entirely ruined her disposition with books

So y'all know kwritten, right? One of the most delightful people ever? Well, she's been bringing an obscene amount of joy to my life recently because she's been writing the Crossover I Never Knew I Needed--in which the Infinite boys (and the miss A ladies) meet DAWN SUMMERS. Obviously this is a seriously cracky premise, but she does what I love best when it comes to cracky premises: she treats it entirely seriously. And it is beautiful and delightful and I love it. AND YOU CAN FIND IT HERE.

Now, I know that a lot of you love Dawn Summers, because I follow the very best people. But I imagine that quite a few of you will be put off by the presence of kpop idols. NEVER FEAR. You really don't have to know a thing about kpop in general or Infinite in particular to enjoy this story (the boys aren't kpop idols at all, actually, so it doesn't matter!). All you have to do is love Dawn. I'm serious. You can treat the boys like beautiful OCs and not even worry about it. Or if you want a crash course in who they are, you can go here (you do NOT have to read the whole thing, just scroll down to where I tell you about the individual boys, okay?). Let me repeat: YOU DO NOT HAVE TO LIKE KPOP TO LOVE THIS. Your love for Dawn will be enough. (And eventually there's going to be Spike and Woohyun broing it up and probably lots more interaction with Buffy and the Scoobies if I guess correctly and if Kels keeps writing for that long, SO THERE'S THAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO.)

Because the premise of this little verse is Dawn Summers Is Perpetually Surrounded By Sweet, Beautiful, Good-hearted, Dorky Boys Who Worship the Ground She Walks On. I'M SERIOUS THAT'S WHAT THE SERIES IS ABOUT. And what could possibly be more delightful than that? So consider overcoming your kpop non-feels and giving it a chance because I think you will love it.

Lauren out.

All I'm going to say about the current fandom kerfluffle is:

I find it kind of (sadly) hilarious that just a week or two ago we were having a discussion about whether or not our corner of BtVS fandom was dying out, and now we have absolute proof that we still care. A lot. A lot a lot. It's just kind of heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time that it's something this ugly (and repetative OMG IS THIS 2001? TALK ABOUT A BEADED DEAD PONY WHEN WILL THE UNFUNNY BUSINESS REPORT BE UP?) that is the catalyst. People, friends of mine, I support you in your righteous indignation, but I'm annoyed that this is happening AGAIN.

And now I'm going back to kpop land, where the shipper wars are just as intense but involve significantly less Opression Olympics.

+ Does anybody else think that the reason they kept Benedict Cumberbatch's role in the new Trek movie a secret is because they knew people would be incredibly pissed at this white guy taking Ricardo Montalban's place and they didn't want to deal with the fallout until they were able to say "Oh, it's too late, we already filmed it"? Because I hate to be that cynical about things, but I'm kind of that cynical about things. Needless to say, I'm pissed. I've been looking forward to this movie, itching for this movie since the last one came out, and now this. Also: if any character didn't need to be rebooted, it was definitely Khan. Ugh. I am distressed.

+ Well, Mark at Mark Watches pretty much had all the right reactions to Fool for Love, my favorite episode of TV ever. And I thought he was surprisingly subdued and thoughtful about it. I was pleased.

+ I have watched four episodes of Queen In-Hyun's Man AND IT IS THE MOST WONDERFUL THING. Kim Boong-Do is a wonderful little scholar-turned-resistance fighter (of sorts, it's complicated) in 1694 Joseon Korea, and through some plot machinations he ends up traveling to the future on several occasions and meeting up with this actress who is playing the queen he serves in a new drama. And what is delightful about this show, besides how brilliantly it's shot and styled (which is brilliant), is the character of Kim Boong-Do. I like Choi Hee-Jin, the heroine, quite a lot, too, but Kim Boong-Do is flawless.


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He's adorable and precious for one thing. But he's also loyal, smart, and incredibly competent. I feel like most time-travel stories really go overboard with CULTURE SHOCK, but Boong-Do's reactions are very calm. He doesn't know things, but he learns very, very quickly, and he has a good enough mind that he can put two and two together and figure things out instead of acting like an idiot. He acts exactly like a smart guy would if he was suddenly time-travelling. He even figures out that he's time travelling all by himself. I can't get over how well the show is handling him and his jumping around through the centuries. It's brilliant.

There is nothing I love more than a show that lets its characters be smart instead of forcing them to be idiots for the sake of the plot. If your plot requires your characters to be idiots IT IS NOT A GOOD PLOT.

[Also, the kid playing Han Dong-Min is insanely cute. THOSE CHEEKBONES.]

+ I feel like King 2 Hearts is becoming kind of sloppy? But I'm still invested, mostly because of Eun Shi-Kyung and his earnestness and his face. Love of mine. Between Ji-Hyuk and Shi-Kyung and now Boong-Do, I am falling in love with kdrama guys right and left.

+ NEW EPISODE OF LOVE RAIN WAITING FOR ME TONIGHT. I DIE OF LOVE.

+ I've watched the first five or so episodes of Young Justice. I like it, but I don't have loads of feels yet. Hopefully those will come.

