#subject: hsmtmts

[pinkhysteria]

used to pray for times like this.

#gina porter #this is what a certain other show should’ve done when their prior female led left but instead i was subjected to nonsense... #glad tim knows to take advantage of his talent! #hsmtmts

[laylakeating]

Did you see that a reviewer said that gina and ej don’t have any significant scenes in the first 3 episodes and ricky and gina do!!!!

i can only see it getting better for rina and worse for pw as the episodes come out lol!!

I DID !!! and that they only really have one conversation between the first 2 eps !! which is just like. incredible. and also what we deserve considering we got NOTHING during 2b.

i think the majority of pw scenes are happening in 301...the only episode rina ISN'T interacting (i'm thinking 301 will end with the 'group hug' scene)....it's very interesting and i'm connecting lots of dots.

and SAME. we've hit rock bottom. we can only go up from here <333

#i cried cheered screamed clapped pw bones AND we don't have to be subjected to them <333 #rina are going to start spending time together in 302 and then just. never stop. love that for us #asked and answered #anonymous #hsmtmts #rina

[gracestone]

1/2 I saw that you are also a fan of Merlin and I wanted to say that Ricky and EJ remind me a little of Merlin and Arthur? Like they didn't get along at first but then became friends. One comes from a wealthy family and the other from a poor one (in Ricky's case, he's obv not poor, but he had to move bc of money pb so he knows what it's like not to have enough). EJ and Arthur, at first, were shown to be arrogant, but they are actually really good ppl (+ the character development).

2/2 Both Ricky and Merlin see the good in ppl. If you see more similarities, pls, feel free to add more :)

You're making some good points! Now all we need is for EJ and Ricky's friendship to become as strong as Arthur and Merlin's 🥰 I would love it if they became as close as brothers by the end of the show!

#hsmtmts #ricky bowen #ej caswell #bbc merlin #sorry i don't have much more to say on this subject

[residentfangirl2104]

I apologize to anyone who follows me for my (previously) Sanders sides or (more commonly now) pjo/st content, but I'm getting serious hsmtmts brainrot and all of you are just going to have to deal with that

#/lh #but also fr I'm sorry to subject you to this but also I'm not sorry at all #this is the first show i ever really got into and season 3 is bringing it all back #I've never experienced full on fandom life till hsmtmts #and I'm not really in the fandom anymore (not actively) because of how chaotic and toxic it's become #and the ship wars are EXHAUSTING #but i still love this show man #hsmtmts #hsmtmts s3

[hufflepuffimagines]

⋆｡°✩ Navegation ✩°｡⋆

⋆ About Me  ⋆

I’m Bells, I’m 20 yo and I’m brazilian, I write since I was 11, I can’t say that I do it perfectly but I try. I’m obssessed with 80s rockstar, specially Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee. I’m a swifitie and I’m going to the Eras Tour in november. I love writing fluffy stories, mostly because it makes me imagine what I’d like my life to be, with that in mind, I can say that I’m trying to shift to my Selection DR, but never made it. I love Barbie, Monster High and these things, I love pink and I can honestly say that I’m a Barbie that is obssessed with rockstars. I don’t have much friends and I’d love to get to know you if you want to talk :)

⋆ You can find my prompt list here (I’ll be adding more to it during the week);

⋆ If you want to be part of my taglist, answer this form;

(that’s me everyday, not my gif)

IMPORTANT THINGS:

⋆ Character List ⋆

Conrad Fisher (The Summer I Turned Pretty);

Sky of Eraklyon (Fate: The Winx Saga);

Marcus Baker (Ginny and Georgia);

Nikki Sixx (Motley Crue/The Dirt);

Tommy Lee (Motley Crue/The Dirt);

Edward Cullen (Twilight);

Maxon Schreave (The Selection);

Troy Bolton (High School Musical);

Paul Stanley (KISS);

Nate Archibald (Gossip Girl);

Slash (Guns N Roses);

Ricky Bowen (HSMTMTS);

Cedric Diggory (Harry Potter);

80s Rockstars (You can specify which one in your request);

Jeremiah Fisher (The Summer I Turned Pretty) (ONLY BY REQUEST).

⋆ How to Request ⋆

In order to request from a prompt list, you need to specify the sentence number;

You can choose up to three sentences from this list;

Remember to include the character’s full name/fandom for clarification!

You can also request another sentence that is not in this list and headcanons!

• Optional: You can add ‘angst’, ‘fluff’, etc… since some can work different ways.

Exemple: Conrad Fisher, prompt 7, fluff

⋆ Rules for Request ⋆

Send requests any time, i just dont guarantee that i’ll be writing it as soon as it arrives

Send the request on the ask box;

Don’t send vague requests, be specific. I like to work with a lot of details, it makes the story more realistic;

I have the ability to deny and delete any requests I don't want to write;

When I post your request, I will tag you.

✔  I write   ✔

Reader insert (character x reader); Fluff, angst, crossovers, songfics, AUs; Some sensitive subjects (depression, anxiety…); Male x male, female x female or any sort of pairing. love is love, you know; Any disabilities, body types, etc. when specified.

❌  I don’t write ❌  

Smut, cheating, polyship; Anything that goes against representation; Romantic stuff with adult/teen characters;   Character x character* and other people’s OCs; NSFW themes; RPF (real people fiction); Any form of incest.

If you have any questions, DM me, I would be happy to talk to you!

