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jackstheprinceofhearts · 1 year

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spoiler-free review on the stolen heir from an ex cardan greenbriar simp

here is photo evidence of me being cringe

alright so I have proven my ex-simp history now we can continue.

alright so first of all, let's talk about what I liked:

I thought the characters were funny, the art on the pages was gorgeous, the hardcover itself was amazing, and I really liked suren and oak as characters!

I also really liked the magic and all that and found it really interesting. I'll talk about the magic again later in the review some more)

I also thought it was just a fun book in general so I rated it 5/5 ⭐. now I do have to say it had no plot and normally I dislike that BUT if the characters are good then I can really enjoy the plotless vibes sometimes but some people just aren't the same like that. but overall I think holly did a pretty good job at making a fun book!

now, for the stuff i didn't like.... I have a few things to go over:

for me, I found the book pretty hard to follow, especially around the end... I was just so confused and maybe I'm just dumb??? but I found it to be really confusing at times.

also, I was pretty disappointed when we were told by holly that we would be getting jude and cardan "crumbs"??? like if you've read it you would know that there is barely anything, they were mentioned a few times and I get that it's oak and suren's story but I really did expect to at least like have them described or see them at some point even just one scene because she kind of made it seem like that.

like yes, there were some but when you hear that you expect there to be like scenes with them you know?? like by crumbs I thought she meant there would be like more of them in it than what we got. so I feel like a few people were just a little disappointed is all.

the next point I have is that all of the character development was at the end!!! like come on bro could we at least have had some foreshadowing or build-up or just SOMETHING to indicate what would happen?? I feel like we needed more build-up instead of just getting this ending for shock value and I was just so confused that I had to ask a few people what happened 💀 because it really just came out of nowhere and not like a "woah that plot twist was so good" like I guessed the twist but how the characters acted is what came out of nowhere but yeah I still liked the ending but it really made no sense.

also the middle of the book?? I remember very little from that because it just felt like the beginning had a lot, the end had a lot, but the middle and a lot of parts I just kind of really forgettable and I'm not saying the story is like bad because of that but I just found it hard to remember stuff but I did read it pretty fast so idk maybe if someone read it a bit slower than I did they may have remembered more but I usually remember a lot.

I also just wish some things were explained MORE. I don't mind when it's left for you to figure out sometimes but honestly, I just felt like we weren't getting AS MUCH as we could be getting, like if suren's abilities had been used a bit more or if we had seen more of what oak could do I think that could've made the story a lot more interesting. and I know yes, yes there's a second book, and oak is supposed to have this air of mystery around him and what not but with duologies, each book has to be able to stand on its own a bit more so I just wish we could've explored the magic just a little bit more

but yeah there is my spoiler-free review of the stolen heir and my thoughts on it LMAO I hope you guys enjoyed this very long review and also if you guys want me to give my thoughts on more books or start posting more about different books then please let me know. (ofc I will still be posting about ouabh & caraval, but I just wanted to make some posts on the stolen heir and share my thoughts since it is currently what everyone is talking about.) love u guys thank you for reading!!!

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catboytwelve · 12 days

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That one post that says "the love was there, the love will continue after this and love endure always" or something like that. That's how Steven Moffat writes for Doctor Who

#mind you it doesnt ALWAYS work and you 100% need to be someone that enjoys this approach #which i am and i always eat it up so yknow skcjaj #also this is literally all i have to say ab the ep. i went into it thinking ill write down my thoughts or even a small review but no LMAO #its def not perfect but i loved it. the first half is incredible #ANYWAY #dw spoilers #doctor who #15th doctor #doctor who spoilers #once again IM FREEE i can open this hellsite and go crazy #boom

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argcicle · 11 months

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I can’t get the idea of c!dream’s mask out of my head. what if it wasn’t always a part of him? in the beginning, dream is an evil man. he’s obsessed with holding power and has a vendetta for tommy. but even though his eyes are cold, he’s a man. his eyebrows furrow when he’s caught off guard and his lip quivers with anger most of the time.

and then tommy gets exiled. alone. nothing to his name but he tries so hard to give himself meaning. and dream accepts the role of boogeyman. he never tries to pretend he’s anyone else, but tommy sees the white mask and he ends up frozen in fear. tommy knows it means that his work will be torn down while he’s forced to watch the taunting unmoving smile. dream’s eyes light up when he notices how tommy relaxes upon seeing his face; the next day, he comes without his mask and does his worst.

tommy never sees his face again after that moment. ranboo asked him once because they’d forgotten ever seeing it, and tommy wasn’t even sure if that man was ever dream. but he still tenses whenever anyone mentions it, and he still prays every night. he grips his own hands with white knuckles, unsure if it’s to forget his face or see it again.

#sorry I love this dynamic. where it’s like the antithesis of a mentor dynamic #especially this duo is interesting to write because I feel like 🟩 wants a familial connection kinda??#like he believes a parent should have this control and is allowed to exhibit such cruelty #and so he molds tommy to create that but simultaneously gets mad that tommy emulates it in turn #it’s not fully developed but that influences how I write him #I guarantee there’s a canon reason for the mask that I don’t know about #but I literally haven’t been able to get this out of my head #so I consider that passing peer review /lh #I’m considering censoring r4nboo and dr3am in the post lmao like these are 2am ramblings. no one should be able to see this /lh #c!tommy

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appalachianapologies · 10 months

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Ok SO I've got some fishes I would like to share from the aquarium we went to a couple weeks ago. First here is my very very favorite fish. I have no idea what it was, but if I was naming it, it would be "patchwork quilt fish" because it looks like somebody just jammed 3 fish together. (Also here's a clownfish.)

