#the moral of this story is i like movies that are sad as fuck except for the few occassions when i don't
Note
top 5 movies!
this might be even harder than the flowers one because i blank so hard whenever anyone asks me about movies uhhhhhh
1. Moonlight
2. Princess Bride
3. Brokeback Mountain
4. Book of Life
5. Train to Busan
#typing out this list like...girl what IS this#the genre switches in this are fucking wild#the moral of this story is i like movies that are sad as fuck except for the few occassions when i don't#also shoutout to 10 things i hate about you that's one of the only romcom adjacent movies i enjoy#and it's a shakespeare adaptation who would have guessed it#though keren does have me very intrigued by when harry met sally#i just don't really watch movies alone#OH ALSO shoutout to it chapter 1 she's insane but i love her <3#FUCK AND ALSO CHILDREN OF MEN HELLOOOOOOOO CHILDREN OF MEN#mck#top 5 asks
4 notes
·
View notes
Text
el chico del apartamento 512
➔ Frankie Morales x gn!Reader - 1.6k
➔ There's a rumor going around your building about the resident of apartment 512, and you're eager to investigate.
➔ Rated PG-13 for allusions to sex but otherwise just some plain old fluff and fun. post movie canon wife and kid erasure sorry, takes place in colombia, both reader and frankie speak spanish and everything is translated.
➔ this is my entry for the Selena Drabble Challenge hosted by mi esposa @fhatbhabie <3 sorry i've been sitting on this forever hehe but i hope you enjoy
Frankie barely manages to pull himself out of the slump he’s in for the first year or so after the absolute disaster in the Andes.
He misses his family, misses his friends, misses his crew–his brothers. He tries to convince himself that it’s for the best, that it’s only a matter of time before those assholes who were in cahoots with Lorea come after him–that the people he loves will be safer and happier if he’s not around them when it happens. And most of the time he can block all that sadness and pain out by throwing his whole mind and body into the earnest construction job he picks up in this new town within this new country. But it catches up to him late at night in dreams and quiet whispers of intrusive thoughts; that he’s a coward for abandoning the ones that needed him most, that he could’ve done more to make that damned mission less of a disaster. That he could’ve come out of it rich and happy if he wasn’t such a fuck-up.
He wakes up screaming in the middle of the night, an ache so deep in his chest that it feels like he’s been shot. He clutches at his sternum and tries to catch his breath but he can’t. His body wracks with sobs and he knows he’ll never be okay again.
But somehow, he ends up okay anyway. Somehow, he falls back to sleep just to repeat the cycle the next day.
There’s a rumor going around amongst your neighbors that apartment 512 is haunted.
People hear things–weird things. Screaming, crying, banging–and always at the dead of night. And everyone swears up and down that they’ve never seen the guy who supposedly lives there. The people who say they have seen him get more dramatic with their descriptions every time–toweringly tall, shoulders that could stand up to a wrecking ball, hauntingly sad eyes and gaunt face. It’s like he’s a thing of legend–a story they tell their kids to make sure they behave. “Don’t run in the halls or the guy from apartment 512 will get you.”
You figure he’s probably just some guy who works long hours and likes to watch horror movies to unwind or something–not a monster or a ghost, just misunderstood. You haven’t seen the guy yourself, but you kinda like him anyway. The building’s certainly been a lot quieter since he moved in… well, everywhere except his own apartment, at least.
You find yourself keeping a more vigilant eye out, alert to any face in the building that doesn’t look familiar. It seems kinda silly to want to see someone you don’t know, but you’re a little nosy and a little more than curious. If there’s some truth to the rumors that have been going around by the people who claim to have seen him, you want to find out for yourself.
It’s a completely ordinary night when you notice an unfamiliar face in the mailroom, and you have to do a double take. This stranger is handsome–tall and dark with shaggy brown hair and an even shaggier patch of stubble across his jaw.
He’s just standing there, staring blankly at a row of mailboxes, looking so… foreboding. You approach slowly, cautiously; part of you thinks you should just walk away and let this man do whatever he’s doing. But there’s a large, louder part of you that approaches with curiosity. There’s just something about him that draws you in, that makes you put on your best smile and ask, “Señor? Necesitas ayuda?” (Do you need help, sir?)
He blinks slowly, heavily, and then dark brown eyes flicker towards you.
“Oh!” He clears his throat and it’s like he’s coming back from an out of body experience–the color returns to his face, his eyes lose that glassy sheen, and his posture loosens a bit. He looks friendly now, sheepish even. He wrings his big hands and shifts on his feet, as if he’s been caught at a vulnerable moment. “Lo siento, estaba en la nube.” (Sorry, I was spacing out.)
“Está bien,” you tell him with your most disarming smile. “Andas buscando algo?” (It’s okay. / Are you looking for something?)
“No, solo estoy recopilando mi correo,” he rumbles before flashing you the most charming smile you’ve ever seen in your life. (No, I’m just getting my mail.)
He fishes through his pockets and finds a small silver key–and then he inserts it into the box labeled “512”.
“Tú vives en el apartamento 512?” There’s a strange air of reverence in your voice despite trying to hide it. This is the guy everyone’s been talking about, and he doesn’t seem nearly as monstrous as everyone tried to make him sound. (You live in apartment 512?)
“Uhhh… sí?” He chuckles and looks over to you, and you can see the way his brow furrows at the look of shocked surprise on your face.
You realize you’re actually gaping open-mouthed at the poor guy, and you snap your mouth closed as soon as you see the little crease between his brows deepen. Not soon enough for it to go unnoticed, though–the corner of his mouth flickers up in a pseudo-smirk, and god he’s handsome.
“No hemos tenido la oportunidad de conocernos aún.” You look up at him and give your best, winning smile as you give him your name. There’s a strange, fluttery feeling in your stomach as his dark eyes meet yours–have you mentioned how handsome he is? (We haven’t had the chance to meet yet.)
“Mucho gusto,” he says with a smile. “Soy Frankie. Supongo que vives en el edificio también?” (Nice to meet you. / I’m Frankie. I’m guessing you live in the building too?)
“Oh, sí,” you say with a slight laugh. “No soy ningún tipo de acosador, vivo en el apartamento 526.” (Oh, yes. / I promise I’m not some kind of creep, I live in apartment 526.)
And then you catch his eyes dragging along your form, not even the least bit subtle, and you try your best to be nonchalant about the way you have to lean against the wall to avoid melting into a puddle on the mailroom floor; especially when you see those full lips of his curve into a smile, and you know he’s liking what he’s seeing.
“Nah, no creo que seas un acosador,” he hums–and there’s that damned smirk again. If you don’t get out of here you’re going to start drooling. (I don’t think you’re a creep.)
He grabs two letters from his mailbox, examines the envelopes, and then unceremoniously dumps them both into the trashcan in the corner with a mumbled, “Malditas estafas por correo.” (Damn junk mail.)
“Eso es lo único que recibo ahora también,” you tell him sympathetically. (That’s all I get anymore too.)
He brushes past you slightly as he moves to the door, and you get a whiff of distinctly woody cologne that makes your heart pick up a beat. You try to act normal and go to open your own mailbox, but he stops in the narrow doorway and leans against the jam to look at you.
“Te volveremos a ver aquí?” (Will I see you around again?)
You think the rumors about him were right, at least a little bit. He’s towering and imposing–he fills the entire doorway with ease. He’s firm and broad and sturdy and big. Maybe he would be intimidating to someone else, but all you can think about is climbing him like a tree.
“Sí. Puedes verme cuando tú quieras.” (You can see me whenever you want to.)
His eyes flicker indecisively for a moment, and then he draws his bottom lip between his teeth. “Qué tal viernes por la noche?” (What about Friday night?)
You try not to focus on how you want him to bite into you like that as you tell him, “Sí, eso sería perfecto.” (Yes, that would be perfect.)
“Perfecto. Te veré luego.” And then he flashes you that damned adorable boyish smile again before he retreats from the mailroom. You think he’s going to be trouble for you. (Perfect. I’ll see you then.)
The monthly building meeting is Saturday morning, and you’re glad to see Frankie’s decided to join in finally. Everyone throws curious looks his way as he walks through the room towards where you’re seated, but no one is curious or brave enough to ask who he is.
“Buenos días, querida,” he murmurs, discreetly ghosting a kiss against your cheek as he drops into the seat beside yours. There’s a hint of amusement in his eyes as they trail over your outfit: the same one you wore to dinner last night, the same one you picked up off his bedroom floor this morning and shoved on hastily to get to this meeting in time. (Good morning, dear.)
Before you get a chance to respond, your neighbor from across the hall plunks down in the seat on your other side.
“Escuchaste ese ruido anoche?” She asks, sounding more amused than annoyed. (Did you hear that noise last night?)
“Qué ruido?” You ask with a raised brow. (What noise?)
She smirks with satisfaction, like she knows something you don’t. And then she looks pointedly between you and Frankie. “Suena como si nuestro fantasma en el apartamento 512 hubiera conseguido un socio para él.” (It sounds like our ghost in apartment 512 got himself a partner.)
You nearly choke on your own tongue, but Frankie just chuckles raspily and wraps an arm around your shoulders. He learned all about the rumors from you last night over dinner, and he thinks they’re hilarious. Besides, they’ll die out soon enough anyway–he’s never slept quite as peacefully as he did last night in your arms–if he doesn’t feed them a little bit. And if feeding the rumors means keeping you moaning and groaning the way he did last night, he can’t say he minds it one bit.
➔ beta: @shakespeareanwannabe; dividers: @saradika-graphics
➔ Want to see more from me in the future? Follow @freelancearsonist-updates and turn on post notifications to be notified when I post new fics!
➔ Want to support me? Please reblog this fic! It helps boost it in the algorithm and gives it more circulation no matter what your follower count is :) any feedback or comment is always greatly appreciated!!
#frankie morales#frankie morales x reader#frankie morales fanfiction#frankie morales one shot#triple frontier#triple frontier fanfiction#pedro pascal#pedro pascal characters#cece writes
104 notes
·
View notes
Note
I watched Crimson Peak recently and saw another post here asking you about it, so since I'm new to this, I'm also going to do the same if thats ok.
I had almost no clue about what i was going to watch, except for the fact that Thomas (aka Tom Hiddleston) is in a relationship with his weird sister, so that didn't really come as a surprise. The way the movie escalated had so many contradictions, Edith's pureness versus the sickening situation that grew in Thomas' family. It bothered me a whole evening how I couldn't make out a satisfying explanation or message this movie wanted to express. I mean other than discovering the truth behind the mystery and empathising with Tom Hiddleston's character. Was that really it? A horror movie having fun with how much a human's boundaries can be stretched? I mean, I liked the movie, at least i thought it was horrifyingly beautiful before it started being violent. That kind of left me with a bitter feeling.
So my question is, could the actual plot twist of the movie be that the WHOLE movie from the moment Thomas appeared was just Edith's imagination? Edith wanted to write a ghost novel, but got rejected because of the lack of romance in it. The existence of the ghosts wasn't really explained in the movie and i know the house in England is supposed to be cursed, but the ghost Edith sees in her own house in the US didn't really make sense. In a love scene, Edith mentions how her characters talk to her or something, she says how personal writing is to her anyway. So could she have come up with everything? And what we're seeing is her imagination, the improved version of her turned down novel? Because for a horror movie there was quite a lot of complicated relationships going on. I don't know, does that idea sound alright? Btw i had expected Thomas wouldn't make it alive through the end, but his death scene was so shocking, i had to pause to process it, it was so sad what he was made to do and how he ended up punished for trying to do the good thing even under such conditions.
Glad you gave it a go!
Personally, I don't think it has a moral or message- not all stories do. It's sort of, to be meme-y about it, "Wouldn't This Be Fucked Up? with Guillermo Del Toro." I think there are a lot of interesting themes to consider, though, including:
Love as a constructive vs. destructive force (Thomas and Lucille- yes, both of them, her by action and him by willful inaction -did horrible things for love of each other. Thomas loves Edith, and both drags her nearly to her death AND ultimately saves her because of it. Edith and Alan love each other platonically, and save/fight for each other- even as loving Edith gets Alan serious injured. Carter loves Edith, but his decision to shelter her dooms him and almost her too. Etc.)
Generational trauma (the Sharpes became Like This because of their parents' abuse, but have now turned abusers themselves even as they try to make their lives better)
Not trusting appearances (on a pretty basic level- the ghosts look scary but are mostly helpful; Edith looks sweet and delicate but will not hesitate to Shovel A Bitch if necessary)
Changing roles of women and feminine ideals at the turn of the 20th century. this I really want to write an essay about, so I'll leave it at that
Conventions of Gothic storytelling
Why Are We So Inclined To Forgive Thomas More Readily Than Lucille When, All Things Considered, He's Really Not That Much Better? (Sure, he saved Edith and Alan, but he's never bestirred himself for the other innocents they've slaughtered. And why did he bring a woman he at least liked into all this, anyway? Not to mention making and serving the first pot of poisoned tea Edith drank.)
(seriously if you get into the character bios Del Toro wrote for the actors during filming and later posted on his Twitter, Thomas' Certified Rancidness shines even more. He gave no kind of damn about his first three wives' deaths, found and lured Enola himself with no input from Lucille, and was overjoyed when he got Lucille pregnant. I love the man but he is a poor little meow meow in every sense)
Is The Fate Of Each Sharpe's Ghost ~Divine Justice~ Or Simply Their Own Willingness/Inability To Move On? Which Would Be More Emotionally Affecting?
[infomercial voice] and so much more!!!
That being said, I've considered the same theory you had! At the very least, it would make an interesting AU
(also the ghost in Edith’s house was her mother; I’m pretty sure she explicitly said that. as for why the ghosts exist...it’s a ghost movie? not really sure what else to tell you there.)
#ask#crimson peak#long post#my-name-is-jonas#also Lucille needs a hug and I love her so. there's that.#She's Horrible But ALso Sad Your Honor#just like Thomas
47 notes
·
View notes
Photo
Movies I watched (and books I read) this Week #101
First watch: Věra Chytilová’s seminal New Czech Wave Comedy Daisies, done during mid-60′s short window of permissiveness. An irreverent, Richard Lester surrealist romp of two carefree young women who don’t abide by any rules, except their own whims. Senseless mayhem, nihilist slapstick and constant eating, ending with a Mad Hatter Feast of pie fights and destruction. The Soviet Czech government banned the film because it promoted ‘Food waste”. 5/10.
🍿
Fellini's Casanova, another of his 1970′s bloated, over-the-top, exaggerated Baroque classics. The story of the always horny, lecherous cocksman, whose life avocation was to fuck anything female, be it young, old, hunchbacks, ugly, fat, thin, even mechanical dolls. Traveling all over Europe with his sexually-stimulated mechanical bird and ridiculous girdle in pursuit of female benefactors, but who longed to be considered a serious intellectual, and not just a famous womanizer. The infamous Chesty Morgan was cast in the film, but her scenes were deleted from the final cut. 2nd re-watch after 40 years. (Photo Above). 3/10.
🍿
A blind viewing of an erotic Japanese New Wave film I never heard of, This Transient Life, part of the unique director Akio Jissoji’s ‘Buddhist Trilogy’. Jissoji apparently was known for his distinctive visual style which he used in horror films, children television and Sadomasochistic adult movies.
This beautiful but controversial 1970 story deals with Buddhist thought, family roles, religious art, obsession - and incest. It tells of an amoral young nihilist who fathers a child with his sister, even as he flirts with moral and philosophical values. Gorgeous black & white photography, constant camera movement - and social transgressiveness. It also touches on impotence, voyeurism, threesomes, suicide and murder. It ends with a climatic philosophical “duel” between a Buddhist monk and the ‘hero’, and a surrealistic dream scene involving a giant stone carp.
What a complex, strange experience - The surprising find of the week!