+ It seems like Vampire Diaries' goal in life right now is to remind me of why I hate love triangles. IT IS WORKING.

+ I am having Bonnie/Jeremy feels again. I know it's insanely underdeveloped, but THEY ARE SO BEAUTIFUL TOGETHER. I'm rarely struck by how a couple looks aesthetically because I'm so busy being obsessed with their characters, but these two are so beautiful individually and when they're together they become even more beautiful and speaking of beautiful if you aren't on tumblr you missed this, which just reminded me of how aesthetically pleasing Buffy and Spike are. Seriously one of my favorite tumblr posts ever. I look at it, and I think, "This is why tumblr exists."

+ I went to see Avengers on Sunday by myself, because that's what I do when I want to see a movie and no one else will go see it with me. I think it's strange that this is considered strange, considering that you're SITTING IN THE DARK and that common courtesy demands you not talk during the show. And yet you're supposed to feel like a loser if you go by yourself? I do not. My mama said that the reason you go with people is so that you have someone to talk to about it afterwards. I said, "That's what I have the internet for." She said, "Oh, yeah. I forgot." TROLOLOLOL.

( Avengers feelings be here )

All in all, it was just a popcorn movie, but it was a good popcorn movie because it cared about its characters. And I love a good popcorn movie.

+ I am now dreading Anne Hathaway as Catwoman even more than before. DO NOT WANT.

+ Lil Sis graduated on Saturday. Which makes me feel old. Lots of family times, and though it was great seeing everybody, it was overwhelming to have everyone together in my parents' house like that--so many people in such a small space! I loved them but was glad when they were gone and I could breathe again.

+ I have discovered the best barbeque place in town. If you're ever in the area ASK ME WHAT IT IS so that I can tell you and you can get some of the best barbeque I've ever had. Everyone in the family agrees that it's so good that you don't even need sauce.

+ I just finished The Man without a Face about Vladimir Putin, and now I am depressed about the world. It was an excellently written book, fascinating and insightful, but being reminded that there are people with so little regard for human life, who will sacrifice anyone and everyone to get what they want...it just reminds me of how broken the world is.

+ I have hit the climax for my novel. And...I have no idea of how to make my hero end up in the vicinity of my villain for a show-down. It would frankly be stupid for her to go into it on purpose, because she is so outmatched, and yet I can't have the villain go to her because of reasons. I think I have written myself into a corner and am not sure what to do. This is the first time since I started the book 65K words ago that I don't have any idea of what to write next. UGH. I really don't know what to do. I didn't write yesterday and I probably won't today, and I do not like what this is doing to my momentum.

+ Does anybody else think that the reason they kept Benedict Cumberbatch's role in the new Trek movie a secret is because they knew people would be incredibly pissed at this white guy taking Ricardo Montalban's place and they didn't want to deal with the fallout until they were able to say "Oh, it's too late, we already filmed it"? Because I hate to be that cynical about things, but I'm kind of that cynical about things. Needless to say, I'm pissed. I've been looking forward to this movie, itching for this movie since the last one came out, and now this. Also: if any character didn't need to be rebooted, it was definitely Khan. Ugh. I am distressed.

+ Well, Mark at Mark Watches pretty much had all the right reactions to Fool for Love, my favorite episode of TV ever. And I thought he was surprisingly subdued and thoughtful about it. I was pleased.

+ I have watched four episodes of Queen In-Hyun's Man AND IT IS THE MOST WONDERFUL THING. Kim Boong-Do is a wonderful little scholar-turned-resistance fighter (of sorts, it's complicated) in 1694 Joseon Korea, and through some plot machinations he ends up traveling to the future on several occasions and meeting up with this actress who is playing the queen he serves in a new drama. And what is delightful about this show, besides how brilliantly it's shot and styled (which is brilliant), is the character of Kim Boong-Do. I like Choi Hee-Jin, the heroine, quite a lot, too, but Kim Boong-Do is flawless.


source

He's adorable and precious for one thing. But he's also loyal, smart, and incredibly competent. I feel like most time-travel stories really go overboard with CULTURE SHOCK, but Boong-Do's reactions are very calm. He doesn't know things, but he learns very, very quickly, and he has a good enough mind that he can put two and two together and figure things out instead of acting like an idiot. He acts exactly like a smart guy would if he was suddenly time-travelling. He even figures out that he's time travelling all by himself. I can't get over how well the show is handling him and his jumping around through the centuries. It's brilliant.

There is nothing I love more than a show that lets its characters be smart instead of forcing them to be idiots for the sake of the plot. If your plot requires your characters to be idiots IT IS NOT A GOOD PLOT.

[Also, the kid playing Han Dong-Min is insanely cute. THOSE CHEEKBONES.]

+ I feel like King 2 Hearts is becoming kind of sloppy? But I'm still invested, mostly because of Eun Shi-Kyung and his earnestness and his face. Love of mine. Between Ji-Hyuk and Shi-Kyung and now Boong-Do, I am falling in love with kdrama guys right and left.