And then there's THIS nightmare horror from the deep which apepared to have one red mouth and like 6 white eyes. I couldn't get a very good picture of this monster but trust me, it looks like it's about to start sucking out your blood while hypnotizing you with its 6 white eyes.

I have a request for a MacGyverism (maybe gone wrong? in a whumpy way? or maybe just a fact?) related to your chemistry homework. (Ok I literally have no idea what type of chemistry you're studying maybe this is impossilble in which case just.... whatever Mac thing strikes you.)

that fish just went thrifting and is showing off its outfit!! and ofc The Horrors™️

prompts

“Shit, shit-”

“Hoss-”

“Uh-” Mac shakes his head, having momentarily forgotten that he had his earpiece in. “How much time can you buy me?”

“I got three bullets and six assholes. Probably not as much as you need.”

“Can you at least keep them occupied?”

“I’ll do my best,” Jack mutters back. “What’s goin’ on?”

Mac swallows, glad that Jack can’t see what he’s seeing. “The casing is starting to erode.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“It means that whatever container Moore was keeping the virus in, he chose the wrong one.”

“Can you fix it?”

“Temporarily, sure.”

“Good enough for me.”

Mac gives a nod to himself. He needs chemicals, and very specific ones. If the container starts leaking, which it inevitably will, he needs it to leak into an acid. The only problem is that he won’t be able to keep the solution acidic for long enough. At best, it’ll take a hazmat team hours to arrive.

Mac exhales, eyes running up and down the shelves of cleaning supplies. Too many of them are bases, but finally, his eyes settle on the vinegar.

Unfortunately, that’s only half the battle. Before he can use it for any type of temporary containment, he needs to create its conjugate base to keep the solution at the same pH.

“Water,” Mac mumbles.

“What’s that?”

“New plan. Let the rest of the guards do whatever they want. I need you to find me some water bottles.” Mac looks back down at the canister, now blistering and looking more than ready to burst. “And Jack?”

“Yep?”

“Do it fast.”

#we're doing very boring things (sorry chemists) rn so this was more difficult than i expected haha #but the short story is that buffers are made and buffers are cool because they prevent solutions from easily changing pH #why would this help a virus in a leaking container? who fucking knows. not me that's for sure lmao #anyway the equation to find the ph of a buffer solution is: pH = pKa + log([A-]/[HA]). just yknow. if anyone needed it kjkfsdkjsfd #in which vi actually writes #asks #rosieblogstuff #we love rosieblogstuff #macgyver #macgyver 2016 #drabbles #prompts #technically buffers were from last unit's stuff (but we're still getting review questions from it)#right now we're doing things like finding the most acidic proton in a molecule and i just could not figure out why or how mac would manage #to do that in the field lol

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jvzebel-x · 1 year

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"I hate how they have the power to kill my future-- kill me. They treat my black skin like a gun or a grenade or a knife that's dangerous and lethal. When, really, it's them. The guys at the top, powering everything."

x. "Ace of Spades", Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

#Ace of Spades #Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé #📚#so. as a rule i usually dont like books that center around school for extremely obvious reasons lol.#a young protag is one thing but a plotline that heavily revolves around school life is. issa no for me lol.#BUT i got recd this book&when i went to go look for reviews the first one listed ripped the book apart.#the language the reviewer used was... questionable seeing as systemic racism was the primary theme lol.#the next review i read however was by a reviewer who LOVED it. in fact the reviews i saw were split basically down the middle.#seeing as the primary theme was systemic racism+antiblackness (w a strong focus on microaggressions) in higher acedemia specifically #&socioeconomics in general it wasnt difficult to guess WHY the split was there lmao&i read the book&yeah lol.#anyway it wasnt like. a perfectly plotted book; like there were certain sideplots that were never really given closure #but its also the debut novel of a Nigerian British author who v specifically wrote a whole authors note #to detail the fact that she wrote the book during a v dark time in her life when she was dealing w systemic racism in academia #so the lack of closure on certain points sounds&feels like she wrote this book for a purpose&those themes werent it.#&the purpose&allegory she was trying to make was really well done. i hope she keeps writing.#... as an aside i was recd this book bc i was recd donna tart first&realized while reading the goldfinch that like.#theres a reason why i see her work clipped&out of context everywhere lmao shes racist as fuck.#nothing like being punched in the gut by the n word out of nowhere spoken by a yt character written by a yt author lmao.#... cannot understand why this woman is like. The End Word in dark academia fiction??? shes terrible???#so yeah i went looking for a better dark academia book lmao.#also found several articles about this issue w donna tartt so i guess i should have just googled it first LMAO.

