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viscountessevie · 6 months

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The Buccaneers (2023): American Poison

Hello everyone! I polled my blog's mutuals, friends and followers to see if they'd be interested in me doing reviews for this show and here are the results. Hence I'm here doing full episode reviews - feel free to follow along the tags below if you'd like to see my reviews and other posts for the show! [Spoilers are under the cut]

The Buccaneers Tag | Live Blogging Posts | Review Posts

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The Buccaneers (2023) is an adaptation of Edith Wharton's posthumous novel of the same name, with a contemporary touch to it. Full disclaimer: I have not read the novel yet. I do intend to give it a shot after watching the tv series. Even though I am not a fan of unfinished works, it would be interesting to see how the source material was adapted to our day and age.

Since I am completely new to this story, I will be judging it solely on the tv series. I will also be judging it as a historical romance with a side of societal commentary (the latter of which I understand the original book was about). On this note, American Poison is a pretty great first episode.

It set up our main characters; Nan, Conchita, Mabel, Lizzie and Jinny well while showcasing both America and the London season of the 1870s era. I found it so refreshing that the story started with a wedding instead of ending in one. It really goes to show that sometimes life really begins after the ‘I Do’. Or rather in the case of our girls, the problems begin to arise.

Speaking of our character set ups, I really enjoyed watching Conchita the most as you can see in my Live Blogging tag. She is just such a dynamic and interesting character who is so full of life and yet goes through such a harrowing arc (from what I am assuming based on the first episode). Her fairytale ending isn't quite a happy ending. This makes for a really compelling conflict within her character and it is a delight to watch! Even moreso a mere five minutes into the first episode, we already have parallels to Meghan Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry. I instantly knew that it will not bode well for Connie. I will give the showrunners credit where it is due, they drew the comparisons without hitting us over the head with it. As someone who royal watches H&M, I did like how Connie and Dickie's relationship was portrayed in the first half of the episode.

That brings me to the second half, as I said here, Dick definitely lived up to his nickname. It was heartbreaking to watch Connie be completely void of life after leaving America and moving in with her in-laws. Especially in her vulnerable pregnant state. I related a lot to her isolation and melancholy. It is not a fun place to be in. The way she lit up when her friends came to visit her was truly so heartwarming. Her happiness means everything to be and I hope her situation improves over the course of the series.

Moving onto our 'main' protagonist/narrator: Nan St. George. I will say it. She is a really boring main protagonist. I have no idea how she is like in the book but you can write a 'plain Jane' type character who engages your audience and they are allowed compelling arcs too. But no, Nan gets a love triangle. The most tired romantic trope of our type. Shondaland and other similar romance-drama shows have overused them to the point I want to throw the whole narrative device away!!

Speaking of said triangles, the only time I have enjoyed watching Nan on my screen is when she is with Guy Thwaite who is so charming. He is so likeable that I would certainly let him marry me for my money (jokes on him, me irl is broke as hell ahaha).

I know a few of my friends had complains about him using Nan for her money but I AM EATING IT UP! This is such a common romance trope. The fortune hunter targets the heroine and like the dumbass he is, he falls for her. That creates such a delicious point of conflict for both of them. The heroine has a brief moment of heartbreak because of the betrayal, while the hero has to fight between his head/the original scheme and heart. Truly one of my favourite premises in a HR book!

On the other end of the triangle, we have Theo, who is the dullest man I have ever seen on screen. Sorry to Theo fans but that man is so unoriginal and BORING. [Correction to my previous statement; Theo is tied with Obie from the Gossip Girl reboot as the most boring character ever].

I just found it so grating that he was just another Duke who is tired of the London social season and ambitious mamas & debs alike. Like YOU AREN'T special, Theo, there are a million heroes and actual lords back then who were like this. At least give the audience something interesting about you for us to root for. Sure, we can look to his artist side but this is least artsy man I have ever seen. Lord Cassidy from Mr. Malcolm's List and Benedict Bridgerton from Bton have done this before and much better. So Theo really is the definition of the Duke of Go Give Us Nothing to quote @imaginejolls in these tags.

Enough about the boring people; onto the Elmsworth sisters! So other than Alisha Boe and Josh Dylan as Connie & Dickie respectively, I was VERY excited to see Josie Totah as Mabel. Not only because I've watched Josie since her Disney days but also because SHE'S PLAYING A LESBIAN/WLW!! I just need more queer women in HR and this fulfils it!

There, unfortunately, wasn't enough of the Elmsworth sisters in this episode but I did love what I saw of Lizzy and Mabel so far. I adore Lizzy already - she is gorgeous and definitely deserves more attention on the marriage mart. Mabel is so cute and I am excited to see her romance blossom with Honoria!

Then there's Jinny. Where do I begin? I'll be very honest; I mistook her for Honoria in the trailer with Mabel 🤡 and was excited for her. I was like Yay dumb lesbian rep because come on the "I like her arms" comment to the art piece is so queer coded hahah. Then I saw a gifset of the trailer kiss and realised it was Honoria with Mabel. Anyway Jinny really is your cookie cutter deb and I wanted to see how she'd subvert that. And while I understand her frustrations with Nan getting in the way, that was no reason to completely upend her sister's life. I also saw the looks of contempt she gave Lizzy over the course of the episode. Like Virginia you grew up with that girl, could you be a little less competitive??

Overall, the pilot fulfilled its job. It introduced us to the main girls, set up their upcoming arcs all while painting the different cultures of the Americans who worked their way up to their riches vs the British centuries old aristocracy. I loved how it was shot, edited and the soundtrack was incorporated. Sure, at times there is a modern lens to it but I like how well our times and influences come together with Edith's original vision and storyline. I am excited for the rest of the series! Happy watching everyone and I will see you in my next review :D

#The Buccaneers #The Buccaneers Review #the buccaneers spoilers #American Poison #HR Blogging #Historical Fiction

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bm-blog01 · 1 year

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The Queen Charlotte takeover

On Christmas Day 2022 the official Bridgerton Social Media accounts posted a throwback to S1 for the 2 year anniversary, there has been no other Bridgerton posts since, not even a post for the S2 anniversary, instead every post since January of this year has been to promote Queen Charlotte.

In March, the week before the S2 anniversary, the official Social Media accounts changed completely to Queen Charlotte, updating the bio and the profile pictures to Queen Charlotte, and though the accounts are still named Bridgerton, they are essentially Queen Charlotte accounts.

But it isn't just the official accounts that have had a complete Queen Charlotte takeover. The main subreddit for Bridgerton also completely changed their look over to Queen Charlotte, despite there being a separate Queen Charlotte subreddit. It makes you wonder what the point of the Queen Charlotte subreddit is if the Bridgerton subreddit is going to go all out for Queen Charlotte, especially with multiple posts a day about it.

The Queen Charlotte takeover has also created some confusion among more casual viewers, and casual reddit users, with some not realising it is a separate show and not just S3 of Bridgerton.

Further, not everyone who is a fan of Bridgerton wants to watch Queen Charlotte. By taking over the Bridgerton spaces online it feels as though the PR team are using Bridgerton as a hook to manipulate some viewers into watching Queen Charlotte by making them think it will continue the story of the Bridgertons. This may mean disappointment for some viewers if they are expecting to see the Bridgertons, as some early reviews suggest that the only character with the name Bridgerton in Queen Charlotte (Violet) is shoehorned in so that they can use the Bridgerton name for the show.

A smarter move for the PR would have been to set up separate Social Media accounts online for Queen Charlotte and link to there, or repost to get the interest up, whilst still posting about Bridgerton. By having Queen Charlotte taking over the official accounts some Bridgerton fans have felt sidelined, and it has caused resentment towards the production and the show. Many of the comments on the Queen Charlotte posts are overwhelmingly negative towards the production.

Whilst the Bridgerton subreddit is not official, and to my knowledge has no link to the production, it is interesting that the mods on the sub have made the decision to change the look of the sub to reflect the official Social Media accounts, for someone new on Reddit looking for a Bridgerton sub they may be confused by thinking that they had been directed to the Queen Charlotte sub instead. But why did the mods decide to change the Bridgerton subreddit to Queen Charlotte instead of directing members to the Queen Charlotte sub to discuss the show? It is hard to know what someone's motivation is, but I believe there is more to the Queen Charlotte reddit engagement than what is seen at face value (stand by for a blog post on that).

We can only hope that after 4 May the PR team for Netflix/Shondaland remember that the Bridgerton series exists and they return their Social Media accounts back to being focussed on the series people visit those pages for.

#Queen Charlotte #Bridgerton #Shondaland #Reddit

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jeanvanjer · 2 years

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Just putting my thoughts out here.

Disclaimer: I haven't seen s2 so my opinions are purely based on reviews and answers by qthe reviewers who got screeners

I agree that Edwina's character and her relationship with Kate relationship could have been better explored in the books. We mostly just hear Kate talk about her, but we never get to see those things about Edwina. So I am glad they've explored her character in depth. But I also cannot let go of the fact that they've maybe just turned her character around. Her most compelling qualities in the book were that she was intellectual and very clear that she wanted a scholar. She was also very perceptive and was one of the few people who immediately picked up of the undercurrents in Kanthony's relationship which is perhaps why she wasn't so shocked by their engagement. JQ shouldnhave definitely added more sisterly scenes where Edwina could have encouraged Kate to go for what her heart wants and reassured her of how much she admires Kate.

I agree that fleshing out characters is great for storytelling. But they could have maybe delved deeper into her existing qualities instead of turning her into a different person? Maybe I am reading too much into this but I guess I'll be fully ready to embrace the differences by 25th?🤷‍♀️

Sorry for babbling in your asks Zara. But I love the way you explore these topics calmly that otherwise get drowned in the general uproar in the fandom ❤

You're absolutely fine for babbling!! I love getting the opportunity to blab my mouth off so please don't stop yourself.

I think as someone who loves Kate as a character, the nice solution would've have been to have Edwina encourage Kate nicely, like a “shipper” if you will, but as someone with two younger sisters myself, i would want Edwina to be really upset and confront both her and Anthony and I hope thats what we're getting.

I loved those aspects about her too. Just giving her more of a voice and agency without changing anything personality wise would've been the route I would've taken but unfortunately Shondaland didn't hire me. I do like the irony of Edwina who was not so inclined to be married and quite fancies a book as opposed to the company of a man became this success of a Diamond. What they really could have focused on is this immense pressure to marry that she felt in the book. Edwina cried from relief when she realized she didn't have to marry. This also tracks with Indian culture. I myself had a very traditional and conservative arranged marriage. That pressure to marry is present in society today and so i would've loved to see Edwina go ham on both Anthony and Kate. Anthony for using her and Kate for her ridiculous martyrdom, over the pressure they put her through and how they risked ruining lives over their idiocy. In fact, call me overly dramatic but I would've maybe even preferred her pushing the limits and actually agreeing to marry Anthony just to see how far they would continue to sacrifice in the name of duty.

as far as perceptiveness goes they definitely made it seem as if she notices whats going on between Kate and Anthony in the trailer. Apparently thats not true. So the changes have been made and we cant do much but try to understand the dynamic and how duty really plays a role and how loyalty to duty and not oneself or a loved one can shake up any relationship.

So despite whatever changes they’ve made to her, its still best to go into the season remember that Edwina is young, apparently oblivious and she knows what her duty is and that is to marry and sure she likes Anthony so despite what unfolds it might be easier to stomach things if we look at it her way.

