily there are plenty of other reasons to check out THE CORPSE GRINDERS this Halloween. If you don't, then you can never really know what the hell I'm talking about.

#blogtober #2020 #the corpse grinders #ted v mikels #horror #exploitation #cattober #arch hall sr #joe cranston #sean kenney #monika kelly #sanford mitchell #j byron foster #warren ball #ann noble

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prettyboysdontlookatexplosions · 4 years

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inspired by @honeybabydichotomy some time back / me wildly needing a series of small brain breaks from trying to plan this remote lesson while sleep deprived because i simply could not fall back asleep after 3:15 this morning and my brain is feeling A Wee Bit Totally Deranged, here is my vague/wishy-washy to-write list!

things you can more or less properly call WIPs:

*the story i am actively working on right now, in which eliot & quentin take a miserable vacation together and i attempt to set a world record for number of words devoted to cultivating the precise emotion of Agonized Horniness. i thought that this was going to be short and it is definitely going to be well over 20k, big lol @ me for wildly underestimating the quantity of feelings i had about eliot waugh! but actually i am having extreme amounts of fun with this deeply self-indulgent project, which has both let me try out some things that feel new for me and also unexpectedly become very personal but not at all in the way i usually mean when i say that a story is very personal, to the extent that not only am i not (as i usually am by this point in a fic) incredibly impatient to finish it, but also i am a little sad at the prospect of no longer living with it in my head all the time! i have superstitiously grounded myself from posting any more snippets of it but taken as a set i think these do capture the vibe.

*a quick & slightly goofy resurrection fic set as a kind of episode tag for 5x03 set in an alternate universe where the “plot” of season 5 is not really happening but alice and eliot still wind up on the top of grief mountain. my motivation for this one decreased as season 5 continued to be Like That to the point of erasing any desire to keep anything from it in my personal magicians canon, but i like the central conceit which involves rewriting alice’s golem spell as a collaborative spell because i’m a sucker for any and all pieces coming together imagery, and also i feel like for me personally actually succeeding in writing something light and breezy would be a really instructive and cool learning experience!

*i am too bashful to publicly describe the last item on this list and may yet prove to be too bashful to ever finish it but it started out as me trying to imagine a conversation in which quentin tells eliot about Ye Olde Sex Magic Escapade and has sort of evolved into like me thinking a lot about eliot’s ability to trust himself? trying to find the right tone/voice for this one has been a beast largely because quentin turning 800 shades of red while he explains to eliot that a stranger had to give him advice about how to give his girlfriend the orgasms he didn’t know she wasn’t having is the funniest thing in the entire world to both me and eliot, but then every other Concept i have for it is, you know, not so much. i would like to persevere though for precisely the reason i am so bashful about it, which is that i am interested in trying to do what like 80% of people into fic do several times a year, namely write a story that moves through characterization & emotional beats mostly through the mechanism of Doing It.

wisps of half-assed notions floating idly in my brain which may or may not ever result in any actual writing:

*i have two vague epilogue/coda notions for wild geese. one is that i’d like to just check in on that version of quentin a few months later and get to see him feeling like a functional person and enjoying & reflecting on the novelty of that, learning to lean in a little more to who he is and what he wants, possibly via [redacted for reasons of bashfulness], possibly just further toying with the hugely entertaining to me notion that one lingering side effect of his death/undeath is that he suddenly becomes a foodie. or he gets into, i dunno, kickboxing. just very Wow I Have A Body times. the other idea is that i am charmed by the notion of quentin and julia getting a brakebills grant to do summer fieldwork at a hedge coven/hippie commune in like maine or something, both because i like the idea of q & j getting to have a fun low-stakes magic adventure together (they deserve it!!!) and because i’m amused by the extent to which julia would be like “this is an extremely fun way to spend exactly 2 months of my life after which i would fully go out of my mind” while quentin is like “idk maybe i do want to join a hedge commune? i wonder if eliot would be into it.” also q & e writing interdimensionally transmitted letters!

*some.... thing... about julia and eliot becoming friends, either like a snapshot of them bonding while trying to resurrect q, or else a post-resurrection fic where the process was very quick so they never really bonded but now that eliot and quentin are dating julia just shows up one day like “hello eliot who is dating my best friend and therefore also my best friend now! :D” and eliot’s like “wait what now” because he’s so used to imperiously friend-seducing people in the weirdest way possible that julia texting him a link to showing of john waters shorts at metrograph is not something he knows how to process

*some... thing... about alice figuring out how to Be Okay after quentin undeads and they break up. she gets really into some niche hobby or takes herself to some scenic location and hates it or finally tries pot. shit, maybe i am accidentally talking myself into casually shipping alice/josh. but also maybe she doesn’t hook up with anyone? maybe she gets to just have... a... friend? (kady?)

*the night of the s5 finale what i really wanted more than anything was some kind of wildly, exuberantly happy ending for eliot and the mechanism for that which popped into my head was an old school kinda 5-times-ish fic centered around a series of new year’s eves. (1) yes i have written this exact conceit before (2) yes this was partly influenced by the fact that new year’s day by taylor swift REMAINS the eliot love song of all time and “i want your midnights / but i’ll be cleaning up bottles with you on new year’s day” is still the most infuriatingly perfect description of eliot in love humanly conceivable. the heart wants what it wants.