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socksandaslide · 2 years

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Crazy how most of the sandman criticism can be spilt in 3 main categories

1- angry religious people

2- Angry Racists

3- Angry homophobic people

[ also the 4th would be people who have issues with the effects, plot lines, or are just die hard fans of the comics and some of it is reasonable so I can understand it ]

#the sandman #the sandman 2022 #the sandman netflix #morpheus #also some people are all 4 lmao #also love that the one religious guy kept watching the horrible witchcraft but it’s alright it was to write a review #starting to believe that review is satirical lmfao I hope it is at least

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mangoisms · 10 months

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using calmly writer again. i used it way back when it was just a chrome extension and now they do have the online version available but they've also moved to a downloadable software. decided to try it out for this one oneshot i am working on bc i wanted more font options (only three on the online version but Much More in the download which is nice, especially since i can use lucida grande, ao3's font, that was a very nice find)

it also has different background presets and there's this one...

sort of. curious. i mean. old school. from where. i was so surprised when i clicked it and then everything changed this... very bright bright LOL. or not bright. but. idk. it Stands Out

ETA: it also has this awesome typewriter sound for when you type! do really like that too

otherwise. pretty solid program. you do need a license to keep using the program and its... $12 USD i think? but you can also download it without putting in payment info and it'll give you an unknown amount of time for the trial, which is what i am on. $12 is pretty good, i think, but i like formatting my writing in..... classic book format? (no idea what it should be called but like. no spaces between paragraphs and indents/tabs at the start of each one, you know) and when pasting over from docs, it does get rid of that/other formatting like italics.

you can indent in the software (but not online, also another reason i decided to give the download a try) but it's kind of. well. gestures to the picture. it doesn't do it automatically, either, you have to do it each time. also don't even know if those indents will hold when i export it which might Stink but i'm saving that problem for my future self (so, like, later tonight). also for a proper em dash, you have to hit '-' three times; two makes it Very Small and again. don't know how it holds when its being exported so i just want to be safe/stay consistent with how long the em dashes were originally when typed in docs

that's really the main thing with it. i like my indents. and i also always copy and paste stuff back into google docs when i'm done working on my laptop (where i might ordinarily use scrivener to write, which doesn't give me any problems with any of these things and with copying back to docs), that way i can keep writing on my phone if i'm going to bed or something. of course now i'm using calmly as like... new program. new inspo. i love environmental changes As We All Know. so i'm overlooking it for the grind (the writing)

#here's the program review no one asked for #and probably too much information about the things i am finicky about when it comes to writing #😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎#its really just because i know this wip is a oneshot that im like #okay lets suffer through some potential issues when it comes to exporting back to docs #because it's one thing. so. yeah #might keep using it too since you can use the trial for an undetermined amount of time #seriously theres no set limit LOL #not complaining tho #at the end of the day i love scrivener and i will always be loyal to her #but i can never say no to a new program #LMAO

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splashink-games · 2 years

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Potion Economics!

okay so I bought Potionomics on release. an impulse purchase. but I knew I was going to love it.

(screenshots are probably spoilers, I'll probably talk about spoilers, so here's your spoiler warning)

so again, I bought the game on a whim. my wallet cries in agony.

I love games like these where you take care of a store and some of my favourites from this genre are Moonlighter and Recettear. super fun times.

Potionomics is a fabulous game with a lot of personality, a simple, well-executed story, and an immensely fun game loop.

to start with the bad (which are few and far between).

my biggest negative for the game is that there is zero voice acting. which was really depressing. for how animated and unique these characters are, I was surprised there were no voices at all. and not like voiced dialogue. there aren't any vocal sfx. no quips. no barks. I would've loved something to make some of the visual novel aspects more entertaining

secondly, this was not a kick back, chill game where you can endlessly make potions for whatever witch, hero, merchant, cat, bird, dog, dragon that comes into your humble little store. no sir ma'am. it was a game with a time limit (which I hate btw) and stress (quite literally). 10 days to get ready and go. and then do that 4-5 times. not the potion I wanted, but not enough to turn me away.

next, we've just got a few release bugs, 80% of which I avoided by waiting like a week to play the game. but I did encounter stuff not showing up, but nothing game breaking.

so for all the lovely positives for the game.

all the characters are so great! they're sometimes cringe, but in a good kind of way. they're all kind of self-aware of their flaws, which makes them a less annoying to be around, but it also made them stronger characters because it was obvious what they needed in order to grow.

their little scenes were all very nice too! I focused on my favourites until about 70% through the game where I decided I could get all the achievements. some of them were lacklustre, maybe because of burnout or because I was hunting achievements, but I think they were all strong in their own rights. and also my favourites did not disappoint. I will always be Salt and Pepper's blood brother <3

even for the characters who I thought I wasn't going to like (cough Roxanne and Baptiste cough) I found that I couldn't hate any of the characters and the rivals are no exception. I think that's a sign of good character design, if I may be so bold.

the story is simple—uncle died, Sylvia inherited debt and needs to manage the store to win competition money. its simplicity allows the game to breathe and you can get so much more from adding details to this story like they did (rather than making a complicated story).

for example, each of the rivals. they're made to each have a main strength and an antagonistic personality. for example, Roxanne (the first rival) is a fraud who uses charm to win. we see what she needs to grow as a character, we see her strengths, and we see her goal.

I'm also extremely happy that the story is complete! which is a little counter to my "this is not endless chill game" problem. the ending wrapped everything up

and now for the absolutely delicious gameplay loop

making potions in Potionomics is a blast. all you do is put ingredients in a cauldron and try to get the right ratio, but holy moly was it fun for me. for a meticulous person like me, I loved it. spent hours on it. but getting higher tiers is kinda frustrating when you've only got crappy ingredients. the gating was real (either I had to wait for harder areas or better equipment).

accepting the requests were also fun little challenges! they weren't really required, I imagine you could essentially beat the game without them, but having to make potions with certain good traits inevitably made me actually good at making potions.

the card battling aspect was also really nice! this was one of the first times I've seen this kind (where you're not out to kill) and I loved that it enhanced the narrative aspect of the game.

one little gripe I have about the deck-building is that you always needs 20 cards. seems balanced enough. it was clearly more than enough to win me the game. but I did want to change up my tactics sometimes, which included wanting less cards. in the end, I pretty much kept the same strategy until the late game where 1. I had too much stress and needed to get some stress reducing cards and 2. I got the really good cards from maxing out relationships.