🍿
2 different foreign TV series:
🍿 The gift is a supernatural/fantasy Turkish TV series from 2019. I was under the influence when I saw the trailer for it (it felt longer), and also later when I watched the first episode. So I thought that this was one of the most visually-stunning productions I’ve seen in a long time, with superb stagecraft, surprising imagination, sophistication and modern uniqueness (quotes from my notes), original like ‘Close encounters of the third kind’. But as I watched the rest of season One, I realized that it was just an ordinary TV mystery of the Netflix kind. With lovely actress Beren Saat.
Kids, don’t do drugs. 2/10
🍿 Marseille, a French TV series about power, corruption and revenge in a mayoral succession struggle. Starring Gérard Depardieu (”The second highest grossing actor in the history of French Cinema behind Louis de Funès”, but also alleged-rapist).
I was attracted to it because of the mysterious Egyptian ear worm cover Ya Sidi, to which I listened dozens of times in this past week. However, of the series itself, I only watched the first episode.
🍿
See how they run, another Agatha Christie adjacent murder mystery, a pleasant new comedy starring the always-lovely Saoirse Ronan (as well as Harris Dickinson who I saw just last week in ‘Triangle of sadness’). A meta-classic British whodunnit playing around the 100th performance of ‘The Mousetrap’ in 1953. 7/10
🍿
My 3rd and 4th films by Ira Sachs (both with Greg Kinnear):
🍿 I was compelled to re-visit his low-key Frankie, the story of famous actress Isabelle Huppert who invited her family to a last Portuguese vacation, before she succumbs to cancer. It was my ‘Best film of the week’ about 5 months ago, but I now read it received mixed reviews upon its 2019 premiere. I can somehow see why: It’s a slow and melancholic art film, and the dynamics between the diverse characters are not very deeply explored. Still, the Sintra locations are magnificent and the final scene at the mountain top is transcendent.
🍿 Little Men is a quiet, humane drama about friendship of two 13-year-old boys in Brooklyn. It is now my favorite of his films. The boy who played the role of Tony, 14-year-old Michael Barbieri, was tremendous.
🍿
The new She said retells how the two female New York Times investigating reporters exposed Harvey Weinstein’s decade-long sexual abuse, thus launching the #metoo movement around the world. I wanted to like it very much, but like most ‘Based on a recent true story’ it started badly and only slightly improved. I hate the trumps, the Weinsteins and the Epsteins of the world with a passion, and I liked the fact that this was a feminist film done with mostly women at the helm, but ‘All the President’s Men’ it was not. Even though it was clearly an attempt to frame it as such.
🍿
Orson Welles X 2:
🍿 First watch: The stranger, Welles third feature film (after ‘Citizen Kane’ and ‘The Magnificent Ambersons’). He directed this Noir thriller to prove that he could make commercially viable films, and it did become his biggest box office success. It's a story about a Nazi refugee who hides in a small Connecticut town, and it was the first commercial film to use documentary footage from the Nazi concentration camps. Disappointingly mediocre. 3/10.
🍿“... How do you do, ladies and gentlemen? This is Orson Welles. I am speaking for the Mercury Theatre, and what follows is supposed to advertise our first motion picture..”
The Citizen Kane trailer, a four-minute, self-contained, "making of" promotional featurette, released in 1940 to promote his first film. Unlike other standard theatrical trailers of the era, it did not feature any footage of the actual film itself, but was a wholly original pseudo-documentary piece. It is considered to be a standalone short film, rather than a conventional "trailer".
🍿
Sr., a loving documentary by Robert Downey Jr. about his father, underground filmmaker, Robert Downey Sr. Filmed in the last 3 years of his life, so more than a family portrait and meditation about life, death and art, it’s also a tribute to saying goodbye. 5/10.
🍿
A short: A lock of Walt Whitman’s hair, Jack Kerouac’s boots, and Virginia Woolf’s cane are just a few of the items of literary paraphernalia available at The New York Public Library’s Collection of Weird Objects.
🍿
Central Park, my first book by French best-seller author Guillaume Musso, a thriller about a French policewoman who wakes up in NYC from a coma, handcuffed to a jazz musician she never met with the whole world after them. Poorly-written and empty-calories, it’s obvious that it was written to be optioned as a movie. I picked it up at a ‘Free Library’ stall at the University Train Station in Tel-Aviv, and read it in a quick tortured go on the plane back. 1/10.
🍿
(My complete movie list is here)
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
☆ ALICIA’S MONTHLY MEDIA MENTIONS: NOVEMBER `22
it's mid-December. school is eating me alive. but here are my media faves of November.
Visual:
Howl's Moving Castle (2004) dir. Hayao Miyazaki - I was never a Ghibli kid growing up, and I think part of the reason why is that I was not exposed to it when I was younger. But holy shit was I missing out. I loved the story, the animation was gorgeous. It has further cemented this desire to pursue a career in filmmaking.
Class Action Park (2020) dir. Seth Porges & Chris Charles Scott - So, this is a documentary about Action Park, a New Jersey water park from the 70s and the crazy fucking way it operated. I'd recommend watching it, just because it's absolutely wild seeing the different attractions they had and just how dangerous they were. But just a heads up that it swings between nostalgic past employers/customers to families who have been victimized by the owner who prioritizes capital gain over human life.
Extracurricular (2020) dir. Kim Jinmin - I don't watch too many k-dramas, because I feel like most of them have an unnecessary romance going on that I just don't want to see lol. This is no exception, but the plot is interesting. It's about a couple of high schoolers and how they get involved in a prostitution ring. It gets you asking some moral questions; it's one of those dramas you'd like to debate with someone over. Justice for Seo Minhee.
She Loves Me (film) dir. David Horn, Scott Ellis (staging) - For a school assignment, I'm making a theatre poster for the play Parfumerie, a Hungarian play written by Miklós László, set in a 1930s perfume shop, and watching She Loves Me was part of my research of the play. It's a sweet, romantic story between two coworkers who have unknowingly been exchanging letters with each other. For the trope fanatics, it's an enemies-to-lovers story. I wouldn't say the songs are quite memorable compared to other musicals I've watched, but it would be something fun to see as the holidays approach.
Fire of Love (2022) dir. Sara Dosa - This is a documentary about two French volcanologists, Maurice and Katia Krafft, and the exciting lives they led studying, filming, and photographing volcanoes. I watched this on a really cold day at the Hot Docs theatre in Toronto. I feel like I went in expecting a romantic movie about the pair, but it didn't quite feel that way. It focused more on their lives and the crazy expeditions they took to study volcanoes. If anyone has watched Guillermo Del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities, the final episode, The Murmuring dir. Jennifer Kent, feels similar.
Atlanta, S4 EP8: The Goof Who Sat by the Door (2022) - My awesome roommate got me into watching Atlanta. So within a month or so, I had binged all four seasons. If you're unfamiliar with the show, it can only really be described as afro-surrealism - it follows its main cast through their ventures in Atlanta and navigating the music industry, and has the occasional off-plot single episode. And it's created by Donald Glover - so you know it's good. This episode is one of those off-plot ones and it's a mockumentary of the career of Thomas Washington, the first black animator and CEO of Disney. I went in thinking this was real LMFAO. But if you go in with that mindset, it's such an impactful episode. Any exaggeration or irony flies right past you and you just see the story and how amazing it is.
Music: November 2022 Spotify Playlist
SMITHEREENS (2022) - Joji - Ugh. What can I say? It's so good. that good Joji sadness we all love to cry to. A few faves include Glimpse of Us, Die For You, YUKON (INTERLUDE), and 1AM FREESTYLE.
'The ReVe Festival 2022 - Birthday' - Red Velvet - I'm always excited for a Red Velvet comeback. I think the album is solid, but by far my favourite track is Celebrate. I listened to this album for the first time with my roommate, and it just so happens that both our birthdays are coming soon. (We're born three days apart!)
Books:
These are all books I'm in the midst of reading.
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones - I decided to read this solely because I couldn't get enough of the film and decided to read the book as well.
Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon - I'm still in the middle of it, but I'd recommend this to fellow artists! An insightful, useful guide to making your way in the art world.
0 notes
Text
July 3: Revenge of the Sith
I finished my prequel re-watch last night with Revenge of the Sith. I liked it pretty well... I think I enjoyed it more than Attack of the Clones. It was similarly too bloated with extraneous action sequences, but not as much so, and I think the overarching plot--Anakin’s turn to the dark side--was better constructed and more interesting than the overarching plot of Ep II: the Anakin and Padme romance. It was very dreary and humorless, except for the weirdly slapstick beginning with the elevator sequence, but I was expecting that.
I really loved the droids in this one, I have to say. All of the battle droids and the weird round things that unfurled and stood on their legs, and the long-nosed dudes who were dumb as posts. And I especially loved the design (and idea) of General Grievous. Very creepy.
Some other thoughts:
Palpatine’s dialogue isn’t subtle but his plan is; it’s actually quite smart, and he’s a good villain. He engineers the war, uses the fear of that war to corrupt the Republic until it can no longer be called a democracy, then paints anyone who mentions that possibility as a traitor; destroys them, and then cleans up all the loose ends. The use of the clones and Order 66 is very chilling a well, and he manipulates Anakin wonderfully.
I do like the Anakin story as it arcs over the three movies. All he’s ever wanted is stability, safety, and family, and the moral certitude that would underpin the rest and allow him to feel secure in it, and he’s never gotten any of it. Any hint of it is immediately snatched from him. And no one but Palpatine even seems to see his desires and needs. Pure power seems to be the only way to get any of it. The Jedi really fucked up with him. In addition to ripping him from his mother and keeping him from any kind of healthy marriage or romantic relationship, their own bloated complacency and wishy-washy morality keeps them from providing the stable base he needs from which to grow. You see hm in Menace, a small child with a lot of power, a lot of emotion, and absolutely no instruction on how to use that power, no guidance at all, impulsive and confused. And the Jedi take that kid and basically just set him loose on the world; all they do is help him grow and hone his power, but not how to harness it for a proper end. He wants to use it for good! He believes in compassion, which is sort of like loving everyone. But the Jedi are simultaneously invested in the moral gray (only the Sith deal in absolutes), and in compromise (putting Anakin on the council, denying him the rank of Master), and in their own secrecy, all he learns from them is more confusion and more instability.
When Mace Windu wanted to kill Palpatine, Anakin wanted to bring him to justice. He wanted to follow the Code he thought the Jedi had taught him. And he saw that the Code was provisional. In that scene, he learned that the Jedi do not have a moral core; they do not provide him with stability and certitude. Palpatine promises him simplicity as well as power: a dictatorship, where the right thing is always done and we know it’s right because one person decides; a world where you don’t need to rely on other people because you can rely on yourself and your own power; you can cheat death, you’ll never lose your family again.
Padme was pretty pathetic in this installment. All she got to do was be pregnant and sad. And apparently she’ll be kicked out of the Senate because the Republic doesn’t have pregnancy discrimination protection?? Okay lol. I’m also really unsure about that whole “died because she lost the will to live” thing. I believe that that could happen, but in the context of those scenes--with the addition of lines like “she’s healthy” and coming as it does at a moment where she seems to be useless to the plot--it sounds less like a fatal psychological injury and more like what it is: a fridging.
I don’t even think that this story point makes sense. Leia says in ROTJ that she remembers her mother. She says her mother died when she was young, but she has some images and other general memories of her: that she was beautiful, kind, but sad. There is no way that she got all that from the moment she was born, I don’t care how Force-sensitive she is. Also, the implication in that conversation is that she spent more time with Padme than Luke did: she has memories, and he doesn’t. Finally, she doesn’t say her mother died in childbirth; she said she died when Leia was YOUNG.
I think a more consistent and less annoying chain of events would be: Padme gives birth to both babies, but is told they need to be separated because the Emperor will be after them; she has to choose between her newborns, which is extremely traumatic; she chooses to keep Leia but will only part with Luke if he’s raised by Anakin’s family on Tatooine and keeps his name (also closing the plot hole of why anyone would “hide” Anakin’s son in his family home with his family name); to keep her and Leia safe, she goes with Bail to Alderaan and for a few years, she raises her child there, but she’s weak, she never really recovers; even in Episode III, other characters talk about how weak she is, so the audience understands what her death will be; over time, implied/off screen, she really does lose the will to live, missing Luke, hurt by Anakin, physically weakened by childbirth, and when Leia is 3-4, she dies and the Organas adopt Leia. I could also see Obi-wan et. al. lying to Padme about Anakin’s fate. She doesn’t know he’s going by the name Darth Vader; Obi-wan could tell her he died on Mustafar and not correct the record even when he finds out that’s not true, and over time this lie to Padme grows in his own mind, so that he increasingly separates dead Anakin from live Vader. So by Episode IV, he’s fully able to talk fondly about Anakin, his friend and apprentice, while viewing Vader as Anakin’s evil killer. This is obviously a huge part of Obi-wan’s (and Yoda’s) psychological and moral rationalization between the prequels and the original trilogy. It would just be interesting if the lie started as a way to protect an already fragile Padme from a truth she can’t face and they wish they didn’t have to.
This version does open up the plothole of why Anakin doesn’t immediately go after his wife if he knows she’s alive, but it closes more than it opens. He could believe her dead. He never clocked Leia as his daughter even though they were face to face, perhaps because he didn’t know a daughter had ever been born, so there is precedent for this kind of “Force sense” wishy-washiness.
In general, I have mixed feelings about Padme. She seems overall rather caught up in her political world, the hypotheticals of the situation rather than the reality on the ground. And her reactions to the reality she does see are lackluster--like when she learns there are slaves on Tatooine. She’s like: that’s bad... and then we never hear of it again. Overall, politics failed the Republic. She and the Jedi were part of that.
But she looks great in those outfits.
The Mustafar fight scene was too long. Way too long. For all that, it was oddly not memorable (as B said). I don’t entirely know why... Was it the length? Did it just mean too much, have too much weight on it? I don’t know.
But the ‘creation’ of Vader as a cyborg was chilling. It’s weird how even though the whole point of the movies was to show how Vader came from this little kid in Episode I, as soon as he was in the suit he seemed like a totally different person to me. It was even weird that he immediately asked for Padme even though he became this way specifically to save her.
Ironic. Also ironic: the way his story fulfilled a prophecy in a very Greek way. He chose the dark side and its power to save Padme, but that same decision--what he became and what he did--was what killed her. In trying to avoid his fate, he put his fate into motion.
Also ALSO ironic: that Palpatine told him that there was only one Jedi/Sith who had ever learned the power of overcoming death (implying it was whats-his-face, the possibly fake Sith who seemed to be Anakin’s father??) but it was Qui-gon who accomplished it. So if Anakin had stayed with the Jedi, he would have gotten exactly what he was looking for with Palpatine.
(And then he became a force ghost anyway, so whatever.)
So... at the end, Vader knows Padme is dead and knows there was supposed to be one baby but he doesn’t know if the baby is dead or alive, or that there were two. and the Jedi think Vader is dead. Because Obi-Wan doesn’t know how to finish a job!! That must have been a fun surprise finding out he’s not.
1 note
·
View note
Text
I feel like bing bong shouldn't have been in Inside Out, or at least his death could've been better executed.
The other day I saw a post, I don't remember the details, but I do remember that it was talking about emotional moments, and how killing a character off is a cheap way of doing it, etc. And how turning red did emotional scenes right because it was more cathartical. And in the tags, it mentioned inside out as like the "bad way" of doing sad scenes because of bing bong's death.
Like. Y'all. Are we forgetting about the memory dump scene? You know, the exact fucking moment in which Joy recognizes Sadness's worth after her whole life mistreating her?? Or the scene where Riley comes home and finally lets herself show vulnerability in front of her parents after them pressuring her to be happy all the time???
This is my exact reason as to why I lowkey hate the writers. His death was in the wrong place. They're literally paid professionals, and I, someone who has never even done as much as written a fanfic, knows this is shitty writing! And don't come at me with "better said than done!! Writing is hard!!! :) :)" these are professionals. They are supposed to know what they're doing.