#asks #bridgerton #bridgerton spoilers #edwina sharma

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pinkyringprvnce · 2 years

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Rewatching ‘Private Practice’: “In Which Addison Has a Very Casual Get Together” 6/113

As a new segment on WhatSamWatches, I will now be doing more informal reviews/commentaries on what I’m watching. And it’ll include shows I’ll be rewatching just because I feel like it. I know I just did a review on Private Practice not that long ago but I’m not ready for it to be over. So I’m binging the show from the beginning all over again. So since I rewatched the third episode last week, we’re now onto the fourth episode of Private Practice.

In Which Addison Has a Very Casual Get Together

I’ve gotten that teeth-falling-out dream more times than I can count.

I don’t know if other people still feel this way about RSVPs, but I too like getting an (digital) RSVP to know who’s coming. Or at least some kind of confirmation.

They really made Sam’s live TV appearance as if he were Oprah. Addison really got inspired by “I’m a strong, proud bald man”? Also, the idea that your mind and body have to work together to keep you healthy is such a norm now. I don’t know if it was back then but it’s nice to see the idea behind Sam’s book still holds up.

I’ve never really thought of the Arm & Hammer logo as a guy. Because it’s literally just an arm. There is no head so we technically have no idea if he (of she, for that matter) is bald.

Pete’s Patient, Sylvie

It’s Owen’s mom from Grey’s Anatomy! I love that they rotate a lot of the same actors throughout all the Shondaland shows. But it does make it a little confusing at first for people who watch all the Shondaland shows.

Sylvie seems to really know Pete and his past. So I find it weird that she never comes back.

Well, at least Sylvie knew Anna. But we don’t really learn anything about her from Sylvie either.

But at least she likes the idea of Pete getting together with Addison.

I love how open Sylvie is about her sex life. Even though Stan clearly isn’t.

Cooper’s Patient, Michael

RUgh, I love Miles Heizer. And I love this storyline altogether.

These days, doctors (or anyone really) wouldn’t assume a male patient’s in love with a girl. Or at least, they shouldn’t.

Poor Michael. He asked a boy out and he beat him. Michael’s so brave to even ask Brian out at all. And at such a young age. I just want to give him a hug.

At least Brian helped Cooper find Michael after he went missing. And he apologized.

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cinema-tv-etc · 3 years

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‘Bridgerton’ Isn’t Bad Austen — It’s An Entirely Different Genre

Critics and viewers have dinged the show for being a cliché-ridden period piece or a sloppy historical drama. But it’s neither: It’s Regency romance, and it’s spectacular.

By Claire Fallon

I was deep in a Regency romance binge a few years ago when I pitched a highly self-interested piece to my editor: an investigation into why this didn’t exist onscreen.

This was a creature apart from the Jane Austen adaptations and sedate period pieces I already enjoyed, or sexy but bloody cable costume dramas. A Regency romance is set in a fantasy version of British high society in the early 19th century, and the central action revolves around the courtship between a woman (often a well-bred beauty) and a man (often a rakish peer). They consummate their attraction in improbably acrobatic sexual encounters, and then they live happily ever after.

In the post-2016 election malaise, these novels became my anxiety palliative of choice. They piled up next to my bed and in my e-reader. But sometimes I wanted more, wanted to see the gossamer petticoats and lingering glances and gently unfastened bodices. The piece I pitched never materialized, but the object of my longing did. On Christmas Day 2020, Shondaland’s “Bridgerton” arrived on Netflix.

What ensued was both somewhat exhilarating — getting to see my Regency escapism come to life — and unnerving. My private indulgence, one generally viewed with dismissiveness if not contempt by non-romance readers, had become the target of a full-blown cultural discourse. “Bridgerton” was met with valid and vital critiques, especially over its treatment of consent, but also ones that made me wince: that it was formulaic, predictable, vapid, historically inaccurate, best suited for teens.

Many of the critiques, understandably, seemed rooted in unfamiliarity with the genre’s conventions, or in the expectation that “Bridgerton,” which is based on a series of books by Julia Quinn, would resemble a “Pride and Prejudice” remake. “You don’t get it!” I wanted to shout. “That’s not what this is!” The historical romance has finally gone mainstream — and that means a whole new audience is learning how to read a genre so long relegated to the margins. Sometimes that can be a bumpy ride.

With its bounty of sherbet-hued satin gowns, scandal rags full of malicious gossip, unblinkingly earnest romance, and on-screen lovemaking, “Bridgerton” seems to defy easy categorization for many critics, journalists and viewers — and even Regé-Jean Page, who stars as the smoldering Duke of Hastings.

“It’s a little bit of Jane Austen meets ‘Gossip Girl’ with maybe ‘49 Shades [of Grey’],” he told The Wrap in a December interview. Critics and viewers, at their wits’ ends trying to make sense of this sexy, gossipy, frothy Regency costume drama, also tried to characterize it in terms of beloved on-screen classics: “Pride and Prejudice,” “Downton Abbey,” and, yes, “Gossip Girl.” These comparisons convey some bafflement, an uncertainty about how to categorize a show that isn’t really a realist historical drama, nor an edgy satire, nor a campy soap.

Though it’s true that Austen was the inspiration behind the whole subgenre — the first Regency romance novelist, Georgette Heyer, was emulating Austen’s work — it has evolved into a well-established genre with its own tropes, conventions and standards.

“There’s a way that those kinds of incredibly popular adaptations of Austen will make you, I think, expect that you’re watching a certain kind of thing, and romance novels are not trying to do the same thing at all,” critic Aaron Bady said in a phone conversation. “If you go in watching ‘Bridgerton’ and say, ‘I think I’m watching Jane Austen,’ you’re going to be disappointed. It feels a little Jane Austen-y, but it doesn’t work like a Jane Austen novel.”

Nor is period romance merely a form of realist period fiction. In her review of the show, Patricia Matthew, an associate professor of English at Montclair State University, placed it in a long artistic tradition of Black women depicted in Regency settings. But ultimately, she said in a phone interview, “Nobody’s reading Julia Quinn because they’re looking for disquisitions on historical precedent.”

Bursting though a romance novel may be with carefully researched, period-accurate details about Vauxhall entertainments, Almack’s vouchers or ribboned chemises, these novels really aren’t about the Regency era, or at least not primarily.

“Historical romance does a different kind of work than historical fiction,” Sarah MacLean, a popular historical romance author, told me during a phone call. “The work of the romance novel is not to tell the story of the past. It is to hold a mirror to the present.”

By building a love story between the primary couple, one that is guaranteed to end “happily ever after” or “happy for now,” a romance novel not only provides escapism and the heart-pounding rush of vicarious passion, but a space in which to explore how romantic relationships can and should be, and how women can find fulfillment and happiness. And that means these stories have little to do with how the marriage market of Regency high society actually functioned; they’re about what readers — predominantly women — want to see in their lives today.

“The appeal of the time period for readers is very much about being able to distance readers from certain kinds of social issues and then reframe them as a reflection of society now,” MacLean explained. In the 1970s, novels typically featured brooding alpha males who took what they wanted sexually ― a narrative device, MacLean argued, for the fictional heroines of the time to have plenty of sex without being seen as loose and deserving of punishment. Historical romance novels today often feature heroes and heroines having what seem like rather anachronistically tender exchanges about consent.

Ella Dawson, a sex and culture critic, sees period romance as a way to provide a balm — an experience in which violence and trauma are, if not absent, superseded by a reassurance of ultimate well-being — while also walking readers through more thorny questions.

“Romance as a genre is really interested in consent, in diversity representation, in political issues,” she said. “Romances are so infused with these issues that I [am] really passionate about, and they explore it through this really fun, romantic, swoony, but still very intellectual, thoughtful, accessible lens.”

As odd as it felt to see a straightforward romance adaptation dissected as if it were a failed attempt at matching Jane Austen, it makes sense. Because the genre is generally regarded with such disdain in mainstream culture, it occupies a rather marginalized niche. A non-romance reader is unlikely to have a firm grasp of many things about the genre, outside of well-worn jokes about throbbing members and Fabio’s flowing hair, and though romance is among the bestselling genres in the book industry, it’s rarely adapted for TV or film.

Why has this omission persisted for so long? “I can’t imagine that it isn’t a huge amount [due to] patriarchy, in the sense that for the same reason it gets disdained on the page, it gets disdained on the screen,” said MacLean. To this day, the people deciding which films and shows to finance are almost entirely men. Shonda Rhimes is that rare exception — a woman with creative control over a TV empire, and a fan of the Quinn series.

Practical obstacles to adapting romance also pop up. A novel stuffed with sex scenes and building toward a tidy happy ending may be tricky to adapt for network TV, which needs to keep things a bit cleaner — and keep the narrative drama going indefinitely.

And it’s not just the network TV standards and the tidy endings. The heightened reality and bodice-unclasping of the genre, Matthew said, rely on an intimacy between the reader and the page that’s difficult to translate to the screen.

“I think the plot lines are bananas. I think they’re so extreme that they strain credulity,” she said, laughing. “You have to believe that a sane man, an adult, would say, ‘Oh, I’m just not going to have children so I can spite my father.’ It only works if it’s you with a glass of wine, kind of throwing yourself over to the world of romance.” It’s awkward to sit with someone else, knowing they’re watching the same melodramatic story unfold, partaking in a pleasure that feels somewhat private, if not embarrassing. “We all have these fan worlds that when they’re exposed to other people that aren’t a part of that world we might feel protective of, or feel bashful,” she said.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/bridgerton-netflix-romance-genre_n_60086fd5c5b6ffcab969dafa?utm_source=pocket-newtab

#Bridgerton #Jane Austen

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douxbebearchives · 3 years

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Meet the Author: tied.knots

Hi, tied.knots!

Stories can be found here.

Twitter.

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When did you start writing Olitz? 2018, after the show ended.

Tell us about yourself! What do you want readers to know about you? I'm from the Philippines, the capital which is Manila specifically. I feel like there's not that many scandal and olitz shippers from where I'm from and I haven't interacted with a local scandal fan haha. Greys and HTGWM are very much more popular here so I guess there's that. I'm basically your regular Millenial girl - balancing work, bills, finances, shopping, the pros and cons of single life hahaha. That's it. I live a boring life!

What drew you to Olivia and Fitz? Firstly, a lot is really credited to Kerry and Tony's chemistry. They seriously have the most potent chemistry that I have ever seen when it comes to tv couples and it's very hard to forget combined with their great acting. I feel like they were really born to play Olivia and Fitz. Next would be the very raw, deeply flawed, and realistic portrayal of their epic love story but dysfunctional relationship. Olitz is a very controversial couple. I would even argue that it is Shonda's most controversial couple in Shondaland. When you go outside of the fandom, they are deeply hated to this day and people have a lot of energy (and apparently are willing to spend their time) to criticize them. But all that hatred and negativity towards them shows how very spot on their story was. There's a lot that could have been improved on but the issues that stemmed out of their relationship and their flaws I think resonated with many people which is why a lot hated them. For a ship to get so much hate even years after show ended, it goes to show that a lot really payed attention to them and were moved by their story. ps. you don't get that much attention with olake haha. that pairing appears to be only relevant when it involves fitz/olitz.

What made you want to write about them? I was really hoping that someone would write a long-form post-canon fic about them. I really thought their ending would spark a slew of fanfic! So with its absence and after back-and-forth consultation with my writer friend, Nina, I decided to just go on and write (my very first attempt ever!) what I would want to read. Canon olitz doesn't have a good rep understandably but there's really a lot of room to unpack in it and at the same time get a deeper insight on why Liv and Fitz acted that way during the show. There's still a lot of story to tell because as cheesy as this sounds Liv and Fitz storyline as seen in scandal will never be over.