I haven't even gotten to talking about the art and the music!

the art and music was phenomenal. loved the character designs. loved the places. the animations were smooth and believable, flashy and unique to each character's personality. the art was one of the things that drew me to the game in the first place, because the cute characters and handsome characters dragged me in. I'm a sucker for them.

the music... was pretty good, all things considering. I liked the music. I liked the sound effects. but I found the audio to be the weakest aspect of the game. that doesn't mean it was weak. it was damn good. just everything else was so high quality, I couldn't pay all too much attention to it. having no voice acting also affected that, though.

Potionomics has a great story, amazing characters, and fun gameplay. there's no doubt in my mind that it's one of my favourite games of the year.

as always, enjoy gaming!

#ink reviews #game review #Potionomics #video games #long review #ink 100%#can you see how much I love this game by how long I talked about it?#can you tell I've been going to my game writing classes? lmao #I have skipped writing reviews for other games I've finished this month but I'll get to them #couldn't fit this into the review but 'magimins' always made me think of 'megumin' the character and I thought that was funny

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kimmkitsuragi · 7 months

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idk why everyone is talking abt tumblr exploding but. once again come join me on serializd, where i write essays on every tv show episode i have ever watched 🤩 my user name is pelinini

(same name on letterboxd and i usually use it a lot too, but i dont write reviews that consistently/seriously + i dont write them in english there but. definitely feel free to join me there too!)

#one of these days i will have a new pinned post w all these and a new about page etc...#anyway rn im literally going crazy in the review section of EVERY iwtv episode.#i will continue to do that w succ too when i get back on my rewatch lmao #i love writing essays that only i care abt truly <3 #🗒

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ficsforeren · 1 year

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Hi Kana!

I just wanna say I absolutely love your writing. TLS had me screaming, kicking, crying, laughing, EVERYTHING and it inspired me to start writing my own fics

There’s two songs I that remind me a lot of TLS —

“Easy to be Around” by Diane Cluck - reminds me so much of Y/N and Armin’s relationship and maybe to an extent how Eren felt about it?

“Downtown” by Magikal Cloudz - I can hear Eren singing this to Y/N and just… I don’t think I’d be okay if not for the alternate ending

I can’t wait to read what you do next! <3

Hi, baby! OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH 😭😭😭 I'm so glad you enjoyed my work!!!

BRO I've never heard downtown by magikal cloudz before so I googled and listened to it and

There's one thing I'll do If it ever goes wrong I'll write you into my all of my songs

And if suddenly I die I hope they will say That he was obsessed and it was okay

WHAT THE HELL ARE THESE LYRICS YOU'RE KILLING ME 😭😭😭

#DAMN #I DID NOT EXPECT IT TO BE LIKE THAT WHEN I SAW THE TITLE BUT YES THAT WOULD DEFINITELY BE EREN 😭😭😭#I CRIEEEEEEEE #i can't believe it's been 84 years and people (me) are still sad about TLS #why did i even write this fic LMAO #again thank you so much for your message this is so sweet 😭#i love you bestie mwah MWAH #the last song canon #kana answers stuff #TLS epilogue review #queue

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obiwan · 2 years

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Thor: Love❤️ & Thunder⚡️ spoilers below!!!

I think almost everyone knew how much I was looking forward to this movie (as a huge fan of Taika’s direction with Thor) so I’m honestly kind of sad to say I didn’t really like it. It felt like a two hour gag-reel. Thor: Ragnarok had a balance of being comedic and fun while having depth and direction, whereas Love & Thunder felt like a complete parody. It was more like a series of bland SNL sketches strung together rather than an actual movie, where most of the jokes fell flat and didn’t land (fat jokes and emasculation jokes? really). I see people saying “don’t hate on a movie because it’s comedic/has too many jokes” but people are criticising it because the jokes just aren’t funny. I doubt anyone expected it to be Schindler’s’ List, it’s Taika Waititi’s Thor, obviously it’s expected to be funny - it just wasn’t. The characters felt all one-note and showed zero progression - they wasted Valkyrie (she is there I guess?) and I don’t even want to talk about Sif. What was that. I really wanted to like this one, but it just didn’t work. The Guardians, Zeus, other gods, all so painfully forgettable. Oh and Taika saying “it’s not a typical love story” when it exactly, absolutely is? Jane is still the main (the only) love interest and gets sacrificed - I would say to further plot, but there really is no plot. I almost feel the need to see it again because I feel like I must be missing something.

On the upside: Thor’s Ass. Rest in Mischief lol. Jane looking great as TMT. And Christian Bale was great, the tiny interesting parts were him and his backstory (shocked they allowed depth in one character) and he makes an interesting villain. Otherwise almost all of it was forgettable. Oh and the post credit scene was cool, excited (loosely using this term lol) for Brett Goldstein.

Anyyywayyy as always I’m a part of the ‘let people enjoy things’ crew, so I do genuinely hope you guys enjoyed it and that’s all that matters tbh, if you loved it then great, be excited about it - I just wanted to write what I thought and vent out my frustration because as sad as it sounds I was really looking forward to this one.