#one shot #imagines #x reader #conrad fisher #maxon schreave #sky of erakylon #edward cullen #nikki sixx #tommy lee #axl rose #slash #paul stanley #kiss #fluffy #angst #writer #80s rock #ricky bowen #troy bolton #jeremiah fisher #nate archibald #requests are open

[blues-valentine]

Long Post: HSMTMTS S1 re-watch: It’s crazy to think Rina changed the game for the writers on 105 because when you watch 101-104 it really makes you wonder if some directing choices are intentional or just came out, particularly from the actors acting choices and the rest just totally solidifies Rina's whole arc. For example:

Gina’s first entrance on the show is when Kourt mentions Ricky to Nini. She is at the back on her locker when Ricky enters the scene to talk to Nini. That’s an intentional framing. On 101, before reading the cast list, he is already looking at her from across the room. On 102, he looks breathless at Gina’s dance during rehearsals and there’s a moment he keeps looking at her even after she walks away. Same episode, their first talk at the stake park does feel like the tension and lingering gazes are intentional. Like you are meant to feel the tension. And you can hear Breaking Free playing from Gina's headphones.

On 105 it does feel odd how mad Ricky was about Gina going with EJ to the homecoming dance because wouldn’t that be good? That EJ isn’t on Nini’s orbit anymore? Even Gina questions him over why is he making her dating life his business and he didn’t know why. He definitely had a crush on Gina then. He had one conversation with her (skate park) and felt like they had a connection ("l thought we sort of got each other"). If you think about it, he internalized Troy and Gabriella's outsiders narrative onto them, which it’s pretty telling.

The whole confessional "Ricky intrigues me and I don’t get intrigued" and "Does she intimidates you? Can’t say she does" tells you they were going that road, at least Ricky having a crush on Gina early on and Josh was told to act this way around her, but it was ultimately the 105 car scene that changed the plans in terms of where the romance was going, not longer being a plot device but a slow burn. And mostly, Ricky stayed in the show for Gina. This is something non-Rina's never seem to put any importance into. Ricky joined the club for Nini but ultimately stayed because Gina's encouragement made him see his own worth (and that defining moment was on 102).

To me, next episodes were key and it throws away the argument that Ricky didn't have a crush on Gina or wasn't pursuing her romantically. Gina dropped her "plans" and Ricky stopped his active pursue of Nini right after homecoming. Each of them forgot what their initial motivation was. This is why the "second choice" argument falls void. Ricky could’ve continued his pursue of Nini especially because at this point he knows she’s not longer in a relationship with EJ but he wasn’t focused on her anymore and those episodes point that out. On 106, Big Red straight up asks him if something happened with Gina on Friday, to what he responds he isn’t sure [if it was romantic] and you can see them gazing at each other across the room (with Nini unbothered in the middle of them. Again, intentional framing).

It baffles me people were trying to make Rinas feel delusional for thinking Ricky had a crush on Gina when he was obvious on his intentions. Before the song, in this scene from 106, Gina was the only one to support his idea and right off the bat she could feel his distress over the possibility of the show getting cancelled. She tried to joke about it but softly changes the subject because she could read him. It points to the emotional connection they already share. After he literally sings to her, Ricky flirts with her and I feel like since Gina didn’t have much experience she didn’t know how to read the whole thing. It’s funny because after Ricky tells her she’s good at everything and says "I can’t forget about anything that happened at homecoming" you can see in his face that he is waiting for a reaction from her — one she doesn’t give him. The scene is pretty layered.

There’s this scene on 107 where Nini clearly flirts with him and he seems uncomfortable. Instead, he looks behind him to see if Gina is bothered by their interaction and goes to sit by her side afterwards. Does that seem like a guy that is desperate to go back to his ex girlfriend now that he is seeing the signals? No. Mind you, there’s a time jump (about a month) between 106-107. Enough for Gina to know where Ricky’s house was and how long it takes her to walk there. They probably spent a lot of time together and this might also be the time Ricky got to have Gina’s mom phone number.

On 107, Gina and Ricky's emotional connection is made clear again by them talking about change and Gina reading Ricky like a book. They both share a strong understanding of each other that gets later confirmed by them on season 2. They arrived at the party and Nini straight up notices their closeness and considers them a "we" and Ricky at this point is not trying to get back to Nini. He interacts with Gina in a way that feels like he is introducing a soon to be lover. He isn’t even trying to make Nini jealous. He isn’t even close to her at the party because his focus is on Gina. After that phone call with Gina and her mom, he can tell she is distressed so he walks off straight to the kitchen to gather her stuff so they can leave, together. Gina shuts him down and tells him not to call her anymore and the first thing he does is grab his stuff and leave the party. Nini tries to stop him but doesn’t get the reaction she expects. And important to notice how he includes Gina in all of the things that are making him distressed.

Gina tells Ricky not to text her anymore and that’s because she thinks there isn’t any point in them continuing whatever their relationship was since she’s leaving (not in those words, but the subtext was there) and he still sends her multiple texts that get unanswered. It again baffles me that some claim Ricky didn’t care about Gina leaving when he was distressed and was trying to be in contact with her. He even firmly claims Gina will be back and when Nini asks him if she texted him, he goes and anxiously asks her if Gina texted her. Nini makes the first move in telling Ricky to practice with her after rehearsals and funny enough, the almost kiss happens right after Gina texts Ricky she is leaving for good. It took Gina being removed from an episode and Ricky believing she was gone for Ricky and Nini to get closer after what was like more than one month.

Opening night makes it very clear that Gina and Ricky were pretty much left in the open. When Ricky waits for Gina backstage after she comes back he tells her "I wish…I don’t know what to say" and Gina tells him not to say anything. She also makes it clear she’s only back for one night only. Was he going to say "I wish I knew you were coming back?" Who knows. At this point Ricky had regressed back to who he was and his confessional during that scene tells you this. "Maybe I’m back to who I always was. I don’t know something is different". He is stating that there’s a before and after Gina for him. And notice how the Rina cue is playing during this scene — a cue that is a representation of Ricky’s feelings for Gina, not the other way.

