#and they're starring in the queer show! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

anghraine · 6 months

Text

In honor of getting notes on my old Jyn/lesbian!Cassian post, I thought I'd finally post the revised version of the story's finale! This part was originally a gift for master enabler @ladytharen <3

title: whatever we deny or embrace verse: queer Rogue One/f!Cassian AU (6/6) characters: Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso; Baze Malbus, Bodhi Rook, Chirrut Îmwe; Jyn/Cassian, background Baze/Chirrut stuff that happens: After five years of ups and down through the war, Jyn makes a decision about her future with Cassia. previous sections: prologue, part one, part two, part three, part four

PART FIVE

“You know,” said Jyn, flopping into the co-pilot’s seat, “we’re probably not going to die.”

Cassia’s attention lifted from a quintuple-check of her flight calculations. She always repeatedly confirmed the calculations, even though after five years together, the entire team knew she could make them on the fly, at near-impossible speeds. As far as they could tell, though, she didn’t use it as a distraction. It was just the usual paranoia that had kept her alive this long.

“Probably,” she agreed, with one of the faint, warm smiles she reserved for Jyn. “It’s a simple—”

“I don’t mean this operation,” said Jyn. “I mean at all, until …” She didn’t believe in jinxes, but until we’re old felt like tempting fate. She settled for, “It could be years. Decades. The odds are for it.”

She was twenty-eight years old. Only now had it struck her that she might see thirty.

-----

Two years after Jyn kissed Cassia on a shadowed turbolift, they had settled into something. Lovers, Jyn supposed, though it didn’t sound right. She only ever thought of Cassia as “Cassia,” and sometimes “she,” a she that eclipsed every other one. Cassia was the senior operative partnered with Jyn; she was Jyn’s closest friend; she was the person who trailed her hands and mouth all over Jyn’s body, painstakingly learning it; and she was the person who cared more about Jyn’s welfare than anyone left breathing.

Jyn didn’t care less than Cassia. She knew that, and flew into quiet fury the few times anyone suggested otherwise.

Cassia wasn’t among those anyones, and yet Jyn sometimes thought she believed them. Or believed the same thing. Jyn cared so much that she once fled from it for weeks, choking on the blur of affection and need and snarling protectiveness. Cassia never understood why, even after. Even now, Jyn suspected.

A full year and a half had passed since Jyn stumbled into an incoherent attempt at reconciliation that Cassia easily accepted. These things always appeared that bit easier for her; Cassia accepted her own feelings, whether for the Rebellion or Jyn, as compulsory and immutable. In fact, she seemed to care for Jyn in very much the same way that she did the Rebellion—no sudden jabs nor expectation of reward, just a truth that pervaded every cell and breath.

Jyn couldn’t be like that about anything. Moments passed when she didn’t think of Cassia at all, for no other reason than that she was preoccupied with something unrelated. But the smallest things could bring her to mind, at times so intensely that Jyn would have bled to have her near.

For Jyn, caring could never be something all but willing itself into existence, strengthened by respect and liking but independent of them, a star on its own path. She couldn’t be Cassia. For her, it was thought and heart and action, felt for reasons and chosen for reasons. She’d chosen Cassia, for better or worse.

Cassia did seem happy—occasionally lonely, and shyer than expected, but she lit up at just about anything, and lavished a high-strung affection on Jyn when she thought it welcome. In all honesty, it took Jyn a good while to recognize Cassia’s worrying and periodic lectures as affection, rather than the chiding they would have meant from Saw, or demands from suspect allies, afterwards.

Once she realized what they meant, she … well, she didn’t mind that much, now knowing why Cassia insisted on running through mission objectives so many times, or complained about Jyn’s fringe diminishing her range of vision, or went on about Jyn needing higher caloric intake, as if she had any room to talk.

But Cassia took just as long to distinguish unwelcome from confused. Beyond that, she could seem almost droid-like at times, recording and categorizing moments for later perusal. It felt a little as if she were hoarding for a long winter, unlike Jyn, who returned to her because she decided that she’d rather live in what moments she had than bleakly survive.

Jyn didn’t say love, or often think it. That wasn’t her; she never could reduce her feelings to words. But when she did think it, the awareness seemed to blast through her entire body, Cassia and I love you filling her mouth like electricity.

The worst, the absolute worst, was early on—when Jyn turned away and Cassia promptly withdrew from everyone. She didn’t do it the way that Jyn had withdrawn from her, but in a strange and awful Cassia way where she turned as uniformly pleasant as she was undercover. Cassia even smiled politely at Han Solo when she delivered a message from the princess (to whom he wasn’t speaking at the time).

“I’ll be damned if she orders me around,” he grumbled afterwards.

“She’s a commander,” said Jyn. “It’s in the job description.”

He blinked at her. “She’s a general, but that doesn’t mean—”

“No, she isn’t. She’s a commander.”

They stared blankly at each other for a moment. Then Solo’s disgruntled face cracked into a smile—not smarmy the way he could sometimes be, just amused.

“I was talking about the princess,” he said. His voice lightened further. “Is Andor sick or something?”

Jyn’s opinion of him jolted upwards. Apart from Baze and Chirrut, hardly anybody else seemed to notice the oddity in Cassia’s behavior at all, except as a sudden good mood. All the while, Jyn’s own dismay escalated, the flat misery of I loved you, I miss you climbing to no, I love you, I didn’t want this, I was afraid but it’s not what you think, I love you.

It was a rough nine weeks.

In fairness, it would have been five weeks if not for Cassia running away. Technically, she accepted a brief solo operation from Draven—otherwise known as running away. And then "complications arose," whatever that meant (classified), and something that should have lasted nine days took four and half weeks, while Jyn tried to ignore Baze’s sullen fretting and believe Chirrut’s assurances that Cassia was alive and healthy.

She’d wondered, back then, if Cassia even knew she had people worrying about her.

Sometimes she wondered if Cassia knew it now. She certainly looked surprised every time Baze or Jyn implied she’d be around in the future, if they all lived. She always had seemed surprised at that, even before the hellish separation. But then, Jyn couldn’t have said she didn’t feel the same.

Oh, Jyn rarely dwelt on the idea of losing Cassia, hardly allowed for the possibility. It was a possibility, of course. Cassia might abandon her, as so many others had done—but Jyn feared that less than she would have expected. Before they so much as kissed, Cassia had proven herself beyond anything Jyn could have imagined, or wanted. The weight of Cassia’s half-broken body, the scent and sight of her blood, still wafted into Jyn’s memory and dreams. More probable than another betrayal, much more probable, was—

She steadied a ragged breath.

Cassia didn’t lack self-preservation, as such. As long as her every breath served the Rebellion, or Jyn, she would fight for them. Not for herself, though she didn’t want to die—nothing for herself, frustratingly. It didn’t seem calculated risk so much as some fundamental quality of her being. If her death meant the Rebellion’s survival, so be it; if her death meant Jyn’s survival, so be that.

It was hard to believe Cassia would survive the war.

Jyn’s odds probably weren’t good, either, but it seemed different to her. She was reckless and determined, not sacrificial. Without difficulty, she could admit to herself that she wanted this or that. Only with the Partisans had she ever thought I want and not reached for it, and then only because she wanted Saw’s approval more. She might have dedicated her life to the cause, but that life mattered beyond it, mattered because it was hers and she wanted to live.

She probably wouldn’t. Probably, they would die together, and Jyn felt a certain consolation in that. And if she did live—she’d tried not to think of it, hadn’t ever followed this track of thoughts so far—if she did survive, she might well survive Cassia. Very likely survive Cassia.

The realization came as a hot jolt in her chest that crackled into her throat and gut. But her cheeks and hands chilled, despite the heavy evening air, as if the flash of panic had drawn its warmth from her skin. More bizarrely still, she was neither alone with her thoughts nor in any particular danger, just eating dinner in the mess hall.