*something exploring my vague headcanon that quentin and julia absolutely accidentally did magic as kids but it was always in the structure of being dreamy kids playing at magic and half-convincing themselves in that dreamy-kid way it was real, so that when later they outgrew that they also mentally filed those experiences away as playing pretend with great intensity.

*some............... thing........... involving present day post-s4 (alive) quentin and arielle’s... grave? great-grandchild? i dunno man, like, teddy never existed without quentin going back in time, but arielle was presumably a real person and not some weird quest-generated cipher, and i just can’t imagine that a version of quentin who remembers even as much as her name and that they were married has access to fillory and some free time and doesn’t try to figure out what did happen to her. or, like, eliot comes across someone in a familiar town with familiar eyes and is like, q i think there is someone you maybe have to see. for most of my half-assed notions i would probably be almost as happy to read a fic that already exists instead of writing it myself but for this one in particular if anyone has read one please do send it my way. it just feels like an odd gap to read so many fics where quentin and eliot are thinking about The Mosaic and Their Family and not at all interested in the branch of that family that like, concretely in this timeline lived. in my brain this is NOT a depressing story but it is admittedly hard to see how that would work out in practice.

*as you can tell from this list i am not generally a big AU person in terms of writing, because by the time i’ve exhausted the things poking at me from canon to resolve or play around with i have historically lost my stamina for that fandom. BUT, the one gratuitously self-indulgent non-magic AU i want in the world is one where quentin and alice were college sweethearts who got married at 23 and divorced six months later and quentin reacted to this by deciding that love/joy/hope/happiness/dreams are for children and stupid people, and now it’s like... 6-10 years later idk and quentin is “fine” in that he shows up to work on time and pays his bills on time and doesn’t often feel sad but lives a very small life in which he doesn’t often feel much of anything or have much of a connection to himself or other people, enter of course eliot having gone through some Rough Times but eventually turned a corner towards getting his shit together and whose joie de vivre / general hotness / open-hearted affection shakes things up in ways that are both thrilling and totally horrifying!

uncategorizable by the headings listed above:

*on december 28, 2019, i started a google doc titled “magicians underworld breakout fic” which i have sporadically been adding notes towards ever since, inspired mostly by how much i think it was a missed opportunity to never have quentin and penny come to any kind of mutual understanding of each other (or even of their own reactions to each other!) except via fake pod person underworld nonsense, and how potentially fun it would be for them to team up to make it back to life. it currently contains just under 3600 words, but they are exclusively things such as:

hades and the underworld library? hades and the whole library? what’s cool about god motivations is they are almost definitionally stupid

or:

They have been taught certain things and those things are lies - connecting to how Margo got her axes

similar to #3 on the WIP list above, the reason i may never write this is the same as the reason i very much want to actually write this, which is that it is by necessity very plotty, something i have never, ever, ever done. i started brainstorming in the last few days i was wrapping up wild geese partly because i was so excited to have written a story where like magic events happened and only like 96% of the plot could be described as “and then a person has a feeling” as opposed to my usual 100%. i have generated a lot more ideas than i really expected to (some of which i like a lot!) but also am still extremely far from having a workable story, although i also have not dedicated any purposeful time to it really, just kind of let it percolate. also it is tough because every version of how it might be told i come up with definitely involves multiple POVs and so far seems to involve more than 2 partly because like a bunch of my other magicians grudges/missed opportunity wishlist items keep sort of working their way in, which is... a lot. i feel like a sensible thing to do would be to come up with at least one (1) kind of mid-tier plottiness concept, somewhere between “50k words of And Then A Person Has A Feeling with a couple thousand spent on Magic Things Happen, Which Are Also Feelings, But Whatever” and like “5 strands of plot drawing together for me to work out every single one of the 700 beefs i have with this show at once” but AS YOU CAN SEE i literally do not have any ideas that fall into that category at the moment, so. we shall see!

#the magicians #this wound up truly unhingedly long but sleep deprivation is rly jostling my brains!#also first real of quarantine qontent is there are no rules of quarantine qontent

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dipwads-n-dragons · 3 years

Text

hey again! so, a little more about me and my campaign

i currently run a small, episodic campaign following 3 players characters, a half-orc bard, a half-elf rogue, and a tiefling ranger. without meaning to, we ended up with the races that are half human. it made for pretty cool story hooks involving things like finding their non-human parent and things about them that their human parent *happened* to leave out.

since the campaign has been stagnant since the quarantine in my state started (7 months!), i started writing up a new campaign as a way to let my creative juices flow. i ended up going for my “Dream Campaign,” a.k.a. that campaign you always dream about running but never get the chance to because you’re either too busy or too lazy. considering i wasn’t at all busy and wanted something to do, i started it! ahh! it’s currently absolutely huge, and i’m going into way too much detail on a lot of things and putting way too much work and effort into it. everything is interactive, npcs all have unique dialogue (and i added a little “romancable?” field to their character sheets hehe). all the books have titles, authors, and unique stories/information, towns have backstories and in depth descriptions of every building on every road, it’s all so much.

i’m so proud of what the campaign has become and it’ll be so long until it’s ready to play, but i’m so excited! this blog is generally about sharing what i’ve done that day and what i’m planning on doing next. maybe i made supplementary tables, maybe it’s just a fun little story! i absolutely adore dnd and it’s kept me grounded through the entire shutdown, and i’m so happy to share it with you.

thanks for reading!

