#skirm rambles

[skirm-the-terrible]

Finished listening to TMA again and tjinking about. How for the whole show the safest place for anyone Jon cared about was to be as far away from him as possible, if not physically then emotionally.

But the apocalypse rolls around and suddenly the safest place for Martin, the person he has grown to care for so, so much, is right by his side. Everything is fuck but he is finally able to protect someone by holding them closer.

Can you imagine the relief of that. Finally having the power to keep one person safe after losing nigh everything else. The bone deep satisfaction of it. Lord

[skirm-the-terrible]

I don’t really experience a lot of gender envy. Or gender euphoria, really, mostly gender frustration and gender apathy.

The one and only exception is Fujimoto from Ponyo

I want to BE HIM

[skirm-the-terrible]

once i was standing in line for merch at a crane wives concert and the person in front of me (leather jacket, long hair, gnc af) completely unprompted turned around, looked me up and down, and said “you’re autistic.”

and i think about that sometimes

[skirm-the-terrible]

Yall should watch this one if you haven’t

[skirm-the-terrible]

There are SO many Buffy references in I Saw the TV Glow!! Here’s all the things I noticed (gasped out loud about)

- First of all The Pink Opaque gives off Buffy vibes right off the bat. I love a girl who can wield an axe in prom fit and insanely weird monsters-of-the-week!

- Opening credits typeface! I was told before watching that TPO had Buffy vibes but that Herculanum font was the first direct nod.

- Tara & Isabel. Tara is the name of (my favorite) character in Buffy. The dynamic between the two MCs of TPO parallels that of BTVS Tara MaClay and Willow Rosenberg; both Taras are experienced in both the supernatural worlds and queer identities that their counterparts are discovering.

- Amber Benson is the actress for Tara MaClay and makes a cameo as Johnny Link’s mom (the gasp I gusped)

- TPO was cancelled on season 5 and ended with the burials of the two MCs. Season 5 of BTVS was originally meant to be its last, with (spoilers) Buffy dying at the end. However, new showrunners brought her back from the dead for two more seasons.

- In the first episode of season 6, Buffy literally claws her way out of her grave, just as Tara did upon reentering the reality of TPO.

- I really wouldn’t be surprised if the inklings of this film’s concept were inspired by some specific moments in BTVS. Two episodes in Season 6 in particular: ep17 “Normal Again” and, ofc, ep7 “Once More With Feeling”.

“Normal Again” is a controversial episode in which Buffy is poisoned by a demon that gives her visions of a world where her life as a slayer is an elaborate hallucination that she is being treated for in a mental institution. Her parents and doctors are begging her to snap out of it and come back to “reality”. It is even left ambiguous whether the alternate world is true.

Many of the lyrics and themes in “Once More With Feeling”, the BTVS musical episode, fit with I Saw the TV Glow. I saw a lot of parallels in Buffy’s journey in season 6 as a whole, and this episode highlights them. When Buffy comes back to life, she struggles to readjust to the world, one which is now cruel compared to the heavenly realm she spent her brief death in. She sings: “I live in Hell//‘Cause I’ve been expelled//from Heaven”. At this point I might be stretching, but the conflict feels similar to Owen’s “real life” vs The Pink Opaque.

Life’s a show

And we all play our parts

And when the music starts

We open up our hearts

Something To Sing About

[skirm-the-terrible]

Just got back from Superman so. Thoughts!!! (Superman spoilers obviously)

There’s lots of folks talking about all different parts of this brilliant film, so I wanted to offer some bits of my own I haven’t seen talked about as much.

Mr. Terrific. Forgive my frankly abysmal knowledge of DC comics, I didn’t know this character existed, and he ended up being probably my favorite in the movie. He started out as this apathetic, emotionless “smart guy” character and yet HE is the one who goes with Lois, who cares enough to use his capabilities to do something rather than sit back like the others. He becomes more expressive from then on, provides some comic relief but pretty much never at the expense of his ~not doing emotion~, is justifiably Done with everyone by the end, and perhaps most significant is that he shows himself to be entirely capable in a fight despite being labeled “just the smart one”. I just thought he was very well-written as a black character and filler of an archetype that is usually very autistic-coded.

The Boravian leader being signaled once Superman seems to be down for the count and immediately making an announcement of genocidal intent. This conflict in the movie is a rather pointed parallel to the Palestinian genocide and there are many moments like this that are direct nods to things Israeli leaders have done or said. The fact that Boravian leadership waited until they thought there would be no obstacle or anyone to punish them is important because it shows that war is not inevitable. Putting pressure on leaders works, because otherwise people in power can and will get away with anything they want. We don’t have a Superman to stop wars, but our voices matter and can have the same effect.

Starting a superhero movie—sorry, a SUPERMAN movie with the indestructible protagonist fallen and beaten to pulp? Brilliant. One of the major facets of Superman’s identity is his humanity, which the audience is reminded of with his every mistake and beat down. The interview scene with Lois I felt showed off some of the rougher edges of Clark’s personality, frustration and anger that I was surprised by. It revealed a depth to his character as not just someone who wants to do good, but also as someone who makes mistakes, who fails, whose response is imperfect. He isn’t cool or ignorant of his effect on the world, the consequences of his actions, he gets upset at social media and angry when someone doesn’t see his perspective. It was an intensely relatable scene.

On a less serious note, Krypto being the most unhelpful destructive little beast was absolutely delightful. I love a little guy who actively worsens a situation. There was just this subtle emphasis on animal companions (the evacuation scenes especially) and how they are loved and deserve love in situations where they are burdensome.

BOY HOWDY what a movie. Do I want to make Superman fanart?? 100% cried at the end scene when Clark is surrounded by images of his parents and childhood. Go see it if you somehow haven’t already after getting thru this long ass post <3

[skirm-the-terrible]

throwing up about him

[skirm-the-terrible]

Kids these days think fighting god is the ideal opportunity to flirt. How are we supposed to relinquish the land from divine tyranny if yall are making eyes over Its terrible blade