Her food abruptly passed from unappetizing to nauseating. No, Jyn decided. No need to look for trouble when they already had so much of it. If that day came, she’d face it then. If it didn’t, she’d … not face it, she supposed. It was hard to imagine surviving.

But if they did, maybe they’d find their way, eventually.

-----

The day that Cassia turned thirty, they all celebrated.

It wasn’t a birthday celebration, really. Cassia’s official date of birth came from the combination of a) her stated age and month of birth upon entering the Rebellion, b) conversions of Fieste’s calendars to Standard, and c) a randomly selected number. She hadn’t known the exact day at six, so she didn’t know it now, and the droid-generated birthday held little significance for any of them.

Still, the recognition did mean something, their ranking leader’s record switching from Age: 29 to Age: 30. It meant more with the unspoken—unspeakable—knowledge that they might well see her, and all of them, live for much longer than that. They might survive.

“To living!” Bodhi cried, lifting his bottle of Corellian ale. He’d acquired good quality alcohol through what he termed my contacts, which Jyn was pretty sure meant I asked Luke and he asked Solo. But it was just them, tonight.

The rest of the team raised their own bottles.

“To living,” they repeated, and with satisfying clinks, gulped down their first mouthfuls of ale.

They’d made it about all of them, thought of it as about all of them, but Cassia looked flushed anyway. Maybe it was the ale. Maybe it was just a change in the light. Or maybe it came from the long gaze Cassia and Jyn exchanged as everyone laughed at something Chirrut had said and Jyn’s eyes lingered on her afterwards.

That wasn’t Jyn’s fault. Cassia almost never smiled fully unless Jyn did it first, or kissed her, but then Cassia would dip her head with a sudden press of dimples, and glance through her eyelashes in a way that Jyn considered a personal affront.

They all allowed themselves the time to celebrate into early the next morning, gossiping about various Alliance spats, toasting variations on the Empire’s dying and we’re alive, ha, and speculating about everything from which planets would join them next to Chirrut’s amorphous concerns about Princess Leia’s pregnancy. Among themselves, Jyn and Cassia considered it careless and surprisingly irresponsible, but tonight, they didn’t care.

Even after this many years, Jyn could hardly believe herself, contentedly drinking in public, pressed up against the arm of a person she’d shared a bed with for five years, eager to hear four friends talking about nothing of significance.

For herself, she couldn’t remember any urge towards speech in her life, or at least her life from the moment that she huddled silently in her parents’ hideout. But she liked to listen to the others’ conversations.

All of them, really. Chirrut with his mantras, Baze with his grumbles. Bodhi muttering nervously or irritably or, more often these days, mildly. Cassia’s low replies to this or that, or Cassia charming their way out of trouble, or—she tried not to think about it just then, but Jyn, Jyn, please, Jyn echoed through her mind, and so did the memories of lying in a haze afterwards, listening to soft, murmured words she couldn’t understand.

Cassia also whispered in Alderaanian when she woke Jyn out of nightmares and tried to get her to wind down. It helped, hearing Cassia’s voice without any need or possibility of comprehension. And Cassia used it during her own … thing. She got lost, sometimes, in her head. Not often, and never anywhere but alone with Jyn in hyperspace, the only time she felt truly safe.

She’d said that much to Jyn, and Jyn silently, expressionlessly basked in it. And Jyn also liked listening to her when—

Well. A lot.

After they finally retired to their quarters, Jyn waited for Cassia to switch on the lights and silently evaluated how tired she was. A little, not too much.

Without warning, Jyn tackled her and pinned her to the wall.

Cassia laughed. “Jyn, what the—”

Although Jyn didn’t much trust herself with words, they did serve their basic function of saying more than her face could.

“We’re alive,” she whispered, and leaned up, releasing Cassia’s left wrist long enough to slip a hand into her hair. Then she trailed her fingertips down Cassia’s cheek to her throat, lightly resting a thumb over her pulse.

Actions said more.

Cassia’s lips parted, tongue darting out to wet the lower lip, her eyes very dark as bewilderment flashed to understanding. Jyn always liked that moment—maybe not best, but near to it. With a familiar clench in her stomach, she pressed closer, sliding her hand back into Cassia’s hair and kissing her throat. Jyn could feel Cassia’s pulse rushing under her mouth, breath quickening against Jyn’s hair.

When Jyn scraped her teeth against her throat, Cassia drew a rough breath and tilted her head back. She couldn’t really be more obvious, but as always, Jyn took care to ask,

“Are we good?”

“Yes,” murmured Cassia, with a soft smile. “We’re good.”

-----

The battle below Endor, fought far away from their then-current mission, did not end the war. It would have done far less than that, if not for the Emperor’s death. As it was, the Rebellion threw the higher ranks of Imperial government into divided, scattered chaos in one stroke. The Empire surely would be overthrown; within a few months, they knew it was only a matter of time.

The certainty did little for Jyn and Cassia. They thought of themselves as members of the Rebellion more than the Alliance, driven on by conviction in the cause rather than its organization or most people in it. In the months after Endor, though, their work for the Rebellion became—different. Still useful, still needed, but less urgent, less military.

“Slimier,” said Baze.

Jyn and Cassia couldn’t disagree.

Intelligence operatives would always be necessary, of course, in peace or war. Cassia poked around enough to suspect that the higher-ups planned to transition the more successful operatives to government work as the New Republic formed, or to use them as groundwork for a New Republic organization of some kind. Jyn and Cassia regarded the idea with professional disinterest and personal repugnance.

“We’re doing this to free the galaxy,” Cassia snapped. “Not to sneak around for bureaucrats.”

“Exactly,” said Jyn.

They confined their discussions of it to the ship, where they now confined virtually any discussion of importance, and which they regularly swept for surveillance. Cassia and Jyn trusted their leaders’ ideals but not their methods, and held their privacy as sacrosanct. They had precious little of it, except sometimes on leave.

They’d rarely claimed their leave over the last five years, when it was available at all. Now they requested it as often as possible, especially after their more trifling assignments. As those took up greater and greater shares of their work, and recruits flooded the Rebellion, Jyn couldn’t help thinking of the future.

Would there even be a point when the Alliance declared an end to this, or would it just transmute into a new version of the Republic, piece by piece and planet by planet? The way the Old Republic had become the Empire? Her father’s research had begun taking shape as the Death Star well before Palpatine declared himself emperor.

The dream of running away, banished for so long, crept back. If they could see no end, could expect no end, then wouldn’t they have to create it for themselves?

If it were Jyn alone, she’d already be gone. But she had her friends to think about, and Cassia, her—

Five years, and she still couldn’t think of a word.

“Girlfriend?” Bodhi suggested, then wrinkled his nose. “No. That’s not Cassia.”

“Right,” said Jyn, flipping through files on her datapad.

“Lover?” he said, and they both cringed. “Okay, I see what you mean.”

Jyn gave this a nod of acknowledgment, not all that interested, but never willing to shrug off Bodhi. As she saw Baze and Chirrut making their way towards the table, she said,

“She’s Cassia. That’s all.”

“There’s got to be a word,” insisted Bodhi. When Chirrut reached them, tapping his way just ahead of Baze, Bodhi turned to him. “What is it called when people spend most of their time together and live together? Indefinitely?”

Baze thumped down into the seat beside him.

“Marriage,” he said dourly.

Jyn’s eyes widened, her thoughts freezing or burning into chaos—she wasn’t sure which. When Bodhi and Chirrut laughed, she forced herself to a slight smile, and heard nothing of what they said.

Marriage. She’d never thought of it. Not once. They lived day by day and month by month, particularly in those first couple of years. Jyn had allowed herself this is good, here and now, and only later drifted so far as what if—? But it was a what if of victory, of companionship, of something other than war, not marriage. Marriage made demands. Demands of the law, the Force, the future—a future she hadn’t dared contemplate until recently. But marriage assumed one, turned indefinitely to forever as far as the galaxy was concerned.

