I feel like The Outsiders fandom doesn't take enough advantage of Pony being a good liar. We see him lie to Soda in the first chapter, then on page 73-74 we see him lie to that farmer, and he says that Soda said the ability to lie comes from all the books he reads, further proving that canonically, he is a good liar! Now obviously Pony isn't the most reliable narrator, but if he were a bad liar, Soda would have no reason to lie about it, and he certainly wouldn't have fallen for Pony saying he's cold in chapter one, no matter how tired he was.
Now, I've seen people use Pony being a good liar for chaos reasons, like him starting a gang (on accident), or breaking Darry's rules, or sick fics, but what I really wanna see is how his lying can be incorporated into his canon dynamics with the gang and his family.
Ponyboy thinks throughout the entire book that the gang only tolerates him because he's a Curtis, and because he knows when to keep his mouth shut. Throughout the story, even at the end, Pony is unsure if Darry loves him as much as Soda. That kinda thinking doesn't develop over night. Imagine, 8 year old Pony feigning disinterest when Soda invites him to play with everyone else because he already knows that the older kids will just think of him as an annoyance.
9 year old Pony waking up screaming from a nightmare and telling his parents to go back to bed because 'he was scared but he's okay now,' because he doesn't want his parents to get sick of him the way the other parents in the neighborhood seem to be sick of their kids.
10 year old Pony lying to the cashier about getting cigarettes for his parents because he wants the big kids to take him seriously, and smoking seems like the only way that'll happen.
11 year old Pony lying to his parents about what he ate at school so he can save up the lunch money he gets every day, in hopes that one day he'll be able to support his family.
12 year old Pony acting unaffected when Steve pushes him and yells at him for always chasing after Soda, because he thinks that if he just handles Steve's cruelty he'll one day respect Pony.
13 year old Pony refusing to cry when his parents die, saying 'I'm fine,' in hopes that no one will see how badly the loss actually hurt him.
14 year old Pony telling his brother he's cold after he got jumped because he'd rather die than admit weakness.
14 year old Pony asking Two-Bit not to tell his brothers he's sick because he needs to fight in that rumble, only to end up passing out.
Ponyboy, who would rather lie than be himself because he was taught that being himself is bad.
Misa Amane and a deconstruction of the protagonist archetype
I wrote this as a comment on a Lawlight fic called "L do you know..." by caffienesuspect (fire fic btw), and I thought I kinda cooked so I'm going to post it here:
"Misa Amane is a character who benefits a lot from analyzing the text under the framing of 'death of the author.' As I wont sugarcoat it, and as we have discussed before, Ohba's seeming views on women range from misinformed to flat out disgusting. As stated before, in one of his other works, he seems to see the best type of women are not the intelligent ones with self worth, but ones who know their place. It seems that the happiest ending a woman can have in his works, is married and devoted to a man. Which of course, for some people that is genuienly what makes them happy, and I hope the best for them! But given the fact that I dont believe that any of his works have passed the Bechdel Test, or if they have, it still wasnt great."
"All that to say that for the purposes of this analysis, I will be doing so under the guise of 'death of the author' as I do believe that if I analyed Misa with author's intent in mind, it would be a much flater charaterization than I think there is otherwise."
"Misa Amane is closer to what I would describe as the typical YA protagonist. A conventionally attractive young adult who lost their parents is granted a second shot at life who is given a mystical power and a companion, as they set off on a quest to find out who saved her and to prevent others from going through what she did. While she may not be the brightest, she will always try her best and is extrememly loyal to her those she loves. It is a story structure that has been seen time and time again. In any other story, Misa would be the main character, Light would be the love intrest that betrays her in the 3rd act, and L would be the stoic detective that doesnt understand what our main character has been through."
"But she's not.....she is the token love interest who gets shafted to side during the third act. The broken clock who's right twice a day. The idiot who is just getting in the way of this cat and mouse game of the century. Once you shift the framing, it turns into a briliant deconstruction of the protagonist archetype. Misa is not an idiot, if anything, I'd consider her slightly above average. Yet by putting her next to all these insanely smart characters, she does look to be bellow average. She is however, insanely charismatic. Her words and empathy being her greatest strength. In any story other that put Misa at the helm, she would have been seen as an equal because of that."
"Death Note instead shows how dangerous and frankly, naive this protagonist mindset would actually be in a quazi-dystopian setting. As the traits that would make her the sympathetic main character are instead what directly leads to her downfall and death. Without more time with Misa and access to her thoughts, her actions turn a lot more morally grey. Her loyalty and love were her fatal flaws. Love does not conquer all."
