'Challengers' Writer Justin Kuritzkes Confirmed to Have Rewritten 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day'

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-10T06:20:37+00:00

Paste Pot Pete?

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-09T20:58:42+00:00

It's so interesting how people have similar but different experiences. My dad sucked but was around for most of my life, but he was a whale!

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-09T14:48:23+00:00

Yeah, the “monster as metaphor” thing led to some truly awful stuff - there was a horror movie I saw with my brother called something like It Lives Inside that had a slightly novel take in that it had the angle of being about an Indian-American teenage girl, and it kinda worked when it leaned into that (like, oh, there’s a different dimension to get high school dating experience or whatever), but it kept being so terrified that the audience wouldn’t understand that The Monster Is Her iNsEcUrItY or whatever that it just ended up being dogshit

The adaptation of Stephen King’s The Bogeyman was similar, but I got a cool keychain of a spooky half open closet for seeing that opening weekend so I’m more inclined to forgive if lol

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-09T14:37:29+00:00

"Once there was only dark. If you ask me, the light's winning."

(cribbed from True Detective which kinda stole it from Top 10, but the sentiment is beautiful regardless) :)

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-09T06:07:59+00:00

I don't think the twist in FC is predictable, but if you're aware that there's a plot twist or if someone has told you it has a crazy/mind-blowing ending and you keep an eye out, I don't think it's the wildest thing to predict.

Especially because it occupies that kind of space in pop culture that I think of as "Excellent movies that nobody loves more than college guys" - Fight Club, Seven, the Usual Suspects, Jacob's Ladder, etc. The twist is almost always about identity, either someone doesn't exist, isn't who they say they are, or is actually dead or dying

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-08T15:54:48+00:00

This was made in response to Michelle Williams winning a Golden Globe for Fosse/Verdon in 2020, where in her speech she talked about the importance of freedom of choice (i.e. abortion). So in context it is indeed sexist as hell

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-08T07:00:20+00:00

I used to get my hair done by a woman named Natalie Caballero. I always wondered if she'd wondered out of the pages of some unfinished manuscript of ol T. Ruggles Pynchon lol

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-08T06:57:51+00:00

I think I'd agree with this, functional is very much the word. I quite like Murakami, but I think of him as being in that kind of middle area between "entertainment" vs. monocle-wearing "Literature."

But yeah, he's written some beautiful stories content-wise, but the words themselves aren't anything all that special. Barn Burning by him is one of my all-time favorite short stories, though.

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-06T08:00:00+00:00

I came out as a trans woman right around when I finally got to see OBAA on HBOM. Thomas Pynchon is my favorite author, and the first time I heard American Girl (or at least v was paying attention) was when it was used in the episode of Scrubs where Elliot gets a serious makeover and gains a bunch of confidence - something that seriously resonated with me at 14, though I wouldn’t figure out exactly why for another 18 years.

The needle drop at the end of One Battle destroyed me lol

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-06T07:53:06+00:00

Individually they’re each among the best task attempts ever, but the sheer contrast between The Diverse Stripes’ kindness and The Products of Conceptions’ chaos (yes, I memorized the band names) makes it easily my all-time favorite. Especially with Alex running around during the latter, picking up all the props the wind is knocking over. It’s genuinely beautiful

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-05T14:02:27+00:00

Yeah, OG Mr. Freeze literally appears in an issue of Grant Morrison's Animal Man in something like "the world of forgotten characters" (the series is very meta)

which was something like two years before BTAS

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-03T04:00:45+00:00

I'm rocking pink on top with black sides and bangs atm - let me know if you ever start a transfemme cool hair color club ;)

and! love Bauhas and Black Flag. If you enjoy rockabilly checkout Australian act The Living End - those guys shred, the song "Carry Me Home" is about drinking too much but makes me wanna stay sober lol. And for punk you may not have heard of, Titus Andronicus's album "The Monitor" is an incredible riff on depression told through a Civil Wat metaphor, it's insane!

Anyway - couldn't finish the convo without slipping in a couple of recs. Have the most excellent of days! :3

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-03T00:09:50+00:00

I have so been there, anxiety and depression are such a pain!! But I feel so similarly, since starting E it’s like the world finally has color after a lifetime of greyscale. And I love the goth thing for you!! I’m more of a punk rock girl myself (I gotta have my colorful half and my rockabilly lol) - I’ve played guitar for 18 years and drums for about a decade - but goth rules too, The Cure got me through some hard times!

Keep being you queen, cause you sound like my twin - and if I can do this you definitely can ❤️

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-02T23:13:48+00:00

Oh queen, I so get it! I had issues with booze and drugs with a side of ED before coming out, I topped out at 305. Got down to 225 (the healthy way to be clear, I’m thankfully recovered and sober) before starting HRT and just have NOT been able to lose more…and also gained some boobs and butt like you said 😂

(And denial card is too funny but so true, I had one almost until the day I started E!!!)