She didn’t care about anyone’s opinion, but she did care about the … shape of things, the boundaries and foundations she could depend upon in every corner. For one hazy moment, Jyn imagined my, er, friend transformed into my wife, across the stars.

Everyone would know.

Now, silently perched on the co-pilot’s seat, Jyn studied her datapad. Cassia lingered in the edges of her vision, a narrow blur of dark and light.

“We might live,” Cassia said, almost wonderingly. “I suppose so. I hadn’t thought of it.”

Jyn felt not the slightest surprise.

“What would we even do?” Cassia asked.

As far as Jyn could recall, this was the first time that Cassia had spoken of the future as a matter of we and not you. That grounded her, along with the clear gleam filling the viewport and scattering a residual glow through the cockpit. Jyn had always liked hyperspace.

“Oh,” Jyn said lightly, “get married and settle in a house on Naboo and grow kutabas.”

Cassia snorted. After a few seconds, Jyn bullied herself into looking over at her. The light obscured her, in an odd way—blotted out the shifts in color and expression that Jyn usually relied upon. She just looked amused and pretty.

“Our pay couldn’t rent a hovel on Naboo,” she said.

They got paid these days.

“True. And I’ve never grown anything in my life,” Jyn admitted. “I think I have a grey thumb. My mother used to hide plants from me.”

Cassia laughed outright.

As a companionable minute passed, Jyn returned attention to her datapad, berating herself all the while. She didn’t even register the background information that rolled down the screen, just forced herself to blink at regular intervals. At last, though, she inhaled a few deep, regular breaths, then turned to Cassia.

Casually, she said, “We could get married, though.”

All possibility of passing it off as a joke died within a few instants. Cassia stared at her, dark eyes wide and disbelieving. Maybe disbelieving? Damn the light; she hated hyperspace.

“We—” Cassia’s voice broke off, her lips still parted. She gazed at Jyn for another horrible stretch of time. It couldn’t have been more than a few seconds, but who cared? Jyn strained for something to say, but words came poorly at the best of times. “You actually mean—”

“Do I usually say things I don’t mean?” snapped Jyn.

Cassia didn’t respond to the tone, but she rarely did. “You’re asking me to marry you.”

“No,” said Jyn, and took some comfort in the tightening of Cassia’s face. She could at least make out that much. “It was a suggestion.”

Cassia looked down, and then slightly up again, teeth pressing into her bottom lip. In that instant, Jyn did recognize the expression: the same one she wore when Jyn smiled at her or kissed her, but far more uncertain.

“You’re suggesting marriage,” Cassia amended. “Between us.” She glanced around, only then seeming to note their surroundings. “In hyperspace.”

“It’s as good a place as any,” said Jyn.

“With your feet on my control panel.”

Jyn shrugged.

Two, three, four more seconds passed—easier seconds, for Jyn. She slouched comfortably in her chair, assured in her conviction that Cassia wouldn’t pass through minor irritations on her way to refusal.

With as little warning as ever, Cassia sprang out of the captain’s seat, stalked over to Jyn, and shoved her feet off the control panel with no ceremony whatsoever. Then she took another step, one that placed her directly in front of Jyn. With her hands held out, she said,

“I don’t want to talk about this from three feet apart.”

Jyn accepted that as reasonable, and let Cassia tug her from slumped to upright, and upright to standing. She didn’t feel the need to release Cassia’s hands afterwards.

For the first time in awhile, it took conscious effort to keep her gaze from drifting to Cassia’s lips. Not for the usual reason, either. A slight curl of her mouth kept disappearing and reappearing as she stared down at Jyn, echoed in the flicker of her lashes: a smile that could not quite believe itself.

Despite Cassia’s talk about this, she said nothing, gazing at Jyn with wide eyes and cold hands.

“Well?” Jyn demanded.

Cassia wet her lip, which didn’t help. “How long?”

With the ease of similarity—and practice—Jyn filled in what she didn’t say. “Have I considered marriage? About a week.”

“A week,” said Cassia, blankly. “Did something happen?”

For no reason that Jyn could identify, she couldn’t resist her own smile at that, one bright enough for her to feel it in her cheeks and about her eyes.

“Baze said we were practically married already,” she replied, readily enough. “He didn’t know he was saying it, but still. And I thought that—it’d be good to have things clear.”

Cassia looked particularly inscrutable. “To me?”

“To everyone,” said Jyn. “No misunderstandings.”

Again, Cassia’s eyes widened. Her grip loosened, and Jyn had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

“You want,” Cassia began, then broke off. “You’re proposing that we swear to … to this, to staying together forever, because now we’ll probably live long enough for it to matter?”

She could be very concise sometimes, without sacrificing meaning. It was one of Jyn’s favorite things about her.

“Yes,” said Jyn.

“And because you want us sworn before the entire galaxy?” she pressed.

“Yes.”

Cassia released Jyn’s hands, which for one terrible moment, threw all of her conclusions into doubt. Then Cassia stepped even nearer than they already stood, almost as near as they could get, and cupped Jyn’s cheek with one hand, the other dropping to her hip.

“Jyn,” she said.

“Is that—”

Cassia pressed her lips to Jyn’s, slanting breathless kisses over every detail of her mouth. Jyn had meant to demand an answer, but even after five years, all thought but yes, this, more fled. She grasped the back of Cassia’s shoulders, pressed their bodies together, caught up to Cassia’s kisses and deepened them. Heat raced from her spine all the way to her feet and the crown of her head, and she caught Cassia’s lip between her own, lightly biting it.

Cassia, Cassia.

Jyn settled a hand over Cassia’s throat, stroking down until she could feel Cassia’s life thrumming under her fingers. When they both parted for breath, they still clung to each other.

Cassia’s unsteady smile returned, settling in her mouth and eyes and cheeks. In that moment, it seemed like it might never go away. Between the light of the smile and the light of hyperspace, she looked radiant, something shining and dangerous.

“You think it’s a good idea, then?” said Jyn, feeling more than usually triumphant.

Cassia leaned down again, this time dragging her mouth to Jyn’s ear, her breath as hot and urgent as when she’d talked her out of murder.

“It’s a very good idea,” she said.

#anghraine babbles #anghraine's fic #anghraine's pics #moodboard #genderbending #otp: welcome home #jyn erso #cassian andor #cassia andor #the queer rogue one fic #also bodhi baze and chirrut but not tagging because they're peripheral characters to the jyn/cassia show in this one #whatever we deny or embrace #long post #star wars

19 notes · View notes

crownspeaksblog · 11 months

Text

There's something so heartwarming about two 50-something year old men who, multiple times, bring up the fact that they're in-laws, that they're a family and that they're gonna be related because their SONS are about to marry eachother.

#like Gabriel brought this up so much more than tarlos bringing up that they're gonna get married!! i love the reyess so much!!#tv shows #also i want more owen and Gabriel bonding and less of owen going behind Gabriel back!!#911 lone star season 4 #911 lonestar #911 ls 4x14 #owen strand #gabriel reyes #tarlos #lgbtq+#queer characters #queer media #queer fiction #👑

34 notes · View notes

unproduciblesmackdown · 9 months

Text

more info, via a couple of reviews:

"Is this the best, most exhilarating, most close-to-perpetual dancing ever to grace the Goodspeed Opera House stage?

It certainly could be.

The new stage adaptation of “Summer Stock” at the East Haddam theater has plenty to recommend it in terms of the canny script and the hummable songs. But it’s the dancing that leaves the biggest impression.

The show is jam-packed with choreography from Donna Feore, who also directs, that is thrillingly executed by the cast.

We’re talking: Gravity-defying kicks. Head-spinning turns. Male dancers lifting and tossing and catching the female ones. It runs the gamut from Cossack-dance athleticism to soft shoe grace, tap precision to Lindy hop energy.

How the cast manages to sing after executing these (literally) breathtaking numbers, I have no idea.

And how do they make it through two performances on some days? Amazing.