You cannot say that if Ricky knew Gina was staying for real, he would’ve gotten back with Nini. There’s also a quote people don’t pay attention to and it’s when Gina asks him what happened since he dropped out of the show and he says "It’s a long story. I could ask you the same thing". It hints he isn’t okay with how things went down with her. Regardless, I’m glad he got back to Nini on season 1 because he needed to get through that process for growth.

Season 1 tells you the basics of their arc and why it took them so long to get together. It basically confirms that Nini represents the childhood Ricky is so afraid to let go of and Season 2 is actually really good at showcasing Ricky’s internal struggle with trying to suppress his feelings for Gina and pushing for something he knows has not future anymore. He wasn’t fighting for Nini but more like for things to stay stagnant because that’s his confront zone.

Ricky and Gina's dynamic on season 2 is brillantly acted by Josh and Sofia because is in the subtle moments and foreshadowing and if you as an audience are used to things being told to you — you would’ve never understood Ricky and Gina as a pairing. I might do one for season 2 when I finish the re-watch for S2.

#thoughts on my rewatch #my friendship (who’s watching for the first time ever) caught up on rina from the get go #hsmtmts #high school musical the musical the series #gina porter #ricky x gina #rina #ricky bowen #text post

[rosesradio]

fanfic ask game

i saw this ask game i wasn’t tagged in so let’s do it 🤠 & i’ll tag whoever wants to do it as well

1. how many works do you have on Ao3?

27 :-)

2. what's your total Ao3 word count?

466,409 (oh cool i’ll most likely hit 500k by the end of the year 💪)

3. what fandoms do you write for?

currently pjo & once in a blue moon hsmtmts, but i have written for like 10-12 different fandoms in my life

4. what are your top five fics by kudos?

ceaseless eve 🌙 (a leo, nico, & piper quest + valdangelo)

camp triple pine 🌲 (a lawrusso summer camp au with fwb 👀)

talk to me, deep in the night (& i’d tell you something i never thought i’d admit) 🏕️ (a surprisingly non-smutty first caswen fic in which ricky talks with ej about how he works too hard, written in s3 era)

Cobra Kai/Karate Kid one shots 🥋 (fluff, humor, angst, smut…what it says on the tin 🤠)

he’s only here for one thing, but (so am i) 🔥 (valdangelo college au smut + camboy nico 👀)

(because i can’t tell a lie, i did skip over one or two stranger things fics on this list. i have complex feelings about them & keeping them up due to the controversy, but also abandoning them or deleting them…i’m sentimental, and i procrastinate lol. i’m glad a higher volume of people enjoyed them by nature of it being a more popular fandom, but i also feel like the kudos aren’t as genuine or earned as they are for my longfics in less popular fandoms for that reason. at least To Me. i hope that makes sense 🧍)

5. do you respond to comments?

i try to reply to every comment around the first week of posting something (because by then it’s an “old work” and it’s “weird” to comment on it, but that’s another post 😐). i still haven’t replied to the last of the ceaseless eve comments & i feel terrible, the sentimentality of it all overwhelms me but know i appreciate it 😭 i wish there was like a code word though that people could comment that lets you know if they want you to respond or not, because it’s hard to know if people want an author response or if it’ll scare them off yk

6. Which of your fics has the angstiest ending?

i don’t do a lot of angst, but when i do, i do (meaning i lay it on too melodramatically thick lmao) but i thought i’d give a list of some of my angstiest/darkest fics 🤠

the moonlace & the sunflower 🌻 (in which grover dies protecting a demigod, so the empathy link causes percy to pass away as well)

games long lost 🌳 (in which luke must drink annabeth’s blood for kronos’s reformation, it covers the dark lukabeth of it all & there’s some death)

the smallest casualty ♟️ (in which it’s slowly revealed over the course of a luke & annabeth chess game that the gods lost the war, and percy & friends have been subjected to dark magic experiments to make them compliant to luke’s fantasy)

rewired 🤖 (okay. i usually try to be humble or self deprecating or whatever but this 1400 word fic is an actual fucking masterpiece to me idc. it just came out of me and makes me physically nauseous to this day. showing this to my hypothetical therapist etc etc. oh wait what’s it about lmao—the concept of daniel rewiring his brain & morals to fit into silver’s desires. ft that sick sick silverusso dynamic)

7. Which of your fics has the happiest ending?

i have a variety of fluffy fics, but i’d have to say my happiest most sugar coated ending is—

who said anybody would? (a ej/gina/ricky road trip fic that literally ends with an ot3 picnic scene 😭 it’s just too much 🫶)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

i’ve gotten unwarranted criticism (i like to ask for constructive crit comments at the end if it’s like a longfic) that’s been surprisingly rude…i won’t say which fic but someone got so mad at one of my chapters they left a lengthy mocking crit comment and then stopped reading 😭 but that’s their prerogative, i hope they found something they enjoyed afterwards. other than that, surprisingly considering some of the controversial dark fics i’ve written…no sign of flames, so thanks! 😅

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

i have four different smut fics (hopefully a fifth if i can ever finish it up)…i fear they’re repetitive but also not really, they cover different fandoms and explore different kinks. i’m not really sure what to say about them, hopefully people find them hot ! or whatever !