~lizzie

#dnd #dnd 5e #dnd campaign #dnd dm

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phinnsyreads · 4 years

Audio

Item #: SCP-080

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-080 is to be contained in a 4 m x 4 m room with a smaller antechamber located on the south wall to provide researchers with access. On the north wall, an observation room is to be connected, overlooking the main room through a window with thick black-out curtains that release only when the door to the observation room is closed. No attempts should be made to remove SCP-080 from this enclosure at any time. No more than one (1) 7 W incandescent light bulb is to be illuminated in the main room at any time. Absolutely no devices capable of producing light should be brought into the room. Under no circumstances should anything be brought into SCP-080’s containment room that has the ability to shroud, conceal, or otherwise hide SCP-080. Failure to adhere to this will result in disciplinary action.

Description: It is unknown if SCP-080 has a physical mass or "body", as all attempts to interact with it physically have failed and have been met with adverse effects (see Experiment Log 080-2). Researchers and personnel have described seeing SCP-080 as various shadows and humanoid effigies, with the only common attribute being two smoking "eyes".

It has come to the attention of researchers that SCP-080 induces uncontrollable drowsiness upon anyone entering its chamber. After approximately 30 minutes, any person observing it will be forced into REM sleep and may suffer irreversible psychological damage. This effect occurs even if SCP-080 is being observed from a separate room (see Incident-080-1). If at any time SCP-080 finds a way to "hide" itself (such as in a cupboard, under a bed, covered in a sheet, etc.), it will disappear entirely. Additionally, if any light enters SCP-080’s containment room with a greater luminance than that produced by a standard children’s night light, SCP-080 will instantly vanish. Both of these events are considered a containment breach and any personnel responsible for this will be severely reprimanded and possibly reassigned.

For all inquiries regarding the origin of SCP-080 and its procurement by the Foundation, please see attached [REDACTED].

Addendum 080-A: On ██-██-20██, Dr. █████ and his immediate staff have begun complaining of increasingly stressful dreams. As he has had the most interaction with SCP-080 thus far, it has been theorized that SCP-080 is somehow capable of some type of memetic effect on nearby personnel, even if not being directly observed.

Addendum 080-B: As of ██-██-20██, following Dr. █████’s recent suicide, all personnel located in SCP-080’s sector are to keep "dream journals" and are to inform site psychologists if dreams became increasingly violent or nightmarish in nature.

Addendum 080-C: All staff are reminded that the black-out curtains in the observation room will not release if the door is not closed and that exposure time should not exceed thirty (30) minutes for any reason (see Incident 080-1).

Addendum 080-D: It has come to the attention of senior research staff that some researchers are unable to see SCP-080, and may be entirely immune to its effects. Any personnel that thinks they are incapable of perceiving SCP-080, please report to Dr. ███████ for mandatory testing.

Addendum 080-E: It has been suggested following Incident-080-1, that a class D personnel be "fed" to SCP-080 once per month in order to neutralize SCP-080's effect on the mental health of on-site personnel. (O5-█: Approved)

Incident 080-1:

On ██-██-20██, A planned observation was conducted by two senior researchers. The researchers entered the observation room and the black-out curtains were released. Believing the room to be safely shielded from SCP-080’s effects, as it had in the past, the researchers began observing SCP-080. Approximately 40 minutes after observation began, both researchers suddenly fell asleep. Upon their retrieval, [DATA EXPUNGED].

(It should be noted that following this incident, all on-site personnel that had reported suffering nightmares and feelings of unease had a good night’s sleep and were generally in a more pleasant mood the following day.)

Note: All personnel are requested to stop referring to SCP-080 as "The Boogieman". - Dr. ██████

---------------------------------------------------

Experiment Log 080-2

Experiment 080-2-A:

Date: █-█-20██ Subject: D-080-1, Male, 19 years old Procedure: Subject was sent into room with SCP-080

Dr. █████: D-080-1, do you see anything?

D-080-1: No. It’s pitch black in here.

(Subject is silent for several minutes)

D-080-1: Did you just let something in here? It feels like something’s watching me.

Dr. █████: No, D-080-1. We did not let anything into the room.

D-080-1: What the fuck is that? (D-080-1 is seen tripping and falling to the floor.)

Dr. █████: What do you see?

D-080-1: This giant blackness, like someone just standing in the corner. Oh God, it’s looking right at me! Let me out! (D-080-1 proceeds to pound on the door leading into the antechamber.)

Dr. █████: It’s looking at you? Please describe its physical appearance.

D-080-1: I don’t know! Oh God, let me out. I don’t want to be in here. (D-080-1 starts whimpering.)

Dr. █████: Tell me what it looks like D-080-1. Then we can let you out.

D-080-1: It- it looks like a figure, hunched in the corner.

Dr. █████: Is it a human?

D-080-1: It’s too big to be human. It’s still looking at me, Doc, still staring.

Dr. █████: Move closer to it.

(D-080-1 proceeds to move to the corner of the room, obviously experiencing difficulty staying on his feet.)

D-080-1: Its eyes look like vapour, just staring at me. Like it wants me to do someth- (D-080-1 falls to the floor again.)

Dr. █████: D-080-1 can you hear me?

Subject was unresponsive for the next five minutes, having presumably collapsed. Subsequently no remains of D-080-1 were found and it is assumed SCP-080 consumed D-080-1.