Also amazing: the fact that they do all this on Goodspeed’s small stage without making the space feel cramped.

So, yes, the dancing is phenomenal. But there’s more to the show than that.

This stage version of “Summer Stock” — which is enjoying its world premiere at Goodspeed — is inspired by the 1950 MGM movie starring Judy Garland and Gene Kelly. Writer Cheri Steinkellner, though, has reimagined the piece in many ways, making it better, stronger and propelled by a more modern sensibility. (Steinkellner’s writing credits range from “Cheers” to the Broadway adaptation of “Sister Act.”)

The foundational story, though, remains the same: A no-nonsense young woman named Jane is trying to save her family farm. Her actress sister (named Gloria in the version at Goodspeed) brings her compatriots to the farm to rehearse a show. Jane first spars with and then starts falling for Gloria’s beau Joe, the production’s director.

Steinkellner has also changed up the score, to great effect. While some tunes from the movie remain, she has pulled others that are in the public domain (such as “Accentuate the Positive,” “Paper Moon” and “It Had to Be You”), and she has woven them perfectly into various plot points and important emotional moments.

As director, Feore makes sure the whole enterprise has a dynamic spirit. It’s a story and a production that brims with optimism and cheerfulness.

Leading the cast is Corbin Bleu, who became famous with his work in “High School Musical” and has gone on to star in several Broadway shows, as Joe. Bleu is a true, and truly talented, triple-threat. He has a warm, welcoming presence as an actor; he also brings an authority to Joe so you believe he’s someone the actors respect and will follow. Bleu’s singing is strong and lustrous, and his dancing — particularly his tremendous tap ability — is … wow.

Arguably the biggest scene-stealer here is Veanne Cox, as the wealthy, snooty owner of huge property surrounding Jane’s. The way she trills dialogue can turn anything into a punchline. She can wave her arms about as her character repeats “l’amour” and generate audience laughs. When her character falls for the egoistic actor Montgomery Leach (played by J. Anthony Crane with Barrymore flair), Cox burbles with girlish romantic giddiness.

Danielle Wade does her own take on the Judy Garland role. She gives Jane a swagger and a tough façade that reveals a more human self during the course of the story. Wade’s most important feature is her voice, which is potent whether she’s finessing a ballad or powering through a big number. While she can’t compete with Garland’s renowned version of “Get Happy” (who could?), Wade does a good job in the number — choreographed and costumed in an homage to the original — that serves as the culmination of the production.

Arianna Rosario gets to play an interesting arc at Gloria. At first, Gloria seems to be a blithe, self-centered actress, but she later shows that she is quite the problem-solving producer. Rosario makes the transformation believable, as if Gloria is finally letting her real self come through.

The scenic design by Wilson Chin suggests the various elements of a Connecticut River Valley farm in the 1950s while still allowing room for the cast to burst into all of those big dance numbers. And the costume design by Tina McCartney provides a fun and functional take on country clothing of the era.

I will say that the second act could be tightened up (we don’t need to see so many beats of the rehearsal process), but, in total, this “Summer Stock” is sensational." [source]

(hooray for most directly explaining gloria's overall arc)

and the next review:

"A throwback to the golden age of Broadway and movie musicals, "Summer Stock" is a timeless, inspiring song-and-dance tale of good deeds, fairy tale showbiz, classic romance and backstage intrigue played out to such dazzling effect, you want to freeze frame it, take it home with you and watch it over and over again for pure fun and a let's-put-a-smile-on-your-face endorsement. This is Goodspeed Musicals at its best - old-fashioned musical entertainment designed to deliver by the bucket's load, stir the senses, rhythmically intoxicate you and dance up a continual storm of good cheer that's guaranteed to leave you breathless.

Animated. Airborne. Magical. Sweet-natured. Fresh-faced. Dance happy. It's all here, wrapped up in shiny gold ribbons and signature colors that complement and complete the picture with a technicolor flourish, a big bang and an internal logic that flows with appropriate style, stamina, full command and intent.

Adapted to the stage by Cheri Steinkellner, "Summer Stock" replays that popular let's- put-on-a-show conceit where everything rests of the big opening night, the box-office intake, the big kiss between the leading man and the leading lady and how a complete unknown saves the day right before the final fadeout. Here, struggling Connecticut farmer Jane Falbury decides to let her actress sister Abigail and her actor friends from New York use the family barn as a rehearsal space for their brand-new Broadway bound musical in exchange for doing the daily farm chores to raise enough money to keep the business from going completely under. One slight problem. During rehearsals, Jane finds herself falling for the show's handsome director, Joe Ross, who, happens to be engaged to the show's leading lady - her sister Abigail.

Staging "Summer Stock," director Donna Feore ("Chicago," "Billy Elliot," "A Chorus Line"), who doubles as choreographer, creates a loveable, intoxicating show that reels you in, grabs hold of you until the final curtain and lets you fall in love with every little detail, surprise, plot twist, joke, visual gag, one-liner and tilt of her jolly agenda while she articulates every element of this musical story with thrust, warmth, spin and splendid articulation. Directorially, she pulls it off spectacularly. No wrong moves here as "Summer Stock" catches fire with a spark, a gusto, a shine and a 1950s mentality infused with plenty of imagination, originality, style and flair. More importantly, the production never loses sight of its origins, its functional plotting and its love of musicals of yesteryear despite well-intentioned doses of kitsch, takeaway humor, giddy backchat and story arcs right out of the MGM library of backlot moviemaking. Feore, free spirit that she is, fuels the musical with a sharpened wit and sentiment that works especially well as does her decision to let "Summer Stock" remain rooted in the period from whence it came in terms of staging, development, expression and interaction.

Moving from screen to stage," "Summer Stock" retains only four songs from the 1950 MGM musical. The addition of several new songs to the original version of the score turns the two-act musical into more of a showstopping event and adds clarity, luster and vintage spin to its already proven material, its let's launch into another song and dance routine blueprint and its firm grasp on characterization, story evolution and its happily ever after conclusion. At Goodspeed, there are 28 important, recognizable, smartly placed musical numbers. They are: "Get Happy," "Happy Days Are Here Again/I Want to Be Happy," "Accentuate the Positive," "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows," "Always," "Always (reprise)," "It's Only a Paper Moon," "The Best Things in Life Are Free," "Dig for Your Dinner," "Me and My Shadow," "Howdy Neighbor, Happy Harvest," "Red Hot Mama," " 'Til We Meet Again," "You Wonderful You," "June Night," "Some of These Days," "Joe's Dance," "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows (reprise)," "It All Depends on You," "Always (reprise)," "Everybody Step," "Lucky Day," "How Ya Gonna Keep 'Em Down on the Farm," "Hinky-Dinky Parlez Vouz," "It Had to Be You," "Get Happy (reprise)" and "You Wonderful You (Finale)."

Musical director Adam Souza ("42nd Street," "Cabaret," "Next to Normal," "A Grand Night for Singing," "Because of Winn Dixie," "Rags") grabs hold of the "Summer Stock" score and allows it to breathe, gesticulate, excite, envelop and rhapsodize with the golden age sentimentality of MGM movie musicals and the timeless, larger-than-life spirit of old Broadway. Here, every song matters. Every song is important. Every song travels down memory lane. Every song is tuned to the max with sweet, centered, warm-heartedness. Every song fulfills its intended purpose. All of this is complemented by the strong, flavorful sound of Souza's orchestral team, all of whom share his tremendous sense of theatricality, musical interlude, impassioned communication and delight of the actual musical itself. They are: David Uhl (bass), Sal Ranniello (percussion), Liz Baker Smith (reed 1), Andrew Studenski (reed II), Travis Higgins III (trumpet) and Matthew Russo (trombone). As with other Goodspeed musicals, Souza doubles as conductor and keyboardist. As "Summer Stock" zings and pops, pretty music every song unfolds with a contagious orchestral musical glow, matched by the splendid musicality of the entire cast who address the catchy, homespun music and lyrics with perfect harmony, rhythm, phrasing and nostalgic commitment. These elements heighten the on-stage mode of the production, its progression from Act I to Act II, its send offs, its pastiche and its electrifying, barn-raising influence and thwack.