#thor spoilers #thor love and thunder spoilers #thor love and thunder #thor 4 #thor review #marvel #i need to be shot for writing this much about marvel lmao #no but i'm sorry i had to say something after waiting for this movie for 4 years #text #anyway no one is reading this kdjfhgfdg

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unproduciblesmackdown · 10 months

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oh the broadway world review of summer stock (a) loved it as much or more than anyone (b) has as much or more info than anyone and (c) generally has the most vivacity thus far

Summer Stock made its world premiere at The Goodspeed Opera House to a most deserving enthusiastic standing ovation. Based on the 1950 MGM film starring Hollywood legends Judy Garland and Gene Kelly, Summer Stock is a spectacular production with phenomenal dancing, feel-good music, and a sweet story, all modernized for today’s audiences.

Audiences will recognize and love hearing classic songs by Irving Berlin and from The Great American Songbook, including “Happy Days are Here Again”, “Accentuate the Positive”, “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows”, “It’s Only a Paper Moon”, “Me and My Shadow”, “Red Hot Mamma”, “’Til We Meet Again", and “You Wonderful You”. Summer Stock’s writer, Cheri Steinkellner, takes the original film story to a whole new level that both contemporary and classic theater goers will absolutely adore. Steinkellner provides additional lyrics to upgrade the story to first class. It’s hard to believe that she “got the call” to write Summer Stock in October, completed the workshop draft by March, and had the rehearsal draft ready by June for a July opening. Steinkellner clearly works well under pressure - Summer Stock is a diamond.

In the Writer’s Notes, Steinkellner elaborates on the restrictions of bringing the film to stage (like how heavy farm machinery wouldn’t fit up on the Goodspeed stage) and how she tackled answering the many questions that the original film glossed over: “Why is a Shakespearean matinee idol starring in a musical in a barn? What happens when you make show-people wake up at sunrise to muck out the stalls?” and more. She repositioned and repurposed the film’s original songs like “Howdy Neighbor” and “Dig for Your Dinner”, so the classic elements that film fans are looking for are still there - only, frankly, much much better. Lastly, she addresses the challenge of “crafting a [contemporary] story to support a diverse cast of characters with intention, authenticity, and care.” Steinkellner rose to the challenge, knocked it out of the park, and created a great musical in record time.

The story is simple and sweet. Set just after World War II, we meet Jane Falbury (Danielle Wade), a doting daughter working the family farm with her father, Lt. Henry “Pop” Falbury (Stephen Lee Anderson). The Falbury Farm is in trouble thanks to the devious and ambitious Margaret Wingate (Veanne Cox), who has grand aims for a monopoly over the Connecticut River Valley. Scheming with her naive son, Orville (Will Roland), they will stop at nothing to own the farm. Meanwhile, Jane’s showgirl sister, Gloria (Arianna Rosario), has moved to The Big Apple to make it on Broadway. She wins a spot in the chorus line of Joe Ross’ (Corbin Bleu) brand new show. With his sidekick and music director, Phil Filmore (Gilbert L. Bailey II) in tow and a Shakespearean star, Montgomery Leach, ready to take center stage, they hit a snag when they lose their rehearsal space. Gloria suggests uprooting the show to rehearse in her family’s barn. Jane, who is fresh out of farm hands, reluctantly agrees to let the actors stay in exchange for earning their keep. The company’s tight harmonies might not charm Jane at first, but they certainly had us swooning. I won’t spoil the entire plot, but will say that hilarity ensues, hearts flutter, dreams are realized, and it’s wonderful.

When I first heard about Summer Stock, I cynically thought that it felt too familiar. The show is set on a Connecticut farm whose owners have fallen on hard times and risk losing their livelihood. They turn to their Broadway friends, who are amidst the usual uphill battle of making it big in show business, and agree to put on a brand new production in the barn to raise funds to save the farm. It’s based on the film of the same name, features music by Irving Berlin, and includes incredible tap numbers, and spotlights America’s sweetheart Corbin Bleu. Hearing that alone, I’d think this was a copy/paste of Tony Award-nominated Holiday Inn: The New Irving Berlin Musical, which opened at The Goodspeed in 2014 and went to Broadway in 2016. We’ve seen a number of Irving Berlin musicals, including White Christmas, and the most recent Broadway production Nice Work if You Can Get It, starring Kelli O’Hara and Matthew Broderick. So, what more is there to add to this Broadway subgenre? If you’d asked me before, I would argue there’s “Nothing More to Say”. I was very wrong. Summer Stock raises the bar with phenomenal choreography, clever storytelling and humor, beautiful orchestrations, and unparalleled performers.