---

Experiment 080-2-B:

Date: ██-██-20██ Subject: D-080-2, Female, 30 years old Procedure: Subject was sent into room with SCP-080, with intent to physically interact with SCP-080.

Dr. █████: Tell me what you see.

D-080-2: I don’t see jack shit. Why is it so dark in here? (after several minutes) Holy shit, what is that? It’s just standing in the middle of the room.

Dr. █████: Describe what you see.

D-080-2: It’s just standing in the middle of the room, I can make out two…eyes, I guess.

Dr. █████: Could you please approach it and let us know if anything changes.

D-080-2: I feel drowsy… did you slip me something, or what?

Dr. █████: Reach out and touch it. Tell me what you feel.

D-080-2: You want me to touch that thing?

Dr. █████: Yes, please proceed.

After a few minutes of argument, it is presumed that D-080-2 proceeded to touch SCP-080, at which time the subject became unresponsive. Subject was found asleep in the corner of SCP-080’s containment room, and appeared to suffer no physical harm during experiment. Subject was interviewed after medical staff deemed D-080-2 to be in good physical health. (See Attached Interview Log 080-1).

---

Experiment 080-2-C:

Date: ██-██-20██ Subject: D-080-3, Male, 24 years old Procedure: Subject was sent into room with SCP-080, having been given a powerful amphetamine.

Upon entering the room, subject was advised to tell researchers what he saw. Subject described a shadow-like figure in the center of the room. Subject was informed to stand still and inform researchers of any changes. Ten minutes into the experiment, subject began yawning and became noticeably frightened. Subject became uncooperative and attempted to escape the containment room. Upon failing to escape, subject announced an intent to harm SCP-080, and presumably attempted to attack it. Upon doing so, subject immediately collapsed.

D-080-3’s body was recovered from SCP-080’s containment room soon afterwards, having apparently suffered a major heart attack. Upon collecting D-080-3’s body, researchers described an intense feeling of unease, a feeling of being watched, as well as a more acute awareness of SCP-080’s presence in the room.

---

Interview Log 080-1:

Interviewed: D-080-2 Interviewer: Dr. █████ Foreword: D-080-2 was interviewed following an inconclusive experiment involving SCP-080, where the subject was secured in the room with SCP-080 for 37mins.

Dr. █████: Please describe what you remember from the experiment.

D-080-2: You told me to walk over to it and touch it, I didn’t want to, I didn’t.

Dr. █████: What happened when you touched it?

D-080-2: When I touched it? Have you seen that thing? Touch it. I couldn’t move, it was staring at me, and I just couldn’t move.

Dr. █████: You didn’t respond for several minutes, what were you doing?

D-080-2: (becoming increasingly agitated) It just stared at me, I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. (D-080-2 starts to hyperventilate.)

Dr. █████: Calm down D-080-2, take a deep breath. Do you remember falling asleep?

D-080-2: It just stared and stared, not moving but I felt something! I was on the floor and they were all over me. They’re here! (D-080-2 begins to scream and abruptly gets to her feet.) No, they’re trying to take me away, back to that thing. I won’t go back! You can’t make me go back in there!

===

[The voice of Dr. ██████ was provided by @phinnsy.] [The voice of Dr. █████ was provided by @mezzoprime.] [The voice of D-080-1 was provided by @phantomancer.] [The voice of D-080-2 was provided by Spera Crinis.] [The voices of the Personnel were provided by @iridethedirt and @navox-the-weary.]

===

[Enjoy the podcast? Consider supporting us on Patreon! Patrons get access to bonus Joke episodes, outtakes, and can even request episodes on specific SCP objects.]

#phinnsyreads #scp foundation #scp 080 #reading #reader #voiceover #sci-fi #horror #urban legend #folklore #fiction #podcast #boogie man

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alpha-centari27 · 4 years

Link

If you’re unhappy with The Rise of Skywalker, and hoping that the holy grail of the #AbramsCut will make you feel vindicated, here’s some relevant news: The Abrams Cut is probably bullshit, but there might be yet another Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly script for Episode IX, that could be the answer to everyone’s unrealized Star Wars dreams.

According to writer and Hollywood insider Robert Meyer Burnett, at least one version of Trevorrow’s unfilmed Episode IX was called Duel of the Fates, and, even if you loved Rise of Skywalker, this leaked script sounds pretty incredible. On Monday, Burnett dropped a lengthy description of the unfilmed, alternate Episode IXon YouTube, and the details are compelling.

The trouble is of course, in determining the validity of the script Burnett claims to have read. Published on his YouTube channel, “Robservations,” Burnett talks for about 18-minutes about his background before getting into the nitty-gritty of the alleged Duel of the Fates script. Presumably, Burnett is making it clear that he’s been in and around Hollywood for a long time, and it’s not that weird to get your hands on an unfilmed script.

“Everything is gettable,” he claims, pointing out that after a movie is actually made, the interest in unfilmed versions of the movies is less important to the general public. Historically, he has a point, but relative to Star Wars, there’s obviously a huge interest (particularly now). Burnett also goes out of his way to sort of obscure how he got ahold of this supposed early Trevorrow draft of Episode IX, and even “jokes” at several points that “maybe I made this all up.”