As with any big stage musical, choreography is key to a production's success, its fluidity of form, its artistic expression and its accompanying dance routines. Here, Feore, as choreographer, gives "Summer Stock" a highly personal touch of invigoration and speedy excitement that is tipped and generated with wonderfully elongated inspiration, stamina and determination. This is star quality choreography that peaks, shines and tilts with clever build ups, catchy dance steps and bold, concentrated rhythms, moves and beats that joyfully celebrate 1950's musicals in all their technicolor glory. As storyteller and dance interpreter, she brings great dimension and scope to the piece using techniques, styles, descriptions and an enriched canvas of thoughts and ideas that make their mark most engagingly. Everything that happens on the Goodspeed Musicals stage has been beautifully blocked, rehearsed and staged with such thrust and individuality, no two dance numbers are alike. In fact, once "Summer Stock" catches fire, there's no stopping it. Creating a freshly minted fusion of moods, tableaus, lifts, twirls and swirls, Feore pays homage to the actual vintage look and mindset of the musical, its dance-friendly art form and its free-flowing feel of excitement and exhilaration. Hands pop. Arms move heavenward. Dancers smile and glisten as they passionately ignite into joyful visions of sweetness, passion, frenzy and syncopation. Everyone is lost in the moment illustrating the traditions, the conscience and the power of musical theatre, giving and getting the most out of Feore's phenomenal, ovation-worthy choreography. Trained, drilled and confident, they each get a chance to shine - and shine they do - all making strong impressions that will live long in memory.

Making his Goodspeed Musicals debut, Corbin Bleu, as Joe Ross, a character originated by Gene Kelly in the 1950 film version, creates a "Wow!" song-and-dance-man factor chock full of charm, personality, self-confidence and full-beam, champagne delightness that astounds, cajoles and sparkles with leading man gait and luxury like no other. No matter what he does, he's a proverbial triple-threat (i.e., a player who excels at acting, singing and dancing) who makes everything that happens on stage feel fresh, spontaneous, real, raw and very much in the moment. It's in his eyes. It's in his moves. It's in his expressions. Exhibiting a sweet, contagious rapport that extends far beyond the footlights, it's the performance of the year and one that Bleu exudes with a Gene Kelly/Fred Astaire aura of showbiz savvy, knockabout whimsy, graceful athleticism and sterling encapsulation. "Joe's Dance," a solo dance number in Act II performed by Bleu only furthers that notion.

In the role of Jane Falbury, a role made famous by Judy Garland in the original "Summer Stock" MGM musical, Danielle Wade lights up the Goodspeed Musicals stage with a breezy, intuitive musical comedy performance of real warmth and spirit that is a constant joy to watch. Veanne Cox, cast in the role of the wickedly devious Connecticut farming magnate Margaret Wingate, is jaw-dropping brilliant, using humor, music, dance and melodrama in divinely daft and glorious ways that prompt applause and laughter whenever she's in the limelight. It's a scene-stealing performance so seamlessly entrenched in glee and fiery abandon, Cox, would be the ideal choice to play narcissistic Broadway diva Dee Dee Allen in the 2024 summer presentation of "The Prom" at Playhouse in Park in West Hartford. I'll personally deliver the contract. Other memorable performances are delivered by Arianna Rosario (Gloria Falbury), Stephen Lee Anderson (Henry "Pop" Falbury), Gilbert L. Bailey II (Phil Filmore), Will Roland (Orville Wingate) and J. Anthony Crane (Montgomery Leach). A musical escape brimming with delightful songs, engaging performances and full-beam dance numbers, "Summer Stock" is not only a bubbly tonic for theatergoers of all ages, but one that kicks nostalgia into high gear with uncomplicated bliss, fizz and vintage sparkle. It sings. It dances. It pops. It dazzles. Like "42nd Street" which played Goodspeed Musicals last season, it overflows with Kelly/Astaire lightness, punch and precision, sunny vibes and well-played exactitude. The energy displayed here is fast and furious with first-night exhilaration and thrill paired especially well with Corbin Bleu's charming star turn, Danielle Wade's joyous "Get Happy" abandon and Veanne Cox's well-prepped, icy cool villain. This is musical theatre of the highest order - infectious, irresistible, glorious. Its leave-your-troubles-at-the-door/Let's-put-on-a-show mentality accelerates with sparkle and cherry pie goodness. And boy, do we need it now!" [source]

(the reference to jane's sister abigail uses the film's names: abigail becomes gloria in this production, which is the name of abigail's actor in the film, which also mirrors how the role of herb is now phil, also the name of herb's actor in the film)

(also shoutout to providing A Full, Chronological List Of Songs. noting that according to another interview, intermission would be between "you wonderful you" and "june night")

#summer stock #dearth of peak relevant info for our purposes otherwise lol but hey #pressing f for danielle wade's performance Tending to be juxtaposed w/either corbin bleu's or judy garland's #which in fact doesn't always mean their going ''eh comes up short Relative to that comparison but good enough'' but yknow #also that role just isn't gonna be designed to be the most thrilling lol...let's get those character(tm) parts babeyyy #further photos of that preview performance do suggest there's more like midshow conflict b/w jane & gloria vs Only getting along great....#and intrigued here if it's like yeah gloria can be written to have Flaws kiiinda like the film dunking on her though not as much as it #(though not as much as it might've; parallel to orville; relevant to their compatibility lol though in this show it indeed just might not #go for ''conveniently gloria's also always already liked him & orville's just glad someone's being nice to him'' lmao. & in fact yes the #material already in the film was like hm sure could be the queer readings in these ''so you're doing cishettery wrong'' roles here #and going aw man wrt the comedy boys herb/phil & orville/orville not getting to interact more #herb getting to make One reference to kinda being the outsider/misfit even amongst the troupe like hey more abt that? what's your job also #meanwhile yeah you can do something like ''oh gloria has this idea re: being The Star but isn't actually as interested in that Process''#but that then instead of that Just being her at odds w/jane & her coming up short she can have her own arc still #finding out what behind the scenes work she Does want to do; jane & gloria of course ending up being mutually supportive one imagines #rather than jane Just being freer from Dealing With her lesser sister or what have you; whom can graciously enough accept this #and ofc we don't Need the partner swaps for everyone's guaranteed happiness communicated through ''they're not single''#whilest the lack of [oh this backup relationship was here the whole time kind of] does make your potential love triangle trickier then lol #hence perhaps some more significant conflict if you're like kissing your sister's date or what have you & she can't Just(tm) have yours #but then being The Lead can't be the ultimate of All [doing theatre]; having kissing status w/a guy isn't the ultimate of all Arcs/Life #(though noting tim wasn't Relieved if another ostensibly straight romance; a cliche in the modern musical; wasn't shoehorned in there...)#(also the awkward notes about Male Dancers and The Female Ones like alright? supposed relevance Where?)#long post ///

5 notes · View notes

annikasevenshots · 1 year

Text

i'm not even going to lie the lack of saffi content is lowkey handicapping our ability to campaign for a seven raffi spinoff on Twitter? like, we can't retweet promo pics or gifs, there's no "see? they have great chemistry" moments to point out this season.

(it's almost like they want us to forget it exists and to focus our attention on the shiny and new thing led by a shiny and new white man.)

meanwhile the calls for a titan spinoff pulls ahead, and i'm just more and more worried that it'll seem like there's no interest for raffi. or like, they'll separated into a titan series and a worf/raffi series. and they'll never be in the same world except by reluctant name drop.

also, calling it #TerryTrek scares me. it's just so trekbro coded and i don't see why Matalas wouldn't cave to them and write Saffi out.

