Friday, 29 November 2019

29/11/19 - Favourite Character Praise Friday WITH A TWIST - Light Turner


Hello everyone! As today is the fifth instalment of Favourite Character Praise Friday since the conclusion of my hiatus, today is the first of many LEAST Favourite Character Praise Fridays. For those that are unfamiliar with me and my content, every ten weeks / five instalments of Favourite Character Praise Friday, I will diverge from my standard practice, where I pick apart my favourite characters and the ones I adore more than anything, so I can challenge myself and explore why the characters I loathe are also brilliant. You can always learn a lot from the characters you hate because they tend to be hated for a reason, and just because you don’t like them doesn’t mean that they’re not somebody else’s favourite character too. Despite finding it much harder to see the good in characters I hate, it is a lot of fun to pick a character apart.

Without further ado, let’s get on with the praise! So, who is the first character I’m analysing for Least Favourite Character Praise Friday – post-hiatus?

Light Turner from the Netflix Live-Action Adaptation of Death Note.



So, I guess it is worth mentioning the reason I dislike him as a character first of all. I will admit that my reasons in this instance are superficial: I am a huge fan of the original source material, and have been since I was fifteen years old. Death Note has been one of those series’ that I can revisit numerous times and always find something new to take out of it – and is the show I have re-watched the most, with my having watched it seven times in the seven years I’ve been a fan of it. Whoops?

In essence, the reason I don’t like Light Turner is because of how different he is from Light Yagami, the main character from the original source material. This sounds childish, but when it was announced that characters from the original: ie, Light, L, Ryuk and Misa would be making an appearance in the Netflix live action I was looking forward to seeing how they would adapt Light’s status as one of the most popular guys in school to a western audience. In short, they didn’t, instead deciding to make his intelligence part of the issue; he’s too smart for his own good. Most of my negative opinions toward Light Turner derive from the fact I was disappointed with the adaptation of the source material, hoping to see it as part of the extended franchise, as opposed to a spin-off adaptation.

However, when conducting analysis, despite how hard it was, I did do my best to look at Light Turner as a character in a film which happens to be similar to the story of Death Note. Splitting the film from the source material made it easier to see why people who watched the film actually did like Light Turner, some of my friends being some of the fans.

Learning from the Netflix Adaptation of Light Turner wasn’t as hard as I was expecting, as taking away the overarching feelings I had about him made it easier to pick him apart without comparing to Light Yagami.

The first thing that I noticed about Light Turner, which does tend to come up in comparison to Light Yagami is his supposed lack of intelligence. This was something I knew would probably come up in my analysis of the film and his character as, at a glance, he seems nowhere near as clever as- his namesake. This is due to the prolonged nature of the Death Note manga and its subsequent anime. With the anime spanning 37 episodes, there is plenty of time to establish how smart and tactical of a person he is. Light Yagami is known for his analytical prowess and is renowned for immense academic potential, coming top of his class and grade at different points of the show with reference to academic performance. In the anime its stated in the college address that he acquired a perfect score in all his entrance exams. With the Netflix film only being an hour and half long, it was much harder to put that much emphasis on his intelligence into the story. Instead of being able to outshine his classmates like Light Yagami did, Light Turner comes into his own, by monopolising his intellect by making a business out of doing at least fifteen different student’s homework for them. This likely made him a significant income. Admittedly, this is the only instance where his academic intelligence is demonstrated, and it is easily overshadowed by the subsequent gore and drama that comes into play throughout the rest of the film. However, he is not completely inept when it comes to one of the other ways that Light Yagami shone when it came to cleverness. He, like his predecessor, is quite good at manipulating other people, even when he’s in a pinch. Light Yagami is best known for using his charm, good looks and cleverness to win over admirers, primarily Misa Amane and Takada Kyomi. Once he has them at his disposal, he does not hesitate to allow these women to act as his pawns, using them to do his bidding when he is unable. This is more prevalent by how he fakes a romantic relationship with Misa for six years in order to get her to act on his behalf as Kira without suspicion. But Light Turner also anticipates to actions of Mia Sutton, the live action adapted Misa. After finding out that she put his name in the Death Note with very little information as to how he would die, he knew exactly how he could outsmart her and stay alive. Knowing exactly what she had commanded of the death note, he orchestrates a police-chase, the collapse of a ferris wheel and the pair plunging to their supposed deaths. The fact that he knew as soon as he’d seen what she’d written, that he could get her to die, and had no issue does so, was a great demonstration of his cleverness. This level of manipulation is very interesting and would very fun to implement in future works of mine. I would love to give it a go someday.