Speaking of unparalleled performers, the cast is perfection. There’s not a single throwaway line or character. They’re all exquisite gems and I’m running out of words to compliment them all. The “city mice” dancers and ensemble features Erika Amato, Hannah Balagot, DeShawn Bowens, Ronnie S. Bowman Jr., Emily Kelly, Francesca Mancuso, Tommy Martinez, Corinne Munsch, Gregory North, Kaylee Olson, Jack Sippel, and Cayel Tregeagle. Danielle Wade sweetly croons just like Judy Garland and swept audiences off their feet. As I left the theater, I overheard two ladies praising Wade for her stupendous performance, saying it was perfect likeness of Garland, yet even more meaningful. Arianna Rosario, as the sugary sweet sister, is absolutely delightful. Stephen Lee Anderson, as the veteran and father, tugs our heart strings. Gilbert L. Bailey II and Will Roland had the crowd roaring with laughter as the feisty music director and innocent corporate heir. Veanne Cox, as the melodramatic mother and CEO of Wingate Agricultural Corporate, had the crowd roaring with laughter from the moment she spoke her first line. Not to be outdone, J. Anthony Crane, as the over-the-top Shakespearean star, brought down the house with his entrance alone. Together, Cox and Crane generate instant heat, which is especially appropriate since they rock the stage with Red Hot Mamma. The cheeky, interspersed Shakespearean innuendo is fast-paced, clever, and had the audience hooting and hollering. I would see the show again for this duo.

Last, but far from least, Corbin Bleu, as the show’s director, gives the performance of a lifetime. Bleu radiates pure joy and leads with heart, inviting his scene partners to shine with him. Audiences instantly fell in love with his gorgeous, velvety voice, and, understandably, swooned. Bleu previously won the Chita Rivera Award for Outstanding Male Dancing in a Broadway Show for his portrayal in Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn, and his transcendent tapping in Summer Stock shows he’s not stopping there. Bleu’s dancing is out of this world! You can’t miss his charming and virtuosic spin on Gene Kelly’s iconic solo dance, featuring the world’s most unexpected dance partner. Corbin Bleu is a national treasure.

The 8-piece orchestra, lead by Goodspeed’s resident music director Adam Souza, performs the remarkable orchestrations, by Doug Besterman, beautifully. The score is demanding, but the musicians don’t let us see them sweat. As much as I’m gushing, I would recommend shifting the show to one hour earlier and give it a little trim. Not a haircutter’s inch, but a discreet tidy-up. As it turns out, I was in slight agreement with the obnoxious subscribers behind me, who disrupted a precious moment to voice their complaints, “This is two hours and forty minutes? Way too long!” I nearly turned to fisticuffs in defense of this phenomenal cast, but chose to deliver an icy, yet effective, glare. I digress, but Goodspeed subscribers are truly spoiled with top-rate performers straight from the Broadway stage. In any case, we could use a couple more developmental scenes to fully flesh out the plot, and I’d be willing to sacrifice by shaving a bit off some of the longer dance numbers (“Everybody Step” and “Dig For Your Dinner”) and songs. (Not too much! Just an inch! And don’t dare recast any characters!)

That isn’t to say that the dance performances weren’t epic: Summer Stock has the best dancing I have ever seen, hands down. The virtuosic ensemble, lovingly called “city mice”, perfectly deliver wildly acrobatic displays all with impossibly high-energy and make it look easy. Director and choreographer, Donna Feore, has made an unforgettable, magnificent Goodspeed debut. Feore makes use of every inch of the stage, making it feel larger than life, and her attention to detail is unsurpassed. The choreography is out of this world! Wilson Chin, scenic designer, set the stage beautifully. The Technicolor New England farm-turned-theater is framed with classic red-sided barn, delicate florals climbing the walls, and hurricane lanterns lovingly displayed as accent pieces. Summer Stock is Goodspeed’s best original production ever. The 12, which opens next, has very big shoes to fill. Summer Stock has its eyes set on Broadway. Does Summer Stock deserve a Broadway run? Absolutely. In this critic’s opinion, it couldn’t get there soon enough. Perhaps my favorite aspect of the production were the many comedic theater flourishes. Broadway audiences will cry with laughter when they watch the city mice (actors) learn how to play the part of farmhands: “What is the farmer’s motivation?” “E-I, E-I!” Frankly, I want an original cast album yesterday. Finally, when it opens on Broadway, you’ll wish you had seen it at The Goodspeed first.

#this is the full text; the Breaks in [indented format] are from organic ones for ads & stuff on the sitepage #since the way formatting works now has an unbroken [indented text] line as One Block even if there's line breaks & Character Limit applies #fixed up a few name typos i caught....reminds me that i did check goodspeed's site again & someone Did correct ''will reynolds'' lmao #shoutout to not only this review mentioning gilbert / phil but also effectively mentioning the phil / orville duo i know is real & true #also i love that gloria is in the chorus now and not the lead....seems fitting & that eliminates [jane must take gloria's role]#and suggests that mayhaps jane's role is wholly created by/for her which also seems more apropos; thematically anyways lol #i agree re: the charm of calling the ensemble dancers / roles the city mice lol #feel free to have spoiled more plot...loving the Reviewer's feistiness also fr. the fisticuffs & effective icy glares. hooting & hollering #everyone agrees on unshocking points like ''could use a lil polish / honing / tightening up sure'' & ''fewer songs maybe''#here like ''shorter dance sequences a couple of times maybe''....also do recall via that cheri steinkellner interview i quoted #(in a separate post weeks back) that she mentioned her experience in tv serving the need to Write Fast #heard similarly before re: other ppl who worked in tv production then wrangling Shorter Than Usual development periods in other mediums #call that other media....also sure does seem like they can do another run of this show in nyc #between (a) being like ''yeah we want to'' & (b) corbin bleu is there (& others; incl ppl who've been on bway) & (c) nyt critic's pick....#summer stock #will roland #orville wingate #(p.s. i don't get the ''what is a farmer's motivation'' ''e i e i'' lol i get One ref & feel i am missing another theatre related one)

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cielsosinfel · 7 months

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reading log #1100111 1100001 1111001

I was keeping reading logs of books and comics I'd completed here, and then on Dreamwidth... but I think I'm gonna end up doing them here first again before archiving on Dreamwidth lol. I have had a very bad time following up on things like this the last few months but I HAVE been finishing books (or giving up on them in frustration.) So, here's some recent ones and some meandering thoughts (if I had typed these up closer to finishing the book I would have much more to say, but alas, memory is a sieve)

CW for mentions of CSA/incest in the "Angels Before Man" section.