#bit of a rant #people see shaw and seven stand next to each other and say they have great chemistry #bitch put jeri ryan and michelle hurd in a room together #i'll show you chemistry #uGHHHHHH #why do networks hate wlw led shows #i'm tired #i'm fucking tired of campaigning knowing the trekbros have a bigger platform and voice and influence #because they're fucking bullies and p+ is soooo eager to please #i am TIRED.#why can't queer/poc people have a show in fucking STAR TREK #don't mind me i've had some coffee #it sets off my brain

15 notes · View notes

lukah-o · 1 year

Text

idc if you think i'm immature or whatever descriptive you wanna give me, i'm gonna skip every scene in that show until i get to the gay ones. you know i'm only here for the gay couple, so let's not pretend

#you guys are hypocrites #don't boo me i'm right #skam #young royals #she ra #i love the straights but they're not the star of the show sorrryyy #orv #anything even SLIGHTLY queer coded #my headcanons = instant canoned #i'm omniscient at this point

8 notes · View notes

terrainofheartfelt · 1 year

Note

Ohhhh i cant wait for you to watch s3 of YOU lmaooo

I'm sure it will break my poor bisexual brain

#it really does seem like every season they're like #okay which of liz's buttons can we press next?#penn badgley with a baby? check.#victoria pedretti evolving into a milf? check.#asks #anon #okay so here's the thing #I am of two minds about this show #one mind is this: it is a very sophisticated work of comedy #in that you are watching through the pov of a character who thinks he is the star of the romantic comedy of his own life #when really #he's the villain in a slasher flick #and the show takes care to show that people (as a whole)#do not care so much for the truth but who is telling it to them #bc the people who see joe for who he is and try to speak it - people find reasons to disbelieve them #peach: closeted queer woman with severe mental health issues #candace: battered ex-girlfriend who is recovering from trauma #delilah: SA survivor and Latina and serving as primary guardian of her younger sister Ellie who: is also Latina and a child #and Forty: an SA survivor and recovering addict who's constantly relapsing and has a history of dangerous and erratic behavior #it is so so so so smart. and I can recognize that #but then the other part of me is like a big mouth hormone monster #just maya rudolph's voice lusting after this beautiful idiotic violent man #and his hot gf who turn out to be equally violent and stupid and dangerous #so. what's a girl to do?#and s4 APPARENTLY this fucker is in Paris #and is a PROFESSOR with LONG HAIR and a BEARD #like I feel targeted. personally.

4 notes · View notes

six-of-snakes · 2 months

Text

now i want to write fanfic for my own original fic 😔

#whyyyy #it would be so good too #like a band au I think #caspian is the former teen pop star who lost a bunch of his following when he came out as trans and started T #he disappeared after the announcement #and all his social media and spotify etc is under “Cass” [his dead nickname] although some of the more rabid fans are convinced they've #found his tumblr #and he's finally returning to the stage but only as the drummer for the Starshine Craving #a pop-punk group consisting of queer activist Sahre #a man no one's ever heard of before: Xanth #and Xanth's adopted sister Merie who's constantly on the first page of the tabloids for her various relationships #and also her very neatly concealed past (there are theories she's a murderer)#anyways #Starshine Craving is the opening act for the wildly popular genre-defying duo Envy of the Infected (know simply as “NV” to their fans)#Envy of the Infected is made up of Khara Aruené #a woman who is as famous as she is mysterious: nothing is know about her before she debuted playing solo in basement shows at nineteen #and Stryker who is similarly mysterious and rumored to be in a high profile situationship with Khara #NV shows are always wild but now eith Starshine Craving in the mix things are heating up backstage too #and the neat public personas of Khara and Stryker are hanging by a thread as recording group Vitalis Records tries to force NV to sign with #them by restoring to blackmail and threats and Starshine Craving could be their way to find what they're really looking for #dirt on Khara that will ruin NVs reputation if shared

1 note · View note

schoolsoutmp3 · 1 year

Text

It's happened to Becky Albertalli, who wrote a book about how terrible it is to be outed.

It's happened to Keiynan Lonsdale, who starred in the adaptation of that book.

It's happened to Kit Connor, who starred in a show that makes it clear you don't owe people your sexuality.

This list will only ever get longer, because you are weaponising the concepts of authenticity and "own-voices" to creep into strangers lives to find out some of the most personal things you could find.

"Queer actors for queer roles" is a right idea until all you can focus on is harassing anyone who's not stated they're gay. Forcing them to tell their parents, their whole extended family, their neighbours, their old pre-school classmates, and thousands of people who will never ever even see them in person let alone interact with them.

#heartstopper #heartstopper comic #heartstopper tv show #love simon #simon vs the homosapiens agenda #love victor #leah on the offbeat #kit connor #his dark materials #queer #gay #bisexual

6K notes · View notes

blushweddinggowns · 1 year

Text

Part 2

He has no right to be here.

He knows that.

He does.

Eddie watches as people pile into the church, all of them dressed to the nines. It's a Harrington affair through and through, and the sight of all these people that he knows Steve hates makes him feel sicker than he already is.

If he wasn't on the edge of crying he would have laughed at himself, like he had any right to judge anyone here. He's the one who dumped Steve. Perfect, wonderful, lovely Steve who just needed a few more years. He just needed to make sure the kids were safe until they graduated. But Eddie couldn't do it. He needed to leave, and Steve needed to stay.

So he ended it. Just like that. He ended it.

He hasn't seen him for three years. By all appearances, it was a good choice, the best thing he could have done for himself. Because against all fucking odds Eddie Munson ends up as a success. He's a star, a famous musician discovered in a shitty little bar. He somehow managed to actually live the dream he used to fantasize about.

He lives it up. He parties, he drinks, he fucks, he spends his early twenties being young and dumb like he always wanted.

And it's horrible. It's so horrible that it becomes hilarious to him. Because he knows why it's so bad. Of course he knows. But it's better this way, really. Because Steve deserved better than him anyway. He deserved someone he didn't run away, full of flimsy excuses of wanting to be out of the shitty town that made him. When the truth was he was scared. He was terrified about how much he loved him. Because what was he going to do when the day came when Steve realized he could do better?

Eddie wouldn't have been able to surivie it. So he left instead. Like the coward he was. He left so he could be miserable and famous but at least Steve could finally find someone who deserved him.

So it really was all for the best. That's what he tells himself, because if he doesn't he'd go insane wondering about what could have been. He has himself convinced that he made the right choice. Maybe not for himself, but at least for Steve.

He doesn't realize how bullshit all of that was until Dustin lets it slip. They're doing the normal routine. Dustin visits, Eddie spoils the shit out of him, and on the last day he asks about Steve. He always tries to keep it casual. Tries to never let his desperation to know what's happening shine through. But it always does, bad enough that Dustin can't help the pity in his eyes when he tells him.

Steve's getting married.

Eddie wasn't aware just how much words could hurt him until that moment. He'd been called every bad name under the sun, a queer, a freak, a fag, you name it and it's been said. But this is the first time someone else's words make him feel like he's dying.

He wasn't invited to the wedding. Why would he be? But he still found it. Because he's a glutton for self-punishment. He hadn't seen Steve for three fucking years, and he chooses to wait till his wedding day?

But it's too late for regret, he's already here. His eyes keep scanning the room, just waiting for him to show up. He probably looks like a creep, dressed in all black and fucking sunglasses, sitting right by the door. He's basically in a fucking disguise, mostly to stop Robin from finding him and kicking his ass.

Speaking of, his eyes widen at the sight of her. She's slipping out of a door to the side, quickly wiping at her eyes before joining the crowd of people. His eyes drift back to the door.

Eddie's on his feet before he knows what he's doing. It's stupid, maybe the stupidest thing he's ever done, but where Robin is, Steve is sure to follow.

And he's right. It leads to a small dressing room. And there he is. Just like that Eddie's in front of the only man he'll ever love. Or at least, behind him. They were alone, and Steve hadn't even noticed him yet, too busy adjusting his hair in the mirror.