One part of Light Turner’s character, which him appear more justified was the murder of his mother and the fact that the person who killed her was acquitted. His emotional wellbeing was evidently compromised, as well as his mental capacity. Despite appearing fine, he was very clearly in distress, and once he understands what he has the power to do, he does not hesitate to be brutal in his murders. He has the man that killed his mother stab himself in the throat with steak knife. This murder, unlike the murder of Kenny, his first victim, is premeditated and done, not as a test, like the decapitation of his classmate, with intentional malice toward him. It is clear through this that he, unlike his predecessor, is not a murderer due to a god-complex, but is instead killing for the sake of power, something he felt he lost when he lost his mother. He is quick to be manipulated by Mia Sutton in this instance as he longs for companionship, something Yagami Light was not short of at any point. I feel that his circumstances make him a better character as the audience initially pities him for his circumstances.

Another interesting and likeable part of Light Turner’s character, is that he, despite being a mass murderer, had a much more complicated sense of emotional distress. When Sochiro Yagami is killed due to Light being Kira, he shows little inward upset, later even calling his late-father a fool for fighting for justice in the way he did. However, when James Turner, Light Turner’s father calls Kira out on TV, baiting him to strike him down, it is Light who refuses to allow Mia to kill him. Where Light Yagami was cold and strategic, he knew that his father’s death could incriminate him and thus attempted to avoid scenarios where he would have to kill him, but when the time came, he had no remorse for his actions leading his father to an early grave. However Light Turner breaks up with Mia for her immediately declaring she has to kill him. Her fear of the consequences of her actions leads to Light being significantly more emotional. He doesn’t want to lose his father and end up in the foster system at aged seventeen. His ability to feel this way is much easier to empathise with than the way Light Yagami felt about his family, who he all ended up regarding as disposable. I found that this makes him a much more empathetic character and I would very much love to try and write a character like that someday, as all of the murderers in my original works have been stone, cold, psychopaths.

Ultimately, I still very much prefer Light Yagami as a character but cannot fault the way that Light Turner acts considering his own circumstances, and despite my dislike of the film, his character is not inherently flawed, it is only if you go into it, as I did initially, with immense loyalty to the source material, that you will dislike him. He acts reasonably considering the scenario he is put into and thus is a good antagonistic character to be the focus of a film such as Netflix’s adaptation of Death Note.

Please, if you have opinions on Light Turner, feel free to share them with me! Don’t forget you can check out my previous Character Praise by looking through the hashtags below.

And remember!

Per Aruda Ad Astra!

Thursday, 28 November 2019

Imogen's A Theatre Nerd: Hamilton... AGAIN????


I have been immensely fortunate when it comes to exposure to musical theatre and live-stage performances. When I was younger, my aunt used to purchase tickets for myself, my younger sister and my mother to see shows on the West End, some of which, I still have the programs for now. I remember the first West End show I went to was Hairspray when I was around eleven or twelve years old. We got to stage door after the performance and the programs we bought were covered with signatures from cast members that were delighted that we had enjoyed the show. The last time I went on one of those trips was when I was sixteen. I had seen Wicked with my family and not everyone had enjoyed the performance as much as I had. But I was still much too young to go to the theatre alone. However, my love for musical theatre in particular didn’t cease.

It was only recently, in October of 2018, that I went to another West End performance, where I saw Heather’s on tour with two of my friends, just weeks after I’d managed to purchase Hamilton tickets for myself and my mother in the new year. It was then that I realised I had happened across an expensive habit. Since then, I have made four more trips to see shows in London; Hamilton (twice), Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Harry Potter and The Cursed Child and The Great Gatsby at Gatsby’s Drugstore.

I figured that, I would share some anecdotes about my experiences, because, honestly, I just love to share and remember the fun I had!


SO, Hamilton, again!


On 17th August 2019, I returned to the greatest city in the world with my mother, grandma and aunt to see Hamilton: An American Musical, again! It was my mother’s suggestion to have everyone go and see the show again, and I purchased a ticket as a birthday present from me to me!