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

i’m not a fan of crossovers currently, but my longest fic i wrote when i was 15 (it’s 97k i’m beating it someday 😭) was a crossover between sanders sides, voltron, miraculous ladybug, and gravity falls (doesn’t that feel like a kick in the gut lmao—did i mention i was 15? 😅)

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that i know of 👁️👁️

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

not that i know of 👁️👁️

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

i tried, myself and another author had a shared Google doc & everything…but we both just didn’t commit. i don’t think i’d work well with another writer…i don’t mind bouncing ideas around with a beta reader/editor (like @heavens-vault 🤠) but ultimately i’d prefer to write on my own

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

it changes—it’s currently valdangelo, but the ones I’ve written the most over the years are: prinxiety (😐), lawrusso, caswen, and valdangelo. i’m excited to explore a bunch of other ships as i continue writing as well

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

oh gosh, i mean i hope i don’t have any like longfics in question…i hope i can finish + deliver on Ivory Rain, but i’m sure I’ll manage even if it takes a while. i haven’t really mentioned this a whole lot to “the public” but i have what i call a “scrap fic” i’m working on, with a bunch of like 800 word chapters i just kinda bounce around when i have time. the concept is really exciting but the execution still needs work, so i’m kinda seeing how that’s gonna play out, it might not be posted. i hope it will though !

16. What are your writing strengths?

i think i’m pretty good at characterization, good romantic moments with good buildup, and humor :-)

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

action scenes i hate you so much 😭 why do i insist on writing pjo fics when i can hardly write a fight scene

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

i should do it more, i hate that i don’t, especially considering nico being Italian and leo’s native language being Spanish. but I’ve used & been disappointed by Google translate too many times…perhaps I’ll find another way to translate to include that for more character accuracy

19. First fandom you wrote for?

actually i think percy jackson, i’ve come full circle. the first fic i posted was sanders sides, but i remember when i was probably nine or so i wrote with pencil and paper and stapled a book together with a hand drawn cover 😭 it was about a son of Apollo, a satyr, and a daughter of Demeter on a quest…so really, richard took some creative liberties from my hand written fanfic i think 👀

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

like the ships, it changes—I love all my fics, it’s hard to explain how there’s little fractures of me at different points in my life at any given time in my works. no amount of over-explaining could make anyone understand how i express myself through my character’s emotions and desires and fears and journeys.

at the moment, my favorite fic is CE. it just got completed, myself and others are excited for the sequel. i think all my pjo works in particular are pretty good, and of course i tend to shy away from my older works because my writing…probably wasn’t as good. but that just means I’ve improved, so that’s good.

that’s all the questions, but this was fun ! :-)

#fanfic #ask game #rose’s asks #(of sorts) #pjo #hsmtmts #valdangelo #eh im not gonna tag all tha fandom stuff we’ll be here all day

[freddieslater]

Scarepairs Rowboat: Madlyn | Maddox x Ashlyn Caswell (HSMTMTS)

"What are the chances."

Ashlyn's eyes widen at the familiar voice and whips around to stare in disbelief at Maddox. Having not seen her since summer, it's safe to say there's a little thrill of excitement. Her disbelief only grows further at the sight of her costume.

Grinning breathlessly, she eyes Maddox's black and white striped coat, black pants and top, and most of all, her white face paint with a subtle skeleton makeup look. For the first time in her life, she is speechless.

Good thing Maddox is great at filling silence.

"And here I thought I was being original with the Nightmare Before Christmas," she jokes, nodding to Ashlyn with an appreciative glance down at her costume as well. "It almost looks like we coordinated!"

It does that, Ashlyn thinks, flustered panic lodging in her throat. For one, Maddox looks really great in a suit. For another, they probably look like a couple right now, and she's not sure how to feel about that!

Letting out a burst of nervous laughter to buy herself time to think, she then shrugs ever so slightly and says, "What can I say? I've always dreamed of being Sally since I was a little girl. I always wanted to wait until I had someone to be my Jack, but... well, I figured Sally wouldn't let a lack of a boy stop her!"

She's rambling. She's aware of it, Maddox is aware of it if her ever-raising eyebrows are anything to go by. A furrow of concern forms between them, her head tilting.

"Wait, what happened to your boyfriend? Big Red?"

And there it is; the question she was hoping she wasn't going to ask.

"We... kind of broke up. But it's okay!" she hurries to assure her at the sight of her about to become sympathetic expression. "Really, we're good. We're still friends, but we realized that we were better off that way right now."

Maddox offers her a small smile all the same. "Oh, okay. Well, I'm glad you're happy. And" --sweeping a hand out of her pocket-- "you look amazing, by the way. It's like you were born to be Sally."

Cheeks warm from the compliment and from simply having Maddox's attention on her for so long, Ashlyn casts a smile at the ground under the pretence of admiring her patchwork dress. She does do a little bit of that as well, pulling it out ever so slightly.

"Thanks! I, uh, made the dress myself," she says, and looks back up to find Maddox's shock and awe. It's a good feeling. "Yeah, like I said. Big love for Sally since I was a kid. I didn't wanna just buy a cheap costume when I knew I could probably make it myself. With some help from Kourtney, of course."

Maddox chuckles and nods. "Of course. I wish I could say the same, but" --she shrugs again as she lightly pulls at the lapel of her striped suit jacket and grins sheepishly at her-- "I just went searching in a thrift store with Jet when we got invited to this party. I should thank EJ for the invitation, by the way. Have you seen him?"

Ashlyn stares at her. "EJ invited you?"

Maddox nods, tucking some loose hair behind her ear as she glances around with no real intention of finding EJ. "Yeah. Well," she rolls her eyes, smiling somewhat secretively, "Ricky texted Jet to tell him that EJ asked us to come. Personally, I think that Ricky just wanted to see Jet again, but I'm not supposed to say anything about that because it's a bit of a touchy subject for Jet right now. You know how it is with secret feelings."

Ashlyn's mouth has gone super dry. She curls her lips beneath her teeth and nods, simply responding with an, "Mhm."

