World of imagination, magic, and excitement

LOTR/HOBBIT
Dwarven affections, or; How to avoid to get caught from one for the rest of your live - When they set their minds to it to catch you, they can be surprisingly sneaky! And what is worse, they have helping cousins, meddling friends under the royals and a mean possessive streak that makes all plans on escape pointless!

After - It's easy to be brave before. It's harder to be brave after.

To Be Kings - While in Rivendell, Thorin has an unexpected encounter with an intriguing young lad named Hope. Or, more specifically, Estel.

An Unexpected Slumber Party - The Company enjoys a carefree evening in Rivendell before facing the dangers that await them on the rest of their journey. There is music, beard-grooming, lettuce-roasting and chronicle-writing. Will even Thorin Oakenshield be able to relax and enjoy himself for a while?

The Audacity of Youth - Young Kili accidentally influences Dwarf politics in the way only a sleepy toddler can.

Safe in My Arms - Bilbo's exhaustion after being rescued by the Eagles does not go unnoticed by Thorin and Company.

How to Handle Your Warg -- A Handbook by Bilbo Baggins - Bilbo Baggins goes for a night walk, gains a rather unusual pet and brings new meaning to the words 'it followed me home, can I keep it'

Wounds of Greatness - Wiser men than Frodo Baggins and Gimli, Glóin’s son, have found that greater deeds often bring the touch of darkness too.' At dawn over Minas Tirith, Frodo and Gimli talk of shadows, heroes and greatness.

Sacrifices - Set after the Fellowship losing Gandalf in the mines of Moria. Frodo's thoughts and personal demons on display.

Bilbo Baggins: Frying Pan Wielder - Bilbo Baggins was about as fightening as a baby rabbit, that was to say: not at all. Or at least, that is what Thorin Oakenshield had thought up until that night... The dwarf had worried before over how the hobbit would fare when they reached the mountain, now he wasn't sure who he should fear more for: the burglar or the dragon.

Young Thorin - A set of one-shots about Thorin as he growns into the dwarf he is now.

FAIRY TALES
Flapper Boy - A reinterpretation of "Donkeyskin" set in 1920s Paris. In the Jazz Age and a time of liberation, how does the story change?

NORTHANGER ABBEY
Northanger Abbey: a Short Story - A short story written for my English Literature class on Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey.

HARDY BOYS/NANCY DREW
Codes and Signals - A coded phone call from Frank to Nancy leads both detectives to reevaluate their relationship.

Got the second part of the HB/ND TV series of season two from the library, and me and my brother (and mom!!!) were off again. Just a few random comments...

"Nancy Drew's Love Match" -- A bit confusing (especially when you almost didn't even see the other who-done-it), but I actually liked this one a lot. Nancy grew on me more; the wide-eyed reaction seemed to have been toned down a bit. The subplot with her pretending to be the date of one of the players even though they had never officially met was cute. The poor guy took all those slaps in stride. Wow, the new George is still not the George from the books. She did more investigating but was whiny and scared. Just wasn't George. Bender...great casting of a totally dislike able character.

"Mystery of the Silent Scream" -- Another good episode. Really liked the interaction between Joe and Frank in this one -- all of the HB episodes, really -- and how they bounced off each other. Both my brother and I thought Joe and Alicia made a cute couple. I really felt for him when she disappeared. It was amusing noting one of the buildings in the ghost town looked like it had been built after the 1920s. And it was obvious that gambler had a bad taste in wigs.

"Will the Real Santa Claus...?" -- The most bizarre episode this season so far in MHO. (A good number of the episodes' mysteries seemed to deal with the irrational, unnatural and illogical.) The real Santa... Why didn't he just fly back home instead of going through all that danger? And the other mystery, there was no way the viewer could figure that one out having never seen the culprit before Nancy's confrontation. Shock #1: Ned's recast! I had no idea who that fine-looking gentleman was until Mr. Drew identified him. And he no longer works for Mr. Drew, he's now with the NYPD. Shock #2: Ned and Nancy have never met before. ?????? Give the Nancy/Ned pairing a whole new start? What the heck? Ned's improved in looks, but personality-wise, seeming to order how the investigation should be conducted, what Nancy should think/do, etc., he doesn't cut it.