How would you describe your writing? Angsty, problematic, realistic, raw, hopeful even when it feels not (I hope I do convey these!)

What inspires you to write / create? Olivia and Fitz characterization and their relationship in the show.

Favorite movies, shows, music?

Films - In the mood for love, Fight Club, Parasite, Clueless, Bridget Jones Diary lol. Any films really by Wong Kar Wai, Davin Fincher, and Nancy Meyer

Shows - Sex and the City, The OC, Succession, Skins UK 1st and 2nd Gen

Music - Too many but mainly The Strokes, Daft Punk, The XX, Phoenix, Britney, Kylie Minoque, etc.

How long does it take you to write a chapter? It really varies! The shortest was like 2 weeks-ish and the longest was like 8 or 9 months. Aside from how my life is going, it really highly depends on my mood towards the subject-Olivia and Fitz. Admittedly I'm an on-and-off shipper, sometimes I enjoy them or get in my feels and then there are times that I highly dislike and regret shipping them to the point that I wish they never got back together or argue that Fitz should have been written off the show. Writing for me is very mood based.

Did the show's themes and plots encourage you or discourage you from writing? Encourage.

Writing AU or Canon? Canon.

Reading AU or Canon: Canon.

________

A favorite line, scene, or paragraph you’ve written.

"Fitz back then always thought that once he has fulfilled his father’s predetermined life for him at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave that he’ll be back home to this cozy beach town. That was of course before that one fateful day on February in New Hampshire when a tornado stormed into his life that was ornamented by the California sun." (Chapter 3)

To me, it sounds nice when you read it haha Their fight scene in chapter 10. Even before finishing chapter 1, I knew that I was going to write a big fight scene and one that is similar to 509. It's a very very important scene to me.

________

Fave Olitz moments? The 'I hate you. I hate you too' phone call, 'I would cross that line again', those small moments when you could see how deeply and conflicted in love Olivia was (eg. watching him and Mellie dance during the first inauguration ball) - Liv is known to be not "accepting" of their love and whether she love him or not was always questioned, but a lot her actions and expressions when you look back showed how deeply she fell in love with him.

Fave Olitz fanfic moments? I forgot the title and the author but there was this one shot back then about Olivia who decided to end her engagement to Jake because she had unresolved feelings for Fitz. This fic took place a year I think after Fitz presidency. So she went all the way to Vermont regardless if it's years since her and Fitz last encounter and how bad their relationship ended - they fought about him going to war for her I think. So yeah she went all the way to Vermont not knowing what to expect and the writer did a good job of piecing them back together.

________

Do you like it when readers engage with you via comments / social media? Yes.

Story Reviews: Love them, hate them? BOTH! The reviews reminds of me of the live tweets when the show was on and the energy back then so I like that aspect. I appreciate readers that are grateful to authors and those that show how curious they are with the stories. I hate the intentional and consistent badmouthing to the point of bullying and creating competition among authors which made some quit or removed their stories. The nonstop attacks by some these "guest" reviewers really says a lot about their character. My friend Nina would always say that the writers don't owe themselves to anyone and that is highly true. We do it because we want to write and we make time for it without expecting anything in return really. Don't like it, then don't read it. Read and review the story you want to read then.

What advice would you give to a new Olitz writer? Just write! Don't care if you don't have experience at all or if you're too conscious about how not perfect your grammar is. The olitz fanfic community I think has a consistently growing audience so there will always be readers. Also most importantly, write the story that you want to tell. It is your work and only you will know how to go about it. Don't focus too much on the reviews/criticisms and don't let it solely dictate you on how to write your story.

Outside of your fics, do you have any fave Olitz stories or authors? PurplePineapple, torri.oats, Only You by anonolitz, that one shot I mentioned above.

Do you talk to other Olitz authors? If so, do you like the camaraderie? I've only interacted with like 2 I think hahaha. It's a very supporting and encouraging group! I think we're just excited to read each other's stories which is a nice feeling.

Have you made friends (people you talk to outside of fanfic) because of Olitz / Scandal fanfic? Yes and we've been friends for almost three years! She knows so much of my life honestly compared to my irl friends.

Before you go, anything else you'd like to share? Thank you for always supporting and encouraging olitz authors! You guys have a really good and organized system which is very helpful :))

ps. Beyond Whiskey is an olitz fanfic :))

________

Thank you, tied.knots, for allowing us to feature you!

#doux bebe archives #meet the author #tied.knots #olitz fanfic authors

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richincolor · 4 years

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Title: Full Disclosure Author: Camryn Garrett Genres: Contemporary, LGTBQIA, Romance Pages: 288 Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers Review Copy: eARC from publisher Availability: Available now

Summary: In a community that isn’t always understanding, an HIV-positive teen must navigate fear, disclosure, and radical self-acceptance when she falls in love—and lust—for the first time. Powerful and uplifting, Full Disclosure will speak to fans of Angie Thomas and Nicola Yoon.

Simone Garcia-Hampton is starting over at a new school, and this time things will be different. She’s making real friends, making a name for herself as student director of Rent, and making a play for Miles, the guy who makes her melt every time he walks into a room. The last thing she wants is for word to get out that she’s HIV-positive, because last time . . . well, last time things got ugly.

Keeping her viral load under control is easy, but keeping her diagnosis under wraps is not so simple. As Simone and Miles start going out for real—shy kisses escalating into much more—she feels an uneasiness that goes beyond butterflies. She knows she has to tell him that she’s positive, especially if sex is a possibility, but she’s terrified of how he’ll react! And then she finds an anonymous note in her locker: I know you have HIV. You have until Thanksgiving to stop hanging out with Miles. Or everyone else will know too.

Simone’s first instinct is to protect her secret at all costs, but as she gains a deeper understanding of the prejudice and fear in her community, she begins to wonder if the only way to rise above is to face the haters head-on…

Review: I have been looking forward to Camryn Garrett’s debut novel for months now, and I am happy to report that it was worth the wait. Full Disclosure is a thoughtful exploration of sex, love, and identity, and Garrett handles the book’s topics with honesty and sensitivity.

One of the things I most appreciated about the novel was its frankness about how some teenagers do, in fact, want to have sex or are already having sex. (And some teenagers don’t—there’s an asexual character!) Simone was able to discuss sex with her doctors, including what she needs to take in consideration because of her HIV-positive status, but she also talked about masturbation, toys, birth control, and more with her friends, too. It’s always nice to see a contemporary YA book that openly deals with these topics, especially when it also touches on bisexuality and HIV.

There is a lot going on in Full Disclosure, so the pace never lags, and there is a large cast of secondary characters. Simone’s adoptive fathers were great, and I particularly enjoyed the scenes we got of Simone’s extended family and how she related (good and not-so-great) to them. Their inclusion really helped flesh the novel out as we got glimpses into the complexity and depths of their relationships to each other and Simone. Claudia, Lydia, and Miles were also solid supporting characters for Simone’s story, even when things got uncomfortable between them.

Another thing I appreciated was how being closeted was handled sympathetically. Simone keeps quiet about her bisexuality and HIV status for a lot of the book due to how things went down at her last school. Other characters are out to friends but not professionally or have strained relationships with family because of their identity/orientation. There are so many reasons people are in/out of the closet to different groups and at different times, and Full Disclosure addresses how difficult that can be and why it can also be necessary in order to protect yourself.

But overall, the best part of this book is Simone. I loved reading her story and following along as she decided what she wanted for her life and figured out how she could try to make her desires and ambitions come true.

Recommendation: Get it soon. Full Disclosure is an entertaining coming-of-age novel that tackles sexuality, HIV, and falling in love head on. I’m looking forward to what Camryn Garrett has in store for us in the future.

Extras

What First-Time Author Camryn Garrett’s Debut Novel Teaches Teens About Living With HIV at Shondaland

Camryn Garrett’s Full Disclosure humanizes an unlikely protagonist: a black girl living with HIV at Entertainment Weekly

Cassie Interviews Camryn Garrett, author of FULL DISCLOSURE at Brazos Bookstore

#full disclosure #camryn garrett #WeNeedDiverseBooks #young adult books

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confused-and-hurtzo · 5 years

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Grey’s S15

So... I pranked myself like I always do, and I decided to do a mini grey’s rewatch of seasons 12-15. To be completely honest, I didn’t watch season 13 or 14 entirely, and I wanted to understand this past season better. (I lowkey also wanted to see Deluca’s character development b/c I want to understand the man that Mer just said ‘I love you’ to). So here is a review of Grey’s S15, what I hope to see in S16, a rant on some comments I have seen on the internet about. I just need to let my thoughts out.

First of all, I am a big Grey’s Anatomy fan. Although I roll my eyes every time I say it's been running this long, this show has a special place in my heart. I started watching the show during my formative years, Cristina Yang basically raised my teenage self. I started in middle school, and now we are here, a year away from graduating my undergrad at UofT. I don’t want to discredit the amazing women that raised me, but I also don’t want to not mention Shondaland and its influence on who I am today. Overall, Grey’s is kind of like my bible, I rewatch it every time I need to feel comfortable, validated, and reasonable. Its storytelling has allowed me to understand so many things, such as addiction (s/o to Private Practice and Amelia Shepherd), family issues, loyalty, love, empowerment. Its most important lesson is that life goes on. No matter how hard it gets, it just keeps going, and that's the beauty of it. We all can take whatever it throws at us, and come on the other side, stronger and wiser. I hate it when people say that they miss the old Grey's, that they miss Derek or Cristina. It’s all very valid, I miss them too. However, that is life, people die, people move across the globe, and you just have to deal with that and move forward.

I really enjoyed this season because of its attention to detail. I know this sounds very odd, but, after watching S12, 13, and 14, I feel that this season was packed with references. It mostly stayed true to the characters' storylines and amended some plot holes from previous seasons. I love that the Mer-Tatcher storyline had a conclusion, I always wondered what happened to him after Lexie died. I also enjoyed meeting Alex’s mom, she is honestly a sweetheart. Benley’s story was so exciting, I am never concerned about them because they are perfect, but it is good to see them going through hard times. They brought back Teddy, which allowed Owen’s character to move forward. I loved that they gave Amelia a chance, we got a better explanation of why her family was not there, and her story became full-circle. There is more reference to the Mer’s kids, making us remember that she is a mom LOL. Finally, although he is a more recent character, I love Schmidt so much. He cracks me up, and his story is so underrated.

In this part, I will focus more on my favorite characters of the show and what I liked about them this season:

Meredith: I have to admit, I always thought I was Cristina Yang, but the more I reflect on this, the more I realize that I am more of a Meredith Grey. I am so proud of how far she has come, professionally and emotionally. She is a warrior. I love how happy she is this season. It's partly because of her new relationship, but also she is very stable now, with her kids, her award, her friendships. She is always working really hard to be a better person, and it takes a courageous person to admit that you need to improve and actually doing the work to be better. She understands her past and moves forward, motivating the people that love her the most to do the same thing. She has changed, for good. And, people may say that she is not the Meredith Grey she was in season 1, and I say that this is a good thing. She has grown up and learned from her mistakes (some of them, she was still afraid of I love you’s and committed insurance fraud, but some things don’t change lol). Cece was such a central character for her storyline, I loved how she allowed her to believe in herself and in life-after-love (yes, this is a Cher reference), which is why Merluca is a thing now. I high-key believe that Cece intentionally created the Link-Andrew-Meredith love triangle for Deluca to step up his game and show her how much she wants to be with her. After all, Cece was there when they talked about the kiss, she saw something, and finessed her way into making it a reality. I can’t help but smile at the fact that Mer is smiling like a teenager again, it fills my heart. I too loved Derek, but he died. That happens, it sucks. But, Mer has every right to move on and fall in love again. She deserves finding love again.