This time, it was much more stressful. With a larger group seeing the show it was much harder to get everything to take place in a relaxed manner, just as there were more people to try and accommodate for. We met in Trafalgar Square, ten minutes later than we were meant to and then struggled to contact one another. I struggled with this as someone who would rather be thirty minutes early than five minutes late.

After meeting up we went to The National Gallery and looked at the paintings by Van Gogh and Monet to fill the four hours before we would have to be in the queue at the theatre. After wondering around we had a sit-down at the café and later made our way to Victoria on the underground during rush hour.

We went for dinner at Prezzo where I had salmon pasta with chilli and peppers. It was delicious and I’d definitely suggest it as something light for dinner, as its easy and quick to eat. Everyone else enjoyed their food too! But by the time we’d finished eating it was seven pm – which stressed me out as the doors would close in fifteen minutes.

We ended up running to the theatre and getting into the queue and admitted very quickly. I was unable to take photos outside but hoped I would get some after the show.

I was very excited to watch the show again and was hoping I would get the chance to stage door once again. My mother agreed to do it, as she knew that I had had very bad luck with stage dooring in the past, having been unable to go at Cursed Child due to train times, missing out at Hamilton because she was in pain, and being unable to meet Roy Haylock / Bianca Del Rio due to the weather. She admitted defeat as soon as I asked and I was elated!

During the intermission, I ran to purchase a programme and on my way back to my seat I was approached by a friend of mine from university. I hadn’t seen her since March and was stunned to see her in a theatre in Central London considering she didn’t live locally. Seeing her made me even happier!

One thing that was a significant issue during the second half of the show, was the heat. Sitting in the theatre during the show had made the space very warm, and my aunt and grandmother were struggling to focus on what was happening onstage because they were so uncomfortably hot. With that in mind I would suggest packing a fan and dressing lightly when going to see a show during the summer months, as you want to be as comfortable as possible.

I ended up crying for a similar length of time when compared to the previous trip, welling up at the start of Stay Alive Reprise and struggling to stop until the curtain call. However, we were quick to make our way to the stage door. Despite it being a Saturday night, only one member of the cast actually came to the stage door that evening, but it was still amazing to go!

I can’t wait for the next opportunity to see it, whenever that may be!



Tuesday, 26 November 2019

26/11/19 - Happy Tuesday! University Inspired Writing Prompt:

Today, 26/11/19, is the next instalment of University Inspired Writing Prompts. Since my first year at university, I have been compiling a collection of writing prompts inspired by my time studying in Derby. I hope that these prompts help you create your own works!

All of these prompts are dialogue based, and are inspired by real conversations I have been part of whilst at university.

PROMPT #30:

" I never thought I’d see the creation of Adam from the Sistine Chapel being drunkenly rein acted on a slide with a pair of sliders"

This prompt is based on drunken shennanigans that took place during the Easter Holidays at a friend's 25th birthday party. After a lot to drink my friends and I had retreated to a nearby park to be rid of excess energy. During that time, several people in our group climbed up on top of one of those blue and orange sheltered circular benches. My friend Maya struggled to do so, so they took off their sliders, passing them to one of the other members of the party, and had to have the shoes passed back to them in a manner which, to all of us, screamed Sistine Chapel. 


I hope that this prompt inspired something, even if it was just a smile! Feel free to check out my previous prompts by looking through the hashtags below! 

Thank you so much for reading! 

And remember! 

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

- Imogen. L. Smiley

Sunday, 24 November 2019

24/11/20 - Song Of The Week Sunday!

Hi guys! I'm back with another Song Of The Week Sunday! The purpose of this segment is to give you guys a quick glimpse into my life and the things I listen to on repeat!

The song of the week this week is Never Too Late by Three Days Grace, from their One-X album 

You can stream it on Spotify here!

https://open.spotify.com/track/5y7NRMui3GLbwj2zBaOqo1

The above song is our Song Of The Week this week as it was an anthem of a friend of mine's novel, which, many moons ago, shared its name with the song. Today, she turns 23 and I am excited to celebrate her special day with a memory like this!

Happy Birthday to Cross-Warrior!

I hope you guys have had an amazing week and continue to do so!

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

Tuesday, 19 November 2019

19/11/19 - Happy Tuesday! University Inspired Writing Prompts

Today, 19/11/19, is the next instalment of University Inspired Writing Prompts. Since my first year at university, I have been compiling a collection of writing prompts inspired by my time studying in Derby. I hope that these prompts help you create your own works!