"The Lady on Thursday at Ten" -- There was a feeling of Bourne alternative in this one. Another confusing episode. Things did or did not happen... Questionable identities... It was wacky. Rocky's friend at the gym I really liked. He was a good guy. My brother and I could not believe how Rocky and Nancy were like joined at the hip, how scared she was about him. They seemingly had discussed nothing but the strange things that had happened, didn't have each other's names done, and... Just didn't get how much Nancy was taken with him.

(A side note: This episode sealed the deal for me: the filmmakers really did not understand, care, and/or respect Nancy Drew compared to the Hardy Boys episodes. While I thought the mysteries improved from season one, recasting George and Ned (and eventually Nancy) did not help matters. The personalities of the characters were nothing like in the books -- while Frank and Joe were different yet at the same time similar to themselves in the books. Nancy is almost like Joe, going crazy about the opposite sex. Very sad. The episodes and, most importantly, the characters should have been better. If only...)

"Oh Say Can You Sing" -- I confess I'm not a huge fan of Joe's singing. Though the running gag of Frank always going off to do something involving a case instead of hearing Joe sing was amusing. I never came close to solving the mystery, I could only say, "Oh." Like the previous episode, there was conflicting versions of incidents and shady characters.

"The House on Possessed Hill" -- Creepiest episode. Could have been turned into a horror film of some sort. The front interior of the house reminded me of the house in the season one episode about the UFOs. The wind never died down there. Of course neither of the boys had a flashlight on them when they investigated the house. Brilliant move.

"Sole Surviver" -- Not quite as much action=packed as the others, I really liked this one. There was more depth to Joe and Frank than usual. Very good acting by both Shuan and Parker. The "chase scene" among all those mannequins was great. The reunion between Joe, Frank, and Mr. Hardy was a bit too understated, in MO. After all they had gone through and felt, I wish the moment had been more emotional.

"Voodoo Doll" -- Janet Louise Johnson's Nancy Drew seemed way too young. I'm not really sure how I feel about her acting. Even though this was a crossover episode, she was barely in it; we hardly saw what was going on her end of things, and she never actually worked with Frank and Joe, always saying she couldn't tell them what she was doing. The chemistry between Nancy and Frank was very different from the earlier crossovers, but I still enjoyed the moments between them: their meeting in New Orleans, Nancy bailing the boys out (how sweet is that?), explaining she can't share with them to keep them (aka Frank) out of trouble, she brushing his cheek at the jail, and all the hand holding while running through the warehouse. Once again, I enjoyed how Frank and Joe bounced off each other. Joe had a good number of Joe-ish comments here, too. The end of the episode was very unsatisfying. It needed more closure.

I wonder if there ever could be a satisfying, well made, TV series of the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew...

P.S. I heart the theme music during the opening and closing credits. :D

It has been a very long time since I did one of these posts...

FANFICTION

Lost in Austen

My Way Home by wings4music
Summary: An alternate ending to the mini-series. Amanda finds a note, and is once again left surprised by the person who most surprised her during her accidental trip.

Hairspray

Got Cooties? by JealousOfTheMoon
Summary: Black, white, red, green, every color in between... Non-chronological series of short Hairspray stories, each with its own color.

Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew

Exasperating by Lady Emily
Summary: Frank is truly and thoroughly exasperated by a certain girl detective. One shot, tag for tv series episode "Mystery of the Hollywood Phantom"

Frozen News and Baby Blues by pedal
Summary: Nancy visits her friends for Christmas. Frank finds himself wondering why she's decided to come all the way to New York in person. Joe may or may not be helping things along.

Chronicles of Narnia

Shades by the shadow proves the sunshine
Summary: Eustace can turn seven different shades of red, and Jill knows every one of them.