Alex: Alex as chief was my favorite thing this season. I love how he just got the job randomly, but this job allowed him to prove himself what he is capable of. Don’t get me wrong, I love Bailey as chief, but we all knew that she was going to be a great chief someday. I always root for the underdog, and in this particular situation, he was the underdog. My favorite part is when Bailey and Weber realized how good he was at the job because he understands that delegating is a thing (lol). I liked meeting his mom, that storyline just re-states how pure he is. I love how he doesn’t realize that Merluca is a thing, he is just completely oblivious. It broke my heart to see him freaking out about Jo because it made me realize how much Izzie scared him. He is the Most Improved Character of the show. Period.

Amelia: I love Amelia so much. She is often very misunderstood by some fans, but you all need to watch private practice to understand her better. I liked this season because it made justice to her and her journey. We learned a bit more about Christopher. We saw her being a mom with both Betty and Leo. We saw her helping Betty through her addiction. We saw her standing up for herself and end a relationship that had become very toxic. We saw her talk to her family and, more importantly, talk to her mom. We saw her rise above her love for Owen and let him be happy with Teddy. She has grown so much and this season allowed her to do that, which I am very grateful for. After rewatching S15, I now am a full Amelink stan. I love how they start their first significant interaction with Link word-vomiting his feeling about the overdose wave. He talks a lot, just like her, and he is willing to listen to her talking. One reason why Omelia didn’t work out was that Owen didn’t talk and Amelia felt that she shouldn’t talk either, leading to significant miscommunications. I also love that Link understands addiction a bit better than Owen, which is already a sign that this relationship has potential. I loved Omelia, they had a very awkward, sometimes funny, sometimes dark relationship and helped each other in very dark moments. They did love each other, in their own twisty way. However, I think that it kind of became an addiction for them to be together despite all the red flags, which is not healthy.

Jackson: I love Jackson, he has such a big heart. Kind of salty about Japril not being endgame, but we gotta move on. I loved how supportive he was with Catherine during the tumor surgery, their chemistry is so good. Like. It’s hard for me to believe that they are not actually mother and son. I love that he is a high-key Merluca shipper and how much he respects Richard Webber. I hope he doesn't die.

Deluca: OK... so I just going to say that I want him to be in peds so bad, he is the SOFTEST character atm, I am in love. He has also grown this season. I think its partly because the writers want us to believe he has now that he is dating THE Meredith Grey, but we stan this evolution. People always complain about how he didn’t want to date Maggie b/c she was his boss, and I would like to disagree with that to an extent. Yeah... the problem was that she was his boss, but the main issue was because he was afraid of the favoring situation, meaning that he didn’t love Maggie because was not willing to put up with what others would think about them. Sigh. Anyways... I enjoy how much depth his character is getting, learning about his family was important because we now understand the difficulties he has faced. He has shown that he is no longer an intern. I cringe every time people try to invalidate his character by pointing out how immature he was. No one on Grey’s is their intern self. Look at Alex, Mer, Bailey, SCHMIDT... everyone has grown out of their intern mistakes, so why should we just bring up Andrew’s to justify why Merluca shouldn’t be a thing? (and so what if he is not as mature as Mer? Mer wasn’t as “mature” as Derek, and no one batted an eye... double standards am I right?). The being beaten up by Alex storyline really shook him. He did say some irrational things, but how are you supposed to be 100% rational when you went through a very untenable situation? He deserves the benefit of the doubt and a second chance. Don’t tell me you all have never said impulsive things or had inappropriate crushes. Smh.

What I want to see in S16

Meredith in jail and her village supporting her.

Jo and Alex dealing with Jo’s depression in a compassionate and empowering way.

Teddy and Owen being parents and being in love.

I want a Towen wedding, just because I want everyone to look pretty AF.

Owen and Amelia being good friends. As much as I think Omelia is no longer a viable love relationship, I really like their chemistry, and I would like to see them becoming good friends.

Merluca being domestic with the kids and talking about their past. I want Mer to tell him about her losses, her feelings, her fears. I want them to talk about the age difference in a positive way. I honestly don’t see Mer getting pregnant, but like I always think about Ben and Bailey and how Ben just became Tuck’s dad and he loves him like his own son. I can see Andrew loving Mer’s kids in that way.

Andrew choosing peds and Alex mentoring him, just like Arizona. Team Peds 2.0?

I want to see Carina more, more insight into her character. She is always someone’s lover or just Andrew’s sister, but we don’t get to see her by herself.

Andrew just dealing with the sister trifecta. I want funny, light, comic relief interactions.

Knowing where the fuck Jackson is. I am ready to see him go, but I am also not prepared to see him go.

#grey's anatomy #meredith grey #alex karev #amelia shepherd #jackson avery #andrew deluca #merluca #amelink #omelia #towen #jolex

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viscountessevie · 2 years

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I gotta a feeling Sameer usmani will play Michael in future seasons, he is not a very big name and was in Shondaland's and Netflix's Inventing Anna

Probably related to my fan cast post and my other reblogs/posts expressing wanting Dev Patel as Michael even if it will never happen.

Since I have been on a Frannie/Michael reblog, I figure I might as well answer this before getting into discourse posts again ahhaha! Also I know you sent this A LONG TIME AGO just after I rage quit the blog I think so I wasn't checking my asks so thanks for waiting and sending this ask in, anon!

While looking for the related posts, I realised I have fan cast a LOT of people for Michael lmao and two men for John. Let's review before we get into this new addition:

My first love: Dev Patel as Michael, honestly never gave much thought to who his John could be. He's a pretty unique looking Indian guy in Hollywood (Ik all the beards make them look alike lol but he looks different enough I can't really find someone who could be his John) He’s trying to kill me with this gif I SWEAR but it’s PEAK Michael:

I love the idea of twin cousins John and Michael since their dad were twins and so I think they'd look alike so hence my fave fan cast to date might be Raymond Ablack as John and Rahul Kohli as Michael:

[It's the way for the first ep of Ginny and Georgia I thought Raymond was Rahul 🤡🤡]

Honourable Mention to Filipino!Stirlings in my fan cast post linked above, who I included because I already used Dev as Benedict and I wanted to switch it up from Indian!Stirlings for that post and since my friend Lil @sharmasandcorgis suggested Manny Jacinto for Michael, I picked out Rene Gube as his John.

More recently I made this post which features Greg Tarzan Davis as a potential Michael, also suggested by Lil when she saw me posting about Top Gun lmao and I also got more Indian!Michael suggestions: Manish Dayal (though he's officially my Adult!Neddy here) and Suraj Sharma.

Honestly at the end of the day, I just want the Stirlings to be extremely hot MoCs that make me feel stupid just by looking at them like that's how attractive they need to be and it would be lovely if they could be dark skinned too we need more dark skinned POC rep. I'm mostly all for Indian!Stirlings because you can never have too many of them in the family lmao and also it would be nice to turn Michael's 2 year coloniser trip into a pilgrimage for John to spread his ashes in his favourite river in India.

Now let's look at this new boy, Sameer Usmani:

The period clothes are like 300 years older than Bridgerton's oop but I see it, he's pretty cute and it would makes sense like you said, he's been in a Shondaland and Netflix show so he can definitely be an in house hire. I haven't seen him in Inventing Anna and I'm not really interested in the show so I can't speak to his acting at the moment but this picture is from Reign so I might watch him in that and see if he could pull Michael off.

Thanks again for this ask anon, hope it was worth the wait and you enjoyed my compilation of Michaels!

#Bridgerton #Bridgerton fancasts #Michael Stirling #John Stirling #Sameer Usmani #Bridgerton Asks

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televinita · 5 years

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Books Read in 2018: The Why

Third year in a row* of answering the self-imposed question: why did you read this particular book?

(*Although 2017′s is presently flagged by the garbage bot and under appeal -- WHY DO U HATE MY BOOK COVER COLLAGES, MR. ALGORITHM)

I am beginning to deeply regret the extra work involved to split them by category, so next year is probably just gonna be a numbered chronological list after the Quilt of Many Covers, but for now they are still divided into adult fiction, YA, middle grade/children’s books, and nonfiction

FICTION

True Valor - Dee Henderson. 2002. Read because: I went hunting for a military romance in which to cast Dalton and Jaz [The Brave]. This one at least guaranteed me Dalton (and included rescuing a female soldier lost/hurt in combat, so).

These Healing Hills - Ann H. Gabhart. 2017. Had this one in my back pocket for a while as a quality-sounding stock romance (nurse/soldier) waiting for players. When my need for a Barbie/Julia [Under the Dome] story reached a new high, I deemed it a match.

Shane - Jack Schaefer. 1949. This is the book Fourmile is based on, so I thought I could get a two-for-one casting thrill out of it.

The Lake House - Kate Morton. 2015. A gorgeous historic mansion hidden within an abandoned estate. A mystery from the past to be solved in the present. What are "things I am here for always."

Crimson Peak (movie novelization) - Nancy Holder. 2015. I LOVED the movie, and the only thing I love more than amazing movies is when I can have them translated into and enriched by prose.

Chasing Sunsets - Karen Kingsbury. 2015. Brush of Wings - Karen Kingsbury. 2016. I was hunting, desperately, for Ben/Ryan-shaped books [Off the Map], and "Brush of Wings" checked all the boxes (young woman who needs a heart transplant volunteers in a third world country, love interest has to find a way to rush her home when the situation turns dire). I only read C.S. first because I didn't want to miss where the romance started.

Rancher Under Fire - Vickie Donoghue. 2014. I was looking for a different book when I casually stumbled upon this title, and listen. I am not gonna turn down a ready-made Barbie/Julia AU* with bonus "single father" angle. (*cowboy/journalist)

Heart Like Mine - Maggie McGinnis. 2016. "Ben/Ryan, Sexy Hookup AU Version please."

The Mountain Between Us - Charles Martin. 2010. The request list for the movie was too long, so I decided to see if it was based on a book. Upon reading the back cover and finding out one character was a surgeon, I immediately forgot the movie cast as my brain exploded with Shondaland options.

When Crickets Cry - Charles Martin. 2006. "Doctor whose wife died young of a lifelong heart condition" sounded like the best book-shaped Ben/Ryan approximation yet, with bonus "watching out for a little girl who is sick in the same way" cuteness as well.

The Woman in Cabin 10 - Ruth Ware. 2016. A woman at work recommended it to me, and I was like, "a well received general thriller? Sure!"

Listen to Me - Hannah Pittard. 2016. Put "road trip" into the library catalog --> picked 70% because "Gothic thriller" made me think of "The Strangers," and 30% because I was reliving the glory days of Derek And Addison and this marriage sounded similar.

The Lying Game - Ruth Ware. 2017. I enjoyed the other book of hers I read so my friend brought in the next one she had.

Hatter Fox - Marilyn Harris. 1973. Read in high school and forgotten until I reread the Goodreads summary, and "doctor drawn to help 17-year-old" set off my radar. Shippy or merely protective/caretaking, my radar reacts the same.

Vanished - Mary McGary Morris. 1988. The trailer for unreleased Martin Henderson film "Hellbent" whipped me into a frenzy so I did my best to find book-shaped approximations of it. (spoiler alert: this failed miserably, but I grudge-matched it out)

Thunder and Rain - Charles Martin. 2012. Former Texas Ranger who is a single dad. Rescuing & protecting a scared/abused woman and child. At his ranch with cows and horses. By an author who has proven his salt in the hurt/comfort and restrained-romance departments.