On the inside, she's cursing EJ so hard. Of course he told Ricky to invite Maddox. She knew she should never have confided in him about her mild, not at all major, tiny little crush on her. He can't help himself, he has to play matchmaker.

Not that she wouldn't have done the same.

"Hey!" Gina, dressed up as Wednesday Addams, pauses on her way past them, eyeing them both with a massive grin on her face and a particularly not-subtle eyebrow raise at Ashlyn. "Jack and Sally! You two make a great couple!"

She doesn't stop long enough for Ashlyn to curse her, too. Well, she had to confide in her best friend. Gina is basically her sister, how could she not tell her the moment she realized she had a crush, even such a totally insignificant, soon-to-be-gone one?

Glancing at Maddox, she finds her smiling happily. Probably just because she appreciates the compliment on the effort she put into the costume. That's definitely why it made Ashlyn feel so good as well.

"I, uh... excuse me."

Ashlyn hurries off, turning on her heel and making her way up the stairs to her bedroom without looking back. It's really the guest bedroom of EJ's parent's house, but it's basically her room.

As soon as she closes her door behind her, relief hits her from the lack of noise, now all muffled by a whole floor.

She takes a deep breath, steadies and composes herself, and moves to sit on her bed. Good thing she only painted her top half blue and went with tights for her legs.

"Damn you, EJ," she mutters, then groans.

Why did she have to do this to herself? Why couldn't Corpse Bride have been her favourite movie instead? Or even just gone with Kourtney's idea of all of them dressing up as Bridgerton girls! There's no way Maddox would have walked in as the Colin to her Penelope. That coincidence would have been far too high.

There's a light knock on her door. Praying that it's EJ so that she can strangle him, she speaks without thinking and says, "Come in."

Maddox appears through a crack in the door. That sheepish smile has followed her all the way up the stairs. Fantastic.

"You okay?" she asks gently, taking a tentative step into the room. When Ashlyn doesn't tell her to leave, she takes it as a good sign and walks in further, leaving the door only slightly ajar behind her. "You took off pretty quick back there. Did I... Was it something I said?"

"Oh, god no! No, it's not you. I'm just..." Taking a deep breath, she puts on her best, most convincing smile and finds the right way to bend the truth. "I'm just a bit overwhelmed, I think. My head hurts. Honestly, I wasn't really up for the whole party thing. I kinda wanted to just stay up here and watch Halloween movies but EJ insisted."

"Well..." Maddox swings innocently, hands behind her back, biting her bottom lip, and god, why does she have to be that cute? "If you wanted, we could just do that. Stay up here, watch Halloween movies. Nightmare Before Christmas?"

At Ashlyn's widening eyes, Maddox mirrors her expression, losing her sliver of confidence.

"Only a suggestion, in case you wanted some company. It's no problem, you have a headache, of course you don't want to be around other people. I'll go."

"No!"

She must really hate herself. Why else inflict such torture such as being in close quarters alone with Maddox on herself? Still, she doesn't double back. Rather, she doubles down upon seeing Maddox's hopeful expression.

"No," she says, softer now. With a sigh, she smiles, and nods, trying not to appear too eager. "Stay. I'd... I'd really like that."

Maddox grins, her shoulders dropping. They get more comfortable on the bed together, both kicking off their shoes and taking care to avoid getting any makeup on the pillows as they curl up under Ashlyn's favourite fleece blanket, patterned with little pumpkins.

She's expecting Maddox to tease her for it, but instead, she strokes one of the little pumpkins with a look of genuine joy.

Biting her bottom lip, Ashlyn tears her gaze away from her and sets up the Nightmare Before Christmas, hoping it'll be a good enough distraction. If not, she's leaving to make hot chocolate.

#hsmtmts #madlyn #maddox hsmtmts #ashlyn caswell #maddox x ashlyn #ashlyn x maddox #high school musical: the musical: the series #10 days of scarepairs #rowing the rarepair rowboat #rarepair rowboat #I had SO MANY ideas for these two #woody x jessie/ bridgerton girls/ spider-woman x mj/ poison ivy x harley quinn/ joker x harley #but ultimately decided on jack and saly as they were my first idea and thought it fit really well #scarepair rowboat

[shelbbswrites]

Hi Shelby, as someone who has seen a lot of tv shows and is a lover of rom-coms, I wanted your take on chemistry between actors/characters. With shows like The Summer I Turned Pretty and HSMTMTS airing around the same time, the discourse around actors having and not having chemistry has naturally picked up. I wondered what your take on the whole chemistry discussion is. I always see people say that chemistry is subjective, or that preference and bias for a certain ship plays a role in whether people see chemistry or not.

For example, TSITP, people rave at the chemistry between the actors who play Conrad and Belly, while saying Jeremiah and Belly don't have any. Yet, a large portion of people who watch say they do have great chemistry.

Same goes for HSMTMTS, you see fans and articles from other tv reviewers rave about the chemistry between Josh and Sofia while playing Ricky and Gina. But, you also have a large portion who feel like they don't have any chemistry or that Mack and Gina had more chemistry in lesser scenes. I had read some articles from other reviewers before the season aired to the public that loved Portwell but admitted that the chemistry between Ricky and Gina was undeniable. Other neutral ones said that the chemistry between the two was organic.

I know over the years creators and writers have come out and admitted that certain actors chemistry changed the plans for the their show (ex. Dawson's Creek with Joey and Pacey), causing them to go in a completely new direction.

Do you think all of this is just a simple answer as we're humans who have different opinions, with chemistry between actors being subjective, or do ship preference and bias come into play? Do you struggle with this being a tv reviewer, trying not to be biased based on your own personal preferences?