+ NEW EPISODE OF LOVE RAIN WAITING FOR ME TONIGHT. I DIE OF LOVE.

+ I've watched the first five or so episodes of Young Justice. I like it, but I don't have loads of feels yet. Hopefully those will come.

+ It seems like Vampire Diaries' goal in life right now is to remind me of why I hate love triangles. IT IS WORKING.

+ I am having Bonnie/Jeremy feels again. I know it's insanely underdeveloped, but THEY ARE SO BEAUTIFUL TOGETHER. I'm rarely struck by how a couple looks aesthetically because I'm so busy being obsessed with their characters, but these two are so beautiful individually and when they're together they become even more beautiful and speaking of beautiful if you aren't on tumblr you missed this, which just reminded me of how aesthetically pleasing Buffy and Spike are. Seriously one of my favorite tumblr posts ever. I look at it, and I think, "This is why tumblr exists."

+ I went to see Avengers on Sunday by myself, because that's what I do when I want to see a movie and no one else will go see it with me. I think it's strange that this is considered strange, considering that you're SITTING IN THE DARK and that common courtesy demands you not talk during the show. And yet you're supposed to feel like a loser if you go by yourself? I do not. My mama said that the reason you go with people is so that you have someone to talk to about it afterwards. I said, "That's what I have the internet for." She said, "Oh, yeah. I forgot." TROLOLOLOL.

( Avengers feelings be here )

All in all, it was just a popcorn movie, but it was a good popcorn movie because it cared about its characters. And I love a good popcorn movie.

+ I am now dreading Anne Hathaway as Catwoman even more than before. DO NOT WANT.

+ Lil Sis graduated on Saturday. Which makes me feel old. Lots of family times, and though it was great seeing everybody, it was overwhelming to have everyone together in my parents' house like that--so many people in such a small space! I loved them but was glad when they were gone and I could breathe again.

+ I have discovered the best barbeque place in town. If you're ever in the area ASK ME WHAT IT IS so that I can tell you and you can get some of the best barbeque I've ever had. Everyone in the family agrees that it's so good that you don't even need sauce.

+ I just finished The Man without a Face about Vladimir Putin, and now I am depressed about the world. It was an excellently written book, fascinating and insightful, but being reminded that there are people with so little regard for human life, who will sacrifice anyone and everyone to get what they want...it just reminds me of how broken the world is.

+ I have hit the climax for my novel. And...I have no idea of how to make my hero end up in the vicinity of my villain for a show-down. It would frankly be stupid for her to go into it on purpose, because she is so outmatched, and yet I can't have the villain go to her because of reasons. I think I have written myself into a corner and am not sure what to do. This is the first time since I started the book 65K words ago that I don't have any idea of what to write next. UGH. I really don't know what to do. I didn't write yesterday and I probably won't today, and I do not like what this is doing to my momentum.

So Mark, he of the Mark Watches blog, is now watching Buffy straight through and posting his thoughts as he goes. This has stirred up a lot of feelings in the remnants of BtVS fandom, and we’ve already talked at length about the depth of his analysis (or, more accurately, the lack thereof) and whether or not we think it’s weird that he’s making money off of basically just posting his emotional responses to a show (for the record, my thoughts are: yes, it’s weird, but I’d probably do the same thing if I had the option, so I can’t really blame him). But I wanted to talk about something I’ve seen mentioned a couple of times in passing in discussions about other aspects of his analysis, because it’s been on my mind a lot.

I can’t remember which post it was (please feel free to link me to it if you remember what I’m talking about), but someone mentioned that you almost have to watch the show in its historical context the way you would read a book written three centuries ago or something like that. Because social justice-y ways of watching the shows were not at all prominent ways of approaching these texts back then (15 years ago, more or less, which: crazy).

For instance. ( Read more... )

And I am sure I’m leaving out something I meant to say, so don’t be surprised if this post is edited to add stuff in the future. My mind does not at all work in a linear fashion, so I usually end up leaving things out.

So Mark's review of Innocence is up, and he mentioned that Angel deserves to lose his soul, and everyone in the comments are like NUH-UH ANGEL WITH A SOUL IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PERSON THAN ANGEL WITHOUT A SOUL. Which, a lot of these people are watching the show with Mark, so it makes sense that they think that at this point and it's impossible to argue without spoiling them (not that I'd get into that argument anyway). But there are others who I'm pretty sure have seen the whole show(s), and I kind of want to pat them on the head for still thinking that. "That's...not how it works." /Rory-voice

Also, he made a request for Spike/Angel fic. HEE!

So Mark's review of Innocence is up, and he mentioned that Angel deserves to lose his soul, and everyone in the comments are like NUH-UH ANGEL WITH A SOUL IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PERSON THAN ANGEL WITHOUT A SOUL. Which, a lot of these people are watching the show with Mark, so it makes sense that they think that at this point and it's impossible to argue without spoiling them (not that I'd get into that argument anyway). But there are others who I'm pretty sure have seen the whole show(s), and I kind of want to pat them on the head for still thinking that. "That's...not how it works." /Rory-voice

Also, he made a request for Spike/Angel fic. HEE!