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I flipped my shit a little when I saw this at fandomsecrets cause as embarrassing as it is, I was thinking about submitting a way-too-similar secret about how I've been projecting fictional characters onto my doctors to get through waiting room anxiety for a long time. Except it would be DeForest Kelley's McCoy, and up until I got into Star Trek it was (even more silly) an original character of mine who happens to be a doctor.
But seriously, I don't get it when Trek fans joke about Bones having a terrible bedside manner. I would've killed to have a doctor like him for the first half of my life, twenty-first century medicine included.

This must be the first time I've felt like I had enough weird opinions to do the ( UNPOPULAR FANDOM OPINION MEME... )

"Twilight will mesmerize its target audience, 16-year-old girls and their grandmothers. Their mothers know all too much about boys like this."

Even if I had any reason to get defensive about the movie, Roger Ebert's review still would have cracked me up. Read it. (But it has some tiny spoilers for non-canon things that happen if you're concerned about that.) He's not scathingly negative about it. It's just that he picks up on everything that is wrong with Twilight -- which it seems the movie might only have exacerbated -- probably only halfway through it.

He makes an interesting footnote recommending Let the Right One In, which by the way, if you don't know about it, is a currently limited Swedish release about a young vampire, and looks AMAZING.

Even though I initially planned on buying Breaking Dawn the night it came out and rapidly getting through it to beat out any possibility of getting spoiled, I have yet to read a page. It took me a long time to actually compare the dates and realize that going to Lollapalooza meant I would miss the release party (kind of a bummer but really not a big deal), and for some reason after I got back from Chicago I just wasn't in any rush to start reading it.

Thing is, I have a fic to finish. It's not exactly a post-Eclipse fic, it's actually an AU that takes a turn somewhere in the timeline before the end of the school year, so it's not like canon is going to intrude on my idea. I just have to be cautious about staying in the right state of mind, I guess. The fanfic, while it's not some contrived punishment on the characters for what I think Meyer did wrong or whatever, is still an extension of my Jacob/Bella, human/vampire attitudes and so is unavoidably inspired by a lot of anger caused me by the series (if only on a sort of subconsious level. . .maybe I shouldn't openly admit any of this). So with this in mind, I could kind of lose my momentum whether the fourth book makes me completely forgive Stephenie Meyer or makes me angry for entirely different and potentially distracting reasons. So, I've concluded that before I read Breaking Dawn, it needs to be finished.

For stupid reasons, I was unable to go on a trip with my family today, and I'm home by myself. I considered devoting the whole day to writing since I've been pretty lazy recently, but in the end I'm a little too bitter about the way things turned out and just feel like treating myself to junk food and some time with my few friends who are actually in town. I believe that it is possible for me to crank out a fic before my classes start, but I'm not going to set any big goals because I don't want to feel like a loser if I don't meet them. Fear of failure FTW!

Judging from a certain recent evening I came slogging home from a seven-hour work shift to predictably find Sara watching Doctor Who and immediately yelled, "I hate this show! I've been wanting to watch it all day!", my usual new fandom nag that is my sister didn't have to try very hard to get me to watch it. My love/hate relationship with the Who is only emphasized by something which may be a reason for which I have on some subconscious level previously told myself I would probably never watch the new series: Simply by being immersed in the internet I'd managed to figure out I'd probably ship the hell out of Doctor/Rose and, having a general idea of how all the fangirls were devastated by the season two finale, maybe felt a little bit like getting into this show would be downright sadistic of me. All I can say is thank god for David Tennant and the fact that the show doesn't take itself too seriously, because this character has some hella-angst baggage going on and somehow every episode still manages to be a little silly and make you laugh your ass off without ignoring all the past tragedies its main character has to constantly reckon with.

One interesting thing that Sara said to me when I started watching this show is that the Doctor and Rose have the potential to make me question everything I've ever held against Stephenie Meyer over Edward and Bella. I swear I could write a whole meta post comparing the two, because I've actually put a ridiculous amount of thought into how the situations are slightly but significantly different. And maybe I will.

Seeing as I'm only at the beginning of season three, I'm in a kind of pseudo-spoiler-lockdown concerning Doctor Who. There aren't exactly an assload of big reveals you wouldn't want spoiled in this kind of show, but since I went in knowing most of the major stuff that would transpire in the first couple seasons it would be nice to be surprised by something. And some of the stuff I don't know about yet probably seems like ancient history to those who've kept up with torrents (or, um, are British) so it's not like people are being sensitive to spoiling others, and they just finished S4 so the fandom is pretty bubbly right now. So I'm just being. . .eh. . .cautious. Not very active on LJ at the moment for various reasons, anyway.

Will possibly post more detailed reactions to specific episodes later. I don't even know how many Whovians are watching my journal, probably not many.