On paper, the fact that Burnett cops to maybe inventing the script could scan as an admission that the whole thing is fake. But, the problem is, Burnett’s background indicates he has no reason to lie. Unlike full-time leakers like Jason Ward or infamous fake-Star-Wars-news guy, Mike Zeroh; Robert Meyer Burnett is a legit filmmaker who’s worked in Hollywood as a director for a long, long time. Along with Mark Altman, he co-wrote and directed the 1999 film Free Enterprise; a romantic comedy about two Star Trek fans who happen to meet William Shanter IRL. (It’s a pretty good movie!)

Burnett also is known for his work on DVD and Blu-ray special features and if you own any of the Star Trek series on Blu-ray or DVD, the chances you have at least one or two mini-documentaries produced and directed by him are pretty high. He also appears regularly on the podcast Inglorious Treksperts with Mark Altman (a huge, and respected journalist and producer of sci-fi/fantasy shows like The Librarians and Pandora). So it’s not like Burnett is a fanboy. He may be outspoken about his opinions on the directions of various franchises and has frequently tweeted out scathing viewpoints on the direction of Star Trek since its relaunch on CBS in 2017.

I don’t share Burnett’s viewpoints on Discovery, but even if he’s not everyone’s cup of Earl Grey, the reality is, he’s a guy who has worked in Hollywood for a long time and knows a thing or two about sci-fi franchises. So, the question with this Star Wars Duel of the Fates leak is: Why would he make this up and risk ruining his reputation?

Inverse has reached out to Burnett for clarification on a few aspects of the Duel of the Fates script and he has yet to respond. We will update this piece when he does. But for now, here are six major differences between the alleged Duel of the Fates script and The Rise of Skywalker.

Spoilers ahead.

6. The title and crawl

First off, you can tell right away this would have been a different movie. “Duel of the Fates” obviously references the John Williams composition of the same name, which was such a big deal in Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Here’s the alternate crawl:

The iron grip of the FIRST ORDER has spread to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. Only a few scattered planets remain unoccupied. Traitorous acts are punishable by death.

Determined to suffocate a growing unrest, Supreme Leader KYLO REN has silenced all communication between neighboring systems.

Led by GENERAL LEIA ORGANA, the Resistance has planned a secret mission to prevent their annihilation and forge a path to freedom…

5. Luke Skywalker’s role was much bigger

In this version of the story, the ghost of Luke Skywalker would have had an ongoing role throughout the film, and he wouldn’t just have been helping to train Rey. In this version, Luke’s ghost haunts Kylo Ren, too. In fact, Kylo Ren’s very first scene in the movie would have involved the ghost of Luke chastising him for going down the dark path. According to Burnett, Luke’s ghost says: “This is where the dark path leads; an empty tomb.”

This is pretty interesting, and clearly is a direct follow-up to Luke’s threat to Kylo Ren in The Last Jedi: “If you strike me down now, I’ll always be with you.” So, in the Duel of the Fates version, Luke takes that pretty literally, following Kylo Ren around, bugging him about being evil.

Luke also trains Rey in this script, (who is rocking a double-bladed saber from the very beginning) and even has a debate with her about the nature of the “balance of the Force.” In what seems like a meta-criticism, Rey questions Luke’s credibility in a pretty awesome exchange:

Rey: Balance? The dark suffocates the light, light extinguishes the dark. Over and over and over again. How is that balance in the Force?

Luke: I know that anger. My father had it too.

Rey: So says my master and his master before him. A thousand masters so eager to tell us how to live.

This is clearly very different than the chummy Luke and Rey we saw in The Rise of Skywalker.

4. Palpatine is in one scene and he isn’t Rey’s grandfather

The dead speak! Only this time, it’s through a hologram. Just like in The Rise of Skywalker, Kylo Ren does return to the planet Mustafar, but it’s to get a Sith Holocron, not a “Wayfinder.” In this scene, the Emperor reveals to Kylo Ren that he had a back-up plan for Darth Vader if Luke and Vader ended-up being the last two Sith standing. In this recorded message, Palps tells Vader to go the planet Remnicore because there’s a secret Sith master hiding there named Tor Valum.

The Emperor is not alive, and Rey is not related to Palps in this version of the story. Also, the version of Mustafar that Kylo Ren hits-up is very clearly Darth Vader’s castle and not the random woodland area of the planet we got in The Rise of Skywalker.

As for Tor Valum, secret Sith Lord, it’s not explained how the existence of this new character would have been reconciled with the Sith “rule of two,” if at all. But Burnett does say the script describes Tor Valum as “7,000 years old” and “an alien of unknown origin [with] spindly, intense sinewy muscle…very Lovecraftian.” So, basically, a Sith monster.

Notably, Kylo Ren’s face would have been badly scarred by the Sith Holocron and he would have been forced to wear some kind of new mask that was partially made of Mandalorian armor.

3. Duel of the Fates would have returned to two hugely important Star Wars planets

According to Burnett, Unlike The Rise of Skywalker, the important events of Duel of the Fates would have taken place on two very pivotal and famous Star Wars planets: Coruscant and Mortis. In this version, the First Order has constructed a galaxy-ruling citadel on Coruscant, with Hux serving as Supreme Chancellor.

Thanks to Luke Skywalker’s journals, Rey discovers a “Force Beacon,” hidden deep within Coruscant, which would allow the broadcast to be sent out to all the possible allies of the Resistance. A subplot involves Rose, Finn, C-3PO, and R2-D2 heading to Courscant to “light the Beacon.” This feels like Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, which is weird, but also pretty cool. It’s very clear Rose had a bigger role in this movie as well. (Burnett claims she’s a major character, but based on the summary it’s hard to see how much more dialogue she has. She certainly has more to do, though!)