I do have more to say on this subject so I might write a part 2 to this at some point. Especially when it comes to how Misa and Takada are treated, more specifically their deaths.
I think a major part of why I enjoy Sieun's fight scenes—other than how impressive it is watching him adapt to his surroundings—is his outlook on violence.
In the beginning, he was passive; he saw no need to fight back because Yeongbin and the others hadn't attacked any part of him he saw as worth defending. It wasn't until they sabotaged his academics—his escape—that he felt the need to retaliate. After that, he'd continue to fight for Beomseok and Suho, and eventually Baku, Gotak, Juntae, and all of Eunjang, because he saw them as worthy causes.
Now, the reason why I find it so compelling is because I have been bullied as well, though it was luckily not to the extent shown in the drama. At the time, and in some ways still, I shared a lot of Sieun's traits, so seeing a character who I can relate to in such a way, one that tries to do the right thing—even if his idea of doing the right thing is keeping his head down in passive "apathy"—but still being able to fight back when he needs to is nice to see as someone who couldn't.
back on my toshi ranting for a sec here! ^_^ can we tell the hyperfix is kicking my ass…
rewatching the kyoto goodwill event simply bc i missed him badly 😓 and i got to the ep where we get his backstory and when i tell you i GASPED.
so when it switches to older him having that conversation with whoever that woman is, he asks why the kamo clan took him in and she says bc his father’s ACTUAL wife (cuz yk toshi’s mom was just a concubine) gave birth to a child that didn’t have a technique.
…
DO WE REALIZE WHAT THAT MEANS 😭😭😭 HE HAS ANOTHER HALF SIBLING…who we can assume is male based on how these clans function
personally i believe this child is older than noritoshi by at least a year for 1) the narrative and 2) the amount of sense it makes??? techniques usually kick in around 5-6 y/o and there’s no exact date for when it happens. could happen when you turn 5 or your last day as 6. so they could’ve most likely waited to be sure, but i feel like they already knew…
(unsure if kid straight up had no curse energy or simply didn’t have an innate technique; either way i don’t think it mattered to the clan)
but this kid doesn’t have the technique and toshi is brought in as the new heir. when i tell you the ideas started FLOWING. little noritoshi wanting to get along with his older sibling because they were family, but doesn’t realize his entire existence is an insult to this child. an insult to everything they knew at this point. THEY should be the heir, not serving tea to some bastard child who got lucky.
AND ARGHHHHHH THEIR RELATIONSHIP KINDA MAKES ME SICK??? IM SO NORMAL???
and then don’t even get me started on when he finds out abt his mother’s second son, his younger half-brother and he’s transported back to his youth and he feels so SICK. he now feels that exact feeling of being replaced and he just can’t actually go up to them. he can’t make that connection (NOT YET ANYWAYS!) and reach out…
he wants to hate that little boy for having a childhood with his mother, something HE never got. but god he can’t. his kid brother would be around the same age he was, wouldn’t he? he’s just a kid…so when toshi finally meets him, he refuses to continue the cycle. he loves that little boy and does his best at being a great older brother
…ARGHHHHHHHHH IM GONNA KMS 😹😹😹
noritoshi kamo…and ur relationship with siblingism and replacement…mmmmm i love u, u traumatized lil guy…
thing I've noticed consistently with Vince is that he's always compassionate when someone is at their lowest. he reassures Regina at the end of the QB sidequest; he empathizes with fiends during the lament of the damned sidequest
feels like one of those cruel irony things that the one person he'll give no compassion to for their mistakes is himself (and calling 'working as a bodyguard for an amoral company with no real control over stopping the JENOVA Project' a mistake could definitely be argued as a massive overstatement on his part)
It really says a lot about who Vincent that even after everything that happened to him, he’s still kind and empathetic to others. He might not be the most social or even approachable person, but he still has a genuinely good heart. He’s probably one of the nicest members of the main cast.
I’m sure that he can and will eventually start to forgive himself if he is given the proper support and care, something I plan on including on my future projects.
*these were compiled from a bunch of old separate/individual Chucky rants of mine *
a majority of this is just be gushing about behind the scene details and character quirks with SOME synopses about some of the movies (mostly focusing on my favorites,curse and cult)also i learned a lot of this info from dead meats yt channel,they do kill counts and go in depth about horror movie productions n stuff!!if you like my little ramble and wanna hear a more concise in depth summary of the story with added behind the scenes info I’d suggest checking out their Chucky franchise recounts !! I do paraphrase some cool parts that I noticed only after watching dead meats kill count so again,highly recommend checking out their video if you want a better in depth look at the Chucky/childs play series!!!