In UnderTale's genocide route, the Sans fight was executed extremely well. You wanna know why? Because in hotland, you need to kill like, 40 monsters to proceed. After probably hours of understimulation from one hit KO's, players will really be thirsting for a good fight. And then you get to Mettaton Neo, except he also dies in a single hit. This is why the Sans fight was so meaningful for genocide players, and it also helped Sans becoming a Tumblr sexyman.
If Mettaton Neo got an actual fight, Sans's fight would not be as meaningful. It just wouldn't be. Compare this to the Memory Dump scene and Bing Bong's death.
So many people say "oh but Bing Bong's death symbolizes Riley letting go of her childhood!!!!!" The memory dump scene was the premise of the entire damned fucking movie! The moral of the entire story, with several scenes leading up to that exact moment, is more important than symbolizing a character getting over her childhood by killing someone whose death wasn't even implied to happen!!
The moment where Joy recognizes Sadness's worth, was the most important moment in the film. And it got overpowered by Bing bong.
If you have an important scene that symbolized the moral of your entire story, don't put an important scene right fucking next to it. Because this will happen.
0 notes
Note
Oh sorry I guess my question was a bit confusing! I meant kinda like how season 0 anime and manga Yami are kinda different, just like all others are different even if slightly! I just wanted to know your opinions on each since even I have favorites,sorry for my confusing words!
Season Zero Yami: absolute gremlin. Morally grey, chaotic good, scary. Is a short King but deadly. Love him. Best voice. (Literally gives me chills when he says “Yami no Game~”) 10/10.
Early Manga Yami: all of the above, except he lacks the sexy scary voice. But he makes up for it by being deadlier and actually walking away from his games with a kill count as opposed to psychological horror. Hide the knives, lighters and tasers because he is prone to murder. 10/10
Duelist manga and Millennium world Yami/Atem: I don’t know, I haven’t read this manga. All I know is he is darker than in the anime. But he insults Yugi’s goth fashion. So he goes to gay baby jail. 6/10
Early DM Anime Yami: way more reserved. Definitely not lacking in confidence, but is not as extreme and out there as his s0 counterpart. More geared towards justice. He’s ok. Great voice. 5/10
Late DM Anime Yami: yeah, I dunno. I haven’t watched this anime. I know he tries to murder Haga on top of a train in season four. I heard about that. And how much he calls Yugi “Aibou” and screams for him. And honestly that kind of devotion does it for me. And if that isn’t a progression in their relationship I dunno what is. Yugi def deserves someone who would murder Haga on a train for him. 7/10
Atem: Still haven’t watched this anime. Everything I know about Atem and the Ancient Egypt arc is just stuff I gleaned from reading fanfic, and being among other fans. His clothes are rad, and I love that we get to see him looking more Egyptian. (Wish they made him look even more Egyptian.) He’s a king, and his voice is still lovely. 8/10.
DSOD Atem: They white washed him. He doesn’t talk. He shows up for like 30 seconds to save Yugi and share a moment where they eye-fuck each other. And then he peace’s out. White and no sexy voice? He gets points for being a badass and leaving the afterlife to protect his husbondage unit but that’s it. 2/10
~000~
Season Zero Yugi: My absolute favorite. tiny, adorable, sweet, charming, huggable. A lovable little happy meal toy. Fights for his friends even if he takes a beating and rarely succeeds, but he never gives up. Would throw himself in front of a bullet for them. Also so tiny. Deserves his murder gremlin spirit protector. Also the most adorable voice. 12/10
Early Manga Yugi: all of the above, but no cute voice and he lacks the more intriguing and meaningful scenario of how he put together the puzzle and befriended Joey. Season Zero did their origin story better and more impactfully than the manga. Yugi is also a little more horny in this version which can be both endearing and off putting depending on the circumstances. 8/10
Duelist Manga and Millennium World Yugi: I have absolutely no idea, I haven’t read this manga. I couldn’t begin to form an opinion. He just gets a neutral 5/10
Early DM Anime Yugi: inconsistent height, but when he is portrayed as tiny he is lovingly tiny. An awkward bean trying to navigate weird situations. He’s a sweetheart, but his voice isn’t adorable anymore, and it’s kinda awkwardly scratchy. Still puts himself out there for his friends, but is lacking the context from season zero that makes his friendships so meaningful and important. 6/10
Late DM Anime Yugi: I haven’t watched this anime. I honestly don’t know much about late DM Yugi. Except that he breaks down and sobs when he beats Atem in the final episode and has to watch his soul mate depart for the afterlife. That’s strength dude. You’re strong even just for playing the duel, knowing what’s at stake. And then you win, on purpose. You gave up so much. Your voice is still awkward though. 7/10
DSOD Yugi: The most depressed sad boy bean. Just watching him in this movie makes my heart hurt, because you can tell he misses Atem so badly and he’s lost a lot of his vitality. There’s just something so empty about Yugi in DSOD, and most of the time it just feels like all his smiles are fake or half hearted. It makes the movie hard to rewatch, because Yugi is my favorite and it hurts to see him hurt. Voice isn’t as weird in this movie, thought still not my favorite voice for him. Also he is not a tiny bean anymore and now I am the sad. Boy needs to stay 5ft nothing or shorter. 4/10
I hope these answers were satisfactory.
35 notes
·
View notes
Text
Catfish & Sunshine
Frankie Morales x Fem!Reader Mini Series
Summary: Frankie is secretly in love with his best friend. Thanks in part to Benny’s shitty horror movie recommendation and stray ice cream, feelings come out unexpectedly during movie night.
Warnings: Language, SMUT, little angst, lots of fluff, poor writer understanding of US military benefits/retirement. WC 8,215.
A/N: I dreamed this up after rewatching Triple Frontier about a month ago (for the plot, of course) and let it sit for a while. Became inspired to finish it off this week and share it with you all-so please let me know your thoughts!
For over a decade, Saturday nights were, for Frankie Morales, usually spent with his best friends over drinks at their favourite bar. When deployed, the bar was instead smuggled whiskey that they shared under the stars, an attempt to imagine they were anywhere other than the current hellhole. As Special Ops soldiers, Frankie and his buddies had been through the worst of the worst together, until one by one they retired or were forced to retire, and then they were back to regular appearances at the local bar, for a while the five of them, then four.
Until Frankie met you.
Had someone come up to him during one of those nights years before and told Frankie that one day he’d be bringing you along to the bar to join him and the guys, he’d have laughed in their faces. But for a while, that was exactly what occurred, until you and Frankie grew so close that you usually ended up making different plans, like going mini-golfing, or lounging at his apartment and watching movies. Not that you didn’t love the guys, all whom you’d met except for Santi as he had been off the grid for just over a year when you and Frankie had met.
It was thanks to the elder Miller brother, Will, that he had even met you at all. Working at the VA office, Will had learned of one of the few retirement perks they had for putting their asses on the line for their country-physical therapy. And you came highly recommended, a star PT who had worked magic over his friends' ailments. Knowing Frankie suffered from shoulder and neck pains, Will handed him your card and encouraged him to book an appointment.
He hadn’t called straight away. He’d popped your card onto his fridge and every day he’d pass by it, consider calling, and then talk himself out of it. Until the pain became too much to bear, his latest menial job just a little too physical for him, causing him to consider using again just to dull the ache. But he’d walked by your card moments later and instead of making a terrible decision he had promised himself he’d never make again, he called your office. Made an appointment with your friendly receptionist, who thankfully had his name already because Will had put in a good word for Frankie and asked that they try and get him in straight away, whenever he finally did call.
Two days later Frankie was standing nervously in the treatment room, looking at a wall decorated with your various degrees and certificates. He was anxious not only because he worried he’d get his hopes up that this would help the pain only to be disappointed, but also because he had no idea what to expect. Years of service as a pilot had made Frankie into a man who planned, meticulously, leaving little in the way of surprises. But he’d reasoned that calling the office back and demanding they give him a minute-by-minute account of what the appointment would be like was probably going too far.
And then you had walked in and immediately his worries morphed into concern over the fact that he required a beard trim, that he looked like he’d just rolled out of bed and popped his usual cap on, probably appearing a little gruff. And fuck, he almost couldn’t breathe when you gave him the most dazzling, genuine smile like you were greeting an old friend. You were bright, a rare energy radiating off of you as though you absorbed it straight from the fucking sun, and you were beautiful. No wonder Will had winked at Frankie when he’d handed you the business card.
You were observant, introducing yourself and seemingly sensing his overall discomfort. Instead of launching straight to business, you gestured for him to sit and spent a good twenty minutes casually chatting, pulling information you needed from him while putting him at ease entirely. He learned then that Will had already sung Frankie’s praises, given you the heads up that he was a worrier and even told a few stories that showcased his talents as a pilot.
If Frankie didn’t know any better, he’d think his friend was trying to play matchmaker.
All thoughts of Will Miller, and pretty much every other thing on the planet, vanished the moment you laid your expert hands on to Frankie. You zeroed in on the worst source of pain and slowly worked away, and he could only agree with Will that you had magic hands. He could have died happily right then, as you chatted away and brought him the most relief he’d felt in years. You would pause occasionally to check in with his pain levels and make sure he was doing alright, always asking him to look at you to answer and searching his face as he spoke to ensure he was telling the truth.
The care you gave Frankie in just one appointment was enough to start him falling. And he kept going back, multiple appointments a week that not only had him walking taller, feeling lighter on his feet and reducing his migraines to seldom, but also allowing him to get to know you better. You were the kind of sweet-natured person that cried when you saw a sad commercial, laughed freely to the lamest of jokes, and seemed to wake up on the right side of the bed every day. You were sunshine, literal, tangible sunshine, and Frankie thought you might not even realize it.
Though Frankie had convinced himself early on that a woman as beautiful and kind as you could never be interested in a grouch like him, with his crows' feet and a closet full of demons. The longer he knew you little seeds of hope would sprout whenever he made you laugh so hard you had to stop the treatment just to hold your stomach as you giggled. Or when you’d share something with him innocent enough but, upon reflection, he would think it wasn’t something a normal patient-provider relationship would find exchanged.
But there was the age difference, a decade between you both that, if nothing else worked, would successfully extinguish his hope. He had wondered if perhaps you were just a decent people person, that the friendship he felt was there was entirely one-sided.
Until one day, a few months into coming to you for treatment, Frankie sat waiting for you to come in the room only for you to appear looking entirely unlike yourself. He booked his appointments always for the end of the day, a routine that promised he would get plenty of uninterrupted time with you and the conversation could flow without a time constraint. He had been so surprised that you weren’t grinning as you stepped into the room that he stood abruptly, filling with concern.
When he asked, softly, if you were alright, you didn’t brush him off like he might have expected. You instead looked up at Frankie, your lower lip trembling as your eyes filled with tears, and sobbed unexpectedly. That sound had torn a hole right into his chest and he had pulled you straight into his arms and hugged you close before asking you to tell him what he could do to help.
You ended up explaining that you had come in that morning to the news that a regular patient of yours, an elderly man you’d known the entire time you’d been working for the VA office, had passed away in his sleep. And you’d apologized to Frankie while sniffling and wiping at the tears, telling him you’d held it in all day but couldn’t do that when your friend asked you, and he had been baffled to realize you were referring to him. As your friend.
He had cut off your apology to hug you close again, smoothing your hair gently as he whispered calming words and sentiments to you in Spanish. And though you didn’t speak the language, you had since told Frankie it had done exactly what he’d hoped and made you feel all the better.
After his treatment that day, Frankie asked if he could take you for a drink to toast your friend's life. He waited for you to close up the office, and then you’d followed him in your car to drive over to his usual bar. And you both drank to the veteran who passed, then ended up ordering dinner and remaining at the bar until late, talking even more freely outside of the office. If Frankie didn’t already have it bad for you, that night sure sealed it for him.
After that, you and Frankie began texting regularly, sometimes even calling one another to share a funny story or talk about something in the news. He had joined you for your former clients funeral, his hand rubbing comforting circles into your back before he took you out for lunch, then you’d ended up at his place to watch a cheesy movie, ordering pizza when you both realized there was a sequel that, if it was as bad as the first, you absolutely needed to watch.
And just like that, Frankie saw his life altered completely when you became his best friend.
Currently, Frankie was seated comfortably on his couch, where he frowned at the TV playing a horror movie that you had insisted was supposed to be good, because Benny had recommended it. Considering the younger Miller brother could barely sit still half the time, that was supposedly good enough for you.
You were tucked into Frankie’s side, eyes fixed on the screen until a jump scare had you jerk, then twist your face to press into his chest, because you hated the gory bits.
“Fuck! How does this not scare you even a little, Frankie?” You whined, unknowingly causing Frankie to swell with pride when he heard the note of admiration in your voice. He had started to suspect that the reason movie nights were becoming exclusively scary movies was that you were determined to find one that actually frightened him.
So far, you’d had no luck. But Frankie didn’t mind, because though you were already a touchy person in general, you were especially clingy when you queued up the next horror flick as if you trusted him to keep you safe.
Frankie didn’t reply, his chest rumbling with silent laughter that made you teasingly poke his side. He jumped, because you knew exactly where to aim, then cleared his throat. The scene ended, and he began to extract himself from your grip. “My sweet tooth is calling, cariño. I’m going to get some ice cream.”
You let him go, your head popping up, a big grin on your face, “Can I have some too, please?” And he nodded, smiling at you before walking across the open concept apartment and into his kitchen.
He stretched his back before opening the freezer where he had some bars next to an off-limits pint of Ben and Jerry’s. You had put it there months ago, telling Frankie it was for days when you got together and one of you needed to cry over a bad date. You called it ‘emergency’ ice cream. Frankie considered it to be ‘fuck you’ ice cream, because every time he opened his damn freezer he saw that pint and ended up thinking about how neither of you had been on a date with anyone since becoming friends over a year before, then falling into the same circular argument with himself-that the friendship was too important for him to feel the way he did, that he was jumping to conclusions and maybe you had gone on a few good dates that you just didn’t tell him about, and he was out of his mind if he thought you would ever feel the same way.
“Here you go, Sunshine,” He plopped back down next to you and passed you your bar, watching as you beamed at him widely, the inevitable result of his use of the nickname he’d dubbed you with a long time ago.
He desperately hoped you never realized the amount of affection truly behind that nickname.
Because how could he even begin to explain that you were literally sunshine in his dark life?
“Thank you,” You pulled the wrapper off, glancing at the movie and frowning. “Uhg. Benny promised the one was good! I’m starting to think he only recommends movies if they have at least one pair of tits.” You took the first bite of your ice cream bar while Frankie nearly choked on his own.
Amused as he was whenever you joked about your shared friends, Frankie also loved it when you swore. You were a goofy, happy little thing most of the time and curse words just seemed so out of character for you, pulling laughter from Frankie any time you caught him by surprise. You spent your days around gruff veterans and never seemed to lose any light, no matter how many real horror stories you heard. So whenever you managed to sound so uncharacteristically blunt, he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Benny has always been a tits man,” Frankie agreed, and you giggled. He tried to refocus on the movie then, but it hadn’t captured his interest in the least. After a moment, you spoke again and he had to work on not choking.
“What are you, Francisco?”
Your tone was playful, light; Frankie’s head jerked in surprise to gaze down at you and you wiggled your brows, going for laughs. You seemed completely unaware of the roaring in his ears, the visceral reaction your words brought forth within him. You and Frankie had shared intimate tidbits like that before with one another, often during nights at the bar with the Miller brothers. After a few drinks and usually, because his friends knew exactly how he felt about you and tried to steer the conversations into dangerous waters and watch Frankie try to save himself.
Only, Frankie’s friendship with you during the last few months had become...deeper. After the operation Santiago had brought Will, Benny, Tom and him in on, your relationship had evolved. Because that nightmare had reminded Frankie just how dark shit could get in the blink of an eye, and he’d had to do things he thought he was done with when he retired from service. Worse, because they were just civilians using Santi’s connections and intel to rob a drug lord.