Meanwhile, Kylo Ren and Rey would eventually get to the planet Mortis, where they would basically battle to try and balance the Force. At other points in the script, Luke would point out that Rey was “something new” and not related to anyone and that the “Force chose her” for a higher purpose.

2. Kylo Ren wasn’t redeemed

Although Burnett says Luke, Yoda and Obi-Wan’s Force ghosts would try to “release Ben Solo” in one scene, they aren’t successful and it doesn’t seem like Ben gets redeemed at all. There’s also no overt romance or kiss between him and Rey. It’s also revealed at one point that although Rey’s parents were “nobodies,” that Kylo Ren is actually the one who straight-up murdered them because Snoke told him to do it. (Snoke is not a Palpatine puppet in this version either.)

It’s tough to really see how Kylo Ren would have been redeemed or become the heroic guy we saw in The Rise of Skywalker. Basically, in this version, his journey ends as a giant bummer and in total tragedy.

1. The basic ending would have been similar, but for totally different reasons

Finally, Burnett notes that the idea of “good” Stormtroopers coming to the aid of the Resistance originates in this version of the script, but also says that it’s handled a little more organically. Another subplot early in the script involves the Resistance stealing a Star Destroyer, complete with AT-ATs and TIE Fighters, and then needing an army to operate them. Apparently, the rogue Stormtroopers help fix part of this problem, but, in the end, Lando rounds-up a bunch of smugglers and that fleet of ships seems to help turn the tide against the First Order. Which, though is similar to The Rise of Skywalker, happens for seemingly very different reasons.

Unsurprisingly, the First Order still loses, but the overall conclusion and climax to Duel of the Fates still feels murky. It’s not clear if he only had part of the screenplay or just chose to summarize the ending (or if the whole thing is a hoax) but at this point, it seems like one could imagine a similar ending to The Rise of Skywalker in terms of a space battle, just happening over a decaying Coruscant instead of Exegol (which sounds way cooler).

Is any of this legit? Does it matter? Right now, we don’t know, but if any aspect of what Robert Meyer Burnett presents as Duel of the Fates was ever really under consideration to be the real Episode IX, you have to ask yourself: What happened?

Was Lucasfilm totally against Kylo Ren ending up as such an irredeemable character? Was their pressure from elsewhere to bring in Palpatine back as a legacy villain? For the most part, for all of its specific differences, the broad strokes of this story are relatively the same, at least in terms of the larger galactic politics and the eventual balance of the Force. So we’re in a situation where the Dark side was in the details, and for whatever reason, those details caused a civil war inside of the Disney empire itself.

#the rise of skywalker #kylo ren #ben solo #rey #finn #poe dameron #luke skywalker #rose tico #general hux #this sounds like a more coherent story #but really?#only NOW do the jedi force ghosts try to help Ben #you know at the point when it's already too late or nearly so #why couldn't they or didn't they help when Snoke was manipulating Ben

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femalechibiblogger · 5 years

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Main Character (Mr. Love: Queen’s Choice)

Name: Depends on the player

Gender: Female

Age: 22

Family: Unnamed Father (deceased), Unnamed Aunts

Occupation: Producer

Likes: Pudding, memories of her father, traveling, working on shows, Kiro’s songs, Lucien helping her with her show, Victor’s approval, Gavin being safe, her employees/friends, taking risks.

Dislikes: Her studio being shut down, Victor’s cold side, Lucien working too much, Gavin not being honest, Kiro eating too much, letting others down, breaking promises.

Description

The Main Character is the main protagonist of the otome dating game: Mr. Love: Queen’s Choice. Throughout the game, the MC is trying keep her late father’s tv studio from shutting down. She meets four men who develop feelings for her: Scientist Lucien, Superstar Kiro, CEO Victor, and Policeman Gavin. Her forgotten past is revealed during points of the game, as well as her connection to the four love interests. The MC’s name and the name of the studio all depend on the player.

Personality

The MC’s personality is kind, caring, serious and hard working. She does not let anything stop her from saving her father’s studio, even if her life is in danger. Her interactions with others depends on the player, and can affect her relationship with the four love interests. The MC is also quite stubborn when it comes to work, as well as the four love interests. Her stubbornness is because she cares about them and doesn’t want them to overwork themselves, though she tends to overwork herself. She misses her father greatly, but tries to stay strong for him.

Background

The MC does not remember the first five years of her life, due to suffering from amnesia. But throughout the game, we learn some parts from when she was five years old. The MC is an Evol, which is a person who is born with some kind of superpower. Her Evol is Precognition, which allows her to have visions of something that will happen a day later, much like future vision. When she was five, she and other Evol children were experimented on in a secret laboratory. She and the other children were likely kidnapped by an organization studying Evols. One day, she and the other children planned an escape from the lab. They managed to succeed, but the MC was struck by some kind of lightning while saving another boy. She was taken away and what happened afterwards is unknown. Some time after that, she was saved by a boy from being hit by a truck. It is unknown what happened afterwards, but she then lived with her father until his death. The rest of her past has yet to be revealed.