PS - I have read your articles over the seasons of HSMTMS and know you liked Ricky and Nini as well as Gina and EJ. So, because I know for sure that you watch the show, I also wondered what your thoughts were on Ricky and Gina's chemistry this season and overall. Did you feel like they had a lot of chemistry? Some? Not as much as others?

I appreciate if you do answer as I tend to ramble once I start writing, sorry about that lol

Sorry it's taken me a bit to answer this ask. I've been watching football all weekend, so I've been pretty absent from social media — unless I was posting about football.

But no apologies are necessary for the long ask. I appreciate your passion and the time it took to write this out. I'll answer it by each paragraph, so I don't miss anything.

Chemistry is interesting because it is often objective, but we often can't help but be subjective. Sometimes, if you prefer one relationship over another, you may see more chemistry between those actors than the ones that make up the other pairing. However, for the most part, I see chemistry as objective. People either have it or they don't — and with rom-coms that can make or break it all.

For instance, Your Place or Mine. I don't think Ashton Kutcher and Reese Witherspoon have all that much romantic chemistry, but I think Reese Witherspoon and Luke Wilson DO in Legally Blonde.

As for The Summer I Turned Pretty, I think all three actors are great. Genuinely. They all have chemistry. But a different kind of chemistry because every dynamic is built on different characters. At this point in Season 2, Belly and Conrad have a different chemistry than in Season 1. That fire still crackles between them, but Conrad is trying to fan the flame to keep it burning, but Belly is moving on because she doesn't know how Conrad feels.

Whereas with Jeremiah, he's only starting to open himself up to Belly again. That hesitance to letting her back in and Belly starting to see Jere differently than in Season 1 informs the actors' chemistry.

But if someone is so adamant about Belly/Conrad or Belly/Jeremiah being superior that they don't even entertain the idea of the other relationship or try to understand where the characters are coming from, then there may be some resistance to seeing the chemistry between the actors.

For HSMTMTS, I think the same remains true — mostly.

Joshua Bassett and Sofia Wylie DO have chemistry. That's part of what made Ricky and Gina's connection jump off the screen all the way back in 2019 in Season 1. Personally, I don't think Mack and Gina had romantic chemistry. They could've, but the show shut that down pretty quickly when Gina met Mack and he was quite rude. From then, they became good friends and that's all I got from them.

Bringing Portwell into it, Sofia Wylie and Matt Cornett also have great chemistry. But their chemistry is different than Wylie and Bassett's. And that's okay! That's what I like! That's what makes the dynamics different and more exciting to watch!

I, too, have read and listened to writers discuss how actors' chemistry can change plans and inform story, and I think that's just smart. It's smart to write towards an actor's strengths when you can.

So, yes, I do think everyone will always have different opinions about chemistry because there is such a passion and loyalty to romantic relationships. And sometimes that dedication makes it hard to see beyond it and look at the bigger picture.

As a critic and an aspiring TV writer, I try to be as subjective as possible. I have my preferences as a viewer, as anyone does. But when I'm reviewing a show or analyzing a theme in a feature, I try to be as subjective as possible and understand where all characters are coming from at all sides. I tried my best to do that in my HSMTMTS Season 4 review and my analysis of TSITP's love triangle after the first three episodes. I'll link those below in case you, or anyone else who may read this, wants to read them.

And thank you for reading my articles! That means A LOT.

#shelbbsanswers #romcoms #rom-coms #romantic comedy #romantic comedies #tsitp #the summer i turned pretty #bonrad #belly conklin #conrad fisher #jelly #jeremiah fisher #hsmtmts #rina #portwell #rini #gina porter #ej caswell #ricky bowen

[snixx]

top 10 tv shows?

ooooooooooooooof

jane the virgin

glee

how to get away with murder

hsmtmts

one day at a time

she ra (2018)

heartbreak high

COMPLETELY SUBJECTIVELY pretty little liars. that show sucks but it's my comfort show ok

23.5 degrees/carmilla/kim's convenience/nhie/communtiy idk i can't choose evil question SO MANY GOOD SHOWS. anything with sapphics i guess

#anon (affectionate)

[the-student-improvement]

› › › welcome to my blog !!!

| studygram _ pinterest _ carrd |

◜ info ◞

hiii!! welcome to the student improvement, a blog focused on studying, productivity, and lifestyle! enjoy various moodboards, articles, inspo posts, freebies, & follow me on my journey through a-levels to university!

◜ about me ◞

i’m isa, i use she/they pronouns, & i’m a 17 year old college student in london, england! i’m currently studying my first year of my a-level courses in english literature, philosophy, & film studies.

◜ my goals ◞

in no particular order !

- to get a consistent study routine that adequately balances all of my subjects

- drink wayyyy more water

- start relearning spanish and integrate it into my daily routine

- work on cultivating this blog, my studygram, and my student community server

- start tennis lessons

◜ hobbies ◞

— reading (physical books not much bc of college but i do read fanfics fairly regularly - lotttsss of choice bc i have so many interests, also dw i don’t read smut!)