And you had no idea what he’d gone through, how hard he’d fought just to get home to you because he couldn’t-wouldn’t-tell you. Yet you still patched him up, physically and emotionally, when he’d come home three weeks later than he’d promised. You held him as he cried and never became angry with him, never questioned him for answers as to why he’d come home with one less friend and a whole lot of mysterious trauma.
After that, Frankie realized he was hopelessly, irrevocably in love with you.
So a simple, flirtatious little question? Yeah, it really managed to fuck Frankie up.
His friends had sensed the change as well, noticed how you held Frankie up when he felt like he couldn’t stand, how you comforted them all when they got home and cried along with them over Tom, over Santi not coming home even though you’d only met him once, briefly. You held strong for him at Tom’s funeral, which prompted the Miller brothers to tell Frankie in no uncertain terms that he simply could not let you slip through his fingers. If that fucking mission had taught them anything, it was that life was too short and you might as well live it to the fullest.
But the thing was, Frankie depended on you. Your friendship was the one real, good, pure thing in his life. And you gave it so willingly and unquestionably even after what he put you through that there was no fucking way he was risking it by telling you how he felt.
Christ, you even had a spot in his bathroom for your own toiletries, a favourite pillow on his bed for the nights you stayed, a fucking hook for your coat that he installed just a little lower than the other because you were so much smaller than Frankie.
And still, he wouldn’t look at what that might mean because he was afraid, and as much as you seemed to think nothing scared him, the truth was that a gory horror movie, or losing his friend, or even fucking live combat could never come close to the fear he felt when he pictured life without you.
You were Frankie’s Sunshine, and he never wanted to be alone in the dark again.
Aware he was still gazing down at you, Frankie found himself entirely at a loss for words. You didn’t seem to mind, simply waiting for him to respond while taking small bites of your treat. His cock twitched at the combination of your words, the innocent way you gazed at him, because Frankie hadn’t touched himself in quite some time and it didn’t take much to drive him up the wall.
His life with you had become remarkably domestic, routine. You often stayed multiple nights in a row at his place, preferring his company over being alone, and the shorter distance to your office. His spacious condo had one large four-piece bathroom, which meant there had been a few times where one of you was in the shower and the other came in, desperate to use the toilet before their bladder could burst. The shower had a thickly frosted glass enclosure, which provided plenty of visual privacy from both sides, the only indication that someone was in the shower was a very faint tint. This was never an issue until it was.
Exactly sixty-two days prior (not that Frankie was necessarily keeping count of passing time since his last orgasm), you had burst into the bathroom one afternoon unexpectedly. Returning early from your jog because you needed to pee, while Frankie stood in the shower. He listened to you tell him about a cute dog you’d seen outside his building. The thing was, Frankie had expected you to be gone longer, and you were in the middle of a three-day visit that had left him needy and horny because he hadn’t had time alone and yet you walked around in his fucking clothes, slept next to him in his bed, and he needed release.
He was grateful the tinted glass prevented you from having any idea what he was doing on the other side. And he had been close already when you came in, one hand fisting over his cock while the other pressed into the tile wall, and guilt sprang up in the back of his mind because he had been thinking of you as he touched himself. And you were just feet away, unaware and fuck if that didn’t lead him to the edge.
But it was when you had sat down to pee and he heard you give a little moan of relief that Frankie lost it, giving in to the most powerful-yet silent-orgasm he had had in fucking years. Rope after rope of cum, his legs violently shaking, and he’d wondered if he would pass out it felt so good. Then you’d flushed and continued speaking, washing your hands before telling him you were going to put on a pot of coffee. And the guilt Frankie felt was so immense that he vowed right there he wasn’t going to touch himself again. He cared for and respected you too much to reduce you to his graphic thoughts without your consent.
Sixty-two days later and you were testing his limits unknowingly.
“I, uh, I’m not sure,” He replied, keeping his eyes locked on yours. You frowned a little, kitten licking the ice cream absentmindedly. Frankie almost groaned, wondering if you were trying to kill him. “I guess, it depends on the person.” He was never, ever going to admit he was a you man, that your ass, your perfect tits, your pretty little mouth were everything he could dream and more.
He tried to shrug casually, as if indifferent.
“I guess it’s a funny question,” You said after a moment, laughing a little, “I mean, no one asks a straight woman if she’s an ass or cock girl!”
Frankie took a too-large bite of his treat, the cold painful and giving him instant brain freeze but it was just the distraction he needed because seeing your plump lips wrap around the word ‘cock’ might just kill him. He coughed attempting to laugh at your joke despite the brain freeze, and you leaned closer in concern.
“Sorry, are you-ah, shit!” A piece of your ice cream bar, which you’d moved to hold higher as you were checking on Frankie, fell off and landed on your chest, instantly staining the pale pink t-shirt. You hopped up with a noise of discontent, catching the fallen glob and hurrying into the kitchen to toss it in the sink. “Damn it!”
Frankie reached out and paused the movie, standing up and intending to follow you. He took two steps, adjusting his cap as he moved, and then looked up to where you stood at the sink, running your shirt under the faucet. Freezing, he took it the sight of you standing in his kitchen, your shirt removed to run under the water, leaving you wearing yoga pants and a simple white bra. For a moment, he just shut down and stared at you dumbfounded, before internal alarms started sounding and Frankie’s eyes were sweeping over your curves, his eyes zeroing in on the lack of support your bra had, your breasts perky and full and fuck, he had to look away.
He looked up at his ceiling at cleared his throat “You uh, want me to grab you a shirt?” His voice came out much deeper than he was expecting. He hoped you didn’t notice, though with only being able to see your profile even if he did dare to look at you, he’d never be able to tell.
“Can I borrow your big sweater, please?” You asked him, and Frankie nodded as he hurried away, down the hall to grab the sweater he knew you meant from his room. He would have laughed at your suggestion it was his sweater when he barely got to wear it himself anymore, but he was trying to remember how to breathe.
Once out of sight in his bedroom, Frankie took a few steadying breaths before grabbing the sweater off the end of his bed. He was going to subject himself to a cold shower after he handed this to you because you were staying the night again and he could not climb into a bed with you this worked up.
One of the reasons that you and Frankie just worked as friends were your opposite ways of navigating life. Where Frankie was a detailed, meticulous planner, you flitted from idea to idea spontaneously until something landed right, and you seemed to enjoy pulling him along with you as you followed those random whims. And he let you pull him because he trusted you so completely. Even if he would still make a new plan in the back of his mind, it still felt like he was taking chances he never would have without you leading the way.
Planning was Frankie’s way of keeping control. Of keeping himself, his squadmates, his loved ones, safe and secure. After Columbia, where every bit of the plan had gone completely to shit, he’d needed to let you lead more often just so he could feel grounded because he didn’t trust himself any longer. And you had been happy to lead, to test his limits by pushing aside any planning he attempted and pull him from his comfort zone. You had taught him how to grapple with his instincts and his desires, giving him real-world methods to cope, including breathing as he was now.
So focused as he was on his breathing, Frankie hadn’t noticed you had joined him in his room, standing just inside the doorway. If he had heard you, he wouldn’t have spun around abruptly and take two long strides before realizing how close you were, nearly knocking you over as he did. He dropped the sweater when he reached out with both hands to grab your upper arms and steady you, and then he met your gaze.
Frankie couldn’t say whether it was the heat of his hands on you so unexpectedly, or the way you each shivered at the electricity that seemed to pulse from him to you. Maybe it was everything combined, years of friendship, longing and pining and then almost dying in the middle of the jungle only to come home and have you climb into his lap and sob in relief that he was home, and a million other moments in between.
But when Frankie met your eyes there in the doorway of his bedroom, he knew his expression was giving him away completely.
You were looking at him with wide eyes, your mouth slightly open in surprise, whatever words you were going to say long since lost. And then he saw it, was looking right at you when your expression shifted, no longer the innocent, playful woman but instead, one who was suffering just as much as he was, longing and love and this hunger on your face he’d never seen before.
Without hesitating, without thinking or planning his next move, Frankie tugged you against him and leaned down to slot his lips over yours, taken aback when he saw you close your eyes and stretch your neck up to meet him. When your soft lips connected to his, Frankie trembled and groaned, loving the feel of your body pressed against him, the way you smelled like something tropical, how even with your perfect curves you were so small compared to him. Kissing you was everything he’d dreamed and more.
He wanted to deepen the kiss, taste you, but even as he thought it his mind jumped ten steps ahead and imagined you on his bed and he had to stop himself from getting carried away. With great effort he pulled back, first breaking the kiss and then taking several steps away, panting heavily.
“Frankie?” You were out of breath, confused, and deliciously flushed. He could see your nipples tightened against the thin fabric of your bra, goosebumps along your skin. Just the knowledge that he’d had that kind of effect on you was enough to make him want to cum in his pants right there.
“Cariño, I can’t, I’m sorry,” It was physically painful now, his hard length straining against his jeans, but he was more concerned about you, and how afraid he was to lose you. “I-I’ve wanted to do that but you gotta know, I love you. I’m in love with you.” He couldn’t meet your eyes, instead choosing to look at his feet and rubbing his hands over his face.
You approached him again, just as quietly, taking him by surprise when you spoke from just inches away. “Frankie, look at me,” It was an order, a tone you rarely used but that always worked on grounding him, and he realized you understood he was struggling right now not to break down, terrified he’d fucked up the best thing in his life in a moment of weakness. He reluctantly met your gaze, swallowing thickly as he did.
“I need you to hear me right now, okay? Tell me.”
“I’m listening,” He confirmed, heart about ready to beat out of his chest, “I can hear you.”
“Good,” And you closed the gap between your body and his, pressing your hands into his shoulders. Frankie caught his breath. “I want you to do that again, and I don’t want you to stop. Please, kiss me again, Frankie, because I love you too and I’ve never wanted anything more in my whole life than I want you-“
Frankie cut you off, a growl ripping from his chest before he gathered you roughly into his arms and kissed you again, this time quickly swiping his tongue across your lips for permission to enter, and you gladly parted them for him, moaning when his tongue licked into your hot mouth. He slid one hand to the back of your head, his fingers weaving into your hair carefully before he pressed your face to his, needy to taste you more, to get drunk on you. Fuck, you were perfect.
When you whimpered against him, the sound almost lost in his mouth, Frankie moved, walking you back until you hit the wall and crowding you there. He ran his free hand across the bare skin of your side, heat coursing through his veins when you shuddered at his touch, keening for him. He hadn’t realized he was rolling his hips against you, his erection pressed into your stomach until one of your small hands somehow slipped between your bodies and ghosted over the front of his jeans curiously.
“Fuck,” He broke the kiss, this time simply to lower his head and kiss along your jaw, down your neck, “Sunshine, I fucking love you, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, sweet girl.” He licked the column of your throat as he moved to the other side of your face before biting gently. The sound that tore from you was so filthy he groaned again, dropping both hands to grasp your forearms.
“Frankie, fuck, don’t stop,” You were tugging at his shirt, and despite your request, he had to move back slightly to pull it over his head, his bare chest revealed to you and even though you’d seen him shirtless before, the intimacy of this time, of finally being with you after so long, made him self conscious. If you saw anything you didn’t like, you didn’t show it. Instead, you bit your lip as your hands tentatively roamed across his chest, trailing over his stomach lightly enough that he shivered. When you spoke next, you yet again took Frankie completely by surprise, your brows furrowing as your expression became more than just hungry, “Mine.”
You whispered it, but to Frankie, it was like you’d just announced it to the entire world. The possessive edge wasn’t lost on him, no, it shot straight to his core and snapped the final cords of his restraint.
“I should...I need a minute, Sunshine,” Frankie pressed his hands into the wall on either side of you, “I haven’t done anything in a long time, haven’t even cum, I don’t think I can be as sweet to you as I want to be.”
Your lust-blown eyes met his, “Why haven’t you cum?” He could hear trouble in your voice now, the not so careful way you spoke pulling dangerous images in his mind as he stared down at you, his jaw tense. When Frankie made no reply, you pressed your pointer finger to the middle of his chest, your eyes never leaving his as you slowly, lightly, moved it downward, trailing his dark hair. “Is it because you think of me? Are you that amazing that you won’t even let yourself cum because you think it’s wrong to think about me like that?”
A strangled noise was all he could respond with, his hands pressing desperately into the wall. You knew him too well, understood exactly what he’d meant without having to ask. And then you kept talking, and honestly, Frankie was floored at how dirty you suddenly were for him.
“I have to admit, you’re better than me, Frankie,” That finger trailed so slowly, closing in on his belly button now, “I’m not good like you, I think about you all the time. Especially when I touch myself, usually after I’ve spent a ton of time with you and I can’t fucking wait for a second longer. Wanna know what I picture?”
His voice was husky, a warning if ever there was one, “What did you picture, sweet girl?”
You moaned, your finger now closing in on the waist of his jeans, “You, bending me over the couch, that one is a favourite. Or waking you up with a blowjob, swallowing everything you’ve got because I know you taste delicious,” You unbuttoned his jeans now, sliding the zipper down with care, “But I think the winner, the one that always makes me scream your name, is thinking about riding you, Frankie. Climbing in your lap and just-“
Fuck, fuck he couldn’t hold back. He’d told you he couldn’t and yet you wouldn’t shut up and all thoughts of making love to you gently were out the fucking window, Frankie instead growled deeply and grabbed you by the arms, all but throwing you on the bed. You were smirking up at him, your eyes dark with lust and shining with triumph.
“Fuck, sweet girl, you wanna scream my name?” He removed his pants and briefs in one motion, his cock spring up, hard and leaking precum and you licked your lips, giving a little whimper at the sight of him. Frankie grasped himself, pumping his hand a few times as he stood over you, “Like what you see?”
“Jesus, Frankie-you need a new nickname,” You said, eyes glued to his cock, “Catfish makes no sense when you’re walking around with that fucking bat-wait!” He froze in the middle of removing his ball cap, looking at you with concern to see you bite your lip a little shyly, “Keep it on. The hat.”
Warmth spread through him at your request and Frankie replaced the hat on his head, then dropped to his knees next to the bed, his hands running up your thighs as you writhed. At your waist, he grasped the tops of your yoga pants and tugged them down, enjoying the way your body arched when you lifted your hips to help him. The only item of clothing either of you wore now was you in your bra, and fuck were you a sight.
Frankie gazed up at you from the floor in awe, his eyes roving over you hungrily as you watched him, propped up on your elbows. He started kissing up your thighs then, pushing your legs apart and spreading you, his hands kneading your flesh. “Sweet girl, you have such a pretty pussy, better than I imagined.” He moaned, biting into the soft flesh of your inner leg and drawing a whimper from you, “I can fucking smell you already, so wet and ready for me, fuck.”
“Oh god Frankie, please, touch me. I can’t wait anymore, I need you!”
“Told you,” Frankie climbed over top of you, his legs on either side of your body as he reached down and dragged you further onto the bed, his show of strength making you whimper, “It’s been a while. And you walk around here wearing my fucking clothes all the time. You don’t know what you do to me, Sunshine.” He grunted as he repositioned himself between your legs, his hands grasping the backs of them to haul your body against his, his cock pressed painfully against your thigh, “Gonna fuck you, sweet girl.” And with one careful, quick motion he thrust forward and each of you cried out at the pleasure of Frankie filling you.
“Frankie! Oh!” Your legs wrapped around him instantly, urging him as deep as possible as he split you open so deliciously. Once he was fully seated within you, Frankie dropped forward, propping himself on one arm, and cupped your face with his free hand. He looked into your eyes as he started a fast, hard pace, thrusting deep and reeling over how wet you were for him, how perfectly your velvet folds wrapped around him.
“Fuck, cariño, you’re fucking tight,” He grunted, kissing you sloppily as you threw your arms around him, hugging him close, “So tight for me, so perfect making those pretty noises, fuck.” Frankie groaned when you clenched around him as he spoke, “You like it when I tell you how perfect you are?”
“Ye-yeah Frankie, I love it. Oh, fuck!”
You were trembling now, squeezing him each time he whispered in your ear. Frankie kept up a string of praises and filthy words, taking note of the ones that had you gripping him extra hard.