Before the Fall - Nick Hawley. 2016. Mostly I came for the dynamic between the young orphan and the passenger who saved him, but I also like witnessing the general aftermath of plane crash survivors.

The Perfect Nanny - Leila Slimani. 2018. My work friend loaned it to me with the statement, "This has such good reviews but I don't know if I 'got' it -- I am really curious to know what you think of it!"

The Girl Before - J.P. Delaney. 2017. She loaned me this one too, with a more glowing recommendation.

Everything You Want Me To Be - Mindy Mejia. 2017. Aaaand one last rec from my seasonal work friend before our projects took us in separate directions.

The Dog Year - Ann Wertz Garvin. 2014. Dog on the cover + synopsis was basically a list of tropes I love: a woman (a doctor to boot!) grieving loss of husband and unborn baby; dogs; a new love interest who is one of my favorite professions to pair with doctor (cop)...

Losing Gemma - Katy Gardner. 2002. "So basically this is the victim backstory to a Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders plot? Dude, sign me UP; I can so see this friendship!"

Uncharted - Tracey Garvis-Graves. 2013. The companion novella to a book I loved.

The English Boys - Julia Thomas. 2016. Mom checked it out of the library, "guy in piney unrequited love with his best friend's fiancee" intrigued me enough to open it, and by 3-5 pages in I was hooked.

The Broken Girls - Simone St. James. 2018. Abandoned boarding-school ruins, a murder mystery from the past being solved in the present day, possibly tied to a second murder from the past?? Yeah, give it.

Heart-Shaped Hack - Tracey Garvis-Graves. 2015. White-Hot Hack - Tracey Garvis-Graves. 2016. Proven quality romance writer's latest books feature a professional super-skilled hacker? Sounds right up my Scorpion-obsessed alley. First book was plenty good enough to launch me into Part II.

Shine Shine Shine - Lydia Netzer. 2012. In my continuing quest to find books in which to cast Walter/Paige, I searched the phrase "her genius husband" and this one's summary matched my desires well.

Learning to Stay - Erin Celello. 2013. Ever eager to expand my hurt/comfort scenario stockpile, I went looking for something where a husband suffers a TBI/brain damage that mostly affects their personality. The bonus dog content sold it.

The Fate of Mercy Alban - Wendy Webb. 2013. Came up on my Goodreads timeline. I read as far as "spine-tingling mystery about family secrets set in a big, old haunted house on Lake Superior" and immediately requested it from the library.

Rated PG - Virginia Euwer Wolff. 1981. I was rereading her Make Lemonade trilogy when I saw a quote in her author bio that said, "I did write an adult novel. Thank goodness it went out of print." Curious, I looked it up, and between its age and the fact that it sounded more like YA than a proper adult novel, I was immediately more intrigued by it than her boring-sounding middle grade books.

Someone Else's Love Story - Joshilyn Jackson. 2013. "Young single mom with genius son meeting a possibly-autistic scientist who protects them during a gas station holdup/hostage situation and later bonds with her son" was the exact literary approximation of a Scorpion AU I wanted in my brain. By the time I realized that was not the endgame ship, I had already flipped through it and fallen in love w/ William and his romantic memories of his wife instead.

Driftwood Tides - Gina Holmes. 2014. Cool title + I love the "young adult adoptee bonds with the spouse of their late birth mother" trope.

The Haunting - Alan Titchmarsh. 2011. Title caught my eye at the library near Halloween; I dug the "dual timelines" setup with a mystery from the past to be solved in the present, and hoped for ghosts.

The Lost Hours - Karen White. 2009. I searched "scrapbook" in the library catalog. A family member's formerly buried old scrapbook, an old house, and unearthing family history/secrets? GIVE IT TO ME.gif.

The Etruscan Smile - Velda Johnston. 1977. Slim (quick read), attractive cover painting, an exotic Italian countryside setting in a bygone era, and a young woman investigating the mystery of her sister's disappearance all appealed to me.

Stay Away, Joe - Dan Cushman. 1953. All I could tell from the book jacket was that it was somehow Western/ranch-themed, possibly full of wacky hijinx and had once been deemed appropriate for a high school library. I just wanted to know what the heck it was about!

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

YOUNG ADULT

(I’m kind of guessing at the line of demarcation between teen and middle grade audiences for some of these, especially the older ones -- another reason that I should give up on categories in the future -- but let’s just go with it)

These Shallow Graves - Jennifer Donnelly. 2015. Seemed like a YA version of What the Dead Leave Behind (which itself I was using as a Crimson Peak AU), from an author whose work has always impressed me.

Snow Bound - Harry Fox Mazer. 1973. Always here for survival stories! Also, this is a good author.

The House - Christina Lauren. 2015. I LOVE evil/haunted mansion stories.

The Masked Truth - Kelley Armstrong. 2015. It looked like Criminal Minds in a YA novel.

Things I'm Seeing Without You - Peter Bognanni. 2017. Went googling for stories that sounded like contemporary variations on Miles & Charlie Matheson [Revolution]. "Teen shows up at estranged father's door" fit the bill.

Even When You Lie to Me - Jessica Alcott. 2015. I always turn out for student/teacher stories, given enough suggestion of it being mostly an emotional connection rather than an illicit hookup.

Too Shattered for Mending - Peter Brown Hoffmeister. 2017. I also dig stories where teenagers have to take care of/fend for themselves in the absence of a parent/guardian.

The Devil You Know - Trish Doller. 2015. I enjoyed a previous book of hers, and I always like road trips and teen thrillers.

The Raft - S.A. Bodeen. Terror at Bottle Creek underwhelmed, so I thought I'd try a YA/female protagonist option for a survival thriller, not least because the girl on the cover reminded me of Under the Dome's Melanie.

Ghost at Kimball Hill - Marie Blizard. 1956. Picked up randomly at an estate sale; the vintage cover and incredibly charming first 2 pages won my heart.

A New Penny - Biana Bradbury. 1971. The rare idea of a teen shotgun marriage in this era -- when it would still be expected, but also more likely to fall apart and end in a young divorce or separation -- fascinated me; I was curious to see how such an adult situation would play out.

Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer - Katie Alender. 2013. I mean...it is really all right there in the title and/or the awesful puns all over the cover. ("Let them eat cake...AND DIE!") Pure unadulterated crack, combining my two fave specialty genres of history and horror? Yes ma'am.

Me And My Mona Lisa Smile - Sheila Hayes. 1981. I was looking up this author of a Little Golden Book to see what else she had, found one that suggested a student/teacher romance, and bolted for it.

To Take a Dare - Crescent Dragonwagon/Paul Zindel. 1982. 50% due to the first author's cracktastic name and my full expectations of it being melodramatic, 50% because I was still on my "Hellbent" high and looking for similar teen runaway stories.

To All My Fans, With Love, From Sylvie - Ellen Conford. 1982. The last one from my attempt-at-a-Hellbent-esque-storyline set -- girl hitchhiking cross-country is picked up by a middle aged man who may or may not have pure intentions, by an established quality author.

Be Good Be Real Be Crazy - Chelsey Philpot. Bright cover called out to me; I was in the mood for a fun road trip novel for spring/early summer.

This is the Story of You - Beth Kephart. Kephart's name always gives me pause due to her fuzzy writing style, but I loved Nothing But Ghosts, so I could not resist the promise of surviving a super-storm disaster.

A Little in Love - Susan Fletcher. "Eponine's story from Les Mis" on a YA novel = immediately awesome; I LOVE HER??? Also it's just my fave musical, generally.

Adrift - Paul Griffin. 2015. I've been really digging survival stories this year, and while stories about survival at sea aren't typically my fave, they keep popping up in my path so I keep poppin' em like candy.

Life in Outer Space - Melissa Keil. 2013. After delighting my brain with concept sketches for a high school AU, I set out to find the equivalent of Scorpion's team dynamics/main relationship in a YA novel, and by god I found it.

Everything Must Go - Fanny Fran Davis. 2017. The brightly colored cover drew me in, and the format of being like a scrapbook of personal documents/paper ephemera lit up the scrap-collecting center of my brain.

Going Geek - Charlotte Huang. 2016.

originally I thought it might be like Life in Outer Space, but once I realized the title geeks were all girls I shrugged and went, "Eh, still a solid contemporary YA novel at a cool setting (boarding school)."

Like Mandarin - Kirsten Hubbard. 2011.

By the author of my beloved Wanderlove, I was drawn in by the title, intriguing cover photo, rural Wyoming setting and the concept of a high school freshman girl latching onto/idolizing a cool senior girl.

Sixteen: Short Stories By Outstanding Writers for Young Adults. ed. Donald R. Gallo. 1984. Tripped over it at the library, and immediately wanted to consume a set of 80s teen book content from a pack of authors I know and love.

A & L Do Summer - Jan Blazanin. 2011. In the summer, sometimes you just want to vicariously relive the feeling of being a largely-responsibility-free teen in a small-town location.

The Assassin Game - Kirsty McKay. 2015. Looked like the (Welsh!) boarding school version of Harper's Island. (spoiler alert: it is rather less stabby than that, but still fun)

We Are Still Tornadoes - Michael Kun/Susan Mullen. 2016. "College freshmen? Writing letters to each other? Sure, looks solid."

Nothing - Annie Barrows. 2017. It looked relatable: like the kind of book that would happen if I tried to turn my high school journals into a book. (spoiler alert: dumber)

The Memory Book - Laura Avery. 2016. Contemporary YA about a girl with a(n unusual) disease, but mostly, the title and promise of it being a collection of entries in different formats.

Kindess for Weakness - Shawn Goodman. 2013. LITERALLY AU RYAN ATWOOD.

Make Lemonade - Virginia Euwer Wolff. 1993. True Believer - Virginia Euwer Wolff. 2001. This Full House - Virginia Euwer Wolff. 2008. I reread the first two so I could give them proper reviews on Goodreads, and then realized I hadn't read the last one at all.

Blue Voyage - Diana Renn. 2015. A hefty teen mystery in a unique exotic location (Turkey) -- with an antiquities smuggling ring! - called out to me.

Girl Online - Zoe Sugg. 2014. I was really in the mood to read something on the younger end of YA, something cute and fun, when I saw this at the library.

Wilderness Peril - Thomas J. Dygard. 1985. Reread of a book I rated 4 stars in high school but couldn't remember, which happened to be lying next to me on a morning where I didn't wanna get out of bed yet.

Survive the Night - Danielle Vega. 2015. The cover had a GLITTERY SKULL. Give me that delightfully packaged horror story for the Halloween season!

The Hired Girl - Laura Amy Schlitz. 2015. I've been digging into my journals and old family photo albums lately, really fascinated by personal historical documents (also recently obsessed over The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt), and when I saw a diary format book set in 1911 -- a housemaid's diary, no less; that must be interesting as far as recording grand house details -- it spoke to me.

Fans of the Impossible Life - Kate Scelsa. 2015. The colored-pencil-sketch cover gave me Rainbow Rowell vibes.

All The Truth That's In Me - Julie Berry. 2013. Someone who favorably reviewed The Hired Girl also recommended this one; the cover caught my eye, and it sounded like a thriller.

Girl In A Bad Place - Kaitlin Ward. 2017. I heart YA thrillers featuring girls.