He still has time to leave. Besides, he didn't come here to ruin everything. He didn't, really.

But he doesn't turn around. Instead, Eddie locks the door behind him. He takes off his stupid sunglasses and clears his throat to speak, but is immediately rendered speechless when Steve turns to look at him.

He's just as gorgeous as he remembered.

His eyes widened at the sight of him, mouth opening and closing like he can't quite believe what he's seeing. Why would he? Eddie never reached out. He ignored the times that Steve did, always too ashamed of himself to face his own mistakes.

Eddie always expected Steve to lash out when he saw him, if he saw him. Lord knows he deserved it. But he doesn't. He just looks...sad. And those basset hound eyes are almost enough to bring Eddie to tears himself.

"What are you doing here?" Steve asked, voice quiet.

Eddie hadn't actually prepared anything to say. His plan was to watch the love of his life marry someone else than drink himself into a stupor at his hotel. He...he hadn't expected to end up here. But there are a million things he wants to say to him.

I'm here to tell you I'm sorry. I'm sorry I was a coward. I'm sorry I wasn't good enough and I made it your problem. I haven't stopped thinking about you. Ever. There hasn't been a day that goes by when I don't regret leaving. And I thought, maybe, just maybe if I saw you move on with my own eyes I could let you go.

But none of that is what comes out of his mouth.

"Run away with me."

If Steve didn't look shocked to see him before he sure did now, "W-What?"

"Run away with me," He repeats. Because it's what he wants. It's what he needs. It's been three years of hell without him and Eddie can't do it anymore. He can't.

He hates that he's the cause of the tears springing up in Steve's eyes, but he can't take it back. He won't.

Steve looks away, eyes trained on the floor, "You can't do this to me Eddie. You can't."

But he is.

Eddie's made his choice. He was a fool to think he was capable of coming here without trying to steal him away. Of course this is where he'd end up. And he'll say anything to get him back. He doesn't care that he's too late. He doesn't care that this whole thing makes him a bigger piece of shit than he already was.

He'll be underhanded, he'll be dirty, he'll do anything to get Steve to leave with him, he doesn't fucking care. Because Steve Harrington is not going to get married today.

He waltzes right up to him. He grabs his chin and forces him to meet his eyes. He probably looks crazy, he feels crazy, "You don't love her like you love me."

He's never met her. He doesn't need to. The way Steve freezes up is all he needs to know that he's right.

He doesn't deny it, but he deflects, "Why are you doing this? You left me. Did you forget that part? I didn't end it. You did! A-And now what? We're just going to ride off into the sunset together? Like you weren't the one to just cut me out of your life-"

"Yes," Eddie interrupts. He feels calm, eerily so as he speaks, "We're riding off into the sunset together. Even though I don't deserve it. I never deserved you. And I was so fucking scared of when you would realize that. I let it eat away at me. So I left. Before you could do it to me. And I was wrong."

"Stop," Steve tries to step back, but Eddie won't let him. He wraps an arm around his waist and pulls him close.

He can't stop talking, even if he wanted to, "I was so wrong Steve. And I've been miserable ever since. Because I couldn't stop thinking about you. I'll never stop thinking about you. Even if you tell me to go to hell and get hitched I'll just wait for a divorce. Because you are the only one for me. And it took me too long to say that out loud. And I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry Stevie."

Steve weakly tried to push him away, but his heart wasn't in it, "Please stop."

But he can't, "I love you."

Steve's eyes are closed, a futile attempt to keep the tears at bay, but his voice comes out strong, "Eddie, I-I can't do this again. I can't. If you left me again I...I just can't."

Eddie can't help but wipe a few of the tears away for him, "Angel, look at me."

He waits for Steve to open his eyes. He looks so fucking beautiful that it hurts, especially since this may really be the last time he sees him again.

But he has one more trick up his sleeve, "Tell me you're not mine and I'll leave."

"W-what?"

"Tell me you're not mine. Say the words out loud and I'll let you go."

Steve stares at him. He's mad, beyond pissed that Eddie has the audacity to throw that in his face, but he's desperate. It was the last thing he said to him, murmured through the driver's side window of the van, seconds before he drove away.

I'm still yours, even if you don't want me anymore.

Eddie had cried the entire ride there after hearing that. And then a few days after for good measure. And here he is, completely ruthless at what he's willing to pull out, "You're mine Steve. You know you're mine."

It's such a fucked up thing to say, but it's true. But it's not the whole truth, "And I'm yours. I've always been yours. Tell me that's not true and I'll leave."

But Steve can't. He can't do it, just like Eddie had known he wouldn't. But what he hadn't expected was for him to surge up and kiss him.

It feels like he fell in love all over again, just from one simple kiss. Because it felt like magic was real and it decided to take on the form of Steve Harrington's lips. It was everything he had missed. Everything he had dreamed about. Eddie tangled a hand into his hair, helpless to do anything but kiss him back, harder and deeper. He wanted to be burned into Steve's memory for all eternity. He wanted him to always remember the moment that they came back to each other.

Because that's what this is. Eddie's certain, Steve was his, and he would never let him go again.

They only stop when there is a knock at the door, a muffled question asked that they can't hear over the sounds of their own breathing. It's enough to have them pulling away from each other, but they ignore it nonetheless.

Steve searches his face, one last test. Eddie can only guess how he looks right now, probably just as desperate and terribly hopeful as he felt. Whatever he's looking for, he finds it eventually.

Steve sighs, glancing toward the back of the room, "There's a window we can probably fit through. Because I'm sure as hell not going out there."

Now it's Eddie's turn to cry. Despite all of his confidence, the certainty that they were supposed to be together, he hadn't really expected it to work. But here they were, giggling with each other as they scurried out of a first-floor window, making a run for Eddie's car.

Eddie can't help but kiss him again before they get in, muttering against his mouth, "I love you so fucking much Stevie. I'm not going to fuck this up again. You won't regret it, I'll spend the rest of my life making sure you don't."

Steve grinned into the kiss, "You better."

There was still so much to talk about. Too much. And they'll fight and they'll scream and everything will get worse before it gets better. And Eddie's so fucking grateful to get the chance.

And for the first time in three years, he feels alive again.

#steddie fic #steddie #steddie ficlet #look at me writing this instead of steddie wip i havent looked at for two weeks #idk where this came from #eddie munson #steve harrington #i do not condone this behavior but god damn is it romantic #if it helps it was a pretty shammy marriage to appease his family but that poor nonexistent bride is in for a bad time #but hey it's better than him cheating on you after you're married right?#wedding #ruined #whoops #its a bad idea to run away with your ex you havent seen in years but damn they did it anyway #angst is in there #breakup #they get back together in a very dramatic fashion

2K notes · View notes

chipthekeeper · 7 months

Text

lately i have been a bit miffed by the lack of awareness when it comes to queer characters, and more specifically sapphic characters, in the Star Wars canon. so, in my capacity as the patron saint of lesbian visibility, i've decided to quit whining about it and be the one to spread some knowledge

without further ado.....a very long and obnoxious lesson

now let me tell you about them. in detail. through very specific categories

you don't have anything else to do, right?

CATEGORY ONE: GAY. ON. SCREEN.

they're gay. on screen.

CATEGORY TWO: THE A WORD

Doctor Aphra and her web of lesbianity

CATEGORY THREE: HANDGAYDENS

Padme Amidala and her gay handmaidens

CATEGORY FOUR: THE HIGHLY GAY REPUBLIC

all the many, many queers of the golden age of the jedi

CATEGORY FIVE: VIDEO GAYMES

queers from the Jedi games and related media

CATEGORY SIX: GAY FROM A CERTAIN POINT OF VIEW

characters created for or made queer in the From a Certain Point of View books

CATEGORY SEVEN: COMICALLY QUEER

wlws from comics not involved with Aphra

CATEGORY EIGHT: BOOKED AND GAY

characters who are gay in books, even if nowhere else

whew. still here?

thank you for scrolling all the way through this. if you are interested in talking about any of these people or want to know how to learn more about them on your own, my inbox is always open!!

and seriously folks, if you’re interested in any of them i implore you: read their stories, write fic, make art!!! the more we show that these characters are appreciated and talked about, the more likely we are to get more like them, and hopefully more that are even better and more visible rep

that’s all from me. have a gay day

704 notes · View notes

quasi-normalcy · 7 months

Text

Which Star Trek series should you start with?