Relationships

Lucien: Lucien is a scientist who is studying Evols. The MC and Lucien met when she needed a scientist to guest star in her show, and her uncle suggested Lucien. Lucien is quite charming towards the MC, and often flirts with her. He often helps her out whenever she is trying to come up with an episode topic involving science, or anything academic in general. Though Lucien is often calm and reserved around her, he actually worries that he might hurt her and has attempted to push her away, thinking that it is for her own good. However, he cannot bring himself to leave her. It is revealed that he and the MC have actually met when they were children, and bonded over their love of drawing. Lucien promised to meet her again, but he never came back. It is likely because Lucien and his parents had been hit by a vehicle, in which Lucien survived but his parents didn’t, and so he was unable to keep his promise and meet the MC again. The MC does not seem to remember him, likely due to her amnesia, but Lucien was able to recognize her and is now determined to never leaver her behind again. Lucien wants her to remember their past together, but is also scared of what could happen. The MC worries that Lucien is not getting enough sleep due to his work, and often checks on him. The two of them are now neighbors whose apartments are right next to each other. Lucien is likely an Evol whose power has to do with dreams and memories.

Kiro: Kiro is a world famous superstar who has a lot of fans. Kiro and the MC met in a convenience store, where a disguised Kiro was trying to buy a bag of chips because it contained that last trading card that he needed to complete his set. The MC gave him the card and the two of them became friends. Kiro is very loving and playful towards the MC, and often runs off with her whenever he sneaks away wearing a disguise. Kiro often shows off and tries to impress her, such as showing her how brave he is in scary and dangerous situations. Kiro is secretly a hacker named ‘Key’, who was framed for crimes by another hacker using his name. When the MC received an invite to a hacker meet up, Kiro also appeared in a disguise to clear his name. The two of them became trapped in a deadly game setup by a mysterious hacker, and it was believed that the hacker was after Kiro. However, it became clear that the real target was the MC, and that her being at the hacker convention was not a mistake at all. It is revealed that Kiro was also one of the Evol children who was experimented and held captive, and that he and the MC became friends during that time. He does not want her to remember that time, and is afraid that those memories will only cause her pain and suffering. The MC often gives Kiro encouragement, and will help him with is performance. Kiro is an Evol whose power is Absolute Charm, meaning he can make anyone be charmed by him. He does not use it on the MC though.

Gavin: Gavin is a police officer who deals with cases involving Evols. Gavin and the MC actually knew each other in high school, but the MC was afraid of him due to rumors that he was a dangerous delinquent. The two of them reunite years later, when the MC goes to the police station to interview officers. At first, the MC was still afraid of Gavin, but the two ended up working together on a case involving missing women. After spending time with him, the MC saw that Gavin was not a bad guy and that the rumors from high school were not true. It is also revealed that he left her a love note in high school, but the envelope was covered in the blood which made the MC believe that it was a threat and never read it. The MC feels guilty about all of this, but Gavin is not angry with her and is just happy that the two of them are now helping each other out. Gavin is very protective of her, and cares about her safety more than anything else. It is soon revealed that Gavin was mistreated as a child because his father, who knew of Evols, believed that Gavin was not an Evol and saw him as worthless. One day, in high school, Gavin got into a fight with 10 thugs on the school roof. One of them threw him off the roof, and Gavin was prepared to give up and die. But as he was falling, he heard someone singing, and it triggered his Evol: Wind Control. Gavin used his power to fly and see who was singing. The person singing was the MC, and Gavin then swore to protect her no matter what. Gavin is aware that the MC is an Evol, and knows that her life is in danger because of her power. Gavin’s Evol, Wind Control, allows him to control wind and use it to fly or sense if the MC is in trouble.

Victor: Victor is the CEO of the Loveland Financial Group. LFG is responsible for funding the MC’s production studio, and so the fate of her studio is in the hands of Victor. Victor actually saves the MC from getting hit by a car, but he does not mention it later and tells her that he won’t save her twice. Victor acts cold towards the MC, which frustrates her greatly, and is never impressed with her work. However, he begins to warm up to her and hides that he actually cares about her and wants her to succeed. The MC discovers that Victor is secretly the owner and chef of a small restaurant, and that he makes a delicious pudding that she remembers from her childhood and has tried to recreate. It is later revealed that was one of the Evol children who was experimented on. He and the MC were friends, and he would give her pudding. When them and the other children escaped, the MC saved Victor from being hit by an electric bolt. Victor tried to help her when she was unconscious, but she was taken away and Victor was told that she was dead. He would spend many years trying to find her. After the two of them are caught in a trap, and the MC is knocked out after saving him from the same attack, Victor realizes that she is the same girl from before and becomes angry at her attackers, vowing to never lose her again. The MC will often tease Victor, but she does try to impress him with how hard she works. The MC starts to vaguely remember Victor from her past, especially after trying his homemade pudding. Victor is an Evol whose power is Time Control, which allows him to stop time for a little bit.

Gallery

#mr. love queen's choice #character description #main character

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anvils-and-dynamite · 5 years

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On Tooniness: on what makes a cartoon (and any other media) “toony”

I didn’t expect to whip up a ramble so soon but I feel like I should go more in depth about what this blog is about and what it’s trying to achieve, so in this post I’ll attempt to define and describe the essence of what is a “toon”.