Facing It - Julian F. Thompson. 1983. I was in desperate need of a book one night and my only option was to buy one off the library sale cart, so I snagged the one that looked like some entertaining 80s melodrama with a fun (summer camp) setting. (Spoiler alert: fun and entertaining it was not.)

A Good Idea - Cristina Moracho. 2017. "Rural literary noir," promised the cover blurb, and as I just mentioned: I heart YA thrillers.

Something Happened - Greg Logsted. 2008. Short/easy read + I was hoping for either a misinterpreted Genuinely Caring Teacher, or scenarios to use in an appropriate age difference context.

In Real Life - Jessica Love. 2016. My shipper radar pretty much looked at the summary and went "THE AU CHRISTIAN/GABBY SETUP OF MY DREAMS."

The Black Spaniel Mystery - Betty Cavanna. 1945.

Adorable cover (and dogs!) from an established quality author.

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CHILDREN’S / MIDDLE GRADE

The Cloud Chamber - Joyce Maynard. 2005. The cover made me think of Under the Dome, and the MC immediately reminded me of Joe McAlister.

Terror at Bottle Creek - Watt Key. 2016. After rereading Fourmile, I got a hankering for more books I might be able to cast with the kids from Under the Dome, and figured more Watt Key + a thrilling survival adventure was the ticket for that.

Swampfire - Patricia Cecil Haas. 1973. One of approximately 100 unread vintage horse books I own at any given time; finally in mood because it was short and sweet.

Baby-sitting Is A Dangerous Job - Willo Davis Roberts. 1985. Reread a childhood favorite in order to give it a proper review on Goodreads.

In The Stone Circle - Elizabeth Cody Kimmel. 1998. Same as above.

Wild Spirits - Rosa Jordan. 2010. Clearly the "Kat & Tommy take Justin under their wing" Power Rangers AU of which I have always dreamed, in my very favorite version of it: the one where Kat surrounds herself with animals.

Claudia - Barbara Wallace. 1969. Picked up cheap at a book sale, standard cute vintage Scholastic about a girl and her school life. Comfort food.

Reasons to be Happy - Katrina Kittle. 2011. The cover and the 5 reasons excerpted in the summary were so cute that I wanted to know what more of the reasons were.

Dark Horse Barnaby - Marjorie Reynolds. 1967. Needed a quick read and I'll p. much read any vintage horse book.

Runaway - Dandi Daley Mackall. 2008. Start of a companion series to my beloved Winnie the Horse Gentler, featuring some favorite themes: foster care + animal rescue.

Wolf Wilder - Katherine Rundell. 2015. Pretty cover, girl protagonist, historical Russian setting, wolves. All good things!

Backwater - Joan Bauer. 1999. Sounded like a beautifully tranquil setting.

The Dingle Ridge Fox and Other Stories - Sam Savitt. 1978. Animal stories + author love = automatic win.

If Wishes Were Horses - Jean Slaughter Doty. 1984. Overdue reread of a childhood favorite because I needed some short books to finish the reading challenge.

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NONFICTION

Junk: Digging Through America's Love Affair with Stuff - Alison Stewart. 2016. I mean, I am definitely an American who has a love affair with stuff.

Keeping Watch: 30 Sheep, 24 Rabbits, 2 Llamas, 1 Alpaca, and a Shepherdess with a Day Job - Kathryn Sletto. 2010.

As soon as I saw my favorite fluffy creature on the cover, I felt an immediate need to transport myself into this (dream) hobby farm setting.

(Side note: this is probably the lowest amount of nonfiction I have read in 1 year for a decade, but I was just so busy hunting down specific types of stories that I could not get distracted by random learning.)

#why I read #quality data #queued

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wbwest · 7 years

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New Post has been published on WilliamBruceWest.com

New Post has been published on http://www.williambrucewest.com/2017/08/18/west-week-ever-pop-culture-review-81817/

West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review - 8/18/17

I swear, as much as I love pop culture, some weeks it’s just really hard to pay attention to that stuff with everything going on in the world. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know about everything that went down in Charlottesville last weekend. I don’t need to recap it, but I’ve got to tell you that I’m scared. Yeah, we’re supposed to stand up to the Nazis and #Resist and all that, but I can still be scared, can’t I? I’ve got to raise a kid in the world. I don’t know how to explain shit that I don’t even understand. We really judge people because of their color? It’s like the Chris Rock joke about VCRs and girls who don’t perform oral sex: “They still make you?” It’s crazy to me, and I tended to just go through life without really thinking too much about it. I had that luxury, and I knew it was a luxury. Part of what made it great was that these folks that are loud and proud used to just be keyboard warriors in their moms’ basements. But they’ve come out of the basements, y’all, and this shit is REAL.

About two years ago, I was driving us all home from the airport. I get to an intersection for a left turn, and the guy behind me keeps honking for me to go, even though he couldn’t really see that I saw cars coming. Eventually, he just speeds around me, and we end up next to each other at the next light. I see him mouthing something at me, so I roll down my window. Then he proceeds to ramble off a bunch of stuff, but what stood out most in my mind was him calling me a nigger. Oh, and my wife a bitch. But mainly him calling me a nigger several times. And it all went black for me.

I seem to remember calling him an asshole, because racial scientists have yet to discover the perfect counter to being called a nigger. White folks are like Teflon when it comes to slurs, as most of the ones about them have lost their effectiveness over the years. And then he challenged me to a fight. Wanted me to pull over into a parking lot. Like I said, I was GONE at this point. Plus, this was the longest red light in history. My daughter started crying in her carseat, and he told me to “go on home and don’t be a deadbeat nigger”, and Lindsay was urging me to just ignore the guy. Engines started revving. The lanes narrowed, and I think I wanted to run him into the median. That was my plan. As Evie’s cries got louder, I realized I had responsibilities and shit, so I let him speed off when the light turned green.

He wasn’t some good ol’ boy redneck. He pretty much looked like a regular White dude with a shaved head. At that point, I didn’t know what the Alt Right was because I hadn’t really heard of Gamergate and all that. But I can say, today, that he was the same type of dude that was down in Charlottesville, and that scares me. It scares me because I don’t like what they’re capable of. But it also scares me because I don’t like what they’re capable of making me do. Bad shit all the way around. Who’s to blame? Well, you be the judge of that. Some of you are still fooling yourselves, but you know exactly how we got here, and didn’t even stop think of what the ramifications would be. Fuck it all, ’cause “emails”, right? Anyway, here we are. Question I have for you is how are we gonna get out of here? And are you part of the solution or part of the problem?

Whew! OK. So, who’s ready for some pop culture ramblings, huh? Huh? Yeah, let’s get to that.

In a pretty big deal, Netflix acquired comic creator Mark Millar’s Millarworld comic imprint. You know, he’s the guy behind Wanted, and Kick-Ass, and Kingsman. Oh, what’s that? No, those properties aren’t part of this deal. Still, he’s quite the prolific writer (so prolific, in fact, that I’m not convinced he’s the one actually writing all this stuff, but I digress…), so there’s a lot of material to pull from. There’s Nemesis, which is basically evil Batman who dresses like a Klansman. There’s Superior, which is basically just Millar’s riff on the Shazam story. There’s Super Crooks, which is about, well, super crooks. I know I sound sarcastic and all, but I actually did enjoy all of these series. They may not have been the most original things I’ve read, but he’s found what works for him, so more power to him.

To me, the real winner here is Netflix, as they basically acquired a comic “company” without any of the hassle. You see, Millarworld isn’t a publisher like Marvel or DC. No, it’s an imprint, which is just a fancy branding tactic to let you know that all the stories spring forth from the same voice. Millarworld comics are currently published by both Marvel and Image. As an imprint, all of the heavy lifting is done by the actual publisher. So, Netflix gets the intellectual property without having to worry about comic shipping schedules, retailer outreach, or anything else that publishers should be doing. With this deal, they essentially get to have their cake and eat it, too. Part of me is scared that Netflix is being a bit too aggressive in the marketplace, and can’t sustain this level of success, but what do I know? It’ll be interesting to see what they end up doing with all of this.

Speaking of big deals, Shonda Rhimes – creator of the hits Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal – has signed a multiyear production deal with Netflix, moving her Shondaland production house from ABC. Her ABC contract was set to expire in May 2018, but word on the street is that she negotiated an early exit. A lot of folks are wondering what this means, especially for ABC, which had built the Thursday night TGIT lineup around Rhimes’s shows. It could be good, and it could be bad. For all of her success (the aforementioned shows), she’s also had some misses, including Off The Map, The Catch, and Still Star-Crossed. And for all the buzz surrounding its star, How to Get Away With Murder struggles to find the audience that Grey’s and Scandal have attracted.

There’s no doubt Rhimes is a powerhouse producer, but I think this move came at the right time, as TGIT was starting to get stale. Grey’s is on season 13, but could continue as long as Ellen Pompeo wants work. Meanwhile, Scandal ends this season, and I really don’t know how much more rope they’re gonna give Murder. I’m sure ABC would love to retool the night, without having to cater to one producer, so this will give them a lot more options. There were some potentially difficult decisions on the horizon that can now be avoided since Rhimes took an early out. As for what she’ll do for Netflix, we’re really just gonna have to wait and see.

So get this: apparently some lawyer bought the rights to My Cousin Vinny just so he could release Back to Brooklyn, a novel that follows the characters 25 years later. Now, I’ve never seen the movie in its entirety, but it’s certainly not one that ended with me wondering what happened to them next. According to the synopsis, not much. According to Deadline:

In the update, Vinny is working on a new murder case. This time, it’s set in his native Brooklyn. But domestic issues still plague him – he hasn’t married Lisa, and his career as an attorney really hasn’t taken wing, despite the Alabama triumph, leading to financial problems. Finally, he is hired to help a woman accused of killing her boyfriend, whose brother is the deputy mayor of New York City.

“Taken wing”? I’ve never heard that before. Is that like “Taking flight“? Anyway, that sounds boring as shit. This reboot/revival industry has really gotten out of hand, and this just takes the cake. I can tell you one thing about it without even reading it, though: 25 years later and Marisa Tomei is still a total smokeshow.

Not only has Chrisley Knows Best been renewed for a 6th sesaon, but it also scored an aftershow, According to Chrisley. Hey, at least it’s not another Hardwick talker! From the description, it’s really just a late night version of a daytime talk show, as Todd Chrisley will interact with the audience and give advice on marriage, parenting, and sex. Yup, good ol’ vaginal intercourse. I’m sure Todd knows TONS about that…

They say the third time’s the charm, and that’s exactly how many times they’ve now tried to make How I Met Your Father happen. This time, the show is being developed by Alison Bennett from a show that I love, FXX’s You’re The Worst. So, tonally, don’t look for the kind of humor you’re used to from HIMYM.

In the world of comics, Wizard: The Guide to Comics is returning in the form of WizPop, which will be yet another pop culture website in a crowded pool of pop culture websites. They say that a quarterly print version will follow at some point in the future, but I really don’t see that getting off the ground in today’s print marketplace. Apparently, WizPop will be a “digital daily video news service”, and I hate videos, so this already isn’t for me. I feel a lot of folks film shit that would’ve been more compelling written. Plus, I’m sure they’ll find some hot girl, get her to talk about Pokémon once a week, and expect the clicks to roll in.