All of these prompts are dialogue based, and are inspired by real conversations I have been part of whilst at university.

PROMPT #29:

"I thought my flatmates were having a domestic but they were just playing Mario Kart"

This was a quote from a friend's flatmate. We were at her house to celebrate her birthday for a chilled out night-in with pizza, alcohol and video games. One of her flatmates hadn't gone into the kitchen and realised that she had guests and believed that all of the incoherent shouting from the kitchen/living room was a fight between two of his housemates, who were in a relationship. Instead it was us playing video games, and once he'd laughed at himself, he produced his own controllers and set up Super Smash Bros. We played it over pizza until we nearly missed the last train home! 


I hope that this prompt inspired something, even if it was just a smile! Feel free to check out my previous prompts by looking through the hashtags below! 

Thank you so much for reading! 

And remember! 

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

- Imogen. L. Smiley

Sunday, 17 November 2019

17/11/19 - Song Of The Week Sunday!

Hi guys! I'm back with another Song Of The Week Sunday! The purpose of this segment is to give you guys a quick glimpse into my life and the things I listen to on repeat!

The song of the week this week is Sincerely Me, by the Broadway Cast of Dear Evan Hansen

You can stream it on Spotify here:

https://open.spotify.com/track/4nna9JONFIwr98bcX6tlta

This happens to be my Song Of The Week because during this week that just past, I managed to finally see Dear Evan Hansen with my friend, Emma. We had been huge fans of this show since the start of our second year of university, and spent the majority of our third year, blaring the soundtrack in the living room. The fact that we finally managed to see it on stage was worth celebrating.

I hope you guys have had an amazing week and continue to do so!

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

Friday, 15 November 2019

15/11/19 - Favourite Character Praise Friday - Captain Jack Sparrow


Hello and welcome back to Favourite Character Praise Friday! This is one of my absolute favourite posts to write and I hope you enjoy my picking apart of my favourite characters enough to stick around while I examine my next victim, I mean, character. Don’t worry, I do not rank these characters in a particular order, it just so happens that some characters are better worth sharing praise for at a different point in time to others! Remember, every fifth instalment is Least Favourite Character Praise Friday, so keep an eye out for me probing at characters I can’t stand and raving about how well they were written in order to evoke such a reaction.

So, who is the subject of my next Favourite Character Praise Friday?

Captain Jack Sparrow from the Pirates of the Caribbean Franchise!



Warning, the following will contain spoilers about the Pirates of the Caribbean Franchise

When I was a child I absolutely adored watching the first three Pirates of the Caribbean films. I always found Jack Sparrow hilarious because of his sense of humour. With the films having a target audience of kids, I'm not surprised that I found him so funny, but even into adulthood, he is very much a comforting and reliable character.

I found that his brand of humour was even more accessible as I got older, which was one of the main reasons I wanted to talk about him. As a child, it looks more like a matter of pride when he corrects people for not referring to him by his title, when they do not hesitate to refer to Captain Barbossa by his title. However, seeing it as an adult, you realise it's not about pride, it's a matter of respect. Jack is aware that he is a pirate and therefore probably shouldn't expect to be treated with politeness by those who wish to see to see him hang. But the fact they will speak of other pirates like that, would obviously be infuriating. He demands respect even when he's at his lowest, knowing that he had worked hard, despite his shortcomings to become the pirate he is. He, in a way, shows an alternative perspective in knowing your worth as a person, which I think is not a good thing to show kids, but also to show adults that may be accompanying these children. He shows you to demand decency, rise up and cause chaos when disrespected. His attitude may be extreme but it is, in a way, an admirable stance to take.

I also adored Jack Sparrow due to seeing him act impulsively and sporadically. It shows that he came into piracy at a young age and thus never really had a childhood. He takes joy out of things that ought to inspire fear, like fighting with a cutlass or the chase, but in spite of his impulses, his actions tend to be more selfless than what may be seen at a glance. When Jack visits the fountain of youth, he switches the goblet with the mermaid's tear in it, so his lost love Angelica wouldn't die to pass her years onto a man pretending to be her father, feigning care for her, and using her for her youth. Jack noticed this and saves her life, instead of drinking it himself to preserve his own life and mortality. His selfless nature shines through his arguably insane decisions.