Phyllis by Dearheart
Summary: Susan could never have guessed that the nerdy kid at the train station would someday be her husband... The story of why Susan chose an ordinary man over a dashing prince.

Fairytale Island and the Frog King by MesT
Summary: Based on the book, the Dawn Treader makes a stop at a small and magical island. Caspian falls under a spell, Lucy saves him.

Six Ways to Kill a Sue by JealousOfTheMoon
Summary: We've seen what happens when a 'Sue enters the storyline of the first book...but what about the other six? Can a Mary Sue survive those?

Once a King by Elouise82
Summary: Peter's thoughts after the White Witch's temptation. Prince Caspian movieverse.

Your Duty as King by To Tuckborough I Go
Summary: Peter and Edmund teach Caspian of a certain person whose name begins with a 'Mary' and ends with a 'Sue.' Poor Caspian how will he cope?

Jane Austen

The Parsonage Attic by 4give4get
Summary: Northanger Abbey fanfic. Ever-paranoid Catherine hears noises again--this time from the Parsonage attic.

The Etiquette of Love by Mango Schmango
Summary: Emma. Mrs. Elton observes the newly married couple and realises that social etiquette and material possessions cannot compensate for love.

Something Worth My Staying For by Juliette
Summary: Persuasion. Captain Wentworth cannot suffer in silence as he observes his beloved Anne accepting the attentions of another man at the Bath concert. But when he gets up to leave, he finds that there may be something worth staying for after all.

Disney

Where I Belong by Dreaming Wide Awake
Summary: TLM. What if Ariel and Eric hadn't met in the way they originally did in the movie/musical? What if, one day, they just happened to meet up on the surface by a twist of fate? Well, let's see what happens if perhaps maybe that was the way of things.

Alluring Aurora by Blackfire 18
Summary: [Sleeping Beauty] Rose has found love on her happy birthday, but the day does not end with cake and gifts. Maleficent has found the elusive princess at last and knows just how to lure the girl to her death. What does Rose see while under the enchantment?

Peter Pan

The Mermaid Lagoon by -HSMismyworld-
Summary: Wendy and Peter venture to the mermaid lagoon, only to find that the mermaids have alot to say to Wendy. And not many nice things.

I'm listening to Dickens' Bleak House on Playaway -- the whole book is on a compact device with buttons to play, pause, go back and forward, and control volume; just plug in headphones and I'm good -- and so far am really enjoying it. I gave up on Dickens after suffering through Great Expectations, but Bleak House is much more interesting. I've decided I'm going to try to see both BBC versions -- 1985 and 2005 -- and I have already searched for music videos on youtube.

Recently I borrowed the entire third season of The Cosby Show from my library. ...Still my favorite TV show. Mr. Cosby is the man. :D

And lastly (you all are probably bored to death with this by now) I found some (more) neat music videos...

Never Alone (Peter Pan)

Requiem for a Dream (Peter Pan)

Can't Fight This Feeling (Hardy/Drew)

First Time (Robin Hood)

Have a good weekend everyone! *hugs flist*

Title: First Impressions
Rating: G (K)
Disclaimer: The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew do not belong to me; this story gives me no profit but fun. No copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: It was all because of him that she arrived at the game Saturday night dressed like this with the invitation in her purse. But she had not expected him to have a friend at the game. A FEMALE friend…

( Read more... )

I’ve rediscovered the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. I read nearly all the books in the original series and the newer ones when I was younger; and I still have a soft spot for the Nancy Drew & Hardy Boys SuperMysteries. (Frank/Nancy all the way! Secrets of the Nile wahoo!!!) I found several good sites dedicated to these popular sleuths. Nancy and the Hardy Boys found their way to the small screen – TV – several times but were never very popular, which I find interesting. According to imdb.com, a Nancy Drew movie might be coming out next year, starring Emma Roberts as the famous detective. ( Read more... )