The editor in chief of this project is Brian Walton, formerly of Nerdist, so I’m sure he knows his shit. The associate editor, however, is Luke Y. Thompson, who’ll I’ll always refer to as “the guy who killed Topless Robot”. Back in the early ’00s you wanted to have the popularity of 2 major sites: Topless Robot and X-Entertainment. Rob and Matt ruled the geek set, and when Rob left Topless Robot – a brand he had built – it really should’ve ended. Instead, Thompson came along and simply didn’t have feet big enough to fill the shoes he’d been left. I remember when the call went out for a new editor for that site, and I considered it briefly, but thought to myself “Nobody knows me, and it’s not like I have that big of a following”. Then they chose Thompson, whom I’d only heard of here and there, and who had basically the same amount of social media followers that I did. Son of a bitch! Anyway, I’m probably being too hard on the guy. I can say with certainty that I wouldn’t have fared any better than he did, as there just wasn’t, nor should there have been, a Topless Robot without Rob Bricken. Can’t begrudge a dude for needing to work, but I really don’t know what Thompson or Walton can bring to the Wizard brand to set it apart from everyone else who’ve already staked a claim to the digital world.

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

Everything’s coming up Jetsons, as DC Comics announced a new miniseries, while ABC announced they’ve picked up a pilot from Robert Zemeckis for a live action sitcom. I say this show dies on the vine like the Seth MacFarlane Flintstones reboot, but we’ll see…

The season 7 Suits finale will serve as a backdoor pilot for a spinoff starring Gina Torres, and set in the world of Chicago politics. I really hope it’s called Da Skirts.

Marvel’s Runaways are about to be DOOMED, as the former movie doctor (and Nip/Tuck butt model) Julian McMahon joins the Hulu series as some worthless adult character. Seriously, if you’ve read the book, you know you can’t trust any adults in their orbit.

Fringe‘s Kirk Acevedo has been cast as “Ricardo Diaz” next season on Arrow, who will be the Arrowverse adaptation of DC Comics martial artist Richard Dragon.

Unwillingly to let a little broken neck stop him (um, spoiler alert?), David Tennant will reprise his role as The Purple Man in season 2 of Jessica Jones.

If you’re looking for conversation fodder for when you talk to your grandma, you should probably know that Daphne Oz, daughter of the Dr, is leaving The Chew. Like I said, your grandma will have something to say about it.

If you’re a 15 year old girl and you stumbled across this site because you found me in one of your chat rooms, then you’ll want to know that the Teen Wolf 100th episode/series finale will air September 24th. No word if Michael J. Fox or Jason Bateman will make a cameo. Oh, you don’t know who they are? Fuckin’ Generation Z, man…

Paul Scheer will now spearhead the Amazon adaptation of Galaxy Quest, which can only mean one thing: Rob Huebel is gonna be the commander. Mark my words!

Lost executive producer/co-showrunner Carlton Cuse just inked an overall production deal with ABC. Spoiler alert: all the characters in all of the upcoming shows have been dead the whole time.

Michael Douglas is in talks to star in a Netflix sitcom created by Chuck Lorre, which means everyone will “hate” it but it’ll still be the highest rated comedy on the streaming service. I mean, Lorre is KING of the Guilty Pleasure.

NBC announced that there have been “talks” of a Frasier revival, though they aren’t sure if the creators want to do it without co-creator David Angell, who died in the September 11th attacks.

Not to be outdone, Fox announced that they’ve been in talks with Mike Judge to bring back King of the Hell. While I’d love to know how Hank Hill would regard Trump’s America, I feel the original run of that show is nearly perfect and wouldn’t want a lackluster follow-up like Futurama 2.0.

Bad Boys 3 is clearly never happening, so it just lost its release date to Will Ferrell & John C. Reilly’s Holmes & Watson, hitting theaters November 9th, 2018.

Nia Vardalos, of My Big Fat Greek Wedding fame, is developing Suburbs Famous, a TV series loosely inspired by the Chewbacca Mom thing. I’m not sure what to call it. It wasn’t a phenomenon. It was just a thing.

Hold onto your butts, children of the 80s, as there’s a reboot of The Two Coreys masterpiece License to Drive. This time it’ll be a female-led ensemble, being called a “female version of Superbad“. Um, OK.

You know that coworker who clearly hates his job, and really doesn’t go out of his way to make you think otherwise? That’s Daniel Craig with the James Bond franchise and, as much as he claims to hate it, it’s a job, so he’ll be back in the next installment.

Get your towels, fangirls (and fanboys, if that’s your thing), ’cause Star-Lord is back on the market! After 8 years of marriage, Chris Pratt and Anna Faris announced their separation. He’ll get custody of the family’s successful movie career, while she gets the car and her job on Mom.

youtube

I thought this was pretty clever

In a rebranding move, Chuck E. Cheese’s is getting rid of the animatronic band that we all grew up being terrified of. But fear not, as the chain will still base their image around a rat serving you pizza, so if that ain’t classy, I don’t know what is!

This week I joined my good pal Classick for another round of the Classick Team-Up Podcast. This was my first show with his new cohost, Amber, and I think we all gelled really well together. You should definitely give it a listen, but listener discretion is advised!

To say that the new DuckTales is good would be an understatement. In fact, it might be too good. Like everyone else, I’m beginning to tire of all of Hollywood dusting off old properties for new money, so I was a bit apprehensive about a DuckTales reboot. I mean, Disney had come a long way since then, so did they really need to return to that well? I grew up with the Disney Afternoon, so I know some DuckTales. It was never my favorite show or anything, but I enjoyed watching it. Even saw the movie in theaters. I would’ve been more intrigued by a Darkwing Duck or, believe it or not, a Goof Troop reboot, but I was willing to return to Duckburg to check things out.

As the news started trickling out about the reboot, I began to get a bit more interested. The character designs were updated, yet faithful to the original. And the cast! They could’ve just gone with some unknown voice actors, but instead they went for Purple Man David Tennant, and SNL guys Bobby Moynihan and Beck Bennett. Hell, they even got Community‘s Danny Pudi in the mix. Even if the show sucked, it wouldn’t be due to the folks behind the mic. Then they announced that the show would premiere on 8/12, and air for 24 hours. And for 24 hours did it run!

I actually didn’t get to watch it until the marathon was over, but when it was over, I couldn’t believe what I had seen. It was great. I was surprised that Huey, Dewey, and Louie actually had personalities now. That’s something I don’t remember being true about the original show. I liked the personality upgrade that Webby received, and I now find her more endearing than annoying. There’s clearly a story behind the new Mrs. Beakley, as she’s not just some doddering housekeeper anymore. And Donald’s even featured this time! There were a ton of Easter eggs referencing the old show, including shout outs to Cape Suzette (Tale Spin) and St. Canard (Darkwing Duck). Hell, they even had Roxanne from A Goofy Movie in it. What’s not to love?

If I had any squabble at all, it’s that I kinda wish Donald had subtitles. I know that’s part of his gimmick, but during the first half hour, for whatever reason, I found him downright incomprehensible. It didn’t seem as bad during the second half hour, so I don’t know what the difference was.

Anyway, the series properly debuts with new episodes on September 23rd, and I think I found my new favorite Saturday cartoon. If you didn’t see it, you should definitely check it out. It might not be your speed, but you can’t help but marvel at what they accomplished. That’s why DuckTales had the West Week Ever.

Oh yeah, I’m still trying to make Sarahah happen, so leave me some comments!

#80s #Batman #Books #Comics #DC #Image #Marvel #Movies #Politics #Race #Star Wars #Television #West Week Ever

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i-may-have-a-point · 7 years

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Japril Foreshadowing??

I don’t know if any of this makes sense, but I took a look at some possible examples of foreshadowing for Japril going back to season 10 through the present. I really just needed to write this down for myself because when I am overanalyzing something, writing it down makes it clearer. Anyway, here are some thoughts if you are bored and need something to read...

I know that most Japril fans are going crazy with the lack of any kind of resolution to their relationship after Japril the Sequel. I, like most of you I’m sure, have been rewatching old episodes of Japril while I wait for them to admit they are sneaking off to on-call rooms again. During my rewatches I was thinking about all the foreshadowing that we can see now that we know what comes after old episodes. So, I wanted to see if I could find any foreshadowing that will give us more of an idea of where they are headed. I mean, you guys really already know what I think because of my 13x16 review, but I’m sure most of you won’t mind if I talk about Japril just a bit more.

In most seasons, we get a pretty good idea of where Japril’s storyline is headed for that season in the first few episodes. For example, in 10x03, the episode where April gets her board results for the second time, we have awkward Japril with underlying hints that they still have feelings for each other. And that pretty much explains all of season 10 for them, several awkward moments filled with sexual tension leading up to them admitting their love for each other.

In 11x01, April tries to convince Jackson to be Owen’s friend because Cristina just left and he is sad. They have some cute, funny moments, but also a really telling moment when April asks Jackson, “What if it were me who had left?” And of course, that is a summary of season 11. We have cute, funny moments at the beginning of the pregnancy that turn into sadness, and like she foreshadowed, April leaves.

But it was 12x02 that really caught my attention. I think this episode parallels Japril’s story in season 12 closer than the previous seasons. At the beginning of the episode Jackson is pissed at April, just like he is for the beginning of the season. We pretty much only see pissed off Jackson until he heals Kamal’s hands in 12x06 (and we got that hug!). Jackson and April don’t communicate well in season 12 (shocking) but the “bubble” that April is in represents the barrier that is between them through the whole season. She literally cannot get to him through the glass, so she has to wait for him to come to her. Just like in the whole season, she tries to get to him, to talk to him, but she has to wait for him to come to her. He finally does, but he tells her he doesn’t know if they are worth fighting for. And we see that represented in the middle of the season. He gives up on them. He divorces her and walks away. In the bubble, she tells him that she will fight for both of them because “I won’t break my promise to you.” And we see the theme of broken promises come back in 12x11 (and JTS). So, although Jackson didn’t say what she wanted him to when he came to see her in the bubble, we do see them at least begin to communicate. They are on completely different pages, but they are talking. This happens again in 12x07/12x11. Sure they talk, but they still see things very differently. We also see that their feelings for each other are still strong (and thank God because hot sex on the counter). But we already knew that their feelings were still there, right? Because 12x02 already showed us that. In 12x02 April openly admitted she still wanted to be married to Jackson, but the audience wasn’t so sure about Jackson. Until that moment in the OR. He is operating on a patient, the OR phone rings, and he is told that April may be in trouble. One of the many great things about Japril is how well Jesse and Sarah communicate emotions with their eyes, and this was one of those scenes. He has on a surgical mask and his scrub cap, so all we can see is his eyes, and we are still able to see that his heart breaks at the possibility that April is not okay. And then he runs. Literally runs to her. So, when Jackson thinks April is hurt, he runs to her. We see this again later in season 12. In the finale, when Jackson knows April is not okay, he runs to the ambulance, just as he ran to her at the beginning of the season. Jackson may have been angry with her, but when April truly needs him, his instinct is to be there.

So, what does any of this have to do with season 13? Besides the fact that we aren’t getting any Japril scenes, so we might as well watch old ones? Well, I think that since early Japril scenes in many seasons often foreshadow how their story will go for the entire season, I decided to look at 13x02 to see what if there may be foreshadowing there as well. (Insert rant about beautiful scenes of them with Harriet that were cut from 13x01 here.)

Going into season 13, Japril really could have went several ways. We got the adorable family scene in 12x24, but that doesn’t mean anything in Shondaland. The first scene we get with them is when Alex brings Harriet in to the room and tells Jackson and April they can take her home. April, of course, can’t go home because her incision has reopened. This was an important decision on the part of the writers. In real life, April would have had to spend extra time in the hospital, but I am surprised this actually happened on the show. The first hint of Jackson’s feelings for April are in this scene. When she says, “Harriet’s going home, but I’m not,” Jackson is noticeably bothered. And I don’t think that is because he is worried about taking care of a newborn alone. His first thought is that April is upset to be separated from her daughter and he doesn’t know how to fix it.