Jack Sparrow is also very clever, a trait that tends to be understated, veiled by his humour and the volume of action in the films. Jack was the first person in Dead Men Tell No Takes to mock Hector Barbossa, telling him that he knows about who Carina Smythe actually is, and that she isn't the daughter of a noble explorer as she believes, but a pirate. He works this out relatively quickly after examining the information presented to him: they are both knowledgeable about the stars, both by trade. Her awareness that she was named after that star aids Jack in his conclusion that she is his daughter. Which is, as we later learn, correct. I feel like this aspect of his personality does need more attention by fans but the execution of hi cleverness is quite hard to do. I would love to try and do something like this in the future.

Please, if you have opinions on Captain Jack Sparrow, feel free to share them with me! Don’t forget you can check out my previous Character Praise by looking through the hashtags below.

And remember!

Per Aruda Ad Astra!

Thursday, 14 November 2019

Imogen's A Theatre Nerd: Everybody's Talking About Jamie


I have been immensely fortunate when it comes to exposure to musical theatre and live-stage performances. When I was younger, my aunt used to purchase tickets for myself, my younger sister and my mother to see shows on the West End, some of which, I still have the programs for now. I remember the first West End show I went to was Hairspray when I was around eleven or twelve years old. We got to stage door after the performance and the programs we bought were covered with signatures from cast members that were delighted that we had enjoyed the show. The last time I went on one of those trips was when I was sixteen. I had seen Wicked with my family and not everyone had enjoyed the performance as much as I had. But I was still much too young to go to the theatre alone. However, my love for musical theatre in particular didn’t cease.

It was only recently, in October of 2018, that I went to another West End performance, where I saw Heather’s on tour with two of my friends, just weeks after I’d managed to purchase Hamilton tickets for myself and my mother in the new year. It was then that I realised I had happened across an expensive habit. Since then, I have made four more trips to see shows in London; Hamilton (twice), Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Harry Potter and The Cursed Child and The Great Gatsby at Gatsby’s Drugstore.

I figured that, I would share some anecdotes about my experiences, because, honestly, I just love to share and remember the fun I had!



On 12th June 2019, I went to see Everybody’s Talking About Jamie as a belated 21st birthday present from one of my best friends, Emma. As both of us are anxious travellers, we decided that even though the show was going to start at seven, that we would meet at 1pm in Leicester Square, that way we could catch up and hang out as appropriate for the weather.

We were, however, very unlucky that it was raining and we therefore optimised on our travel-cards and retreated to the warmth of Stratford and Westfield Shopping Centre. We ended up spending an hour and a half in a coffee shop there, before heading back to Leicester Square and having an early dinner at Burger King. When we got to the theatre, we were, once again, caught in the rain and were advised to retreat into the McDonald’s down the street as it was too early for admission to the theatre.
We were lucky enough to be allowed in twenty minutes before normal admission time due to the weather. However, the weather would end up being the bane of our existence for the rest of the day.

I was immensely lucky, as a long-time-fan of RuPaul’s Drag Race, to have been gifted tickets to see Everybody’s Talking About Jamie when Bianca Del Rio was in the cast as Loco Chanel! Emma had teased me for insisting we shouldn’t go in June, and should go after the summer as the tickets could have been cheaper. However, instead we ended up getting tickets for June and seeing Bianca. Emma said that my reaction to her arrival was hilarious because I all but started screaming as soon as I heard her voice.

I tweeted about how star-struck I had been in the intermission and she liked, and retweeted my fangirl-ing onto her own account. This made me even more excited to potentially stage door at the end of the show.

After an amazing evening and an emotional performance, we went to the back of the theatre, programmes in hand, hoping to get them signed. The rain made a brief appearance and meant that some of the cast including Roy Haylock AKA Bianca Del Rio wouldn’t be able to do an appearance at the stage door as they didn’t have understudies. It was a reasonable but frustrating declaration, but still we waited, in the hopes to see some of the other cast. We were lucky enough to catch Layton Williams and bag a selfie! He even wished me a happy birthday, seeing the badge we’d bought. It was the best birthday celebration ever! I was so happy!

My advice in this instance would be to always be aware of the weather and how it may positively or negatively impact your experience at the theatre, you might not always be lucky enough to get early admission to a show because of the weather, nor might you be able to see everyone you want at the stage door.



Tuesday, 12 November 2019

12/11/19 - Happy Tuesday! University Inspired Writing Prompt:

Today, 12/11/19, is the next instalment of University Inspired Writing Prompts. Since my first year at university, I have been compiling a collection of writing prompts inspired by my time studying in Derby. I hope that these prompts help you create your own works!