— writing (as part of my essay-based subjects, my volunteering as a blog writer and editor for Simple Studies, & has always been a passion of mine)

— playing bass guitar (yuppp i’m a music lover 🗣️, i was in a small band in secondary school - aka high school for the americans - and attended the school’s guitar club regularly, where I found my love for bass. i’m not in a band currently but i’m interested in joining one, my college has music facilities but i can’t access them as i’m not a music student 😭)

◜ my favs ◞

ok guys we’re like scratching the surface of my manyyy interests and like fandom territory lets goooo

— book series: a series of unfortunate events by lemony snicket, percy jackson by rick riordan, delirium trilogy by lauren oliver, the hunger games by suzanne collins, grishaverse books by leigh bardugo

— tv shows: new girl, community, gossip girl, yellowjackets, the wilds, class of 07, teen wolf, paper girls, buffy the vampire slayer, hsmtmts, mysterious benedict society, a series of unfortunate events (ohhh the adaptation was amazing), ahs1989, the boys, grease rise of the pink ladies

— films: fantastic mr fox, emma (w anya taylor joy), hunger games catching fire, grease, bottoms, fear street 1978, hsm2, the grand budapest hotel, cabin in the woods, princess diaries, legally blonde, all the narnia films, heathers

there’s a wayyy more detailed list on my carrd!!

◜ likes ◞

— musicals

— tv shows

— spotify <ily crane wives3

◜ dislikes ◞

— my procrastination demons

— superrr busy schedules

— bugs

theres a more detailed list in my carrd!!

◜ my tags ◞

— #dailystudentimprovement

› › daily life pics, recaps, etc.

— #askstudentimprovement

› › for responding to asks

— #studystudentimprovement

› › advice & inspo for studying and productivity

— #lifestylestudentimprovement

› › lifestyle inspo, advice, tips, support, etc.

◜ studyblr shoutouts ◞

check these guys out!!

›› @riverlightlily

›› @wik-likes-studying-and-films

›› @isasarchives

›› @emmastudies

#studyblr #studyblr intro post #studyblr introduction #study motivation #study blog #a levels #college #college life #studyinspo #student #productivitytips #studyspo #pinterest #university #a level english #english literature #english lit student #english lit studyblr #philosophy #philosophy student #philosophy studyblr #girl blogger #productivity aesthetic #pinterest girl #film student #film studies #uk studyblr #langblr #langblr intro

[laylakeating]

i’m neutral on the ships, but i do feel like gina was more natural/herself (similar to the sneak peak with ricky) around EJ prior to dating him. Their scenes have felt a little forced lately but I do think it could just be her figuring out how to be a “girlfriend” since this is her first relationship. what do you think? i love gina with both ej and ricky so i’m just excited to see where the writers go with it all.

i mean, i AM a rina shipper so pw interactions have always felt forced to me. that is obviously a biased take, but i feel like you can absolutely see the difference between a rina scene like the sneak peek and literally any pw scene ever?? 

it could definitely just be gina figuring out how to be a girlfriend. again, as a rina, i’m inclined to disagree!! there’s just a sense of familiarity and comfort that rina have with each other that pw just don’t. other factors come into play, of course they do, but i think this is the underlying issue. 

i hope you’re enjoying this season omg. it’s definitely feeding both sides of the love triangle though which is very fun 

#ngl i love a good love triangle #and it's better this season bc gina is far more compelling than nini ever was #ALSO this maybe doesn't make too much sense and take it all with a grain of salt bc i am a rina !! i am biased !! #that doesn't make my takes invalid but it does make subjective #<3 #asked and answered #anonymous #hsmtmts

[yellowlaboratory]

share ten different favorite characters from ten different pieces of media in no particular order, then send this to 10 people (anon or not, your choice) 🎥🎬📺

hi reina fancy seeing you here!! in no particular order (and also just off the top of my head so everything but the first 3 are subject to change):

annabeth chase (percy jackson)

elizabeth bennet (pride and prejudice)

kiara carrera (outer banks)

toni shalifoe (the wilds)

gina porter (hsmtmts)

stiles stilinski (teen wolf)

inej ghafa (six of crows)

ruhn danaan (crescent city)

jude duarte (cruel prince)

michelle jones (spider-man)

#stiles and ruhn repping the men in this list aklsdjfhlkasjdfhlk #i guess that says something about my preferences in men #also the top 3 are my top 3 ever characters and don't read into that too much #(actually don't read into this list at all I think there's realities I'm not ready to figure out) #but ANYWAYS #annabeth lizzie and kie are my top three girlies and I don't rank them against each other #they are just collectively The Best #the characters I have trauma bonded with the most lmao #everyone else exists on the next tier and i obviously love them very very much but the top 3 girls are my girls you know #this also doesn't include the characters from the very trashiest of the books I read that I won't admit to but let me tell you this #will grayson III and darius acrux would be making appearances if i had less shame #emory scott woud also be up there #cassian could probably make a claim as well but #anyway

[tellmeastorytblr]

I really liked this episode of hsmtmts. Few things that I wanted to touch on:

Surprisingly, i liked Nini’s scenes this episode. I do think that the most interesting parts of the show are when we follow the rest of the cast at camp, thus making her scenes feel a little out of place, but I didn’t mind this time. I loved the fact that the title of her new song was the same as the one her mothers and biological father wrote a while back. My favorite original song so far. Overall, it was a nice little storyline for her even tho i do wish that her finding out who her biological is had been made a bigger deal than it was.

Portwell were cute. I liked how supportive of each other they were. But like, you can see the cracks in their relationship. They were made especially obvious this episode. I mean the fact that when Ej brought Ricky’s arrival into their first conversation this episode, Gina tried to change the subject tell me that there are still unresolved feelings on her side, which is not good. Mind you, that’s just one example.

I’m wondering if something happened between Jet and Maddox that made her not like him. Maybe, i’m reading too much into things but she didn’t seem  too thrilled to see Jet crash auditions. Maybe she tried to be nice to him when he first arrived at camp and got rejected. I guess I’ll have to wait and see whether or nor this is all in my head.

I can’t wait to see how Ricky and Jet’s relationship gets developed. The way I see it, they’ll probably have a mentor-protegee  kind of relationship which will fit Ricky perfectly. I feel like their bond will also be a way of showing Ricky’s growth this season since he said himself, Jet reminds him a little bit of himself. Or at least, the old him.