Then we see Jackson taking the baby home and April being a typical emotional new mom. This scene is set up as comedy to contrast the Alex drama, but it is also pretty important for Japril. We get to see their playful banter again, “birds and dogs?” which comes back later in 13x03 (April drops the diaper bag and runs to the ER) and 13x07 (Jackson teasing her about how “amazing” her date was). I also like that we see Jackson still respecting April’s wishes for Harriet because he knows they are important to her. The first thing he did was change her into that yellow frog onesie because April asked him to.

And his instinctive concern for her comes out in this scene as well. “I’m not going anywhere when you’re this upset.” Jackson has showed that this is true over and over again. When April is upset, he is there for her. He continues to show this when he calls to check on her. They are divorced. His daughter is home with him. He has no reason to check on April - except that he wants to. Because again, if April is upset, he is there. “You’re still crying?” But she pushes him away. He made his decision. He didn’t want to be with her, so she is trying to let him go and move on. That’s what he wanted so she is giving it to him. And this foreshadows her trying to move on in 13x07 by going on a date. She doesn’t want to go on a date, but she does it because she thinks she should be moving on. Not that he is really about to let her.

This scene also begins the pattern of Japril reminding each other that they are not married all season. “We’re not married.” But they are really reminding themselves, because in their hearts, they still feel married.

Jackson has obviously been thinking of how he could help her and what she needed when he went home. “We’ll fly your mom out…I’ll get a baby nurse…” But like most of the season, she pushes him away. “So I’m just supposed to let you cry then?” He can’t handle her pushing him away when she is hurting. He needs to help her. And that is not a feeling that exes generally have for each other. But they aren’t married, right? And even with as little Japril as we have gotten this season, we have still seen this theme of Jackson needing to make sure April is okay in other episodes, particularly in 13x04 when he tells Ben that he gets up with Harriet every time April does to make sure she is okay because she is recovering from surgery.

I absolutely love whoever decided to have April sing to Harriet. And maybe Harriet really needed her. Maybe she couldn’t sleep. Or maybe this was Jackson’s way of checking on April again and helping her be a part of Harriet’s first night home. Either way, it’s a great scene. And the lyrics of the song are perfect for Japril’s situation. April has faith, strong faith, but she is going to continue to push him away because she has to “pick her heart up off the floor.” The divorce really hurt her. And it will take a “strong man” to change her mind. The camera showed Jackson when she sang that line. I think that was intentional. I think this scene is foreshadowing 13x04 when Jackson finally speaks up and tells April he doesn’t want her to move out. Jackson rarely voices his feelings unless he gets to a breaking point, so for him to tell April that he wanted her to stay is significant. He has to say something at this point or she will leave. He has to be “strong” because she doesn’t think he wants her anymore. In her eyes, this is all about Harriet, but in this moment, we see it isn’t.

Yay for Richard Webber, right? He always has the best words of wisdom. So, when he tells Jackson, “Be persistent. Kepner’s family,” Jackson really listens. And he is persistent about taking care of her. April says herself in 13x16, “And you haven’t stopped taking care of either of us ever since.” I don’t think Jackson needed a reminder that April is his family, but it was a nice reminder to the audience that he sees her that way. And we get to see them being a family in a couple moments later in the season, particularly at the end of 13x06, when they leave work and triple check Harriet’s car seat. They are absolutely a family in that moment.

I think the scene that sets up their story for the rest of season 13 the most is the last scene of 13x02. Jackson did not have to ask April to stay with him. The writers made it seem like there was no other option, but that is only because they wrote it that way. They easily could have had her mom show up or a nurse come in to help, but they didn’t because if they are being true to Jackson’s character, he wouldn’t have been okay with those other situations. As he has shown countless times before, if she needs him, he will be there. He wants to take care of both of them. He wants April in his life and in his home. Yes, they have things they need to work through in season 13, “I know that we need boundaries,” but they doesn’t change how they feel. This is another rare moment when Jackson says what he is truly feeling. “I think you and Harriet should come live with me.” So, I’m wondering if this last scene foreshadows the end of the season. Hopefully Jackson says what he is feeling to April before the end of the season. And hopefully him asking her to live with him at the end of 13x02 parallels them still living together at the end of the season. If past seasons are any indication, I think this could be right. Or maybe I am way overanalyzing the show…guess we will find out soon enough? Either way, thanks for reading another one of my ramblings.

#japril #japril thoughts

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sueboohscorner · 7 years

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#Still Star Crossed - The Course of True Love Never Runs Smooth

Unfortunately for fans of Still Star Crossed, ratings have been pretty dismal. It's unusual for a Shondaland show to tank, but Still Star Crossed just hasn't clicked with viewers. The show is on a hiatus until July 8, and moves to Saturday night which is not a good sign after only three episodes. But, we shall recap and review as long as Still Star Crossed airs so let's get to it.

Rosaline and Benvolio have one thing in common - they do not want to be married to each other. But, Prince Escalus is convinced that a union between the Capulet's and Montague's is the key to ending the dangerous and deadly feud between these two powerful families so married they will be.

In the first episode it was revealed that there is history between Rosaline and Prince Escalus and now it seems that Rosaline is also close to Princess Isabella. Rosaline goes to her friend, the Princess and asks for her help to end the betrothal. Isabella does not agree with her brother's decision and she has a plan. She invites Rosaline to a dinner which will give Rosaline one chance to speak with Escalus alone and try to change his mind.

The House of Capulet has been creating a Capulet Cathedral for many years. It's huge and ornate and as Benvolio learns, it has broken the Capulet bank. Things are so dire that the architect will not proceed until Lord Capulet pays his bill. Benvolio informs Lord Montague what he has learned.

Count Paris isn't doing well. His stab wound is infected and he is not expected to survive. Livia tells the nurse that she knows a treatment that could heal him. Count Paris is in and out of consciousness. Livia applies the treatment to his wounds and he screams in pain. Later, Count Paris finally wakes and is told that Livia saved his life.

The Prince is hosting a dinner with the prominent families in Verona and talk turns to the wedding. Knowing the status of the Capulet Cathedral construction, Lord Montague tells the guests that he would like the wedding to be held there. Lord Capulet is speechless. An argument ensues. Prince Escalus stabs the hand of one man to stop the fighting. Escalus wants the wedding to take place at the Cathedral.

Lady Capulet is having a hard time coming to terms with Juliet's suicide. She visits her daughter's tomb and finds that Friar Lawrence is there as well. He is the Friar who performed the wedding ceremony and provided Juliet with the sleep potion. Lady Capulet is sure that someone convinced Juliet to kills herself. She knew her daughter and does not believe Juliet would kill herself. Later, she ransacks Rosaline's room to find evidence that Rosaline was behind Juliet's death.

As promised, Princess Isabella takes Rosaline to see Escalus. Rosaline begs the Prince not to make her marry Benvolio, but he believes that the wedding is for the good of Verona and will not change his mind. Then he tells Rosaline that he loves her and they share a passionate kiss. After the kiss, the Prince tells Rosaline that he loves her and that she will not marry Benvolio. Instead she will wed Escalus. He will make the announcement the next morning.

Now that the Prince has demanded that Rosaline and Benvolio's wedding be held at the Cathedral, a frantic Lord Capulet talks to the architect about finishing the Cathedral for the wedding. The architect won't finish it until he's been paid. Capulet has no money to pay the man so he throws the man over the ledge to his death.

In Romeo's tomb, someone has dismembered Romeo's body! Escalus is informed of this and tells his page to put the pieces back together so it looks like nothing every happened.

In the Prince's chambers, Rosaline wakes. Escalus has changed his mind again. He will tell everyone that Rosaline spent the night with Isabella. He will not marry her. Her wedding to Benvolio is back on. Rosaline is confused at the Prince's change of heart and quite furious.

Tomorrow I will recap episode 3 - All the World's a Stage.

#stillstarcrossed

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team-adults-blog · 7 years

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4.01 Echoes

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO… This was more than I anticipated writing, but as a future note, this will not likely be a review of the whole episode. It will mainly be *cough*KABBY*cough* or on scenes I think were really good/bad.

I was extremely pleased with the pacing of the episode. The three month time gap between S2 and S3 was terrible, and they rushed the first part of the season to fill in some of the gaps and propel us toward the power struggle in Arkadia and the annoying B plot of Jaha and the CoL.

After the episode I texted my friend how happy I was that Kane and Abby had a nice scene where Abby has to face what she had done while chipped. She blames herself and is upset that she hurt him, but he’s instantly forgiving- because she was chipped, dude. No control. He doesn’t even let her apologize. The little reassuring cheek rub conveys SO MUCH LOVEEEEE. Okay. So. This was necessary upfront because 1) we can’t afford to have mom and dad feeling super guilty over each other when they love each other so much and would never blame the other. So let’s skip all that nonsense and get to helping the “youths” save the world. And 2) y’all KNOW Kabby is having sex 4.02 or 4.03 at the latest, so we’ve got to have them as a unit again in 4.01.

Clarke’s reaction was super sweet. She’s happy for her mom and a little sad that Lexa is gone. AND THEN dr. mom acknowledges her bi daughter’s love and loss, which is super important and a god way to respectfully move on from Lexa. Abby is a great mother (to all her children, not just Clarke) and I will fight you defending her. She gets so much shit but she’s doing the best she can. Remember when Raven had to get off of that horse? I DO. Good mom, rough life. Give her a break. Or Marcus Kane.

Looping back to moments later in that scene when Indra walks in: I had all the feels. It’s Kane’s turn to go through what Abby just went through with him. He’s not really sure how to apologize for putting her on the cross, but she saves him the trouble and hugs him. I love the way they respect and genuinely like each other. Back in the day they hated each other a lil bit. Indra mainly shows tough love (i.e. Octavia) and it was so nice to see her smile and greet “Kane, my friend” back in polis last season. Then in the finale she GOES BACK TO SAVE HER CHIPPED BFF FROM A BOMB THAT WOULD KILL HIM. She saves him but he puts her on a cross. So I feel like there’s a lot of emotion in that hug, some thanks, and I’m glad you’re alive, along with apologies.

Science me must butt in for a second, that’s not how radiation works. We have to ignore a lot of the show’s fake science, but no. Also how did Raven, even with her A.L.I.E. upgrade, get all these radiation monitors up and running? Back in S1, we assume, or I assume that the radiation levels were being monitored from space. It doesn’t really matter all that much, but that’s the sort of thing I wonder about. Dr. Abby tryna fix Roan’s heart under pressure and then him waking up .02 seconds later? Mmmmm OK. I get the drama. But not likely.

We should take a moment to talk about what a great actor Devon Bostick is. The process and planning his suicide felt very real and was therefore disquieting to watch.

Death predictions: Bryan or Harper. Neither of them has had a lot of character development, and Jonathan Whitesell is on a new show, which doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to die, but Alycia Debnam-Carey and Ricky Whittle’s characters were killed off. And coming from Shondaland background, I’m fully aware that death of anyone but the absolute MAIN character (#2 you’re still at risk) is very possible. I have a feeling whoever gets more character development will be the one to die. Killing Bryan would be problematic for the show’s already iffy LGBTQ+ character treatment, but I also really like Harper and would like to see her get some more storylines outside of her relationship with Monty/ more than just a line or two on guard squad.

#cool #I hate myself #HERE WE GOOOOOO #the 100 #4.01 #S4

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