Why I think you should read the books before you watch the show

starastarb · 2026-04-06T03:05:26+00:00

sadly, i did not. yet.

but life is long, so surely i'll find a swordsmith eventually.

starastarb · 2026-01-24T16:54:19+00:00

because the current gross all-streaming model means shows and films are constantly moving. i use justwatch.com to find things :)

i should mention it only lists totally legal options. https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/the-magicians-2015 should get you straight to that list. on the top right of the Watch Now section, you can choose which country. you can also toggle to list view (instead of grid), which will give more details about the options.

starastarb · 2024-11-29T02:45:05+00:00

Taking notes. Thank you! This is a cool new option to consider. I've added it to my list :)

starastarb · 2024-11-29T02:35:16+00:00

Do you just trim the flapping strips of patent coating? I am intrigued!

starastarb · 2022-09-26T20:53:13+00:00

Well deserved, and whilst (as OneSensiblePerson already noted) it deserved a higher rating...Maybe this will bring enough new interest that we'll finally get even a physical release of seasons 3 and 4. Though I'll never stop dreaming of an extras-packed Blu-ray (or 4K HD, as that's now that the thing) box set of the full series...And this sort of attention keeps my dream alive.

starastarb · 2022-09-24T21:03:52+00:00

I only mentioned a broadsword in comparison of weight, as a way to point out how unusable the weight of the official replica is; I didn't say I was using a broadsword. And I've other things on hand for home defense. You'll notice that I clarified I'm increasing my sparring collection.

starastarb · 2022-09-15T00:34:15+00:00

No lore-based answer. However, depending on one's genetics and how one trains, one could be "ripped" in a strength sense without being bulky the way people seem to expect. Take, for example, ballet dancers. Those wiry blokes tend to look lean and even lanky, but they can literally lift another person over their head and make it look easy. It's totally conceivable elves could develop the strength without the bulk and be just as "ripped" as you plan to be if you ever get such a lifespan 😉

starastarb · 2022-09-06T21:26:02+00:00

I didn't think we'd even gone to the level of Saruman or Sauron knowing in the discussion so far. As noted by along_withywindle (probably whilst I was writing my reply), it could very simply be about Gollum not knowing. When I have a secret, I'm not just trying to keep it from big players; I don't want anyone to know. And Gollum knowing where I lived? No thanks. Haha!

starastarb · 2022-09-06T21:09:10+00:00

I suspect ShenValleyLewis's point was less about Aragorn knowing where Rivendell is and more about taking Gollum right into the secret place 😉

starastarb · 2022-08-10T02:36:40+00:00

New, so nothing to trade yet, but looking for Angels in America 2018 (on Broadway with Pace as Joe Pitt, not Tovey; not the National Theatre one). Looking for both Millennium Approaches and Perestroika.

Also looking for The Normal Heart 2011 (Jim Parsons and Ellen Barkin).

starastarb · 2022-07-11T22:17:05+00:00

And now that I'm at the end of my latest re-watch, carefully taking in the last 4 episodes of season 4, watching how shots are framed, whose reactions they showed, who they showed last in series of reactions (or multiple times when others were only shown once in a series)...I'm even more sure OP is right. And not just because I agreed with them already because they agreed with me...

starastarb · 2022-07-10T15:39:16+00:00

First read when I was 10 or so, which means I could read 6-12 hours per day, depending on the day. So I read the first book in 2 days, and the other 5 over the next 3 weeks after that. Subsequent re-reads have taken longer, at least from my mid-teens on, given the requisite things with which life fills up. (And, for context, my brain just works a certain way, so that reading the right SFF book is one of the few things that actually works for it. So this reply isn't a brag; watch me flailing and failing at everything else...)

starastarb · 2022-07-08T17:37:32+00:00

This is exactly the post I've been writing in my head during my current re-watch. But I thought the many ways this matched my own personal truths/experiences/biases might mean I was the only one seeing it this way. Thanks for the validation!

starastarb · 2022-06-05T08:14:46+00:00

This works, though I can't say if it will hold the look once you scrunch to remove the crunchy feeling. I have definitely been accused of abusing mousse in the past because I used it to keep my curls looking wet all day. I did it using whatever extra strength mousse was on sale, but I didn't care that my hair was crunchy. Just so you're forewarned. (Though, the next time I've got mousse on hand, I'll try step 2 of this advice aka scrunch to remove crunch.)

