Shipping and OTPs

October 7, 2014November 4, 2014 / fiona / Leave a comment

Before we get started on the actual post, I’d like to let you know that I’ve written a co-review of “Kill the Moon” (S08, E07 of Doctor Who) with nevillegirl at Musings from Neville’s Navel. You can find the post here.

For those of you who aren’t neck deep in nerd culture and fandoms, I’m going to define what these mysterious “ships” and “OTPs” are (No, it has nothing to do with FedEx).

Shipping (Ship is short for relationship, I think?) generally means that you think two characters would make/ are a cute couple. Sometimes people also ship characters as just friends- they don’t necessarily have to be in a relationship.

OTP stands for “one true pairing”. The thing is, most people have multiple OTPs. It can be taken in different ways, like you have one OTP per fandom, or even per character.

So, anyway, now that I’ve defined those critical terms and self-promoted a bit (as usual), let’s get started! I’m going to be listing my OTPs and my thoughts on them/ why I ship them. Hopefully, this one will have a bit more substance than my horrendous INTJ characters post.

Let the shipping begin!

Clint Barton/ Natasha Romanoff- Marvel Cinematic Universe

“Agent Barton was sent to kill me. He made a different call.” -Natasha Romanoff, The Avengers

How could anyone not ship this? I mean, they’re just so perfect for each other. You want chemistry? They’ve got chemistry. I can totally imagine them going on this super romantic dinner date and then right afterwards going out to kick some HYDRA butt or something.

Cecil/ Carlos- Welcome to Night Vale

Awww it's like Night Vale meets Disney

“Neat!” -Cecil Baldwin, WTNV Episode 16 (The Phone Call)

Why do I ship them, you ask? HAHAHA Cecil and Carlos are just… They’re just… so cuuuuute together. Also I have a weakness for ships where one or both of the people in it are super awkward and nerdy and obviously in love but have a really hard time expressing it and I just… It’s perfect. They’re perfect for each other.

Jenny/ Madame Vastra- Doctor Who

“I’m a lizard woman from the dawn of time, and this is my wife.” -Madame Vastra, The Snowmen

Jenny and Vastra are really one of the only reasons I’m still watching this Moffat stuff. I don’t have as much to say on this one, but… PERFECTION.

Sherlock Holmes/ Molly Hooper- Sherlock

“You’ve always counted.” -Sherlock Holmes, The Reichenbach Fall

As I said, awkward-nerdy-but-still-adorable ships are one of my weaknesses. I don’t really have a whole lot to say on Sherlolly either, though, aside from that it’s cute.

Billy Kaplan and Teddy Altman- The Young Avengers

“Oh, ugh. Is love really going to save us all?” -Loki, Young Avengers #13

Why, you ask? Excuse me if I laugh at you again. Billy and Teddy are the best together, there’s no denying it. They understand each other, and they’re just such a (I feel like I’m really overusing this word but) cute couple.

Gertrude Yorkes and Chase Stein- The Runaways

“I was reventilating him. Anyone who says different gets fed to my dinosaur.” -Gertrude Yorkes, Runaways #16

Throughout most of the original series, they hated each other (Well, at least, Gert hated Chase. I have no idea if Chase hated Gert or not.) and then BOOM. They were absolutely in love and it was perfect. And it wasn’t perfect, either. It was realistic. They had their ups and downs. It wasn’t all just fluffiness and rainbows, but they still stayed together, and… I think that makes it all the better.

Let me know what your ships and OTPs are in the comments!

INTJ

September 28, 2014 / fiona / 2 Comments

First off, before we get started here, I’d like to ~~shove you in the general direction of~~ gently nudge you toward the new page I created on my current WIP novel.

And now that you’ve done that (You have, right? Thanks. You’re an awesome human being. High five!), on to the actual post. Basically, I’m going to list a few characters who supposedly share my personality type and my thoughts on them and our similarities (because I like making lists).

If you want to try this, you can take the test here and find the character list here.

Brief summary of my type (INTJ): INTJs are clever, analytical, pragmatic and logical, and are not scared to tell someone (or themselves) when they’re being stupid. They emphasize efficiency, making them simultaneously loners and excellent leaders.

Batman from DC Comics
As you probably already know, I’m not a huge DC fan and I really don’t know enough about him to judge my thoughts on this one, but hey, I’m Batman!

Ebeneezer Scrooge from A Christmas Carol
Um I really don’t think so but oookay? Maybe I can see him being an INTJ, but I’m still not really very much like him.

Four (Tobias Eaton) from Divergent
I haven’t read Divergent yet but I’m going to file this away for future reference.