He’d always had a casual enjoyment of dirty talk, nothing over the top, easy enough to shut off if it wasn’t enjoyed by the other person. But something about talking like this to you had his balls tightening that much faster, his thrusts becoming brutal.
Still murmuring in your ear, Frankie lowered his hand to your clit, experimentally rubbing, circling and pinching it to see what you liked. He was going to cum soon, and he’d be damned if you didn’t cum too. Though, as Frankie settled on circling you, both feeling and hearing how this was definitely how you liked it, his worries quickly dissipated when your hips were suddenly bucking up to meet his and you were screaming his name.
“That’s it, let go for me sweet girl,” Frankie’s thrusts were becoming increasingly sloppy as he neared the edge, “Are you-fuck, where should I?” He couldn’t even form a sentence now, he was so close and you were squeezing around him so perfectly as you closed in on your orgasm.
You understood though, your eyes meeting his as you pulled yourself together enough to reply, “Frankie, cum inside me please, please fill me up, pleasepleaseplease-“
“Fuck! H-here you go, perfect little thing!” He roared, dropping his weight over your and growling as he spilled inside you, as you bucked and writhed beneath him and screamed out, toppling over the edge and into oblivion with him. He heard himself cursing in Spanish as he experienced the most intense orgasm of his entire life, his hips slowing to continue to draw it out, still more cum filling you and you were a wreck under him, shivering and moaning.
“Yes, Frankie, yes.” You whimpered, your hands sliding into his hair-knocking his cap off-and tugging at his curls.
It took several minutes to recover, though Frankie had enough awareness to shift his weight so that you could breathe properly. Still hard inside you, he began to kiss you all over, peppering your face and neck before biting a few more marks into your neck, his tongue laving out to soothe. He enjoyed the way you whimpered when overstimulated, twitching when he pinched your nipple over your bra, squeaking his name when he pressed himself as deep inside you as he could one last time before pulling out.
Frankie collapsed on the bed next to you, then quickly tugged you into his arms and kissed the top of your head. His fear began to bubble back up now that the haze of passion was clearing, and he was starting to question every single moment that had occurred since you'd asked him if he was a tits man or an ass man.
What had he done? Was he going to lose you after this? Lose his entire reason for living for one amazing orgasm?
But it was like you could reach his mind, as only a few minutes had passed and then, with a little groan, you pulled yourself up so that you were on your elbow, looking down at Frankie. You took one look at his face and frowned, “That was quicker than I thought.”
Frankie stared at you, “What was?”
“I guessed it would take more than two minutes for you to start regretting this.”
Sighing, he pulled himself up, sitting on the edge of the bed. You followed, but crossed your legs and shuffled next to him. “I meant what I said, I love you,” Frankie explained, rubbing a hand over his face, “I love you so much, so fucking much it hurts. But the idea of messing this up is terrifying me, Sunshine. I don’t think I could lose you, I think it would kill me.”
“Frankie,” You crawled over him, straddling his hips and settling into his lap. You cupped his face firmly, looking into his eyes. Your expression was open, warm and vulnerable and a little incredulous, “You aren’t going to lose me, not ever. I want this-I want you, and everything you come with, okay?”
Though his heart was soaring, Frankie still worried, shaking his head, “I come with a lot of dark baggage, sweet girl. Not to mention the age difference.”
“Jesus, Frankie, do you really think I don’t know what I’m saying when I tell you I’m all in?” You asked him, not waiting for an answer before continuing. “I love you. Can I tell you when I knew?”
Frankie peered at you, his hands coming to hold your waist as he nodded.
“The boys trip.” You stated, using the term each of you agreed upon when referencing his three-week disappearance to Columbia. “When you first left, I knew something was off but I trust you, so I didn’t question it. But then after a few days, with no word from you, I started to really worry,” You paused, momentarily lost in thought, eyes dark now with the painful memory of his absence and the little information you’d come to learn about it since. “Did I ever tell you I booked a ticket to Columbia?”
This caught Frankie off guard because you most certainly had not told him that, “What, are you serious?”
“Yep. Booked it for the day after you ended up calling me. I don’t know what I was planning to do, but I knew you were there and, even if you were dead, I needed to be as well.” You stroked your thumbs over his cheeks, “After you called, and I knew you were alive and coming home, I realized that the way you said it meant you almost didn’t make it home, and I knew you weren’t saying something. I hung up and sat in my room for a minute and it occurred to me that you could have died and I would have never seen you again. That was when I knew it wasn’t just a crush.”
Heavy emotion filled his chest, rendering him unable to immediately respond. Frankie gathered you close and stood, clutching you against him and carrying you into the bathroom. He set you on the toilet before turning to his massive soaker tub and switching it on, fully intending on spending the rest of the night in there with you. When he turned around, you were carefully tidying yourself up. With a grunt, he grabbed a washcloth and ran it under warm water before kneeling in front of you and taking over.
“Why didn’t you say anything? After I came home, I mean.” His tone was light, as he didn’t mean to come across as accusing you of anything-it’s not like he had said anything to you. Good-natured as you were, you simply smiled at him, a little sadly.
“Too afraid, right at first,” You admitted, your eyes fluttering shut as he took care of you with the warm washcloth, “But when you came home you were a fucking wreck, Frankie. You lost your friend, Santi didn’t come back with you either, and Will and Benny had the same expression on their faces whenever I saw them. You saw some shit, did some shit, I don’t know and I’ll be real here, I don’t need you to ever feel like you should tell me what exactly happened. But after the first day you were back, I could see how much it changed you and I thought it would be selfish to tell you how I felt and add more emotional bullshit onto your plate.”
Frankie continued to kneel in front of you after tossing the washcloth into his laundry hamper. For a moment, the only sound in the room that of the tub filling. He stared into your eyes, seeing only how truthful you were being, how incredibly kind. He had never realized how completely he could love someone until he met you.
“I thought about you the entire time I was gone.” He admitted before carefully standing and checking the temperature of the water. He added a bath salt mixture that you’d bought a while ago, claiming it was a gift when really you were the one to use them, locking yourself away for hours to soak because you didn’t have a tub at your place. He shut the water off and held his arms out for you, which you eagerly stepped into and allowed him to guide you both into the water.
Once settled, your back against his chest, you replied. “Your face when you came home, I’ll never forget your expression.” His legs were on either side of you, and you began to lazily trace along his right thigh as both of you fell into your painful memories of his ill-fated trip.
Frankie sighed sadly, “I’m sorry I ever left, Sunshine. I never should have left you,” He tightened his grip around your waist under the water, one hand spread flat across your stomach, “It was just...fuck, everything went bad straight from the start. We had a moment of luck and then it was like nothing could go right. And I don’t know, I’m fucking gutted that Tom is gone, but it’s worse that Santiago won’t come home. He’s like my brother, and he blames himself for everything.”
Frankie knew you had no idea what he meant. You knew he and the guys were former special ops that served together, but when Santi had asked him to go to Columbia Frankie had only told you the basics-the country, who he would be with, that he might not have a lot of chances to call, and that it would be about a week. Santi had picked him up and you had been there to see him off that morning, and his friend had casually referenced a ‘boys trip’ while speaking with you as Frankie loaded his shit in the back.
Of course, you weren’t stupid. You worked with the VA, met a lot of former service members who ended up contracting out their skills after retiring or leaving due to injuries or lifestyle changes. And you knew Frankie, understood him like no one ever had before, which is why as he gave you further details you didn’t flinch or freeze up, you simply listened. When Frankie had gone quiet for a while, you eventually turned to gaze up at him over your shoulder, your cheek on his chest.
“From what I could tell,” You began slowly, your words cautious, “Whatever you did, what happened, you all put it aside to get Tom’s body home to his family. And considering the type of work Santi was doing out there for three years before he came here to ask you guys to join him, I figure you all must have almost died a few times each, probably took out some terrible men along the way.”
Frankie had to bite back his sob, turning his face away from you to stare, ashamed and remorseful at the wall. You reacted quickly, pulling yourself up and turning over, your naked body pressing over his as you grabbed Frankie’s head and gently turned him to look at you. “Baby,” You cooed, your eyes shining with concern, “Don’t do that, don’t hide from me.”
That was all it took. Frankie let the sob out and the relief of it was instantaneous, so much so that he let out another, then another, all while you held him and murmured soft, sweet words and pressing chaste kisses to his cheeks, his forehead, along his jaw. It didn’t last long, he’d cried so many times over everything that had gone down, but this was the first time you had revealed you sort of had an idea of what they had been up to, and you were still supporting him and loving him and it was all very overwhelming.
A short time later, Frankie wiped his eyes and shot you a grateful look, hoping you could sense how much he appreciated you. You settled into the water again, knees pulled to your chest as you faced him and trailed your hands comfortingly up and down his chest. “Sunshine,” He whispered, catching one hand and holding it against his heart, “I love you, thank you for being so fucking incredible.”
He tugged you closer, joining you in laughing when a little water sloshed up over the edge of the tub as you landed against him. You snuggled close and kissed him, your fingers carding into his curls and holding him steady. When Frankie took you to bed that night, there were no pillows between your bodies, not a shred of clothing separating you. He held you close, falling asleep faster than he had in years.
And for the first time in Frankie’s life, he felt whole and complete, like nothing could ever bring him into darkness again, not when he had you, literal sunshine, lighting his existence.
PART TWO
Permanent Taglist:
@mermaidxatxheart @paintballkid711
#reader insert#fanfic#angst#fluff#triple frontier#triple frontier x reader#frankie morales smut#frankie catfish morales#frankie morales#frankie morales x reader#fem reader#oneshot#best friend#friends to lovers#pedro pascal x reader#pedro pascal#pedro pascal smut#smut#love
503 notes
·
View notes
Text
I cant stop posting about this movie.
SPOILERS AHEAD
Everything and i do mean everything was a work of art, EXCEPT for the ending.
I'm totally gonna pretend that it never happened. In the future I will stop the movie at Toby's death.
Every death was sad and horrible and kinda painful to watch because we really got to see how painful and horrible it is to die fighting, Nari and Nomura's cries of pain hurt my heart but guess what? That's how death is and I am so glad they aren't washing it for the kids because kids need to know the life is not pastel colors. I like that a lot.
I loved Jim's moments of doubt. I am so glad that they keep reminding us that Jim is a boy, a young man, a HUMAN FOR FUCK'S SAKE he is not a god and they allowed him to be human and have doubts and still manage to give his best for his cause. Jim has grown so much and he keeps growing.
Aja's character was very nicely developed. She may look mean to some people, but she isn't. She greets Steve but doesn't waste time in corny words. She doesn't waste time in comforting Jim either, because she is a queen now and she knows that what has to be done, has to be done without hesitation. She is not mean, she is acting in her role.
Every character holds it together while fearing and having doubts. Aja is behaving like the Queen she is now, Douxie is making all the planning and hard decisions a wizard has to make, Claire is doing what she has to as the witch of the group and, above all, protecting and loving Jim, Toby is in his role of moral support which yeah is the lamest power but the most important, and so with everyone else.
Character development was amazing.
Jim did what he had to do. He lost his new father figure, had to watch his mother's heart break again, he saw a bright force of nature fall on behalf of her faith in humanity, he saw Nomura survive many death threats and now she is death, they lost Archie and Charlemagne who were everything for Douxie. It is heartbreaking and it kills you, but is real and it means growing up.
The death of Toby was naturally the most important. As they said, they found the amulet together and have been together ever since, they began the team and now —losing Toby means the true end of the journey. He is going to reunite with his parents, leaving his granny to suffer another terrible loss. Jim is losing his only family besides his mother and that is just—
As Lemony Snicket once said, if you have suffered a loss like that, you already know, and if you haven't... you can't possibly imagine what it feels like.
I loved that they didn't show his father, that Barbara said loud and clear than she has no big revelation about James Lake Senior: he walked out on them and that's it. End of the story. As I said in other posts, Jim taught me that I wasn't unworthy just because my parents abandoned me and I could become a hero too.
But the the ending? WHAT THE FUCK? Jim is just throwing it all aside? The WHOLE journey? Three of the most important years for the story of the world? He just left Claire to live the rest of her days without him in another timeline? AFTER EVERYTHING THEY WENT THROUGH TOGETHER?
So I am officially deciding that the movie never ended that way. It all ended with Toby's death for me.
#tales of arcadia#Trollhunters#wizards#3below#toa#movie#rise of the titans#rott#jim lake jr#jim lake junior#claire nuñez#toby domzalski#douxie casperan#aja tarron#krel tarron#eli pepperjack#steve palchuk#staja#jlaire#DreamWorks
122 notes
·
View notes
Text
what makes the dsmp’s story stand out
Why the dsmp is so special and why it distinguishes itself amongst the insane amount of media that we could be consuming instead right now.
So basically, this is really obvious and simple and i think we all kinda know it without thinking about it but i still felt like writing it down because it’s super important to me.
The thing that makes this story stand out amongst so many others (apart from the fact that it’s a mc rp lmao) is that all the character’s are treated like people. What i mean by that is that they can’t be treated simply as ways to further the plot, they can’t just kill off characters in favor of contributing to some other character’s arc, they can’t have stuff like “manic pixie dream girls”. and that’s because each character IS a real person, if they tried that, if someone suggested that stuff someone in the discord call is gonna go “hey, what the fuck man, you can’t just kill me off like that”.
Each character is therefore special, none of them can be 2d because they are people, they all exist as people instead of being plot devices. There aren’t any extras (except arguably the guests like drista, lil nas x, etc) there aren’t really any side characters*, because it’s everyone’s story, all the characters have someone sitting there that actually care about them and are interested in making that character special, they won’t be neglected.
that’s also why, often the characters just… don’t fit in tropes. they don’t really exist the way normal character’s do, they don’t have this “purpose” that movie or books characters do, like hero, trainer, soft character that teaches the main character about love, comic-relief, or love-interests that’s only there for 3 chapters because they die for the mc to teach them about grief.
They’re only there as, themselves. They don’t fit in one trope because people don’t do that, there’s more to them then that, they’re complex. they’re closer, more similar to real people than anything that’s been made in a really long time, and that’s because they all have a person to take care of their little character.
there was this really cool thinking written by @/mt-words which i’ll link here about techno not fitting in a trope and that possibly fucking with people’s expectation of his characters. i think the idea that we’re so used to getting the same tropes regurgitated back to us over and over again that we don’t know how to handle stuff that doesn’t fit in them is very funny (and also a bit sad). Like, has media really become THIS repetitive and unoriginal??? But i digress.
anyway, time for quick examples, i was watching the “healthy competition” stream from 07/26 and i noticed something cool. So basically c!wilbur asks c!ranboo to ”pick his brain” and then asks him a bunch of questions about his morals and they discuss his alignments and other similar stuff right? And we can see clearly that c!wilbur is completely baffled at the stuff c!ranboo is saying about him not disliking anyone and not really having any strong stances at all. he just genuinely doesn’t understand c!ranboo and can’t relate at all.
Yet 10 mins later, he’s pouring his heart out to him and more importantly he’s talking about how he feels like c!ranboo really gets him. Obviously they are super similar in lots of ways, like their paranoia and anxiety, how they’re both kinda people pleasers, etc.
the fact that they can be in complete agreement on a topic and be so similar in certain aspects while also being complete opposites and being genuinely confused at the stuff that’s coming out of the other’s mouth on other topics really shows how multifaceted the character’s are, how 3d and real they feel.
I’m going to be adding another example from a post i just read by @/shrugofmud here it is :). It’s basically about how c!jack and ghostbur are cool because they balance comedy and drama. I’m gonna talk more about c!jack here. basically he’s comedic relief and he leans into that role right? but he’s also so much more than that, the way he balances the jokes and the clear comedy of his plotline with the sadness and loneliest he clearly feels and let’s that seep through in his jokes. He’s more than one thing, he’s more than comedic-relief, he copes with humor and covers his desire for a sense of belonging and to be heard by a bitter hatred and desire for revenge on c!tommy.