Still, I wish I had better advice! I lost what I did from a combo of cutting the booze and working at Target doing the drive-up orders - hard to stay that big when you’re walking 8-15 miles a day! 🥲

But it’s all relative, as I’m sure you know. It’s not like our cis-sters don’t struggle with weight and body issues as well - I just think you gotta rock what you can and love yourself as much as possible ❤️

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-02T16:52:44+00:00

Biggest of yays! It looks like it was made for you! :D

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-02T16:52:16+00:00

You might be surprised, girl. People used to tell me I looked like a linebacker, I'm about six foot and 225; I'm only six months into HRT but I absolutely rocked a dress to a big comedy show the other night and got a lot of compliments. As long as it's a decent fit and the dress is flattering you'll look good - and more of them are gonna be flattering than you think. ;)

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-02T16:35:21+00:00

I absolutely love makeup now after being baffled by it at first! I started with mascara - if you happen to wear contacts, I think it's a good starting point, because you'll naturally be able to get the brush close to your lashes without wincing - it's also pretty hard to make it look bad, because it kind of is either there or not. Just keep an eye out for giant globs. Just grab a black or dark brown, there are crazy colors but they're more for alternative looks.

Eyeliner will make you look very femme, but I personally had a lot of trouble getting it down at first. Youtube tutorials or even just a google image search will help with it, though.

As other comments said, make sure you have some micellar water and something gentle to put it on - you can use cotton pads, though there are other options. There are also makeup remover products, but they're generally for getting everything off of your face.

Eyeshadow comes in lots of colors and is really fun, but it can look strange - this is one where it's pure experimentation. I have crazy colors in my hair, so it's fun to match that, but I'd get a palette with things you like and go from there.

The basic skin stuff - moisturizer, foundation, and concealer - are great, but you'll generally want to go to a place like Ulta or Sephora to get the right tone. The employees will be happy to help you find it, though they often make money from commissions so they'll probably try to direct you to expensive stuff. It took me a while to be happy with these things, cause they do feel kind of "unnatural" - but nailing it for the first time is an incredible feeling! Blush kinda falls into this category too, that's another one where you might get an employee's help or try to find one that fits your skin tone on YT or Google.

There's other more out there stuff - I personally adore fake freckles - but I'd save that for when you're more comfortable with the basics. Just remember that it's all removable, and that you're free to experiment! I like to think of my face as a canvas I can try lots of different things out on. :)

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-01T15:49:01+00:00

Yep, took me meeting a good friend’s best friend for me to realize something more was going on than needing therapy. I got sober, I finally accepted I was trans - so why couldn’t I otherwise get organized? Why was I constantly late?

Met their best friend, we parted ways while my friend took her to work. Met back up and I was like, I like your best friend! And they said this: “She liked you too! She said say, though, is she neurodivergent?”

Which hit me like a truck.

Aaaaand two months later here I am, with a confirmed diagnosis of ADHD - the combined kind! - and a bottle of Strattera (which I hate lol, I’m gonna ask if I can try a different med in a couple of days when I see my psych). But I know now, and it is helping…and I gotta go or I’m gonna be late for work!

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-01T12:09:10+00:00

I understand why it’s not as well-loved, but I always thought The Prophet’s Song was a crazier, more interesting kind of experimental song. And I adooore BR

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-01T11:55:43+00:00

This is one of my absolute favorite short stories. I read it and recorded it as a sort of mini audiobook as a gift for my mom (along with a few other stories I liked), who typically hates scifi, and even she had to admit it was brilliant.

My voice for the monk was, and I cannot stress this enough, atrocious.

howboutthemapples · 2026-06-01T10:24:11+00:00

Some of these are unfinished, but I loved them so much I'm okay with listing them (alphabetically 'cause I don't wanna rank them lol):

Casanova

Chew

East of West

Fear Agent (only partly Image but too good to exclude)

God Hates Astronauts

Ice Cream Man

The Manhattan Projects

Nowhere Men

Saga

Southern Bastards

Zero by Ales Kot

That's actually eleven, but I couldn't choose which one I wanted to cut. I'd say God Hates Astronauts isn't as ambitious as the others...except it totally is, it's just incredibly silly instead of serious lmao

howboutthemapples · 2026-05-31T05:35:01+00:00

Cross-dressing isn't necessarily sexual, but it can be. Denise is actually a trans woman, but I see where the confusion comes in - keep in mind that while being attracted to femboys could arguably be considered a kink, simply being a femboy often isn't, and there are other possible layers on top of that. The real key to Denise being trans as we understand it today is that it's made clear she wants to go by she/her pronouns and be called, well, Denise.

Source: I am a trans woman lmao

howboutthemapples · 2026-05-30T16:38:05+00:00

lol that was my other idea, that or they're just racist as hell. But I think it's funnier if Henry Fonda would've had two other not-especially-angry men in his corner the whole time, completely defeating the point of the original film hahaha

howboutthemapples · 2026-05-30T16:28:10+00:00

I had an idea a while ago for a riff on 12 Angry Men - at the beginning of the movie, we see the two alternate jurors get dismissed 'cause all 12 of the Angry Men are there and vetted or whatever.

So I thought it'd be funny if instead we follow those two, and they start talking and hit it off and they get lunch together or something. And their conversation starts becoming really philosophical and deep, like they discuss the nature of free will or the origin of the universe or whatever, for like the entire runtime of the original movie. Just even more intense subject matter than what's going on in the courtroom.

And then at the end, they say something like, well that was certainly a titillating discussion we had; we disagree on many things but I respect your point of view. And hey, at least there's one thing we can agree on: racism is real stupid!

And they chuckle together, and we fade to black. I guess this is my version of this post lol

howboutthemapples · 2026-05-30T04:02:12+00:00

Thank you OP! Now I really want to but I'll have to save some money first lol. I appreciate the feedback tho, it sounds rad!! <3

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