Some Incarnations of the Doctor from Doctor Who
That’s not very helpful. Maybe if I knew which ones it was talking about? Twelve, I suppose?

Severus Snape and Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter
NOPE. Voldemort isn’t an INTJ. I can say that for a fact. I mean, those long “I’m going to gloat and rant about you before I kill you” speech he does every time he gets his hand on Harry isn’t very “clever, pragmatic, and logical” of him, is it? Maybe I can go with Snape. But not Voldemort.

Marvin the Paranoid Android from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
AHAHAHA My life is complete. I am Marvin the Paranoid Android. I guess I can maybe see a tiny bit of a resemblance? Maybe?

Smaug from The Hobbit
Why yes I do have a nasty habit of hoarding treasure. This is turning into less of a “deep thoughts on my similarities to the characters” and more of a sarcastic commentary.

Amon from The Legend of Korra
WOAH OKAY let’s take a detour and talk about storylines that don’t live up to their potential, yes? Because Amon and the Equalists had a lot of wasted potential. When they were first introduced, I had kind of expected them to be more of a metaphor for other real life equal rights movements. But then the show kind of brushed them off as being bad guys who think that the Benders are privileged even though they aren’t. I felt like the storyline would have been a lot more interesting if it were more about Korra questioning the world as she knew it, and who was right- the Benders or the Equalists. If that makes any sense? Anyway. Back on track.

Scar from The Lion King
Why am I always the bad guy? Geez.

Loki from the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Um, yeah, I can agree with that one, actually. Even though he’s a villain.

Tiana from The Princess and the Frog
YES AN AWESOME AND AMBITIOUS DISNEY LADY! AND SHE’S NOT A VILLAIN!

Professor James Moriarty and Sherlock Holmes from Sherlock Holmes
Annnnd another villain.

Khan from Star Trek: Into Darkness
First Sherlock, and now Khan. I’m sensing a pattern here.

So basically a short list of villains, with a few heroes and more sympathetic villains scattered in between. And I must say, I like a lot of the characters on this list.

Quarterly Rewind: Spring 2014

July 1, 2014 / fiona / 2 Comments

So, hi guys! It’s me again, believe it or not. Sorry for the lack of posts lately! I’ve had a really hard time coming up with ideas for posts lately, but hopefully I’m back now. Keep an eye out for my review of Ash by Malinda Lo, as it should be coming soon!

(And yes, I’ve borrowed the Quarterly Rewind from Musings from Neville’s Navel again.) It’s a bit late, but hey, who cares?

Favorite Quote From A Book I Read This Spring

“I got to thinking that poems were like people. Some people you got right off the bat. Some people you just didn’t get- and never would.”

-Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, by Benjamin Sáenz

This Spring In One Word

Busy!

Most Popular Review This Spring

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

Top Two Books I Read This Spring

Ash, by Malinda Lo. I haven’t even finished it yet, but gosh, this book is amazing. Queer protagonists! Fairy tale style storytelling (in a YA book)! What’s not to like?
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. METAPHORS! Metaphors everywhere!

Two Things I’m Looking Forward To This Summer

Horseback riding. I’m doing a summer camp, so that’ll be fun. Even if it’ll be really hot out.
Guardians of the Galaxy comes out on August 1st! I can’t wait!

Three New Obsessions This Spring

Comic books. I still haven’t read that many, but the ones I have read, I’ve loved.
Renaissance-era stuff. My school is doing a renaissance fair next year, so I’ve been doing a lot of research.
Polyvore, a new favorite website of mine. Which is weird. I’ve never really been into fashion. Even if it’s fandom related.

Most Popular Three Blog Posts Overall This Spring

How to Read and Write Circular Gallifreyan

Elsa and Anna: Not the First

Why Gertrude Yorkes Needs a Bit More Appreciation

Three Posts I Loved On Other Blogs This Spring

Review: The House of Hades (Musings from Neville’s Navel)

Bending Over Backward (This Page Intentionally Left Blank)

Writers Should Learn Languages (YAvengers)

Three Things That Happened This Spring

I’ve branched out in my reading interests a bit. I’ve started reading a lot more historical fiction, queer fiction, and comic books lately.
I was REALLY busy in May. I had a horse show and two big school events. It was fun, though.
I volunteered to help teach a book club at school next year with a few friends!

Six Songs That I Listened To Far Too Often This Spring

Cassandra’s Waltz, from the Doctor Who soundtrack. It’s so lovely and sci-fi sounding at the same time.
New Year’s Day, by U2. I don’t know what it is about this song, but I love it.
New Soul, by Yael Naim. Which is weird. This is more my mom’s kind of music (I usually don’t listen to upbeat songs), but… I like it.
Nobody but Me, by Save Ferris.
Warg Scouts, from the An Unexpected Journey soundtrack. This one is great for writing action scenes to.
I Can See the Light from Tangled.