(also fyi not beta read ,pretty much word vomiting about my favorite horror franchise)
Chucky ramble ⬇️ : D
(Spoiler warning and tw for canon typical violence/violent scene mentions)
Offshooting from a Scream tangent discussing favorite horror movies,Chucky (for me atleast) just handles the characters much better.
the way that they never stray away from the main antagonists and also manage to introduce new protagonists in a way that they relate the the ever growing franchise lore/plot just amazes me
not even to mention the way that Don Mancini directs the franchise and continues to integrate the same actors in a way that i havent seen a lot of horror franchises do. EX: using Jennifer Tilly to play the non doll Tiffany Valentine,using her voice after her character's normal human self dies,and using her as a full actor again to play herself in the later Chucky movies
i just adore how Don finds as many ways as possible to give the actors that have been loyal to him and his franchise new roles/work
also it really helps out with the franchises actual story too
Also i just think it’s cool that Nica Pierce is played by Fiona Dourif,daughter of Brad Dourif (Charles lee ray's actor + Chucky's voice actor)
I can go on for hours about Cult and Curse of Chucky :v
When Nica Pierce,a traditionally fem presenting person,gets possessed by Charles lee ray/Chucky,a visceral traditionally masculine serial killer,the way her mannerisms change to reflect that change in mindset and personality makes me go fucking wild
genuinely most of my favorite parts of the franchise is when she's possessed by Chucky
Also Devon Sawa has appeared so much in the Chucky franchise and he plays different characters almost every time(since the characters he plays keeps on dying) and when he appeared in the 2nd season of the Chucky franchise he makes a reference to his earlier horror comedy work (Idle Hands) and i hshdjajdnkkajs makes me so happy cause i love that movie so much
Also the way that all the movies vary tonally makes me so happy.its like sampling a little bit from each horror genre. from horror comedy,to the traditional slasher esc moments,to the utter suspense of the cult and curse movies,then not even to mention how it (in my opinion) works so well when being integrated to the tv it just works so well for me
also just i love the gore effects so much
Dr.Foley's death was genuinely one of my favorite parts of the franchise like the way his head gets bashed in with Nica's stiletto heel was really well executed,I love the practical effects used !!!
okay actually getting to each movie (and a little bit of the TV series)
The 1st movie was just a cult classic and it deserves all its recognition and it's premise and plot has still held up pretty well to present day
the 2nd movie does so well letting the audience see how the events of the 1st film plauged the young Andy Barclay into his late childhood,it's also excellent when introducing his new foster sister Kyle (best character in the first 3 movies ong)
can't say too much on the 3rd movie,it's not bad by any means,it still excels at practical gore effects and the characters and pretty solid but it's nothing compared to the movies that follow it
Bride of Chucky.
LORD
Don Mancini's turn in directors chair after overseeing the franchise since the first movie, and he does not disappoint
I've seen a lot of people claim that Bride is the worst in the franchise because of its overly silly tone but that's one of my favorite parts about this era of the franchise
The way that Don isn't afraid to play around with the characters and plot makes way for so many outlandish moments in the franchise that help it out so much overall
Anyways god i adore Jennifer Tilly
Bride being the first film that i had ever seen her act in,it was like a whole experience
the way she played Tiffany Valentine just stuck with me,then her voice acting as Tiff in doll form is so well performed,and Bride has some of the most iconic/best lines and line deliveries i have ever seen!!
Btw im trying to speed run talking about the earlier films because i really want to talk about Curse and Cult but i think that Bride is such an interesting movie when you step back and compare it to the ones the come and the ones that came before it
Anyways any film with Jennifer Tilly is a win and im so glad that she remained a mainstay in the Chucky franchise because her acting skills and her character are so much of the reason that im infatuated with this series
Okay but anyways Seed of Chucky!
Putting aside the lovely queer representation (something that will become a running theme in Mancini's work with the franchise) I lovelovelove Glen/Glenda's character(s) so much as a juxtaposition to Tiff and Chucky's.Their strange family-esc dynamic allow for so many comedic moments that let me just relax and genuinely enjoy the movie so much.