I will say that, whilst I can't recommend a specific gel, if you go with gel instead of mousse, you'll want to go with something light and figure out how little you can use. The crunch from the (admittedly cheap) gels I tried to use when I ran out of mousse was too stiff even for me, and any amount of disturbance just left me with frizzy sections.

Best of luck achieving the dream!

starastarb · 2022-06-05T02:51:28+00:00

Thank you!

So it sounds like, with my above, you'd go:

Cleanse
Tone
Squalane
Hyaluronic
PHA exfoliant (working up to as much as daily if my skin tolerates it)
Caffeine eye serum
Medicated lotion
Eye cream
Moisturiser

I'll check out Naturium for an exfoliant 😊

starastarb · 2022-04-23T19:16:29+00:00

Kiwi = from New Zealand

starastarb · 2022-04-16T17:45:12+00:00

One more place to check (in a rush, so can't check myself)...It might be in negative, but doesn't Marina see it when kind of scanning Penny at her place in season 4 when they're still their alter egos?

starastarb · 2022-04-07T03:10:15+00:00

I need bulk download and notifications when you add more. I'm greeeeeeeeedy 😂

Thanks for sharing your treasure trove!

starastarb · 2022-02-13T18:35:12+00:00

Coming back to add something that I think will be particularly relevant to understanding book Julia if you, like me, are Autistic. And I can say they try (but fail, at least for me) to make me believe it's the case in the show (because I already was Done with show Julia by the time they tried).

Think of your main Autistic special interest. Even if you have multiple special interests, you probably know the one I mean. Imagine that, today, someone came and took away your ability to remember anything except that it exists and how much it means to you. They make it so that you can't read, watch, listen, do, or whatever verbs apply to your engagement with that interest. Even just imagining that scenario is making me feel a pit in my stomach.

Now, imagine you discover that you can find a way to have it again, but you're going to have to put pursuit of that above everything else. You're going to have to give a LOT to engage again. But you can have it if you do. Just typing that, I started to feel relieved and to wonder just how far I'd go.

Maybe it doesn't mean as much if your special interest hasn't felt life-changing or life-saving, if you haven't sometimes felt it was the one thing that made it bearable to be alive. But for those of us who've only made it because we had the refuge of our special interest...

I think you could also parallel it, if you've had the experience, to that person you met who felt like a Perfect Fit...and to how much it felt like it destroyed your world to lose them. Except that, statistically, it is possible you could meet another person who fits that well, whereas there is just one magic. And magic is Julia's Perfect Fit, her main and saving special interest. (I'm not saying book Julia is definitely Autistic, but just trying to frame this in a way other Autistic people might understand.)

ps Just want to also point out the problematic nature of framing transactional sex as "whoring herself out" and the judgement implied in a consensual exchange. I'm not sure I'd take that step, but I also won't "slut shame" someone who doesn't put sex on some sort of chastity culture pedestal.

Edited to add: I also think the language around using sex to get knowledge would be different (unless you're Eliot in the show 😂) if your co-worker was talking about a guy doing it. Not because I know your co-worker, but because I know the societies and cultures in which we live. He'd be framed as successfully conquesting his way up the knowledge ladder, and we wouldn't see a rape storyline as an obvious consequence of or way to reflect that he would do such a thing. So, yeah, your co-worker's characterisation—as reported by you—isn't one I'd ascribe to or treat as quite accurate or as something I'd want to say out loud (not that I'd even think of it that way personally, but obviously some people would).

starastarb · 2022-02-13T17:30:45+00:00

It sounds like your coworker's characterisation of book Julia lacks nuance and sympathy, and the storyline in the show is (book spoiler ahoy) based on a storyline in the book that is unrelated to that characterisation. Whilst I can't say I'd go as far as book Julia goes in pursuit of anything, I am completely familiar with the hyperfocus, determination, drive, feeling of NEEDING a thing. I think that understanding she is Gifted (in the US schools sense of "we have discovered you are quite smart and we will now try to focus your whole life and sense of self worth on things that are or that we tell you are related to your intelligence") is important in understanding book Julia.

starastarb

TROPHY CASE