ETA Twilight Friday Five:

1) Pick four characters or more (spontaneously!) then read on. Now, what are their favorite holidays?
Rosalie: Christmas
Sam: summer (there are no good summer holidays)
Aro: Sweetest Day
Jessica: her birthday
2) Twilight: The Musical just hit the stage. What are some of the songs (can be real songs in a fanmix style or fictional songs with fun titles)?
"All Day and All of the Night" by the Kinks
"I Am A Vampire" by VAST
And of course the Quileute pack would put on a nice number of "Mambo" from West Side Story. Wut.
3) If Twilight invaded your favorite TV show, who would become friends/love interests with who?
Okay, Battlestar Galactica. Bill and Charlie could probably shoot the shit for hours if they got drunk enough. Edward would be so grimly fascinated by Gaius's brain that he'd be entertained playing cards with him, while Alice, discovering that cylons are annoyingly immune to her powers, goes crying to the hybrid. Rosalie and Anders would dislike each other at first but get along quite well after a while. Emily would strike up a conversation with Lee, who would be standing awkwardly in the corner with Mike Newton while Starbuck parties with Emmett.
4) Emily Young or Leah Clearwater? Leah's a total bitch, but a little more interesting
5) If you could hand pick a director, musical artist to write some songs for the soundtrack/play them, or any specific behind the scenes person, who would it be and why?
Well, there's gotta be some Primus playing in Jacob's garage. But if the movies were going to be good and I could hand-pick someone to do the actual score. . . a Clint Mansell/Angelo Badalamenti collaboration.
--

I was finally persuaded to see IronMan when the BFF was the fifth or sixth person to tell me I would definitely not be bored. I liked it a lot. Gwyneth Paltrow's character was particularly adorable.

So. I was trying to think of all the big summer movies that are coming out this year and could only think of a sad few that I'm actually intending to see. Speed Racer looks ridiculously pointless; Narnia can kiss my ass. I consulted lastshowing.net's guide to this year's summer movies and officially want to see. . .seven of them.


Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. trailer. (May 22)
Yes, I will admit I am crazy excited to see a movie that has the phrase "crystal skull" in the title. I'm hoping this sequel will achieve for the Indiana Jones movies what the Star Wars prequels epically failed at. For one thing, Steven Spielberg hasn't turned into a total asshat, and most things that Cate Blanchett so much as spits on come out gold.

Kung Fu Panda. trailer. (June 6)
Animated features have become kind of hit-or-miss lately, as has Jack Black, I'm sad to say. But this looks so adorable I don't think I can say no to it. The characters look nicely designed.

The Happening. trailer. (June 13)
This looks. . .ambiguous. The trailer isn't giving away a whole lot, but the story seems to have vague similarities to a short I wrote for creative writing freshman year (teehee). I will always give Shyamalan movies a chance, and at this point I kinda doubt he's going to pull a twist if he doesn't want to eternally be the butt of many jokes.

The Incredible Hulk. trailer. (June 13)
I wouldn't be surprised if this is as bad as the first one, but I'll definitely see it anyway just because I think Edward Norton is so perfect for this role. I'm gonna have to get used to how flippin ugly the actual Hulk is in this version. Damn. I have mixed feelings about Liv Tyler being in this, but Tim Roth is win.

Wall-E. trailer. (June 27)
This just looks. . .magnificent, I don't know what else to say. Go Pixar.

Wanted. trailer. (June 27)
Hadn't heard of the graphic novel this is based on, but this movie seems just in time for me to realize I like Angelina Jolie. Also, James McAvoy as a common-man-come-assassin (with a destiny *yawn*) sounds kinda, you know, tasty. It just looks fun.

The Dark Knight. trailer. (July 18)
*flails all over the place* I don't think anybody expected Heath Ledger's final theatrical legacy to be in the form of anything so terrifying. I'm pretty sure this movie would've scared me right out of my toddler Batman phase if it had come out in 1990. God DAMMIT. I'm SO. EXCITED.

My vdkapenguin f-list is kicking ass pretty fast, but you guys should take a gander at my movie quotes meme.

I can generally be pretty amused rather than offended by total wank, but I hate tw_secret with kind of a passion. People don't seem to understand the point of a secrets board; most of the stuff people submit aren't even secrets, so when somebody submits something that totally disgusts you you don't know if the person knows how embarrassing or terrible it is - (hello, SECRETS?) - or if they're just trying to slam their insulting opinion into everyone's faces, just like everybody else. I don't think I'm going to watch anymore. I'm sure they'll miss me dearly, you know. LOL.

I have realized that I have a bunch of unfinished plans for fanmixes for a variety of fandoms just sitting around and feel like I don't know where to start in getting around to posting them. I'm thinking about just working my ass off to get them all done and then having some week or so in which I post one a day and it's just a mixed bag of random subjects (and free music of course).