All of these prompts are dialogue based, and are inspired by real conversations I have been part of whilst at university.

PROMPT #28:

" My lecturer just asked me if I was okay on the one day I didn’t come to class in red lipstick and winged eyeliner."

This was a genuine thing that happened to me, even though I cannot be certain my lack of makeup was what provoked his concern, it wouldn't have surprised me, as the general consensus, students and lecturers alike was that if I wasn't wearing my red lipstick especially, there was probably something wrong as I was constantly reapplying it. The fact that my lack of a statement red lip potentially evoked lecturer's to be concerned amused me immensely and thus I thought I would share


I hope that this prompt inspired something, even if it was just a smile! Feel free to check out my previous prompts by looking through the hashtags below! 

Thank you so much for reading! 

And remember! 

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

- Imogen. L. Smiley

Sunday, 10 November 2019

10/11/19 - Song Of The Week Sunday!


Hi guys! I'm back with another Song Of The Week Sunday! The purpose of this segment is to give you guys a quick glimpse into my life and the things I listen to on repeat!

The song of the week this week is I'm So Sick by Flyleaf, a song from their self-titled album 

You can stream it on Spotify here!

https://open.spotify.com/track/3CzOoYfw7mj5jMHGsJp9TG


This happens to be my Song Of The Week as it was a pivotal one for establishing the mood for the start of my story for NaNoWriMo, now that the initial exposition about my protagonist has ceased, I now get to start exploring her head-space and how she feels about the situation she is in, before all of the drama begins! 

I hope you guys have had an amazing week and continue to do so!

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

Tuesday, 5 November 2019

5/11/19 - Happy Tuesday! University Inspired Writing Prompt!

Today, 5/11/19, is the next instalment of University Inspired Writing Prompts. Since my first year at university, I have been compiling a collection of writing prompts inspired by my time studying in Derby. I hope that these prompts help you create your own works!

All of these prompts are dialogue based, and are inspired by real conversations I have been part of whilst at university.

PROMPT #27:

"I’m going to show up ten minutes late to graduation with a Starbucks just to keep the entire university experience on brand"

The above is a quote from one of my friends, who was usually cutting it fine when attending lectures, especially in her third year, due to a lengthy commute from the next city over. This meant that when she was late to class, she would make an appearance, coffee in hand as she had had no time to get one before setting off for class. Her plight became a joke amongst us, some even offering to purchase her drinks, to which she refused as she didn't know what time she'd arrive. 


I hope that this prompt inspired something, even if it was just a smile! Feel free to check out my previous prompts by looking through the hashtags below! 

Thank you so much for reading! 

And remember! 

Per Ardua Ad Astra!

- Imogen. L. Smiley

Sunday, 3 November 2019

3/11/19 - Song Of The Week Sunday!

Hi guys! I'm back with another Song Of The Week Sunday! The purpose of this segment is to give you guys a quick glimpse into my life and the things I listen to on repeat!

The song of the week this week is The Writer by Ellie Goulding, which can be found on her album Lights

You can stream it on Spotify here!

https://open.spotify.com/track/782PQRatayI7f2L1DdRX6d

This is the SOTW due to it being the first Sunday of NaNoWriMo 2019! I felt that it was the most apt way to celebrate the dawn of a month dedicated to trying to produce novels. Writing is something that is really important to me so I was really excited to share a song that I listen to when I want to get in a writing mood! Happy NaNoWriMo, everyone! 

I hope you guys have had an amazing week and continue to do so!

And remember:


Per Ardua Ad Astra!

Friday, 1 November 2019

1/11/19 - Favourite Character Praise Friday - Simon Spier

Hello and welcome back to Favourite Character Praise Friday! This is one of my absolute favourite posts to write and I hope you enjoy my picking apart of my favourite characters enough to stick around while I examine my next victim, I mean, character. Don’t worry, I do not rank these characters in a particular order, it just so happens that some characters are better worth sharing praise for at a different point in time to others! Remember, every fifth instalment is Least Favourite Character Praise Friday, so keep an eye out for me probing at characters I can’t stand and raving about how well they were written in order to evoke such a reaction.

So, who is the subject of my next Favourite Character Praise Friday?