Thoughts on ‘Fangirling’

April 10, 2014 / fiona / 2 Comments

Fangirl

Noun; fan-girl

Informal, derogatory; An obsessive female fan

—

Some people would call me a fangirl. Most, actually. Why? I’m a girl, and I enjoy nerd culture.

But why does that make me a fangirl?

And why is okay to be a fangirl, but not a geek girl?

After all, ‘geek girls’ are being called out today, for cosplaying and wearing the costumes that the very men shaming them designed.

Yet nobody is calling out the thousands of ‘fangirls’. Why?

Because it’s okay to idolize an actor for his portrayal of a character in a movie or TV show that happens to belong to nerd culture.

But enjoying the actual comics? Or the movie, simply for its quality? Or cosplaying your favorite character?

No. That’s not okay, in today’s society

And that needs to change.

Because it’s okay to like an actor. Being a fangirl is just fine. But it’s not okay to also enjoy nerd culture for something other than certain British men.

And that’s just wrong.

Now, why do people assume that any girl who enjoys nerd culture is a fangirl?

Am I, a teenage girl, incapable of enjoying something, simply for its content?

No. I’m not.

Maybe I do on occasion think ‘Oh. He’s cute.”

But I’m not a fangirl, and I’m sure there are plenty of other people like me.

People who are sick of being stereotyped because of the things they enjoy.

What Every Fairy Tale Needs

March 9, 2014November 4, 2014 / fiona / Leave a comment

Three of the greatest villains ever created.

Three entirely different characters.

What makes them all so amazing?

So different?

So evil?

Or in some cases, so sympathetic?

Moriarty, Loki, and Sauron are three popular examples of what I like to think of as the three main villain archetypes.

First of all, we’ve got Moriarty.

Moriarty just wants to have fun.

He doesn’t have a specific goal in mind. He doesn’t want to take over the world, even though he could, in a heartbeat.

Some would call him crazy.

I suppose you could say that.

But he’s not. Not really.

He’s perfectly capable of having a nice cup of tea with his archnemesis.

Perhaps that’s what makes him so terrifying.

He’s perfectly mild, perfectly calm, perfectly reasonable.

One minute, he’s calm. Almost friendly. Greeting you like an old friend.

The next, he’s…

Well…

Next up, we’ve got Loki.

Loki is the sympathetic villain.

Sometimes, he’s even a hero.

How does that work? How can he be villain one moment, hero the next?

Well, unlike Moriarty, he’s got motivation.

He isn’t just doing this for fun.

He wants the approval of his father.

He’s been hurt. Ignored because of his Frost Giant lineage.

But he doesn’t go about it the right way. He makes a bad choice, the same as we all do.

Perhaps that’s what makes this archetype so powerful.

None of these villains are necessarily “evil”. They make bad choices, and suffer the consequences.

Finally, for Sauron.

Sauron is the Old Fashioned Villain.

The fairy tale villain.

He’s just plain evil. He wants to destroy Middle Earth and take it for himself.

So he creates an all powerful weapon, a tool to achieve his goals.

But the Old Fashioned Villain doesn’t function very well on his (or her) own, except in fairy tales and bedtime stories.

That’s what makes the Ring so important.

An Old Fashioned Villain doesn’t provide the depth that every good story needs.

The Ring gives Sauron the motivation he needs; it provides an extra layer to to book that Sauron himself cannot provide.

Lists

August 1, 2013 / fiona / Leave a comment

I’ve realized that my posts on here leave much to be desired. I created this blog intending it to be a place for me to share my thoughts, but I’ve realized that, when I post on here, it tends to be just a collection of Doctor Who/ Sherlock/ Harry Potter pics. Therefore, I’ve decided to make 3 changes to this blog, starting today.
1. I’ll try to post at least once a week (Note the word try. I’ll be homeschooled this year, so I’ll be working much harder.)
2. My posts will (almost) always have some… substance? Is that the word for it? I won’t just be posting random pics anymore.
3. I’ll post for a wider audience. It won’t all be Doctor Who/ Sherlock/ Harry Potter themed (Although you can expect quite a few of Doctor Who/ Sherlock/ Harry Potter themed posts, still)
Now, for today’s post. 🙂 I got this from Musing From Neville’s Navel, and although I hope to do some better posts later on, here it is.

Top 5 Favorite Animated Movies