Also the fact that Glen/Glenda's voice actor is the same one that played a hobbit in lord of the rings/hobbit (i forget which) just adds a bit of silliness to them
OOO And the scene when Tiff calls a help hotline is a masterpiece on its own
The concept of a killer doll calling a help hotline because she feels like shes goiing to relapse on killing already has such a comedic premise to it but the way the movie plays it dead serious always amuses me,it adds a layer to her character that's so entertainingly nuanced
OKAY NOW ONTO CURSE + CULT
Okay so Curse of Chucky is one of my favorite movies of all time (no surprise) starting out with the mere fact that Fiona Dourif is in it AND she plays Nica Pierce.Fiona Dourif being the daughter of Brad Dourif,the actor and voice actor for Chucky/Charles lee ray,is already fantastic but Nica's character by herself serves as an astoundingly well written and complex figure in the Chucky franchise
She's strong,witty,kind,resourceful,and downright badass at times and i adore her to bits
The way her character is portrayed in Curse and Cult makes for such an interesting viewing
She's a woman whos been looked down on/pitied for all of he life,on account of the fact that she's handicapped and wheelchair bound,despite that she still manages to carry herself with a sense of self confidence that doesn't make her come off as arrogant but headstrong
When shit hits the fan she's downright distraught when her sister dies at the hands of Chucky,showing that although she has a sarcastic attitude she's still very much a well fleshed out character
Throughout the movie she's shown to be compassionate but still not taking anyone's shit and she makes for a really interesting character to nitpick
Despite her horrid situation she still manages to (almost) best Chucky at his own gritty game,she's shown to be able to both take and throw punches,even against someone/thing that's killed the rest of her family (except for alice,niece,but well get to her later)
The end of the movie is bittersweet in the sense that while Nica does manage to survive Chucky,she's left to take the blame for the massacre he left behind.
Her screaming "i'm still alive" to an unmoving chucky while in court at her own sentencing is a scene that never gets old to me
Also i cant talk about curse without mentioning the Andy Barclay cameo end credit scene because when i say i went absolutely feral to see his character come back into the franchise,still played my a now grown Alex Vincent
anyways CULT OF CHUCKY!!!
This movie take so many stylistic liberties which i dont mind,heavily reminds me of experimental artistic late 70s-early 90s european films
It also fully brings back Andy Barclay as a mainstay character + a cameo from Kyle!!!
This film taking place a few years (i believe) from the last movie,still following Nica Pierce
The whole premise is that she's thrown into a mental/psyche ward and after a while accepted the false truth that she was insane and hallucinated the whole Chucky is alive thing.Eventually Dr.Foley,the main doctor at the ward overlooking Nica brings in a Chucky doll as a sort of exposure therapy and Chucky shenanigans ensue
All while Andy Barclay is trying to kill all the Chuckys (because theres more then one because of voodoo soul splitting across multiple vessles) and Nica is just trying to survive
The movie ends with Chucky shoving part of his soul in Nica Pierce,possessing her and the possesed Nica runs away from the asylum with Tiff
I could go on and on for hours about the practical gore/sfx/effects,and the great stylistic choices in the movie but i'd just be rambling more at that point than i already have
But like lord
The one scene when Dr Foley's head gets bashed beneath Nica's heel is one of my favorite parts of the franchise,both because of Fiona Dourifs and the awesome practical effects !!!
anyways
Can you tell i really like the chucky franchise-
I just realize i didnt even mention the practical Chucky animatronic effects
Throughout the whole Curse and especially Cult movie the amazing work of the puppeteers really shines through in the scenes with multiple chucky dolls!