Which book in the series is your favorite?
NEW MOON. BESIDES JUST ENJOYING THE CHARACTERS THE MOST, I THINK IT'S REALLY THE MOST WELL-WRITTEN. THERE ARE SO MANY EFFORTLESSLY BEAUTIFUL IMAGES IN IT.

How long did it take you to read the books?
2-3 WEEKS.

Who introduced you to the books?
flowrs4ophelia. QUITE INSISTENTLY.

Did you buy them, borrow them, or have them given to you as a gift?
BORROWED.

Are you most looking forward to: Breaking Dawn, Midnight Sun, or the movie?
ACTUALLY...THE MOVIE. EVEN THOUGH I'M REALLY JUST GOING TO HAVE FUN WITH IT AND PROBABLY NOT GET UPTIGHT ABOUT IT BEING DIFFERENT FROM THE BOOK.

What's your dream ending to the series?
BELLA=HUMAN

Favorites:

Who is your favorite character?
JACOB!

Who's your favorite vampire?
THIS IS SO HARD!!! I HONESTLY LOVE EMMETT AND ROSALIE AND JASPER EQUALLY.

Who is your favorite werewolf?
JACOB, OF COURSE. I ALSO LIKE SAM.

What's one of your favorite quotes from the stories?
"DID YOU KNOW YOU'RE SORT OF BEAUTIFUL?"

What was your favorite Bella and Edward moment?
I THOUGHT IT WAS PRETTY INTENSE IN TWILIGHT WHEN HE MANAGED TO SUCK THE VENOM OUT OF HER. SERIOUSLY.

What was your favorite Bella and Jacob moment?
THE ENTIRE DAY FROM WHEN HE RESCUES HER FROM DROWNING TO DROPPING HER OFF AT THE HOUSE. BEFORE...*GRUMBLES*

How about your favorite Bella and Alice moment?
I GUESS THEIR ENTIRE RESCUE OPERATION - AND GRAND THEFT AUTO, BABY!! - IN THE END OF NEW MOON.

What was your favorite adventure/battle?
DOES BELLA'S FAIL CLIFF DIVE COUNT?

Which book cover was your favorite?
NEW MOON

Are these books among your favorite books of all?
I DON'T KNOW, THERE ARE A LOT OF BOOKS. NEW MOON WILL ALWAYS HAVE A SPECIAL PLACE IN MY HEARTZ.


This or That?

Twilight or New Moon?
NM

New Moon or Eclipse?
NM

Eclipse or Twilight?
TW

Are you more excited about Breaking Dawn or Midnight Sun?
= (THIS MAY BE SURPRISING, BUT I HONESTLY THINK GETTING INTO EDWARD'S HEAD WILL PROBABLY HELP ME HANDLE B.D. A LITTLE BETTER)

Midnight Sun or the Twilight Movie?
MOOOVIE

The Twilight Movie or Breaking Dawn?
USE MATH

Who do you want to see Bella with most: Edward or Jacob?
QUIL!

Who do you like more:

Bella or Edward?
EDDIE

Bella or Jacob?
JAKEY

Bella or Alice?
=

Alice or Edward?
EDDIE

Alice or Jacob?
JAKE AGAIN

Rosalie or Alice?
ROSE

Jasper or Alice?
JASPAR

Jasper or Edward?
JASPARD

Carlisle or Esme?
CARLISLE HE DOES THINGS.

Emmett or Jasper?
EMMETT?

Emmett or Jacob?
=

Bella or Rosalie?
ROSE

Esme or Charlie?
CHARLEZ

Charlie or Carlisle?
HUMOR GETS YOU A LONG WAY, CHARLIE

Charlie or Billy?
=

Jacob or Sam?
JAAAKE JAKEY JAKE

Sam or Quil?
SAM

Quil or Embry?
EMBRY

Who's the better villain: James or Victoria?
JAMES

Werewolves or Vampires?
THEY BOTH HAVE THEIR MOMENTS, BUT I THINK WOLVES


Movie Stuff:

How did you first find out about the movie?
flowrs4ophelia TOLD ME.

Are you excited?
YEAH.

What do you think of the casting so far?
I'M VERY CONTENT; I THINK THEY'RE DOING A PRETY GOOD JOB. JUST NERVOUS ABOUT THE NATIVE AMERICAN CASTING NOW.

Are you going to go see it?
PROBABLY OPENING NIGHT.

Planning on going with anyone in particular?
flowrs4ophelia. AND I IMAGINE MY BOYFRIEND WILL WANT TO COME ALONG.