They’re more than just one thing, they aren’t reduced to a trope or a key personality trait the way characters often are. there’s so much to them, different parts of their personality that work together to make a whole, like a person :)
I also believe this is why the fandom as so much character analysis material and just keeps going, but it’s also why there’s so much disagreement on the characters and their personalities, like “oh people are villanizing c!wilbur too much” or “people are reducing c!niki to her villain arc and turning it into a ‘girlboss moment’” or “people are making c!tubbo too soft”. the character’s are harder to write into fanfic properly or analyze because you have to take into account all the different subtleties of them.
some people chose to focus on certain aspects of the characters, aspects they find more interesting or aspects they relate to, while other’s chose to focus on other aspects, which causes a bit of confusion.
It’s what makes this story so original and cool to think about and make the character’s so fucking compelling. It’s what makes me sit down for 6 hours straight and watch VODs so i can better understand different characters, it’s what makes me excited for each lore stream. it’s how human they are, how real they feel.
And this is why i’m the biggest believer and will always push for STUFF CAN BE TWO THINGS!!
#dsmp#dsmp analysis#dream smp#dream smp analysis#dream smp fandom#mcyt#mcytblr#character analysis#dsmp meta#dream smp meta#c!jack manifold#jack manifold#wilbur#wilbur soot#c!wilbur#ranboo#c!ranboo#tubbo#c!tubbo#niki nihachu#c!niki#ghostbur#long post
85 notes
·
View notes
Text
FAVORITE SHOWS IN POSTERS
Well, we’re back for another installment of this tagged meme, this time for TV shows! I also stole this from/was indirectly tagged by @jcmorrigan. My taste in shows also differs a bit from my taste in movies, as I tend to like a lot of comedy shows with not as many horror ones. I’m not into shows as much as movies overall, but there are some that I am very passionate about so I picked twenty again. So, here we go for part 2, in order:
1. Avatar: The Last Airbender/The Legend Of Korra (2005-2014)
I'm including these as one show since they take place in the same universe and tell a continuation of the same overall plot. Altogether this is probably the best piece of media to ever exist, including movies. It has so many great characters and villains especially and some of the most epic sequences, charming humor and heartwarming moments ever. I've never met a person who didn't like these shows, even people who normally don't like cartoons. My dad, who is biased against animation? He loved it. My mother? She loved it, watched it with her multiple times. My grandmother? Loved it. My ex-boyfriend? Loved it. My best friend? Loved it. I dare anyone not to, and I'm so glad it's making a resurgence since it's on Netflix for a new generation to enjoy.
2. Black Butler (2008-2014)
I never was big into anime growing up and only really started watching anime when I was like 16 and above, but this is one of the exceptions because holy shit is it ever dark and epic. I'm not sure I'd really recommend it for kids, it's more of a teens and young adults kind of anime and that's probably why it's so good, because it isn't afraid to explore dark and mature topics and do it with all of the intensity and gravitas required to do said topics justice. It has lots of great characters, and the story of demons who make deals with children who have a dark side is fun to watch play out.
3. Seinfeld (1989-1998)
My dad was a huge fan of this show so I watched it growing up since I was a toddler and it became a classic for me. I've watched thw hole show through at least 8 times, and I'll never stop because it never gets old or boring. It's also my only comfort show when I'm having a panic attack because of one time a few years ago when I was having a drug-induced psychosis episode and watching it calmed me down, so now it's like the opposite of a trigger and whenever I'm having an episode or something I watch it to bring me back to reality. For that reason it's more than a show to me, it's a medical treatment and I'm forever grateful to it.
4. The Good Place (2016-2020)
The big four shows made my Michael Schur all made it on this post (The Good Place, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Office and Parks And Recreation), either in the main list of the honorable mentions, but this is my personal favorite of the four. It's so funny, quirky, relatable and basically tailor-made to suit my interests. Not only is it an entertaining and wholesome show, but I think watching it helped me come to terms with a lot of things like mortality, ethics, philosophy, religion and my relationships with other people. It gets alot of different viewpoints across and if you're a very analytical and philosophical person like me you'll probably enjoy seeing it all play out. Not to mention, every single character is 'favorite character' material. It's rare you find a show with no filler characters in the main cast, but I genuinely can't choose who is best.
5. Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013-?)
Another of Michael Schur's shows, this one is just barely under The Good Place and to be honest it was tough to pick my favorite between the two because they're both equally funny. I know it's kind of controversial right now because of the whole law enforcement thing, but I actually think they do a good job of handling social issues in the show and remaining respectful of real-life systemic problems. As for the characters, this is another one of those shows where every single character is gold and I think that tends to be a trend among Schur's shows in general. He produces damn good comedy, and damn good characters. I can't wait to see what they bring next.
6. Rick And Morty (2013-?)
This is unfortunately one of those cases of 'great show, horrible fandom' and for that reason I don't get involved in the fandom even though I love the show. It's a shame because it really is a great show, so funny and, again, such good characters. I think it's a lot more accessible than the fandom likes to claim, so I'm hoping more people will give it a chance and not get put off by the intellectual elitism of the fandom because it does have some of the most entertaining and batshit crazy episodes ever, poking fun of some of the staples of science fiction in media while also poking fun of itself the whole time. Unlike the fandom, the show doesn't take itself seriously and that's enjoyable nowadays.
7. Orange Is The New Black (2013-2019)
While this show is a comedy, it is also a lot of other things and it's probably made me ugly-cry just as many times as it's made me laugh. Well, maybe not as often, but those few scenes (if you've watched the show then you know the ones I'm talking about) made me hysterically sob hard enough to be worth like fifty minor sads. But I didn't even mind because the show is just that good, and it makes you /feel/ something in a real way. Probably because of just how real it gets in terms of telling stories that happen all the time in the real world, sometimes with inevitably tragic endings. But these things do happen every day, and it's important to shine a light on that. It's not just representation for LGBTQ+ but also for POC, the neurodiverse, the poor, and many more. Give it a watch to broaden your perspective!
8. Big Mouth (2017-?)
This is probably the grossest show I've ever seen but by god is it ever funny. Maybe it's because I have an immature sense of humor or something, but I love this show. It definitely won't be everyone's cup of tea and I don't recommend you watch this show with anyone else around because it will get awkward. I think part of its appeal to me is that everyone I talk to who likes it considers it so relatable to their lives growing up but for someone like me who grew up on the autism and asexual spectrum and who was physically an early-bloomer by years, nothing about this show is relatable to me in any way so it makes it all the more crazy and bizarre watching how the people around me must have experienced things. Did y'all really have these experiences with puberty in middle school???
9. Dexter (2006-2013)
I recently heard that this show is coming back for a reboot soon and I'm so excited because this is my absolute favorite drama/thriller show, as evidenced by the fact that it's the highest one on the list so far that isn't a comedy. I love the idea of having a protagonist who is sort of a villain (or at least morally dubious), and the idea of a serial killer who only kills bad people is particularly satisfying for some reason. Maybe because he's the vigilante we all deserve and want in this unjust and evil world of modern times? Idk but the very premise of this show set it up for big things and aside from the ending I think it delivered consistently.
10. Once Upon A Time (2011-2018)
This show took us on some journeys, and you can't deny that. Sure, maybe it didn't always finish what it started and didn't always end in the most satisfying way, but part of its charm is that you didn't care because the experience was just so much fun. They took characters and stories that have been told to death and somehow managed to put a unique and unexpected twist on them, and that alone is admirable. Good twists, good villains, and pretty much every cliffhanger known to man will keep you hooked on binge-watching every episode.
11. RuPaul's Drag Race (2009-?)
A bit different than the other entries on my list in that it's not fiction but a reality competition show, but I couldn't leave Drag Race out because it's just so fucking iconic and perfect. Even when you disagree with the judges or can't stand a certain contestant you'll still be having a good time. It's got the personalities you love to love, the ones you love to hate, and the comedy that's completely meme-able. I mean just how much has this show contributed to pop culture and the internet? More than most of us, henny. I've watched every single season, even the international ones and all of the spinoffs. This show will probably be on for another thirty years when Ru is throwing shade from a hospital bed and I'll still be watching.
12. House (2004-2012)
Some people hate on this show, and I don't get it. I love House. Yes, he's an ass. That's the point. He's supposed to be unlikeable, and that's why I like him. Maybe because I always love the rude, sarcastic, misanthropic jerkass-genius characters for some reason. And I also love procedural shows, so it's a win-win. I also work in the healthcare field so it appeals to me for that reason too, because obviously the whole premise is outlandish which is what makes it funny. Of course it's not realistic for a hospital, so just enjoy the absurdity and don't get too hung up on the details of medical accuracy and professional ethics and you'll be fine.
13. The Office (2005-2013)
The third of Michael Schur's show and the last one that made the main list (sorry Parks And Rec, I love you too but there was just so many good shows to choose from and I saw you last so the nostalgia isn't as strong!) I don't think I need to hype this show up any, it's already a classic and you can't even turn around online without getting hit in the face by a dozen Office memes. You'll have to pry this show and it's relatable characters (especially Michael Scott) from my cold, dead hands.
14. All Hail King Julien/The Penguins Of Madagascar (2008-2017)
Like Avatar/Korra, I also consider this as one show for the sake of this list because it also takes place in the same universe (Madagascar, specifically) and I just couldn't choose one over the other because they're both so perfect. They're funny and I love all the characters (it cut out the weaker links of the Madagascar film series and just focuses on expanding the standout side-characters like King Julien and the penguins). It also delved into some lore, particularly the first show, and even though I didn't also agree with the directions it took (you may have seen me get salty about the ending because I cared too much), I can't deny how much I love it.
15. Bones (2005-2017)
One of the other scarce non-comedy shows on this list, it still has it's funny moments. It's also, like House, another procedural show that involves some medical stuff, but this time on a more scientific and forensic level which is even more interesting. It's nice to see a lead female with Asperger's, too. There's a lot of cop/law enforcement shows where they try to solve crimes, but this one is the best, and I'm saying that as a fan of CSI as well. Don't fight me on this, I'm right. Oh yes, it's corny, it's campy, it's cheesy, but I love every minute of it. Don't watch if you have a weak stomach though.
16. The Simpsons (1989-?)
We all grew up with this show, don't lie. It's been around longer than most people on tumblr have even been alive. Should it have ended seasons ago? Hell yes. But that doesn't take away what the first like 20 or so seasons gave us (there's a lot of argument about when the show jumped the shark, for me it wasn't until much later than the popular consensus). The characters are amazing, but the secret to the show's longevity is that they always return to status quo and there's comfort and nostalgia in that. Bart will still be in 4th grade when you're out there pushing 90. This show is persistent. This show is eternal. This show will outlive us all.
17. Ash Vs. Evil Dead (2015-2018)
Sorely underrated. This show is hilarious, gruesome and campy as hell and I love it. I don't think you necessarily have to watch the Evil Dead movies beforehand in order to get the plot of the show, although it would probably help. In my opinion this show ended way too soon and I'm hoping someday we'll get a comeback because Ash is the reluctant, self-absorbed hero we all need and it's 2020 so at this point there really might actually be a demon-zombie apocalypse and who's gonna save us then if not for the impulsive womanizer with a chainsaw for a hand?
18. Malcolm In The Middle (2000-2006)
Another show I grew up with, I don't think it gets as much credit as it deserves. It has some damn funny episodes and great characters, and it did a lot of the popular sitcom tropes before they were 'cool'. Some other great sitcoms, The Middle in particular, took a lot of influence from this show and it helped pave the way for the future of sitcoms at a time when they were about to make a comeback. If you want a good show about the real experiences of growing up, this is a much more accurate representation of the highs and lows of being an awkward tween from a dysfunctional home.
19. A Series Of Unfortunate Events (2017-2019)
Unlike most people I actually liked the movie version from the early 2000's, and I read the books growing up so I was excited when I saw there was a live action television adaptation of it on Netflix because I felt like they cancelled the movie franchise too soon. I was interested to see how new actors would handle the roles, and I was not disappointed. I wouldn't say I liked either portrayal of the characters better or worse, they both added their own twist to it and this show is a great and loyal adaptation to the books, probably because the author was so heavily involved. He knew just when to stick to the books and when to improve upon what he had done with the benefit of hindsight. This show is basically the books, but remastered.
20. Winx Club (2004-?)
Sort of an odd one out on this list, but I really love this show even as an adult and it may surprise you to learn it is still going on and the most recent season came out last year. They take big breaks sometimes in between seasons, but it's still going strong and in multiple countries. The only thing I don't like about watching this show is all the different and inconsistent dubs since the original show is Italian and each dub only goes for a couple seasons so by the time you get used to one set of voices/names for the characters oyu have to abruptly switch to another, but it's still worth it for the beautiful animation and cool characters (especially the villains!)
Honorable Mentions:
13 Reasons Why, America's Next Top Model, American Horror Story, Arrested Development, Bates Motel, Battlestar Galactica, Black Mirror, Care Bears, Chernobyl, Courage The Cowardly Dog, Criminal, CSI, Duck Dodgers, Goosebumps, Kenny Vs. Spenny, Kim Possible, Kingdom Hospital, Lazytown, Lost, Making A Murderer, Mayday, Mindhunter, Modern Family, Monster High, Obsession: Dark Desires, Parks And Recreation, Prison Break, Project Runway, Queer As Folk, Queer Eye, Salem, Schitt's Creek, SCTV, Spongebob Squarepants, The Emperor's New School, The Good Doctor, The Haunting Of Hill House/Bly Manor, The Middle, The Pretender, The Walking Dead, The X-Files, Through The Wormhole, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Unsolved Mysteries, Yugioh
Tagging: @bullet-farmer and anyone else who wants to!
#avatar the last airbender#the last airbender#avatar#legend of korra#the legend of korra#lok#atla#seinfeld#the good place#brooklyn nine nine#brooklyn 99#rick and morty#orange is the new black#oitnb#big mouth#dexter#once upon a time#ouat#house md#house#rupaul's drag race#the office#all hail king julien#the penguins of madagascar#bones#the simpsons#ash vs evil dead#malcolm in the middle#a series of unfortunate events#asoue
273 notes
·
View notes
Text
Steve Rogers is a Monster
Yeah, that’s a hell of a title, isn’t it? Strap in, it only gets worse from here.
(click here if you’d prefer to read this on AO3)
Forewarning, if you enjoyed the epilogue for Endgame, this particular essay is not for you - and no, I am not bashing the Steve/Peggy shippers, you are beautiful human beings who make the fandom brighter and I’m happy that at least someone in this fandom got the ending they wanted.
Additional warning: if you expect this to be another Civil War debate, you will also be disappointed. There has never been a measurement invented that can adequately describe how much I loathe the verbal dick measuring contest that seems to pass for human interaction between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers in this franchise. It’s not funny or entertaining - it’s exhausting, uncomfortable, and frankly it’s rather lazy writing.
This is about the very specific way that the epilogue in Endgame completely changed the way the character of Steve Rogers can be interpreted, and I don’t just mean the very illogical and contradictory way that time travel is explained, both in the movie itself and the fact that the writers and directors have two completely different views on how that worked out.
I mean that the choice made by Steve Rogers in the very last minutes of that movie alters the way I view each and every one of his actions starting from The First Avenger and that alteration is exactly what I want to talk about, because whether you view it as deserving or not, what Steve does at the conclusion of Endgame was the most selfish thing humanly possible. Time is a thief, but somehow Steve managed to steal even more than Time.
Side note here: I understand that I am a completely biased Stucky shipper, a friend to Barnes and Noble, a Starbucks aficionado - sorry. Anyway, I’ve always believed that Steve and Bucky were destined blah blah blah, but I was never expecting a Stucky ending. Disney wasn’t going to do that, and I knew that, I wasn’t bothered that Steve and Bucky weren’t doing the smoochies by the end. But Bucky’s facial expression during those last minutes was gut-wrenching. Like...I have no idea what kind of cues the script and directors gave him, but in the future, please don’t ask Sebastian Stan to look sad unless you want soul-crushing devastation. It’s not Seb’s fault, his features are just arranged that way - but the fact that the editing staff allowed Sam to be sad though elated to be entrusted with the Shield and Bucky looked like his soul was being physically torn out of his body was an… interesting choice.