The Original Series: Advantages: + The one that started it all + Has some sophisticated and socially conscious science fiction that has held up exceptionally well + The lead characters all have really good chemistry and fun to see play off of one another + It's what most people probably think of when you say Star Trek (together with TNG) Disadvantages: - It can feel very dated and kind of sexist, particularly in its treatment of women - The sci-fi and social commentary may have held up, but damn it, the special effects really haven't - When TOS is bad, it's really, really bad.

The Animated Series: Advantages: + Basically just more TOS. Disadvantages: - Basically just more TOS, but substituting extremely cheap animation for bad special effects

The Next Generation: Advantages: + Probably the most popular one at this point + The crew is full of interesting characters and they're fun to spend time with + Just really smart people solving Space Mysteries + Socialist space utopia + Geordi-And-Data! + Lots of cool sci-fi concepts and social commentary + It's what most people probably think of when you say Star Trek (together with TOS) Disadvantages: - Although not in the same way as TOS, it can feel dated at times, particularly in terms of its treatment of women and it's near complete refusal to acknowledge queerness - Without wanting to bias viewer opinion, the first season is widely considered to be pretty bad - The series makes no bones about the fact that the socialist space utopia is better than every other society that has ever existed and will reiterate this point over and over again

Deep Space Nine: Advantages: + The most popular Trek series on Tumblr + Has a complete story arc, as well as arcs for all of its characters, including the extremely minor ones + Plain, simple, Garak. The humble tailor. + Garashir, if you're into that + Seriously has a really sophisticated treatment of things like post-colonial politics, anthropology, worldbuilding, and the horrors of warfare + Just the characters in general + Is the only Star Trek prior to the 2010s to even look meaningfully at queer representation Disadvantages: - Has an absolutely massive inferiority complex with respect to TNG and this drives a few poor writing decisions that seemingly exist just to poke the Socialist Space Utopia in its eye - Introduces a space religion and then just slowly turns it into Christianity with the numbers filed off - Seems to think that sexual harassment is just a quirky eccentricity - There's no women in its writers' room, and frankly it shows

Voyager: Advantages: + Probably the clearest instance of found family in space + Lots of really good episodes + Lots of fun new characters + Strong female role models + "Set a course...for home." Disadvantages: - Continuity? I never knew her! - Probably about 90% of Trek's reputation for technobabble comes from this one series - Even less queerness than TNG. - Only like...3 characters actually get arcs. - The first few seasons lean very hard into bullshit fake "Native American" spiritualism with one of the characters - How do these guys have warp drive but can't find any water?

Enterprise: Advantages: + Chronologically the first series + 90% less technobabble + The only series to plausibly frame our heroes as astronauts...on some kind of...star trek. + Still has probably the best production values of any series + Makes alien cultures of the week feel somehow richer and deeper than other series + Faith of the Heart is good, fuck you. Disadvantages: - Oh my god, the decon scenes - Seriously, if you've ever wondered what a "sexy" series written by a 14 year old boy who's only ever seen a bit of scrambled softcore porn on late-night cable would be like, this is the show for you - Somehow feels more sexist and racist than the show from the '60s - Seriously, the POC characters mostly exist to fill seats on the bridge; the women constantly have to undress themselves - Hellooooo, Bush II-era political analogies - Scott Bakula is a good actor but you wouldn't know it from this series - In season 3, they add a tambourine beat to Faith of the Heart and ruin it

Discovery: Advantages: + Noticed the lack of queer characters in the first 50 years of Star Trek canon and decided to make up for lost time + Seriously, the "Bury Your Gays" tally for this series is like...negative two + Just incredible representation in general + Some really good science fiction plots, particularly in later series + Some really fun, memorable characters + It's still running, so it has an active fandom on Tumblr Disadvantages: - Makes Elon Musk out to be one of the great visionary geniuses of history - Not really representative of Star Trek as a whole - The series swerves wildly in tone because of constant, behind-the-scenes churn in the writers' room - Offputtingly grimdark first season - Let's be honest, none of the season-long arcs have actually had satisfying conclusions - Half the cast feels like it's just there for exposition and to be killed for cheap drama

Picard: Advantages: + Has the best dramatic acting of any Star Trek series by a fair margin + Has the best musical score of any Star Trek series + Introduces a whole crew of fascinating new characters + Introduces all kinds of fascinating transhumanist concepts + AGNES. JURATI. Disadvantages: - You know all of those fascinating new characters that I mentioned? Yeah, it unceremoniously gets rid of all of them to bring back the old TNG gang. - You know that all of those fascinating transhumanist concepts that I mentioned? Yeah, it gets rid of those too so that to give us some generic action - Oh my god, someone teach the set designers to operate a fucking light switch - Grimdark - Nossssstalgia - Each season is basically unrelated to every other season - Depends so heavily on TNG that its final season is basically unwatchable if you haven't already seen a 30-year-old TV series

Lower Decks: Advantages: + It has probably the most efficient storytelling that I've ever seen; seriously, it's incredible how much it can fit into a half hour episode + It has a bunch of delightful, archetypical characters you get to know and love + You like hanging out with these people + The ship is kind of crap and you will learn to love it that way. + Basically a sitcom version of TNG. + Has a big fandom on Tumblr Disadvantages: - The art style is pretty Rick & Morty-ish - It takes most of its first season to really strike a good balance between being a sitcom and being a Star Trek series - The main character, Mariner, is kind of unlikable for the first season or so (she gets better) - Lots of callbacks to other series (though always either incidental or clearly explained) - Given that it's the first Star Trek sitcom, the comedy is honestly kinda the weakest part? Subjective I know.

Prodigy: Advantages: + Absolutely gorgeous to look at; the most visually stunning Star Trek by quite a ways + Lots of fun new characters on a cool ship + Gives you clear on-boarding notes to the Star Trek franchise if you're watching it for the first time + Can be watched on its own, but also works as a direct sequel to Voyager and a prequel to Picard (making both of them retoractively better, in fact) + Kind of like the Clone Wars or Rebels of the Star Trek universe, I guess? + Found family in space! The next generation! + Soon to be running on Netflix, so if you already have a Netflix subscription, you don't need to pay for another service + Written for a younger audience. Not necessarily an advantage, but nice if you happen to like family friendly animation or YA. Disadvantages: - *sigh* You basically need to pirate it. Thanks, Paramount. - Has a second season that we may or may not ever actually get to see even through piracy. Thanks, Paramount. - Isn't airing on the same streaming service as all of the other ones. Thanks, Paramount

Strange New Worlds: Advantages: + Basically what the original series would be if it were released today, rather than 57 years ago; all of the cool, socially consciousness sci-fi adventure, none of the weird 60s sexism + Fun, awesome characters you get to like spending time with right away + Incredible visuals + Nifty sci-fi concepts, mostly without the 90s-style technobabble Disadvantages: - A huge cast with only ten episodes a season, so many of them feel underdeveloped - Unfortunately, a bunch of its characters are younger versions of the characters from The Original Series, and they hog most of the spotlight; and the characters whose futures aren't locked in stone are kind of treated as disposable - In general, it needs to spend less time being a prequel, and more time being its own thing - "What if Starfleet ran into the Xenomorphs from Alien?" "Well, they'd probably kill them." "Okay, let's spend several episodes on this."

#star trek #tos #tng #ds9 #voy #ent #tas #dsc #pic #lwd #pro #snw

785 notes · View notes