Ricky and Gina. They were so cute. Ricky was such a dork. I’ve never seen him look this awkward before. Gina made him loose his cool and it was glorious. Cringe, but glorious.  I wish  they’d had more scenes this episode, but it’s okay. We still have 6 episodes to go and to be honest, i’m just glad that  they’re talking.

#hsmtmts #ricky x gina #rina

[homemade-ghosts]

I feel so bad that I wasn't investigating on how hsmtmts was trying to tell me. I shipped Rina in s1 when they were hanging out and getting closer and I was really rooting for them so hard and wanted them to be together so badly, then s1 finale happened and that shocked me to my core and I was heartbroken then there went s2 with few scenes that gave me hopes about them like VDay when she visited his apartment and then all of sudden they got angsty and stopped hanging out and weren't friends so again, my heart was broken. I wanted Gina to be happy as she is my fav so I was fine with Gina dating EJ because I wanted her to move on and be happy even for a while but I KNEW that EJ wasn't the first choice and that Gina still wasn't over Ricky. And I was happy when Rini broke up then Lily shit happened so I was like ugh, why this show kept throwing wedge between them? I thought Ricky would be showing interest in her after his broken up with Nini like fighting for Gina but nope, the show had to do Lily bs. So now Rina are together and I am just speechless that this is happening. The whole time I was heartbroken and rooting for them to be together but had no idea that the show was already planning with Rina from the very season one and that they are indeed endgame. If only, IF ONLY, I would come here and investigate all of your analysis, all of that would make a difference. Sorry for long post, lol.

Although my opinion is by no means gospel, I’m happy that I could help shed some light on a few of the show’s narrative choices with my ask responses — but please don’t feel bad! Even if you didn’t realize it at the time, maybe, now that Ricky & Gina are together, you can go back and pick up on some hints that you may have missed the first time around.

In regards to the whole “Lily” mess though, I will say that I think the intention behind her character was to create a sort of Walmart brand/bargain bin Gina, circa early s1. At one point in s2, she tells Ricky that her mom says, “if [she’s] not adding followers, [she’s] not adding value.” (Quoting that from memory because I don’t want to willingly subject myself to rewatching any of Lily’s scenes lol, so that might not be word-for-word). Just like how, in s1, Gina mentions that her mom tells her, “if you can’t be number one at something, it isn’t worth doing.” & then, just like how Gina opened up to Ricky about her family situation in s1, Lily tells Ricky about her dad getting remarried in s2. The most obvious comparision, though, is the fact that the both say, “get’cha head in the game” to Ricky, both on opening night, both right before he had to get into a harness for his next scene as the lead (in s1, he needed it for floating above the audience during “Get’cha Head in the Game” and, in s2, he needed it for the Beast’s transformation).

At the time, Ricky was respecting Gina’s boundaries, but giving her the space she needed meant that there was a kind of Gina-shaped hole in his life that made him reach for Lily, who, how ever unconsciously, reminded him of what Gina was like when they first met — a competitive, misunderstood “mean girl” with a complicated home life. He couldn’t spend time with Gina, so he looked for her in someone else. 

I think he thought that, if he took a chance on Lily, he could unlock another side to her, — sweeter, kinder, softer, vulnerable — that she just needed someone she felt comfortable enough with to let her guard down, like Gina did — but Lily isn’t Gina. Where Gina regretted manipulating Ricky and swore off all scheming with EJ after they connected on Homecoming night, Lily had no problem exploiting Ricky’s good nature if it meant she could steal that harness on Opening Night of BATB and sabotage their production. Where Ricky & Gina got each other on a level neither of them had ever experienced before, Ricky said himself that he couldn’t think of a single thing he & Lily had in common. 

Ricky sought out Lily because he wanted to recreate what he had with Gina, but, in the end, his connection with Gina couldn’t be replicated — it was their’s and their’s alone.

I wish the show had directly addressed that in some way in s3, it would’ve made Lily slightly less pointless of a character lol

#hsmtmts #rina #asks #anon

[blues-valentine]

Do you think HSMTMTS S4 will change its rating to PG-13 and targeted towards teenagers instead of pre teens??? they’ve been including more mature content lately on their platform around teen dramas. ex, prom pact & doogie kameāloha, md.

I don’t know, anon. I saw some people making speculations about this because of Dara’s live a few months ago saying the season was “PG 13 messy” or something like that. I believe the show is currently under TV PG rating so one rating lower than PG 13. They could change it.

The season has been filmed and done but I hope they did change its ranting for Season 4 since it would benefit the show. If anything Season 3 proved is that their audience is a lot older than they anticipated. Is definitely not pre-teens at all. And their most popular/viral episode was 305 which included a really good balance between mature and kid friendly. Overall, Season 3 step it up in terms of content, and humor. It felt a lot more mature. And the actors are older too and I feel would want to deliver more serious subjects. It would be really good for them to gather a new viewership, considering Season 3 did really well online.

I saw Prom Pact and was surprised by some of the lines. I haven’t seen Doogie yet but I’ve seen some clips from last season and again, was surprised by some of the scenes and how much to an older audience it seemed. Maybe, Disney+ is getting a bit more lenient with that.

Honestly, it depends on the writers and the platform if they upped the show for Season 4 but I think they realized they could do it based on their audience and it would benefit them.

#hsmtmts #high school musical the musical the series #hsmtmts season 4 #gina porter #ricky bowen #kourtney greene #carlos rodriguez #ashlyn caswell #maddox hsmtmts #jet hsmtmts #ricky x gina #rina #rina hsmtmts #asks #doogie kamealoha m.d. #prom pact