Other side note: if you’re writing about time travel, I’m begging y’all to get your facts straight. Or just don’t write about time travel. It almost always sounds better on paper than it does on screen and it means that you’ve opened doors to more questions than you’ve probably got the answers for. I know this was about trying to set up the idea of the multiverse, I get that, but there were better and less messy ways to do that, and I know that because I’ve done it before. @Marvel: Let me write you a six-way orgy you fucking cowards~
By going back in time, Steve robbed Peggy of the future that would have been hers - not only that, he’s robbed her of even the chance of making the choice between those futures, because you honestly could not tell me with a straight face that Steve told her the complete truth of what he had done and she would be okay with him alternating the very course of the future. It doesn’t help his case that he has a history of not disclosing truths that he knows will be painful or inconvenient for other people in his life.
He robbed his loved ones - Sam, Bucky, Wanda - of the years they would have spent with him. Sure, he ‘came back’ after Peggy passed away, but they are adults in the prime of youth who knew him sixty years ago in his own time and he is an old, old man who has lived an entire life completely separated from them. He is practically a stranger with a name they know, but a history that no longer belongs to any of them - not even his oldest friend. They have him back, but judging from his age, they’ll be lucky to get even ten more years with him. Assuming of course, that any of them can stand to speak to him - I certainly couldn’t blame them if they tell him to go to hell and take his dad jokes with him.
Steve has stolen away their friend and dropped off an elderly and dying near-stranger in his place, and this is treated by the writing (and the majority of the acting) as a wild and unexpected but not tragic event.
Is it really that unexpected, though?
I recall seeing a Game of Thrones essay on Daenerys across my dash (I’m sorry, love, I don’t recall who you are since it’s not a fandom I’m in, but if someone knows who wrote that, please post the link!) which detailed how her ending in the series was foreshadowed many times by her penchant for bloody killings and her habit of surrounding herself with her own fawning friends.
Months after reading that, I had the thought: though Steve is never really shown thinking about Peggy after Civil War, except in a few scattered scenes in Endgame, was this foreshadowed? Whether you believe that his actions are justified or not, what Steve does is still, in the end, selfish at its very heart, and Steve Rogers is not a selfish person.
Oh no, my dear friends and readers. Because taking this action has solidified and clarified Steve Rogers as the biggest and most selfish asshole in this whole universe.
Steve does not do the right thing, Steve does the thing that will most make him feel better. The fact that this often happens to be the right thing in the end is more the result of happy coincidence than any special sort of moral authority that the man holds.
Rescuing Bucky Barnes and his fellow captives in a prisoner of war camp from being experimented on by an insane Nazi eugenicist? That was not a moral stand, that was endangering himself, Peggy Carter, and Howard Stark because he couldn’t handle the reality of his best friend being killed in war.
Sacrificing himself by putting the Valkyrie down in the Arctic Circle? That was not about sparing human lives, that was about Steve seeing his friend die right in front of him and not being able to deal with the grief. There were ways he could’ve prevented the plane from killing people without killing himself.
Trying to make Bucky remember who he was? And later on, saving him from the government agencies who wanted to hunt him down? Although, arguably, that last one is also just good common sense - Steve was already shown that government agencies could and were corrupted by HYDRA and he’d also seen how dangerous the Winter Soldier could be when unleashed.
Steve did, I think, truly believe that this was the right thing to do, but it was also about keeping his connection - his very last, since Peggy had descended into dementia caused by Alzheimer’s before she ultimately died - to a past that for him, was only months or years ago, rather than decades. In some ways, this is completely understandable - Bucky might be the very last person left alive who truly knows who the real Steve Rogers is, because the rest of these people only know Captain America and we are consistently shown through multiple movies how uncomfortable this makes him.
This gets...considerably less and less understandable as we are shown Steve’s growing relationships with Natasha, Sam, Wanda - even Sharon, though she barely gets any screen time and they share the most awkward kiss I’ve ever seen - and indeed, what might be the most uncomfortable kiss in cinema history.
Side Note 3: This is made even more awkward by the director’s choice to have two of Steve’s friends watching them the whole time - seriously, who even does that? Why would you make them do that? Only sociopaths make out with their friends staring at them like that. It’s so fucking creepy - and don’t even get me fucking started on the fact that she’s also apparently his own niece. AHHHHH!
But we are shown, over and over again, that Steve is capable of building close meaningful relationships with people in the present. They don’t know his whole history, but they do know Steve Rogers rather than Captain America and they care about him deeply.
Side Note 4: Notice that I don’t count Tony Stark among those people - despite this strangely persistent narrative that the various writers and directors tried to sell to the audience, Tony and Steve were not friends. They were never friends. They were colleagues at best, but these were two men who neither liked nor understood each other very well, but had to work together. And sometimes that’s okay, too. (Oh dear, I just gave the Stony fans a fit too, didn’t I? Sorry, guys. Enemies to Lovers is a great trope, I support you!)
But let’s set aside Steve’s gross betrayal of the people who loved him. We’ll also ignore the question of whether the motive for these good actions has tainted the actions themselves. Because even without questioning these, the conclusion of this story arc still transforms Steve into the biggest monster this franchise has.
The very fundamental way that the writers and directors can’t agree on how the time travel mechanics in their own story work mean that Steve has just done one of two things and they range from shady and very questionable to absolutely fucking horrific.
The first, that he’s created his own alternate universe to exist in, is morally dubious at best. Even the people who support this theory and liked the ending seem to feel that it wasn’t necessarily a ten out of ten on the moral goodness spectrum. They’ll say things like ‘he deserved to have his happy ending’. Even that phrasing seems to acknowledge that doing this was the opposite of the right thing. It just considers doing the wrong thing as being justified rather than horrifying.
But let’s examine this first idea for a minute - even this, the more innocent of the two implications, means that rather than really processing his grief or dealing with the repeated tragedies and losses that have occured in his life, even as he was running group therapy sessions and grief counseling, Steve Rogers chose to escape his current life by creating an alternate universe that specifically allows he himself to live out his own fucking fantasies of the way his life should have turned out.
That, in case you are not aware, is wildly fucked up. I thought I was playing pretty fast and loose with Steve’s characterization when I turned him into an extremely polite serial killer but as it turns out, I clearly just wasn’t setting the bar high enough, because that’s somehow even more fucked up than being an undercover child soldier with a small sadistic streak.
Hm, and now I feel I should have been more creative there...
The second, and even more horrifying option, is that this older Steve Rogers has been in this world the whole time, watching as things unfolded just as we’ve seen over the past decade, taking ‘the slow way’ through time.
Side Note 5: I do kind of understand why you would do it this way, because that’s really cool and shocking when you say that! Until you think about it for longer than three seconds and suddenly you realize…
Everything that has happened here, every tragedy and downfall these people experienced, happened because Steve Rogers lived his happily ever after with his beautiful wife and did absolutely nothing to stop it. He got to fuck Peggy Carter and watched as his wife built an empire of intelligence networks, knowing that her efforts were completely in vain because her agency was rotten to the core and he never told her.
Every horrifying act committed by HYDRA under the guise of SHIELD was permitted through Steve Rogers’ negligence. And that’s just the wider big-picture worldview, large and shocking, but not personal.
What about the people that Steve claims to actually care about?
This means that Steve lived his whole life in contentment with his wife and children while his best friend was physically and psychologically tortured for over seventy years and just...let that go.
He allowed one friend to murder another in the nineties, when the Winter Soldier was sent after Howard and Maria Stark. Then their child was being advised by a greedy self-interested warmonger who paid terrorists to drag him off to be tortured and slaughtered, and Steve did nothing about that, either.
Bruce Banner was exploited, experimented on, and made into a monster against his will in the failed pursuit of recreating what was done to Steve, resulting in billions of dollars in damage and dozens or even hundreds of lives lost, and Steve allowed that to happen, too.
Like Bucky Barnes, Natasha Romanov was physically and psychologically tortured for others to use her as a living weapon - except that this was probably happening to her since early childhood, and a man her future self loved and trusted implicitly did nothing to save her from this upbringing.
The Maximoff twins are shown to have not wealthy but loving parents who are murdered in front of them and they both endure days of laying in the rubble of their ruined apartment, wondering if the bomb in their living room would go off and kill them. Later, they are taken in by HYDRA, experimented on, and recruited as child soldiers to the cause when they show signs of having supernatural powers. They start a series of events that result in the destruction of a major city and the loss of what is probably thousands of lives. Pietro is murdered while trying to help the Avengers to stop this, and Wanda suffers the loss of the very last living person she loved. None of these things seem to have bothered Future Steve.
Steve “I can’t sit on the sidelines when I see a situation go sideways” Rogers, planted himself on that fucking sideline and observed for nearly eighty years as friends, colleagues, and his own wife were lied to, brainwashed, tortured, vilified, and hunted down like animals.
And then there Steve Rogers himself - not the Endgame Steve Rogers, the Steve Rogers who brought down a Nazi plane and will lie beneath the ice for seventy years while everything he knows disappear (mostly) innocent of these horrors, the life he would’ve lived stolen from him by a stranger with his name and his face from another universe.
What I’m saying here is that if you consider this idea for any amount of time, it took Steve Rogers less than ten minutes to become the most evil and disturbing figure in the entire MCU, only (not really tho) contested by Thanos himself.
Gross and poorly reasoned libertarian ethics aside, Thanos genuinely believes that he did what he did for the sake of the entire population. It’s made fairly explicitly clear that Steve didn’t do this for anyone but himself.
Call me crazy, but if everyone you know needs to suffer and multiple planet-wide devestations have to happen in order for you to get your happy ending, you might be the bad guy.
Maybe I’m just old-fashioned?
16 notes
·
View notes
Text
OKAY, my thoughts on batman: bad blood
overall: interesting but not much depth
i'm going to break down this movie and its three acts by their plot and character development, and give my general feelings as we go through the acts and then at the end.
act 1
- i liked the kate kane introduction. we get a feel for who she is/what she's about decently well
- really wish we'd gotten more of dick!batman and robin!damian. they get like one scene together. sad. that said, i don't think i've ever seen an animated dick!batman, so it was interesting to hear how the voice actor chose to do a "dick grayson voice but as batman" ya feel?
- love how dick is batman for like two days and has already told two people who he is lmao
- also, the last movie ended by saying oh man damian need to go off and find his own sense of morality and then they don't even delve back into it until THE THIRD ACT
- dick has this line where he tells kate growing up with bruce was lonely because bruce and batman are both just a mask for bruce's pain that he never shares with anyone which like. deep.
- luke doesn't get a whole lot to do. i think mainly he's here so that instead of dick adding 1(one) person to the batfam because he specifically trusts just kate, he's willing to add two, because dick is just that sort of guy.
- dick does this whole angst thing about being batman but like he's only batman for like two acts so like why even start that
OKAY so second act
- "god won't like this" "i don't think she's been around for a while" lmao kate
- damian gets a fucking CLONE WHO IS WEIRD AS FUCK?? AND THEN IS IMMEDIATELY KILLED BY TALIA??? WHAT THE SHIT???
- i got the impression from batman and robin that talia, like, actually cared for her son?? like why the fuck else leave damian with batman you KNOW bruce is going to impart some anti-killing mantra into him WHY DOES THIS SURPRISE YOU. THE DAMIAN CLONE ADDED NOTHING. WE CAN MAKE UP ANOTHER REASON ROBIN GETS KIDNAPPED
- talia got no nuance and depth in this film idk shes straight up like yeah dami ur fucking useless i don't love you LIKE??? BRO???
- when they get bruce home he tells dick off for telling ppl their ID's and gets mad like DAMN if i was dick i'd be pissed too.
- the fight scenes are cool
ACT THREE
- they have a fight scene where kate fights her dad in her underwear what up sexist writing decisions.
- damian tries to save a villain pretty instinctively and SEEMS like he's more anti-killing so i guess this is the result of his himalayan school trip??
- alfred engages in fisticuffs LMAO
- nightwing vs batman fight A+
- so bruce is mind controlled and dick talks him out of it? it's really interesting bcus earlier talia told tetch that getting to the child inside of batman, i.e. his childhood trauma, would be what would break him, but it's dick recalling the trauma to bruce that is what breaks bruce out of the mind control. because even if they fight and dick thinks he doesn't really know bruce, he knows more than most people alive.
- talia is implied to be killed by some random henchwoman of clone!damian??? okay
- damian and bruce have a heart to heart OFF SCREEN???
- movie ends with bruce working w/ kate and luke so apparently he's cool with expanding the batfamily?? like mind you he was mind controlled when he yelled at dick about it, so apparently bruce is just. cool with it now.
so yeah the movie did some interesting stuff but i think they did too much and so nothing really had any depth. they should have cut the clone damian stuff and not made talia so cold towards her kid. i think in the third act she should have given damian a chance to join her and return and damian turns her down to stay with his family. i REALLY wanted more dick and damian scenes too. also maybe pair up kate and luke in more scenes? like maybe have kate and luke working together before kate's dad attacked them. this movie needed a more central theme and main character, so i think they should have given dick more of a character arc. the story ends pretty much exactly where it began with the exception of kate and luke, but apart from that nothing major really happens
#batman: bad blood#batman bad blood#batman#superman#jason todd#dick grayson#kate kane#luke fox#batwing#dc#dcamu#the burd squawks
25 notes
·
View notes
Text
nobody asked but here are my personal top five pat gill videos | a 2.1k word long post where i rank and review pat gill’s videos for just way too long.
Right around the tail end of April, 2020, I fell into the rabbit hole of my current obsession; Polygon Dot Com Video Content. As a consequence of this was being introduced to the phenomenon of Pat Gill. A dire consequence of that consequence was me slowly, deeply, irrevocably, finding myself attracted to this marionette of a man. So, I enjoy his content and I think he’s hot and that combined with the fact that some of my friends bully me over that latter fact has inspired me to do this: rank my personal favorite Pat Gill videos in a post that’s entirely too long.
Before I get straight into the rankings, I need to explain my process.
First, I needed to narrow my scope. Polygon has a lot of videos. Polygon has a lot of videos with Pat Gill in them. If I didn’t narrow my scope, I would either go bonkers yonkers or have a list that would be kilometric in length and thus miss the entire point of ranking altogether. So, for my sanity, I am excluding any videos that are a part of a Polygon video series. This means no Overboard, no Gill and Gilbert, no Video Game Theatre, etc. If I included these, I would cry. I do not want to cry over Polygon Dot Com Video Producer Pat Gill.
Second, I need a criteria. If I just ranked videos with no system, I would find myself endlessly rearranging my list based on whatever thought comes out on top in my mind at the given moment. I am a disorganized person, so I need rules. I have decided that I will rank Pat Gill videos using the EEEH criteria.
Entertainment. Do I smile, watching the video? Do I chortle? Am I filled with the embarrassing urge to show this video to my sister and derive glee from her laughing at the exact same moment I laughed? Entertainment is key.
Education. Did I come out of this video knowing something I originally did not know? More importantly, was I engaged in the learning process? I come from a family of teachers, so I have high standards when it comes to education. If I am to learn, I must learn well.
Exaltation. This is a bit of an oddball criteria, but it is important to me. The word “exalted” is defined as “elevated in rank, character, or status.” This criteria refers to how good it is at exalting, elevating, pulling me out of a depressive episode. That is to say I’ve been in a depressive episode for the past month and whether or not the video made me stop crying and brush my teeth is essential. Polygon video content has been integral to my serotonin production lately, and thus the video’s ability of acting as an audiovisual antidepressant for me factors into the rankings.
[BONUS POINTS] Hotness. How Hot Is Pat Gill In It? I felt bad, morally, ranking videos based on how good looking I thought Pat Gill was in it---because beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and all that, and people don’t exist to be beautiful, they just are, and I agree---so I’m relegating this criteria as a bonus point. Standard is 0, because he’s always hot in my mind, but he gets plus points if he is exemplary in the hotness department.