Also how Brad Dourif decides to voice the different chucky dolls makes me so happy,like he makes the newer created Chucky's have voice cracks and a slightly pitched voice to indicate the new life brought to it and its just so well done in the movie(noticed this after it was pointed out in the Chucky recount/kill count on yt :D)
also also the multiple chucky shenanigans makes me so happy lord
I could go on about the practical effects in the franchise,i havent mentioned it a lot but the puppeteering and animatronics and effects have been spectacular since the beginning,and the way that the animatronics evolve with the innovation with technology and also the bigger budgets with the movies
Rahh also also if anyone ever wants me to go into the filmography and special effects of the Chucky franchise just tell me because i will go crazzyyyyy
i really need to find a clip of the scene when Nica bashes Foleys head in underneath her heel because it will never get old for me
trust i could write a whole essay on the complexities and nuances of dynamics and the strained relationship between so many of the characters 🙏
Tiff (especially in Bride) really encapsulates a lot of what I love about the series,I just adore how she’s written
Omg and don’t get me started on Brad Dourif. He plays Chucky so well and his character both as the human Charles lee ray and in doll form as Chucky is so amusing
More on the actual franchise,i have so much to say about the tv show but i still havent finished it yet (on season 2)
Mini ramble abt Nica and Tiff,their dynamic in the show and plot wise has always interested me
The strained dynamic between Nica and Charles/Chucky in Curse ultimately culminating in Nica being possessed by Chucky in Cult,the on and off relation between Chucky and Tiff,and the absolute infatuation between Nica and Tiffs (or well at least Tiff’s infatuation with Nica)carries so much of the character driven plot in a way i wouldn't have expected initially,in something i thought was going to be a silly slasher series
Wooooo okay mini mini rant on the tv series because its so good even though i havent finished it yet
As mentioned prior i adore how the franchise handles introducing new characters to the ever growing plot and lore or the series,one amazing example of this is how they bring a new generation of protagonists into the show while not throwing aside Andy Barclay's character
Jake serves as a great stand in for Don Mancini himself (admitted as much in interview) and the striking conflict that he has with his sexuality mirrors Don's own personal experiences with his own life.While Jakes sexuality is a part of his character it isnt the only thing about him (which i adore,i dont like when a characters whole personality is just being queer) but his sexuality creates great context and depth to his character and his struggles
anyways the way that the characters keep on evolving as the series progresses is highlighted in Nica and Tiff's relationship compared to them at the end of cult to them in the ending of season 1
Oml and not even mentioning the sapphic twist on the traditional killer couple,the interactions between Chucknica (Chucky possessed Nica) + Tiff and Tiff + normal Nica make for some of my personal favorite scenes in the series,having the characters written and interacting in such a way allows for so much more comedic and sometimes downright suspenseful scenes !!
i.e. the scene when Nica overcomes the possession for a bit,gaining control of her body,but she's still in a room with Tiff,Chucky's girlfriend,being forced to play cards with her to make sure Tiff doesn't notice its Nica in control
Tiff’s giddy psychotic personality really creates the sense that Nica is in genuine danger when around her,like when she giggles about her murders with a smile while nica has to act like she's still possessed by chucky WHILE playing cards with her.
The scene comes to a somewhat sudden shift in conversation when Tiff reveals that she's known Nica was there since she first regained control of her body.She knew it was her since she stabbed Nica in the thigh and Nica didn't feel a thing (paralysed by the waist down) then comes the shocking notion announced to Nica from tiff,being that Tiff actually likes her more that she likes Chucky.All of Nica's cunning acting,trying to seem like Chucky in front of Tiff was for nothing because Tiff was just playing with her all along
the dynamic between the 3 is so interesting to analyze and it gets even stranger in the 2nd season
Since Tiff is still a psycho and a killer at heart,she can't handle the idea of letting Nica go,but, since Chucky's soul is still in Nica's body Tiff had to find a way to "disarm" Chucky
The most heart wrenching scenes in the tv show,to me at least,is the one at the ending of season 1.It reveals that Tiff drugged Nica and cut off her limbs,making it so that Chucky cant harm Tiff in Nica's body
Nica is one of my favorite characters and to see her headstrong resolve shatter when she realized what had happen to her is so unnerving
Her character doesn't disappear from the show though,she's kept alive in Tiffany's house,captive
the beggining of season 2 reveals that tiff had been keeping Nica and taking care of her for the better part of a year
Nica still keeping with her character of sarcastically witty even in the face of insanity,she suprisingly still has the energy to keep her bitterness towards Tiff despite the horrid things she'd been put through
Thankfully Nica gets back on her feet (pun intended) when Tiff's kid,Glen (in human form since should transfer to human body + Glenda's there too) breaks Nica out of Tiffs house and gives her her wheel chair back with the addition of prosthetic arms to help her use her wheelchair
Tired of seeing ppl say c!Techno doesn’t care about anyone other than himself (or c!Phil, for that matter) when he has shown time and time again he cares for c!Niki and c!Ranboo. He was genuinely upset when c!Ranboo was killed, sought out answers for it, refused to leave with c!Dream because he wasn’t gonna leave without c!Ranboo, literally has a plan to get revenge on c!Sam. He has always been kind to c!Niki and has shown concern for her several times. He has genuinely cared about and fought for c!Tommy before they fell out. c!Techno may not be the most empathetic character, and he may not show how much he cares for his friends often, but he clearly cares deeply.