Simon Spier from Simon Vs The Homo Sapien Agenda & Love, Simon



Warning: The following analysis will contain spoilers for Simon Vs The Homo Sapien Agenda and Love, Simon

When I first read Simon’s story it was 2016 and I fell in love with the way his story was so perfectly crafted to be the same as a “standard” heterosexual Young Adult Romance. I remember seeing the film in cinema with my friends, and all of us weeping in the back row at how beautiful it was.
But why is Simon one of my favourite characters?

He fit seamlessly into the Young Adult Genre. Becky Albertalli demonstrated with this novel that when writing same sex relationships between characters in this genre, you don’t need to change much about them. Had Simon been a female character, a lot of his struggles would have been nullified, but he would have been equally as likeable. Simon’s character fit so well because he was just a normal person, this is explained several times in both the film and the book, the most iconic instance being in the opening monologue where he says “my name’s Simon and I’m just like you”. He acknowledges that he is a normal guy and he and his friends do what normal teenagers do, drink too much iced coffee, watch bad ‘90s movies and hangout at Waffle House dreaming of college and gorging on carbs. Which, in my experience, is exactly what I do with my friends. I felt like the way that was written immediately establishes the type of person he is. All of the declarations are easy to access, regardless of which aspect of the list relates to you as the consumer best. I immediately felt a kinship with Simon as I related to all three things he listed. I felt like the way he was written as a character was an easy way to show other writers who are apprehensive to write LGBT characters that they don’t need to make these characters any different than you would the rest of your characters. Not every gay male fits into an archetype, the same way that no straight male does.

I also love Simon because he is so easy to access. I have already touched on this in my previous point where I explained why I felt a kinship with him, but to look at the film, in particular, you can see from the stuff on his cork-board that he has interests outside of the plot of the story. It became a game of my friends and I to look for more Easter Eggs about Simon’s character. He has a Hamilton playbill mounted on the board, and a Hufflepuff crest. I feel like the film shows a completely different dimension to his character that isn’t necessarily seen in the book, as Simon would have no need to describe the contents of his bedroom as he knows where everything is. Seeing his outside interests littered around the room make him even easier to access than the information he provides us in the opening monologue about how he’s “just like you”. I feel like the fact he is so easy to relate to in that instance makes it easier to become attached to him as the story goes on. Most teenagers can relate to the plights he is exposed to; with one friend seeming to have so much undesired romantic attention, or exposure to unrequited love, the sensation of getting to know people through a computer screen, so on and so forth. It’s not uncommon for stuff like this to take place in the lives of teenagers, especially with us being in the age of social media. I have seen, and wept over many videos of online friends meeting in person for the first time, and have met some of mine in a similar way, not that we recorded it, even though we probably should have done. Albertalli really created something clever here with so much reach to connect with so many different types of people.

The last reason I adore Simon Spier is due to the plight that he has found himself in. Being in a situation where you feel like you can tell someone absolutely everything and be so emotionally close with them, but have no idea who they are is a scenario many with online friends encounter a lot. However, his is amplified due to his knowledge that Blue, his love interest, actually goes to his High School. The prompt addition of Martin Addison’s threat to out him makes the entire story more tragic and heart-breaking. In the film, after he is outed via social media, Simon ends up confronting Martin after he attempts to apologise for his actions and tells him that “that’s supposed to be my thing”. It awareness to people that aren’t LGBT that if you’ve been trusted with that kind of information, it isn’t yours to share, even if the person who shared that information with you is out to many people, which, in Simon’s case, he was not.

I am immensely grateful that Albertalli wrote this story as it was one that I feel that many people need to see in the world! Simon is, consequently, one of my absolute favourite characters, and it was genuinely really hard to unpack why I adore him as I do.

Please, if you have opinions on Simon Spier, feel free to share them with me! Don’t forget you can check out my previous Character Praise by looking through the hashtags below.

And remember!

Per Aruda Ad Astra!

1/11/19 - Happy National Novel Writing Month!

So guys! Today's the day! November 1st! You guys know what that means, right? Today is the dawn of NaNoWriMo 2019, and I couldn't be more excited to start this journey again! This is my favourite time of the year, because everyone is just so creative and I am eager to see and support as many artists as I can.

I hope to keep my instagram updated with my NaNoWriMo 2019 journey, so if you are interested in finding out just how I'm doing with my newest project, don't hesitate to check out my account under @Imogen_L_Smiley!

I am looking forward to sharing this new story with you! Let's see where this adventure takes us!