This might get a bit too long so I spoilered it for your convenience. I am by no means an expert on this kind of stuff, so if you’d like to present any counter-arguments, ask questions or discuss further what I’m going to talk about, feel free to do so in the comments, via PM or private chat.

“Toon” is a word associated with the animated media, often used to describe cartoon characters or characters drawn in a particular cartoony style (which is the case of, for example, The Legend of Zelda or Yu-Gi-Oh).

Beyond these definitions, there is also a tendency to stereotype the concept of a cartoon itself drawing from features and characteristics from early animated works from the 30s-40s, such as early Mickey Mouse works, Betty Boop and Looney Tunes. I think the best example I can come up with is this bit from Ed Edd n Eddy, an already very "toony” cartoon (jump to 9:47)

youtube

However, this essay argues that there is more to “tooniness” than certain design cues; that, beyond the white gloves, Pacman-shaped eyes and grayscale palette, there’s a series of principles that makes any kind of media (not just animated!) feel truly “toony”. While we also appreciate “toony” designs and overall aesthetic, this essay aims to go beyond mere aesthetic and try to identify what is “toony” in any kind of media’s presentation.

The whole purpose of this blog is, as its own description states, to celebrate “the tooniest of cartoons”; and, in order to achieve that, we find necessary to identify the core features of “tooniness”. We believe these core features are three, and, because this is toons we’re talking about, we’ve took the liberty to make their names alliterate: slapstick, sillyness, surrealness.

Slapstick

Let me begin this section by quoting one of my personal favourite quotes about toons: “See, your mother was right - cartoons are filled with senseless violence!” (Toon: The Cartoon Roleplaying Game, p.24).

Wikipedia defines slapstick as the following: “a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity which exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy.” In other words, slapstick is a form of physical comedy characterized by an exaggeration of violence and misfortune.

The animated medium lends itself well to physical comedy in general, since the latter relies on exaggeration (not only of violence, but also of expression, gesture...) and the former allows it to exaggerate it even further, beyond what a live-action actor can do.

Same can be said for slapstick, even to the point that several “toony” cartoons are based around slapstick comedy (Tom & Jerry and Wile. E. Coyote & The Roadrunner are the first ones to come to mind) and only have the bare bones of a plot, yet they are still successful and well-regarded.

In short, “toon” media has been associated, since the beginnings of animation, with physical comedy, and especially slapstick since the 40s. This doesn’t mean that toony cartoons cannot have other kinds of humor (such as dialogue-based, wordplay, referential...) but the qualities of the animation medium make it especially suitable for physical comedy and visual humor. Hell, this blog wouldn’t be called the way it is if one of the stereotypical characteristics of a “cartoony” cartoon wasn’t slapstick with falling anvils and exploding dynamite.

Silliness

noun The quality of being silly; foolishness; senselessness; weakness of understanding; extreme simplicity; absurd or contemptible folly.

(and now I realize I’ve been misspelling “silliness” all this time whoops)

While many of these adjectives fit toon media, let me get this out first: silliness does NOT mean toon media is necessarily lighthearted or even funny, but it is true that there is a sense of “happy-go-lucky” in it. This can be especially seen in Betty Boop shorts such as “Bimbo’s Initiation”, “Swing You Sinners” and “M.D.” (aka “the Jippo one”)

I’m not linking because Tumblr likes to mess up with my text if I insert another video. They’re on youtube, feel free to give them a watch before continuing.

You can see these three in particular handle pretty dark topics (cults, “I’m going to hell” kind of guilt... Hell, in the third one Betty Boop & friends straight up kill a man with snake oil!) yet, they there’s plenty of singing and dancing. It might be creepy, but it doesn’t give a “gritty” vibe: if anything, the fact that these subjects are handled in such a playful way makes it even more shocking and creepier. I think “happy go lucky” is the right term for that. The toon character approaches the world it lives in with curiosity, and no matter what horrible things they get put through in an episode, they’ll be in tip-top shape in the next one (non-linearity between episodes really helps with that). However, the defining name for this quality is “silliness” because another relevant philosophy that goes hand-to-hand with “happy-go-lucky” is that the toon media doesn’t take itself seriously. It acknowledges it’s silly, absurd and non-sensical and runs wild with it. And why is it so silly?

Surrealness

I found several definitions of “surreal” and they all agree on the following: what is surreal is fantastic, incongruous, and dream-like. This is the term we’ve chosen to define what is perhaps the most important characteristic of “tooniness”

Toons are not realistic, and they barely attempt to be. The toon world is loosely based on reality as to let its audience have something to hang on, and from that point, it goes wild. Characters act and talk exaggeratedly without caring for what’s considered socially appropiate, emotions and thoughts manifest in ways that could not be possible in reality (no hearts, no shoulder angels), and nonsensical things happen all the time (such as objects coming to life, gravity playing tricks or the infamous falling anvil).

This disregard for reality is what allows toon media to handle any kind of theme in its characteristic playful nature (silliness) and, together with the medium of animation, allow physical comedy to extend beyond the boundaries of reality (slapstick): because “toon” revels in its own status as fiction, and, as a child of animation, attempts to show us what a camera can’t (if someone can remind me where this quote came from, thanks).

I hope that, with this essay, I established the main characteristics of how toon media presents itself. As I mentioned before, I’m up for discussion on this and you can contact me via PM or chat. I will also reply to comments in reblogs!

#toon #cartoons #anvils presents #cartoon review

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