Do you think it will stay true to the book?
I ACTUALLY THINK STAYING TOO CLOSE TO THE BOOK JUST WOULDN'T MAKE FOR A VERY GOOD MOVIE. TWILIGHT IS SO HEAVY ON EXPOSITION, WHICH WORKS WITHIN THE SERIES, BUT I IMAGINE THEY'LL STRETCH OUT THE MORE ACTION-Y PARTS TO TAKE UP LIKE 50%.

Breaking Dawn Speculation:

Are you planning on buying this book as soon as it's out?
YES. I'M KINDA HOPING THERE'S A RELEASE PARTY SOMEWHERE.

Do you think Bella will be turned into a vampire finally?
I THINK PROBABLY NOT (CAN YOU SAY 'POOR CHARACTER GROWTH?'). I HAVEN'T RULED IT OUT THOUGH.

Do you think she and Edward will get married?
PROBABLY

Do you think Jacob might imprint in this book?
IT SEEMS VERY LIKELY THAT IT WILL HAPPEN, AND I WILL HATE IT.

Who do you think Bella will end up with : Edward or Jacob?
ERM.

Do you think it will be a happy, sad, or shocking ending?
I'M THINKING MEYER IS GOING TO SHOCK US SOMEHOW, BUT I'M REALLY NOT SURE IF IT WILL BE HAPPY OR SAD. SOMEHOW FOLLOWING UP THE SEQUENCE OF WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON WITH EVERYTHING BEING MOSTLY OKAY WOULD SEEM IMBALANCED, THOUGH.

Who do you think will be the villain(s) of the book this time?
BELLA HAR HAR HAR

How would you feel about a possible vampire / werewolf cross?
WAT?

Will Charlie find out Edward is a vampire?
I WONDERED CIRCA-TWILIGHT IF THAT WOULD EVER HAPPEN, CAUSE I THINK IT WOULD BE EFFING HILARIOUS. I'M NOT SURE HOW LIKELY IT IS, THOUGH.

Will the vampires and werewolves continue the truce they had in Eclipse?
I LIKE THE IDEA THAT THE PACT WAS TOSSED AWAY FOR GOOD WHEN CARLISLE (AND EDWARD?) BREACHED LA PUSH TO TAKE JAKE HOME WHEN HE WAS INJURED. YES, I THINK THINGS WILL BE DIFFERENT BETWEEN DOGS AND LEECHES IN THE LAST VOLUME.

If anyone, who do you think will die in this book?
I THINK IT WOULD BE MEAN AND AMAZING IF A VAMPIRE DIED. JASPER, MAYBE. HE HAS TRAGEDY WRITTEN ALL OVER HIM.

For a twist: what would you think if Edward was somehow turned human?
COP-OUT!!!

Do you think Jacob will be over Bella by the end of the book?
NOT IF SHE CHANGES. FUNNY HOW THAT WORKS.

What do you most want to happen in Breaking Dawn?
FOR BELLA TO GET GENUINELY MAD AT EDWARD, EVEN MORE THAN DURING THE WHOLE DOG-BLOCKING FIASCO. SERIOUSLY, I WANT HER TO LOCK HER BEDROOM WINDOW, JUST ONCE.

What's your dream ending?
THE ONE THAT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! :)

(A Few Last Things:)

In which book did you like Bella's character best?
I RELATED TO HER THE MOST IN NEW MOON.

How about Edward's?
STRANGELY? NEW MOON.

Jacob's?
NM

Alice's?
NM

If it were possible...who would you most want to meet in person?
PROBABLY EMMETT, SINCE I DON'T IMAGINE HE'S VERY HARD TO GET ALONG WITH. BUT DEFINITELY JACOB TOO.

As a newcomer to the Twilight fandom who has now finished New Moon, I have been in denial, telling myself I was still pretty undecided on Edward/Bella vs. Jacob/Bella, but I was really kidding myself. I fell in love with the Jacob/Bella 'ship really fast. I thought I should introduce myself to others in the fandom with my thoughts - not so much on why the J/B relationship is more romantic or compelling or sweet than E/B, though I'm sure I could make a few points about that as well - but on how it is healthier than any possible present or future she could ever have with Edward. I hope all this babble doesn't come off as more anti-E/B than pro-J/B, but a lot of my points arguing for one required putting down the other. For that, I apologize to Switzerland.

I have only read Twilight and New Moon and ask, please, that you limit your comments to discussion that is only relevant to those books, though of course your opinion can't help but be affected by all three. Because flowrs4ophelia has spent the last couple months talking my ear off about these books, I'm likely to discuss some information that isn't revealed until the third book, but please keep in mind I haven't read it.

P.S. I fully owe it to flowrs4ophelia, by the way, for getting me into these books, so you can hold her fully responsible for any of my tomfoolery.

"When Romeo and Juliet Don't See Eye-To-Eye"

( or Most of the Reasons (so far) I Think The Vampire Girl Should Choose Jacob )