The maximum score for each of these criteria is 5 points, making the perfect score a 15, but because of the bonus points, a 20 is, hypothetically, possible.
With that out of the way, let me dive right into it.
5. The fastest interview ever with Ben Schwartz from Sonic the Hedgehog
youtube
Entertainment: 5
Education: 2
Exaltation: 2
Hotness: +2
Total Score: 11
Pat Gill is a good interviewer, he’s engaging and fun and keeps the interview interesting, but this interview is particularly special because it seems that, and let me quote Youtube user AudreyN who left a comment on this video stating “ben schwartz consumed all seven chaos emeralds prior to this interview.” Pat Gill and Ben Schwartz’s dynamic is amazing, and by “dynamic” I do mean “Ben Schwartz absolutely just fucking dunking on Pat Gill for 14 entire minutes.” and it is glorious.
For Entertainment this scores a solid 5. Quite honestly the funniest interview I’ve ever watched in my entire life. Just the sheer beauty in the exchange [Pat] “You would use Sonic’s power to gaslight me?” [Ben] “Just you.” In terms of Education, I guess I did learn a bunch of things about the Sonic movie that I didn’t know before, but the avenue by which it was portrayed in was not exactly the most engaging, more like I was absorbing it via watching two experts discuss on a webinar. I would have given just 1 point to Education but I made it 2 because of the wonderful knowledge that Pat Gill can draw a pretty good Sonic in a few seconds. When it comes to Exaltation, I must admit that while this video got quite a few laughs out of me, it didn’t make me want to get out of bed and take a shower.
BONUS: Pat is +2 hot in it. His short hair makes him look very handsome. He’s a spiffy boy, in this video. Very, very good.
4. Pat Will Not Tweet at Nintendo This Week Because He is Resting at Home — PLEASE RETWEET, Episode 12
youtube
Entertainment: 5
Education: 0
Exaltation: 5
Hotness: +1
Total Score: 11
I know I’m breaking a rule I set for myself a few paragraphs earlier by including an episode of Please Retweet, which counts as a video series, but this is my post and I can do whatever I want. More importantly, this video is so fucking funny to me, it feels like it would be a crime not to put it in this list.
Solid 5 out of 5 for entertainment. Pat Gill, alone in his apartment, drinking six cans of what I think is beer silently while the intro music plays. That scene in itself should win an Oscar. Sadly, a solid 0 for Education, because I learn nothing in this video except for the fact that Pat Gill is the type of person to put out a coaster and then just completely not use it. I quantify things as educational if I can maybe answer a trivia question with them, and unfortunately, this fact does not pass that test. In terms of Exaltation, seeing Pat Gill lie down on the floor next to his cat made me get out of bed to do the same with my dog, and with myself thusly out of my bed cocoon of sadness, I was able to actually complete tasks on the day I watched this video. Perfect 5.
BONUS: Pat is +1 hot in this because there’s something very beautiful about him being a little bit miserable. However, I do miss his beard when I watch this video. It is one of my favorite things about him, and it is not present here.
3. Pat and Simone Play Human: Fall Flat
youtube
Entertainment: 5
Education: 1
Exaltation: 5
Hotness: 0
Total Score: 11
I very much enjoy Polygon’s gameplay streams. I often play them in the background while I’m doing other stuff like doodling or origami, but this stream is special. It is special because of the moment at 24:00 when Pat Gill, in game, swings a stereo into a glass window, shattering it, while saying, “Actually, y’know what? Let’s talk about trauma.” and then proceeds to tell a horrible and embarrassing story from his childhood where he had to do a rap about Ancient Egypt.
5 points for Entertainment. This is partly because of Pat’s tragic childhood story about the Egypt Rap (and, segue just to point out 33:22 the incredible moment where you can hear Pat’s feral panic when Simone finds the lyrics to the Egypt Rap) but also because Pat and Simone just talking to each other is so deeply entertaining to me in a very comfy way. I’m starved for human interaction, in this quarantime, okay. Let me enjoy listening to other people have conversations while playing video games. Education scores a 1 because, again, nothing in this video will let me answer a trivia question, however it does get 1 point and not a 0 because the Egypt Rap’s lyrics are in the comments and I did end up learning stuff about Ancient Egypt that I didn’t know. A perfect 5 for Exaltation because this video showed me that talking about trauma can actually be cathartic, given that you’re trashing a video game living room at the same time, and I think that message of not bottling up your experiences really helped me, in these trying times.
BONUS: Pat Gill is not visible for the entirety of this episode, so he scores the standard 0. I’m sure he was hot. We just couldn’t see him.
2. Why Bloodborne and Muppets are the same thing
youtube
Entertainment: 4
Education: 4
Exaltation: 3
Hotness: +2
Total Score: 12
Ah yes, one of Pat’s “x is y because of z” videos. He’s made a number of these and they’re all very good but this one is my favorite among them and earns a spot on this list because 1) I think puppets are cool and 2) I fucking love monsters.
This video scores a 4 on Entertainment, just shy of perfect, because as funny as it is, it also gives me the vibe like I am being lectured by a professor who’s just a little bit off the shits. And we all know that lectures are supposed to be taken seriously. Which brings us to Education, which also scores a 4. I learned a lot in this video! Watching Pat Gill explain to me that children’s puppets and these horrifying viddy game monsters use the same character principles in different ways is not only very educational but is also explained in a streamline and easy to understand manner that I WISH some of the shitty professors at my old university could emulate. As for Exaltation, while this video did give me enough energy to have a meal, I did eventually end up back in bed for the night at 8pm crying myself to sleep, thinking “I’m like the slime scholar. Used to be a scholar. Now they’re slime.”
BONUS: Pat Gill is +2 hot here. He’s rockin that basic ass monochromatic aesthetic and I love his look dearly.
1. Preparing for Big Boy Season in Red Dead Redemption 2
youtube
Entertainment: 5
Education: 3
Exaltation: 5
Hotness: +3
Total Score: 16
Here we are. My favorite non video series Pat Gill video. The video where Pat Gill tries to make Red Dead Redemption 2 protagonist, Arthur Morgan, large.
Perfect fucking 5 for Entertainment, which I’m sure many may find odd. Afterall, this video is told in a serious investigative tone reminiscent of Vox’s videos on current issues. But that’s the glory of it. The complete and utter ‘playing it straight and serious’ for a ridiculous issue in a video game. It is high tier comedy in a subtle, understated way that sings to my comedy loving heart in a melody so lovely, so wonderful, that it urged me to give this video 5 points for Entertainment. It scores 3 on Education, because I have never played Red Dead Redemption 2, nor will I ever, but now I know things about it. The information was also relayed to me in a very interesting style, via something like a crime procedural, and thus it was engaging for me to absorb all this new knowledge. Exaltation scores a perfect 5 because of this video’s beautiful end about existential smallness. No joke, but hearing Pat Gill say “Our bigness isn’t measured in pounds, but in the impact we have on the people with whom we shared the world.” deadass made me want to talk to my friends again after conversationally isolating myself for 3 days. Preparing for Big Boy Season has a special place in my heart. And there it will stay.
BONUS: Pat Gill is not visible for most of the video but he does appear for like 15 seconds in the middle of it, and guess what. He’s hot. +3 hotness. Good beardage, good hair, all in all, good Pat Gill.
So there you have it. My five favorite Pat Gill videos. If you read this whole thing, holy shit. You’re welcome, I guess.
#this is what im using my degree in creative writing for i guess#polygon#pat gill#pat gill thirst jail#patrick gill#nobody asked but
171 notes
·
View notes
Text
Listing my favorite animes (because I’m jumping on the bandwagon)
❗️⚠️ *spoilers!! (Duh)* ❗️⚠️
5. Deadman Wonderland
I was really really sad when I found out this anime got cancelled. The music was fantastic, the animation was really good, and the voice acting was incredible. Even the fucking dubbed version (I loved the voice they chose for Senji. God he was hilarious). I binged this show so fucking fast it wasn’t even funny. I loved watching the characters go through their own struggles and grow as people in the very small amount of episodes provided. There was a lot of development within the snippet that we actually saw, and I was thoroughly impressed with how well it was done. I wanted to scream or something when I found out there wouldn’t be a second season.
Sigh. Oh well. At least we got some of the manga’s masterpiece translated into a show, even if we were missing some fucking awesome characters.
4. Guilty Crown
Ugh, don’t even get me started. This anime was beautiful and I got so invested so freaking quickly. I literally go back every few years to rewatch it because I get ship starved.
Shu and Inori’s story was so beautifully done; between Shu uncovering his courage and Inori’s journey of self-discovery, I was continuously awe-struck and filled with feelings—I mean, I had never felt such raw emotion while watching something and I was completely blown away by the affect it had on me. Anger, hatred, sadness, it was all there (even for the main character lmao) and it was one of the first times I had ever felt a ship so heavily that I literally cried at the end. It was one of the very first Animes I’d ever seen and was one of the reasons I got such a taste for them. Thanks for throwing me down that rabbit hole, GC.
3. Soul Eater
This was literally the first Anime I’d ever seen, and my god I couldn’t have asked for a better starter. What I like about this one is that it’s style is so unique and different. It’s very punk and grunge, something I admired and appreciated in a genre that is normally the opposite (like Guilty Crown, for example). Also the fight scenes were badass, like holy shit just look at that gif ??? Freaking amazing.
I loved the way the show transitioned from light hearted to intense and adrenaline pumping so effortlessly. That can be said about a lot of shows, but this one went from *haha cute show* to *holy shit, like they’re actually gonna die ohmygod howaretheygoingtosurvivethis* so smoothly I was genuinely surprised. They made one of the main villains actually cool and each character had their own beautifully done arc. I loved and adored how the show solidified and expanded on the different friendships/relationships that were involved—specifically Soul and Maka’s (also, holy shit, Stein’s arc? Fucking prime, dude). There was a lot of growth in each and every friendship (CRONA!!!), and that really pushed the viewer to invest in the individual characters.
I am fucking delighted that this was my first anime, and (though the ending was a little anticlimactic) it remains one of my top favorites to this day. It set the bar pretty fucking high, and for that I am extremely greatful.
No one asked for Soul Eater: Not! It is the unspoken sin of the Soul Eater world (then again, it is called Soul Eater: Not!)
2. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
If you have been following me for a while, then you are no stranger to my love of FMAB. Some of my most popular posts are about this anime, and for good reason.
Unfortunately, I was late to the party. I actually didn’t watch this until last year, but got invested really damn quick. I have a tendency to be extremely picky about the animes that I watch/like (which is why NONE of these shows are that recent), to the point that I will literally research them before I start watching (a bad habit, do not copy me). I have an incomparably hard time finishing a show when I start, because I get bored really quickly, but this was an exception. I started watching and I just... didn’t stop. I spent a straight week watching FMAB, gobbling it up during any small amount free time I could manage, and finished it before I even knew what happened. I wasn’t picky about it, I didn’t research it, I just dove right in and gosh, I was not disappointed.
The subtle romance that was alluded throughout the entire show was super cute, the devotion the brothers had for each other was to die for, and the struggles that each person went through was more than moving. I never once found myself bored while watching, and that’s saying a lot for my adhd ass. I was invested in each and every second of that damn anime and I was never, ever left underwhelmed. That probably had to do with the fact that every. Single. Character. Had a purpose. I’m not even kidding. Every single person contributed to the big fight at the end and that alone is fucking fantastic.
Not to mention ALL the women, every female character, was a badass bitch. None of them were reduced to sex appeal or romantic subplot, they all had real feelings, real arcs and real, unadulterated badassery that I thoroughly admired and appreciated. I could watch this anime over and over again every single month and I wouldn’t get bored. Between the emotional struggle, self discovery, and personal development of each character, I promise you will not see a lack of plot or meaning here. The more you watch, the more you discover and that is not a lie. There are so many layers to its story, which only makes me wish I had watched this sooner.
There is nothing I have to offer in the ways of criticism, and for that I couldn’t be happier. Thank you, Hiromu Arakawa, for such an incredible piece of art. You deserve every bit of love that this manga/anime gets. You go girl.
1. Cowboy Bepop
Holy shit holy shit holy shit this anime is so fucking good and it has been my favorite for so damn long. I have been watching anime for years, and while some of the shows in my list have moved around, this one has yet to be bumped down from the top (and I doubt it ever will). There’s a reason it became such a cult classic.
For starters, the animation. I mean, just look at Spike and the way they animate his fighting (yes I am aware that this gif is from the movie, but that still doesn’t change my point). The sequences in the show/film have been reused in many other shows and for good reason. It’s good, incredible, actually and they make him look so badass with just a few hand movements. I was consistently impressed with the way the fight scenes were portrayed and wasn’t ever left underwhelmed or disappointed (or, for that matter, feeling like they completely over exaggerated/overcompensated the scene with huge close-ups and tons of debris and lights). I loved watching this and my heart was always pounding with every intense interaction. I didn’t feel bored during any of the episodes and always found myself laughing when they cracked a joke—pretty much all of their funny lines hit and that’s saying something, dude.
The show, while having a lighthearted surface, has a heavy meaning that you don’t see at first glance. It’s about dealing with grief and loss, and how the characters themselves accomplished that in different ways. The most prominent quote is the biggest indication of its moral “you’re gonna carry that weight”. Basically: ‘You’ve gotta pick up your baggage, because the world moves on, with or without you’. Or ‘You’re going to carry that weight whether you like it or not, because life keeps going’. When I figured out the show’s actual message, while staring at my ceiling in the long hours of the night, I almost cried. This realization brought something entirely different to the table, a new understanding of the show’s characters and overall essence.
The main characters, all of them, had depth. They had real, palpable depth, and even if you didn’t want to care you found yourself seriously interested in their lives. Each of them had relatively shitty pasts. Faye with her lost memories, Spike with Julia and the people who fucked him over, Jet with his old flame and the ISSP, Ed and her/his father... throughout the entire show we got to see how all of them dealt with these things, whether they wanted to continue on with life or not. The way they portrayed it was engaging, because the characters individual, contrasting journeys weren’t repetitive or one note. The beauty that the show holds so achinging close to its core, the layers of grief that the characters are wrapped in so delicately is almost suffocatingly real—because they’re all different. It’s something you discover when you think on the subject in a deeper light, which is another reason why I enjoy it so much. It has both a surface story and a deeper one. You can either take the show at face value or choose to understand the underlying moral.
This show inspired my very first, thoroughly fleshed out OC, and continues to inspire me to this day. It has contributed to my own personal growth, and has helped push me to continue my art and writing. It is beautifully written, beautifully executed and even though some of the episodes seem like filler, it has never disappointed me. I rewatch it all the time because there’s something so infinitely refreshing about the beauty of this anime, whether it be the way we watch the characters develop or the overall moral it portrays. This show has given us a message that is essentially timeless, it can be ‘carried’ through generation after generation, and still have the same impact—something I absolutely fucking adore.
I owe so much to this anime, including my very own artistic development. I discovered it during a really shitty time in my life and I couldn’t have asked for better timing. I will never tire of the bittersweet message or the thoroughly fucking fantastic animation. Everyone who contributed to this masterpiece deserves love, because it’s seriously fucking gold.
#deadman wonderland#ganta igarashi#shiro#soul eater#soul eater evans#maka albarn#blackstar#tsubaki nakatsukasa#death the kid#liz and patty#franken stein#crona#guilty crown#shu ouma#inori yuzuriha#fullmetal alchemist: brotherhood#edward elric#alphonse elric#cowboy bebop#spike spiegel#faye valentine#jet black#edward wong hau pepelu tivrusky iv#ein#anime#anime aesthetic#anime gif#fmab edwin#inori and shu#soul and maka
246 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
chessess
Untitled
musingsofmissanon
Musings Of Miss Anon
ohhaiitssarah
so young and lovely
katkrow
korie
kipastangancustom
Tanpa judul