A Man of Lies by Ben Crane: This came up in the library database when I searched for Queer Fiction, and it was described as a heist novel with a gay lead. It's the author's first novel, too- he was a film screenwriter (none of his movies seem to have been very successful, though.) It sure is a heist novel! The MC, Barret, is an enforcer for the biggest mob boss in the Midwestern states, and falls in love with the boss' top accountant, Mickey. They want more out of life than the criminal underworld, and hatch a plot to steal shitloads of cash from their boss and flee together. But the plot is of course found out, and Mickey is killed right in front of Barret, and now Barret is forced to pay off the debt or be killed himself. But he has a better idea- one more risky scheme to to make millions and live the life Mickey wanted for them.

I actually enjoyed this one a lot!! It's very fast-paced. There are way too many POVs- it switches characters every chapter, and the narrator PoV shifts from first-person when it's Barret to close-third-person for everyone else, so it felt hectic at times. I think you can definitely tell this was written by someone used to writing film scripts- so many scenes are written in such a way that feel like they'd perfectly translate to a film scene (I got the feeling the author might be wanting to turn this into a film at some point?) There's also some flashback fuckery near the end I found kind of obnoxious but oh well, it didn't detract from the book.

It's a super ridiculous book at it's core and definitely leans hard into the tropes of its genre. Some things made me roll my eyes, especially with Barret's narration (I'm a liar! You'll never know when I'm telling the truth!) but there were some sexy moments with his suffering. I REALLY liked Cass (long-time petty criminal with a bitterness toward the world, looking for her big break), Johnny Boy (Cass' pacifist friend who just wants to do right by everyone and keep his friends safe, but can never meet Cass' expectations and is always the target of her anger), and Pickens (long-suffering genius lockpicker who just wants to get paid without getting dragged into other peoples' bullshit. He is, dare I say it, my poor little meow meow.)

It ends in a ridiculous but good plot-twist that actually makes me want to read the sequel when it comes out (this is rare. I have very low patience for multi-book series anymore lmao.) So yeah. Quick, easy, fun read, excited for more.

Idol, Burning by Rin Usami (tl. Asa Yoneda): This is a book about a high school girl's life in idol fandom, but so much more than that. I wasn't sure what I was expecting going into this- I only heard about it because I saw someone talk about an essay they wrote on this, about how it shows how idol fandom could be considered feminist- but it really was not what I expected just going off that!!

This is about a girl who is being failed by many people around her. This is a girl who has undiagnosed dyslexia and learning disabilities; a girl who is very depressed, suicidal and self-harming; a girl with a worsening eating disorder; a girl with a total disconnect from the people around her. She falls into idol fandom for a particular idol, a boy who she has been obsessed with since she was a young child watching him as a 12 year old, performing as Peter Pan, and it becomes her solace, her refuge, and a crutch. She doesn't understand herself or her life, so she obsesses over trying to understand every ;ittle detail about her oshi, from the smallest facial movements to the tone of his social media text posts.

When her idol is suddenly in a media storm for hitting a woman- a woman he may have been secretly dating- it's like a spiderweb of cracks in a dam are suddenly broken through and she's struggling to tread water.

I feel like what this book really captures is how being deeply involved in fandom, and being super passionate for a hobby, and online communities of likeminded fans, can both help and hurt. The more depressed Akari gets because of her family life, of failing in school, of being treated as an idiot because of ableist barriers she doesn't even realize are blocking her path forward, the more she fixates on her idol- constantly watching and rewatching shows and interviews to try to see beyond her oshi's public persona, updating her blog with in-depth reviews of albums or summaries of interviews, buying up all of the merchandise she can for what amounts to an all-consuming shrine in her room filled with trash and uneaten food.

Her oshi becomes the only reason she gets up and leaves the house, the only reason she gets dressed (always in blue, her oshi's official color), the only reason she continues to work (she needs the money to support her oshi), the only reason she interacts socially outside her family (with fandom, with other obsessed fans who understand why she's so emotionally reliant on a celebrity that she'll nvver truly meet). But this hyperfixation is undeniably a large part of why her life is stalling and backsliding, even if it's not the /root/ cause, but a symptom presenting an out-sized impact.

Anyway, it like, resonated with me as someone who was also once a young girl with undiagnosed dyslexia/learning disabilities, with all-devouring depression, with suicidal urges, with eating disorders no one recognized. And no support structure but my hyperfixations on fictional characters and the friendships I had with other fans via internet communities. It's just such a painful, painful book to read because even though the cultural context and fandom context is so completely different (I was born and raised in the US, I have no idea what girls in Japan go through), it resonated SO MUCH.

The ending is also something I like a lot- it's not a Happy Ending(TM) at all, but I found it much more impactful in its realism. Akari is not "better," she is still in such a bad place, but she's taking these small steps to break the self-destructive cycle she's ended up with. And that's what's important- is the small steps, and the acknowledgment that there are steps to be taken at all.

Also, the ending of the English edition has a letter written by the author addressing her younger brother, who has dyslexia, and discussing the failures of the Japanese education system regarding disabled students. She says in the letter herself, that her brother will never read it because it's in English, and she'll likely never say any of what she wrote to him, but the letter was still so, so, so affecting... Just, this acknowledgment of both her brother's struggles, and how she added to those struggles when they were younger and she understood less. Much like how Akari's older sister in the novel can't understand why Akari struggles so much, and takes out her own frustration on Akari- her frustration at bearing so much responsibility in a family with a single, over-worked mother, and no matter how much she tries to steer her sister in the right direction and help her (taking on the role of a mother for her), nothing seems to help. It's not something children can help! It's the adults refusing to see that the system they set in place is not helping these children!!

But the letter also says that though the Japanese education system almost failed the author's brother, he was able to go to a school specifically for children with learning disabilities, and he excelled and now leads a happy, successful life. Akari doesn't get that in the book; Akari's story is the other side of the coin. But where the ending of Akari's story is not quite happy, it's like a soothing balm to read that the author's real, living, breathing brother got his own happy ending.

Angels Before Man by rafael nicolás (Did Not Finish lol):

OK. OK I SUPER HATE THIS BOOK SO MUCH JESUS CHRISTTTTTTTT OK. Ok. So this is a "queer retelling of the fall of Lucifer." Right? And I, being an ex-catholic trans faggot, am totally into reclaiming Lucifer in the name of being a filthy dirty gay heathen? Right??

But this book is sooooooooooooooo

I'm gonna make a bullet point list

It's extremely unimaginative when it comes to what Heaven and angels are like, for one.We have some mentions of chariots and ophanim who are these otherworldly beings, but 99% of the cast are just regular Joe Schmo cis dudes with wings. They live in a very run of the mill pseudo-Roman town with regular buildings and colisseums and bathhouses and stores. It's very uninspired imo. They pass their time talking, lounging, bathing, trading fruits and eating, and competing in the colisseum, and just... not very Angelic??

The first 150 pages is some of the most repetitive writing I have read in years. I kid you not, the book starts with Lucifer's creation and then for the next 150 pages it is just variations of: Lucifer is lost and confused; Lucifer cries; everyone compliments Lucifer's beauty; Lucifer cries over being beautiful; they eat some fruit and walk to see people; they go on flying lessons; repeat. repeat. repeat. EVERYTHING IS DESCRIBED WHEN ITS NOTE VEN NECESSARY FOR ANYTHING BUT PADDINGGGGG

Also Lucifer's shame over being beautiful: WHY is he ashamed? Every single time he gets attention because of his beauty and being God's favorite, every time someone compliments his beauty, we get a paragraph about how ashamed he is of his beauty and his body, but never WHY. There are no details about what is causing him this shame. And if God made him to be beautiful, to embody beauty, why would he have any shame over it? Why is he ashamed of the being he was made to be, the attribute he was hand-crafted to embody? We're not given anything deeper than "Lucifer is so ashamed and he cries and cries and cries." Stop crying over being pretty god damn!!

Basically none of the characters have any voice or personality except for like, Uriel and God. Lucifer's personality is crying and being confused and having a crush on Michael. I'm not even kidding. Maybe some hyperbole but everything in this book is so FLAT and LIFELESS.

Also Lucifer is created not knowing a single thing about existence- he doesn't know what roads are, or what water is, or what air is, or what creation is- but this is also close-third person POV and his internal narration is constantly making reference to things you'd assume he'd be unaware of. Sometimes there will be some metaphor or comparison to an object, that a few pages/chapters later Lucifer will be introduced to for the first time. It just really takes you out of the story, you know?

OK the big thing though

the thing that pissed me off the most?

The entire thing that brings about the fall of Lucifer is being raped by God.

lmao

lmao!!!!

OK see I could see this kind of narrative being potentially compelling and meaningful in the hands of a good, experienced writer but that's not this writer. No. It just is such utter fucking garbage that, to me, personally, was outright offensive as a survive of CSA/incest. This is horrible writing, and horrible handling of the subject matter. It's just, so poorly thought out in so many ways.

Literally the mainstream opinion in Catholicism already is that child sexual abuse survivors are sinned, stained, ruined by the abuse and violence they have suffered. This does not add a single new thing. ugh. ighhhhh!!!

On top of that the writing of the CSA itself and Lucifer's emotional interiority in the aftermath were really fucking shallow for a book that has this as the traumatic pivot of the narrative and Lucifer's character arc into becoming a fallen, corrupted being. It's literally "he's this poor shaking crybaby everyone loves->God violently abuses him->he has violently gone off the deep down and lost his mind in some of the most cliche writing I've seen yet"

And to top it off the writing is full of spelling errors, grammar errors, punctuation errors especially-- I do not say this lightly because I am someone who writes fanfic and holds it near and dear to my heart, but this reads more like someone took a fanfic directly off Wattpad or AO3 and slapped it into a book with no editing. It is so. Bad. good lord!

If this was just porn I would not care nearly as much, like whatever gets your noncon kink rocks off, but this isn't porn, this is trying to be a deep insightful exploration on sexual trauma and incest and I can't deal with how bad it was.

#reading log #mine poste #it took me over a week to finish writing this whew #two rambling reviews for books i loved and one rambling review of a book i LOATHE #this is probably the last of these i will write this year lmao

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